1. U.S. acceptance of coexistence as the only alternative to atomic war.

2. U.S. willingness to capitulate in preference to engaging in atomic war.

3. Develop the illusion that total disarmament of the United States would be a demonstration of moral strength.

4. Permit free trade between all nations regardless of Communist affiliation and regardless of whether or not items could be used for war.

5. Extension of long-term loans to Russia and Soviet satellites.

6. Provide American aid to all nations regardless of Communist domination.

7. Grant recognition of Red China. Admission of Red China to the U.N.

8. Set up East and West Germany as separate states in spite of Khrushchev's promise in 1955 to settle the German question by free elections under supervision of the U.N.

9. Prolong the conferences to ban atomic tests because the United States has agreed to suspend tests as long as negotiations are in progress.

10. Allow all Soviet satellites individual representation in the U.N.

11. Promote the U.N. as the only hope for mankind. If its charter is rewritten, demand that it be set up as a one-world government with its own independent armed forces. (Some Communist leaders believe the world can be taken over as easily by the U.N. as by Moscow. Sometimes these two centers compete with each other as they are now doing in the Congo.)

12. Resist any attempt to outlaw the Communist Party.

13. Do away with all loyalty oaths.

14. Continue giving Russia access to the U.S. Patent Office.

15. Capture one or both of the political parties in the United States.

16. Use technical decisions of the courts to weaken basic American institutions by claiming their activities violate civil rights.

17. Get control of the schools. Use them as transmission belts for socialism and current Communist propaganda. Soften the curriculum. Get control of teachers' associations. Put the party line in textbooks.

18. Gain control of all student newspapers.

19. Use student riots to foment public protests against programs or organizations which are under Communist attack.

20. Infiltrate the press. Get control of book-review assignments, editorial writing, policymaking positions.

21. Gain control of key positions in radio, TV, and motion pictures.

22. Continue discrediting American culture by degrading all forms of artistic expression. An American Communist cell was told to "eliminate all good sculpture from parks and buildings, substitute shapeless, awkward and meaningless forms."

23. Control art critics and directors of art museums. "Our plan is to promote ugliness, repulsive, meaningless art."

24. Eliminate all laws governing obscenity by calling them "censorship" and a violation of free speech and free press.

25. Break down cultural standards of morality by promoting pornography and obscenity in books, magazines, motion pictures, radio, and TV.

26. Present homosexuality, degeneracy and promiscuity as "normal, natural, healthy."

27. Infiltrate the churches and replace revealed religion with "social" religion. Discredit the Bible and emphasize the need for intellectual maturity which does not need a "religious crutch."

28. Eliminate prayer or any phase of religious expression in the schools on the ground that it violates the principle of "separation of church and state."

29. Discredit the American Constitution by calling it inadequate, old-fashioned, out of step with modern needs, a hindrance to cooperation between nations on a worldwide basis.

30. Discredit the American Founding Fathers. Present them as selfish aristocrats who had no concern for the "common man."

31. Belittle all forms of American culture and discourage the teaching of American history on the ground that it was only a minor part of the "big picture." Give more emphasis to Russian history since the Communists took over.

32. Support any socialist movement to give centralized control over any part of the culture--education, social agencies, welfare programs, mental health clinics, etc.

33. Eliminate all laws or procedures which interfere with the operation of the Communist apparatus.

34. Eliminate the House Committee on Un-American Activities.

35. Discredit and eventually dismantle the FBI.

36. Infiltrate and gain control of more unions.

37. Infiltrate and gain control of big business.

38. Transfer some of the powers of arrest from the police to social agencies. Treat all behavioral problems as psychiatric disorders which no one but psychiatrists can understand.

39. Dominate the psychiatric profession and use mental health laws as a means of gaining coercive control over those who oppose Communist goals.

40. Discredit the family as an institution. Encourage promiscuity and easy divorce.

41. Emphasize the need to raise children away from the negative influence of parents. Attribute prejudices, mental blocks and retarding of children to suppressive influence of parents.

42. Create the impression that violence and insurrection are legitimate aspects of the American tradition; that students and special-interest groups should rise up and use united force to solve economic, political or social problems.

43. Overthrow all colonial governments before native populations are ready for self-government.

44. Internationalize the Panama Canal.

45. Repeal the Connally reservation so the United States cannot prevent the World Court from seizing jurisdiction over nations and individuals alike.
A self-made Sydney University student has posted an enticing offer for a 'cute girl' to join him on an all-expenses-paid luxury trip across Europe.

The anonymous student took to Facebook to offer a three-week trip taking in the sights of the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben and the islands of Greece.

But the bizarre advert - directed to 'the ladies' and 'preferably a commerce gal' - was met with skepticism by potential suitors after it was posted online.

A self-made Sydney University student has posted an enticing offer for a 'cute girl' to join him on an all-expenses-paid luxury trip across Europe (stock image)

Some commenters on the Facebook thread nervously joked that they might be abducted like in the thriller movies Hostel and Taken

The user on the University of Sydney Love Letters Revived Facebook page called for a 'cute girl' to accompany him on his summer vacation.

The only requirement was that his companion had to be female and 'down for long adventures without whining'.

The trip would take in England, Ireland, France, Germany, Hungary, Greece and Turkey - with all accommodation promised to be at least four-star.

The post promised trips to France and England, with four to five-star accommodation included in the vacation (stock image)

The user promised not to kidnap his travel buddy, but potential suitors weren't convinced - fearing they could be lured into a real-life version of the thriller movie Taken

As if to reassure potential candidates his request for a travel buddy was genuine, the user also promised he wouldn't kidnap the person who took him up on the offer.

But commenters on the post weren't convinced.

One person responded: 'Anyone suddenly feel like watching Hostel or Taken?,' alluding to the thriller movies where foreign tourists are abducted in Europe.

Others were stuck in two minds, though, as to whether the risk was worth it.

One said: 'Murder/ missing person waiting to happen but I'm ready for a holiday.'

The man's request for a commerce student to accompany was also enticing to some, with one commenter encouraging her friend to take him up on it.

The post came after it was revealed on Thursday that hundreds of advertisements offering women a room in Sydney in exchange for sex were being posted on Craigslist.
Norwegian police are investigating the 'strange' disappearance of a cyber security expert who is friends with Julian Assange.

Arjen Kamphuis, 47, has been missing since August 20 when he left his hotel in the northern Norwegian town of Bodo.

He was due to fly home to Amsterdam two days later but never made his flight.

Assange's organisation WikiLeaks tweeted on Saturday about the Dutchman's disappearance, sparking numerous conspiracy theories online.

Arjen Kamphuis, 47, has been missing since August 20 when he left his hotel in the northern Norwegian town of Bodo

Assange's organisation WikiLeaks tweeted on Saturday about the disappearance, sparking numerous conspiracy theories. Pictured: A missing poster

Many speculated that his disappearance has something to do with his ties to Wikileaks, an international non-profit organisation that publishes secret information.

But others noted he was a keen hiker and said he could simply be lost in the woods.

Wikileaks said that Kamphuis had a ticket for a flight departing on August 22 from Trondheim, a city located more than 700 kilometres (435 miles) south of Bodo.

'The train between the two takes (approximately) 10 hours, suggesting he disappeared either in Bodo, Trondheim or on the train,' the organisation tweeted.

Kamphuis is best known for his book titled Information Security for Journalists, which gives writers tips on how to keep their work safe from spying.

A website set up to gather information says: 'He is 47 years old, 1.78 meters tall and has a normal posture. He was usually dressed in black and carrying his black backpack. He is an avid hiker.'

Many speculated that his disappearance has something to do with his ties to Wikileaks, an international non-profit organisation that publishes secret information. Pictured: Arjen Kamphuis

'We have started an investigation,' said police spokesman Tommy Bech, adding that so far they had no clue about the Dutchman's whereabouts.

The police 'would not speculate about what may have happened to him,' Bech said.

Assange has been holed up at Ecuador's embassy in London since 2012 when he was granted political asylum as he feared extradition to the United States to face trial over WikiLeaks' publication of secret US military documents and diplomatic cables in 2010.
Gary Gardner (pictured appearing in court today), 56 and from Leicestershire, is charged with three counts of fraud after allegedly using money he raised for charity to promote his musical interests

An HGV driver who 'wanted to become a music producer' spent thousands of pounds in charity cash meant for murdered soldier Lee Rigby's young son on a 'flop' record and 'showcasing' new musical acts, a court heard today.

Gary Gardner collected the money at a series of 'high profile' truck-pull events between 2013 and 2015.

It was supposed to go to Jack Rigby - the eight-year-old son of Fusilier Lee Rigby, who was hacked to death outside Woolwich Barracks on May 22, 2013.

But a jury was told the youngster never received a penny of the 24,000 - with Gardner instead spending it on a charity single that 'flopped'.

The money was also said to have been used on his 'enthusiasm' for emerging musical talents and travel and expenses in London.

The 56-year-old was arrested and charged with three counts of fraud. He is now standing trial for the offences at Leicester Crown Court.

Opening his case to the jury of six men and six women, prosecutor Samuel Skinner said: 'In May 2013 a British soldier named Private Lee Rigby of the Royal Fusiliers was murdered on the streets of London.

'Private Rigby had a son, named Jack, who is now about eight years old.

'This case is about the defendant, Gary Gardner, using the names of Private Rigby and his son, Jack, to raise thousands of pounds from charitable donations.

'But the defendant has never handed any of the money he raised on behalf of Jack Rigby to Jack Rigby, or his trust fund.

'The defendant kept no accurate records of exactly how much money he raised on Jack Rigby's behalf.

'In fact he used some of the money to finance production of a charity music single called Miss You Machine.

Rebecca Rigby (right) is pictured here with her son Jack at the charity truck pull organised by Gary Gardner. She told the court today that Gardner had said enough money would be raised to 'set Jack up for life' - but she claims Jack is yet to receive a penny

Gary Gardner at the 2013 truck pull in Stroud (pictured kneeling down). Jurors were told at Leicester Crown Court that money raised from the truck pull was spent on Gardner's musical interests, rather than donated to the son of Lee Rigby

Gardner is pictured here arriving at Leicester Crown Court today where he faces three counts of fraud - all of which he denies

'He used donors money to finance a charity music single without the permission of the donors because he wanted to become a music promoter.

'In any event, the defendant used some of the money for a purpose that the original donors never intended and would not have approved if they had known. It appears that the defendant has spent all the money he received.

'He has not given Jack Rigby, or his trust fund, any money. But the defendant declared publicly in late 2013 that he donated 3,000 to Jack Rigby. That public declaration was untrue.

'In summary, the evidence available will show that the defendant set out with the publicly declared aim of raising money on behalf of Jack Rigby.

'He also organised high profile events and raised considerable sums but took no official steps to regularise his fundraising activity or to keep reliable accounts.

'As well as this he was not transparent in his dealings with the money he raised.

'He also transferred some of the money from a charity bank account to his own personal bank account and spent questionable amounts of donors money on travel and expenses in London.'

Fusilier Lee Rigby was ran over and brutally hacked to death outside Woolwich Barracks on May 22, 2013 by Michael Adebolajo and Michael Adebowale

Mr Skinner also noted that analysis of bank statements revealed the defendant had raised at least 24,000.

Some of this Mr Skinner claims Gardner publicly professed to have given Jack Rigby.

He said: 'He publicly declared that he had given 3,000 of donated money to Jack Rigby or his trust fund.

'In fact he has given no money whatsoever to Jack Rigby.

'Of the thousands he has raised, police were only able to trace 4,000 making its way to any charity, but none to Jack Rigby.

'The payments the defendant did make to charity may be seen as token payments made under pressure to avoid any further investigation into the finances behind his fundraising.

'He instead used donors money to finance a charity single.

'The defendant has said the cost of running the charity events limited the amount available for donation.

'However, the defendant appears to have an enthusiasm for promoting emerging music artists and it is the showcasing of these artists to the public with himself as the manager or producer that has swallowed up most of the verifiable donations.'

The court heard that Gardner worked as an HGV driver in 2013, but by 2016 the focus of his career shifted towards promoting music artists.

Mr Skinner told jurors: 'In due course you may want to consider whose money he used to change the focus of his career.'

Mr Skinner said the 56-year-old originally came from Gloucestershire, but by early 2013 had settled in the Leicestershire village of Medbourne, near Market Harborough.

Rebecca Rigby (right) appeared in court today to give evidence to the jury. She told the court that neither she nor Jack had 'received a penny' from Gardner. She is pictured here with her son Jack at the vigil of Lee Rigby held at Bury Parish Church in 2013

Rupert Grint (right) was in attendance at a charity truck pull organised by Gardner (left) in Stroud in 2013. Gardner is said to have raised thousands from the events

Members of Lee Rigby's regiment helped pull a six ton lorry at the charity event to help raise funds for his son Jack on August 26, 2013

It was claimed that shortly after Private Rigby's murder, Gardner approached the Medbourne Village Hall Committee to gain support for a 'truck-pull' event.

This would involve teams of men and women pulling an HGV cab by a rope against the clock.

This was to be held in August 2013 for 'local causes' and on behalf of Jack, who was then two.

Mr Skinner said that at the same time, Gardner contacted representatives of drummer and machine gunner Pte Rigby's regiment, the Royal Fusiliers, asking to be put in touch with his widow, Rebecca.

He added that after Gardner explained he wanted to raise cash for Jack Rigby, the army put him in touch with Rebecca and they spoke via phone, text and email.

Gardner invited Rebecca and members of her family, including Jack, to the truck-pull.

Jurors heard Gardner subsequently published a poster advertising the event, claiming 'every penny raised goes to both local community charities and private Lee Rigby's son (Jack) trust'.

The poster added Rebecca and Jack would be in attendance.

Mr Skinner said a committee was formed to organise the truck-pull - with concerns expressed by a member early on about Gardner's 'lack of transparency regarding money'.

However, when asked how the cash would be divided up after the fundraiser, Gardner 'did not provide clear answers, and was evasive'.

According to the prosecution, Jack Rigby (pictured left) was meant to receive the money raised from charity truck-pulls organised by Gardner. He is pictured here with his mother Rebecca at the vigil of his father held at Bury Parish Church in Lancashire

Mr Skinner alleged Gardner approached a neighbour, Maurice Stanton, and asked him to be a co-signatory on an application for a charity bank account with the Nationwide bank in the name of 'Truck-Pull Challenge'.

However, Mr Stanton 'never knew how much money was raised', and 'was not involved in calculating what happened to the money'.

The court heard that on the night before the event, Gardner went to the pub rather than briefing people charged with the job of collecting the cash.

Then, on the day itself, he set up a tent in the grounds of the village hall and collected cash in a bucket with no system to record how much was received.

It was claimed that one of the villagers who helped collect donations offered to help count up the cash at the end of the day - but Gardner refused her offer and 'took the bucket of money away'.

Mr Skinner said: 'No-one, except the defendant, can have an accurate idea of how much money was raised on August 26, 2013 but it must have approached 10,000 as he later published inconsistent and unverifiable figures for the total raised.

'By all accounts the event was very successful with crowds in the hundreds turning out to watch the spectacle.

The defendant arranged for a professional stage and PA system to be supplied. He booked professional musicians to perform. He paid these people at their market rates.

'Even the Women's Institute set out their stall and donated hundreds of pounds by selling tea and cake. Rebecca Rigby and her family attended as guests of honour.'

The court heard Gardner paid just over 8,000 into the Nationwide account between the end of the event and the following November, with Mr Skinner adding: 'We do not know what proportion of the total money received by the defendant this sum represents.'

Gardner (pictured) denies the three counts of fraud he is facing at Leicester Crown Court this week. The prosecution claims he used money raised for charity on a charity single and to showcase 'new musical acts'

He said Gardner remained in touch with Rebecca Rigby over the next few weeks. In one email, he wrote he wanted to put on more events to 'raise even more money for Jack's trust fund'.

But by September 2013, villagers in Medbourne had grown suspicious with Gardner's handling of the cash.

Under pressure about how much had been raised, he organised a presentation event in Market Harborough the following November.

Mr Skinner said Gardner presented an oversized 'promotional type cheque' made out to Jack Rigby in the sum of 3,000.

However, he added: 'The defendant did not ever give Jack his money.'

The jury was told that Gardner's next idea was to make a charity single in aid of Jack, despite advice from the Military Wives' Choir that it would fail to make money.

Mr Skinner said Gardner had admitted to police he used cash received for Jack to finance the record. However, he didn't tell anyone when they donated that that was his plan, and hadn't asked for Rebecca Rigby's permission.

And shortly before the recording, he transferred 3,000 from the charity Nationwide account to his own - wiping out a 'significant' overdraft he'd run up.

The court heard the single was made in a studio and a launch event took place in Trafalgar Square in February 2014 - with retired Royal Fusiliers, some of whom had known Pte Rigby, recruited by Gardner to help take donations from the crowd.

But Mr Skinner said: 'They did so, and each handed in a collecting tin full of coins and notes to the defendant at the end of the event. They wore their beret and hackle and thought they were representing their old regiment

'We have no idea what he did with this money, or how much it came to. Jack Rigby has not seen any of it.'

Mr Skinner added the record was a 'flop' - with Gardner 'losing all the money' in producing it he had raised on behalf of Jack.

Further truck-pulls were organised in May and August 2014 to take place in Medbourne, and Stroud, Gloucs.

Mr Skinner claimed: 'These were, as before, run to raise money for Jack Rigby. As before, he kept no records had no processes for accurately recording how much money he received for Jack. He made no donations to Jack, or his trust fund, from these events.'

Jurors were told that Gardner then 'expanded his fundraising horizons', advertising he was collecting cash not only for Jack but for 'fallen Fusiliers', the British Heart Foundation, and a charity called 'Action for Children'.

However, Gardner took no steps to register with the Charity Commission or to regularise his charitable behaviour in any way - and the British Heart Foundation said it had never heard of him, despite the fact its branded collecting buckets were found in his home when it was searched by police.

The final fundraising event organised by Gardner was a truck-pull in Market Harborough in August 2015 which the court heard was again 'successful' - but once more the amount raised was 'unknown'.

Mr Skinner said a local gym owner who had helped arrange the event became suspicious over how much had been donated - and threatened to report Gardner to the police.

He was eventually arrested and admitted during an interview with officers that he had publicly said he had given money to Jack Rigby - but hadn't actually done so.

Mr Skinner told the court: 'He admitted keeping no records. He was incapable of stating how much money had been raised or where it had all gone.

'He maintained he had the intention of raising money for Jack Rigby but that circumstances had conspired against him resulting in the unsuccessful charity single.

'In subsequent interviews he gave a prepared statement denying liability and thereafter offered no comment.'

The prosecutor added: 'The connection between the defendant and Fusilier Lee Rigby is likely to raise strong feelings. But we invite you (the jury) to try this matter solely on the evidence, which circumstantial and heresay as it may be, we submit should drive you to be sure of only one conclusion.'

Pte Rigby's wife, Rebecca, 34, later gave evidence to the jury.

She told how the army put her in touch with Gardner, who said he wanted to 'arrange a truck-pull in Lee's name to raise money for Jack'.

After the event, which Rebecca described as a 'really good day', she said Gardner claimed he wanted to raise more money for Jack by organising further truck-pulls and climbing Mount Kilimanjaro.

'He said he wanted to raise thousands and thousands. He spoke about large money and it was if he was going to set Jack up for life.'

However she said neither she nor Jack had 'never received a penny' from Gardner.

Rebecca added: 'I tried to contact him and it got to the stage where there were no returned calls, no answers, no emails.

'I couldn't say how many times I tried. It was a fair few. Then I discussed my concerns with Captain Andrew Harris and Major Les Carr (of the Royal Fusiliers).

'Contact had started to go through them, then tailed off to nothing.'

Rebecca said she presumed Gardner was funding the charity single himself, and 'wouldn't have allowed it' if she had known he was using money raised from the first truck-pull for its recording.

Gardner, of Medbourne, denies three counts of fraud.

The trial, which is expected to last into next week, continues.
A 30-year-old man shot himself in the head in the backseat of a yellow cab in New York.

He got into the taxi at 2.30am on the Upper West Side and killed himself during the journey.

The passenger asked driver Manzu Mazi to take him to Columbus Avenue in Manhattan and pulled the trigger 15 blocks away from the destination.

A 30-year-old man shot himself in the head in the backseat of a yellow cab in New York

'The guy didn't say anything. All of a sudden, [the cabbie] hears a gunshot, turns around and sees the guy bleeding in the back seat,' police told the New York Post.

Mazi was left 'shaken up' and upset for the dead man's family, according to Bhairavi Desai, from the New York Taxi Workers Alliance.

When the gun went off, Mazi pulled over and immediately called 911.

The passenger, who was from the Bronx, was taken to Mount Sinai St Luke's Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Desai said the driver was 'lucky' that the passenger didn't shoot him instead, as the car wasn't fitted with bulletproof glass.

'The police told [Mazi] he was really lucky, and was given a second chance,' Desai said.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison has contrasted his life as a suburban dad with his old boss and described the leadership spill which saw him elevated to the top job a 'Muppet Show'.

Mr Morrison was named Australia's fifth prime minister in five years after a week of bitter infighting within the Liberals which saw Malcolm Turnbull overthrown.

Mr Morrison and his wife Jenny appeared on A Current Affair on Monday, where he offered the stark difference between his life and that of his predecessor.

When asked the difference between himself and Mr Turnbull, he replied: 'I'm a boy from the suburbs here in Sydney.'

'I'm a father bringing up two kids in suburban Sydney,' Mr Morrison continued. 'I've got a mortgage about the same size as most other Australians on average.'

His financial position is in stark contrast to Mr Turnbull, who has an estimated wealth of around $180 million and lives with his wife Lucy in a multimillion-dollar property in Point Piper.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison and his wife Jenny (pictured) appeared on A Current Affair on Monday, where he contrasted his lifestyle with that of his predecessor Malcolm Turnbull

After seizing the nation's top job in an extraordinary three-way leadership ballot over a week ago, Prime Minister Scott Morrison said it was the end of that type of in-fighting.

After seizing the nation's top job in an extraordinary three-way leadership ballot over a week ago, he promised stability within government and a new era of leadership.

'Parliament resembled a Muppet Show a week ago...it's a new generation of liberal leadership,' he told Nine's Tracy Grimshaw.

'I'm starting fresh, if they (leakers within parliament) are feeling wounded, if they are feeling damaged or if they're feeling hurt, you know what, get over it because we've got a country to run and that's what I've demanded of them.'

The Prime Minister will soon be fighting a new political battle in Mr Turnbull's seat of Wentworth.

Mr Turnbull officially resigned from federal parliament on Friday afternoon, leaving a ticking time bomb for Australia's new prime minister Scott Morrison that will explode when he leaves Parliament.

Mr Turnbull and Lucy are set to flee the political madness in favour of a few weeks' holiday in New York, where the pair own a two-bedroom Manhattan apartment they bought for $4.5 million in 2012.

Mr Turnbull (pictured here with wife Lucy) will choose the overseas vacation over joining the Liberal's campaign to retain his seat of Wentworth
Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez

Spain's Prime Minister today proposed a referendum in Catalonia on greater autonomy for the region but ruled out a vote on independence.

Socialist Pedro Sanchez has attempted to defuse tensions over Catalonia's independence since coming to power in June.

He told radio Cadena Ser that dialogue with the region's separatist president Quim Torra should lead to 'a vote... on the reinforcement of Catalonia's autonomy'.

'It is a referendum for autonomy, not for self-determination,' he said, without giving a timeline for the proposed vote.

But Torra, who was being interviewed at the same time by Catalan public television, said 'Catalonia's right to self-determination could not be swept under the carpet'.

'The independence process is irreversible,' he told the station.

Catalonia, which has its own distinct language, was granted autonomy under Spain's 1978 constitution adopted three years after the death of longtime dictator Francisco Franco.

In 2006, a statute granting even greater powers to the northwestern region, boosting its financial clout, was approved by the Spanish and Catalan parliaments. And in a referendum at the time, over 73 percent of voters in Catalonia approved it.

But in 2010 Spain's Constitutional Court struck down several articles of the charter, among them attempts to place the distinctive Catalan language above Spanish in the region and a clause describing the region as a 'nation'.

The ruling sparked a rise in support for independence in Catalonia, which is home to some 7.5 million people and accounts for about one fifth of the Spanish economy.

Protesters wave Spanish and Catalan Senyera flags during a pro-unity demonstration in Barcelona on October 29, 2017

Catalonia, which has its own distinct language, was granted autonomy under Spain's 1978 constitution. Pictured: Protests in 2017

In 2006, a statute granting even greater powers to the northwestern region, boosting its financial clout, was approved by the Spanish and Catalan parliaments. Pictured: Protests in 2017

'Catalonia currently has a statute which it did not vote for, so there is a political problem,' Sanchez said.

Sanchez's minority government, which relies on the support of Catalan separatist parties to pass legislation, has distanced itself from the hardline approach adopted by its conservative predecessor against Catalonia's separatist drive, which sparked a major political crisis.

The Catalan government pressed ahead with an independence referendum on October 1 - even though it had been banned by the courts - and the vote was marred by police violence.

Catalonia's regional parliament then voted to declare independence on October 27, prompting Madrid to sack the regional government and put the region under direct rule from Madrid.

The current regional president Torra was hand-picked by his predecessor Carles Puigdemont who is in self-imposed exile in Belgium to avoid being tried for rebellion in Spain.

Polls show Catalans are divided on the question of independence but an overwhelming majority back a referendum to settle the question.
A man has died after he was found with gunshot wounds in Tottenham Cemetery, north London.

Armed police were deployed before the 22-year-old was found at the cemetery shortly before 8am this morning. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Police have yet to identify the victim but a murder investigation has been launched and a post-mortem examination is due to be held.

Police are pictured wearing protective suits at Tottenham Cemetery, London, where the body of a man was found this morning with several gunshot wounds

Officers enter the cemetery today after the body was found by a member of the public

Detective Inspector Simon Stancombe of HMCC said: 'At this early stage of the investigation we are keeping an open mind to the motive of this attack.

'I urge anyone who may have seen anything to contact police as soon as possible.'

Police confirmed no arrests have yet been made.

A spokesman for Scotland Yard said: 'A murder investigation has been launched in Tottenham after a man was fatally shot in Tottenham Cemetery.

'Armed officers, the National Police Air Service and London Ambulance Service attended after police were called to the cemetery at 07.53am on Monday, 3 September.

'They found a 22-year-old man suffering from gunshot wounds. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

'The man's next of kin have been informed, however formal identification awaits. A post mortem examination will take place in due course.'

The number of investigations into killings in London this year passed 100 last month, amid a surge in knife and gun violence.

Police are pictured outside the north London cemetery where the body of a man was found

A 22-year-old man has been shot dead at Tottenham Cemetery and a murder probe launched
A Jack Russell puppy is shown being taught to stay away from snakes by his owner in an adorable video posted online.

Four-month old Koda from Adelaide can be seen nervously cocking his front leg at a blue container, which has a slithering small red-bellied black snake inside.

But after being told a stern 'no' by his snake-catcher owner, the small puppy then backs off from the reptile.

Koda is then rewarded with a congratulatory pat on the head for his good behaviour.

Ange Broadstock posted the footage on the Snake Catchers Adelaide Facebook group - adding that her other Jack Russell named Coco had already learnt to stay away from the venomous snake.

Ms Broadstock said it was important for her dogs to have proper training in the dangers of snakes - as she currently has 40 snakes in her care.

A four-month old puppy called Koda has been taught to stay away from snakes by her owner Ange Broadstock in an adorable video

Speaking to Channel 7, Ms Broadstock said she hoped Koda would live up to his CoCo's level of street-smart.

She said: 'She would sit on the back lawn and take no notice of the snake. She got to the stage that she found a blue tongue (lizard) and guarded it.'

Offering some tips to other dog owners eager to keep their furry friends away from snakes, Ms Broadstock said using the same word over and over again until one got a reaction worked best for her.

After obeying his owner's orders repeatedly, the puppy is then rewarded with a congratulatory 'good boy' and a pat on the head

Other social media users were impressed with the snake-catcher's effective training methods, with one user saying the technique could save dog owners a fortune at the vets.

Another applauded her on teaching her puppy the ways of the Australian outdoors, saying their own Jack Russell had died from a brown snake bite.

Ms Broadstock added that you don't have to have a pet snake at home to teach your pet to leave them alone - and lizards also work as a good teaching tool.
Convicted murderer Jacques Edwards, 55, is facing assault charges after he shoved the boy head first into a filing cabinet at the Nicholas Scoppetta Children's Center in Manhattan

A convicted murderer who was hired by the New York Administration for Children Services has been arrested after allegedly assaulting a six-year-old boy.

Jacques Edwards, 55, is facing assault charges after he shoved the boy head first into a filing cabinet at the Nicholas Scoppetta Children's Center in Manhattan.

The ACS immediately suspended Edwards for 30 days without pay.

But as Edwards' past has been revealed, many are wondering how he got a job supervising vulnerable children in the first place.

Edwards served nearly 30 years behind bars after he was convicted of a murder in Brooklyn in 1981, when he was 18 years old.

The convict disclosed his past when he applied for the job and a review was also conducted by the Department of Citywide Administrative Services.

Edwards was cleared for employment because 'the murder conviction was more than a decade old', city officials told the New York Daily News.

Coworkers said Edwards didn't try to hide his rap sheet, even bragging about the fact that he had killed someone.

'People thought it was BS,' one source told the site. 'They thought he was trying to make himself more intimidating... maybe make himself look more gangster.

'A great deal of people knew about [his past] but nothing was done. Everyone knows that he shouldn't have been there.'

And last month's assault at the foster care center wasn't the first time Edwards has landed in hot water on the job.

In 2014 Edwards was accused of choking a 15-year-old boy he was arguing with at the Crossroads Juvenile Center in Brooklyn.

The accusation came within the first year that Edwards was hired by the ACS.

Sources said Edwards wrapped his hands around the teen's throat as they fought.

'He was choking the child so badly that a sergeant had to pull him off the kid,' one source recalled.

The ACS has immediately suspended Edwards for 30 days without pay after the alleged assault occurred at the Nicholas Scoppetta Children's Center, a foster care center (pictured)

'They put him on leave and then they placed him in a different facility. Everyone knew there was something wrong with him.'

Another source said the allegation was investigated by the ACS but did not find enough evidence to bring charges against Edwards.

Edwards wasn't fired because the ACS desperately needed a male employee to keep the children in order, one source claimed.

'They needed someone from the man pool who could go in and be intimidating. He fit the bill,' they added.

Edwards, who is out on $15,000 bail, is expected to be fired from the ACS this week after his suspension comes to an end.

In 2014 Edwards was accused of choking a 15-year-old boy he was arguing with at the Crossroads Juvenile Center in Brooklyn (pictured)

ACS Commissioner David Hansell said the convict would not have been hired under the department's current rules.

'We believe in second chances, and it's not city policy that a criminal conviction of any kind is a permanent bar to city employment,' he said.

'But when it comes to working with children, we have to have stricter scrutiny, we have to have higher standards. And we do.'

Edwards' family members have since come forward to defend him, noting that he received two college degrees in prison.

'He changed himself around,' one relative told the site. 'He went through a lot.'

'He could have sat there and did his time and did nothing. But he did something with his life. He's not a bad person.'
The confronting internet search history of a serial rapist has been revealed.

In August, Andrew Benn, 29, was found guilty of sexually assaulting 14 women he met on social media in the Hunter Valley region, north of Sydney, over five years.

After arresting him in January 2018, police searched through Benn's phone, looking for call logs and text messages to other victims.

Police found five more of his victims using this method - and also discovered the man's depraved search history, the Sydney Morning Herald revealed.

The disturbing search history of serial rapist Andrew Benn (pictured) reveals he searched for methods of sedating victims using illicit drugs

Police say that Benn's search history leading up to his arrest proved he was erratic and violent.

The frequency of his attacks had increased, from once every couple of months to four times in five days.

His search history reflected his sadistic thoughts and desire to sedate his victims with drugs.

'Can you add something to crack to make someone pass out,' one search read.

'What can you add to a crack pipe to make a woman delusional to have sex,' another read.

'Can you had (sic) a substance to ice to make someone delusional,' he searched, only three days before he violently raped a woman in her home.

The court previously heard Benn would take his victims to secluded areas, like the deserted Morpeth Cemetery (pictured), and sexually assault them

In the next four days, he would assault three other women, the last of which was able to flee, hide and call the police, leading to his arrest.

While police said Benn was becoming erratic, his final victim said he thought he'd perfected his craft, saying: 'He thought he was on top of the world.'

Benn was sentenced to 40 years in jail, with a non-parole period of 30 years.
Peter Willsman (pictured leaving his home in Oxford last month) sparked fury in July after he was secretly recorded blaming the Jewish community for inventing the anti-Semitism scandal rocking the party

An ally of Jeremy Corbyn who ranted about 'Jewish Trump fanatics' today won re-election to Labour's ruling committee.

Peter Willsman sparked fury in July after he was secretly recorded blaming the Jewish community for inventing the anti-Semitism scandal rocking the party.

In an angry diatribe at a meeting of Labour's ruling executive committee, he accused Jewish 'Trump fanatics' of 'making up duff information' to attack Mr Corbyn.

Mr Willsman, who will now serve another two years on the NEC, said his job was to support his 'friend for 41 years' Mr Corbyn - who he called 'Jerry'.

Despite the furious row over his remarks, he will now retake his seat on the National Executive Committee - which has a vital role in disciplining activists and picking candidates.

Voting in the election began before Mr Willsman's comments were leaked but continued until last Friday - raising the prospect thousands of Labour members may have voted for him despite the anti-Semitism storm.

Mr Willsman won 70,321 votes to claim the ninth and last spot on the committee. Yasmine Dar was first in the election with 88,176 votes.

All nine winners are close supporters of Mr Corbyn. They all had the backing of Momentum, the Corbyn support group, at the start of the election campaign, before Mr Willsman was dropped from the slate.

Comedian Eddie Izzard was the best placed loser, finishing tenth with 67,819 votes.

Since the leak, anti-Semitism allegations have continued to rock Labour, fuelled by a dispute over why the party has not adopted the international definition of abuse against Jews.

The NEC - including Mr Willsman - is due to discuss the issue again at a crunch meeting tomorrow.

Labour MP Wes Streeting revealed his despair at the re-election, warning Mr Willsman should have been 'booted off' the NEC during the election.

He said: 'Through his actions, Peter Willsman has shown he is unfit to serve on Labour's NEC.

'The results suggest that had his conduct come to light sooner - and Momentum taken swifter action - he would not have been elected.

'He should have been booted off the NEC already.'

In an angry diatribe at a meeting of Labour's ruling executive committee, Peter Willsman (file) accused Jewish 'Trump fanatics' of 'making up duff information' to attack Mr Corbyn

Board of Deputies Vice President Amanda Bowman said: 'The election of Peter Willsman to Labour's NEC following his reprehensible comments about Jews is deeply concerning.

'This has not been helped by Labour's appalling attitude to tackling prejudice, as evidenced by Jeremy Corbyn failing to rebuke Peter Willsman during his antisemitic tirade and Generall Secretary Jennie Formby letting him off the hook.

'This has all taken place during a summer of equivocation and denial emanating from the Labour leadership.'

Denny Taylor, spokesperson for the Labour Against Anti-Semitism campaign said: 'The election of the '#JC9' slate by Labour members to the party's NEC raises further concerns about institutional antisemitism in the party.

'One of the successful members, Pete Willsman, was embroiled in controversy earlier this summer when he claimed Jews who were concerned by antisemitism in the party were 'Trump fanatics'.

'Even if the NEC does adopt the IHRA definition at its meeting on Tuesday, it is difficult to believe that these members will accept the definition and uphold its parameters to challenge racial hatred against Jews in the party.

'It is highly disappointing that, despite the raised profile of antisemitism in the Labour Party over the summer, Labour members have chosen to give their support to candidates so apparently ambivalent towards tackling what is an existential threat to our party.'

Mr Willsman won 70,321 votes to claim the ninth and last spot on the committee. Yasmine Dar was first in the election with 88,176 votes

Jeremy Corbyn (pictured today in Liverpool) has spent the summer engulfed in a crisis over anti-Semitism

Last week Mr Willsman told HuffPost that despite the incendiary row, he still wanted to get one of the spots so he can 'defend JC [Jeremy Corbyn] against all the appalling and unjust attacks and smears'.

Mr Willsman was widely expected to be re-elected in today's NEC election, which finishes at noon.

But his chances were thrown into some doubt after Momentum - the influential Corbyn-backing group within Labour - cut ties with him after the secret recording was first exposed in July.

The battle for the NEC is crucial as it is part of the effort by Corbynistas to tighten their grip on the party.

But it comes as Labour is being torn apart by the bitter anti-Semitism scandal, which has escalated over the summer.

Labour MP Wes Streeting revealed his despair at the re-election, warning Mr Willsman should have been 'booted off' the NEC during the election

Mr Corbyn has insisted that he is determined to root out anti-Semitism festering among some of his supporters.

But he has faced repeated accusations from Jewish leaders and his own MPs that he is turning a blind eye to the abuse and failing to stamp it out.

The party leadership has so far refused to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's (IHRA) definition of anti-Semitism - defying demands from many MPs and Jewish groups.

After any weeks of controversy they are expected to back down and take u the definition- but only with caveats that threaten to water it down.

And the row has escalated in recent days after MailOnline published a tape in which Mr Corbyn accused British Zionists of having 'no sense of English irony'.

Jews, including the Labour MP Luciana Berger (pictured) have repeatedly demanded Mr Corbyn tackle anti-Semitism inside Labour

In a speech at the Palestinian Return Centre in 2013, Mr Corbyn said: '[British Zionists] clearly have two problems. One is they don't want to study history, and secondly, having lived in this country for a very long time, probably all their lives, they don't understand English irony either.'

He added: 'They needed two lessons, which we could perhaps help them with.'

The revelation sparked furious condemnation, while the former chief rabbi Jonathan Sacks accused Mr Corbyn of being an 'anti-Semite' who 'defiles our politics'.

He said the tape are the most offensive remark by a British politician since Enoch Powell's infamous Rivers of Blood speech in 1968.

When the tape was exposed in late July, Mr Willsman apologised and said he was referring himself for equalities training.

He said: 'I am sorry for my behaviour in the last meeting of Labour's NEC...

I am of course aware of appalling instances of anti- Semitism within our party, and am wholly determined to rooting it out...

'I do not believe anti- Semitism is 'widespread' in the party, and that was what my comments were trying to refer to, but we do have a problem which needs stamping out.

'In diminishing the experiences of those who face anti-Semitism, I showed a lack of sensitivity... I will be referring myself [for] equalities training so I can better understand how to approach discussions of such issues in a respectful way.'
A man should be allowed to pocket 6million of his mentally incapacitated mother's 18.6million fortune to cut the inheritance tax bill, a judge has decided.

The 72-year-old woman, who cannot be named, suffered from dementia and needed full-time care, London-based Judge Carolyn Hilder was told.

She had executed a lasting power of attorney, and appointed her son as her only attorney, eight years ago.

The man, his mother's sole surviving child and her only appointed attorney, asked Judge Hilder to allow him to give himself a 6million 'gift' to reduce inheritance tax liabilities. Judge Hilder approved the plan.

She made her ruling at the Court of Protection, where issues relating to people who lack the mental capacity to take decisions are considered, earlier this year.

A judge has ruled that the son of a dementia-hit 72-year-old woman should be allowed to 'gift' himself 6million of her 18.9million fortune to avoid inheritance tax (file photo)

Judge Hildrer said some might say the man's application was 'self-serving', but added that she was satisfied that the application had 'not been improperly brought'.

She also noted that the woman's long-standing financial adviser was 'fully in support'.

The woman had been separately represented by staff from the office of the Official Solicitor, who help mentally ill people caught up in litigation. They had also given their backing for the move.

Eight years ago, the woman had spent more than 500,000 on a home for her son.

Judge Hilder said the woman had made a will seven years ago under which her son would inherit the vast majority of her fortune.

The judge also gave the man permission to make 'gifts' from his mother's funds to a number of charities.

She was told that more than 7million of the woman's money would be given in gifts in total - a move which could cut inheritance tax liabilities by more than 3million.

Judge Hilder heard that the woman was a widow who had been married a fourth time. The woman had married her fourth husband when in her fifties.

He had been a businessman and had 'created' the woman's wealth.

Judge Hilder was told that he had died eight years ago and left his 'entire estate' to the woman.

'(The woman's) sole-surviving child makes the application,' said the judge in her ruling.

'Of course it may be said that, since he is the recipient of the largest part of the proposed gifting, the application is self-serving but I am satisfied that it has not been improperly brought.

'(The woman) appointed (her son) as her sole attorney, indicating a significant degree of trust and faith in him and the decisions he is thereby empowered to make.

'The proposal he now makes is beyond the scope of his powers as attorney but he makes it with (the woman's) long-standing adviser, fully in support.'

She said 'factors in favour' of the 'proposed gifts' outweighed 'factors against'.
Almost 500 immigrant children have yet to be reunited with their parents after being separated at the Southern U.S. border  and 22 are younger than five years old, according to court filings.

About 65 percent, or 322 of the 497 children, have parents who are outside of the country, in many cases because they were deported without them.

Of the 2,654 immigrant children who were separated from their parents during the Trump administration's 'zero-tolerance' policy at the U.S.-Mexico border earlier this year, 2,175 have been discharged, according to the federal government's latest update to U.S. District Judge Dana Sabraw.

Migrant parents, all of whom were separated from their children by U.S Customs and Border Patrol, arrive at a government facility in Texas in June

'Discharged' means that in many cases the children were reunited with their parents, though some were instead placed in custody with other family members living in the U.S., or were minors who have since turned 18.

Between April and June, the Trump administration separated more than 2,600 children from their parents after the families came into the country - legally and illegally - across the southern U.S. border as part of a 'zero tolerance' immigration policy.

The actions sparked massive public outrage, leading to Trump ending it through an executive order on June 20.

U.S. Attorney Jeff Sessions has blamed the separation of children and families on the parents fleeing violence in Latin America for breaking U.S. immigration laws.

The efforts to reunify children have been executed under the oversite of Sabraw, who said Friday that the U.S. should not follow the 'natural tendency to treat each person as a number.'

Of the children who still haven't been reunited with parents, 167 have parents who 'indicated desire against reunification.'

However a lawsuit that the American Civil Liberties Union filed in July claims many immigrant parents were misled or coerced by U.S. officials into signing such documents.

The federal filing also indicated that 32 parents had a 'red flag' in their background checks precluding reunification with their children, while 18 other parents had flags about safety and well-being and three had flags with questions concerning their parentage.

The government is required to provide another update later this week with new numbers.

Attorneys for the government had previously sought to place responsibility for finding parents who were already deported on the ACLU, which is representing the children in the class action suit Sabraw is overseeing.

The judge ruled in early August that it was '100 percent the responsibility' of the Trump administration to make reunifications happen.
BBQ Becky's 911 audio has been released nearly four months after she made headlines for calling the police on two black men while they were using a grill at a park in Oakland, California.

Jennifer Schulte was captured on video on April 29 claiming that the men were using a charcoal grill instead of a non-charcoal grill in one of Lake Merritt's designated grilling zones.

Authorities released the audio of BBQ Becky and two emergency dispatchers to KTVU.

In the first 911 call, Schulte spoke to a male dispatcher. During that call Schulte explained that the two men were using a charcoal grill in a non-designated area in the park and that she wanted the situation 'dealt with immediately'.

BBQ Becky's 911 audio has been released nearly four months after she made headlines for calling the police on two black men while they were using a grill at a park in Oakland, California

Jennifer Schulte was captured on video on April 29 claiming that the men (left and right) were using a charcoal grill instead of a non-charcoal grill in one of Lake Merritt's designated grilling zones

Her reasoning: 'So that coals don't burn more children and we don't have to pay more taxes.'

The dispatcher is heard asking Schulte for more information regarding the race of the two men and what they were wearing before they got off the phone.

Two hours later, Schulte calls 911 again. This time, the call is chaotic as people are heard in the background questioning Schulte for calling the police on the family.

'I was wondering when the police are going to come and help me!' Schulte is heard yelling as someone shouts at her in the background.

A female dispatcher is heard asking Schulte for the address before she questions Schulte about the person yelling in the background.

'What's the panic over a barbecue? I don't understand,' the dispatcher is heard asking.

'So why are you in an argument with these people? Can you walk away?'

Schulte claimed that the family started following her out of the park.

And then moments later a woman in the background is heard shouting at Schulte: 'You're the one harassing people!'

Schulte is then heard telling the dispatcher that the woman in the background is 'harassing me'.

The dispatcher asks Schulte for her name, which Schulte refused to give.

'I would like a police officer to come as soon as possible,' the dispatcher is heard telling Schulte.

'I'm really scared! You gotta come quick!' Schulte said.

A bystander named Michelle Snider (left), noticed the commotion and confronted the woman for 'harassing' the family (right), camera in hand, to record the 25-minute verbal altercation

The dispatcher then asks Schulte about her race and what she's wearing, questions that Schulte was hesitant to answer.

'My race doesn't matter,' Shulte said. The dispatcher responds: 'It does matter. How are we going to find you? Just any lady? Are you black or are you white?'

Schulte said: 'It doesn't matter. I want the police to come I've been waiting two hours for them.'

The dispatcher then asks Schulte: 'How are they going to find you?'

'They usually call your cell phone when they're here,' Schulte said.

'I'm talking to you right now. Have you ever been to John George?' the dispatcher asked the woman.

'What's John George?' Schulte asked. The dispatcher said 'it's a mental facility', to which Schulte replied: 'No!'

Dispatcher: 'Ok, then. Please answer my question. They're coming to you right now.'

Schulte continues to refuse to answer and the dispatcher tells her she's going to hang up, before she finally tells the dispatcher the information.

At the time of the incident, a bystander named Michelle Snider, noticed the commotion and confronted the woman for 'harassing' the family, camera in hand, to record the 25-minute verbal altercation.

The April 29 video is one of many that has surfaced on the internet recently, showing white people calling the police on black people for doing everyday activities such as sitting in Starbucks, participating in a college tour, and taking a nap in a campus lounge.

In the video, Snider asks behind the camera: 'Why are you so bent out of shape over them being here?'

The woman replies: 'Because it causes extra money from our city to do things when children get injured because of improperly disposed coals.'

Police responded to the incident after the woman's call but did not issue any citations.

However, authorities questioned the family for one hour, according to Oakland Council member Lynette Gibson McElhaney.

McElhaney told the Huffington Post: 'In a city that needs significant policing services, we can't have those precious expensive resources squandered in a frivolous way.'

She added: 'Police are not a private security for any white person that's offended by the presence of black folks in our public spaces.'

Once police arrived, Schulte walked away to meet the officer at a convenience store.

During one of the 911 calls, a dispatcher is heard shaming Schulte for calling the police over a minor incident

Schulte began to cry when police arrived claiming the woman recording was harassing her

As Snider followed her with the camera, the woman began to cry and told the officer she was being harassed.

The officers spoke to both parties and diffused the situation without giving the family a fine.

Lake Merritt has six designated barbecue zones, three of which permit charcoal grills and three for 'non-charcoal portable grills'.

The family were using the incorrect grill for the area they were in, however it is not illegal to do so.

'We will do our part to lean into the conversation thoughtfully and [make sure] that the activities of black people aren't being overly policed,' McElhaney said.

In the past few months, the world has witnessed Coupon Carl, Permit Betty and Permit Patty, among several others, who have all called the cops on black people doing ordinary people things.

Shortly after BBQ Betty came Permit Patty who called the cops on an eight-year-old girl who was selling bottles without a permit.

Then came Pool Patrol Paula who was arrested after she assaulted a 15-year-old black teen at a South Carolina pool.
A U.S. Armed Forces director who was set to start a top job with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services this month has had his employment offer revoked after anti-Muslim messages were found on his Facebook page.

Army director Guy Sands-Pingot was going to be named deputy director of the immigration agency, in charge of leading the department's application center.

But on Friday, Buzzfeed published an investigation which discovered a series of social media posts targeting Muslims on his Facebook since 2013.

In a December 2015 Facebook post, Sands-Pingot - who in the past served as a brigadier general - commented on a story about Pakistani Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousafzai, who critiqued Trump for his remarks about Muslims.

Malala was shot in the head by the Taliban, simply because she was a girl wanting to get an education.

US Army director Guy Sands-Pingot was expected to become a deputy director at the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services later this month

Malala Yousafzai, the youngest ever to win a Novel Peace prize, was the subject of one of the numerous posts found on Facebook page of US Army director Guy Sands-Pingot

Sands-Pingot, who was deployed to Afghanistan after the September 11 attacks, said Malala has become a poster person for the left.

'She was shot in the head by 'normal' conservatives that used the koran not only to justify their action, but to demand it be compulsory for other moslem females who dare to think they should receive an education,' he wrote. 'She became the 'posterperson' for all delusional leftist who think she is the face and body of a fictional 'moderate' islam.'

The New York City native, who lives with his wife Valentina in Lorton, Virginia, shared a vile Islamaphobic post in October 2015.

The headline read: 'If you wipe your butt with your bare hand but consider bacon to be unclean, you may be Muslim.'

Malala's comments about Donald Trump in December 2015 interview with Vox.com didn't go down too well with US Army director Guy Sands-Pingot

Sands-Pingot blasts Malala in a Facebook post that would land him in trouble and cost him a job with the USCIS

Sands-Pingot, who has been a part of the US Armed Forces for over 28 years, was in active duty during Operation Desert Shield and Operation Desert Storm and served during the Bosnian Civil War.

He was expected to commence work with the USCIS overseeing the country's naturalization and immigration systems in the middle of the month.

Buzzfeed also unearthed a post from July that the US Army general liked that read: 'Immigrants Do Not Have a Right to Come Into This County and Make Demands.'

His removal from consideration as deputy director for the immigration agency comes at a critical time when the Trump administration continues to strengthen its immigration policies and make the process even more difficult for immigrants looking to establish asylum and residency in the country.

In June, the Supreme Court voted 5-4 to uphold Trump's controversial travel ban that he issued in September 2017, which has been widely criticized.

One of the many anti-Muslim Facebook posts that US Army director Guy Sands-Pingot shared and like dating back to 2013

A shocking post where US Army director Guy Sands-Pingot compares Islam to the Nazi Party

Among other Facebook posts, was an opinion he shared two years ago where he criticizes Islam, saying Muslims excuse terror as 'solitary acts of violence by mentally unstable individuals that despite their clear and undeniable connection with islamic militant groups and their ideology cannot be grouped into a single category of religiously inspired terrorists.'

'It would undermine their fantasy of their not being an islamic threat to the non-islamic world and peoples,' wrote Sands-Pingot.

'This is similar to saying crimes committed by nazi storm troopers had nothing to do with the Nazi Party even though every propoganda point of the Nazi Party political and social platform clearly spelled out what they would do and why they would do it, and to whom they would do it to.'

The Armed Forces veteran also liked several posts of anti-Islamic commentator Pamellar Geller, including a two-year-old link about a Muslim man who killed his four-year-old daughter because the child had forgotten to wear her headscarf will eating.

'I would invite people to read the postings of young muslim men yo this blog...unbelievably threatening...and does not sound to be peaceful and merciful to me,' he wrote.

Sands-Pingot also smeared the LGBT community in 2013 in a comment about 'Pat', the fictional character from Saturday Night Live that was created and portrayed by actress Julia Sweeney.

Sands-Pingot erroneously credits former Senator Al Franken, who also was a part of the cast, in the post about the famous character whose appearance on the program would lead other cast characters guessing what 'Pat's' gender was, but not in a disrespectful manner.

'Do you remember when [Julia Sweeney], being far ahead of [her] time discovered the character 'Pat'??? well we are in the age of 'Pat' --in fact, from this point onward, we are all in the 'Age of Pat',' he ranted.

'...to wit...multi-gender access for 'transgendered' 10-18 year old to bathrooms in all California schools and many, many, many more examples that will not or cannot be mentioned here at all...'

Sands-Pingot's remarks about Pat, a Saturday Night Live character, were discovered during Buzzfeed's investigation

Sands-Pingot was expected to step down from his post as the US Army Reserve's Director of Human Capital before joining the immigration agency.

USCIS spokesman Michael Bars issued a statement to Buzzfeed confirming Sands-Pingot will no longer be coming aboard.

'After conducting a full and open competition in compliance with all Office of Personnel Management guidance for career vacancies in the Senior Executive Service, including assembling resume review and interview panels as part of the standard hiring process, a candidate was selected for the position of Deputy Director,' Bars said.

'And a tentative job offer was extended, expected to commence mid-September, at this point, however, the candidate is no longer slated to commence employment at USCIS. USCIS is committed to equal employment opportunity, adherence to merit principles, and fair treatment for all employees.'

The Daily Mail reached out to the USCIS and contacted Army's Public Affairs office as to whether Sands-Pingot will continue to be employed.
A catalogue of bureaucratic blunders by social service officers left a severely disabled Colombian woman stranded in a British hospital, at a cost to taxpayers of almost 400,000.

A top judge condemned the 'shocking' waste of public money lavished on keeping the 55-year-old 'prisoner' in the UK, despite her 'abundantly clear' and 'absolutely consistent' wish to return to her homeland for care.

Mr Justice Newton said social services bosses at London's Lambeth Council and health staff had approved the idea but had wrangled over the price of a wheelchair for years as the woman languished in Putney's Royal Hospital for Neurodisability.

A catalogue of bureaucratic blunders by social service officers left a severely disabled Colombian woman stranded in Putney's Royal Hospital for Neurodisability (pictured), at a cost to taxpayers of almost 400,000

'Miserable and isolated', she was kept there for almost three and a half years, at a cost of over 2,000-a-week, unable to communicate with her carers because she only speaks Spanish.

And only in January this year was she finally flown home to Colombia to be cared for by her large and loving family, Mr Justice Newton said.

The High Court heard how the woman collapsed at a south London bus stop in May 2014, after suffering a cardiac arrest which left her with brain damage.

She was physically and mentally disabled and, after making a slow recovery, she was moved to the Putney hospital in September 2014.

Although she did not have the mental capacity to make decisions for herself, she made her wish to go home 'abundantly clear, at every opportunity'.

There was also 'no question' that repatriation to Colombia would have been in her best interests.

Mr Justice Newton (pictured) said social services bosses at London's Lambeth Council and health staff had approved the idea but had wrangled over the price of a wheelchair

The woman suffered daily distress at being cared for by hospital staff who did not speak her language and said she felt like she was drowning.

'I can only imagine her sense of frustration and loss at being kept here for years against her wishes, and for no good reason,' added the judge.

Arrangements to fly her home 'could and should have been established and implemented long ago, years ago,' he added.

'But, because of disorganised, muddled and unfocused decision making, and what has at times verged on arrogance, she has just had to wait.

'It should be remembered that she had been kept here against her wishes, at a cost to the taxpayer of over 2,000 per week.

'If the authority (Lambeth) had done what it should have done in a timely professional manner, not only could they have saved themselves over 100,000 a year, and saved the cost to the taxpayer of these protracted High Court proceedings, they could have avoided this woman the years of misery from being kept a prisoner here, against her will.'

He said a 'malaise' had set in for which Lambeth Council was 'entirely responsible'.

Describing the 'shocking history' of the case, the judge said disputes over whether Lambeth, or the NHS, should pay for a wheelchair and air ambulance added to the delay in flying her home.

The High Court (pictured) heard the woman was 'miserable and isolated' as she was kept in the hospital for almost three and a half years, at a cost of over 2,000-a-week, unable to communicate with her carers because she only speaks Spanish

He added: 'No one appeared to be qualified to make what in some instances were trifling decisions involving a few hundred pounds.

'Innumerable communications occurred over the provision of, cost of, source of, import duty on, or who should pay for the transport of a wheelchair she so urgently required, far exceeding the cost of the chair itself.'

Despite a number of 'unnecessary' court hearings, the judge said granting the woman's wish to return to Colombia 'seemed a mile away' until the deadlock was finally broken in January this year.

The woman was 'calm, restful and slept' during her air ambulance journey back to Colombia on January 25 and, when she arrived, she was met by many relatives 'with smiles all over their faces.'

The judge described her return home as 'finally, a happy end to a tragic story.'

Mr Justice Newton concluded: 'I set out the summary of these unhappy proceedings, not just because they should not have been necessary, but to highlight the very deeply frustrating and disorganised thinking, planning and management within the authority.

'As a result, a vulnerable adult has been kept unnecessarily miserable against her will, confined in an environment for much longer than was necessary.'

The judge ruled that the woman could not be identified.

Last night Lambeth CCG and Lambeth Council said it was 'a complex case' and the care she needed on the NHS was greater than her family would be able to afford in Colombia.

'Strenuous efforts' were made to ensure she would get 'suitable' care in Colombia.
Saturday Kitchen star Rachel Allen has spoken of her 'devastation' after her son Joshua was arrested in a 27,000 drugs raid.

The 46-year-old Irish celebrity chef has said that her son, who has 'never been in trouble with the Gardai', has made a 'huge mistake'

Joshua, 18, was arrested by gardai from the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau during a raid on a home in County Cork, reports the Irish Mirror.

The mother-of-three said in a statement: 'We are making a statement in response to, and hopefully to alleviate, the frenzy of enquiry and speculation on going in relation to our son Joshua.

'He has been arrested on suspicion of possession of drugs (marijuana) with intent to supply them to others.

Saturday Kitchen star Rachel Allen has spoken of her 'devastation' after her son Joshua was arrested in a 27,000 drugs raid

Joshua, 18, was arrested by gardai from the Drugs and Organised Crime Bureau during a raid on a home in Shanagarry, County Cork, on August 30. Pictured: Mrs Allen and her son Joshua, aged 14

'He has admitted his guilt immediately and co-operated fully with the Gardai.

'A file has been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions and when formally charged Joshua will be pleading guilty at the first opportunity. 'We are absolutely devastated at this turn of events.

'Our son is eighteen years old, has never been in trouble with the Gardai, and has made a huge mistake, which will have profound consequences for him.

'We do not in any way condone his actions, in fact, we utterly condemn them, but it is not for us to condemn him.

'We must now try to look after our son and our family, the best way we can.

'We would ask that the legal process would be allowed to proceed to deal with this matter, without interference, and that we would be allowed to deal with this, like any other parents, in a similar position.'

A garda spokeswoman told the Irish Mirror that Revenue Customs Officers seized approximately 30,000 of suspected herbal cannabis in the Shanagarry area of East Cork on August 30.

Officers seized around 1.5kg of the drug during the raid.
Yolande Kennedy (pictured) was just 18-years-old when she was raped at knife-point

A woman sexually assaulted more than 30 years ago by a brutal attacker known as 'the Early Bird rapist' has spoken of her relief as he was jailed for 13 years today.

Yolande Kennedy was just 18-years-old when she was raped at knife-point by twisted Christopher Clark who dragged her into a farmyard as she walked to work.

Clark had watched the teenager repeatedly over a number of days before the shocking early morning attack in 1985 in Grays, Essex.

The case was not solved by Essex Police at the time and Miss Kennedy revealed today how detectives previously refused to believe her.

Clark - nicknamed the Early Bird rapist following a string of morning sex attacks across Essex in the 1980's - was finally caught after detectives reviewed the case in 2016 and found a match using advances in DNA technology.

The serial sex attacker was jailed for life in 1997 for a separate sex attack in Bristol, but was just weeks away from a parole hearing when detectives made their breakthrough on the Essex case.

Now aged 68, he was jailed for 13 years this afternoon at Basildon Crown Court.

He was also handed a five years' extended licence period.

Mother-of-two Miss Kennedy bravely waived her rights to anonymity to speak about the nightmare Clark put her through.

She hopes her decision will help encourage more women to contact the police if they have been sexually assaulted.

The 51-year-old, who now lives in America, flew back to the UK in order to face her attacker again for the first time in 33 years.

Miss Kennedy bravely read a statement to the court describing how she had even tried to kill herself at one point in order to end the pain Clark caused her.

Christoper Clark (pictured left in the 1980's and now, right) was jailed for 13 years this afternoon at Basildon Crown Court

Members of her family openly wept as she read the lengthy statement.

'Does he know the damage he has done. Does he even care how it has effected me? I became like a broken vase - you can piece it back together but it wont be the same as it once was.'

Looking at her attacker she said: 'You made me feel like nobody. You are a sad old man who will die in pain for what you have done'

She told the packed court: 'He raped me like I was a prey for the taking'.

Clark, who claims he cannot even remember the rape, showed no visible reaction to the heartbreaking statement.

Dressed in a cream sweatshirt and blue jogging bottoms, he sat behind the re-enforced glass of courtroom three and asked for a hearing loop in order to follow what was happening.

Louise Oakley, prosecuting, described how Clark had pressed a Stanley knife to his victim's throat, saying 'I don't want to hurt you, I don't want to hurt you'.

He then led Miss Kennedy from the path to a farmyard and told her he was going to make love to her before then raping her.

When police interviewed him in prison he answered no comment to all questions but admitted a single charge of rape at the same court last month.

Talking publicly today for the first time about her ordeal Miss Kennedy said: 'I wanted to face him, see the whites of his eyes and let him know how it's effected me.

'He probably won't care, because of the sort of person he is but I want to tell him exactly how I feel.

'He needed to know and I need that to help me with some closure.

'The police asked if I wanted to come over to England [for the sentencing] - I said "absolutely, I want to be in that courtroom".'

Miss Kennedy revealed she still suffers recurring flashbacks to the morning she was raped by Clark on September 17, 1985 at around 6.15am.

Talking about the attack she said: 'He watched me for a few days. He would sit on a wall, just watching me.

'I did not think anything of it - every time I saw him he would let me walk a little way and then he would run past and look back.

'I thought maybe he was just a local worker and then I had a day off and then the next day I went to work and that's when he grabbed me and took me into the farmyard and did what he wanted to do.

'Time stood still. I was in complete shock. When he ran away he had left his knife and he came running back.

'I thought I was going to die at that point. I thought "oh my God, he's going to slit my throat," and I was going to die.

'But he picked up his knife and covered his face for some reason'.

The traumatised teen ran to a nearby house and told a man what had happened before heading home and telling her parents about the ordeal.

Unforgivably the police who investigated her case were sceptical about whether the teenager had even been attacked.

'The police at the time were very 'old school'. They just didn't believe me. I was not believed.

'They thought my story was too 'fantastic', that I had remembered too much, there was too much detail.

'I have had to live with that for 33 years, just wondering had he moved on to worse things. Did he kill somebody? Had he moved on to hurt other people?

'I think it was just 'let go' which was the sad thing. I had to live with it - nightmares, constant nightmares, I have been married three times. It effected three marriages.

'I've lived with that mental scar. It's just horrible. It will never go away. I was constantly looking over my shoulder, wondering where he was, where he is from - is he still out there somewhere waiting to pounce again?

'Even in America, still today, I still look over my shoulder, if someone comes running up I am always looking behind me. It's been a lifetime sentence, absolutely.

'Today gives me some closure which I am very thankful for but it is never going to go away, it's always going to be there.'

Miss Kennedy had all but given up hope that Clark would ever be caught and was stunned when her local force in Pensacola, Florida, made an initial approach on behalf of Essex Police.

It was the first time in more than 30 years she had heard from Essex Police about the case.

Yolande Kennedy pictured alongside DCI Stephen Jennings who is in charge of the case

Miss Kennedy said her experience following the DNA breakthrough had been very different to when she was a teenager: 'They are amazing now. Absolutely amazing. I can't thank them enough.

'Times have changed and they really, really treat you like you should be treated - with compassion and understanding,' she said.

She is now helping give guidance to Essex Police officers about how they support sex attack victims.

'I want to make something positive out of this now. I want to help other victims, if I can at least give them some hope that they can trust the police, that they can talk to somebody.

'I want to help these people, it's very difficult - there are a lot of women out there who are too scared to come forward, who are not believed or they don't trust who they are talking to because they think they are going to think they are making it up.

'There are women out there that have not made it out alive, so I want to be a voice for them as well. If it just helps one person, then I've done what I want to do,' she said.

Recorder Claire Davies, sentencing, said: 'She was understandably absolutely terrified of what you were doing to her.

'You would have known you were hurting her and that was the very least you were doing that day.

'Your actions that day had a dramatic effect on Miss Kennedy and her family. Her mother described her a changed person after that day. She was in such a state she attempted to take her own life.'

She said she did not believe that there was 'any real remorse at all' for his actions, despite a written apology to Miss Kennedy.

Detective Chief Inspector Stephen Jennings of Essex Police said: 'DNA has really developed since 1985 to the position where we are now.

'The forensic service reviewed the case and said "we think we might have a match" but we need to take a further sample from this person but the profile fits.

'At that point, it was quite exciting to think that potentially we have caught the person responsible.'

The scene of the attack, pictured, in North Stifford, Essex, in the 1980's

Clark was arrested and interviewed in prison and provided a DNA sample which conclusively matched with the DNA evidence from the time.

Police believe there could be more victims out there.

'Christopher Clark is a serial offender. He is a dangerous man and yes, there could be be other victims from around that period of time.

'We urge any victims to come forward - I hope this is an example of the kind of system we have in place with a support network for victims [which] allows them to really work with us and help with the judicial process.

'We had to convince her that we are in a different place now with policing to what we were then and that we have the tools, the experience, the training to support her.

'The credit has to go to Yolande for not only coming forward and supporting this but also the fact she has waived her anonymity and is now helping us to train our younger officers to understand what some of the issues that victims do, unfortunately, receive sometimes from the police.

DCI Jennings said the decision to waive anonymity was 'extremely brave'.

'Nothing can ever change what happened to her that day when she was just a teenager - rape is an offence that has a lifelong lasting impact on victims.

'But now at least she can take some small comfort from the fact that Clark will finally face justice for the heinous crime he subjected her to that day.'

Serial sex offender Clark, now of HMP Lincoln, previously hit the headlines when he attacked a young teacher only three months after being freed from a 14-year prison sentence.

He was jailed for life in 1997 after it emerged probation officers feared he would strike again but were powerless to prevent it.

On that occasion he pounced on his victim, placing a plastic bag over her head and indecently assaulted her yards from a bail hostel in Bath where he was being held on probation.

As Clark began his life sentence, probation officers said they had been 'waiting for something to happen' as soon as he was freed after serving nine years of his 14-year term.

But they were helpless to prevent his release because his original sentence for rape was handed down before the 1991 Criminal Justice Act made it possible to keep offenders inside if they are still considered a risk to society.

Even members of Clark's family at the time revealed that they had pleaded with the authorities to prevent his release.
Nearly 90 elephants were found slaughtered near a famous wildlife sanctuary in Botswana making the scale of poaching deaths the largest seen in Africa.

An aerial survey conducted by Dr Mike Chase from Elephants Without Borders found as many of the 87 dead elephants that had been killed for their tusks just weeks ago, including five white rhinos also poached in three months.

'The scale of elephant poaching is by far the largest I've seen or read about anywhere in Africa to date,' Dr Mike Chase from Elephants Without Borders told the BBC.

Nearly 90 elephants were found slaughtered near a famous wildlife sanctuary in Botswana making the scale of poaching deaths the largest seen in Africa

The conservation ecologist said he had recorded double the number of poached elephants than anywhere else in Africa when compared to figures from the 2015 Great Elephant Census.

That census estimated a third of Africa's elephants had been killed in the last decade and 60 per cent of Tanzania's elephants had been lost in five years.

Botswana has the world's largest elephant population of 130,000, largely due to the the country's tough approach to poachers and armed and well-managed anti-poaching units.

Tracking collars revealed elephants had found sanctuary in Botswana from countries where poaching for ivory was more prevalent such as Angola, Namibia and Zambia.

'The scale of elephant poaching is by far the largest I've seen or read about anywhere in Africa to date,' Dr Mike Chase from Elephants Without Borders told the BBC

But Botswana's anti-poaching unit was recently disarmed in May - a month after President Mokgweetsi Masisi was sworn into office.

A senior official in the president's office, Carter Morupisi, said that the 'government has decided to withdraw military weapons and equipment from the Department of Wildlife and National Parks', but did not explain why.

Since then poachers have been breaching the border.

The latest killings were found deep in Botswana - close to the protected Okavango Delta wildlife sanctuary.

Dr Chase said that, together with the dismantling of the anti-poaching units, it was now 'open season for poachers' in Botswana.

Botswana's 2018 Wildlife Aerial Survey is conducted by plane where the survey area is split into sections to record any 'fresh carcasses' of elephants lost within the last three months.

The survey is only half-way through, with many of deaths recorded within the last few weeks, making conservationists fear the final figure of poached elephants will be a lot higher.

'This requires urgent and immediate action by the Botswana government,' Dr Chase said.

'Our new president must uphold Botswana's legacy and tackle this problem quickly. Tourism is vitally important for our economy, jobs, as well as our international reputation, which is at stake here as being a safe stronghold for elephants.'
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Blake's 7 star Jacqueline Pearce has died at the age of 74 shortly after being diagnosed with lung cancer, her friend John Ainsworth has said.

The actress, best known for playing villain Supreme Commander Servalan tin the popular BBC science fiction series, died at her home in Lancashire.

Alongside her role in Blake's 7, which was expanded from a single episode to a regular role over four series due to her popularity, Pearce was also known for her guest role in The Two Doctors, a pair of Doctor Who episodes in 1985.

Her friend John Ainsworth, who had been her friend for 25 years and was with her at the time, announced the news today.

Blake's 7 star Jacqueline Pearce (pictured left in 2012 and right in role in Blake's 7) has died at the age of 74 at her home in Lancashire, shortly after being diagnosed with lung cancer

He said: 'She was outrageous, she was very honest and very straightforward, which didn't always go down very well, but you knew where you were with her.

'She liked a glass of champagne and liked everyone to have a good time with her, and of course she was a brilliant actress and everyone who worked with her remembered her very fondly.'

He added Pearce had been diagnosed 'a couple of weeks ago' and chose to be cared for at home after leaving hospital.

The two-part Doctor Who story in 1985 saw Pearce play Chesenne Colin Baker's Time Lord and his returning predecessor Patrick Troughton.

Baker, who played the Doctor between 1984 and 1986, reacted to the news on Twitter, saying: 'Such sad sad news. Lovely Jacqeline Pearce has left us. Sublime actress and lady. Class. Will be much missed.'

Pearce's film roles included White Mischief with John Hurt, How To Get Ahead In Advertising with Richard E Grant and Princess Caraboo with Kevin Kline.

Further TV shows she acted in included a six-part BBC adaptation of David Copperfield in the 1970s, a detective series called The Rivals Of Sherlock Holmes and two episodes of Casualty in 2006.

Born in Byfleet, Surrey, in 1943, she was also in the 1988 version of The Bourne Identity and appeared as Annabelle Levi in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.

After training at the Royal Academy Of Dramatic Arts alongside Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt, she appeared in episodes of Danger Man and The Avengers - as well as children's dramas Moondial and Dark Season, starring a young Kate Winslet and penned by Russell T Davies.

In a statement, Davies said: 'It was a joy, working with Jacqueline on the first drama I ever wrote, Dark Season.

The British actress, who died at her home in Lancashire, is seen in publicity pictures from 1972

Jacqueline Pearce pictured in 1968 when she was starring in the television series Man In A Suitcase

The actress in 1966, when she played in the British TV series The Avengers as a character called Marianne

Film and TV highlights of actress Jacqueline Pearce's career 1964: Played the character of Jeannie in the secret agent show Danger Man 1966: Featured as Marianne in The Avengers, a British espionage series 1971: Acted in The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes, an ITV series featuring fictional detectives to rival Arthur Conan Doyle's character 1974-75: Played Rosa Dartle in a six-part BBC adaptation of the Charles Dickens novel David Copperfield 1978-81: Starred as Supreme Commander Servalan in Blake's 7, her most enduring role 1985: Guest starred as Chessenne in a two-part Doctor Who episode alongside lead actor Colin Baker and predecessor Patrick Troughton 1988: Received a credit in the TV movie The Bourne Identity, based on the same novel by Robert Ludlum which also inspired the 2002 film 1993: Played Annabelle Levi in The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles 2006: Appeared in two episodes of the BBC's Casualty Advertisement

'She was glorious, vivid, passionate, filthy and the most wonderful company. And underneath the style and the laughter, a truly fine actor.'

Blake's 7 ran between 1978 and 1981. It proved an unlikely hit after initially being mocked as a 'poor man's Star Trek' for its shoestring effects and primitive scenery.

Sky One announced in 2008 it was commissioning a revival with computer-generated scenery but it cancelled the relaunch in 2010.

She also starred in West End theatre roles, including a production of Otherwise Engaged directed by Harold Pinter at London's Queen's Theatre in 1975.

Pearce was married for three-and-a-half years to Gordon 'Drewe' Henley, from 1963 until their divorce. Henley featured in the original Star Wars film in 1977 and footage of him was used in 2016's spin-off Rogue One.

After relocating to South Africa for several years, initially to care for orphaned monkeys, Pearce returned to the UK in 2015.

Her autobiography, From Byfleet To The Bush, was published in 2012.

Writer Matthew Sweet paid tribute on Twitter, saying: 'Some say Darth Vader was the greatest leader of an evil space empire. But Jacqueline Pearce did it arms aloft, in high heels.

'Who didn't secretly yearn to be subjugated by her? Supreme Commander, we salute you.'

Mark Morris, who has written Doctor Who novels based on the BBC series, said: 'So sad to hear of Jacqueline Pearce's death at the age of 74.

'I fell in love with her as a callow youth when I saw her in The Reptile (still my favourite Hammer movie), and then of course she went on to enduring fame as Servalan, one of SF TV's most ruthless & memorable villains.'

BAFTA-nominated author James Swallow shared a memory, saying: 'Many years ago, I met Jacqueline Pearce in an elevator; she swept in and I was instantly shocked silent at the sight of one of sci-fi TV's greatest super-villains sharing a lift with me.

'She favored me with an imperial smile & said 'Yes, darling. I get that a lot.'

Former Labour MP William Bain joined the tributes, saying: 'Really sad news. Over 10m people watched Blake's 7 at its peak & Jacqueline Pearce as Servalan was big part of its appeal. RIP Supreme Empress.'

Admirers of Jacqueline Pearce and fans of the science fiction series Blake's 7 took to Twitter to pay tribute to the actress

Blake's 7 star Jacqueline Pearce (pictured in 1978) has died at the age of 74 shortly after being diagnosed with lung cancer, her friend John Ainsworth has said

The actress, pictured in 1967, was a star of the show Blake's 7 and also featured in Doctor Who

Jacqueline Pearce and actor Richard Hansell pictured together in September 1994

Actress Jacqueline Pearce is pictured in 1966 in a promotional photo for The Avengers in which she played Marianne

The actress pictured left at the London Film and Comic Convention in 2005 and right at the Birmingham NEC in 2012

A publicity shot of Jacqueline Pearce from 1972. That year she starred in the TV series New Scotland Yard

The actress in 1980, while she was playing her most famous role as the Supreme Commander in the series Blake's 7
WARNING: GRAPHIC CONTENT

A seven-year-old girl is in hospital on an IV drip after a spider bite on her arm appeared to cause her skin to be 'eaten away.'

Jaime Anderson, 41, from South Ockendon, Essex, became worried after spotting a bite on her daughter Bella's arm when she came home from a sleepover.

After several desperate trips to the hospital, surgeons identified the bite was in fact from a false widow spider, known for their nasty venom.

'She doesn't actually remember where she got it from,' Ms Anderson said.

'When the kids get bites from mosquitoes they get a reaction, so when I first saw it I thought I'd wait and see how it goes.

'But it just got worse and worse, so on the Monday I took her to the hospital.'

A seven-year-old girl is in hospital on an IV drip after a spider bite on her arm appeared to cause her skin to be 'eaten away' (pictured)

Initially the nurses at the hospital didn't seem to recognise it as a false widow spider bite, Ms Anderson explained.

She said: 'They sent me away. I think they didn't recognise it, it's not their fault but I want to make people more aware.'

After being turned away twice, the bite on Bella's arm continued to get worse and started leaking pus.

'It got progressively worse again. It started to leak puss and the skin looked like it was being eaten away.

'It was about the size of a 50p piece originally, but it became bigger.

'We were sent to Broomfield Hospital to see a surgeon who immediately recognised it as a false widow spider bite.

'He had been bitten really badly on his leg in the past, and they had also treated a little girl before who had been bitten by a one.'

The bite looked so bad that Ms Anderson said even the nurses at the hospital were shocked by its appearance.

Jaime Anderson, pictured with husband Trevor and daughters Bella (front) and Laurena, became worried after spotting a bite on her daughter Bella's arm when she came home from a sleepover

'Two different nurses on two different days looked shocked when they saw it, I think one called it 'manky',' she said.

'It was quite nerve-wracking for me, seeing their faces and their reactions.'

Although the bite looks painful and unpleasant, Bella hasn't appeared to suffer any pain or discomfort.

'She's been fine, it hasn't itched or bothered her and there hasn't been any pain,' she said.

'I think mummy and daddy have been more worried about it, because it looks so bad.'

Originally it was thought that Bella would need surgery to clean the bite, however due to her improvement after being put on antibiotics that is no longer the case.

'They were going to operate as of yesterday to open up the wound and clean it out, but she's had three lots of antibiotics and this morning they have said it is OK.

'I was dreading her having to go under, so I'm over the moon that she doesn't.'

Ms Anderson was told by the surgeon that the false widow spiders are being found across Essex.

She said: 'The surgeon said they have come over in bananas from the Canaries and are now populating Essex.

'We get spiders around the house, but we never saw this one. I don't normally kill spiders, but unfortunately now I will stamp any that look bad.'

WHAT IS THE FALSE WIDOW SPIDER AND WHAT TO DO IF YOU GET BITTEN False widow spiders are distinctive for their shiny, black flesh, bulbous bodies, thick legs and skull-like patterns. Millions of false widows, Britain's most venomous spider, have been found across the UK and the population is believed to be growing. The species has a brown bulbous abdomen with cream markings that look like a skull. They have long legs and can reach about 15mm in size. Also known as steatoda nobilis, the spider is frequently confused for the black widow, which has deadly venom. The false widow was first spotted in the UK in Torquay, Devon, in 1879, and it is understood that it may have made its way to these shores from Madeira or the Canary Islands in a shipment of bananas. The Natural History Museum says that warmer summers mean the spider is spreading northwards through the UK, having been found mainly in southern England. False widow spiders are distinctive for their shiny, black flesh, bulbous bodies, thick legs and skull-like patterns IF YOU GET BITTEN... The first thing you should do is wash the area thoroughly with soap and water to prevent infection - and don't scratch, as if you break the skin there's more chance for bacteria to get in. Cover bites with a plaster and apply an antihistamine sting cream to calm any inflammation or itching, says Stuart Hine, from the Natural History Museum's identification and advisory service. Any redness, pain or swelling should subside after three days. Be alert to potential signs of infection, such as weeping blisters or painful swelling, that continue to get worse after a few days. If this happens, seek advice from your GP. Advertisement

Bella is on the mend, she doesn't need surgery and is expected to be put on a course of antibiotics once she leaves hospital.

She will even be able to make the first day back at school on Wednesday.

'She's been on an IV drip and will have to stay on antibiotics when she leaves.

'She goes back to school on Wednesday, but she should be fine. I'll just have to go in at lunch time so she can take her antibiotics.'

Ms Anderson believes that they are very lucky and that if they had left the bite much later it would have been a lot worse.

'We were lucky, if we had left it any longer it would have been a lot worse,' she said.

'I posted a message and pictures to Facebook because I wanted to raise awareness of it. If you get a bite you can't leave it, you have to see a doctor.'
A woman has appeared in court charged with making explosives at the home she shared with her boyfriend.

Natalie Parsons, 51, appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court in London on Monday afternoon after police reportedly found explosives at her property.

Police allegedly made the discovery at her home in Archer Crescent, Ely, Cardiff, when officers raided the property on Wednesday.

Natalie Parsons, 51, appearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court, London, where she faces two counts of making or possessing an explosive substance with intent to endanger life

Parsons is accused of two counts of making or possessing an explosive substance with intent to endanger life, and four counts of possession of terrorist documents.

She appeared in court today wearing a grey jumper and flanked in the dock by three officials, was remanded in custody.

She confirmed her name, address, date of birth and British nationality during the 25-minute hearing.

Counter-terror police said there was no evidence of a specific terrorist threat against the Welsh capital.

Her partner, Edward John Harris, 27, appeared in court on Saturday charged in connection with the same incident. The pair are due before the Old Bailey on September 27.

Police forensic officers enter a property in Cardiff, Wales, where Edward John Harris and his girlfriend lived




A man has been arrested for jumping the security fences around the Houses of Parliament - just weeks after the latest terror attack.

He was detained by four officers just a few metres from the main entrance to the building at about 5.40pm on Monday.

After around 10 minutes sitting on the ground with his hands cuffed behind his back, the intruder was brought to his feet by officers.

Armed police outside Parliament where a man was detained for jumping over the fence

Once re-cuffed with his hands in front, he was led to a red plastic crash barrier set up by workmen near the Elizabeth Tower, the home of Big Ben.

One officer guarding the intruder was seen holding a pair of large white headphones thought to belong to the man.

The intruder was described as white and bald. He was wearing dark glasses, jeans, trainers and a camouflage jacket, the Mirror reported.

The incident is not being treated as terror-related, Met police said.

House of Commons and Palace of Westminster pictured next to Thames river in London (stock photo)

A spokesman for the force said: 'At approximately 5.40pm police arrested a man at the Palace of Westminster for trespassing. He remains in police custody.

'It is not being treated as terror-related.'

Police and security staff are reportedly looking through cameras on the Parliamentary Estate near New Palace Yard.

The incident comes as Salih Khater, 29, is accused of attempted murder after he allegedly drove a car at Parliament on August 14.

The Sudanese-born suspect, who is a British citizen, allegedly drove his vehicle into pedestrians and cyclists before swerving towards police officers.
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A young beauty queen has become the first hijab-wearing contestant to reach the finals of a prestigious pageant.

Sara Iftekhar, from Huddersfield is battling it out on the catwalk as she hopes to become the first Muslim Miss England.

The 20-year-old law student is the only contestant competing in a hijab at Kelham Hall, in Nottinghamshire, today.

The Muslim student, who often shares pictures of herself wearing Pakistani fashion to her thousands of followers on Instagram, said she 'can't even comprehend' how 'amazing it is' to have reached the competition's finals.

Sara Iftekhar won Miss Huddersfield 2018. She hopes to go on to compete in Miss World in China by winning Miss England. She is wearing an ocean rescue themed dress

Sara Iftekhar, the current Miss Huddersfield 2018 is pictured with Stephanie Hill, the current Miss England 2017 and Kelly Levell

Sara is up against Alissa King Underwood who was crowned Miss Cambridgeshire 2018 (left) and Olivia Green, Miss Skegness 2018

Sara Iftekhar, from Huddersfield hopes to take the Miss England crown at Kelham Hall, in Nottinghamshire next week

Sharing a selfie with a trophy in July, she said on Instagram: 'Wowwwwwww!!!! I cant even comprehend how amazing it felt for my name to be announced as a finalist in the Miss England Finals 2018! Alhamdullilah.

'It was an incredible experience and something which I will never be able to forget. The opportunities which I have received with being a finalist in Miss England are opportunities which I would never have thought of and will forever be grateful for'

The University of Huddersfield student, who started her own business aged 16, is also using her publicity she's gained from the competition to fundraise for Beauty with a Purpose.

Sara Iftekhar said she was 'amazed she had got so far in the competition and was setting her sights on winning in the Miss England final

The charity raises money to help unprivileged children around the world, and helps with things such as the Cleft Palate Teams in South America, Sri Lanka and Russia, displaced children in Vietnam and those affected by natural disasters.

Writing on her GoFundMe page she said: 'I participated in Miss 2018 in order to to show that beauty doesn't have a definition, everyone is beautiful in their own ways, regardless of their weight, race, colour or shape.'

Sara will face fierce competition from 49 other beauty queens in Tuesday final. If she wins, she'll go to Sanya in China to represent England at Miss World.

Contestants focused on the scourge of plastic in the world's oceans at the 2018 Miss England competition in Nottinghamshire

Contestants in Eco Wear for the 2018 Miss England competition which is focusing on plastic in the oceans

Those going up against Sara include Chloe Rose Adkin Miss Sherwood Forest 2018 (left) and Elli Wilson Miss Wirral 2018

Katerina Christo Miss Colchester 2018 (left) and Neha Dhull Miss Kent 2018 are also hoping to be crowned Miss England

A total of 50 girls are in the final in England. The winner will represent the country at Miss World in Sanya China in November and December (pictured Charley White, Miss Northamptonshire 2018 and Annabella Stanyer, Miss Stoke on Trent 2018)

The Muslim student, who often shares pictures of Pakistani fashion to her thousands of followers on Instagram, said she 'can't even comprehend' how amazing it is to have reached the competition's finals.

She said on Instagram: My Miss England journey has been so so amazing and an experience which I never thought i would be part of.

'I still feel honoured to be one of the amazing girls in the top 50 chosen out of 22,000 women.

'I just cant wait to see where this journey takes me.

Miss England finals: Miss Lincolnshire, Miss Leicestershire, Miss Bournemouth and Miss Manchester take part in laser clay shooting
The shackled woman who was sexually abused and fled her house at 3am, frantically ringing her neighbors' doorbells, has defended her boyfriend.

Dennis Ray Collins, 49, was identified as the 32-year-old woman's partner.

He shot himself to death after a video of the woman - who was only wearing bondage shackles on her wrists and a T-shirt - ringing the doorbell went viral.

Despite the traumatizing experience, the woman said she forgave Collins and still has love for him.

The shackled woman who was sexually abused and fled her house at 3am, frantically ringing her neighbors' doorbells, has defended her boyfriend

Dennis Ray Collins, 49, was identified as the 32-year-old woman's partner. He shot himself to death after a video of the woman ringing her neighbor's doorbell went viral

'Dennis, I believe in my heart, that's not who he truly is, so it hurts me to see him bashed online,' she told KTRK.

'It is truly difficult to understand the duality that exists within each of us. People would like to paint Dennis or myself as entirely good or entirely evil, light or dark, every human has both of these inside.'

'It is hard to understand how someone who treated me with such kindness is the person I saw that night.'

The woman, whose name has not been released, said Collins accepted the 'dark parts' of her.

'I can be selfish,' she said. 'I have done things most would be ashamed of and I had a dependence on a substance because of a serious injury.'

'I forgave Dennis long before he was gone, and love him. I know he too forgave and loved me.'

Despite the traumatizing experience, the woman said she forgave Collins for what he did to her and still has love for him

The woman, who had just fled the Montgomery, Texas home she shared with Collins when she was captured on camera, said she was 'scared at the time'

A security camera captured the moment the woman frantically rang her neighbor's doorbell in Montgomery, Texas two weeks ago.

The woman, who had just fled the home she shared with Collins, said she was 'scared at the time'.

She rang multiple doorbells, but no one answered. She then tried to flag down people who drove by, but no one stopped to help.

The woman then returned to the home and found that Collins wasn't inside.

But she said her boyfriend followed her as she drove to Dallas to be with her family because she was 'having anxiety issues'.

The woman spoke with Collins after she left Montgomery and said there was no sign he was going to commit suicide.

His last text was: 'Give my mom a hug and be happy'.

Collins was arrested and convicted of second degree attempted sexual assault in Houston, Texas, in 2000. He pleaded guilty and was given five years probation

Collins shot himself at this house, which he shared with the woman. He was identified after his ex-wife saw the security camera footage of the woman online

Collins was identified after his ex-wife saw the footage of the woman online and called police.

'She was adamant it was the girlfriend in the video,' said Montgomery County Sheriff's Department Lt Scott Spencer. 'She had met her before.'

The ex was worried because Collins had texted her threatening suicide. Spencer said it was clear that he was upset by the video that had circulated widely online.

Officers met the woman at Collins' three-bedroom, single-story home on Sunrise Pines Drive.

They had to force their way in and found him dead in a back bedroom with a single gunshot wound to his chest. A handgun was found nearby.

Law enforcement surrounded the house where Collins took his own life on Wednesday

Authorities said Collins admitted to his crimes in a suicide note he left behind.

Collins had previously pleaded guilty to second-degree attempted sexual assault, a felony, in 2000 and was given five years probation.

If Collins was still alive, authorities said he would have faced serious charges including kidnapping, unlawful restraint, and sexual assault.

But the woman remains adamant that Collins was a good person.

'Dennis, I believe in my heart, that's not who he truly is,' she said. 'So it hurts me to see him bashed online.'

Jennie Drude's home security camera (pictured) captured the chilling video of the woman

The woman only became aware of the viral security footage on Wednesday, revealing she had just 'wanted to block out the world' when she returned to Dallas.

She also initially had no idea that numerous families had called authorities after the video went viral, hoping she may be their missing loved one.

'That hurt my heart,' she said. 'I wish that I could hug each of them and somehow help them to heal.'

The woman said she was also 'touched' to find out how many people around the world were worried about her, and said it gave her 'strength'.

'It would be easy to have resentment in our minds and hearts, but fear, hatred, and shame only create more fear, hatred, and shame,' she concluded.

'Love is the only thing in this world to create light where there was none. I hope that in this transforming time in society we are able to choose love more often.'
This is the moment a British grandmother was thrown off a banana boat when it flipped over flinging holidaymakers into the sea.

Janice Bowles, 58, from Bristol, died after she was reportedly trapped underneath the inflatable while on a Thomas Cook holiday in Egypt.

Her family have said they are 'broken inside' following her tragic death in Hurghada on August 28.

She died just one week after fellow British tourists John and Susan Cooper died at the nearby five-star Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel.

This is the moment a British grandmother was thrown off a banana boat in Egypt last week

Janice Bowles died after was reportedly trapped underneath the inflatable on August 28

Janice Bowles' (pictured at the resort during her holiday) family have said they are 'broken inside' following her tragic death in Hurghada

Mr Bowles daughter, Annmarie Cox wrote in a Facebook tribute to her mother: 'I am broken inside and don't know how to get my head around it. It is such a devastating shock to the whole family.

'It is with the heaviest heart that I am having to write this status.

'Unfortunately whilst my mum Janice Bowles was on holiday in Egypt, there was an accident and she sadly passed away.

'She was the funniest, kindest, most loving mother i know and if i can aspire to be half the woman she is i know ill do my girls proud.

'I love you momma and can't believe I'll never hear your voice or get to make you p*** yourself laughing.

'Sleep tight you beautiful angel xxxxxxxx visit me often please momma xxxxxxxxx.'

A family member at the home in Bristol declined to comment.

Today the family of Mrs Bowles, who died in front of her daughter, released a picture of the grandmother on her doomed holiday.

She died just a week after two fellow British tourists died suddenly at the five-star Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel

Mrs Bowles was reportedly trapped after the boat it flipped and threw all riders into the sea. Stock picture

Janice Bowles, 58, died after becoming trapped under a banana boat in Hurghada on August 28

One British holidaymaker, an ex-army veteran, who was on board at the time said the boat flipped after the speedboat pulling it along 'bombed out' on the water, The Sun reported.

The incident took place a week after fellow British tourists John and Susan Cooper died suddenly at the five-star Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel.

The group had been on a dolphin-watching tour just before the tragic accident.

The man told the Sun: 'I could hear the woman's daughter wailing, as she knew that there was something seriously wrong with her mum.

'They got the lady back on an they were doing chest compressions, but at no point were there any breaths given.

'I'm screaming at them 'open her airways' but they pushed me back.'

Thomas Cook have suspended the dolphin-watching tour the group were on while they investigate.

A Thomas Cook spokesman told the Sun: 'We can confirm that one of our customers sadly died last week while on an excursion in Egypt.

Mrs Bowles died off the coast of Hurghada (pictured) after becoming trapped under the inflatable when it flipped over on August 28

Mrs Bowles died a week after fellow British tourists John and Susan Cooper died at the resort

'We would like to offer our sincere condolences to the family, and our welfare team continue to do all they can to support them at this time.

'We are urgently investigating what happened.'

A Foreign Office spokesman said: 'Our staff are assisting the family of a British woman who has died in Hurghada.'

Mr and Mrs Cooper stayed next to a room that had been fumigated just hours before, raising fears they may have been poisoned by toxic gases.

Pest controllers sprayed chemicals into the room on August 20, the day before Susan and John Cooper died.

The couple's daughter Kelly Ormerod reported a strange smell in her parents' room at the five-star hotel at the Red Sea resort of Hurghada in the hours before they died. Kelly's daughter had intended to stay the night with her grandparents but returned to her mother's room due to the odour.
Texas woman Kelly Coltrain, 27, died on July 22, 2017 after three days in Nevada prison

A Texas woman died after three days in a Nevada jail because she was refused medical help as she was going through heroin withdrawal.

Now her family is suing the Mineral County Sheriff's Office for failing to provide her with the medical attention she begged for.

Kelly Coltrain, 27, was in Mineral County jail in Hawthorne when she suffered convulsions and died on July 22, 2017.

Coltrain was living in Texas but was arrested after she was caught speeding while visiting Rendo, Nevada for a family reunion.

Because she failed to take care of previous traffic violations, she was booked into jail where she initially refused to answer questions about her medical history and family.

When she realized she couldn't make bail, she admitted she was dependent on drugs and had a history of seizures during withdrawal, according to the Reno Gazette Journal.

But her family says that the Sergeant Jim Holland didn't follow a jail policy that requires inmates with history of seizures to be cleared by a doctor prior to incarceration. Jailers also failed to monitor her vitals after she told them she was going through withdrawal.

Harrowing photos of her cell inside the rural prison shows Coltrain's conditioning worsening and displays her mopping up her own vomit in the hours before her death.

She was arrested for speeding on July 19 and jailed for failing to take care of previous traffic violations. She told officers she was dependent on drugs and suffers seizures when she goes through withdrawal, pictured in her vomit-covered cell at Mineral County Jail

As she was detoxing from heroin she fell ill, vomited all over her cell, and barely ate. She pleaded for medical help and was denied

On July 22, the day of her death, Sergeant Jim Holland brought her a mop and told her to clean up the mess

Hours later she suffered convulsions and died around 6.30pm. Her body was found six hours later by Deputy Ray Gulcynski who reported her dead, but didn't call paramedics

Four hours after she was jailed on July 19, she told the night deputy she needed to go the hospital immediately for her medication.

But prison policy says that jailers have to deem inmates 'at risk' in order to receive medical attention.

'Unfortunately, since you're DT'ing (referring to the detoxification process), I'm not going to take you over to the hospital right now just to get your fix,' Deputy Ray Gulcynski told Coltrain, according to the investigation report.

'That's not the way detention works, unfortunately. You are incarcerated with us, so  you don't get to go to the hospital when you want. When we feel that your life is at risk then you will go,' he added.

Then 72 hours later she began to vomit, convulse, and shake. She didn't eat, barely drank water, and remained under her bed covers.

By 5pm on July 22, Sergeant Holland convinced her to eat a few bites and gave her new clothes to replace her sullied uniform. He brought a mop and asked her to clean up her vomit on the floor, pointing out spots she missed, then leaves with the mop.

Surveillance footage shows she couldn't even stand to mop her room, and cleaned from her seated position in bed.

Less than an hour later Coltrain started to violently convulse until she stopped moving at 6.26pm.

Six hours later at 12.30am Officer Gulcynski arrives to move her to a different cell and realizes she's dead.

He reported her dead yet no one called for paramedics, despite the prison being located across the street from a hospital, just a two-minute walk away.

The lawsuit says that sheriff's office had no policy on what to do upon discovering an unresponsive inmate.

Coltrain's body was left locked in the cell until a forensic technician arrived at 5.48am to investigate.

The details of her shocking death was revealed in a 300-page report compiled by state investigators and released this week.

She died here at Mineral Couty Jail in Hawthorne, Nevada, which is across the street from a hospital

The family of Coltrain (right) filed a wrongful death lawsuit on Wednesday to compensate damages and to rally for better conditions in the prison

The Washoe County Medical Examiner said her death was accidental. A toxicology report showed she had heroin in her system and died of 'complications of drug use'.

Investigators found that Coltrain's jailers violated multiple policies such as denying her medical care after she told them she was drug dependent and suffers seizures.

But following the investigation, Lyon County District Attorney Stephen Rye declined to press charges in the case.

'The review of the case, in our opinion, did not establish any willful or malicious acts by jail staff that would justify the filing of charges under the requirements of the statute,' Rye said.

'Based on my review, they did not notice any signs warranting any medical intervention based on their training or experience,' he added.

Mineral County Jail's lawyer says that Deputy Gulcynski was disciplined and Sergeant Holland opted to retire early in a buy-out deal with the Mineral County Commission.

The District Attorney's decision to not press charges spurred a new lawsuit filed on Wednesday to compensate damages and to rally for better conditions in the prison.

Coltrain's mother, father and grandmother filed a wrongful death suit, accusing the sheriff's office of ignoring her 'life-threatening medical condition' despite knowing about her seizures and withdrawal.

'(Jail staff) knew Kelly Coltrain had lain for days at the jail, in bed, buried beneath blankets, vomiting multiple times, refusing meals, trembling, shaking, and rarely moving. Defendants knew Kelly Coltrain was in medical distress,' their lawyers Terri Keyser-Cooper and Kerry Doyle say in lawsuit, adding the case is 'the worst I have ever seen'.

'Kelly Coltrains medical condition was treatable and her death preventable. If Ms. Coltrain had received timely and appropriate medical care, she would not have died. Kelly Coltrain suffered a protracted, extensive, painful, unnecessary death as a result of defendants failures,' they added.

The lawsuit described her as a 'successful student and a friendly outgoing girl' and said she developed a drug addiction and suffered depression following a knee injury as a teenager.

Mineral County Sheriff Randy Adams said he's already working to improve and update the jail's policies.

'Obviously it's terribly unfortunate and it's tragic. That's really all I can say,' he said to the Reno Gazette Journal.
A South Florida bride is completely devastated after a box containing her wedding dress was suddenly stolen from her home's doorsteps a week before she was set to travel to the Dominican Republic for her momentful day.

Now the saddened Dominican as no idea what she will do without the dress - that retails for $211 onJuneBridals.com - when she sets foot in her native land next week for a day she's been waiting to celebrate with friends and family.

On Friday, a heartbroken Massiel Rodriguez told Miami ABC affiliate WPLG that she had recently installed a surveillance camera system at her home in West Park last week.

Massiel Rodriguez had planned to have her wedding pictures taken in the Dominican Republic next week but a box containing her dress was stolen last week

Massiel Rodriguez shared the video of the thief stealing a box containing her wedding dress

Massiel had even scheduled a photography session to capture her extravagant day.

She believes it could be the same man that made off with a package containing dog food from the entrance to the home last Friday.

In the video, the man wearing an oversized straw hat walks up to Rodriguez's house in the middle of the day and reaches for the package containing her special dress, before running off.

Massiel Rodriguez has been is distraught after a thief stole her wedding dress that retails for $211 on JuneBridals.com

Rodriguez choked up and fought to hold back her tears as she described her stolen wardrobe piece meant to commemorate her upcoming special date .

'It's a long-sleeve, backless, see-through beautiful dress that he stole, and I have going to my home country, Dominican Republic, next week,' she said.

A thief walks up to Massiel Rodriguez's home, possibly for the second time in a week, to steal a package that had the bride's wedding dress

A South Florida thief bends over and reaches for a package that had a future bride's wedding dress
Prisoner John Clifford, pictured, who is unlawfully at large

A manhunt has been launched for a convicted child killer who is unlawfully at large after failing to return from prison.

John Clifford, 56, was out on day release from Burren House on the Crumlin Road in Belfast, Northern Ireland, a satellite of Maghaberry Prison.

Officials confirmed that the convicted murderer didnt return to custody on Sunday evening after an appointment.

Clifford was originally jailed in 1989 for murdering his niece Sue Ellen, reported Belfast Telegraph.

He raped and strangled the eight-year-old before deserting her on a railway line in 1988.

Clifford was freed in 2005 but breached the terms of his probation and was jailed once more in 2007.

He is described as being 5 foot 7 inches tall with green eyes and fair hair. He was last seen using 'a distinctive three-wheel mobility scooter'.

Inspector Paul Noble said, 'We have initiated enquiries to locate John Clifford. He is described as being 1.75m tall with green eyes and fair hair.

'He is of medium build with a fresh complexion.

John Clifford, 56, was out on day release from Burren House on the Crumlin Road (pictured) in Belfast, Northern Ireland , a satellite of Maghaberry Prison

'When last seen he was wearing a black beanie style hat, heavy black coat, grey trousers and black dress shoes.

He was last seen using a distinctive three-wheel mobility scooter bearing the registration plate EXZ4974.'

He continued: 'Members of the public or anyone with information about his whereabouts should contact us immediately on 101.'

A spokesperson for the Northern Ireland Prison Service said: 'The Prison Service is investigating the circumstances surrounding the abscondment of John Clifford.

'At this time we are focused on returning him to custody and we would ask anyone with information to contact the PSNI immediately.'
Two adorable baby kangaroos were spotted enjoying the sun and sand at an Alabama beach this weekend.

The joeys, aged six and seven months old, were spotted hopping about on Dauphin Island on Sunday, to the delight of Labor Day weekend beach goers.

Local Jane Covel Walton shared snaps of the two exotic animals curiously playing in the sand.

Two baby kangaroos enjoyed their first beach trip ever at Dauphin Island in Alabama on Sunday

The joeys, aged six months and seven months old, played in the sand and sun for the first time

The furry creatures live in Louisiana and were visiting for the weekend with their owner

'Yes those are baby kangaroos, six and seven months old. A lady from Baton Rouge raises them and this was their first trip to the beach to experience the sand and water,' Walton wrote on Facebook.

'They arrived on the beach on leashes and wearing diapers and then Val took them off their leashes so they could hop around in the sand,' she added.

Her post has already racked up 2,600 likes as fans ask questions about the furry creatures.

'They were super gentle and friendly. She gets them used to people so that she can travel to schools with them,' she said on the joeys' caretaker.

'She said they love to cuddle and she had them in a bag around her neck when she first came out with diapers on,' Walton added.

Local Jane Covel Walton shared pictures of the baby kangaroos on Facebook where they've racked up 2,600 likes

Walton, above, said the baby kangaroos arrived on the beach on a leash and wearing diapers

Fun in the sun: The baby kangaroos carefully hopped about the beach under the watchful eye of their owner

Vacation mode: A curious kangaroo digs in the sand while the other looks at the shore line
Dangerous prisoners were able to contact victims from their cells because of lax prison security, a damning report has revealed.

Inspectors said inmates were left in a position where they could get in touch with vulnerable individuals by phone calls and letters.

Watchdogs warned of serious failings at HMP High Down, a Category B jail. Security was so poor that staff were failing to place restrictions on who inmates were allowed to write to or call.

Concerns were raised at the prospect of terrified victims and witnesses being intimidated by prisoners from behind bars  potentially leading to crooks walking free. At least one high-risk prisoner contacted a vulnerable person in the community. It is not known how many others did the same.

Watchdogs have warned of serious failings at HMP High Down, a Category B jail in Banstead, Surrey (pictured)

Under the current rules, prison officers are meant to assess the need for inmates letters and calls to be monitored. If there is a risk to anyone in the community, restrictions are placed on who a prisoner can contact.

During a visit to High Down in Banstead, Surrey, in May, HM Inspectorate of Prisons found the system had collapsed. The report said: Public protection work was significantly undermined by the lack of assessment for mail and telephone monitoring, and this presented an unacceptable risk.

It added: Some prisoners who presented a risk to people in the community did not have restrictions applied, enabling them to contact victims or potential victims without the fear of being detected.

One high-risk prisoner who should have had his letters monitored had been missed over recent weeks and there was evidence of him regularly contacting a vulnerable person in the community.

Liberal Democrat Sir Ed Davey said: One alarming implication is that this thuggish intimidation might potentially lead to guilty criminals walking free: Ministers have got to get a grip.

Michael Spurr, of the Prison and Probation Service, said High Down had been give a significant influx of new staff and this would help ensure all public protection work is done to a high standard.
The Florida man who was charged with manslaughter after killing an unarmed black man over a handicapped parking spot said he has no regrets about what he did.

Michael Drejka, 48, has become the center of the state's newest high-profile 'Stand Your Ground' case after gunning down Markeis McGlockton, 28, in July.

McGlockton was shot to death in front of his girlfriend and children outside the Circle A convenience store in Clearwater.

Drejka, who is currently behind bars, said he has had 'plenty of time to think' about the shooting but still would not do anything different if he could turn back time.

Scroll down for video

Michael Drejka said he has no regrets about shooting Markeis McGlockton, 28, over a handicapped parking spot. Drejka is currently in prison facing manslaughter charges

Drejka, 48, has become the center of the state's newest high-profile 'Stand Your Ground' case after gunning down McGlockton (right) in July

'As far as changing anything, events, I don't see - no, not off the top of my head,' he told WTSP in an interview from prison.

'I followed the law the way I felt the law was supposed to be followed. I cleared every hurdle that the law had to put in front of me.'

Brittany Jacobs, McGlockton's girlfriend, was sitting in the couple's car with their three-year-old and four-month-old child when she was confronted by Drejka.

McGlockton, meanwhile, was inside the convenience store with the couple's five-year-old son, also named Markeis.

Jacobs said Drejka confronted her for being parked in the handicapped-accessible space and told her to move the 'f*****g car'.

Security footage showed McGlockton leaving the store and, seeing the argument, shoving Drejka to the ground.

Drejka, who is currently behind bars, said he has had 'plenty of time to think' about the shooting but still would not do anything different if he could turn back time

Drejka said he's spent his 'whole life' looking 'for a handicapped parking spot' for his late high school sweetheart and, more recently, his mother-in-law and calls it a 'hotbed' issue for him

Seconds later, Drejka pulls a handgun and shoots McGlockton as he backs away.

McGlockton then runs back into the store clutching his chest. Witnesses said he collapsed in front of young Markeis, who was waiting inside.

Drejka said that he's spent his 'whole life' looking 'for a handicapped parking spot' for his late high school sweetheart and, more recently, his mother-in-law.

'It's always been a hotbed for me, always touched a nerve with me,' he said. 'The parking spots, the way they're used and abused.'

Drejka said he doesn't 'usually confront people about it' and claims that was the case with McGlockton, despite the fact that footage shows him walking up to Jacobs' car and confronting her over the spot.

Drejka is pictured here during his first appearance at the Pinellas Courthouse in Clearwater, Florida, from the county jail via video

'I did not confront anyone,' he said. 'I was confronted and I answered.'

Drejka also claims McGlockton 'tackled' him to the ground and that it felt like 'someone hit me from behind with something'.

The footage clearly shows the 28-year-old pushing Drejka in the chest, not the back.

Drejka claims he was 'stunned' by the push and that he was 'very scared'.

'I didn't know what was coming for me and there's only one way to look at that,' he said. 'You have to be scared for it, cause if you'e not, you're wrong. And that's that.'

'So yeah, I was very scared. I've never been confronted like that. I'm not a physical person to begin with, I don't wrestle with people, I don't push and shove my friends.'

'There's none of that that goes on in my life, so I'm a very hands-off person.'

Drejka said he felt 'vindicated' when Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri refused to arrest him and said he was protected by the state's Stand Your Ground law.

But after protests from McGlockton's family and civil rights group, the State Attorney reviewed the case and decided to pursue charges against Drejka.

Drejka, who was arrested on August 13 for the July 19 shooting, maintains that he is not a racist and not a violent or confrontational person.

But Drejka has threatened three other drivers in the past few years, even pointing a gun at them, according to Pinellas County Sheriff's Detective George Moffett.

McGlockton's girlfriend Brittany Jacobs and father Michael McGlockton were on hand for Drejka's first court appearance. Drejka and Jacobs got into a fight before he shot McGlockton

McGlockton (left, standing) was shot dead by Drejka (kneeling) outside a store following a dispute about the parking spot

Three months before the fatal July incident, Drejka allegedly threatened to shoot Richard Kelly, a black septic truck driver.

He also allegedly hurled the N-word at Kelly when the driver parked in the same handicapped-accessible parking space as McGlockton, CNN reported.

Kelly drove away, but his boss told Moffett that Drejka later called and told him 'he was lucky he didn't blow his employee's head off.'

Drejka told WTSP that the claim was 'false' and he 'wouldn't have used that word'.

'He had the name of his company on the side of his truck and he was an easy target for my pet peeve that day so why would I mess that up by throwing that word in?' he said.

Moffet also said that in 2012, drivers involved in two separate road-rage confrontations with Drejka said he pointed a gun at them.

The detective said that. in one of the cases, 18-year-old Tyler Smith was driving in front of Drejka's truck when he stopped at a yellow light.

This enraged Drejka, who allegedly displayed a gun to the teenager and later followed him. Smith declined to press charges.

In another incident that year, a woman told police that Drejka pointed a gun at her and the occupants of her car.

Sheriff Bob Gualtieri (pictured) recently stood by his decision not to arrest Drejka, saying the man was defending himself and had claimed he was in fear for his life

When police interviewed the suspect, Drejka denied pointing a gun at the other vehicle, but said he honked at the motorist because she was driving too slow through a school zone.

In November 2013, Drejka was again interviewed by police in connection to a road-rage incident in which he was accused of deliberately causing another vehicle carrying two children to rear-end his truck.

Drejka claimed he missed a turn, but the trooper who responded to the scene said it did not appear like the motorist had attempted to turn before the crash. Drejka was cited for stopping or sudden decrease in speed without signaling.

McGlockton's videotaped shooting revived debate over Florida's Stand Your Ground law.

Under the law, people are allowed to use deadly force if they believe they are in imminent danger of death or great bodily harm and have no obligation to retreat.

Michael McGlockton recently said he believes his son would still be alive if the law didn't exist.

McGlockton's family has spoken out against Stand Your Ground and said their loved one would still be alive if the law didn't exist

'No law should be able to protect somebody to the point that they kill somebody on the street and they can lay in the bed the same night,' he said.

'To me and my family, that's a slap in the face. [Drejka] would've thought twice before he pulled the trigger. With the law, he knew that he could hide behind that.'

'He didn't have to pull that trigger. But because of Stand Your Ground, this is what happens.'

Michael McGlockton said it is his son who was defending himself and his family against a threat.

'Every man raises his kid to be that ultimate man for his family,' he said.

'That's exactly what he was doing, standing up for his family. I'm so proud of him because he did exactly what I taught him to do.'
Gene Gotti, the brother of legendary New York crime boss, John Gotti, may be released from prison this month following his 29-year sentence for heroin trafficking.

In 1989, Gene Gotti was ordered behind bars for 50 years at the Federal Correctional Institution in Louisiana for running a multi-million dollar heroin distribution ring.

According to the New York Daily News, Gene is set to be released on September 15.

Gene Gotti (pictured), the brother of legendary New York crime boss, John Gotti, may be released from prison this month following his 29-year sentence for heroin trafficking

Gene (left) and John (right), who died in 2002, were also cleared in a 1987 federal racketeering case where a juror was bribed

A few years before he was sentenced FBI bugs captured Gene, 71, discussing his family's dealings in drugs and hiding illegal cash.

Those recordings led to the apprehension of Gene and some of his mob associates in 1983.

Two years later, his brother, Teflon Don John Gotti, climbed the ranks and took over after ordering the December 16, 1985, mob assassination of predecessor 'Big Paul' Castellano.

According to the Daily News, the hit was Dapper Don's attempt to save his brother's life.

John Gotti, who was known for his perfectly tailored suits and flawless hair, evaded charge upon charge for alleged involvement in mafia activity while cultivating an image that was like something out of central casting during his reign at the head of the Gambino crime family.

He was a doting father, a proud Italian-American and a criminal who lived in plain sight, structuring his life by not only the mafia code of omerta but by the insistence that he would never hide who he was.

Gene (right), 71, a few years before he was sentenced, FBI bugs captured him discussing his family's dealings in drugs and hiding illegal cash

Gene and John, who died in 2002, were also cleared in a 1987 federal racketeering case where a juror was bribed.

Angel Gotti, Gene's niece and John's daughter, told the newspaper: 'My uncle has been away 29 years so I'm sure he will be spending all his time with his wife, kids and grandchildren.'



Hollywood star John Travolta recently took on the role of John Gotti in the movie 'Gotti'.

The film grossed $4.3million and received a rare score of 0 per cent on Rotten Tomatoes.
Donald Trump invited Obama-era Secretary of State John Kerry to challenge him in 2020 a day after the Democrat declined, when asked in an interview, to rule out another Oval Office bid.

'I see that John Kerry, the father of the now terminated Iran deal, is thinking of running for President. I should only be so lucky - although the field that is currently assembling looks really good - FOR ME!' Trump wrote.

Kerry said in an interview that aired Sunday on CBS that it's 'a total distraction and waste of time' to talk about the election that's two years away and that he's 'not really thinking about it.'

But he also told 'Face the Nation' that Trump is 'dishonest' and 'doesn't know what he's talking about.

John Kerry said in an interview that aired Sunday on CBS that it's 'a total distraction and waste of time' to talk about 2020 and that he's 'not really thinking about it,' yet didn't explicitly rule out a run

Donald Trump invited the Obama-era Secretary of State John Kerry to challenge him in 2020 in a Labor Day tweet

Trump (seen here Thursday in Indiana) blames Kerry personally for entering into an international nuclear pact with Iran and other countries on behalf United States that the Republican president has said is one of the worst deals to ever come across his desk

Trump blames Kerry personally for entering into an international nuclear pact with Iran and other countries on behalf United States that the Republican president has said is one of the worst deals to ever come across his desk.

He's said that Kerry should have 'walked away' when Tehran wouldn't abide by the terms presented by the U.S.

Trump has also mocked the ex-diplomat for falling prey to a bicycle accident during one of his trips abroad to negotiate.

'John Kerry  not the best negotiator we've ever seen. He never walked away from the table except to be in that bicycle race where he fell and broke his leg. That was the only time. I said, "Don't tell him you broke your leg. Just stay inside. Say you don't want to negotiate. You'll make a much better deal,' Trump said this year at the National Rifle Association's annual conference.

In a CBS interview this Sunday, Kerry fought back. 'I did walk away. And we almost walked away on two or three other occasions where we thought it was necessary,' he said.

'So he really, unfortunately, and I say this sadly- you know, more often than not he really just doesn't know what he's talking about. He makes things up, and he's making that up as he has other things,' Kerry added.

Kerry said in the Sunday show appearance that he resisted slapping back at Trump on Twitter at the time of the disparaging comments because he believes Americans can determine the truth without him injecting his two cents.

'I think America and our democracy are more thoughtful than dishonest tweets,' he said.

Trump was not the only president to be targeted by Kerry in the interview, in which the ex-senator reflected on his time as America's chief diplomat and his failed presidential bid in 2004 while ramping up for a book tour.

Kerry said in the interview that CBS taped weeks ago, and suggested it held in the wake of John McCain's death, that he believes former President Barack Obama should have enforced his 'red line' warning to Syria.

The former Obama administration official said he believes the United States 'paid a price' for its inaction.

Kerry said he thought Obama was going to launch a missile strike in Syria in 2013 after the country's dictator, Bashar al-Assad, used attacked his own citizens with chemical weapons.

A year before, after all, Obama had said the use of chemical weapons would be a 'red line' that would be a 'game changer' for U.S. involvement in Syria.

'I thought we were going to go forward. I thought that weekend was the weekend. I expected the phone call to be telling me that he had decided we were striking that night or whatever was going to happen, and it wasn't,' Kerry said on 'Face the Nation.'

He recalled: 'I put several ideas on the table. The president was not persuaded by my argument. I believed that we had several options we could have done at very low risk to be able to make it clear to Assad that when we had a ceasefire and when he said he was going to live by it, he had to live by it. And I thought we should have done that.'

Kerry said he believes the U.S. 'paid a price' because Obama did not stand by his threat.

'But we got the chemical weapons out, which was the objective,' he added.

Kerry wrote about Obama's inaction in his book 'Everyday is Extra.' He says he doesn't agree with how the former president handled the pivotal moment, but he doesn't think it was a 'weak' point for Obama.

'I don't think it's fair in terms of the president "being weak" because the president took a lot of very tough positions and did a lot of things that evidence strength and that showed a president who had a very clear moral compass as well as very clear, a very clear set of values and principles by which he knew he could protect our country,' Kerry said on 'Face the Nation.'

Kerry also said in the interview that he thought Barack Obama was going to launch a missile strike in Syria in 2013 after the country's dictator, Bashar al-Assad, used attacked his own citizens with chemical weapons

In 2012, Obama warned Syria that if it used chemical weapons that would be a 'red line' and that would be a 'game changer' for U.S. involvement in Syria, then declined to act

Kerry said he believes that Trump was right to bomb Syria following Assad's continued use of weapons - but disagrees with his one-time strike last April.

'I don't support just a one-off where you drop a few bombs and there's no follow-up diplomacy and no additional effort to try to use the leverage you get out of doing that,' he argued. 'I thought that the president should have done that, President Trump should have done that.'

He went on to criticize Trump for his approach to Tehran in the interview, claiming it was 'common sense' for the nuclear agreement that Trump pulled out of to continue.

Of his own efforts to save the deal, which included huddling overseas with world leaders whose countries were also party to the pact, Kerry said he violated no rules with the behind the scenes efforts and rebuffed claims that he attempted to undermine Trump.

'I didn't negotiate. I spoke out, and I will always exercise my right to speak out,' he stated.
Joshua Garcia was charged with murder after his 19-year-old girlfriend Erin Castro was found lying on a road in San Antonio, Texas in the early hours of Sunday morning

A 20-year-old man has been arrested for killing his girlfriend after he allegedly stabbed her and repeatedly ran over her with his car while she was on the phone to her mother.

Joshua Garcia was charged with murder after his 19-year-old girlfriend Erin Castro was found lying on a road in San Antonio, Texas in the early hours of Sunday morning.

The victim had frantically called her mother to tell her Garcia had stabbed her in the neck and was refusing to let her out of his car after they had a fight.

Castro's mother quickly called 911 and authorities were able to trace the teenager's phone to an area near Interstate 10.

The victim's mother stayed on the phone with her daughter until medics arrived.

Garcia's brother told investigators he witnessed the crime after his brother asked him to drive to the location because he was having trouble with Castro, according to court documents obtained by KENS5.

The victim had frantically called her mother to tell her Garcia had stabbed her in the neck and was refusing to let her out of his car after they had a fight in an area near Interstate 10

Castro was found dumped by the side of the road by EMTs with what they described as catastrophic injuries over her entire body

He said he saw his brother and his girlfriend arguing outside the car before Garcia ran over Castro. He then allegedly put the car into reverse and ran over her again.

Garcia then allegedly got out of the car and kicked his girlfriend's injured body.

Police said Garcia and his brother then left Castro's body and drove home.

Garcia had claimed that Castro assaulted him when he was driving.

He told police he was scared of what would happen if Castro called authorities.

Castro was found by EMTs with what they described as catastrophic injuries over her entire body.

She died at the scene.

Garcia is charged with murder and remains in prison without bond.
Monica Lewinsky cut short a live interview and walked off stage when she was asked by an Israeli broadcaster if she expected a personal apology from former President Bill Clinton.

Lewinsky had just given a speech about cyberbullying at the Jerusalem Convention Center in Israel on Monday evening.

After her remarks, the former White House intern sat down for an interview with Yonit Levi, a well-known news anchor in Israel.

Recently in an interview on NBC News, former President Clinton was rather irate when he was asked if he'd apologized to you personally and he said, I apologized publicly.

Do you still expect that apology? A personal apology? Levi asked Lewinsky.

Lewinsky immediately answered: I'm so sorry. I'm not going to be able to do this.

She then stood up and walked across the stage. Levi followed a few steps behind.

.@MonicaLewinsky walking out abruptly on @LeviYonit (chief anchor at @NewsChannelIL ) few seconds into her on stage live Interview after being asked: do you still expect a personal apology from Pres. Clinton. Sorry, i cant do this. pic.twitter.com/ZN3BiGViwF  Tal Schneider     (@talschneider) September 3, 2018

Monica Lewinsky (left) cut short a live interview and walked off stage when she was asked by an Israeli broadcaster if she expected a personal apology from former President Bill Clinton. She is seen above with Israeli journalist Yonit Levi (right)

After Levi asked Lewinsky if she expects an apology from Clinton, she immediately answered: I'm so sorry. I'm not going to be able to do this'

She then stood up and walked across the stage. Levi followed a few steps behind

Lewinsky later posted a message on Twitter explaining her abrupt exit from the stage

Lewinsky later posted a message on Twitter explaining her abrupt exit from the stage.

After a talk today on the perils and positives of the Internet, there was to be a 15 minute conversation to follow up on the subject of my speech (not a news interview), Lewinsky wrote.

There were clear parameters about what we would be discussing and what we would not.

In fact, the exact question the interviewer asked first, she had put to me when we met the day prior.

I said that was off limits.

When she asked me it on stage, with blatant disregard for our agreement, it became clear to me I had been misled.

I left because it is more important than ever for women to stand up for themselves and not allow others to control their narrative.

To the audience: Im very sorry that this talk had to end this way.

In June, Clinton told NBC News he didnt believe he owed Lewinsky a personal apology. Clinton is seen above in Detroit during Aretha Franklin's funeral on Friday

Lewinsky, a native of Los Angeles, said that she was ostracized by the Jewish community in which she grew up after news of the affair broke

Israel's Channel 2, which hosted the event, released a statement thanking Lewinsky for her appearance while acknowledging that 'we respect her sensitivity and wish her luck.'

In June, Clinton told NBC News he didnt believe he owed Lewinsky a personal apology.

'I do not  I have never talked to her. But I did say publicly on more than one occasion that I was sorry,' Clinton told NBC.

'I apologized to everybody in the world,' Clinton said, implying that was enough.

The former president also said he, too, was a victim of the entire saga since he left the White House $16million in debt.

In her speech, Lewinsky talked about the public humiliation she suffered after it was revealed that she and Clinton had a sexual relationship, according to The Jerusalem Post.

'My strong sense of family is rooted in the cultural traditions of Judaism, but there have been periods of my life where my faith has been challenged,' she said.

Lewinsky, a native of Los Angeles, said that she was ostracized by the Jewish community in which she grew up after news of the affair broke.

I was shunned from almost every community which I belonged to, including my religious community.

That led to some very dark times for me.

In her speech on Monday, Lewinsky talked about the public humiliation she suffered after it was revealed that she and Clinton had a sexual relationship. Clinton and Lewinsky are seen above in the White House

She said that she sat in a hotel room in 1998 and kept thinking: I want to die.

There were moments for me when it seemed like suicide was the only way to end the pain and the ridicule, she said.

Lewinsky told the audience that unlike women during the #MeToo era, she was left alone without any public support during her ordeal.

I dont think I would have felt so isolated if what happened in 1998 happened in 2018, she said.

By and large I had been alone. Publicly alone.

Abandoned most by the main figure in this crisis, who knew me well and intimately.

Lewinsky said that although she didnt know it at the time, she was subjected to cyberbulling, online harassment and slut shaming.

After years of relative silence, Lewinsky re-emerged in public to become an advocate for combating online harassment and bullying.

I am in awe of the sheer courage and bravery of the women and men who have stood up and begun to confront the entrenched beliefs and institutions, she said.

Part of what has allowed me to shift [into public life], is knowing Im not alone anymore.
Steve Bannon blasted gutless New Yorker editor David Remnick for bowing to pressure from big-name celebrities by cancelling the former Trump aides appearance at an upcoming festival.

The reason for my acceptance was simple: I would be facing one of the most fearless journalists of his generation, Bannon told The New York Times on Monday.

In what I would call a defining moment, David Remnick showed he was gutless when confronted by the howling online mob.

Bannon told the Times that he was in Venice when he received a phone call from Remnick on Monday.

The editor informed Bannon, who was in Italy for a screening of a documentary about him, that he was no longer invited to appear at the event.

Steve Bannon blasted gutless New Yorker editor David Remnick for bowing to pressure from big-name celebrities by cancelling the former Trump aides appearance at an upcoming festival

The New Yorker rescinded its invitation to the controversial former White House strategist to its festival after stars like Jim Carrey, Jimmy Fallon, Judd Apatow, John Mulaney, and Patton Oswalt said they were pulling out in protest.

After the initial invite to the controversial Bannon caused an uproar, Remnick told staff members on Monday that he is canceling the former Breitbart chiefs appearance.

I dont want well-meaning readers and staff members to think that Ive ignored their concerns, Remnick told New Yorker staff members.

After the initial invite to the controversial Bannon caused an uproar, David Remnick, the magazines editor, told staff members on Monday that he is canceling the former Breitbart chiefs appearance

Ive thought this through and talked to colleagues - and Ive re-considered.

Ive changed my mind. There is a better way to do this.

Remnicks comments to staff were tweeted by New Yorker reporter Philip Gourevitch.

Our writers have interviewed Steve Bannon for The New Yorker before, and if the opportunity presents itself Ill interview him in a more traditionally journalistic setting as we first discussed, and not on stage, Remnick told staff members.

Jim Carrey tweeted on Monday: 'Bannon? And me? On the same program? Could never happen.'

The former Donald Trump aide was supposed to be a featured guest during a prestigious gathering that over the years has drawn some of the worlds most prominent artists.

Bannon, who espouses far-right views, has been accused of being a white nationalist and racist.

'I'm out,' Tonight Show host Fallon tweeted on Monday in response to a New York Times link to its story about Bannon's invitation.

Oswalt tweeted: 'Im out. Sorry, @NewYorker. See if Milo Yiannopoulos is free?'

'I'm out,' Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon tweeted on Monday in response to a New York Times link to its story about Bannon's invitation

Yiannopoulos is a former editor for Breitbart who has made offensive comments about gays, Blacks, and others.

He has also been barred from Twitter for attacking comedian Leslie Jones and had a book deal for his autobiography canceled after comments of his surfaced in which he expressed support for pedophilia.

Carrey tweeted on Monday: 'Bannon? And me? On the same program? Could never happen.'

Mulaney, the star comedian, tweeted on Monday: 'Im out.

'This is PT Barnum level horse***t,' comedian John Mulaney tweeted on Monday

'I genuinely support public intellectual debate, and have paid to see people speak with whom I strongly disagree.

'But this isnt James Baldwin vs William F Buckley.

'This is PT Barnum level horse***t. And it was announced on a weekend just before tix went on sale.'

Apatow, the comedian and filmmaker whose credits include hits like Bridesmaids and The 40-Year-Old Virgin, also posted a scathing message on Twitter saying he would not attend the festival.

'If Steve Bannon is at the New Yorker festival I am out,' Apatow tweeted.

'I will not take part in an event that normalizes hate. I hope the @NewYorker will do the right thing and cancel the Steve Bannon event.

'Maybe they should read their own reporting about his ideology.'

Judd Apatow, the comedian and filmmaker whose credits include hits like Bridesmaids and The 40-Year-Old Virgin, also posted a scathing message on Twitter saying he would not attend the festival

After the magazine announced it was disinviting Bannon, Apatow hailed the decision

After the magazine announced it was disinviting Bannon, Apatow hailed the decision.

'That is very good news,' Apatow tweeted on Monday.

'There is no reason to have a hateful person at this festival. Thank you New Yorker for listening and making an adjustment.'

Remnick (above) told the magazine's staff on Monday that he had changed his mind about Bannon after the fierce reaction

Remnick told The Associated Press in a statement shared Monday with the magazine's staff that he had changed his mind.

Bannon was supposed to be a featured guest during a prestigious gathering that over the years has drawn some of the world's most prominent artists and public figures.

This year's guests include Emily Blunt, Zadie Smith and Sally Yates, who Trump fired as deputy attorney general after she refused to back his initial ban on travelers from Muslim countries.

The ban was advocated by Bannon, a senior White House adviser at the time.

Remnick also acknowledged that festival guests, unlike those interviewed on radio or for a print story, are paid an honorarium, along with money for travel and lodging.

The New Yorker's announcement on Bannon was also denounced by Roxane Gay, Jessica Valenti and many others.

Kathryn Schulz was among the New Yorker staff writers who tweeted that they had informed Remnick directly about their objections.

In explaining his initial decision, Remnick wrote Monday that Bannon was well aware of their political differences.

Meanwhile, Bannon is scheduled to appear Sept. 15 at The Economists 'Open Future' festival in New York City. British writer Laurie Penny tweeted Monday that she 'cannot in good conscience appear at an event which chooses to dignify a neo-nationalist like Steve Bannon'

'The point of an interview, a rigorous interview, particularly in a case like this, is to put pressure on the views of the person being questioned.'

'There's no illusion here,' he wrote.

'It's obvious that no matter how tough the questioning, Bannon is not going to burst into tears and change his view of the world.

'He believes he is right and that his ideological opponents are mere "snowflakes."

'The question is whether an interview has value in terms of fact, argument, or even exposure, whether it has value to a reader or an audience.'

Meanwhile, Bannon is scheduled to appear Sept. 15 at The Economists 'Open Future' festival in New York City.

According to The Economist, festival attendees will 'discuss the most urgent issues of our time and remake the case for liberal values.'

At least one guest already plans to drop out.

British writer Laurie Penny tweeted Monday that she 'cannot in good conscience appear at an event which chooses to dignify a neo-nationalist like Steve Bannon.'

Erick Erickson, a conservative commentator, tweeted: 'I'm always surprised when I see liberal editors like Jeff Goldberg or David Remnick make controversial decisions. I am never surprised when I see them fold under pressure from their tribe.'

'I think maybe it's bad form to disinvite someone you say you worked for months to interview at length,' tweeted Kate Bennett of CNN

'It's OK to engage people you deeply disagree with,' Robert P. George tweeted

Chelsea Clinton tweeted: 'For anyone who wonders what normalization of bigotry looks like, please look no further than Steve Bannon being invited by both The New Yorker and The Economist to their respective events in New York City a few weeks apart'

The Bannon-New Yorker controversy was a hot topic for debate on social media on Monday.

Some commentators faulted The New Yorker for capitulating to pressure from critics and celebs.

'I think maybe it's bad form to disinvite someone you say you worked for months to interview at length,' tweeted Kate Bennett of CNN.

'If you found the subject viable for a long interview in your publication, on your radio program, at your festival - changing that because celebrities have dropped out seems odd.'

Robert P. George tweeted: 'Disinviting Bannon under pressure speaks poorly for Remnick and the New Yorker and its followers.

'During the campaign, after I said Donald Trump was morally unfit to be President, I went on Bannon's radio show and debated him.

'It's OK to engage people you deeply disagree with.'

Erick Erickson, a conservative commentator, tweeted: 'I'm always surprised when I see liberal editors like Jeff Goldberg or David Remnick make controversial decisions.

'I am never surprised when I see them fold under pressure from their tribe.'

Others supported the decision to disinvite Bannon, who never should have been invited in the first place, according to critics.

Chelsea Clinton tweeted: 'For anyone who wonders what normalization of bigotry looks like, please look no further than Steve Bannon being invited by both The New Yorker and The Economist to their respective events in New York City a few weeks apart.'
Africa has been a target for more economically developed nations for centuries thanks to its wealth of natural resources and enormous landmass.

The 'Scramble for Africa', a frantic period of colonisation, occurred during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.

Beginning with the Berlin Conference in 1884, European nations vied for strategic superiority on the continent by invading as fast as they could.

Britain and France quickly became the two main players in the race to conquer the continent.

British lancers charging at Omdurman in 1898 as British troops took over Sudan in the Mahdist war

A map of colonial Africa on the eve of World War I. By this time, European powers controlled 90 per cent of the continent

France seized most of West and northern Africa, with British enclaves carved out in Nigeria and Egypt.

While Britain's influence spanned from the Mediterranean to the Cape in South Africa with the acquisition of Sudan, Kenya and Tanzania.

Other powers at play included Belgium, which took a large landmass known as the Belgian Congo in the center of the continent, and Germany which had colonies in the east and west.

Britain fought several costly wars to ensure predominance in the continent, including the famous Anglo-Zulu war of 1879.

With the development of the machine gun, among other military innovations, colonizing powers were easily able to take over.

In a single day's battle for Sudan, 10,800 Sudanese were killed, compared with 48 British soldiers.

British rule in Africa continued for over a hundred years, mostly by using 'indirect' puppet governments to put down rebellions.

Abyssinian infantry scramble for the cover as Italian war planes attack in the Ogaden region of Ethiopia during a bitter war in 1935

Meanwhile industrialists like Cecil Rhodes mined Africa for its precious natural resources and expanded the boundaries of the empire.

After a long period of European rule, however, many African nations started clamoring for independence at the dawn of the twentieth century.

Following the example of India in 1947, several of Britain's most valuable colonial possessions split from the empire in the 1950s and 1960s.

The last African nation to gain its independence from Britain was Zimbabwe in 1980.

The era since decolonisation took place has been characterised by turbulence in many African countries.

Particularly in South Africa where 'apartheid' was in place until as late as the early 1990s.

Figures like Nelson Mandela were instrumental in leading the continent into a new age.

But many African nations remain plagued by corruption and snowed under by enormous foreign debt repayments.
Wildfires in the U.S. have charred more than 10,000 square miles so far this year, an area larger than the state of Maryland, with large fires still burning in every Western state including many that are not fully contained.

Whether sparked by lightning or humans, fire has long been a force shaping the landscape of the U.S. West.

Hot, dry winds can whip flames into firestorms that leave behind charred wastelands prone to erosion and mudslides.

FILE - In this Aug. 2, 2018, file photo, a tower of smoke pours from Cow Mountain as Burney, Calif., firefighter Bob May keeps a watch on surrounding vegetation for spot fires during the River wildfire near Lakeport, Calif. Wildfires that have long shaped the landscape of the U.S. West are getting bigger and burning longer - bringing more choking smoke, deadly mudslides and habitat loss.

THE HEAT RECORDS BEING BROKEN AROUND THE GLOBE So far this month, at least 118 of these all-time heat records have been set or tied across the globe, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Japan hit 106 degrees on Monday, its hottest temperature ever. Records fell in parts of Massachusetts, Maine, Wyoming, Colorado, Oregon, New Mexico and Texas. And then there's crazy heat in Europe, where normally chill Norway, Sweden and Finland all saw temperatures they have never seen before on any date, pushing past 90 degrees. Advertisement

Other fires clear out underbrush, open the forest floor to sunlight and stimulate growth.

Government agencies in recent decades effectively upended that cycle of destruction and rebirth.

Fire suppression policies allowed fuels to build up in many Western forests, making them more susceptible to major fires.

Those influences are magnified as development creeps ever deeper into forests and climate change brings hotter temperatures.

Recent images of subdivisions ablaze thrust the power and ecological role of wildfires into the spotlight.

Most immediately fire brings destruction.

Temperatures from extreme fires can top 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit - hot enough to kill all plant life, incinerate seeds hidden beneath the surface and bake the soil until it becomes impervious to rain.

The lifeless landscape becomes prone to severe erosion, fouling streams and rivers with silt that kills fish and other aquatic life.

Torrents of muddy debris following fires last year in Southern California killed 21 people and destroyed 129 homes.

This NASA satellite image posted Aug. 20, 2018 shows several of the larger wildfires in both Oregon, top, and California

U.S. Geological Survey scientists say the problem is getting worse as the area burned annually by wildfires increases.

A study last year concluded sediment from erosion following fires would more than double by 2050 for about a third of western watersheds.

Smoke from this summer's Western wildfires - a potential health hazard for at-risk individuals - prompted the closure of Yosemite National Park for more than two weeks and drifted to the East Coast , according to NASA.

Recent research says it also impacts climate change as small particles spiral into the upper atmosphere and interfere with the sun's rays.

This Jan. 8, 2018, file photo shows standing rain water pools where a Fountaingrove neighborhood home once stood in Santa Rosa, Calif. Wildfires that have long shaped the landscape of the U.S. West are getting bigger and burning longer - bringing more choking smoke, deadly mudslides and habitat loss.

CLIMATE QUESTIONS

Scientists broadly agree wildfires are getting bigger in North America and other parts of the world as the climate warms.

But still emerging is how that change will alter the natural progression of fire and regrowth.

The time interval between wildfires in some locations is getting shorter, even as there's less moisture to help trees regrow.

That means some forests burn, then never grow back, converting instead into shrub land more adapted to frequent fire, said Jonathan Thompson, a senior ecologist at Harvard University.

'They get stuck in this trap of repeated, high-severity fire,' Thompson said.

'Through time we'll see the California shrub land shifting north.'

Similar shifts are being observed in Colorado, Wyoming's Yellowstone National Park and Glacier National Park in Montana, he said.

The relationship between climate and fire cuts both ways.

A longer fire season and bigger fires in the boreal forests of Alaska and Canada are burning not just trees but also tundra and organic matter in soils, which hold roughly a third of the Earth's terrestrial carbon, said David Peterson, a former U.S. Forest Service research scientist.

The carbon enters the atmosphere and contributes to higher temperatures, leading to bigger fires that release yet more carbon.

This Aug. 3, 2018, photo by European Space Agency astronaut Alexander Gerst aboard the International Space Station, provided by NASA, shows smoke from California's Carr and Ferguson fires blowing eastward across the western United States

BIRD IN THE BALANCE

Life and property still top the list of priorities for firefighters, but in recent years another asset has been deemed worth extra protection in many Western states: a chicken-sized bird known as the greater sage grouse.

Fires burned an estimated 3,240 square miles (8,390 square kilometers) of the bird's sage bush habitat in 2017 and have burned almost 2,400 square miles (6,215 square kilometers) so far in 2018.

When sage brush burns, it's often replaced with a plant from Europe called cheatgrass, which crowds out native plants and is more prone to burning.

That's challenging government efforts to keep greater sage grouse off the endangered species list, which could restrict economic development.

Areas considered crucial to the bird's survival now get extra attention: A military-type Blackhawk helicopter is under government contract to deploy quick-reaction teams to snuff out sage brush fires in portions of Idaho, Nevada, Utah and Oregon.

In this Sunday, July 15, 2018, file photo, flames from the Ferguson fire burn down a hillside in unincorporated Mariposa County Calif., near Yosemite National Park.

REGENERATION

A turning point in public understanding of the ecological importance of fire came in 1988 , when 1,240 square miles (3,200 square kilometers) of Yellowstone National Park burned.

The devastation, punctuated by images of wildlife fleeing flames, fed into the perception of wildfires as a menace to be battled.

The events drew criticism of the park's 'let it burn' policy.

Officials didn't immediately squelch lightning-caused fires that June because they did not pose an immediate threat to life or property, but eventually ended up deploying 10,000 firefighters.

This Dec. 7, 2017 photo by NASA astronaut Randy Bresnik from the International Space Station shows smoke from California wildfires.

By that fall, seedlings already were emerging in some burned out areas.

Park biologist Roy Renkin recalls a visitor reacting with surprise a decade later when he told her a thick stand of young trees emerging from a burned area had come back on their own.

Lodgepole pines are commonly cited as an example of forest resiliency. The fire's heat releases seeds from the pine's cones.

Several species of woodpeckers thrive on insects attracted to fire-killed trees.

A plant called fireweed is specially adapted to take root in fire-damaged soils, multiplying rapidly and forming carpets of pink petals against a blackened backdrop.

'It's isn't all death and destruction,' Renkin said.

'These forests have evolved with fire.'
Scientists are on the hunt for a 'dark force' of nature that, if found, would open the door to an invisible realm of the universe.

The team hope to uncover a new fundamental force that connects ordinary matter with the elusive dark sector - invisible matter that makes up most of the cosmos.

If successful, the find would fill in substantial holes in our understanding of the universe, making it one of the most dramatic discoveries in the history of physics.

Our best guess at the make-up of the cosmos explains only 4 per cent of the observable universe, with the rest filled in by dark matter and dark energy.

Dark matter and dark energy are among the most perplexing materials in the cosmos, and could explain the movement of stars and the expansion of the universe.

But while this so-called dark sector forms a significant portion of the known universe, scientists have never directly observed it.

Researchers hope finding a new force that connects the dark sector with ordinary matter will finally reveal what dark matter and energy are made of - if they exist at all.

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Using a new instrument in Rome, scientists will begin a hunt this month for a fifth fundamental force of nature. It is hoped that this theoretical force, which connects ordinary matter with the so-called dark sector, will answer key questions about dark matter (artist's impression)

'At the moment, we don't know what more than 90 per cent of the universe is made of,' Dr Mauro Raggi, a scientist at Sapienza University in Rome, which is leading the project, told the Guardian.

'If we find this force it will completely change the paradigm we have now.

'It would open up a new world and help us to understand the particles and forces that compose the dark sector.'

Researchers will turn on an instrument at Italy's National Institute of Nuclear Physics in Rome this month in search of a fifth fundamental force.

The four basic forces physicists know of include the electromagnetic force and gravity, as well as the strong force - which holds atoms together - and the weak force, which is involved in radiation.

It is believed that a fifth force control dark matter and dark energy, and may exert subtle effects on the other four forces that scientists currently struggle to explain.

Our best guess at the make-up of the cosmos explains only 4 per cent of the observable universe, with the rest filled in by dark matter and dark energy (artist's impression)

Dark matter: The mysterious substance that makes up 85% of the universe that scientists cannot confirm Dark matter is a hypothetical substance said to make up roughly 85 per cent of the universe. The enigmatic material is invisible because it does not reflect light, and has never been directly observed by scientists. Astronomers know it to be out there because of its gravitational effects on known matter. The European Space Agency says: 'Shine a torch in a completely dark room, and you will see only what the torch illuminates. Dark matter is a hypothetical substance said to make up roughly 27 per cent of the universe. It is thought to be the gravitational 'glue' that holds the galaxies together (artist's impression) 'That does not mean that the room around you does not exist. 'Similarly we know dark matter exists but have never observed it directly.' The material is thought to be the gravitational 'glue' that holds the galaxies together. Calculations show that many galaxies would be torn apart instead of rotating if they weren't held together by a large amount of dark matter. Just five per cent the observable universe consists of known matter such as atoms and subatomic particles. Advertisement

The Positron Annihilation into Dark Matter Experiment, or Padme for short, will record what happens when antimatter particles called positrons are fired into a fragment of diamond just a tenth of a millimetre thick.

When positrons hit the diamond, they merge with its electrons, releasing two particles of light called photons in a burst of energy.

If the theorised dark force exists, then instead of producing two visible photons, the experiment will only release one regular light particle.

The other will be a so-called dark photon that is invisible to the experiment's instruments.

This hypothetical particle is the dark sector's equivalent to a photon, and will be measured by comparing the energy and direction of photons fired in, with whatever comes out.

By measuring the energy of dark photons, scientists can figure out their mass, which the scientists predict is around 50 times that of an electron.

Knowing the mass of the dark photon, if it exists, would allow scientists to figure out what particles it breaks down into, providing a first look at the dark sector.

Other laboratories around the world are also looking for dark photons. Bryan McKinnon, a research fellow at Glasgow University, is involved in the search for the particle at the Thomas Jefferson national accelerator facility in Virginia.

'The dark photon, if it exists, is effectively a portal,' said Glasgow University research fellow Dr Bryan McKinnon, who is not involved in the research.

'It lets us peer into the dark sector to see what is happening. It won't open the floodgates, but it will allow us to have a little look.'
Facebook should face new laws over its deliberate failure to protect children, according to the social media giant's ex-operations manager.

Sandy Parakilas, who worked at the firm between 2011 and 2012, said Facebook's content and product design was driven by algorithms that maximised the number of users, irrespective of whether it caused addiction, or promoted inflammatory, disturbing or threatening material.

The company repeatedly ignored his warnings about the way it handled the data and health of younger users, he told the Telegraph.

This 'deliberate failure' allowed for the spread of problems such as social media addiction, anxiety or depression.

The prominent Facebook critic argues that a duty of care to users must be imposed on tech firms to protect people from the harms of social media.

New laws that force companies to safeguard the personal data, safety and mental health of users are needed to ensure people's safety, he said.

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Sandy Parakilas (pictured left) has said Facebook is run like a personality cult centred around CEO Mark Zuckerburg (pictured right). He argues new laws must be put in place to ensure big tech firms have a 'duty of care' to users

He claimed the company was run like a 'personality cult' centred around CEO Mark Zuckerberg, with no dissent or constructive internal criticism of policies.

'Businesses have a duty to do certain kinds of things,' Mr Parakilas said.

'While any law might not regulate at a hyper-specific feature level, you can say that companies have a duty not to addict their users.

'Where a company takes explicit steps that violate that duty, there should be some punishment.'

Mr Parakilas is now chief strategy officer at the Center for Humane Technology, a group of former Silicon Insiders aiming to change our relationship with technology.

Sandy Parakilas, who worked with the company from 2011 to 2012, said Facebook repeatedly ignored his warnings over misuse of the personal data of younger users (stock image)

WHAT DO WE KNOW ABOUT FACEBOOK WHISTLEBLOWER SANDY PARAKILAS? Sandy Parakilas worked as Facebook's operations manager at its Menlo Park campus in California between 2011 and 2012. He has since become a prominent critic of the social media site, and says he will continue until it does more to protect elections. The whistleblower warned in late 2017 that Facebook could not be trusted to regulate itself. He described the company as a 'living, breathing crime scene' for its role in the 2016 election. Following the Cambridge Analytica scandal in March, Mr Parakilas said CEO Mark Zuckerberg knew the potential for such a breach as far back as 2010. He gave evidence to Congress, UK MPs and MEPs in Brussels during investigations of the scandal. Mr Parakilas has claimed Facebook repeatedly ignored his warnings over misuse of the personal data of younger users. He is now chief strategy officer at the Center for Humane Technology, a group of former Silicon Insiders aiming to change our relationship with technology. Advertisement

He has repeatedly spoken out against the practices of Facebook, where he worked for two years at its Menlo Park headquarters in California.

Following the Cambridge Analytica scandal in March - in which it was revealed Facebook shared the data of 87 million users with a British political consultancy firm - Mr Parakilas claimed the company could have avoided the controversy.

He told MPs that CEO Mark Zuckerberg would have known about concerns of data breaches at Facebook as early as 2010, in which 'highly personal' data on its users was handed over to app developers.

But once the information was handed over the company had no way of keeping track of it - meaning it could be harvested and used by firms like Cambridge Analytica.

Mr Parakilas said he gave top executives a briefing on the dangers that data could be breached.

But Facebook effectively turned a blind eye to these concerns and did not carry out audits of where the data was going.

He said Facebook's obsession with growth but lax privacy controls was like the 'Wild West' of America.
A stunning 13th century tiled floor has been found 6.5 feet (two metres) below the current floor level at a medieval Abbey, in what has been described as a 'once-in-a-lifetime' discovery.

The vividly-coloured tiles, which have not been seen in 500 years, display the coats of arms of powerful Norman monarchs and barons.

They give a unique glimpse at what the interior of the grand Normal cathedral, which once stood on the site, would have looked like.

The 'amazing' discovery was made at Bath Abbey in Somerset  which was initially founded in the 10th century  as part of vital repair work to the Abbey's collapsing floor.

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A stunning 13th century tiled floor has been found two metres (6.5ft) below the current floor level at a medieval Abbey, in what has been described as a 'once-in-a-lifetime' discovery

The tiles were found during renovation work for Bath Abbey's Footprint project to install a new eco-friendly heating system by using Bath's unique hot springs as a source of energy.

Project director Charles Curnock said: 'Seeing these tiles is just amazing.

'We knew there was a floor down there but in a couple of places that we've done [and seen] already, there have been nothing of significance at all, just ordinary stone if that.

'We have been surprised and thrilled by the beautiful medieval tiles that Wessex Archaeology have just found as they dig down through the different layers of history below the floor.'

Cai Mason, senior project officer for Wessex Archaeology, which is excavating the site, said that for archaeologists involved it is 'a once-in-a-lifetime find'.

'The trench in which the tiled floor was discovered was excavated during vital repair and stabilisation work to the abbey's collapsing floor', he said.

'The work is part of the 19.3 million ($25m) Heritage Lottery-supported Footprint Project which will also create new spaces and facilities for the community and install an eco-friendly heating system using Bath's famous thermal spring.'

The 700-year-old floor is currently being painstakingly recorded by the archaeologists.

The 'amazing' discovery was made at Bath Abbey in Somerset  which was initially founded in the 10th century  as part of vital repair work to the Abbey's collapsing floor

The tiles were found during renovation work for Bath Abbey's Footprint project to install a new eco-friendly heating system by using Bath's unique hot springs as a source of energy

WHAT HAVE ARCHAEOLOGISTS FOUND UNDER BATH ABBEY? A stunning 13th century tiled floor has been found 6.5 feet (two metres) below the current floor level at a Bath Abbey, in what has been described as a 'once-in-a-lifetime' discovery. The vividly-coloured tiles, which have not been seen in 500 years, display the coats of arms of powerful Norman monarchs and barons. They give a unique glimpse at what the interior of the grand Normal cathedral which once stood on the site would have looked like. The 'amazing' discovery was made at the abbey  which was initially founded in the 10th century  as part of vital repair work to the Abbey's collapsing floor. The 700-year-old floor is currently being painstakingly recorded by the archaeologists. The tiles will be preserved in situ; covered by a protective membrane and a layer of inert sand before the floor layers are built back up again to their present level. Experts have always known that before the current Gothic church was built there stood a Norman Cathedral and before that an Anglo-Saxon monastery. The three golden lions on a red shield is the coat of arms of the Plantagenet kings. The three red chevrons on a gold shield is the coat of arms of the de Clare family. This was composed of powerful Norman marcher barons who held the earldoms of Gloucester and Hertford as well as land in both Wales and Ireland. The family line came to an end when Gilbert de Clare, 8 Earl of Gloucester and cousin of Edward II, died at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. Advertisement

It will eventually form part of a 3D model encompassing all the excavations within the abbey.

The tiles will be preserved in situ; covered by a protective membrane and a layer of inert sand before the floor layers are built back up again to their present level.

Mr Curnock said: 'We have been surprised and thrilled by the beautiful medieval tiles that Wessex Archaeology have just found as they dig down through the different layers of history below the floor.

Experts have always known that before the current Gothic church was built there stood a Norman Cathedral and before that an Anglo-Saxon monastery.

'Lifting the pews and repairing the floor as part of the Footprint project is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity', Mr Curnock said.

'It will mean that we can maintain and make improvements to this beautiful building, and change how it can be used to better serve the city, visitors and future generations.

Experts have always known that before the current Gothic church was built there stood a Norman Cathedral and before that an Anglo-Saxon monastery

'However, a massive bonus is that it has allowed us to discover important parts of the heritage; things like these beautiful tiles which are being seen for the first time in centuries.'

Experts say that if it wasn't for the work carried out for the Footprint project they would have no idea they were here.

The floor is composed of exquisite tiles which are attributed to the Wessex School; a series of designs derived from tiles laid at Clarendon Palace, east of Salisbury.

Other examples of these tile designs are known from Bath, Wells, Bristol and Glastonbury.

The three golden lions on a red shield is the coat of arms of the Plantagenet kings.

The three red chevrons on a gold shield is the coat of arms of the de Clare family.

This was composed of powerful Norman marcher barons who held the earldoms of Gloucester and Hertford as well as land in both Wales and Ireland.

The family line came to an end when Gilbert de Clare, 8 Earl of Gloucester and cousin of Edward II, died at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314.
Labor Day is an annual celebration that is observed across the United States with parades, fireworks and trips to the beach and this year, the day has been marked in the Google Doodle for Monday, September 3, 2018.

Every year, Labor Day aims to honour the American worker in addition to their social and economic achievements, after the day was inaugurated in the late 19th century out of respect for the rights of the individual.

According to the US Department of Labor, the day constitutes a yearly national tribute to the contributions worker have made to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of our country.

The annual celebration of Labor Day has been marked in the Google Doodle for September 3

What is Labor Day?

Usually celebrated on the first Monday in September, there is some confusion about who was the first to propose the idea of Labor Day, as reported by The Independent.

While Peter McGuire, the General Secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and Vice President of the American Federation of Labor, is often credited with putting the idea forward in 1882, Matthew Maguire, machinist and Secretary of the Central Labor Union (CLU) in New York has also been declared an alternative source.

The first Labor Day was held on September 5, 1882 in New York City by the CLU and a street parade was also held in Union Square. Soon enough, other cities followed with Oregon becoming the first state to make it an official holiday in 1887.

By 1894, 34 US states had observed the date, which in turn, encouraged President Grover Cleveland to sign a bill into law that made the day into an official holiday. According to The Independent, this was timely because it coincided with the Pullman Strike.

The Pullman Strike came as a result of a dispute that saw 4,000 American Railway Union (ARU) workers employed at the Pullman Company plant on Chicagos South Side refuse to work after the company, that ran the local community, refused to let employees own homes.

After wages were cut and operatives were sacked, Pullman staff protested in a series of strikes between May 11 and July 20, 1894. Following this, Eugene V Debs, head of the ARU, stopped the movement of cars to railroads and a boycott of all trains that towed a Pullman carriage.

This resulted in all railway lines west of Detroit, Michigan, being affected with over 250,000 workers in 27 states protesting. However, after the company made no changes, riots erupted with 37 people being killed, 57 injured and $80 million of damage.

Labor Day 2018

Labor Day 2018 is being celebrated on Monday, September 3 - the day taking place on the first Monday of September every year.

Today, many associate the day with the end of summer and mark the holiday with barbecues, trips to the beach and other seasonal activities.

While Canada also marks the same occasion, the European equivalent is International Workers Day on May 1.

What is a Google Doodle?

A Google Doodle is a change to the homepage logo on the website which reflects a significant birthday, event, accomplishment or individual.

First introduced back in 1998 to celebrate Burning Man festival, Google Doodles were created by Google's co-founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page.

Later, a group of outside contractors created them and eventually, a special in-house team called Doodlers was established to create them more consistently

Recent Google Doodles have commemorated notable individuals like Leonard Bernstein, Ismat Chughtai and Prayoon Yomyiam.
AI powered listening posts are now protecting endangered elephants from poachers over an area of 580 square miles in Nouabale-Ndoki National Park in the Republic of Congo.

It means scientists can learn critical information about the elephants' habits and patterns in a fifth of the time they used to so park managers can be alerted about potential risks before it's too late.

They are doing this by creating sensors that can distinguish low-frequency, long-duration elephant calls from other rainforest sounds.

Before it took up to eight weeks to decipher the sound data but now these samples can be analysed in 22 days, and experts hope this could soon be done even faster.

Forest elephants are a distinct species from the more populous  although also endangered  savanna elephants.

Their vast range and the thick rainforest canopy make them extremely difficult to track by land or air.

The number of forest elephants in central Africa has plummeted from an estimated 100,000 in 2011 to fewer than 40,000 today.

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AI powered listening posts are now protecting endangered elephants from poachers over an area of 580 square miles in Nouabale-Ndoki National Park in the Republic of Congo

Scientists from Cornell University currently track elephants with acoustic sensors as part of their Elephant Listening Project (ELP).

However, the forests are so remote and the sound files so huge it takes months to collect and analyse the data  too long to rescue the animals from poachers or other threats.

For example in 2014, scientists learned 25,000 forest elephants had been slaughtered by ivory poachers in Gabon's Minkebe National Park.

Before anyone realised those elephants were in danger, they'd been wiped out.

Fifty sensors have now been installed throughout a 580-square-mile area of Nouabale-Ndoki National Park through a collaboration with an AI startup called Conservation Metrics.

They generate seven terabytes of data every three months  the equivalent of two million iTunes songs.

New developments in machine learning and deep neural networks make it possible to analyse these enormous files faster and with much higher accuracy.

This means scientists can alert park managers about red flags in less time.

Fifty sensors have been installed throughout a 580-square-mile area of Nouabale-Ndoki National Park. They generate seven terabytes of data every three months  the equivalent of two million iTunes songs

'A key thing this collaboration will do is speed things up, so we can show the people who manage the national park that we can provide information that will make a difference,' said Peter Wrege, director of the Elephant Listening Project, part of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

'If it takes us a year to figure out what elephants are doing in the forest, it's already too late.'

Using the data from acoustics, researchers can create maps showing the elephants' habits.

For example, a recent map revealed large numbers of elephants congregating in an area adjacent to a logging site and close to roads, making them highly vulnerable to poachers.

'What the Elephant Listening Project is doing in terms of working with collaborators on these sites in Africa is really impressive, but the logistics are really hard,' said Matthew McKown, CEO of Conservation Metrics, which recently received a two-year Microsoft AI for Earth grant for this work.

'It's a truly ambitious project, and it's the first time we're actually realising the potential of these automated monitoring approaches.'

New developments in machine learning and deep neural networks make it possible to analyse these enormous files faster and with much higher accuracy

ELEPHANTS ARE HIGHLY INTELLIGENT AND VERY SOCIAL WITH 'SOME HUMAN-LIKE PERSONALITY TRAITS' New research has proven that elephants' emotional characteristics are similar to those of humans. It turns out the animals have distinct personalities. They can be aggressive, attentive and outgoing. For the study scientists asked elephant riders, or mahouts, to answer questions about the behaviors of the animals they worked with each day. A new study has found that elephants, like humans, have distinct personalities. They can be aggressive, attentive and outgoing. Pictured is an elephant with its mahout, or rider, who the animal works with each day in Myanmar's timber industry Dr Martin Steltmann, who worked on the new report, explained how his team defined the traits that categorize elephants. He said: 'Attentiveness is related to how an elephant acts in and perceives its environment. 'Sociability describes how an elephant seeks closeness to other elephants and humans and how popular they are as social partners. 'Aggressiveness shows how aggressively an elephant acts towards other elephants and how much it interferes in their social interaction.' Dr Steltmann's team is hopeful the new research can aid in elephant conservation efforts. Advertisement

Part of the grant from Microsoft includes access to Azure, its powerful cloud server.

Once the team develops compatible software it could potentially complete the analysis using Azure in a single day.

Eventually, ELP and Conservation Metrics hope to create a way to run the artificial intelligence tools directly in the African forests; then the numbers of elephants in each area could simply be texted to the United States.

'It's years away, but if you look at the technology that is being developed for commercial purposes, it seems feasible, whereas a few years ago we would have just said it was a dream,' Mr McKown said.

Mr Wrege said his hope is that acoustic monitoring can become fast and effective enough for park managers in Africa to appreciate its value.

'Acoustics isn't going to stop the poaching, but I do think it offers maybe the only way we can get information regularly enough,' he said.

'It's daunting, but it's worth it, and it can be done. We just have to keep at it.'
The birth of the world's first test-tube lion cubs could mark an incredible breakthrough for saving highly endangered big cats, scientists say.

A lioness gave birth to two cubs in South Africa - a male and a female - created through artificial insemination.

The feat could offer hope for saving species like the tiger and the snow leopard who are threatened by extinction, researchers claim.

The birth of the world's first test-tube lion cubs could mark an incredible breakthrough for saving highly endangered big cats, scientists say. A lioness gave birth to two cubs in South Africa - a male and a female - created through artificial insemination

A team of experts at the University of Pretoria pioneered the research into in-vitro fertilisation (IVF) for big cats.

They harvested the sperm of a male lion, which was placed inside the lioness and she gave birth to two healthy cubs three and a half months later.

Both cubs, who were born at the Ukutulu Game Reserve and Conservation Centre, have been given a clean bill of health.

Professor Andre Ganswindt of the University of Pretoria Mammal Research Institute said: 'There are tremendous threats to wildlife due to the loss of habitat and other pressures created by human activities which also affect big cats.

'That is why a number of species are listed as vulnerable or endangered but this research could combat the threat of extinction facing several types of big cat around the world'.

The feat could offer hope for saving species like the tiger and the snow leopard, researchers claim. This image shows one of the cubs yawning

Professor Andre Ganswindt of the University of Pretoria Mammal Research Institute said: 'There are tremendous threats to wildlife due to the loss of habitat and other pressures created by human activities which also affect big cats'. This image shows the same cub as above

Both cubs, who were born at the Ukutulu Game Reserve and Conservation Centre, have been given a clean bill of health

The South African study examined artificial insemination protocols for the female African lion, but the research could be used as a baseline for other endangered large wild feline species.

Professor Ganswindt said this research was carried out as a pre-emptive measure to ensure techniques were developed before a big cat species was critically endangered.

He said: 'To have the opportunity to stabilise populations even with artificial breeding you have to have the necessary techniques well ahead of the time when it necessary.

'That is why you cannot develop these techniques on a critically endangered species.

'In South Africa we have a relatively stable lion population and that allows us to use lions as the forefront species to collect the knowledge for techniques to be used on endangered species'.

Experts harvested the sperm of a male lion, which was placed inside the lioness mother (pictured) and she gave birth to the two healthy cubs three and a half months later

This image shows the lioness having ultra sound scan. Dr Imke Luders (left) is part of the team from the University of Pretoria and Dr Isabela Callealta (right) had one of the lion cub 's named after her

The project's main researcher Dr Isabel Callealta said: 'The next step is to continue looking for the right protocols for the large feline species which is good news for endangered big cats.

'This was a world first for lions and now we start a journey and the idea is to improve or knowledge and understanding of the big cats and move the research quickly forward.

'The research will hopefully mean we can start working towards carrying out similar procedures on some of the much rarer big cats like the snow leopard and the tiger in the future'.

The owner of Ukutulu Game Reserve and Conservation Centre Willi Jacobs, 60, added: 'Lionesses have between one and four cubs and our lioness gave birth to two so that was very normal.

'They are both absolutely perfect cubs in every way and we decided to honour the researcher Isabella by naming the female cub after her and the male cub after her fiance Victor.

'When they are big enough they will be introduced to the other lions but that will be some time yet but meanwhile they are happy and healthy and playful and leading us a merry dance.

'This research although done on lions will benefit all the highly or critically endangered species in the world and will benefit so many types of big cat close to the danger of extinction'.

Ukutula, in conjunction with University of Pretoria and international researchers, established the conservation centre, laboratory and biobank at the beginning of 2017 for scientific research.

There are thought to be less than 4,000 tigers left in the wild in Asia and less than 7,000 snow leopards in the mountains of Central Asia and as few as 300 Iberian Lynx in Spain.

In Africa there are 18,000 lions left in the wild thanks to successful conservation and breeding.
It is one of the biggest mysteries in the universe - and could be hiding in plain sight.

Many astronomers are still convinced 'Planet Nine' exists beyond Jupiter.

'Every time we take a picture,' Surhud More, an astronomer at the University of Tokyo told the Washington Post, 'there is this possibility that Planet Nine exists in the shot.'

While evidence for its existence stacks up, no telescope has yet been able to spot it.

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Astronomers are still convinced a mysterious 'Planet Nine' exists beyond Jupiter. 'Every time we take a picture,' Surhud More, an astronomer at the University of Tokyo told the Washington Post, 'there is this possibility that Planet Nine exists in the shot.'

Michael Brown, an astronomer at the California Institute of Technology, says he feels 'eternally optimistic' that someone will soon find it - but experts say it could be essentially invisible to existing observatories.

'It might be lingering bashfully on the icy outer edges of our solar system, hiding in the dark, but subtly pulling strings behind the scenes: stretching out the orbits of distant bodies, perhaps even tilting the entire solar system to one side,' NASA said.

Astronomers have debated whether an elusive ninth planet orbits beyond Pluto for years, but a recent study may finally prove the mysterious world is real.

Researchers spotted a distant rocky object that they suggest was pushed into an 'extraordinary orbit' by the gravitational pull of an uncharted planet.

They say that their finding bolsters the ever-convincing case that a so-called 'Planet Nine' exists.

Planet Nine was first theorised by experts at Caltech in 2016 when they spotted that a group of icy objects on the edges of the solar system have tilted orbits.

They suggested the orbits of these lumps of ice - so-called Trans-Neptunian objects (TNOs) - were warped by the gravitational pull of a ninth planet in the solar system.

An undiscovered world may be lurking in the outer reaches of the solar system. Astronomers have debated whether an elusive 'Planet Nine' (artist's impression) orbits beyond Pluto for years, but a new study may finally prove the mysterious world is real

The objects had elliptical orbits that pointed in the same direction and were tilted 30 degrees 'downward' compared to the plane in which planets circle the sun.

While Planet Nine has never been spotted, a number of astronomers - including scientists at Nasa - have since released research that supports the theory.

In a new paper a group of experts led by the University of Michigan describe a distant object that they spotted in 2014 that could be as large as a dwarf planet.

PLANET NINE: ORBITS OF OBJECTS BEYOND NEPTUNE SUGGEST 'SOMETHING LARGE' IS THERE Astronomers believe that the orbits of a number of bodies in the distant reaches of the solar system have been disrupted by the pull of an as yet unidentified planet. First proposed by a group at CalTech in the US, this alien world was theorised to explain the distorted paths seen in distant icy bodies. In order to fit in with the data they have, this alien world - popularly called Planet Nine - would need to be roughly four time the size of Earth and ten times the mass. Researchers say a body of this size and mass would explain the clustered paths of a number of icy minor planets beyond Neptune. First proposed by a group at CalTech in the US, this alien world was theorised to explain the distorted paths seen in distant icy bodies. Its huge orbit would mean it takes between 10,000 and 20,000 years to make a single pass around the sun. The theoretical Planet Nine is based on the gravitational pull it exerts on these bodies, with astronomers confident it will be found in the coming years. Those hoping for theoretical Earth-sized planets proposed by astrologers or science fiction writers - which are 'hiding behind the sun' and linked with Doomsday scenarios - may have to keep searching. Advertisement

The rocky body, dubbed 2015 BP519, peaked the team's interest because its orbit is unusually tilted away from the plane that most objects that orbit the sun lie.

They used computer simulations of the solar system to explore how this strange trajectory may have arisen.

Simulations where our star system had eight planets did not reproduce 2015 BP519's tilted orbit.

When researchers added a ninth planet that matched the properties of those proposed by the Caltech researchers, the simulation reproduced 2015 BP519's current orbit almost exactly.

'It's not proof that Planet Nine exists,' Professor David Gerdes, an astronomer at the University of Michigan and a co-author on the new paper, told Quanta.

'But I would say the presence of an object like this in our solar system bolsters the case for Planet Nine.'

This image shows the orbit of 2015 BP519 (blue) as well as other TNOs as comparisons. For each orbit, the darker regions on the curve show where an object falls below the plane of the solar system. 2015 BP519 has the highest inclination of any extreme TNO discovered to date

The study adds to piling evidence for the existence of Planet Nine, though astronomers remain latched to their telescopes in search of the object.

In October 2017 Nasa weighed in on the debate, highlighting five different lines of evidence pointing to the existence of the object.

It said that imagining that Planet Nine does not exist generates more problems than it solves.

In 2016, researchers examined the orbits of six objects in a distant region of icy bodies stretching beyond Neptune. The objects had orbits that point in the same direction and are tilted 30 'downward' compared to the solar plane in which the eight planets circle the sun

Dr Konstantin Batygin, a planetary astrophysicist at Caltech in Pasadena, whose team is closing in on finding Planet Nine, said: 'There are now five different lines of observational evidence pointing to the existence of Planet Nine.

'If you were to remove this explanation and imagine Planet Nine does not exist, then you generate more problems than you solve.

'All of a sudden, you have five different puzzles, and you must come up with five different theories to explain them.'

Researchers are now using the Subaru Telescope in Hawaii in the hopes of finding Planet Nine, and hope that its detection will also shed light on its origin.

In 2016, Dr Batygin published a study that examined the orbits of six objects in the Kuiper Belt - a distant region of icy bodies stretching from Neptune outward toward interstellar space.

His findings revealed that the objects all had elliptical orbits that point in the same direction and are tilted 30 degrees 'downward' compared to the plane in which the eight planets circle the sun.

To investigate this further, the researchers used computer simulations of the solar system with Planet Nine included, and showed that there should be more objects tilted at 90 degrees to the plane of the eight planets.

The team realised that five objects already known to astronomers fit the bill.

Following this study, two more clues emerged about Planet Nine.

A second article by Dr Batygin's team, led by Ms Elizabeth Bailey, showed that Planet Nine could have tilted the planets of our solar system during the last 4.5 billion years.

Dr Batygin said: 'Over long periods of time, Planet Nine will make the entire solar-system plane precess or wobble, just like a top on a table.'

Finally, the researchers demonstrate how Planet Nine's presence could explain why Kuiper Belt objects orbit in the opposite direction from everything else in the solar system.

Dr Batygin said: 'No other model can explain the weirdness of these high-inclination orbits. It turns out that Planet Nine provides a natural avenue for their generation.

'These things have been twisted out of the solar system plane with help from Planet Nine and then scattered inward by Neptune.'

The researchers now hope to find Planet Nine itself using the Subaru Telescope at Mauna Kea Observatory in Hawaii, which they describe as the 'best tool' for the job.

Dr Batygin added: 'I think Planet Nine's detection will tell us something about its origin.'
Babies can identify a bully before they can talk properly, scientists have revealed.

They know the difference between respect and fear-based power by the time are 21 months old, according to new research.

A study of 96 infants found they expected cartoon characters to obey a bully only when the bully was present.

However, with a leader they assumed order would continue to be followed even in their absence.

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Babies can identify a bully before they can talk properly, scientists have revealed. They know the difference between respect and fear-based power by the time are 21 months old, according to new research (stock image)

Psychologist Professor Renee Baillargeon from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign said the discovery sheds light on how babies make sense of the social world.

She said: 'In general, when the leader left the scene, the infants expected the protagonists to continue to obey the leader.

'However, when the bully left, the infants had no particular expectation. The protagonists might continue to obey out of fear, or they might disobey because the bully was gone.

'The infants expected obedience only when the bully remained in the scene and could harm them again if they disobeyed.'

Another experiment tested whether the babies were responding to the likeability of the characters in the scenarios - rather than to their status as leaders or bullies.

Professor Baillargeon said: 'Finally, when the likeable character left, the infants expected the protagonists to disobey, most likely because the character held no power over them.'

The findings confirm earlier studies showing infants can detect differences in power and expect them to to endure over time.

Professor Baillargeon said: 'Our results also provide evidence infants in the second year of life can already distinguish between leaders and bullies.

'Infants understand that with leaders, you have to obey them even when they are not around. With bullies, though, you have to obey them only when they are around.'

The study, published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, followed the eyes of the infant participants as they viewed a series of animations.

These included interactions between three protagonists and a character depicted either as a leader or a bully.

A study of 96 infants found they expected cartoon characters to obey a bully only when the bully was present. However, with a leader they assumed order would continue to be followed even in their absence (stock image)

Eye-gazing behaviour is a standard approach for measuring expectations in children too young to explain their thinking to adults.

It relies on the observation babies stare longer at events that contradict their expectations.

Previous studies have shown infants can recognise power differences between two or more characters.

Professor Baillargeon said: 'For example infants will stare longer at scenarios where larger characters defer to smaller ones.

'They also take note when a character who normally wins a confrontation with another suddenly loses.

'But little was known about infants' ability to distinguish between different bases of power.'

So she developed animations showing cartoon characters and an individual portrayed as a leader, a bully or a likeable person with no evident power.

She first tested how adults (undergraduate students at the university) responded to the scenarios and found they identified the characters as intended.

Next, she measured the eye-gazing of the infants as they watched the same animations.

Professor Baillargeon said: 'In one experiment, the infants watched a scenario in which a character portrayed either as a leader or a bully gave an order - 'Time for bed' - to three protagonists, who initially obeyed.

'The character then left the scene and the protagonists either continued to obey or disobeyed.'

The leader hit the ground with a stick as they played ball in a field so they handed the ball over and returned to the house and stayed inside even after she went away.

But the bully used the stick to hit them over the head and snatched the ball away instead of asking.

Professor Baillargeon said: 'We examined whether 21-month-old infants could distinguish between two broad types of social power.

'Respect-based power exerted by a leader who might be an authority figure with legitimate power, a prestigious individual with merited power, or some combination there of and fear-based power exerted by a bully.'

Infants first saw three protagonists interact with a character who was either a leader or a bully and gave an order.

They initially obeyed and the character then left. The protagonists either continued to obey or no longer did so.

Professor Baillargeon explained: 'Infants in the leader condition looked significantly longer at the disobey than at the obey event, suggesting they expected the protagonists to continue to obey the leader in her absence.

'In contrast, infants in the bully condition looked equally at the two events, suggesting that they viewed both outcomes as plausible.

'The protagonists might continue to obey the absent bully to prevent further harm, or they might disobey her because her power over them weakened in her absence.

'Additional results supported these interpretations. Infants expected obedience when the bully remained in the scene and could harm the protagonists if defied.

'But they expected disobedience when the order was given by a character with little or no power over the protagonists.

'Together, these results indicate that by 21 months of age, infants already hold different expectations for subordinates' responses to individuals with respect-based as opposed to fear-based power.'
The leaks just won't stop coming for Google.

Another set of images claiming to show the Pixel 3 XL has leaked - this time from a Lyft driver who discovered the device in the back of his car, left behind by a forgetful passenger.

It's unclear where the incident, first reported by Android Police, occurred.

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Another set of images claiming to show the Pixel 3 XL has leaked - this time from a Lyft driver who discovered the device in the back of his car, left behind by a forgetful passenger

The driver discovered the phone in the back of his car minutes after the passengers exited and, being a Pixel 2 XL owner, immediately recognized what it was, due to the Google logo on the back and the prominent notch at the top of the screen.

He then shot a few photos of the device before giving it back to its owner. The phone had some identifying stickers, which Android Police blocked out.

The incident has drawn some comparisons to when Apple suffered an embarrassing leak in 2010, after a man accidentally left an iPhone 4 prototype behind in a bar.

The leak comes about a month ahead of the Pixel 3 XL's official release date.

Google is expected to release two new Pixel models at its October hardware event later this year.

This isn't the first time the Pixel 3 XL has been spotted out in the wild well ahead of its official launch.

The driver discovered the phone in the back of his car minutes after the passengers exited and, being a Pixel 2 XL owner, immediately recognized what it was, due to the Google logo on the back and the prominent notch at the top of the screen

A closeup of the device's notch. The unit lines up with what analysts have predicted for Google's upcoming phones. The firm is expected to launch two new phones in October

In July, a savvy leaker shared images that purportedly show the yet-to-be-released Pixel 3 XL in a white colorway, according to XDA-Developers.

They reveal that the Pixel 3 XL is likely to include a large notch, as well as a sizable 'chin,' or space at the bottom of the phone's display.

The photos provide more details after another leak in early June claimed to show the Pixel 3 XL in black.

Like the photos shared earlier this year, these show off a Pixel phone with a larger form-factor, an orange power button on the right side of the device, single-lens rear camera, dual front-facing cameras and stereo speakers.

Additionally, the device shows a logo on the back panel that's different than the typical 'G', indicating that it's more than likely a prototype model.

Critics of the notch on Apple's iPhone X are likely to be peeved by Google's next smartphone. New images claim to show the upcoming Pixel 3 XL with a massive notch and chin design

The photos were leaked by XDA-Developers user 'dr.guru' on Sunday.

'Unfortunately the phone doesn't boot because it was remotely erased by Google,' the user wrote in a blog post.

The prototype Pixel device shows that it has 4 gigabytes of RAM, as well as 64 gigabytes of storage.

Last week, photos leaked that claim to show what Google's smaller Pixel 3 smartphone could look like.

An anonymous Reddit user shared several detailed shots of the seemingly legitimate device, as well as a few screenshots of its specifications.

It's the latest case of Google being been hit by savvy leakers who claim to have photos of the tech giant's yet-to-be-released flagship phone.

An anonymous Reddit user shared several detailed shots of the seemingly legitimate device, as well as a few screenshots of its specifications. It appears to be the smaller Pixel 3 phone

Google typically releases two variants of its Pixel smartphone each year. This year, it's expected to release a Pixel 3 base model, as well as the larger Pixel 3 XL.

The leaked photos seem to depict the smaller Pixel 3.

The phone appears to have a 5.5-inch display with a 2160x1080 resolution, making it about 10% bigger compared to the 5-inch Pixel 2.

Small bezels can be seen at the top of the device, as well as a chin at the bottom.

Consumers will likely be happy to find that it doesn't have a notch cutout.

Making the phone seem more legitimate is the Google logo on the back, as well as the matte finish of the rear panel.

Screenshots show that the phone will have a 2,915mAh battery, which is a noteworthy jump in capacity from the Pixel 2. It also shows two 8 megapixel front-facing cameras

The leaked spec photos also give a glimpse of what could be coming in the smaller Pixel 3.

Screenshots show that the phone will have a 2,915mAh battery, which is a noteworthy jump in capacity from the Pixel 2.

It also features wireless charging and two 8 megapixel front-facing camera. It appears that users may be able to switch between f/1.8 and f/2.2 apertures.

Previous reports have indicated that the Pixel 3 will come with 4 gigabytes of RAM and a Snapdragon 845 processor.

The screenshots don't confirm this, however.

Like the photos shared earlier this year, these show off a Pixel phone with a larger form-factor, an orange power button on the right side of the device, single-lens rear camera, dual front-facing cameras and stereo speakers. It has 4 gigabytes of RAM and 64 gigabytes of storage

The feature that's generated the most attention is the XL prototype's 'deep notch' and massive chin.

Apple first popularized the notch, which houses facial recognition sensors and cameras, in the iPhone X.

At the time, the controversial design received feedback from users who both loved and hated the notch, with some claiming it was an ugly feature that distracted from the phone's edge-to-edge screen.

More and more smartphone vendors have worked to minimize the notch to make way for a truly bezel-less display, but if the prototypes prove accurate, the Pixel 3 XL will move in the opposite direction.

The feature that's generated the most attention is the XL prototype's 'deep notch' and massive chin. Pictured is a closeup of the notch design, which likely houses front-facing cameras

The large chin at the bottom of the device is expected to house dual front-facing stereo speakers.

It's also unclear whether the phone features an organic LED display or the Active Edge squeeze feature that's appeared on previous Pixel devices.

Active Edge first appeared on the Pixel 2 and can be used to activate Google Assistant, as well as other helpful features, such as silencing incoming calls.

Along with the Pixel 3 XL, analysts have projected that Google will launch a smaller Pixel device that'll be reminiscent of the Pixel 2.

It will feature sizable bezels at the bottom and top of the screen.

Savvy Twitter user @PhoneDesigner created renderings of what the Pixel 3 and Pixel 3 XL could look like based on leaked images of what claim to show their screen protectors

Google is expected to release two Pixel models at its October hardware event later this year. A nearly bezel-less Pixel 3 XL (pictured in a rendering) will be released, along with a Pixel 3

Google typically features different designs for its base Pixel model and the XL model, so it's unsurprising that the notch may only make it onto the larger of the two devices.

It's also believed that Verizon will be the exclusive carrier of the Pixel 3 devices.

Unlike Apple, Google's next smartphones are expected to retain a single-lens camera design on the back panel.

It may take a page from the iPhone maker in other areas, however, as new leaked images show off a 'Pixel Stand.'

The device, also leaked by XDA-Developers, is believed to be a wireless charging device for some upcoming Google devices. It's unclear if that includes the new Pixel phones.
Water meters should be compulsory in almost every British household, an environmental scientists has claimed.

Experts say more hot, dry summers could follow this years, which means more water is needed, leakage from old pipes must be reduced and peoples usage cut.

Currently, fewer than half of households have water meters, which record water usage and charge people for how much they get through.

The measure must be considered to tackle the water crisis which almost saw a hosepipe ban in the north west of England during this summer drought.

Water meters should be compulsory in almost every British household, an environmental scientists has claimed. Experts say more hot, dry summers could follow this years, which means more water is needed (stock image)

The comments were made by Professor Jim Hall, from the University of Oxford.

The meters are not necessary in wetter, less populated parts of England and Wales, he said, but could significantly cut demand in London and the South East.

The devices are controversial, as large families can end up paying more than with traditional water rates for the extra water they use.

But supporters say they can reduce water usage by more than eight gallons (30 litres) per person per day.

Retrofitting water-saving devices such as low-flow taps and showers in existing homes could make a big difference, but there were more low cost and higher benefit options that could be deployed first, he suggested.

Professor Hall, from the University of Oxfords Environmental Change Institute, said: Compulsory water meters for a large part of the country is an option we should be considering, but regulators are reluctant and the Government is cautious about imposing them.

In the current situation there are winners and losers.

'For example, people living in a large house with teenage children taking a lot of showers and using more than the average amount of water would end up paying more with a meter, but people using less than the average may end up paying less.

The National Infrastructure Commission has called for the UK to cut water use from 37 gallons (141 litres) per person per day to an ambitious 30 gallons (118 litres).

Professor Hall added: If you are going to get down to NIC levels, you are going to need to have water metering, plus some other instrument in there - possibly some pricing mechanism which then further incentivises people to get water demand down, plus some other regulatory measure, maybe around household appliances.

This could mean new rules requiring manufacturers to make dishwashers, washing machines and power showers more energy-efficient.

The devices are controversial, as large families can end up paying more than with traditional water rates for the extra water they use. But supporters say they can reduce water usage by more than 30 litres per person per day (stock image)

Water bills for unmetered homes built before 1989 are based on the value of the property, judged by its size and location.

But metered households instead pay for exactly how much water they use.

The average person in England and Wales uses 40 gallons (162 litres) of water a day if they dont have a meter, but cuts that to 34 gallons (129 litres) if they are metered, according to national figures.

However this may be because those who choose to get a meter are more careful to save water.

The news that Thames Water was telling families they must have a smart meter last year raised concerns the firm could spy on households and bring in more expensive tariffs for those using more water during droughts.

But radical measures are being considered to save water for the future, including desalination of water, transporting it across the country, and treating waste water to reuse it.

Jamie Hannaford, principal hydrologist at the Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, added: The headline, if you like, the simple story, is warmer, drier summers and, as a result, lower river flows in the future.
Scientists have created an AI that can detect obesity from space.

The software scans satellite images and predicts how many residents are overweight based on the availability of parks, fast food stores and other buildings in the area.

Researchers used deep learning to scan 150,000 high-resolution satellite images from Google Maps in order to identify patterns.

They looked at data in six US cities - Bellevue, Seattle, Tacoma, Los Angeles, Memphis, and San Antonio.

The team found that features of the built environment explained 64.8 per cent of the variation in obesity between cities.

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They looked at data in six US cities - Bellevue, Seattle (pictured), Tacoma, Los Angeles, Memphis, and San Antonio. The team found that features of the built environment explained 64.8 per cent of the variation in obesity between cities

Researchers, led by Adyasha Maharana from the University of Washington Seattle, looked at how obesity is related to characteristics of the built environment.

They compared this to data on obesity prevalence from the Centres for Disease Control and Preventions 500 Cities project.

Obesity is defined as having a 'body mass index' or BMI score over 30, whereas being overweight is having a BMI of more than 25.

'Regression models were used to quantify the association between the features and obesity prevalence across census tracts',researchers wrote in the paper published in JAMA Network Open.

The success level varied across cities and the dataset was best at predicting obesity in Memphis, which it did with 73.3 per cent accuracy.

Researchers say that this kind of system could help experts gauge obesity risks in different cities, writes Science Alert.

Scientists found that 19.8 per cent of residents were obese in Bellevue; 30.8 per cent in Tacoma; 22.4 per cent in Seattle; 26.7 per cent for Los Angeles; 36.3 per cent for Memphis and 32.9 per cent for San Antonio.

'Understanding the association between specific features of the built environment and obesity prevalence can lead to structural changes that could encourage physical activity and decreases in obesity prevalence', researchers wrote in the paper.

Researchers, led by Adyasha Maharana from the University of Washington Seattle, looked at how obesity is related to characteristics of the built environment. Pictured is Memphis, Tennessee, which was included in the study

Scientists say that a third of the world's population is now overweight or obese.

In June experts said obesity has become a 'rising pandemic' and a 'disturbing global public health crisis', which is leading to booming rates of diabetes and heart disease.

Excess weight is already contributing to one in every 14 deaths from any cause, the researchers found, a figure which they said is bound to rise.

Only 61 per cent of these weight-related deaths were to people classed as 'obese' - with the remaining 39 per cent to people who were merely 'overweight'.

The startling paper, based on a compilation of figures from 195 countries around the globe in 2015, found 2.2billion people - 30 per cent of the world's 7.5billion population- were overweight.

Of these, 711million are classed as obese - nearly 10 per cent of the global population.

The researchers found that the UK is well above the global average, with 67 per cent of adult men and 57 per cent of adult women overweight.
A key opponent of high-tech, automated weapons known as 'killer robots' is blaming countries like the U.S. and Russia for blocking consensus at a U.N.-backed conference, where most countries wanted to ensure that humans stay at the controls of lethal machines.

Coordinator Mary Wareham of the Campaign to Stop Killer Robots spoke Monday after experts from dozens of countries agreed before dawn Saturday at the U.N. in Geneva on 10 'possible guiding principles' about such 'Lethal Automated Weapons Systems.'

Point 2 said: 'Human responsibility for decisions on the use of weapons systems must be retained since accountability cannot be transferred to machines.'

Killer robots must be banned to prevent unlawful killings, injuries and other violations of human rights 'before it's too late', according to Amnesty International. The non-profit aims to halt the development of autonomous systems, such as AI-controlled UAVs (file photo)

Wareham said such language wasn't binding, adding that 'it's time to start laying down some rules now.'

Members of the LAWS conference will meet again in November.

Last week Amnesty International said killer robots must be banned to prevent unlawful killings, injuries and other violations of human rights 'before it's too late', as the talks kicked off.

The development of automated weapons, which can pick out and eliminate targets without input from a human being, has proliferated over the past decade.

Countries including the UK, France, Israel and the US are known to be developing the technology for use in military and police operations.

Amnesty International argues humans should remain 'at the core of critical decisions' on the use of deadly force, such as the selection and engagement of targets.

The call came ahead of the UN Convention on Certain Conventional Weapons (CCW) Group of Governmental Experts (GGE) on Lethal Autonomous Weapons Systems, which met in Geneva between 27 and 31 August.

During the meeting, states discussed options for addressing the human rights, humanitarian, ethical and security challenges posed by killer robots.

'Killer robots are no longer the stuff of science fiction,' said Rasha Abdul Rahim, an advisor on artificial intelligence and human rights at Amnesty International.

'From artificially intelligent drones to automated guns that can choose their own targets, technological advances in weaponry are far outpacing international law.'

'A ban on fully autonomous weapons systems could prevent some truly dystopian scenarios, like a new high-tech arms race between world superpowers which would cause autonomous weapons to proliferate widely.

'We are calling on states present in Geneva this week to act with the urgency this issue demands, and come up with an ambitious mandate to address the numerous risks posed by autonomous weapons.'

Amnesty International is calling upon the United Nations to place restraints on the development of autonomous weapon systems ahead of key negotiations in Geneva this week (file photo)

At the last CCW meeting in April, the majority of the which 120 member states stressed the importance of retaining human control over weapons systems.

Twenty-six of these called for a total ban, including Austria, Brazil and Egypt.

China also called for a new CCW protocol to prohibit the use of fully autonomous weapon systems.

WHAT AUTONOMOUS WEAPON SYSTEMS ARE UNDER DEVELOPMENT? A number of countries are known to be developing autonomous weapon systems, which can select and eliminate targets without human help. They include France, Israel, Russia, South Korea, the USA and UK. Nations are racing to develop AI systems that can take control of unmanned military Reaper drones - UAVs that are currently piloted by humans from a ground control centre. The high-altitude craft could soon pick out targets and hit them with air-to-ground missiles without any human oversight. Rumours suggest military officials are also looking into the development of automated tanks. AI-assisted weapons systems are already in use in some countries, including Israel, which recently deployed semi-autonomous drones to fire tear gas at protesters in Gaza. Advertisement

But a number of key states oppose creating legally binding BANS, including governments who are already known to be developing autonomous weapons systems, such as France, Israel, Russia, South Korea, the USA and UK.

It is not clear what form autonomous weapons of the future could take, but experts warn they could eventually replace human decision-makers on the battlefield.

Amnesty International is calling for the creation of legally-binding standards to ensure that humans remain at the core of 'critical functions' of weapons systems.

Several countries, including the UK, France and United States, are already developing weapons that can eliminate targets without human help. The technology is reminiscent of the killer androids featured in the Terminator franchise (stock)

The non-profit argues humans must be involved in the identification, selection and engagement of targets to comply with International Law.

The call forms part of Amnesty International's Campaign to Stop Killer Robots, which is seeking a total ban on the development, production and use of fully autonomous weapon systems.

'So far, the likelihood that autonomous weapons will be used in police operations, with all the risks that entails, has been largely overlooked,' said Mr Rahim.

WHAT IS THE AUGUST UN CONVENTION ON KILLER ROBOTS? Experts from scores of countries are meeting to discuss ways to define and deal with 'killer robots' - futuristic weapons systems that could conduct war without human intervention. The weeklong gathering is the second this year at UN offices in Geneva to focus on such lethal autonomous weapons systems and explore ways of possibly regulating them, among other issues. Some top advocacy groups say governments and militaries should be prevented from developing such systems, which have sparked fears and led some critics to envisage harrowing scenarios about their use. As the meeting opened Monday, Amnesty International urged countries to work toward a ban. Amnesty researcher on Artificial Intelligence Rasha Abdul Rahim said killer robots are 'no longer the stuff of science fiction,' warning that technological advances are outpacing international law. Advertisement

'But drones capable of shooting electric-shock darts, tear gas and pepperball already exist.

'The use of fully autonomous weapons in law enforcement without effective and meaningful human control would be incompatible with international human rights law, and could lead to unlawful killings, injuries and other violations of human rights.

'We are calling on states to take concrete steps to halt the spread of these dangerous weapons, both on the streets and on the battlefield, before it's too late.'
Google has developed an AI tool to help flag child sex abuse content online.

The free tool uses image recognition to help human moderators spot and remove child sexual abuse material (CSAM) more quickly.

It will reduce moderators' exposure to content that can be traumatic, while hopefully catching greater quantities of child sex abuse content.

The move comes as UK officials have called on Google and other Silicon Valley giants to take greater action against online child sexual abuse.

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Google has developed an AI tool to help flag child sex abuse content online. It uses image recognition to help moderators spot child sexual abuse material (CSAM) more quickly

Some existing systems are able to identify child sex abuse images and video by running it through a database of content that has already been flagged.

It's a helpful tool for spotting content that has been re-posted on the internet, but it doesn't ease the process of finding new images or video.

Instead, human moderators have to review the content themselves.

Google's technology aims to address that issue, by allowing service providers, non-governmental organizations and other tech firms 'review this content at scale,' the firm said.

It uses deep neural networks to sort through masses of content and prioritizes certain posts for review.

'Quick identification of new images means that children who are being sexually abused today are much more likely to be identified and protected from further abuse,' Google explained in a blog post.

Google said it has already observed the system's success: It helped a reviewer 'take action on 700 percent more CSAM content over the same time period'

'Were making this available for free to NGOs and industry partners via our Content Safety API, a toolkit to increase the capacity to review content in a way that requires fewer people to be exposed to it.'

Google said it has already observed the system's success: It helped a reviewer 'take action on 700 percent more CSAM content over the same time period.'

The firm is partnering with UK-based charity Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), which is dedicated to stamping out CSAM online.

IWF employs human moderators to identify child sex abuse content online and also investigates sites where CSAM is shared, while working with law enforcement in some cases.

'We, and in particular our expert analysts, are excited about the development of an artificial intelligence tool which could help our human experts review material to an even greater scale and keep up with offenders, by targeting imagery that hasnt previously been marked as illegal material,' said Susie Hargreaves, chief executive at IWF, said in a statement.

In a keynote speech today (pictured), Home Secretary Sajid Javid painted a terrifying picture of the 'sickening' scale of the problem on the internet

WHAT HAVE EXPERTS WARNED ABOUT CHILD SEX ABUSE ONLINE? The National Crime Agency said the number of tips about online child abuse had risen 700 per cent from 10,384 in 2012 to 82,109 last year Cases involving perverts watching sickening images of very young children and babies being abused have soared; The NCA revealed yesterday that 131 suspects  including a former police officer, five teachers and a children's entertainer  were arrested in one probe New technology to remove indecent images has led to more than 800,000 takedown notices being issued Police recorded an average of 23 child sexual offences involving the internet every day in 2017-18  up from 15 a day the year before 400 predators are arrested a month, helping to safeguard 500 children. Advertisement

'By sharing this new technology, the identification of images could be speeded up, which in turn could make the internet a safer place for both survivors and users.'

IWF will now test out Google's AI tool to see how it performs.

The announcement from Google came just a few hours after the UK's Home Secretary Sajid Javid doubled down on calls for tech firms to crack down on CSAM.

Javid said he had only recently understood the scale of the issue, claiming that people can livestream child sex abuse online for just 12.

He said tech companies needed to do more than just flag offensive material and threatened legislation if they didn't take more action.
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Scientists tracking a massive iceberg that broke free from Antarctica's Larsen C Ice Shelf has begun to spin, satellite images have revealed.

Experts had previously said the giant area, estimated to be about the size of Delaware, was locked into place, saying it 'likely got stuck on the sea bed'

'But now A68 has started to swing northwards,' said Polar oceanographer Mark Brandon recently, who spotted the movement using temperature data collected by the Suomi NPP satellite.

'You can see at between 7-12 July 2018 the weather conditions and ocean currents conspire to swing the trillion tonnes of the giant iceberg A68 in an anticlockwise direction,' he said.

'My guess is that A68a will continue rotating as it is now around that western point, until what is currently the northern edge collides with the Larsen C ice front.

'It has a spectacular amount of momentum and it's not going to stopped easily. I should think we will see some interesting collisions with the ice shelf in the next few months.'

It is believed a 'temperature anomaly' on 20 July 2018, when it was almost 20 C warmer than the mean over the Weddell Sea and Larsen Ice shelf, may have triggered the rotation beginning.

Glaciologist and former Project MIDAS collaborator Martin O'Leary told Earther a collision is 'certainly possible' he doubts it would have much of an effect on either the iceberg or shelf given the slow-motion speed at which it would occur.

Eventually, O'Leary says the prevailing ocean currents will push the iceberg northwards and eastwards into the Southern Ocean 'where it will probably break up and melt.'

Left, a 'temperature anomaly' on 20 July 2018, when it was almost 20 C warmer than the mean over the Weddell Sea and Larsen Ice shelf Right: Sentinel-1 SAR satellite imagery from 29 August 2018 shows that to the north of the iceberg the wind is pushing the sea ice northwards faster than the iceberg is rotating. Iceberg A68 captured from with the Sentinel-1 SAR sensor 29 August 2018 23:58 UTC, showing an area of open water where there is intense sea ice generation happening right now.

last year it was revealed dense ice cover had so far prevented it from drifting far out to sea.

An animation showing its movement over the last few months reveals how the trillion-plus ton Iceberg A-68 has shifted as it's battered by ocean currents, tides, and winds in the Weddell Sea.

While the huge chunk of ice, estimated to be about the size of Delaware, has moved around some, the experts say its surroundings have kept it somewhat locked into place.

An animation showing its movement over the last few months reveals how the trillion-plus ton Iceberg A-68 has shifted as it's battered by ocean currents, tides, and winds in the Weddell Sea

Iceberg A-68 is the sixth largest iceberg on record since scientists began keeping track, and its separation from the ice shelf sparked fears about its future impacts on global sea levels.

Despite all the activity in the Weddell Sea, 'its northern end has repeatedly been grounded in shallower water near Bawden Ice Rise,' according to Project Midas researchers, who have been monitoring the iceberg over the last year.

'These groundings led eventually to further pieces of the iceberg being shattered off in May 2018.

'Whilst not quite large enough to be given labels themselves, the total area of icebergs lost from A-68 in May was the size of a small city.'

Scientists tracking a massive iceberg that broke free from Antarctica's Larsen C Ice Shelf last year say dense sea-ice cover has so far prevented it from drifting far out to sea. It is shown above in July, 2018

While the huge chunk of ice, estimated to be about the size of Delaware, has moved around some, the experts say its surroundings have kept it somewhat locked into place. Its position back in November, 2017 is shown

Earlier this year, scientists released the first-ever footage of 'A-68', a trillion-ton iceberg the size of Delaware that has broken off from Antarctica.

Stunning aerial clips capture the huge crack in Antarctica's Larsen C ice shelf that led to the third largest iceberg ever recorded breaking off from the continent last July.

When A-68 separated from Larsen C, it revealed an ocean hidden under the ice shelf for 120,000 years, and a team of scientists are now studying the region to uncover some of the hidden ecosystem's mysteries.

Led by the Cambridge-based British Antarctic Survey (BAS), the group will study tiny animals, microbes and plankton on the seafloor to see how they cope with severe changes to their environment.

As part of preliminary research for the trip, the team have taken aerial footage of the iceberg to monitor how far it has drifted to sea - the very first video captured of the berg since it calved from Larsen C last year.

Marine biologist Dr Katrin Linse, the BAS researcher leading the mission, said: 'The calving of A-68 provides us with a unique opportunity study marine life as it responds to a dramatic environmental change.

'It's important we get there quickly before the undersea environment changes as sunlight enters the water and new species begin to colonise.

'We've put together a team with a wide range of scientific skills so that we can collect as much information as possible in a short time. It's very exciting.'

The scientists are travelling by ship to collect samples from the newly exposed seabed, which covers an area of around 2,250 square miles (5,800 square kilometres).

The team says their mission is urgent because the ecosystem that's likely hidden beneath the ice for thousands of years may change as sunlight starts to alter the surface layers of the sea.

The team will investigate the area previously under the ice shelf by collecting seafloor animals, microbes, plankton, sediments and water samples using a range of equipment including video cameras and a special sledge pulled along the seafloor to collect tiny animals.

They will also record any marine mammals and birds that might have moved into the area. Their findings will provide a picture of what life under the ice shelf was like so changes to the ecosystem can be tracked.

A-68 is 620 feet (190 meters) thick from top to bottom, with just 100 feet (30 meters) of it is visible above the ocean.

The iceberg was formed by a single crack along Larsen C, its parent ice shelf, and makes up a little over 10 per cent of the shelf.

BAS researchers flew around the iceberg to get a better view of it as it drifts into the Weddell sea.

This newly exposed marine area is the first to benefit from an international agreement made in 2016 by the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR).

The edge of A-68, the iceberg the calved from the Larsen C ice shelf. Nasa took this image in November during a flight that was part of its IceBridge program, which will help researchers understand the bedrock under the ice

This agreement designates Special Areas for Scientific Study in newly exposed marine areas following the collapse or retreat of ice shelves across the Antarctic Peninsula region.

The agreement came following a European Union proposal to CCAMLR, led by BAS scientists.

Professor David Vaughan, Science Director at BAS, said: 'The calving of A-68 offers a new and unprecedented opportunity to establish an interdisciplinary scientific research programme in this climate sensitive region.

'Now is the time to address fundamental questions about the sustainability of polar continental shelves under climate change.

'We need to be bold on this one. Larsen C is a long way south and there's lots of sea ice in the area, but this is important science, so we will try our best to get the team where they need to be.'
Sandy Parakilas worked as Facebook's operations manager at its Menlo Park campus in California between 2011 and 2012.

He has since become a prominent critic of the social media site, and says he will continue until it does more to protect elections.

The whistleblower warned in late 2017 that Facebook could not be trusted to regulate itself.

He described the company as a 'living, breathing crime scene' for its role in the 2016 election.

Following the Cambridge Analytica scandal in March, Mr Parakilas said CEO Mark Zuckerberg knew the potential for such a breach as far back as 2010.

He gave evidence to Congress, UK MPs and MEPs in Brussels during investigations of the scandal.

Mr Parakilas has claimed Facebook repeatedly ignored his warnings over misuse of the personal data of younger users.

He is now chief strategy officer at the Center for Humane Technology, a group of former Silicon Insiders aiming to change our relationship with technology.
Researchers at the University of New Brunswick asked 362 heterosexual adults how they had staved off temptations to cheat while in a relationship.

1. 'Relationship enhancement'

Seventy-five per cent of the study's respondents, who were aged between 19 and 63, selected 'relationship enhancement' as their primary tactic.

This ploy included things like taking their partner on a date, making an extra effort with their appearance around them, or having more sex with them.

2. 'Proactive avoidance'

The second most-popular was 'proactive avoidance', which involved maintaining distance from the temptation.

As well as physically avoiding the temptation, people also avoided getting close in conversation with that person.

3. 'Derogation of the temptation'

The third and final tactic used by people was 'derogation of the temptation', which involved feelings of guilt, and thinking about the tempting person in a negative light.

Participants reported flirting less when they applied the final, 'derogation of the temptation' strategy.

But none of the strategies had an effect on the levels of romantic infidelity, sexual infidelity, and whether the relationship survived.

Psychologist Dr Alex Fradera, who was not involved in the research, said the findings show little can be done once feelings of temptation have crept in.
Liverpool attacker Sadio Mane has been pictured cleaning the toilets and wudhu area of a mosque just hours after scoring in his side's Premier League win over Leicester.

Mane, who is paid 90,000 a week at Anfield, fired home the first goal in Liverpool's 2-1 win over the Foxes at the King Power Stadium on Saturday afternoon.

However, footage has now emerged of him helping to clean his local mosque and the clip has gone viral on social media, gaining 9,000 retweets and 18,000 likes on Twitter.

Liverpool star Sadio Mane has been pictured cleaning the toilets and wudhu area of a mosque

The video shows Mane filling buckets with water as a young boy uses a pressure washer

Mane fired home the first goal in Liverpool's 2-1 win over Leicester on Saturday afternoon

The video shows Mane filling buckets with water as a young boy grabs hold of a pressure washer to clean the floor. The wudhu area is where Muslims perform the washing ritual before prayer.

According to viewers on social media, the footage was captured at the Al-Rahma mosque in Liverpool. Mane is a devout Muslim and celebrates goals by performing sujood - touching his head on the floor and worshipping.

The 26-year-old grew up in the small village of Bambali, in the south of Senegal, where his father was the imam at the local mosque.

When a Senegalese reporter visited the region after Mane signed for Liverpool in 2016, he was told that the former Southampton winger had recently paid for the mosque to be reconstructed.

According to viewers on social media, the footage was captured at the Al-Rahma mosque

The 26-year-old is a devout Muslim and celebrates goals by performing sujood

Sujood sees Mane touch his head on the floor and praying after he has scored a goal

Mane has been deadly in front of goal so far this season, scoring four goals in four games

Mane has made a sensational start to the new Premier League season, scoring four goals in four games to help Liverpool to a 100 per cent record.

He scored twice on the opening day against West Ham, sealed the three points with a late goal at Crystal Palace and put the Reds in front at Leicester on Saturday.

Mane will now travel back to his homeland on the international break as Senegal prepare for a 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Madagascar on Sunday.
The number of tourists visiting Spain in July fell for the first time in nine years, new figures have revealed.

Statistics show that visitor numbers to the country are now stalling after five years of record growth.

And the slow down is being blamed on rival destinations such as Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt tempting holidaymakers with cheap, all inclusive deals elsewhere.

The coastline in the Spanish resort of Benidorm on the Costa Blanca. The number of tourists visiting Spain in July fell for the first time in nine years, new figures have revealed

Tourism accounts for around 11 per cent of Spain's economic output and the number of foreign visitors rose to 82 million last year, making Spain the world's second most visited country after France.

But visitor numbers fell by 4.9 per cent in July, Monday's data showed, the first fall for that key summer month since 2009.

In the first seven months, numbers rose by 0.3 percent, the lowest growth rate in eight years and compared to double-digit growth in 2016 and 2017.

Turkey, Tunisia and Egypt have experienced a resurgence in tourism, marking a revival of demand for these destinations which had been shunned by holidaymakers following militant attacks and an attempted military coup in Turkey in 2016.

This season they have been competing for German and British tourists with packages priced up to 73 per cent cheaper than the popular Spanish resort islands of Ibiza, Mallorca and Menorca, according to one study.

Spanish hotels have cut prices in an attempt to lure back visitors, hoteliers and tourist officers have told Reuters.

German and British tourists have found package holidays in alternative destinations priced up to 73 per cent cheaper than the popular Spanish resort islands of Ibiza, pictured, Mallorca and Menorca, according to one study

Meanwhile, in Tunisia, tourism jumped by 40 per cent in the first half of 2018, its government said, driven by a strong return of European tourists three years after they were targeted in attacks. Egyptian numbers surged by a similar percentage.

In Turkey, tourism grew by nearly a third in the same period after slumping in 2016 following a series of bomb attacks and the abortive coup.

Spanish hotel operators have attempted to upgrade their offerings in response to the spike in visitor numbers of recent years, targeting high-spending tourists rather than those seeking cheap sun-and-sand packages.

Official data on Monday showed that, although the total spend of international tourists in July had fallen 0.9 percent from one year ago, the average spend was up 9.5 percent.
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Some critters tend to shy away from the camera.

But these curious animals show no sign of fear as they get up close to photographers in their natural habitat.

The adorable images show bears, big cats, birds and other members of the animal kingdom distracting photographers from the task in hand as they investigate what's going on.

One meerkat cheekily sits on the back of a photographer as he gets down on the ground to take some pictures in Bostwana, Africa, while a young black bear is caught standing upright as it examines a camera set in Ontario, Canada.

In Austria, an alpine marmot gets very close to a cameraman, as it pokes its head into a lens hood.

Scroll down to see the friendly beasts making a wildlife photographer's job a touch more tricky...

A cheetah sniffs around a photographer in South Africa, who seems unaware the big cat is so close

A curious kitten approached animal photographer Mitsuaki Iwago sitting on the ground filming. The adorable incident occurred on the island of Okinawa, Japan

A meerkat fearlessly climbs up on the back of a photographer while he gets down on the ground to shoot in Botswana, Africa

Photo assistant Tony Heenon, gets an eye-to-eye encounter with a kangaroo while in Australia

A gray wolf looms behind photographers Jim and Jamie Dutcher at Sawtooth Range in Idaho

A coal tit sits perched on telephoto lens of a wildlife photographer with a piece of food in its beak

A young black bear examines a photographer's camera on set in Ontario, Canada

A playful grey seal pup nibbles an underwater camera off the coast of Northumberland in Britain

In Austria, an alpine marmot gets very close to the camera, as it pokes its head into a lens hood

A squirrel stands on the back of a photographer in Canada while it stops for a little snack
It's been one week since Troy Delmege and Carly Bowyer announced their split.

But an insider claimed on Monday that Married At First Sight's 'last couple standing' actually split months ago but kept up appearances for publicity.

Woman's Day reported that the exes pretended to be together so Troy, 36, could land his 'dream job' of becoming a television host.

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'She was over it': Married At First Sight couple Troy Delmege and Carly Bowyer 'split MONTHS ago and kept up appearances for publicity', Woman's Day claimed on Monday... but she insists they were 'working on their relationship' until the bitter end

However, Carly has slammed the claims as 'utterly insulting' in a statement to Daily Mail Australia.

'It's false and completely made up. Yes, we'd been working on our relationship for weeks but we were very much still together right up until recently,' she said.

Woman's Day had alleged that Troy moved back to Sydney 'months ago', leaving Carly in Melbourne.

'It's false and completely made up': After Woman's Day alleged the former MAFS couple were keeping up appearances for publicity purposes, Carly described the report as 'utterly insulting' in a statement to Daily Mail Australia

'They've been putting on a showmance because they believed they would get better publicity opportunities if they were still a couple,' claimed the publication's source.

'When Carly realised that Troy's dream of becoming a TV star outside of MAFS wasn't going to come true, she was over being with someone obsessed about extending their 15 minutes of fame.'

The insider then hinted that Troy and Carly had an argument at the Logie Awards in July, which resulted in her 'kicking him out of their hotel room'.

Big dreams: The magazine claimed that unemployed IT worker Troy (pictured in a recent sponsored Instagram post) 'hoped Channel Nine would give him a hosting job'

They also suggested that Troy's inability to find a job in IT after filming Married At First Sight contributed to Carly's frustration.

Daily Mail Australia has contacted Troy for comment.

Announcing their break-up last week, Troy wrote on Instagram: 'Dear fans, it is with great sadness I want to let you know that Carly and I have decided to go our separate ways.

'I am so so sorry it hasn't worked out. This is a very painful situation. We've had an incredible nine months together and it hurts to walk away.'
Her firstborn daughter Kulture Kiari Cephus entered the world last month.

And Cardi B doted on her little pride and joy this Sunday, telling the baby in an Instagram caption: 'I needed a girl like you. KK.'

Cardi, 25, had treated her 31.8m Instagram followers to a snapshot of her own finger being held by her baby's tiny hands.

Kultural enrichment: Cardi B doted on her little pride and joy this Sunday, telling the baby in an Instagram caption: 'I needed a girl like you'

The Bronx-born rapper welcomed the baby with her husband Offset, who recently had the infant's name tattooed onto his face.

Offset, whose real name is Kiari Kendrell Cephus, showed on his Insta Stories that 'Kulture' is scrawled in cursive along his jawline.

She has been accused of ordering her posse to attack a pair of New York City strip club bartenders, Jade and Baddie Gi, who happen to be sisters, according to TMZ.

As seen in February: The Bronx-born rapper welcomed the baby with her husband Offset, who recently had the infant's name tattooed onto his face

The pair, who have allegedly taken the case to law enforcement, claim that they were quite hurt in the assault and that Cardi flung a a bottle at them.

Jade has alleged that Cardi believes she - Jade - has slept with Offset, resulting in a pattern of menacing behavior from Cardi.

Cardi has been with Offset, of Migos fame, since at least last year, and last October he caused an online sensation by proposing to her onstage.

Trouble: Cardi has been accused of ordering her posse to attack a pair of New York City strip club bartenders, Jade and Baddie Gi, who happen to be sisters, according to TMZ

She announced her pregnancy early this year on Saturday Night Live, flaunting her burgeoning baby bump as she gave a musical performance on the show.

In June of this year, court documents emerged via TMZ revealing Cardi and Offset had privately tied the knot in Georgia last September - prior to the onstage proposal.

Cardi set her Twitter ablaze by confirming the news while taking a swipe at the press, writing: 'This why i name my album Invasion of privacy cause people will do the most to be nosey about your life .'
They're reportedly set to tie the knot in a picture perfect Mexican chapel in December.

But sources close to Karl Stefanovic and Jasmine Yarbrough claim the couple are already actually married, alleging they legally exchanged vows at a commitment ceremony in Sydney's Palm Beach, earlier this year.

'Jas has her heart set on this gorgeous little white chapel in Mexico,' the insider told New Idea on Monday.

Are Karl Stefanovic and Jasmine Yarbrough already married? Sources claim Today host and shoe designer legally tied the knot at their Palm Beach 'commitment ceremony' in March months before upcoming Mexican nuptials

'But they found that if you want to get married at a venue with religious significance, it's not recognised anywhere else.

'That's why they held a small party at Palm Beach in March to make it official.'

It's not the first time rumours have circulated over the secret nuptials.

'That's why they held a small party at Palm Beach in March to make it official!' Insiders claim the couple made it legal at the surprise service held at a luxury mansion in Sydney's Palm Beach earlier this year

In August, Jasmine, 34 dropped a major hint the couple had married after she shared a sweet photo of herself to Instagram sitting on the backseat of a car with Karl's brother Tom's wife, Jenna Dinicola.

And it was Jasmine's choice of caption on the photo with Jenna  who married Tom in 2015  that attracted the most attention.

'Sister sister,' she wrote, suggesting the two are already sisters-in-law.

Just married? In August, Jasmine shared this photo of herself with her future sister-in-law Jenna Dinicola, prompting reports she and Karl Stefanovic may already be married

Jasmine's other future sister-in-law, Sylvia Jeffreys  who is married to Karl's other brother, Peter  commented on the photo with a series of love heart emojis.

Last week, the shoe designer was spotted flying out to Mexico on to finalise preparations.

Daily Mail Australia understands Jasmine spent several days at a luxury resort in San Jose del Cabo with wedding planners prior to the lavish ceremony, which will reportedly see a star-studded guestlist including James Packer and his girlfriend Kylie Lim, Richard Wilkins, Peter Stefanovic and Sylvia Jeffreys.
The Bachelor has been serving up generous amounts of drama this season.

And it seems tensions will hit boiling point this week, with NW magazine claiming that Nick 'Honey Badger' Cummins is set to send one girl home after intervening in a vicious catfight.

According to the NW insider, Nick took the liberty of booting the mystery woman on the spot, rather than waiting for the evening's rose ceremony.

'He didn't want to wait for the rose ceremony to get rid of her': Tensions are said to hit boiling point on The Bachelor this week, with NW magazine claiming that Nick 'Honey Badger' Cummins will send one girl home immediately after intervening in a vicious cat-fight

'There was absolutely no messing around. He didn't want to wait for the rose ceremony to get rid of her. The girl was clearly devastated but Nick wasn't having it,' they claimed.

Meanwhile, one of Nick's front-runners will reject him during a rose ceremony this week, NW has claimed.

'Nick - and many of the other girls - are completely blindsided when she storms out of the rose ceremony', the NW insider alleged.

'Nick- and many of the other girls- are completely blindsided when she storms out of the rose ceremony': Meanwhile, one of Nick's front-runners will reject him during a rose ceremony this week, NW has claimed

This week will also see the arrival of three new intruders into the mansion, one of whom is set to flee the mansion while telling producers to 'get those f**king cameras away from me.'

In a promotional clip for this Wednesday's episode, one brunette intruder is seen unzipping her glamorous frock at the cocktail party and stripping off her microphone pack.

'Can you please un-mic me?' she is heard saying to a crew member.

We've got a runner! This week will also see the arrival of three new intruders into the mansion, one of whom is set to flee the mansion while telling producers to 'get those f**king cameras away from me'

You forgot your hiking boots! As she proceeds to run away from the mansion in complete darkness, a female producer is heard saying: 'Seriously stop running away.... it's dangerous!'

As she proceeds to run away from the mansion in complete darkness, a female producer is heard saying: 'Seriously stop running away.... it's dangerous!'

Daily Mail Australia believes that the brunette featured in the clip is nursing student Brittney Weldon.

The Bachelor continues Wednesday September 5 at 7.30pm on Network Ten.
She's enjoying her stay in Italy for the Venice Film Festival.

And Anne Hathaway looked end-of-summer chic as she was spotted leaving a boat with husband Adam Shulman, 37, and two-year-old son Jonathon.

The 35-year-old actress sported a chic black shirt that draped over a pair of white skinny jeans as she carried her baby boy in her arms.

Family affair: Anne Hathaway, 35, was spotted leaving a boat with husband Adam Shulman, 37, and two-year-old son Jonathon

Rocking a large white fedora, the Ocean's Eight star kept her bundle of joy close as she made her way back on land.

Styling her auburn locks in a poker straight look, the Princess Diaries star complemented her outfit with black oversized shades.

Jonathan was as cute as a button in a white shirt, matching shorts, and blue shoes.

Adam kept it casual as swell in a simple blue and white striped tee and navy pants as he carried a black messenger bag.

Summer chic: The actress sported a chic black shirt that draped over a pair of white skinny jeans as she carried her baby boy in her arms

Hair story: Styling her auburn locks in a poker straight look, the Princess Diaries star complemented her outfit with black oversized shades

Making her way: Rocking a large white fedora, the Ocean's Eight star kept her bundle of joy close as she made her way back on land

Cute as a button: Jonathan was as cute as a button in a white shirt, matching shorts, and blue shoes

A day before, the Oscar-winning actress looked super stylish in her off-duty attire, donning a simple white blouse and loose trousers.

She paired the candy striped garment with comfy sneakers and donned a pair of trendy shades as she headed out with her husband Adam Schulman and their son.

The Les Miserables star was spotted blowing bubbles - much to her young son Jonathan's delight.

Casually-clad: She paired her footwear with a chic monochrome shirt which sheathed over her trim frame, teaming the top with skinny white jeans

Old friends: Joined by Valentino Garavani, Anne donned a pair of the Italian designer's sliders for their boat cruise

Sweet: Adam meanwhile, cut a dapper figure in an all-navy outfit as he turned out to support Anne for the occasion

Cute: The actress, 35 packed on the PDA with her businessman partner as they made their way to the annual festival by a speedboat

Later in the day, Anne and Adam were spotted on a glamorous night out.

The star donned a billowing grey tunic dress, and her beau, 37, couldn't take his eyes off the stunning beauty as they made their way to the boat.

Anne teetered through the cobbles in a pair of sparkling jeweled heels and toted a chic white leather clutch bag for the glamorous evening.

Sightseeing: Anne Hathaway was enjoying a family outing with her son Jonathan, two, and husband Adam in the city on Saturday

Venice Film Festival: Later in the day, Anne and Adam were spotted on a glamorous night out

The Les Miserables star looked ever the A-list beauty with sophisticated cat-eyed shades and added extra glam with gold statement earrings.

Anne styled her chestnut locks in a sleek straight 'do while nude make-up highlighted her natural beauty.

Actor husband Adam looked just as stylish in his evening attire, pairing a white polo shirt with a black jumper and matching slacks.

Glamorous: The Oscar-winning actress, 35, put on quite a leggy display in a billowing grey tunic dress

Stylish couple: Anne teetered through the cobbles in a pair of sparkling jeweled heels and toted a chic white leather clutch bag for the glamorous evening

The silver fox sported some scruff around his jawline as he accompanied his love to the boat before heading to the star-studded red carpet.

Anne and Adam no doubt enjoyed some couple's time together as the couple raise their son Jonathan, two, together.

The showbiz couple got married in 2012 in a traditional Jewish ceremony in California's Big Sur.

Stepping out: The Les Miserables star looked ever the A-list beauty with sophisticated cat-eyed shades and added extra glam with gold statement earrings

Their outing comes after Anne opened up about the empowering, body-positive environment on the set of Ocean's Eight earlier this year.

The New York City native said she grew close with her famed castmates in the film - including Rihanna, Sandra Bullock, Cate Blanchett, Mindy Kaling, Helena Bonham Carter, Awkwafina, Sarah Paulson and Dakota Fanning.

'I'd met a couple of them before but I wasn't close with anybody: Now we're all close,' The Princess Diaries star said.

Making an entrance: Anne styled her chestnut locks in a sleek straight 'do while nude make-up highlighted her natural beauty

Handsome: Actor husband Adam looked just as stylish in his evening attire, pairing a white polo shirt with a black jumper and matching slacks

On their way: The silver fox sported some scruff around his jawline as he accompanied his love to the boat before heading to the star-studded red carpet

'It just was this huge, huge love fest, which is great, cause there's this terrible rumour out there that women can't get along,' Anne said.

'And man, did we just murder that rumor. We just loved each other so much and it was so special.'

Hathaway said that the support she received from her colleagues was 'really significant,' as it was her first appearance in a film after giving birth to her son in April of 2016.

'After I had my son, the weight was really slow to come off and I was a different size than I normally am,' she said. 'And the director [Gary Ross] told me, "That's great, we have eight women in this movie and need to have as many body types as we can."'

Time off: Anne and Adam no doubt enjoyed some couple's time together as the couple raise their son Jonathan, two, together

Confidence: Their outing comes after Anne opened up about the empowering, body-positive environment on the set of Ocean's Eight earlier this year

Hathaway said she received a huge boost as she went to work, as many of her celeb colleagues showered her with compliments about her post-baby body.

'I walked on the set and I'm in my jeans and I've done my best and I'm gonna love myself no matter what,' said Anne.

'And Sandy Bullock just looks up and says, "Looking good, mama." Ooh, that made me feel amazing.'

Anne continued: 'And then Cate Blanchett's like, "Nice jeans Hathaway." And then Rihanna looks up and goes, "Damn girl, you got an a**"... and I of course was freaked out and loved it so much. And I was like, "Really?"'

Rihanna continued, 'You got an a** like me!'
It's been less than a month since Tammy Hembrow, 24, was wheeled out of Kylie Jenner's birthday party face-down on a stretcher.

But it was Tammy who did the wheeling this Monday, as she rolled her designer luggage through Brisbane airport en route to New York Fashion Week.

The Instagram model went braless for the occasion, donning a casual white T-shirt that revealed a glimpse of toned torso.

Living the high life! Braless Tammy Hembrow, 24, was spotted wheeling her designer luggage through Brisbane airport \ahead of New York Fashion Week on Monday

She completed her jet-setting ensemble with a pair of black velvet trousers and some white sneakers.

Staying true to her ever-glamorous public image, the mother-of-two also decided to wear a full face of makeup for the long-haul flight.

Tammy is set to showcase her active-wear brand Saski Collection at New York Fashion Week as part of the Australian showcase on Friday.

Bit nippy? The Instagram model went braless for the occasion, donning a casual white T-shirt that revealed a glimpse of toned torso

Other Down Under labels that will grace the New York Fashion Wee krunway include Bronx & Banco, Elliatt, Elle Zeitoune, Santina-Nicole and DA by Daniel.

Speaking to Daily Mail about the success of Saskii Collection, Tammy said: 'Since the beginning I've always wanted my own clothing label. I pretty much live in gym clothes and wanted something that I would personally wear.'

'With Saski Collection I was able to marry fitness and fashion, it was the perfect match,' she said.

All smiles! The mother-of-two looked cheery ahead of the long-haul flight

Taking the global stage! Tammy is set to showcase her active-wear brand Saski Collection at New York Fashion Week as part of the Australian showcase on Friday

The busty blonde recently made headlines when she was identified as the blonde who was stretchered out of Kylie Jenner's 21st birthday bash in trendy nightspot Delilah in West Hollywood face down.

In a YouTube post following the incident she reflected on what had happened, telling her fans she was 'super embarrassed' about the situation.

'Firstly I want everyone to know that I'm OK... So yeah I pretty much collapsed. Honestly I'm already like super super embarrassed about it,' she said.

'I probably, definitely shouldn't have been drinking because of how jet-lagged and exhausted I was and I already wasn't feeling well.'
The Today show host Georgie Gardner has recalled the terrifying moment she confronted a burglar during a home invasion.

On Monday, the Channel Nine personality was prompted to tell her story as the panel discussed the a brazen robbery of Top Gear's Richard Hammond in St Tropez.

'Have you ever had an experience such as that?' newsreader Sylvia Jeffreys asked Georgie and co-host Karl Stefanovic.

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'I flew down the stairs to fight': Today show host Georgie Gardner reveals the terrifying moment she confronted a burglar during a home invasion

Georgie began to recall her own terrifying ordeal, which occurred several years ago when she lived in an apartment block.

'Well, I did confront a burglar once,' the mother-of-two begun, offering a cheeky laugh at her youthful bravado.

'So fight or flight, you're a fighter': Co-host Karl Stefanovic was impressed with the gusty display by the Mosman-based blonde calling her a 'fighter'

'And I chased him down the stairs of the apartment block but I didn't manage to catch him.'

Looking back at the frightening situation, Georgie mused about whether her actions would be the same if a similar situation occurred again.

'I'm often thought back that was a really dumb thing to do,' she explained to the panel.

Co-host Karl Stefanovic was impressed with the gusty display by the Mosman-based blonde calling her a 'fighter.'

'So fight or flight, you're a fighter,' Karl said.

Georgie, taking the light-hearted joke as a compliment, replied: 'I flew...Well I flew down the stairs to fight.'

'He had stolen the bag with the keys in it': Georgie said she was 'cross' as the thief had already stolen the TV before he came back for more

She said she was 'cross' as the thief had already stolen the TV before he came back for more.

'He was putting the keys in the front door,' she said, 'and I opened it, and there he was,' she said, to the shock of Sylvia and Karl.

'He had stolen the bag with the keys in it.'

Georgie said she thought the bold thief must have wanted to come back for the remote control to the television.

'He had left that behind,' she said, 'I mean, that was useless to me.'
She may be a major Hollywood star.

But on Sunday Catherine Zeta Jones was just a mother dropping her oldest child off at college for the first time.

The Oscar-winning actress, 48, shared a very polished black-and-white video to her Instagram showing son Dylan, 18, moving into his dorm room at Brown University on Rhode Island.

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Transition: Catherine Zeta Jones shared a black-and-white video to her Instagram Sunday after helping her son Dylan, 18, move into his dorm room at Brown University on Rhode Island

Devoted mom: The Oscar-winning actress, 48, wished her eldest child with Michael Douglas 'good luck' as he embarks on the next stage of his life

Catherine, her husband Michael Douglas, 73, and their daughter Carys, 15, were all on hand to help Dylanget settled.

The teen proudly showed off his new digs that included Union Jack cushions on his bed, in honor of his British roots via his Welsh mother, and a Rolling Stones poster on the wall.

There was also a desk with a lamp on it and a set of drawers in the otherwise sparse dorm room.

Catherine also documented Dylan's emotional goodbye to his sister and added some throwback snaps of her son from when he was a baby.

Helping her brother: Dylan's sister Carys, 15, was also on hand and Catherine showed them walking down the street outside his dorm building

New digs: The teen seemed excited as he sat on his bed which had Union Jack cushions on it and he also had a rolling Stones poster on the wall

Unpacking: Carys helped put things in his drawers

Big day: Dylan's dad Michael, 73, was also there on the momentous occasion

On his own now: Carys and Dylan shared an emotional goodbye when it came time to leave

Catherine gushed about the next phase in her son's life on her Instagram.

'Jumping for joy this morning. The start of Dylans college life,' she wrote.

'He is bursting with joy, as am I ! Wish I could enroll too!! Fantastic! Enjoy every second #thejoyoflearning.'

She added in the caption next to her video: 'Let the lectures really begin! I love you Dylan. Good luck in the next exciting and enlightening chapter of your life.'

First born: Catherine added some throwback snaps of her son from when he was a baby. She and michael welcomed Dylan in August 2000

Family: She also shared this portrait showing herself and Michael with a newborn Dylan

Siblings: Carys was born in April 2003 and she and Dylan are clearly very close

Catherine and Michael welcomed Dylan in August 2000.

Three months later, the couple tied the knot in a lavish ceremony in New York in November 2000 following the finalization of the Fatal Attraction star's divorce from first wife Diandra.

Daughter Carys was born in April 2003.

Michael also has a son Cameron, 39, from his first marriage and recently became a grandfather when Cameron's daughter Lua Izzy was born last December.
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Sara Vale spectacularly stormed off The Block last week after she and husband Hayden placed last for the third time in a row.

But the mother-of-one, 31, was all smiles on Sunday night after the couple catapulted to the top of the leaderboard when their incredible master bedroom was unveiled.

The show's three judges - Shaynna Blaze, Darren Palmer and Neal Whitaker - were blown away by the structure and styling of the pair's master suite, which nailed the brief of modern luxury.

Winners are grinners! The Block's Hayden and Sara Vale (pictured) catapulted to top of the leaderboard on Sunday night's episode, blowing the judges away with their master bedroom reveal

Perfection! It seems Sara made the most of her one-on-one styling session with Shaynna Blaze, deftly offsetting the dark colours with light bedding and curtains

Sara and Hayden's stylish bedroom featured a navy feature wall, which was complemented with a dark blue velvet bedhead.

It seems Sara made the most of her one-on-one styling session with Shaynna, deftly offsetting the dark colours with light bedding and curtains.

Admiring the bedroom, Shaynna remarked: 'For me, the outstanding thing in here is balance, which I think is something Hayden and Sara have really struggled to find over the last few weeks'.

Second place: South Australian couple Kerrie Charter and Spence Thomson also impressed the judges with their colour palette and their large walk-in wardrobe

Coming in second place were South Australian couple Kerrie Charter and Spence Thomson, who impressed the judges with their colour palette, described as 'romantic without being overly feminine'.

The dark carpet and curtains were well-received, as was their lavishly large walk-in wardrobe.

However, judge Darren thought the overhead lighting was far from cosy, saying: 'You've got some hospital lights that are doing a hospital glow on the wall. There's these beautiful luxe colours and the velvets, but it feels clinical'.

However, the the pair still received a respectable 24 out of 30 points

What do you think? Best friends Carla Dziwoki and Bianca Chatfield garnered mixed reviews for their room, which Shaynna thought would turn off a female buyer due to its 'heavily masculine' palette

Meanwhile, best friends Carla Dziwoki and Bianca Chatfield garnered mixed reviews for their room, which featured a striking slate wall.

Shaynna believed that the room might not appeal to a female buyer, stating: 'I feel this is so heavily masculine, with your dark drapes, your dark wall, your charcoal.'

However, she was suitably impressed by the herringbone flooring and a snazzy Samsung television which turns into an artwork when it is switched off.

They received 22.5 points for their master bedroom.

Mixed reviews: While judge Darren loved Norm Hogan and Jess Eva's master bedroom, Shaynna complained she felt claustrophobic in the space

Queensland couple Norm Hogan and Jess Eva had a smaller space to work with for their master suite, but judge Darren enjoyed the playful nature of the room.

Host Scott Cam told the couple: 'Darren really liked the bed, loved the dressing, very plush, loved the colour scheme on it, the scale and the colour of all the cushions on the bed too.'

Shaynna, however, felt ' soclaustrophobic' in the space and criticised some of the decorative items as outdated.

The couple also received 22.5 out of a possible 30 points.

Failed to impress: Competitors Courtney Brown and Hans Baumgartner came in last pace for their supersized master bedroom, which featured lots of wasted space

Competitors Courtney Brown and Hans Baumgartner came in last pace for their supersized master bedroom, which featured a king-size bed and a large sitting area.

While the judges praised the couple's lighting fixtures and their colour palette, they conceded that much of the enormous space had been wasted.

Judge Neal complained: 'You know, there are elements in here that are nice. But does it come together as a room?

'For me, no, it doesn't. You know, if you've got a room that is this huge, this massive, demonstrate it. Show me a couch. Show me an ottoman. Show me an amazing rug.'

The Block continues Monday at 7:30pm on Channel Nine
He's rarely seen out of the kitchen where his apron is usually fully fastened.

So it's no surprise that MasterChef's Shannon Bennett left fans stunned over the weekend while showing off his huge chest tattoo, after casually unbuttoning his shirt.

The 42-year-old was attending the 8th annual Sample Food Festival in Bangalow, near his new home in Byron Bay, over the weekend.

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Tatt's a surprise! MasterChef's Shannon Bennett shows off HUGE secret chest tattoo at food festival

Images shared to social media showed Shannon posing with other festival goers while proudly displaying the inking under his loosely fastened denim shirt.

The Australian chef's tattoo looks to be some kind of scripture or tribal design.

It appears to cover the majority of his chest - and has never been discussed publicly.

Although it is unknown when Shannon had the inking done, his chest appeared bare at an event in March - but the tattoo was visible at the end of July.

Who knew! The 42-year-old, who is rarely seen out of the kitchen, was attending the 8th annual Sample Food Festival in Bangalow when he flashed the flesh

Surprise: Although it is unknown when Shannon had the inking done, his chest appeared bare at an event in March - but the tattoo was visible at the end of July

Last week it was revealed that Shannon and wife Madeleine West were relocating from Melbourne to Byron Bay to start a new life together.

The news came after Woman's Day reported that the couple had split after 13 years of marriage.

Although neither of them confirmed or denied the speculation, Shannon told the Herald Sun: 'There were all these rumours about us and, to be honest, I know we're reconnecting and it's great.'

'We're reconnecting and it's great': Last week it was revealed that Shannon and wife Madeleine West were relocating to Byron Bay to start a new life together following rumours of a split

'The bottom line is Madeleine and I care about each other deeply and we're not letting anything go at all.'

With Shannon being pictured at the festival near Byron Bay over the weekend, after previously revealing their six children have enrolled in local schools, it appears the couple may have already made the move.

Daily Mail Australia have contacted Shannon for comment.
The Block's celebrity interior designer Shaynna Blaze has a history of feuds with female participants on the popular renovation show.

From this season's contestant Jess Eva to 2014's Alisa and Lysandra Fraser, a slew of women seem to have experienced conflict with the strong-willed judge.

During a recent radio interview, Jess described Shaynna, 55, as a 'hard woman' who picks favourites on the show.

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Why does Shaynna Blaze clash with so many women on The Block? Female contestants have a history of feuds with the strong-willed judge. Pictured: Shaynna on The Block

'She's such a perfectionist... she gets her favourites and she's into those designs of what they do and the rest of us are always chasing our tail with her,' Jess claimed.

These scathing comments came after 'villain' Sara Vale clashed with Shaynna in an episode that aired last month.

Shaynna tore strips off Sara for her know-it-all attitude, telling her in no uncertain terms that she is the interior design expert.

'Hard woman!' During a recent radio interview, 2018 contestant Jess Eva (pictured) described the judge as a 'hard woman' - but she's not the first female Blockhead to clash with Shaynna

'What's your career?' The Block 'villain' Sara Vale (right) recently clashed with Shaynna (left) on Channel Nine's popular renovation show

'What's your career?' the judge demanded, to which Sara replied: 'Flight attendant!'

'So how are you meant to know what I've done for 30 years?' Shaynna snapped back.

Taking offence, Sara rolled her eyes and claimed the 'constant pecking' was going to make her 'explode'.

'How are you meant to know what I've done for 30 years?' Taking no prisoners, Shaynna (left) tore strips off Sara (right) for her know-it-all attitude

Back in 2014, Shaynna branded twins Alisa and Lysandra 'try-hards' during a dramatic episode of the Channel Nine show.

The conflict ensued after Shaynna scored the girls five out of 10 for their bathroom while the other judges, Darren Palmer and Neale Whitaker, gave them six-and-a-half and seven respectively.

At the time, some viewers speculated that Shaynna may have been jealous of the twins, who run their own interior design business.

Highly strung: Sara has emerged as one of The Block's most divisive contestants so far this season. Pictured throwing a tantrum after last Sunday's bathroom reveal

However, Shaynna defended herself during an interview in March 2014.

'I'm a big supporter of women so for [viewers] to say I'm jealous of them is laughable,' she said defiantly.

'For people to say I'm being mean to the twins is just not true. I judge it from what I see.'

'Try-hards': Back in 2014, Shaynna branded twins Alisa and Lysandra Fraser (pictured) 'try-hards' during a dramatic episode

Jealousy? At the time some viewers speculated that Shaynna may have been jealous of the twins, who run their own interior design business

She added: 'Last year [2013] I was battered for giving them favouritism but this year I'm being pounded because I'm the total opposite and jealous of them  which is hilarious.'

Alisa previously told Daily Mail Australia of their experience on The Block: 'It wasn't so much losing that upset us, it was the comments from one judge in particular.

'A few of Shaynna's comments seemed a bit personal and we think getting a five was unfair considering the judges slammed Kyal and Kara's [Demmrich] terrace area a few weeks before and they didn't get that score.

'She walks into our rooms each week already on the defensive. We felt pretty gutted, because for us it felt like a personal attack. I don't think our room deserved five out of 10 from Shaynna, I think it was a seven at the most.'

'You're a bogan from Wantirna!' Also in 2014, The Block: Glasshouse contestant Deanne 'Dee' Jolly blew up at Shaynna after brothers Shannon and Simon Vos won the ensuite challenge

Also in 2014, The Block: Glasshouse contestant Deanne 'Dee' Jolly blew up at Shaynna after brothers Shannon and Simon Vos won the ensuite challenge.

As soon as the reveal was over, Deanne began unleashing to her fellow contestants, even going as far as to say: 'I hate Shaynna'.

She snapped: 'Tell you what, she'd want to keep away from me at the wrap party if she shows up.

'You're a bogan from [Melbourne suburb] Wantirna and you've got no f**king idea and I will out-style you any day.'

He said what?! Shaynna's discerning taste also appeared to be too much for The Block's host Scott Cam, 55, who infamously labelled her a 'b***h' during an episode in 2017

Shaynna's discerning taste also appeared to be too much for The Block's host Scott Cam, 55, who infamously labelled her a 'b***h' during an episode in 2017.

Scotty criticised the judge for what he considered to be harsh scores of the contestants' final front yard and facade reveals.

'Some high scores and some low scores. And that Shaynna's a b***h, isn't she?' Scott said while his colleague was not present.

He later apologised for the remark, telling Hit105's Stav, Abby and Matt: 'It was poor judgment on my part, and I've rung Shaynna and apologised.

'We're fantastic friends and we've worked together for a lot of years. She's incredible - shes a great designer, she's a great person, she's a great judge. She's certainly not "that" [a b***h].

'I did it in total jest, and it was just poor judgment. I've apologised - it was disrespectful, there was no doubt about that. Sometimes I'm an idiot.'

The Block continues Monday at 7:30pm on Channel Nine
One of the Bachelor contestants has a child from a previous relationship but was reportedly instructed by producers not to tell Nick Cummins.

According to Woman's Day, Ashlea Harvey was 'encouraged' to hold back from telling the former Wallabies star about her nine year-old son, Jayden.

Her situation is rather different to fellow contestant Dasha Gaivoronski, who wasted no time telling Nick that she shares a five year-old son, Leon, with her ex-husband.

Which Bachelor star has a secret child? One of the contestants has a child from a previous relationship but was reportedly instructed by producers not to tell Nick Cummins, Woman's Day claimed on Monday. Pictured: (top row, left to right) Cat Henesy, Romy Poulier, Emily Dibden, Ashlea Harvey and (bottom row, left to right) Sophie Tieman and Cassandra Wood

'She was encouraged by producers to hold onto the news,' a source claimed.

'She's been waiting for the right moment on a single date but there's no sign of that happening yet and the others in the house are starting to ask if she's embarrassed about having a son.

'Dasha is out and proud about her boy, which is why everyone's saying to Ashlea, "Why don't you tell Nick too?"'

'She's been waiting for the right moment on a single date!' According to Woman's Day on Monday, Ashlea Harvey (pictured) was 'encouraged by producers' to hold back from telling the former Wallabies star about her nine year-old son, Jayden

Mother and son: Ashlea is pictured with Jayden last year

While Ashlea, 30, has yet to speak about her son on the program, Russian-born Dasha told Nick all about Leon during their first single date.

'He is my best friend, my family, it's just him and me,' Dasha said.

The sportsman was open to the idea of dating a woman with a child, even saying that her honesty and family values were something he admired.

'Why don't you tell Nick too?' The other contestants reportedly didn't understand why Ashlea kept Jayden a secret from Nick on the show. Pictured: Nick Cummins

'That could scare off a few blokes but [Dasha] loves [Leon] so much and loves family, that doesn't scare me off one bit,' he said.

'I love what you've shared, it's awesome,' Nick added, before the pair kissed.

The Bachelor continues Wednesday at 7:30pm on Network Ten
Married At First Sight's Erin Bateman and Bryce Mohr became the show's last remaining couple after Zoe Hendrix and Alex Garner announced their split in April.

And Erin broke her silence on her co-stars' split on Monday, telling New Idea that she feels sorry for them.

'It's so sad as they are such lovely people and Harper [their one-year-old daughter] is amazing.'

'I feel bad for both of them': Married At First Sight's Erin Bateman has broken her silence on Alex Garner and Zoe Hendrix's split... as she reveals plans for a 'real wedding' with Bryce Mohr

Erin, who is close friends with both Zoe and Alex, added: 'I feel bad for both of them.'

Bryce also expressed his sympathy, saying: 'I'm not as close as Erin is to them, but I still feel for them, especially with the young one.'

Elsewhere during the interview, the couple spoke about their blossoming relationship and confirmed plans to move in together and have a 'real wedding' one day.

Former couple: Married At First Sight's Alex Garner (left) and Zoe Hendrix (right) announced their separation back in April. They share a one-year-old daughter, Harper (centre)

Heartbreaking: Bryce (right) also expressed his sympathy, telling New Idea on Monday, 'I'm not as close as Erin is to them, but I still feel for them, especially with the young one'

Last month, Erin revealed the secret behind the couple's rock-solid relationship is keeping a low profile on social media.

She told fellow MAFS star Bella Frizza on her podcast The D&M that she doesn't advertise her love life on Instagram.

'We keep [our relationship] on the down-low. I'm sure it infuriates a lot of people that they're not kept in the loop because the nature of reality TV is you then go on to flaunt your whole life on social media,' she said.

'I don't think it's normal. I know personally people who portray their relationship on social media as this fairytale, who are some of the most miserable people I've ever met, in terms of relationships.'

Staying private: Last month, Erin revealed the secret behind the couple's rock-solid relationship is keeping a low profile on social media

'We are very much together,' she added, 'But that doesn't mean it hasn't been without its ups and downs and everything else that goes with a normal relationship.'

But Erin was quick to add that neither she nor Bryce have changed who they are since their televised 'wedding'.

'The Bryce I got the day that I met him is the Bryce I have today,' she explained. 'He hasn't changed at all. He is exactly who he is, and I'd like to think he feels the same about me.'
Love Island Australia's Eden Dally and Erin Barnett shocked fans on Sunday by announcing the end of their relationship.

But co-star and one-time rival Grant Crapp says the split is no surprise to him, claiming that they have been broken up for weeks.

The 22-year-old tradie told The Kyle and Jackie O Show on Monday that he believed Erin and Eden were pretending to still be a couple in order to lengthen their time in the limelight.

'They were trying to hold onto the fame!' Love Island's Grant Crapp has hit out at former co-stars Eden Dally and Erin Barnett by claiming that they broke up WEEKS ago

Grant stated: 'From what I've heard they broke up a few weeks ago.. The cat's out of the bag!'

Grant famously butted heads with Eden on the program, and he took a cheeky dig at his former cast mate by saying: 'Eden's held out a bit for the fame. I hope he's listening to this, because he'll enjoy it!'

He added: 'Erin lives in Melbourne, Eden lives in Sydney, so how was that going to work? Neither of them were prepared to move, and if they were in love they would've moved already'.

It's over! Eden and Erin (pictured) quickly fell for each other on Love Island Australia, and were inseperable throughout the series

Eden and Erin quickly fell for each other on Love Island Australia, and were inseparable throughout the series.

Once filming wrapped two months ago, however, the pair flew home to their respective cities and maintained a long distance relationship.

However, on Sunday, the pair shared identical statements to Instagram announcing their break-up.

'We look back and cherish the time we have spent together' The pair released a joint statement announcing the the sad news

'We wanted to share with you, that after much deliberation, we have quietly parted ways,' they wrote.

'We look back and cherish the time we have spent together, the memories we have created, in both Spain and in Australia,' the statement continued.

'We cant thank each and everyone of you enough, for the support and love you have shown us, but we have to be honest within ourselves as we realise that our forever as a couple, is no longer.

In happier times: Erin and Eden met in Majorca Spain just three months ago as they filmed the first season of Love Island Australia

'We look forward to supporting each other moving forward and remain best friends.

On Friday night, fuel was added to speculation that Erin and Eden had gone their separate ways when Eden was spotted getting cosy with busty Love Island co-star Natasha Webster in Sydney.

Natasha has denied any involvement in the break-up, taking to Instagram to defend herself.

She wrote: 'I am NOT GUILTY of breaking up my two closest friends from the villa. I just want to nip this in the bud now because some of the dm's I'm receiving are very distressing (death threats) and it is quite upsetting reading these disgusting hateful comments'.
In a rare public outing together, Julia Roberts and her niece Emma Roberts enjoyed a day out together in Malibu.

Julia, 50, and her brother Eric's daughter were among the local celebrities who showed up at the annual Malibu Chili Cook-off Sunday.

Joining the two actresses was Evan Peters, Emma's actor boyfriend.

Family outing: Julia Roberts joined niece Emma roberts and her boyfriend evan Peters for a trip to the Malibu Chili Cook-off on Sunday

Hollywood star Julia looked lovely in a buttoned-up blue cotton shirt tucked into dark blue cropped skinny jeans.

The Erin Brockovich oscar winner added navy slip-on canvas shoes.

Her long blonde hair was piled high on top of her head and she sported black-framed sunglasses.

Casually stylish: Julia looked lovely in a buttoned-up blue cotton shirt tucked into dark blue cropped skinny jeans. The Erin Brockovich oscar winner added navy slip-on canvas shoes

Emma, 27, and Evan, 31, have dated on and off since 2012.

The two have worked together on several occasions on the American Horror Story anthology series.

Emma wore a pair of denim shorts and a long-sleeved beige top and steppe dout in chunky black heeled shoes.

Evan was dressed in knee-length black shorts and a white short-sleeved shirt that he left untucked and wore short white socks and black trainers.

Couple: Emma, 27, and Evan, 31, have dated on and off since 2012. The two have worked together on several occasions on the American Horror Story anthology series

Leggy look: Emma wore a pair of denim shorts and a long-sleeved beige top and stepped out in chunky black heeled shoes. Her father is Julia's older brother, actor Eric Roberts

Laid back: Evan was dressed in knee-length black shorts and a white short-sleeved shirt that he left untucked and wore short white socks and black trainers

Fun times: Emma seemed to be having a blast on the carnival rides

Just last week, Emma unveiled the first look at her Coven character Madison Montgomery resurrected (a second time) for American Horror Story: Apocalypse.

In the on-set snap, the 27-year-old niece of Julia Roberts clutches a feather duster while clad in a vampy halter LBD near unearthed skeletons outside season one's Murder House.

During season three, the hard-partying 17-year-old witch died twice at the hands of Fiona Goode (Jessica Lange) and Kyle Spencer (Evan).

Madison's revamped coven includes Taissa Farmiga, Sarah Paulson, Stevie Nicks, Gabourey Sidibe, Lily Rabe, and Frances Conroy.

Co-creator Ryan Murphy also unveiled the first image of 31-year-old Evan on Tuesday returning as ghostly Tate Langdon, who was killed by a SWAT team in 1994 after shooting 15 students at Westfield High.

The eighth season of AHS premieres on FX on September 12.

'Does the b**** survive the #apocalypse?' Last week, Emma unveiled the first look at her Coven character Madison Montgomery resurrected for American Horror Story: Apocalypse

ACS co-creator Ryan Murphy also unveiled the first image of Evan returning as ghostly Tate Langdon, who was killed by a SWAT team in 1994 after shooting 15 students at Westfield High

Arriving: Real Housewives Of Beverly Hills held hands with husband Mauricio Umansky with daughter Portia Umansky as they arrived to the Malibu Chili Cook Off

Family first: Olivia Wilde and Jason Sudeikis brought their kids Otis and Daisy

Happy: Paula Patton and son Julian, eight, grinned ear to ear at the Malibu Chili Cook Off

Keeping casual: Ellen Pompeo brought her daughters to the cook off

On the way: The Grey's Anatomy star's daughters Stella, eight, and Sienna, four, were on hand

Strike a pose: Rebecca Gayheart seen with her kids: Georgia, six, and Billie, eight; Eric Dane was also on hand

Summer fun: Jordana Brewster and her husband Andrews Form brought son Rowan, two
She's been enjoying a whirlwind holiday across the Mediterranean Sea.

And Nicole Scherzinger finally touched back down in her homeland as she was spotted arriving at LAX on Sunday.

The 40-year-old Pussycat Doll alum was end-of-summer chic in an all white ensemble as she stomped through the Los Angeles airport.

Landed: Nicole Scherzinger, 40, was spotted arriving at LAX on Sunday

Daring to impress, the How Hot Is My Sauce songstress rocked a simple white tank top as she wrapped a shirt around her lithe waist.

Her gorgeous gams were thrust on center stage as she strutted around in a pair of body-hugging white leggings.

She kept her trademark raven tresses long and tucked under a large white fedora as the locks cascaded over her shoulders.

Nicole has been living a jet set lifestyle of late, having just returned from a sun-soaked trip to Vietnam last month, after jetting into the city of Da Nang for the 2018 Cocofest music festival.

Dazzling: The Pussycat Doll alum was end-of-summer chic in an all white ensemble as she stomped through the Los Angeles airport

Impressive: Daring to impress, the How Hot Is My Sauce songstress rocked a simple white tank top as she wrapped a shirt around her lithe waist

'Thankyou #Vietnam for a beautiful trip. For your kindness, beauty and grace. Cant wait to come back,' she captioned the snap.

It's been a fun couple of weeks for Nicole who celebrated her landmark birthday on the stunning Greek island of Mykonos, where she was also seen stumbling down some stairs after a seemingly raucous night on the town with her pals.

The chart-topper looked stunning in a white crochet cover-up with a cobalt blue swimsuit underneath as she appeared to have overindulged while larking around with her pals on the low-key getaway.

Leggy lady: Her gorgeous gams were thrust on center stage as she strutted around in a pair of body-hugging white leggings

Her holiday came just days after Nicole marked her birthday with a cherubic childhood snap and poignant caption that urged her followers to never take anything for granted.

She wrote: 'God where does the time go...? Birthday got me like Its crazy...I find the older you get the faster time flees...so be GRATEFUL.

' Count your blessings, even thru the sun and rain. And cherish every moment, because you never know. I love you all. My heart, Little Nicole.'
On Saturday, she was the center of attention at the Deauville American Film Festival in northern France.

But on Sunday, Elle Fanning was back stateside after flying into Los Angeles International Airport.

The actress, 20, wore her blonde hair in pigtails and carried a large pillow as she exited the arrivals terminal.

Home: On Saturday, she was the center of attention at the Deauville American Film Festival in northern France. But on Sunday, Elle Fanning was back stateside after flying into LAX

Elle wore an ankle-length floaty white dress and white trainers.

She added a black coat with a red-and-white checked lining and carried a large patterned and pastel colored backpack.

She completed her look with a pair of cat's eye tortoiseshell-framed sunglasses.

Always stylish: Elle wore an ankle-length floaty white dress and white trainers. She added a black coat with a red-and-white checked lining

Traveling light: The actress, 20, wore her blonde hair in pigtails and carried a large pillow as she exited the arrivals terminal. She carried a large patterned and pastel colored backpack

Famous face: She completed her look with a pair of cat's eye tortoiseshell-framed sunglasses and clutched her smart phone in one hand

Elle's new film Galveston was screened at Deauville where she walked the red carpet in a stunning gold tulle gown.

The dazzling low-cut number featured a bejeweled bra-top with a large bow at the bust and cut-out panels at the waist.

With her hair in a stylish chignon, Elle looked every inch the Hollywood movie star as she was presented with the festival's Rising Star Award.

She stars with Ben Foster in the film directed by French actress and filmmaker Melanie Laurent about a dying hitman who returns to his Texas hometown where he plans his revenge.
Hit Network radio star Ash London will replace 2Day FM Breakfast radio host Em Rusciano after she announced her resignation from the struggling Sydney show on Monday morning.

Southern Cross Austereo released a statement confirming 32-year-old Ash will temporarily 'fill-in alongside Grant Denyer and Ed Kavalee until a replacement for 2Day FMs 2019 breakfast line up has been determined.'

Ash was previously tipped to replace the embattled radio star after she faced mounting backlash and calls to be taken off the air back in May over her 'diva antics'.

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Who is Ash London? Meet the radio presenter who will replace Em Rusciano on 2Day FM's breakfast slot for the rest of the year. Pictured at the 31st Aria awards in Sydney

The Nights host, who has regularly filled in on the Sydney breakfast radio show over the past two years, is likely to secure the top gig permanently.

Sportsbet.com.au revealed that the odds favour Ash becoming a permanent fixture on the show.

Ash rose to fame hosting Channel Eleven Australian music show The Loop alongside Scott Tweedie.

The television presenter departed the music show in early 2015 to concentrate on her radio career.

The Melbourne-born star got her start in the radio industry by working as a copywriter and content creator for MCM.

She has hosted a number of syndicated shows across the country for Southern Cross Austereo, including Take 40 Australia, Shazam Top 20 with Angus OLoughlin and of course Ash London LIVE.

The SCA way: Ash has hosted a number of syndicated shows across the country for Southern Cross Austereo including Take 40 Australia and Shazam Top 20 with Angus OLoughlin and of course Ash London LIVE

In December 2017, Ash courted controversy after she commented on the appearance of One Direction's Louis Tomlinson while chatting to co-hosts Ed Kavalee and Ash Williams on the Hit Network.

She was forced to retreat from social media following backlash from One Direction fans after she described Louis' facial hair as 'ratty.'

The joke sent the star's groupies into meltdown, with Ash receiving a deluge of death threats and forcing her to temporarily quit all social media platforms after the online abuse became too much.

Controversy: In December 2017, Ash (pictured) courted controversy after she commented on the appearance of One Direction's Louis Tomlinson as she chatted to co-hosts Ed Kavalee and Ash Williams on the Hit Network

Meanwhile, Ash tied the knot with Fox FM content director Adrian Brine in Melbourne, Victoria this year.

Daily Mail Australia reached out to Ash London for comment.

Em Rusciano announced her resignation from 2Day FM on Monday, telling listeners she will be finishing up this week and not returning following the birth of her third child.

She said on air: 'Casual bombshell alert. This Friday will be my last day on air for 2Day FM breakfast, and I want to make it crystal clear that this is entirely my decision and not one I made lightly.

'The truth is when I found out I was pregnant, I made my mind up on the spot that this year would be my last year of breakfast radio. I had intended to work through until December, but as my pregnancy is progressing I'm finding it increasingly harder to fulfill the requirements of my job. So after talking it through with my family, and my boss Gemma [Fordham, Hit Network's Head of Content], it was decided that I should finish up.'

Em Rusciano quits 2Day FM: The controversial radio host announced her resignation from the struggling breakfast show live on air on Monday. Her last day will be Friday

She continued: 'I want to thank everyone who listened right from the start, however you consumed our show  be it podcast, Facebook videos or listening to us live, I appreciate it.

'I still marvel that people actively choose to let me into their lives for a small portion of their day. That's my favourite part of this job, and something I sometimes forget that's even happening when I'm sitting in that small studio talking into a stick.'

The Hit Network's Head of Content Gemma Fordham said in a statement: 'We are so thrilled for Em and her family that after everything they experienced last year [with her miscarriage] they will have a beautiful baby in their world early next year.

Quitting: On Monday, Em said: 'Casual bombshell alert. This Friday will be my last day on air for 2Day FM breakfast, and I want to make it crystal clear that this is entirely my decision and not one I made lightly'. Pictured with her co-hosts Grant Denyer (centre) and Ed Kavalee (right)

'Em had a heart to heart with me last month and let me know that she would like to wrap up breakfast hours and focus on her growing family and her other many creative pursuits.

'The business 100 per cent supports and understands Em's decision. Em has always been forthright and honest with our listeners, sharing every intimate detail of her life, and she will continue to be part of the 2DayFM family when she can for the remainder of this year.'

In a blog post uploaded on Monday, Em wrote about her relief at no longer waking up at 4am every weekday.

Prioritising her family: Em is currently pregnant with her third child (pictured earlier this month). She will be finishing at 2Day FM on Friday and won't be returning after giving birth

'I want to spend the next few months focusing on my family, eating, sleeping, possibly wearing overalls and attempting to grow some veggies. But most importantly, I want to properly prepare for the arrival of my new human early next year,' she stated.

The former Australian Idol contestant, 39, thanked the team at 2Day FM breakfast and her co-hosts Ed Kavalee and Grant Denyer, describing them as a 'lovely, dysfunctional family'.

However she did acknowledge some of the well-documented tensions behind the scenes at the struggling Sydney breakfast show.

First attempt: Em has been with 2Day FM since the departure of Rove McManus and Sam Frost in early 2017. The first iteration of the program, The Em Rusciano Radio Show with Harley Breen, lasted less than 12 months before comedian Harley Breen's (right) departure

'My time at 2Day has been a mixed bag,' she wrote. 'I'd be flat out lying if I said any differently. Its been heartbreaking, hilarious, soul-destroying, uplifting, disappointing and bloody hard a lot of the time.

'Thanks to radio I've learned so much about myself. It really puts a spotlight on your strengths and weaknesses like nothing I've ever experienced before. But the best thing to come out of it has been me rediscovering my sense of self. For a time I believed that being a strong, decisive and ambitious woman was something to hide. I must thank radio for reminding me that those are my greatest attributes, not my worst.'

Em, who is expecting her third child with husband Scott Barrow, has been with 2Day FM since the departure of Rove McManus and Sam Frost in early 2017.

The first iteration of the program, The Em Rusciano Radio Show with Harley Breen, lasted less than 12 months before comedian Harley Breen's departure.

It was rumoured that the two presenters did not get along behind the scenes.

He was subsequently replaced by TV personalities Ed Kavalee and Grant Denyer and the show was rebranded Em, Grant and Ed by the Hit Network.

Em admitted earlier this year that this shake-up was a difficult transition for her.

She said the Hit Network's decision came out of the blue, leaving her with the intimidating task of generating chemistry with two people she'd never met.

Rebranded: After Harley Breen's exit, TV personalities Ed Kavalee (right) and Grant Denyer (centre) were hired to replace him and the show was rebranded Em, Grant and Ed

Speaking to Wil Anderson on his Wilosophy podcast in May, she said: 'It was hectic. It was the Em Rusciano Radio Show - it was my show! And then all of a sudden Ed's anchoring and the show's called "The 2Day FM Breakfast Show".'

Em also revealed at the time that she she fought with 2Day FM to let her produce the program and manage staffing, but they declined because they wanted to have a say in the show's direction.

Shortly after her interview with Wil made headlines, the mother-of-two was publicly accused of creating a 'toxic' workplace at the Hit Network.

'She makes it a toxic work environment,' a former staff member told News.com.au.

'In all honesty, I actually feel really sad for her. She seems really insecure. She portrays this really confident, "I think I'm the greatest!" image but I think it stems from a really deep-seeded insecurity, which is really sad.

Troubled times: It has been widely reported that Em has struggled at 2Day FM, with reports earlier this year that she was responsible for creating a 'toxic' work environment

'She just doesn't know how to interact with people. She won't compromise with anybody. Shes always has to be right.'

Another ex-employee told The Daily Telegraph there 'had been casualties at the hands of Em Rusciano' at 2Day FM.

'Things are at breaking point, people just cannot work with her energy,' they said.

'The audio producer is now working on another show, the publicist is refusing to work with her and one of the producers has told the company that they are looking for other work. All of that on top of the previous host [Harley Breen] leaving.'

The most recent radio ratings, released last Tuesday, showed that Em, Grant and Ed had taken another tumble.

The show earned just 3.3 per cent of the Sydney breakfast radio audience, dropping from a 4.3 per cent share in the previous survey.
For five years Nicolle Dickson was the nation's sweetheart, portraying Home and Away rebellious bad girl Bobby Simpson.

But after a string of dramatic storylines including homelessness, the death of her mother, teen pregnancy and the collapse of marriage to her foster brother, the actress quit the show, resulting in her spectacular death in a tragic boat accident.

But capitalising on her stardom and finding subsequent starring roles proved impossible for Nicolle, who says she was ultimately forced to quit acting for a career in accountancy.

'It was tough to find work after Home and Away!' Former Summer Bay favourite Nicolle Dickson has revealed she was forced to ditch acting for accountancy after quitting the soap and struggling to land starring roles

'I'd been on Home and Away for six years and you can get stale doing a show like that,' the former soap star, now 49, told Woman's Day on Monday.

'And while I was pleased I went out with a bang, it was tougher than I imagined to find [acting] work afterwards.'

After leaving Summer Bay behind, the mum of two, married to real estate agent James Bell, landed bit parts on medical drama, GP and Murder Call and All Saints before pursuing a career in accountancy.

Teen idol: After a string of dramatic storylines including homelessness, the death of her mother, teen pregnancy and the collapse of marriage to her foster brother, the actress quit the show, resulting in her spectacular death in a tragic boat accident

Sweethearts: Viewers were glued to their screens when Bobby said 'I do' to foster brother Frank (Alex Papps) in 1991

But making the transition from the small screen wasn't easy.

'Once you've been in the public eye,' she explained, 'it's really hard to get a normal job.'

Now mum to sons, Lincoln, 22 and Winston, 20, she accepted her husband's offer to do the books for his business before studying a degree in accountancy.

Reunion: Nicolle and Alex reunited for Seven documentary, Endless Summer which aired earlier this year, celebrated the soap's 30th anniversary

But fans haven't forgotten about Bobby and the former actress is regularly stopped in the street.

'Surprisingly, people still remember me from way back then and tell me I have not changed,' she told the West Australian in July.

'So, Bobby has not left me yet. She was such a great part of my life and my early 20s and I have great memories.'

Nicolle added: 'It is quite weird, because even though it was so long (ago) and I have had a whole life since then and I have grown-up children, it still seems so familiar at the same time.'
Cassandra Thorburn looked positively triumphant leaving Channel Seven's Sydney studios on Monday, following her first TV interview since her split with Today host Karl Stefanovic in 2016.

The 47-year-old former journalist couldn't wipe the smile off her face as she strolled through windy Martin Place in a long navy coat, matching shirt and skinny trousers, accompanied by a female friend.

Adding a touch of glamour to her look with drop earrings, the mother-of-three cut a youthful figure while on the campaign trail for her new children's book, Leo Lion's Big Bed.

Happiness is the best revenge! Karl Stefanovic's ex-wife Cassandra Thorburn couldn't wipe the smile off her face while leaving Channel Seven's Sydney HQ on Monday

It's likely Cassandra's visit to Channel Seven's HQ this week sparked nervous chatter among Karl's colleagues and senior management at the Nine Network.

However, they must have breathed a collective sigh of relief when it became clear she wasn't using her appearance on The Morning Show to air the former couple's dirty laundry.

Instead, she praised her three children - Jackson, 19, Ava, 13, and 11-year-old River - and spoke in general terms about the experiences that inspired her new kids' book.

Cassandra told hosts Larry Emdur and Kylie Gillies that divorce is 'particularly challenging for children', adding that the 'public' nature of her own split was difficult.

Having the last laugh! The 47-year-old former journalist looked positively triumphant following her first TV interview since her split with the Today host in 2016

Effortlessly chic: The mother-of-three strolled through windy Martin Place in a long navy coat, matching shirt and skinny trousers, adding a touch of glamour to her look with drop earrings

Taking it all in her stride: Cassandra - who is on the campaign trail for her new children's book, Leo Lion's Big Bed - was accompanied by a friend after her interview on The Morning Show

Profits from Cassandra's book are going to Relationships Australia, an organisation which she says 'prioritises children in the separation process'.

'I thought it was a perfect thing for us to put all profits there because it's important to me,' she explained.

'It's part of what me and my children have been through which led me to writing this book.'

Phew! It's likely Cassandra's interview on The Morning Show sparked nervous chatter among Karl's colleagues at the Nine Network. However, they must have breathed a sigh of relief when it became clear she wasn't using her appearance to air the former couple's dirty laundry

Her time to shine! Instead, she praised her three children - Jackson, 19, Ava, 13, and 11-year-old River - and spoke in general terms about the experiences that inspired her new kids' book

High-profile split: Cassandra and Karl were married for 21 years before their split in 2016. The couple are pictured on May 1, 2011 at the Logie Awards in Melbourne

When Larry asked Cassandra about how difficult divorce is for kids, she replied: 'I think everyone knows separating and divorce is particularly challenging, for the children especially.'

'And it being so public wasn't perfect!' she added, referencing her own marriage breakdown.

'But now, I'm stepping out to say that I feel comfortable within myself and I'm telling others to be comfortable in their own skin. Pursue what you want to, regardless of what is going on on the sidelines.'

Proud mum! In her interview with The Morning Show, Cassandra also praised her eldest son Jackson (left), who is reportedly estranged from his father

Cassandra also praised her eldest son Jackson, who reportedly estranged from his famous father.

Kylie asked: 'In the book, the big brother comes to the comfort his little brother. You have two boys. [Was there] something you were able to draw upon there?'

She responded: 'Absolutely, and the age difference between my boys [Jackson and River], which is seven-and-half-years, certainly means that one is that big brother. He's a huge protector of his siblings, and they're very close'.

Cassandra was previously an acclaimed TV producer and journalist, but she said on Monday that she doesn't particularly miss her old career.

Talented: Cassandra was previously an acclaimed TV producer and journalist, and has now authored a children's book. Pictured on October 4, 2017 in Sydney

As for the future, the devoted single mother is taking it one step at a time.

'I want to focus on my children, and making sure that they're all happy and well. Looking that far ahead and focusing on myself is not something that I'm wanting to do right now,' she said.

Meanwhile, Cassandra's ex Karl is preparing to marry his fiancee Jasmine Yarbrough in December at a star-studded ceremony in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico.
She's the model-turned-designer, who is more famous for her private life.

And in a childhood throwback shared to Instagram on Sunday, the blonde beauty was pictured as a chubby-cheeked toddler.

She's now the brains behind a prominent shoe label, whose fans include the likes of Margot Robbie and Kendall Jenner.

Guess who? Model-turned-designer is pictured as a chubby-cheeked toddler before she became famous for her private life

She once dated Australian Wallabies player Drew Mitchell.

The famous face is Jasmine Yarbrough, 34.

The talented Mara & Mine designer shared an old photo with her dad for Father's Day.

Revealed: The famous face is Karl Stefanovic's fiancee Jasmine Yarbrough

In the happy picture, a young Jasmine has a fringe and is smiling while seated next to her father, Robert.

Currently, Jasmine is preparing to tie-the-knot with Today show co-host Karl Stefanovic, 44, in January, after the pair celebrated a commitment ceremony in Sydney in March this year.

Last week, the blonde reportedly headed to San Jose del Cabo in Mexico, in order to finalise all the details ahead of the big day.

Blushing bride! Jasmine is preparing to tie the knot with Karl (pictured), after the pair had a lavish commitment ceremony in Sydney earlier this year

Speaking with Nine's TheFIX earlier this year, Karl stated: 'When Jasmine came into my life, I had no thoughts of new love or the future, but we are happy and grateful we found each other'.

Karl was previously married to Cassandra Thorburn for 21 years, and their divorce was finalised last year.
The Beckham brood are enjoying a fun-filled trip to the French Riviera.

And Harper Beckham was having a blast on board Sir Elton John and David Furnish's yacht on Saturday, watching her older brothers perform gravity-defying stunts.

The seven-year-old youngster looked adorable in a pink swimsuit with a quirky animal print as the family relaxed on board the luxury vessel.

Fun in the sun: Harper Beckham was having a blast on board Sir Elton John and David Furnish's yacht on Saturday, watching her older brothers perform gravity-defying stunts

Harper was spotted perching on the edge of the yacht while the boys splashed around in the water at her feet.

Meanwhile, Cruz, 13, Romeo, 16, and Brooklyn, 19, proved themselves to be extremely acrobatic, performing a number of gravity-defying stunts.

The Beckham kids were seen diving off the edge of the boat while dad David looked on, recording their antics on his mobile phone.

Defying gravity: Cruz, Romeo and Brooklyn proved themselves to be extremely acrobatic, performing a number of stunts

Are you watching, dad? The Beckham kids were seen diving off the edge of the boat

Captured on camera: David looked on, recording their antics on his mobile phone

All aboard! Harper was having a lovely holiday with her famous family as they continued their French escape with Elton John

Family getaway: The Beckham brood have been making the most of the children's summer hoidays to relax in the sun

Brooklyn delighted in showing off his skills, backflipping off the edge of the vessel as his proud parents looked on.

Meanwhile, Victoria and David looked happier than ever - having reportedly told their children that 'Daddy's not a cheat' after rumours began swirling that they were going to divorce.

Back in June, Posh and Becks were forced to vehemently deny speculation that they would be splitting up - with them allegedly admitting that during that turbulent time Victoria sat down with their four children to reassure them about the state of their parents' marriage.

Doting mother: Victoria was quick to capture the children's antics on camera

Joining forces: Also on board the boat were Elton's children Elijah, five, and Zachary, 7

Pictures or it didn't happen! The Spice Girls star couldn't contain her excitment

Supportive brothers: The boys ensured Harper was the centre of attention

Taking a dive! The boys couldn't resist showing off their acrobatic skills

Tussle: David was seen play fighting with his sons, trying to push Brooklyn in the water

Watch this one, mum! Victoria ensured she got the best camera angles

Victoria is said to have made the admission in an interview with Vogue which will be published this week, according to The Sun.

The chat with the publication was intended to mark the former pop star's ten years at the helm of her eponymous fashion label - but Victoria took the opportunity to address divorce rumours as well.

'They sat the children down and addressed these horrific, hurtful whispers,' a friend of the Beckhams told the publication. 'Both David and Victoria are very transparent with the kids to ensure they hear things directly from them  and not from the playground.

Sporty: Romeo, a keen tennis player, proved himself to be a skilled diver as well

Watch out below! He was also spotted dive bombing off the edge of the yacht

Splash! He hit the water with a big splash after plummeting from above

Down he goes! Brooklyn showed no fear, leaping off the edge of the luxury boat

Hold on tight! The boys were in high spirits as they frolicked about on board

Double trouble: Brooklyn and Cruz were seen diving in the crystal clear water

Living it up: The duo were in high spirits they showed off to their parents

'After the latest furore, they once again took the decision to be open and honest with them, reassuring them Daddy is not a cheat.'

The source added that while the couple of 21 years laughed off the rumours publicly, they took it 'much more seriously' at home.

The couple first began dating in 1997, before tying the knot in 1999. At the time of the divorce rumours, Jo Milloy, a spokesman for Spice Girl-turned-designer Victoria, told the Daily Mail the gossip was 'absolute nonsense'.

Proud: The fashionista couldn't resist taking a number of videos of her sons

Presiding over the family: Devoted father-of-four David remained on the prow

Leap of faith: The youngsters showed no fear during their action-packed outing

Cute: Harper was spotted sharing a tender hug with her mother
They have been dating since 2014 and things appear to be going well.

And Matt Smith and Lily James looked happier than ever as they stepped out together at the premiere of Charlie Says at Sala Casino in Italy on Sunday night, in which he plays criminal, Charles Manson.

The stunning blonde actress, 29, looked chic in a bodycon mini dress as she headed to the screening, which was part of the star-studded Venice Film Festival.

Loved-up: Matt Smith, 35, and Lily James, 29, looked happier than ever as they stepped out together at the premiere of Charlie Says at Sala Casino at the Venice Film Festival on Sunday night

Gorgeous: The stunning blonde actress looked chic in a bodycon mini dress

The black and white bardot dress featured horizontal stripes, with Lily's enviable curves highlighted with a bold, black waist belt.

The talented actress added height to her toned pins in a pair of pointed black sling-back stilettos with a strap adorned with sparkling rhinestones.

Lily carried her belongings in a simple black handbag and accessorised with a large statement ring on her right hand, and a pair of delicate, dangling silver earrings.

She styled her blonde tresses into elegant, beachy waves parted at the centre, and opted for a subtle make-up look, with a light dusting of bronzer and a highlighted glow.

Chic: The black and white bardot frock featured horizontal stripes, with Lily's enviable curves highlighted with a bold, black waist belt; Pictured with Alberto Barbera

Stylish: The talented actress added height to her toned pins in a pair of pointed black sling-back stilettos with a strap adorned with sparkling rhinestones

It's all in the details: Lily carried her belongings in a simple black handbag and accessorised with a large statement ring on her right hand, and a pair of delicate, dangling silver earrings

Before heading to the Sala Casino for the Charlie Says movie premiere, Lily attended the Miu Miu Women's Tales Dinner.

The Baby Driver actress shielded her eyes with a pair of glamorous, oversized black shades as she made her way between the two star-studded events.

Upon removing her sunglasses for the screening of Matt's latest film, Lily revealed a pretty flick of eyeliner, drawing attention to her piercing brown eyes.

Good casting: Matt bears an uncanny resemblance to cult leader Charles Manson as he portrays the notorious killer in new biopic Charlie Says

Major transformation: The 35-year-old actor swaps his usual clean-shaven look for Manson's long mane and dishevelled beard in the crime drama

In action: Stills from the upcoming flick show the one-time Doctor Who leading his commune, who went on to slaughter seven strangers in August 1969

Matt, 35, looked dapper in a tailored blue suit and smart black shoes, which he teamed with a stone coloured shirt and shimmering bronze tie.

He portrays cult leader Charles Manson in Charlie Says, which follows three women who killed for Manson and were sentenced to death, but ended up getting life imprisonment instead.

The film covers their rehabilitation, thanks to a grad student social worker assigned to counsel them.

Matt and Lily's loved-up appearance at the movie premiere, comes after the actress recently spoke about the strength of her romance with the hunky actor.

In demand: Before heading to the Sala Casino for the Charlie Says movie premiere, Lily attended the Miu Miu Women's Tales Dinner

Covering up: The Baby Driver actress shielded her eyes with a pair of glamorous, oversized black shades as she made her way between the two star-studded events

Pretty: She styled her blonde tresses into elegant, beachy waves parted at the centre, and opted for a subtle make-up look, with a light dusting of bronzer and a highlighted glow

The blonde beauty admitted that she has found it difficult to find the perfect work/life balance and will consider slowing down in the future to focus on their relationship.

Lily spent months away from her man Matt last year, when she filmed Mamma Mia! in Croatia.

Clearly she wasn't too happy about it, she said in an interview with Marie Claire: 'I'd like a few months where I go travelling and just switch off.

Smart styling: Matt looked dapper in a tailored blue suit and smart black shoes, which he teamed with a stone coloured shirt and shimmering bronze tie

Happy couple: The Doctor Who actor couldn't hide his delight at being accompanied by his stunning girlfriend, with a grin almost permanently plastered across his face

Glamorous: Lily displayed her chic sense of style in an eye-catching dress

'When you're an actor, its like, "you've got to keep the momentum up." And I'm like, "No!" You have to trust that things won't go away if you stop for a bit.

'I haven't really stopped, and I don't think that's a feasible way to work. For me, eventually, that's not the lifestyle I want.'

She revealed that her views affected everyone in her personal life: 'That's not only with regards to my relationship with Matt, but with my friends and family.

'There's so much you miss. That's why I know I can't keep working at this intensity. I finish a job; Matt starts one.'

PDA: The couple put on a loved-up display, affectionately holding hands at every opportunity and beaming with happiness

Adorable: Matt couldn't keep his hands off his beautiful beau

Proud: Lily beamed with pride as she supported Matt at the premiere of his latest film
She's famed for her incredible good looks and loves to share pictures of herself wearing swimwear on holiday.

And Lisa Snowdon, 46, went a step further while on holiday in the Maldives on Monday morning when she shared a completely naked selfie.

Wearing nothing but a cowboy hat, the radio presenter covered her modesty with some carefully thought out angles.

Bold move: Lisa Snowdon shared a completely naked selfie on Instagram on Monday as she holidayed in the Maldives

But she seemed pretty pleased with herself as she showed off her body, displaying her golden skin and incredible curves.

She captioned the image with the words: 'Mondays in the Maldives... #noretouching #nomakeup #nofilter #noclothes #curves #bodyconfidence #bodypositive #naked #wiwt.'

Lisa's bikini appearance shortly follows the star sharing her 'needle selfie' from her Cosmetic acupuncture session on social media.

Proud of her body: Lisa likes to share pictures of her bikini body on social media

George Clooney's ex, who was at the top of the modelling world for more than two decades thanks to her youthful glow, has turned to the painful-looking therapy.

Cosmetic acupuncture, touted as a natural alternative to Botox, involves having up to 100 needles inserted into the face and ears.

It is claimed to improve skin moisture balance, elasticity and cellular turnover, and to reduce inflammation from skin conditions such as eczema, psoriasis and dermatitis.

The TV presenter shared a picture of herself on social media which showed 97 needles of various sizes placed around her face.

Lisa, who is engaged to 37-year-old entrepreneur George Smart, claimed the procedure was most relaxing and helped balance her hormones.

The former Strictly Come Dancing contestant is being treated by Sarah Bradden, a holistic therapist based in Mayfair, who specialises in cosmetic acupuncture.

Patients are recommended to have a minimum course of six to 12 weekly sessions costing around 175 a time. She had her sixth session, which lasted 25 minutes, earlier this month.

Posting the picture to her 180,000 followers on Instagram, she wrote: So Ive progressed to 97 needles in this treatment, which is very much an all-over body, mind balance, as well as helping to lift and tone my face.

I also have needles in my ears, which helps to treat the whole body, boost my kidneys etc. Exciting to see and feel a difference in my body, my mind, my hormones balancing out and my overall health improving.

'It may look terrifying but I promise you the most relaxing treatment. As soon as the first needle goes in my whole body seems to breathe a sigh of relief and surrenders.

Gwyneth Paltrow, Jennifer Aniston, Madonna and Angelia Jolie are all said to be fans, while Millie Mackintosh and Kim Kardashian have posted needle selfies.
Matt Smith has revealed his transformation into Charles Manson as a new film about the cult leader premieres at the 75th Venice Film Festival.

The 35-year-old actor swaps his usual clean-shaven look for Manson's long mane and dishevelled beard in Charlie Says, which follows the story of the three young women who were imprisoned for their parts in the infamous Manson murder case.

Stills from the upcoming flick show the one-time Doctor Who star leading Manson's commune which slaughtered nine strangers including rising Hollywood actress Sharon Tate in August 1969.

The film has been largely panned by critics, receiving only two stars from the Guardian's Peter Bradshaw who called it 'oddly unambitious' and three stars from the Telegraph's Robbie Collin who said Smith was 'miscast' and the movie was 'frustrating'.

Good casting: Matt Smith bears an uncanny resemblance to cult leader Charles Manson as he portrays the notorious killer in new biopic Charlie Says

In action: Stills from the upcoming flick show the one-time Doctor Who leading his commune, who went on to slaughter seven strangers in August 1969

The story focuses less on Manson and more on three women, Susan Atkins, Lesley Van Houten and Patricia Krenwinkel, who were sentenced to death for the murders.

When their death penalty is lifted, leaving them with life imprisonment, one young graduate social worker is sent in to rehabilitate the troubled women, leading to their transformations as they face the reality of their horrific crimes.

Skins star Hannah Murray depicts Van Houten, while 13 Reasons Why actress Sosie Bacon plays Krenwinkel and Imposters' Marianne Rendon stars as Atkins.

Infamous killer: Manson was convicted of nine counts of murder and sentenced to death. However, California ended capital punishment a year later

Major transformation: The 35-year-old actor swaps his usual clean-shaven look for Manson's long mane and dishevelled beard in the crime drama

The Walking Dead star Merritt Wever plays young grad student Karlene Faith, who also penned the 2001 book The Long Prison Journey of Leslie Van Houten which inspired the story.

The film, from American Psycho director Mary Harron and writing partner Guinevere Turner, is also based on material from Ed Sanders 1971 book The Family.

Announcing the film in February, Harron said the Charlie Says team had found the ultimate cast to tell the horrifying tale, saying: 'Guinevere Turners script brings a fresh and unique perspective to the infamous story of the Manson murders and we have now found the perfect cast to bring it to life.'

Her first choice: Director Mary Harron said that Matt was the 'ultimate casting' to portray the notorious cult leader

In good company: Matt was joined by girlfriend Lily James as he attended the movie's premiere at the 75th Venice Film Festival in Italy on Sunday night

Head over heels: The couple - who have been dating for four years - posed up a storm on the red carpet together

At the helm: Charlie Says is also the work of American Pyscho writer Guinevere Turner

Manson was an American songwriter who led a cult that became known as the Manson Family, a quasi-commune in California.

Manson's followers committed a series of nine murders at four locations in July and August 1969.

In 1971, he was convicted of first-degree murder and conspiracy to commit murder for the deaths of seven people, which members of the group had carried out at his instruction.

Manson was also convicted of first-degree murder for two other deaths.

He died of natural causes at the age of 83 on November 19, 2017, after serving nearly 50 years in prison.

The brutal and sadistic crimes perpetrated by members of the 'Manson family' on his order shocked and horrified the nation.

The 'Manson Family' murders In August 1969, Manson had ordered his family members to slaughter 26-year-old Sharon Tate, and three of her friends at her home above Beverly Hills. Despite the actress pleading for her life and that of her unborn son's the evil killers showed her no remorse and she was stabbed 16 times. Susan Atkins said she told Sharon as she begged for her life, 'woman, I have no mercy for you' before stabbing her in the stomach. Stephen Parent was a fifth unfortunate victim that night. The 18-year-old had driven to the property to see if caretaker William Garreston wanted to buy his AM/FM Clock radio, and had stayed on for a beer at the guest house. Watson aimed a 22-caliber revolver at him when he wound down the window at the electric gate as he left as the youth begged him not to shoot. The murderer then lunged at Stephen with a knife before shooting him four times. Manson family member Linda Kasabian was also present on the night of the Tate murders but was found to have had no involvement in the actual killings and was granted immunity in return for her prosecution testimony Following Mansons instructions to leave a witchy sign that might implicate the Black Panthers, one of his female assassins wrote Pig in Tates blood on the front door. The following night the Family butchered small business owners Leno and Rosemary La Bianca, in their home in Los Angeles. After Manson tied them up and left, they, too, were frenziedly stabbed to death. Their murderers wrote Kill the Pigs in blood on a wall, and even carved War on Leno LaBiancas torso. The murders were carried out in upscale, mostly white neighborhoods of Los Angeles in order to blame the crimes on African Americans, in the hope of sparking what he termed a 'Helter Skelter' race war. Manson was also later convicted of the slayings of musician Gary Hinman and stuntman Donald 'Shorty' Shea. During the trial he was convicted of leading a cult in which disaffected young people living in a commune followed his orders and were ultimately turned into killers. In the end, Manson was convicted of nine counts of murder (including two men who were killed separately) and sentenced to death. However, California ended capital punishment a year later, at which point his sentence was commuted to life. Advertisement
Dakota Johnson looked uncomfortable while at a photocall for new movie Suspiria on Saturday.

The 28-year-old looked down and pulled a face as the movie's director, Luca Guadagnino's hand was placed a little too near to her breast.

There is nothing to suggest that this was intentional - and the placement could appear worse due to the camera angle.

Awkward: Dakota Johnson looked uncomfortable due to director Luca Guadagnino's 'unfortunate' hand placement at a photocall for Suspiria at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday

But regardless, Dakota appeared to be a little surprised nonetheless.

According to The Sun, onlookers said 47-year-old Luca's intention was to shield her cleavage area from photographers, as she was perhaps avoiding a wardrobe malfunction.

It is not known if any words were said alongside this moment.

MailOnline has contacted a representative for Dakota and Luca for comment.

What happened here? There is nothing to suggest that this was intentional - and the placement could appear worse due to the camera angle

Cringe: The 28-year-old looked down and pulled a face as the movie's director, Luca Guadagnino's hand was placed a little too near to her breast

Protective: According to The Sun, onlookers said 47-year-old Luca's intention was to shield her cleavage area from photographers

Meanwhile, the actress recently revealed she had to work hard to prepare for the erotic Fifty Shades, but it was nothing compared to the physical demands of Suspiria,

The movie is a horror in which much of the fear comes through her ability to dance like a woman possessed.

A remake of the 1970s cult classic is set in a dance school in Berlin where Johnson's character Susie, a naive young hopeful from the cornfields of Ohio, arrives to find strange powers at work.

Awkward? The actress appeared to be suffering a wardrobe malfunction

Laughing it off: Dakota appeared to be in good spirits following the red carpet incldent

The older women at the academy are impressed by her instinctual, violent dancing, and quickly give her the lead role in an upcoming performance - although the viewer suspects they have something more sinister in mind.

'It was amazing to discover that I could do that with my body, but it was a lot of work, it was a lot of training,' Johnson told Reuters in Venice, where Suspiria is competing for a Golden Lion.

'I worked for six months before filming. I was filming another movie in Vancouver, the third Fifty Shades movie, and I would go after work or before to train with the trainer.'
Bodyguard reached the halfway stage with a bang, and a hell of a lot of suspects.

Basically everyone in fact  even the heads of MI5, the Mets Counter-Terrorism division, and Specialist Protection command. Actually, particularly them They were double-crossing, undermining, or plotting against someone.

Then we can add the Home Secretarys political aides, her enemies in the Tory party/Government, and the man who is her bodyguard and her lover.

Bodyguard reached the halfway stage with a bang, and a hell of a lot of suspects. Basically everyone in fact  even the heads of MI5, the Mets Counter-Terrorism division, and Specialist Protection command. Actually, particularly them...

Not great.

Not when she is the one who has been blown up  only a week after a soldier whod served in Afghanistan also tried to kill her, peppering her car with bullets.

Of course it could always have been ISIS or Al-Qaeda all along.

Or her embittered former advisor Chanel.

The plot thickens... Three episodes in and the more weve watched the less we know whats going on, whos done to whom, or who we can trust?

Explosive: Julia Montague (played with icy grace by Keeley Hawes) was the target of the bomb as she made a speech about the anti-terrorist legislation she wanted to push through

Three episodes in and the more weve watched the less we know whats going on, whos done to whom, or who we can trust?

In other words classic Jed Mercurio, pure Mercurio: Mercurissimo.

We didnt even know if the lead character was alive or dead.

Julia Montague (the rabidly ambitious Home Secretary played with icy grace by Keeley Hawes) was the target of the bomb that ripped through the auditorium as she made a speech about the anti-terrorist legislation she wanted to push through.

All we knew at the close was that she had sustained severe injuries but there was no confirmation of her condition.

Dead or alive? All we knew at the close was that she had sustained severe injuries but there was no confirmation of her condition

Nobody is safe! With any other writer, at only the halfway point, youd expect the lead character to pull through. But killing off his characters is one of Mercurios trademarks

With any other writer, at only the halfway point, youd expect the lead character to pull through. But killing off his characters is one of Mercurios most distinctive trademarks. He appeared to relish executing Danny Mays charismatic corrupt cop in the debut episode of one series and had Jessica Raines popular PC thrown out of a tower block window.

As well as the bomb, episode three saw Mercurio suddenly move away the action/espionage of the first two weeks back to the spirit and style of Line Of Duty.

Finally we had someone who could stop David Budd - if indeed the Home Secretarys bodyguard was going to finish the job as Andy Apstead (aka Adrian Smith) had implored him before committing suicide?

There's something about David... Will anybody notice what a WEIRDO David Budd is? Probably not.

When two officers from S0-15 called him back in for questioning about the incident, inconsistencies in his story and new CCTV evidence meant his version of events began to unravel.

Later, after theyd found Apsteads car, Chief Inspector Deepak Sharma and DS Rayburn believed the two attempts on Montagues life could be connected  suggesting the gunman had at least one accomplice.

The $64, 000 question of course: was this David Budd?

The way the camera then immediately cut to Budd calmly walking out of the hospital suggested it was.

Here are the 12 main questions we need answering halfway through Bodyguard:

1. Is the Home Secretary really a power-crazed sociopath, as her former aide Chanel, alleged?

A: Hopefully. Theres nothing better than Keeley Hawes playing a psycho, as we remember from Lindsay Denton.

2. Is Julia Montague going to have survived or died in the bomb blast?

Answer: Survived (probably). Otherwise Budd cant kill her (or save her) later.

3. Were the police behind the attack, as the Director General of MI5 implied?

A: It sounds unlikely but certainly not impossible. Stephen Hunter-Dunn had concluded (not unreasonably) from the planning involved in Andy Apsteads assassination attempt that the Home Secretarys itinerary had been leaked - either by the police or her personal security team. We already know the Head of Specialist Protection and the Commander of Counter-Terrorism at the Met had coerced David Budd into spying on Montague. Gina McKee has had surprisingly little screen time for an actor of her calibre. Plus of course Jed Mercurio has a history of sinister elements high up in the Met pulling the strings.

4. Were MI5 behind the attack?

A: Also not impossible. Stephen Hunter-Dunn had a clandestine alliance with Montague but appeared to authorise a plan putting in place when she had a secret meeting with the Prime Minister at Chequers.

Hello? Is someone going to notice that whenever a serious terrorist incident or assassination attempt happens, David Budd is always present and escapes with barely a scratch?

5. Was Montagues special advisor, Rob McAndrew involved in the bombing or just working for the Prime Minister and responsible for duping Tahir Mahmood into messing up her speech?

A: Probably the latter.

6. Was her aide Tahir Mahmood responsible for the bombing  possibly with David Budds help or complicty?

A: The partial shot of someone standing at the side of the stage just before the bomb went off could well have been Mahmood who was acting strangely beforehand and been reluctant to co-operate when Budd refused to let him go into the auditorium without checking his briefcase. When Tahir opened it and Budd muttered OK was easy to assume it had contained research files as hed claimed. What if Budd had seen there was a bomb inside and waved Tahir through?

7. Wouldnt MI5, the Mets Counter-Terrorism and Protection commands know/find out Budd was sleeping with the principal Julia Montague?

A: Yes. They were certainly bugging, following, and spying on everyone else.

8. Were Julia Montagues feelings for her bodyguard genuine?

A: Unlikely. The sex scenes between them in this episode were surprisingly touching and her questions under the sheets about whether hed always wanted to be a soldier, convincingly tender. Well almost. This is Keeley Hawes were talking about after all.

Genuine feelings? The sex scenes between Montague and Budd were surprisingly touching and her questions about whether hed always wanted to be a soldier, convincingly tender

9. Were David Budds feelings for Montague genuine?

A: Also unlikely. His answers were also persuasively personal  until he then hacked the i-Pad Stephen Hunter-Dunn had given her. Mind you, he then told his boss he had nothing to report on her. Weirdo.

10. Is someone going to notice that whenever a serious terrorist incident or assassination attempt happens, David Budd is always present and escapes with barely a scratch?

A: No. They havent so far, even though he was on the train when two bombers threatened to blow it up, in the front seat when Apstead shot dozens of bullets into Montagues car, and in the hall at the time of the most recent explosion. And yet he emerged with just a plaster across his eyebrow that made him look even more handsome. Suspicious surely.

11. When is someone going to notice what a WEIRDO David Budd is?

A: Possibly never given that they havent noticed so far  or registered his panic attacks, heavy drinking, rages, PTSD, scars from Afghanistan, history of cocaine use, and allegations of serious sexual assault. Budd even manage to throttle Julia in his sleep. She then became the second woman (along with his wife) to tell him he needed help.

Whatever your training has made you, its out of control!

Not ideal for the Home Secretarys bodyguard.

12. What can we possibly say about what Keeley Hawes did standing in the doorway of her hotel room with her flies undone?

A: Nothing.
He's the self-professed 'Italian Stallion' who hoped to win the ladies over with his smooth moves on the first episode of Take Me Out on Monday night.

But Perry, from Sydney, saw most of the ladies' lights turned off as soon as he revealed his bizarre habit of cooking naked.

Posing in nothing but an apron with his bare bottom on show, the account manager revealed being naked in the kitchen 'relaxes' him.

'Nothing relaxes me more': Take Me Out contestant 'Italian Stallion' Perry reveals he enjoys cooking naked... and flashes his bare behind in nothing but an apron to prove it

'Nothing relaxes me as much as cooking... naked,' he said with a laugh before turning his back to the camera to reveal his nude behind.

Chopping vegetables while naked under his apron, Perry said: 'I like to feel comfortable and when I'm naked life is great'.

Lights flew off again, with the women admitting they didn't want to see his bum just yet.

The butt of the joke: 'Nothing relaxes me as much as cooking... naked,' he said with a laugh before turning his back to the camera to reveal he was naked

Got a date: Perry did get a date with Italian-speaking Jo Jo (pictured) with the pair headed for a weekend away on the Gold Coast to get to know each other

Even more ladies bowed out when Perry revealed that he's a keen gymnast, and performed a strange routine live on stage while shirtless and wearing tights.

'Move over Rocky, I'm the real Italian Stallion... If you're looking for a man who can take change look no further,' Perry boasted.

Despite losing almost all the ladies by the end of his strange aerial gym routine, Perry did get a date with Italian-speaking Jo Jo, with the pair headed for a weekend away on the Gold Coast to get to know each other.

Ladies getting lucky: Every single man on the first ever episode of the dating show scored a date on night one

'Hopefully he can keep some clothes on if he does cook for me this weekend,' Jo Jo joked after the pair made their match.

Every single man on the first ever episode of the dating show scored a date on night one.

And host Joel Creasey revealed that the Australian version of the dating show could follow the UK's lead and also feature same-sex couples.
Gemma Chan and Dominic Cooper have confirmed their romance during a beach day on the Spanish island of Formentera.

The Crazy Rich Asians star, 35, and the Mamma Mia actor, 40, looked happy and relaxed as they cuddled on the shoreline while enjoying their first holiday as a couple.

Proudly flaunting their new relationship just weeks after they were first linked, the pair looked utterly enamoured as they enjoyed their sun-soaked summer break.

It's on! Gemma Chan and Dominic Cooper have confirmed their romance during a beach day on the Spanish island of Formentera

Gemma slipped into a casual pair of light-wash denim shorts, which she teamed with a plain black tank top.

The slight racer-back design of the slinky item and it's loose fit, allowed the straps of her multicoloured aztec print bikini to be seen.

The actress wore a chic flat pair of tan coloured cross-over slingback sandals, which she took off and carried in her hand as she strolled along the sand.

Gemma shielded her eyes with glamorous, oversized shades and accessorised with pretty gold hoop earrings.

Loved-up: The Crazy Rich Asians star, 35, and the Mamma Mia actor, 40, looked happy and relaxed as they cuddled on the shoreline while enjoying their first holiday as a couple

Relaxed: Gemma slipped into a casual pair of light-wash denim shorts, which she teamed with a plain black tank top

Sweet: The slight racer-back design of the slinky item and it's loose fit, allowed the straps of her multicoloured aztec print bikini to be seen

Fun in the sun: The new couple looked happy and relaxed as they soaked up the Spanish sun

Adorable: The actress wore a chic flat pair of tan coloured cross-over slingback sandals, which she took off and carried in her hand as she strolled along the sand with her beau

The actress - who is Jack Whitehall's ex - styled her brunette tresses into an understated bun at the nape of her neck and opted for a minimal make-up look.

Dominic went shirtless for the day at the beach, displaying his tanned, toned torso, in a pair of aqua coloured board shorts.

The actor proved he was ready for a swim, clutching onto a pair of goggles before he waded through the shallow waters.

Gorgeous: Gemma shielded her eyes with glamorous, oversized shades and accessorised with pretty gold hoop earrings

Easy does it: The actress - who is Jack Whitehall's ex - styled her brunette tresses into an understated bun at the nape of her neck

Stunning: Gemma opted for a minimal make-up look as the couple chilled out by the sea

Hunky: Dominic went shirtless for the day at the beach, displaying his tanned, toned torso, in a pair of aqua coloured board shorts by Frescobol Carioca

He looked devilishly handsome with designer stubble on show, and protected his eyes from the Spanish sunlight with a pair of classic black sunglasses.

Gemma swooned over the actor, draping her arms around his neck at every opportunity and whispering sweet nothings into his ear.

The Mamma Mia star seemed to be delighted, and equally as enamoured, placing his hand around Gemma's waist and pulling her closer to him.

Let's go: The actor proved he was ready for a swim, clutching onto a pair of goggles before he waded through the shallow waters

Handsome: Dominic looked devilishly handsome with designer stubble on show

PDA: Gemma swooned over the actor, draping her arms around his neck at every opportunity and whispering sweet nothings into his ear

Protective: The Mamma Mia star seemed to be delighted, and equally as enamoured

On the hunt: After cooling down by dipping their feet in the water, Gemma and Dominic went barefoot as they strolled along the beach on the hunt for ice-cream

After cooling down by dipping their feet in the water, Gemma and Dominic went barefoot as they strolled along the beach on the hunt for ice-cream

The pair held hands as they wandered around the Spanish beach, care-free, smiling and laughing.

The loved-up couple returned to their spot in the sun at a leisurely pace, whilst eating their Calippo ice lollies and chatting away.

Dominic couldn't resist affectionately placing a hand onto Gemma's bottom as the walked along the sand.

The pair sparked romance rumours when they were spotted getting 'cosy' during a night out in Spain in August.

Loved-up: The pair held hands as they wandered around the Spanish beach, care-free

Happy: The loved-up couple returned to their spot on the sand at a leisurely pace, whilst eating their Calippo ice lollies and chatting away

Sunday strolls: The couple slurped on ice lollies to cool down

Comfortable couple: Dominic couldn't resist affectionately placing a hand onto Gemma's bottom as the walked along the sand

The Mamma Mia! star was seen laughing and holding onto Jack Whitehall's ex's waist.

Gemma's arms were wrapped around Dominic's neck as they walk on the pavement.

A source told The Sun: 'They seemed to be having a great time. Dominic is very recognisable  especially with Mamma Mia 2 out at the minute  so it didnt take long for people to notice him.

'He and Gemma looked as though they were having a great time  laughing loudly and cuddling up while taking pictures.'

Cooling down: The pair cooled off from the Spanish heat by searching for sweet treats

Rumour mill: The pair sparked romance rumours when they were spotted getting 'cosy' during a night out in Spain in August

Spotted: The Mamma Mia! star was seen laughing and holding onto Jack Whitehall's ex's waist

Keep up: Dominic kept a watchful eye on Gemma as she fell behind

Can't be missed: 'Dominic is very recognisable  especially with Mamma Mia 2 out at the minute  so it didnt take long for people to notice him' continued the source

The duo both starred together in the film, Stratton, last year where Dominic played the main part of John Stratton.

Last month, Dominic's ex, Ruth Negga, 36, insisted that they had left things on good terms and are still 'super-supportive' of each other.

Speaking to Marie Claire,the actress admitted it wasn't difficult to work with her former boyfriend on their recent TV series Preacher.

Gemma and her ex Jack Whitehall called time on their relationship after six years together last year.

Co-stars: The duo both starred together in the film, Stratton, last year

Moving on: Last month, Dominic's ex, Ruth Negga, 36, insisted that they had left things on good terms and are still 'super-supportive' of each other

Hard times: Gemma and her ex Jack Whitehall are said to have split in September because of their increasingly hectic schedules

The pair are said to have split in September because of their increasingly hectic schedules.

An insider told The Sun that the couple remain friends despite the break-up, and decided to go their separate ways after finding it more and more difficult to spend time together.

Jack and Gemma first began dating after meeting on the set of Jack's comedy-drama series Fresh Meat in 2011, and both have gone on to have hugely successful acting careers.

Sad times: The insider said the pair decided to go their separate ways after finding it more and more difficult to spend time together

Leading lady: Gemma has had roles in Secret Diary of a Call Girl and Sherlock, as well as stunning fans as a synth on drama Humans, which just aired its third series

Jack is a hugely successful stand-up comedian and stars on the Sky One hit A League of Their Own, he has also starred in Bad Education and Jack Whitehall: Travels With My Father.

Gemma has had roles in Secret Diary of a Call Girl and Sherlock, as well as stunning fans as a synth on drama Humans, which just aired its third series.

Dominic and Gemma's romance could create awkwardness between the actor and Jack.

The two stars know each other through James Corden and both attended his stag party in 2012.
It has gripped the nation with its dramatic plot-lines, romance and cliffhangers.

And fans were left aghast on Sunday night as they watched the two leading stars of BBC's Bodyguard, Richard Madden and Keeley Hawes have their steamiest sex scene to date.

With the political thriller drawing in a staggering 6.7million viewers, many took to Twitter to comment on the fictional Home Secretary's (Hawes) raunchy romance with her Bodyguard, Sergeant David Budd (Madden), while others complained there was too much sex in the third episode.

Racy: Fans were left aghast on Sunday night as they watched the two leading stars of BBC's Bodyguard, Richard Madden and Keeley Hawes have their steamiest sex scene to date

Richard Madden, 32, certainly had his moment on Sunday's show as viewers got a glimpse of his bare bottom, in what could compete with Tom Hiddleston's famed Night Manager scene.

As Budd continued his relationship with 42-year-old Keeleys character Julie Montague in a series of steamy trysts, the Home Secretary later tried to seduce him by pleasuring herself.

However, at one point, the former army officer, who suffers from PTSD following time in Afghanistan, attempted to strangle her after she woke him in the night  before realising who she was.

Risque: With the political thriller drawing in 6.7million viewers, many took to Twitter to comment on the fictional Home Secretary's (Hawes) raunchy romance with her Bodyguard

Raunchy: A slew of viewers complained there was too much sex in the third episode

Peachy: Richard Madden, 32, certainly had his moment on Sunday's show as viewers got a glimpse of his bare bottom

Shocked by the raciest episode, fans took to Twitter in their droves to comment on their on-screen dalliance.

One wrote: 'Keeley Hawes you naughty woman! #Bodyguard', while another typed: 'Keeley Hawes - hands down drawers', adding a shocked face emoticon.

Others admired Richard's peachy derriere as he strutted to his room after doing the deed, one wrote: 'Can we have a moment of appreciation Richard Madden's bum there,' while another chimed: 'Look at that bum! Phwoar!'

Dalliance: Budd continued his relationship with 42-year-old Keeleys character Julie Montague in a series of steamy trysts, with her later trying to seduce him by pleasuring herself

Setting pulses racing: Shocked by the raciest episode, fans took to Twitter in their droves to comment on their on-screen dalliance

Scary: At one point, the former army officer, suffering from PTSD following time in Afghanistan, attempted to strangle her after she woke him in the night  before he realised who she was.

However others were left less than impressed with their on-screen dalliance, with some branding the sex scenes, 'daft, bizarre and unbelievable'.

One fan wrote: 'The Bodyguard would be equally as good and more believable without the daft sex scenes.'

'The gratuitous sex adds nothing to the story. Bizarre and unbelievable', another chimed.

Another viewed added: 'Bodyguard was great viewing tonight. However the sex scenes do not really fit the plot at all.'

'Unbelievable': However others were left less than impressed with their on-screen dalliance, with some branding the sex scenes, 'daft, bizarre and unbelievable'

Terror: Bodyguard's third episode saw Budd continue his relationship with Miss Hawess character Julie Montague before he dealt with a dramatic assassination attempt

Madden has quickly become the BBCs new hunk, filling the boots left by The Night Managers Tom Hiddleston and Poldarks Aidan Turner.

Asides from the steamy trysts, sinister themes continued throughout Sunday's show as the Home Secretary suffered another assassination attempt.

As Julie delivered a speech about plans to increase surveillance powers a bomb is detonated, causing her and Budd to be thrown into the air.

Budd crawled through debris to reach the minister, whose charred body appears lifeless.

Destined to become this autumns must-watch drama, Bodyguard was created by the BBCs star writer, Jed Mercurio. He was also responsible for Line of Duty, which starred Miss Hawes, 42, as well as medical series Bodies.
She's been happily nesting after moving into a new $11.7 million New York City love nest with boyfriend Norman Reedus last month.

And Diane Kruger showed off her baby bump ahead of the arrival of the couple's first child as she ran errands in Manhattan on Sunday.

The actress, 42, looked lovely in a cute button-down jumpsuit as she collected a delivery of items, perhaps for her new bundle of joy.

Bumping along: Diane Kruger showed off her baby bump in a cute button-down jumpsuit as she collected a delivery of items in New York on Sunday ahead of the arrival of her first child

The In The Fade star teamed her stylish one-piece with a black baker boy cap and dark shades to keep the late summer sunshine at bay.

The mother-to-be slung a red leather satchel bag across her chest and kept comfortable in a pair of practical, flat sandals.

Diane wore her short blonde hair tied up and went make-up free to display her naturally glowing complexion.

It comes after the former model moved into a $11.7 million New York City love nest with boyfriend, The Walking Dead star Norman Reedus, 49.

Chic: The actress, 42, amed her stylish one-piece with a black baker boy cap and dark shades to keep the late summer sunshine at bay as she went about her day in Manhattan

According to the Wall Street Journal, the couple paid $11.7 million for a four-story, 3,800 square foot Manhattan townhouse, built in the 1800s.

Although they are yet to formally confirm Diane's pregnancy, the pair are no doubt looking forward to the arrival of their first child together.

While the baby will be Diane's first, Norman already as a teenage son Mingus, 18, with his supermodel ex Helena Christensen, 49.

The couple went public with their romance in March 2017, two years after meeting when they co-starred in Sky in 2015.

When they met, Diane was still in her decade-long relationship with actor Joshua Jackson, 40.

Although Diane and Norman walked multiple red carpets during their time as co-stars, the 2018 Golden Globes marked their first high-profile event as an official couple.
They moved in together last month into a luxurious apartment in London's Canary Wharf.

And now Dani Dyer and Jack Fincham have opened up about living together outside the Love Island villa during their first TV interview on Monday's This Morning.

Speaking about their new chapter, 22-year-old Dani admitted that it's been 'fun' settling into their new abode, without cameras watching every move.

Loved-up: Dani Dyer and Jack Fincham have opened up about living together outside the Love Island villa during their first TV interview on Monday's This Morning

Jack, 26, gushed: 'I love it'. While Dani weighed in and said: 'Its fun, I feel like a house wife'.

Already wanting to keep their new home pristine, former stationery salesman Jack admitted that he's been banned from one of their bathrooms.

He hilariously said: 'She has a show bathroom. Im not allowed use it and theres loads of display stuff in there I can't use.'

In August, the pair collected a month after winning the ITV2 show and took to Instagram to give fans a sneak peak of the new abode, which is-close enough to the city for work opportunities and still the right side of town to get to and from their families in Essex.

New abode: Speaking about their new chapter, 22-year-old Dani admitted that it's been 'fun' settling into their new abode, without cameras watching every move

'Love': Jack, 26, gushed: 'I love it'. While Dani weighed in and said: 'Its fun, I feel like a house wife'

In snaps from inside the flat, Jack showed off the plush bathroom, hardwood floors, private balcony and riverside views.

The property also features a large leather sofa, for their evenings at home together.

Jack posted a snap of them at the property together, looking over the moon, captioning it: 'What a lovely morning weve had! Exciting.' He added emojis of a house and keys.

Dani, uploaded to her Insta Stories, writing: 'Finally moving into our new home.' She decorated this with heart emojis and cuddled up to Jack in the selfie, which was snapped on their new balcony, which features a view of the Wharf.

Pristine: Already wanting to keep their new home pristine, former stationery salesman Jack admitted that he's been banned from one of their bathrooms

Change: Back on This Morning, Dani revealed that she has left the Love Island 2018 WhatsApp group after she was forced to change her number

Discussion: Viewers will remember when Georgia Steel was accidentally booted out of the texting group when Adam Collard mistakenly added the wrong Georgia to the messaging platform

'Stressful': Discussing her decision to leave the WhatsApp group, she said: 'I'm not in it, I changed my number. I don't like WhatsApp and you miss out on so much information. It's stressful'

Back on This Morning, Dani revealed that she has left the Love Island 2018 WhatsApp group after she was forced to change her number.

Viewers will remember when Georgia Steel was accidentally booted out of the texting group when Adam Collard mistakenly added the wrong Georgia to the messaging platform.

But now Dani confessed that she's left the group while Jack revealed he still regularly chats to pal Dr Alex George.

Speaking about how there's no competition between her former cast mates, she said: 'We're just proud of them, supporting their journey and them support our journey.'

Chat: But now Dani confessed that she's left the group while Jack revealed he still regularly chats to pal Dr Alex George. Speaking about how there's no competition between her former cast mates, she said: 'We're just proud of them, supporting their journey and them support our journey'

Pretty as a picture: Jack held onto a framed photo of Dani's father Danny Dyer

Discussing her decision to leave the WhatsApp group, she said: 'Oh I'm not in that, I changed my number.

'I don't like WhatsApp groups, I don't understand them like you miss out on so much information - I get bored, I'm just not good in them.'

Their rise to fame since debuting on Love Island this summer has been unprecedented, with such stars as Margot Robbie and Paris Hilton weighing in on the happenings in the Mallorca villa.

Dani is believed to be on Channel 4's list of celebs they hope to recruit for the Great British Bake-off, along with Mollie King and Nick Grimshaw.

Proud: The reality proudly held the present beside his head

Having a look: Jack beamed as he received the present

A source told the Sun: 'Dani provided some great laughs during her time in Love Island, one of them being when her and boyfriend Jack Fincham went shopping for the group dinner.

'When they got back to the villa, she nagged at him for wolfing down half the nachos which were meant as a starter.

'Bake Off bosses think she would bring a fantastic light-hearted energy into the Bake Off tent, so have been in touch to say they would love to have her on the show.
It's not the first time that contestants have stormed off set.

And in a preview of The Block on Monday, South Australian couple Kerrie Charter and Spence Thomson were seen dramatically walking off the show.

A glimpse of the episode shows a builder discovering a huge problem with the ceiling and tensions arise.

'I need to get out of this place': The Block's Kerrie and Spence SHOCK walk off the show after they discovered a big complication in the most dramatic exit yet

'The boys have used the wrong clips. All of yesterday's work - all for nothing,' the builder known as Dan says.

An irritated Spence, 47, responds: 'I don't like doing things twice'.

Dan asks whether the couple are ok to redo the work, prompting a frustrated Spence to firmly respond: 'no'.

'I don't like doing things twice,' Spence, 47, said after foreman Dan revealed the wrong clips were used on the ceiling

Also annoyed, Kerrie, 49, adds: 'What's the point...Yeah and then they give you such a big room to do.'

Spence was seen holding up the clips that were mistakenly used in one hand and the correct clips in the other, comparing them to 'potato potato'.

Later, the B&B owners from the Barossa Valley were seen storming down the road as Spence took off his Hi-Vis shirt during the shock walk-out.

'What's the point...Yeah and then they give you such a big room to do,' nurse Kerrie, 49, said moments before the explosive exit

'I need to get out of this place,' Spence dramatically confessed.

And Kerrie and Spence confirmed to TV Week on Monday that they considered quitting the show this week due to 'stress' and 'sleep deprivation'.

Kerrie told the publication: 'We were deciding if this [The Block] was really for us, because there was nothing wrong with the clips. We were both sleep-deprived - especially Spence. It was the straw the broke the camel's back.'

The Block continues Tuesday night at 7:30pm on Channel Nine

Deliberation: Kerrie and Spence confirmed to TV Week on Monday that they considered quitting the show this week due to 'stress' and 'sleep deprivation'
Instagram-famous couple Chiara Ferragni and Fedez finally tied the knot in a glamorous ceremony in Sicily. The Italian blogger opted to sport three Dior bridal gowns on her wedding day, designed by Creative Director Maria Grazia Chiuri.

Months after the birth of the equally-famous Leone, the couple, who have dubbed themselves #The Ferragnez, celebrated their marriage at an extravagant reception, which included a fairground carousel, a Ferris wheel and a fireworks display.

The Blonde Salad blogger, who has a staggering 14 million followers on Instagram, took to the social media site to explain how the custom made Dior haute couture dress had lyrics from a song Fedez wrote for her when he proposed.

Chiara Ferragni attends the pre wedding party before tying the knot with Fedez in Noto, Italy

Who is Chiara Ferragni?

Born on May 7 1987 in Cremona, a city located in northern Italy, Chiara Ferragni garnered fame after the launch of her blog The Blonde Salad in 2009. Since then, she has become the Creative Director of her own clothing line, a magazine cover star and has collaborated with a number of fashion houses, according to Glamour.

Two years after the launch of her blog, while still studying at Bocconi University, she had reached more than one million unique visitors and 12 million views per month and in addition to this, was featured in Teen Vogue as their Blogger of the Moment.

After modelling for Guess in 2013, she collaborated with Steve Madden to design a nine-shoe collection for Spring 2014. The show mogul said: Chiara is fashions Italian goddess. Im excited to give our customers shoes that combine her flair with a twist of Steve Madden.

Chiara added: My inspiration for this collection comes from all the shoes Ive been wearing over the years and all the shoes Ive always looked for but never found: every pair is unique and tells a different story. Following this, she went on to present the Italian TRL Awards and made an appearance on Chiambretti Night.

After appearing as a guest judge on Project Runway, Chiaras shoe collection was set to make her $8 million (6.2m), making her one of the first to use a personal blog to launch a career and establish a fully realised brand and global business, according to WWD.

In April 2015, she also became the first blogger to ever grace the cover of an edition of Vogue and since then, Chiara has appeared on over 50 magazine covers. She was then named the global ambassador of Pantene with Mattel created a Barbie version of the model in 2016.

A year later, Chiara opened her first Chiara Ferragni Collection store in Milan and her success also resulted in her taking the top spot on Forbes Top Influencers list in the Fashion category and becoming a Harvard Business School case study.

The Ivy League school predicted that Chiara was making up to $9 million (7m) revenue for herself and her team and since the report was published in 2015, she has gone from strength to strength, now employing 20 members of staff.

In an interview with Forbes, Chiara said: I think influencers right now are the new media. In the past, people were so interested in reading fashion news out of a magazine, and now they get all this information from social media, through influencers.

Chiara continued: I really started The Blonde Salad at the best time possible. Thats when the world started talking about the fashion blogger phenomenon, and brands started approaching me from the very beginning.

Today, her collection is available in over 350 stores with her flagships being in Milan and Shanghai. She is also thought to be grooming her younger sister Valentina Ferragni to become the next social media star from Italy.

Chiara Ferragni and Fedez attend the pre wedding party on August 31, 2018 in Noto, Italy

Chiara Ferragni and Fedez

Federico Leonardo Lucia, or Fedez, proposed to Chiara in May 2017 during one of his concerts at Veronas Arena venue which the blogger was attending with friends as part of her 30th birthday celebrations, as reported on WWD.

The concert and proposal was broadcasted live on the Italian radio and TV channel RTL 102.5 and shared on social media. The couple then headed to Venice to celebrate and Chiara went on to host a part in Milan.

The engagement came a year after the pair started dating and they welcomed their son, Leone, on March 19, 2018. Chiara and Fedez split their time between Los Angeles and Milan.

Chiara Ferragni wedding

Chiara and Fedez married in a lavish ceremony in Sicily, the bride choosing to wear three Dio bridal gowns on her wedding day, designed by Dior Creative Director Maria Grazia Chiuri, who was also a guest at the wedding.

The outdoor ceremony and reception included a fairground carousel, a Ferris wheel and fireworks. Chiara took to Instagram to explain how her custom made Dior haute couture dress had lyrics from a song that Fedez wrote for her when he proposed, in addition to other meaningful symbols.

Her first dress was a lace gown with a full-length veil, while her second was a nude fairy-tale inspired gown with a tulle skirt. For her final look, she replaced her long skirt with a shorter ballerina-style tutu.

Chiara Ferragni net worth

Chiara Ferragnis net worth is approximately 8.5 million, according to Spears, thought to have been accumulated as a result of earnings from her show collection and Chiara Ferragni Talent Management, which amassed around 5.6 million.

In addition to what she makes from sponsored posts on Instagram, advertising revenue on The Blonde Salad amounts to over 1 million and in 2015, Chiara made 7 million through collaborations and adverts.
She was recently left looking uncomfortable at a photocall for new movie Suspiria on Saturday after the movie's director, Luca Guadagnino,'unfortunate' hand placement.

And Dakota Johnson was spotted heading home from the 75th Venice Film Festival as she made her way to the airport via water taxi on Monday.

The Fifty Shades of Grey actress, 28, looked effortlessly chic as she rocked a casual ensemble of jeans and an oversized purple striped shirt.

Home time: Dakota Johnson was spotted heading home from the 75th Venice Film Festival as she made her way to the airport via water taxi on Monday

Giving a nod to her superstar status, Dakota accessorised her look with a pair of Gucci trainers and oversized pointed tortoise shell sunglasses.

The talented actress appeared to go make-up free as she styled her brunette locks and fringe into a relaxed loose hairdo.

Dakota appeared in good spirits after she was left looking uncomfortable at a photocall for her new movie Suspiria on Saturday.

Stylish: The Fifty Shades of Grey actress, 28, looked effortlessly chic as she rocked a casual ensemble of jeans and an oversized purple striped shirt

Talented star: The talented actress appeared to go make-up free as she styled her brunette locks and fringe into a relaxed loose hairdo

Unfortunate: Dakota appeared in good spirits after she was left looking uncomfortable at a photocall for her new movie Suspiria on Saturday

The 28-year-old looked down and pulled a face as the movie's director, Luca Guadagnino's hand was placed a little too near to her breast.

There is nothing to suggest that this was intentional - and the placement could appear worse due to the camera angle.

But regardless, Dakota appeared to be a little surprised nonetheless.

Awkward: Dakota looked uncomfortable due to director Luca Guadagnino's 'unfortunate' hand placement at a photocall for Suspiria at the Venice Film Festival on Saturday

According to The Sun, onlookers said 47-year-old Luca's intention was to shield her cleavage area from photographers, as she was perhaps avoiding a wardrobe malfunction.

It is not known if any words were said alongside this moment.

MailOnline has contacted a representative for Dakota and Luca for comment.

What happened here? There is nothing to suggest that this was intentional - and the placement could appear worse due to the camera angle

Cringe: The 28-year-old looked down and pulled a face as the movie's director, Luca Guadagnino's hand was placed a little too near to her breast

Protective: According to The Sun, onlookers said 47-year-old Luca's intention was to shield her cleavage area from photographers

Meanwhile, the actress recently revealed she had to work hard to prepare for the erotic Fifty Shades, but it was nothing compared to the physical demands of Suspiria,

The movie is a horror in which much of the fear comes through her ability to dance like a woman possessed.

A remake of the 1970s cult classic is set in a dance school in Berlin where Johnson's character Susie, a naive young hopeful from the cornfields of Ohio, arrives to find strange powers at work.

Awkward? The actress appeared to be suffering a wardrobe malfunction

Laughing it off: Dakota appeared to be in good spirits following the red carpet incldent

The older women at the academy are impressed by her instinctual, violent dancing, and quickly give her the lead role in an upcoming performance - although the viewer suspects they have something more sinister in mind.

'It was amazing to discover that I could do that with my body, but it was a lot of work, it was a lot of training,' Johnson told Reuters in Venice, where Suspiria is competing for a Golden Lion.

'I worked for six months before filming. I was filming another movie in Vancouver, the third Fifty Shades movie, and I would go after work or before to train with the trainer.'
She's enjoyed a busy few days of parties and premieres at the 75th annual Venice Film Festival.

And Dakota Fanning was back to it as she stepped out in the Italian city on Monday morning as the movie event continued in full swing.

The actress, 24, looked chic in a yellow frilled blouse, which she tucked into a white A-line skirt.

Out and about: Dakota Fanning looked chic in a yellow frilled blouse and a white skirt for an outing at the Venice Film Festival on Monday

The Alienist star stepped out in gold heels, which gave her look an extra dazzling touch.

Dakota's blonde locks were worn in a sleek, straight style and she wore a slick of dark pink lipstick.

She accessorised with a pair of retro-inspired cat eye sunglasses, and kept her personal items in a chic handbag.

The actress has been working with luxury label Miu Miu on their short film series, Women's Tales, which empowers female directors to create works through the female gaze.

Dazzling: The actress, 24, stepped out in gold heels and cat eye sunglasses, which gave her look an extra dazzling touch

The caveat to the series being that all the costumes and clothing featured must be from Miu Miu collections.

The program is debuting their 15th and 16th shorts this year with Dakota serving as director for number 15.

Her short Hello Apartment made its world premiere in London in February and made its Venice debut on Sunday.

Stylish: Dakota's blonde locks were worn in a sleek, straight style and she wore a slick of dark pink lipstick

Dakota's film is about viewing the life of the main character through her apartment.

'I've wanted to direct something for a long time, ever since I can remember. It's the only other thing (besides acting) I've wanted to do,' she told Variety.

The I Am Sam actress also divulged that the project was quite personal for her because she just moved out of her first apartment after seven years.
Georgia Love and Lee Elliott stepped out in style for the Opening Townhall Runway show at Melbourne Fashion Week on Monday.

The couple, who celebrated their two years anniversary last month after meeting on The Bachelorette, looked incredibly happy as they posed for photos together ahead of the fashion show.

Georgia, 30, looked stunning in a figure-hugging red mini-dress, which featured a plunging neckline and cut-out panels on her upper arms.

Date night! Georgia Love and Lee Elliott look smitten after celebrating their two year anniversary as they attend Melbourne Fashion Week

She accessorised with strappy black stilettos and statement earrings, and wore her hair parted in the middle and slicked back in a low ponytail.

Meanwhile, Lee looked dashing in a charcoal grey and white check suit.

The 37-year-old also wore a white pinstripe shirt, which he teamed with a plain black tie and patent leather brogues.

The former Bachelorette stars looked surprisingly fresh-faced as they posed for photos together following a weekend of celebrating Georgia's milestone birthday.

Loved up: The couple - who have been going strong for two years now, after meeting on the 2016 season of The Bachelorette - looked incredibly happy as they posed for photos together

The television journalist celebrated her 30th with a musical theatre-themed birthday party, which she held at Melbourne's Regent Theatre.

Georgia dressed up as Satine from Moulin Rouge, while Lee went dressed as the Beast from Beauty and the Beast.

'Although you stitched me up in the costume department, deciding last minute not to go as Belle from Beauty and the Beast, I can't help but feel I kept up my end of the bargain,' Lee captioned a sweet photo of the pair at the party on Instagram.

'But it turned out alright as I have just got word that I'm the first Beast ever to be awarded the No-Belle prize!'

Party people: The television journalist celebrated her 30th with a musical theatre-themed birthday party, which she held at Melbourne's Regent Theatre

Georgia also shared a series of photos from the themed birthday bash on her own Instagram, and gave Lee a sweet shoutout.

'I've had the time of my life and I owe it all to you!' she captioned a photo of the two of them together.

'The first look at the most EPIC night of my whole life, celebrating my 30th in the only way I know possible: throwing a totally OTT musical theatre party at the Regent!! And of course it wouldn't have been half as wonderful without my beast.'
Kaia Gerber admits it was an honor to work with her fashion 'hero' Karl Lagerfeld.

The 17-year-old model - who is the daughter of 90s catwalk icon Cindy Crawford and her husband Rande Gerber - has created a new capsule collection for his eponymous brand and she was inspired by how passionate Karl, 84, still is about clothes.

In an interview with Vogue Australia, she said: 'Genuinely, Karl has always been my fashion hero, and having worked with him, he's still my hero. He's such a visionary and he's been in this industry, which is not an easy industry to be in, for such a long time. I love how passionate he is about what he does ... It was just really cool to see the way that those two worlds met. You wouldn't necessarily place them together, but I think it worked out really well.'

Kaia Gerber admits it was an honor to work with her fashion 'hero' Karl Lagerfeld. Seen here last month

The Karl Lagerfeld x Kaia Capsule Collection was unveiled in past week, with a star-studded party hosted in Los Angeles attended by Kaia, Corinne Olympios, Sabina Gadecki and Larsen Thompson.

Among the products for sale are a leather biker jacket - which is inspired by her Harley Davidson riding dad Rande - a tux jacket with striking stripes down the arms, skate shoes and a studded handbag, and Kaia is particularly pleased at how the range marries Californian cool style with Parisian chic.

Kaia - who first met Karl in September 2017 at a fitting for Fendi - said: 'I'm from Malibu, and there's a Californian casual way that people dress here. Then there's the Parisian look, which is very chic and very pulled-together, but in also a cool and casual way. I think Karl and I really wanted to just bring the two worlds together.

'It was just really cool to see the way that those two worlds met. You wouldn't necessarily place them together, but I think it worked out really well.'

Kaia says Karl, 84, is still passionate about clothes. He's seen here in July 2017

Kaia has admitted that when the opportunity arose to design the line, she was already prepared as she often spends her free time creating ideas for garments.

She explained: 'I always have mood boards going, no matter if I'm working on something or not - I just like having inspiration. I basically already had all my ideas [when they called].

'They wanted to know what I thought. I was really excited because it really did feel like collaboration - we both played a role in the final outcome.'
They met when he auditioned on the 2010 series of The X Factor, going on to join one of the show's most successful boybands One Direction.

And Simon Cowell has exclusively revealed to the MailOnline that he he has a 'strong bond' with his co-judge Louis Tomlinson and hinted that he could even be his next 'successor'.

The music mogul, 58, shook up The X Factor's judging panel for this year's series with the One Direction star, 26, Robbie Williams, 44, and his wife, Ayda Field, 39, joining the show.

Sweet: Simon Cowell has exclusively revealed to the MailOnline that he he has a 'strong bond' with his co-judge Louis Tomlinson and hinted that he could even be his next 'successor'

Talking about his 'strong bond' with Louis, he exclusively said: 'There's a really strong bond between us, we've always been close.

'From the beginning of One Direction I talked to Louis so much. So when we've been auditioning on X Factor in the past Im always curious to hear what he likes.

'He knows Im not a huge fan of all the guitar acts, so we wind each other up about that. You want people with strong opinions.

Pals: Talking about his 'strong bond' with Louis, he exclusively told MailOnline: 'There's a really strong bond between us, we've always been close.'

Shake-up: The music mogul, 58, shook up The X Factor's judging panel for this year's series with the One Direction star, 26, Robbie Williams, 44, and his wife, Ayda Field, 39, joining

'He keeps calling me the gaffer which I think is hysterical. Im not the gaffer, but he knows me well enough that we just take the mickey out of each other!'

When asked if he could be a 'mini Simon Cowell' in the making, he added: 'I hope he'll be like me! Maybe he could be my successor you never know!

'But seriously, I've met my match, I've got to admit it. All the judges this year have their own opinions, good ideas, it's been really fun.'

The sweet comments come after Louis became emotional during Sunday night's instalment of The X Factor, when he was reunited with a former contestant.

Anthony Russell - who has auditioned for the show twice before, getting through to last year's Judges' Houses round - had to pull out of the series in 2017 due to personal issues.

'Strong bond': They met when he auditioned on the 2010 series of The X Factor, going on to join one of the show's most successful boybands One Direction

Success: Louis pictured with his band One Direction in 2014 at the 42nd annual American Music Awards

On Sunday he made a return, with Louis revealing that he helped the 28-year-old Liverpudlian labourer by arranging for him to go to rehab after having to quit last season.

Anthony explained: 'I thought I had a shot at this, I could be someone  and then I started going down a rocky road, making bad choices, the wrong decisions, started getting weak.

'So obviously I started stepping out of the competition myself  I was devastated.'

Appearing to know each other quite well, Anthony and Louise exchanged familiar chat, after which Anthony performed a rendition of Wake Me Up by Avicii.

Fighting tears: Louis Tomlinson became emotional during Sunday night's instalment of The X Factor, when he was reunited with a former contestant

The audience and judging panel were left impressed, with Louis fighting back tears after the proud moment.

Louis headed on to the stage to hug his friend, with the other judges applauding. Robbie Williams remarked: 'It takes courage and ferocity. Your voice is sensational.'

He added: 'Thank you so much! In my short stint as an X Factor judge so far, 70 per cent of acts are all right. What Im looking for is The X Factor and what youve got is The X Factor and Ill tell you why those battle scars give you something that not everybody has because your story is unique.'

Another shot: Anthony Russell - who has auditioned for the show before, getting through to last year's Judges' Houses round - had to pull out of the show in 2017 due to personal issues

When Louis was asked to speak, however, he couldn't. The One Direction star fought back tears, with Simon patting him on the back in comfort.

'Im pretty emotional after that. I literally cant even talk here it was a big moment for both of us and you absolutely delivered.'

At first, Louis refused to give Anthony a 'yes' as he was biased. But Simon noted that Anthony deserved a 'yes' from the man who helped him through his issues.

Louis' 'yes' - along with Simon, Robbie and Ayda Field's - sent Anthony through to Bootcamp.

The X Factor continues on Saturday at 8pm on ITV.
She's the Melbourne fashion and lifestyle blogger who is frequently praised for her sophisticated wardrobe choices.

But Rozalia Russian missed the mark in a bizarre co-ord at Melbourne Fashion Week on Monday.

The Melbourne socialite raised eyebrows while dressed head-to-toe in double denim.

Un-suit-able? Rozalia Russian turns heads in a peculiar double denim ensemble as she steps out for Melbourne Fashion Week

The sartorial featured a top that elongated past Rozalia's hands, finishing off with unusually flared edges.

A zipper adorned the front of her bust as she teamed up the quirky top with a pair of tight matching pants.

Heavily embellished with an all-over denim print, the pants gathered at her ankles and were also cut over-length.

Bold choice: The sartorial featured a crepey top that elongated past Rozalia's hands, finishing off with unusually flared edges

Peeking through the edges of her pants was a pair of stylish transparent heels - and to complete the astonishing get-up, Rozalia opted for a coordinating denim cross-body bag.

Her make-up consisted of dewy foundation, heavily lined eyes, a pop of coral eye shadow and glossy nude lips as Rozalia's brunette tresses were styled in relaxed textured waves.

And speaking to Sitchu last month, the fashion icon described her personal style.

Recurring print: Peeking through the edges of her pants was a pair of stylish clear heels - and to complete the astonishing get-up, Rozalia opted for a coordinating denim cross-body bag

'My wardrobe can be quite monochrome in winter, sometimes with very little colour and patterns, and I feel as though this translates to our home,' she said.

Expressing her interior design taste, Rozalia explained: 'I prefer more masculine interiors with lots of dark wood and a monochrome scheme.'

She continued: 'Our home is all black and white with small pops of colour in artwork. I add warmth to the house with beautiful soft coloured flowers.'
They announced the end of their marriage back in February.

But Rebecca Gayheart looked happy and relaxed as she took to the beach in a bikini on Sunday, with her soon to be ex-husband Eric Dane at her side.

The two were enjoying a Labor Day weekend getaway with friends in Malibu.

Still good friends: Rebecca Gayheart shows off her bikini body as she holidays in Malibu with ex Eric Dane... seven months after split

Catching up: Eric, in American flag shorts, chats to his estranged wife

The couple have daughters Billie, eight, and Georgia, six, together.

Amongst their beach group were Mike D from the Beastie Boys and his wife Tamra Davis.

Back in February Grey's Anatomy star Eric and Rebecca, 46, revealed their 14-year union had broken down.

A statement read: 'After 14 years together we have decided that ending our marriage is the best decision for our family.

'We will continue our friendship and work as a team to co-parent our two beautiful girls as they are the most important thing in the world to us. We kindly ask that you respect our privacy during this time as we navigate the next phase of our lives.'

Support: Among the group were Mike D from the Beastie Boys and his wife Tamra Davis

Previously, papers obtained by TMZ and signed by Rebecca revealed that the Beverly Hills 90210 star was seeking spousal support, as well as joint legal and physical custody of their girls.

A year ago 45-year-old Eric took a break from his TNT series The Last Ship to focus on his mental health, and later urged others experiencing similar issues to address their problems and seek help.

He said: 'I took some time off - I was dealing with some depression, which was kind of odd to me.

'I felt very conflicted about it because I didn't really feel like I had anything to be depressed about.'

'Now I take a medication called Pristiq, which I thought just sounded like a good mood. And the depression is gone.

'You've got to listen to your body. It's a very serious thing. Like I said, I felt very conflicted because I couldn't figure out what I was depressed about. But it's very real.'

Working mom: Rebecca strolls the sand; she has daughters Billie, eight, and Georgia, six

Moving on: Papers revealed that the Beverly Hills 90210 star was seeking spousal support, as well as joint legal and physical custody of their girls

Eric went to rehab in 2011 after becoming addicted to painkillers, and whilst he claimed it was a 'scary' time for him, he's pleased to be on the other side of his battle.

He said: 'That was a scary thing, when you wake up and you're like: 'I don't want to get out of bed.' I was seeing these doctors thinking that there was something physically wrong with me, because I'd never felt like that.

'I mean, I'd dealt with depression throughout my life, but it was always manageable.

'I just felt like, you know, everybody kind of feels a little blue. But this just hit me like a truck. I had to take some time off - I went away, I took care of it, and I'm feeling great.'
On a night dedicated to film it was fashion that dominated as Naomi Watts commanded the red carpet at the 75th annual Venice Film Festival on Monday evening.

The British-Australian actress, 49, caught the eye in a glittering black gown with distinctive sheer detailing while attending the premiere of forthcoming release At Eternitys Gate.

The fitted design drew attention to Naomis slender physique as she posed for photos after joining a selection of the films cast in the picturesque Italian citys Salo Grande.

Stunning: On a night dedicated to film it was fashion that dominated as Naomi Watts commanded the red carpet at the 75th annual Venice Film Festival on Monday evening

The actress added to her look with a pair of strappy heels, while a tasteful clutch and jaw-dropping De Beers jewels, including a pair of Arpeggia One Line Earrings, rounded things off.

Allowing her outfit to dominate, Naomi opted to style her blonde locks with a conventional centre parting ahead of her latest red carpet appearance.

Evidently in high spirits, the star offered a beaming smile as she waved at onlookers while making her entrance.

High glamour: The British-Australian actress, 49, caught the eye in a glittering black gown with distinctive sheer detailing while attending the premiere of forthcoming release At Eternitys Gate

Upbeat: Evidently in high spirits, Naomi beamed as she made her way across the red carpet on Monday night

While Naomi does not star in the film, a biopic about the final days of Vincent van Gogh, she was in good company as she joined guests including fellow actress Tilda Swinton.

The British star proved to be equally engaging in a vibrant red and white mottled jumpsuit while greeting photographers on Monday evening.

Matching gloves and stiletto heels gave the look an eccentric flourish, while Tilda's androgynous cropped hairstyle also ensured she was hard to miss.

Engaging sight: A tasteful clutch and jaw-dropping De Beers jewels, including a pair of Arpeggia One Line Earrings, rounded things off

Hard to miss: Tilda Swinton proved to be equally engaging in a vibrant red and white mottled jumpsuit while greeting photographers on Monday evening

Recurring theme: Matching gloves and stiletto heels gave the look a typically eccentric flourish

All eyes on me: Tilda's bold ensemble ensured she claimed her fair share of the spotlight on Monday evening

Keeping it simple: Allowing her outfit to dominate, Naomi opted to style her blonde locks with a conventional centre parting ahead of her latest red carpet appearance

Naomi's visit to the annual festival is more work than pleasure this time around, after she was announced as one of the festival's jurors.

The beauty has joined Oscar-winning director Guillermo del Toro who was appointed as juror president earlier this year.

Among the industry professionals, other people on the panel include Thor: Ragnarok director Taika Waititi, actresses Sylvia Chang, Nicole Garcia, and Trine Dyrholm, and filmmakers Paolo Genovese and Malgorzata Szumowska.

Main man: Willem Dafoe, who plays Vincent van Gogh in the new film, was joined by wife Giada Colagrande

Dressed to impress: Chloe Sevigny caught the eye in a thigh-skimming monochrome minidress

Say cheese: The American actress cracked a smile as she posed for photographers at the star-studded event

In attendance: Valentina Siragusa (L) and Lolita Chammah (R) also walked the red carpet on Monday evening
Diane Kruger gave her baby bump some love on Labor Day in New York City.

The 42-year-old actress was spotted dressed down with a very pregnant belly walking in Manhattan on Monday.

The mommy-to-be sported a graphic T-shirt over her adorable bump that read 'all you need is love.'

Mommy moment: Diane Kruger was spotted dressed down in a graphic T-shirt over her adorable baby bump that read 'all you need is love'

The German-born beauty is sure to being giving a lot of love to her first child with partner, 49-year-old actor Norman Reedus.

The Inglorious Basterds star wore a trendy pair of comfortable Adidas training pants and a pair of embellished black slides.

She kept her cropped blonde bob pulled back into a sleek ponytail and shielded her eyes with a pair of dark sunglasses.

In her hand she carried a set of house keys and had a bold red leather cross body bag slung over one shoulder.

Mums the word: The 42-year-old and her partner, actor Norman Reedus, still haven't officially confirmed that Diane is expecting

The house keys could perhaps unlock her new palatial townhouse that she's currently nesting in with her beau.

Kruger and the Walking Dead star recently scooped up an impressive new home to the tune of $11.7M.

According to the Wall Street Journal, the duo will welcome their newborn into a four-story, 3,800 square foot Manhattan brownstone, built in the 1800s.

Mums the word with the pair when it comes to the new addition in the family.

The couple has yet to confirm that Diane even actually pregnant.

However several recent photos clearly show off the mommy-to-be's evident baby bump and pregnacy glow.

Baby makes three: This will be the first child for the actors together. Norman has a son from a previous relationship with supermodel Helena Christensen

Just three weeks ago, Daily Mail revealed exclusive photos of a pregnant Kruger for the first time. She was spotted hailing a cab in New York.

Yesterday the star was seen again running some errands in NYC in a precious bump hugging black cotton onesie.

While the baby will be Diane's first, Norman already as a teenage son Mingus, 18, with his supermodel ex Helena Christensen, 49.

The couple met while filming Sky in 2015. They debuted their romance in 2016, the same year the actress ended a decade long relationship with actor Joshua Jackson.
She's one of the stars of forthcoming BBC drama, The Cry.

And on Monday night, Jenna Coleman stepped out at the Soho Hotel in London to promote the programme - turning heads in a quirky paisley get-up.

The Victoria actress posed for snaps in the maroon and red ensemble, which featured long flared trousers and a high-necked top.

Stylish: Jenna Coleman stepped out at the Soho Hotel in London to promote her new show The Cry - turning heads in a quirky paisley get-up

The top had cut outs at her shoulders, teasing her bare skin below, and featured gold metallic bands around her arms.

She wore her brunette locks in loose waves, behind her shoulders, and sported a pale make-up palette, accentuated with dashes of red around the eyes and a rosy pink to her lips.

She wore delicate drop earrings and showed off a dark-coloured manicure.

She was joined for the photocall by the likes of Glendyn Ivan - the show's director - as well as Claire Mundell, Edith Bowman and writer Helen Fitzgerald, who penned the novel on which the show is based.

Quirky: The Victoria actress posed for snaps in the maroon and red ensemble, which featured long flared trousers and a high-necked top

A look: She wore her brunette locks in loose waves, behind her shoulders, and sported a pale make-up palette, accentuated with dashes of red around the eyes and a rosy pink to her lips

In good company: Jenna was joined for the photocall by the likes of [L-R] Glendyn Ivan, Claire Mundell, Helen Fitzgerald and Edith Bowman

Drama: The Cry was shot in Australia and Scotland and will be shown both in the UK and Down Under

The Cry was shot in Australia and Scotland and will be shown both in the UK and Down Under.

It is adapted from the novel of the same name, written by Helen FitzGerald.

Jenna portrays Joanna. She is married to Alistair, and travel from Scotland to a town in Australia, to fight for custody of Alistair's daughter, Chloe, against his Australian ex-wife, Alexandra.

As they drive from Melbourne to Geelong, their baby son Noah goes missing suddenly from the side of the road.

In the aftermath of the tragedy, under public scrutiny, their marriage collapses and her psychology disintegrates.
They're set to tie the knot during a lavish ceremony in San Jose del Cabo,Mexico in December.

And as the big day approaches, more details have emerged about Karl Stefanovic and Jasmine Yarbrough's upcoming wedding.

A source told Woman's Day on Monday that Jasmine's family is 'thrilled' that she will say 'I do' inside a traditional chapel.

Grandma can't wait! Jasmine Yarbrough's family is 'thrilled' she is having a traditional chapel ceremony... as more details of her lavish Mexican wedding to Karl Stefanovic emerge. Pictured: Karl and Jasmine at the 2018 TV Week Logie Awards

Jasmine's grandmother is particularly pleased about the inclusion of the chapel in the day's events, given that their family is part of the Anglican community in Ascot, Brisbane.

Last month, Daily Mail Australia reported that the celebrity couple will wed in a picturesque chapel at the One&Only Palmilla Resort, where they'll also be staying.

The wedding will be a three-day affair, with the newlyweds sparing no expense.

Meant to be! The chapel that Karl and Jasmine will marry in (pictured) overlooks the ocean, with Jasmine's grandmother reportedly particularly pleased about the venue's inclusion

Picturesque: The stunning white chapel is the perfect destination for any loved-up couple

They have booked two villas, one at $11,600 per night and another at $15,000 per night.

The chapel where Karl, 44, and Jasmine will tie the knot overlooks the Sea of Cortez, and the bride has reportedly requested fireworks to accompany the nuptials.

Meanwhile, Karl's eldest son Jackson, 19, will not be attending the wedding.

How romantic! Karl and Jasmine are set to marry at the One&Only Palmilla Resort (pictured) in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico in December

A source previously told Daily Mail Australia that Jackson was also not invited to Karl and Jasmine's commitment ceremony in Sydney's Palm Beach in March.

It is possible the teenager will be in Europe when the wedding takes place, however, as he is currently there on a gap year.

Karl and Jasmine first met in December 2016, just a few months after the Channel Nine star split with his wife-of-21-years Cassandra Thorburn.

They became engaged at the start of the year.

Ocean views: The luxury, five-star resort boasts breathtaking views of the Sea of Cortez

The wedding ceremony is reportedly scheduled to take place on December 8 in San Jose del Cabo, Mexico.

The guest list includes: Jasmine's Mara and Mine business partner Tamie Ingham and her sister Katie, James Packer and his girlfriend Kylie Lim, Richard Wilkins and his girlfriend Virginia Burmeister and Karl's manager Sharon Finnigan.

It has also been claimed that Karl's brother Peter Stefanovic will not be best man.

No expense spared! Karl and Jasmine have booked two villas, one at $11,600 per night and another at $15,000 per night
As a jet-setting Victoria's Secret model, Georgia Fowler knows the importance of staying in peak physical condition all year round.

And on Monday, the 26-year-old offered fans a glimpse at her intense training regimen, taking to Instagram to reveal her four-step circuit workout.

Sharing a series of photos and instructional videos, the New Zealand-born beauty performed several exercises in a midriff-baring crop top and leggings.

Want to sweat like an Angel? Victoria's Secret model Georgia Fowler, 26, revealed the simple four-step circuit workout behind her chiselled physique on Monday

'After activations, warm ups, a mix of a cardio and strength rounds, here's part of my core circuit,' she began, before listing off a series of low-impact maneuvers.

'Single leg hip bridge x 10, single leg hip bridge with leg lever x 5, single leg hip bridge with circles - 5 in each direction. Repeat on other leg,' she explained.

Georgia completed her post with an inspirational message, declaring: 'Working hard isn't seasonal. Being strong is always part of my routine. Dedicate yourself and be your very best you can be.'

Working hard! 'After activations, warm ups, a mix of a cardio and strength rounds, here's part of my core circuit,' she wrote on Instagram, before listing off a series of low-impact maneuvers

After the sweaty gym session, Georgia treated herself to an infrared sauna.

Sharing a selfie as she recovered, she told her Instagram followers: 'With all the workouts it's been important for me to do some R&R which I'm not so good at.'

'Infrareds help you not just sweat, but aid in muscle recovery, detoxification and reduce cortisol levels (stress).'

Workout glam: Georgia showcased her lithe figure in a black crop top and matching leggings, while accessorising her look with a gold necklace and ring

Besides modelling for major fashion brands, Georgia is also known for her rumoured fling with Harry Styles in 2015.

During an interview with The Morning Show last November, Georgia addressed speculation that Harry's song Kiwi was about their relationship.

'I don't really know anything about it,' she said. 'I definitely don't have a baby... that's what the song is all about... I think it's highly unlikely.'

Whispers of a romance between Georgia and the former One Direction star, 24, began in October 2015 after she posted Snapchat videos of them together.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison is refusing to say whether Liberal Party members accused of bullying will be publicly named and shamed.

Victorian Liberal MP Julia Banks cited instances of bullying and intimidation by Liberal MPs when announcing her resignation last week.

Mr Morrison is now working with Minister for Women Kelly O'Dwyer and Chief Whip Nola Marino to investigate the claims.

"This is about ensuring a positive culture in our party and our party organisation as well," he told 3AW radio on Monday.

Radio host Neil Mitchell pressed the prime minister on whether the alleged bullies would be named.

"I'm dealing with facts, I'm not dealing with allegations," Mr Morrison said.

"I'm working with that internally in my party with my party organisation."

Asked again if it was likely, Mr Morrison said: "It is likely that we will absolutely deal with this issue as a party, as colleagues, and I have no truck with bullying whether it's in a classroom, whether it's in a workplace, or with a broadcaster."
Scott Morrison has questioned why African gang violence is a problem in Melbourne, saying it doesn't happen in Sydney because NSW has a "police force that's a force".

The ongoing gang violence in Melbourne has sparked debate between the Victorian and federal governments about the extent of the issue and its causes.

The Sydney-based prime minister says the city has a law and order problem not witnessed in Australia's other major cities.

"We have (Australia's) highest proportion of Sudanese population in NSW," Mr Morrison told 3AW on Monday.

"We don't have these problems in NSW, they're not happening in other cities. Why is it happening in Melbourne?"

The prime minister recounted how former NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione changed the name of the NSW Police Service to NSW Police Force, bringing about a cultural change.

"Law and order means something in NSW and I feel for Victorians who are asking the big question, why is this happening in our city and it's not happening in other places," he said.

"There's not the same issue, even though we have the same challenges in other cities in the country, including in my home city of Sydney, because we have a police force that's a force."

He said it was up to Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews to ensure "there is a police force that is a force".

"When you don't have that control and rule of law being imposed and forced in your community, people take advantage of it," he said.
The new South Australian Liberal government will forecast a "modest" surplus for 2018/19 when it hands down its first budget since the March state election.

Treasurer Rob Lucas has also pledged to follow that up with similar surpluses across the government's first term.

Mr Lucas told reporters on Monday that Tuesday's budget would outline where the government had made savings to bring the state's finances back into the black after what would be sizeable deficit for 2017/18.

The government has also confirmed infrastructure spending will be a key part of the budget commitments to a range of projects.

It will outline funding promises for road and rail and public transport initiatives including further work on Adelaide's South Road corridor and the electrification of the Adelaide to Gawler train line.

The budget will also include almost $500 million of assistance to come from the federal government.

The commonwealth has agreed to provide $177 million to upgrade another section of Adelaide's South Road corridor, $220 million to electrify the Adelaide to Gawler rail line and $160 million for a new bridge project at Port Augusta in the mid-north.

Last week it also committed $70 million for a road duplication project at Port Wakefield.

The state government says the spending will fulfil election promises but they are also expected to tip the budget into the red unless it looks for cuts in other areas.

Labor says there no excuses for any cuts with the government splurging on luxuries since taking office, including "boozy" lunches and chauffeured limousines.
The Victorian Labor government has tabled tens of thousands of pages of confidential documents on Opposition Leader Matthew Guy dating back to his time as planning minister.

Deputy Premier James Merlino is expected to address the media on the documents on Monday afternoon but the documents have yet to be uploaded to the parliamentary website.

The documents refer to the controversial re-zoning of farmland for housing at Ventnor on Phillip Island, which captured the attention of US pop star Miley Cyrus in 2011, sparked an Ombudsman investigation and involved an out-of-court settlement when the decision was reversed.
Shares in Northern Star have hit a record high on their return to trade after the gold miner raised the cash to buy the $347 million Pogo underground gold mine in Alaska.

The Perth-based miner's shares surged by as much as 18.5 per cent on Monday to a record $8.25 after the end of a two-day trading halt, as investors reacted warmly to a deal that will make Northern Star the second largest gold producer on the ASX.

As a result of the deal to buy Pogo from Japan's Sumitomo, Northern Star increased its FY19 guidance from between 600,000 and 640,000 ounces, to between 850,000 and 900,000 ounces.

Royal Bank of Canada mining analyst Paul Hissey said, while questions remained over the deal, even a partial reproduction of its previous acquisition and exploration success could make Northern Star a genuine global mid-tier player.

"Instinctively, if you told us that NST were buying an asset for $357 million, which produces 250,000 ounces annually at $A1,200 an ounce, with exploration upside, we would be inclined to be supportive," Mr Hissey said.

"The company deserves credit for the growth it has delivered over the last few years."

Northern Star issued 26.1 million new shares at $6.70 in a bid to raise $175 million.

The company said the placement was heavily oversubscribed, with BlackRock Investment Management snapping up $57 million of new shares.

In March, Northern Star also agreed to buy the South Kalgoorlie gold mine from Westgold Resources for $80 million.
Foreign Minister Marise Payne says Pacific leaders aren't being snubbed despite Prime Minister Scott Morrison skipping a major regional meeting.

Mr Morrison will not go to the September 3-5 Pacific Islands Forum on Nauru, despite concerns about the rising influence of China in the region.

"I am attending this meeting and participating in it fully with my counterparts and colleagues from across the region," Senator Payne told ABC radio on Monday.

"We have absolutely reinforced the Pacific is a key priority of Australia's foreign policy."

Pacific leaders are also concerned about climate change, which has once again torn apart the Liberal party as it seeks a new energy policy.

Senator Payne said she was not surprised by the attitudes of Pacific leaders, because climate change had been raised in previous Pacific Island Forum declarations.

"We absolutely recognise it's in our national interest to take action on climate change," she said.

"It is absolutely a top priority for the region and a top priority for Australia."

Former international development minister Concetta Fierravanti-Wells accused China of building "roads to nowhere" in the Pacific, causing tension with the Asian nation, but Senator Payne refused to repeat the claim.

"I'm certainly not going to comment on or adopt those views," Senator Payne said.

She said leaders are expected to adopt a new regional security declaration to deepen cooperation, after growing concerns about emerging security threats.

Other major issues on the forum leaders' agenda include climate change, sustainable development, fisheries management, and health.
Days after Malcolm Turnbull was knifed by the Liberal Party, his son asked the Labor candidate vying to replace him as the member for Wentworth "What can I do to help?".

Tim Murray says he reached out to Alex Turnbull shortly after his friend's father was deposed as prime minister.

"He said 'What can I do to help?' and I said 'Oh I'm not sure it's early days' and then boom off he went," Mr Murray told AAP on Monday.

"Alex is a pretty independent thinker just like his dad. I doubt Malcolm is feeling a lot of love for the Liberal Party at the moment."

Alex Turnbull has taken to Twitter to encourage people to donate to the Labor Party ahead of the Wentworth by-election saying it's the best "bang for the buck" they'll get.

He is also sharing ALP campaign material via social media.

Mr Murray - a businessman who spent years working in China - says Malcolm Turnbull would be one of the first people he'd hope to speak with if he were to win the harbourside seat.

"He has been the most popular member for Wentworth in history, he is really loved around here," the 50-year-old said.

A recent opinion poll has the Liberal and Labor parties at 50 per cent on a two-party preferred basis in a sign voters could punish the government for dumping Mr Turnbull. But Mr Murray isn't entirely convinced.

"It has at least become contestable but, put it this way, I'm not looking at real estate in Canberra yet," he said.

"Before Malcolm Turnbull resigned there was absolutely no way on earth that it was winnable."
DETAILS ALREADY REVEALED IN THE SA BUDGET:

* The budget for 2018/19 will forecast a modest surplus with similar results expected over the forward estimates

* The government will axe some Labor projects and programs and has looked at every department to make savings

* The budget will include $60 million to start development of an Aboriginal art gallery on part of the site of the old Royal Adelaide Hospital

* It will also include almost $500 million in funding from the commonwealth for key road and rail projects

* The government will allocate $45 million over two years to cut elective surgery waiting lists.

* It will also provide funds to boost parking at two bus interchanges in Adelaide's northeast.
The federal workplace watchdog has dropped legal proceedings against collapsing delivery service Foodora which had been accused of mistreating employees.

But the union insists it will not let the company "off the hook over ripping off its riders".

The Fair Work Ombudsman took the food delivery company to the Federal Court in June alleging two Melbourne bike riders and a Sydney driver were classed as "independent contractors" when they did the work of full-time employees.

The ombudsman said Foodora "breached sham contracting laws" and misled the workers about the nature of their employment.

Another rider appealed to the Fair Work Commission saying he was unfairly dismissed after speaking out over low pay and poor conditions.

Foodora in early August announced it was going into administration and would cease operations in Australia by August 20.

The ombudsman on Monday announced its case could not continue while Foodora was in administration without approval from the Federal Court or the administrator.

The ombudsman confirmed it would not seek to continue proceedings.

The Transport Workers Union last week said Foodora was being pursued by Australian authorities for unpaid taxes.

The union on Monday vowed to continue fighting the unfair dismissal case despite the ombudsman's "startling inaction".

"When riders stood up and challenged Foodora the company decided to avoid its responsibilities and leave Australia altogether," TWU national secretary Michael Kaine said in a statement.

"We will not stand by and allow them to do this."

Foodora has been contacted for comment.
Labor has called for Australia's big four accounting firms to be investigated by the competition watchdog over allegations of cartel-like behaviour.

Shadow assistant treasurer Andrew Leigh and fellow Labor MP Julian Hill have written to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission boss Rod Sims to examine the structure of the market.

Labor wants Deloitte, EY, KPMG and PwC to be put under the microscope over revelations the auditing companies' chief executives met for private dinners.

The firms deny any commercially sensitive matters were discussed during the meetings.

"The traditional financial statement and assurance auditing functioning of the big four firms is of critical importance to the Australian economy and the wider capital markets," Dr Leigh and Mr Hill wrote.

They ask Mr Sims whether the dinners point to sufficient "cartel-like behaviour" to warrant further interrogation by the regulation.

Dr Leigh and Mr Hill also want to know if the ACCC is considering the impact on capital markets of perceived conflicts in large firms between traditional auditing and the growing consulting market.

"Our immediate concern is the admission that the (present and no-former) CEOs of the large accounting firms attended six events together, including at least two private dinners, in the past two years," they wrote.
The Australian Liberal Party must return to its conservative roots to regain the support of voters, British politician Nigel Farage says.

Mr Farage said the Liberal Party occupies the centre of Australian politics, but, beyond the cities and "media districts", the public is generally more conservative.

He said the party, like other right wing groups across the world, must make its mind up as to whether it will hold centrist or conservative ideals.

"I think that is the crisis in conservatism that we've seen across the whole of the western world," he said on Monday.

"The UK conservatives are still terribly split over this.

"In the end, one side or the other is going to win, and I think, in the end, it will be the Eurosceptic side that wins, as the party itself becomes more of that opinion."

Mr Farage, the former leader of the UK Independence Party, said it was "agony" to see Brexit plans watered down by Prime Minister Theresa May, who he said does not believe in Britain's withdrawal from the European Union.

"I still think, on balance, we will leave the treaties on March 29th next year at 11pm, and we'll pop a few corks when that happens," he said.

Mr Farage, an ally of US President Donald Trump, started his Australian speaking tour in Perth on Sunday, and will appear in Adelaide on Monday night.

Dozens of protesters heckled guests as they arrived at his Perth event, but Mr Farage rejected the notion he was the latest far-right figure to visit Australia.

He said his tour deals with the global political revolution that began in 2016.

"If you scratched your head with Brexit, put your head in your hands over Trump, fell into total despair over Italy, I've got bad news for you - there's a lot more to come, and it could happen here too."
The Victorian government says confidential documents about Matthew Guy from his time as planning minister question his judgment and motivation as opposition leader.

The Andrews Labor government has tabled 80,000 pages of documents from the previous government relating to Mr Guy's rezoning of farmland for housing at Ventnor on Phillip Island.

The approval copped widespread criticism, including from US pop star Miley Cyrus in 2011, sparked an Ombudsman investigation and involved an out-of-court settlement when the decision was reversed.

Deputy Premier James Merlino said Mr Guy had avoided providing the documents to the Ombudsman despite being requested.

"We are 80 days from the election, these are questions that go directly to the judgement and the motivation of the leader of the opposition, they deserve to be examined," he told reporters.

The government used its numbers in the lower house earlier this year to vote for the release of the documents, usually kept secret, and they were tabled on Monday.

The upload of the documents to the parliament website took hours, with 32 boxes of documents submitted, each divided into multiple sections.
Queensland's attorney-general will push for an urgent hearing of an appeal against the decision to not extend a supervision order against a convicted sexual predator.

The supervision order against Robert John Fardon expires on October 3, after the Brisbane Supreme Court last week dismissed the government's attempt to have the order extended.

After seeking legal advice, Attorney-General Yvette D'Ath announced the appeal against the decision on Monday.

Ms D'Ath says she's hoping to have the appeal heard before Fardon's current order expires.

"I believe this is the appropriate course to take and it's one that the public would expect us to take," she said.

Fardon, 69, has a history of attacking females dating back to the 1960s and has been under supervision since his release from prison in 2013.

Among his reasons for dismissing the government's bid, Justice David Jackson said the risks of rapists reoffending "becomes very low after the age of 65".

A number of Fardon's victims reacted with anger at the court's decision, with Sharon Tomlinson, who was attacked by Fardon as a 12-year-old, calling the prospect terrifying.
The Reserve Bank of Australia would be bucking expectations if it chose to lift the cash rate from its record low this month.

Economists widely predict the RBA will keep the cash rate at 1.5 per cent for the 25th consecutive month, at its September board meeting on Tuesday.

The bank last cut the rate in August 2016, paving the way for the longest period without a change in modern history.

Announcing it would not change the rate in August, RBA governor Philip Lowe added the drought affecting eastern Australia to his list of concerns, saying it had "led to difficult conditions in parts of the farm sector".

Weak household spending also remains a source of uncertainty for the economy and a factor in the RBA board's decision-making, he said.

The governor is due to speak in Perth on Tuesday evening.

The RBA board meeting comes less than a week after Westpac revealed its variable home loan rates would go up from September 19.

The rates will rise by 14 basis points, due to rising wholesale funding costs, Westpac said.
Australia's powerful construction union is gearing up for a brawl with the Morrison government after the prime minister threatened to shut it down.

Scott Morrison is considering deregistering the CFMEU after voicing his disgust with a Victorian official using his children to campaign against the building industry watchdog.

CFMEU Victorian official John Setka posted a picture of his children holding a sign saying 'Go get f*#*ed' with the caption "Leave our dads alone and go catch the real criminals you cowards".

He later deleted the tweet, admitting he shouldn't have included his kids and saying he was emotional on Father's Day after a tough year on his family.

The union's national construction secretary Dave Noonan said the CFMEU would vigorously resist any attempts to deregister it.

He accused Mr Morrison of trying to distract from problems within the Liberal Party.

"It's disappointing but not surprising that a broken and divided government is resurrecting the CFMEU bogeyman in an attempt to frighten voters," Mr Noonan said.

He said the prime minister had nothing to say about criminal behaviour of banks, along with stagnant wages and the death toll in the construction industry.

"And now he wants to leave construction workers with no representation," Mr Noonan said.

Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O'Dwyer said the government would "consider all options" on the future of the CFMEU.

"John Setka's use of his own children in an obscene image to target the hardworking officials of the Australian Building and Construction Commission is beyond the pale," she said.

Ms O'Dwyer called on Labor to support a bill before the Senate which would allow unions to be deregistered for widespread lawlessness.

"Labor should stand up for Australian workers, not law-breaking union thugs," she said.

The legislation would also see union mergers, like the CFMEU's amalgamation with the maritime union earlier in the year, subject to a public interest test.
The fight to win Malcolm Turnbull's safe Sydney seat is heating up, in no small part because the ousted Liberal prime minister's son has called on political donors to side with Labor.

ALP candidate Tim Murray says his friend Alex Turnbull spoke with him shortly after Malcolm Turnbull lost the Liberal leadership and asked what he could do.

Mr Turnbull's son has taken to Twitter to encourage people to donate to Labor ahead of the Wentworth by-election and shared campaign material.

Mr Turnbull told reporters from New York his son was able to express himself now that he was out of office.

The Liberal Party preselection is down to three names including Peter King, who lost the seat to Mr Turnbull in 2004.

Tony Abbott's sister Christine Forster has declined to run for Liberal preselection but City of Sydney councillor Kerryn Phelps is considering running as an independent.

A by-election date is yet to be set but will likely be in mid-October.
The South Australian budget will be responsible but will still include measures to cut the cost of living and reduce business taxes, Premier Steven Marshall says.

Mr Marshall's new Liberal government will on Tuesday hand down its first budget since the March state election.

Treasurer Rob Lucas has confirmed it will forecast a "modest" surplus for 2018/19 thanks to extra GST funds and cuts to some Labor projects and programs.

He says the government will fund all its election promises, including the pledge to deliver balanced budgets.

"So there will be modest operating surpluses all the way through the forward estimate years," the treasurer said.

Key spending initiatives will include $60 million to start development of an Aboriginal art gallery on the site of the old Royal Adelaide Hospital, funds for major road and rail projects and $45 million over two years to cut elective surgery waiting lists.

Families will benefit from cuts to the Emergency Services Levy while businesses will get payroll tax relief.
Former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull was days away from signing a $4.4 billion 10-year deal with the Catholic and independent education sectors before he was ousted in a leadership coup.

The deal was dependent on the Catholic education hierarchy agreeing to implement a needs-based funding model that assessed parents' ability to pay school fees, News Corp Australia reports on Tuesday.

The revelation is the second leak out of Prime Minister Scott Morrison's newly formed government, and comes less than two weeks since he took the reins of power during a failed leadership challenge from Peter Dutton.
The superyacht on which Australian model Sinead McNamara died has reportedly left the Greek port where it was moored.

Fairfax Media reports the superyacht, owned by Mexican mining billionaire Alberto Bailleres, was allowed to leave the island of Kefalonia on Sunday and is now headed for the western Mediterranean.

The yacht had been held while the death of the 20-year-old from Port Macquarie was investigated.

Ms McNamara was found tangled in rope and in critical condition at the rear of the vessel in the early hours of Thursday during her last shift.

She died as she was being airlifted to hospital, media reports say. She was to have met up with her sister that day.

Fairfax, citing a source, says an autopsy has not been completed but police, who have viewed CCTV from the yacht and questioned all the crew, believe there are no suspicious circumstances.
The federal government has committed $185 million for an Adelaide tram extension program without informing the South Australian government or Premier Steven Marshall.

Prior to being overthrown, former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull signed the deal, as well as committing $1.2 billion to complete the South Rd expressway from the tram overpass at Black Forest to the River Torrens, The Advertiser reports on Tuesday.

"There has been no approach. If there is more money available from the federal government then we will be putting that money towards our priorities, in particular more productive infrastructure to get this state moving in the right direction," Mr Marshall said.
A married teenager accused of plotting a terror attack with her husband told her "Boo Boo" she would never give evidence against him and that Allah was her legislator, a Sydney jury has heard.

Alo-Bridget Namoa and husband Sameh Bayda, both now aged 21, are accused of preparing a terrorist attack and having multiple documents connected with terrorism.

Both were aged 18 when arrested in early 2016.

On the first day of their trial in the NSW Supreme Court, crown prosecutor Nicholas Robinson said the pair had a large volume of extremist material including Islamic State and al-Qaeda magazines.

"They considered Islam under attack around the world and they had an obligation to respond," the prosecutor told the jury on Monday.

Mr Robinson said a "goodbye note" Namoa had written to her husband was found on one of the couple's phones, while Namoa authored a neatly handwritten and unsigned note found at Bayda's home.

Addressed to "my Boo Boo", the handwritten note in effect told Bayda she'd never give evidence against him.

"Allah is my legislator, I don't follow their corrupt laws," the note stated, according to the prosecutor.

Mr Robinson said the evidence included thousands of images, numerous graphic videos of executions and other deaths, and social media profiles that showed the pair had adopted alternate names or kunya.

Namoa also linked Bayda, whom she married in a 2015 Islamic ceremony, to a group on messaging platform Telegram that gave "advice to those who cannot come to Sham" - the Syrian area of the Levant.

Mr Robinson said, when confronted by police at his home, Bayda told his wife to delete messages between the pair that were contained on her phone.

Police later retrieved more than 5000 deleted messages from Namoa's phone.

The prosecutor said Bayda's phone contained several selfies with "IS salutes" and extremist documents including one that advised the "perfect place to kill" by stabbing.

The jury heard when police raided a home in early 2016, Namoa started trying to dress herself and asked the whereabouts of her skirt and gloves.

She then attempted to get her handbag in which police later found a hunting knife and a folded black Shahada flag.

Namoa's lawyer, Christopher O'Donnell, told the jury it was important to note the gloves were found in the handbag.

"Context is very important," Mr O'Donnell said.

Bayda's counsel said the intention of the young man was very much in dispute and asked the jury to consider the role the couple's age may have had in their conduct.

Bayda and Namoa, dressed in a red hijab, made handwritten notes while seated beside each other in court.
A second phase of sanctions targeting Iran's crucial oil industry and banking sector will be reinstated on November 5

Japan's major oil wholesalers are preparing to suspend crude oil imports from Iran in October, amid fears Washington will sanction countries importing Iranian crude, local media reported.

US President Donald Trump in May pulled out of a 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and last month began reimposing sanctions that block other countries from trading with Iran.

A second phase of sanctions targeting Iran's crucial oil industry and banking sector will be reinstated on November 5.

Japan has been seeking a waiver that would allow it to continue importing Iranian oil, but it appears unlikely to win one, Jiji Press agency and other local media reported in recent days.

As a result, Japanese oil companies are preparing to halt imports of Iranian crude and researching ways to increase imports from elsewhere to make up the shortfall, the reports said.

A trade ministry official on Monday confirmed Japan had raised the issue of a waiver in talks with the US but declined to comment further.

Oil importers declined to confirm they were contingency planning for a halt in Iranian imports.

"We've been saying we will observe a government decision (on Iranian oil imports), but we can't comment further as we don't disclose information on individual trades," a spokeswoman for wholesaler Showa Shell Sekiyu told AFP on Monday.

Wholesaler JXTG also declined to confirm the report.

Resource-pour Japan relies heavily on imports of oil from the Middle East, though crude from Iran accounted for just 5.3 percent of the country's total imports last year.
Chagos islanders hold up placards demanding the right to return to live in Diego Garcia in this file photo of a demonstration in London on October 22, 2008

The UN's top court will hear arguments Monday on the future status of the British-ruled Chagos Islands, home to a strategic joint US military base but a territory claimed by Mauritius.

Port Louis is set to open arguments before the International Court of Justice in a case brought by the United Nations over the Indian Ocean archipelago, which has been the centre of a dispute for more than five decades.

In a diplomatic blow to Britain, the UN General Assembly last June adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the Hague-based ICJ to offer a legal opinion on the island chain's fate.

The ICJ's 15 judges will now listen to arguments on the "legal consequences of (Britain's) separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius" in 1965, shortly before Port Louis' independence from its colonial ruler.

Residents of Diego Garcia island, in the Chagos archipelago, hear news of legislation to deport all the Chagos population to Mauritius and the Seychelles

The African Union and a remarkable number of 22 countries -- which also includes the US, Germany and several Asian and Latin American nations -- are to make statements during the four-day hearing.

After the hearings, the ICJ will hand down a non-binding "advisory opinion", but the judges' ruling may take several months or even years.

An opinion in favour of Mauritius may strengthen Port Louis' hand in negotiations or could lay the foundation for an eventual formal claim before the ICJ -- set up in 1946 and which also rules in disputes between countries.

Mauritius, which declared independence in 1968 argues that it was illegal for London to break up its territory while still under colonial rule.

Britain detached the islands from Mauritius, then a semi-autonomous British territory, using decolonisation talks as leverage and paying 3 million pounds for them at the time.

- Key military base -

As the Cold War with the former Soviet Union intensified, London established a combined military base with the US on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands.

The Indian Ocean base plays a key strategic role in US military operations.

In the 1970s, it offered proximity to Asia during the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge takeover in Cambodia, and as the Soviet navy extended its influence in the region.

In recent years it has served as a staging ground for US bombing campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Britain in the early 1970s also evicted the archipelago's residents -- some 2,000 in total -- to Mauritius and the Seychelles to make way for the base.

A British diplomat in a cable at the time described it as the removal of "some few Tarzans and Man Fridays" and islanders have not been allowed to return since because of security reasons.

Last year's vote before the UN whether to refer the matter to the ICJ was also seen as a test for Britain's ability to rally support from fellow Europeans at the world body, a year after its shock vote to leave the European Union.

The matter was passed 95-15, with 65 abstentions -- most by European member states including France, Italy and Spain.

Two thousand pound bombs are loaded into a US Air Force B1 bomber at the Diego Garcia base in this October 22, 2001 file photo

London, ahead of Monday's hearings, pledged to mount a "robust defence" saying the move was bound to hurt relations with Port Louis.

Mauritius on the other hand, said it wants to "eliminate colonialism" and that its independence would not be complete without getting back the Chagos Islands.

Port Louis did however say it recognised "the existence of the base and accepts its continued and future functioning in accordance with international law."
A large crowd chanting 'Nazis out' turned up at Monday's free concert in Chemnitz featuring several punk and indie bands

Tens of thousands of people thronged an anti-racism concert Monday in protest against xenophobic mobs that ran rampage in the city of Chemnitz, as Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans to stand up against the far right's message of hate and division.

Chemnitz, in former communist Saxony state, was flung into the spotlight as far-right protesters went after foreign-looking people in violent demonstrations last week against the fatal stabbing of a man, allegedly by an Iraqi.

After a weekend of protests in which right-wing extremists vastly outnumbered counter-protesters, a huge crowd estimated by city authorities as 50,000 people massed by early evening at the Chemnitz free concert Monday.

Bearing anti-racism posters, many chanted "Nazis out" at the gig, featuring several punk and indie bands under the motto "there are more of us".

Earlier Monday, Merkel had urged Germans to mobilise against hate.

Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert said it was understandable that crimes like the knife attack in Chemnitz would provoke sadness and concern among the population.

But marches by "violence-prone right-wing extremists and neo-Nazis have nothing in the least to do with mourning for a person or with concern for a city's cohesion", he said.

The eastern German city of Chemnitz has faced days of far-right protests

"These people who march and are prone to violence -- some have also shamelessly shown their closeness to Nazism -- they stand neither for Chemnitz nor for Saxony overall, nor are they 'the people'," said Seibert, referring to a popular "We are the people" chant used by far-right protesters.

"We must make that clear to them," be it through political or legal means, he said.

"Every citizen can also raise his or her voice to clearly show them their attitude against hate, against the attempt to divide this country."

- 'Nazis out' -

Merkel's call was echoed by Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who on Sunday told Germans to "get off our sofas and open our mouths" against xenophobia.

Organisers were expecting more than 20,000 in Chemnitz, but that had been far exceeded by early evening, with police saying that 5,000 people have arrived for the concert by trains from Leipzig alone, Saxony's biggest city.

"It's not about a fight pitting left against right, but everyone with normal decency -- regardless of their political stripe -- standing up against the far-right mob," said Campino, the lead singer of punk band Die Toten Hosen.

Organisers were expecting more than 20,000 in Chemnitz, but that had been far exceeded by early evening, with police saying that 5,000 people have arrived for the concert by trains from Leipzig alone, Saxony's biggest city

"And it is very important to stop this conduct while it is a snowball and before it becomes an avalanche," he added.

Felix Brummer from Kraftklub also said: "We are not under any illusion that you can save the world with a concert. But sometimes it's important to show that you're not alone."

A "window demo" call has also gone out on social media for those who cannot make it to Chemnitz to hang a colourful poster on the window or balcony to show their support for the anti-racist cause.

But the criticism of the right-wing extremist protesters was immediately rejected by far-right party AfD, which had, along with the Islamophobic street movement PEGIDA, led last week's demonstrations.

- 'Vilified' -

"An entire state and its people are vilified here in general because there is a distinct and understandable resentment about the circumstances," Joerg Meuthen, AfD co-chief said at a street festival in Bavaria, which holds a state election next month.

Chemnitz, in former communist Saxony state, was flung under the spotlight as far-right protesters went after foreign-looking people in violent demonstrations last week against the fatal stabbing of a man, allegedly by an Iraqi

Amid the highly charged atmosphere in Chemnitz, a failed asylum applicant was sentenced to eight and a half years in jail for another fatal stabbing -- in another case also seized on by the far right's anti-immigrant campaign.

The defendant, identified only as Abdul D., was sentenced by the juvenile court in the western town of Landau to a jail term over the killing.

Abdul D. had admitted to the court to stabbing the girl at a drugstore in the town of Kandel on December 27. Prosecutors believe he acted out of jealousy after the girl broke up with him.

The AfD has seized on Kandel case, like the Chemnitz stabbing, to bolster its case against immigration.

Map of Germany locating Chemnitz

Railing against Merkel's liberal refugee policy that led to the arrival of more than a million asylum seekers since 2015, it won dozens of seats in the German parliament for the first time in last year's election.

Resentment against the newcomers runs particularly deep in Saxony state, where Chemnitz is located.

Surveys suggest the AfD is poised to become Saxony's second biggest party in next year's regional elections.
Japanese authorities believe the country faces significant military threats from China and Russia

Japan's defence chief on Monday warned the country faces a tough security environment, with China and Russia stepping up military activity and North Korea posing "imminent threats".

Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said China had been "unilaterally escalating" its military activities in the past year, including carrying out new airborne operations around Japan and running a nuclear submarine near disputed East Coast isles.

"China has been rapidly improving its military strength and fast increasing its military activities," Onodera told an annual gathering of the top brass of Japan's Self-Defense Forces.

"It is unilaterally escalating its military activities in the sea and aviation spaces around our country. This has become a significant concern for our country's defence," he said.

Onodera made the remarks as Tokyo attempts to improve its tense diplomatic ties with Beijing, with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expected to visit Japan's biggest trade partner next month.

On coming to power, Abe took a firm position on Japan's claims to a disputed island chain in the East China Sea, aggravating tensions with Beijing.

But he has since softened his rhetoric, and called on China to press North Korea to give up its nuclear and missile programmes.

Japanese businesses have also voiced desire for closer ties with China to boost trade.

Onodera said Russia was also flexing its military muscle.

Moscow is planning to hold its biggest drill since the Cold War era and is bringing powerful weapons, including ground-to-air missiles, to the disputed Southern Kuril islands, he said.

"We are seeing movement to again push forward its military activities in the Far East," he said.

Onodera also repeated that North Korea continues to pose a "serious and imminent threat" to Japan, despite international diplomacy intended to convince Pyongyang to denuclearise.
Two Malaysian women have been caned after an Islamic law court convicted them of having lesbian sex, despite an outcry from activists at the 'cruel and unjust' punishment.

The women, aged 22 and 32, were arrested in April after they were found in a car in a public square in northern Terengganu state, one of the country's most conservative areas.

The pair, whose identities have not been revealed, pleaded guilty to breaking Islamic laws and were sentenced to six strokes of the cane each and a fine of 3,300 ringgit (620).

The women, aged 22 and 32, pictured in court today, were arrested in April after they were found in a car in a public square in northern Terengganu state, Malaysia

The case has sparked widespread condemnation and focused attention on what rights groups say is a deteriorating climate for the gay community in the Muslim-majority country.

Campaigners said it was the first time that women in Malaysia have been caned for violating a sharia regulation which forbids same-sex relations.

The country operates a dual-track legal system and Islamic courts can handle religious and family matters for Muslim citizens, as well as cases such as adultery.

The two women were caned at the Sharia High Court in Kuala Terengganu, state capital of Terengganu, a court official confirmed to AFP.

The women's conviction sparked a storm of criticism. Before the caning was carried out, Gwen Lee, Amnesty International's Malaysia head, slammed the punishment as 'cruel and unjust'.

One of the two women found guilty of having same-sex relations arrives at court for her caning accompanied by a police woman and a relative, in northern Terengganu state, Malaysia

Malaysia has a dual track legal system where sharia courts can handle religious and family matters

Malaysia 'must end the use of caning and repeal the laws that impose these torturous punishments completely,' she said.

Thilaga Sulathireh, from transgender rights group Justice for Sisters, said the caning would 'increase the impunity of perpetrators to carry out acts of violence' aimed at gay people.

Concerns have been mounting in recent weeks in Malaysia, a multi-ethnic country where some 60 percent of the population is Muslim, about a deteriorating climate for the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community.

The Islamic affairs minister has spoken out against homosexuals and ordered pictures of LGBT activists to be removed from a public exhibition, while a transgender woman was brutally attacked in the southern state of Negeri Sembilan.

Malaysian Muslims have traditionally practised a tolerant brand of Islam but concerns have been growing in recent years that attitudes are becoming more conservative.
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte has apologised for offensive remarks in 2016 to former US President Barack Obamaa

Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte has apologised to former US president Barack Obama for calling him a "son of a whore" in 2016, which sparked a new low in their nations' long alliance.

Duterte lobbed the insult in response to steady criticism from the United States over his violent drug crackdown, which has been a target for international condemnation.

However, the Philippine president said his nation's relationship with America has since improved under President Donald Trump, who he described as a "good friend" who "speaks my language".

"It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr. Obama that you are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words," Duterte said Sunday in a speech before Filipinos in Israel.

Duterte landed in Israel on Sunday for a four-day stay as the Philippines seeks to develop new sources of military hardware and nail down protections for its overseas workers.

"If it is (in) your heart to forgive, you forgive. I have forgiven you, just like my girlfriends when I was still a bachelor... I have forgiven them also," the Philippine leader said in the same speech.

After his election in mid-2016, Duterte quickly earned a reputation for using vulgar language against critics which his aides have tried to minimise or explain away.

He branded Pope Francis and the then US ambassador to Manila "sons of whores". He also fired expletives at the United Nations and during a speech in the Philippines raised his middle finger in defiance to the European parliament.

Duterte often rails at critics of his campaign to rid the Philippines of narcotics, which police say has killed 4,410 alleged drug dealers or users.

Rights groups say the actual number of dead is triple that and could amount to crimes against humanity.

Duterte cursed Obama ahead of a regional summit in Laos two years ago prompting the US to cancel a meeting between the two leaders there.

Obama later described Duterte as "a colourful guy" as he urged him to conduct his anti-narcotics campaign "the right way".

Duterte sparked new criticism ahead of his departure for Israel, blaming the high number of rapes in his hometown of Davao on the large number of beautiful women there.

"They say there are many rape cases in Davao," Duterte said in a speech on Thursday. "For as long as there are many beautiful women, there will be many rape cases, too."

Duterte has on several occasions made rape jokes in public since his presidential campaign. The latest comment was denounced by women's rights defenders.

"Beauty doesn't cause rape, rapists do," said Philippine lawmaker Risa Hontiveros, a Duterte critic.
Africa's leaders have denied that a Chinese investment package is 'a new form of colonialism' after Xi Jinping pledged $60 billion worth of funding to several nations on Monday.

Xi told African leaders at a summit that China's investments on the continent have 'no political strings attached', even as Beijing is increasingly criticised over its debt-heavy projects abroad.

Following Xi's pledge, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered a stinging rebuttal to criticism of China's development aid in Africa.

Ramaphosa defended China's involvement, saying that the meeting 'refutes the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa as our detractors would have us believe'.

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South African President Cyril Ramaphosa shakes hands with Chinese President Xi Jinping during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing

Chinese President Xi Jinping and African leaders stand together for a group photo during the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation

A view of the opening ceremony of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing

Rwandan President Paul Kagame, current chairman of the African Union, also rallied behind China's involvement in Africa.

'Africa is not a zero sum game. Our growing ties with China do not come at anyone's expense,' he told the summit.

Xi offered the funding at the start of a two-day China-Africa summit that focused on his cherished Belt and Road initiative. The money - to be spent over the next three years - comes on top of US$60 billion Beijing offered in 2015.

The figure includes US$15 billion in grants, interest-free loans and concessional loans, US$20 billion in credit lines, US$10 billion for 'development financing' and US$5 billion to buy imports from Africa.

In addition, Xi said China will encourage companies to invest at least US$10 billion in Africa over the next three years.

The massive scheme is aimed at improving Chinese access to foreign markets and resources, and boosting Beijing's influence abroad.

It has already seen China loan billions of dollars to countries in Asia and Africa for roads, railways, ports and other major infrastructure projects.

But critics warn that the Chinese leader's pet project is burying some countries under massive debt.

Ramaphosa reviews an honour guard. He stated that the meeting 'refutes the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa, as our detractors would have us believe'

Xi told African leaders that China's investments on the continent have 'no political strings attached', even as Beijing is increasingly criticised over its debt-heavy projects abroad

'China's investment in Africa comes with no political strings attached,' Xi told a high-level dialogue with African leaders and business representatives ahead of the summit.

'China's cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects, but in places where they count the most.'

But Xi admitted there was a need to look at the commercial viability of projects and make sure preparations are made to lower investment risks and make cooperation 'more sustainable'.

Belt and Road, Xi said, 'is not a scheme to form an exclusive club or bloc against others. Rather it is about greater openness, sharing and mutual benefit.'

Later, at the start of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Xi announced US$60 billion in funds for eight initiatives over the next three years, in areas ranging from industrial promotion, infrastructure construction and scholarships for young Africans.

He added that Africa's least developed, heavily indebted and poor countries will be exempt from debt they have incurred in the form of interest-free Chinese loans due to mature by the end of 2018.

South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit shakes hands with President Xi during the summit

Chinese funding in Africa has increased about 150 per cent since 2011

A study by the Center for Global Development, a US think-tank, found 'serious concerns' about the sustainability of sovereign debt in eight Asian, European and African countries receiving Belt and Road funds.

During a visit to China last month, Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamed warned against 'a new version of colonialism,' as he cancelled a series of Chinese-backed infrastructure projects worth US$22 billion.

Ahead of FOCAC, Rwandan President Paul Kagame, currently the chair of the African Union, also dismissed the concerns, telling the official Xinhua news agency talk of 'debt traps' were attempts to discourage African-Chinese interactions.

At the last three-yearly gathering in Johannesburg in 2015, Xi announced US$60 billion of assistance and loans for Africa.

Nations across Africa are hoping that China's enthusiasm for infrastructure investment will help promote industrialisation on the continent.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will oversee the signing of a telecommunication infrastructure deal backed by a US$328-million loan facility from China's Exim bank during his visit, his office said.

Xi said Belt and Road complies with international norms, and China 'welcomes the participation of other capable and willing countries for mutually beneficial third-party cooperation'.

China has provided aid to Africa since the Cold War, but Beijing's presence in the region has grown exponentially with its emergence as a global trading power

Chinese investment in Ethiopia has enabled the government to build massive infrastructure projects

China has provided aid to Africa since the Cold War, but Beijing's presence in the region has grown exponentially with its emergence as a global trading power.

Chinese state-owned companies have aggressively pursued large investments in Africa, whose vast resources have helped fuel China's transformation into an economic powerhouse.

While relations between China and African nations are broadly positive, concerns have intensified about the impact of some of China's deals in the region.

Djibouti has become heavily dependent on Chinese financing after China opened its first overseas military base in the Horn of Africa country last year, a powerful signal of the continent's strategic importance to Beijing.

Locals in other countries have complained about the practice of using Chinese labour for building projects and what are perceived as sweetheart deals for Chinese companies.

The concerns are likely to grow as countries in other parts of the world -- especially Southeast Asia -- begin to question whether Chinese aid comes at too high a price.

'Time has come for African leaders to critically interrogate their relationship with China,' an editorial in Kenya's Daily Nation said Monday.

African leaders, 'should use the summit to ask tough questions. What are the benefits in this relationship? Is China unfairly exploiting Africa like the others before it?'

Public transport systems and skyscrapers have given the city a strikingly Chinese feel

Ethiopia's motorways were all built by China as part of its huge investment programme in the country
Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi (C) is seen here greeting officials at the Arab League in Cairo on August 14, 2018

Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, whose country is gripped by a devastating civil conflict, will undergo medical tests in the United States later this month, a minister said Monday.

Information Minister Moammer al-Eryani said in a tweet that Hadi was travelling to the US to attend the UN General Assembly, which opens on September 18 in New York.

"He will undergo medical examinations while there," Eryani tweeted, without providing further details on the nature of the tests that the Yemeni president is expected to undertake.

Yemen's state news agency Saba published a statement confirming Hadi had left Sunday night for the United States, where he would undergo a "routine medical examination".

Hadi, 73, who has lived in exile in Riyadh since 2015, on Sunday chaired a cabinet session in the Saudi capital.

There have been no reports that Hadi has been ill.

Backed by Saudi Arabia and its allies, Hadi's government has battled Iran-backed Huthi Shiite rebels for more than three years in what is widely seen as a proxy war between Riyadh and Tehran.

The UN recognises the administration of Hadi as the legitimate government of Yemen.

The world body has invited Yemen's warring parties to hold peace talks in Geneva from Thursday.

Both the government and rebels have said they do not expect any breakthrough at the talks, the first since UN-backed negotiations broke down in 2016.

Yemen's foreign minister has ruled out face-to-face meetings between the delegations.

In 2014, the Huthis overran the capital, driving out the Hadi government and setting up a parallel government in Sanaa.

Saudi Arabia and its allies joined the government's fight against the Huthis in 2015, triggering what the UN has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

More than 10,000 people have since been killed and the country now stands at the brink of famine.
An air strike near a US base in southeastern Syria has killed at least eight pro-government fighters, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Monday.

Four Syrians, one Iranian national and three other non-Syrian fighters were killed in the strike carried out on Saturday, the Britain-based war monitor said.

At least 11 people were wounded in the attack, according to Observatory figures.

"A convoy of Iranian forces and allied militia was hit by air strikes as it drove near Al-Tanf base," the monitor's head Rami Abdel Rahman said.

He could not confirm the strike had been conducted by the US-led coalition present in the region.

A coalition spokesman told AFP the Al-Tanf base "received fire from unknown forces, with no damage and the coalition forces did not fire back".

Several strikes against Syrian government or allied forces have in the past been attributed to US forces, which were deployed with the declared goal of fighting the Islamic State (IS) group.

The base, set up in 2016 near the borders with Iraq and Jordan, was also used for the training of so-called "vetted opposition" to the regime of President Bashar al-Assad.

Despite a 55-kilometre (34-mile) deconfliction zone around the base, Al-Tanf is seen as a potential flashpoint between US and Iranian or Tehran-backed forces.

The presence of a US base in the arid border region has been a source of tension and its dismantling is often cited as a key demand by Damascus and its allies.

Beyond the battle against IS jihadists in their nearby desert hideouts, analysts say Washington sees the base as disrupting Iranian efforts to open a east-west land corridor from Tehran to Lebanon.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif listens during a meeting in Tehran on August 8, 2018

Iran's foreign minister met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad on Monday in a surprise visit to Damascus ahead of a looming regime offensive against the country's last rebel stronghold.

Mohammad Javad Zarif's trip to war-ravaged Syria also comes just days before a top-level tripartite meeting in Tehran to discuss the Syrian conflict, now in its eighth year.

On Monday afternoon, he met Assad to discuss "issues on the agenda for the tripartite meeting," according to the Syrian presidency's account on the Telegram messaging app.

Zarif also met with Syria's prime minister and its chief diplomat Walid Muallem on Monday.

A statement by Syria's foreign ministry said Zarif and Muallem discussed political and military developments "in preparation for the tripartite summit for guarantors of the Astana process."

Since early 2017, Iran, fellow regime ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey have sponsored a negotiations track based in the Kazakh capital to tamp down hostilities in Syria.

The presidents of the three countries are due to meet in Tehran on Friday to discuss the conflict.

Last year, they had designated Idlib province in the northwest as a "de-escalation" zone where violence would halt in preparation for a countrywide ceasefire.

But Syrian government forces are now massing around the province, which has become the last rebel bastion in the country.

Idlib is held by a complex array of rebels and jihadists, many of whom have been blacklisted as "terrorists" by world powers.

Russia and Iran have insisted that jihadist groups in Idlib must be defeated and are expected to back regime forces in any assault.

"Iran will remain a supporter of the Syrian government in its efforts to remove terrorists from its land, and it will continue its advisory role and help the Syrian government in the upcoming Idlib campaign," Iran foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said.

Tehran has provided steady political, financial and military backing to Assad throughout the war, which has left over 350,000 people dead since it broke out in 2011.

Iranian Defence Minister Amir Hatami was in Damascus last week and signed a "defence and technical agreement" designed to ensure the continued "presence and participation" of Iran in Syria.
Sri Lanka's elephants are seen as a national treasure

Sri Lankan authorities on Monday began investigating the deaths of wild elephants in the east of the island after pulling seven carcasses out of a marsh, a minister said.

Wildlife Minister Palitha Thewarapperuma said six out of the seven animals found in the swamp were young -- below the age of 12 -- and he suspected that many more may have died there.

"We have wildlife experts and vets who are investigating the cause," Thewarapperuma told AFP from the district of Polonnaruwa, 220 kilometres (135 miles) east of Colombo.

He said a possible reason was that the swamp is currently strewn with water hyacinth, an invasive plant known locally as Japan Jabara.

The swamp is located on a migratory route and the animals may have become bogged down and exhausted battling through the plants and then drowned.

Japan Jabara was introduced to Sri Lanka at the turn of the last century and has spread rapidly since World War II.

Allied forces stationed in Sri Lanka planted the free-floating species on waterways in a bid to mislead Japanese pilots on bombing missions into thinking that they were grassy fields suitable for landing in emergency.

"It is heartbreaking to see so many young elephants killed here. We are trying to see how we can flush out Japan Jabara and make this area safe again," Thewarapperuma said.

Sri Lanka considers elephants a national treasure and they are protected by law.

However, human-elephant conflict near wildlife sanctuaries have led to the deaths of 375 people in the past five years, according to official figures.

Enraged villagers have retaliated by slaughtering nearly 1,200 of the beasts.

Last month the government said authorities would begin constructing 2,651 kilometres (1,556 miles) of new electric fencing to keep elephants away from villages bordering wildlife reserves.

The Sri Lankan elephant population in the wild is estimated at 7,500.
Zimbabweans will be in dire need of food aid before the next harvest in 2019, the World Food Programme has warned.

The World Food Programme said on Friday that it is preparing to provide food aid to 1.1 million Zimbabweans before the next harvest in 2019, as rural smallholders face shortages.

Growing food prices and the country's dire economic state could also affect those living in urban areas, the UN food agency added.

"WFP plans to address the most urgent food security needs of 1,135,500 people during the peak of the 2018-19 lean season," said the agency's Zimbabwe spokeswoman Ashley Baxstrom in a statement.

"Vulnerable groups are always disproportionately affected by adverse conditions (and) shocks."

The WFP said that $71.2 million (61.1 million euros) would be needed for the planned response, with $22 million already raised -- largely from USAID.

The Zimbabwe Vulnerability Assessment Committee's 2018 Rural Livelihoods Assessment Report suggested that more than 2.4 million people will be food insecure during the peak of the 2018-19 lean season.

The WFP's statement follows a report by the Famine Early Warning Systems Network which said poor families in arid areas of Zimbabwe are running out of food.

"These food security outcomes are expected to persist through March 2019," said the network on its website.

Livestock conditions were also deteriorating across the country due to water shortages and poor pasture, it added.

Zimbabwe is battling an economic crisis that includes cash shortages, high unemployment and lack of investment which has caused the cost of imported food to soar.

Newly-inaugurated President Emmerson Mnangagwa has vowed to fix the country's economy after he was sworn in following July 30 elections, the results of which were disputed by the main opposition party.
In a diplomatic blow to Britain, the UN General Assembly in June last year adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the ICJ to offer a legal opinion on the island chain's fate

Britain apologised Monday for the "shameful way" it evicted residents of the disputed Chagos islands in the Indian Ocean but insisted Mauritius was wrong to bring the increasingly bitter dispute to the UN's top court.

Hearings opened Monday before the International Court of Justice in The Hague, where judges are listening to arguments over the future status of the remote archipelago -- home to a strategic US military base leased from Britain on territory claimed by Mauritius.

Britain in the early 1970s evicted almost 2,000 residents to Mauritius and the Seychelles to make way for the key base. For years Chagossians have dreamt of returning.

London "fully accepts the manner in which Chagossians were removed from the Chagos Archipelago," British MP and Solicitor General Robert Buckland said.

"The way they were treated thereafter was shameful and wrong and (Britain) deeply regrets that fact," he told ICJ judges.

But London did not believe the world court -- which was asked by the United Nations General Assembly to give a legal opinion -- was the right body to resolve the matter.

"This is a purely bilateral dispute," between London and Port Louis, Buckland said, adding the ICJ's judges should "decline the request for an advisory opinion."

Earlier Monday, Mauritius' lawyers said the British-ruled Islands were "integral" to its territory and that the Indian Ocean island chain was handed to London "under duress".

"More than 50 years after independence... the process of decolonisation of Mauritius remains incomplete," former Mauritian president Anerood Jugnauth said.

This was "as a result of the unlawful detachment of an integral part of our territory on the eve of our independence," he told the judges.

- Diplomatic blow -

In a diplomatic blow to Britain, the UN General Assembly in June last year adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the ICJ to offer a legal opinion on the island chain's fate.

The Chagos archipelago was detached from Mauritius for inclusion in the newly created British Indian Ocean Territory in 1965 shortly before Port Louis' independence from Britain.

Residents of Diego Garcia island, in the Chagos archipelago, hear news of legislation to deport all the Chagos population to Mauritius and the Seychelles

The African Union and 22 countries -- including Germany and South Africa and several Asian and Latin American nations -- will make statements during the four-day hearing.

They all voted last year whether to ask the ICJ to rule on the matter. The US and Australia will also speak and are expected to support Britain while South Africa and the AU are likely to back Mauritius.

After the hearings, the ICJ will hand down a non-binding "advisory opinion", but the judges' ruling may take several months or even years.

An opinion in favour of Mauritius may strengthen Port Louis' hand in future negotiations or could lay the foundation for an eventual formal claim before the ICJ, which also rules in disputes between countries.

Britain used decolonisation talks as leverage and paid 3 million for the Chagos islands.

Jugnauth however said Mauritian officials were given "no room for any choice" during the 1965 talks and had to chose between letting Chagos go or failing to obtain independence.

- Key strategic base -

As the Cold War with the former Soviet Union intensified, the US established a military base on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands.

Map locating the Chagos Islands

The base plays a strategic role in US military operations.

In the 1970s, it offered proximity to Asia during the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge takeover in Cambodia, and as the Soviet navy extended its influence in the region.

In recent years it has served as a staging ground for US bombing campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.

London has stressed that it promised to hand back the Chagos islands "when no longer required for defence purposes."

Port Louis has conceded that it recognised "the existence of the base and accepts its continued and future functioning in accordance with international law."

Last year's vote before the UN whether to refer the matter to the ICJ was also seen as a test for Britain's ability to rally support from fellow Europeans at the world body, after its shock vote to leave the European Union.

The matter was passed 95-15, with 65 abstentions -- most by European member states including France, Italy and Spain.
Malaysia's Finance Minister Lim Guan Eng was a vocal critic of the former leader Najib Razak

Malaysia's finance minister was Monday cleared of corruption charges brought against him by the former government, which critics said were a bid to neutralise a potent political threat, official media reported.

Lim Guan Eng is a leading politician in the reformist alliance that unexpectedly swept to power at May elections, toppling the coalition that had ruled Malaysia for 61 years and was criticised for becoming increasingly authoritarian.

Lim was a vocal critic of the former leader Najib Razak, who allegedly had a central role in a massive financial scandal that helped persuade voters to boot him out of power.

Lim went on trial in March when he was still chief minister of northern Penang state and was accused of one count of corruption in allegedly purchasing a house at below-market value.

A second charge related to abusing his position over re-zoning some public land for development.

The High Court in the state cleared him of the charges on Monday after the attorney-general's office agreed to withdraw them, official news agency Bernama reported.

He had faced up to 20 years in jail if convicted.

Businesswoman Phang Li Koon, who was accused of abetting Lim in the purchase of the house, was also acquitted.

Lim and Phang hugged each other in the dock when the decision was delivered, Bernama reported.

However the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC), which had been investigating the case, said it was "shocked".

"The MACC stresses that this decision was made by the Attorney-General's Chambers and not the MACC," the agency said in a statement.

Since his election loss, Najib has been arrested and charged over a scandal surrounding sovereign wealth fund 1MDB. The ex-leader and his cronies are accused of looting billions of dollars from the investment vehicle.

He denies any wrongdoing.
Kagame has been de-facto leader since 1994

Rwandans voted in parliamentary elections Monday that are expected to shore up the power of President Paul Kagame's ruling party a year after he was re-elected with 98 percent of the vote.

The Rwandan Patriotic Front (RPF), in power for 24 years, its allied parties and one critical opposition party are vying for 53 of the 80 seats in parliament.

The remaining 27 seats are reserved for women, youth and the disabled and they are elected by special councils and national committees.

"Our party is gaining momentum across the country despite numerous hurdles. We are hopeful that we will win at least ten seats in parliament," said Frank Habineza of the Democratic Green Party, the only permitted critical opposition party, casting his vote in Kigali.

Habineza secured only 0.45 percent of the vote in last year's presidential election. There were strict restrictions on opposition parties who were given only three weeks to campaign.

Currently all 53 seats up for grabs are held by the RPF and parties that are allied with it or back government policies.

Long queues of voters waited to cast their ballots. Polls opened at 0500 GMT and will close at 1500 GMT. Provisional results are expected late Monday.

"Turnout began as high as we expected and the elections are being conducted in a peaceful manner. In total we expect over six million voters and many youths who will be voting for the first time," Charles Munyaneza, executive secretary of the National Electoral Commission told AFP.

Instead of voting for individual lawmakers, Rwandans vote for a party which then decides the candidates to enter parliament.

To win at least one seat, a party has to get at least five percent of the total votes cast.

Kagame cast his vote from Rwanda's embassy in Beijing on Sunday, where he is attending the Forum on China Africa-Cooperation (FOCAC).

Kagame has been the de-facto leader of Rwanda since 1994 when as a 36-year-old his rebel army routed extremist Hutu forces who slaughtered an estimated 800,000 people -- mainly minority Tutsis -- and seized Kigali.

His victory last year came after 98 percent of Rwandans approved a constitutional amendment in a 2015 referendum that granted him the right to run for a third term.

Kagame is hailed for his role in halting the genocide and turning around Rwanda's economy but criticised for his iron-fisted rule with rights groups regularly accusing him of ruling through fear and crushing free speech.

A prominent critic of Kagame, 36-year-old Diane Rwigara, tried to contest the 2017 presidential election but was disqualified and arrested on charges of treason, inciting insurrection and forging documents.

Her mother is also in jail on similar charges and their family property was auctioned off on charges of tax evasion.
Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi was once a staunch advocate for the free press and a darling of the foreign media

The jailing of two Reuters journalists shreds what remains of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's reputation as a rights champion, critics say, after she failed to come to their defence or speak up for the persecuted Rohingya minority.

Suu Kyi was once a staunch advocate for the free press and a darling of the foreign media.

During her long years of house arrest under the former junta -- which choked the media inside Myanmar -- it was foreign correspondents who carried her message of peaceful defiance to the outside world.

Glowing profiles burnished her image, with comparisons made to the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King.

Suu Kyi remains adored inside Myanmar. Supporters of her democracy battle say she has limited control over the military, which ceded full control in 2015 after almost 50 years in power.

But her response to the Rohingya crisis has sent her international reputation into a tailspin.

Wa Lone and his colleague have been held in Yangon's notorious Insein prison since their arrest in December

Former friends and supporters have looked on aghast at her lack of criticism of last year's military campaign against the Rohingya.

UN investigators last week said that campaign was pursued with "genocidal intent".

Monday's conviction of two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and their seven-year sentence has sent a chill through Myanmar's already embattled press community.

Yet throughout the trial Suu Kyi has been unmoved by calls to intervene, or even criticise the court case.

- 'Traitors' -

Bill Richardson, a US diplomat and until recently a Suu Kyi confidante, alleges that she denounced the two journalists when he tried to raise their plight in person.

"Suu Kyi's response was filled with anger, referring to the journalists as traitors," the former New Mexico governor told AFP.

Shortly after the set-to in January, Richardson quit his position on an international advisory body into the Rakhine crisis, labelling it a whitewash.

Another person at the same meeting said there was shouting and a "charged atmosphere".

Kyaw Soe Oo (C) is escorted by police after being sentenced in Yangon

"In that heated exchange I wouldnt dismiss that the word was used," said retired Thai lawmaker and ambassador Kobsak Chutikul, who was secretary for the panel and who also later resigned.

"It would have fitted the emotions and sentiments at the time," he added.

Since sweeping to power three years ago, Suu Kyi's relationship with the press has been fraught.

Prosecutions of journalists and media intimidation more redolent of the junta years have been common.

Around 20 journalists were prosecuted in 2017, many under a controversial online defamation law.

At the same time Suu Kyi has been accused of backing misinformation and distorted reports about the Rakhine crisis.

State media published by the Suu Kyi-controlled Ministry of Information has continuously echoed the military line, rejecting allegations of atrocities against the Rohingya as "fake news".

That has put her at odds with a mountain of evidence and an international community calling for justice.

"To say that Aung San Suu Kyi's star has faded is a massive understatement," said Matthew Burgher from free speech advocacy group Article 19.

- Powerless or accomplice? -

Suu Kyi's defenders say her hands are tied by an army that still controls all security matters as well as 25 percent of parliamentary seats.

The stateless Rohingya are also a deeply unpopular cause among the Buddhist-majority public in Myanmar, where Islamophobia has surged in recent years.

Graphic on the two Reuters jounalists who were jailed for seven years for breach of state secrets in Myanmar

That reality gives Suu Kyi little political incentive to defend the Muslim minority -- or reporters who write about their plight.

But some analysts note a transformation in Suu Kyi in recent months, from trying to avoid talking about them to supporting the military's kickback against "terrorists".

At a speech in Singapore last month she referred to generals in her cabinet as "rather sweet". UN investigators have accused the army of genocide.

"We who are living through the transition in Myanmar view it differently from those who observe it from the outside and who will remain untouched by its outcome," she said.

Given that an appeal could take years, the best hope for early release for Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo may be a pardon from President Win Myint, a key aide to Suu Kyi.

Aaron Connelly, a Myanmar expert at Australia's Lowy Institute, said the notion that Suu Kyi is powerless to counter the military's excesses is a "myth" since she uses her political leverage on issues she deems worthy.

"Unfortunately, she does not consider the safety and dignity of Rohingya to be among them," he added.

burs-joe/jta/apj/sls
Nauru President Baron Waqa said the Pacific Islands Forum was a chance to discuss climate change, although media questions centred on the plight of refugees on the island

Pacific leaders opened their annual diplomatic summit in Nauru Monday, but the ceremony was overshadowed by allegations that children of asylum-seekers on the tiny Pacific island have been traumatised by systemic abuse.

Nauru President Baron Waqa formally welcomed delegates to the 18-nation Pacific Islands Forum, saying the summit was a chance to demand the world take urgent action on global warming.

However, when the Nauruan leader faced a rare grilling from the media, questions centred on the plight of those detained on the remote island under an agreement with Australia.

A report released Monday said the mental health of asylum-seekers was buckling under the strain of indefinite detention, adding that "those who have seen this suffering say it is worse than anything they have seen, including in war zones."

"People are broken," said the report, co-authored by the Refugee Council of Australia and the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.

"Children as young as seven and 12 are experiencing repeated incidents of suicide attempts, dousing themselves in petrol, and becoming catatonic."

The report estimates there are 900 asylum-seekers on Nauru, including more than 100 children.

They are in Nauru as part of Canberra's tough immigration policy, which sees asylum-seekers who try to reach Australia by boat detained and processed in remote camps on Nauru and Papua New Guinea.

Psychiatrist Louise Newman said many children on Nauru -- the report estimates at least 30 -- were suffering from "traumatic withdrawal syndrome" because they could see no end to their plight.

"(It) is found in children exposed to ongoing trauma where they feel hopeless and helpless, resulting in a giving up on engagement with the world," she said.

Waqa said he had seen no evidence of mental health syndromes among refugee children. "They're living among us and running their lives just like any other Nauruans," he said.

"They're provided all the services that are provided to Nauruans and we live together very happily."

The summit will continue until Thursday, with delegates expected to issue a communique calling for action on climate change.

The Pacific is on the frontlines of the issue, with some island nations fearing they will be swallowed by rising seas and others repeatedly lashed by fierce storms that grow more intense as the weather changes.

"Climate change is already here, it's not just coming in the future," Waqa told reporters.

"We're working extremely hard, especially the small island states, to advocate to the world that something has to be done right away."

Other issues on the agenda include regional security, fighting obesity in the world's fattest region and China's rising influence in the region.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte waves on his arrival in Jerusalem at the start of an official visit to Israel, on September 2, 2018

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has apologised for comparing himself to Hitler, visited Israel's Holocaust memorial on Monday and said he hoped the world learned lessons from the "horrific" period in history.

The controversial leader held talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the second of a four-day visit to Israel, with defence deals and other areas of cooperation on the agenda.

All visiting leaders pay their respects at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, usually without much fanfare.

But Duterte's Hitler remarks and other controversial actions, including his internationally condemned drug crackdown that has killed thousands, had led to increased attention.

He spoke twice during his visit to the solemn memorial perched high in Jerusalem's hills, saying he "could not imagine a country obeying an insane leader".

"And I could not ever fathom the spectacle of a human being going into a killing spree... I would like to say that we are one in saying that this will not happen again."

He later read out what he wrote in the memorial's guest book, saying "may the world learn the lessons of this horrific and benighted period of human history."

On Wednesday, Duterte will inaugurate a memorial near Tel Aviv commemorating the Philippines' acceptance of 1,300 Jews fleeing the Holocaust.

Duterte's visit to Yad Vashem led to criticism even before it took place, mainly due to comments in 2016 comparing himself to Adolf Hitler.

"Hitler massacred three million Jews. Now there are three million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I'd be happy to slaughter them," Duterte said then.

Historians say six million Jews died in the Holocaust.

Duterte later apologised and said the comments were aimed at critics who had likened him to the Nazi leader.

- 'Hitler admirer' -

Israeli newspaper Haaretz published an editorial headlined "A Hitler admirer at Yad Vashem," while left-wing politicians questioned why Netanyahu would welcome Duterte with open arms.

Netanyahu "is willing to whitewash an illegitimate leader, who took pride in massacring his citizens and violating human rights, and why?" Tamar Zandberg, head of the leftist Meretz party, wrote on Facebook.

"Because Duterte is willing to support the occupation (of the West Bank)."

Israel's government focused on what it sees as the positive aspects of Duterte's visit, the first by a Philippine leader in more than 60 years of diplomatic ties.

Netanyahu noted the Philippines' support for Israel at the United Nations and said his father had been cared for by a Filipino in his later years, as is the case with many elderly Israelis.

Duterte, speaking alongside Netanyahu ahead of their lunch, said they "share the same passion for peace".

"But we also share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who have the corrupt ideology who knows nothing but to kill and destroy," he said in English.

He thanked Israel for supplying him with unspecified defence equipment that was "critical" in "winning the war" -- presumably a reference to his government's battle against jihadists in the city of Marawi last year.

Filipinos wave their flag and the Israeli one as they wait for Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to arrive in Israel for an official visit, on September 2, 2018

Netanyahu is always on the lookout for allies who will support Israel in international forums, where the country often faces criticism over its occupation of Palestinian territory.

In recent months, he has found common cause with a number of nationalist leaders, including Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

The Philippines was among the countries that abstained from a UN General Assembly vote rejecting US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December.

It also emerged as a significant new customer in 2017 for Israel, with sales of radar and anti-tank equipment worth $21 million.

Beyond that, the country is an important provider of labour to Israel, where some 28,000 Filipinos live including many working as care providers for the elderly.

On Monday, the two countries signed agreements related to Filipino caregivers, scientific cooperation and bilateral investments.

- 'I am sorry' -

Immediately after Duterte's arrival on Sunday night, he revived one of his previous foul-mouthed remarks that have caused anger, saying he was sorry for calling former US president Barack Obama a "son of a whore".

Duterte lobbed the insult in 2016 in response to steady criticism from the United States over his violent drug crackdown.

"It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr. Obama that you are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words," Duterte said Sunday while speaking to Filipinos in Israel.

On Wednesday, Duterte heads to Jordan, where he is expected to meet King Abdullah II.

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Boko Haram has intensified attacks on military targets in Nigeria in recent months

Forty-eight soldiers were killed in a Boko Haram attack in remote northeast Nigeria, military sources said on Monday, in the latest strike that raises questions about the group's apparent resurgence and troops' ability to fight back.

Scores of jihadist fighters in trucks stormed the base on Thursday in Zari village in northern Borno state and briefly seized it after a fierce battle.

Boko Haram, which has been waging a deadly insurgency in northeast Nigeria since 2009, has intensified attacks on "hard" military targets in recent months, undermining repeated claims by the military that they have the upper hand.

Troops have even protested that they are stretched to breaking point by constant security duties and the attacks that analysts tracking the conflict say have become more sophisticated and planned.

At least 30 Nigerian soldiers were initially said to have been killed in Thursday's raid, which was claimed by a Boko Haram faction backed by the Islamic State group.

"The casualty toll now stands at 48 with the recovery of 17 more bodies of soldiers in surrounding bushes in Zari by search and rescue teams," a military source who did not want to be named told AFP.

"Search operations are still ongoing and more bodies are likely to be recovered."

Another military source confirmed the new death toll.

"So far (the) bodies of 48 troops have been recovered. Yesterday rescue teams found 17 bodies of fallen soldiers," he said, adding that they included two officers and 46 soldiers.

"When the troops were overwhelmed by the terrorists they withdrew in different directions."

- Upsurge in activity -

The militants were said to have taken weapons and military equipment before they were pushed out of the base by troops with aerial support. The sources said the extremists were pursued and bombarded by a fighter jet.

"The terrorists also suffered heavy casualty from the bombardment," one of the military officers said.

Zari is located 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the town of Damasak, on the border with Niger, which has seen an upsurge in Boko Haram activity.

The jihadists are thought to have attacked the base from the nearby Garunda village, where 17 troops were killed and 14 injured in an attack on another military base last month, the sources said.

In a statement late Friday the Nigerian military confirmed troops fought Boko Haram "insurgents... on (a) rampage to loot the community and extort money from villagers". But no death toll was given.

The intensified armed campaign in recent weeks, primarily against military targets, has claimed the lives of dozens of troops, providing the government with a headache as it looks to trumpet its security achievements before elections next year.

On July 14, militants overran a military base in Jilli village in neighbouring Yobe state. Dozens of troops were said to have been killed, wounded or missing.

The army at the time conceded the base was attacked but again said troops remobilised and succeeded in repelling the attackers.

In a short statement last Wednesday, IS-affiliated Boko Haram jihadists claimed to have killed "several" Nigerian troops in separate mortar strikes on a military base in the town of Arge in the Lake Chad area.

AFP could not independently verify the claim .

The Boko Haram insurgency, which is in its ninth year, has left 20,000 people dead and displaced 2.6 million.
AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka has questioned the viability of a revamped NAFTA without Canada, drawing fire from US President Donald Trump on the US Labor Day

US President Donald Trump took a crack Monday at the head of the nation's largest federation of labor unions on the US Labor Day holiday after the workers' advocate criticized his threat to exclude Canada from a new NAFTA deal.

Speaking Sunday on Fox News, AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka said it was "pretty hard to see" how Trump's efforts to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement would work "without having Canada in the deal."

"We've been aggressively pursuing an agreement that works for the workers in all three countries and I can say we're not done yet," Trumka told the Fox network, a favorite among Trump's base.

The US president -- who said last week there's "no political necessity" for Canada to remain in the trade pact -- responded to Trumka with a jab on the final day of America's three-day holiday weekend celebrating the worker.

"Some of the things he said were so against the working men and women of our country, and the success of the U.S. itself, that it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly," the US president tweeted of Trumka.

Minutes later Trump took on a more jovial tone, tweeting "Happy Labor Day!"

"The U.S. has tremendous upside potential as we go about fixing some of the worst Trade Deals ever made by any country in the world."

In the Fox interview, Trumka also had charged that Trump has "used his office to actively hurt working people."

The AFL-CIO collectively represents 12.5 million workers, and as its head Trumka is an influential voice on trade issues.

In the ongoing NAFTA negotiations, the US and Mexico announced a tentative agreement last week, potentially leaving Canada out in the cold -- although Ottawa's foreign minister Chrystia Freeland insisted a "win-win-win" agreement was within reach.

The White House notified Congress on Friday of its "intent to sign a trade agreement with Mexico -- and Canada, if it is willing -- 90 days from now."

US-Canadian trade talks are set to resume on Wednesday, and Ottawa and Washington still have time to reach an agreement that would keep Canada in the 25-year-old trade pact with Mexico.
The conflict has displaced around 200,000 people

A prominent Cameroonian rights activist has been missing for nearly a month after heading to the restive anglophone region on a fact-finding mission, his partner said Monday.

Franklin Mowha, the head of the Frontline Fighters for Citizen's Interest, disappeared after leaving the commercial capital Douala on August 6 for Kumba, a town in the English-speaking South-West Region, Stephanie Flore Ngiedie Nkamgue told AFP.

"I have tried in vain to contact him on telephone," she said.

"Nobody has been able to talk to him from August 6 and all his numbers have been unreachable from the 13th," she said.

Separatist unrest in Cameroon's two minority English-speaking regions -- North-West and South-West -- has left scores dead and displaced around 200,000 people since late 2016.

Years of resentment at perceived discrimination at the hands of Cameroon's francophone majority have led to almost daily acts of violence and retribution and triggered a government crackdown.

Theophile Nono, another activist, said Mowha was going to Kumba to gather numbers on how many people had been displaced by the unrest.

His family has informed the police but Cameroonian authorities have so far not commented on the disappearance.

The conflict in the anglophone region, where separatists have declared an independent state, poses problems for the organisation of the presidential election scheduled for October 7 in which the 85-year-old incumbent Paul Biya is bidding for a seventh consecutive term.

Anglophones today account for about a fifth of the West African country's population of 22 million.
Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman speaks during a visit to the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on July 10, 2018

Israel's defence minister said Monday that negotiations with Palestinians on the situation in both Gaza and the occupied West Bank were pointless and that the country should act unilaterally.

Avigdor Lieberman's remarks came as Egypt and the United Nations were working to forge a lasting ceasefire between Gaza rulers Hamas and Israel after months of tensions and violence.

"I'm aware of all the negotiations and all the mediators and everything going on there," he said at a Jerusalem conference, in remarks relayed by his office.

"The negotiations, regardless of whether they're on Ramallah or Gaza, won't lead us anywhere," he said.

"All the negotiations have led us to a dead end, therefore we need to act on the Palestinian issue -- regarding Ramallah and Gaza -- unilaterally, and define the reality unilaterally, according to our understanding," Lieberman said.

The outspoken minister reiterated the strategy of enabling more commerce and travel in and from the blockaded Gaza Strip in return for a decrease in militant activity from the Palestinian enclave and clashes along the border.

"The average Gazan concerned about his livelihood and how to feed his family must understand that whoever participates in terror activity harms his livelihood," he said.

"Security quiet brings economic benefits."

There have been months of tension along the border and several military-flare ups, but recent weeks have seen relative calm.

Palestinian militants in Gaza and Israel have fought three wars since 2008.
A photo released by NASA taken from the International Space Station on October 7, 2014

The United Arab Emirates has selected its first two astronauts to go on a mission to the International Space Station, Dubai's ruler said Monday.

Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashed al-Maktoum named the new astronauts as Hazza al-Mansouri, 34, and 37-year-old Sultan al-Neyadi.

Writing on Twitter, he said the duo "raise the bar of ambitions for future Emirati generations".

Sheikh Mohammed, the UAE's vice president and prime minister, last year vowed to send four Emirati astronauts to the space station within five years.

The UAE has its sights set on space with a programme worth 20 billion dirhams ($5.4 billion), according to Sheikh Mohammed.

The oil-rich Gulf nation has already announced plans to become the first Arab country to send an unmanned probe to orbit Mars by 2021, naming it "Hope".

The astronaut programme would make the UAE one of only a handful of states in the Middle East to have sent a person into space, as it looks to make good on a pledge to become a global leader in space exploration.

The first Arab in outer space was Saudi Arabia's Sultan bin Salman Al-Saud, who flew on a US shuttle mission in 1985. Two years later, Syrian air force pilot Muhammed Faris spent a week aboard the ex-Soviet Union's Mir space station.

Mansouri and Neyadi, who were among more than 4,000 Emiratis to apply for the programme, were chosen after a rigorous six-stage vetting procedure.

In the long-term, the UAE says it is planning to build a "Science City" to replicate life on Mars and aims to create the first human settlement on the red planet by 2117.
South African Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi has declared the world's worst recorded listeria outbreak over after the deaths of 216 people

South Africa on Monday declared an official end to the world's worst recorded listeria outbreak after it killed 216 people and sickened more than 1,000 since early 2017.

Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi said no news cases had been recorded over the past three months.

"The conclusion is that the outbreak of listeriosis in South Africa is over," the minister told a news conference.

Health officials announced in March that they had traced the outbreak to an Enterprise Food plant, 300 kilometres (185 miles) northeast of Pretoria, and immediately ordered a nationwide recall of affected processed meat products.

Motsoaledi said it has not been established yet how the listeria emerged at the factory.

At least 216 people died during the outbreak, according to the country's National Institute for Communicable Diseases.

A total of 1,060 people contracted the disease, which is caused by bacteria from soil, water, vegetation and animal faeces which can contaminate fresh food, notably meat.

The United Nations had said South Africa's listeriosis outbreak was believed to be the largest-ever worldwide.

Regional countries in southern, western and eastern Africa imposed a ban on imports of chilled meat imports from South Africa.

The infection mainly affects children and has an incubation period of up to 70 days, making it difficult to track.

Contamination in humans can result in flu-like illness, infection of the bloodstream and, in severe cases, infection of the brain which can prove fatal.

Motsoaledi called for hygiene standards to be raised to avoid further outbreaks.
Two Reuters journalists Kyaw Soe Oo (L) and Wa Lone (R) were jailed in Myanmar for breaching the country's state secrets law during their reporting of the Rohingya crisis

Britain called for the "immediate" release of two Reuters journalists jailed in Myanmar on Monday, saying the verdict had "undermined freedom of the media".

"We are extremely disappointed with this verdict and sentencing and we call for the journalists to be released immediately," said a spokesman for Prime Minister Theresa May.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, are accused of breaching Myanmar's state secrets law while reporting on a massacre of Rohingya Muslims and were jailed for seven years, fuelling international outrage.

Mark Field, Britain's Minister for Asia and the Pacific, "said he was "extremely disappointed" by the verdict, calling it a "bad day" for Myanmar.

"They provided valuable reporting on abhorrent human rights violations in Rakhine state, and I have consistently called for their immediate release, including directly with the Burmese government," he said in a statement.

"Journalists must be free to carry out their jobs without fear or intimidation," he added.
The leaders of Russia, Iran and Turkey will hold a tripartite summit in Iran on Friday seeking an end to the Syrian conflict

The Kremlin on Monday said the leaders of Russia, Iran and Turkey would on Friday hold a tripartite summit in Iran seeking an end to the Syrian conflict.

In a statement confirming the date of September 7 that was reported earlier by Turkish media, the Kremlin said Putin would "make a working visit to Iran" for the talks.

He and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani will consider "further joint efforts to ensure long-term normalisation of the situation in Syria," the Kremlin said.

Putin also plans bilateral talks with each of the leaders, it added.

The Kremlin said they would discuss further measures "aimed at finally liquidating the hotbed of international terrorism" in Syria, where the conflict has killed more than 350,000 people since 2011.

Discussions will look at "promoting the process of a political settlement, including creating the conditions for the return of refugees and the internally displaced," the Kremlin said.

The statement did not say where in Iran the talks would be held, but Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last week they would be in Tehran.

Putin, Rouhani and Erdogan have backed Syria peace talks based in the Kazakh capital of Astana which they insist are aimed at reinforcing, rather than undermining, a parallel UN peace process in Geneva.

The three leaders last met for similar tripartite talks in Ankara in April and before that in November last year in the Russian resort of Sochi.

Iran and Russia are the main allies of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad and their military interventions in Syria are widely seen as tipping the balance of the seven-year civil war in the regime's favour.

Turkey has backed rebels seeking to oust Assad but since late 2016 has been working increasingly closely with Iran and Russia to bring peace to Syria.

Preparations for the talks are going on as a Syrian regime offensive is expected imminently in the country's last rebel stronghold, northwestern Idlib province, which Assad wants to recapture to crown a string of military successes.

Turkey has warned that a military operation to take Idlib risks provoking a humanitarian "catastrophe" with 3.5 million people crammed into the region.
An undocumented immigrant leaves a Texas detention center for a hearing before an immigration court in the city of McAllen

Under oath before a US immigration judge, 14-year-old Sandy quietly asks the authorities to send her back to her native Guatemala, which she had left only months earlier.

In a barely audible voice, she affirmed to a judge in Los Angeles her decision to opt for "voluntary departure."

She is one of 445 childrens who as of last Thursday were still in US custody, the bitter fruit of US President Donald Trump's policy of "zero tolerance" of illegal immigration.

Sandy entered Arizona on May 17, 2018, at the height of US enforcement of the policy that ultimately lead to more than 2,600 children being separated from their families. Of those, 2,157 have now been reunited with their families.

"Have you been deported before?" the judge asks Sandy. "No, only my father" -- with whom she apparently crossed the border from Mexico.

Lindsay Toczylowski, executive director of the Immigrant Defenders law center, told AFP that if a minor "is not afraid to return, voluntary departure is an option."

The government says it has seen a rise in the number of children asking to leave the country voluntarily to rejoin their parents. A report released on Thursday detailed 15 cases so far, adding that the government would "facilitate and pay for" return transportation.

The decision to return is not one taken lightly. Fear is a fundamental factor, especially since many of the migrants were fleeing violence in their Central American countries.

That was the case with Pedro, a 34-year-old Honduran who asked that his real name not be used for reasons of security.

He was separated from his daughter at the border and deported back to Honduras, where he lives in fear of violence. The last thing he wants is for his child to be sent home.

- 'There's nothing good here' -

Undocumented immigrants wait in a detention center in McAllen, Texas

Pedro was a government official in Honduras and says he decided to head to the United States with his daughter after two gang-related attacks.

"I fled and brought the girl with me," he told AFP by telephone, adding that she was also threatened.

"I really did not want to travel to the United States. I had been told that the road was ugly -- and hard."

But he felt he had no choice. They made their way across the Rio Grande into Texas, where they surrendered to immigration authorities and sought asylum. Pedro says he was made to sign a paper in English that he did not understand.

"I told the officer, 'If it's to deport me, I don't want to sign because life is too difficult back there. I don't want to go back.

"He laughed and told me it was not to deport me."

His story was like many others: He was separated from his daughter and deported, while she was sent to a shelter. That was more than two months ago.

"I'm very worried," he said.

The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and other rights groups have contacted the deported relatives of 322 children still in the United States, according to the official report. It said the families of 167 children chose not to be reunited.

When Pedro was called, he made clear that it was better, for his daughter's safety, that she not return.

"There's nothing good here," he said.

- 'Ripped apart' from family -

When separated from their parents, the children become "unaccompanied minors" in the US system and are processed as such.

The advantage of that status is that they cannot be deported before seeing a judge.

Activists in New York are seen protesting the immigration policy of US President Donald Trump

They have the option of requesting asylum, applying for a juvenile visa or leaving voluntarily. In the latter instance, their file remains clean, allowing them in future to apply for a visa from abroad.

That was Sandy's case. She was part of a recent surge in "children who came with their parents," said Joanna Fluckey, a lawyer with the NGO KIND (Kids in Need of Defense).

"No one anticipated that they would be ripped apart from their loved ones," she added.

Sometimes, added Toczylowski, these children "don't understand the danger they may have been in" in their home country.

"So a lot of times ... it may be up to the parent in the home country to continue to try and make the decision that is safe for their child, and convince their child to, you know, maybe stay and fight" for a better life in the US.

If such a child has no relative or family friend in the US to care for him, he or she enters a foster parent program until the age of 18.

Judge Ashley Tabaddor, who for nine years has dealt with cases of "unaccompanied minors," told AFP that voluntary departures are not common in her court.

But the current group of children is hardly typical.

When it separates a family, Tabaddor said, "Our government is creating an unaccompanied child."

It was Tabaddor, who is president of the National Association of Immigration Judges, who heard Sandy's case, granting the government 120 days to prepare for the girl's return.

"Have a safe trip home," the judge said as the teenager left the courtroom.
Director Amos Gitai warned that Israel's "open society" has been put at risk by Benjamin Netanyahu's rightwing government as he premiered two new documentaries at the Venice film festival

Israeli director Amos Gitai lashed his country's government Monday for trying to "turn culture into propaganda" and cosying up to the "worst anti-Semites in Europe".

He warned that Israel's "open society" has been put at risk by Benjamin Netanyahu's right-wing government as he premiered two new documentaries at the Venice film festival.

"It used to be said that the best homage that an artist can make to his country was to be critical of it," he told reporters.

"Strong cultures don't always need to be caressed. But in Israel now there is a big debate about the minister of culture of this very bad government who thinks that all culture is propaganda."

Gitai, who was badly wounded in the 1973 Yom Kippur war, insisted that he and other Israeli liberals "love our country, but the direction the country is taking is very problematic. The government can destroy the very idea of an open society."

The director, who said his next project will be about the origins of European anti-Semitism, blasted Netanyahu for what critics called his "illiberal bromance" with Hungarian leader Viktor Orban.

He said people have to speak out "when you see Netanyahu shaking hands with the worst anti-Semitic leaders in Europe and at the same time he allows shooting unarmed Palestinian protestors in Gaza.

"He only believes in physical force. This is very un-Jewish so it needs to be criticised," he added.

Gitai screened two films at the festival, "A Letter To a Friend in Gaza" and a "A Tramway in Jerusalem", both trying to warn of where Israel's "intransigence" might lead it.

He said anti-Semitism is still deep in the "DNA of European society" so it is no surprise it should be resurfacing across the continent.

"Its origins are religious, the Church brought up generations to hate the Jews, they burned Jews and discriminated against them and humiliated them for centuries."

But the Jews have survived and "prevailed. They are still around which is impressive, but they should not forget the lessons."
In this file photo, Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is seen arriving on Capitol Hill for an introductory meeting with a senator ahead of his confirmation hearings, set to begin September 4

President Donald Trump's newest Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is expected to face punishing questioning from Democrats this week over his endorsement of presidential immunity and his opposition to abortion.

Some two dozen witnesses are lined up to argue for and against confirming Kavanaugh, who could swing the nine-member high court decidedly in conservatives' favor for years to come.

Democrats have mobilized heavily to prevent his approval.

They argue that while Trump faces investigation for alleged obstruction of justice and possible collusion by his campaign with Russia, he should not be able to choose a judge who could cast a decisive vote in his case.

- Four days of hearings -

When Kavanaugh appears before the Senate Judiciary Committee on Tuesday for the first of up to four days of hearings, Democrats aim to show that his record as a judge and a former White House legal counsel is colored by extremist views.

They are especially concerned that his vote might allow the Supreme Court to overturn the landmark 1973 Roe v. Wade case, which gave women the right to have an abortion.

They are also concerned about his views that the president should be immune from investigation and prosecution while in office -- issues that could come before the Supreme Court if Special Counsel Robert Mueller determines Trump violated laws.

"President Trump promised to appoint justices who would automatically overturn Roe v. Wade, and be pro-gun," Senator Dianne Feinstein, senior Democrat on the committee, said Friday.

"We have no reason to doubt that Kavanaugh would fulfill that promise."

Added Senator Richard Blumenthal, another Democrat on the committee, "There will be sparks at this hearing."

- Strong Republican roots -

Judge Brett Kavanaugh's nomination to the US Supreme Court has aroused strong emotions on both sides, including from the Los Angeles demonstrator seen in this file photo from August

Kavanaugh, a 53-year-old conservative Catholic from a wealthy Washington suburb, has the backing of powerful right-wing judicial groups and deeply religious evangelical Christians -- both of which are key constituents of the Republican voter base.

"How did Donald Trump get 82 percent of the evangelical Christian vote? ... Because of the Supreme Court," noted University of Virginia political scientist Larry Sabato.

Kavanaugh began his career as a clerk to Anthony Kennedy, the justice long considered a critical swing vote on the Supreme Court, who retired on July 31.

In the 1990s he worked with special prosecutor Kenneth Starr in his probe of Democratic president Bill Clinton's affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, which led to Clinton's impeachment trial.

In 2001 he joined President George Bush's White House legal team, where his role in key terrorism-related decisions, such as permitting the torture of detainees, remains unclear.

As a US Court of Appeals judge in Washington for the past 11 years, Kavanaugh has ruled on some of the nation's most sensitive cases, including when he opposed the Affordable Care Act, the signature health reform of President Barack Obama that Trump has sought to dismantle.

"There is no one in America more qualified for this position and no one more deserving," Trump said in announcing Kavanaugh's nomination.

- Trump probe at issue -

One of the senators with whom Kavanaugh held introductory meetings was Lisa Murkowski of Alaska, a Republican

Kavanaugh's record of court opinions and legal analyses shows a mainstream conservative opposed to abortion, supportive of corporations against regulation, and -- despite his work in the Clinton case -- holding beliefs that a sitting president should not be distracted by legal proceedings against him.

"President Trump thinks he's above the law," said Senator Kirsten Gillibrand. "It's no coincidence his Supreme Court nominee believes sitting presidents shouldn't be indicted." She called for Kavanaugh's appointment to be blocked.

Democrats are also angry that the Trump administration has not released all the records of Kavanaugh's work while he was in the White House. Senator Patty Murray said this was "even more reason to stop this entire process in its tracks."

But Republicans insist that Kavanaugh's judicial history shows a fully qualified jurist able to see all sides of the law.

"The American Bar Association 'has determined by a unanimous vote that Judge Kavanaugh is Well Qualified...its highest possible rating,'" Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell said via Twitter Friday.

Democrats have hoped that one or more Republican senators in favor of abortion rights, particularly moderate Susan Collins, would oppose the nominee.

Kavanaugh needs 50 votes for confirmation, and 47 Republicans have indicated their support, with 41 Democrats announcing their opposition, the Politico website reported.

But Collins has appeared to accept Kavanaugh's pledge that he respects established court precedent, presumably including the Roe v. Wade ruling.

Meantime, some Democrats, particularly those in states won by Trump, see Kavanaugh's approval as unavoidable. They have signaled they could vote for him to appease their constituents.
Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi speaks in parliament in the capital Baghdad on September 3, 2018

Iraqi lawmakers convened Monday with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and a populist cleric together seeking to form a government and sideline pro-Iran rivals with a deal to create the biggest bloc in parliament.

The country's next leaders will face the mammoth task of rebuilding a country ravaged by the war against jihadists as well as tackling public anger over corruption, unemployment and decrepit public services.

Late on Sunday 16 political groups including those of Abadi and firebrand preacher Moqtada Sadr -- whose alliance with communists won the most seats in the May 12 polls -- announced an accord to create the largest force in parliament.

But they face a challenge from rivals who also claim to have the upper hand.

Abadi defended his record before lawmakers, saying he had come to power in 2014 at a time when "IS occupied large areas while the security forces were in a state of near-total collapse".

One of Abadi's aides told AFP before parliament met in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone that his coalition with Sadr and other groups included 177 lawmakers representing more than half of the 329 seats in the legislature.

That could potentially allow Abadi to remain in his post despite coming third in the election with 42 seats. Sadr's joint list won 54 seats.

Iraqi lawmakers in parliament on September 3, 2018, as they begin the process of forming a new government

A former militia leader who led two uprisings against the US-led invasion of Iraq, the cleric has called for his country to be more independent of both Iran and the United States.

But his alliance with Abadi is being challenged by former prime minister Nuri al-Maliki, who has teamed up with a group of former anti-IS paramilitary fighters close to Iran.

Maliki claimed his bloc had signatures of support from 153 lawmakers which he argued put it in a stronger position than his rivals because they only had signatures from the group leaders.

Maliki's bloc said it had poached 21 lawmakers from Abadi's Victory Alliance which, if confirmed, could tip the scales, especially since Kurdish parties are still negotiating with both sides.

Those who have switched sides include Falih Alfayyadh, who last week was sacked by the prime minister as head of the powerful Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force.

Abadi on Monday named himself chief of the Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation), which played a major role in fighting the Islamic State jihadist group (IS).

- Array of challenges -

On Monday lawmakers were sworn in before the session was adjourned.

They will reconvene on Tuesday when parliament is expected to elect a speaker -- traditionally a member of Iraq's Sunni Muslim community -- as well two deputy speakers.

After that, lawmakers will have 30 days to elect a new president, a largely symbolic position that traditionally goes to a member of the Kurdish minority.

The new president will then have 15 days to task the biggest parliamentary bloc to form a new government, which will face an array of challenges including the lingering threat posed by jihadists.

Abadi declared "victory" in December over IS after a devastating three-year war against the Sunni extremists, who at their height controlled nearly a third of the country.

Despite being driven from Iraq's towns and cities, the jihadists continue to stage attacks from their hideouts in remote desert areas.

Suspected IS members killed seven people on Monday in an attack in a village west of Kirkuk, a multi-ethnic city north of Baghdad, a security official said.

Iraqi protesters clash with security forces on August 31, 2018 in the southern city of Basra

The raid came less than a day after a man was shot dead outside a mosque north of the capital, in what a police officer said was a jihadist attack.

The incoming government also faces a wave of social unrest particularly in southern Iraq, which has been shaken by weeks of protests demanding better public services in a country beset by energy and water shortages.

Police in Basra on Monday again used tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters in front of the provincial headquarters, an AFP correspondent said.

The meeting of parliament was delayed by allegations of electoral fraud which prompted the supreme court to order a manual recount that last month confirmed the victory of Sadr's alliance.

The polls saw a record low turnout of 44.5 percent, with long-time political figures pushed out by voters seeking change in a country mired in conflict and corruption.

Iraq's political system is designed to ensure that no one person or party can dominate, in order to avoid the return of a dictatorship following the ouster of Saddam Hussein in 2003.
Yemenis dig graves for children killed in a Saudi-led coalition air strike on August 9 on a market in the Huthi stronghold of Saada

The Saudi-led coalition battling rebels in Yemen insisted Monday that an August air strike that killed dozens of civilians including 40 children had a "legitimate" target.

Spokesman Turki al-Maliki told reporters in Riyadh that a coalition investigation into the August 9 raid found that "the target was legitimate but there was an error in the timing" of the strike.

On Saturday, the coalition admitted "mistakes" had been made in the strike, a rare admission of guilt in the three-year conflict, following international criticism over the deadly raid.

The bombing on a crowded market in rebel-held northern Yemen killed a total of 51 people, according to the Red Cross.

Fifty-six children were also among the 79 people wounded in the strike on Saada province, a stronghold of Huthi rebels backed by Saudi Arabia's arch-rival Iran.

The incident sparked a wave of international anger and calls by the United Nations Security Council for a "credible and transparent" investigation.

On Sunday, the United States and Britain welcomed the results of the coalition's investigation. London also called for clarifications on other deadly operations.

Maliki said that in light of the probe, the coalition would revise its rules of engagement to avoid civilian casualties, as well as offering compensation to the families of the victims.

The Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 after the Huthis ousted President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi's government from the capital Sanaa and seized swathes of the country.

The devastating conflict has since left nearly 10,000 people dead and sparked what the United Nations has described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
DRCongo wants to use touch screen voting machines but some say this will pave the way for fraud

Police arrested and violently dispersed scores of pro-democracy activists Monday protesting against controversial voting machines that the government wants to use in key elections later this year.

The pro-democracy movement Lucha (Struggle for Change) says the South Korean touch screen voting machines will pave the way for fraud in the long-delayed December 23 ballot.

Police detained 22 Lucha activists briefly in Kinshasa as they demonstrated outside the office of the national electoral commission (CENI), police said.

"They tried to march but were arrested by police. But there was no reason to hold them so I let them go," Kinshasa police chief Sylvano Kasongo said.

"Youths from Lucha came. They weren't scared and went right up to the CENI shouting 'No voting machines'," a street vendor told AFP.

"They did not resist arrest," another witness said.

In Goma, the capital of the restive Nord-Kivu province, police violently dispersed a Lucha protest beating several activists with batons, an AFP reporter said.

"We have re-established order, about 20 youths were arrested," the city's police chief Colonel Job Alisi said.

"I had not authorised today's march and the police only did their job to re-establish order," Goma mayor Timothee Mwissa Kiense said.

In Bukavu, the main city in Sud-Kivu, 17 Lucha members were arrested but released an hour later, the group said.

"We were brutalised, beaten, tortured. Two of us were seriously injured ... others were stripped of their money and cellphones," said Judith Maroy.

But police spokeswoman Linda Margehane denied the activists were mistreated during their brief detention. Several activists were detained in other towns and cities, according to AFP correspondents.

The former Belgian colony has not seen a peaceful transition of power since 1960. The current president, Joseph Kabila, who has held office since 2001, has said he will not run again.

Several members of the UN Security Council, including Britain, France and the Netherlands, have said the UN was ready to offer logistical aid for the election but Kinshasa has rejected all offers of support.
Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman speaks to the press in the Golan Heights on July 10, 2018

Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Monday signalled his country could strike Iranian targets in Iraq if they threatened Israel, saying it would hit wherever necessary.

"We will face any Iranian threat, no matter where it comes from," Lieberman said in response to a question about reports that Iran had provided ballistic missiles to allied Shiite militias in Iraq in recent months.

"Our freedom of action is total," he told a conference organised by an Israeli media company.

Israel has pledged to stop Iran, its main enemy, from entrenching itself militarily in neighbouring Syria, where Tehran is backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime in his country's civil war.

A series of recent strikes in Syria that have killed Iranians has been attributed to Israel.

Israel also acknowledges carrying out dozens of strikes in Syria against what it says were advanced weapons deliveries to Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Shiite group.

Asked about the possibility of Israel hitting Iranian military positions in "Iraq or Tehran," Lieberman said: "We do not limit ourselves to Syrian territory alone. It must be clear."

On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with US special representative for Syria engagement James Jeffrey on the war-ravaged country and Iran.
Eight people were killed Monday in an explosion at a munitions factory near Cape Town in South Africa, a city official said.

Local residents reported that nearby houses shook from the blast, which sent a plume of white smoke into the air above the Rheinmetall-Denel plant in Somerset West when it erupted at 3:45 pm (1345 GMT).

"Eight persons were confirmed as fatalities and the fire department is assisting the search and rescue operations," J.P. Smith, Cape Town council's safety chief, told AFP after the explosion rocked the Rheinmetall Denel plant in Somerset West.

Smith said that a fire at the accident site was contained.

The Rheinmetall Denel company confirmed the incident but gave no details on fatalities.

"An explosion occurred at one of the buildings of Rheinmetall Denel Munition (RDM)... At this stage we are unable to confirm if there are any injuries or fatalities," it said in a statement.

"We are currently investigating the matter."

The joint German-South Africa company said it makes munitions and explosive products for the South African military and police and international clients.

RDM is 51 percent owned by Rheinmetall Defence in Germany and 49 percent by South Africa's Denel.
Myanmar journalist Wa Lone of Reuters is escorted by police after being sentenced with his colleague Kyaw Soe Oo to seven years in jail over their reporting on a 2017 massacre of Rohingya Muslims

The United States on Monday condemned the jailing in Myanmar of two Reuters journalists who had reported on a massacre of Rohingya Muslims in that country, calling it "deeply troubling" and urging the men's immediate release.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were sentenced Monday to seven years in jail on charges of violating the Official Secrets Act, a draconian British colonial-era law which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years.

The case has drawn international condemnation as an attempt by Myanmar authorities to muzzle reporting on last year's crackdown by security forces on the Rohingya minority.

A statement from the US embassy in Yangon said the case raises "serious concerns about rule of law and judicial independence in Myanmar, and the reporters' conviction is a major setback to the government of Myanmar's stated goal of expanding democratic freedoms."

The US State Department did not issue a separate statement, referring instead to the embassy comment.

The United Nations, the European Union and, separately, EU members Britain and France have condemned the verdict and called for the release of the men, jailed since December.

Canada's special envoy to Myanmar, Bob Rae, denounced the sentence as "a parody of justice."

The reporters have denied the charges, insisting they were set up while exposing the extrajudicial killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in Inn Din village last September.

They told the court they had been invited to dinner by police in Yangon, who handed them documents. As they left the restaurant, the two men were detained for possessing classified material.

A whistleblowing policeman's testimony corroborated the men's version.

The group Reporters Without Borders denounced the "sham trial," which it said had dealt "a terrible blow to press freedom in Myanmar." It called for the men's immediate release.
Syrians chant slogans and wave flags of the opposition as they protest against the regime and its ally Russia, in Binnish in Syria's rebel-held northern Idlib province on August 31, 2018

An all-out Syrian offensive against the rebel bastion of Idlib and its catastrophic consequences can still be averted, the International Crisis Group said Monday, calling for a return to negotiations.

The Brussels-based think tank argued that Russia, whose air support would be crucial for the offensive to succeed, should understand that a bloodbath in Idlib would jeopardise its own political goals.

"By backing an all-out offensive, Russia risks undermining its long-term political objectives in Syria," ICG wrote in a nine-page briefing entitled "Saving Idlib from destruction".

Syrian forces are poised to launch an attack on the northwestern province of Idlib, the last major region in Syria still controlled by rebels and jihadists.

All the while seeking to pressure Turkey into reining in jihadists in Idlib, Damascus's main sponsor Russia has been sounding the war drums in recent days.

Idlib is a cul-de-sac for many rebels and civilians transferred there after previous regime assaults.

The United Nations and aid groups have warned that a full assault on Idlib could spark a humanitarian catastrophe on a scale not yet seen in Syria's seven-year-old conflict.

ICG argued that Moscow would be shooting itself in the foot by backing such a scenario.

"Russia seeks to ensure not just the regime's military victory in Syria but its full political restoration through international re-legitimation at war's end," it said.

The think tank stressed that Russia needed Turkey, a co-sponsor of Syria peace talks in the Kazakh capital Astana that yielded previous deals meant to reduce violence and pave the way for reconciliation.

"Likewise, a regime victory in Idlib that kills many civilians and displaces hundreds of thousands would shock the same European countries Russia is now courting to reopen diplomatic relations with the Syrian regime and invest in reconstruction," ICG wrote.

It said the three Astana guarantors should urgently return to the negotiating table and thrash out a plan that would satisfy some of Moscow's key demands.

ICG cited "intensified Turkish efforts to rid the area of jihadists, an end to drone attacks on Russia's (Hmeimim) air base and regime control over Idlib's key highways."

"There is an alternative to a military offensive," it said.
Libya, where a new ceasefire was announced Wednesday to end a month of deadly fighting near the capital, fell into chaos with the ouster and killing of strongman Moamer Kadhafi in October 2011.

Two rival authorities and a multitude of militias are vying for control of the oil-rich country.

The capital Tripoli is the seat of the internationally backed Government of National Accord (GNA), led by Fayez al-Sarraj.

A parallel government operates out of the country's east, backed by the self-styled Libyan National Army of military strongman Khalifa Haftar.

Here is a timeline of the Mediterranean country's descent into chaos:

- Kadhafi killed -

Triggered by uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, demonstrations erupt in Libya in February 2011.

A coalition led by Washington, Paris and London lends its backing.

Kadhafi, who has ruled for 42 years, flees the capital. He is killed on October 20, 2011 during a battle for his hometown Sirte, east of Tripoli.

Three days later, the rebel National Transitional Council (NTC) declares Libya's "total liberation".

In August 2012 it hands power to the transitional General National Congress.

- Embassies targeted -

US ambassador Chris Stevens and three American staff are killed in a September 11, 2012 attack on their consulate in Libya's second city Benghazi.

An Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist group is blamed.

A car bomb in April 2013 targets France's embassy in Tripoli, wounding two French guards.

Most foreign delegations withdraw from the country.

- Rival governments -

Dissident general Haftar, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launches an offensive in May 2014 against jihadist groups in Benghazi.

Several military officers from the east join his self-styled Libyan National Army.

In June, following legislative elections, the General National Congress is replaced by a parliament dominated by anti-Islamists.

In August, after weeks of deadly clashes, Islamist-led militias grouped under the "Fajr Libya" (Libya Dawn) banner storm Tripoli and set up a "national salvation" government.

The parliament and government of Abdullah al-Thani, elected in June, take refuge in eastern Libya.

The country finds itself with two governments and two parliaments.

On December 17, 2015, after months of negotiations, accords signed under UN supervision in Morocco designate a UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA).

In March 2016 GNA prime minister Sarraj arrives in Tripoli to set up the new government.

- Attacks and vote deal -

In January 2018 militias attack at Tripoli's only working international airport and at least 20 people are killed.

The same month, two car bombings kill nearly 40 people in Benghazi. In May, Islamic State suicide attackers kill 14 people at Libya's electoral commission.

In a bid to restore stability, senior Libyan leaders including Sarraj and Haftar commit at a Paris peace conference in May to hold elections on December 10.

But the unrest continues. In June, a militia attacks two northeastern oil sites under Haftar's control, through which oil is piped abroad.

After days of fighting, Haftar's forces announce they are back in "full control" and have also seized the city of Derna from radical Islamists.

- Clashes erupt near Tripoli -

On August 27, heavy clashes break out between rival militias on the outskirts of Tripoli, killing dozens over the following days.

The UN brokers a ceasefire on September 4 but fighting resumes within days. The capital's airport is attacked with rocket fire on September 12 and rival militias clash nearby on September 18.

By Wednesday's announcement of a renewed commitment to the September 4 ceasefire deal, the fighting around Tripoli has left at least 117 dead and more than 400 injured, according to the GNA.
General Scott Miller, who took command of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan on Sunday, said the US soldier's death September 3, 2018 was "a tragic loss"

A US soldier was killed and another wounded in an "apparent insider attack" in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, NATO said, marking the sixth American service member death in the war-torn country this year.

The so-called "green-on-blue" attack was the latest in a series of incidents in which Afghan forces have turned their weapons on international troops with whom they are working.

The last time a US soldier was killed in an insider attack was on July 7 in the country's south.

General Scott Miller, who took command of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan on Sunday, said the soldier's death was "a tragic loss".

"Our duty now is to honour him, care for his family and continue our mission," Miller said in a statement.

The wounded soldier was in a stable condition, the statement said.

NATO did not release the identity of the American soldier killed or provide further details about where the incident took place.

Currently, there are about 14,000 US troops in Afghanistan, providing the main component of the NATO mission there to support and train local forces.

American casualties have fallen dramatically since the withdrawal of US-led NATO combat troops at the end of 2014.
A South African trade union launched a protest Monday against plans by the country's Sasol chemicals company to exclude white staff from a new employee share-ownership scheme.

Solidarity, which has mainly white members including 6,300 at Sasol, said employees of the company's Secunda plant southeast of Johannesburg would strike on Thursday.

The union contests "the company's staff share scheme that excludes white employees", saying that 89 percent of Solidarity members at the facility supported the walkout.

"Solidarity is also calling on South Africans not to fill their tanks at Sasol petrol stations this coming Wednesday in support of the Sasol employees," it added in a statement.

Solidarity said it began a low-intensity industrial action on Monday that would escalate over the next three weeks.

"This will be a clever strike. Our 6,300 members are highly trained employees of major strategic importance to Sasol. We intend to switch off a different section of Sasol each day," said Solidarity chief executive Dirk Hermann.

Sasol spokeswoman Matebello Motloung told AFP that the new share scheme was not part of employees' basic remuneration and was intended to empower members of previously disadvantaged communities.

"It primarily focuses on the inclusion of black employees and public shareholders," she said.

"Our intention is to create meaningful financial benefits for approximately 230,000 black public shareholders and qualifying employees, and to achieve 25 percent direct and indirect black ownership."

Sasol, which employs 31,000 people in 33 countries, confirmed that Solidarity had said it would strike over the dispute.

"We have activated contingency measures to minimise potential disruption," Motloung added.

The ruling African National Congress (ANC) party said it had noted the strike action "with concern".

"The ANC is deeply concerned about the racist overtones of this strike, which seeks to reverse the gains of our democracy," said ANC spokesman Pule Mabe in a statement.

"In characterising the Sasol initiative as racial exclusion is at best malicious -- and at worst dishonest."

The government introduced policies in 2003 to economically empower black South Africans.
Democrats have long expressed disdain for US Attorney General Jeff Sessions, but some now see him as a bulwark against attacks on the Justice Department

US President Donald Trump launched a fresh attack Monday on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, saying his party could lose two "easy" races in November after the Justice Department filed charges against Republican congressmen.

"Two long running, Obama era, investigations of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department. Two easy wins now in doubt," Trump tweeted.

"Good job Jeff," he added sarcastically.

Trump has frequently pilloried Sessions for recusing himself from Special Counsel Robert Mueller's investigation of possible collusion with Russia to tilt the 2016 US election toward the real estate billionaire.

The president has waged a strikingly public campaign against the Alabama Republican he named to the top law enforcement post.

That has left the attorney general's position seeming tenuous at best, though Trump recently told Bloomberg News that Sessions was safe, at least until after the November mid-term elections.

Chris Collins of New York was indicted on insider trading charges, which he has denied, while Duncan Hunter of California was accused with his wife of using campaign donations for personal purposes. Hunter has said his wife handled the campaign money.

Both men had been expected to face easy re-election campaigns.

Trump's suggestion that Sessions should have withheld charges against two fellow Republicans for purely political reasons seemed a remarkably unapologetic blurring of a traditional line between presidential authority and the law.

While there have been exceptions, longstanding protocol holds that the Justice Department should be left to operate free of political influence from the White House.

Under pressure from Trump, Sessions issued an unusual statement last month saying that "while I am attorney general, the actions of the Department of Justice will not be improperly influenced by political considerations."

Democrats have long expressed disdain for Sessions, a former Alabama senator, as an intolerant relic of the racist Old South.

But some now see him as a bulwark against attacks on the Justice Department.

"The Democrats, none of whom voted for Jeff Sessions, must love him now," Trump quipped.
Syrian rebel fighters prepare for an upcoming government forces offensive, in the countryside of the rebel-held northern Idlib province

US President Donald Trump on Monday warned Syria against launching an attack on the country's last rebel stronghold with the help of Russia and Iran, saying the offensive could trigger a "human tragedy."

"President Bashar al-Assad of Syria must not recklessly attack Idlib Province. The Russians and Iranians would be making a grave humanitarian mistake to take part in this potential human tragedy," Trump tweeted.

"Hundreds of thousands of people could be killed. Don't let that happen!"

The United Nations and aid groups have warned that a full assault on Idlib could spark a humanitarian catastrophe on a scale not yet seen in Syria's seven-year-old conflict.

Syrian government forces are now massing around the northwestern province of Idlib, which is held by a complex array of rebels and violent extremist fighters, many of whom have been blacklisted as "terrorists" by world powers.

Russia and Iran have insisted that extremist groups in Idlib must be defeated and are expected to back regime forces in any assault.

Since early 2017, Iran, fellow regime ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey have sponsored a negotiations track based in the Kazakh capital to tamp down hostilities in Syria.

Last year, they had designated Idlib as a "de-escalation" zone where violence would halt in preparation for a countrywide ceasefire.

All the while seeking to pressure Turkey into reining in jihadists in Idlib, Damascus's main sponsor Russia has been sounding the war drums in recent days.

Tehran and Moscow provided steady political, financial and military backing to Assad throughout the war, which has left over 350,000 people dead since it broke out in 2011.

The International Crisis Group, a Brussels-based think tank, said an all-out assault on Idlib and its catastrophic consequences could still be avoided.

Russia, whose air support would be crucial for the offensive to succeed, should understand that a bloodbath in Idlib would jeopardize its own political goals, according to ICG.

"By backing an all-out offensive, Russia risks undermining its long-term political objectives in Syria," ICG wrote in a nine-page briefing entitled "Saving Idlib from destruction."

- US warnings ring hollow? -

Despite Trump's warning, analysts believe the United States appears resigned to the likelihood of a final military victory by Syrian government forces.

Behind the scenes, American diplomats have been actively warning Moscow, which has been accused in the past of turning a blind eye to chemical weapon use by its Syrian proteges.

But these "verbal warning shots" have little to do with today's reality in Syria, said Jonas Parello-Plesner, a researcher with the Hudson Institute think tank in Washington who recently published a study on the US approach to the region.

And that reality, he told AFP, is that "Assad is advancing on the ground, aided by Iran by land and Russia by air," while the United States places its hopes on a UN-backed Geneva peace process that might best be described, he said, as "moribund."

Trump said in April that "it's time" to bring American troops home from Syria -- once the jihadists of the Islamic State group had been definitively defeated.

While he quickly backed away from talk of an immediate withdrawal, his underlying determination to leave Syria's seven-year war as soon as possible seems unchanged.
QINGDAO, China (AP) - The sight of five burly guards blocking the way out of her dorm filled Ren Liping with rage.

It was 3 a.m. on a recent Saturday and the thin, bespectacled 26-year-old Chinese graduate student was exhausted. Her mind raced back to earlier in the day when she had tried once again to publicly protest her alleged rape. Again, the police had stopped her and held her at a station for hours. Again, she was escorted back to campus.

Now this.

In this July 3, 2018, photo, Ren Liping pauses during an interview after filing her petition to have her rape allegation case reexamined in Beijing. Chinese graduate student Ren has spent the past year filing lawsuits and attempting to protest authorities in the coastal city of Qingdao for what she says was their mishandling of her rape allegation. At every turn, Ren has been stymied by guards. Her efforts highlight at once the challenges of reporting sexual assault in China and the determination of a new generation of Chinese women pushing the country into its own #MeToo moment despite all attempts to silence them. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

She pounded on the glass door with her fist, but the men ignored her. "This is illegal!" she shouted, to no response. She felt nauseous. Her face was numb. She picked up a bicycle pump in the corner and smashed it against the glass.

The door shattered.

"Whoever tries to suppress my case will end up like this door," Ren said to the men.

More than a year after she accused an ex-boyfriend of raping her on the China University of Petroleum campus in the coastal city of Qingdao, this had become Ren's life: a series of attempts to protest the university and authorities' mishandling of the case.

At every turn, Ren has been stymied by the school's guards or the police, who say there's no evidence of a crime. She was even detained in a hotel for six days at one point.

Her efforts highlight at once the challenges of reporting sexual assault in China and the determination of a new generation of Chinese women pushing the country into its own #MeToo moment despite attempts to silence them.

The movement has gathered considerable steam in China, with dozens of men, including prominent media personalities, non-profit advocates and even a top monk, publicly accused of sexual assault or sexual misconduct in recent months.

But like any social campaign, #MeToo poses a challenge to President Xi Jinping's administration, which has waged an unprecedented crackdown on civil society groups and activism that the ruling Communist Party deems as threats to its rule.

Ren accuses Liang Shengyu, her ex-boyfriend, of raping her on campus last summer. Liang denies the allegation. They are suing each other for defamation.

In an action that legal experts say is unprecedented, Ren is also suing the police - for what she's described as a mishandling of the investigation and the use of force against her.

"She is a representative for the #MeToo movement," said Lyu Xiaoquan, a Beijing lawyer who helped Ren prepare her initial complaints.

Ren and Liang met in 2013 when they were undergraduates at the university's geosciences department. Liang says he was attracted to Ren's strength and independence. They dated for two years, experiencing for the first time the freedom of a romance far from their parents' scrutiny.

After a bitter breakup, Liang and Ren rarely spoke. But last summer they got back in touch, and on the evening of July 28, 2017, agreed to walk back to their dorms together after Liang completed an assignment in the lab.

Their accounts of the rest of the night diverge.

Ren said that Liang asked her if they could get back together, but that she said no because she liked someone else. Liang then cornered her in a bicycle parking lot, she said, pinned her against a concrete wall and put his hand inside her denim shorts.

Stunned and terrified, Ren tried to choke him but wasn't strong enough.

"You're dirty," she told him.

"You've been with me before. You didn't think I was dirty then," he said, according to Ren.

Ren said Liang ignored her protests, pulled down her shorts and raped her. She was sobbing in pain, she said.

"Do you want to destroy me?" she cried at the time.

That's when he stopped, picked his cap up off the ground, and walked away, Ren said.

According to Liang, however, Ren had been pestering him for weeks because she thought he had a new girlfriend.

Liang said Ren tried to convince him to break up with this woman and that all they did that night was argue.

"We did not have any physical contact whatsoever that night," he said. "And there was no so-called rape or sexual assault or behavior of that kind."

At first, Ren did not plan on reporting her alleged rape.

"I didn't know what people would think of me," she said.

When it continued to haunt her five days later, she told the school, but administrators encouraged her to keep quiet. Then she went to the local police station, where a female officer told her to drop her claim, saying that not all sexual experiences are pleasurable, according to Ren.

Frustrated, Ren filed lawsuits against the police and started holding protests.

But the authorities' resolve to silence her only grew with her efforts. In June, after she shouted in the middle of a campus square about being raped, Ren said security detained her inside a hotel room in Qingdao for six days while the city hosted a major summit.

Her parents were also ordered to stay in the hotel with her. Her mother, a wheat farmer from rural Henan, said university officials dangled vague job offers and study abroad opportunities to get Ren to drop her case. Their promises to investigate Liang's conduct never materialized, according to her mother, who requested that she only be identified by her surname, Zhang.

"Everyone lied to us," Zhang said. "It's because our family has no money or power - if we did, things wouldn't have reached this stage."

School officials declined repeated requests to comment. Police in a district in Qingdao that oversees the campus said investigators examined the case closely, interviewing Ren and Liang, their family members, teachers and classmates, and concluded that no crime had taken place. In a statement faxed to The Associated Press, the district police bureau said investigators asked Ren about the alleged rape multiple times but found inconsistencies in her description of the circumstances.

In July, Ren took a four-hour train ride to Beijing, joining the legions of petitioners who flock to the capital to seek help from the central government for what they believe are abuses of power by local officials that lead to personal losses such as home seizures or being laid off.

Ren submitted her documents to three petition offices. A security officer at one of the places remarked that she seemed too young to be among the more than 1,000 petitioners who come to the office every day. Two months later they would return to repeat the same cycle: line up, submit papers, wait, he said.

"Just like that, I was hit with a splash of cold water," Ren wrote on her online blog that night. "Hope has pretty much been extinguished."

The authorities have continued to monitor Ren's movements, she said, more than a year after she first went to the police. On a recent trip to a neighboring city, one man whom she says was trailing her dragged her into a black car when she tried to depart for a third city where she planned to meet with a lawyer.

But Ren remains determined to hold the police, the university and Liang to account.

On the eve of the Aug. 3 protest that would end up being thwarted, Ren posted somber photos of herself wearing a black sun hat and sunglasses, holding up a sign with "#METOO#" scrawled on it.

Ren correctly predicted she would face punishment for her actions. Quoting a Chinese proverb, she declared: "I'd rather be a shattered jade than an unbroken piece of pottery."

___

Associated Press reporter Dake Kang and researcher Fu Ting contributed to this report.

In this July 3, 2018, photo, Ren Liping, second right, takes a subway train to the police headquarters to file her petition after arriving in Beijing. Chinese graduate student Ren has spent the past year filing lawsuits and attempting to protest authorities in the coastal city of Qingdao for what she says was their mishandling of her rape allegation. At every turn, Ren has been stymied by guards. Her efforts highlight at once the challenges of reporting sexual assault in China and the determination of a new generation of Chinese women pushing the country into its own #MeToo moment despite all attempts to silence them. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

In this July 3, 2018, photo, Ren Liping, center, looks for the direction to the police headquarters to file her petition to have her rape allegation case re-examined in Beijing. Chinese graduate student Ren has spent the past year filing lawsuits and attempting to protest authorities in the coastal city of Qingdao for what she says was their mishandling of her rape allegation. At every turn, Ren has been stymied by guards. Her efforts highlight at once the challenges of reporting sexual assault in China and the determination of a new generation of Chinese women pushing the country into its own #MeToo moment despite all attempts to silence them. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

In this July 3, 2018, photo, Ren Liping walks by police vehicles parked outside the police headquarters as she prepares to file a petition for her case to be re-examined in Beijing. Chinese graduate student Ren has spent the past year filing lawsuits and attempting to protest authorities in the coastal city of Qingdao for what she says was their mishandling of her rape allegation. At every turn, Ren has been stymied by guards. Her efforts highlight at once the challenges of reporting sexual assault in China and the determination of a new generation of Chinese women pushing the country into its own #MeToo moment despite all attempts to silence them. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

In this July 3, 2018, photo, Ren Liping, right, looks at the subway map direction to the police headquarters after arriving at the south train station in Beijing. Chinese graduate student Ren has spent the past year filing lawsuits and attempting to protest authorities in the coastal city of Qingdao for what she says was their mishandling of her rape allegation. At every turn, Ren has been stymied by guards. Her efforts highlight at once the challenges of reporting sexual assault in China and the determination of a new generation of Chinese women pushing the country into its own #MeToo moment despite all attempts to silence them. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)

In this July 3, 2018, photo, Ren Liping talks on her phone after filing her petition to have her rape allegation case re-examined in Beijing. Chinese graduate student Ren has spent the past year filing lawsuits and attempting to protest authorities in the coastal city of Qingdao for what she says was their mishandling of her rape allegation. At every turn, Ren has been stymied by guards. Her efforts highlight at once the challenges of reporting sexual assault in China and the determination of a new generation of Chinese women pushing the country into its own #MeToo moment despite all attempts to silence them. (AP Photo/Andy Wong)
WASHINGTON (AP) - Wayne Rooney broke a tie on a penalty kick in the 52nd minute and set up Luciano Acosta's two goals in D.C. United's 3-1 victory over Atlanta United on Sunday night.

Acosta opened the scoring in the 29th by running past the defense for a glancing header of a goal kick, cut back two defenders and sent in a shot from near the penalty spot. He added his second in the 77th on a one-on-one breakaway.

Bill Hamid made six saves for D.C. (8-12-6), which ended a two-game scoreless losing streak. United is six points behind Montreal for the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference.

Jeff Larentowicz headed in a goal for Atlanta (16-5-6) in the 39th to tie it at 1. Atlanta had a seven game unbeaten streak snapped and sit a point behind the Supporters' Shield leader New York.

Atlanta star Josef Martinez failed to add to his MLS season record of 28 goals. With a goal, he would have set a MLS record with his 10th straight scoring game.
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - The Latest on Sen. John McCain's final service and burial (all times local):

7:25 p.m.

A grieving Cindy McCain pressed her cheek against the surface of the casket of her husband, Sen. John McCain, during the burial service Sunday for the longtime Arizona Republican.

In this image provided by the family of John McCain, Jimmy McCain hugs his brother Jack McCain, touching casket, as Cindy McCain, watches during a burial service for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., at the cemetery at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018 (David Hume Kennerly/McCain Family via AP)

McCain had requested to be laid to rest alongside a friend at the cemetery of the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Among the mourners were other members of the Class of 1958 as well as military leaders and current academy midshipmen.

A horse-drawn caisson carrying the senator's casket led a procession from the academy's chapel to its cemetery following a private service.

McCain sons Jimmy and Jack shared a hug beside the casket as family, friends and other mourners bid farewell to the former prisoner of war and presidential candidate. McCain died Aug. 25 at the age of 81.

___

4:25 p.m.

Sen. John McCain's widow and other family members joined friends and admirers following a horse-drawn caisson carrying the casket of the longtime senator to the U.S. Naval Academy cemetery.

The procession left the Naval Academy's chapel Sunday afternoon following a memorial service for McCain. Overhead, a flyover of military aircraft paid tribute to the navy pilot who was shot down in Vietnam and held five years as a prisoner of war.

The service and burial in Annapolis, Maryland, mark the final farewell for McCain. Tributes to McCain began last Wednesday in Arizona and included a funeral on Saturday at Washington's National Cathedral.

___

John McCain's final journey from his Arizona ranch is ending on a grassy hill at the U.S. Naval Academy within view of the Severn River and earshot of midshipmen present and future, and alongside a lifelong friend.

A private service at the academy's chapel followed by a procession to the burial site marked the farewell Sunday to a man who lived a very public life. Invited along with family and friends were members of McCain's Class of 1958, military leaders and Naval Academy midshipmen.

One scheduled speaker at the service, Sen. Lindsey Graham, said earlier Sunday he would tell the audience that "nobody loved a soldier more than John McCain."

The private ceremony is the final event of nearly a week of remembrances stretching from Arizona to Washington to Annapolis, Maryland.

Family members, including Cindy McCain, back center, follow a horse-drawn caisson carries the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as it proceeds to the United States Naval Academy cemetery in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

People watch as the funeral procession for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arrives at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for his funeral service and burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

Family members, including Cindy McCain, back center, follow a horse-drawn caisson that carries the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as it proceeds to the United States Naval Academy cemetery in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

People watch as the funeral procession for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arrives at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for his funeral service and burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Sen. John McCain's final journey ended Sunday on a grassy hill at the U.S. Naval Academy within view of the Severn River and earshot of midshipmen present and future, and alongside a lifelong friend.

A horse-drawn caisson carrying the senator's casket led a procession of mourners from the academy's chapel to its cemetery following a private service. The senator's widow, Cindy, and his children were among those who walked behind the caisson. Joining them were family and friends as well as members of McCain's Class of 1958 and military leaders.

The U.S. Navy band played marches along the way and several hundred Naval Academy midshipmen lined the path. A flyover of military aircraft in "missing man" formation honored the Navy pilot who was shot down over Vietnam and held more than five years as a prisoner of war.

In this photo provided by the family of John McCain, Cindy McCain lays her head on the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., during a burial service at the cemetery at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., on Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. (David Hume Kennerly/McCain Family via AP)

After the American flag was removed from the casket, a grieving Cindy McCain pressed her check to its surface and McCain sons Jimmy and Jack shared a hug. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis presented flags to Cindy McCain and Roberta McCain, the senator's 106-year-old mother.

The burial was private as per the wishes of McCain, the Arizona Republican and 2008 presidential nominee died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81.

Those offering tributes or readings during the funeral service included Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; McCain sons Jack and Douglas; retired Gen. David Petraeus, former CIA director; and Mark Salter, McCain's longtime co-author.

Petraeus said McCain was a man of "great courage, unshakable determination, and unwavering devotion to our country and those who defend it," according to remarks released by the family.

Jack McCain said of his father, "He fought hard, obstinately, exuberantly because he liked to fight, but more importantly, because he believed in what he was fighting for." He later added, "My father fought and suffered, endured defeats, rose from the ground and fought again to keep faith with his heroes, to safeguard the country he loved and her causes, to be a better man, and to make a better world."

Earlier, as the hearse carrying McCain passed through a gate and into the academy, there was loud applause from the several hundred people lining the street outside on the hot and muggy summer day. Many held their hands over their hearts and waved American flags. Some shouted, "God bless you."

People in the crowd held signs that read "Senator John McCain Thanks For Serving! Godspeed" and "Rest In Peace Maverick."

For his final resting place, McCain picked the historic site overlooking the Severn River, not Arlington National Cemetery, where his father and grandfather, both admirals, were buried.

Years ago Chuck Larson, an admiral himself and an ally throughout McCain's life, reserved four plots at the cemetery - two for McCain and himself, and two for their wives, now widows. Larson died in 2014, and McCain wrote in a recent memoir that he wanted to be buried next to his friend, "near where it began."

Among the pallbearers on a list provided by McCain's office were Frank Gamboa, his academy roommate; Mattis; and two men who were POWs with McCain in Vietnam, John Fer and Everett Alvarez Jr.

Tributes to McCain began Wednesday in Arizona and continued for the remainder of the week. On Saturday, speeches by his daughter Meghan and two former presidents - Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama - remembered McCain as a patriot who could bridge painful rivalries. While their remarks made clear their admiration for him, they also represented a repudiation of President Donald Trump's brand of tough-talking, divisive politics. Trump and McCain were at odds during the 2016 campaign and for much of Trump's presidency.

A horse drawn caisson carries the casket containing the remains of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to his burial sight at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis Md., Sunday, Sep. 2, 2018. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

In this image provided by the family of John McCain, Jimmy McCain hugs his brother Jack McCain, touching casket, as Cindy McCain, watches during a burial service for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., at the cemetery at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018 (David Hume Kennerly/McCain Family via AP)

In this image provided by the family of John McCain, the horse-drawn caisson bearing the body of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., moves through the grounds of the United Sates Naval Academy toward the cemetery after a service in the Chapel Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Annapolis, Md. (David Hume Kennerly/McCainFamily via AP)

In this image proved by the family of John McCain, the family follows as the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is moved from the Chapel on the grounds of the United States Navel Academy after a service Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Annapolis, Md. The casket was carried by horse-drawn caisson to the cemetery at the Naval Academy where McCain was buried. (David Hume Kennerly/McCain Family via AP)

Family members, including Cindy McCain, back center, follow a horse-drawn caisson that carries the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as it proceeds to the United States Naval Academy cemetery in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

A horse drawn caisson carries the casket containing the remains of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to his burial sight at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

A horse drawn caisson carries the casket containing the remains of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to his burial sight at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis Md., Sunday, Sep. 2, 2018. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Family members, including Cindy McCain, back center, follow a horse-drawn caisson that carries the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as it proceeds to the United States Naval Academy cemetery in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

People watch as the funeral procession for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arrives at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for his funeral service and burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

In this photo provided by the family of John McCain, the horse-drawn caisson bearing the body of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., moves through the grounds of the United Sates Naval Academy toward the cemetery after a service in the Chapel Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Annapolis, Md. (David Hume Kennerly/McCainFamily via AP)

People watch as the funeral procession for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arrives at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for his funeral service and burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

People watch as the funeral procession for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arrives at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for his funeral service and burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

People watch as the funeral procession for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arrives at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for his funeral service and burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
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ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Sen. John McCain's final journey ended on a grassy hill at the U.S. Naval Academy within view of the Severn River and earshot of midshipmen present and future, and alongside a lifelong friend.

A horse-drawn caisson carrying the senator's casket led a procession of mourners from the academy's chapel to its cemetery Sunday following a private service. The senator's widow, Cindy, and his children were among those who walked behind the caisson. Joining them were family and friends as well as members of McCain's Class of 1958 and military leaders.

The U.S. Navy band played marches along the way and several hundred Naval Academy midshipmen lined the path. A flyover of military aircraft in "missing man" formation honored the Navy pilot who was shot down over Vietnam and held more than five years as a prisoner of war.

In this photo provided by the family of John McCain, Cindy McCain lays her head on the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., during a burial service at the cemetery at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., on Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. (David Hume Kennerly/McCain Family via AP)

After the American flag was removed from the casket, a grieving Cindy McCain pressed her cheek to its surface and McCain sons Jimmy and Jack shared a hug. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis presented flags to Cindy McCain and Roberta McCain, the senator's 106-year-old mother.

The burial was private as per the wishes of McCain, the Arizona Republican and 2008 presidential nominee died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81.

Those offering tributes or readings during the funeral service included Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.; McCain sons Jack and Douglas; retired Gen. David Petraeus, former CIA director; and Mark Salter, McCain's longtime co-author.

Petraeus said McCain was a man of "great courage, unshakable determination, and unwavering devotion to our country and those who defend it," according to remarks released by the family.

Jack McCain said of his father, "He fought hard, obstinately, exuberantly because he liked to fight, but more importantly, because he believed in what he was fighting for." He later added, "My father fought and suffered, endured defeats, rose from the ground and fought again to keep faith with his heroes, to safeguard the country he loved and her causes, to be a better man, and to make a better world."

Earlier, as the hearse carrying McCain passed through a gate and into the academy, there was loud applause from the several hundred people lining the street outside on the hot and muggy summer day. Many held their hands over their hearts and waved American flags. Some shouted, "God bless you."

People in the crowd held signs that read "Senator John McCain Thanks For Serving! Godspeed" and "Rest In Peace Maverick."

For his final resting place, McCain picked the historic site overlooking the Severn River, not Arlington National Cemetery, where his father and grandfather, both admirals, were buried.

Years ago Chuck Larson, an admiral himself and an ally throughout McCain's life, reserved four plots at the cemetery - two for McCain and himself, and two for their wives, now widows. Larson died in 2014, and McCain wrote in a recent memoir that he wanted to be buried next to his friend, "near where it began."

Among the pallbearers on a list provided by McCain's office were Frank Gamboa, his academy roommate; Mattis; and two men who were POWs with McCain in Vietnam, John Fer and Everett Alvarez Jr.

Tributes to McCain began Wednesday in Arizona and continued for the remainder of the week. On Saturday, speeches by his daughter Meghan and two former presidents - Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama - remembered McCain as a patriot who could bridge painful rivalries.

While their remarks made clear their admiration for him, they also represented a repudiation of President Donald Trump's brand of tough-talking, divisive politics. Trump and McCain were at odds during the 2016 campaign and for much of Trump's presidency.

In this image provided by the family of John McCain, the horse-drawn caisson bearing the body of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., moves through the grounds of the United Sates Naval Academy toward the cemetery after a service in the Chapel Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Annapolis, Md. (David Hume Kennerly/McCainFamily via AP)

In this image proved by the family of John McCain, the family follows as the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., is moved from the Chapel on the grounds of the United States Navel Academy after a service Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Annapolis, Md. The casket was carried by horse-drawn caisson to the cemetery at the Naval Academy where McCain was buried. (David Hume Kennerly/McCain Family via AP)

In this image provided by the family of John McCain, Jimmy McCain hugs his brother Jack McCain, touching casket, as Cindy McCain, watches during a burial service for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., at the cemetery at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018 (David Hume Kennerly/McCain Family via AP)

In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, Navy Body Bearers walk with the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., followed by family members including Cindy McCain, to place it onto a horse-drawn caisson after his funeral service at the United States Naval Academy Chapel, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Annapolis, Md. McCain was buried in the cemetery at the Naval Academy. (Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Nathan Burke/U.S. Navy via AP)

In this image provided by the U.S. Navy, Navy Body Bearers move the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., from his processional hearse into the United States Naval Academy Chapel, Sept. 2, 2018, on Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. (Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Nathan Burke/U.S. Navy via AP)

In this photo provided by the family of John McCain, the horse-drawn caisson bearing the body of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., moves through the grounds of the United Sates Naval Academy toward the cemetery after a service in the Chapel Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Annapolis, Md. (David Hume Kennerly/McCainFamily via AP)

The covered burial plot for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., sits quietly Monday, Sept. 3, 2018 at the cemetery at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. Years ago Chuck Larson, whose memorial stone is at right, an admiral himself and an ally throughout McCain's life, reserved four plots at the cemetery - two for McCain and himself, and two for their wives, now widows. Larson died in 2014, and McCain wrote in a recent memoir that he wanted to be buried next to his friend, "near where it began." (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

A horse drawn caisson carries the casket containing the remains of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to his burial sight at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis Md., Sunday, Sep. 2, 2018. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Family members, including Cindy McCain, back center, follow a horse-drawn caisson that carries the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as it proceeds to the United States Naval Academy cemetery in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

A horse drawn caisson carries the casket containing the remains of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., to his burial sight at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana)

Family members, including Cindy McCain, back center, follow a horse-drawn caisson that carries the casket of Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., as it proceeds to the United States Naval Academy cemetery in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)

People watch as the funeral procession for Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., arrives at the United States Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, for his funeral service and burial. McCain died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. (AP Photo/Susan Walsh)
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) - A huge fire engulfed Brazil's 200-year-old National Museum in Rio de Janeiro, lighting up the night sky with towering flames as firefighters and museum workers raced to save historical relics from the blaze.

The esteemed museum, which houses artifacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman art and some of the first fossils found in Brazil, was closed to the public at the time of the fire, which broke out at 7:30 p.m. Sunday local time, it said in a statement.

There were no reports of injuries, the museum said, and it wasn't immediately clear how the fire began.

Flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Roberto Robadey, a spokesman for the fire department, said 80 firefighters were battling the blaze and that by midnight local time it was "just about under control" and should be out within a few hours.

President Michel Temer called it "a sad day for all Brazilians."

"Two hundred years of work, investigation and knowledge have been lost," Temer said in a statement.

According to its website, the museum has a vast collection related to the history of Brazil and other countries, and that many of its collections came from members of Brazil's royal family.

Robadey said firefighters got off to a slow start fighting the blaze because the two fire hydrants closest to the museum were not functioning. Instead, trucks had to be sent to get water from a nearby lake.

But he added that some of the museum's pieces had been spared.

"We were able to remove a lot of things from inside with the help of workers of the museum," Robadey told Globo News.

Connected to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, the museum has expositions that include anthropology, archaeology and paleontology, among others.

The vice director of the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, told Globo news the museum suffered chronic underfunding.

"Everybody wants to be supportive now. We never had adequate support," he said.

Latin America's largest nation has struggled to emerge from its worst recession in decades. The state of Rio de Janeiro has been particularly hard hit in recent years thanks to a combination of falling world prices of oil, one of its major revenue sources, mismanagement and massive corruption.

Just over a month before national elections, even before the flames were put out, the fire was leading to recriminations about dilapidated infrastructure and budget deficits in the city that hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics.

"Unfortunately, given the financial straits of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and all the other public universities the last three years, this was a tragedy that could be seen coming," Marina Silva, one of the leading presidential candidates, tweeted.

On Instagram, Rio Mayor Marcelo Crivella called on the country to rebuild.

"It's a national obligation to reconstruct it from the ashes, recompose every eternal detail of the paintings and photos. Even if they are not original, they continue to be a reminder of the royal family that gave us independence, the (Portuguese) empire and the first constitution and national unity," he said.

____

Associated Press video journalist Yesica Fisch contributed to this report from Rio. AP reporter Mauricio Savarese contributed from Recife, Brazil.

___

National Museum website: http://www.museunacional.ufrj.br/

Firefighters work to douse the flames at the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Firefighters work to put out a fire at the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Fire burns inside the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

People watch as flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Salvaged equipment lies on the ground as flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Firefighters work the fire at the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Firefighters battle the flames at the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)
HUAMANGA, Peru (AP) - An octogenarian couple in Peru has received the skeletal remains of their son from authorities more than three decades after he was taken away by soldiers during the darkest days of the Andean nation's fight with Maoist rebels.

The return was part of a renewed effort by Peru to bring closure to families of the more than 20,000 people forcibly disappeared during the armed conflict.

Maximo Cueto and his wife Gregoria spent the better part of their savings and retirement from a prosperous business raising livestock in the southern Andes looking for their son, Cesareo, ever since he was forcibly taken from his university dormitory one night in 1984. Their search took them as far away as the Amazon rain forest and a former island penitentiary off the coast of Lima used for political prisoners in the 1980s.

In this Aug. 22, 2018 photo provided by the Peruvian Specialized Forensic Team, Maximo Cueto, 86, and his wife Gregoria Gastelu, 88, look at the remains of their son Cesareo Gastelu, who was kidnapped by the military in 1984 and murdered at the military base "Los Cabitos," in Huamanga, Peru. The couple spent the better part of their savings and retirement from a prosperous business raising livestock in the southern Andes looking for their son ever since he was forcibly taken from his university dormitory one night in 1984, not knowing why their son was targeted. (Ivan Vargas/Peruvian Specialized Forensic Team via AP)

Gregoria, 88, even composed a song in the native Quechua language to express the family's grief at not knowing the fate of their son.

"It was an obsession," said Elder Chipana, the couple's grandson and nephew of Cesareo.

Between 2008 and 2012, a team of forensic experts carried out thousands of excavations in a 7-hectare plot next to a military barrack in Huamanga that was the site of one of the most horrific crimes committed by the military in its bloody conflict with Shining Path rebels that terrorized much of the countryside in the 1980s and 1990s. There they found the remains of 109 individuals. Many of the bones were burned in a stove used by the military to dispose of bodies and hide any evidence of torture.

Twice before the family thought it had found Cesareo among the victims due to familiar-looking clothing that was found with the remains only to have DNA tests come back negative. Then, in July, they learned that a pile of bones with scrapes on the right knee and marks on the teeth indicating past dental work was their son, said archaeologist Luis Rueda, head of the team behind the excavations.

Authorities hope that in the future thousands of Peruvian families who have spent decades wondering about loved ones who disappeared during the conflict won't have to wait as long for closure. This month, for the first time, the remains of 14 people were turned over to loved ones under a new law that seeks to streamline the lengthy and burdensome process to identify those killed in the conflict.

Under the measure, authorities can turn over remains uncovered by forensic scientists before determining a cause of death or completing an investigation. Families are also no longer required to file a complaint with the chief prosecutor's office first.

For the Cueto family, who persevered in the face of the bureaucratic hurdles, the new law is a welcome change.

Last Saturday, they finally bid farewell to their son in a family mausoleum in Huamanga. A small band played popular Andean music as his maroon-colored coffin was paraded through the city that for years was the setting for a solitary battle they hope other families won't ever have to repeat.

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Briceno reported from Lima, Peru.

In this Aug. 16, 2018 photo, Lidia Flores places flowers in La Hoyada, at the site she believes her husband Felipe Huaman Palomino was disappeared, in Huamanga, Peru. More than 20,000 people were forcibly disappeared during the armed conflict between the army and the Shinning Path rebels. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

This Aug. 16, 2018 photo shows a sculpture of a villager being dangled from a military helicopter at the Museum of Memory in Huamanga, Peru. The scene represents one of the many human rights abuses that occurred in during the army's fight against the Shining Path rebels. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

In this Aug. 16, 2018 photo, Juana Carrion Jaulis, whose two brothers Ricardo and Teofilo were allegedly disappeared by the army in 1984 and 1989, poses for a photo in a field that was used by the military regiment "Los Cabitos," in Huamanga, Peru. The remains of 109 individuals have been found in this field. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

In this Aug. 16, 2018 photo shows the detail of sculpture showing a military confrontation between the Peruvian soldiers and Shining Path guerrillas in the 1980s, on display at the Museum of Memory in Huamanga, Peru. More than 20,000 people forcibly disappeared during the armed conflict. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

In this Aug. 16, 2018 photo, Lidia Flores places flowers in La Hoyada, at the place she thinks her husband Felipe Huaman Palomino was murdered and disappeared by police 34 years ago, in Huamanga, Peru. This month, for the first time, the remains of 14 people were turned over to loved ones under a new law that seeks to streamline the lengthy and burdensome process to identify those killed in the Peru's fight with Maoist rebels. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)

This Aug. 16, 2018 photo shows a sculpture depicting a Peruvian soldier stand guard by a furnace where political prisoners are incinerated, on exhibit at the Museum of Memory in Huamanga, Peru. Many of the bones were burned in a stove used by the military to dispose of their victims and hide any evidence of torture, during the darkest days of the Andean nation's fight with Maoist rebels. (AP Photo/Rodrigo Abd)
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:

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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.

In the Sept. 1, 2018 photo, Japan's helicopter carrier J JS Kaga stops at Subic port in Zambales province, the Philippines. The Japanese navy's largest ship has joined up with the USS Ronald Regan aircraft carrier strike group for joint exercises in the South China Sea, the latest sign of Japan's increased presence in the region on which it depends for much of its foreign trade. Joined by two guided missile destroyers, JS Kaga is on a southern cruise that includes port calls in India, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines. (Kyodo News via AP)

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JAPANESE, US NAVIES JOIN IN TRAINING

The Japanese navy's largest ship has joined up with the USS Ronald Regan aircraft carrier strike group for joint exercises in the South China Sea, the latest sign of Japan's increased presence in the region on which it depends for much of its foreign trade.

Joined by two guided missile destroyers, the helicopter carrier JS Kaga is on a southern cruise that includes port calls in India, Sri Lanka, Singapore, Indonesia and the Philippines.

The Japan Times newspaper said Friday's exercise included sailing in formation, maneuvering procedures, replenishment-at-sea and the exchange of liaison officers. The almost 20,000-ton Kaga can carry up to 28 aircraft and has a crew of 400.

China has repeatedly denounced Japanese military activity in the seaway it claims as its own territory, particularly when that includes joint maneuvers with the U.S. and other countries considered outside interlopers by Beijing. China's defense ministry last week accused Japan of seeking excuses to justify amending its pacifist constitution and return to its "old past of expansionism."

Despite such protests, the government of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has responded to China's growing assertiveness in the South China Sea by boosting its own presence there. That was underscored by the dispatch of the helicopter carrier JS Izumo to the region for a three-month tour last year, described by Japanese media as the navy's largest show of force in the South China Sea since World War II.

An estimated $5 trillion in global trade traverses the South China Sea annually, much of it traveling to or from Japan.

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PHILIPPINE NAVY FRIGATE RUNS AGROUND

Philippine officials say they notified China about a navy frigate that ran aground near a hotly disputed area of the South China Sea in hopes of avoiding any misunderstandings.

The Philippine military said the BRP Gregorio del Pilar ran aground during a routine patrol Wednesday night in the vicinity of Half Moon Shoal, called Hasa Hasa in the Philippines. The crew was unhurt.

The barren shoal is on the eastern edge of the disputed Spratly archipelago, where tensions have run high in recent years after China transformed seven disputed reefs into islands, including three with runways, and reportedly installed missile defense system.

Philippine Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said China offered to help free the ship but the Philippines declined because it was able to handle the matter on its own.

The Philippines earlier was one of the most vocal critics of China's assertive moves in the disputed waters. In 2016 it largely won a complaint it lodged before an international tribunal that invalidated Beijing's sweeping territorial claims in the South China Sea. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, however, took steps to revive once-frosty ties with China after he took office in 2016 as he sought infrastructure funding and more trade and investment from Beijing.

The frigate is one of three former U.S. Coast Guard cutters acquired by the Philippine military from the United States that now are the Philippines' largest warships.

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CHINA RESPONDS TO US B-52 FLIGHTS

China's defense ministry said it scrambled jet fighters and took other measures in response to operations by U.S. Air Force B-52 bombers in the vicinity of the South China Sea.

Defense Ministry spokesman Col. Wu Qian said Thursday that the U.S. planes entered China's self-declared East China Sea air defense identification zone on Aug. 23. He said Chinese planes were dispatched for surveillance purposes and that other unspecified actions were taken.

The U.S. Pacific Air Forces said two U.S. Air Force B-52H Stratofortress bombers departed from Anderson Air Force Base in Guam and participated "in routine training missions" on Aug. 27 and 30. It wasn't clear whether those were the same missions Wu was referring to.

The statement said the bombers assigned to the 96th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron "conducted training in the vicinity of the South China Sea before returning to Guam." It said they also integrated with the strike group attached to the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan.

"U.S. Indo-Pacific Command's Continuous Bomber Presence (CBP) operations have been ongoing since March 2004; these recent missions are consistent with international law and United States' long-standing and well-known freedom of navigation policies," the statement said.

"CBP operations demonstrate the United States' commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific, help maintain the readiness of U.S. forces and improve coalition and joint service interoperability," it said.

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Associated Press writer Jim Gomez in Manila, Philippines, contributed to this report.

FILE - In this Aug. 31, 2018, file photo provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine Navy ship BRP Gregorio del Pilar is seen after it ran aground during a routine patrol on Aug. 29, in the vicinity of Half Moon Shoal, which is called Hasa Hasa in the Philippines, off the disputed Spratlys Group of islands in the South China Sea. Philippine officials say they notified China about a navy frigate that ran aground near a hotly disputed area of the South China Sea in hopes of avoiding any misunderstandings. (Armed Forces of the Philippines via AP)

FILE - In this Aug. 31, 2018, file photo provided by the Armed Forces of the Philippines, the Philippine Navy ship BRP Gregorio del Pilar is seen at center right after it ran aground during a routine patrol, on Aug. 29, in the vicinity of Half Moon Shoal, which is called Hasa Hasa in the Philippines, off the disputed Spratlys Group of islands in the South China Sea. Philippine officials say they notified China about a navy frigate that ran aground near a hotly disputed area of the South China Sea in hopes of avoiding any misunderstandings. (Armed Forces of the Philippines via AP, File)
PARIS (AP) - French children who are going back to school Monday after summer vacation will have to do so without their mobile phones.

The government passed a law banning phone use in all primary and middle schools for the entire day, including during breaks -with exceptions in cases of emergency and for disabled children.

Pupils are requested to shut down their mobiles or put them in a locker.

High schools can also voluntarily implement the measure. Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer said it aims to help children focus on lessons, better socialize and reduce social media use. The ban is also designed to fight online bullying, and prevent thefts and violence in school.

The law allows teachers to confiscate phones until the end of the day in cases of non-compliance.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia (AP) - Two Malaysian Muslim women convicted under Islamic laws of attempting to have sex were caned Monday in a rare public whipping that was slammed by lawmakers and rights activists as a form of torture.

Lawyers and activists said the women, aged 22 and 32, were seated on stools facing the judges and given six strokes from a light rattan cane on their backs by female prison officers. More than 100 people witnessed the caning in a Shariah courtroom in northeast Terengganu state, they said.

Muslim Lawyers' Association deputy president Abdul Rahim Sinwan said unlike caning under civil laws, the punishment under Islamic laws isn't painful or harsh and was meant to educate the women so they will repent. The women, dressed in white headscarves and clothing, didn't cry or scream but "showed remorse," he said.

"Repentance is the ultimate aim for their sin," he said.

Human rights groups slammed the punishment as a setback for human rights and said it could worsen discrimination against people in Malaysia's lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender community.

"Caning is a form of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and may amount to torture," Amnesty International Malaysia said in a statement. "People should not live in fear because they are attracted to people of the same sex. The Malaysian authorities must immediately repeal repressive laws, outlaw torturous punishments and ratify the U.N. Convention Against Torture."

Malaysia follows a dual-track justice system. Nearly two-thirds of Malaysia's 31 million people are Muslims, who are governed by Islamic courts in family, marriage and personal issues. The two unidentified women were discovered by Islamic officials in April and sentenced last month by a Shariah court to six strokes of a cane and a fine after pleading guilty.

Thilaga Sulathireh, from the group Justice for Sisters who witnessed the caning, said she was shocked by the public spectacle. She said Malaysian laws were inconsistent because civil laws prohibit corporal punishment against female prisoners.

"It's a regression of human rights in Malaysia. It's not about the severity of the caning. Corporal punishment is a form of torture regardless of your intention," she said.

Lawmakers also joined in the chorus of condemnation against the public caning.

"Islam teaches us to look after the dignity of every human being. And that mercy is preferable to punishment," opposition lawmaker Khairy Jamaluddin tweeted.

Lawmaker Charles Santiago said the government must repeal all laws that criminalize homosexuality.

"And this is because we really need to make sure that no one is publicly caned let alone because of their sexuality," he said.

Malaysia is seen as a moderate and stable Muslim-majority country, but Islamic conservatism is on the rise.

The caning occurred amid a climate of fear and discrimination against Malaysia's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. A few weeks ago, authorities removed the portraits of two LGBT rights activists from a public exhibition. Malaysia religious minister Mujahid Yusuf later said the government doesn't support the promotion of LGBT culture. A transgender woman was also beaten up by a group of people in a southern state this month.
BERLIN (AP) - A migrant was convicted Monday of murdering his 15-year-old German ex-girlfriend and sentenced to 8.5 years in prison, the German news agency dpa reported.

The stabbing of the 15-year-old girl at a drugstore in the southwestern town of Kandel in December 2017 shocked Germany and fueled a debate about violence by migrants.

The verdict comes at a time when Germany is struggling to come to terms with the influx of more than 1 million migrants since 2015.

FILE - In this Dec. 28, 2017 file photo a card with a writing 'angels are forever' is placed between candles in Kandel, western Germany, at the site where 15-year-old Mia was stabbed earlier. On Monday, Sept. 3, 2018 the regional court in Landau sentenced her former boyfriend for murder to 8 1/2 years in prison. (Andreas Arnold/dpa via AP)

Emotions have run high after another fatal stabbing last month, allegedly by two migrants, in the eastern city of Chemnitz. It has triggered sometimes violent protests by far-right groups.

Because of privacy rules, the victim in the Kandel stabbing has been identified only as Mia and the migrant as Abdul D., who was also convicted of assault at the district court in Landau. Authorities did not confirm the perpetrator's nationality and his age, but German media have reported that he is most likely Afghan and he was tried as a minor.

Abdul D. said he was 15 at the time of the murder, but an age evaluation during the trial concluded he was at least 17, dpa reported. Young asylum-seekers, especially unaccompanied minors, have more privileges and get better care in Germany than older asylum-seekers, which is why some of them lie about their age when they apply for asylum. The Kandel case has led for calls to better determine the age of migrants upon their arrival in Germany.

The victim had ended the relationship with the migrant a few weeks before the murder, dpa reported. Twelve days before the fatal attack, she pressed charges against him including insult and threat. Prosecutors claimed during the trial that the migrant acted out of jealously and revenge and that he wanted to punish her.

A lawyer for the migrant said Monday that his client would not appeal the verdict, dpa reported.

In the past months, far-right groups have used Mia's killing to stage several protests against migrants in the small town near the French border -with pro-migrant counter-protests quickly following.
ATHENS, Greece (AP) - Greek ferry crews on Monday decided to extend for at least one more day a strike that has left tens of thousands of travelers stranded on the country's popular island destinations.

The main PNO crew union said that ferries will remain confined to port until 6 a.m. (0300GMT) Wednesday. The union said it proposed to extend its protest if its demands for pay rises and tax breaks are not met.

Ferry companies have said that Monday's strike would affect about 180,000 people who had booked to travel to or from the islands, which include many of Greece's most popular tourist destinations such as Mykonos, Santorini and Crete.

A man fishes in front of docked ferries during seamen's unions strike at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. Ferries are due to be halted by a 24-hour strike Monday, as unions seek the return of benefits and pay scales scrapped or frozen during eight years of international bailouts that ended in late August. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Many of the smaller and more remote islands have no air connections with the rest of the country, and a protracted ferry strike would lead to shortages of goods.

Unions are seeking a 5 percent pay rise after an eight-year pay freeze due to Greece's debt crisis.

Tourism is a key earner in Greece, with record arrivals expected this year.

Travelers carry their bags during seamen's unions strike at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. Ferries are due to be halted by a 24-hour strike Monday, as unions seek the return of benefits and pay scales scrapped or frozen during eight years of international bailouts that ended in late August. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

A man fishes in front of a docked ferry during seamen's unions strike at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. Ferries are due to be halted by a 24-hour strike Monday, as unions seek the return of benefits and pay scales scrapped or frozen during eight years of international bailouts that ended in late August. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)

Workers on a boat clean the sea during seamen's unions strike at the port of Piraeus, near Athens, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. Ferries are due to be halted by a 24-hour strike Monday, as unions seek the return of benefits and pay scales scrapped or frozen during eight years of international bailouts that ended in late August. (AP Photo/Thanassis Stavrakis)
LONDON (AP) - British Prime Minister Theresa May's brief summer holiday from Brexit battles came to a noisy end Monday, as she faced attack from both sides of her divided Conservative Party.

Archrival Boris Johnson inflamed speculation that he aims to oust May by branding her plan for Brexit "a disaster."

Johnson fumed in a newspaper column that May's proposal to retain close economic ties with the European Union after Brexit would leave Britain locked in the trunk of a Brussels-driven car with "no say on the destination."

FILE - In this Thursday, May 25, 2017 file photo British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, left, and Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May arrive for a meeting during the NATO summit of heads of state and government, at the NATO headquarters, in Brussels. British ex-Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson has slammed Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit policy, a move likely to fuel speculation that he is seeking to oust her. Johnson wrote in the Daily Telegraph on Monday Sept. 3, 2018 that May's so-called Chequers plan for continued ties with the European Union after Brexit will leave Britain in a weakened position.(Thierry Charlier/Pool Photo via AP, File)

Meanwhile, a more pro-EU Conservative faction argued that the U.K. should keep even closer bonds with the bloc than May is proposing, at least temporarily.

Lawmaker Damian Green, an ally of May, conceded the prime minister was in a tight spot.

"The government is walking a narrow path with people chucking rocks from both sides," he told the BBC.

Johnson, who resigned as foreign secretary in July after feuding with May over Brexit, used his weekly column in the Daily Telegraph newspaper to accuse May of surrendering to the EU in divorce negotiations.

Johnson said that Britain has "gone into battle with the white flag fluttering over our leading tank" and had agreed to pay a 40-billion pound ($51 billion) divorce bill in return "for two-thirds of diddly squat."

Britain is due to leave the EU in March, but negotiations have stalled amid divisions within May's Conservative government over how close an economic relationship to seek with EU.

A proposal hammered out by May's Cabinet in July at the prime minister's Chequers country retreat proposes keeping the U.K. aligned to EU regulations in return for free trade in goods. The plan infuriated Brexit-backers including Johnson, who quit the government in protest. Johnson claims the Chequers plan would prevent the U.K. from striking new trade deals around the world.

"We will remain in the EU taxi; but this time locked in the boot (trunk), with absolutely no say on the destination," Johnson wrote. "We won't have taken back control - we will have lost control."

May's official spokesman, James Slack, dismissed Johnson's attack, saying there were "no new ideas in this article to respond to."

"What we need at this time is serious leadership with a serious plan and that's exactly what the country has with this prime minister and this Brexit plan," he said.

With Parliament due to return Tuesday from its summer break, Johnson and his fellow Brexit enthusiasts aren't the only obstacle May faces as she tries to get her Brexit deal past her Conservative Party, Britain's Parliament and the EU.

On Monday, Conservative supporters of "soft Brexit" put forward a rival proposal, arguing that Britain should stay in the EU's single market for goods and services for three years after Brexit while it negotiates a future free trade deal with the bloc - a plan summed up as "Norway, then Canada," in reference to those countries' trade relations with the EU.

Conservative lawmaker Nick Boles said the idea was better than the Chequers proposal, which had "close to zero" chance of being approved by Parliament.

"What I want is a plan that's workable," Boles told the BBC. "We can't get to Nirvana in one step."

Meanwhile, pro-EU campaigners are pushing for a new referendum on any deal agreed between Britain and the EU. May insists that won't happen, but the idea is gaining momentum.

Britain and the EU had hoped to hammer out an agreement on divorce terms and the outlines of future trade by a European Council summit in October so that it can be approved by individual EU countries before the U.K. leaves the bloc on March 29. Both sides now say that deadline may slip to November or later.

The Chequers plan has been received coolly by EU leaders, who warn that Britain can't "cherry pick" aspects of membership in the bloc without the full cost and responsibilities.

The EU's chief Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, told German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung that the bloc has "a coherent market for goods, services, capital and people - our own ecosystem that has grown over decades. You cannot play with it by picking pieces."

The British government insists it's confident of reaching an agreement with the EU, but is preparing for all outcomes, including a "no deal" Brexit.

Think tank U.K. in a Changing Europe said Monday that the short-term consequences of failing to get a deal would be "severe and overwhelmingly negative."

In a report, it said a "chaotic Brexit" would mean "the disappearance without replacement of many of the rules underpinning the U.K.'s economic and regulatory structure" would disrupt everything from agriculture to financial services to aviation.
JERUSALEM (AP) - A group of Israeli farmers is filing a war crimes complaint at the International Criminal Court in The Hague on Monday against Hamas over the torching of thousands of acres of farmland in recent months.

The farmers want prosecutors to investigate leaders of Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, for allegedly issuing "orders" to Palestinians to breach the territory's frontier with Israel and having supporters deliberately set fire to fields in southern Israel.

"What they are trying to do is to burn us, not just our fields. It's a war crime and a crime against humanity," farmer Ofer Lieberman told Israeli Army Radio ahead of his arrival at The Hague.

Palestinian protesters gather on the beach near the border with Israel in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)

In recent months, Hamas has led regular mass protests along the border that are partly aimed at lifting a decade-old Israeli-Egyptian blockade. Since the protests began in March, 125 protesters have been killed by Israeli fire. During that time, a Gaza sniper killed an Israeli soldier.

During the demonstrations, protesters have launched incendiary kites and balloons into Israel, sparking fires that have destroyed forests, burned crops and killed livestock. Israel initially struggled with how to cope with the burning devices and later began targeting their launchers.

Israel says it is defending its border against attempts by Hamas to infiltrate and carry out attacks. But it has come under heavy international criticism over the large number of unarmed protesters who have been killed or wounded.

Palestinian protesters run from tear gas fired by Israeli soldiers during a protest on the beach near the border with Israel in Beit Lahiya, northern Gaza Strip, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. (AP Photo/Felipe Dana)
JERUSALEM (AP) - Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who once compared himself favorably to Adolf Hitler, paid a solemn visit to Israel's national Holocaust memorial on Monday, branding the Nazi leader "insane" as he lamented the genocide of 6 million Jews.

The comments marked a dramatic turnaround for Duterte, who just two years ago had compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust and said he would be "happy to slaughter" 3 million addicts. He later apologized.

Duterte, known for his profane outbursts and accused of committing widespread human rights abuses, spoke quietly and respectfully during his stop at the Yad Vashem memorial. He said the Holocaust should never be repeated and that "despots" have no place in the modern world.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, stands next to Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte during their meeting in Jerusalem on Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. (Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP)

"I could not imagine a country obeying an insane leader, and I could not ever fathom the spectacle of the human being going into a killing spree, murdering old men, women and children. I hope this will not happen again," he said.

"There is always a lesson to learn: that despots and leaders who show insanity, they should be disposed of at the first instance," he said.

Duterte, the first Philippine president to visit Israel, has received a warm welcome from the government, despite criticism that it is embracing a leader accused of rights abuses in his deadly crackdown on drug dealers.

The agenda reportedly is expected to include an arms sale to the Philippines. Israel agreed in the past to sell assault rifles to the Philippines national police force.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remarked Monday on the countries' long friendship. He said the Philippines took in Jewish refugees after World War II and was the only Asian nation to vote for Israel's establishment. He noted that Filipino health aides now assist the elderly in Israel, including Netanyahu's father.

"We remember our friends, and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years," Netanyahu told Duterte. "There has been a remarkable phenomenon in Israel where thousands and thousands of families have taken heart from the support given by Filipino caretakers for the elderly."

Duterte thanked Israel for hosting some 28,000 Filipino workers and for assisting his country in times of need.

"We share the same passion for peace. We share the same passion for human beings. But also we share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who have the corrupt ideology, who know nothing but to kill and destroy," he said at a joint appearance with Netanyahu. "And in this sense, Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extend to your country."

The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1957. Netanyahu has worked to cultivate new allies in Asia, Africa and Latin America, where many countries have historically sided with the Palestinians in their conflict with Israel, to help chip away at the number of anti-Israel votes at the United Nations.

But Netanyahu has come under fire for embracing Duterte, a 73-year-old former government prosecutor whose forces are accused of killing thousands in anti-drug raids since he took office in 2016.

Duterte drew outrage that year when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust and himself to Hitler. More recently, he forcibly kissed a woman on stage and said there would be many rape cases in a Philippine city "if there were many beautiful women."

In its lead editorial Monday, the liberal Haaretz daily accused Netanyahu of selling out Israeli values for dubious allies.

"Under the shadow of Duterte's visit, Israel once again proves it's willing to overlook leaders' human rights violations for the sake of opportunities for arms deals and defense contracts," the newspaper said.

Duterte, who calls U.S. President Donald Trump a friend and in 2016 cursed President Barack Obama for alleged meddling, offered the former occupant of the White House an apology of sorts.

"I said, 'Son of a bitch, Obama you can go to hell. You son of a bitch.' I said that because he was not a civilized person," Duterte said in Israel. "It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr. Obama that, 'You are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words.'"

Duterte has been criticized for a brutal crackdown on the Philippine drug trade. Reports of extrajudicial slayings of alleged dealers surfaced during Obama's presidency.

Official Philippine police tallies put the number of suspects killed in police-led drug raids at more than 4,500 since Duterte took office.

International human rights watchdogs have cited far higher death tolls. Duterte denies condoning extrajudicial killings, but has openly threatened drug dealers with death.

His visit to Israel was to include a stop at a monument commemorating the Philippines' rescue of Jews during the Holocaust.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, right, shakes hands with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte during their meeting in Jerusalem on Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. (Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP)

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and his daughter Sara lay a wreath during a memorial ceremony at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, Monday, Sept 3, 2018. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and his daughter Sara attend a memorial ceremony at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, Monday, Sept 3, 2018. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, centre, visits the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, Monday, Sept 3, 2018. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte and his daughter Sara visit the Hall of Names at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, Monday, Sept 3, 2018. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

The text written and signed by Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in the guest book of Yad Vashem, Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem, Monday, Sept 3, 2018. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)
ATLANTA (AP) - Can't get enough of the Georgia coast? Then this could be your good-luck coin.

The U.S. Mint last week released a new quarter into circulation honoring Cumberland Island National Seashore.

It's the most recent of the mint's "America the Beautiful Quarters Program" featuring designs that depict national parks and other significant sites around the country. The program began in 2010 with quarters for some of the nation's most iconic parks including Yellowstone and the Grand Canyon.

The back of the Cumberland Island 25-cent piece shows a snowy egret about to take flight amid the island's celebrated salt marshes. The words "Cumberland Island" and "Georgia" are inscribed around the edge.

Located near the Florida border, Cumberland is the largest and southernmost of Georgia's barrier islands. The island has no road connecting it to the mainland, and its relative inaccessibility has left the island with little human development, helping to preserve the unique coastal habitat.

Cumberland Island National Seashore, the federally managed park on Cumberland Island, was established by congress in 1972.

Visitors to the island must arrive by boat and have two options for spending the night: National Park Service campsites or a single swanky bed and breakfast housed in a mansion that was once a retreat for the Carnegie family.

According to the Cumberland Island Conservancy, a group dedicated to protecting Cumberland Island, the island is a nesting ground for Loggerhead sea turtles and home to a variety of bird species.

"In the marshes and along the creeks, snowy egrets, great egrets, great blue and little blue herons and small (and not so common) green herons can be easily watched as they feed on aquatic life," the conservancy's website notes.

The next quarter slated for release in the line will feature Block Island National Wildlife Refuge in Rhode Island. It's set to go into circulation in November.
NEW ORLEANS (AP) - The sounds of a raucous pool party drift over a privacy fence amid brightly colored cottages that have become vacation rentals in New Orleans' Marigny neighborhood, and Allen Johnson laments the dwindling number of full-time neighbors.

"Suitcases are a sign of the times here," he says as two young men bearing 12-packs of beer exit a taxi and disappear behind an iron gate.

Short-term rentals facilitated by Airbnb, HomeAway and similar web-driven operations have been changing neighborhoods in New Orleans and other cities, generating headaches along with tourist dollars.

In this Aug. 28, 2018, photo, Alex Ramirez poses in front of one of his short-term rental properties that he refurbished from a blighted state, in Mid City New Orleans. New Orleans officials are looking at the benefits and headaches of the vacation rental industry that has proliferated with the growth of online sites such as Airbnb. They've put a halt, for now, on approving or renewing licenses for the short-term rental of whole houses in much of the city. Some rental property owners are crying foul, saying they are being unfairly punished while contributing to the city's vital tourism industry. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

Critics in New Orleans say current regulations have allowed proliferation of "whole-home" short term rentals owned by investors - often from out of state - not residents. They complain of an exodus of full-time neighbors amid a lingering dearth of low-income housing and higher property tax assessments.

Also, the visitors often push the limits of city's heritage of all-night partying.

Battles over short-term rental regulations have been playing out at the municipal and state levels nationwide. In New York, Mayor Bill de Blasio signed a bill requiring Airbnb to reveal host's names and addresses so the city can fight illegal listings. Massachusetts legislators have been debating lodging taxes for short-term rentals. Proposed restrictions on vacation rentals may be put before voters soon in South Portland, Maine.

New Orleans seemed at the forefront of efforts to legalize and regulate vacation rentals in 2016. Airbnb negotiated elements of the regulations and hailed them as a model - a tool for rule enforcement and taxes and fee collection.

Now, the city is trying again, prodded by dissatisfied residents and associations, such as one headed by Johnson.

"We were sold a bill of goods - that it was going to be mom-and-pop," Council member Kristin Gisleson Palmer said, alluding to arguments that it would aid homeowners who want a little extra income.

Palmer won unanimous council approval for a city planning commission study of the issue and a nine-month moratorium on some rental licenses. New Orleans homeowners can still rent part of the house they live in to vacationers, but there are no new or renewed licenses for rentals of whole homes not occupied by the owner.

Airbnb soon removed a registration system from its website allowing short-term rental hosts to apply for a city license, saying it's not workable under the new changes. A HomeAway spokesman expressed worries that the city was moving toward banning or severely limiting whole-home rentals.

More recently, HomeAway released proposals for changes aimed at "compromise and collaboration." And Airbnb spokeswoman Laura Rillos issued a statement in mid-August saying her company is open to working with the city on issues including enforcement tools and neighborhood impacts.

Opinions on short-term rentals are as diverse as New Orleans itself.

Sitting at a kitchen table in one of his vacation rental houses, Alex Ramirez, the son of Central American immigrants, recounts buying the two-unit house in a blighted neighborhood, living in one side and renting the other out. As he invested in more real estate, he says, short-term rental revenue enabled him to purchase and renovate abandoned and blighted properties.

"Every one of the properties that I own, whether it's on the short-term rental market or the long-term rental market, I've brought back to commerce," says Ramirez, who said he owns eight short-term rental properties and manages several others.

Eric Bay, who manages vacation rentals, says they bolster tourism, create jobs and provide affordable lodging for families learning the history and culture of the 300-year-old city.

But some hospitality industry workers see a threat.

"At the end of my lease my landlord asked us to leave" casino worker and union member Dylan Seitel told the planning commission recently. He said his one-time home became a short-term rental.

Susan Beck, an artist and waitress living in half of a two-unit house, sees both sides: The owners of her unit give her a break on the rent for cleaning the other unit - a short-term rental. But noise from a two-story vacation rental across the street can be a nuisance.

"It's just an odd feeling when I get up in the morning and I come out my front door and there's a different group of six guys on the balcony every morning," she adds.

HomeAway's suggested regulation revamps include allowing property owners to rent out only two properties that they don't live in; limiting the number of licenses per block face; and an exemption to limits in blighted areas to encourage development.

"Everything's on the table," insists Palmer, who said in an interview that regulations may ultimately require large-scale owners of affordable rentals in commercial areas to provide long-term affordable housing.

She stressed that new regulations must address the density of vacation rentals that critics say have commercialized neighborhoods.

"When you live in a neighborhood, you have a quality of life, where you care about the trash, you look out for your neighbors," she said. "All that's being eroded, that whole sense of community."
NEW YORK (AP) - Revelers displaying their Caribbean pride took to the streets of Brooklyn on Monday, flags waving, music blaring and feet dancing, for New York City's annual take on Carnival celebrations.

At the main West Indian American Day Parade and the early morning street party known as J'Ouvert that preceded it, they were joined by a significant police presence intended to prevent any violence from marring the events as has happened in some years. As of Monday evening, police had no reports of violence along the route.

"This festival means a whole lot. I'm West Indian, and it's important to share that heritage, share our color and our food and our music," said Deyon Roman, 53, who had her hair pulled back with the flag of her native Grenada, and was clad in a handmade crochet top and skirt, showcasing Grenada's colors of red, green, and yellow. "This parade represents the melting pot that is the Caribbean."

A person moves along the parade route during the West Indian American Day Parade in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. New York's Caribbean community has held annual Carnival celebrations since the 1920s, first in Harlem and then in Brooklyn, where festivities happen on Labor Day. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

New York's Caribbean community has held annual Carnival celebrations since the 1920s, first in Harlem and then in Brooklyn, where festivities happen on Labor Day.

The festivities start with J'Ouvert, which comes from the French words "jour" and "ouvert" and means daybreak. Meant as a celebration of emancipation from slavery, it features revelers who cover their bodies in paint or oil, wear helmets with giant horns, and toss talcum powder into the air. The highlight is a parade of steel pan bands.

J'Ouvert was once only loosely organized and began in the dark, hours before dawn, in a Brooklyn neighborhood still dealing with gang violence.

Late-night shootings were a concern for years, but outrage grew fervent in 2015, when Carey Gabay, an aide to Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo, died after he left his Brooklyn home to attend the festivities and was hit by stray gunfire. Two more people were killed at the celebration in 2016, despite enhanced security. The main parade had also been scarred by sporadic incidents in the last 15 years.

The New York Police Department instituted a series of security measures, which included moving the start of the J'Ouvert parade away from the middle of the night to 6 a.m., putting light towers and security cameras in place, setting up checkpoints, and increasing police presence at both the early morning event and the larger parade.

No violence was reported at the events, though a 3:30 p.m. shooting five blocks away drew a crowd that caused some congestion near the parade route, police said. They said the shooting stemmed from a dispute not related to the parade. The victim, wounded in the hand, is expected to survive.

At Monday's main parade, spectator Arnold Cherry, 76, said, "We want the parade to be safe, so it's necessary to have them here. This is supposed to be more free flow and free spirit, but we don't want violence to get in the way of the parade continuing. We can't have one incident be used as an excuse to inhibit it."

Still, said 72-year-old Trevor Lyons, "I feel it's been tempered down, it's been dampened. There used to be more vendors, more dancing, but now it's gotten too controlled."

Elected officials and those running for office came out to take part in the parade. Cuomo marked the occasion by announcing the state would put up to $15 million toward building a community center in Brooklyn named for Gabay.

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Deepti Hajela covers issues of race, ethnicity and immigration for The Associated Press. Follow her on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/dhajela . For more of her work, search for her name at https://apnews.com .

Powder flies in the air over revelers and participants at the the West Indian American Day Parade in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. New York's Caribbean community has held annual Carnival celebrations since the 1920s, first in Harlem and then in Brooklyn, where festivities happen on Labor Day. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

Participants take part in the West Indian American Day Parade in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. New York's Caribbean community has held annual Carnival celebrations since the 1920s, first in Harlem and then in Brooklyn, where festivities happen on Labor Day. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

A person participates in the West Indian American Day Parade in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. New York's Caribbean community has held annual Carnival celebrations since the 1920s, first in Harlem and then in Brooklyn, where festivities happen on Labor Day. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

A person in masquerade participates in the West Indian American Day Parade in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. Revelers displaying Caribbean pride took to the streets of Brooklyn on Monday, flags waving, music blaring and feet dancing, for New York City's annual take on Carnival celebrations. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

Spectators watch as floats and participants pass by during the West Indian American Day Parade in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

Powder flies in the air over revelers and participants at the the West Indian American Day Parade in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. New York's Caribbean community has held annual Carnival celebrations since the 1920s, first in Harlem and then in Brooklyn, where festivities happen on Labor Day. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)

From second left, Letitia James, New York City Public Advocate, the Rev. Al Sharpton, New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo and New York Lt. Gov. Kathy Hochu take part during the West Indian American Day Parade in the Brooklyn borough of New York, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. (AP Photo/Craig Ruttle)
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP) - An Afghan asylum-seeker accused of stabbing two Americans in Amsterdam believes that Islam is insulted in the Netherlands, Dutch prosecutors said Monday, giving the first indication of why they think a "terrorist motive" was behind the attack.

The 19-year-old suspect is accused of stabbing the 38-year-old tourists Friday in an unprovoked attack after he arrived at Amsterdam's Central Station on an international train.

The American men were not targeted because of their nationality, which the alleged attacker did not know, prosecutors said. The suspect's grievance was with the European country where the assault took place, they said in a written statement.

Dutch police officers point their guns at a wounded 19-year-old man who was shot by police after stabbing two people in the central railway station in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, Friday Aug. 31, 2018. Police investigators in Amsterdam included an extremist attack as a possible motive for the stabbings of two people at a busy railway station Friday as authorities in the Dutch capital reported that the suspect shot by police is an Afghan citizen. (AP Photo)

"It is apparent from his statements that he believes that in the Netherlands, the Prophet Muhammad, the Quran, Islam and Allah are repeatedly insulted," prosecutors said, noting that the young Afghan man specifically mentioned Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, who is well known for his fierce anti-Islam rhetoric.

"From the suspect's statements so far, it is clear the man had a terrorist motive ... and that he traveled to the Netherlands for that reason," the prosecutors' said.

Earlier Monday, German authorities said the man had applied for asylum in Germany and was not considered a security threat there.

Wilders last week called off a planned contest for cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad following death threats and concerns other people could be put at risk. Prosecutors said the suspect did not mention the contest in his statements.

Wilders reacted with a tweet, writing: "Muslim terrorists hate our way of life and our freedoms. They answer criticism of Islam with violence."

The prosecutors added that there was so far no indication the suspect, identified as Jawed S. under Dutch privacy rules, was working with anyone else.

Police shot him after the stabbings, and he remains in a hospital. An investigating judge held a closed-door hearing there Monday and ordered him held for two more weeks on suspicion of assaulting the Americans "with a terrorist motive."

They suffered serious, but not life-threatening injuries in the attack.

The judge extended the suspect's custody because of fears he may flee, repeat the crime or violate the law, according to a statement by an Amsterdam court.
GRANT TOWN, W.Va. (AP) - It's coal people like miner Steve Knotts, 62, who make West Virginia Trump Country.

So it was no surprise that President Donald Trump picked the state to announce his plan rolling back Obama-era pollution controls on coal-fired power plants.

Trump left one thing out of his remarks, though: northern West Virginia coal country will be ground zero for increased deaths and illnesses from the rollback on regulation of harmful emission from the nation's coal power plants.

Brian Weekly, a contractor at West Virginia's Grant Town coal-fired power plant, gestures toward the small facility's smokestack, Thursday, Aug. 23, 2018 in Grant Town, W.Va. Weekly says opponents of the coal industry are behind warnings of health risks from smokestack emissions under the Trump administration's plan. President Donald Trump picked West Virginia where he announced rolling back pollution rules for coal-fired power plants. But he didn't mention that the northern two-thirds of West Virginia, with the neighboring part of Pennsylvania, would be hit hardest. (AP Photo/ Ellen Knickmeyer)

An analysis done by his own Environmental Protection Agency concludes that the plan would lead to a greater number of people here dying prematurely, and suffering health problems that they otherwise would not have, than elsewhere in the country, when compared to health impacts of the Obama plan.

Knotts, a coal miner for 35 years, isn't fazed when he hears that warning, a couple of days after Trump's West Virginia rally. He says the last thing people in coal country want is the government slapping down more controls on coal - and the air here in the remote West Virginia mountains seems fine to him.

"People here have had it with other people telling us what we need. We know what we need. We need a job," Knotts said at lunch hour at a Circle K in a tiny town between two coal mines, and 9 miles down the road from a coal power plant, the Grant Town plant.

The sky around Grant Town is bright blue. The mountains are a dazzling green. Paw Paw Creek gurgles past the town.

Clean-air controls since the 1980s largely turned off the columns of black soot that used to rise from coal smokestacks. The regulations slashed the national death rates from coal-fired power plants substantially.

These days pollutants rise from smoke stacks as gases, before solidifying into fine particles - still invisible - small enough to pass through lungs and into bloodstreams.

An EPA analysis says those pollutants would increase under Trump's plan, when compared to what would happen under the Obama plan. And that, it says, would lead to thousands more heart attacks, asthma problems and other illnesses that would not have occurred.

Nationally, the EPA says, 350 to 1,500 more people would die each year under Trump's plan. But it's the northern two-thirds of West Virginia and the neighboring part of Pennsylvania that would be hit hardest, by far, according to Trump's EPA.

Trump's rollback would kill an extra 1.4 to 2.4 people a year for every 100,000 people in those hardest-hit areas, compared to under the Obama plan, according to the EPA analysis. For West Virginia's 1.8 million people, that would be equal to at least a couple dozen additional deaths a year.

Trump's acting EPA administrator, Andrew Wheeler, a former coal lobbyist whose grandfather worked in the coal camps of West Virginia, headed to coal states this week and last to promote Trump's rollback. The federal government's retreat on regulating pollution from coal power plants was "good news," Wheeler told crowds there.

In Washington, EPA spokesman Michael Abboud said Trump's plan still would result in "dramatic reductions" in emissions, deaths and illness compared to the status quo, instead of to the Obama plan. Obama's Clean Power Plan targeted climate-changing carbon dioxide, but since coal is the largest source of carbon dioxide from fossil fuels, the Obama plan would have curbed other harmful emissions from the coal-fired power plants as well.

About 160 miles to the south of Grant Town, near the state capital of Charleston, shop owner Doris Keller figures that if Trump thinks something's for the best, that's good enough for her.

"I just know this. I like Donald Trump and I think that he's doing the right thing," said Keller, who turned out to support Trump Aug. 21 when he promoted his rollback proposal. She lives five miles from the 2,900-megawatt John Amos coal-fired power plant.

"I think he has the best interests of the regular common people at the forefront," Keller says.

Trump's Affordable Clean Energy program would dismantle President Barack Obama's 2015 Clean Power Plan, which has been caught up in court battles without yet being implemented.

The Obama plan targeted climate-changing emissions from power plants, especially coal. It would have increased federal regulation of emissions from the nation's electrical grid and broadly promoted natural gas, solar power and other cleaner energy.

Trump's plan would cede much of the federal oversight of existing coal-fired power plants and drop official promotion of cleaner energy. Individual states largely would decide how much to regulate coal power plants in their borders. The plan is open for public review, ahead of any final White House decision.

"I'm getting rid of some of these ridiculous rules and regulations, which are killing our companies ... and our jobs," Trump said at the rally.

There was no mention of the "small increases" in harmful emissions that would result, compared to the Obama plan, or the health risks.

EPA charts put numbers on just how many more people would die each year because of those increased coal emissions.

Abboud and spokeswoman Ashley Bourke of the National Mining Association, which supports Trump's proposed regulatory rollback on coal emissions, said other federal programs already regulate harmful emissions from coal power plants. Bourke also argued that the health studies the EPA used in its death projections date as far back as the 1970s, when coal plants burned dirtier.

In response, Conrad Schneider of the environmental nonprofit Clean Air Task Force said the EPA's mortality estimates had taken into account existing regulation of plant emissions.

Additionally, health studies used by the EPA looked at specific levels of exposure to pollutants and their impact on human health, so remain constant over time, said Schneider, whose group analyzes the EPA projections.

With competition from natural gas and other cleaner energy helping to kill off more than a third of coal jobs over the last decade, political leaders in coal states are in no position to be the ones charged with enforcing public-health protections on surviving coal-fired power plants, said Vivian Stockman of the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition.

"Our state is beholden to coal. Our politicians are beholden to coal," Stockman said outside Trump's West Virginia rally, where she was protesting. "Meanwhile, our people are being poisoned."

And when it comes to coal power plants and harm, Schneider said, "when you're at Grant Town, you're at Ground Zero."

Retired coal miner Jim Haley, living 4 miles from the town's coal-fired power plant, has trouble telling from the smokestack when the plant is even operating.

"They've got steam coming out of the chimneys. That's all they have coming out of it," Haley said.

Parked near the Grant Town post office, where another resident was rolling down the quiet main street on a tractor, James Perkins listened to word of the EPA's health warnings. He cast a look into the rear-view mirror into the backseat of his pickup truck, at his 3-year-old grandson, sitting in the back.

"They need to make that safe," said Perkins, a health-care worker who had opted not to follow his father into the coal mines. "People got little kids."

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Raby reported from Charleston, West Virginia. AP Science Writer Seth Borenstein contributed from Washington.

In this Aug. 23, 2018 photo, American Electric Power's John Amos coal-fired plant in Winfield, W.Va., is seen from the town of Poca across the Kanawha River. President Donald Trump picked West Virginia where he announced rolling back pollution rules for coal-fired power plants. But he didn't mention that the northern two-thirds of West Virginia, with the neighboring part of Pennsylvania, would be hit hardest. (AP Photo/John Raby)

In this Aug. 23, 2018 photo, Andrea Maxey of Poca, W.Va., speaks outside her home with the American Electric Power's John Amos coal-fired power plant is in the background across the Kanawha River in Winfield. Maxey says emissions from the plant aren't a nuisance. President Donald Trump picked West Virginia where he announced rolling back pollution rules for coal-fired power plants. But he didn't mention that the northern two-thirds of West Virginia, with the neighboring part of Pennsylvania, would be hit hardest. (AP Photo/John Raby)

American Electric Power's John Amos coal-fired plant in Winfield, W.Va, is seen Aug. 23, 2018, from an apartment complex in the town of Poca across the Kanawha River. President Donald Trump picked West Virginia where he announced rolling back pollution rules for coal-fired power plants. But he didn't mention that the northern two-thirds of West Virginia, with the neighboring part of Pennsylvania, would be hit hardest.(AP Photo/John Raby)
The Latest on Tropical Storm Gordon on Monday (all times local):

5:20 p.m.

A hurricane warning has been issued for portions of the central U.S. Gulf Coast as Tropical Storm Gordon approaches.

Volleyball courts on Lummus Park Beach, South Beach are empty as a tropical storm warning was issued for the Miami Beach, Fla., area on Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. Tropical Storm Gordon lashed South Florida with heavy rains and high winds on Monday, forcing holiday beachgoers to drier ground. (Carl Juste/Miami Herald via AP)

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said in its 5 p.m. EDT advisory that it expects Gordon to be a hurricane when it reaches coastal Mississippi and Louisiana sometime late Tuesday.

A hurricane warning is in effect for the area stretching from the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border.

The storm is centered about 50 miles (85 kilometers) west-southwest of Fort Myers, Florida, and moving west-northwest at 17 mph (28 kph). After making landfall, it is expected to move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley on Wednesday.

Officials say maximum sustained winds are near 50 mph (85 kph) with higher gusts.

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4:35 p.m.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell says the city has "the pumps and the power" needed to protect residents from Tropical Storm Gordon.

However authorities issued a voluntary evacuation order for residents outside the levee protection system, including the Venetian Isles, Lake Saint Catherine and Irish Bayou areas.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said the storm is expected to move away from the southwestern Florida coast and reach coastal Mississippi and Louisiana by late Tuesday.

At a press conference Monday afternoon, Cantrell urged residents within the levee protection area to stock up on supplies and shelter in place.

New Orleans director of emergency preparedness Collin Arnold says the storm has the potential to turn into a "low-level hurricane" with potential winds of up to 70 mph (113 kph).

The Louisiana coastal town of Grand Isle has also issued a voluntary evacuation order.

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4 p.m.

Tropical Storm Gordon has left many businesses on Florida's Gulf Coast feeling shortchanged by the holiday weekend.

The Naples Daily News reports that Naples beachfront stores were getting hardly any foot traffic Monday as the storm approached.

The southern Gulf Coast has already been heavily impacted by this summer's so-called "red tide," in which massive algae blooms have caused waves of dead marine life to wash up along the coast, driving people from the water.

At Lowdermilk Park, the beach was nearly empty despite there being no signs of red tide.

Beach Cafe manager Fred Macolino tells the newspaper that business over the holiday weekend had been "horrible."

The storm is expected to move away from the southwestern Florida coast and reach coastal Mississippi and Louisiana by late Tuesday.

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2:20 p.m.

A hurricane watch remains in effects for portions of the central U.S. Gulf Coast as Tropical Storm Gordon approaches.

NOLA.com/The Times-Picayune reports that drivers around the metro New Orleans area are lining up to put sand bags in their trunks. In St. Tammany Parish, a line of cars reached between 20 and 25 vehicles long at times.

The storm was lashing South Florida on Monday with high winds and heavy rains as it moved west-northwest at 16 mph (26 kph).

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said in its 2 p.m. EDT advisory that the storm is expected to move away from the southwestern Florida coast and reach coastal Mississippi and Louisiana by late Tuesday and move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley on Wednesday.

A hurricane watch is in effect for the area stretching from the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border. A hurricane watch means that hurricane conditions are possible.

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12:30 p.m.

Rain has drenched the Miami area as Tropical Storm Gordon moved into the Gulf of Mexico on Monday.

In a tweet, Miami Beach Police advised residents and visitors that the Labor Day holiday was "NOT a beach day," with rough surf and potential rip currents.

Police advised beach-goers to stay indoors.

In Tallahassee, city officials offered sandbags to help homeowners prepare for potential flooding.

Red flags flew over Pensacola-area beaches in Florida's Panhandle, where swimming and wading in the Gulf of Mexico was prohibited.

The National Weather Service said Naples, Marco Island, and Everglades City also could expect hazardous weather on Monday.

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11 a.m.

A hurricane watch has been issued for portions of the central U.S. Gulf Coast as Tropical Storm Gordon approaches.

The storm was lashing South Florida on Monday with high winds and heavy rains as it moved west-northwest at 16 mph (26 kph). The storm was expected to reach coastal Mississippi and Louisiana by late Tuesday and move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley on Wednesday.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said in its 11 a.m. EDT advisory that the storm was centered 60 miles (95 kilometers) west-northwest of Key Largo and 50 miles (80 kilometers) south-southeast of Marco Island.

A hurricane watch - meaning that hurricane conditions are possible - was put into effect for the area stretching from the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border.

A storm surge warning has been issued from Shell Beach, Louisiana, to the Mississippi-Alabama border.

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9:30 a.m.

Residents in parts of South Florida, Mississippi, and Louisiana are being warned to prepare for tropical storm-force winds with the onset of Tropical Storm Gordon. Isolated tornadoes are possible.

The National Weather Service said Monday that Naples, Marco Island, and Everglades City in Florida were among the locations that could expect hazardous weather over the next 36 hours.

The storm is expected to cross from southwest Florida into the Gulf Coast later Monday afternoon.

Flooding was also a high risk for the areas affected by the storm, including portions of southeast Louisiana north of Interstate 10 and southwest Mississippi west of Interstate 55.

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Weather forecasters have issued storm warnings for portions of South Florida and the Florida Keys.

The National Hurricane Center in Miami said Monday that Tropical Storm Gordon is likely to batter the region with heavy rains. A Storm Surge Watch is in effect for a portion of the Mississippi-Alabama border.

The center said in its 8:30 a.m. EDT advisory that the storm was centered 20 miles (30 kilometers) west of Key Largo and 85 miles (135 kilometers) southeast of Marco Island.

The storm was moving west-northwest at 17 mph (28 kph). Maximum sustained winds were clocked at 45 mph (75 kph).

A view of the lifeguard tower while local resident Mike Squillace looking for metal at Dania Beach, Fla., as Tropical Storm Gordon pass by South Florida with wind gust and heavy rainfall for the Labor Day holiday on Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. (David Santiago/Miami Herald via AP)

A man walks off the nearly abandoned Lummus Park Beach as a tropical storm warning was issued for the Miami Beach, Fla., area on Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. Tropical Storm Gordon lashed South Florida with heavy rains and high winds on Monday, forcing holiday beachgoers to drier ground. (Carl Juste/Miami Herald via AP)

I-95 Northbound is bumper to bumper traffic as the Labor Day weekend Home Show clogs up the freeway on Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. Tropical Storm Gordon lashed South Florida with heavy rains and high winds on Monday, forcing holiday beachgoers to drier ground. Weather forecasters said the storm could strengthen to near-hurricane force by the time it hits the central U.S. Gulf Coast. (C.M. Guerrero/Miami Herald via AP)
Amid complaints that a proliferation of short-term rental properties has diminished quality of life in historic neighborhoods and contributed to a lack of affordable housing, New Orleans slapped a moratorium on issuing licenses for short-term rentals of whole houses. Revisions to its regulations are likely this fall. Meanwhile, other cities and states also are grappling with how best to regulate the short-term rental of homes.

BOSTON

Boston's City Council passed regulations in June banning investors from renting apartments by the night but still allowing people to rent a room in their homes or a spare unit, provided they own and live on the property.

SOUTH PORTLAND, MAINE

Among South Portland's regulations is a requirement that owners live in the homes that they rent to short-term visitors. But there has been controversy, and the Portland Press Herald reports the City Council is mulling whether to call a referendum to let voters decide.

HONOLULU

The city has long wrestled with the issue of short-term vacation rentals. This year, residents have been debating Mayor Kirk Caldwell's plan to legalize more vacation rentals but under stricter regulations.

NEW YORK

Mayor Bill de Blasio recently signed a bill requiring Airbnb to reveal the names and addresses of hosts so the city can crack down on illegal listings.
MOSCOW (AP) - A Russian state-owned television channel has a new weekly current affairs program devoted to President Vladimir Putin.

The first episode of "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin." aired on Sunday night, stressing the Russian president's work to address various crises and stay in touch with ordinary Russians.

The Kremlin has consolidated its control over television stations since Putin came into office in 2000, and Putin's activities traditionally receive wide coverage on news programs on state television. Still, a weekly show devoted to news events as seen through the work of Putin is something new for Russia.

FILE - In this Sunday, Aug. 26, 2018 file photo released by Kremlin press service on Monday, Aug. 27, 2018, Russian President Vladimir Putin rests during a mini-break in the Siberian Tyva region, Russia. A Russian state-owned television channel has a new weekly current affairs program devoted to President Vladimir Putin. Rossiya 1 aired the first episode of "Moscow. Kremlin. Putin." on Sunday, Sept. 2. It stressed Putin's work to address various crises and to stay in touch with ordinary Russians. (Alexei Nikolsky/Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP, File)

The hour-long program on Rossiya 1 featured interviews with Putin's spokesman and the Kremlin pool reporter who covered the president's activities last week, as well as a segment about Putin's break in the mountains last month.

Quizzed by the show's host about Putin's recent meeting with gifted children and his supposed love for the youth, his spokesman Dmitry Peskov said: "Putin loves not only children, he loves people in general. He's a very humane person."

The Russian leader's approval ratings sharply declined in July after the government proposed raising the ages for pension eligibility the previous month.

Speaking to reporters on Monday afternoon Peskov insisted that the Kremlin did not commission the TV show, and that it was the channel's own idea. He added that the program was done in a balanced manner.

Russian President Vladimir Putin makes an address on the state TV in the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, Wednesday, Aug. 29, 2018. Putin in a televised address Wednesday said without raising the retirement age Russia's pension system "would crack and eventually collapse." He offered concessions to the reform, saying that women's retirement age should increase from 55 to 60 years, lower than had proposed. (Alexei Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin Pool Photo via AP)
BEIRUT (AP) - United Nations schools for Palestinian refugees in Lebanon started the new school year on time on Monday, despite the U.S. decision to cancel funding to the international body's Palestinian relief agency.

Students were giddy as they arrived at the Haifa Intermediate School in Beirut's Bir Hassan neighborhood on Monday and sat through their first language, history, and math lessons of the year.

Claudio Cordone, director of UNRWA affairs in Lebanon, called it a "joyful day," and called on donor nations to fill the deficit left behind by the U.S. decision announced Friday.

A Palestinian refugee student sits inside her classroom as she attends the first day of a new school year, at one of the UNRWA schools, in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. The United Nations' Palestinian relief agency celebrated the start of the school year in Lebanon on Monday, managing to open its schools on schedule despite a multi-million dollar budget cut on the heels of U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to stop funding to the agency. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

It was a day many thought would not come, at least not on time, as UNRWA faces some of its toughest pressures in its 68-year history. The Trump administration, encouraged by Israel, has expressed deep skepticism over the agency's mission to provide education and social services to over 5 million Palestinian refugees across the Middle East.

UNRWA was founded in 1949 to serve some 700,000 Palestinians who were uprooted from their homes in the war to create Israel.

Palestinians depend on the UNRWA to get by outside their homeland, in countries that treat them as second-class residents with only limited rights.

The agency relies on the U.S. for 30 percent of its budget. But the Trump administration on Friday called UNRWA an "irredeemably flawed operation" and halted $300 million in planned donations on the grounds that it is an obstacle to a settlement between Palestinians and Israel. The agency strongly rejects the characterization.

"Today we can express our deep regret over the announcement from the US that it will not fund the agency after decades of support. And we reject the criticism that the UNRWA schools and its health centers and its emergency assistance program is plagued by defects, and that they cannot be reformed," said Cordone.

He said the agency was facing a $217 million deficit.

Rawan al-Hassan, a pupil, said students were acutely aware of the budgetary situation.

"We are happy, it's the first day of school, we're going to see our friends again. But we're not very happy because they're saying that the books are not good. They're preparing us because there's nothing good for us," said al-Hassan.

Palestinian refugee students attend a ceremony to mark the return to school of a new year at one of the UNRWA schools, in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. The United Nations' Palestinian relief agency celebrated the start of the school year in Lebanon on Monday, managing to open its schools on schedule despite a multi-million dollar budget cut on the heels of U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to stop funding to the agency. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

Palestinian refugee students stand outside a classroom as they wait to attend a ceremony to mark the return to school of a new year at one of the UNRWA schools, in Beirut, Lebanon, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. The United Nations' Palestinian relief agency celebrated the start of the school year in Lebanon on Monday, managing to open its schools on schedule despite a multi-million dollar budget cut on the heels of U.S. President Donald Trump's decision to stop funding to the agency. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
DETROIT (AP) - Some 50,000 Detroit public school students will start the school year Tuesday by drinking water from coolers, not fountains, after the discovery of elevated levels of lead or copper - the latest setback in a state already dealing with the consequences of contaminated tap water in Flint and other communities.

Detroit Public Schools Superintendent Nikolai Vitti expects the closure of water fountains and other drinking fixtures in all 106 schools to go smoothly because the district - Michigan's largest - had previously turned off the tap in 18 schools. The coolers and bottled water will cost $200,000 over two months, after which the district probably will seek bids for a longer-term contract, he said.

Kids at the schools that already had coolers drank more than they ever had from the fountains, according to their principals.

In this Aug. 31, 2018, photo, a sign is displayed at the Marcus Garvey Academy, in Detroit. The school is among Detroit schools where elevated levels of lead or copper were detected in the most recent round of water testing. When students start the school year Tuesday, they will drink from water coolers or bottled water after the closure of all drinking fountains and other fixtures districtwide. (AP Photo/Roger Schneider)

"There has been an undertone of not trusting the water to begin with," Vitti told The Associated Press in a phone interview Friday, days after announcing his decision. "With the water coming from the water coolers, they just trust it more and are drinking it more."

Detroit is not the first major school district to switch to bottled water. The 49,000-student district in Portland, Oregon, turned off its fixtures in 2016 after a scandal over high levels of lead in the water at almost every school - a problem that took two years to fix. Fountains at most schools in the 80,000-student Baltimore districts have been shut off for more than a decade .

Last year, LeeAndria Hardison saw brown water coming from fountains at the Detroit school attended by her teenage son.

"I've been sending water to school every day with his name on it - five bottles of water in a cooling pack," said Hardison, 39. "He was only allowed to drink that water."

Water testing in Detroit schools should have started years ago due to aging pipes, said Ricky Rice, 61, who has a grandson in sixth grade and another grandchild beginning kindergarten.

"In the poorer neighborhoods, in the black neighborhoods we always have a problem with issues of environment," Rice said. "Look at the water up in Flint . Now, look at the water here. They should have known it was going to be a problem with this old infrastructure."

Detroit's move is being welcomed by experts and state lawmakers who say such voluntary testing should be mandated in school districts nationwide, only 43 percent of which tested for lead in 2016 or 2017, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office .

"Somebody's finally checking to see if the water's OK and doing something about it," said Thomas Lyon, a University of Michigan professor who studies water-quality issues.

While water utilities are required to check for lead, they focus on a sample of homes, which does not guarantee that all individual residences or buildings are lead-free. The entities that provide and distribute Detroit's drinking water - the Great Lakes Water Authority and the Detroit Water and Sewerage Department - said it meets and surpasses federal and state standards, and the district's problems are due to aging plumbing.

Vitti, who took over in Detroit in 2017 after the district had been under state management for years, said it is "preposterous" that schools are not forced to test for lead and that Detroit's problems are reflective of inequities in urban America and a lack of spending on infrastructure.

"You can test the water coming into a building," he said. "But if you're not testing every water source - water fountains, sinks in bathrooms, kitchens - then you're assuming that the plumbing linked to that particular water source is not producing elevated levels of copper or lead."

Vitti ordered the testing of every water outlet in each school building last spring. It was a more expansive sampling than was conducted in 2016 - testing that came in the wake of the crisis in Flint, where the water source was switched under state management and not treated to prevent corrosion, enabling lead to leach from aging service lines and household fixtures.

Water-quality issues have been identified at some water outlets in 34 Detroit schools. Test results are pending for other schools.

Vitti said he is in no rush to turn the tap back on and that a long-term solution must first be identified.

Only eight states require lead-in-water testing in schools and Michigan is not among them. Republican Gov. Rick Snyder first proposed mandated testing in 2016 as part of broader changes outlined in the wake of the Flint crisis, for which his administration was primarily blamed . Democratic-backed bills have not advanced in the GOP-led Legislature, but a hearing held in June indicates they could come up again.

Rep. Stephanie Chang, a Detroit Democrat, said the inaction is disappointing given the serious health consequences of being exposed to lead.

"It only makes sense to test water on a regular basis in our schools and in childcare centers and in other places where there are vulnerable populations," she said.

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Eggert reported from Lansing, Michigan.

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WASHINGTON (AP) - America is about to get its first extended look at Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh in his confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Viewers just tuning into the battle over the 53-year-old appellate judge's nomination should expect to see Kavanaugh portrayed by fellow Republicans as a principled jurist who has no preconceived ideas about the law. Democrats will try to paint President Donald Trump's nominee as a results-oriented conservative who wants to undo abortion rights and generally push the Supreme Court to the right.

Lawmakers know the public is watching, but as the nomination hearing gets going and lawmakers seek to probe the nominee's views, they often slip into using legal jargon and refer to past Supreme Court cases in shorthand. It can sound as though they're talking in code. Expect senators to use these terms at Kavanaugh's hearing, starting Tuesday:

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FILE - In this June 1, 2006 file photo, from left to right, President Bush, watches the swearing-in of Brett Kavanaugh as Judge for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia by U.S. Supreme Court Associate Justice Anthony M. Kennedy, far right, during a ceremony in the Rose Garden of the White House, in Washington. Holding the Bible is Kavanaugh's wife Ashley Kavanaugh. Kavanaugh has been a conservative team player, and the Supreme Court nominee has stepped up to make a play at key moments in politics, government and the law dating to the Bill Clinton era. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais, File)

Roe v. Wade, Planned Parenthood v. Casey - These cases from 1973 and 1992, respectively, are the two main decisions on abortion rights. Kavanaugh has not said whether he believes they were decided correctly, and he's not likely to do so during the hearings. But he is certain to be asked repeatedly about abortion, Roe and Casey. He has provided two recent clues to his views, in the form of a speech that praised the late Chief Justice William Rehnquist's dissent in Roe and Kavanaugh's own dissenting opinion that would have denied immediate access to an abortion for an immigrant teen in federal custody.

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Stare decisis - Latin for to stand by things decided. It's the legal principle that judges use to base decisions on earlier ones. When it comes up at confirmation hearings, it's often in reference to abortion rights and it's usually a way of asking if a nominee will overturn certain decisions - like Roe v. Wade. Nominees invariably invoke stare decisis, or refer to something as settled law, to try to reassure senators that they have great respect for Supreme Court precedents, without committing to preserve any specific one. Respect for precedent, however, has its limits. Last term, the court squarely overturned three precedents.

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Chevron deference - A 1984 Supreme Court ruling, in a case involving the Chevron oil company, says that when laws aren't crystal clear, federal agencies should be allowed to fill in the details. That's what agencies do - on environmental regulations, workplace standards, consumer protections and even immigration law. But a growing conservative legal movement has questioned the Chevron decision. Kavanaugh has expressed some support for limiting agencies' discretion, as have several conservative justices. If a future Supreme Court were to limit the Chevron ruling, it would mark a big change in the law that would potentially make it harder to sustain governmental regulations.

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Recusal - A judge's decision to not take part in a case, usually because he participated in it at an earlier stage, or has a financial or personal conflict. Democrats are going to press Kavanaugh to pledge to recuse himself if a case comes to the court involving Trump and special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation. He is not likely to commit to do so.

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Unitary executive - Kavanaugh will be asked to explain his view of just how much power a president has under the unitary executive theory of constitutional law. Kavanaugh has written judicial opinions and law review articles that suggest he supports the idea that a president may decline to enforce a law he believes is unconstitutional. Questioners also may focus on Kavanaugh's service in the White House under George W. Bush, who used signing statements to legislation that his administration saw as unreasonable or unconstitutional limits on executive power.

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Subpoena - a legal order requiring a person to testify as a witness, it sometime also requires a person to turn over documents or other records under their control. Kavanaugh should expect to be asked whether the president can be subpoenaed, an open legal question that could reach the Supreme Court if Mueller tries to force the president to testify as part of the Russia investigation. Also an open question: Whether the president can be indicted, meaning charged with a crime.

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Affirmative action - The term for efforts to improve opportunities for minorities, generally in employment and college admissions. It's a standard topic for Supreme Court confirmation hearings, particularly after a 2003 Supreme Court decision that predicted affirmative action wouldn't be necessary in 25 years. Senators may bring up a comment Kavanaugh made in 1999 about a different Supreme Court case, saying he believed it was "one more step along the way in what I see as an inevitable conclusion within the next 10 to 20 years when the court says we are all one race in the eyes of government."

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Balls and strikes - OK, that's not a legal term, but it will come up anyway. Chief Justice John Roberts famously compared judges to umpires during his 2005 confirmation hearing, saying neither makes the rules, but rather both just apply them. He said he'd remember if confirmed that his job is "to call balls and strikes." Lawmakers love to ask nominees about this analogy.

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"Let him answer the question" - Again, not a legal term. Expect Senate Judiciary Chairman Chuck Grassley, or the Republican sitting in his place, to interject when Democrats' questioning of Kavanaugh gets especially heated, or they try to cut in if they feel Kavanaugh is trying to filibuster. Question time is limited and senators often feel free to jump in to move the questioning along.

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Associated Press writer Jessica Gresko contributed to this report.

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RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) - The Latest on the fire at Brazil's National Museum (all times local):

3:13 p.m.

Brazil's National Museum was so strapped for cash that it turned to crowdfunding to reopen an exhibition that closed after a termite infestation.

A man watches as flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

Officials sought at least $7,000 earlier this year on a crowd funding site to rebuild a base that held a 13-yard-long dinosaur skeleton.

The institution's precarious financial situation came to light as criticism flew Monday about who was responsible for a devastating fire at the museum.

The fire broke out Sunday night and appeared to have gutted much of the building.

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1:20 p.m.

An official from Brazil's National Museum says he and his colleagues knew about fire risks at the building and worried about them every day.

Vice Director Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte told Brazilian TV that he unplugged everything in his office for safety reasons before leaving each day. He also said that employees had recently received training from firefighters in how to minimize risks and respond to a fire if one should occur.

He said that no one was in the building to put the training into practice when the museum caught fire on Sunday night.

The museum had a collection of 20 million items, including Egyptian and Greco-Roman artifacts and the oldest human skull found in the Western hemisphere.

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12:54 p.m.

Brazilian President Michel Temer says public and private banks and companies have agreed to help rebuild the National Museum that caught fire.

Temer said Monday that several private banks, the public development bank, mining company Vale and state-run oil company Petrobras will form a "network of economic support" to help restore the museum and reconstitute its collection.

The museum appears to have been almost completely gutted in the fire that began Sunday night.

Museum director Alexander Kellner said Monday that it was not possible yet to detail what was lost.

The museum had a collection of 20 million items, including Egyptian and Greco-Roman artifacts and the oldest human skull found in the Western hemisphere.

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12:20 p.m.

Brazilian police are using batons, tear gas and pepper spray to hold off a crowd gathered in front of the National Museum.

A few hundred people are demanding entry into the building to see what was damaged in a fire on Sunday night. They have attempted to push through the gates surrounding the grounds and were calling on the government to rebuild the property.

The museum caught fire around 7:30 p.m. local time and at least part of its collection of 20 million items was destroyed.

It held things such as Egyptian and Greco-Roman artifacts and the oldest human skull found in the Western hemisphere.

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11:24 a.m.

Smoke was still rising from the burned-out hulk of Brazil's National Museum after a large fire broke out.

Museum director Alexander Kellner said Monday that part of the collection was destroyed Sunday night, but that it was not possible yet to detail what was lost.

The museum had a collection of 20 million items, including Egyptian and Greco-Roman artifacts and the oldest human skull found in the Western hemisphere. It was once the home of the Brazilian royal family.

The building was still standing, but much of it appeared to have been gutted. A few hundred people crowded at the gates of the site, some in tears.

"This fire is what Brazilian politicians are doing to the people," said Rosana Hollanda, a 35-year-old high school teacher. "They're burning our history, and they're burning our dreams."

On the massive site where the museum sits, the fencing was dilapidated, stonework was cracked and lawns appeared untended.

A meteorite on exhibit at the National Museum is seen through a door after an overnight fire in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. The esteemed museum houses artifacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman art and some of the first fossils found in Brazil. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

National Museum Director Alexander Kellner talks with his personnel after an overnight fire at the museum in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. The esteemed museum houses artifacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman art and some of the first fossils found in Brazil. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)
MADISON, Wis. (AP) - Democrats know who their voters are. They just have to figure out how to get them to the polls in November - and that's where the puppies come in.

Students returning to the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus this summer were greeted by therapy dogs for petting. Those lured by the chance to ruffle a dog's ears were then asked to register to vote - a "Pups to the Polls" gimmick that was just one of several similar events being staged in 11 battleground states by the liberal group NextGen America.

Young people tend to vote for Democrats, but they also tend stay away during midterm elections. It's a perennial frustration for the party - one they are trying to overcome as they seek to take control of Congress.

In this Thursday, Aug. 30, 2018 photo, University of Wisconsin freshman Kellen Sharp, left, gets information about registering to vote from NextGen America worker Sean Manning, right, in Madison, Wis. Sharp says he's excited to vote. He and others at the Madison event think young people are more energized than ever. (AP Photo/Scott Bauer)

NextGen America, formed by billionaire activist Tom Steyer, hopes to be a game changer. Steyer is investing more than $30 million in what's believed to be the largest voter engagement effort of its kind in U.S. history.

The push to register and get pledges from college students to vote is focusing on states such as Wisconsin, Virginia, California and North Carolina with competitive races for Congress, U.S. Senate and other offices.

NextGen sees young voters such as Kellen Sharp as key to flipping targeted seats from red to blue.

"The outcome of this election definitely affects us," said Sharp, an 18-year-old freshman from Milwaukee who stopped to register during the dog event the week before classes started. "I'm just excited to have a voice and say something."

A poll this summer by the Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research and MTV found that most Americans ages 15 to 34 think voting in the midterm elections gives their generation some say about how the government is run. The poll found young people eager to vote for someone who shared their political views on issues such as health care and immigration policy. They expressed far less excitement about voting for a candidate described as a lifelong politician.

"If we all vote, we can make a change," said 20-year-old Grace Austin, who stopped to pet the dogs at the Wisconsin event and wound up registering to vote.

Austin and other college students who registered said they feel like their friends are more interested in politics than ever before - boosting hopes of Democrats trying to reverse the trend of declining youth participation in midterm elections.

"We want them to know they need to show up and when they do, we will win," said NextGen's Wisconsin director George Olufosoye. "We want them to know they have power."

They certainly have the numbers.

Since the last midterm election in 2014, 15 million post-millennials - those between the ages of 18 and 21 - have become eligible to vote. But while Generation X, millennials and post-millennials make up the majority of voting-eligible adults nationwide, they are not expected to cast the most votes in November.

In the 2014 midterm, they cast 21 million fewer votes than voters over age 54, according to an analysis by the Pew Research Center. Turnout among 18- to 24-year-olds hit a 40-year low in 2014, bottoming out at 17.1 percent, according to an analysis by the Center for Information and Research on Civic Learning and Engagement, or CIRCLE, at Tufts University.

NextGen points to higher voter turnout on the University of Wisconsin campus for a spring state Supreme Court election won by a liberal, and spikes in turnout in other targeted races, to argue that their push to register 122,000 young people to vote is bearing fruit.

"We're trying really hard to have this be much more of an infrastructure, organizational thing than a two-month campaign," NextGen founder Tom Steyer said in an interview. "We're trying to get the broadest possible democracy, the biggest representation."

More media coverage of competitive races, combined with energy from the March for Our Lives movement that seeks stricter gun laws, has empowered young voters and made them "feel like it's time to have their voice heard about what happens to their generation," said Kei Kawashima-Ginsberg, director of CIRCLE.

That's what NextGen hopes. It has nearly 800 organizers on 421 college campuses in Wisconsin, Arizona, California, Florida, Iowa, Michigan, Nevada, New Hampshire, North Carolina, Pennsylvania and Virginia. In Wisconsin alone, NextGen has 27 full-time workers and 40 student fellows registering voters on 26 campuses.

Republicans recognize the power that motivating young voters could have for Democrats, but they're skeptical that participation will increase much. In Wisconsin, Republicans have been targeting college voters for years.

"Wisconsin Republicans win by connecting with voters directly where they are - and young voters are no different when it comes to that strategy," said Wisconsin Republican Party spokesman Alec Zimmerman.

Wisconsin has two of the nation's competitive and closely watched races. Democratic Sen. Tammy Baldwin is being challenged by GOP state Sen. Leah Vukmir, while Republican Gov. Scott Walker faces a challenge from Democratic state schools chief Tony Evers. Polls show the races to be a dead heat - just the kind of competitive elections research shows excite younger voters.

"I've never seen anything like this," said NextGen worker and 2016 University of Wisconsin graduate Joe Waldman. "I've never seen the energy, passion and activism there is now."

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KENNEBUNKPORT, Maine (AP) - Three decades after it was ridiculed and became a punchline on late-night television, former President George H.W. Bush's Points of Light concept is still going strong to the surprise of some, including President Donald Trump.

The phrase, aimed at promoting the former president's vision of volunteerism, was transformed into Point of Light awards given to more than 6,000 individuals and the foundation Points of Light, which promotes volunteerism in 37 countries. This week, Bush, 94, hopes to greet board members and corporate partners during a three-day event that begins Tuesday in Kennebunkport, Maine.

"Points of light" originated in Bush's acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in 1988. He later likened volunteerism to "a thousand points of light in a broad and peaceful sky."

FILE- In this May 21, 1990, file photo, U.S. President George H.W. Bush is surrounded by cheering students from the Independent Living Program in Los Angeles, as Bush prepared to leave Los Angeles International Airport. President Donald Trump may have ridiculed former President George H.W. Bush's "thousand points of light" this summer but the concept is still going strong three decades later. (AP Photo/Marcy Nighswander, File)

The media, including comedian Dana Carvey, lampooned the phrase. Bush was undeterred, repeating it in his inaugural and State of the Union addresses. He began a daily Point of Light award in 1990, and the foundation expanded the president's vision.

A decade ago, the Points of Light Foundation and HandsOn Network merged to strengthen efforts to encourage volunteerism at the corporate, nonprofit and individual level. Today, there are more than 5 million volunteers.

The phrase never sat well with Trump, apparently.

"Thousand Points of Light. I never quite got that one. What the hell is that? Has anyone ever figured that one out?" Trump asked a crowd this summer in Montana.

Neil Bush, son of former President George H.W. Bush and brother of former President George W. Bush, chose not to respond to Trump's biting remarks.

The chairman of the foundation's board, Neil Bush said he's glad his father's "vision" continues to grow and "will have an influence on many, many lives."

On Tuesday, the 6,341st "Daily Point of Light" will be presented by Neil Bush to Kathy Hecht, whose "Salute of Service" helps disabled veterans train their own dogs to become service animals to help themselves. If they don't have a dog, then the group will help them find one.

Hecht, of Searsport, Maine, said she was stunned by the recognition.

"We're such a small organization that was I surprised that we ended up on anyone's radar," she said, adding that "to end up getting this award is just wonderful beyond words."

The group has helped more than 150 veterans over the past four years.

The Points of Light Foundation's marching orders come from Bush's words.

"The solution to each problem that confronts us begins with an individual who steps forward and says, 'I can help,'" said Natalye Paquin, the foundation's chief executive officer.

Atlanta-based Points of Light bills itself as the world's largest organization dedicated to volunteer service. Much of its work focuses on working with corporations like Starbucks to encourage their employees to volunteer in local communities.

Last month, Starbucks announced a pilot program in which some employees will work 20 hours and perform community service for 20 hours each week in 13 cities.

As for the former president, Bush wrote in a letter that was later published in his 2014 book "All the Best, George Bush: My Life in Letters and Other Writings" that some of his happiness comes from being a point of light.

"I believe I was right when I said, as president, there can be no definition of a successful life that does not include service to others," he wrote.

The daily Point of Light recipients get a certificate with Bush's signature, though Bush is no longer actively involved. He's spending this summer recovering from health problems and the loss of his wife, Barbara, who died in April. But he's still passionate about the cause.

"He's a frail, loving, thoughtful old man," Neil Bush said. "He clearly cares deeply for this mission. If you were to talk to him, he'd express that."

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Online: http://www.pointsoflight.org/
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) - About two dozen environmental demonstrators are undertaking a 100-mile march in Iowa to protest the Dakota Access oil pipeline.

The Des Moines Register reports that they began their eight-day trek Saturday in Des Moines.

Advocacy groups Bold Iowa and Indigenous Iowa organized the march to show unity against the $3.8 billion, four-state pipeline.

Protesters plan to walk 10-15 miles (16-24 kilometers) a day, completing the march Saturday in Fort Dodge.

Native American Coalition of the Quad Cities President Regina Tsosie told the newspaper that the pipeline could break and poison the water. She also says it has desecrated sacred sites.

Protesters have pushed back against the pipeline for years. But a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study of the pipeline released last week says it poses no significant environmental threats.
MEXICO CITY (AP) - In his final state of the union address Monday, outgoing President Enrique Pena Nieto blamed surging violent crime in Mexico on the inability of state and local police to handle the smaller gangs that emerged following the capture of cartel leaders.

Pena Nieto, who leaves office with historically low approval ratings, sidestepped blame for poor economic growth and rising debt during his six-year term, and he warned Mexicans not to turn to a foreign policy of "indifference."

His successor, left-leaning Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador who takes office Dec. 1, has pledged to refrain from any kind of intervention in the affairs of other countries, in contrast to Pena Nieto, who has sought out solutions to Venezuela's economic and political crisis. Non-intervention was a bedrock of Mexico's foreign policy before 2000.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto, seen on the screen, delivers his sixth and final State of the Nation address at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. President-elect and longtime opposition leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador will take over the reigns of power on December 1. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

"Don't confuse non-intervention with indifference to what is happening in the world," Pena Nieto warned.

Pena Nieto said he is proudest of the broad reforms early in his administration that revamped the oil industry, education, telecommunications and other sectors.

"Big areas of the nation's life were transformed as a result of the reforms," Pena Nieto said. "The structural reforms are without doubt the biggest success of this administration, and are our contribution to the country's future growth."

Apart from corruption scandals, one of the things that has reduced Pena Nieto's approval ratings is Mexico's unabated gang-fueled violence.

The president said the federal government "had success in significantly reducing the capacity and size" of criminal gangs and drug cartels. Many of the country's top cartel leaders have been captured or killed in recent years.

"Unfortunately, this weakening brought with it smaller criminal groups, without there being the capacity on the local level to effectively confront them," Pena Nieto said. While local police in most parts of Mexico have long been ill-trained, poorly equipped and often corrupt, critics say Pena Nieto has done little to strengthen federal law enforcement,

Mexico had 25 homicides per 100,000 inhabitants in 2017, the highest since comparable records began being kept in 1997, and higher than at the height of the drug war in 2011. Pena Nieto took office in 2012.

"Regarding law enforcement and security in this administration, little was done, much was abandoned and even less groundwork was laid," wrote newspaper columnist Alejandro Hope.

He noted there was very little increase in security budgets, federal police strength or the military under the current administration.

The economy was another weak spot for Pena Nieto. While growth in tourism - in part attracted by a weaker peso - was a bright spot, the economy as a whole lagged.

Pena Nieto presided over a devaluation of almost 50 percent in the Mexican peso, and the economy grew by an anemic average of 2.1 percent annually in his first five years in office.

Government debt, meanwhile, rose from about 33.8 of GDP in 2012 to an estimate of 45.4 percent of GDP by mid-2018.

Pena Nieto claimed he was leaving "a manageable and declining level of debt."

"When my administration ends, I will have fulfilled 97 percent of the promises I made to the public," Pena Nieto said.

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto greets guests as he arrives to deliver his sixth and final State of the Nation address at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. President-elect and longtime opposition leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador will take over the reigns of power on December 1. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto arrives to deliver his sixth and final State of the Nation address at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. President-elect and longtime opposition leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador will take over the reigns of power on December 1. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto waves to supporters after delivering his sixth and final State of the Nation address at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. President-elect and longtime opposition leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador will take over the reigns of power on December 1. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)

Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto thanks supporters after delivering his sixth and final State of the Nation address at the National Palace in Mexico City, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. President-elect and longtime opposition leader Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador will take over the reigns of power on December 1. (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump started his Labor Day with an attack on a top union leader, lashing out after criticism from AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka.

Trump tweeted Monday that Trumka "represented his union poorly on television this weekend." He added: "It is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!"

The president's attack came after Trumka appeared on "Fox News Sunday" over the weekend where he said efforts to overhaul the North American Free Trade Agreement should include Canada. Trumka, whose organization is an umbrella group for most unions, said the economies of the United States, Canada and Mexico are "integrated" and "it's pretty hard to see how that would work without having Canada in the deal."

In this Aug. 31, 2018, photo, President Donald Trump holds up a list of his administrations accomplishments while speaking at a Republican fundraiser at the Carmel Country Club in in Charlotte, N.C. President Donald Trump is starting his Labor Day with an attack on a top union leader. Trump tweeted Monday that AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka "represented his union poorly on television this weekend." He added: "it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!" Trumka appeared on "Fox News Sunday," where he said efforts to overhaul the North American Free Trade Agreement should include Canada. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

Trump said Saturday on Twitter that there was "no political necessity" to keep Canada in NAFTA. But it's questionable whether Trump can unilaterally exclude Canada from a deal to replace the three-nation NAFTA agreement, without the approval of Congress. Any such move would likely face lengthy legal and congressional challenges.

Trump administration negotiations to keep Canada in the reimagined trade bloc are to resume this week as Washington and Ottawa try to break a deadlock over issues such as Canada's dairy market and U.S. efforts to shield drug companies from generic competition.

Trump wants to get a trade deal finalized by Dec. 1.

Trumka also said of Trump: "The things that he's done to hurt workers outpace what he's done to help workers," arguing that Trump has not come through with an infrastructure program and has overturned regulations that "will hurt us on the job."

Asked about the low unemployment rate and economic growth, Trumka said "those are good, but wages have been down since the first of the year. Gas prices have been up since the first of the year. So, overall, workers aren't doing as well."

On Monday, Trump touted the economy, saying "Our country is doing better than ever before with unemployment setting record lows." He added, "The Worker in America is doing better than ever before. Celebrate Labor Day!"

The unemployment rate of 3.9 percent is not at the best point ever - it is near the lowest in 18 years.
MEXICO CITY (AP) - Authorities in the northern Mexico border state of Tamaulipas say they have arrested a suspect for the May murder of a journalist.

State prosecutor Irving Barrios Mojica said video from surveillance cameras had helped identify those who took part in the killing of Hector Gonzalez Antonio.

Gonzalez was a journalist with the national newspaper Excelsior.

Barrios says authorities did not initially discount that Gonzalez had been killed for his work, but evidence suggested he died while resisting the theft of his vehicle and equipment.

The man arrested Monday was allegedly driving one of the stolen vehicles used. Additional arrests are possible.

Gonzalez was found beaten to death on May 29 in the Tamaulipas state capital of Ciudad Victoria.
WASHINGTON (AP) - President Donald Trump escalated his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions on Monday, suggesting the Department of Justice put Republicans in midterm jeopardy with recent indictments of two GOP congressmen.

In his latest broadside against the Justice Department's traditional independence, Trump tweeted that "Obama era investigations, of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department."

He added: "Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff......"

In this July 13, 2018 photo, Attorney General Jeff Sessions delivers remarks in Portland, Maine. President Donald Trump is escalating his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, suggesting the embattled official should have intervened in investigations of two GOP congressmen to help Republicans in the midterms. Trump tweeted Monday that "investigations of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department." (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)

The president's striking suggestion that the Justice Department consider politics when making decisions showed his disregard for the agency's independence. Trump has frequently suggested he views Justice less as a law enforcement agency and more as a department that is supposed to do his personal and political bidding. Still, investigators are never supposed to take into account the political affiliations of the people they investigate.

Trump, who did not address the specifics of the charges, did not name the Republicans. But he was apparently referring to the first two Republicans to endorse him in the GOP presidential primaries. Both were indicted on separate charges last month: Rep. Duncan Hunter of California on charges that included spending campaign funds for personal expenses and Rep. Chris Collins of New York on insider trading. Both have proclaimed their innocence.

The Hunter investigation began in June 2016, according to the indictment. The indictment into Collins lays out behavior from 2017. He was also under investigation by congressional ethics officials.

Hunter has not exited his race, while Collins ended his re-election bid days after his indictment. Both seats appear likely to remain in GOP hands, but the charges have raised Democratic hopes.

A spokeswoman for Sessions declined comment, and the White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Trump did not have any public events Monday. He briefly exited the White House to a waiting motorcade, but then went back inside without going anywhere.

Trump's tweet drew a scolding from Sen. Ben Sasse, a Nebraska Republican who sits on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

"The United States is not some banana republic with a two-tiered system of justice - one for the majority party and one for the minority party," Sasse said in a statement. "These two men have been charged with crimes because of evidence, not because of who the President was when the investigations began. Instead of commenting on ongoing investigations and prosecutions, the job of the President of the United States is to defend the Constitution and protect the impartial administration of justice."

Trump has previously pressed Sessions to investigate his perceived enemies and has accused Sessions of failing to take control of the Justice Department. Trump has also repeatedly complained publicly and privately over Sessions' decision to recuse himself from the federal investigation into possible collusion between the Trump campaign and Russia because he'd worked on Trump's campaign.

Some of the issues Trump has raised have either already been examined or are being investigated.

The tension between Trump and Sessions boiled over recently with Sessions punching back, saying that he and his department "will not be improperly influenced by political considerations." Still, Sessions has made clear to associates that he has no intention of leaving his job voluntarily despite Trump's constant criticism.

Allies, including Republican members of Congress, have long advised Trump that firing Sessions - especially before the November midterm elections - would be deeply damaging to the party. But some have indicated that Trump may make a change after the elections.

"I think there will come a time, sooner rather than later, where it will be time to have a new face and a fresh voice at the Department of Justice," Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina told reporters recently.

--

Eric Tucker contributed from Washington and Mike Balsamo contributed from New York City.
SALEM, Ky. (AP) - Police say four people have died in a house fire in western Kentucky.

Kentucky State Police said in a news release five people were inside the home when the fire broke out Saturday in Salem, about 130 miles (209 kilometers) northeast of Nashville, Tennessee.

State Police identified the deceased as 75-year-old Kenneth Belt, 26-year-old Lindsey Dickerson, 32-year-old Waylon Hillard and 1-year-old Nathan Hillard. The statement says witnesses removed an uninjured 6-year-old child from the home.

The cause of the fire remains undetermined but foul play is not suspected.
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) - Brazil's National Museum in Rio de Janeiro, which suffered a massive fire late Sunday, boasted the largest archive of historical artifacts and documents in Latin America, some 20 million pieces from around the globe. Museum officials say it's too soon to say what had been lost or spared, as firefighters were still putting out ambers and assessing whether it was safe to enter.

Here is a look at some of the museum's most notable pieces, according to its website:

'LUZIA'

Firefighters and museum personnel carry away a burnt painting from the National Museum after an overnight fire in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. A huge fire engulfed Brazil's 200-year-old museum, lighting up the night sky with towering flames as firefighters and museum workers raced to save historical relics from the blaze. (AP Photo/Silvia Izquierdo)

Discovered during an excavation in 1975 outside of the Brazilian city of Belo Horizonte, the fossilized remains sat in storage for two decades. In the mid-1990s, tests by scientists determined it was the oldest fossil in the Americas. It was given the name "Luzia," homage to "Lucy," the famous 3.2-million-year-old remains found in Africa.

ANCIENT EGYPT

Among the Egyptian relics is the mummy of Sha-Amun-In-Su, dating back to 750 B.C. The mummy was in its original coffin, which was closed. It was given to Dom Pedro II by Egyptian Viceroy Ismail Pasha during a visit to the Middle East.

INDIGENOUS REMAINS

One of the museum's most important expositions of indigenous peoples were three bodies mummified together, an adult and two children. It was originally found in the state of Minas Gerais. The collection also includes bows and arrows from different indigenous groups and explanations about studies conducted by the royal family on the Tupi and Guarani languages.

METEORITE

Called Bendego and weighing more than five tons, the meteorite is the largest ever found in Brazil. It was found in the state of Bahia in the 18th century. The meteorite, which sits in a main entrance, could be seen in the burned-out building.

DINOSAUR

One of the museum's most popular displays was one of its biggest, a dinosaur called Maxakalisaurus tapai. Found in Minas Gerais in 1998, the excavation and reconstruction of the dinosaur took 10 years.
Terrorists in Afghanistan have made UK links and pose a real threat to Britain, raising concerns over possible Manchester-style attacks, the Defence Secretary has warned.

Intelligence agencies are said to have detected evidence of militants making links from the war-ravaged country to Britain and its European neighbours.

Some IS fighters are suspected of travelling to Afghanistan after the groups collapse in Syria and Iraq to continue in their efforts to attack the West.

Meanwhile, hundreds of British troops are being deployed to assist Afghan forces in their efforts to eradicate the extremists.

What we see is a real threat posed by these groups to the UK and weve got to be acting as we are to ensure that we do not see future Manchester-style attacks, Gavin Williamson told Sky News.

We consistently see terrorist groups operating here in Afghanistan, (and) evidence of their links back not just to the United Kingdom but to the whole of continental Europe.

The Defence Secretary was visiting Mazeer-i-Shareef, a city in northern Afghanistan.

A branch of IS, called IS-Khorasan or IS-K, is said to be operating in the country with fighters recruited from Syria and Iraq.

Prime Minister Theresa May committed 440 additional British troops to an international mission in Afghanistan at a Nato meeting in July (Steve Parsons/PA)

Prime Minister Theresa May committed 440 additional British troops to an international mission in Afghanistan at a Nato meeting in July.

It came amid pressure from US President Donald Trump for European allies to contribute more to their collective defence.

The extra troops, from the Welsh Guards, are bolstering the UK-led Kabul Security Force.

It provides protection for Nato civilian staff engaged in capacity-building programmes in Afghanistan, as well as mentoring Afghan forces in the capital.

The deployment was set to begin in August with a second contingent to follow in February, taking the total UK military presence in the country to 1,100.

General John Nicolson, the outgoing American head of the international coalition, said that IS-K had been prevented from growing as a result of the campaign.

He told Voice of America: They have been able to replenish a portion of their losses by recruiting from other violent extremist organisations.

Despite this recruiting there are losing fighters and losing ground.
Water companies United Utilities and Severn Trent have pledged to slash bills for millions of customers and tackle leaks as part of fresh business plans.

United Utilities said it would cut average bills by 10.5% in real terms between 2020 and 2025, amounting to a reduction of 45 per customer.

The North West-focused firm also said it will invest 750 million in delivering a major water resilience scheme for customers in Manchester and the Pennines.

Water companies have outlined plans for 2020-2025 (PA)

The company will aim to deliver a 15% reduction in leaks by 2025, according to its five-year business plan released to regulator Ofwat.

As part of Ofwats 2019 price review, water companies are required to outline a detailed business plan, demonstrating how they will meet the needs of their customers from 2020 to 2025.

Water companies are submitting their #pr19 business plans today. See what @OfwatChiefExec has to say how Ofwat will scrutinise the plans to make sure they deliver #moreofwhatmatters https://t.co/MmVNBHl3Ov  Ofwat (@Ofwat) September 3, 2018

United Utilities boss Steve Mogford said: We are cutting bills such that they will be lower in real terms in 2025 than they were 15 years ago, whilst also delivering higher standards of service, increasing resilience, delivering innovation and investing for the long-term.

The utilities firm also said it will reduce capital expenditure by over 1 billion to 5.4 billion from 2020 to 2025.

Meanwhile, Severn Trent said it will introduce a real-terms bill reduction of 5%, the largest price cut in two decades.

To facilitate the reduction, Severn Trent said it will use innovation and commercial pipelines to deliver a 13% efficiency in spending, with total expenditure of 6.6 billion planned over the five-year period.

In addition, Severn Trent is proposing a new community dividend of 1% of profits each year, to support communities in the region.

Thames Water, meanwhile, said it would keep bills flat but spend 11.7 billion on upgrades, including 2.1 billion to boost resilience and reduce leakage.

In June, the company  which supplies more than 15 million people  was ordered to pay a total of 120 million to compensate customers over leakage failures.

The water regulator will assess the business plans and publish its findings in January.

Ofwat senior director John Russell said: Weve reached a key milestone in our price review process.

From now until January 2019, well pore over each and every business plan and well be looking for evidence that they are robust, ambitious and, crucially, that they have been shaped by customers.

All companies have had an opportunity to develop high-quality plans, but where plans arent sufficiently ambitious or stretching, well step in to protect customers and the environment.
The lawyer tasked with leading a review into the impact of policing during the miners strike in Scotland has urged those involved in the protests to speak out.

John Scott QC said there were still strong feelings about industrial action, although it took place more than three decades ago.

Miners across the UK went out on strike for a year in a bid to prevent the closure of pits by Margaret Thatchers government.

Miners across the UK went out on strike for a year in a bid to prevent the closure of pits by Margaret Thatchers government (PA)

The dispute, which ran for a year between March 1984 and March 1985, included violent clashes between the police and strikers.

Launching a call for evidence, Mr Scott said: Although the miners strike took place over 30 years ago, I am aware that strong feelings about it persist in Scotland, especially in mining communities.

He added: If you were a miner, part of a mining community, a police officer or in some other way affected by, or involved in the strike, please let us know about your experience.

Mr Scott will be assisted during the review by an advisory panel made up of former MP and MSP Dennis Canavan, Jim Murdoch, a professor of public law at the University of Glasgow, and former Assistant Chief Constable Kate Thomson.
Harry Arter has not been included in the Republic of Ireland squad for the Nations League clash with Wales amid reports he has pulled out following a spat with assistant manager Roy Keane.

The midfielder, who played 90 minutes for Cardiff on loan from Bournemouth in their 3-2 Premier League defeat by Arsenal on Sunday, was included in the initial party for Thursday nights game in Cardiff and the friendly trip to Poland which follows it.

However, his name was conspicuous by its absence when manager Martin ONeill announced the final 26-man party on Monday.

Harry Arter has not been included in the latest Republic of Ireland squad (Brian Lawless/PA)

ONeill confirmed last month that there had been a difference of opinion between Keane and Arter and striker Jonathan Walters before the June friendly against the United States.

Walters has been included in the squad, although had not joined up in time for Monday mornings first training session in Abbotstown after playing 90 minutes for Ipswich in Sundays 1-1 derby draw with Norwich.

Southampton striker Shane Long has missed out with a foot injury suffered in his clubs 2-0 Premier League win at Crystal Palace on Saturday, joining James McCarthy and Robbie Brady on the casualty list.

Shane Duffy and David Meyler sat out the first training session as a precaution with groin and knee problems respectively, but both are expected to be fit for the Wales game.

Uncapped Kristiansund BK keeper Sean McDermott and Preston striker Callum Robinson remain in the squad.
Stark variations in the number of people registered to be organ donors have been exposed in a new interactive map.

In some parts of the UK just 16% of people are registered to donate organs in the event of their death, compared to as many as seven in 10 people in other regions.

The tool, created by mapping and analytics company Esri UK, shows which regions of the country have the highest proportion of organ donors and the lowest.

The new map shows the regions with varied numbers of organ donors registered (PA)

Words save lives. This Organ Donation Week join the millions of people that have told their family they want to be an organ donor #WordsSaveLives #YesIDonate https://t.co/fqriib2q3S @NHSOrganDonor pic.twitter.com/sOztasziDr  Yorkshire Ambulance (@YorksAmbulance) September 3, 2018

According to data from May 2018, the five regions with the highest percentages on the Organ Donor Register are:

1. South Hams in Devon  71%

2. Malvern Hills District  67%

3. Wiltshire  64%

4. Edinburgh  62%

5. Shropshire  61%

Meanwhile there are six areas in Britain where fewer than one in five people have signed up:

1. Barking and Dagenham, in East London  15.99%

2. Harlow, Essex  16.2%

3. Newham, East London  16.3%

4. Leicester  19.4%

5=. Redbridge in East London and Luton  19.9%

Jess Houghton, technical research consultant at Esri UK, who created the map, said: Mapping complex data in this way makes it easier for the public to see how many people are on the organ donor register in their area and compare it with the rest of the country.

According to NHS Blood and Transplant (NHSBT), as of 31 August 2018, there are 25,661,697 people on the Organ Donor Register across the UK.

Anthony Clarkson, interim head of organ donation and transplantation at NHSBT, said: We recognise that there is a disparity in the numbers of registered donors between urban and rural areas.

We dont fully understand why more people in rural areas have joined the register and we welcome the debate.

This is one of the drivers for Organ Donation Week  to get people everywhere to talk about it and to register so we can save more lives.

People need to tell their family they want to save lives through organ donation. Words saves lives.

The map, which also includes information on how many people were waiting for a transplant in May, can be found at: https://www.arcgis.com/apps/Styler/index.html?appid=44a3f48caae14bee8a7bb82ad1115a5b
SNP membership has overtaken the Tories for the first time, pushing the party of government into third place.

House of Commons Library data shows the SNP membership has just under 125,500 registered members, compared to 124,000 for the Conservatives.

A House of Commons Library spokesman tweeted: The latest available data shows that membership of the SNP (August 2018) has surpassed the latest reported figures for the Conservatives (March 2018).

(PA Graphics)

Nicola Sturgeon reacted with amazement to official figures showing her party was now the second largest in the UK by membership.

She said: Wow  the SNP is now officially the second biggest party in the whole of the UK.

SNP business convener Derek Mackay MSP welcomed the figures, which he said were boosted in June by the row over the so-called Brexit power grab on devolved governments.

 New figures show our party is now powered by 125,482 members - making @theSNP the second biggest party in the UK. Join us today: https://t.co/IVyL6HVDuP pic.twitter.com/thaksHdOJi  The SNP (@theSNP) September 3, 2018

Over 7,000 people joined the SNP in just five days in June, propelling us ahead of a waning Tory party which is at risk of imploding completely over Brexit, he said.

Like the extraordinary membership surge of 2014 joining the SNP has once again become not just a powerful symbol, but the best way to ensure Scotlands voice is heard.

People were rightly outraged at Tory plans to remove powers from the Scottish Parliament, and that only 15 minutes were given over at Westminster to debate the impact of the EU Withdrawal Bill on devolution.
Mark Carneys tenure at the Bank of England could be extended after reports again surfaced suggesting the Treasury is in talks over the Governor staying on until 2020.

The Canadian is currently due to leave in June 2019, ending six years as head of the UKs central bank, and an advert seeking a replacement was expected to be posted by the end of September.

However, the BBC reported that the department is in talks with Mr Carney over him staying at the helm until 2020.

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney (PA)

The Governor will be urged to come clean about his future when he appears in front of the powerful Treasury Select Committee on Tuesday.

Next week, we'll hear from @bankofengland Governor Mark Carney on the Inflation Report, alongside Members of the Monetary Policy Committee - Andy Haldane, Silvana Tenreyro and Michael Saunders. Watch it live on Tuesday 4 September at 1.15pm: https://t.co/j3PCm8HFiA pic.twitter.com/16vJnOGhlE  Treasury Committee (@CommonsTreasury) August 30, 2018

Mr Carney announced in late 2016 that he would stay in his role until the end of June 2019, opting against a full eight-year term.

But that would mean he will be in the hot seat for just three months after Britain formally leaves the European Union in March, leaving a newcomer to navigate the aftermath of the divorce.

The Treasury declined to comment on the Canadians future, but Prime Minister Theresa Mays official spokesman said: The Governor has said that he intends to step down in June 2019 and the Treasury have said they will start recruiting for a new governor in due course.

That is still the plan.

The Bank of England did not respond to request for comment.

Rumoured contenders for Governor have included Financial Conduct Authority chief executive Andrew Bailey, as well as Minouche Shafik  a London School of Economics director and former Bank of England deputy governor.

Former Reserve Bank of India governor Raghuram Rajan and Ofcom chief executive Sharon White have also been listed as possible candidates.

But it is unclear when the recruitment process will formally begin, given the confusion over Mr Carneys future.

Mr Carney became the Banks governor in 2013, succeeding Mervyn King and becoming the first non-Briton to hold the post.

He previously served as governor of the Bank of Canada from 2008 and was widely credited with helping the Canadian economy withstand the shock of the financial crisis.

It followed a stint in the Canadian government, having been senior associate deputy minister of finance, all of which came after a 13-year career with Goldman Sachs.
Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has extended a warm welcome to controversial Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte at the start of an official visit.

The two leaders oversaw the signing of three agreements in trade, science and care-giving.

Mr Netanyahu highlighted the countries long friendship, how the Philippines took in Jewish refugees after the Second World War and was the only Asian nation to vote for Israels establishment.

We remember our friends and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years, Mr Netanyahu told Mr Duterte.

Mr Duterte said: Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extend.

Mr Netanyahu, right, spoke of Israels close friendship with the Philippines (Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP)

Mr Duterte has been accused of condoning human rights abuses in his deadly drug crackdown and has made controversial comments about the Holocaust.

He drew outrage in 2016 when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Nazi genocide of Jews and said he would be happy to slaughter 3 million addicts. He later apologised.

Official Philippine police tallies place the number of suspects killed in police-led anti-drug raids at more than 4,500 since Mr Duterte took office in June 2016.

International human rights watchdogs have cited far higher death tolls.

Mr Duterte, a 73-year-old former government prosecutor, denies condoning extrajudicial killings but has openly threatened drug dealers with death.
Hundreds of young musicians across Scotland are to join violinist Nicola Benedetti in a series of events.

The Super Strings Sessions will see around 350 budding musicians have the opportunity to play alongside the 31-year-old.

Children and teachers from the four Big Noise centres in Stirling, Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee to form one-off string ensembles at the events.

Dineo Makhatholela, Fergus Slater, Lucia-Elena Butnaru, Ella Skinner, Daniel Kondraciuk and Nicola Benedetti (Aberdeen City Council)

The project will culminate with a Festival of Strings Day at the Caird Hall, Dundee on Tuesday October 9.

Ms Benedetti, announcing the programme in Aberdeen, said: I am extremely excited to be working with young people right across the country including children who already attend Big Noise.

By attending the sessions, children and young people will not only have fun and make new friends but they will also learn to collaborate.

I will be working to help improve their playing technique, freedom of expression and command of their instrument so that each element combines individually, and within an ensemble, to create the fullest sound possible.

More than 2,500 children attend the Big Noise programme at its centres each week.

Sessions with Ms Benedetti were to be be held on Monday in Aberdeen, Tuesday in Stirling; Sunday in Glasgow as well as the final concert in Dundee.
The University of the West of Scotlands (UWS) new 110 million Lanarkshire campus has opened to students.

The site has been completed in a two-year project and includes cutting-edge research facilities, an environmental chamber and virtual wards for nursing and midwifery courses.

The university said it represents a step-change in the way learning and teaching is delivered in Scotland.

Students have been welcomed to the UWS Lanarkshire campus in Hamilton (UWS/PA)

Based in Hamilton International Business Park near businesses including HSBC, Babcock and John Lewis, UWS said the campus will promote collaboration with students, graduates and academics.

A sneak peek at the new @uwslanarkshire campus - look forward to welcoming everyone next week! https://t.co/ceMc4bvW3g pic.twitter.com/N8uGo6HauT  UWS (@UniWestScotland) August 29, 2018

Professor Craig Mahoney, principal and vice-chancellor of UWS, said: The opening of the UWS Lanarkshire campus is a momentous occasion in our Universitys history, and has been delivered on time and on budget  an extremely proud moment for everyone involved in the highly-ambitious project.

The new campus will give students and staff access to some of the most advanced teaching and research facilities in the UK.

It will also have a tremendous impact on the local community, with estimates suggesting the campus will result in a 443 million boost over the next 25 years.

He added: The way students learn is changing. With direct access to knowledge at their fingertips in the form of smart devices, students need a campus which is flexible and responsive to learning in all its forms  UWS Lanarkshire is equipped with first-class facilities to support the changing nature of learning and teaching higher education.

Every element of the campus has been carefully considered to ensure it is modern, connected, collaborative, sustainable and that it provides significant opportunities for research and enterprise activity.

As we welcome students to the UWS Lanarkshire campus, we hope they will relish the opportunities it presents and be proud of their new university facility. We want all our students to use the new space, shape it, and make it their own.
A charity fundraiser who collected thousands of pounds for the son of murdered fusilier Lee Rigby spent profits on producing a music single he knew would be a flop, a court has heard.

Jurors heard how Gary Gardner raised at least 24,000 from various events but only 4,000 made its way to any charity because of his enthusiasm for promoting emerging music artists.

It is alleged he used some of these funds to make a charity track called Miss You Machine, which members of the Military Wives Choir warned would fail to make money.

As well as the production of the single, jurors heard the defendant also used the profits for travel expenses in London as he allegedly transferred funds from the charity bank account to his own personal account.

The 56-year-old lorry driver put on three truck-pull events in 2013, 2014 and 2015 in the Leicestershire village of Medbourne and also in Market Harborough  fundraisers which were attended by thousands of people, including Fusilier Rigbys widow Rebecca and his son Jack.

In May 2013, Private Lee Rigby of the Royal Fusiliers was murdered on the streets of London and Leicester Crown Court heard that shortly after his death, Gardner said he wanted to raise money for Jack Rigby and local Medbourne village causes.

Lee Rigby (Family Handout/PA)

Despite Gardner allegedly using funds for his own expenses, Mrs Rigby said she had to pay for her own travel and accommodation to attend a truck-pull event he organised, and never received any money for Jack.

Giving evidence on Monday, she said: Gary invited us to Medbourne to a truck-pull event. I paid for my expenses hotels and meals.

There were talks of climbing Kilimanjaro, there were a number of things he wanted to do to raise funds for Jack.

He spoke about large money  thousands  and it was as if it would set Jack up for life.

Mrs Rigby was asked: Have you ever received any money from this defendant? to which she replied: Jack and myself have never received a penny from him.

The prosecution alleged that no money had made its way to Jack despite the defendant sending emails to Rebecca saying he wanted to raise even more money for Jacks trust fund.

Opening the case against Gardner, prosecutor Sam Skinner said: In this case the defendant, Gary Gardner, using the names of Private Lee Rigby and his son Jack Rigby, raised thousands of pounds in charitable donations.

But the defendant has never handed any of the money raised on behalf of Jack Rigby for his trust fund over to Jack Rigby.

The defendant kept no accurate records of exactly how much money he raised on Jack Rigbys behalf.

He added: In any event, the defendant used some of the money for a purpose that the original donors never intended and would not have approved if they had known. It appears that the defendant has spent all the money he received.

Speaking of how Gardner had allegedly used the money, Mr Skinner said: He spent questionable amounts of donors money on travel and expenses for himself in London.

He has not given Jack Rigby or his trust fund any money. But the defendant declared publicly in late 2013 that he donated 3,000 to Jack Rigby. This public declaration was not true.

As the weeks passed, the defendant kept in contact with Rebecca Rigby. In one email, he said to her that he wanted to put on more events to raise even more money for Jacks trust fund.

Mr Skinner continued: In fact, he did use some of the money to finance production of a charity music single called Miss You Machine.

As the defendant was aware would happen, the charity single was a flop. The defendant not only exposed Jack Rigby to the risk of losing his money from the 2013 truck-pull, he actually lost the money as well.

The defendant appears to have an enthusiasm for promoting emerging music artists and it is the showcasing of these acts that has swallowed up most of the verifiable donations.

The prosecution added that donors would not have agreed that their money could be used for that purpose.

Gardner, of Old Holt Road, Medbourne, Leicestershire, denies three counts of fraud.

The trial continues.
A 51-year-old woman has appeared in court charged with making high explosives at the home she shared with her boyfriend.

Natalie Parsons is accused of two counts of making or possessing an explosive substance with intent to endanger life, and four counts of possession of terrorist documents.

She appeared at Westminster Magistrates Court in London on Monday afternoon to confirm her name, address, date of birth and British nationality during the 25-minute hearing.

Court artist sketch of Natalie Parsons appearing at Westminster Magistrates Court (Elizabeth Cook/PA)

Police allegedly discovered triacetone triperoxide  known as TATP  in her fridge at home in Archer Crescent, Ely, Cardiff, when officers raided the property on Wednesday.

Another substance, hexamethylene triperoxide diamine (HMTD) was allegedly discovered elsewhere in the property.

Parsons, wearing a grey jumper and flanked in the dock by three officials, was remanded in custody.

Counter-terror police said there was no evidence of a specific terrorist threat against the Welsh capital.

Her partner, Edward John Harris, 27, appeared in court on Saturday charged in connection with the same incident. The pair are due before the Old Bailey on September 27.
Officials from Mauritius have told United Nations judges that the UK pressured its leaders into giving up the Chagos Islands as a condition of independence.

The claim by the Indian Ocean island nation about its former colonial power could have an impact on a strategically important US military base.

Judges at the International Court of Justice began hearing arguments for an advisory opinion the UN General Assembly requested on the legality of British sovereignty over the Chagos Islands.

The largest island, Diego Garcia, has housed the US base since the 1970s.

Mauritius claims the UK illegally maintains sovereignty over the Chagos Islands (AP Photo/Mike Corder)

Mauritius defence minister Anerood Jugnauth told judges: The process of decolonisation of Mauritius remains incomplete as a result of the unlawful detachment of an integral part of our territory on the eve of our independence.

Mauritius argues that the Chagos archipelago was part of its territory since at least the 18th century and was taken unlawfully by the UK in 1965, three years before the island gained independence. Britain insists it has sovereignty over the archipelago, which it calls the British Indian Ocean Territory.

Mr Jugnauth said that during independence negotiations, then-British prime minister Harold Wilson told Mauritiuss leader at the time, Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, that he and his colleagues could return to Mauritius either with independence or without it and that the best solution for all might be independence and detachment (of the Chagos Islands) by agreement.

Mr Ramgoolam understood Mr Wilsons words to be in the nature of a threat, Mr Jugnauth said.

British Solicitor General Robert Buckland described the case as essentially a bilateral dispute about sovereignty and urged the court not to issue an advisory opinion.

Mr Buckland also disputed Mauritiuss claim about coercion, citing Ramgoolam as saying after the deal that the detachment of the Chagos islands was a matter that was negotiated.

The UK sealed a deal with the US in 1966 to use the territory for defence purposes. The United States maintains a base there for aircraft and ships and has backed Britain in the legal dispute with Mauritius.

However, Mr Jugnauth said the base should not be affected by his countrys claim against Britain.

Mauritius has been clear that a request for an advisory opinion is not intended to bring into question the presence of the base on Diego Garcia, he told the UN judges.

Mauritius recognises its existence and has repeatedly made it clear to the United States and the administering power that it accepts the future of the base.

Representatives from about 20 nations, including the US, and from the African Union are due to speak in the case this week.

Judges are expected to take months to issue their advisory opinions on two questions: Was the process of decolonisation of Mauritius lawfully completed in 1968 and what are the consequences under international law of the UKs continued administration, including with respect to the inability to resettle Chagos residents on the islands?

Britain evicted about 2,000 people from the Chagos archipelago in the 1960s and 1970s so the US military could build an air base on Diego Garcia. The islanders were sent to the Seychelles and Mauritius, and many eventually resettled in the UK.

The Chagossians have fought in British courts for years to return to the islands. A small group of Chagossians protested outside the court on Monday holding banners including one that read: Chagossian sacrifice to protect the world but our reward is slow death.

Another Chagossian, Marie Liseby Elyse, recorded a video that was shown to judges. In it, she recalled being taken by boat from her home island.

We were like animals and slaves in that ship, she said. People were dying of sadness.

Mr Buckland expressed the UKs deep regret at the way the Chagossians were removed.

The UK fully accepts the manner in which the Chagossians were removed from the Chagos Archipelago and the way they were treated thereafter was shameful and more, he said.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte called Adolf Hitler insane during a visit to Israels national Holocaust memorial.

Mr Duterte, who once compared himself to Hitler, lamented the Nazi genocide of an estimated 6 million Jewish people,

The comments marked a dramatic turnaround for Mr Duterte, who just two years ago had compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust and said he would be happy to slaughter 3 million addicts. He later apologised.

Mr Duterte, known for his profane outbursts and accused of committing widespread human rights abuses, spoke quietly and respectfully during his stop at the Yad Vashem memorial. He said the Holocaust should never be repeated and that despots have no place in the modern world.

I could not imagine a country obeying an insane leader, and I could not ever fathom the spectacle of the human being going into a killing spree, murdering old men, women and children. I hope this will not happen again, he said.

There is always a lesson to learn: that despots and leaders who show insanity, they should be disposed of at the first instance, he said.

Mr Duterte was softly spoken and respectful at the Holocaust memorial (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Mr Duterte, the first Philippine president to visit Israel, has received a warm welcome from the government, despite criticism that it is embracing a leader accused of rights abuses in his deadly crackdown on drug dealers. The agenda reportedly is also expected to include an arms sale to the Philippines.

Mr Duterte and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu oversaw the signing of three agreements in trade, science and care-giving.

Mr Netanyahu highlighted the countries long friendship, how the Philippines took in Jewish refugees after the Second World War and was the only Asian nation to vote for Israels establishment. He noted how in recent years Filipino health aides have assisted the elderly in Israel, including Mr Netanyahus own father.

We remember our friends, and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years, Mr Netanyahu told Mr Duterte.

Mr Netanyahu, right, spoke of Israels close friendship with the Philippines (Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP)

There has been a remarkable phenomenon in Israel where thousands and thousands of families have taken heart from the support given by Filipino caretakers for the elderly.

Mr Duterte thanked Israel for hosting some 28,000 Filipino workers and for assisting his country in its times of need.

At a joint appearance with Mr Netanyahu, he said: We share the same passion for peace, we share the same passion for human beings but also we share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who have the corrupt ideology, who know nothing but to kill and destroy.

And in this sense Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extend to your country.

The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1957. Mr Netanyahu has worked to cultivate allies in Asia, Africa and Latin America, where many countries have historically shunned Israel over its treatment of the Palestinians.

But Netanyahu has come under fire for embracing Mr Duterte, whose forces are accused of killing thousands in anti-drug raids since he took office in 2016.

Mr Duterte drew outrage that year when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust, and himself to Hitler, before being forced to apologise.
The Scottish Government has highlighted serious concerns over the possibility of a no-deal Brexit in a letter to Theresa Mays effective deputy.

Scotlands Constitutional Relations Secretary Mike Russell has claimed such an outcome would be irresponsible and would greatly increase the uncertainties over Britains exit from the European Union (EU).

In his letter to Cabinet Office Minister David Lidington, Mr Russell warned of significant negative economic and social consequences following any no-deal result and stressed that the devolved administrations views must inform UK preparations for such an event.

Mike Russell has written of his concerns over a no deal outcome of Brexit (Nick Ansell/PA)

The letter, sent on Monday, comes ahead of a UK Cabinet meeting on September 13 to look at no deal preparations.

Mr Russell wrote: It is vitally important that that type of discussion is informed by the views of the devolved administrations.

As I set out to the Scottish Parliament in June, the Scottish Government needs to prepare for all exit possibilities.

However, we have serious concerns that a no deal outcome will magnify massively the uncertainties over Brexit.

The Scottish Government believes there are major questions over a range of vital matters, including customs arrangements, burdens on business, imports and exports of plasma products, medicines and medical devices, the involvement of UK universities in programmes such as the Erasmus scheme and future funding for UK aid organisations.

I would be grateful to know what arrangements you will be making to ensure that the devolved administrations are consulted and their views made known in advance of the special Cabinet meeting in order that the discussion reflects the interests of the whole of the UK.

Mr Russell told how the letter followed a telephone conversation between the two men on planning for a possible no-deal outcome and added: As you know, the Scottish Government believes that such an outcome would be irresponsible and would have significant negative economic and social consequences for Scotland and indeed for the whole of the UK.

It comes as new polling suggested Britains departure from the European Union could build majority support for Scottish independence

The research, by Deltapoll for Best for Britain, found 47% said they would support independence, with 43% saying they would opt to stay part of the Union if a referendum on Scotlands future were held after the UK leaves the EU.

A UK Government spokesman said: The UK Government wants to secure a Brexit deal that works for all parts of the UK.

As part of this, we are working on contingency arrangements as any responsible government should.
A former UBS trader jailed for fraud in 2012 is facing deportation to Ghana after being detained at a police station.

Kweku Adoboli was found guilty of two counts of fraud that resulted in losses of 1.4 billion and was released after serving half of his seven-year sentence.

He was detained during a fortnightly check-in at Livingston Police Station, West Lothian, on Monday and is understood to have been taken to Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre.

Kweku Adoboli was released after serving half of his seven-year sentence (Lewis Whyld/PA)

His lawyer Jacqueline McKenzie said he has been told he will not be deported before September 10.

She said: He was detained in Livingston when he went to report today.

He has been told he wont be deported to Ghana before the 10th of September and after that he will be removed without any further notice.

We are doing a fresh claim submission for him which we will be putting to the Home Office.

She said Mr Adoboli left Ghana at the age of four and considered himself settled in the UK, having gone to boarding school here from the age of 12.

He was reporting to the police station on a monthly basis, but a couple of weeks ago this was increased to once a fortnight, she said.

A Home Office spokesman said: All foreign nationals who are given a custodial sentence will be considered for removal.

Foreign nationals who abuse our hospitality by committing crimes in the UK should be in no doubt of our determination to deport them and we have removed more than 42,800 foreign offenders since 2010.
The Duke of York will visit Hungary later this month for a three-day trip which will include a meeting with the countrys right-wing nationalist prime minister Viktor Orban.

Andrews official trip, requested by the Government, will see the royal attend events focused on the topics of education, science, technology and engineering.

The Duke will also meet Hungarys president Janos Ader and foreign affairs minister Peter Szijjarto during his visit, which begins on September 10.

Hungarys Prime Minister Viktor Orban (Luca Bruno/AP)

Mr Orban was returned to office in April following elections where his anti-immigration campaign message proved popular with older voters  while younger Hungarians opted for change.

Members of the royal family have carried out a string of official visits to Europe since Britain voted to leave the EU, dubbed Brexit diplomacy trips by the press.

The royals have used their brand of soft diplomacy to strengthen ties and renew friendships with EU member states ahead of the UKs break with the EU.

During his visit, the duke will open a conference on civil engineering at the Academy of Sciences, which will commemorate the 200th anniversary of the UKs Institute of Civil Engineers  which Andrew supports as patron.

Over the course of the trip, Andrew will learn about Hungarys efforts to promote diversity and equal opportunities with a visit to the Suhanj Training Centre, Hungarys first integrated fitness centre for disabled and able bodied people.

At the end of his visit, the duke will be introduced to Hungarys science and technology start-up community when he attends the final of Hungarys first Pitch@Palace project.

The initiative was founded by the duke in 2014 to amplify and accelerate the work of entrepreneurs across the UK.
Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald has said the new Garda Commissioner must address the concerns of victims and survivors of loyalist attacks.

Ms McDonald said her party had confidence in Drew Harris but he needed to take into account the feelings of victims and survivors.

The party president made the comments on Mr Harriss first day in his new role. He was attested as the new commissioner in Dublin on Monday.

Some survivors and the families of victims of loyalist attacks expressed concerns when Mr Harris was appointed.

Drew Harris at Kevin Street Divisional Headquarters in Dublin (Garda/PA)

Questions were raised over his suitability because of his experience in the RUC and the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI).

During his time with the PSNI, Mr Harris worked closely with MI5.

As Garda Commissioner he will be in charge of state security as well as day-to-day policing.

The Sinn Fein leader said she did not want to see the new commissioner fail but he needed to address the legitimate concerns of families.

We have to get policing right, Ms McDonald said.

I want the new commissioner to succeed, I dont want him to fail.

Ms McDonald referred to the Dublin-Monaghan bombing and the Miami Showband massacre which involved allegations of collusion between loyalist organisations and the RUC.

At the core of accountable, responsive policing is public confidence, she said. This is a legitimate issue.

She added that she had experience of working with Mr Harris in Northern Ireland and she looked forward to engaging in a very constructive working relationship.

I want there to be public confidence in the new commissioner and I firmly believe for that to happen then I think that he has to address the concerns and experiences of those families, she said.

Its absolutely essential and its hard to imagine when the government signed off on the decision, this particular appointment, its hard to imagine that it didnt occur to them that these issues would arise in respect to the Dublin and Monaghan families or the Miami Showband.

This is a very serious matter. I dont think it is real to brush it off.
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The 200th anniversary of Queen Victorias birth is to be marked with a major new exhibition at Kensington Palace.

Visitors will be able to follow a route through the suite of rooms in the west London royal residence where the young Victoria was born and spent her childhood.

On 24 May 2019 we mark Queen Victoria's 200th birthday with a new exhibition at #KensingtonPalace. Discover the private woman behind the public monarch and explore Victorias life from Princess to Queen in the rooms where she grew up https://t.co/rEX4xCNjWa pic.twitter.com/myKs6462BA  Historic Royal Palaces (@HRP_palaces) September 3, 2018

New research by curators at Historic Royal Palaces is being used to reimagine the rooms as they would have been when Victoria was a child.

Among the items on show from May next year will be a scrapbook of mementos created by Victorias German governess, Baroness Lehzen, which goes on public display for the first time.

Showing the envelope of a letter from Queen Victoria (1819-1901) to Baroness Lehzen, a vignette with a scene of Queen Victorias coronation ceremony in 1838, and a lock of hair annotated `hair of her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales.Item from a memorial album collected 1820-41 by Queen Victorias German governess, Baroness Louise Lehzen (1784-1870).Memories collected by Queen Victorias governess including a letter from Victoria, a vignette with a scene of Queen Victorias coronation ceremony and a lock of hair from "Her Royal Highness the Princess of Wales" (Historic Royal Palaces/PA)

Victoria, who ruled from 1837 to 1901, was the nations longest-serving monarch until Queen Elizabeth II overtook her record in 2015.

Her initially idyllic childhood became governed by the strict rules of the so-called Kensington System when it looked likely she would become the heiress presumptive.

She was kept under constant surveillance and isolated from the company of other children at the instruction of her mother the Duchess of Kent and her fathers former equerry John Conroy.

The young princess escaped into a fantasy world of story writing, doll making and drawing inspired by her love of opera and ballet.

As well as the new family-friendly route of rooms examining her childhood, an exhibition in the palaces Pigott Gallery will consider the woman behind the public monarch, and re-examine Victorias later life and legacy.

Rare surviving pieces from the 19th century monarchs wardrobe will be displayed at the palace for the first time  including a simple cotton petticoat dated to around the time of her marriage, and a fashionable pair of silver boots.

Queen Victorias petticoat (Historic Royal Palaces/PA)

Pair of shoes by Gundry & Sons worn by Queen Victoria in the 1840s (Historic Royal Palaces/PA)

The exhibition will also look at Victorias power and influence following the death of her beloved husband Prince Albert, and the role of her Indian servant Abdul Karim, on whom the queen bestowed the title of Munshi or teacher.

Polly Putnam, exhibition curator at Historic Royal Palaces, said: Although considered one of the most famous women in history, Queen Victorias personality, passions and politics remain little known.

To mark the 200th anniversary of her birth at Kensington Palace, in 2019 well be re-examining the life of this fascinating and contradictory monarch, whose cultural legacy and impact on world affairs are still felt to this day.

Kensington Palace in west London (Daniel Leal-Olivas/PA)

Kensington Palace  known as KP  is now home to the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and their children Prince George, Princess Charlotte and Prince Louis.

The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also live in Nottingham Cottage in the grounds of the royal residence.

Both the exhibition and newly presented young Victoria route will open on May 24 2019  the anniversary of Victorias birth  and will be included in standard admission to Kensington Palace.
Ryanair has accused the UK's air traffic control provider Nats of deliberately delaying its flights by not rostering enough staff at London Stansted airport.

The budget carrier claimed 52 per cent of all air traffic delays in the London area 'caused by' operator Nats during the first three months of the year affected flights at Stansted, which is its largest base.

This is compared with zero delays at Heathrow and 10 per cent of delays at Gatwick.

Budget airline Ryanair has said the failure of Nats to 'fairly supply' staffing and resources has led to delays at Stansted airport - its biggest base in the UK

According to Irish-based Ryanair, the failure of Nats to 'fairly supply' staffing and airspace resources at Stansted has 'wreaked havoc' on its schedules this summer.

The airline's analysis of Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) data found that 2018 is on course to be the worst year on record for air traffic disruptions at the Essex airport.

Ryanair has now submitted a formal complaint to the European Commission and the CAA over the issue.

Nats is owned by a public private partnership including the government who have a 49 per cent stake and a group of UK airlines such as British Airways and Virgin Atlantic, who own 42 per cent.

Ryanair chief operating officer Peter Bellew said the airline and airport are 'clearly being discriminated against', describing the delay figures as 'unjustifiable'.

He went on: 'The situation is particularly bad at weekends where Nats are hiding behind adverse weather and euphemisms such as "capacity restrictions" when the truth is they are not rostering enough ATC staff to cater for the number of flights that are scheduled to operate.

'Urgent action must now be taken by the UK Department for Transport and the EU Commission, otherwise thousands more flights and millions of passengers at Stansted will continue to suffer disproportionate delays while Nats protects its shareholder airlines' services in Heathrow and Gatwick.'

Nats says that Ryanair's figures coincide with the introduction of new technology that affected flight capacity at Stansted and other airports such as London Luton over a seven-month period

Nats insisted that it 'does not discriminate between airlines or airports' and declared that Ryanair's performance this summer 'cannot be blamed on UK air traffic control'.

It said in a statement that the figures quoted by Ryanair coincide with the introduction of new technology that affected flight capacity at Stansted and other airports such as London Luton over a seven-month period.

The statement went on: 'All airlines and airports were notified of the timetable in advance and understood the new technology will help us increase capacity safely in the future.

'Nats has a duty to ensure commercial aircraft can fly safely through UK airspace. Adding extra controllers to the Essex airspace will not make a difference.

'Additional aircraft cannot fly in that area safely without redesigning the airspace, which requires consultation with those affected on the ground.'

A spokesman for Manchester Airports Group, which owns Stansted, said: 'We are seeking answers from Nats on the root cause for these delays and considering the need for further action, including the possibility of making a formal complaint to the CAA in due course.'
A man has been arrested for jumping the security fences around the Houses of Parliament.

He was detained just a few metres from the main entrance to the building at about 5.40pm on Monday.

The intruder was described as white and bald. He was wearing dark glasses, jeans, trainers and a camouflage jacket, the Mirror reported.

Metropolitan Police are not treating the incident as terror-related (Nick Ansell/PA)

The incident is not being treated as a terror-related, Met police said.

A spokesman for the force said: At approximately 5.40pm police arrested a man at the Palace of Westminster for trespassing. He remains in police custody.
Donald Trump has escalated his attacks on attorney general Jeff Sessions, suggesting the Department of Justice had put Republicans in mid-term jeopardy with recent indictments of two congressmen.

In his latest broadside against the Justice Departments traditional independence, the president tweeted that Obama era investigations, of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department.

He added: Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff

The first two Republicans to endorse Mr Trump in the Republican presidential primaries were indicted on separate charges last month, Duncan Hunter, of California, on charges that included spending campaign funds for personal expenses, and Chris Collins, of New York, on insider trading.

Both have proclaimed their innocence.

Another blow in Mr Trumps long-running feud with Mr Sessions, the presidents complaint fits with his pattern of viewing the Department of Justice less as a law enforcement agency and more as a department that is supposed to do his political bidding.

The president  who did not address the specifics of the charges, just the political impact  has previously pressed Mr Sessions to investigate his perceived enemies and has accused him of failing to take control of the Justice Department.

Mr Trump has also repeatedly complained that Mr Sessions recused himself from the Russia investigation.

Jeff Sessions insists he will not be forced out (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP)

Some of the issues the president has raised have either already been examined or are being investigated.

The tension between the pair boiled over recently with Mr Sessions punching back, saying he and his department will not be improperly influenced by political considerations.

He has made clear to associates he has no intention of leaving his job voluntarily despite Mr Trumps constant criticism.
German authorities plan to step up surveillance of the far-right Alternative for Germany amid growing concern that the third-largest party in parliament is closing ranks with extremist groups.

Activists for AfD marched in the eastern city of Chemnitz alongside leading figures in anti-migrant group Pegida and members of the areas militant neo-Nazi scene in the past week, after two refugees were arrested over a German citizens fatal stabbing.

Parts of AfD are openly acting against the constitution, justice minister Katarina Barley told the RND media group.

We need to treat them like other enemies of the constitution and observe them accordingly.

Crowds at the concert against far-right protests in Chemnitz (Jens Meyer/AP)

Authorities in northern Germanys Bremen and Lower Saxony said they have begun monitoring the partys youth wings in the two states.

Boris Pistorius, Lower Saxonys interior minister, said the decision was not related to recent events in Chemnitz. It was based on the Young Alternatives anti-democratic goals and close links to the Identitarian Movement, a white nationalist group which has been under surveillance for four years, Mr Pistorius said.

His counterpart in Bremen, Ulrich Maeurer, described the views of AfDs youth wing in the city-state as pure racism.

AfD immediately announced it would dissolve the two youth sections in question to avert harm to the party and insisted its aims were democratic.

Police cars stand across the road as police separate leftist and nationalist demonstrators in Chemnitz (dpa/AP)

Andreas Kalbitz, a member of the partys national leadership, accused other political parties of panicking in the face of AfDs electoral success.

AfDs rise since its founding five years ago has shaken Germanys establishment and called into question the countrys post-war consensus that far-right parties have no place in the mainstream.

The party, bolstered by widespread unease in Germany about the influx of more than a million refugees since 2015, placed third in the 2017 national election.

Officials are particularly concerned about its strategy in eastern Germany, where Mr Kalbitz said the party hopes to become the strongest force after state elections next year.

Saxony  where Chemnitz is located  has an entrenched neo-Nazi scene and AfD has done particularly well there.

The party encouraged last weeks protests, which drew thousands following the August 26 killing of 35-year-old carpenter Daniel Hillig in Chemnitz. Some of the demonstrations erupted into violence between far-right marchers and counter-protesters.

A 22-year-old Iraqi citizen and a 23-year-old Syrian citizen were arrested on suspicion of manslaughter over Mr Hilligs death, police said.

Government officials urged Germans who are upset over the killing to distance themselves from the neo-Nazis who performed Hitler salutes, chanted Foreigners out and harassed journalists covering the demonstrations.

If one doesnt think this way, it would be good to draw a clear line and distance oneself from those who are doing that, said Steffen Seibert, German Chancellor Angela Merkels spokesman.

In an organized response to the far-right events, tens of thousands of people gathered on Monday in Chemnitz for a free open-air concert by some of Germanys best-known bands.

The show was part of an effort to encourage young Germans to stand up against far-right extremism. It was promoted with the hashtag #WeAreMore and broadcast live online.
Novak Djokovic appeared to struggle with the heat again at the US Open but came through an intense clash with Joao Sousa in straight sets to reach the quarter-finals.

Djokovic took a long bathroom break after the second set, much to Sousas annoyance, and then went off court again early in the third set after calling for the doctor.

But the sixth seed did not face too many hairy moments in a 6-3 6-4 6-3 victory that took exactly two hours.

Novak Djokovic consulted medical staff during his victory over Joao Sousa (Carolyn Kaster/AP)

Clean sheet for @DjokerNole as he defeats J. Sousa 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 to reach the QF!



He awaits the winner of Federer/Millman...#USOpen pic.twitter.com/UN4KR3NRRg  US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 3, 2018

Djokovic said: Im very happy to get this one done in straight sets. It was much more difficult than the score indicated. Credit to Joao for fighting, he brought a lot of intensity on the court.

It was very tough conditions, especially the first hour and a half. We are putting in all the work but sometimes you just have to survive.

The extreme heat policy was again in action, with temperatures climbing over 30C and significant humidity, meaning a 10-minute break between the third and fourth sets, although this match did not get that far.

After a relatively comfortable first set, Djokovic found himself in trouble at the start of the second as Sousa, the first Portuguese player ever to reach the fourth round of a grand slam, broke for a 2-1 lead.

11-0



Novak Djokovic extends his unbeaten streak in #USOpen fourth-round matches, beating Joao Sousa 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 on Arthur Ashe Stadium.



Will the  lift his third  in New York this year? pic.twitter.com/JsSMmlSr1d  ATP Tour (@atptour) September 3, 2018

The 13-time grand slam champion hit straight back and went on to take the set but was clearly not enjoying himself in the heat, although his struggles were not as severe as during his first-round clash with Marton Fucsovics.

Sousa, a fiery presence, took exception to Djokovics lengthy bathroom break, and was then left sitting alone on court while his opponent consulted the doctor, but ultimately he could not find the shots to hurt him where it mattered.

Djokovic will face the winner of the Monday night clash between Roger Federer and John Millman, while also through to the last eight is Japans Kei Nishikori.

Looking ahead:@keinishikori will face either Cilic or Goffin in the QF...



<Head to Head>



3Nishikori 0Goffin

8Nishikori 6Cilic#USOpen pic.twitter.com/uwtOxZbDUH  US Open Tennis (@usopen) September 3, 2018

The 21st seed defeated Philipp Kohlschreiber 6-3 6-2 7-5 and could next face a rematch of the 2014 final, which he lost to Marin Cilic.

Nishikori missed this tournament last year and the Australian Open in January because of a wrist injury and dropped down to the second-tier Challenger Tour to begin his path back.

He said: I was playing one match at a time because I didnt have any confidence and I was still worried about my wrist.

The clay-court season was great then first time going to the quarter-finals in Wimbledon. Its going well this year.
BEIJING, Sept 3 (Reuters) - China reported a new case of African swine fever in Xuancheng in Anhui province on Monday, the second in the city in as many days, raising the risk for farmers as the disease spreads rapidly in the world's top pork producer.

The new outbreak, the seventh in China since early August and the third in the eastern province of Anhui, occurred on a small farm of 308 pigs, killing 83 of them, said the nation's agriculture ministry.

The highly contagious disease was also found on another small farm in Xuancheng on Sunday.

"It looks like it's accelerating," said Pan Chenjun, senior analyst at Rabobank, adding that she expected farmers to start selling off pigs before they are forced to cull animals if the disease hits their own or neighbouring farms.

"I think in coming days they will liquidate their herds," she said. That would hurt prices for all farmers, even those able to keep the disease at bay.

China has now discovered seven cases of the deadly disease in five provinces: in Liaoning in the country's northeast, in central China's Henan, and in the eastern provinces of Anhui, Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

China's agriculture ministry said on Sunday it will shut live hog markets in the affected provinces. It also imposed a ban on transporting pigs and pork products from the provinces, the most drastic measure taken so far, and one set to have major repercussions across the supply chain.

The prohibition will effectively prevent slaughterhouses and meat processing factories from using pigs or pork from affected regions. Stopping pigs and pork products from being transported out of those regions will also cause major disruption to farmers, traders and slaughterhouses.

"This will be a very serious situation for large companies with several farms in the northeast," said Pan.

Northeastern provinces do not have sufficient slaughterhouse capacity and typically transport pigs to provinces in the south.

In Henan province, one of China's top pig-producing regions, animal stocks have jumped because farmers there can no longer sell animals to other parts of the country, said an agent surnamed Ni who trucks pigs around the province.

"I haven't had any business in the past two days because there are too many pigs in the market. Prices are bad and there is not much demand," he said. Ni said he used to transport up to 700 pigs a day, but current volumes are around 700 a week.

The government also said live hogs from unaffected provinces cannot be transported through those that have reported infections.

Until now, authorities had only stopped transportation of pigs and products and shut live markets in and around infected areas.

"Costs will go up and it will take much longer to get pigs to the consumption areas," said Ni.

Shares in meat processer Shandong Longda Meatstuff Co Ltd fell more than 7 percent on Monday morning to 6.7 yuan, before recovering later in the day.

Major feed and pig farming firm Beijing Dabeinong Technology Group Co Ltd fell by 2.1 percent, while New Hope Liuhe Co Ltd fell 1.5 percent in morning trade before rebounding.

Xuancheng city is around 70 km (45 miles) southeast of Wuhu city, where another African swine fever case was reported last week.

The ministry said it had culled more than 38,000 hogs as of Sept. 1 as it tries to contain the outbreak.

Last week, the government warned it cannot rule out the possibility of new outbreaks, highlighting the challenge for the government in controlling the disease.

The virus is transmitted by ticks and direct contact between animals, and can also travel via contaminated food, animal feed and people moving from one place to another. There is no vaccine for the disease, but it is not harmful to humans.

(Reporting by Judy Hua, Stella Qiu, Hallie Gu, Josephine Mason and Dominique Patton; Editing by Richard Pullin and Tom Hogue)
FRANKFURT, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Qatar plans to invest billions of dollars more in Germany and will broaden its focus to the country's medium-sized companies, business newspaper Handelsblatt said in a report due to be published on Monday.

Citing diplomatic and company sources, the paper said that the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and private sector players would be looking at Germany's "Mittelstand" manufacturing companies.

"We see Germany as a key player in the world economy and are looking at the German market with great optimism," Handelsblatt quoted Qatar's Minister of Finance Ali Sharif al-Emadi as saying.

"Our delegation will be announcing big new investments," he said in an interview in the Handelsblatt report ahead of a Qatar Germany Business and Investment Forum in Berlin on Sept. 7.

Qatar, the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG), has shareholdings in companies including Volkswagen , Deutsche Bank, Siemens, Hochtief and SolarWorld.

Handelsblatt calculated that they jointly amounted to $20 billion.

Al-Emadi said Qatar was happy with its investments, despite having incurred some losses from Solarworld and Deutsche Bank engagements. "We have a lot of stamina, and that goes for all sectors," he said.

Germany's economy ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request to comment. (Reporting by Vera Eckert, editing by Jane Merriman)
HANOI, Sept 2 (Reuters) - Vietnamese state media reported that police have arrested seven more people they say belong to an exile group based in Canada that aims to overthrow the ruling Communist party.

The arrests were the latest in a string of crackdowns by the government on local dissidents and exiled groups, including two that it designated as terrorist groups.

The official police newspaper Cong An Nhan Dan reported on Saturday that "Trieu Dai Viet", or Viet Dynasty, was behind a bombing of a police station in Ho Chi Minh City in June.

The incident, in which two small explosive devices were detonated, injured three people. Police said in July that they had arrested seven people in relation to the case.

Canada-based Trieu Dai Viet, with a motto to "fire all", "kill all", "destroy all", "steal all", also planned to bomb houses of some local provincial officials but were stopped by police, the newspaper reported.

The details could not be independently confirmed by Reuters and no comment was available from the group.

Trieu Dai Viet was founded by former key members of the California-based Provisional National Government of Vietnam, which is loyal to the now defunct state of South Vietnam, who broke away due to a conflict of ideas, the newspaper's website said.

The Provisional National Government of Vietnam was listed by Vietnam as a terrorist organisation in January.

Ngo Van Hoang Hung, founder of Trieu Dai Viet, was given a life sentence in Vietnam in 1979 but fled to Canada and never returned to Vietnam. The group spreads their message through Facebook and Youtube, the report added.

The arrest came just before Vietnam celebrated its National Day holiday on Sept. 2 and after Vietnam ordered police and military forces in the capital Hanoi to prevent big gatherings or protests.

Earlier this week, police arrested a man accused of being a member of the Viet Tan group, which Vietnam also regards as a terrorist organisation, on suspicion of planning attacks after he entered Vietnam from Cambodia with a large number of weapons.

Viet Tan, which describes itself as an "unsanctioned pro-democracy party", rejected the allegations and said the police are trying to scare people not to support pro-democracy organisations by falsely accusing them of smuggling weapons. (Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
BEIJING, Sept 3 (Reuters) - China's manufacturing activity grew at the slowest pace in more than a year in August, with export orders shrinking for a fifth month and employers cutting more staff, a private survey showed on Monday.

The gloomy findings reinforce views of a further cooling in China's economy in coming months, as the United States ramps up tariffs on Chinese goods. That is likely to prompt more spending and other growth boosting steps from Beijing.

The Caixin/Markit Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 50.6 in August from July's 50.8, matching economists' forecasts.

Though the index remained above the 50-point mark that separates growth from contraction for the 15th consecutive month, it was the weakest since June 2017. While output improved modestly, most of the other readings were lacklustre.

"The manufacturing sector continued to weaken amid soft demand, even though the supply side was still stable...I don't think that stable supply can be sustained amid weak demand," Zhengsheng Zhong, director of Macroeconomic Analysis at CEBM Group, said in a note accompanying the survey.

"In addition, the worsening employment situation is likely to have an impact on consumption growth. China's economy is now facing relatively obvious downward pressure."

The economy was already showing signs of stress before the U.S. trade row flared. A regulatory crackdown on financial risks and debt was pushing up borrowing costs and making it tougher for firms to get funding, sparking a growing number of defaults.

But the steady reports of weaker export orders suggest the deepening trade dispute is now adding to that pressure, with the impact starting to ripple through to China's factory floors.

New export orders - an indicator of future activity -- have contracted for the longest stretch since the first half of 2016, the Caixin PMI showed.

The sub-index came in at 48.8 in August, compared with 48.4 in July. As a result, total new business, domestic and foreign, rose at the weakest pace since May 2017.

An official PMI survey on Friday also showed another month of sliding export orders, though its overall activity reading ticked higher.

Factory activity in Guangdong province, which produces more exports than any other Chinese one, contracted in August for the first time since March 2016, an official survey from the province's Economics and Information Commision showed on Saturday.

Chen Hongyu, an official with the provincial party school, attributed the PMI decline to the restructuring of domestic industries and negative impact from "drastic changes" in international economy and politics, the commission said on its website.

President Donald Trump's administration could slap tariffs on another $200 billion of Chinese imports as early as this week.

COST PRESSURES

Facing rising costs and sluggish demand, China's manufacturers have been reducing their payrolls for nearly five years straight, according to the Caixin survey, which focuses more on small and mid-sized firms. But the August staff cuts were the sharpest in over a year.

An analysis of financial data of Shanghai-listed companies published by the Shanghai Stock Exchange on Sunday confirmed that some companies are grappling with cost pressures.

Their report found that downstream consumer firms were being squeezed in the first half of the year by higher raw materials costs and weaker-than-expected consumer demand, while upstream and midstream oil, metals and chemicals manufacturers posted the strongest profit growth.

Some firms are also facing operating difficulties due to trade frictions between the United States and China and economic restructuring, the report said.

Chinese officials have pledged to prevent extensive job losses as trade risks mount, following a rise in the July unemployment rate.

Policymakers are accelerating approvals for road and rail projects and are trying to reduce business costs. More cash is being pumped into the financial system to bring down lending rates, taxes are being cut and state banks are being urged to keep credit flowing to companies hit by trade tensions.

But economists caution it will take some time for actual infrastructure construction to get going and put a floor under the cooling economy. Fixed-asset investment growth in the first seven months of the year fell to a record low.

Meanwhile, corporate price pressures continue to rise, the private survey showed. Input costs increased at a sharp and accelerated pace last month but only one in 10 respondents said they were able to pass these on to their customers.

(Reporting by Elias Glenn, Additional reporting by Stella Qiu ; Editing by Kim Coghill & Shri Navaratnam)
Political prisoner, activist, journalist, hymn-writer, emerging think tanker, aspiring novelist, hanger on of academia, parliamentary candidate for North West Durham, Shadow Leader of the Opposition, Speedboat, proudly banned from Twitter so officially more dangerous than the Taliban, eagerly awaiting the second (or possibly third) attempt to murder me.
The overall conditions remain as dismal as before, though there are rays of hope on the horizon

The emerging Sino-Indian detente provides BIMSTEC a solid foundation for exponential growth

The Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC), which held its fourth Summit in Kathmandu on August 30 and 31, appears to have entered a new era, awakening from years of somnolence.



The first signs of an awakening appeared in 2014, when a Permanent Secretariat was established and a Secretary General was appointed, the first since the organization came into being in 1997.



Under the first Secretary General, Sumith Nakandala of Sri Lanka, BIMSTEC became a beehive of activity. Expert committees on multifarious economic and social developmental areas submitted reports on plans of action.



Not surprisingly, the Kathmandu Declaration expressed appreciation of Nakandalas valuable contribution to advancing the work of BIMSTEC.



In 2017, at the end of his three year term, Nakandala passed on the torch to the Bangladeshi diplomat M. Shahidul Islam, who organized the fourth Summit this year. At the Fourth Summit the Nepalese Prime Minister K.P. Oli handed over the Chairmanship of BIMSTEC to the Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena.

A tireless proponent of cross-border outreach, with unmatched experience in promoting cross cultural interaction as a Lankan diplomat, Sumith Nakandala believed that if the Bay of Bengal region was integrated in ancient times, it could be re-integrated again.



Armed with that motto, Nakandala oversaw the conclusion of the BIMSTEC Convention on Suppression of Terrorism and the finalization of BIMSTEC Transport, Infrastructure and Logistics Study (BTILS) conducted by the Asian Development Bank. He got the ADB to offer its technical assistance in strengthening the BIMSTEC Secretariat.

How integration and joint development will be possible when the South Asian and the Bay of Bengal region have become so-politicized and militarized and visas are so difficult to get



Burdensome Backlog



However, given the 20 year backlog of expectations, much remains to be done. The overall conditions remain as dismal as before, though there are rays of hope on the horizon.



The BIMSTEC Free Trade Agreement was signed in 2004, but is yet to be implemented. The economies of the countries in South Asia are so protectionist that free trade is almost an unattainable objective. Non-Tariff Barriers reduce the advantages of tariff concessions. Bureaucracies in South Asia are chronically anti-free trade. The so-called national interests also stand in the way. Sudip Dey, President of the Kolkata Customs Agents Association told a seminar in Dhaka that mutual fear blighted any prospect of free movement of goods. Unless the fear psychosis goes, cooperation can only be a dream, he said. Admiral Dr Jayanath Colombage, an expert on maritime security, wonders how integration and joint development will be possible when the South Asian and the Bay of Bengal region have become so-politicized and militarized and visas are so difficult to get. Regional disputes and bilateral agreements, which member countries enter into for greater benefits, stand in the way of collectives like BIMSTEC.



Way Forward



However, the proceedings of the Kathmandu Summit clearly indicated that BIMSTEC is trying to chalk up a new path. One of the most important things that the Summit did was to resolve to have a Charter with clearly stated goals and an organizational system to delivery on ideas propounded by the Heads of Government.

The Charter is expected to clearly delineate the role and responsibilities of the different layers of the institutional structure and decision-making processes.

It was also decided to establish a Permanent Working Group to deal with financial and administrative matters of the BIMSTEC Secretariat and other BIMSTEC entities. The Working Group would also prepare schedules of meetings and prioritize and rationalize the organizations activities.



Coming to the question of projects, while BIMSTEC has given itself many functions, the most important of them will be connectivity, from now onwards.

The emphasis on connectivity is largely due to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modis passion for multi-modal connectivity across borders, probably inspired by Xi Jinpings Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).



Like Xi, Modi wants to go beyond the traditional confines of trade and investment. Like Xi, Modi is hopes to use connectivity projects to project his countrys power, capability and strategic reach.



The BIMSTEC Declaration said that it would establish Seamless multi-modal transportation linkages and smooth and synchronized and simplified transit facilities through the development, expansion, and modernization of highways, railways, waterways, sea routes and airways.



With China frenetically promoting infrastructural development and connectivity in all the countries in BIMSTEC (barring India), New Delhi had had no option but to take up similar projects in order not to lose support in the neighbourhood and beyond. Thus, India is now part of the Bangladesh, Bhutan, India and Nepal (BBIN) sub-regional hub. It is also part of the Bangladesh, China, India, Myanmar (BCIM) Economic Corridor proposed under Beijings Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).



Making Up With China



India is Chinas rival, and the two Asian giants are competing for strategic space in the South and South East Asian region and even in Africa. And yet, at another level, India has realized that it cannot disregard China and act entirely independently. With relations with the Trump Administration in the US not exactly warm, India is looking for fresh pastures and cooperation with China is seen as a fresh pasture.



Chinas well-funded infrastructural programme under BRI has made India sit up and take notice of what is happening in its neighbourhood. All the countries in BIMSTEC have signed up with the BRI and are to execute BRI projects, throwing up a challenge to India in a manner of speaking.



There is another point to be considered too. With Chinas massive presence, Indian or BIMSTEC infrastructural projects, even if conceived and executed separately, will have to coordinate with BRI projects to make them economically viable.



Fortunately, countries like Nepal, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, which have close relations with both India and China, are eager to bring the two Asian giants to cooperate for economic benefits as well as security.



India does not accept BRI on the grounds that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which is part of BRI, passes through Gilgit-Baltistan claimed by India. But pragmatic New Delhi has accepted all other projects under BRI, albeit as a fait accompli.



Recently India said that it would give China access to Chittagong Port in Bangladesh. China too has said that it did not insist that India should endorse BRI formally and that it was ready to work with India on commercial basis.



The emerging Sino-Indian detente provides BIMSTEC a solid foundation for exponential growth.



END
Assures State support for tea industry to modernise and to maximize production

Draw parallels with 3000-year old European wine industry, which still gets State support

Urges industry to evaluate future market trends

By Nishel Fernando

Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe affirmed that terming Sri Lankas tea industry as a matured industry was a mistake and asserted that the industry needs the state support to withstand growing competition as in the case of the European wine industry.



He also assured that Ceylon Tea is among priority sectors in governments agenda to boost foreign exchange flows to Sri Lanka.



Addressing the 19th Annual General Meeting of Tea Exporters Association last Friday, Wickremesinghe acknowledged that successive governments made a mistake of treating Ceylon Tea as a matured industry.



You were never a mature industry, he said. Comparing the 150-year old Ceylon Tea industry with the over 3000-year old European wine Industry, Wickremesinghe pointed out that the European wine industry was able to withstand the competition from the emerging wine growers from various parts of the world.



However, he noted that tea producing countries, such as Kenya and China who were far behind Sri Lanka in terms of production in 1960s, were able to surpass Sri Lanka while others such as Vietnam and Indonesia are now emerging as top tea producers.



They withstood the challenge from all the new wine growing regions such as California, South America, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, and the demand for European wine is still going up, he said. The Premier made these remarks following TEA Chairman Jayantha Karunaratnes observations that the Ceylon Tea industry was neglected by policymakers and government officials terming it as a matured industry.



The government also didnt include the Ceylon Tea industry among priority sectors in the recently launched National Export Strategy (NES) considering tea as a matured industry. However, Wickremesinghe assured that the Ceylon Tea industry is among governments priority sectors as the government prioritised to support tradable sectors over non-tradable sectors.



The problem we face today is that the economy had expanded in the non-tradable sector during the past few years. All those in the non-tradable sector made their money, and now we are asking all of you, who are in the tradable sector, to pay off the debts. Thats the actual situation.

What we were trying to do since 2015 is to restructure the economy to go back into the tradable sector; expand the tradable goods, whether its for the local market or for the export market, more so to the export market.



When we are doing that, those who made money from non-tradable goods, shout. But you cant help them, they have to come back to tradable goods.



As far as I and the government are concerned, in the medium and long-term, we have to put more into plantation industry for tea, rubber and even smaller crops, he elaborated.



The Prime Minister noted that even though the government might not be able to provide tax concessions to the industry, the government would support the industry to modernise, to maximize production and to reach new markets.



The government should help you to look at how you can modernise the industry, which also means giving you more funding and help whether you are a smallholder or a large plantation. In return, what we expect is a modern tea industry, he said.



Wickremesinghe stressed that increasing productivity per person, exploring new ways of selling and going into new markets and changing system of training and education in plantations are vital for the growth of the industry.



He urged the industry to focus on how to maximize the production while focusing on maximizing the prices of tea.



Meanwhile, Premier noted that the tea industry also needs to evaluate the future trends in the tea market.



A cup of tea is very nice. But will it be there as a cup of tea or cup of anything in 2060? There are many ways to look atfor value additions, he said.



Commenting on disagreement among tea industry stakeholders with regard to allowing tea imports for value additions, Wickremesinghe said: We need some consensus in the industry to move forward. There is no consensus about blending. But that should not prevent us from looking at all the other aspects to grow exports. Lets keep aside problematic sides, lets focus on what we agree.



The tea production experienced a dip in 2018 as the production from January to July 2018 recorded 182.24 million kg in comparison to 182.4 million kg, recorded over the same period in 2017. However, tea industrys revenue showed a slight positive result in first seven months of the year, recording a revenue of Rs. 134 billion, reporting a Rs 2 billion increment from the previous year.



Sri Lanka used to supply 8 percent of the world tea production a decade ago, however, it was gradually declined to 5.4 percent at present while Sri Lankas three major markets : Russia, Iran and Turkey under pressure due to sanctions or currency issues, reduced their buying power significantly.

US $ 100mn ADB loan to modernise industry

Sri Lanka is to receive US $100 million Asian Development Bank (ADB) loan to modernise the countrys tea industry within the next 7-8 months, Plantation Industries Minister Navin Dissanayake told the 19th AGM of Tea Exporters Association (TEA), last Friday.



On an earlier occasion, Sri Lanka also successfully negotiated a US $ 150 million low-interest loan facility with Japan Bank for International Cooperation (JBIC) and Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) to modernise about 150 tea factories. Dissanayake noted that Ceylon Tea would be facing challenging times in the world market as Kenya has entered the orthodox tea market, where Sri Lanka remains to be the leading exporter.

Kenya is going into orthodox tea production and they will be Sri Lankas largest orthodox tea competitor, he remarked.



Dissanayake asserted that the emphasis should be on the quality of Ceylon Tea while increasing the production to face this competition.



Meanwhile, the Minister also announced that the government in agreement with the industry stakeholders has decided to put more emphasis on digital channels to promote Ceylon Tea under a Rs.4.5 billion global tea promotion campaign.



However, according to industry sources, the launch of the global tea promotion campaign is yet to be determined as there are several tender processes that remain to be completed before the launch of the campaign.



Dissanayake also confirmed that the promotion and marketing levy on tea exports would be slashed by 50 percent next year, after considering requests from tea exporters.



He further said an additional Rs.500 million was also allocated for individual brand promotion, where Sri Lanka Tea Board funds 50 percent of the cost of these campaigns.



The minister noted that the government is open to the idea of tea blending, if the tea industry can ensure stability of prices.



Sri Lanka cannot afford a drop in tea prices in the auction that would create a lot of pressure. If the industry can assure, the Prime Minister and I are open for the idea, he stressed.
From left: Dr. Timotheues Gaasbeek, Dr. Giriraj Amarnath, Dr. Nilanjan Sarkar (Moderator), Dr. Soumya Balasubramanya and Dr. P.B Dharmasena

Pic by Damith Wickramasinghe

By Nishel Fernando

A leading academic recently proposed to set up a coordination body and to launch a comprehensive watershed management plan to manage Sri Lankas water resources effectively as the current uncoordinated intuitional framework poses risks to the countrys water security, despite having sufficient water resources.



We are not managing the water resources well. We receive 2000-millimetres rainfall annually, amounting to about 131.22 billion cubic-metres of water. However, half of it goes to the sea, University of Colombo, Agriculture and Water Management consultant and visiting Lecturer of University of Rajarata, Dr. P.B. Dharmasena said.



He was speaking at the latest Colombo Development Dialogues, a collaborative initiative by the LSE South Asia Centre (LSE-SAC) and the United Nations Development Programme in Sri Lanka, in partnership with Dilmah Tea, Citra Social Innovation Lab, and the Faculty of Graduate Studies, last Friday in Colombo.



Dr. Dharmasena pointed out that there are over 10 ministries responsible for managing water resources linked to 28 State agencies, which has led to a lack of institutional coordination.

We should have a coordination body, which is independent of politics, compromising national level, district level and divisional secretariat level committees. The decision making should be allowed both ways-from bottom to top and top to bottom, he said.



Dr. Dharmasena emphasised that the ground level issues were only known to persons who operate at that level and hence they should be able to make decisions at divisional secretariat level while the macro level issues must be addressed through a national level body.

He also pointed out that due to the absence of a national water policy, Sri Lankas water resources are not managed effectively to address the agricultural, domestic, municipal and industrial water demands, which are growing at an accelerated rate.



Hence, Dr. Dharmasena proposed at least to formulate and implement a comprehensive watershed management plan in Sri Lanka.



We want to go for a comprehensive watershed management plan and it should be operated on the basis of our ways and models that is sustainable in the long-term. It shouldnt be a battle between drinking and agricultural water as both should be combined. In order to ensure water security, multiple water resources should be considered, he opined.



Sri Lanka has 103 river basins, 80 major reservoirs and dams, 14,204 minor tanks and 12,942 minor anicuts.



However, Dr. Dharmasena pointed out that there are major disparities in terms of utilisation of water from the major river basins, as the countrys over 1,600 tank cascade system is mainly concentrated in North and East, North Central, North Western and Southern provinces.



He noted that Gin, Kalu and Kelani river basins, which flow to the Indian Ocean through the Western Province, have about 60 percent water drainage to the sea while water drainage of other river basins such as Malwatu Oya, Yan, Kala and Daduru Oya amount to less than 20 percent.



Dr. Dharmasena further highlighted that higher water drainage from large river basins such as Gin, Kalu and Kelani to the sea also causes floods, while other areas of the country suffer from drought due to mismanagement of these water resources.



We can minimise the risk of floods and drought by managing the river basins well. If you can have reservoirs at the middle of river basins, that will solve the problem of droughts and floods, he said.

Joining the discussion, an expert in international water resource management, specialist in water security and climate variability, Dr. Timotheus Gaasbeek commented on changing rainfall patterns in Sri Lanka and its implications on how Sri Lanka could utilise the water resources available in the country.



He said Sri Lanka is in a wet season and would soon enter into a dry season and stressed that countrys water management policy should be adopted to face the upcoming dry season as most of Sri Lankas reserves were built during 1970s, which was wet season.



Dr. Gaasbeek also touched upon the changes of rainfall in certain areas of Sri Lanka, which might be due to land use.



During the southwest monsoon, water that usually falls in Nuwara Eliya falls in Colombo. I have a hunch that this is due to changes in land use over the last 100 years, he said.



Meanwhile, a senior researcher on environment and development economics, Dr. Soumya Balasubramanya stressed that the water security initiative should be more inclusive, particularly strengthening the capacities of rural women who face the brunt of challenges arising from climate change.



She pointed out that 33 percent of female workforce in Sri Lanka is employed in agriculture while 40 to 50 percent of agriculture workforce is female. Hence she urged that a gender-based approach is needed to address the water security matter.



Meanwhile, a research group leader for water risks and disasters, Dr. Giriraj Amarnath emphasised that Sri Lanka needs to move towards climate smart agriculture in order to address climate variability and water security.



Commenting on how to mitigate contamination of water, the panellists agreed that stronger regulations are needed to control contamination of water with the involvement of all stakeholders.



Some regulations are needed to control the contamination of water, as even though we have some acts such as Agrarian Services Act, it doesnt work. Hence, we should formulate implementable policies, Dr. Dharmasena said.



The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) also plans to develop a working paper from the recently concluded dialogue on water security.
Friends and family of 25-year-old Kamar Nizamdeen, who was arrested by the New South Wales Police on Thursday for alleged terrorism charges, claimed that Nizamdeen was framed.

"He was an open minded Muslim who has been framed by someone with immense jealousy in heart. Jealousy on his accolades, his position and the type of character he has developed, his 19-year-old brother said in a posting that is being circulated on Social Media.

Another friend, Shehan Bhavan posting on Facebook questioned as to the credibility of the evidence against him.

"Why would an IT savvy person like him have a notebook full of places in Sydney? he is being framed for his name," he said.

Another friend posted "Absolutely unbelievable that this is happening to the Kamer we know and love" before adding sympathy toward the family.

Nizamdeen, a Phd student at the University of New South Wales and an alumnus of the St.Thomas College, Preparatory School, Kollupitiya and Asian International School (AIS), was arrested by the New South Wales Police after it had received a tip-off from a colleague regarding a notebook containing symbolic places on Thursday.

A former teacher of Kamer, Tania Bartlett told the Daily Mirror that it was " unthinkable" that he would be aligned to such ideology or activity he is suspected of.

" Kamer as I know him could never be capable of such depravity. He is a clever, kind and sensitive and is a fun-loving, food loving boy just as most boys his age and so this is simply unthinkable by me and other teachers, students who know him, have stayed in touch with him. We all pray that the investigation will be thorough and that he will be cleared of all this" she said.

He was not granted bail with the next hearing set for October 23rd. It is unclear as if he were granted legal representation during the hearing. Media reports said that Nizamdeen had not sought bail.

The brother of Nizamdeen, explaining the statements of the Police reported in the media, said that there was an attempt to mystify the public with vague statements.

"When the media tells you that he travelled to Sri Lanka and other areas please understand that other areas are not Syria or any war torn region in the Middle East. It is simply the United States of America where he travelled to visit family. When they tell you that they raided his apartment and found Electronic Gadgets please note that they are referring to a Phone, Laptop and an Xbox, he said.

In a final plea to the suspected framer, Junior Nizamdeen urged that they come forward and tell the truth.

"To he who has done this and framed my brother I sincerely cannot speak for my parents but I can forgive you. I hope you look deeply into your heart and feel guilt in your horrendous crime. I hope you can find God and that you can have sincere repentance and come out and tell the truth," he said.

The NSW Police earlier allegedly found documents 'containing plans to facilitate terrorism attacks' and a notebook that named a number of locations and individuals as 'potential targets'.

'From the documentation, we believe he would affiliate with ISIS,' Detective Superintendent Mick Sheehy told the media hours after the arrest.

Australian Federal Police detective superintendent Michael McTiernan said the charges laid against Nizamdeen were 'serious and significant'.

At this stage there is a number of locations and individuals named in that document who are potential targets, he told reporters on Friday.

However, Bhavan insisted that something remained amiss in the entire saga.

"I know he never believed in any of the crap he is being accused for simply finding a notebook of places," he said going on to state "our best guess is he uncovered something while working with the Government and now he is being framed for it".

The brother of Nizamdeen also extolled the same sentiments.

"He has been falsely accused and as justification of having no conclusive evidence, their motive is to prolong his stay under custody to simply save themselves," the post being circulated on social media said. (Hafeel Farisz)
Political change is imminent

Mahinda Rajapaksa as PM is the alternative

No public utterances on presidential candidate

UNP means everything bad in this country

I am for a Unitary State with provincial powers

There is a serious competition between President and Prime Minister

the presidential election could begin earlier if the current President decided to contest

Joint Opposition MP Vasudeva Nanayakkara, in an interview with Daily mirror , shares his thoughts on the current political developments in the country. Mr Nanayakkara, who is the leader of the Democratic Left Front, sees that a political change is imminent in the country.

Excerpts:

QThere are different opinions being expressed by you and others in the Joint Opposition about the presidential candidate to be fielded next time. How will it affect the unity of the Joint Opposition at the end?



We discussed this matter. It was decided that we should not have this debate in public until we discussed it internally and arrive at a consensus. Until then, none of us should be speaking. None should be going around saying a such and such person is the candidate.



QYet, some MPs like Kumara Welgama speak about it. Isnt it?



You cannot stop people from speaking. But it is not us. We have agreed not to speak about it.



QYou had taken up a position on the person to be chosen as the candidate. How serious are you in that position?



I am very serious. I think the winning candidate has to draw a section of the democratic forces, leftist forces, centre forces, minorities and the youth. The candidate should be able to get a combination of these votes. That is what I contemplate on. I am very serious again.



QIn case, your position is not accepted. What will you do?



We will be bound by the collective decision of the Joint Opposition. But, I will make my personal choice if I am unable to abide by the collective decision.



QWhat does it mean?



If the collective decision is to have a particular person as the candidate, I will either stay with the Joint Opposition or out of it.



QDoes it mean you will join hands with the other side?



There is no joining hands with anybody in this regard. I cannot be in the Joint Opposition without abiding by the collective decision. I will remain outside the Joint Opposition in regards to that matter only.

It is very urgent to bring about a change of government. We cannot endure any more the policies being carried out by the government. People cannot bear the high cost of living. People cannot stand and watch how the unitary state is under threat and Federalism is imposed



QOtherwise, is there any decision to join the United National Party (UNP) in such an eventuality?



(Laughs) I can only laugh at it.



QWhy is it?



The UNP is anathema for us from our young days. The UNP means imperialism, right wing, discrimination, oppression and everything that is bad in this country. The UNP is the representation of globalization and neo-liberalism. I think that is sufficient justification to see the UNP as anathema.



QHow do you look at the current status of politics in the country?



There is a serious turn of events prompting the change of political equation. The government is unable to stay together cohesively. There is no coherence within the government. There is conflict within the government. There is a serious competition between President Maithripala Sirisena and Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe representing two currents of thought. It has almost reached the point of breaking up. I expect the current political situation to develop into a split within the governing coalition.



QHow soon will it happen in your view?



It is very difficult to give dates. It will happen fairly sooner. The major political events like the presidential election could begin earlier if the current President decided to contest. That is very near at hand. That is one political factor that is pushing.



The UNP has decided not to go along with the concept of common candidate any more. It will have its own candidate. The UNP has voiced more than once their intention to form its own government. Economically and financially, the countrys situation is decisively crucial. The rupee value is declining.



There is increasing debt. Peoples income level is declining. The cost of living is skyrocketing. All these bring about conditions of upheaval. The government has to deliver or have a political change in order to make a new stand. All these facts put together, I think it is in the interests of the government to opt for a new political decision. What it could be is dependent on other factors. Political decisions have to be taken by the partners of the government sooner than later. The conditions are compelling. There is a serious breakdown in the government affairs. I reason out that there will be an imminent political change.



QHow certain are you of such a change?



I am fairly certain going by my political experience and ability to gauge political trends. There will be a new turn of events.



QWhat will be the new political formation in such an eventuality?



It will be the President who, in all likelihood, wants to break ranks with the unity government. The unity government does not favour him in terms of his popularity any longer. On the other hand, the unity government has an inbuilt problem about the leadership. Therefore, the President has to break up from the unity government. It means he has the opportunity of forming a new government. He calls upon a new person to be the Prime Minister and appoint the Cabinet accordingly.

The UNP has decided not to go along with the concept of common candidate any more. It will have its own candidate



QWhat is your choice of the Prime Minister in case a new government is formed?



It is the choice of the President. The President will decide with whom he will coalesce. I think the President will try out the option of having Mahinda Rajapaksa and the Joint Opposition. For that, he has to agree to appoint Mr Rajapaksa as the Prime Minister. That is one option. In return, Mahinda and the Joint Opposition have to come to an arrangement with the President to make him reasonably comfortable in the aftermath.



QHow optimistic are you of making Mr Rajapaksa the Prime Minister?



There is no other option.



QIs it politically realistic because there was a lot of antagonism between the two in the past?



In politics, antagonism does not last. Only the alliances are renewed. Antagonism gives way to new alliances. The major premise is not antagonism, but the alliance.



QHave you sought the possibility of patching up differences between the two?



I cannot answer you directly. I can only say that I have found out his mind (the Presidents mind) to be favouring a possible agreement with Mahinda. I have read his mind.



QBut, some people say nobody can read the President mind accurately. How certain are you of your reading of his mind then?



I may be wrong. I cannot be certain that I am correct. But, one has to arrive at some conclusion in politics in making the next move. You cannot keep everything in uncertainty.



QIf this arrangement is worked out, what will be the arrangement for the Presidential Elections?



If this arrangement works out, there will be no presidential election.

I can only say that I have found out his mind (the Presidents mind) to be favouring a possible agreement with Mahinda.

I have read his mind



QWhat does it mean?



It means that Mahinda as the Prime Minister will muster the support of two thirds with the concurrence of the President to amend the Constitution. That is to avoid a Presidential Election. That is to elect the President by an internal arrangement in Parliament.



Q:Are you favouring such a move rather than conducting the Presidential Elections?



We want to do away with the presidential system. We can take this opportunity for it.



QIs your idea gaining ground in the Joint Opposition?



The leftist parties have always maintained this position in the Joint Opposition. We want a parliamentary system.



QHow are you getting ready for the September 5th protest?



That is an important day. After we got a popular victory on February 10, 2018, it has had its political effects everywhere. It dawned on everyone that the Joint Opposition which contested under lotus bud symbol is the major political force. Everybody was shockingly awakened to this reality. It had its repercussions within Sri Lanka Freedom Party (SLFP). It resulted in a section of the SLFP breaking up from the government. It caused major trouble within the UNP. We have 70 members in Parliament now. We are the main opposition. But, we are not recognized. We are second only to the UNP in terms of the number of MPs. Where do we go from here?

September 5 is an important day for us. It will be a major, unprecedented political action of mass intervention. People will gather in large numbers and fill the space in Colombo. It will bring the activities of Colombo to a halt. Of course, the city will become prepared for it in advance.



It is very urgent to bring about a change of government. We cannot endure any more the policies being carried out by the government. People cannot bear the high cost of living. People cannot stand and watch how the unitary state is under threat and Federalism is imposed. Above, we have the question of our national assets being alienated. The Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with Singapore is a classic case in point.

There is a serious breakdown in the government affairs. I reason out that there will be an imminent political change



QAre you for a unitary state now?



I am for a Unitary State with provincial powers. It can be State run by the Provincial Councils but with unitary characters.
IFC, the private sector funding arm of the World Bank, has significantly cut its exposure to the shares of Sri Lankas leading telco, Dialog Axiata PLC, most likely at a loss, according to stock analysts Mirror Business talked to.



IFC has been divesting its Dialog shares since 4Q17 and was not featured among the top 20 shareholders of Dialog as at June 30, 2018.



IFC held little over 64 million shares or 0.79 percent of Dialogs issues shares for a long time, frequently featuring among the top 10 shareholder of the company. Even as far back as March 31, 2012 (oldest interim account available on CSEs official website), IFC held the exact amount.



However, during the 4Q17, IFCs holding in Dialog had come down to little over 40 million shares or 0.49 percent and by March 31, 2018 (1Q18), the holding had further come down to little over 20 million shares or 2.49 percent.

But IFC was still among the top 20 shareholders of Dialog.



However, according to the latest interim financial accounts of Dialog released for the April-June quarter (2Q18), IFC was not among the top 20 shareholders of Dialog. IFC is one of the initial investors with Dialog since the company went public in 2005. In 2007, IFC infused US$ 100 million into Dialog-US$ 30 million equity investment to acquire a 1.6 percent holding in Dialog from Telekom Malaysia and a US$ 70 million as a loan.



Brokers say Dialog share had been performing weak in the past two weeks amid the removal of the floor rates and introduction of Rs.200, 000 tax on each telecom tower per annum, starting from next year.



Although some telecom analysts fear the removal of floor rates may result in an irrational price war, BRS Equity Research, the research arm of a Colombo-based equity brokerage, thinks Dialog could increase its market share with competitive pricing.



Given the existing high margins in the mobile business, we expect Dialog has the ability to lower call rates which would attract market share especially from networks with smaller subscriber bases, BRS Equity Research said.



BRS Equity Research expects Dialog, which had customer market share of 44 percent as of 2017, to price their voice call rates at or above the unit cost of the voice call.



Once the floor rate is removed, calls made within the same network would cost less for the services provider due to the absence of call termination fees and more, and would be priced lower.



As Dialog has a larger customer base, a Dialog user can enjoy lower rates for most of the calls he/she makes as opposed to a user using a service provider with a smaller customer base.



It would be convenient for a subscriber using a service provider with a smaller subscriber base to move to a service provider with a larger subscriber base as calls within the same network would be cheaper, BRS Research noted.



Meanwhile, assuming Dialog owns 2,100 towers, BRS Equity Research estimates the tax hit on the firm to be Rs.420 million per annum.



Dialog share closed at Rs.12.20 at yesterdays trading.
The 'Janabalaya Kolambata', protest march organized by the Joint Opposition (JO) scheduled to be held on Wednesday (5) in Colombo, would be carried out in a peaceful way, MP Namal Rajapaksa said today.

Addressing a news briefing, he said the protest march had been organized in a way that no harm would be caused neither by the general public nor to public property.

The Government is spreading rumours that the JO protest would bring inconvenience and trouble to the general public. It is obvious that the Government is scared of this protest because they know that this protest march would become a challenge to the Government, the MP said.

"Thats why they are in a move to sabotage this protest march, the MP added.

He said the protest campaign mainly aimed at toppling the Government and pressing it to go for the General Election.

Meanwhile, MP Kanchana Wijesekera said that anybody could join hands with them irrespective of party affiliations.

This is a protest for all those who are against this Government and aspiring to have a new Government. Hence, there is no restriction or barrier to joining in this protest, MP Wijesekera said. (Sheain Fernandopulle)

Video by Sanjeewa
There wont be any need to close schools tomorrow on account of the JO protest march, Education Minister Akila Viraj Kariyawasam said.

The Janabalaya Kolambata, anti-government protest campaign organized by the joint opposition is scheduled to be held tomorrow in Colombo.

Speaking to the Daily Mirror, the minister said the Government has not taken any steps either to close schools in Colombo or send students home before 1.30 pm owing to this march.

Why should we be worried about this protest? Let them conduct their protests. We are not keen to know what the JO is doing, the Minister said.

We have deployed the Police to take necessary actions in the event any unlawful act that could take place during this protest, the Minister added. (Sheain Fernandopulle)
Mr. Chaminda Ediriwickrama (Left)  Director Marketing & Sales/ Corporate Affairs, Litro Gas Lanka Ltd receiving the award from the Chief Guest Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe while Mr. Kulamithra Bandara - Technical Manager, Litro Gas Lanka Ltd (Right) looks on

Sri Lankas largest importer and supplier of LP Gas, Litro Gas Lanka illustrated its industrial and brand strength respectively with two back to back awards from the Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI) and the Golden Globe Tigers Awards recently. Winning the Gold Award in the extra-large Category at the prestigious Achiever Awards conducted by the Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI), Litro Gas Lanka proved its prowess in areas such as financial strength, operational excellence, competencies in the HR facet, Health, Safety and Environmental disciplines, achievements in technological expertise, proficiencies in marketing and undertakings on areas of Corporate Social Responsibility as well as Sustainability. Claiming the Market Leadership Award at the Sri Lankan edition of the Golden Globe Tigers 2018, Litro displayed its excellence in branding and marketing.

The 17th CNCI Achiever Awards ceremony took place at the Galaldari Hotel in the presence of Chief Guest Prime Minister Ranil Wickramasinghe while the Golden Globe Tigers 2018 was held at the Taj Samudra Hotel.

Our strength as a premier corporate entity in Sri Lanka encompasses both our industrial as well as brand proficiency. While we commit to enhancing our technological strength, innovation and sustainable practices, we also put forth a considerable amount of effort towards building our brand. The two awards testify to the success of our endeavours, commented Chaminda Ediriwickrama  Director Marketing & Sales/ Corporate Affairs.

Gold Award in the extra-large Category at the Achiever Awards of Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI)

Organized by the, the premier Industrial Chamber in the country, CNCI Achiever Awards is a prestigious platform that that recognizes Sri Lankan Industrialists for their achievements both in the manufacturing and service sectors. Through recognizing various competencies of industrials in Sri Lanka, CNCI strives to promote quality, adherence to standards, productivity, employee benefits, labour relations while assuring concerns over the social and environmental obligations in order to encourage enterprises to reach further heights in their spheres of operations.

A panel of eminent judges conduct a stringent, independent and transparent evaluation process of the applicants attributes to bestow the Achiever Awards on deserving enterprises. CNCI consistently ensures the victorious dignity of the awards process and provides reasonable meaning to the sentimental value of the symbol of the achievements of victorious entities.

The award for Industrial Excellence in the extra-large Category focuses on competencies and excellence in similar organizations with a higher annual total turnover. LITRO Gas has been a member of CNCI from 2016 and this is the first time that the Company participated in the prestigious event.

The Golden Globe Tigers Awards aims to recognize "TIGERS" in marketing, branding CSR, social innovation, education and academia across leadership levels in individuals and amongst organizations.

The Golden Globe Tigers awards is multifunctional, multidisciplinary and it honours focused industries as well as industries across various segments.

Gold Award Certificate in the extra-large Category at the Achiever Awards of Ceylon National Chamber of Industries (CNCI)

Litro Gas Lanka Limited operates the countrys only import terminal and filling facility which has the capacity to cater to the LPG needs of the entire Island. Fuelled by comprehensive coverage given an island wide network as well as robust brand strength, Litro retains a strong position as a corporate entity in general and in the LPG industry in particular.
REUTERS, 02nd SEPTEMBER, 2018-Former U.S. presidents Barack Obama and George W. Bush, once rivals of the late Senator John McCain, praised him in eulogies on Saturday and joined his daughter at a memorial service in subtle and not-so-subtle rebukes of President Donald Trump.



Without naming Trump, who did not attend the service, Meghan McCain condemned the president in remarks that at times drew applause and came after she said her dad told her to show them how tough you are with her eulogy.



We gather here to mourn the passing of American greatness, the real thing, not cheap rhetoric from men who will never come near the sacrifice he gave so willingly, nor the opportunistic appropriation of those who live lives of comfort and privilege while he suffered and served, she said, speaking forcefully and, at times, through tears.
The founder office bearers and first executive committee of the Palm Oil Industry Association. From left: Gayan Samarakone, Bhathiya Bulumulla, Lalith Obeyesekere, Vish Govindasamy (Vice President), Dr Rohan Fernando (President), Sajjad Mawzoon (Vice President), Oshadhi Kodisinghe (Secretary), Ravi Jayatilleke (Treasurer), Thishan Karunasena, Manjula Narayana and Manoj Udugampola.

Businesses with a cumulative investment of approximately Rs.26 billion in the oil palm industry in Sri Lanka came together in Colombo on August 30, 2018, to formally inaugurate an industry association under the aegis of the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce to promote common interests and advocate sustainable growth through responsible production.



Plantation Industries Minister Navin Dissanayake officiated as chief guest at the launch of the Palm Oil Industry Association (POIA) and pledged his support to its efforts and to the industry, which is on the cusp of celebrating its 50th anniversary in Sri Lanka.

Representing cultivators of oil palm, refiners, processors, manufacturers, marketers and sellers of palm oil and other products of the oil palm, the POIA has identified, as one of its first tasks, the need to work with government authorities and industry experts to address a recently-manifested campaign of misinformation targeting the industry.



Speaking at the inauguration of the association, Minister Dissanayake said the government is pursuing the policy decision to permit the cultivation of up to 20,000 hectares of oil palm in Sri Lanka and that he as the minister in charge is committed to it, but stressed that policy guidelines on good agricultural practices, procedures and protocols would have to be developed when implementing the decision.



I am very happy that finally, a palm oil association has been formed, because palm oil has been in Sri Lanka for 50 years and is nothing new to this country, the minister said.



There is no doubt that it is a cash crop. Mahinda Samarasinghe, the minister at the time, took the decision to plant up to 20,000 hectares of palm oil and I think that was a right decision, he said.



Minister Dissanayake also disclosed that the industry is working closely with a committee formed by the National Economic Council (NEC) to address some of the strictures made by the Central Environment Authority (CEA) on the industry. He urged the newly-formed association to use logic and reason to take on the naysayers and win the argument.



In his address, Aitken Spence Director Dr. Rohan Fernando, the first President of the Palm Oil Industry Association, observed that in Sri Lanka, people sometimes oppose developments that are good for the country.



Citing the examples of the accelerated Mahaweli Development Programme and the Kandalama Hotel, he said: Both were opposed by ignorant people, but today are beacons of light. Palm Oil is similar; it has been here for 50 years but over the last year or two, some people are speaking against it.



Delivering the welcome address, Sunshine Holdings Group Managing Director Vish Govindasamy, the Associations Vice President, pointed out that in Sri Lanka, oil palm is cultivated only as a replacement for crops that have become non-viable and that in that respect, Sri Lanka is a far cry from countries that do mass cultivation of oil palm.



There is no question of forests being cleared for cultivation as oil palm is grown in areas already under cultivation, he said.



Among the highlights of the launch of the new association were two presentations by experts, one titled Sustainable and Responsible Palm Oil Production - A Wilmar perspective by Edrin Moss, Group Manager - Sustainability, Wilmar PPB Oil Palm East Malaysia, and the other titled The need for a Palm Oil Industry in Sri Lanka by Prof. Asoka Nugawela, Chair Professor at the Department of Plantation Management of the Faculty of Agriculture and Plantation Management of the Wayamba University.



The office bearers and members of the Executive Committee of the Palm Oil Industry Association comprise of Dr. Rohan Fernando (President), Vish Govindasamy and Sajjad Mawzoon (Vice Presidents), Oshadhi Kodisinghe (Secretary), Ravi Jayatilleke (Treasurer) and Gayan Samarakone, Bhathiya Bulumulla, Lalith Obeyesekere, Thishan Karunasena, Manjula Narayana, Manoj Udugampola and Binesh Pananwala.
With the fate of Sri Lankas plantation industry continuing to remain a hot-button issue of debate in the media, numerous views have been aired on the rationale behind the privatization of State plantations in 1992.



In order to clarify the facts regarding privatization and the conditions which made it necessary in the first place, the Planters Association of Ceylon facilitated a discussion with one of the prominent individuals who rendered yeoman service to the nation by helping to drive reforms to the industry at a time when they were sorely required: Dr. Romesh Dias Bandaranaike.



Having been closely involved with the initial privatization, Bandaranaike was able to offer unique insights into the journey towards privatization and some opinions on its legacy 25 years later.



Biggest source of political patronage

Going back to the time before privatization, the plantations in the late 1980s were the biggest source of political patronage in the country.



Politicians were using the resource to give jobs, transport contracts and provide numerous other benefits to their supporters. Even small portions of land itself were hived off for private benefit.



The plantations of that era were constantly subject to political interference. The management was not allowed to operate freely and were often forced to hire political appointees. Transfers and disciplinary actions were also frequently interrupted. This meant that even when people were caught being crooked, they were still retained. Meanwhile, numerous individuals with influence were attempting to profit off these plantations, and encroachments on these lands were becoming the norm, Dr. Bandaranaike explained.



Given the magnitude of unethical political capital vested in the State plantations, and the inarguably worsening position of these estates as a result, he explained how it became clear to all stakeholders that some kind of radical reform would have to be implemented to save the industry and economy from collapse.



From a numbers perspective alone, with the exception of a short period in 1987 when there was a huge boom in international markets, the Janatha Estates Development Board (JEDB) and the Sri Lanka State Plantations Corporation (SLSPC) made continuous losses and had to be heavily subsidised by the government to the tune of Rs. 1 billion per year  which would be equivalent to Rs. 5 billion today, Dr. Bandaranaike added.



He noted that a further Rs. 8 billion, 5 times as much in todays Rupees, was owed by the JEDB and SLSPC to the Bank of Ceylon and Peoples Bank as a result of a US$ 300 million lending facility which was extended to the state plantations by the World Bank. While these funds were intended for the improvement of the plantations industry, there were no significant improvements and the plantations did not have the ability to repay the debts, and the Government was eventually compelled to absorb this debt.



Strategic thinker

The strategic thinker behind the privatisation exercise was the highly respected former Ministry of Finance civil servant, Faiz Mohideen, who later went on to become the Deputy Secretary to the Treasury, while Bandaranaike became the public face of the exercise. Overall guidance and connection to the highest levels of Government were provided by a three-member Steering Committee chaired by the Secretary to the Treasury.



Bandaranaike explained how an uphill battle was fought to bring industry stakeholders together to hold a discussion on the future of the Sri Lankan plantation industry and to find a way forward through the quagmire it found itself in following the assumption of management by the State.



While the exercise as initially presented to the stakeholders was purportedly to find ways to improve the operation of the JEDB and the SLSCPC under state management, ultimately it was the then Chairman of the JEDB who first acknowledged that any measures identified as necessary to reform the plantation industry would be impossible to implement within a State-managed framework. There was simply too much bureaucracy and politically motivated interference to get anything done. The only hope was to bring in private management.



Private management

Once it was clear to the main stakeholders that efficient operation of the nationalized plantations was not a feasible option under State management, developments moved at a fairly rapid pace. Cabinet approval was granted by the then President Premadasas regime to bring in private management into the plantations under contract while the Government still retained ownership.



Tender documents were drafted laying out clear criteria on how the selection would be done. A number of Sri Lankan companies with the necessary financial and management strength applied and following a detailed analysis, management contracts were awarded for 22 Regional Plantation Companies made up of most of the estates of the two state plantation corporations. This all happened with a sense of urgency because the damage that was being done to plantations under state management could no longer be denied, he explained.



Everything was done according to a strict procedure because we wanted these reforms to be above-board so they would last. In fact, after she was elected, President Kumaratunga appointed a Committee headed by the then Secretary to the Treasury to investigate and report on the exercise of bringing in private management. The Committee report gave a clean bill of health to the process.



Full privatisation

After some years of private management on a profit share basis without direct investment it became clear that the private sector needed to invest its own funds into the estates to get the best out of them, because the Government could not afford to do so, and also because this was the best way to ensure that invested funds were not wasted but put to profitable use. This was the next stage, which happened under the Presidency of Chandrika Kumaratunga, when the private sector purchased shares in the RPCs, resulting in full privatisation.



In the context of the entire privatisation exercise, it is vital that we all understand that while it is proper to debate methods through which plantations can be improved, we must all remember that no matter how bad the situation gets, there can be nothing worse than a reversion to State management, he added.



Commenting on the present status of the RPCs, Dr. Bandaranaike noted that producers  RPC and smallholder alike  were likely to benefit from a re-evaluation as to the approach and model for selling tea.



The auction system that we have in place at present is problematic. Especially in todays world where we have such a large volume of transactions taking place online, it seems like a relic of a bygone era. We must look at ways of allowing producers to link up with buyers more directly.



There are instances when a single buyer will be able to purchase the entire produce of an estate if it is of a suitable quality and effectively marketed. We have to streamline our processes to cater directly to these types of niche opportunities while also adding more value locally he stated.



However, Dr. Bandaranaike noted that moving to a completely free market for tea sales without interference and sales regulations by the State is bound to be difficult to achieve because of the large number of parties, including in the private sector, with a vested interest in continuing the present arrangements.



He further noted that another crucial factor for the industry moving forward will be with regard to succession in leadership in a manner that preserves and enhances the knowledge base of future leaders in the plantation sector.



Ultimately, it is crucial to have intelligent, knowledgeable, people in charge, not just at the heads of the companies, but also at the superintendent level. More often than not, a good superintendent will make even an estate that performs poorly produce significantly better results, whereas a bad one put in charge of a profit making estate can bring down productivity and profitability in short order.



Over generations, planters have developed their own systems of meticulous record keeping that has helped to pass on knowledge on best practices for each estate, but I believe more work can be done to codify this information and pass it down. Ultimately it is not just about good agricultural knowledge. Good management also requires good relationships with employees and the ability to motivate them to perform, Dr. Bandaranaike suggested.

Reserve funds

In the context of growing challenges facing the industry as a result of fluctuating international market prices and sharp variations in productivity as a result of adverse climatic conditions he also advocated for the creation of reserve funds within each RPC to be set aside to handle future bad years, which are guaranteed to arise from time to time.



Shifting his attention to the ongoing losses of the State-owned plantation sector, these were the estates which for a number of reasons were not included in the original exercise of bringing in private management, Dr. Bandaranaike called for the further privatization to be carried out of these estates in smaller blocks, than the present RPCs. The government is presently subsidising losses by these estates exceeding Rs 1 billion per year. Provident fund and retiring gratuity payments are also very much in arrears in this sector.



In my view these lands, after excluding areas which fall within conservation areas, should be sold outright to anyone who can come up with a sustainable, profitable business model, after making suitable arrangements to address the relatively small amounts of labour on these lands. While some lands would inevitably just be acquired by speculators, they will ultimately end in the hands of those who wish to put it to productive use. There would definitely be some innovation, and even if it is to set up a boutique hotel; that is still a more productive use than what is taking place under state management with most of these lands, he said.



With agricultural innovation, such as successful growing of a new crop, if one person makes a success of it, others will follow, this is the Sri Lankan model of entrepreneurship.



Ownership of agricultural land

One of the main obstacles to this type of privatization is the Land Reform Act, which restricts ownership of agricultural land to 50 acres per person or company. In my view, there was an original rationale for the Act, because land ownership before its implementation was highly skewed, mostly due to historic reasons, either because some ancestor got large tracts from past kings, or handouts given by the British to favoured parties.



There has now been a redistribution of these lands and there is no longer any reason to restrict ownership, particularly when viable commercial agriculture needs tracts of land much larger than 50 acres. However, I do believe that this legislation will eventually be replaced.
Left pane (from left) Mr. PasanManukith, Head of Information Technology Systems Development, Sampath Bank PLC; Ms. Nadi B. Dharmasiri, Head of Marketing, Sampath Bank PLC;Mrs. Shashi Kandambi Jassim, Senior Deputy General Manager -Corporate Banking, Sampath Bank PLC;Mr. TharakaRanwala, Senior Deputy General Manager -Consumer Banking, Sampath Bank PLC;Mr. Nanda Fernando, Managing Director, Sampath Bank PLC;Mr. Ajith Salgado, Group Chief Information Officer, Sampath Bank PLC; and Mr. Nuwan Wickramanayake, Manager Systems Administration, Sampath Bank PLC.

Sampath Bank honored Sri Lankan ace spinner Mr. Rangana Herath for his outstanding performance in the recent series against South Africa. Congratulating him on his wicket haul during the tournament, Mr. Nanda Fernando, Managing Director, Sampath Bank PLC gifted him a token of appreciation using the Sampath igift app. Rangana, a member of the Sampath family for over 18 years, received the giftinstantaneously on his mobile phone. He thanked Mr. Fernando and team Sampath for their continued support throughout his sporting career.

Launched as the first block chain based banking solution to be introduced in Sri Lanka in June this year, Sampath igift has been transforming the way Sri Lanka celebrates momentous occasions.

The unique person to person gifting mobile appenables all Sampath Bank account holders to gift money to anyone on their smartphones contact list. They can gift any amount between Rs.100 to Rs.10,000 per gift, up to a maximum of Rs.100,000 per day. It also allows them tosend personalized messages with text, selfies, emoticons, stickers and more along with the sum being gifted.

Sampath Bank account holders can simply start using Sampath igift by downloading and installing the app from the Google Play Store or the Apple App Store and registering themselves through it.

Sri Lankan ace spinner Mr. Rangana Herath,a member of the Sampath family for over 18 years

Recipients who have the app installed on their smartphone will get an in-app notification when they receive gifts through Sampath igift. They can retrieve the gift and deposit the money to their account at Sampath Bank or any other bank in Sri Lanka. In the event the recipient does not have the app on their phone, they will receive a SMS with a link to download the app and access the gift.

To know more about Sampath igift, please call 011 230 30 50 or visit any of the 229 Sampath Bank branches island wide.
Sri Lanka is strengthening relations with Vietnam and the Association of South East Asian Nations with Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe due to address a World Economic Forum regional meeting in Hanoi shortly, officials said.



The successful completion of bilateral political consultations in February 2018 acted as a catalyst for future enhancement of relations Plantations Industries Minister Navin Dissanayake said addressing diplomats in Colombo at an event to mark the National Day of Vietnam, which fell on September 02.



The bilateral relations between Sri Lanka and Vietnam are multifaceted and encompass the economy, agriculture, fisheries and education, he said. Vietnams Ambassador to Colombo Pham ThiBich Ngoc said there was an opportunity to elevate bilateral relations to a higher level and co-operate in regional and international platforms for peace and stability.



Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe had accepted an invitation from Vietnam to address the World Economic Forum - ASEAN which will be held in Hanoi from 11 to 13 September, the second time in as many months that he is participating in a forum in the country.

It will be an opportunity to discuss innovative and creative ideas and strengthen regional economic relations with ASEAN, Minister Dissanayake said .

Sri Lanka had established diplomatic relations with Vietnam in 1970.



Last week Prime Minister Wickremesinghe was in Hanoi to address a maritime forum, the Indian Ocean Conference 2018.



Vietnam has been integrating with the world for several decades since the iMi (renewal) reforms started in 1984. Vietnam today is a highly open and diverse economy, Ambassador Ngoc said.Our Gross Domestic Product growth has been sustained at a high rate. The living standards of the people have been significantly improved.



Vietnams economy grew 7.08 percent in the first six months of the year, data from the General Statistics Office of Vietnam reported. In 2017 the economy grew 6.8 percent. Vietnam is a chosen destination for foreign investment (FDI) and tourism with Sri Lankan visitors also increasing to the country Ambassador Ngoc said.

Up to August 2018, US$ 13.4 billion of new FDI projects had been signed with Japan accounting for US$ 5.8 billion and Korea US$ 5.8 billion. Existing companies had applied to invest a further US$ 5.5 billion totaling US$ 19.0 billion.



Realized investments up to August 20, was US$ 11.25 billion, up 9.2 percent from a year earlier.



In 2017, foreign companies applied to invest US$ 29.5 billion in Vietnam and realized inflows were US$ 17.5 billion.



Several Sri Lankan firms had already invested in Vietnam, including in apparel.



Minister Dissanayake said Sri Lanka had a stable investment environment and Vietnamese firms could look at sectors like tourism.



In the first 7 months of 2018, Vietnam welcomed 9.08 million tourists, up 25 percent from a year earlier with 1.9 million coming in July alone. Sri Lanka received 2.1 million foreign visitors in the 12-months to December 2017. In 2017 Vietnam received 12.9 million visitors, up 29 percent from a year earlier. Up to August exports from Vietnam grew 14.5 percent to US$ 155.4 billion and imports grew 11.5 percent to US$ 152.6 billion. In 2017 exports grew 21 percent to US$ 213 billion. Vietnam has a population of 93.7 million people.
AFP, 02nd SEPTEMBER, 2018-A suicide car bomb killed three security guards and injured several more people in the heart of the Somali capital Mogadishu on Sunday, authorities said.



Islamist extremists of the Al-Shabaab movement immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

There was a car bomb blast targeting the district administration offices and three people died and several others wounded, Mogadishu administration spokesman Salah Hassan Omar told reporters at the scene.



He said the dead were security guards at the buildings main entrance where the blast occurred.

Witnesses said the explosion destroyed the building.



The blast was very huge, it affected several nearby buildings including a Koranic school and a mosque, said witness Abdukadir Dahir.



Eight people were wounded among them several students who stayed at a nearby madrasa, he added.



The militants claim came in a brief statement posted on a pro-Shabaab website.



The Mujahedeen attacked the headquarter of the apostate administration... using a vehicle loaded with explosives, there are casualties, it said.



Somalia suffered the worst terror attack of its history in October last year.
President Maithripala Sirisena (centre) launches the official web domain of the organisation

In comparison to the disaster situations in 2016 and 2017, sri lanka has faced disasters more successfully

This year the Government was not criticised nor condemned in the media due to its efficient response in managing disaster situations

With both natural and man-made disasters becoming frequent, the need for a professional forum of disaster risk management professionals has been long felt in Sri Lanka. With the vision of providing a professional discussion forum relating to disaster and climate risk management in the country, the Association aof Disaster Risk Management Professionals in Sri Lanka (ADRiMP) was launched recently.



ADRiMP is an assembly of professionals representing varied disciplines to nurture a culture of safety in Sri Lanka associated with the impact of disasters. The professional body also aspires to provide a platform for dialogue to achieve effective implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (2015-2030) and the Paris Agreement (2015 - 2030) for combating climate change and advocacy for policy initiatives.



Dr. Buddhi Weerasinghe, the associations president, possesses over 20 years experience in Disaster Risk Management. Weerasinghe commenced his work in 1996 with the pioneering project in Sri Lanka under the Asian Urban Disaster Mitigation Program of the Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC), Bangkok.

At the launch of the association, Dr. Weerasinghe, addressing the gathering, noted the significant contributions made by professionals, scholars, academia international and local non-governmental organisations which have been vital in the establishment of the association.



Our vision is to provide a forum for dialogue across multi-disciplinary sectors which is essential for disaster risk management. The trend is to be isolated in compartments within our own independent institutions and fields of study. It is time for us to combine our energies to bring new knowledge, to research and become a think tank for the country and to take informed decisions regarding the safety of Sri Lanka and our future generations, Dr. Weerasinghe said.



The chief guest at the event, President Maithripala Sirisena, launched the official web domain of the organisation; www.adrimp.org.lk. The State Minister of Irrigation, Water Resources and Disaster Management Palitha Range Bandara addressing the gathering said that the Government has been forced to deal with numerous disasters and hazards during its brief tenure.



Sri Lanka faced floods, landslides, strong winds and even droughts frequently over the past few years. During these disasters, the Government was able to combine all relevant sectors in order to successfully face these disasters, the minister said.



Minister Bandara was of the view that the Government has been able to prevent further disasters from taking place by mitigating risks of hazards. The professionals who were involved in these efforts have come together under one roof to work simultaneously, he noted.



The minster was confident that through effective initiatives led by professionals of the countrys disaster management sector, the Government could serve the public promptly and mitigate forthcoming disaster situations.



In comparison to the disaster situations in 2016 and 2017, we have faced disasters more successfully this year due to the efforts of the professionals present here today.



Accordingly, 293 deaths were reported during the previous disaster period.



However there have been only 24 deaths reported during the disaster situations this year, the Minister observed. The Minister added that while 5 of these deaths were reported due to lightning, the majority had been caused due to the negligence of the public.



This year the Government was not criticised nor condemned in the media due to its efficient response in managing disaster situations. Relief was provided promptly while victims were not only safely sheltered, but also provided with compensation within a matter of 24 hours, he added.



The Minister was also of the belief that the Meteorology Department is at present able to issue accurate and timely weather forecasts as opposed to misleading bulletins issued earlier. Huddersfield Universitys Professor of Disaster Risk Management and Reduction Dilanthi Amaratunga, who is also the Head of its Global Disaster Resilience Centre, delivered the keynote address of the event.



Prof. Amaratunga noted that while there has been a major shift in the focus of thinking in terms of disaster management, it is imperative for ADRiMP to facilitate knowledge sharing and capacity development in order to support policy makers and research.



(Photographs via: www.president.gov.lk)
Making a startling revelation to Police Narcotic Bureau sleuths the suspect who was arrested with 6000 tablets of Tramadol yesterday had confessed that the drugs were from the batch of 70,000 tablets discovered by the SSP office in Jaffna on August 13th.

A couple was arrested by the Senior Superintendent of Police Divisional Office of Jaffna on August 13th 2018, with 70, 000 tablets of Tramadol worth over 2 million rupees.

The 35 year old suspect arrested last evening by the Special Task Force in Ja-ela had confessed to the sleuths that the 6000 tablets he had brought to Colombo by bus from Jaffna was in fact from a portion of the 70,000 tablets taken into custody previously.

The suspect was arrested after sleuths had made a deal to purchase the tablets from him in Ja-ela.

The Police Narcotic Bureau and the Special Task Force are conducting further investigations. (H.F)
A group of activists called Liberation Movement today staged a protest outside the Welikada Prison in Colombo demanding authorities to treat detainees humanely.

They urged that the detainees should be released if they were not treated humanely. They also said hundreds of female detainees only had access to one toilet and they had been given only one sanitary pad per month. Pix by Waruna Wanniarachchi
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British Army Apaches Training for Oman Exercise



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Canadian Helicopter Detachment in Mali Now Fully Operational



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Belgium, Canada and Germany Take Up NATO Air Policing Duties



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New Taipei keen on becoming smart city, says deputy mayor

New Taipei City, the largest municipality in northern Taiwan, has been selected by Intelligent Community Forum, an international organization, as one of the global top-7 smart cities for three consecutive years due to its achievement in promoting application of smart city solutions to its administration and services, deputy mayor Yeh Hueh-ching said during a recent interview by Digitimes.

The large population of nearly four million people of diverse background and the big gap in urban and rural developments have been motivating the government to enlist smart city slutions to tackle its problems and provide services, Yeh explained.

Smart city hall and energy management

The city hall is highly automated, including its lighting, air conditioning, ventilation, and elevator systems. Air conditioning on each floor is adjusted based on the estimated number of users via monitoring the use of elevators.

The city is experimnting in two of its districts smart micro-grids which feature integration of rooftop PV systems, small wind turbines, energy storage systems and smart energy management systems for adjustable power supply. Such micro-grids enable stable power supply when communities suffer power outage or shortage during peak-load hours. The city also monitors power use in each building and household, understanding their power consumption for reference in energy saving education.

Private funding

Ddue to insufficient budgets, the city has adopted a PFI (private finance initiative) model to replace 220,000 mercury vapor streetlamps with LED ones in three years without spending any government money. The LED streetlamps save power consumption by 185 million kWh a year, equivalent to carbon reductions by 96,000 metric tons. Many of the LED streetlamps are smart ones equipped with air quality sensors for cloud computing-based detection of air pollution.

Many municipal elementary schools have adopted a PFI model to install LED lighting systems. LED lighting suppliers are accepting the PFI model that gives them opportunities of valuable experiments, Yeh explained.

PV-powered e-paper bus stop displays

While the city is promoting smart bus stop displays, it is difficult to install such displays in remote areas, especially those in the mountains, because of supporting power supply systems. Thus, the city has cooperated with Chunghwa Telecom to install electronic paper (e-paper)-based smart bus stop displays with small PV modules for charging.

An e-paper-based smart bus stop display consumes power of only 63Wh daily, much lower than 630Wh for a regular one, and a single charge is enough for the display to run 14 days. And there is no need to dig up roads for laying power conduits. E-paper-based smart bus stop displays are currently in trial run in two remote areas and will be installed in others later.

Cross-boundary bus services

To facilitate residents commuting to and from neighboring areas, such as Taipei City, the New Taipei City government has developed a bus app allowing users to customize their own commuting routes by specifying the time, the origin and destination. The app, which works on a ride-sharing concept, will then propose the route, waiting for others to subscribe to it. Once 20 people subscribe to it, the bus operator managing the app will start providing the customized service for those subscribers within 20 days.

The customized service is characterized by fewer bus stops and more direct routes based on passengers' needs. The first customized bus route came into operation in 2015 and there are now 15.

Smart day care centers and others

There are 56 city-commissions public day care centers in New Taipei. The city government will encourage them to upgrade to smart operations via cooperation with high-tech companies. Smart day care centers will feature real-time monitoring of indoor temperatures, humidity and air quality as well as smart management for children's health.

The main municipal library has adopted facial recognition to manage the lborrowing of books. Facial recognition is also used in three small unstaffed smart libraries.

Capitalizing on big data analysis of 1.47 million entries of information concerning high-risk families, the city has developed portable risk calculators to help social workers make immediate assessment of risks and give early warning for possible family crises, Yeh said. The city also has established a social security network for assisting families with high-risk children and teenagers by integrating 10 of its departments, private organizations and groups. The network has so far assisted 117,500 such families, he noted.

Other smart city solutions include cloud computing-based online teaching platforms for use by very small primary schools and smart farming, Yeh noted.

New Taipei City has served as a site for experiments for many smart city solutions, some of which have been adopted by others after successful runs in New Taipei, Yeh said. For example,the smart library solution has been introduced to cities in China and the smart LED streetlamp solution to cities in other Asian countries, Yeh noted.

Commenting on the challenges in promoting smart city solutions, Yeh indicated that they should be based on innovative ideas and system integration, and it is important to have everyone motivated, which, however, is not easy.

New Taipei City deputy mayor Yeh Hueh-ching

Photo: Shihmin Fu, Digitimes, August 2018

A rooftop PV system as part of a micro-grid in a large community

Photo: New Taipei City government

An e-paper-based smart bus stop display equipped with a PV module

Photo: New Taipei City government
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Los Angeles, Sep 3 (EFE).- Sylvia Acevedo, an aerospace engineer, entrepreneur and now CEO of the Girl Scouts, said in an interview with EFE that she believed in the importance of not giving up even when the answer was "no" and that was the message of her new book.

"Path to the Stars: My Journey from Girl Scout to Rocket Scientist" tells the story of a girl whose dreams came true because she worked hard and developed the tools needed to reach her goals.

As one of the first Hispanic women to earn a master's degree in engineering at Stanford University and one of the first to work as a researcher at NASA, among other achievements, Acevedo said her book provided a great opportunity to motivate others to visualize their dreams and believe in themselves.

"I want to tell everyone that, like me, you can also do it, you have opportunities. You must define what you want to do and determine the steps you'll take to make it," Acevedo told EFE.

In her case, Acevedo said, her goal from the age of 9 was to study at one of the best universities in the United States, and a teacher told her about Stanford.

"She told me, 'you can go, you're smart, you can do it,' and that's what I wanted, and that changed my life," Acevedo, the daughter of a Mexican-American father and a Mexican mother, said.
Strengthening the European financial industry amid disruptive global challenges

Speech by Yves Mersch, Member of the Executive Board of the ECB, at the European Institute of Financial Regulation (EIFR), Paris, 3 September 2018

Europes financial industry still faces a number of challenges. Its continued weak performance, with low price-to-book ratios and meagre profitability, is ample proof of that.

Some of those challenges  such as high levels of legacy assets, the need for deleveraging and the burden of stricter regulation  are a result of the financial crisis. But even before the financial crisis, the industry was facing pressure on various fronts, and those challenges are still there. In particular, fundamental technological change continues to call established business models into question.

Today, I will focus on disruptive challenges that are arising in a particular area of business: digital technology. Such technology is becoming ever more important in banking and is opening the door to competition from non-banks in core areas such as payments. Cascades of complementary innovations have already fundamentally altered the payment landscape, and European banks need to act now if they want to avoid losing out to bigger international players.

The euro area has been very successful in providing a top-tier foundation for innovative payment services. However, this foundation has not yet been fully utilised by European players to provide true stateof-the-art pan-European services. There is currently a window of opportunity for Europes financial industry to make use of this top-tier infrastructure and the changing patterns in retail payments. But in order to seize these opportunities, it needs to avoid the mistakes of the past.

Laying the foundations

The euro was introduced in 1999, with physical banknotes and coins following in 2002. However, that success was not matched by integration in the market for electronic retail payments in euro, with national solutions remaining disparate and lacking interoperability. While the establishment of TARGET, the real-time gross settlement system for the euro, resulted in a fully integrated money market and wholesale payment market, cross-border retail payments in euro remained expensive, slow and inefficient, with no standardised way of making electronic payments across the euro area. For far too long, huge economies of scale remained unexploited.

The ECB played a key role in laying the foundations for such standardised cross-border payments through the establishment of the Single Euro Payments Area (SEPA)  an endeavour that required substantial efforts by all stakeholders. That initiative consisted of two key stages.

First of all, a harmonised legal framework was needed for payment services in the EU. Thus, the Payment Services Directive (PSD) was adopted in 2007 and entered into force in 2009.

Second, it was important to ensure that consumers and businesses in the EU could send payments to each other quickly and easily across borders, with no differences between domestic and non-domestic payments. The SEPA credit transfer and SEPA direct debit schemes replaced all domestic payment schemes in the euro area, using fully interoperable global standards.

Catering for innovation

In the current age of rapid technological progress, it is vital to ensure that innovation delivered by banks and non-banks reaches all European citizens. Innovative bespoke national solutions using national  or, more frequently, non-European  technology could threaten the integration achieved by the various SEPA schemes.

Innovation may start at domestic level, but it should not face barriers preventing pan-European expansion. Thus, national solutions should provide for pan-European reach in their initial design. As these solutions tend to be provided by non-banks or disseminated by local banks on behalf of non-European entities, third-party providers need regulated access to payment accounts. The revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2), which is currently in the process of being implemented, will provide secure and interoperable payment account access and will allow innovative new payment services to be provided in the EU. What we dont need is integration with non-European countries that runs counter to European standards.

While legislation is indispensable for an integrated market and to promote innovation, it is not the only precondition. Cooperation between stakeholders is also essential in order to ensure smooth and harmonised processes throughout the EU.

The ECB has brought the market together, initially via the SEPA Council and then via the Euro Retail Payments Board (ERPB). The ERPB was instrumental in the development of the SEPA instant credit transfer scheme, which is now live, with over 1,000 providers participating. Those instant payments have been achieved without legislation, with the ECB instead facilitating dialogue and consensus between market actors.

Moreover, that scheme will soon be complemented by the ECBs new Target Instant Payment Settlement service, which is set to go live this November, providing a real-time, high-end platform for payment service innovation.

The challenge for Europe

Progress towards an integrated market for payments has not been without its problems. Europe still does not have an integrated, standardised card payment network, with the vision of being able to use any card at any payment terminal in Europe having yet to be realised.

Europes largest card payment networks are still not interoperable. For example, Germanys Girocard and Frances Cartes Bancaires account for a substantial number of card payments in the euro areas two largest economies. However, owing to significant technical differences, a supposed lack of a business case and an absence of political will, these two networks remain separate  as do most other national card schemes. As a consequence, it is more convenient to use non-European cards when travelling across Europe.

Although some standardisation work has been carried out via the European Cards Stakeholders Group, Europe still does not have its own Europe-wide card scheme, so we remain fully reliant on non-European schemes when making cross-border card payments. Although they provide a valued service, those schemes raise certain questions from a governance perspective. European banks have relinquished their influence in this area, possibly because of short-term profit considerations.

Indeed, large non-European companies now play a significant role in the provision of payment services in Europe, while European banks are focused solely on serving their national markets.

Lets face it: the foundations laid by European institutions have not been leveraged by European providers in order to offer panEuropean services. Instead, those foundations are often exploited by multinationals from outside Europe offering innovative, consumer-friendly solutions. Indeed, European banks seem to have surrendered much of the panEuropean payment business.

PayPal now dominates the market for online payments in Europe, using the pan-European SEPA credit transfer and SEPA direct debit schemes to provide harmonised services. Meanwhile, Google, Apple, Facebook and Amazon  often referred to collectively as GAFA  are also offering significant payment services with pan-European reach, some of which involve joint ventures with individual banks at national level. At the same time, Chinese giants like Alibaba and Tencent are advancing. While these companies are to be admired for their ability to expand and provide innovative services that consumers want, I would ask why there are no European companies competing in that arena.

There is a risk that our dependence on foreign providers will increase further as regards the development of innovative payment services, since banks are resisting the objectives of PSD2 on this front. They have been defensive when it comes to granting technical access to new and innovative payment service providers, which will limit European fintech companies ability to provide competitive solutions. Indeed, I fear that global giants from outside Europe will use their network power to increase their presence further.

In other sectors, European companies have succeeded in achieving global reach. In the car industry, for example, European vehicles set the standard when it comes to quality and reliability. There is no reason why this success cannot be replicated in the area of payment services  or financial services in general.

The way we pay in Europe is changing. Significant numbers of consumers are moving to online payment channels, with retail payments increasingly being carried out via mobile phones. At the same time, virtual currencies have long been a topic of debate  and not only among experts, either.

European citizens demand pan-European services that are safe and efficient. Consequently, there is a need to look carefully at the governance and regulation of payment solutions. Many payment channels are provided by non-European companies. Although those companies comply with our legislation and use our payment infrastructure, they are, for the most part, not domiciled in Europe. This increases our dependence on third countries. In particular, we have to be mindful of the fact that extraterritorial jurisdiction could, in a worstcase scenario, affect the operation of those companies and disrupt payments between European counterparties. In the current geopolitical environment, such risks are, unfortunately, not as remote as they once were and need to be taken seriously by European policymakers.

Conclusions

We have laid the groundwork by providing safe and efficient market infrastructure, and this should be used as a basis for innovative, user-friendly solutions. The way to protect the integrity of European payment services is not by closing them off to the world, but by making them global players. Building on local or national solutions is anachronistic and will not meet the needs of the market.

If we are to succeed at a global level, the issue of domestic governance needs to be addressed. Our reliance on non-European card schemes for domestic payments in Europe is suboptimal. European card schemes should make interoperability and full pan-European reach their main priorities, enabling any card to be used at any terminal. At the same time, governance arrangements need to cater for European needs, given that cards are the single most important electronic payment instrument in Europe.

However, protectionism should not be used to artificially promote European innovation in payment services. We should remain open to global players, but should focus more on addressing the reasons for the lack of major European providers in the payment market.

It is important that European payment service providers are active at a global level. Rather than establishing national solutions, we should seek to develop global solutions based on European open governance that use European infrastructure.

Europe boasts state-of-the-art payment systems. They should be used by pan-European providers to offer innovative, safe and user-friendly solutions for the benefit of people across Europe and all over the world.




Ireland launches the country's first animal health surveillance website



A website focusing on health surveillance of farmed animals was launched in Ireland on Thursday.

Speaking at the launch ceremony of the Animal Health Surveillance Website, Michael Creed, Irish Agriculture Minister, said, "Farmers today need information to manage risk in all aspects of their businesses, including maintaining the health of their animals."



The website, created by the Department of Agriculture, Food and Marine, aims to increase farmers' awareness on animal diseases in order to maximise economic returns from their farmed animals, Creed added.



Additionally, the Minister explained that the website can also be used as a marketing tool by Irish trade delegations when promoting Irish produce abroad.



Essentially, animal health surveillance encompasses systematic collection, collation, analysis and dissemination of animal health data. In a nutshell, it is the gathering of intelligence to quickly identify animal diseases for a more informed risk management at all levels within the animal farming industry.



A country well-known for its high-quality and green meat products, official statistics showed that the country exported a record high of 3.8 billion euros (US$4.4 billion) of meat products in 2017.



The launch of the animal health surveillance website is part of the local government's efforts to maintain the competitiveness of Irish meat products on the international market.



Source: Xinhuanet
Erdogan proposes trade without US dollar

'We are proposing to trade in our own currencies rather than US dollar', Erdogan said to heads of Turkic Republics.

International trade's dependency on the US dollar should be decreased as it became an obstacle for Turkey, said President Erdogan on Monday.

FIGHTING WITH FETO

"We are proposing to trade in our own currencies rather than U.S. dollar," told Erdogan at the 6th Summit of the Turkic Council at Rukh Ordo Cultural Center in Kyrgyzstan. The Turkish leader said Turkey and its friendly countries should not delay fighting the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO).

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.

THE TURKIC MEETING

Erdogan added that the terrorist organization had shaped an organizational structure by establishing educational institutions worldwide as well as in Turkey.

The summit is hosted by Kyrgyzstan's President Sooronbay Jeenbekov at Rukh Ordo Cultural Center.

In addition to presidents of Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, and Uzbekistan, Hungarian prime minister also participates in the event as an observer.
The misguided Affordable Clean Energy rule By Dr. Tim Ball and Tom Harris

On August 29, 2018, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a press release EPA Acting Administrator tours Ohio to promote ACE rule, his proposed Affordable Clean Energy rule. According to the release, the Trump Administrations proposed rule will replace the Clean Power Plan [CPP] and establish emission guidelines for [U.S.] states to develop plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But the new rule is still misguided. Like the CPP, it is based on the mistaken idea that human activities, and particularly our industries and electricity generators, are causing dangerous global warming. In reality, increasing atmospheric levels of carbon dioxide (CO2), the only gas restricted by both the ACE and the CPP, is bringing huge benefits across the terrestrial biosphere. CO2 is an essential ingredient in photosynthesis. The last thing we should be doing is trying to reduce this plant food. So why is it that, even under President Trump, the EPA still finds it necessary to restrict CO2 emissions? Lets review a bit of history. To increase government control over the economy, the Obama White House strongly supported the climate scare: the unfounded crusade to restrict CO2 emissions. The impact was and would be profoundly harmful. As MIT atmospheric meteorologist Richard Lindzen has said, Controlling carbon is a bureaucrats dream. If you control carbon, you control life. Obama achieved his goals using the deep state  influential, unelected, decision-making, unaccountable government bureaucrats, whose policies and long-term goals are mostly unaffected by changes in elected officials. In particular, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was central to his administrations control of carbon in the form of CO2. Obama knew he could not get the Paris Agreement on climate change through the Senate because  just before the rest of the world adopted the UNs 1997 Kyoto Protocol in Japan  the Senate unanimously passed the Byrd/Hagel Resolution. This resolution stated that the United States should not be a signatory to any agreement that did not hold developing countries to similar targets as developed nations. In particular, the document said in part: Resolved, that it is the sense of the Senate that  the United States should not be a signatory to any protocol to, or other agreement regarding, the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change of 1992, at negotiations in Kyoto in December 1997, or thereafter, which would 



a) mandate new commitments to limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions for the Annex I Parties, unless the protocol or other agreement also mandates new specific scheduled commitments to limit or reduce greenhouse gas emissions for Developing Country Parties within the same compliance period The Paris Agreement does indeed have very different targets for developing and developed countries. So Obama asserted that Paris should not be considered a treaty, and so would not require Senate approval. To get rulings that seemed to legitimize the EPAs control over CO2 without going through Congress, Obama exploited a growing problem with the Constitutional balance of powers: the increasing tendency of the Judicial Branch to rule from the bench and make decisions that were properly Legislative Branch responsibilities. The EPA website explains how it was able to bypass Congress and control CO2: On April 2, 2007, in Massachusetts v. EPA, 549 U.S. 497 (2007), the Supreme Court found that greenhouse gases [including CO2] are air pollutants covered by the Clean Air Act. The Court held that the [EPA] Administrator must determine whether or not emissions of greenhouse gases from new motor vehicles cause or contribute to air pollution which may reasonably be anticipated to endanger public health or welfare, or whether the science is too uncertain to make a reasoned decision. Predictably, on December 7, 2009, the EPA issued its Endangerment Finding that GHG emissions did indeed threaten health, asserting: The Administrator finds that the current and projected concentrations of the six key well-mixed greenhouse gases  carbon dioxide (CO2), methane (CH4), nitrous oxide (N2O), hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs), perfluorocarbons (PFCs), and sulfur hexafluoride (SF6)  in the atmosphere threaten the public health and welfare of current and future generations. and: The Administrator finds that the combined emissions of these well-mixed greenhouse gases from new motor vehicles and new motor vehicle engines contribute to the greenhouse gas pollution which threatens public health and welfare. This is the flawed driver, the faulty reasoning, that underlies both the CPP and the ACE. Ironically, under the EPA definition of air pollutant, EPA could even include oxygen because it causes rust. It is likely that the EPA colluded with the State of Massachusetts to get it to sue the EPA in support of designating GHGs as pollutants. In effect, the state claimed that the EPA was endangering the lives of its citizens by failing to control harmful CO2. The trial transcript strongly suggests that EPA deliberately lost the final Supreme Court case. If it had properly defended itself, the case would have exposed all the lies and misinformation already pedaled to convince the public that dangerous human-caused global warming is a proven scientific fact. The trouble is, most people think about this case in the context of criminal or civil law. In fact, and this is central to the problems created by unaccountable bureaucrats, it was adjudicated under Administrative Law (AL), a third component of the U.S. legal system. Created just after World War II, AL allows groups and individuals to bypass the Constitution and Congress. It gives direct, unaccountable power to technocrats, subject matter experts who are members of highly skilled elite groups. The creation of AL speaks to the failure of the political class, but also to the manipulative power of technocrats and technocracy. It was created because too many politicians cannot understand science and technology. They are afraid of making a mistake and exposing their ignorance, which would jeopardize their political careers. Instead of creating legislation that enables them to get information in ways they can understand, they give nearly complete control of issues involving science and technology to scientists, specialists and technologists. Here is what the Administrative Law does, The executive, legislative, and judicial branches of the US federal government cannot always directly perform their constitutional responsibilities. Specialized powers are therefore delegated to an agency, board, or commission. These administrative governmental bodies oversee and monitor activities in complex areas, such as commercial aviation, medical device manufacturing and securities markets. Simply put, if legislators cant decide these matters in the first place, they wont know if what the experts are telling them is the truth, or an exaggeration, manipulation or fabrication. Justice Scalia summarized the situation when the case came before the Supreme Court in 2007: The Courts alarm over global warming may or may not be justified, but it ought not distort the outcome of this litigation. This is a straightforward administrative-law case, in which Congress has passed a malleable statute giving broad discretion, not to us but to an executive agency. No matter how important the underlying policy issues at stake, this Court has no business substituting its own desired outcome for the reasoned judgment of the responsible agency. As forceful and persuasive as Justice Scalias comments were (here is his dissent in full), there is one massive hole in them that illustrates what is wrong with AL, not only in this case, but in almost every case where it is the basis for judgment. It was the EPA that determined that CO2 was a harmful substance. The Supreme Court is in the foolish position of effectively ruling that the EPA must control a harmful substance that the EPA decided, with little evidence, was a harmful substance. No wonder so many bureaucrats take positions with technocrat groups after they leave government. They can guide the groups on how to get what they want without having to bribe politicians. The EPA was the central agency for creating, perpetuating and applying the myth that that CO2 is a harmful substance that is causing runaway global warming. Its bureaucrats wrote and promoted the biggest deep state fake news story of all time. President Trump must continue to rein them in. Dr. Tim Ball is an environmental consultant and former climatology professor at the University of Winnipeg. Tom Harris is executive director of the Ottawa, Canada-based International Climate Science Coalition. Home
America First Energy Conference  an amazing day

By Dr. Jay Lehr and Tom Harris



It will be an amazing day, Dr. Tim Huelskamp announced at the start of the America First Energy Conference (AFEC) held August 7 in New Orleans. Youre going to learn a lot  about so many issues  issues many in the media do not want us to know about.

Indeed, we did. As Huelskamp, former Kansas Congressman and now President of conference organizer The Heartland Institute, explained to the audience of 225, packed into that single day were presentations from leading representatives of government, science and think tanks determined to set the record straight on where America stands and where it needs to go on energy. Here are samples.

In his morning keynote address Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry summarized the benefits of energy independence. An energy independent America creates a safe America; it creates a prosperous America. It builds the middle class. It provides good jobs, good schools. It gives government the ability to give teachers a raise, to give our police and firefighters raises. It secures the safety and liberty of the entire world.

Using the electricity required to power the Houston metropolitan area as an example, Landry discussed the impracticality of trying to replace fossil fuels with alternative energy. To produce that power using corn ethanol would require over 21,000 square miles of corn fields.

Think about that footprint! he exclaimed. To produce the same amount of electricity from wind power would take almost 900 square miles of wind turbines, or 150 square miles of solar panels, he added.

Roy Spencer, Principal Research Scientist at the University of Alabama in Huntsville, was an ever-present voice at the conference. He received an award for valor in the face of extreme opposition to his outstanding work on satellite measurements, which show conclusively that carbon dioxide (CO2) has played no significant role in altering Earths temperature.

In his panel presentation on CO2, he made the unarguable case that there are no negatives for the rising amount of CO2 in our atmosphere. It is a miracle molecule that makes life possible on Planet Earth.

Kathleen Hartnett White, Director of the Armstrong Center for Energy & the Environment, Texas Public Policy Foundation, talked about the positive impact that her book Fueling Freedom: Exposing the mad war on energy, coauthored with Steve Moore of the Presidents transition team, has had on the US energy picture.

She also focused on the horrific impacts outcomes forced upon worlds poorest families, when they are deprived of efficient, inexpensive fossil fuels in favor of costly solar and wind energy that can never compete in the free market without major taxpayer subsidies.

Joe Leimkuhler, vice president of drilling for Louisiana-based LLOG Exploration, shocked the audience with incredible data on the efficiency and economics of continuing to developing our vast offshore oil reserves in the Gulf of Mexico.

Because of the great advances in development of shale gas through horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, less attention is being paid to more conventional off shore vertical wells. But in fact, three-dimensional seismic data, combined with technological advances that allow multiple wells from the same platform, have costs down and yields up.

Leimkuhler said that in areas of the Gulf of Mexico that are currently open to leasing (i.e., the Central and Western Gulf) more and more offshore leases are likely to receive bids in the future, due to the increased value of Gulf Coast Crude relative to oil from fracking. For the Gulf Coast refineries, offshore Gulf of Mexico crudes provide higher yields of the more valuable products desired by the market (fuel, diesel).

Sterling Burnet, Editor of the Heartland Institutes Environment and Climate News, moderated a panel on coal, oil, and natural gas. Panelists demonstrated Americas good fortune of holding huge inexpensive reserves that can maintain Americas energy costs dramatically below that of other nations. Burnett said we must end the war on fossil fuels by continuing to explain the economics, safety and efficiency of coal, oil and natural gas.

He described the large numbers of coal fired plants that were shut down by the Obama administration. This trend must be stopped, Burnett emphasized. Coal needs to be brought back as a great American resource in the hearts and minds of the American public.

Myron Ebell, Director of the Center for Energy and Environment at the Competitive Enterprise Institute, led the Trump administrations transition team on energy regulation. At AFEC he reviewed the many regulations being eliminated.

He noted that President Trump called for two rules to be eliminated for every new rule that would be established in his administration; but in fact his administration has eliminated twenty regulations for every new one established. We still have a long way to go to fully unencumber Americas economy, Ebell said, but the start has exceeded most expectations.

Marc Morano, publisher of the influential Washington,DC-based Climatedepot.com, revealed that many of Americas most strident leftist environmental activist groups are heavily financed by Russian money in an effort to hurt the US economy through inhibiting the use of fossil fuels and promoting the waste of government funds for research into implausible man-caused climate change.

Moranos new book, The Politically Incorrect Guide to Climate Change, is considered one of the most complete guides to the true history of the greatest fraud in history, man-caused climate change.

It was heartening to learn the participants in Panel 6: Reforming the EPA all felt the new administrator Andrew Wheeler will carry on the excellent work of former administrator Scott Pruitt. The problem is, and will continue to be, that the vast majority of EPA staff remain Obama appointees who will continue to impede efforts to make significant reforms. In spite of this, changes for the better are occurring almost daily as Wheeler meets with state groups across the country.

In his keynote address at the conferences closing session, philosopher and President of the Center for Industrial Progress Alex Epstein explained how to win the energy debate. First establish an agreement on the correct framework, one that is even handed, precise and values human health, living standards and betterment. Then the facts in support of fossils fuels are more likely to be well-received.

Epstein, author of the New York Times bestseller,The Moral Case for Fossil Fuels, showed a video of his exchange with Senator Barbara Boxer of California at the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works. Boxer wondered what a philosopher was doing lecturing the committee. He smoothly answered, to help you learn how to think clearly. This brought the house down.

All AFEC sessions  including Carbon taxes, cap & trade, and other bad ideas, Fueling freedom and prosperity, Cafe standards: Why they need to go, Climate lawsuits against energy companies and the government  may be viewed on the conference web site: http://americafirstenergy.org/.

Everyone needs to watch these educational conference presentations. It was a day to remember.

Dr. Jay Lehr is The Heartland Institutes Science Director. At AFEC, he moderated the conference panel Why CO2 emissions are not creating a climate crisis. Tom Harris is Executive Director of the Ottawa, Canada-based International Climate Science Coalition. He is a policy advisor to The Heartland Institute and moderated the conference panel, Fueling freedom and prosperity.
Ahab Mueller continues to chase President Trump By Michael R Shannon

I frankly dont know how President Trump gets anything accomplished in the White House. What with the noise created by dominoes falling and the screeching of walls closing in due to Ahab Muellers investigation, it must be impossible to hear yourself think. On the plus side, the background din does make it that much harder for disgruntled employees to surreptitiously record the presidents conversations. Now that former Trump lawyer Michael Cohen pled guilty, its time for Ahab Mueller and his angry Democrats to quit shillyshallying and get to the campaign finance scandal hiding in plain sight: Barron Trumps allowance. Stormy Daniels ragging on Trump during his campaign is just another estrogen attack like Rosie ODonnell or Megyn Kelly. Trump and female entertainers, with or without their clothes on, are a volatile mix. Barron is a different story. Say hes unhappy with the size of his allowance compared to that of other plutocrat progeny. In an interview with the school newspaper Barron calls his father a skinflint and hints that he might not be a billionaire. Tiger Beat picks up the story and the next thing you know George Ramos is shouting questions. Its possible Trump isnt as wealthy as he claims. Thats why the only way the public would get access to Trumps tax returns is if Anderson Cooper pried the documents from his cold, dead hands. I think thats also why Trump abandoned one of his early selling points and didnt finance his own campaign. If Barron had even intimated he thought dad had small hands and a smaller bank account it would have been headline news. Keeping that negative publicity squashed would have been invaluable to Trumps campaign. Thats why its time for Mueller to bait another hook. First, Ahab needs to learn if Barrons allowance experienced a suspiciously large increase just after his father announced. Then, who handled the money? Did Trump distribute the payoff or did he use a cutout like Melania? Or a check drawn on a Russian bank? Everyone knows how volatile kids can be. Did Trump have to sweeten the pot as the campaign intensified to ensure continued silence? You may be skeptical. Thinking even the insane clown posse that constitutes the US left would hesitate to weaponize an allowance, but youd be wrong. Look at the campaign law violations to which Cohen pled guilty. In this instance Mueller manufactured his own whale and claimed a catch. The twisted logic behind the violation is twofold. Cohen made an illegal campaign contribution when he paid Stormy Daniels using his own money, then Trump reimbursed him. And two, the expenditure was not accurately reported on the campaign reports filed with the FEC. Lets take these fantasies one at a time. Trump is allowed to spend unlimited amounts of his money on his campaign. If Cohen is guilty of a contribution violation because he paid a whore for not performing, then EVERY campaign vendor from ad agencies, to printers, to pollsters are also guilty of campaign contribution violations if they bought media, printed literature or surveyed voters before being paid by the campaign. By this illogic, any vendor who has an outstanding invoice woe unto you if its the Clinton campaign  is also guilty of an expenditure violation or an unreported loan. Which brings us to the other violation. Theres a blank on the form where the campaign explains for what the money was spent. Ive seen consulting, media and campaign services plenty of times, but never hush money to a ho. If Trump reimbursed Cohen and the expenditure was listed as consulting and not consorting then we are in the realm of definitions. At worst its a labeling offense and no jury would convict and no prosecutor, other than one on a whale hunt, would bring charges. Fined, yes. Jail, no. Im in agreement with Mark Penn, formerly a consultant for the Clintons, Paying for nondisclosure agreements for perfectly legal activities is not a crime, not a campaign contribution as commonly understood or ruled upon by the Federal Election Commission. Ahab Mueller had Cohen hanging from a yardarm. The bank fraud and tax charges were real and carry significant jail time. The deal was Cohen pleads guilty to actions that werent crimes to damage Trump in order to get leniency from Mueller on the real crimes. As Penn points out, [Cohen] is pleading guilty over a corporate contribution he did not make. The one he did make was a personal expenditure that if Trump had used campaign funds to pay, he would have been guilty of committing a crime. Investigating Barrons allowance is no more ridiculous than indicting for convincing a ho to sign a nondisclosure agreement. The Mueller gang isnt conducting an investigation, its conducting a slowmotion coup. Michael R. Shannon is a public relations and advertising consultant with corporate, government and political experience around the globe. He is a dynamic and entertaining keynote speaker. He can be reached at mandate.mmpr (at) gmail.com. He is also the author of Conservative Christian's Guidebook for Living in Secular Times (Now with added humor!). Home
36% of Black Americans support whom?

By Mark Alexander



When the great Stanford economist Thomas Sowell was still writing his syndicated column, he would occasionally submit "Random Thoughts on the Passing Scene." In one such offering on the prevalence of racism, as a black American he observed, "Racism is not dead, but it is on life support  kept alive by politicians, race hustlers and people who get a sense of superiority by denouncing others as 'racist.'"

That quote came to mind last week as I was surveying the passing scene and realized that the week marked the 55th anniversary of Martin Luther King's remarkable "I Have a Dream" speech on the Washington Mall.

King declared: "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: 'We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.' ... I have a dream that my four children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character. ... And if America is to be a great nation this must become true."

Surveying the rest of the passing scene, I came across a stunning presidential approval report: While an NBC News/Wall Street Journal survey found that Donald Trump's approval numbers are holding steady after last week's pile on, what really caught my attention was one standout in Rasmussen's highly regarded Presidential Approval Tracking Poll. Trump's approval rating among black Americans is now 36%, almost twice what it was a year ago. Now, I don't expect this trend will show up as dramatically in the midterm elections, but it is clear that more black voters are recognizing that Democrats turned King's dream into a nightmare.

Trump's standing is, in large measure, because of the impact of his administration's economic policies, which have had a major impact on minority job and income growth. For generations, the Democrat Party has successfully subordinated its black American constituencies to its political will by convincing them they are victims and dependents, and thus, has kept them enslaved on government welfare plantations that have proven to be a miserable failure.

But that's changing, much to the consternation of the Democratic National Committee, which must constantly juggle its support for an ever-growing list of "political identity groups." Having shifted its focus toward a "new breed of Democrats," those promoting "Democratic socialism," the DNC announced this week that it would also be more visibly pandering to its gender dysphoric constituents, modifying its charter to account for "all genders." Of course, everywhere but in the DNC's altered reality, there are only two genders.

This is just the latest revision of the Democrats' systematic "divide and conquer" playbook, as they foment "Trump Derangement Syndrome" among their increasingly unhinged adherents with an ever-increasing tenor of hate-filled rhetoric. They do so, however, at peril of moving the nation from uncivil discourse to civil war.

Recall that the Democrat race hustlers were greatly empowered under Barack Obama, who was a disciple of hate mentored by his Afro-centric black nationalist "pastor," Jeremiah "G d America" Wright.

In stark contrast to Obama's focus on race, Martin Luther King dreamed that his children would "live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character." More than a half-century later, long after the passage of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the enactment of Lyndon Johnson's so-called "Great Society" programs, Democrats are still focusing on "color" rather than "character."

Obama was elected both because of his unspoken promise to assuage liberal "white guilt" and because of his "color" rhetoric: "A deep distrust exists in communities of color. ... There are still problems and communities of color aren't just making these problems up. ... Frustrations have deep roots in many communities of color. Too many individuals, particularly young people of color, do not feel as if they are being treated fairly."

The propagation of this insidious race-bait charade was apparent long before MLK's generation.

In 1901, Booker T. Washington, founder of the Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, wrote the following in Up From Slavery:

[I] resolved that I would permit no man, no matter what his color might be, to narrow and degrade my soul by making me hate him. ... I pity from the bottom of my heart any individual who is so unfortunate as to get into the habit of holding race prejudice. ... In the sight of God there is no color line, and we want to cultivate a spirit that will make us forget that there is such a line anyway.

As for those who maintain that line, Washington wrote in My Larger Education:

There is another class of colored people who make a business of keeping the troubles, the wrongs, and the hardships of the Negro race before the public. ... Having learned that they are able to make a living out of their troubles, they have grown into the settled habit of advertising their wrongs  partly because they want sympathy and partly because it pays. Some of these people do not want the Negro to lose his grievances, because they do not want to lose their jobs ... There is a certain class of race-problem solvers who do not want the patient to get well, because as long as the disease holds out, they have not only an easy means of making a living, but also an easy medium through which to make themselves prominent before the public.

A few months before the Civil Rights march in Washington, Dr. King wrote of those who foment hatred:

I stand in the middle of two opposing forces in the Negro community. One is a force of complacency ... The other force is one of bitterness and hatred, and it comes perilously close to advocating violence. It is expressed in the various black nationalist groups that are springing up across the nation, the largest and best-known being Elijah Muhammad's Muslim movement. This movement is made up of people who have lost faith in America, who have absolutely repudiated Christianity, and who have concluded that the white man is an incorrigible 'devil.' ... I have tried to stand between these two forces, saying that we need emulate neither the 'do-nothingism' of the complacent nor the hatred of the black nationalist. ... For there is the more excellent way of love and non-violent protest. I am grateful to God that, through the influence of the Negro church, the way of nonviolence became an integral part of our struggle...

King concluded his "Dream" speech as follows:

I have a dream that one day ... the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with new meaning, "My country 'tis of thee, Sweet land of liberty, Of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, Land of the Pilgrims' pride, From every mountainside, Let freedom ring." When we let freedom ring ... we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children  black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics  will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual, "Free at last! Free at last! Thank God Almighty, We are free at last!"

Fortunately, there is increasing evidence that black Americans are awakening to the Democrats' generational charade  that Demos have betrayed MLK's grand vision. That shift is due to the ever-more apparent fact that Democrats and their Leftmedia talkingheads don't think black lives matter beyond the voting booth.

I share King's dream.

Mark Alexander is the executive editor of the Patriot Post.
Obama carbon colonialism and climate corruption continue, Part 2 By Paul Driessen and David Wojick

Part 2 of a 3-part seriesexplaining how the U.S. Agency for International Development continues to use climate change, sustainability, subsistence farming and other Green fads to justify lethal Obama era anti development policies that have disturbingly racist impacts. Read part one here. USAID policies fail on humanitarian grounds These Obama era anti-fossil-fuel, anti-development, anti-people policies are cloaked in lofty virtue-signaling language. But examined honestly and completely, they fail every humanitarian test. USAIDs Low Emission Development Strategies do not forge partnerships with poor countries. They force (impose) partnerships that provide climate mitigation, sustainable development and renewable energy funding  which ends up primarily in the bank accounts of ruling elites in those nations. The lives of impoverished families improve little, if at all. Above all, they get virtually no electricity that is reliable, affordable or plentiful enough to operate even small furniture making shops  much less establish and sustain modern communities and societies with roads, hospitals, schools and other infrastructure, including sanitation, clean water, indoor plumbing or even homes with window screens. These families are not threatened by climate and weather fluctuations that are different from or more severe than what they have confronted and survived numerous times throughout their history. They are threatened by climate alarmist policies that keep them impoverished, diseased and malnourished  with few or no prospects for having the living standards, health and longevity they dream of  and most Americans view almost as their birthright. USAID policies leave these families vulnerable to the extreme weather they have always confronted. They protect against minor climate changes like those they have faced throughout history  and against dire future climate and weather threats that exist only in GIGO computer model projections. Worse, USAID policies perpetuate the horrendous conditions that result in millions of deaths every year from disease, malnutrition, and substandard infrastructure and housing. Modern fossil fuel energy systems would dramatically reduce these needless tragedies. Low emission growth and clean economic growth are just code words for low economic growth and permanent poverty and misery. The terms could of course include hydroelectric and nuclear power, but rabid environmentalists opposed that, as well, and USAID does not support such energy projects. Countries from Colombia to Indonesia to South Africa to Ukraine and beyond should no longer do what rich countries are doing now that they are rich. They should do what rich countries did to become rich. Its no wonder poor countries are angry about foreign aid that attaches so many anti-development strings. They increasingly point to China, Germany, Britain, Russia, Japan, the USA and other wealthy nations that are embracing coal and natural gas to fuel economic recoveries, exporting fossil fuels to rich and poor nations alike, and ending wind and solar subsidies. Pakistan, Poland and other poor countries are saying, Why shouldnt we produce and use the reliable, affordable fossil fuels that we need and have in abundance? (Meanwhile, once uber-green Germanys wind and solar sectors are imploding, causing numerous layoffs in those sectors, but likely creating jobs in industries that were pummeled by 38-cents/kWh electricity.) Many of these countries have turned to China for financial and technological assistance, because the USAID, EU and anti-development banks wont help them. In fact, some 1,600 coal-fired power plants are planned or under construction in 62 countries; China alone is financing and/or building 700 of them, many in the Middle Kingdom, but many in other Asian or African countries. Self-described civil society groups now claim to be concerned about this Chinese assistance. But the proper response is for Western nations and UN agencies to help poor countries build coal and gas plants, drill and frack for gas, build pipelines, make coal mines safer, build roads and rail lines, construct modern schools and hospitals  and stop making their loans and grants contingent on anti-people climate change and renewable energy restrictions. Indeed, the best way to ensure climate resilience is to have strong economies, modern technologies, early warning systems, and modern infrastructures that are built to withstand natures onslaughts. USAID policies fail on ecological grounds Obama era climate and sustainability policies also fail every ecological test. As multiple articles have pointed out (here, here and here, for example), clean renewable energy requires vast amounts of land, concrete, steel, copper, rare earth elements, lithium, cobalt, petrochemicals and other raw materials. All require extensive mining, processing and manufacturing  using fossil fuels. But the pollution, CO2 emissions and other impacts are in somebody elses backyard. So its OK. However, the USAID Climate Strategy doesnt just oppose fossil fuels for generating electricity. Under the benign sounding terminology of preserving landscapes, it also opposes deforestation  clearing land for farming. (This makes the USAID the ultimate Agenda 21 land use arbiter.) Deforestation is a major offense in manmade climate chaos circles because, they say, it eliminates carbon sinks and produces greenhouse gases. The fact that people in poor countries also turn forests into firewood and charcoal  because they dont have coal, natural gas or electricity  escapes them. Even crazier, under extremist Agro-Ecology principles, environmentally conscious activists and bureaucrats oppose the use of hybrid and genetically engineered crops, chemical fertilizers and insecticides, even tractors and other machinery. These policies reduce crop yields per acre, require that more land be cultivated to feed people, and demand far more back-breaking, dawn-to-dusk labor. And then USAID and rabid greens say, Dont clear more land for food production! But apparently there is no climate or ecological problem if large forest areas are cut down for wind farms, solar panels or canola, corn (maize) ethanol and soy biofuel plantations. Or if thousands of acres of forest habitats are converted into wood pellets for electricity generation in Britain, to reduce coal burning. In fact, American and Canadian companies are cutting down thousands of acres of forest habitats, and turning millions of trees into wood pellets, which they then truck to coastal ports and transport on oil-fueled cargo ships to England. There the pellets are hauled by train to the Drax Power Plant and burned to generate electricity, so the UK can meet its renewable fuel, climate and sustainability targets! That way, Britain avoids burning coal, and doesnt even have to burn natural gas that it actually has in abundance but has thus far taken only a few baby steps to develop via fracking. So when USAID says its policies ensure more stable and prosperous futures for its partners and creating new markets for clean technology and expansion of the green economy  what it really means is that the agency is improving the bottom line for members of the climate and renewable energy cabal, at the enormous expense of nearly everyone else, especially dark-skinned Third World families. Part 3 will show how these USAID policies perpetuate subsistence farming, malnutrition and disease in poor countries  and what Congress and the White House must do to end these travesties. Paul Driessen is senior policy analyst for the Committee For A Constructive Tomorrow and author of Eco-Imperialism: Green power - Black death and other books and articles on energy, climate change and economic development. David Wojick is an independent analyst specializing in science, logic and human rights in public policy, and author of numerous articles on these topics. Home
Taming the EPA regulatory hydra: Further solutions (Part 2) By William L. Kovacs

Part 1 of this article recommended that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) be reorganized into a five-person commission. The primary reason is to dilute the massive regulatory powers that currently reside in a single Administrator, whose agency in recent years has been responsible for fully 25% of all federal regulations, a number of which were sharply criticized as being based on faulty or insufficient evidence. Secondly, a five-person commission would make it more difficult for the agency to manipulate science, economics and facts in the rulemaking process. The minority members of the commission would have access to the same data as available to majority commissioners, thus allowing for minority reports that would be used in the rulemaking process and by courts in judicial reviews of a regulation. This second installment recommends a few modest but substantive changes that would create an agency better able to balance environmental protection with economic growth, and to recognize that a strong economy is also essential for human health and environmental quality. 1) Transform the agency from one in which each part of the agency focuses on a single statute, thereby fostering myopic thinking, into an agency that coordinates functions to address all the most serious environmental risks facing our country. To make this change, the agency needs to appreciate that what was needed or what worked in the 1970s and 1980s (addressing specific types of end-of-the-pipe pollution) is not as relevant today, because most of those earlier challenges have been addressed. Today the agency needs to focus on preventing new kinds of pollution, using Big Data and technology to identify and address the new risks, and addressing the most significant environmental issue of all: poverty. If EPA truly wants a better environment, it needs to reverse its policy of limiting the placement of new industries in minority and low-income areas. These areas need jobs that pay fair wages so that workers can provide food, shelter, education and healthcare for their families by working at companies that are accountable for achieving all environmental standards. 2) EPA needs to recognize that all risk is not equal. It must identify and prioritize risks, and address the most serious risks first. EPA itself first recommended this approach in 1990 in its report Reducing Risk: Setting Priorities and Strategies for Environmental Protection. This report recognized that the agency often concentrated on risks perceived by the public to be most significant  frequently because of intense media and environmentalist pressure group campaigns  notwithstanding that in many cases the science community presented a very different view of the same risks. 3) EPA must recognize that the states are partners, not servants of the Federal Government. States currently implement over 80% of EPAs delegated programs. Yet they receive only 30% or so of the funds needed to administer these programs. Moreover, if EPA disagrees with a state on an enforcement matter, EPA thinks nothing of interfering with the states approach. Once EPA delegates a program to a state, the state should be completely responsible for administering the program. If EPA believes the state is not implementing the program properly, it should hold a hearing on the states actions. If EPA finds the state is indeed implementing the delegated program improperly, it should withdraw the entire program from state jurisdiction and implement it with federal resources. Only by fairly reviewing a states complete implementation of an EPA program can EPA determine the value of the states activity. 4) To reduce regulatory churn and overreach, Congress should mandate that, once a regulation is issued, EPA should be barred from amending the regulation for ten years unless there is an emergency. That would ensure that a new administration or environmentalist pressure does not result in ever-tighter, politically inspired standards. 5) EPA currently operates as investigator, rule-writer, prosecutor and judge for all claims of environmental harm or failure to comply with regulations. This system is unfair and costly to a company defendant, since even an administrative trial judge is an EPA employee. To bring fairness to the system, a defendant should be allowed to proceed immediately to federal court, where it and EPA will be on equal footing before a federal judge. 6) Congress should establish within EPA an independent Bureau of Environmental Statistics that would undertake independent peer reviews of the economics and science used by the agency. 7) EPA should release all data it relies on, via a rulemaking presented for public review. There is no place for secretive, non-reviewable science in the public policy arena, especially considering the impact of costly regulations on jobs, local economies, and thus the health and welfare of American families. 8) Congress should authorize EPA to develop a performance-based regulatory system that could be implemented in lieu of the current command and control system. This will encourage business innovation and significantly reduce regulatory uncertainties and costs. 9) EPA should encourage companies to undertake routine environmental audits, as the most effective mechanism for ensuring environmental compliance. If a company discovers non-compliance, it should immediately remedy the matter. To encourage environmental audits, EPA should waive penalties for the prompt reporting and remediation of a problem. 10) EPAs climate science work should be transferred to the Department of State, since contentious climate science, economic, energy and human welfare issues cannot be resolved by any one nation. It must be a global effort. These recommended changes will bring regulatory efficiency and improved public welfare, by eliminating several levels of government activity to implement the same programs. They will reduce regulatory overreach, while promoting compliance. They will also provide the public with transparency, to ensure a sound foundation for regulatory activity. (For more background on this agency, more examples of EPAs past dishonesty and hyper-regulation  and more ideas on what can be done to make it more honest and accountable  read JunkScience.com director Steve Milloys book, Scare Pollution: Why and how to fix the EPA.) Simple fairness, honesty and transparency should be little to ask of an agency that was created to protect our overall environment, health and welfare  a policy that all Americans support. William L. Kovacs was active in national policy issues for over 40 years, as a senior vice president for environment, technology and regulatory affairs for a major business trade association, a chief counsel on Capitol Hill, chairman of a state environmental board, and a partner in several Washington, DC law firms. Home
An introduction to the thought of George Parkin Grant, on the centenary of his birth (Part Three) By Mark Wegierski

The world of Canadian politics has been undergoing unusually dramatic shifts. In the 1980s, the Tories or Progressive Conservatives (P.C.'s), traditionally the party of Canadian nationalism, protectionism, etc., had become a liberal-capitalist party, pushing free-enterprise and free-trade. The Liberals, whose conventional policy had always been pro-U.S. continentalism (or, so-called amalgamation) had, in the 1980s, become Canadian nationalists. The Liberals fought against the Free Trade Agreement in 1988 under the leadership of John Turner. Turner might have in fact been more substantively conservative than Brian Mulroney on many issues. The New Democrats (New Democratic Party  NDP  Canadas social democratic party) often described themselves as the most consistent Canadian nationalists in that decade. In the 1990s, however, it seemed that all of the parties in the federal Parliament had become liberal-capitalist, with greater or lesser degrees of fervour. There have remained though, large cultural industries and structures -- together commanding greater resources than some major political parties -- which appear to make the persistence of Canadian identity possible. These might suggest to some that Canadian nationalism is alive and well, and that Canada -- to put it in Grantian terms -- has some chance of resisting the Americans. However, it might be noted that the context of Canada today is entirely different from that of the Canada of the early 1960s when the struggle over the future of Canada between Diefenbaker and Pearson took place. According to Grant, the defeat of Diefenbaker in the 1963 election represented Canada's final integration into the American technological empire. Prime Minister Diefenbaker had refused to accept U.S. nuclear weapons on Canadian soil, with the result that virtually all of the media instrumentalities and pollster expertise of the North American managerial classes were turned against him, in the ensuing election of 1963. Despite his thoroughgoing pessimism, Grant expressed some hope for an alliance of the old conservative nationalist communitarianism (such as that represented by Sir John A. Macdonald and his National Policy), with the new nationalist collectivism of the Left, to fight for what remained of Canada -- against the dynamic, technological, liberal, individualist, and capitalist America. Today, Canadian nationalism has apparently been pushed into the position of a strong extra-parliamentary opposition. However, it should be examined closely what the messages being offered by such archetypically Canadian institutions as the CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation) actually consist of, in relation to Canadian nationalism. If one accepts George Grant's Loyalist thesis, this means that Canada was, in essence, a British-inspired society at the moment of its founding -- British North America. (The Act of Confederation, which received final approval from the British Parliament, was called in full the British North America Act.) It would seem logical that the spirit of Britishness was the only force which could have resisted Americanization. Yet, post-Pearson Canada is based on an explicit rejection of the British origins of Canada. Gad Horowitz himself has made an extraordinarily harsh critique of the current multiculturalism policies, and calls for the reassertion of English-Canadian nationalism, which he sees in political and not ethnic terms. Canada, if it is to be a country with a definable identity, can only be so as a British-inspired society, at least on the level of institutions and political culture. The denial of Britishness amounts to an embracing of Americanism, or so Gad Horowitz argues. And it is only in a British-inspired Canada that socialism can exist, because the essence of Americanism is individualist liberalism and capitalism. So, therefore, social democrats in English Canada must be English-Canadian nationalists. In relation to Quebec, Horowitz was astutely advocating the formal recognition of its "special status" as early as the 1970s. This recognition -- which might well have taken the wind out of the Quebec separatists' sails -- was rejected by "the rest of Canada" in 1990 and 1992. Both the Meech Lake Accord and the Charlottetown Agreements failed. Horowitz's argument does seem to look somewhat archaic, in the current-day context of English-speaking Canada. Like George Grant's definition of conservatism, Horowitz's definition of socialism is quite unusual. Today, the New Democratic Party is in the vanguard of multiculturalism -- and no other major party has criticized it (apart from some elements of the more conventionally right-wing Reform Party and its successor, the Canadian Alliance). Horowitz's definition of socialism is more akin to that of the old, pre-war British Labour Party, or that of the Co-operative Commonwealth Federation (C.C.F.) in Canada, from which the New Democratic Party had emerged (the name was changed in 1961). Eugene Forsey, a member of the old C.C.F., and a leading constitutional scholar, was someone who was conservative in regard to parliamentary institutions and Canada's political culture generally, while being social democratic in regard to economics. He was one of only a few figures prominent on the national scene who expressed reservations about the new 1982 Constitution because it weakened Parliament, and made Canada more like America, with a formal "bill of rights" (the Charter of Rights and Freedoms), subject to judicial review (or judicial fiat), as opposed to the British and Canadian tradition of the sovereignty of Parliament. Socialism, as Horowitz defines it, simply does not exist anymore. The New Democratic Party most enthusiastically supports multiculturalism. Ostensibly liberationist social issues are also massively promoted. At the same time, consumerism, commercialism, big corporations, etc., are becoming more and more powerful, and Canada seems to be slipping into "the new economy" (where corporations make ever-more massive profits, while ever-more working people are laid off), and into the usual neoconservative budget cutbacks. To be continued. Mark Wegierski is a Canadian writer and historical researcher. Home
Palestinian leaders threaten Jerusalems Arabs on eve of citys municipal elections By Nadav Shragai

Eight weeks before the local elections in Jerusalem on October 30, 2018, terrorist organizations are increasing the pressure on east Jerusalem residents to stay away from the voting booths and maintain the boycott of Jerusalems municipal elections as in the past. While the pressure grows, this time surveys and some new, different voices reflect a desire among many Arab east Jerusalemites to participate in the elections. They seek to become part of the municipal establishment so that they can wield influence and channel budgets into services and infrastructure for the Arab neighborhoods. An open letter appeared in various Arab media outlets calling on Arab Jerusalemites to boycott the citys municipal elections. It was translated for the first time on the Facebook page View from East Jerusalem  0202 under the heading: The Islamic nationalist forces in Al-Quds the occupied capital. The letter states: We regard anyone who takes part in the elections, supports them, or deals with them as someone who is cut off from the nation and will be seen as one of the mechanisms of the occupation and its helpers. The letter further asserts: Whoever takes part in the elections is a traitor who harms all the Palestinian values. This public letter was preceded by a religious ruling by the Mufti of Jerusalem, Sheikh Muhammad Hussein, which also states that whoever takes part in the elections is a traitor and that whoever among the Jerusalem residents takes part in the local elections will be defined as someone who has left the fold of nationhood, the homeland, and the religion. A few weeks ago, the PLO Executive Committee took the same stance, warning the east Jerusalem population not to have anything to do with the elections. The committee, which is headed by Mahmoud Abbas, warned that participating in the elections could signify de facto recognition of Israeli rule and sovereignty in Jerusalem. Candidate Ramadan Dabash on the Threats: Im a Traitor? Theyre Traitors! Yet, despite the growing tensions in the east Jerusalem street and the attempts to terrorize the population, Mukhtar Ramadan Dabash, chair of the community administration in the east Jerusalem neighborhood of Sur Baher, has announced his intention to head the faction, Jerusalem for Jerusalemites, that will run in the elections for the Jerusalem City Council. Dabash also said he intended to do so in collaboration with Palestinian entrepreneur Aziz Abu Sarah and left-wing Jewish activist Gershon Baskin. The initiative for the Jewish-Arab list, however, apparently ran aground, and Baskin will not be included in the party. Surveys indicated that a joint list of this kind would perhaps add a few hundred Jewish votes, but would lose thousands of Arab voters who oppose collaborating with the Jewish Left in the electoral framework. Therefore, Dabashs list will include only Arabs. The main objective of this new faction is to wield influence through municipal representation on the allocation of municipal resources and budgets in the spheres of infrastructure and services. Dabash, for his part, is not deterred by the Muftis religious rulings or by the threats that have been directed at him. He made clear that he opposes the division of Jerusalem. He said that if a referendum were to be held among the east Jerusalem Arabs, they would vote to keep living in a unified city even if it entails recognizing both its western and eastern parts as the capital of Israel. Im a traitor? Theyre traitors, Dabash asserted recently in a conversation with me. These elections are a municipal affair. Fifty-one years in which we have no father and no mother. Fifty-one years in which Hamas and the PLO sat like onlookers from the side and did not help us, neither in construction nor in education, nor in many other municipal matters. He added: Islam is a religion of life not of death. The Mufti is wrong when he says that were traitors. We want to give the east Jerusalem residents a chance to live like human beings. I want to have clout from the inside, to get more resources allocated to the Arab residents. Arabs Are 31 Percent of the Voters About 630,000 Jerusalemites are eligible to vote. Some 200,000 of them  31 percent  are Arabs. (Arabs constitute 41 percent of all Jerusalem residents, but many are children and teenagers too young to vote.) In the 2013 municipal elections, only one percent of the citys Arabs voted. Dabash estimates that at least 40 percent of them want to vote, but do not know what they will ultimately do if two days before the elections  as in previous election campaigns  Hamas threatens their lives. According to Dabash, I think this time its more widely understood that a change is needed. I myself am not afraid. One cant remain silent any longer. One has to stand up and vote. Dr. David Koren, Arab-affairs adviser to Jerusalem Mayor Nir Barkat, said recently in a conversation published in Israel Hayom that, indeed, many more of the east Jerusalem Arabs will vote than in the past, but still not enough. Koren thinks there will be voting blocs in places such as Wadi Joz, Beit Safafa, and Sur Baher, but he is not convinced that there will be enough ballots cast to pass the minimum threshold of votes. The east Jerusalem residents are still threatened and intimidated by terror and extreme nationalism, Koren observes. The Palestinian Authoritys ability to stick labels on them as Zionist agents and collaborators still exists. And it has a deterrent effect. Korens impression is that the number of courageous people who are freeing themselves from the threat is growing. You also hear from the private person who will tell you, in a conversation in a closed room, that he prefers to keep living in one city under Israeli sovereignty but with equality, something he will never say on the outside. But a vote is another step forward, and I am not convinced that the general public is ripe enough for it. What is completely clear to me is that from a security standpoint, the police and the security establishment must give the east Jerusalem population a sense that it is safe to go out and vote, and I am convinced  in light of conversations I held with the police  that they are completely aware of the issue. Does the Jewish population have reason to fear Arab representation on the City Council? Koren was asked. He replied: Whoever wants to see Jerusalem divided with two different municipalities has no reason to support it. Whoever truly understands what is entailed by a united city has to know that as part of the processes of Israelization and becoming citizens that a considerable portion of the east Jerusalem Arabs is undergoing, they will in the future become part of the political and municipal game. A Disconnect between the Local and National Arenas Early this year, a wide-ranging survey of east Jerusalem Arabs by the Palestinian Center for Public Opinion found that 60 percent think they should take part in the Jerusalem municipality elections at the end of October, that they should try to exert influence from within, and that after the protracted boycott, the time has come to take part in the municipal game. (The survey was commissioned by the Hebrew University to gauge Arab attitudes after President Trump declared U.S. recognition of Jerusalem as Israels capital.) The survey results were not a surprise. They again showed that alongside trends of Islamization and religious radicalization in east Jerusalem society, the Israelization trend among many east Jerusalem Arabs is also continuing and perhaps even gaining steam. The survey results also indicated the strength of the reality for Jews and Arabs after 50 years together in a single city without borders. Today, many in the Arab community seek parity of services and infrastructures between the eastern and western parts of the city by securing clout on the City Council. The survey findings suggest that this interest is stronger than the interest in the Palestinian national narrative about Jerusalem pushed by the Palestinian Authority and Hamas. Those two entities, each in its own way, view any cooperation with Israel  and particularly in Jerusalem  as treason against the supreme goal of establishing Jerusalem as the capital of the Palestinian state. The survey apparently shows that a considerable part of the east Jerusalem residents is prepared to set aside the supreme goal of the Palestinian leadership. Instead, they wish to distinguish between the local, municipal arena and the Palestinian national objectives, which for now appear unachievable. The poll also suggests that many more east Jerusalem residents now understand that obtaining a larger stake in the municipal budgets  which have been flowing mainly to west Jerusalem for many years  requires political clout on the City Council. Seeking Ballot Boxes, Not Bullets And yet, just months before the October 30, 2018, elections, the atmosphere in some parts of the east Jerusalem street is one of fear, and it is not clear whether these trends, which have been mounting for several years, will be translated on election day into east Jerusalem Arabs heading to the polling stations. That also appears to depend on the activity of the Israeli security branches and on whether they can give east Jerusalem residents a sense of security. Part of the answer lies in a sufficient dispersal of the ballot boxes. In the previous elections, only 13 voting booths were provided in the eastern part of the city, making it much more difficult for the few residents who wanted to vote. In previous municipal election campaigns, the terror organizations were able to torpedo any significant participation by east Jerusalem Arabs and Arab parties with the exception of the 1969 elections. Only a few percent of those eligible to vote came to the polls, and terror triumphed. Over the years, these tiny numbers conveyed a Palestinian national message of not formally recognizing Israeli rule and unification of the city. Israel, for its part, failed to create a sense of security that would have enabled more east Jerusalem residents to take part in the elections. The threat to their safety was too tangible. It is still well-remembered in east Jerusalem that in the past the Arab public who wanted to take part in the local elections and well-known figures who wanted to run for a seat on the City Council, were threatened and sometimes even subjected to the violence and terror of Hamas and Fatah. For example, Hanna Siniora, the former editor of the newspaper Al-Fajir and who wanted to run for the City Council, had two of his cars set ablaze. Local initiatives in Beit Safafa and Sur Baher met a similar fate. This time, will Israel be able to create a different atmosphere and different conditions? At the moment, the picture is still unclear, but the terror threats do not augur well. The Israelization trends by themselves will not change the electoral map in the eastern part of the city. What is lacking there is a feeling among the residents that they are protected against the threats made by terror groups and that their physical safety is ensured. However, feelings of safety and security are much harder to impart. Nadav Shragai is a senior researcher at the Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs. He served as a journalist and commentator at Haaretz between 1983 and 2009, is currently a journalist and commentator at Israel Hayom, and has documented the dispute over Jerusalem for thirty years. His books include: Jerusalem: Delusions of Division (Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, 2015); The Al-Aksa Is in Danger Libel: The History of a Lie (Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, 2012); the ebook Jerusalem: Correcting the International Discourse  How the West Gets Jerusalem Wrong (Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs, 2012); At the Crossroads: The Story of Rachels Tomb (Gates for Jerusalem Studies, 2005); The Temple Mount Conflict (Keter, 1995); and the essay: Jerusalem Is Not the Problem, It Is the Solution, in Mr. Prime Minister: Jerusalem, Moshe Amirav, ed. (Carmel and Florsheimer Institute, 2005). Home
Will Ducey appoint a moderate or a conservative to replace McCain? By Rachel Alexander

Arizona Governor Doug Ducey said he would name a replacement for John McCain in the Senate after McCains funeral proceedings concluded. Insiders say it is likely to be McCains widow, Cindy McCain, 64. If she gave him any indication she wants the seat, I think she gets it, a source told The Guardian. She is less conservative than her husband. She was an outspoken supporter of the NOH8 campaign, a gay rights project opposed to California Proposition 8, a ballot measure banning same-sex marriage. Cindy McCain is not the only McCain reportedly under consideration. The McCains daughter Meghan McCain, 33, is a possibility. She is quite liberal, although she calls herself a Republican. She admits she is liberal on social issues. She supports gay rights and opposes abstinence-only education. She is worried about global warming and says she is on the fence about the Occupy Wall Street movement. She supports government funded embryonic stem cell research. She voted for John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election. She once said on the Rachel Maddow Show, "I didn't even take econ[omics] in college. I don't completely understand it so I'd hate to make a comment one way or the other. That's  truly of all the things  I keep reading and I just don't understand it." She praised Hillary Clinton for having "pushed through many doors and shattered many glass ceilings for women in politics. Adam Brandon, the president and CEO of FreedomWorks, penned an op-ed for the Washington Examiner advocating for former Congressman Matt Salmon, 60, to replace McCain. Salmon has a lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union of 95, far higher than McCains 80. The conservative base would be fine with him, and hes done a pretty good job of not making enemies with the moderates. The conservative base would also love to see Ducey appoint Kelli Ward, 49. She lost the GOP primary election for Senate to replace Arizona Senator Jeff Flake last week. Moderate Congresswoman Martha McSally, who has a dismal lifetime score of 71 from the American Conservative Union, won. McSally received millions from the GOP establishment. One of the Super PACs supporting her ran an ad full of misstatements about Ward. Conservatives are bitter about moderates beating up on the conservative Ward and believe appointing her to this seat would resolve the unfairness. Another solid conservative name that has popped up is former Congressman John Shadegg, 68. He has an impressive lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union of 98. He gets along with both the conservative base and the moderates. Former Senator Jon Kyls name is being circulated. The 76 year old has a lifetime rating of 96 from the American Conservative Union, but the conservative base dislikes him. They view him as part of the GOP establishment and a McCain crony. He angered them when he helped craft a compromise on immigration that they viewed as amnesty. Duceys chief of staff Kirk Adams, 45, a former legislator, may be under consideration. He has close ties to the wealthy libertarian Koch brothers. While his record in the state legislature was fairly conservative, he has riled the conservative base with some of his heavy handedness as chief of staff. A dark horse candidate is Eileen Klein, who Ducey recently appointed as state treasurer. She previously served as chief of staff for Governor Jan Brewer. Barbara Barrett, 67, the first woman to run for governor in Arizona, is another dark horse candidate. She has never held public office. Businesswoman Karrin Taylor Robsons name is also being thrown around. Ducey is likely to appoint someone who will run for office after the appointment ends, instead of a caretaker to merely serve out the term. He will probably not appoint a sitting member of Congress, because that would force an election to find a replacement. Ducey has to tread very carefully here. A significant portion of the conservative base is upset with him for caving in on #RedForEd. He agreed to a 20 percent salary increase for teachers which has no guarantees it will be implemented. Although Ducey easily won reelection in the GOP gubernatorial primary election last week, appointing a moderate Republican will destroy his reputation as a conservative.



Rachel Alexander and her brother Andrew are co-Editors of Intellectual Conservative. She has been published in the American Spectator, Townhall.com, Fox News, NewsMax, Accuracy in Media, The Americano, ParcBench, and other publications. Home
Some notes on Polish higher education today, based partially on a trip in 2002 By Mark Wegierski

The number of students attending public and private universities and colleges in Poland is reaching ever-higher levels with every year. There has been an incredible boom in private colleges since the 1990s. Also, there have been numerous State Higher Schools of Vocational Learning established. However, the ever-higher tuition costs (as well as the high costs of living in the major university towns), and high levels of poverty in Poland, may mean that above-average but not stellar students, from less affluent families, may not get the chance to attend university. There is also a major trend to political correctness and probably too much emphasis on E.U. guidelines in some institutions of higher learning, resulting in less and less Polish patriotic spirit. A parallel trend is the excessive stress on career-related business and technical studies, rather than on what could be seen as a better-rounded education in liberal arts such as philosophy, history, and literature (at least for part of ones pre-professional studies). I recall that on Friday, September 27, 2002, I travelled with my female relative from Ciechocinek, the spa and resort town at which I was staying during the late summer and early autumn of 2002, southwestward to Lodz, the second-largest city in Poland. She drove a compact yet elegant Peugeot 206. Ciechocinek lies about two hundred kilometers northwest of Warsaw. She was going to pick up the formal graduation papers associated with the Masters degree she had just completed, at the Wojskowa Akademia Medyczna (Military Medical Academy) in Lodz. There was some urgency to the matter, as the WAM was merging with another institution to become the Uniwersytet Medyczny (Medical University) in Lodz. The WAM had been open to civilian students for a number of years, and my relative had completed a Masters in Public Health on a part-time basis. As we sat in the car in front of the guard-house entrance to the university, I recalled her complaints, in earlier telephone conversations, about the long trips to classes she had to take from the environs of Ciechocinek, where she lives, to Lodz, often in inclement weather. The WAM campus consisted of several large buildings constructed in what I thought to be a 1920s, Neoclassical style. I still remember the pleasant sunshine and warm weather at the time of our trip there, on that day in September. Among her other studies, my relative has completed a Licentiate (the Polish equivalent of a B.A.) in Cosmetology, at the Rydygier Medical Academy in Bydgoszcz, Poland. There was some controversy when that Medical Academy proposed to merge with the Uniwersytet Mikolaja Kopernika (UMK) (Nicolaus Copernicus University) in Torun  since the city administration of Bydgoszcz had hoped that the Rydygier Medical Academy could have become part of a major new university in Bydgoszcz itself. Indeed, the Rydygier Medical Academy became the UMKs Medical College. Nevertheless, a few years later, there was a major university established in Bydgoszcz  Uniwersytet Kazimierza Wielkiego (UKW) (University of King Casimir the Great). Having reached Lodz, we then continued southward to Czestochowa, where most of my relatives immediate family  including her mother, sister, and brother  live, in a fairly big house with a large yard, on the citys outskirts. Driving around Czestochowa, we noticed the large, elegant building of the Akademia Polonijna (Polonia University), a major new private college, which is very well-regarded  as seen, for example, in its high place in the annual college rankings put out jointly by the large-circulation newspaper, Rzeczpospolita (The Republic) and Perspektywy (Perspectives), a major magazine for students. The Akademia Polonijna has set, as one of its missions, extensive cultural and scholarly interaction with persons of Polish descent living abroad, as well as documentation of the various cultural and patriotic achievements of the various Polonia communities. (Polonia is the term often used in the Polish language to describe Polish communities outside of Poland.) The combination of the activities of the Akademia Polonijna may, indeed, be seen as felicitous. Since we had arrived unannounced at her familys house, we decided to go for supper to Zornica, an elegant restaurant (and inn) on the southern outskirts of Czestochowa, built in the style of the Goral (Polish Mountaineer) architecture. Although, at six P.M., the place was rather empty, my dish was nevertheless tasty, consisting of pork medallions baked with mountaineer cheese and mushrooms, along with spicy roast potatoes, on a bed of sauerkraut. We went back to the house for tea and cake, and then started the long trip back to Ciechocinek at about 8 P.M. In a feat of driving I thought incredible, we got back to Ciechocinek somewhere after midnight. Many young people (as well as some persons in middle age) in Poland today, face the problem that, although they may in fact have very good training in a technical or business field, jobs for them simply dont exist. The unemployed graduate of Management and Marketing studies in Poland is a virtual cliche. The nationwide average of unemployment was for many years around twenty percent, and was actually much higher for young people, and in certain regions, such as the southeast. Those Polish politicians who can somehow improve the employment situation in Poland, in a way that will be sustainable over the long run, can expect to receive major support from the people of Poland. (An earlier version of this article has appeared in Polonez: Canadian-Polish News (1-15 January 2007), p. A1.) Mark Wegierski is a Toronto-based writer and historical researcher. Home
Preordained by God: President Donald Trump By Michael Moriarty

America and the world in general have never been so godless as now. Karl Marx and Vladimir Lenin were no gods, despite their self-declared omniscience. And the god of Radical Islam is an anti-Semitic insanity. However, Communism and Radical Islam are the two main inspirations for this: The Progressive New World Order

Of the American Deep State

And the unrelenting ambitions

Of

The United Nations. Donald Trump miraculously became President of the United States for one reason and one main reason only: To stop

The New World Order! The principle reason for President Donald Trumps commitment to Make America Great Again! is to put indisputable and unconquerable, military power behind his deliberately understated commitment to protect the Judeo-Christian Civilization. Above all, the Presidents promise to basically reinstate the undeniable preeminence of the Holy Bible, and the inseparable eternity of Judeo-Christianity?

A True Civilizations Best Hope No, he cant state it that clearly, but both Israel and Judeo-Christian America know that to be the case. When questioned about this, he will most probably say: Thats Moriartys opinion, not mine. However, my opinion about the President is why I believe President Trumps re-alliance with Jerusalem as the capital of Israel has dictated his choice of that Israeli capital as the permanent home for the American Embassy. No, he doesnt broadcast it that way. However Last night, August 30, 2018, in the middle of his divinely inspiring speech in Indiana, when he briefly but undeniably pointed to the heavens? He was telling us who his only real Boss is. No wonder the godless cannot stand him. And they will not be able to stop him either. Hes our second Abraham Lincoln. They, the Confederacy, shot Lincoln. Killed him. From the grave, President Lincoln won the American Civil War. The most important of President Trumps enemies know that. They also know that President Trump will only accept an unconditional surrender to his vision for reinvigorating the Judeo-Christian civilization in America. The wise Progressives know that assassinating President Trump would eternally martyr him. Therefore, they are in a no-win nightmare. Their increasingly desperate efforts to impeach President Trump only make them look increasingly foolish and, yes, even more increasingly treasonous. And these traitors have been, at one time, considered the best and brightest of America. Why? Following the assassination of President John F. Kennedy and his fateful speech, the major participants in those secret societies he spoke of have become fairly obvious to a former Ivy Leaguer like myself. President Trump knows exactly who they are and why they are also in, of all places, the Republican Party. His silence about it is a fairly good bit of advice to the rest of us. President Trump will drain that swamp of the Deep State by exposing the secret societies when God tells him to. In short, the God of both the Old and New Testaments is, thank God, in charge of Donald Trump. President Trumps impatience with his political enemies and fake news is hardly touching the deepest core of his profoundly justified rage. I was so fed up with America under the Clinton Administration, I left. I came to Canada. Ive dual citizenship. Im not just American now. I am a North American. Yet there was more of the Progressive New World Order to come with a second member of the Bush New World Order and President Barack Hussein Obama. With the exception of President Ronald Reaganthere have been 48 years of treasonously New World Order Presidents since the assassination of John F. Kennedy. Think of that. President Trump must overcome 48 years of Progressive New World Order treason and that treasons best friend, the Red/Islamic United Nations. He needs all the help he can get! Michael Moriarty is a Golden Globe and Emmy Award-winning actor who starred in the landmark television series Law and Order from 1990 to 1994. His recent film and TV credits include The Yellow Wallpaper, 12 Hours to Live, Santa Baby and Deadly Skies. Contact Michael at rainbowfamily2008@yahoo.com. He can be found on Twitter at https://twitter.com/@MGMoriarty. Home
SLAPP litigation shutting down activists, media By Rachel Alexander

The left frequently resorts to the legal system to shut down conservatives, since the courts are dominated by the left. One way they do so is to file a groundless lawsuit known as a SLAPP, a strategic lawsuit against public participation. Its to shut down some type of free speech and usually takes the form of a defamation claim. The plaintiffs dont expect to win. Instead, the lawsuit is meant to intimidate and overwhelm a victim with costly litigation that can last years. Discovery alone can cost thousands of dollars. The average activist, journalist or blogger doesnt make a big salary so theyre easy targets. The smackdown also has a chilling effect on others who might be considering the same type of speech or speaking up to defend a victim. Judges arent able to discern at the beginning of one of these lawsuits that they are groundless. As a result, state legislatures around the country have started passing anti-SLAPP legislation. There are now 28 states with anti-SLAPP laws. They generally permit a victim to ask the court to dismiss one of these lawsuits early on. Penalties include awarding attorneys fees against the plaintiff. One of the most notorious instigators of SLAPP lawsuits is Brett Kimberlin. He is a left-wing activist who was convicted of perpetrating the 1978 Speedway bombings. But when conservative bloggers mentioned his past in their articles, he came after them with lawsuits. He warned one conservative blogger, I have filed over a hundred lawsuits and another one will be no sweat for me. On the other hand, it will cost you a lot of time and money and for what. That blogger, Patrick Frey, was fortunate enough to find pro bono counsel to represent him against the groundless lawsuit. But it took six years to wind down. A fairly recent SLAPP lawsuit involved the Clock Boy. Ahmed Mohamed brought a clock to high school that looked like a bomb. A teacher referred him to school administrators, and he was briefly arrested. His family claimed that it was discrimination because he was a Muslim. Several conservative pundits discussed the case in the media, some labeling it a hoax. The father of Mohamed filed a lawsuit against them. The case was eventually dismissed. David Yerushalmi, senior counsel at American Freedom Law Center, which represented one of the defendants, said it was Islamist warfare, using lawsuits to label as Islamophobic any public criticism of a sharia-centric, jihad-driven Islam. In February, a professor who sued a conservative leaning scientific publication for defamation withdrew his $10 million lawsuit. Stanford University professor Mark Jacobson sued the National Academy of Sciences and Christopher Clack, an author who co-wrote a piece critical of Jacobsen. Jacobsen had suggested in a co-authored paper that renewable energy sources alone could power the U.S. by 2050. Clack wrote in in his critique, We find that their analysis involves errors, inappropriate methods, and implausible assumptions. Jacobsen admitted after withdrawing his lawsuit, It should never have gone to court in the first place. I was expecting them to settle. These lawsuits strike close to home for me. I was recently threatened with a groundless defamation lawsuit over an article I wrote. The big name law firm gave me 24 hours to take the article down or legal action would be contemplated. When I didnt comply, they sent the same exact letter to my employers address  apparently to intimidate my employer. The article wasnt even written for my employer, but in my personal capacity for another publication. They havent sued me yet, but Im not holding my breath. Fortunately Im an attorney so Im less afraid of legal mumbo jumbo than the average person. Others in my situation might have caved and taken down the article, effectively suppressing their free speech. Numerous friends advised me to delete the article, merely to avoid years of costly litigation. Unfortunately, not all anti-SLAPP laws are broadly written to protect bloggers and journalists. Some only protect issues of public interest. Aggressive litigants will forum shop to pick a state to sue in that either has no anti-SLAPP law or a weak version. There is no anti-SLAPP law on the federal level, so suing in federal court is another option. Trial lawyers, who contribute large amounts to the Democrats every year, have put up strong opposition to any federal legislation. This important legislation needs to be enacted everywhere in its strongest form, otherwise the First Amendment is in jeopardy.



Rachel Alexander and her brother Andrew are co-Editors of Intellectual Conservative. She has been published in the American Spectator, Townhall.com, Fox News, NewsMax, Accuracy in Media, The Americano, ParcBench, and other publications. Home
Money, fake money, and sound money



By Jp Cortez

Americans no longer carry gold and silver money in our pockets and purses as our grandparents did. But we still carry the history, legacy, and spirit of those gold and silver coins in our language. Sound money embodies a clear message recognized for centuries around the world. It describes the musical, metallic ring of a gold, silver, or copper coin dropped on any hard surface of glass, stone, wood, or metal. Sound money literally refers to real wealth, with a natural, unmistakable signature of authenticity, as opposed to the paper, plastic, and electronic debt instruments used almost exclusively today. The term sound money has its roots in Ancient Rome, where small, silver coins were standard in everyday commerce, whether used for paying Roman soldiers or buying exotic goods from all corners of the known world. As Rome squandered its wealth, it found a shortcut to shore up the treasury. It gradually debased those silver coins with common metals, ultimately cutting the silver content to just 5 percent. That didn't fool anyone for long. Understandably, disciplined Roman soldiers did not appreciate being paid with worthless mystery metal in return for risking their lives on Rome's bloody battlefields. History is wrought with economic distortions resulting from currency debasement by central planners. Appreciation for gold and silver has been driven out of the public consciousness. Today, there is little understanding of what money actually is, its origins, and the folly of politicians and financial experts. What is Money? Austrian economist Carl Menger explains that the origins of money are spontaneous. The barter systems shortcomings were quickly exposed by the problems of divisibility and double-coincidence of wants.

A farmer can tender corn and wheat in exchange for medical services, but what if the town doctor already has all the corn and wheat he needs? Market actors realized that they could acquire more goods by tendering a more sought-after, or saleable, commodity as payment. The most marketable goods establish themselves as common media of exchange. The marketability differences between commodities serve to discern between them; it is in this way that money undergoes competition. Through this process, gold and silver rose as the most marketable commodities due to their features: The metals are portable, homogenous, divisible, durable, and scarce. Through market processes, the most marketable commodity, as economist Ludwig von Mises described money, makes itself known. Money is not created by government decree, but rather by surviving the test of time and the pressures of market forces while maintaining its value. What is Fake Money? Less than a hundred years into the American experiment, the Civil War began. Wars are expensive, and the federal government, which had a policy to only print notes that were backed by an equal amount of gold and silver, was running low on specie. To fund the Civil War, President Lincoln signed the Legal Tender Act in 1862, which allowed the U.S. government to print $150 million worth of unbacked paper notes. The force of government was used to legitimize this fake, fiat money of the nature we still use today. Lincoln and his money managers knew citizens would be wary of unbacked paper notes. After all, the Constitutional Convention that took place less than 75 years prior had overwhelmingly rejected paper money. George Washington wrote that paper money was wicked. James Madison wrote it was unjust and unconstitutional. Thomas Jefferson wrote its [paper moneys] abuses also are inevitable and, by breaking up the measure of value, makes a lottery of all private property, cannot be denied. Although not allowed by the Constitution, Lincolns government issued unbacked paper money, called Greenbacks. But how could he get people to accept them in exchange for their goods and services? Lincoln made them legal tender for debts (but not customs duties, which still had to be paid with gold or silver coin). Legal tender is a stamp of approval by the federal government that magically turns strips of unbacked paper into money people must accept, if begrudgingly at first. By the end of the war, nearly half a billion unbacked notes had been issued. As always happens with paper money, the Greenbacks lost buying power. At their low point, it took $265 in Greenbacks to buy $100 worth of gold. Legal tender allowed debtors who had borrowed money (gold or silver coin) before the Civil War to repay debts with Greenbacks that had less than half the buying power of the original loan. Creditors were understandably furious over this swindle. When the war ended, the constitutionality of printing unbacked notes was heard by the Supreme Court of the United States in Hepburn vs. Griswold (1870). Chief Justice Chase, who had been Lincolns Secretary of the Treasury and who had imposed legal tender, said that there is no legal tender power in the Constitution. He said that legal tender was a war measure used out of necessity. Since the war was over, so was legal tender. On the same day the Hepburn decision was announced, two of President Grants nominations for Supreme Court Justice were appointed to the high court. The Legal Tender Act issue was reheard in Knox v. Lee (1871), and the Hepburn ruling was overturned. By a vote of 5-4, the Supreme Court ruled that printing unbacked paper money was no longer unconstitutional, even when there is no war or emergency. The next 60 years were marred with the destruction of sound money (not to mention the Constitution): establishment of the Federal Reserve System (which has served to devalue the Federal Reserve Note 97% since its creation, despite its mandate to maintain price stability), an unconstitutional income tax, gold confiscation by executive order, and the abrogation of gold clause contracts. What came next should surprise no one. An explosion of government spending brings us to today. Bureaucrats saw the constraint that sound money placed on government spending as a bug rather than a feature, and America is now well down the road to financial disaster, shouldering more than $21 trillion in debt. What is Sound Money? Deriving its name from the powerful, melodic ring gold and silver make when dropped, signaling honesty and integrity, sound money is money that is not prone to sudden appreciation or depreciation in purchasing power over the long term, aided by self-correcting mechanisms inherent in a free-market system. The foregoing definition presents several implications about how we view sound money and how we should approach money in general. Central banks across the world manipulate money ostensibly to grow, or stabilize, or otherwise achieve their desired interventionist goals for the economy. However, large swings of the purchasing power of a money, such as that seen with the Federal Reserve Note, result from the same money manipulation that purports to solve the very problem it causes. A negative consequence of central bank control of money is the disconnect between the money supply and the demand for money. Economic downturns strike when changes in the demand for money are not met with an automatic adjustment in its supply. In the United States, todays monetary system is antithetical to sound money. Money, including its supply, is controlled by unelected bureaucrats operating a government backed banking cartel with no real constraints on its power. Despite gold being a linchpin of the United States monetary system for most of our nations history, the U.S. severed its final link to gold in 1971. After several millennia of being tested by market forces, gold and silver are undoubtedly sound money. Its also possible that other sound monies could emerge. However, no government can replace the ringing echo of sound money from its system without grave consequences. The process through which money is created is not one of central planning, but rather one in which money is discovered by markets. It would behoove us to realize and correct this mistake before its too late. William Jennings Bryan, famous for repudiating the gold standard in favor of a bi-metallic standard that used both gold and silver, cried, you shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold! Bryans fears may have misplaced, however. For, instead, mankind has been crucified upon a cross of paper. Jp Cortez is a graduate of Auburn University and a resident of Charlotte, North Carolina. He is the Policy Director of the Sound Money Defense League, an organization working to bring back gold and silver as America's constitutional money. Follow him on Twitter @JpCortez27. Home
As a response to the generalized food crisis of the early 1970s, the Committee on World Food Security prompted the creation of the Global Information and Early Warning System on Food and Agriculture (GIEWS). Over the years, GIEWS has established itself as the worlds leading source of information and as a respected authority on global food production, consumption and trade. It continuously monitors the food security situation in every country of the world and alerts the world to emerging food shortages. more...
Zzish, a London, UK-based edtech startup, raised 544k in a crowdfunding round.

The company, which has raised 3.5m in total funding to date, intends to use the capital to accelerate global expansion plans and extend its product further to parents, particularly in the US and Asia.

Led by Charles Wiles, CEO & Founder, Zzish provides a formative assessment platform for teachers and students. Its intelligent educational app platform gives teachers and parents instant insight into each childs learning gaps, and then finds solutions to help each child progress.

Teachers can also pre-assign tailored follow-up exercises once students have completed an interactive game or assessment that measures their mastery of a topic. Additionally, the platform learns just how effective each learning resource is and how much it improves students results on average so that, when teachers set assignments with the tool, theyll be recommended follow-up activities which are proven to have the most positive impact on students.

Finally, Zzish is also a platform for developers to create, distribute and monetize educational applications.

Today, 155,000 teachers from 170 countries and two million students currently use Zzish.

Last year, the company raised over 1m in less than 24 hours on equity crowdfunding platform Crowdcube. It is backed by Leaf Investments, Chengdu Wide Horizon, one of Chinas leading edtech funds, and Neil Hutchison, angel investor and founder of the Forward Internet Group.

FinSMEs

03/09/2018
Verdane Capital, an investor and active owner of technology-enabled growth companies in Northern Europe, acquired two companies from early-stage technology investor Skagerak Maturo*.

Verdane Capital IX acquired closed transactions with Skagerak Maturo containing Skagerak Venture Capital Is and Skagerak Seed Capital IIs ownership in:

 Zisson, a Norwegian provider of cloud-based communication center software led by Andre Jensen, CEO, and

 Penetrace, a provider of a cloud-based contact center solution for marketing professionals with 30 team members located in Oslo, Stockholm, Copenhagen and Vietnam.

Through its software and software-as-a-service expertise, extensive international network and track record of internationalizing Nordic technology companies, Verdane Capital IX is investing to allow the companies to further strengthen their product offering and boost international growth.

* Skagerak Maturo is an early-stage technology investor, which is the result of Skagerak Venture Capital and Maturo Kapital joining forces. The firm has a presence in Kristiansand, Skien and Oslo.

FinSMEs

03/09/2018
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A man who fired shots into a crowded area because he was upset he couldn't get into a sold-out concert by the rapper Ice Cube was shot and wounded by a sheriff's deputy Sunday evening in Del Mar, Calif., police said.

The unidentified suspect was taken to a hospital. His medical condition was unknown, police told San Diego's FOX 5.

The concert was scheduled for the Del Mar Racetrack at the fairgrounds about 21 miles north of downtown San Diego. About 7:30 p.m. Pacific time, the operators of the racetrack tweeted that the situation has been contained, and the concert would be moving forward as planned.

A video posted on Twitter appeared to show a man holding a handgun, with two deputies nearby.

"Drop it!" a voice is heard saying, then the suspect falls to the ground.

The concert was scheduled to follow a full slate of horse races at the track, the station reported.

The gunfire happened as the final race of the day was underway, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.
Susan Brown, best known for her role as Dr. Gail Adamson Baldwin on the soap opera General Hospital has reportedly died at age 86.

The news comes from General Hospital executive producer Frank Valentini, who took to Twitter to give his condolences.

It's a very sad day in Port Charles as the wonderful Susan Brown ("Gail Baldwin") passed away today, he wrote. My sincerest condolences to her family and to all who knew this amazing woman.

Kin Shriner, known for playing Browns on-screen step son Scotty on General Hospital also used the social media platform to say goodbye to Brown, noting that she was one of his best friends.

Sad to say one of my best friends and costars Susan brown passed away today she played Gail Baldwin @GeneralHospital my mother R.I.P. Susan I will miss all our laughs, he tweeted.

General Hospital veteran Jackie Zeman responded to Kins tweet with her own condolences.

Kin I am so sorry for your loss. I will miss Susan too. She was so very special, on set and in friendship. I remember all the good times we shared on our @GeneralHospital #GH lunch breaks at at her amazing dinner parties at her beautiful home. RIP Susan + God Bless, she wrote.

Others connected to the show to share their sadness at Browns passing include Lynn Herring, Lisa Locicero, Kathleen Gati and Jon Lindstrom. All of whom were retweeted by the official General Hospital Twitter account.

Variety reports that Brown died after a battle with Alzheimers disease. Reps for ABC did not immediately respond to Fox News request for comment.

Born in San Francisco, Brown graduated from the University of Southern California and began her TV career in 1959 on the soap From These Roots. She would later hold parts on The Young Marrieds, Bright Promise and Return to Peyton Place. She would join the cast as Dr. Baldwin in 1977 and remain with the show until 1985. However, she made brief reappearances on the soap, even returning in 1992. Her final appearance was on the shows spinoff Port Charles in 2004. The role earned her a Daytime Emmy nomination for outstanding supporting actress two years into her run.
Italian director Luciano Silighini Garagnani turned heads Saturday with his red-carpet wardrobe -- a T-shirt expressing support for disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein.

Garagnani, 42, sported a homemade "Weinstein is innocent" shirt at the world premiere of Amazon Studios Suspiria at the Venice Film Festival. The director paired the shirt with faded jeans and a black jacket at the black-tie event, the Daily Beast reported.

CNN PULLS ASIA ARGENTOS EPISODES OF ANTHONY BOURDAINS PARTS UNKNOWN

Venice Film Festival chief Alberto Barbara told Deadline that Garagnanis T-shirt stunt was a stupid move.

More than 75 women have accused Weinstein, who was one of the most powerful men in Hollywood, of some form of wrongdoing. Allegations first detailed in Pulitzer Prize-winning stories last October in The New York Times and The New Yorker magazine swelled into the #MeToo movement.

Several actresses and models have accused Weinstein of criminal sexual assault, including Italian actress and filmmaker Asia Argento, who became one of the most prominent voices in the #MeToo movement. Los Angeles authorities announced last month they were looking into sexual assault allegations by a young actor against Argento.

RONAN FARROW EX-PRODUCER SAYS NBC TOLD THEM TO STOP REPORTING WEINSTEIN STORY

Weinstein was indicted by a Manhattan grand jury on rape charges in May. The Los Angeles Police Department and authorities in London are currently investigating allegations against Weinstein, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
At age 10, Craig Horwich had a big mouth loaded with questions for his future stepfather, Jackie Gleason.

The celebrated comedian, one of the top stars of Hollywood during the 50s and 60s, is still remembered today as roly-poly bus driver Ralph Kramden of The Honeymooners, a sitcom he created based on one of his comic sketches. Gleason passed away in 1987 at age 71 from cancer.

Horwich, now 55, runs Jackie Gleason Enterprises, which still licenses the actors shows and specials. With the help of Horwich, Time-Life recently released a DVD collection of The Jackie Gleason Show, which also features unreleased episodes in full color.

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

Horwich told Fox News he still vividly remembers meeting the TV icon for the first time.

I was unaware of the magnitude of his fame, said Horwich. He was an incredible man. I had questionitis. I remember him saying that to me. I had questionitis. He answered a trove of questions that came out in rapid fire from this young boys mind.

"He lived in this beautiful, big home. He would be driven around in a limo He was always well dressed. Always at the head of the table and in charge. I found him very intriguing.

Gleason first met Horwichs mother, Marilyn Taylor of the June Taylor Dancers, in the late 1940s while they were working the east coast nightclubs. The troupe was ultimately featured in Gleasons variety programs. A romance soon blossomed.

By 1952, thats when Jackie and my mom began a relationship, said Horwich. But my mom would not go out with Jackie until he got a separation. He was married, but separated The relationship ran its course. Jackie was unable to be granted a divorce. He was very Catholic as his wife was. So the relationship really had a shelf life. So they went their own ways.

Gleason was then married to dancer Genevieve Halford, with whom he had two daughters. They eventually divorced in 1970 and Gleason went on to marry former secretary Beverly McKittrick from 1970. That union lasted until 1974.

Meanwhile, Taylor had moved north.

After they went their own ways, my mom moved to Chicago and met my father, said Horwich. I was then born. And then in the early 70s, my father passed away in Chicago. So my mom and I moved to Florida so she could be with her family.

Then fate came knocking. It turned out Gleason happened to be in Florida when Taylor came to town.

When he found out my mom was now widowed and living in South Florida He wooed and reunited with her, he said. They married and quite literally lived happily ever after.

Horwich, who was 12 when the couple tied the knot, witnessed a new side to the TV star.

The majority of his time at home was spent quietly, he said. He was a prolific reader. Constantly reading. There was a store called Bookland Every week or two the owners would come by and drop off a box of books. Jackie just consumed books. He read everything but he was most intrigued with non-fiction. He felt that his life as an actor, as a performer, was all fiction.

He also listened to the radio. He had a room upstairs that we called the radio room. There were dozens of radios. He listened to airplanes flying over at the airport, long distance radio operators from around the world. He had the passion and curiosity of a child with the experiences of an adult.

Gleason, who grew up in working-class Brooklyn, N.Y., was happily enjoying the wealth and fame he achieved entertaining America with what Horwich described as his God-given talent. And Horwich insisted Gleason never grew tired for being recognized as Kramden.

He embraced it and was very proud of it all, boasted Horwich.

The Honeymooners, which explored the hilarious antics of a city bus driver (Gleason) and his sewer worker friend (Art Carney) as they struggled to strike it rich, aired from 1955 until 1956.

Kramden was originally one of a dozen characters Gleason played on his variety show The Jackie Gleason Show, which was broadcast live from what is now the Ed Sullivan Theater in New York City, the current home of The Late Show with Stephen Colbert. That hourlong variety show aired from 1952 until 1957.

Horwich revealed Gleason never rehearsed to bring Kramden to life.

He had a photographic memory, he explained. He could watch somebody do a dance and on his first try recreate the dance. It was a gift and he knew it He believed rehearsals can take the edge off of a performance.

"Theres just nothing like that first performance. He didnt enjoy rehearsing so he didnt do it. Thats why Art Carney and Audrey Meadows (Alice Kramden) were deserving of all accolades. And Jackie at every point in his career always acknowledged their talents.

While Gleason was a gentle giant, he had high standards when it came to performers who would join him on stage. Horwich confirmed Meadows was originally rejected for the role of Kramdens wife because she was too glamorous.

Jackies vision of The Honeymooners was to be very authentic, very blue collar without the luster that we see on television, he explained. Audrey, who was a beautiful woman, originally auditioned but was told she was too attractive.

But she had an agent who said, I got an idea. Lets dress you down, take the makeup off and take an early morning shoot. They took photos of her without makeup and lighting. When Jackie saw it, he said, Theres Alice. Her beauty almost got in the way, but she proved she was perfect."

Despite The Honeymooners becoming a massive success, it ended after one season.

He signed a contract for two years, said Horwich. But Jackie realized that after one year that if you were to do any more, it would just be a variation of those same storylines. He said, I cant do this again, the audience will tire of it. That was it was just one year and 39 episodes. Those were the ones that were put in syndication from the 50s to today.

Gleason stayed busy successfully pursuing film, television and even music. His last credited role was 1986s Nothing in Common.

Horwich said that when it came to Gleasons outlook on life during his later years, he followed one motto  Just play the melody.

Be true to yourself and everything will fall into place, explained Horwich. He had a very impoverished childhood in Brooklyn He learned as a young adult that there was a lot more out there He was able to provide through hard work an affluent life that he was very proud of. He was able to enjoy the rewards of his labor.

This article originally ran in September 2018.
NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles!

Test your knowledge of current events by answering this question: Which organization remains stuck in deep cover-up mode?

A) The FBI

B) The Roman Catholic Church

C) Both of the above

D) Neither of the above

If you get your news only from The New York Times, you believe the correct answer is D, neither of the above. Other people know the correct answer is C because they see the leaders of both organizations acting as if the public cant handle the truth.

It is not my intent to suggest the FBI and the Vatican are in all ways comparable. Far from it.

Yet they are in similar straits because each faces a crisis of public confidence. Those crises are severe because of internal decisions to parse, obscure and withhold important facts.

The FBI and the Catholic Church are in similar straits because each faces a crisis of public confidence. Those crises are severe because of internal decisions to parse, obscure and withhold important facts.

While a desire to protect historically valuable institutions from external harm is understandable, the goal cannot come at the expense of honesty and truth. When it does, the damage grows.

One result is that the same questions are being asked of both the Church and the FBI: What did their leaders know and when did they know it?

The Vaticans failure to come clean about sexually abusive clerics has cost it dearly over the last 15 years, and the consequences are now engulfing Pope Francis.

By seeing the issue through the lens of its own prejudices, the Times, which never had much use for the Church, tries to obscure the only thing that matters: Is the pope guilty as charged? Everything else is noise.

In a sensational 11-page letter, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano accuses the pope of bringing into his inner circle a disgraced former American cardinal, Theodore McCarrick, despite knowing McCarrick had a long history of sexual misconduct.

Vigano, a former Vatican ambassador to the US, calls on the pope to resign and declares that there are homosexual networks corrupting the Church from within.

He writes that many current priests and bishops committed immoral, forbidden acts or protected the guilty from exposure.

He accuses, by name, about 30 former and current officials, many of them in America. Perhaps most damaging, he says he personally told the pope in 2013 about McCarricks record but the pontiff still released McCarrick from sanctions imposed by Pope Benedict.

Vigano writes that by doing so, Francis associated himself in doing evil with someone he knew to be deeply corrupt. He followed the advice of someone he knew well to be a pervert, thus multiplying exponentially with his supreme authority the evil done by McCarrick.

The scathing letter requires a full Vatican response, but the pope declined, telling reporters: Read it carefully and make your own judgment. I will not say a single word about it.

I suspect that wont be his final word. The letter is so explicit and specific about events and individuals that silence will be ruinous to the Churchs credibility. Catholic news organizations are digging into the claims and some normally supportive lay Catholics already believe its possible the popes reign will be short as a result.

A clear exception is The New York Times, which is politicizing the issue by accusing Vigano of being part of an anti-gay, conservative cabal, a sort of deep state within the Vatican. The pope, on the other hand, is depicted as a compassionate progressive out to save the Church from the ignorance of men like Vigano.

By seeing the issue through the lens of its own prejudices, the Times, which never had much use for the Church, tries to obscure the only thing that matters: Is the pope guilty as charged? Everything else is noise.

Similarly, the Times and other liberal media are obscuring all that matters in the investigation of the FBI: Is the agency guilty of trying to sabotage Donald Trump before and after the 2016 election? Yes or no.

As with the Church, we cant say for certain if the FBI cover-up is worse than the crime because the cover-up continues. By releasing information drip by drip, and only when its forced to, Americas premier law-enforcement agency confirms the worst suspicions.

The latest example involves the congressional testimony of Bruce Ohr, a top Justice Department official who continued to meet with and accept information from Christopher Steele long after the FBI fired Steele for lying.

The Times and other liberal media are obscuring all that matters in the investigation of the FBI: Is the agency guilty of trying to sabotage Donald Trump before and after the 2016 election? Yes or no.

Steele, of course, is the former British spy secretly hired by Hillary Clintons campaign to dig up dirt on Trump in Russia. Steele fed his salacious, unverified claims to the FBI, which then briefly hired Steele and used his work to get a surveillance warrant against Trump associate Carter Page.

In leaked portions of his testimony, Ohr said he warned the FBI that Steele was determined to block Trumps election and that Ohrs wife, Nellie Ohr, a Russian specialist, was working with Steele in compiling the anti-Trump manifesto. Such facts would help a judge get a balanced view of Steeles motives and the FBIs conflicts of interest.

But the FBI reportedly never mentioned Ohrs warnings to FISA judges or admitted it fired Steele. And now we learn, thanks to a Judicial Watch lawsuit, that FISA judges never held a single hearing before approving the request to spy on Page.

This month marks the two-year anniversary of those events, but still the public remains largely in the dark about what appears to be a an illicit attempt by the FBI to block Trumps election.

At a Thursday rally, the president demanded that officials come clean, warning that if they dont, I will get involved.

Whats he waiting for? He has the power to declassify the documents involved, and should use it immediately.

By doing so, Trump would keep his promise of transparency. And perhaps the pope would take the hint and do the same with secret Church documents.



After all, miracles can happen.

Keep reading Michael Goodwin's column in the New York Post.
A moment between former first families has gone viral  as former President George W. Bush is caught passing a piece of candy to former First Lady Michelle Obama during the memorial service for the late Sen. John McCain on Saturday.

As former Sen. Joe Lieberman paid tribute to his friend and colleague, the camera turned to the audience as Lieberman made a joke about McCain, catching the brief moment between the former president and former first lady.

George W. Bush and Michelle Obama have been observed for their seemingly close bond.

George W. Bush and Michelle Obama have been observed for their seemingly-close bond, seen together at the dedication of the National Museum of African American History and Culture in 2016.

With partisan politics continuing to create division in the current political climate, the seemingly unlikely friendship between Bush, a Republican, and Obama, a Democrat, has sparked conversation on social media.

Click for more from Fox 5 DC.
Although critics have charged that Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., has advanced her career with a narrative that she is a distant descendant of Cherokee and Delaware tribes, Harvard University never considered her ethnicity when it hired her as a law professor, according to a report Saturday.

The Boston Globe reported interviews and documents showed that the issue was not considered by Harvard Law faculty when it considered her application in the 1990s.

The report also saw no consideration of her race when she applied to work at Rutgers, the University of Houston, the University of Texas or the University of Pennsylvania.

She was not on the radar screen at all in terms of a racial minority hire, Randall Kennedy, a law professor who was in charge of recruiting minority candidates to Harvard Law School, told the Globe. It was just not an issue. I cant remember anybody ever mentioning her in this context.

Neither Harvard nor Warren immediately returned Fox News requests for comment Sunday.

The Globe noted that Warren listed herself as a minority before Penn offered her a job. However, the law schools dean and affirmative action officer wrote in a 1987 equal opportunity compliance statement form that Warren was the best candidate for her job despite being white.

The report also noted that nearly three years after she took the Penn job, she asked the university to change her listed ethnicity to Native American. A 2005 university publication noting a teaching award that she won a decade earlier listed her as a minority, the Globe added.

The newspaper reported that it examined hundreds of documents, many of them never before available, and talked to 31 law school professors from that period at Harvard. All but one said her Native American heritage was not discussed as part of the decision to hire her. One said he was unsure if the issue came up, but if it did, it had no bearing on his vote.

Warren on Sunday posted on her website documents related to her job and school applications and again asserted that her heritage played no role in her career advancement.

My family is my family, the outspoken progressive told the Globe. But my background played no role in my getting hired anywhere.

President Trump repeatedly has referred to Warren as Pocahontas in mocking her claims of heritage.

Warren, 69, is seeking reelection in November, and is set to face one of three Republicans running in a primary on Tuesday. She repeatedly has said shes not running for president in 2020, but continues to position herself as a national leader in the Democratic Party.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Sen. Bernie Sanders took aim President Trump Monday morning during an appearance at Labor Day union breakfast in the state that holds the first presidential primary, but kept mum on a possible second White House bid for himself.

The longtime independent senator from Vermont - who energized progressives across the country as he battled eventual Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton in the 2016 campaign - sparked more speculation about his 2020 presidential ambitions as he headlined the New Hampshire AFL-CIO's annual Labor Day breakfast.

In his speech, Sanders blasted Trump, saying: "We have a president, and I say this with no joy in my heart, who is a pathological liar."

Sanders added: "We have a president for cheap political reasons who is trying to divide us up."

Sanders claimed that Trump has been teaching people to "hate other people because they may have been born in a different country, color of their skin is different, their religion is different, their sexual orientation may be different."

Sanders also repeatedly charged that the Republican majority in the Senate and House "are exactly on the wrong side of where the American people are."

The Vermont lawmaker, who headlined the New Hampshire Labor Day breakfast for the fifth straight year, urged voters to stand together.

"We need to stand together and we will not allow Trump or anybody else to divide us up based on color of our skin, our religion, our nationality, or our sexual orientation," he said. "When we stand together we win. When they divide us up, they win."

Sanders, who is running for re-election in Vermont this November for a third term in the Senate, didn't make any references to the next White House race. Instead, he highlighted his progressive agenda, including his signature platforms of Medicare for all and a $15-per-hour minimum wage.

"I was in New Hampshire three years ago, coming before you and the people of this state, and I said, we need to move toward a Medicare-for-all single-payer program," Sanders said. "Seemed like a radical idea then. Oh my god, single payer, Medicare for all, radical idea."

He added: "I'm proud to tell you that legislation that I've offered in the Senate raising the minimum wage to $15 per hour now has 30 co-sponsors, and all across this country, cities and states are moving towards $15 an hour."

The senator also pushed for strengthening Social Security, income equality and new gun laws during his speech.

"We come from rural states, New Hampshire and Vermont," he said. "And a lot of our people hunt and own guns. But I believe that in our states and throughout this country, the overwhelming majority of the American people support common-sense gun safety legislation."

Sanders crushed Clinton in the 2016 New Hampshire primary, launching him into a months-long fight with Clinton for the Democratic nomination. Many of his top supporters from that campaign were in the audience at the Labor Day breakfast.

"I think Bernie's message is spot on - we need to come together and we'll figure out the way to do that with whomever is leading the charge, said Executive Councilor Andru Volinsky, who was legal counsel and a member of the steering committee for Sanders' campaign in New Hampshire. "It will take a little bit to work out, but I think we're going to be fine."

Asked if the New Hampshire voters were ready for the possibility of another White House bid by Sanders, Volinsky said, "I think we have quite a crew. And that crew is still here and I see them at these events all the time."

Sanders' son, Levi, a New Hampshire resident, is one of 11 Democrats currently running for the open congressional seat in the state's 1st District. However, the elder Sanders has stayed neutral in the race and has refrained from endorsing his son since Levi Sanders announced his candidacy in late February.

Still, the senator did give his son a very quick shout-out near the beginning of the speech, saying, "Let me also thank my son Levi, who is here. Levi, stand up."
The Senate Judiciary Committee launched confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh on Tuesday, kicking off what is expected to be a bitterly partisan gauntlet as Democrats vow to scrutinize his lengthy record as an appellate judge and lawyer in the Bush administration.

In excerpts of his opening statement released by the White House Tuesday morning, Kavanaugh vowed to be an objective "pro-law judge."

"A good judge must be an umpirea neutral and impartial arbiter who favors no litigant or policy," he plans to say. "I dont decide cases based on personal or policy preferences. I am not a pro-plaintiff or pro-defendant judge. I am not a pro-prosecution or pro-defense judge. I am a pro-law judge. ... If confirmed to the Court, I would be part of a Team of Nine, committed to deciding cases according to the Constitution and laws of the United States."

Kavanaugh's elevation from the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals to replace retired Justice Anthony Kennedy would mark a generational rightward shift on the Supreme Court, raising the stakes beyond those of last year's nomination of Neil Gorsuch and leading Democrats to ratchet up their rhetoric.

Last month, Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., accused anyone who supports Kavanaugh of being "complicit in evil." After ex-Trump lawyer Michael Cohens guilty plea  which was used by Democrats to push for Kavanaugh delays  Sen. Mazie Hirono, D-Hawaii, even nixed a one-on-one meeting with the nominee, claiming Trump had picked him "purposely ... to protect, as we say in Hawaii, his own okole" from possible criminal charges. Some Democrats, including Sen. Bob Casey, D-Pa., had rejected Trump's selection before they even knew who it was, predicting the nomination process would be a "corrupt bargain with the far Right, big corporations, and Washington special interests."

WATCH: 'OUTNUMBERED' CALLS OUT CORY BOOKER'S DOOMSDAY RHETORIC ON KAVANAUGH

But Kavanaugh steadily has gathered support from legal circles, former colleagues and Republican lawmakers. Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, called him "perhaps the most qualified person ever nominated to the Supreme Court."

The judge's nomination, though, will ultimately succeed or fail depending on a handful of swing-vote senators, including vulnerable red-state Democrats and moderate pro-choice Republicans who have all said that they would withhold judgment on the nominee.

Republicans command a narrow 50-49 Senate majority, which would return to 51-49 once a Republican successor to the late Sen. John McCain is appointed. Republicans have little margin for error, though Vice President Pence can break a tie.

Who are the senators to watch?

Among the key votes on the Democratic side are Indiana's Joe Donnelly, West Virginia's Joe Manchin and North Dakota's Heidi Heitkamp. All three voted to confirm Gorsuch to the Supreme Court last year, and all are up for re-election in November in states that went for Trump in the 2016 presidential election. Each has also met with Kavanaugh on Capitol Hill, and has promised to carefully weigh the upcoming hearings before making a final call.

Alabama Democratic Sen. Doug Jones, who recently won a special election and will be up for election in 2020, is also considered a potential yes vote on the nominee. But he recently said he wanted to delay Kavanaugh's confirmation hearings, citing the "cloud" of suspicion around Trump and his desire to see more documents from his time in the Bush White House. Jones claimed his view was shared by everybody else around here on the Democratic side of the aisle" -- but some Democrats, including Manchin, dismissed those last-minute concerns, saying there was no basis to delay the hearings.

Even before former Trump attorney Cohen pleaded guilty last month to several federal charges, Democrats had already called for Kavanaugh's hearings to be postponed until after the November midterms, in retaliation for Senate Republicans' decision to deny a vote on then-President Barack Obama's Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland in 2016.

DEMS CALL COHEN GUILTY PLEA 'GAME CHANGER,' CALL FOR POSTPONING KAVANAUGH HEARINGS

Meanwhile, outside groups have been pressuring moderate Republican Sens. Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine. Both have promised to remain independent and carefully consider the results of Kavanaugh's confirmation hearings, but have given some clues on their leanings.

Last month, Murkowski vowed to take a "similar, if not identical  approach I took for Justices Gorsuch, Kagan, Sotomayor, Alito and Roberts" in vetting the nomination. Murkowski voted to confirm Kavanaugh to a seat on the influential D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in 2006.

And Collins, who also voted to confirm Kavanaugh in 2006, acknowledged shortly after Trump nominated him to the Supreme Court that he has "impressive credentials and extensive experience, having served more than a decade on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals."

Notably, Collins has rejected calls from Democrats to delay Kavanaugh's confirmation hearings, saying there was "no basis" for the move. After meeting with Kavanaugh on Capitol Hill, Collins said Kavanaugh had reassured her that Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court case that established a constitutional right to an abortion, was "settled law."

NARAL Pro-Choice America and the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) have spent hundreds of thousands of dollars targeting Murkowski and Collins specifically, Politico reported, in an effort to sway them against Kavanaugh.

Another influential liberal group opposing Kavanaugh, the Alliance for Justice (AFJ), told Fox News that both Collins and Murkowski would jeopardize their reputations by failing to vote down his confirmation.

"For someone like Collins or Murkowski, their legacy is really on the line here," AFJ Legal Director Dan Goldberg said. "Whatever votes they had in the past to protect women, to protect health care, would long be forgotten -- they would have to own every decision Brett Kavanaugh makes."

Goldberg added that Kavanaugh's national poll numbers are "consistent with Robert Bork and Harriet Miers" when they were under consideration for Supreme Court posts they ultimately didn't receive. A Fox News poll last month showed voters evenly divided on Kavanaugh.

After his sit-down with Kavanaugh on Capitol Hill last month, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., also made his case to Murkowski and Collins.

SCHUMER SUGGESTS KAVANAUGH LYING ABOUT HIS TIME IN THE BUSH WHITE HOUSE: 'THIS IS A BRIGHT MAN'

"He would not give me any reassurance that he believed Roe or [Planned Parenthood v. Casey] were correctly decided or should be left alone," Schumer claimed. "That should send shivers down the spine of any American who believes in reproductive freedom."

Sen. Booker echoed that line of attack after his own meeting with Kavanaugh, telling reporters, "A lot of folks were wondering that he might not overturn Roe v. Wade. ... He confirmed with me that that door was still wide open."

Still, Schumer, who also implied Kavanaugh was lying about the details of his time in the Bush White House, acknowledged that Kavanaugh had told Collins that Roe was settled law.

"I understand that the judge told other members today that he considered Roe v. Wade settled law," Schumer said, before adding, "He did not say that to me."

Kavanaugh's paper trail -- asset or liability?

Kavanaugh has left one of the longest paper trails of any recent Supreme Court nominee, having served for more than a decade on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals and, before that, for five years as a lawyer in the White House Counsel's office in the George W. Bush administration. Kavanaugh also worked for independent counsel Ken Starr for three years during the probe that led to the impeachment of former President Bill Clinton.

In looking at Kavanaugh's jurisprudence, Democrats will likely focus on Kavanaugh's decisions in cases like Priests for Life v. HHS, in which Kavanaugh wrote a dissent arguing that ObamaCare's contraceptive coverage requirements put undue burdens on some religious beliefs.

Both parties are also likely to grill Kavanaugh on his 2011 dissent in an ObamaCare case, Sevensky v. Holder, which Republican critics have claimed effectively provided the Supreme Court with a roadmap to uphold the law's contentious individual mandate provision. In his dissent, Kavanaugh wrote that only a "minor tweak" to the text of ObamaCare -- which required individuals to purchase health coverage or pay a monetary cost -- would bring it within the ambit of Congress' established power under the Constitution's Taxing Clause.

Chief Justice John Roberts would later provide the swing vote to uphold to ObamaCare's individual mandate by citing Congress' power under the Taxing Clause, instead of adopting the Obama administration's arguments that the law was justified broadly under the Constitution's expansive authority to generally regulate interstate commerce.

But others, including a former Kavanuagh law clerk, called that interpretation "nonsense" and argued that Kavanaugh, in fact, was outlining why Congress' Taxing Clause could not save ObamaCare from unconstitutionality.

TRUMP IMPEACHMENT EMERGES AS NEXT DEM LITMUS TEST

Democrats are also expected to question Kavanaugh about Garza v. Hargan, a recent case in which Kavanaugh dissented from a ruling that the Trump administration should permit an illegal immigrant in federal custody to have an abortion. Kavanaugh's dissent managed to anger both sides of the abortion debate, because while Kavanaugh did not endorse the immigrant's right to an abortion, his dissent also did not specifically deny her that right in all cases.

In the wake of several high-profile school shootings, Democrats may further zero in on Kavanaugh's position on gun rights. Kavanaugh dissented in the landmark Heller case when it was before the D.C. Circuit, arguing that a D.C. ordinance unconstitutionally infringed on residents' right to own semi-automatic weapons by requiring them to keep them unloaded and unassembled, or bound by a trigger lock.

Additionally, liberal groups have highlighted Kavanaugh's record on the environment, saying that he has overzealously struck down Environmental Protection Agency regulations. In a case last year, Mexichem Flour v. EPA, Kavanaugh wrote a majority opinion that struck down a 2015 EPA rule regulating hydrofluorocarbons, which analysts say led to substantially increased greenhouse gasses. Kavanaugh reviewed the text of the Clean Air Act and the legislative history before writing that the EPA's rule had exceeded the agency's statutory authority under the Clean Air Act -- although he sounded a note of regret in the process.

"However much we might sympathize or agree with EPA's policy objectives, EPA may act only within the boundaries of its statutory authority," Kavanaugh wrote. "Here, EPA exceeded that authority."

MEDIA'S BIGGEST MISSES: ASPIRING KAVANAUGH HIT PIECES DRAW MOCKERY

But Supreme Court nominees are typically unwilling to offer much insight into their legal philosophies during confirmation hearings, which carries a major political risk and could prejudice future cases before the Supreme Court. There was also a greater potential for Democrats to score points by questioning Kavanaugh on his record as a Bush administration lawyer and adviser to Kenneth Starr, especially given that his writings in those capacities were less guarded than a typical judicial opinion.

During the Clinton investigation, for example, Kavanaugh unloaded on Clinton, telling Starr that the president should be impeached, citing his "revolting" behavior in the Oval Office and "sheer number of wrongful acts." But since his time in the Bush White House, Kavanaugh has argued that presidents should not have to endure lengthy probes during their time in office, saying in 2009 that indicting sitting presidents would "ill serve the public interest," especially in times of financial or national security crisis.

He wrote in an article that year: [T]he nation certainly would have been better off if President Clinton could have focused on Osama bin Laden without being distracted by the Paula Jones sexual harassment case and its criminal investigation offshoots.

That language has alarmed top Democrats, who have voiced concerns that Kavanaugh would vote to shoot down a subpoena or even indictment of President Trump if one were filed by Special Counsel Robert Mueller or other federal prosecutors.

Meanwhile, Democratic concerns that Kavanaugh may have misled the Senate Judiciary Committee during his 2006 confirmation hearings for his D.C. Circuit post have fizzled in recent weeks. A document dump last month from Kavanaugh's time in the Bush White House suggested that he had, in fact, offered legal advice on attorney-client privilege issues surrounding terror detainees, even though he said under oath that he had no involvement in "rules governing the detention of combatants." The White House has maintained Kavanaugh's statements were truthful, and the controversy died down.

Nevertheless, Goldberg, the AFJ legal director, said he anticipates that Democrats will hammer the issue during this week's hearings.

"There are certainly questions about his candor and veracity in front of the Senate Judiciary Committee when he was first confirmed --- issues that I know Sen. [Patrick] Leahy will press him on in the hearing," Goldberg told Fox News, referring to the long-time Vermont Democratic senator who serves on the Judiciary Committee. Leahy has opposed Kavanaugh dating back to his 2003 nomination to the D.C. Circuit, saying he had "failed to demonstrate his capacity for independence." Democrats stalled Kavanaugh's appellate court nomination until 2006.

In recent days, Democrats, including Leahy, have cried foul that the Kavanaugh paper trail is actually not long enough, saying they have been denied access to all the documents they need to vet his nomination. Schumer has threatened to sue the National Archives, which is handling their requests for documents from Kavanaugh's public service. He has also sharply criticized the procedure for the ongoing document production, saying it's inappropriate that a Republican lawyer is vetting all documents before their release.

Despite Kavanaugh's voluminous record -- and the all-out contentious rhetoric surrounding it -- Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn, R-Texas, has said Republicans hope to have Kavanaugh confirmed by a floor vote by early October, when the next Supreme Court term begins.

Fox News' Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
Parkland school shooting survivor David Hogg and other activists are working to stop Texas Sen. Ted Cruz from winning reelection by raising thousands of dollars to purchase a mobile billboard that will feature some of President Trumps scathing tweets about his former Republican rival.

Antonio Arellano, a Texas-based activist, was joined by Hogg and political activist Claude Taylor to launch the GoFundMe page, which seeks to raise the $6,000 needed for a billboard, The Washington Post reported.

In a description on the GoFundMe page, the billboard is intended to be used as a reminder of Trumps words regarding Cruz during the heated 2016 Republican presidential primary. The hatchet has long since been buried between the two men, however, and last week Trump announced he would headline a major rally for Cruz in October. Democratic Rep. Beto ORourke is challenging Cruz in November for the Senate seat.

DAVID HOGG SAYS HE PLANS TO RUN FOR CONGRESS WHEN HES 25

During the 2016 presidential election, Trump nicknamed Cruz Lyin Ted, appeared to make fun of the senators wifes appearance and even lent support to a conspiracy theory suggesting Cruz's Cuban-born father had a hand in President John F. Kennedys assassination. Cruz responded by calling Trump "a sniveling coward," ''a pathological liar" and "a serial philanderer."

The GoFundMe campaign raised $9,760 as of Monday morning, surpassing its goal of $6,000.

Congratulations! Thank you to your support our campaign has reached its goal, an update on the website stated. We are no longer accepting donations at this time.

Hogg rose to prominence after becoming a gun-control activist following the deadly shooting at his high school. Last month, the 18-year-old told New York Magazine he planned to run for the House of Representatives when hes 25.

BETO OROURKE REPORTEDLY TRIED TO FLEE SCENE BEFORE 1998 DRUNKEN-DRIVING ARREST, WITNESS SAID

"So many wonderful selections to choose fromThank you @POTUS, Hogg tweeted with screenshots of Trumps tweets attacking the Texas senator.

Arellano told The Washington Post the billboard would be a mobile truck with two sides, and could carry two different tweets at once, one on each side.

A Democrat in Texas hasnt been elected to statewide office since 1994, the longest such political losing streak in the nation.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Andrew Gillum, the Tallahassee mayor who recently won Florida's Democratic gubernatorial nomination, likes to thank "everyday folks" for donating to his campaign. On Sunday he also thanked billionaires George Soros and Tom Steyer.

Ill tell you, Im obviously deeply appreciative of Mr. Soros, as well as Mr. Steyer, both men whom Ive known for some time, Gillum said on NBCs Meet the Press on Sunday.

"Ill tell you, Im obviously deeply appreciative of Mr. Soros, as well as Mr. Steyer, both men whom Ive known for some time."  Florida gubernatorial nominee Andrew Gillum

In fact, the 39-year-old Gillum received an outpouring of support from liberal megadonors and groups associated with their vast network of affiliates, helping him emerge from a crowded Democratic field last Tuesday.

In April, his campaign raised $450,000, with more than half of that coming from Soros in the form of a contribution to Forward Florida, a political action committee focused on getting Gillum elected, the Tampa Bay Times reported.

Both Soros and Steyer, whos been leading an effort to impeach President Trump, also directed $650,000 in the final two weeks of primary campaigning toward the same political group, according to Politico.

Before the last-minute cash infusion, Steyer reportedly had already donated $500,000 to groups supporting Gillum, while Soros total contributions to the pro-Gillum group stood at $1 million.

Despite the donations and criticism that the billionaires may have undue influence in politics, Gillum brushed off suggestions that his candidacy was bankrolled by billionaires, saying the campaign was led by donations from everyday folks.

[O]ur campaign was really propped up by a lot of small contributions, including my mother, who was on auto-deduct of $20 a month into our campaign, Gillum said on the show. In the first two days of this general election, our campaign has been buoyed this first week, raising over $2 million by everyday folks, not big contributions, but everyday folks sowing a seed into our race.

Gillum will face Republican U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis in November.
Monica Lewinsky walked off stage during an interview Monday at a conference in Israel -- after the interviewer asked her a question about former President Bill Clinton.

Lewinsky was sitting for the question-and-answer session after speaking about the pros and cons of the Internet at a conference organized by the Israel Television News Company on Monday. The interviewer asked if Lewinsky was still waiting for a personal apology from Clinton, Haaretz reported.

Recently in an interview with NBC News, former President Clinton was rather irate when he was asked if he ever apologized to you personally, news anchor Yonit Levi said. Do you still expect that apology, the personal apology?

Lewinsky, 44, replied, Im so sorry, Im not going to be able to do this, before storming off stage.

Lewinsky became a household name after her affair with Clinton in the 1990s when she was working as a White House intern in her early-20s. Often ridiculed, she became an anti-bullying advocate and activist.

MONICA LEWINSKY GETS AN APOLOGY AFTER TOWN & COUNTRY UNINVITED HER FROM EVENT AFTER BILL CLINTON AGREED TO ATTEND

She later took to Twitter to defend herself, saying that there were clear parameters about what we would be discussing and what we would not.

The exact question the interviewer asked first, she had put to me when we met the day prior. I said that was off limits. When she asked me it on stage, with blatant disregard for our agreement, it became clear to me I had been misled.

Lewinsky said that walking off stage sent the message that it is more important than ever for women to stand up for themselves and not allow others to control their narrative.

The NBC interview that Levi referenced took place back in June. Clinton was asked by Craig Melvin if he ever personally apologized to Lewinsky.

I've never talked to her. But I did say, publicly, on more than one occasion, that I was sorry, Clinton said during the interview. He also took issue with Melvin's line of questioning, saying: Someone should ask you these questions, because of the way you formulate the question.

Fox News Nicole Darrah contributed to this report.
Cynthia Nixon has been frequently referenced in the press as trying to become New Yorks first lesbian governor -- but the actress-turned-politician does not actually self-identify as a lesbian, instead considering herself as queer, according to campaign spokeswoman Lauren Hitt.

Speaking to the New York Daily News, Hitt noted that the frequent descriptions of Nixon as a lesbian were incorrect, but declined to discuss further why Nixon identifies as a queer rather than as a lesbian or as bisexual.

Its personal, Hitt said of the choice.

Nixon, who rose to fame on HBOs Sex and the City, and who is now challenging incumbent Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo ahead of the Sept. 13 Democratic primary, is married to LGBTQ advocate and political strategist Christine Marinoni. The couple has one child and Nixon also has two children with her ex-husband, Danny Mozes.

For decades, the term queer was used derisively to attack people who were not heterosexual, but in recent years the word has been "reclaimed" by many in the LGBTQ community. The term is now meant to include people who dont necessarily feel they fall under any specific label and, in other cases, to highlight fluid gender identities.

"The term can represent a kind of freedom and acceptance which allows space for individuality and acknowledges that each person's sexuality and identity is distinct from every other," a pro-gay rights group, PFLAG (Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays), says on its website.

Hitt told the New York Daily News that Nixons gender identity is not fluid, and the politician identifies solely as a woman.

LGBTQ rights are one of the benchmarks of Nixons gubernatorial campaign, as she has promised to push a pro-LGBTQ agenda in Albany if elected, including passing a law outlawing discrimination against those who are transgender.

While Nixon has won the support of some prominent groups within the community, Cuomo  who successfully pushed for legalizing same-sex marriage and signed an executive order that prohibits insurance companies from covering gay conversation therapy  also has the backing of many LGBTQ groups and leaders.

The Stonewall Democrats, the Empire States largest LGBTQ Democratic club, voiced its support for Cuomo in July.

With the governors stances over the years [on gay marriage] and people from his staff have always asked questions, How can we help, what can we do, club president Rod Townsend told the New York Post. Our membership notices that.

Nixon and Cuomo met last week for their only scheduled debate in a testy, hourlong exchange at Hofstra University that featured plenty of interruptions and insults. But neither candidate landed the political equivalent of a knockout blow likely to significantly alter the race.

Polls suggest Cuomo has a more than 30 percentage point lead over Nixon, who also trails substantially in fundraising.

The Democratic primary winner faces Republican Marc Molinaro, Green Party candidate Howie Hawkins and independent Stephanie Miner in November. Registered Democrats outnumber Republicans in New York by more than 2-1.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
President Trump slammed John Kerry on Monday, labeling the former Massachusetts senator and secretary of state the father of the Iran nuclear deal amid speculation that Kerry could challenge Trump in the 2020 election.

I see that John Kerry, the father of the now terminated Iran deal, is thinking of running for President, Trump tweeted. I should only be so lucky - although the field that is currently assembling looks really good - FOR ME!

The tweet from the president came amid speculation that Kerry, the Democratic nominee who ran unsuccessfully against President George W. Bush in 2004, is considering another run in two years.

Kerry, 74, has refused to rule out another run for the White House in 2020, but has urged Democrats to focus on the midterm races.

"Talking about 2020 right now is a total distraction and waste of time," Kerry said in an interview with CBS News' "Face the Nation."

"What we need to do is focus on 2018. We need to win back the confidence of the country to move in a better direction, and to do it in sensible ways," he said.

Kerry said that for now he will continue to be an activist.

He added, Im going to continue to fight.

In January, the Israeli newspaper Maariv reported that Kerry, during a visit to the Middle East, told Palestinian officials he was considering running for president in 2020.

Trump has been critical not only of the Iran deal but also of Kerrys role in negotiating the now-defunct agreement. The president repeatedly has called Kerry the worst negotiator Ive ever seen.

Kerry also criticized former President Barack Obama in his CBS interview, arguing that Obama should have followed through on his infamous red line warning to Syria, and that the United States paid a price as a result of Obama's inaction.

Fox News Adam Shaw contributed to this report.
President Trump lashed out at Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a string of tweets on Monday, accusing him of hurting Republican chances in the upcoming midterm elections with a series of Justice Department investigations.

Two long running, Obama era, investigations of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department, Trump tweeted. Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff.....

The president apparently was referring to the current investigations into GOP Reps. Duncan Hunter of California and Chris Collins of New York. Fox News has reached out to the White House for additional clarification, and the Justice Department did not immediately respond.

Hunter and his wife, Margaret, were indicted last month on charges of illegally converting $250,000 in campaign funds for personal expenses and filing false records, while Collins was indicted earlier in August on insider-trading charges. Prosecutors pinpointed the alleged insider trading to June 2017, after Trump took office.

COLLINS, ACCUSED OF INSIDER TRADING, SAYS HE'LL STAY ON BALLOT FOR RE-ELECTION

Trump also tweeted: The Democrats, none of whom voted for Jeff Sessions, must love him now. Same thing with Lyin James Comey. The Dems all hated him, wanted him out, thought he was disgusting - UNTIL I FIRED HIM! Immediately he became a wonderful man, a saint like figure in fact. Really sick!

Mondays tweets continued a long-running gripe Trump has had with Sessions ever since the attorney general recused himself last year from the Russia investigation. Last month, the president tweeted that Sessions "doesn't understand what is happening underneath his command position" and told "Fox & Friends" that his attorney general had "never taken control of his department."

The president also said the only reason he named Sessions to one of his most important Cabinet-level positions was the former Alabama senator's early support in the 2016 presidential election.

The comments prompted a pointed response from Sessions, who said in a statement that "While I am Attorney General, the actions of the Department of Justice will not be improperly influenced by political considerations."

In an interview with Bloomberg on Thursday, Trump said Sessions would remain in his job at least until the November midterm elections. The president did not elaborate on whether he would keep Sessions on as attorney general following the election.

Fox News' Serafin Gomez contributed to this report.
Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey has at times favored allowing far-right personalities such as Infowars' Alex Jones and white nationalist leader Richard Spencer on his social media platform, despite objections from some of Dorseys staff.

The news, which was first reported by the Wall Street Journal, comes as Dorsey is set to join other heads of social media companies on Capitol Hill this week for a hearing in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

According to the newspaper, there were at least two separate occasions where Dorsey favored keeping the far-right activists on the social media platform. Dorsey is also said to have overruled the decision to ban conspiracy theorist Alex Jones from the platform last month.

Jones, however, was eventually blocked from using Twitter for a week after one of his tweets was deemed to be in violation of the platforms rules.

In November 2016, Dorsey also allegedly told employees Spencer should be allowed to keep one of his numerous accounts on the site after Twitter's safety team initially kicked him off the platform.

Twitter has denied Dorsey was involved in any of the decisions.

Any suggestion that Jack made or overruled any of these decisions is completely and totally false, Twitters chief legal officer, Vijaya Gadde, told the Journal. Our service can only operate fairly if its run through consistent application of our rules, rather than the personal views of any executive, including our CEO.

The Wall Street Journal story comes as big tech companies have faced a backlash for allegedly censoring conservative and Republican accounts on their platforms, with its most notable critic being President Trump.

Last week Trump launched an attack on Google with an early morning tweet accusing the tech giants search engine of being biased against conservative media and promising that the situation will be addressed.

Just weeks ago, Trump attacked other tech giants such as Twitter and Facebook for silencing non-left wing voices - saying too many voices are being destroyed and pledged to address the problem  and he has previously pointed to the problem of so-called shadow banning on social media platforms, where users, while technically not banned, found their posts invisible to most users.

In an effort to curb bad behavior and rhetoric from its platform, Twitter plans to introduce a new feature that will show a picture of a tombstone in place of a tweet that has been taken down for violating the platform's guidelines.

Both Dorsey and Facebooks Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg have confirmed they will be in Washington for the Senate hearing Sept. 5.
A small town in Virginia is attempting a reputation makeover after a restaurant in the area infamously refused to serve White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders in June.

The area's regional tourism board is pulling together emergency funds to boost its digital marketing campaign, the Roanoke Times reported Sunday. The money is normally saved, however, officials agreed the region is in desperate need of positive coverage after the Sanders controversy.

The tourism board serves Lexington, Va., where The Red Hen is located, and other communities that are about three hours from Washington, D.C.

SARAH SANDERS SAYS SHE WAS THROWN OUT OF VIRGINIA RESTAURANT BECAUSE SHE WORKS FOR TRUMP



Following the incident, the tourism board was flooded with thousands of calls and emails -- and the complaints are still coming. The office received a letter Thursday from a Georgia family that wrote to say it would never return because of what happened.

For a town our size, it was a significant impact, Patty Williams, the director of marketing, told the Roanoke Times.

In June, Sanders tweeted she was told to leave by the owner of the restaurant because she worked for the president.

RED HEN OWNER RESIGNS FROM VIRGINIA BUSINESS GROUP AFTER BOOTING SARAH SANDERS FROM RESTAURANT

Last night I was told by the owner of Red Hen in Lexington, VA to leave because I work for @POTUS and I politely left, Sanders tweeted at the time. Her actions say far more about her than about me. I always do my best to treat people, including those I disagree with, respectfully and will continue to do so.

Following the tweet, social media users took to the Red Hens Facebook and Yelp pages to bombard it with one-star ratings and bad reviews. Some Trump supporters also flocked to the restaurant in protest after news broke. The restaurant closed its doors for nearly two weeks after the controversy broke.

Fox News Adam Shaw and the Associated Press contributed to this report.
Brazil's National Museum has suffered catastrophic damages after a massive fire broke out on Sunday. Firefighters are working to salvage some of the artifacts inside the museum, which was once home to a 12,000-year-old skeleton, the oldest human remains ever found in the Americas.

Many of the 20 million items in the museum, formally known as Rio Museu Nacional, have been lost. However, Roberto Robadey, a spokesman for the fire department, said that some 80 firefighters were battling the blaze and some of the museum's pieces had been spared.

"We were able to remove a lot of things from inside with the help of workers of the museum," Robadey told Globo News.

THE LATEST: BRAZIL MUSEUM OFFICIAL SAYS RISKS WERE KNOWN

The museum contained pieces relating to anthropology, archaeology and paleontology, among other fields, including the aforementioned remains of a 12,000-year-old skeleton known as as "Luzia", the oldest ever discovered in the Americas, according to the BBC.

The museum also housed items from the 1500s, when the Portuguese arrived in the country, all the way up to 1889, when Brazil was declared a republic. It also had pieces from Greco-Roman times and Ancient Egypt, the BBC added.

In addition, the ethnology collection had pieces from the pre-Columbian era.

Many of its collections came from members of Brazil's royal family, officials said.

Robadey said that by midnight local time the fire was "just about under control." Smoke was still rising from the building the following morning.

President Michel Temer said it was "a sad day for all Brazilians."

He continued in a statement, "Two hundred years of work, investigation and knowledge have been lost."

BRAZIL'S NATIONAL MUSEUM, 200 YEARS OLD, GOES UP IN FLAMES

It was not yet known what caused the fire, which started after the museum closed on Sunday. The museum reportedly had infrastructure problems in recent years.

The museum is Brazil's oldest. Sergio Sa Leitao, the country's culture minister, told the newspaper how tragic it was to see the museum in flames. According to a translation of his remarks, he said the fire "could certainly have been avoided."



Fox News' Nicole Darrah and The Associated Press contributed to this report. Follow Chris Ciaccia on Twitter @Chris_Ciaccia
MOFFETT FIELD, Calif.  Sending humans back to the moon won't require a big Apollo-style budget boost, NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine said.

During the height of the Apollo program in the mid-1960s, NASA gobbled up about 4.5 percent of the federal budget. This massive influx of resources helped the space agency make good on President John F. Kennedy's famous 1961 promise to get astronauts to the moon, and safely home to Earth again, before the end of the decade.

NASA's budget share now hovers around just 0.5 percent. But something in that range should be enough to mount crewed lunar missions in the next 10 years or so, as President Donald Trump has instructed NASA to do with his Space Policy Directive 1, Bridenstine told reporters yesterday (Aug. 30) here at NASA's Ames Research Center. [In Photos: President Trump Aims for the Moon with Space Policy Directive 1]

The key lies in not going it alone and continuing to get relatively modest but important financial bumps, he added. (Congress allocated over $20.7 billion to NASA in the 2018 omnibus spending bill  about $1.1 billion more than the agency got in the previous year's omnibus bill.)

"We now have more space agencies on the surface of the planet than we've ever had before. And even countries that don't have a space agency  they have space activities, and they want to partner with us on our return to the moon," Bridenstine said in response to a question from Space.com.

"And, at the same time, we have a robust commercial marketplace of people that can provide us access that historically didn't exist," the NASA chief added. "So, between our international and commercial partners and our increased budget, I think we're going to be in good shape to accomplish the objectives of Space Policy Directive 1."

Those objectives call for a sustainable human return to the moon, rather than the transient, flags-and-footprints approach of Apollo. Establishing a permanent presence on and around the moon is an aim in itself, but it will also teach NASA and its partners the technologies and skills required to push out even farther into the solar system, to Mars and beyond, Bridenstine and other agency officials have said.

For example, water ice mined from permanently shadowed craters near the lunar poles could be split into its constituent hydrogen and oxygen  prime components of rocket fuel. This propellant could then be hauled up to off-Earth depots, which could fill the tanks of spaceships bound for Mars or other distant destinations. This strategy could spur a new era of exploration, freeing humanity from the need to launch huge amounts of fuel out of Earth's substantial gravity well, space-mining advocates have stressed.

The centerpiece of NASA's crewed moon plans, at least in the short term, is the Lunar Orbital Platform-Gateway. This small, moon-orbiting space station will be assembled and visited with the aid of NASA's Space Launch System megarocket and Orion capsule, both of which are in development.

The Gateway will house up to four astronauts for a month or two at a time and serve as a hub for robotic and crewed exploration of the lunar surface, NASA officials have said. [Moon Base Visions: How to Build a Lunar Colony (Photos)]

The first element of the Gateway  its power and propulsion module  is scheduled to launch in 2022. Other key pieces will be lofted shortly thereafter. If all goes according to plan, astronauts could visit the outpost as early as 2024 and start making trips to the lunar surface a few years later, before the end of the 2020s, NASA officials have said.

That will be a milestone when it happens; no boots have pressed into the gray lunar dirt since the Apollo 17 astronauts departed for Earth back in 1972.

The Gateway will be compatible with a variety of vehicles, to encourage the cooperation that NASA officials deem so crucial.

"We want to have strong partnerships, not just commercially but internationally, so that we can do more than we've ever done before and build this sustainable architecture that is our direction under Space Policy Directive 1," Bridenstine said.

Indeed, NASA is encouraging the progress of private landers, such as those in development by the American companies Blue Origin, Moon Express and Astrobotic. The agency plans to buy some rides down to the lunar surface aboard such commercial craft, rather than have to build or purchase every moon lander itself.

Eventually, commercial vehicles may even ferry NASA astronauts  not just robotic payloads  from the Gateway to the moon's surface and back, Bridenstine said.

This approach is in keeping with the agency's recent push to commercialize low Earth orbit. SpaceX and Northrop Grumman already launch uncrewed cargo missions to the International Space Station for NASA, and SpaceX and Boeing both hold multibillion-dollar deals to ferry agency astronauts to and from the orbiting lab. The first crewed flights of these private astronaut taxis are scheduled to take place next year.

Originally published on Space.com.
A moose drowned in a Vermont lake over the weekend after people trying to snap a picture of the animal crowded it and forced it into the water, wildlife officials said.

The moose swam across Lake Champlain from New York to South Hero, Vermont, on Saturday, according to the officials. After the animal made it to shore, onlookers started taking pictures of it. Likely spooked and threatened, it went back into the water, where it became exhausted and then drowned.

NORTH CAROLINA WOMAN SAYS DOG DIED PROTECTING FAMILY FROM BEAR THAT BROKE INTO HOME

Fish and Wildlife Warden Robert Currier told The Associated Press he arrived shortly before the moose drowned and was later removed from the lake.

"It was struggling pretty good at that point. We were waiting for a boat to respond to try to assist it, but before the boat arrived, it had drowned," he said. "It was really rough out there, probably 4- to 5-foot swells and high wind."

It all happened near a bike path thats popular with tourists.

Currier said moose typically respond to threats by leaving an area or getting aggressive.

LONG ISLAND POLICE DOG KILLED IN CRASH AFTER CHASE

"I would advise the public to keep their distance from the animal, give it a lot of space and notify the Department of Fish and Wildlife," he said.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Evidence for Planet Nine continues to mount, but there may be a good reason why scientists have yet to find it  it may be hiding.

In October 2017, NASA released a statement saying that Planet Nine may be 20 times further from the Sun than Neptune is, going so far as to say "it is now harder to imagine our solar system without a Planet Nine than with one."

But the reason it may not yet have been found is due to that same distance. At that distance, the equivalent, of 600 astronomical units (1 AU is defined as the distance between the Earth and the Sun, or approximately 93 million miles), it would be 160,000 times dimmer than Neptune is. Kevin Luhman, an astronomer at Pennsylvania State University, told Quanta Magazine by way of the Washington Post that at 1,000 AU, it's a "brick wall, basically," making any potential planet next to impossible to see using current technology.

NASA SAYS EVIDENCE FOR 'PLANET NINE' IS MOUNTING

However, scientists believe the possibility of another planet, one which may have "10 times the mass of Earth," does indeed exist.

Every time we take a picture, there is this possibility that Planet Nine exists in the shot, Surhud More, associate professor in Kavli Institute for the Physics and Mathematics of the Universe at the University of Tokyo, told Quanta Magazine.

Slashgear reports that it could take up to 1,000 years before the planet is found.

Michael Brown from the California Institute of Technology has said he thinks Planet Nine will eventually be found, but it will take significantly stronger telescopes and planet finding technology than currently exist.

In the Oct. 2017 statement, Caltech planetary astrophysicist Konstantin Batygin, who worked with Brown, said that there "five different lines of observational evidence" that point to the existence of the planet.

The five lines of evidence are:

Six known objects in the Kuiper Belt, all of which have elliptical orbits that point in the same direction.

The orbits of the objects are all tilted the same way; 30 degrees "downward."

Computer simulations that show there are more objects "tilted with respect to the solar plane."

Planet Nine could be responsible for the tilt of the planets in our solar system; the plane of the planets orbit is tilted about 6 degrees compared to the Sun's equator

Some objects from the Kuiper Belt orbit in the opposite direction from everything else in the solar system.

"No other model can explain the weirdness of these high-inclination orbits," Batygin added. "It turns out that Planet Nine provides a natural avenue for their generation. These things have been twisted out of the solar system plane with help from Planet Nine and then scattered inward by Neptune."

SCIENTISTS MAY HAVE JUST FOUND A NINTH PLANET AND IT'S MASSIVE

"If you were to remove this explanation and imagine Planet Nine does not exist, then you generate more problems than you solve," Batygin also said. "All of a sudden, you have five different puzzles, and you must come up with five different theories to explain them."

Their work was published in a January 2016 paper that can be read in its entirety here.

News of a Planet Nine first surfaced in 2014, when researchers found a planetoid and a subsequent celestial body that appears to orbit around the Sun.



Follow Chris Ciaccia on Twitter @Chris_Ciaccia

This story has been updated to reflect that More's quote came from Quanta Magazine and not the Advocator. Fox News regrets this error.


If your iPhone 8 has been acting up, then you might be eligible for a free repair.

On Friday, Apple said a "very small percentage" of iPhone 8 models were found built with faulty logic boards. "Affected devices may experience unexpected restarts, a frozen screen, or won't turn on," the company said in a support post.

The defect is present in iPhone 8 models sold from last Sept to this March to the biggest markets including the US, China, Japan, India, along with Australia and New Zealand.

Fortunately, iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X models have been found free of the defect. To find out if you're eligible for a repair, you can visit Apple's support post on the issue and enter your iPhone's serial number.

The logic board, also known as a motherboard, houses the most critical components of an iPhone, including the CPU and memory chips. So any problem to it can cause the whole device to fail.

Apple didn't say why the phones were built with the manufacturing defect, but fixing the issue will require the company sending the devices to its official repair centers.

To proceed with the repair service, affected iPhone owners will need to either make an appointment at an Apple retail store, visit an authorized service provider, or contact Apple support to have it mailed to an Apple repair center. However, if your iPhone has a cracked screen, the company will need you to fix that first.

Another condition is that Apple "may restrict or limit" the iPhone's repair to the original country or region the product was bought in.

This article originally appeared on PCMag.com.
Watch out for suspicious job offers on LinkedIn. Chinese government agencies are using the social network to recruit Americans for spying purposes, a US spy chief says.

According to William Evanina, director of the National Counterintelligence and Security Center, China is contacting "thousands" of LinkedIn members in a bid to uncover US government and commercial secrets.

Linkedin "makes for a great venue for foreign adversaries to target not only individuals in the government, formers, former CIA folks, but academics, scientists, engineers, anything they want. It's the ultimate playground for collection," Evanina told Reuters.

China has been using LinkedIn to reach out to experts in supercomputing, nuclear energy, nanotechnology, semiconductors and other tech fields, according to Reuters, citing unnamed US officials. Although Russia, Iran, and North Korea also exploit LinkedIn for recruiting purposes, China is viewed as the most prolific and will use tactics such as bribery and phony business deals to lure in potential informants.

Evanina stopped short of saying whether he was frustrated by LinkedIn's response to the spying activities. However, he did urge the Microsoft-owned platform to take a page from Twitter, which deleted millions of suspected fake accounts.

Earlier this month, LinkedIn announced it had ousted a group of fewer than 40 fake accounts that tried to connect with members of US political organizations. However, it isn't clear who was behind those fake accounts or what their intentions were.

In response to Evanina's reported comments, LinkedIn said: "We've never waited for requests to act and actively identify bad actors and remove bad accounts using information we uncover and intelligence from a variety of sources including government agencies."

The company also has a "threat intelligence team" specifically devoted to stopping malicious activities. But LinkedIn refrained from directly commenting on suspected Chinese government espionage campaigns or how many fake accounts might be involved.

Evanina is speaking out about LinkedIn after a former CIA officer was convicted in June of spying for China. The officer, Kevin Mallory, became embroiled in the espionage campaign after he received a message over LinkedIn in February 2017 from a Chinese headhunter. Mallory now faces life in prison for handing over US secret documents to a Shanghai think tank with alleged ties to a Chinese security ministry.

This article originally appeared on PCMag.com.
Chinese billionaire Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, was arrested in Minneapolis on Friday night on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct, jail records showed.

Liu, 45, the founder of the Beijing-based e-commerce site JD.com, was released on Saturday afternoon pending possible criminal charges, Hennepin County Jail records showed. The jail records dont provide details of the alleged incident.

Minneapolis police spokesman John Elder said Sunday he couldn't provide any details because the investigation is considered active. He declined to say where in Minneapolis that Liu was arrested or what Liu was accused of doing.

VIRAL MOMO SUICIDE GAME BLAMED FOR DEATHS OF BOY, 16, AND GIRL, 12, REPORTS SAY

Minnesota law defines five degrees of criminal sexual misconduct, ranging from a gross misdemeanor to felonies, and covering a broad array of conduct ranging from nonconsensual touching to violent assaults with injuries. The jail records for Liu don't indicate a degree.

JD.com said in a statement on Sunday on social media that Liu was falsely accused while in the U.S. on a business trip, but police investigators found no misconduct and that he would continue his journey as planned.

"We will take the necessary legal action against false reporting or rumors," the company said.

JD.com is Chinas second-largest e-commerce company after Alibaba. In June, Google said it would invest $550 million in JD.com.

GOOGLES SECRET DEAL WITH MASTERCARD TRACKS OFFLINE SPENDING, REPORT SAYS

The arrest comes after Liu recently tried to distance himself from a sexual assault allegations against a guest at a 2015 party at Liu's penthouse in Australia. Liu was not charged or accused of wrongdoing, but Australian media reported he tried unsuccessfully to get a court to prevent the release of his name in that case. The guest was convicted.

The New York Times reported Liu has returned to China where he has become the talk of the nation. His mugshot was said to be plastered all over Chinese news outlets and social media pages. The Times reported many in Chinese view self-made tech moguls as rock stars. Liu grew up in a poor part of eastern China before attending the prestigious Renmin University in Beijing. He is worth an estimated $7.3 billion, CBS News reported.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
How do you feel about artificial intelligence? Excited? Apprehensive?

Perhaps you wish there was "grown-up supervision" on hand. Relax, there is: Founded in 1979, the Association for the Advancement of Artificial Intelligence (AAAI) has kept a fairly low profile outside of academic arenas, emerging when called upon to add reason behind closed doors in Washington.

But the organization now has 4,000 members worldwide and its goal is to: promote research in and guide the responsible use of AI; enhance public understanding of the field; raise standards in training AI innovators; and provide guidance to those funding major AI initiatives.

To find out more, we spoke with Dr. Yolanda Gil, who just took over as AAAI's 24th president, via phone, at her office in USC's Information Sciences Institute (ISI). Dr. Gil joined ISI in 1992 and is currently its Director of Knowledge Technologies and Associate Division Director; she's also a Research Professor in Computer Science and in Spatial Sciences with a focus on intelligent interfaces for knowledge capture and discovery. Here are edited and condensed excerpts from our conversation.

Dr. Gil, could you tell us why you accepted the role of AAAI president? What was it about the organization and its mission that really drives you?

These are exciting times as AI increasingly permeates our lives. We see it in systems from chatbots to self-driving cars to scientific discovery and many other applications doing useful tasks. I believe AAAI is the leading forum to coordinate many areas of AI, and that we also have a strong responsibility to design AI systems that haveand encourageethical and responsible behaviors. My career has always included a focus on service to the AI and computer science communities so this was a natural step for me. I'm really excited about it.

Can you talk about three major objectives you have for AAAI moving forward?

The first thing to tell you is that I really see this as a listening experience, at least initially, so I can be responsive to what the community is looking for. Having said that, one big area is to enhance and strengthen AAAI links with industry. Our annual conference has a lot of participants from industry but I'd like to see more presence from industry research labs. Traditionally it's been a very academic conference but today, many professors spend time in industry. We need to give that sector a lot more presence. That's a major focus. I am also looking to include underserved communities in our membership to diversify it strongly; launch K-12 initiatives to grow the pipeline; and ensure we include professionals in other areas.

As young students learn about AI but go into other fields, it'll spread understanding, rather than fear?

Exactly. Many K-12 students will go on to be doctors, entrepreneurs, engineers, or whatever they choose. But through exposure to AAAI, they'll know more about the potential for AI in their chosen field.

Your predecessor launched a focus on AI and ethics.

Yes, and we'll be continuing that through 2019...particularly within the second conference on "AI and Ethics in Society" during our annual conference. We need to look at employing ethics within AI at every level: how systems need to be designed with different mechanisms to respond ethically to events; understand when an AI system could do harm; and so on. I'm very excited about our initiativeit's in partnership with ACMand, as a community, we need to take a leadership role and do more research in this area: properly, clearly and creatively rather than letting circumstances shape AI.

Pivoting to your own research, for a moment, we first encountered your work back in 2015, at DARPA. How has that project progressed since then?

At the time [at DARPA] we were just starting that project on using intelligent systems for scientific discovery, assisting scientists with intelligent systems that analyze data, test hypotheses, and make new discoveries. At the beginning, we were focused on capturing scientific processes as semantic workflows. We have been working on several science domains. Now we have several related projects and are starting to see some results.

These results have not yet been published, but can you share some insights and specific areas of focus for your intelligent systems?

Yes, for example, in the scientific field of proteomics, the biochemical study of proteins within an organism, we have now captured a lot of workflows about this kind of analysis. And, interestingly, what we realized is that, when the studies are published, they just used one model [to identify the proteins] but they didn't explore others, which means many proteins are missed.

And your AI system is smart enough to comprehend this omission and correct it?

Precisely. Our systems are now intelligent enough to be diligent and keep trying other methods, other algorithms, to detect hundreds of proteins that have been left out otherwise. The system itself is working on making new discoveries.

That's amazing. Your AI systems will be making new scientific breakthroughs. A popular lab partner, one assumes.

[Laughs] We hope so. We are now working on a mechanism to measure "interestingness," so that when the system finds something new it can check if it is significant breakthrough. This is a very challenging; it requires that the system has knowledge on what's the state of the art in the field, the latest thinking on those proteins.

Otherwise it might just get excited, but the proteomics researchers might say: "yeah, but that's merely a prosaic protein."

That is right. And a good lab partner would not bother a scientist with minutia or unimportant findings. So we have to design an "interesting lab partner."

Can your AI system ingest and analyze multiforms of data input?

Yes. We're now automatically generating machine learning workflows. We give it data and a metrici.e. the desired goaland the system will start looking at what type of data it is. If it's audio, it will look for a way to process it. If it's visual data, it will find a means to understand and catalogue that. Then it will apply algorithms to maximize the metric (eg the accuracy of the solution). It's very systematic.

Aside from inside the proteomics lab, aren't your systems tackling problems out in the field with your new $13 million DARPA award?

Yes, that award is for a 4-year project called MINT for Model INTegration, part of DARPA's World Modelers program. We are building workflows to integrate complex models of the world that cover hydrology, food production, climate, social and economics. We're asking our intelligent systems to help us understand, in particular, prospective food shortages, poverty and food insecurity for at-risk communities around the world.

Right now, we're collaborating with Kimetrica, the data company which provides large-scale investment appraisals and government statistics reports, to use our automated machine-learning workflows, and it turns out that they are better than the ones they did by hand. This is still in initial stages, but we're getting good results. It's exciting to have their domain expertise, combined with our AI research finding solutions to important world problems.

In the current issue of AI Magazine, Dr. Lynne Parker, co-leader of the National Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan writes: "it is incumbent upon us as technologists to focus on the positive, ethical development and use of AI, ensuring that everyone can benefit from the practical application of AI across society, regardless of which nation leads in the strategic development of the technology." What was the significance of this document?

AI has always been very internationaland distributedwith cultural richness embedded from all regions, many of which take different approaches to AI. For example, in Europe there's an incredible tradition of logic-based approaches, in Asia it comes from advanced computational mathematics, whereas in Africa and Australia there's a strong focus on applied research. The document you refer to is very significant because it means that the US recognizes the importance of having a national plan and making strategic investments.

An increased focus to compete with China and elsewhere?

To be clear, the US government has always made AI an important area for investment, but it hasn't traditionally been a large investment, whereas the EU and China have been prioritizing government-led research investments in AI for a while. That report is a recognition that the US needs to continue to play a leadership role. It was a great document, very thorough and its recommendations are very right.

One thing it pointed out is that machine learning is important but human-computer collaboration is something that we cannot neglect. It also emphasized basic research in AI because, when you invest for 10, 20, or 30 years into the hard problems we have in AIlike speech recognitionyou can see amazing results, but only when investments are sustained over a significant period of time.

It's very frustrating for major speech-recognition AI researchers when the popular view is that there's a magic Google Assistant lab that "figured it out over a late night pizza-fueled session in 2018."

Right! [Laughs] Speech-recognition research took decades, and some directions didn't work, and had to be abandoned. But because there was a significant investment people stuck with the problem and kept being creative and pushing forwards.

What about the current administration, considering that national AI plan was a document drawn up under President Obama?

Actually, the current administration just released a statement that they are going to make significant investments in AI and have started a special study to come up with a roadmap for AI research. I will be co-chairing that effort.

Well that's a cheering thought. When, as co-chair of this new AI strategic plan for the US, are you delivering the first paper?

We're going to be taking the National Artificial Intelligence Research and Development Strategic Plan and thinking very hard about basic research, human-computer collaboration, understanding the benefits of society as we investparticularly around health and scientific discoveries and so onto create an extensive roadmap by spring 2019. We also want to emphasize how innovation in AI can boost competitiveness and benefit both the industry and government sectors.

To learn more, the AAAI Fall Symposium is scheduled for Oct. 18-20 in Arlington, Virginia. The registration deadline is Sept. 21.

This article originally appeared on PCMag.com.
Chicagos crime rates have lived up to their national notoriety over Labor Day weekend, with shootings killing at least five people and wounding more.

The dead included a man, 18, shot in the chest and head while standing on a sidewalk; a man, 32, shot in the neck by a man wearing a mask; and a woman, 30, struck in the back of the head while standing in an alley, WMAQ reported.

Killed on Sunday were a 25-year-old man who was caught in a crossfire in Rogers Park on the city's North Side, and a 41-year-old man who was shot in the chest on the far South Side, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Victims of nonfatal shootings on Sunday included an 11-year-old girl and a 17-year-old girl, the Sun-Times report said.

"My baby got shot!" a woman could be heard screaming at the scene where the teenager was struck, the newspaper reported.

Also on Sunday, a 17-year-old boy was found critically injured with two gunshot wounds to his head, police told the paper.

No suspects were reported to be in custody.

The weekend started with an apparent lull in violent crime  but it didnt last.

For more than 15 hours Saturday, no one was reported shot in Chicago, the Chicago Tribune reported. Then, the bullets started to fly.

By the end of last weekend, three people were shot dead and 25 others were wounded, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

The majority of Chicago shootings have unfolded on the citys south and west sides, as Fox News previously reported  areas marked not only by deteriorating neighborhoods, but also by a lack of quick, efficient emergency care.

The violence in Chicago, police have said, is fueled primarily by gangs. However, many people who live in these neighborhoods describe the shootings as a byproduct of individuals facing and normalizing poverty, as well as a lack of resources. Locals also say theyve been frustrated with the pace of progress in criminal investigations.

Of the 75 people who were shot during a bloodbath on the Aug. 3-5 weekend, only one person has been charged in connection to any of the shootings.

Police reported via Twitter Friday night that violence was down in August compared with a year ago.

Chicago Police spokesman Anthony Guglielmi tweeted Sunday morning that, Since Friday at 6pm through noon Sunday, police have taken 65 illegal guns off city streets & made 30 arrests for gun charges including illegal possession.

Police said the department plans to hire an additional 300 homicide detectives by the end of 2018.

Fox News Barnini Chakraborty contributed to this report.
A small airplane or engine-driven recreational aircraft crashed Sunday on a rugged and scenic mountain south of Reno, igniting a wildfire in Nevada that officials feared could climb uphill toward the Mount Rose Ski Tahoe resort.

The fire was reported about 1:40 p.m. Sunday on Slide Mountain in the Mount Rose Wilderness and quickly grew to 20 acres, Truckee Meadows Fire Protection District spokesman Adam Mayberry said.

Washoe County sheriffs officials began a rescue operation, while the Nevada Division of Forestry, U.S. Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service firefighters headed to the scene.

The type of aircraft that crashed was not immediately known, but the area near Bowers Mansion is popular for gliders and small recreational aircraft, officials said.

It was so steep that rescuers could not immediately get to the wreckage to reach possible survivors or identify the aircraft, Mayberry and sheriffs spokesman Bob Harmon said.

The first firefighting efforts were conducted using helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, Mayberry said.

Hikers were advised to leave the remote area. Old Highway 395 was restricted to residential traffic and emergency vehicles.

There was no report about an inbound or outbound commercial aircraft missing or being lost on radar, Reno-Tahoe International Airport spokesman Brian Kulpin said.

An official at Carson City Airport, which is also in the area, did not immediately respond to messages.

The Federal Aviation Administration had no immediate information about the downed aircraft, agency spokesman Ian Gregor said.
At least 8 people were shot Sunday night at an apartment complex in San Bernardino, Calif. -- with at least two of the victims reportedly in extremely critical condition.

Police originally said 10 people were shot and 3 were in critical condition, but the numbers were updated on Monday morning. Police said the youngest person shot was 17-years-old and in "extremely critical condition," NBC Los Angeles reported.



Police have set up a large perimeter around the crime scene, according to KTVN-TV in Los Angeles.

Multiple handguns and rifles were fired by gunmen who fled the scene, according to Capt. Richard Lawhead of the San Bernardino Police Department.

Officers arrived at the location Sunday night to find an "unruly crowd" at a common area in the apartment complex, Lawhead said. It appeared the crowd of people may have been playing a game of dice when the shooting occurred, the Press-Enterprise reported.

"It was a chaotic scene," Lawhead said.

So far no arrests have been made and there was no immediate description given for any suspects. Lawhead said there was gang activity in the area but it was not immediately clear if that was connected to the shooting.

California Sen. Kamala Harris tweeted about the shooting, sending her thoughts to those affected.

"Heartbroken over the shooting in San Bernardino. Praying for the injured and the entire community. Thank you to law enforcement officers and first responders in the scene," she wrote.
Employees at the Pines Thrift Store in Sarasota, Florida, are scratching their heads after someone left nearly 5 pounds of marijuana outside the shop last week.

Four bags of vacuum-sealed marijuana turned up inside a tote bag near the clothing drop-off area outside the store, officials with the Sarasota Police Department told Fox 13.

CHINESE BILLIONAIRE ARRESTED IN MINNEAPOLIS FOR ALLEGED SEXUAL MISCONDUCT

Inside the tote was a brown paper bag, which contained the pot. The cops were called after an employee opened the bag and saw what was inside.

The pot weighed about 4.7 pounds and is worth an estimated $5,400, ABC News reported.

LAS VEGAS POLICE FIND BODY OF MISSING BOY, 3, ARREST MOM AND BOYFRIEND

So far, no arrests have been made, according to Fox 13. However, the Sarasota Police Department sent the bags off for DNA and other testing to find out the drugs' source.

Officials are also checking to see if surveillance footage of the area could help them in their investigation, WFTS-News reported.
An exchange of gunfire Monday between police and a shoplifting suspect at a Georgia Walmart has left one officer wounded and a suspect dead, investigators confirmed.

The officer, identified as 34-year-old Matt Cooper, was airlifted to Atlanta Medical Center, according to Fox 5. He was shot in the head, WSB reported.

Cooper was recovering in serious condition, the Georgia Bureau of Investigation added.

Officers were responding to a shoplifting call at a Walmart in Covington around 12:30 p.m., Fox 5 added.

The officers arrived and grabbed two suspects, a police spokesman told the station.

A third suspect, Aaron Demonta Fleming, started firing at police, hitting one of the officers, the spokesman said. Fleming was shot and killed at the scene; investigators said the gunshot likely was self-inflicted. Police took the two other suspects into custody.

Covington is a 40-minute drive southeast of Atlanta.

Click for more from Fox 5 Atlanta.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A 3-year-old Las Vegas boy was found dead Monday, and his mother, who reported him missing, is facing murder charges, police said.

Little Daniel Theriot was a victim of child abuse, Las Vegas Police Homicide Lt. Ray Spencer said.

Its absolutely disturbing on how the child, we believe, was killed, Spencer said without elaborating.

He said investigators found Daniel's body in a remote area within Lake Mead Recreational Area, FOX5 Las Vegas reported.

Daniels 20-year-old mother and her 40-year-old boyfriend were jailed after the discovery, the station reported.

Spencer told reporters the pair will be booked on murder charges later Monday. The names were not immediately released.

The woman's other child, a 2-year-old, was turned over to child welfare workers. That child had also been abused, Spencer said.

The mom told police Daniel vanished when he walked away from her Sunday morning as she was making a phone call in Sunset Park.

A few hours later police began to doubt her story after conducting a fruitless search for him and finding no one who had seen the mother or the boy in the park.
Police roped off several blocks in downtown Birmingham, Ala., on Sunday night after six teens were shot outside a party venue, according to a report.

One of the teens suffered life-threatening injuries, Sgt. Johnny Williams told AL.com.

A seventh teen suffered a knee injury during the chaotic scene, AL.com reported.

Shots rang out about 10 p.m. at WorkPlay, a music venue in the downtown area, AL.com reported. It was unclear how many suspects were involved.

The shooting occurred outside the club after two males who were arguing went outside, the news site reported.

Sgt. Timothy Gardiner told the outlet that an altercation developed outside the part site before shots were fired.

Parents were told where to pick up their teens, according to the report.
BLACK MOUNTAIN, N.C. (AP) -- A woman says her dog has died after warding off a bear that broke into her family's North Carolina home.

WRAL reported Saturday that the incident occurred in Black Mountain, a town outside Asheville in the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Tiffany Merrill said she thought she was going to die when the bear broke in. She yelled to her children to shut their doors.

Her dog Pickles quickly appeared. Merrill said the five-pound dog "started barking and got the bear's attention and got the bear outside and he saved my life."

Merrill said she couldn't save her dog's life. She said she "wanted to go out there and jump on the back of the bear and save my dog."

She now finds herself grieving. She said Pickles "was always with me."
An animal rescue center in Middletown, Ohio says one of their dogs was brutally killed while working in a prison program that pairs rescue dogs with inmates.

The dog, a 4-year-old German Shepherd and Norwegian Elkhound mix named Evie, was found Saturday morning unresponsive by her handlers and she had passed away, Josephs Legacy, the animal rescue center that placed the pup with Warren Correctional Institution, wrote in an online statement.

A necropsy, an animal autopsy, revealed Evie died from blunt force trauma to her abdomen causing her liver to hemorrhage and her kidney was also damaged, Josephs Legacy wrote. Were all undeniably angered and overwhelmingly upset.

LONG ISLAND POLICE DOG KILLED IN CRASH AFTER CHASE

In a statement to Fox News, Lisa Cantrell, the secretary and board member of Joseph's Legacy, and Meg Melampy, the president and founder of the facility, said theyve never had any issues with the program before.

While those responsible have not yet been identified, Cantrell and Melampy said that at least two inmates have been in solitary confinement since Evie was found.

Until recently, Josephs Legacy was one of many rescue centers across that country that paired certain inmates with rescue dogs.

Like most, we were excited to have our troubled dogs get their training and excited to help the program. Many dogs came, got trained and headed out to their forever homes. It seemed to have little issues and worked smoothly. We had volunteers regularly on site and observing the dogs progress and how the handlers were working with them, the facility added.

Following Evies death, however, Joseph's Legacy said all of its dogs have been removed from the program.

Moving forward, the rescue center hopes to get justice for Evie, adding state authorities are investigating the incident and formal charges will be pressed.

Evie, an extremely sweet dog who had so much more life, happy moments and years ahead of her, first came to the shelter in 2015 with a broken hip, an injury she sustained after she was hit by a car.

NORTH CAROLINA WOMAN SAYS DOG DIED PROTECTING FAMILY FROM BEAR THAT BROKE INTO HOME

She joined the prison program after she was adopted but was later returned a few months ago through no fault of her own Joseph's Legacy said in the online statement. She was doing amazing things with her foster mom but we had thought maybe trying to get some more training, it would be safer for when she was adopted again.

"Evie was an extremely sweet dog who had so much more life, happy moments and years ahead of her."  Joseph's Legacy

But Evies life was cut short before she had the chance of finding a new home.

We are absolutely heartbroken, Krista Snyder Bolser, also a board member at Josephs Legacy, told Fox News.

A spokesperson for the Warren Correctional Institution was not immediately available for comment on Monday.
A viral Facebook post describes how a police officer helped out an elderly woman in a big way, during an encounter at a gas station on Friday.

An elderly woman came into my station today and gave me $3 in change to put on her gas pump, Seth Kazz, who Fox 4 identified as a Citgo gas station owner in St. Clair Shores, Michigan, recalled.

Kazz added that a nearby officer was listening and saw she was using a cane, struggling to walk back to her car.

The officer headed outside and said hed pump her gas himself.

After a few minutes of getting to know one another he realized she was really struggling and didnt have any gas or money left, he shared. The $3 will only get her so far.

The officer's kindness continued, according to Kazzs account: he then went inside and paid more for the womans gas.

He went back and finished pumping and she told him her husband had recently passed away and shes stuck paying all their bills and is behind every month. This $20 really helped her! Kazz said.

DEER SPOTTED HUGGING FIREFIGHTER ON CANADA FERRY

The spoke about police officers in a Facebook post, which as of Tuesday afternoon, had more than 33,300 reactions, 3,000 comments and 14,600 shares.

Nowadays theres so much negativity towards police officers. No one respects them, Kazz wrote. We hear all the complaints and 'bad' stories. Im not saying every officer is perfect, Im sure some are at fault at times. We all make mistakes- but we should all respect, appreciate, and thank them for what they do.

Kazz added: To all the men and women in blue I THANK YOU for your service!

Kazz, who says he has set up a GoFundMe account for the woman, told Fox News she looked very excited by the officers gesture, which he hadnt seen the man do previously.

But I know the officer has played basketball with kids before, he shared. The community loves him.
Tropical Storm Gordon was already battering South Florida on Monday as meteorologists issued tropical storm warning for the region from the Florida Keys to the upper Gulf Coast.

Periods of heavy rain were expected to continue Monday through the late afternoon with a possibility of flooding, gusty winds and isolated tornadoes, according to the National Weather Service.

Its not expected to be a hurricane, winds will be there around 45 miles per hour, mostly its going to be a rainmaker for a lot of these areas, Fox News Channel Meteorologist Adam Klotz said.

The NWS said in its 8:30 a.m. EDT advisory the storm was centered 20 miles west of Key Largo and 85 miles southeast of Marco Island.

The storm was moving west-northwest at 17 mph. Maximum sustained winds were clocked at 45 mph with most of the rain centered on the Miami area.

Rain is the main concern as South Florida is expected to get 2-4 inches Monday with 4-6 inches on the Gulf Coast.

A Storm Surge Watch is in effect for a portion of the Mississippi-Louisiana border issued by the National Hurricane Center in Miami

Tropical Storm Gordon is the Atlantic basins seventh named storm of the year, expected to approach the northern Gulf Coast Tuesday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A woman gave birth to twins just two hours after surviving a terrifying bus crash in New Mexico last week that left eight people dead.

Christy Westerdale was traveling with the father of her children, Joseph Chandler, from Oklahoma to their home in Stockton, Calif., when the crash occurred on Interstate 40 in New Mexico on Thursday afternoon. The Greyhound bus was carrying nearly 50 people when a semitrailer going in the opposite direction lost the tread on its left front tire and veered across a median, smashing into the bus, police said. Along with the eight killed, 25 people were injured, including three young children.

The crash forced Westerdale to give birth two months early.

"I just thank God that my babies are OK," Westerdale told FOX 40. "I just can't believe they're so strong through it all and everything."

Chandler said he was knocked out during the crash but was able to regain consciousness.

BLOWN TIRE MAY BE CAUSE OF HEAD-ON CRASH THAT LEFT AT LEAST 8 DEAD IN NEW MEXICO, OFFICIALS SAY

"I got my whole family off the bus and its a miracle. I cannot believe it. Everybody that was sitting in front of my family is dead," he told FOX40.

He described the incident as being in an apocalyptic movie.

"It was kind of like being in an apocalyptic movie. It was like the world was ending. It wasnt just happening to me," he said.

Chandler said he got his daughter off the bus before going back to carry Westerdale.

"I thought she was dead and I was gonna get her body off the bus when she woke up in my arms," Chandler told FOX40. "I was like, Oh my God! Come on baby, were going to be OK, were going to get off this bus."

Westerdale had a shattered knee, broken leg and separated pelvis in the crash and will be OK with physical therapy. The twins will have to remain in the hospital in New Mexico for a few months before they can go home to Stockton.

DEADLY NEW MEXICO BUS CRASH PROMPTS NEGLIGENCE CLAIMS

"Were so far away from home and we have nothing. I have no car, no housing and were going to be here for a while," Chandler said.

The couple launched a GoFundMe page to help raise money for their living expenses. Westerdale said she remains optimistic during the recovery.

"Im hopeful to recover and see my babies recover," Westerdale said. "Get through this all and put it behind us."

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A friendly yet "lonely" deer wandering around a lake in Canada became a viral star after a photo online showed the animal snuggling up to a firefighter.

Jan Giesbrecht was near Burns Lake in British Columbia on Wednesday, transporting firefighters to and from a fire camp in the area, when she spotted the peculiar encounter.

Giesbrecht told Canada's Global News outlet that the deer was on the Francois Lake Ferry, seemingly looking for friends among the humans.

"He wanders around visiting people," she said, adding that the deer often was spotted in the area. "He seems lonely and wants attention."

Another photo showed the deer sneaking a peek inside Giesbrecht's bus after the animal saw firefighters climbing aboard, and even later followed the bus as Giesbrecht drove around.

A witness told the CBC that the deer, named "Elliot" by his family, "is like a dog -- it comes up to you and I can pat it on the back, it licks my hand."

"It's just the friendliest deer going," Grand Borden said. "For him to be so friendly, it's kind of bizarre and a little unnerving at first."

Borden said the deer was bottle-fed growing up. Therefore, "he does know humans."

The wildfires have sparked the most destructive fire season on record for the province. Fortunately for the deer, a public safety official told the news outlet that the animal isn't in danger.
Around 400 inmates escaped from a prison in Libya's capital Sunday as fighting continued between rival armed groups nearby, reports say.

Guards at the Ain Zara prison in southern Tripoli feared for their lives as the inmates broke free, Reuters reported.

The detainees were able to force open the doors, local police said.

The escape came amid increasing heavy fighting between rival groups in the city, prompting the United Nations-backed Libyan government to declare a state of emergency given the seriousness of the current situation.

The U.N. called upon the groups to cease the clashes and hold talks Tuesday.

Most of the prisoners were supporters of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who was removed from power following a NATO-backed uprising against his government in 2011, the BBC reported.

Multiple reports said a missile fell Sunday on a camp in Libya's capital that housed displaced people. The hit killed two and wounded seven people, including two children.

Another rocket hit the Waddan hotel in the center of the capital near the Italian Embassy. Three people were reportedly injured.

On Saturday, a rocket hit a state oil firm NOCs diesel depot that supplied energy to a power station.

The infighting between rival factions  the Seventh Brigade, based outside Tripoli, and the Tripoli Revolutionaries Brigades and the Nawasi, both based in the capital  began last week.

The Tripoli-based government, while technically in charge, allows armed groups to operate with relative autonomy as long as they remain allied with the government.

The U.N. called on the various concerned parties to gather Tuesday for an urgent dialogue on the security situation.

A joint statement Saturday by the U.S., Britain, France and Italy called for an immediate end to violence in Tripoli.

The statement, according to the BBC, said the attempts to weaken the legitimate Libyan authorities and hinder the ongoing political process are not acceptable.

We are calling on the armed groups to immediately stop all military action and warn those who seek to undermine stability, in Tripoli or elsewhere in Libya, that they will be made accountable for it, it added.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.
Iran's foreign minister said at the start of a visit to Damascus on Monday that "terrorists must be purged" from Syria's Idlib and the entire northwestern province returned to government control.

Mohammad Javad Zarif's comments in Damascus were reported by the semi-official Fars news agency and came as Syrian forces and their allies are preparing for an assault on Idlib, the last opposition stronghold in the country.

"Syria's territorial integrity should be safeguarded and all tribes and groups, as one society, should start the reconstruction process, and the refugees should return to their homes," Zarif said.

He met with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, who is just back from a visit to Moscow, and was to meet later with Syrian President Bashar Assad. The visit comes days before the leaders of Iran, Turkey, and Russia are expected to meet in Iran to discuss the situation in Idlib.

Zarif said it was necessary to consult "with our Syrian friends" ahead of the Sept. 7 summit, according to Fars.

Iran has lent crucial military and economic support to Assad throughout the seven-year civil war and the discussions are expected to focus on the looming battle for Idlib.

Assad has vowed to defeat the opposition in its last refuge in the northwestern province if the rebels do not surrender to government rule.

Idlib and the surrounding area is home to some 3 million people  nearly half of them already displaced more than once by the civil war. Tens of thousands of people have fled to Idlib after surrendering in the face of government offensives elsewhere, choosing to relocate to an opposition-held area rather than risk reprisals or forced conscription at the hands of the government.

U.N. officials believe an offensive on Idlib would trigger a wave of displacement that could uproot an estimated 800,000 people and discourage refugees from returning home.

Thousands of government troops and allied fighters have been massing in areas surrounding the province.

___

Associated Press writer Zeina Karam in Beirut contributed.
An Iranian civil aviation company is suspected of smuggling arms into Lebanon, destined for the militant group Hezbollah and Iranian weapons factories -- and western intelligence sources said Monday they've uncovered the unexpected routes that Iran apparently took to try avoiding detection.

The sources identified two rare and unusual Qeshm Fars Air flights from Tehran to the international airport in Beirut during the past two months.

The first flight, on July 9, involved a Boeing 747 that departed from an air force base in Tehran, stopped for a short layover at the international airport in Damascus, Syria, and then continued with a rather uncharacteristic flight path to the Beirut international airport, where it landed shortly after 4 p.m. local time.

According to flight data obtained by Fox News, the route passed over northern Lebanon, not following any commonly used flight path. A regional intelligence source who asked to remain anonymous said: The Iranians are trying to come up with new ways and routes to smuggle weapons from Iran to its allies in the Middle East, testing and defying the Wests abilities to track them down.

Western intelligence sources said the airplane carried components for manufacturing precise weapons in Iranian factories inside Lebanon. The U.S. and Israel, as well as other western intelligence agencies, have supplied evidence that Iran has operated weapons factories in Lebanon, Syria and Yemen.

Last week, citing Iranian, Iraqi and Western sources, the Reuters news agency reported that Iran had transferred short-range ballistic missiles to its Shiite allies inside Iraq in recent months. Tehran and Baghdad formally denied that report.

The second flight was conducted on August 2. Flight number QFZ9960 landed in Beirut at 5:59 pm, after departing Tehran's international airport two and a half hours earlier. This time, the plane did not stop in Damascus, but it followed a slightly irregular route north of Syria.

Qeshm Fars Air is considered one of the various pseudo-civilian airlines used for arms-smuggling by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the elite Al-Quds force led by Qassem Soleimani. Back in October 2017, President Trump imposed sanctions on the IRGC and the Al-Quds force.

IRAN STILL SEEKING WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION, GERMAN INTEL REVEALS

The airline had ceased operations in 2013, citing poor management, but restarted under new management in March 2017. It is said to have two Boeing 747s in its fleet. Among the members of the companys board are three IRGC representatives: Ali Naghi Gol Parsta, Hamid Reza Pahlvani and Gholamreza Qhasemi.

The United States is Lebanons primary security partner, according to the State Department. Since 2006, the U.S has provided Lebanon over $1.7 billion in security assistance, in part to counter Hezbollahs influences.

NETANYAHU: IRAN 'BRAZENLY LYING' AFTER SIGNING NUCLEAR DEAL

Hezbollah is considered a terror organization by many U.S. officials and other western countries, and is backed and funded by Iran.
Dutch prosecutors on Monday announced that the 19-year-old Afghan citizen accused of stabbing two American tourists may have done so because he believes Islam is insulted in the Netherlands.

The announcement came after officials said there was a terrorist motive behind the attack.

The suspect, identified only as Jawed S., allegedly stabbed the two Americans at Amsterdams Central Station just after noon on Friday. His reasoning for targeting the victims was not based on their nationality, prosecutors said. Rather, the suspect's grievance was with the European country where the assault took place, they said in a written statement.

"It is apparent from his statements that he believes that in the Netherlands, the Prophet Muhammad, the Quran, Islam and Allah are repeatedly insulted," prosecutors said, noting that the Afghan man specifically mentioned Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, who is known for his fierce anti-Islam rhetoric.

"From the suspect's statements so far, it is clear the man had a terrorist motive ... and that he traveled to the Netherlands for that reason," the prosecutors said.

The Americans suffered serious but non life-threatening injuries. Prosecutors said they did not believe the suspect was working with anyone else.



Wilders last week called off a planned contest for cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad following death threats and concerns other people could be put at risk. Prosecutors said the suspect did not mention the contest in his statements.

DUTCH LAWMAKER CANCELS PROPHET MUHAMMAD CARTOON CONTEST

Wilders reacted with a tweet, writing: "Muslim terrorists hate our way of life and our freedoms. They answer criticism of Islam with violence."

The suspect, who was shot after the stabbings and was recovering from his injuries in a hospital, had applied for asylum in Germany and was not considered a security threat there, German officials said Monday.

An investigating judge extended the suspect's custody because of fears he may escape the region, repeat the crime or otherwise break the law, according to a statement by an Amsterdam court.

Fox News Paulina Dedaj and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
A U.S. service member was killed and another was wounded during an apparent "insider attack" in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, according to a statement from U.S. Forces Afghanistan.

It's the second time in two months that a U.S. service member was killed apparently by the very same Afghan forces he was there to train. Six U.S. troops have been killed in Afghanistan this year.

"The sacrifice of our service member, who volunteered for a mission to Afghanistan to protect his country, is a tragic loss for all who knew and all who will now never know him," Resolute Support and U.S. Forces Afghanistan Commanding General Scott Miller said in a statement. "Our duty now is to honor him, care for his family and continue our mission."

The service member who was wounded in the attack is in stable condition, U.S. Forces Afghanistan said. The name of the fallen service member will be released "24 hours after next of kin notification," officials added.

The death came one day after a new U.S. commander for all American and allied forces in Afghanistan took over. The commander, Gen. Scott Miller, is the former head of Joint Special Operations Command (JSOC), responsible for leading elite commando units such as the Armys Delta Force, SEAL Team Six and the 75th Ranger Regiment.

"The world recognizes Afghanistan cannot be a safe haven for terrorism. The world recognizes we cannot fail. I know this has been a long fight, and it has been generations for us, for the Afghan people. I understand the reason we are fighting, and I know why we are here, and I know terrorists seek safe haven to export murder," Miller said as he assumed command.

Britain's defense minister echoed that point on a recent visit to Afghanistan -- as he warned of the ever-growing threat from the Islamic State. "We are seeing that terrorist groups operating here in Afghanistan, evidence of their links back not just to the United Kingdom but to the whole of continental Europe," British Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson said during the recent visit.

Some 15,000 American troops remain in Afghanistan, down from a high over 100,000 during the Obama administration.

Last week, the U.S. military's top officer said the reduction marked a new strategy put in place by President Trump a year ago.

"I certainly don't expect that the current forces that we have in Afghanistan represents an enduring large military commitment," Gen. Joseph F. Dunford, Jr., chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said last week during a briefing with reporters at the Pentagon.

The Pentagon said Sunday it killed the head of ISIS in Afghanistan in a drone strike late last month.

This year, the U.S. military has dropped more than 3,500 bombs across Afghanistan, about double the number for the same period a year ago, and more than five times the number from the first half of 2016.




The road has total length of over 139.2km, including 131.5km of high-speed road and another 7.7km linking the expressway with National Highway 1A. It traverses Da Nang city, Quang Nam province and Quang Ngai province, which form part of the central key economic region of Vietnam.

It allows speed limits of up to 120km per hour, helping reduce travel time from Da Nang to Quang Ngai to one and a half hours, instead of the usual three hours when using National Road 1A.

The project, beginning in 2013, costs over VND34.5 trillion (USD1.64 billion), including USD798.5 million loaned by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) and over USD590 million by the World Bank (WB). The rest was covered by the Vietnamese Government.

The first 65km-long section, linking Da Nang and Tam Ky city of Quang Nam, was inaugurated in August 2017.

Da Nang  Quang Ngai Expressway is expected to create opportunities for central localities to make breakthroughs, attract investment, and promote the development of industrial parks and tourism along the countrys central coast.

It is also hoped to boost transport connectivity from the Vietnam-Laos-Cambodia economic triangle through the East-West Economic Corridor to seaports in the central region.

Speaking at the launch ceremony, Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung thanked the JICA and the WB for funding the project.

He asked the Ministry of Transport to direct the investor to urgently complete support facilities along the route, and the investor, Vietnam Expressway Corporation, to abide by State regulations in management, exploitation and maintenance of the expressway, ensuring traffic safety, environmental hygiene as well as safe, smooth and effective operation of the road./.
clarajancita at 3-09-2018 11:47 AM (3 years ago) (f)

A young Nigerian girl who has been described as being prettier than Nicki Minaj, has emerged winner of the Little Miss Nigeria pageant. She is only nine years old, but Mmesoma Ikwuagwu, from Abia state, is already a beauty queen.

A young Nigerian girl who has been described as being prettier than Nicki Minaj, has emerged winner of the Little Miss Nigeria pageant. She is only nine years old, but Mmesoma Ikwuagwu, from Abia state, is already a beauty queen.

According to Reporters, the little girl who is described by some as being prettier than American rapper and singer, Nicki Minaj, has emerged winner of the just concluded Little Miss Nigeria Beauty Pageant in Lagos.



The event which held at Vantage point, Ikeja, Lagos, had an artist like Mjpink who entertained the audience with a wonderful performance. Also, Menankiti Daniella, representing Anambra state and Mnena Ternenge representing Benue state came 1st and 2nd runner Ups respectively.



Mmesoma emerged winner of the competition after keenly contesting with 37 other smart girls from other states. One of the judges, Queen Abdulateef Titilope, described the contestants as being very intelligent.

According to Reporters, the little girl who is described by some as being prettier than American rapper and singer, Nicki Minaj, has emerged winner of the just concluded Little Miss Nigeria Beauty Pageant in Lagos.The event which held at Vantage point, Ikeja, Lagos, had an artist like Mjpink who entertained the audience with a wonderful performance. Also, Menankiti Daniella, representing Anambra state and Mnena Ternenge representing Benue state came 1st and 2nd runner Ups respectively.Mmesoma emerged winner of the competition after keenly contesting with 37 other smart girls from other states. One of the judges, Queen Abdulateef Titilope, described the contestants as being very intelligent. Quote All the contestants are very intelligent. As one of the judges, judging them was very difficult, but, definitely, a winner must emerge in a contest. I plan to work with the Little Miss Nigeria to help promote any pet project she comes up with.

Speaking with Vanguard, immediately after being crowned, Mmesoma expressed joy for her victory and thanked the audience for their participation. She however revealed her intention to work together with her predecessor, Queen Esther Lawal to carry out her duties of helping less Privileged children.

According to her, I am happy for my victory. I feel glad and very encouraged to do better for the children. I plan to partner NGOs and government agencies to help the less privileged, to support them. I also plan to support the rescued Dapchi and Chibok girls drive.

My predecessor, Queen Esther Lawal is very kind, pretty and shes very intelligent too. She has been so helpful throughout today, I will like to say to her, youre a great queen, I hope to be like you and maybe even as great as you.



Expressing her joy, the mother of the queen, Mrs. Ikwuagu said Mmesoma is a special gift from God who has always made a name for herself, not just in beauty but also in her academics. She said the little beauty has won a lot awards to herself.

The convener, Little Miss Nigeria Project, Oladele Nihi, said the project is to get one of the little girls to advocate for her colleagues in the Nigerian situation where female children are the main victims of crisis such as the Boko Haram, kidnaps, rapes and other social vices because they are harmless.

Calling on the state and Federal government to support the project, Nihi said the wife of President and wives of governors should key into the project. She said they should see the platform as a means to reach out to Nigerian children.

They can partner with us so that their goodwill and benevolence to the Nigerian children can pass through the queen, she can even be the queen of their pet projects.



Post Reply I am a metro reporter on Gistmania, I have been publishing news materials for over 5 years Posted: at 3-09-2018 11:47 AM (3 years ago) | Hero




General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and President of China Xi Jinping offered congratulations to General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong and President Tran Dai Quang. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang sent the congratulatory message to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, while Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress of China Li Zhanshu extended greetings to Chairwoman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

In their messages, the leaders of the Chinese Party, State, Government and National Peoples Congress highly valued the achievements Vietnam has obtained over the past time, voicing their belief that under the CPVs leadership, the Vietnamese people will definitely soon realise the target of building a socialist State with prosperous people, a strong country and an democracy, equitable and civilised society.

They affirmed that China attaches importance to developing relations with Vietnam and is willing to join Vietnam in developing their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in a stable, healthy and sustainable manner.

General Secretary of the Lao Peoples Revolutionary Party and President of Laos Bounnhang Vorachith, Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith and Chairwoman of the National Assembly Pany Yathotou also sent congratulatory messages to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, President Tran Dai Quang, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc and NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.

The Lao leaders expressed their delight at the unceasing development of the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries Parties, States and people. They once again thanked the Vietnamese Party, State and people for their previous, timely and effective support for Laos to address recent flood consequences in Attapeu province.

They also affirmed that despite how complex the regional and international situation is, the Lao Party, State and people will, together with Vietnam, continue nurturing the special bilateral relations.

Meanwhile, Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, the Central Committee of the Cambodian Peoples Party, Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, President of the Senate Say Chhum and the senior parliamentarian Samdech Heng Samrin also sent letters of congratulations.

They congratulated Vietnam on the major attainments it has gained under the CPVs leadership, which they said have helped improve the countrys role and stature in the region and the world.

They applauded the growth of the solidarity, traditional friendship, and comprehensive, sustainable and long-term cooperation between the Cambodian and Vietnamese Parties, Governments and people. They showed the resolve to intensify those ties, wishing Vietnam to harvest even greater victories in national development.

In his messages sent to the Vietnamese President and PM, President of the Councils of State and Ministers of Cuba Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez offered the warmest congratulations and stressed the determination to strengthen the long-lasting friendship, fraternity and cooperation between the two nations.

The leaders of Vietnam also received congratulations from Russian President Vladimir Putin, PM Dmitry Medvedev, Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Viktorovich Volodin, and Chairwoman of the Federation Council Valentina Ivanovna Matviyenko.

The Russian leaders highlighted that the countries time-tested friendship and comprehensive strategic partnership have recorded dynamic strides and achieved big accomplishments in enhancing the trustworthy political ties and relations in economy-trade, science-technology, culture and humanism, thus ensuring their peoples interests and contributing to the stability and security in the Asia-Pacific region.

They also expressed their belief that the upcoming official visit to Russia by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong will promote win-win bilateral cooperation in all aspects, as well as close coordination in global and regional issues of mutual concern.

Singaporean President Halimah Yacob and PM Lee Hsien Loong also extended congratulations to their Vietnamese counterparts, saying that Vietnam has made great socio-economic progress over the past years, become one of the fastest growing economies in the region, and also been a leading option of foreign investors, including those from Singapore.

They emphasised that the two countries are enjoying a sound relationship. Notably, they are celebrating 45 years of bilateral diplomatic ties and five years of the strategic partnership. The leaders hope to continue working closely with the Vietnamese side to expand cooperation and bring the countries relations to a new height in the time ahead.

In his message sent to PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha noted that Thailand and Vietnam have close and dynamic relations based on the common visions and interests along with long-standing people-to-people exchanges. He affirmed the resolve to cooperate closely with Vietnam in reinforcing bilateral links for the common interests and prosperity of their people and the region.

On this occasion, Vietnamese Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh received congratulations on the National Day from Chinese State Councillor, Foreign Minister and Chairman of the China-Vietnam Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation Wang Yi; Lao Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith; Cambodian Senior Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn; Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla; Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov; Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan; and Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai./.
kejguv at 3-09-2018 03:09 PM (3 years ago) (m)

The Edo State government has evacuated 15 children from the Gods Own Orphanage, in Benin, pending the conclusion of on-going investigation into the case of a Elo Ogidi, who was allegedly stolen from the Christ Embassy Church, Oregun, Lagos and found at the orphanage in Benin. Four-year-old Ogidi was stolen during a church service in July and found last Friday, at the Gods Own Orphanage, when policemen raided the facility after a tip-off. The police have arrested the Proprietress of the Orphanage Home, Kehinde Blessing Imarhiagbe, for complicity in the alleged theft of Elo Ogidi.



Speaking with journalists on Friday, after sealing off the home, located at 25 Davies Street, off 2nd Dr. Garrick Layout, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Magdalene Ohenhen, said the management of the home did not follow due process in admitting Elo into the facility. She said during the operation, the police also discovered that the orphanage had three other children who were not documented with the ministry as required by law. Ohenhen maintained that there were rules and regulations guiding the operations of orphanages in the state, but that the management did not abide by them. The procedure is that before you accept a child into an orphanage in the state, the operator of the home must inform the state government through the states Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development. Children in the orphanage numbering about 15 are being moved to a safer centre, where they will be under the custody of the Edo State government, pending when investigation on the activities of the home is concluded, she said.

The Edo State government has evacuated 15 children from the Gods Own Orphanage, in Benin, pending the conclusion of on-going investigation into the case of a Elo Ogidi, who was allegedly stolen from the Christ Embassy Church, Oregun, Lagos and found at the orphanage in Benin. Four-year-old Ogidi was stolen during a church service in July and found last Friday, at the Gods Own Orphanage, when policemen raided the facility after a tip-off. The police have arrested the Proprietress of the Orphanage Home, Kehinde Blessing Imarhiagbe, for complicity in the alleged theft of Elo Ogidi.Speaking with journalists on Friday, after sealing off the home, located at 25 Davies Street, off 2nd Dr. Garrick Layout, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Magdalene Ohenhen, said the management of the home did not follow due process in admitting Elo into the facility. She said during the operation, the police also discovered that the orphanage had three other children who were not documented with the ministry as required by law. Ohenhen maintained that there were rules and regulations guiding the operations of orphanages in the state, but that the management did not abide by them. The procedure is that before you accept a child into an orphanage in the state, the operator of the home must inform the state government through the states Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development. Children in the orphanage numbering about 15 are being moved to a safer centre, where they will be under the custody of the Edo State government, pending when investigation on the activities of the home is concluded, she said.

Post Reply Writing is my passion and facts-proofing is my hobby, I have been writing at Gistmania for close to a decade now and It is one of the most exciting things I do. Outside writing, I love enjoying time with my loved ones - if you have any tip for me, please do get in touch Posted: at 3-09-2018 03:09 PM (3 years ago) | Gistmaniac
English French

Regulated information

Information on the total number of voting rights and shares

Gosselies, Belgium, 3 September 2018, 7am CEST - BONE THERAPEUTICS (Euronext Brussels and Paris: BOTHE), the bone cell therapy company addressing high unmet medical needs in orthopaedics and bone diseases, today announces an increase in the total number of voting rights and shares as a result of the issuance of new shares on 22 August 2018 following the conversion of convertible bonds issued on the private placement on 7 March 2018. The following information is published in accordance with Article 15 of the Belgian Law of 2 May 2007 on the publication of major shareholdings in issuers whose shares are admitted to trading on regulated market.

Total amount of share capital on 11 July 2018 EUR 11,659,789 Total number of shares with voting rights on 11 July 2018 7,733,246 Total number of new shares issued on 22 August 2018 101,703

Total amount of share capital on 22 August 2018 EUR 11,813,360 Total number of shares with voting rights on 22 August 2018 7,834,949 (a) Total number of voting rights (denominator) on 22 August 2018 7,834,949 Total number of attributed warrants 167,300 Total number of convertible bonds outstanding 242 Total number of bond warrants outstanding 3,577 Total number of shares with voting rights that could be created following the exercise of the bond warrants, the conversion of the convertible bonds and the attributed warrants (1) 1,191,446 (b) Total number of diluted shares with voting rights 9,026,395 (a+b)

(1) Based on the conversion price of EUR 9.3224 (92% of the Volume-Weighted-Averaged-Price of Bone Therapeutics on 22 August 2018)

About Bone Therapeutics

Bone Therapeutics is a leading cell therapy company addressing high unmet needs in orthopaedics and bone diseases. Based in Gosselies, Belgium, the Company has a broad, diversified portfolio of bone cell therapy products in clinical development across a number of disease areas targeting markets with large unmet medical needs and limited innovation.

Bone Therapeutics' technology is based on a unique, proprietary approach to bone regeneration, which turns undifferentiated stem cells into "osteoblastic", or bone-forming cells. These cells can be administered via a minimally invasive procedure, avoiding the need for invasive surgery.

The Company's primary clinical focus is ALLOB, an allogeneic "off-the-shelf" cell therapy product derived from stem cells of healthy donors, which is in Phase II studies for the treatment of delayed-union fractures and spinal fusion. The Company also has an autologous bone cell therapy product, PREOB, obtained from patient's own bone marrow and currently in Phase III development for osteonecrosis of the hip.

Bone Therapeutics' cell therapy products are manufactured to the highest GMP standards and are protected by a rich IP estate covering nine patent families. Further information is available at: www.bonetherapeutics.com.

Contacts

Bone Therapeutics SA

Thomas Lienard, Chief Executive Officer

Jean-Luc Vandebroek, Chief Financial Officer

Tel: +32 (0) 71 12 10 00

investorrelations@bonetherapeutics.com

For Belgium and International Media Enquiries:

Consilium Strategic Communications

Amber Fennell, Jessica Hodgson, Hendrik Thys and Lindsey Neville

Tel: +44 (0) 20 3709 5701

bonetherapeutics@consilium-comms.com

For French Media and Investor Enquiries:

NewCap Investor Relations & Financial Communications

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Certain statements, beliefs and opinions in this press release are forward-looking, which reflect the Company or, as appropriate, the Company directors` current expectations and projections about future events. By their nature, forward-looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. These risks, uncertainties and assumptions could adversely affect the outcome and financial effects of the plans and events described herein. A multitude of factors including, but not limited to, changes in demand, competition and technology, can cause actual events, performance or results to differ significantly from any anticipated development. Forward looking statements contained in this press release regarding past trends or activities should not be taken as a representation that such trends or activities will continue in the future. As a result, the Company expressly disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release any update or revisions to any forward-looking statements in this press release as a result of any change in expectations or any change in events, conditions, assumptions or circumstances on which these forward-looking statements are based. Neither the Company nor its advisers or representatives nor any of its subsidiary undertakings or any such person`s officers or employees guarantees that the assumptions underlying such forward-looking statements are free from errors nor does either accept any responsibility for the future accuracy of the forward-looking statements contained in this press release or the actual occurrence of the forecasted developments. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of this press release.
Myanmar President Win Myint and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, as well as Indian President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, sent messages of congratulations to Vietnamese President Tran Dai Quang and Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

In their message, President Win Myint and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi expressed their delight at the rapid development of the Vietnam-Myanmar friendship and multifaceted cooperation, both bilaterally and multilaterally, particularly within ASEAN. The Myanmar leaders believe that the Comprehensive Cooperative Partnership between the two nations would be continuously consolidated and developed for mutual benefit.

Meanwhile, the Indian leaders said they were pleased to welcome President Quang and PM Phuc in India in March and January 2018, respectively. They thanked Vietnam for its significant contributions as the coordinator of the ASEAN-India relations. They affirmed that Vietnam is a key pillar in Indias Look East policy and expressed their confidence in the growth of the Vietnam-India Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for mutual benefit and for peace and development in the region.

The Vietnamese President and PM also received similar messages from US President Donald Trump, who affirmed that 2018 is an outstanding year with many milestones being recorded in Vietnam-US relations.

President Trump said he was satisfied with his visits to Da Nang and Hanoi last year, and applauded the increasing connectivity between the two countries as reflected in their Comprehensive Partnership. He believes that 2019 would be a promising year for the bilateral ties and is looking forward to working with the Vietnamese leaders in stepping up the realisation of the priorities that have been set for the Indo-Pacific region.

Governor-General of Australia Peter Cosgrove sent a congratulatory letter to President Tran Dai Quang. In the letter, he wrote that Australia highly values its relations with Vietnam.

The Governor-General said he was delighted to find that the importance of the bilateral ties was acknowledged by the Vietnamese and Australian PMs in their joint statement on establishing the Vietnam-Australia Strategic Partnership in early 2018. Cosgrove said he expects the bilateral relationship to thrive on the basis of their freshly upgraded relations. He also stressed his belief that the two countries, as members of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), would continue expanding their economic and trade cooperation.

President of the Republic of Korea Moon Jae-in also delivered a congratulatory message to President Tran Dai Quang, in which he expressed his hope that, based on agreements secured by both sides during his visit to Vietnam last March, more diverse cooperation activities would be held, thus bringing wealth and happiness to the people of both nations and deepening their mutual understanding and friendship.

Meanwhile, in his letter to President Tran Dai Quang, Japanese Emperor Akihito conveyed his sincere congratulations and wish for prosperity to the Vietnamese people. The Emperor said he and Empress Michiko were happy to recall the memories they shared with President Quang and his wife during the Vietnamese leaders visit to Japan.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko extended his greetings to General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong and President Tran Dai Quang, while Belarusian PM Sergei Rumas sent a message of congratulations to PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc.

King Carl XVI Gustaf of Sweden and President of the Republic of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon also sent congratulatory messages to President Tran Dai Quang.

On the occasion, Vice President Dang Thi Ngoc Thinh received congratulations from Myanmar Vice Presidents Myint Swe and Henry Van Thio.

Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh received congratulatory messages from Myanmars Union Minister for International Cooperation Kyaw Tin, US Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo, Bulgarian Deputy Prime Minister for Judicial Reform and Minister of Foreign Affairs Ekaterina Zaharieva, and Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei.
On Friday, in the morning, at Government House, His Excellency the Honourable Paul de Jersey AC received the Governor of Nevada, the Honourable Brian Sandoval; First Lady Lauralyn Sandoval; Nevada Governors Office of Economic Development Executive Director, Mr Paul Anderson; and Deputy Director, Mr Derek Armstrong.

Following, at Government House, His Excellency and Mrs Kaye de Jersey hosted a morning tea for the official opening of The Spouses Gallery and The Spouses of the Governors of Queensland book, and the Governor addressed guests.

In the afternoon, His Excellency and Mrs de Jersey departed Government House for official travel to Townsville.

In the evening, at the North Queensland Club, Townsville, His Excellency and Mrs de Jersey attended the Past Presidents Gala Dinner, and the Governor addressed guests.
Description

GIS - 03 September, 2018 : Government has agreed to the signing of four Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) , France, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and China in view of further enhancing cooperation in various fields.

The MoU to be signed between SADC Member States pertains to the establishment of the SADC Centre for Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency. The main objective of the Centre is to contribute towards increased access to modern energy services and improved energy security across the SADC Region through the promotion of market based uptake of renewable energy and energy efficiency. The Centre has been mandated by SADC Member States to play a key role in the implementation of the Southern Africa Renewable Energy and Energy Efficiency Strategy and Action Plan.

Mauritius will sign another MoU with France on  Cooperation de Defence  for further collaboration on matters of maritime security and fighting against maritime threats in the Indian Ocean region. It relates mainly to the conduct of joint naval operations by Mauritius and France in the Maritime Zones of Mauritius.

A third MoU relating to Co-operative Activities will be signed with the OECD with a view to strengthening and supporting effective regulation, sound corporate governance and good conduct in Mauritius and in the Southern and Eastern African regions. T he areas of cooperation would focus on markets and regulatory conduct and include, among others:

 regulation and supervision of the financial sector, and the development of sound, transparent and efficient financial markets, private pensions and insurance;

 financial literacy and education, financial consumer protection and financial inclusion;

 functioning of capital markets and corporate governance of both listed and state-owned enterprises; and

 anti-bribery and blockchain policy issues in the financial sector and other sectors.

As regards the Free Trade Agreement (FTA), Mauritius and China will be signing a MoU to confirm that negotiations on the FTA have been completed. The FTA would be signed after both sides complete their respective internal processes.
Charles Leclerc is back on pole position for a plum Ferrari seat in 2019.

Before the death of president Sergio Marchionne, the young Monaco born driver looked set to be promoted by Ferrari from his current seat at Sauber.

But after Marchionne died, new Ferrari chief Louis Camilleri was believed to have preferred that Raikkonen stay after all.

However, it is believed Marchionne actually arranged a 'pre-contract' with Leclerc some months ago regarding 2019, and Camilleri is prepared to honour the deal made with the 20-year-old's manager Nicolas Todt.

The information was reported by authoritative publications including Auto Motor und Sport, Blick and Kolner Express.

Camilleri said at Monza: "Nothing has been decided yet and there is no time window. The final decision will be made by Maurizio Arrivabene."

It is believed Arrivabene would actually prefer to keep 38-year-old Raikkonen, while technical boss Mattia Binotto is championing Leclerc's cause.

Asked on Sunday if he has 'options' for the future beyond Ferrari, Finn Raikkonen answered: "There's always going to be options in life generally.

"It depends on what I want to do. It depends on a lot of things. So we'll see in the future what will happen," he added.

(GMM)
Although the vast majority of American workers remain reliant on cars to get to work, the percentage has decreased. In 2007, 85% of Americans drove themselves to work and 6% rode with someone else. By 2018, while the 6% of Americans who carpool has remained constant, there has been a decrease in the percentage of those who drive themselves to work, edging down to 77%, according to Gallups Work and Education poll, conducted 1-12 August.

Meanwhile, the minority of Americans who employ alternative ways of getting to workmass transportation, walking, biking, working remotely or something elsehas grown, from 9% in 2007 to 16% today.

The decrease in those driving themselves to work has been accompanied by small, two-percentage-point upticks since 2007 in the percentages of US adults who ride mass transportation, walk to work, or telecommute or work from home. One percent of Americans now say they bike to work.

Gallup also asks US workers the total time they spend each day commuting to and from work. Currently, Americans who commute to work report an average round-trip time of 52.4 minutes. In 2007, it took commuters an average of 48.1 minutes to get to and from their jobs. Though the four-minute increase from 2007 to 2018 is not statistically meaningful, the US Census Bureau has found a similar increase over that time.

For perspective, if a commuter who works five days a week for 50 weeks each year experienced an increase of one minute to their daily commuting time, that would translate to more than four additional hours spent commuting each year.

The current 21% of American workers who say their commute to work is very or somewhat stressful is similar to the 24% recorded in 2007. Meanwhile, a small majority (53%) of commuters say their commute isnt stressful at all -- and this figure hasnt changed since 2007.

The level of stress ones commute causes them is predictably related to how long it takes. Workers who spend an hour or longer commuting each day are more than three times as likely to describe their commutes as very or somewhat stressful as are workers whose commutes total 59 minutes or less.

Additionally, where a commuter lives plays a role in how stressful their trips to and from work are. Few workers in towns or rural areas describe their trips as very or somewhat stressful (11%), while commuters in cities (24%) and suburbs (29%) are more than twice as likely to report this level of stress.

As the number of cars on US roads continues to grow, more workers have apparently found alternative ways of getting to work, such as using mass transit or telecommuting instead of working on location. Still, cars remain the dominant mode of commuter travel in the US.

But despite changes in how Americans get to work, their commute times havent gotten any shorter, and long commutes could impact their well-being. Though overall commute-related stress has not increased by a meaningful amount over the past decade, workers with longer commute times are more likely to say their trips are stressful. This fits with other Gallup workplace research showing that Americans with longer commutes are more susceptible to physical ailments, such as neck and back pain, high cholesterol and obesity. Workers with longer commutes are also more likely to experience worry and less likely to experience enjoyment or feel well-rested. However, engaged employees with such long commutes weather these negative impacts better than disengaged workers do.
Business

Mahira Khan, Ahad Raza named Pakistan Pavilion's official Ambassadors at Expo 2020 Dubai

Mahira said, I feel so proud to be the official Pavilion Ambassador. Its been such a pleasure going around the Pavilion from the landscapes to the rich history and the diversity you see, you will be amazed at what all Pakistan has to offer. It really is a Hidden Treasure.
* United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on August 31 regretted the United States' decision to end aid to the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA).

* Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday (September 1) held talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi in Beijing and the two leaders agreed to jointly advance the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership for greater development in the new era.

* The US military said it has made a final decision to cancel US$300 million in aid to Pakistan that had been suspended over Islamabad's perceived failure to take decisive action against militants, in a new blow to deteriorating ties.

* US President Donald Trump said on September 1 there was no need to keep Canada in the North American Free Trade Agreement and warned Congress not to meddle with the trade negotiations or he would terminate the trilateral trade pact altogether.

* France, Italy, Britain and the United States on September 1 issued a joint statement condemning the escalation of violence between government forces and armed groups in the Libyan capital Tripoli since August 27.

* At least 30 Nigerian security force members were killed after Boko Haram militants stormed a village in restive northeast Borno State, military sources told Xinhua on September 1.

* Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said on September 1 that retaking the northwestern province of Idlib from the rebels is a priority, saying it's the duty of the Syrian state to secure all its territories.

* The foreign ministers of Morocco and Russia vowed Saturday to consolidate their bilateral strategic partnership.

* Policymakers and experts from Ethiopia and Djibouti on September 1 underscored need to tackle the different cross-border security related challenges and threats in the Horn of Africa region.

* Arab League (AL) Secretary General Ahmed Aboul-Gheit denounced Saturday the US decision to stop funding the UNRWA. The AL chief said in a statement that the US decision lacks sense of responsibility and humanitarian values.

* Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez returned to Madrid from his tour of South America (Chile, Bolivia, Colombia and Costa Rica) on September 1, expressing his satisfaction with the visit.

* The Disaster Prevention and Mitigation Department of Thailand said over 78,000 people were still affected by the floods caused by tropical storm Bebinca and southwest monsoon.

* At least one person was killed and 30 doctors injured in a road accident in the western Indian state of Maharashtra, police said Saturday.

* Nigerian security forces have killed several Boko Haram insurgents and recovered weapons in Guzamala area of restive northeast Borno in a recent crossfire, the military said Saturday.




Haiti - Back to School : Message from the Minister of National Education





On Monday, September 3, while nearly 4 million Haitian students return to school, Pierre Josue Agenor Cadet the resigning Minister of Education, at the official launch of the Back to school around the theme "A school Inclusive for a Solidarity Nation" delivered a speech to the entire educational community to students to parents, which we invite you to share the essential excerpts.



Excerpt from the speech of the resigning Minister of National Education for the new school year 2018-2019 :



"'Tant vaut lecole, tant vaut la Nation' this well-known adage reflects the extraordinary power of the school to shape the future of society [...] However, we must recognize that the missions entrusted to the Haitian school of training the men and women we dream of for this country will not be realized if we do not give ourselves the means to overcome the enormous challenges facing the current system.



[...] inclusion will be at the center of our concerns and actions this year. We want to see all Haitian children benefit from the same education, overcome inequalities of birth or origin and offer everyone the opportunity to access the same scientific education, historical, moral, break the language barrier and create the Seating essential for all children who are still outside the system. Yes, it has come time to succeed this universal access to school for all our children.



An inclusive school for a Solidarity Nation would mean that there is a school in all places where children who are not yet in school are living.



An inclusive school for a Solidarity Nation should have as a motto the emancipation of every individual and fight against exclusion and dropping out of school.



An inclusive school for a Solidarity Nation would provide adequate means for vulnerable children so that, becoming adults, they are useful to their environment, to society.



Finally, an inclusive school for a solidarity nation would see teachers present in the classrooms every day to mentor our children and give them hope for a better future. I emphasize this part, public school children have suffered too much from the lack of teachers in the classrooms.



[...] On behalf of the President of the Republic, the Prime Minister and the whole Government, I wish everyone a good start to the school year!



Education is everyone's business! Edikasyon se zafe nou tout ! Nan sans sa a, nou tout dwe mete men pou yon lot kalite Edikasyon nan entere tout sosyete a.



Happy school year to all !



Thank you !"



See also :

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-25420-haiti-news-zapping.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-25419-haiti-politic-school-canteens-350-000-beneficiaries-schoolchildren.html

https://www.icihaiti.com/en/news-25414-icihaiti-security-deployment-of-more-than-1-000-civic-brigadiers-for-back-to-school.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-25393-haiti-education-important-measures-for-a-safe-return-to-school.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-25335-haiti-politic-summary-in-figures-of-state-actions-for-the-back-to-school.html

https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-25218-haiti-flash-back-to-school-assistance-measures-and-promises-of-president-moise.html



HL/ HaitiLibre






















Haiti - Economy : The fight against corruption, only a slogan in Haiti





In its latest newsletter, the Franco-Haitian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (CFHCI) stresses that the fight against corruption is being conducted very seriously in many countries of the world including : in Brazil business Lula Da Silva and Dilma Roussef, in the Dominican Republic the Odebrecht case, South Korea, the Park Geun-Hye and Lee Myung-bak cases, in Panama the Ricardo Alberto Martinelli case, in Peru the Pedro Pablo Kuczynski case and in El Salvador the cases Antonio Saca and Cristina Kirchner, "in Haiti, the battle against corruption remains a slogan, a promise, an ideal..."



"From one power to another, from one regime to another, bad practices are not sanctioned. Corruption has become a normal social fact. Haiti remains poor and impoverished while some personalities of the public and private sector, enriched by corruption. It has become more than urgent that this evil be penalized to dream of succeeding in building a modern and just economy."



CFHCI stresses how corruption has negative economic and social consequences "Corruption creates poverty and inequality. When money is diverted, stolen or wasted, it is hospitals and schools that can not be built, it is agriculture that is not funded and supervised.



Corruption tarnishes the image of the country and scares away investors. We can not be surprised when the Dominican Republic manages to capture 25 times more Foreign Direct Investment than Haiti each year https://www.haitilibre.com/en/news-24971-haiti-economy-$375m-investment-in-2017-an-illusion-record.html .



Corruption adds to administrative procedures and makes the state dysfunctional. Corruption creates inflation through overbilling. It leads to the bankruptcy and closure of many companies that can no longer resist against others who benefit from corruption and unfair competition.



Corruption deprives the state of hundreds of millions of dollars on the border, in ports and in the payment of direct and indirect taxes (smuggling and tax evasion). Several studies conducted by the World Bank and the Private Sector Economic Forum show more than 400 million dollars lost by the State each year on the border [...]"



HL/ HaitiLibre


















The government views in its newly unveiled budget proposal that the savings accounts would make investment an attractive proposition for a higher number of Finns.

The Finnish governments proposal to introduce equity savings accounts for small investors has received a lukewarm reception from the Social Democratic Party and the Central Organisation of Finnish Trade Unions (SAK).

Prime Minister Juha Sipila (Centre) underlined in a news conference that the equity savings accounts have been designed particularly to encourage and benefit small investors. (Credit: Jussi Nukari  Lehtikuva)

Small investors would be able to transfer up to 50,000 euros to the equity savings accounts for investing in the shares of listed companies. The returns on investment, including dividends and share value gains, would be subject to a capital income tax upon the withdrawal of funds, the rate of which would be determined based on the proportion of the returns to the funds in the account.

The equity savings accounts are to become available in January 2020.

Prime Minister Juha Sipila (Centre) underscored in a press conference that the accounts have been designed particularly for small investors, explaining that the upper limit on savings will allow investors to transfer 400 euros a month to the account over a ten-year period.

Timo Harakka, the budget and finance spokesperson for the Social Democratic Parliamentary Group, states that the initiatives set forth in the budget proposal would effectively see the government channel funds to its interest groups. The equity savings accounts, for example, would effectively lower taxes for the wealthy, while denting the tax revenues of Finland.

Only four per cent of Finns own shares in more than four listed companies. The wealthiest one per cent owns nearly a half of the shares. What is preventing ordinary Finns from investing are not taxes but rather the fact that they are unable to save money, he argues.

Harakka states that in spite of the 50,000-euro cap on funds, the accounts would primarily benefit banks and people who already have substantial investments.

He also estimates that small investors would benefit more from an income tax reduction for low and middle-income earners and concludes that the proposal for equity savings accounts is unlikely to get through the Parliament.

The dividends derived from the equity savings account would not be taxed at the moment of accrual, contrary to the recommendation of an expert working group at the Ministry of Finance. The working group predicted that the loss of tax revenues would be tens of millions of euros, as [the proposal] would prevent us from taxing dividends paid overseas, states Harakka.

The proposal is a step in the wrong direction also according to SAK.

It would effectively lower capital taxes and reduce the states tax revenues. We should be strengthening the public economy instead of devising new tax breaks for investors, an SAK spokesperson says according to Kauppalehti.

The commerce-oriented newspaper adds that the equity savings accounts have received support from the financial sector, in spite of the 50,000-euro cap on savings and implementation in 2020.

Sari Lounasmeri, the managing director of the Finnish Foundation for Share Promotion, views that the euro-denominated cap is better than the alternative proposed by the working group of subjecting the dividends to a tax immediately upon accrual.

This kind of an account may become a good product that interests small investors and the asset management services of banks, she says.

The Finnish government, she underlines, must also find legislative means to ensure the tax breaks do not end up in the pockets of banks in the form of high commission and brokering fees.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Source: Uusi Suomi
Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) holds talks with South African President Cyril Ramaphosa at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 2, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

BEIJING, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa held talks on Sunday ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), agreeing to elevate the comprehensive strategic partnership of the two countries to a new level.

Xi noted that China and South Africa have valued sincerity, friendship and mutual trust. He also welcomed Ramaphosa's visit and co-chairing the FOCAC Beijing Summit, believing this will inject new impetus into the development of China's relations with South Africa and the continent.

Xi stressed that the significance of the relationship between China and South Africa has far exceeded the bilateral scope and is of global and strategic influence.

Since the establishment of diplomatic ties 20 years ago, the two countries have been committed to mutual respect, trust and benefit, and have always understood and relied on each other, said Xi.

Xi said the two countries should advance toward the major direction and target that have been established, actively implement important consensuses they have reached, make strategic plans for the bilateral cooperation in the next 10 years, strengthen high-level exchanges, deepen political mutual trust, promote practical cooperation and enhance inter-party and people-to-people exchanges.

Xi also called for concerted efforts to make the China-Africa cooperation flourishing, make the BRICS cooperation stronger and better, closely communicate and coordinate within multilateral frameworks, protect the legitimate rights of developing countries, promote democracy of international relations, propel the international system and international order to develop in a more equitable and reasonable direction.

Ramaphosa said the relationship between South Africa and China has been set up on the basis of equality, mutual respect and benefit, adding that it is unfading and strategic.

"I am very happy to visit China for the first time as the president of South Africa and continue our strategic communication," said Ramaphosa, noting that keeping high-level exchanges between the two sides is very important to deepen mutual trust.

South Africa is willing to learn from China's valuable experience in areas including ruling party building and corporate management, and will actively participate in the Belt and Road cooperation, said Ramaphosa.

Ramaphosa called for concerted efforts in upholding multilateralism and international trading regime, and safeguarding the common interests of emerging markets and developing countries.

After the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the signing of cooperation documents.
What made the situation so difficult is that the majority of these people are on the move because of economic reasons  not because they are fleeing war or personal persecution. Thats what has caused the unrest in Europe, stated Sipila.

Prime Minister Juha Sipila (Centre) has come under heavy criticism for comments he made about immigration and asylum seekers in an interview on YLE TV1 on Saturday.

YLE called his estimate into question the following day by pointing out that positive decisions made up over a half of the roughly two million asylum decisions issued in the European Union in 20162017, according to statistics released by Eurostat. The number, it added, creeps up to over 1.2 million when taking into consideration also the negative decisions that were overturned after an appeal.

The same argument was made by Erna Bodstrom, an immigration researcher at the University of Helsinki.

Really Juha Sipila, do you have any evidence to support your ugly claim? According to Eurostat, over a half of asylum seekers are granted international protection, she commented on Twitter.

Tapio Laakso, an advocacy advisor at Save the Children Finland, reminded that a half of the asylum seekers who arrived in 2015 and 2016 came from three countries plagued by serious, ongoing conflicts  Afghanistan, Iraq and Syria.

Its sad that the prime minister is unable to stick to the facts when talking about asylum policy, he lamented.

Emma Kari (Greens) urged Sipila to correct his statement in order not to create a hostile environment toward immigrants.

You better hope that the prime minister gave false information about asylum seekers by accident. Comments such as this incite hatred against vulnerable people and are consequently outright irresponsible when coming from the prime minister. Thats why its crucial that Sipila corrects his statement, tweeted Kari.

Sipila also raised eyebrows by assessing that uncontrolled immigration and its ramifications are to blame for the recent wave of anti-immigrant demonstrations in Germany.

Its very problematic that we have a prime minister who makes racist violence by the far-right legitimate by remarking that its because of uncontrolled immigration, said Veronika Honkasalo, a deputy chairperson of the Left Alliance.

He is thereby providing justification for racism.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Source: Uusi Suomi
The Finnish government announced after last weeks budget session that the energy tax on fuels for machinery and heating, including peat, will be raised by a total of 22 million euros  representing a reversal of its position on what supporters argue is a biofuel and opponents argue is a fossil fuel.

Energy utilities and environmental advocacy groups alike have expressed their disappointment with the 10-million euro increase in the tax on peat to be introduced in Finland in 2019.

The tax on peat has decreased from 4.9 to 1.9 euros per megawatt hour since the start of the current electoral term. The tax cuts have been justified with estimates indicating that a more lenient tax treatment of peat would result in an up-tick in the use of coal and, as a result, undermine the security of energy supply in Finland.

Finnish Energy (ET) responded to the announcement by stating that it would be logical to reduce the overlap between energy taxation and emissions trading, reminding that the companies buying emissions allowances are also the ones paying taxes to the central administration on fuels for heating.

You should refrain from introducing tax increases in order not to drive down the competitiveness of efficient and low-emission combined heat and electricity production, said Jukka Leskela, the managing director of ET.

ET warned that the costs arising from energy taxes and emissions allowances will eventually fall on the shoulders of the citizens and businesses using electricity and district heating.

It is desirable that the government examines the impact of its tax decisions on the purchasing power and housing costs of citizens. The proposed revisions are ineffective when it comes to climate goals, said Leskela.

Harri Laurikka, the managing director of the Bioenergy Association of Finland, similarly reminded that most of the energy user of peat takes place at utilities that fall under the emissions trading scheme, thus forcing such utilities to buy more emissions allowances than those using natural gas, for example.

At the EU level, the emissions cap will stay unchanged, even if a particular fuel is used more than another in Finland, he told Uusi Suomi. We think you should let the emissions trading scheme have its impact instead of taking action to reduce the competitiveness of a domestic fuel.

The price of emissions allowances, he highlighted, has already more than tripled from the previous year to roughly 21 euros per tonne of carbon dioxide, thus significantly reducing the competitiveness of peat.

Analysts specialising in emissions trading are now predicting that itll rise to as high as 40 euros over the next ten years, added Laurikka.

The Finnish Association for Nature Conservation (SLL), on the other hand, has voiced its concern about the fact that the energy use of peat surged by 47 per cent year-on-year in the first quarter of the year. It consequently believes the tax increase announced by the government was only a small step in the right direction.

The detrimental tax subsidies for peat still amount to over 160 million euros in the 2019 budget. Emissions from the energy use of peat exceed those from the use of coal, and it is not justified to continue the special tax treatment of peat going forward, it highlighted.

Otto Bruun, an environmental policy officer at SLL, told Uusi Suomi that the tax on the energy use of peat is expected to be approximately 2.9 euros per megawatt hour.

If peat was subjected to the same tax as other fuels for heating, the tax would be almost ten times as high. The current tax rate is markedly too low when taking into account the adverse effects of peat, he stated.

Laurikka, in turn, reminded that while the increase in the energy use of peat was substantial at the start of the year, the long-term trend is pointing down.

Aleksi Teivainen  HT

Source: Uusi Suomi
A TEENAGER says cuts to bus services in Peppard will reduce his independence.

Cameron Towers, 16, uses Reading Buses pink 25 service to Reading to visit friends.

The bus is the only public transport which links the village with the town but from Monday the company is to reduce the off-peak Monday to Saturday daytime service from every 30 minutes to once an hour and the Sunday service from hourly to once every two hours.

The weekday morning and evening peak time services will remain half hourly and a double-decker will also run on the busiest services.

The bus travels between Reading station and the Unicorn pub in Peppard via Emmer Green and stops at 11 places in Peppard and Sonning Common.

Cameron, a student at Pangbourne College, has started a petition calling for the service to remain as it is and has collected 700 signatures.

He said: One of the biggest reasons for starting a campaign was because I use the bus very often to go to the shops and to see friends in Reading. I would be heavily impacted by these cuts as, with no car of my own, I lose my sense of freedom and independence.

I can also easily sympathise with other groups in the community whose livelihood depends on public transport.

Cameron has written to Tony Pettitt, interim chief executive of Reading Buses, which is owned by Reading Borough Council.

His letter includes suggestions on how to keep the service going, including reducing the number of stops and promoting buses over other forms of transport.

Cameron said there should have been more public consultation on the changes.

He said: The fact Reading Buses is, in essence, publicly funded, makes it hard to see why it failed to hold a second public consultation for a second round of changes.

I felt I had to start this petition because the bus network is in public ownership. Buses should be there to serve the communities they go through and I do not believe these changes are in anyones interests.

I feel there are many things Reading Buses has not yet tried with regards to how it operates its buses and slashing services appears to be the easy way out of running at a loss.

You can see the negative effect that taking bus services away has had on many other UK towns but the difference elsewhere is that bus companies are privately-owned, looking to make the greatest profit margin possible. I fear Reading may be heading in that direction.

As of now, Reading has a bus network that the town can boast about and a big reason for this is because services are run by a council-owned organisation.

I fear this is the start of a vicious circle, where after cuts are made fewer people use the bus, meaning smaller passenger numbers and then further cuts rather than the growth Reading Buses has promised us.

Stopping these cuts is a big part of breaking the vicious circle, which has led to the deterioration of many private bus companies across the UK and of bus travel in general. It is no coincidence that passenger numbers for UK buses are falling year on year.

Reading Buses says the changes are necessary due to growing challenge with its network, especially with congestion, and a challenging financial position due to increased costs and loss of revenue caused by factors such as less footfall in the town centre.

A company spokesman said: Its important that we run a network that is as punctual and reliable as possible but is also cost-effective within our self-funding means.

Following the major consultation exercise undertaken for our Caversham routes at the end of last year, it is disappointing that the expected levels of growth, where services were maintained or indeed enhanced, has not materialised and these routes remain challenging to sustain, a situation that is further compounded by the costly effects of congestion.

It is nearly six months since we made the last changes and it is regrettable that we are being forced to revisit some of these services.

To sign the petition, visit www.change.org/p/reading-buses-stop-crippling-caversham-cuts
DAVID PRIOR, known as Dave to his family and friends, died on Friday, August 17 at the Sue Ryder hospice in Nettlebed.

Dave was born in Trowbridge, where his parents ran a drapers shop. He was always very proud of being a Moonraker, the legendary name for people from Wiltshire.

The family moved to Caversham in 1949 and shortly afterwards his sister Christine was born.

Dave attended Caversham Primary School, EP Collier Central School and then joined Stoneham Boys School to take his A-levels.

After school he began to realise his ambition to become a civil engineer, studying at Brighton Technical College.

On graduating, he worked for Reading Borough Council for a time and then at a sewage treatment centre in Hertfordshire, which became the location of his first date with his girlfriend Sue, who was later to become his wife.

As Dave was keen to pursue the love of his life, he found employment in Bracknell, where Sue was working, joining the engineering team at Bracknell Development Corporation.

The couple were married in January 1972 and continued to live in Bracknell until November 1997.

Their three sons, Steve, Matt and Tim, were all born between 1974 and 1979 and Dave found great pleasure and joy in seeing them grow up.

He was also so proud of the lives they have each made for themselves. More recently, the birth of his four grandchildren was an extra blessing and he so much enjoyed spending time with them.

A career change took place in the early Eighties as Dave responded to a call to join the full-time staff of Bracknell Baptist Church as its administrator.

During his time there he helped oversee the transition of the church into a 3million purpose-built centre for not only the church members but also for the benefit of the wider community.

In 1997 Dave was invited to manage the d:two centre in Henley, formerly known as Dayspring, home of Henley Baptist Church.

He and Sue relocated to Stoke Row and in 2002 moved again into Henley.

With the d:two centre building needing considerable repairs and maintenance, Dave helped oversee its redevelopment into the vibrant centre it is today using all the experience he had gained in Bracknell.

Dave was also known as the blind man for acting as a rep for Howards Blinds to supplement his income. He visited many local people, estimating and fitting their blinds.

On top of his considerable commitments to the church and d:two centre, Dave provided incredible support to Sue when she took over the management of the Nomad project in Henley, acting as treasurer and secretary to the trustees.

He continued this as his son Tim took over and would always be in the background of the many community events organised by Nomad, ensuring that things ran smoothly.

Throughout his life, Daves Christian faith was strategic, both personally, with his family and in all that he did.

His love for God and enthusiasm for the church was evident. He wanted to provide the best resources and facilities for the church members but, perhaps more importantly, he wanted it to be the best for its non-members.

Dave was delighted to see d:two being used by many children, young people, families and older people on a daily basis.

He and Sue were known for their hospitality and over the years provided a home for many people as they moved into new situations to start work or found themselves in need of some support to help them through particular challenges in their lives. People would stay for between a few hours and a couple of weeks and even up to three years.

Dave was always willing to give time and love and the many messages of condolences and support since his passing have shown what an impact he had on many lives.

A master at organisation, he was one of the few men who could multi-task.

As well as being involved at a local level, he was also part of the management teams that organised family camps for thousands at the Stoneleigh Bible Weeks each summer and family camps for up to 600 in Poland.

Annual visits to Malawi, one of the poorest countries in the world, provided a stark contrast to the affluence of Henley.

These trips were made to support a Henley girl, now living with her husband and two children in Malawi and heading up a small UK charity called Starfish Malawi.

Dave loved meeting Malawians and spending time with the many orphaned children there. It was a humbling experience.

After being diagnosed with non-hodgkins lymphoma in September 2017, his faith never wavered. Dave remained positive throughout his illness, encouraging many and continuing to work up until just a few weeks before his death.

He will be greatly missed by his family and friends but his legacy will live on. When someone asks who set up that procedure or policy, the answer will most likely be Dave Prior.
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Chinese President Xi Jinping (R) meets with United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 2, 2018. (Xinhua/Wang Ye)

BEIJING, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday met with United Nations (UN) Secretary-General Antonio Guterres ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), scheduled for Sept. 3 and 4.

Calling the UN "the flag of multilateralism," Xi said the world has been more in need than ever of multilateralism and a stronger UN as the rising unilateralism and protectionism is dealing a blow to the international order and the system of global governance.

The most fundamental principle of multilateralism is to address international issues through consultation in accordance with the collectively agreed rules, with each country's interests and concerns taken into consideration, Xi said.

Noting that China has always firmly supported multilateralism and safeguarded the UN's authority and function, Xi said China expects the UN to play its leading role in upholding fairness and justice, safeguarding world peace and promoting common development, especially in deepening global cooperation and in tackling challenges facing the world.

China's resolve in comprehensively deepening reform is unchanged. The country is ready to take concrete actions to unite with all parties to uphold liberalization and facilitation of trade and build an open world economy, Xi said.

Noting China's long-time friendship and shared destiny with Africa, Xi said China does not attach any political strings, nor does it seek any privilege or special interest in China-Africa cooperation.

"We will make unremitting efforts and do a good job as long as we believe it benefits African countries and people," Xi said.

The FOCAC is a model of South-South cooperation and the Beijing summit will focus on unity, cooperation and common development, which are highly consistent with the UN's goals and purposes, he said.

He called on the UN to take Africa as a priority in its work and support African countries in solving their problems in African ways so as to achieve long-term peace and stability on the continent.

The UN should help African countries speed up development, support their unity, self-improvement and integration, and make their voice and influence greater in international affairs, Xi said.

China is willing to strengthen communication and discussion with the UN on how to better support Africa, Xi said.

Guterres said African affairs have always been a priority on the UN agenda and his attendance to the Beijing summit is evidence of the UN's support of Africa and China-Africa cooperation.

As a model of South-South cooperation, the FOCAC will make important contributions to world peace and development with demonstrative significance, he said, wishing a complete success of the summit.

He praised China for its commitment to supporting multilateralism, actively safeguarding the multilateral order and improving global governance when multilateralism is facing severe challenges.

China's development, a trend that cannot be halted, is of great significance to the cause of world peace and development, he said.

The UN is willing to strengthen dialogue and cooperation with China to build a rule-based multi-polar world and encourage other countries to participate in the Belt and Road construction, he said.

Guterres also expressed his gratitude for China's great efforts in tackling global challenges including climate change despite difficulties.

The UN expects more support from China on global governance and regional hotspot issues, he said.
ANKARA, Sep. 2 (Xinhua) -- As the Turkish-U.S. ties remain deeply strained, Ankara's relationship with Europe is steadily warming, where cooperation seems to have taken the upper hand over confrontation.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan is scheduled to pay a state visit to Germany in late September, the first of its kind in four years.

Meanwhile, the Turkish leader is also likely to host a summit between France, Germany and Russia, in the absence of the United States, to discuss the Syria issue.

In August, the Netherlands restored full diplomatic relations with Turkey, after over a year of a bitter political spat between the two countries.

Relations between Turkey and Europe have been in the deep freeze for more than two years.

Erdogan frequently engaged in rhetoric aimed at infuriating European leaders in the wake of a failed military coup designed to topple his government in June 2016.

In response, European leaders targeted Turkey's political system, which has been changed gradually by popular vote toward an executive presidency with less checks and balances.

However, Brussels and Ankara have recently found themselves on the same page against U.S. President Donald Trump's protectionist policies, signalling a common stance in the face of a bullying trade partner.

Turkey and the EU have also found common ground in opposing the U.S. unilateral withdrawal from the 2015 international agreement on Iran's nuclear program. Turkish companies, like their European counterparts, are facing American sanctions for trading with Iran.

Neverthelss, analysts say the hope for Turkey to return to the path of a full membership to the European bloc remains misplaced, and a realistic approach should still be given priority.

"Until there is a common ground on that (Turkey's full membership of the EU), we should concentrate on areas such as trade, common foreign and security policy and energy cooperation," Bahadir Kaleagisi, an EU expert from the Turkish Industry and Business Association, told Xinhua.

Kaleagisi pointed to the choice of differentiated integration, a relation between core members and candidate countries, for Turkey's decades-long attempts to join the EU.

The Turkish expert suggested "the upgrade of the 1995 Turkey-EU customs union," saying it is "a good opportunity to revive bilateral relations."

In Turkish streets, there are also calls for better relations with Europe, especially in trade, even as the domestic economy shows signs of weakness amid the current volatility of Turkish currency lira, which has lost more than 40 percent of its value against the U.S. dollar since the start of this year.

"We have to find a way where we could cooperate more on trade and economy in these difficult times when the lira is so weak and makes us all suffer because Turkey is very dependent on foreign purchases," Veysi Sargin, a shop owner on the busy Tunali Hilmi Avenue in downtown Ankara.

Economic factors remain a vital driving force behind Turkey's rapprochement with Europe.

On the Turkish side, Erdogan remains committed to mega-construction projects, including one of the world's largest airports and a major canal running through Istanbul, Turkey's largest city and economic heartland.

For the EU, economic troubles in Turkey would also be undesirable, as the bloc largely depends on Turkey to keep mass Syrian refugees away from EU borders.

"Despite many problems between Turkey and the EU, they are deeply interdependent and share many historical, economic and political bonds," Sabah daily cited Muhittin Ataman, a professor of international relations at the Yildirim Beyazit University as saying.

"Under these new circumstances, Turkey and the EU will redefine their bilateral relations according to a realist approach and develop a strategic partnership," he noted.
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Uganda Military Arrests Musician, Politician Bobi Wine #FreeBobiWine

Ugandan pop-star turned parliamentarian, Bobi Wine was violently re-arrested by authorities as he attempted to leave the country on Thursday, his attorney Nicholas Opiyo said.

The Uganda Police have violently blocked Hon Bobi Wine from traveling outside of the country in spite of the court declining to do so when being released on bail earlier in the week. This is absurd to say the least. #FreeBobiWine  Nicholas Opiyo (@nickopiyo) August 30, 2018

The police have violently abducted Bobi Wine from the airport, forced him into a police ambulance and is being driven to unknown destination.  Nicholas Opiyo (@nickopiyo) August 30, 2018

According to CNN, Wine, whose real name is Robert Kyagulanyi, was first arrested by the Ugandan military on August 15th after a riot erupted between supporters of two political parties ahead of a parliamentary election.

Wine was freed on bail on Monday after weeks of legal wrangling and was on his way out of the country to seek medical care in the U.S. for injuries sustained during detention when he was re-arrested, CNN reported.

Wine is a key figure in a youth movement that has undermined support for Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni and has used his music as a means of spreading his political message. He was elected as an MP in 2017 as an opposition party candidate.

His detention earlier this month led to widespread protests around Uganda and prompted a significant military presence in the capital, according to media reports.

International artists, including Chris Martin, Angelique Kidjo, and Damon Albarn have lent their support to Wine, joining a social media campaign to #FreeBobiWine.

 CelebrityAccess

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iciHaiti - Dajabon : Haitians try to destroy two border terminals





On Friday, September 1, Dominican farmers who work in the production area of the municipal district of Canongo (North), saw Haitians on a beef farm and plantain culture, on a parcel limited to the west of the island with the Haitian communities Derac and Meac, destroying the pyramids #4 and #5 used to delimit the border between the two countries.



Following a complaint, the soldiers went to the scene and the Haitians claimed to be the owners of the parcel on which these pyramids were located, while the Dominicans contested this claim, saying that these lands belong to the successors of the Castro family. An investigation has been opened to verify the facts and take the measures that the law imposes. Since the partial destruction of these two pyramids, due to the military presence, no other incident has been reported



Remember that this is not the first time that Haitians are trying to destroy, destroy or move these pyramids. In 2005, by Decree 298-05, a Commission was commissioned to relocate these pyramids to their historic position and in accordance with the territorial agreements between the two nations as well as to rebuild the damaged pyramids on the Dominican Republic border. and Haiti.



IH/ iciHaiti


















The list of the top 500 Chinese firms has been unveiled on Sunday, September 2, 2018 at the 2018 Top500 Enterprises Summit hosted by the China Enterprise Confederation and China Enterprise Directors Association, reports the People's Daily.

The 2018 Top500 Enterprises Summit was held in Xi'an, Shaanxi Province from September 1 to 2, 2018. [Photo: ce.cn]

The total revenues of the 500 companies on this year's list comes in at roughly 71 trillion yuan (around 10 trillion US dollars), equaling 86% of China's overall GDP this past year. State Grid, Sinopec and PetroChina top the list, with more than 2 trillion yuan each in business revenues.

172 companies on the list have incomes of more than 100 billion yuan, 15 more than were on the list last year.

The most lucrative firms are found in the finance, telecom, internet and real estate sectors.

Seven of the 10 most profitable companies on the list are banks.

One third of the 500 companies are based in Beijing, Shandong and Jiangsu Provinces. Huawei, Founder Group and China Unicom hold the most patents among the companies on the list.
Recently, 27 employees from Stoneham, Mass.-based Akshaya Patra, with the help of four food distribution vehicles, helped families affected by the recent floods in Kerala by cooking 25,000 meals, serving 100,000 meals in total. (photo provided)
Joys of Sharing Foundation, Organization of Hindu Malayalees and the Anekant Community Center Aug. 23 held a fundraiser event to help Kerala recover from floods that have affected more than 1 million people. The event raised $101,000. (photo provided)
The North Texas Food Bank's Indian American Council, founded by Raj and Aradhana Asava, announced that, at the end of its Hunger Mitao Week, it has raised enough food and funds to provide more than 2 million meals for hungry families throughout North Texas. (NTFB-IAC/Facebook photo)
Anil Kalhan, an Indian American law professor at Drexel Universitys Thomas R. Kline School of Law, is among faculty members and 35 Asian American groups who have filed an amicus brief in support of race-conscious admissions at Harvard University. (drexel.edu photo)
Researchers led by Shankar Subramaniam (left) at the University of California at San Diego have received a $12 million grant by the National Institutes of Health to continue its research on human metabolism. (phys.org photo)
The European flake graphite market has remained stable over the past week after some downward adjustments earlier in August, while availability was thought to be reduced because some local suppliers reported that they were fully booked.

Prices for flake graphite into Europe held firm at the end of August.

Industrial...
The Edo State government has evacuated 15 children from the Gods Own Orphanage, in Benin, pending the conclusion of on-going investigation into the case of a Elo Ogidi, who was allegedly stolen from the Christ Embassy Church, Oregun, Lagos and found at the orphanage in Benin.

Four-year-old Ogidi was stolen during a church service in July and found last Friday, at the Gods Own Orphanage, when policemen raided the facility after a tip-off.

The police have arrested the Proprietress of the Orphanage Home, Kehinde Blessing Imarhiagbe, for complicity in the alleged theft of Elo Ogidi.

Speaking with journalists on Friday, after sealing off the home, located at 25 Davies Street, off 2nd Dr. Garrick Layout, the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Development, Magdalene Ohenhen, said the management of the home did not follow due process in admitting Elo into the facility.

She said during the operation, the police also discovered that the orphanage had three other children who were not documented with the ministry as required by law.

Ohenhen maintained that there were rules and regulations guiding the operations of orphanages in the state, but that the management did not abide by them.

The procedure is that before you accept a child into an orphanage in the state, the operator of the home must inform the state government through the states Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Development.

The owner of Gods Own Orphanage didnt inform government before admitting Elo, who was reported missing in a church in Lagos, before accommodating her in the home,

She noted that 15 children in the orphanage numbering about 15 are being moved to a safer centre, where they will be under the custody of the Edo State Government, pending when investigation on the activities of the home is concluded.

Children in the orphanage numbering about 15 are being moved to a safer centre, where they will be under the custody of the Edo State government, pending when investigation on the activities of the home is concluded, she said.
According to reports over the weekend, about 30 soldiers were killed by Boko Haram at Zari village in Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno State on Friday.

By this morning, the death toll of the soldiers was said to have risen to 42  As hundreds of Boko Haram fighters stormed the base at Zari village, in the northern State late Thursday, in truck. The Jihadists reportedly seized the town after a fierce battle, which ended in the death of over 40 soldiers.

However, the Nigerian Army on Sunday the reports saying, it is the figment of the imagination of foreign media. Army Spokesma, Brig-Gen Texas Chuwkwu said the insurgents were overpowered by the military, and they escaped with dead and the wounded.

He said;

During the fire-fight, overwhelming volume of fire was unleashed on the insurgents from both the air and ground troops, neutralising several of them and their weapons. The Boko Haram took some of their corpses and fled while others escaped with bullet injuries, adding that normalcy and sanity was restored in the affected communities. It is very unfortunate how people will just sit in the comfort of their zones and fabricate stories that dont exist, most especially the international media. Such false narratives, we have always believe are deliberate attempts to promote Boko Haram and their activities against the sovereignty of the country. That media organisation was said to have gotten their information from a security personnel and went ahead to file their report without making further inquiries. This is unethical and unprofessional to say the least,

Reacting to the news, many Nigerians have expressed their sadness as well as their anger at the spate at which soldiers are being killed by insurgents. They also decried that, government has failed to honour these heroes by pretending their death never happened.

See reactions below

A few weeks ago 300 soldiers of the Nigerian Army were killed in battle by Boko Haram. They were buried in secrecy in mass graves. Yesterday another 30 were killed. Pres. Buhari has neither acknowledged their sacrifice nor admitted that they were killed. This is unacceptable.  Femi Fani-Kayode (@realFFK) September 1, 2018

According to @vanguardngrnews the death toll from Boko Harams attack on a military base in Borno has increased to 48, yet no condolence from the C-in-C. Instead, the @NGRPresident released a statement claiming world leaders are queuing up to meet President Buhari #RenosDarts  Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) September 3, 2018

I cry for Nigeria and the Military. The spate of killings of Nigeria military officers by Boko Haram is alarming. My heartfelt sympathies to the family of the decease. may their souls Rest in Peace.  Geebee (@Geebee1st) September 3, 2018
Nigerian businesswoman, lawyer, and politician Eunice Uche Julian Atuejide has expressed her disappointment in another aspirant Donald Duke, over his stance on homosexuality in Nigeria.

In an interview with Laila and Falz, Donald Duke said:

I dont understand the emotional feelings a gay person would have toward someone of their sexuality. I dont understand it. But I would not criminalise them. I would ensure that they have the protection of the law. But if they want to exhibit their sexuality, then thats an affront on the current norms of society.

After receiving backlash from many Nigerians who took his comment to mean he might rescind the law criminalizing homosexuality if elected into office, Duke released a statement yesterday saying Homosexuality is a crime in Nigeria and ought to remain so.

Reacting to Donald Dukes clarification, Eunice Atuejide expressed her disappointment at the former governor for not taking a firm stance against the anti-gay law.

She wrote:

You see ehn, when I watched Donald Duke with Folarin Falz Falana and Laila Johnson-Salami on @onthecouchnaija I was so proud of him. Today, I feel awfully ashamed of him.

In fact, the only area he actually made sense while on the couch was when he discussed criminalising homosexuality in Nigeria. I drew strength from his views, and felt more confident about my approach to the topic.

Today, when I saw his retraction, I lost the little respect I had started to develop for the man  Donald Duke.

Dear Donald Duke we must state our opinions clearly, and when we have done so, we must stand by them no matter whose oxes are gored!

How else do you Mr. Donald Duke hope to assure the electorates that your word is your bond?! ?

Homosexuality may be immoral, unacceptable, embarrassing etc, but it is not a crime!

Nobody gets hurt when two or more fully consenting adults indulge in same sex activities. We can criminalise public displays, but certainly not whatever fully consenting adults are doing in the privacy of their homes, offices, hotels etc.

They are HUMANS. And EVERY human being has a fundamental right to the protection of their privacy.

Lets please read or re-read the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. We are ALL equal under the laws of this land because we are HUMANS!

And all laws in Nigeria which contravene the Constitution are null and void to the extent of that contradiction.

Prison because one is homosexual runs foul of our Same Sex Marriage Prohibition Act and our Constitution. Shikena!

#ANigeria4All
State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi and Chairman of the African Union Commission Moussa Faki Mahamat inaugurate the AU's representative office in China on Sunday in Beijing. Feng Yongbin / China Daily

China sees the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation as an excellent platform to further strengthen traditional friendships, solidarity and coordination with African countries, State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi said in Beijing on Sunday.

China is ready to work with African countries to jointly build an even stronger community of a shared future, Wang said at the Seventh Ministerial Conference of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Ministers and representatives tasked with foreign and economic cooperation responsibilities from 53 African member states and from the African Union Commission attended the meeting, which was held ahead of the main summit on Monday and Tuesday.

The meeting reviewed and approved the drafts of the outcome documents to be submitted to the summit, including the Beijing Declaration and the FOCAC Action Plan (2019-21).

Wang congratulated Gambia, Burkina Faso, and Sao Tome and Principe on being the newest members of FOCAC.

President Xi Jinping will put forward specific proposals to build a China-Africa community with a shared future at the summit, and he will announce China's initiatives and measures to strengthen China-Africa cooperation, Wang said.

These initiatives and measures "will intensify the China-Africa win-win partnership, helping Africa to achieve revitalization and development", Wang said.

Wang and Commerce Minister Zhong Shan co-chaired the meeting with South African co-chairs Minister of International Relations and Cooperation Lindiwe Sisulu and Minister of Trade and Industry Rob Davies.

Calling China a trusted and reliable partner of Africa, Sisulu said African countries are willing to learn from China's development experience and enhance cooperation in such fields as agriculture, infrastructure construction, trade, and science and technology.
Peoples Democratic Party(PDP) presidential aspirant, Atiku Abubakar has expressed his regret at not taking over Lagos, when he had the opportunity.

According to the former vice president, he said when they(Olusegun Obasanjo and himself) came to power in 2003, he had the authority to take over the Southwest, which were all Alliance for Democracy(AD) states but he didnt take over Lagos, because of Bola Ahmed Tinubu, with whom he says, he had come a long way  A decision he says, he now regrets.

Atiku said this, while speaking with members of his party(PDP) in Lagos, and he apologised to them for not doing what he should have done then.

In his words:

When we came to power in 1999, the entire South-western states were controlled by the AD. And when we were approaching the 2003 elections, I told my boss, give me the chance to take over the South-west.

And he gave me that authority, and I took all the states with the exception of Lagos. Why? Because Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and I came a long way from the SDP, PDM and all of that, and I felt I should leave Lagos for him. In fact, I could easily have taken over Lagos, but I did not.

I have since regretted my decision; please, my sisters and brothers in the party, I want you to forgive me for taking Lagos out of that arrangement.

If I have another opportunity again, Lagos will be taken to where it belongs. So, I am appealing to you to give me that opportunity so that I can correct the mistakes that I made.
Nigerian celebrity blogger, Linda Ikeji who is currently in Atlanta, United States to welcome her baby, has confirmed that her baby daddy is from Delta State.

The confirmation was made in a new post she shared on Instagram. The photo Linda Ikeji shared came with the caption;

Mummy-to-be to a future Itsekiri big boy 

Since millionaire blogger announced her engagement, a lot of people have been trying to figure out and find out who Linda Ikejis baby daddy, fiance or husband is. It was even speculated that the blogger had an IVF for the baby.

However in a new post about her extreme love for children and how she intends to be the best mother in the world, Linda Ikeji let it slip that the babys father is tall, dark and handsome.

Well, according to a user on the popular Nigerian forum Nairaland, Linda Ikejis baby daddy is Sholaye Jeremi, a close associate to Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu.

According to the anonymous user identified by the moniker Nobody, Jeremi resides in Ikoyi, where Linda has her mansion. Pictures of Jeremi found on the internet shows hes close pals with billionaire Femi Otedola.

The user wrote;

Linda Ikeji is pregnant for Sholaye Jeremi, a close associate to Minister of State for Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu. He is from Sapele, Delta state. 100% confirmed. The funny thing is there was no engagement as Shola will not settle down although he is 40 plus.

Jeremi also stays in Ikoyi. Very credible, although Linda is trying to manage the situation but this information is 100 percent credible. You can do your findings as well, but thats the guy.

Before this news broke, some people have even speculated that she was pregnant for popular media publicist Big Sam. And controversial journalist, Kemi Olunloyo, also alleged, Linda may not be really pregnant for anyone and what she is parading is simply a moonbump.
Many worshippers of the St. Paul Catholic Church Ugolo, Adagbrasa, in Okpe local government area of Delta State, were on Sunday morning, reportedly trapped when the church building collapsed during morning mass service. According to DailyTrust, a worshipper has been confirmed dead and scores injured.

Eye witnesses revealed to a correspondent that the immediate cause of the collapse could not be ascertained yet.

In a statement issued on Sunday in Asaba by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Charles Aniagwu, Governor Okowa described the unfortunate incident as a sad, unfortunate and regrettable experience. Okowa prayed for the repose of the departed faithful and condoled with the family of the deceased, and the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, who hails from the locality.

This is indeed a very sad and unfortunate incident. On behalf of the Government and people of Delta State, I commiserate with the family of the deceased and those injured, the Speaker of the Delta State House of Assembly, Chairman of Okpe Local Government Council, Chief Julius Scott, the Orodje of Okpe, HRM, Orhue 1, Major Gen. Felix Mujakperuo (retd) and the entire Ugolo community in Okpe Kingdom over the unfortunate incidence. It is our prayer that the soul of the deceased will rest in peace, and that the injured will experience quick recovery. Our thoughts and prayers will continue to be with the people of Ugolo in Okpe Kingdom over this tragedy, he said.
Nollywood actress, Mercy Aigbe was missed at the just concluded Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards (AMVCA) mainly because fans expected she would have shown up in a killer outfit.

While other top Yoruba actresses like Toyin Abraham, Iyabo Ojo and Faithia Williams attended in exquisite gowns, a lot of Aigbes fans waited all night in hope that she would show up.

The actress has now addressed fans who were disappointed by her absence explaining that she was stuck in location.

Aigbe wrote on Instagram, Awww I am not even gonna pretend that I didnt see all the Comments, all the tags, all the plenty DMs, I feel so loved I was stuck on set, filming the Series Palaver directed by @desmondelliot. pain me sha! But the show had to go on!!!!!!!..






Senior special assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, Mr Garba Shehu disclosed on Saturday, that Nigeria has signed a $328 million agreement with China on the National and Communication Technology Infrastructure Backbone (NICTIB) Phase 11.

The agreement according to NAN was signed when Buhari arrived in Beijing, China, for the 2018 Forum on ChinaAfrica Cooperation (FOCAC), with Chinese President Xi Jinping witnessing the signing.

It was also disclosed that the project will be executed by Galaxy Backbone Limited and Huawei Technologies Limited (HUAWEI) while funding will come from the Chinese EXIM Bank.

Former presidential aide, Reno Omokri taking to his Twitter handle, said the president and his government of sharing $322 million Abacha loot to the poor but has now signed a $328 million soft loan agreement in China, an act, he says is an evidence of lifelessness.

A month ago the @MBuhari government shared $322 million Abacha loot to the poor. Yesterday, President @MBuhari signed a $328 million soft loan agreement in China. And when they say this fellow is lifeless you take offence. Is this not evidence of lifelessness? #RenosDarts  Reno Omokri (@renoomokri) September 2, 2018



Reacting to the news, Former Education Minister Oby Ezekwesili said Chinese attitude to Indebtedness is the hardest in the world. She said she knows this because they had to deal with it in the course of their work at the World Bank, helping African countries to get the HIPC Debt Cancellation.

She noted that countries are best advised to avoid the riskiest debt types especially the Chinese genre  that has been happening across Africa in recent times.

She wrote:

Chinese attitude to Indebtedness is the HARDEST in the world. I know, because one had to deal with it in the course of my work @ the World Bank, helping African countries to get the HIPC Debt Cancellation. It ANNOYS ME TO NO END to see our countries BINGING on Chinese Loans.  Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) September 3, 2018

Most annoying of this latest round of RISING SCALE of Public Debt by countries of the continent is that the politicians are behaving EXACTLY like the ones who PILED UP DEBTS in the 80s & 90s.

Just sign up for plenty Loansforget about imperatives of Debt Sustainability. KAI!!  Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) September 3, 2018

The Chinese KNOW EXACTLY what they are doing. If you read their Loan Agreements with African countries, you will see how TIGHT they cover their exposure. Meanwhile, our own Leaders go there to naively, gleefully and with huge dose of inferiority complex, sign on to BAD DEALS.  Oby Ezekwesili (@obyezeks) September 3, 2018




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LONDON, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Chinese ambassador to Britain said on Sunday that China has been a responsible investor and lender in Africa, rebuffing claims that his country is the cause of Africa's debt problem.

In a signed article published by the Sunday Telegraph and its website, ambassador Liu Xiaoming said that China-Africa cooperation is "open" and "transparent" and excludes no one.

He said that China stands ready to work with all countries that care for Africa and leverage its resources and advantages to help with Africa's development.

"In fact, China and the UK have engaged in extensive cooperation in this regard," the senior diplomat said. "Some people in the West blame China-Africa cooperation for Africa's debt problem, just as Aesop's fox claims that the grapes beyond its reach are sour."

Liu said the debt problem is a result of complex causes, including the "growing pains" and the influence of global economy.

He stressed that China has taken measures to help Africa control debt risks and to alleviate debt pressure, having announced a number of cancellations of debt on interest-free loans involving heavily indebted poor countries and least developed countries in Africa.

Since the Johannesburg Summit of FOCAC (Forum on China-Africa Cooperation), China has exempted more than 20 African countries from paying off interest-free loans due by the end of 2015.

Liu said that amid increasing instabilities and uncertainties in the world and surging unilateralism and protectionism, the FOCAC Beijing Summit to be held assumes great significance.

In his diplomatic career lasting more than 40 years, Liu served in two African countries and have seen with his own eyes the growth of China-Africa relations and the benefits of the ever-deepening cooperation between the two sides.

The source of the deep-running China-Africa friendship is that the two sides have helped and supported each other and shared weal and woe in the pursuit of national independence and development, he said.

"China and Africa are true friends who respect each other's choice of development path and never impose their will on each other," he said. "Africa belongs to the African people, and African issues should be determined by the African people."

China never preaches at or exports its model to Africa, nor does China attach any political strings to China-Africa cooperation, he noted.

China has been the largest trading partner of Africa for nine consecutive years. In 2017, two-way trade reached 170 billion U.S. dollars. China's investment stock in Africa has surpassed 100 billion dollars. China-Africa cooperation on the Belt and Road Initiative has been thriving, delivering tangible results such as the Addis Ababa-Djibouti Railway,the Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway and the Hisense Home Appliances Industrial Park in South Africa.

China has built hundreds of schools and hospitals, provided training to over 160,000 people and offered government scholarships to over 20,000 students in Africa.

Liu stressed the importance of honoring commitment, saying there is no shortage of international mechanisms dedicated to African development. "Making promises is not enough," he said. "It is more important to deliver."

The ambassador said that with the joint efforts of China and Africa, the Beijing Summit will become a new milestone in the history of China-Africa relations.

"It will be a new contribution to better development, high-standard cooperation and an even stronger community for China and Africa, with a view to forging a community with a shared future for mankind," he said.
SANAA, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- At least 33 African migrants drowned off the eastern coast of Yemen after smugglers operating the boat forced the passengers into sea, the spokesman of International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Yemen told Xinhua Sunday.

"The victims, including 22 men and 11 women, drowned on Wednesday off the Yemeni southeastern coast of Shabwa," the spokesman Saaba al-Mualemi said.

He said the 33 migrants were part of 360 African refugees and migrants overcrowded onboard two small boats.

"The smugglers of one of the boats opened fire and forced the passengers to jump out of the boat few kilometers away from the shore," al-Mualemi said, adding that some managed to swim and survived, while "Yemeni rescue teams pulled the 33 victims."

In May, about 46 African refugees drowned off Shabwa, according to the IOM.

Humanitarian situations have been deteriorated in Yemen since the poorest Arab country fell in deadly civil war in late 2014.

The African refugees and migrants, mostly from Somalia and Ethiopia, have frequently fled their countries in the horn of Africa to Yemen, from which they later infiltrate through mountainous and desert borders to neighbouring oil-rich Arab Gulf states for better living conditions or works.
Rwandan President Paul Kagame receives an interview in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 2, 2018. Paul Kagame is here to attend the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation. (Xinhua/Yin Gang)

BEIJING, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Visiting Rwandan President Paul Kagame said here Sunday that the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) comes at the right time as globalization faces headwind.

FOCAC is a cooperation mechanism that has, since its establishment in 2000, achieved great results in health care, education, infrastructure and industrialization in Africa, Kagame said.

China and Africa share a common aspiration for development and stability, he said. With a solid foundation in place for China-Africa cooperation, Kagame said he expects the summit, set for Sept. 3-4, to further expand the scope of cooperation and do "better and more of what we are doing well now."

He described the summit as timely since there is "need for cooperation more than ever" as some countries make clear their intentions to serve themselves first over other countries, Kagame said.

FOCAC emphasizes a form where countries come together for cooperation, carrying a positive message for the whole world, he added.

The Rwandan leader also made comments about the so-called China "debt trap" for Africa, calling the fabricated concept an attempt to discourage relations between China and Africa.

They say China has lent too much to Africa, but "another perspective of the issue is that those criticizing China on debt give too little," and Africa needs the funding to build capacity for development, he said.

The Rwandan leader also recalled Chinese President Xi Jinping's state visit to his country in July, saying it "offered us a great opportunity to discuss and strengthen our friendship and cooperation" at the bilateral level and beyond. The visit was the first to the African country by a Chinese head of state.

When asked to describe the Rwanda-China relationship, he called it a "productive partnership" of mutual benefit, noting that it has brought great benefits to the Rwandan people.

Kagame, whose country holds the rotating chair of the African Union (AU), also elaborated on his goal for institutional reform of the continental bloc.

The long-called-for reform aims to strengthen unity among member states, enhance capacity for self-driven development and improve efficiency within the bloc, said Kagame.

There is a lot of strength in unity, and AU member states need to work ly for a better future of the continent, he said. "We should be able to take care of ourselves."

The ongoing reform of the AU "fits very well with our cooperation with China," said the Rwandan president.

"China has been a supportive friend for Africa for a long time," he said. "The reform should build our capacities and make the partnership more meaningful. We are looking to China to strengthen us in this quest for unity, independence and efficiency."
HUGO, Ore.  Though flames from the Hugo Road Fire have destroyed two homes since the fire flared to life on Sunday evening, fire crews are now beginning to claim the upper handraising containment of the 199-acre fire to 45 percent, according to a Tuesday morning update from the Oregon Department of Forestry (ODF).

Overnight, ODF says that firefighters were able to complete mop-up of 100 feet from the perimeter control line, around threatened structures, and from the edge of roadways. Crews also restored power to homes that had lost it due to the flames.

ODF says that they plan to extend that mop-up area to at least 200 feet so that afternoon wind gusts don't cause the fire to overwhelm control lines.

Meanwhile, crews from the Oregon State Fire Marshal's (OSFM) office are planning to head home by 4 p.m. on Tuesday.

"Community members can expect to see out-of-area engines departing the fire throughout the day and local engines entering to assist with the transition," said ODF in their morning update.

Governor Kate Brown declared the Hugo Road Fire a "conflagration" early Monday morning, which allowed crews from OSFM to come in and assist local firefighters in preparing homes against the flames. Four structural task forces from Marion, Lane, Linn and Klamath counties also joined the firefight.

"When life and property are at risk, we as a state must do everything we can to support firefighters and the communities they protect," said Governor Brown. "While Labor Day usually marks the end of summer in Oregon, it doesn't bring an end to wildfire season."

In spite of that quick declaration, ODF has confirmed that at least two homes and 13 outbuildings have been destroyed by the fire, with three homes and two outbuildings damaged. 265 structures remain under threat.

Although ODF indicates that evacuation levels could drop for the Hugo area later in the day, on Monday morning those evacuation orders remain in effect:

Level 3 GO -

Oxyoke Road from Three Pines Road to Hugo Road, Hugo Road from Oxyoke Road to Three Pines Road, Three Pines Road from Hugo Road to Oxyoke Road, Monterico and all secondary roads off of Monterico, Hitching Post Road, Hasis Road, Trevor Lane, Dakota Lane, Templin Avenue and Wilson Lane.

A Level 2 BE SET -

Three Pines Road to Monument Drive. Monument Drive to the Interstate 5 at Milepost 66 interchange.

A shelter has been established for people and animals at the Josephine County Fairgrounds. Anyone needing assistance can call Southern Oregon Emergency Aide at 541-226-1124.
In this July 13, 2018 photo, Attorney General Jeff Sessions delivers remarks in Portland, Maine. President Donald Trump is escalating his attacks on Attorney General Jeff Sessions, suggesting the embattled official should have intervened in investigations of two GOP congressmen to help Republicans in the midterms. Trump tweeted Monday that Auinvestigations of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department.Au (AP Photo/Robert F. Bukaty)
EUGENE, Ore. -- A local teen is working to prevent suicide around the world and he's starting in Eugene.

Carson Lydon lost two friends to suicide in just the past two years. He's now working to raise awareness about mental health.

Lydon said he lost his close friend Will Manstrom-Greening to suicide on February 14, 2017.

"I've known him since I was born," said Lydon. Then, he said he lost a family friend, Christine Tofte, on May 15, 2018. He said he'll never forget those two dates or the two people they represent.

"It's just a lot of questions that you can't answer," said Lydon. "You just never know what's going on in someone's life."

At 15 years old, he's starting his sophomore year with a big goal: "Try to make this world free of suicide, that's my slogan."

For the second year in a row, he's getting a team together for the Out of the Darkness Walk, organized by the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. AFSP said they use the funds raised to invest in new research, create educational programs, advocate for public policy, and support survivors of suicide loss.

Lydon said his goal is to raise $10,000.

"Last year I raised $5,000, but I got to go bigger this year," said Lydon.

He's designed shirts for his team, A World Free of Suicide-WMG&CT, and will be passing them out for free at the walk. He said Stoneworks International is sponsoring the few hundred he needs to order. Lydon said they're still looking for a company to help make them.

He says along with the walk, he tries to be more aware of others: "I try to make sure every single day to ask someone...how are you, and that I love them."

Lydon said he wants to make sure people know they're loved, because it can make a big difference: "If you keep fighting and keep persevering through everything that's going on in your life, you can make it positive."

The Out of the Darkness Walk will be at Alton Baker Park in Eugene on September 30th. The event begins at 10: 00 a.m. and the walk starts at 11:00 a.m.

If you'd like to get involved or donate, click here.

If you'd like to keep up with Lydon and his team's journey leading up to the walk, click here.
China and Africa have witnessed expanded and upgraded financial cooperation over the past three years. It is a result of the great efforts made by China to accelerate African countries industrialization and modernization. China has helped Africa addressed its core development challenges such as capital shortage and underdeveloped infrastructure.

May to August each year is the busiest time for the factory of China-Africa Cotton Zambia Limited located in Chipata, capital city of Zambias Eastern Province.

The factory, jointly built by China-Africa Development Fund and a texture company from Qingdao, eastern Chinas Shandong province, has motivated local cotton planting and increased farmers income thanks to the quality and productive cotton industry of Zambia, and the innovative order-based farming model.

So far China-Africa Cotton has established factories in Zambia, Malawi and Mozambique, benefiting more than 200,000 local farmers, and making huge contribution to China-Africa cooperation on agricultural modernization.

At the Johannesburg Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Chinese President Xi Jinping declared $5 billion of additional capital for the China-Africa Development Fund, making the total number rise to $10 billion.

The fund has accumulatively invested more than $4.6 billion in 92 projects in 36 African countries, which has levered nearly $23 billion of investment from Chinese companies in Africa.

At present, the China-Africa Development Fund, investing in multiple sectors such as infrastructure, agriculture and manufacturing, is making both economic and social benefits to local communities.

Financial institutions, including banks, have built bridges for China-Africa economic and trade cooperation, said Wang Lubin, Chief Representative Officer of Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) African Representative Office.

By the end of this March, ICBC and its partner, Standard Bank of South Africa, have together provided finance for 35 projects in Africa, and levered an investment of more than $20 billion. Their cooperation has accelerated a great number of significant infrastructure and livelihood projects.

The financial cooperation between China and African countries have brought advanced ideas to local communities, and offered secured and convenient payment methods, substantially optimizing the modernized financial system for Africa.

At present, Chinas UnionPay bank cards are accepted by most of the ATMs of the four major banks in South Africa for withdrawal service. As a matter of fact, it is accepted in 50 countries and regions in Africa, and more and more local banks in Africa are issuing UnionPay cards.

Now, UnionPays acceptance coverage in Uganda is over 80%, according to Stephen Mukweli, CEO of Post Bank Uganda.

In China, citizens only need their mobile phones in hand when they go out. It is believed that such secured and convenient mobile payment service will become available for more and more African citizens as China-Africa financial cooperation continues to deepen, said Thulani Gcabashe, chairman of the Standard Bank of South Africa, who has visited China for many times.

Africa is an important part in the Belt and Road construction. In the past 5 years since the proposal of the Belt and Road Initiative, Chinese financial institutions have provided diversified products and multi-layered financial supports to align national development strategies of African countries with the Belt and Road Initiative.

Chairman Mohamed Eletreby of Egypts national bank Banque Misr told Peoples Daily that Egypt and China enhanced cooperation in multiple sectors since the proposal of the Belt and Road Initiative.

The central banks of the two countries signed a currency swap agreement at the end of 2016, he introduced, adding that it facilitated bilateral trade and investment, and promoted the accommodation of funds between the two countries.

The Beijing Summit of the FOCAC is scheduled to be kicked off this September. Eletreby, who is about to attend the meeting, said that the Belt and Road construction promoted accommodation of funds between China and African countries including Egypt. He is expecting that the summit will inject new energy into bilateral financial cooperation.
ROCHESTER, Minn. - Communities United for Rochester Empowerment, or CURE, is hosting a Labor Day Picnic at Bear Creek Park.

People can celebrate the holiday with food, drinks, and a bike give away. CURE is also using the day to push part of it's 'People's Platform,' specifically raising minimum wage to $15 an hour in Rochester.

CURE member Danny Solis said this rate is reasonable for a twon like Rochester.

"Because workers have more money in their pockets to go out and spend. So you know this panic, almost, over $15 an hour is misplaced I think, and over blown," he said.

Minnesota Leiutenant Governor Candidate Peggy Flanagan and Minnesota House of Representatives candidate Dan Feehan are also scheduled to come to the event. Flanagan is planning to speak at the event.

"By coming to the picnic they're making a statement. By speaking at the picnic, they're basically letting the world know they support workers," Solis said.

The pinic is open to the public. It will be on Labor Day Sept. 3, at Bear Creek Park. It is scheduled to run from 11am-2pm.
(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own. Refiles to remove unnecessary apostrophe in third paragraph.) By Ed Cropley LONDON, Sept 3 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Just because beer is cheap, it doesnt mean you should drink. Africa has for years been drunk on cheap Chinese credit, a habit that has led to waste and even sovereign default. China is now preaching sobriety, but neither Africas borrowers nor their lender are showing much appetite for restraint. China and Africa are logical partners. Filling a gap left by Western commercial lenders, who were too expensive, and multilateral agencies, who were too slow, Chinas government and banks have lent at least $136 billion to the continent this century, providing Africa with much-needed capital, and Beijing with vital natural resources.

The cash has built airports, ports and railways from Cape Town to Cairo, creating jobs. But it has also led to expensive projects, and ultimately bankruptcy and accusations by campaign groups such as London-based Jubilee of debt-trap diplomacy by Beijing. Angola has already restructured the $42 billion  more than a third of its GDP  that Johns Hopkins University reckons it owes Beijing, according to Reuters. Ethiopia and Zambia have also said they need to do the same. President Xi Jinping seems to want change. On Monday, while pledging a further $60 billion over the next three years, he warned countries against vanity projects. Yet China has so far done little to make its lending more accountable or transparent. Export-Import Bank of China and China Development Bank, the main funding conduits, reveal few details of their loans, making it hard to gauge how much they ultimately cost African taxpayers. By contrast, World Bank projects undergo lengthy public scrutiny to show that they make economic sense and do not damage the environment. Nor are the borrowers showing much evidence of sobriety. As it paid out the final chunk of a $918 million bailout in April, the International Monetary Fund told Ghana, a modest cocoa, gold and oil producer, to rein in its borrowing. In a meeting with Xi in Beijing, President Nana Akufo-Addo announced a 100-year infrastructure bond worth $50 billion, roughly 100 percent of its GDP. The next hangover may be even worse.

On Twitter CONTEXT NEWS - Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sept. 3 pledged to provide African countries with $60 billion in financing over the next three years, matching funding offered since 2015.

- China lent $125 billion to the continent from 2000 to 2016, according to data from the China-Africa Research Initiative based at Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies in Washington D.C.

- Ethiopia and Zambia have both said they want to restructure their debt to China. Bankers believe Congo Republic and Angola have already done so, Reuters reported on Aug. 31. - For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on - SIGN UP FOR BREAKINGVIEWS EMAIL ALERTS <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ China's Xi says no to Africa "vanity projects" as hosts major summit Despite debt woes, Africa still sees China as best bet for financing Ghana may issue $50 bln century bond  president ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^> (Editing by Neil Unmack and Bob Cervi)

ed.cropley.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))
China and Africa will further carry forward their high-level cooperation based on profound historic bonds and realistic demands, as well as the all-round development of bilateral ties built in the past five years, the Peoples Daily said in a commentary published under the byline of Guo Jiping on Saturday.

In the article published days ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) scheduled to begin on Sept. 3, the paper gives an in-depth analysis on how China and Africa embark on a road of common development by win-win cooperation.

An abstract translation of the article is as follows:

The high-level ties between China and Africa are grounded on their profound historic bonds and realistic appeals. It is notable that thanks to the all-round efforts China has made in its diplomacy towards Africa over the past five years, this precious treasure shared by both sides will be further carried forward.

Chinese President Xi Jinping, in March 2013, set a precedent by choosing three African countries, Tanzania, South Africa, and the Republic of the Congo, as the destination of his first overseas visit after taking office as Chinese head of state. In July, 2018, the African continent was once again selected as the first overseas destination after Xi was re-elected as Chinese President.

Chinas African policy put forward by Xi, namely the principles of sincerity, real results, affinity and good faith and the approach of upholding justice and pursuing shared interests, has charted course for Chinas relationship with Africa in the new era.

China and Africa upgraded their relations to a comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership at the FOCAC summit in Johannesburg in 2015, during which China also announced to implement ten major cooperation plans together with Africa to push bilateral ties for in-depth development and enrich the connotation of China-Africa community with shared future.

Different ways to deal with ties towards Africa reflect diversified philosophies in front of international relationship.

Back to those days when the international relations were dominated by hegemonism and law of the jungle, Africa fell into a battlefield whose resources were ravened by Western powers.

Although African countries braced for national independence after the World War II, the West world intervened their development in a more subtle way. Each time when the African nations needed loans, the so-called liberalization scheme in the name of structure reform would be required as preconditions.

When taking about the Western aid, former president of Mozambique Joaquim Chissano said that the endless seminars and working groups always ended with suspicious results, as those possible aids would often be attached with pressure for political reforms that may cause instability.

What China did when handling its ties with Africa runs contrast to the colonization and intervention by the West, as China starts its cooperation with Africa from supports to the continent and win-win outcomes.

An African scholar commented that when the western media labeled Africa as a hopeless continent, it was China who brought hopes to them.

Kenneth David Kaunda, Zambia's first president, coined China as an everlasting friend of African countries, saying that the supports from China, without any strings attached, are more like the way it treats friends.

China backs Africa with a great deal of mutually beneficial and win-win cooperation projects that complement each others advantages and allow Africa to learn how to fish instead of given fish. Their cooperation offers more choices for Africa and also helps African countries explore development paths more independently in accordance with their own national conditions.

Western media also pointed out that different with the colonizers who built infrastructures in Africa to isolate the continent and serve their own interests, China is serving the development of the whole continent as the railways and other infrastructures it constructed are now connecting regional countries closer.

Preliminary statistics show that since the proposal of the ten major cooperation plans, projects completed by and constructed by Chinese enterprises in Africa will build around 30,000 kilometers of highway, increase 85 million tons of annual port capacity, and raise over 9 million tons of daily water treatment capacity for the continent.

Besides, these projects will increase a power generation capacity of nearly 20,000 MW and build over 30,000 kilometers of power transmission and transformation lines for Africa. And nearly 900,000 jobs will be created for local communities.

In addition, China has provided over 20,000 government scholarships and more than 1,700 degree education places for African countries.

The co-construction of Belt and Road and alignment of development strategies are rising as new highlights in China-Africa cooperation.

China has inked cooperation agreements on Belt and Road with more than 10 African nations, and is discussing on the signing of such deals with over 20 African countries, which means that an upsurge for Africa countries to join the co-construction is now around the corner.

The concrete actions of China-Africa cooperation set a model for the rest of the world when cooperating with Africa.

China has been devoted to increasing the representativeness and right to speak of African countries in multilateral fora including the UN, G20 and BRICS cooperation. The fruits from bilateral cooperation made the world realize the great importance of the principles and concepts China upholds in dealing with Africa.

China has stressed that other nations are welcomed to join the open economic and trade cooperation between China and Africa based on the principle of mutual benefits and win-win results.

China has also reiterated its willingness to launch third-party market cooperation in Africa together with other countries.

The world is watching how a deepened China-Africa cooperation will help African countries play a more effective part in international industrial specialization and share the dividends of economic globalization, which is beneficial to the general orientation of economic globalization, more balanced world economy and ample release of potential and vitality of global growth.

Edmond Moukala, chief of the Africa Unit at the World Heritage Centre at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, described China-Africa cooperation as an important factor for current and future development of the world, saying that it supports the sustainable growth of the global economy.

(Guo Jiping is a well-known pen name used for Peoples Daily editorials meant to outline Chinas stance and viewpoints on major international issues.)
(The author is a Reuters Breakingviews columnist. The opinions expressed are his own.) By Christopher Thompson LONDON, Sept 3 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Be careful what you wish for. That may well be the advice to those vying to replace Daniele Nouy as the European Central Banks top banking supervisor when the French chair steps down at the end of this year. Running the watchdog which oversees Europes 119 largest banks has become one of the most important jobs in the single currency area. Nouy has shaped the fledgling body, set up in the aftermath of the euro zone crisis, cracking down on lax regulation and taking a tough approach to failing lenders. There is no shortage of applicants for the job, which start the start of a whirlwind of senior European policymaking jobs. Germany is supporting Irelands deputy central bank governor Sharon Donnery to replace Nouy, Reuters reported on Aug. 29. Potential rivals include Elisa Ferreira, vice-governor of the Bank of Portugal, and three Italians: Andrea Enria, chair of the European Banking Authority, Ignazio Angeloni, another top ECB bank supervisor, and Deputy Governor of the Bank of Italy Fabio Panetta. Whoever ends up taking charge of Europes Single Supervisory Mechanism will face a full inbox. This includes implementing tougher standards on classifying bad loans, firming up banks monitoring of possible money laundering, and pushing for the completion of the euro zones banking union. Lowering national banking barriers is a precondition for any large-scale cross-border consolidation in the industry. That, in turn, is one of the primary solutions to the supervisors most pressing medium-term problem: lenders chronic lack of profitability. Senior regulators are dismayed that European banks are expected to make an aggregate return on equity of just 7.4 percent in 2019, according to ECB projections issued last year. Assuming a 10 percent cost of capital, that means most banks are destroying value for their shareholders when economic growth is decent and bad debts are at a record low. This in turn limits banks capacity to invest in better compliance and information technology. The winning candidate cannot expect much help from Nouys current deputy, Sabine Lautenschlaeger, who is expected to leave next February. Allowing Europes top two bank supervisors to leave within months of each other looks like extremely bad planning. It also means Nouys successor will face a fight on multiple fronts. On Twitter CONTEXT NEWS - Andrea Enria, the head of the European Bank Authority, has applied to become the next chief of the European Central Bank's banking watchdog, the Single Supervisory Mechanism, according to a statement from the EBA quoted by Reuters on Sept. 3. - The ECB is looking for candidates to replace the current chair, Daniele Nouy, when her term expires at the end of this year. - Irish Central Bank Deputy Governor Sharon Donnery became the first person last month to publicly put her name forward for the post. Media reports in Italy said ECB supervisor Ignazio Angeloni was also expected to apply, according to Reuters, but his candidacy has not yet been confirmed. - The deadline for applications was Aug. 24. - For previous columns by the author, Reuters customers can click on - SIGN UP FOR BREAKINGVIEWS EMAIL ALERTS <^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Italy's Enria applies for ECB bank watchdog job Job ad BREAKINGVIEWS-U.S. creeps into EUs money-laundering blind spot ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^> (Editing by Peter Thal Larsen and Bob Cervi) Christopher.G.Thompson.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.


PARIS, Sept 3 (Reuters) - * European Union soybean imports in the 2018/19 season that started on July 1 totalled 2.27 million tonnes by Sept. 2, down 1 percent from 2.29 million a year earlier, data published by the European Commission on Monday showed.

* EU 2018/19 soymeal imports had reached 2.8 million tonnes, down 23 percent from a year-earlier 3.7 million, the official data showed.

* EU 2018/19 palm oil imports stood at 911,000 tonnes, down 22 percent from a year-earlier 1.2 million tonnes.

* Due to a technical hitch, the Commission did not publish the weekly export and import data last week.

* For a detailed table of EU oilseed imports: (Reporting by Valerie Parent and Clement Rouget Writing by Gus Trompiz Editing by Bate Felix) Messaging: gus.trompiz.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)) Messaging: gus.trompiz.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.


WARSAW, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Poland's PMI data for August may indicate that the peak of the economic cycle is coming to an end, Finance Minister Teresa Czerwinska said on Monday. The IHS Markit Poland Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index fell to 51.4 in August from 52.9 in July, the lowest reading since October 2016, a business survey showed on Monday. "August PMI data signals a slowdown in the Polish industry sector and may indicate that we have the peak of economic cycle behind us," Czerwinska was quoted as saying in a statement emailed to Reuters.



(Reporting by Pawel Sobczak; Writing by Agnieszka Barteczko; Editing by Alison Williams) Messaging: agnieszka.barteczko.reuters.com@thomsonreuters.net)) Messaging: agnieszka.barteczko.reuters.com@thomsonreuters.net))

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.


Click the following link to watch video: Source: Reuters Insider Description: Chinese President Xi Jinping says that his country's investment in Africa comes with no strings attached, ahead of a triennial China-Africa summit in Beijing. Ryan Brooks reports. Short Link: Video Transcript: No strings attached - that's the promise of Chinese President Xi Jinping as a major China-Africa Summit kicked off in Beijing on Monday. He's talking about the billions of dollars worth of loans China has extended to African nations for projects like railways and roads. And later in the day, he pledged tens of billions of dollars in new financial aid. Xi said China's investment comes with no political obligations but as Reuters Christian Shepherd reports, it's creating problems of its own. For some Africa nations, the burden of Chinese debt really is growing. They have the majority of their -- that are being held by Chinese banks and they, themselves, are often a high risk of debt distress. Data from Johns Hopkins University showed that China loaned around $125 billion to the continent between 2000 and 2016. That's cranked up high debt risks for countries like Djibouti and Zambia. But there are reasons why countries are still taking the money. African nations defend the Chinese model of saying that compared to their other financing options, the terms are much better often from Chinese policy banks. They have longer repayment periods. The interest is lower. They often get a long grace period. It just makes more sense. And also, they say, that when it actually comes to giving out the loans, China is just more willing than other partners in Europe or in North America. Chinese state media has angrily rejected claims of debt traps in Africa, accusing critics in the West of being jealous of China's prominent role in the continent.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.


Click the following link to watch video: Source: Reuters Insider Description: JD.com chief executive Richard Liu was arrested in the U.S. state of Minnesota on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct and later released after what the company said was a false accusation. Chris Dignam has more. Short Link: Video Transcript: The Billionaire, Founder, and CEO of China's e-commerce giant JD.com, Richard Liu, arrested in Minnesota on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct and was later released after what his company said on Sunday was a false accusation. In a statement representatives from JD.com said, "During a business trip to the United States, Mr. Liu was questioned by police in Minnesota in relation to an unsubstantiated accusation. The local police quickly determined there was no substance to the claim against Mr. Liu, and he was subsequently able to resume his business activities as originally planned." The company did not provide further details and Liu could not immediately be reached by Reuters. According to the Hennepin County website, the arrest of the 45-year-old CEO was made just before midnight, local time, on Friday. And he was released after 4PM on Saturday. A Minneapolis Police Department spokesman told Reuters on Sunday that he didn't know if there will be charges or not because the investigation was ongoing. Liu is well-known in China and, according to Forbes, has a net worth of $7.9 billion. JD.com is one of China's tech heavyweights competing with larger rival Alibaba, and is backed by Walmart, Alphabet's Google, and China's Tencent Holdings.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.


Click the following link to watch video: Source: Thomson Reuters Description: The CEO of JD.com, Richard Liu, has returned to China, the Chinese e-commerce giant said on Monday, days after he was arrested by police in the U.S. city of Minneapolis on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct and later released. Short Link: Video Transcript: Verified transcript not available

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are those of the author and may not reflect those of Kitco Metals Inc. The author has made every effort to ensure accuracy of information provided; however, neither Kitco Metals Inc. nor the author can guarantee such accuracy. This article is strictly for informational purposes only. It is not a solicitation to make any exchange in commodities, securities or other financial instruments. Kitco Metals Inc. and the author of this article do not accept culpability for losses and/ or damages arising from the use of this publication.
LONDON, Sept 3 (Reuters) - Nigerian crude differentials rose on Monday, supported by bidding from BP, while only about a fifth of Angola's cargoes for October loading are still available, indicating strong demand.

NIGERIA

* Qua Iboe for October loading was bid by BP via Platts at dated Brent plus $1.65 a barrel. That was up 5 cents from a similar bid on Friday.

* BP bid for Bonny Light at dated Brent plus $1.65, also up 5 cents, indicating a stronger market.

ANGOLA

* About 20 percent of Angola's 49 cargoes of October-loading crude are available for sale, fewer than reported on Friday.

* State oil company Sonangol is sold out of October cargoes, a source said.

(Reporting by Alex Lawler; editing by Alexander Smith)

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(Photo: Yin Miao)

New York (Peoples Daily)  United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Thursday called China a fundamental pillar of the multilateral system and said its cooperation with Africa is essential to world peace and development during an interview at the UN headquarters in New York.

I am very delighted to have this opportunity to participate in the summit of FOCAC and my main objective of this trip is to show that I am much committed to the success of south-south cooperation and the importance of China-Africa partnership to promote multilateralism, Guterres said.

Guterres said that China-Africa cooperation is an important measure for Africa's development and a core component of South-South cooperation, which is in line with the goals of the UN's 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the African Unions 2063 Agenda.

The forthcoming Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation is an extremely important moment, Guterres said. The leaders of China and Africa can discuss cooperation issues of common interests. I am a true believer that Africa's success is vital to world peace and development, and Africa's success is inseparable from cooperation with China."

Guterres said that everything is connected in the worlds current era of global economic integration. He gave an example of products from China having components from various countries around the world and that enhancing connectivity is crucial for the worlds development. He also praised the Belt and Road Initiative for its infrastructure, telecommunications, and information technology connectivity.

(Photo: Yin Miao)

Guterres said that the Belt and Road Initiative is not just economic cooperation, nor is it just interconnection  it is related to all aspects of national life. This includes promoting the economy by improving global economic development patters and global governance through economic cooperation as well as creating an important pathway for the healthy development of economic globalization.

"The world is one, the planet is one, this is true from climate change, economic development, to peace and security," Guterres said. "If we want to be prosperous, the only way to be prosperous is to avoid contradictions, and for that we need to have a shared vision and a shared development for a shared prosperity to be possible."

Guterres said that South-South cooperation is not meant to replace North-South cooperation. Developed countries should continue to assume their responsibilities and obligations to support developing countries. He said it is fundamental for African countries to benefit from the remarkable success of the Chinese economic development in the last few decades.

Guterres said that the world is changing and that as the world becomes more globalized, developing countries will play a bigger role in global affairs. He also said that developing countries will develop bigger voices and eventually have a voice in the UN.

Guterres also mentioned that China has been a firm supporter of Africa at the UN and for African countries involved in multilateral mechanisms.

As the founding member of the united nations and one of the permanent members of the security council, as I said that china today plays an important role in order to make sure the multilateral institutions continue to play an essential role in the rules-based international system, Guterres said.
From left, classical music label Deutsche Grammophon president Clemens Trautmann, conductor Chung Myung-whun and pianist Cho Seong-jin pose for a photo during a press conference announcing the record company's 120th anniversary celebrations at the Plaza Hotel in central Seoul, Monday. Yonhap



By Kwon Mee-yoo



The distinctive "Yellow Label" logo of Deutsche Grammophon (DG), the world's oldest surviving record company, is like a guarantee among a flood of classical music records. The label commemorates its 120th anniversary this year with a variety of events and Korean musicians Chung Myung-whun and Cho Seong-jin who have been working with the record label will join the festivities.



In celebration of the anniversary, DG will hold a series of gala concerts across the globe, starting in Shanghai and continuing through Beijing, Berlin, Hamburg, Hanover, Hong Kong, London, Taipei, Tokyo and Seoul.



The Seoul concert will be held at the Seoul Arts Center on Dec. 6-7. Maestro Chung will lead the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra and pianist Cho will perform on Dec. 6 and world renowned violinist Anne-Sophie Mutter on Dec. 7.



Clemens Trautmann, president of Deutsche Grammophon, said celebrating the company's birthday in Korea is no coincidence, with the company's history going back to Emile Berliner, the German-born American inventor of gramophone and its disk.



"At the outset of our company, it was founded by an 'immigrator,' who is the inventor of gramophone," Trautmann said at a press conference in Seoul, Monday. "Also in the early 20th century, he and producer Fred Gaisberg pioneered to the Far East to make recordings in Japan, China and India and sent the recordings off to Hanover to be manufactured. It was already a global business back then."



Trautmann said what makes the company strong is the quality of the records produced by DG.



"We maintain close, long-term relationships with our artists. The central feature of our early works was made by the producers who forged good relationships with artists and we would always remember that.



"DG is an engine of innovation, which brought music to private homes, which was not available before the mid-19th century. DG is the first label to produce a full symphony recording in 1913 and the first to record on magnetic tape in 1946. We were the first label to have our own web shop in the late 1990s. However, for us technology is not an end but a means to communicate with outstanding recordings our artists produce."



The DG president said the label always looks for musicians with a certain level of craftsmanship.



"What we are looking for is an artist with great imagination. Every time they record a classical piece, they need to give something new. It is increasingly important in this digital age when all recordings of all times are readily available in the digital format. The recording really needs to stand out and be unique," he said.



"The power of imagination is the quality the artists beside me embody," he added referring to Chung and Cho.



He unveiled some upcoming projects of DG in relation to Korean musicians including Polish pianist Rafal Blechacz and Korean violinist Kim Bomsori's duo album and recitals and Cho's new Mozart album, slated for a November release.



"Our commitment to Korea and Asia remains very strong and in fact the inspiration for the 120th anniversary celebrations came from our team in Korea. Korea is an important market for DG and we continue to work with a young generation of outstanding talent," Trautmann said. "We have loyal listeners here in Korea and are looking forward to the anniversary season here. There will be other events than the gala concert such as our Yellow Lounge and tour of international artists."



Chung and Cho at concert



Conductor Chung is an exclusive recording artist for DG and has a long relationship with the company since 1991. He produced many recordings with orchestras he led including the Paris Opera, the Radio France Philharmonic Orchestra and the Seoul Philharmonic Orchestra.



"Personally, I don't like recording for a disk, but it certainly helps an orchestra to grow up and move on to the next step. I am grateful that I was able to produce the Seoul Philharmonic recordings with the world's best label," Chung said.



One of the latest releases by Chung is Beethoven's Piano Concerto No. 5 with his One Korea Orchestra, accompanied by aspiring pianist Cho, who won the International Chopin Piano Competition in 2015.



"I am happy that a young musician like Cho provides support for the project promoting peace between North and South Korea," the conductor said.



Cho, who released his first-ever recording with DG three years ago, was also excited to perform with Chung again in the December concert.



"I first performed with Chung in 2011, playing a Mozart concert. I am honored to perform it with the maestro again almost eight years later," Cho said.



The 24-year-old pianist said about half of his own recording collection came from DG.



"I have liked listening to music since I was young and many of my records are from DG. I've only produced recordings with DG and cannot tell which is the best, I am honored to work with a company that I've listened to for a long time," Cho said.



The pianist, now based in Berlin, like Trautmann, said he likes the label because of its atmosphere. "When I asked for Clemens to talk about my ideas and worries, he willingly accepted my requests and I think we became closer," he said.



Trautmann emphasized building trust with the label's artists as Cho mentioned about their relations.



"Trust builds over time and it's not about me as president, but the team the musician works with. When the artist shows passion, the label supports him. When we have an idea we could explore together and provide guidance to the artist," the DG president said.


Cinematographer Kim Woo-hyung is behind the camera, shooting a scene for "Assassination." Courtesy of Cinematographers Guild of Korea



By Park Hyong-ki



Cinematographer Kim Woo-hyung has joined director Park Chan-wook and BBC's production team to shoot their mini-series spy drama, "The Little Drummer Girl," according to the Internet Movie Database (IMDB).



The drama, consisting of six episodes, is based on the book of the same title by John le Carre, who is often referred to as the "master of spy storytelling." The TV mini-series is also a remake of the 1984 film directed by George Roy Hill, who is famous for films with the acting duo Paul Newman and Robert Redford in "Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid" and "The Sting."



Director Park and Kim will be working together for the first time on this series, which critics expect to be "much darker in tone" than the original 1984 film. This would also be their first time making an overseas TV drama.



This is because of Park's previous movies crediting classic film noir that integrates gloomy plot twists and turns through femme fatales and male characters in despair  best represented by his Cannes winner "Old Boy."



Cinematographer Kim is known for using deep and rich contrasting colors that almost look surreal especially for period films that get audiences immersed in fictional scenes set in non-fictional times.



His most recent film credits include "1987," "Assassination," and "The Front Line"  set in the past during the Democratic Uprising, the Japanese occupation of the Korean peninsula and the Korean War, respectively.



Kim is expected to reuse his trademark of lights and cameras to paint Park's spy thriller about an Israeli agent tracking down a Palestinian terrorist, who targets and bombs Jewish facilities in Europe. The agent uses a female character to capture the terrorist.



The "Drummer" storyline similarly takes after Israel's clandestine mission to track down terrorists in Europe following the Munich massacre at the 1972 Olympics. This was later adopted by director Steven Spielberg for "Munich," which was based on the book "Vengeance" by George Jonas.



Park and BBC's "The Little Drummer Girl" shot by Kim will be shown in November.


Woori Bank CEO Sohn Tae-seung, right, and National Pension Service Chairman and CEO Kim Sung-joo, left, stand together with two volunteer workers at a ceremony to launch a joint global social service team at the bank's headquarters in central Seoul, Wednesday. The team, consisting of 600 officials from the two organizations, will be dispatched to Thailand from Sept. 2 to 8 to conduct a variety of volunteer activities, including education service. / Courtesy of Woori Bank
With the opening of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, Africa is once again under the spotlight. As many people hold a prejudiced view toward cooperation and investment between China and Africa, saying its a losing business for the Chinese. Its time to clarify the misunderstandings about Africa and justify the status quo of China-Africa cooperation.

Africa doesnt mean poverty

Talking about Africa, many tend to have stereotypical images like poverty, backwardness and disease. Due to historical reasons, Africa is a continent with the largest number of developing countries and a striking imbalance between different regions. The average income per person in some countries is relatively low while other countries are relatively prosperous.

As one of the top three economies in Africa, Nigeria is the continents largest oil producer and the sixth-largest oil exporter in the world. South Africa, as a mid-level income country, leads the world in gold and diamond exports, plus many other minerals. Egypt, as one of the four major ancient civilizations, takes the lead in technology, tourism, agriculture, industry and service sectors.

When compared with other developed nations, most African countries still have a long way to go. However, the economic growth rate on the continent is one of the best globally. Simply saying Africa is poor is a misconception regarding its development and could have a negative influence on others who are unwilling to discover its vast potential

China not dropping money to Africa

For decades, China has assisted Africa by building thousands of miles of railways, roads and numerous bridges as well as schools, hospitals, libraries, and stadiums. While Western media has portrayed such support as a form of neocolonialism, the iron facts prove the accusations are groundless.

Chinese leaders have reiterated that the country will not follow the colonial ways of the past, and that Africa's development will not be at the cost of the environment or long-term interests.

The infrastructure projects that China assisted on with Africa have been controversial as some have even said that Chinas assistance is a losing business. In fact, what China has done is neither a business secret nor random acts of dropping money. The country is seeking a new pattern for South-South cooperation across the globe.

Despite the gap in income created by the acceleration of globalization, China and the African countries they work with have built an example of inclusive cooperation in which both sides will never be left behind.

Sino-Africa cooperation is not a form of one-way aid. A small proportion and cooperation in investment make up the majority. By enhancing investment cooperation, China can help Africa speed up the process of industrialization, helping more Chinese equipment and products enter the African market.

China not only wins friendship and does the right thing by helping Africa, but also creates substantial benefits for itself. Though there are no political strings attached to the projects between China and Africa, many African countries still use their actions to return the favor.

The cooperation between China and Africa is inclined to be mutually beneficial. China offers development loans to resource-rich nations, like Angola, and helps Angola connect ports and railways to the Democratic Republic of Congo, which helps with the export of oil, copper, gold and other commodities.

China gets on the priority list when purchasing mineral resources from Angola. As for Ethiopia, more than 80 percent of the countrys infrastructure projects are contracted to Chinese enterprises.

As investment and trade surge simultaneously, China is sharing capital, experience, technology, and talent with African countries.

With major infrastructure projects complete or under construction, the continent has developed a stronger capacity to pursue a green and prosperous future. More jobs are available, and a better quality of life is on the horizon as poverty will continue to decline.

In 1971, Africans and representatives from other developing countries helped China take its legitimate seat as the People's Republic of China at the United Nations. In 2008, after the Wenchuan earthquake, African countries generously offered support by donating money and sending relief supplies.

Smaller countries with a population under 2 million donated a few million euros to China, 1 euro per person. More than half of the countries that supported Chinas stance in upholding the sovereignty of the South China Sea are from Africa.

The brotherhood between China and African countries is not a matter of money that can be solely evaluated on a material basis. We should often reflect on the past and while at the same time look forward to the future of China-Africa cooperation.

Both sides have joined hands to develop a more inclusive path that can lead to win-win results which will help other developing nations participate in the global industrial chain so they too can have a bumper harvest.


By Park Hyong-ki



Local financial groups are mobilizing their employees and executives to form internal preparedness teams focusing on studying North Korea to find potential business opportunities in the future.



KB Financial, Shinhan Financial, Hana Financial and Woori Bank groups have either set up internal taskforces or had their subsidiaries establish them.



They have been formed mostly to "research" North Korea and its economy, and draw up potential road maps for their market entry into the North under the scenario that U.N. sanctions get lifted and the two Koreas' relations develop amicably.



Once things take a turn for the better between the United States, and South and North Korea, the taskforce will change into a sort of "strike team" that will be immediately deployed to put their business models related to North Korea into action.



Woori Bank, which seeks to transform itself into a holding company in the near future, launched its internal team about two months ago with this in mind.



"We are preparing for the possibility of re-establishing our branch inside the Gaeseong Industrial Complex if the sanctions on North Korea are lifted," a Woori Bank taskforce official said.



"The bank could consider launching businesses that would financially support the North's infrastructure development including schools."



Woori opened a branch inside Gaeseong in 2004, but closed it down following the Park Geun-hye administration's decision to suspend joint operations there indefinitely amid Pyongyang's missile tests and threats.



KB Financial also has a team, but it is currently more of a "research" team.



"They are operating like students preparing for tomorrow's lessons, studying North Korea," a KB financial spokesman said.



"We do not know what will happen regarding the talks and the relations. But it looks like the two Koreas are seeking to build a mood of reconciliation. It is always good to prepare for something unexpected."



KB Financial also said there could be opportunities in the North's infrastructure.



Hana Financial Investment, a brokerage arm of Hana Financial Group, is leading in preparing for business possibilities with its taskforce on the North.



"The investment banking unit is leading the initiative for the group, and held a forum on North Korea last month," a Hana Financial spokesman said.



The company held the forum Aug. 7 with companies from the construction industry and university professors.



Hana Financial Investment CEO Lee Jin-kook said at the forum they could consider designing a project in which its investment bankers can help boost infrastructure development exchanges between the two Koreas.



Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byoung recently held a monthly book club where he discussed North Korea with his executives including Shinhan Bank CEO Wi Sung-ho.



The group said the chairman talked specifically about a book he read  "North Korea Confidential: Private Markets, Fashion Trends, Prison Camps, Dissenters and Defectors."



Shinhan Bank has a "lab" that studies and looks into potential opportunities for doing business with North Korea.



"Every month, the chairman hosts a book club. This month, he talked about North Korea with regard to that book," a Shinhan Financial spokesman said.


Young jobseekers watch a video that introduces how artificial intelligence technology bridges employers and jobseekers during the 2017 Leading Korea Job Festival at the COEX in Seoul, Nov. 20. Kookmin Bank plans to use AI technology to recruit new employees in the second half of the year for the first time in the banking industry. / Korea Times file



By Jhoo Dong-chan



Banks are starting to use artificial intelligence (AI) technology to recruit new workers to ensure fairness and reduce costs.



According to KB Kookmin Bank, Monday, the lender will hire 615 new workers in the second half of the year.



During the recruiting, the bank said it will use the AI system in its online interview to evaluate applicants more objectively, and the AI analysis data will be used as reference material for the face-to-face interview.



It is the first time for a commercial bank to use AI technology in the recruiting process.



"KB Kookmin Bank is looking for new talent with innovative ideas," said a KB Kookmin Bank official.



"Of the 615 new employees, KB will recruit 200 workers specialized in the IT and digital fields, investment banking and wealth management. The decision is based on our belief that IT, digital, investment and wealth management are the bank's future growth engines. We will continuously enhance our workforce in these related fields."



The move to use AI technology follows a series of hiring irregularities engulfing the nation's top commercial banks, and is expected to improve transparency in their recruiting processes.



According to the Financial Supervisory Service, 11 commercial lenders, including major banks such as Kookmin, Woori, KEB Hana, Shinhan and Nonghyup, were found to be involved in 22 cases of alleged hiring irregularities earlier this year.



Mired in the recruitment scandal, former Woori Bank CEO Lee Kwang-goo was indicted without detention in February. Also, DGB Financial Group and Daegu Bank Chairman Park In-gyu was arrested on similar charges more than a month after he resigned from his post in March.



KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo is alleged to have helped a family member gain employment with the group's KB Kookmin Bank.



"There have been mounting doubts about the lenders' recruiting processes. KB's move to use AI technology will improve its transparency," said a commercial bank worker who asked not to be named.



"I understand other banks are strongly considering introducing the technology in their hiring processes."



Separate from their recruiting processes, commercial lenders are also rushing to introduce "chatbot" services, computer programs using AI that conduct conversations via text.



Offering an automated teller and loan service 24 hours a day, the AI-based chatbot services are expected to gradually replace humans at banks.



In June, internet-only bank Kakao Bank started its chatbot service on the nation's top mobile messenger KakaoTalk.



Unlike existing chatbots on the market, Kakao Bank said its uses various images and video clips to help develop customer understanding. It also uses hashtags to deliver detailed information.



Commercial banks, including Woori, KEB Hana and Shinhan, have already introduced chatbot services.



In September, Woori Bank launched, Wibee Talk, for the first time in Korea. NH Nonghyup and KEB Hana Bank also rolled out similar services shortly afterwards.



Shinhan Bank, which integrated its numerous apps into one, the SOL, in January, inserted a chatbot service into the app.




By Jhoo Dong-chan







ING Life Korea officially changed the name of the firm to Orange Life, Monday, by replacing the large sign at its head office in central Seoul with a new logo.







It also renamed head office building to Orange Center.







The move came after its shareholders agreed on the name change on Aug. 23 as the firm's five-year trademark contract with Holland-based ING Group is scheduled to expire by the end of this year.







"Orange Life inherits ING Life's brand identity and commitment to customer service. It symbolizes the bright and energetic future of our customers," said ING Korea President & CEO Cheong Mun-kuk.







"It also demonstrates our will to innovate ourselves into a customer-centered firm."







Orange Life is now the nation's sixth-largest insurer with an asset volume of 31.5 trillion won, and Shinhan is expected to spend more than 2 trillion won for the takeover of its management rights.







Shinhan Financial Group is now in talks with MBK Partners, a local private equity firm that acquired the Korean life insurance arm of the Dutch insurer ING Group in 2013 for 1.8 trillion won ($1.62 billion), acquiring a 59.15 percent share of the company.







If Shinhan buys Orange Life, it will mark the biggest insurance takeover in Korea, as the life insurer reported 4.34 trillion won in revenue last year and generated a net profit of 340 billion won.







The decision would also put Shinhan in charge of two life insurers along with its existing Shinhan Life Insurance. If the group merges the two firms, it would create the nation's fifth-largest life insurer.


Kim Bok-dong, 92-year-old victim of Japan's wartime sexual slavery, stages a solo protest in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul, Monday. Kim called for the dissolution of the Reconciliation and Healing Foundation, which was set up with Japanese funds in a controversial 2015 agreement between Seoul and Tokyo to settle the issue. / Yonhap




By Jung Min-ho







The Korean government denied reports that it rejected an official request from Israeli President Reuven Rivlin to visit Seoul over the coming months.





A senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told reporters Friday that it did not turn down a summit proposal, saying that government officials of the two nations are "discussing the timing of high-level talks, including a summit."





This remark came after Ynetnews, an online English-language Israeli website, reported Thursday that Korea rejected the proposal without any explanation.





The website also reported that, despite Korea's rejection, a senior official at the Israeli Foreign Ministry said the country considered Korea is one of its closest friends among Asian nations.


Kim Bok-dong, 92, who was forced into sexual slavery for Japanese troops during World War II, stages a protest in a wheelchair in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul, Monday morning. She called for the removal of a foundation established under a controversial 2015 Seoul-Tokyo agreement. Yonhap







The placard behind Kim reads: "Disband the Reconciliation and Healing Foundation that fools victims of Japan's wartime sexual slavery." Yonhap



Heavy rain could not stop Kim Bok-dong, 92, from staging a solo protest in a wheelchair in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the thick of Monday's rush hour.



The victim of Japan's forced sexual slavery is the first in a line of others who will protest against the establishment of the Reconciliation and Healing Foundation, a controversial state-run body for Korean sexual slavery victims set up with a 1 billion-yen ($9.2 million) Japanese contribution.



"It's only been five days since I had my surgery (for cancer)," said Kim, wearing black-rim glasses and holding the picket against her legs. "But I was more upset staying in bed and had to come out and say something."



She lambasted the former Park Geun-hye government for allowing the foundation to be set up in Korea, under a 2015 agreement between Seoul and Tokyo. Tokyo pledged to provide the funding.



The agreement reached between Park and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe sparked a strong backlash from Korean victims and Park's political opponents. It also drew ire from the general public.





Braving rain, Kim is surrounded by reporters in front of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul, Monday. Yonhap
Deputy Prime Minister and Education Minister Kim Sang-kon, right, shakes hands with Rep. Yoo Eun-hae of the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK), who was recently nominated as his successor, during a meeting with ministers and DPK members at Cheong Wa Dae, Saturday. / Yonhap



By Kim Jae-heun



Newly nominated Education Minister Yoo Eun-hae has fallen into controversy about her qualifications for the position.



Many regard Yoo, a ruling Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker, as a non-specialist in education and worry she may pursue policies without enough hands-on experience of knowledge in the field.



Over 42,500 people have signed an online petition on Cheong Wa Dae's website as of Sunday, requesting the withdrawal of Yoo's nomination. It has only been four days since she was nominated for the job, Thursday.



The petition argues that she neither holds expertise in education nor has experience of the field despite her six years of activity on the National Assembly Education Committee.



Yoo is mostly criticized for her proposal of a bill in 2016 in which she sought to give permanent teacher status to non-regular workers at schools, such as librarians, nutritionists as well as temporary teachers.



However, Yoo's proposal was retracted at the time upon facing strong opposition by students at education colleges and those studying for the state-run teacher qualification exam, who claimed it would be unfair if such non-regular workers could become teachers without the making same effort they had.



The petitioner, and many others, claimed the Moon Jae-in administration selected Yoo to seek such policy again and transform temporary workers at schools into regular ones.



"Yoo's bill made securing regular job positions for temporary teachers and workers a priority It was a bill that maximizes the benefits of temporary teachers as laborers but shuns their responsibility as public servants," the petitioner wrote on the website.



The person said Moon seems to be interested in creating regular jobs at schools, not in education, as his top policy is focused on solving low employment, together with reducing temporary positions in public sectors.



"Please do not utilize schools to create jobs and do not make it a victim of your policy," the petitioner wrote. "Please nominate someone who has insight of the educational field and who has long experience with it."



Former lawmaker Jeon Yeo-ok of the Saenuri Party, the predecessor of the Liberty Korea Party, also criticized Yoo' nomination, calling her bill superficial.



"When you first see this bill, it sounds fair and just. But it is a selfish plan," Jeon wrote on her blog, Saturday. "Many people have been spending sleepless nights to prepare for the state-run teacher qualification test. Giving the privilege of becoming permanent teachers to those who did not take the exam will only make those people fools."



Besides the job issue, Yoo also sought to put more importance on school records in college admissions last year.



However, many top universities do not want to select students based on their school records because they doubt their fairness. Recently it was suspected that a high school teacher leaked exam questions to his twin daughters who were attending the same school.



Regarding these controversies, Yoo said Friday she would settle the concerns about her qualifications during her confirmation hearing at the National Assembly.


By Lee Suh-yoon



The Police have opened an investigation of a high school in Gangnam, southern Seoul, about allegations that one of its head teachers leaked exam questions to his twin daughters attending his school.



According to Suseo Police Station on Monday, the police are examining the girls' exam papers and other evidence submitted by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education (SOME), which conducted its own inspection recently into Sookmyung Girls' High School. After reviewing the evidence, the police may summon those under suspicion for questioning.



The education office announced the results of its own probe last Wednesday, saying the head teacher examined the exam papers, which his daughters were supposed to take, six times to approve the questions. The SMOE also said it would penalize him along with the headmaster and the daughters' homeroom teachers for "damaging the fairness" of the tests.



Both of the twin daughters recorded the highest final exam scores in their grades. As the controversy deepened, the head teacher rebutted the allegations, saying his two daughters raised their grades by studying hard and sleeping only four hours a day.



In response to this recent scandal, the Ministry of Education announced last month that high school teachers will be banned from working at schools attended by their children. But whether the rule can be enforced is unknown because the ministry cannot force private schools to follow it.








By Jung Min-ho







Police are looking for two Chinese men, who have fled Korea after allegedly trying to make a massive amount of methamphetamine here.





Busan police said Monday that they had arrested a Korean man, surnamed Park, for playing a leading role in conspiring and attempting to make 10 kilograms of the illicit drug, which would be worth about 30 billion won ($27 million).





Seven other Koreans are also being investigated.





According to police, Park offered three Chinese meth production experts, known as "cooks," work at a drug lab at Hongseong in South Chungcheong Province early this year.





Their plan was to make meth with ephedrine and other raw materials and sell it in Korea and Japan.





However, their plan started to fall apart when one of the three cooks  the most advanced one  pulled out for personal reasons.





The two Chinese tried to make meth without him, but failed. Around that time, one of the Korean members, surnamed Kang, was arrested over other crimes.





Police said they were seeking the cooperation of the National Intelligence Service and Chinese authorities to catch the Chinese suspects.





China is reportedly a major source of meth expertise, which is used to produce the synthetic drug that is being smuggled into the Philippines.





Police are worried that Chinese cooks have started making inroads into Korea.








By Jung Hae-myoung







A Korean-Japanese man has received a suspended one-year jail term with 80 hours of community service for attacking a stewardess and forcing the plane to turn around.







Busan District Court said the man, 30, had tried to strangle the stewardess, 28, and hit her arm twice, for which she needed two weeks' medical treatment.







He man claimed the stewardess had scratched his hand while storing his luggage and coat.







The attack happened on an Air Busan flight departing from Busan for Osaka, Japan.







The captain returned the plane to Gimhae International Airport, where the man was arrested.







"He had threatened other passengers and did not make any attempt to settle the matter amicably with the victim," the court said.






On Aug 30, the California State Legislature passed a bill that actively supports trade with the Peoples Republic of China.

California's Legislature will urge the President and Congress of the United States to support actions that further strengthen economic links between the United States, including California, and China.

The bill, Assembly Joint Resolution No. 44, which was introduced by Assembly member Evan Low, D-Silicon Valley, was passed with a vote of 75-1 with four abstentions.

Under the bill, California is one of China's most important partners in the United States, with approximately two million Chinese and Chinese Americans living in California. There are more than 20 daily flights between California and major cities in China, including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Xian, Chengdu, Wuhan, and Qingdao, and more than 20 paired sister cities between California and China.

China is the fifth largest source of tourism in the United States, with almost 1.5 million Chinese tourists visiting California in 2016. The Chinese government attaches great importance to friendly and cooperative relations with California.

California and China are both actively committed to green development and have been playing decisive roles in addressing climate change.

In 2013, California became the first state to establish trade promotion agreements with individual Chinese provinces. According to statistics published by the Rhodium Group, Chinese investment in the U.S. amounted to $29.4 billion in 2017, $4.7 billion of which was invested in California, with the state doing more business with China than any other.

In 2017, the total trade volume between California and China was $175.6 billion, accounting for 27.6 percent of U.S. trade with China. Furthermore, California has accounted for 21.5 percent of Chinese investment in the U.S. since 2000.

With an increase of about 14.5 percent annually, Californian exports to China amounted to $16.43 billion in 2017, accounting for 12.6 percent of all U.S. exports to China. Chinese imports to California increased at a rate of about 10.5 percent annually, and amounted to $159.2 billion in 2017, approximately 36.1 percent of total U.S. imports from China.

The Assembly and Senate of the State of California decided that the Legislature should actively support continued coordination and collaboration between California and China to increase mutually beneficial economic opportunities and strengthen the substantial, bilateral relationship in the areas of people-to-people exchange, trade, climate change, education, tourism, technology, innovation, and green development.

The Legislature urges the President and the Congress of the U.S. to support existing legislation and to enact new legislation to further strengthen economic links between the United States, including California, and China.
In this undated photo, provided on Aug. 19, 2018, by the North Korean government, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, center, visits a construction site during a visit to the city of Samjiyon, a remote northern city near the Chinese bo. Yonhap



By Kim Yoo-chul



While North Korea has greatly reduced criticism of South Korea and the United States as the countries are involved in diplomatic talks, it has increased its attacks toward new target _ Japan.



Pyongyang demanded full compensation from Tokyo for it past colonial rule of the peninsula and an apology for "past wrongdoings" as a condition for improved relations. It said Japan's past actions would be labeled crimes against humanity today.



"The Japanese reactionaries have now gone more and more impudent, far from apologizing and reflecting on their hideous past crimes," a spokesman for the North's Korea Asia-Pacific Peace Committee was quoted in a statement carried in English by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).



"What is all the more intolerable is that the Abe group is adding new crimes to the piles of hideous past crimes, far from atoning for them. While keeping mum about the hideous crime that took the lives of millions of Koreans, they are hyping the issue of a few abductees," the statement continued.



Japan has long adopted a harder line against North Korea than South Korea or the United States. The North has therefore increased its criticism in an apparent effort to divide Japan from its allies. Pyongyang was also critical of Tokyo's move to possibly providing some financial assistance to ensure denuclearization of the peninsula.



The statement is at odds with Pyongyang's "attempts" to develop mutual trust with Seoul and Washington to see "substantial progress" in the nuclear disarmament talks. South Korea and the United States are "completely in sync" on North Korea, according to diplomatic sources.



But Sean King, senior vice president at New York-based consulting firm Park Strategies said Tokyo's fear of being left out of critical decisions that affects it is known as "Japan passing." The term comes from "Korea passing," coined by Korean journalist, to describe South Korea facing the same predicament over U.S. President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un dealing directly with each other.



Kim met with South Korean President Moon Jae-in twice this year, while a third summit is set for next month in Pyongyang. Kim also held a summit with Trump in Singapore, June 12.



But, so far, Kim has not met with any Japanese leaders. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was hoping to hold a meeting with him at next month's Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok, Russia; however, diplomatic sources say it's "highly unlikely" that Kim will participate. Japan wants to directly touch on the issue of the North's abduction of Japanese civilians in the 1970s and 1980s.



"Japan has to clearly understand that without atonement for its past crimes, it can never take even one step toward the future," the North's statement said. Japan and North Korea have never had official diplomatic relations.



Officials say North Korea's demand for compensation related to colonial rule could be over "billions of dollars."



"Japan still believes it paid North Korea decades ago; however, changing relations between the two Koreas and Washington and Pyongyang may pressurize Japanese leaders to reconsider the North's fresh demands," said Yang Moo-jin, a professor at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul.


By Kim Bo-eun



Attention is focused on North Korea's next possible offer in the denuclearization process, with President Moon Jae-in's envoys set to visit Pyongyang on Wednesday.



Cheong Wa Dae said denuclearization is on the agenda, along with discussions about the summit between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un this month, means to develop inter-Korean relations and ways to establish peace on the Korean Peninsula.



The envoys' visit comes at a time when denuclearization talks between North Korea and the U.S. appear to have stalled, after U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to Pyongyang was canceled citing a lack of denuclearization action on the part of North Korea.



In March, a team of presidential envoys visited Pyongyang and met with Kim Jong-un. After meeting with the South Korean envoys, the North Korean leader stated the regime was willing to give up its nuclear program if its safety was ensured, and that it had intentions to hold denuclearization talks with the U.S.



In light of the progress elicited after the envoys' visit, there is some anticipation that North Korea may pledge to take tangible denuclearization steps.



"If North Korea were to promise to report its nuclear facilities, it would be greatly meaningful," said Shin Beom-chul, senior fellow at The Asan Institute for Policy Studies.





'No signs of ICBM launches ahead of NK founding day' Moon to send envoys to Pyongyang on Sept. 5 Inter-Korean liaison office to open this week US tells its citizens not to visit North Korea "While signs show that progress in denuclearization is stalled, the North's acceptance of South Korean envoys shows there is some possibility of progress," he said. "North Korea may offer a gift, considering what the meeting in March generated."



By gift, he was referring to a pledge to take tangible denuclearization measures. Shin added, however, it does not appear likely that North Korea would take a major step.



The outcome of the envoys' visit may also depend on other factors, such as whether they will meet with the North Korean leader. Cheong Wa Dae said this has not yet been decided.



"The main agenda for the envoys' meeting with the North is the upcoming summit, but South Korea will also have to play a facilitating role for denuclearization talks between North Korea and the U.S., as a stalemate in the talks will negatively affect the inter-Korean summit," Dongguk University professor Koh Yu-hwan said.



"If things go well, there may be a meeting between Pyongyang and Washington after North Korea's Sept. 9 founding day, and the inter-Korean summit held afterward," Ko said.



He said "the envoys will need to hold talks with North Korea with a roadmap for declaring the end of the Korean War in mind."



The delegation of envoys is composed of the same members who went to Pyongyang in March _ National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong, National Intelligence Service director (NIS) Suh Hoon, Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung, NIS deputy director Kim Sang-gyun and senior Cheong Wa Dae official Yun Kun-young.



Cheong Wa Dae said it "considered the continuity in inter-Korean dialogue and the effective achievement of the trip's objective" in its decision to send the same officials.



The envoys' visit to Pyongyang in March is seen to have led to the inter-Korean summit in April and the summit between Kim Jong-un and U.S. President Donald Trump in June, where Kim pledged to achieve complete denuclearization.








By Lee Min-hyung



The defense ministry has launched a military-civilian gender equality committee to alleviate sexual discrimination and prevent sex crimes within the armed forces.



The 15-member committee will have a consulting role to raise awareness of gender equality in the military, and come up with policies to prevent any possible sexual harassment in the military, the Ministry of National Defense said Monday.



Vice Defense Minister Suh Choo-suk will lead the committee on the military side. Civilian committee members, consisting of nine experts in human rights and gender equality, are expected to offer consultations to the defense ministry to stop sexual harassment among troops.



On Monday, Defense Minister Song Young-moo awarded a letter of appointment to the civilian consultants, calling for them to give sharp advice on ways to guarantee women's rights in the military.



The committee was launched amid concerns over a growing number of reported military sex crimes.



"The defense ministry will continue to garner efforts to root out discrimination against female soldiers, thereby building an environment where soldiers of both genders can display their competency under equal conditions," a ministry official said.



The launch of the committee comes about a month after Defense Minister Song Young-moo held an emergency meeting with chiefs of staff from the nation's Army, Navy and Air Force to discuss how to eradicate sex crimes in the military.



At that time, Song pledged to impose the "toughest punishment" for sex offenders. He urged the need to prioritize eradicating sex-related problems in the military.



The pledge came at a critical time when the defense ministry is under a public backlash over a growing numbers of reported sex crimes each year. The military said it received 29 sex crime reports from Feb. 12 to April 20.



Despite the minister's pledge to put an end to sexual harassment, the military suffered a public backlash for a series of sex scandals involving general-level officers.



"The gender equality committee will do its utmost for gender equality and build an ecosystem where soldiers of both genders can grow in a sustainable way," the military official said.



The committee plans to hold regular meetings on a quarterly basis and provide consultations to the defense ministry over the gender equality agenda.



The ministry said it plans to continue playing a part in introducing gender equality policies within the military under close cooperation with other related ministries, the defense ministry said.




President Moon Jae-in smiles during a weekly meeting with his senior secretaries at Cheong Wa Dae, Monday. At Moon's right is his national security adviser Chung Eui-yong. Yonhap



By Kim Yoo-chul



President Moon Jae-in asked the National Assembly to give its full support to the ongoing peace talks between North Korea and the United States.



"South Korea is at a critical stage in setting up permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula. The government will send special envoys to North Korea. As President, I want the National Assembly to give its full support to the government's ongoing efforts to bring permanent peace on the peninsula," Moon said in a weekly meeting with his senior secretaries at Cheong Wa Dae, Monday.



"Without complete denuclearization, permanent peace on the Korean Peninsula is impossible," Moon said, adding the government is closely monitoring all developments on the peninsula.



"If the National Assembly endorses efforts made following the announcement of the Panmunjeom Declaration, that will be a big help," Moon said.



The president announced he would send both his national security adviser Chung Eui-yong and top spy chief Suh Hoon as special envoys on a "one-day mission" to Pyongyang, Sept. 5, ahead of his upcoming third summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.



Seoul proposed sending the special envoys and Pyongyang accepted, implying it was also frustrated with the current situation. Political analysts in Seoul say the North needs someone to deliver its messages to the United States.










The Belt and Road project  which the Center for Strategic and International Studies says could cost anywhere between $1 trillion and $8 trillion  aims to connect trade between Asia, Africa and Europe with infrastructure that is built and paid for by China.



According to the consulting firm Dezan Shira & Associates, the project's financing mainly comes from Chinese state-owned investment funds and development banks, as well as the newly created Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank.



The project also puts the stability of China and neighboring countries as a priority. This is tied to their fears of revolt from separatists in Xinjiang province. The project also puts the stability of China and neighboring countries as a priority. This is tied to their fears of revolt from separatists in Xinjiang province.



China worries they could find a base of operation outside its borders, and are using the project as a means to leverage regional security cooperation. China has already acquired a 40 year lease on a deep water port in Pakistan, as well as a naval-base in Djibouti. Future ports in Burma and Kenya may also hold promise for the country.



This has led some analysts, such as Professor of Strategic Studies at the New Delhi-based Centre for Policy Research, Brahma Chellaney, to believe Beijing's actual aim is to create a network of naval bases via its Belt and Road trade routes. (Next Animation via Reuters)




By Andrew Hammond





The global spotlight is shining brightly on Africa. Leaders from top states in the continent are, separately, meeting Donald Trump, Xi Jinping, Theresa May and Angela Merkel underlining their growing importance, especially on the economic front.







Politically, the continent has also assumed some additional influence. Yet, it is economically that the continent is especially coming of age boasting a growing number of key emerging markets as highlighted in the South Africa-hosted BRICS summit in July.







The growing economic weight of the continent is illustrated by the fact that it houses six of the world's top 12 fastest-growing countries: Ethiopia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Mozambique, Tanzania and Rwanda. Moreover, the IMF also asserts that in the five years to 2023, Africa's overall growth prospects will be among the best in the world.







Small wonder therefore that nascent superpower China is showing increasing interest in the continent aiming to better connect its Belt and Road initiative increasingly with Africa development.







Beijing's top leadership (the president, premier and foreign minister) have reportedly made a total of around 80 visits to over 40 different African countries over the past 10 years. And following Xi's visits in July to Senegal, Rwanda, Mauritius and South Africa, he will host the China-Africa summit in Beijing this week with at least 50 heads of state attending.







While Trump has  rightly  been criticized for not having a coherent or clear Africa policy, his administration may now be waking up to smell the coffee of China's growing presence in Africa. This indeed was one of the topics at the White House on Aug. 27 when Trump met Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta whose nation's external debt is largely (around 70 percent) owed to Beijing, and where Chinese firms are building many large infrastructure projects.







Kenya is a key U.S. partner in the region, including in the campaign against terrorism, and the White House talks explored ways to boost bilateral trade via the U.S. Africa Growth and Opportunity Act legislation.







While the session was only the second one-on-one meeting the U.S. president has held with a sub-Saharan African leader since he took office, there appears to be modest momentum in Washington in the direction of developing an ambitious Africa strategy.







This includes the appointment in June of Tibor Nagy as the State Department's top diplomat in the continent, and recent indications that the region could become part of the new U.S. "Indo-Pacific" strategy, despite the fact that it is not usually seen as part of that already massive geography from the U.S. Pacific coast westwards.







Yet it not just China and the United States that are showing greater interest in the continent. Many other key nations  India, the Gulf states, Turkey and top EU nations such as France, Germany and the United Kingdom  are also showering Africa with greater interest, giving countries there more diplomatic options than just Beijing and Washington moving forward.







Under Emmanuel Macron, for instance, Paris is seeking to double down ties with its former colonies while embedding relations with the continent's biggest economies, including South Africa and Nigeria.







Last week, however, it was not Macron, but Merkel and May who were visiting the continent. The German chancellor met on Thursday and Friday with Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari (who is the only other sub-Saharan leader Trump has seen at the White House) to try to embed Berlin's ties with the nation that is sometimes called the "giant of Africa."







While Merkel has made numerous trips to the continent before, May  belatedly  made her first prime ministerial visit seeing the heads of three major Commonwealth countries: South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Buhari and also Kenyatta in what she calls "a unique opportunity at a unique moment."







For the United Kingdom, the continent has assumed new importance with Brexit as London seeks to consolidate ties with key non-EU nations as it leaves the Brussels-based club.







Given the longstanding historical ties the U.K. has with Africa, May is seeking to rediscover the U.K.'s heritage "as a great global trading nation" with a "prosperous, growing ... Africa." However, it is not solely through the lens of economics that she views the relationship.







She also stressed  as did Trump  the need for greater security ties with the West "to tackle instability across the region." In Nigeria on Wednesday, for instance, the threat of Boko Haram was discussed, and in Kenya (where she made the first trip by a U.K. prime minister since 1988) she saw firsthand on Thursday the role U.K. troops are playing there as part of an alliance of countries fighting al-Shabab militants in Somalia.







This underlines that, while the upsurge of attention to Africa by Western powers and China largely reflects economic calculations, some broader political considerations are in play too. From Brexit to the great power game underway between Washington and Beijing in the continent, interest in the region is only likely to grow in coming years, especially if it continues to fulfill its economic potential.









Andrew Hammond (

) is an associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics.




By Ngaire Woods





LONDON  The British government has now launched its plan to turn the United Kingdom into an "exporting superpower." It is an ambitious, if not entirely fanciful, goal.



Given the escalating trade war between the United States and China, countries around the world are rushing to consolidate their trade relations and preserve existing supply chains. Not so the U.K., which is now in the final stages of negotiations to withdraw from the European Union  a move that will upend its relationship with its single largest trade partner. The country will soon become not just a lesser exporter, but also a lesser power.



A first "must" for an exporting superpower is to establish clear and stable trade arrangements with other countries, so that firms can produce goods and services collaboratively across borders. That is what China is doing with its extraordinary investments in infrastructure and by forging new cross-border ties across Eurasia and beyond. And it is what European countries did by creating and expanding the single market over the course of many decades.



These projects are justified by the fact that three-quarters of all international trade is made up of inputs that contribute to the production of finished products further down the line. Global value chains change what governments can and cannot do. When U.S. President Donald Trump's administration imposes tariffs on China, it is raising the cost of imports that domestic small businesses desperately need to keep operating.



Likewise, the U.K. government's Brexit plans will disrupt the supply chains on which British firms depend. To take just one example, the crankshaft of a BMW Mini crosses the English Channel three times before the car is completed, which means that any delay at the border will destroy the profitability of that supply chain.



Like its Brexit strategy, the government's new exporting plan does not provide any clarity for British firms. Half of all British exports are to the EU, but many British firms are now questioning whether they will be able to continue production with their EU partners in the future.



A second "must" for a successful 21st century export strategy is a focus on services, which have been largely ignored in the government's negotiations with the EU. The service sector makes up 79 percent of Britain's GDP, and accounts for some 80 percent of employment in the U.K. economy, compared to just 10 percent for manufacturing. Services were the first to recover after the 2008 financial crisis; and, as of late 2017, the U.K.'s services exports were roughly double its services imports.



The government's lack of a plan for services could have far-reaching consequences. Exporting services can be much more complicated than exporting goods. For a country to export the services of lawyers, doctors, engineers, insurers, accountants, and teachers, other countries must recognize and trust its professional qualifications and broader regulatory regime. This is why services exports tend to grow with regional economic and legal integration. The most successful example of such integration is, of course, the EU.



In the case of the U.K., some 40 percent of services exports go to the EU, 21 percent to the U.S., and the rest to Asia, non-EU European countries, Latin America, Africa, Australasia, and the South Pacific. These hard facts are immune to Brexiteers' rhetoric about reviving the Commonwealth and creating a new Global Britain. If Britain loses its access to the EU single market for services, the competitiveness of its largest sector  along with 80 percent of U.K. jobs  will be at risk.



Though there are export markets for services beyond the EU, past global efforts to open them up have generally failed. Thus, the U.K.'s trade strategy should focus on what it will take to win a greater share of those markets. This means outcompeting rivals. In the U.K., where the largest service exports are in what trade specialists describe as "professional, scientific, and technical services," this implies the need to train, attract, and retain the world's best experts.



But to do that, Britain's universities and research laboratories must be world-class institutions capable of poaching experts from other countries, and particularly from EU countries. After all, the EU  especially France and Germany  will soon be its biggest competitor. And, at $2.3 trillion, the EU's share of global services exports is the world's largest by far.



Unfortunately, the government's strategy is sorely lacking on this front. Harsh immigration policies and the looming specter of Brexit are repelling foreign professionals. If the U.K. really wants to become an exporting superpower, it should be welcoming immigrants, and working to ensure that its immigration process is smoother than that of its rivals.



The U.S.-China trade war may lead to a slight opening-up of China's services markets, implying new opportunities for service exporters. But it could also close off existing markets. In the U.S., for example, Goldman Sachs is advising investors to put their money in "domestic-facing" firms to weather the trade-war storm.



Launching the new trade strategy, Secretary of State for International Trade Liam Fox promised that more exports would increase Britain's economic resilience, and bring higher-skill, higher-wage jobs to the country. If anything, Britain is heading for the exact opposite.



By demolishing the arrangements that provide British firms with seamless access to the world's largest services market, and by closing itself off to immigration, the U.K. has embarked on a path of greater economic vulnerability, and lower-skill, lower-wage jobs.



This is not an opportune moment for Britain to pursue export-superpower status. It can either leave the EU, or it can aim to increase its exports. It cannot do both.





Ngaire Woods is founding dean of the Blavatnik School of Government at the University of Oxford. Copyright belongs to Project Syndicate (www.project-syndicate.org).




In its zeal to rid the United States of people living here illegally, the federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency has long crossed lines of decency and propriety  from detaining the undocumented in jails regardless of whether they pose a flight risk or a public safety threat to, more recently, separating parents from their children at the border to try to deter families from entering.



And not just immigrants are affected by these zero-tolerance policies. This year the Los Angeles Times reported that about 1,500 American citizens had been detained for deportation in error, often because investigators messed up the identifications. One example: After investigators mistook his father, a Jamaican-born American citizen, for a noncitizen with a similar name, a New York man spent 1,273 days in detention before he finally convinced the government that he was a U.S. citizen.



Now comes a report from the Washington Post that the government has revived a practice of denying passport applications and renewals from hundreds of people of Mexican descent living along the Rio Grande. Why? Because they had been born with the assistance of a midwife at home or in a community health center rather than at a regional hospital, a not uncommon practice in remote and impoverished areas where health services can be hard to find.



Unfortunately, some of the midwives had fraudulently attested that a few Mexican-born babies had been delivered on the U.S. side of the border, improperly qualifying them for citizenship. During the George W. Bush administration the government began questioning the citizenship of thousands of people simply because they had been delivered by one of the few midwives who had committed fraud.



Civil rights groups rightly sued in 2008 on the grounds that those targeted were being denied due process and were being singled out because of their ethnicity. In a 2009 settlement, the government promised to better train staff and set clearer directions on processing passport applications, including no longer relying solely on the presence of a midwife at the birth to justify questioning the legitimacy of a birth certificate.



Now, under the Trump administration, it appears those onerous practices have returned with a vengeance. Even people born under the care of a Texas gynecologist, Dr. Jorge Trevino, have had their passport applications rejected. The government didn't comment to the Post on why Trevino's patients had been flagged, but in this administration, it's not unreasonable to wonder whether the births would be questioned if the doctor's name was Smith.



This is more than an inconvenience for those affected. With their passports revoked and their citizenship questioned, some have been jailed pending deportation proceedings, an outrageous act of injustice. Americans seeking to return to the U.S. from Mexico have been stranded, and people who need to cross the border for work or to visit family members cannot do so legally.



The Post's report, of course, is just the latest revelation about an immigration policy under President Donald Trump that defies basic humanity and long-standing practices.



ICE agents have resumed showing up in California courts to arrest people making appearances there on suspicion that they are in the country unlawfully, a practice that California Supreme Court Chief Justice Tani G. Cantil-Sakauye described as "disruptive, shortsighted, and counterproductive" and "damaging to community safety and disrespects the state court system."



People who fear that taking part in the court system will draw them into the reach of immigration agents and get them deported are less likely to answer summonses, file for restraining orders or testify in trials  the kind of engagement that benefits society.



Further, Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who oversees the immigration courts, has set quotas for the number of cases immigration judges must complete each year and reassigned cases to himself so he can overturn previous immigration court decisions. The government wants to add space to detain thousands more people facing deportation, regardless of whether they are flight risks or a danger to society  and many have legitimate and legal requests for asylum.



So to seek sanctuary from the U.S. they first must go to prison, an atrocious affront to the whole concept of asylum. As unconscionable as those actions are, they pale in comparison to challenging the citizenship of Americans based on a barest whisper of wrongdoing not by them, but by the people who brought them into this world.





The above editorial appeared in the Los Angeles Times. It was distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.




Rival parties should focus on economic recovery



The National Assembly started a 100-day regular session Monday to deal with various bills aimed at reinvigorating the sluggish economy and promoting deregulation. During the session, lawmakers of the rival parties will deliberate on the 2019 government budget proposal and conduct an inspection of ministries and agencies.



Undoubtedly the regular session has significant implications not only for the legislative process, but also the execution of major policies set out by the Moon Jae-in administration. So the people have high expectations about the session amid the rapidly changing geopolitical situation on the Korean Peninsula and the escalating trade war between the U.S. and China.



Most of all, it is urgent for legislators to focus on economic recovery by passing bills designed to help small businesses, the self-employed and poor workers who are bearing the brunt of the ill effects of President Moon's "income-led growth policy." Despite its purpose of creating more jobs and raising income for these vulnerable economic players, the policy has lowered their income and offered fewer jobs.



Lawmakers of the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) are feared to engage in political wrangling with their opposition counterparts over the inclusive policy. DPK members are trying to defend the policy, while legislators of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP) are calling for scrapping the policy which they claim has already fallen apart.



If the rivals continue to play partisan politics during the session, it may be impossible to pass many impending bills drafted to stabilize the livelihoods of the underprivileged and poor. Such dog-eat-dog partisan struggles could also derail the liberal government's efforts to revitalize the sagging economy.



In a worst-case scenario, the LKP and other minor parties might block the passage of all the bills presented by the government and the governing DPK. If this becomes a reality, the Moon administration will have no other choice but to suffer a serious setback in carrying out its policies, especially for job creation, regulatory reform, innovation promotion and a fair economy.



Thus it would be better for the rival parties to avoid going too far. They need to solve the problem through dialogue and compromise. DPK lawmakers should not try to pass bills unilaterally. Instead, they should reach out to opposition legislators and persuade them to cooperate in the legislative process and the execution of the government's major policies.



Moon promised to achieve "cooperative politics" with the opposition bloc. But he has yet to keep his promise. So we urge him and the ruling party to use the regular Assembly session to realize a partnership with the rival parties. To that end, it is necessary to develop a working relationship with the opposition.



On the other hand, the LKP and other minor parties need to refrain from opposing government policies for the sake of objection. They must play a constructive role of democratic checks and balances. They are also required to redefine their status as a partner, not an enemy, of the government and ruling party.


The case of Liu Qiangdong, founder of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com, who was accused of sexual misconduct in the US has gone viral, causing a social media storm home and abroad starting Sept 1.

Around 20,000 out of 27,000 followers of JD spokesperson, an official account of JD reposted the company's responding statement of the case. Hundreds of thousands of users also reposted and commented on the case on Facebook and Twitter.

Jail records from Hennepin County, Minneapolis show a man named Liu Qiangdong, born on March 10, 1973, was arrested in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct.

Liu was arrested at 11:32 pm on Aug 31, and released pending investigation at 4 pm Sept 1, according to jail records.

JD.com said in a Sunday statement on its Weibo account its founder and CEO Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, was falsely accused of sexual misconduct while in the US on a business trip.

The statement said local police found no misconduct and that Liu would continue his trip as planned.

"We will take necessary legal action against false reporting or rumors," the company said.

Minneapolis Police Department spokesman John Elder said an investigation was ongoing and declined to provide details of the arrest, according to a Reuters report.

"We don't know if there will be charges or not because we haven't concluded an investigation," he told Reuters on Sunday.

Minnesota law defines five degrees of criminal sexual misconduct, ranging from gross misdemeanors to felonies and covering a broad array of conduct ranging from nonconsensual touching to violent assault with injury. The jail records for Liu don't indicate the degree of the alleged offense, a report by the Associated Press said.

The University of Minnesota said Liu was a student in its doctor of business administration program, primarily held in Beijing in partnership with Tsinghua University and aimed at full-time executives. The students were in the Twin Cities last week as part of their training, Reuters reported.

University spokeswoman Emma Bauer declined to comment further and referred questions to the Minneapolis Police Department in a statement, the report said.

JD.com, the main rival to Alibaba Group, is backed by Walmart Inc, Alphabet Inc's Google, and China's Tencent Holdings Ltd.

The company has not been performing well recently. Its Q2 net income totaled 122.3 billion yuan ($18.5 billion), up 31.2 percent, while its net profit was down 51.04 percent to 478 million yuan based on non-GAAP accounting, according to the company's Q2 fiscal report released on Aug 16.
By John Burton





The North Korean nuclear issue abruptly fell off the radar of most in Washington, D.C. this summer in the wake of U.S. President Donald Trump's summit with Kim Jung-un on June 12 in Singapore. The war-like rhetoric about North Korea was suddenly toned down as U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo traveled to Pyongyang to negotiate the details of the Trump-Kim accord to denuclearize North Korea.



But things look like heating up again. Trump recently cancelled a scheduled trip in late August to North Korea by Pompeo to continue the negotiations, just days after a new U.S. special envoy to North Korea was named. The Pentagon has suggested that it will resume joint military exercises with South Korea that had been suspended as a goodwill gesture to Pyongyang, although Trump has reportedly not yet approved the move.



Conservative critics of the Trump-Kim summit are crowing "I told you so" as they repeat their earlier suggestions that the American president had been hoodwinked by Kim. Pompeo apparently has not been able to achieve any considerable concessions. Meanwhile, the Pentagon has been leaking intelligence that Pyongyang is continuing to develop its nuclear weapons.



The real sticking point, however, appears to revolve around the issue of whether the U.S. is willing to sign some form of peace treaty with North Korea before Pyongyang releases a list of its declared nuclear facilities and begins dismantling them.



Prior to the summit, Trump indicated that a good starting point to get the talks rolling would be for him to highlight his intention to bring an end to the Korean War by signing a peace declaration, if not a formal peace treaty. But he did not make any such public announcement of this in Singapore, although it is now being reported that he privately promised Kim during their face-to-face discussions the he would soon sign a peace document.



If these reports are accurate, it may explain why North Korea has been dragging its feet recently and resuming its hostile rhetoric against Washington since there has been little sign in the last two months of the U.S. implementing this promise.



U.S.-North Korean negotiations have often faltered during the past 25 years on the sequence of promised actions by each side. Trump earlier appeared to recognize that the U.S. might have to deliver the first major concession in the form of an official peace declaration to persuade Pyongyang in response in kind.



A peace agreement by the U.S. is important to Kim to placate hard-line critics in Pyongyang before he begins to reduce the country's nuclear arsenal.



So why has Trump apparently reneged on his promise? He may have caved to pressure from the national security establishment that has always argued that any deal with Kim is a trick.



John Bolton, Trump's national security advisor, has long been an opponent of any compromise with North Korea on its nuclear weapons. The Pentagon has also worried that a peace agreement could lead to the withdrawal of U.S troops from South Korea (particularly when Trump has complained about the cost of maintaining them there), which is said to explain why U.S. Defense Secretary Jim Mattis is also opposing the peace initiative.



But given the ever-changeable nature of Trump could he reverse course once again and offer a peace declaration?



It was said that one key motivation for Trump to meet Kim was that the American president saw this as an opportunity to win the Nobel Peace Prize. If that is true, then Trump has more reason than ever before to pursue a peace deal to rescue himself from the damaging effects of the mounting Russiagate investigation.



Trump is also likely to face pressure from Seoul to pursue the peace deal option. President Moon Jae-in endorsed the idea during his talks with Kim. The topic is likely to be discussed again during the inter-Korean summit in Pyongyang this month since both sides have indicated they want some sort of a signed agreement by the end of the year.



Moreover, Trump is losing his leverage over North Korea as the international sanctions regime against the country begins to crack. Beijing's relations with Pyongyang appear to be warming following three meetings between Chinese President Xi Jinping and Kim this year. As a result, China may quietly ease trade restrictions with North Korea in the coming months, particularly if a Sino-American trade war escalates.



Trump faces a stark choice. He can either scrap talks with North Korea and reconsider military options, which would also likely put him on a collision course with Seoul, or else decide that a peace agreement could represent his best deal ever.





John Burton (johnburtonft@yahoo.com), a former Korea correspondent for the Financial Times, is now a Washington, D.C.-based journalist and consultant.


By Andrew Hammond







U.S. and Chinese negotiators are meeting Wednesday and Thursday in the latest bid to avoid a potential all-out trade war. While markets have been buoyed by the news, the political backdrop to the session is inauspicious given the recent uptick in bilateral tensions over foreign investment.







Last Monday, U.S. President Donald Trump signed legislation requiring the U.S. Commerce Secretary to deliver a "Report on Chinese Investment" in the United States to Congress and the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) every two years up to 2026.







While the bill focuses on military capabilities not just of China, but also Russia and Iran as "potential adversaries," it singles out Chinese investment as a security threat and zeros in on Beijing's "Made in China 2015" plan.







The reaction in Beijing has been predictably furious, although this week's talks, led by Vice Commerce Minister Wang Shouwen and Treasury Undersecretary David Malpass, are underway.







On Tuesday, for instance, the Chinese Defense Ministry asserted that the new law "abounds in Cold War thinking, exaggerates the level of the China-U.S. confrontation ... undermines the atmosphere of development of China-U.S. military ties, damages China-U.S. mutual trust and cooperation."







What the legislation certainly underlines is how much the Trump administration is focusing on perceived national security risks around inward and outward investments.







Since 1990, there have been only five cases where U.S. presidents have blocked big commercial mergers involving U.S. firms: Two of these have been under Trump, including his order in March blocking Broadcom from merging with U.S.-based Qualcomm.







For Trump, there is a clear political narrative around his actions in this area that he sees as a key plank of his "Make America Great Again" agenda. This program includes reducing the U.S. global trade deficit and cracking down on trade practices perceived to be unfair.







Especially with the new law, the president is only likely to become more activist in this area  at least as long as he perceives there is a political benefit to doing so, and key foreign countries resist his calls for trade renegotiations.







The new legislation also give CFIUS  which is an inter-agency, Treasury-led committee with nine Cabinet members, two ex officio members and members appointed by the president  authority to review any transaction involving foreign investments in U.S. "critical infrastructure or technology companies," even when they don't involve the foreign entity acquiring a controlling stake.







The act also expands CFIUS's scrutiny to include real estate deals, mandating a review for any foreign purchases of property near U.S. military installations, or sales of real estate located in U.S. ports.







These are significant new powers for CFIUS, which was established in 1975, but gained increased traction after the September 2001 terrorist attacks.







Even before the new law, CFIUS had the power to examine any takeover bid by a foreign company if deemed to pose a national security threat; intervene to change parts of proposed deals, for instance excluding part of a U.S. firm from an agreement; and been able to negotiate with the parties to a proposed deal.







Of course, legitimate U.S. concerns do exist about some overseas foreign investment. And the United States is by no means the only country that is looking to modernize its powers in this area.







For instance, Europe policymakers in Germany, France and the United Kingdom are also debating this topic as technological, economic and geopolitical changes mean that reforms to public powers to scrutinize investments on national security grounds may well be needed.







Across these nations, governments are looking at the best way to combine a broadly open approach to international investment while having appropriate security safeguards.







Compared to these European powers, however, what is striking about the U.S. approach is the degree to which China has been singled out by Washington policymakers. So much so in fact that some in Beijing already perceive the new U.S. legislation as just the latest part of a wider, grand strategy under Trump to thwart the nation's rise as a global superpower.







In this context, any increased U.S. veto of foreign investment and mergers could therefore see China  and indeed other countries  respond in a like-minded way.







While increasing protectionism through tariffs (a second tranche of U.S. and Chinese retaliatory sanctions officially take effect this week) and tougher security of investment is easy to initiate, this can be difficult to control and unwind and it remains highly unclear if the latest U.S. actions will fundamentally modify China's policies, or simply trigger a further deterioration in bilateral relations.







While markets appear to believe a decisive breakthrough is possible in this week's talks, this therefore seems optimistic in the current context.







However, given incentives both sides have to eventually resolve the escalating economic disputes, a roadmap could emerge to help resolve them that may ultimately require final negotiation by Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping when they are next scheduled to meet in November at the G20 and APEC forums.









Andrew Hammond (

) is an associate at LSE IDEAS at the London School of Economics.




Huawei is being treated as a national security threat in some countries over its ties to the Chinese government. Reuters



By Jung Min-ho





Bates Gill.

The United States, Britain, Australia and now Japan. Huawei, a Chinese telecoms equipment maker, is facing severe restrictions over its ties to the Chinese government.



On Aug. 23, the Australian government decided to block the company from rolling out 5G technology on the country's wireless networks, due to national security concerns. Now Japan's government is considering doing the same.



Meanwhile, Korea's No. 3 mobile carrier LG Uplus is set to buy 5G network equipment from Huawei for its latest mobile services. Should Koreans be worried? Experts say they are right to be cautious.



"The future 5G network is considered critical infrastructure. As such, insider knowledge of the 5G network  which its builders and operators would possess  could not only provide access to sensitive information within the system, such as transport and energy grids, water supplies, financial and banking services, but also allow those builders and operators to disrupt those systems if they chose to," Bates Gill, professor of Asia-Pacific security studies at Sydney's Macquarie University, told The Korea Times.





Shambhu Upadhyaya
Visitors look around a Huawei booth during the Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) Berlin. / Korea Times photo by Jun Ji-hye



By Jun Ji-hye



BERLIN  Looking around the exhibition halls of the Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) Berlin  Europe's largest consumer electronics and appliance trade show that began Friday  it felt like one in every two to three booths were occupied by Chinese firms.



The Chinese firms were competitively showcasing their cutting-edge products ranging from TVs to smartphones in a bid to prove themselves as fast movers and expand their global sales.



According to the IFA, 665 Chinese firms participated in the event, accounting for about 40 percent of the total. The number of Chinese companies was 10 times more than that of Korean firms, which was about 60.



The Huawei booth, which displayed smartphones, tablet PCs and smart home platform, was crowded from the opening day of the exhibition.





Korea Times reporter Jun Ji-hye tries out the Huawei VR2 with support for the IMAX virtual giant screen video experience at a Huawei booth during the Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) Berlin.
Seen is LG Chem's battery plant in Nanjing, China. / Courtesy of LG Chem



By Baek Byung-yeul



LG Chem, Samsung SDI, SK Innovation and other battery makers for electric vehicles (EVs) here are attracting strong attention from investors and industry officials as to whether they can benefit from their increasingly financially-troubled Chinese rivals.



Korean companies have refrained from publically speaking about the effects of China's decision to phase out state subsidies given to Chinese EV battery makers by 2020, which has put further downward pressure on the already cash-strapped producers on the mainland.



But most analysts here say Korean EV battery makers, which have been unable to receive the EV battery subsidies on the mainland, will benefit from China's subsidy phase-out and regain an edge over their struggling Chinese competitors.



According to industry officials Monday, China's No.3 EV battery maker OptimumNano Energy said in early July that it would suspend its operations for six months because of a shortage of revolving funds.



Furthermore, production lines of Nanjing Yinlong New Energy were placed under custody in July and Shenzhen-based maker Roogrow also announced its bankruptcy at the end of July.



This is because the Chinese government implemented a new subsidy policy starting June 12 to encourage the development of EVs with longer ranges and more battery pack densities.



As the revised policy increased barriers for applying the subsidies, EV makers have been forced to delay their payments to battery suppliers.



While EV makers have been delaying payments to their suppliers, many battery makers in China have continued manufacturing and shipping batteries to car makers, which apparently increases the burden on their finances, according to a recent report from Taiwan-based DigiTimes.



Big players in the EV battery market in China are also struggling. CATL, the world's largest EV battery maker, has seen its operating profits decrease significantly only a few months after the company made its debut on China's stock market.



BYD, the No.2 battery maker in China, announced Aug. 29 that it saw its operating profit fall 72.2 percent in the first half of this year, compared with the same period last year. The company said it was mainly due to a change in subsidy policy.



Industry watchers said the changed subsidy policy of the Chinese government has led to a reshuffle of Chinese battery makers and this could be a good sign for Korean lithium-ion manufacturers. As China had excluded EVs equipped with Korean firms' batteries from a subsidy list since last year, Korean manufacturers have been blocked from doing business in China.



"The Chinese EV battery market has been flooded with a slew of minor companies. The changed subsidy policy may force the Chinese firms to merge into a few players that will have competitive advantages in battery production technology," said an industry watcher who refused to be named.



Stating there will be no immediate change for Korean firms, the industry watcher said it could be an opportunity for Korean firms as the Chinese government is looking to end its subsidy program by 2020.



"Korean battery makers have been developing their technologies in the EV battery market though they are not available to conduct business in China," he said.



LG Chem, Samsung SDI and SK Innovation said there will be no change for them before the expiration of China's subsidy program.



LG Chem said it is focusing more on its energy storage system (ESS) business and exporting batteries for EVs in the European car market. "China is an important market for us. Currently we are having trouble conducting business there but we are taking a long term view towards this market as China has the biggest EV market in the world," an LG Chem spokesman said.



SK Innovation has been focusing on establishing a joint venture with Chinese firms. SK Innovation, SK Group's energy affiliate, already established a joint venture BESK with Chinese companies in 2013. The joint venture, in which SK Innovation invested 163 billion won ($147 million), has a battery pack production line in Beijing.



SK Innovation announced on Aug. 24 that it began construction to build a battery plant for EVs in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province, with its Chinese partners, Beijing Automotive Group and Beijing Electronics. SK said the Changzhou plant will be the first large-scale battery plant in collaboration with a Chinese EV manufacturer and a foreign battery maker.






By Park Si-soo







The International Exchange Foundation (IEF) is recruiting university student game players to represent South Korea at the 2018 Jeju International e-sports Festival.







The festival is to take place on the southern resort island of Jeju on Nov. 23-25, during which game players from 20 countries will compete for 12.4 million won ($11,130) prize money in three games  League of Legends, Hearthstone and Penta Storm.







The foundation, co-chaired by former lawmaker Lee Kwang-jae and former Gyeonggi governor Nam Kyung-pin, started receiving applications on Monday. Applications will remain open until Sept. 22.







Applicants will have to prove their skills in multiple preliminary matches. The final roster will be announced on Nov. 10.







For more information, visit the IEF's website (

) or call 070-4226-0670.






A Coway official introduces the company's air purifier at the 2018 Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA), which started Friday in Berlin. / Courtesy of Coway



By Nam Hyun-woo



Home appliance maker Coway showcased its water purifiers and air cleaners at the Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) Berlin, in an attempt to tap into global home care markets in Europe and the Middle East.



According to the company, it is showcasing 22 products including water purifiers, air cleaners and garment cleaners at this year's IFA, Europe's largest consumer electronics and appliance trade show that began Friday and will last until Wednesday.



It was the first time in seven years that Coway participated into the IFA and this is interpreted as an attempt to meet the increased interest in home care appliances in Europe, especially on devices for indoor air quality.



"As indoor air quality is garnering great attention across the world, the European market is also showing keen interest in air cleaners," a Coway official said. "Coway showcased a lineup of air cleaners equipped with a multiple filtering system and earned great interest with visitors."



Of them, Coway's Triple Power Air Purifier garnered strong attention with its dual suction on the sides and floor air cleaning system. It also monitors indoor air quality in real time and controls its air volume by itself.



Coway seeks to introduce air cleaners into Poland, where people rely on coal for heat in the winter. Greece and Italy are also on the radar to target allergy sufferers.



During the show, Coway also made aggressive efforts with its water purifiers, in a belief that those products have a niche in Europe where people mostly drink expensive bottled water.



Coway set up an Italian body in 2010 to sell water purifiers and bidets, but closed it after four years as it failed to overcome cultural differences. This time, the company is taking a "long-term" approach, starting with business-to-business transactions to spur potential demand.



"During the exhibition, many buyers and visitors from all across the world showed interest in Coway products' specialties and distinctiveness," the official said. "Coway will continue working to become a global brand releasing products improving water and air quality."




Fan Bingbing at the Cannes Film Festival this year. AFP-Yonhap



By Ko Dong-hwan



Chinese actress Fan Bingbing reportedly sought political asylum in Los Angeles following months of her whereabouts being unknown and a tax evasion charge involving millions of dollars.



Fan, a leading actress in China and well-known internationally, appeared at the immigration office in Los Angeles on Aug. 31, according to Singapore's The Strait Times, citing a Hong Kong news outlet. The report suggests that the actress, 36, might have fled China to evade prosecution for alleged tax evasion.



Chinese actor Jackie Chan reportedly assisted Fan in moving to the U.S. The actor, best known for his martial arts stunts, advised her to seek refuge to avoid the tax situation, according to the Singaporean daily, citing a Twitter. But Chan's company told Chinese news site ETtoday that reports that he was involved were "nonsense."



Fan stayed under the radar in June after veteran Chinese host Cui Yongyuan accused her of the charge in late May. He reportedly implied that when she was filming "Cell Phone 2," she signed two contracts known as "yin and yang" contracts. This allowed her to prepare one official copy of a contract for the authorities and another for herself and the movie's production company. Consequently she was to receive 60 million yuan, but would be taxed only for 10 million yuan.



Fan denied the claims and Cui later withdrew his allegation. But China's State Administration of Taxation in early June, several days after Cui's allegations, ordered its local bureau in Jiangsu province  where Fan's film studio is based  to investigate the tax evasion issue within the film industry.



Zhejiang Talent, a production company involved in the Chinese TV drama "The Legend of Ba Qing," in which Fan that stars, released a report on Aug. 29 no release date had been set because of the allegations about Fan, the Straits Times said.



Fan's social network account on Weibo, which she used to update almost daily, has been dormant since June 2.



Fan's husband Li Chen, also an actor, has remained silent about the matter.


President Bio (third from right) joined by the First Lady and government ministers.

The President of Sierra Leone, retired brigadier Julius Maada Bio, has urged investment in his country, while assuring investors that his government has put policies in place to support their businesses.

President Bio, who addressed both the Sierra Leonean and Chinese business communities in Beijing on Friday, Aug 31, 2018, assured investors that his government will create a lawful environment so that they can conduct business in the country without fear.

Come to Sierra Leone, invest and employ our Sierra Leonean compatriots, and we will ensure that we create an avenue for you to make profits from your investments. We have a new government that is serious about investment, and we will do everything to protect it, he stated.

President Bio continued, our brothers and sisters from China are invited to come to Sierra Leone. If you have once been there and got hurt, come again. This new administration will heal your wounds.

Speaking on the bilateral relationship between Sierra Leone and China, the President said it has now existed for 47 years, adding that it has been tried, tested and proven reliable.

During the Ebola and mudslide incidents in Sierra Leone, the Chinese government supported us. The things that China did for us have not gone unnoticed. Currently, everything I see between us is of mutual benefit. We will have to restructure the relationship going forward to ensure its sustainability, he said.

President Bio called on the government and people of China to transfer skills and knowledge to Sierra Leoneans, noting that, the Chinese government can feed 1.4 billion people within the country and if it transfers skills to us, we will be able to feed the little over seven million people in Sierra Leone. We dont want to only feed the minds of Sierra Leoneans with free, quality education but we also want to produce food that will feed the whole country.

First Lady, Mrs. Fatima Bio, told the business community to come and invest in Sierra Leone because the country now has a disciplined leadership that is determined to positively transform it at all costs. We know that there was a relationship before, but this one will be better. We will do everything possible to ensure that investors are protected in the country, she said.

Members of both Sierra Leonean and business communities in the meeting hall on Friday.

Head of Chancery (HOC)of the Republic of Sierra Leone embassy in China, Unisa Sahid Kamara, said Sierra Leone had seen great reform since President Bio took over as leader of the country, adding that he has put in place committed ministers who support his ideas.

We will always support the new direction through the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, he said.

He said Sierra Leones 47 years of bilateral ties with China have seen significant development in the areas of infrastructure, health, electricity and education.

HOC Kamara noted that the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) and the Forum of China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) had ushered in a new era of partnership between Sierra Leone and China.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Dr. Alie Kabba, thanked President Bio for appointing an ambassador to the embassy in China after more than a year without one.

A representative of the Sierra Leonean community in China, Brima S.C Zoker, called on the new direction administration to establish a website, which will provide regular updates on the countrys tourism, bilateral ties, imports and exports, among other areas. They noted that if this information is available, they will be better able to explain the business opportunities in Sierra Leone to investors.

The thing that pains me seriously is that most times, people say come back home and contribute to national development, and when we go back home, there is not even a defined office where we can seek job opportunities, he said.

He called on the new direction administration to create job opportunities for them so that they could go back and impart what they have learned over the years.
The Rediscovering Tianjin from the eyes of Foreign Media  Binhai Edition kicked off on August 27, and saw foreign journalists from Belt and Road and ASEAN countries explore the city of Tianjin over the following days.

As part of the tour, foreign journalists have already visited a number of companies to learn about the artificial intelligence and smart technology being developed in the Binhai Area.

The area boasts a number of tech companies that are pioneering new methods of implementing technology to help in daily life. For example, the Tianjin Academy for Intelligent Recognition Technology is developing facial and iris recognition software to help identify people, hoping to eventually disregard the need for ID cards. This software is already being implemented in Chinese airports and railway stations.

The enterprise is also developing danger recognition technology, which can pinpoint a small flame or high temperature device in a deliberate or accidental incident.

Other companies, such as Efy Technology, are focused on implementing drones for a number of different commercial purposes, including agriculture, police assistance, GPS, mapping and delivery.

Its hoped that through this tour, journalists can learn more about the area and its advancements in AI, and help communicate ideas between China and the rest of the world.
Supporters of a mentally challenged woman convicted in two states in the 1994 kidnapping and killing of two elderly women say she was actually a victim of the men involved in the crime and are pushing for her release.

They've persuaded one state  Missouri  to grant Angel Stewart parole. But things are more complicated in Iowa, where Stewart is serving a life-in-prison sentence that does not include the option for parole.

Stewart, now 45, was convicted in two states because one of the victims abducted in Des Moines, Iowa, was driven just across the state line to Missouri and killed. Two men, Steven Bradley and Garland Shaffer, were convicted of first-degree murder and are serving life terms in Iowa.

A suburban St. Louis-based advocacy group for women in need of legal assistance, the WILLOW Project, took up Stewart's case, saying Stewart was abused and tortured by those men, was not directly involved in the crimes, and went along only out of fear. They also cite her IQ, estimated at 65, saying she was unable to defend herself to police after her 1994 arrest.

"She essentially lost her whole life for something she didn't do because she couldn't tell her own story in a way understandable to people," Anne Geraghty-Rathert, director of the Webster University-based WILLOW Project, said.

Advocates are now preparing a clemency request to Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds. A spokeswoman for the Republican governor said the request has not yet been received and declined further comment. A message left Friday with the Missouri Corrections Department seeking information about that state's parole decision was not returned.

Stewart was 19 when she and her 1-year-old son began sharing a Des Moines apartment with Bradley, Shaffer and a 16-year-old runaway, Angel Chamberlain. Bradley was 32 at the time, and Shaffer was 68.

It didn't take long before the men became abusive, Geraghty-Rathert said. The young women were beaten and padlocked inside the apartment.

An 82-year-old woman who lived near the apartment, Phyllis King, grew concerned and contacted Stewart's mother. Shaffer went to King's house to confront her. When he did, another neighbor, 79-year-old Clara Baker, threatened to call police.

Shaffer admitted that he abducted both women at gunpoint. He strangled Baker and dumped and her body was dumped along an Iowa interstate highway, hidden beneath an abandoned chair in a ravine.

Later, Shaffer drove King across the state line and beat her to death with a board, dumping the body in a wooded area near Kahoka, Missouri, court records show.

Bradley, Shaffer, Stewart and Chamberlain were arrested at a motel in Osceola, Iowa, in June 1994. Chamberlain was jailed briefly in a juvenile facility and later released.

Stewart said she went along with the men only out of fear for her life and her son's life. But facing a potential murder charge and told that could mean the death penalty in Missouri, she agreed to plead guilty to kidnapping in both states.

John Sarcone has been county attorney in Iowa's Polk County since 1991, and he prosecuted Stewart. He believes prison is "where she belongs."

"They were involved in the process," Sarcone said of Stewart and Chamberlain. "They could have saved these women, and they didn't. Years later it's very easy to make the claim you were forced into it, but those poor ladies never had a chance."

Geraghty-Rathert said she is hopeful Stewart will soon be freed based in part on the growing acceptance about how an abuser can coerce a victim.

"The public is beginning to believe that there are stories like this out there," Geraghty-Rathert said.
These days, Americans are more likely to associate Labor Day with cookouts, the beginning of the school year and a much-needed three-day weekend. But Labor Day was envisioned as a celebration of the American worker.

So: How to spend a day off work? Well, you could look at it as an extra 24 hours to read  a chance to dive into the history of the labor movement in America. Here are seven great books, fiction and nonfiction, about labor unions and the fight for workers rights:

The Man Who Never Died: The Life, Times, and Legacy of Joe Hill, American Labor Icon by William M. Adler

One of the most beloved and controversial figures in labor history, Hill was a Swedish immigrant, songwriter and Industrial Workers of the World activist who was executed in 1915 for double murder. Adlers biography of Hill posits what many of Hills admirers have said for a long time  that the activist was innocent of the slayings.

Work Song by Ivan Doig

Set in his beloved Montana, the 10th novel from the late Doig follows Morrie Morgan, a former teacher who travels to Butte, hoping to get rich from the towns copper mines. Instead, he finds himself embroiled in a battle between a large mining company and its beleaguered employees.

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There Is Power in a Union: The Epic Story of Labor in America by Philip Dray

Drays history of the American labor union is certainly comprehensive  its more than 800 pages long, covering two centuries of labor history. He examines the importance of unions to the nation and looks at notable figures in the movement such as Mary Harris (Mother) Jones, Samuel Gompers and Karen Silkwood.

Sometimes a Great Notion by Ken Kesey

The authors 1964 follow-up to One Flew Over the Cuckoos Nest tells the story of a loggers strike in Oregon from the point of view of a logging family who keep working during the labor action, drawing the ire of their fellow town residents. Paul Newman directed and starred in a film adaptation of the novel in 1971.

The Crusades of Cesar Chavez: A Biography by Miriam Pawel

Former Times reporter Pawel won a California Book Award for her look at the life of Chavez, the labor activist and co-founder of the United Farm Workers. Her book is honest about Chavezs dark side  he ruled his union with an iron fist and alienated a long string of friends and supporters  as well as his numerous accomplishments, bringing fieldworkers together against fierce opposition.

In Dubious Battle by John Steinbeck

Steinbecks 1936 novel, set during the Great Depression, is the story of two Communists who travel to Central California, hoping to convince a group of disgruntled apple pickers to strike. The book might have been inspired by an actual fruit worker strike in 1933 in Tulare County.

Triangle by Katharine Weber

The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire in 1911 killed more than 140 garment workers who were unable to escape the New York building, and the ensuing controversy led to the strengthening of labor unions. Webers 2006 novel follows the granddaughter of one of the survivors searching for the real story behind her grandmothers accounts of the disaster.
JD.com Inc.s billionaire founder has returned to China after his weekend arrest on allegations of sexual misconduct in Minnesota, with local police beginning an investigation into the chief executive of one of the Asian countrys largest internet corporations.

Liu Qiangdong, who uses the English name Richard, was brought in at 11:32 p.m. local time on Friday on an accusation of criminal sexual conduct and was released just over 16 hours later, according to arrest records. Minneapolis Police Department spokesman John Elder declined to provide any further details about the reasons for the arrest, but said authorities decided not to keep Liu in custody and havent imposed travel restrictions on him while conducting their investigation.

JD.com is Chinas largest ecommerce company after Alibaba Group Holding Ltd., backed by investors including social media titan Tencent Holdings Ltd. and American names Walmart Inc. and Alphabet Inc.s Google. Liu, 45, has led the $45-billion business since its founding and controls the business through special voting rights.

We are very much in the infancy of this investigation, Elder said. Authorities may decide not to charge Liu at all, he added. There are no travel restrictions on him at the moment, and hes not charged with a crime at this time.

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The billionaire has since flown back to China, his company said. JD earlier said on its official Weibo social media account that U.S. police found no misconduct in their probe against Liu. It didnt elaborate or explain how that assertion squared with the polices own statement of an ongoing investigation. In the Weibo post, the company had said he would continue a scheduled business trip.

Police havent outlined specific accusations against Liu, said attorney Joseph Friedberg, whom JD confirmed as representing the billionaire. His team was awaiting details from the authorities before deciding on next steps, and Friedberg wouldnt elaborate.

No one has told him or us what the accusations are, he said in a phone interview. If he were to be charged  and I dont think there is any possibility of that  he would certainly come back to face charges.

Liu is registered as a student at the University of Minnesotas Carlson School of Management in its Doctor of Business Administration program, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported, citing a spokesman. Participants were in town from Aug. 26 through Saturday as part of their residency, the newspaper reported. The university didnt respond to calls and emails from Bloomberg News outside normal business hours.

Liu became one of Chinas best-known self-made billionaires by turning a chain of electronics goods stores into an online powerhouse selling everything from mobile gadgets to fresh seafood. Its Walmarts partner in the country, and its largest shareholder is WeChat operator and games giant Tencent. The CEO has amassed a fortune of about $7.3 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

His wife, Zhang Zetian, is famous in China in her own right with 1.5 million followers on Weibo. She was dubbed Sister Milk Tea after a photo of her holding the drink went viral on social media in the country.

Lius JD has started pushing into physical stores and the billionaire speaks openly about his longer-term goal of expanding internationally, though the companys incursions overseas have so far mostly been limited to Thailand, Indonesia and Vietnam. Liu has his eyes on the affluent consumers of Europe and the U.S. as he makes substantial investments in the infrastructure needed to supply millions of customers around the world.
With a masters degree in computer science and 30 years of experience working for technology companies, Tom Middleton had little doubt he would soon find new employment after losing his job a decade ago as a software engineering manager at Kyocera in San Diego.

How wrong he was.

After two years of submitting more than 300 applications for tech jobs and scoring only an occasional face-to-face interview, the then-59-year-old Middleton became convinced his age was a hindrance. He would hear feedback like Youre overqualified and We cant pay you what youre used to.

As money grew tighter, house payments were missed and 401(k) savings were exhausted, he took minimum-wage jobs at Target and Walmart and tried his hand at income tax preparation. On a whim, he applied for a job as a bus driver  and was hired, now earning less than half his former six-figure salary.

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I had some days where I just wanted to crawl in a hole, Middleton, now 66, said of his job search. I thought Id be a bargain to someone, but they didnt see it that way.

A growing share of baby boomers is opting to work well into what traditionally would be their retirement years, but the challenges of remaining employed or reentering the workforce at an older age, even in todays tight labor market, havent necessarily eased.

And even as Labor Department data show more people 55 and older are employed than ever before and have a lower jobless rate  3.1%, compared with 3.9% for all workers  they remain out of work longer than their younger peers when they lose a job. On average, theyre jobless for about 37 weeks, compared with 25 weeks for workers ages 35 to 44, according to 2017 data from the Bureau of Labor Statistics.

Their hourly pay also starts to decline as they enter their 60s, regardless of how much education they have.

We are living longer. We are living healthier. We want to work, said Susan Weinstock, vice president of financial resiliency for the AARP. We have this labor shortage, and we hear about the skills shortage. Older workers can fill those needs if employers will open themselves up to the idea.

Why work longer?

Changing demographics and compensation for older Americans have been upending the retirement landscape since the mid-1990s.

In a reversal of a decades-long trend toward earlier retirement, workers ages 55 and older made up 22.4% of the U.S. workforce in 2016, up from just 12% two decades earlier, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. By 2026, when baby boomers will be 62 to 80 years old, that share is expected to rise to 25%.

Workforce participation also has risen sharply, with about 40% of people ages 55 and older either working or actively looking for work today, compared with 30% in 1996. In a survey last year by the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies, more than half the people queried said they plan to work past age 65 or do not plan to retire.

Economists offer multiple theories about what is driving people to work longer, including improving health, higher education and a shift toward less physically demanding jobs.

The gradual phaseout of traditional employer pensions and a corresponding rise in more volatile 401(k) plans have also discouraged earlier retirements. At the same time, an increase in the Social Security full retirement age (now 66 and rising) has induced people to stay in the workforce longer by rewarding them with higher monthly payments.

There is a whole set of people who have never really recovered from the Great Recession, AARPs Weinstock said. If your retirement accounts took a hit at that time, it has only been 10 years, and it takes a lifetime to build up those retirement accounts.

Workers 55 and older have been the fastest-growing segment of the U.S. labor force since 1996, and that trend is expected to continue through 2026, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. At the same time, the growth rates for younger age groups arent projected to increase much over the next decade.

And as Gary Burtless, a senior fellow in economic studies with the Brookings Institution, noted, there are also some people who simply like their jobs and arent ready to stop working.

Lower wages, regardless of education

After 35 years in the construction industry, David Sapper, now 64, said it felt like a punch in the gut when he lost his highly paid management job as part of a downsizing seven years ago.

Recognizing he would have to settle for pay well below his previous six-figure salary, he spent nearly a year looking for work before taking a job he hadnt envisioned for himself  and that pays much less than his old one.

Wage data assembled by the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta show average hourly pay for full-time workers starting to decline after age 60 across all education groups. Those statistics, though, are only for full-time employees and therefore dont reflect the part-time work many older workers typically take, either by choice or necessity.

For the last six years, Sapper has been a caravan driver for San Diego Zoo Safari Park, escorting visitors on tours that include close-up views of giraffes, rhinos and antelopes. Since joining the park, he has worked his way up to nearly 40 hours a week, earning $45,000 to $50,000 a year, he said.

Sapper acknowledged that his wifes job as a school administrator enabled him to take a significant pay cut, but he also said working at Safari Park has meant much less stress in his life.

I can now finally sleep at night and go to work happy and not be walking through the door dreading how am I going to make up for a half-million-dollar overrun on a construction job, he said.

Ellyn Terry, economic policy specialist with the Atlanta Federal Reserve Bank, surmises that one reason for the drop in pay that some workers experience as they age may have to do with reduced productivity.

Theres economic theory that says prime productivity declines close to the end of our careers, she said. Productivity is generally associated with wages; that is, the more you can produce, the more you will get paid. Lower wages among older individuals may also reflect people switching to less intensive jobs.

She is less convinced, though, that the data suggest age discrimination.

An economist would argue that age discrimination should not exist, that when an employer wants the best person at the best price theyre not going to willy-nilly use age unless its related to something else correlated with worker productivity and they have nothing else to go on, Terry said.

Proving discrimination is tough

Greg Locke, 60, says he saw signs of bias while looking for work recently. After 21 years in the Marines, Locke earned a masters degree in business management from San Diego State University and started a second career working for the County of San Diego in the early 2000s.

In June of last year, he retired as real estate telecommunications development project manager, took a few months off and then began looking for work again. During a few of the six interviews he had, Locke said, he was asked how he would interact with younger workers.

I have to wonder if younger workers were also asked how they would interact with older workers, he said. He eventually landed a job with a company that didnt ask that question.

Proving discrimination is difficult, especially in instances where someone does not get hired for a job and age bias is the suspected reason.

Often cited as evidence that age discrimination does indeed exist is research conducted by a trio of economists who in 2015 sent out some 40,000 applications with fictitious resumes for about 13,000 largely low-skilled positions, such as retail sales clerks, janitors and administrative assistants. The resumes were nearly identical except for age and gender.

It turned out that callback rates were higher among younger applicants than their older counterparts, providing compelling evidence that older workers experience age discrimination in hiring in the lower-skilled types of jobs the experiment covers, the authors said.

Instances of age discrimination were most noticeable among older women, said coauthor David Neumark, economics professor at UC Irvine and a visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.

Still, Neumark acknowledges that proof of discrimination remains elusive. My point is simply, its complicated, he said. Its better to be an older worker now than it was in 2010, and its better to be a black worker and an ex-felon because employers have fewer workers to choose from to hire. But its about the employment cycle, so right now its a little easier for these workers finding work, but were at the end of a very long recovery.

There remains a strong perception among the graying workforce that their age is working against them. A 2017 survey commissioned by AARP found that 3 in 5 workers over age 45 have experienced or seen age discrimination in the workplace.

Laurie McCann, senior attorney with the AARP Foundation, said employers these days are savvy enough to not leave the smoking gun around that would clearly show age discrimination, but that doesnt mean there arent more subtle instances of ageism in the hiring process.

Some indications are asking that people be recent graduates. Were also seeing some jobs where people have to be a digital native, which is someone who grew up using the internet, McCann said.

Age discrimination complaints filed with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission totaled more than 18,000 last year, although the number has been trending downward since the recession, when they peaked at more than 24,000. It is not atypical for such complaints to ebb and flow with the economic cycle.

Potential bias against older workers could derail policies aimed at encouraging baby boomers to work longer  one of the best options for keeping the nations labor force vibrant.

Thats important because labor force participation among people ages 16 to 24 has been declining since the 1990s. Moreover, employment for workers ages 25 to 54 was stagnant most of the last decade. It was not until this year that jobs in this age group finally returned to pre-recession levels.

Meanwhile, the leading edge of the baby boom generation  some 76 million people born between 1946 and 1964  is now 72 years old. Ten thousand baby boomers are retiring every day, AARPs Weinstock said. Thats a companys institutional knowledge walking out the door.

The changing job search process

For some older workers, particularly those who worked for one company for many years, trying to find a new job is daunting.

The job search process has moved online, with job boards such as Indeed and ZipRecruiter making it easy to find and apply for all sorts of jobs. But often these efforts prove fruitless, with no feedback whatsoever to applicants.

Kim Selznick, 64, worked as an accountant/administrator for an alternative investment firm for the past 21 years. In April, she was laid off, and shes struggling to find another job.

It was suggested that I get on LinkedIn, find people to connect with, then find people that they are connected with, she said. That is where I have a hard time, asking people for help and making those connections.

Yet thats what it takes to get an employers attention in an era of online applications, said Kyle Houston, San Diego branch manager for staffing and consulting firm Robert Half Technology.

My first bit of advice is to stop applying through job boards, he said. That whole adage, its not what you know but who you know, still rings true.

Weisberg and Freeman write for the San Diego Union-Tribune.
A patient jumped out of a moving ambulance on a Northern California highway and was struck and killed by a passing car, according to authorities.

The California Highway Patrol told KTVU-TV that the unidentified woman was being transported Monday from a medical center in Pleasanton to a psychiatric hospital in San Leandro.

According to the CHP, the woman got out of her restraints, overpowered a paramedic and jumped out as the ambulance was coming to a stop on a ramp connecting two highways. The woman, whom authorities did not identify, was declared dead at the scene.

CHP Officer Josh Roberts said investigators are trying to figure out how the woman was able to jump out.
The body of one of four people missing since Saturday when two boats crashed head-on and sank in the Colorado River was pulled from the water Monday as the search for the others continued, the sheriffs office in Mohave County, Ariz., said.

Officials identified the victim as Christine Lewis, 51, of Visalia, Calif., but released no other information about her.



For the record: An earlier version of this story said the three missing victims were men. One is a man and two are women.

She had been missing since about 8 p.m. Saturday when a northbound Hallett boat carrying 10 people collided with a southbound Sleekcraft with six aboard, officials said. The crash occurred on the California-Arizona border north of Lake Havasu, between Pirates Cove and Topock Marina near Moabi Regional Park.

All 16 were thrown into the fast-moving river as the two boats sank. Several people were pulled from the water by other boaters. One critically injured woman was airlifted to a Las Vegas hospital, officials said, and nine others went by ambulance to area hospitals.

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The boats hit head-on while traveling about 50 mph, according to an emergency dispatcher whose report was broadcast on local TV stations.

Anita Mortensen, a sheriffs spokeswoman, said Monday that investigators had not determined what role speed might have played in the accident.

We havent come up with anything on contributing factors yet, she said, adding that efforts are focused on finding the missing boaters. Once they are located, then we can continue pursuing that information.

Lewis and the three people still missing  two women and one man  had been riding in the Hallett, officials said. Lewis body was recovered about 7:30 a.m. Monday, officials said.

The river was jammed with Labor Day weekend visitors at the time of the crash. Those aboard the boats were friends and family, some from outside the area. No one wore a life jacket.

It is not mandated that they do, though we encourage it, Mohave County Sheriff Doug Schuster said Sunday.

kim.christensen@latimes.com

Staff writer Esmeralda Bermudez contributed to this report.

kim.christensen@latimes.com

https://twitter.com/kchristensenLAT

UPDATES:

3:20 p.m.: This article has been updated with information on the missing victims.

2:55 p.m.: This article has been updated with the victims home town.

This article originally published at 11:20 a.m.
When Los Angeles City Council members vowed to back a minimum number of new homeless housing units in each of their districts, Councilman Paul Koretz cautioned that it might not be easy in the pricey neighborhoods he represents.

Im 100% committed to it, Koretz said, but we definitely will need some help finding sites.

Months later, as some council members have neared or breezed past the number, the Westside councilman is among a handful who remain far from that target.

It is nearly two years ahead of the deadline the council imposed on itself, and more apartments are in the pipeline. But the slow start for some members underscores the challenges the city faces in spreading housing for the homeless across L.A.

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Housing advocates say high land costs in affluent neighborhoods and other practical barriers, along with fears of community opposition, have historically steered nonprofit housing developers away from some areas. Earlier this year, a city analysis found that homeless housing has been disproportionately built in poor and racially segregated neighborhoods.

As elected officials plan for thousands of units of new housing, they have vowed to reverse the containment of homeless housing and services on skid row and plant new units all over the city. Doing so helps homeless people rebound in their own communities, close to family, friends and familiar resources, advocates say.

Placing homeless housing throughout the city also reassures residents who worried about where those units would be built, said Miguel Santana, chair of the citizens oversight committee for Proposition HHH, a $1.2-billion bond measure for homeless housing.

Angelenos are willing to do their share, Santana said, as long as they know its being spread around evenly.

Council members pledged to back at least 222 units of supportive housing in each of their districts by July 1, 2020, including units dating back to July 1, 2017, around the time the city began funding HHH projects. Meeting that target would put L.A. on track to meet its goal of adding 10,000 homeless housing units in a decade.

So far, no new projects have been approved in Koretzs Westside district.

The same goes for Councilman Joe Buscaino, whose district stretches from Watts to San Pedro, and Councilmen Mitchell Englander and Bob Blumenfield, who represent the western San Fernando Valley. L.A. council members have the power to quietly block homeless housing in their districts, but the four lawmakers say they have not thwarted proposed projects.

Were pursuing every angle we can, Blumenfield said, touting other efforts to bolster affordable housing. But I dont control what developers do.

Only one HHH project has been proposed in his San Fernando Valley district: a 26-unit project that Blumenfield helped usher along by enlisting the city to purchase the Reseda site and put it up for development to serve the community. It has strong support from Blumenfield, but even if it is approved, he will need many more units to meet the 222-unit goal.

Englander, in turn, enthusiastically supported the idea of converting a Roscoe Boulevard motel into housing for scores of homeless veterans. But that plan never moved forward.

And Buscaino already has hundreds of supportive housing units in his district, but all were approved before the period covered by the pledge. His spokesman, Branimir Kvartuc, said Buscaino was eager to support such projects but had only recently gotten a pair of HHH proposals totaling more than 110 units.

Meanwhile, Councilmen Gil Cedillo, Jose Huizar and Curren Price, who represent districts covering downtown, parts of the Eastside and South L.A., have already exceeded the goal, according to the United Way of Greater Los Angeles, which is tracking their progress.

Several others are not far off, including Councilman Mike Bonin, whose coastal district includes some of the most expensive areas in the city.

At a recent community meeting, some residents prodded Koretz about building homeless housing. The pledge was really a big deal for our part of town where I dont think there was that urgency, said Scott Epstein, head of the Mid City West Community Council. Its been an important rallying cry.

Koretz and his staffers stress that land is coveted and pricey in his Westside district, which includes Bel-Air, Cheviot Hills and Westwood.

My problem isnt community opposition, Koretz said earlier this summer. I havent been able to get to the point where we have anything to oppose.

For instance, affordable housing developer Steven Spielberg said one possible project dissolved because his nonprofit ultimately did not purchase the La Cienega Boulevard motel that it had been eyeing. Spielberg said the seller wanted the firm to submit an offer so quickly that it could not perform due diligence.

He and his firm have since proposed a new 50-unit building for homeless residents in the district that Koretz represents, which the councilman supports.

Another plan for turning a motel into homeless housing fell apart in North Hills, which is represented by Englander, after the owner of the motel chain insisted on a steep payment, said Andy Meyers, chief executive of Shangri-La Construction. The motel is still operating on a busy stretch of Roscoe Boulevard near the Anheuser-Busch brewing plant.

No new HHH projects have been proposed in the district. Converting motels can be an efficient way to create homeless housing, but such properties are concentrated in poor and segregated neighborhoods. Only two motels exist in Englanders district, according to a housing department report this spring.

The district is slightly hamstrung, said Shangri-La President Ayahlushim Getachew.

Alan Greenlee, executive director of the Southern California Assn. of Nonprofit Housing, said that Englanders and Blumenfields Valley districts might also be short on HHH proposals because affordable housing developers havent been as likely to scope out sites in those relatively far-flung parts of the city.

Homeless advocates have urged the city to examine land it already owns for possible housing, especially in areas where private land is costly. Bonin, for instance, has neared the goal in his coastal district with projects slated for sites owned by the city and the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs.

But when city analysts scrutinized hundreds of surplus sites, they ruled out almost all of them for homeless housing  including scores of sites in Koretzs district  because they were too small, already in use, impractical to build on, or had other issues.

L.A. staffers are now examining parking lots owned by the city, which were not included in the initial review, along with property owned by other public agencies and private entities as another pool of possible sites.

The city has also offered an incentive to developers building HHH projects in areas with high land costs, allowing them to receive more of their fee when construction loans close, according to a housing department report. As of this spring, the department said it was too soon to tell if it had been effective.

Ultimately, elected officials will need to mobilize community leaders to address a problem the housing market will not fix on its own, said Greg Spiegel, director of strategic initiatives for Inner City Law Center.

Developers  it isnt their job to solve this problem, Spiegel said.

emily.alpert@latimes.com

Twitter: @AlpertReyes
The China-Rwanda cooperation is a productive partnership that benefits both countries, Rwandan President Paul Kagame said on Sunday, Sept. 2, in the run-up to the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

We have benefited a lot from Chinas support in our social and economic programs, and that has continued to strengthen the partnership between China and Rwanda, Kagame explained during an interview with Peoples Daily Online.

Mr. Kagame is also serving as the rotating chair of the African Union (AU) this year. He said hes happy to do his part to help bring African countries and China closer together under the framework of the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI), noting that this year marks the 5th anniversary of the BRI's launch.

The Belt and Road Initiative is a very good concept where each country involved finds a place for its own development in areas like industrialization, infrastructure and green economy. The progress made for all players has been so far so good. We will continue to play our own role to make sure we contribute to the overall development framework, Kagame said.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame

Kagame expects the 2018 FOCAC Beijing Summit to help both African countries and China identify areas of required improvement. We need to do more and do better than we have already achieved in the last several years, Kagame said, adding, FOCAC can show the world how countries can work collaboratively at a time when issues like trade protectionism continue to brew.

This years summit is themed "China and Africa: Toward an Even Stronger Community with a Shared Future through Win-Win Cooperation.

Kagame notes that no matter the distance, we are driven by the same aspirations: development and stability. We should do what we can to make sure the world we live in is taken good care of.
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. Its Monday, Sept. 3  Labor Day  and heres whats happening across California:

TOP STORIES

Endorsing a dramatic departure from decades of secrecy surrounding policing in the state, California lawmakers have moved to undo some of the nations strictest rules keeping law enforcement records confidential, particularly involving officer killings of civilians. The bills would give public access to internal investigations of police shootings statewide, and another would allow the release of body camera footage of those incidents. Los Angeles Times

-- The Times series on how secret police misconduct records can subvert the criminal justice system in California. Los Angeles Times

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-- In another dramatic criminal justice reform, California is poised to do away with cash bail. Bail companies would need to spend around $3 million for a referendum asking state voters to rescind the newly passed law. Its estimated that the industry generates perhaps 30 times that amount every year. Los Angeles Times

-- A topsy-turvy week for the American Civil Liberties Union in California. San Diego Union-Tribune

More from the wildfires aftermath

Gov. Jerry Brown must now decide what to do with a collection of proposed laws to bolster fire prevention efforts and the readiness of residents, along with a plan in which utility companies could pass some wildfire-related costs onto customers. Consumer groups and large industrial stakeholders were enraged by provisions in SB 901 that will offer financial help to utility companies to pay for the liability costs of fires. Pacific Gas & Electric is facing potential bankruptcy from the costs of wine country fires. Los Angeles Times

-- Why PG&E ratepayers will end up with higher bills. Wall Street Journal

-- Secret rooms. Beloved vistas. A onetime library of Patty Hearst scholarship. Things lost in the Redding fire. Redding Record Searchlight

Get the Essential California newsletter 

L.A. STORIES

Monorails, affordable homes, maybe personal blimps? Is greater Los Angeles getting better or worse? Columnist Steve Lopez asked. Many of you answered. The responses were as far apart as Inglewood and Indio: Its hell on earth. No, wait, its paradise and getting better all the time. Los Angeles Times

Plus: Here is the blueprint to make L.A. better. Los Angeles Times

Online furor: An attorney appears to mock Asians in Orange County. And she gets mocked in return. Orange County Register

The whole street is the canvas: A mile-long museum of African American life could be coming to Crenshaw Boulevard. Los Angeles Magazine

A Valley tradition: Secession. Now, a part of Woodland Hills wants to become something new, with the world walnut in it. Los Angeles Daily News

Fight, fight, fight: The Chip Kelly era at UCLA begins, well  Los Angeles Times

CRIME AND COURTS

In Moreno Valley: Authorities say street racing may have contributed to a horrific crash that killed four people in the Inland Empire. If so, it would be part of a growing death toll. Los Angeles Times

Officer-involved shooting: A sheriffs deputy on Sunday shot a man who appeared to be firing a weapon into the air outside a gate leading into a scheduled Ice Cube concert at the Del Mar Racetrack. San Diego Union-Tribune

Head-on collision: A man from New Zealand drove on the wrong side of the road in Northern California. SFGate

Mob thefts: Whats behind the rash of thefts at Apple stores? Why cant the company do more to stop them? San Francisco Chronicle

POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT

In tribute: In the week since his death, flags all over Orange Countys Little Saigon have flown at half-mast for Arizona Sen. John McCain. They celebrated McCain for fighting alongside the South Vietnamese and for championing political detainees. Los Angeles Times

Son Nguyen, a math instructor at Coastline Community College, at the Vietnam War Monument in Westminster. (Gary Coronado / Los Angeles Times)

Umm: Is giving someone a noogie ever a good idea? Los Angeles Times

Confirmation time: Sens. Dianne Feinstein and Kamala Harris have their agendas as the Supreme Court nomination fight heats up. San Francisco Chronicle

Who knew? Wine country grape workers could be getting more pay, thanks in part to competition for labor from pot growers. Santa Rosa Press Democrat

THE ENVIRONMENT

North of Lake Havasu: A night on the Colorado River turned tragic when two boats crashed and sank, casting 16 passengers into the rushing water. Four people  three women and one man  were still missing Sunday night, officials said. Los Angeles Times

CALIFORNIA CULTURE

Farm living is the life ...: For years, a Santa Monica couple dreamed of starting their own farm, but in the way so many of us do  romantically fantasizing about giving up the urban sprawl for a simpler life. Then they actually purchased 130 acres of land in Moorpark. In true Hollywood style, their story is now a movie. Los Angeles Times

Why is this so difficult? TV writers rooms are not particularly diverse places. Some in Hollywood want to change that. But finding non-white writers has proven difficult. Or has it? New York Times

Lessons for Hollywood: Sequels still rule, pure comedies are in trouble, documentaries are having a moment (again). Los Angeles Times

Out with a roar: One last ride on the Jurassic Park ride at Universal Studios. LAist

And: Bye bye to the bugs at Disneyland. San Gabriel Valley Tribune

Life after 55: More older Californians than ever have to work well past retirement age to make ends meet. Finding work at a certain age can be depressing. San Diego Union-Tribune

Shooby dooby to Chapter 11: Tough times for iconic Southern California diner chain Rubys. Wall Street Journal

CALIFORNIA ALMANAC

Los Angeles area: Partly cloudy, 80, Monday. Sunny, 80, Tuesday. San Diego: Partly cloudy, 76, Monday. Partly cloudy, 77, Tuesday. San Francisco area: Sunny, 67, Monday. Partly cloudy, 67, Tuesday. San Jose: Sunny, 84, Monday and Tuesday. Sacramento: Sunny, 94, Monday. Sunny, 93, Tuesday. More weather is here.

AND FINALLY

This weeks birthdays for those who made a mark in California: lawyer Robert Shapiro (Sept. 2, 1942), singer Beyonce (Sept. 4, 1981) and comedian Bob Newhart (Sept. 5, 1929).

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.
If there is one inarguable truth about the state of the modern world, its that industries and national economies have become so globalized that there is no turning back, no matter how many tariffs President Trump slaps on imports or how hard he tries to rewrite trade deals. But theres another inarguable truth, too. The advanced nations of the world did not fully anticipate and address the economic pain of workers whose jobs have disappeared as production has migrated to other countries to take advantage of lower labor costs or move closer to foreign markets. And so, somewhat incongruously, increased globalization has helped propel the rise of protectionist nationalism, particularly here in the U.S. and in Europe, which could lead to a more fractious, and thus more dangerous, world.

Free trade and the globalized economy have been especially good for some corporations and developing nations, but not so good for the working and middle classes of some developed nations or the people living outside population centers who dont work in export-friendly businesses. While American economic energy and people have consolidated in large metro areas mainly in the coastal states, many rural areas and smaller interior cities have suffered, leading to geographic and class resentments.

If nations are to flourish in this globalized world, they will need to find ways to lessen the economic damage from globalization.

Donald Trump tapped into that well of populism to win the White House, and neo-nationalists have done similarly in Europe. Great Britains vote to withdraw from the European Union relied on similar dissatisfactions. Residents of Scotland and British urban areas voted against Brexit, but not in sufficient numbers to counter the strong support in rural areas and small towns.

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But theres more involved than economics and the rural-urban divide. Brexit supporters were driven largely by resentment toward immigrants, and western Europe has been grappling with a huge influx of refugees from the Middle East and Africa as wars, political instability and sputtering economies have put torrents of people on the move.

Since 2014, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees reports, more than 1.8 million mostly Middle Eastern and African migrants have arrived in Europe by sea. That influx has fueled complaints by some conservatives who claim it is changing the nature of Europe itself, and its giving political support to nationalist parties in France, Hungary, Poland and Italy.

The U.S. has its own long-running debate over immigration control even as the total number of people living here illegally has dropped over the past decade. The dramatic flow of unaccompanied minors and families fleeing Central American violence has reinvigorated anti-immigrant hardliners, though a growing number of Americans say they believe the nation needs more legal immigration.

In many ways, the rise of ethnic nationalism stems from fears of lost identity. The demagogues fueling and feeding off this instability want, as Trump put it, to make their nations great again. Thats usually defined by reverting to some previous and usually romanticized state of ethnic dominance. Some white Americans fear the browning of the nation and its implied cultural shifts; Marine Le Pen, the face of French right-wing nationalism, wants France for the French, and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has won success by framing his country as the last bastion against the Islamization of Europe. According to Orban, neighboring nations acceptance of immigrants opened the way for the decline of Christian culture and  Islamic expansion.

Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion 

It is that sort of economic and cultural anxiety that threatens to undo the post-World War II order of liberal democracy and the belief that individual freedoms must be protected in pluralistic societies. If nations are to flourish in this globalized world, they will need to find ways to lessen the economic damage from globalization and to counter the fears of cultural change. They also need to make a stronger defense of liberal institutions such as independent judiciaries and a free press, reduce vitriol and ostracization in public discourse, and better integrate rural areas with the national economy (improving rural internet access and hiring more people to work remotely would be a start).

Ultimately the nations of the world need to recognize that while there is mutual advantage to globalization, localized damage must be addressed without foisting undeserved blame onto immigrants or minority cultures within nations. The world has seen where toxic nationalism has led in the past  to devastating wars, in fact  and cannot countenance its rise now. A world of walls can be a dangerous place.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook
The Labor Question is back, big-time. The term came into use around the turn of the 20th century; it was a shorthand way of asking: What should be done about the working class smoldering discontent in the wake of industrialization? The anger was palpable, made manifest in waves of worker revolts that stretched from the nationwide rail strike of 1877 through the general strikes of 1919.

Not all the battles were fought in the plants and in the streets. Progressive state legislatures in the early 20th century enacted laws setting minimum wages and limiting the hours women and children could be compelled to work; the courts routinely struck them down, and just as routinely short-circuited strikes by imposing jail sentences on strikers.

It was the New Deal, and the rise of unions that the New Deal facilitated, that rendered the Labor Question seemingly moot. In the three decades following World War II, when unions were strong and prosperity broadly shared, the term receded into the history books alongside other phrases  like, say, slaveholder  that evoked a dark and presumably buried side of Americas past.

The economic inequality that preceded the New Deal is back with us; the Labor Question has returned.

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For the last several decades, however, its the largely egalitarian spirit of the New Deal that has receded into the shadows. The economic inequality that preceded the New Deal is back with us; the Labor Question has returned.

At the core of the problem is the imbalance of economic power, which takes the form of booming profits and stagnating wages. The Financial Times recently reported that the share of company revenues going to profits is the highest in many years, which necessarily means that the share going to the main alternative destination for company revenues  employees pockets  has shrunk.

Nor is this a short-lived phenomenon brought about by the Republican tax cut. In 2011, the chief investment officer of JP Morgan Chase calculated that three-quarters of the long-term increase in U.S. companies profit margins was due to the declining share going to wages and benefits. A study last year by Simcha Barkai, an economist at the University of Chicagos Stigler Center, found that labors share of the national income has dropped by 6.7% since the mid-1980s, while the share of the nations income going to business investment in equipment, research, new hires and the like has dropped by 7.2%. Correspondingly, the share of the nations income going to shareholders (the lions share to the very wealthy, among them the CEOs who are compensated with shares) rose by 13.5%. That shift has put American workers at a double disadvantage, as their wages and the private-sector investment that creates jobs and boosts productivity have both hit the skids.

Like slowly simmering frogs, Americans have required some time to grasp just how dire their situation has become. On Labor Day 2018, however, its clear that most of them now realize the need to reshuffle the power structure. A Gallup Poll released on Friday showed support for unions at 62%, the highest level in 15 years, with majority backing from every demographic group except Republicans, and even they are evenly split, 45% to 47%.

The overwhelming public support for striking teachers this spring in such red states as West Virginia, Oklahoma and Arizona was no fluke; another recent poll, this from the venerable education pollster PDK, found 73% support for teachers strikes, and a remarkable 78% support from parents of school-age children. The two-to-one rejection of a right-to-work law this summer by Missouri voters is further evidence of a pro-labor shift in public opinion, as are the successful unionization campaigns over the past year of such not-easily-fired workers as university teaching assistants and journalists (including those at such venerable anti-union bastions as the Chicago Tribune and the Los Angeles Times).

Enter the Fray: First takes on the news of the minute from L.A. Times Opinion 

As was the case during the years when the Labor Question was first before the nation, the chief instrument the right relies on to diminish worker power is the courts. The Supreme Courts decision in June in the Janus case, which was meant to reduce the membership and resources of public-sector unions, was just the latest in a string of rulings to advantage corporate and Republican interests. During the past year, however, progressives have put forth some of the most far-reaching proposals in many decades to rebalance economic clout, including bills from two Democratic senators  Massachusetts Elizabeth Warren and Wisconsins Tammy Baldwin  that would require corporations to divide their boards between representatives of workers and representatives of shareholders.

Since conservatives and business interests began pecking away at the New Deals handiwork in the 1970s, class conflict in America has been largely one-sided. On this Labor Day, however, its clear that the battle has finally been joined. The Labor Question is before us and remains to be resolved.

Harold Meyerson is executive editor of the American Prospect. He is a contributing writer to Opinion.

Follow the Opinion section on Twitter @latimesopinion or Facebook
A new 10-day holiday-season tour for families explores Vietnams culture and landscape, with a focus on cooking.

In addition to visits to Ho Chi Minh City, Hoi An and Hanoi, the Thomson Family Adventure includes a cooking class focusing on preparation of four traditional Vietnamese dishes: beef noodle soup, clay pot fish, lemongrass shrimp grilled in banana leaves and grilled chicken and banana flower salad.

Participants will also take a nighttime Vespa food tour, explore the Mekong Delta, cruise Halong Bay and take a tai chi lesson. The tour is recommended for kids 8 and older.

Dates: Dec. 23-Jan. 1, 2019; other 2019 dates available.

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Price: Adults and teens from $4,890 per person, double occupancy; $4,790 for kids. Includes accommodations, meals, land transportation, entrance fees, guide and travel insurance. International and in-country airfare not included.

Info: Thomson Family Adventures, (800) 262-6255

ALSO

Could your European river cruise turn into a land tour? Summer drought leaves some ships high and dry

All the LAX parking lots are full and your flight is in an hour. Heres what to do

California has an apple season, and it starts now. Here are four places to pick or just sample

travel@latimes.com

@latimestravel
China has promoted its massive global infrastructure plan, the Belt and Road Initiative, with dancing children singing a propaganda pop song, an animated rap and TV bedtime stories with tinkly background music on how it helps everyone.

Well share the goodness now, the Belt and Road is how, the children sing in a 2017 video about President Xi Jinpings foreign policy cornerstone.



For the record: An earlier caption referred to Nigerian President Mahamadou Issoufou. Issoufou is the president of Niger, not Nigeria.

But lately the governments big spending in Africa and elsewhere faces a growing domestic backlash, from leading academics to everyday Chinese on social media websites.

Why is China, a country with over 100 million people who are still living below the poverty line, playing at being the flashy big-spender? wrote an influential Tsinghua University law professor, Xu Zhangrun, in a wide-ranging critique of Xi in July. How can such wanton generosity be allowed?

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China has pumped more than $124 billion into Africa since 2000 and on Monday offered another $60 billion while canceling the debts of some poor African nations. It has spent $500 million on Belt and Road projects in dozens of countries globally.

Speaking at a summit Monday, Xi said Chinas new spending in Africa would deliver tangible benefits.

Chinas cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects but in places where they count most, he said.

But the spending comes, many Chinese note, while theres a doctor shortage, rampant pollution and people struggling to buy medicines or get a decent education at home.

Xus critique, which singled out what he called vanity politics, sent tremors through Chinas elite because of its blunt criticism of Xi.

The projects and spending from China take many forms  sometimes infrastructure built by Chinese state-owned companies, sometimes by private firms. The funds tend to be distributed through low-interest loans.

Chinese officials have been on the defensive lately about criticisms, including Western accusations, that Belt and Road projects could snare nations into unsustainable debt, and a raft of senior officials from Xi down have been at pains to defend the plan and promote its benefits.

Domestic criticisms of Belt and Road come at an awkward time, with dozens of African leaders jetting in Monday to Beijing for a summit that many likely hope will lead to more financial promises this year.

China has built roads, railways, airports, stadiums and electricity systems in Africa, doling out loans without questioning governments about human rights, a policy that makes China an attractive partner to African leaders. The spending spree has offered many African nations development opportunities they would have otherwise never had.

Chinese activity in Africa expanded dramatically from around 2000, well before the Belt and Road era, far surpassing the U.S. and opening up access to African resources. In 2013, an official with the Export-Import Bank of China estimated that by 2025, China will provide Africa with financing  including direct investment, soft loans and commercial loans  totaling $1 trillion U.S.

But critics warn that African nations could be sinking into unsustainable debt, like the debts to Western and multilateral lenders in past decades that many African countries still bear. In recent years, many African nations have rapidly expanded their debt, prompting recent warnings from the International Monetary Fund of debt distress in 15 African countries.

Details of China-Africa loans are usually kept secret by both parties, but critics say the deals often involve African nations mortgaging their mineral and oil resources as collateral. U.S. officials have warned that African countries risk losing their sovereignty because of Chinese debt.

The Chinese government has responded harshly to critics of its spending overseas.

Last month during a live radio interview, Sun Wenguang, a retired professor from Shandong University, was criticizing Xis spending in Africa and arguing that the Chinese president was overlooking Chinas own poverty when six police officers barged into his apartment.

There are so many other things for him to take into account, Sun said in the Voice of Americas Mandarin service interview. China has got a huge population, and there are still so many destitute people. If you dont actually have the capacity to meet the scale of things you are trying to do, just dont do it. [If] you still choose to throw money at other countries, a domestic backlash is almost guaranteed.

The police officers forced him off air and took him from his house, even as he insisted that he had a right to free speech. He could be heard protesting, Ordinary people are poor. Lets not throw our money away in Africa. Throwing money around like this doesnt do any good for our country or our society.

The Belt and Road Initiatve, or BRI, is actually a brand designed to boost Chinese leaders domestically, according to Merriden Varrall, a China analyst at the Lowy Institute think tank in Sydney.

This vast web of projects and deals around the world is less about China attempting to attain global domination than about desperately promoting, among Chinese people, Xi and the Chinese Communist Partys right to rule, Varrall wrote recently.

As critics see it, BRI projects are used by party officials to curry favor with their superiors by making them look good, according to Matt Schrader of the Jamestown Foundation, a Washington-based global affairs think tank.

In the BRI, domestic critics see an extension of the Chinese Communist Partys predilection for grand spending that disproportionately benefits connected insiders, he wrote in a recent analysis.

On Weibo, Chinas version of Twitter, some criticize Chinas pride in flashing its big money.

In recent years, China has invested heavily in foreign countries and provided a lot of assistance to many developing countries and poor countries and regions such as Africa and Asia. Is China a developed country? Most people dont think so, because Chinas per capita GDP ranked around 70 in the world, and China still has tens of millions of people living below the poverty line waiting for poverty alleviation, one user wrote.

Another said that if China was so strong that it had spare money to invest endlessly in Africa, why cant you help your own people at home? adding that government officials could not survive on the minimum wage that many Chinese are paid.

Foreign officials have pushed back on Belt and Road projects too. One embarrassing rebuff came recently when Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad halted two Chinese BRI mega-projects, saying they would bankrupt his country.

We do not want a situation where there is a new form of colonialism happening because poor countries are unable to compete with rich countries, Mahathir said in Chinas Great Hall of the People after meeting with Chinese Premier Li Keqiang.

Crushing BRI debt might haunt some other countries too. A report in March by the Center for Global Development, a Washington-based think tank, warned that 23 of 68 countries were at quite high risk of debt distress due to Belt and Road projects, while eight others could have trouble servicing their debt  Pakistan, Djibouti, the Maldives, Laos, Mongolia, Montenegro, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

Amid the Malaysian setback and domestic criticisms, Chinese officials have been talking up the projects global good, its trade benefits to China, and its importance to developing nations with no other means to finance transportation infrastructure.

Xi said Tuesday that Belt and Road did not aim to create a geopolitical bloc, military alliance or China club. The trade volume with China and countries involved in BRI exceeded $5 trillion in the past five years, he said, according to the Communist Party-owned China Daily.

Chinas foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying denied China was luring poor nations into debt traps.

I cant help but wonder why the money is money pie when it is offered by the Western countries but money trap when offered by China? Isnt it a glaring double-standard? she said. By funding infrastructure and other areas that lag behind for a shortage of money, we have helped the relevant countries break bottlenecks, enhance their capacity for independent development, realize social and economic sustainable development, and improve peoples livelihoods.

robyn.dixon@latimes.com

Twitter: @RobynDixon_LAT

UPDATES:

9:10 a.m.: This article was updated with Chinese President Xi Jinping announcing additional funding for nations in Africa.

This article was originally published at 3 a.m.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who once compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust, paid a solemn visit to Israels national Holocaust memorial on Monday, branding Nazi leader Adolf Hitler insane as he lamented the genocide of 6 million Jews.

The comments marked a dramatic turnaround for Duterte, who with his Holocaust analogy two years ago said he would be happy to slaughter 3 million addicts. He later apologized.

Duterte, known for his profane outbursts and accused of committing widespread human rights abuses, spoke quietly and respectfully during his stop at the Yad Vashem memorial. He said the Holocaust should never be repeated and that despots have no place in the modern world.

I could not imagine a country obeying an insane leader, and I could not ever fathom the spectacle of the human being going into a killing spree, murdering old men, women and children. I hope this will not happen again, he said.

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There is always a lesson to learn: that despots and leaders who show insanity, they should be disposed of at the first instance, he said.

Duterte, the first Philippine president to visit Israel, has received a warm welcome from the government, despite criticism that it is embracing a leader accused of rights abuses in his deadly crackdown on drug dealers.

The agenda reportedly is expected to include an arms sale to the Philippines. Israel agreed in the past to sell assault rifles to the Philippines national police force.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remarked Monday on the countries long friendship. He said the Philippines took in Jewish refugees after World War II and was the only Asian nation to vote for Israels establishment. He noted that Filipino health aides now assist the elderly in Israel, including Netanyahus father.

We remember our friends, and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years, Netanyahu told Duterte. There has been a remarkable phenomenon in Israel where thousands and thousands of families have taken heart from the support given by Filipino caretakers for the elderly.

Duterte thanked Israel for hosting some 28,000 Filipino workers and for assisting his country in times of need.

We share the same passion for peace. We share the same passion for human beings. But also we share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who have the corrupt ideology, who know nothing but to kill and destroy, he said at a joint appearance with Netanyahu. And in this sense, Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extend to your country.

The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1957. Netanyahu has worked to cultivate new allies in Asia, Africa and Latin America, where many countries have historically sided with the Palestinians in their conflict with Israel, to help chip away at the number of anti-Israel votes at the United Nations.

But Netanyahu has come under fire for embracing Duterte, a 73-year-old former government prosecutor whose forces are accused of killing thousands in anti-drug raids since he took office in 2016.

Duterte drew outrage that year when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust and himself to Hitler. More recently, he forcibly kissed a woman on stage and said there would be many rape cases in a Philippine city if there were many beautiful women.

In its lead editorial Monday, the liberal Haaretz daily accused Netanyahu of selling out Israeli values for dubious allies.

Under the shadow of Dutertes visit, Israel once again proves its willing to overlook leaders human rights violations for the sake of opportunities for arms deals and defense contracts, the newspaper said.

Duterte, who calls U.S. President Trump a friend and in 2016 cursed President Obama for alleged meddling, offered the former occupant of the White House an apology of sorts.

I said, Son of a bitch, Obama you can go to hell. You son of a bitch. I said that because he was not [behaving like] a civilized person, Duterte said in Israel. It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr. Obama that, You are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words. 

Duterte has been criticized for a brutal crackdown on the Philippine drug trade. Reports of extrajudicial slayings of alleged dealers surfaced during Obamas presidency.

Official Philippine police tallies put the number of suspects killed in police-led drug raids at more than 4,500 since Duterte took office.

International human rights watchdogs have cited far higher death tolls. Duterte denies condoning extrajudicial killings but has openly threatened drug dealers with death.

His visit to Israel was to include a stop at a monument commemorating the Philippines rescue of Jews during the Holocaust.
While movie audiences worldwide relish the million-dollar earrings and private jets of Crazy Rich Asians, Singaporeans would like you to know that in reality, things here can get even richer and even crazier.

One described a wedding reception where Diana Ross performed. Another told of a son from a wealthy family who knocked out his front teeth chugging from a magnum bottle of Dom Perignon.

An heir to a business fortune admitted  no, more like bragged  to a newspaper that hed once walked into a designer shoe store and said: Ill take one pair of everything you have, in every color.

The movie is just a really nice romantic comedy, said Juliana Chan, a scientist and magazine editor. It didnt feel over-the-top.

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One out of every 34 Singaporeans is a millionaire, the highest density of any Asian city. (Wallace Woon / EPA/Shutterstock)

The real-life stories of Singapores ultra-rich illustrate this tiny city-states remarkable transformation from a sleepy colonial trading post with no natural resources into a global financial capital and playground for the 1%.

But the tales of excess hardly square with the obsessively disciplined, authoritarian ethos that propelled the island to prosperity over the last half-century. Even as many Singaporeans revel in Hollywoods sumptuous portrayal, Crazy Rich Asians has renewed questions about inequality and privilege in a society that was founded on values of hard work, equal opportunity and social order.

The movie has lit a spark because it seems to be celebrating wealth that 99% of the country cant access, said Aun Koh, an entrepreneur. And in the last 10 years that gap has gotten worse.

The signs of Singapores success are everywhere  the Instagram-ready pool parties atop five-star hotels, the designer boutiques shimmering along tree-lined boulevards, the oceanfront mansions on the resort island that hosted President Trumps summit in June with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.

One out of every 34 Singaporeans is a millionaire, the highest density of any Asian city, according to the research company WealthInsight. With a population of about 5.5 million, Singapore has a $57,000 per capita income  nearly that of the United States.

It got this way under the guidance of the late Lee Kuan Yew, who was prime minister when the former British colony separated from Malaysia and became independent in 1965. Lee built a ruthlessly efficient government that paid handsome salaries to recruit top-notch Cabinet ministers and drew investors from around the world to the islands strategic location along one of the worlds busiest shipping corridors.

Disdainful of democracy and famously abstemious  he reportedly wore the same exercise shorts for 17 years  Lee led a one-party state that enforced strict notions of public behavior. Graffiti, feeding pigeons and the sale of chewing gum were banned.

Singapores founding prime minister, Lee Kuan Yew, is shown in an April 2011 photo. Lee died in 2015 at age 91. (Wong Maye-E / AP)

But he also created an enviable system of schools, hospitals and public housing that was meant to guarantee everyone in the multiethnic country  mainly Chinese, but with sizable groups of Indians and Malay  an equal chance at success.

Singapore was to be a meritocracy, in Lees vision, and those who succeed shouldnt flaunt their advantages. His son, current Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, said recently that Singaporeans should frown upon those who go for ostentatious displays of wealth and status, or worse, look down on others less well off and privileged.

But the younger Lee earns more than $1.7 million. And last month, just before Crazy Rich Asians premiered in Singapore, a controversial comment by former Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong laid bare a growing social divide.

Goh was asked whether government ministers million-dollar salaries should be reduced to increase entitlements for the elderly. Rejecting the idea, he said that in that case the government would only be able to attract very, very mediocre people who cant even earn a million Singaporean dollars, or about $730,000, in the private sector.

Many Singaporeans were appalled.

What was worse is that not a single political leader spoke up to criticize the comment, Koh said. Theres a huge problem if this whole layer of government has this snobbish attitude.

Theres a lot of resentment building up, and the movie didnt do any favors to the people in authority.

Fireworks light up the sky behind Singapores Marina Bay Sands hotel during the 53rd National Day parade and celebration last month. (Roslan Rahman / AFP/Getty Images)

Even the vaunted public schools, long the pathway for working-class students into top business and government jobs, are becoming more stratified as generations go on. The best high schools award some spots to the sons and daughters of alumni and others to those who live in surrounding neighborhoods  where housing prices have naturally soared into the millions of dollars.

The principal of one of the top schools, Raffles Institution, which counts Lee Kuan Yew and many Cabinet members as alumni, recently said he was struggling to recruit students from diverse backgrounds because some were worried about not fitting in with wealthier classmates.

The divide is entrenched very early in life, said Chan, the scientist and magazine editor.

Some experts say the very policies that have made Singapore an attractive investment destination  low corporate and personal income tax rates, and no capital gains or estate tax  have made it more unequal.

Chinese businessmen have flocked to the island since 2008, bringing a flood of new money and gaudy spending that Singapores original ethnic Chinese business families  like the relatively low-key Young clan at the center of Crazy Rich Asians  regard as gauche.

But the government has courted the new arrivals with tax breaks and other inducements  including building two luxurious casinos despite Lee Kuan Yews longtime opposition to gambling. At the casino at the Marina Bay Sands hotel complex  the three curved towers topped by a ship-like terrace  Singaporeans must pay a $70 entry fee while admission is free to foreigners.

A carries the Singaporean national flag above the Marina Bay Sands, where Singaporeans must pay a $70 entry fee to gamble but foreigners may enter for free. (Wallace Woon / EPA/Shutterstock)

The red carpet is rolled out for foreigners, especially the wealthy, said Linda Lim, a Singapore-born professor of international business at the University of Michigan.

The whole society is now based on making money. It is at odds with our founding values.

Still, many Singaporeans see inequality as the cost of a relentlessly capitalistic system that rewards certain types of skills. In official terms, Singapore has no poverty  because it has not defined a poverty line  and no pension system, in keeping with the founding ethos that everyone must work.

Many struggling elderly Singaporeans, often without families to support them, bus tables at the citys ubiquitous outdoor food stalls or collect cardboard boxes to recycle for money.

We accept some inequality in order that we can have the kind of economic prosperity that has brought us this far, said Irene Ng Yue Hoong, an associate professor of social work at the National University of Singapore.

But the government has been sensitive to criticism over inequality and responded with additional subsidies  expanding access to early childhood education for low-income families and announcing welfare packages for seniors born in the 1940s and 1950s, before the economic boom.

The need to maintain upward mobility is really important for the governments legitimacy, said sociologist Chua Beng Huat. But the governments idea is to keep raising the bottom of the economic ladder, rather than restrict the top.

shashank.bengali@latimes.com

Twitter: @SBengali
During the 1980s, as much of Central America became a bloody Cold War battleground, the conflict in Guatemala stood out as exceptionally sinister.

The ruling military junta viewed the highland Indians  descendants of the Mayas  as natural allies of the Marxist guerrillas fighting to overthrow it.

Security forces launched a massive counterinsurgency against selected populations, especially the Ixil ethnic enclave here in Quiche province.

A report by a United Nations-backed truth commission after the 36-year civil war formally ended in 1996 found that security forces had inflicted multiple acts of savagery and genocide against Maya communities.

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The campaign included: bombing villages and attacking fleeing residents; impaling victims; burning people alive; severing limbs; throwing children into pits filled with bodies and killing them; disemboweling civilians and slashing open the wombs of pregnant women.

The massacres, scored-earth operations, forced disappearances and executions of Mayan authorities, leaders and spiritual guides were not only an attempt to destroy the social base of the guerrillas, but above all, to destroy the cultural values that ensured cohesion and collective action in Mayan communities, the Commission for Historical Clarification said.

The Guatemalan government was responsible for more than 90% of deaths, disappearances and other human rights violations during the war, the commission said. The state deliberately exaggerated a limited insurgent threat to justify large-scale repression, the commission found.

At least 200,000 people died in the civil war, the commission said.

In 2013, former dictator Gen. Efrain Rios Montt was convicted of genocide and crimes against humanity for the deaths of at least 1,771 Ixil people during his rule from 1982 to 1983. He was sentenced to 80 years in prison in a case that was widely hailed as a landmark, the first time that a former head of state faced formal genocide charges in his own nation.

But less than two weeks later, Guatemalas highest court overturned the conviction on technical grounds.

Years before Rios Montt came to power, U.S. President Carter had banned military aid to Guatemala because of the countrys dismal human rights record. It was a controversial measure at a time when left-wing insurgencies threatened U.S.-backed governments in Nicaragua and El Salvador. Guatemala had long been viewed as an anti-communist bastion.

Indeed, a CIA-backed coup in 1954 had toppled the government of leftist Guatemalan President Jacobo Arbenz, who championed a signature land reform, redistributing large estates to peasants.

Rios Montt, a charismatic evangelical preacher, was the head of a three-man junta that seized power in Guatemala in March 1982.

His admirers included President Reagan, who declared after meeting him in 1982  as the military was conducting its brutal onslaught against Maya communities  that the junta boss exhibited great personal integrity and had gotten a bum rap.

The Reagan administration lifted the embargo on arms sales to Guatemala in 1983, allowing the country to obtain equipment and parts for helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, among other items, for its counterinsurgency efforts.

The truth commission found that U.S. military assistance to Guatemala had a significant bearing on human rights violations during the armed confrontation.

In 1999, President Clinton formally apologized for Washingtons backing of right-wing governments in Guatemala.

Support for military forces and intelligence units which engaged in violence and widespread repression was wrong, and the United States must not repeat that mistake, he said.

Rios Montt, 91, reportedly suffering from a weak heart and dementia, was being retried for genocide when he died on April 1.

patrick.mcdonnell@latimes.com

Twitter: @PmcdonnellLAT
Bilateral relations between China and Benin are on good terms, while the latter is ready to intensify its cooperation with China under the framework of the Belt and Road and the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), with a focus on e-commerce, noted Benin Ambassador, Simon Pierre Adovelande.

The remarks came ahead of the FOCAC summit's successful opening in Beijing on Monday, making Adovelande one of the African politicians to further promote Sino-African relations during the event.

Im looking forward to the upcoming summit, as it will serve as a new milestone for Sino-African relations, marking the maturity of China and Africas cooperation. More importantly, China has included African countries in its shared future, so surely, we can expect fruitful results from the summit, said Adovelande.

Fostering friendly ties with Benin for the past 46 years, China has become the African country's third largest trade partner, with an annual trade volume of $2 billion. Though Benin is not a country along the Belt and Road, it plans to take part in the initiative to consolidate its trade with China.

Benins national strategies can dovetail with the Belt and Road Initiative, as it has provided Benin new opportunities to expand its cooperation with other African nations, as well as support the nations future development, added Adovelande.

According to Adovelande, Benin is now focusing on e-commerce, an industry in which China has rich experience. He believes that further cooperation in this emerging area will benefit both sides, while further collaboration in custom services and the Internet are needed.

China is a superpower in e-commerce, while Benin is at the starting point in this industry. For now, our online merchants have no access to the Chinese market, but within time, products from Benin are expected to reach China, said Adovelande.
Education & Career Training Institute Pune is offering Blockchain Training in Kothrud Pune



03.09.2018 09:18:47 - Training Institute Pune is a leading organization that provides training on multiple professional courses in the IT field. Now they are offering Blockchain Training Courses in Kothrud area for the interested candidates.



(live-PR.com) - Training Institute Pune is a leading organization that provides training on multiple professional courses in the IT field. Now they are offering Blockchain Training Courses in Kothrud area for the interested candidates.



Training Institute Pune is a well-known one in the Pune city. Now, they are going to launch their new Blockchain Training Courses in Pune for the students of Kothrud - Training Institute Pune is a leading organization that provides training on multiple professional courses in the IT field. Now they are offering Blockchain Training Courses in Kothrud area for the interested candidates.Training Institute Pune is a well-known one in the Pune city. Now, they are going to launch their new Blockchain Training Courses in Pune for the students of Kothrud area in this city. The growing demand for online transactions strategies makes it obvious that people get proper training on this subject and know more about Blockchain. Their new classes will make the students completely prepared for this subject, and they can join their professional field with confidence. Kothrud is one of the busiest parts of Pune and thus they target the aspiring professionals of this area to get the proper training on this subject.

This is an ISO 9001-2015 certified company. As the subsidiary of Optimized Infotech, Training Institute Pune has been offering their training to both the students and the established professionals, who think that better guidance can help them to achieve their target in their professional life. Thus, anybody looking to upgrade their careers and get on the exciting blockchain Courses in Pune can enroll for this best blockchain training course in Pune. The organization has some of the most talented and high qualified trainers who have immense knowledge about the latest trends in Blockchain technology.

Training Institute Pune (TIP) make you Blockchain Expert who understands and knows in-depth what is Blockchain and how Blockchain works and also uses the same knowledge to build Blockchain-based applications for enterprises and businesses.

Blockchain Certification Training Course offers the definitive training in the blockchain that includes blockchain programming  Solidity, ethereum, the concepts of distributed ledger, hyperledger, multichain, cryptocurrency, bitcoin mining, architecture, core layers, application and more. In this Blockchain course you will work on real world projects and case studies for hands-on experience.

Those who live in Kothrud area can easily access this course. It can be a student who wishes to join the Blockchain Training industry or an entrepreneur who like to use Blockchain technology.



About Training Institute In Pune

This recognized organization has flexible class timing for the interested candidates. They also provide training on various training like Digital Marketing, SEO, Artificial Intelligence, MVC 6.0. You can get more information about this organization from www.traininginstitutepune.in.

Contact:

Office No. 203, Above SUBWAY Sairam Building, Near Vanaz Company,

Paud Road, Kothrud Pune 411038+91 8007 777 243 | +91 8007 122 667

info@traininginstitutepune.in



TIP  Training Institute in Pune is pioneer in training Institutes providing various professional training courses for various technologies. Institute is constituted by proficient professionals and experts. We are working on technological domains as a centre for education to give a comprehensive and finest learning experience in various technologies. TIP is the Leading Professional Training Institute for SEO, Digital Marketing Courses in Pune. We also offers other IT Trainings like AngularJS, MVC, Python, Salesforce, Data Science, AI, Blockchain Hadoop, RPA (Blue Prism, Automation Anywhere, UI Path) Informatica, Selenium. Our Specialty is we provide Hands on Training for all Courses and All Trainers at our Institute are from MNCs.

area in this city. The growing demand for online transactions strategies makes it obvious that people get proper training on this subject and know more about Blockchain. Their new classes will make the students completely prepared for this subject, and they can join their professional field with confidence. Kothrud is one of the busiest parts of Pune and thus they target the aspiring professionals of this area to get the proper training on this subject.This is an ISO 9001-2015 certified company. As the subsidiary of Optimized Infotech, Training Institute Pune has been offering their training to both the students and the established professionals, who think that better guidance can help them to achieve their target in their professional life. Thus, anybody looking to upgrade their careers and get on the exciting blockchain Courses in Pune can enroll for this best blockchain training course in Pune. The organization has some of the most talented and high qualified trainers who have immense knowledge about the latest trends in Blockchain technology.Training Institute Pune (TIP) make you Blockchain Expert who understands and knows in-depth what is Blockchain and how Blockchain works and also uses the same knowledge to build Blockchain-based applications for enterprises and businesses.Blockchain Certification Training Course offers the definitive training in the blockchain that includes blockchain programming  Solidity, ethereum, the concepts of distributed ledger, hyperledger, multichain, cryptocurrency, bitcoin mining, architecture, core layers, application and more. In this Blockchain course you will work on real world projects and case studies for hands-on experience.Those who live in Kothrud area can easily access this course. It can be a student who wishes to join the Blockchain Training industry or an entrepreneur who like to use Blockchain technology.About Training Institute In PuneThis recognized organization has flexible class timing for the interested candidates. They also provide training on various training like Digital Marketing, SEO, Artificial Intelligence, MVC 6.0. You can get more information about this organization from www.traininginstitutepune.in.Contact:Office No. 203, Above SUBWAY Sairam Building, Near Vanaz Company,Paud Road, Kothrud Pune 411038+91 8007 777 243 | +91 8007 122 667info@traininginstitutepune.inTIP  Training Institute in Pune is pioneer in training Institutes providing various professional training courses for various technologies. Institute is constituted by proficient professionals and experts. We are working on technological domains as a centre for education to give a comprehensive and finest learning experience in various technologies. TIP is the Leading Professional Training Institute for SEO, Digital Marketing Courses in Pune. We also offers other IT Trainings like AngularJS, MVC, Python, Salesforce, Data Science, AI, Blockchain Hadoop, RPA (Blue Prism, Automation Anywhere, UI Path) Informatica, Selenium. Our Specialty is we provide Hands on Training for all Courses and All Trainers at our Institute are from MNCs. Press Information:

Training institute pune







Contact Person:

info@traininginstitutepune.in



Phone: 02027272777

eMail: eMail



Web: http://https://www.traininginstitutepune.in





03.09.2018 09:18:47 -

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Amid rising global trade protectionism, the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) shows Chinas determination to promote fair international trade, which will significantly benefit African countries, said Julius Maada Bio, President of Sierra Leone.

The rising protectionism should worry us all, as it distorts the markets and results in trade wars, but the successful opening of the FOCAC summit shows Chinas multilateral diplomacy regarding Africa, providing more cooperation opportunities for both sides, Bio told Peoples Daily Online.

Bios remarks were made at the FOCAC, an important summit held on Sept.3-4, which aims to build a closer China-Africa community with a shared future, as well as further dovetailing Chinas Belt and Road Initiative with African development.

China has been providing support to Africa over the past decades, focusing mainly on areas including infrastructure, agriculture, healthcare and human development. The FOCAC summit will surely give us an opportunity to develop a more strategic and cooperative partnership with China, Bio noted.

According to Bio, fostering friendly bilateral relations for 47 years, China and Sierra Leone are now heading into a golden era for more diversified cooperation, with a focus on industrialization, agriculture modernization, innovation and technology, investment and human development.

China is now Sierra Leones top export destination, while trade between the two nations has witnessed continuous growth since 2002.

In addition to trade, Bio also expressed his gratitude towards Chinas aid during the countrys Ebola outbreak and in the aftermath of the recent mudslide, adding that he and his country will support President Xi Jinpings vision of China-African relations as a community of common destiny.

China provided both personnel and financial assistance when Ebola and the mudslide hit our country. Needless to say, China has always been a great friend in times of need, and as African leaders, we also have the responsibility to support the vision of a community of common destiny, said Bio.
Big names in Hollywood, sports, and music often enforce their personality rights: William Shatner called out a Toronto developer for using his likeness while selling luxury condos; Michael Jordan sued a Chicago grocer over an advert that displayed his name and number; and Rihanna litigated a UK retailer's sale of a t-shirt bearing her image. This area has become increasingly complex with the rise of social media celebrities and the borderless nature of modern advertising.

In the US, Canada, and the UK, recognisable individuals are entitled to control the commercial use of their name, image, likeness, voice and certain other aspects of their identity. These rights are known as personality rights and are generally enforceable through various statutory and common law remedies.

Mr Shatner turned to Twitter to achieve results. However, Canadian law provides multiple legal avenues to protect personality rights, many of which have parallels in the UK and US. Canadian trade mark law prohibits adopting a trade mark that may falsely suggest a connection with any living individual. Likewise, copyright law protects against the reproduction of certain works that capture the celebrity's image or likeness. Some provinces have also enacted a statutory tort of wrongful use of personality under their respective privacy statutes. Wronged plaintiffs can also rely on the common law tort of misappropriation of personality, provided they can demonstrate their likeness was used for a commercial purpose in a manner that suggests some form of endorsement.

In the US, Mr Jordan brought a statutory claim for commercial appropriation of his identity (citing a violation of the Illinois Right of Publicity Act, among other claims). The majority of US states recognise this form of action at the common law, and many states have legislated private rights of action. State-level nuances exist  for example, Indiana enacted protection of gestures at the behest of Groucho Marx's estate. A claim may also be brought under US federal law. Pursuant to the Lanham Act, a claim may be brought where there is the likelihood of confusion as to the nature of association between a person and a brand, e.g. an unauthorised endorsement.

The UK does not explicitly recognise a personality right. However, tangential legal rights can be relied on. Rihanna relied on the trade mark law tort of passing-off, which prevents a brand from falsely representing that a celebrity has endorsed a certain product or brand. Furthermore, the tort of misuse of private information protects unauthorised publishing of private information where the individual has a reasonable expectation of privacy.

The law surrounding personality rights is complex and the examples discussed in this article do not capture all available legal remedies. While personality rights have been a long-standing concern for the traditional celebrity, the rise of social media celebrities increases the risk that companies could face personality rights claims across multiple jurisdictions if legal clearance is not sought.

Elizabeth Williams

Suite 3800, Royal Bank Plaza, South Tower, 200 Bay Street, PO Box 84Toronto Ontario M5J 2Z4CanadaTel: +1 416 216 4000Elizabeth Williams specializes in the areas of global brand strategy, advertising and marketing law matters and commercial intellectual property. She advises clients on worldwide branding strategies and protection and enforcement of intellectual property rights and advises on advertising and marketing law matters including digital branding and social media matters. In addition, Elizabeth works on intellectual property-related aspects of corporate transactions and negotiates complex commercial IP agreements including licenses. Elizabeth has been a long-standing INTA Committee member and now sits on the Rights of Publicity Committee.





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The Japanese IP system has vulnerable evidence collection procedures in comparison with foreign countries. In March 2017, the Patent System Subcommittee of the Intellectual Property Committee under the Industrial Structure Council published Functional Strengthening of Systems for Handling Intellectual Property Disputes in Japan, making some proposals including an amendment of the laws concerning appropriate and fair evidence collection procedures.

1. General remarks

Evidence collection procedures in patent infringement lawsuits should be strengthened. Parties need to make appropriate decisions based on a high level of technical knowledge, and circumstances exist in which patentees have difficulty proving patent infringement because evidence relating to the accused infringers is not easily located, especially for inventions concerning manufacturing methods.

In designing the system, the following should be considered: balance in attack and defence by the patentees and the accused infringers, protection of trade secrets of the accused infringers, prevention of abuse of evidence collection procedures, and consistency with the general rules on civil lawsuits.

Based on the above, introduction of the following systems through amendments in the Patent Act should be considered: fair and neutral third party technical experts can participate in evidence collection procedures subject to confidentiality obligations; the court can determine the necessity for submitting documents and presenting objects to be inspected under in camera procedures in orders for submission of documentation and presentation of an object for inspection.

2. Details

2.1. Evidence collection procedures after filing lawsuits

(i) Introduction of a system in which fair and neutral third party technical experts can participate in evidence collection procedures after filing with confidentiality obligations imposed

Regarding an inspection system in which fair and neutral third parties conduct inspections on the accused infringers (inspection after filing), some opinions state that introducing mandatory inspections should be avoided even after filing lawsuits considering the importance of trade secret protection. Other opinions state that they doubt whether the Japanese legal system admits claims for information only in patent disputes, which provide the basis for inspections.

For these reasons, introduction of a mandatory inspection system should be carefully considered. Firstly, we should try to strengthen the procedures by introducing a system in which fair and neutral technical third party experts can participate in evidence collection procedures. These should be consistent with the structures of civil lawsuit systems in Japan, and should be closely watched.

(ii) Introduction of a system in which the parties can use in camera procedures so that the court can determine the necessity for submitting documents and presenting objects to be inspected

Some opinions state that regarding the current system of orders for submission of documents, it is difficult for parties to satisfy the necessity requirement.

Thus, a system in which the court can observe the documents and objects for inspection in order to determine existence of the necessity through in camera procedures should be introduced. By introducing this system, when the court has difficulty determining existence of necessity only based on the briefs, the court can order the party to present the documents or objects to be inspected to determine existence of necessity by actually observing them.

(iii) Plan to obtain orders for submission of documents more easily where the alleged infringers do not sufficiently perform the obligation to clarify specific conditions of infringement

(iv) Plan to enable the court to issue orders for submission of documents and protective orders simultaneously so that the court can issue orders for submission of documents more easily

It is appropriate at first to introduce the new system proposed in (ii) and closely watch the court's practice after the introduction, and to consider the proposed plan after various difficulties become clear.

2.2. Evidence collection procedures before filing lawsuits

Voluntariness in current evidence collection procedures before filing lawsuits should be maintained. Like the plans for improvement of evidence collection procedures after filing lawsuits, the procedures should be strengthened by introducing a system in which fair and neutral third party technical experts can participate in evidence collection procedures. These should be consistent with structures of civil lawsuit systems in Japan.

Practical tips

The introduction of an inspection system was proposed with the idea that even if the US discovery system does not match with the Japanese system, European evidence collection procedure may match and the German inspection system can be a good reference. However, introduction was suspended due to strong concern about trade secret leakage from the industry. For example, the concern that there would be a serious problem if someone enters a factory based on alleged evidence collection and urges the factory to disclose a manufacturing method or tries to steal know-how was expressed.

The in camera procedure was restricted to judging whether reasonable grounds to reject submission exist. The 2018 Patent Act amendment allowed in camera procedure to judge whether documents are necessary to prove infringement or calculate damages. By this amendment, for example, in camera procedure can be used when the structure of the product in question is in dispute and the defendant alleges that they cannot disclose the structure of the product due to it being a trade secret.

A judge explained the reason why almost no orders for submission of documents were made. As the order compels the party to submit a secret which they definitely do not want their direct competitors to know, the court should carefully examine whether it is necessary evidence for judgment, and the possibility of a fishing expedition or an abusive application. Judges are facing difficulty controlling the situation.



Takanori Abe





ABE & Partners

Matsushita IMP Building

1-3-7, Shiromi, Chuo-ku, Osaka, 540-0001, Japan

Tel: +81 6 6949 1496

Fax: +81 6 6949 1487

abe@abe-law.com

www.abe-law.com

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Starbucks coffeehouses can be found in myriad regions of the globe. However, Starbucks' trajectory in Russia has not been easy. Even prior to 2000, Starbucks had its sights on Russia, noting its affection for lattes and cappuccinos. It even registered its trade mark there. However, the trade mark was not used for several years for some reason.

A far-sighted Russian trade mark squatter seized this opportunity and registered the trade mark in the name of his company Starbucks Ltd, set up specifically for the purpose of squatting. Starbucks Ltd was a paper company. It had no inventory or personnel. It did not consist of anyone except its owners. As soon as the real Starbucks stepped on to Russian territory, it was confronted by the squatter who demanded $600,000 for the return of the trade mark. Unlike other companies which prefer to pay up, Starbucks preferred to fight and managed to cancel the pirated trade mark at the Russian office.

Starbucks capitalised on the successful outcome and registered a chain of trade marks that include word elements. These are:

No 349070, priority February 19 2007

No 336367, priority August 1 2006

No 323308, priority August 10 2004

No 325164, priority August 10 2004

No 323307, priority November 19 2002

No 323304, priority April 2 2002

No 254933, priority December 24 2001

As is evident, the trade marks are mostly similar (differing in font or in colour) or registered for different kinds of goods. As they say, once bitten, twice shy: Starbucks protected itself against any kind of mishap.

A little while later the precaution proved to be wise. A trade mark application for "One Bucks Coffee" was filed in 2016.

The patent office refused registration citing the chain of Starbucks trade marks. The applicant appealed the decision of the examiner at the Chamber of Patent Disputes. The Chamber supported the rejection of the registration. It stated that the basic individualising function in the trade marks is in the words. The words are easily remembered by the consumer. His perception of the trade mark begins with the word. The basis for the rejection was that the claimed designation is confusingly similar to the series of trade marks that include word elements STARBUCKS COFFEE registered in the name of Starbucks Corp., USA in respect of similar services in Classes 42 and 43. The claimed designation contains the words ONE, BUCKS and COFFEE while the cited trade marks contain the words STARBUCKS COFFEE.

When the consumer perceives the claimed designation he fixes his attention in the first place on the words BUCKS and COFFEE written in large font in the central part of the designation while the word element ONE is located vertically in the top left part of the designation. As a result of this, the attention of the consumer is less directed to it.

The word elements of the claimed designation, BUCKS and COFFEE, form part of the cited trade mark STARBUCKS COFFEE. They sound the same phonetically.

Even though the cited trade marks differ in their initial part, i.e. they contain the element STAR, the remaining part of the word designation sounds much longer, BUCKS COFFEE. As a result, eight out of twelve sounds in the compared designations coincide. The sounds follow in the same sequence which leads to an identical aural perception of the compared designations.

It is not possible to compare the meaning of word elements ONE and BUCKS with the coined word STARBUCKS cited against the claimed designation.

The Chamber also examined the criteria of visual similarity of the designations. According to the appellant some of the cited trade marks contain a stylised image of a woman with a crown on her head which creates visual differences between the registered trade marks and the claimed designation. The Chamber agreed with that argument. However, it pointed out that when comparing the designations, the Chamber proceeded from the first impression that those trade marks produce on the consumer. That impression is similar and is based on the similar sound of the word elements ONE BUCKS COFFEE and STARBUCKS COFFEE.

Based on the above information the Chamber of Patent Disputes came to the conclusion that the claimed designation and the cited trade marks are similar despite the difference that exists in some elements.

The Chamber of Patent Disputes also took into account the fact that the owner of the cited trade marks is Starbucks Corporation founded in 1971 and represented in more than 50 countries. By 2017 Starbucks had opened more than 100 coffeehouses in several cities (Moscow, S-Petersburg, Ekaterinburg, Rostov-na-Donu, Samara and many others).

The established presence of the company in the market, the scope of its products and the coverage of the territory which its products and services span under the STARBUCKS designation demonstrate the fame of the Starbucks Corporation in Russian territory. From this an obvious conclusion follows: the wider the fame and reputation of the trade mark, the more probability there is that the use of a similar designation will cause confusion.



Vladimir Biriulin

Gorodissky & Partners

Russia 129010, Moscow

B. Spasskaya Str

25, stroenie 3

Tel: +7 495 937 6116 / 6109

Fax: +7 495 937 6104 / 6123

pat@gorodissky.ru

www.gorodissky.com

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Section 13 Paragraph 2 of the Thai Trademark Act directs registrars to refuse applications for marks that are similar to a prior registered mark, given that such similarity is likely to mislead or confuse the public as to the ownership or origin of the goods claimed. In several past cases, in order to demonstrate extensive reputation of a mark and dispel the possibility of consumer confusion under this provision, the party submitted extensive use evidence.

The Central Intellectual Property and International Trade Court (CIPITC)'s decision number 127/2557 (2014) and the subsequent Supreme Court's decision number 8019/2560 (2017) on the same case on appeal have shed valuable light on the relationship between extensiveness, honesty and concurrence of trade mark use and coexistence of arguably conceptually similar trade marks.

The fluttering bird saga

The case of Jaspal Co., Ltd. v The Department of Intellectual Property  2012 which gave rise to the above-mentioned decisions involved an application by the plaintiff to register itstrade mark in class 25, which was refused by the registrar due to its similarity with a third party's registrations for themark in classes 18 and 25. The plaintiff appealed to the Trademark Appeal Board, arguing that its mark had been used extensively and in honest concurrence with the prior registered marks, which rendered any consumer confusion highly unlikely. The Appeal Board dismissed the appeal on the basis that, while the marks have minor visual differences, they are conceptually similar and their pronunciations identical (Bird Brand). The entire body of use evidence filed to prove an extensively recognised reputation was not sufficient.

The plaintiff appealed to the CIPITC, maintaining its original arguments, supplemented with a reasoning that the clear differences in the origins of the goods (the plaintiff's goods originating in Thailand, while those of the third-party in the USA) are a significant factor indicating to the public that the marks used on the respective parties' goods are different. Furthermore, the plaintiff claimed that it never intended to benefit from the third party's reputation in the development and use of its own mark.

The legal basis for use evidence

While both the CIPITC and Supreme Court agreed the plaintiff's mark was registrable, the Supreme Court overturned the CIPITC's reasoning. The CIPITC observed that the marks are visually different, the plaintiff did not have any dishonest intention to benefit from the prior mark's reputation and that its use was extensive. The CIPITC held the consumer confusion requirement for rejecting marks under Section 13 was not met, and thus, the marks were dissimilar.

On appeal, the Supreme Court disagreed with the CIPITC's reasoning on mark similarity. The Supreme Court found the marks are visually similar and that such similarity is likely to cause consumer confusion. However, evidence of extensive, honest and concurrent use comes into play under Section 27 of the Trademark Act, which states that marks rejected under Section 13 can be registered if honest concurrent use can be proved.

The Supreme Court relied on Section 27 to hold that the plaintiff's evidence of use, contrary to the Appeal Board's opinion, sufficed to prove honest concurrent use. This reasoning indicates that the similarity between marks and the likelihood-of-consumer-confusion test should be applied to the inherent features of the marks only, without considering any external factors such as extent of use or reputation. Extensive, honest and concurrent use of the subject mark does not negate but mitigates the likelihood of consumer confusion due to the conceptual similarity of the marks.

Sufficient level of use evidence

The Trademark Appeal Board's Regulations on Appeal and Cancellation Procedure B.E. 2545 (2002) require that evidence to prove honest concurrent use under Section 27 must demonstrate trade mark use in Thailand for the goods claimed for a reasonably long period of time. To illustrate this requirement, the evidence submitted by the plaintiff at the Supreme Court stage included:

evidence of the mark's conception and first use  to demonstrate honest intention of the applicant;

evidence of the applicant's marketing of goods under the subject mark;

advertising materials in various media;

evidence of advertising budgets for goods under the subject mark;

sales figures of goods under the subject mark over several years.

Also, use evidence of the subject mark as part of a larger composite mark was deemed acceptable evidence.

To conclude, when claiming honest concurrent use after receipt of a similarity rejection, applicants should bring claims under Section 27 of the Trademark Act, and the evidence submitted to substantiate such claims must demonstrate extensive, honest and concurrent use of the trade mark.

Daniel Greif Dhanasun Chumchuay

Spruson & Ferguson

Nos. 496-502 Amarin Plaza BuildingUnit Nos. 1806-1807, 18th Floor, Ploenchit Road, Lumpini Sub-District, Pathumwan District, Bangkok 10330 Thailand

Tel: +66 2 305 6893

mail.asia@spruson.com

www.spruson.com

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When evaluating bad faith claims, the Turkish Patent and Trademark Office (TPTO) considers several matters, but predominantly if the trade mark is an original sign that was created by a prior right holder. In a recent decision, the Office made an exemplary decision concerning bad faith.

The trade mark Carducci is owned by House of Monatic (Pty) Limited of Republic of South Africa. The stylised sign was first created in 1978, yet the firm does not have an earlier registration in Turkey. A Turkish entity filed an application for the same trade mark on the same goods and faced an opposition. This Turkish entity also has registrations for Carducci in different forms that go back as early as 2005. These were also challenged through an invalidation action, pending at the time of the Office decision which is the subject of this article.

The opposition against the stylised application was based on the grounds of genuine right ownership of the opponent, bad faith of the applicant, well-known status of the opponent's trade mark and copyright ownership of the relevant sign. The opposition was rejected in the first instance, but the Board of the Office overturned the decision upon appeal and decided for refusal of the trade mark application as a whole, solely on the ground of bad faith.

The Board concluded that the signs are identical and the applicant, who operates in the same sector as the opponent, could not have filed this identical application by coincidence, that the application shows the applicant's intention to move closer to the opponent's trade marks, and that the application is in bad faith. Despite the fact that this decision confirms the opponent's genuine ownership of the sign, as per the Office's settled practice, the genuine right ownership claim was officially rejected due to lack of earlier use of the ground trade mark in Turkey.

Bad faith applications are a big issue in the Turkish trade mark system. With this decision, the Office overlooked the applicant's earlier registrations and acknowledged bad faith as a sole ground for refusal  at least for original trade marks  despite the fact that genuine right ownership cannot always be acknowledged.

Zeynep Seda Alhas Baran Guney

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Kore Sehitleri Cad. 17Zincirlikuyu 34394Istanbul, TurkeyTel: + (90) (212) 354 00 00Fax: + (90) (212) 274 20 95 gun@gun.av.tr gun.av.tr
On June 12 2018, Vietnam passed a new Law on Competition that will take effect on July 1 2019, replacing the Law on Competition of 2004. The new law brings about several changes affecting intellectual property. Notably, it eliminates many of the discrepancies between the current 2004 Competition Law and the Intellectual Property Law in dealing with IP-related unfair competition.

Acts of unfair competition

A weakness of the 2004 Competition Law and its subordinate regulations (such as Decree No. 71/2014/ND-CP) is that they overlap with provisions on competition found in other laws. For example, both the 2004 Competition Law and the IP Law have provisions concerning acts of cybersquatting, the use of misleading trade indications, and the unauthorised use of a trade mark by an agent, and both provide that the infringement of trade secrets is an act of unfair competition. This has led to confusion for law enforcement agencies and rights holders as to which enforcement mechanisms should be employed in taking action against unfair competition relating to IP.

The new Competition Law no longer sets out acts of unfair competition that are already covered by the IP Law. Instead, the new law expressly states that when there are discrepancies between the Competition Law and the related unfair competition provisions of another law, the provisions of the other law will prevail. This is a big step towards clarifying enforcement of the laws on unfair competition in practice. When the new Competition Law takes force, rights holders can rely solely on the IP Law.

Secrets in business

The new Competition Law seems to introduce a new statutory term, "secrets in business" (bi mat trong kinh doanh). The new law considers infringement of these "secrets in business" to amount to unfair competition, but it does not define this term. The term is similar to the statutory term "trade secret" (bi mat kinh doanh) defined in the IP Law. However, given the principle that the new law does not repeat acts of unfair competition covered in other laws, it is uncertain whether the term "secrets in business" has an equivalent meaning to "trade secret" in the IP Law, or is something entirely new. As a matter of practice, the government will roll out decrees to guide the implementation of new laws. In these decrees, the government should clarify the meaning of this term.

Court jurisdiction

The prevailing competition laws defer to the Civil Code for resolving non-contractual damages related to unfair practices. If unfair practices cause damage to the lawful rights and interests of others, the offenders are required to compensate for such loss in accordance with the civil laws. Under the Civil Procedure Code, disputes over compensation for non-contractual damage fall under the jurisdiction of the civil court. To resolve these disputes, the court must assess the unfair competition acts as one of the bases for determining the damages.

The new Competition Law no longer expressly refers to the civil laws as the legal tools to deal with unfair competition, triggering concern about whether the civil court still has jurisdiction to rule on unfair competition. However, the new law does not expressly obviate the court's jurisdiction over acts of unfair competition that cause harm to the legitimate rights and interests of competitors. In addition, the Law on Promulgation of Legal Documents prevents laws from repeating regulations that are mentioned in other laws. The civil laws already expressly allow companies to initiate suits to protect their rights and interests generally. Thus, the new Competition Law should be interpreted in a way that does not preclude the court's power to deal with acts of unfair competition.

Other changes

The new law establishes a new state agency, the National Competition Commission, to be in charge of dealing with antitrust and unfair competition practices set out in the law. For unfair competition acts covered in other laws, the respective authorities empowered by such laws would deal with matters. As such, to curb unfair competition under laws relating to IP, companies can rely on administrative enforcement bodies, civil courts, or arbitration as set forth in the IP Law.

The new law also shortens the timeframe for administrative bodies, namely the National Competition Commission, to deal with unfair competition. Under the new law, the maximum time is just 60 days, with an option to extend another 45 days. This would only apply to unfair competition acts not falling under the IP Law.

On the whole, the new Competition Law marks progress in eradicating discrepancies between laws on competition and IP that have caused uncertainty for years. However, certain issues still need clarification, such as compulsory licensing and secrets in business, for the law to be easily implemented in practice.



Linh Duy Mai Thomas J Treutler

Tilleke & Gibbins

HAREC Building, 4th Floor

4A Lang Ha Street, Ba Dinh District, Hanoi, Vietnam

Tel: +84 4 3772 6688

Fax: +84 4 3772 5568

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It is a long-standing principle of Australian patent law that determining whether or not a patent application is directed towards patentable subject matter should be done separately to determining issues of novelty and inventive step. However, amendments to the Australian Patent Examiners Manual late last year introduced a new practice, encouraging consideration of prior art when assessing subject matter eligibility, which in Australia includes the requirement that the invention be a manner of manufacture. A year on, it seems that this supposed clarification to the Manual has only resulted in confusion and uncertainty about what role prior art plays in determining the existence of patentable subject matter.

Changes to the Australian Patent Examiners Manual

The practice of separating considerations of manner of manufacture from those of novelty or inventive step is one rooted in case law and policy decisions. It is reflected in the decision of the High Court in Lockwood Security v Doric Products [2004] HCA 58, which, at [46], stated generally that "the grounds of invalidity themselves are, and must be kept, conceptually distinct". More recently, at [33] of Research Affiliates LLC v Commissioner of Patents [2014] FCAFC 150, the court stated, in relation to the consideration of inventive step in the context of patentability, that, "[t]hat approach is not relevant to Australian law".

However, an amendment to Section 2.9.2.2 of the Patent Examiners Manual on August 1 last year has expressly recommended that examiners, in assessing patentable subject matter, "consider which features of the claim confer novelty over the prior art". This recommendation appears as part of an explanation of the second step of the four-part test introduced into the Patent Examiners Manual based on the UK Aerotel Ltd v Telco Holdings Ltd & Ors Rev 1 [2007] RPC 7 decision (the Aerotel test). Not only does this change to the Manual conflate the issues of patentable subject matter and novelty, it explicitly states that prior art is relevant to the finding of a manner of manufacture in a claim.

Not long after the amendment to the Manual was made, the International Association for the Protection of Intellectual Property (AIPPI) adopted a resolution on the patentability of computer implemented inventions. The resolution, dated October 2017, states that "[e]ligibility of a [computer implemented invention] for patent protection should not depend on the prior art or any assessment of novelty or inventive step". This statement is a direct and unequivocal rejection of the recommendation adopted in the amended Manual. However, despite the AIPPI's stance, the Australian Patent Office (APO) seems to be wholeheartedly applying the Manual's recommendation. Since June alone, prior art has been cited in patentable subject matter assessments in four of five decisions issued by the APO where manner of manufacture was in issue.

Consequences of the change in Australian practice

The repercussions of this arguably incorrect approach are that matters of novelty and inventive step are now being dealt with under the guise of patentable subject matter, resulting in some absurd and unfair decisions. For example, in Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation v Technological Resources Pty. Limited [2018] APO 23 (the CSIRO decision), a "method of separating a mined material" was determined not to be a manner of manufacture, despite reciting only physical processing steps. At [201] of the decision, the delegate states that the determination of the contribution of the invention must be made in light of an "understanding of the common general knowledge and prior art". By dismissing each of the recited steps as well-known and generic in view of this, the delegate then arrives at the conclusion that the claims lack patentable subject matter.

While, fortunately, the CSIRO decision has since been overturned, the language in the Manual still stands. This is a concerning state of affairs. Our decision makers are not equipped to deal with novelty and inventive step issues under the umbrella of manner of manufacture. For one, there is no guidance given in Australian law as to what documents might be properly considered prior art when assessing patentable subject matter. This is in contrast to the areas of novelty and inventive step, where significant statutory authority and case law exists to help determine permissible documents for decision makers to consider.

While the recommendation remains in place, it seems that the issue of patentable subject matter for software-related inventions in Australia has become more problematic than ever for patent applicants. There is a glimmer of hope, however, in the form of a number of appeals currently afoot in the Australian courts, which seek to overturn some recent Patent Office decisions regarding patentable subject matter, and hopefully steer the law in a more reasonable direction. With many members of the Australian patent attorney profession being in agreement as to the lack of legal support for the Manual's recommendation, the outcomes of the appeals are eagerly awaited.

Beata Khaidurova

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Although the amount of patent litigation in Brazil is far from the level of litigation in the US, patent infringement actions are very common in the jurisdiction. Such actions are the most effective measure against infringers, since preliminary injunctions are widely available. This makes Brazil very attractive as an additional battlefield for worldwide patent disputes.

Brazil has a truly independent judiciary system, and judges are doing their best to enforce the rule of law. In contrast to other BRICS countries, there is no bias against foreign companies. A great number of infringement actions initiated against local companies are filed by foreign entities, and their chances of success are basically the same as those of any other plaintiff.

In comparison with the US, the standards for obtaining injunctive relief in Brazil are much lower than one might expect as, for instance, there is no need to give notice to the defendant, and the parties are allowed to have ex parte in chambers meetings with the judges, meaning that plaintiffs are often able to obtain preliminary injunctive relief even before the defendants are served with the summons. In certain places, for example, Rio de Janeiro, plaintiffs are able to obtain injunctions more often than not.

Moreover, obtaining preliminary injunctive relief is possible even if the asserted patents cover standard-essential technologies, as in Vringo v ZTE and Ericsson v TCT. In both cases, the defendants were prevented from manufacturing, using, selling, offering and importing the infringing goods in Brazil. A preliminary injunction may also include search and seizure measures or orders for the defendant to present copies of contracts and other relevant documents, as well as notifications to third parties and to customs authorities to make relevant information about their dealings with the defendant available.

Generally, to obtain injunctive relief, the plaintiff must present sufficient documentary evidence to establish (i) the likelihood of eventually prevailing on the merits and (ii) that the result sought with the lawsuit could be frustrated or harmed if an injunction is not granted (i.e. the plaintiff must establish that granting the preliminary injunction is an urgent matter). Alternative ways of obtaining preliminary injunctions occur when the plaintiff is able to establish that the defendant is presenting defences and objections in an abusive way, or that the defendant is trying to delay the proceedings, or if the defendant is not able to create reasonable doubt regarding the facts alleged by the plaintiff.

Additionally, in order to maximise the chances of obtaining an injunction, it is usual for plaintiffs to present several technical opinions from well-known local and foreign experts, normally professors teaching at renowned universities, in support of their arguments.

In a nutshell, the lower standards for obtaining preliminary injunctive relief make Brazil a very favourable battleground to enforce patent rights in global litigation. This is an opportunity for non-practising entities (NPEs) and a substantial risk for corporations facing infringement claims.

Ricardo Nunes

Daniel Legal & IP Strategy

Av. Republica do Chile,

230, 3rd Floor

Centro, Rio de Janeiro

20031-170, Brazil

Tel: +55 21 2102 4212

www.daniel-ip.com

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Dr. Alie Kabba, Sierra Leones Minister of Foreign Affairs (left) and Sierra Leones Ambassador to China, Ernest Mbaimba Ndomahina (right).

Sierra Leones Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, Dr. Alie Kabba, has said that the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) provides an excellent opportunity for both Chinese government and its African counterparts to sit down together and discuss key priorities.

Dr. Kabba, who spoke to this journalist in an exclusive interview in Beijing on Sep 2, 2018, explained, the 2018 Beijing summit of FOCAC is a way of deepening ties between Africa and China.

We are confident that at the end of FOCAC, we are going to emerge stronger and better in terms of the relationship and cooperation between Africa and China. China has always been a good friend of Africa. For us in Sierra Leone in particular, we have established a relationship of over 47 years with China. So, our presence here is an affirmation of the deep standing friendship between our two peoples, he said.

The Foreign Affairs minister said he expects that during this FOCAC summit, several areas of cooperation will be covered, adding that China is very active in all key areas in Sierra Leones economy, agriculture, infrastructure, communication, education, health and electricity.

He also stated that the FOCAC summit is going to build on previous achievements, noting that hes confident that this particular summit will lay the foundation for significant engagement and cooperation between Africa and China.

Dr. Kabba, who was part of the delegation during President Xi Jinpings meeting with Sierra Leonean president, Retired Brigadier Julius Maada Bio, and also signed several agreements, said President Bios state visit was a momentous occasion for the two leaders to meet.

The meetings were very productive, and I was able to sign four agreements. Those agreements reflect wide areas of cooperation between the two countries. They include agreements on fisheries, agriculture and education, and when you look at those agreements, you can sense a deeper relationship between China and Sierra Leone, he said. He added that President Bio has prioritized the relationship between his country and China since he took over office.

He noted that Sierra Leone, under the leadership of President Bio, is going to continue to be a friendly nation and to count on China to fill in the void regarding development.

China has witnessed great development in all areas, which is evident when visiting its municipalities and provinces, where people no longer wish to move to the country's bigger cities as they have everything they need at home.

Asked if he thinks such development would work in Sierra Leone in order to decrease rural-urban migration, which would subsequently decongest the country's cities, Dr. Kabba said President Bio has always said that his delegation came to China to learn from the Chinese experience.

That is why we are joined by our Minister of Planning and Economic Development, to understand how China has been able to make great strides in such a short time since her reforms and opening up. We have visited places to see for ourselves, we now have an idea of how to manage growing population, and also responsibly manage the environment, while investing smartly in the economy to lift people out of poverty, he noted.

He added that they are learning a great deal from the state visit and there are essential elements that they hope will be applicable in Sierra Leone.

Im sure that in the coming years in Sierra Leone, we will see a lot of these lessons reflected in our development priorities, especially in the areas of planning, how we are going to manage the growing population of our cities, and also the infrastructure that we need to connect our people together, he stated.

In the area of people-to-people exchange between China and Sierra Leone, the foreign affairs minister said the fact that Sierra Leoneans have been able to engage with their Chinese counterparts to share ideas is a welcome thing.

Every year, China provides scholarships for our well-deserving students to come and study in Chinese universities. The Chinese also have opportunities to go to Sierra Leone. We have medical corps that visit the country on a yearly basis, to provide medical assistance in the healthcare sector. I can also say that throughout the year, we have short training opportunities for technical cooperation between us, Minister Kabba said.
Philippines asks South Korea to cut banana tariff

posted September 02, 2018 at 07:20 pm by Othel V. Campos September 02, 2018 at 07:20 pm

The Trade Department filed a new request with the Korean government to reduce the tariff on Philippine banana exports. Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez, who recently met with Korean Trade Minister Kim Hyun-chong, reiterated the Philippines request for wider market access to South Korea. We will open discussion and we are considering options for a better process moving forward, either bilateral through PTA [Preferential Trade Agreement] or under Asean-Korea trade agreement, he said.The Philippine remains the biggest supplier of bananas to South Korea with over 85-percent market share. Other countries with similar trade arrangements are asking Korea to increase their market presence. South Korea imports about 30 million boxes of Philippine bananas or about 390,000 tons a year. Philippine bananas are levied a 30-percent duty in Korea.

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President Rodrigo Duterte will bring a delegation of 150 businessmen and 15 government officials on his trip to Israel this week, in hopes of reaffirming the ties between the two countries. I leave today for landmark visits that underscore our vision for our countrya responsible member of the world communitya Philippines that is a friend to all, an enemy to no one, said the President in his departure statement Sunday afternoon. Duterte, who was criticized in 2016 for comparing the Jews to the victims of the campaign against illegal drugs, said he responded to the call of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. We have about 28,000 Filipinos in Israel and there are 48,000 Filipinos in Jordan. And you know, without mentioning anything, theres a volatile situation there and we have to be sure that our citizens are fully protected, said Duterte, who promised to bring several retiring military officials as a gift for serving the country. I shall seek to have a robust relationship that looks forward to broader cooperation on a broad range of mutually important areasdefense and security, law enforcement, economic development, trade [and] investments and labor, he added. Meanwhile, the Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs said Dutertes three-day visit symbolizes the strong, warm ties between the two countries and the potential for developing and strengthening those relations. The Philippine President will be accompanied by a large delegation of ministers, including the ministers of foreign affairs, national defense, trade and industry, agriculture, internal security, science and technology, labor and employment, tourism and transportation. Senior senators will also be part of the delegation, MFA spokesperson Emmanuel Nahshon said in a statement. Nahshon said Dutertes visit will mark several important events such as the 80-year anniversary of the Philippines opening its doors to the Jewish refugees in the late 1930s, the 70-year anniversary of the Philippines support of United Nations Resolution 181, paving the way for the creation of the State of Israel, and 60-year anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Israel and the Philippines. One of the important subjects to be discussed is the opening of a direct flight route between Manila and Ben Gurion Airport, said Nahshon, saying that direct flights will bring a rise in the number of Filipino tourists going to Israel, particularly Christians wanting to make pilgrimages to the Holy Land. Nahshon said other agreements to be discussed or signs include one that would regulate the employment of thousands of Filipino caregivers. The agreement will protect the workers rights, ensure equal and fair treatment of them, and cancel all the fees that until now they have been forced to pay to intermediate agents, he said. Nahshon also said there are agreements waiting to be signed in science and technology, promotion of investments, agreements between chambers of commerce, and the environment. The official delegation includes: Executive Secretary Salvador Medialdea, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, Labor and Employment Secretary Silvestre Bello III, Defense Secretary Delfin Lorenzana, Trade and Industry Secretary Ramon Lopez, Environment Secretary Roy Cimatu, Transportation Secretary Arthur Tugade, Energy Secretary Alfonso Cusi, National Security Adviser Hermogenes Esperon, Presidential Spokesman Harry Roque, Special Assistant to the President Christopher Go, Political Adviser Francis Tolentino, Senator Richard Gordon, Interior and Local Government officer in charge Eduardo Ano, and Philippine Coast Guard commandant Rear Admiral Elson Hermogino. The Palace has already said that public funds will be used to finance Dutertes trip to Israel and Jordan, but said the benefits would outweigh the cost. Duterte is set to arrive Sunday for a visit to Israel and Jordan, pursuing a pivot away from his nations long-time reliance on American military hardware and backing. The four-day stay in Israel is the first by a Philippine leader in more than 60 years of diplomatic ties between the two nations, even though their links go back to Manila sheltering Jews during the Holocaust. Dutertes visit has generated a lot of attention, powered both by his penchant for foul-mouthed statementsincluding likening himself to Hitlerand his internationally condemned drug crackdown that has killed thousands. Duterte, accompanied by an entourage including soldiers and police, will sit down with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and hold an event with some of the thousands of Filipino migrant workers in Israel.We assign great importance to this visit, which symbolizes the strong, warm ties between our two peoples, Israels foreign ministry said in a statement. Duterte has pivoted the Philippines away from its former colonial master the United States and toward warmer diplomatic and business ties with China and Russia. The US and Canada have both had military hardware deals fall apart with the Philippines due to concerns over Dutertes drug war. But so far sales with Israel have gone smoothly. [The visit] is for President Duterte to look for an alternative market for... weapons for our armed forces as well as for the police, Henelito Sevilla, an international relations expert at University of the Philippines, said. Israel is among the worlds top arms dealers, with nearly 60 percent of its defense exports going to the Asia Pacific region, according to Israeli defense ministry data. The Philippines emerged as a significant new customer in 2017 for Israel, with sales of radar and anti-tank equipment worth $21 million. There could be far bigger deals on the way as Manila plans a multi-billion dollar overhaul of its armed forces. Duterte has been dismissive of American sales overtures, saying he does not need US fighter jets or submarines. Manila says the trip is expected to yield signed agreements on defense as well as labor, which is one of the Philippines top exports. Some 10-million Filipinos work abroad and send home money that is a lifeline to the economy. Manila is keen to ink agreements that protect conditions and pay for the workers, who are seen as national heroes at home. Though the Philippines has a special bond with Israel for giving refuge to some 1,300 Jews fleeing the Holocaust, Duterte drew global condemnation for comparing himself to Hitler in 2016. Hitler massacred three-million Jews. Now there are three-million drug addicts [in the Philippines]. Id be happy to slaughter them, he said. Most mainstream historians say six million Jews died in the Holocaust. Duterte later apologized to the Jewish community over his remarks, which he said were aimed at critics who had likened him to the Nazi leader. Just over a year later the Philippines abstained from a UN vote rebuking the United States for moving its embassy to Jerusalem. Palestinians see the eastern part of the disputed city as the capital of their future state. The Philippines was reportedly among a handful of nations considering following the Americans move, but Manila has issued repeated denials. This is actually not a topic of discussion, Foreign Undersecretary Ernesto Abella told journalists at a pre-visit briefing. Duterte heads to Jordan on Sept. 5, where he is expected to meet with King Abdullah II.
The idea of a new Centre Party is back in the news in Britain. There is a growing realisation amongst the ruling class that the crisis of the Tory government, together with the debacle over Brexit, could soon lead to a general election that would propel Corbyn into 10 Downing Street.

A recent headline in the Financial Timesaccurately summarised the mood amongst the Establishment: Business fears a Corbyn government almost as much as Brexit.

How then can the bosses avert this calamity? By relying on the Blairites to come to their rescue, of course.

Smears and sabotage

In recent months, the preferred strategy of the Labour right wing has been to manufacture a hysteria about anti-Semitism in order to discredit Corbyn and the Labour Party. In this smear campaign, the Blairites have been joined by conservative Jewish establishment figures and the capitalist press, both for their own reasons.

Leading the charge recently has been Chuka Umunna, who asserted in an article in the Independent that the Labour Party is the home of institutional anti-Semitism. In 2016, however, the right-wing Labour MP said the opposite, stating that he had never seen a single example of anti-Semitism in 20 years. Chuka Umunna asserted in an article in the Independent that the Labour Party is the home of institutional anti-Semitism. In 2016, he said the opposite / Image: Socialist Appeal

The overwhelming majority of Labour MPs did not believe he was fit to lead the party in the first instance, the arch-Blairite writes. In spite of the silence of most of the Parliamentary Labour Party  driven by a fear of deselection if they speak out  there is no doubt that most Labour MPs are as horrified as I am by the anti-Semitism which has been exposed in the party in recent months. Many feel that they are being pushed to breaking point.

If only right-wingers in the Parliamentary Labour Party (PLP) were afraid of speaking out. In fact, you cant shut them up! The likes of Umunna and others have rushed to the media to sabotage and undermine Corbyn at every opportunity.

Umunna goes on in his article to scandalously equate the far right with the far left, before stating that: The enemies identified by the far left tend to be America (regardless of who is the sitting president), markets, capitalism and the so-called business-owning class.

Well, yes. The left have attacked American imperialism, markets, capitalism and the ruling class  all of which Umunna has consistently defended to the hilt. This shows clearly where his political loyalties lie. He is pro-capitalist, pro-market and pro-big business.

Party of the establishment

This is the real reason behind Umunnas nonsense accusations that Labour is institutionally anti-Semitic. In reality, such ludicrous statements are part of an ongoing campaign to split the Labour Party and provide big business with a new, reliable Centre Party.

There have been dozens of reports about MPs and peers plotting to split from Labour as soon as the Brexit negotiations are out of the way. It is no accident that John Woodcock, the anti-Corbyn MP who recently resigned from Labour, has called for MPs on all sides to come together to form a new political party.

There have been dozens of reports about MPs and peers plotting to split from Labour as soon as the Brexit negotiations are out of the way / Image: Socialist Appeal

Mike Gapes, the useless MP for Ilford South, is hinting that he could go any day now. When push comes to shove, many others will likely split too. But some have pledged to stay, including Dame Margaret Hodge. They will act like a Fifth Column, continuing to attack Corbyn from within.

In such a scenario, the Blairites hope that a new right-wing leader in the Tory party might lead to a split in the Conservatives also. Remainers like Nicky Morgan and Anna Soubry are good candidates to break away and join hands with Labour right-wingers. The Liberal Democrats would no doubt climb aboard too.

They would like to emulate the rise of French President, Emmanuel Macron. Indeed Macron himself seems to be encouraging such a project. But what those seeking a new Centre Party in Britain fail to mention is that Macrons bubble has burst. Barely one-third of the French electorate now approve of the former investment banker.

Rule or ruin

The aim of any Blairite split would be to inflict the maximum damage to the Labour Party and keep Corbyn out of power. They intend to do this with the full support of the capitalist media.

Richard Burgon: "The formation of the SDP breakaway from the Labour Party in 1981 was an anti-socialist betrayal that helped to gift the 1980s to Thatcherism and her brutal anti-working class policies" / Image: Socialist Appeal

Labour MP Richard Burgon has correctly highlighted the true goal of these threats.

The formation of the SDP breakaway from the Labour Party by Roy Jenkins, Shirley Williams, David Owen and Bill Rodgers in 1981 was an anti-socialist betrayal that helped to gift the 1980s to Thatcherism and her brutal anti-working class policies. Ramsay MacDonalds formation of a national government with the Conservatives, Liberals, Liberal Nationals and so-called National Labour in 1931 was done to push through austerity politics, guaranteeing that his name went down in history as a byword for betrayal. There are some now proposing to repeat these historical tragedies. (Morning Star, 16/8/18)

Socialist Appeal has warned about this many times. The Blairite Trojan horse in the PLP will never be reconciled to Corbyn or the left. Faced with a mass membership that is seeking an end to austerity and war, they have little prospect of winning the party back to New Labour principles. Instead, their motto is rule or ruin.

Mandatory reselection

This is why we need the mandatory reselection of MPs: to clear out the careerism and Toryism within the Labour Party.

This demand for the democratic accountability of Labour MPs has begun to gather momentum in recent weeks. A rule change to introduce mandatory reselection is due to be discussed at the upcoming Labour Party conference. It has generated a head of steam, with Unite the Union backing the proposal, together with the FBU.

We need the mandatory reselection of MPs to clear out the careerism and Toryism within the Labour Party / Image: Socialist Appeal

With the likely backing of other unions  such as ASLEF, TSSA, CWU, BFAWU  as well as possibly two-thirds of local party delegates, this could easily be passed.

Elsewhere, Chris Williamson, the Labour MP for Derby North, has also come under attack from the party establishment for organising a democracy roadshow, with meetings around the country in support of mandatory reselection.

This has created a storm of protest from Labours right wing. Lord Hattersley, the former deputy leader of the party under Kinnock, amongst others, has called on Corbyn to repudiate Williamsons campaign.

Writing in the Guardian, Hattersley has warned that the right wing will split from the party if this measure goes through:

Reselection and the prospect of reselection will undoubtedly split the party  led not just by sitting MPs who were deselected or fear deselection but also by MPs who think that the attempted cull of their colleagues demonstrated that Labour no longer represented their view of the good society. (The Guardian, 28/8/18)

This threat is precisely the reason why we need reselection. What Hattersley means by the good society is the good life that MPs have become accustomed to. Rather than seeking to represent the interests of the working class, they see their privileged position as being a job for life.

Kick out the careerists

It is no surprise that Hattersley goes on in his letter to attack the party leadership, stating that Corbyns team, because of a combination of its own incompetence and its enthusiasm for ideological claptrap, is squandering its chances of winning the next election.This is rich coming from someone who lost two general elections in a row.

We must get rid of these pro-capitalist saboteurs within our ranks. This must go hand-in-hand with the fight for socialist policies and the return of Clause IV / Image: Socialist Appeal

In any case, it is clearly not Corbyn who is squandering these chances, but those right-wing Labour MPs who are constantly publicly attacking the party. Without any hint of irony, they admonish left-wingers like Williamson, accusing them of risking a split in the party; yet in the same breath, they smear Corbyn and threaten to walk away over made-up accusations of anti-Semitism.

We must get rid of these pro-capitalist saboteurs within our ranks. To root out careerism, we should have Labour MPs taking a workers wage, in order to ensure that our representatives will for the interests of the working class.

This must go hand-in-hand with the fight for socialist policies and the return of Clause IV, to rid ourselves of the ravages of the market and the greed of the capitalist system.
Egypt's tourism revenue jumped 77 percent in the first half of 2018 to around $4.8 billion compared with the same period last year, a government official told Reuters.

Egyptian tourism has been gradually recovering from a 2011 downturn triggered by the uprising that ousted president Hosni Mubarak, helped by a currency float in late 2016 that halved the pound's value and made the country a relatively cheap bet for foreign visitors.

The tourism sector is a pillar of the country's economy and a key earner of foreign currency.

The official, who declined the be named, said visitor numbers during the first half of 2018 jumped 41 percent from a year before to about 5 million. A total of 14.7 million people visited Egypt in 2010 before the uprising.

"Indicators suggest the sector will earn about $9 billion by the end of this year," the official said, adding there were expectations of greater traffic from western Europe, Italy, Germany and Ukraine towards the end of the year.

That figure would mark a jump from last year's $7.6 billion.

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Extension Office presents report to Morgan County Commissioners Audio Article 4-H Update from Pam Montgomery and Lydia Flores CARTEENS leaders and Pam held a virtual CARTEENS program on October 12. 4-H Advisory Committee and 4-H Horse Sub-committee held meetings on September 22. In the next few months, they will be working, evaluating, updating, and changing things for 2022. Both Lydia...

Waterford FFA Soils Team headed to Nationals Audio Article The Waterford FFA Rural Soil Judging team is headed to Oklahoma, after participating in three different soil judging contests that lead them to becoming one of the best soil judging teams in Ohio. The first competition was the Washington County Soil Judging Contest which was organized by the Washington County...
KABUL  Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, H.E Salahuddin Rabbani and Pakistans Foreign Minister, Shah Mahmood Quraishi held a telephone conversation.

While congratulating Mr. Quraishi on his appointment as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Mr. Rabbani wished him success and called for speedy resolution to the issue of Consulate General of the our neighbor and friendly State of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan in Nangarhar.

Mr. Quraishi also stressed that their security depended on that of ours and our security depended on theirs, emphasized regional the importance of cooperation.

Furthermore, Mr. Rabbani invited his Pakistani counterpart to travel to Afghanistan for further discussions on bilateral and regional cooperation as well as the peace process.

Both sides discussed and exchanged views on the way forward for addressing existing challenges between the two countries and decided to meet in the sidelines of the of UN Summit.
KABUL- Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, H.E Salahuddin Rabbani met with Ambassador of the Republic of Tajikistan to Kabul, Mr. Sharafuddin Imam.

Mr. Rabbani held that cooperation between the two countries were expanding and stressed further growth of relations between the two nations.

Ambassador of the Republic of Tajikistan also called Afghanistan a good friend and partner in all areas and added that Afghanistan was a permanent friend of Tajikistan.

Both sides discussed and exchanged views on bilateral diplomatic, economic and security cooperation.
The Egyptian President is set to attend on Monday the Forum on ChinaAfrica Cooperation FOCAC 2018

Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi met on Monday with his South Sudanese counterpart Salva Kiir on the sidelines of the Forum on ChinaAfrica Cooperation FOCAC 2018, which is set to be held in Beijing later in the day.

"The meeting discussed pushing forward cooperation between both countries as well as the recent political and security developments in South Sudan," Egyptian Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry said in a press statement from Beijing.

''Egypt reaffirms its support for the political road map that has been drawn up in South Sudan and will continue to provide support to the formulated political agreement," Shoukry added.

El-Sisi started an official three-day visit to China on Saturday, heading a top level official delegation, where he was received by his Chinese Counterpart Xi Jinping at the People's Great Hall. He is set to attend the forum later on Monday.

The Egyptian President attended the signing of a number of agreements and contracts with Chinese companies to implement projects in Egypt worth $18.3 billion on Sunday.

El-Sisi also met with Chinese officials and business CEOs as well as African leaders, including the Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, following a visit to the Communist Party Academy.

Earlier on Sunday, El-Sisi met with Chinese Prime Minister Li Keqiang where they discussed ways to boost the Egyptian-Chinese bilateral relations especially in the economic field.

The Egyptian President also met with CEOs of leading Chinese companies working in Egypt where they discussed the country's steps to attract foreign direct investments as well as strategic and economic relations between Cairo and Beijing.

El-Sisis delegation in China includes Minister of Foreign Affairs Sameh Shoukry, Minister of Investment and International Cooperation Sahar Nasr, Minister of Electricity Mohamed Shaker, and the Chairman of the Suez Canal Authority Mohab Mamish.

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Egypt's Prosecutor-General Nabil Sadiq referred a 33-year-old man from Dakahliya governorate to criminal court on Sunday over the murder of his two children in August.

Two weeks ago, the bodies of the two children, Rayan and Mohamed, aged three and five, were found dead in the Nile outside of Faraskur City in the Damietta governorate.

According to a six minute video released by the Ministry of Interior, the father, Mahmoud Nazmy, confessed to throwing the children into the river, while under the influence of drugs, for being an annoyance.

The video shows the father saying that unstable relationship with his wife and her repeated accusations of his neglect of his fatherly duties pushed him to commit the crime.

Prior to his arrest the day after the bodies were found, the father claimed that his two kids disappeared while he was chatting with an old acquaintance during the Eid al-Adha holiday.

However, according to the authorities, Nazmy fled during the children's funeral, raising suspicions that prompted police to question him and eventually elicit a confession.

The interior ministry stated that the man suffers from a disturbed personality and a drug problem.

The ministry also announced the existence of witnesses who attested to seeing the suspect and his two children on the way from their hometown of Meet Salseel in Dakahliya to Faraskur in Damietta.

The ministry also said that they had tracked and triangulated phone calls the father made from his cellular phone, which place him in Faraskur the day of the crime.

The forensic department released a toxicology report showing traces of the banned pain killer Tramadol and hashish in Nazmys system the day of the murder.

The department also said the cause of death for both children was asphyxiation due to drowning.

On Tuesday, hundreds of residents in Meet Salseel protested in front of the father's house, demanding a re-investigation into the incident and the crimes he is accused of.

The residents were driven by social media reports alleging that the father was pressured to confess to killing his children under threats from unknown parties who were involved in the crime.

Dozens of the protesters were subsequently arrested for illegally demonstrating.

On Sunday, several talk shows and media outlets circulated a one minute video from a gas stations CCTV reportedly showing the father riding in his vehicle along with his two children minutes before he arrived at the crime scene.

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MERIDEN  The Meriden Lions Club Water Park in City Park is offering extended hours to residents hoping to find refuge from the late-summer heat.

I opened up for the heat wave, said water park superintendent Eva Kim Marquez on Monday.

With temperatures in the 90s last week, Marquez said she asked Parks & Recreation Director Chris Bourdon if she could open up the park after the usual closing date of August 26.

Marquez said shell try to keep the park open for limited hours each day after school as long as the heat continues. Today the park is scheduled to be open 4 to 6 p.m.

Michaela Bell, 23, enjoyed the water park on Monday with her 4-year-old nephew Lien Figueroa, who was happy to get more time in the water.

Were here all the time, Bell said. He gets so excited, he just loves being in water.

Bell said theyve been going to the water park every weekend throughout the summer.

The park opened in June after school ended for summer break. Marquez said attendence at the park was busier than usual this summer, with an average of 60 kids each day. Her busiest day saw about 140 kids.

To check on water park extended hours, visit the Meriden Parks & Recreation Department Facebook page.

bwright@record-journal.com

203-317-2316

Twitter: @baileyfaywright
By Bailey Wright

Record-Journal staff

NORTH HAVEN  Police say a one-car crash resulted in at least one death on Middletown Avenue Monday.

Police reported responding to the crash around 11 a.m., south of the Montowese Avenue intersection on Middletown Avenue (Route 17). Police say the road will remain closed between Montowese Avenue and Village Street for several hours as they investigate.

While traveling northbound, the vehicle left the roadway, rolled over and impacted a utility pole on the west side of the road, police said. Fire and utility companies are also on scene.

The South Central Connecticut Regional Traffic Unit is assisting in the investigation, according to police.

bwright@record-journal.com

203-317-2316

Twitter: @baileyfaywright
Egypts Head of the Meteorological Authoritys Analysis Center Mahmoud Shahin warned governors across the state of this autumn seasons expected floods, which are estimated to begin on 22 September.

The EMA called on all governors to check flood and rain sewerage networks, while mountains governorates should pay extra attention to face the autumn floods this year.

Shahin affirmed that the autumn season this year will witness the highest amount of rain and floods during the whole year.

On Sunday, Shahin said the flood season is expected to start in Egypt on 22 September, indicating that it may be accompanied by unstable weather conditions.

Over the past few years, Egypt has been hit with several bouts of torrential rain, which has caused a number of deaths, power cuts, and road accidents in several parts of the country.

In November 2015, the governor of Alexandria resigned after officials failed to take adequate measures to deal with a wave of torrential rain which flooded the city, leaving five dead.

In 2016, 26 people died in the governorates of South Sinai, Sohag, and the Red Sea as a result of flooding after heavy rainfall.

Earlier in April, many Egyptians expressed frustration with the situation, sharing videos and photos online showing up to two feet of rain deluging apartments, garages and shutting down major roads.

President Abdel-Fatah El-Sisi, in an effort to combat the suffering of some Egyptians resulting from the heavy downpours in the country, has called to intensify efforts to prevent the recurrence of such problems again.

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SOUTHINGTON  Families were able to give rescue dogs a new home during Companion Pet Rescues weekend adoption drive.

As soon as we saw her, we knew thats the one, said Sam Bevivino, of Bristol. She adopted Henley, a one-year-old Shepard-Labrador mix.

Bevivino and her boyfriend were looking for a dog who likes to cuddle, somebody whos energetic, she said. Its just nice to come home and have someone happy to see you.

We had a very successful weekend, said Kat Bivona, Companion Pet Rescues foster coordinator. They started the weekend with 35 dogs on Friday and by Sunday morning were down to five. While their Friday drive was in the nonprofits hometown of Southbury, they brought their dogs to the Southington Petcos National Adoption Weekend on Saturday and Sunday.

With the ordeals many of the dogs go through, Bivona said its the most rewarding feeling when they finally find a permanent home. The dogs are rescued from euthanization centers and pounds in Tennessee, where there are a large number of strays and abandoned dogs, and brought north to local canine foster homes.

When one family asked about the background of the dog they were interested in, Bivona said they believe it was dropped off on the side of a road and left behind. Many of the rescues from euthanization occur at the eleventh hour, Bivona said.

Saving a life is very important, said Kate Kelly, of Watertown, while her family weighed adopting Cleopatra, a hound mix they felt would be perfect for their Lhasa Tibetan Terrier, Licket.

Were looking for somebody for our dog Licket, because he needs a friend, Kelly said. The two were already getting along and Cleopatra fit right into their search for an eccentric, but easy going dog.

Theyre better than people most of the time, Kelly said. Theyre loyal, theyre loving, they make you feel better.

Kristin Crosswait, of Naugatuck, was volunteering her weekend matching dogs with families for the first time after she met her dog through the nonprofit in March.

What drew me is knowing the fact that no one wanted them, she said. Somebody needs to adopt them, they need to find their forever home.
The Ministry of Antiquities offered its expertise to the afflicted Brazilian national museum, which contains priceless artefacts from all over the world as well as Ancient Egyptian artefacts, to help restore its collection

Egypt's Ministry of Antiquities sent a request on Monday to the country's foreign ministry to prepare a detailed and urgent report about the condition of the Ancient Egyptian artefacts in the National Museum of Brazil, which was virtually destroyed by a massive fire on Sunday.

"We feel great sorrow about what happened; it is a great loss for humanity and world heritage," said Mostafa Waziry, the secretary-general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, in an official statement issued by the antiquities ministry.

Waziry added that the antiquities ministry stands in complete solidarity with the National Museum of Brazil, and that it is ready to make available the needed expertise to restore the ancient artefacts in the museum, if the Brazilian government requests it.

Later on Monday, the Egyptian foreign ministry issued a statement saying it was following up on the issue, and had contacted the Egyptian embassy in Brasilia to investigate the current status of the Egyptian artefacts in the Brazilian museum.

"The Egyptian ministry of foreign affairs expresses its full support to the Brazilian side, and its readiness to assist, through the antiquities ministry, in providing technical assistance to restore all heritage artefacts of all historic periods if the Brazilian government requires that," the foreign ministry said.

A huge fire totally destroyed the 200-year-old museum in Rio de Janeiro on Sunday night.

One of the biggest and oldest national museums in South America, it is home to thousands of priceless artefacts, including fossils of the oldest human being ever discovered on the continent.

The Egyptian collection includes several hundreds of ancient Egyptian artefacts, making it one of the largest collection of Egyptian artefacts in South America.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian National Committee of the International Council of Museums (ICOM EGYPT) issued a statement also expressing its deep sorrow for the disaster and offering its help.

"ICOM and all its affiliates are deeply saddened by the fire which engorged the National Museum Brazil in Rio de Janeiro, which destroyed the museum's collection. This is a terrible happening to human heritage that caused the world to lose a heritage that cannot be compensated of fossils dating back to ancient times, and it is difficult to compensate for the heritage loss, which included items of the Egyptian Pharaonic civilization.

ICOM added that it is "in solidarity with the Brazilian Committee in this disaster, and is offering to provide its utmost support for the revival of this museum in affirmation of international solidarity."

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Chinese President Xi Jinping offered another $60 billion in financing for Africa on Monday and wrote off some debt for poorer African nations, while warning against funds going towards "vanity projects".

Speaking at the opening of a major summit with African leaders, Xi promised development that people on the continent could see and touch, but that would also be green and sustainable.

China has denied engaging in "debt trap" diplomacy, and Xi's offer of more money comes after a pledge of another $60 billion at the previous summit in South Africa three years ago.

Xi, addressing leaders at Beijing's Great Hall of the People, said the new $60 billion will include $15 billion of aid, interest-free loans and concessional loans, a credit line of $20 billion, a $10 billion special fund for China-Africa development, and a $5 billion special fund for imports from Africa.

Chinese companies will be encouraged to invest no less than $10 billion in the continent in the next three years, he said.

Government debt from China's interest free loans due by the end of 2018 will be written off for indebted poor African countries, as well as for developing nations in the continent's interior and small island nations, Xi said.

"China-Africa cooperation must give Chinese and African people tangible benefits and successes that can be seen, that can be felt," he said.

China will carry out 50 projects on green development and environmental protection in Africa, focusing on fighting climate change, desertification and wildlife protection, Xi said.

He pledged, without giving details, that China would set up a peace and security fund and a related forum, while continuing to provide free military assistance to the African Union.

Chinese officials have vowed to be more cautious to ensure projects are sustainable. China defends continued lending to Africa on the grounds that the continent still needs debt-funded infrastructure development.

Speaking earlier at a business forum, Xi said China had to be careful about where money was spent.

"China's cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects but in places where they count the most," he said.

Beijing has also fended off criticism it is only interested in resource extraction to feed its own booming economy, that the projects it funds have poor environmental safeguards, and that too many of the workers for them are flown in from China rather than using African labour.

'Africa knows best'

Chinese officials say this year's summit will strengthen Africa's role in Xi's Belt and Road initiative to link China by sea and land with Southeast and Central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa through an infrastructure network modelled on the old Silk Road.

Xi said the plan, for which Beijing has pledged $126 billion, would help provide more resources and facilities for Africa and would expand shared markets.

China loaned around $125 billion to the continent from 2000 to 2016, data from the China-Africa Research Initiative at Washington's Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies shows.

State media has accused the West of sour grapes over China's prominent role in Africa and has angrily rejected claims of forcing African countries into a debt trap.

"In terms of cooperation with China, African countries know best," widely read tabloid the Global Times wrote in an editorial on Monday.

"Western media deliberately portray Africans in misery for collaborating with China and they appear to have discovered big news by finding occasional complaints in the African media about Sino-Africa cooperation," it said.

Every African country is represented at the business forum apart from eSwatini, self-ruled Taiwan's last African ally that has so far rejected China's overtures to ditch Taipei and recognise Beijing.

African presidents in attendance include South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa, Egypt's Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Zambia's Edgar Lungu and Gabon's Ali Bongo.

There are some controversial guests.

Sudan President Omar al-Bashir, who has been in power for nearly 30 years, is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes over killings and persecution in Sudan's Darfur province between 2003 and 2008.

Xi told him on Sunday that "foreign forces" should not interfere in Sudan's internal affairs, China's Foreign Ministry said. China is not a party to the court.

"China has always had reservations about the International Criminal Court's indictment and arrest order against Sudan's president. We hope the ICC can prudently handle the relevant issue," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters.

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Sesa Sen By

Express News Service

SURAT: Indian Oil Corporation Ltd (IOCL), country's largest refiner will infuse Rs 16,500 crore to set up three downstream petrochemical complexes and is planning to pump in another Rs. 33,000 crore to expand its petrochemical capacity in three years time.

We are looking at ramping up our existing refineries as we believe that the future refineries would entail better petrochemical output driven by robust demand. To cater to the demand we have three projects in Odisha worth Rs. 16,500 crore which are at various stages of implementation, said IOC chairman Sanjiv Singh, on the sidelines of the textiles and plastics investors conclave, here on Sunday.

Giving a break-up of the plan, Singh said about Rs. 4,500 crore will go into projects such as Purified Terephthalic Acid (PTA), Rs. 10,000 crore will be for Mono Ethyl Glycol (MEG) and another Rs. 2,000 crore will go into setting up a polyester staple fibre (PSF) unit. The PSF facility is the second such downstream petrochem facility in Odisha, where IOC is also setting up a plastic park close to its refinery in Paradip. Besides, the oil marketing major has plans of setting up a Textiles Park in Odisha, in which the polyester fibre produced in PSF unit will be used as feedstock.

In addition, a polypropylene unit of 700 KTA (kilo tonnes per annum) would also be set up at its refinery complex, to support the plastic industry by supplying raw materials. Estimated to cost Rs. 3,150 crore, the plant is getting ready to be commissioned by December, this year.

Expansions are also planned at the firms Panipat refinery in Haryana, Koyali refinery in Gujarat, Barauni refinery in Bihar, Paradip in Odisha and Mathura refinery in Uttar Pradesh to produce Euro-VI emission norm compliant petrol and diesel by 2020 as against Euro-IV fuel being produced now. We are looking at ramping up our newest refinery at Paradip in Odisha to 18 mtpa from current 15 mtpa. Overall, the capacity augmentation at various refineries will cost us around Rs 33,000 crore per annum and help us reach a refining capacity of around 115 mtpa in the next 12 years, said Singh.

The proposed petchem plants along with upgradation of refineries will serve as an alternative line of revenue and add to the firms gross refining margins, said an expert tracking the sector, calling it a de-risking model.

Investment push

Addressing the conclave, Union minister Dharmendra Prasad urged investors in Surat to invest in the proposed textile and plastic park. There is a huge opportunity to develop downstream industries in sectors such as petrochemical, plastic and textiles with convenient access to all the primary raw material needed. The region also has the necessary infrastructure, including ports, railway connectivity and road networks along with low-cost labour, that will facilitate the speedy development of the two sectors, he said.

Notably, even as Odisha is scouting for potential investors for the downstream plastic park in Paradip, Kolkata-based Aradhana Plastics and Tidal Trading from Paradip have already done their groundbreaking at an estimated investment of Rs 60 crore. With an annual installed capacity of 5,040 tonnes per annum, the estimated cost of Tidal Trading's project is Rs 20 crore, while Aradhana Plastics project cost is about Rs. 40 crore. Three more companies are in the pipeline which is expected to come on board by this year-end, said Avinash Verma, executive director (Petrochemicals), Indian Oil.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: Referring to mob lynchings across the country and issue of abuses and threats on social media, Supreme Court lawyer and activist Prashant Bhushan termed the current situation worse than that of the Emergency period.

Speaking at a literary meet on tolerance at Central College here on Saturday, Bhushan slammed the clampdown of dissent in different forms. What our country faces today is nothing short of an existential threat to civilisation itself. We see mobs lynching old defenceless men and women. People have stopped differentiating between truth and lies, he said.

He said most of the mainstream media had been brought under the governments control by either inducements or threats. Attacking the RSS, he said members of such anti-constitutional organisations shouldnt be allowed to hold any public posts.

To counter the scenario, Bhushan said we needed to identify sources that spread fake, false and hateful news via social media and file complaints against the culprits. He suggested formation of a peace committee comprising people of different religions in every district to promote greater interaction among different communities and to dispel false notions.

Historian Ramachandra Guha, who also spoke, said political democracy does not mean social and cultural democracy. Quoting Ambedkar, Guha said, Bhakti in religion is the root to the salvation of the soul and Bhakti in politics is the root of dictatorship.

Octogenarian playwright, actor and filmmaker Girish Karnad slammed the recent arrests of five activists across the country, and said the citizens needed to keep protesting the act. Filmmaker M S Sathyu too spoke on the arrests and said artists should oppose this fascism through their work.
Yemeni President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, whose country is gripped by a devastating civil conflict, will undergo medical tests in the United States later this month, a minister said Monday.

Information Minister Moammer al-Eryani said in a tweet that Hadi will be travelling to the US to attend the UN General Assembly, which opens on September 18 in New York.

He will undergo medical examinations while there", Eryani tweeted, without providing further details on the nature of the tests that the Yemeni president is expected to undertake.

Hadi, 73, who has lived in exile in Riyadh since 2015, on Sunday chaired a cabinet session in the Saudi capital.

There have been no reports that Hadi has been ill.

Backed by Saudi Arabia and its allies, Hadi's government has battled Iran-backed Huthi Shia rebels for more than three years.

The UN recognises the administration of Hadi as the legitimate government of Yemen.

The world body has invited Yemen's warring parties to hold peace talks in Geneva from Thursday.

Both the government and rebels have said they do not expect any breakthrough at the talks, the first since UN-backed negotiations broke down in 2016.

Yemen's foreign minister has ruled out face-to-face meetings between the delegations.

In 2014, the Huthis overran the capital, driving out the Hadi government and setting up a parallel government in Sanaa.

Saudi Arabia and its allies joined the government's fight against the Huthis in 2015, triggering what the UN has called the world's worst humanitarian crisis.

More than 10,000 people have since been killed and the country now stands at the brink of famine.

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By Express News Service

BENGALURU: With 36 out of 224 seats in the state Assembly, the JD(S) was successful in getting the Chief Ministers post. Now, with 15 members out of 198 in the BBMP Council, the party is demanding the Mayoral post. The incumbent Sampath Raj and Deputy Mayor Padmavathis term will be completed by the end of September.

The Congress and JD(S) coalition in the state government have kept the single largest party  BJP  out of power. A similar strategy was used in the BBMP Council in 2015. The BJP had won 100 seats and has the support of one independent, Congress had won 75 and JD(S) 14, while six independents supported to bring the Congress-JD(S) combine to rule the BBMP Council.

The BJP is the single largest party in the BBMP Council. Apart from BBMP Councillors, MLAs, MLCs and MPs with Bengaluru residential address can also vote for the Mayor and Deputy Mayor. With this, the Congress-JD(S) alliance numbers are more than the BJP. Since 2015, there has been mutual understanding among the two parties, where a Congress member would become Mayor and JD(S) Deputy in the last three terms. This time, reservation for the Mayors post is for a woman and deputy a General category. Now, with the JD(S) in power in the state, it is also trying its luck in the BBMP.

JD(S) has extended its support to Congress in the last three years. We are just asking for one year term for JD(S). We have been appealing to them to give the Mayoral post to us and let Congress keep Deputy this time. We will discuss this soon, Mahalakshmipura JD(S) MLA Gopalaiah told The New Indian Express.

There are seven women councillors in the JD(S). One of the strongest contender is Hemalatha, wife of Gopalaiah , who earlier served as Deputy Mayor.

While Congress has two candidates  Sowmya Shivakumar from Shanthinagar ward and Gangambike from Jayanagar ward, who has the backing of the Lingayat community. There has been no representation for this community in the BBMP/BMP in the last 20 years and various associations have appealed to the Congress to make her the mayor.

When asked about the JD(S) demand, ruling party leader M Shivaraj said this time it will be a Congress mayor. According to him, there are 259 voters for the mayoral and deputy mayoral elections. Together with Congress, JD(S) and independents, our strength is 137 seats, while the BJP has just 122, he said.

The BJP on the other hand is trying its luck. We do not know how many of them are valid voters from Congress and JD(S). We will field our candidate anyway, said a BJP member.
Samuel Merigala By

Express News Service

CHENNAI: As the skies turned grey over S Kolathur on Sunday, a sense of gloom filled residents. For them, even a short spell of rains like the one they witnessed in the afternoon is a reminder of flooding during the monsoon. With remedial measures promised yet to materialise, residents fear this years monsoon is going to be no different.

The Narayanapuram canal, which passes through the area after cutting across the Pallavaram-Thoraipakkam radial road at the Keelkattalai signal, is the primary outlet for water which stagnates in the low-lying area. However, the 70-foot canal remains highly encroached upon, impeding the flow of excess water from the Nanmangalam lake to the Pallikaranai marshland.

Following the 2015 December floods, the Public Works Department had religiously marked encroachments for demolition along the entire stretch of the canal. But three years later, these residential buildings continue to dot the canal.

At one particular point, a religious encroachment in Krishna Nagar narrows the canal down to 15 feet and water is forced to find an alternative route along the streets of Raja Nagar, TNPL colony and Kagithapuram.

Further down, residential encroachments have forced the canal to take an abrupt right turn. This also forces water to inundate the streets. Around 1,200 families reside in this part of S Kolathur and Kagithapuram. They are affected by the overflow of water from the canal and have to venture out during the monsoon by hailing tractors, said Zahid Hussain Parveez, a resident.

The PWD in November, 2017 brought down commercial encroachments on the canal near the Keelkattalai signal and residential encroachments along the Medavakkam Koot Road, but failed to continue demolishing encroachments on the canal as it proceeds toward the Pallikaranai marshland. When Express contacted the PWD regarding the issue, they claimed that there were legal hurdles. Some of the encroachers have gone got stay order and so, our hands are tied, said a PWD official.

Meanwhile, residents approached their MLA Aravind Ramesh with a plea to build a bridge over the canal to help people in the low-lying areas evacuate in case of an emergency. The bridge is nearing completion. The government has to address the root cause of all our problems  encroachments, said GV Ramesh, treasurer, BKR Residents Welfare Association.
By Express News Service

CHENNAI: The woman, who had murdered her two children for her illicit affair with a man, was arrested by special police on Saturday night. Enquiries revealed that Abirami on Thursday poisoned the food of her husband Vijay and children, Ajai (7) and Karumila (4).

While the husband and son were not affected by the poison, her daughter died the same night. Having failed to murder her husband and son as planned, the woman tried to carry out her plan on Friday night. However, her husband, who left for work on Friday morning assuming that his daughter was asleep, informed her that he would not return home that night. This led the woman to poison her son, this time successfully, before fleeing to Nagercoil, said an investigation officer.

The woman had planned to elope to Nagercoil with Sundaram, an employee in a restaurant, with whom she had an extramarital affair. Her plan of murdering her husband became a flop and she fled the house instantly, informing Sundaram to meet her in Nagercoil.

However, the police nabbed Sundaram before he could escape. The Kundrathur police made a call through Sundarams phone and tricked Abirami into their net.

Vijay, 30, an employee in a private bank and his wife, Abirami, were living with their two children Ajay (7) and Karnika (4) in a rented house in Thiruvalluvar Nagar, Moondram Kattalai, Kundrathur. Vijay, who worked late on Friday, returned home on Saturday morning. When he opened the door, he saw his son and daughter frothing at the mouth. His wife was missing. He informed the Kundrathur police about the incident.

The police recovered the bodies and sent them to the Government General Hospital at Chrompet for postmortem.

Man held for driving car pasted with fake stickers

Chennai: A 50-year-old man, who was moving in a car pasted stickers of government departments, with a handcuff and walkie-talkie at Abhiramapuram, was arrested. The Abiramapuram traffic police, who were checking vehicles, found a car with registration number TN-07 CQ 2005 carrying lots of stickers pasted on the windscreen. The stickers included Government of India, Crime and Corruption Control Association, Human Rights Journalists Association and Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The vehicle also had a small emblem inscribed on it.

Man held for raping step-daughter

Chennai: A 35-year-old man, who allegedly raped his step-daughter, was arrested by Avadi all-women police station. Police said the accused of Tiruvallur, works at a private company in Chennai. In 2010, he fell in love with a widow who eloped with him. In 2014 the woman took back the custody of her children. In 2017, he allegedly raped the minor kid, who became pregnant. He threatened the girl not to tell the matter to anyone. Recently, she fell ill and her grandfather took her to a hospital where he found that she was suffering from side-effects of abortion. The infuriated elderly man lodged a police plaint.
Sanskriti Talwar By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Just a few days before he was about to be sent home, a 14-year-old boy who had run away from home, allegedly committed suicide by hanging himself in the washroom of a shelter home in Karol Bagh in the wee hours of August 2, police said on Monday.

The boy, a native of Etawah in Uttar Pradesh, was found wandering on the streets and was sent by the Child Welfare Committee to Surakshit Bachpan shelter that is maintained by Railway children, a global children's charity working with street children in India, East Africa and the UK.

Confirming the suicide, ACP (Karol Bagh) said, An enquiry was set-up by the Sub-Divisional Magistrate and a post-mortem was also ordered.

According to a source, the suicide was reported to the Prasad Nagar police station soon after another child in the shelter went to the washroom and found the boy hanging.

"The boy was on the run because he had lost something his father had bought for him. He was afraid to go back for fear of a beating by his father. The shelter had located the parents by contacting the village Sarpanch. The boy, who had been in the home for ten days was about to be sent home, a police officer said.

"The CCTV footage of the shelter home did not show any foul play. However, the autopsy report is still awaited," he added.

The shelter home staff said the boy had appeared normal and used to mingle with the other boys. They, however, refused to speak about the suicide as a probe is underway.
By Express News Service

KOCHI: The flood had deposited around four tonnes of plastic waste on the walkway on the banks of the Muvattupuzha River. The entire waste would have made its way back into the river if the students of Govt Vocational Higher Secondary School, East Maradi, hadnt come forward and taken up the task of disposing of the trash.

The task was taken up by the members of the National Service Scheme (NSS) unit of the school in association with Green People. The walkway built near the river was restored to its former glory after a concerted effort by the students and the volunteers of the green organisation.

Over four tonnes of wastes like diapers, hospital waste, clothes, waste from the shops and decaying vegetation had got entangled on the handrails of the walkway after the river breached its banks. According to the residents, the residents associations and various clubs had promised to clean the walkway. But all of them got frightened by the size of the waste pile, said a resident. It was at this juncture the students came to the rescue.

ALSO READ | Leptospirosis and related mortality rates on the rise after floods

The District Collector has issued a strict directive against disposal of waste in the water bodies in the flood-hit areas. After cleaning the walkway, the students also staged a protest march against the disposal of waste into the river.

Snehaksharam scheme

Besides, waste management, a drive to collect and distribute books, pencils and other stationery items has been undertaken by the NSS unit under the Snehaksharam scheme. Around 3,000 books have been collected under the project. The books thus collected have been distributed among the students of the school. Books were also given to other schools located along the banks of the river, said Sameer Siddiqui, programme officer, NSS unit, Govt VHSS, East Maradi.
By PTI

LOS ANGELES: Kevin Spacey's former co-star Robin Wright says the actor should be given the chance to ''reform'', following his sexual assault scandal.

The 58-year-old actor is facing several accusations that he sexually assaulted men including actor Anthony Rapp, who claimed the star made unwanted advances on him when he was just 14-years-old.

Spacey addressed the allegations and came out as gay.

The allegations caused the star to be removed from Netflix drama "House of Cards", which also stars Wright.

"I don't know how to comment on that, I really don't. I believe every human being has the ability to reform. Has the ability to reform. In that sense, second chances, or whatever you are going to call it absolutely, I believe in that. It's called growth," Wright told Net-A-Porter.

The 52-year-old actor, who will be leading the final and last season of "House of Cards", said she does feel sorry for Spacey.

"I feel sorry for anybody whose life is in the public arena. It's a nightmare, can you imagine? We do a job, we share (a performance) with viewers. Why does our private life have to be public? I hate that part of this industry. I'm talking about media. The exposure. It's an awful feeling," she said.

Wright, however, said she has not been in touch with Spacey since his exit from the series.

"He'll reach out when he's ready, I'm sure. I think that's the way it should go," she said.
By UNI

NEW DELHI: The cast of Ali Abbas Zafar-directorial 'Bharat' gets bigger as Jackie Shroff joins the team as Salman Khan's father.

The director has confirmed the senior actor to step in as the father of Salman for the period film.

'Bharat' depicts the eternal bond shared by a father and son, which is quite evident in the teaser.

Dropped on Independence day, the teaser had gone viral, creating a frenzy across quarters raising the anticipation for the film.

Talking about Jackie Shroff, director Ali Abbas Zafar said, "We met Jaggu da in London and discussed his dates and looks. I have wanted to work with him for a long time as I feel he is the perfect amalgamation of a star and actor. I was very glad as Jackie sir instantly agreed with the story to do the film in just 20 minutes of narration."

The film that traces the journey 60 years, boasts of an ensemble cast with names like Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Disha Patani, Sunil Grover, Tabu and Jackie Shroff.

After wrapping the first schedule in Mumbai, the team has recently concluded the second schedule in Malta.

The cast has been sharing pictures from the sets piquing the interest of the audience for the much-anticipated film.

'Bharat' shot for a grand circus sequence in the first schedule with a song choreographed by Vaibhavi Merchant featuring Salman Khan and Disha Patani.

The film showcases Disha Patani as a trapeze artist and involves action sequences and stunts with fire for which the actress geared up months before the film went on floors.

Pictures of Salman Khan doing daredevil stunts on a motorbike amid a ring of fire in the circus set-up added to the excitement of the film.

Recently, Salman Khan shared a still featuring himself and Katrina which looked straight out of a fairy tale, which became the talk of the town in no time.

'Bharat's release brings back Salman and director Ali Abbas for an Eid release after the 2016 blockbuster hit, 'Sultan'.

The hit director-actor duo will be marking a hat trick with 'Bharat' after their last outing 'Tiger Zinda Hai'.

Salman Khan will yet again treat the audience on the festive season of Eid next year with the release of 'Bharat'.

The film will feature the actor sporting five different looks spanning 60 years, wherein a crucial part will showcase him actor in his late 20s, looking much leaner and younger.

Salman will be recreating his 'Karan-Arjun' look which has created immense excitement among the audience.

The film is set to have a character-driven story spanning across many periods.

'Bharat' will be shot across exotic locations in Malta and Abu Dhabi, besides Punjab and Delhi.

Directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, 'Bharat' is produced by Atul Agnihotri's Reel Life Production Pvt.

Ltd and Bhushan Kumar's T-Series releasing Eid 2019.
Sajin Shrijith By

Express News Service

For someone whose first movie, Mandharam, is about to come out, director Vijesh Vijay doesn't have a hint of worry on his face; he is a picture of enthusiasm and confidence. And one doesn't get the feeling that he is trying to feign either of them. This is a man who knows what he is doing.

When asked how he manages to stay tension-free, he tells us that he had been asked that question before and he doesn't know why exactly. "Maybe it's because I knew that I was destined to make movies. I've struggled a lot, but there was always this feeling inside me that I would get to where I am now. Mandharam was 9 months in the making (there were multiple breaks between schedules). And I also know that audiences will come to see my movie," says Vijesh.

Did these schedule breaks concern him? "Not at all. I was happy that I finally got to direct something, even if it was going to take a while to come out."

The film, starring Asif Ali, was initially planned for a September 7 release. However, the unexpected floods led to their film being postponed to a later date. Asif Ali will be seen in three different get-ups in the film.

Though Mandharam is a romantic entertainer, Vijesh elaborates that it's also a coming-of-age drama in addition to being a story about friendship and parental bonds. "I've always been interested in films that appeal to the emotions and senses. I believe in cinema that entertains. I'm not interested in making films that nobody wants to see."

Poster of 'Mandharam'

If you ask Vijesh a list of filmmakers who inspire him, you won't hear names like Stanley Kubrick, Steven Spielberg, Akira Kurosawa or Martin Scorsese; you'll hear instead names like Mani Ratnam, Gautham Menon, Imtiaz Ali, SS Rajamouli, etc.

"When an ordinary man gets off from a long and hard day at work, he wants to see something that makes him feel good when he comes out of the theatre. Most people don't go to the theatre to get depressed further (laughs). That's the kind of cinema I want to make because that's the kind of cinema I want to see as an audience member," says Vijesh.

Vijesh cites Alphonse Puthren's blockbuster Premam as a perfect example. "I know that there are some folks who didn't like that film. But I enjoyed it. I thought it was a fun experience. Isn't what cinema was invented for?"

Since he had brought up Premam, we asked him about the comparisons some people made between Mandharam and Premam, given the fact that it shows Asif's character in three different time periods. Vijesh clarifies that though they are two different movies, there is nothing wrong with past influences showing up in your work. "Even if you take the Hollywood movies being made today, there are concepts in them that we have seen many times before, in an older era, being repackaged to appear fresh for a new generation of moviegoers. They may have not seen the inspirations but we are aware of this," observes Vijesh.

It's all in the treatment, regardless of how old or cliched the subject is, says Vijesh. "Mandharam narrates the emotional journey of Asif Ali's character; and what he goes through, some of us may have gone through a similar experience. It's possible for more than one person to go through the same experience, no? There are situations in this film that I and M Sajas (writer) have gone through."

Having an actor like Asif Ali on board made things much easier, adds Vijesh. "Being the open-minded person that he is, Asif is willing to accept our ideas and put in that extra effort to help us realise them. And he comes up with some cool inputs of his own. We had an incredible rapport on set. He didn't treat me like a newcomer. Now that I have made one film with Asif, I know everything about him. So in case I make another film with him, I know that I'll be able to utilise him better."

Vijesh says the songs in the film were added much later. "I had a clear idea of where I wanted to place the songs. So I shot the footage I wanted for them much earlier. The actors didn't know that this footage was being shot for the songs. At that point, there were no lyrics or music; we just used some random, dummy lyrics instead. Everything was written and composed later." He confesses that one of the songs, which is about to be released online soon, was written by him.

Mandharam is produced by Monisha Rajeev and Tinu Thomas under the banner of Magic Mountain Cinemas. Kannada actress Varsha Bollamma (who made her Malayalam debut with Kalyanam) and Anarkali Marikar (who debuted in Aanandam) play the main female leads. Jacob Gregory, Arjunan Asokan and Vineeth Vishwam appear in supporting roles.
By Online Desk

The Madras High Court has ruled that actor Simbu must pay back the money that he received as an advance from producers at Passion movie makers.

The court ruled that he should return the 50 lakhs with an additional interest of 35 lakhs for causing a loss for the producers. If the amount is not furnished in 4 days, the actor's home appliances and car will be seized.

After receiving the advance, Simbu reportedly didn't turn up for shooting. When Simbu also refused to return the advance, the producers filed a case against the actor.

ALSO READ: Check out some rare photos of controversial actor STR

In court, Simbu blamed the producers for not beginning the film shooting on time.

'Arasan', which was to be produced by passion movie makers, was pitched to actor Simbu by director Narayan Nagendra Rao in 2015. The director had just completed his film 'Maalai Pozhudhin Mayakathilaey' and was hoping to star Simbu in a film about a leader. The director had also started with another project while waiting for Arasan to materialise.

According to Dinamalar, Narayan expressed sorrow that Simbu was blamed for this, and that the title of the film which was kept under wraps was revealed.
By Express News Service

MUMBAI: In an attempt to justify their action, the Pune police on Wednesday stated that they have enough evidence to implicate the activists who were arrested on Tuesday only after a sustained surveillance.

Joint Commissioner of Pune Police Shivajirao Bodkhe, who read out a statement justifying the arrests, said the police has evidence which suggests that the arrested people had links with Kashmiri separatists.

All the activists have links with the banned CPI (Maoist) and have shown a strong intolerance towards the political system, he said. Bodkhe said that the 'evidence' was collected after the arrests of five other activists in June in the Bhima Koregaon probe.

Also Read | Delhi High Court questions Maharashtra police on activist Gautam Navlakha's arrest

He, however, did not take questions from the media.

According to officials of the Pune police, the 'evidence' includes around 25 to 30 terabytes of data, which has been examined in the presence of the legal and IT cell of Pune police.

Arrested activists were planning a "big conspiracy" to target the "highest political functionaries", the sources said.

Also Read | RJD chief Lalu Prasad Yadav decries arrest of Left-leaning activists, says country moving towards dictatorship

Bodkhe also claimed that the banned organization CPI (Maoists) funded the Elgar Parishad and added that after assessing the 'evidence' that allegedly point to Maoist connections, police surveilled the activists for almost a week before conducting raids.

During the search operations, multiple laptops, mobile phones, SIM cards, cameras and other writings and documents have been confiscated.

The activists were charged under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

The police have maintained that these activists were connected to the violence that erupted in Bhima Koregaon near Pune in January following the Elgaar Parishad conclave on December 31, 2017, the officer said.

Also Read | Bhima-Koregaon violence: Pune court asks cops to send arrested activists back to homes

Meanwhile, the district and sessions judge K D Vadane of Pune district court ordered Pune police to send Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira back to their residences, where they will be kept under 'house arrest', said Assistant Commissioner of Police, Shivaji Pawar.

"We had contended before the court here to allow them to be put under arrest at a guest house in Pune. However, due to specific directions of the apex court, the judge ordered that they be sent back to their respective cities for house arrest," he said.

The three activists may be sent back to their cities by tomorrow, police said.

Pune police had arrested them and two others - Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha - in connection with an FIR lodged following the 'Elgaar Parishad' conclave held in Pune on December 31 last year that had triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village.
Suspected Islamic State group jihadists shot dead a man as he emerged from prayers at a mosque north of Baghdad and wounded three others, police said on Monday.

The attack took place late Sunday in the village of Khanouka near Ash-Sharqat, one of the last areas retaken by government forces from IS last year, 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of the capital, a police officer said.

"The man, aged 80, had just finished praying (and was leaving the mosque) when the jihadists opened fire at him," the officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"Three other people were wounded in the shooting," he added.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

According to the police officer, IS holdouts are still present in the hills of Khanouka and other mountainous and desert regions of Iraq.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared "victory" in December in the fight against IS, which seized nearly a third of the country in 2014.

But sleeper cells continue to launch attack from sparsely populated areas.

According to Hisham al-Hashemi, an expert on radical Islamist groups, about 2,000 IS jihadists are still active in Iraq.

The elusive leader of the jihadist group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, called on Muslims to wage "jihad" in a purported new audio recording released on August 22.

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By UNI

NEW DELHI: With the elections to the state assemblies of Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram round the corner, the Congress is looking to turn the heat on the NDA government over the alleged irregularities in the deal for Rafale fighter jets.

With party president Rahul Gandhi leading from the front, the principal opposition party has been holding protests across the country over the past week to highlight the alleged irregularities in the deal before the people.

As part of the nationwide campaign to 'expose' the corruption in the Rafale deal, which began on August 25, spokespersons of the party, including Anand Sharma, Jaipal Reddy, Ajay Maken, Shakeel Ahmed, Randeep Surjewala, Manpreet Badal, Pawan Khera, Raj Babbar, Priyanka Chaturvedi , Jaiveer Shergill and others have been holding press conferences in various parts of the country.

Congress will be holding as many as 100 press conferences across the country and till now, the conferences have been held in New Delhi, Srinagar, Jalandhar, Jodhpur, Rajkot, Nashik, Bikaspur, Dehradun, Gwalior, Mandi, Meerut, Hubli, Bengaluru, Coimbatore and Jhansi.

ALSO READ: Rafale deal conflict explained: Here's what Congress and BJP said over the past three years

Simultaneously, protests have also been held by local units of the Congress across the country.

Apart from senior leaders and former Ministers, Congress has fielded 50 leaders for the month-long campaign to take on the Modi government.

The National Democratic Alliance's decision to enter a government-to-government deal with France to buy 36 Rafael warplanes made by Dassault was announced in April 2015, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi 's visit to France.

The agreement was signed a little over a year later.

The deal signed by the NDA government replaced the previous United Progressive Alliance regime's decision to buy 126 Rafael aircraft, 108 of which were to be made in India by Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd.

The Congress has charged the NDA government with not following proper defence procurement procedures in signing the deal.

It has alleged that approval of the Cabinet Committee for security was not obtained before signing the deal.

The deal has also come under attack from the Congress due to the fact that one of the offset deals signed by Dassault was with Anil Ambani's Reliance Group.

The Congress claimed that the earlier deal was scrapped and a new one signed just to benefit Mr Ambani.

It also claimed that the company, owned by Mr Ambani, does not have any past experience in defence production.

Viewing the Rafale deal as an opportunity to put the government on the mat and reap electoral dividends, the Congress has been relentlessly attacking the NDA government.

Alleging that it is "the corruption of the century", the Congress has been claiming that the deal was aimed at bailing out corporate crony capitalist friends of the Prime Minister.

Addressing a press conference here earlier this week, Mr Gandhi said, ''The truth is that Prime Minister signed the deal just to benefit Anil Ambani.

'' The Congress has claimed that the Modi government was buying each aircraft at a cost of Rs 1,670 crore when the United Progressive Alliance (UPA) regime had finalised a price of Rs 570 crore per aircraft in 2012.

Political analysts admit that the Rafale deal could be a key issue ahead of the assembly polls to the four states, that is crucial for the fortunes of the Congress party.

In fact, party sources say that the ruling regime has been defensive on the issue.

The coming days could see the Congress step up its attacks on the government on the issue.

Party leaders say that they would continue its attacks on the government till their demand for constituting a joint parliamentary committee to probe the deal is accepted.
Namita Bajpai By

Express News Service

LUCKNOW: After a stay by the Allahabad High Court in response to a PIL against the construction of a heritage hotel in Lucknow's VVIP zone, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav has reportedly shelved his plan and gone for restoration of a bungalow on the plot at 1-A Vikramaditya Marg.

The former UP chief minister had planned the hotel on the plot owned by him and his wife Dimple. He had submitted documents to the Lucknow Development Authority (LDA) for getting the map of the proposed hotel, 'Hibiscus Heritage', passed and for getting the required NOCs.

In an affidavit submitted to the Allahabad High Courts Lucknow bench, the Yadavs gave an undertaking that they will withdraw their application from the LDA seeking permission for the construction of the heritage hotel.

The counsels for the Yadavs told the court that they had bought the land with a 1940-built bungalow from Jwala Ramnath. They assured the court that their clients would drop the plan of hotel construction and, instead, get the dilapidated bungalow restored for living purpose.

After getting an assurance from the Yadavs, a division bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Abdul Moin passed an order allowing the repair of the bungalow at 1-A Vikramaditya Marg with a rider that it would be used only for personal use and no new construction for any commercial activity would be allowed.

The high-security site happens to be in close proximity with the Samajwadi Party headquarters. Since the plot comes under a high-security zone where buildings cannot be more than seven meters, a number of NOCs from different departments were required.

In fact, the Yadavs had purchased the 23,872 sq ft plot at a cost of `39 lakh in 2005. A PIL was also filed in this regard recently raising objections to the construction of the hotel as the venue lies in high-security zone.

Earlier, while hearing a PIL, the High Court had passed an order staying construction of a heritage hotel on the land. To get the stay vacated, Akhilesh and Dimple Yadav had moved an application to withdraw their plans for constructing the hotel and had sought permission from the court to allow them to repair the bungalow for their personal use.
By IANS

MUMBAI: The Shiv Sena on Monday targeted the Maharashtra Police for the arrests of five left activists last week claiming they were reportedly "hatching a conspiracy to overthrow the central and state governments" besides allegedly "plotting a Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi", among others.

"The police contentions behind the arrests are ridiculous... The erstwhile government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was voted out and removed by the people -- not by the Maoists."

"As of now... at least, it is still possible to change the government through the democratic processes," the Sena said.

"The (Pune) police must not shoot off their mouths like this and the government must bar them from such statements... It's sheer stupidity," the Sena said in sharp edits in the party mouthpieces, "Saamana" and "Dopahar Ka Saamana".

While the practice of "using the police" for different aims is nothing new for the politicians and government, in the present instance, "the faster the truth emerges, the better," (remove the 'mukhota') for the police, demanded the Sena.

The second argument of the Pune police was that Modi was allegedly being targeted in a "Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination", at which the Sena clawed at the Pune police.

"The former PMs, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi were fearless and courageous leaders... It was their boldness which claimed their lives... But Modi will never indulge in such adventures."

"He is already provided the best security in the world and not even a bird can overfly him," the Sena pointed out.

Dismissing the police contentions, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party ally in Maharashtra and the Centre, the Sena said that "if these handful of Maoists had so much political strength", they would never have lost their (Communist) governments in West Bengal, Tripura, Manipur, etc.

Urging the government to rein in the police, it said the action last week was one of the biggest attack on Maoism by the Pune police culminating in the arrests of five "Urban-Naxals" in simultaneous nationwide raids.

The Maoist movement is spread across Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal, Karnataka, Odisha and Maharashtra's Gadchiroli and Chandrapur areas.

In many of these areas, they run parallel governments, killing many security personnel and even top politicians like Congress leader V.C. Shukla and others.

The edit said the Pune police arrested P. Varavara Rao, Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Fereira and Vernon Gonsalves -- intellectuals in different fields of life, rights activists, considered extremely influential persons moving about in high society circles.

"There are some doubts that something is wrong somewhere with these arrests... The facts must come out before the BJP becomes the butt of new jokes," the Sena concluded.
Ejaz Kaiser By

Express News Service

RAIPUR: The ongoing protest at the Hidayatullah National Law University (HNLU) in Chhattisgarh has intensified with the students threatening to go on a hunger strike if their demands were not met by September 5.

The students have been seeking the removal of Vice-Chancellor Sukh Pal Singh and protesting against alleged sexual harassment by faculty members, lax administration and arbitrary rules.

Even though there were little details forthcoming about allegations of sexual harassment, students have alleged that several of their demands have been rejected by Singh.

The students began their protests seeking Singhs dismissal soon after the Chhattisgarh High Court quashed his extension plea on August 27 and there were reports that the V-C would appeal against the court order.

The students, who staunchly oppose the move, also began a campaign under #HNLUKiAzaadi across the social media to safeguard the institute from "repressive, arbitrary rules and non-transparent administration".

The Students Bar Association of HNLU is seeking a probe into complaints of alleged sexual and mental harassment of students and lifting of restriction within the campus.

It's not that our demands came up now. But the VC, whose tenure faced serious allegations ranging from embezzlement to apathy, has ignored our fundamental issues", Snehal Ranjan Shukla, president, Students Bar Association, HNLU, told TNIE.

With no end to the peaceful demonstration by the law students, the university Chancellor appointed Principal Secretary (Law) Ravi Shankar Sharma as an interim V-C.

Sharmas dialogues with the students yielded no results though he acknowledged their right to raise demands and promised to look into their grievances on September 5.

During Sharma's visit to Delhi on September 2, the alumni of HNLU had impressed upon him that the demands were genuine and had been pending for the past several years.
By PTI

NICOSIA: President Ram Nath Kovind on Sunday praised the Indian community in Cyprus for strengthening people-to-people relations between the two nations.

Addressing the Indian Community here, the president said, "India is proud of its diaspora and their achievements. They are true cultural ambassadors of India and will deepen our ties with Cyprus."

Kovind arrived in Cyprus on Sunday on the first leg of his three-nation visit to Europe to continue India's high-level engagements with European countries.

The president and his wife arrived at the Larnaca International Airport.

They were received by Georgios Lakkotrypis, Cyprus' Minister of Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism.

"Happy to begin my visit to Cyprus, one of our closest and most steadfast partners in the international community.

My delegation and I bring warm and friendly currents from the Indian Ocean to the waters of the Mediterranean.

Looking forward to a productive visit," Kovind tweeted.

Apart from Cyprus, Kovind will also visit Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

This is his first overseas state visit in the second year of his presidency.
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: In the wake of recent abductions and killings of policemen by militants, the wife of a serving policeman has penned down an emotional post about struggles and worries of families of policemen serving in strife-torn Kashmir.

"I'm a wife of a policeman. I am also a warrior, much braver, overburdened and accountable. For the wives of policemen, the adolescent fancy of 'being together' through thick and thin turns out to be a distant dream," wrote Arifa Tausif, a gold medalist in Sociology and working as a supervisor in ICDS, in a local news portal "Free Press Kashmir".

While narrating their struggle of loneliness, she wrote, "We halt for lunch. We keep waiting to dine together. We keep planning to attend family functions or funerals-God forbid!-together. We keep scheduling an outing. But that hardly ever happens. It's not about solo parenting only. We're the biggest liars!"

"We keep lying to our children that 'dad is coming this Saturday'. We lie that dad is attending the parent-teacher meet this time. We lie that we're going on a picnic this weekend. We keep lying that dad is going to join us this Eid, or that marriage. We keep lying to their old ailing parents that he is expected this or that day. We lie to our own selves. But we console, and encourage our own selves too," she wrote.

Arifa further wrote that sleeping alone was not the most stressful but waking up in the middle of the night, uncomfortable, restless and suffocated is. "There's no one around to comfort when we're in any kind of pain. We wait and wait, and only wait. Let it be today, tomorrow or a day after, but the plan hardly ever subsides."

"Even if it does, a police officer only marks his physical appearance at home. Mentally (and telephonically) he is attending to his duties without fail. This makes our life more stressful. And when we talk of our current scenario, the wives of policemen are hypertensive because they're always in a state of insecurity," she said. With surge in attacks on policemen and militants targettting families of cops, she stated that risks and dangers are increasing day by day.

"Every single casualty of a policeman elsewhere makes our life additionally insecure and worrisome."Four policemen were killed in single militant attack in south Kashmir last week while families of 11 policemen were kidnapped by militants in south Kashmir after police detained family members of some militants and allegedly torched houses of two active militants.

Arifa said the varying political ideology of the society makes it hard to explain to people that doing a job in the police department never means disloyalty to one's people. "It's not always a matter of choice." She said the stress increases when "you are out of your home because in case of any unfortunate event (a pellet injury to someone), people do make us somehow feel responsible for the same. And then, when anything untoward happens to the policemen, there is hardly anyone to even sympathise with us."

She said killing of senior journalist Shujaat Bukhari's by militants in June this year was widely condemned and rightly so. "But hardly anyone knows the name of the two policemen killed on that fateful day. The slain cops also must have had a family which is equally shattered."

Arifa said she penned down her emotions in response to one more lie to her daughter that her father was joining them on Eid. "He actually wasn't! We've been expecting him since the day he joined the police department," she said.Arifa concludes with the prayer that her children understand all this at the earliest. "I wish my state comes out of these dark clouds and we see the dawn of a peaceful and prosperous Kashmir."
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: A youth was killed and two others were injured in security forces firing on the stone-pelting mob during a cordon and search operation in restive south Kashmir's Pulwama district on Monday while a PDP worker escaped unhurt in a militant attack in the same district.

A police official said police, CRPF and army men laid siege around over dozen villages in Pulwama district early this morning on reports that militants were hiding there. As the security personnel were conducting searches, the youth in village Chewakalan in Pulwama took to roads and clashed with the troops.

The protestors pelted stones on the security personnel, who retaliated by firing tear smoke shells, pellets and bullets. In the security forces firing, a youth sustained bullet injury in head while two others were hit by pellets. The injured were taken to a nearby hospital, where from youth with bullet injury was referred to Srinagar hospital in critical condition.

The youth identified as Fayaz Ahmad Wani succumbed to injuries in the Srinagar hospital.After youth's death, intense clashes broke out between youth and security men at his native place and other places in Pulwama district. The clashes continued till late evening.

Meanwhile, militants fired on an active worker of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Mehraj Ahmad Parra at village Naira in Pulwama district in the afternoon. However, the PDP worker escaped unhurt in the attack. Mehraj is said to be relative of PDP youth leader Waheed Ur Rehman Parra. After the incident, police and paramilitary personnel rushed to the area and launched a manhunt to track down the attackers. However, no arrests were reported.
Ramananda Sengupta By

Express News Service

NEW DELHI: Amidst the political slugfest over the Rafale deal, three of the French combat jets accompanied by one Atlas A-400M military transport aircraft, one C-135 refuelling aircraft, one Airbus A310 cargo aircraft and about a 100 French aviators are in India on a three-day mission September 1-4 as part of Mission Pegase (Pegasus).

This follows the recently concluded Pitch Black exercise in Australia, where the French and Indian Air Force conducted joint drills as part of the multilateral drill, in which over 140 aircraft from nine countries took part.

Operation Pegase, led by Air Corps General Patrick Charaix, aims to reinforce France's presence in South and Southeast Asia, and deepen its relations with its main partner countries. The French detachment reached India after stops in Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Singapore, and will involve joint flights and exchanges between the two air forces at India Air Force Stations of Gwalior and Agra.

ALSO READ | Taxpayers will pay Rs 1 lakh crore to PM Modi's friend for Rafale deal: Rahul Gandhi

During this trip, some Indian pilots are expected to fly the Rafale, the first lot of which are expected to be inducted into the IAF early next year. "This mission in India is yet another illustration of the depth of the Indo-French strategic partnership, which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year, and the great trust that prevails in the relations between our respective armed forces," said a French embassy release.

Earlier, the French defence ministry said that "This deployment provides the opportunity to reaffirm the commitment of France to security and stability in the Asia-Pacific, in conformity with the conclusions of the Strategic Review ("Revue Strategique"). It will emphasize the attachment of France to international law and to freedom of navigation and supply. It will demonstrate the ability of the Air Force to respond rapidly and to ensure a presence in this part of the world, with due attention to the political and economic considerations at stake and to questions of national sovereignty."
Fayaz Wani By

Express News Service

SRINAGAR: With the Governor administration in Jammu and Kashmir announcing holding of Urban Local Bodies (ULB) and panchayat polls in the State from next month, the separatist leaders on Monday called for boycott of the polls.

Three senior separatist leaders Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik met at Geelani's residence today to discuss the prevailing political situation in the State. "We want to convey to Government of India (GoI) the loud and clear message by people of Kashmir that they boycott any kind of participation in elections and instead only demand Right to self determination," said a joint statement issued by three separatist leaders after the meeting.

They said people of Kashmir know that when it comes to J&K, all power rests with New Delhi and all decisions flow from there. "In 70 years since 1947, J&K is a colony ruled by India. Each election that has been held in J&K from panchayat to parliament has only been a means to further strengthened that power centre and in turn New Delhi's hold on J&K, and steadily but surely weaken the sovereignty of the people of J&K".

"Any participation in these polls is propagated as peoples' verdict in favour of India and hence they are used as a means to dilute J&K disputed status and undo the holding of a referendum as promised by India at the UN. These elections only bring prosperity to an opportunist class of people whom India has patronized in Kashmir like snakes being fed milk, while selling these elections to the people of India and the world as an endorsement by people of J&K to Indian rule," said Geelani, Mirwaiz and Malik, who have come under united banner of "Joint Resistance Leadership".

They said New Delhi has never believed in empowering people of J&K or the institutions here, as "it knows that its connect with the state is neither legitimate nor moral but an outcome of manipulation's and broken promises."The state government has announced to hold election for municipal bodies in the State in four phases with polling dates between October 1 and October 5.The Panchayat election would be conducted in eight phases with polling dates between November 8 and December 4.
Anand ST Das By

Express News Service

PATNA: Policemen were deployed in a village in Bihar's Vaishali district on Monday as tension prevailed between people belonging to two different castes following the lynching of a 55-year-old Dalit man, which led to the burning of seven huts belonging to people from an extremely backward caste (EBC).

Even though most male residents of Murtazapur Dumri village had fled the village after 39 of them were booked for burning of the huts on Sunday, police feared more clashes and remained alert. None of the 39 people named as accused has been arrested so far, said Patepur police station SHO Chhotan Kumar.

Five people, including two women, from the Sahni community were arrested for the murder of Nagendra Paswan following a fierce group clash in the village on Friday. Paswan was grievously injured after lathi-wielding men and women thrashed him in an agricultural field. He was first treated at a private clinic and then rushed to Patna Medical College and Hospital (PMCH), where he succumbed to his injuries.

The clash erupted from a minor incident involving children. After two children of the village belonging to the two castes had a quarrel and fought, the villagers were divided along caste lines and a skirmish ensued, leading to the Nagendra Paswans death, said Vaishali SP Manavjeet Singh Dhillon.

News of Paswans death angered the Dalit villagers, who allegedly set afire at least seven huts of people belonging to the Sahni community on Sunday, causing the stage for further retaliation. But swift deployment of police force brought the situation under control.

A probe is on to ascertain the claims by the Paswan community that the Sahnis had themselves set afire their huts to implicate the Paswans, said Dhillon.

Nagendra Paswans murder had sparked massive protests by the Dalit people from several nearby villagers, who had blocked the state highway linking Patepur to Mahua for about seven hours on Saturday.
A German court Monday jailed a failed asylum seeker who claims to be from Afghanistan for stabbing his 15-year-old ex-girlfriend to death, in a case the far-right has seized upon in its campaign against migrants.

The defendant, identified only as Abdul D., received a jail term of eight and a half years from the juvenile court in the western town of Landau.

The verdict came a week after violent anti-immigrant protests erupted in the eastern city of Chemnitz over the fatal stabbing of a man, allegedly by a Syrian and an Iraqi.

Abdul D. had admitted to the court to stabbing the girl at a drugstore in the town of Kandel on December 27. Prosecutors believe he acted out of jealousy after the girl broke up with him.

Besides his nationality, doubts have been raised about his age, which he said was 15 at the time of the crime.

An expert had estimated his age as between 17 and a half and 20 but, given the uncertainty, the proceedings were held behind closed doors and under juvenile penal rules.

Abdul D. arrived in Germany in April 2016 and his request for asylum was rejected in February 2017 although he was not immediately deported.

The case is one in a string of high-profile crimes allegedly committed by asylum seekers that have stoked popular anger against the new arrivals and put pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel over her liberal refugee policy.

Far-right party AfD has been mobilising regular demonstrations over the killing in the small town with a population of just 9,000, as it has sought to bolster its anti-migrant campaign.

At the peak of the protests, thousands marched in Kandel, but the rallies have since lost momentum. On Saturday, a demonstration in the town attracted 350 people, local police said.

Residents of the small town frustrated by the far-right rallies also lined the demonstration route, carrying banners like "Stop hate and incitement" or "Kandel is colourful, not brown" -- in reference to the Nazi's khaki uniforms.

Rhineland-Palatinate state premier Malu Dreyer accused the far-right of exploiting the teenager's death for political gains, saying this was "intolerable".

"It is the hope of all of us that once the trial is over, peace will return to Kandel," she said.

Across the country in Chemnitz, in the formerly communist east, tensions have been running high over another stabbing case.

Rival rallies in the eastern city on Saturday drew 11,000, with far-right demonstrators outnumbering counter-protesters by 8,000 to 3,000, police said.

Eighteen people were reported injured, police said, with a Social Democrat MP also saying that his team was "attacked by Nazis" as they were heading towards their bus.

Resentment against the arrival of more than a million asylum seekers since 2015 is particularly strong in Saxony state, where Chemnitz is located.

The AfD, railing against asylum seekers, has won strong support in the state, and surveys suggest that it is poised to become Saxony's second biggest party in next year's regional elections.

On Sunday, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas urged Germans to "get off our sofas and open our mouths" against xenophobia.

"All of us have to show the world that we democrats are the majority and the racists are the minority," he told Bild am Sonntag.

"The silent majority must get louder."

Later Monday, several left-leaning and anti-fascist punk bands were expected to attract thousands for a free concert in Chemnitz to protest the racist violence there, held under the motto "there are more of us".

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By UNI

LUCKNOW: With weather office issuing a fresh alert of heavy rain during the next 24 hours in several districts of Uttar Pradesh, the death toll in the recent spurt of rains and flood like situation in the state has gone up to 28 on Monday.

Officials sources here said that 9 more deaths were reported last night including 3 in Farrukhabad, 2 in Barabanki and 4 in Faizabad districts in house collapse and other rain-related incidents.

On Sunday, the total deaths was 19 in the rain related incidents in the state.

Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel on Sunday rescued 14 people stranded in Lalitpur and Jhansi districts of the state following the heavy showers, officials said.

IAF Choppers rescued six people who were marooned in a village under Telbehat tehsil of Lalitpur district.

The area got marooned due to heavy downpour.

The MI 17 Air Force rescue helicopters were sent from Gwalior who carried out the rescue work.

Highest deaths have been reported from Shahajahanpur where six people died of lightening on Saturday.

In neighboring district of Sitapur four more died in the incidents of house collapse.

Two people died each in Auraiyya and Amethi, two died in Bahraich, one person each died in Lakhimpur Khiri, Rae Bareli and Unnao," the official said.

Officials said that the government has announced an ex-gratia payment of Rs four lakh each to the families of the deceased.

The state government has directed District officials of affected-areas to immediately provide necessary monetary help in cases of house collapse or any other eventuality.

Directions were also issued for taking necessary steps to ensure proper treatment of the injured and warned that no laxity would be tolerated in relief works.

Meanwhile, Met officials have predicted more rains in next 24 hours.

"Area of low air pressure exists over eastern Uttar Pradesh and is moving northwardly. Similar pressure areas exist over Bay of Bengal. Under these circumstances heavy rains are expected in next couple of days," the Met official said here on Monday.

The weather department predicted thundershowers over Lucknow, Raebareli, Pratapgarh, Faizabad, Barabanki, Mainpuri, Balrampur, Pilibhit, Bareilly, Shahjahanpur, Budaun, Farrukhabad, Jalaun, Meerut, Muzaffarnagar, Shamli districts and adjoining areas.

The monsoon trough is slight to the north of its normal position and remain active with three embedded cyclonic circulations over Haryana and adjoining northwest UP, over central parts of south UP and adjoining parts of north Madhya Pradesh and over north Odisha and neighbourhood, Met officials said.

The weakening of cross-equatorial flow has caused a reduction in rainfall activity over peninsular India and parts of west India and is likely to remain subdued during the next four to five days.
By Express News Service

BHOPAL: For those aspiring Congress tickets in Madhya Pradesh, the new criterion is a minimum of 15,000 likes on their Facebook page and 5,000 followers on Twitter.

The MP Congress Committee issued a circular on Sunday making a major presence on the social media compulsory for all its office bearers in the state and districts, sitting MLAs and aspiring MLAs.

The order signed by MP Congress Committee vice-president in-charge of organization Chandraprabhash Shekhar mentioned that all those aspiring party tickets should have at least 15,000 likes on their Facebook page and a minimum of 5,000 followers on Twitter.

The order mentions that all party office bearers, present legislators and aspiring MLAs should have an account on Twitter, a Facebook page and presence on WhatsApp groups at the booth-level in their constituency. It also directs every aspiring candidate to like and share the party's official tweets and posts on Facebook.

The Congress IT Cell has directed all the party office-bearers and sitting MLAs to submit details of their Twitter handle and Facebook account by September 15.

According to state Congress' new IT cell head Abhay Tiwari, the latest move will help in bringing the entire party cadre on one platform to ensure better coordination. It will also help the party's candidates to connect better with local issues as the party wants to contest every seat on local issues.

He denied that the order would cause problems for ticket aspirant in rural areas. "There is no area where there isn't internet connectivity. Everyone has smartphones and teams who are well versed and active on social media platforms."

Recently, Congress state president Kamal Nath is said to have expressed his displeasure with the functioning of the IT cell. IT cell head Dharmendra Vajpayee was dumped and in came Tiwari, who headed the Congress online campaign in the 2017 Gujarat election.

Reacting to the Congress' attempts to streamline its social media apparatus, MP Minister of State for Cooperatives and BJP MLA from Narela (Bhopal) Vishwas Sarang said: "let the Congress do whatever it wants in the virtual world, but its base has drastically eroded in the real world."
By Express News Service

BHOPAL: Violent protests were witnessed during Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's Jan Ashirwad Yatra (JAY) on Sunday in the Assembly poll-bound Sidhi district, the home district of Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Vidhan Sabha Ajay Singh.

It all began at the CM's public meeting at Puja Park in Sidhi town, when a group of men sporting saffron stoles suddenly started raising Shivraj Singh Murdabad and Shivraj Singh Vapas Jao slogans in the middle of Chouhan's meeting.

One of them also hurled a slipper at the stage from where Chouhan was addressing the meeting. The security personnel escorting the CM immediately encircled him and three men, identified as Pramod Singh Parihar, Sanjay Mishra and Mrityunjay Mishra, all natives of Sidhi district, were taken into custody.

According to the Sidhi district police, the three arrested men are habitual offenders, against whom action has been taken in the past also for breach of public peace. Its, however, not yet clear, how these habitual offenders managed to enter the CM's programme.

Sources however said the three men were among those who have been protesting against the recent passage of the Bill to amend the SC/ST Atrocities Act by the Parliament.

The second incident happened in Churhat town of Sidhi district (600 km from Bhopal), when a group of men showed black flags and raised anti-Chouhan slogans while the JAY was passing through the town, which forms part of LoP Ajay Singhs Assembly constituency Churhat.

Sidhi police sources said the protestors were irked over the delay in construction of road in the area as well as the Parliament passing the Bill to amend the SC/ST Atrocities Act.

As many as 22 men were arrested from the spot and produced before court for breach of peace, after which they were sent into judicial custody.

Videos of the protest which have gone viral show one of the protestors standing near the door of the CM's vehicle and saying, "Mamaji Thakur Brahmin Ka Karein (what should the general category people, including Thakurs and Brahmins do?)."

In the third incident, people allegedly hurled stones at the CM's JAY vehicle in Patpara village (also part of Singh's Churhat Assembly constituency) at around 9.30 pm. The stones hit the vehicle and damaged its glasses, but the CM escaped unhurt.
By Express News Service

TUMAKURU: As many as 20 people suffered burns when a miscreant sprayed a bottle of chemical on the celebration party of a corporator here on Monday.

The Congress party's ward 16 candidate Inayath Ulla Khan won and he was taking out a procession along with his supporters when an unidentified miscreant attacked them at Barline area. He sprayed the chemical and escaped. The spot where the attack took place is a Muslim dominated area where former Congress MLA S Shafi Ahmed stays. The police recovered the video footage of the attack and are going to arrest the accused as soon as possible, sources said.

An injured patient is treated after an Acid attack during an election victory celebration on Monday near Tumkur. (Photo | Vinod Kumar T/EPS)

The victims were rushed to the district general hospital and are being treated for burns. All of them were out of danger, said district surgeon Dr T A Veerabhadraiah.

Former MLAs Rafeek Ahmed, Shafi Ahmed and former minister Sogadu Shivanna of the BJP visited the hospital and took stock of the situation. Town police have registered a case and taken up the investigation.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: A Pune-bound GoAir flight from Bengaluru made an emergency landing at the Kempegowda International Airport (KIA) on Saturday morning due to an engine shutdown. All 169 passengers on board were safe.

A major engine vibration mid-air just minutes after take-off is said to have caused the emergency landing. It is yet to be verified what caused the vibrations.

ALSO READ | AirAsia India flight diverted to Hyderabad after smoke warning

Just a few minutes after the flight took off from KIA, the pilots received an on board warning about severe vibrations in one engine. An oil chip detection alarm went off on that engine. Fearing a worse-case scenario, the pilot decided to shut off the engine mid-air.

As it would have been risky to continue the flight to Pune with the aircraft, an A-320, powered by just one engine, the pilot urgently requested the KIA Air Traffic Control to allow the flight to make an emergency landing. Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu has ordered a probe into the incident.

A BIAL spokesperson said, There was a minor issue with regard to GoAir flight on Saturday and we provided all support from the airport. According to a GoAir spokesperson, Flight G8-283 BLR-PNQ suffered a technical glitch. As a standard operating procedure, the Captain returned to Bengaluru. Post landing, all passengers were accommodated on alternative flights. GoAir sincerely regrets the inconvenience caused to passengers. GoAir is committed to the highest degree of safety of passengers and its own crew members and the crew operated within the established guidelines to provide for safe travel.

Bengaluru-bound AirAsia flight makes emergency landing

Hyderabad: A Bengaluru-bound AirAsia flight made an emergency landing at Rajiv Gandhi International Airport (RGIA) on Saturday night, after it experienced a cargo smoke warning. The aircraft with 112 passengers on board resumed its travel after a thorough inspection that confirmed the warning to be spurious. Flight no. I5 1629 from Amritsar to Bengaluru, took off from Amritsar at 7:23 pm. While in air, the pilot detected smoke and alerted the near Air Traffic Control at RGIA. After the ATC declared a local stand-by in emergency, the flight safely landed at 10 pm.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: The Congress may be going to the Lok Sabha polls in an alliance with the JD(S), but it has already started the process of identifying potential candidates for all 28 Lok Sabha constituencies in Karnataka.

The state Congress on Sunday concluded its two-day consultation meeting with district leaders, unit chiefs and legislators.

AICC General Secretary in charge of party affairs in Karnataka K C Venugopal, Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee chief Dinesh Gundu Rao, KPCC working president Eshwar Khandre, Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara and Congress Legislative Party chief Siddaramaiah held talks with leaders of Hubballi-Dharwad, Chitradurga, Gadag-Haveri, Kolar and Tumakuru among others in back-to-back meetings to draw names of probable candidates.

We are holding meetings with district leaders, MLAs and district unit presidents to elicit opinion. They are giving names and it will all be compiled and placed before the election committee. The list will be sent to our central leadership where the selection screening committee will take the final decision. The process has just begun, said Parameshwara.

While the coalition partners are yet to finalise on their seat-sharing formula, Congress is preparing a list of its candidates and aspirants for all Lok Sabha seats.

While many leaders from Hubballi batted for Vinay Kulkarni despite his loss in the assembly elections, others compelled the party leaders to consider candidates like S R More from the OBC community since the party has been giving preference to Lingayat candidates in the last four elections.

Leaders like K S Basavaraju urged the Congress not to give a ticket to Shivamurthy Naik for the Chitradurga Lok Sabha seat, accusing him of backing the BJP in the Assembly polls.

People of my community have been protesting demanding a ticket for me in the Lok Sabha polls from Chitradurga. If the state leaders refuse to give me a ticket, I will directly go to (Congress chief) Rahul Gandhi, said Shivamurthy Naik after his candidature was opposed by leaders of the district.

Former minister H K Patil, who was present for the Gadag-Haveri seat discussion, said a candidate has not yet been decided upon.

We will hold a meeting under G S Patils leadership and decide on a candidate unanimously in the next 15 days, H K Patil said.

Discussions with district leaders have so far been a stormy affair for the Congress. With many aspirants in the fray, the party has a giant task of filtering through all the names suggested by district-level leaders.

In Haveri alone, Saleem Ahmed, Shivanna, B R Patil and Srinivas Mane are in contention for the MP ticket. While senior party leader Manohar Tehsildar has suggested Saleem Ahmed and Shivanna, others pushed for Mane.

Siddaramaiah and Parameshwara are said to have asked the district leaders to discuss among themselves and suggest two final names to be sent to the central screening committee.

The party hopes to retain its sitting MPs in Chitradurga, Kolar, Chikkodi and Tumakuru, but the names of competing aspirants will also be included in the final list which will be sent to the screening committee.

We are working out strategies to win all 28 seats in Karnataka. Yes, in alliance with the JD(S), said Venugopal when asked about seat sharing with their coalition partner.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: The much debated strategy employed by the Congress and the Janata Dal (Secular), of having a 'friendly fight' amongst its candidates for the urban local bodies (ULB) elections seems to have paid off as the coalition has emerged as winners in 1357 seats out of 2662 seats across the states. While before the elections, questions had been raised about the wisdom in separate candidates for each party, the results on Monday brought cheer to the coalition partners.

Karnataka civic polls latest tally:

Total seats: 2664

Declared seats: 2662

Party Seats won BJP 929 INC 982 JD(S) 375 BSP 13 NCP 0 CPI 0 CPI(M) 0 Independents 329 Others 34

"The results show that unlike what was being speculated, the Congress has not weakened due to the alliance," Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) President Dinesh Gundu Rao said in a post results press conference. "This shows that the Congress and JDS, with their combined strength, can decimate the BJP," he said. The JDS has won 375 seats across the city corporations, city and town municipalities and town panchayats which went to polls on August 31.

Speaking on the results, Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy said that this clearly indicated that people of the state fully support the coalition government and reject BJP's allegations against the government. "Voters in urban areas are no longer supporting the BJP and that was clearly evident from today's results. They too have supported the coalition government," he said. In the ULBs with fractured mandate, the Congress and JD(S) will together elect president and vice president, he added

However, the saffron surge continued in the coastal areas as the BJP swept four out of seven Urban Local Bodies in the elections in Dakshin Kannada and Udupi districts. The Congress may come to power in three ULB's that have witnessed a fractured verdict with the help of the Social Democratic Party of India's support. The results came as a big shock to Housing Minister UT Khader as Ullal CMC slipped from Congress's hands for the first time in many years. The SDPI, which abstained from contesting assembly elections, appears to have rocked the Congress' boat. Despite not using pictures of its women candidates in publicity materials, three women won on SDPI symbol in Ullal.

Of the three city municipal corporations, BJP retained power in Shivamogga, while it was a fractured mandate in Mysuru and Tumakuru. In a setback to former CM Siddaramaiah, BJP emerged as single largest party in the Mysore City Municipal Corporation. However, the Congress- JD(S) coalition will have a clear majority in the CMC.

"The results are satisfactory but we could have performed better. The party will focus on winning 22 out of 28 Lok Sabha seats in the upcoming general elections," State BJP President BS Yeddyurappa said in a statement.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU:The state Congress will stage statewide protests in every district starting from Thursday, according to AICC General Secretary and in-charge of party affairs in Karnataka KC Venugopal.

In its build-up to the Lok Sabha polls, the Congress intends to play up the Rafale deal, demonetisation and fuel prices to attack the Narendra Modi-led NDA government at the Centre. And these agitations will mark the beginning of the Congress attack. The party has been demanding that the Union government set up a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the multi-crore Rafale deal, which the party deems to be a scam under the Modi government.

The party also hopes to derail the Modi governments clean governance image by pushing the Rafale deal as a scam of epic proportions and demonetisation as a failure for the common man but beneficial for the corporates.

We demand that the Union government form a JPC. If not, we will hold agitations from September 6-15 in all districts of Karnataka. Towards the end of September, we will hold a massive protest in Bengaluru against the Union government, Venugopal said at a press conference on Sunday.

Setting the narrative of the Congress for the Lok Sabha polls, Venugopal said it will be a fight between the rich and the poor. The Congress raised questions on the lives lost during demonetisation and how ineffective the process has been in curbing black money, countering fake notes and controlling cross border terrorism.

Demonetisation is the biggest fraud committed on the people of this country. The government wants to burden the common man with excise duty on fuel but wants to help corporates with deals like Rafale, Venugopal said.

Accusing the government of misusing Central government agencies like the Income-Tax Department and the Enforcement Directorate for vindictive politics, Venugopal said the same tactics will not help in the parliamentary polls.
By Express News Service

BENGALURU: In a sign that it may have recovered from its poor showing in the assembly election, the Congress on Monday emerged with a slight but clear lead over rival BJP in the keenly contested polls to 105 urban local bodies in Karnataka.

The Congress won 982  about 37%  of the 2,662 wards across city corporations, city and town municipalities and town panchayats for which elections were held on August 31, and together with alliance partner JD(S), which won 375 wards, will keep control of a majority of the urban local bodies. On the other hand, despite winning 929 wards for a close second-place finish, the BJP is likely to govern just about 31 local bodies, where it secured a majority.

The much-debated strategy of the Congress and the JD(S) of having a friendly fight among its candidates seems to have paid off as the coalition, put together, won 1,370 seats, including 13 by the BSP.

The results show that Congress and JD(S), with their combined strength, can decimate BJP, said KPCC president Dinesh Gundu Rao. All speculations that the party could weaken with an alliance with the JD(S) can now be put to rest, he said.

Voters in urban areas are no longer supporting BJP and that was evident from todays results, said Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy, who announced that the two partners will work together in civic bodies with a fractured mandate.

The result can be seen as a setback for BJP that emerged as the single largest party in the May assembly polls. Despite the BJPs attempt to congratulate itself for Mondays results  an improvement over its 2013 tally  it was evident that the party leaders were less than satisfied with the outcome.

The results are satisfactory but we could have performed better. The party will focus on winning 22 out of 28 Lok Sabha seats in the upcoming general elections, state BJP president B S Yeddyurappa said.

Political analysts believe that the results should worry BJP. Urban areas are their (BJPs) forte but they havent been able to do well. The Congress is ahead of them. If a post-poll alliance can bring an advantage, it has to be seen how much of an impact a pre-poll alliance (between Congress and JD-S) can make, said Dr Sandeep Shastri, political scientist.

The BJP, that hoped to win 60 per cent of all local bodies, managed to win 4 out of 7 in DK and Udupi districts and retained power in Shivamogga.

Ullal municipality in Dakshina Kannada slipped from Congress hands for the first time in many years. The SDPI appears to have rocked the Congress boat. Despite not using pictures of its women candidates in publicity materials, three women won on SDPI symbol in Ullal.

While the JD(S) trumped the Congress in Tumakuru, Mandya and Hassan, the BJP emerged as the single largest party in Mysore city corporation. However, the Congress-JD(S) coalition holds a clear majority in the civic body.
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: KPCC chief M M Hassan said the planned overseas visit by the state ministers to mobilise funds for flood relief will undermine the ongoing flood relief and rehabilitation work. In a release here, Hassan, who termed the proposed trip by the ministers untimely, hastened to add Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayans visit to the US is for medical purposes.

Kerala is limping to normalcy from the flood disaster, with thousands still in the relief camps. The ministers going on the foreign jaunts are in charge of districts to coordinate the relief and rehabilitation work along with senior officers, he said. Considering the emergency situation the foreign travel of the ministers should be put off, Hassan said.

ALSO READ | Leptospirosis and related mortality rates on the rise after floods

Even the LDF MLAs had stated in the Assembly there is no coordination in the relief and rehabilitation work, Hassan said. The exact figures regarding the scale of the tragedy are not available yet and the government should immediately come out with detailed figures and action plan to get more Central funds, Hassan said. This will also become affected on account of the ministers staying away.

Malayalees world over, including those living in the state, had contributed generously to the CMs Distress Relief Fund, with relief materials worth several crore too being sent. All these were done online and materials and money can be collected in the same manner,Hassan said, indicating the ministers foreign jaunt for the purpose is totally unwarranted. A special account should be opened immediately to ensure proper utilisation of flood relief funds, he said.
The Egyptian Competition Authority (ECA) on Monday warned Uber and Careem, the two largest ride hailing companies in Egypt, against proceeding on a reported merger deal without receiving prior permission from the authority, an official statement read.

The ECA said it has reached out to the San Francisco and UAE, respectively, based companies over July media reports that Uber is seeking to acquire Careem in an attempt to overcome a costly competition.

The authority explained its reasoning citing article five in the 2005 law on the protection of competition and the prohibition of monopolistic practices, which stipulates that the provisions of the law shall apply to acts committed abroad, should these acts result in the prevention, restriction, or harm of the freedom of competition.

They added that, according to article one, economic activities shall be undertaken in a manner that does not prevent, restrict or harm the freedom of competition in accordance with the provisions of the law.

The ECA said that it has sent an official notification to both firms stating that the acquisition of shares or transfer of ownership or an agreement between competing enterprises constitute a violation of the provisions of the sixth article of the law.

The authority also pointed out the they have the power to stop such deals, citing a recent move by the Singapore Competition Authority which stopped a merger between Uber and their competitor Grab in the south east Asian city-state, to prevent monopolization.

Uber and Careem had been at risk of shutting down their operations in Egypt due to legal status uncertainties prior to the passage of a law regulating their services earlier this year.

Last July, sources told Bloomberg news agency that Uber and Careem were in preliminary talks to combine their Middle Eastern operations.

According to media reports, the companies have discussed a number of potential deal structures, but they have not come to an agreement on the specifics.

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By Express News Service

KOCHI: Hanan Hamid, who rose to fame after reports of her selling fish in college uniform went viral on the social media, has been hospitalised following an accident in Kodungalloor. The 19-year-old was returning after a stage show in Kozhikode when the car she was travelling in hit an electric post.

Hanan, who suffered serious injuries on her spine, underwent surgery at Medical Trust Hospital in the city. She is under 48-hour observation post the surgery. The car driver was also injured in the accident.The accident occurred early morning. Hopefully, Hanan will recover soon, said Priya, who is Hanans bystander at the hospital.

Govt to pay for Hanans treatment

TRIVANDRUM: Health Minister K K Shylaja said the government will bear the medical expense of Hanan Hamid who is undergoing treatment at the Ernakulam Medical Trust Hospital after she met with an accident. According to the minister, she contacted the hospital authorities and inquired about Hanans health.

A B.Sc student at a private college at Thodupuzha in Idukki district, Hanan's story had gone viral after a Malayalam daily told her story of selling fish to raise money for her studies and to take care of her family.

However, a section of social media users expressed doubts about her struggles and claimed it was 'fake.' Hanan, a college student from Kochi, had contributed Rs 1.5 lakh towards the Chief Minister's Disaster Relief Fund.

(With agency inputs)
By Express News Service

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The state government plans to go ahead with Netherlands-based KPMG as consultants for the post-flood reconstruction of the state, Industries Minister E P Jayarajan said on Monday.The allegations regarding the agencys credibility are baseless, Jayarajan told reporters. The allegations against the agency appear to be baseless. The government has decided them (KPMG) as the consultants, he said.

Earlier in the day, Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala had written to the state government demanding an investigation into KPMGs credibility. Jayarajan, who has been assigned to preside over the Cabinet meetings in Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayans absence, confirmed he had received Chennithalas letter.

The letter, he said, was based on news reports. Flood victims who have grievances regarding the assessment of damage should approach the district collectors concerned, he said.

ALSO READ | Leptospirosis cases are mounting, 66 deaths till now

Jayarajan on Monday launched a mobile platform for digitally compiling data on flood-related damage. Technically qualified volunteers can indicate the local body that they wish to work with on the platform www.volunteers.rebuild.kerala.gov.in.

Local bodies, on their part, can deploy the volunteers in areas where their services are required. Only these volunteers will be deemed eligible to compile data on damage. For the platform, search for rebuildkerala IT Mission on Google PlayStore. Information on fully destroyed houses and partially-destroyed ones can be registered via the app. For easily identifying the owners, the location can be geo-tagged and photos uploaded.Houses that have sustained more than 75 per cent damage is considered fully destroyed. Damaged houses are categorised as 15 per cent, 16-30 per cent, 31-50 per cent and 51-75 per cent damage.

Check consultants credibility: Chennithala

TPuram:Opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala has written to the state government to check the credibility of KPMG before giving it the contract for post-flood reconstruction. He noted there are several malpractice allegations against the company globally. He said the state should consider accepting the support extended by the Dutch government which has experience and expertise in managing flood disasters and reconstruction.

There is no opposition to bringing international consultants with a good track record, transparency and human resources for the reconstruction and rebuilding of the state, he said. However several allegations have come up in the visual, print and social media against KPMG which the state government has selected as the consultancy partner, he said.
Prabhakar T By

Express News Service

COIMBATORE: The city police, based on a tip-off from Central intelligence agencies, arrested five Muslim youth for allegedly hatching a plot to murder Hindu Makkal Katchi (HMK) leader Arjun Sampath and his son Omkar Balaji, on Saturday night. Four of them were already on the radar of the Central intelligence agencies when they showed up at Coimbatore Railway Junction; the fifth person had gone to the station to receive the other four.

A social media page was the only link between the four Chennai youth -- Jafar Safiq Ali (29) of Vysarpadi, Ismail (25) of Tindivanam, Samsudeen (20) of Pallavaram and Shalavuddin (25) of Pallavaram, and one Coimbatore boy -- Ashik (25) of Variety Hall Road. And the alleged plan to murder HMK leader Arjun Sampath and son Omkar Balaji.

Sources privy to the investigation told Express that the five had discussed ways to kill Arjun and had spread hatred against on social media, they had plans ready for Omkar as he was an easier target, given that the former had police protection. One of the five members was said to be a sympathiser of the Islamic State of Jammu and Kashmir and a member of the banned terrorist organisation; two others from Chennai were members of political parties. Ashik was facing several cases, including kidnapping school girls, in the city. He had been under the radar of the city intelligence for his notorious activities but his radical activities had not come to light till now, sources added.

Though these youth did not have any previous enmity with the leader, they were inspired by the IS module and other radical religious outfits and hatched a plot, a senior official said.

Meanwhile, there were claims that the four youth had come to Coimbatore to attend a wedding. However, police confirmed that they were not even invited to a wedding but had come to meet in person and find ways to kill the leader before the upcoming Vinayagar Chathurthi.

Threats to Omkar came a couple months ago

After Coimbatore City Police arrested five youth -- one from the city and four from Chennai -- for reportedly plotting to kill Hindu Makkal Katchi (HMK) leader Arjun Sampath and son Omkar Balaji, sources in the city intelligence confirmed that Omkar had indeed received death threats two months ago.

After top officials in the city police were alerted in early July, people who were considered a threat to him were closely watched.

According to an intelligence personnel, in the aftermath of the murder of Hindu Munnani functionary C Sasikumar, Balaji had reportedly taken to social media and called for people to act against a particular community. It was from then that he had received threats on social media.
S Godson Wisely Dass By

Express News Service

THOOTHUKUDI: Thoothukudi police on Monday booked a 28-year-old research scholar for allegedly raising anti-BJP slogans on a flight from Chennai to Thoothukudi based on a complaint filed by Tamil Nadu BJP president Tamilisai Soundararajan. The scholar was remanded in judicial custody for 15 days but as she developed abdominal pains, she was hospitalised in custody,

S Lois Sofia, who is pursuing research at the University of Montreal in Canada, and Soundararajan were on the same flight to Thoothukudi from Chennai. Sofia was travelling with her parents who live in Kandancolony, Thoothukudi. According to sources, when Soundararajan tried to take her luggage, which was near Sofias bag, the latter raised an anti-BJP slogan. After the flight landed, Soundarajan questioned Sofias anti-BJP slogan at the airport lounge, and sought an apology. However, Sofia refused to apologise. The entire scene unfolded in front of BJP cadre gathered there.

On being informed of the matter, airport police tried to pacify the BJP leader, but in vain. Soundararajan reportedly insisted that Sofias anti-BJP comments were not in line with the right to free expression. Later, addressing media persons outside the airport, she raised questions about Sofias background. I can face criticisms at any time, but not inside an aircraft, she said. Sofias father, Dr A A Samy, a retired government doctor, said Sofia had raised an anti-BJP slogan but in a normal tone.

BJP cadre threatened my daughter

She didnt criticise anyone personally. Though I told the BJP leader that my daughter did not speak anything against PM Modi or even Soundararajan herself, the BJP cadre used unparliamentary language against my daughter, and verbally threatened her, especially after she refused to apologise, her father said.

Soundararajan lodged a complaint with airport police seeking action against Sofia. Police questioned Sofia for two hours, before handing her over to the All Women Police Station (AWPS) in Pudukottai.

The AWPS has booked Sofia under Section 290 (committing public nuisance) and 505 (1)(b) (statements conducing to public mischief with intent to cause, or which is likely to cause, fear or alarm to the public) of the IPC and Section 75 (1)(C) of the Tamil Nadu City Police Act (behaving in a violent or boisterous or disorderly or riotous or indecent manner which causes or is likely to cause a breach of public peace in a public place). She was produced before Judicial Magistrate Thamilselvi who remanded her for 15 days. Meanwhile, Dr Samy lodged a complaint at the AWPS against Tamilisai and the BJP cadre for verbally abusing Sofia. However, police said that they were not registering an FIR at the moment.

DMK President MK Stalin condemned Sofias arrest and demanded her release. If those shouting such slogans were arrested, it could be lakhs (of us). I too raise the slogan - Fascist BJP rule should end, he tweeted.
By Express News Service

TIRUCHY: Equating the Edappadi K Palaniswami government with the collapsed part of the Upper Anaicut, Leader of the Opposition MK Stalin on Monday demanded the CM step down accepting failure to safeguard barrage on Kollidam.

After inspecting temporary arrangements at Mukkombu to stop water from draining into the river, Stalin stated that not even 40 per cent of work had been completed and argued prior testing of structure could have avoided situation.

75% of restoration work over, says minister

Within minutes of Stalin leaving, Collector K Rajamani along with Tourism Minister Vellamandi N Natarajan and S Valarmathi rushed to the site. Trashing Stalins charges, Natarajan said almost 75 per cent of work had been completed at the Upper Anaicut, adding that the remaining work would be completed in two days.
By AFP

BOLIVIA: Tragedies cast a shadow over Bolivia's carnival celebrations this weekend, with a staggering 21 people killed and 72 injured, authorities said Sunday.

In the city of Oruro, famous for its carnival celebrations, a heating gas tank exploded and killed eight people and wounded another 47.

Many of the others killed were in traffic and bus accidents, police and local officials said.

In Oruro, about 25,000 dancers take part in the pre-Lenten blowout that is Bolivia's biggest tourist attraction and brings as many as half a million people to the sleepy town.

The pageant along the city's cobblestones is a mixture of Spanish colonial traditions with those of the ancient indigenous Inca and Aymara peoples in a ritual seeking better farming and good health.

In 2001, the UNESCO cultural organization declared the carnival an intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
By IANS

KABUL: Several Taliban fighters on Monday laid down their weapons and joined the peace process in Afghanistan's Jalalabad.

The move came as part of an amnesty scheme sanctioned earlier by both the former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and the US, Efe reported.

Hundreds of insurgents have handed over arms to the state security forces since the amnesty was rolled out in 2004.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) officially ended its military campaign in Afghanistan in 2015, but around 16,000 troops from member states remained in an advisory capacity for the Afghan security forces.

Afghanistan is going through one of its bloodiest phases since the end of NATO's combat mission.
By AFP

SYDNEY: China has blocked access to the website of Australia's national broadcaster for breaching Beijing's internet rules and regulations, ABC said on Monday.

It comes a year after the Australian Broadcasting Corporation began running a Chinese-language service.

ABC said access to its website and apps was blocked on August 22 and it has since been trying to find out why.

After repeated requests for clarification, an official from China's Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission dictated a statement to the broadcaster.

"We welcome internet enterprises from all over the world to provide good information to the netizens of China," said the official, who declined to give his name, according to ABC.

"However, state cyber sovereignty rights shall be maintained towards some overseas websites violating China's laws and regulations."

The official said these included websites "spreading rumours, pornographic information, gambling, violent terrorism and some other illegal harmful information which will endanger state security and damage national pride".

ABC said it had not been told what laws it had violated or which content sparked the ban.

However, ties between Canberra and Beijing have been strained recently over allegations that China is interfering in Australia's domestic politics and using donations to gain access.

The claims infuriated China, which has dismissed local media stories -- including by ABC -- about infiltration as hysteria and paranoia.

The ABC also recently reported on Beijing's push into the Pacific through "soft diplomacy", which Australia and New Zealand fear could potentially upset the strategic balance in the region.
By PTI

BEIJING: China has lifted 740 million people in rural areas out of poverty from 1978 to 2017, roughly 19 million each year, an official data stated today.

The poverty ratio in rural areas dropped 94.4 percentage points during the same time period with an average annual decrease of 2.4 percentage points, the state-run National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said.

As per the data, China's poverty relief achievements have contributed more than 70 per cent to global poverty alleviation work in the past 40 years.

The average annual income of rural residents in impoverished areas rose an average of 10.4 per cent each year from 2012 to 2017, up 2.5 percentage points from the average for rural residents, the state-run Xinhua reported quoting the NBS data.

Over the past five years since President Xi Jinping came to power, over 68 million people were lifted out of poverty in China, the report said.

The country aims to further lift 10 million people out of poverty this year and eradicate poverty by 2020, it said.

China recently released guidelines on winning the battle against poverty in the next three years in order to prepare the nation for eradicating poverty by 2020.

The guidelines made guaranteed food and clothing to impoverished people and nine-year compulsory education for children from poor families.

It also made guaranteed basic medical facilities to the impoverished.

People having annual income below 2,300 yuan (USD 37.3) are defined as living below the poverty line in China.
By AFP

JERUSALEM: Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte has apologised to former US president Barack Obama for calling him a "son of a whore" in 2016, which sparked a new low in their nations' long alliance.

Duterte lobbed the insult in response to steady criticism from the United States over his violent drug crackdown, which has been a target for international condemnation.

ALSO READ | Rodrigo Duterte in Israel; first visit by a Philippines President

However, the Philippine president said his nation's relationship with America has since improved under President Donald Trump, who he described as a "good friend" who "speaks my language".

"It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr.

Obama that you are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words," Duterte said Sunday in a speech before Filipinos in Israel.

Duterte landed in Israel on Sunday for a four-day stay as the Philippines seeks to develop new sources of military hardware and nail down protections for its overseas workers.

"If it is (in) your heart to forgive, you forgive.

I have forgiven you, just like my girlfriends when I was still a bachelor. I have forgiven them also," the Philippine leader said in the same speech.

After his election in mid-2016, Duterte quickly earned a reputation for using vulgar language against critics which his aides have tried to minimise or explain away.

He branded Pope Francis and the then US ambassador to Manila "sons of whores".

He also fired expletives at the United Nations and during a speech in the Philippines raised his middle finger in defiance to the European parliament.

Duterte often rails at critics of his campaign to rid the Philippines of narcotics, which police say has killed 4,410 alleged drug dealers or users.

Rights groups say the actual number of dead is triple that and could amount to crimes against humanity.

Duterte cursed Obama ahead of a regional summit in Laos two years ago prompting the US to cancel a meeting between the two leaders there.

Obama later described Duterte as "a colourful guy" as he urged him to conduct his anti-narcotics campaign "the right way".

Duterte sparked new criticism ahead of his departure for Israel, blaming the high number of rapes in his hometown of Davao on the large number of beautiful women there.

"They say there are many rape cases in Davao," Duterte said in a speech on Thursday.

"For as long as there are many beautiful women, there will be many rape cases, too."

Duterte has on several occasions made rape jokes in public since his presidential campaign.

The latest comment was denounced by women's rights defenders.

"Beauty doesn't cause rape, rapists do," said Philippine lawmaker Risa Hontiveros, a Duterte critic.
The Journey (Al-Rihla), a film by Iraqi director Mohamed Al-Daradji, will be screened at the Netherlands-Flemish Institute in Cairo on 16 September.

Set in Baghdad in 2006, the film looks at two radically opposite viewpoints on politics and society in Iraq.

When Sara and Salam encounter each other in the Baghdad train station, each with very different intentions, they are forced to examine their beliefs and prejudices over the course of a day.

The 2017 film is a joint production between Iraq, UK, France, Qatar, and the Netherlands.

Al-Daradji is an award winning Iraqi-Dutch director and producer. His 2009 film Son of Babylon won the Best Screenplay award at the Cairo International Film festival, the Peace Film Award and the Amnesty International Film Prize at Berlinale, and the Rotterdam Award at the Rotterdam Film festival, among others.

His other notable award-winning films include Dreams (2006) and In the Sands of Babylon (2013).

Programme:

16 September, at 7.30pm

NVIC, 1 Mahmoud Azmy St., Zamalek, Cairo

For more arts and culture news and updates, follow Ahram Online Arts and Culture on Twitter at @AhramOnlineArts and on Facebook at Ahram Online: Arts & Culture

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By PTI

YANGON: Two Reuters journalists accused of breaching Myanmar's state secrets law during their reporting of a massacre of Rohingya face a court ruling Monday that could see them jailed for up to 14 years.

The case has outraged the international community for attacking media freedom and has intensified the glare on Myanmar security forces over its crackdown on the Muslim minority in Rakhine state.

Army-led "clearance operations" last year drove 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, carrying with them widespread accounts of atrocities -- rape, murder and arson -- by Myanmar security forces.

Reporters Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, have been held in Yangon's Insein prison since their arrest in December.

They say they were invited to dinner by police who handed them documents before the pair were arrested as they left the restaurant for possessing classified material.

Reuters journalist Kyaw Soe Oo, center , is escorted by polices as they leave the court after their trial Monday. (Photo | AP)

The duo, both Myanmar nationals, were charged with violating the Official Secrets Act, a draconian British colonial-era law which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years.

The reporters deny the charges, insisting they were set up while doing their jobs to expose the extrajudicial killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in a Rakhine village in September last year.

The army pre-emptively published its version of events at Inn Din village, conceding the Rohingya men were killed while in custody in a one-off act of abuse by a mix of security forces and ethnic Rakhine locals.

The verdict was initially due last Monday, but was delayed due to the apparent illness of the presiding judge.

ALSO READ | Reuters reporters to face trial in Myanmar for breaking secrecy law

On Saturday, more than 100 journalists and activists marched through Yangon in support of the reporters, whose trial echoes the treatment of government critics during the junta years.

"We want the immediate release of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo," journalist Hlin Thit Zin Wai told AFP.

"The right to information as well as access to information for the people is really difficult.

" Monday's ruling comes a week after the release of an explosive United Nations-led study into abuses in Rakhine, accusing Myanmar's army chief of heading up a campaign of "genocide" and "crimes against humanity" against the Rohingya.

It also strongly criticised de facto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi for failing to use moral authority to stand up for the stateless minority.

The same day, Facebook pulled down the pages of Myanmar's army chief Min Aung Hlaing and other military top brass, in what the company said was a bid to prevent them from further fanning "ethnic and religious tensions".

ALSO READ | Myanmar court refuses to drop case against Reuters journalists

As calls for Myanmar's military leaders to face an international tribunal mount, they have remained defiant, insisting last year's crackdown was a proportionate response to attacks by Rohingya militants.

If convicted, the two journalists can appeal and may also be eligible for a pardon at the discretion of Myanmar's civilian president, a staunch Suu Kyi ally.

Suu Kyi's reputation as a defender of human rights has been eviscerated by her refusal to speak out against the military for its handling of the Rohingya crisis or in support of the jailed reporters.

The case has outraged the international community for attacking media freedom and has intensified the glare on Myanmar security forces over its crackdown on the Muslim minority in Rakhine state.
By Associated Press

GENEVA: The UN refugee agency says people smugglers are taking greater risks to ferry their human cargo toward Europe as Libya's coast guard intercepts more and more boats carrying migrants, increasing the likelihood that those on board may die during the Mediterranean journeys.

That's one of the key findings from the latest UNHCR report about efforts to reach Europe.

The report, released early Monday and titled 'Desperate Journeys', says that even though the number of crossings and deaths has plunged compared to recent years, the voyage is more deadly in percentage terms for those who venture across.

The report says 2,276 people died last year while trying to cross, or one death for every 42 arrivals.

This year, it's 1,095 deaths, or one out of every 18 arrivals.

In June alone, the proportion hit one death for every seven arrivals.

On the Central Mediterranean route so far this year, there have been 10 separate incidents in which 50 or more people died -- most after departing from Libya.

Seven of those incidents have been since June alone, UNHCR said.

"The reason the traffic has become more deadly is that the traffickers are taking more risk because there is more surveillance exercised by the Libyan coast guards," said Vincent Cochetel, UNHCR's special envoy for the central Mediterranean.

"They are trying to cut the costs: It costs them more to keep those people here longer in their warehouses, under captivity."

Libyan authorities intercepted or rescued 18,400 people between August last year and July this year -- a 38-percent increase from the same period of 2016 and 2017.

Arrivals by sea from Libya to Europe plummeted 82 percent in those comparable periods, to 30,800 in the more recent one.

UNHCR says a growing worry these days is deaths on land by people trying to get to Libya in the first place, or getting stuck in squalid, overcrowded detention centers: Many get returned there after failing to cross by sea to Europe.

"The problems after disembarkation (is that) those people are sent back to detention centers, and many disappear," Cochetel said.

"Many are sold to militias, and to traffickers, and people employing them without paying them."

He said the drop in departures means that traffickers attempt to "monetize their investment, which means they have to exploit more people.

That results in more cases of slavery, forced labor, prostitution of those people -- because they (smugglers) want to make money on those people."

Would-be workers and migrants are still pouring into Libya: Some are fleeing injustice, abuse or autocrats in their home countries further south in Africa.

Others are looking for work in the oil industry or agriculture.

"I think you have more deaths on land," Cochetel said, referring to treks across the desert in Sudan, Algeria, Chad, and Niger.

"Many people in Libya are reporting having seeing people dead in the desert on the way to Libya."

In Libya, instability continues even seven years after the fall of Moammar Gadhafi.

French medical aid group Doctors Without Borders said Friday that fighting between rival militias in Tripoli, the capital, has endangered the lives of people trapped there and worsened humanitarian needs -- especially at migrant detention centers.

Cochetel said Europe -- where some countries have shown "appalling" squabbles about who would take in rescue ships carrying migrants -- should look at the root causes of such journeys.

European populations need to shun anti-migrant rhetoric and realize that figures are down sharply, and migrant flows are clearly manageable at current levels, he said.

"Europe has to show the lead, has to be exemplary in its response, but it's quite clear that it's already too late when the people are in Libya," he said.

"We need to work downstream in country of first asylum, in country of origin, and that takes time." he added.
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Tim Mitchell is a reporter at The News-Gazette. His email is tmitchel@news-gazette.com, and you can follow him on Twitter (@mitchell6).




PRICES of basic commodities have been going up since last week and parents are struggling to buy necessities for their children who start school tomorrow.





Goods that include rice, cooking oil, cereals, sugar, washing powder, lotions, toiletries, instant noodles, snacks, sweets and juices have been on an upward trajectory in retail outlets in Bulawayo while their prices have been constant on the street.





A snap survey conducted by The Chronicle revealed that prices have gone up by up to 50 percent.





A majority of residents said they now avoid retailers and buy commodities from street vendors, whose prices were up to half of what is charged by retailers.





They called on the Government to rein in retailers, who they said were profiteering as there was no justification for the price increases.





Mrs Nompumelelo Moyo said she was having a headache trying to juggle her budget.





I did a survey in three retail shops hoping to get better prices but its the same story. Things are not balancing and they exceed my budget.





Last term I forced my child to go with instant porridge because Cerevita  his choice of cereal  was expensive but now the price for instant porridge is high as well but I cannot send him away without any cereal, she said.





Instant porridge has risen from an average of $2.50 to $3.25 while Cerevita remains pegged at about $3.75.





The Chronicle noted that the price of a 2kg packet of local Red Seal rice has risen from $2.50 to $2.90 while cooking oil has gone up from around $3 to about $4.20.





Instant noodles went up to $5 from $4.20 while tomato sauce now costs $1.35 from $1.10. Single ply tissue paper shot to $1.75 from an average of $1 while Farai sanitary wear now costs an average of $1.





Jumbo snacks increased from $1.80 to $2.90. Arctic mints increased from $3.20 to $4.29 while lolly pop sweets increased from $4.50 to $5.30.





The price hikes have sparked outrage among parents who are trying to balance paying bills, putting food on the table and preparations for the new school term, especially those with children going to boarding schools.





Miss Lisa Mugabe said: School opening days are hectic, retailers increase prices forgetting that we have many expenses; school fees, groceries and transport money to send children to school.





Mr Denis Parrot said: Groceries are expensive and I am stressed out trying to balance all the expenses. Where my child learns there is only one visiting day per term. Imagine sending a child to school with little or inadequate grocery. I have already been forced to remove some food items from his grocery list.





Another parent, Mrs Linda Nare, said for some groceries she preferred buying from vendors.





I ended up buying snacks and juice from vendors because shops were a non starter. At times like this you forget about quality and aim for quantity and prices of goods, she said.





Ms Lisca Ncube said the Government should protect consumers from greedy businesspeople.





When the economy normalises and people have found alternative markets, the same retailers are the first to run to Government for protection. When it suits them, they exploit consumers. Such unfairness has no room under the new dispensation.





The media should also investigate the building industry where prices have been shooting up willy nilly but manufacturers claim they last raised prices last year, said Ms Ncube.





Confederation of Zimbabwe Retailers (CZR) president Mr Danford Mutashu said an increase of prices of basic commodities and other products is looming in Zimbabwe as people are not yet certain of the future economy.





Usually when business people are not certain of the political status of a country, they tend to panic and this leads to price hikes. This is evident by cash commodification in the streets, he said. Chronicle




"During my tenure in office, I will not in any way allow the relocation of people from Save Valley. Wildlife is not more important than people. I am their representative and they told me that they don't want to move," said Bhila in an interview with The Mirror.
She served the country she so loved with all her zeal. She was liked by everyone at the embassy and at head office. Her humbleness and everlasting jovial mood will be greatly missed by all who knew her.
'Today Is a Monumental Day In

the Course of This Pandemic'
(Newser)  CNN has removed episodes of Anthony Bourdain's Parts Unknown involving Asia Argento, the girlfriend the late chef met on the show. The network says the episodestwo filmed in her native Italy, which she appeared in, and one from Hong Kong, which she directedwere pulled from the CNN GO streaming service due to allegations that she sexually assaulted former co-star Jimmy Bennett when he was underage, TMZ reports. Argento and Bourdain first met while filming an episode of the show in Rome.

story continues below

"In light of the recent news reports about Asia Argento, CNN will discontinue airing past episodes of Parts Unknown that included her, until further notice," a CNN spokesperson tells BuzzFeed. CNN has also removed an episode in which Bourdain, who killed himself in June, visited a therapist in Buenos Aires and spoke about his depression. (Argento says the accusations are false and Bennett demanded money because Bourdain was "a man of great perceived wealth.")
(Newser)  A massive fire has destroyed millions of items at Brazil's national museumand for many Brazilians, shock has turned to anger. The blaze, which began at the 200-year-old museum in Rio de Janeiro after it closed to the public Sunday, is believed to have wiped out much of its 20-million item collection, including Latin America's largest national history collection, the Guardian reports. "It is an unbearable catastrophe," museum vice-director Luiz Duarte told TV Globo. "It is 200 years of this countrys heritage. It is 200 years of memory. It is 200 years of science. It is 200 years of culture, of education." Famous items feared to have been destroyed in the blaze include "Luzia," a 12,000-year-old skeleton thought to have been the oldest ever found in the Americas.

story continues below

The cause of the fire is still unknown, but the building, which once housed the Portuguese royal family, had fallen into disrepair in recent years amid budget issues. Fire authorities say there was a huge amount of flammable material in the buildingand the nearest two hydrants were dry. "This isn't just Brazilian history that's gone up in flames. Many see this as a metaphor for the cityand the country as a whole," says BBC correspondent Katy Watson, who notes that rising violence and economic decline have hit Rio very hard since the 2016 Olympics. "This was a museum that many saw as long ignored and underfundednow, with devastating consequences for Brazil's heritage," she says. (Read more Brazil stories.)
(Newser)  A Myanmar court sentenced two Reuters journalists to seven years in prison Monday for illegal possession of official documents, a ruling that comes as international criticism mounts over the military's alleged human rights abuses against Rohingya Muslims. Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, had pleaded not guilty to violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, punishable by up to 14 years in prison. They contended they were framed by police. Both journalists, who have been detained since December, testified they suffered from harsh treatment during their initial interrogations. Wa Lone's wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to the couple's first child on Aug. 10, but Wa Lone has not yet seen his daughter.

story continues below

The two journalists had been reporting last year on the brutal crackdown by security forces on the Rohingya in Myanmar's Rakhine stateone that has now been labeled genocide by the UN. The case has drawn worldwide attention as an example of how press freedom is suffering under the government of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, the AP reports. Her taking power in 2016 had raised hopes for an accelerated transition to full democracy from military rule, but she has since disappointed many former admirers. "What happened today threatens to undermine the rule of law and freedom of press that democracy requires," says Kevin Krolicki, Reuters' regional editor for Asia. He calls the verdict "heartbreaking."

(Read more Myanmar stories.)
(Newser)  British PM Theresa May is coming down hard against calls for a second Brexit referendum, even as ex-Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson slams her stancesetting up speculation that the two are on a collision course, reports the BBC. May wrote in the Sunday Telegraph that it would be a "gross betrayal of our democracy" to have another vote, adding that "millions came out to have their say" in the June 2016 vote that set Brexit in motion. Her embattled government has faced increasingly strident calls for another vote once the terms of Britain's future relations with the EU are known, the AP reports.

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In a competing piece in the Daily Telegraph on Monday, Johnson wrote that May's so-called Chequers plan for continued ties with the European Union after Brexit will leave Britain in a weakened position. He said that May is giving EU leaders a "victory" without even trying to forge a Brexit plan that would strengthen Britain's hand after it leaves the EU in March, reports the AP. He said that Britain has "gone into battle with the white flag fluttering over our leading tank." The prime minister used her column to defend her Chequers proposal, and said she won't be pushed around by EU negotiators. (President Trump has advised May to sue the EU instead of negotiating.)
(Newser)  President Trump got a somewhat non-traditional start to a president's typical Labor Day: An attack on the president of the nation's largest labor union federation. He tweeted: "Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO, represented his union poorly on television this weekend. Some of the things he said were so againt (sic) the working men and women of our country, and the success of the U.S. itself, that it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!" It seems that Trumka displeased the president by telling Fox News on Sunday that Canada ought to be included in NAFTA negotiations, notes the Washington Post, and that "the things that (Trump has) done to hurt workers outpace what he's done to help workers."

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Trump then touted the economy, tweeting, "Happy Labor Day! Our country is doing better than ever before with unemployment setting record lows." The AP fact-checks that claim, noting that the unemployment rate of 3.9% is not at the best everbut it is near the lowest in 18 years.

(Read more President Trump stories.)
(Newser)  It was a small flash of light, likely from her cellphone, that helped rescuers locate Cari Mews in Lake Superior Thursday night, suffering from hypothermia six hours after her kayak had capsized. But while the 29-year-old Wisconsin mom was lucky to be found in time, the other members of her family39-year-old husband Erik Fryman and their three kids, 9-year-old Kyra, 5-year-old Annaliese, and 3-year-old Jansenweren't, after a family kayaking trip gone terribly wrong. Per the Minneapolis Star Tribune, authorities say the family had launched their kayak from Madeline Island, headed for Michigan Island about 4 miles away, around 1pm, but at around 4pm, the kayak tipped over after wind and choppy surf dumped water into the vessel. Mews, whose cellphone had been in a waterproof bag, managed to fire off two texts to her sister.

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"911," then "Michigan Island" were the two messages Bobi Jo Mews received from her sister, she tells WCCO. But Bobi Jo Mews didn't get the messages until several hours after they were sent due to spotty service, a US Coast Guard rep tells CNN, and although her call to authorities sent rescuers out to the lake to find her family members, it was only Cari Mews who was recovered as she tried to make her way to the shores of Michigan Island. The bodies of Fryman, Annaliese, and Jansen were found just after midnight, while Kyra's body was recovered the next morning on the Michigan Island beach. All five had been wearing life jackets, but Cari Mews was the only one found fully clothedher kids had been in bathing suits, while her husband had only pants on. "I think hypothermia was a huge factor [in their deaths], especially for the children," another Coast Guard rep tells the Star Tribune. (Read more kayaking stories.)
(Newser)  "Multiple victims down," an "uncooperative" crowd, and a "very chaotic scene" is how Captain Rich Lawhead describes to KABC what police encountered at an apartment complex in San Bernardino late Sunday. Ten people were shot in a common area of the complex on the 1200 block of Lynwood Drive just after 10:30pm, Lawhead says, per CNN. Three of the shooting victims are said to be in "extremely critical" condition, he adds. There isn't yet a suspect (or suspects) in custody, and though it appears several handguns and rifles were used in the attack, no weapons have been recovered, Lawhead says.

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Witnesses tell KABC some of the victims may have been playing dice when the gunshots rang out. "My brother-in-law could hear bullets flying past our house, he was outside at the time of the shooting," a neighbor tells CNN, while another adds, "I heard around four shots, then what sounded like a motorcycle speeding off, after that just a continuation of gun shots." Although Lawhead initially noted all 10 victims were believed to be adults, Reuters reports some of the victims are believed to be children. Lawhead adds the area is a known gang hot spot, but it's not clear if this was a gang assault, Fox News reports. The attack takes place nearly three years after the San Bernardino mass shooting in which 14 died and nearly two dozen were injured. (Read more San Bernardino stories.)
(Newser)  Roseanne Barr may be killed off in the reboot of her ABC sitcom, and the controversial comedian says she won't be tuning in. Instead, TMZ reports she's decided to be in Israel for the fall premiere of the newly re-named The Conners. Barr, whose eponymous series was canceled following her infamous tweet about Obama aide Valerie Jarrett, made the announcement on celebrity rabbi Shmuley Boteach's podcast. "I have an opportunity to go to Israel for a few months and study with my favorite teachers over there," Barr said. And it may even be permanent. Per CNN, Barr said she would "probably move somewhere there. ... I have saved a few pennies and I'm so lucky I can go. It's my great joy and privilege to be a Jewish woman."

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Barr, who ABC has announced will have absolutely no creative or financial ties to The Conners when it debuts, also addressed her firing in the interview. The vocal supporter of President Trump said she made a "fatal mistake" when she decided to apologize for the tweet in which she compared Jarrett, who is black, with a character from Planet of the Apes. "Once you apologize to them they never forgive, they just try to beat you down until you dont exist," Barr said in reference to the political left. "Thats how they do things. They dont accept apologies." The Conners airs its first episode Oct. 16. (Read more Roseanne Barr stories.)
New Delhi:

Two suspected cow smugglers on Sunday allegedly opened fire at a Police Control Room (PCR) vehicle in north Delhis Timarpur area, said police.

According to Deputy Commissioner of Police (north) Nupur Prasad, the incident took place on the intervening night of September 1 and 2.

The two unidentified men allegedly fired two gunshots at the policemen which was following them, however the policemen were escaped unhurt, police said.

Also Read | Monsoon rains wreak havoc in Uttar Pradesh, 16 killed, 12 injured

As per reports, the duo ran away before the police leaving behind a tempo carrying two cows.

The seized vehicle bears Rajasthan registration number, said police.

Based on the registration number, efforts are underway to identify the owner of the vehicle and the accused, DCP said.

Meanwhile, the rescued cows have been sent to a cow shelter, it said.

(With PTI inputs)
New Delhi:

In a bid to ensure that people belonging to economically weaker sections get at least one meal per month, a private individual with help of his associates on Sunday introduced a subsidized meal facility for just Rs 10 in Allahabad. The pocket-friendly meal, which will serve pure vegetarian items across Allahabad, has been named Yogi Thali. The Thali will consist of rice, pulses, a seasonal vegetable, two tandoori roti or four kachaudi, pickle, salad etc.

Dilip Kumar Kakay, who is the district president of Akhil Bharatiya Khatri Mahasabha, took the noble initiative so that no one had to sleep on an empty stomach.

"It will be a pure vegetarian thali without onion and garlic. The thali will cost us Rs 30-40. Usually, the customers get this thali for Rs 50 or more. Once we get more funds, we will serve a sweet also," Kumar said.

Read | Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma enjoying meal in Thali in Sri Lanka

Kakay named the thali after Yogi Adityanath as he feels that the Uttar Pradesh chief minister is working for the welfare of people across the state.

Launching the Yogi Thali on Sunday evening, Allahabad mayor Abhilasha Gupta said, "It is an initiative by a private individual. This facility has started from today on the name of Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath".

"It is a thali for Rs 10 and I am sure disabled, poor, needy, saints etc. would be greatly benefitted from this initiative. This is a good thought where even those who cannot afford a full meal normally can get it here," Gupta added.

The meal facility has been made available at Kumar's restaurant Baba Da Dhaba near Attarsuiya locality in Allahabad.

Read | 26 students taken ill after having mid-day meal at Delhi government school

Kakay, who also serves as the joint secretary of Jeev Kalyan Evam Shiksha Samiti, wishes to distribute the Yogi thali at the Kumbh Mela 2019. In case government permits Kumar for the same, the Yogi Thali will be free for saints, seers and the disabled while it will charge Rs 5 for rural pilgrims and Rs 10 for others at the sacred Hindu pilgrimage in 2019.
New Delhi:

Northeastern states of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh have been put on high flood alert after China warned India about the rising water levels in Tsangpo river. Authorities have issued an alert about flooding from a rain-swollen river that originates from China.



ALSO READ | Get Yogi Thali for just Rs 10 at 'Baba Da Dhaba' in Allahabad



Hundreds of people from about a dozen villages have moved to higher ground in Arunachal Pradesh, said Tamiyo Tatak a district magistrate.



China warned India last week that torrential rains have increased the water level in the river that flows into Indias Northeast, he said.



Earlier, nine people were airlifted by the Air Force from a flooded Arunachal Pradesh on Friday and over 200 others rescued from Assams Dhemaji district as the river continued to swell. All of them, including children, have been brought to safety, sources in Dhemaji administration said.



ALSO READ | Don't become slaves of Delhi parties, KCR urges Telangana people



According to a Chinese Government report, Tsangpo was in spate because of heavy rains. The various gauge and discharge stations on the Tsangpo had observed a discharge of 9,020 cumec water, official sources there said.
New Delhi:

Buzz is, Jackie Shroff is Salman Khan's father in Ali Abbas Zafar directorial Bharat, and the director has confirmed the news. Zafar believes that Jackie is the perfect amalgamation of a star and actor". And the two sealed the deal when they met in London recently.

"We met Jaggu da in London and discussed his dates and looks. I have wanted to work with him for a long time as I feel he is the perfect amalgamation of a star and actor. I was very glad as Jackie sir instantly agreed with the story to do the film in just 20 mins of narration," Zafar said as quoted by sources close to him.

Also Read | Bigg Boss 12: Launch episode to be shot in Goa instead of Lonavala

As revealed in the teaser of Bharat, the film is about the eternal bond between a father and son, spanning across many periods. Bharat traces the journey 60 years, boasts of an huge ensemble cast with names like Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Disha Patani, Sunil Grover, Tabu and Jackie Shroff. The team recently wrapped up the second schedule in Malta.

The song in Bharat's grand circus sequence in the first schedule featuring Salman Khan and Disha Patani was choreographed by Vaibhavi Merchant. The film showcases Disha Patani as a trapeze artist and involves action sequences and stunts with fire. The actress has been working on her role for months before the film went on floors. Salman Khan does daredevil stunts on a motorbike amidst a ring of fire in the circus.

Read More | Shweta Bachchan accused of plagiarism

Bharat's release brings back Salman Khan and director Ali Abbas Zafar for an Eid release after the 2016 Blockbuster Hit, Sultan. The hit director-actor duo will be marking a hattrick with Bharat after their last outing Tiger Zinda Hai.

The sources said that the film will feature Salman Khan sporting five different looks spanning 60 years, wherein a crucial part will showcase the actor in his late 20s, looking much leaner and younger. Salman Khan will be recreating his 'Karan-Arjun' look which has created immense excitement among the audience.

After Mumbai and Malta, Bharat will be shot across exotic locations in Abu Dhabi, Punjab and Delhi.

Set for 2019 release, Bharat is produced by Atul Agnihotri's Reel Life Production and Bhushan Kumar's T-Series.

Read More | Bigg Boss 12: Five SECRET rules of the house

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Mumbai:

Kangana Ranaut's upcoming flick "Manikarnika", which has become a center of media and controversial hooplas, is taking a new turning point with each passing day. Amid all the reports of Kangana apparently "hijacking" the project as a director, Producer Kamal Jain stood by the Bollywood actor and said that the reins to helm the period drama were handed over to her because of her creative inputs.

Also Read | Arjun Kapoor's new look as intelligence officer Prabhat in Indias Most Wanted revealed

It seems that this Bollywood drama is not going to conclude anytime sooner. Jain in a statement revealed that the additional shoot of the much-anticipated movie, is currently being shot at ND Studios at Karjat, in Mumbai. Kangana Ranaut took over the shoot responsibilities from the then director of the movie, Krish. He said that after the previous schedule got over, they saw the line up of the film. After going through the work, they realised they needed a few additional scenes along with the necessary patchwork. And hence, the "Tanu Weds Manu" actor was brought into the directorial scenes, as Krish was busy with his next project by then. The actor who was creatively involved with the film from the beginning, it was a planned decision to take her as the director. The decision was approved by every cast and crew of the film, including the producer and the studio.

The controversy was sparked when pictures from the sets of 'Manikarnika' with Kangana's name as director, went viral on social blogging sites. Rumours surfaced that Krish left the film under the Bollywood 'Queen's' influence. Recently, Sonu Sood's untimely departure from the film triggered the controversy.

Also Read | Kaun Banega Crorepati 10: How to Watch, timings of Amitabh Bachchans show KBC

The movie which was set to initially release in April was later pushed to August and now the producer said the team is committed to releasing the film as scheduled on January 25 next with an "aggressive production schedule."

On responding to Sonu's departure, Jain said, "While we managed to get matching dates from Danny Denzongpa, Jishu Sengupta, Ankita Lokhande and others, we got stuck on Sonu Sood's combination dates and continuity look as he has grown a beard for 'Simmba'. Hence, we had to let him go, Zeeshan Ayub now plays the character of Sadashiv."

Also Read | Bigg Boss 12: Five SECRET rules of the house

While Jain is affirmative about the making, he assured that the film is going on smoothly. He even added that Nick Powell had been called to design some "mind-blowing action shots to complement with what has already been shot earlier."

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New Delhi:

The Bombay High Court on Monday came down heavily on Maharashtra Police for holding press conference on theA Bhima Koregaon violence, saying the matter is subjudice and revealing information pertaining to the case is wrong.

"How can the police do this (press conference)? The matter is subjudice. The Supreme Court is seized of the matter. In such cases, revealing information pertaining to the case is wrong,"A Justice Bhatkar said.

A petition was filed by one Satish Gaikwad, who claims to be a victim of famous Bhima Koregaon violence, seeking an NIA enquiry in Elgar Parishad 'anti-Maoist' crackdown matter. However, the hearing in the case was adjourned as the copies of the petition were not submitted to all the concerned persons.

The court has, now, posted the matter for further hearing on September 7, 2018,

Elgar Parishad matter: Bombay High Court raised a question that why Maharashtra police held a press conference when the matter is sub-judice in Courts. https://t.co/tYHD7kYYLv a ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

Gaikwad, who moved the HC, demanding an NIA inquiry into the case, told the court that the police, who wants an in-camera hearing into the case, themselves are revealing evidence in public in the form of a press conference. Therefore, citing lack of privacy and Maharashtra police's negligence, Gaikwad wanted the case to be handed over to the National Investigative Agency (NIA).

The Maharashtra police, who have been facing criticism for the activists' arrest followed by a coordinated raid across India, claimed to have solid evidence, including "thousands of documents and letters" that clearly establish their links to Maoists activities. The January 1 violence in Maharashtra's Bhima Koregaon is believed to be the assassination plot of Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the lines of former PM Rajiv Gandhi.

On January 28, Lawyer and trade union activist Sudha Bhardwaj, revolutionary poet P Varavara Rao, civil rights activist and journalist Gautam Navlakha, and lawyers and activists Arun Ferreira and Vernon Gonsalves were arrested for their alleged Maoist activity, that rocked Maharashtra's Bhima Koregaon during the 200th-anniversary celebration of a British-era war.

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New Delhi:

The Congress on Monday defeated the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Karnataka urban local bodies elections by winning 982 out of 2662 seats against the saffron partys 929 seats. Despite being in coalition, the Congress and the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) had decided to fight the elections separately and stitch a post-poll alliance. The JD-S secured 375 seats in the civic polls held on August 31.

With 982 of the Congress and 375 of the JD-S, the ruling coalition has a clear edge over the BJP in the southern states urban local bodies.

Congratulating the party workers for the victory, Congress spokesperson Randeep Singh Surjewala took a dig at the saffron party and said that people of the state had rejected the jumlas of BJP.

People of Karnataka have once again reposed their faith in Congress by making it the No. 1 party in Urban Local Bodies. People have accepted development policies of Congress and JDS Govt and have rejected Jumlas of BJP. Many thanks to every Karnataka Congress worker, Surjewala wrote on Twitter.

Terming the victory as a peoples stamp on the coalition government, Karnataka Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy said, Voters in the city usually vote for BJP but with the outcome of this result, now even they have shown full support for the coalition government led by Congress and JD(S).

Reacting to the victory, former prime minister and the JD-S chief HD Deve Gowda said, We have succeeded. The JD(S) and the Congress will work together to keep BJP at a distance.

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New Delhi:

Kanhaiya Kumar, former Jawaharlal Nehru University Students Union president, has again grabbed headlines in the national media, not because of sedition cases but for his plans to contest elections. According to reports, the 28-year-old student leader is likely to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha polls in 2019 on a Communist Party of India (CPI) ticket from Begusarai district, from where he belongs.

Also Read | Kanhaiya Kumar open to contest 2019 elections from Bihar's Begusarai; CPI to take final call

Here are 10 facts about Kanhaiya Kumar

Born on January, 1987, Kanhaiya Kumar is a resident of Barauni, Begusarai district in Bihar. Second eldest among three siblings, Kanhaiya did his schooling from RKC High School in Barauni and graduated from College of Commerce, Patna, Bihar. In 2002, Kanhaiya joined the All India Student Federation (AISF), a student wing of the Communist Party of India (CPI) as a member. During his stint in his college, he helped in reviving many Marxist centres of learning in his college as well as the Patna University. In 2011, he came to Delhi for the first time and enrolled in JNU for PhD in African Studies at the School of International Studies. In 2015, Kanhaiya became the first AISF member to become the president of the JNU students union, creating history altogether. On February 13, 2016, Kanhaiya Kumar was arrested by the Delhi Police and slapped with sedition charges for voicing anti-national slogans in a rally, which marked the 3rd anniversary of Afzal Gurus hanging. Following his arrest, students at JNU went on strike, and paralysed the university administration. Being a great orator, Kanhaiya is quite a known figure in the campus. Kanhaiya Kumar is likely to contest the upcoming LS polls in 2019 from CPI ticket from his district.

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New Delhi:

A special court in Mumbai on Monday allowed liquor baron Vijay Mallya to file his reply on the Enforcement Directorate's application, seeking to declare him a fugitive economic offender under the new Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018.

The special court gave Mallya three weeks time to file his reply on the EDs application. He will now have to file the reply by September 24 and after that, the court will decide the future course of hearing on the EDs plea.

Also Read | Bhima Koregaon Violence: Mumbai High Court raps Maharashtra Police for holding PC on 'subjudice case'

Earlier in June, the ED had moved to a special court in Mumbai seeking fugitive economic offender tag for Mallya under the recently promulgated Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance, which will allow the agency powers to confiscate his assets.



Sixty-two-year-old Mallya, the former boss of now-grounded Kingfisher airlines, is wanted in India for defaulting loans of state-run banks worth around 9,000 crore. He had fled the country on March 2, 2016, the very day when the banks had moved the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT).

Also Read | Vijay Mallya releases letter to PM Modi, says ready to settle all dues

Currently, he is residing in the UK and the Indian government is making all the possible efforts for Mallya's extradition before 2019 Lok Sabha elections. He was even arrested in 2017 on an extradition warrant by the UK police. However, he got the bail soon after his arrest.

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New Delhi:

Former President Pranab Mukherjee has once again caused a flutter in political circles by inaugurating a few projects under the Smartgram Yojna or Smart Villages Scheme on September 2 at Gurugram, near Delhi, along with Haryana BJP Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar. This step by Mukherjee is bound to embarrass his former party Congress since it is going to be seen as a sequel to his visit to the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) headquarters in Nagpur in June.

In the case of Pranabs last visit to Nagpur, a few Congress leaders had written to dissuade him from sharing dais with the top brass of the RSS. And, thus, the party is going to be a good deal amused by former Presidents latest step.

Also Read | Why Centre must give up the idea of simultaneous polls to Parliament and assemblies

This is more so since Khattar has his roots in the RSS though this time Pranab had tried to draw a distinction between the RSS and the BJP, or the Government run by the latter, by issuing a statement through his office on August 31 to say that he is not going to join any RSS event in Haryana, nor his Pranab Mukherjee Foundation has any collaboration with the RSS.

The statement issued on his behalf before the visit to Gurugram reads: There have been reports in certain sections of the media suggesting that the Pranab Mukherjee Foundation (PMF) may collaborate with the RSS in Haryana. It is categorically clarified that there is neither any existing collaboration, nor is there any such move in the offing.

The Smartgram Project in Haryana started in July 2016, when Pranab Mukherjee adopted some villages as the serving President and he will be visiting Gurgaon at the invitation of the Government of Haryana on September 2, 2018 to inaugurate projects started during the last two years along with ML Khattar, the CM of Haryana.

Mukherjee had adopted four villages about a couple of years ago in Gurugrams (as Gurgaon is known now) Alipur for their uplift. And ever since the PMF has come to intervene in about 100 villages of Haryana in collaboration with IFFCO, or Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Ltd, to improve farm productivity and encourage best agricultural practices in the area.

Thus, PMFs intervention in Haryanas countryside has been expanding over the years. And this has obviously the support of the Haryana government.

And at the same time, Khattars government has decided to take on the Congress first family by lodging a case against one of its members besides the former party CM in a land purchase deal about which the Congress statement said that the deal is over 10 years old and the BJP took a good nearly four years to file FIR after coming to power in Haryana.

Also Read | Subramanian Swamys invade threat to Maldives, Yameen may result in raw deal for India

Amid such moves by the BJP Government in the state, the RSS flaunted its inclination to extend an invitation to Congress president Rahul Gandhi to attend one of its shows in Delhi which is likely to be held in a couple of weeks or so from now.

The Congress has been cold to the RSS efforts to make Rahul Gandhi toe the footsteps of Pranab Mukherjee vis-a-vis the RSS. Rahul has often been attacking the RSS and blaming its cadre and sympathisers of virtually taking over most public and government institutions, courtesy the BJP which serves as the political arm of the RSS.

Although Mukherjee often admonished the Hindutva hardliners backed by the BJP and the RSS as President of the country, his decision to visit RSS headquarters after his retirement had caused consternation not only in the Congress but also in his family.

His daughter, Sharmishtha Mukherjee, who is spokesperson of Congress Delhi unit, had differed with him over the visit to the RSS citadel. So, the show of warmth between him and an old RSS hand like Khattar is unlikely to be taken as simply as Pranab has tried to make it out through the statement issued on his behalf a couple of days before his Gurugram visit.
New Delhi:

At least twelve people, including two Ukrainians, were killed in a Moldavian aircraft crashed in northern Afghanistan on Sunday, officials said.

An Mi-8 helicopter crashed due to technical problems shortly after taking off in Dehdadi district, it said.

According to official reports, the helicopter was carrying 14 people including 11 member of Afghan security forces when it crashed in the northern province of Balkh.

Also Read | Myanmar releases 75 more child soldiers: UNICEF

The two killed Ukrainians were crew members and a third Ukrainian crew member survived the crash, said officials.

According to reports, the Moldavian aircraft was carrying ammunitions and exploded on impact, burning bodies beyond recognition.

The helicopter belonged to a private company and had been hired by the Afghan Aviation Ministry, it said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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New Delhi:

A 200-year old National Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro on late Sunday was caught on massive fire, lighting up the night and sending large plumes of smoke into the air, sources said.

According to reports, no casualty was reported in the fire, which occurred after the museum was closed for the day.

Around 50 firefighters have been trying to contain the inferno, which has engulfed the entire building in flames, according to sources.

This is a tragic day for Brazil, President Michel Temer said in a statement. Two hundred years of work and research and knowledge are lost.

Also Read | Helicopter crash kills 12 in Afghanistan

The esteemed museum, which was founded in 1818 by King Joao VI and is among Brazils most important architecture, houses over 20 million objects ranging from archaeological findings to historical memorabilia, sources said.

The national museum is housed inside the Sao Cristovao palace in Rio de Janeiro, a former residence of the Portuguese royal family.

This is a cultural tragedy, the director of the National History Museum said on Globo TV.

Read More | US military cancels $300 million financial aid to Pakistan; accuses of failure to curb militancy

According to the museums deputy director, there were plenty of inflammable items inside the building that could have triggered the blaze.

The cause of the fire is not yet known, it said.

(With inputs from agencies)

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New Delhi:

Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Monday called on Prime Minister Imran Khan in PM secretariat ahead of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeos visit to Islamabad on September 5 and discussed a range of issues including Defence Day, US-Pakistan relations, internal and external security situation .

COAS General Qamar Javed Bajwa called on Prime Minister Imran Khan in PM secretariat today. Matters related to Defence Day, US-Pakistan relations, internal and external security situation were discussed. #Pakistan YY pic.twitter.com/atQUCRaZr7  PTI (@PTIofficial) September 3, 2018

Bajwa and Khan had held their first formal meeting on August 27 and discussed efforts to ensure long-lasting peace and stability in the region.

Also Read | UAE announces first two astronauts to go to ISS

Mondays meeting is significant as the US Secretary of State is expected to demand support from Pakistan to bring Taliban to the negotiating table.

US-Pakistan tensions have flared before Pompeos trip with Islamabad dismissing as incorrect reports the US has cancelled USD 300 million in military aid to the country, saying Washington owed the money to Islamabad for expenses incurred on fighting terrorism.

Pompeos visit on September 5 will be Washingtons first high-level dialogue with Islamabad since Khan was sworn-in as Pakistans 22nd prime minister on August 18, 2018.

On August 30, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief visited the General Headquarters (GHQ) and assured that his government would provide all resources to maintain the capability and capacity of the Army, a major player in Pakistans politics. Pakistan Army has ruled coup-prone Pakistan for nearly half of the countrys history since independence in 1947.

On Friday, Khan told said that his government will hold talks with Pompeos delegation to seek a mutually beneficial relationship with the US, which will be based on mutual respect.

Also Read | Pak FM SM Qureshi blames PML-N govt for suspension of $300 m aid

Meanwhile, former Senate chairman Raza Rabbani said that the prime minister should not meet Pompeo during his visit, but Pakistan foreign minister should meet his US counterpart instead.

Rabbani maintained that the recent cut in aid was part of measures to put pressure on Pakistan and mentioned Pompeos recent statement, in which he discouraged the International Monetary Fund (IMF) from providing Pakistan with a bailout, alleging the money would be used to repay Chinese loans as a previous measure.

(With PTI inputs)

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New Delhi:

A day after the United States Military cut off a financial aid worth 300 million USD to Pakistan, the Pentagon on Monday issued a clarification, saying that the decision to suspend the same was made in January only.

In his respond to via e-mail to Ani, Pentagon spokesperson, Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner said, "Unfortunately, recent reporting has distorted the details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) by stating several things out of context'.

"The suspension of security assistance to Pakistan was announced in January 2018. CSF is included in the suspension and it remains in place. This is not a new decision or a new announcement, but an acknowledgement of a July request to reprogram funds before they expire," Faulkner added.

Read | Donal Trump threatens WTO, says 'Shape up or we'll quit'

The spokesman also noted that the 2018 Department of Defence (DoD) Appropriations Act, published on March 23, details USD 500 million was rescinded by the Congress.

The Donald Trump cabinet cancelled the financial aid to the Imran Khan government due to the growing concerns regarding Islamabad's failure to curb militancy.

However, Pentagon's move to cancel the aid is yet to be approved by the US Congress. The department is still awaiting a congressional determination on whether this reprogramming request will be approved or denied.

Meanwhile, the United States has consistently engaged with Pakistan's top military officials and is pressing them to indiscriminately target all terrorist groups that threaten the stability and security across the globe.

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The report of cancellation, which is part of a broader suspension of aid, came ahead of US Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford's expected trip to Islamabad, which is scheduled on September 5, 2018.

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Starychi, Ukraine:

Ukraine on Monday launched joint military exercises with the United States and a string of other NATO countries as tensions with Russia remain high over the Kremlin-backed insurgency in the country's east. The annual Rapid Trident military exercises, taking place in the western Ukrainian village of Starychi until September 15, involve some 2,200 soldiers from 14 countries.

"(The participants) stand in solidarity with Ukraine, for Ukrainian security, Ukrainian sovereignty, and Ukrainian territorial integrity," the US Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch said at the opening ceremony.

Also Read | Death toll hits 48 in Boko Haram troop attack: military sources

The drills start a week before Russia holds its biggest military exercises since the Cold War, in the east of the country and with the participation of China and Mongolia.

A spokesman for the Ukrainian drills Taras Gren told AFP that some 350 pieces of military equipment will be used during the exercises.

The Ukrainian Border Guard Service and the National Guard troops will be involved for the first time, he said.

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Hundreds of US soldiers have been training Ukrainian soldiers since 2015 to support them in their fight against Russian-backed rebels in the country's war-torn east.

On Monday, the Ukrainian army reported eight servicemen had been wounded over the past 24 hours in clashes with rebels although a fresh truce took effect last week.

More than 10,000 people have been killed since the rebel insurgency broke out in the eastern Donetsk and Lugansk regions in April 2014 following Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Also Read | Reuters reporters jailed for seven years in Myanmar

Ukraine and its Western allies accuse Russia of funnelling troops and arms across the border.

Moscow has denied the allegations despite evidence it has been involved in the fighting and its open political support for rebels.

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Pl a n s t h a t e n v i s a g e eco-friendly vehicles filling the roads across the Kingdom are in place, it emerged. Once implemented, the plan is expected to bring a paradigm shift in the Kingdoms transport sector, said Industry, Commerce and Tourism Minister Zayed Al Zayani yesterday.

Mr Al Zayani was speaking to Tribune on the sidelines of a conference opened yesterday under the theme Innovation in Sustainable Mobility at the Bahrain International Convention and Exhibition Centre.

This conference is a first step towards developing the infrastructure to bring in electric cars while encouraging people to switch over to eco-friendly vehicles, he said. The Cabinet had approved a plan to improve energy proficiency by six per cent by 2025 as part of efforts to reduce gas pollutants.

Mr Al Zayani said that the Kingdom and other Gulf countries are working towards adopting unified specifications so that electric cars would start occupying the Kingdoms roads by 2022. All ministries are working towards implementing the National Energy Efficiency Plan adopted by the Cabinet and electric vehicles have a pivotal role in it.

There are three million electric cars worldwide and the United Nations has adopted an initiative, according to which electric vehicles will cover about 20 per cent of the urban transport sector by 2030.

Muna Al Alawi, Standards and Metrology Director at the Industry, Commerce and Tourism Ministry, said the main aim of the conference is to create a platform that will provide an awareness on the significance of using eco-friendly vehicles. For the successful implementation of this project, we want everyone aboard, be it the legislators, businessmen, car companies or government officials.
HRH the Premier stressed the importance of enhancing values of communication and coexistence enjoyed by the Bahraini society despite attempts to sow division.

This came as His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa received heads of Hussaini Matams and members of the General Authority of Husseini Processions led by head of Madan Matam, Ibrahim Mansour Al Mansour at Gudaibiya Palace yesterday.

The Premier highlighted the loyalty of Bahraini people to their country and leadership during the difficult times. He affirmed support for initiatives aimed at preserving the unity and progress of the homeland. HRH the Premier noted the sincere national role of the Bahraini people, saying the strength of the Bahraini society lies in its awareness and cohesion, which made the Kingdom a unique model of coexistence based on friendship and respect.

HRH the Premier said that maintaining the homeland security and stability is a shared responsibility between the government and the people. HRH the Premier praised the efforts of heads of Hussaini Matams to revive religious rituals in cooperation with the government agencies, underlining the governments support for Ashura events.
Many respected citizens have begun renouncing the title Dr from their names since His Royal Highness Prime Minister Prince Khalifa bin Salman Al Khalifa issued a directive to take strict action against those who obtained positions in the government sector after receiving fake degrees.

The directive has turned out to be a cause of big worry for these respected citizens and officials who were, hitherto, thriving on their fake degrees. The changes were first felt on social media, where many have started removing titles in order to avoid getting embroiled in controversies related to fake degrees. Tribune reported a few days ago that the Civil Service Bureau (CSB) has also initiated a drive to bring all those in the government service, who got fake and unaccredited degrees to justice. It is learnt that the CSB is contemplating strict action against those having fake degrees including dismissal from service. Meanwhile, sources say the Ministry of Education has also launched a parallel drive against its employees who are unqualified and obtained jobs using fake degrees.

However, social media is rife with advertisements of different courses and programmes offered by various universities located outside the country. And almost all of these degrees and certificates have no validity in the Kingdom. Speaking to Tribune, an academic, who doesnt want to be identified, said, There is no way to exercise control over the social media networks. But, of late, people in the Kingdom are becoming aware of fake degrees offered by many of these universities. However, the academic said the responsibility of government bodies is not yet over when it comes to carrying out large-scale awareness programmes against these fake universities and degrees and certificates offered by them.

These universities are capitalizing over the element of confusion that is prevailing in the Bahraini society with regard to higher education. One of the things offered by these fake universities to attract Bahraini students is cheap costs for certificates and degrees. Any student can easily be lured away with their advertisements unless the government bodies carry out a strict campaign against these fake universities.

The academician said it is a matter of shame that many became doctors without even submitting a thesis because of these fake universities. While there are many who have been tricked by these fake universities into pursuing programmes, there are also some who joined such programmes after knowing their incapacity to obtain degrees through hard work and learning process. The second category must face legal action as they have been cheating the society with their fake degrees.

There are many holding senior government positions after obtaining these fake degrees. No lenience should be shown towards them as there are many well-qualified Bahrainis who are jobless.
Two Bahraini fugitives were arrested in Kuwait by the Interpol, Tribune learnt. The duo have been wanted in connection with security cases registered in 2011, but they managed to flee the Kingdom, sources said.

The first is said to have crossdressed to impersonate his sister, whose ID was used to flee the Kingdom. The second man allegedly used his cousins ID card as he had facial similarities with the accused. Both made their way to Kuwait at different points of time. From Kuwait, they went to the UAE.

While returning from the UAE to Kuwait, they showed their original IDs and were arrested instantly as an Interpol arrest warrant was in place, police sources said.
A Bahraini student killed his Sudani friend following a ridiculous argument on posting photos and a video on social media, Tribune learnt. The duo were out together in a group road trip and snapped some images as well as a video. Both would threaten each other to publish them on their social media accounts with mocking comments, according to police sources. On the following day, a quarrel ensued and the Bahraini student stabbed the victim with a knife in the chest and leg.
More than 18,000 government teachers and administrative employees yesterday resumed work, signalling the beginning of the new school year.

A batch of 797 Bahraini teachers, who graduated from the University of Bahrain (UoB) Teachers College and other academic institutions, have also received their respective appointments and school postings. Education Minister Dr Majid Al Nuaimi visited a number of schools and inspected preparations to receive students next Sunday.

He met a number of new teachers who graduated from the UoB Teachers College and newly-appointed school staff, hailing their qualifications and dedication.
When she set out on a boat for the USSR w i t h h e r family some 70 years ago, Yanina Stashko had no idea she would never see her native France again.

Like millions of others, mainly from continental Europe but also Britain and the United States, Stashkos family was tempted home to the Soviet Union by a post-war propaganda drive. But when they got there they lost their previous nationality, found themselves impoverished at best and victims of political repression at worst.

Of course I could have done much more in France than I did here. But obviously it is too late to go back, the 88-year-old said at the farm where she lives in the west of Belarus. In the 1920s, Stashkos father had moved from what is now western Belarus to France along with his wife. There he worked in the mines in the north of the country which at the time were crippled by strikes. In France we lived well.

We had a house that my father was given from the mine, said Stashko, who was born shortly after her parents arrival in the country. Millions like us But after World War II, her father lost his job. The region from where in Belarus his family originated had become a part of the USSR -- at home, they would read Soviet newspapers, which were full of propaganda, and talk about what life would be like on the other side of the Iron Curtain.

At the time, the Soviet Union was on a major repatriation drive with immigrants, exiles, White Russians who had opposed the Bolsheviks in the Civil War, as well as other refugees from the conflict encouraged to come back. Soviet statistics from 1952 say as many as 4.3 million people returned from around the world.

In the end, my father said that he wanted to go home. But nobody asked my opinion, said Stashko, who was a teenager and working as a seamstress in France. In 1948, the family set out from the French port of Marseille to Odessa, southern Ukraine, with around 2,800 others, according to only child Stashko. We travelled as workers, in third class.

The people in first and second class took cars with them, their belongings, some of them were leaving behind their businesses in France. There were doctors, engineers, teachers, the now widowed mother-of-two remembers. But when they arrived, the passengers in the top two classes were immediately confronted with the realities of Joseph Stalins regime. They were arrested and their belongings were confiscated, Stashko said.

Her own family saw their French passports confiscated and they were transported in cattle wagons to Belarus.
US President Donald Trump yesterday threatened to exclude Canada from a new NAFTA agreement after negotiations to rewrite the pact ended without an agreement There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal. If we dont make a fair deal for the U.S. after decades of abuse, Canada will be out, he tweeted.

Congress should not interfere with these negotiations or I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely & we will be far better off. US-Canadian trade talks are set to resume on Wednesday, and Ottawa and Washington still have time to reach an agreement that would keep Canada in the 25-year-old trade pact with Mexico.

But Trumps tweet seemed designed to greatly ramp up the pressure on Canadian negotiators. Earlier in the week, officials had appeared close to reaching a deal that would rewrite the North American Free Trade Agreement, but leaked inflammatory comments from Trump angered Canadian officials and threatened to upend the talks.
At least 11 persons have been killed in a fresh attack in Jos south local government area of Plateau state.

At least 11 persons have been killed in a fresh attack in Jos south local government area of Plateau state.





Terna Tyopev, spokesman of the state police command, confirmed the incident, saying it happened on Sunday night.





He said the command immediately mobilised officers to restore peace and normalcy to the area.





Plateau, among other northern state, has suffered series of attacks in clashes between herders and farmers in the region.





The state received its worst hit in June when over 100 people were killed in a night.





Eleven people lost their lives, 12 injured and are receiving treatment in the Jos University Teaching Hospital and Plateau state specialist hospital, Tyopev said.





At 20:30 hours, we received a distress call from an anonymous caller who informed us that there was an attack. Immediately we mobilised people there. On arrival, we discovered that some people were on the ground. So, we moved them immediately to the hospitals. And it was on arrival that some of them were confirmed dead by some doctors on duty. And some are also admitted.





No arrests have been made. Investigation is on. We are appealing to the residents of the area to give us information that would lead to the arrest of the perpetrators of the act. We are also appealing to them not to vent their anger on the security personnel who are there to protect their lives. Youths should calm themselves down and not take laws into their hands.




At least 30 soldiers were reportedly killed when Boko Haram insurgents attacked a military base in Zari, Borno state.

At least 30 soldiers were reportedly killed when Boko Haram insurgents attacked a military base in Zari, Borno state.





They were said to have stormed the area in trucks on Thursday, overrunning the military base and sacking the entire village.





Twenty soldiers were injured in the incident, sources told Daily Trust.





The soldiers were said to have withdrawn following the heavy assault while the insurgents carted away weapons abandoned by fleeing troops.





A fighter jet deployed to the area was said to have repelled the attack, saving the situation.





We lost many soldiers in the duel and many of them are still missing because they are yet to return to the Damasak base, a military source was quoted as saying. We equally lost weapons to the attackers.





The Nigerian army had confirmed the encounter with the insurgents in a statement on Friday but was, however, silent on the casualty suffered by the troops.





Reacting to TheCables enquiry on Sunday, Chukwu said the insurgents never attacked soldiers.





Look for my release on Friday morning you will see the report. Point of correction, Boko Haram did not come to attack our soldiers. Soldiers were the one he said via a text message.




President Muhammadu Buhari has insisted that no part of Nigeria was under the control of Boko Haram insurgents.

President Muhammadu Buhari has insisted that no part of Nigeria was under the control of Boko Haram insurgents.





Buhari stated this while recounting some successes of his administration during an interactive session with some Nigerians in Beijing, China, on Sunday.





He said security operatives deployed to counter-insurgencies in the North East were responsible for the successes of the operation.





This is coming at a time about 30 soldiers were alleged to have been killed by Boko Haram insurgents at Zari village in Guzamala Local Government Area of Borno.





However, Brig.-Gen. Texas Chukwu, Director, Army Public Relations stressed that the report was a figment of the imagination.




President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday declared that he is not afraid of the 2019 election being free and fair election.

President Muhammadu Buhari on Sunday declared that he is not afraid of the 2019 election being free and fair election.





Speaking during an interactive session with the Nigerian community in China, Buhari insisted that he was not afraid of all contestants having a level playing field in next years election.





Buhari is in China for the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Summit.





I have no fear about free and fair election, because thats what brought me here, he said in a video shared on the presidencys Twitter handle.





He also spoke on how he became President after trying four times.




Yahaya Bello, governor of Kogi state, has described as nonsense, the alleged plot of Senate President Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara, spe...

Yahaya Bello, governor of Kogi state, has described as nonsense, the alleged plot of Senate President Bukola Saraki and Yakubu Dogara, speaker of the house of representatives, to frustrate President Muhammadu Buhari.

The executive and legislature are not having a smooth relationship at the moment, with some of the presidents supporters accusing the leadership of the national assembly of refusing to convene plenary so as to slow down the progress of the current administration.





said the president would win his reelection and put an end to the nonsense that Saraki and Dogara are doing. Addressing his supporters at his residence in GRA, Okene, Kogi, Bellosaid the president would win his reelection and put an end to the nonsense that Saraki and Dogara are doing.





The governor, who spoke in his native Ebira dialect, also appealed that members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) should be voted for in the coming elections.





Tijani Damisa, our brother in house of representatives, is among the people looking out for President Muhammadu Buhari That is why the nonsense that Saraki and Dogara are doing is not successful. I urge you all to vote for him and his colleagues, Bello said.





God willing, Buhari will return in 2019. All the people bearing APC ticket in Kogi, not just Ebira, will win by Gods grace.





He is the one who will give us and Buhari power. Not the one that Saraki and Dogara are making it difficult for him in his first term. In the second term, he will do it smoothly When it is my own time, we will win it very well. We wont just win it, we will superintend over the next one.





But in this era, please, everyone should be patient. Please, dont ridicule me before the president, because, I know my status there.





Bello said he is the first person Buhari reaches out to when he has a personal issue to discuss, boasting that he has a father-to-son relationship with the president.





According to him, when the president needs to talk to a governor, if he does not call me, he cannot call another person.





When it is time for a personal and sensitive matter to be discussed between father and son, I am the first person he (Buhari) reaches out to, he said.





Bello asked the people to vote only candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC).





He, however, warned them not to desist from brewing trouble with the opposing Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).





Please, tell one another that all of Kogi, all of Ebira, are for APC. Anyone that is in the camp of the other, just use it to eat. When it is election time, everyone is APC, he said.





If you do not do so and do something else, you are one dividing Ebira. You are the one saying Ebira should not move forward, you are the one saying kidnapping of people in the past, in the time of PDP, should continue. You are the one calling for the return of that time.





You are the one saying we should put an end to all the good work we are doing. You are the one saying you are not happy with the water projects we are doing. You are the one saying the hospitals we are building, should be on hold.





Dont deviate from the plan because if you do, you are saying our suffering is not enough. I am not saying if you see someone from PDP, you should stone him or mock them in songs.




The structures of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Benue were on Monday handed over to Gov. Samuel Ortom.Former President of the Senate David Mark handed over the structures at the partys stakeholders meeting in Makurdi.Mark further said that the stakeholders meeting was the first of the harmonised PDP since Ortom came back to the party.He said that with the calibre of the people that had come back to PDPs fold, it could win any election in the country.He said that both the old and new members of the party had equal rights in the party, stressing that it was on that basis that the partys executive positions had to be reviewed so as to accommodate the people that just defected to it.As they joined us we need to give them some positions thereby giving them a sense of belonging.We have constituted an Integration Committee which will work 24/7 to ensure proper harmonisation right from the council ward upwards, he said.Also, Ortom promised that all the political leaders of the party in the state would continue to work together and it would be sustained.The governor said that in politics there was neither permanent enemy nor friend but what was permanent was interest.Our coming together was for the interest of the state and that was what brought them together, he said.He commended the partys leadership for agreeing to review the partys structure in order to accommodate the people that defected with him to PDP.He said that other governorship aspirants of the party should not be worried because even as a leader of the party now he could not compromise the rules and constitution of the party.There will be a level playing field for all the aspirants, he said.Former governor of the state, Mr Gabriel Suswam, informed the people that the officers whose offices were affected by the review would be given immediate appointment by the state government.Suswam said that the decision was arrived at for the best interest of the state, stressing that the party was considering the future; and all affected should accept the decision in good faith.Earlier, the state Chairman, Mr John Ngbede, warned local government chairmen against preventing people from joining the party at the local government level.You do not have the right to deny anybody membership card of the party, he said.He expressed optimism that Ortom would move the party to lofty heights now that he assumed leadership of the party.
The Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode has reacted to reports of him defecting from the All Progressives Congress, APC, to the Peoples...

The Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode has reacted to reports of him defecting from the All Progressives Congress, APC, to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Ambode described the report of his planned defection as false.

The Governors stance was disclosed on Sunday by President Muhammadu Buharis Personal Assistant on New Media, Ahmad Bashir.





Citing a newspaper report, Bashir quoted Ambode as saying he was not planning to defect.





The report claimed that Ambode was planning to defect from APC to the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.




A lawyer, Mr Olukoya Ogungbeje, has sued the Federal Government, demanding N200bn compensation for the at least 214 persons allegedly killed this year by armed herdsmen in Benue and Plateau states.Apart from seeking compensation, the applicant, acting in his capacity as the Convener of the Movement Against Killings in Nigeria, sought a court order compelling the Federal Government to arrest and prosecute the killer herdsmen and their accomplices in a court of competent jurisdiction.The applicant who blamed the killings on grave constitutional infraction and shirking of constitutional responsibility by the respondents, filed two separate fundamental human rights enforcement suits to seek redress for the deceased.The Federal Government, President Muhammadu Buhari and the Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Abubakar Malami (SAN), are the three respondents to each of the two suits.The plaintiff filed one of the suits in the Makurdi Division of the Federal High Court, demanding N100bn compensation each for the 114 persons said to have been killed by the killer herdsmen in Benue State and another in the Jos Division of the court demanding another sum of N100bn for the over 100 others killed in Plateau State.The lawyer blamed the killings on the failure of the respondents to the suit (the Federal Government, Buhari and the AGF) to discharge their constitutional responsibility in strict compliance with Sections 33, 46 and 14(2)(a) and (b) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.The applicant alleged that the failure of the three respondents to discharge their constitutional duties culminated in the killings and extrajudicial murder of the deceased persons by armed killer herdsmen.He argued that the killings violated the deceased victims rights to life guaranteed under Sections 33 and 46 under Chapter IV of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.In the suit marked FHC/MKA/CS/43/2018, filed before the Federal High Court in Makurdi, on August 23, 2018, the applicant said that of the 114 massacred by herdsmen in Benue State, 73 of them were killed on January 1, 2018, in Logo and Guma Local Government Areas, while 26 others were killed on March 5, 2018, in Okpokwu LGA.He noted that the rest of the 15 victims in Benue State included two Catholic priests namely, Rev. Fathers Joseph Gor and Felix Tyolaha, who were hacked down by the assailants on April 24, 2018, during a mass at St Ignatius Quasi Parish at Ukpor-Mbalom in Ayar-Mbalom Community of Gwer East Local Government of the state.In the other suit filed before the Jos Division of the Federal High Court on August 27, 2018, and marked, FHC/J/CS/40/2018, the applicant said the herdsmen on June 23 and 24, 2018, killed over 100 persons in 11 communities in Barkin Ladi, Riyom and Jos South Local Governments Areas of Plateau State.
G. O. Agbadua, a counsel to Department of State Services (DSS), says national security is the reason Jones Abiri, a Bayelsa-based journali...

G. O. Agbadua, a counsel to Department of State Services (DSS), says national security is the reason Jones Abiri, a Bayelsa-based journalist, was detained for two years without trial.





Abiri, publisher of Weekly Source Newspaper, was arrested by Department of State Services (DSS) in 2016 and accused of being the the leader of the joint revolutionary council of the Joint Niger Delta Liberation Force, a separatist group.





He was arraigned for the first time after two years in July following public outcry. Abiri was granted bail in August.





Thereafter, the journalist asked the Abuja federal high court to compel the federal government to pay him N200 million as compensation for spending two years in detention.





He said he was tortured by the DSS while in detention.





At the court on Monday, Agbadua explained that when a capital crime has been committed as in the alleged case of Abiri, a person can be held in detention without a trial.





Section 30(3) of ACJA where a suspect is taken into custody and it appears to the police officer in charge of the station that the offence is of a capital nature, the arrested suspect shall be detained in custody, and the police officer may refer the matter to the attorney-general of the federation for legal advice and cause the suspect to be taken before a court having jurisdiction with respect to the offence within a reasonable time, the counsel said.





It is of individual right to national security and rule of law, the state itself was a result of individuals submitting their powers, their rights to the state for protection.





Reading those provisions, we are of the view that since its individual right, it cannot supersede that of the national security and that bail in capital offence is not as of right.





But Samuel Ogala, counsel to Abiri, disagreed with Agbadua.





Ogala argued that his clients detention was illegal and there is no court order to that effect.





What is rule of law and national security? It is the duty and responsibility of the court to say yes, this case is a capital offence or whether an applicant is entitled to bail or not, he said.





It is not the responsibility of the state security service to sit in their office, arrest, detain and punish a person.





The issue of rule of law and national security is very clear, what I want the court to understand is that, the applicants detention is criminal intimidation and it is punishable.





After listening to counsels, Nnamdi Dimgba, the judge, adjourned the matter till September 13.





The issue of national security and the rule of law has generated controversy in the last one week.




The Nigerian and South African armies on Monday pledged to strengthen collaboration to create conducive environments for their peoples to pursue economic activities.The Chiefs of Army Staff of Nigeria and South Africa, Lt.-Gen. Tukur Buratai and Lt.-Gen. Windile Yam, made the pledge at a joint news conference at the army headquarters in Abuja.The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Buratai had earlier received the South African army chief behind closed doors, where they discussed modalities to strengthen cooperation.Speaking earlier, Yam noted that the reason armies existed was to ensure security and peace so that their respective countrys economies could thrive.He described the Nigerian army as a very experienced army that had worked to ensure peace and stability, not only in Nigeria and the West African sub-region, but the continent in general.Yam said that cooperation between both armies was imperative, hence he visited to explore ways to strengthen the cooperation.On his part, the Nigerian army chief said that when the armies of both countries were strong and collaborating, there would be security for their economies to thrive.Buratai said also that when both armies collaborated, they would be in a better position to tackle the security challenges confronting the African continent.
Reportsfrom Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, have it that members of the Oyo state chapter of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) are c...

Reportsfrom Abeokuta, the Ogun state capital, have it that members of the Oyo state chapter of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) are currently meeting with ex-president Olusegun Obasanjo.





It was gathered from one of the stalwarts of the party who is currently in the meeting, that the meeting was called in order to find a lasting solution to the crisis rocking the Oyo State chapter of the party.





Among the personalities present at the meeting holding at Presidential Library, Abeokuta included: Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, national chairman of the party, Chief Ralph Nwosu, and other groups within the state chapter of the party.





Recall that a group within the party, Unity Forum, had last week raised alarm over the alleged hijack of the party by former governor of Oyo state and former secretary to the state government, Senator Rasidi Adewolu Ladoja and Chief Michael Koleoso respectively.





The group last Thursday issued a 72-hour ultimatum to the national leadership of the party to address what they termed as impunity. The ultimatum expired yesterday.





Our correspondent learnt that Mondays meeting was called in order to correct alleged imbalances in the party.




The All Progressives Congress (APC) has threatened to discipline its members plotting to oppose its choice of direct primary.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) has threatened to discipline its members plotting to oppose its choice of direct primary.

The party initially decided to adopt indirect primary for all elective positions, but later switched to direct primary.





Indirect primary election would require delegates to choose the partys candidate while direct primary is a process where interested members of the party vote for a candidate.





The APC says some of its members, drawn from various organs of the party, are planning to meet on Sunday at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, to kick against the adoption of direct primary.





We want to state clearly that the meeting is illegal and an attempt to puncture the sincere efforts being made by the Comrade Adams Oshiomhole-led NWC to reposition our Party ahead the 2019 General Elections and to ensure unity, equity and justice in the Party, the APC said in a statement issued Sunday by Yekini Nabena, its acting spokesman.





The outcome of such meeting which is already known will be a nullity and we admonish our members to disregard such meetings in the interest of the Party. It is illegal to call such meetings outside the purview of the constituted authority.





The ruling party said the identities of those behind the meeting have been identified and unless they desist from such they will be dealt with in line with the Partys Constitution at the appropriate time.





The APC added that its national working committee will resist any attempt to disrupt the current peace and harmony prevailing in the party after the exit of some of its members.




President Muhammadu Buhari has come under severe pressure to sack the Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Mr. Abubakar Malami, SAN, Group Managing Director of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, Chief Executive Officer of Nigerian Sovereign Investment Fund, NSIA, Mr. Uche Orji, and a number of other influential technocrats in his government.





The move, said to be promoted surprisingly by a senior Presidency official, is designed to culminate in the formation of a brand new team of technocrats and politicians who will take over these and other strategic institutions and agencies of government.





The perceived sins of the Managing Director of NSIA is his assumed proximity to the Chief of Staff to the President, Mallam Abba Kyari.





It is the belief of the plotters that the sack of Orji will also weaken the Chief of Staff and put him on the line of fire.





A highly reliable source who was at the meeting, disclosed that there is also a plan to launch a campaign against them soon. The source said the move is aimed at gaining influence in the presidents campaign team ahead of the 2019 election





It was unclear at press time whether President Buhari or his Vice, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, was aware of the plot, but highly placed officials of the Buhari administration are said to be involved.





A source argued that it would be naive for anyone to think the senior Presidency official, whose aide was available at the meeting, had no knowledge of such high-stake plot.





Members of the group who had benefitted so much from President Buharis magnanimity, had moved to ensure the sack of Baru while the President was on his last working visit to London.





The leader of the group had, according to sources, tried to latch on to the momentum of the sack of the Director-General of the Department of State Service, DSS, Lawal Daura, by the acting President, Osinbajo, to effect the sack of Baru were also to be arrested and given the same treatment that was meted out to the sacked DG, DSS.





He however, escaped the plot because out of the country on official engagements.





Osinbajo had enjoyed rave recommendations in the media for Dauras sack, while the proponents of this plot had hoped that he would be emboldened to deploy the powers of his office to rework the administrative infrastructure along the line of instilling discipline and redirection in government.





In recent weeks, several reports have appeared in some online publications against these men who are considered the true technocrats in Buharis administration,





There had been an ongoing medias attack on Malami who had been accused of shady deals in the handling of the repatriation of funds said to have been looted by the family of the late General Sani Abacja.





His legal advice to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on the prosecution of suspects in the $1.1 billion Malabu scandal was also twisted to mean an advice to discontinue the trial.





His advice to the Inspector General of Police on the interim report on Offa bank robbery which indicted the Senate president, Bukola Saraki, to do more investigations was also wrongly interpreted in the media as a legal clearance for Saraki.





The AGF had had to make clarifications on these subjects several times to put the record straight.





Orji was first appointed in October 2012 for a term of five years, renewable for another term. He was re-appointed October last year for another term of five years.





Femi Adesina, spokesman of the President, who announced the reappointment, said the NSIA under Orjis leadership made remarkable strides and its assets now stand at over $2 billion, which is invested in Nigerian infrastructure, economic stabilisation and future generation funds.





There had also not been any love lost between Baru and the Minister of State for Petroleum since the appointment of the latter, culminating in the scandalous leakage of a private memo to the President.





It may be recalled that the content of the memo had since been established as baseless and put to rest.





Some analysts in the know of the plot have also argued that those behind the plot may actually be moles in the administration who are working against President Buharis re-election bid.





They reasoned that it could not have been mere coincidence that Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, had intensified attacks on the NNPC and Baru in recent days.




Staff at a second-hand bookstore in Badajoz, western Spain, were terrified to discover that one of the books in their collection had had its pages removed and replaced with a complex mechanism that closely resembled a bomb.

The book in question, a copy of The King of Beggars by French writer Jean Larteguy attracted the attention of staff at the Hundred Cannons bookstore in the town of Badajoz, due to its unusually hefty weight. Upon opening it to inspect the contents, they were shocked to find that all the pages had been cut out and replaced with a mechanism that included several stopwatches, capacitors, and loads of electrical wires. The first thing that went through their minds was that this was a bomb-book, so they immediately evacuated the place and called the police.

Photo: El Periodico Extremadura

We found a paperback book of overseas origin, dating from the 80s, around 85-86 and when we picked it up, we noticed that it was too heavy. We open it and we found a mechanism inside the book, one Hundred Cannons employee told Extremadura News.

After sending a photo of the dangerous-looking book to the police, it was confirmed that it looked a lot like an improvised explosive device, so a team of Specialists in Deactivation of Explosive Devices (TEDAX) was mobilised and a perimeter was set up around the bookstore. After carefully inspecting the book, TEDAX established that the stopwatches inside had long run out of battery and that there was no trace of any explosive materials inside. The book is still being examined by experts, but it appears to be harmless.

Although the origins and purpose of this fake book bomb are yet to be established, the owner of the Hundred Cannons library has his own theory. Taking into consideration the Basque name of the books author and the fact that this particular edition was published in the mid 80s, he believes it could have belonged to a member of the Baque terrorist group ETA who prepared it to be used as a bomb and simply forgot about it.

Interestingly, Jean Larteguy is credited with envisioning the ticking time bomb scenario in his 1960 book Les Centurions. Maybe that has something to do with this bizarre book bomb? I guess well never know.
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The groundwork is being prepared by an intelligence alliance known as Five Eyes comprising Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States, to crack down on technology companies that won't comply with court orders to give up data on local and international criminal and terrorist networks on demand.

The surveillance capabilities of the Five Eyes were greatly increased as part of the global War on Terror after 9/11. The easy use of encryption apps that lock out law enforcement is hampering major investigations globally and Five Eyes now wants to regain the upper hand on criminals. Protection of criminals over law enforcement is no longer an option.

A Little Background: Last June Patently Apple posted a report titled "The 'Five Eyes' Intelligence Network backed by the U.S. and UK are Set to Tackle the Problem of Encrypted Messaging." A month later we posted a related report titled "Australia proposed new Laws Compelling Companies like Facebook & Apple to Provide Access to Encrypted Messages." In the last 30 days the U.S. Government filed a motion against Facebook for contempt of court for not complying with a surveillance request and the Australian government is preparing to introduce new laws in 2019 forcing tech companies, telecommunications and technology service providers  to cooperate with agencies to gain access data from organzed criminal organizations and beyond on demand.

FCM's 2018 Communique

Today we're learning of an official communique from the Five Eyes FCM group that emerged from their Australian meeting held on August 28-29 2018 on the Gold Coast. The group is also known as FCM which consists of Homeland Security, Public Safety and Immigration Ministers. The Five Eyes intelligence group also has other associated groups such as a financial intelligence unit under its umbrella.

The 2018 Five Country Ministerial (FCM), which in previous years has achieved advancements in information and intelligence sharing on border protection and counter-terrorism, has matured to become the pre-eminent forum for collaboration among the five countries on domestic security issues. This year's FCM meeting recalibrated the forum to focus on tangible deliverables and practical collaboration on counter-terrorism, countering violent extremism, cyber security, countering foreign interference, protecting critical infrastructure, border management and law enforcement.

Just as the internet provides many benefits, it also provides opportunities for people to carry out crimes and spread illicit content. Terrorism, child sexual abuse and exploitation, violent extremism, and coercive acts of interference and disinformation are enduring concerns of government. The anonymous, instantaneous, and networked nature of the online environment has magnified these threats and opened up new vectors for harm.

Governments have a responsibility to protect those within our borders against both physical and digital threats, and to ensure that the rule of law prevails online, as it does offline. We have a responsibility to tackle these challenges in a coordinated and effective way.

On the Topic of Encryption

While the communique covered such topics as terrorism, cyber security, resilience of critical infrastructure, migration and boarder management, it's the topic of encryption that received more attention and a new focus.





The communique specifically stated that "Encryption is vital to the digital economy, a secure cyberspace and the protection of personal, commercial and government information. The five countries have no interest or intention to weaken encryption mechanisms.

We recognize, however, that encryption, including end-to-end encryption, is also used in the conduct of terrorist and criminal activities. The inability of intelligence and law enforcement agencies to lawfully access encrypted data and communications poses challenges to law enforcement agencies' efforts to protect our communities.

Therefore, we agreed to the urgent need for law enforcement to gain targeted access to data, subject to strict safeguards, legal limitations, and respective domestic consultations. We have agreed to a Statement of Principles on Access to Evidence and Encryption that sets out a framework for discussion with industry on resolving the challenges to lawful access posed by encryption, while respecting human rights and fundamental freedoms.

You could review the entire communique that was issued here.

The issue of encryption was first raised during the group's 2017 meeting and noted in their communique for that year. This year's communique advances that cause and will put forth a starting framework to approach tech companies with in respect to encryption.

No matter what agreement is made with technology companies on the issue of encryption, we the public will never know what steps have been agreed to. It's not in the interest of either tech companies or law enforcement to advertise that encrypted communications is no longer a guarantee for criminal organizations. That would be counterproductive. Yet at the end of the day, the Five Eyes group will eventually prevail in one way or another.

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There is no need for Ghana to float a $50 billion centenary bond as revealed by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Gideon Amissah, a financial analyst and economist, has said.



According to him, if the government goes ahead to float this bond, it will have dire consequences on the future of the country, a situation that can cost the New Patriotic Party (NPP) the next elections.



He explained in an interview with Accra FM Monday, 3 September that this will result in a huge debt that generations unborn will have to come and pay, coupled with the already existing debt portfolio of Ghana.



Speaking to President Xi Jinping of the Peoples Republic of China during his state visit, President Nana Akufo-Addo said: The Ministry of Finance and the economists in Ghana are looking at floating a $50 billion Century Bond.



This will provide us with the resources to finance our infrastructural and industrial development. We are hoping that, at some stage, China will interest itself, and take a part of it as Chinas contribution to Ghanas development, the president said.



According to him, the centenary bond will be one of governments means of securing long-term financial sources that will allow us to deal with our infrastructural development, and also realise the vision of a Ghana Beyond Aid.



But Mr Amissah said: What at all motivated the president to make this revelation in China? What are the details of the discussion between President Akufo-Addo and the Chinese President that may have resulted in our president to make this comment?



We dont have too much information on this and I think Ghanaians must be concerned about it.



He added: This bond is not necessary, we dont need this $50 billion that we will be paying in the next 100 years. Let us hasten slowly, I think we are rushing, it is not necessary, we dont have to push ourselves too much. If the government goes ahead with it, it will cost them in the elections.









Source: classfmonline.com









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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The President and Chairman of Groupe Nduom (GN), Dr Papa Kwesi Nduom, has said the retrenchment of even a single employee of his firm leaves him in pain.



At Groupe Nduom, we have over 6,000 employees. Most of them work hard. They have families and they have hopes for a better future. I agonise over even one employee who has to go home because the business cannot support him or her, the business consultant stated in a Facebook post.



He recounted that: Once in my life, I had to sell almost everything I owned and cherished and start all over again. But my dignity and knowledge was intact, so, I bounced back. I will do it all again if I have to. But not everyone has the choices available to me.



Dr Nduoms comments follow the action of the Bank of Ghana (BoG), recently, to fuse uniBank with Sovereign Bank, The Royal Bank, The Beige Bank and The Construction Bank, to form a totally new local bank called Consolidated Bank Ghana (CBG) Limited.



Before morphing the five banks into CBG, the central bank, in August 2017, revoked the licences of two other local banks, UT Bank and Capital Bank, and were subsequently taken over by GCB after having been declared "irredeemably insolvent" by the Bank of Ghana.



It has emerged that about 1,700 staff of CBG will be losing their jobs.



But Dr Nduom has entreated government and other authorities to quickly solve the challenges in the financial sector to boost local banks.



We need lower cost of money, phased and guaranteed payment of government debts, managerial and shareholder/shareholder discipline, appropriate punishment for those who will not accept correction and a sustained programme to buy Made-in-Ghana among others, he added.







Post Below-

Source: classfmonline.com









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Chief Executive Officer of Kantanka Automobile, Kwadwo Safo has revealed that the bad nature of road network in the country contributed to why the company was only in the production of four wheel drives.



He said his outfit is capable of producing smaller cars which can be used for commercial purposes such as Taxis and Uber.



You cant produce smaller cars whereas your roads are not of international standards, when we began we identified that our roads are bad he told Kasapa Fm.



Several others have advised that the company gets into production of relatively smaller cars such as the ones used for Uber and taxis in order to catch the market and also gain prominence in the Ghanaian market.



But according to Kwadwo Safo, although the company now produces smaller cars, they come with challenges and become vulnerable to bad roads.



First of all, if we want to bring smaller vehicles onto the market it will break down early, secondly producing smaller cars are more difficult as compared to producing bigger ones and that is the truth.



So we began from somewhere and what we were looking for we didnt get. The company we were partnering with at that time to meet the international standard they didnt have smaller cars and we had to work with them for a long time which necessitated the involvement of our Research and Development department before we were able to achieve that, so we now have smaller cars he said.

The automobile firm has expressed concerns over what they believe is the hasty approach government has resorted to in signing the agreement for the establishment of an assembling plant of German car giant VW in Ghana.



In a statement Kantanka said although they are not against the coming of VW into the Ghanaian market, they hoped the government had attached speed and relevance to the numerous proposals that they have submitted to it like it did in the case of VW.







Source: kasapafmonline.com









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Outspoken Member of Parliament for North Tongu, Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa has hit out at campaigners and authorities calling and rooting for the construction of a National Cathedral.



As has become his custom, in a long write up filled with references from the Bible, Mr. Ablakwa expressed his disappointment at individuals who he noted should know better not to fuel the debate about whether the country needs a Cathedral.



He called out the Deputy Minister of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mr. Paul Essien who had earlier argued that putting up the Cathedral in the way Government is going about it will bring blessings to the nation and criticized him for failing to see that God blesses individuals by their conduct and obedience to His commandments.



Clearly, the Deputy Minister has not averted his mind to I Kings 6:11-13 where King Solomon after spending 7 years to build what the Bible records as a most imposing and magnificent temple made of gold - "Then the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying: Concerning this temple which you are building, if you walk in My statutes, execute My judgments, keep all My commandments, and walk in them, then I will perform My word with you, which I spoke to your father David. And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.



It is as clear as daylight that God will not merely bless our nation just because we constructed a cathedral. The Lord looks more at our conduct and our obedience to his commandments.



The Deputy Minister and the many Government spokespersons speaking like that are failing to recognize that our hearts and our deeds are what the Lord looks at and indeed what matters to Him. The Bible says in Proverbs 14:34 that "righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people." Note that it isn't the existence of cathedrals that exalts a nation. He averred.



The pious MP also charged government to come clean on its true intention on the construction of the edifice which will require the demolition of the homes of about nine judges.



Perhaps it's time for those Government spokespersons claiming we need this cathedral for moneymaking ventures such as an event centre to host 5,000 people and that additionally we stand to benefit economically as a nation through tourism and other forms of entrepreneurship to start rethinking their stance. We are either putting up a sacred cathedral to worship and honour the Lord to attract His blessings if we are found worthy by His mercies or we are seeking to engage in a purely commercial enterprise. Government must come clean on its true intentions.



Read his full post



The National Cathedral debate must not divide us



The tumult created by Government's decision to pull down structures including the residences of judges, the Passport Office and the Scholarship Secretariat and in their place erect a national cathedral doesn't appear to be abating anytime soon.



What worries me, however, is the calamitous form this debate is assuming by the rather unfortunate effort to deliberately pitch Christians against Muslims.



People we expect to know better now claim Christianity is under attack in Ghana. Some even go as far as to suggest that the State has prioritized the concerns of our Muslim brothers and sisters to the detriment of Christians. They list the State's support for some Hajj pilgrims, Muslim holidays and the Kawukudi Mosque being constructed by a Turkish NGO to make their case. By the way; those who present these charges remain silent on our cherished Christian holidays, they ignore the commendable role of the State in offering land for the establishment of churches many years ago and they conveniently fail to recall how former British High Commissioner to Ghana Jon Benjamin criticized the Ghanaian State for granting Diplomatic Passports to many Reverend Ministers which he thought constituted an abuse of the privilege.



Those engaged in this reckless incitement ought to be called to order. They should be told to stop playing with fire if not an inferno.



We have done pretty well as a country over the years to build a united cohesive State despite our religious diversity much to the admiration of the international community and we cannot afford to let ourselves down seeing the beautiful gains we have made.



Christians and Muslims have co-existed peacefully to the extent that unlike elsewhere, intermarriages and having members of the same nuclear family subscribing to these two religions are now common.



We all know the consequences of a religious conflagration as has been seen in other jurisdictions where thousands and millions have lost their lives leaving in its wake unspeakable horror and untold destruction.



This is not a matter to joke about. It is easy to destroy than to build. Easy to fragment than to construct a cohesive State. Divide and rule tactics have only given those who pursue it momentary relief but in the final analysis like uncontrollable bush fire, it consumes everybody including those who set it off. It is the reason responsible leaders who love their nations shun this rather retrogressive modus operandi.



How is it that those who claim to be defending Christianity by engaging in this unacceptable incitement do not reflect Christ's sermon on the mount when He said in Matthew 5:7; "Blessed are the peacemakers for they will be called children of God."

Paul re-echoed this to the Christians in Rome when he admonished; "If it be possible, as much as lieth in you, live peaceably with all men." (Romans 12:18).



Instructively, we are told in John 3:17; "For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him."



The national cathedral debate has at all material times been about whether we should be demolishing official accommodation for judges who are already reeling under poor conditions of service, whether we should pull down the Passport Office and the Scholarship Secretariat and whether we could not have spared scarce national resources by avoiding a reconstruction of these facilities we are about to tear down and identifying unencumbered land to put up a national cathedral if we so desire. I am not aware that anybody has said Christians don't deserve a national cathedral or don't deserve a national cathedral at a prime location for that matter.



In any case, don't we see large tracts of prime land belonging to the State being sold to real estate developers every passing day much to the chagrin of Ga and La Chiefs who continue to agitate that if the State no longer has use for the original purpose for which their land was acquired then it should be returned to them within the remit of Article 20 of the Constitution of Ghana?



Do we need to be reminded of the infamous list revealing how some top politicians and their associates were allocated plots of land in the choicest parts of Accra in the not too distant past?



Some time ago, Dr. Omane Boamah and I were engaged in a protracted legal battle to prevent a former Chief of Staff and former Minister from buying over an acre of prime land on which stood a newly renovated Government bungalow. Ironically, the proposed national cathedral is to be sited not far from this address. We lost that battle and in the process the State lost that premium property. That notwithstanding, I still do not believe that it is right for those of us who get into the Executive ostensibly to protect national assets and State resources to turn round and appropriate same to ourselves.



The fundamental question to ask, therefore, is that if those at the helm of affairs can allocate unencumbered land to real estate developers, to themselves and to their associates, why should the Lord's cathedral deserve less? Why should we embroil, entangle or ensnare the Lord's cathedral in this needless controversy?

What happened to the timeless Christian doctrine of giving the Lord the best sacrifice/offering since the beginning of mankind when God rejected Cain's sacrifice in Genesis 4:4-5 to God's further elucidation in Malachi 1:6-8. Are we certain in our heart of hearts that the Lord will be pleased with this controversial cathedral sacrifice?



That said, when one considers the social media posts of some of the over one thousand Presidential Staffers and pronouncements of other Government officials, I am beginning to wonder if this needless controversy was not deliberately and irresponsibly created by some NPP politicians in order to create the impression that they are the vanguards of Christianity and hopefully rake in the majority Christian votes in election 2020. It is sad that some politicians think of only the next election and not the enduring foundations of our national construct.



Nevertheless, the politicians engaged in this plot must really be underestimating the God-given intelligence and doctrinal soundness of the Ghanaian Christian no matter our human failings.



Then there is the Deputy Minister of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs, Mr. Paul Essien who argues that putting up this Cathedral in the way Government is going about it will bring our nation blessings. See: https://www.myjoyonline.com/news/2018/august-30th/enemies-wont-win-govt-not-backing-out-of-cathedral-plans-dep-minister.php



Clearly, the Deputy Minister has not averted his mind to I Kings 6:11-13 where King Solomon after spending 7 years to build what the Bible records as a most imposing and magnificent temple made of gold - "Then the word of the Lord came to Solomon, saying: Concerning this temple which you are building, if you walk in My statutes, execute My judgments, keep all My commandments, and walk in them, then I will perform My word with you, which I spoke to your father David. And I will dwell among the children of Israel, and will not forsake My people Israel.



It is as clear as daylight that God will not merely bless our nation just because we constructed a cathedral. The Lord looks more at our conduct and our obedience to his commandments.





The Deputy Minister and the many Government spokespersons speaking like that are failing to recognize that our hearts and our deeds are what the Lord looks at and indeed what matters to Him. The Bible says in Proverbs 14:34 that "righteousness exalts a nation, but sin condemns any people." Note that it isn't the existence of cathedrals that exalts a nation.



We must also to be minded of Proverbs 29:2 which cautions that: "When the righteous are in authority, the people rejoice: but when the wicked beareth rule, the people mourn.



As students of theology, we cannot forget that when God decided to destroy Sodom due to their abominable acts as vividly described in Genesis 18, he asked for righteous persons to step forward to spare the destruction of the city - initially demanding 50 righteous people after which Abraham strenuously negotiated down to 10 righteous people.

Note here too that God searched for righteous persons to spare Sodom from destruction NOT the cathedrals citizens of Sodom had constructed.



As we very well know, the only time Jesus Christ picked up the whip was right in the temple when the House of God had been turned into a business venture as John 2:14-17 recounts. The lesson here again is that you can have a temple or a cathedral and not use it in ways that pleases the Lord. Perhaps it's time for those Government spokespersons claiming we need this cathedral for moneymaking ventures such as an event centre to host 5,000 people and that additionally we stand to benefit economically as a nation through tourism and other forms of entrepreneurship to start rethinking their stance. We are either putting up a sacred cathedral to worship and honour the Lord to attract His blessings if we are found worthy by His mercies or we are seeking to engage in a purely commercial enterprise. Government must come clean on its true intentions.



Finally, as we set out to construct this national cathedral if we feel strongly about it, and by the way, I must assert that the architectural design by the internationally acclaimed Sir David Ajaye - that proud son of Ghana is most impressive. However, as New Testament Christians and national leaders, let us not be oblivious of Paul the Apostle's revelation to the Corinthians that it is our bodies that are the temples of the Holy Spirit which we must use to honour the Lord. And honouring the Lord cannot be without striving to defeat the temptations of the flesh which amongst others lead to bad governance. We cannot also afford to renege on our fundamental calling in Matthew 25:34-36 which reads, "Then the king will say to those at his right hand, Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me."



Without a scintilla of doubt, this exhortation forms the cardinal principles of Good Governance where the people's needs are not neglected and priorities not misplaced.



May this national cathedral debate rather bring us together to live in peace with all and to increase our faith in the Lord.





Source: Samuel Okudzeto Ablakwa MP, North Tongu









Disclaimer : Opinions expressed here are those of the writers and do not reflect those of Peacefmonline.com. Peacefmonline.com accepts no responsibility legal or otherwise for their accuracy of content. Please report any inappropriate content to us, and we will evaluate it as a matter of priority.

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We have keenly investigated about the current happenings between customs and the Trade Community with respect to the introduction of of the Cargo Tracking Note(CTN).



The CTN basically is system that has been established by Ghana Customs with a sole objective of electronically monitoring goods while on transit, and control the goods along the corridor route to th destination.



The Cargo Tracking Note (CTN) system is being introduced by the government through customs to track all imports to Ghana to reduce revenue losses associated with under declaration of goods at the port and this will allow customs to identify items bought from the originated country with the value that has to be charged on it.



Hence, it baffles our mind that some people would insist that such a great policy should not seen the light just because of their on parochial interests.



We have realised that most people in Ghana engages in cargo dumping just to evade taxes. Cargo Dumping means where goods destined for Ghana are illegally diverted into the Nigerian market for it to later shipped to Ghana to enjoy the ECOWAS treaty to evade tax. This activity has led to huge losses in tax earnings to the country. The CTN technology has also improved operations at the ports of most African countries.



According to Freight Watch International, the East African countries are on the list of spots in Africa where businesses and supply managers have reported cargo theft as one of the main challenges facing their operations.



In Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda the CTN has helped enhance revenue collection, enforce cargo handling requirements and improved the business environment of the respective countries trade routes.



This is being spearheaded by the state-owned tax collection agencies and the improved custom duty collection has not only enabled a reduction of import tax in some instances, but has also made it possible for governments to reduce tax on cargo.



Basically, the introduction of the CTN is bringing a lot of benefits to the Trade Community such as:



1. It will make a provision of a one stop comprehensive and broader view of the logistics chain to customs, the Port Authority and other structures of control which will eliminate duplication and enhance reporting requirements.



2. This will also serve as another source of data for valuation purposes and not a tool for valuation in particular.



3. The CTN will combat commercial fraud in trade documentation.



4. It will also detect disagreements in the Bill of Lading numbers, ports of loading, description of goods.



The above are some few of the benefits of the CTN which wouldn't lure to the benefit of the commissioner of port neither the workers of customs but benefits that would befall on all Ghanaians including the Trading community and hence we must embrace it with joy instead of allowing ourselves to be misinformed by certain people just to gain political points.



Again, customs is not in a hurry to impose the CTN on the importers whatsoever as people want us to believe a lot of consultations are still going on that is why the proper implementation of the CTN has been rescheduled to October 2018 instead of September 2018.



We must not allow ourselves as people to be deceived by some people who are hungry to score political points with this policy to confuse us with the CTN and the CET. They are absolutely different things. The CTN would rather bring a relief to us as importers and again, the Commissioner of Ports, Mr. Isaac Crentsil has announced that:



1. There will be no fee or charges applicable to importers or shippers in Ghana or elsewhere associated with the implementation of the CTN now or in the future.



2. Any fees charges to any importer so far in association with the implementation of the CTN will be reimbursed by the Ghana revenue authority.



3. The Ghana revenue authority will inform all shippers abroad today that the No CTN no load  policy is rescheduled until October 15, 2018 as earlier indicated.



Thank you



SIGNED



....................



JENNIFER QUEEN



(CHAIRPERSON)



ISAAC ESSUMAN



(SECRETARY)



FREDDY KING DUODU



(P. R. O)



0240549464





Source: Peacefmonline.com/Ghana









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Chinese President Xi Jinping held talks on Saturday with visiting Ghanaian President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, and the two leaders agreed to introduce a new vitality into bilateral relations.



President Akufo-Addo is on a state visit to China. He will also participate in the 2018 Beijing Summit of the China-Africa Cooperation Forum scheduled for 3-4 September.



Noting the long tradition of Sino-Ghanaian friendship, Xi said China has always regarded Ghana as a reliable friend and a good common development partner. Bilateral relations have played a leading role in the development of Sino-African relations.



Both sides should breathe new life into their relationships and enrich them further, make high-level visits more frequent and continue to understand and support each other, Xi said.



Ghana is invited to participate in the construction of the belt and the road and to join the Asian Investment Bank for Infrastructure.



China is ready to create synergy between the two countries' development strategies, expand cooperation in various fields and strengthen interpersonal and cultural exchanges.



Both sides should strengthen communication and coordination on international and regional affairs to better protect the common interests of both countries and developing countries, Xi said.



For his part, Akufo-Addo said that the friendship between Ghana and China, forged by the oldest generations of leaders of both countries, was unbreakable. Ghana voted in favor of the resumption of the seat of the People's Republic of China at the United Nations and the one-China policy.



Akufo-Addo said that Ghana is ready to deepen bilateral relations, to participate actively in the construction of the Belt and its roads and to give new impetus to bilateral cooperation. China, along the path of socialism with Chinese characteristics, plays an important role in peace and development in the world. China offers an important opportunity for stability and revitalization of Africa, he said.



Ghana will always be China's trusted friend in Africa, Akufo-Addo said. After the talks, the two presidents attended the signing of cooperation documents.



Meanwhile, the Chinese police band surprised President Akufo-Addo with a musical treat by playing one of his favourite songs 'Oye' - [God is good].







Source: Xinhua









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The UK Ghana Chamber of Commerce (UKGCC), over the weekend hosted a delegation from the United Kingdom. The 4-day visit was in conjunction with Africa House London, a company aimed at promoting collaboration and encouraging sustainable trade between the UK and Africa.



The 14-member delegation who arrived in Accra are expected to gain on-the-ground insight into investment opportunities in Ghana. The delegation includes the Member of Parliament for the Romford Constituency in Greater London, Mr. Andrew Rosindell among representatives from the medical, infrastructure, transport, agriculture, education, environmental, security and surveillance, sectors in the United Kingdom.



During a session, the Chief Executive Officer of UKGCC, Mr. Tony Burkson, commented that the Chamber takes its role as the premier trade facilitator between Ghana and the United Kingdom very seriously.



He mentioned that in October this year the Chamber will be hosting another delegation of investors and companies from the Finance, Agro-processing, Pharmaceuticals and manufacturing sectors in the UK to Ghana, who will also interact with Ghanaian business officials in those sectors.



Mr. Rosindell who led the delegation stressed that Ghana and the UK have had a strong historical bond, with common values, common culture, common language and now exhibits more commitment in the strengthening of the Commonwealth between the two nations.



The delegation will be here for Seven (7) days and will also spend time in Ghana to discuss partnerships with key stakeholders in both the government and private sectors.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Some 400 prisoners have escaped from a facility near the Libyan capital Tripoli amid deadly violence between militia groups in the city, police say.



"The detainees were able to force open the doors" in order to leave the Ain Zara prison, the local police said.



They added that guards, fearing for their lives, were unable to prevent the breakout following riots at the jail.



Clashes between militias in the city have led Libya's UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency.



The incident on Sunday took place during armed violence between rival factions around the facility, which houses only male inmates.



Many of the prisoners held at the Ain Zara prison in south-east Tripoli were reportedly supporters of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, and had been found guilty of killings during the uprising against his government in 2011.



Separately on Sunday, two people were killed and several others were injured when rockets hit a camp in Libya's capital housing hundreds of displaced people, according to emergency services and witnesses.



Libya's Ministry of Health reports that some 47 people, including civilians, have died in rival militia clashes in Tripoli over the past week, with dozens more injured.



A UN-backed government is nominally in power in the capital, but militias occupy much of the rest of the country.



Why is there violence?



The violence broke out last week when militias from a city to the south of Tripoli attacked southern areas, leading to fighting with local militias that support the internationally recognised government, the Government of National Accord (GNA).



The GNA has described the clashes as "an attempt to derail peaceful political transition" in the country, adding that it "could not remain silent over the attacks on Tripoli and its suburbs, which is a violation of security in the capital and of citizens' safety".



Human Rights Watch has also condemned the violence, adding that at least 18 of the dead were reportedly civilians, among them four children.



Hundreds of migrants trapped by the fighting have been moved to other detention centres, while the city's airport was closed for two days on Friday.



Libya has faced continuing chaos since Nato-backed militia forces, some of them rivals, overthrew long-serving ruler Colonel Gaddafi in October 2011.



What has the international community said?



UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has said the "indiscriminate use of force is a violation of international humanitarian and human rights law" and has urged "all parties to grant humanitarian relief for those in need".



On Saturday, the US, UK, France and Italy called for an immediate end to deadly violence in Libya's capital.



A joint statement said attempts "to weaken the legitimate Libyan authorities and hinder the ongoing political process are not acceptable".



"We are calling on the armed groups to immediately stop all military action and warn those who seek to undermine stability, in Tripoli or elsewhere in Libya, that they will be made accountable for it," the joint statement read.



However successive attempts at a truce have so far failed to stop the fierce fighting between several militias.

Source: BBC









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The annual defense white papers Japan has released in recent years have delivered the same message: the security situation in the neighborhood is severe. They have come up with the same suggestion, too: Japan's defense capabilities must be increased.

The primary threats to Japan in these papers are the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, China and,sometimes, Russia.

Various challenges and destabilizing factors become more "tangible" and "acute", says this year's report that was approved by the Japanese Cabinet on Tuesday. The white paper recommends that necessary and sufficient defense capabilities be developed "qualitatively" and "quantitatively". Actually, Japan's defense budget has increased every year since Shinzo Abe began his second stint as prime minister in late 2012.

The Abe administration has changed Japan's postwar defense posture, by ordering two revisions to the National Defense Program Guidelines, revising the Japan-US Guidelines for Cooperative Defense, enacting legislation to expand the scope of Japan's security options and clear the path for Japan's exercise of collective self-defense, as well as pledging to amend Article 9 of the Constitution to codify the Self-Defense Forces' status and acquiring advanced military equipment.

Japan is set to update the NDPG and Mid-Term Defense Plan this year. The NDPG provides the long-term direction for the country's defense posture based on security assessments, and the MTDP offers five-year acquisition designs to meet those requirements. Discussions on how to revise the two documents are ongoing.

But the ruling Liberal Democratic Party has pitched its proposals for new NDPG and MTDP. Its "cross-domain defense concept" calls for a massive defense buildup while carrying forward existing themes such as seamless response to "gray zone" contingencies, improving joint interoperability and strengthening the Japan-US alliance.

The LDP also wants to strengthen Japan's presence in space and cybertechnology. And Japan's Ministry of Defense is considering to establish a new command center for cyberspace and outer space, deemed the "fourth and fifth battlefields" after land, sea and air. The two new realms are expected to be a theme in the updated NDPG.

As for the defense budget, the LDP proposed on May 25 the scrapping of the cap of 1 percent of GDP for defense spending, which has been in place since the Miki Takeo administration in 1976. Instead, it wants a 2 percent GDP target, the same as that for NATO's European member states.

So the new MTDP may not follow Japan's informal limit on defense spending, unveiling a grander defense strategy.

Besides, Japan's National Security Council plans to lead the defense buildup. In other words, the Prime Minister's Office is expected to have a bigger say in the choice and acquisition of defense equipment, which were previously handled by the Self-Defense Forces.

The NSC, established in December 2013, formulates Japan's key security policies, with its permanent secretariat set up in the Cabinet Secretariat. Chaired by the prime minister and attended by the defense minister, foreign minister and the chief Cabinet secretary, the NSC discusses mid- to long-term security policies.

The NSC is expected to introduce the new decision-making mechanism in the next five-year MTDP which starts in fiscal 2019. Many say that by taking over these functions, the council will help the government to take into consideration the bigger picture of Japan's security situation.

On Jan 4, Abe said at a news conference that his administration will "strive to strengthen our defenses, not just as an extension of existing (practices) but in a way that's truly necessary to protect the citizens". Thus he set the tone for the upcoming NDPG and MTDP, although it is unclear what ideas will finally make it to the two documents.

But what is clear is that they will reset Japan's security policy direction, moving the country further away from the postwar defense-only strategy.

The author is China Daily Tokyo bureau chief.
In a one-of-a-kind collaboration between Israeli Defence Force (IDF) and the Ghana Armed Forces (GAF), a team of seven officers from the IDF is scheduled to arrive in Ghana to hold a three-day Counter-Terrorism Training to the Ghana Armed Forces 64 Regiment Special Unit.



This special collaboration between the IDF and GAF is led by the Israeli and Ghanaian Chiefs of Defence Staff and Ministers of Defence.



The Counter-Terrorism Training is scheduled to take place at the Ghana Armed Forces Asutsuare Military Base from Monday, 3 to Wednesday 5 September 2018.



About 25 military commanders are expected to benefit from the training, which will include shooting ranges, Krav maga (an Israeli self-defence and fighting system) and skills building for dealing with hostage situation.



The trainers are high-ranked officers from different units and field missions with large expertise in counter-terrorism tactics. A final exercise and closing ceremony will be held on Wednesday, 5 September at the Asutusare Military Base for senior officials, in the presence of the Chief of Defence Staff.



This training is the second in its nature being conducted by the IDF in the world and the first ever in Africa.



Military Relations between Ghana and Israel dates back to 1959 when the IDF collaborated with GAF to build GAF's, Air Force.



The relations where halted in 1964, however, they were renewed with the reopening of IDFs Military Attache Office to Africa in 2017.



The current training is led from the Ghanaian side by Director General, Air Commodore Wayoe and Deputy Director, Col. Ako Adjei and from the Israeli side by IDF Military Attache Col. (Res) Aviezer Segal and Director of Africa Division at the Israeli Ministry of Defence (SIBAT), Lt. Col. (Rtd.) Asaf Dvir. In the last year, three personnel from GAF have attended various training and seminars in the International Relations and Counter-Terrorism Units of the IDF.



A total of 871 Ghanaian soldiers have served in the UN Peacekeeping Forces in the North of Israel, in charge of the surveillance of the military relations with Lebanon (UNIFIL).



Currently, the Head of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in the North of Israel, in charge of the surveillance of the military relations with Sirya is a Ghanaian Officer, accompanied by a 5-member staff of Ghanaian soldiers.

This special collaboration between the IDF and GAF is led by the Israeli and Ghanaian Chiefs of Defence Staff and Ministers of Defence.



The Counter-Terrorism Training is scheduled to take place at the Ghana Armed Forces Asutsuare Military Base from Monday, 3 to Wednesday 5 September 2018.



About 25 military commanders are expected to benefit from the training, which will include shooting ranges, Krav maga (an Israeli self-defence and fighting system) and skills building for dealing with hostage situation.



The trainers are high-ranked officers from different units and field missions with large expertise in counter-terrorism tactics. A final exercise and closing ceremony will be held on Wednesday, 5 September at the Asutusare Military Base for senior officials, in the presence of the Chief of Defence Staff.



This training is the second in its nature being conducted by the IDF in the world and the first ever in Africa.



Military Relations between Ghana and Israel dates back to 1959 when the IDF collaborated with GAF to build GAF's, Air Force.



The relations where halted in 1964, however, they were renewed with the reopening of IDFs Military Attache Office to Africa in 2017.



The current training is led from the Ghanaian side by Director General, Air Commodore Wayoe and Deputy Director, Col. Ako Adjei and from the Israeli side by IDF Military Attache Col. (Res) Aviezer Segal and Director of Africa Division at the Israeli Ministry of Defence (SIBAT), Lt. Col. (Rtd.) Asaf Dvir. In the last year, three personnel from GAF have attended various training and seminars in the International Relations and Counter-Terrorism Units of the IDF.



A total of 871 Ghanaian soldiers have served in the UN Peacekeeping Forces in the North of Israel, in charge of the surveillance of the military relations with Lebanon (UNIFIL).



Currently, the Head of the UN Peacekeeping Mission in the North of Israel, in charge of the surveillance of the military relations with Sirya is a Ghanaian Officer, accompanied by a 5-member staff of Ghanaian soldiers.

Source: myjoyonline.com









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The new tax measures introduced by government in July this year is taking a toll on the salaries of Members of Parliament.



As part of measures to raise more revenue to meet its revenue target for the 2018 fiscal year, government among other things revealed it will introduce a new tax known as the high net worth income tax.



In line with the new tax, government established that it will charge 35 percent on incomes that are over GHC 10,000.



Despite concerns by some stakeholders including the Trades Union Congress, the directive has taken effect, and Members of Parliament whose salaries are currently pegged at eleven thousand Cedis are complaining.



Member of Parliament for Kumbungu, Ras Mubarak, expressed his misgivings about the development, saying Our MPs are earning GHC 2,000 less than what they previously earned before the coming into effect of the 35% income tax on people who earn more 10,000. MPs are earning more than GHC10,000. The take-home of MPs was a little over GHC 11,000 . With the coming into effect of the 35% new income tax, MPs are earning around 9,000 plus. For many of us that is a huge dip because it is an assault on our disposable income. Imagine what 2,000 can do in a rural constituencyIt is an assault and an attack on the middle class and it will impoverish more people. 



It would be recalled that the Finance Minister also announced a 3.5% tax on importation of luxury vehicles with engine capacities of 3.0 liters and above.



He however did not confirm the percentage to be charged.



In line with the new tax, the government was expected to charge 35 percent on incomes that are over GHC 10,000.

Source: citinewsroom.com









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The Member of Parliament for Assin Central, Kennedy Agyepong has been sued by a mining company for defamation.



Mr. Agyepong, according to the suit made some defamatory comments about C &G Aleska Company Limited, a mining company in the Western Region, on an Accra-based Net 2 TV station owned by the lawmaker.



According to the statement presented to the court by C &G Aleska Company Limited, Mr Agyepong accused them of destroying and degrading farmlands.



C &G Aleska Company Limited maintains the utterances by the Assin Central lawmaker has gravely injured their business and reputation is, therefore, demanding Ghc20,000,000 for general damages for slander spoken and published by Mr. Agyapong.









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Five heavyweights of the biggest opposition party, the National Democratic Congress (NDC), were given the shocks of their lives last Saturday when they were defeated in their quest to become regional chairmen of the party in their respective regions.



They are the former Transport Minister, Ms Aku Dzifa Ativor, who failed in her bid to lead the NDC in the Volta Region; the incumbent Eastern Regional Chairman, Mr Bismark Tawiah Boateng, who was also booted out as regional chairman; a former Central Regional Minister, Mr Aquinas Tawiah Quansah, who was floored in the Central Regional polls and Mr Joseph Yammin, who was also defeated in the Ashanti Regional delegates elections.



In the Western Region, incumbent Michael Aidooo aka Big Aidoo was also lost his position chairman.



The Greater Accra Regional Chairman Mr Joseph Kobina Ade Coker, however, retained his position after a closely contested elections.



Dzifa Ativor fails bid



Ms Attivor was kicked to the curb by delegates in the NDC stronghold after the partys just ended regional elections.



She was left to lick her wounds after she lost the chairman position to the incumbent, John Kwadwo Gyapong, in a fairly contested polls.



The former transport minister failed to get the maximum number of votes from the partys World Bank to defeat the incumbent chairman Mr Gyapong.



She was able to garner 371 votes while Mr Gyapong won with 491 votes.



Delegates who voted in the elections rejected Ms Ativor who had been tipped to overthrow the incumbent chairman.



A total of 54 persons filed their papers to contest various regional executive positions of the NDC in the region.



Prior to the elections, Madam Attivor, who is also the chair of the Women Working Committee of the party, noted that the party had come of age to have women playing commanding roles at the helm of affairs, stressing that men have led this party since its inception but I believe the time has come for women to take charge and lead the NDC into the future.



She thus appealed to the party delegates to support her to make history, saying she had the clout to unite and give hope to the partys branches, connect the party back to the cadres, get women to be part of the new NDC, attract first-time voters into the NDC, as well as build a strong partnership with the media in the region.



Tawiah Boateng in painful defeat



In the Eastern Region, the incumbent Eastern Regional Chairman, Mr Boateng, was defeated by his long-term political rival, John Owusu Amankrah, popularly known as Jowak, a businessman.



Mr Amankrah polled 379 votes as against the 281 votes secured by Mr Boateng to avenge a painful defeat he suffered in the hands of Mr Boateng in 2014.



The Eastern regional NDC election recorded several dramatic incidents before and during the voting process, which delayed the election.



For instance, delegates initially boycotted the event in demand of their transportation fares before they took part in the exercise.



Also, the exercise suffered power outage which was interpreted to be an alleged orchestrated attempt to manipulate the polls, a situation which caused a chaotic scene and led to the suspension of the election for a while. Voting ended around 1:30 a.m. and declaration was done around 3:40 a.m. yesterday.



Aquinas floored



A former Central Regional Minister, Mr Ebenezer Kojo Tei Addo, won the central regional chairman contest of the NDC.



The veteran politician and lawyer polled 299 votes to beat his closest contender, Mr Kakra Yalley, who polled 256 votes.



Another former Central Regional Minister, under the Mahama administration, Mr Quansah, who was widely tipped to win the election, came third in the three-man contest, polling 157 votes despite the huge support he allegedly enjoyed from the outgoing chairman, Mr Bernard Allotey Jacobs, popularly referred to as Educated Fisherman.



Fierce race in Ashanti



The race for the chairmanship was fierce in the Ashanti Region. It saw Mr Augustus Andrew Nana Kwasi win the seat with 699 votes, while Mr Yammin garnered 611 votes.



The former Deputy Ashanti Regional Minister, Mr Yammin, was rejected in his attempt to lead the NDC as chairman in the Ashanti Region.



Yammin, who was also a former Ashanti Regional Secretary of the party, lost by 88 votes as against Nana Akwasis 699 votes on Saturday at the Twebeboah Kodua Senior High School at Kumawu where the Ashanti Regional NDC delegates held their conference.



When Yammin and a crowd of 'macho men' arrived, the gates to the hall had been locked but they bulldozed their way into the assembly hall where the election was taking place.



The aspiring chairman was seen making a forceful entry into the hall when police personnel tried to stop him at the entrance. The General Secretary of the NDC, Johnson Asiedu Nketia, who was there to observe proceedings asked that the door to the hall be closed to allow the delegates to listen to his remarks.



Mr Yammins forceful entry drew disapproval from some of the delegates and got the NDC members hooting and making fun of him.



In explaining what happened after the dust had settled, Mr Asiedu Nketia said the aspiring chairman forcefully entered the hall because he thought it was a plan to lock him out.



He explained further that Yammins action was because he was absent when the order to lock the door for less distraction was made.



He apologised on behalf of Mr Yammin for the seeming confusion.



About 1500 delegates of the NDC in the Ashanti Region voted to elect the new regional executives.

Shocking defeat in W/R



A former NDC Western Regional Chairman, Nana Kojo Toku, defeated Mr Aidoo, the incumbent, to recapture the seat he once held.



Nana Toku lost the chairmans seat to Mr Aidoo on Wednesday, November 12, 2014 and subsequently collapsed out of shock.



After four years, Nana Toku has returned to recapture the seat from the one who nearly cost him his life.



Mr Aidoo, after snatching the seat from Nana Toku in November 2014, pledged to unite the party and increase its parliamentary seats from the then 18.



While some analysts opined that Mr Aidoo failed to unite the party because deep cracks had developed after the Bogoso elections, others believe his incompetence led to the partys loss of about seven parliamentary seats in the 2016 general election.



Mr Aidoo in November 2014 won 133 out of 295 votes, while Nana Toku got 126.



During the partys regional election last Saturday, Nana Toku won by 469 of the total votes, while Mr Aidoo lost after securing 346 votes, a 123 vote difference compared to the seven votes Mr Aidoo used to defeat Nana Toku in 2014.



It is believed that because Nana Tokus era brought the NDC to power in 2008 and 2012, his return will bring back the party from opposition to power come the 2020 general election.



Ade Coker retains post



Meanwhile, in the Greater Accra Region, the incumbent Chairman, Mr Ade Coker, has retained his position following a closely contested election.



Going into the polls as the favourite, many predicted a landslide victory for Mr Ade Coker.



After the elections, however, the Greater Accra regional chairman beat his closest compatriot by 26 votes.



Although it was a sweet victory, pundits will question what might have gone wrong to deny Chairman Ade Coker a landslide victory and what that could mean for the affairs of the party in the capital.



His competitors, Daniel Amartey, Yahya Kundow and Nii Ashie-Moore polled 293, 113 and 283, respectively.



Over 1,000 delegates converged on the Central Cafeteria of the University of Ghana to elect the regional officers who would steer the affairs of the party in the 2020 general election.

Source: Daily Graphic









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President Nana Akufo-Addo has said the Chinese government is fully backing his administrations uncompromising stance towards illegal mining.



Speaking at a meeting with the Ghanaian community in China as part of his visit to that country, President Akufo-Addo said he had been able to hold frank discussions with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the matter.



He [Xi Jinping] himself was the first to recognize that Ghanaian laws have every right to deal with people who are involved in illegal activities.I was very happy about the manner in which he [Xi Jinping] responded and the assurance that he gave that those of his compatriots who were engaged in this illegal mining activities will not find any support in this government.



Chinese nationals are known to be one of the main culprits in illegal mining in Ghana.



Scores of them have been arrested in the last 18 months after the government launched a significantly more intense campaign against illegal mining than in previous years.



Despite scores of Chinese being arrested for illegal mining, President Akufo-Addo assured that Chinese nationals were not being stereotyped.



We are not acting against Chinese. There is no anti-Chinese policy in Ghana. But we do have a quarrel with those who will get involved in this illegal mining.



Tensions over reportage



In April 2017, the Chinese mission in Ghana expressed its displeasure with the way Ghana was dealing with the issue of illegal mining.



It also criticized the media for targeting China in their reportage on the matter.



The mission in a letter addressed to John Peter Amewu, Ghanas Minister for Lands and Natural Resources, said if nothing changes about the nature of campaigns against illegal mining in the country, bilateral relations between Ghana and China would be affected.



There are a number of distorted or biased reports and stories on Chinese people, especially some reports and cartoons that are defaming Chinese leaders and senior officials. The Chinese side is very concerned about this unhealthy tendency. We hope that the Ghanaian government will pay due attention to this situation, take the necessary action to stop such things from happening again and guide the media to give an objective coverage on the illegal mining issue so as to create a good environment for further development of our bilateral exchanges and cooperation, the letter said.

Source: citinewsroom.com









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It has been six editions, over 30 music greats, thousands of audiences thrilled, African Legends Night is back with a surprise for the love for music.



After giving audience an outstanding experience of the music show last year, African Legends Night which featured Congolese soukous musician Kanda Bongo Man, Ghanas finest Abrantie Amakye Dede and the lover man Charles Kojo Fosu aka Daddy Lumba served patrons with a variety of good music as food for the soul.



To give more, this years show promises to move a notch higher. Whats new? We are bringing the legends home, settling down a long-held battle of who is who. Ghanaians should be ready to experience the many music styles from traditional music to Highlife which many believe gave birth to new music genres such Hip Life, Afro-Pop and Dancehall in Ghana. All theses genres will be on the table of music for the soul to consume.



For many years, Highlife was the preferred music genre because it easily connects us to our culture and makes us unique in the world of music. Audience should not be surprised if some battle lines are settled among some legends when they take on the same stage.



Our music has come a long way and it is in the right order to celebrate. It is in this regard that African Legends Night event was put together to celebrate music legends that have contributed to the industry in Ghana and in Africa as a whole.



This years African Legends Night is special and you cant afford to miss. One can say, after the Ghana 60 years on edition which put the icing on the cake and cemented African Legends Night as arguably the best music show in Ghana, it is just proper to raise the bar further.



"This year has something new and special. We are bringing the legends home. We want Ghanaians to own it, said Ernest Boateng, Chief Executive Officer of Global Media Alliance (GMA), organisers of the event.



Two of our great Ghanaian legends that we have never seen on the same stage for many years will perform. Their fans have been asking for it and we want to give it to them on the platform of African Legends Night where we create a platform for our music legends and to have close interactions with their fans," Mr Boateng added.



There is never a dull moment at this event; some performances have been known to thrill music fans beyond measure. It has been also hailed by industry players as "simply the finest" music event. Every year, African Legends Night entertains over 1,000s of fans with soothing, exciting, danceable African tunes.







African Legends Night has played host to great music icons from Ghana as well as other African nations and has over years carved an event niche catered to people who have soft spot for local African music.







Past editions have included headliners; Ivorian Freddy Meiway, South Africas Yvonne Chaka Chaka. Hugh Masekela, Nigeria's Femi Kuti, Kanda Bongo Man from DR Congo, George Darko, Amakye Dede, Ben Brako, Ghanaian ace Saxophonist Steve Bedi, Wiyaala and many others.







Event delivery has always been on point with no hitches and our music legends delivering their danceable tunes with patrons asking for more even when the show ends.

Source: Peacefmonline.com









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Archbishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams, the Presiding Archbishop and General Overseer of the Christian Action Faith Ministries (CAFM) has broken his long silence on the circumstances leading to his divorce.



He said, he married consciously but he did not know anything about the making up of marriage.



Archbishop Duncan-Williams stated that at age 24, he was asked to marry in other not to fall into the trap of sin.



The man of God got married to Rosa Whitaker some nine years ago after he divorced his previous wife, Mama Francisca after 26 years.



Rosa Whitaker is described as a woman with a solid educational background. She is the president and CEO of The Whitaker Group (TWG) and is recognisedas a leading expert on African trade, investment and business.



However, speaking at the International Youth Empowerment Summit in Accra, the CAFM Founder indicated that marriage is not for boys because boys do not marry and that he was a boy in his first marriage.



Buttressing his stance with a scripture, the man of God said: for this reason, a man shall live his father and the mother and joined his wife, not a boy shall leave the father and mother and join his girl, he stressed.



He was emphatic that a mature man is a man who truly qualifies to be called a married man, insisting that a married man is a mature man and a mature man is one who is well developed mentally, economically, spiritually, physically, psychologically and emotionally strong.



According to the CAFM General Overseer, a man is truly the one who understands and takes responsibilities, takes full charge and control them without any external power while a mature man is always focused and decisive.



He contended that men marry for a tangible purpose but boys and most of young men of today marry because of sexual satisfaction and lust of human flesh.



Archbishop DuncanWilliams noted that for one to be fully matured in marriage, it does not matter his or her success in life, level of education, giftings, talents, anointed, abilities and capabilities.

Source: adomonline.com









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Commander Australian Fleet Rear Admiral Jonathan Dallas Mead delivers an opening speech during the opening ceremony of the multinational naval exercise Kakadu-2018 aboard the HMAS Canberra (L02), the lead ship of the Canberra-class landing helicopter dock (LHD) in service with the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), on the afternoon of August 31.

By Xu Guang and Yi Hongji

DARWIN, Sept. 3 (ChinaMil) -- The opening ceremony of the multinational naval exercise Kakadu-2018 was held aboard the HMAS Canberra (L02), the lead ship of the Canberra-class landing helicopter dock (LHD) in service with the Royal Australian Navy (RAN), on the afternoon of August 31. The HMAS Canberra was decorated with flags and welcomed the arrival of the participating countries naval troops with the highest naval etiquette.

More than 150 people, including personnel of the Chinese guided-missile frigate Huangshan (Hull 570) and representatives of other participating parties, as well as Australian government officials, attended the opening ceremony.

Government officials of Darwin introduced some local information and traditional culture to the attendees and conducted traditional blessing rituals according to the local customs. Subsequently, Commander Australian Fleet Rear Admiral Jonathan Dallas Mead delivered an opening speech.

Rear Admiral Mead said in an interview that China, Pakistan and other countries were here for the first time, which makes the Kakadu exercise more meaningful, enriching the exercise purpose of self-confidence, cooperation and communication.

After the opening ceremony, the Australian side held an official reception in the hangar of the HMAS Canberra. The representatives of the Chinese naval officers and soldiers actively engaged in exchanges and interactions with other participating countries naval troops and exchanged views on issues of common concern.

It is reported that the exercise will be held for 15 days and the first section is harbor phase held from August 31 to September 5.This phase includes the opening ceremony and introduction of the exercise, the fleet commanders conference, the planning coordination meeting, the Kakadu Cupsports meeting and so on.
BUSIA  Police in Kenya has seized bags of contraband sugar valued at approx KSh1.5 million (UShs563m).

The illegal goods which were packed in bags are suspected to have been smuggled into Kenya from Uganda through the porous border, the Daily Nation reported Monday.

Wambua Katithi, Busia County Commander said 68 bags of the sweetener were found at a warehouse at Bulanda on the outskirts of Busia while 20 others were confiscated in Butula.

We have arrested one suspect in Bumala who was transporting 20 bags of sugar in a Probox to an unknown destination. In total, we have impounded 88 bags each weighing 50kgs, Mr Katithi said.

We have impounded three Probox cars whose owners are still on the run. Other goods we have impounded include Waragi brand and other illicit liquor from Uganda.

Mr Katithi warned that the war against contraband goods would continue, adding that police had already changed tact to deal with lawbreakers.

The said sugar is also believed to be part of the imported sugar from Brazil.

The seizure comes days after furious President Yoweri Museveni ordered Prime Minister, Dr Ruhakana Rugunda to immediately close a sugar bond containing sugar imported from Brazil.

Museveni said that as a result of Brazilian sugar hitting the Kampala market, it has left the neighbouring countries sceptical of Ugandas capacity to supply the East African region with enough sugar, given the fact that the country has allowed a Sugar Bond in her territory.

He said that the regional members have been thrown into doubt whether the sugar coming from Uganda is really Ugandan or is part of the so-called Bond Sugar imported from foreign sources.

More importantly, I now direct that working with the Attorney General this Sugar Bond should be immediately closed, never to be reopened again. Who is operating this Sugar Bond in any case? I really want to know who they are and who allowed them?

Musevenis letter came at a time when Kenya and Uganda were hit by reports that poisonous sugar had hit their markets. The report originated from Kenya and consequently, the government banned the importation of sugar outside the East African region.

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A submarine surfaces. Photo: 81.cn

The People's Liberation Army (PLA) Navy conducted a submarine rescue drill in the East China Sea on Saturday, with military experts on Monday calling it a worldwide challenge.

The drill involved frigates, submarines, rescue vessels and anti-submarine aircraft from multiple PLA Navy forces, the Xinhua News Agency reported on Sunday.

"Submarine rescue work is a worldwide challenge with high risks," Song Zhongping, a military expert and TV commentator, told the Global Times on Monday.

The drill shows that China understands its importance, and is making efforts to ensure its support to submarines in need, Song said.

The drill simulated malfunctions in a submarine, including the loss of communications with its headquarters.

Rescue forces arrived at the scene as fast as possible and began searching by using various air and sea methods, Xinhua reported.

It is not an easy task to find the exact location of a stranded submarine, Song said, adding that oxygen is limited on a submarine, and the pressure caused by the weight of sea water may also cause problems to the vessel at any time.

The rescue equipment must dock with the submarine to rescue its crew, Song said, noting that the process is very risky and difficult.

The submarine's crew also practiced survival skills, Xinhua reported, adding that the drill fully tested China's submarine rescue mechanism.

China can rescue Chinese and foreign submarines, Song noted.
BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, September 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

Sunstar is proud to announce the launch of Oral Cancer: Prevention and patient management, an FDI World Dental Federation chairside guide for oral health professionals. The guide is supported by Sunstar and aims to mitigate the effects of oral cancer by promoting comprehensive oral cancer screenings as an integral part of routine dental check-ups. It highlights the most common risk factors for oral cancer and underlines the importance of early diagnosis and treatment by providing practical solutions for the care pathway.

The guide was released today at the FDI World Dental Congress in Buenos Aires, Argentina. "FDI recognizes that oral health professionals play an essential role in combatting oral cancer," said Dr Kathryn Kell, FDI President. "Oral cancer is among the 10 most common cancers worldwide, but oral health professionals can help diminish its effects through early detection and swift treatment action."

The chairside guide provides oral health professionals with concise, yet comprehensive, information about oral cancer prevention, risk factors and management, and also helps them navigate the clinical examination and diagnosis through a decision tree. It focuses on the most common sites of oral cancer: the tongue, the insides of the cheeks, and the floor of the mouth.

"At Sunstar, we constantly investigate the power of a holistic approach to health to prevent and treat life-threatening conditions as early as possible. This chairside guide is a great example of a tool that supports health professionals in their daily patient screenings. Dental check-ups can be the perfect setting for early detection of several diseases, providing a central prevention role to dental professionals," said Dr Marzia Massignani, Sr Manager of Scientific Affairs at Sunstar.

Survival rates for oral cancer can be improved through early detection. Therefore, it is essential that oral health professionals such as dentists, dental hygienists, dental therapists and oral health therapists understand the importance of conducting a thorough oral screening examination for malignant and potentially malignant lesions as part of their routine clinical assessments, even in younger populations considered at lower risk for oral cancer. The chairside guide encourages and facilitates the integration of this examination into routine dental check-ups.

"About 500,000 new cases of oral and oropharyngeal cancers are diagnosed annually, three-quarters of which occur in the developing world," said Dr Ihsane Ben Yahya, FDI Council member and oral cancer expert. "FDI is committed to reducing the oral disease burden and improving oral health outcomes worldwide. By designing an informative tool to prevent,promptly detect and treat oral cancer, we act in line with our mission to lead the world to optimal oral health."

Oral Cancer: Prevention and patient management is available to consult and download on the Sunstar GUM website, and print copies in English and Spanish will be distributed at the FDI World Dental Congress at the Sunstar booth in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

About Sunstar

With an eye to the future, Sunstar's vision is to pioneer a new era of innovation, champion new invigorating partnerships, and speak to the heart of a new generation of global consumers. We strive to help people everywhere achieve better health and enhance their quality-of-life through our products and services. Based on our corporate motto "Always strive to help people everywhere achieve better health and enhance their quality-of-life", the Sunstar Group will continue to be attentive and responsive to the varied needs and expectations of our global consumers. http://www.sunstar.com/company/philosophy

About FDI World Dental Federation

FDI World Dental Federation is an international, membership-based organization that serves as the main representative body for more than 1 million dentists worldwide, active in some 200 National Dental Associations (NDAs) and specialist groups in close to 130 countries. FDI has a bold vision: to lead the world to optimal oral health. Speaking as the unified voice of dentistry, we collaborate closely with our members, oral health experts, allied health professionals, and industry partners alike to achieve this vision together. http://www.fdiworlddental.org; http://www.facebook.com/FDIWorldDentalFederation; http://www.twitter.com/fdiworlddental

SOURCE Sunstar
ABC/Image Group LA This Labor Day, Nashville's Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum happens to be honoring two of its best waiters in its American Currents exhibit. You see, before Brothers Osborne hit it big, they waited tables and worked in catering at the Hall.

"There was a catering department here that TJ worked in," John Osborne explains, "and that restaurant right there, I worked there for four-and-a-half years."

"The intention was to work there for a few months until my career took off, and that took a lot longer than expected," he laughs. "And that's just what we did: waited tables to make ends meet. And I would go out on Broadway and play gigs at night, come back here hungover and wait tables. And I did that five days a week..."

Last March at the opening of the American Currents: The Music of 2017 exhibit -- which includes a suede jacket and an electric guitar from Brothers -- TJ Osborne had a bit of a flashback.

"I worked banquets. I would be working this event, actually," TJ pointed out. "These very things. I'd come in and set up all of this amazing, like, vegetables and fruits and drinks. And no one would use any of it. And then I'd have to pack all of it right back up that night."

"So it's actually pretty amazing to me..." he continued. "And it's funny to walk in here now and see some familiar faces."

This weekend, TJ and John play tour mate Dierks Bentley's Seven Peaks Festival in Buena Vista, Colorado. They're also featured on his new single, "Burning Man."

Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Chinese and Nigerien peacekeepers evacuate an injured Nigerien peacekeeper with a stretcher during the joint defense drill in Menaka, Mali, on August 29, 2018. (Photo by Liu Xiaoshuai)

MENAKA, MALI, Sept. 3 (ChinaMil) -- To address the grim security situation in Mali's Menaka region, a contingent in Menaka assigned to the 6th Chinese peacekeeping engineer detachment to Mali carried out a joint defense drill with the Nigerien peacekeeping infantry battalion on Aug. 29, in a bid to jointly enhance the capabilities to deal with emergencies. Menaka has been on an "Orange Alert", a high-risk level, since the deployment of the Chinese peacekeeping contingent in early July this year. As of the end of August, there have been 21 terrorist attacks with more than 90 casualties in the area.

The joint defense drill was conducted against the backdrop of a terrorist attack on the UN camp.

During the drill, the Chinese contingent immediately judged the situation together with Nigerien peacekeepers after receiving a warning signal from the sentry post. The Chinese and Nigerien quick-response teams dispatched infantry fighting vehicles to support. The Chinese medical team rushed to the scene to conduct forward first aid and medical evacuation to the injured. In the meantime, the Nigerien peacekeeping infantry dispatched armored vehicles to the combat readiness areas of the UN camp for support.

Wang Yong, deputy head of the Chinese contingent, said: "In this joint drill, the Chinese and Nigerien peacekeeping forces successfully handled the sudden 'hostile situation' through intelligence sharing and joint operations. They also learned from each other's operational concepts. The emergency response capabilities of Chinese peacekeepers have been further strengthened."
"The North once operated 10 such camps," the source added. "But it seems to have closed four near the Chinese border around 1990, when international human rights organizations made an issue of its prison camps and called for a fact-finding mission."

North Korea has six concentration camps for political prisoners with about 154,000 inmates, a South Korean government source said Tuesday. The number of inmates is a little smaller than the 200,000 estimated by the National Human Rights Commission of Korea in January last year.

The six camps are No. 14 camp in Kaechon and No. 18 camp in Pukchang, South Pyongan Province; No. 15 camp in Yodok, South Hamgyong Province; and No. 16 camp in Hwasong, No. 22 camp in Hoeryong, and No. 25 camp in Chongjin, North Hamgyong Province.

There are two kinds of political prison camps: permanent camps where inmates are locked up their entire life, and a re-education camp where they can be released after a long stint of forced labor.

No. 15 camp in Yodok is the only re-education camp. In the others, the prisoners are interned with three generations of their family. Forced labor, torture and violence are routine there.

The North denies the existence of the camps, but there is increasing awareness in the international community, the source said.
Russian Forex Jurisdiction Gains Strength

After the summer break, investors are going back to business, refreshed and ready to go productive. Most of them see September as the beginning of a new life cycle in their career. its not accidental that an unprecedented event is planned by Alpari Forex. The Alpari office located in Saint Petersburg, Russia, will welcome Evgeniy Masharov, who is in charge of the Association of Forex Dealers. He is visiting Alpari Forex for the first time and planning to participate in a meeting with some of the Forex traders and investors registered in the Russian FX jurisdiction.

The participants are expected to discuss the most urgent problems existing in the jurisdiction as well as its prospects and ways of improvement as a part of the global FX industry. It's not accidental that the meeting will take place in Saint Petersburg. The thing is that the Russian FX segment of the international FX market has been booming over the recent years. it has also change for the better quite a lot, including many legal changes making the segment more secure and regulated. Still, there is a lot to solve to make the market even better.

This is what the participants are planning to discuss. By the way, Director General of Alpari Forex Guzel Mirzeeva will also attend the meeting. During a preliminary interview, she answered traders questions, mostly related to the market mechanisms and product specifications offered by the company.

These are some of the questions:

Question: What's new in the Russian Forex jurisdiction?

Guzel Mirzeeva (GM):

These days, the Russian Forex industry keeps on developing confidently. 8 Forex dealers licensed by the Central Bank of the Russian Federation have still been members of a self-regulated organization called the Association of Forex Dealers. Just 4 learning centers working with the licensed and regulated FX dealers have been registered as accredited companies and therefore have the right to provide FX education services. The learning center by Alpari was the first one to be licensed (license 001). The corresponding licensing was made by the Association of Forex Dealers.

Question: Is your learning center already operating?

GM: Yes, indeed. Our clients have been getting comprehensive educational support ever since the opening. On top of that, in late August, the Alpari learning center invited Forex instructors from 20 cities to assess and certify them. We always require high standards in terms of the quality of education, the instructors' skills and their methods.

Question: What problems exist in the Russian FX industry?

GM: Today, on of the main issue on the agenda has to do with simplified user identification by licensed Russian FX dealers. It's been actively discussed by the market participants. The corresponding draft bill has already been introduced to the Russian legislators. By the way, in the neighboring Republic of Belarus, this question has recently been resolved. Apart from visiting the company's office personally, now FX traders have the opportunity to get verified online without a personal visit. Apart from that, Alpari Eurasia is licensed by the National Bank of the Republic of Belarus. It successfully lunched an online project together with BPS-Sberbank to let the clients get easily verified for Alpari Eurasia by visiting any BPS-Sberbank office with their passports. we hope that this experience with be passed on to the Russian segment. Anyways, the Russian FX jurisdiction is getting more and more popular with international traders and investors. It has been moving on and forward towards high international standards while making it difficult for unfair companies to operate in the industry.

Question: How did Alpari contribute to making the Russian FX jurisdiction more popular?

GM: To my mind, it has contributed a lot. From day one, Alpari Forex has been busy promoting the Russian FX jurisdiction among local and international traders and investors. Since 2017, the company has held over 90 free events in more than 50 Russian cities.

Question: What has the industry been focused on right now?

GM: For us, it's important to sustain the dialog with the client. Basically, that's why we are happy to hold another major event on September 13th in Saint Petersburg. It's extremely important for the entire Association of Forex Dealers to get timely feedback of high quality from their clients as well as some other traders and investors operating in the Russian FX market. It's essential to learn their opinion on the new legislative initiatives, as well as on the questions related to client rights, market issues and perspectives.

Question: Amid trade and currency wars, what would you recommend to people in terms of the assets to secure their savings? What's likely to happen to the Russian Ruble exchange rate?

GM: I would recommend against selling out the Russian Ruble in panic. I strongly belive that a good investment portfolio should be well balanced and diversified with various currencies. As for the Ruble, any downtrend is followed by a period of at least partial recovery.

You are free to discuss this article here: forum for traders and investors
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British Prime Minister Theresa May said she would not compromise with Brussels over her plans for Brexit as a media report said rivals in her party were set to publish their own proposal calling for a cleaner break with the European Union.

With under two months before Britain and the EU want to agree a deal to end over 40 years of union, May is struggling to sell what she calls her business-friendly Brexit to her own party and across a divided country.

The EU has tentatively welcomed what has become known as the Chequers plan, which is designed to protect cross-border trade, but difficult negotiations lie ahead. "I will not be pushed into accepting compromises on the Chequers proposals that are not in our national interest," May wrote in the Sunday Telegraph newspaper.

"The coming months will be critical in shaping the future of our country and I am clear about my mission."

May also said she would not hold a second referendum on Britain's EU membership, reiterating a long-held position in an attempt to counter increasingly vocal campaigning for another public vote on the terms of the divorce.

"To ask the question all over again would be a gross betrayal of our democracy," May said.


Investigation into alleged organizer of Russian penitentiary officials murder completed

 Fotolia/ Africa Studio

12:59 03/09/2018

ST. PETERSBURG, September 3 (RAPSI, Mikhail Telekhov)  Investigation into ex-deputy chief of the Federal Penitentiary Services (FSIN) St. Petersburg and Leningrad Region directorate Sergey Moiseyenko charged with organizing the murder of his subordinate, Colonel Nikolay Chernov, has been completed, the Investigative Committee has told RAPSI.

One more defendant in the case is Igor Zakharov, who stands charged with ammunition trafficking. According to investigators, Zakharov has supplied a pistol for committing the murder. The case has been forwarded to prosecutors for indictment approval.

A criminal case against alleged killer Sabir Sadykov has been transferred to court earlier.

According to investigators, Chernov, the head of the technical supervision department for the FSINs St. Petersburg Directorate, was murdered in order to hide corruption crimes that took place during construction of a new detention center in the region.

Investigators believe that in late 2016 Sadykov was approached by Moiseyenko, who proposed to kill Chernov, after the latter began to counteract corruption plans of Moiseyenko. In turn, Sadykov received a gun and ammunition from Zakharov.

The case documents read that in March 2017 Sadykov appointed a meeting with Chernov on a highway. On March 2, 2017, the defendant allegedly shot the victim, who died in a hospital on March 7.

Moiseyenko also stands charged with taking bribes from CEO of Petroinvest company engaged in the construction of a detention center in St. Petersburg Ruslan Khamkhokov and another businessmen Viktor Kudrin.
Russian ombudsman applies to U.S. Attorney General over Butinas detention

 RAPSI

13:40 03/09/2018

MOSCOW, September 3 (RAPSI) - Russias Human Rights Commissioner Tatiana Moskalkova announced Monday that she had forwarded a petition over Maria Butinas detention in the U.S. to the countrys Attorney General Jeff Sessions.

Butina was arrested in the United States on suspicion of espionage in July. The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) claims that the woman was fronting for Russia and forged friendly relationships with American officials. She was placed in detention.

In late August, Moskalkova sent petitions concerning Butinas arrest and detention to the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Council of Europe Secretary General and OSCE.

According to the Russian ombudsman, Butina, who is accused by American authorities of illegal activity as a foreign agent, must be released from jail. The ombudsmans motion for the Russian nationals release was submitted to the U.S. ambassador to Russia Jon Huntsman.

Moskalkova calls Butinas detention conditions inhuman. According to the ombudsman, the woman was placed in a separate cell and she is often in handcuffs. Moreover, Butina was repeatedly subject to a strip search. The human rights commissioner believes that the detained woman can give any evidence and even incriminate herself in such a situation.
Yandex.Taxi found guilty of distributing misinforming advertisement

 RIA Novosti, Natalia Seliverstova

16:59 03/09/2018

MOSCOW, September 3 (RAPSI)  The Federal Antimonopoly Agency (FAS) found Yandex.Taxi service guilty of law violation because of a small unreadable print in the companys advertisement, the watchdogs statement reads.

According to the FAS, from March to May, the company advertised its services in such Russias cities as Kursk, Petrozavodsk, Stavropol, Pyatigorsk, Ivanovo, Cherepovets and Murmansk. A part of the ads text was published in a small print.

The antimonopoly agency ruled that a substantial part of the advertisement was published in a fine print; therefore, customers had misperception of the services cost.

The FAS found Yandex.Taxi guilty of distributing misinforming advertisement and issued the company an instruction to stop the violation. Moreover, a case on administrative offence is ready to be opened, the statement reads.
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The Mission On Vandor-1 3.75-inch action figure multipack featured on this page was announced on July 17, 2018 and made its first public appearance in Hasbro's booth at the 2018 San Diego Comic-Con. The set featured three new figures including Han Solo, Qi'Ra, and Weazel along with a repack of the Range Trooper. It began hitting shelves in North America the following August.

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In a session that stretched into the early hours of Saturday, the justices voted 6-1 against the once hugely popular president, who is imprisoned on a corruption conviction he claims is a sham.

Former President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has been barred from Brazil's October presidential election by the country's electoral court despite easily leading in the polls, a ruling that adds uncertainty to the race to lead Latin America's largest nation, leaving no clear favorites.

 Appeal Planned

Da Silva's left-leaning Workers' Party issued a statement vowing to appeal, but there appeared to be scant chance it would succeed. That would seem to leave the partys fortunes in the hands of its current vice presidential candidate Fernando Haddad, a former Sao Paulo mayor who so far has polled in single digits and would have to count on the borrowed charisma of da Silva to succeed.

Supreme Court Justice Luis Roberto Barroso cast the first vote against da Silva, saying the ruling was "very simple" because the law forbids candidates whose conviction has been upheld on appeal.

"There is no margin here for the electoral court to make any other evaluation but the one showing there is a conviction, and that conviction matters in the candidate's eligibility," Barroso said.

Justice Edson Fachin disagreed, citing a recent call by a UN human rights committee calling for da Silva to be allowed to run while he further appeals his conviction.

Even as the justices were debating, the Workers' Party put out ads on social media channels featuring da Silva, holding fast to a strategy to keep the former president front and center as long as possible.

 Once-Popular President

The former firebrand union leader led Brazil during a booming period from 2003 and 2010, promoting social policies that pulled millions from poverty. U.S. President Barack Obama once called him the "most popular politician on earth."

But da Silva and party have lost much of that appeal over the last several years because of a stumbling economy under his hand-picked successor Dilma Rousseff and a sprawling corruption probe that has ensnared many top businessmen and politicians, including da Silva.

The 72-year-old ex-president is serving a 12-year-sentence for corruption and money laundering after being convicted of trading favors with construction company Grupo OAS in exchange for the promise of a beach house apartment.

Justice Barroso said the Workers' Party should replace da Silva within 10 days, and that he should not appear as a presidential candidate in free airtime that is given to political parties on nationwide TV and radio starting Saturday.

In a statement late Friday, the Workers' Party said it would appeal the electoral court ruling, just as da Silva is fighting to overturn his corruption conviction.
'There is no one capturing and presenting the larger picture, such as to provoke debate the way the GDP numbers do,' observes T N Ninan.

IMAGE: 'After the Kerala floods,' says T N Ninan, 'it hardly bears pointing out that an obvious example of mismanaged assets is the country's natural resources: Water, forests, etc.'

'You can grow income while depleting finite assets (as India has been doing) for a certain period of time, but not forever.' A scene from the prime minister's helicopter, August 18, 2018. Photograph: Press Information Bureau

The manner in which the two leading political parties got into a tizzy over some new numbers on growth of gross domestic product, put out by a government-appointed committee, is instructive.

The Congress was over the moon because growth during its period in office was posted as being about a half-percentage point more than previously reported. The government's response was to come back with a riposte on the costs of that growth.

It would seem that the rate of economic growth has become every government's choice of phallic symbol, never mind that all calculations of GDP are but someone's opinion of the facts.

The calculations are numbingly complex, with all manner of (sometimes arbitrary) assumptions made in order to arrive at the final number.

Especially in an economy like India's, where the unorganised sector of the economy is the preponderant one, whatever GDP growth number is put out is at best a rough approximation.

So 7.5 per cent could well be 7 per cent, and the other way round.

It is plain silly to get into political slanging matches over such decimal points, especially since the basic narrative is pretty much what it was earlier: The second Congress-alliance government could not sustain the growth rate of the first, and the second BJP-alliance government has not been able to accelerate.

During the long decades when India's growth rate was underwhelming, there was good reason to focus on getting the rate up to what other economies had achieved.

Growth, after all, is the best antidote to poverty -- as validated by the faster reduction in poverty numbers during the years of rapid growth.

But having achieved rapid growth on a sustained basis (though, admittedly, not rapid enough), it is time to recognise that GDP (roughly, national income) is only one measure of performance.

There are plenty of others -- like what has been happening to national assets. Just as the income/expenditure statement of a company needs to be read together with its balance sheet of assets and liabilities, so it is with the economy.

After the Kerala floods, it hardly bears pointing out that an obvious example of mismanaged assets is the country's natural resources: Water, forests, etc.

You can grow income while depleting finite assets (as India has been doing) for a certain period of time, but not forever.

India is running out of water, while continuing to deplete other natural resources like forests.

Why aren't the governments statisticians enlightening us on changes in the economy's balance sheet, in addition to telling us about national income?

There are other assets like human capital, and institutional capital. What is the performance on health and education? By general reckoning, not as good as the performance on GDP.

As for institutional capital, which in some ways is the most important of all, most people would agree that some key institutions are being run down in terms of their social capital: Corruption in the courts, suborning of criminal investigation agencies, the autonomy of universities and the quality of university appointments, the operating freedom of the press, and much else.

Then there is equality, or the lack of it. As the distance grows between rich and poor, a society's fault lines come under greater strain.

The geographical inequalities are particularly stark: Bihar's per capita income is a fourth of the southern states. And Uttar Pradesh's less than a third.

Is this a sustainable situation?

Do the gaps in incomes and opportunities explain why there is more vigilante action (lawlessness) in some of the 'Bimaru' states than elsewhere?

Won't the loss of social cohesion translate into economic disruption of one kind or other?

The broader India story does not shine as much as the GDP numbers. But there is no one capturing and presenting the larger picture, such as to provoke debate the way the GDP numbers do.

If the narrative has to go beyond plain growth of income, our statisticians need to focus on the country's balance sheet of trackable assets as carefully as they track changes in income.
The recommendation, if implemented, is likely to face opposition from the government's key support base among Hindu traders and businesspersons.

Archis Mohan and Joydeep Ghosh report.

IMAGE: A scene from Kanu Behl's film Titli which revolved around a Hindu family in Delhi. Kindly note that the image has only been published for representational purposes.

In a recommendation that can cause a lot of heartburn for business houses and taxpayers, the Law Commission last week proposed doing away with the concept of Hindu Undivided Family, or HUF.

According to the income tax department statistics, there were almost 2 million registered HUFs till March 2018.

In a consultation paper called Reform of Family Law, the commission came down hard on HUFs.

The strongly worded paper says 'justifying the institution on grounds of deep-rooted sentiments at the cost of country's revenues may not be judicious'.

The paper quotes former chief commissioner, income tax, T C A Ramanujam, as saying that 'the government carries out any amount of amendment to the Hindu law without looking into the revenue loss caused by the recognition of HUF as a separate taxable entity.

'HUF may be a boon to the taxpaying Hindu. But it is definitely a bane to government revenues'.

An HUF is a separate tax entity under the provisions of Section 2(31) of the IT Act.

Income tax experts believe this proposal has been made primarily because of the government's increased focus on tax compliance.

"The government might be looking at HUFs from the perspective of taxpayers using it to reduce tax liability," says Kuldip Kumar, partner and leader, personal tax, PwC.

"It is also possible that it is finding that this vehicle is being used for hiding any income," adds Kumar. "Given the big focus on compliance, the government is trying to plug all loopholes for tax avoidance."

The recommendation, if implemented, is likely to face opposition from the government's key support base among Hindu traders and businesspersons.

Confederation of All India Traders chief Praveen Khandelwal says his organisation, which claims to represent 50 million small traders across the country, would oppose any move to abolish HUF.

"The view of the Law Commission on this needs to be changed. The institution of joint family is very much alive," says Khandelwal.

"The karta of an HUF is the head of the joint family, and by virtue of that and the expenditure incurred to preserve and run the institution of a joint family gets a little relaxation in tax. Where is the question of tax evasion in this?" asks Khandelwal.

Tax experts say an HUF does helps taxpayers to save on taxes by creating a separate tax entity.

There are many tax exemptions and deductions that are allowed in the income tax laws, especially to an HUF.

Doing away with HUFs may not be easy, say experts.

"The intent of creation of a HUF was for ease of succession in case of a joint family. In case the revenue authorities want to avoid the use of HUF as a tax planning mechanism, they could look at the option of introducing specific anti-avoidance rules for the taxation of HUFs," says Amarpal Chadha, tax partner & India mobility leader, EY.

"If the concept of HUF is abolished under the income-tax law, the taxation of existing HUFs may become complex," Chadha adds.

The commission said the special status given to the entity of HUF was a 'so-called gift by the British' who could not comprehend the complex socio-economic structure of the Indian families.

'Now, this status is being used for the evasion of tax only,' it said.

'However, today when it has been 72-years since Independence, it is high time that it is understood that justifying this institution on the ground of deep rooted sentiments at the cost of the country's revenues may not be judicious,' the Commission concluded.

'In present times,' the commission observed, 'HUF is neither congruent with corporate governance, nor is it conducive for the tax regime.'

In addition, the commission also recommended that coparcenary of ancestral property under Hindu law be abolished and the right in a property by birth be extinguished in favour of 'tenancy in common', instead of 'joint tenancy'.

The paper has also recommended making it easier for couples to get a divorce, more equitable share for women in property at the time of divorce, abolition of polygamy among Muslims and doing away with the law on adultery.

In June 2016, the Law Commission had been tasked with looking into matters related to the uniform civil code, a key promise of the Bharatiya Janata Party manifesto of the 2014 Lok Sabha election.

However, the commission, instead of a full-fledged report on a uniform civil code, preferred a consultation paper to suggest 'piecemeal' changes in personal laws.

The commission said it dealt with laws that are discriminatory rather than providing a uniform civil code, 'which is neither necessary nor desirable at this stage'.

'The issue of uniform civil code is vast, and its potential repercussions untested in India,' it said.

It even came close to rejecting the notion of a uniform civil code and pointed to exceptions provided to specific communities.

'Most countries are now moving towards recognition of difference, and the mere existence of difference does not imply discrimination, but is indicative of a robust democracy,' it noted.

Now, it will be up to the 22nd Law Commission to bring out a final report on the uniform civil code.

The commission had put out a questionnaire in the public domain in November 2016 and received 75,378 responses.

But it bemoaned the majority of the responses 'dealt specifically with the issue of triple talaq, which is one among the various other issues that need attention'.

It said specific groups, or weaker sections of the society must not be dis-privileged in the process of reforming law.
'To ascribe motives to the actions of the state government at such an early stage of police investigation will be counter-productive,' says former Union home secretary Madhav Godbole.

Photograph: PTI Photo IMAGE: Revolutionary writer P Varavara Rao -- one of the five activists arrested on August 28 -- hit out at the Centre and the Maharashtra government , saying there cannot be a bigger conspiracy than calling those fighting against 'fascist policies' conspirators.

The stalled attempt of the Pune police to arrest some liberal activists has blazed a new trail and has raised disquieting questions which are far more important than merely the concerns arising out of the Bhima Koregaon violence.

Perhaps, it is for the first time that three courts in Delhi at three levels -- a magistrate's court, the Delhi high court and the Supreme Court -- have taken cognisance of the matter the moment the activists were arrested.

The police had approached the magistrate's court for a transit remand to bring two of the arrested persons to Pune. The Delhi high court and the Supreme Court have thought it fit to intervene and the Supreme Court has ordered that the persons arrested, not just in Delhi but also other places in the country, should be kept under house arrest till the case is disposed of by it.

The apex court has declared 'Dissent is the safety valve of democracy -- if it is not allowed, the pressure cooker will burst.'

The observation made by the court is unexceptional, but has created the impression that there was a deliberate attempt on the part of the police to stop dissenting voices in the country.

I find this somewhat disconcerting. It is time we go back to the basics.

It is true that the credibility and the image of police, both at the central and state levels, has suffered grievously in recent years, but this cannot be the reason for not permitting the police to act in this case.

If the rule of law is to prevail in the country, the police must be allowed to do its job.

After investigation, including interrogation of the persons concerned, the case will be put up in the court and the courts will have the last word to decide if there is any substance in the case.

Should the police be deterred from doing their work by seeking the intervention of the courts?

Should anyone, including the court, pre-judge the issues and the case?

There seem to be increasing instances of the courts stopping the police from interrogating the accused by taking them in police custody. The judgment as to whether custody is necessary for effective interrogation should be left to the police.

If there is misuse of powers, the police can be hauled up by the court but it would be frustrating the provisions of law if the police is not permitted to do their job.

I have been advocating for quite some time to do away with the provision of law for anticipatory bail (The Changing Times, 2000, pages 113-116).

The original purpose of incorporating Section 438 in the Criminal Procedure Code is being subverted by liberal recourse to this provision, particularly in high profile cases though interrogation of the accused in custody is often more successful during police investigation.

As the Punjab and Haryana high court had held the investigation should not be stifled at the very threshold of investigation by granting anticipatory bail (Gurbaksh v state of Punjab, A. 1978 P&H (F.B.)).

The Supreme Court has also cautioned against its misuse. However, the experience is quite the contrary.

This was pithily brought out by a cartoon. A father proudly shows a statue of Mahatma Gandhi to his son and says, 'Gandhi had to undergo long spells in the prison in the freedom struggle.' The son innocently but pertinently asks, 'Daddy, why did he not take anticipatory bail?'

IMAGE: A protest against the police raids on the homes of activists and their subsequent arrests in New Delhi. Photograph: Kamal Kishore/PTI Photo

I have often argued in my writings that Naxalism should not be treated as a simple law and order problem and the underlying socio-economic causes must be addressed. But a line must be drawn between the advocacy for this well merited cause and supporting the ideology of violence to achieve the objectives.

Any encouragement for mobilisation of funds for the purpose, procurement and use of lethal weapons must be put down with a heavy hand. Often, there is a thin line between the proponents of the cause.

The police must be permitted to establish their case if any group of activists falls in the latter category. Prima facie, this is the issue in the present case.

As in the United States after the assumption of office by President Trump, in India too, the country is split in the middle, with Hindutvawadis, and liberals and secularists arraigned against each other.

It is as if 'either you are with me or against me'. Everything is either black or white. There are no shades in between.

As a society, are we becoming colour-blind?

Analogies are being drawn with the Emergency during 1975-1977. This is ridiculous. In no way are the two situations even close to each other.

The very fact that the judiciary intervened so decisively in this case at the level of both the high court and the Supreme Court so soon after the event and on one single day is proof enough that this comparison is not valid.

In fact, making such comparisons has been responsible for creating a very negative and destructive mindset in society.

In the national discourse on this case, one important aspect is being lost sight of. According to the Constitution of India, 'police' and 'public order' are subjects in the state list. The Union government is not even remotely concerned, except that in this case,the state and central government belong to the same political party. But this is inevitable in a quasi-federal structure of India.

To ascribe motives to the actions of the state government, and that too at the so very early stage of police investigation will be counter-productive.

Let the law take its course. Let us not stop the police from doing its job.

India has the world's most powerful judiciary to uphold the Constitutional precepts and protect the citizens' freedoms.
'The individuals whom this government and its media call 'Urban Naxals' should not have been arrested.'

'In any civilised democracy (which India is not) this would not have happened,' argues Aakar Patel, winner of the 2018 Prem Bhatia Award for Political Reporting.

Illustration: Uttam Ghosh/Rediff.com

We often hear in India the phrase 'I have full faith in the judiciary' and that 'the law will take its own course.'

I do not use these phrases and I have little faith in the judicial system. The law almost never takes its own course in India.

The State is always up to mischief against the citizen and the judiciary usually does not resist it.

Let me illustrate this by looking at the case about which we are hearing so much these days, the arrest of five individuals whom this government, and its media, are calling 'Urban Naxals'.

I will urge readers to withhold their opinion about these individuals, particularly based on what they are hearing and reading in the media. It is nonsense.

The individuals should not have been arrested and in any civilised democracy (which India is not) this would not have happened because civilised democracies have functioning judiciaries that protect the rights of citizens.

They are not enthusiastic about rubber-stamping whatever the State produces before them that violates our rights.

I accept that in the current instance it is also the judiciary itself that has revealed the problems within it. I do not mean the Supreme Court, but the Delhi high court.

A two judge bench was looking at the arrest and transit remand of one of the five individuals, Gautam Navlakha.

This court's order on the matter, dictated by Justice S Muralidhar, is a remarkable document and must be read by all citizens. It is 10 pages of clarity, precision and elegance.

It tells the following story:

On August 28, Gautam Navlakha was arrested from Delhi. The police did not have a search warrant and were not allowed to enter his house. They went back and returned with a warrant.

The basis of the case was an FIR filed about an event held on December 31, 2017. Gautam was not named in that FIR. He says he was not even present at the meeting.

The charge of Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (which is the law the government uses against terrorism) was not originally mentioned in the original FIR. It only had sections related to promoting disharmony.

After his arrest, Gautam had to be taken to Pune. The chief metropolitan magistrate of Saket in Delhi, Manish Khurana, allowed transit remand to take him to Pune. The transit remand application was made in Hindi. However the documents that were produced before the magistrate were mostly in Marathi.

The Delhi high court said: 'It is not possible to make out from these documents what precisely the case against the petitioner is.'

The question we as citizens should ask is: Then why was permission for the transit remand given by the magistrate?

The high court ordered that the case would be heard the following day, and that the documents that were shown to the magistrate should be translated from Marathi.

Meanwhile, Gautam was to be taken back to the place where the police had picked him up from.

In the morning, the advocate for the police said the translation was taking more time and the court gave till afternoon.

At 2.15 pm, the court was shown a few pages, including the FIR translated into English but with much of the material still in Marathi.

The police lawyer asked for still more time, which the court did not give.

The court then said it was 'concerned with the legality of the arrest' and 'legality of transit remand passed by the learned CMM'.

It said the FIR did not mention Navlakha, so what evidence was produced before the CMM?

It asked the Maharashtra police officers present this question: 'Whether at any time during the proceedings before the learned CMM, the learned CMM asked to see the case diary in which purportedly the relevant material concerning the involvement of the Petitioner is contained.'

The policemen said no. It was revealed that the case diary is also in Marathi.

The police lawyer then said Gautam could apply for regular bail so there was a real problem.

To this the high court pointed out that under UAPA 'it would be extremely difficult' to get regular bail 'till at least the time of filing of the chargesheet'.

It was at this stage, on the 29th, that the police lawyer said the Supreme Court had intervened. The high court then said it would no longer be appropriate for it to continue hearing about the validity of the transit remand.

As we now know, the Supreme Court is to hear this again on September 6.

Many of us will be watching what it does with great interest.

Aakar Patel is Executive Director, Amnesty International India. The views expressed here are his own.
IMAGE: Congress workers celebrate their win in Karnataka Urban Local Body Election 2018, in Mysuru on Monday. Photograph: PTI Photo

Establishing a slight edge over Bharatiya Janata Party in a closely fought race in urban local bodies polls in Karnataka, the Congress is set to gain control of a majority of the urban local bodies (ULBs), teaming up with its ruling coalition partner Janata Dal-Secular.

The Congress has secured 982 seats and the BJP 929 in the elections held Saturday, while JD-S came a distant third with 375 seats, according to the state election commission results.

The others, including 329 independents, bagged the rest of the seats in the three-way race with the Congress and the JD-S fighting against each other, despite being coalition partners.

Both the Congress and JD-S have declared that they would tie-up in ULBs which have produced a hung verdict.

Elections were held for three city corporations,29 city municipal councils (CMC), 52 town municipal councils (TMC) and 20 Town Panchayats (TP).

Results for 2,662 of the 2,709 seats for which polls were held have been declared.

With the combined strength of Congress and JD-S securing 1,357 seats, they enjoy a clear edge over the BJP to seize control of a majority of the ULBs.

These elections were considered the first test of popularity of the Congress-JD(S) coalition government, which was formed post-May assembly polls when it yielded a hung verdict.

The BJP had emerged as the single largest party in the assembly polls, but failed to shore up the numbers in its bid to form the government.

The ULB polls were also considered as indicative of the voters' mood before the next Lok Sabha elections.

Compared to its performance in the 2013 urban local bodies elections, BJP has fared far better. In the polls then conducted for 4,976 seats, the Congress had bagged 1,960 seats and BJP and JD-S 905 seats each.

Elections for the remaining more than 2,300 seats is likely be held early next year.

Polls to Kodagu urban local bodies has been withheld due to the recent floods in the district.

Reiterating the JD-S and Congress' resolve, former prime minister and JD-S supremo H D Deve Gowda said, "Wherever we can form a coalition government to keep the BJP out of power, we will certainly do that."

Buoyed by the election results, Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy said it was a 'befitting answer' to those who were saying that the coalition government was weak and would collapse soon.

"The election results have silenced all those who have been saying that Congress has weakened, that it was lagging behind and its popularity was diminishing," said an upbeat state Congress president Dinesh Gundu Rao.

State BJP chief B S Yeddyurappa admitted that the election results were not as per the expectations.

"Results are not as per our expectation. The overall results satisfy us because we could withstand the money and muscle power used during the election," he said.

Yeddyurappa said the results would not have any bearing on the popularity of the government because there were many local factors at work. He reiterated the party's resolve to win 22 or 23 seats out of 28 in Lok Sabha polls.

The ULB results show that the Congress, BJP and JD-S have broadly held on to their position secured in the assembly polls.

The results were marred by an ugly incident in Tumakuru where a Congress candidate and his nine supporters were injured in a suspected acid attack during a march to celebrate his victory.

Inayatullah Khan, who won the election from ward No.16 in Tumakuru -- around 70 km from Bengaluru, was taking out a victory procession in the morning when an unidentified person sprayed some liquid on the crowd and fled the scene, police said.

Around 10 people felt a burning sensation and were rushed to a nearby hospital where they were administered first-aid.

They suffered minor injuries, among whom Khan had the maximum burns on his face, Tumakaru Superintendent of Police Divya V Gopinath said.

Doctors said the liquid might be some low-intensity acid like bathroom cleaner, the SP said Police suspect the incident to be the handiwork of Khan's rival, whose name they did not disclose.

Nobody has been arrested so far and no complaint has been lodged, the officer added.
The Shiv Sena has dubbed as 'stupid' the Maharashtra police's claim that the five arrested Left-wing activists were involved in an alleged Maoist plot to overthrow the Modi administration.

The Bharatiya Janata Party's carping ally said the police assertion about security threat to Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Maoists was just a 'conspiracy theory'.

The Uddhav Thackeray-led party said Modi's security remains robust and there is no need to worry on that front.

'The government should stop stating that these so called Maoists could potentially topple the sitting government at the Centre. This is a stupid statement,' the Sena said in an editorial published in its mouthpiece Saamana, Monday.

'Manmohan Singh's (Congress-led United Progressive Alliance) government was brought down by the people of this country not by Maoists or Naxalites. In recent times, governing parties were changed through democratic process alone,' the Marathi daily said.

The saffron outfit asked the police to exercise restrain while making claims.

'Had these Maoists possessed power to topple governments, they would not have lost control in West Bengal, Tripura and Manipur.

'The police (must) exercise restrain while making claims or else Modi and the BJP will be ridiculed once again,' the Sena cautioned.

The party, which has ministers in the BJP-led governments in Maharashtra and also at the Centre, said there is nothing to worry about Modi's security.

'Another conspiracy theory of the police is about threat to the life of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His security is of very high standard and there is nothing to worry about,' the party said.

'(Former prime ministers) Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi had an element of adventurism (in them), which went wrong and they lost their lives. (However), Modi would not engage in such adventurism,' said the Sena publication.

The saffron party also took a dig at the people who have been criticising the arrest of five Left-wing activists late last month for alleged links with Maoists.

'Urban Maoists' are involved in philosophising the acts of Naxals in remote areas of Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Odisha.

Naxalites run their own parallel governments in remote areas and several people, including government officials and Congress leader Vidya Charan Shukla, have lost their lives in attacks carried out by them, the Sena said.

'These were the same people who instigated the violence at Koregaon-Bhima (a village in Pune district on January 1, 2018). They want to create some unrest in every state and are hardly bothered about democracy. Their thoughts are violent,' the editorial read.

'People like Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navalakha and Vernon Gonsalves (all arrested last month for alleged Maoist links) enjoy high social standing.

'Mao is from China and whoever attempts to topple the government there is put behind bars or disappears. In our country, such people get support.

'From Congress president Rahul Gandhi to Sharad Pawar (Nationalist Congress Party), Prakash Ambedkar (a Dalit leader) to Akhilesh Yadav (former Uttar Pradesh chief minister), all are strongly supporting these people.

'If these people are facing charges of plotting to kill PM Modi, how can anyone support them?' the party asked.

Maoist sympathisers take a different stand when it comes to the arrest of right-wing activists in connection with the killing of rationalists Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare and journalist Gauri Lankesh, it said.

'They are willing to accept Hindutvawadis or right- wing supporters as terrorists but (for them) Maoists mean intellectuals and rebel poets. Having such double standards is in itself sedition,' the Sena said.

The party also slammed Congress leader and former Union Home Minister P Chidambaram over the phrase 'saffron terror'.

'Chidambaram has rejected the urban Naxal terminology. He claims it is an attempt to divert peoples attention from the Rafale jet deal, failure of note-ban and other burning issues. But it was he who supported saffron terror terminology a few years back and defamed Hindus,' the Sena said.

Naxalism is a far more serious security threat than terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir as it is weakening the country from inside, the party said.
The AAP leader, who has been recently in the news for supposedly dropping her second name, has been active in reforming the education and health sector, reports Aparna Banerjea.

IMAGE: Atishi recently launched Happiness Curriculum in the schools of Delhi. The curriculum, which will cover around 800,000 students, was introduced to ensure happiness equality among students. Photograph: AtishiAAP/Facebook

Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, concerned citizens can change the world. Indeed, its the only thing that ever has -- Margaret Mead

Atishis Twitter account has this quote from the famous American anthropologist. Being the first candidate to be named by the Aam Aadmi Party the 2019 Lok Sabha elections (East Delhi constituency), she has just opened her office in Vikas Marg near Laxmi Nagar metro station, an area in the national capital that is congested, busy and none too clean.

Atishi -- who has supposedly dropped her second name Marlena -- is the Arvind Kejriwal regimes brain trust. It was largely her work that propelled education reform by the government since 2015.

Born to Delhi University professors Vijay Kumar Singh and Tripta Wahi, Atishi was given the second name, Marlena, by her parents. My parents believed in the ideology of the Left. And being influenced by Marxism and Leninism theories, they chose Marlena as my second name, she said.

But now, while Atishis Twitter handle has changed from @Atishimarlena to @AtishiAAP, her name has been amended on the AAP website -- many calling it an attempt to dodge attacks from other parties over her Christian-sounding last name, according to several media reports. While she chose to remain silent on the matter, the party has rejected reports that it forced her to drop Marlena from her name.

IMAGE: Atishi was an education advisor to Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia from July 2015, till she, along with other eight other AAP members, was removed from her post by the ministry of home affairs. Photograph: AtishiAAP/Facebook

Atishi graduated in History (Honours) from St Stephens College in 2002. Later, she got her Masters degree from the University of Oxford in ancient and modern history and became a Rhodes scholar. Upon her return to India, she spent some time teaching at RishiValleySchool in Andhra Pradesh and then moved to a small village near Bhopal. There she worked with several non-profit organisations, such as the Sambhavana Institute of Public Policy. Atishi also immersed herself in organic farming and learning about progressive education systems, when she met some AAP members for the first time.

Atishi was an education advisor to Delhi Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia from July 2015, till she, along with other eight other AAP members, was removed from her post by the ministry of home affairs on April 17, 2018. No prior approval of the central government has been taken for creation of said posts on which these persons have been appointed on the co-terminus basis, the order stated. Atishi was involved in drafting the manifesto of the party for the Delhi assembly polls.

IMAGE: Atishi is one of the members of the AAP who has managed to steer clear of controversies. Photograph: AtishiAAP/Facebook

The AAP leader has been active in reforming the education and health sector in Delhi, especially government schools. Her big push in transforming the education system was her community-based approach -- creating a network of parents whose children are studying in government schools, said Akshay Marathe, joint secretary, AAP, who has worked closely with Atishis education team since 2016.

The recently launched Happiness Curriculum was the result of a joint SisodiaAtishi initiative. The curriculum, which will cover around 800,000 students, was introduced in government schools at the end of July. The initiative is to ensure happiness equality among students.

According to party functionaries, while working as education advisor, Atishi was managing six to seven programmes herself -- some towards improving the classroom environment, teacher training and pedagogy.

Mission Buniyaad, the latest in the series of campaigns, has shown results. A fantastic performance by Delhi government schools in Class 12 -- the 90.64 per cent result is 2.37 per cent better than our own performance last year, and 7.6 per cent higher than the national CBSE average. Who would have thought this was possible? Atishi said

She is one of the members of AAP who has managed to steer clear of controversies.
Steps taken to prevent misuse of the platform have to be balanced with data privacy and security concerns, say experts.

IMAGE: Many legal experts feel asking WhatsApp to do the job of the government and law-enforcement is a misplaced notion. Photograph: Dado Ruvic/Reuters

The government recently asked instant messaging platform WhatsApp to comply with Indian laws, bring in accountability and facilitate enforcement of law to prevent the spread of fake news and rumours.

Legal experts agree that the government is well within its sovereign rights to ask any IM platform to comply with the law of the land or any such regulation which is necessary to maintain law and order.

But, several experts disagree over whether it is a good idea to ask a communication platform to monitor, report and filter any misuse; this may well go against the grain of the data privacy and protection regime currently in the works.

The government is pretty strong in its legal standing asking the IM platform to comply with Indian laws, says cyber law expert Pavan Duggal.

The IM platform is treated as an intermediary under Section 2(1)(w) of the Information Technology Act, 2000. Further, under Section 79 of the Act, such IM platform is mandated to exercise due diligence while discharging its obligations under the law, says Duggal.

This law is applicable to all legal entities whether they are physically located in India or not, so long as their computers, computer systems or networks are physically located in the country, experts add.

Cyber lawyer Prashant Mali points out that the government also has the option to invoke Indian Penal Code Section 268 of causing public nuisance or under abetment of crime mentioned under S 153A or S 295A of the Code. WhatsApp by not regulating hate content sometime abets the same, he says.

But many legal experts feel asking an instant messaging platform to don the job of the government and law-enforcement is a misplaced notion.

Asking them (IMs) to assume more powers with absolutely little enforceable accountability or transparency is a recipe for disaster, says Prasanna S, a lawyer actively involved in the shaping the data privacy regime.

Asking a communications platform provider to proactively alert law enforcement authorities is a huge infraction of citizens right to communications privacy.

According to another lawyer Raman Jit Singh Chema, any demand by the government for traceability of messages without specific new legal provisions may not survive the test of constitutionality.

Some experts find it disturbing that the governments discussions on this issue with the instant messaging platform have been behind closed doors and not through the Cyber Regulatory Advisory Committee established through the Information Technology Act.

Seeking to place a filtering or mass surveillance obligation on internet intermediary services is immensely dangerous, says Chema.

Duggal too agrees that India needs to revisit the entire issue of intermediary liability to provide more effective remedies to affected persons.

For that, India needs to have a fresh look at Section 79 of the IT Act, 2000, he says.

Salman Waris, partner at law firm TechLegis, fears that efforts by the government to prevent spread of fake news through IM platforms may lead to the breach of individual privacy.

WhatsApp has been resisting the demand for traceability of messages citing that lack of end-to-end encryption may result in data privacy concerns. Experts say it is not clear whether the government is seeking such a feature absolutely or only for certain message trails involving objectionable content.

Technically, implementing such a feature is possible. But it would have to be done balancing the data privacy concerns and, keeping in mind the overall digital security which may come to risk if the safeguards such as end-to-end encryption are relaxed, says Punit Dutt Tyagi, executive partner, Lakshmikumaran & Sridharan. A balance needs to be achieved between the powers which are allowed under the IT Act and data privacy, in general.

Moreover, such powers should be exercised only for a limited/definite time period in order to curtail circulation of certain types of content which are either related to fake news or involve messages intended to incite violence, adds Tyagi.

What could further shape the narrative for IMs platforms are the soon to be released recommendations by the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India on regulations governing Over-The-Top service providers.

The recommendations of the B N Srikrishna Committee on data privacy and protection regime will also influence the thinking of policymakers, say experts.
Even as dahi handi festival was celebrated with gaiety on Monday, one Govinda (reveller) died and 150 others injured in separate incidents in Mumbai and suburbs, the police said.

Photograph: Sahil Salvi/ Rediff.com IMAGE: Youngsters fall as they form a human pyramid to break the dahi handi in Mumbai.

In Thane district neighbouring Mumbai, 13 Govindas, including two children -- one a 10-year-old and other 12-year-old -- suffered injuries, a Region Disaster Management Cell official said.

He said the injured Govindas were admitted to different hospitals in Thane and Kalwa.

In Mumbai, Kush Khandare, 20, suffered an epileptic attack when he climbed the first layer of a human pyramid in Dharavi in Central Mumbai this afternoon, police said.

He was taken to Sion Hospital where doctors declared him dead before admission, a senior police officer said.

The deceased was a resident of a chawl in Dharavi.

In separate incidents in the island city and suburbs, 150 Govindas suffered injuries, the officer said.

Photograph: Sahil Salvi/ Rediff.com IMAGE: An injured Govinda is rushed to a hospital.

The festival, which marks the birth of Lord Krishna, was celebrated with enthusiasm across Mumbai, including in areas like Ghatkopar, Dadar, Lalbaug and Bhandup.

The dahi handi ritual is part of the Janmashtami festival in Maharashtra, where youngsters (called Govindas), dressed in colourful attire, make human pyramid to reach an earthen pot containing buttermilk and suspended in mid-air, and break it.

Religious institutions, political leaders and Govinda mandals took part in the dahi handi celebrations which were marked by frequent chants of "Govinda aala re" (Govinda has come).
From Mumbai to Patna, the birth of Lord Krishna was rung in with religious fervour and gaiety across the country on Monday.

President Ramnath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to extend their greetings to the nation on the occasion.

"Greetings and good wishes to fellow citizens on the auspicious occasion of Janmashtami. The teachings of Lord Krishna have a universal message - Nishkam Karma. May this festival inspire us to follow the path of virtue and righteousness in thought, word and deed #PresidentKovind," a tweet by the president read.

Here are some of the glimpses of the celebrations.

Photograph: Sahil Salvi/ Rediff.com In Maharashtra, dahi handi ritual is a part of Janmashtami festival, where youngsters (called Govindas), dressed in colourful attire, make human pyramid to reach an earthen pot containing buttermilk suspended mid-air, and try to break it.

In Mathura, which according to mythology, is the birthplace of Lord Krishna, lakhs of pilgrims paid obeisance at major temples amid tight security. Photograph: PTI Photo

Children dressed up as Hindu God Krishna take a selfie as they participate in celebrations of Janmashtami festival in Ajmer. Photograph: PTI Photo

Photograph: Sahil Salvi/ Rediff.com In Mumbai, at least one Govinda was killed and 87 others were injured in dahi handi related incidents.

Artists dressed as Lord Krishna and Radha perform in Patna. Photograph: PTI Photo

In rain-soaked Delhi, thousands of devotees thronged temples to offer prayers to Lord Krishna. Photograph: PTI Photo

Female Govindas also broke dahi handis in Mumbai where the police was on roads to ensure compliance to the Bombay high court's order on the age of participating Govindas (they should not be below 14), insurance for them, and the height of the human pyramid. Photograph: Shashank Parade/ PTI Photo

Devotees perform abhishek of Lord Krishna at ISKCON temple in Guwahati. Photograph: PTI Photo

Vrindaban was the centre of attraction for pilgrims in the noon, where the festival was celebrated in three major temples -- Radha Raman temple, Radha Damodar temple and Shah Ji temple. Photograph: PTI Photo

Religious institutions, political leaders and Govinda mandals in Mumbai took part in the dahi handi celebrations which were marked by frequent chants of Govinda aala re (Govinda has come). Photograph: Shashank Parade/ PTI Photo
The U.S. cited a quantity of diesel fuel that would be carried on a South Korean train running on North Korean railway tracks to block a plan by the two Koreas to survey a cross-border railway. Diesel exports to North Korea are banned under UN Security Council sanctions.

Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung asked U.S. Forces Korea Commander Vincent Brooks, who is also the head of the UN Command which oversees the armistice, to let the survey go ahead, but to no avail.

"We can't disclose in detail the items to be shipped to and from the North," a Unification Ministry spokesman told reporters in a press briefing last week.

But a diplomatic source said, "They'll have to use an electric locomotive and a diesel engine to power the cross-border railway survey, which could violate UN and U.S. sanctions."

The intervention came as denuclearization talks between the U.S. and North Korea reached a fresh impasse.

The two Koreas agreed at their summit in April to see how the railway from Seoul to Sinuiju on the North Korea-China border can be reconnected. It is currently impossible for trains to run across the border because South and North Korean trains work on different voltages, so diesel locomotives would have to be used instead.

A UNSC resolution from last December, bans all member states from "the direct or indirect supply, sale or transfer to [North Korea], through their territories or by their nationals, or using their flag vessels, aircraft, pipelines, rail lines, or vehicles... of all refined petroleum products" over an annual limit of 500,000 barrels.

The U.S. believes that the North has already secured more than 500,000 barrels of refined oil this year through illegal ship-to-ship transfers.


With the 2019 Lok Sabha polls less than eight months away, the party has resumed stoking the emotional issue through its second-and third-rung leaders, reports Virendra Singh Rawat.

In October last year, a press communique by the Uttar Pradesh Ram Bhavan said the Yogi Adityanath government proposed to build a grand 100-metre Lord Ram statue near the banks of the river Saryu in Ayodhya.



A few days later, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, accompanied by a battery of his cabinet colleagues, descended on the temple town on the eve of Deepavali for a religious-cultural show comprising lighting diyas (earthen pots), performances by artistes from various parts of India and Southeast Asia, laser show themed on the Ramayan, etc.



Both these developments were deftly weaved around the partys Ram temple agenda, which the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has resorted to in successive elections, especially in the vast Hindi heartland. Uttar Pradesh has been the nerve centre of the temple movement and the Kamandal theatre spearheaded by saffron outfits.

Now as the 2019 Lok Sabha polls are less than eight months away, the BJP has resumed stoking the emotional Ram temple issue through its second-and third-rung leaders although the top leadership has also and always sworn its commitment to the temple cause.



Recently, UP Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya said the BJP-led central government could bring in a law to facilitate the construction of the temple if the Supreme Court verdict on the Ayodhya title suit was unfavourable.



Against the backdrop of the Adityanath government undertaking mega development and infrastructure projects over the past months to underline its socioeconomic commitment, the temple element seemed removed from the minds of the voters, especially the youth.



However, Mauryas statement, which, political pundits say, is the first among the many more to come on the temple issue as elections draw nearer, serves two purposes for the party.

First, it brings the temple issue into the pre-election public discourse, and provides an opportunity to the saffron party to gauge the public mood and the reaction of opposition parties, so that any course correction could be incorporated into the larger election strategy.

Second, the prospects of opposition parties tilting at the election machinery of the BJP and the winning duo of Narendra Modi-Amit Shah have made the saffron party seek recourse to the emotive temple plank.

The statement by Maurya shows the BJP is in a state of desperation, since 2019 would be fought in the name of Modi and the party is worried at the prospects of the election results, given the proposal of a grand alliance among regional parties. Plus, there is also the factor of anti-incumbency, political analyst and commentator Sharat Pradhan said.



He said by introducing the temple element before the Lok Sabha polls, the BJP was trying to consolidate the majority vote, cutting across caste lines and splitting the traditional vote banks of its adversaries. Besides, the opposition parties would need to devise a response to the temple issue.



The BJP knows the Centre cannot get any pro-temple law passed since it currently lacks a majority in the Rajya Sabha. Yet, it is making such statements to keep the Ayodhya issue contemporary while putting opposition parties on the defensive, he underlined.

The recent passing of Atal Bihari Vajpayee has reinvigorated the partys religious-cultural ethos. The ritual of immersing his ashes in Haridwar and other major places across India would provide an opportunity to the party to re-enforce the Hindutva line, albeit subtly.



During Deepavali, the party has planned similar high-optic events in Ayodhya. The religious-cultural thread will invariably extend to Kumbh Mela 2019, which will be just before the Lok Sabha elections and thus allow the party to showcase Hindutva elements under the garb of tourism initiatives.

Nonetheless, the BJP is deftly balancing the temple narrative with development showpieces, like the UP Investors Summit, One District One Product Summit, Bundelkhand Defence Corridor, Purvanchal Expressway, and Bundelkhand Expressway.



On anonymity, a BJP leader said the temple was a core issue for the party and it was confident of a pro-temple court verdict in consonance with the popular sentiments and the pro-temple stand taken by the Shia Waqf Board.



It is wrong to suggest the party invokes the Ram temple issue for electoral gains. Besides, the ceremonies weaved around traditional festivals are aimed at introducing the new generation and the first-time voters to our ancient heritage, which was getting lost owing to the apathy of previous regimes, he said.
IMAGE: Journalist Wa Lone leaves after the verdict at Insein court in Yangon on Monday. Photograph: Myat Thu Kyaw/Reuters

Two journalists of international news agency Reuters were sentenced to seven years in prison by a Myanmar court on Monday for violating the countrys state secrets law while reporting on the massacre of Rohingya Muslims.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28 -- who were arrested last year in December and were lodged in prison since then -- were convicted by Yangon northern district judge for violating British-era Official Secrets Act.

The judge said the journalists collected and obtained confidential documents.

The defendants ... have breached Official Secrets Act section 3.1.c, and are sentenced to seven years, the judge said, adding that the time served since they were detained in December would be taken into account.

The duo can challenge the decision in the regional court and further in the Supreme Court.

The two reporters had pleaded not guilty and told the court that the police planted documents on them in the course of their work in reporting on violence-hit Rakhine state.

They said they were arrested after being invited to dinner by police in Yangon who handed them documents.

As they left the restaurant, the duo was detained for possessing classified material.

One police witness confirmed the story, testifying that the restaurant meeting was a set-up to entrap the journalists to block or punish them for their reporting of a mass killing of Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine.

IMAGE: Journalist Kyaw Soe Oo arrives at Insein court. Photograph: Ann Wang/Reuters

The case has sparked an outcry among the international community as an attempt to muzzle reporting on last years crackdown by Myanmars security forces on the Rohingya minority.

Press freedom advocates, the United Nations, the European Union and countries including the United States, Canada and Australia had called for the journalists acquittal.

Reuters editor-in-chief Stephen J Adler, in a statement, hinted at considering legal options to challenge the conviction of the duo.

Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere.

We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum, Adler said.

Coming out of the courtroom, a handcuffed Wa Lone gave a defiant thumbs up to reporters and others gathered outside, saying we will face it (the verdict) with stability and courage.

Lone shook hands with supporters, telling them not to worry.

IMAGE: Relatives of Kyaw Soe Oo leave after listening to the verdict. Kyaw Soe Oo has a three-year-old daughter and Wa Lones wife gave birth to their first child last month. Photograph: Ann Wang/Reuters

We know what we did. We know we did nothing wrong. I have no fear. I believe in justice, democracy and freedom, he said.

Kyaw Soe Oo also said the reporters had committed no crime and that they would maintain their fight for press freedom.

Mondays ruling comes a week after a UN report accused Myanmars army chief of heading up a campaign of genocide and crimes against humanity against the Rohingya.

It also strongly criticised de facto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi for failing to use moral authority to stand up for the stateless minority.

Army-led clearance operations drove 7,00,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, carrying with them widespread accounts of atrocities -- rape, murder and arson -- by Myanmar security forces.
The Pakistan plan hinged on two critical assumptions: India would not be able to replenish supplies quickly to launch a counter-attack.

India could not respond in enough strength to dislodge the Pakistanis.

Both assumptions would be proved wrong due to the ferocity of the Indian response, reveals former RA&W Tilak Devasher in his new book, Pakistan At The Helm.

An exclusive excerpt:

IMAGE: Then Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif in Lahore. Photograph: John Moore/Getty Images

Prior to its actual implementation, the Kargil operation had been considered at least twice earlier and rejected on both occasions.

The first occasion was during the tenure of Zia-ul Haq.

The second time the operation was mooted was under the Benazir Bhutto government.

Benazir remembered a presentation made during her second term at the joint staff headquarters chaired by Air Chief Marshal Farooq Feroze Khan.

She had subjected the then director general of military operations Pervez Musharraf to a series of questions that also contested his political claim that by taking Srinagar, Pakistan would have won.

She opposed the idea on the 'concrete grounds that it was not a political reality to think that you could go into Srinagar and put a flag... because there were other international treaties and United Nations resolutions that could also be brought into force and a particular power situation in the world'.

The common grounds for rejecting the plan on both occasions was the same -- that it would lead to a full-scale war with India, something that Pakistan was not prepared for.

The third time, the planners were successful since it was Musharraf who was in charge.

What Musharraf sought to achieve by the Kargil intrusions was to threaten the main Indian supply route, National Highway 1A, linking Srinagar to Leh via Dras and Kargil.

This was in retaliation for India interdicting the Neelam Valley Road in Pakistan occupied Kashmir.

The whole plan hinged on two critical assumptions: India would not be able to replenish supplies quickly to launch a counter-attack even though Pakistan had no information on Indian reserve stocks in Leh and beyond; India would not or could not respond in enough strength to dislodge the Pakistanis.

Both assumptions would be proved wrong due to the ferocity of the Indian response.

The moot question in the whole Kargil fiasco was whether (the then prime minister) Nawaz (Sharif) was briefed about the operations and if he gave the go-ahead.

In his book In the Line of Fire, Musharraf writes that the army briefed the prime minister in Skardu on January 29, 1999 and in Kel on February 5, 1999 when Pakistan's 'defensive manoeuvre' was explained as a response to developments in Indian Kashmir.

'Nawaz was also briefed on March 12 at the Inter-Services Intelligence headquarters. This included a comprehensive review of the situation inside 'Occupied Jammu and Kashmir' as also along the Line of Control.'

'Subsequently, the DGMO briefed him in detail on May 17 and briefings were also held on June 2 and June 22'.

According to Nawaz, the briefing by the army in Skardu was about tourism while the meeting in Kel was in the open air. Tourists were roaming about in the area so there was no way a sensitive issue like Kargil could have been discussed.

Musharraf's assertion has also been sharply contradicted by Sartaj Aziz, the then foreign minister who was present during the February 5 briefing.

IMAGE: Indian soldiers during the Kargil War.

In fact, if what Musharraf says is true, Nawaz knew about the operation even before the Lahore bus yatra of Prime Minister (Atal Bihari) Vajpayee on February 20, 1999.

This would be an astounding act of betrayal and deceit on the part of Nawaz Sharif.

According to Sartaj Aziz, by March 1999, the mujahideen with the assistance of the Northern Light Infantry had occupied several heights in the Kargil-Dras sector.

It was only then that General Musharraf and his team decided to 'brief' the prime minister on March 12-13, 1999 about the operation, and that too only obliquely.

What the briefing did was to flag the increased 'mujahideen' activity inside Kashmir, especially in the Kargil-Dras sector and a plan to provide them stinger missiles.

Such activity was felt to have a beneficial impact on the Kashmir negotiations since India would be forced to accept the urgency of a solution.

Aziz is categorical that no mention was made about the role of the Pakistani army or paramilitary personnel or crossing the LoC to occupy any positions.

Sharif agreed to go ahead, but quite possibly his nod was based on his understanding that regular troops were not involved in the operation and it was only a question of putting pressure on India.

Nawaz would have undoubtedly been looking to cash in if the 'mujahideen' succeeded.

In an interview to Shuja Nawaz, Lieutenant General Ziauddin, the man whom Nawaz appointed as army chief to replace Musharraf in October 1999, made some interesting revelations that show Nawaz in a poor light.

According to him, it was at the May 17, 1999 briefing that discussions were held on the Kashmir operations in general and Kargil in particular.

He recalled Nawaz saying: 'This is a military operation. All I can stay is that there should be no withdrawal, no surrender of any post because that will greatly embarrass us.'

Hence, in Ziauddin's view, Sharif was fully in the picture from then on.

Musharraf also claimed that in 1999, Pakistan's nuclear capability was not yet operational -- exploding a bomb did not mean that a nuclear force could be deployed or a bomb could be delivered on a selected target.

Thus, 'talks of preparing for nuclear strikes was preposterous'.

Interestingly, neither Nawaz nor Musharraf mention the June 24-25, 1999 visit of the United States Centcom commander General Anthony Zinni.

He had been directed by the White House to lead a presidential mission to Pakistan to prevail upon Nawaz and Musharraf to withdraw their forces from Kargil.

In his meetings, Zinni told them: 'If you don't pull back, you're going to bring war and nuclear annihilation down on your country. That's going to be very bad news for everybody.'

According to Zinni, neither Musharraf nor Nawaz argued with this reasoning.

He realised, however, that the problem was the national humiliation that the Pakistan leadership would have to bear.

Thus, what was needed was 'a face-saving way out of the mess'.

A meeting with President (Bill) Clinton was put on the table.

However, Zinni insisted that the meeting would be announced only after a withdrawal of forces.

In a subsequent interview with Shuja Nawaz, Zinni made the following points: First, he confirmed that Nawaz 'finally came around and he ordered the withdrawal' and a meeting with Clinton was set up for July.

Second, it was Musharraf who encouraged Prime Minister Sharif to hear Zinni out since earlier Nawaz was unwilling to meet him.

Third, in the meeting with Nawaz, Musharraf did not utter a word.

Fourth, Zinni recalled stating that he needed evidence of Pakistani preparation to pull back before Clinton would finally agree to a meeting. He told Shuja Nawaz that this happened soon after his return to Washington.

IMAGE: A photograph issued by the Indian Air Force shows regions occupied by Pakistan-backed infiltrators in the Kargil sector on May 31, 1999. Photograph: Reuters

US satellites picked up movements indicating that the Pakistanis were getting ready to move back.

It was then that he gave the green light to the White House.

Clearly, according to Zinni's version, Musharraf was not only aware about the US suggestion for a withdrawal but assisted Zinni in making the argument for it before Sharif.

Additionally, he was also aware that the offer of a meeting with Clinton was dependent on agreeing to a withdrawal and Nawaz had, in fact, agreed to such a withdrawal in Musharraf's presence.

Some, like Gohar Ayub Khan, believe that Nawaz knew about the whole operation.

In an interview that he gave a Pakistani journalist that was later published as a book, Nawaz gave his version.

In it, Nawaz said he was not taken into confidence and when he was briefed, he was told that the army would not be involved, only the mujahideen.

However, in the operation, the entire Northern Light Infantry perished: 2,000 martyred and hundreds wounded; the death toll was higher than the 1965 and 1971 wars put together.

After such heavy losses, when he asked Musharraf about army losses, he said Indians were carrying out carpet-bombing, something they did not anticipate.

'I must tell you that when the Washington pact was concluded, the Indian Army had got Kargil vacated. They were advancing swiftly. It was I who saved our army from dishonour and disgrace.'

Nawaz also claimed that Musharraf came to the airport when he was leaving for the US, 'to plead with him to extricate the army from Kargil where the Indians had begun to make progress'.

Musharraf claimed that the ceasefire in Kargil was a military triumph.

In his words, 'The Kargil conflict emerged out of a tactical manoeuvre of limited dimensions but had significant strategic effects.'

However, to others, it was obvious that the Kargil operation lacked proper strategic planning.

As a senior air force officer put it 'his (Musharraf's) adventurous assault in Kargil had brought about an all-round embarrassment. Only Bill Clinton's intervention could help save us some face. General Musharraf still doesn't agree with this conclusion but there hasn't been a bigger strategic blunder in Pakistan's recent history.'

Instead of getting international support, all the major powers, including Pakistan's old ally China, asked Pakistan to revert to the LoC. Pakistan had to comply.

In the process, it was made obvious to the world that the so-called 'mujahideen' were being controlled by Pakistan.

Musharraf's tall claims about the Kargil operation contrasted harshly with the autopsies of dead Pakistani soldiers that revealed the presence of grass in their stomachs.

This indicated that the Pakistan army had left their soldiers on their own because of which they ran out of food supplies.

Excerpted from Pakistan At The Helm by Tilak Devasher, with the kind permission of the publishers, Harper Collins, India.
Freedom in the World 2018 - Swaziland

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Swaziland, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24af26.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Not Free

Aggregate Score: 16 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 6.5 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 7 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 6 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 1,300,000

Capital: Mbabane

GDP/capita: $3,048

Press Freedom Status: Not Free

OVERVIEW

Swaziland is a monarchy currently ruled by King Mswati III. The king exercises ultimate authority over all branches of the national government and effectively controls local governance through traditional chiefs. Political dissent and civic or labor activism are subject to harsh punishment under laws on sedition and other offenses. Additional human rights problems include impunity for security forces and discrimination against women and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) people.

Ratings Change:

Swaziland's civil liberties rating declined from 5 to 6 due to increased government infringements on religious freedom and freedom of private discussion.

Key Developments in 2017:

In January, the government banned the teaching of religions other than Christianity in public schools.

In August, the king approved amendments to the Public Order Act and the Suppression of Terrorism Act (STA) that nominally addressed some human rights concerns, but the laws continued to impose serious constraints on peaceful dissent and activism and introduced some new restrictions.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 1 / 40

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS: 0 / 12

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 0 / 4

The king, who remains the chief executive authority, is empowered to appoint and dismiss the prime minister and members of the cabinet, though they must be members of Parliament. Barnabas Sibusiso Dlamini, the king's half-brother, has served as prime minister since 2008, having secured reappointment following the 2013 elections, which were neither free nor fair. Dlamini had previously held the post from 1996 to 2003.

Traditional chiefs govern their respective localities and typically report directly to the king. While some chiefs inherit their positions according to custom, others are appointed through royal interventions, as allowed by the constitution.

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 0 / 4

Of the House of Assembly's 65 members, 55 are elected by popular vote within the tinkhundla system, which allows local chiefs to vet candidates and influence outcomes in practice; the king appoints the other 10 members. The king also appoints 20 members of the 30-seat Senate, with the remainder selected by the House of Assembly. All members of Parliament serve five-year terms, and because political parties are unable to participate in elections, all candidates run as independents. After the 2013 elections, which reportedly featured vote buying and other irregularities, the king named several members of the royal family to the appointed seats in the House of Assembly.

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 0 / 4

The Elections and Boundaries Commission (EBC) is not considered impartial. It is financially and administratively dependent on the executive, and its members are appointed by the king on the advice of the Judicial Service Commission, whose members are also royal appointees. The EBC chairman, Gija Dlamini, is a half-brother of the king. Traditional chiefs also play an important role in elections, as candidates effectively need their approval to run for office.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 1 / 16

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 0 / 4

Election to public office is based on 'individual merit,' according to the constitution, and there is no legal avenue for parties to register and participate in elections. Some political associations exist without legal recognition, but those that advocate for democracy, such as the People's United Democratic Movement (PUDEMO), are banned and subject to prosecution.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 0 / 4

The 2013 elections featured significant turnover in the House of Assembly, with most incumbents replaced by new members. However, the king's tight control over the political system  in law and in practice  leaves no room for the emergence of an organized opposition with the potential to enter government.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 0 / 4

Traditional chiefs, as the king's representatives, wield enormous influence over their subjects. In addition to vetting prospective candidates for office, they have been accused of ordering residents to vote or not vote for certain candidates.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 1 / 4

There are virtually no members of minority groups in the government, as most officials have some connection to the royal family or its broader clan. Women are also politically marginalized, and the authorities have not adhered to constitutional gender quotas for the House and Senate. Only one woman was elected to the House in 2013, and three were appointed, leaving the chamber well short of the 30 percent minimum. Ten women were named to the Senate, short of the required 13. Customary restrictions on widows in mourning  a period that can last from one to three years  effectively bar them from participating in public affairs.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 0 / 12

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 0 / 4

The king and his government determine policy and legislation; members of Parliament cannot initiate legislation and have little oversight or influence on budgetary matters. In March 2017, the House of Assembly rejected the national budget on the grounds that its spending priorities favored security forces over basic services for ordinary people, but members reportedly reversed themselves after the prime minister rebuffed the possibility of any changes.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 0 / 4

Corruption is a major problem, and implicated officials generally enjoy impunity. The Anti-Corruption Commission is perceived to be ineffective, with civil society groups accusing it of pursuing politically motivated cases and serving the interests of the prime minister. The commission, which reports to the Justice Ministry, lacks adequate financial and human resources and must consult with the minister on hiring.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 0 / 4

Swaziland has no laws guaranteeing public access to government information, and there is no culture of proactive disclosure of such information. Public requests for information are largely ignored in practice. The authorities tightly restrict access to data on spending by the royal family and the security forces.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 15 / 60 (-2)

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 5 / 16 (-2)

D1. Are there free and independent media? 1 / 4

A variety of laws, including the Sedition and Subversive Activities Act (SSAA), can be used to restrict media coverage. The state broadcaster is tightly controlled by the government, and the Swazi Observer, a major newspaper, is effectively owned by the king. Journalists often face harassment and intimidation, and self-censorship is reportedly common. In January 2017, an editor and senior reporter with the Times Sunday, sister paper to the Times of Swaziland, received death threats over a planned story on alleged misdeeds by security personnel.. In September, two journalists with the state television outlet were disciplined for covering a protest march by public servants seeking a wage hike.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 2 / 4 (-1)

The constitution guarantees religious freedom and bars discrimination based on religion. Rules requiring registration of religious organizations are not strictly enforced. However, members of the Muslim minority allege discrimination by officials and Christian citizens, and police reportedly monitor mosques. Non-Christian groups are also denied airtime on state broadcasters. Construction of religious buildings must be approved by the government or local chiefs. Christian education is compulsory in public schools, and in January 2017, a government decision banned all teaching of other religions in the public school curriculum. In May, firefighters expressed concern about pressure from superiors to attend Christian fellowship services.

Score Change: The score declined from 3 to 2 due to a government directive that prohibited teaching on non-Christian religions in public schools, reinforcing a pattern of official support for Christian churches and discrimination against non-Christian groups.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 1 / 4

Academic freedom is limited by restrictive laws such as the STA and SSAA. In 2017, officials at the University of Swaziland attempted to ban meetings of student groups, which at times clashed with police during protests over inadequate funding and living conditions. Ten students were arrested following protests in September.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 1 / 4 (-1)

Constitutional rights to free expression are severely restricted in practice. Security agencies reportedly monitor personal communications, social media, and public gatherings, and criticism of the king or other elements of the regime can be punished under laws such as the SSAA, the STA, and the Public Order Act. While the latter two were amended in August 2017, they remained highly restrictive, and in some cases the amendments added new constraints on expression. Under the revised Public Order Act, any criticism of Swazi culture and traditions or defacement of national symbols  including the king's image  can draw fines and up to two years in prison.

Score Change: The score declined from 2 to 1 due to amendments to the Public Order Act that prescribe fines and imprisonment for criticism of Swazi culture and traditions or defacement of national symbols.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: 2 / 12

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 0 / 4

Freedom of assembly remained heavily restricted in 2017 despite the August amendments to the Public Order Act and the STA. The amended Public Order Act defines a public gathering as any assembly or procession of 50 or more people, compared with 10 in the previous version, and removes controls on private gatherings. Nevertheless, authorities continued to monitor meetings and obstruct assemblies throughout the year, at times using batons and tear gas to disperse protesters.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 1 / 4

The operation of nongovernmental organizations has been inhibited by the broadly written sedition and terrorism laws as well as police monitoring and interference. Organizations that advocate for democracy remain banned. In September 2017, police blocked a prodemocracy meeting in the capital on the grounds that permission had not been granted.

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 1 / 4

Swaziland has active labor unions, but workers' rights are not upheld in practice. Although workers in most sectors, with the exception of essential services defined by the labor minister, can join unions, strikes and other labor activism routinely trigger crackdowns and arrests by the police. In February 2017, the police prevented a march to the Ministry of Labour by members of the Trade Union Congress of Swaziland (TUCOSWA).

F. RULE OF LAW: 4 / 16

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 1 / 4

Although the judiciary displays a degree of independence in some cases, the king holds ultimate authority over the appointment and removal of judges, acting on advice from a Judicial Service Commission made up of royal appointees.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 1 / 4

Safeguards against arbitrary arrest and detention, such as time limits on detention without charge, are not always respected in practice. Detainees are generally granted access to lawyers, though only those facing life imprisonment or capital punishment can obtain counsel at public expense. Lengthy pretrial detention is common, and politically sensitive cases often feature high bail levels. Fair trial rights are not respected by traditional courts, often headed by chiefs, that adjudicate minor offenses and use customary law.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 1 / 4

Physical abuse of suspects and inmates by law enforcement officials is an ongoing problem, and investigations into such abuse lack independence and transparency. Some prisons also suffer from overcrowding and other harsh conditions. Rangers tasked with combating game poachers have been accused of improper use of lethal force, and several deaths were reported during 2017, but the law grants rangers immunity from prosecution for such killings.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 1 / 4

Women's rights remain restricted in law and in practice. Both civil and customary law treat women as dependents of their fathers or husbands, and societal discrimination further impairs their access to education and employment. Residents who are not ethnic Swazis also face de facto discrimination. Discrimination against LGBT people is not prohibited by law and is widespread in practice. A criminal ban on same-sex sexual activity is not regularly enforced.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 4 / 16

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 1 / 4

The constitution guarantees freedom of movement. However, minority ethnic groups and political activists have faced delays in obtaining passports and other citizenship documents. Traditional chiefs regulate movement and residence within their communities and generally deny access to groups advocating human rights or democracy. Individuals who violate customary rules can face eviction from their localities. Widows in mourning are barred from approaching chiefs or the king and excluded from certain public places and activities.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 1 / 4

The constitution provides legal protections for property rights, but women generally face limitations under customary rules that subordinate them to male relatives. Widows in particular face expropriation by the deceased husband's family. Chiefs have broad authority to allocate and withdraw rights to communal land. Individuals can also face expropriation due to land claims by state-owned companies and powerful private interests, and constitutional guarantees of fair compensation are not upheld.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 1 / 4

Women's social freedoms are restricted by both civil and customary law, which puts them at a disadvantage regarding marriage, divorce, and child custody. Customary law allows girls as young as 13 to marry. Sexual and domestic violence remains extremely common, and any penalties for perpetrators are often lenient.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 1 / 4

Residents have some access to formal employment and economic opportunity, but the majority of the population lives in poverty. Forced labor remains a problem, with some chiefs compelling Swazis, including children, to work in their communities or the king's fields. Among other forms of child labor, girls are particularly vulnerable to domestic servitude and commercial sexual exploitation. In May 2017, the Observer reported on an alleged practice in which soldiers give food parcels to girls from poor rural families in exchange for sex.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
Freedom in the World 2018 - Slovakia

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Slovakia, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24b67.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Free

Aggregate Score: 89 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 1.0 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 1 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 1 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 5,400,000

Capital: Bratislava

GDP/capita: $16,088

Press Freedom Status: Free

OVERVIEW

Slovakia's parliamentary system features regular multiparty elections and peaceful transfers of power between rival parties. While civil liberties are generally protected, democratic institutions are hampered by political corruption, entrenched discrimination against the Romany minority, and growing political hostility toward potential migrants and refugees who could augment Slovakia's tiny Muslim population.

Key Developments in 2017:

The parliament adopted a constitutional amendment scrapping a series of controversial amnesties issued by former prime minister Vladimir Meciar in 1998, paving the way for investigation of the alleged 1995 state-sponsored kidnapping of a Slovak citizen and subsequent 1996 murder of a friend of a witness to the crime.

Two former government ministers were sentenced to 12 and 9 years in prison for corruption in a public procurement case.

A district court awarded financial compensation to a Roma woman on the basis of her forced sterilization in the 1990s.

Parliament overrode a presidential veto of legislation that significantly increased the number of number of adherents required for a religious group to be officially recognized and eligible for public subsidies. The measure was widely interpreted as a preemptive step against registration of Muslim religious societies.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 36 / 40

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS: 12 / 12

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 4 / 4

Slovakia is a parliamentary republic with government under the leadership of the prime minister. There is also a directly elected president with important but limited executive powers. President Andrej Kiska was elected in 2014; as an independent newcomer he gained 59 percent of the vote and defeated Prime Minister Robert Fico in a run-off.

Following elections, the president appoints the prime minister, who is usually the head of the majority party or coalition. Fico has served as prime minister since 2012.

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 4 / 4

The 150 members of the unicameral parliament are directly elected to four-year terms in a single national constituency by proportional representation vote. The last elections took place in 2016. The ruling party, Direction-Social Democracy (Smer-SD), lost its outright majority and formed a coalition with two other parties, including the nationalist Slovak People's Party (SNS). The vote took place peacefully and its results were accepted by stakeholders and certified by the State Commission for Elections and the Control of Funding for Political Parties (State Commission).

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 4 / 4

The legal framework is generally fair, and 2014 legislation that addressed some gaps and inconsistencies in electoral laws was praised by a 2016 Organization for Co-operation and Security in Europe (OSCE) election monitoring mission. However, electoral legislation leaves ambiguous whether meetings of the State Commission  which is tasked with oversight of party funding, vote tabulation, and electoral preparations  should be open to the public. In 2016 OSCE monitors were permitted to attend meetings, but they called for explicit regulations allowing the attendance of citizen observers.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 15 / 16

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 4 / 4

Citizens can freely organize in political parties and movements. In 2016, 23 parties competed in the year's elections and 8 of them entered the parliament.

In May 2017, the prosecutor general filed a motion with the Supreme Court to dissolve the extreme right People's Party-Our Slovakia (LSNS) parliamentary party, led by Marian Kotleba, a neo-Nazi and the former regional governor of Banska Bystrica. The prosecutor general argued that the party's activities violated the Constitution because it aimed to eliminate a democratic regime in Slovakia. LSNS had entered the parliament in 2016, after taking an unexpected 8 percent of the vote.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 4 / 4

There have been regular alterations of parties in government in the last two decades. In November 2017, elections in eight regions led to the replacement of four out of six Smer-SD regional governors by politicians from the center-right opposition.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 4 / 4

There are few direct limitations on political choices of citizens in Slovakia. The Catholic Church is influential, as are conservative NGOs backed by it.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 3 / 4

Nearly all relevant political parties have expressed bias against LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) people, who are poorly represented in politics. The Roma minority is poorly represented, and there have been reports of vote-buying in Roma settlements in local and regional elections.

Women hold one-fifth of seats in the parliament, and are underrepresented in politics generally. The government has worked to implement action plans aimed at achieving gender equality.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 9 / 12

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 4 / 4

Democratically elected politicians are the key agents for determining public policy.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 3 / 4

Corruption remains a significant problems, though in 2017 the conclusion of a case involving two former SNS construction ministers suggested courts' increasing capacity to address the issue. In October, the former ministers, Marian Janusek and Igor Stefanov, who had served in the center-right 2006-10 government, were sentenced to 12 and 9 years in prison, respectively; the court ruled that they had deliberately bypassed legal guidelines for public procurement in order to give contracts to a group of contractors close to the political leadership. It was the first instance of government ministers' imprisonment in Slovakia.

Separately, in an indication of increasing public confidence in anticorruption structures, results of a survey commissioned by the Slovak branch of Transparency International released in 2017 indicated that 40 percent of citizens indicated that they would report instances of corruption to authorities  the highest share ever recorded in the country.

However, senior officials continue to be implicated in corruption, and such claims sparked public demonstrations in 2017. In an effort to tackle increasing public concern over corruption, Fico in 2017 met representatives of several watchdog groups and floated the idea of establishing a new Protection of Public Interest Office to improve the protection of whistleblowers.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 2 / 4

The law obliges mandatory publication of all contracts in which a state or public institution is a party, but state institutions have at times refused to provide access to such documents. In late 2016, a former employee with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs came forward with allegations that ministry staff had sidestepped proper procurement procedures. In April 2017, the Public Procurement Office (UVO), following an inspection of the ministry, concluded that it had not violated laws on public procurement. However, Transparency International Slovakia, which publicized the allegations, claimed the UVO inspection was narrow and did not encompass many relevant contracts.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 53 / 60

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 15 / 16

D1. Are there free and independent media? 3 / 4

Media in general are free and independent, despite substantial pressure on journalists exerted by both from the government and from outlets' owners. Prime Minister Fico in 2017 openly called upon Smer-SD lawmakers to replace the director of public broadcaster Radio and Television of Slovakia (RTVS), whose five-term was up for reinstatement, saying the broadcaster was biased and covered his administration unfairly. The International Press Institute (IPI) criticized the remarks as an 'inappropriate and unwise' efforts to control the broadcaster. The incident took place as polling in 2017 showed that the public perceived greater independence at RTVS.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 4 / 4

Religious freedom is guaranteed by the Constitution and generally upheld by state institutions. Registered churches and religious societies are eligible for tax exemptions and government subsidies. In 2016, the parliament passed a bill that increased the number of adherents required for a religious group to be officially recognized and eligible for public subsidies from to 50,000 members, from 20,000 previously. The amendment  which came into force in January 2017 after parliament overrode a presidential veto  was widely interpreted as a preemptive step against registration of Muslim religious societies. The government, for its part, argued that it sought to prevent the establishment of a new religious group that existed solely to access public funds.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 4 / 4

Academic freedom is guaranteed by the Constitution and upheld by authorities.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 4 / 4

People may discuss sensitive or political topics without fear of retribution or surveillance.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: 12 / 12

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 4 / 4

Freedom of assembly is constitutionally guaranteed and upheld by state authorities, and peaceful demonstrations are common.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 4 / 4

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are free to operate and criticize the state authorities. However, in 2017 they came under pressure from Fico, who suggested in April that street demonstrations critical of his administration were organized by foreign-backed NGOs. Fico added that as a result, NGOs would have to disclose information about their funding, though no such measures were implemented by year's end. On other occasions, Fico indicated his government's willingness to work with anticorruption watchdogs.

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 4 / 4

Trade unions in Slovakia are pluralistic and operate freely.

F. RULE OF LAW: 12 / 16

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 3 / 4

The constitution provides for an independent judiciary. However, there is a widespread perception of a lack of transparency and abundance of corruption in the functioning of the judicial system. Eurobarometer in 2017 issued findings showing that among respondents in all EU countries, those in Slovakia has the lowest confidence in the independence of their judiciary, and that respondents had cited interference or pressure from government and politicians to be the most serious problem. In May 2017 elections to the Judicial Council  a self-governing body overseeing the operation of Slovakia's courts  none of the nominees of an independent judiciary reform initiative known as For an Open Judiciary (ZOJ) were elected, prompting some concern among jurists.

Separately, to increase individual responsibility of judges, disciplinary powers of the bodies tasked with monitoring judicial decision making have increased since July 2017.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 3 / 4

Due process usually prevails in civil and criminal matters. Individual judicial panels, however, occasionally release controversial decisions that critics suggest reflect corruption or intimidation in the judiciary.

In an unprecedented move supported by 129 out of 150 parliamentarians, the parliament adopted in March 2017 a constitutional amendment aimed at scrapping amnesties issued by former Prime Minister Vladimir Meciar. The amnesties, granted in 1998, relate to the 1995 kidnapping of the son of then-president Michal Kovac, allegedly by the state secret service, and the murder of a friend of a key witness in the case. The move was approved by the Constitutional Court. Police had charged 13 people in 1998 but the prosecution stopped due to the amnesties. At year's end there was some speculation that Meciar himself could face prosecution for issuing the amnesties.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 3 / 4

Police abuse of suspects is a persistent problem. However, some efforts have been made to tackle the issue, including attaching cameras to police uniforms, instituting changes to guidelines on the use of force, and implementing better psychological training for new police recruits.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 3 / 4

The Roma population faces persistent employment and other kinds of discrimination. Recent initiatives to increase policing of Roma settlements have prompted NGOs to express concern about racial profiling. Roma children in primary schools are regularly segregated into all-Roma classes, and many are educated in schools meant to serve children with mental disabilities. In May, a district court awarded financial compensation to a Roma women on the basis of her forced sterilization in the 1990s, only the second such ruling by the Slovak courts. LGBT people face widespread discrimination.

Women enjoy the same legal rights as men, but are underrepresented in senior-level business and government positions.

A party led by the neo-Nazi Marian Kotleba, the LSNS, sits in the national parliament as a result of the 2016 elections. The party's entry into the legislature raises concerns about increasing societal acceptance of aggressive and exclusionary nationalist rhetoric. However, the LSNS performed poorly in regional elections in November 2017, and Kotleba lost his post as regional leader in Banska Bystrica.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 14 / 16

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 4 / 4

The government respects the freedom of movement and the right of citizens to freely choose their residence, employment, and educational institution.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 4 / 4

In general, the government does not arbitrarily interfere with citizens' rights to own property and to establish private businesses.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 3 / 4

Personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, are guaranteed and upheld by the state authorities, but a 2014 constitutional amendment defines marriage as a 'unique bond' between one man and one women. LGBT partners do not have the right to conclude civil unions.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 3 / 4

Severe marginalization of the Roma harms their opportunities for social mobility.

Human trafficking is a problem, and mainly involves the transport of men, women, and children to countries in Western and Central Europe, where they are engaged in forced labor, sex work, and begging. The government had recently increased antitrafficking efforts, including by more frequently investigating and prosecuting organizers. However, sentences are sometimes light, and victim identification and services are inadequate.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
Freedom in the World 2018 - Sierra Leone

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Sierra Leone, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24b91.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Partly Free

Aggregate Score: 66 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 3.0 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 3 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 3 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 6,600,000

Capital: Freetown

GDP/capita: $588

Press Freedom Status: Partly Free

OVERVIEW

In 2018, Sierra Leone will hold its fourth national elections since the end of civil war in 2002. However, opposition parties have faced police violence and restrictions on assembly. Government corruption is pervasive, and the work of journalists is hampered by the threat of defamation charges. Other longstanding concerns include gender-based violence and female genital mutilation (FGM).

Key Developments in 2017:

In March, the police fired live ammunition into student protests in the city of Bo, resulting in one student's death.

In November, President Ernest Bai Koroma of the All People's Congress (APC) faced criticism for unilaterally nominating his party's candidate to succeed him, Samura Kamara, rather than holding a party election. The next presidential and legislative elections are scheduled for March 2018.

The government announced in September that it would monitor some social media during the upcoming elections, but would not set an outright ban, raising concerns about the curtailment of freedom of expression.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 28 / 40

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS: 10 / 12

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 3 / 4

The president is elected directly by popular vote for up to two five-year terms. President Koroma, of the APC, was reelected in 2012. The Sierra Leone People's Party (SLPP) filed a petition alleging numerous voting irregularities. Koroma and Julius Maada Bio, opposition candidate of the SLPP, later issued a joint statement recognizing the APC's victory. International observers determined that the election was credible. The next presidential election is scheduled for March 2018.

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 3 / 4

In the unicameral Parliament, 132 members are chosen by popular vote, and 12 seats are reserved for indirectly elected paramount chiefs. Parliamentary elections are held concurrently with the presidential election every five years. Despite the complaints made by the SLPP and some procedural errors, observers determined that the last parliamentary elections in 2012 were credible.

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 4 / 4

The electoral laws and framework are generally deemed to be fair, although restrictions that limit who can run for office have drawn criticism from international observers  non-African ethnic minorities and independent candidates cannot stand for election, for example. The National Electoral Commission (NEC), which administers elections, works impartially and independently.

In March 2017, Parliament passed the Provinces Act, which created additional districts, provinces, and localities, giving people greater electoral representation.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 11 / 16

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 2 / 4

Although people have the right to organize in different political parties, opposition parties and leaders have faced intimidation and harassment from the government and the ruling APC. The APC and SLPP are the main political parties, but 14 parties are officially registered.

Alie Kabba, a leader of the SLPP who was expected to run for the presidency, was arrested and charged with bigamy in 2015. Although critics alleged that his arrest was politically motivated, he was released on bail and was active with the SLPP during his trial, which took place in 2017. In 2016, 30 SLPP members were arrested for holding an unauthorized parade; police fired live ammunition and tear gas into the crowd. In August 2017 the Freetown headquarters of the Alliance Democratic Party (ADP) caught fire. Party chairman Mohammed Kamarainba Mansaray, who had been an outspoken critic of President Koroma and the APC, claimed that the APC was responsible for the blaze.

In September 2017, several high profile figures left the SLPP to form the National Grand Coalition (NGC). The NGC was officially registered in October after bureaucratic delays.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 3 / 4

Opposition parties can increase their support or gain power through elections, although the ruling APC used public resources to campaign in 2012, providing the party with an advantage. The APC won the last two presidential elections, in 2007 and 2012, and the SLPP lost one seat in the 2012 parliamentary elections.

The NEC announced in December 2017 that candidate nomination fees would be subsidized. Nomination fees were a point of contention during the 2012 campaign, as party leaders complained that the fees were excessively high compared to regional standards.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 3 / 4

Sierra Leoneans generally enjoy freedom in their political choices, although traditional and religious leaders are highly influential and have a significant impact on the political choices of voters. President Koroma was criticized by civil society leaders for choosing the APC presidential candidate, Foreign Minister Samura Kamara, unilaterally, rather than by a party election.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 3 / 4

Ethnic and religious minorities typically enjoy full political rights and electoral opportunities. Women's political participation remains a challenge, with only 14 of 124 parliament seats held by women in 2017, and only 4 of 23 ministries led by women. The husbands of women are known to influence their political choices.

Sierra Leoneans who are not of African descent are not granted citizenship at birth and must become naturalized citizens to be able to vote, and they are not allowed to run for elected office.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 7 / 12

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 3 / 4

The president and parliament generally determine the policies of the government, although most power lies in the executive branch. China has become a major donor, providing billions of dollars of aid since 2013, and has cultivated a close relationship with the Koroma administration. Civil society leaders have claimed that this closeness has allowed China to influence policymaking.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 1 / 4

Corruption remains a pervasive problem at every level of government. In recent years, the Sierra Leone Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC) has made some progress toward uncovering corruption among high-level officials, but it has a poor prosecutorial record, especially in trials involving President Koroma's friends, family, and political allies. The ACC itself has been accused of corruption by a leading nongovernmental organization (NGO). The government has used defamation laws to prevent witness testimony in corruption trials.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 3 / 4

Sierra Leone has an uneven record on transparency. As of August 2017, 29 public entities had yet to give financial records to the Auditor General. Legislation passed in 2016 gives public institutions three months after the end of the fiscal year to submit financial information.

The Right to Access Information Commission was created in 2013 to facilitate transparency and openness in government, but its effectiveness has been hampered by lack of funding and limited public outreach.

Sierra Leone continues to review and make public all mining and lease agreements, retaining its Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) compliance designation. It is up for review in 2018.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 38 / 60

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 12 / 16

D1. Are there free and independent media? 2 / 4

Numerous independent newspapers circulate freely, and there are dozens of public and private radio and television outlets. However, public officials continue to employ the country's libel and sedition laws to target journalists, particularly those reporting on high-level corruption. In September 2017, three reporters from the Salone Times and New Age publications who had criticized a potential increase in telecommunications prices appeared in court after being charged with libel. In October, a journalist was reportedly stabbed by supporters of the SLPP during a march.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 4 / 4

Freedom of religion is protected by the constitution and respected in practice.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 3 / 4

Academic freedom is generally upheld, but resource strains within the university system have led to strikes by professors. In March 2017, in the city of Bo, one student from Njala University was killed and several were injured during protests against a faculty strike over unpaid salaries and other benefits.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 3 / 4

Private discussion remains largely open. In September 2017, the head of the National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM), while speaking to the Sierra Leone Association of Journalists, announced that some monitoring of social media would be conducted during the 2018 elections, but no outright ban.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: 7 / 12

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 2 / 4

While freedom of assembly is constitutionally guaranteed, the police violently cracked down on several protests and demonstrations in 2017. In March, police fired tear gas into a students' demonstration in front of President Koroma's home and arrested 16 students. In September, the Malen Land Owners and Users Association (MALOA) was denied permission by the police to hold a public gathering.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 3 / 4

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) and civic groups operate freely, though a 2008 law requires NGOs to submit annual activity reports and renew registration every two years. In January 2017, Abdul Fatoma, a leader at the Campaign for Human Rights and Development International, was arrested for criticizing the government and the ACC in a radio interview.

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 2 / 4

While workers have the right to join independent trade unions, there are no laws preventing discrimination against union members or prohibiting employers from interfering in the formation of unions.

F. RULE OF LAW: 9 / 16

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 2 / 4

While the constitution provides for an independent judiciary, in practice the judiciary is prone to interference from the executive branch, particularly in corruption cases. A lack of clear procedures for appointing and dismissing judges makes these processes vulnerable to abuse. Corruption, poor salaries, and a lack of resources impede judicial effectiveness.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 2 / 4

Resource constraints and a lack of lawyers outside of Freetown hinder access to legal counsel. Although the constitution guarantees a fair trial, this right is sometimes limited in practice, largely due to corruption. Because of resource constraints, the average defendant spends between three and five years in detention awaiting trial. In May 2017, the judiciary developed new bail and sentencing guidelines to limit the amount of time prisoners spend in pretrial detention facilities.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 3 / 4

Detention facilities are under strain, with occupancy levels at 216 percent of official capacity as of September 2017. Prisons and detention facilities fail to meet basic standards of health and hygiene, and infectious disease is prevalent.

Extrajudicial killings by the police remained a problem in 2017, particularly against people peacefully engaged in protests. Police are rarely held accountable for abuses and killings. People can report abuse or ill treatment to the Police Complaints, Discipline, and Internal Investigations Department (CDIID) or the Independent Police Complaints Board (IPCB), although the effectiveness of these agencies is hindered by resource constraints.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 2 / 4

Members of the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community face discrimination in employment and access to healthcare, and the population is vulnerable to violence. Discrimination against LGBT people is not explicitly prohibited by the constitution. During its Universal Periodic Review (UPR) in 2016 by the UN Human Rights Council, the government only noted, rather than accepted, recommendations to guarantee the rights of LGBT people. Women experience discrimination in employment, education, and access to credit. Employers frequently fire women who become pregnant during their first year on the job.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 10 / 16

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 3 / 4

Sierra Leoneans generally enjoy freedom of movement after restrictions from the Ebola Virus epidemic were lifted in 2016. However, petty corruption is common and parents often have to pay bribes to register their children in primary and secondary school.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 3 / 4

Property rights are constitutionally guaranteed, but the laws on the books do not effectively protect those rights. Sierra Leone does not have a land titling system. Outside of Freetown, land falls under customary law and its use is determined by chiefs. The government has often failed to regulate the activities of international investors, exacerbating threats to property rights.

Laws passed in 2007 grant women the right to inherit property, but many women have little power to contest land issues within the customary legal system. In 2016, Sierra Leone reduced the cost of registering a new business.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 2 / 4

The law prohibits domestic violence, but gender-based violence remained a serious problem in 2017. Reports of rape and domestic violence rarely result in conviction, and the police unit responsible for investigating and prosecuting these crimes remains underfunded and understaffed. Women experience discrimination in marriage and divorce laws. Customary law guides many of these issues, and women are often conferred inferior status  women are often considered equal to children under customary law, and also considered the property of their husbands.

Female genital mutilation is not prohibited by law, and the practice remains widespread. The government's 2015 ban on 'visibly pregnant' girls from attending school remained in effect in 2017. In 2016, President Koroma rejected a bill passed unanimously by Parliament that would have legalized abortion at up to 12 weeks of pregnancy under any circumstances and up to 24 weeks under special circumstances. Child marriage remains a problem, with almost half of all girls married before the age of 18.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 2 / 4

Reports of economic exploitation of workers in the natural resource sector are common. Barriers to access remain for individuals who wish to seek redress for economic exploitation. While it is not common for individuals to take such cases to the formal legal system, there is little data on how such issues are handled.

Child trafficking remained a problem in 2017. Through August 2017, 698 cases of sexual exploitation of children were reported, and only 142 were referred for prosecution. Child labor is prevalent, despite laws limiting it.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
South Korea plans to send five senior officials to North Korea on Wednesday. National security adviser Chung Eui-yong, National Intelligence Service Chief Suh Hoon and Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung, who also prepared for the cross-border summit in April, will be part of the delegation laying the groundwork for a fresh summit later this month.

Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom said, "The delegation is the same as in March because the important thing is... continuity of negotiations with North Korea."

They will head to Pyongyang on Wednesday and return the same day.

The brevity of their trip suggests that most of the details have already been ironed out. But it is uncertain whether they will be able to meet with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un this time round, the spokesman added.


Freedom in the World 2018 - Liechtenstein

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Liechtenstein, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24bb3.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Free

Aggregate Score: 90 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 1.5 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 2 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 1 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 40,000

Capital: Vaduz

GDP/capita: $168,146

Press Freedom Status: Free

OVERVIEW

The Principality of Liechtenstein combines a powerful monarchy with a parliamentary system of government. The prince of Liechtenstein has an influential political role, which was enhanced by a constitutional referendum in 2003. Human rights and civil liberties are generally respected in the country.

Key Developments in 2017:

Parliamentary elections in February resulted in a victory for the ruling Progressive Citizens' Party (FBP), which formed a coalition with the Fatherland Union (VU). The right-wing populist Independents party, which ran by criticizing the political establishment as corrupt and out of touch and occasionally made appeals to xenophobia, gained a seat.

Significant progress was made with the implementation of anticorruption laws, including the adoption of a code of conduct for corruption prevention.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 33 / 40

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS: 10 / 12

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 2 / 4

Liechtenstein has one of the most politically powerful unelected monarchs in Europe. In a 2003 constitutional referendum, voters granted significantly more power to the monarch. The prince, as hereditary head of state, appoints the prime minister on the recommendation of parliament and possesses the power to veto legislation, dismiss the government, and dissolve parliament. Prince Hans-Adam II is the current head of state, but he handed his governmental powers over to his son, Hereditary Prince Alois, in 2004.

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 4 / 4

The Landtag, the unicameral parliament, consists of 25 deputies chosen by proportional representation every four years. Voting is compulsory under the law, but not enforced. International observers considered the 2017 parliamentary election to be credible. Four parties competed and Prime Minister Adrian Hasler's FBP won 35 percent of the vote and nine seats.

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 4 / 4

The electoral framework provides a sound basis for democratic elections. There are no provisions for election observation, but domestic and international observers are free to monitor the election process. Liechtenstein remains one of the few European countries without a legal framework on party finance  parties can spend unlimited money and do not have to disclose their sources of funding.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 13 / 16

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 4 / 4

There are no limits on the establishment or participation of political parties. There are currently four political parties in Liechtenstein. Parties must obtain eight percent of the vote to meet the threshold for representation in parliament  it is one of the highest electoral thresholds in the world, making the formation of competitive new parties difficult.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 3 / 4

The unelected prince wields significant political power in Liechtenstein, which limits the impact of legislative elections on power dynamics. However, opposition parties have the ability to gain power in parliament through elections, as demonstrated by the right-wing populist Independents party, which won four seats in 2013, its first election, as well as an additional seat in 2017. The Independents ran on a platform criticizing the political elite as out of touch and corrupt, and made occasional appeals to xenophobia. The ruling FBP lost one seat in the 2017 election.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 3 / 4

Although citizens are largely free to make their own political choices, the prince has the power to veto the outcome of national referendums and popular initiatives. The prince has occasionally threatened to use these veto powers, thereby exercising undue influence on such plebiscites.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 3 / 4

Approximately one-third of the population consists of foreign nationals who do not have political rights. Under Liechtenstein's restrictive naturalization criteria, one must marry a resident Liechtenstein citizen and live in the country for more than 10 years, or live in the country for 30 years, to qualify for citizenship.

The number of women in parliament declined in 2017 from six members to three, which led to calls for the introduction of a quota. In 2016, in a move that showed the government's commitment to representing women's interests, Liechtenstein signed the Istanbul Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence. At the end of 2017, the government was working to harmonize it with domestic law in order to ratify it.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 10 / 12

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 2 / 4

Although parliament sets the legislative agenda, the prince has significant political power with no electoral mandate. The prince can dismiss the government and parliament, veto legislation, call referendums, and nominate judges.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 4 / 4

Anticorruption laws are effectively implemented, and levels of corruption are reportedly low. In a 2017 evaluation report, the Council of Europe's Group of States against Corruption (GRECO) applauded Liechtenstein for the implementation of anticorruption measures, including the adoption of a code of conduct for corruption prevention.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 4 / 4

Although there is no constitutional guarantee of access to information, laws are in place to provide for government transparency, which are largely respected in practice. The government has made efforts in recent years to increase transparency in the banking sector.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 57 / 60 (-1)

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 16 / 16

D1. Are there free and independent media? 4 / 4

The constitution guarantees freedom of the press, which is respected in practice. Liechtenstein has one private television station, one public radio station, and two main newspapers that are owned by the two major political parties. The media lacks pluralism, but citizens do have access to foreign broadcasting, mostly from Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 4 / 4

Religious freedom is constitutionally guaranteed and protected in practice. The constitution establishes Roman Catholicism as the state religion. Catholic or Protestant education is mandatory in all primary schools, but exemptions are routinely granted. Islamic religious classes have been offered in some primary schools since 2008. All religious groups are tax-exempt.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 4 / 4

Academic freedom is largely respected, with no restrictions from state or nonstate actors.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 4 / 4

The law guarantees freedom of expression, but prohibits public insults directed against a race or ethnic group. There are no restrictions on internet access or online communication.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS : 12 / 12

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 4 / 4

The constitution guarantees freedom of assembly, and this right is respected in practice.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 4 / 4

Domestic and international nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are able to function freely. The government largely cooperates with NGOs and is receptive to their viewpoints.

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 4 / 4

The law facilitates the formation of trade unions and collective bargaining, and the principality has one small trade union. A 2008 law gives civil servants the right to strike.

F. RULE OF LAW: 14 / 16

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 3 / 4

The judiciary is independent and impartial, but the 2003 constitutional referendum gave the prince the power to appoint judges, meaning that the judicial appointment process lacks a key element of democratic accountability. The appointments of ad hoc judges, who often serve for a short time, are not publicly announced.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 4 / 4

The constitution provides for the right to a fair trial, and the rights of defendants are usually respected. Most trials in 2017 were public and defendants were considered innocent until proven guilty.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 4 / 4

People in Liechtenstein are largely free from the illegitimate use of physical force, as well as war and insurgencies.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 3 / 4

In 2015, the European Commission against Racism and Intolerance reiterated its recommendation to abrogate specific sections of the Law on Foreigners, which allow for the withdrawal of a permanent residency permit if the foreign national is highly dependent on social welfare.

Despite antidiscrimination laws, women, particularly Muslim women, experience employment discrimination. LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) individuals face social stigma, and according to a leading human rights group, often do not disclose their orientation out of fear of discrimination.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 15 / 16 (-1)

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 4 / 4

There are no restrictions on the freedom of movement in Liechtenstein.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 4 / 4

There are no undue restrictions on the right to own property or to establish a private business for residents. Non-residents are not allowed to establish a business in Liechtenstein, but prospective business owners exploit loopholes to work around the law.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 3 / 4 (-1)

Same-sex registered partnerships are legal, but in a 2016 speech, Prince Hans-Adam II announced his opposition to adoption rights for same-sex couples. At the end of 2017, single LGBT people could adopt children, but same-sex couples could not.

Domestic violence and spousal rape are illegal in Liechtenstein and authorities effectively prosecute offenders and protect victims. Abortion is illegal with only a few exceptions  a 2011 referendum to legalize it was defeated by voters.

Score change: The score declined from 4 to 3 because same-sex couples continue to face restrictions on their ability to adopt children.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 4 / 4

Liechtenstein is largely free from economic exploitation and human trafficking. Despite its relative wealth, poverty is still a persistent issue in Liechtenstein, particularly in immigrant communities. Immigrants often struggle to find jobs and social mobility for immigrant communities is limited.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
Freedom in the World 2018 - Guinea-Bissau

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Guinea-Bissau, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24c1a.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Partly Free

Aggregate Score: 41 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 5.0 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 5 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 5 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 1,900,000

Capital: Bissau

GDP/capita: $585

Press Freedom Status: Partly Free

OVERVIEW

Guinea-Bissau's 2014 elections moved the country back toward democratic governance after a 2012 military coup. Since then, however, the political system has been paralyzed by divisions between the president and the parliament, and within the ruling party. The crisis has contributed to restrictions on the media and freedom of assembly. Corruption is a major problem that has been exacerbated by the criminal activities of international drug traffickers.

Key Developments in 2017:

Umaro Sissoco Embalo, the prime minister appointed by President Jose Mario Vaz in November 2016, remained in office throughout the year, but he lacked the support of the African Party for the Independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cabo Verde (PAIGC), which won a majority in the parliament in 2014. The ongoing rift prevented the legislature from convening and approving a budget.

Demonstrators protesting against the political crisis assembled several times during the year, in some cases triggering clashes with police or government attempts to prohibit such gatherings.

In June, the authorities suspended two Portuguese state broadcasters, citing noncompliance with a bilateral media cooperation agreement; observers raised suspicions that the government objected to the outlets' coverage of the political crisis. In September, employees at Guinea-Bissau's state-run television station complained of censorship.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 16 / 40

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS: 7 / 12

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 2 / 4

The president is elected through a two-round voting system for a term of five years. The prime minister is appointed by the president 'in accordance with the election results' after consulting with the parliamentary parties, and the government must be dissolved if the parliament rejects its proposed budget.

In the 2014 presidential election, Jose Mario Vaz of the PAIGC took 61.9 percent of the second-round vote, defeating independent Nuno Gomes Nabiam, who took 38.08 percent. The election was considered largely free and fair. However, Vaz's 2015 dismissal of PAIGC leader Domingos Simoes Pereira as prime minister touched off a political crisis. A series of subsequent governments appointed by Vaz failed to secure parliamentary approval. Prime Minister Sissoco, appointed in November 2016, remained in office throughout 2017, but he had the support only of the minority Party for Social Renovation (PRS) and a group of 15 PAIGC dissidents. In September 2017, the UN Security Council urged Vaz and other leaders to implement the 2016 Conakry Agreement, which called for an inclusive government led by a consensus prime minister.

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 3 / 4

Members of the 102-seat National People's Assembly are elected by popular vote for four-year terms. In the 2014 elections, the PAIGC took 55 seats and was allocated two additional seats for diaspora representation, bringing its total to 57. The PRS secured 41 seats, the Party for Democratic Convergence (PDC) took two seats, and the Party for a New Democracy (PND) and the Union for Change (UM) won one seat each.

Monitoring groups and local human rights organizations reported some instances of intimidation or beatings of election officials and candidates during the election period. One PRS candidate for the legislature was reportedly kidnapped by unknown armed assailants. Voting was otherwise relatively peaceful and transparent, and the legislative elections were considered largely free and fair by international observers.

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 2 / 4

There are some problems with the country's electoral laws and framework, including weak controls on campaign spending and vote buying and a lack of legal provisions for domestic poll observers. The 2014 elections were delayed in part due to a lack of funding.

As a result of the continued political impasse in 2017, the parliament was unable to appoint new members of the National Electoral Commission, whose incumbents' mandates expired in June. Moreover, the president had yet to set a date for parliamentary elections due in 2018, and in December 2017 he suggested holding them in 2019 to coincide with the presidential vote.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 8 / 16

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 3 / 4

Dozens of political parties are active in Guinea-Bissau, and 15 of them competed in the 2014 legislative elections. The political crisis has led to some instances of violence and intimidation among partisan groups. In October 2017, clashes between supporters of the rival PAIGC factions broke out when the dissidents' group tried to submit a petition at the party's headquarters, resulting in a small number of injuries.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 2 / 4

Guinea-Bissau has a limited record of democratic power transfers between rival political parties, as the PAIGC or military rulers have governed for most of the period since independence. In 2014, Vaz succeeded an independent serving as acting president in the wake of the 2012 coup. Opposition forces had a realistic chance of increasing their representation in the 2018 legislative elections if the current political impasse could be resolved in time to allow them to go forward.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 1 / 4

The military has apparently refrained from interfering in politics under its current commander, Biague Nan Tan, but the threat of an intervention has not entirely receded. The choices of voters and politicians continue to be influenced by corruption and patronage networks. Organized crime linked to drug trafficking has contributed to the county's political instability in recent decades.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 2 / 4

Women enjoy equal political rights, but their participation is limited in practice by cultural obstacles, and they are underrepresented in leadership positions. Just 14 women won seats in the last parliamentary elections. Ethnicity plays a role in politics, with one of the larger groups, the Balanta, traditionally dominating the military and casting votes for the PRS.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 1 / 12

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 1 / 4

Governance has been impaired by the political crisis that began in 2015. The constitutional legitimacy of the current prime minster and cabinet remained in doubt during 2017, and the legislature had not convened since January 2016. While the Permanent Commission of the National Assembly continued to meet, full sessions to vote on government proposals, including the budget, had not been held.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 0 / 4

Corruption is pervasive, including among senior government figures. Both military and civilian officials have been accused of involvement in the illegal drug trade. Critics of past corruption investigations targeting former high-ranking officials have argued that they were politically motivated.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 0 / 4

There are no effective legal provisions to facilitate public access to government information, and government officials do not disclose their personal financial information as required by law. The political impasse and related parliamentary dysfunction have further obstructed oversight of government spending in recent years.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 25 / 60 (+1)

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 10 / 16

D1. Are there free and independent media? 1 / 4

The constitution provides for freedom of the press, but it is often restricted in practice, with journalists regularly facing harassment and intimidation. In June 2017, Vaz asked journalists to avoid writing negative stories about the country. In the same month, Portugal's state radio and television outlets (RDP and RTP) were suspended from broadcasting in Guinea-Bissau; the government claimed that a bilateral agreement on media cooperation had not been followed, but critics of the move argued that it was motivated by the government's perception that the outlets had provided biased coverage of the political situation. In September, employees of Guinea-Bissau's state-run television station issued a letter denouncing censorship at the broadcaster.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 3 / 4

Religious freedom is legally protected and usually respected in practice. Government licensing requirements are not onerous and often disregarded. Some Muslims have reportedly raised concerns about the influence of foreign imams who preach a more rigorous or austere form of Islam.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 3 / 4

Academic freedom is guaranteed and generally upheld, though the education system is poor in terms of access, quality, and basic resources.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 3 / 4

Individuals are relatively free to express their views on political topics in the private and social sphere, though some more public figures have faced arrest or charges in retaliation for their remarks in recent years. In June 2017, prominent PAIGC member Manuel 'Manecas' dos Santos was arrested and held for 24 hours without charges after stating in an interview in April that the political crisis might lead to a coup. In September, Prime Minister Sissoco declared that anyone who insults the president, prime minister, or leader of the parliament would be arrested.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: 6 / 12 (+1)

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 1 / 4

Freedom of assembly is frequently restricted. The authorities repeatedly interfered with demonstrations by groups opposed to the political crisis or the president during 2017, either by attempting to ban planned events or by forcibly dispersing assemblies. In April 2017, for example, police used tear gas against peaceful protesters and detained several activists. In June, the government prohibited two civil society organizations from holding planned protests. Clashes between protesters and police in May and November led to a number of injuries and arrests.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 2 / 4

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are generally able to operate, but they sometimes face intimidation and other obstacles. In July 2017, the offices of a human rights dialogue group (Casa dos Direitos) was surrounded by 100 police officers as it prepared to hold a press conference, drawing criticism from other human rights groups.

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 3 / 4 (+1)

Workers are allowed to form and join independent trade unions, but few work in the wage-earning formal sector. Private employers sometimes engage in improper interference with union organizing and other activities. The right to strike is protected, and government workers frequently exercise this right. Among other such actions during 2017, teachers' unions went on strike over pay and working conditions in May, and although an agreement with the government was reached in June, the unions mounted further strikes in the fall to ensure compliance with the June agreement and pressure the government to resolve outstanding issues.

Score Change: The score improved from 2 to 3 due to public-sector unions' ability to engage in vigorous negotiations and strike activity without major state interference.

F. RULE OF LAW: 4 / 16

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 1 / 4

Judges are highly susceptible to corruption and political pressure, and the court system as a whole lacks the resources and capacity to function effectively. In September 2017, the public prosecutor's office said it would not recognize a Supreme Court ruling on the office's power to impose restrictions on suspects under investigation, in this case a former cabinet official.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 0 / 4

Corruption is common among police, and officers often fail to observe legal safeguards against arbitrary arrest and detention. Very few criminal cases are brought to trial or successfully prosecuted, partly due to the limited material and human resources available to investigators. Most of the population lacks access to the justice system in practice.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 1 / 4

Conditions in prisons and detention centers are often extremely poor, and law enforcement personnel generally enjoy impunity for abuses. A number of cases of torture and beatings by police have been reported in recent years. In January 2017, a man accused of theft died after police allegedly tortured him in custody.

Because of its weak institutions and porous borders, Guinea-Bissau has become a major transit point for cartels trafficking illegal narcotics to Europe. The armed forces and some other state entities have been linked to drug trafficking. Criminal violence and homicides continue to pose serious problems.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 2 / 4

Women face significant traditional and societal discrimination, despite some legal protections. They generally do not receive equal pay for equal work and have fewer opportunities in education and employment.

There are virtually no effective legal protections against discrimination on other grounds, including ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity, though same-sex sexual activity is not specifically criminalized.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 5 / 16

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 2 / 4

There are few formal restrictions on freedom of movement, but widespread corruption among police and other public officials can limit this right in practice, as can criminal activity.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 1 / 4

Illegal economic activity, including logging, by organized groups remains a problem. The quality of enforcement of property rights is generally poor, and the formal procedures for establishing a business are relatively onerous. In October 2017, police and merchants reportedly clashed in Bissau after city officials ordered the expulsion of street vendors from a main avenue. Police were then accused of stealing goods from the merchants.

Women, particularly those from certain ethnic groups in rural areas, face restrictions on their ability to own and inherit property.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 1 / 4

Domestic violence is not specifically addressed by law, and it is reportedly common. Victims of rape and domestic abuse rarely report the crimes to authorities. The government, international organizations, and community leaders have worked to eliminate female genital mutilation, though nearly half of the country's women have undergone such traditional practices. Early and forced marriages remain common.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 1 / 4

Guinea-Bissau is one of the world's poorest countries, with most families relying on unstable employment in the informal economy or remittances from migrant workers abroad. Public services have deteriorated in recent years amid irregular payment of public-sector workers.

Boys are vulnerable to organized exploitation as beggars or forced labor in sectors including mining and agriculture. Girls are trafficked for sexual exploitation or domestic servitude. Government officials have been accused of complicity in trafficking activity, including sex tourism schemes in the Bijagos islands.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
Freedom in the World 2018 - Gabon

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Gabon, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24c3a.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Not Free

Aggregate Score: 23 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 6.0 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 7 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 5 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 1,800,000

Capital: Libreville

GDP/capita: $7,389

Press Freedom Status: Not Free

OVERVIEW

Although Gabon holds multiparty elections, President Ali Bongo Ondimba maintains political dominance through a pervasive patronage system and restrictions on dissent, having succeeded his father when he died after more than 40 years in power in 2009. Media coverage that is critical of the government can draw legal repercussions. The executive branch effectively controls the judiciary, and prisoners suffer from harsh conditions. Other significant problems include discrimination against African immigrants, marginalization of indigenous people, and legal and de facto inequality for women.

Ratings Change:

Gabon's political rights rating declined from 6 to 7 due to the postponement of legislative elections for a second time, which underscored President Ali Bongo's dominance of the political and electoral systems.

Key Developments in 2017:

In July, the Constitutional Court authorized the postponement of legislative elections, originally due by December 2016, for a second time, setting April 2018 as the new deadline.

In August, opposition leader Jean Ping called for a civil disobedience campaign, arguing that there was no other means of forcing political change in the aftermath of the deeply flawed 2016 presidential election.

In December, the National Assembly passed draft constitutional amendments that, if approved by the Senate, would strengthen the president's authority over the prime minister and cabinet; lawmakers rejected opposition calls to impose presidential term limits.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 4 / 40 (-4)

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS: 0 / 12 (-2)

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 0 / 4

The president, who is the chief executive authority, is elected by popular vote for seven-year terms. Presidential term limits were abolished in 2003. The president nominates and can dismiss the prime minister on his own initiative.

The August 2016 presidential election pitted incumbent Ali Bongo Ondimba against Jean Ping of the opposition Union of Forces for Change (UFC). A few days after the voting, the National Autonomous and Permanent Electoral Commission (CENAP) declared Bongo the winner with 49.8 percent of the vote, compared with 48.2 percent for Ping. In the province of Haut-Ogooue, a Bongo family stronghold, turnout was reported at a dubious 99.9 percent, with 95 percent backing the incumbent, even though turnout in the rest of the country was just 54 percent. Both Ping and observers from the European Union called for a recount, and the results were sent to the Constitutional Court for review.

Meanwhile, violent protests erupted, the parliament building was set on fire, and security forces stormed Ping's headquarters. Estimates of the death toll from the unrest ranged from fewer than 10 to more than 50, and hundreds of others were arrested, though most were later released or freed pending trial.

The Constitutional Court, headed by a longtime Bongo family ally, rebuffed an observation mission from the African Union during its deliberations on the recount results and ultimately validated Bongo's victory. The president was credited with 50.66 percent of the vote, leaving Ping with 47.24 percent. Ping refused to accept the results.

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 0 / 4 (-1)

Gabon's bicameral Parliament consists of a National Assembly, whose 120 members are elected by popular vote for five-year terms, and a 102-seat Senate, indirectly elected by regional and municipal officials for six-year terms. Bongo's Gabonese Democratic Party (PDG) claimed 113 of 120 seats in 2011 National Assembly elections, which were boycotted by some opposition parties over the government's failure to implement biometric technology for voter registration. PDG allies took five seats, leaving the opposition with just two. The PDG took 81 seats in the 2014 Senate elections.

The next National Assembly elections were due by December 2016, but the government postponed them until July 2017, citing a lack of funds. The Constitutional Court approved a second postponement that month, setting a new deadline of April 2018. The government claimed that it needed more time to enact electoral reforms.

Score Change: The score declined from 1 to 0 due to the expiration of incumbent National Assembly members' original mandates and the extension of their terms by more than a year.

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 0 / 4 (-1)

Gabon's electoral laws and framework do not ensure free and fair elections. CENAP, the Interior Ministry, and the Constitutional Court all play important roles in managing elections, and all are widely seen as loyal to the president. Even before the controversy and violence surrounding the 2016 presidential election, an Afrobarometer poll conducted in 2015 found that of 36 African countries surveyed, Gabonese citizens had the lowest level of trust in their electoral commission.

In December 2017, the National Assembly approved draft constitutional amendments that were developed without meaningful input from opposition groups, civil society, or the general public. The text was not made public during the legislative debate. Among other changes, the amendments introduced a runoff system for presidential elections if no candidate wins a majority in the first round, granted the president authority to set state policy unilaterally rather than in concert with the prime minister and cabinet, and required ministers to take an oath of allegiance to the president. Lawmakers rejected opposition proposals including the imposition of presidential term limits. The amendments were awaiting passage by the Senate at year's end.

Score Change: The score declined from 1 to 0 due to constitutional amendments that were adopted in an opaque manner by a National Assembly whose elected mandate had expired.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 2 / 16 (-1)

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 1 / 4

The PDG, which has retained power since it was formed in 1968, holds a dominant position in Gabon's nominally multiparty system. The country's opposition parties are fragmented, and many are spinoffs of the PDG. Ping himself is Bongo's former brother-in-law and a former foreign minister. In 2017, the authorities reportedly denied opposition parties permits for public gatherings, arrested participants in largely peaceful opposition protests, and incarcerated opposition leaders. Bertrand Zibi Abeghe, a former PDG member who campaigned against Bongo in 2016, was arrested that August and remained in prison through 2017. Among other cases during the year, security forces arrested Alain Djally, an aide to Ping, in April; he was provisionally released in June.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 0 / 4

In light of the PDG's decades-old monopoly on the executive branch, the opposition's tiny presence in the legislature, and the outcome of the deeply flawed 2016 presidential vote, there is no realistic opportunity for the opposition to gain power through elections. In August 2017, Ping called for a campaign of civil disobedience, arguing that he had exhausted all institutional remedies against what he maintained was an illegitimate election result.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 0 / 4 (-1)

The Bongo family and its associates have acquired enormous wealth and control over the economy after decades in power. These resources are allegedly used to maintain political patronage networks and engage in vote-buying activities during elections. The leadership also relies on security forces to intimidate opposition politicians and supporters, as demonstrated during the attack on Ping's campaign headquarters in August 2016.

Score Change: The score declined from 1 to 0 due to the ruling elite's continued use of economic power and control over state institutions to limit citizens' political choices.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 1 / 4

While both women and ethnic minorities formally enjoy full political rights, in practice they have little ability to organize independently and gain political influence given the dominance of the PDG structure. Key government and military posts are held by loyalists from all major ethnic groups except indigenous populations, which are poorly represented in politics and government. In the most recent elections, women won just 15 of 120 seats in the National Assembly and 19 of 102 seats in the Senate.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 2 / 12 (-1)

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 0 / 4 (-1)

Government policy is set by the president, who is not freely elected, and his senior aides. Parliament is dominated by the ruling party and provides little oversight of the executive branch. The democratic legitimacy of the National Assembly has been further undermined by the expiration of its original mandate in late 2016.

Score Change: The score declined from 1 to 0 due to the second postponement of legislative elections, which left the country without a duly elected National Assembly for the entire year.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 1 / 4

Relatively robust anticorruption laws as well as anticorruption institutions launched since Ali Bongo took office are not employed effectively, and both corruption and impunity remain major problems. Authorities have reportedly used anticorruption efforts to target regime opponents. In 2017, the government criticized a French corruption probe focused on Marie-Madeleine Mborantsuo, a Bongo family ally who serves as president of the Constitutional Court.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 1 / 4

The government operates with little transparency, particularly regarding expenditures. Between 2008 and 2014, the presidency's budget increased by 1,073 percent, while the entire government budget increased by just 64 percent. The presidency's budget is not subject to the same oversight as those for other institutions. High-level civil servants are required to disclose their assets, but the declarations are not made public. Gabon was delisted as a candidate for the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI) in 2013 because it submitted its validation report after the deadline. The constitutional amendments under consideration at the end of 2017 would reportedly strengthen the role of the auditor general, in cooperation with Parliament, in assessing public accounts and policy outcomes.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 19 / 60 (-5)

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 8 / 16 (-1)

D1. Are there free and independent media? 1 / 4

Press freedom is guaranteed by law and the constitution but restricted in practice, and self-censorship to avoid legal repercussions for critical reporting is common. After the 2016 presidential election results were announced, the government shut down access to the internet for five days; service was then restored for 12 hours a day, with social media sites remaining blocked. Full access was not restored for about a month. A new communications code that went into effect in January 2017 was criticized by activists for several provisions that restricted media freedom, including an obligation for media to promote 'the country's image and national cohesion.'

In June, the National Communication Council (CNC) suspended the newspaper Les Echos du Nord for two months based on allegations that it had defamed Bongo, Prime Minister Emmanuel Issoze-Ngondet, and the government as a whole. Also that month, journalist Juldas Biviga and union leader Marcel Libama were arrested for defamation following a radio interview in which Libama accused a prosecutor of abuse of power. Both men received fines and a month in jail. Landry Amiang Washington, an activist blogger arrested in August 2016, remained in prison at the end of 2017.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 3 / 4

Although religious freedom is enshrined in the constitution and generally respected in the predominantly Christian country, some heterodox religious groups reportedly have difficulty obtaining registration from the government. Security forces began monitoring Muslims in full face veils in 2015 after terrorists in nearby countries used such garments to disguise themselves.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 2 / 4 (-1)

Omar Bongo University, Gabon's main center for tertiary education, is state-run, and academic freedom there is tenuous. Professors are believed to self-censor to protect their positions and avoid conflicts with the authorities. The tense political atmosphere since the 2016 election has further dampened critical discussion. Police used violence to disperse student protests regarding university tuition hikes and other grievances during 2017.

Score Change: The score declined from 3 to 2 due to further perceived pressure on academic discussion of sensitive political issues in the aftermath of the 2016 election crisis.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 2 / 4

Ordinary individuals' freedom to express criticism of the government is limited by restrictive laws and deterred by the authorities' surveillance and detention of opposition figures and activists.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: 3 / 12 (-1)

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 1 / 4

Freedom of assembly is limited. In 2017, the government reportedly denied permits for meetings and repeatedly used tear gas and arrests to disperse unauthorized demonstrations. Parliament enacted a law in August that further limited the freedom to assemble, in part by making organizers responsible for offenses committed during a public gathering.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 1 / 4

Relatively few nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) are able to operate in Gabon. Freedom of association is guaranteed by the constitution, but the process for formally registering NGOs is onerous and implemented inconsistently, leaving groups vulnerable to accusations that they are not in compliance with the law.

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 1 / 4 (-1)

Workers have the formal right to join unions, engage in collective bargaining, and strike under certain circumstances, but authorities cracked down on union activism during 2017. In March, the government obtained a court order to halt a strike by the teachers' union CONASYSED that had begun in October 2016. The union was also barred from conducting any activities on the grounds that it had disturbed public order. In separate incidents in February, police reportedly used excessive force to disperse striking oil workers as well as students demonstrating in support of the striking teachers. Similar tactics were used against an Oil Ministry strike later in the year.

Score Change: The score declined from 2 to 1 due to increased repression of labor unions during the year, including a ban on activities by a teachers' union involved in a months-long strike.

F. RULE OF LAW: 3 / 16 (-3)

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 0 / 4 (-1)

The judiciary is accountable to the Ministry of Justice, through which the president has the power to appoint and dismiss judges. The country's highest judicial body, the Constitutional Court, is composed of three members appointed by the president, three by the head of the National Assembly, and three by the head of the Senate. The constitutional amendments under consideration at the end of 2017 would reduce the parliamentary appointees to three and give the Superior Council of the Judiciary  headed by the president and justice minister  three appointees, potentially increasing presidential control. All nine judges' terms would be extended from seven to nine years.

The Constitutional Court's handling of the 2016 election results and its subsequent approval of two lengthy delays in the National Assembly elections further demonstrated its lack of impartiality. Critics noted that Mborantsuo, the court's president for more than 20 years, had been a mistress of late president Omar Bongo, bearing him two children and winning appointment to another high court at age 28. She has been accused of amassing illicit wealth while in office.

Score Change: The score declined from 1 to 0 due the Constitutional Court's pattern of deference to the executive, most recently demonstrated by its approval of the government's request to postpone legislative elections for a second time.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 1 / 4 (-1)

Legal safeguards against arbitrary arrest and detention are not upheld by police in practice, and detainees are often denied access to lawyers. Lengthy pretrial detention is common. Cases of arbitrary arrests linked to opposition protests and activism have reportedly increased since the 2016 election crisis. The opposition figures detained during 2016 and 2017 have been denied due process. For example, Alain Djally was reportedly held in solitary confinement without access to his lawyer during his time in detention, and Bertrand Zibi Abeghe remained in detention with no trial date well over a year after his arrest. Both men were arrested without warrants.

Score Change: The score declined from 2 to 1 due to the denial of due process rights to political detainees and a reported increase in arbitrary arrests since the 2016 election.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 1 / 4 (-1)

Prison conditions are harsh, and facilities are severely overcrowded, with limited access to proper medical care. Torture is specifically outlawed by the constitution, but detainees and inmates continue to face physical abuse, including those detained for political reasons during 2017. Violent crime and ritual killings remain serious concerns.

In the postelection clashes of 2016, the authorities used indiscriminate and often deadly force against political opponents and protesters, causing a number of fatalities. Members of the security forces involved in these and other alleged abuses apparently enjoyed impunity in 2017.

Score Change: The score declined from 2 to 1 due to impunity for election-related deaths in 2016 and continuing physical abuse of political and other detainees.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 1 / 4

The country's large population of noncitizen African immigrants is subject to harassment and extortion, including by police. Indigenous people reportedly experience discrimination in the workplace and often live in extreme poverty.

Women have equal legal rights on some issues but face significant de facto discrimination in employment and other economic matters. Sexual harassment in the workplace, which is not prohibited by law, is reportedly common.

Gabon has no specific statute outlawing same-sex sexual activity, but bias against LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) people remains a problem. Those who live openly risk housing and employment discrimination.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 5 / 16

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 2 / 4

There are no laws restricting internal travel, but police often monitor travelers at checkpoints and demand bribes. Married women seeking to obtain a passport or travel abroad must have permission from their husbands. In September 2017, the government temporarily banned senior opposition leaders, including Ping, from leaving the country.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 1 / 4

Bureaucratic and judicial delays can pose difficulties for businesses. Enforcement of contracts and property rights is weak, and the process for property registration is lengthy. Bongo and his associates play a dominant role in the economy, impairing fair competition and favoring those with connections to the leadership.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 1 / 4

Personalized forms of violence are believed to be widespread, and perpetrators generally enjoy impunity. Rape and domestic abuse are rarely reported to authorities or prosecuted. Spousal rape is not specifically prohibited. The minimum age for marriage is 15 for women and 18 for men. About 22 percent of women aged 20-24 were first married before age 18, according to UN data.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 1 / 4

Wage standards and laws against forced labor are weakly enforced, particularly in the informal sector and with respect to foreign workers. Both adults and children are exploited in a number of different occupations, and foreign women are trafficked to Gabon for prostitution or domestic servitude.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
Freedom in the World 2018 - Costa Rica

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Costa Rica, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24c5a.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Free

Aggregate Score: 91 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 1.0 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 1 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 1 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 4,900,000

Capital: San Jose

GDP/capita: $11,406

Press Freedom Status: Free

OVERVIEW

Costa Rica has a long history of democratic stability, with a multiparty political system and regular rotations of power through credible elections. Freedoms of expression and association are robust. The rule of law is generally strong, though presidents have often been implicated in corruption scandals, and prisons remain overcrowded. Among other ongoing concerns, the LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) community and indigenous people face discrimination, and land disputes involving indigenous communities persist.

Key Developments in 2017:

The current president and other high-level officials from all three branches of government were implicated in the Cementazo corruption scandal, which involved Chinese exports of cement to Costa Rica. The events fomented a widespread distrust of the current administration prior to the 2018 elections.

Violence, primarily attributed to organized crime and drug trafficking, was a growing problem in 2017. The murder rate increased to 12.1 murders per 100,000 people, a record high.

The legislature delayed the passage of multiple bills to advance LGBT rights in the country, including a bill to legalize same-sex marriage and a bill strengthening antidiscrimination measures.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 38 / 40

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS: 12 / 12

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 4 / 4

The president is directly elected for a four-year term and can seek a nonconsecutive second term. Presidential candidates must win 40 percent of the vote to avoid a runoff. In 2014, Luis Guillermo Solis of the Citizen Action Party (PAC) was elected president in the second round of voting. Solis faced Johnny Araya of the National Liberation Party (PLN) in the runoff, and proceeded to win 78 percent of the vote. The election was considered credible by international election observers, including the Organization of American States (OAS).

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 4 / 4

Elections for the 57-seat unicameral Legislative Assembly occur every four years, and deputies are elected by proportional representation. Deputies may not run for two consecutive terms, but may run again after skipping a term. In the 2014 legislative elections, the PLN won the most seats, followed by the PAC. Legislative elections were held concurrently with the presidential election and were deemed credible by international observers.

The PAC lost control of the legislature in 2015 following elections for the chamber's directorate, which gave the opposition five of six seats.

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 4 / 4

A special chamber of the Supreme Court appoints the independent national election commission, the Supreme Electoral Tribunal (TSE), which is responsible for administering elections. The TSE carries out its functions impartially and the electoral framework is fair. In the 2014 elections, Costa Ricans residing abroad were allowed to vote for the first time.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 15 / 16

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 4 / 4

People have the right to organize in different political parties without undue obstacles. Power in Costa Rica has long alternated between the two dominant parties, the PLN and the PUSC. However, dissatisfaction with party politics and political scandals resulted in defections from the PLN in the early 2000s. PAC, formed in 2002 as an anticorruption party, has become a rising force in Costa Rican politics, winning the presidency and 13 seats in the legislature in 2014, while the PUSC has been damaged by corruption scandals. By the 2014 elections, it appeared that Costa Rica's traditional two-party system had collapsed, as nine parties won representation in the legislature.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 4 / 4

Power regularly alternates in Costa Rica, and opposition parties compete fiercely in presidential and legislative elections. Most recently, Luis Guillermo Solis won the 2014 presidential election as the candidate of PAC, an opposition party at the time. Parties along a wide spectrum of the political order are freely competing in the upcoming 2018 elections. At the end of 2017, there were many undecided voters, as the incumbent government is unpopular due to corruption scandals.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 4 / 4

Citizens' political choices are free from domination by unelected elites and foreign powers, though the Roman Catholic Church can be influential on some issues.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 3 / 4

In 2015, the legislature passed a constitutional amendment declaring Costa Rica to be 'multiethnic and plurinational.' However, indigenous rights have not historically been prioritized by politicians, and there are no indigenous representatives in the legislature. Women are represented in government  over 30 percent of seats in the Legislative Assembly are held by women, but this number is a decrease from the previous legislature. Few women are appointed to high-level government positions. The government has introduced some initiatives to increase women's political participation, such as the institution of gender quotas in order to ensure gender parity in political parties. The legislature has also passed several key bills to advance women's rights, including a 2016 law that ended discrimination against women in divorce proceedings.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 11 / 12

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 4 / 4

Costa Rica's freely elected government and lawmakers set and implement state policy without interference. However, legislative gridlock was an issue in 2017. The opposition continued to control the Legislative Assembly in 2017 and blocked President Solis's attempts to pass legislation that would address the country's worrisome annual fiscal deficits.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 4 / 4

Costa Rica has effective laws against corruption, which are generally well enforced. In a positive sign for transparency and accountability, President Solis compelled Labor Minister Victor Morales to resign in 2016 after the newspaper La Nacion reported that the minister's niece had been hired by the ministry in violation of an ethics code. In July 2017, Costa Rica became a member of the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) Anti-Bribery Convention to help prevent corruption.

Despite its functioning anticorruption mechanisms, nearly every president since 1990 has been accused of corruption after leaving office. In September 2017, President Solis was implicated in the Cementazo scandal, involving influence peddling related to Chinese cement exports to Costa Rica. In December, a legislative commission stated that close to 30 people, including the president and other prominent officials from all three branches of government, were involved in the scandal. Cementazo loomed large over the nascent presidential campaign in late 2017, and public opinion surveys have revealed that many Costa Ricans viewed corruption as a key issue in the 2018 elections.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 3 / 4

Citizens generally have access to government information. However, there are some deficiencies in the reporting of budgets to the public, including a lack of transparency in communicating the objectives of the annual budget. Senior government officials are required to make financial disclosures, but that information is not available to the public.

In April 2017, two executive decrees were signed with the goal of ensuring transparency compliance with the law across the government and facilitating access to information. In November, the legislature passed a law to increase efficiency and establish an information access office in every public institution.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 53 / 60

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 16 / 16

D1. Are there free and independent media? 4 / 4

Freedom of the press is largely respected in Costa Rica. Defamation laws are on the books, but imprisonment was removed as a punishment for defamation in 2010. A new freedom of expression and press draft law was presented to the legislature in April 2017 which further narrowed the definition of defamation.

There are six privately owned daily newspapers. Both public and commercial broadcast outlets are available, including at least six private television stations and more than 100 private radio stations.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 4 / 4

Roman Catholicism is the official religion, but the constitution guarantees the freedom of religion, which is generally respected in practice.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 4 / 4

Academic freedom is constitutionally protected and generally upheld.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 4 / 4

Private discussion is generally free and the government is not known to surveil the electronic communications of Costa Ricans.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: 11 / 12

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 4 / 4

Freedom of assembly is constitutionally protected, and this right is generally upheld in practice. A diverse range of groups, including LGBT and environmental organizations, hold regular rallies and protests without government interference.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 4 / 4

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs), including those engaged in human rights work, are active and do not encounter undue obstacles.

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 3 / 4

Although labor unions are free to organize, and mount frequent protests with minimal governmental interference, the law requires a minimum of 12 employees to form a union, which may negatively impact union rights at small enterprises. Some cases of employers firing employees who attempted to organize unions were recorded in 2017.

F. RULE OF LAW: 13 / 16

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 4 / 4

The judicial branch is generally independent and impartial. Supreme Court judges are elected by a supermajority of the legislature.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 3 / 4

Due process rights are provided for in the constitution, and they are protected for the most part. However, there are often substantial delays in the judicial process, resulting in sometimes lengthy pretrial detention  approximately 16 percent of the prison population consisted of inmates awaiting trial in 2017.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 3 / 4

Violence in Costa Rica has increased in recent years and in 2017 the country documented over 600 murders, or a rate of 12.1 murders per 100,000 people, a record high. The Pacific coast serves as a drug transshipment route and the government has reported that most homicides are related to organized crime and drug trafficking. There are reports of occasional police abuse, including violence and degrading treatment  confirmed cases are investigated and prosecuted.

Overcrowding, poor sanitation, insufficient access to healthcare, and violence remain serious problems in Costa Rica's prisons. Recurrent abuse by prison police has not been thoroughly investigated due to victims' reluctance to file formal complaints.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 3 / 4

The constitution outlines general equal rights for all people, but those rights are not always respected. Indigenous people, who comprise 3 percent of the population, continue to face discrimination, particularly in regard to land rights and access to basic services. Costa Ricans of African descent have also faced discrimination in access to healthcare, education, and employment.

Women experience discrimination due to entrenched gender stereotypes, which can limit their equal access to employment, health services, and the justice system. Executive orders prohibit discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation and gender identity and the government has expressed commitment to the protection of the LGBT community. However, law enforcement officials have displayed persistent discriminatory attitudes and practices toward the LGBT community, including attacks on transgender sex workers. Additionally, the legislature has delayed the passage of several bills that would advance LGBT rights in the country, including a bill that would strengthen antidiscrimination measures.

In 2016, a new law provided disabled people greater personal autonomy  prior to the law's passage, family members often had legal guardianship over some disabled people. A number of asylum seekers arrived in Costa Rica in 2017, and although the law entitles them to access public services, discrimination sometimes prevented them from taking advantage of those benefits.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 13 / 16

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 4 / 4

Freedom of movement is constitutionally guaranteed and Costa Ricans enjoy relative freedom in their choice of residence and employment.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 3 / 4

Property rights are generally protected, with the exception of intellectual property rights. Laws protecting intellectual property are not always adequately enforced in practice.

Individuals are free to establish businesses, and the business and investment climate is generally open, although the complicated bureaucracy can deter entrepreneurs.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 3 / 4

Despite the existence of domestic violence legislation, violence against women and children remains a problem and reportedly increased in 2017. In June 2017, in response to a public assault of a woman on a San Jose street that garnered national media attention, the National Women's Institute, a government agency committed to advancing women's rights, revealed a plan to combat violence against women and address the social and cultural factors that contribute to it.

A court decision in 2015 granted common-law marital status to same-sex couples for the first time, though the legislature has not legalized same-sex marriage. Abortions are illegal in Costa Rica except when the health of the mother is in danger. Health professionals' lack of knowledge of the law and fear of repercussions for performing even legal procedures has left many women without access to that right.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 3 / 4

Despite legal protections, domestic workers, particularly migrant workers, are subject to exploitation and forced labor. Employers often ignore minimum wage and social security laws, and the resulting fines for violations are insignificant. Child labor is a problem in the informal economy. According to a 2016 government report, over three percent of minors were employed.

Sex trafficking and child sex tourism are also serious problems. A law that took effect in 2013 established penalties for human trafficking and organ trafficking, as well as a fund for victims and prevention efforts. The U.S. State Department's 2017 Trafficking in Persons Report found that government antitrafficking efforts were improving, noting that antitrafficking funds were being disbursed for the first time and more trafficking victims were identified. However, there was only one trafficking conviction during the reporting period and the government did not provide adequate victim care services.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
Freedom in the World 2018 - Bosnia and Herzegovina

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Bosnia and Herzegovina, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24c7a.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Partly Free

Aggregate Score: 55 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 4.0 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 4 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 4 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 3,500,000

Capital: Sarajevo

GDP/capita: $4,584

Press Freedom Status: Partly Free

OVERVIEW

Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) is a highly decentralized parliamentary republic distinguished by a fragmented constitutional regime embedded within the Dayton Peace Agreement, which ended the 1992-95 Bosnian War. Politics are characterized by severe partisan gridlock among nationalist leaders from the country's Bosniak, Serb, and Croat communities. Corruption remains a serious problem.

Key Developments in 2017:

Milorad Dodik, president of the Republika Srpska (RS) entity, continued to question the Constitutional Court, and to suggest that the RS could try to secede.

In November, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia (ICTY) found former Bosnian Serb military leader Ratko Mladic guilty of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, and sentenced him to life in prison. The same month, the ICTY confirmed the sentences of several former Bosnian Croat leaders, and in December it shut down permanently after over two decades of operations.

In May, Sarajevo Canton authorities failed to issue a permit in time for a planned gathering of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) activists to take place.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 21 / 40

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS 7 / 12

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 3 / 4

The 1995 Dayton Accords that ended the civil war in Bosnia and Herzegovina (BiH) created a loosely knit state composed of two entities  the Federation, whose citizens are mainly Bosniak and Croat, and the largely Serb Republika Srpska  that operate under a weak central government. The role of head of state is fulfilled by a three-member presidency comprising one Bosniak, one Serb, and one Croat; each is elected to a four-year term, which the three presidents serve concurrently.

In 2014 elections deemed generally free and fair, Mladen Ivanic of the Party of Democratic Progress (PDP), Dragan Covic of the Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HDZ-BiH), and Bakir Izetbegovic of the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) were respectively elected to the Bosnian Serb, Bosnian Croat, and Bosniak seats of the tripartite presidency.

October 2016 mayoral polls were marred by violence and irregularities. Due to an ongoing electoral dispute concerning ethnic representation, local elections have not been held in the city of Mostar  the largest urban center in the Herzegovina region  since 2008. No progress was made on the Mostar question in 2017, nor were meaningful steps taken to ensure that scenes like those in 2016 would not be repeated in 2018.

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 2 / 4

The Parliamentary Assembly, a state-level body, has two chambers. The 15-seat upper house, the House of Peoples, consists of five members from each of the three main ethnic groups, elected by the Federation and Republika Srpska legislatures for four-year terms. The lower house, the House of Representatives, has 42 popularly elected members serving four-year terms, with 28 seats assigned to representatives from the Federation and 14 to representatives from the Republika Srpska. The House of Representatives elects the head of the Council of Ministers (equivalent to the prime minister), who leads the state-level government.

The SDA, HDZ-BiH, and Serb Democratic Party (SDS) dominated the 2014 general elections, which were deemed generally free and fair. Denis Zvizdic of the SDA was appointed as head of the Council of Ministers.

October 2016 municipal council polls, held concurrently with the mayoral elections, were marred by violence and irregularities. None were held in Mostar due to the ongoing dispute there.

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 2 / 4

Within the context of BiH's deeply segmented and fragmented constitutional regime, the Central Election Commission (CIK) administers elections with the help of municipal election commissions, which are sometimes the source of political party interference. The CIK is a largely ineffectual body, unable to act stridently without political support.

Conflicts over fair ethnic representation continue to surround aspects of the complex Dayton constitution and its implementation. For example, Bosnian citizens who do not identify as members of the country's Bosniak, Serb, or Croat 'constitutive peoples' remain constitutionally barred from the presidency and membership in the House of Peoples, despite 2009 and 2016 rulings by the European Court of Human Rights that the exclusion of members of other ethnic groups violated the European Convention on Human Rights.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 10 / 16

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 3 / 4

Political parties typically organize and operate freely, though the political arena in the Federation is generally limited to Bosniaks and Croats, while Serbs dominate politics in the Republika Srpska. While coalitions at all levels of government shift frequently, vast patronage networks controlled by governing parties dominate the country's politics, and reform-oriented forces have struggled to make meaningful breakthroughs.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 3 / 4

There are no legal barriers preventing opposition parties from winning power. However, expansive veto powers granted to the constitutive peoples and their representatives have allowed the dominant nationalist parties to shut out reformist and multiethnic challengers.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 2 / 4

The Office of the High Representative (OHR), which was created by the Dayton Accords, operates under the auspices of the United Nations and has the authority to remove elected officials if they are deemed to be obstructing the peace process. In recent years, the OHR has been reluctant to intervene in the country's politics.

Both Serbia and Croatia wield outsized influence in the Bosnian political sphere through their respective proxies; the Dodik government, in the case of Serbia, and the HDZ-BiH, in the case of Croatia. Two other foreign governments, Russia, and Turkey, have offered support to preferred candidates. Religious leaders are influential in all three ethnic communities.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 2 / 4

Political rights in BiH are in large part contingent on one's ethnic background and place of residence. Ethnic minorities including Jewish and Roma Bosnians are constitutionally barred from the presidency and from membership in the House of Peoples, despite the European Court of Human Rights rulings against those provisions. Serbs who live in the Federation and Croats and Bosniaks who live in the RS are also excluded from the presidency. Bosnian Croats argue that their rights to representation are violated by electoral laws allowing non-Croats a significant voice in the selection of the Croat member of the presidency and Croat members of the House of Peoples. Women are underrepresented in politics and government.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 4 / 12

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 2 / 4

Elected leaders are promptly seated, but their ability to implement legislation is limited by a number of factors.

Under the Dayton Accords, representatives from each of the three major ethnic groups, at both state and entity levels, may exercise a veto on legislation deemed harmful to their interests, which hampers policymaking.

The federal government is undercut by movements within each of BiH's entities for greater autonomy. In the Republika Srpska, hard-line president, Milorad Dodik continued agitating for greater autonomy in the wake of a 2016 political crisis that saw his government defy a Constitutional Court ruling in order to hold an unlawful plebiscite concerning a holiday commemorating the entity's founding in 1992. He additionally suggested in 2017 that the entity might rewrite its constitution in a manner he explained as allowing it to 'break away' from BiH, but which also would not contain 'secessionist tendencies.' Separately, Bosnian Croats continued their drive to modify electoral laws in order to achieve greater autonomy from Bosniaks in the Federation, but have been unsuccessful.

Croatia and Serbia have influence over policymaking through their allies in the HDZ-BiH and Dodik's Alliance of Independent Social Democrats (SNSD).

The influence of religious leaders can extend to policymaking.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 1 / 4

Corruption remains widespread and systemic, and enforcement of legislation designed to combat corruption is weak. When corruption probes are actually opened, they rarely result in convictions. In June 2017, Transparency International BiH said it had noted a significant decline in the efficiency of corruption jurisprudence in the country over the last eight years, and particularly in 2015 and 2016. Amir Zukic, the general secretary of the Bosniak nationalist SDA, was arrested in February 2017 on suspicion of a number of corruption-related offenses. In July, he was released from detention for the remainder of his trial, over the objections of the prosecutor.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 1 / 4

Government remains largely inaccessible to the public. Procurement awards are often made in secret and, according to a March 2017 report published by Mediacentar Sarajevo, a local nongovernmental organization (NGO), most public institutions do not comply with BiH's legal requirements related to freedom of information. Candidates for major offices are required to make financial disclosures, but the relevant laws do not meet international standards and the resulting disclosures are considered unreliable. Debate and decisions on matters of great public interest, including legislation and matters pertaining to EU accession, routinely occur during interparty negotiations that take place behind closed doors, outside of government institutions.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 34 / 60

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 10 / 16

D1. Are there free and independent media? 2 / 4

Freedom of expression is legally guaranteed but limited in practice. Journalists face harassment and threats as well as political pressure. In August 2017, the Institution of Human Rights Ombudsman of Bosnia and Herzegovina issued a report recommending that the country build a stronger legal infrastructure for punishing attacks on journalists. In September, police officers reportedly threatened members of a Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) crew while preventing them from filming a protest in front of the parliament building in Sarajevo; the treatment of the journalists prompted a protest by media workers in the city.

In general, the media situation is worse in the Republika Srpska entity than it is in the Federation. In January, Dodik blocked reporters from the CNN affiliate N1 from attending a press conference, and struck the network from the president's mailing list; the incident occurred just days after Dodik had publicly lashed out at an N1 journalist and criticized the network's coverage. In July, opinion writer Dragan Bursac was forced to flee Banja Luka and go into hiding after receiving death threats following his criticism of a planned rally in support of former Bosnian Serb military leader Ratko Mladic. Mladic later in the year was convicted of war crimes and genocide at the ICTY.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 3 / 4

Religious freedom is not subject to formal restrictions, but in practice the ability to express religious belief openly can be contingent on remaining in areas where one's own religious group dominates.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 2 / 4

Like most public sectors, the education system is wracked by corruption and clientelism, and curriculum is politicized at all levels of education. At some schools in the Federation, Bosniak and Croat students are divided into classes on the basis of their ethnicity, meeting in segregated classrooms despite attending school in the same building. Some Bosniak returnees in the Republika Srpska have sent their children to temporary alternative schools in protest of curricula they call discriminatory, and some Serb families have described discriminatory educational environments in the Federation.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 3 / 4

Free speech in BiH is generally protected from overt government interference. However, public reaction and peer pressure remain significant curbs on the discussion of sensitive topics. Media often report on 'controversial' social viral media posts by members of the public.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: 7 / 12

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 3 / 4

Freedom of assembly is generally respected in BiH, and peaceful protests are frequent. However, police at times have overreacted to public demonstrations. In August, police violently dispersed a peaceful protest against the building of a dam in the village of Kruscica. Separately, in May, Sarajevo Canton authorities failed to issue a permit in time for a planned gathering of LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) activists to take place. In the Republika Srpska, people are not allowed to assemble in front of public institutions.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 2 / 4

The NGO sector in BiH remains robust but is sometimes exposed to government pressure and interference. There have been reports of prolonged tax investigations by the Republika Srpska government into NGOs. Many organizations rely on government funding, posing a potential conflict if they seek to criticize the government.

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 2 / 4

Labor unions operate freely in the whole of BiH, although the general position of working people is vulnerable. The right to strike is legally protected, but labor law in the Federation erects significant barriers to the right. Enforcement measures of labor laws and their protections for workers are weak. The leading political blocs in the country have significant sway over unions.

F. RULE OF LAW: 7 / 16

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 1 / 4

The judiciary is formally independent, but very weak in practice, and the Constitutional Court continues to face challenges from Dodik in the Republika Srpska, and the HDZ-BiH in the Federation. The high-profile 2016 decision by Dodik to hold the Republika Srpska holiday referendum in defiance of the Constitutional Court marked a significant deterioration of constitutional governance in BiH, though it was one of dozens of disregarded Constitutional Court decisions. In August 2017, the Constitutional Court ruled that all military installations in the RS were BiH state property. Dodik criticized the ruling as politicized and other figures in the RS entity government indicated that they would ignore it. In January, the president of the HDZ-BiH joined Dodik in questioning the inclusion of foreign judges on the Constitutional Court.

The lack of a single, supreme judicial body and the existence of four separate court systems  for the central state, the Republika Srpska, the Federation, and the self-governing Brcko district  contributes to overall inefficiency.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 2 / 4

Guarantees of due process are inconsistently upheld. Access to adequate legal counsel can be contingent on one's financial standing. Police corruption is a problem, sometimes in connection with organized crime.

The process of prosecuting war crimes in domestic courts has been slow, with political interference and courts' lack of resources and capacity contributing to a backlog of several hundred cases. A push to reinvigorate the process was ongoing at year's end, but impunity for war crimes including killings and sexual violence continues.

In November, the ICTY issued a major ruling, finding Mladic guilty of genocide, war crimes, and crimes against humanity, and sentencing him to life in prison. The same month, the ICTY confirmed the sentences of several former Bosnian Croat leaders, and in December it shut down permanently after over two decades of operations.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 2 / 4

Harassment by police remains routine for vulnerable groups. Many prisons are run down or overcrowded, and detainees risk abuse by prison authorities. The thousands of active mine fields still in place following the war continue to pose a danger. Two civilians were killed and one was injured in mine accidents between January and September 2017.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 2 / 4

Discrimination against minorities is illegal but nevertheless widespread, particularly against member of the Romany minority. Bosniaks and Croats in the RS experience difficulties accessing social services. Members of the LGBT community face discrimination, harassment, and occasional physical attacks, and authorities fail to investigate and prosecute crimes against LGBT individuals adequately. People displaced during the war but who later returned to their homes, face discrimination in employment and housing in regions that are not dominated by their own ethnic group. Women are legally entitled to full equality with men but face discrimination in the workplace.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 10 / 16

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 3 / 4

The law protects freedom of movement and this right is generally upheld in practice. However, land mines threaten movement in some areas. Corruption can hamper people's ability to freely choose their place of employment.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 2 / 4

Widespread corruption and patronage remain major barriers to free enterprise in BiH.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 3 / 4

Sexual harassment is common. Domestic violence remains a serious concern but the government has launched several initiatives to combat gender-based violence. Individuals are largely free to marry and dress as they please.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 2 / 4

According to the U.S. State Department's 2018 Trafficking in Persons Report, men, women, and children are subject to trafficking for the purposes of prostitution and forced labor, with Romani children particularly vulnerable to forced begging, and forced marriages that amount to sexual servitude. According to the report, the government was making efforts towards prosecuting perpetrators, protecting victims, and preventing trafficking, though its efforts in the first two areas decreased somewhat in 2017.

Patronage and clientelism continue to adversely affect hiring practices and contribute to de facto restrictions on labor markets in BiH.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
Freedom in the World 2018 - Bhutan

Publisher Freedom House Publication Date 27 August 2018 Cite as Freedom House, Freedom in the World 2018 - Bhutan, 27 August 2018, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/5b8d24c9a.html [accessed 3 November 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.

Freedom Status: Partly Free

Aggregate Score: 55 (0 = Least Free, 100 = Most Free)

Freedom Rating: 3.5 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Political Rights: 3 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Civil Liberties: 4 (1 = Most Free, 7 = Least Free)

Quick Facts

Population: 800,000

Capital: Thimphu

GDP/capita: $2,615

Press Freedom Status: Partly Free

OVERVIEW

Bhutan is a constitutional monarchy that has made significant strides toward becoming a consolidated democracy over the past decade. It has held credible elections and undergone a transfer of power to an opposition party. Ongoing problems include media self-censorship and discrimination against Nepali-speaking and non-Buddhist minorities.

Key Developments in 2017:

By year's end, a freedom of information bill first passed by the National Assembly in 2014 had still not received final approval.

Early in the year, one of Bhutan's most famous journalists left the country for Nepal after an influential businessman pressed a defamation case against her, though the suit was withdrawn just before reaching a verdict.

In June, the head of state-run Bhutan Telecom and 11 other people were charged with graft in a case related to land acquisition.

POLITICAL RIGHTS: 28 / 40

A. ELECTORAL PROCESS: 10 / 12

A1. Was the current head of government or other chief national authority elected through free and fair elections? 3 / 4

King Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck formally succeeded his father in 2008. The monarch is head of state, appoints a number of high officials in consultation with other bodies, and retains a waning degree of influence over ministerial positions. The king nominates the leader of the majority party in the elected National Assembly to serve as prime minister. Tshering Tobgay took office as prime minister in 2013 after parliamentary elections that were viewed as credible by international observers.

A2. Were the current national legislative representatives elected through free and fair elections? 4 / 4

The constitution provides for a bicameral parliament, with a 25-seat upper house, the National Council, and a 47-seat lower house, the National Assembly. Members of both bodies serve five-year terms. The king appoints five members of the nonpartisan National Council, and the remaining 20 are popularly elected as independents; the National Assembly is entirely elected. In the 2013 National Assembly elections, the opposition People's Democratic Party (PDP) won 32 seats. The Druk Peace and Prosperity Party (DPT), which had dominated the first national elections in 2008, won the remaining 15 seats. International observers deemed the 2013 elections credible.

A3. Are the electoral laws and framework fair, and are they implemented impartially by the relevant election management bodies? 3 / 4

Elections are administered by the Election Commission of Bhutan (ECB). The commission is thought to act impartially, although some of its regulations regarding which parties can compete in elections are controversial. In 2013, the ECB was criticized for disqualifying the Bhutan Kuen-Nyam Party (BKP) from competing in the primary elections because it did not produce candidates in two local constituencies.

B. POLITICAL PLURALISM AND PARTICIPATION: 10 / 16

B1. Do the people have the right to organize in different political parties or other competitive political groupings of their choice, and is the system free of undue obstacles to the rise and fall of these competing parties or groupings? 3 / 4

Citizens must receive government approval to form political parties. Obtaining approval is difficult, and the government has denied registration to several newly formed parties. The Bhutan Happiness Party, formed in 2017, had not yet been approved by the government at the end of the year. Bhutan has two officially registered major parties, the PDP and the DPT, and three officially registered smaller parties.

B2. Is there a realistic opportunity for the opposition to increase its support or gain power through elections? 4 / 4

The opposition has a realistic chance to increase its support through elections. In 2013, the PDP, then the main opposition party, won the parliamentary elections with 68 percent of the vote.

B3. Are the people's political choices free from domination by the military, foreign powers, religious hierarchies, economic oligarchies, or any other powerful group that is not democratically accountable? 2 / 4

India still has a strong influence over the choices of Bhutanese voters and politicians. In 2013, just before the parliamentary elections, India withdrew subsidies for oil and kerosene. Many observers viewed the move as retaliation for the DPT government's closer ties to China and an attempt to swing the elections toward the PDP.

The royal family also retains significant influence. Most members of the political elite, including members of parliament, steadfastly support the king and are hesitant to take any positions in direct opposition to the royal family.

B4. Do various segments of the population (including ethnic, religious, gender, LGBT, and other relevant groups) have full political rights and electoral opportunities? 1 / 4

Electoral rules stipulate that political parties must not be limited to members of any regional, ethnic, or religious group. There is no party that represents Nepali speakers. Citizenship rules are strict, and many Nepali-speaking people have not attained citizenship, effectively disenfranchising them. International election monitors have noted that Nepali speakers have been turned away from voting.

Women are underrepresented in public office, occupying only 8 percent of the seats in the National Assembly. Traditional customs inhibit women's political participation. The government has supported several programs to empower women and increase their engagement in politics.

C. FUNCTIONING OF GOVERNMENT: 9 / 12

C1. Do the freely elected head of government and national legislative representatives determine the policies of the government? 3 / 4

Bhutan has made a successful transition from a system in which the monarch and his advisers dominated governance to one in which policies and legislation are mostly determined by elected officials.

India still has an influence on policymaking in Bhutan, and China has also become an important player in recent years. India provides significant foreign aid to Bhutan and accounts for 75 percent of its trade. As a result, the Bhutanese government is hesitant to make policies that will upset the relationship with India. In a 2017 incident that highlighted the impact of Bhutan's powerful neighbors, India sent troops to confront Chinese military personnel attempting to build a road on the Doklam plateau, on territory claimed by both Bhutan and China. Indian and Chinese troops withdrew after a standoff that lasted from June 2017 until late August.

C2. Are safeguards against official corruption strong and effective? 3 / 4

The government generally enforced anticorruption laws effectively. The 2006 Anti-Corruption Act established whistle-blower protections. The Anti-Corruption Commission (ACC), which had its role strengthened and expanded in 2011, is tasked with investigating and preventing graft, and has successfully prosecuted several high-profile cases. The chief executive officer of state-owned Bhutan Telecom Ltd. was charged with graft in June 2017, along with 11 others, in connection with an attempt to acquire government land.

Nepotism and favoritism in public procurement and government employment remained a problem in 2017.

C3. Does the government operate with openness and transparency? 3 / 4

Although Bhutan lacks comprehensive freedom of information legislation, Prime Minister Tobgay has strengthened transparency by making the salaries of officials public and using his office to make the central and local budgets more open to review. A right to information law passed by the National Assembly in 2014 was designed to put the onus on government officials and agencies to release information. However, the National Council did not approve the bill, and by the end of 2017 it had yet to win final passage.

ADDITIONAL DISCRETIONARY POLITICAL RIGHTS QUESTION

Is the government or occupying power deliberately changing the ethnic composition of a country or territory so as to destroy a culture or tip the political balance in favor of another group? -1 / 0

The government has for decades attempted to diminish and repress the rights of ethnic Nepalis, forcing many of them to leave Bhutan. The government expelled a large percentage of Nepali speakers in the early 1990s; in 1992, well over 100,000 refugees living in Nepal were denied reentry to Bhutan. A resettlement effort aimed at transferring the refugees to other countries began in 2007. By November 2017, close to 111,000 Bhutanese refugees in Nepal had been resettled, mostly in the United States. Approximately 2,000 more were undergoing screening before being resettled, after which 8,500 refugees would remain in Nepal awaiting resettlement.

CIVIL LIBERTIES: 27 / 60

D. FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION AND BELIEF: 9 / 16

D1. Are there free and independent media? 2 / 4

While there are multiple private media outlets, many depend on advertising from state bodies, and Bhutan's media environment remained subject to a high degree of self-censorship, especially regarding criticism of the royal family. Powerful individuals can use defamation laws to retaliate against critics. One of the country's most prominent journalists, Namgay Zam, left for Nepal in early 2017, after a prominent businessman filed a defamation lawsuit against her in 2016 over one of her postings on social media. Zam said she could not find a lawyer to represent her. The suit was withdrawn shortly before reaching a verdict in January 2017.

In December 2017, the Bhutan Information Communications and Media Act was passed, replacing a 2006 law. The government said it would strengthen the independence of the media and promote a free and vibrant media industry. The legislation called for the establishment of an independent body called the Media Council, which will be responsible for monitoring and regulating the media and will determine whether any media content is harmful or offensive. Press freedom advocates fear that the new body will further erode press freedom and contribute to greater self-censorship.

D2. Are individuals free to practice and express their religious faith or nonbelief in public and private? 2 / 4

The constitution protects freedom of religion, but local authorities are known to harass non-Buddhists. While Bhutanese of all faiths can worship freely in private, people experience pressure to participate in Buddhist ceremonies and practices.

Christian churches have often been unable to obtain registration from the government, which means that they cannot raise funds or buy property, placing constraints on their activities. Christian children are sometimes not allowed into schools based on their religion.

D3. Is there academic freedom, and is the educational system free from extensive political indoctrination? 2 / 4

Few restrictions on academic freedom have been reported. However, Bhutanese university students are often hesitant to speak out on controversial political issues and practice self-censorship. Students, in conducting research, tend to receive negative feedback for posing questions that could be considered offensive or too blunt.

D4. Are individuals free to express their personal views on political or other sensitive topics without fear of surveillance or retribution? 3 / 4

Freedom of expression is constitutionally guaranteed and generally respected. However, under the National Security Act, speech that creates or attempts to create 'hatred and disaffection among the people' or 'misunderstanding or hostility between the government and people,' among other offenses, can be punished with imprisonment. The broad language of the law makes it vulnerable to misuse.

E. ASSOCIATIONAL AND ORGANIZATIONAL RIGHTS: 4 / 12

E1. Is there freedom of assembly? 2 / 4

The constitution guarantees freedom of assembly, but this right is limited by government-imposed restrictions. Public gatherings require government permission, which is sometimes denied. Curfews and restrictions on the location of demonstrations also serve to curtail assembly rights.

E2. Is there freedom for nongovernmental organizations, particularly those that are engaged in human rights- and governance-related work? 1 / 4

Nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) that work on issues related to ethnic Nepalis are not allowed to operate, but other local and international NGOs work with increasing freedom. Under the 2007 Civil Society Organization Act, all new NGOs must register with the government. Registration is granted to NGOs that are determined by the government to be 'not harmful to the peace and unity of the country.'

E3. Is there freedom for trade unions and similar professional or labor organizations? 1 / 4

The constitution nominally guarantees the right of workers to form unions, but the right to strike is not legally protected. Workers may bargain collectively, and antiunion discrimination is prohibited. Most of the country's workforce is engaged in small-scale agriculture and is therefore not unionized.

F. RULE OF LAW: 6 / 16

F1. Is there an independent judiciary? 3 / 4

The independence of the judiciary is largely respected. Senior judges are appointed by the king on the recommendation of the National Judicial Commission. However, the rulings of judges often lack consistency, and many people view the judiciary as corrupt.

F2. Does due process prevail in civil and criminal matters? 1 / 4

Although the right to a fair trial is largely guaranteed and arbitrary arrest is not a widespread problem, plaintiffs and defendants in civil disputes often represent themselves. The U.S. State Department and NGOs continue to document instances of alleged political prisoners being held in Bhutan, usually because of their work advocating for ethnic Nepalis.

F3. Is there protection from the illegitimate use of physical force and freedom from war and insurgencies? 1 / 4

The civilian police force generally operates within the law, and incidents of excessive force are rare. However, insurgents from the Indian state of Assam sometimes enter Bhutan and undermine security. Occasional instances of kidnapping and robbery occur along the border with India.

F4. Do laws, policies, and practices guarantee equal treatment of various segments of the population? 1 / 4

The constitution protects against discrimination based on sex, race, disability, language, religion, or societal status. However, Nepali-speaking people reportedly face employment discrimination and other forms of bias.

LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender) people experience societal discrimination and social stigma, and there are no specific legal protections for transgender people. Same-sex sexual activity remains a criminal offense and can be punished with up to a year in prison, although the law is not generally enforced. Despite recent gains, discrimination in employment and education persists for women in Bhutan.

G. PERSONAL AUTONOMY AND INDIVIDUAL RIGHTS: 8 / 16

G1. Do individuals enjoy freedom of movement, including the ability to change their place of residence, employment, or education? 2 / 4

Bhutanese citizens generally have the freedom to travel domestically and internationally. However, the government has established different categories of citizenship, which restricts foreign travel for some. These restrictions reportedly have the greatest effect on Nepali speakers. Bhutanese security forces sometimes arrest Nepali people seeking to enter the country.

G2. Are individuals able to exercise the right to own property and establish private businesses without undue interference from state or nonstate actors? 2 / 4

Individuals generally have rights to own property and establish businesses, but the process of registering a new business can be cumbersome and hinder business development. Some ethnic Nepalis who lack a security clearance certificate face difficulties in starting a business. The property registration process can also be lengthy.

G3. Do individuals enjoy personal social freedoms, including choice of marriage partner and size of family, protection from domestic violence, and control over appearance? 2 / 4

Reports of domestic violence have increased in recent years. Societal taboos lead many incidents of rape and domestic violence to go unreported. Child marriage still occurs with some frequency; according to UNICEF, 26 percent of women are married before age 18.

G4. Do individuals enjoy equality of opportunity and freedom from economic exploitation? 2 / 4

Female household workers, who often come from rural areas or India, are vulnerable to forced labor and other abuse, as are foreign workers in the construction and hydropower sectors. Child labor continued to be a problem in 2017, mostly in the agriculture and construction sectors. Girls often served as household workers and were vulnerable to abuse.

Sex trafficking remained a problem in 2017, and the government's enforcement efforts were inadequate to address it effectively; no prosecutions for trafficking were reported during the year. However, the government funded an NGO that shelters victims of trafficking.

Scoring Key: X / Y (Z)

X = Score Received

Y = Best Possible Score

Z = Change from Previous Year

Copyright notice:  Freedom House, Inc.  All Rights Reserved
With the Sept. 9 celebrations less than a week away, there has been conspicuous silence from Beijing.

Chinese President Xi Jinping is expected to miss North Korea's celebrations of its 70th founding anniversary after all as denuclearization talks have hit a fresh impasse.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un invited Xi to a massive military parade in Pyongyang on the occasion when the two met earlier this year, and Xi was widely expected to accept.

Former Chinese presidents Jiang Zemin and Hu Jintao announced their North Korea visit exactly a week ahead in 2001 and 2005, but so far there has been no notification about Xi's trip to any government agency, according to a source in Beijing.

A look at Xi's schedule confirms how small the chances of his visit are. The presidents of Congo, Egypt, Ghana and South Africa are visiting Beijing from Friday until Sept. 9 at Xi's invitation for a broad African summit with Xi.

China is going all out to ensure the success of the summit, which also includes leaders or high-level representatives of 49 other African countries.

Meanwhile, the Chinese government told the UN Security Council that it supplied North Korea with 903.87 tons of refined oil in July, bringing the total to 8,333.36 tons so far this year, which indicates it is abiding by sanctions against the North.

Combined with the amount supplied by Russia, that brings the total to 18,611.35 tons or 140,000 barrels, which is only 30 percent of the annual limit of 500,000 barrels under UNSC sanctions. But the U.S. believes North Korea is already over the limit due to illegal shipments.


Mac, who served as Senate Majority leader, was the father of the GI Bill. Along with Carl Hayden, another towering figure from Arizona, he worked tirelessly for the Central Arizona Project. So did Sen. Barry Goldwater and Reps. Stewart Udall, Mo Udall, and John J. Rhodes.

McCain served 31 years in the Senate. But his legislative record was minimal. This is certainly so compared with giants such as Edward Kennedy, Hubert Humphrey, Henry Clay, Daniel Webster, Robert Taft, Robert La Follette Sr., Arthur Vandenberg, or Arizonas Ernest McFarland.

In World War II, the treatment of Allied POWs by the Japanese was barbaric. After they were liberated, Gen. Jonathan Wainwright who surrendered the Philippines and British Gen. Arthur Percival who surrendered Singapore were positioned beside Douglas MacArthur on the deck of the U.S.S. Missouri for the Japanese surrender. Nearly walking skeletons in uniform, their presence was powerful. No one remembers them today.

Still, hundreds of American soldiers, Marines, airmen, and naval aviators suffered at the hands of Hanoi as well.

McCain suffered terribly as a prisoner of war and heroically refused an early release as the son of the admiral in charge of Pacific forces. This denied a propaganda coup to the communists.

I put my shoulder to this necessary task knowing that he was admired and even loved by people I respect. They range from Grant Woods to Alfredo Gutierrez and Neil Giuliano. I never much cared for John McCain, both because he did so little to use his prestige and power to help his adopted state, and because his conservatism helped set the table for todays emergency.

A man who made straight talk one of his trademarks would surely not be satisfied with the flood of worshipful accolades enshrining him as a unique hero, statesman, and patriot for the ages. My aim is to remedy that.

Winning the CAP was a bipartisan endeavor. Hayden most of all made it happen, creating todays Arizona for better and worse (and Hayden had a bit of winners remorse late in life).

They understood that Arizona depended on not just its fair share of federal money, but much more. That without federal largesse  the U.S. Cavalry, Newlands Act, New Deal, postwar defense spending, flood control, etc.  the state would not be possible.

McCain married Cindy Hensley, and helped by the Hensley beer fortune, made Arizona the base of his political career. The Navy made it clear he wouldnt become an admiral, and he had been bitten by the political bug while serving in D.C. He won Rhodes House seat in 1983.

Theres nothing wrong with being an engine of ambition. But by the time McCain came along, the bipartisan agenda had crumbled. So-called movement conservatism had triumphed, and Arizona's GOP House and Senate members were committed to being the "Delegation of No." McCain stuck to this fetish throughout his career, even as he gained seniority and influence. To be fair, Arizona was changing fast, becoming more reactionary, aggressively ignorant of history. To win, Republican politicians had to move right. On the other hand, Texas is plenty right wing, but its delegation brings home the bacon.

This change was tragic. Winning the CAP was the beginning, not the end, of the states need for what critics call pork but is actually investment. The state needed funding for transit, commuter rail, education, high-end federal facilities, a federal lab, and research money so it might be more than just an endless short-hustle land economy. The most McCain did was put off the overrunning of Luke Air Force Base by sprawl. Nor could his Olympian gaze find much time for some important local veterans' issues. The Prescott VA nursing home ranks among the worst in the nation. The VA Hospital crisis, part of a cynical GOP ploy to underfund and then privatize the system, had an epicenter in Phoenix.

McCain played no role gaining funding for Phoenix light rail (WBIYB). Reliable sources told me McCain was so disliked by his colleagues that his intercession might actually have hurt the quest. He was a vehement opponent of Amtrak, especially the two long-distance trains that still served his nominal home state. He was untroubled that Phoenix became by far the largest American metropolis with no intercity passenger rail.

McCain was especially hostile to the city of Phoenix. He attempted to spearhead a regional airport near Casa Grande, which would have enriched local landowners and killed Sky Harbor (where a terminal now bears his name). When then-Mayor Terry Goddard tried to get the closing Phoenix Indian School as a grand central park in the late 1980s, McCain supported a Byzantine land swap that benefited the Barron Collier Co. Phoenix was left with an interior parcel for a much diminished Steele park. Collier continues to land-bank most of its Phoenix windfall.

McCain is said to have given some support for T-Gen, but it hardly shows in research funding. For example, in fiscal 2017, Arizona received $189 million in National Institutes of Health grants. This compares with $998 million for Washington and $2.7 billion for Massachusetts, states with similar population size.

Late in his life, McCain offered a rhetorical boost for completing the Rio Salado project. Again, no federal funding to make it real was forthcoming. He made few efforts to conserve the state's natural wonders in the face of exurban sprawl and dodgy land swaps. His lifetime score from the League of Conservation Voters was 20 percent.

The crucial settlement of water rights with the Gila River Indian Community and other tribes was left to Sen. Jon Kyl, not McCain.

While he no doubt was fond of Arizona, McCain always wanted to be a national figure. He could have chosen Florida or Virginia as his perch if not for Cindy.

The Maverick was mostly a myth. McCain had a lifetime rating from the American Conservative Union of nearly 81 (Nancy Pelosi, 2.56). He was a usually reliable member of the disciplined Republican right. For all the accolades he received for loving the Constitution and norms-based self-governance, McCain supported Mitch McConnell's unprecedented refusal to give Merrick Garland, President Obama's Supreme Court nominee, so much as a hearing. McCain promised to block any Supreme Court selections by Hillary Clinton during the 2016 campaign.

He had his virtues. McCain was no climate-change denier. He introduced legislation for a mandatory cap-and-trade system to reduce greenhouse gases (it failed). He (mostly) spoke out against torture and (mostly) supported immigration reform. The McCain-Feingold Act attempted to control big money in politics, but had unintended consequences and was mostly undone by Citizens United  passed by activist Justices he had approved. McCain cast the vote that saved the Affordable Care Act from repeal (but not sabotage)  yet he hated Obamacare, even though it was a "market-based" plan that originated in a right-wing "think tank."

In 2000, McCain was treated shamefully by the Bush/Rove forces in the South Carolina primary, which derailed his first presidential campaign. Among these was a whisper campaign that his adopted daughter Bridget had been fathered by him with a black prostitute.

Alas, he also had titanic blind spots, previewed by his role in the Keating Five scandal, conveniently forgotten. As longtime chairman or ranking member on Armed Services, McCain was unable or unwilling to continue production on the essential F-22, while allowing the troubled and untrustworthy F-35 to continue production and enter service. Among all members of Congress, he should have realized the quagmire the Iraq War would become. He supported it.

In 2008, he was willing to put the wildly unqualified, half-term Alaska governor Sarah Palin a heartbeat away from the presidency. While hes rightly praised for correcting the supporter who called his opponent an Arab, the disturbing McCain-Palin rallies were our foretaste of todays neo-Nazi lock her up! fervor.

Against Obama, McCain reprised Floyd Patterson against Muhammad Ali: I came to see that I was a fighter and he was history. Maybe he came to see it. McCain asked Obama to give his eulogy, which was a magnificent tribute  and a sense that we might have heard the same at the end of the Roman Republic.

A portion of Obamas eulogy is worth reprinting, and meditating on:

John cared about the institutions of self-government, our Constitution, our Bill of Rights, rule of law. Separation of powers. Even the arcane rules and procedures of the Senate. He knew that in a nation as big and boisterous and diverse as ours, those institutions, those rules, those norms are what bind us together. Give shape and order to our common life. Even when we disagree. Especially when we disagree. John believed in honest argument and hearing our views. He understood that if we get in the habit of bending the truth to suit political expediency or party orthodoxy, our democracy will not work. That's why he was willing to buck his own party at times. Occasionally work across the aisle on campaign-finance reform and immigration reform. That's why he championed a free and independent press as vital to our democratic debate. And the fact it earned him good coverage didn't hurt either. John understood as JFK understood, as Ronald Reagan understood that part of what makes our country great is that our membership is based not on our bloodline, not on what we look like, what our last names are, not based on where our parents or grandparents came from or how recently they arrived, but on adherence to a common creed that all of us are created equal. Endowed by our creator with certain inalienable rights.

Burn this in your brain. Even if Obama is being perhaps overly generous to an individual, he is making a vital point if we're to find our way out of this national crisis.

I look at the national outpouring of encomiums and am reminded how much McCain cultivated the national media, which loved him (the local press knew the score: "positive" stories or no access). Sure, this was enhanced by social media. But other elements in the narrowness of the coverage are the 40-percent loss of journalists since 2007, and the desperate desire of the media to lionize a Republican at a time when the party is enabling Donald Trump. Yet don't forget: John McCain voted with Trump 80 percent of the time. We're not talking about Winston Churchill here (another former POW).

Part of this spectacle reminds me of the aftermath of Robert F. Kennedys assassination, especially the funeral train down the Northeast Corridor. Kennedy had a short, sketchy record in the Senate and, as Attorney General, approved wiretaps on Martin Luther King Jr. But much of the nation projected its grief over larger national losses and might-have-beens upon that passing train, especially with the RFK tempered by his brothers murder and his liberal awakening.

Yet the McCain phenomenon is more still.

It is a collective primal scream against the traitorous, criminal enterprise in the Oval Office.

Next to scenes of McCains family in the National Cathedral, the most poignant image in the service was seeing Hillary Clinton, who should be president.

His beloved Hemingway is well and good: Today is only one day in all the days that will ever be. But what will happen in all the other days that ever come can depend on what you do today.

But time runs short for the American republic.
French drug giant Sanofi SA (SNYNF,SNY) announced Monday that the European Commission has granted marketing authorization for Cablivi (caplacizumab) for the treatment of adults experiencing an episode of acquired thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura or aTTP, a rare blood-clotting disorder. Cablivi is the first therapeutic specifically indicated for the treatment of aTTP.

In addition, the company said the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has accepted for priority review the Biologics License Application for caplacizumab for treatment of patients 18 years of age and older experiencing an episode of aTTP. The target action date for the FDA decision is February 6, 2019.

Cablivi was developed by Ablynx, a Sanofi company. Sanofi Genzyme, the specialty care global unit of Sanofi, will work with relevant local authorities to make Cablivi available to patients in need in countries across Europe.

The approval of Cablivi in the EU is based on the Phase II TITAN and Phase III HERCULES studies in 220 adult patients with aTTP. The efficacy and safety of caplacizumab in addition to standard-of-care treatment, daily PEX and immunosuppression, were demonstrated in these studies.

Cablivi is the company's first Nanobody-based medicine to receive approval and the first newly approved product that will be part of Sanofi Genzyme's Rare Blood Disorders franchise. Earlier this year, Sanofi acquired Bioverativ which has treatments for hemophilia A and B.

aTTP is a life-threatening, autoimmune-based blood clotting disorder characterized by extensive clot formation in small blood vessels throughout the body.

For comments and feedback contact: editorial@rttnews.com

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Uddhav Thackeray (file photo) The Shiv Sena on Monday targeted the Maharashtra Police for the arrest of five so-called "urban-Naxals" on charges that they were a plotting a Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi among others. "The police contentions behind the arrests are ridiculous. The erstwhile government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was voted out and removed by the people - not by Maoists. As of now... at least, it is still possible to change the government through the democratic processes," the Sena said.



"The (Pune) Police must not shoot off their mouths like this and the government must bar them from such statements. Its sheer stupidity," the Sena said in editorials in the party organs "Saamana" and "Dopahar Ka Saamana".



The editorial also took on the Pune Police over claims that Modi was allegedly being targeted for a 'Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination'.



"The former PMs, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, were fearless and courageous leaders. It was their boldness which claimed their lives. But Modi will never indulge in such adventures. He is already provided the best security in the world and not even a bird can overfly him," the Sena pointed out.



Dismissing the police contentions, the Sena, a BJP ally in Maharashtra and Centre, said that "if these handful of Maoists had so much political strength", they would never have lost their (Communist) governments in West Bengal and Tripura.



The Pune Police arrested P. Varavara Rao, Sudhar Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Fereira and Vernon Gonsalves from different cities.



"There are some doubts that something is wrong somewhere with these arrests. The facts must come out before the BJP becomes the butt of new jokes," the Sena said.




Less than four months after the Assembly election, the Congress on Monday won the most seats in Karnataka's 105 urban local bodies, pushing the BJP to the second spot, and voicing confidence that a Congress-JD(S) combine will sweep the Lok Sabha polls.

"The Congress winning 982 of the 2,662 civic body seats across the state shows people's confidence in the party and our coalition government with the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S)," state Congress President Dinesh Gundu Rao told reporters here.



"The Congress cannot be written off in Karnataka any more. We (Congress and JD-S) will have a pre-poll alliance for the Lok Sabha elections which we are confident of winning," Rao added.





In the polls for urban bodies across 22 of the state's 30 districts held on August 31, the Congress has won 982 of the total 2,662 seats. The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) came second with 929 seats while the JD-S remained far behind with 375 seats.



Independents bagged 329 seats, the Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) 13 and other regional parties and fringe outfits won 34 seats.



While the Congress won majority seats in 10 districts, it was looking at an alliance with JD-S in a few regions to keep the BJP out of power, as it did in the Assembly election in May which threw up a hung verdict, Rao said.



Even as the BJP won majority seats in seven districts including the coastal districts of Udupi and Dakshina Kannada, the JD-S and Congress tie-up will control most of the urban bodies in the state.



In the Assembly election, of the 224 constituencies, the BJP won 104 seats, the Congress 80 and JD-S along with BSP (38).,



JD-S leader and Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy termed Monday's results a victory for the coalition government.



"The outcome shows that JD-S and Congress have won the trust of not just the rural electorate but urban voters as well," Kumaraswamy told reporters here.



The BJP, on the other hand, blamed the JD-S and Congress for its poor showing.



"The BJP should have won more seats but we could not perform the way we wanted to because of the Congress-JD-S coalition," BJP state unit President B.S. Yeddyurappa told reporters here.



But the BJP is confident of winning a majority in the Lok Sabha election, he said.



The BJP performed well in its traditional bastions of coastal districts while the Congress retained its position in its strongholds of northern districts.



Polling took place last Friday across 22 districts of the state spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities, 23 town panchayats and 135 wards of three city corporations -- Mysuru, Shivamogga and Tumakuru.



The polling in 45 seats of Kodagu district's civic bodies has been postponed due to heavy rains and floods.



In the 2013 elections held for 4,976 seats, the Congress won 1,960 seats, while BJP and JD-S won 905 seats each while Independents bagged the remaining 1,206 seats.
British athlete Guy Bridge charged up the leaderboard on the third day of the KiteFoil World Series at Weifang Binhai, in eastern China, with scintillatingly-quick and accomplished racing that earned him a hat-trick wins.

The wins catapulted Bridge, the younger sibling of Olly Bridge, up the rankings to third spot overall on a day of confusingly-mixed conditions that finally came good late in the afternoon, enabling the race director to squeeze in four races.Bridge's stellar outing on the two laps of the windward-leeward track on the Yellow Sea in 13kts to 18kts boosted his quest for overall victory at the International Kiteboarding Association (IKA) KiteFoil World Series season opener.But almost as important for Bridge was that with the mounting number of races he was able to discard from his tally another poor early score caused by a retirement for a broken line that had been costing him dearly.Still, fellow countryman Connor Bainbridge did enough on the third of the five-day regatta to hold his spot at the head of the order, though he suffered an expensive tangle with French racer Theo de Ramecourt in the final race of the day.Multiple world champion Maxime Nocher (MON) again had another strong day in the shifty, onshore breezes that only filled in after violent squall blew over the track as racers were held on the beach. In what were ultimately excellent racing conditions, Nocher notched up three-second places as he battled Bridge around the course, enough to cement his second spot overall.Yet with two more days of racing scheduled at the Weifang World Series regatta-where prize money of 60,000 is up for grabs-all the racers in the 32-strong fleet from 16 nations realise everything is still to play for.Next week many of the fleet will travel south to Fujian province's Pingtan island for the second of four scheduled KiteFoil World Series stops to crown the IKA KiteFoil World Champion.The reigning world champion, France's Nico Parlier, slipped a place to fourth overall after he suffered the misfortune of missing the day's first race when he went to change wet clothes after the rain squall, unaware the start was imminent.But it was the younger Bridge who set the scorching pace on his 15m kite, when rivals chose larger 18m or 19m kites. His first race did not go so well, when he could only manage a fifth after hitting some debris and crashing. But afterwards he did not look back."I get really good speed with my 15m kite going upwind," said Bridge. "If I have enough to hold them off going upwind, then I can go well downwind. I'm pleased with today. It's a bit hard doing four races back-to-back, but I feel really good."Nocher enjoyed his duels with Bridge and is equally happy he is rediscovering the kind of form that has helped him capture so many world titles over the years."It was a good day," said a smiling and relaxed Nocher. "In the first race I crashed into some lines and ended up sixth. But after that it was good. It was fun racing against Guy Bridge. He was very fast today. Good racing. It was little difficult to see the wind shifts with foggy conditions, but still interesting."In the women's group, racing with the men, three-time Formula Kite World Champion Daniela Moroz (USA), is more than holding her own. She sits in the middle of the extremely strong fleet and is learning a lot."It's very tactical and I'm really learning a great deal," said Moroz. "It's great matching up against the guys. I'm really happy with my position, but my goal is to make it into the top ten of the KiteFoil World Series fleet this season."

Top three men after 12 races (two discards)

1 Connor Bainbridge (GBR) 29.0pts

2 Maxime Nocher (MON) 30.0pts

3 Guy Bridge (GBR) 37.0pts



Top three women after 12 races (two discards)

1 Daniela Moroz (USA) 133.0pts

2 Elena Kalinina (RUS) 176.0pts

3 Kirstyn O'Brien (USA) 232.0pts
China has denied it is engaged in debt trap diplomacy and Chinese state media have argued that concerns raised in Western media and by politicians are nothing but sour grapes.

Speaking to leaders from more than 30 African countries at Beijing's Great Hall of the People, Xi said China's investment and engagement on the continent would continue, with no political strings attached to Beijing's investments in Africa. "China-Africa cooperation must give Chinese and African people tangible benefits and successes that can be seen, that can be felt," Xi said.

He did not say which countries would have their debt absolved, but the move appeared to be the latest effort by Beijing to deflect concerns about debt levels on the continent and the risks of "debt trap diplomacy."

President Xi Jinping made the pledge Monday during the opening ceremony of the triennial Forum on China Africa Cooperation in Beijing.

Beijing is pledging to extend new funding of US$60 billion to Africa, aimed at areas from industrial enhancement to infrastructure. China also says it will wipe clean the debt for certain African countries when interest-free loans come due later this year.

According to data from John Hopkins University's China Africa Research Initiative, China has already loaned around $125 billion to the continent between 2000 and 2016. That has led to high debt risks in countries like Djibouti -- where China recently opened its first overseas military base -- and Zambia.

Xi did not say which countries China would extend debt relief to, but he noted they would be Africa's least developed, heavily indebted and poor as well as small island developing countries that have diplomatic relations with China.

Xi said during the next three years and beyond, China would carry out eight major initiatives with African countries. The initiatives include infrastructure connectivity, green development, and health care, as well as peace and security.

Xi said China would set up a China-Africa peace and security fund and that a total of 50 "security assistance" programs will be carried out, such as UN peacekeeping missions, fighting piracy and combating terrorism.

Breaking down the $60 billion China pledged to extend, Xi said $15 billion of those funds would be for aid, interest free and concessional loans, $20 billion would be set aside for as a new credit line, $10 billion for China-Africa development and five billion for imports.

South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa spoke after Xi at the opening ceremony and said the Forum on China Africa Cooperation should work to balance the structure of trade between the continent and China.

When FOCAC last met in 2015, African leaders and those in China set a goal to double trade to $400 billion by 2020. Trade between Africa and China in 2014 was at $220 billion. It has since dipped and last year continued a slow recovery to $170 billion.

Ramaphosa urged China to focus more on the nature of and quality of its investments in Africa and not just natural resources. He said Xi has expressed his commitment to addressing the issue.

"Much of what is exported from Africa is raw materials and primary product. Much of what is imported from China is finished goods," he said. "We are exporting to China what we extract from the earth. China exports to us what it makes in its factories." He said that limits the ability of African countries to get the full value out of their natural resources and create work for their people.
Many members of the wider E.F.K.S church do not support their elders decision to stop their faifeaus from registering as tax payers, says a senior member of the E.F.K.S church in Alamagoto.

Lay preacher and former secretary for the E.F.K.S Church in Alagamagoto, Letaa Tanielu Maiava says that contrary to what C.C.C.S General Secretary, Reverend Vavatau Taufao says, he believes there are many members who feel frustrated and discouraged with the church elders decision.

As a senior member of the church, Im very embarrassed at the stance the church is taking.

My concern is that that I know that that a lot of people do not support this move by the elders with their instructions to the faifeau not to register as taxpayers.

I know I will cop a lot of flak for this, but I also know that I must voice my own opinion because it sounds like it is the whole church going against the Government  its not, he said, in an interview with Samoa Observer.

Letaa said current stand-off between his church and the government is a result of overlapping between two institutions, which should not happen.

If the elders or the leaders of the church wish to be involved in politics  leave your parishes and go into parliament where they can voice their political views but dont mix church and politics.

To encourage the faifeau in their churches to break the law is morally and ethically wrong, added the lay preacher and former secretary for the E.F.K.S Church in Alagamagoto.

The bible clearly tells us that if you break one commandment, you break all of them. For them to say to the faifeau dont pay your taxes is encouraging them to break the law, yet they preach integrity and honesty. You cant say one thing and do another - they are condoning the breaking of the law. There is no difference between being punished for a crime of stealing and being punished for not paying your taxes.
The official opening church service for the 2018 McDonalds Miss Samoa Pageant took place at the Congregational Christian Church (C.C.C.) in Apia yesterday.

The nine beauties vying for the 2018 crown attended the church service together with the C.C.C. of Apia congregation.

Reverend Elder Utufua Naseri of the C.C.C. in Apia led the service along with welcoming the contestants.

We are fortunate to be in the presence of so many beautiful young women. This beauty pageant, I compare it to the story of Esther in the Bible.

It is a story about a brave and beautiful queen who stood by her faith even at the cost her of her own life.

I encourage you all to walk with God as your guidance in life so that you may overcome any obstacles ahead.

It is true that it is a competition but always remembers that God created everyone to be uniquely beautiful in their own way.

To whoever will win this year, we pray that she will be a guiding force in setting good examples but also making a great difference in our country during her time of reign, Rev. Naseri said.

After the church service, refreshments were served by the Womens Fellowship from C.C.C. Apia in honor of the contestants visit.

The contestants will depart Upolu today for the big Island of Savaii where they will be met by nine village hosts, who will look after them for the duration of the week. The program includes a parade through Salelologa alongside a number of activities that have been arranged. The pageant is to take place at the hall of Don Bosco at Salelologa this Saturday at 10:00 am.
The 49th Pacific Islands Forum was officially opened last night in Nauru with delegates and officials recognising the efforts of outgoing Forum Chair, Samoan Prime Minister Tuilaepa Sailele Malielegaoi.

Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat (P.I.F.S.) secretary general Dame Meg Taylor said the Forum made significant progress during the tenure of Tuilaepa in areas such as the 11th European Development Fund (E.D.F.) Regional Indicative Programme and preparations towards the post-Cotonou negotiations.

Dame Megs deputy, Cristelle Pratt, told a pre-Forum media workshop earlier that the evolution of the narrative through Tuilaepa in the last 12 months inspired her.

In fact when he spoke at Lowy Institute several days ago, he was able to use the Blue Pacific narrative in so many different ways as he wove his speech and his statement to those that were in the room.

But he did make the point that we do need to think that we are big and weve been told by so many that we are small. So this idea of the Blue Pacific Continent gives us the sense that we are not insignificant in the world, that we are the largest continent on the planet. That we are the Blue Continent on the Blue Planet, and I think that in many ways he served the narrative well, she said.

Leaders of the Small Island States (S.I.S.) and the Pacific A.C.P. states met yesterday to discuss various issues including agreeing to and have a common position on their trade negotiations with the European Union (E.U.).

President of Nauru and Chair of the Pacific ACP Group, Baron Divavesi Waqa, in his opening statement to the Pacific A.C.P. meeting also thanked Samoas Prime Minister for his stewardship in the last 12 months.

I have been briefed on the good progress we have made and I look forward to steering the Pacific A.C.P. agenda over the next 12 months, particularly as we commence negotiations for a post-Cotonou Agreement.

As we approach these negotiations, it is important to reflect on our historic relations with the European Union in advancing our interests and mutual cooperation post-2020. The Georgetown Agreement, dating back to before 1975, which inevitably established the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific Group, and the intentions for a desire to consolidate and strengthen the existing solidarity, remains as relevant today considering the geo-political circumstances, the enlargement of the EU block to 28 States, and challenges affecting our region, he said.

Today kicks off with the Forum Dialogue Partners session with Forum Leaders, Associate Member and Observer Dialogue session with Forum Leaders as well as civil society and private sector dialogues with Forum Leaders. The Leaders Retreat is scheduled to be held tomorrow with the regional conference closing on Thursday.
Samoa Airways has added the Australian city of Brisbane to its list of destinations and will commence the service in November.

Making the announcement just a few months shy of its one-year anniversary, Samoas national airline said the direct service between Apia and Brisbane will be twice weekly on Tuesday and Sunday using its 737-800 aircraft.

The inaugural flight is scheduled to take off on November 13, which will mark one year since Samoa Airways took to the skies.

Samoa Airways CEO, Tupuivao Seiuli Alvin Tuala, indicated that the presence of a large Samoan population in Brisbane was one of the factors behind the decision to fly to the Queensland capital.

The Brisbane area is home to a large Samoan population and I am particularly pleased that the national carrier, with the support of Brisbane Airport, is able to respond to calls by our community who travel frequently between Samoa, American Samoa and Brisbane for family, church and cultural obligations, for improved air access, he said in a statement.

Tupuivao and Brisbane Airport Corporation CEO Gert-Jan de Graaff signed a partnership agreement. The agreement acknowledged the relationship between Queensland and Samoa, and the collaborative approach by Brisbane Airport and the national carrier to establish non-stop air services.

The Minister for Samoa Airways, Lautafi Selafi Purcell, will deliver the official address on behalf of the Samoan government and Samoa Airways at the occasion.

A special event for the Samoan community in Brisbane will also be held in Ipswich as part of this announcement with Lautafi the main speaker.

CEO Tupuivao said Brisbane Airport presented a good opportunity for Samoa Airways for many reasons. These included the airport being Australia's third busiest, with total annual passengers of 23 million in 2017.

It is a key gateway which serves 32 international ports and 52 domestic destinations and is an award winning airport offering world class facilities.
Australian-based airline Virgin Australia has applied to the Minister for Works Transport and Infrastructure asking for its license to be renewed to fly between Australia and Samoa.

The airline published a public notice in yesterdays edition of the Samoa Observer, pursuant to the Civil Aviation Act 1998, for any written objections to their application to be sent to the Minister.

Samoas Government revoked a joint venture agreement with Virgin Australia last year due to increasing public concerns over the rising cost of airfares. However, the Government granted the airline a license for a direct service between Samoa and Australia but not through New Zealand.

The Australian-based airlines application to the Government coincides with the announcement by national airline Samoa Airways of a new direct service between Samoa and Brisbane. The service will commence in November using its 737-800 aircraft and will be twice weekly on Tuesdays and Sundays.

The commencement of the Samoa-Brisbane service will mark the one-year anniversary of the State-owned Samoa Airways.

Currently Virgin Australia, Fiji Airways, Real Tonga Airlines and Air New Zealand are the only foreign-owned airlines that fly into Samoa. In October 2016, China and Samoa signed an air service agreement for direct flights between China and Samoa but Chinese airlines are yet to capitalise on the opportunity.
The Chinese Embassy yesterday hosted a farewell reception for 17 Samoans who were awarded scholarships to study in China.

The scholarships were awarded under the auspices of the China-Pacific Islands Forum Scholarship Scheme, with the latest recipients to undertake bachelors degree studies in more than 10 disciplines.

The Chinese Ambassador to Samoa, Wang Xuefeng, urged the students to use the scholarship opportunity and cultural exchange as a stepping stone to success in their lives.

Starting from 1982 China has been granting government scholarships to Samoan students. Up to now, nearly 250 Samoan students in total have been enrolled.

The scholarship programme has provided young people in Samoa a chance to broaden their views and enhance their knowledge and skills, empowering them for future life and work.

As we can see, many graduates now enjoy a fulfilled and successful life and have become bridges of friendship between the two countries, he said at the reception, which was also attended by some of the scholarship recipients parents.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Assistant Chief Executive Officer (bilateral relations division), Tagaloa Sharon Potoi Aiafi, acknowledged the contribution of the Chinese government to building and strengthening Samoas human resource capacity.

She advised the students to approach their studies with determination and perseverance as failure is not an option.

Speaking on behalf of the departing scholarship recipients, Rexona Dean, thanked the governments of China and Samoa for the 10 scholarship awards that would enable her and her cohort to undertake studies in China.

Graduating with a bachelors degree in survey engineering from the Beijing University of Technology will add to the growing number of engineers in the country.

I hope that one day there will be more work for local qualified engineers instead of depending on contractors from overseas, especially for all the major infrastructure building thats happening in Samoa, she said.

Twenty-year-old Eros Afaese will study for a bachelors degree in science technology, which he hopes will lead to a job in the lab at the Scientific Research Organisation of Samoa (S.R.O.S.).

Bio has always been my thing, to me, bio is life and explains how anything from a flower to a human body works, having people immersed in that field is important. Id love to work in an accredited laboratory like S.R.O.S, Ive always admired their work since I was in fifth grade, he said.

The scholarship scheme, which comes under Chinas bilateral programme, is offered on an annual basis to Samoan nationals and is administered through the joint efforts of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (bilateral relations division), the Government of Samoa and Embassy of the Peoples Republic of China in Samoa. Currently, there are more than 60 scholars studying at tertiary educational institutes in China.
Schools back in session. On this first holiday of the new school year, we focus on the right of California employees who are parents to time off to participate in the activities of school-aged (K-12) children. This particular leave law defines parent to include a parent, guardian, stepparent, foster parent, grandparent, or anyone else who stands in the place of a parent to the child.

Under California law, employers with 25 or more employees working at the same location may not discharge or in any way discriminate against an employee for taking up to 40 hours each year -- though no more than eight hours each month -- to participate in school or licensed child care provider activities of the employee-parents child. The employee must give the employer reasonable notice of the planned absence prior to taking the leave.

Where more than one of the childs parents is employed by the same employer at the same worksite, only the parent who first gives notice of the particular activity has the legal right to take this leave. Another parent may take leave at the same time for the same child only with the employers permission.

California is one of only about 10 states plus D.C. with such a small necessities law.

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In passing the law, the California legislature found that [p]arents represent the single most important citizen group in terms of school support and [t]he building of a network of parent volunteers to support children in public schools is central to the well-being of the entire community.

Substantial advance notice is unnecessary if the employee is taking leave for a school emergency. A school emergency is defined as a situation in which an employees child cannot remain in school: (1) because the school has asked that the child be picked up or because the school has an attendance policy that requires the child to be picked up or prohibits the child from attending school on a day other than a planned holiday; (2) because the child has a behavioral or disciplinary problem; (3) because the school unexpectedly closes, such as due to a safety emergency; or (4) due to a natural disaster, such as a fire or an earthquake.

The employee generally must use existing vacation, personal leave, or compensatory time off to participate in non-emergency school activities. An employee may use time off without pay to the extent made available by the employer. The prudent employer will provide unpaid school activities leave even to an employee who does not have available paid leave to cover it.

An employer may require the parent-employee to provide documentation from the school to verify that he or she engaged in child-related activities on the particular date and time. This note from school, as it were, may be in whatever form the school deems appropriate.

An employee who is fired because the employee has engaged in child-related school activities is entitled to reinstatement. An employee who has lost wages, a promotion, or any other job benefit for this reason is entitled to get that benefit back. An employer that willfully refuses to restore such benefits to an employee who has been determined to be eligible for rehire or promotion in a grievance proceeding, arbitration, or other hearing authorized by law must pay a civil penalty of three times the amount of the employees lost benefits.

Happy Labor Day and have a safe and healthy school year.

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.
One wintry morning, a couple in their mid-twenties prepare their load on their dokos (conical-shaped dry bamboo strip hand-woven baskets) laden almost to overflowing with cauliflower from their farm. The man carried a bigger basket and the woman a slightly smaller one. They heaved the load onto their backs and started from their home in Chitlang on the steep daunting climb to the Chandragiri ridge, the wooded hill still shrouded by the early morning fog.

That happened to be the ancient trail (before the Tribhuwan Highway came), which started from Thankot and traversed places such as Chitlang, Markhu, Kulekhani, Chisapani Gadi and finally the last point, Bhainse, where the travellers took a ride in a lorry to Birgunj. The couple was on their way to Kalimati, Kathmandu (21-22km), to sell their produce. After a five hours gruelling walk with the heavy loads on the dirt trail (the present jeep track was not built then), they arrive at Panighat, Thankot and retire for the night there.

At first light next day, the couple head out for Kalimati to sell off their cauliflowers and return the long journey back home. Strange as it may sound, the mans doko weighed a whopping 80 kilos while his wifes, a mere 45kg woman then, (she weighs almost 80 kilos now) tipped the balance at 55 kilos! That couple happened to be none other than Ashok Kumar Singh Thakuri and his wife, Rita Singh Thakurithe present owners of the goat-milk cheese factory at Chitlang, Makwanpur District. They were into vegetable farming in the late 1980s until early 1990s before going into cheese-making.

The story behind the goat-milk cheese factory in Chitlang, in fact, dates back more than 20 years, even before Ashok and Rita had the faintest idea about it. Sometime in the late 1990s, a French couple, Gerard Denis and Josette Denis, visited Nepal. They worked as agriculture teachers back in France. They came to spend their holidays in Nepal but after seeing the abject poverty in the rural areas, decided to help the village people mostly dependant on subsistence farming by introducing cheese-making from goat milk. The idea took shape and the French couple dedicated themselves to make it happena Herculean task indeed.

Subsequently, with the assistance from a French NGO based in Northern France, La Maison des Himalayas, a Dairy Goat Project (DGP) was initiated. The INGO was involved in Nepal to alleviate poverty in the rural areas of the country. The objectives of DGP were to develop goat breeding, production of goat milk and cheese-making. DGP was further helped by the Institut DHazebrouck, Francean agriculture school for dairy farming. The village selected for the project was Chitlang, Makawanpur district. The partnership was expanded: first with the DLS (Department of Livestock Service of the Ministry of Agriculture of Nepal) and then with Heifer International, France.

The fieldwork started in 2000 but it was only in 2004 the project got the new impetus after the French Embassy based at Kathmandu offered help to grant funds. In 2002 the factory building was built. As further assistance, French engineering students lent their hands to the project by visiting Chitlang from 2004 to 2007. It was now time for a local farmer to learn the process of cheese making. Among many aspirants, Ashok Singh Thakuri, a wiry little man was chosen as the candidate for his resolute personality and leadership qualities. In 2001 he visited the goat-milk cheese factory, La Cevriette, located at Pas-de-Calais, France for a month-long training. The training, however, lasted only 22 days and he was back home.

On November 22, 2004, Mr Michel Jolivet, the then French Ambassador to Nepal inaugurated the cheese factory and a trial production was made. It came through with flying colours. Initially, 25 farmers were involved in this project and the factory was run as a cooperative under Ashok Singh Thakuris leadership. Quite a number of women too were in the organisation. Each member was also given a goat as a gift by the French ambassador.

The modest production started with both soft and hard cheese. The main hurdle the factory faced was marketing. Star-hotels and posh restaurants in Kathmandu were approached but the response was lukewarm. Most of them were even sceptical about its authenticity. Goat-milk cheese produced in Nepal, really?  was the kind of sarcastic comments I got from some hotel managers, reminisces Ashok.

In Nepal goat is reared primarily for meat purpose and the milk from them is not marketed like cow or buffalo milk. So, the next problem the cooperative faced was the collection of milk sufficient enough to meet their requirement. The supply of goat milk all depended on increased milk production, for which an efficient breeding of goats was required. At the behest of Ashok, the French NGO again came to the rescue. French volunteers were sent to effectively market the cheese production and help improve the collection of goat milk.

More and more farmers were encouraged to rear goats and were trained to manage proper breeding. I was shocked to watch the once arrogant hotel managers in Kathmandu completely change when I was accompanied by the French lady volunteer. They even promised to buy our cheese. The colour of skin made so much difference, Ashok almost fumed indignantly.

In a years time, the state of the factory was far from satisfactory though. For three years, Ashok devoted himself to sustain the factory, which was already in a shaky condition. The cooperative was running into heavy losses because of poor market, insufficient goat milk collection, and lack of funds. Soon, it looked the project was teetering towards it last legs.

The cooperative members instead of coping with the problem and uniting to face the challenge and restore order started backing off. This came as a big shock to Ashok who had put in every ounce of his energy and effort to run the factory, the only in the entire country. It was his dream project. The non-cooperation from the cooperative members dashed his hopes. The co-operative went into liquidation and the production of cheese halted.

Ashok did not admit defeat, though. Despite all cards stacked against him, he was determined to pull this project through on his own. His wife, Rita, was equally resolute and the couple registered the factory in their name and struggled hard for three long years to sustain the factory and keep it alive. They had to start from scratch, a daunting task indeed. The couple started goat-breeding with a few heads and built an outhouse to rear them. They went from door to door around the village for the collection of goat milk and motivate the villagers to do goat farming.

Cheese making was Ashoks forte but milk production and supply was equally important. He travelled to India and brought a cross-breed of Sannen goat (a Swiss breed recognized as the most productive domestic goat, which gives more milk than the local breed). He even applied to the government to import the pure breed from Switzerland but his request was turned down. A pure-breed Sannen produces 4 to 5 litres of milk daily while the cross-breed can produce one-half to two-half litres a day. Other breeds like the long flat droopy-eared Jamuna-pari (Indian strain), and Khari-bakhra (local strain) fare poorly and are less viable for obtaining optimal milk production.

It was an epic struggle for Ashok and Rita to revive the factory literally doomed to failure. They sold off some of their hard-earned lands and stabilized their financial condition. Gradually, they mobilised their marketing strategy, added more heads to their goat farm with cross-breeds, maintained better hygiene at the factory and devised a more efficient way of collecting milk from the local farmers. For the iron-willed couple, there was no turning back and no looking back. And surely after three years of hard work, it paid off. Eventually, Ashok and Ritas dream was fulfilledthe factory survived.

Today, the factory produces five to six kilos of soft cheese, which are easily sold in the market. In fact, if I were to produce 12 to 15 kg of cheese a day currently, marketing it would not be a problem, Ashok confided to me confidently. The factory is running on its 12th year today. When Chitlangs name is mentioned, the goat-milk cheese becomes a spontaneous issue. Every year the factory attracts foreign as well as domestic tourists. Colleges and schools from around Nepal, conduct study tours to the factory.

Both Rita and Ashok are quite content with their work at the factory. Ashok had the opportunity to visit a number of European countries such as France, Germany, and Belgium at the invitation of the goat-milk cheese factories from those countries. Recently, a Belgian team completed a documentary film on their factory at Chitlang.

Apart from the cheese factory, they also run a home-stay right next to the cheese factory. The objective of opening a home-stay was to cater for the many foreign volunteers and tourists (domestic included) who visited the cheese factory. His guests even included the Israeli Ambassador to Nepal. The idea caught on and they have expanded the accommodation to 12 beds after a humble start at the beginning with one room.

After the interview, my companion Sayeet and I took a survey of the cheese factory and the goat farm. We had to take off our shoes, don a cap and change into a gown before entering the factory. As we surveyed the factory, Rita explained the cheese-making process in detail. The soft cheese sells for Rs.2, 500.00 per kilo and the hard for Rs. 3,500.00. The soft cheese can be stored in a refrigerator for two months, the hard cheese for two years.

So, are you happy with the present status of your factory?I asked after the visit to the factory. Yes, my husband and I are satisfied with the progress we have made in those 14 years. Our dreams have finally come true, remarked Rita Singh Thakuri and gave me a demure smile. You once weighed 45 kilos when doing vegetable farming. Now, you seemed to have doubled your weight. Is it the goat milk or the cheese that has made you put on so much weight? I commented jokingly to Rita. Her grin suddenly broke into laughter.

[email protected]
Marcelo Kertesz turned 40 and was ready for something new.

So he, his wife and two young girls moved from Sao Paulo to Encinitas.

I lived in Brazil for 40 years and Sao Paulo for 20 years, Kertesz said. I turned 40 and wanted to have a different experience in life. We decided to try a different lifestyle and come to a small town. Encinitas was a good size and close enough to San Diego.

A few years after moving to the U.S., he came up with an idea to start a business selling coffee just from Brazil where he had lived almost all of his life. This past June, about a year after Kertesz came up with the plan, he and a local coffee expert launched Encinitas-based Mesteeso, which imports high-end coffee beans from Brazil that are roasted in San Diego.

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His products, including a $3.50 espresso and a $16 12-ounce bag of Cafezinho beans, sell online and out of a cart at Del Mars Viewpoint Brewing Co.

For his new coffee business, Kertesz applies his background in advertising, an industry the 44-year-old has worked in his entire professional career and still does.

I always wanted to put my skills to the test, he said. The ultimate test is when you do the branding for your own company. Everything I did for my clients for all those years, I now have a chance to do for myself.

Below, Kertesz talks about why its important to create a business that uses skills from previous jobs, why he settled on a coffee business and advice to folks thinking about going down a new professional path.

The interview was edited and condensed.

Q. How long have you worked in advertising?

A. Ive worked in advertising my whole professional career. For the past few years, Ive been working for myself. But before that, I was working for companies. My clients have included Fiat, Nokia, Budweiser, Honda, Johnson & Johnson, Microsoft, Procter & Gamble and Suzuki. Even in my advertising career, I ended up doing a lot of different things. I (owned) a branding company (with clients like a) public water service company, magazines, newspapers and websites. (I did) advertising and graphic design for presidential election campaigns. I owned a production company where I produced and directed commercials and small documentaries.

Q. Why did you start a coffee business?

A. We were always discussing new ideas, possibilities, ventures and because I came from Brazil, doing something with Brazil was always in the back of my mind. Its a country thats under celebrated.

The thing is Brazil is the No. 1 producer of coffee in the world. But Brazil for most coffee companies in the U.S. is just one of many sources of coffee. Im proposing something different. (Mesteeso coffee is just from Brazil.) You can find extremely good coffee in Brazil. We have over 300,000 coffee farms in Brazil.

Q. Many people have business ideas but dont act on them immediately, if at all. Why did you?

A. In December 2014, I moved to the U.S., specifically Encinitas. I came here to study product design to expand my skills and take a break from my line of work in Brazil. At that time, I was open to new ideas, initiatives, things I could do. What made me move rather fast was that I was in a new country with no pre-established conditions that prevented me from trying this new venture. The further we discussed the idea, the stronger we felt about it and the more momentum we had.

Q. Do you think one day, youll focus on just the coffee business?

A. I think its very possible. As this coffee brand grows, I look forward to that day where I can dedicate 100 percent of my time to that. Everything youve learned working for clients for 20 some years, you suddenly have the chance to do it for yourself. Its a cool and scary situation at the same time. Its easy to recommend something to a client, but when you are the client and have to put money on what youre recommending, it puts it to the test. You really have to believe in what youre doing. Its a super interesting situation.

Q. Whats your advice to someone thinking about starting a new business?

A. If you love to learn new things, then its not a problem. If you have difficulty learning, then you have to rethink starting a new business.

Also, its a lot easier to start a new business where your skills are relevant and important to the success of that business. Your skills are 50 percent of that new venture. My skills (for the coffee business) include branding, advertising, graphic design; and website and film (creation). Things that I knew how to do before helped me a lot in this new venture. And I found a partner that knows a lot about coffee, such as roasting and coffee pricing. The combination of our skills make us a strong viable company. If I was doing something that had nothing to do with what I did before, I think it would be much harder.

And, I have the benefit of having family and friends as investors. Family and friends trust you and support you and dont demand the same feedback as a professional investor that can be hard for a startup to achieve.

Business

Hang Nguyen is a freelance writer based in Los Angeles.
Clustered near county jail and the courthouse, San Diego bail bond agencies sit at the intersection of crime and punishment, ready to play their part in the criminal justice system by helping people avoid incarceration while they await trial. They are, by their own accounts, the unsung heroes of the accused.

Now its their turn to appeal to a higher power.

Last week Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law Senate Bill 10, effectively eliminating cash bail and the niche industry surrounding it, valued at $2 billion annually in the U.S. California-specific revenue is hard to pin down, but Aladdin Bail Bonds, one of the nations largest bail bond companies, is based in Carlsbad and is expected to pull in $14.4 million in 2018 U.S. revenue, according to research outfit IBISWorld.

Ultimately, the new law aims to level the playing field for rich and poor, ensuring that those who are detained ahead of trial are in custody because they need to be, not because they dont have the money to get out, said bill author Sen. Bob Hertzberg, D-Van Nuys.

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There are other victims though.

It would put us out of business completely, said George Junior Stahlman III, whose local bail bond business, King Stahlman Bail Bonds, was established by his father, the late George King Stahlman, in 1954. Youve surely heard its famous jingle, Its better to know me and not need me than to need me and not know me.

Were a mom and pop store  a San Diego family business.

Currently, judges in California set bail for defendants, or a fixed amount that must be deposited with the court to ensure someone charged with a felony, and a misdemeanor in special cases, returns for court hearings and trial. If the defendant cannot post the entire bail, the court will accept a promise by a bail bond agency to pay the entire amount. The defendant then must pay a non-refundable premium to the agency in question, which is typically around 10 percent, and also promise to pay the full amount if he or she doesnt appear as directed.

Under the new pretrial risk assessment system, which goes into effect on Oct. 1 of next year, people arrested on most misdemeanor charges will be automatically booked and released. Everyone else will be graded by a validated risk assessment tool  aka computer software  that scores a persons likelihood to return to court, and whether or not the person is a threat to public safety. Those deemed by the tool to be low risk or medium risk will be released after making a written promise to return to the court  with money no longer a factor in the process. Higher risk individuals, meanwhile, may or may not be released with supervision, via tracking devices paid for by taxpayers, following a prevention detention hearing.

A referendum drive, launched by a coalition of agencies and supported by bail agents, aims to stop the law from being enacted before the public can weigh in, which would be during the November 2020 election. But, as it stands, the 2,795 licensed bail bondsmen and bondswomen of California, 265 of whom call San Diego County home, need to think about finding a new career.

I stand to lose a business that I built from nothing, said Wendy Zamutt, the owner of the San Diego-based Bail Bond Woman agency and a licensed agent since 1996.

Am I sad? Im very sad. Im not sad for Wendy, the bail bondwoman. Im sad for California, because were going to lose our Eighth Amendment right to bail.

Zamutt, who sold pagers before entering the bail services business in the mid-90s, speaks of her role in the justice system as one mostly misunderstood by the public. Shes not a vulture, preying on people when theyre down and out. Rather, in her eyes, shes a friend with a shoulder to cry on and a bank account that guarantees a loved ones release.

Im here to rescue you, she said.

Zamutt meets her clients directly at jail while theyre still in custody  so they dont have to be seen going into a bail bonds office. She helps them locate phone numbers for family members, which most people dont have memorized in the age of smartphones. And she provides hugs when needed, because her clients are often scared and alone.

People are treated very badly when theyre arrested, Zamutt said. But just because you were arrested doesnt mean you need to be treated like a criminal.

Its a flowery version of the surety bond system, for sure, but Zamutts glowing Yelp reviews back up her assertions. Plus, she touts a 100 percent return rate, meaning she makes sure her clients return to court as ordered, and she doesnt need to keep a bounty hunter on staff.

Whether sweet or sour in approach, Zamutt, Stahlman and other bail agents argue that they do what counties cannot; they get people to show up for court.

The law will put tens of thousands of criminals back out on the streets, said Jeffrey Stanley, a one-time mortgage banker who started his own company, Bad Boys Bail Bonds, 20 years ago. I think it was irresponsible of the legislature to pass this bill.

Hertzberg, he said, is ignorant of the work it takes to get someone charged with a crime to show up for court appearances. A friendly reminder wont cut it. Nor will counties have the police manpower and financial resources to pick up defendants who fail to appear, Stanley said.

Its the classic argument that private enterprise can do better than government  because money is on the line.

I would be out of business if my clients didnt show up to court, he said.

I employ 19 full-time investigators that help make sure (defendants) go to court, Stanley added. If someone misses court, we dont put a warrant into the system. We put them into custody.  We spend $2.1 million a year  on recovery, locating individuals.

Whether counties across the state can match the bail agents court return rates  Stanley says he has a 99.8 percent success rate  remains to be determined. The Pretrial Services Agency for the District of Columbia, where cash bail is a thing of the distant past, asserts that 90 percent of released defendants made all scheduled court appearances in 2015. The federal agency, however, comes with an annual cost of more than $60 million, according to its budget reports.

Because of the states size, California taxpayers can expect to spend billions in dollars to fund these kinds of pretrial services, the bail agents argue. And because money is at the heart of the matter, they also challenge the idea that money bail discriminates against poor people, claiming its just political rhetoric.

I can see why people would think that, Junior, the acting King Stahlman, said. But theres a false narrative spread by the people who created this bill. They act like people are languishing in jail because they cant afford to bail out.

Most people dont know this, but bail bond companies dont charge 10 percent anymore. They can charge up to 10 percent, but most of the time its way under that. Theres a lot of negotiation that goes on depending on what they can afford.

The most common offenses he sees are cases of driving under the influence, which only require a $2,500 bail. That means the defendant would pay at most $250 to secure his or her release. And most times, Stahlman said, the defendant or a family member would make a $50 down payment.

Agree or disagree, the argument is moot  so long as the state law stands.

That means people like Gloria Mitchell, the volunteer president of the California Bail Agents Association and the owner of Gloria Mitchell Bail Bonds in Pomona, must abandon businesses that have often been handed down from generation to generation. Two decades ago, Mitchell took over the family business after her mother died of cancer. Now her two daughters are helping out.

Its very disheartening that the governor did not stand up to Senate Bill 10, she said.

Hertzberg, of course, argues otherwise.

Our job in California is to make sure people are treated fairly, not to protect one industry over another.

Business

jennifer.vangrove@sduniontribune.com (619) 293-1840 Twitter: @jbruin
City leaders in National City on Tuesday will consider a number of actions they can take against Councilman Jerry Cano, who failed to correct building code violations for a span of five years.

Tuesdays meeting will mark the City Councils return from a month-long recess. During the last meeting, on July 24, an independent attorney shared the findings of an investigation commissioned by the council.

The investigation focused on whether Cano, who avoided fines for the building code violations, violated state law that prohibits public officials from influencing a governmental decision for the sake of their financial interest.

Attorney William Curley of the Lozano Smith Law Firm found no evidence Cano had a hand in the lax enforcement, but Cano refused to participate in the investigation. As a result, Curley said his findings were inconclusive.

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The City Council on Tuesday will decide whether to ask the District Attorneys Office, state Fair Political Practices Commission, state Attorney Generals Office or county Grand Jury to investigate whether Cano violated any laws, such as Penal Code 424, which addresses the misuse of public funds.

In a report shared with the City Council at its last meeting, Curley noted Canos case expended city staffs time and, as a result, public funds.

This expense, without explanation, could be held by an enforcement agency to be a violation of California Penal Code 424, which addresses misuse or improper use of public money, Curley said.

Other options the City Council will consider include censuring or verbally reprimanding Cano for violating ethical and fiduciary duties  a topic Curley also addressed in his report.

Although ethical and fiduciary duties are not legal duties imposed on city leaders by statute, Curley pointed to a case out of Los Angeles County in which the state Attorney General charged council members and other city officials with violating fiduciary duties and the publics trust.

Another option the City Council will consider is calling on Cano to publicly apologize to Councilwoman Mona Rios, who was accused by Cano of sexual harassment after she called for an investigation into Canos prolonged non-compliance. Cano backtracked on the allegation he made against Rios when the outside investigation got underway.

City Attorney Angil Morris-Jones laid out in a staff report the options the City Council can take against Cano, who was elected in 2012. Morris-Jones did not make a recommendation.

Cano also has faced calls to resign from Assemblywoman Lorena Gonzalez Flether and others.

Canos building code violations dated back to 2013 and were linked to outdoor renovations he made to his home without proper permits. He did not correct the violations until last May, following news reports, public outcry and pressure from Morris-Jones, who was hired last year and has said she was unaware of the violations.

Over the five-year period of Canos non-compliance, the city did not fine the councilman for the building code violations. Instead, the city issued in 2015 a recordation to limit his ability to sell or refinance his house.

While the investigation by Curley found no evidence Cano influenced how the Building Department handled the case, Curley uncovered other reasons that he described as weak enforcement.

According to the investigation, the lax enforcement was the result of an understaffed department that lacks proper policies and protocols to follow up on cases. As a result, staff is forced to use their discretion to prioritize cases that pose a safety threat or encourage economic development.

Cano, who has not publicly addressed the matter, did not respond to a request for comment.

Email: david.hernandez@sduniontribune.com

Phone: (619) 293-1876

Twitter: @D4VIDHernandez
Janette Thomas is all about second chances.

Nobody, in her view, is beyond redemption, including convicted criminals.

Thats why Thomas founded Cell Dogs, an Orange County group that rescues dogs from local shelters and pairs them with inmates who train them for adoption.

The mission of our group is second chances for shelter dogs and people who have made poor choices in their lives, said Thomas, 63, of Tustin.

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The organization is preparing to celebrate its 10th anniversary with its annual fundraiser on Sept. 26. Thomas started the group on her own and ran it for about five years.

Cell Dogs has seven members: three trainers, a grant writer, a clerical support specialist, an outreach coordinator and Thomas, a retiree who is the only full-time member.

Throughout the year, the group takes dogs from shelters and brings them to correctional facilities where inmates train them during an eight- to- 10-week course. Juvenile and adult convicts participate in the program.

Cell Dogs partners with correctional facilities and shelters. The group runs programs with Orange County Probation and at the James A. Musick Facility in Irvine, a jail run by the county sheriffs department. Thomas said the training program is redemptive for inmates who are given a chance to learn new skills, opening doors to potential career opportunities after their sentences are served.

You have to develop a sense of responsibility and patience to train dogs, Thomas said.

Prison dog-training programs are not uncommon, and Thomas said theyve been shown to reduce recidivism.

The canines are trained in basic obedience, such as how to sit and walk on a leash. The dogs never return to the shelter after departing, staying with their trainers until graduation, when about 80% of them are adopted.

Some that have shown a predilection for learning go on to be trained as service dogs.

Thomas said the other 20% are adopted by children with autism, the physically disabled and veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder.

Cell Dogs has placed more than 300 dogs into new homes.

Erin Quintanilla, 34, of Orange received a service dog from the group about two years ago to help her with daily tasks shes unable to perform because she uses a wheelchair. Quintanilla has Charcot-Marie-Tooth, a degenerative neurological disease.

Blossom, a 3-year-old chocolate Labrador, provides crucial services  picking things up for Quintanilla, pulling her wheelchair and closing doors for her, among other tasks.

Blossom is my lifeline, Quintanilla said. She helps me be so much more independent.

Quintanilla said Blossom is an example of what the nonprofit organization can accomplish.

I am proud that Blossom has touched more than just my life, she also helped an inmate, Quintanilla said. Shes helped two people in her little life.

Thomas said clients are sometimes apprehensive about adopting a canine trained by a convict.

Quintanilla said her concerns were allayed after learning the inmates wouldnt know her identity or address. She never learned the identity of the inmate who trained Blossom or what befell her. I just hope she is living her best life, Quintanilla said.

ben.brazil@latimes.com
Sen. John McCains final journey ended Sunday on a grassy hill at the U.S. Naval Academy alongside a lifelong friend within view of the Severn River and earshot of midshipmen present and future.

A horse-drawn caisson carrying the senators casket led a procession of mourners from the academys chapel to its cemetery after a private service. The senators widow, Cindy, and his children were among those who walked behind the caisson. Joining them were family and friends as well as members of McCains academy Class of 1958, military leaders and academy midshipmen.

About 4 p.m. a flyover of military aircraft honored the Navy pilot who was shot down over Vietnam and held for more than five years as a prisoner of war. The burial was private as per the wishes of McCain, the Arizona Republican and 2008 presidential nominee who died Aug. 25 from brain cancer at age 81. Vehicles that had carried mourners began leaving the area between 4:30 and 5 p.m.

One scheduled speaker at the service, fellow Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham of South Carolina, said beforehand that he would tell the audience that nobody loved a soldier more than John McCain, that I bear witness to his commitment to have their back, travel where they go, never let them be forgotten. Also expected to pay tribute were David H. Petraeus, a retired Army general and former CIA director, and McCains son Jack.

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As the hearse carrying McCain passed through a gate and onto the academy grounds, there was loud applause from the several hundred people lining the street on the hot and muggy summer day. Many held their hands over their hearts and waved American flags. Some shouted, God bless you.

People in the crowd held signs that read Senator John McCain Thanks For Serving! Godspeed and Rest In Peace Maverick.

For his final resting place, McCain picked the historic site overlooking the Severn River, not Arlington National Cemetery, where his father and grandfather, both admirals, were buried.

People pay tribute as the hearse carrying Sen. John McCains casket arrives at the Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md., on Sunday. (Susan Walsh / Associated Press)

Years ago Chuck Larson, an admiral himself and an ally throughout McCains life, reserved four plots at the cemetery  two for McCain and himself, and two for their wives. Larson died in 2014, and McCain wrote in a recent memoir that he wanted to be buried next to his friend, near where it began.

Among the pallbearers on a list provided by McCains office were Frank Gamboa, his academy roommate; Defense Secretary James N. Mattis; and two men who were POWs with McCain in Vietnam, John Fer and Everett Alvarez Jr.

Tributes to McCain began Wednesday in Arizona and continued through the weekend. On Saturday, eulogies by his daughter Meghan and two former presidents  Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama  remembered McCain as a patriot who could bridge painful rivalries. While their remarks made clear their admiration for him, they also represented a repudiation of President Trumps brand of tough-talking, divisive politics. Trump and McCain were at odds during the 2016 campaign and after Trumps election.

Theres a lesson to be learned this week about John McCain, Graham said.

No. 1, Americans appreciate military service.... If you work hard and do your homework and know what youre talking about, people will listen to you. That if you pick big causes bigger than yourself, youll be remembered, he told Fox News Sunday.

He tried to drain the swamp before it was cool, that you can fight hard and still be respected. If you forgive, people appreciate it, and if you admit to mistakes, you look good as a stronger man. Thats the formula, John McCain. This was a civics lesson for anybody who wanted to listen. Why do we remember this man? Because of the way he conducted his public life.

UPDATES:

2:50 p.m.: This article was updated after Sen. John McCains burial.

This article was originally published at 11:15 a.m.
Tropical Storm Gordon lashed South Florida with heavy rains and high winds on Monday and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane when it hits the central U.S. Gulf Coast.

Gordon formed into a tropical storm near the Florida Keys early Monday as it moved west-northwest at 17 mph. The storm is expected to reach hurricane strength when it hits the Gulf Coast, including coastal Mississippi, by late Tuesday. From there, it is forecast to move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley on Wednesday.

The National Hurricane Center said at 8 p.m. Eastern time Monday that the storm was centered 95 miles west of Fort Myers, Fla Maximum sustained winds were clocked at 60 mph.

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A hurricane warning was put into effect for the area stretching from the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border. As much as 8 inches of rain could fall in some parts of the Gulf states through late Thursday.

The Miami-based hurricane center said the storm is also expected to bring life-threatening storm surge to portions of the central Gulf Coast. A storm surge warning has been issued for the area stretching from Shell Beach, La., to Dauphin Island, Ala. The region could see rising waters of 3 to 5 feet.

The deepest water will occur along the immediate coast near and to the east of the landfall location, where the surge will be accompanied by large waves, the center said.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency Monday and said 200 National Guard troops will be deployed to southeastern Louisiana.

The storms predicted track had shifted slightly east as of Monday evening, meaning Louisiana is just outside the area under the hurricane warning. Still, the southeastern part of the state remains under a tropical storm warning and residents need to be prepared for the storm to shift west, Edwards said.

This storm has every possibility to track further in our direction, Edwards said during a news conference Monday evening.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell held an afternoon news conference and said the city has the pumps and the power needed to protect residents. But authorities issued a voluntary evacuation order for areas outside the citys levee protection system, including the Venetian Isles, Lake St. Catherine and Irish Bayou areas.

Cantrell urged residents within the levee protection area to stock up on supplies and shelter in place.

The Miami Beach Police Department said via Twitter that the Labor Day holiday was NOT a beach day, with rough surf and potential rip currents. Red flags flew over Pensacola-area beaches in Floridas Panhandle, where swimming and wading in the Gulf of Mexico was prohibited. More than 4,000 Florida Power & Light customers lost power Monday.

The National Weather Service said conditions were possible for tornadoes in the affected parts of South Florida on Monday night.

The storm left many businesses on Floridas Gulf Coast feeling shortchanged by the holiday weekend. The area has already been heavily affected by this summers so-called red tide  massive algae blooms that have caused waves of dead marine life to wash up along the coast.

Jenna Wright, owner of a coffee shop in Naples, Fla., told the Naples Daily News that she had expected higher numbers for the Labor Day weekend.

This is normally a decent weekend, but the storm and red tide arent helping, Wright said. Were a beach coffee shop, and if people cant go to the beach, then we wont get any customers.

Separately, Tropical Storm Florence continues to hold steady over the eastern Atlantic. Forecasters say little change in strength is expected in coming days, and no coastal watches or warnings are in effect.

UPDATES:

7:18 p.m.: This article was updated with additional details.

2:26 p.m.: This article was updated with additional details.

The article was originally published at 8:40 a.m.
More than two years ago at a news conference in the Hall of Justice, then-District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis released a portion of police body camera footage showing the fatal shooting of Timothy Smith by San Diego officers in 2015.

Dumanis had ruled the shooting was justified, and the video  along with seven other videos of police shootings  was widely disseminated after the news conference.

Thats one reason why it was surprising to lawyers for Smiths family  who are suing the city, Officer Scott Holslag and others over the death when city lawyers submitted in March more than two dozen videos as part of a motion to throw out the case and wanted the judge to seal the videos from public view.

The city contended the sealing was needed in order to protect the privacy rights of Smith, as well as those of police officers who were not part of the case. Lawyers for Smiths family were taken aback.

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Defendants may not kill a person only to ask the Court for summary disposition of the case by submission of documents not yet produced to plaintiffs, and seek to keep the evidence secret by asserting the dead mans privacy rights, lawyers Eugene Iredale, Julia Yoo and Grace Jun wrote. Defendants should not be permitted to bury the truth along with the body of Timothy Smith.

U.S. District Court Judge William Q. Hayes agreed, and on Aug. 3 declined both the motion to seal the video and a second motion to throw out the case.The ruling keeps the suit on track, Iredale said.

Gerry Braun, chief of staff for City Attorney Mara Elliott, said the city had sound reasons to ask Hayes to keep the videos private.

The City wanted the Court to see this body-worn camera footage because it supports our position that the officers acted lawfully and reasonably, he said in an emailed statement Friday. We argued in court that the evidence should be sealed for two reasons: to safeguard operational security procedures and arrest tactics, and to protect the privacy of witnesses and neighbors, including those who allowed officers into their homes.

Smith, 47, was killed in Pacific Beach on Nov. 4, 2015, after running from police officers, shirtless and wearing a pair of shorts. His wife, Janie Sanders, was being sought for skipping a $7,500 bail in Missouri.

The lawsuit contends that bail agents had fabricated information that both Smith and Sanders were violent felons, and had gotten law enforcement to help look for them, in part by creating a wanted poster on the couple. The poster erroneously said that Smith, who was not wanted on bail, had left Missouri with an AK-47, and that both had a violent history.

Smith had no weapon, and neither had a violent criminal past, though they did have non-violent convictions, Iredale said. About 3 p.m. on the day of the shooting, police spotted Smith on Garnett Avenue, identifying him from the poster.

He fled, eventually running into an alley divided by a fence and hiding in a storage shed. As police on foot and in a helicopter searched the area, he ran from the shed, scaling the fence. As he did so, a police dog clamped on to his foot. Smith was able to shake off the dog, losing a shoe.

He then jumped atop a trash bin in the alley next to an apartment building wall as police closed in, ordering him to surrender. The videos show Smith putting his hands on his waist, perhaps reaching to his pockets and not heeding shouted commands to keep his hands visible.

When she ruled the shooting was justified, Dumanis noted several officers saw Smith reach into his pockets and were concerned he might be reaching for a gun police had been told he had.

Iredale said frame-by-frame still photos from the body-camera video of one officer behind Holslag show Smith turning toward the building wall with his hands up when he was shot.

Dumanis concluded that Holslag had fired in self-defense.

In rejecting the request to seal the videos on the federal case, Hayes concluded that city lawyers had not articulated a compelling reason that would outweigh the publics interest in seeing the videos, as well as transcripts of the tapes.

Twitter: @gregmoran

greg.moran@sduniontribune.com
After the #MeToo wave crashed upon the Capitols granite steps last fall, the issue of sexual harassment seeped into nearly every corner of Californias legislative landscape.

It loomed over day-to-day business as lawmakers grappled with salacious accusations about their colleagues and soul-searching about their own behavior. It forced an examination of how the Legislature handled internal complaints. And it inspired bills that tackled harassment in Hollywood, Silicon Valley and the workplace at large.

With the Legislature winding down last week, those most involved with the movement took stock of the wins and losses, transformations and setbacks of this decidedly abnormal year.

It has been a moment to seize, and seize it we have, said Noreen Farrell, executive director of Equal Rights Advocates, a womens rights group.

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It all began with a letter cobbled together in mid-October by a group of female lobbyists who were inspired by the focus on sexual harassment in Hollywood after the accusations leveled at producer Harvey Weinstein.

They longed for a similar conversation about California politics. Within a few days, more than 140 women, including elected officials and legislative staff, had signed on to a missive to condem a pervasive culture of harassment and misconduct.

The effort came together with 24 hours, about 500 phone calls, a couple bottles of wine and a lot of coffee, said Samantha Corbin, a lobbyist who helped spearhead the effort. This was not a targeted, long-planned campaign. We were woefully unprepared for the magnitude, the windfall of responses that we got.

In the 10 months since, three legislators resigned after facing public accusations of sexual misconduct and a fourth stepped down, citing health reasons, while a harassment investigation against him was underway. One state senator was reprimanded for giving unwanted hugs; another was admonished for giving an unsolicited noogie. An assemblywoman at the center of the movement was stripped of her committee chairmanship for inappropriate behavior, while an investigation into a groping allegation continues.

The allegations reverberated far beyond Sacramento. Adama Iwu, a lobbyist who helped coordinate the original letter, was featured on the cover of Time magazines Person of the Year issue, along with other women who spoke out against harassment.

It was definitely distracting, theres no question, Assemblywoman Laura Friedman (D-Glendale) said about #MeToos upheaval of state politics. When you have a bit of a collective trauma with the whole building, the whole Capitol community, people do need to talk it through. If people werent talking, Id be worried.

Female lawmakers, staffers and lobbyists speak out on pervasive harassment in Californias Capitol 

In response, lawmakers did what they typically do when faced with a high-profile issue: They turned headlines into legislation. Legislators proposed more than two dozen bills addressing sexual harassment in this legislative year; more than half of those made it to the governors desk.

Legislators were practically falling over themselves to be aligned with #MeToo legislation this year, Farrell said.

Some proposals targeted specific industries, including a measure now awaiting the governors signature that would require harassment prevention training for in-home caregivers and a failed bill to install panic buttons in hotel rooms to protect employees.

Others would force businesses to overhaul how they handle reports of misconduct in the workplace. A pair of bills by Assemblywoman Eloise Gomez Reyes (D-Grand Terrace) would require large employers to retain records on sexual harassment complaints for five years after the accused or complainant leaves the company, and would extend the statute of limitations for filing harassment complaints with the state from one year to three. Both easily cleared the Legislature and now await Gov. Jerry Browns approval.

The extension of the filing deadline, Farrell said, is a powerful example of a bill that wouldve never gotten traction but for this movement. It implicates potentially thousands more claims being filed that wouldve been dead in the water.

Lobbying around the bills drew in several famous faces. Actress Jane Fonda and former Fox News host Gretchen Carlson stumped for a bill that would ban employers from forcing workers to settle harassment disputes in private arbitration instead of giving them the option to go to court. The bill now sits on Browns desk. Actress Mira Sorvino, who went public with a sexual misconduct allegation against Weinstein, touted a package of anti-harassment bills from the Oscars red carpet and later lobbied lawmakers by phone.

But the increased attention did not set the measures on a glide path. A bill by Sen. Hannah-Beth Jackson (D-Santa Barbara) that would expand anti-harassment provisions in state law ran into stiff opposition from the California Chamber of Commerce.

The business group objected to the proposals limitation of non-disparagement agreements as a condition of employment or a raise, as well as language that made clear to judges that a single incident of harassment could be enough to satisfy the severe and pervasive legal standard of sexual harassment. The chamber argued the bill could lead to a significant increase in lawsuits against employers.

Jacksons bill squeaked past the Legislature in a narrow vote. It now awaits Browns signature.

The fact of the matter is that change is always difficult, Jackson said. It requires taking on the status quo  the status quo being the traditional business community.

California Legislature releases a decades worth of records on sexual harassment investigations 

But the outcry from legislative employees and others who do business in the Capitol forced legislators to turn their focus inward, looking at how their own workplace handled complaints. Staffers complained of a byzantine system in which each house handled its own complaints. Fears of retaliation and politicization were rampant.

After a months-long overhaul, lawmakers rolled out a new policy that would create a designated unit in the Legislatures legal office to receive and investigate complaints. A panel of independent experts would determine if an investigated claim was substantiated and recommend a response. Legislators approved $1.5 million to establish the new unit.

This is the most comprehensive and rigorous policy in the country in terms of statehouses, said Friedman, who led the effort. Its amazing our speaker and [Senate president] pro tem were willing to give up a lot of their power in this to an outside group of experts and let them be the ones to adjudicate. Thats pretty profound.

The public got more insight than ever before into complaints lodged in the Capitol. Departing from a precedent in which information about internal operations was rarely released, legislative leaders started a new policy of disclosing complaints against members and high-level staffers that were found to be substantiated.

Publicly disclosing that information could be a significant check on bad behavior, Assemblyman Mark Stone (D-Scotts Valley) said.

The stuff that happens in this bubble  our voters dont know about, Stone said. If I harass somebody up here and I know its going to get buried, whats actually the deterrent?

Stone sought to enshrine the new process in state law with a bill to change the Legislative Open Records Act to guarantee substantiated complaints would be released, ensuring disclosure would continue under new legislative leadership.

The measure did not even receive a hearing  a sign, Stone said, that old habits die hard.

This underlying  notion that were going to protect members and by that were going to protect the [Legislature]  were still not over that, Stone said. The pushback on this [bill] is an artifact of that.

Introducing new bills and writing new internal policies are one thing. Transforming Capitol culture is another. Those involved in this debate said it will take time to determine how much the latter has really changed.

Creating an environment so that people self-censor, that people are a little more aware  thats going to take years, Stone said. Theres going to be some resentment. Were going to go through some ups and downs. The rate of change will depend on the confidence staff has to make those complaints.

Iwu, the lobbyist who became a face of the #MeToo movement, said serious discussion of the issue must continue even as it fades from headlines.

This is an issue that we are all still evolving on. Things that were acceptable 12 years, 12 months, 12 weeks ago  we are realizing as we continue to have these conversations that theyre not acceptable, Iwu said.

Self-reflection has to be ongoing, she added. This isnt something you get to take a class or a training, and then check the box and youre good.

melanie.mason@latimes.com

Follow @melmason on Twitter for the latest on California politics.
Two major issues that have received the topmost attention in major Nepali and English broadsheet dailies published from Kathmandu on Monday are the protest launched by Nepal Medical Education against new criminal code, and a mandamus order issued by the Supreme Court to ensure the voting rights of Nepali citizens living abroad. The reconstruction of Dharahara, a historic tower that collapsed in the 2015 April earthquake, is likely to resume as the National Reconstruction Authority has restarted the contract process and this also has got significant attention on the front pages of major newspapers.

A demonstration launched by Province 2 Minister for Internal Affairs and Law, Gyanendra Yadav, against the Nepal Rastra Bank for defying the public holiday decision has also been covered on the front page of many newspapers.

Few other political, sociocultural, and economic issues have been featured on the cover pages of broadsheet dailies today.

Important

Mandamus order for the franchise of citizens living abroad

A Supreme Court division bench of justices Purushottam Bhandari and Sapana Pradhan Malla on Sunday issued a mandamus order in the name of government to ensure voting rights of Nepali citizens living abroad, according to newspaper reports.

The order has been issued to the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers, the Federal Parliament, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Ministry of Labour and Employment, the Ministry of Law, and the Election Commission, reports Annapurna Post.

The bench has ordered the government to implement the verdict by the upcoming national level elections and make sure that those who have not given up Nepali citizenship and who have voter id card can cast votes regardless of their country of residence, according to Nagarik.

Doctors protest hits patients hard

As doctors and medical professionals resorted to a street protest upon a call from the Nepal Medical Association, most hospitals and health institutions of the country remained shut yesterday, reports Kantipur.

Around 6,000 protesting doctors submitted their professional licences to the Nepal Medical Council as part of their protest. On the other hand, the Ministry of Health has warned of launching stern action against the striking doctors if they do not return to work, the report adds.

The Himalayan Times reports that the Association will continue its protest programmes throughout this week.

Meanwhile, the Federation of Nepali Journalists has warned of launching a protest against the code citing it is against the free press, Nagarik reports in a box story. The umbrella organisation of Nepali journalists has also suggested amending the law during a meeting of the Legislative Committee of National Assembly.

Nepal-China joint venture to reconstruct Dharahara

The Himalayan Times and Republica have published reports that a construction company named GIETC/RAMAN J/V has won the contract to reconstruct the historic tower of Dharahara. It is a joint venture of Nepali and Chinese businesses, according to The Himalayan Times.

Republica informs that the company has proposed the lowest amount of Rs 3.45 billion for the reconstruction project. The report also adds that the Nepal Reconstruction Authoritys decision to select the contractor through free competition saved as much as Rs 940 million.

Earlier, the Office of the Prime Minister and Council of Ministers had halted the bid process after receiving a complaint by one of the competitors, according to the report.

Ignored

Literacy campaign ineffective

It has been 10 years since the government announced the launch of literacy campaign across the country, but the campaign has been largely ineffective, according to a brief story in Nepal Samcharpatra. So far, only 47 of 77 districts have been declared fully literate. None of the district in Province 2 has been declared literate till now.

Madhesh activists death in custody raises questions

A three column story of The Kathmandu Post reports that a Free Madhesh activist and support of CK Raut has died in the police custody on Saturday and it has been dragged into controversy as his neighbours and police officials made different statements about his death.

Ram Manohar Yadav was arrested from Bardiya of western Nepal 12 days ago for showing black flags to Deputy Prime Minister Upendra Yadav and he was brought to Kathmandu from Nepalgunj for further treatment, the report adds.

Interesting

China interested to buy Nepali electricity

Karobar reports in a two column story that China has expressed its interest to buy electricity upto 1,000 megawatt from Nepal every rainy season. During a bilateral meeting held recently, the Chinese side expressed the interest to buy power regularly, the report claims quoting Komal Aatreya, who had led the Nepali delegation.

Home Ministry to launch campaign against violence against women

The Ministry of Home Affairs has decided to launch a campaign against various forms of violence against women among other malpractices in the society, reports Gorkhapatra.

The campaign also tries to address rape, use of narcotic drugs, uncontrolled and illegal trade of liquor, according to the Ministrys spokesperson Ram Krishna Subedi.

The Ministry is preparing to launch the movement by the end of this month.
In the end, the California Legislature concluded that some companies  namely utilities  are just too big to fail.

You wouldnt ordinarily think that about a leftist, heavily Democratic legislature not known for being business friendly.

But the lawmakers agonized and decided that private utilities should be allowed to raise customers electricity rates to help cover 2017 wildfire liabilities if thats deemed necessary to forestall bankruptcy. Theyd need to sell the rate hike to the California Public Utilities Commission.

Weve done everything we can to protect ratepayers, Senate leader Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) said in a statement. But without the rate hike option, she continued, the utilities face the dire prospect of bankruptcy. If we allowed that to happen, ratepayers would suffer deeper as rates spike [and energy] reliability is lost.

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Consumer advocates called the legislation a bailout.

The utilities  especially Pacific Gas & Electric Co.  didnt like the legislation either. They had sought a more generous formula for determining financial liability when wildfires are sparked by their equipment, such as fallen power lines. PG&E says it faces up to $2.5 billion in liabilities from last years devastating wine country fires.

The bill did contain a more utility-friendly liability formula for catastrophic wildfires starting in 2019. Utilities could also seek rate hikes to help cover liability costs for those fires.

The sweeping legislation included a lot of other things too  mainly aimed at increasing the states fire prevention efforts by removing combustible fuel from woodlands. Legislators allotted $200 million annually for that purpose from the states greenhouse gas reduction fund.

With devastating blazes raging for weeks throughout California, legislators were under pressure from constituents to pass significant prevention and firefighting bills.

It was personal for many legislators who were threatened by flames the last two years, or feared the future new normal.

Were going into fire season when I go home, Assemblywoman Marie Waldron (R-Escondido) told colleagues during the house debate, referring to the traditional peak fire months of September and October. And I dread what thats going to be when the Santa Ana winds blow.

The fire legislation passed both houses late Friday night, just before lawmakers adjourned their two-year session.

More from George Skelton 

It was a fairly productive session measured by the passage of important bills. There also were scores of frivolous bills sent to the governor. More on that another time.

From the get-go, the Legislature concluded that President Trumps policies needed to be resisted at all costs  especially on illegal immigration. That was reflected in a sanctuary state bill the Legislature passed last year.

If Trump hadnt won the presidency, thered be no need for this measure, said then-Senate leader Kevin de Leon (D-Los Angeles), author of that bill. There has to be a firewall to protect our state.

De Leons bill was significantly toned down under a veto threat from Gov. Jerry Brown. It prohibited California law enforcement from joining federal agents in immigration raids. The idea was that local cops are paid to enforce local laws, not federal immigration statutes.

But if an immigrant in the country illegally is convicted of one of roughly 800 crimes, he can be reported to the feds before his release from jail.

Coverage of California politics 

Politically, Democrats would have been better off if theyd allowed jailers to tip off federal agents whenever any undocumented lawbreaker was released, regardless of his crime. The sanctuary bill, which mirrored the policies of several California cities, merely enhanced our national image as a radical left coast state.

The Legislature continued fighting Trumps policies right up until the sessions end. It sent Brown a bill restoring net neutrality rules that federal regulators have scrapped.

Under the bill, broadband and wireless companies would be prohibited from favoring some websites over others by charging for faster speeds. Providers also would be barred from blocking access to content. The internet industry, of course, lobbied heavily against the measure, written by Sen. Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco).

The Legislature also consistently bucked Trumps coal-oriented energy policies. He considers human-caused climate change a hoax.

State lawmakers passed an ambitious De Leon bill requiring California to obtain 100% of its energy from clean sources by 2045. The only other state with such a bold goal is Hawaii.

Brown, one of Americas loudest crusaders against climate change, was unusually silent on De Leons bill. But the governors expected to sign it as an overture to a big climate summit hes holding next week in San Francisco.

Another monumental bill the Legislature passed and Brown signed last week will end Californias money bail system. No longer will defendants be locked up awaiting trial simply because theyre too poor. Judges will decide whos a flight risk or a public danger and should be jailed  and who should be freed.

The bills author, Sen. Bob Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys), called the current system perverse.

The most gutsy  and contentious  thing the Democrat-controlled Legislature did during the two years was pass an unpopular increase in gas taxes and vehicle fees. The idea was to raise $5.2 billion annually, mostly for road repairs with some for transit.

Republicans are attempting to capitalize on the tax hike. Theyre sponsoring a November ballot measure that would repeal the tax  and, they hope, light a fire under GOP voters. They just might do it.

george.skelton@latimes.com

Follow @LATimesSkelton on Twitter
Chaos erupted when a man fired a gun into the air before the start of a concert by rapper Ice Cube Sunday night at the Del Mar Racetrack in California.

According to witnesses and concertgoers, the crowd was getting impatient entering the venue for the performance that was to follow the races.

A person pulled out a gun and appeared to fire into the air, setting off a chaotic scene.

At least one video posted on Twitter showed a female sheriffs deputy fire what sounded like four rounds after a man standing near an entrance gate is seen pointing a weapon toward the sky.

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The San Diego County Sheriffs Department confirmed that one person was down and taken to the hospital, but did not provide details on the persons injuries.

At 7:22 p.m. local time, the Del Mar Racetrack, which is 20 miles north of San Diego, tweeted that the situation has been contained and said the concert is moving forward as planned. By 8:30 p.m., the concert was underway.

The shooting took place during the 10th race. In a TVG broadcast of the race that was posted on Twitter, an announcer can be heard repeatedly saying, Theres gunfire at the track, as horses continue along the turf course.

The sold-out show drew about 18,000 people and was part of the 2018 Del Mar Summer Concert Series.

With News Wire Services
A California man accidentally shot his wife in the arm after mistaking her for an intruder, police said Monday.

The husband shot his wife accidently. He thought she was a prowler. She was transported to a hospital with non-life-threatening injuries, Kimberly Alexander with the Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department told the Daily News.

Alexander said the call came in at 2:13 a.m. from the residence in San Gabriel, about 10 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.

She said the investigation was ongoing and that the name and age of the husband was not released because he was not arrested.

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She said it didnt appear that the couple was estranged.

It doesnt look like anything nefarious was happening, Alexander said.
President Trump started off Labor Day by accusing the nations top organized labor leader of acting against the interests of American working men and women.

Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO, represented his union poorly on television this weekend, Trump tweeted shortly after dawn. Some of the things he said were so against the working men and women of our country, and the success of the U.S. itself, that it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly.

A Dem! the President added.

AFL-CIO spokesmen did not return requests for comment from the Daily News.

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Trumps federal holiday fighting words came on the heels of Trumka criticizing him over threatening to exclude Canada from a trade deal meant to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement.

The three countries in North America, the economy is pretty integrated, Trumka, whose organization represents more than 12 million workers, said on Fox News Sunday.

And its pretty hard to see how that would work without having Canada in the deal.

Trumka also ripped Trump over the GOP tax bill and failing to defend Obama-era overtime pay mandates.

Unfortunately, to date, the things he has done to hurt workers outpace what he has done to help workers, Trumka said.

Trump faced bipartisan criticism last week when he conspicuously left Canada out of a new trade deal with Mexico.

The President followed that up with a tweet claiming, Theres no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal.

If we dont make a fair deal for the U.S. after decades of abuse, Canada will be out, the President tweeted.

Lawmakers and trade experts have cautioned Trump against cutting a deal without Canada, saying it would end up hurting American consumers.

Trumps attack on Trumka drew swift condemnation from Democrats.

Just this morning he was tweeting against Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO. Look, Im here to say on Labor Day, that working people, union people are fighting back, Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) said at an event shortly after Trumps initial tweet. When unions fight back, all workers get stronger.
iStock/Thinkstock(CLEARWATER, Fla.) -- Breaking his silence in a jailhouse interview, the white Florida man charged with manslaughter in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black man in a dispute over a parking space says "I cleared every hurdle" of the state's "stand your ground" self-defense law.



Michael Drejka spoke for the first time since being arrested and charged in the July killing of Marquis McGlockton, who was gunned down in front of his girlfriend and children.



Drejka, 48, invoked the "stand your ground" law, saying that he was in fear of his life after McGlockton shoved him to the ground when he came out of a convenience store in Clearwater, Florida, to find Drejka allegedly berating his girlfriend, Britany Jacobs, about parking in a handicap space.



"I followed the law the way I felt the law was supposed to be followed," Drejka told ABC affiliate station WTSP-TV in Tampa Bay. "I cleared every hurdle that that law had put in front of me."



Asked if he could go back and change anything he did that fateful day, Drejka said, "No, [not] off the top of my head."



On July 19, Drejka spotted Jacobs sitting in her car parked in a handicap spot outside the Circle A convenience store in Clearwater waiting for McGlockton, the father of her three children, to come out.



He said he confronted Jacobs because he has a "pet peeve" about seeing people illegally parked in spots reserved for the disabled.



Drejka said he once had a childhood sweetheart who was disabled in a car crash when she was 16, and that his mother-in-law is disabled.



"I always said, my whole life is always looking for a handicapped parking spot," Drejka said in the interview conducted Friday at the Pinellas County Jail, where he is being held on $100,000 bail. "And it just always touched a nerve with me."



Investigators said Drejka, who is not disabled, was alone on the day of the shooting.



He denied that the episode with Jacobs and McGlockton had anything to do with race, and said it was "totally false" that he used racial slurs in the encounter with Jacobs or anyone else.



Drejka refuted allegations by attorneys for Jacobs and the McGlockton family that he is a racist.



"No sir, not by any means," he said. "I've worked with too many people, I've met too many people in my life to be that kind of person. There's no way to survive really by being like that."



Surveillance video taken from in front of the Circle A store showed McGlockton, 28, getting between Drejka and Jacobs, and shoving Drejka to the ground. Drejka, who had a permit to carry a concealed weapon, is seen in the footage pulling a .40-caliber Glock handgun while he was still on the ground and firing it at McGlockton, who appeared to be retreating.



The video shows McGlockton being shot once in the left side. Jacobs said she and McGlockton's 5-year-old son witnessed the shooting.



McGlockton stumbled back in the store mortally wounded and later died at a hospital.



Drejka said he feared for his life when McGlockton "tackled" him to the ground.



"There was only one way to look at that. You have to be scared ... because if youre not and you're wrong you know  thats that," he said. "So, yeah very scared having never been confronted like that or never been assaulted like that if you will."



Pinellas County Sheriff Bob Gualtieri initially declined to arrest Drejka after the gunman invoked the "stand your ground" defense, saying his decision was bound by the law.



Drejka said he felt "vindicated" by Gualtieri's decision, even as protests broke out in Clearwater and across the nation over the shooting.



"I'm a strong supporter of Second Amendment rights and the fact that everybody deserves to feel secure in their person no matter where they go or what they're doing as long as they're there legally, of course," he said. "So yeah, I guess you can say I'm a big supporter of the Second Amendment. I suppose not overtly outspoken about it, but in my heart."



When asked if he could say anything to McGlockton's loved ones, he initially declined. But later in the interview, he said, "I'm sorry, that's all I can really say to them."



"And thinking about it, would you accept those kinds of words from someone? I dont think I would," he said.



He said he was surprised when Pinellas County State Attorney Bernie McCabe filed a manslaughter charge against him on Aug. 13. Drejka denied that he voluntarily turned himself in.



"They lied to me," he said of the detective who arrested him. "And under the guise of returning my property, he requested me to show up at the sheriff's office to talk to the original detectives."



The only time in the interview that Drejka showed emotion was when he spoke of his wife and children, who he claims have been facing death threats and eviction from their rented home.



"I miss my girl. I miss my girls. All of them, yeah," he said crying.



Attorneys for Jacobs and the McGlockton family could not be reached for comment on Sunday. They have previously praised McCabe for filing charges against Drejka while criticizing Sheriff Gualtieri for not arresting Drejka immediately.



"I support the state attorney's decision and will have no further comment as the case continues to work its way through the criminal justice system," Gualtieri said in a statement after Drejka was charged with manslaughter.



Jacobs' attorney, Benjamin Crump, has called Drejka a "self-appointed wannabe cop" who attempted to "hide behind 'stand your ground' to defend his indefensible actions."



"I have full faith that this truth will prevail to punish this cold-blooded killer who angrily created the altercation that led to Markeis' needless death," Crump said the day Drejka was charged. "We will continue to fight until justice is brought for the family of Markeis McGlockton."



Drejka has plead not guilty to the charge and has a pre-trial hearing scheduled for Oct. 19.

Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Kathmandu, September 3

Nepali Congress chief Sher Bahadur Deuba says his party supports the ongoing agitation by doctors demanding changes in some of the provisions of the new civil code.

Deuba, who was speaking to mediapersons in Chitwwan on Monday, said that the government should fulfil the doctors demands. The government should address the legitimate demands of the doctors, added the Congress president.

Deuba criticised the government for failing to address important issues facing the country. He said that the government had failed to book culprits involved in heinous crime.

On the international front, however, the government is not doing bad, he told mediapersons. He said that the BIMSTEC Summit in Kathmandu was successful. The former Prime Minister said his party has no objection to Nepals participation in the BIMSTEC military drill.


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So now we all know where he goes

When Santa seeks summer repose.

He trades in his sleigh

For artists beret

And paints with the grass neath his toes.

Congratulations to Michelle Gordon-Weedon of Airway Heights, Washington! For her limerick describing J.C. Leyendeckers cover illustration for the May 26, 1934, issue of the Post, she wins $25 and our gratitude for a job well done.

If youd like to enter the Limerick Laughs Contest for our upcoming issue, submit your limerick via our online entry form.

Subscribe and get unlimited access to our online magazine archive. Subscribe Today

In no particular order, here are some of our other favorite entries to this limerick contest:

Said an elderly artist named Will,

Painting nature is quite a big thrill.

The poses wont last,

So I have to work fast

Cause hummingbirds cannot sit still! Roger Blush, Irvine, California

My questions, I hope, wont cause strife.

Is he ignoring the cute wildlife?

Is his nose red from drink?

And that sweater of pink 

Does it really belong to his wife? Brian Federico, Clyde, New York

The animals witnessed that summer

A bearded and red-bereted plumber

Who sat at his easel

And painted a weasel

So perfectly  number by number. Denis Feehan, Mesquite, Nevada

With butterflies, bluebird and doe,

Two bunnies complete our tableau.

Idyllic? You bet!

However, I get

Art critics wherever I go. Steve Johnston, Peoria, Arizona

Well, this dwarf had the right to be mopey.

He again lost a film part to Dopey.

So he shed just one tear

As he cut off his ear.

You might know him: His name is Van-Gogh-pey. Jennifer Klein, Jericho, New York

The painter applied his paint thick.

His brushwork was skillful and quick.

When the painting was done

He amazed everyone.

With a chuckle, he signed it Saint Nick. Roy Skibiski, Lawndale, California

As the animals gather and stare,

He is sitting composed in his chair.

He is painting with ease

And enjoying the breeze,

But his painting is off by a hare. Ryan Tilley, Altamonte Springs, Florida

As the animals gradually got bolder,

Painters temper had started to smolder.

He finally confided,

I just cant abide it 

You lot looking over my shoulder! Lisa Timpf, Simcoe, Ontario, Canada
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Unlike most holiday imagery, a symbol for Labor Day can be difficult for many Americans to conjure. Is it a muscled arm wielding a tool? An American flag? The dreaded hammer and sickle?

To West Virginians like Wilma Steele, the perfect symbol for Labor Day is a red paisley bandanna. This was, after all, the unifying costume of West Virginia coal miners during the largest labor uprising in American history.

Steele is a board member and co-founder of the West Virginia Mine Wars Museum, a humble collection of artifacts and displays in Matewan, West Virginia. The museum is one of the only surviving testaments to the struggles of the states coal miners in the early 20th century  a labor story that Wilma believes more people ought to know.

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Matewan sits in Hatfield-McCoy country, in the southwest corner of the state, just across the Tug Fork River from Kentucky. The town of 500 people includes a downtown district designated a National Historic Landmark for its role in the escalation of the mine wars.

At the turn of the 20th century, southern West Virginian coal miners faced uniquely squalid working circumstances. While the United Mine Workers of America had organized many of the mines in Indiana, Ohio, and Pennsylvania, mine owners in West Virginia discouraged their workers from unionizing, hiring guards from the Baldwin-Felts Detective Agency to squash dissent and evict striking miners. West Virginian mine workers lived in company housing and bought their groceries (and mining tools) from company stores with their pay, a company currency called scrip.

Mary Harris Mother Jones, a brassy and bold labor leader, began speaking to miners around the state in the 1890s, giving powerful calls to action laced with obscenities. According to James Greens The Devil Is Here in These Hills, a U.S. district attorney named her the most dangerous woman in America because she could, by her own words and deeds, persuade hundreds of men to walk out the mines.

And she did. The Paint Creek-Cabin Creek strikes brought a year and a half of armed conflict between miners and mine guards to the Kanawha Valley southeast of Charleston in 1912. After striking for better wages, an eight-hour workday, and the right to assemble and organize  all having been afforded to their northern counterparts  miners were evicted from their houses and took to canvas tents in the hills provided by the UMWA. Mother Jones called on the workers to take up arms against the Baldwin-Felts agents, who had shot at the miners tents from train cars, and the workers retaliated. Miners fired on trains bringing in mine guards and strikebreakers and blew up railways with dynamite. Governor William Glasscock declared martial law and sent the National Guard to bring order to the region three times, and his successor Henry Hatfield finally established a lasting  albeit all-around unsatisfying  negotiation between mine owners and strikers.

The West Virginia mines saw relative peace during World War I, but the next eruption of violence put little Matewan on the map in 1920. After a significant rise in UMWA membership in Matewan, Baldwin-Felts agents arrived to oust union members from Stone Mountain Coal Company housing. The town mayor, Cabell Testerman, and union-sympathizing police chief, Sid Hatfield, confronted the agents near Matewans train station on their way out, and the ensuing shootout left 10 dead: seven agents, two miners, and mayor Testerman. No one could agree on who shot first, but the Matewan Massacre rallied UMWA members in West Virginia to boost their southern membership and begin a general strike.

Martial law was declared in Mingo County, and scores of miners were arrested under suspicion of union activity. The governor sent over 1,000 special police to Mingo, strengthening UMWA claims around the state that the countys miners were under attack.

Meanwhile, Sid Hatfield was acquitted in the murder trial and became a hometown hero to Mingo County miners. But when Hatfield and his deputy were gunned down by Baldwin-Felts agents on August 1, 1921, the already-volatile strike became an all-out war.

The only way to get your rights is with a high-powered rifle, claimed organizer and longtime miner Frank Keeney, as he gathered thousands of miners in Lens Creek in the weeks following Hatfields assassination. The Redneck Army consisted of immigrants, black miners, and generational West Virginians wearing red bandannas around their necks. The plan was to march to Mingo County to free their jailed comrades, but first the army would have to cross Logan County, where Sheriff Don Chafin had assembled the Logan Defenders, made up of thousands of local and state police as well as Baldwin-Felts agents.

The 10,000-strong Redneck Army clashed with the Logan Defenders at Blair Mountain. Chafins men utilized machine guns and even biplanes with homemade bombs against the miners in the five-day skirmish. Even so, only about 20 men died overall in the Battle of Blair Mountain. Two thousand federal troops broke up the fighting and dispersed the respective forces under the command of President Harding.

The leaders behind the Redneck Army, Keeney and others, were indicted for state treason, but most escaped conviction. The harshest blow was to the UMWA, whose numbers dwindled in the coming decade. It wasnt until F.D.R.s New Deal programs of the 1930s that the miners union picked up again.

The stories of Mother Jones, Frank Keeney, Sid Hatfield, and the rest of those involved in the mine wars were kept among West Virginians for generations  along with the physical remnants of the states difficult past.

Long before they opened the Virginia Mine Wars Museum in 2015, Wilma Steele teamed up with some other West Virginians to incorporate their heirlooms, artifacts, and local history in a way that could benefit everyone. A canary cage used by miners during the period kept the birds that would warn the workers of dangerous methane in the mines. Oil-wick cap lamps kept an open flame on a wick attached to the workers hats that both allowed them to see their work and also posed the severe risk of igniting explosions. Metal scrip pieces could buy provisions at the company store while only going for about 75 percent of their worth for cash. Rusted remnants of an 1873 Remington carbine and some bullet casings recovered from Blair Mountain illustrate well the tools of a miner who has put down his pickaxe.

Kimberly McCoy, a museum guide who grew up in Matewan, shows guests the bulletholes on the back of the museums brick building from the Matewan Massacre while explaining how folks in town always felt about Smilin Sid Hatfield. Children around here are generational coal-mining children. They need to know how their grandparents and great-grandparents struggled for them to be able to choose a profession today instead of going into the coal mines at 15 years old, she says.

The museum believes the story of the mine wars should be taught to all West Virginian schoolchildren. Thats why, this year, theyve created curricula for fourth-, fifth-, eighth-, and eleventh-grade students to learn about the decades-long struggle of the states miners. Given the complicated and contradicting historical accounts of the events, students are encouraged to read primary sources and think critically about the working conditions of miners and child laborers and to take part in role-play, considering how they wouldve acted 100 years ago.

Keeping the history of the mine wars alive for West Virginians has been a battle of its own. In 2011, Wilma Steele marched on Blair Mountain with hundreds of others in the group Appalachia Rising to call for an end to mountaintop removal mining and declare the mountain a protected historic site. The place where 10,000 rednecks took up arms against big coal was, coincidentally, at risk of being mined itself by several companies who claimed surface mining permits on Blair Mountain.

Mountaintop removal mining began in the 1960s, but it became more prevalent in Appalachia in the 90s. The widely-criticized form of coal mining is executed by blasting off mountaintops with explosives to reach coal seams underneath. According to the EPA, mountaintop mining poses significant risks of contaminating nearby streams and rivers. Many Appalachians, like Steele, have long opposed the practice because of the detriment on nearby communities: deforestation, loud explosions, and dust accompany the mountaintop mining process. The landscape is often spoiled, and the number of jobs created in the region cannot begin to reconcile with the damage.

Blair Mountain Battlefield was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2009, then de-listed after a few months due to objections from the coal companies with permits in the area. Just this June, the site was added back to the list after years of legal battles and advocacy from groups like The Sierra Club and Friends of Blair Mountain.

The spirit of the Redneck Army was also present in the state this past February when West Virginia public school teachers protested in Charleston during a nine-day strike for higher wages while wearing red shirts and  for some  red bandannas. The demonstration set off a chain of teacher strikes and marches in Oklahoma, Arizona, and Kentucky.

Wilma Steele believes in the historical significance of the red bandanna, and thats why she shares them with activists everywhere she goes. The paisley pattern on a bandanna shows organic designs and geometric designs in balance, she says, the figures in paisley could look like a tear, or a drop of blood, or they could come together to form a heart. Her husband Terry was a 4th-generation coal miner, and he belongs to UMWA 1440 in Matewan. The building housing the union presides over the historic town, and its a short walk from where Sid Hatfield confronted agents from Baldwin-Felts. Kimberly McCoy comes from generations of miners too. The historic labor struggles of West Virginians might be difficult for outsiders to grasp, but  like the bulletholes in the brick of the museums exterior  the implications of the mine wars are imprinted on the people. I know the history, McCoy says, its my history. When asked what the stories of Sit Hatfield and Frank Keeney can mean for others, she says, We are the story of the working class. Were proud of rednecks here.

Sources and further reading:

The Devil Is Here in These Hills by James Green

Life, Work, and Rebellion in the Coal Fields: The Southern West Virginia Miners, 1880-1922 by David Corbin

http://www.wvculture.org/hiStory/journal_wvh/wvh50-1.html

https://www.pbs.org/video/american-experience-mine-wars/
By looking from two ground-based telescopes at wavelengths sensitive to thermal radiation leaking from the depths of Jupiters mysterious, roiling storm called the Great Red Spot, a NASA-led team of astronomers and astrophysicists detected the chemical signatures of water. The pressure of the water, combined with the measurements of carbon monoxide, imply that Jupiter has two to nine times more oxygen than the Sun. This finding supports theoretical and computer-simulation models that have predicted abundant water on Jupiter made of oxygen tied up with molecular hydrogen.

Jupiter is a gas giant that contains more than twice the mass of all of our other planets combined, said co-author Dr. Mate Adamkovics, from the College of Science at Clemson University.

And though 99% of Jupiters atmosphere is composed of hydrogen and helium, even solar fractions of water on a planet this massive would add up to a lot of water  many times more water than we have here on Earth.

The moons that orbit Jupiter are mostly water ice, so the whole neighborhood has plenty of water, said lead author Dr. Gordon Bjoraker, an astrophysicist at NASAs Goddard Space Flight Center.

Why wouldnt the planet  which is this huge gravity well, where everything falls into it  be water rich, too?

Dr. Bjoraker, Dr. Adamkovics and co-authors searched for water in the Great Red Spot by using radiation data collected by: the iSHELL spectrograph on NASAs Infrared Telescope Facility and the Near Infrared Spectograph on the Keck II Telescope, both of which are located on the remote summit of Maunakea in Hawaii.

The researchers found evidence of three cloud layers in the Great Red Spot, with the deepest cloud layer at 5-7 bars (a metric unit of pressure that approximates the average atmospheric pressure on Earth at sea level). Altitude on Jupiter is measured in bars because the planet doesnt have an Earth-like surface from which to measure elevation.

At about 5-7 bars  or about 100 miles (161 km) below the cloud tops  is where they believed the temperature would reach the freezing point for water.

The deepest of the three cloud layers identified by the team was believed to be composed of frozen water.

The discovery of water on Jupiter using our technique is important in many ways,

Our current study focused on the Great Red Spot, but future projects will be able to estimate how much water exists on the entire planet, Dr. Adamkovics said.

Water may play a critical role in Jupiters dynamic weather patterns, so this will help advance our understanding of what makes the planets atmosphere so turbulent. And, finally, where theres the potential for liquid water, the possibility of life cannot be completely ruled out. So, though it appears very unlikely, life on Jupiter is not beyond the range of our imaginations.

The discovery is reported in the Astronomical Journal.

_____

G.L. Bjoraker et al. 2018. The Gas Composition and Deep Cloud Structure of Jupiters Great Red Spot. AJ 156, 101; doi: 10.3847/1538-3881/aad186
The highlight of the evening was a solo headline show by French DJ David Guetta.

AIDAnovas naming ceremony was a special event in a special place: We are delighted that we were able to stage the AIDA Open Air in Papenburg at the Meyer Werft shipyard, so that we could share our enthusiasm about our new ship with so many people, said AIDA president Felix Eichhorn.

AIDAnova was imposingly illuminated with lighting and laser effects in front of the shipyard hall in Papenburg, and an impressive laser show brought the ship to life.

Strobes, floodlights and spotlights makes ship shine

The 20 multicolored laser projectors, over 300 strobes and more than 100 floodlights and spotlights made the ship glitter and shine. Two aqua acrobats ascended with their luminous flyboards to a height of 20 meters, gliding across the surface of the water, and creating fountains in the air with their stunts.

Another novelty at the naming ceremony was the naming by the Mirza family with mother Sonja citing the blessing before hitting a buzzer to send the champagne bottle shattering against the bow.

A laser wave effect brought a smile to the AIDAnova lips, and made the eye wink. After that, fireworks lit up the sky above AIDAnova before the evenings highlight concert started.

At the end of September AIDAnova will make a first short trip, setting sail for Eemshaven in the Netherlands for final fit-out and sea trials.

AIDA will take over the new ship from the Meyer Werft shipyard on November 15, 2018, in Bremerhaven.

On that day, the first guests will also be arriving. The ship will sail a series of pre-naming itineraries from Hamburg before heading to the Canary Islands and Madeira for an inaugural season from mid-December 2018.

AIDAnova is the worlds first LNG powered cruise ship. Two further AIDA ships of this new generation will be built by 2023 - also at the Meyer Werft shipyard in Papenburg.
The GuangzhouShenzhenHong Kong express rail link will be operational on September 23, connecting Hong Kong to the worlds longest high-speed rail network and with the impending operation of the Hong Kong  Zhuhai - Macao bridge, Hong Kong will become even more accessible to inbound travelers from the western areas of the Pearl River Delta, such as Zhuhai, Zhongshan, Jiangmen and Zhaoqing.

To take advantage of the new transport infrastructure, Dream Cruises recently kicked off a roving road show campaign in five major cities that will have access to Hong Kong by high-speed rail or the tunnel bridge, including Changsha, Wuhan, Zhuhai, Dongguan and Foshan to promote High-speed Rail + Cruise as a vacation option.

High-speed rail fare rebates

The campaign features an exclusive high-speed rail fare rebate of RMB$200 (maximum of RMB$400 per cabin), applicable to the first 1,000 guests who will take the high-speed rail to Hong Kong for a 2-night cruise holiday from Kai Tak Cruise Terminal.

Pre- and post cruise stays in Hong Kong

Inbound tourists from mainland China who travel to Hong Kong by high-speed rail or via the Hong Kong  Zhuhai  Macao bridge can choose to start their vacation with a cruise holiday, then stay in Hong Kong; alternatively, they can book a pre- cruise stay for sightseeing and shopping in Hong Kong.

World Dream currently offers two alternating weekly itineraries from her dual homeports of Hong Kong and Guangzhou  the 2-night weekend escape and 5-night cruise to Okinawa, the Philippines or Vietnam, subject to different cruising seasons.

The train journey times vary from 40 minutes by high-speed rail from Zhuhai to Hong Kong up to five hours from Wuhan Railway Station in West Kowloon.
The gmec gathering is taking place in Hamburg on September 5, 2018 during SMM and co-organised by Seatrade.

Huang will then join Capt Sean T. Brady, commandant (CG-OES) of the US Coast Guard office of operating and environmental standards, among others speakers, on the next panel discussion focussing on Preparing for Ballast Water Treatment.

One year after the IMOs Ballast Water Management Convention came into force, this session will provide an overview of installed applications and examine which technology is really fulfilling the goals. There will also be practical case studies on the challenges associated with selecting an approved system and operating it.

Focus on greenhouse gas (GHG) strategies and emission control

After lunch the attention focusses on GHG strategies and energy efficiency and emission control moderated by Teus van Beek, general manager market innovation, Wartsila Marine Solutions.

Finally, passenger shippings pioneering role in environmental protection comes under the spotlight in an expert panel, moderated by Andreas Chrysostomou chief strategy officer (CSO), Tototheo Maritime. This session will focus on the cruise and ferry sectors advances in this area and how they are one step ahead in many cases.

The afternoon panel discussion features views from Bud Darr, evp, maritime policy and government affairs at MSC Cruises; Lex Nijsen, vp and head of Four-Stroke Marine, MAN Diesel & Turbo; Jan-Erik Rasanen, head of new technologies at the Finnish engineering firm Foreship; Rolf Sandvik, ceo The Fjords and Tom Strang, svp maritime affairs Carnival Maritime and also chair of CLIA Europe Environmental & Security Committee.

Make sure you don't miss out these important discussions and visit - gmec, the global maritime environmental congress, to register
Music therapy

Image: Lost Chord at work

Nottinghamshire County Council

It is widely recognised that music has a positive effect on our mood but it has also played a clinical role in treating certain conditions and diseases. It has been shown to relieve pain and fatigue as well as improve those suffering from anxiety and depression. In the UK, several organisation such as Lost Chord and Live Music Now have been set up with the explicit purpose of bringing music to dementia sufferers due to its innate ability to unlock memories.

A number of research projects have examined the effects of music on health, learning and memory and even on milk production in animals. And coming soon, a new BBC documentary headed by BAFTA winning actress Vicky McClure will examine how music helps the fight against dementia, involving scientists as well as musicians.

It is known that certain acoustic frequencies regulate cognition and excitement in the hippocampal portion of the brain but the biochemical mechanism responsible for these effects is unclear. A new study by Chinese scientists has attempted to throw some light on this by carrying out a proteomics study on rats that were played music before they learnt their way around a maze. In the first study of its type, Juan Wang, Chen Huang and colleagues from Xi'an Jiaotong University and its Health Science Center wanted to identify proteins that were affected during spatial cognition and memory tasks under the influence of music.

Light music listening

The piece of music L'amour Est Bleu by Richard Clayderman was played regularly to the rats in their cages over 15 days and a control group was denied the pleasure. Then the rats were introduced to the classic Morris water maze test. They were released at different points in the maze, being trained to wait 15 seconds initially before entering the water and searching for a submerged platform. The activity was timed. After five days, the platform was removed and the number of times the rats crossed its location in subsequent tests were recorded.

On completion of the tests the rats were anaesthetised and blood was collected from the eye. The peptides present were extracted and analysed by matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionisation mass spectrometry. A total of eight and nine peaks in female and male rats, respectively, had different abundances between the music and control groups but only one from each group had a significant difference. These two were identified by liquid chromatography/mass spectrometry in tandem mode.

Proteins affected by music

It was clear that the spatial learning ability and memory of both genders of the rat improved after musical intervention. This is significant because previous work has illustrated some gender differences in the effects of background music on visuospatial and navigational working reactivity.

The affected peptide in the female rats, which was increased in abundance after music treatment, originated from the protein desmin. It was validated by Western blotting and immunofluorescence of hippocampal slices, which confirmed its location within that region of the brain. Desmin has been associated with many diseases and an examination of the published literature led the researchers to speculate that it is a dynamic substrate linked to the brain cytoskeleton and injuries.

The male peptide was part of the protein Acsm1, which was reduced in abundance after musical intervention. However, its identity could not be determined by immunofluorescence due to the lack of an antibody. The Ascm1 gene has been linked to a genetic susceptibility for schizophrenia and depression and the team proposed that their findings were consistent with improvements in spatial learning.

The results confirm that music has an effect on protein expression and cognitive learning in rats, which are traditional models for human behaviour. This preliminary study, the first of its kind, has demonstrated that proteomics is a valid way to study in more detail how music affects the brain and "could provide a reference for the clinical application of music therapy in humans".

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New Zealand shares dropped, led lower by Fisher & Paykel Healthcare and Z Energy while A2 Milk rose amidst new Chinese e-commerce legislation.

The S&P/NZX50 Index fell 55.91 points, or 0.6 percent, to 9,257.29. Within the index, 21 stocks rose, 19 fell and 10 were unchanged. Turnover was $97.2 million.

"It's pretty light volume in a market that's trading at an all-time high, effectively, so it's not surprising to see a bit of profit taking come out on the back of an amazing August for most people," said Rickey Ward, NZ equity manager at JBWere.

Fisher & Paykel Healthcare led the index lower, dropping 3.9 percent to $15.75. It warned the cost of contesting the latest patent allegations from rival ResMed will cut annual earnings by as much as $10 million in a far-ranging dispute across multiple jurisdictions.

F&P said it will contest complaints in the US International Trade Commission (ITC) and US District Court for the Southern District of California, and cut forecast profit to $205 million -$210 million in the year ending March 31 from a previous forecast of $215 million due to the cost of defending the litigation. The companies have been locked in litigation since 2016 spanning the US, UK, Europe, NZ and Australia.

"When you start to have bigger players issuing litigation, it means you're annoying them - it's a coming-of-age for Healthcare," Ward said. "They clearly are on the radar for incumbents, and this is a way of life for them, big companies do this all the time so investors have got to get used to it."

Z Energy dropped 2.2 percent to $7.05, Ryman Healthcare fell 1.9 percent to $13.82 and Trade Me Group declined 1.9 percent to $5.27.

Sky Network Television was the best performer, up 2.3 percent to $2.20. Synlait Milk, which supplies A2, rose 1.6 percent to $13.

A2 Milk Co rose 1.4 percent to $12.80. It said it welcomes new e-commerce law in China, as it awaits further information. A2 said the new law creates a broad framework for e-commerce, and it will keep working with its partners to respond to the new law and yet-to-be-released guidance.

"Today's announcement didn't provide any clarity about how you value the changes in the law around e-commerce, it's a difficult company to get insight into but the momentum is very good," Ward said.

Restaurant Brands New Zealand gained 0.1 percent to $7.71. It is exiting its Starbucks coffee business after two decades of operation after the US brand failed to take off as anticipated, selling the fixed assets of the chain for up to $4.4 million to local hospitality business Tahua Capital.

Summerset Group was unchanged at $7.78. It plans to sell up to $100 million of seven-year, fixed-rate bonds as it cuts it reliance on bank debt. The bond offer is expected to open the week of Sept. 10 and Summerset said it would provide more details at that time.

(BusinessDesk)

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The Commerce Commission will keep the power to regulate the mobile roaming market, which it says provides a backstop to keep commercial arrangements in check.

Mobile roaming regulation currently requires the three network operators - Vodafone New Zealand, Spark New Zealand and Two Degrees Mobile - to provide wholesale access to any new operator. Commissioners Stephen Gale, Jill Walker and Elisabeth Welson decided not to investigate deregulation, something the regulator is required to consider every five years.

The commissioners said existing operators have conflicting incentives to offer new entrants network access and that it can't be sure "such contracts would be competitively available without the presence of a NR (national roaming) specified service in the market". That means regulation "remains important for promoting competition, while still giving roaming providers flexibility around commercial pricing of roaming services".

The commissioners acknowledged the potential for regulation to distort investment incentives but said the specified nature of the roaming service mitigated that risk. Without regulation, if a new entrant couldn't secure a reasonable offer from the incumbents the service would have to be added to the regulated schedule, they said.

The majority of submissions supported the commission's draft view that it should keep regulation, including Two Degrees, which said regulation helped facilitate mobile infrastructure competition.

Vodafone was more circumspect, saying historical concerns had been largely addressed although it saw "no harm" in keeping regulated national roaming, while Spark was disappointed the regulator didn't consider the potential benefits of deregulation and costs of regulation. Chorus encouraged the commission to focus on the mobile market study rather than consider deregulation.

Telecommunications commissioner Gale said submissions generally supported the regulator's view.

We believe the roaming opportunity remains relevant because it could help any new mobile business enter the market in the future, as it did when Two Degrees launched," he said in a statement.

(BusinessDesk)

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Trade Me paid $4 million to become the biggest shareholder in start-up fund distribution platform Sharesies, which it sees as opening up "big revenue pools".

The Wellington-based company announced the "small investment" in its annual result last month, saying the size of the investment was "commercially sensitive and not material". Documents lodged with the Companies Office dated Aug. 24 show Trade Me paid $14.11 a share to build a 16 percent stake in Sharesies, valuing the firm at $24.4 million.

"We think making investing more consumer-friendly can do great things for New Zealand consumers while opening up big revenue pools," Trade Me said in its annual report. "This is also another step in us building out a vibrant New Zealand online ecosystem."

Trade Me's Sharesies stake is one of four 'innovation' initiatives singled out in the annual report. The others include the company's new payment system Ping, experiments with artificial intelligence to accelerate the listing process, and a new-look mobile interface. Trade Me spent $28.7 million on investment activities in the year ended June 30, of which $24.7 million was the purchase and capitalisation of intangibles, including internal software development.

The online auction site has previously invested in other financial service platforms, such as its 13 percent stake in peer-to-peer lender Harmoney Corp.

Sharesies came out of the Kiwibank-sponsored 2017 fintech accelerator, providing an online platform for people to make regular small investments in a range of funds. It launched in June last year and as at July 31 had signed 20,000 customers and facilitated $21 million of investments.

The start-up doesn't charge on portfolios of $50 or less. Portfolios between $50 and $3,000 attract a $1.50 monthly charge and those over $3,000 have a $3 monthly fee. Investors can access 13 funds offered by AMP Capital, Pathfinder Asset Management and NZX's Smartshares exchange-traded funds.

NZX named Sharesies as a "channel innovator" in supporting the stock market operator's efforts to expand its ETF suite of products last year. NZX and Sharesies commissioned retail investor research by Colmar Brunton which found just 18 percent of New Zealanders own shares, with the biggest reasons being a lack of surplus cash, a lack of knowledge in how to invest, a belief that shares are a risky asset, and a belief that the share market is only for wealthy people.

(BusinessDesk)

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New Zealand's merchandise trade rose in the June quarter, bolstered by stronger dairy and record meat prices, but fell short of expectations.

The terms of trade, which measures the purchasing power of New Zealands exports relative to imports, rose 0.6 percent in the June quarter after falling a revised 2 percent in the March quarter, Statistics New Zealand said. Economists had expected a 1 percent rise, according to the median Bloomberg poll, although forecasts ranged from a 0.5 percent drop to a 1.7 percent lift.

Terms of trade measures the purchasing power of New Zealands exports abroad and is an indicator of the state of the overall economy. The 0.6 percent lift means New Zealand can buy more imports for the same amount of exports.

Export values rose 3 percent to $13.4 billion in the second quarter, with a 1.1 percent lift in volumes and a 2.4 percent lift in prices. The value of imports rose 1.7 percent to $15.1 billion as prices increased 1.7 percent and volumes advanced 0.9 percent. The figures are seasonally adjusted.

On the export side, dairy prices rose 3.2 percent, with milk powder up 7.1 percent, cheese increasing 1.2 percent, and butter up 1 percent. Dairy volumes rose 5.2 percent, while values increased 7.6 percent.

Meat export prices rose 3.6 percent, with lamb up 5.4 percent and beef up 1.7 percent. Both total meat and lamb are at record prices, Stats NZ said.

Wool export prices rose 4.8 percent as volumes fell 2.1 percent and values rose 1.2 percent.

On the import side, petroleum and petroleum product prices rose 10 percent, following a 7.9 percent increase in the March 2018 quarter. Crude oil prices rose 14 percent, volumes fell 35 percent, and values slipped 26 percent. Crude oil volumes and values are not seasonally adjusted.

The Marsden Point refinery maintenance shutdown during the June quarter led to the fall in volume of crude oil imported, business prices manager Sarah Johnson said.

Stats NZ also noted that New Zealand's dollar fell 1.5 percent in the June quarter on a trade-weighted index basis and "a falling New Zealand dollar has an upward effect on export and import prices and their New Zealand-dollar values, Johnson said.

(BusinessDesk)

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Weaker than expected terms of trade and a Chinese survey suggesting the Asian economy remained under pressure in August kept the kiwi capped against the greenback in local trading.

The New Zealand dollar traded at 66.05 US cents at 5pm in Wellington from 66.15 cents at 8am and 66.18 cents on Friday in New York. The trade-weighted index was at 71.66 from 71.80.

Waning risk appetite was already weighing on the kiwi as markets continue to fret over the escalation of the US-China trade war as US President Donald Trump stands poised to impose 25 percent tariffs on another US$200 billion worth of imports from China. The public comment period ends Thursday in the US.

The kiwi dipped further after New Zealand's merchandise trade rose 0.6 percent in the June quarter, bolstered by stronger dairy and record meat prices, but fell short of expectations at 1 percent. ASB Bank senior economist Mark Smith said while terms of trade were lower than expected, the measure was still more than one-third above historical averages.

The local currency was also weighed down by China's Caixin manufacturing PMI declining to a 14-month low of 50.6 in August. Like the official PMI, the breakdown of the Caixin index points to stronger output but weaker new orders, said Julian Evans-Pritchard, senior China economist for Capital Economics. "Overall, the PMIs for August suggest that economic activity continued to cool last month, most likely on the back of a further slowdown in credit growth and infrastructure investment," he said.

Martin Rudings, senior foreign exchange dealer at OMF, said that "added to the risk-off sentiment and I wonder if the US dollar hasn't turned a corner". Rudings noted US markets are on holiday and the kiwi "isn't going anywhere fast."

The kiwi fell to 91.81 Australian cents from 92.08 cents on Friday in New York and declined to 4.5145 Chinese yuan from 4.5290 yuan. It decreased to 73.26 yen from 73.65 yen last week and traded at 51.07 British pence from 51.11 pence. The kiwi slipped to 56.90 euro cents from 57.18 cents last week.

New Zealand's two-year swap rate fell 1 basis point to 1.96 percent. The 10-year swap fell 2 basis points to 2.80.

(BusinessDesk)

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The New Zealand dollar fell against its trans-Tasman counterpart ahead of today's Reserve Bank of Australia policy review which will attract close scrutiny after Westpac Banking Corp's out-of-cycle rate hike.

The kiwi declined to 91.49 Australian cents as at 8am in Wellington from 91.81 cents yesterday. It was almost unchanged at 66.02 US cents from 66.05 cents yesterday with US markets closed for the Labor Day holiday.

The RBA is expected to keep the target cash rate at 1.5 percent today after a slightly more upbeat assessment of the economy last month. Governor Philip Lowe's statement will be closely watched for any shift in tone, with Westpac's decision to raise its variable mortgage rate 14 basis points last week posing questions about whether the RBA can retain its neutral stance. New Zealand's Reserve Bank has indicated it doesn't plan to shift the official cash rate for the foreseeable future may raise or lower the benchmark rate.

"Todays RBA policy announcement is likely to maintain a decisively neutral tone, but the market will be interested if there is any response to the recent nudge up in mortgage rates from a number of banks," Bank of New Zealand senior markets strategist Jason Wong said in a note. The Aussie "has unwound some of Fridays inexplicable underperformance and sits this morning just above 72 US cents, which sees NZD/AUD down to 0.9160."

No local data is scheduled today, although the Global Dairy Trade auction overnight is expected to post an increase in prices.

The kiwi rose to 51.29 British pence from 51.07 pence yesterday after UK Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit plan attracted criticism from European Union chief negotiator Michel Barnier and former UK foreign secretary Boris Johnson. The kiwi traded at 56.83 euro cents from 56.90 cents yesterday.

The local currency edged up to 73.37 yen from 73.26 yen yesterday and fell to 4.5032 Chinese yuan from 4.5145 yuan. The trade-weighted index was at 71.59 from 71.66.

(BusinessDesk)

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Vodafone New Zealand reported a 16 percent slide in annual profit as the country's biggest mobile carrier's margins were squeezed by more expensive handsets and content costs, and a bigger wage bill.

Auckland-based Vodafone reported a profit of $39.9 million in the 12 months ended March 31 versus a restated $47.6 million a year earlier, financial statements lodged with the Companies Office show.

Revenue edged up 0.2 percent to $2.03 billion in a period when mobile customer numbers rose 3.2 percent to 2.56 million and broadband customer numbers increased 3,000 to 426,000. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation fell 5 percent to $403 million, lagging behind rival Spark New Zealand's 2.2 percent ebitda gain to $1.04 billion in the June year reported last month.

A proliferation of internet service providers as the government-sponsored fibre network gets rolled out has seen telecommunications firms compete more aggressively for customers, ceding margin for share.

Vodafone's NZ accounts show its direct operating expenses - including the costs paid to other telecommunication operators for delivery of voice, message or data from Vodafone customers to other customers and device and other product costs - were $944.6 million versus $941.9 million in the prior year.

Those costs also include wholesale access fees to Chorus and other network operators of $388.1 million versus $404.9 million in the prior year.

Vodafone's device costs for handsets and modems rose 4 percent to $366.4 million, while other direct costs including content, managed services and regulatory fees increased 2.9 percent to $190.1 million.

The mobile operator's wage bill rose 4.4 percent to $257.2 million, underpinning an increase in indirect operating costs such as IT and network maintenance, leases and advertising to $688.4 million from $659.5 million in the prior 12 months. Vodafone cut its outsourcing bill 15 percent to $28.6 million.

Purchases of property, plant and equipment were also higher at $218.5 million versus $162.3 million in the prior year. That included purchase of TeamTalk's Farmside rural internet provider.

Vodafone's depreciation and amortisation costs were $310.6 million versus $316 million in the prior year.

The accounts don't mention Vodafone's joint venture with Vocus New Zealand to take advantage of the unbundling of the ultrafast broadband network in 2020, meaning the local fibre companies will have to let rivals access their fibre optic cables. The joint venture plans to buy fibre access at a wholesale price then repackage it for consumers to allow greater innovation for consumers.

Vodafone's year-earlier numbers were restated to correct the timing of revenue recognition, and to adjust the estimate of rates used to capitalise certain overhead expenses, and to correct some errors, such as errors made in holiday pay calculations, among other factors.

(BusinessDesk)

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Former public servants Sandi Beatie and Geoff Dangerfield gave an upbeat assessment of the New Zealand Intelligence Community in the follow-up review to the agencies' 2014 performance improvement framework.

The earlier report generally found the Government Communications Security Bureau, Security Intelligence Service, and National Assessments Bureau and Intelligence Coordination of the Department of Prime Minister and Cabinet faced "severe financial pressures" as the agencies went through a leadership change while under intense public scrutiny.

That led to a significant increase in funding, which Beatie and Dangerfield's report says is "an instructive example of where adverse PIF findings were taken on board by the senior leadership to drive significant change in performance while at the same time investing in new skills, analytics and tools."

The report cites shared support services as key to dealing with internal infrastructure that was "well below accepted standards" in need of urgent attention. Since then, "significant progress" has been made to boost the agencies' capabilities in human resources, finance and information technology, leading to better recruitment practices.

The intelligence agencies received $179 million over four years in response to a review seeking to better position them to meet current and future challenges.

While the intelligence community has lifted its game, "critical challenges remain including recruiting a more diverse workforce particularly in core intelligence collection capability," they said. "As the community grows and potentially becomes more diverse, there will inevitably be quite a significant cultural challenge to ensure the protection of the integrity and social licence to operate while continuing to build and retain ministerial, customer and public trust and confidence."

The intelligence agencies currently have 14 jobs advertised in a separate website branded as 'Beyond Ordinary' careers.

Managing that growth is seen as one of the risks to the agencies, with personnel seen growing by 50 percent between 2016 and 2020. As at June 30, 2016, GSCB had 353 full-time equivalents and the SIS had 304, which implies a target of about 1,000. As at June 30, 2017, GCSB employed 392 FTEs, SIS had 290, and the DPMC's Security Intelligence Group employed 66 staff.

The PIF reviewers said the SIS and GCSB have made "tangible progress" in closer recruitment, but more can be done give the "competitive market" to make sure they can secure "good quality candidates from a diverse range of backgrounds and experience".

The agencies last year launched a diversity and inclusion strategy, and for the past two years, GCSB has offered tertiary scholarships to women studying science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The review's release coincided with a Five Eyes ministers meeting in Australia, where they discussed counter-terrorism, countering violent extremism, cyber-security, countering foreign interference, protecting critical infrastructure, border management and law enforcement.

Local industry group Internet NZ today raised concerns about a recommendation at the conference granting law enforcement agencies access to encrypted data and communications.

"Encryption provides important protection for all of us. We need encryption for things like online banking and booking travel safely. We need it to keep ourselves safe and secure online. Without it no one will have trust in the internet," Internet NZ chief executive Jordan Carter said in a statement. "Its vital the government discuss these topics with a wide range of people and organisations - the tech sector, law enforcement, small and medium businesses who depend on safe online services, human rights, privacy advocates and more."

The PIF review noted work on the development of encryption infrastructure and engagement with telecommunications and other providers were among the NZ intelligence agencies' cyber-security activities.

"An independent quality assurance of a major cyber-security investment has shown that the project was well managed and achieved its objectives," the reviewers said.

In May, the GSCB's minister Andrew Little signalled plans to expand its Malware-Free Networks programme after a successful pilot with Vodafone New Zealand. Some 66 nationally significant public and private sector organisations fall under the Cortex umbrella.

The technology lets the GCSB's National Cyber Security Centre analyse, detect and disrupt cyber threats against public and private sector organisations, and from that, the unit draws insights it can provide cyber security advice to hundreds of nationally significant organisations.

(BusinessDesk)

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According to news agency ANI, a massive crowd gathered near the CMs bus (modified as a chariot) when he reached Churhat area, around 25 km away from the district headquarters. The crowd then raised black flags, hurled stones at his vehicle and raised slogans against him.

Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan who is on a statewide tour ahead of the assembly polls, on Sunday faced with a difficult situation when an irate mob in Sidhi district hurled stones on a vehicle carrying him and also raised black flags to protest against his Jan Ashirwad Yatra.

Visuals show as soon as the CM came out of the sunroof bus to wave the crowd, a few miscreants within the crowd started pelting stones on him and raised black flags. The CM, however, escaped unhurt as his security officials immediately rushed to his rescue.

#WATCH: Black flags shown to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan & stones hurled at his vehicle in Sidhi during Jan Ashirwad Yatra. (02.09.18) pic.twitter.com/OVHoPVy7Hx  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

Churhat Police Inspector Ram Babu Choudhari confirmed the incident but did not give any more information.

The Churhat assembly seat is the constituency of Congress leader and Leader of Opposition Ajay Singh. The BJP alleged that those who created ruckus during the yatra were the Congress party workers. However, the Congress leader Ajay Singh issued a statement alleging no Congressman was involved in the stone-pelting incident. He said his party does not follow the culture of violence.

Addressing a public meeting later in the district, CM Chouhan dared Singh to come in the open and fight with him. Ajay Singh, if you have strength come in open and fight with me. I am physically weak, but I wont be bogged down by your deeds. People of the state are with me.

The Jan Ashirwad Yatra of Shivraj Singh Chouhan was flagged off by BJP president Amit Shah in July from Ujjain. During the yatra which will continue for 55 days, the CM will cover all the 230 Assembly constituencies and address around 700 rallies.
EU lifts restrictions on solar panels from China



Brussels, Sept 3 (AFP) Sep 03, 2018



The European Union will end its five-year-old restrictions on solar panel imports from China, officials said Monday, as Brussels and Beijing increase their own trade cooperation in the face of protectionist steps from the United States.

The European Commission, the EU's executive arm, suggested the decision would boost the bloc's renewable energy goals as it rejected an appeal from the European solar industry to reconsider the move.

"The EU anti-dumping and anti-subsidy measures on solar panels from China will expire today at midnight (2200 GMT)," the commission said.

The EU imposed the duties in 2013 after European panel manufacturers complained they were being forced out of business by underpriced Chinese imports.

Other European companies which install solar panel systems claimed the duties harmed them by increasing their costs.

Brussels said it was lifting the restrictions in the "best interests of the EU as a whole" after weighing the needs of producers against those of users and importers of solar panels.

The EU imposed restrictions in December 2013 for two years before extending them for another 18 months in March last year, as opposed to the usual five years.

It has gradually adjusted the measures to allow prices of imports to "align progressively with world market prices," the commission said.

The commission said market conditions had not changed enough since then to justify extending the restrictions.

The commission billed the 2013 duties as an "amicable solution" to a dispute that had threatened to become a full-blown trade war.

In 2017, EU figures show bilateral trade came to some 516 billion euros, with the EU running a deficit of 176 billion euros with China.

As US President Donald Trump's administration hits both the EU and China with tariffs as part of his "America First" policy, Brussels and Beijing have increased trade cooperation and touted their free trade credentials.
Page Content

Minister of Education, Culture, Youth and Sports, the Honourable Wycliffe Smith received an overview of the program Education On The Move from the coordinators, Angelique Roumou and Janelle Presentacion-James on Thursday. The program is an initiative which began under the administration of former minister, Silveria Jacobs and it will continue with Minister Smith.





Education On the Move is a community-wide program aimed at encouraging all stakeholders to promote education. Schools, government agencies and the private sector participate in varying activities. Moving forward, there will be a Literacy campaign during the first two weeks of September where community leaders will be reading to children. Also, a Teachers Appreciation Seminar will be held on September 28, honouring and encouraging the islands teachers.





A UNICEF collaboration for the Too Cool To Loot campaign will be highlighted in an Education On The Move debate. There will be an art auction of paintings on the theme and an environmentally-conscious initiative of making compost in each school. Angelique Roumou, coordinator for the Education On the Move program, anticipates great success and participation from companies and schools as we move Sint Maarten forward together.





This initiative is in line with the Governing Program 2018-2022 which aims to promote lifelong learning and to stimulate learning outside the classroom. Minister Smith encourages all persons and organisations to participate in the activities and support Education On the Move.





Photo Caption:





Minister Wycliffe Smith (centre) with MP Silveria Jacobs (2nd left), Acting Secretary General (left), Angelique Roumou (right), and Janelle Presentacion-James (2nd right) displaying shirts for the Education on the Move campaign.




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South Korea's new coronavirus cases spiked to over 2,600 on Wednesday, two days after the country began its "living with COVID-19" scheme as part of a broader plan to gradually lif...
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Zach Gibson/Getty Images(WASHINGTON) -- Democrats are expressing alarm over the Trump White House decision to claim executive privilege and withhold some 100,000 pages of documents from Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaughs time with the George W. Bush administration.



That decision, relayed in a letter late Friday, just days before confirmation hearings are set to begin Tuesday, is a move top Senate Democrat Chuck Schumer of New York called a Friday night document massacre.



On Sunday night, just hours before the hearings were set to begin, another 42,000 pages of Kavanaugh documents were released to the Senate, Schumer tweeted.



More than 400,000 other pages had been previously handed over to the Senate Judiciary Committee, but Democrats say the withheld documents would give details and color to Kavanaughs time as staff secretary and associate White House counsel in the Bush White House  when he was involved in some of its most controversial decisions and judicial nominations.



It's a time Democrats say is key in giving context to his time as a partisan Republican.



Before serving in the Bush White House, Kavanaugh had been a key deputy to Independent Counsel Ken Starr and advocated for tough questioning of President Bill Clinton about his sexual encounters with then-White House intern Monica Lewinsky.



Later, he said, after seeing the pressures inside the Bush White House, he wrote in a 2009 article for the Minnesota Law Review that any civil and criminal investigations of a president should be deferred until they're out of office because theyre time-consuming and distracting.



The just over 100,000 pages of material was withheld after the Trump White House directed that we not provide these documents, wrote William Burck, the lawyer handling the document release on behalf of the Bush administration.



The Department of Justice and the White House said it had identified the documents to be within constitutional privilege, Burck wrote in the letter, which was released by the Senate Judiciary Committee. Most of the documents reflect deliberations and candid advice concerning the selection and nomination of judicial candidates, the confidentiality of which is critical to any presidents ability to carry out this core constitutional executive function, Burck wrote.



The documents that didnt concern judicial candidates, Burck wrote, contained advice submitted directly from Kavanaugh to Bush, conversations between White House staffers that disclosed conversations with the president and substantive discussions about executive orders or legislation.



Schumer called the last moment decision by President Trump unprecedented in the history of [Supreme Court nominations] and said it had all the makings of a cover up.



Senators should not be willing to cast a 'yes' vote for a nomination of this magnitude when more than 90 percent of the nominees record is being denied to them, Senator Diane Feinstein tweeted on Saturday.



Sen. Dick Durbin of Illinois, the second-ranking Democrat in the Senate and also a member of the Judiciary Committee, said on "FOX News Sunday" that theyd be lucky to see six percent of all the documents out there.



If hes so proud of his conservative credentials, show us the record, stand before us, trust the American people and they will trust you. I would say that to Judge Kavanaugh, Durbin said.



Fox News anchor Chris Wallace noted that the committee has received almost half a million documents on Kavanaugh, more than provided for the past five Supreme Court nominees.



Another Democratic Judiciary Committee member, Sen. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota, raised concerns over more than 140,000 pages of material that have been made available to senators but not to the public.



I think that you could ask some very interesting questions about these documents that I'm unable to even say, because I'm not able to make them public, Klobuchar said on NBCs Meet the Press on Sunday.



Asked if the documents shes seen would actually raise doubts about Kavanaughs ability to be fair, Klobuchar said it would strongly bolster the arguments that [she] could make.



Republicans, who hold just a 51-seat majority in the Senate, are quick to point to the public career of Kavanaugh and the hundreds of thousands of documents provided that show his stances on different issues.



The Democrats have more than enough information to understand that this is a highly qualified jurist that should be the next Supreme Court justice, said Republican Sen. Ron Johnson of Wisconsin on ABCs This Week Sunday. In an earlier time, 30 years ago, he would have passed unanimously.



Sen. Lindsey Graham, a Republican from South Carolina, pointed to the 308 decisions Kavanaugh wrote in his time on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals as enough to form a pretty good idea of what he thinks, he said on Fox News Sunday.



Senator Grassley has been very fair, Graham said, emphasizing the record-high number of documents already provided. We're going to have a hearing and there's no drama in this hearing, he said.



Despite the Democratic grievances, Graham predicted Kavanaugh would be confirmed, calling him the one person I think every Republican president would see is the most qualified of their generation.



He predicted a smooth confirmation with 55 or more votes for Kavanaugh  meaning he assumes a handful of Democrats will join Republicans in voting for the president's nominee.



Because of the razor-thin margin in the Senate, the focus is on the 10 Democrats running for re-election in 2018 in states that Trump won just two years ago. Three of those Democrats, including Sen. Heidi Heitkamp of North Dakota, Sen. Joe Donnelly of Indiana and Sen. Joe Manchin of West Virginia, voted to confirm Supreme Court Justice Neil Gorsuch, Trump's previous nominee.



There are also two Republican senators on the radar: Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, both of whom are pro-choice.



Last month, Kavanaugh told Collins he believed the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision was settled law  a comment she was pleased with, but that many Democrats and abortion rights organizations called vague and unimpressive.

Copyright  2018, ABC Radio. All rights reserved.
Back to school for French kids... without their phones



Paris, Sept 3 (AFP) Sep 03, 2018



Texting under the table should be a thing of the past when French children return to class Monday following a nationwide ban on mobile phones in schools.

The ban, a campaign pledge of President Emmanuel Macron's, was brought in under a law passed in July which also banishes tablets and smart watches from French primary and junior high schools.

High schools, taking students aged 15 to 18, will also be allowed to initiate partial or total bans as they reopen after the summer break, though they will not be obligatory.

Proponents say the law, which has prompted vigorous debate, will reduce distraction in the classroom, combat bullying and encourage children to be more active during recess.

Nearly 90 percent of French adolescents aged between 12 and 17 have a mobile phone, and supporters hope the ban will help limit the spread of violent and pornographic content among children.

Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer has hailed the legislation as "a law for the 21st century" that would improve discipline among France's 12 million schoolchildren.

"Being open to technologies of the future doesn't mean we have to accept all their uses," he said in June when the bill was going through parliament.



- PR 'stunt' -



But critics have dismissed the ban as a public relations exercise and predicted it will be difficult to apply.

The government has left schools to decide how to implement the new rules, recommending that they store students' phones in lockers during the day -- but some schools don't have them.

Research shows that in French schools that had already declared their own ban, many pupils admitted to breaking the rules and using their phones anyway.

Schools all over the world have struggled to adapt to the rise of pocket-sized devices as parents grow increasingly anxious about the amount of time their children spend glued to the screen.

In 2015 New York Mayor Bill de Blasio lifted a ban on phones in his city's schools on security grounds, saying parents should be allowed to stay in touch with their children.

Macron, a 40-year-old centrist, pledged widespread reforms when he was elected and education has been no exception.

Along with the mobile phone ban, he has halved class sizes in high-priority areas to 12 in a bid to narrow the massive gap in attainment between children from poor and wealthy families.

The scheme, which covered children aged six to seven this year, will be expanded in this new school year to cover those aged seven to eight.

At the other end of the age spectrum, a shake-up of the higher education system making university access more selective prompted a wave of student sit-ins this year.
Ukraine launches joint military drills with NATO



Starychi, Ukraine, Sept 3 (AFP) Sep 03, 2018



Ukraine on Monday launched joint military exercises with the United States and a string of other NATO countries as tensions with Russia remain high over the Kremlin-backed insurgency in the country's east.

The annual Rapid Trident military exercises, taking place in the western Ukrainian village of Starychi until September 15, involve some 2,200 soldiers from 14 countries.

"(The participants) stand in solidarity with Ukraine, for Ukrainian security, Ukrainian sovereignty, and Ukrainian territorial integrity," the US Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch said at the opening ceremony.

The drills start a week before Russia holds its biggest military exercises since the Cold War, in the east of the country and with the participation of China and Mongolia.

A spokesman for the Ukrainian drills Taras Gren told AFP that some 350 pieces of military equipment will be used during the exercises.

The Ukrainian Border Guard Service and the National Guard troops will be involved for the first time, he said.

Hundreds of US soldiers have been training Ukrainian soldiers since 2015 to support them in their fight against Russian-backed rebels in the country's war-torn east.

On Monday, the Ukrainian army reported eight servicemen had been wounded over the past 24 hours in clashes with rebels although a fresh truce took effect last week.

More than 10,000 people have been killed since the rebel insurgency broke out in the eastern Donetsk and Lugansk regions in April 2014 following Russia's annexation of Crimea from Ukraine.

Ukraine and its Western allies accuse Russia of funnelling troops and arms across the border.

Moscow has denied the allegations despite evidence it has been involved in the fighting and its open political support for rebels.
Boko Haram military base attack death toll hits 48



Kano, Nigeria, Sept 3 (AFP) Sep 03, 2018



Forty-eight soldiers were killed in a Boko Haram attack in remote northeast Nigeria, military sources said on Monday, in the latest strike that raises questions about the group's apparent resurgence and troops' ability to fight back.

Scores of jihadist fighters in trucks stormed the base on Thursday in Zari village in northern Borno state and briefly seized it after a fierce battle.

Boko Haram, which has been waging a deadly insurgency in northeast Nigeria since 2009, has intensified attacks on "hard" military targets in recent months, undermining repeated claims by the military that they have the upper hand.

Troops have even protested that they are stretched to breaking point by constant security duties and the attacks that analysts tracking the conflict say have become more sophisticated and planned.

At least 30 Nigerian soldiers were initially said to have been killed in Thursday's raid, which was claimed by a Boko Haram faction backed by the Islamic State group.

"The casualty toll now stands at 48 with the recovery of 17 more bodies of soldiers in surrounding bushes in Zari by search and rescue teams," a military source who did not want to be named told AFP.

"Search operations are still ongoing and more bodies are likely to be recovered."

Another military source confirmed the new death toll.

"So far (the) bodies of 48 troops have been recovered. Yesterday rescue teams found 17 bodies of fallen soldiers," he said, adding that they included two officers and 46 soldiers.

"When the troops were overwhelmed by the terrorists they withdrew in different directions."



- Upsurge in activity -



The militants were said to have taken weapons and military equipment before they were pushed out of the base by troops with aerial support. The sources said the extremists were pursued and bombarded by a fighter jet.

"The terrorists also suffered heavy casualty from the bombardment," one of the military officers said.

Zari is located 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the town of Damasak, on the border with Niger, which has seen an upsurge in Boko Haram activity.

The jihadists are thought to have attacked the base from the nearby Garunda village, where 17 troops were killed and 14 injured in an attack on another military base last month, the sources said.

In a statement late Friday the Nigerian military confirmed troops fought Boko Haram "insurgents... on (a) rampage to loot the community and extort money from villagers". But no death toll was given.

The intensified armed campaign in recent weeks, primarily against military targets, has claimed the lives of dozens of troops, providing the government with a headache as it looks to trumpet its security achievements before elections next year.

On July 14, militants overran a military base in Jilli village in neighbouring Yobe state. Dozens of troops were said to have been killed, wounded or missing.

The army at the time conceded the base was attacked but again said troops remobilised and succeeded in repelling the attackers.

In a short statement last Wednesday, IS-affiliated Boko Haram jihadists claimed to have killed "several" Nigerian troops in separate mortar strikes on a military base in the town of Arge in the Lake Chad area.

AFP could not independently verify the claim .

The Boko Haram insurgency, which is in its ninth year, has left 20,000 people dead and displaced 2.6 million.
Eight civilians killed in Iraq in suspected IS attacks



Samarra, Iraq, Sept 3 (AFP) Sep 03, 2018



Suspected Islamic State group jihadists have killed eight people and wounded four others in two attacks in northern Iraq, security officials said Monday.

The extremist group has stepped up its attacks since the release of a purported new audio message late last month from IS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi.

On Monday "seven civilians were killed when jihadists fired on houses in the village of Albu Shaher", 25 kilometres (15 miles) west of Kirkuk, a multi-ethnic city north of Baghdad, a security services official told AFP.

A police officer was wounded in that attack, which also saw jihadists raid a currency exchange office and steal $20,000 (17,225 euros) before fleeing, he added.

Late on Sunday, a man was shot dead and three others were wounded outside a mosque north of Baghdad.

The attack took place in the village of Khanouka near Ash-Sharqat, one of the last areas retaken by government forces from IS last year, 100 kilometres north of the capital, a police officer said.

"The man, aged 80, had just finished praying (and was leaving the mosque) when the jihadists opened fire at him," the officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for either of the attacks.

According to the police officer, IS holdouts are still present in the hills of Khanouka and other mountainous and desert regions of Iraq.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared "victory" in December in the fight against IS, which seized nearly a third of the country in 2014.

But sleeper cells continue to launch attacks from sparsely populated areas.

According to Hisham al-Hashemi, an expert on radical Islamist groups, about 2,000 IS jihadists are still active in Iraq.

The elusive leader of the jihadist group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, called on Muslims to wage "jihad" in a purported new audio recording released on August 22.
Rivals jostle for power as Iraq parliament meets



Baghdad, Sept 3 (AFP) Sep 03, 2018



Iraqi lawmakers convened Monday with Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and a populist cleric together seeking to form a government and sideline pro-Iran rivals with a deal to create the biggest bloc in parliament.

The country's next leaders will face the mammoth task of rebuilding a country ravaged by the war against jihadists as well as tackling public anger over corruption, unemployment and decrepit public services.

Late on Sunday 16 political groups including those of Abadi and firebrand preacher Moqtada Sadr -- whose alliance with communists won the most seats in the May 12 polls -- announced an accord to create the largest force in parliament.

But they face a challenge from rivals who also claim to have the upper hand.

Abadi defended his record before lawmakers, saying he had come to power in 2014 at a time when "IS occupied large areas while the security forces were in a state of near-total collapse".

One of Abadi's aides told AFP before parliament met in Baghdad's fortified Green Zone that his coalition with Sadr and other groups included 177 lawmakers representing more than half of the 329 seats in the legislature.

That could potentially allow Abadi to remain in his post despite coming third in the election with 42 seats. Sadr's joint list won 54 seats.

A former militia leader who led two uprisings against the US-led invasion of Iraq, the cleric has called for his country to be more independent of both Iran and the United States.

But his alliance with Abadi is being challenged by former prime minister Nuri al-Maliki, who has teamed up with a group of former anti-IS paramilitary fighters close to Iran.

Maliki claimed his bloc had signatures of support from 153 lawmakers which he argued put it in a stronger position than his rivals because they only had signatures from the group leaders.

Maliki's bloc said it had poached 21 lawmakers from Abadi's Victory Alliance which, if confirmed, could tip the scales, especially since Kurdish parties are still negotiating with both sides.

Those who have switched sides include Falih Alfayyadh, who last week was sacked by the prime minister as head of the powerful Hashed al-Shaabi paramilitary force.

Abadi on Monday named himself chief of the Hashed al-Shaabi (Popular Mobilisation), which played a major role in fighting the Islamic State jihadist group (IS).



- Array of challenges -



On Monday lawmakers were sworn in before the session was adjourned.

They will reconvene on Tuesday when parliament is expected to elect a speaker -- traditionally a member of Iraq's Sunni Muslim community -- as well two deputy speakers.

After that, lawmakers will have 30 days to elect a new president, a largely symbolic position that traditionally goes to a member of the Kurdish minority.

The new president will then have 15 days to task the biggest parliamentary bloc to form a new government, which will face an array of challenges including the lingering threat posed by jihadists.

Abadi declared "victory" in December over IS after a devastating three-year war against the Sunni extremists, who at their height controlled nearly a third of the country.

Despite being driven from Iraq's towns and cities, the jihadists continue to stage attacks from their hideouts in remote desert areas.

Suspected IS members killed seven people on Monday in an attack in a village west of Kirkuk, a multi-ethnic city north of Baghdad, a security official said.

The raid came less than a day after a man was shot dead outside a mosque north of the capital, in what a police officer said was a jihadist attack.

The incoming government also faces a wave of social unrest particularly in southern Iraq, which has been shaken by weeks of protests demanding better public services in a country beset by energy and water shortages.

Police in Basra on Monday again used tear gas to disperse hundreds of protesters in front of the provincial headquarters, an AFP correspondent said.

The meeting of parliament was delayed by allegations of electoral fraud which prompted the supreme court to order a manual recount that last month confirmed the victory of Sadr's alliance.

The polls saw a record low turnout of 44.5 percent, with long-time political figures pushed out by voters seeking change in a country mired in conflict and corruption.

Iraq's political system is designed to ensure that no one person or party can dominate, in order to avoid the return of a dictatorship following the ouster of Saddam Hussein in 2003.
38 Yemeni rebels killed in Hodeida: military sources



Khokha, Yemen, Sept 3 (AFP) Sep 03, 2018



The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen killed 38 rebels in the past 24 hours in air strikes on the strategic port of Hodeida, military and medical sources said on Monday.

The latest raids come just days before peace talks in Geneva between the internationally recognised government backed by the coalition and the Shiite Huthi rebels linked to Iran.

Pro-government military sources told AFP the coalition targeted Huthi sites, including a roundabout in the south that leads to the centre of Hodeida city and near a naval academy to the west.

Four military vehicles belonging to the rebels were also targeted near Hodeida's airport.

Medical sources in Hodeida said 38 Huthi rebel fighters were killed and 26 were wounded.

Hodeida's port serves as an entry point for some 70 percent of imports in a country where eight million people face imminent famine.

The Red Sea port has been controlled by the rebels since 2014, when they drove the government out of Sanaa and much of the country.

The government and the coalition accuse the Huthis of receiving smuggled weapons through Hodeida and have demanded their unconditional withdrawal from the city.

Pro-government forces backed by the alliance have paused their assault on Hodeida port after launching an offensive in June in what they say is a bid to give UN-led peace efforts a chance.

Thursday's talks in Geneva are expected to focus on the fate of embattled Hodeida, as well as a prisoner exchange deal.

Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and other allies intervened in the conflict between Yemen's government and rebels in March 2015, aiming to push back the Huthis and return the government to power.

Nearly 10,000 people have been killed in the conflict since then, 2,200 of them children.
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Interview with Canadian Foreign Minister Freeland 'The Claim by Trump Is Absurd'

U.S. President Donald Trump has recently been unsparing in his words about Canada. But Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland says that even if "liberal democracies around the world are under attack," her country must still work with Trump's White House.
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.
China has admitted that production of its first stealth fighter, the J20 is stalled and the manufacturer confirmed the reasons why. The details were explained on state run television, in part to help recruit the skilled workers needed to produce the J20. These is a shortage of labor in China, largely because of the decades of low birth rates mandated by the one child policy. The Chinese aircraft manufacturing industry, for both military and commercial aircraft, is booming and workers able to fabricate and assemble components are in short supply. Building the J20 requires a disproportionate number of skilled workers. Parts of the fuselage are made of alloys that are particularly time-consuming to mold and then fabricate into complex structures. Many of the components come from Chinese suppliers who are still developing and perfecting their production capabilities. The J20 requires a lot of exotic components and supplies are tight. China also revealed that development of the J20 has, so far cost $4.4 billion and that the construction cost doe each aircraft is $110 million. In addition to the manufacturing difficulties, there are performance problems with the prototypes and six production models already turned over to the Chinese Air Force.

China declared that its J20 stealth fighter had officially entered service in September 2017 but even then it was obvious (via aerial photos of the factory and air bases) that production of the J20 was stalled. The manufacturer had planned to build three a month initially but since mid-2017 production turned out to have been zero. There are apparently a dozen in more in various stages of completion. In early 2018 it was already known that there were several potential problems with the J20 production but the main ones had to do with stealth (the delicate materials on the airframe that make radar detection less effective) and engines. The most obvious problem was the engines. The WS-10s currently installed are a stopgap and not efficient enough to support supercruise (go supersonic without using the afterburner). China has had persistent problems developing high-performance jet engines. China has been developing the more powerful (and supercruise ready) WS-15 engine since the 1990s for a larger aircraft like the J20 but has not been able to get the engine to work reliably enough for service (rather than a prototype) aircraft. Officials also confirmed rumors that a WS-15 exploded during a 2015 static (on the ground) test. That failure had been a secret but when an engine this big fails by blowing up the incident is difficult to hide. It turned out that the WS-15 problems were less difficult to fix than those encountered with other components and the skilled labor shortage.

No date was given as to when the WS-15 would be available for use or whether it would have the same vectoring (ability to move the hot jet exhaust in different directions in order to make the fighter more maneuverable) the F-22 uses. At first, a more powerful and reliable version of the WS-15 for J20 was believed possible by 2020 but changes in the shape and weight of the WS-15 would require modifications to the shape of the J20 and that would require a lot of testing to ensure that stealth was not compromised. The factory would have to install new or modified manufacturing equipment and suppliers would have to do the same to produce the new airframe components. Meanwhile, the WS-15 reliability problems are still not completely resolved. Currently, final production models of the WS-15 are supposed to be available in 2019. This is a reasonable assumption because the WS-15 has been in development for about fifteen years and the first working version appeared in 2008. Based on past engine development experience the JS-15 should be ready for mass production by 2020, although the skilled labor shortage may be a problem there as well.

Another potential J20 problem is its ability to operate effectively in a wide variety of climates. For example, development and pre-production J20s were flown frequently in a wide variety of climates during 2017 and that may have revealed unanticipated problems requiring fixes that are still in the works.

In early 2017 Chinese officials announced that at least a dozen J20s (including prototypes) had been delivered to the Chinese air force as part of a new fighter squadron. This information was exaggerated and apparently released to help with export sales because at the time Chinese media was reporting that Pakistan had agreed to buy J20s. Numbers were not announced and there are still questions about how effective the J20 actually is. Pakistani interest in the J20 may have more to do with the fact that China is the only major-power ally they have, their main supplier of weapons and, best of all, a neighbor. Pakistan cannot afford many $110 million aircraft and China is not known to be generous with credit or discounts when it comes to high tech gear like this.

While China began offering its 18 ton J31 fighter to export customers in 2014 (as the FC-31), it was not until 2017 that efforts were made to export the more advanced J20. The manufacturer of the J20 (CAC. Chengdu Aircraft Company) also produces the JF-17 and J-10. The JF-17 is a joint effort with Pakistan and Pakistan is the main customer. J31s are not yet being produced in large numbers, in part because it has some of the same production problems as the J20 and China is deliberately putting more emphasis on getting the J20 into mass production.

The J20 made its first flight in 2011, and many more since then. Before scheduled mass production could begin in late 2015 eight prototypes were built. There were at least two original J20 prototypes, and in 2013 a new prototype appeared that had several modifications and is estimated to have a max weight of 36 tons. Since then several more prototypes have been built along with at least six production models (and over a dozen stalled on the assembly line). All of these were built with the understanding that some major (and time-consuming) refurbishing might be needed once the WS-15 was ready for service.

Work on the J20 began in the late 1990s, and the Chinese went forward on the assumption that it could be 25 years or more before they had a competitive stealth fighter-bomber in service. The twin engine J20 first appeared to be about the same weight class as the non-stealthy 30 ton F-15C but the production model was closer in weight to the F22. By comparison, the U.S. F-35A stealth fighter-bomber is a 31 ton, single engine fighter, while the twin-engine F-22 is slightly larger at 38 tons. The Russian Su-57 weighed in at 37 tons and its production is also stalled over technical issues. The Russians can make more powerful (and reliable) engines than the Chinese but are still having problems with their other techs (stealth coatings and electronics). Russia has officially put production of its Su-57 stealth fighter on hold and are suffering from some of the same production problems as the Chinese.

While the J20 looks like the American F-22 when viewed head-on, it's overall shape, weight, and engine power is closer to the older, non-stealthy American F-15C. In other words, the J20 is 20.4 meters (67 feet) long, with a wing span of 13.5 meters (44 feet). The J20 has about the same wing area as the F-15C, which is about 25 percent less than the F-22 (which is a few percent larger than the F-15 in terms of length and wingspan). Worse for the J20, is the fact that its engine power is about the same as the F-15C, while the F-22 has 65 percent more power. With the afterburner turned on, the J20 has more power than the F-15C and nearly as much as the F-22. But because the afterburner consumes so much fuel you can't use more than a few minutes at a time. The afterburner also generates a lot more heat which makes an aircraft more visible to heat sensors. The new J20 model appears to be able to supercruise with a powerful enough engine, joining the F-22, Eurofighter, and the Gripen as aircraft that can supercruise. The J20 appears capable of doing lots of engine dependent things during tests or in theory that has not been able to sustain in regular service.

The J20 has some stealthiness when it's coming at you head on. But from any other aspect, the J20 will light up the radar screen unless it has effective radar absorbing material on the exterior. For this reason, the J20 appeared to be a developmental aircraft, not the prototype of a new model headed for mass production. China soon made it clear that the J20 was the basis for a new fighter and would go through as many design and shape changes needed to become combat ready. Based on recent Chinese warplane development projects (J-11 in particular) it was believed that the J20 had a long development road ahead of it. There were some obvious changes between the first and the later prototypes, but nothing all that drastic. Thus it was surprising when the J20 was declared ready for service in 2017 but not so surprising when production was quietly halted because of unspecified problems. Yet the Chinese have been competent and relentless in developing complex technologies and there is no reason to believe they wont get the J20 working.

The J20 is only the fifth stealth warplane to fly, the others being the American F-22 and F-35, plus the Russian Su-57. The older U.S. F-117 was actually a light bomber and the B-2 was obviously a heavy bomber. While the shape of the J20 confers a degree of stealthiness (invisibility to radar), even more electronic invisibility comes from special materials covering the aircraft. It's not known how far along the Chinese are in creating, or stealing data on, these materials or the needed engines. China would most likely use the J20 singly, or in small groups, to seek out and attack American carriers. For the J20 to be a superior fighter capable of that it would need electronics (including radars and defense systems) on a par with the F-35 and F-22 as well as powerful and reliable engines and effective radar absorbing materials.

So far, the Chinese have not caught up with stuff used by current American fighters. But the gap is being closed, faster than it was during the Cold War when the Russians were creating or stealing, their way to military tech equivalence with the West. The Russians never made it but the Chinese believe they can succeed. It may be that the J20 is not meant to be a fighter but a stealthy strike aircraft, like the first American stealth fighter the F-117. This innovative aircraft was actually a stealthy light bomber that first flew in 1981 and entered service a few years later. It was very successful as a strike (bomb delivering) fighter and the Chinese may have noted that such an aircraft would also make an excellent interceptor. That would also explain Pakistani interest as they still use fighters armed with nuclear weapons and the main foe here is India, a country that has been improving its air defense systems a lot lately.

China is also developing other support technologies, like the AESA radar, highly efficient cockpit, stealth, and software to tie everything together. Developing, or even copying, this tech is not easy. But the Chinese already know that, having decades of experience adapting stolen technology to their needs. Thus, it appears that China was planning on having the J20, in some form, ready for service by the end of the decade. The key factor is their ability to develop or steal the needed technology by then. The J20 appears to be a fighter-bomber, as this kind of aircraft would be most useful for dealing with the U.S. Navy and key targets in Taiwan or Japan. In any event, the J20 is an attempt to develop some kind of 5th generation aircraft, complete with stealth.

The J31 and J20 are further evidence that China is determined to develop its own high tech military gear. While China is eager to develop advanced military technology locally, it recognizes that this takes time and more effort than nations new to this aspect. Thus, China is trying to avoid the mistakes Russia made in this area. That means having competing designs and developing necessary supporting industries as part of that. All this takes a lot of time and involves lots of little (and some major) failures. The Chinese are doing it right and are willing to wait until they get the military tech that is truly world class.
Despite North Korean willingness to get rid of its ballistic missile and nuclear weapons program, Japan is moving ahead to expand its ballistic missile defenses. Most of these will be based on the Aegis system, which is normally installed on large (8,000 tons and up) warships. Japan has four of these Aegis anti-missile system destroyers with two more under construction. One of the new Maya class Aegis destroyers was launched in July 2018. It will now have its weapons and equipment installed and be in service by 2020. The second one of these 10,000 ton destroyers is under construction and scheduled to enter service in 2021. The Maya class destroyers are improved versions of the earlier Atago class destroyers. In turn, theses are improved versions of the first four Japanese Aegis-type ships, the Kongo class. The 9,500 ton Kongos were built during the 1990s and modeled on the American Burke class Aegis destroyers. The Kongos had 90 VLS (Vertical Launch System) cells for anti-aircraft/missile missiles as well as ASROC anti-submarine rockets (that carry an anti-submarine torpedo to, in effect, extend the range of the torpedo by 22 kilometers). Japanese Burke type destroyers also carry a five inch gun and eight Japanese designed anti-ship missiles (similar to the American Harpoon). The Maya class has 96 VLS cells (as do Atagos) as well as more advanced electronics that enable the Mayas to link with the U.S. Navy Cooperative Engagement Capability that allows real-time sharing of sensor and other data in real time.

In addition, Japan has ordered two land-based Aegis anti-missile systems but these wont be in service until 2024. At that point, Japan will have eight Aegis anti-missile systems and could have two more Aegis anti-missile destroyers by 2024 by upgrading the Aegis systems on two of the older destroyers. That depends on whether North Korea continues to be a threat and how much more of a ballistic missile threat China becomes. At the moment North Korea is sounding less cooperative and the Chinese are still a threat.

In 2017, Japan decided it did not need the more expensive THAAD anti-missile system and instead expanded its Aegis anti-missile systems. Japan is installing the two land-based Aegis systems on the main island. That plus the Aegis equipped destroyers armed with the SM-3A anti-missile missile would enable those two land-based Aegis systems to protect all three of the home islands. In addition, Japan has 24 Patriot anti-aircraft missile batteries that can also fire the PAC-3 anti-missile missile. The PAC-3 has one drawback, it only has an effective range of 30 kilometers against incoming missiles. The Aegis SM-3 anti-missile missile has a range of from 700 kilometers (older Block 1) to more than three times that for the later Block II models. This is why two Aegis land-based systems can protect most of Japan (the main island). The Patriot PAC-3 provides local defense for key targets (the capital and major military bases).

The first Aegis Ashore system became operational in 2015 in East Europe and appears to be as reliable as the original ship-based systems. This was what was expected because the East European Aegis had never been to sea. In early 2014 the only land-based Aegis system in existence (in New Jersey) was taken apart, packed into 60 large (18.2 meter/40 foot) shipping containers and sent to Romania where it was put back together and in 2015 was an operational anti-missile system. After that two more ground-based Aegis systems were ordered; one in Poland and one in Hawaii. All three, including new Aegis components for two of them and needed missiles (24 per location) and launching hardware for all of them came out costing $767 million each. Then came the Japanese Aegis Ashore order, which will cost over two billion dollars for each system.

The U.S. has long sought to put anti-missile systems in Eastern Europe to protect against ballistic missile attacks from Iran. Russia has opposed this and sees it as a subterfuge to weaken the effect of Russian ballistic missiles attacking European targets. Most Europeans dont know what to make of that, but East European countries (like Romania) that spent 1945-89 as involuntary Russian vassal (or satellite) states, do see a need for protection from Russian missiles.

So far, Aegis has achieved an 83 percent success rate during live test firings. As a result, many countries want Aegis ABM (Anti-Ballistic Missile) ships for protection from local ballistic missile threats. The Aegis system was designed to operate aboard warships. These are usually cruisers and destroyers that have been equipped with the special software that enables the AEGIS radar system to detect and track incoming ballistic missiles. Currently, the U.S. Navy has about 40 ships with the Aegis anti-missile system. There are over 100 American and foreign warships equipped with Aegis, but less than half of them had the software mods and anti-missile missiles that enable them to shoot down ballistic missiles and low-orbit satellites. Converting an Aegis ship to Aegis ABM costs about $30 million, mainly for new software and a few new hardware items. This is seen as a safe investment and the U.S. expects to see most Aegis equipped ships to be upgraded to ABM versions in the 2020s.

To knock down ballistic missiles Aegis uses two similar models of the U.S. Navy Standard anti-aircraft missile, in addition to a modified version of the Aegis radar system, which can now track incoming ballistic missiles. The anti-missile missile is the RIM-161A, also known as the Standard Missile 3 (or SM-3). It has a range of over 500 kilometers and max altitude of over 160 kilometers. The Standard 3 is based on the anti-missile version of the Standard 2 (SM-2 Block IV). This SM-2 missile turned out to be effective against ballistic missile warheads that are closer to their target, as is its replacement, the SM-6. One test saw a SM-2 Block IV missile destroy a warhead that was only 19 kilometers up. An SM-3 missile can destroy a warhead that is more than 200 kilometers up. But the SM-3 is only good for anti-missile work, while the SM-2 Block IV and SM-6 can be used against both ballistic missiles and aircraft. The SM-2 Block IV also costs less than half what a SM-3 costs. SM-3 is not being replaced by instead constantly upgraded.

The SM-3 has four stages. The first two boost the interceptor out of the atmosphere. The third stage fires twice to boost the interceptor farther beyond the earth's atmosphere. Prior to each motor firing it takes a GPS reading to correct course for approaching the target. The fourth stage is the nine kg (20 pound) LEAP kill vehicle, which uses infrared sensors to close on the target and ram it.
Congos government says it will not accept logistical help from the UN in the December national elections. The government had previously indicated it would not accept external (foreign) financial assistance to hold the election. That noted the UN Security Council has authorized the UN peacekeepers in Congo to spend about $85 million to assist Congo in the presidential election. Congos election commission has estimated the election will cost $420 million. Several donor nations, among them the U.S., have said Congo needs UN help on several fronts, including communications gear as well as vehicles and aircraft. Logistical support for elections is part of the UN peacekeepers mandate. Kabila has also rejected aid from South Africa. The governments rejection of aid has increased opposition party worries that current president Joseph Kabila intends to undermine the election. Catholic Church leaders in Congo have insisted that international monitors must be present at the polls in order to ensure a fair election. (Austin Bay)

September 1, 2018: Relations between Uganda and Rwanda continue to deteriorate. Uganda claims Rwanda has established espionage networks in Uganda. The Ugandan operatives control bars and dance halls and are also influential in the taxi industry. Rwanda accused Uganda of letting the RNC (Rwanda National Congress) rebels recruit in Uganda.

August 30, 2018: Former Congolese rebel militia commander Bosco Ntaganda told the International Criminal Court I am a revolutionary but I am not a criminal. Ntaganda faces charges of murder, rape, pillage and employing child soldiers in fighting that took place from 2002-2003 in northeastern Congos Ituri region. There he commanded the Patriotic Forces for the Liberation of Congo militia.

A Ugandan court has confirmed a former Lords Resistance Army commander, Thomas Kwoyelo, will face 93 serious charges in an upcoming trial. Charges include rape, murder, torture, enslavement, torture, kidnapping. Kwoyelo is also charged with leading attacks on refugee camps where they looted, burned and killed. His worst crimes occurred in the years of 1987, 1993, 1996 and 2003.

August 28, 2018: The Kabila government of Congo is accused of violently suppressing a peaceful opposition rally in Kinshasa that took place on August 7. The witnesses claim the demonstrators were peaceful while the government claimed they were throwing rocks.

August 27, 2018: The trial of 24 people accused of being involved in the March 2017 murder of two UN workers monitoring conditions in the Kasai region has resumed after a ten-month suspension. The two victims were investigating possible crimes committed by the army while fighting Kamuina Nsapu rebels.

August 25, 2018: The Republic of Congo (Brazzaville) is confronting a yellow fever epidemic along its border with Angolas Cabinda enclave. Health authorities report only a handful of confirmed cases but over 180 suspected cases. The country is organizing a nation-wide vaccination program.

August 24, 2018: Congos election commission has refused to accept the candidacy of opposition leader Jean-Pierre Bemba. Earlier this year an appeals court acquitted Bembas ICC conviction for war crimes. He returned to Congo in August and announced he wanted to run for president.

August 23, 2018: In CAR (Central African Republic) gunmen killed a Burundian soldier serving with UN peacekeepers near the town of Pavika.

August 21, 2018: CAR and Russia have signed a military cooperation agreement. Russia described the agreement as a framework for improving defense ties. CAR officers will be allowed to attend Russian military institutes. Russia has a training cadre in the CAR, comprised of military and civilian contractors. Some of the Russian civilians are believed to be mercenaries working for the Russian Wagner mercenary organization.

August 17, 2018: Congos eastern Ebola epidemic is claiming more lives. In North Kivu province least 45 people have died and another 80 are infected. Health workers report that lack of security in the province impedes their ability to reach remote areas to provide aid.

August 16, 2018: The Congolese government has issued an international arrest warrant for opposition political leader Moise Katumbi, who is the most popular opposition candidate for president.

August 15, 2018: The government of Zambia said that it is preparing for a refugee surge from Congo during and after the December Congolese national election. Zambia apparently believes rebel militias and possibly pro-Kabila forces will attempt to disrupt the elections.

August 13, 2018: In CAR UN peacekeepers report that fragmentation of rebel groups has become a security problem. For example, several armed factions have formed from the Seleka rebels. These factions continue to fight with anti-balaka militia factions. The FPRC (Popular Front for the Rebirth of Central Africa) has emerged as one of the more powerful rogue Seleka factions. However, the FPRC itself has produced another rogue faction; the MPC (Patriotic Movement for Central Africa) that is also an FPRC rival. Selekas breakup is a bit ironic. In the Sangho language (the CARs official language, also called Sango), Seleka means alliance. The big alliance has dissolved. The new factions appear to be organized along religious, ethnic and regional lines. The Seleka movement was a predominantly Muslim movement but drew on tribes in the east and north. (Austin Bay)

August 11, 2018: After declaring an end to the Ebola virus epidemic in western Congo, new Ebola cases have appeared in eastern Congo. Authorities believe the virus has killed at least 21 people in North Kivu province. The national health ministry has begun deploying personnel and medicine to combat the epidemic and determine how many people have been infected.

In eastern Congo (Maniema Province) Mai Mai Malaika rebels attacked a convoy of trucks from the local Namoya gold mine. Two people were killed, four (two soldiers and two drivers) were kidnapped. The attack took place in a jungle area about 35 kilometers from the mine. The Congolese Army has begun searching for the kidnap victims.

August 10, 2018: In eastern Congo (North Kivu Province) Ugandan ADF Islamic rebels attacked the town of Mayi-Moya and killed six civilians and wounded another. The attackers slipped past an army checkpoint near the town. There was no report of pillaging. This indicates the attack was intended to terrorize civilians.

The tiny Caucasus state of Georgia sent another platoon of peacekeepers to the CAR to replace the one already there. These platoons serves with the EU security force in the CAR for six month-long tours and is usually replaced by another platoon from home.

August 9, 2018: Congos ruling political coalition, The Common Front for Congo, confirmed it has selected Emmanuel Ramazani Shadary as its candidate. The CFC is president Joseph Kabilas political party, which means Shadary is his handpicked successor. Shadary is regarded as a Kabila loyalist and at one time served as interior minister. Several EU nations have sanctioned him for his role in security force and pro-Kabila militants attacks on anti-Kabila protestors in 2017. Interestingly enough, Congos Catholic Church leaders indicated the decision was positive because it meant Kabila would not personally attempt to remain in office. Yesterday Kabila announced he would not run in December. Kabilas announcement followed reports that the U.S. was about to impose political and financial sanctions on at least one pro-Kabila senior security officer. France and Britain are also pressuring Kabila.

August 8, 2018: The Rwandan Army has arrested the former head of the National Intelligence and Security Services, lieutenant general Karenzi Karake. Official charges have not been filed. However, the arrest is reportedly related to Rwandas deteriorating political relationship with Uganda. Rwanda accuses Uganda of supporting anti-Rwandan rebels who seek to destabilize the Rwandan government. Uganda has arrested several Rwandans living in Uganda on charges of illegal entry and deported them to Rwanda. Uganda has also claimed Rwandan is conducting spy operations in Uganda.

August 7, 2018: Security forces in Kinshasa fired teargas at demonstrators identified as supporters of opposition politician Felix Tshisekedi. Security officials claimed the protestors were throwing rocks. Tshisekedi leads the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) and is the son of late opposition icon Etienne Tshisekedi.

August 6, 2018: In Burundi, three soldiers were killed and five wounded when unidentified gunmen ambushed their truck on a road outside the capital and near the Congo border. Extremist Hutu guerrillas in the FLN (National Forces of Liberation) are known to operate in the area.
Wells De Lune will have to defy the burden of 12-2 if he is to land his fifth win in a row. Photo: David Pratt

TUESDAY sees the first of two meetings this week in what is a busy time for the course, as Stratford stages a six-race card supporting the Acorns Childrens Hospice, writes David Hucker.

Top of the bill is the 20,000 Stuart Stanley Supporting Acorns Childrens Hospice Handicap Chase over two-and-a-half miles in which Wells De Lune will have to defy the burden of 12-2 if he is to land his fifth win in a row.

All of his four wins this summer have come at Cartmel and he carries a 7lb penalty for his latest success when making all the running to easily beat Ifandbutwhynot by 12 lengths.

The stable also had course winner Play the Ace entered, but have opted for the improving top-weight, who could extend his winning run at the expense of Comanche Chieftain, who struggled to cope with a 10lb rise in the weights when looking to follow up over hurdles at Worcester, but should be happier back over the bigger obstacles now.

The Acorns Childrens Hospice Novices Hurdle gets the afternoons actions underway at 2.15pm. Ex-French Djin Conti got off the mark at the second time of asking in Britain when scoring at Wincanton in May and runs in this race in preference to the handicap later on.

Henry Smith was well beaten by multiple scorer Hatcher here in July, but returned after a wind operation to score at Bangor-on-Dee to earn an official rating of 119 and looks the one to be on.

There is a field of 12 for the Equine Products Novices Handicap Chase over two and three-quarter miles and Torhousemuir could provide each-way value. After finishing second to Eric The Red at Newton Abbot last month, Torhousemuir ran well from a 3lb higher mark to be third to easy winner Peppay Le Pugh over the course a week ago, but is still looking for his first win after 13 attempts.

Although only four line up for the Hibbert Family Handicap Hurdle, it still looks a close race to call, with a case to be made for each of the runners.

Collodi struck for the Neil Mulholland Racing Club when beating Red Ochre at Market Rasen and has gone up 3lbs in the weights as a result. He will be ridden by the excellent Noel Fehily, who returned after a four-month absence through injury to finish second on his only ride at Newton Abbot on Saturday.

Hat-trick seeking Beach Break was also entered at Sedgefield on Thursday, but runs here for trainer Donald McCain.

Ridden by Brian Hughes, who was on the mark at the last meeting, he has gone up another 8lbs for his latest success, but may not have stopped improving yet.

Mr Caffrey has finished runner-up in his last three races after returning from a years break and may get his head in front in the Jessica Wilcox Race To The Rainbow Handicap Hurdle. Champion jockey Richard Johnson, who closed the gap on Harry Skelton at the top of this years table to 15 after a Saturday treble, rides Knight Commander, formerly trained by Olly Murphy, but now with Leominster-based Steve Flook.

Versifier was sent off favourite to break her duck when finishing runner-up to Hoponandsee at Newton Abbot last month.

Despite still being a maiden after 14 races, she actually went up in the weights for that defeat against a horse who was winning her first race, but could gain her revenge when the two face each other again in the closing Bet At racinguk.com Mares Handicap Hurdle.
Long time ago, far from Bethlehem, so the Bible says, Rosemarys boy child Chruzt was born in 1970, on this winter solstice day. The longest night always amplified in northern climeswith the sun at its weakest arc. Ted Cruz, Rosemarys babycursedly equipped with a silkily spawned bifurcated tonguewas born on December 22, in Calgary, Canada. Born into a coven, headed by a Cuban father and an American mother. His dad, Pastor Rafael Cruz, having had little intellectual choice but to give his life to a higher power. Rafaels grenade-throwing days in the name of Castro had led to multiple wives, alcohol-fueled misery, an ever-downward spiral of divorce, and eventual child abandonment. Being reborn, under so many clouds, does not turn him into a self-aware Christianmore of an apostle from hell. Rafael perpetuates his fingernails on blackboard-odious essence, doubtless till his final breath.

We need to send Barack Obama back to Chicago. Id like to send him back to Kenya, back to Indonesia.

Rafael begat Ted, whose shrunken black obsidian eyes are drawn to the dark side. Ted proclaims, My father has been my hero my whole lifeand from that day is doomed to vomiting an endless foam of bile, pulsating from his death-throes-rabid-unborn-again brain. But Teds dad continues to darken every room with trademark deadly drivel:

The Obama Administration wants to take our rights to keep and bear arms away from us. They are trying to take our God, and our gun. And if they do that, they can impose a dictatorship upon us.

Yes, we are trying to exorcise you of your God, your false idol, but never to any avail. There is nothing left to isolate from the rot. Rafael Cruz to his audience of Onions:

Cruz: So Barack Obama said, if the winds shift, Ill side with the Muslims. Audience member: He is Muslim! Cruz: McCain couldnt say that, because it wasnt politically correct. Its time we stop being politically correct!

Actual quote from The Audacity of Hope: Thoughts on Reclaiming the American Dream.

Of course, not all my conversations in immigrant communities follow this easy pattern. In the wake of 9/11, my meetings with Arab and Pakistani Americans, for example, have a more urgent quality, for the stories of detentions and FBI questioning and hard stares from neighbors have shaken their sense of security and belonging. They have been reminded that the history of immigration in this country has a dark underbelly; they need specific assurances that their citizenship really means something, that America has learned the right lessons from the Japanese internments during World War II, and that I will stand with them should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.

See how a serpent distorts reality, turns hope and love into fear and hate? Ted Cruzs dad shows yet again that however many times you get reborn, you are more than likely resurrected as the very same lying, homophobic, racist hypocritical snake in the grass that you were in all your previous lives. How the hell does he, a pastor, believe his life, in any shape or form, would not bring shame and horror upon Jesus Christ? That must be his intent, what he was reborn to do. But perhaps that Old Testament God has gotten his mojo back and really does enjoy retribution.

Justifiable patricide? The story of this chosen reborn-again charlatans spawn oddly resonates with other, less-lofty chosen ones. Consider the striking resemblance to Mike Huckabees spawn or look at the spawn of Jerry Falwell and Billy Graham (Jerry Jr. and Franklin Graham, the twin towers of hate). Not to mention Foster Friesss four pillars of emotionally distant offspring. Out of this satanic pool of puss, sometime ago, not far from Mexico, in his Groundhog Day life, Rafael begat a tragically destined daughter (who understandably could never forgive her parents) and during another such day, a serpent son. Looking at ones parentsespecially Dadif you do not embrace the evil, you would want to kill it or yourself; hence, the pattern of misery. But Ted Jr. needs no such soul-searching.

Stand up now if anyone can find a shred of decency

What does Ted Cruz really want? Who is his real God?

He was ostensibly raised to be a (or for any megalomaniac, the) servant of Jesus. We can let Cruz himself provide the answer, having had such a wholesome, God-worshipping upbringing:

Well my aspiration is to, uh, oh I dont know, be in a teen tit film like that guy who played Horatio. You know he was in Malibu Bikini Beach Shop, he says. The reference appears to be to a 1986 movie, The Malibu Bikini Shop, which came out two years before the video was filmed. Well, other than that, Cruz continued, take over the world, world domination, you know, rule everything. Rich, powerful, that sort of stuff.

Ted CruzThe Anti-Chruzt

Cruzs college roommate Craig Mazin, who wrote the screenplays for The Hangover and the Scary Movie sequels, says of him:

I would rather have anybody else be the president of the United States. Anyone. I would rather pick somebody from the phone book. Ted Cruz will become the thing you need him to be so that he wins an election. No principles, no moral center, no values. Just ambition Ted has wanted to be president ever since his father told him that is what Jesus wanted to happen.

Josh Marshall, of Talking Points Memo, was one year ahead of Cruz at Princeton. Additionally, Marshalls wife went to Harvard Law School with Ted.

My friend [redacted] went to Harvard Law with Ted. [He] says that Ted shocked people when during the first week, he announced that he was creating a study group and only people with high GPAs from the Big Three Ivies could apply for admission. In short, Ted managed to come off as a pompous asshole at Harvard Law.

Every person Marshall spoke to at Princeton evidently had pretty much the same recollection:

Everybody I talked tomen and women, cool kids and nerds, conservative and liberalstarted the conversation pretty much the same. Ted? Oh yeah, immense a*#hole. Sometimes, total raging a#%hole. Sometimes other variations on the theme. But you get the idea. Very common reaction. But that wasnt all. Before retelling this or that anecdote, there was one other thing that everybody said, A really, really smart dude.

The Daily Beast got similar feedback:

It was my distinct impression that Ted had nothing to learn from anyone else, said Erik Leitch, who lived in Butler College with Cruz. Leitch said he remembers Cruz as someone who wanted to argue over anything or nothing, just for the exercise of arguing. The only point of Ted talking to you was to convince you of the rightness of his views. In addition to Mazin and Leitch, several fellow classmates who asked that their names not be used described the young Cruz with words like abrasive, intense, strident, crank, and arrogant. Four independently offered the word creepy, with some pointing to Cruzs habit of donning a paisley bathrobe and walking to the opposite end of their dorms hallway where the female students lived. I would end up fielding the [girls] complaints: Could you please keep your roommate out of our hallway? Mazin says.

Ted Cruz is likely worse than Trump, especially since he is a destructive, disciplined, cunning true believerthe opposite of our transparent Trump. I would like to allow Robert Reich two minutes to explain why Cruz is so much more dangerous. But bear in mind, Robert Reich does not include the really good stuffthe stuff that will clearly indicate where Ted Cruz lies on the religious spectrum, where he will find himself in the afterlife.

Americas fake Christians decided to bond themselves, tie their souls, to a man who could not be possibly further apart from Jesus Christ. Self-flagellation might have a role somewhere in the spiritual world. But keep it to yourself; it is not acceptable to make others involuntarily suffer as a result. Ted Cruz is, simply put, the best example, the dark emperor, of any Antichrist that can be found in halls of power.

By the time the cock crows thrice, Jesus will be betrayed into oblivion

So why did Cruz run for president? Well, according to his dad (lying againsince this issue had long been ordainedbut why not rope more subservient suckers into the Cruz coven?), God intervened, using the most logical conduit. According to his father, God intervened by sending a message to his sons wife:

My son Ted and his family spent six months in prayer seeking Gods will for this decision. But the day the final green light came on, the whole family was together. It was a Sunday. We all gathered at the pastors office [at the First Baptist Church in Houston]. We were on our knees for two hours seeking Gods will. At the end of that time, a word came through his wife, Heidi. And the word came, just saying, Seek Gods face, not Gods hand. And Ill tell you, it was as if there was a cloud of the Holy Spirit filling that place. Some of us were weeping, and Ted just looked up and said, Lord, here am I, use me. I surrender to you, whatever you want. And he felt that was a green light to move forward.

Senator Rafael Edward Ted Cruz announced his 2016 bid for the White House at Liberty University, a large evangelical institution founded by the late Jerry Falwell Sr., which regularly hosts many soulless political leaders on its campus. What is wrong with this? A couple of things, actually. If you are happy to be baptized by the Falwells, what does that say about you? What does that say about your attitudes on race, women, abortion, to people who live in New York, and the working class? In Cruzs case it confirms the bond, the marriage, the merging of the disparate covenRosemarys baby gathers its siblings. Falwell Sr. has boasted that he lived in the segregated past and believed that

the true Negro does not want integration he realizes his potential is far better among his own race.

Falwell supported South African apartheid and opposed the Brown v. Board of Education ruling (evidently, God would not have tolerated blacks mingling with whites on school buses). On God and the working class:

Labor unions should study and read the Bible instead of asking for more money. When people get right with God, they are better workers.

Evidently, 9/11 happened because God was angry at all people who reject Farwells brand of hate.

The abortionists have got to bear some burden for this because God will not be mocked. And when we destroy 40 million little innocent babies, we make God mad. I really believe that the pagans, and the abortionists, and the feminists, and the gays and the lesbians who are actively trying to make that an alternative lifestyle, the ACLU, People for the American Way, all of them who have tried to secularize America, I point the finger in their face and say, You helped this happen.

There is so much wrong with that. But the point that hits me hardest, and only because there is not sufficient societal punch back, was that abortion argument. I point the finger back and unequivocally state that noit is you who are guilty of this massive number of abortions. And yes, you are guilty of refusing to use your

God-given brain. This is a sin, to hate Gods creationin hating the LGBT community and alternative life styles. Do you see?

How low can he go?

Cruz has no problem hanging out with all the crazies in and around the Falwells and Robertsonsbut the thing about crazy is that the pit is bottomless. If you have no compass but power, you can never navigate your way from the bottomless black-hole pit that beckons the worst of us, sucking out the last vestiges of that rare Northern Light. But may the force be with usplummet in after it we must.

Now, remember the best single tool for reversing income-discrepancy trends would be to reform the inheritance tax. But Ted Cruz steps around this fact by saying that we do not really need an inheritance tax, because under this tax its the less well-off that suffer:

The people who pay the death tax, who I talk to all the time, are farmers out in west Texas who are growing cotton, who are struggling hard. The people who pay the estate tax are the small-business owners that have a small factory that when the patriarch passes on, the next generation sells the factory and fires the workers.

Jesus only lost his temper once. Just saying.

Out of the cauldron of hell, the covens shall unite

Now, watch Cruz kneeling at the foot of another of Satans spawn, Kevin Swanson, who makes occultist Hitler look rational. Ted Cruz pretends to look the other way. To Jake Tapper:

I dont know what this gentleman has said or hasnt said . I have been fighting for religious liberty for everyone.

Ted, when you talk you lie. You do know what this person has said and not said in the past and yet were just about to speak at his conference when Tapper questioned you. You were just about to join him there, where he would say the most objectionable things, which would be extremely memorable. You would have to be as oblivious as a Palin, Bachman, Kathy McMorris, Ben Carson, or a Trump to pull off that line of defense. Cruz is none of those. Eventually, he admitted to USA Today it was a mistake to have attended.

Here Swanson is equating birth control with the pits of hell. I guess 98 percent of women are hell bound.

Next, we see Kevin Swanson explicitly endorsing the idea of imposing the death penalty for homosexuality; he is looking forward to eliminating homosexuals. Note the same backdrophere he is screaming for the death penalty for gays.

But Cruz does not hear those screams:

I dont know what this gentleman has said or hasnt said.

He will not have heard the screams of dreamers being rounded up, of Mexican judges being marginalized, women being abused and the Jews in the gas chamber. Oh, stop being hyperbolic with that gas chamber stuff. Well, eat this as Cruz teams up with Mike Bickle:

Mike Bickle, founder of International House of Prayer (IHOP), believes God sent Hitler to hunt Jews, that a new era of concentration camps awaits Jews before they find Jesus.

The Lord says, Im going to give all 20 million of them the chance to respond to the fishermen. And I give them grace. And he says, And if they dont respond to grace, Im going to raise up the hunters. And the most famous hunter in recent history is a man named Adolf Hitler.

Evidently, Jesus will soon kill the head of the United Nations. Bickle believes that gay marriage is rooted in the depths of hell, that homosexuality opens the door to the demonic realm, and that Oprah Winfrey is a forerunner of the antichrist. He linked a January 2016 East Coast blizzard to a Supreme Court decision on abortion rights in North Dakota:

We are calling for national prayers of repentance from February 3 to March 4. On January 22, the Jonas storm, which also means Jonah, hit Washington, D.C. That same day the Supreme Court denied North Dakota the right to ban abortion and help women with child care. We urge everyone to pray every day for the Supreme Court and America to repent.

Disturbing? Well, do not worry. Ted Cruzs wife explains all and oh so nicely. His wife, Heidi, who had been campaigning for her husband full time over several months in 2016, advised a South Carolina radio personality that Cruz is running to show this country the face of the God that we serve. But we can all see that face, dear; it is not a pretty picture.

Rosemarys baby always had a plan

Most scarily, Ted Cruz is not mad, andas Rolling Stone reportsTed Cruz does not make gaffes:

Ted Cruz is far from crazy, which is the essential Ted Cruz problem. Crazy you can deal with, even forgive a little, often ignore. Ben Carson is a bowl of Froot Loops floating in a sad lethal pond of gasoline. Donald Trump went warp speed into the Trumpiverse decades ago. Both men have conducted their campaigns and recent years on perpetual tangents. But Ted Cruz knows exactly what hes doing. He doesnt even hide it particularly well. Not only is his intelligence one of his favorite selling points, his book undermines any notion that he misspeaks. He is gaffe proof because the gaffes are not arrived at by error. Ted Cruz does awful things by intelligent design.

But Ted Cruz has no time for truth. His pitch for his book: Washington D.C. desperately needs leaders who arent afraid to tell the truth

Elsewhere, I have discussed some questionable strategies Cruz employed to win the 2016 Iowa primary.

These dirty tricks continued in New Hampshire as he worked to undermine Ben Carson (hardly a heavy lift, in any sane universe) by leaking a false rumor that Carson was about to pull outthus, eroding enthusiasm for Carson. Evidently, Cruz tried to apologize in a closet, since his pollsters said he should. But pyramid-loving Carson was having none of it. The dirty tricks continued unabated as in anti-Trump robocalls a pro-Cruz super PAC, reached out to 180,000 households, in attacking Trumps support for removing the Confederate flag from the capitolyes, Ted feels their pain.

The Charleston Post and Courier created an anonymous site they called the Whisper Campaign, where South Carolinians could submit tips about questionable mailers or advertisements theyd seen. The Cruz campaign was behind most of the submissions that the Post and Courier was able to link to a specific campaign. Since there were six candidates at the time, Ted Cruzs deceit and insidiousness were clearly disproportionate. Outdoing the Trump campaign in dishonestynow, thats quite a feat.

Just in case that penny has not dropped, the fact that Ted is loathed by his Senate colleagues should be warning enough. Think about this. You must know that there is a large pool of decency-impaired, power-ensnared senators, who regularly stoop to extraordinary Mariana Trench depths. Just think about the Senateand all the times it is hot for Netanyahu or rootin for Putin, embracing collusion and treason, salivating over clamps on food stamps, promoting voter suppression without question, and obliviating the sainthood of Planned Parenthood. The Senate, where only the wealthy can be healthy, race is shoved into a dark place, and indiscriminately shooting blanks via weapons of assaultare safe by default.

But evidently, there is one place that even these weasels cannot gostill some form of single-cell life at that trench. But such life is threatened to become still born as it enters the mouth of Cruzs black hole that sits in the center of his breast. These senators look at that coven and recoil in horror. Ted Cruzs quest for the GOP presidential nomination has been hampered, from the start, by the reality that the vast majority of influential DC Republicans simply cant stand the guy. The more you know him, the quicker you must dart to avoid him.

Why doesnt Ted Cruz worry about, or try to work around, any of this? What can be gained by soul-searching? Cruz fully understands what Ive been saying, what the Trump campaign also much later figured outthat the GOP base is not capable of critical thinking and has zero interest in facts. That the more bigoted, arrogant, and disgusting you are, the more they will love you. As Trump said, I could stand in the middle of Fifth Avenue and shoot somebody and I wouldnt lose voters.

All their ideas have failedthey lose every argumentand they fear people consider them stupid (go figure). Any candidate that fills this emptiness with toxic goo will get the bases basest love, wrapped in hate and the desecrated flag. Hence the ever-devolving level of politicians they are attracted to. Hence Pence, Trump, Cruz.

But I digress, for there is moreso much more.

To talk is to lie

Ted Cruz: if I am talking, I am lying. We know thatbut how much bull can Ted Cruz pack into a couple of sentences? I believe Cruz may have just beaten the world record in that category.

More whoppers, placing more Americans on intellectual life support.

But for those who supposedly work in the name of that Lord on high, they must be judged accordingly. Such expectations are simple and obvious. So if the glove fits, we must acquitif not, we must crucify. So come on down, Jesus, its time to meet your guy. Will you love him?

Cruz and Jesus join forces on foreign policy

And here he is, our very own Stupidparty, alternate reality, Jesus. This chest-thumping lets make my tribe great again Jesus loves the idea of turning his sheep into wolves, ploughs into swords. Cruz the messenger, evidently speaking in tongues whilst simultaneously dampening his underpants a wee bit, would like to explain his Jesus Christ-endorsed strategy for tackling a certain foeISIS:

We will utterly destroy ISIS. We will carpet-bomb them into oblivion. I dont know if sand can glow in the dark, but were going to find out.

Tears of pride, watching his boy Ted, stream down alternate reality Jesuss cheeks. U.S. military experts are somewhat less enthused. As reported by the New York Times, a former commandant of West Point commented:

While he clearly thinks the imagery is cute, nothing has made it more obvious that Ted Cruz has absolutely no idea what hes talking about. He certainly hasnt consulted with any actual military men on the subject, nor is he familiar with any basic military history of the country he claims to love so dearly.

Major General Robert Scales (retired), Vietnam veteran and former commandant of West Point, laughed when queried on the issue:

Thats just another one of those phrases that people with no military experience throw around. The Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Paul Selva, disgustedly noted that this not the way that we apply force in combat. It isnt now, nor will it ever be.

Just a little reminder to the shoot-first USA, USA, USA trolls that tolerate Cruz and his crew:

Were the United States of America, and we have a set of guiding principles and those affect the way we as professional soldiers, airmen, sailors, Marines, conduct ourselves on the battlefield, Army Lt. Gen. Sean MacFarland, commander of the coalition against ISIS in Syria and Iraq, said on February 1, 2016. Top of Form Bottom of Form So indiscriminate bombing, where we dont care if were killing innocents or combatants, is just inconsistent with our values. And its what the Russians have been accused of doing in parts of northwest Syria. Right now we have the moral high ground, and I think thats where we need to stay.

Now, perhaps Ted Cruz, Gods infallible messenger, knows something about Syria the rest of us dont know, than anyone else, or how else can he rationalize the slaughter of hundreds of thousands of innocent civilians? So lets take a peek at what he knows.

Sorry, God. I mean Cruz. I hate to deflate an imaginary partnership only ever tenable amongst the most feeble-minded of fake Christians. But in reality there are hundreds of armed rebel factionsmaybe a thousandrepresenting an incredible array of agendas. Yet our messenger Cruz wants us to hate indiscriminately, carpet-bomb them all. Remember, Cruz does not make gaffes; he knows exactly what I just clarified. He is inflaming hatred of Americans and dividing Americansputting American and non-American lives in danger, all for personal gain. A bit like when, in 2013, he maneuvered the U.S. government into a sixteen-day shutdown, causing countless employees to be sent home and risking default on the national debt. A default would have been catastrophic increasing the cost of servicing the U.S. debt for generations. All to prove to idiots that he dislikes the government more than anybody else. Grandstanding on epic proportionsfor personal gain, for Lucifers ascent into the White House.

The final solutionRosemarys baby demands human sacrifice

On September 10, 2014, Cruz headed to the Omni Shoreham Hotel in Washington as a keynote speaker in a Defense of Middle Eastern Christians summitthat was specifically intended to build support for the Christians of Iraq. In the audience were a range of Middle Eastern Christians: Orthodox, Catholic, Coptic, Syriac, Lebanese, Assyrian, and others facing genocide at the hand of ISIS/ISIL/IS in Syria and Iraq, violence in Egypt, and discrimination elsewhere in the Middle East. He managed to piss just about everyone off. How?



In this case, he chose the beginning of his speech to tell Middle Easternmainly ArabChristians that they have no greater ally than the Jewish state; praising Israel but also lecturing these Arabs that they needed to publicly stand with Israel; he went on to criticize those who hate the Jewish state. He was booed off the stage.

Please allow us (myself and my colleague Brian Frydenborg) to explain how ignorant, offensive, and deadly this advice was and why a discussion such as was begun by Cruz was inappropriate.

For one thing, the conference was titled the In Defense of Christians summit. Notice how the words Israel, Jews, and Speak about Anything You Want are absent. Perhaps Senator Cruz got an invitation to a different conference and went to the wrong location. Alas, no. He was supposed to speak and was briefed on the audience.

This speech had everything to do with the 2016 Republican primary audience, and very little to do with the actual Middle Eastern Christians with whom he shared the room, many of whom were part of communities facing genocide from just about the worst terrorist organization in history. In fact, he gave advice to these very people under threat of death that would be sure to endanger their lives, but which sounded really good to this rabid Stupidparty disciple base of his that he needed to pamper, in order to secure the nomination in the 2016 Republican primaries.

The fact is that in Middle Eastern countries other than Lebanon, Christians are a very tiny minority. For Palestinian Christians, Jewish Israeli authorities dont look at their religion and say, Ah ha! Youre a Christian like Ted Cruz no roadblocks, curfews, detentions, land confiscations, beatings, or arrests for you. Palestinian Christians suffer just as much from a brutal, unforgiving, and humiliating decades-long military occupation as do their Muslim brothers and sisters. In Egypt, Coptic Christians (1015 percent of the population) have been facing attacks from Islamists in a relatively new wave of violence there, with even churches and weddings not off limits. The situation was even worse at the time in both Iraq and Syria, where ISIS and other groups targeted all non-Muslims, and even many Muslims, in genocidal ethnic cleansing.

Before he was booed off the stage, Ted Cruz spent more time lecturing the rooms Middle Eastern Christians on Jews and Israel than speaking of their own plight. This made absolutely no sense, unless, again, you realize he was not actually speaking to the people in the room, but to his rabid American fake Christian base.

Cruz forgets that repressed, phobic fake Christians are the deviants

After condemning the Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood shootings of November 2015, Tedpushing back on the suggestion it was an anti-abortionist act (obviously)said it had been reported that perhaps the shooter was a

transgendered leftist activist

This untruthful statement reveals so much. First, Cruz desperately tried to latch onto a false rumor (spread by fake right-wing pseudo-journalists) that the shooter, John Dearthe bearded, aging, white, pro-life, misogynistic gun nutwould somehow prefer to be running around in high heels, pressing wildflowers. That this automatically turned an obvious caricature of a Stupidparty disciple into a phantom leftist activist just beggars belief.



But it reveals so much more about his base. Look at all the ever-so-un-Christian sentiments this one odious comment embodies.

But Ted Chruzt prays every day for guidance, and we imagine his alternate Jesus, his imaginary friend, has responded in his head:

Unto you I say, go forth and lielie to all the idiots that I have created. For I have made them thy Sheepthey will respondeth well to thee, my chosen one.

The sermon on the mount

So Ted Chruzt goes forth to the land of the caves and sayeth unto the great gatherings of troglodytes that the Democrats have issued an ominous threat to the Catholic Church.

His (imaginary) crowd respondeth:

Oh, Father Ted Jesus Chruzt, you must shut down the government, for we do not need hospitals, not while you are there for us.

Ted Chruzt then sayeth that there was a strong bipartisan majority in the House that voted to repeal Obamacare (two Democrats joined the Republicans). His crowd respondeth:

Oh, Father Ted Jesus Chruzt, we dont need no healthcareit is just another brick in the wall.

Ted Chruzt then sayeth, It is a felony with ten years jail term to sell the body parts of unborn children for profit. Thats what these videos show Planned Parenthood doing. Absolutely, we shouldnt be spending $500 million of taxpayer money to fund an ongoing criminal enterprise. (The two anti-abortion activists who made these doctored and illegal videosStupidparty flakeshave been indicted in California on privacy charges and conspiracy. But more to the point, multistate investigations into this facet of Planned Parenthood have turned up no wrongdoing charges.)

Ted Jesus Chruzt carries onand now sayeth, There are 110,000 agents at the IRS. We need to put a padlock on that building and take every one of those 110,000 agents and put them on our southern border. (The IRS doesnt have 110,000 employees, let alone agents. They have 14,000.

The alternate-reality Jesus, which only Rosemarys baby and his apostles could reimagine, then said unto his chosen one, You did well. You have become me, for worrying about the truth is just so time-consuming. You have the proudest record of all my fallen angels on PolitiFact (Stupidparty lies are 1,000 percent more voluminous than those of the other party) for not telling the truth. Out of the sixty comments fact-checked, an astonishing 67 percent of them have been rated as Mostly Falseall the way down to Pants on Fire. And out of the entire sixty comments, only one has been rated True. It was so inspired of you to use

the truth to bash handicapped people when you truthfully said that government regulations are so bad that they actually demand wheelchair-accessible toilet seats. Son, you make me so proud. And the crowd respondeth:

Oh, Father Ted Jesus Chruzt, we dont need no handicapped. They should rise up by their own prayeror failing that, their own shoelaces, or boot straps (whatever comes to hand), but we just do not need no more moochers, for they are just another brick in the wall.

We dont know how to love him. Does she?

Ted, if only you had played your cards right, if only you had not been so transparently repulsive, the Jesus Christ Superstar narrative of your life could have been so different. Heidi Cruz, campaign fatigue having set in, finally cracked and burst into song.

Take it away, Tim Ricesince we cannot hear Andrew Lloyd Webber.
UN seeks probe into Saudi bombing of civilian targets By Thalif Deen View(s): View(s):

UNITED NATIONS, (IPS)  Saudi Arabia, which has been accused of relentlessly bombing civilian targets in strife-torn Yemen and threatening executions of human rights activists, is fast gaining notoriety as a political outcast at the United Nations. The bombings of civilians have also led to speculation whether the Saudis and their coalition partners could be hauled before the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes.

In a report titled 44 Small Graves Intensify Questions About the US role in Yemen, the New York Times said some members of the US Congress have called on the American military to clarify its role in airstrikes on Yemen and investigate whether the support for those strikes could expose American military personnel to legal jeopardy, including for war crimes.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has not only condemned the continued attacks on civilians but also called for an impartial, independent and prompt investigation into some of the recent bombings in Yemen. Guterres has described Yemen as the worlds worst humanitarian crisis, with three in four Yemenis in need of assistance. So far, the UN and its partners have reached out to more than 8 million people with direct assistance this year.

The death toll alone amounts to over 10,000 people, mostly civilians, since 2014. But any drastic action against the coalitionor even an independent UN investigation is most likely to be thwarted by Western powers, including three permanent members of the Security Council, namely the US, UK and France, which are key suppliers to the thriving multi-billion dollar arms market in Saudi Arabia.

According to Amnesty International, the Saudis are also seeking the death penalty for five individuals who face trial before Saudi Arabias counter-terror court, including Israa al-Ghomgham, who would be the first woman ever to face the death penalty simply for participating in protests. With a woman activist being threatened with execution, who is next in line? Children?

Daniel Balson, Advocacy Director at Amnesty International, told IPS The sad fact is that in Saudi Arabia, children and the mentally disabled are not exempt from execution. Abdul Kareem Al-Hawaj was 16 when he took part in anti-government protests. Abdullah al-Zaher and Dawood al-Marhoon were arrested on March 3 and May 22, 2012, when they were 16 and 17 years old respectively. Ali al-Nimr was 17 when he was arrested in February 2012.

Balson pointed out that these cases have several things in common: All four are members of the minority Shia sect. All four claimed that their confessions were extracted under torture. All four are at risk of imminent execution. Unfortunately, Saudi authorities have proven their willingness to incur substantial political cost simply to put people to death.

In January 2016, Saudi authorities executed 47 people in a single day despite widespread international condemnation. Saudi Arabia is certainly no stranger to killing women  authorities executed two in 2017.

Asked about the continued strong military relationship between the Saudis and Western governments, Balson told IPS that U.S. government officials must, along with their Western allies ban the sale of weapons to Saudi Arabia, not just to dis-incentivise executions but because these weapons cause innumerable civilian deaths in Yemen.

This isnt conjecture, its a documented fact, he said. Late last year, Amnesty documented that a US-made bomb killed and maimed children in Sana. Media reports have indicated that a bomb that killed dozens of children last month was made in the U.S.

The U.S. must communicate to Saudi authorities that the killing of children  whether by warplane or executioner  is abhorrent, he declared. Hiba Zayadin of Human Rights Watch (HRW) told IPS the public prosecutor is demanding the death penalty for five of the six activists currently on trial.

We do not know of any other woman activist that has faced the death penalty before for her rights-related work and believe this could set a dangerous precedent. It goes to show just how determined the Saudi leadership is to crush any and all dissent, all the while claiming to be on a path towards modernisation, moderation, and reform, she said.

Zayadin said now is the time for the international community to speak up about the human rights abuses increasingly taking place in Saudi Arabia today, especially by allies such as the US, Britain, and France.

We believe Saudi authorities would be responsive to calls from allies and international businesses seeking to invest in Saudi Arabia to respect the rule of law and release all unjustly detained dissidents

If the Saudi leadership is truly committed to reform, she said, it would change course, and as long as it does not, the international community has a responsibility to hold it accountable to its promises.

Samah Hadid, Amnesty Internationals Middle East Director of Campaigns, said Saudi Arabia is one of the worlds most prolific executioners and the world cannot continue to ignore the countrys horrific human rights record.

We call on the international community to put pressure on the Saudi Arabian authorities to end the use of the death penalty, which continues to be employed in violation of international human rights law and standards, often after grossly unfair and politically motivated trials.

Meanwhile, UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Mark Lowcock said that at least 22 Yemeni children and four women were killed in an air strike last Thursday (August 23) as they were fleeing the fighting in Al Durayhimi district in Hudaydah governorate.

This is the second time in two weeks that an air strike by the Saudi-led Coalition has resulted in dozens of civilian casualties. An additional air strike in Al Durayhimi on Thursday resulted in the death of four children, he added.

Lowcock said he was also deeply concerned by the proximity of attacks to humanitarian sites, including health facilities and water and sanitation infrastructure.

The UN and its partners, he pointed out, are doing all they can to reach people with assistance. Access for humanitarian aid workers to reach people in need is critical to respond to the massive humanitarian crisis in Yemen. People need to be able to voluntarily flee the fighting to access humanitarian assistance too.

The parties to the conflict must respect their obligations under international humanitarian law and those with influence over them must ensure that everything possible is done to protect civilians, he added.

In a piece titled US Commander Seeks Clarity in Yemen Attack, the New York Times said since 2015, the US has provided the Saudi-led air campaign in Yemen with mid-air refueling, intelligence assessments and other military advice.

The US air commander in the Middle East, Lt. Gen Jeffrey Harrigian, has also urged the Saudi-led coalition to be more forthcoming about an airstrike in early August which killed more than 40 children. He was quoted as saying Theres a level of frustration we need to acknowledge. They need to come out and say what occurred there.

The conflict in Yemen began in 2014 when Houthi rebels, aligned with Iran, seized the capital and sent the government into exile in Saudi Arabia. The fighting intensified beginning 2015.
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Putting Thackerays Vanity Fair on screen is far from untrodden ground. There have been around 13 adaptations of the story of Becky Sharp, Emma Sedley and their friends and families so far, all the way from a 1911 silent movie to a 1998 BBC version.

But the director of Mammoth Screens upcoming ITV/Amazon take on the novel, James Strong, hasnt seen any of them.

In fact, says the director, whose credits include Broadchurch and Liar, hes not really a big fan of period drama. As a viewer, I sometimes find certain period dramas, particularly of this period, can be quite distancing  a little unrelatable to a modern audience. And that made him the ideal fit for this adaptation that aims from the outset to be a contemporary drama in a period setting. That tone begins with Gwyneth Hughes scripts, says Strong. They immediately have a modernity to them in the way theyre paced.

And Strong was determined that the direction had to capture that tone. I was very clear I wanted to approach it in the same way Id approach a contemporary drama. But, he says, thats an easy thing to say and a little harder to get right in practice.

Initial thoughts were for a mad, Trainspotting Baz Luhrmann mash up but that was soon dropped. The danger with that is it would tire after 20 minutes leaving audiences dazzled but exhausted and missing the drama. To have too stylised an aesthetic could risk detracting from the believability of the story, he says.

The show needed to have an attitude and swagger and fun to it with the pace of contemporary drama, but had to keep the story real. Rehearsals with the cast steered clear of the text itself to keep performances fresh. You have to catch lightning in the bottle a bit. On set we try to get the cameras up and running very quickly so were rehearsing as were shooting so you can often catch instinctive emotional reaction  a technique used on Broadchurch and Liar. And the cameras were kept fluid so the actors arent restrained.

But alongside that contemporary feel, the show also needed to keep all that is good about period drama. Historical accuracy was not up for discussion, its as forensically accurate as possible. The costumes, the etiquette, the houses, the decor, the military operations are all as accurate as you can be. That extended to the decision to shoot much of the drama in the London, the novels main setting, despite the capital being a nightmare to film in. Its really expensive. The permissions are a nightmare, they take forever. There was also extensive vfx clean up by Technicolor of out-of-period architectural details.

The series just played around the edges with the format, the look, the music. It had a modern veneer, says Strong. But at the same time the drama is shot in a beautiful appropriate way, he says. There is handheld, theres Steadicam, theres movement but there are also beautiful graphic wides that allow you to enjoy our locations and sumptuous settings and scale. Its a big story  youve got the politics of war, the battle of Waterloo. Its both epic and intimate so we had a to find a style that fitted those two things.

Part of that came from the use of zoom lenses throughout the series Theres no tracking, theres no unmotivated camera work. If theres something going on the camera will be drawn to it. I told the operators that if theres something interesting going on in the scene, then take me to it. It was, says Strong, a way of using the set piece of a big composition but then using a zoom to isolate characters in a more immediate way than that slow gentle tracking or the American power push.

DoP Ed Rutherford shot on the Red Epic with a 6K Dragon sensor, another departure from traditional period drama production. I love that Alexa look with the Cooke lenses where youre trying to chuck everything out of focus and the shallow depth of field, says Strong. But I wanted this to be visceral. I didnt want a soft-focus view of the past.

Colours and lenses also help tell the story, says Strong. As Becky rises there is literally more colour in her life and as the Sedleys lose their money the colour drains out of Amelia. The lenses tell the same story, Amelia initially shot wider with the family she fits into then as things go wrong, slightly longer lenses as she becomes more alienated. Theres the reverse for Becky, long lenses while shes different and separated from her environment and shorter wider lenses as she makes her way in society.

References for the look of the series spanned Kate Moss in her Britpop pomp, the photography of Saul Leiter and Gregory Crewdson, Blade Runner 2049s colours, The Shape of Water Del Toro does period and doesnt feel stuck in the past. A balancing act that Vanity Fair also manages to pull off.

DETAILS

Gwyneth Hughes seven part adaptation of Thackerays classic novel is set against the backdrop of the Napoleonic Wars, and follows heroine Becky Sharp as she attempts to claw her way out of poverty and scale the heights of English Society.

Production co Mammoth Screen

Cast Olivia Cooke, Claudia Jessie, Tom Bateman, Johnny Flynn, Simon Russell Beale, Martin Clunes

Writer/exec producer Gwyneth Hughes

Director/ exec producer James Strong

Exec producers Damien Timmer, Tom Mullens

Producer Julia Stannard

DP Ed Rutherford

Director episode 6 Jonathan Entwhistle

Line Producer Paula McBreen

Casting Theo Park

Costume designers Suzie Harman, Lucinda Wright

Production designer Anna Pritchard

Art director Henry Jaworski

Editor Steve Worsley

Camera Red Epic 6K Dragon sensor

VFX Technicolor

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Linkedin - (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta, Indonesia  Tue, September 4, 2018 00:04 1156 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877127cba 4 Inforial Free

With vast natural resources, diverse tourist attractions plus a strategic location, Banten is poised to become the worlds great investment destination.

Banten province is witnessing an upward trend in annual foreign direct investment (FDI). The value of realized foreign investment and domestic investment has been on the increase for the last three years. In 2017, investment flowing to Banten reached Rp 55.82 trillion (US$3.8 billion), higher than the previous year, which stood at Rp 52.23 trillion, with 2,980 projects.

Correspondingly, entering 2018, thanks to the Banten provincial administrations persistence in promoting the regions investment potential, Banten has seen an upward trend in investment. The realized investment for the first semester of 2018, for instance, was recorded at Rp 29.99 trillion, with 2,055 projects, according to the Investment Activity Report (LKPM) obtained by local investment office One-Stop Integrated Services (DMPTSP).

The increase in the realized investment has signified foreign investors growing interest in investing their capital in Banten. Based on the report, realized foreign investment in Banten province for the first semester ranked third after West Java and Jakarta, with an investment value of Rp 21.97 trillion from 1,518 projects. Meanwhile, domestic investment ranked seventh, with investment value of Rp 8 trillion and 537 projects.

The increase in the value of investment annually has proven that Banten has become one of the main investment destinations, for both foreign investment and domestic investment. Even from 2015 to 2017, Banten ranked in five big positions and as of the first semester of 2018, realized foreign investment jumped to the third position in investment destinations in Indonesia.

Relying heavily on the regions potential and geographical location is highly insufficient to boost investment growth. Through the DPMTSP, the Banten government has taken breakthrough steps, which include enhancing the ratio of the ease of doing business, changing the behavior of bureaucrats, establishing a taskforce to settle bottleneck related to business license, ensuring security, et cetera.

To fulfill investors substantial need for a simple, quick and effective service related to business permits, the Banten administration has applied an online one-stop-integrated service, making it unnecessary for investors to repeatedly visit relevant technical agencies to meet the proposed license conditions.

Related to the high demand for a quick and efficient business license process, a significant step has also been taken by enhancing the capacity of officers in charge to enable them to provide better services and to create ease and comfort for prospective investors to start and develop their business.

In this respect, the Banten administration has also obliged all of its regency and town administrations to set a taskforce whose major tasks are to bridge, solve and reduce the obstacles in the investment process, either in the license application phase or the implementation (debottlenecking). The taskforce is expected not only to help the Banten administration monitor the investment process but also to handle the arising license-related issues.

Apart from that, the Banten administration has also set up an integrated licensing program, or online single submission (OSS), to comply with Government Regulation No. 24/2018 on the electronic integrated business services, aimed at providing ease for investment in Indonesia. Under the OSS system, investors can handle nearly all of the licensing process, starting from the making of a corporate deed to obtaining a commercial license.

Investment security for investors

Ensuring comfort and security is a prerequisite for investments. Therefore, the Investment Coordinating Board (BKPM) has teamed up a mutual work team with the National Police, with the two parties signing a working guideline for the coordination of protection and security for business in 2016. As an investment destination, the Banten administration, in collaboration with the regional police, is always ready to maintain the investment climate.

The Banten provincial government ensures security for the investors, starting from the licensing process, an inventory of the possible security disruptions around the investment activities to quick assistance in the event of a demonstration and unwanted violent actions by thugs.

Investment in tourism sector

Banten Governor Wahidin places the tourism sector as his priority program because Banten has great tourism potential, which includes special economic zone (SEZ) Tanjung Lesung. According to him, it is highly important to manage tourism destinations well and give a good impression to tourists visiting Banten. Currently, the Banten provincial government is focusing on the improvement of road access to local tourist attractions, including the area of Sultan Banten, known as Banten Lama (Old Banten) and Tanjung Lesung Beach.

For this reason, local administration has spurred the acceleration of various strategic national projects (PNS) to boost tourism in Banten, such as the SEZ of Tanjung Lesung, reactivation of the Labuan-Panimbang railway, the development of an 84-kilometer-long Serang-Panimbang toll road and the revitalization of Banten Lama.

The efforts to revitalize Banten Lama have seen much progress following the signing of a memorandum of understanding (MoU) between the Banten provincial government and the Serang municipality in July.

For example, a canal in the area, which was formerly a slum and dirty area where illegal businesses operated, has been cleaned up as it will be developed into a water tourism facility. An old mosque has also been revitalized, with its front yard already looking clean, neat and orderly. A bus terminal has also been built close to the house of prayer to provide more tourists with easy access to the site.

The initial phase of the development of Banten Lama is expected to be completed in December. Banten Lama will have a new face as a religious tourism destination and is expected to attract more domestic and international travelers, which will boost investment in tourism and other sectors.

On the other hand, the government is focusing its attention on boosting investment to develop tourism potential. As one of the 10 national priority destinations, the Tanjung Lesung Beach area takes center stage, especially with the area expected to welcome 1 million tourist arrivals in 2019, as the government has targeted.

The Tanjung Lesung area covers an area of 1,500 hectares, with diverse tourism potential, including the beauty of the natural beach, flora and fauna diversity and a wealth of exotic cultures.

Apart from the property and leisure sectors, investors can also take the opportunity to invest in the transportation and logistics sector and other service sectors that support tourism business-related activities in the area.

The Special Economic Zone (SEZ) status for the Tanjung Lesung area is expected to make the area attractive to investors.

The status of Tanjung Lesung Beach area as an SEZ is expected to benefit investors because the area has already provided what investors need: the master plan for long-term development, basic infrastructure such as power supply, a clean water plant, a waste management plant, land with certificates etc, according to Poernomo Siswoprasetijo, president director of PT Banten West Java Tourism Development, a developer of the Tanjung Lesung Beach area.

. (./.)
While The United Nations aims at halving food loss and waste by 2030, a Boston Consulting Group (BCG) study found that worldwide food waste was estimated to reach 2.1 billion tons annually, worth US$1.5 million, according to VOA.

Currently, around 1.6 billion tons of food are wasted annually.

One of the studys authors, Esben Hegnsholt, told the Thomson Reuters Foundation that the world was seeing a real crisis at a global level.

The amounts of waste and the social, economic, environmental implications are serious if we dont change the trajectory. When we fight food loss and waste, we also fight hunger, poverty and global warming, he said.

While the handling of this crisis requires a huge, global effort, we can also start doing our part from home.

The Takeout has compiled a list of small steps to combat food waste.

Keep pantry staples on hand

It is a good idea to always stock our pantry with eggs, rice or pasta sauce. So when we have excess ingredients after cooking a dish, we can use the stock to whip up a second dish. Leftover vegetables, cheese or herbs can be made into an omelet.

Steak from the day before? Make a stir-fry with it. A piece of roast chicken, make it a topping for pasta. Or in most Indonesian cases, you can always make fried rice with almost any leftovers. Rendang, black pepper beef, salted fish, you name it.

Best-before date is not the end of the food

After we make sure that we store our foods properly, now its time to check the expiration date to know how long we can keep it before we finish it. According to Greatist, expiration dates on food and drink products are not required or regulated by federal administrators.

Best-if Used Before/By, for instance, means that this date helps specify when a product is at its peak freshness. If a box of cereal says best-by Aug. 31, it doesnt mean you cannot eat it on Sep. 2.

Read also: In Britain, chefs stir up food waste revolution in the kitchen

Make stock using whatever is in stock

Kevin Pang, a reader who contributes idea to combat food waste to The Takeout wrote that he would make stock using the carcass of supermarket rotisserie chicken, carrot peels, bottom end of celery stalks, lettuce and the last scoop from a can of tomato paste.

A stock is incredibly forgiving to what garbage you throw in the pot, he wrote. (mut)
Over 100 short, feature and documentary films from 30 countries will reportedly be screened at the 2018 Bali International Film Festival, also known as Balinale, slated to be held from Sept. 24 to 30.

With a focus on the history of the Indonesian film industry, the Balinale will reportedly be opened with Hanung Bramantyo's film Sultan Agung and closed with Shoplifters, which was helmed by Japanese director Hirozaku Kore-eda and recognized with the 2018 Cannes Film Festival's Palme d'Or.

According to tempo.co, the BalinaleX Industry Forum, to be held at Ayodya Resort Bali, Nusa Dua, on Sept. 23, will serve as the festival's pre-event.

First held in 2017, the forum aims to gather the government, creative industry and commercial parties, allowing them to share knowledge and have discussions regarding challenges and commercial opportunities in local as well as international film industries.

"This year, BalinaleX will return with film industry experts, such as Hanung Bramantyo with his work on Indonesian hero Sultan Agung and Shalahuddin Siregar with his film Lima, which highlights the principal values of Pancasila. Indonesian actress Cinta Laura will also present to share her perspective on crossing to the international film arena," said the festival's founder, Deborah Gabinetti, on Tuesday as quoted by tempo.co.

Meanwhile, to explain the business aspects of the film industry, the forum will feature Ody Mulia Hidayat and Chand Parwes Servia from Indonesia, as well as Taiwanese producer and Taipei Film Festival director Jeane Huang and Broadway producer and Tony Award-winner Jhett Tolentino.

Read also: Indonesia submits five films to Asia-Pacific Film Festival

The BalinaleX will also bring Global Film Solutions CEO and former head of Film New Zealand, Julian Grimmond, to explore the role of Indonesia as an interesting film location for international productions.

Education and Culture Minister Muhadjir Effendy, Ahmad Yani from the Film Censorship Institute (LSF) and Maman Wijaya as the ministry's head of film development center were also invited to discuss the current regulation in Indonesia.

"ASEAN Secretary-General Lim Jock Hoi will also [present] to discuss the impacts of film at the regional level," added Gabinetti. (kes)
If Dakota Johnson had to work hard to prepare for the erotic Fifty Shades, it was nothing compared to the physical demands of Suspiria, a horror movie in which much of the fear comes through her ability to dance like a woman possessed.

A remake of the 1970s cult classic, Suspiria is set in a dance school in Berlin where Johnsons character Susie, a naive young hopeful from the cornfields of Ohio, arrives to find strange powers at work.

The older women at the academy are impressed by her instinctual, violent dancing, and quickly give her the lead role in an upcoming performance - although the viewer suspects they have something more sinister in mind.

It was amazing to discover that I could do that with my body, but it was a lot of work, it was a lot of training, Johnson told Reuters in Venice, where Suspiria is competing for a Golden Lion.

I worked for six months before filming. I was filming another movie in Vancouver, the third 50 Shades movie, and I would go after work or before to train with the trainer.

The 28-year-old has another horror movie in the works - Bad Times at the El Royale with Jeff Bridges and Chris Hemsworth.

Read also: Dakota Johnson needed therapy after horror film 'Suspiria'

I think I went through a little horror phase recently, Johnson said, before realising that could be mis-heard.

I said horr-or phase, to be clear, she said, jabbing the air with her finger for emphasis, and adding: Not whore phase. Oh God! I dont know!

Im interested in making all kinds of films. I love cinema and I love movies, so I really dont know what Ill do next. But the ones coming out are a little, a little different.

The Venice Film Festival runs to Sept 8.
The newly released book Does ASEAN Matter: A View from Within aims to show the inner workings of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) from the perspective of someone who is closely acquainted with the organization.

Written by diplomat and former Indonesian foreign minister Marty Natalegawa, the 258-page book discusses the history and impact of ASEAN across five chapters, exploring issues such as how trust was forged between states, punctuated by accounts of the diplomatic tensions that arose during Martys tenure as foreign minister from 2009 to 2014.

Marty, who also served as Indonesias permanent representative to the United Nations from 2007 to 2009, said that the question in the books title came from a single standpoint only  his own perspective as a former foreign minister  and was not an expression of be-all and end-all wisdom.

When we reviewed the question, we came to the conclusion that when we talk about ASEAN in the past 50 years, there are three ways that ASEAN has mattered, he says.

First, he said ASEAN had changed how Southeast Asian countries maintained relationships with one another.

Before the conception of ASEAN in 1967, relations between nations in Southeast Asia were fraught with tension and open conflict, and marked by a deficit of trust. In 50 years, we have seen a change in dynamics, from a trust deficit to strategic trust where open conflict can almost be set aside, Marty said, adding that he used the qualifier almost so that there was no sense of complacency.

The second transformation identified by Marty was the increased role of Southeast Asian countries in world affairs, noting that the countries were pawns of major powers during the Cold War.

[The countries] were victims of the rivalry between East and West, which further magnified competition in the region. Through ASEAN, they have gained power as part of the central entity in the region and play a determinant role in the Asia Pacific regional architecture.

Third, ASEAN has changed from a state-centric entity into a people-centric entity, becoming more attuned to the needs of its people.

This is much more apparent in the economy, as the nations economies before ASEAN were marked by underdevelopment, high levels of poverty, and so on. We have seen a change, with Southeast Asian countries becoming some of the most dynamic economies in the world.

In the writing of Does ASEAN Matter: A View from Within, Marty said the book began with his personal notes regarding his experiences as foreign minister.

Originally, there was no intention of putting all of these views and notes into a book, he said.

But maybe it is one of the books strengths, because it is written with a sense of honesty, candidness and openness while acknowledging where it is lacking because it was very much initially intended as my own note file, he added, noting that the book also served as a way to preserve his memories of his time in the post.

Many revisions were made during the writing of the book, he said, especially on the subject of achievements.

All the supposed achievements go into my delete file, because I felt that Im not the person that should write about what we achieved. Let history be the judge.

As well as discussing the content of the book at its launch, Marty, who spent more than three decades at the Foreign Ministry, also fielded several questions from the audience, who mostly asked about his perspective on current issues.

Martys experience in diplomacy showed clearly when faced with tough questions, notably responding to an enquiry about Taiwans role in ASEAN in the same manner he used as foreign minister.

I would simply say it is a brilliant question and I will deflect subsequently, Marty stated to a burst of laughter.

However, Marty did in fact answer the question, citing that he was now free from his official duties that previously prevented him from answering questions that could affect diplomatic relations.

[...] I will say clearly that Taiwan, as an economic and social entity, has an important role to play in our region.

With geopolitics heating up in recent times, its worth remembering a line from the books opening chapter: Indeed, for the future, as it is sometimes said, the only certainty is uncertainty itself. Change is permanent.
What comes to your mind when you hear the word India? Many are likely to answer Bollywood. Some may think of the distinctive female garment the sari. Others may associate it with its dishes known for their exotic flavors.

Like the Chinese, Indians are spread throughout the world. People can come across them in any area at any time.

Indonesia should learn many things from the Indian diaspora. Not only does their typical distinctiveness show a splendid cultural legacy, more importantly, the Indians of the diaspora are instrumental in setting an example for us, either at home or overseas, to beef up the quality of our human resources on a global scale.

I am of the view that learning from the lives of the Indian diaspora is an attempt to look at ourselves in the mirror, learning from the experience of others or bringing out the best in others. Despite their dynamics, however, the people of the Indian diaspora are strongly rooted in the following forces.

First, international orientation is the key to their existence and identity. It lends color to the Indian education system and way of communication. It is not simply limited to the curriculum at primary, college or university level.

Equally importantly, it also deals with the quality of human resources, instead of spending too much capital on financial resources, on mere physical aspects, such as deluxe university buildings. It is no surprise that many university classrooms in India do not have air-conditioning. Yet Indian students enjoy the best and brightest lectures from Indian professors graduating from the best universities in the United States, United Kingdom and Europe.

The international standard of education has produced Indias best talent, occupying various senior posts around the globe in finance, taxation, medicine, IT and many other fields. Many renowned CEOs in the worlds largest corporations are Indian-born, such as Satya Narayana Nadella of Microsoft and Sundar Pichai of Google.

The amazing thing is that many Indians going abroad do so on a free-fall principle  without scholarships from their government and relying upon their own funds when it comes to seeking jobs overseas.

Besides, their global orientation cannot be separated from their cultural power and English-speaking skills. Indians are noted for being a talkative people, which is their source of confidence. In response to this, I told a joke to my Indian friend, While its hard to get Indonesian students to start speaking in English in a classroom or international forum, it is much more difficult to get Indian students to stop talking in the same venue.

In terms of English competence, it is public knowledge that Indians speak English better than any other non-English speaking countries.

In Australia, for example, people do not simply meet Indians as bankers, accountants, professionals, researchers, or IT specialists but also as drivers, bakers or call-center officers. They easily access any jobs as they have no problem with English as a tool of communication and service.

Second, Indians are very proud of their culture. They are committed to bringing their own identity into the public space, not only on certain seasons or festivities.

On many occasions, for example, I often come by Indian women wearing their traditional clothes, such as kurta, in the workplace, going shopping and picking up their kids from school. While attending functions outdoors, they continue to listen to Desi songs even though they speak English between them.

This suggests that Indians excel in sustaining a balance between the need to become global citizens and pride in identity. In a multicultural country, a sense of and pride in identity is of paramount significance, as many people  particularly third-generation immigrants  are prone to become detached from their cultural identity, marked by their inability to speak their mother tongue.

In many ways, we have much in common with Indians. The richness of culture, language and culinary arts are the main elements that attract the world community to visit Indonesia.

However, our momentous task is how to build our citizens ability to communicate globally through the English language, something we may learn from Indians. The balance between pride in our own culture and globally exploring capabilities through the English language needs to be taken into account as early as possible.

Third, Indians have a high regard for elderly people. This is something serious and readily found among the Indian diaspora. Just visit food courts in shopping malls in Melbourne, Australia, for instance, you will find lots of complete Indian extended families  father, mother, kids and grandparents.

I assumed it was a typical phenomenon of certain multicultural suburbs, like Clayton, Springvale or Bix Hill in Melbourne. My assumption was wrong. They are found in many places mostly inhabited by white people, including in Port Melbourne, Toorak or Brighton. As I asked my Indian friend about this, he replied that Indians highly appreciated and respected their parents. They will not leave their parents at home on their own; in a nutshell, extended family is a precious treasure for the Indian diaspora.

***

The writer is a lecturer at the School of Cultural Sciences, Andalas University in Padang, West Sumatra.
Impatient diners crowd around carts of steaming dim sum steered by fierce "trolley aunties" at Hong Kong's Lin Heung Tea House, one of the city's most famous restaurants, now fearing for its future.

Lin Heung's traditional homemade dishes, including cha siu bao (barbecue pork buns), har gow (shrimp dumplings) and ma lai go (Cantonese sponge cake), have earned a loyal following from locals with a taste for nostalgia, as well as inquisitive tourists.

The two-story restaurant in the bustling Central district has multiple top listings in global travel guides and serves customers from 6:00 am until 10:00 pm, seven days a week.

Diners sit elbow-to-elbow at shared round tables, metal spittoons still tucked beside them, the walls hung with decorative bird cages and traditional Chinese numerals used for menu prices.

But the restaurant says the building's new owner has not yet contacted them about renewing their lease, despite it expiring early next year, and they feel in the dark about the landlord's intentions.

That has sparked fears that Lin Heung will be the latest Hong Kong culinary treasure to fall foul of the city's thirst for redevelopment.

The building's landlord, CSI Properties, told AFP it could not comment on the case.

Lin Heung's possible demise has been widely reported by local media and worried regulars say they are visiting as much as they can in case it closes.

Retiree Mr Yip, 80, says he is coming more often to enjoy his favorite dish of pork liver siu mai -- a kind of dumpling -- and freshly made tea.

Dim sum is often paired with a cup of Chinese tea in a tradition known as "yum cha", literally "drink tea".

"It's my habit to sip a cup of Chinese tea and greet everyone here every week. The tea is special and the people too," Yip told AFP.

"I feel comforted when I see the staff. It feels like home."

Read also: Jakpost Nightlife: Asian-inspired bars

- 'Sense of belonging' -

The city's housing market was crowned the most expensive in the world in 2017 -- the most recent figures available -- according to US-based Demographia and developers clamor for prime real estate.

The selling off of older buildings, as well as spiraling rents, has spelled the end for a number of family-run neighborhood favorites across Hong Kong.

Lin Heung is one of the city's oldest Cantonese restaurant businesses and is run by the Ngan family, who arrived from the southern Chinese province of Guangdong and set it up in 1926.

It now has three outlets in Hong Kong and has moved its restaurants around over the decades.

The Central venue on Wellington Street is its main restaurant and has been in the same spot for 22 years.

Restaurant spokesman Terence Lam said the current lease would end in March 2019 and he hoped the restaurant would not have to close.

"It's not only a business. It embodies the legacy of the past," Lam told AFP. "It represents the hardship of our ancestors."

Local food writer Wilson Fok said the evolution of "yum cha" culture was intertwined with Hong Kong's history as numerous mainland dim sum chefs fled to the former British colony in the 1950s after civil war ravaged China.

He describes the atmosphere inside restaurants like Lin Heung as a "piece of history".

"Going to 'yum cha' is not just a cultural habit where people consume food, but also a way of life that shapes our identity," said Fok.

"Some of these old traditions are often lost in our fast-paced society," he added.

Tourists visiting the tea house said they appreciated the restaurant's traditional approach -- a rarity now in Hong Kong.

"We usually sit with family or friends in China. But here, we share tables with people we don't know," said 20-year-old mainland Chinese visitor Wu Yutung.

Brazilian tourist Marcelo Garcia, 47, who said he had never before eaten dim sum, described Lin Heung as "an environment with a huge amount of energy".

"People probably come here again because they feel a sense of belonging," he said.
From bright hair dye, heavy eye makeup to flashy stage costumes, some of the key elements of a K-pop boy band defy conventional beauty standards for men.

K-pop groups have long drawn a stark contrast with Western boy bands, but are increasingly challenging what many brand as traditional masculinity by fully embracing makeup and fashion forward styles to best deliver their music.

Perhaps ironically, BTS, the group that has enjoyed most success in the West, is also among the groups that least conform to its male style norms.

Lexie Marie, a 17-year-old YouTuber from the UK, is one of the K-pop fans who love how groups like BTS channel feminine elements into their music.

K-Pop boy groups do differ from Western boy groups. The most notable differences are definitely the makeup, hair and outfits, Marie said, whose channel featuring reaction videos to K-pop videos has some 76,000 subscribers.

Marie makes I Force My Friends videos where she asks her non K-pop fan friends, many of whom are male, to watch K-pop videos and the general reaction has been respectful.

Read also: Puma teams up with BTS for new Basket silhouette

I dont think it really bothers them or if its something that they even really notice since they tend to care more about the music itself, she said.

Marie sees music as an art form and that includes how idols present themselves, be it makeup or outfits. She wishes people would not see K-pop stars as just boys in makeup.

I dont think that wearing makeup questions the masculinity of these artists in any way and their work should not be belittled by people who think that it does, Marie said.

Ten years ago, things were starting to move the other way.

In 2008, K-pop boy band 2PM created a beast-dol phenomenon in South Korea, a compound word of beast and idol with emphasis on masculinity, as the group often performed topless on stage showing off buffed chest and muscular arms.

But by 2010 the group had augmented their image with heavy makeup for Dont Stop Cant Stop".

Meanwhile Big Bang was also experimenting with bold makeup. Where as before cosmetics had been used to cover blemishes and subtly polish a look, now groups wanted to make a statement.

One of the reasons behind the success of BTS is the members appearances, according to pop culture critic Jung Duk-hyun.

Some of the elements that characterize the success of K-pop idols like BTS among international fans are the pretty boy looks on top of their vocal skills, heavily choreographed moves and dance skills, Jung told The Korea Herald.

Compared to the previous generation of boy bands, such as Shinwha, who put an emphasis on traditional masculinity by having muscular bodies, Jang said todays male K-pop idols put more focus on embracing their individuality.

The change in the appearance of idol groups also reflects the growing number of men who wear makeup.

Data from market researcher Euromonitor estimates South Koreas male grooming market was worth 1.28 trillion won ($1.14 billion) in 2017, up 4.1 percent from the year before.

Against this backdrop, Chanel launched its very first male makeup line Boy de Chanel on Saturday in South Korea.

Lee Jong-im, a researcher at the Center for Culture & Society, echoes the view that boy bands in K-pop have come further from traditional beauty standards.

Contrary to boy bands a few years back, members of boy groups now have a more fashion model-like body and presents a prettier and more polished look, Lee told The Korea Herald.

Not everyone is on board with the androgynous and gender-bending looks sported by K-pop boy bands, who sometimes face criticism for being too feminine and gay.

Read also: Lee Dong-wook becomes brand campaign model for Chanel

Last month, American director Joseph Khan tweeted, They all have plastic surgery. They are all wearing lipstick. This is what Crazy Rich Asians actually look like, alongside a picture of BTS.

In another tweet, Khan wrote, Asian Americans: Stop feminizing our men. Asians are macho too. Asians: You no wear lipstick? Why?

Khans tweet reflects the large number of people that still hold an unfavorable view on men wearing makeup.

Though men who wear makeup are still very much in the minority, Lee said traditional gender identity is being challenged, at least in South Korea.

In South Korea where there is a strong emphasis on looks, how we look is becoming our property almost, Lee said.

Its a good thing that we now embrace individuality more openly, but its also worth noting that looks are now being more prioritized, resulting in the growing cosmetics and plastic surgery industry.
For decades, McDonald's was the brand French people loved to hate.

From the 1970s it was accused of being the exporter of "mal bouffe" ("bad food") to the land of fine dining, blamed for introducing millions of French people to high-calorie American fast-food.

It was also resisted as a symbol of US economic and cultural imperialism, particularly by leftwingers, in a country that remains suspicious of globalization -- and more eager than most to defend its own language and culture.

French farmer and one-time presidential candidate Jose Bove built a political career through his opposition to McDonald's which saw him trash a restaurant in the south of France in 1999.

And resistance to the golden arches continues: a mayor on the island of Oleron in western France has famously battled to keep the company out, and the brand is still a favorite target of anti-capitalist protesters during street demonstrations.

Read also: McDonalds introduces latest menu item ayam kremes sambal matah

- 'There's nothing else' -

But in a turn of events that would have French food purists choking, campaigners including local lawmakers have mobilized to save, not shut, a restaurant in one of the poorest suburbs of the southern city of Marseille.

"From the outside it might seem to be just another restaurant," local MP and hard-left leader Jean-Luc Melenchon said in a visit last month to the outlet where he was cheered and applauded.

"But it's the only place where there's something going on in this area, where you can get something to drink or have a bite to eat with friends."

The campaign to prevent the "McDo", as it is known in France, from shutting -- local Socialist and even Communist Party figures have joined Melenchon -- is an unusual development for politicians better known for their opposition to multinational companies.

But it has also served to highlight how the American fast-food chain has become a pillar of the local community, underscoring the lack of other facilities, and economic opportunities, in France's deeply deprived suburbs.

"There's only this," one local, Farida Mameri, told AFP as she arrived with her children. "This area without McDonald's? There'd be nothing. When you meet someone it's here, there's nothing else."

- Drugs and poverty -

The restaurant is located next to the partly completed L2 trunk road in the tough northern suburb of Saint-Barthelemy, a multiethnic area home to a large Muslim population and some of the city's poorest housing estates.

McDonald's is the second-biggest formal employer in the neighborhood with its 77 staff, after a local supermarket chain, trade unionists say.

Residents lament how shops and businesses have gradually moved out at the same time as drug-dealing has flourished -- providing more lucrative, and dangerous, opportunities for unemployed local men.

Marseille remains an important gateway for drugs arriving in Europe from North Africa, causing deadly turf wars between Kalashnikov-wielding gangs that are a blight on the lives of local families.

In May, amateur video went viral showing several masked men armed with machine guns running through a housing estate in nearby Busserine, where police -- and journalists -- are often wary to enter.

Since opening in 1992, the McDonald's has helped to stop some of the criminality, employees and campaigners say.

"McDonald's kind of got me out of the shit, if you'll excuse the term," Nordine Aklil, a 27-year-old employee, told AFP. "I had come out of prison and McDonald's offered me rehabilitation basically.

"It also allowed me to have more stability in my life."

Salim Grabsi, a member of a working class collective in the area called SQPM, agreed that the business had played a "social role" under its previous managers.

"Young girls and young boys who haven't got internships, they end up here," he explained.

"When kids no longer have any interest in school, or they no longer want to go to school, to avoid them landing in drugs and all that, their first job is often at McDonald's."

Read also: McDonald's has a legal problem in pizza-loving India

- Honorable ending? -

At stake is the threatened closure of the restaurant by its current operator, a franchisor called Jean-Pierre Brochiero who owns the restaurant in a 50-50 joint venture with McDonald's France.

He claims the site is loss-making -- which the branch's employees contest -- and wants to sell it to a Tunisia-based company which would open an "Asian halal" food outlet targeting the local Muslim population.

The employees, who have been protesting for months, believe the takeover plan is a ruse to avoid paying them redundancy compensation and they have gone to court to prevent the transaction.

"As badly paid as they are, as bad as working conditions are at McDonald's, their whole life is built around this job," a lawyer representing staff said after a court hearing on Monday.

"The whole life of the neighborhood is built around this restaurant. McDonald's needs to be aware of that and they need to come out of this honorably too."
Lameness prevention: it's all in the head

An understanding of how cows think, how they see the world and how they move is essential for lameness prevention.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3, 2018 08:12 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b308770fffad 4 Politics Jokowi,anti-jokowi,#2019gantipresiden,#2019changepresident,#2019PresidentialElection,Prabowo-Subianto Free

President Joko Jokowi Widodo said he backed the polices decision to restrict events of an anti-Jokowi movement known under its Twitter handle #2019GantiPresiden (Change the president in 2019) in several cities.

He said that, while Indonesia was a democratic country, there were some limitations to the freedom of expression.

Yes, this country is a democratic country. Everyone has the right to assemble and have their own opinion, but remember that there are limitations to it and rules to follow, okay, he told reporters after attending a NasDem Party event in Jakarta on Saturday, as quoted by tempo.co.

Jokowi lauded the polices decision to dissolve the #2019GantiPresiden declaration to maintain public order, as the event was deemed to have the potential to spark riots between supporters and opponents of the incumbent.

Police officers dissolved events in several cities, including Pekanbaru in Riau and Surabaya in East Java, because of the risk of commotion.

On a similar note, NasDem Party chairman Surya Paloh deemed the declaration to be inappropriate to be expressed in public, because it could hurt the feelings of people with different political preferences.

Regarding a verbal attack on Jokowi by presidential hopeful Prabowo Subianto concerning the depreciating rupiah, Surya recommended that Jokowi simply respond to his critics with a smile.

If the [opposition candidate] was the leader today, would the US dollar fall today? Im not so sure, he said in response to Prabowos comment about the rupiah falling in value to Rp 14,700 per US dollar recently. (ris)
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Washington, United States  Mon, September 3, 2018 08:18 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877100930 2 World #Crime,#China,#USA,China,businessman,arrest,Sexual-assault,USA Free

Chinese e-commerce billionaire Liu Qiangdong -- also known as Richard Liu -- was briefly arrested in the midwestern US city of Minneapolis over allegations of criminal sexual conduct, authorities said.

Records from Hennepin County Jail showed Liu, founder and CEO of Chinese online retail giant JD.com, was arrested over the misconduct allegations late Friday night and released Saturday afternoon.

The Minneapolis Police Department said the investigation remained active and would not confirm details of the arrest or the allegations against the 45-year-old Liu.

"The individual was arrested Friday evening and released Saturday afternoon. He was released pending formal complaint," Public Information Officer John Elder told AFP.

In the state of Minnesota, "criminal sexual conduct" encompasses a broad spectrum of nonconsensual sexual activity.

In a statement posted on Chinese social media network Weibo, JD.com confirmed that Liu had been arrested over what it described as a false allegation during a business trip.

The statement, contradicting US police, added authorities found no evidence of misconduct and released Liu to continue his trip.

Founded in 1998, the Fortune Global 500 company is China's second-largest e-commerce firm and an aggressive competitor of Alibaba.

The company says it offers a "one stop" shopping experience to over 300 million active customers in China, with same- and next day-delivery as standard.

In June, Google announced it would invest more than half a billion dollars into JD.com as part of a move to expand retail services around the world.

The firms will marry JD's supply chain and logistics experience with Google technology to create "next generation" personalized retail in regions including Southeast Asia, the US and Europe, both companies said in a statement.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3 2018

President Joko Jokowi Widodo welcomed the billionaire co-founder of Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, Jack Ma, at Bogor Palace on Saturday.

The President and the billionaire held a meeting partly to discuss the Asian Games 2022, which will be held in Hangzhou, China.

Hangzhou is the city where Ma lives, as well as the location of Alibabas headquarters.
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3 2018

A recent drought has led to a lack of clean water in Tangerang, Banten, prompting local tap water company PDAM Tirta Beteng to send water trucks to several residential areas in the municipality.

Theres been no clean water here for two days, Fitoni, a resident of Sangiang subdistrict in Priuk district, said on Sunday as quoted by wartakota.tribunnews.com.

He and hundreds of other residents were lining up at the water trucks for clean water for their daily needs.
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Linkedin Yunice Karina Tumewang (The Jakarta Post) Yogyakarta  Mon, September 3 2018

Indonesia is gearing up for the annual meeting of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank set to take place in Nusa Dua, Bali, in October this year. More than 15,000 guests from 189 countries, including delegations from the Group of 20, Group of 24, Gulf Cooperation Council and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) will take part in the meeting scheduled from Oct. 12 to 14.

The meeting will give Indonesia the opportunity to have its voice heard and demonstrate its progress as Southeast Asias largest economy, as well as to bring in millions of dollars and attract more investors by highlighting its successful story as the fourth country in ASEAN to host the event.

The government previously projected to earn more than US$100 million from the event, which will see Indonesia make a profit of at least Rp 500 billion ($34.25 million). The government has set aside a budget of Rp 810 billion for the meeting.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3, 2018 16:35 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b308771191bb 1 Business Indonesia,USA,steel,Trade,tariff-exemption,Enggartiasto-Lukita,trade-mission,Washington Free

The United States has made the decision to exempt 19 Indonesian steel products, namely carbon and alloy and stainless steels, from its 25 percent tariffs, Trade Minister Enggartiasto Lukita has said.

The US government's decision was made on Aug. 2, said Enggartiasto, claiming that it came as a result of an Indonesian mission to Washington from July 23 to 27.

Led by the minister himself, the mission included a meeting on trade issues with US Trade Minister Wilbur Ross.

Apart from trying to convince the US government, we also sought support from business communities, particularly from the importers of the Indonesian steel products, Enggartiasto said in a statement received on Monday.

He said the mission was to convince the US government that Indonesia still deserved to be part of the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP).

We were trying to convince the US government that Indonesia still deserves to be part of the GSP because the characteristics of Indonesian products were different from those produced in the US, he added

Trade Ministry international trade director general Oke Nurman said 12 Indonesian steel products with a total volume of 336,688 tons annually were still seeking exemption from the US.

He said the Indonesian government would continue to communicate with the US. Direct contact with trade partners like the US is important, particularly amid the ongoing trade war, he added. (bbn)
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Linkedin (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3 2018

The North Sumatra Prosecutors Office has arrested a fugitive who had been on the run for months after being convicted of corruption in a meningitis vaccine graft case.

Iskandar, 52, was apprehended in Medan, North Sumatra, on Wednesday. He was transferred to Pekanbaru, Riau, the next day and is currently being held in Pekanbaru Penitentiary.

We placed him in Pekanbaru Penitentiary Class II-A after a health examination, head of the Pekanbaru Prosecutors Offices special criminal investigations unit, Sri Odit Megonondo, said on Friday as quoted by Antara news agency.
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Jerusalem  Mon, September 3, 2018 09:09 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b308771031af 2 World #Israel,#USA,Syria,#Iran,Israel,talks,USA,Iran Free

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Sunday with a US envoy for Syria for talks on the war-ravaged country and Iran, his office said.

Netanyahu discussed "the situation in Syria and the joint effort to stop Iran's terror and aggression" with James Jeffrey, the US special representative for Syria engagement, said a statement.

Ahead of the visit, the US State Department said Jeffrey, accompanied by US special envoy for Syria Joel Rayburn, would discuss "maintaining Israel's security while countering Iran's destabilising activity throughout the region".

Jeffrey and Rayburn would travel on to Jordan and Turkey, where they would reiterate the US position against a military offensive in Idlib, the State Department said.

The two "will also address Russia's specious allegations of international plans to stage a chemical weapons attack in Syria" in their meetings across the region, according to the State Department.

Iran is backing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his country's civil war along with Russia and Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah.

Israel has sought to avoid direct involvement in the conflict but acknowledges carrying out dozens of air strikes in Syria to stop what it says are deliveries of advanced weaponry to its Lebanese enemy Hezbollah.

It has also pledged to prevent its arch foe Iran from entrenching itself militarily in Syria, and a series of strikes that have killed Iranians in Syria have been attributed to Israel.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3, 2018 15:49 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877116dd1 1 Business NGO,Conference,IMF-WB-meeting,#IMFWBG,bali,Nusa-Dua Free

Fifteen NGOs plan to hold a conference on Oct. 8 to 10 ahead of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank Meeting, to be held from Oct. 12 to 14 in Bali.

The people summit on alternative development is aimed at consolidating the voices of civil society in Indonesia and other countries that have been critical of policies and programs initiated by the World Bank and the IMF, said Hamong Santono, chairman of the summits organizing committee, in a press release on Monday.

He said the organizers had prepared thematic workshops centered on the historical debt of the World Bank and IMF; anticorruption efforts, transparency and development funding; public service, inclusion and gender fairness; tax fairness and disparity; legally binding treaties in business and human rights for international financial institutions; human rights, public infrastructure and the tourist industry; digital economy and decent jobs; and climate change and natural resources.

Meanwhile, Arimbi Heropoetri of debtWATCH Indonesia said the country had yet to carry out a comprehensive evaluation of the World Bank and IMF. We still remember in 1998 when the IMF gave Indonesia advice on financial balance. But, although we have paid the debt, we still feel the impact [of the crisis] now, he added.

Andi Muttaqien of ELSAM said the summit had been organized before the IMF and World Bank Meeting because civil society wanted to present the negative impacts of projects funded by the institutions. (bbn)
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Linkedin News Desk (Agence France-Presse) Oslo, Norway  Mon, September 3, 2018 09:39 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877104f82 2 World #WikiLeaks,#JulianAssange,Wikileaks,Julian-Assange,police,Norway Free

Norwegian police on Sunday said they were investigating the disappearance of WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange's associate Arjen Kamphuis, a cyber security expert, who was last seen in northern Norway.

"We have started an investigation," police spokesman Tommy Bech told AFP, adding that so far they had no clue about the Dutch citizen's whereabouts.

The police "would not speculate about what may have happened to him," Bech said.

WikiLeaks tweeted on Saturday about Kamphuis's "strange disappearance", saying he had been missing since August 20 when he left his hotel in the northern Norwegian town of Bodo.

It added that Kamphuis had a ticket for a flight departing on August 22 from Trondheim, a city located more than 700 kilometers south of Bodo.

"The train between the two takes (approximately) 10 hours," suggesting he disappeared either in Bodo, Trondheim or on the train, WikiLeaks said, triggering numerous conspiracy theories on Twitter.

Assange has been holed up at Ecuador's embassy in London since 2012 when he was granted political asylum as he feared extradition to the United States to face trial over WikiLeaks' publication of secret US military documents and diplomatic cables in 2010.
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3, 2018 17:35 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087711cfc8 4 National #drugs,#Malaysia,Malaysia,arrest,distribution,drugs,EcstasyPills Free

The National Police have arrested a Malaysian national suspected of manufacturing ecstasy and distributing the drug in nightclubs in the capital.

The maker is a Malaysia citizen identified [only] as SI, the National Polices narcotics director Brig. Gen. Eko Daniyanto said as quoted by tempo.co on Monday.

Eko said the raw materials for the ecstasy were imported from China by a man who was still being sought.

He said the drug, which was sold in sachets labeled Happy Water, had been mixed with vitamins and strawberry essence.

Eko said SI, who was arrested on Aug. 25, had conducted his drug business for a year through word-of-mouth. (vla)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3, 2018 15:28 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087711692e 1 City Depok,brawl,Youth,arrest Free

The police arrested several youngsters suspected of wanting to start a brawl in front of SMA 6 state senior high school on Jl. Raya Meruyung, Limo, Depok, West Java, on Sunday night and confiscated traditional machetes they were carrying.

Initially, we received information from local residents at 3 a.m. about a group of youngsters loitering on the side of the road, looking like they wanted to start a brawl, Limo Police chief Comr. Muhamad Iskandar said on Monday, kompas.com reported.

He said the patrolling police officers approached the youngsters, some of whom then fled the scene.

There were more than a hundred youngsters loitering. After we walked over to them, they ran away, so we could only bring 13 of them to the police headquarters for questioning, Iskandar said.

He said most of the youngsters were senior high school students.

The police confiscated six machetes from the 13 detained youngsters, he added.

We found six [machetes], but when we questioned the 13 students, none of them admitted that the [machetes] were theirs, he said.

He said police had asked the students to write statements not to become involved in any brawls, supervised by their schoolteachers and parents.

We made them write a statement to not become involved in any brawl; if we find that they are in a brawl, we will have to arrest them, he said. (ami)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3, 2018 09:58 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b30877106fe0 4 Business BI,foreign-banknotes,limitation Free

Bank Indonesia started on Monday to punish corporations or individuals who violate a Bank Indonesia regulation that limits the amount of of foreign banknotes that can be carried when crossing the Indonesian border.

With the enforcement of Bank Indonesia Regulation (PBI) No. 20/2018 on the revision of PBI No. 19/7 2017, only licensed institutions  banks and money changing institutions  are allowed to carry more than US$1 million in banknotes.

Violators of the regulation are required to pay a fine of up to 10 percent of the banknotes they carry, with the maximum fine set at Rp 300 million (US$20,299), BI head of management Hariyadi Ramelan said as reported by kontan.co.id on Sunday.

He said Bank Indonesia had prepared information technology infrastructure to process licensing for those who wanted to import or export foreign banknotes.

He said the infrastructure was integrated into the Indonesia National Single Window (INSW), a system used by the government to supervise exports and imports of limited goods.

Hariyadi said the central bank was also coordinating with other institutions like the Customs and Excise Office, the Finance Ministry, the Financial Services Authority (OJK), the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK), the Law and Human Rights Ministry, the Foreign Ministry and authorities at airports and seaports.

BI has also finished processing proposals for permits on exporting and importing foreign banknotes, he added. (bbn)
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Linkedin News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3, 2018 11:23 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087710eb55 4 City Tangerang,mental-disorder,e-ID,population,registration Free

The South Tangerang Population and Civil Registration Agency (Disdukcapil) provided on Sunday an electronic identification (e-ID) card data gathering service for people with mental disabilities and prison inmates who were residents of the city in Banten province.

The agencys registration head, Heru Sudarmanto, said the service was being provided to residents who were unable to visit their local civil registration office to provide the data themselves.

Aside from people with mental disabilities and [prison] inmates, we also provide this [service] to senior citizens at nursing homes and hospital patients with severe illnesses, such as strokes, he said as reported by tribunnews.com.

One such resident was Syaiful Rahman, a South Tangerang resident and inmate at the Gunung Sindur Class III prison in Bogor, West Java. Heru said Syaiful must have an e-ID so that the local administration could issue a birth certificate for his child.

Families of residents who are unable to provide their data in person at the nearest civil registration office may send a letter to request the service. (vla/dmr)
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Linkedin Kharishar Kahfi (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta  Mon, September 3, 2018 17:54 1157 882ab4bc56dbda08a069b3087711f52b 1 SE Asia journalism,press-freedom,AJI,Amnesty-International Free

Long prison sentences for two journalists in Myanmar send a stark warning about press freedom in the country, a human rights group and an Indonesian journalists alliance said on Monday. The journalists covered alleged crimes against humanity on the Rohingyas in Rakhine.

Amnesty International crisis response director Tirana Hassan has demanded that the convictions be quashed and both men immediately and unconditionally released.

This politically-motivated decision has significant ramifications for press freedom in Myanmar. It sends a stark warning to other journalists in the country of the severe consequences that await should they look too closely at military abuses. This amounts to censorship through fear, she said in a statement.

A court found the two journalists guilty of breaching Myanmars Official Secrets Act for allegedly possessing documents relating to security forces in Rakhine state and sentenced them to seven years behind barshalf of the maximum sentences of 14 years in prisonon Monday.

Prior to their arrest in December last year, the pair had been working on Reuters investigative coverage of military operations in northern Rakhine, which were marked by alleged crimes against humanity targeting the Rohingya population.

Todays verdicts cannot conceal the truth of what happened in Rakhine. Its thanks to the bravery of journalists like Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo that the militarys atrocities have been exposed, Tirana went on to say.

Amnestys statement was echoed by the Alliance of Independent Journalism (AJI). The verdict was a systematic measure by the [Myanmar] government to silence press freedom in the country, AJI chairman Abdul Manan told The Jakarta Post.

He added that "solidarity" among ASEAN countries, which sometimes was interpreted as not criticizing each other's government, should not be an excuse for the association not to speak up against violations of basic rights, including press freedom.
The world's biggest statue is rising in a remote corner of India to honor an independence hero but it could quickly be outdone by a monument to a Hindu warrior king in the sea off Mumbai.

In a burst of nationalist fervour, around one billion dollars is being spent on the two giant effigies, each more than twice as tall as the Statue of Liberty.

A 182-meter-high (600-foot-high) tribute to independence icon Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Gujarat state will be the first to dwarf the Spring Temple Buddha in China, currently the world's biggest statue at 128 meters (420 feet) in height.

Pick-axes are also swinging for a 212-metre-high likeness of 17th-century king Chhatrapati Shivaji, resplendent on a horse and brandishing a sword, which should dominate the Mumbai shoreline from 2021.

An army of 2,500 workers -- including several hundred Chinese labourers -- is toiling around the clock to put 5,000 squares of bronze cladding on the figure of Patel so it can be ready for inauguration on October 31 by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The 29.9-billion-rupee ($430-million) "Statue of Unity" overlooking the isolated Sardar Sarovar Dam is a pet project of Modi.

He has predicted it will attract "hordes" of tourists, as the Statue of Liberty does in New York.

Visitors will be able to access a viewing gallery 153 metres up -- about chest height on the huge standing figure.

But they will have to travel 250 kilometres (150 miles) from the state's main city of Allahabad to get there.

Read also: Garuda Wisnu Kencana: Precious gift for Independence Day

'Iron Man' emerges

There is also a political motive to the mega project, with India heading into a campaign for a national election early next year.

Patel was deputy to India's first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru after independence in 1947 and Modi's nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party says his name has been unfairly overshadowed by the dominant Nehru dynasty.

Patel became known as the "Iron Man of India" by persuading -- through talks and a hint of force -- some 550 princely states to become part of India after independence from Britain in 1947. He died three years later.

Many Hindu nationalists feel it was a slight when Patel was asked to step aside to let the secular Nehru become the country's first leader.

"Every Indian regrets Sardar Patel did not become the first prime minister," Modi said while campaigning in 2013.

"Modi has used Patel's legacy a lot in his election campaigns," said Ghanshyam Shah, a former professor of class politics at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi.

"He is very likely to use the Statue of Unity during the upcoming campaign but I am worried about how it will influence voters," Shah added.

The opposition Congress party says that a plan to change the Nehru Memorial museum in New Delhi into a centre devoted to all of India's prime ministers is another bid to taint Nehru's name.

In 2016, Modi laid the foundation stone in Maharashtra state for the statue of Shivaji, a hero of the 80 million strong Marathi community based in the state.

Hindu nationalists have also adopted Shivaji, who made his name battling the Muslim Mughal empire. Critics say the 36-billion-rupee ($515-million) statue is a way of winning Marathi votes in next year's election.

Fuelling the fervour, the government announced last week that the word "Maharaj", or king, had been added to the title of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport.

Read also: German city takes down golden Erdogan statue after outcry

Statue politics

"The BJP has been appropriating icons for some time," said Sudha Pai of the Indian Council of Social Science Research.

"Patel has been used to wipe out the Nehru legacy. The BJP wants to change the way history is perceived and show that the right wing was as important in India's freedom struggle."

Preliminary work has started on the controversial project -- with a museum, park and helipad -- on reclaimed land two kilometres (1.5 miles) out to sea.

Environmentalists and thousands of fishing workers oppose the statue because of the threat to fishing stocks.

The price of the monument is certain to rise, analysts say and the state government has already changed the design to bring down costs.

How it will eventually look and when it will be finished remains in doubt.

India's statue politics often fall victim to "hard economic reality", according to Badra Narayan, a professor at the Pant Social Science Institute in Allahabad.

An overrun is inevitable, according to I.C. Rao, head of a Mumbai citizens' group, who has questioned the cost and safety of the Shivaji design.

He said finishing the statue on time, would be "an impossibility even for the Trojans".
The Tourism Ministry is optimistic the target of attracting 17 million foreign tourists by 2018 and 20 million by 2019 can be achieved.

Achieving 17 million foreign tourists by 2018 would mean a 21 percent rise from last years figure.

Guntur Sakti, head of the ministrys public communications bureau, told kompas.com in Batam, Riau Islands, that to achieve this years target, the ministry would need special marketing strategies. Tourism Minister Arief Yahya has stated this quite often, that extraordinary outcomes cannot be achieved with ordinary efforts, he added.

Such efforts include three marketing programs as the result of the second Tourism National Coordinating Meeting in July. They involve all tourism stakeholders, namely businesspeople, the government, the community, academics and the media, often referred as the Penta helix model.

Read also: Bali & Beyond Travel Fair 2018 explores tourism potential

The first effort is an incentive program for airlines and wholesalers. The ministry has signed collaborations with 15 airlines and eight wholesalers. It is forecast it will bring in some 730,000 foreign tourists from August till December, said Guntur. The collaboration means integrated promotions that include trade shows, festivals, familiarization trips and publications.

Second, the Visit Wonderful Indonesia  Hot Deals programs will be utilized to optimize idle capacity. The three As [attraction, accessibility and amenity] of tourist destinations can be combined in a platform to provide affordable and easy tourism services, Guntur said.

The Hot Deals programs are carried out through three main entry points, which are Bali, Jakarta and Riau Islands.

The third is the Competing Destination Model (CDM) program, which acts as a customer-acquisition strategy by performing data-driven marketing activities. Currently the ministry is working with a CDM-method provider to achieve the extra target of 1 million foreign tourists, Guntur said. (wng)
Up to 70 yachts will reportedly pay a visit to Kumai port in West Kotawaringin regency, Central Kalimantan.

The yachts will bring the participants of the 2018 Wonderful Sail to Indonesia yacht rally when they arrive on Oct. 7 and stay until Oct. 10.

During their trip in Kumai, the participants will explore Tanjung Puting National Park and meet its most famous residents, the orangutans. The visitors, coming from several different countries, will also visit the locations of orangutan research centers, namely Camp Prof. Dr. Birute Galdikas and Camp Leakey.

Tourism Ministry marine tourism development acceleration team head Dwisuryo Indroyono Soesilo told tempo.co that the yacht rally participants had specifically requested to visit Tanjung Puting during their journey.

"Prior to [the visit to Tanjung Puting National Park], they also explored other islands in Indonesia," said Indroyono in Jakarta on Monday.

Read also: Fantastic animals of Indonesia and where to find them

He added that the tourists would visit several destinations in the archipelago over a period of five months. Up to 53 islands have been chosen as the ports of call. At each of the destinations, the participants are expected to spend their money on food, merchandise and using local transportation. They will also stay at several homestays on the islands.

The Wonderful Sail to Indonesia has been claimed to be the longest sailing tour in the world, where yachts will navigate the best route, stretching up to 7,000 kilometers across Indonesia for five months between June to November.

"Wonderful Sail to Indonesia has become a prestigious sailing tour brand at the international level," said Indroyono. (kes)
Full of history, this true open-air museum is also vibrant and young. From Darwin to Alice Springs, these five activities will get you to discover some of the hidden gems of this incredible part of Australia...

1. Darwin Harbour Highlights Adventure Cruise

This is one of the many cruises offered by Sea Darwin. This one-hour tour takes you around the Harbour, and enables you to discover the history, mammals (who regularly come and say hi!), aboriginal and western cultural landmarks and even a visit to a crocodile trap!

It really gives an insight to the real Darwin Harbour - not the touristy bits - and a chance to experience something different. Isn't it true, Charles?

via GIPHY

Where: Darwin Harbour

Duration: 60 Minutes (approx.)

Price: $35

Book from here: Sea Darwin website

Picture courtesy of Northern Territory

2. Top Didj & Art Gallery

South of Darwin, Top Didj is a top place (laugh with us on that poor joke). This is the gallery to find local artists from the desert and Katherine region. Not everyone is looking to start an art collection, but youll find gems for each budget in this friendly gallery.

And if youve not had enough, why not book a cultural experience? This two-hour activity has a secret weapon: Manuel Pamkal, a local artist with a colourful life!

After this experience, the words bim, marnarr , gilidih and jardij will have a special meaning.

Where: Katherine

Duration: 2 hours approximately

Price: $75 for the cultural experience

Book here: Top Didj website

3. Karlu Karlu Devils Marbles

The round boulders or Karlu Karlu are gigantic rounded granite boulders that are carefully balanced - that what weve been told, anyway. Learn about the Aboriginal mythology around this geological treasure and stay the night in one of the local campsites to admire the marbles changing colour and turning to a glowing red as the sun rises. Definitely Instagram-worthy.

Where: Tennant Creek

Duration: Afternoon and night

Price: $6.60 for a category A campsite

Book from here: No need to book!

4. Larapinta Trail

This 223-km walking track is one of the gems of the Northern Territory. It is divided in 12 sections, each with vehicle access, which makes it possible to dip in and out at any point.

The most popular section of the trail is the Ormiston Gorge to Finke River section. It takes about five hours to walk and gives you the chance to walk in the bed of one of the oldest rivers in the world. The official website gives many options for one-day adventures that are less visited, if thats what youre after!

Whatever you decide, do take the time to look around as 53 of the species found in this region are listed as threatened (plants, vertebrate and invertebrates).

Picture courtesy of Northern Territory

Where: West MacDonnell Ranges, Alice Springs

Duration: From 5 hours

Price: Free, but check parking and campsite fares

Book from here: No need to book!

5. Todd Mall Markets

If you want to hang around in the area, spend some time on a Sunday at this incredible not-for-profit outdoor market in Alice Springs. Wonder on the streets, with stalls selling everything from food and second hand books to aboriginal clothing and crafts, whilst listening to local bands. A perfect Sunday plan, right?

Picture courtesy of Northern Territory

Where: Alice Springs

Duration: A few hours

Price: Free, but we cant vouch for how much youll buy

Book from here: No need to book!

Got a bit of time to explore the Northern Territory? Wed recommend the 10 Day Top End and Red Centre Crocodile Rock Adventure (bookable through STA Travel) that takes you from Darwin to Alice Springs, and covers all of the Northern Territorys biggest names along the way: Kakadu and Litchfield national parks, Katherine Gorge, Mataranka Thermal Pools, Devils Marbles, Uluru, Kata Tjuta and Kings Canyon. Explore waterfalls, marvel at epic gorges, and drink in the Aboriginal culture. There really is nothing like it. Find out more here.

Need a quicker trip? The 3 Day Cockatoo Dreaming Red Centre Safari starts at Uluru, finishes at Alice Springs, and takes in Ayers Rock Resort, Kings Canyon, Mt. Ebenezer and more sights along the way. Get more info here.
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Now that cheerleading for Coca-Colas 3.9billion buyout of Costa from Whitbread is dying down, it is worth taking a second look at the transaction and what it really says about Britain plc.

And as we are about to lose one leading brand to a ruthless American multinational, it is also worth girding ourselves against the departure of Unilever, one of Britains world-beating enterprises, from these shores.

Remarkably, a timid and Brexit-preoccupied Government does not seem to care.

Sold: Whitbread in effect has been bullied by activist investors into abandoning the only global challenger to Starbucks, says Alex Brummer

Lets take chief executive Alison Brittains decision to sell Costa rather than go ahead with a demerger  it was greeted on the London stock market like the second coming.

The short-term attractions of a premium of up to 70 per cent are hard to resist. But Whitbread is not just any company. It may not brew ale any longer, but with a 276-year history as a hospitality champion and a good corporate citizen which pays its taxes and is headquartered in the UK, it ticks many boxes. This at a time when better governance is meant to be top of the Tory agenda.

Whitbread in effect has been bullied by activist investors into abandoning the only global challenger to Starbucks.

Whether Coke began its pursuit of Costa before the demerger plan is irrelevant. Whitbread chairman Adam Crozier and Brittain might not have tolerated the pursuit but for activists opening the door.

What is certain is that a slimmed-down Whitbread of Premier Inns and some restaurants as a medium-term proposition is a myth. It will be a sitting duck for takeover.

We saw that with Cadbury. Schweppes was first demerged then Kraft came for the rest. Brittain already is being cagey about her own (much enriched) future once the Costa deed is done.

Which brings us to Coca-Cola. The likelihood must be that its demand for coffee, to fill its 10m vending machines worldwide, will quickly make Costas roasteries in south London irrelevant.

And as is the case with its new rival Starbucks, Coca-Cola is not a corporation which in the past has felt it had a duty to pay its full whack of American taxes.

Whitbread chief executive Alison Brittain

In a report dated March 2017, the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy found that over an eight-year period, Coke made profits of $23.9billion and paid taxes of $4.9billion. This amounts to a US corporate rate of 20.4 per cent when the tax code was still 35 per cent.

Coke has also been named as one of 30 US companies which have used tax havens to allegedly shelter earnings. It has a complex of 15 subsidiaries ranging from Bermuda to the Cayman Islands and Costa Rica in which it holds cash.

Even though Britain now has a low corporation tax regime, there is no reason to think that Cokes behaviour as owner of Costa should be different.

Costa, however, is small fry when compared to what may happen to Unilever.

Chief executive Paul Polman did a fine job in keeping Unilever independent when it was besieged by the owners of Kraft-Heinz.

Now there is a serious danger than an enterprise with a golden heritage in the UK could be off to Rotterdam. Documents will be posted soon outlining a proposal to effectively delist in London and switch domiciles.

The change is being made in the name of simplicity but it is in effect a reverse takeover by Dutch interests.

In the interests of keeping the FTSE 100 as Europes dominant index and ensuring Unilevers tax base and intellectual property remains in the UK, this unwanted transfer of control should be rejected. The Government needs to make its voice heard.
By Trend





An Iranian petrochemical firm has managed to achieve the technical know-how to produce special gasoline refinery catalysts for the first time ever, making Iran the worlds second manufacturer of such advanced component, a report said.




USA is the honored country of the 83rd International Fair Trade of Thessaloniki that will take place this September, from the 8th until the 16th next month

Central streets and avenues of Thessaloniki city in Northern Greece are about to be decorated with stars painted white, red and blue to honor the United States of America.

USA is the honored country of the 83rd International Fair Trade of Thessaloniki that will take place this September, from the 8th until the 16th next month.

In a letter of the Management of D.E.TH.  HELEXPO to the Municipality of Thessaloniki is mentioned that the events objective is the amelioration of knowledge regarding issues concerning the USA and its history and culture by the locals and visitors of the city.

These decorative interventions will be held around the area of the Fair Trade and on Tsimiski street, one of the main avenues of the city.

A similar move occurred last year, when the honored country was China and in 2016, when the country that was honored was Russia.

Read more at greekreporter.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
One of the new recipes will be the traditional and very popular among Greeks sweet and sour soup with eggs and lemon called avgolemono along with the mediterranean inspired tabbouleh with extra virgin olive oil

Passengers flying with Qatar Airways from Australia can try traditional Greek dishes, signed by the famous Greek  Australian chef George Kalombaris?

This is the news of the year concerning gastronomy in aviation, as the famous chef George Kalombaris and Qatar Airways are going to work together to create delicious dishes inspired by Greece, not just for passengers of First Class but also for anyone who will be flying with Qatar Airways from Spring next year onwards.

The new choices of the menu will be introduced gradually, beginning with the route from Doha to Perth, Sydney and Adelaide, with Melbourne being the immediate next destination to include the brand new delicacies.

This is not the first time that the aviation giant from the Middle East is collaborating with George Kalombaris, one of the most famous chefs in Australia and the world who used to be one of the judges of the Network Ten series and MasterChef Australia.

George created dishes inspired by his Greek, Cypriot and Italian heritage back in 2017 to mark the introduction of the route between Melbourne and Doha with the amazing A380 airplanes.

One of the new recipes will be the traditional and very popular among Greeks sweet and sour soup with eggs and lemon called avgolemono along with the mediterranean inspired tabbouleh with extra virgin olive oil.

Read more at greekreporter.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
Igoumenitsa is attracting attention due to its servicing the Greece-Italy routes, as well as ferry boat routes to Corfu from the mainland

Greece's privatization agency, HRADF, is reportedly ready to launch the third phase of a process to, at least, partially privatize 10 regional port authorities around Greece, four of which are in the country's north; three in the greater Athens area, two elsewhere on the mainland and the last one on Crete.

The development comes following the sale of majority stakes of the port authorities of Piraeus (2016) and Thessaloniki (2017), along with the management of the latter ports - the biggest and busiest in Greece.

Next up on the Hellenic Republic Asset Development Fund's "to do" list are the port authorities of Alexandroupolis, in extreme NE Greece, and west of the land border with Turkey; on the popular Ionian island of Corfu; Kavala, in central northern mainland Greece; Igoumenitsa, in extreme NW Greece, just south of the Albanian border and a hub for the Greece-Italy ferry routes; and ultimately, Volos, in central Greece.

According to media, Alexandroupolis' and Corfu's ports have attracted most of the attention by potential investors and operators.

However, in a major difference from the process followed for Piraeus and Thessaloniki, where a majority stake was sold off and with it, the management of the port authorities, the mostly leftist Tsipras government now appears only ready to grant long-term concessions for specific port activities, while retaining the overall ownership and management of the actual port authorities.

According to other reports, nevertheless, the privatization fund's leadership continues to support an outright sale of majority stakes of individual regional ports. HRADF is a quasi-independent entity established under memorandum obligations between Athens and its institutional creditors.

Long-term concessions for port activities

The option of long-term concessions for port activities surfaced after the Thessaloniki Port Authority (OL.Th) was sold off in an international tender. The proposal aimed to quell opposition from within the ruling SYRIZA party and the then shipping ministry's leadership.

If the "compromise scenario" of port activity concessions is finally selected - creditors' annoyance notwithstanding - the question then focuses on which specific port sectors the current government is willing to privatize at the 10 regional ports.

Relevant studies are sceduled to be presented to the privatization fund next month.

According to reports collected by "Naftemporiki", granting the cruise ship concession at the port of Corfu is a distinct prospect.

Conversely, for Alexandroupolis the chief "partial privatization" scenario involves an onshore concession, mainly loading and off-loading cargo. According to the same reports, Alexandroupolis will be the first regional port where further privatization efforts will continue. The same location is adjacent to a major offshore LNG facility being built offshore by the Copelouzos and Livanos groups.

Igoumenitsa is also reportedly attracting attention thanks to its servicing the Greece-Italy routes, as well as ferry boat routes to Corfu from the mainland.

Conversely, according to the same reports, investor interest in the small near-Athens ports of Rafina, Lavrio and Elefsina is weak, at least as far as port activities are concerned. For Elefsina, situated in an industrial district west of Athens-Piraeus proper, bulk cargo appears to be the primary interest, and the cruise ship sector for Lavrio, southeast of the greater Athens area.

Finally, as far as the promising cruise sector in concerned, Chinese multinational Cosco - which operates the port of Piraeus as the majority owner of the Piraeus Port Authority - continues to seek cooperation with several islands and mainland harbors in order to establish a cruise network in the tourism-laden east Mediterranean country.

Cosco, which has expressed its intent to transform Piraeus into an international home port for cruise operators, is reportedly eying cooperation with facilities on Rhodes, Myknonos, Santorini, Katakolo, and with the Cretan ports of Hania (Chania) and Irakleio (Heraklio), as well as with previously mentioned Corfu.

Read more at naftemporiki.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: Evmeos License: CC-BY-SA
Landmarks not to be missed by visitors to Turkey, and places that should also be visited by Greeks as reminders of Greeces long, rich history and contribution to Western civilization

There are numerous ancient Greek and Byzantine archaeological and historical sites in Turkey, attracting hundreds of thousands, even millions, of visitors every year.

All of them are landmarks not to be missed by visitors to Turkey, and places that should also be visited by Greeks as reminders of Greeces long, rich history and contribution to Western civilization.

HAGIA SOPHIA

Constructed on the ruins of two previous churches after the Nika riots of 532, Hagia Sophia was Byzantine Emperor Justinian Is crowning achievement. Taking only five years to be completed, the impressive architecture of the building has allowed it to stand the test of time and nature. Today it is Istanbuls most visited landmark.

Mainly an Orthodox basilica, it was briefly converted into a Roman Catholic cathedral during the Fourth Crusade, then became a mosque after the fall of Constantinople in 1453.

Each culture has regarded the building as the highest platform of spirituality and art; therefore, the monument is laden with valuable historical traces from the last 1,500 years. Since 1935, Hagia Sophia has functioned as a museum, and was given UNESCO World Heritage status in 1985.

TROY

Since Homers epic Iliad, Troy has become the essence of legend and source of artistic inspiration for millennia. Although a mythical place for many, it is actually a historical place, located on the mound of Hisarlik in modern north-west Turkey.

The excavation of the site is attributed to German entrepreneur Heinrich Schliemann, who commenced work there in the 1870s. With over 4,000 years of history as a connection point between Eastern and Western civilizations, Troy was named a World Heritage Site in 1998.

EPHESUS

Close to modern Selcuk in the Izmir province of western Turkey lies the port city of Ephesus, a remarkably well-preserved model of Greek, Roman and early Christian culture, inhabited since the 10th century BC. The Temple of Artemis that belongs to the Classical Greek era is one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World. The Library of Celsus is a Roman addition, and was designed to serve as a mausoleum for Senator Celsus, who is buried in the crypt below.

The Christian epoch is represented in Ephesus in the nearby House of the Virgin Mary. It was an essential place of pilgrimage for Christians and non-Christians alike, since the fifth century. The area is laden with interwoven tradition, and was given World Heritage status in 2015.

ST. NICHOLAS CHURCH, DEMRE

Born in nearby Patara, St. Nicholas was the influential bishop of Myra (modern Demre in south-west Turkey) in the fourth century. After his death, the new church constructed in his name in Myra became his final resting place.

The particular St. Nicholas is the historical equivalent of our modern Santa Claus and the site is widely regarded as one of the most significant Byzantine structures in Anatolia that was a place of worship and pilgrimage from the fifth to the 12th century. The church was later flooded and buried under silt, then discovered and partially restored by Russian Czar Nicholas I in 1862. It has been under official excavation since 1988.

ANTIOCH OF PISIDIA

The city was built in the Hellenistic period by Antiochus I Soter from the Seleucid dynasty, or possibly even earlier, by his father, Seleucus. The name Antioch was often used by Antiochus I when founding new settlements and renaming the already existing towns. He founded as many as 16 new Antiochs in Asia Minor and the Middle East.

The term Pisidian is often added to its name, to distinguish this particular city from other Antiochs. It is not entirely correct since Antioch is located on the border between the ancient Phrygia and Pisidia. Its location is better reflected by its Latin name  Antioch ad Pisidiam meaning Antioch [located] in the direction of Pisidia.

MILETUS

Miletus in western Anatolia was one of the most prominent cities of Ionia. It is located near the mouth of the Meander River in ancient Caria. Today the nearest village is Yenikoy.

The ancient site and the local museum with findings from Miletus, Didyma, Priene and Myous are a must, and so is the theater. Excavations in Miletus started by French archaeologists in 1868, while significant research has been carried out since 1899 under the auspices of the German Archaeological Institute.

Read more at greekreporter.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: Arild Vagen License: CC-BY-SA
Sex tourism for swingers is another fast-growing industry in the Greek islands, with the Swedish travel agency Metsail offering adventurous couples the chance to live out their fantasies on board a yacht for 8 days in Rhodes. The titillating sea voyage takes the couples, usually between 30 and 40 years old on a route from Rhodes to Tilos-Agia Marina-Agios Nikolaos-Symi-Panormitis-Halki and Rhodes, and promises a very sensual, and unforgettable experience with luxury services. As the site states on its site:

Imagine stepping off the gangway and immediately feeling somehow sexier and more alluring. Feel the approving glances of others as if you were a celebrity. Indeed! When you are with one of these cruises, thats exactly how it begins. The atmosphere is sleek and sexy. You are joining other like-minded passengers ready to embark in a delicious week of fantasy fulfilment. Of course, everyone likes different flavours but with a group this large, its easy to guarantee that you will find many other couples just like you.

The swinger voyages, which take place on yachts for a maximum of 6 couples sail every Sunday from Nea Marina. According to the site, the dates available are for 2019 between June 16 and 23 at a rate of 1,350 Euros per person, July 14-21 for 1,670 per person, August 11-18 for 1,820 and September 16-23 for 1,440. ed takes the

As part of the rules stipulated on the site no single men are permitted to take part while swapping partners on deck is forbidden, unless the boat is out in the open seas with no other ships around, in which case anything goes. As the site says: Swinger activities are not allowed on the deck of the swinger cruise ship, but limited to cabins and specially prepared venues onboard. While we are on land or in a marina, certain lifestyle activities are also limited to the privacy of cabins. Our swinger cruises are not barbaric or perverse quests in Greece. While on a swinger cruise vacation there will be plenty of opportunities both for having sex and being a normal tourist. Because we do want to visit all those lovely tourist attractions, dont we?

While you are sailing on the open seas you are a swinger, and you can do whatever you like: flirt, touch and have the wildest sexual adventures when nobody is around watching. Nevertheless, once on the land, you transform into a regular tourist. You can walk around and enjoy your vacation without anybody knowing about the other part of your travels. Enjoy amazing sightseeing, eat in wonderful restaurants, dance in top clubs, do everything that the average tourist does.

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
Azizi Developments, a leading private developer in the UAE, said it had received an overwhelming response from Chinese investors for its premium projects showcased at a key industry event hosted by Dubai Land Department (DLD) in the Chinese city of Shanghai.



Dubai Property Show (DPS)  Shanghai was attended by a number of select leading real estate, brokerage, and finance companies from Dubai, stated Azizi, a major sponsor of the event. It was held at Everbright Exhibition & Convention Centre Shanghai from August 31 to September 2.



DLD delegates focused on Dubai being the best investment and tourism destination, underpinning the investment opportunities available to buyers. Azizi Developments' pavilion at the show attracted a healthy attendance from Chinese investors and buyers.



The projects on display included its Dh12-billion ($3.19 billion) development, Azizi Riviera that boasts 16,000 units in Meydan with views of the Dubai Canal and Dubai skyline. It also showcased the Azizi Victoria project, featuring 105 mid- and high-rise residential buildings comprising 30,000 studio, one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, a mega integrated retail district, and two hotels, situated south of Meydan One and west of The Meydan Hotel.



Another highlight was the Dh780-million Azizi Mina project, situated on Palm Jumeirah and spanning 16,500 sq ft which will provide 120 one-bedroom and 54 two-bedroom apartments, as well as four penthouse residences and six retail units.



On the solid reponse, Group Chairman Mirwais Azizi said: "Our sponsorship of the event was integral as it granted us access to foreign investors from China. Over the past two years Chinese buyers have consistently ranked among Dubais top ten foreign investors, consolidating the economic growth resulting from UAE-China investments."



The latest DLD data reveals that 7,013 Chinese investors made 9,640 real estate transactions from July 2002 until July 2018 to the tune of Dh14.34 billion, with a continuous increase in the volume of investment from 2013. Chinese investor activity has also been consistently growing on an annual basis with 749 investments valued at Dh1.05 billion as of July 2018.



"We look forward to a long-term partnership with DLD and the Dubai Property Show in representing Dubai as one of the most alluring cities in the world to live, work, and invest in," noted Azizi.-TradeArabia News Service
Non-OECD states are likely to spend a whopping $57 trillion on infrastructure projects over the next 20 years, compared to $34 trillion by OECD countries, according to a recent study by management consultancy Strategy& Middle East (formerly Booz & Company), part of the PwC network.



In conjunction with this spending, policymakers in non-OECD countries have increased their commitment to promote localization of their infrastructure spend. Nearly 300 local content requirements measures are currently in place in non-OECD countries.



According to the Strategy& report, such an approach is particularly important for the GCC, where governments are investing significant sums to develop infrastructure.



Saudi Arabia, for example, is likely to spend $1.1 trillion from 2019-2038, while the UAE is expected to invest $350 billion over a similar time frame. These large development schemes can allow local companies not just to substitute imports, but also to grow non-oil exports by enhancing their capabilities.



Commenting on the report, Dr Raed Kombargi, Partner, Strategy& Middle East said the trend towards local content requirements reflects an increasing recognition that the trillions of dollars that governments spend on mining, oil and gas, power, water, and transportation infrastructure could potentially fuel economic growth, create jobs, and support broader national strategies.



However, many local-content programs fall short of their objectives because policies are affected by the conceptual biases of policymakers. By understanding and addressing these biases directly, developing countries can ensure that they retain the bulk of the economic gains from the coming wave of infrastructure spending, he noted.



According to him, the GCC governments need to think logically about how they balance the need to localise manufacturing while pursuing sound economic policies.



There are many capabilities that the region does not possess because of its small size and hence needs to import to build infrastructure, observed Kombargi.



Additionally, policymakers need to stress the importance of economic openness and free trade given the regions need to export. However, many governments have a sense of urgency that, although commendable, can lead to short-sighted and counterproductive policies, he stated.



Governments in developing economies are increasingly crafting policies to expand the share of local goods and services in large infrastructure projects worth trillions of dollars, he added.



The Strategy& Middle East report outlines three key biases that can interfere with robust, fact-based analysis and policy design:

False aggregation of demand. Policymakers tend to overestimate the localization potential from a given product category, failing to factor in the huge disparities in sizes, designs, and costs of goods in that category.

A fixation on familiar objects. Policymakers tend to focus disproportionately on familiar product categories, such as consumer goods, wind farms, or solar panels, rather than lesser-known goods and industries that hold greater potential to create value.

Absolutist target-setting. Policymakers aim for higher percentages of local content without analyzing the underlying economic value created. Some inputs will always be cheaper to import.



Dr Shihab Elborai, Partner, Strategy& Middle East, said: "Overcoming these biases will require analytical and behavioral safeguards that complement and reinforce each other. Regarding analytical measures, policymakers need to develop a detailed view of procurement spending, establish a baseline of local supply chain capabilities, and quantify the trade-offs from specific initiatives."



"As for behavioral measures, policymakers must be aware of biases, encourage dissent and constructive debate, and require adversarial reviews of the policy recommendations," he noted.



Elborai pointed out that the sourcing of manufactured goods and services from within the local economy continues to play a central role in the industrial policies of a growing number of governments, particularly in developing countries.



In Indonesia, for instance, up to 71 per cent of electrical power infrastructure spending come from local suppliers, along with as much as 50 per cent of expenditure on equipment used in wireless broadband services and base stations.



Brazil has steadily raised its local content requirements from 30 per cent to 65 per cent on offshore deep-water oil and gas exploration and development projects, across multiple bidding rounds, he stated.



Dr Yahya Anouti, Principal, Strategy& Middle East, said: "Policymakers in developing countries are justifiably keen to derive maximum economic value from massive public expenditure. Still, creating a policy framework for local content development that nurtures economically sustainable and internationally competitive domestic industries has proven remarkably challenging."



"A mounting sense of urgency and public expectations of immediate job creation, national business support, and non-resource-based GDP growth typically drive local content development policies," added Anouti.-TradeArabia News Service
More than 3,000 international industry experts will discuss the transformation of the heavy oil value chain at the 2018 edition of the World Heavy Oil Congress & Exhibition (WHOC) that opened in Muscat, Oman today (September 3).



Inaugurated by Dr Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy, Minister of Oil & Gas of Oman, and Shaikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa, Minister of Oil of Bahrain, the three-day event will run at the Oman Convention & Exhibition Centre.



In his opening remarks, Al Rumhy said: Oman did not slow down during the 2014-2018 oil drop. The fear was always that the reduction in investment, specifically in exploration, was going to hit us hard but we stayed the course and proceeded with our previous plans with the support of the government, shareholders, and oil and gas companies operating in the country. As a country, we took the right decision to focus on investment and that has helped us in the end.



Both the public and private sector have a responsibility. With greater private sector participation and the optimization of ecosystems of our economy versus prioritizing profits, we can together further advance our industry forward, he added.



Shaikh Al Khalifa said: Within the region, Oman was the first to invest in heavy oil and we have a lot to learn from them. Heavy oil could be in heavy demand, at least in the short term, as a result of implications of the light tight oil phenomenon in North America.



The Ministers along with a high-level delegation from WHOC toured the exhibition, where regional and international NOCs, IOCs, service and technology providers are showcasing the best technologies, products and services for the heavy oil sector.



Notable exhibitors include Petroleum Development Oman (PDO), Eni SPA, China National Offshore Oil Corporation, Bahrain Petroleum Company, Kitsnet, Badr EOR, Albpetrol, RGL Reservoir Management Ltd, SoluForce, HP Well Screen, and Salamander, among others.



Welcoming participants from all around the globe, Congress Chairmen Dr Ali Al Gheithy, Petroleum Engineering Function director at Petroleum Development Oman, and Dr Saleh bin Ali Al Anboori, director general of Planning and Studies at Omans Ministry of Oil & Gas, highlighted the Sultanates growing role on the global stage in spearheading innovation to maximize heavy oil production.



The world is awash with heavy and extra heavy oil deposits, in excess of 1 trillion barrels. It currently accounts for 12-15 per cent of total global production and there is significant recoverable potential to be unlocked. Technology and collaboration will be the key, said Dr Al Gheithy.



Heavy oil and enhanced oil recovery form an important part of Omans oil mix. It is anticipated that by 2025 about 25 per cent of PDOs production will come from EOR projects. Weve partnered with Omani universities and academic institutions to develop and further advance our research and development programs to not just keep up with the technological innovations but also to pioneer and lead this disruption.



Heavy oil is a conventional resource that deserves special attention. We always try to apply the most advanced techniques to increase the amounts of recovery of heavy oil and to do it in the most efficient way possible. Digitalization can help further improve our industry to become more efficient, lower our unit operating costs, and enhance our safety standards, said Luca Bertelli, chief exploration officer of Eni.



A key highlight of the day was GlassPoint Solars announcement of SolaRISE, a new technology centre in partnership with Petroleum Development Oman. Standing for solar research, innovation and sustainably in energy, SolaRISE will develop and test next generation solar technologies in the oilfield environment.



Running simultaneously to the Strategic Conference, the Technical Conference began with six stimulating sessions. Providing an invaluable opportunity for heavy oil professionals to learn from one another, the sessions addressed a number of current hot topics including Enhanced Oil Recovery, data management and Industrial Internet of Things, as well as exploration and reservoir challenges and opportunities.  TradeArabia News Service
Whenever Kokob began to lose hope during her long and dangerous journey to safety, it was the music that saw her through.

In some hangars in Libya they would let us sing, in whispers, the 16-year-old recalls. In others, everything was forbidden. Thanks to the music, I kept my hopes up along my terrible journey.

Kokob was just 13 when she left Eritrea and her family behind. She then spent two years in a refugee camp in Ethiopia, where she made the decision to travel on to Europe. It was to be a journey fraught with danger.

A new report from UNHCR shows that more than 1,600 people have died or gone missing while attempting to reach Europe so far this year.

"I kept my eyes shut for the fear."

The report shows that while the total number of people arriving in Europe has fallen, the rate of deaths has risen sharply, particularly for those crossing via the Mediterranean Sea from Libya, often after a harrowing overland journey.

New arrivals to Italy frequently report being sold by one armed group to another, being tortured as part of demands for ransom, being forced to pay sums of several thousand dollars, sometimes on multiple occasions, to secure their release. Children like Kokob run the same risks as adults.

The notebook in which Kokob transcribed some of her favourite songs.  UNHCR/Marco Rotunno

In the middle of the desert between Sudan and Libya the trafficker told me I need to pay additional US$2,200. Later, he took the money and sold me to other traffickers," she says. "After that they requested another US$2,500 and I was moved from one hangar to another, seven in total. Finally, I paid the final US$1,500 for the sea crossing. I spent more than one year in Libya.

Kokob was lucky. She explains that her grandmother and other family members sold property in order to find the money she needed to pay the traffickers ransom and secure her freedom.

The report shows that the total number of people arriving in Europe has fallen.  UNHCR

They were too afraid of what happens to people in Libya, she says. They wouldnt let me die in the hands of the traffickers.

Before Kokob embarked on her perilous journey, she bought one item  a memory card filled with music  which would help her through the darkest hours that lay ahead. She transcribed the songs into a notebook so that she could sing along, and added others from the companions she met along the way.

I learned some melodies from the others. We used to sing together whenever we needed to comfort each other. Sometimes people asked me to lend them the songbook, so they could sing and pray by themselves.

"People started singing to celebrate.

The night Kokob crossed the Mediterranean was the first time she had ever seen the sea. Before they arrived at the rickety wooden boat, she covered her precious songbook with plastic and hid it behind her back, so traffickers would not take it away from her. Then she climbed aboard with other 450 people.

The waves were so terrifying that not only was I unable to sing, I couldnt even look at the water. I kept my eyes shut for the fear. Only when we saw the rescue vessel, could I finally open my eyes. People started singing to celebrate.

This little songbook helped its young and brave owner survive the horrors of Libya and the Mediterranean crossing. She's now safe in Italy, where she keeps on singing after her #DesperateJourney pic.twitter.com/QVQUMOPtwy  UNHCR Italia (@UNHCRItalia) September 3, 2018

One week after the rescue vessel arrived in Pozzallo, a UNHCR team met Kokob, in a reception centre for unaccompanied girls. She smiled and said she wanted to study. At last, she was looking forward to the future.

Then, she sang the song that came to her in the middle of the Mediterranean, as she was being rescued.

Its called The Boat, and it says: You are my boat, you protected me from the waves, taking me to safe shore. Now I am not afraid of the waves."

Read a news release on the report here.
The first migrants from the Aquarius ship arrive at the port of Valencia on an Italian ship, the Dattilo, June 2018.  UNHCR

Three years on from the shocking images of lifeless Syrian toddler Alan Kurdi on a Turkish beach, a new report by UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency shows that crossing the Mediterranean Sea has become even more deadly.

UNHCRs new Desperate Journeys report shows that more than 1,600 people have died or gone missing while attempting to reach Europe so far this year.

The report shows that while the total number of people arriving in Europe has fallen, the rate of deaths has risen sharply, particularly for those crossing via the Mediterranean Sea. In the Central Mediterranean, one person died or went missing for every 18 people who crossed to Europe between January and July 2018, compared to one death for every 42 people who crossed in the same period in 2017.

This report once again confirms the Mediterranean as one of the worlds deadliest sea crossings, said UNHCRs Director of the Bureau for Europe, Pascale Moreau. With the number of people arriving on European shores falling, this is no longer a test of whether Europe can manage the numbers, but whether Europe can muster the humanity to save lives.

In recent months, UNHCR, together with the UN Migration Agency, IOM, has called for a predictable, regional approach for the rescue and disembarkation of people in distress in the Mediterranean Sea.

UNHCR is also calling on Europe to increase access to safe and legal pathways for refugees, including by increasing resettlement places and removing obstacles to family reunification  helping to provide alternatives to potentially deadly journeys.

The report also outlines the dangers refugees face while traveling along land routes to or within Europe. Noting the steps that some have taken to prevent refugees and migrants from accessing their territory, the report urges States to grant those seeking international protection readily-available access to asylum procedures. It also appeals to States to strengthen mechanisms to protect children traveling alone and seeking asylum.

Best-selling author UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Khaled Hosseini, himself a former refugee from Afghanistan, has published a new illustrated book, coinciding with the three-year anniversary of Kurdis death. Sea Prayer is dedicated to the thousands of refugees who have perished around the world while fleeing war, violence and persecution.

When I saw those devastating images of the body of Alan Kurdi, my heart shattered, said Hosseini. Yet, just three years on and despite thousands more people losing their lives at sea, our collective memory and urgency to do better seems to have faded.

In June and July 2018, Hosseini visited Lebanon and Italy and saw the devastating impact on families who have lost relatives while attempting to reach Europe.

In Sicily I visited a lonely, unkempt cemetery full of unmarked graves of people  including many children  who have drowned on journeys just like Alans in the past years, said Hosseini. Each one of those people is now reduced to just a number, a code on a grave, but they were all men, women and children who dared to dream of a brighter future. Three years on from Alans death, its time we came together to do more to prevent future tragedies and let our friends, families, communities and governments know that we stand with refugees.

The full report can be accessed at: http://www.unhcr.org/desperatejourneys

Key stats

Along the Central Mediterranean route, so far this year there have been ten incidents in which 50 or more people died , most after departing from Libya. Seven of these incidents have been since June.

, most after departing from Libya. Seven of these incidents have been since June. Along the sea route from North Africa to Spain, more than 300 people have perished this year already, a marked increase on 2017 - when 200 deaths were recorded in the whole year.

already, a marked increase on 2017 - when 200 deaths were recorded in the whole year. In April this year, when over 1,200 reached Spain by sea, the rate of deaths climbed as high as one death for every 14 persons arriving in Spain by sea .

. More than 78 deaths of refugees and migrants have been recorded so far along land routes in Europe or at Europes borders compared to 45 in the same period last year.

For more information on journeys to Europe, contact:

For queries related to UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Khaled Hosseini, contact:

In London, Coco Campbell, [email protected] , +44 7715 420 076

, +44 7715 420 076 In London, Sarah Epstein, [email protected] , +44 7572 601 088

For broadcasters, news organizations and other media professionals: A full multimedia content package and the full report can be found on the media page.
Larnaca (Cyprus), Sep 3 (UNI) President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday expressed hope that the signing of MoU between India and Cyprus on money laundering will go a long way in creating a "cleaner economy".

"India is striving to create a cleaner economy. This is both a domestic and a global problem. In this context, the agreement signed earlier today between the Financial Intelligence Unit of India and the Unit for Combating Money Laundering of Cyprus will be useful for both of us," President said in his address at the House of Representatives of Cyprus.

President also said India has called for finalising the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism at the United Nations and maintained that India will be counting on the support from Cyprus.

"We count on your support. I would also like to thank Cyprus for its unstinted backing of Indias candidature for an expanded UN Security Council as well as for the Nuclear Suppliers Group," he said.

Dwelling at certain measures taken by Indian government back home, Mr Kovind said the "tax reforms to galvanise" Indias wide-spread manufacturing and business capacities and large domestic market have also helped.

"The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax has led to uniform, simpler and digitally-enabled taxation in all of our 29 states. It has integrated the country into one business system," he said.

This, President said, is a historic achievement that "can be compared to bringing the European

Union into a common fiscal framework".

"There have been other measures too. The enactment of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code has made it easier for non-performing businesses to exit," he said.

Recalling deep and historic relationship between two countries, Mr Kovind said - "In India, we fondly remember that about 50 years ago Cyprus issued two postage stamps to commemorate Mahatma Gandhis birth centenary. These stamps are still cherished by collectors. It is a fine coincidence that my current visit is taking place only a few weeks before October 2nd, when we begin the two-year celebrations of the 150th birth anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi".

"Figures like Gandhiji and Archbishop Makarios dont belong to any one country. They are part of the heritage of humanity," said Mr Kovind paying tributes to Makarios III.

Makarios III was a Greek Cypriot clergyman and a politician, who served as the Archbishop and Primate of the Church of Cyprus between 1950 and1977). He was the first President of Cyprus from 19601977) and in his three terms as President he survived four assassination attempts and a move for a coup.

President Kovind also said that as a responsible nation-states, both Cyprus and India are alive

to the challenges in the international system.

"As civilisations, we have been open societies and trading economies for millennia. The continued relevance of a rules-based international order, for trade, for our sea lanes and the global maritime commons, and in other domains is an article of faith for us," he said.

UNI DEVN SHK1657
(Sept. 4, 2018) -- UTSA has received a four-year, $1.5 million grant from the National Science Foundations Improving Undergraduate STEM Education: Hispanic-Serving Institutions (HSI) Program to improve student success and the diversity of students in the science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) fields. The HSI Program seeks to enhance the quality of undergraduate STEM education at HSIs while increasing retention and graduation rates of undergraduate students pursuing degrees in STEM fields at HSIs.

UTSA will use the funding to develop and implement new instructional methods and curricular changes focused on academic literacy, student mentoring, and instructional inquiry and reflection in an effort to transform its undergraduate curriculum and improve the persistence rate of its STEM students.

The university currently awards 1,045 bachelors degrees in STEM fields each year. Among those graduates, 52.6 percent identify as Hispanic, African American, American Indian or Alaskan Native.

The Texas Workforce Commission has estimated that 60,000 new scientists and engineers will be needed to meet workforce needs over the next decade, which means the annual graduation rate of scientists and engineers needs to double, said UTSA Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Kimberly Andrews Espy. At UTSA, we know that there is certain coursework in our STEM curriculum that is especially challenging for many of our students. By addressing this and teaching the curriculum in a new way, we can maintain the rigor of our STEM degree programs while improving retention and graduation rates.

According to the National Center for Higher Education, only 55.5 percent of U.S. students who pursue a STEM degree will graduate with a STEM degree.

Gateway courses, lower-division courses that students must complete to proceed through their degree programs, are particularly challenging for STEM majors. In Fall 2016, the pass rates for UTSA gateway courses in physics, calculus, chemistry and engineering analysis were 63, 61, 52 and 51 percent, respectively. These pass rates decreased an additional 4.2 percent for Hispanic students majoring in engineering and six percent for Hispanic students majoring in science or math.

To improve undergraduate student persistence from lower-division to upper-division courses, a team of UTSA faculty members from science, engineering, and education and human development will implement six strategies, building on the Language, Literacy and STEM (LA-STEM) Framework. The framework is rooted in the belief that literacy skills support success across all academic disciplines and are a necessity for students learning STEM concepts.

Using the LA-STEM Framework, UTSA aims to:

Develop and improve undergraduate STEM students integrated understanding of academic literacy and core competencies;

Create interdisciplinary professional development lesson study groups of instructors to engage in sustainable instructional and curricular change;

Align STEM curricula between lower and upper-division courses;

Develop a near-peer mentoring program for sophomore and junior level STEM students;

Provide research opportunities and professional development activities for STEM students; and

Evaluate the relevance and effectiveness of the institutional curricular redesign.

Additionally, innovative cross-disciplinary partnerships will be established between UTSA STEM and Education and Human Development faculty members to create groups of faculty leaders that promote academic literacy in the development of strong university-level STEM teaching and learning.

We know that there are certain courses that challenge our students, said Heather Shipley, vice provost of academic affairs and dean of UTSAs University College. By re-developing the way we teach those courses, we will be able to maintain the academic standards of our curriculum while making the curriculum more accessible to our students. We intend to create best practices that will not only help UTSA students succeed but will also serve as a model for other colleges and universities around the country.

This program will benefit STEM undergraduates at UTSA by increasing their retention rates, critical thinking skills, professional knowledge and self-efficacy. Taken together, this will support timely completion of undergraduate degrees and will increase the marketability and job placement of UTSA graduates.

The grant team will be led by Shipley, Mark Appleford (Biomedical Engineering), Juliet Langman (Bicultural-Bilingual Studies) Kelly Nash (Physics and Astronomy) and Jorge Solis (Bicultural-Bilingual Studies) with support from Krystel Castillo (Texas Sustainable Energy Research Institute at UTSA), Harry Millwater (Mechanical Engineering) and Orlando Graves Bolanos (Interdisciplinary Teaching and Learning and the DoSeum).
The existence of this document, written in October 2017 by UN Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, Jeffrey Feltman, was revealed by Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov on 20 August 2018. The Voltaire Network procured it and published it.

The following initial parameters and principles shall apply in all UN actors operating in Syria in order to ensure support and assistance is provided to those en need in all areas of Syria. Note that these parameters and principles are to be developped further and would also require setting a due-diligence process to ensure implementation. The principles and parameters, including any further revisions, must also be consistent with the principles of the Charter of the UN and relevant Security Council resolutions.

Parameters

 Life-saving humanitarian needs remain enormous in Syria and assistance delivery through the most direct routes remains critical. Humanitarian principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence apply to life-saving humanitarian assistance as well as early recovery and resilience activities with humanitarian objectives. The UN, with the active engagement of the

Secretary-General, will endeavour to secure the maximum possible flow of humanitarian assistance into Syria, including through the most direct route, ensuring non-interference with its operations, to sustain operations envisaged in the Humanitarian Response Plan (HRP).

 The HRP must remain humanitarian in order to ensure the United Nations can deliver on essential humanituian activities to save lives and ensure the basic needs for people. Development or reconstruction activities that are outside this will need to be reflected in other frameworks that are by nature a longer negociation with governments. This is essential given the complex legal and political issues involved.

 Early recovery and resilience activities in Syria, as currently outlined in the HRP, offer an opportunity to go beyond immediate life-saving assistance and offer minimum living conditions for local affected communities.

 The UN will advocate for the full range of durable solutions for lDPs and refugees, in the whole of Syria, support host communities and promote rights-based approaches in accordance with international law and standards. The UN will not promote the return of refugees and lDP, but will support returnees with a view to ensuring the safe, dignified, informed, voluntary and sustainable nature of return and reintegration, as well as the right of Syrians to seek and enjoy asylum.

 Only once there is a genuine and inclusive political transition negotiated by the parties, would the UN be ready to facilitate reconstruction.

Principles

The aforementioned activities are delivered under the following principles :

o Principles of neutrality, impartiality and independence in mind and keeping with basic principles of human rights-based approach to programming, including participation, empowerment, local ownership, and sustainability.

o Assistance must be prioritized based on the needs of the population (rather than government driven) with a particular focus on the needs of vulnerable groups and individuals, in a manner that protects human rights as an outcome.

o It musl be delivered in a fair, equitable, non-discriminatory and non-politiczed manner.

o The UN shall work directly with communities and households, such that United Nations assistance is delivered with uniformily throughout Syria, regardless of zones of influence.

o The UN shalI consider carefully human rights and protection implications, especially with regard to where and how assistance is provided. UN assistance must not assist parties who have allegedly committed war crimes or crimes against humanity.

 UN assistance shall be determined consciously and explicitly without prejudice to the goals of accountability for serious human rights violations, and the goals of legitimate, equitable, and sustainable political settlement.

 The specific needs and vulnerabilitics of women shall be at the forefront of UN response planning and implementation.

Implementation and next steps

 A multi-disciplinary working group under the auspices of the UN Syria Inter-Agency Task Force (lATF) will monitor adherence to the principles and parameters agreed by the UN system in this strategy, including political, legal, and human rights as well as humanitarian and development dimensions, and will report on this to the Secretary-General.

 UN agencies, funds and programmes should strengthen internal control, monitoring and tracking systems for the implementation of UN and partner programmes in Syria, with a view of taking all reasonable steps to avoid the diversion of or interference with aid assistance.

 A consultative needs assessment would be required that takes account of both needs and principles, including future expectations. Rigorous standards of due diligence should apply, drawing from the principles of the Human Rights Due Diligence Policy.

 The UN shall apply the UN Guiding Principles for Business and Human Rights in all areas of its work in Syria, including in its post-agreement planning.

 UN funding modalities should be independent of both government and donors, to the extent possible. In this context, the UN, with the active engagement and advocacy of the Secretary General, will endeavour to ensure sufficient donor support.

These agreed parameters shall form the basis of common positions and coordinated advocacy with key member states and donors.
Photo: Cartoon Network

Adventure Time was never at a loss for memorable characters. The Cartoon Network show  which airs its final episode Monday night  got a lot of mileage out of its central duo of Finn and Jake, of course, but one of its central strengths was the way that it didnt really need them to keep things moving. Episodes focused on everyone from the too-cool Marceline the Vampire Queen and the scientifically gifted, ethically confused Princess Bubblegum, to largely one-off goof characters, like aspiring mystery writer Root Beer Guy and unlucky criminal Princess Cookies. But Adventure Times best character was the one who seemingly had the least depth, at least at first: Ice King.

When the show began in 2010, Ice King was a comically exaggerated kids TV antagonist. An old, blue-skinned man with a magic crown and a mean streak, he spent most of his time flying around the Land of Ooo trying to kidnap one of the other main characters, Candy Kingdom ruler Princess Bubblegum  or failing that, any of the many, many other princesses in the shows world. As a recurring villain, Ice King could be menacing when he tried, but there was never any doubt that Finn and Jake would take him down. Even Ice Kings organs were evil: After a failed experiment, his heart gained sentience, left his body, and became a villain of its own known as Ricardio the Heart Guy, voiced by George Takei. In those early episodes, Finn and Jake were trying their hardest to be adventurers, righting wrongs and saving princesses. They were living in a cartoonish version of a Dungeons & Dragons campaign, so there had to be an evil wizard. But as Adventure Time went on, it became clear that Ice King wasnt just, or even mostly, malicious. He was sad.

In season twos The Eyes, Finn and Jake spend a sleepless night haunted by a creepy-looking horse staring into their souls  only to discover that the observer is actually Ice King in an inflatable horse costume. The reason? Because Ice King is miserable and Finn and Jake always seem to be so effortlessly happy. Ice Kings creepy spying was a sort of rudimentary attempt at self-help, at learning the secret of happiness. In this episode and many others, Ice Kings bumbling largely stems from the way he feels slightly out of sync with the rest of the world. He gets angry that no one invited him to a party, but it turns out he just didnt open the invitation. He accidentally rebrands as the Nice King after shaving and putting on a sweater, until his beard (and his rage) eventually get the better of him. He builds a Frankenstein-esque princess out of body parts from other princesses, and then tries to act as a supportive, loving husband, but when Princess Monster Wife decides to return her stolen body parts, he complains about her selfishness.

Each time, Ice King comes thisclose to real compassion, like a prestige TV antihero designed to keep the viewer dangling on the edge of their seat. But unlike those characters, Ice King tries to put his heart  George Takei and all  in the right place. (Especially as it becomes clearer that he really thinks of himself as being best bros with Finn and Jake.) More importantly, he really doesnt understand why what hes doing is wrong. As Adventure Time progressed, the show delved into Ice Kings tragic backstory as the suave archaeologist Simon Petrikov, a human cursed by the magic crown to an eternity of insane rambling. Ice Kings desire for princesses stems from half-remembered echoes of Simons old girlfriend, Betty. Even his insanity was a conscious decision, a sacrifice he made after putting on the crown to save a young Marceline.

These layers awkwardly stack on top of each other, making it easy for viewers to latch on to different parts of Ice King. The writer Lev Grossman compared watching Adventure Time to the experience of watching his father suffer from Alzheimers disease, but he also described watching the show with his young daughter, who perhaps responded more strongly to Ice Kings schlemiel nature and his unfortunate tendency to get his hams (that is, legs) smacked around. More than anything, what makes Ice King such a great character is the way his different modes and different personalities became a stand-in for a wide variety of problems, ranging from the intense (Alzheimers disease and depression) to the unfortunately relatable (being so awkward no one wants to hang out with you). Hes got a giant psychic itch, and hes constantly scratching it in ways that make the problem worse. For people who frequently deal with anxiety and stress through goofy humor, Ice King is a years-long I felt that meme. But even though hes such a relatable character, theres no risk of him ever becoming the protagonist or sucking up all of the oxygen the way a similarly complex, tragic character might on another series. Hes George Costanza, not Jerry Seinfeld.

By the end of the series, Ice King has become a sort of grotesque sitcom neighbor, always showing up when he isnt wanted while coming through exactly when hes needed. He goes on magical road trips with his wizard friends. He lives with Finn and Jake for a while. Hes even made decent progress navigating what Simon calls the labyrinth in his brain. Throughout, voice acting legend Tom Kenny imbues Ice King with equal parts pathos and insane, pathetic comedy. But theres a dangerous lesson in Ice Kings appeal as a character. His magic crown is a powerful metaphor precisely because it allows him to give up personal responsibility. The prospect of pawning off your actions and decisions is as powerful and tempting as ice magic itself, even when you havent had to make a tragic bargain. In one episode, Finn watches Ice King accidentally ruin a party and ponders, Its like some part of him wants to be a sad wong lord, a feeling that will resonate with anyone whos had that friend whose life is constantly in crisis for reasons everyone else can plainly see.

The same thing that make Ice Kings problems so relatable  the way his backstory gives him license to wallow in his own pain  feels like its own sort of cautionary tale. What makes Ice King so heartbreaking is that he doesnt want to engage in most of those behaviors, and only does so because he cant quite understand the effects of his own actions. Deep down, theres a part of himself that doesnt want to be sad. In Ice Kings perfect world, he would be in a stable and happy relationship with a princess and spend most of his time hanging out with his best buds Finn and Jake. The problem is just that he doesnt know how to get there  at least not without help, which is perhaps Adventure Times most important message of all. If we forget it, we run the risk of taking on one of Ice Kings worst, most unfortunate attributes: remaining frozen.
Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 star Dave Bautista has hedged around this inevitability for some time now (well, as much as Dave Bautista hedges, which isnt very much.) Now, in a new interview on The Jonathan Ross Show, the actor answers the question of whether or not he will actually be in the upcoming sequel with an its complicated. Explains Bautista, Its a bittersweet conversation. No, its a bitter-bitter conversation, because Im not really happy with what theyve done with James Gunn. Theyre putting the movie off. Its on hold indefinitely. To be honest with you, I dont know if I want to work for Disney. Added the actor, Ive been very vocal about the way I feel. I am not afraid to admit how I feel.

Now that production of Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3 has been paused following director Gunns dismissal over inappropriate jokes on Twitter, concrete answers about the whats and the whens and the whos of the film are somewhat up in the air. Of course, as Bautista himself has said, hes required to fulfill his legal obligation to Disney. But while an actor or actress reluctantly taking part in a film they no longer believe in might not be that unusual, one who is so vocally, so transparently disgusted with the studio is something a little different. Admits Bautista, I dont think Im your typical Hollywood guy.
Insecure Fresh-Like Season 3 Episode 4 Editors Rating 4 stars * * * *  Previous Next  Photo: HBO

When depicted onscreen, the opening or closing of a door is an unsubtle broadcaster of narrative beginnings or endings. A door opens and tornado-swept Dorothy and Toto begin their traipse through the trippy, Technicolor dreamscape of Oz. A door closes and you know for certain that Henry Hills life amongst the Goodfellas is finis, the metal slam ringing with finality. On Insecure, which has the bones of a stylish romantic comedy in extenso, the door trope figures almost as prominently as mirror shots and naked mens asses. In last seasons finale, Issa dawdled, fantasizing of merrier endings before closing the door on a weepy, turtlenecked Lawrence. Later, as a brand-new single, she knocked, and when the door swung, it was Daniel who appeared on the other side, the final shot of the season. Now, in this seasons fourth episode, Fresh-Like, the characters are again peering across thresholds, and in some instances, forcing themselves across.

Within the scope of Issas character arc over the past three seasons, Fresh-Like is propellant: Issa settles into her own spot, casts off Daniel before leaping onto another man, and leaves her ho-hum job, invigorated by her new lover. I decided to examine this weeks episode with an eye toward those major themes and encounters, the major scaffolding of the episode.

Home

The episode commences with Issa, finally in possession of a bathroom of her own, rapping to her reflection in the mirror. At moments, the shows protagonist feels flimsily drawn; the performed verses, all braggadocio and id, are the deepest excoriation of a character whose internal workings and deeper desires often arent excoriated. Daniels knock interrupts, and when Issa answers, she attempts an apology for her previous rejection of him. A deflated Daniel waves it off, assuring Issa that no apology is necessary. As Daniel makes his exit, Molly enters, closing the door behind him; for now, Daniels chapter is done. Molly has come bearing gifts, in the form of some of Issas old storage-unit things and a few new purchases, an inflatable bed among them. So you dont have to sleep on the floor like a little slave, she says. I bristled at the joke, which may have been the point. The affordability of Issas new place is an employment perk of her position as property manager, a realistic rendering of young, broke (not poor) people living in expensive coastal cities. That she has no prior experience, or even skill, as a property manager is irrelevant. A few of the funnier moments of this episode involve Issas run-ins with a persistent, addled tenant, who eventually resorts to sending her small son over to issue complaints as well.

Romance

While out for lunch, Issa runs into Nathan, the handsome Lyft customer from a few weeks back. Their happenstance meet-up is improbable, but cute nonetheless. Nathan is a Texan and thus remains unimpressed with Los Angeles, a stance which Issa commits to changing. The majority of the episode is spent following the two on a day-long excursion, with Issa as the informed native and Nathan happy to tag along. At Nathans encouragement, Issa calls into her job and informs them shell be out for the rest of the day, foreshadowing her future decision. That the push to shirk a company shes hated and considered leaving for three seasons was made as a result of her time with a man was one I found interesting. The show dedicates far too much time to each of Issas lovers, and before she can ever fully recover from a breakup and spend significant time alone, another beau is slotted in. This could be an attempt at honestly portraying the scattershot, ill-advised dating patterns of younger women, but it often reads as trepidation to have the series carried by its protagonist alone.

While playing hooky from work, Issa takes Nathan to the Baldwin Village neighborhood, colloquially referred to as the Jungles. The film Training Day, starring Denzel Washington, was shot in the much-maligned neighborhood. Issas motivations for bringing Nathan to the neighborhood are supposedly noble: She wants to dispel the ugly myths about its dangers and working class constituents. It strikes a more dubious tenor, for me. Why is Issa ferrying a transplant through a neighborhood which she herself is also not a member of, a place she grew up close to, but not inside of? The visit has a faintly paternalistic tone, which may hint at her reasons for employment at the nonprofit, her wayward do-gooder tendencies. The intent is grand but the messaging a little off: Poor people. Theyre just like us.

After the (thankfully) uneventful visit to the Jungles, Issa and Nathan head to her childhood home, a cozy place in, as I predicted, a comfortably upper-middle-class section of the city. When Nathan teases her about being rich, Issa reveals that her parents, now divorced, scrounged and saved for the beautiful home. Ive always been curious about Issas parentage on the show; is she, like her creator and namesake, a child of Senegalese-American immigrants? So much about her background is kept mysterious, or isnt considered.

The visit is a refreshing look into her upbringing, into what made her. She and Nathan play a game of Truth or Dare, which, as it was meant to do, gets them both naked in the pool. Issa reveals that she still wants to be involved in rap in some way, but the statement is too ambiguous to decipher. Is she saying she wants to be a rapper, or be involved with an organization like the one she encountered on career day, focused on uplifting and inspiring kids with an interest in the arts? Also the more explicit nod to Issas relative privilege casts an aspect of last season in an interesting light. Issa had been priced out of her old apartment, due to the rising rents wrought by gentrification. It seems likely now that she herself had also been a gentrifier, a young professional seeking cheap rent in a part of the city she was not native to. The phenomenon of first wave gentrifiers being priced out by a second wave of (usually white) gentrifiers is a complex one, again endemic in the countrys urban enclaves.

When Issa asks Nathan about his previous relationship, he responds that hes never really had a relationship because the girls in Houston, which he fled following the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, had a complacent mind-set compared to himself. Issa doesnt seem to register this as a red flag. Not only that a man who is presumably thirty or near it has never had a relationship, but also that he seems to earnestly believe that an entire city full of women had a mind-set which was so different, and inferior, to his own.

Issa and Nathan wind up at her place, where the pesky neighbor has sent her precocious young son with maintenance requests, a welcome jolt of comedy. Nathan opens the door to leave, but the scene cuts before it can close on him, a hint that he may be a (semi-)permanent fixture.

Work

The day after her date with Nathan, Issa finally leaves We Got Yall. A pan around the office reveals a sea of white faces. She has the job as a landlord plus her Lyft gig, so Issa has an income, but I suspect shell seek more fulfilling employment soon.

Meanwhile, Molly, employed at an all-black firm, is struggling to find her footing. This has mostly been due to her own abrasiveness and passive-aggressive tendencies, in my opinion. No one wants to hear about your old job and its alleged superiorities at every turn. This episode, however, seems to point at more complex explanations for the feudal distance of Mollys co-workers. In a meeting, Molly attempts to provide insight, and is talked over by two male employees, both black. Recall that jibe last week, in which a character lightly teased Molly about her frequent mentions of her old job, was made by a man of color. (He was very fair-skinned and could be black, but I dont know for certain. Is the firm staunchly all black, or are people of color welcome as well?) In this episode, after offering two black female colleagues her assistance, Molly miffs them and heads into the office with the men. The two women respond with stares of betrayal. The shows attempt to navigate the nuances and perplexities of black mens misogyny towards black women is a bold and necessary risk.
Bannon. Photo: CNBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

Update: Steve Bannon lambasted The New Yorkers David Remnick for his dismissal from The New Yorker festival Monday night. The reason for my acceptance was simple: I would be facing one of the most fearless journalists of his generation, Bannon told the New York Times in a statement. In what I would call a defining moment, David Remnick showed he was gutless when confronted by the howling online mob.

Update: In a statement made Monday evening, Remnick announced he had changed his mind following the backlash to his decision to interview Steve Bannon for The New Yorker Fest. I dont want well-meaning readers and staff members to think that Ive ignored their concerns. Ive thought this through and talked to colleagues  and Ive re-considered. Ive changed my mind. There is a better way to do this. The announcement was made after a number of other headliners took to Twitter to back out of their own appearances at the festival, and after Remnick had reportedly received a lot of feedback from readers and his own staff.

A statement from David Remnick, editor of The New Yorker, explaining his decision to no longer include Steve Bannon in the 2018 New Yorker Festival. pic.twitter.com/opayiw5GQ2  The New Yorker (@NewYorker) September 3, 2018

Following the announcement that Steve Bannon would be headlining the New Yorker Festival this October, subscribers, celebrities, and even the magazines own employees turned to Twitter to vent their frustrations. Director Judd Apatow, comedian John Mulaney, actor Jim Carrey, and musician Jack Antonoff all announced they had withdrawn from their participation in the festival over Bannons inclusion. Mulaney expressed frustration with both Bannons presence and the way the festival announced it, tweeting [T]his isnt James Baldwin vs William F Buckley. This is PT Barnum level horseshit. And it was announced on a weekend just before tix went on sale.

Im out. I genuinely support public intellectual debate, and have paid to see people speak with whom I strongly disagree. But this isnt James Baldwin vs William F Buckley. This is PT Barnum level horseshit. And it was announced on a weekend just before tix went on sale. https://t.co/oYk1llNgvV  John Mulaney (@mulaney) September 3, 2018

Director Judd Apatow urged The New Yorker to cancel Bannons appearance while announcing he would not appear at the same festival as him.

If Steve Bannon is at the New Yorker festival I am out. I will not take part in an event that normalizes hate. I hope the @NewYorker will do the right thing and cancel the Steve Bannon event. Maybe they should read their own reporting about his ideology.  Judd Apatow (@JuddApatow) September 3, 2018

Jack Antonoff, Jim Carrey, and Patton Oswalt all announced they would also no longer be appearing at the festival on Twitter, though they were far more brief.

Bannon? And me? On the same program?



Could never happen.  Jim Carrey (@JimCarrey) September 3, 2018

im no longer going to be speaking/performing at the new yorker festival as long as steve bannon is there  jackantonoff (@jackantonoff) September 3, 2018

The New York Times reported that Bannon would appear for an interview with the magazines editor and frequent Trump critic David Remnick, who told the Times he had no plans to coddle the former White House chief strategist. I have every intention of asking him difficult questions and engaging in a serious and even combative conversation, Remnick said. The audience itself, by its presence, puts a certain pressure on a conversation that an interview alone doesnt do. You cant jump on and off the record.

But many questioned whether Bannon, someone who no longer works in the White House and whose sole claim to relevancy is getting this kind of media attention, is worth attempting to corner. Director Ava DuVernay lamented that the magazine was selling tickets to see a man who had helped white nationalists reach the mainstream.

He created an online home for white nationalists to groom and grow their violent base. He cemented his destructive white supremacist views into the DNA of the White House. Now, New Yorker is selling tickets to see him headline. And here we are, folks. https://t.co/JyK8J13Zko  Ava DuVernay (@ava) September 3, 2018

Author Roxane Gay wrote that an invitation to Bannon from a publication with the prestige of The New Yorker, even for a contentious debate, only legitimizes him.

Giving Bannon a platform like this, with the imprimatur of The New Yorker, provides him with further legitimacy. It emboldens him and his ilk. And those of us who object are told we're just angry instead of wide awake. Bravo to everyone involved.  roxane gay (@rgay) September 3, 2018

Chelsea Clinton agreed with Gays assessment and also added that The Economist had also included Bannon in their Open Future festival. (Bannon will be engaging in a fireside chat with editor-in-chief Zanny Minton Beddoes.)

For anyone who wonders what normalization of bigotry looks like, please look no further than Steve Bannon being invited by both @TheEconomist & @NewYorker to their respective events in #NYC a few weeks apart. https://t.co/u0TDfCYrQ1  Chelsea Clinton (@ChelseaClinton) September 3, 2018

Numerous others aired their disdain for Bannons inclusion in the festival, including staff writers at The New Yorker and elsewhere.

I love working for @NewYorker, but I'm beyond appalled by this: https://t.co/WlZdsBpF1R I have already made that very clear to David Remnick. You can, too: themail@newyorker.com  Kathryn Schulz (@kathrynschulz) September 3, 2018

Imo, it would be fine for the New Yorker festival to host a hostile interview with Stephen Miller, since that fascist is an active public official who would remain powerful and relevant without any media attention. Bannon invite is harder to understand.  Eric Levitz (@EricLevitz) September 3, 2018

Im not sure how this is meaningfully different from inviting David Duke https://t.co/u4OfM5BXnL  b-boy bouiebaisse (@jbouie) September 3, 2018

You have to be very boring or very stupid to think that Steve Bannon is interesting or smart. A garbage bag full of ice-cold gin wrapped in four barn coats, sweating profusely while trying to explain the plot of a racist French novel. Fantastic stuff.  David Roth (@david_j_roth) September 3, 2018

This post has been updated throughout.
Ruth Wilson in The Little Stranger. Photo: Nicola Dove/Focus Features

Before his critically acclaimed indie hit Room earned Brie Larson an Oscar in 2016, director Lenny Abrahamson was toiling away in Ireland, looking for his niche as a filmmaker. His first film, Adam & Paul, was a modest success, taking the Laurel & Hardy approach to a pair of Dublin junkies in search of their next fix. Then came the tragicomedy Garage, about a rural Irish gas station attendant on an earnest quest to change his life. And next, Frank, starring Michael Fassbender as an erratic and genius musician (ironically, it couldnt bank on the actors face, as he donned a giant papier-mache head for almost the entirety of the movie). With Room, Abrahamson finally stumbled on his magic story formula  a woman in search of agency  a premise which Abrahamson, a man, unexpectedly connected with on a deeply personal level.

Abrahamsons newest film, The Little Stranger, an adaptation of the Sarah Waters novel of the same name, continues the themes of a woman trapped in a hostile environment. The gothic tale tells the story of a post-WWI British country doctor (played by Domhnall Gleeson) who revisits a grand estate he knew from his youth, only to find the home dilapidated and the once-great family inside it worn down to a small, impoverished, grief-stricken clan. The doctor takes a fancy to the daughter of the family, Caroline Ayers (Ruth Wilson), but also finds himself more and more obsessed with the Ayers home, even as Caroline is trying to escape it and the spirit she thinks lives there. In a conversation with Vulture, Abrahamson spoke about venturing into genre filmmaking, obsessing over locations, and finding kinship with women who are on a quest for autonomy.

Youve done two novel adaptations in a row, first Emma Donoghues Room and now The Little Stranger. And Frank was loosely based on the comic persona of the late Chris Sievy. People are going to start thinking adaptation is your thing. Is that something youre seeking out now, or do the stories find you?

I read this book not intending to do another adaptation, I promise, but life doesnt work in those nice, neat ways. Ive been thinking about this novel for ages, and when I finished Room, the script adaptation Lucinda Coxon was writing for The Little Stranger was finally ready. I happened to have a gap in my schedule, and I just knew that if I didnt make it then that I wouldnt be the one to get to make it. I couldnt take that chance. The next one isnt going to be an adaptation, but when really good material has taken root in my head, its impossible to let it go.

What about the story ended up attracting you? So many filmmakers who traditionally work in drama or comedy these days are throwing their energy at horror, trying to catch the genre boom. Were you hoping to find an audience there, too, or did everything come together by accident?

First, I read the book when it came out [in 2009]. A friend said, You should read this, its really good, and I was sent through, by accident, only half of this book, before it was published. I said This is fascinating stuff, but it feels like its missing an ending, and so I came up with a bunch of suggestions of where I thought it might go and sent those off not knowing it already had the perfect ending. And they wrote back apologetically that theyd mistakenly only sent half. But I was still engrossed in this book even though it was entirely truncated, if that tells how you good it is.

Generally, Im not interested in genre films and not a horror aficionado. The story is such an interesting hybrid of all these elements that Sarah [Waters] manages to weave together so beautifully and with a profound emotional impact and its not just, Oh god its chilling, and Im terrified and on the edge of my seat. But if you compare this story to something like Downton Abbey, which I suppose you could, this is going through this undergrowth of those people in Britain and finding this odd tribe thats not the clean and nice noblemen, and Im attracted to that.

Did you ever meet people like the Ayers  aristocratic Brits from giant country estates?

I did, actually. I went to a university much loved by posh British people, so I ended up meeting a lot of people who came from places like Hundreds Hall in the story, and its fascinating to me that this life still exists with all its peculiarities.

When I watched your film, I was struck by how closely the images you created resembled what was in my head when I was reading the novel. You went for a straight adaptation, which also utilizes literary devices like an unreliable narrator and first-person interior dialogue. How did you accomplish translating those elements to the screen?

One technique we used was getting the camera very close to Domhnall, so it was clear the story was being told through his flawed point of view. Ruth gets a few big closeups, but theyre very held back, because were seeing her only how Dr. Faraday sees her. You can do a lot of prep for something like that, but we discovered you send it all out the window when you really face it and look at rushes and learn what works and what doesnt. We dont know why it works, but we discovered with Domhnalls Dr. Faraday, that if we moved close to him with a particular lens, that it just felt right. Its a little closer than conventionally, but were not looking up his nose or anything. Im sure Domhnall wouldnt like that. Its one of those things that you cant put your finger on, but its odd. It puts you off-kilter, and were lucky we stumbled on or developed this style.

So youre saying it could have been a disaster.

It was a delicate souffle, and any bit of wrongness would have shown. But a lot more of this than youd think came together in the editing. We spent a lot of time reworking the first 15 minutes of the film, doing very small tweaks in terms of how much we stick with Faraday, foreshadow how much is going to happen. And the tiniest changes would entirely shift how the film landed in the end.

Back to the idea of horror: the convention of a gothic story isnt exactly synonymous with horror, though there is quite a bit of crossover. Do you ever worry that audiences will be disappointed by the lack of scares? Your star Ruth Wilson already caught a little of that when she starred in Oz Perkins gothic film I Am the Pretty Thing That Lives in the House, which also refrains from conforming to horror conventions.

The danger in marketing this film is that people will go in expecting a horror movie, and its not really that in a traditional sense. And gothic stories are diverse as well! Some with jump scares and all that. Whats fascinating about Sarahs novel is that for ages, nothing untoward or creepy happens, but the dread grows out of the situation.

Speaking of the diversity of gothic stories, youre actually going against the grain with The Little Stranger. Most scenes take place during the daylight, and youve got a warm color palette, which seems almost antithetical to the gothic genre.

You can imagine going super-gothic on this, picking a Tudor house with really creepy vines, but as soon as you do, youre saying youre in that kind of film. Its harder to inflect the tone of the story. The audience is finding these clues you laid for them rather than youre doing the work to tell them. I dont want people to know why this is spooky. We looked in loads of places for the right house, at every British manor house and stately home, and if you were to go the house we selected now, youd be very surprised, because its surrounded by concrete and a car park and everything, but the bones of the house are exactly what we needed. Its a very odd house, and it has these loads of interconnecting rooms that allow you to look through doorways and see other parts of the house, so we could create this tiny, three-dimensional map that we played with in planning. Of course, once you get in the house, the temptation would be to go super dark or shafts of light for contrast, but we went for a more faded gaiety  lots of golds, salmon pinks, pale blues, rich and warm colors. And yet the house feels wrong somehow. But you cant point your finger and find exactly what makes it wrong. Thats the aesthetic, hiding the unnerving parts.

This is also your second film in a row to focus on a female character whos trapped in a place. First a room, now a haunted house.

Well, this film does have a lot to say about men and women and how mens expectations of womens desires are very problematic. Caroline, of all the characters in this film, is the one who finds her way to a sense of agency. You go online and see how people treat strong women, and its, Oh my god! But Caroline is the character who begins to understand herself. Its a thread that sneaks up on you in the story and I find that a compelling thing to watch, and I feel that women saying what they want or think is something our society has not liked traditionally. Its amazing how powerful that impulse is, for men to shut women down who are assertive. Ive got a Civil War project  not an adaptation  that has a central female character whos dealing with that in a time when women werent allowed to do many things, including fighting in a war she believes in.

What do you personally get out of working with complex female characters in crisis?

I really, really enjoyed working with Ruth [Wilson] and with Brie [Larson], because Im distanced from the characters myself as a man, and it allows me to not bring so much of my own self and to listen to the character more truthfully than if it were a character I were closer to. Gender is not the defining aspect of the person, and its diminishing to think it is, but I do think I have much in common with those female characters. The humanity is the fundamental thing and we all share that, and in the case of Carolines recognition that her role need not be defined as it has been by men, I understand that. We all fall into patterns of behavior and conform to other peoples ideas, but that movement and desperate push toward autonomy and agency, it breathes in and out of our lives at times when you feel objectified. And we all feel that sometimes.
This Labor Day The Democratic nominee for Alabama Governor spent the day campaigning in the Tennessee Valley. In Tuscumbia, Walter Maddox is urging people to vote for him in November.

Walter Maddox told WAAY 31 today was the perfect day to speak with people face to face. He said he wanted to find out about issues facing voters. He also shared why he fully supports the lottery.

Now that Mississippi has approved its own lottery, Alabama is the only southern state without one.

Governor kay Ivey told WAAY 31 on Friday she supports letting voters decide the issue.

Maddox said the lottery could provide money for college scholarships and workforce development training. However, Ivey said there's no need for a lottery because the state is doing well financially. Maddox disagrees.

"That's not true. Right now, corrections is under a court order by Judge Myron Thompson. Our state has borrowed so much money that the average Alabamian is $2,000 in debt. Our roads are deteriorating, mental health has collapsed. Rural hospitals have continued to close. Governor Ivey is out of touch. She believes it's in shape because she never leaves Montgomery," said Walter Maddox.

Maddox also said he wants to improve education in Alabama, health care and the state's prison system.

The general election is Tuesday November 6th.
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By Sep. 02, 2018

Evenings Upstairs at McLib will host Ghostly Tales with Kentucky Storytellers



Tales From Bloody Breathitt - Ghosts of Appalachia will be presented by Jerry Deaton, author and filmmaker at McCracken County Public Library on Thursday, October 4, from 7 - 8 pm.





In this presentation ,Deaton will share some of his stories and talk about folklore and literature from around Appalachia.





Deaton is an author, filmmaker and playwright from Frankfort, Ky. Jerry has published two books on his home county of Breathitt, including Appalachian Ghost Stories; Tales from Bloody Breathitt, and Kentucky Boy, My Life in Twenty Words.

PADUCAH -this fall.
Man injured after travel app confusion on I-24 results in another accident
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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Sep. 03, 2018 | PADUCAH

By West Kentucky Star Staff Sep. 03, 2018 | 03:03 PM | PADUCAH

Paducah's 43rd Annual Labor Day Parade made its way along Broadway Monday morning with lots of political candidates, union members with their families and friends, floats, cars, trucks, a few bands and cheer leaders, and signs emphasizing the theme of this year's parade, "Which side are you on"?



But children were all about the 'candy' that was being thrown and handed to them (and adults) along the 16-blocks of hot pavement. An occasional breeze made the heat bearable for all those who attended.



Meanwhile in neighborhoods throughout the community, there were hundreds of American Flags placed in lawns early in the morning to honor the Labor Day holiday. In uniform, Boy Scout Troop 1 members placed flags in the yards of those who have subscribed to their Holiday Flag Program. Starting last July 4th, Boy Scout Troop 18 now places the American flags on holidays (for subscribers) in the downtown Paducah area and out from toward Reidland. The patriotic fundraising program for the scouts has become increasingly popular in recent years. (read more about it on WestKyStar).


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By West Kentucky Star Staff

Aug. 31, 2018 | PADUCAH

By West Kentucky Star Staff Aug. 31, 2018 | 06:08 AM | PADUCAH

The 43rd Annual Labor Day Parade conducted by the Western Kentucky Labor Day Committee will begin at 9:30 a.m. on Monday, September 3.



The parade, which attracts on average 40 to 60 entries, will follow Broadway starting at 2nd Street and then head west on Broadway until it disbands at Fountain Avenue (17th Street). The parade route will close at 9 a.m. and remain closed until the parade passes.



The theme of this years parade is "Which Side Are You On. "



Pets are allowed at parades. However, for the publics safety, Chapter 14 of the City of Paducah Code of Ordinances lists requirements to bring a dog to a special community event such as a parade or festival. The dog must be licensed by McCracken County Animal Control or by any other state or county and restrained by a leash or lead that is no longer than three feet.
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Lionel Messi has been omitted from the shortlist for the FIFA Mens Player Award for the very first time since the award was introduced (in 2016).

Instead, the 2018 award will be contested by Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric and Mohamed Salah, with Messis off year (a mere domestic double coupled with being both the top goalscorer and assist provider in the whole of Europe) ruling him out of the running.

Ronaldo is already favourite to take the trinket due to his Champions League heroics, though UEFA did upset the apple cart slightly last week by crowning Modric as their Player of the Year.

Obviously it stands to reason that both Modric and Salah are perfectly worthy of inclusion, but have we reached the point where Messi scoring 34 league goals and powering Barcelona to a 17-point league-winning gulf is not outstanding enough to top them both?

Its like he is now being judged by prime Messi standards rather than in relation to his mere mortal contemporaries, as he should be. Just seems a little incongruous that the best individual and team player in the world shouldnt be included in the FIFA top three.

Oh well, were sure hes not remotely phased. Ho hum.
An ongoing federal investigation into public corruption in Tallahassee, Florida, threatens to damage the nascent campaign of Democratic gubernatorial nominee Andrew Gillum, the city's mayor.

The FBI investigation into whether out-of-town developers were able to influence city development projects has already become fodder for political attacks against the gubernatorial candidate, who won the state's Democratic primary last week and rose to national prominence because of his historic win and gripping personal story.

Andrew Gillum Continents and regions Crime, law enforcement and corrections Criminal investigations Criminal law Donald Trump Elections (by type) Elections and campaigns Federal Bureau of Investigation Florida Government and public administration Government bodies and offices Government organizations - US Governors Gubernatorial races Heads of government Investigations Law and legal system North America Political candidates Political Figures - US Politics Ron DeSantis Southeastern United States State elections Tallahassee The Americas United States US Department of Justice US federal departments and agencies US federal government

"He is embroiled in a lot of corruption scandals," Rep. Ron DeSantis, Gillum's Republican opponent, said on Fox News after the primary win. "This guy can't even run the city of Tallahassee. There is no way Florida voters can entrust him with our entire state."

Gillum's level of exposure in the probe remains unclear, though the mayor has long said publicly that the FBI told him he was not a focus of the investigation. His campaign officials have said the same thing and looked to turn the attack back on DeSantis.

"Mayor Gillum is not a subject of the FBI investigation, and he's committed to rooting out any corruption or wrongdoing in Tallahassee," said Geoff Burgan, Gillum's spokesman. "We're not going to take ethics lectures from Congressman Ron DeSantis, who is marching in lockstep with the most morally, ethically and legally challenged President in American history."

The FBI declined to comment on the investigation.

Gillum has not been named in any of the subpoenas, but questions have been raised about his potential involvement, in part because the investigators have compelled information from Adam Corey, a lobbyist and longtime Gillum friend who volunteered as finance chair on his 2014 mayoral campaign. Hundreds of Corey's emails have been posted online, at Gillum's direction, fodder for Republican groups that will spend millions looking to stop Gillum's campaign.

Gillum's ties to Corey, whom he met while he was in college, have long raised questions. The Tallahassee Democrat reported in 2015 that Gillum's 2013 decision as a city commissioner to vote to fund a multimillion-dollar project tied to Corey through the city's community redevelopment agency raised questions because of their friendship, even though city lawyers deemed Gillum did not have a conflict of interest.

The vote made way for Corey and other partners to convert a turn-of-the-century electric plant into an upmarket restaurant named Edison.

Those questions grew when the paper reported on Gillum and Corey vacationing together in Costa Rica, where they agreed to meet with Mike Miller, a name used by one of three FBI agents posing as developers, once they were back in Florida. Gillum's chief of staff told the paper that the trip was not business related and that he was on vacation with friends. Questions have also been raised about a 2016 trip to New York, where Corey and Miller were also present. A local television station published a photo in August of 2017 that showed Corey, Gillum and an FBI agent sitting in the back of a boat in New York harbor with the Statue of Liberty in the background.

According to public documents, the undercover agents posing as developers got close to city officials and lobbyists in an attempt to snuff out public corruption. FBI agents subpoenaed thousands of records in June 2017 and Gillum's office then posted those records online. Reporting from the Tallahassee Democrat found that a cadre of city officials and power brokers have been named in the subpoenas, but Gillum's campaign has denied any connection to the probe and pledged to work with the FBI.

Even so, Republicans will seek to use the investigation to bludgeon Gillum's campaign. The Republican Governors Association has already put out a digital ad on the probe and Jon Thompson, a spokesman for the group, told CNN that is likely just the beginning.

"This FBI investigation will haunt Andrew Gillum's gubernatorial campaign and will be a very lethal attack," he said.

Jared Leopold, spokesman for the Democratic Governors Association, responded, "Ron DeSantis has spent his political career pandering to far-right fringe elements, by voting to raise the retirement age and jack up health care costs on Floridians with pre-existing conditions. The RGA is desperate to rewrite history now that they're saddled with a candidate who is more extreme than Trump."

The Gillum-DeSantis race is likely to be one of the most expensive gubernatorial contests in the country, with both campaigns and outside groups spending millions to control Florida's executive branch.

Gillum has sought to fight back on the attacks by distancing himself from Corey and pledging to be helpful, while also using his approach to the investigation to attack President Donald Trump, a vocal DeSantis backer.

"We want to make sure that any individual that participated in that is held fully accountable. The good news is, is that it doesn't involve my government or myself. We have all been fully cooperating," Gillum told CNN's Dana Bash in an interview Sunday on "State of the Union."

Despite their longtime friendship, Gillum also distanced himself from Corey by referring to him as just a campaign volunteer.

Referring to Trump's constant attacks against the FBI for the ongoing investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election, Gillum added, "The difference between how we have addressed this and how Ron DeSantis and Donald Trump have addressed the FBI is that we have welcomed them and have tried to aid in their work."

No charges have been filed to date as a result of the Tallahassee probe.
LAFAYETTE, Ind. (WLFI) - For some, Labor Day weekend is a time of relaxation and grilling out good food on the bar-b-que. But others in our community can't relax because they don't know where their next meal is coming from.

Food Finders Food Bank is preparing to help as the month of September kicks off Hunger Action Month.

This is a time when the charity is focusing on education and advocacy for various hunger issues. Issues that become more urgent as the winter months approach.

"When people to have to pay heating bills, and the costs that go along with having your kids in school, it's really important for working families and those who are unemployed to have a regular source of food they can depend on," said CEO of Food Finders Katy Bunder.

She said that she wants the families they serve to be able to focus on putting their money where it's needed.

"So we try to help families use our services so that they can save their very limited resources to pay the rent and the utility bills," she said

According to recent numbers, even though we are 10 years out of the recession, they are still seeing up to 400 people visit Food Finders pantry days. Nearly 30% of the 78,000 hungry people in North Central Indiana are children. And about 5,300 are 65 or older.

But Food Finders is ready to get the community involved to help fight this battle. Hunger Action day is on September 13th. Food Finders will host a volunteer day with a Purdue sorority.

This years annual Hunger Hike is scheduled for September 16th. Bunder said this event makes sure they can properly stock their shelves with the items they need, like milk and meat.

"We can buy the food that we know we need for the people we routinely serve through our pantry and other services," she said.

And seeing the whole community rally behind this cause gives Food Finders the momentum they need to make it until spring.

"It gives us a boost to last all year long," she said.

Click here to learn more about how to get involved with Hunger Action Month.




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A5 at Chirk reopens after milk spillage

This article is old - Published: Monday, Sep 3rd, 2018

UPDATE: The A5 at Chirk has reopened following the earlier milk spillage

ORIGINAL: Motorists are being asked to avoid the A5 in Chirk this morning after a road closure was put in place due to a milk spillage.

The road closure is in place on the A5 while clean up work takes place.

Police and the fire service are in attendance at the scene.
Splash Community Trust shortlisted for Social Enterprise Of The Year award

This article is old - Published: Monday, Sep 3rd, 2018

The community organisation now running Plas Madoc will be competing to be Welsh Social Enterprise Of The Year at a glitzy awards evening in Cardiff later this month.

Plas Madoc has a well documented recent history, with Wrexham Council voting to close and knock the building down back in 2014 during the ongoing Reshaping of Services aka budget cuts. A public meeting was held with the agreement in principle to explore a community run option, which was resisted at various points, however finally got support to reopen.

More recently local battles for funding were re-run, which saw a report before councillors noting the now community run entity showing an operating deficit of 13,639 , vastly different from the over 500k a year loss when under Council control. Wrexham Council agreed to the funding request (and also noted their other contributions) at a similar point in time when sizeable Welsh Government support came through for the centre.

The journey continues to the awards night, being held on Wednesday 26th September at the City Hall in Cardiff, that recognises excellence within the social business sector in Wales. Entrants come from a range of social businesses but organisers says all demonstrate a dynamic, entrepreneurial and ambitious attitude that are driving the sector forward.

This year there are two headline categories  Wales Social Enterprise of the Year and Wales One to Watch, which looks for new and innovative social enterprises trading under two years with an impressive initial impact and strong vision for the future. Social enterprises also had the opportunity to enter five sector categories, with winners of each category being automatically entered into the Social Enterprise of the Year.



Local MP Susan Elan Jones called in (pictured above) to Plas Madoc Leisure Centre to congratulate them on their shortlisting for the Social Business Wales awards.

Following her visit, the Clwyd South MP said: I am delighted to hear the fantastic news that Plas Madoc has been shortlisted for this prestigious award. The Centre is a tremendous asset to the community and the work being undertaken to improve its facilities is very impressive. It is right that we celebrate and encourage excellence within the social business sector in Wales.

I recently asked Wales Office Ministers in Parliament what more could be done to support social enterprises as part of the North Wales Growth Deal. Its vital that we support community-run enterprises like Plas Madoc Leisure Centre; they are the lifeblood of our local communities.

Derek Walker, Chief Executive, Wales Co-operative Centre said: Every year it seems to get more difficult to short list for these awards, the quality of the applications are a testament to all the good work that these businesses are doing. We wish all our finalists the best of luck and look forward to seeing them at the awards.

You can see what is happening at Plas Madoc via their website here!
A record audience of over 25,000 took part in this years Young Euro Classic festival in Berlin. The festival took place for the 19th time, and ended on August 20 with a rousing tribute to American composer, musician and conductor Leonard Bernstein, who was born one hundred years ago.

Even more so than in previous years, the 20 nearly sold-out concerts by international youth orchestras struck a clear musical counterpoint to the policies of political elites across the globe that are increasingly fueling fierce xenophobia and nationalism.

It was entirely appropriate that Leonard Bernstein was honored by this festival, which includes among its aims the promotion of peace and international understanding through music. Equally appropriate was the choice of the Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestrathe very same orchestra founded by Bernstein 31 years agoto play at the end of the festival.

Their program included Bernsteins Symphonic Suite On the Waterfront, the Symphonic Dances from West Side Story and the overture to Candide, as well as the violin concerto in D major by Erich Wolfgang Korngold, the Viennese composer who went into exile in the United States, and combined vibrant Viennese late Romantic music with sweeping Hollywood-style cinematic compositions. The result was truly cross-border music, drawing on the different traditions of old Europe and the New World of America. The performance, by the orchestra and solo violinist Charles Yang under the direction of British conductor Wayne Marshall, combined youthful enthusiasm with a sense of touching poetry.

Schleswig-Holstein Festival Orchestra with soloist Charles Yang. (Kai Bienert, MUTESOUVENIR)

Korngold was almost 20 years older than Bernstein and they were in some respects very different figures, but both came from Jewish families in Europe and Russia, and were torn between the different continents of their birth and much of their subsequent musical work.

Born in the US to a Russian-Jewish family, Bernstein promoted European composers such as Gustav Mahlerlittle-known in the US at the time but whose symphonies Bernstein conducted and recordedas well as the Finnish composer Jean Sibelius and the Soviet composer Dmitri Shostakovich. Mahler in particular felt like a soul mate to Bernstein. It was Mahler who once said that he felt homeless three times overas a Bohemian in Austria, as an Austrian in Germany and a Jew in the world.

At his concerts in Berlin on December 23 and 25, 1989, on the occasion of the fall of the Berlin Wall, Bernstein conducted Beethovens 9th Symphony, renaming the final movement Ode to Freedom instead of Ode to Joy. Bernstein brought together musicians from the countries of all four former occupying powers, including the Soviet Union. Today, following numerous wars, he would undoubtedly think twice before renaming Beethovens Ode.

The explosive music at the final concert was at times romantic, but also humorous and jazzy. Bernsteins combination of entertaining (or light) and serious music brought him close to the younger generation. It struck an unmistakably optimistic note at the end of the festival that left no one cold in the crowded concert hall.

This was underlined in an encore by the jam session between Wayne Marshall on piano and Charles Yang playing his violin as a guitar, rhythmically accompanied by the audience. At the end orchestra members embraced one another warmly.

The concert conveyed a message very different from the aggressive nationalism and anti-American stance put forward by the German foreign minister and echoed by leading media outlets in the past few days. As Leonard Bernstein once said, The future of our world will be a common one for all peoplesor it will prove to be a very inhospitable future.

This basic mood of international collaboration and the joy of playing music together are central threads running through this festival.

MIAGI Youth Orchestra from South Africa (Kai Bienert, MUTESOUVENIR)

The opening concert of the entire festival, by the South African orchestra MIAGI, which emerged from educational projects in the South African slum of Soweto, was a lavish multinational and multicultural highlight.

While German interior minister Horst Seehofer is building a massive system of camps for refugees from Africa and the Middle East and the European Union is shutting down its frontiers and permitting thousands of people to drown in the Mediterranean or die of thirst in the Sahara, the appearance by MIAGI celebrated the cultural link with the impoverished continent of Africa.

The concert began with Beethovens revolutionary music from his Egmont Overture, followed by an idiosyncratic and sensitive rendition of the Firebird Suite by Igor Stravinsky. After that, the orchestra swung into Leonard Bernsteins wildly virtuosic jazz composition Prelude, Fugue and Riffs (with solo clarinet Visser Liebenberg) and then the orchestra suite Rainbow Beats, composed by the 29-year-old British conductor Duncan Ward.

Ward called his work a surprise journey through the African soundscape. In fact, the piece is marked by surprising contrasts, combining African, Arabic, Latin and North American and European melodies and dance rhythms. In its finale, the entire orchestra danced and sang, while the conductor performed a skillful break dance to the accompaniment of the concert hall audience.

In his introductory remarks, Ward rejected the idea that African youth have difficulties understanding European musical language of the period since the Enlightenment. Music is a universal language, he said, and the members of MIAGI are young, wild players driven by sheer passion, with a great hunger to learn.

There were many other highlights at this years Young Euro Classic festival. One example was the appearance of the traditional European Union Youth Orchestra (EUYO), which selects the best young musicians from all 28 EU countries each year. As the orchestra came into the concert hall they were greeted by the audience with thundering applause and foot stamping. Two years ago, the flagship project of European cultural policy ran into financial difficulties and only received further financing following considerable protests. In the wake of the Brexit vote, it is about to relocate its office from London to Italy.

The title of the programPianistic Poetry against symphonic self-doubtand a piece of pure zest for life, was fulfilled completely by the EUYO orchestra. The German premiere of Fireworks by the Polish composer Agata Zubel, a sparkling short work in which one can literally hear the sound of firecrackers hissing through the air and exploding, was awarded the Composers Prize by the audience jury. The composer said of her work: My intention with Fireworks was to empower the listener and activate him, to join with him in his enthusiasm, rather than starting a debate about the actual or claimed identity of each individual.

After the Piano Concerto No. 2 by Chopin (soloist Seong-Jin Cho), the orchestra demonstrated its musical prowess with a moving interpretation of Tchaikovskys tragic Symphony No. 5 in E minor.

In total, more than 35 works from the 20th and 21st centuries were performed this year, including 13 German premieres and world premieres. One attention grabber was the fusion of Bachs Piano Concerto in D minor BWV 1052 with techno music by the Georgian Sinfonietta ensemble.

Along with the joy of playing music, experimentation and the festive mood, this years festival also showed the great seriousness with which young musicians interpreted classical works.

A good example was the interpretation of Shostakovichs 11th Symphony by the National Youth Orchestra of Romania. The symphony was composed to commemorate the Bloody Sunday of 1905 in St. Petersburg. One could almost hear the attacks by Tsarist soldiers on demonstrators, feel the mourning for the dead in the third movement, and feel electrified at the finale, when march rhythms underpin the workers determination to continue the revolutionaccompanied by echoes of the Ukrainian revolutionary song Beware Tyrants and the Polish Varshavyanka.

St. Petersburg Youth Chamber Orchestra with soprano, Karina Flores (Kai Bienert, MUTESOUVENIR)

The performance of the 14th Symphony for soprano, bass and chamber orchestra by Dmitri Shostakovich (1969) by the Youth Chamber Orchestra of St. Petersburg under the direction of Migran Agadzhanyan was both impressive and deeply moving. The composer sought to protest in the name of life on earth against inevitable, unjust and sometimes premature death. The basis of the symphony is eleven poems by Federico Garcia Lorca, Guillaume Apollinaire, Rainer Maria Rilke and the German-Russian poet Wilhelm Kuchelbecker, which deal with war, imprisonment and suicide. The instrumentation and vocals (Karina Flores, soprano, Felix Kudryavtsev, bass) retained a laconic-fatalistic tone, without any religious overtones.

The gloomy death songs reverberate for a long time. The festive atmosphere of Young Euro Classic gave way to deeply felt tones of sadness and empathy for the victims of war and oppression.

The young musicians are surprisingly serious, almost too serious ..., commented one German radio reporter. But, one could answer, it is todays serious world situation, which threatens the future of the entire younger generation, that resonates at this festival, despite all of the youthful joie de vivre.

For those able to access German television, some of Young Euro Classics concerts can be heard at Arte Concert, including:

Until September 11: Youth Chamber Orchestra St. Petersburg

Until September 13: European Youth Orchestra

Until September 16: Georgian Sinfonietta
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Labor Day 2018 is being celebrated today in the United States and Canada. As is the case every year, the day will be marked in the US with a few demonstrations organized by the AFL-CIO, where union officials and Democratic Party politicians deliver empty and hypocritical speeches. This year, however, Labor Day takes place amidst a resurgence of class struggle that is bringing workers into ever more direct conflict with the corporatist and anti-working class trade unions.

With public schools reopening, teachers are renewing their fight for substantial wage improvements and increased funding for public education. In the state of Washington, where in 2013 Democratic Governor Jay Inslee oversaw the largest corporate tax cut in US history$8.7 billion for aircraft and defense giant Boeingteachers have walked out in several districts. Despite efforts by the unions to shut down the struggles, there are increasing demands from rank-and-file educators for a statewide strike.

Last week, teachers in Los Angeles voted by 98 percent to authorize a strike in the nations second-largest school district, with 640,000 students and over 33,000 teachers. In Detroit, teachers and parents are livid over high levels of lead and copper in drinking water, just two years after Detroit teachers waged a series of wildcat sickouts over decaying schools and underfunded classrooms. The school district has been forced to shut off water to all the citys schools.

In the states where teachers waged statewide walkouts earlier this year, none of the issues motivating the strikes have been resolved. In Arizona, the state Supreme Court just threw off the ballot a tax initiative, called Invest in Education, which would have raised income taxes by a meager 3 to 4 percentage points on individuals and households earning more than $250,000. The unions, the Democrats and their affiliated organizations promoted the initiative as the solution to the funding crisis when they conspired to shut down the six-day strike by 60,000 Arizona teachers last May. In the end, however, the ruling class would not countenance the slightest incursion on its moneymaking operations.

The strikes in the US coincide with the growth of the class struggle internationally. Over the weekend, workers at South Western Railway in the UK carried out a three-day strike against the elimination of safety guards positions. This followed last months strike by Ryan Air pilots in Ireland, Spain and other European countries.

The trade unions have worked systematically to prevent strikes and, if unable, to quickly isolate these struggles and sell them out.

 The teacher unions have rushed to settle a dispute in Seattle, the largest school district in the state of Washington, in an effort to prevent a statewide walkout. The teacher strikes in the spring were not initiated by the unions but emerged through a rebellion of rank-and-file educators against them.

 After the labor agreement covering 31,000 workers at US Steel and ArcelorMittal expired Saturday, the United Steelworkers union has forced workers to remain on the job despite the demand for historic rollbacks by the highly profitable companies.

 A month after the July 31 expiration of the contracts covering 230,000 workers at United Parcel Service, the Teamsters has defied the overwhelming strike mandate by workers and is trying to push through a contract introducing lower wages and part-time conditions for package delivery drivers, along with poverty-level wages for warehouse workers.

 The Communications Workers of America has kept 7,000 AT&T workers on the job months after the expiration of their contracts.

 After Fiat Chrysler workers voted overwhelmingly to strike the companys transmission operations in Kokomo, Indiana, the United Auto Workers has kept them on the job. The UAW has been exposed as a direct arm of corporate management, accepting millions of dollars in exchange for its role in pushing though historic concessions on auto workers.

The actions of the trade unions are the expression of what they are. Over the past four decades, the unions, based on their defense of capitalism and the nation-state system, have been transformed into cheap labor contractors and police agencies over the working class. They exist not to organize opposition to the dictates of the ruling class, but to prevent this opposition.

During the Janus v. AFSCME case, attorneys for the public sector unions repeatedly told the Supreme Court justices that agency feesthe equivalent of union dues for public sector workers who opt out of union membershipwas the tradeoff for no strikes. That is, the state-sponsored, automatic deduction of a portion of workers wages was the payment for ensuring that workers do not rebel against the conditions imposed on them.

More recently, a spokesman for the New York State United Teachers told the Albany Times Union that the Taylor Law, which bars strikes by public sector employees, has worked effectively for more than 40 years in keeping the peace and should not be overturned.

At its recent Fifth National Congress, the Socialist Equality Party (US) passed a resolution, The Resurgence of Class Struggle and the Tasks of the Socialist Equality Party, that explained the consequences of the extreme growth of social inequality and the social and political radicalization of the working class and youth:

The United States is a social powder keg. The eruption of social struggles on a scale never before seen in the United States is all but inevitable. There are many factorsthe commonality of social interests among broad sections of the working class, the erosion of sectional differences, the racial and ethnic integration of the working class, the impact of Internet-based social mediathat are working toward the coalescence of mass protests. Thus, it is to be expected that the outbreak of serious social protestswhatever the immediate issue or wherever the locationwill rapidly expand and draw millions of workers into active participation in the struggle. Given the historical experience of the working class, the logical outcome of this coalescence of social struggles will be a general strike, which will raise the question of political power.

This analysis has proven correct. Workers throughout the country and internationally are seeking a way to oppose inequality, intensified exploitation, social misery and all the consequences of capitalism. However intense their internal conflicts, the representatives of the ruling class, Democrat and Republican, are united in their terror at the implications of the resurgence of class struggle.

The coordination and organization of working-class opposition requires the formation of new organizations, rank-and-file committees, independent of the trade unions. As the resolution states:

Therefore, preparation for mass working-class struggles requires the development of an interconnected network of popular workplace and neighborhood committees. The necessity for such committees arises out of the experiences of the workers themselves. The organizations that claim to represent them, the trade unions, are not only deeply hostile to the organization of working-class struggles, they have abandoned even the most limited forms of representation, including the resolving of grievances and the enforcement of contract provisions.

The development of such committees is a central task confronting every section of the working class. So long as the trade unions maintain their organizational stranglehold over the working class, the establishment of a genuinely united movement of the working classin the United States and internationallyis impossible.

The formation of factory committees and the preparation of a general strike raise, as the SEP resolution states, the question of political power. The fight for the most elemental necessitiesthe right to decent wages, high quality public education, health care and housing, and a future for the next generation free from war, political repression and violencerequires the revolutionary mobilization of the working class to take political power in its own hands, break the stranglehold of the corporate and financial aristocracy and carry out the socialist reorganization of society.
The closure of one of only two abortion clinics in Nashville could force poor and working class women to travel almost 600 miles round trip to obtain an abortion. In mid-August, the Women's Center announced recently that it would close its 419 Welshwood Drive offices, leaving only five such clinics remaining in the state of Tennessee.

The closure leaves only one remaining clinic performing abortion services in Tennessees most populous city. For women seeking an abortion, it was reported on August 16 that the waiting period for an appointment at Nashvilles Planned Parenthood was nearly two weeks.

The clinic's attorney, Thomas Jessee, told the Tennessean newspaper that women were being referred to clinics in Bristol and Knoxville, located in the far eastern part of the state. Knoxville is about 180 miles away with a driving time of six hours roundtrip, while Bristol is about 300 miles away, requiring nine hours roundtrip.

Francine Hunt, executive director of Advocates for Planned Parenthood, told the newspaper that the closing of the Nashville clinic is a sliver of the larger picture of reductions in general healthcare. We see this as a small part of an overarching healthcare issue, but it is notable that it is particularly pointed at women, Hunt said. Without a doubt, women's health is an absolute target right now in the healthcare arena.

According to the Guttmacher Institute, as of 2014, 60 percent of women seeking an abortion were in their 20s while 86 percent were unmarried. Fifty-nine percent of such seekers had one or more children. Strikingly but not unexpectedly, the institute found that 75 percent in the study were economically disadvantaged.

Significantly, no racial or ethnic group made up a majority: Some 39 percent of women obtaining abortions were white, 28 percent were black, 25 percent were Hispanic and 9 percent were of other racial or ethnic backgrounds.

According to a Marketwatch report in July, More than 27 cities across the U.S. qualify as abortion deserts, meaning people there need to travel more than 100 miles to get an abortion.

Travel costs money, so do hotel rooms, Elizabeth Nash, a state issues expert with Guutmacher said of closures in neighboring Kentucky: Not everybody gets paid time off. Essentially, you would be losing out on earning money. It balloons.

A woman from Nashville in need of an abortion would have to make an appointment for the clinic in Knoxville; a three-hour drive. After confirming an appointment for the procedure, the patient must wait a mandatory 48 hours. After the procedure, the patient must take a couple of days to recover. In all, the process could take up to a week or more. If the patient does not have proof of pregnancy done through blood work, this could add a few more days to the process as the blood work results are analyzed at the clinic.

Many jobs do not offer paid time off and require advance notice of time off needed. Many women who need abortions do so because of the lack of resources to raise a child. Not only is an abortion an expensive procedure, the financial cost of taking off from work and traveling can be a severe financial burden.

According to Guttermacher, the following restrictions on abortion were in effect in Tennessee as of May 1, 2018:

 A woman must receive state-directed counseling and then wait 48 hours before the procedure is provided. Counseling must be provided in person and must take place before the waiting period begins, thereby necessitating two trips to the facility.

 Health plans offered in the states health exchange under the Affordable Care Act may not provide coverage of abortion.

 The use of telemedicine to administer medication abortion is prohibited.

 The parent of a minor must consent before an abortion is provided.

 Public funding is provided for abortion operations only in situations involving life endangerment, rape or incest.

A state bill passed in May 2017 requires that a pregnant woman undergo a test for fetal viability and gestational age before an abortion may be allowed. A doctor that violates the law faces up to 15 years imprisonment. Tennessee state law does not properly define what terms such as fetal viability mean, leaving the results of such tests subject to political bias.

As Tennessee shuts its facilities serving primarily the poor and working class, Nashville/Davidson County is awash in corporations making money in providing healthcare services.

According to Becker's Hospital Review 2016, six of the top ten for-profit healthcare corporations in the nation are either in Metropolitan Nashville/Davidson County or in Williamson County, the richest county in the state and adjacent to Metro Nashville.

The Nashville area is a health-care hub, with more than 400 health-care organizations and 250,000 jobs connected to health care throughout the region, boasted the website liviability.com. From pioneering research to medical device innovation, life sciences discovery taking place in Tennessee is having an impact around the world ... More than 1,700 life sciences businesses and organizations operate in the state, among them such household names as Johnson & Johnson, Merck, GlaxoSmithKline, Smith & Nephew, Medtronic and DeRoyal.

Nashville has slavishly given hundreds of millions of dollars in tax breaks to corporations while Meharry/General Hospital, the charity hospital for the destitute and poor, struggles to stay open. The citys previous mayor sought unsuccessfully to have the hospital turned into an out-patient clinic.

While this was happening, the city agreed to give Opryland Resorts an almost $14 million tax break to build a $90 million water theme park only open to hotel guests of the Resorts hotel. As the WSWS reported in June, the tax gifts to healthcare corporations, including for items such as luxury office furniture, are just as obscene.

Despite billions of dollars in healthcare investment and dozens of hospitals in Nashville and surrounding counties, poor and working class women are limited to a single, small clinic for elective abortions.
On Saturday, Rob Tibbetts, the father of Mollie Tibbetts, the young Iowa woman whose body was found in late August after a month-long search operation, published a guest column in the Des Moines Register. He declared that his daughter is nobodys pawn, and that to use her death to peddle a racist, anti-immigrant agenda is both heartless and despicable.

The message of the column was powerful and straightforward. The grieving father asked right-wing politicians and pundits to stop distorting and corrupting Mollies death to advance a cause that she vehemently opposed and not use his familys tragedy to push the Trump administrations foul anti-immigrant agenda.

The immediate cause for the column seems to be an op-ed published last week in the same forum by Donald Trump Jr., the presidents oldest son. Framed loosely as a commentary on the response to Mollies murder, Trump Jr.s op-ed is notable only for the fact that it relentlessly and shamelessly hammers home his fathers usual talking points: illegal alien crime is one of the biggest problems faced by American society; the Left, i.e., the Democratic Party has facilitated this existential threat because of an ideological commitment to open borders; and Mollies murder would never have happened if we policed our southern border properly. Not one of Trump Jr.s claims stands up to even minimal scrutiny.

There have been numerous studies by academics and think tanks in recent years that have clearly shown that there is no correlation between immigration and crime. If anything, research seems to indicate that immigrants are less like to commit crimes than those who are American-born.

On the political front, to claim that the Democrats have been supporters of open borders is ludicrous. Historically, the militarization of the border has been the product of a bipartisan consensus amongst the ruling class. Many of the detention camps that are being used by the Trump administration were in fact set up during the Obama administration. It was during Obamas tenure that the US deported more immigrants than during the rest of its history, earning the president the title of deporter-in-chief.

In the aftermath of Mollies funeral, the Hispanic community in Des Moines has been the target of anti-immigrant groups that have painted racist graffiti on public roads and used recorded calls to threaten violence. The calls, traced to an out-of-state group called the Road to power, state that Tibbetts was killed by an invader from Mexico and that America should be white only.

Our community members are very afraid, Latino community leader Joe Henry told CNN affiliate KCCI. We had young people last week who were confronted even walking in parks. Two local festivals celebrating Latino culture in Iowa were postponed, with organizers for one the events citing security concerns.

In his op-ed, Rob Tibbetts reached out to the Hispanic community, saying, my family stands with you and offers its heartfelt apology. That youve been beset by the circumstances of Mollies death is wrong. We treasure the contribution you bring to the American tapestry in all its color and melody. The person accused of Mollies murder, her father wrote, is no more a reflection of the Hispanic community as white supremacists are of all white people. To suggest otherwise is a lie.

Revealing a more profound understanding of democratic rights than the current administration, Tibbetts pointed out that the accused will receive a fair trial, and if found guilty, he would face the consequences society has set, and that would be the end of the matter. To focus on his ethnicity or legal status was to knowingly foment discord among races. Such an action, Tibbetts stated, incites fear in innocent communities and lends legitimacy to the darkest, most hate-filled corners of the American soul. It is the opposite of leadership. It is the opposite of humanity... It is shameful.

Given the systematic attempt by the Trump administration and its supporters to promote a fascistic ideological atmosphere targeting immigrants, the heartfelt statement by Rob Tibbetts is a powerful sign of the working classs unwillingness to fall into this trap. Under the most tragic of circumstances, instead of falling prey to the foul rhetoric emanating from the White House, Tibbetts statement reveals thoughtfulness, humanity and a commitment to democratic principles.
The Ukrainian government of President Petro Poroshenko is facing a serious economic crisis as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is demanding ever greater social cuts.

Since the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991, the various oligarchic bourgeois regimes that have ruled the country have accepted IMF funding in exchange for carrying out a series of reforms, such as the privatization of state-owned industries and elimination of government subsidies, all carried out at the expense of the working class.

The current IMF program, under which Ukraine has received only $8.7 billion of a potential $17.5 billion, is scheduled to expire in March of next year. The IMF has not released any funds to the country since April 2017.

The current sticking point is the elimination of household gas subsidies. Any rise in consumer prices would be correctly seen by Ukraines working class as an even further lowering of their already precarious living standards.

After initially agreeing to raise household gas prices, Poroshenko has repeatedly continued a freeze on consumer gas prices and most recently set a new deadline of September 1 for continued government subsidies.

The government argues that without an injection of funds from the IMF, the government may start defaulting on paychecks for government workers. As of July, the country had already begun delaying pension payments to retirees causing widespread dissatisfaction.

Prime Minister Volodymyr Groysman blamed the delays on the incompetence of the countrys pension fund managers, rather than any critical drop in the stability of the Poroshenko regime, and promised an investigation.

A significant percentage of Ukraines elderly population relies on monthly pension payments to survive. One of the IMFs other demands is that the country increase the retirement age, which currently stands at 60 for men and 58 for women. Any scheme to cut pensions or adjust the retirement age would be a disaster for the over 8 million pensioners in Ukraine who live on less than $50 a month and millions more preparing to retire.

In October of last year the government attempted to appease the IMF and passed a pension reform bill. The bill cut back on early retirements and increased the number of years workers must contribute to the pension system in order to qualify, but stopped short of raising the retirement age or cutting payments. The move was apparently not enough for the IMF as it nevertheless refused to release any more funds to the country.

The ongoing war in the Donbass the region of the country has already given the government an excuse to cut the pensions of residents in Donbass or to make it extremely difficult for refugees to obtain their payments while living elsewhere in the country. In September of last year, the Norwegian Refugee Council reported that up to 600,000 Ukrainians had lost their pensions since December 2014, most of them elderly residents in areas in eastern Ukraine not controlled by Kiev.

There is also anxiety in Kiev that Russias construction of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline will cut out its position as middle-man in the transit of gas between Russia and Western Europe and deprive it of needed foreign cash. The Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline will connect Russia directly to Germany through the Baltic Sea and is scheduled to be completed in 2019.

Naftogaz, the state-owned gas and oil company of Ukraine, is in large part only profitable thanks to the transit fees it receives from Russia as it sends gas to European countries such as Germany, which obtains 70 percent of its gas from Russia. The current transit arrangement between Russias Gazprom and Naftogaz is set to expire January 1, 2020, just as Nord Stream 2 is to launch.

Any losses from such transit fees would be taken out of the pockets of Ukrainian workers in the form of a rapid hike of gas prices.

Other EU members and most notably the Trump administration have criticized Germany for moving forward with the Nord Stream 2 pipeline in the midst of their confrontation with Moscow.

Further exacerbating Ukraines fiscal situation is the fact that the Ukrainian government will be facing $15 billion in foreign debt repayments between 2018 and 2020. Even if Ukraine complies with the orders of the IMF, the scheduled influx of $2 billion will simply go to paying off foreign debt rather than into pensions and the paychecks of government workers.

In addition to the demands to ramp up attacks on the working class, the IMF and Western governments constantly harangue Kiev over corruption. A campaign in recent months in the bourgeois press, especially in the US and Germany, has attacked the Poroshenko regime over the pervasive corruption in Ukrainea phenomenon that has characterized the oligarchy there, as in all countries of the former Soviet Union, ever since the destruction of the USSR.

In August, the German newspaper Suddeutsche Zeitung reported that Ukraine loses $4.8 billion a year due to corruption. The country regularly ranks near the bottom in Transparency International's Corruption Perception Index.

In response to the criticism, Kiev in July expanded the powers of a recently created sham anti-corruption court, which Poroshenko himself initially opposed but then embraced when IMF cash was not forthcoming. The IMF praised the anti-corruption efforts but flatly refused to budge on releasing any more cash until gas prices are raised to market levels.

Behind the bogus anti-corruption campaign is the concern that the obvious corruption among the Ukrainian oligarchs and their control over much of the Ukrainian economy impede US and German business interests in the country. At the same time, the imperialist powers and the IMF are using the issue to push for further attacks on the already abysmally low living standards of the Ukrainian working class.

The Poroshenko regimes hesitancy in fully implementing the IMF demands is rooted in its fear of an uncontrollable explosion of working class anger. In July, miners from Donetsk in Eastern Ukraine struck over the government failure to pay out more than $107 million promised to support the country's troubled coal mines.

Miners at the mine Kapitalnaya went on strike, demanding that they be paid their salaries from May and June. According to Life.Ru, as of mid-July the government owed the miners over $41.6 million in salary payments. Protests and demonstrations by miners also took place in the Lviv region in West Ukraine and in the capital in Kiev.

In May, workers struck at the western Ukrainian metallurgical factory ArselorMittal Krivoi Rog, which produces railroad tracks, demanding better working conditions and wages. The average monthly salary in Ukraine is currently around $300. There exists a vast chasm between the countrys ruling oligarchic elite (as of 2015, Poroshenko had a net worth of $720 million) and the Ukrainian working class.

Under these socially explosive conditions, Poroshenko is well aware that his governments obvious servitude to the IMF would likely result in the elimination of his already slim chances for reelection in next years presidential elections.
As Clarke Tucker drove through a city once dominated by Bill Clinton, he signaled he was ready to move on.

Not from Little Rock or the congressional campaign he was arduously waging against Republican Rep. French Hill, but from the Clintons all together.

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"They are part of history, and it is great obviously," the Democratic candidate said of Bill and Hillary Clinton as he drove through a city where the moniker is omnipresent. "But at the same time, we are trying to progress and move forward as a state, and they are not an active part of that. So, people are kind of ready to move on."

Tucker, a 37-year old congressional candidate who national Democrats see as a rising star, may represent Arkansas Democrats' best chance to regain a foothold in a state they once commanded. The race could hinge on Tucker's attempts to court African American voters, a strategy that has been key to the Democratic Party's success in other races in the deep-red South.

Tucker is a moderate Democrat out of step with the party's far left reaches, but he has staked the campaign on a personal health care message, regularly speaking candidly with voters about his own bladder cancer diagnosis in 2017.

"It just gives you a new perspective on life," Tucker said of his diagnosis, "on what is important and what is not important."

Unlike many of his predecessors, Tucker -- an introverted but engaging candidate, is untethered to the Clintons and seemingly fine with it.

"We need new blood," he said.

The candidate hasn't personally reached out to either Clinton for campaign help, but one of his top consultants -- Robert McLarty, a relative of Bill Clinton's first chief of staff Mack McLarty -- did reach out to the Clintons for their assistance, according to sources familiar with the request. Tucker, who is waging a campaign pledging to vote against House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, was also not among the roughly two dozen candidates Hillary Clinton's political group donated to earlier this year.

Spokesmen for Hillary and Bill Clinton declined to comment for the story.

While Tucker lauds the couple's importance to the state and fondly remembers being in front of the Old State House in 1992 to watch Bill Clinton's presidential acceptance speech, he also laments being aware of the President's "stuff", does not cite the former governor among his political idols and criticizes Clinton's backing of the 1993 crime bill, a plan that the former President has admitted was a mistake because it led to mass incarceration.

And aides inside Tucker's campaign are even more blunt: Any help from Bill Clinton, said one Democrat, would be a net negative. And any help from Hillary Clinton, a Democrat who has long had a complicated relationship with the state she lived in for two decades, could hurt even more.

This tension gets to a larger issue in a state that has largely cast Democrats out of power over the last six years. Bill and Hillary Clinton, while once incredibly popular in Arkansas, are now a political liability outside the Democratic confines of Little Rock, making it hard for someone like Tucker to embrace the couple.

But Tucker isn't alone in distancing himself for national leaders -- and the predicament is bipartisan.

Hill, Tucker's wonky but affable opponent who has represented the district since 2015, has a similarly complicated relationship with President Donald Trump. While he has stood by the President at times in Washington, he wants little to do with him as he battles Tucker.

Asked what he wold tell Trump if the president offered to rally for him in Arkansas, Hill was blunt as he enjoyed coffee at a local Waffle House: How about Pence?

"I'd say I'm going to invite the Vice President (Mike Pence)," Hill said he would tell the President. "I think the Vice President is somebody who I think fits the personality of this district."

Possibly realizing what he was saying, Hill added, "President Trump fits a big part of it, too, but I just think the VP is somebody who embodies sort of the economic message, the national security message, the faith message, all of which I hear about when I am in this district."

Hill, in a sign of confidence, concluded by saying he believed Trump should be focused on "big races where there is either more at risk... and this race is not in that kind of political situation."

The 'critical' African American vote

Both Hill and Tucker believe African American voters, who make up roughly 20% of the district's electorate, could decide the race. But it's Tucker who knows he can't win without them.

"They are critical. Critical in the district and therefore critical to the campaign," Tucker said after a Saturday full of campaigning in African American neighborhoods around Little Rock.

And Tucker is taking no chances. His campaign enlisted Rep. John Lewis, a Civil Rights icon, to stump for Tucker at black churches on Sunday, an experience that Tucker was visibly moved by.

"We are making a conscience effort to be out in the community and show African American voters here that they are an important part of my hopes and dreams for this part of the state," Tucker said after he visited Arkansas Beauty College to meet with instructors and students.

Tucker isn't a commanding presence. He proudly calls himself an introvert -- "I just don't like being the center of attention," he said -- but is confident in who he is. When Keith Rancifer, a longtime African American field organizer in Little Rock suggested he walk into the beauty school and boisterously announce his presence, Tucker was unmoved.

"That's not me," he said, deciding to ignore the advice and quietly make his way around the expansive room with little fanfare.

Bill Clinton he is not, but the beauticians in training loved it.

"I think that African Americans are on guard with the temperature of our country nowadays," said Gwendolyn Midbleton, the campus president of the school. "We are wanting someone who is going to be true and authentic."

Lewis, who spoke with Tucker at two churches and a boisterous rally at Philander Smith College, implored voters like Midbleton to stand with the young candidate.

"It's good to be here with a young man, a young brother, a wonderful man, Clarke Tucker," he said at St. John Baptist Church to applause. "I have been in Washington for almost 30 years. We need help. We need a lot of help."

Lewis' call for help in Congress was a subtle rebuke to Hill, a Republican that has worked directly with the Civil Rights leader in Congress. Hill shook off Lewis' trip to Arkansas and admitted that he doesn't expect to pull in much of the black voter in November.

"I compete for all the votes," Hill said. "With that said, I don't win a large percentage of the African American vote. I work for it. I try to earn it. And I will continue to try to do that."

He added: "I think I have taken the steps... to make the case to African American voters that they should diversify their political participation and they should support Republican candidates who are working for the community, the entire community."

Pushing the rock up the hill

Tucker rejects the idea that he, like some white politicians, needed time on the campaign trail to learn how to relate to African American voters.

His reasoning: He spent four years at Central High, the famed Little Rock high school that famously desegregated in 1957. Tucker was the class president his senior year and believes that experience working with the school's diverse population, along with his time intersecting with the Little Rock Nine, the nine African American students who first desegregated, as foundational to his ability to reach black voters.

"I have a different skin tone... but I feel like these are my people and that is who I want to represent in Congress," Tucker said. "I feel very comfortable and passionate about representing these communities."

Tucker would go on to study at Harvard -- he was in the same class as Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner -- and then got his law degree at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville. Those close to Tucker said it always seemed like he wanted to get into politics, and he did in 2014 when he successfully ran to represent part of Little Rock in the Arkansas legislature.

Tucker's quick rise at a young age has state Democrats hopeful about his future, but as losses for Democrats stack up in Arkansas, some are left asking whether there will be statewide or federal positions for a candidate like him.

That negativity is apparent in even brief conversations with Democrats in Little Rock, including Elizabeth Eckford, one of the eight surviving Little Rock Nine, the first nine African American students who enrolled Little Rock Central High School in 1957.

While she has endorsed Tucker and has appeared at campaign events with him, she was blunt about his long odds of winning in an interview.

"I think it is something that will prepare him for opportunities in the future and it is giving people an alternative," she said. "But he has got an uphill battle."

She paused and tried to recall the story of Sisyphus, the character from Greek mythology who is forced to push a boulder up a hill without every getting to the top.

"Who is that person in mythology who is pushing this globe up the hill," she asked. "I think he has a similar story."

She added: "Clarke will be eventually win. But this is going to be an uphill struggle."
MIDWAY, Fla.(WTXL) - On Second Cup on Monday the spotlight turned to students with disabilities and creating a venue for them to show work specific skills.

WTXL ABC Sunrise Anchor Christine Souders spoke to Stephen Tessel of the ARC of the Big Bend.

At an upcoming Jobapalooza, the students will get a chance to interact with the business community as future employees.

Employers will set up booths with a task that is performed at their place of business.

Students with disabilities and their peer mentor will demonstrate the task and be judged with their speed and accuracy.

Local businesses will be able to give back to the same people that support their business through this event.

Students will learn new job tasks leading to new skill development and knowledge of the local business community. Mentors will learn leadership skills.

The event will be Sept. 6, 2018, from 9 a.m. - 2 p.m. at Leon High School, 550 E. Tennessee St.

More information is available at their site.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - A Tallahassee man has been arrested, accused of threatening a witness in a child sexual battery case he is at the center of.

Willie Washington, 31, was arrested over the weekend.

According to a probable cause documents, on Aug. 16, officers began investigating accusations that Washington sexually assaulted a minor.

The victim said the sexual assaults started at the age of 9.

Washington would touch the victim under the guise that he "needed to check [the victim]," according to court documents, and repeatedly sexually assaulted the victim. Documents say Washington allegedly told the victim that what he was doing was okay because he wasn't the victim's biological father.

Eventually, the victim's mother found out what had been going on and Washington began threatening her, documents say.

When asked why police were called on Aug. 16, the victim stated Washington got into an argument with the victim's mother and threatened to have all of the kids taken if she said anything about the sexual allegations.

Court documents say investigators spoke to the victim's mother, who confirmed that Washington had been calling and texting her repeatedly about the case, trying to keep her from talking to law enforcement.

Investigators note that Washington tampered when he text the victim's mother five times, the most recent text saying, "If she says nothing... then you should't worry... if they have nothing, it will go away."

Based on the evidence, Washington was charged with five counts of tampering with a witness or informant. Police are still investigating the sexual assault allegations against Washington.
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WTXL) - An armed robbery victim and the suspect in the robbery have been arrested after a shooting at Seminole Grand apartments.

Janoah D. Jackson, 24, and Landon D. Wilson, 20, face charges from the incident at 1505 West Tharpe Street, which happened about 1:41 a.m. Monday.

Jackson was suffering from a gunshot wound and was taken to a hospital with non-life threatening injuries, a TPD news release said.

Police said Jackson attempted to commit an armed robbery against Wilson. During the struggle, Wilson fired his handgun, hitting Jackson.

Police said they later found that the robbery victim, Wilson, possessed a stolen firearm. As a result, both men were transported and booked into the Leon County Detention Facility.

Jackson has been charged with possession of a weapon by a Florida convicted felon and robbery with a firearm. Wilson has been charged with grand theft of a firearm.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-02 22:12:21|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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Photo taken on Sept. 2, shows a street blocked by burning tires in Aden, Yemen. Traders in the southern port city of Aden held a general strike in protest against the collapse of the Yemeni riyal and the skyrocketing prices of basic commodities. (Xinhua/Murad Abdu)

by Murad Abdu

ADEN, Yemen, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Traders in the southern port city of Aden held a general strike in protest against the collapse of the Yemeni riyal and the skyrocketing prices of basic commodities.

Early on Sunday morning, shops and local companies remained closed across Aden as citizens and traders held a general strike to pressure the internationally-backed government.

People in a number of other provincial capitals controlled by the government also organized anti-government demonstrations, demanding economic solutions for the sharp depreciation of the country's national currency.

Angry protesters blocked the main streets in Aden with burning tyres and rocks, forcing government institutions to stop working.

Many stores and wholesalers in Aden city confirmed to Xinhua that they opted to shut their doors rather than selling imported products at loss.

Owners of exchanges companies and commercial banks in Aden also joined the strike and closed their doors in protest against the currency crisis that reached the critical point.

Following about four years of deadly military conflict, the depreciation of Yemeni riyal continued in recent days. In the street markets in Aden, where the Saudi-backed government is officially based, 1 U.S. dollar was traded for 623 riyals, up from 215 riyals compared with the rate before the war.

With the sharp devaluation of the local currency against major foreign currencies, prices of basic commodities witnessed hikes, worsening the economic woes and leaving many citizens in destitute in the war-ravaged Arab country.

Due to difficult living conditions and surging food prices, millions of people, observers said, will suffer more in the next few months.

Humanitarian organizations say over 80 percent of people in Yemen need humanitarian aid and over 7 million people are suffering from famine.

Political activists in Aden urged Saudi Arabia and the other Gulf countries to support the Yemeni economy and save citizens from starvation.

"Our neighbors have the ability to rescue our country and they should move immediately. Saudi Arabia must do something to help Yemenis economically," said Ahmed Fuad, an activist in Aden.

"The currency crisis will create more complicated problems in Yemen that will definitely affect the neighboring Gulf countries," Fuad said, adding Yemen needs economic support instead of military and "it's time to end this ugly war because more catastrophes are looming."

The impoverished Arab country has been locked into a civil war since the Iranian-backed Shiite Houthi rebels overran much of the country militarily and seized all northern provinces including the capital Sanaa in 2014.

The internal military conflict between the Iranian-backed Houthis and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government recently entered its fourth year, aggravating the suffering of Yemenis and deepening the world's worst humanitarian crisis in the country.

Last year, the Yemeni government floated the national currency, a move economic observers and analysts said was not well-studied a year after the relocation of the Central Bank to Aden.

The Yemeni economy is continuing to suffer after all exports were halted following a blockade on the country which was part of a Saudi-led military intervention in March 2015. The blockade has also largely restricted imports.

All investments, including oil and gas projects, whose revenues used to contribute more than 70 percent of the state budget, were shut down.

Flow of foreign cash has stopped almost completely and widespread corruption within the government institutions is among the many problems that deepen the economic misery.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 01:33:22|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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JERUSALEM, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Some 250 workers of Israel's Teva Pharmaceutical, the world's largest generic drugmaker, launched a strike on Sunday to protest against the debt-laden company's plan to sell the plant.

Israeli-based Teva announced eight months ago that it intends to sell medical equipment plant "Migada" in the north city of Kiryat Shmona, as part of its streamlining program worldwide.

Teva has promised the workers that the plant will not be closed because it is profitable, but the workers still fear for their future.

The plant's workers were saved from the company's plan, which announced at the end of last year closure of factories and mass layoffs.

Five months ago, Teva was still considering the sale of the northern factory, as well as the logistic center in the town of Shoham in central Israel, but the company announced that both would not be closed.

Meanwhile, Teva announced the closure of its plant in the southern city of Ashdod, and the workers in Kiryat Shmona fear that their fate will be similar.

The General Federation of Labor in Israel "Histadrut" said that it supports the workers' strike and added that "we regret that Teva management does not understand that in far places such as Kiryat Shmona, the employment alternative for workers is almost non-existent."

Teva said that they are working to sell the plant as a live business that ensures the continuity of the employees, as part of the reorganization process.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 02:53:36|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RIYADH, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Saudi-led coalition involved in a war in Yemen confirmed on Sunday the interception of a ballistic missile fired by Houthi militias toward the border city of Jazan, Al Arabiya local news reported.

The frequency of Houthi missile attacks has increased in recent weeks, with most of them destroyed by Saudi air forces without reporting casualties or property damage.

The missile attacks were claimed to be launched in response to Saudi airstrikes in Yemen.

Saudi Arabia has been leading an Arab military coalition in Yemen over the last three years against Houthi militias, which overran much of northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, in late 2014.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 04:44:00|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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HELSINKI, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Passengers should wash their hands quickly after going through the airport security checks. This is one of the recommendations based on a study by the supreme Finnish public health body, the Agency for Health and Wellbeing, into the conditions at the Helsinki international airport.

The investigation released on the weekend revealed that the plastic trays used for travelers to put gadgets and clothing in through the x-ray checking have a huge bacteria and virus load.

The toilets meanwhile got a clean bill. Samples from the upper covers of toilets, the flushing handle and the door handles gave no indications of viruses. The fact that janitors pop into toilets regularly can be an explanation.

The highest risks were found in a children's play corner. A plastic dog pet featured two contageous viruses. Experts of the Health and Wellbeing Agency concluded that the particular dog may have made hundreds of kids sick.

The buttons of the card payment terminals in the airport pharmacy also offered a good collection of the ailments the customers of the pharmacy appear to have had.

The security check trays carried adeno, influenza A, rhino and corona OC43. The pet dog featured at least adeno and rhino.

The recommendation for travelers to wash hands quickly after the security check is not that easy to follow, at least in Helsinki. There are wash basins in toilets, but their availability is limited compared to the number of travellers. Many customers actually tend to go directly from the security checks to enjoy shopping and cafeteria.

Commenting on the results, the weekend business magazine Talouselama noted that avoiding touching the trays or boxes in the security checks would "require major acrobatics".

There was no immediate comment from the airport authority as to whether the wearing of thin gloves all through the screening process could be allowed. The security attendants meanwhile have protective gloves.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 08:21:28|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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Medical workers prepare medicines for cholera-infected children at a hospital in Sanaa, Yemen, on Sept. 2, 2018. The UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) on Aug. 22 said that the number of suspected cholera cases in Yemen is reportedly increasing, raising concerns of a possible "third wave" of the epidemic. (Xinhua/Mohammed Mohammed)
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 08:59:39|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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TOKYO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks opened lower Monday on concerns over free trade talks between the United States and Canada.

As of 9:15 a.m. local time, the 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 98.57 points, or 0.43 percent, from Friday to 22,766.58.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, lost 7.84 points, or 0.45 percent, to 1,727.51.

Iron and steel, mining, and pulp and paper-linked issues comprised those that declined the most in the opening minutes after the morning bell.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 12:05:16|Editor: Liangyu

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MANILA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- An explosion broke out on Monday in a port in Masbate, an island province in the Bicol region in the Philippines, damaging Philippine army and Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) boats, but no injures were reported.

PCG spokesman Capt. Armand Balilo said the explosion occurred around 12:30 a.m. local time at Masbate port, some 100 meters away from a PCG station where the speedboats were moored.

Balilo said two new PCG boats were damaged while an army boat was totally destroyed.

"Witnesses disclosed that prior to the incident, a small motorized banca was seen roaming the vicinity of the incident," Balilo said, adding that a police investigation is underway.

According to the initial investigation, a homemade explosive was apparently used in the attack by an unknown group.

Police recovered pieces of orange polyvinyl chloride pipes and shattered pieces of the damaged boats from the site.

It was the second explosion that rocked the port in over a month. On Aug. 2, an improvised explosive device also went off at the port and damaged two motorboats owned by fishermen, police said.

No one was hurt in both incidents, police said.

Police have yet to conclude whether the two explosions are related.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 12:55:22|Editor: ZD

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SAN JOSE, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- Costa Rica should take an active part in the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative, and strive to boost ties with China, said political observer and China expert Sergio Rivero.

China's Belt and Road Initiative is gaining traction in Latin America, he said, adding that the Costa Rican government should take advantage of China's impetus in developing infrastructure and promoting international trade.

Proposed in 2013, the initiative aims to build a trade and infrastructure network connecting Asia with Europe and Africa along the ancient trade routes of the Silk Road.

"I think the key point of the Belt and Road is interconnectivity," he said.

China is involved in a key infrastructure project which is underway in Costa Rica -- the expansion of Route 32, a major highway connecting the capital San Jose with the port of Limon, one of the country's leading trade hubs.

The new Route 32 will influence areas including tourism, trade and logistics as well as the growth of regions that are still neglected, Rivero said.

Costa Rica should take the opportunity and dedicate more economic and human resources to cooperation with China, Rivero said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 14:50:39|Editor: Liangyu

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by Xinhua writers Chu Yi & Lin Bifeng

KUNMING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Yang Xiandou was only 15 years old when he joined thousands of local people to dig a road through the mountains in southwest China's Yunnan province to help the country fight the Japanese aggressors during the Second World War.

The Japanese army escalated the invasion into a full-scale war against Chinese in 1937, blocking ports in China's coastal areas and cutting off the Yunnan-Vietnam railway, thus making it extremely difficult for China to get supplies from allies.

At that critical moment, a road was the key to all.

China on Monday marked the 73th anniversary of the victory of the Chinese People's War of Resistance against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, memories of the hards days eight decades ago resurfaced.

Japan signed the formal surrender on Sept. 2, 1945, and China celebrated its victory the following day and declared Sept. 3 Victory Day.

Yang, born in 1922, was the youngest of four kids in a farming family that had been living in Lijia village in the city of Baoshan for generations.

Local leaders came to every household and required villagers to help build a road linking Yunnan and Myanmar.

"But I was too young to know what was going on," Yang said.

As the dawn broke on a cold winter day, the little boy set off on foot with a carrying pole. He packed tools including a hoe, two dustpans and a sickle and daily necessities for ten days -- a quilt, clothes, as well as potatoes, rice and pickles for food.

In the jungle, vines wrapped themselves around his ankles. Due to safety concerns, usually, around 50 villagers traveled together.

"To get to the construction site, we had to climb up steep mountains more than 2,000 meters above sea level, with more than 30 kg of luggage for at least one day, from dawn to dusk," he said.

Upon arriving, they need to build a shed in the nearby mountains first. Adults and the strong were responsible for the work. They cut four trees to form the foundation and then used sheets made from bamboo for the walls and roof. The only things inside were self-made straw mattresses which served as their beds.

"A larger shed can fit four people while a smaller can fit two," Yang said.

As one of the youngest workers, Yang's duty was the easiest, mainly digging into the hillside and transporting stones and soil to less elevated areas.

From morning to night, the road was filled with thousands of workers -- teenagers, adults, and the elderly.

"Without any advanced equipment or machinery, everything depended on human forces," he said.

In the evening, the road was the most dangerous part. Using ropes, a dozen workers pulled a huge stone used to flatten the mountainous terrain.

"A large stone roller can weigh several tonnes and its speed was hard to control, especially when going downhill. It was common that the stone ran over workers who failed to pull it back," Yang said.

Despite the hardships and dangers, nobody gave up. "Even during rainy days, workers would continue with raincoats made from straw."

Yang worked a total of 100 days, completing over 40 km of road.

Besides Yang, about 200,000 Chinese people paved a miracle in road history, completing more than 540 km in nine months during the war, about half of the 1,146-km China-Myanmar road (also known as the Burma Road) that connects Kunming, the provincial capital of Yunnan, with Lashio of Myanmar.

A total of 242 new bridges and about 1,800 culverts were also built along the road.

Since 1938, trucks and cars have sped in an endless stream along the road. During China's war against Japanese invasion, about 490,000 tonnes of supplies from Western allies carried over the road first arrived in Kunming, then traveled over mountains, passing through cities such as Guiyang, the provincial capital of Guizhou, before continuing to Chongqing, where the interim government was based.

"The China-Myanmar road played a vital role in China's victory of its war against Japanese invasion, and the construction workers are the real heroes that have made the impossible come true," said Yu Ge, writer and WWII expert.

"They leave us with great spiritual heritage, motivating Chinese to pursue a better life with hard work," he added.

About 80 years later, most of the workers have passed away and Yang is one of less than 10 workers still alive. His life has undergone tremendous changes.

Yang retired from a state-owned forest farm in 1980 and now enjoys pension and subsidies of about 3,000 yuan (439 U.S. dollars) a month.

At the age of 96, he keeps reading and watching TV every day. He has a large family of 36 people; his eldest great-grandson is seven years old.

Living a tranquil and cozy life with his daughter in a two-story house in the countryside, Yang often tells his story to his offspring.

"Life is better but history should never be forgotten. Surviving through wartime makes me cherish the hard-won peace more than ever," he said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 15:05:42|Editor: Li Xia

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Indian devotees form a human pyramid to reach and break curd-pot, on occasion of the Janmashtami Festival in Mumbai, India, Monday, Sept. 3, 2018. The Indian city of Mumbai has been since Sunday busy celebrating "Dahi Handi" (Mud Pot in literal translation), a Hindu festival which is also known as "Janmashtami" in the rest of the country to celebrate the birth of Lord Krishna, Indian Express reported on Monday. (Xinhua/Stringer)

MUMBAI, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Indian city of Mumbai has been since Sunday busy celebrating "Dahi Handi" (Mud Pot in literal translation), a Hindu festival which is also known as "Janmashtami" in the rest of the country to celebrate the birth of Lord Krishna, Indian Express reported on Monday.

"Dahi Handi" involves communities hanging an earthen pot filled with dahi (yoghurt) or other milk-based delicacies, at a height easy or difficult to reach. Young men would then form teams, make a human pyramid and attempt to reach or break the pot.

While it has religious implications tied to it, in the same way as other great celebrations in India, "Dahi Handi" is additionally celebrated with a considerable measure of pageantry and show boisterous DJs, insane rain dance and what always takes the spotlight, a Dahi Handi challenge.

During Janmashtami in Mumbai, the roads are claimed by govindas (people who act as human pyramids) upon the arrival of Dahi Handi. As indicated by Hindu folklore, Lord Krishna and his companions used to form human pyramids to break pots hung from the roofs of neighbourhood houses in order to steal curd and butter in Vrindavan, a village in Uttar Pradesh.

To remember that custom on this day, youngsters, called govindas, attempt to break the dahi handi by forming human pyramids.

"In Mumbai, clay pots filled with curd, butter, money and turmeric are hung high and a group of professionals make human pyramids and break the pot with a coconut and, if they are "courageous" enough, with their foreheads," the Express said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 16:00:56|Editor: Li Xia

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JAKARTA, Sept. 13 (Xinhua) -- The number of foreign holiday makers travelling into Indonesia inched up 12.92 percent to 9.06 million people from January to July year-over-year, the national statistics bureau announced on Monday.

On months, the arrival shot higher 16.57 percent to 1.54 million people in July, head of the bureau Kecuk Suhariyanto disclosed.

The official said that the hike continued the uptrend which has kicked off since June and for July alone, it was amplified by the commencement of holiday season in American continent, he cited.

"Countries situated in the American continent have entered summer holiday season," Suhariyanto said at the bureau headquarters.

The enlargement of the schedules of direct flights overseas also factored in addition to the summer holiday factor, he cited.

China, followed by Malaysia, Timor-Leste, Singapore and Australia, is the most contributing country to the Indonesian foreign tourist arrivals in May, the official noted.

Indonesia has estimated a total of 17 million foreign holiday makers arriving in the country this year after logging a 15 million figure in 2017.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 16:10:59|Editor: ZX

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by Jamil Bhatti

ISLAMABAD, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Pakistani government led by Prime Minister Imran Khan has shown its full support and a firm commitment to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), vowing to utilize the project for poverty alleviation and development of the country.

In the victory speech after his Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party won the July 25 general election, Imran Khan described CPEC as one of the best models to bring people out of poverty and assured the nation that the PTI would take it as an opportunity for the development of Pakistan.

"China has given us an opportunity of progress by starting CPEC which can raise prospects of investment flows from other countries and investors," said Khan, adding that his government would learn from China how they pulled out 700 million people out of poverty.

Local political watchers said that CPEC can help the PTI fulfill its manifesto in which the party promised to provide 10 million jobs for youth and marginalized communities in its five-year tenure.

On Saturday, an official statement said that the government had posted nine experienced and senior officers to the southwest Balochistan province as part of their policy to expedite development projects under CPEC in the province, the house of CPEC's major project of Gwadar port.

In his several public speeches and interviews before the general elections, Khan also vowed to work on CPEC more vigorously so as to extract the best and maximum benefits for the country.

Khan once told media that CPEC had injected a new energy into Pakistan's national economic and social development by bringing many positive aspects, especially by providing some 60,000 direct jobs to Pakistani youth during the past five years.

Earlier on Friday, Pakistan's Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reform, Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar, said that the government is fully committed to the development of CPEC for the country's development, prosperity, poverty alleviation, human resource development, job creation, industrialization and power generation.

Bakhtiar, who is also the minister in charge of CPEC, held a meeting with Chinese Ambassador to Pakistan Yao Jing and said that development of the Special Economic Zones (SEZs) under CPEC is the priority area of the new government to achieve high economic growth and to encourage exports.

The Pakistani government has already asked all the officials concerned to speed up the efforts for SEZs where industry, commerce and entrepreneurship will be the main areas of focus, a way to generate employment opportunities for skilled and unskilled labor.

The minister also discussed various models of possible Chinese investment for the CPEC projects, third party participation and possible cooperation in agriculture and tourism sectors.

Fawad Chaudhry, Pakistan's information minister, commented last week that the CPEC is an expression of Pakistan's geo-social relationship with China and the government intended to further develop the corridor.

Power projects under the CPEC have brought a great practical change in Pakistan's energy sector by bringing 13 to 14 hours a day of load-shedding in 2013 to almost zero in 70 percent areas of the country. Over 20 energy projects have been planned under the CPEC, which will double the energy-thirsty country's current capacity for electricity production after their completion, according to the planning ministry.

A speedy work is in progress at several road infrastructure projects under the CPEC which is connecting the country's north with the south.

Cooperation from China helped Pakistan emerge as a rising economy in the world, the planning ministry said, adding that projects under the CPEC, including road infrastructure, energy projects and Gwadar port, would accelerate economic development and would further open Pakistan to the world.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 16:31:06|Editor: Li Xia

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SHARAN, Afghanistan, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Anti-government militants conducted violent attacks on three schools by hand grenades and rocket outside Sharan city the capital of eastern Paktika province on Monday, an official said.

The attack have forced thousands of students to stay away from schooling, deputy to education department of the province Nasim Wajid said.

"Unknown militants targeted Hazrat Belal and Sayed Jalal Bukhari high schools with hand grenades at 7:00 a.m. local time today and attacked another school with rocket outside Sharan city but fortunately no students were present at the time of attack," Wajid told Xinhua.

However, the official added that the attacked schools were badly damaged due the blasts.

Usually schools in Afghanistan open at 8:00 a.m. local time for the students to attend classes.

"The incidents deprived thousands of students of education in the city at least for today, where nearly all the attacked schools properties and libraries were burned to ashes," Wajid asserted.

Earlier another official said that casualties feared as three schools were attacked by militants in Sharan city.

Although no group has claimed of responsibility, the official and locals have not ruled out the involvement of Taliban militants in the attack.

Hundreds of schools have remained closed in areas controlled by Taliban and the Islamic State outfit in parts of the conflict-hit Afghanistan.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 16:36:08|Editor: Li Xia

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TOKYO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Tokyo stocks closed lower Monday as investor sentiment was soured by the suspension of talks between the United States and Canada to reach an agreement on a free trade deal.

The 225-issue Nikkei Stock Average dropped 157.77 points, or 0.69 percent, from Friday to close the day at 22,707.38.

The broader Topix index of all First Section issues on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, meanwhile, lost 15.04 points, or 0.87 percent, to finish at 1,720.31.

Metal product, real estate and construction-oriented issues comprised those that declined the most by the close of play.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 16:36:09|Editor: Li Xia

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COLOMBO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Wildlife officials in Sri Lanka will soon be armed with assault rifles to protect elephants from poachers and to save human lives in the long standing human-elephant conflict, local media reported on Monday.

The weapons are to be bought on a recommendation by Sustainable Development, Wildlife and Regional Development Minister, Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka. The total number of weapons to be imported is 2,568.

Deputy Minister of Wildlife Palitha Thewarapperuma said the purchase of assault rifles would be connected with the human-elephant conflict, caused mainly as a result of people encroaching into the jungle habitats of elephants.

"At present wildlife officials are reluctant to intervene when civilians and elephants are threatened," he said.

Cabinet Spokesperson Gayantha Karunathilaka said last month that the death toll from Sri Lanka's long term human-elephant conflict has hit a record high with over 375 people killed by wild elephants and over 1,100 elephants killed by humans within the last five years.

Karunathilaka said in order to find a solution to the bitter battle, the government had decided to extend electric fences near national parks and vulnerable villages as part of a new drive to protect people and wild elephants.

Elephants in Sri Lanka are protected by law. Killing wild elephants is a punishable offence, but there have been regular reports of angry villagers poisoning or shooting them.

Official records show the population of wild elephants is estimated at 7,500 in Sri Lanka.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 16:46:12|Editor: ZX

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Huang Kunming, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, attends a symposium to commemorate the 73rd anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War, in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 3, 2018. (Xinhua/Liu Bin)

BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- China on Monday held a symposium to commemorate the 73rd anniversary of the victory in the Chinese People's War of Resistance Against Japanese Aggression and the World Anti-Fascist War.

Huang Kunming, a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and head of the Publicity Department of the CPC Central Committee, joined about 200 representatives from various circles at the event in Beijing.

Senior scholars, Party officials and military officers, World War II veterans and student representatives spoke at the symposium and discussed the significance of the victory.

They stressed that the historical event should be remembered and the heroes should be honored, expressing confidence and determination to safeguard peace and development.

Families of war heroes, representatives of non-Communist parties and foreigners who contributed to China's war against Japanese aggression also attended the symposium.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 16:51:15|Editor: ZX

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Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech themed "walk together towards prosperity" at the opening ceremony of the High-level Dialogue Between Chinese and African Leaders and Business Representatives as well as the Sixth Conference of Chinese and African Entrepreneurs in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 3, 2018. (Xinhua/Yao Dawei)

BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- China supports African countries in jointly building the Belt and Road to share the win-win outcomes, said President Xi Jinping Monday when addressing the High-Level Dialogue Between Chinese and African Leaders and Business Representatives.

China stands ready to strengthen comprehensive cooperation with African countries to build a road of high-quality development that is suited to national conditions, inclusive and beneficial to all, Xi said in his keynote speech at the meeting, also the Sixth Conference of Chinese and African Entrepreneurs.

Realizing common prosperity for the people of all nations, including African people, is an important part of building a community with a shared future for humanity, Xi said in his speech themed "walk together towards prosperity."

"Africa is an extension of the Belt and Road development historically and naturally and an important participant in the initiative," Xi said.

China does not attach any political strings to its investment in Africa under the Belt and Road Initiative, nor does it interfere in African countries' internal affairs or impose its demands on others, Xi noted.

The China-Africa cooperation under the initiative targets inadequate infrastructure and other key constraints on Africa's development, "with funds to be used where they count most," Xi said.

He said China and Africa's joint development of the Belt and Road completely follows established international rules, and China is ready to strengthen third-party cooperation with any country that has the capability and the intent.

China encourages and supports two-way investment, does not pursue trade surplus and is willing to create conditions for expanding import, Xi said.

China welcomes entrepreneurs worldwide, including those from Africa, to invest and develop in China and encourages Chinese entrepreneurs to explore and develop business in Africa, so as to jointly promote the Belt and Road, Xi said.

He asked Chinese and African entrepreneurs to grow together with the people of China and Africa, jointly making great achievements.

Xi also urged entrepreneurs to seize this historic opportunity for innovation, learn from each other and create new ways to cooperate.

Entrepreneurs should also shoulder social responsibility, respect local cultural customs and serve as a bridge for China-Africa friendship in the process of economic cooperation, Xi said.

"China is willing to work hard side by side with our African brothers to share the fruits of development and together set foot on a path of happiness where people live a better life," Xi said.

African leaders also delivered speeches at the meeting, including South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno, Djiboutian President Ismail Omar Guelleh, Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, Namibian President Hage Geingob and Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari.

Noting that the ten cooperation plans announced at the 2015 Johannesburg summit of the FOCAC have given a strong impetus to comprehensive economic and social development in Africa, these leaders said the Belt and Road Initiative aligns with the economic development projects of African countries.

The African leaders also expect deep engagement in Belt and Road development via the Beijing summit and to work with China to build an even stronger China-Africa community with a shared future.

Representatives of both Chinese and African businesses expressed their willingness to actively participate in the Belt and Road cooperation and contribute to the building of a China-Africa community with a shared future.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 17:01:21|Editor: Li Xia

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BETHLEHEM, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Israeli occupation forces demolished Monday four houses that belong to Palestinians in the south Bethlehem town Al-Walaja in the West Bank.

Palestinian sources said that three homes were leveled to the ground by Israeli authorities, while they forced the owner of a fourth one to demolish her own home at her own expense to avoid a substantial fine imposed by the Israeli Jerusalem municipality.

The owner of the fourth home, Hanan Razem, stopped the process of her home demolition after neighbors intervened to help her.

The Israeli forces, who stormed into the town in the early hours of the morning, clashed with residents who attempted to stop the demolition, injuring at least 16 Palestinians with rubber coated bullets and tear gas grenades that were used to disperse the civilians.

Israeli sources said the demolition orders came due to lack of permits by the house owners.

According to UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, Israeli authorities approved only 1.5 percent of building permits applied by Palestinians.

According to Palestinian sources, over 97 percent of Al-Walaja's area, which is mostly agricultural land, is classified as area (C) under the Oslo Accords signed between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel.

Almost 2.6 percent of the town's area, which is a residential area, was classified as area (B) under the same accords.

Under the interim Oslo Accords signed between the PLO and Israel in 1993, the West Bank is divided into three zones: A, B and C, with area (A) being under Palestinian control, (B) being under Israeli security coordination and Palestinian administrative control, and (C) being under full Israeli control.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 17:11:25|Editor: ZX

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ULAN BATOR, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Mongolia has exported most of its crude oil production this year to China, adding 55 million dollars to the state exchequer, the Ministry of Mining and Heavy Industry said on Monday.

A total of 4.20 million barrels or 569,000 tons of crude oil was extracted from the beginning of this year to Aug. 15, the ministry said. Of this, 4.11 million barrels or 558,000 tons were exported to China.

The landlocked East Asian country plans to extract 8.1 million barrels or 1.1 million tons of crude oil in 2018, which would contribute 93.31 million dollars to the state coffers.

It has so far implemented 50.71 percent of the export plan.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 17:26:33|Editor: ZX

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BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- China will exempt certain African countries from outstanding debts incurred in the form of interest-free Chinese government loans due by the end of 2018, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced Monday.

The exemption will be granted to Africa's least developed countries, heavily indebted and poor countries, landlocked and small island developing countries that have diplomatic relations with China, Xi said in a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 17:41:39|Editor: Li Xia

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WINDHOEK, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The United Nations Children's Fund (Unicef) Representative in Namibia, Rachel Odede has called for the speedy regulation of the 2015 Child Care and Protection Act, in the country.

The representative said this in a statement on Monday following the mutilation and murder of a nine-year-old girl from Windhoek that occurred on Aug. 28.

"UNICEF is devastated by the heart-breaking story of the mutilation and murder of nine year old Cheryl Avihe Ujaha from Windhoek's Katutura township. We condemn this attack and extend our heartfelt condolence to Cheryl's family," she said.

Namibia's Child Care and Protection Bill was passed in the National Assembly on March 4, 2015 and provides a legislative framework to give effect to some rights of children.

Odede said the recent brutal act reminds the nation that many of the children in Namibia continue to experience acts of violence in their communities.

"Across different social and economic strata of Namibia, all children should live in a protective environment, one that safeguards them from abuse and exploitation," she said.

According to Odede, UNICEF remains fully committed to support the relevant organizations in Namibia who provide the support to communities affected by violence against children, and to ensure that mechanisms are in place to address and avert such crimes.

Meanwhile the UN agency has welcomed the National Safe Schools Framework that will be launched this month. The framework is aimed at setting guidelines for safer school environments and it identifies seven standards to help Namibian schools create favorable teaching and learning environments.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 17:46:40|Editor: Li Xia

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BANGKOK, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Against the backdrop of severe and record heatwaves, bushfires, droughts and floods across the world, governments will convene a supplementary meeting in Bangkok from Tuesday to prepare the implementation guidelines of the Paris Climate Change Agreement.

Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of UN Climate Change, made the announcement at a press conference on Monday. She stressed that the guidelines are needed to make the Paris Agreement work fairly and transparently for all.

Following a two-year negotiation process, the implementation guidelines are set to be adopted at the annual climate conference, COP24, to be held in Katowice, Poland in December.

While the talks have made modest progress, the Bangkok meeting is the last opportunity before COP24 to accelerate negotiations.

"Building on progress made, countries now need to take a decisive step forward in preparing the ambitious and balanced outcome that we need in Katowice," Patricia Espinosa said, adding that reaching success at COP24 will be challenging without the preparation of an official negotiating text on the implementation guidelines.

"It will be critical for negotiators in Bangkok to produce solid text-based output that can function as the basis for concluding negotiations in Katowice and be turned into the final implementation guidelines of the Paris Agreement at COP24. The texts capturing progress to date are not yet refined enough for this purpose," she said.

"With only six additional days for negotiations in Bangkok, UN Climate Change is carefully coordinating demands to fully support countries in their important task," she added.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 17:51:41|Editor: Li Xia

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BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- China will extend a total of 60 billion U.S. dollars of financing to Africa, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced Monday.

The financing will be provided in the form of government assistance as well as investment and financing by financial institutions and companies, Xi said in a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

The financing includes 15 billion U.S. dollars of grants, interest-free loans and concessional loans, 20 billion U.S. dollars of credit lines, the setting up of a 10-billion-U.S. dollars special fund for development financing and a 5-billion-U.S. dollars special fund for financing imports from Africa. Chinese companies are also encouraged to make at least 10 billion U.S. dollars of investment in Africa in the next three years.

China has honored its 2015 promise to provide Africa with funding support totaling 60 billion U.S. dollars, Xi said, adding that the financing has been either delivered or arranged.

China decided to provide the funding support at the FOCAC Johannesburg summit to ensure the successful implementation of ten China-Africa cooperation plans adopted at the summit.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 17:56:43|Editor: Li Xia

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KUALA LUMPUR, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Singapore has agreed to Malaysia's request to postpone the High Speed Rail linking the two countries without compensation, local media reported Monday.

Economic Affairs Minister Mohamed Azmin Ali was quoted by the local Star Newspaper as saying that Singapore has agreed to put the project on hold "indefinitely", and there will be no need for Malaysia to pay compensation during the period.

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad announced shortly after taking office in May that the high speed rail would be dropped, citing high cost and low usage. He later changed tone that his country would seek deferment on the project, saying it has to pay a penalty of around 500 million ringgit (123.1 million U.S. dollars) to Singapore for the cancellation.

Azmin visited Singapore last week and met with Singaporean Coordinating Minister for Infrastructure and Minister for Transport Khaw Boon Wan on the high speed rail project, according to a statement by the Economic Ministry.

"It was a very productive meeting with the promise of a very imminent win-win resolution," the statement said.

For his part, Khaw said in a post on social media that Singapore and Malaysia "should be able to announce our joint decisions" soon.

The governments of Malaysia and Singapore signed a legally-binding pact on the project in 2016. Both sides called for tender last year.

The high speed rail project would cut travel time between Kuala Lumpur and Singapore to 90 minutes once in operation.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 17:56:45|Editor: Li Xia

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BAGHDAD, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Iraqi parliament Monday held its first session within its fourth legislative term, signalling important progress in forming a new government.

The 329-seat parliament is holding its session under the chairmanship of Mohammed Zayni, the eldest member of the parliament, and the lawmakers should wear in before they elect the new parliament speaker and his two deputies.

According to the Iraqi constitution, the Council of Representatives (parliament) shall elect its speaker, then his first deputy and second deputy, by an absolute majority of the total number of the lawmakers by direct secret ballot.

Later, the parliament shall elect the president from among the candidates by a two-thirds majority of its members, and according to the power-sharing system in Iraq, the president should be for the Kurds, the speaker for the Sunnis and the prime minister for the Shiites.

Then, the elected president will ask the largest alliance to form a government within 30 days, according to the constitution.

So far, the rival political blocs claimed they have formed the largest alliance that would form the next government, hours before the first parliament session.

On May 12, millions of Iraqis went to 8,959 polling centers across the country to vote for their parliamentary representatives in the first general election since Iraq's historic victory over the Islamic State militant group in December 2017.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 18:21:50|Editor: Li Xia

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TEHRAN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The summit of Iran, Russia and Turkey in the capital Tehran will be dedicated to the discussion of the protracted crisis in Syria and restoration of peace in the Arab state, an Iranian spokesperson said Monday.

The tripartite meeting between Iranian President Hassan Rouhani and his Russian and Turkish counterparts, Vladimir Putin and Recep Tayyip Erdogan, would be held on Friday, Iran's Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qasemi said at a weekly press conference.

Fighting terrorism in the country tops the agenda of the meeting, he said, adding that regional, international and mutual topics will be discussed as well.

The three countries are guarantors of a cease-fire deal in Syria and they have been mediating a peace process for the Syrian crisis since 2016.

The Syrian government, backed by Russia and Iran, aims to clear Syria's northwestern province of Idlib, on the border with Turkey, of militants who have been controlling the province since early 2017.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 18:41:52|Editor: Li Xia

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MADRID, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- In the wake of the U.S. decision to end financing the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Spain Sunday urged the European Union (EU) and its member states for "supplementary" efforts to bridge the ensuing void.

The U.S. was a main contributor to the UNRWA and in a press communique Sunday, the Spanish Foreign Ministry asked Washington to reconsider the decision, taking into account that it had slashed its aid from 365 million U.S. dollars in 2017 to 60 million dollars at the start of 2018.

The "critical financial situation of the UNRWA caused by the decision taken by the (Donald) Trump administration seriously threatens the continuity of special programs in health, education and food, which directly benefit Palestinian refugees in the Middle East," it said. "The suppression of basic services to 3 million Palestinian refugees could have serious consequences for the stability of the region, especially in the Gaza Strip."

The ministry said Madrid is "fully committed" to "finding joint solutions", which will allow the UNRWA to continue its work in a sustainable manner.

"Spain considers that the EU and its member states should make a supplementary effort to compensate the possible consequences of the serious decision taken by the U.S.," it said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 19:22:02|Editor: ZX

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Photo taken on Aug. 24, 2018 shows Xu Jing (L) talking with Raphael Tuju in Nairobi, capital of Kenya. Xu Jing, who teaches at the University of Nairobi's Confucius Institute, is the chinese teacher of Raphael Tuju, the Secretary General of the ruling Jubilee Party of Kenya. Xu's steely guidance is expected to boost Tuju's proficiency in mandarin as he occupies a vantage position to deepen China-Kenya economic, political and cultural ties. (Xinhua/Li Yan)

by Jin Zheng, Christine Lagat

NAIROBI, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Raphael Tuju carries himself with elegance and his imposing persona, eloquence and intellect has earned him one of the most coveted seats in Kenya's body politic.

The Secretary General of the ruling Jubilee Party whose headquarters is located in downtown Nairobi, has an expansive office that is tastefully furnished and has interior decor that is eye-catching to visitors.

An ever busy senior Jubilee party official and minister without portfolio, Tuju is taking time to learn new phrase in mandarin with a Chinese tutor.

"Mandarin is spoken by more than 1.3 billion people in the world and I think it is a very important language to me as we build our relationship with China," Tuju told Xinhua.

The middle-aged father of three and a former television producer became an elected representative in 2002 and has since served in different Kenyan administrations as a minister for tourism, information and foreign affairs.

Prior to enrolling for a Chinese language course in the early days of July this year, Tuju had made frequent official visits to China in his capacity as a cabinet minister and senior official of the ruling party.

Securing an accomplished Chinese tutor to guide him through the basics of spoken and written mandarin was an honor to a man who has developed a strong attachment to the culture, political and economic system of the Asian giant.

"Well, I am a social scientist and it is very important to break the barriers in communication by learning other people's languages. The Chinese is one of the most ancient civilizations and it is a pity we have not prioritized the language and am impressing my children to learn it," said Tuju.

He had woken up at dawn last Friday to spend an hour on a homework given earlier by the Chinese tutor, Xu Jing, who teaches at the University of Nairobi's Confucius Institute.

"Have you done your homework?" Xu asked Tuju. "Yes, I did some but was very busy last week because of the upcoming trip to China," he responded and later pronounced Chinese numbers with ease.

Tuju accompanies President Uhuru Kenyatta during his trip to China to attend the Forum on China Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit held in Beijing on Sept. 3-4.

"When I go to China in the next few days, I would like to learn more Chinese," said Tuju adding that he is determined to overcome initial setbacks and improve his proficiency in spoken mandarin.

As a senior official from the ruling Jubilee party that has forged a working relationship with the Communist Party of China (CPC), Tuju is convinced that fluency in mandarin is key to promote Sino-Kenya ties in all spheres.

In fact, he has been spending a two-hour session with the Chinese tutor on Tuesdays and Fridays since July 3rd to learn characters, numbers and pronunciation of key words like greetings.

"What is most difficult for me besides characters is that I do not have many Chinese friends to talk to. Writing is also difficult but I want to keep on pressing," said Tuju.

"Luckily, I have a very good teacher who is also tough, she gives me a lot of homework and if I do not do it, am in big trouble," Tuju told Xinhua with a light touch adding that his regular meetings with CPC officials has triggered a desire to learn the Chinese language and communicate effectively with them.

Despite being a senior cabinet member who is busy with domestic political affairs, Tuju still creates time to attend Chinese language lessons either at home or at the office.

He expressed confidence that he would be able to master the spoken Chinese language within one year.

Tuju's enthusiasm to improve his proficiency in mandarin while defying age and hectic schedule has impressed Xu Jing who revealed he is now able to introduce himself in fluent Chinese.

"He is really interested in learning the Chinese language. He is very busy but trying his best to understand the language," said Xu.

"One day he was sick and sent a message requesting to rest but he later called me to teach him at his home," She added.

Xu's steely guidance is expected to boost Tuju's proficiency in mandarin as he occupies a vantage position to deepen China-Kenya economic, political and cultural ties.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 19:37:06|Editor: Li Xia

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BEIRUT, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese legal businesses have suffered from illegal competition by Syrian companies operating in Lebanon, said caretaker Economy Minister Raed Khoury Monday.

"These illegal companies do not pay taxes or social security for their employees while selling their products and services at lower prices," he was quoted by Elnashra, an online independent newspaper, as saying.

"These practices lead to the bankruptcy of local businesses which, in turn, result in high unemployment among the Lebanese," he added.

Khoury said that Lebanon welcomes investors of any nationalities to establish legal businesses in Lebanon.

"We encourage foreign investment in Lebanon but in a legal way," he said.

Khoury added that Syrian refugees are working in sectors that should be only accessible by Lebanese.

"The Lebanese government should take the necessary measures against Syrian refugees who do not abide by the law," he said.

More than one million Syrian refugees are registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Lebanon. The government estimated the true number of Syrians in the country to be 1.5 million.

A Lebanese official said last month that 270,000 Lebanese people have lost their jobs after 384,000 Syrian refugees poured into the country's employment market.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 19:47:08|Editor: ZX

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NANNING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Two people were killed and more than 130,000 people affected by heavy rain which has lasted for a week in southwest China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, local authorities said Monday.

According to the provincial department of civil affairs, five cities and 14 counties were flooded and over 5,500 residents were relocated. About 3,820 hectares of crops were destroyed and 177 houses were damaged by the flooding.

The local meteorological department said heavy rain will last in parts of the region until Tuesday.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:02:10|Editor: Li Xia

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BERLIN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Afghan asylum seeker Abdul D. will spend eight years and six months in prison for murdering his 15-year-old ex-girlfriend in the west German town of Kandel, the Landau regional court ruled on Monday.

The court found the suspect guilty of killing local resident Mia a few days after Christmas in December 2017 as punishment for having separated from him earlier. Shortly before the deadly incident took place in a drugstore, the girl and her father had reported Abdul D. to police on counts of libel, duress and making threats and infringing on her privacy.

The public was excluded from the eight-month court proceedings which occurred under juvenile criminal law because the exact age of the suspect is unknown.

The Afghan asylum seeker himself indicated being 15-years-old and was consequently treated as an unaccompanied minor when he arrived in Germany. However, a subsequent assessment by state prosecutors concluded that Abdul D. must be at least 17.5 years old and was more likely around 20 years old.

As a consequence, the case has sparked a heated and ongoing public debate over whether the German asylum policy and the specific procedures by which authorities determine the age of young asylum seekers upon arrival are still appropriate.

The anti-immigrant group "Kandel is everywhere" was set up in response to Mia's death to draw attention to the alleged threat posed by asylum seekers to the German native population more generally and drew 4,000 protesters to its first rally.

The Kandel incident was also cited by far-right protesters during recent and widely-publicized violent demonstrations in Chemnitz after a 35-year-old German succumbed to his injuries from a knife attack in a brawl involving an Iraqi and a Syrian national.

The Landau court confirmed on Monday that it had reached a ruling on the basis of juvenile criminal law on counts of murder and assault. During the private hearings, state prosecutors had reportedly demanded for Abdul D. to be imprisoned for a period of ten years.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:17:11|Editor: Li Xia

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YANGON, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Death toll from severe flooding reached 31 across Myanmar over the last two months, according to figures released by the National Natural Disaster Management Committee and the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement on Monday.

As of Sunday, Bago region led with a death toll of nine by flooding due to heavy rainfall, followed by Mon state, Kayin state, Tanintharyi and Magway regions.

A total of 136 temporary relief camps have been set up to accommodate 62,435 flood victims so far.

Due to the torrential rainfall and strong wind, houses, bridges and roads have also been destroyed in the southern part of the country since the last week of July.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:22:13|Editor: ZX

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by Xinhua writers Zhou Xiaoli, Wei Mengjia, Fan Pan

BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- NourEldin Mohamed Abdelaal, from Egypt, declined offers from a number of elite universities in Western countries and entered the Beijing Institute of Technology (BIT) to study computer sciences in September.

The 20-year-old had received multiple offers from universities in countries including the United States and Britain. The University of Cambridge also reserved a spot for him for his post-graduate study once he achieves his bachelor's degree.

He said he was attracted by China's booming computer industry and decided to come to China for his bachelor's degree study.

NourEldin won the honor of "Best Arab Young Innovator in the World" in 2016 for his creation of a parallel network which exceeds the current internet speed by 32 times.

"China's computer industry has been developing rapidly. I want to study here and find entrepreneurship opportunities," NourEldin said.

NourEldin's decision to study in China was supported by his father, who worked for a Chinese automobile company in Egypt for many years. His father has made more than 20 business trips to China and deemed the country a "unique" place with good study conditions.

NourEldin came to Beijing in August 2017 to take a Chinese language course. Apart from the language, NourEldin found it interesting to learn traditional Chinese culture.

He is now a big fan of Chinese tea and enjoys watching Beijing Opera. After class on his first day at BIT, he went to Lao She Teahouse and watched a Beijing Opera show with his dad.

He found the exquisite costumes and the singing to be mysterious. "The high-pitched tunes were like a nightingale's singing," he said.

Living in China for a year, NourEldin has fallen in love with Chinese cuisine and started to cook it on his own. He can cook Chinese braised eggplant very well. He said he loves Chinese noodles, and his favorite were braised beef noodles and Lanzhou ramen.

"Chinese culture made my life in Beijing more colorful and helped me see the world from a different perspective," NourEldin noted.

His interests in Chinese culture are shared by his classmates.

Kembabazi Barbara, 21-year-old half Chinese half Ugandan, said the Chinese celebrations of Spring Festival are her favorite time of the year when all her family members sit around the dinner table and eat delicious Chinese dishes.

"My favorite dishes are lotus root soup with pork ribs, braised Wuchang fish, and tofu skin," she said.

Her Ugandan father met her mother when they were studying at Huazhong University of Science and Technology in central China's Hubei Province.

Her parents moved to Uganda after their marriage, but their affection for China continued and had an impact on Kembabazi.

"I feel close to China because of my half-Chinese identity," she said. Every two or three years, her mother went back with Kembabazi to her hometown in Hubei province, visiting the scenic and landmark places of Shennongjia Natural Reserve and the Three Gorges Dam.

The Ugandan is a Tai Chi fan. She learned the art from her grandfather and won the first prize for her part in a Tai Chi group at the Xuzhou China International Wushu Competition in May. At the start of BIT's new semester, she was happy to pick up a weekly Tai Chi course.

"Chinese Tai Chi is famous in Uganda. It can help people maintain balance and keep tranquility under various conditions," she said.

Kembabazi enjoys the convenience of Beijing's modern lifestyle, riding shared bikes around the campus, shopping with mobile payment apps and exploring fun places in the city with her smartphone.

"I want to bring the advanced technology that I learned in China back to Uganda and make Ugandan people's life more convenient," she said.

Kembabazi is ambitious to start her own business in Uganda after her graduation from BIT.

According to the Ministry of Education, 61,594 African students were on campus in Chinese universities, research institutions and other educational institutions in 2016, up 23.7 percent year on year and representing 13.91 percent of total international students in China.

The ministry's statistics showed that China has offered 43,000 training programs, over 20,000 governmental scholarships and more than 1,300 degree programs to African countries.

Sovi-guidi W. Lionnel Pyrrhus, 23, from the Republic of Benin, is pursuing his master's degree in Teaching Chinese as Foreign Language at Beijing Language and Culture University (BLCU).

Lionnel Pyrrhus started learning Chinese at the Confucius Institute at the University of Abomey-Calavi in 2014. Last year, he attended the 16th "Chinese Bridge" Chinese Proficiency Competition and won the second prize for the Africa region.

Lionnel's motivation to learn Chinese derived from his fascination with Chinese Kung Fu. At an early age, he watched plenty of movies and TV series about Chinese martial art heroes and was especially impressed by Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Jet Li.

"I have been fascinated with Kung Fu ever since I was little. My father told me if I wanted to know a country, I need to learn its language first," he recalled.

The 23-year-old dreamed to become a Chinese teacher in Benin after earning his Ph.D. from BLCU.

"I wish to bring the Chinese language and culture to Benin," Lionnel said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:22:13|Editor: Li Xia

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RAMALLAH, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Palestinian Foreign Affairs Ministry on Monday slammed U.S. peace envoy to the Middle East Jason Greenblatt over criticizing the Palestinian Authority (PA) for rejecting U.S. peace proposal.

Greenblatt reiterated in an editorial published Monday in Israel Hayom newspaper the U.S. position towards Jerusalem as being entirely the capital of Israel and considered the Palestinian position toward the United States "disappointing and harmful."

In response, Palestinian Foreign Ministry said in an emailed press statement that Greenblatt undermines international legitimacy and his article shows "the absolute adoption of the current U.S. administration to the Israeli narrative and vocabulary."

The statement said that Greenblatt's words "reveal a complete ignorance of the facts related to the conflict, or a deep, wide disdain to the Arab and Islamic worlds."

In February, Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas presented a peace plan to the United Nations Security Council, calling for holding an international peace conference and forming a multi-international mechanism to sponsor the peace process.

Abbas' plan was based on implementing the two-state solution in accordance with the 1967 borders and aimed at giving the Palestinian people freedom and independence with East Jerusalem as their capital.

However, the U.S. government under President Donald Trump has been preparing for a new peace plan called "Deal of the Century" against which the Palestinians have repeatedly voiced their rejection.

The PA severed its ties with the Trump administration after he declared Jerusalem as the capital of Israel in December of 2017 and moved the U.S. embassy to the disputed holy city on May 14.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:32:14|Editor: Li Xia

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Students sit in their classroom on the first day of new academic year in one of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency(UNRWA) schools in Beirut, Lebanon, on Sept. 3, 2018. Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Monday called for an emergency meeting of the League of Arab States to issue a decision for funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA). (Xinhua/Bilal Jawich)

BEIRUT, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Lebanese Parliament Speaker Nabih Berri on Monday called for an emergency meeting of the League of Arab States to issue a decision for funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA).

Berri made the call following a decision by U.S. President Donald Trump to defund it, said a report by Elnasha, an online independent newspaper.

The United States announced Friday that it will no longer contribute to the UNRWA, calling the agency an "irredeemably flawed operation" while criticizing other countries for not sharing the burden of supporting Palestinians.

The move sparked anger and worries among Lebanese officials who voiced their concerns over the presence of a conspiracy to nationalize Palestinians in Lebanon.

Minister of Foreign Affairs Gebran Bassil held a meeting Monday with Syrian ambassador to Lebanon to discuss the issue.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs also issued a statement Sunday criticizing the U.S. decision to defund the UNRWA.

"The ministry calls upon all concerned countries to meet in a bid to take the necessary measures for facing this decision," according to the statement.

UNRWA provides aid, mostly in the form of education, health care, food security and other essentials, to some Palestinians registered as refugees in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Syria, Lebanon and Jordan.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:37:15|Editor: Li Xia

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TEHRAN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Iran will continue its support to Syria and keep its military advisory presence in the Arab state, Iran's Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said here on Monday.

"Iran will remain a supporter of the Syrian government in its efforts to remove terrorists, and continue its advisory role and help the Syrian government in the upcoming Idlib campaign," Qasemi was quoted as saying by Press TV.

The Syrian government "has the right to fight against terrorists and purge them entirely from its territory," he said.

"Idlib is a complicated issue as it is the last stronghold of rebels operating against the Syrian national government, and is also home to terrorist elements," he added.

"As part of its battles and victories over terrorists, the Syrian government is resolved to end the plague (of terrorism) in this province as well," he said, adding that the Idlib offensive has worried "certain sponsors of terrorists" who have launched "a massive propaganda campaign" to forestall the purge.

Presidents of Iran, Russia and Turkey will convene in the capital Tehran on Sept. 7 to discuss the upcoming Syria military operation in Idlib.

The Syrian government, backed by Russia and Iran, aims to clear Syria's northwestern province of Idlib on the border with Turkey of militants who have been controlling the province since early 2017.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:37:16|Editor: Li Xia

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TEHRAN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Iran's Foreign Ministry announced Monday that the Islamic republic is ready to work with any government to be formed in Iraq.

"We will work with any government linked with any political party and faction in Iraq, because the two countries are neighbors and must cooperate and work together," Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said.

"What matters to Iran is the realization of what the Iraqi people want," Qasemi was quoted as saying by Press TV.

Iran has dismissed the allegations of intervention in the Iraqi political affairs.

On Sunday, Qasemi also decried allegations made by U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo of Iran's transfer of missiles to Iraq.

He said that Washington will not succeed in hampering longstanding relations between Tehran and Baghdad through its divisive policies.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:42:17|Editor: Li Xia

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ABUJA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Local police on Monday confirmed 11 people were killed and 12 others wounded following an attack in the city of Jos in Nigeria's central region.

The cause of the late Sunday attack in Jos south district of Plateau State is unknown, said Terna Tyopev, spokesman for the police.

Tyopev said the attackers stormed Lopandet Dwei Du area of the city and unleashed terror by shooting indiscriminately at the residents.

The wounded victims were rushed to a state-run hospital for treatment.

The police spokesman said an investigation is underway to arrest the perpetrators of the heinous crime.

Last Wednesday, at least eight people were killed following an attack by suspected cattle raiders in another area of the state.

The state, located in Nigeria's middle belt where the Muslim-dominated north and the Christian-majority south meet, has witnessed constant rifts between locals and Fulani herdsmen. Many, especially women and children, have been murdered in previous attacks.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 20:47:19|Editor: Li Xia

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BERLIN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The imposition of new automotive industry tariffs threatened by the United States would hit German carmakers hard, government calculations published on Monday by the newspaper Handelsblatt show.

Handelsblatt cited an official response by the German ministry for the economy which the Free Democratic Party (FDP) had received to a parliamentary enquiry into the matter. According to the document, an increase in U.S. tariffs on automotive imports from currently 2.5 percent on average to 25 percent would decrease Germany' Gross Domestic Product (GDP) by up to 0.2 percent, or between 5 and 7 billion euros.

Ministerial secretary of state Claudia Doerr-Voss noted that the country was thus likely to be worst affected among the sample of four countries, including Canada, Japan, and Mexico, considered in the study. Nevertheless, the federal government did not expect a material impact on Germany's record low unemployment from a further escalation in Trump's "America First" policies.

Speaking to Handelsblatt on Monday, FDP deputy parliamentary faction leader Michael Theurer warned that such optimism could yet prove misplaced. "The ministry for the economy is talking down the problem, certainly also for diplomatic reasons. The actual impact is likely to be even greater than depicted (in the official response)," Theurer argued.

The FDP politician said that the deterioration in transatlantic relations was already too serious for the prospect of additional U.S. protectionism to be slighted by Berlin. "The chancellor must make this subject her personal priority right now and ensure that the trade conflict between the United States and the European Union (EU) does not escalate further," Theurer told Handelsblatt.

Trump recently told Bloomberg that an EU offer to phase out all tariffs on automotive products exchanged between the two major economic blocs was "not good enough."

The comments have since sparked fears of a renewed tensions between Washington and Brussels over trade after a short-lived respite. For European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker the provocative comments drew the outcome of the latest EU-U.S. negotiations on trade into doubt.

"We, me and Trump, have reached a sort of ceasefire," Juncker told the public broadcaster ZDF. He cautioned that the EU would retaliate against any moves by Washington to impose new punitive levies on the bloc's automotive exports.

During the meeting in question, the Commission president secured a pledge from the United States to exempt the EU from further punitive tariffs on automotive imports. Instead, the EU and the United States would focus on launching negotiations for a program of mutual industrial tariff reduction and reforms of the surveillance- and enforcement mechanisms of the WTO.

Prior to Trump's latest media outburst, German policymakers had expressed confidence that discussions towards that end were advancing well. Most economic experts anticipate that Germany's automotive industry would benefit more from a zero-tariff-regime than its U.S. counterpart given the greater international appeal of the country's powerful car brands.

Even if the EU and United States still reached the kind of industrial deal initially demanded by Trump, however, the Federation of German Industries (BDI) has warned that growing signs of a potential unravelling of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) posed risks to domestic carmakers as well which rely on globe-spanning value-chains. Having won Mexico's approval for a renegotiation of NAFTA, the U.S. president said that he would not shy away from kicking Canada out of the free trade zone, as well as side-lining the U.S. Congress to pass corresponding legislation as desired by his administration.

Additionally, the White House has threatened to go as far to leave the Geneva-based WTO which the United States itself was instrumental in creating.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 21:27:28|Editor: Li Xia

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GENEVA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Mediterranean crossings are deadlier than ever, a new report by the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, showed Monday.

The report showed that three years on from the shocking images of lifeless Syrian toddler Alan Kurdi on a Turkish beach, crossing the Mediterranean Sea has become even deadlier.

It showed that while the total number of people arriving in Europe has fallen, the rate of deaths has risen sharply, particularly for those crossing via the Mediterranean Sea.

More than 1,600 people have died or gone missing while attempting to reach Europe so far this year, said the report.

"This report once again confirms the Mediterranean as one of the world's deadliest sea crossings," said UNHCR director of the Bureau for Europe, Pascale Moreau.

In the Central Mediterranean, one person died or went missing for every 18 people who crossed to Europe between January and July 2018, compared to one death for every 42 people who crossed in the same period in 2017, according to the report.

"With the number of people arriving on European shores falling, this is no longer a test of whether Europe can manage the numbers, but whether Europe can muster the humanity to save lives," said Moreau.

In recent months, UNHCR, together with the UN migration agency, IOM, has called for a predictable, regional approach for the rescue and disembarkation of people in distress in the Mediterranean Sea.

UNHCR said it is also calling on Europe to increase access to safe and legal pathways for refugees. This includes increasing resettlement places, removing obstacles to family reunification, and helping provide alternatives to potentially deadly journeys.

The report also outlined the dangers refugees face while traveling along land routes to or within Europe.

It noted the steps that some have taken to prevent refugees and migrants from accessing their territory, urging states to grant those seeking international protection readily-available access to asylum procedures.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 21:47:33|Editor: ZX

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HARBIN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- A short circuit has been blamed for a deadly hotel fire that had killed 20 people in northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, investigators said Monday.

At around 4 a.m. on Aug. 25, a fan short-circuited setting nearby plastic ornaments on fire at the Beilong Hot Spring Leisure Hotel in Harbin, the provincial capital, according to the investigation team.

All the victims of the fire have been identified.

The legal representative of the hotel is under criminal detention while two hotel managers are under investigation.

The city's disciplinary authorities are further investigating the case to find any malfeasance behind it.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 22:12:39|Editor: Li Xia

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by Maria Spiliopoulou

ATHENS, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The number of registrations at private schools across Greece for the 2018-2019 period increased by 10 percent compared with last year, local "Kathimerini" (Daily) newspaper reported on Monday.

The trend was regarded as one more sign that Greeks try to turn page after the exit from the bailout programs this August after eight difficult years of debt crisis, representatives of the local market noted.

Despite financial constraints, private schools gain ground again as parents invest in education, Chairman of the Association of Private Schools Haralambos Kyrailidis said.

The rise in demand for private schools at all grade levels this year has reversed a six-year decline in registrations, from 82,000 students in 2009 to 67,000 in 2015.

There are 1,100 private schools in Greece out of a total of some 13,000 schools nationwide which educate more than 1.3 million pupils from kindergarten to high school, according to education ministry data.

Kyrailidis as well as other representatives of private schools and parents attributed the change this year also to the discounts offered.

The average annual cost for private education has not increased since 2010, standing at 1,200 euros (1,390 US dollars) for kindergartens to over 12,000 euros for high schools, according to the association.

Moreover, private schools offer significant discounts to parents in case they register more than one child, as well as scholarships. (1 euro=1.16 U.S. dollars)
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 22:22:41|Editor: Liangyu

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South African President Cyril Ramaphosa addresses the opening ceremony of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 3, 2018. Ramaphosa co-chaired the event with Chinese President Xi Jinping. (Xinhua/Liu Weibing)

BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- South African President Cyril Ramaphosa on Monday dismissed allegations of China practicing colonialism in Africa, saying China instead has been a partner in boosting social and economic development on the continent.

Ramaphosa made the remarks in a speech delivered at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

"Since its launch in the year 2000, FOCAC has grown both in extent and scope," he said. "It serves as an effective platform for South-South cooperation focused on the tangible improvement of the quality of lives of the people of Africa."

"In the values that it promotes, in the manner that it operates, and the impact it has on African countries, FOCAC refutes the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa, as our detractors would have us believe," said the South African president, who is co-chairing the event with Chinese President Xi Jinping.

Ramaphosa, who is on a state visit to China until Wednesday, said FOCAC is concerned with a lot more than trade and investment.

"We are working to build an Africa that is defined by good governance, democracy, respect for human rights, justice and the rule of law," he said, calling China-Africa relations a "dynamic force in the international arena."

He hailed China's Belt and Road Initiative as complementing the forum's goals and Africa's own development plans over the next several decades, saying the grand global initiative will boost trade in Africa.

Lauding China's economic achievements, Ramaphosa said China and Africa are working together to "advance growth and development on the African continent."

"There are many valuable lessons that Africa can learn from China's impressive growth model and its approach to meeting the needs of its people," he said.

He added that the forum "has become an essential platform to contribute to Africa's social and economic advancement" and contributes to promoting multilateralism in an "increasingly uncertain global environment."

Ramaphosa concluded his speech by saying that FOCAC's mission extends beyond China and Africa, because "together we are working to build a community of a shared future for mankind."

China has been South Africa's largest trading partner for the past nine years, and South Africa is China's largest trading partner in Africa. Bilateral trade amounted to 39 billion U.S. dollars last year.

This is Ramaphosa's first visit to China as South African president. He held talks with President Xi on Sunday.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 22:27:42|Editor: Li Xia

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BEIRUT, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- A Lebanese lawmaker on Monday called for official visits to Syria to push forward the opening of Nasib Border Crossing for exports, a local newspaper reported.

"The banana harvest is about to start and we will be facing a big issue if we do not agree with Syria to open the Nasib border to export our produce to Arab countries," Nawaf al-Moussawi, a member of Hezbollah's parliamentary bloc, was quoted by the National News Agency as saying.

As the only functioning crossing between Jordan and Syria, Nasib is vital for goods transport from Lebanon and Syria to Jordan and the Gulf states.

Moussawi's remarks came after his phone call with caretaker Minister of Agriculture Ghazi Zeaiter, who vowed to discuss with his Syrian counterpart the possibility of opening the Nasib border during a possible visit to Syria soon.

The Syrian authorities said earlier that Lebanon must send an official request to Syria for the use of the Nasib Border Crossing to send its exports to the rest of the world.

However, Lebanese Prime Minister-designate Saad Hariri has officially refused to restore ties with the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad or visit Syria under any circumstances even if it would cost him his premiership.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 22:32:44|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MOGADISHU, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The UN envoy in Somalia has called on the international community to sustain assistance to people affected by conflict, 2017 drought as well as this year's devastating floods and cyclone in Somalia.

Justin Brady of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs warned that although the overall food security has improved in Somalia, a significant portion of the population remains food insecure.

"We are on a positive trajectory, but the number of people in need remains high particularly among the rural populations and the urban poor," said Brady who spoke on behalf of Humanitarian Coordinator Peter de Clercq at the release of the latest food security and nutrition assessment results by FAO's Food Security and Nutrition Analysis Unit (FSNAU) in Somalia.

"The repeated humanitarian emergencies have resulted in many communities with little or no means to recover. Predictable multi-year humanitarian and development funding will be extremely critical," said Brady in a statement issued on Monday.

According to the UN, despite above-average performance of the Gu rains, some 4.6 million people, including 2.5 million children, still require humanitarian assistance.

Of these, 1.5 million are in crisis or emergency. Internally displaced persons (IDPs) are the most vulnerable and in dire need of immediate and long-term assistance.

Brady warned that high malnutrition rates prevail across the country, especially among the highly vulnerable IDP population, noting that the nutrition status of children under age five remains largely unchanged.

An estimated 295,000 children are acutely malnourished, among them 55,000 severely malnourished and in need of urgent life-saving treatment.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 22:52:49|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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LONDON, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Downing Street hit back Monday after the strongest attack so far on Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit blueprint by former Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson.

Johnson used his column in the London-based Daily Telegraph to describe the soft-Brexit plan devised by May as a disaster for Britain.

In response, May's official spokesperson at 10 Downing Street insisted the prime minister was providing serious leadership and a serious plan for Britain's departure next March from the European Union.

The spokesperson added that there were no new ideas in Johnson's article to respond to.

Even so most national newspapers in Britain cited the article as showing the rift between May and Johnson, who some political commentators view as a potential challenger to the leadership of the governing Conservative Party.

Johnson resigned as Foreign Secretary in July just days after May unveiled her blueprint after a day-long meeting of her most senior ministers at Chequers, her country retreat.

Johnson said: "In adopting the Chequers proposals, we have gone into battle with the white flag fluttering over our leading tank. We will remain in the EU taxi; but this time locked in the boot, with absolutely no say on the destination. We won't have taken back control, we will have lost control."

Johnson won some support for his attack from former Brexit Secretary who also resigned following the Chequers blueprint.

Davis said: "He's got a point. We have not been tough enough in the negotiations with the Europeans. Chequers gives too much away for nothing much back."

In its rebuke May's official spokesman said: "What we need at this time is serious leadership with a serious plan and that's exactly what the country has with this prime minister and this Brexit plan. She is a serious prime minister and she has put forward serious proposals."

The Guardian newspaper said Monday that No 10's intervention marks an escalation of the feud between the prime minister and her former foreign secretary, which has intensified since his attack on the government's Brexit plans, widely viewed as a renewed push for the top job.

"Johnson used his newspaper column on Monday to accuse some members of the government of deliberately using the Irish border situation to 'stop a proper Brexit', a claim rejected by Whitehall sources," said the Guardian.

The Independent newspaper said the clash marks the renewal of the parliamentary sitting following the summer recess, raising the curtain on what is likely to be a tumultuous few months as MPs battle over Brexit.

The Independent said over the weekend a plot emerged to bring down May's Chequers proposals, with claims dozens of Conservative politicians are ready to vote the plans down, with Johnson said to be on manoeuvres for a leadership bid.

Brexit-supporting Conservative MPs claim May's Chequers plan would keep Britain tied too closely to the EU, because it would involve adopting a "common rule book" for goods and collecting tariffs on behalf of the European Union.

The war of words comes just 24 hours before MPs return to the House of Commons after their summer holiday. MPs are eagerly waiting to hear if the government will announce Tuesday morning whether there will be a ministerial statement in the House of Commons later that day about Brexit.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 22:57:51|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RIGA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- A documentary following the lives of seven children from different backgrounds has been chosen by a national panel of experts as the Baltic country's submission to the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, the Latvian National Film Center announced on Monday.

The feature-length documentary "To Be Continued", directed by Ivars Seleckis and produced by Mistrus Media, beat seven other films in the national competition for this year's Oscars entry.

This year has been especially prolific for the Latvian film industry thanks to the National Film Center's sponsorship program that has supported various cinematic projects, including Seleckis' documentary, dedicated to the centenary of Latvia's independence.

"To Be Continued" premiered in Latvia on March 23, 2018.

Filmmaker Viesturs Kairiss whose film represented Latvia in last year's competition for Oscars and who this year chaired the national panel of experts, described "To Be Continued" as an "internationally convertible story about Latvia here and now, told in a clear cinematic language by a professional documentary filmmaker".

"Some scenes in the film "To Be Continued" represent the strongest message found in the Latvian films of recent years. With this verdict we vote for humanism and true filmmaking," said Kairiss.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:02:54|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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WELLINGTON, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Around 2,000 New Zealand core public service employees will be in a better position to make ends meet after receiving a new, 2018 Living Wage, hourly rate of 20.55 NZ dollars (13.58 U.S. dollars), Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said on Monday.

This follows the government's announcement in June that the new hourly rate, or annualized equivalent of 42,744 NZ dollars, including full-time, part-time and casual employees, would be implemented as a one-off pay adjustment by Sept. 1.

"This is about fairness. Everyone deserves to be paid a fair amount for the work they do, and to earn enough to have a decent standard of living," Ardern said in a statement.

"While we're continuing to lift the minimum wage for all workers, our commitment to pay all public service staff at least the 2018 living wage is about leading from the front," she said, adding she wanted the government, in its role as employer, to be part of the solution to the imbalance in peoples' pay.

"We have a wide program of work to ensure those on lower and middle incomes start to see some of the benefits of a growing economy," Ardern said, adding more than 164,000 people will benefit from an increase to the minimum wage to 16.5 NZ dollars on April 1 and 20 NZ dollars an hour by 2021.

The decisions to stop performance pay to state sector CEOs and freezing MP pay this year were also part of the program to focus on lower and middle-income earners rather than those at the top, the prime minister said. (1 NZ dollar equals to 0.66 U.S. dollar)
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:07:57|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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by H. L. Bentley

BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping and leaders from across the African continent gathered in Beijing for a two-day summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Depending on where you are now, this forum might not change your life, but -- with a combined population of over 2.6 billion -- even if it affects a fraction of the people who call either of the two regions home, there are a lot of lives to be touched.

Africa has three development bottlenecks -- lack of infrastructure, skilled workforce and funding. There are more developing countries in the African Union than any other multilateral grouping in the world.

Since China embarked on reform and opening-up 40 years ago, great things have been achieved, with some going so far as to be called "a miracle." The accomplishments of the past four decades, however, were less to do with divine intervention than pure grit and determination.

In the process of releasing the creativity and vitality of its people, China has learned monumental lessons, many the hard way.

It is for this reason that today, China, the world's largest developing nation, is working with other developing nations, so that they can pursue modernization with a full arsenal of tools to avoid the negative side effects that have accompanied rapid industrialization in the past.

The China-Africa forum, therefore, is not just about the "three bottlenecks." There is one issue that many nations, regardless of their geographic location, must all address: how can the international community limit, and where possible fix, the damage we have done to our planet?

In a recent interview with Xinhua, Erik Solheim, the Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), said he hoped the meeting would result in "win-win solutions where Africa can learn from Chinese experience on fast development and also how China is turning around to be an environment-friendly country."

This poignant fact was also underscored by the President of Rwanda Paul Kagame in another recent interview with Xinhua.

"The distance between China and Africa doesn't matter [...] at the end of the day we are all driven by the same aspirations. We want development. We want stability. We want to make sure the environment we are in is taken care of," he said.

Closeness is about more than distance, and shared values and aspirations make us stronger.

The members of FOCAC are united by being beneficiaries of two over-arching programs -- on the one hand is China's Belt and Road Initiative, which aims to achieve common development through improved infrastructure and connectivity.

On the other hand is the African Union's Agenda 2063, a strategic framework for the socio-economic transformation of the continent.

This year's summit is not just about the China-Africa community with a shared future. Increased China-Africa cooperation has worldwide implications.

By the end of 2017, China had invested 100 billion U.S. dollars in Africa. Projects include the Nairobi-Mombasa standard gauge railway in Kenya and the Ethiopia-Djibouti railway. In fact, the railways and highways that have been built across Africa by Chinese firms are long enough, if connected, to stretch from China to Rwanda.

Cooperation is not just about concrete and glass. There is also the question of how to bring the peoples of different cultures closer together. This can be achieved through knowledge sharing and cultural exposure. To this end, more than 160,000 people from Africa have received training under China-Africa programs since the Johannesburg summit in 2015, and over 200 schools had been built by the end of 2015. There are now 54 Confucius Institutes in 41 African countries since the first one in Africa opened in Nairobi in 2006.

In Tanzania, the University of Dar es Salaam's China Culture Center is celebrated for the work it does to support cultural exchanges. It achieves this through events that promote China, and showcase the opportunities available -- from martial arts, Mandarin classes, to demonstrations on Chinese tea ceremonies. Today, Chinese culture is celebrated not only through a love for language, but also through traditions and kinship.

Promises and proposals, however, need funding. Here, too, China has offered a hand.

The China-Africa Development Fund was set up in 2007 following the 2006 FOCAC Beijing summit. It has, so far, decided to invest more than 4.6 billion dollars in over 90 projects in 36 African countries. It is estimated that more than 8.7 million people on the African continent will benefit from investment channelled through these projects.

China will extend a total of 60 billion dollars of financing to Africa, President Xi announced Monday at the opening ceremony of the FOCAC Beijing summit. The financing will be provided in the form of government assistance as well as investment and financing by financial institutions and companies.

The summit has the potential to make real differences to topics -- growth, welfare, environment -- that have prominence outside the FOCAC member states. China has already entered into a new stage of social and economic development. Is Africa, too, ready to embark on a similar path?
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:07:57|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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NAIROBI, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Over 150 exhibitors from 30 countries will attend the 21st edition of the Kenya International Trade Exhibition (KITE), organizers said on Monday.

The exhibition dubbed Consumex Africa, organized by the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Cooperatives, will take place in Nairobi on Sept. 4-6.

"The exhibition is a prime platform for trade and networking for local and international businessmen and firms," the statement said.

The trade fair will showcase exhibits from the agricultural sectors, medical and pharmaceuticals divisions, the plastic, printing and packaging industry, food and beverages industry, hospitality sector from Europe, Asia and Africa.

The exhibitors from Kenya, China, Latvia, Germany, Belgium, India, Italy, Thailand, Malaysia, Turkey, United Arab Emirates (UAE) and other countries will offer solutions and products at the venue.

"With increase in purchasing power and progress in the consumer market, there has been a tremendous increase in East Africa's gross domestic product (GDP), thus raising opportunities in different sectors," the statement said.

The ministry said there has been a rise in the demands for various products and services, especially in the consumer industry in the country.

"The need for electronics, home wares, appliances and consumables is never ending hence paving a pathway for local and international traders that are set to explore opportunities in Kenya," the ministry said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:17:59|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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WINDHOEK, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Namibian President Hage Geingob has called on the Southern African Development Community (SADC) member states to leverage their relationship with China to achieve industrialization and technological advancement.

According to a statement from Namibia's presidential office, Geingob, the current chairperson of the SADC, made the remarks at the summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) Monday in Beijing.

"The FOCAC provides an excellent opportunity for dialogue between China and Africa. This gives us a good opportunity to discuss the main issues that were considered during our regional summit such as initialization of the region, empowerment of youth and maintaining peace and security," Geingob said.

The SADC held its 38th Ordinary Summit of the Heads of State and Government in Windhoek on Aug. 17 and 18 under the theme "Promoting Infrastructure Development and Youth Empowerment for Sustainable Development."

Geingob reiterated that industrialization in the SADC region will create employment and combat poverty.

"We therefore invite the People's Republic of China and its investment community to partner with us in supporting projects in the priority sectors such as manufacturing, infrastructure, transportation, agriculture and tourism," Geingob was quoted in the statement as saying.

Geingob said that the SADC region prioritizes youth empowerment and job creation as pillars of development for the future, adding that its partnerships with China will go a long way in achieving rapid economic growth and infrastructure development, and in promoting the transfer of skills to the region's population.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:18:00|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad concluded his two-day official visit to Brunei on Monday evening with both countries reiterating their friendly bilateral relations.

The Malaysian prime minister was welcomed by Brunei's royal family at the royal palace on Monday morning and then held talks with Brunei's Sultan Haji Hassanal Bolkiah on the relations between the two countries and ways to boost them in various fields.

When hosting an official luncheon for the Malaysian prime minister, the Sultan of Brunei said that friendship between Brunei and Malaysia has brought many benefits, enabling the two countries to cooperate closely in various fields including trade, investment, defense, education, health and tourism.

In his address at the University Brunei Darussalam, the Malaysian prime minister said that Malaysia and Brunei have many similarities from the aspects of language, religion and culture, which further strengthen the relations between the two countries.

Last year, the total trade between Brunei and Malaysia stood at 1.14 billion U.S. dollars, an increase of 70 percent from the previous year.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:28:02|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MADRID, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- FC Barcelona striker Leo Messi said on Monday that he believes it is time the club once again challenged for the Champions League title.

Although Barca won the Champions League in 2015, they have disappointed by their high standards in the past three years, losing to Atletico Madrid in the quarter-final in 2016, Juventus the following year, while 2018 saw them once again crash out of the last eight, losing on away goals to Roma after winning the first game of the tie 4-1 in the Camp Nou Stadium.

Those exits have been all the more painful given that bitter rivals Real Madrid have triumphed in Europe for the past three years

That defeat highlighted weaknesses in Barca's squad but after a summer which has seen the arrival of Arturo Vidal, Malcom, Clement Lenglet and Arthur, plus the fact that Phillipe Coutinho will be available this season in Europe, Messi believes Barca are once again candidates.

"It's time for us to win the Champions, we have a spectacular squad," he said in an interview on Catalunya Radio.

"I think it's time for us to win because we have had three successive seasons in which we have gone out in the quarter-finals and maybe the last (against Roma) was the worst of all because of the first leg result and how we played in the second leg," continued Messi.

"I think we have to aim for this as a club, as a team and for the squad that we have now. We have a spectacular squad and we can win it," insisted the Argentinean forward.

Messi said he was "not saying it for the sake of saying it: we have a squad that can compete and fight to win this competition," he concluded.

Meanwhile the club has confirmed that Malcom has suffered a twisted ankle in training and will be out of action for around a week.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:28:03|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ISLAMABAD, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Asian Development Bank (ADB) has approved a 100-million-U.S.-dollar loan on Monday to improve irrigation infrastructure and water resource management in Pakistan's southwest Balochistan province.

The loan will help to address persistent water shortages in Balochistan's farmland and increase earnings on farms, the ADB said.

According to the statement, a dam able to hold 36 million cubic meters of water, 276 km of irrigation channels and drainage canals will be constructed or upgraded, adding that about 16,592 hectares of land will be added or improved for irrigation in the province.

A water resources information system will also be established that will use advanced technology such as satellite and remote sensing to do river basin modelling and identify degraded land for rehabilitation, the statement added.

Agriculture accounts for almost two-thirds of Balochistan's economic output and employs 60 percent of the province's 13 million population. Frequent drought and poor water management has put the industry and related population at risk, according to the statement.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:28:04|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte (L) meets with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Jerusalem, on Sep. 3, 2018. Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte received a warm welcome by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, as the Phipilline president started his visit in Israel. (Xinhua/Marc Israel Sellem/POOL/JINI)

JERUSALEM, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte received a warm welcome by Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday, as the Phipilline president started his visit in Israel.

In the first such visit by a Philippine president, the two leaders signed three bilateral agreements.

One of the agreements aims to improve the work conditions of Filipino workers in Israel, most of whom work as health aides for the elder, while the other two seek to boost bilateral science cooperation and encourage investments and financial cooperation.

The arms deal is at the heart of Duterte's visit. His government has recently purchased Israeli-made weapons such as Galil assault rifles and pistols for its 120,000-strong police personnel.

Israel is among the world's top arms dealers, with nearly 60 percent of its defense exports going to the Asia-Pacific region, according to Israeli defense ministry data.

On Wednesday, Duterte is expected to lay wreaths at the Open Doors Monument in Rishon Letzion, 8 km south of Tel Aviv, in commemoration of the Philippines' efforts to save the Jews during the Holocaust.

Duterte started his four-day visit in Israel on Sunday night by attending an event with the Filipino community in Israel, which included some 76,000 Filipino workers.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:28:05|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BERLIN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- German Health minister Jens Spahn (CDU) has called for the federal government to follow the example of other countries on Monday by establishing an opt-out system for organ donations in Germany.

Speaking to the newspaper BILD, Spahn argued that legislation under which adults would be presumed to be organ donors unless they explicitly objected to this status prior to their deaths would overcome a looming crisis in the German health care system. The number of potentially-vital organ donations in the country has been falling steeply for years with only 797 donations being recorded in total in 2017.

"We have tried everything for many years to increase the number of organ donors without success. This is why we need have a broad societal debate about introducing an opt-out system," the health minister told BILD. Spahn said that such discussions should take place across party-divides in the federal parliament (Bundestag) where his ministry would be happy to provide delegates with relevant subject matter expertise.

The Christian Democratic Union (CDU) politician admitted in the BILD interview that he had been torn on opt-out organ donation systems himself until recently given that it was a matter which directly infringed upon the freedom of the individual. He said that he was still unaware of chancellor Angela Merkel's (CDU) exact position but "welcomed her contributions to the debate."

Questioned by BILD whether opt-out legislation might spark popular fears that a mandatory organ donation system was the next step, Spahn said that such concerns would have to be addressed calmly by policymakers with "good arguments in a broad debate." The 38-year-old noted that he had personally already opted-in to his organs being donated under the current voluntary system.

Reacting to Spahn's comments on Monday, Merkel's official spokesperson Seffen Seibert told the press in Berlin that she welcomed a debate over a potential overhaul of current regulations due to the low number of organ donations. Seibert was unable to say whether or not the CDU leader was in favor of an opt-out system but noted that she had repeatedly campaigned for more voluntary donations.

Germany is one of several European countries which are deliberating whether to opt for opt-out systems to improve the availability of organ donations in their respective health care systems. A corresponding system is scheduled to be in place by 2020 in England subject to parliamentary approval after Wales already introduced a similar scheme back in 2015.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:28:08|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MOSCOW, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Russia wants the European Union (EU) to develop and prosper in a stable and predictable manner and wishes to boost bilateral ties with its members, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday.

Peskov made the remarks when commenting on French President Emmanuel Macron's recent statements that Russian President Vladimir Putin is dreaming about "the EU's dismantlement."

"Russia continues to boost bilateral relations with members of this union. Since the EU is Russia's main trade and economic partner, though closely followed by China, we are interested in an evolving, prospering, predictable and stable EU," Peskov was cited as saying by Russia's Tass news agency.

Currently, the EU accounts for almost 45 percent of Russia's foreign trade, according to the Russian Foreign Ministry.

Peskov said that Putin has repeatedly spelled out Russia's standpoint on this issue and that it has not changed at all.

While noting that Russia-EU relations are in a "frozen" condition, Peskov reiterated Russia's willingness to revive ties with the EU.

"Russia, as President Putin said many times, is ready to embark on the path of invigorating and improving relations whenever Brussels says it is ready for that," Peskov said.

Bilateral relations are still developing in certain areas including the energy sector, he said.

Tensions between Russia and the EU have increased since 2014 over Russia's annexation of Crimea and Sevastopol, which resulted in Brussels imposing a set of sanctions on Moscow and the latter's retaliating.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:33:09|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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by Alessandra Cardone

ROME, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Italy had no intention to send special troops to Libya, the northern African country engulfed in a recent escalation of violence between the government and armed militias, Italian authorities said on Monday to dismiss media reports.

"In relation to some news reports published today in the media, it is categorically denied that an intervention of Italian special (military) corps is being prepared," the government said in a note.

"Italy continues to follow with the utmost attention the situation on the ground, and has already publicly stated its concern, along with an appeal to stop the fighting (signed) together with the United States, France, and the UK," the note added.

One report to which the government might refer was that published by Turin-based La Stampa newspaper on Monday about a possible "Italian task force" in the country.

Italy now counted about 400 soldiers in Libya, after the parliament in January voted in favor of increasing a presence of some 270.

According to the Defense Ministry, these soldiers were mainly employed in protecting Italian medical staff and field hospital set up in the city of Misurata, east of the capital Tripoli; assisting and training Libyan troops; and supporting the Libyan coast guard in curbing migrants departures.

Amid renewed clashes in Tripoli on Saturday, at least one rocket hit the al-Waddan hotel that lies near the Italian embassy in central Tripoli, injuring at least three people.

In a joint statement in the same day, Italy, France, UK, and the United States condemned "the continued escalation of violence" in and around Tripoli.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:33:10|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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STOCKHOLM, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Short-term work contracts in Sweden are becoming increasingly common for young adults under the age of 30, Swedish Television SVT reported on Monday.

The number of Swedes working in a temporary post, usually a couple of months, has increased during the past ten years. Especially young adults under the age of 30 who work a lot as substitutes and hourly employees.

"Young people enter today's labor markets on loose terms," researcher Michael Allvin from the University of Uppsala told SVT.

According to him, temporary jobs create problems and obstacles especially for those who want to apply for mortgages and become a member of a labor union. They also affect future pension payments.

"At the same time the risk of stress-related disorders increases. Young adults might feel that they have to work whenever possible," Allvin said.

Allvin believed that the number of short-term contracts will not decrease in the future. He said that the Swedish labor market is instead increasingly moving towards an international model where the continuity of work is not secured.

In Sweden, short-term work contracts became common during the 1990s. According to studies, nearly 40 percent of those who have temporary posts get a permanent job within two years.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:38:15|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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NEW DELHI, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- More than 1,400 people have died so far in as many as 10 Indian states during this year's ongoing monsoon season, media reports quoted the National Emergency Response Centre (NERC) as saying on Monday.

NERC is a part of India's Ministry of Home, particularly tasked to estimate the damages suffered in natural calamities.

The most affected is said to be the southern state of Kerala where around 500 people have died, nearly 5.5 million severely affected, and nearly 1.5 million people rendered homeless who are staying in relief camps across the state, reported the Press Trust of India (PTI).

Besides, standing crops on over 57,024 hectares of land have been damaged in Kerala alone, it quoted the NERC as saying.

Rains and floods-related deaths have also been reported from northern state Uttar Pradesh where as many as 254 people died, 210 deaths in eastern West Bengal, 170 in southern Karnataka, 139 in southwestern Maharashtra, 52 in western Gujarat, 50 in northeastern Assam, 37 in northern Uttarakhand, 29 in eastern Odisha and 11 in northeastern Nagaland.

Nearly 50 people have been missing out of which 15 cases reported from Kerala, 14 from Uttar Pradesh, five in West Bengal, six in Uttarakhand and three in Karnataka.

Rains and floods are known to have hit 30 districts in Odisha, 26 districts in Maharashtra, 25 in Assam, 23 each in Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal, 14 in Kerala, 13 in Uttarakhand, 11 each in Karnataka and Nagaland and 10 in Gujarat.

In north-eastern state Assam, 1.1 million people have borne the brunt of the rains and floods, which have also hit crops on 27,964 hectares of land. In West Bengal the deluge has hit 228,000 people and damaged crops on 48,552 hectares of land, said the figures released Monday.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:43:17|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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KIEV, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on Monday submitted to parliament a draft law on adding into the constitution Ukraine's aspirations to join the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and the European Union (EU), a senior official said.

Iryna Lutsenko, the Ukrainian president's representative in the parliament, said on Facebook that the draft law envisages amending the constitution's preamble, three articles, and transitional provisions.

Earlier this year, Poroshenko said that in the near future he will submit to the parliament draft amendments to the constitution, which define the membership in the EU and NATO as Ukraine's strategic goals.

In 2014, when pro-West authorities came to power in Ukraine, Kiev abandoned its multilateral policy and set a course toward European integration. Furthermore, the parliament revoked Ukraine's non-aligned status, paving the way for its membership in military blocs.

Over the past four years, Ukraine has strengthened cooperation with the EU and increased interactions with NATO, but neither organization has promised Kiev near-term membership prospects.

Legislation can be enshrined in the Ukrainian Constitution with the support of at least 300 lawmakers in the 450-seat parliament.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:43:19|Editor: ZD

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Leaders and delegates attend the opening ceremony of the High-level Dialogue Between Chinese and African Leaders and Business Representatives as well as the Sixth Conference of Chinese and African Entrepreneurs in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 3, 2018. (Xinhua/Li Xueren)

BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- African leaders said here Monday that their continent stands ready to further cement its partnership with China and promote win-win cooperation under the China-proposed Belt and Road Initiative.

They made the remarks at the High-Level Dialogue Between Chinese and African Leaders and Business Representatives and Sixth Conference of Chinese and African Entrepreneurs, held on the sidelines of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

The Beijing summit "reflects the unique as well as the strategic nature of our partnership," South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, who co-chairs the two-day FOCAC summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, said at the dialogue.

The Africa-China partnership "facilitates the realization of Africa's developmental aspirations reflected in Agenda 2063 through pragmatic collaboration in the quest of win-win cooperation," he added.

"I am convinced that the FOCAC has taken the comprehensive strategic partnership journey further and to higher levels," Ramaphosa said.

Speaking on behalf of leaders of North African countries, Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz said "China and Africa enjoy sound cooperation in trade."

He noted that China has put forward the important Belt and Road Initiative, while the African Continental Free Trade Area is gradually taking shape and African countries are making progress in seeking development paths that suit their national conditions.

Such moves will help upgrade China's trade and investment cooperation with North African as well as other African countries, he added.

North African countries expect to deepen understanding and cooperation with other countries and promote peace, stability and sustainable development in the world, he said.

"Therefore, the countries need to work together to secure our achievements through win-win cooperation," the Mauritanian president said.

Also at the dialogue, Djiboutian President Ismail Omar Guelleh said the Africa-China partnership is based on win-win cooperation and mutual benefit.

On behalf of East Africa, Guelleh said the region is delighted that it will continue to benefit from the many advantages of the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China.

"China's investment and involvement in East Africa date back to more than 40 years ago, which demonstrate not only the depth of our friendship, but more importantly, how China, even when it was trying to develop itself and lift its people out of poverty, always extended the hand of friendship to Africa and believed in our success," he said.

China and East Africa have grown together, he said, adding that the region is pleased to see that win-win cooperation and friendship have only deepened and helped better the lives of the Chinese and African people.

In his keynote speech at the meeting, Xi said China stands ready to strengthen comprehensive cooperation with African countries to build a path of high-quality development that is suited to respective national conditions, inclusive and beneficial to all.

Realizing common prosperity for the people of all nations, including the people of Africa, is an important part of building a community with a shared future for humanity, Xi said in his speech themed "walk together towards prosperity."

FOCAC was formally founded in 2000. Since then China and African countries have held the 2006 Beijing summit and the 2015 Johannesburg summit, which have promoted cooperation between the two sides and produced fruitful results.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-03 23:53:22|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Africa-China partnership, in contrast to some allegations, is based on win-win cooperation and mutual benefits, Djiboutian President Ismail Omar Guelleh said here Monday.

The president of the East African country made the remarks while addressing the High-Level Dialogue Between Chinese and African Leaders and Business Representatives and Sixth Conference of Chinese and African Entrepreneurs.

"Our mutual history is one based on win-win cooperation and mutual benefit ... in complete contrast to what some of you have believed," he said.

"In that respect, the number speaks for itself," he said, citing a report to show that close to 90 percent of Chinese companies operating in Africa were privately owned, and 89 percent of their employees were Africans, which translates into several million jobs across the continent.

Speaking of the history of Africa-China cooperation, Guelleh said that since the first meeting of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) 18 years ago, China's investments in Africa have grown exponentially in every single sector.

These investments "have no doubt been a contributing factor to the unprecedented growth our continent has experienced during that time," he said.

He added that FOCAC has been instrumental in pooling critical investments in various areas including infrastructure, power generation, industrialization and agriculture.

The president said Africa has found in China a partner who believes in the continent's ability to lift its people out of poverty and achieve economic independence and self-sufficiency.

China has played an instrumental role in Africa's pursuit of economic growth, he said, noting that the continent has greatly benefited from Chinese investments in its ports, airways and roads, which have improved the movement of goods and persons.

On behalf of East Africa, Guelleh said the region is delighted that it will continue to benefit from the many advantages of the Belt and Road Initiative proposed by China.

"China's investment and involvement in East Africa date back to more than 40 years ago, which demonstrates not only the depth of our friendship, but more importantly, how China, even when it was trying to develop itself and lift its people out of poverty, always extended the hand of friendship to Africa and believed in our success," he said.

China and East Africa have grown together, he said, adding that the region is pleased to see the win-win cooperation and friendship have only deepened and have helped improve the lives of the Chinese and African people.

In conclusion, the president proposed the creation of a joint East Africa-China business council which, he said, would serve as a channel for business cooperation and a forum for economic advancement and reform.

Also speaking at the meeting were other African leaders, including South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Chadian President Idriss Deby Itno, Mauritanian President Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, Namibian President Hage Geingob and Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 00:08:27|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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HO CHI MINH CITY, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Three new compressed natural gas (CNG) filling stations will be set up here to meet refueling demand of CNG buses this year, according to the municipal Transport Department.

Ho Chi Minh City needs a total of 19 CNG filling stations to accommodate the rising number of CNG buses in the coming years, Vietnam News Agency on Monday quoted director of the department's Public Transportation Management Center, Tran Chi Trung, as saying.

Next year, the department expects to build an additional 12 CNG filling stations in many districts, he said.

The installation follows a plan of the municipal authorities to create an environmentally friendly system of passenger transportation.

The city aims to replace about 3,120 buses with new ones in the 2018-2020 period. Of the figure, it is estimated that the city can reach about 75 percent of the replaced buses running on clean fuel like CNG.

However, the city currently has only four CNG filling stations, which are located far from the city center, leading to increased operational costs for bus operators and more time for bus refueling.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 00:38:34|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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LONDON, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- British police said Monday that they arrested 131 suspects tied to online child sex offences last week in police raids, and are calling for the technology industry to increase its help in stopping the abuse.

Teachers, a children's entertainer and a former police officer were among those arrested in the police raids as part of a massive crackdown by the British National Crime Agency (NCA) and police forces in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Over the course of a week-long operation, more than 200 raids took place and 164 children were safeguarded, the NCA said.

The arrests were announced ahead of a flagship speech by British Home Secretary Sajid Javid, in which he made a "call to action" for technology companies, such as Facebook and Google, to do more to help combat online child sexual abuse as a part of a new government push.

The home secretary described tackling child abuse as his "personal mission" and claimed that "80,000 people in the UK pose a threat to children online."

Of those arrested, 19 held positions of trust and 13 were registered sex offenders, it added.

According to NCA, on average around 400 people are arrested in the UK every month for offences connected to child sexual abuse and exploitation.

Javid's speech followed the allegation last week by British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt that Google is refusing to cooperate with the UK in removing illegal content.

At the time, a Google spokesperson said, "We agree with Jeremy Hunt that child sexual abuse is abhorrent and must be removed, that's why we cooperate with governments to fight child sexual abuse online."

Without naming Google, the NCA has blamed technology companies for providing "encryption and increased anonymity on the internet" which it suggests is enabling offending.

Rob Jones from the NCA said: "Whilst some online platforms have taken important steps to improve safety, we are asking them to take it to the next step ... and to invest in preventing these online offences from happening in the first place."

According to the NCA, 225 warrants were executed by forces, and 164 children were safeguarded.

Last year, the independent surveillance regulator in the UK warned that innocent people had been arrested as paedophiles, with one family having their children taken away, because of errors in warrants.

British ministers are warning of the widespread use of encryption by technology companies following a meeting in Australia of senior political figures from the Five Eyes intelligence alliance.

The Five Eyes, composed of the U.S., UK, Canada, Australia and New Zealand, was accused of conducting global internet surveillance after Edward Snowden leaked secret documents to journalists in 2013.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 00:38:35|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BERLIN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The satisfaction of apprentices with Germany's famous vocational training system has fallen to a record low, the 2018 "training report" published on Monday by the Federation of German Trade Union (DGB) finds.

According to the report, 70.3 percent of apprentices indicated during the latest DGB survey that they were happy with the quality of jobs training they received. While showcasing that a large majority of trainees are still satisfied with the system, the figure was the lowest measured by DBG since the beginning of the current time series in 2005.

Additionally, more than a third of respondents said that they were regularly expected to do overtime (36.3 percent) with 13 percent thereof receiving no compensation for the work. 54.4 percent of apprentices surveyed by DGB indicated that it was generally expected from them to be reachable by phone or email outside of their regular working hours.

The findings were published during a presentation in Berlin on Monday which coincided with the launch of the new 2018/2019 training year. In July, the Federal Labor Office (BA) registered 531,426 available training places and 501,878 interested apprentices for the coming period.

Deputy DGB president Elke Hannack argued that it was not surprising that employers struggled to find apprentices in light of the deteriorating working conditions which young Germans faced in such positions. "The old complaint by employers about a scarcity of apprentices is mainly made in industries which are known for miserable training conditions and poor pay", Hannack said.

Aside from specific problems encountered in this regard in gastronomy & tourism, retail and parts of the handicraft trades, the deputy DGB president urged German firms to improve the quality and structure of apprenticeships more generally. "The federal government must finally reform the jobs training law, introduce a minimum trainee wage and improve the opportunities for obtaining qualifications and enrolling in further training (after completing an initial apprenticeship) at firms", Hannack said.

Another recent study by the state-owned KfW banking group recorded the first aggregate increase (plus 1.1 percent) in the number of apprentices in six years in 2017. Around 90 percent of the 1.32 million trainees were hereby employed in small and mid-sized (SME) firms.

SMEs are often depicted as the backbone of the German economy with their participation in the country's "dual education system", comprising two distinct university and apprenticeship routes, being cited as a key reason for its relatively low youth unemployment.

Given currently high demand for skilled labor from employers, the KfW predicted that the total number of apprentices was likely to grow again by roughly one percent in 2018 in spite of a remaining gender pay gap between female and male trainees and a broader trend towards more university enrolment in Germany.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 00:38:36|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ADDIS ABABA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Communal clashes in Benishangul Gumuz regional state in western Ethiopia has left 10 people dead, state media Fana Broadcasting Corporate (FBC) said on Monday.

The report said Assosa, capital city of Benishangul Gumuz, and its surrounding localities were scenes of violent ethnic clashes during the weekend, which left 10 people dead and four others injured.

The region had witnessed a similar deadly unrest in May involving locals and other ethnic groups residing in the region, reportedly over access to land and state resources.

FBC said regional and federal security forces are working in coordination with local community leaders to pacify the situation to prevent a recurrence of the weekend violence.

Benishangul Gumuz, located in western Ethiopia along the Ethiopia-Sudan border, hosts Ethiopia's largest development project, the 6,450-megawatt Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam (GERD), which is under construction on the Blue Nile River.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 00:43:37|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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Chinese President Xi Jinping delivers a keynote speech titled "Work Together for Common Development and a Shared Future" at the opening ceremony of the Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, capital of China, Sept. 3, 2018. The FOCAC Beijing Summit opened here on Monday. (Xinhua/Huang Jingwen)

BEIJING, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping on Monday announced a raft of renewed measures to elevate China-Africa cooperation as more than 50 African leaders gathered in central Beijing for a major event.

"We are so delighted to have all of you with us," Xi said as he opened the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), an occasion he described as the reunion of the China-Africa big family.

Xi called for efforts to forge an even stronger China-Africa comprehensive strategic and cooperative partnership.

With the next three years in sight, he put forward eight initiatives and backed it up with a pledge of financing amounting to 60 billion U.S. dollars.

Among the measures are the import of more non-resource products from Africa, increased corporate investment, more direct flights, an environmental cooperation center, an African studies institute, and security programs fighting pirates and terrorists.

Calling Africa a "land of great promise" and a continent "full of hope," Xi said no one can hold back the Chinese people or the African people as they march toward rejuvenation.

EIGHT INITIATIVES

The summit is the third of its kind since FOCAC was set up 18 years ago.

Liu Guijin, a veteran diplomat who once served as the first special representative of the Chinese government on African affairs, said the initiatives were a follow-up to the 10 cooperation plans announced at the last summit in 2015.

"Our policies have been very consistent. We build on past success and move ahead," Liu said.

On industrial promotion, Xi said a China-Africa economic and trade expo will be held in China. A number of economic and trade cooperation zones in Africa will be built or upgraded.

"We encourage Chinese companies to make at least 10 billion U.S. dollars of investment in Africa in the next three years," he said.

Zhu Gongshan, chairman of Chinese energy company GCL Group, said he would like to scale up investment in Africa, especially to tap into the huge market potential of solar-power generation. His company had already set foot in Ethiopia and Djibouti.

"The outlook is good. We as business people have high hopes and are more willing to invest," he said.

Observers said as a strength of Chinese support, infrastructure development in Africa will continue to benefit from concessional loans and credit lines.

Xi specifically pledged support for Chinese companies that adopt an investment-construction-operation model in infrastructure projects.

He said China will work with Africa to undertake a number of key connectivity projects. That will increase landmark infrastructure rising up across the continent over the past few years, such as the Mombasa-Nairobi Standard Gauge Railway in Kenya and the Maputo Cross-sea Bridge in Mozambique.

On trade, Xi said China has decided to increase imports, particularly non-resource products, from Africa, support the African Continental Free Trade Area, and hold free trade talks with interested countries and regions.

Xi's initiatives also cover capacity building, health care, people-to-people exchange, and peace and security.

Environmental protection also featured high on the agenda.

Xi said 50 aid projects will be undertaken on green development and ecological and environmental protection in Africa, with a focus on tackling climate change, marine cooperation, desertification prevention and control, and wildlife protection.

"The speech highlighted what we are all doing now," said Wang Qingfeng, director of the Nairobi-based Sino-African Joint Research Center with the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Since 2013, the center has put forward more than 45 joint research programs including biodiversity investigation, pathogenic microorganism detection, geographic science, and remote sensing.

Kembabazi Barbara Gamukama, a Ugandan student in Beijing, said she was motivated by Xi's speech too.

"China will import more from Africa. That means Uganda can export more coffee, and there are opportunities for Uganda's young people looking for jobs," she said.

FIVE-NO APPROACH

Despite the geographical distance between them, China and Africa enjoy a friendship that has stood the test of time.

Profound friendships were first forged among the founding fathers of China and African countries in the middle of last century. Signature aid projects like the Tanzania-Zambia Railway in the 1970s brought the people closer.

Xi expounded at the summit that China follows a "five-no" approach in its relations with Africa: no interference in African countries' pursuit of development paths that fit their national conditions; no interference in their internal affairs; no imposition of China's will on them; no attachment of political strings to assistance; and no seeking of selfish political gains in investment and financing cooperation.

"China follows the principle of giving more and taking less, giving before taking and giving without asking for return," Xi said.

A sign of the China-Africa family getting closer can be seen by the adding of new FOCAC members. All 53 African countries with diplomatic ties with China are now members.

Xi led a round of loud applause on Monday as he welcomed the Gambia, Sao Tome and Principe, and Burkina Faso as the three new members.

"Africa has chosen China," Burkina Faso President Roch Marc Christian Kabore told Xinhua before he flew to Beijing. "It is our choice and we stick to that."

FROM AFRICA TO WORLD

Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who serves as the rotating chairperson of the African Union for 2018, said the summit comes at the right time as globalization faces headwinds.

Talking to reporters before the summit, Kagame said there is a "need for cooperation more than ever" as some countries make clear their intentions to serve themselves first over other countries.

Xi reiterated China's stance to safeguard an open world economy and the multilateral trade system, rejecting protectionism and unilateralism.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said China's cooperation with Africa is fundamental for Africa's success, which underpins the success of the world in development and peace.

China and Africa are home to roughly 2.6 billion people, making up 35 percent of the world's population.

Xi said China and Africa have long formed a community with a shared future and will now turn it into a pacesetter for building such a community for humanity.

"Our goal is to make the world a place of peace and stability and life happier and more fulfilling for all," Xi said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 00:48:38|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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CAPE TOWN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- At least eight people were killed an exlosion at a munitions depot in Somerset West outside Cape Town on Monday, authorities said.

The blast took place just before 4:00 p.m. at Rheinmetall Munitions Factory, which belongs to arms manufacturer Denel, the City of Cape Town's Fire and Rescue Service said.

Six other people who were unaccounted for after the blast have been found, according to rescuers at the scene.

The huge explosion ripped through the Denel munitions depot, about 30 km outside of Cape Town, witnesses said.

The cause of the blast is still under investigation, said Theo Layne of the fire and rescue service.

The city has dispatched 15 firefighters and three fire trucks to the scene, he said.

The blast rattled doors and homes, and almost knocked out windows in some instances in Somerset West and nearby Strand township, some residents said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 00:58:41|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ADEN, Yemen, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Protests over sharp devaluation of Yemen's national currency continued in the southern port city of Aden for the second straight day on Monday.

Hundreds of angry protesters staged anti-government demonstrations. They blocked main roads, paralyzing daily life in Aden and its neighboring cities.

Yemeni President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who has lived in exile in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh since 2015, held an emergency meeting on Sunday with the country's Economic Committee to discuss the current situation.

During the meeting, Hadi agreed to an increase in salaries of the civil sector, covering thousands of employees and pensioners.

He ordered the government to take effective and urgent measures to restore food stability and service supply.

According to the Houthi rebel-controlled Saba news agency, Hadi called for resumption of oil and liquefied natural gas exports to bring in foreign currency.

"We know the magnitude of the challenges, the economic impact of the Houthi militia's unrelenting war on the nation and confiscation of foreign cash reserves to finance the war," Hadi said.

"Nevertheless, we are not absolved from stepping up efforts to take tackling measures and start building a new economy right from scratch," he added.

However, pay rise and other measures declared by Hadi's government didn't calm down angry protesters in Aden and other government-controlled provinces. Demonstrations escalated further on Monday following a general strike a day before.

The Yemeni riyal has been sinking faster and faster in recent days after nearly four years of deadly military conflict.

In the street markets in Aden, where the Saudi-backed government is officially based, one U.S. dollar was traded for 623 riyals, up from 215 riyals before the war.

The impoverished Arab country has been locked into a civil war since Shiite Houthi rebels overran much of the country militarily and seized all northern provinces, including capital Sanaa, in 2014.

The internal military conflict between Iran-backed Houthis and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government has entered its fourth year, leading to the world's worst humanitarian crisis.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 01:08:42|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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Soldiers attend a parade of "Quick Response 2018" in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, on Sept. 3, 2018. EUFOR-led peace support operation exercise "Quick Response 2018" officially started with a parade on Monday afternoon at EUFOR Headquarters located in Sarajevo. (Xinhua/Haris Memija)

SARAJEVO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- EUFOR-led peace support operation exercise "Quick Response 2018" officially started with a parade on Monday afternoon at EUFOR Headquarters located in Bosnia and Herzegovina's (BiH) capital Sarajevo.

At the opening ceremony in Camp "Butmir", COMEUFOR Major General Martin Dorfer emphasized that this year's exercise will be the largest one so far, taking place at several locations throughout BiH.

In a situation of a potential threat to the safe and secure environment, Quick Response Exercises test the complex mechanisms that can be activated and integrated with reserve troops already arranged, Dorfer explained.

"Together, we will demonstrate that the citizens of BiH can be assured of our joint and combined commitment to ensuring the safe and secure environment," Dorfer said.

Taking place from Sept. 3-7, "Quick Response 2018" practices EUFOR's capability to call in parts of their reserve forces and engage them in an international exercise. This annual international exercise involves EUFOR's Multinational Battalion, the elements of the reserve forces from Austria, Bulgaria, Italy, Romania, the United Kingdom and the NATO Kosovo Force Tactical Reserve Battalion.

"Including forces from BiH, a total of eight nations and over 1,000 troops will actively participate in Quick Response 2018, demonstrating that we are collectively unified in the primary aim of being prepared to ensure a safe and secure environment," Dorfer concluded.

BiH Minister of Defense Marina Pendes pointed out that the current security challenges threatening BiH and the region necessitate a better and closer cooperation of all relevant stakeholders in security and defense sectors, including BiH Armed Forces and EUFOR.

Pendes said that the exercise will provide the necessary tools to support BiH aspirations towards full membership in the European Union (EU) and NATO.

EUFOR is governed by the UN Security Council's executive mandate for this exercise and is required to regularly rehearse this reinforcement. This year's exercise will bring together BiH Law Enforcement Agencies, BiH Armed Forces and EUFOR, in order to test the respective contingency plans and the capability to be mutually supporting.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 01:13:46|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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TEHRAN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The 43rd Executive Board Meeting of the Organization of Asia-Pacific News Agencies (OANA) officially kicked off in the Iranian capital Tehran on Monday.

The OANA meeting called for the adoption of new approaches to keep up with the pace of science and technology in the field of news dissemination.

"We live in an era when the media need to re-define and re-evaluate themselves in order not to lag behind science and technology," Iranian Minister of Culture and Islamic Guidance Abbas Salehi said in his address to the meeting.

"Therefore, re-organizing the mechanisms according to the new atmosphere of the communication world and social networks is an inevitable necessity," Salehi noted.

Founded in 1961 on the UNESCO's initiative, OANA aims to facilitate information dissemination in the region, with 44 members from 35 countries in Asia and Oceania.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 01:13:46|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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ZAGREB, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- After a 10-day strike that finished on Friday, the Croatian shipbuilding industry was hit again as clients canceled contracts with the country's largest shipbuilding group.

On Monday, Uljanik Group informed the Zagreb Stock Exchange that its clients had canceled a total of four new builds. It is a big blow to the company that is already struggling with financial problems and an uncertain future.

Around 4,500 Uljanik employees went on strike in late August over unpaid wages. On Friday, they received delayed salaries for July thanks to the Croatian government who struck a deal with a local bank and secured the next two wage payments. Although workers of Uljanik Group have canceled the strike, problems in the shipyards have not disappeared.

At "3. Maj", one of the shipyards in the Uljanik Group, there was not much work to do on Monday since there was still no material to continue production. Member of the striking committee and one of the union leaders Juraj Soljic requested an urgent session of the supervisory board to analyze the company's current situation and appoint a new crisis management team, N1 television reported.

Soljic said "3. Maj" could sink due to the latest contract cancellations. Workers at the shipyard want to split off from the Uljanik Group.

Croatian police confirmed on Monday that it was investigating a possible fraud in the shipyards. In March, the Uljanik Group chose the local company Kermas Energija as its strategic partner, but the European Commission has still not approved its recapitalization plans.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 01:43:55|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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AMMAN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Jordanian Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi on Monday met with visiting U.S. envoy James Jeffrey the recent developments in war-torn Syria.

During the meeting, Safadi reaffirmed Jordan's call for a political solution to the Syria crisis, according to a ministry statement.

The solution needs to preserve the unity and territorial integrity of Syria and should be accepted by all Syrians, he said.

They also discussed the issue of Syrian refugees as well as Jordan's pressure by hosting a large number of Syrians.

According to official figures, there are 1.3 million Syrian refugees living in Jordan.

The Jordanian minister called for continued international efforts to provide support for the Syrian refugees, adding that his country encourages the voluntary return of refugees.

Jeffrey, U.S. special representative for Syria, is currently on a tour to the region.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 02:09:02|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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MADRID, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Five people, including three men and two women, lost their lives and 15 more were injured as a bus on the route between the cities of Oviedo and Gijon crashed in the town of Aviles in the northern Spanish Community of Asturias on Monday, emergency services inform.

The accident happened when the bus collided with a concrete pillar sustaining an overhead viaduct at a speed estimated to be between 80 and 90 kilometers an hour, at 13:40 p.m. local time.

The accident was on the AI-81 road as the bus headed to Gijon, which is 28 kilometers away.

Four of the five victims died in the accident, while a fifth passed away while being taken to hospital, meanwhile five of the injured, including the bus driver, are reported to be in a "serious" condition by regional health authorities.

The 'Alsa' company which runs the service confirms the driver had been working for them for 7 years and had passed a medical test in April.

The company also confirmed that the vehicle involved in the collision had passed all of the necessary safety checks, the last of which was in March of this year and the vehicle had also undergone routine maintenance on Aug. 19.

A spokesperson for the Civil Guard reported "a bus came off the road and collided with a pillar of a section of the new motorway which is currently being built," in an area of reduced speeds because of the roadworks.

Witnesses have told the Spanish press that just prior to the collision, the vehicle swerved first to the right and then left before hitting the pillar.

Although the cause of the accident is still being investigated, the early hypothesis is that the driver may have lost consciousness moments before the collision, while split the bus into two halves down to the third row of passenger seats.

The company Alsa, meanwhile will hold a "crisis meeting" to analyze all of the information currently available.

Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez confirms he has been in touch with the leader of the Autonomous Community of Asturias, Javier Fernandez, in a 'tweet' in which he gives "solidarity to the victims and their families" and wishes a "rapid recovery to the injured," while the regional government of Asturias has declared an official day of mourning for the victims.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 02:09:03|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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LJUBLJANA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Slovenian police last week arrested six Slovenians suspected of running an international prostitution ring after a nine-month investigation, the national media reported on Monday.

The head of the Celje criminal police Damjan Turk stated on Monday that the suspects, aged between 24 and 66, had mostly used Slovenian and Ukrainian girls, with a total of 13 victims identified.

Citing the police, the Slovenian Press Agency STA said in its report that charges have been brought against eight people and one company so far, but the investigation continues after about 700 visits to the prostitutes by clients had been identified.

The girls had to share half of their revenue with the suspects or more if they failed to make the monthly minimum of around 1,000 euros. The costs of the sexual services ranged between 60 and 180 euros each.

Meanwhile, criminal inspector Damijan Roskaric of the Ljubljana Police Administration said that Slovenia was a target country when it comes to people trafficking, with prostitution being the main abuse method.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 02:14:05|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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TRIPOLI, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Libya's UN-backed government on Monday denied press reports that its headquarters in the capital Tripoli was attacked by gunmen.

The government work in the headquarters was going smoothly, it said.

Local media reported earlier that the government's headquarters in central Tripoli was attacked by gunmen, forcing security guards to flee.

Southern Tripoli has been witnessing violent clashes in the past week between government forces and armed militias, killing at least 41 and injuring 123 others.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the continued escalation of violence in and around Tripoli on Sunday.

"Indiscriminate use of force is a violation of international humanitarian and human rights law," he said.

Following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime, Libya has been suffering escalating violence and political division.
Supporters of Ethiopian opposition take part in a demonstration along the streets of Addis Ababa, capital of Ethiopia, Jan. 17, 2018. (Xinhua/Michael Tewelde)

ADDIS ABABA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Former Ethiopian minister Junedin Sado returned home on Monday after close to a decade in exile due to disagreements with the Ethiopian government.

Sado, who had served as Ethiopia's minister of transport as well as other high-level government roles, followed the footstep of many other opposition figures, journalists and activists who returned following the government's reconciliation effort.

Sado's homecoming on Monday came a day after another prominent Ethiopian government critic and human right activist, Tamagn Beyene, who returned on home on Saturday after more than two decades of strong opposition in exile.

Beyene, who was welcomed by senior Ethiopian government officials including Deputy Prime Minister Demeke Mekonnen upon his arrival in Ethiopia, said recent peaceful transition and reform within the Ethiopian government was the major factor for him to return.

Mekonnen, who commended Beyene for his decision to return home, further called on Ethiopians in exile to follow suit, according to the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister.

The Ethiopian government, following Abiy Ahmed's premiership in early April, has been implementing various decisions aimed at creating a nationwide reconciliation, including the release of high-level political prisoners, invitation for Ethiopian rebel groups for talks as well as the decision to normalize relations with its regional arch-rival Eritrea.

Ahmed also declared an amnesty invitation for exiled politicians, journalists and human right activists to return home and pursue their political activities in a peaceful manner.

Kassa Kebede, foreign policy chief of Ethiopia's former ruling party, is one among the many Ethiopians who have returned home after decades of stay in exile.

Other notable activists and journalists that have returned include Jawar Mohammed and Mohammed Ademo.

Various rebel groups, such as the Patriotic Ginbot 7, Oromo Leberation Front (OLF) and the Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF), have also declared ceasefire.

The ONLF, a rebel group operating in the Ethiopia's Somali regional state, is the latest to declare a unilateral temporary ceasefire.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 02:39:10|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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Photo taken on Sept. 3, 2018 shows the opening session of the newly elected parliament in Baghdad, Iraq. Iraq's newly elected parliament held its first session within its fourth legislative term on Monday. (Xinhua)

BAGHDAD, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Iraq's newly elected parliament held its first session within its fourth legislative term on Monday.

The 329-seat parliament held the session at about 11:00 a.m. (0800 GMT) with the presence of 297 lawmakers who convened under the chairmanship of Mohammed Ali Zayni, the eldest member of the parliament.

After the outgoing President Fuad Masoum, Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Speaker Salim al-Jubouri delivered their speeches, the lawmakers were sworn in.

According to the Iraqi constitution, the lawmakers should elect a new speaker from the Sunni political blocs, in accordance with the power-sharing system in Iraq, which states that the president should be for the Kurds, the speaker for the Sunnis and the prime minister for the Shiites.

However, the divided Sunni blocs nominated six candidates for the speaker post, who will need absolute majority of the total 165 lawmakers by direct secret ballot.

The parliament also will have to elect the speaker's first deputy and second deputy, usually to be one from the Shiite candidate and another from Kurdish candidate, who both will need absolute majority by direct ballot.

In the afternoon, Zayni decided to resume the session later to give time for lawmakers to reach a consensus about the nomination of the speaker post and the two deputies.

Meanwhile, political blocs led by Sairoon Coalition, led by Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, have claimed they have formed the largest alliance and officially presented their document (of largest alliance) to Zayni, signed by leaders of some 20 political blocs, which includes more than 180 lawmakers.

Other blocs led by Iranian-backed Coalition of al-Fatah, headed by Hadi al-Ameri, and former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki, who heads State of Law Coalition, also presented their document signed individually by more than 153 lawmakers.

The conflicted announcements by the political blocs confused the political scene, as the lawmakers of each side are interpreting the constitutional Article 76 about the largest alliance in different ways, pushing the temporal Speaker Zayni to send a request to the Supreme Federal Court to interpret the article in order to decide which one is the largest.

The Shiite Fadhilah parliamentary bloc called for holding a round-table meeting of the winning blocs to fix the rift that is deepening between the two groups of the blocs about the largest alliance.

"The first session approved that divisions (over largest alliance) are deepening and threatening with further fragmentation, which will disrupt the course of constitutional obligations in their specific timings and delay the formation of the government," Ammar Tu'ma, head of Fadhilah bloc, said in a statement.

"The conflict about the largest alliance will take a long time and create a tense political atmosphere that would cause more street discontent and undermine confidence in the entire political process," Tu'ma warned.

According to the Iraqi constitution, the parliament shall elect the president from the Kurdish lawmakers by a two-thirds majority of its members. Then, the elected president will ask the largest alliance to form a government within 30 days.

On May 12, millions of Iraqis went to 8,959 polling centers across the country to vote for their parliamentary representatives in the first general election since Iraq's historic victory over the Islamic State militant group in December 2017.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 02:44:11|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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NICOSIA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Cyprus and India signed agreements aimed at further enhancing their "special ties", the presidents of the two countries said after talks in Nicosia on Monday.

The talks were part of an official visit to Cyprus by Indian President Ram Nath Kovind, the first visit by India's Head of State in nine years. It followed a visit by President Nicos Anastasiades to India last year.

Kovind said at a joint press conference that the agreements were part of efforts to further enhance the already "special ties" between the two countries dating back to the 1960s.

He added that Cyprus and India enjoyed close relations as a result of the personal friendships of their leaders at the time, Mahatma Gandhi of India and Archbishop Makarios of Cyprus, both imposing figures of the Non-Aligned Movement.

The agreements signed, they said, are in the fields of economic and commercial cooperation, merchant shipping, tourism, sustainable development, dealing with climate changes, with special emphasis on financial intelligence and IT.

Kovind spoke of the unwavering support of India for a solution to the Cyprus problem ending the 44-year long of partition of the eastern Mediterranean island, for which President Anastasiades expressed gratitude and appreciation.

Kovind also addressed a special session of the Cypriot parliament, after laying flowers at the bust of Mahatma Gandhi next to parliament's building.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 03:29:21|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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DAR ES SALAAM, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The government of Tanzania said on Monday it was deeply saddened by the deaths of four tourists, a guide and a driver in the East African nation's tourist region of Arusha.

The accident on Sunday killed four Italian and Spanish tourists, their Tanzanian tour guide and driver after their vehicle collided head on with a lorry at Nanja in Monduli district, about 65 kilometers from Arusha city.

Deputy Minister for the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism Japhet Hasunga said in a statement that the government was deeply saddened by the tragedy.

The tourists and their tour guide and driver were travelling from Arusha city to Tarangire National Park.

Iddi Kimanta, Monduli District Commissioner, said on Sunday the accident occurred at Nanja area in Monduli district, about 65 kilometers from Arusha city on the slopes of Mount Meru, Africa's fourth highest mountain.

"The vehicle that was carrying the tourists has been reduced to a mangled wreckage ... it's a very serious accident," said Kimanta.

Arusha region boasts of several tourist attractions, including the Serengeti National Park, the Lake Manyara National Park and the Ngorongoro Conservation Area, attracting tourists from across the world.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 03:34:23|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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DAMASCUS, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Days after visiting Turkey, Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in Damascus Monday as part of a shuttle diplomacy to resolve the situation in Idlib province, the last major rebel stronghold in Syria.

Upon arriving at the airport, Zarif said the militants of the Levant Liberation Committee (LLC), or the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, must be "cleaned out" of Idlib in northwestern Syria, the last major rebel bastion in Syria.

His visit came before the presidents of Turkey, Iran, and Russia are to meet in Iran on Friday to discuss the Syrian situation, especially in Idlib.

In a meeting during his visit last month, Hatami and his Syrian counterpart signed a deal for military cooperation, while the United States, France and Britain issued a statement claiming Syria was planning a chemical attack in Idlib and warned that they would use force in case of such attack.

The Western statement was condemned by Syria, Iran, and Russia, who believe it is a Western attempt to prevent the Syrian army from capturing Idlib.

On Aug. 29, Zarif visited Turkey and met with officials including President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in reported talks on Idlib.

Turkey has 12 observation posts run by its military in Idlib to monitor the "de-escalation zone" agreed upon by Turkey, Russia, and Iran.

The Syrian army, backed by both Iran and Russia, has been amassing forces to launch a wide-scale campaign to eradicate the ultra-radical groups in Idlib while at the same time trying to reach reconciliation deals in that area.

Turkey's role is essential as Ankara has a considerable sway over the rebels in Idlib. It was assigned to monitor the truce between the Syrian government and the opposition.

But after failing to convince the LLC to dissolve itself, Turkey has recently declared the rebel group as a "terror organization."

Zarif said the tripartite summit on Friday will discuss ways to confront the extremist groups, mainly the LLC, amid efforts to separate this group from other less-radical militants who could achieve reconciliation with the government without military operation.

The meeting will also discuss how to coordinate on continuing the political process and the counter-terrorism in Syria, he added.

"After the victory against the extremist groups in Syria, it's about time to rebuild this country. Syria's alliances are contributing to this matter," Zarif said.

Hatami also said recently that Syria has entered the phase of reconstruction as the war was nearing an end.

"Russia, Iran, and Turkey are the guarantor countries to the Astana process. We are sure that the main goal of this summit will be the case of liberating Idlib and this is what the Syrian people are looking for," Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem told Russia Today in an interview.

The three countries have backed the Astana process for Syria and agreed to establish four de-escalation zones including Idlib.

The Astana peace talks were launched in January 2017 with the aim of putting an end to violence and improving the humanitarian situation in the war-torn Syria.

But the situation in Idlib has escalated with the presence of ultra-radical groups such as the LLC, which also prevents other rebel factions from accepting a reconciliation deal with the Syrian government.

The government prioritized reconciliation in Idlib but was rejected by the ultra-radical groups who opted for a military operation.

The visit of Zarif to Syria was read by analysts as aiming to put the Syrian government in the picture of what had been discussed in Ankara.

Zarif also met with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, during which both sides agreed that the pressure from the Western powers on Syria and Iran will not prevent both countries from protecting the interests of their people.

As Syria has a strong alliance with Iran and Russia, its relations with Turkey had dramatically worsened during the Syrian war as Turkey has been a major backer of the rebels in their insurgency against the rule of Assad.

But Turkey started considering its alliance with Iran and Russia as significant, particularly after the recent deterioration in the relations between Turkey and the United States, which imposed sanctions on Ankara over disputes regarding a jailed U.S. pastor in Turkey.

Meanwhile, Syria's Prime Minister Imad Khamis said during his meeting with Zarif that Damascus will continue to cooperate with friendly countries to reconstruct Syria, especially "Iran and Russia and the private sectors in these countries."

Khamis also welcomed the participation of the Iranian companies in the upcoming Damascus International Fair.

Al-Moallem said during his recent visit to Moscow that the reconstruction process constitutes a "golden chance" for the Russian companies as they will have a priority in implementing reconstruction projects in Syria due to the Russian support to Syria during the war.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 03:44:26|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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SANAA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi rebels said they fired a ballistic missile toward Saudi Arabia's border city of Jizan on Monday, Houthi-controlled Saba news agency reported.

Meanwhile, the Saudi-owned Al Arabiya television reported that the Saudi air defenses intercepted and destroyed the ballistic missile over Jizan.

No further details were provided by either sides.

On Sunday, the Houthis said they launched missile and drone attacks on military targets inside Jizan.

Yemen has been locked in a civil war since late 2014, when the Houthi rebels overran much of the country and seized all northern provinces, including the capital Sanaa.

Saudi Arabia is leading an Arab military coalition that intervened in the Yemeni war in 2015 to support the Yemeni elected government of exiled President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi.

The war has so far killed more than 10,000 Yemenis, mostly civilians, and displaced about 3 million others.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 03:54:30|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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THE HAGUE, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The suspect of the stabbing of two U.S. citizens at Amsterdam's Central Station has named insults of Islam and anti-Islam politician Geert Wilders as reasons for committing his crimes in the Netherlands, the Dutch public prosecutor stated on Monday.

During the initial hearing, the 19-year-old Afghan with a German residence permit claimed that in the Netherlands "the prophet Muhammad, the Koran, the Islam and Allah are insulted frequently". He mentioned right-wing Party for Freedom PVV leader Wilders as one of the insulters.

According to the statement by the prosecutor, the man arrived at Amsterdam's Central Station just before noon local time on Friday with an international train from Germany. Just after noon he stabbed two 38-year-old men from the U.S. The man has declared he picked the victims at random.

Both victims are still in hospital, severely wounded, but not in life danger. The suspect was shot by the police. He is also in hospital, under police surveillance. He will be examined psychologically and psychiatrically.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 04:04:32|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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CAPE TOWN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- South Africa's Cape Town has managed to steer itself away from disaster known as Day Zero, when the city runs out of water, executive deputy mayor Alderman Ian Neilson said on Monday.

Giving the latest update on rainfall the city has received in the past few days, Neilson said the city is very encouraged to see dam levels rising above 65 percent after significant late-winter rainfall, the first time in years.

"It is hoped that this latest rain could provide sufficient motivation for finally easing the water restrictions," he said.

Cape Town, South Africa's second largest city and legislative capital with about 4 million people, was on the brink of becoming the world's first metropolis to run out of water last year, in what was called Day Zero which refers to the time when dams supplying water to the city run dry, water taps are switched off and residents have to collect water at designated points.

An unprecedented drought prompted the city to impose Level 6B water restrictions, the most stringent in history, on January 1 last year. Under the restrictions, a resident can only use 50 liters of water each day.

The water restrictions still remain despite the continuous rise of water in dam levels, Neilson said.

The rainfall over the past few weeks, combined with continued saving efforts by the majority of residents, has seen dams fill to levels the city had not seen in years, he said.

The city has advocated for a conservative relaxation of the restriction levels, which would pave the way for the associated relaxation of the restriction tariff, according to Neilson.

This decision is currently being considered by the department, he said, while cautioning that any relaxation of restrictions will at first be conservative.

"We cannot return to a business-as-usual attitude to water without risking water security in the years to come," he said.

"Given the unpredictable nature of our rainfall, it is imperative that we diversify our supply for the future, and entrench the water-saving mindset we have cultivated over the past year," said Neilson.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 04:04:33|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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By Stefania Fumo

VENICE, Italy, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- American director Julian Schnabel's tribute to legendary painter Vincent van Gogh, titled At Eternity's Gate and starring iconic actor Willem Dafoe, premiered in competition at the Venice Film Festival on Monday.

Largely shot with a handheld camera, using first-person POV and extreme close-ups alternating with wide shots of the protagonist immersed in the landscapes of southern France, the movie tells the story of the last days of the great Dutch painter, who died in 1890 at the age of 37 after being shunned and misunderstood for most of his life.

Van Gogh is known for his use of intense colors and thick, fierce, churning brushstrokes that transformed his subject matter -- flowers, landscapes, people -- into a new vision that revolutionized 20th-century Western art.

Dafoe took one-on-one painting lessons from Schnabel, who was a successful artist before turning to filmmaking, in preparation for the role.

"This is a movie as much about painting as it is about Van Gogh, so a big part of the process for me was learning how to paint -- and even more so, learning how to see," Dafoe explained.

"I learned about how to touch a canvas, how to approach color, how to strategize and how to abandon strategies," said the actor, a three-time Oscar nominee who has appeared in over 100 films directed by the likes of Kathryn Bigelow, David Lynch, Werner Herzog, Spike Lee, Wim Wenders, Martin Scorsese, Oliver Stone, and Zhang Yimou, to name just a few.

"Most of all, I learned that painting is a combination of inspiration, impulse, technique, training -- and then letting go of training," said Dafoe, who along with Schnabel received an ovation at the press conference for the movie in Venice.

The film pursues the act of creation -- the magic that travels from the painter's eye, to his mind, to the canvas. A key element is the evocative piano-based score by Kazakhstan-born musician, visual artist, performer, and model Tatiana Lisovskaya.

"Tatiana created original music that takes you into the sound in Van Gogh's head," said Schnabel, who made his directorial debut in 1996 with a hit film about Haitian-American graffiti artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, who skyrocketed to fame before dying prematurely at age 22.

That movie, titled Basquiat, was the first-ever commercial film about a painter directed by a painter, and was nominated for a Golden Lion at Venice.

"If you ask me to explain (At Eternity's Gate), I would say it's impossible," Schnabel continued. "We tried to make an equivalent to a feeling you may get while observing a work of art."

At Eternity's Gate was shot by Benoit Delhomme, who won the Camera d'Or at Cannes for his work with Vietnamese director Tran Anh Hung, and was written by Jean-Claude Carriere, himself a cinematic legend known for his 19-year collaboration with Luis Bunuel and winner in 2014 of an honorary Academy Award for his body of work as a screenwriter.

This movie is a feast for the eye and mind of all lovers of art, of painting, of cinema, and of Van Gogh. As Schnabel has said: "The only way to describe a work of art is to make a work of art."

The Venice Film Festival, now in its 75th edition, ends on Sept. 8.
Refugee children attend an official ceremony to return to school at a UNRWA school at a Palestinian refugee camp in al Wehdat, Amman, Jordan, on Sept. 2, 2018. (Xinhua/Mohammad Abu Ghosh)

RAMALLAH, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- In the wake of the U.S. decision on Friday to stop funding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), Palestinian factions and observers say Washington is working toward the annulment of the UN General Assembly Resolution 194 on Palestinian refugees.

Adopted in late 1948 near the end of the Arab-Israeli war, the UN Resolution 194 defines principles for the settlement of the Palestinian refugees and their compensation by allowing them to return to their homes.

Issam Bakr, the coordinator of Palestinian national and Islamic factions in the West Bank, told Xinhua that the U.S. decision to stop funding UNRWA means its increasing bias against Palestinians and in favor of Israelis.

"Their end goal is the annulment of the UN Resolution 194," Bakr noted.

ADVERSE IMPACTS OF U.S. FUNDING SUSPENSION

The U.S. decision has put the UNRWA in a serious financial crisis which may lead to closure of parts of its services to more than 5 million Palestinian refugees in the region.

On Saturday, Pierre Krahenbuhl, commissioner general of the UNRWA, urged donor countries to step their contributions, as the UN refugee agency is suffering an unprecedented 200-million-U.S.-dollar deficit.

On Wednesday, the UNRWA started the new school year in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, with some 526,000 Palestinian students attending 711 schools.

The current funding shortage facing the UNRWA may put the educational rights of the Palestinian students at risk, Krahenbuhl warned.

Nour Odeh, a Ramallah-based diplomatic affairs analyst, said the American approach could trigger "an international crisis, not just a Palestinian one," given its implications on both regional and international levels.

Washington "is using political and financial extortion to dictate its hostile policy against Palestinians, and the international community will need to act more courageously and responsibly to confront this bullying tactic," she said.

On Saturday, Israeli media quoted diplomatic sources as saying the United States even demands the Gulf states stop their funding to UNRWA after 2018.

"Arab states have a vested interest in maintaining UNRWA operations because the collapse of the UNRWA will threaten their stability, especially the host countries," Odeh explained.

PALESTINIAN OUTCRY AGAINST U.S. DECISION

According to Palestinian factions, a sit-in will be organized on Tuesday in front of the America House in Ramallah City, in addition to a series of other protests.

Palestinian officials said Washington aims to eliminate the issue of refugees from the final status negotiations between Israelis and Palestinians.

Nabil Abu Rudeinah, spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, announced on Saturday that Abbas is considering going to the UN General Assembly and the Security Council "to challenge the U.S. decision to stop all funds to the UNRWA," official Palestinian news agency WAFA reported.

Meanwhile, Palestinian Prime Minister Rami Hamdallah described the decision as "a new flagrant attack against Palestinian rights and international law," urging the international community to "stand against this unjust decision."

Hanan Ashrawi, a member of Palestine Liberation Organization Executive Committee, described the U.S. funding cut as "inhumane and reckless."

The move would lead to "instability of the entire region and creation of unimaginable suffering and hardship for the Palestinian refugees," she warned.

The U.S. Statement Department Spokeswoman Heather Nauret said in an official statement on Friday that "the U.S. is ending all funding to the UN Palestinian refugee agency."

The statement described the UNRWA as "irredeemably flawed," saying the U.S. government has "carefully reviewed" the issue and "will not make additional contributions to UNRWA."

For nearly five years, the UNRWA has been dealing with an worsening financial problem caused by the increased demand for its services with the growing number of registered Palestinian refugees and their deepening poverty and vulnerability.

As the oldest and largest relief organization, UNRWA was established in 1949 and mandated to provide assistance and protection to some 5.4 million registered Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Syria, Lebanon, the West Bank and the Gaza Strip to achieve their full potential in human development.

Its services include education, health care, relief, social services, infrastructure, camp improvement and microcredit.
A cholera-infected child receives medical treatment at a hospital in Sanaa, Yemen, on Sept. 2, 2018. (Xinhua/Mohammed Mohammed)

by Mohamed al-Azaki



SANAA, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Fear of a possible third deadly wave of cholera is rising in Yemen, as a public hospital in Sanaa is receiving over 60 suspected cases of the epidemic each day, mostly children.

The United Nations humanitarian agencies have recorded more than 1.1 million suspected cases and more than 2,300 associated deaths since April last year, labeling the country with "the largest outbreak on record."

Al-Sabeen Maternity and Child Hospital in Sanaa is filled with groans and cries of children and mothers suffered from the epidemic, sounding the alarm over the most humanitarian tragedy of the country in the modern age.

Lujain Muammar has been lying on the hospital bed in the intensified care unit of the cholera treatment section for several days.

"She began crying after we had a lunch at a house of our relatives ... and then she went into persistent vomiting and watery diarrhea," Fatima, the mother of the six-year-old girl, told Xinhua.

"Her legs were then cramped and she went into coma ... we quickly brought her here," the mother recalled, sitting beside Lujain.

The father, Muammar, was a government employee and relied on his monthly salary until the deadly civil war broke out in March 2015. He has since become jobless like hundreds of thousands of Yemeni civil servants who gone largely unpaid due to the war.

Lujain's doctor Ismail al-Mansour said the girl was badly infected with cholera and unfortunately, she is also malnourished.

"Lujain needs a long-term treatment from both cholera and malnutrition and she must remain in the hospital under close medical observation," the doctor said.

At the time, Tahir al-Refaei was rushing down the hospital corridor to the cholera treatment section, carrying his wife in his arms.

"Please help," al-Refaei told the doctors while putting his wife on the bed, and the doctors immediately started examinations on her.

"She has been suffering from severe diarrhea and continuing vomiting all the night, so I rushed her here," al-Refaei said.

He told Xinhua that a female relative of his family died four days ago from the cholera infection. The family did not take her to the hospital and she died after the disease led her to dehydration and kidney failure.

Nearly all beds in this hospital suite were occupied by children and young girls.

Doctor Adel al-Almani, the head of the cholera treatment section of the hospital, told Xinhua that the section receives an average of 60 to 70 suspected cases everyday, mostly children under the age of seven.

"I notice that the numbers of infected cases are increasing recently," doctor al-Almani said.

Nearly 25 million Yemenis have been lacking access to clean drinking water since the war erupted.

Moreover, it has since become a common sight to see piles of garbage mingled with stinking green watery filth littered the streets across the neighborhoods, causing the spread of major fatal diseases.

Last week, Peter Salama, deputy director-general of emergency preparedness and response of the World Health Organization, warned that the war-torn country is still vulnerable to the spreading epidemic.

"We've had two major waves of cholera epidemics in recent years, and unfortunately, the trend data that we've seen ... suggests that we are maybe on the cusp of the third major wave of cholera epidemic in Yemen," Salama said.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 04:44:43|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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CAIRO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Egypt on Monday highlighted the importance of restoring stability in Libya by enabling state institutions, especially the military and security entities.

In a statement, the Egyptian Foreign Ministry said that Egypt is following up the recent dangerous developments in Libya, especially the armed clashes in Tripoli and its suburbs.

The ministry also called for avoiding chaos spread by militias to enable the Libyans to maintain the country's resources to build a modern, united and stable country.

Southern Tripoli witnessed violent clashes in the past week between government forces and armed militias, killing at least 41 and injuring 123 others.

The reasons for the clashes remain unknown, with growing tensions and military mobilization over the past few days between armed groups from outside and inside the city.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the continued escalation of violence in and around Tripoli on Sunday, saying that "indiscriminate use of force is a violation of international humanitarian and human rights law."

Following the 2011 uprising that toppled former leader Muammar Gaddafi's regime, Libya has been suffering escalating violence and political division.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 04:44:44|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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DUBAI, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) and the United States agreed Monday to enhance cooperation in defense and military, UAE state news agency WAM reported.

The UAE Armed Forces Deputy Supreme Commander Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan met with U.S. Central Command Commander Joseph Votel, and discussed bilateral issues and ways of "further solidifying friendly bilateral ties."

Both sides reviewed an array of issues of mutual interest in the meeting, attended by other ministers and senior army officers.

The UAE also vowed support of the U.S. administration's more hawkish stance on Iran.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced in May withdrawal from the Iran nuclear deal.

The UAE is part of a Saudi-led coalition that has been fighting anti-government Houthi rebels in Yemen since March 2015, and the coalition blames Iran of arming them.
At the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center in Star City, Russia, Expedition 48-49 backup crewmembers Peggy Whitson of NASA (left), Oleg Novitskiy of Roscosmos (center) and Thomas Pesquet of the European Space Agency (right) arrive for Soyuz qualification exams May 26, 2016. (Xinhua photo)



DUBAI, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announced on Monday that the first two UAE astronauts will join Russia's space mission in 2019, UAE state news agency WAM reported.



The two candidates, Hazza Ali Abdan Al Mansouri and Sultan Saif Hamad Al Neyadi, were selected among 4,022 young people who have been tested for the UAE Astronaut Program, which aims to qualify and prepare UAE astronauts for scientific missions in outer space.

One astronaut will fly to space in April 2019 on a 10-day mission as part of the Russian space mission to the International Space Station aboard the Soyuz MS-12 spacecraft.

The second will serve as a replacement.

Earlier in June, the UAE and the Russian space agency Roscosmos State Corporation for Space Activities signed an agreement to send the first UAE astronaut to orbit.

The astronaut will participate in scientific tests and research programs as part of Russia's space mission to the International Space Station aboard the Soyuz-MS spacecraft.

"Hazza and Sultan represent a new stage for the UAE youth and will raise the aspirations of new generations," said UAE Vice President Sheikh Mohammd bin Rashid Al Maktoum.

Al Mansouri and Al Niyadi won the competition after completing six phases of medical, psychological and advanced tests and a series of interviews in cooperation with NASA as well as advanced medical tests by Roscosmos.

Thirty-four-year-old Al Mansouri, who holds a bachelor's degree in aviation science and military aviation from the Khalifa bin Zayed Air College, has 14 years of military aviation experience.

According to WAM, Al Mansouri qualified to be an aeronautical pilot in 2016 and now pilots an F-16B60 aircraft.

Al Niyadi, 37, has a doctor's degree in data leakage prevention technology from Griffith University in Australia and a bachelor's degree in electronics and communication engineering from Brighton University in Britain.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 05:04:51|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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RIYADH, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Saudi Arabia on Monday dismissed reports saying it plans to impose fees on expatriate remittance, Saudi Press Agency reported.

The Saudi Finance Ministry confirmed that it supports the free movement of capital through official channels in accordance with international standard and practices.

The ministry added that this will also enhance foreign investors' confidence in the kingdom's economy and financial systems.

The ministry also said such approach comes in line with the Saudi Vision 2030 to diversify the economy and attract foreign investments.

The ministry clarified that the statement was issued in response to "baseless and unfounded" media reports.

The ministry also dismissed in 2017 similar reports.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 05:14:53|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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BERLIN, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Chinese and German companies could work well together to accelerate innovation process, a German expert told Xinhua here on Monday.

Thomas Nolting, Chairman of the Board of the German Advanced Industrial Technology Research Institute, made the statements after having visited the Chinese company Haier's booth at the Berlin's consumer electronics show, the Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA).

The Qingdao Haier Co. Ltd. is one of the world's leading home appliance makers.

"It is good for Chinese companies like Haier to present themselves here (at IFA)," Nolting said, adding that German and Chinese can help and learn from each other.

In general, German companies are great machine producers and have good manufacturing technologies. But in the area of Internet of Things, Chinese companies are more innovative than European companies, according to him.

Nolting believed that innovation is very necessary, and both Chinese and German companies are very innovative.

"The (innovation) train is traveling with great speed. We have to catch hold of it," he said.

Meanwhile, Nolting noted that products of Chinese companies are very good and they are getting even better. He praised Haier's advanced and intelligent technology, as well as its excellent design.

"So I think in the coming year, German and Chinese companies can work together in many areas," he concluded.

IFA 2018, which will last until Sept. 5, has drawn 1,814 exhibitors worldwide. More than one third of them come from China.
Photo taken on July 22, 2018 from the strategic Tal Al-Jabiyeh hill shows Syrian tanks moving toward the Tal Al-Jumou hill that is under the Islamic State (IS) control in the southern province of Daraa, Syria. (Xinhua/Ammar Safarjalani)

MOSCOW, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- The Islamic State (IS) terrorist group is seeking alternative sources of finance after its revenues from the sale of oil and collection of taxes from the population in Syria and Iraq shrunk drastically, a senior Russian security official said Monday.

Compared to financial receipts estimated at about 3 billion U.S. dollars in 2014, now the IS only gets 200-300 million dollars a year, according to Sergey Beseda, head of the intelligence information and international relations service at the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).

"There is a tendency to invest previously earned funds in legal business in order to facilitate the regular receipt of finance for further activities," RIA Novosti news agency quoted Beseda as saying at an international conference on countering illegal arms supplies in light of combating international terrorism.

He added that after suffering losses in Syria and Iraq, the IS moved part of its militants to Afghanistan.

The FSB forecast that the IS is likely to take over "certain drug trafficking channels" in order to improve its financial situation, TASS news agency quoted Beseda as saying at the conference.

"There is a reorientation to less costly projects, social work has become more active and propaganda has spread through social networks, and the recruitment of militants also proceeds through social networks," he said.

Such a development could become a new global problem and force the international community to seek new methods of fighting terrorism, said Sergei Kozhetev, first deputy head of the Special Purpose Center of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service.

The IS is training and redeploying sabotage and terrorist groups to Europe, Central and Southeast Asia, as well as Russia, Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure executive committee deputy head Dzhumakhon Giyesov told the conference, according to RIA Novosti.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 05:45:03|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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Protesters confront Illinois State Police in Chicago, the United States, on Sept. 3, 2018. Police arrested 12 people attempting to block traffic on the highway leading to Chicago O'Hare International Airport on Monday. The protesters' demands include more African Americans in the construction workforce in Chicago, the repurposing of closed schools, economic investment in African American neighborhoods, resources for black led anti-violence initiatives, and the resignation of Mayor Rahm Emanuel. (Xinhua/Wang Ping)

CHICAGO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Police arrested 12 people attempting to block traffic on the highway leading to Chicago O'Hare International Airport on Monday.

According to Illinois State Police, eight men and four women were arrested, including local activist and protest leader Reverend Gregory S. Livingston.

Police used a loudspeaker to instruct protesters to leave the highway. Protesters, including Rev. Livingston, then formed a single-file line to be arrested.

More than 100 police officers from several local and state agencies were present to stop the protesters from walking on the highway.

Activist Audrey Davis, a former school teacher of Chicago, told Xinhua, "Like all protesters, I am concerned about the escalating violence in our city and in our state ... I think there's a lot of inequity in black neighborhoods compared to white ones."

The protesters' demands include more African Americans in the construction workforce in Chicago, the repurposing of closed schools, economic investment in African American neighborhoods, resources for black led anti-violence initiatives, and the resignation of Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

This protest came just days before the beginning of the trial of former Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke, who prosecutors charged with the first-degree murder of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald. On Dec. 29, 2015, Van Dyke pleaded not guilty to the charges. The trial will begin on Wednesday.

Gun violence in Chicago's poorest communities has drawn national attention for a number of years. Since September 2011, at least 174 people under the age of 17 have been killed, and another 1,665 shot, according to figures compiled by The Chicago Tribune.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 06:05:07|Editor: Shi Yinglun

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SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- U.S. tech giant Google announced on Monday that it is employing a new artificial Intelligence (AI) technology to combat online spreading of contents involving child sexual abuse.

Google said its cutting-edge AI technology uses deep neural networks for image processing to help discover and detect child sexual abuse material (CSAM) online.

The new tool based on the deep neural networks will be made available for free to non-governmental organizations (NGOs) and other "industry partners," including other technology companies, via a new Content Safety API service that could be offered upon request.

"Using the Internet as a means to spread content that sexually exploits children is one of the worst abuses imaginable," Google Engineering Lead Nikola Todorovic and Product Manager Abhi Chaudhuri wrote in the company's official blog post.

The new AI technology will significantly help service providers, NGOs and other tech firms to improve the efficiency of CSAM detection and reduce human reviewers' exposure to the content, said the two Google engineers.

"Quick identification of new images means that children who are being sexually abused today are much more likely to be identified and protected from further abuse," they noted.

"We've seen firsthand that this system can help a reviewer find and take action on 700 percent more CSAM content over the same time period," they added.

Many tech companies are now more willing to leverage AI to detect various kinds of CSAM contents such as nudity and abusive comments, and Google's announcement represents its fresh commitment to fighting online CSAM contents by sharing "the latest technological advancements."

Google has been cooperating with some of its partners in combating online child sexual abuse, including the Britain-based charity the Internet Watch Foundation, the Technology Coalition and the WePROTECT Global Alliance, as well as other NGO organizations.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 06:10:08|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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BEIRUT, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Lebanon's Prime Minister-Designate Saad Hariri presented Monday a new proposal to President Michel Aoun on the government formation, local media reported.

Hariri said after meeting with President Aoun that the new proposal was not discussed before, and is made to form a national unity government, reported National News Agency.

He added that further discussions are needed with the president and different political parties to agree on the ministers to be appointed.

Meanwhile, the president's media office issued a statement that Aoun made a few remarks about the new proposal, saying the president "will be in touch with prime minister designate in a bid to reach a new formula for the future government."

Hariri is facing various hurdles in his attempt to form a 30-member national unity government, due to the rifts among rival politicians over the representation of the main Christian parties as well as the Druze sect.

Some progress happened lately in the cabinet formation as Lebanese Forces Chief Samir Geagea agreed to revoke his demand to hold the post of deputy prime minister in addition to a sovereign ministry in return for four ministries.
Source: Xinhua| 2018-09-04 06:30:12|Editor: Mu Xuequan

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CAIRO, Sept. 3 (Xinhua) -- Egypt requested Monday a detailed report on the status of Egyptian artifacts on display at Brazil's 200-year-old National Museum in Rio de Janeiro that caught fire late on Sunday.

Secretary General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities Moustafa el Waziri expressed in a statement regret over the incident, saying the fire is a fatal loss to human and historical heritage.

He said Egypt is ready to send experts and cooperate with the museum officials in restoring the priceless artifacts that were damaged in the fire as long as it was requested by the Brazilian government.

The museum press services reported no injuries as the fire broke out at night when the museum was closed to the public.

The three-story museum, which houses more than 20 million items, used to be the official residence of Portuguese and Brazilian royal families.

The museum has archaeological finds including some of the first fossils found in Brazil, historical relics and artifacts from Egypt and other countries as well as Greco-Roman pieces of art.
The OSCE Election Observation Mission for the Hungarian elections in April 2018 has finally published their final report. As Index.hu reports, the elections were democratic, but the media was biased.

OSCE, the international organisation has already issued its preliminary statement following the Hungarian elections in April.

The organisation launches Election Observation Missions only to countries upon the official invitation of the government. In their preliminary statement, the Mission concluded that the parliamentary elections were characterised by a pervasive overlap between state and ruling party resources, undermining contestants ability to compete on an equal basis.

The report also emphasised that, although there was a wide range of options, media bias and the lack of real political debate hindered voters ability to make a well-informed and grounded decision. In the final report, these concerns are even more stressed.

As the report states, campaign financing was vague and chatoic due to an overlap between the financial resources of the state and the candidate ruling party. Concerns were raised regarding the state of Hungarian media.

As we have written about it earlier, several online sources have expressed similar opinions: The Guardian wrote about the worrying tendencies in Hungarian media freedom, while an American journalist reported about Hungary as a failing democracy.

According to OSCE, media coverage during the campaign period prior to the elections was extensive, but highly polarized. Public media has met the requirements that were posed in terms of providing coverage to all candidates in its news program, but other than that, it was clearly biased towards the ruling coalition.

As the report stresses, women are highly underrepresented in Hungarian politics, and the media paid nearly any attention to the empowerment of women candidates. The organization included some recommendations in the report to help Hungary fulfil international obligations and standards in the future.

The focus is on clear and transparent campaign financing, safeguarding the public broadcasters independence and possibilities for broader citizen observation.

MTI Photo

Sources: Daily News Hungary, Index.hu
The government will provide 7 billion forints (EUR 21.4m) in supplemental central funding for the renovation of the Chain Bridge and the Castle Hill Tunnel, as per the request of the Budapest metropolitan council, Gulyas Head of the PMs Office said.

At the same time, the cabinet has requested that the renovation should not take longer than a year and a half to finish, he added.

Gulyas also announced that the electronic road toll would rise by 5.8 percent from January 1 with the extra revenue going towards a village road fund that will allow the government to develop the countrys least developed village roads.

The price of 10-day motorway vignettes will rise to 3,500 forints from the current 2,975 forints, he said.


The pro-migration government of Sweden has expressed baseless criticism over Hungarys migration policy, foreign ministry state secretary for communication Tamas Menczer said.

The Swedish foreign minister has falsely claimed that Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban and Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini stand against the principles of democracy, Menczer told public news channel M1.

The participants of Tuesdays Italy-Hungary talks are true democrats because they represent the will of the European people when they fight against illegal migration, he added.

As the European parliamentary elections draw closer, politicians have been divided into two groups: those who support migration and those who want to stop it, Menczer said.

At the same time, the people of Europe are united in that they do not want illegal migrants, he added. In the recent period, voters expressed their will in national elections in Italy, Germany, Slovenia and Hungary, he said.
From the organiser: We are pleased to welcome Mitchelle Wangari as our new Sunday school director and teacher. Mitchelle, a member of our Saint Margarets community, is completing her medical studies in Budapest.

On most Sundays of the school year, Father Frank meets briefly with the children at the beginning of the service. The kids then head off to the Sunday School lesson  which usually also includes a craft or activity of some sort. The children return to the chapel at the conclusion of the service and share with the congregation what they have learned.

Saint Margarets also offers its unique Pray-and-Play carpeted area for children under five-years of age for whom the regular Sunday School programme might be a challenge.

The Pray-and-Play carpet allows the young people to remain in the chapel with the congregation and under the supervision of their own parents throughout the service. Pre-school toys and colouring materials are available but parents are also welcomed to bring items from home.

The Sunday school classroom adjoins our worship space at both locations  Svabhegy and Fasori. Study and activities mainly follow the lessons from the weekly Scripture readings and Gospel accounts read during the service itself.

Occasionally, a block of weeks will be devoted to a specific theme or topic and will include a Bible reading with craft activity connected to the subject. The main age-range for these Sunday school activities is 5-12 but all are welcome. For further information, please contact Father Frank.

Date and time: starting from 16 September, 10.30 am, nearly every Sunday

Venue:

Protestans Szakkollegium

1121 Budapest Svabhegy, Eotvos ut 35.

Fasori Gimnazium

1071 Budapest, Varosligeti fasor 17-21.
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...
Act II Playhouse offers us a loving version of Neil Simon's Biloxi Blues (extended through Sept. 30) in the shadow of the author's death on Aug. 26 at age 91. This play probably hit harder in 1985 than it can today. Since then, we have had many more trenchant looks at the military, anti-Semitism, first-time sex/love, the outsider in a regimented world. But for a Neil Simon play, Biloxi has range.

This is the middle play of Simon's kind-of-autobiographical "Eugene trilogy" of the 1980s, made up of Brighton Beach Memoirs, Biloxi Blues, and Broadway Bound. Well-scrubbed audience favorite DJ Gleason returns as Eugene Morris Jerome, now on his way to basic training in Biloxi, Miss. Adam Riggar's sets are clever and shift easily from train to basic training to 48-hour leave in a Mississippi backwater.

In Biloxi, Simon takes Eugene, the main figure of the trilogy, and sets him somewhat in the background. Gleason is sparkly as the likable young guy, the funny and word-wise chorus. But he tells us his main goals early: "become a writer, not get killed, fall in love, and lose my virginity." No surprises here: He takes care of them all.

The production's best thing is the battle of wills between fellow trainee Arnold Epstein (done beautifully by a bespectacled Luke Bradt), a thoughtful, dyspeptic, deeply read Jew who insists on dignity and compassion; and Sgt. Merwin J. Toomey (the tremendous Andrew Criss, about to pop his uniform with muscles and rage), who, in his own mind, is "trying to save these boys' lives" through discipline, drill, acid insult, and ritual humiliation.

Bradt and Criss crackle on stage; lighting designer James Leitner bathes their scenes in glaring light. Director Tony Braithwaite does even better with their through-line than with his comic specialty. Soldier's and sergeant's viewpoints are just too far apart. More than personal degradation, Epstein is fighting anti-Semitism; his fellow Jew Eugene can but record Epstein's heroic stand. Sgt. Toomey, as Criss plays him, is splendid, down to his pleasure in others' pain. In the climactic scene of Act Two, involving a pistol, a veterans' home, and a bet, Criss and Bradt take the production into high-stakes territory.

So there are questions of moment  leavened with hijinks and smiles. Eugene has his first big night with professional madame Rowena (played with blowsy knowingness by Heather Plank) and his first love thanks to Catholic girl Daisy Hannigan (the bright Anne Wechsler). (This subplot strikes me as saccharine, I'm afraid; nostalgia clearly overcame the author.)

One liners? Oh, yes: "The Army is really dumb. If the Navy is this dumb, we'll have to take a train to Europe!" One soldier, aching to get his turn with a sex worker, howls, "Hurry up, damn it! I'm going to pass my peak!" Dared to enumerate the sexual positions, first-timer Eugene says: "There are 52! I saw a dirty deck of cards once." My favorite is a piece of wisdom: "Without problems, the day would be over at 11 o'clock in the morning."

Aside from the Eugene/Sgt. Toomey contretemps, little is ruthless or truly dark; even the horrors of war seem exorcised. Act II Playhouse is taking care of the audience, who responded by eating up Gleason, nodding at a morality tale about tolerance, and indulging in a tale of a boy's growing up.
The scene in Harrisburg Tuesday as family members of victims heard Pa. attorney general speak of more than 70 years of abuse by clergy. Read more

HARRISBURG  Over the course of 70 years, allegations of rape and sexual abuse levied against clergy members who worked in the Pittsburgh Diocese led to several million dollars in settlements and other bills, according to a review of the grand jury report released last month.

The report lists $5.8 million in payments covering lawsuits, counseling for victims, Catholic school tuition for victims' children, and, in at least two cases, "sustenance" payments for priests who had been convicted of indecent assault or corrupting minors.

The document does not always clarify whether the payments were covered by the Diocese of Pittsburgh, insurance, or other entities.

But that $5.8 million is almost certainly an undercount. The report lists payments stemming from the actions of 29 clergy members in the diocese; for 10 of them, it did not specify the amount paid out.

While that tally is less than the figures publicly known in other dioceses across the country, it has renewed questions about who should pay when priests sexually abuse children and where that money should come from.

"The grand jury's report  raises more questions for us, especially given the tithing and given who the players were," said Michael Hammond, a lawyer representing parishioners from two shuttered churches that have accused the diocese of fraud.

The money

Just under half of the known payments stem from one lawsuit, involving a former priest named Richard Deakin. According to the grand jury report, Deakin worked in the Baltimore area before coming to the Pittsburgh Diocese. In Maryland, he had developed a relationship with a teenage girl and "assumed a prominent role in her life" as she recovered from surgery to remove a tumor from her chest.

In the winter of 1985-86, he began sexually abusing her; the abuse lasted for about a year and a half and continued after he transferred to a church in Rochester, Beaver County. In 1989, the girl began having nightmares about the abuse, entered counseling, and told her mother and psychiatrist about the abuse.

Deakin was arrested in 1990 and pleaded guilty to rape and sexual abuse of a child, according to the report.

The girl and her mother filed a lawsuit that settled in 1993 for just over $2.7 million. The grand jury report does not specify who paid that money. The Archdiocese of Baltimore, the Capuchin religious order, and six church officials were named in the suit, according to a Baltimore Sun story from 1993.

In two cases, the diocese covered "sustenance" payments for priests after they were convicted in separate cases of either corrupting children or indecent assault.

One former priest, Richard J. Dorsch, now 73, was convicted of indecent assault and corrupting minors. He received $159,700 in sustenance payments through 2009, according to the grand jury report.

In another case, the report suggested, the diocese paid more than $260,000 in sustenance payments for former priest Richard F. Zula, who was convicted of corrupting children.

"The report takes issue with the fact that the Diocese of Pittsburgh paid for professional medical help for Zula and continued to provide him with sustenance," the diocese wrote in its response to allegations outlined by the grand jury report. "Canon law required the Diocese of Pittsburgh to support Zula."

The Zula case also involved a confidential settlement with two brothers for a total of $900,000. And the grand jury said the diocese obtained a doctor to evaluate Zula and present at his sentencing in hope of reducing it  a notion the diocese strongly disputed in its written response to the report.

"While diocesan resources were being used in such a fashion, unknowing parishioners were still actively tithing from their income without knowledge that church funds were being used to mitigate a convicted sex offender's sentence," the grand jurors concluded.

It is unclear how much money for the payments described in the report came from tithing. The Diocese of Pittsburgh has not answered the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's questions about the payments.

In a few cases, the grand jury report itself provides details about how the expenses were covered. For example, the report says the Catholic Charities Fund paid $10,065 to educate one victim's children.

Other information can be gleaned from past news stories. In 2007, the Diocese of Pittsburgh agreed to pay $1.25 million to settle a case involving 32 victims. The diocese told priests that insurance provided the money, according to a Post-Gazette account.

The amount of publicly known payments in the Pittsburgh Diocese is lower than what's known to have been paid elsewhere. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia said in a recent statement that it "has paid more than $10 million in recent years to help hundreds of victims."

Robert Hartwig, former CEO of the New York-based Insurance Information Institute and a professor at the University of South Carolina, said even when insurance is in place, it might not cover all of a diocese's costs.

"Historically," he said, "I have seen dioceses retain some of the costs using dioceses' funds, as well as assets from the sale of land, property and buildings."

A fraud allegation

Real estate developments are at the heart of a case currently winding through the state's court system.

Parishioners from St. Agnes in Richeyville and St. Anthony in Monongahela sued the Diocese of Pittsburgh over mergers involving their parishes.

They alleged, among other things, that they donated money through a diocesan fund-raising campaign promoted to raise funds to support "vibrant parishes," Catholic education and evangelization. At St. Agnes, parishioners helped raise more than $100,000.

"It is clear, however, that the diocese only desired to improve the market value of St. Agnes property in order to sell it for a higher profit," their attorney wrote in one filing.

He made similar claims on behalf of parishioners from St. Anthony.

The diocese countered that parishioners had ample reason  including from past statements  to expect the churches could be merged. Mergers are necessary because of declining attendance, strapped finances, and a shortage of priests, the diocese has said.

The parishioners "claim, contrary to canon law, that their donations, tithes and offerings were converted by Bishop [David] Zubik to his personal use. Bishop Zubik contends that the monetary donations, in keeping with canon law, were transferred to the new parish," the diocese's attorney wrote in one court filing.

The diocese has argued in some instances that the former churches' locations or other features of their buildings made them less preferable for hosting a merged parish.

"The bishop must consider and act in the best interest of the universal church generally and the entire diocese specifically  not just in what a few individual parishioners believe is their best interest," the diocese's attorney wrote.

The case was initially dismissed by Washington County Court Judge Katherine Emery, who found that parishioners lacked standing and that their claims would require a judge to "delve into the canonical law" in a way that could violate the First Amendment, which grants freedom of religion.

The parishioners appealed the ruling, and that appeal is pending in Commonwealth Court. If the parishioners are successful, the payments mentioned in the grand jury report could factor into their arguments going forward.

"That's certainly a theory that we intend to dive into as to where these funds have gone, what the plans are for liquidating the church assets, why you're selling off more attractive properties and what the sudden need for that cash is," Hammond said.

Staff writer Angela Couloumbis and Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reporter contributed to this article.
Blood and chalk circles mark where casings were recovered by Philadelphia Police at the scene of the fatal shooting Saturday night on Abbottsford Avenue in Germantown of a Florida man in town to visit relatives. Read more

Sitting on the porch of her Greene Street home Sunday afternoon, Marcie Ashby periodically rubbed her face with her hands and rocked softly in her chair.

"I'm talked out and I'm cried out," she finally said. But after reflection she agreed to talk some more about her nephew, Antonio Baggs, 37, who was shot to death around the corner Saturday night on Abbottsford Avenue, which intersects Greene.

Baggs, her brother's son, from Pompano Beach, Fla., had come to Philadelphia with his fiancee and his son and daughter for what was to be a surprise visit, first to Ashby's home and next to the Delaware home of his 86-year-old grandmother, who is Ashby's mother, she said.

But before Baggs and his family could exit their Dodge Durango, a black vehicle with dark tinted windows driven by a man pulled alongside and a gunman opened fire, striking Baggs multiple times just after 10 p.m., according to Ashby and police. The vehicle was last seen going south on Greene Street, police said.

Somehow the others in the SUV were not hit by bullets. Baggs was pronounced dead at Einstein Medical Center about a half-hour later, police said.

"My daughter across the street called me and said Tony's in town and he's trying to get in. So when I was coming downstairs I just heard boom, boom, boom. Loud gunshots. I went to the door but I didn't see him," Ashby recalled. "By this time cops were everywhere and we knew somebody got shot. Then my son-in-law came out of the house and said, 'Mom, that was Tony who got shot, that was Tony.' And I just snapped."

Ashby, 68, said she is convinced her nephew was shot in a case of mistaken identity because he has no criminal record and he has no enemies in Philadelphia.

Through her screams of anguish she said as much to the police officers who converged on the tree-shaded block of well-maintained large-framed rowhouses. This was not a drug killing, this was her nephew who worked in a dairy, took care of his family, and was planning to marry in three months, Ashby told the cops.

"They believed me. You should have seen them, they looked so sad you would have thought a policeman had been shot," she said. "The cops were so sad here and at the hospital. They believed me. They know that he was a good guy."

Homicide Capt. John Ryan said Sunday evening that police haven't yet determined what a motive.

"It could very well be a case of mistaken identity. That is the most likely thing now," Ryan said. "We'll have to look into his background more, but this man had just driven up from Florida and had only been in the city a few hours. He hadn't been in the city long at all."

Baggs had made a few stops in Philadelphia, including at a restaurant, but "there had been no altercation with anyone. And this was not a road rage kind of thing. We literally have no idea what prompted this," Ryan said.

"It is very fortunate that no one else in the car got killed," he said. "It's bad enough that he got killed."

The family has not told Baggs' grandmother because she is frail "and this could kill her," said Ashby, who is retired from SEPTA.

Baggs' fiancee and his children  Ashby said the boy is about 14, the girl, 5  had to rent a car to get to the airport to return home because the vehicle he was mortally wounded in is still being held as evidence, she said.

"They're out of it. His father is out of it. His mother was taken to the hospital. Everybody is out of it," Ashby said.

For her nephew's killer she had this message: "You took a beautiful life, someone who wouldn't hurt a fly. All he did was take care of his kids. He took them fishing in the ocean. That's what he did."

About 15 relatives came to Ashby's home Sunday, a common occurrence when elderly relatives pass, she said. But this time the relative was young.

"It's always a natural death. Never murder or drugs," she said of the previous gatherings.

Ashby can barely comprehend what has befallen her family.

"Things are getting so bad here, they can't talk about New York or Chicago anymore. Young people just killing each other, snuffing lives out," she said. "My nephew did not deserve that. He never harmed a fly, he never sold a drug. They young thugs who drove up on him and shot him like that thinking he was someone else. He didn't deserve that."
Six hours of talks Sunday failed to achieve a deal on a new contract between Philadelphia-area Catholic high school teachers and the archdiocese. Negotiations are expected to resume 10 a.m. Monday and continue, if necessary, to 8 p.m.

Needed is a pact to replace the one that expired at 12:01 a.m. Saturday.

>> READ MORE: Catholic teachers won't have new pact before contract expires

"We are still very far apart with a number of crucial issues on the table. These include money, medical, and teacher working conditions," Rita Schwartz, president of the Association of Catholic Teachers, wrote in a text Sunday evening. "While I am trying to remain hopeful, there is a lot of ground to cover in a short space of time."

The 11,600 students at the 17 area high schools the union represents are scheduled to start classes on Wednesday.

Teachers are scheduled to meet 10 a.m. Tuesday at Penns Landing Caterers for a general membership meeting. Schwartz has hopes that members would have a new contract agreement to consider then.

Jason Budd, chief negotiator for the archdiocese, issued a statement of optimism Sunday night:

"Steady progress has been made by the teams today in reducing the number of proposals under discussion. There are still key issues to be resolved, such as salary, benefits, term of agreement, and professional responsibilities, but the archdiocesan team is committed to working toward a resolution that our teachers would accept, thus ensuring an on time start to the school year."
Pearl Nipon, 90, the fashion designer behind the Albert Nipon label and one of Philadelphia's most widely acclaimed purveyors of haute couture, died in Philadelphia on Sunday, Sept. 2, of heart disease.

Mrs. Nipon frequently described her relationship with her husband and business partner, Albert Nipon, the same way: He was the head of the family, but she was the neck, "and the neck turns the head anywhere it wants it to go."

It didn't always play out like that. Family members said Mrs. Nipon was sometimes the neck and the head, and the body, too. Over 65 years of marriage  and decades of partnership in their fashion design empire that counted Nancy Reagan and Barbra Streisand among its devotees  the couple complemented each other well: He had the administrative chops and business acumen. She was the visionary.

"They were two sides of a perfectly matched coin," said the couple's oldest son, Larry Nipon. "An incredible love story."

Mrs. Nipon resided for decades in Gladwyne with her husband and their four children, but the couple had lived at the Residences at the Ritz-Carlton in Center City for the last decade.

Born Pearl Schluger to an appliance salesman and garment worker, Mrs. Nipon was a native of Philadelphia and a graduate of Overbrook High School. She got her start in fashion without her husband, the namesake of the acclaimed black-on-white "Albert Nipon" label. In 1950, she and her sister, Dorothy, opened a dress shop at 18th and Sansom Streets.

Mrs. Nipon met Albert when they were both in Atlantic City, with different dates, and she dared him to throw her into the pool. He did, and a couple months later, asked her what she wanted for her birthday. She said "a diamond," and then showed up the next day with a bag of diamonds she borrowed from a jeweler and held it in front of Albert, asking: "Which one would you like me to have?" They married in 1953.

Two years later, Mr. Nipon left his accounting job at Du Pont to manufacture maternity clothing that Mrs. Nipon designed under the company name Ma Mere, which they grew into a nationwide chain of more than 100 stores. Mrs. Nipon retired in 1957 to raise her children.

But maternity clothing retail revenue dipped by the late 1960s, and Mr. Nipon convinced his wife to make a comeback. Saks Fifth Avenue buyers were interested in the style of her pieces, made with high-end fabric and known for elegant collars and bows, and asked Mrs. Nipon to design a line of about a dozen women's dresses.

It was a gamble  women at that time were more often wearing pantsuits and sportswear. But Saks loved the line, and Mrs. Nipon helped to bring back femininity, creating a line that was more ladylike than the other top labels at the time.

"She had a taste level from God," Larry Nipon said.

Albert Nipon Inc. exploded in popularity, becoming one of the preeminent labels of the 1970s and '80s and establishing the couple as industry celebrities. In the mid-1980s, the Nipons released a survey showing Albert Nipon was the second most-recognized designer name in the country, behind only Calvin Klein. Mary Tyler Moore, Barbara Walters, Rosalynn Carter and other women of note frequently donned Mrs. Nipon's designs.

At its peak, Albert Nipon Inc. grossed $60 million a year and employed 600 people in a North Broad Street factory, making it the city's biggest employer of unionized garment workers.

In 1988, Mr. Nipon sold the company after completing a prison term on tax fraud charges. Leslie Fay Cos., the New York-based sportswear company that acquired Albert Nipon Inc., shuttered its Philadelphia operations in 1992.

But the Nipons had, even at 90, remained an integral part of Philadelphia high society, and Mrs. Nipon was known for keeping a full social calendar.

"It's hard to even accept the fact that she's not going to be calling us and telling us what we're doing," longtime friend Ron Rubin said, "or what we should be doing."

Though her designs were dainty, Mrs. Nipon was described by friends and family as a "force"  she was strong-willed, high-energy and a little chaotic, and was known by some in the business as the "white tornado," because she never stopped going.

She's remembered as a woman who had strong opinions and wasn't shy about them. Larry Nipon said she loved a good debate and started most sentences with: "I disagree." Marcia Rubin, a longtime friend, described Mrs. Nipon as having a "bravado" that she marveled at.

"Her comfort in saying what she thought was something I really admired," she said, "to the point where I would say out loud: Be like Pearl."

In 1984, Mrs. Nipon pointedly told an Inquirer reporter about dealing with the death of her own mother, who'd died a few years earlier and was buried in a red dress.

"Me? I think I'd like to have my ashes scattered over Philadelphia," Mrs. Nipon told the paper. "Or maybe over Seventh Avenue [in New York]," she said. But then she reconsidered, after looking out over Philadelphia's bustling garment district. "No, I'd like to stay right here."

Besides Albert, 90, and Larry, Mrs. Nipon is survived by children Leon, Andrew and B.J. Nipon Spencer, as well as nine grandchildren.

A funeral service will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday at Adath Israel, 250 N. Highland Ave., in Merion Station. Interment will follow at West Laurel Hill Cemetery in Bala Cynwyd. Shiva will be observed at B.J. and Craig Spencer's home on Wednesday immediately following the burial and Thursday from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m.
In this April 4, 2018, file photo, Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., responds to a question during a town hall meeting in Jackson, Miss. Sanders won Vermont's Democratic Senate primary on Tuesday, Aug. 14, but was expected to turn down the nomination, as he did in his previous campaigns, and support other Democratic candidates. Read more

When Bernie Sanders was the lone socialist voice on the political landscape, both he and socialism were pretty easy to ignore. As mayor of Burlington, Vt., he was a curiosity. But having won a seat in the U.S. Senate, and then having been a contender for the Democratic presidential nomination, Sanders has come to be much more than a simple curiosity. Today, he inspires acolytes, like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who are themselves experiencing some electoral success.

But, socialism has put Venezuela, the country with the largest oil reserves on the planet, into an economic death spiral. In socialist North Korea, even soldiers live in near-starvation. In socialist China and the Soviet Union, tens of millions were killed outright or starved by economic collapse. At our doorstep, the people of socialist Cuba have endured a half-century of misery. Despite this overwhelming evidence, socialist politicians in the United States are, nonetheless, ascending. To get around their obvious PR nightmare, they claim not to embrace socialism, but democratic socialism. With socialism, the state confiscates the means of production. Democratic socialism is the kinder, gentler version. With democratic socialism, a majority of voters confiscate the property of a minority of voters after things have been produced. With democratic socialism, the state doesn't control production, it simply redistributes profits.

The rise of socialist politicians in the U.S. has fueled the debate of the merits of socialism versus capitalism. But the socialism-capitalism debate is not particularly productive because neither actually exists, at least not in a pure form. What exists is a spectrum. On the side most comfortable to Sanders and his followers, the government controls all things. On the other side, the government controls nothing. Using labels loosely, we can call the two extremes "pure socialism" and "pure capitalism," though this does injustice to both. Seeing the matter as a spectrum captures what almost all Americans intuitively understand: Each of us is both an individual and a member of a broader community. As such, each of us has both rights for ourselves, and responsibilities to others. Across countries and throughout history, people have engaged in an ongoing balancing act between rights and responsibilities, sliding one way or the other on this spectrum between the extremes of pure socialism and pure capitalism.

If we look at where countries have fallen on the spectrum, we can draw some conclusions about how well these systems work. Cross-referencing data sets on economic freedom and economic outcomes from disparate sources such as the Fraser Institute, the Heritage Foundation, the United Nations, and other governmental bodies reveals a compelling story. Across countries, states, cities, and time, the closer governments have wandered toward pure socialism, the worse off their people have tended to be. Countries at this end of the spectrum tend to experience lower average incomes, higher poverty rates, more environmental degradation, more income and gender inequality, and higher child labor rates. It turns out that no country has ever tried pure socialism because no people would tolerate the unbearable misery that accompanies complete government control over an economy. Conversely, no country has ever tried pure capitalism either because no people would tolerate the absence of the rule of law that results when there is no government. How do we know? Because in every place where people have found themselves without a government, they inevitably created one.

There is no economic theory that tells us where lies the best spot on this spectrum between extremes. Even people who have made studying economics and the economy their life's work don't know exactly where the sweet spot is. If they don't, then Ocasio-Cortez, Sanders, and everyone clamoring to support them have no idea either.

But there are a few things that we do know that these ascendant socialist politicians seem determined to overlook. The closer any country has gotten to pure socialism, the more miserable it has become. Yes, pure socialism has never been tried. But everywhere it has been approximated, people have suffered. Meanwhile, the closer to pure capitalism countries have moved, the happier, wealthier, and healthier their citizens have tended to become. If outcomes matter more than intentions, then the better, if not the absolutely correct, answer should be pretty clear to everyone.

Antony Davies is associate professor of economics at Duquesne University. James R. Harrigan teaches in the department of Political Economy and Moral Science at the University of Arizona. They host the weekly podcast, Words & Numbers.
Henry Nicholas, who is the president of 1199C and NUHHCE, watches during a union rally outside Federal Court in Philadelphia, PA on June 27, 2018. Read more

Labor Day has marked the victories of unions and America's working people for the last 136 years. It's a day of remembrance for the fight for workers' rights, the very concept of the eight-hour workday, the weekend, the elimination of child labor in favor of universal education, and the injustice of unsafe, often lethal working conditions.

It is time for us to return to the same principles of economic justice and working-class solidarity that delivered those victories. Our history shows that when workers come together in a union and exercise their collective voice on the job, we transform the economy and the daily lives of all our brothers and sisters who work. 

America's working people and their unions have faced many challenges over the last few years, but with adversity comes opportunity. Today, corporations and moneyed special interests try to pit us against each other as they rig the economy to work for the wealthy few at the expense of the working class. In the last year, we have seen incredible grassroots action in response to threats to our freedoms and our rights. Hundreds of thousands of newly organized union members are reclaiming their power in the workplace, and three-quarters of them are younger than 35.

This summer, the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Janus v. AFSCME Council 31, delivering a politically motivated verdict that affects millions of workers across America and hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians. Their decision overturned more than 40 years of established labor law. Many were ready to spell the end for the labor movement, for fair workplaces and for workers' rights.

From the teachers striking and winning in West Virginia, to the brothers and sisters in Missouri who repealed "right to work" legislation at the ballot box for the first time in history, to right here in Pennsylvania, when we proved this spring that our economic values are more unifying and energizing than the divisive rhetoric of politicians, we are proving them wrong. We are still fighting; we are marching, striking and organizing.

Right now, our country is divided along many lines, emotions are raw, and many of us feel like we are not being heard. This is a pivotal moment, not just for the labor movement, the civil rights and equal rights movements; it is a moment to refocus on the issues that bring us together in solidarity.

And this moment could not be more significant in its magnitude. We are at a point in history where we are seeing yet another opportunity to create change in the workplace through organizing in a union, by standing up against sexual harassment and gender discrimination, or ending the prejudice that exists based on race and sexual orientation or protesting the consistent failure to care for workers' safety and rights.

Labor unions and members have been fighting for legislation to protect workers for years; bills like public sector worker safety, the protection of workers' compensation and unemployment insurance, and addressing discrimination in the workplace. Yet our state legislature is often unable to act on behalf of the working men and women of this commonwealth. These are not partisan issues; this is about your right to security and safety on the job, and to come home at the end of the day.

We need courageous Pennsylvanians to stand up and pass the Jake Schwab Worker Safety Bill, the Pennsylvania Workplace Freedom Act, and the sexual harassment bills sitting in Harrisburg waiting to protect our sisters and brothers from abuse.

Only when we come together and demand that each of us is treated with respect on the job, in our communities and in our government, will we become the change we seek.

Rick Bloomingdale is president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO.
This Labor Day, workers deserve much more than our words. They deserve our actions.

We don't need to look any further than our own city to see the power of working people leading on critical issues in our economy and society.

Long before this year's teacher strikes in West Virginia, Oklahoma, and Arizona rocked the nation, I marched alongside Philadelphia teachers who fought for and won a contract to restore essential classroom resources and keep middle-class jobs in our city. I've met with hotel workers and nurses who are unionizing for better care by keeping client ratios at sustainable levels, and I've supported Philadelphia's airport workers who won a multiyear battle for a living-wage contract that offers them a path out of poverty.

For the last year, I've been listening to Philadelphians who work at some of the largest retail and fast-food chains in the country, yet make among the lowest wages in our economy. Retail, hospitality, and food service are the second-largest sector of Philadelphia's economy and growing fast. There are more than 130,000 workers in hourly jobs that have little predictability in scheduling or guarantee of hours. As a result, these are Philadelphians struggling to make ends meet, trying to go to school and gain new skills, juggling multiple jobs, and scrambling for affordable childcare.

A recent Philadelphia study of these workers showed that almost 80 percent don't have a regular daytime work schedule and 45 percent have schedules so chaotic that they cannot predict a weekly income. The stakes are especially high for working parents: Many lose out on childcare subsidies or access to benefits when their hours fluctuate dramatically. And a significant percentage of workers say they forgo school or other employment in order to keep their schedules open in case they are called into work.

This doesn't just impact workers. There's a big hit on businesses as well, in terms of high turnover, low customer satisfaction ratings, and threats from e-commerce. A recent study at the Gap showed that when their retail stores provided predictable and stable scheduling, productivity and profitability improved and employee turnover declined.

After hearing these stories from our constituents, our City Council took action.

We held a hearing and met with dozens of businesses, worker organizations, students, and nonprofit advocacy groups. And in June, eight council members introduced a bill that would require large corporations to give workers a two-week notice of their schedules, a right to rest between shifts, and a pathway to gain more hours. This "Fair Workweek" bill is one of the most powerful tools municipalities can use to both support workers and encourage sustainable growth for business.

In passing our Fair Workweek bill, Philadelphia will join 17 states and municipalities who recognize that stable and predictable schedules are smart for business and smart for workers.

We have a long way to go.

This Labor Day, we must build a renewed sense of worker power through new forms of organizing and new policy solutions. From gig workers, like those who deliver our food and packages, to the retail, food service, and hospitality workers who are rallying for "Fair Workweek" legislation, I am committed to supporting the next phase of the labor movement and the fight for economic justice.

Helen Gym is an at-large member of Philadelphia City Council.
Patrick J. Eiding, center, President of the Philadelphia Council AFL-CIO, speaks during a union rally outside Federal Court in Philadelphia in June. Read more

Given the booming economy, American workers should be feeling good this Labor Day about their contribution to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of the United States. But the sad reality is many middle-class workers are struggling and feel worse off today than a decade ago, while conservative groups have launched an all-out assault on unions.

To be sure, corporate profits are up and the stock market is enjoying a record bull market that began in March 2009. But what happens on Wall Street does not benefit many on Main Street. Nearly half of the country has no money invested in the stock market.

Meanwhile, President Trump's $1.5 trillion tax cut  like previous massive tax cuts  has failed to trickle down to average workers in a meaningful way, and many of his policies are hurting American workers. Just 4 percent of workers at Fortune 500 companies received a bonus or wage increase as a result of the tax cut, according to an analysis by Americans for Tax Fairness, an advocacy group dedicated to tax reform.

The tax cuts helped the one group that didn't need a boost. The richest 1 percent of taxpayers will receive an average tax cut of more than $55,000, while the middle fifth of taxpayers will receive a tax cut of $800 in 2019, according to an analysis by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy, a non-partisan think tank.

The upshot is added growth in inequality as the rich keep getting richer and the middle class continues to shrink.

Research shows the rise in inequality in America corresponds with the fall in unionized workers. In the mid-1950s, one out of every three workers had a union job, according to the Congressional Research Service. Today, roughly 10 percent of U.S. workers belong to a union.

A concerted effort over the last 40 years by a network of conservative think tanks, corporations, and political action committees has added to the decline in unions. That effort gained steam following the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling, in Janus v. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, that millions of public sector workers can stop paying union dues. The ruling is likely to hurt private sector unions as well.

A recent working paper by economists at Princeton and Columbia universities found that unions helped reduce income inequality in the United States in the decades when organized labor was strong. That bolsters earlier research from 1998 that estimated the decline in unions resulted in 10 to 20 percent of the increase in inequality over the previous quarter century.

The rise in technology has also contributed to the increase in inequality as machines replace some blue-collar jobs and displace low-skilled workers who are unable to adapt. Globalization has made it easier and even encouraged companies to close factories and move jobs offshore.

But the decline of unions has had a negative impact on the income of non-union workers as well, a report by the Economic Policy Institute shows. Indeed, many Americans are working two jobs just to keep up. So, instead of enjoying a well-deserved day off, many people will be working on Labor Day and beyond.
New Delhi: The auspicious occasion of Shri Krishna Janmashtami had the nation gripped in its festive fervour. While a majority of the population celebrated the festival on September 2 this year, in some parts it is being celebrated on September 3. The day marks the birth of Lord Krishna and devotees usher in the day with full gusto.

The social media platforms have been flooded with numerous posts wishing each other a 'Happy Shri Krishna Janmashtami'. Our Bollywood celebrities too thronged Twitter and Instagram wishing fans on Lord Krishna's birthday.

Sidharth Malhotra took to Twitter and shared a childhood picture of him where he can be seen dressed as Lord Krishna. It's simply adorable and will bring back many memories from your own childhood days. He captioned it as: #HappyJanamashtami #KrishnaJanmashtami      , me dressed as krishna by my beloved Dadi . #throwback #delhihouse #festivaloutfit .....P.S- for some reason placed next to a tall plant. Height reference maybe?

#HappyJanamashtami #KrishnaJanmashtami      , me dressed as krishna by my beloved Dadi . #throwback #delhihouse #festivaloutfit .....P.S- for some reason placed next to a tall plant. Height reference maybe? pic.twitter.com/EnpdbkAI0g  Sidharth Malhotra (@S1dharthM) September 2, 2018

Devotees observe fast, sing his songs and pray to the god with much gusto. The day is also special as several delicacies are prepared at home for celebrating the birth of Thakur Ji.

Janmashtami, also known as Gokulashtami in several parts of the world celebrates the birth of Lord Krishanthe eight avatar of god Vishnu. According to Hindu lunar calendar, it is observed on the eighth day (Ashtami) of the Krishna Paksha in the month of Shrawana or Sawan. It overlaps with August and September of the Gregorian calendar.

The festival of Shri Krishna Janmashtami is followed by Nandotsavcelebrating the occasion when Nanda Baba distributed gifts to the community in honour of Krishna's birth.

Jai Shri Radhey Krishna!
NEW DELHI: Self-styled godman Nabbe Das was on Sunday arrested by the Delhi Police for allegedly molesting and threatening to kill a girl. He was held under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) Act after a woman filed a complaint on August 30 that Das molested her niece on August 17. She even alleged that he threatened to kill her.

An investigation into the case is underway.
NEW DELHI: Niti Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar on Monday held former Reserve Bank of India Governor Raghuram Rajan responsible for the country's declining economy.

"Growth was declining due to former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan's policies. It declined because of rising NPAs in the banking sector. Because under previous governor Mr Rajan, they brought in new mechanisms to identify stressed NPAs and these continued to go up which is why banking sector stopped giving credit to industry," Kumar said.

As per a recent report, the gross non-performing assets (GNPAs) of the banking sector is likely to improve to 10 per cent in March 2019, from 11.52 per cent as on June 30, 2018, as nearly 60 per cent of the bad loans of the sector are under active resolution.

The net NPA is also expected to decrease to 4.3 per cent, from 5.92 per cent as of June-end this year, Icra said in its report.

With expiry of the 180-day period provided in RBI's February 12 circular for resolution of large stressed borrowers, rating agency Icra has estimated that 70 big companies accounting for around Rs 3.8 trillion of debt may be heading for resolution under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC).

A Parliamentary committee had recently questioned the RBI for failing to take preemptive action in checking bad loans in the banking system prior to the Asset Quality Review undertaken in December 2015.

According to sources familiar with the report of the Standing Committee on Finance, RBI needs to find out as to why the early signals of stressed accounts were not captured before the AQR. The report was adopted by the Committee headed by senior Congress leader M Veerappa Moily and is likely to be placed in the Parliament in the Winter Session.
PANAJI: Congress has demanded the dismissal of Goa government and imposition of President's rule citing the health of Chief Minister Manohar Parrikar. Congress said that apart from the CM, two more ministers are unwell due to which the state administration has been in turmoil.

"For last 6 months administration is in turmoil. Adding to the ailment of CM, two more ministers have also fallen ill. We continue to pray for good health of all of them, but we can't sit idle and watch the helplessness of the people of Goa. The Governor should intervene," Goa Congress leader Ramakant Khalap said.

"We demand that the Goa Govt be dismissed and president's rule be imposed in the state," he added.

Apart from Parrikar, Goa's power minister Pandurang Madkaikar and urban development minister Francis D'Souza have also been unwell. While D'Souza went to USA for a medical treatment last month, Madkaikar is admitted to a Mumbai hospital since June 5 after he suffered a brain stroke.

Parrikar went to the US in the last week of August. He was admitted to the Lilavati Hospital in Mumbai for a review health checkup on August 23, a day after he returned from the US, and was scheduled to return to Goa on Wednesday. However, instead of coming home, he was taken back to the US directly from Mumbai.

He had been admitted to a US hospital between March and June when he had undergone a surgery for a pancreatic ailment.

Unlike earlier, the official charge of the post of the Chief Minister is with him. Officials had said that there is no need to hand over the charge to anyone as he had gone for regular checkup. He is likely to return to India on September 8.
Narmada: The principal of a residential school in Gujarat's Narmada district has been arrested on charges of molesting girl students, police said on Monday. Four girls, in the age group of 14 to 17 years, alleged that the principal, Harshad Patel (36), molested them on several occasions in the recent past, Assistant Superintendent of Police Achal Tyagi said.

Based on a complaint filed by one of the students of the government-funded school, located in Garudeshwar town, Patel was arrested Saturday, he said.

He was booked under IPC section 354 (assault or criminal force on woman with an intent to outrage her modesty) and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The incident came to light on Saturday when an unidentified person called the women's helpline number '181', alleging that the principal had been molesting girl students at the school.

When police along with officials of the helpline talked to girls at the school, it came to light that Patel had allegedly been molesting students for the last some months, Tyagi said.

The principal had also called some of the victims to his house and touched them inappropriately, he said.

"During the counselling, at least four girls told us that they were molested by Patel. They even claimed that few students who had left the school were also physically exploited by the principal. We have made one of the girls as complainant in the case and arrested Patel," Tyagi said.

Meanwhile, the accused was produced Sunday before a local court which remanded him in police custody for five days, Tyagi added.
Lucknow: Uttar Pradesh has been reeling under heavy rain and a flood-like situation with deaths of as many as 16 people being reported so far. The Indian Air Force (IAF) personnel on Sunday rescued 14 people stranded in Lalitpur and Jhansi districts of the state following the heavy showers, officials said.

Six people were also marooned in a village of Lalitpur district on Sunday morning.

In Garautha tehsil of Jhansi district, eight fishermen were stranded on an island near Erech Dam on the Betwa River after a sudden rise in water level owing to heavy downpour, they said.

Uttar Pradesh Relief Commissioner Sanjay Kumar said, "All six people were successfully rescued in Lalitpur district. The IAF team did a fantastic job."

He also added, "The district magistrate of Jhansi has confirmed that all eight fishermen have been successfully rescued by an IAF team."

According to an official statement in Lucknow, Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath praised the rescue work carried out by IAF personnel in Talbehat area of Lalitpur district in which 6 persons were rescued.

The chief minister also took the opportunity to extend Janmashtami greetings to the officials and jawans.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) on Sunday said that heavy rainfall was observed at isolated places over Uttar Pradesh in the last 24 hours.

The monsoon trough was slight to the north of its normal position and remained active with three embedded cyclonic circulations over Haryana and adjoining northwest Uttar Pradesh and over central parts of south Uttar Pradesh and adjoining parts of north Madhya Pradesh, IMD added.

(With inputs from agencies)
Nine persons, reportedly Congress workers, were arrested on Monday for allegedly pelting stones on Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's vehicle in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district. No one was hurt in the incident on Sunday night near Churhat town, around 540 km from Bhopal, but a windowpane of the vehicle was damaged, police had said.

Churhat is the assembly constituency of Congress leader Ajay Singh, who is also the leader of Opposition in the assembly. The party has denied any role in the incident.

"Nine office-bearers of the Congress were arrested for hurling stones at Chouhan's vehicle," state Home Minister Bhupendra Singh told PTI.

It has been made on the basis of eyewitness accounts and more arrests cannot be ruled out, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader said, adding that Chouhan's security had been ramped up.

District Superintendent of Police Tarun Nair identified the nine accused as Rambhilas Patel (52), Pankaj Singh Chauhan (32), Gaurav Singh Chauhan (21), Roshan Singh (18), Saurabh Dwivedi (19), Shivedra Singh (24), Saurabh Singh (21), Charan Singh (21) and Sanjay Singh (28). They were charged with rioting and on other counts.

Hitting out at the opposition party, the home minister alleged, "The Congress has started a new politics of violence. The Congress knows it cannot come to power in the state due to Chouhan. That is why, Congress leaders are hatching conspiracies to kill Chouhan."

Addresing a rally after the incident, Chouhan dared Ajay to come out in the open and fight with him. "I am physically weak but I won't be bogged down by your deeds. The people of the state are with me," the chief minister had said.

Ajay, however, had said no Congressman was involved in the incident, terming it a well-thought-out conspiracy to defame him and the people of Churhat.

State Congress spokesperson Bhupendra Gupta on Monday accused the BJP of running a smear campaign against the party, saying, "The home minister is accusing Congress leaders of hatching conspiracies to kill Chouhan. Why is he not asking the police to arrest such Congress leaders?"

"They are claiming the arrested accused are Congress office-bearers. The home minister, please give us details of the accused with their positions in the Congress," Gupta added.

The chief minister is touring the state as a part of his 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra'. The BJP is in power since 2003 and will be seeking a record fourth term in the assembly polls, due later this year.
MUMBAI: The Bombay High Court rapped the Maharashtra Police on Monday for holding a presser in connection with the recent Bhima-Koregaon raids while the matter is sub-judice.

The court further adjourned a petition demanding a National Investigation Agency (NIA) inquiry in the Elgar Parishad matter for the hearing on September 7, since copies of the petition were not served to all concerned persons, reported ANI.

In a press conference on Friday, August 31, Maharashtra police ADG PB Singh said that the evidence collected establishes the link between arrested activists with Maoist organisations and Communist Party of India (Maoist).

The activists were planning another Rajiv Gandhi-like incident, he added.

Last week, the Pune Police arrested Left-wing activists Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Ferreira, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha, and raided the homes of several others as part of their probe into the 'Elgar Parishad' conclave in Koregaon-Bhima village near Pune on December 31 last year.

The Supreme Court later ordered that the five activists be kept under house arrest till September 6.

Meanwhile, on Sunday, the Pune court granted an extension of the 90-day period for filing charge sheet against five persons arrested in June for alleged Maoist links. Police had arrested Sudhir Dhawale, Rona Wilson, Surendra Gadling, Shoma Sen and Mahesh Raut in June while probing the alleged Maoist connection to the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31 last year.
Patna: The Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) has declared Class 10 Compartmental Examinations 2018 results on their official website - biharboard.online. Candidates who have appeared in the exam can check their results by visiting the board's official portal. The results were released on Sunday.

The results of 348 students, who missed to fill the set code on their objective question paper, have been withheld. These students can fill their question paper set code on BSEB portal from September 4 to September 6. Following this, their results will be declared.

"There are 348 students who missed to fill the set code on their objective question paper. The result of such students has been withheld. Such students can fill their question paper set code on BSEB portal from 4-6 Sept. On that basis, their results will be declared," Bihar School Examination Board (BSEB) Chairman, Anand Kishore said.

A total of 2,17,575 students filled forms, out of which 2,16,455 students appeared while 57,642 students cleared the examination. This year, the pass percentage is 26.63.

"Results of 2018 Secondary Compartmental Examinations declared. Total 2,17,575 students filled forms, of which 2,16,455 students appeared. 57,642 students (26.63% of total students) cleared the exam," Anand Kishore added.

About the board

BSEB was established for holding and conducting an examination at the end of the secondary school stage, for prescribing course of studies for such examination and for carrying out such other objects and duties as may be considered necessary for the purpose as stated in the act, rules and regulations of the board. Apart from the secondary school examination, the board also conducts departmental examinations (not on yearly basis) such as diploma in physical education, certificate in physical education and teachers training examination on such terms and condition as laid down by the state government.
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New Delhi: Discrimination on the basis of religion, caste or gender is unacceptable to any "nationalist" and this approach should be followed by everyone, Vice President Venkaiah Naidu said Sunday.

Naidu, who is also the Rajya Sabha Chairman, called for deciding upon a national policy on the need for the Upper House in state legislatures, and urged political parties to evolve a consensus on the code of conduct for their members both inside and outside legislatures.

He made the remarks during the launch of the book 'Moving on...Moving forward: A year in office'. The event was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former prime ministers -- Manmohan Singh and H D Deve Gowda, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Rajya Sabha's Deputy Leader of Opposition Anand Sharma.

Noting that the last session was called the "Session for Social Justice", Naidu said it was important to consider and pass legislations that reflect collective commitment to social justice.

"In order to build a more inclusive society, there is a need to move towards ensuring proportional representation of all groups, especially those which have till now been under represented," he said.

There is a need to cleanse politics, strengthen parliamentary and governance institutions, give a big push to next level of reforms to harness the entrepreneurial and economic potential, harness the energies of young India, and ensure sustainable and remunerative agriculture, Naidu said.

He also called for upholding the rich traditions of cultural diversity and nationalism.

"Nationalism, according to me -- Bharat Mata ki Jai...It means 'Jai Ho' to all the 130 crore people irrespective of their caste, creed, sex or religion.

"Any discrimination on the basis of religion, any discrimination on the basis of caste, any discrimination on the basis of gender, is not acceptable to any nationalist. That sort of approach should be there among everyone of us. I hope we all move in that direction," Naidu said.

Talking about the issue of political defections, he said the anti-defection laws should be implemented in letter and spirit expeditiously, within three months.

"I know that this is absolutely feasible since I could dispose off the petitions that I received within this time frame," Naidu asserted.

In his remarks, the Rajya Sabha chairman urged all the political parties to evolve a code of conduct for MPs and MLAs both within and outside the Houses for effective functioning of legislatures to restore the confidence of the people in parliamentary institutions.

Voicing concern over the functioning of legislators in the country, he also urged parties to come together, transcending political considerations, on issues of national importance.

Naidu described the book launched Sunday as a report to the people on his mission and its outcomes during the year since he was sworn in as vice president on August 11 last year.

"While there is cause for a great deal of celebration in the way Indian economy is shaping up and how India's standing in the comity of nations has been steadily going up, I am a little unhappy that our Parliament is not functioning as it should," he said.

Naidu also said election petitions and criminal cases against political leaders should be decided quickly by special benches of higher courts.

He also urged political parties to consider issues concerning women dispassionately to ensure their safety and dignity. He called for ending discrimination against women on the basis of religion and other factors.

Naidu called for reservation for women in all spheres, including legislatures.

Stressing that agriculture is the basic culture of the country, the vice president said there was a need for a bias towards farmers in resource allocation to ensure remunerative farming and a robust food security.

During the last year, in 60 visits to different parts of the country, including all the seven northeastern states, Naidu said he interacted with the youth, farmers, and scientists, and made an effort to promote public discourse on four key issues of broader concern.

He said the four key issues were the huge untapped demographic dividend, an effective and enabling ecosystem for remunerative farming in the country, orienting scientific and research efforts to better the lives of the people, and enhancing public awareness about rich Indian heritage and inculcating national pride in "our pluralistic, inclusive, harmonious world view".

Naidu also asserted the benefits of reservation should reach everyone.

He also expressed his disappointment over the frequent disruptions in Rajya Sabha. "I have not hesitated in recording in the book just now released, my disappointment over the functioning of Rajya Sabha during the first two sessions that I have presided over.

"But I have also referred to the new tidings during the recently concluded Monsoon Session raising hopes. So, there is a hope but we need to stay on course. My earnest endeavour has been to facilitate informed and dignified debates befitting the stature of this hallowed institution," he said.
Delhi Chief Minister and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal on Monday attacked Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led NDA government at the Centre saying Economy was never in such a mess. Kejriwal accused Narendra Modi government of not being bothered about the hardships of the common man.

Taking to microblogging site Twitter, the AAP supremo raised the issue of petrol and diesel prices touching all-time high and Rupee falling to a historic low.

Petrol/Diesel prices touching an all time high. Rupee falling to a historic low. BJP's Central govt, in its last months, either does not know what to do or is simply not bothered about the hardships it is heaping on Aam Aadmi. Economy was never in such a mess ! tweeted the Delhi Chief Minister.

Petrol/Diesel prices touching an all time high. Rupee falling to a historic low. BJP's Central govt, in its last months, either does not know what to do or is simply not bothered about the hardships it is heaping on Aam Aadmi. Economy was never in such a mess !  Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) September 3, 2018

The latest attack by the AAP supremo on Modi government came as Indian rupee nosedived to a new life-time low of 71.10, shedding 10 paise against the US Dollar on Monday. The rupee's previous record low was 71, marked on August 31.

Petrol and diesel prices also witnessed another hike touching record levels in cities like Delhi and Mumbai. In Mumbai, the price of petrol reached Rs 86.56/litre, up by Rs 0.31/litre. It is the highest ever for any metro city. Diesel was at Rs 75.54/litre, up by Rs 0.44/litre.

In the national capital, petrol prices touched Rs 79.15/litre and diesel was at Rs 71.15/litre. The price of petrol increased by Rs 0.31 per litre while that of diesel was hiked by Rs 0.39 per litre.

Stepping up the attack on the central government was Kejriwals Aam Aadmi Party, which released a statement saying that its national convenor had expressed serious concern over the deteriorating condition of the economy.

"The Aam Aadmi Party is of the clear view that the grossly incompetent Bhartiya Janata Party(BJP) government, led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, has failed to address the concerns of rising fuel prices and depreciation of the rupee," read the statement.

Urging the government to address the issues at the earliest, it said the BJP would face "certain defeat" in the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, if the situation continued to aggravate.
A high-level meeting between the border forces of India and Bangladesh began in New Delhi on Monday where the two sides are expected to discuss action against insurgent groups and movement of displaced Rohingyas, a senior BSF official said.

"The 47th border co-ordination conference, the DG-level talks between Border Security Force and Border Guard Bangladesh, began today," a BSF spokesperson said.

The spokesperson had on Sunday said India would take up issues like BSF personnel being attacked by Bangladeshi criminals and those related to cross-border smuggling.

It is expected that the two sides will also share updates about the movement of Rohingyas in their respective jurisdictions.

A 13-member delegation of the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), led by its Director General (DG) Maj Gen Md Shafeenul Islam, had arrived in India on Sunday to hold the bi-annual talks with their counterparts -- BSF -- as part of their six-day tour.

The 13-member Border Security Force BSF) side is being led by DG K K Sharma.

The bi-annual meeting comes at a time, the spokesperson had said, when relations between India and Bangladesh are at an all-time high.

"Issues like preventing attacks on BSF personnel by Bangladeshi criminals, joint efforts to prevent trans-border crimes, action against Indian insurgent groups (operating from the other side) among others are part of the agenda for the DG-level talks," he had said.

Issues related to border infrastructure, simultaneous coordinated patrol in vulnerable areas of the border and mutual sharing of information are also part of the BSF subjects, the spokesperson had said.

The Dhaka-headquartered BGB is expected to take up issues like smuggling of various types of drugs/narcotics from Bangladesh and arrest or apprehension of Bangladeshi nationals by the BSF among others, the spokesperson said.

A joint record of discussion will be signed between the two forces on September 7. The visiting delegation is expected to return the next day.

This is the 47th DG-level conference between the two sides since it began in 1975. The last time the two forces met for such a meeting was in April this year in Dhaka. The two countries share a 4,096-km border.
Houston: The Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF) will be held here for the first time as part of the larger umbrella of the literary event in the US, its organisers have said.

Indian politician and writer Shashi Tharoor and Indian ambassador to the US, Navtej Sarna, are expected to attend the event in Houston, Texas, from September 14 to 15. Sarna is one of the chief guests.

Hailed as one of the greatest literary shows globally, the JLF after Houston, will be held in New York from September 19 to 20 and from September 21 to 23 in Boulder, Colorado.

"We're so excited to be collaborating on the first JLF at Houston for the first time in Texas," Bonna Kol, president of the Asia Society's Texas centre, said.

Producer JLF Teamwork Arts would be organising the event in association with the society and Inprint.

"Engaging our diverse city in an array of international topics and speakers aligns perfectly with our deep commitment to promoting cultural understanding," Kol said.

The Asia Society promotes mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among people and institutions of Asia and the west.

Executive director, Inprint, Rich Levy said as this the inaugural edition of the JLF in Houston, it makes clear that it is a city of brilliant writers and passionate readers.

Inprint, a literary arts non-profit, supporting and engaging readers and writers, is proud to be at the epicenter of the Houston literary life, he said.

"What an honour and a joy to work with JLF on making JLF at Houston a reality," Levy said.

Since its inception in 2006, this is the first Texas visit for the JLF, which will bring together acclaimed authors, thinkers and humanitarians to champion the freedom to express and engage in thoughtful debate and dialogue.

"The Jaipur Literature Festival has a fair representation of American authors and audience. The American audience comes from across states, but one has noticed a larger share from New York and Texas.

"Hence, the selection of Houston as one of the venues. There is also a sizable Indian diaspora concentrated in these places," Sunil Varma, senior vice president, marketing and sponsorship, at Teamwork Arts told PTI.

He said the Houston event will showcase south Asia's rich literary and oral heritage. It will have authors from across the world as well as local literary figures, Varma said.

In Houston, participating speakers and writers include Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, Namita Gokhale, Sonal Mansingh, Omar El Akkad, Robin Davidson, Jay Aiyer, Kurt Heinzelman, Lacy M Johnson and McKenna Jordan.

Ruben Martinez, Jovan Mays, Jasminne Mendez, Marcus Moench, Rajesh Parameswaran, Sharad Paul, Daniel Pena, Shobha Rao, Kathy Reichs, Anis Shivani, Mimi Swartz, Marina Tristan, Roberto Tejada, Novuyo Rosa Tshuma and Milan Vaishnav, are also expected at the JLF here.

The programme includes an opening and closing night musical performance and vigorous panel discussions.

The audience will also get an opportunity to listen to conversations such as those on the continuities of Mexican and American experiences and narratives, the violence of cross-border realities and of pluralism and diversity.

Indian myths and their impact on the collective faith of the people; forensic anthropology, genetics and health; a crucial session on water, climate change, and social issues are also in the programme.

Readings and conversations on poetry are also part of the JLF in the US.
The Shiv Sena has attacked Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led central government and the Maharashtra Police for recent arrest of activists over alleged links with Maoists. Terming the claims of a security threat to Prime Minister Modi as a conspiracy theory, the NDA constituent dubbed the action by Maharashtra Police as stupid.

In an editorial in its mouthpiece Saamana, the Shiv Sena said, The government should stop stating that these so called Maoists could potentially topple the sitting government at the Centre. This is a stupid statement. Manmohan Singh's (Congress-led UPA) government was brought down by the people of this country not by Maoists or Naxalites. In recent times, governing parties were changed through democratic process alone.

Cautioning that Prime Minister Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) might be ridiculed because of the claims of the police, the editorial in Saamana said, "Another conspiracy theory of the police is about threat to the life of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His security is of very high standard and there is nothing to worry about."

This comes just days after the families of activists, arrested for alleged Naxal links, had dismissed the evidence produced by the police, calling them fabricated.

The Bombay High Court also pulled up the Maharashtra Police on Monday for holding a press conference over the raids and arrests made in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence, which is sub-judice.

In a press conference held on Friday, August 31, Maharashtra Police ADG PB Singh said that the evidence collected established the link between arrested activists with Maoist organisations and Communist Party of India (Maoist).

The Maharashtra Police had last week arrested five activists  Sudha Bharadwaj, Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonsalves, Gautam Navalakha and Arun Ferreira for their alleged links with Maoists in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence case.

The police have claimed they have "conclusive proof" to link Left-wing activists arrested in June and last week to Maoists, saying one of them spoke of a "Rajiv Gandhi-type event to end Modi-raj". The threat allegedly figured in an email exchanged between Rona Wilson, an activist arrested in June, and a Maoist leader.

(With PTI Inputs)
Bhopal: Targetting the vehicle of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, miscreants hurled stones and waved black flags on Sunday. The Chief Minister was touring the state ahead of the assembly elections, in Churhat area near Sidhi district.

In a 15-second video shared on social media, people are seen showing black flags towards the bus carrying Chouhan while the vehicle tries to make way through the crowd.

#WATCH: Black flags shown to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan & stones hurled at his vehicle in Sidhi during Jan Ashirwad Yatra. (02.09.18) pic.twitter.com/OVHoPVy7Hx  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

Nearly 20 people have been arrested in connection with the incident. Chouhan, who was touring the state in a bus modified as a chariot, was not hurt in the incident, said Churhat Police Inspector Ram Babu Choudhari.

The police officer did not give any further information, saying he was busy discharging his duties at a public meeting of the chief minister in the district.

Stones were hurled at Chouhan's vehicle in Churhat area, which is the assembly constituency of Leader of Opposition Ajay Singh, Madhya Pradesh BJP spokesman Rajnish Agrawal said. Churhat is about 25 km from the district headquarters.

Later addressing a public meeting in the district as part of his Jan Ashirwad Yatra, Chouhan dared Singh to come in the open and fight with him.

"Ajay Singh, if you have strength come in open and fight with me," he said.

"I am physically weak but I won't be bogged down by your deeds. People of the state are with me," he added.

In a press release, Singh said no Congressman was involved in the stone-pelting incident. He said his party does not follow the culture of violence.

"I suspect that it was a well thought and hatched conspiracy aimed at defaming me and people of Churhat," he added.

(With inputs from agencies)
BJP President for Tamil Nadu, Tamilisai Soundararajan got into an argument with a lady at Tuticorin Airport on Monday. The BJP leader claimed that the lady, later identified as Sophia, raied slogan against the BJP government.

The 25-year-old woman shouted "Fascist BJP Government down down" slogan and got into an argument with Soundararajan.

According to news agency ANI, Soundararajan claimed that Sophia followed her till the arrival gate, raising slogan against the BJP government. "Her appearance looked threatening, I feel some organisation is behind her," said Soundararajan.

ANI also released a video where the woman can be seen arguing with Soundararajan while the police is constantly trying to calm her down.

#WATCH BJP Tamil Nadu President Tamilisai Soundararajan got into an argument with a co-passenger at Tuticorin airport. The passenger who has now been detained had allegedly raised 'Fascist BJP Govt down down' slogan #TamilNadu pic.twitter.com/TzfyQn3IOo  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

"She is not an ordinary person," the BJP leader said, adding she suspected her background.

Sophia, who is said to be pursuing research in Canada, was returning home and was seated behind Soundararajan`s third-row seat. Suddenly she got up and shouted anti-BJP slogans.

Soundararajan later told the media that the girl student rose in a "menacing" manner against her.

Leaders of various political parties including the CPI-M, CPI and PMK criticized the police "high handedness" and demanded the woman`s immediate release.

They also said Soundararajan should have handled the issue in a mature manner without resorting to gimmicks. The incident only showed that young people in the country were angry with the Central government, they said.
CHENNAI: Five people, allegedly plotting to kill three Hindu leaders, were detained by law enforcement agencies.

The Special Investigation Unit (SIU) of the Coimbatore police arrested the five terrorists on Saturday evening following inputs from intelligence agencies.

Arjun Sampath of Hindu Makkal Katchi and Hindu Munnani leader Mookambikai Mani are two of the three leaders the group planned to eliminate, said police.

A group of four landed in Coimbatore, aiming to eliminate three Hindu leaders.

The fifth person arrested was the one who came to receive the group.

The group initially claimed that they came to attend a marriage, but revealed their entire plan during interrogation.

All the five were booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and conspiracy. The police sent them to prison.
YANGON: A Myanmar judge on Monday found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and sentenced them to seven years in prison, in a landmark case seen as a test of progress toward democracy in the Southeast Asian country.

Yangon northern district judge Ye Lwin said Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, breached the colonial-era Official Secrets Act when they collected and obtained confidential documents.

"The defendants...have breached Official Secrets Act section 3.1.c, and are sentenced to seven years. The time already served by the defendants from Dec. 12 will be taken into consideration," the judge said.

The reporters had told the court two police officials handed them papers at a north Yangon restaurant moments before other officers arrested them on Dec. 12, in what one police witness testified was a set-up to entrap the journalists.
Washington: The US continues to press Pakistan to "indiscriminately target" all terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network, the Pentagon said on Sunday, claiming that recent reports distorted details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF).

The remark comes amid news reports that the US has suspended USD 300 million in military aid to Pakistan as Islamabad was not doing enough to tackle militant groups.

"Unfortunately, recent reporting has distorted the details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) by stating several things out of context. The suspension of security assistance to Pakistan was announced in January 2018,? Pentagon spokesman Lt Col Kon Faulkner said.

He said, "The CSF is included in the suspension and it remains in place. This is not a new decision or a new announcement, but an acknowledgement of a July request to reprogram funds before they expire."

Faulkner said since January, they have consistently engaged with Pakistani military officials at the highest levels, based on both a shared commitment to defeat all terrorist groups that threaten regional stability and security, as well as on a shared vision of a peaceful future for Afghanistan.

"We continue to press Pakistan to indiscriminately target all terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network an LeT, and we continue to call on Pakistan to arrest, expel or bring the Taliban leadership to the negotiating table," he said.

Faulkner noted that the 2018 DoD Appropriations Act, published on March 23, details USD 500 million was rescinded by the Congress.

Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy, the remaining USD 300 million was reprogrammed by the Department of Defense (DoD) in July 2018 time frame for other urgent priorities before the funds expire on September 30, he said.

The department is awaiting congressional determination on whether this reprogramming request will be approved or denied.

"The DoD will have a congressional response before September 30, 2018, to allow the DoD to implement the reprogramming actions,? the spokesman said.

Fresh news reports about suspension of the CSF is expected to further strain US-Pak relationship, which comes ahead of the Islamabad visit of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The top American diplomat is expected to raise issues related to counter terrorism during his meetings with the top Pakistani leaders.

Pakistan has dismissed all such reports about suspension in US aid, arguing that the United States owed the money to it for expenses incurred on fighting terrorism.

"It is not a cut in any [US] aid, it is not assistance. This is our own money which we have used for improving regional security situation and they had to reimburse it to us,? Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told reporters in Islamabad.


The Ukrainian Oscar Committee has defined a film that will represent our country in one of the world's greatest film contests. The drama Donbas of Serhiy Loznytsia will compete for the American Film Academy award (more commonly known as Oscar). The picture will be presented in the Best Foreign Language Film category.



However, we are talking so far not about the nomination itself, which will include only five finalists, and not on even a short-list, where there will be a little more (namely - nine) films. So far, Donbas has been chosen only by our country, which, like many other members of the world community, wants to participate in the Oscar race-2019. Last year, for example, a record number of such projects was registered - as many as 92. How many films will be presented this time, will be known after October 1, when the American Film Academy will complete the acceptance of applications of several categories, among which is Best Foreign Film. In January, short lists will be made public, the ceremony of determining winners and awarding will be held on February 24.

However, as already mentioned, the world premiere of the picture took place somewhat earlier. In May this year, it has opened the section "A Special Look" - the second most important competition in Cannes. And Loznytsia received a prize for the best direction. In addition, recently it became known that Donbas entered the long list of the European Film Academy Award, and his North American debut will take place at a prestigious festival in Toronto, which will begin in a week.



All this, of course, plays into the hands of the film and increases its chances in the Oscar race. "The American Film Academy has a complex selection system, so it's very difficult to predict anything, but the best option to be noticed is to be seen before it goes to the Oscar. And the Donbas was noticed much earlier," explained the head Counting Commission of the Ukrainian Oscar Committee Serhiy Vasiliev and added that the committee and the entire structure of the selection process was organized in such a way that the film presented by Ukraine had the maximum chance of attracting the attention of the selectors.



Alexander Gusev, a colleague and member of the Oscar Committee, supported the opinion of the colleague and member of the Oscar Committee, who noted that in part this choice was due to the fact that the film received the greatest international resonance. However, the key evaluation criterion, he said, was the high level of implementation of the project: "I want to congratulate all of us with the fact that Ukraine on this international platform, in this nomination will represent an artistically powerful film in which aesthetic and ethical qualities have come in a happy This is a film that, on the one hand, shows all the colors of Ukrainian modernity, but it is a very universal, very understandable story about what happens to human nature, which is no longer contained by the fear of punishment or is under this fear."

"Donbas" really makes a strong impression. It is built on a dozen of virtually unrelated plots, but equally sharp and stunning. In the center of attention, as it is easy to guess by name, are the occupied territories of Eastern Ukraine - their new illegal power, as well as military and ordinary citizens. At the heart of the film Loznytsia put real stories, which people shared through video clips posted on the Internet. Rethinking their stories, the director made a production picture, in which he deliberately raised the degree of absurdity to the maximum. Thanks to this technique, a persistent sense of the improbability of what is happening is created, but an understanding of its life component at times reinforces an already powerful social message.



In his work, the director constantly balances on the brink of documentary and farce. He examines what is happening with the equanimity of the outside observer, exaggerating nuances, but leaving the viewer to decide who is right and who is wrong. And although the answers during the viewing may seem obvious, "Donbas" in no way promotes the idea of some exceptional congenital depravity of southeastern Ukrainians. The film, first of all, reveals the essence of human nature and only then  the citizens of a particular country, caught up in such circumstances, which allowed many of them (but, well, not all) to sacrifice their morality and to show unpunishedly the worst qualities of their nature.





Thanks to these hypertrophied stories, it becomes clearly visible in what conditions residents of the occupied territories of Ukraine exist. This makes it possible to fully understand the scale and essence of what is happening. And, not only the rest of the Ukrainians, who at times tend to abstract from the horrors of the "neighboring hut", but the whole world, often shortsighted about other people's problems.
Ukraines system for the enforcement of sentences, like many other spheres, have absorbed a great Soviet legacy. After the revolution, the authorities have promised to radically change the countrys system of execution of punishments. And this work has started.

The disciplinary unit of Zhytomyr penal institution No. 8 is traditionally located in a special building. This is the worst place in prison: the air has a persistent smell of urine and humidity is high due to water all over the floor below. Until recently, the disciplinary unit was not heated at all (even in winter), the temperature inside was equal to the temperature outside, the floor was made of stone. Now it is already covered with wood, and there are heaters. In the summer, the only barred window of the disciplinary unit was covered with special metal shields; in summer, it created unbearable heat. The tortures of the prisoner were intensified by the fetid evaporation from the toilet located here, on these very two square meters  the so-called "faucet." Seeing a rat in the hole of the faucet is a usual thing here.

A disciplinary unit is not the worst thing here; there is a so-called "glass-hut," an unheated and unventilated room in which you can only stand, you cannot even hunker down or move. The "glass-huts" are located in the special building, but their use has been banned for ten years. The convict could be also thrown to the "harass-hut" (where prisoners, leashed by the administration, serve their time). In such a cell, people are lawlessly shattered: they deprive people of health or even of human dignity. Unofficially, prison administration admits that "harass-huts" still exist but their existence is not officially recorded.

According to official data from the Ministry of Justice, at the beginning of 2018, the number of prisoners in Ukraine reached 56,123 people. There are 148 penitentiary facilities in the territory, controlled by Ukraine.

A facility, in which the situation is controlled by the administration, is traditionally called "red." This classification is most likely connected with the fact that the prisons, which distinguished in socialist competitions in the Soviet Union, were awarded a red pennant, and the backbone of the criminal thieves' milieu was considered to be a "black bone." Representatives of elite criminal convicts, thieves and those who aspire to join them, are not be able to collaborate with the prisons administration without losing their authority.

Tattooing remains a testament to the status of a person in captivity; all the tattoos have respective meaning. Rascals are not allowed to have tattoos. The higher hierarchies representatives usually are marked with special prison rings. Playing cards are officially prohibited, however, prisoners play different card games. Most of the card games are played for keeps.

Unofficially a colony employee from the junior ranks admits that there are punks in the colony. And, of course, they have a separate table in the dining room: "Now we have supposedly gender equality and all castes or labels are prohibited. Theoretically, we should put them by a common table. But do you imagine what would happen if we do this? People are serving their sentence, and they have their self-esteem, do we have the right to humiliate them? Do you imagine what will happen in the colony if you a prison bitch sits takes a seat near the others?"

"The prison bitches also have their own hierarchy. Previously, they were physically raped in the prison, now different items are used, for example, a mop. The prisoner might be just humiliated, for example, someone urinates on his face and smear a penis over the lips. But this is not the true punks humiliation. The prisoners know who are really hustled, and we know them well..." an employee of one of the colonies said unofficially.

The head of the Raikovetska prison says that in his institution, after a cell toss, 200 liters of prison wine were seized in the first half of the year, 9 criminal cases were opened on the fact of the seizure of drugs. He complains that prison wine and drugs (also mobile phones) are thrown through the fence by special throwers. The prisons administration cannot do anything with it: only the police have the right to detain them. Fixing the fact of throwing something on the territory of the prison, the staff of the colony call a police squad, but usually, the police come too late.

According to the Ministry of Justice, as of June 1, 2018, during the 120,766 searches in protected areas 6418 UAH or 240 USD (92 cases), 5,418 mobile phones, 563 liters of alcoholic beverages, 8631 liters of fermentation products, 3,218 piercing-cutting items, 44 grams (12 cases) of drugs were recorded. Attempts to deliver 1,039 liters of alcoholic beverages, 3,6 kg of drugs were stopped.

As of June 30 (since the beginning of the year), 2,190 cases of transferring prohibited items through fences of the institutions of the State Penitentiary Service of Ukraine were recorded. Recently, the law enforcers have detained a lieutenant colonel, an employee of the Odesa remand centre, who was trying to carry a large amount of drugs to the prisoners. After the detention, he admitted that the prisoners promised him a thousand hryvnia bribe (40 USD).

The salaries of junior staff in the colony are now 260 USD, the middle level employees get 370 USD, the senior staff gets 670 USD, and the heads of the prisons get approximately 850 USD.

The convicts do not hurry to realize their right to work on the industrial facilities, there is no special motivation for it. The payment of their labor is ridiculously small. According to the Ministry of Justice, in 2017, the average monthly salary of convicts was 53 USD per month (against 20 USD in 2015 and 22 USD in 2016). One convict, who currently works as a janitor (cleaning the premises and helping in the kitchen), said 112.ua that his monthly salary is not more than 37 USD.

Convicts wage and pensions withholdings are made: personal income tax 15%, alimony, cost of food, clothing, footwear, communal services, and other services (except the cost of special clothing and special food). Regardless of all withholdings, 50% of the monthly salary go to the personal account of the prisoner. Another serious aspect of the problem is that the prisoner cannot actually buy a lot. For the money accrued by the bank transfer to the personal account, convicts can buy something in the prison shops. At the time of a 112.ua correspondent visit, in the store of penal colony No. 4 you could buy toilet paper, matches, bulbs, washing powder, wooden cutting boards, black trousers for 7,3 USD, fur caps (in August!), shaving foam, deodorant, markers (0,3 USD), brushes for drawing - (0,16 USD), shoe polish, lighters.

You can also buy juice, fizzy water, chocolate, sunflower oil, noodles, cocoa, olives, dried soup briquettes, canned goods, waffle cakes.

The only tea brand is "Princess Nuri" in sachets, there is no loose tea. For the preparation of the traditional builder's tea, loose tea is required. Lately, only old school prisoners, who are imprisoned for 15 years or more years, use to drink builder's tea, young prisoners take care of their health.

Life-term convicts have prison visits every other months, ordinary convicts are allowed to see their relatives and lovers every three months, representatives of the lower administration link can take visits on a monthly basis. Long-term visits can last up to three days. Either close relatives, or a legitimate spouse might come to the prison visit.

According to the order of the Ministry of Justice, approved on October 19, 2017, the convicts were given the right to create e-mail and use it under the supervision of the administration. In the new order, it is written that they have the right to use Skype-communication.

For all the years of independence, no new correctional facility has been built in Ukraine. The most important issue of the penitentiary system remains that Ukraine has no system of socialization or adaptation of the former prisoners. Everyone knows that people with a criminal record cannot find any official employment.

According to the Ministry of Justice, in the first quarter of 2018, out of 3,619 people released from penitentiary institutions, 20 officially had no housing, 185 had no passports, 235 had no professional education, and 62 had secondary education. Out of this number of people, 36 were sent to social adaptation institutions, and 17 to medical institutions. 943 people were employed, another 57 were officially registered as unemployed.

Read the original text at 112.ua.

This column does not necessarily reflect the opinion of the editorial board or 112.International and its owners.
At the administrative border with annexed Crimea, the Russian border guards strengthened the access control and create the artificial vehicle line as the press service of the Azov-Black Sea regional department of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine reported on Facebook.

"Today, the border guards spotted the artificial line at the administrative borders one more time. The workers of the State Border Guard Service did not record any queue before the Ukrainian checkpoint "Chonhar" but at the same time, today about 200 vehicles waited for their turn before the occupation so-called "checkpoint", the message said.

According to the information, about 400-500 vehicles pass the checkpoint "Chonhar" towards Crimea daily.

"In other words, almost the half of the vehicles that pass the administrative border per day were in the line created by the occupants, probably, for "the image of the tourist flow" or the unwilling to work qualitatively," the press service added.

Also, it was noted, that usually, the pass of the vehicles at the border was performed by the occupants with the use of the traffic light and barrier but today they fielded extra soldiers for the control.

As we reported Russia violates the rights of those who refused to receive the Russian passports on the territory of annexed Crimea. In particular, those people are expelled as migrants who violated the terms of state in the country.

As it is known, Russia annexed Crimea in March 2014 after the illegal referendum. On March 17, 2014, Putin signed an order which recognizes Crimeas independence. On the next day, he signed an agreement which joins Crimea and Sevastopol to Russia.

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Next payments are scheduled for November 1 and 5

Open source

On August 31, Ukraine transferred $160,3 million to the International Monetary Fund on account of the principal debt repayment, as FinClub informed the press office of National Bank of Ukraine.

It was noted that the payment of 114,3 million SDR (Special drawing rights) of around $160 million was transferred through stand by arrangement program as of April 2014. In total, Ukraine transferred $605,6 million to the fund in August.

Next payments are scheduled for November 1 and 5.

Reportedly, Ukraines National Bank expects another tranche from the International Monetary Fund within EFF program till the end of autumn.

Earlier, former Finance Minister of Ukraine Oleksandr Danylyuk stated that he did not doubt that IMF will send another tranche, stressing that we have to do that in June.

Moreover, the representatives of the National Bank stated that Ukraine might receive another tranche from the IMF in autumn.

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25 brand new and completely modernized schools were opened in Ukraine, as the President of the country Petro Poroshenko stated during the celebrations marking the beginning of the school year which took place in Kyiv lycee, the Presidents Administration reports.

We restored the infrastructure in Donbas. We are constructing new roads. We are building new schools and kindergartens. And only today 25 new and fully modernized schools were opened in Ukraine, Poroshenko noted.

The President congratulated the pupils and said that today more than 16,000 schools opened their doors for almost 4 million pupils. 450,000 of them are first-grade pupils who will study under a new program.

Earlier, it was reported that the first graders would start studying by the textbooks since October, as first study month will be adaptational.

Reportedly, since September 1, education reforms block New Ukrainian school was introduced in Ukraine: now the pupils will study 12 years, report cards are canceled along with the home tasks for the lower grades.

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The soldiers of the Detached Battalion of Marines present Ukraine at the drills

Open source

On September 2, the command post exercises Agile Spirit  2018 has begun at Georgian military base "Senaki" as Radio Liberty reported.

237 soldiers from the U.S., Bulgaria, Romania, Latvia, Greece, Ukraine, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Estonia and Georgia participate in the drills.

The readiness of the military brigades to respond to the crises or holding of the joint operations as a part of the NATO Response Force will be mastered at the exercises. The soldiers of the Detached Battalion of Marines present Ukraine at the drills.

The officers of the U.S. Army coordinate the training with assistance from NATO training center in Georgia with the participation of the local command.

As we reported the multinational military drills of NATO member countries and partners of the Noble Partner 2018 alliance started in Georgia on August 1 and lasted until August 15.

Also, we reported that next month Russia will hold the military drills East  2018 that is the biggest one in the last four decades. 300,000 soldiers, 36,000 hardware units and more than 1,000 aircrafts will be involved.

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The serviceman of the National Guard of Ukraine is charged with the murder of Italian reporter in Donbas combat area in 2014

The Italian court that looks into the case of Vitaliy Markiv, the serviceman of the National Guard of Ukraine, appointed the dates of five court hearings. Yevhen Perelyhin, the Ukrainian ambassador in Italy said that in his interview with Interfax-Ukraine news agency.

'The first one is slated for September 14, the next one for September 28, another one in October, and two more in November', Perelyhin said.

According to him, a consul regularly visits the convicted Ukrainian citizen, and the serviceman hopes for a just trial.

'I can say he is holding on just fine. He believes it all should be settled by rights', the diplomat said.

Perelyhin also added that the Italian law enforcers have no intentions to create the joint investigation group, as there's no necessity in it. On the other hand, according to him, the Italian officials have never been on the assumed 'crime scene'.

As it was reported earlier, Vitaly Markiv was detained in summer 2017 in the city of Bologna. Suspicion to him was put forward by the Pavia Prosecutor's Office. Currently, the fighter is in prison. Deputy platoon commander Markiv, who served in the operational battalion of Kulchytsky, is suspected of involvement in the deaths of photo reporter Andrea Rocchelli and Russian journalist Andrey Mironov, who were killed in May 2014 near Sloviansk (Donetsk region). French reporter William Roguelon was also wounded that day. In the area of the village Andriivka group of foreign journalists fell under mortar fire.

After it became known about the detention of Markiv, Ukraines Prosecution General said that it was truly surprised by the arrest of the soldier. Ukrainian law enforcers are investigating criminal proceedings on the death of foreign journalists, and according to investigators, the deaths of two journalists were the result of shelling by Russian-terrorist forces. The Office also appealed to the Italian authorities to provide evidence of Markiv's guilt or his immediate release.

Markiv came to Italy to visit his mother on vacation and was detained. There are reports that 14 Italian law enforcers took part in his arrest.
The pro-Russian militants use the death of Zakharchenko for the discreditation of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Dmytro Hutsuliak, the spokesperson of the Defense Ministry of Ukraine claimed this referring to the information of the Chief Intelligence Department as 112.ua reported.

"The command of the Russia occupation troops uses the death of the head of the terrorist grouping Alexander Zakharchenko to discredit the Ukrainian law enforcement structures. Particularly, the Russian promoters continue to spread the gossips on the involvement of the Ukrainian special service in his death," he noted.

As Hutsuliak said, the work of the representatives of the propagandistic Russian mass media was activated at the front line of the formations and units of the 1st and 2nd Army Corps of the Armed Forces of Russia to prepare the false and distorted materials about Ukraine and its Armed Forces.

To fabricate the fake video-materials, the militants carried the provocative attacks of the positions of the Joint Forces Operation, coordinating their actions with the arrived Russian camera crews.

"The reports fabricated in such way were submitted for the approval to the special commission of the Russian promoters who came from Russia on the eve of Zakharchenko's murder," Hutsuliak emphasized.

Earlier it was reported that the militants stopped to pass people through the demarcation line after the death of Zakharchenko.

Reportedly, on August 31, as a result of the explosion in the restaurant in the downtown of Donetsk, head of so-called DNR Aleksandr Zakharchenko died. The Russian mass media reported that Oleksandr Timofeyev, so-called "minister of revenue and duties" of so-called "DNR" has also died. The so-called law enforcers of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic stated that they detained Ukrainian saboteurs who are presumably involved in the assassination of Zakharchenko. Although, SBU hasnt approved the information.

ORDO, Separate district of Donetsk region, suspects one of the guards of Zakharchenko in his death. At the same time, the Russian MFA accused "Kyiv regime" in the death of Zakharchenko. It was reported on the closure of all crossing checkpoints along the Inter-Entity Boundary Line because of the incident. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences over the murder of Zakharchenko.

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The Treaty is not terminated but suspended in connection with non-extension

Open source

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko proposed to inform Russia about the suspension of the Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation until September 30. Poroshenko claimed this at the meeting with the leaders of the factions and groups of the Ukrainian Parliament, which was broadcasted by 112 Ukraine.

Soon, on that occasion, after the Ministry of Foreign Affairs introduces propositions, I am planning to hold the session of NSDC and until September 30, to send a message signed by me to the Russian Federation about the non-renewal of this agreement. It doesnt need a voting in the Parliament but certainly I would like to hold a consultation on this occasion to take into account the position and opinion of the Parliament, Poroshenko claimed.

Poroshenko specified that the Treaty is not terminated but suspended in connection with non-extension.

Want to make certain comments and clarify from the point of view of not prolonging the big Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation with the Russian

Reportedly, Head of Ukrainian MFA Pavlo Klimkin claimed that the documents for the termination of the Treaty with Russia are ready and soon would be referred to for consideration.

Federation. Stressing that is it terminated, since it a complicated procedure. It is suspended in connection with non-extension, Poroshenko claimed.

Earlier, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko commissioned the MFA to get prepared for the termination of the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Partnership between Russia and Ukraine.

Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation, and Partnership between Russia and Ukraine was ratified by the Ukrainian Parliament in January 1998. The document enshrined the principles of strategic partnership, recognition of the inviolability of existing borders, respect for territorial integrity and mutual commitment not to use its territory to the detriment of each other's security.
Spokesperson of the Russian president Dmitry Peskov claimed that Russia will not withdraw from the Minsk process due to the murder of the Head of the so-called Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) Alexander Zakharchenko as Interfax-Ukraine reported.

"After the happened terrorist act (the murder of Zakharchenko) it is very difficult to talk about something with the Ukrainian side. But I repeat one more time, it does not mean that Russia withdraws from the Minsk Talks," Peskov said.

Earlier Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov claimed that after the death of the former leader of DNR there can be no possibility of the Normandy Four meeting.

Reportedly, on August 31, as a result of the explosion in the restaurant in the downtown of Donetsk, head of so-called DNR Aleksandr Zakharchenko died. The Russian mass media reported that Oleksandr Timofeyev, so-called "minister of revenue and duties" of so-called "DNR" has also died. The so-called law enforcers of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic stated that they detained Ukrainian saboteurs who are presumably involved in the assassination of Zakharchenko. Although, SBU hasnt approved the information.

ORDO, Separate district of Donetsk region, suspects one of the guards of Zakharchenko in his death. At the same time, the Russian MFA accused "Kyiv regime" in the death of Zakharchenko. It was reported on the closure of all crossing checkpoints along the Inter-Entity Boundary Line because of the incident. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences over the murder of Zakharchenko.

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The Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine has to adopt the defense draft laws, Electoral Code and law on language this autumn. Andry Paruby, the speaker of the parliament claimed this as 112 Ukraine reported.

"The security issue remains to be the most important for us. I want to remind that at the end of the previous session we adopted the law on the national security that provides the implementation and adoption of the number of the next laws. The law on the SBU, law on the intelligence bodies, the law on the state defensive order are among them and I remind you that it is our commitment, the law on the detached parliamentarian committee that will provide the parliamentarian control over the security sector and intelligence bodies," Paruby noted.

He emphasized the importance of the information security issue.

"I talked to Head of Committee Viktoria Syumar to prepare the offers on the information security because if we cannot protect our internal informational space that it is hard to talk about the protection from the external aggression. Unfortunately, I can confirm that the internal informational space was attacked, also by people who openly work for the country-aggressor," he said.

Paruby expressed the hope that the draft budget for 2019 will be registered in time (September 15) and the MPs will make it discuss the budget before its adoption.

"The important block is the elective one. We begin the election year and it will be important this autumn to finish the issue of the forming of the Central Election Commission. I remind about the Electoral Code as the biggest draft law on the number of the amendments. I talked to the head of the task groups Chernenko and I urged him to maximally speed up the consideration of the amendments so we will be able to consider the Electoral Code understanding its volume and it can take two plenary weeks, but we should come and consider the Electoral Code this autumn," parliament's speaker noted.

Moreover, he expressed the belief that the parliament should decide on the language issue.

"Also, I am sure that this autumn, at this session, we should consider the law on language. As the Constitutional Court canceled the so-called law of Kolesnichenko-Kivalov (The law on the principles of the state language policy), the legislative vacuum occurred and we should fill it. There are five registered draft laws; the majority of them are already considered by the committee and I urged the parties last spring to hold the discussion so we will be able to follow one negotiated draft law," Paruby said.

According to him, in autumn the Verkhovna Rada will consider the draft laws necessary for the eurointegration and implementation of the Association Agreement with the EU.

"And, of course, there are the amendments to the Constitution. I remind that the Constitutional Court made a decision on two draft law on the inviolability and we should consider these two bills and made a decision on them. I remind that the decision should be made by 226 voices this session and by 330 during the next one, but we should consider this issue in autumn," the speaker concluded.

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The sanctions concern the Russian politicians and separatists from Crimea and Donbas

Open source

The European Union prolonged anti-Russian sanctions for half a year, as Rikard Jozwiak, Radio Liberty correspondent, wrote on Twitter.

eu diplomats have today decided to prolong the visa ban and asset freezes by another six months of politicians from #Russia and separatist in #Crimea & #Donbas. Zakharchenko will obviously be removed so 154 ppl and 44 entities. To be confirmed by ambs on wed. #Ukraine  Rikard Jozwiak (@RikardJozwiak) September 3, 2018

Earlier, Montenegro, Albania, Norway and Ukraine announced an intention to reconcile their national policy with the prolongation of the anti-Russian sanctions.

Reportedly, on July 5, the EU prolonged economic sanctions against Russia till December 31, 2019. The sanctions were imposed in July 2014 as a response to Russias destabilizing activity in Ukraine.

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As a result of the accident, the driver and the passenger of the bike died

Open source

A motorbike crashed into a Ukrainian tourist bus in Romanian Suceava at night, on September 3, consequently, two people died. Libertatea reports.

According to the outlet, 67 Ukrainians were on the bus, including 20 children. According to the preliminary information, no one requested a medical aid.

At the same time, as a result of the accident, the driver and the passenger of the motorbike died.

The Suceava Police initiated an investigation to establish the circumstances and the guilty party of the accident.

As it was reported earlier, a Ukrainian bus with tourists had an accident in Podkarpackie Voivodeship in Poland on August 17. As a result of the accident, three people deceased, and 51 are injured. The Ukrainian Consul urgently headed out to the scene.
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Earlier, she reported about the psychological pressure from Russian FSB and phone calls from unknown numbers during several months

The activist of the Ukrainian Cultural Center Olga Pavlenko had to leave the occupied Crimea and move to the mainland of Ukraine. On September 2, the woman crossed the administrative border with the peninsula at the Kalanchak checkpoint PE and went to Kherson, where she plans to settle. This was reported by Hromadske Radio.

Earlier, she reported about the psychological pressure from Russian FSB and phone calls from unknown numbers during several months.

As it was reported, the operatives of the FSB, Russian federal security service searched the house of Ukrainian civil activist Olga Pavlenko in the annexed Crimea.

Previously, in April 2018, prosecutor's office in Simferopol summoned Pavlenko and her colleague Olena Popova, while looking into the activity of the pro-Ukrainian NGO - specifically, printing of the local newspaper called 'Crimean Blackthorn'. The summoned activists used their right not to testify against themselves.

According to Krym.Realii, Pavlenko's friends assume that the search could take place after someone fed the information to the pro-Russian web portal Russkaya Vesna (Russian Spring, - 112 International).
People purchased tickets on the Internet and during the entrance control, it appeared that the tickets were fake

Hundreds of fans didnt make it to Imagine Dragons concert which took place in Kyiv last Friday on August 31. It appeared that people bought fake tickets from the frauds on a fake website. The police opened a criminal proceeding.

The concert was quite large-scale, NSC Olimpiyskiy was full. But not all the people had an opportunity to listen to their favorite group, they had to appeal to the police instead.

People purchased tickets on the Internet and during the entrance control, it appeared that the tickets were fake.

There was an incident on the Imagine Dragons concert. A crowd bought tickets from a fake ticket operator. The website was made at the beginning of this year on a Ukrainian hosting, and one pays for the ticket by a credit card, a social network user wrote.

My daughter went to the Imagine Dragons concert, they didnt let her in The tickets are fake She was dreaming and waiting for half a year, it was a birthday gift The number of the victims is more than 1500 people only in the fan-zone, another user informed.

Most of the victims said they bought the tickets on e-ticket.in.ua. Some also said they purchased them on Instagram or OLX. For now, the website e-ticket.in.ua is unavailable. The average price of the ticket is $7`.

The police confirmed that the citizens, who became victims of the fraud, are massively addressing the law enforcers.

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Ukraines SBU expelled a code-bound criminal nicknamed Papun who is involved in the commission of felonies and grace offenses, as SBU press office reported.

The law enforcers determined that the representative of the criminal sectors from the South Caucasus countries nicknamed Papun illegally returned to Ukraine regardless of the entry ban. According to the security service. The culprit arrived at the territory of our state to coordinate the activity of the criminal gangs. The code-bound criminal had to take control over reallocation of the money flow from the robberies, armed assaults, thefts and blackmail, the message says.

SBU officers detained the criminal in Obolon district of the capital and forcefully expelled him from Ukraine.

Earlier, another code-bound criminal nicknamed Khidir was expelled from Ukraine. He came here to enhance the impact of a clan of code-bound criminals.

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The suspect in the case appeared to be the historians distant relative

Mykola Shytyuk, a Ukrainian prominent historian, was found dead in Mykolayiv on September 2, as Radio Liberty reported.

Police informed that the body had signs of violence including stab wounds.

On September 3, it was reported that Ukraines National Police detained the suspect in the stabbing death of the Ukrainian historian. A 25-year-old man confessed that he stabbed Shytyuk over a personal argument, as the police directorate in the southeastern region of Mykolayiv stated.

Later, 112.ua reported that the suspect in the case appeared to be the historians distant relative, as Viktor Pryadun, the acting Head of the Central Police Department of the National Police in Mykolayiv region, informed.

A 24-year-old man is a distant relative of the victim and he was prosecuted multiple times for commission of the crimes of mercenary, violent nature related to the illegal drug trafficking, Pryadun said.

Mykola Shytyuk was famous for the works about Holodomor famine, which murdered millions of Ukrainians in the early 1930s.

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Open source

A Ukrainian-Italian movie IZI received Opera Prima award in Kineo Diamanti al Cinema program of the 75th Venice Film Festival and was declared the best debut film of 2017. The film was included in the final-5 of the Italian most prestigious movie award David di Donatello in the categories Best First-time Director and Best actor. In Ukraine, the movie was nominated in Viewers Choice category of Golden Dziga award.

Kineo Movie Diamond Award is the official award of the Venice Film Festival for the movies which combine artistic qualities and success on the international markets. This year, Kineo marks its 16th anniversary in the Venice Film Festival. The award was established by Italys Culture Ministry along with CSC (Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia) Award, SNCCI (National Union of Movie critics) and Best Movie magazine.

IZI feature film is Ukraines first official co-production with Italy. The movie was made with the support of Ukraines Cinema Committee, Italys Culture Ministry and Friuli-Venezia Giulia audiovisual fund (Italy). Fresh Production Group (Ukraine), Bartlebyfilm  Pilgrim Film (Italy) were involved in the production.

Nicola Nocella, Barbara Bouchet, Ostap Stupka, Verokina Shostak and Orest Garda.

In August 2017 the movie participated in the competition program of the 70th International Film Festival in Locarno-2017 (Switzerland). In late September of 2017 IZI movie took part in the main competition of the 35th Annecy Cinema Italien-2017 (France), where it was awarded with the Jury Grand Prix. In total, the movie got 27 awards and participated in more than 90 film festivals in around 25 countries.

The movie was also presented on the Film Festival in Oostende-2017 (Belgium) and on the 30th Helsinki International Movie Festival Love and anarchy-2017 (Finland). Besides, it was invited to take part in more than 50 film festivals.

The film is in TOP-10 of La Repubblica, an Italian newspaper, rating.

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The Consul contacted their families and they could arrive in Genoa on the next day.

Two Ukrainians who were injured in a bridge collapse in Genoa are in a satisfactory condition, as Yevgen Perelyhyn, Ukraines Ambassador to Italy, said, Interfax-Ukraine reports.

He also stressed that the Consul went to see the victims right away, he also contacted their families and they could arrive in Genoa on the next day.

The medical facility sent the information to the Embassy which confirms that these citizens are under control and they receive necessary medical treatment. It is known that their health condition is quite fine, I can't say more due to the privacy, the Ambassador stated.

Earlier, on August 14 a bridge collapsed in the Italian Genoa, latest reports informed about 42 victims. At first, it was reported that the bridge collapsed because of the slacking of the load carrying structures. Later, the Prosecutor Francesco Gozzi stated that humans mistake led to the incident.

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The representatives of the Ministry noted that they still consider the Normandy format meeting of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine reasonable

Frances Foreign Ministry informed that the murder of the head of so-called DNR Aleksandr Zakharchenko should not doubt the commitment of the sides of the Minsk Agreements, as the website of the Ministry reports.

The representatives of the Ministry noted that they still consider the Normandy format meeting of Germany, France, Russia and Ukraine reasonable.

Tension occurs right at the moment when honest talks are to begin, the statement says.

Earlier it was reported that the militants stopped to pass people through the demarcation line after the death of Zakharchenko.

Reportedly, the Russian side supposed that Minsk Agreements might not be obligated after Zakharchenkos death. Vyacheslav Volodin, Russian State Duma Spokesperson, stated that Zakharchenkos murder zeros the sense of the Minsk Agreements.

However, on September 3, the Kremlins Spokesperson Dmitry Peskov stated that Russia would not exit the Minsk process due to this incident.

Reportedly, on August 31, as a result of the explosion in the restaurant in the downtown of Donetsk, head of so-called DNR Aleksandr Zakharchenko died. The Russian mass media reported that Oleksandr Timofeyev, so-called "minister of revenue and duties" of so-called "DNR" has also died. The so-called law enforcers of the self-proclaimed Donetsk Peoples Republic stated that they detained Ukrainian saboteurs who are presumably involved in the assassination of Zakharchenko. Although, SBU hasnt approved the information.

ORDO, Separate district of Donetsk region, suspects one of the guards of Zakharchenko in his death. At the same time, the Russian MFA accused "Kyiv regime" in the death of Zakharchenko. It was reported on the closure of all crossing checkpoints along the Inter-Entity Boundary Line because of the incident. Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed his condolences over the murder of Zakharchenko.

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Italian English

PRESS RELEASE

Fashion Development Materials is born, the new Bio-on business unit

dedicated to bioplastic materials for fashion and the luxury sector.

FDM, Fashion Development Materials , is added to the 5 business units that Bio-on created a year ago.

, is added to the that created a year ago. A dedicated team will develop new materials based on Minerv PHA bioplastics, 100% natural and biodegradable, targeting the fashion and luxury industry.

The new materials also respond to the need to reduce the pollution caused by synthetic fibers that are released into the environment. A dramatic phenomenon similar to that caused by plastic microbeads used in cosmetics that pollute seas and rivers.

The strategy of setting up the business units has generated important results in just one year, allowing to optimize the company organization the company and to accelerate the ability to respond to the growing demand for PHA bioplastics coming from different sectors.





Bologna, 3rd September 2018  Bio-on, listed on the AIM segment of the Italian Stock Market  Borsa Italiana and operating in the sector of bioplastic of high quality, presents today the new business unit Fashion Development Material (FDM) specialized in the development of new high-tech materials for the fashion and luxury industry, based on Minerv PHA bioplastics, natural and 100% biodegradable. The goal is to identify processes, technologies and patents to produce fabrics, yarns, flexible surfaces, films, etc. made of bioplastic and designed to replace today's materials, many of which are synthetic and polluting.

The search for innovative and eco-sustainable materials, which respect the environment and people, is now a priority also in the luxury and fashion sector - explains Marco Astorri, President and CEO of Bio-on - and today the creativity of the best designers is expressed also through the choice of natural and biodegradable materials. We are already collaborating with some of the most important worldwide fashion brands and thanks to this experience we launch today our sixth business unit to respond to the market in a more rapid, timely and personalized way.

The materials, which will be developed by a dedicated team, respond also to the need to reduce the pollution caused by the synthetic fibers that are used today by the fashion industry and that, invisibly, are released at each washing, ending up in the environment and seas. A dramatic situation similar to that caused by the plastic micro-beads used in cosmetics that pollute seas and rivers. In both cases Bio-on has developed innovative solutions starting from PHA bioplastics, which comes from a completely organic process and are 100% biodegradable.

Fashion Development Material (FDM) is added to the 5 business units that Bio-on created one year ago: Bio-on Plants; Cosmetic, Nanomedicine & Smart Materials (CNS); Recovery and Fermentation (RAF); Engineering (ENG) e Structural Materials Development (SMD).

In the last 12 months, the activities of the business units, in addition to representing an optimization of the company organization, have allowed the development of the Bio-on business model through the creation of "newco" dedicated to specific market sectors. Thanks to the recognized potential and the positive impact that Bio-on biopolymers can generate, these new companies have attracted the attention and entry as business partner of some of the most important players in the reference markets.

All the Minerv PHA bioplastics (polyhydroxyalkanoates) developed by Bio-on are made from renewable plant sources with no competition with food supply chains. They guarantee the same thermo-mechanical properties as conventional plastics with the advantage of being 100% eco-sustainable and naturally biodegradable.

Here's what the 5 Business Units launched on 31st of August 2017 from Bio-on do:

Bio-on plants

It manages the first Bio-on production plant inaugurated on 20th of June 2018 in Castel San Pietro Terme near Bologna, where the company has invested 20 million euros. The new plant is located over an area of 30,000 m2, 3,700 of which is covered and 6,000 m2 for building. It is the result of a reconversion of a former factory (without occupying new land) in which the best technologies currently available on the market have been used. Bio-on Plants has followed and coordinated the construction, will take care of future expansions and the construction of new plants. In the last year Bio-on Plants has managed important "numbers". 380 piles of 30 meters high and with a diameter of 600 mm; 3,500m3 of concrete; 480,000 kg of reinforcement iron; 680,000 kg of erected steal structures; 130,000 hours of work.

Headquarters: Castel San Pietro Terme (Bologna)

CNS

The CNS Business Unit (Cosmetic, Nanomedicine & Smart Materials) deals with the development and commercialization of functionalized biomaterials and devices, capable of providing "Ultra-Green Performance" exploiting the unique characteristics of biodegradability in water and biocompatibility typical of PHA bioplastics.

The areas of activity are Cosmetics, Biomedical, Nutraceutical, Bioremediation, Organic Electronic, Smart Materials. In particular in the world of cosmetics through the development of micro powders for the replacement of the current polluting and environmentally harmful plastics. Over the last year, the CNS Smart Labs, a highly-equipped research center, has been completed in record time, thanks to an investment of 2 million euros, it is spread over an area of over 400 square meters and divided into 5 thematic areas. CNS has realised the "Powder Boutique" laboratory, a sort of technological tailoring, which develops the technologies and know-how to modify the morphology of the biopolymers in order to maximize performances with respect to the applications. The researchers of the CNS business unit have generated a huge IP portfolio consisting of different patents and international patent applications (PCT).

Headquarters: Castel San Pietro Terme (Bologna)

SMD

This Business Unit is in charge of developing different product grades for injection, extrusion, thermoforming and film coating technologies. The structural materials are basically those obtained starting from granules or pellets. As a rule, they are large or complex plastic items with high-performing forms and functions.

In the last year the SMD Business Unit has developed, among others, new formulations suitable for the realisation of food containers with high impact resistance materials. It continued the development of Minerv Supertoys, the bioplastic grades designed for toys with the highest safety standards for use by children.

The activity also focused on the development of a new fully biodegradable food packaging with barrier performance that allows at least 10% extension of the "shelf life", thus overcoming the obstacles in the performance that have, so far, limited the use of totally biodegradable biopolymers in food applications.

Headquarters: Bentivoglio (Bologna)

RAF

This Business Unit deals with the research and development of new agricultural wastes to be used in fermentation for the production of PHA biopolymers, the demonstration and scale-up of new plants for the fermentation and recovery of PHAs biopolymers with a high degree of purity. Over the last year, the number of trials has increased through the application of new technologies in the fermentation processes and thankjs to the increase of bioreactors available. New cell lines able to produce bioplastic were also identified. RAF has tripled the fermentation units in recent months. Operators also increased exponentially with the introduction of 10 new employees. This led to a doubling of production capacity linked to research and development activities.

Headquarters: Castel San Pietro Terme (Bologna)

ENG

This Business Unit develops and supplies the complete documentation on dedicated and bankable industrial feasibility studies: Project description, Designation list, Standards, Design Criteria, Process, Process control system, Storage and Warehouse, Utilities, Electrical Installation. Industrial scale-up with the production modules definitions. It realizes complete process design packages (PDPs) from the laboratory to the industrial scale production plant with production modules of 5, 10, 20 thousand tons / year. Bio-on / ENG has taken care of the commissioning and start-up phase of the plant in Bologna (in addition to those granted under license) through the drafting of the necessary protocols and procedures.

In the life cycle of the projects, Bio-on / ENG follows the initial phase of the authorization process and has carried out project management activities for the multidisciplinary engineering phases, procurement of materials and equipment necessary for the plant and subcontracting for the execution of the works of construction and assembly.

SEDE: Bio-on S.p.A. (Bologna)

Press info: Simona Vecchies +393351245190  press@bio-on.it  Twitter @BioOnBioplastic





Bio-on S.p.A.

Bio-on S.p.A., an Italian Intellectual Property Company (IPC), operates in the bioplastic sector conducting applied research and development of modern bio-fermentation technologies in the field of eco-sustainable and completely naturally biodegradable materials. In particular, Bio-on develops industrial applications through the creation of product characterisations, components and plastic items. Since February 2015, Bio-on S.p.A. has also been operating in the development of natural and sustainable chemicals for the future. Bio-on has developed an exclusive process for the production of a family of polymers called PHAs (polyhydroxyalkanoates) from agricultural waste (including molasses and sugar cane and sugar beet syrups). The bioplastic produced in this way is able to replace the main families of traditional plastics in terms of performance, thermo-mechanical properties and versatility. Bio-on PHAs is a bioplastic that can be classified as 100% bio-based, certified by USDA (United States Department of Agriculture), and completely biodegradable, certified by Vincotte. The company's strategy envisages the marketing of licenses for PHAs production and related ancillary services, the development of R&D projects (also through new collaborations with universities, research centers and industrial partners), as well as the realisation of industrial plants designed by Bio-on.

Issuer

Bio-On S.p.A.

Via Dante 7/b

40016 San Giorgio di Piano (BO)

Tel: +39 051 893001

info@bio-on.it Nomad

EnVent Capital Markets Ltd

25 Savile Row W1S 2ER London

Tel. +44 7557879200

Italian Branch

Via Barberini, 95 00187 Roma

Tel: +39 06 896841

pverna@envent.it Specialist

Banca Finnat Euramerica S.p.A.

Piazza del Gesu, 49

00186 Roma

Lorenzo Scimia

Tel: +39 06 69933446

l.scimia@finnat.it

Attachment
HENGELO, The Netherlands, Sept. 03, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Energy management company Lithium Werks ( www.lithiumwerks.com ), known for its Nanophosphate Cells and its smart lithium-ion modules, is merging with fellow lithium battery developer and producer Super B ( www.super-b.com ).



The new global company serves over 1,000 customers in nearly 50 countries and offers jobs to over 550 employees. With more than 400 patents for lithium technology, the company is a leading player when it comes to technical knowhow.

Earlier this year, Lithium Werks acquired the assets of the former Valence Technology, Inc, and the Industrial business of A123 Systems, LLC. The new Dutch company Lithium Werks B.V. as such is a joint force between a leading cell supplier, offering high quality Nanophosphate Cells, and two A-brand battery system suppliers: Valence and Super B.

The companies were already close partners. Our strategic partnership has evolved. We now know that the best way for us to meet our customers growing demand for portable power solutions is to join forces, said T. Joseph Fisher III, CEO and co-founder of Lithium Werks.

Super Bs chief executive Henk Kleef said: The strong brand positions of both Valence and Super B for battery systems enables the development and expansion of the new Lithium Werks organization. We will continue to offer long lasting, safe, reliable and customized battery systems to our customers in sectors such as industrial, transportation, marine and renewable energy.

Together, we will facilitate a global transition to clean power, using nanotechnology and smart software to improve efficiency of transporting goods, people and energy." Mr Fisher said.

About Lithium Werks

Lithium Werks is a fast-growing global lithium ion battery company with production facilities in China and offices in the USA, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Great Britain and Norway. Lithium Werks provides cells, modules, and battery management systems into markets such as material handling, stationary energy storage, medical, and commercial marine.

About Super B

Super B has a strong reputation for developing and producing unique high-end lithium batteries for a variety of industries and applications. Various leading manufacturers and customers in markets such as automotive, recreational vehicles, motorcycles, UPS and marine have experienced the innovative and reliable Super B lithium battery solutions. The Super B solutions are developed and produced in Hengelo, The Netherlands and supported with worldwide regional sales/service centers.
PARIS, Sept. 03, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) --

3rd September 2018

CNP Assurances

Post Stabilisation Notice

HSBC (contact: Syndicate desk, telephone: +44 207 992 8066) hereby gives notice that no stabilisation (within the meaning of the rules of the Financial Conduct Authority) was undertaken by the Stabilisation Manager(s) named below in relation to the offer of the following securities.

Issuer: CNP Assurances Guarantor (if any): na Aggregate nominal amount: EUR 500,000,000 Description: 4.75% Perp NC10yr Offer price: 100 Stabilising Managers: HSBC, Morgan Stanley, Credit Suisse, Natixis, Societe Generale, Unicredit

This announcement is for information purposes only and does not constitute an invitation or offer to underwrite, subscribe for or otherwise acquire or dispose of any securities of the Issuer in any jurisdiction



This information is provided by RNS, the news service of the London Stock Exchange. RNS is approved by the Financial Conduct Authority to act as a Primary Information Provider in the United Kingdom. Terms and conditions relating to the use and distribution of this information may apply. For further information, please contact rns@lseg.com or visit www.rns.com .

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New investment rules will squeeze US-China flows



Corporate America will be forced to rethink its approach to overseas deals



Rana Foroohar







National security has become the key factor governing foreign investment in the US. That is the upshot of a bill that recently passed through Congress.



Although the inter-agency Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States, or Cfius, has reviewed the national security implications of inbound foreign investment since the 1980s, it has tended to favour the benefits over the potential risks.



But the new Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act, or Firrma, which is driven by fears of a rising China and had bipartisan support, marks a shift. The act strengthens the role of the Department of Defense and the intelligence community in deciding who should, or should not, be allowed to invest in the US. It will also make it a lot harder for American companies to put money into the Middle Kingdom. The result will be significant changes in how companies raise capital and do cross-border business.



Regardless of the dollar amounts involved, these shifts are among the most significant in 40 years, because they mark a new attitude on the part of the US government about American business.



Marketing slogans aside, since at least the 1980s there has been no presumption that US companies had to operate in the national interest. Goods, capital, and labour could move where they liked  that is the definition of globalisation. Most people believed that if US companies did well, Americans would prosper. But, as the past several decades of wage stagnation have shown, the fortunes of US companies and consumers are now fundamentally disconnected.



The wealth gap alone wasnt enough to persuade politicians from either party to rethink the rules. But China is. While tariffs are President Donald Trumps personal preoccupation, fears over losing an economic and cultural war (and possibly a real one at some point) with China is a worry that is shared broadly in the US, no matter what circles you travel in.



Midwestern men may wear America First hats, but coastal elites are paying top dollar to get their kids into private schools with great Mandarin programmes (better prospects at home have made Chinese nannies, once a New York status symbol, unaffordable, and new visa rules make them harder to find).



Rational or not, this anxiety puts business in an increasingly tight spot.



In my consultations, Trump administration officials have told me bluntly that US business has sold their souls and IP to gain a foothold in China, says Michael Allen, a member of the National Security Council in George W Bushs administration who now advises corporate clients on security issues. They speak in terms of breaking the dependence [between the two countries] and [say] it will hurt now, but youll thank us later.



Plenty of people  both on the right and on the progressive left  have thought along these lines for years. But the fact that such views are now being openly discussed and acted upon is a remarkable repudiation of the idea that the US and China are inextricably intertwined. There are any number of reasons why the new view may be wrong: the difficulty of disentangling decades of trade and investment ties between the two countries; the market effects of trying; a change of heart from the president; or some key compromise from the Chinese (both of the latter are doubtful). But I suspect the trend has legs, and will result in the following shifts.



Corporate messaging about cross border deals will change. You will hear less talk about transforming boundaries and bringing people together and more about strategic dealmaking to bolster US growth. Chief executives will spend more time in Washington, not just at the Treasury but at the White House and the Pentagon. Charm offensives in advance of dealmaking will be key.



Defence contractors and large industrial groups are already in the political cross-hairs. Technology and finance will follow. Already, Chinese inbound investment has plunged from a record $46bn in 2016 to a mere $2.1bn in the first half of 2018, according to Rhodium. Now outbound investment will be under fire, too. There has been a tremendous money flow from both Silicon Valley and Wall Street to China in recent years in areas such as artificial intelligence, 5G and quantum computing.



Consider SenseTime, an AI company in Beijing with facial recognition software used with CCTV footage and digital payment systems. It has received funding from Qualcomm, Silver Lake, Tiger Global Management and Fidelity.



But the politics of those investments will become much harder, particularly while there is a perception that American investors are funding or sharing (via joint ventures or forced tech transfer) innovations, ideas and data that may be used by the Chinese surveillance state. One can imagine all sorts of tech companies, from Cisco to Google, Amazon and Facebook, coming under fire in this way.



It is not unusual for the approach to overseas investment to shift every time there is a big new player on the global scene. The previous large update of the Cfius law came in the 1980s, in response to the rise of Japan. But Firrma is different. It may well mark the end of an era in which business was just about that.








The missive addressed to the Board of Supreme Prosecutors was delivered by members of the following political parties: Peruanos por el Kambio (PPK), Alianza para el Progreso (APP), Accion Popular (AP), Frente Amplio (FA), Nuevo Peru (NP), as well as non-grouped and independent legislators.





In this regard, Congressman Gino Costa explained that three out of five members of the Board are allegedly implicated in the complaint filed by Prosecutor Pablo Sanchez.













"It is imperative that they step down, but if they don't, we'll call on the population to mobilize. There is no justice if they remain leading the Public Ministry," he stated.





(END) JCC/CCR/RMB/MVB

Congress political parties except Fuerza Popular and APRA on Monday sent a letter to Peru's Public Ministry urging the resignation of Attorney General Pedro Chavarry, as well as Supreme Prosecutors Victor Raul Rodriguez and Tomas Galvez.Published: 9/3/2018
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During Covid-19: Face coverings required, no change fees, and contactless travel using the app. Amtrak, 325 Depot. Tickets and reservations: (800) 872-7245. Depot open daily 6:30 a.m.-9:30 p.m. All major credit cards accepted. Three daily eastbound trains travel to Dearborn, Detroit, Royal Oak, Troy, and Pontiac. Three daily westbound trains travel to Jackson, Battle Creek, Kalamazoo, and Chicago (and points in between). Lansing and Port Huron can also be reached with a transfer in Battle Creek. Buses depart in the evening once daily for Toledo to meet an overnight train to the East Coast. WiFi on all trains. 734-994-4906, amtrak.com


YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. A massive fire has engulfed the National Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro, BBC reports.

The fire broke out in the evening of September 2. No one has been injured in the incident.

The cause of the fire is not known yet.

Firefighters are tackling the blaze at the building, which contains more than 20 million items in its collection.

The museum, which once served as the residence for the Portuguese royal family, celebrated its 200-year anniversary earlier this year.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Japan wants to deepen the relations with Armenia, foreign minister Taro Kono said during a joint press conference with Armenian foreign minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan in Yerevan, reports Armenpress.

We have discussed how we can deepen the relations with Armenia. Japan will cooperate with Armenia in training young lawyers. A decision was made to facilitate visa regime for the citizens of Armenia. Japan plans to join the international support ahead of the expected elections in Armenia, the foreign minister said.

He stated that Japan in particularly attaches importance to the stability in the Caucasus region. The Caucasian region is the section uniting Asia to Europe. Stability is very important here. We have presented an initiative for the regional development, the first one is the support of human resources, the second one is the support to improving infrastructures and business environment. We would like the cooperation with Armenia to be based on these issues, he said.

The two foreign ministers also touched upon the North Korea issue during their meeting. The Japanese FM told reporters that he will continue to take steps to materialize the agreements reached with the Armenian counterpart.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. 685.970 tourists visited Armenia in the first half of 2018, minister of economic development and investments Artsvik Minasyan told reporters on September 3, reports Armenpress.

Compared to the same period of the previous year, the growth comprised 10.2%. 610.900 people from Armenia have left for tourism purposes. The growth comprised 7.1%, the minister said.

Artsvik Minasyan added that nearly 27.1% of tourists belong to the CIS countries. 24% of tourists arrived in Armenia from the EU member states. The growth in this case comprised 43.3%. The tourists who visited Armenia from other countries comprise 48.9%, the growth  8.1%, he said.

17.1% growth has been recorded in terms of the domestic tourism.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Armenian foreign minister Zohrab Mnatsakanyan met with Japanese counterpart Taro Kono during which they discussed the rich agenda of the Armenian-Japanese relations which has been formed during the 26 years of establishment of relations, reports Armenpress.

During a joint press conference in the Armenian foreign ministry, FM Mnatsakanyan told reporters that they have outlined the directions which will move forward quite rich and dynamic bilateral agenda.

The Armenian-Japanese bilateral agenda has greatly developed over the past 26 years. We highly appreciate the permanent presence of Japan in Armenias development agenda. The assistance provided to Armenia during these years is quite significant, the Armenian FM noted.

He reminded that during these years Japan has provided nearly 300 million USD privileged loans, 79 million USD grants, 11.5 million for technical assistance and training programs to Armenia. Starting from firefighter vehicles up to the fields of healthcare, education and culture have used this cooperation and the assistance provided. We have more than 600 specialists who passed training in Japan. We have outlined new directions which we would like to develop. I want to highlight the field of innovations which can bring tangible and concrete results in the dialogue, cooperation of our countries, Zohrab Mnatsakanyan said.

He informed that an agreement was reached to jointly work on the development of infrastructures. Japan also has its engagement in the development process of Armenias democratic institutions. We have discussed the cooperation directions on this path, also in the context of the parliamentary elections. We also attached importance to the human contacts which is the base for inter-state relations, he said.

The FM reminded that Armenia has set a privileged regime for the citizens holding Japanese passport who can visit our country without a visa and expressed hope that Japan will also take step which will allow to facilitate the visits of Armenian citizens to Japan.

Mnatsakanyan also informed that they also touched upon the prospect of launching Tokyo-Yerevan direct flight.

I have also touched upon the settlement process of the Nagorno Karabakh conflict, presented the negotiation process. I highlighted our stance that the conflict should be solved exclusively peacefully, through negotiations, within the frames of the Minsk Group. I also referred to the formation of conditions contributing to peace and the importance we attach to that, he said.

The officials also discussed a number of other issues of the international agenda, such as the developments in the Middle East and East Asia.

The Japanese FM arrived in Armenia on September 2 on an official visit. He is scheduled to meet with President Armen Sarkissian and Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan.

Edited and translated by Aneta Harutyunyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Russian minister of foreign affairs Sergei Lavrov has commented on the planned upcoming meeting between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan, RIA Novosti reported.

Another meeting of President Putin and Prime Minister Pashinyan is planned soon. I believe it will be important for us to hear how the new leader of Armenia himself is assessing the prospects of developments of the situation in his country. Of course, we arent indifferent at all as to what Armenias obligations towards the CSTO look like in this situation, we are proceeding from the fact that these obligations are functioning, they are required to be implemented fully, including in terms of what relates to the strengthening of our common organizations conduct and reputation, he said.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 1, ARMENPRESS. The curious story behind the arrest of a pro-Azerbaijani and pro-Turkish lobbyist who was detained in Yerevan by law enforcement agencies gets more and more bizarre after scrutinizing the available information and putting the pieces together from the mans past.

Kevin (Kemal) Oksuz, the Turkish-born American citizen wanted by the United States who was arrested in Yerevan on August 29, is nowhere near to be considered a minor lobbyist.

It appears the man has, or at least at some point had, close ties with the government of Azerbaijan.

Moreover, Kevin (Kemal) Oksuzs name is tied to the notorious Azerbaijani state-sanctioned bribery scheme known as the Azerbaijani Laundromat.

As previously reported, Oksuz is also a part of the Gulen movement in North America, being heavily involved in its operations. It is noteworthy that currently the state of Azerbaijan has the same position on the Gulen movement as Turkey  the Gulen movement is outlawed. Azerbaijans attitude for Oksuz at this moment is unclear, taking into account the fact that Baku and Ankara carry out almost identical policies. It is moreover unclear to whom Oksuz has remained faithful to  Gulen movement, or Azerbaijan.

As reported earlier, Oksuz was the center of a US Congressional inquiry into a controversial trip organized by his US-based nonprofit for American lawmakers to Azerbaijan. The Congressional inquiry revealed that Azerbaijans state-owned SOCAR oil company secretly funded the trip and spent hundreds of thousands of dollars, including on lavish gifts for the American politicians.

Oksuz chaired the Assembly of Friends of Azerbaijan (AFAZ), a Houston-based tax-exempt nonprofit, an influential organization closely tied with Azerbaijani authorities. He later moved the nonprofit to Washington, according to reports.

AFAZ may have been established in 2012 but took its first official actions in April 2013, approximately one month prior to the Convention.The organization was created in Houston, Texas by the leadership of SOCAR and has since moved to Washington, D.C.Its CEO and President was Kemal Oksuz. At the time, Kemal Oksuz was also the President of TCAE, the Office of Congressional Ethics of the US House of Representatives Report Review No. 15-9180 reads. TCAE is the Turquois Council of Americans and Eurasians.

SOCAR Legal Counsel 1 described AFAZ as SOCARs nonprofit in the United States. Notably, SOCAR was AFAZs only founding member.SOCAR, as the sole founding member, appointed the board of directors of AFAZ. Mr. Oksuz was one of the individuals appointed to the board. Mr. Oksuz was then appointed to serve concurrently as president alongside other board members also holding different offices, reads the report.

But the most interesting part of the report is about Kemal Oksuzs relationship with SOCAR.

Funds transfer request from SOCAR to International Bank of Azerbaijan

It was Mr. Oksuz who introduced the other Turkic nonprofit organizations to Azerbaijani officials, and Mr. Oksuz who coordinated Turkic efforts related to Azerbaijan, the report said.

For example, it appears that following the Convention in September 2013, Mr. Oksuz worked with several Turkic nonprofits to send letters and video messages from Members of Congress to the President of Azerbaijan.A consultant for SOCAR noted that the SOCAR chair, parliament speaker, and Ambassador value Kemals opinion, the report said. The report also notes that it is SOCAR that selected Oksuz to be president of AFAZ.

According to a 2014 article of the Houston Chronicle, AFAZ operates as a U.S.-based public relations arm of SOCAR, which is in turn wholly controlled by the Azerbaijani government. The nonprofit lists Rauf Mammadov, director of SOCAR America, as its treasurer.

Back in early 2013, AFAZ worked with the Embassy of Azerbaijan to help organize an event on Capitol Hill in Washington commemorating the anniversary of the so-called Khojaly massacre, according to The Sunlight Foundation.

Speaking to The Sunlight Foundation via email in a 2014 interview, Oksuz denied having ties with SOCAR, and sent the following letter:

Oksuz's email to the newspaper

Oksuz denied that AFAZ is tied to SOCAR, but the Congressional report clearly leaves no doubt that it operated through Azerbaijani oil dollars and that Oksuz is a personal acquaintance of many top level Azerbaijani government officials, perhaps even President Ilham Aliyev himself.

Subsequently Kemal Oksuz was charged by the US for fraud over falsifying documents and hiding the true source of funding for the trip which he organized for the American lawmakers. It is unclear how and when he left the US and where he was located at the time of being declared wanted.

But on top of all this, it appears that Kemal Oksuz is also involved in the Azerbaijani Laundromat case  the highly publicized corruption scandal which was uncovered by the OCCRP - Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project. The Azerbaijani Laundromat is a complex money-laundering operation and slush fund that handled $2.9 billion over a two-year period through four shell companies registered in the UK. The Azeri state-sanctioned bribery scheme was used to pay off European lawmakers. But in a follow-up report about the Azerbaijani Laundromat case, the OCCRP reported in a May, 2018 article titled Bakus Man in America that another recipient of the Laundromat money was an influential American oil and gas consultant of Azerbaijani origin who worked to influence US policy in his native countrys favor. And this man himself is tied with the controversial trip of US lawmakers organized by Oksuz.

Adil Baguirov, a business owner based in Dayton, Ohio and a vocal member of the Azerbaijani Diaspora, received the $253,150 transfer just months after a non-profit organization he runs, the Houston-based US Azeris Network, helped host a conference in Baku, Azerbaijans capital, that was attended by 10 members of Congress. The junket was widely criticized, and investigated by the House Ethics Committee, for being secretly funded by Azerbaijans state oil company, the OCCRP said.

Baguirovs Washington lobbying in the interests of Azerbaijan goes far beyond the 2013 conference. He has also helped organize other US-Azeri conferences in Washington, repeatedly testified before the House in favor of US military aid to Azerbaijan, served as the coordinator of the Congressional Azerbaijan Caucus, and worked prominently in a Houston-based company that claims to have organized a trip by the countrys president, Ilham Aliyev, to the White House.

Baguirov outside the Armenian Embassy in Washington D.C.

Baguirov and his family run in elite circles back home. They are known to have close ties to President Aliyev  who awarded Baguirov a medal for his efforts in the US  and he and his father serve in numerous advisory roles to the Azerbaijani and Russian governments respectively, the report stated.

It is noteworthy that each time an Azerbaijani nonprofit or any kind of a council is mentioned, it turns out that they operate in Houston, or at least have originated from there.

The estimated proposed budget for the conference was $1.5 million. But it appears that its organizers had trouble securing the necessary funds. Two managers from ConocoPhillips told OCE investigators that Kemal Oksuz, the president of both hosting organizations, asked the corporation for a $250,000 sponsorship. But it eventually agreed to provide just $10,000, as did two other sponsors, McDermott and BP.

Reporters found no evidence that either Baguirov or his non-profit helped cover the shortfall. But his consulting company received the $253,150 Azerbaijani Laundromat payment six months later, the OCCRP said.

Oksuz has been active for years in several nonprofits that are part of the so-called Gulen movement, the Houston Chronicle reported earlier in 2015.

Media reports show that Oksuz was engaged in similar activities at least as far back as 2003, when the Chicago Tribune reported that the Turkish-American is planning to open a new cultural center in Mount Prospect, Illinois.

Niagara Educational Services, founded by Turkish-Americans in 1997 as a tutoring center, operates a kindergarten to 8th-grade Science Academy of Chicago, said Kevin Oksuz, who would serve as director of the new cultural center.

The organization's programs and outreach are cross-cultural, which would be reflected at the Mt. Prospect center. Programs would be developed based on "the needs, expectations and demands" of its members, and membership would be open to people of all religious and ethnic backgrounds, Oksuz said, according to Chicago Tribune.

As intriguing and controversial as Kemal Oksuzs past may seem, the fact that he  a top pro-Azerbaijani lobbyist with extensive ties - ended up being arrested in Yerevan is more bizarre, not mentioning that he was operating a business here since 2017. Moreover, his office was located in downtown Yerevan. Although the phone number listed in his company was unavailable, the business center, Elite Plaza, confirmed to ARMENPRESS that Kemal Oksuzs The Sena Group, an event management and travel company, is registered in their premises.

It is unclear if Kemal Oksuz sought any hidden agenda.

Security services are yet to release a follow-up statement over the issue following the initial press release about the arrest.

The Facebook account of Oksuzs Yerevan company, The Sena Group, appears to have been quite active in promoting their services.

As reported earlier, the document of registration of The Sena Group by Armenias state registry lists the date of foundation as 2017. But it is unclear when Oksuz had arrived to Armenia and whether or not he has traveled to the country in the past also.

Oksuz is currently under arrest pending further proceedings over the extradition to the United States.

On September 3, the Prosecutor Generals office told ARMENPRESS that Kevin (Kemal) Oksuz has been remanded into custody as requested by the prosecution.

By Stepan Kocharyan and Araks Kasyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. As a result of cooperation between law enforcement agencies of Armenia and Georgia the third suspect in the August 28 home invasion case has been apprehended in Georgia on September 2.

The suspect is identified as 49-year-old Gagik Danoyan, police said.

Danoyan is one of the two suspects who had fled the scene after breaching into the home of a former top judge in Armenia, using assault rifles. The gunmen targeted the countryside home of Arman Mkrtumyan, the former president of the Court of Cassation of Armenia.

One of the suspects was neutralized by Mkrtumyan himself and his son, while the two others initially fled the scene.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian says he attaches great importance to respect for teachers in the society.

The President visited today the Dasaran (translated to Classroom) Educational Center where he met with teachers of public schools.

The Armenia of my dreams is Armenia where along with numerous positive things there will be respect of the society towards teachers. And that the first grades teacher is remembered as someone whom you have loved and respected. And when the state will be in a far better condition, this respect should be expressed also materially. You cant praise the profession, advance it, if those dedicated to it arent remunerated accordingly. Teachers have a very priority role within the society, the president said at the meeting.

During the visit the president also attended the special class on first aid. Sarkissian emphasized the significance of having skills and knowledge on first aid. He also talked to the children.

Edited and translated by Stepan Kocharyan
YEREVAN, SEPTEMBER 3, ARMENPRESS. Prime Minister of Armenia Nikol Pashinyan received on September 3 Foreign Minister of Japan Taro Kono who is in Armenia on an official visit.

The PM welcomed the first visit of Japans Foreign Minister to Armenia and noted that it takes place in an important period for Armenia in terms of democratic changes. Last year we marked the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia and Japan, which could be described as productive and dynamically developing. At the same time I think we have real chances to raise bilateral cooperation to a new level and particularly to foster economic relations, PM Pashinyan said.

Japans FM shared the opinion of the Armenian PM over the issue that the two countries have a great potential for developing and deepening the partnership in different spheres. Its an honor for me to visit Armenia. Today I visited Tumo center for creative technologies and I am impressed by the Armenias educational model of technologies. Tumo is one of the areas where we can collaborate. We are ready to discuss the prospects for economic cooperation, he said.

PM Pashinyan referred to the newly established political and economic situation in Armenia and the reforms underway, particularly fight against corruption and improvement of business and investment environment. The Foreign Minister of Japan saluted the democratic changes in Armenia and expressed readiness to support the Armenian Government in that process.

Speaking about the development of economic relations the interlocutors highlighted the signing and ratification of the agreement on Liberalization, Encouragement and Protection of Investments between the Government of Armenia and the Government of Japan.

The Head of the Executive assessed promising the development of partnership in high technologies, tourism, infrastructures and innovations.

The sides highlighted the necessity of holding culture days of both countries in Armenia and Japan, as well as deepening of inter-parliamentary relations. The interlocutors reached an agreement to set a joint agenda and to actively work to bring it to life.

Nikol Pashinyan also highlighted the deepening of humanitarian ties and the privileged visa regime for the citizens of Japan visiting Armenia, in the sidelines of which they can visit Armenia without entry visa.

The sides also exchanged ideas on regional and international issues. The Armenian Premier noted that Armenia highly appreciates Japans balanced position on Nagorno Karabakh conflict.

Translated and edited by Tigran Sirekanyan
The Australian recently announced the LAND 400 Phase 3 request for tender (RFT). Hence, Land Forces 18 is providing a relevant opportunity for the contenders to display their systems and capabilities to decision-makers.



CV90 MKIV from BAE Systems at Eurosatory 2018 (Picture source Army Recognition)

Three main industry partners are preparing to display their different vehicles to compete for the approximately $10-15 billion project to replace the ageing M113 APCs, with an Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV) and APC. The main competitors are BAE Systems with the CV90 MkIV, Hanwha Defense Systems with the AS21 Redback and Rheinmetall with the KF41.

The CV90 MkIV was born out of a research and development programme which incorporated feedback from the seven nations that currently use the CV90 platform. With upgrades to the drivetrain, the CV90 MkIV now has a new engine with up to 1,000 horsepower and a more powerful X300 heavy-duty transmission, while providing users with an additional two tonnes of payload without compromising the vehicles agility.

The new CV90 MkIV was presented at Eurosatory 2018 fitted with a two-man turret armed an automatic cannon from 35 to 500mm, one 7.62mm coaxial machine, one 40mm automatic grenade launcher and two anti-tank guided missile launchers mounted on the right side of the turret. The rear part of the CV90 MkIV can accomodate 8 infantrymen who can leave an enter the vehicle through a large hydraulically operated ramp located at the rear of the hull.



Drawing of the future South Korean AS21 Redback from the Company Hanwha (Picture source Defence Technology Review from Australia)

The South Korean company Hanwha Defense Systems AS21 Redback is proposing an evolved variant of the in-service K21, built on the basic platform of the K21. The K21 infantry fighting vehicle is described by Hanwha as the infantry fighting vehicle (IFV) that introduced the concept of "transport for infantry troops with combat capability". K21 features 20% lighter weight and 50% lower price competitiveness than other countries. The K21 IFV has achieved a high localisation rate and is expanding the line-up into 105mm turret loaded medium tanks and medium recovery vehicle. It is the top-of-the-line armored fighting vehicle in service with the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

The AS21 will include the capability to integrate active protection systems into an evolved turret system. The Redback will, like its BAE competitor, be capable of transporting 11 people (three crew, eight troops), at a top road speed of 70km/h on hard surface (40km/h off-road), with an operational range of 500 km. The armament consists of a 40mm automatic cannon and a 7.62mm coaxial machine gun.



Rheinmetall's KF41 Lynx unveiled at Eurosatory 2018 (Picture source: Army Recognition)

Rheinmetall KF41 Lynx is also a tracked, highly protected IFV designed to meet the requirements of LAND 400 Phase 3. It was officially unveiled at Eurosatory 2018. The Lynx, described as highly survivable, adaptable to diverse environments, extremely agile, hard-hitting, and with huge payload reserves, is a next-generation combat vehicle designed to confront the challenges of the future battlefield like no other.

Ben Hudson, global head of Rheinmetalls Vehicle Systems Division said, With the Lynx KF41, the Rheinmetall team has developed a truly innovative next-generation combat vehicle. The breadth of capabilities that a Lynx IFV provides soldiers results in a veritable Swiss Army knife that has unprecedented utility across the full spectrum of conflict. Its modular, adaptable survivability systems allow the vehicle to evolve through life, the high level of mobility will provide battlefield commanders great tactical flexibility in combat, and the diverse effects that the Lance 2.0 turret can generate allow the crew to deal effectively with a wide variety of battlefield situations.

Gary Stewart, Rheinmetall Defence Australia managing director, said, "Rheinmetall has developed this vehicle so it is positioned at an ideal level of maturity when Australia needs it to enter service in 2026  and it will have a growth path to extend these capabilities through its 40-year life."

The Lynx KF41 has been designed to meet the following operational needs from inception: combined arms capabilities at the platoon level so that commanders can adapt while in contact; combined arms fighting systems to conduct operations across the spectrum of conflict; high mobility to enable tactical flexibility in contact; adaptable vehicle systems that can be upgraded or modified in theatre; and survivability that forces the enemy to operate above the detection threshold. The Lynx KF41 can transport 12 people (three crew, up to nine troops), has a maximum road speed of 70km/h, a range of more than 500 km, with an armament consisting of the Lance 2.0 30-35mm autocannon, a 7.62mm coaxial machine gun and a variety of additional close in weapons systems.
Imagine traveling the world without spending a dime on expensive flights and hotels. While it may seem like a dream, savvy travel hackers Chad and Hannah Janis accrued 2 million credit cards points, quit their jobs, and have set off on an eight-month adventure to 40 countries  for free.

The Janises have been travel hacking for several years, and started after Chad scored a free flight for a job interview. Since then, theyve used their points to fly to South Africa for just $72, Iceland for free, and spots around the U.S. for just $11.

Once they moved to New York, Chad wanted to take their travel hacking to the next level.

Weve been doing travel hacking for a while, and when we came out to New York, we had this idea of, lets try and get as many points as we can and then book an around-the-world ticket and see how far it takes us, he says.

While it sounds spur of the moment, Hannah says she needed to warm up to the idea in the beginning.

At first I was like, I dont know if thats going to work out, but then, I thought, we can take more time because we have the opportunity, Hannah says. We have more time than money, so in the end, I was ready for it.

Over the past year, theyve opened up 26 credit cards, keeping track of minimum spends on a master spreadsheet. Once they spend enough to get the sign up bonus, they score tens of thousands of points they can redeem for flights and hotels around the world.

Theyve turned this hobby and that master spreadsheet into a website, Wall Street Minimalist, which offers travel hacking advice, and helps their users find the best credit cards to maximize points for free flights and hotel deals.

Want to travel like Chad and Hannah? Here are their travel hacks:

Pay attention to credit card bonuses

The Janises biggest travel hack is paying attention to sign-up bonuses. As long as they spend a certain amount of money in a certain amount of time, theyre rewarded with thousands of points.

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We had to think about how much money we were going to spend on normal everyday living and how could that transfer to everyday credit card usage, Chad says.

Their favorite credit card for beginners is the Citi Thankyou Preferred Card, which can help build your credit score and earn rewards before you expand into higher earning options.

Plan your destination first

The Janises recommend deciding on your destination first, instead of letting the points dictate where you want to go. Doing the research on routes and rates will help you find a credit card that can pay for your trip.

Well go get the card that earns towards that airline and book for free, Chad explains.

Knowing whats actually a good deal for your points is simple, according to what Chad calls his Golden Rule.

When were looking to book a trip, we always look at the point value. If its less than a penny per point, were not going to do it, he says.

Live intentionally to save

While the Janises have saved more than $64,000 by using points, theyve also saved close to 40% of their incomes over the last year by living minimally and spending intentionally.

Lets be honest  there are not enough credit cards to get a whole year of free flights and hotel stays, Chad says. Weve also saved and spent intentionally on what we know we need, and then the rest goes into savings.

That means creating capsule wardrobes to avoid buying new clothes, and living without a kitchen table or TV in their NYC apartment.

Its rewarding because I know where that money is going to go, Hannah says. We have so many exciting things lined up, so we can let go of these things so we can have this year together.

Want more travel hacks? Visit their website and follow along with their travels on their Youtube and Instagram channels, @HannahandChad.

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Engineers at the University of NSW are working on a brain-machine interface.

They have developed pixel-like sensors on a chip that pick up electrical signals when placed on brain tissue.

The researchers have has been awarded a $US359,000 ($A490,215) US Naval Research grant.

Australian researchers have just won funding from the US to help develop chips to read neural activity from the brain.

The University of NSW Sydney Engineering researchers have been awarded a $US359,000 ($A490,215) US Naval Research grant for work which could lead to the creation of a brain-machine interface.

Dr Leonardo Silvestri and Professors Francois Ladouceur and Nigel Lovell from UNSW Engineering are working on a direct communication pathway between a wired brain and an external device.

The ultimate goal is to enable two-way communication between the brain and a machine, such as an artificial limb or a computer.

The team invented the first chip to use fibre optics to measure signals from the brain and convert them to an image that can be read.

Weve developed optrodes -- pixel-like sensors on a chip -- that pick up electrical signals when placed on brain tissue," says Dr Silvestri.

"At the back of the chip are optical fibres that measure this brain activity and translate it into a visual image.

"This is the information we can interpret and use to control a connected device, which could have potential applications in numerous fields."

Fibre optic technology uses light pulses to send data via optical fibres, which have a much higher bandwidth than electrical wiring.

What we are building is a chip with a million electrodes, with a small bundle of thin, lightweight glass fibs going from the brain to a small device in your pocket, from where it can transmit wirelessly," says Dr Silvestri.

"Our solution is far easier to scale than those using traditional wiring and its also less susceptible to interference -- so when instructing a machine we can be much more precise. This will be especially valuable for medical applications."
Australian retail sales were flat in July, according to the ABS, the weakest monthly result since December last year. Non-food sales -- often seen as a discretionary spending indicator -- fell 0.25% for the month.

Sales fell in a majority of Australian states and territories, masked by an usually large 0.8% gain in Queensland.

Over the year, total and non-food sales both rose at a faster pace than in June. However, both remained weak compared to historical standards.

Australia's retail sales stalled in July, defying expectations for another modest monthly increase.

According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS), retail turnover was unchanged after seasonal adjustments, undershooting market expectations for an increase of 0.3%.

The surprise result followed a strong period for sales over the prior three months, including a 0.4% gain in June.

"There were falls in three of the six industries," said Ben James, Director of Quarterly Economy Wide Surveys at the ABS.

"Household goods retailing (-1.2%) led the falls, and there were also falls in clothing, footwear and personal accessory retailing (-2%) and department stores (-1.9 per cent).

"The falls were offset by rises in other retailing (1.7%), food (0.3%) and in cafes, restaurants and takeaway food services (0.6%)."

The weakness in sales of household and personal goods could reflect the impact of falling home prices in many parts of Australia, a trend that continued last month with CoreLogic reporting that home values fell in five of Australia's eight capital cities, and in regional areas, during August.

Indeed, excluding food sales -- the largest category by dollar spend -- turnover fell by 0.25% to two decimal places, partially reversing the 0.4% increase seen in June.

Non-food sales are often regarded as a better overall indication on discretionary spending patterns across the economy.

By state and territory, the ABS said sales fell in a majority of locations after seasonal adjustments.

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"There were falls in Western Australia (-0.6%), Victoria (-0.2%), South Australia (-0.3%), the Northern Territory (-1.6%), the Australian Capital Territory (-0.6%), and Tasmania (-0.3%)," James said.

"New South Wales was relatively unchanged while Queensland rose 0.8%."

Put another way, had it not been for an unusually large gain in Queensland, nationwide sales would have fallen during the month.

Despite the soft monthly result, annual growth in sales actually accelerated a touch in July, lifting by 2.9% following an increase of 2.8% in the 12 months to June.

It was the fastest increase since March this year.

Non-food sales also grew at a faster pace over the year, increasing by 2.2%, up from 1.8% in the 12 months to June.

With Australia's estimated resident population increasing by 1.6% in 2017, according to latest population data released by the ABS, it suggests that total and non-food sales likely grew by around 1.3% and 0.5% respectively over the past year in per capita terms.

"The data confirms that it is still a very patchy environment for retailers as households continue to battle against a number of headwinds," said Sarah Hunter, Head of Macroeconomics Australia for BIS Oxford Economics.

"Although it was a small increase, last weeks out-of-cycle mortgage rate rise by Westpac will have added to the drags being created by stagnant real wages, slow growth in other source of household income, and falling house prices in the largest cities, which will be weighing on households wealth and confidence."
Moa is trialling a beer infused with deer velvet at boutique craft stores in China.

The deer for the Blenheim craft brewer first batch of its Red Stag Wheat Beer was shot on a hunting trip with the directors of one of Southern China's largest beer distributors, M99, in the Waihopai Valley.

Deer velvet, which grows on the antlers of deer for about three months a year before turning into bone, is widely thought to have health benefits, especially in Chinese medicine.

The New Zealand College of Chinese Medicine said it could be used as a "liver detox".

Deer Industry New Zealand market manager for Asia Rhys Griffiths said the product was most often used as an immunity and energy boost by students in Asia cramming for exams.

Moa general manager, Gareth Hughes said the idea of putting deer velvet in beer originated about a year ago when he was sitting down at one of M99's six stores in Chengdu, China brainstorming how to better cater to the Chinese market.

"We don't have the marketing budget of a lot of the multi-nationals, so we've got to do a lot of our talking via the beer," Hughes said.

The company's second container-load of the beer has hit store shelves this month.

Moa brewed its first batch of the Red Stag Wheat Beer in January, which Hughes said used red malts but has as strong a hop flavour as an imperial pale ale due to the addition of Nelson hops.

Moa brewers put the deer antlers into a giant sieve and place it in the kettle with sugar and malts to boil for an hour before yeast is added.

Brewer Paul Chambers said about 8 kilograms of deer velvet was added to the first batch.

Hughes said the flavour of raw velvet was hard to describe.

"It's just kind of like a protein really."

M99 sold the entire first batch of the deer velvet beer in 48 hours after advertising it on Chinese version of Facebook, WeChat, Hughes said.

Moa chief executive Geoff Ross said China was "a crucial growth prospect for Moa's products".

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"We're particularly excited to take to market the first beer developed specifically for Chinese tastes, while driving our vision of being 'New Zealand's craft beer' on the international stage."

Ross estimates the annual value of Kiwi beer and cider exports at between $NZ2 million to $NZ3 million.

New Zealand's deer velvet exports are also growing.

Griffiths said in the year to April deer velvet exports were $NZ69 million, up from $NZ54 million the previous year.

"That's generally thanks to the use of velvet in sophisticated food products, particularly in Korea," he said.

In the last year New Zealand sold an estimated 700 tonnes of deer velvet with prices typically around $NZ127.50 to $NZ130 a kilogram.

Hughes said the beer was also receiving a "fair bit of interest" from South Korean importers.

Hughes did not rule it out selling the beer in New Zealand in future.

This article was originally published on Stuff.co.nz. Read the original here.
A man has died in his familys arms after being shot in the chest outside his home north of Brisbane.

Just before midnight on Sunday, a group of men approached the front door of the house in Deception Bay, where an argument broke out between the group and owner of the home.

Shortly after, a gun was fired, hitting the victim in the sternum. As his attackers fled, the man bled to death inside his home.

Officers are now searching for a carload of men who were seen at the property on Sunday night. Source: 7 News

The man was shot in the chest in the front yard of his home in Deception Bay. Source: Google Maps

Homicide detectives are now looking for a carload of men and have appealed for any witnesses or anyone who might have dashcam or security footage of the Thompson Street crime to come forward.

Police could not confirm how many men were involved or reports a woman at the scene tried to save the victim by performing CPR.
The UN's top court will hear arguments Monday on the future status of the British-ruled Chagos Islands, home to a strategic joint US military base but a territory claimed by Mauritius. Port Louis is set to open arguments before the International Court of Justice in a case brought by the United Nations over the Indian Ocean archipelago, which has been the centre of a dispute for more than five decades. In a diplomatic blow to Britain, the UN General Assembly last June adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the Hague-based ICJ to offer a legal opinion on the island chain's fate. The ICJ's 15 judges will now listen to arguments on the "legal consequences of (Britain's) separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius" in 1965, shortly before Port Louis' independence from its colonial ruler. The African Union and a remarkable number of 22 countries -- which also includes the US, Germany and several Asian and Latin American nations -- are to make statements during the four-day hearing. After the hearings, the ICJ will hand down a non-binding "advisory opinion", but the judges' ruling may take several months or even years. An opinion in favour of Mauritius may strengthen Port Louis' hand in negotiations or could lay the foundation for an eventual formal claim before the ICJ -- set up in 1946 and which also rules in disputes between countries. Mauritius, which declared independence in 1968 argues that it was illegal for London to break up its territory while still under colonial rule. Britain detached the islands from Mauritius, then a semi-autonomous British territory, using decolonisation talks as leverage and paying 3 million pounds for them at the time. - Key military base - As the Cold War with the former Soviet Union intensified, London established a combined military base with the US on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands. The Indian Ocean base plays a key strategic role in US military operations. In the 1970s, it offered proximity to Asia during the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge takeover in Cambodia, and as the Soviet navy extended its influence in the region. In recent years it has served as a staging ground for US bombing campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. Britain in the early 1970s also evicted the archipelago's residents -- some 2,000 in total -- to Mauritius and the Seychelles to make way for the base. A British diplomat in a cable at the time described it as the removal of "some few Tarzans and Man Fridays" and islanders have not been allowed to return since because of security reasons. Last year's vote before the UN whether to refer the matter to the ICJ was also seen as a test for Britain's ability to rally support from fellow Europeans at the world body, a year after its shock vote to leave the European Union. The matter was passed 95-15, with 65 abstentions -- most by European member states including France, Italy and Spain. London, ahead of Monday's hearings, pledged to mount a "robust defence" saying the move was bound to hurt relations with Port Louis. Mauritius on the other hand, said it wants to "eliminate colonialism" and that its independence would not be complete without getting back the Chagos Islands. Port Louis did however say it recognised "the existence of the base and accepts its continued and future functioning in accordance with international law." Chagos islanders hold up placards demanding the right to return to live in Diego Garcia in this file photo of a demonstration in London on October 22, 2008 Residents of Diego Garcia island, in the Chagos archipelago, hear news of legislation to deport all the Chagos population to Mauritius and the Seychelles Two thousand pound bombs are loaded into a US Air Force B1 bomber at the Diego Garcia base in this October 22, 2001 file photo
Mauritius told the UN's top court Monday that the British-ruled Chagos Islands are "integral" to its territory and that the Indian Ocean island chain was handed to London "under duress". Hearings opened Monday before the International Court of Justice in The Hague where judges are to hear arguments over the future status of the remote archipelago -- home to a strategic joint US military base but territory claimed by Mauritius. "More than 50 years after independence... the process of decolonisation of Mauritius remains incomplete," former Mauritian president Anerood Jugnauth said. This was "as a result of the unlawful detachment of an integral part of our territory on the eve of our independence," he told the judges. In a diplomatic blow to Britain, the UN General Assembly in June last year adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the ICJ to offer a legal opinion on the island chain's fate. The ICJ's 15 judges on Monday started listening to arguments on the "legal consequences of (Britain's) separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius" in 1965, shortly before Port Louis' independence from its colonial ruler. The African Union and a remarkable number of 22 countries -- which also includes the US, Germany and several Asian and Latin American nations -- are to make statements during the four-day hearing. After the hearings, the ICJ will hand down a non-binding "advisory opinion", but the judges' ruling may take several months or even years. An opinion in favour of Mauritius may strengthen Port Louis' hand in future negotiations or could lay the foundation for an eventual formal claim before the ICJ -- set up in 1946 and which also rules in disputes between countries. - 'Immense pressure' - Britain detached the islands from Mauritius, then a semi-autonomous British territory, using decolonisation talks as leverage and paying 3 million for them at the time. On Monday Jugnauth said Mauritian officials were given "no room for any choice" in keeping the Chagos Islands during the 1965 independence talks. During secret meetings at the time in London, then British prime minister Harold Wilson aimed to "frighten" Mauritian officials into handing over Chagos in return for independence, Jugnauth said. Wilson told the officials they could return to Port Louis "either with independence or without it" and that the "best solution of all may be independence and detachment by agreement", said the veteran politician, who was then part of the Mauritian delegation. "It is against that backdrop of immense pressure and in the circumstances amounting to duress, that less than five hours later, four of the five Mauritian representatives yielded to the detachment of the Chagos Archipelago," he said. - Strategic base - As the Cold War with the former Soviet Union intensified, London the established a combined military base with the US on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands. The Indian Ocean base plays a key strategic role in US military operations. In the 1970s, it offered proximity to Asia during the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge takeover in Cambodia, and as the Soviet navy extended its influence in the region. In recent years it has served as a staging ground for US bombing campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. Britain in the early 1970s also evicted the archipelago's residents -- some 2,000 in total -- to Mauritius and the Seychelles to make way for the base. Last year's vote before the UN whether to refer the matter to the ICJ was also seen as a test for Britain's ability to rally support from fellow Europeans at the world body, after its shock vote to leave the European Union. The matter was passed 95-15, with 65 abstentions -- most by European member states including France, Italy and Spain. London, ahead of Monday's hearings, pledged to mount a "robust defence" saying the move was bound to hurt relations with Port Louis. Port Louis however say it recognised "the existence of the base and accepts its continued and future functioning in accordance with international law," a point stressed by Jugnauth on Monday. In a diplomatic blow to Britain, the UN General Assembly in June last year adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the ICJ to offer a legal opinion on the island chain's fate Residents of Diego Garcia island, in the Chagos archipelago, hear news of legislation to deport all the Chagos population to Mauritius and the Seychelles Map locating the Chagos Islands As the Cold War with the former Soviet Union intensified, London the established a combined military base with the US on Diego Garcia, the largest of the Chagos islands
Fifty years ago Britain separated the Chagos Islands from its colony Mauritius, expelling the entire population to make way for the installation of a US military base that is today highly strategic. Britain's 1965 acquisition of the Indian Ocean archipelago has been disputed ever since, with Mauritius demanding its return. As the UN's International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague holds hearings on the case from Monday, here is some background. - Indian Ocean colony - Located several hundred kilometres (miles) south of the Maldives, the Chagos Islands were discovered by Portuguese explorers in the 16th century but remained uninhabited until they were colonised by France in the 18th century. African slaves were shipped in to cultivate coconuts and copra. In 1814 the archipelago of around 55 islands was given to Britain, which in 1903 merged them with Mauritius, around 2,000 kilometres to the southwest. After the abolition of slavery in 1834, Indian workers arrived and mixed with the first settlers. Only three of the islands were inhabited: Diego Garcia, the largest, and Salomon and Peros Banhos. - Detached from Mauritius - In 1965 Britain detached the islands from Mauritius, then a semi-autonomous British territory, using decolonisation talks as leverage and paying 3 million pounds for them at the time. This meant that when Mauritius obtained independence three years later, the islands remained under British control, renamed the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT). In 1966 Britain leased the Chagos Islands to the United States for 50 years, so that it could set up a military base. In 2016 the deal was extended to 2036. Between 1968 and 1973 around 2,000 Chagos islanders were evicted, a process described in a British diplomatic cable at the time as the removal of "some few Tarzans and Man Fridays". Most were shipped to Mauritius and the Seychelles. Citing security reasons, the British authorities have since banned all visits to the islands without a special authorisation, making it impossible for Chagossians to return. Mauritius argues it was illegal for Britain to break up its territory. It claims sovereignty over the archipelago and demands the right to resettle former residents. - Strategic military base - The Diego Garcia base became of major strategic importance to Britain and the US during the Cold War. It offered proximity to Asia as the Khmer Rouge takeover of Cambodia diminished Washington's military capabilities in the region, while an assertive Soviet navy was extending communist influence in the Indian Ocean. After the 1979 Iranian revolution, the United States expanded the base to receive more warships and heavy bombers. In recent years it served as a staging ground for US bombing campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. - Islanders take action - Chagos islanders living in Mauritius launched legal proceedings in 1975 against their expulsion, resulting in a 1982 payment of 4 million in compensation along with land valued at 1 million. There were no reparations for islanders settled in the Seychelles. In 2007 a British appeals court paved the way for Chagossians to return home but its decision was annulled by the upper House of Lords the following year. In 2016 the British government confirmed its opposition to the resettlement of Chagossians, including for reasons of defence, security and cost. Today around 10,000 Chagossians and their descendants are divided among Mauritius, the Seychelles and Britain. - Marine reserve fiasco - In 2010 Britain declared the islands part of a Marine Protected Area, arguing that people should not be permitted to live there. Diplomatic cables revealed by WikiLeaks quoted a British official as saying the plan "put paid to the resettlement claims of the archipelago's former residents." The move backfired as a UN tribunal declared it illegal in 2015. A US air force B-1B bomber takes off from the Diego Garcia base on the Chagos Islands for a mission in Afghanistan in 2001
President Xi Jinping told African leaders Monday that China's investments on the continent have "no political strings attached", pledging $60 billion in new development financing, even as Beijing is increasingly criticised over its debt-heavy projects abroad. Xi offered the funding at the start of a two-day China-Africa summit that focused on his cherished Belt and Road initiative. The money -- to be spent over the next three years -- comes on top of $60 billion Beijing offered in 2015. The massive Belt and Road scheme is aimed at improving Chinese access to foreign markets and resources, and boosting Beijing's influence abroad. China has poured billions in loans for roads, railways, ports and other major infrastructure projects in Asia and Africa. But critics warn that the Chinese leader's pet project is burying some countries under massive debt. "China's investment in Africa comes with no political strings attached," Xi told a high-level dialogue with African leaders and business representatives ahead of the summit. "China's cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects, but in places where they count the most." But Xi admitted there was a need to look at the commercial viability of projects and make sure preparations are made to lower investment risks and make cooperation "more sustainable". Belt and Road, Xi said, "is not a scheme to form an exclusive club or bloc against others." Later, at the start of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Xi announced $60 billion in funds for eight initiatives over the next three years, in areas ranging from industrial promotion, infrastructure construction and scholarships for young Africans. He added that Africa's least developed, heavily indebted and poor countries will be exempt from debt they have incurred in the form of interest-free Chinese loans due to mature by the end of 2018. - 'New colonialism' - A study by the Center for Global Development, a US think-tank, found "serious concerns" about the sustainability of sovereign debt in eight Asian, European and African countries receiving Belt and Road funds. But South African President Cyril Ramaphosa defended China's involvement on the continent, saying FOCAC "refutes the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa as our detractors would have us believe." During a visit to China last month, Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamed warned against "a new version of colonialism", as he cancelled a series of Chinese-backed infrastructure projects worth $22 billion. Rwandan President Paul Kagame, current chairman of the African Union, also rallied behind China's involvement in Africa. "Africa is not a zero sum game. Our growing ties with China do not come at anyone's expense," he told the summit. - 'Fractured world' - At the last three-yearly gathering in Johannesburg in 2015, Xi announced $60 billion of assistance and loans for Africa. Nations across Africa are hoping that China's enthusiasm for infrastructure investment will help promote industrialisation on the continent. Ramaphosa noted that Africa exports its minerals to China while the Asian country exports to the continent what its factories produce. "This obviously limits ability African countries to extract full value of abundant natural resources and create work for its people. It is through platforms like FOCAC that we should work to balance the structure of trade between Africa and China," he said. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will oversee the signing of a telecommunication infrastructure deal backed by a $328-million loan facility from China's Exim bank during his visit, his office said. China has provided aid to Africa since the Cold War, but Beijing's presence in the region has soared with its emergence as a global trading power. Chinese state-owned companies have aggressively pursued large investments in Africa, whose vast resources have helped fuel China's transformation into an economic powerhouse. African Union Commission chairman Moussa Faki acknowledged that concerns have been expressed about debt, but said "the risks must be put into perspective" as "Africa's financing needs are such that it must seize every opportunity offered to it." Djibouti has become heavily dependent on Chinese financing after China opened its first overseas military base in the Horn of Africa country last year, a powerful signal of the continent's strategic importance to Beijing. Locals in other countries have complained about the practice of using Chinese labour for building projects and what are perceived as sweetheart deals for Chinese companies. An editorial in Kenya's Daily Nation said Monday that African leaders "should use the summit to ask tough questions. What are the benefits in this relationship? Is China unfairly exploiting Africa like the others before it?" President Xi Jinping insisted that China will not impose its will on Africa despite a huge investment program South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa reviews an honour guard at the Great Hall of the People South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa reviews an honour guard at the Great Hall of the People China has provided aid to Africa since the Cold War, but Beijing's presence in the region has grown exponentially with its emergence as a global trading power


Just when you thought the Coles Little Shop promotion was drawing to an end, the supermarket giant has announced a new competition to reignite the frenzy.

Coles is looking for the Ultimate Little Shopper  and if thats you, you could win free groceries for a year valued at $10,000.

Shoppers have been inundating supermarkets around the country ever since Coles launched 30 miniature toys to collect in mid-July.

For every $30 spent at the checkout, customers are given one collectable item.

Interest in the Coles Little Shop promotion is set to continue after a $10,000 competition was added to the campaign.

Alongside the mini toys is a rare mini Red Hand, which comes with a $100 Coles gift card.

To be in the running for the competition, entrants need to upload a photo or video to Instagram and in 25 words or less explain why they are Australias Ultimate Little Shopper.

More than 30 entries have already been posted to the social media site, including creative entries from artists and adorable submissions from children.

One of the entries for the Coles Ultimate Little Shopper competition. Source: Instagram/rtist_

One participant included their dogs in their entry. Source: Instagram/teddy.the.chi

Another entrant got creative with their extra collectables. Source: Instagram/crystal_cameron

The winner will be announced on September 10, one day before the Little Shop promotion officially draws to an end.

The collectables have produced a cult-like following in young children and their parents since its launch. Some schools have even been forced to ban the items after reports of children stealing from each other.

The supermarket giant received backlash over the items, which were released just days after announcing a ban on single-use plastic bags.

But the uproar wasnt enough to stop Coles marking a recent rise in their profits.

Some complete sets of collectables have been selling online for up to $1000.




A male doctor has given a shockingly candid and eye-opening response to the pay gap within the medical industry.

The doctor was asked what he thought of females reportedly being paid a third less than men for an issue of the Dallas Medical Journal that was devoted to women last month.

Female physicians do not work as hard and do not see as many patients as male physicians, Gary Tigges, an internal medicine doctor at Plano Internal Medicine Associates wrote.

This is because they choose to, or they simply dont want to be rushed, or they dont want to work the long hours. Most of the time, their priority is something else  Family, social, whatever.

Nothing needs to be done about this unless female physicians actually want to work harder and put in the hours. If not, they should be paid less. That is fair.

Dr. Gary Tigges claims women in the medical industry dont work as hard. Source: Plano Internal Medicine

Upon reading this comment in the journal, several doctors posted it to social media.

Thank you for publicly displaying your disgusting thoughts on the value of women physicians in the workplace, Hala Sabry-Elnaggar wrote on Facebook.

Women physicians have been proven to put their skills into their work with better mortality outcomes and they continue to do this despite the discrimination more than 80% of them face at work.

So please educate yourself beyond your medical degree about what your colleagues are doing  and how their presence is important to the healthcare team and to their patients.

Hala Sabry-Elnaggar posted the comment online. Source: Hala Sabry-Elnaggar/ Facebook

Sabry-Elnaggar backed up her statements with links to a study in the Journal of the American Medical Association and a survey.

He clearly needs more than one class in bias and reinforcing misconceptions created by our cultural constructs, commented Jennifer Taylor in a Twitter thread.

If anyone knows Dr. Gary Tigges in Plano, TX, please tell him that hes just pissed off a few thousand HARD WORKING women physicians. Because, you know, quotes like this tend to get shared a lot on social media. pic.twitter.com/IxmQ1yRoVS  Alethea Allen, MD (@AletheaAllen) September 1, 2018

After the uproar over his comments, Tigges told the Dallas Morning Journal that he didnt know his comments would be published and walked back the extent of his statement.

Story continues

My response sounds terrible and horrible and doesnt reflect what I was really trying to say, he told the Morning Journal.

Tigges went on to echo others explanations that the gap is actually due to the fact that male doctors are more likely to see more patients, while female doctors spend more time with each patient.

Thats something we have to deal with every day; you have to work out that balance, Tigges told the paper.

Every physician wrangles with that. But it was not my intention to say female physicians are lazy or dont work as hard.

In a long post on his website, Tigges apologised, writing: I apologise to my female colleagues for these comments. These comments do not accurately reflect the the actual utmost respect I have for them and their work ethic.

Tigges apoologised in a long post on his website. Source: http://planointernalmedicine.com/gary-a-tigges-md-pa/

The Dallas Medical Journal says it was clear in its email that it would publish select responses in the Bright Ideas section of the journal.

In a statement posted online, Gabriela M. Zandomeni, a physician and chair of the Dallas County Medical Society Communications Committee, explained why she decided to publish Tigges answer even though it angered her.

I also was outraged at the many more opinions claiming that gender pay does not exist, Zandomeni wrote.

This is not a new concept; there are many more physicians who do not see the discrimination, the misguided prejudices that influence our employment.

The danger is not in this single physicians response, however misogynistic and insulting it was.

The danger is in the physicians who think this but do not express it, or who justify it: Well  women have more family responsibilities, or women will have their husbands income and treat this as a hobby, etc.

Many of these people are in power and influence when women are offered less pay than their male counterparts. This needs to be exposed! The other part to this is apathy. When no one cares, there is no momentum for change.
A can of pepper spray went off inside a plane headed from California to Hawaii, leaving several people requiring emergency help.

Hawaiian Airlines said 12 passengers and three flight attendants on the flight were treated for respiratory issues at the airport in Kahului, Hawaii.

A passenger illegally brought the pepper spray on the plane carrying 256 passengers and 10 crew members, but it appears it discharged accidentally.

The airline could not provide any details about the passenger or why officials believe the release was accidental.

A canister of pepper spray leaked on the Hawaiian Airlines flight. Source: AP

The flight crew of the Boeing 767 declared an emergency to get priority to land at the airport in Hawaii on Friday.

Nicholas Andrade said he and his fiancee were trying to take a nap in their seats just behind first class when the problems began.

I was woken up by someone having a coughing fit. But what I came to find out is that it wasnt one person coughing, it was many people coughing. And then everyone was coughing and then we were coughing. And the flight attendants were covering their faces and passengers started covering their faces, he said.

People had trouble breathing and were shouting.

People were definitely panicked, he said.

Flight attendants told the affected passengers to move to the back of the plane where the air wasnt bothering people. He said about 40 people stood in the back galley for about half an hour until the air around their seats improved.

Mr Andrade was among the 12 evaluated by medical professionals after the plane landed. He said he had a headache and felt light-headed. Other passengers had burning and watering eyes.

Passengers had to stand in the planes galley for 30 minutes. Source: AP/Nicholas Andrade

Transportation Security Administration spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said in an email that her agency and Maui police were investigating.

She said the canister held about 42 grams. The fine for bringing pepper spray onto an airplane can reach $2725 or higher, Ms Farbstein said.

The airline said the flight was delayed earlier Friday after a teenager in Oakland sent a photo depicting a fake crime scene featuring a child-sized mannequin to other passengers cellphones.

The teen and his family were booked for a later flight while officials investigated.

Hawaiian Airlines said the two incidents were not related and the familys baggage had to be located and removed from the plane, causing the delay.
A stranded vessel empty of crew and goods that was found in Myanmar's waters this week was being towed by a ship with 13 Indonesian nationals before it became unmoored, the Myanmar Navy said. Fishermen came across the rusted and empty vessel, bearing the name "Sam Rataulangi PB 1600", drifting in the Gulf of Martaban, about 11 kilometres (seven miles) off the coast of Myanmar's commercial capital. Myanmar Navy personnel boarded the vessel to investigate the situation this week, and shed some light on their search in a post on the navy's official Facebook page late Friday. "It was the view that the ship could have been towed by another ship after two cables... were found at its head", the post said. The navy's coastal radar records showed the movement of two ships on Sunday and Monday in the Yangon and Sittaung rivers -- which run into the Gulf of Martaban. Based on these findings, the navy scoured the waters for a second ship and found the "Independence" vessel, carrying 13 Indonesian crew members, about 80 kilometres from Yangon's shores. After questioning the crew members, the navy discovered that the Independence departed Jakarta on August 13, towing the old vessel bound for a ship-breaking factory in Bangladesh, the Facebook post said. "They faced bad weather when they arrived south of Yangon River", the navy said. "The cables attached to the ship broke, and the ship was floating along with the tide and it was difficult to continue its journey." Old and unseaworthy vessels are often towed to Bangladesh's southern Chittagong province, which houses a thriving -- and controversial -- ship-breaking industry. According to the Marine Traffic website, which lists the movements of ships around the globe, the vessel was built in 2001 and had a deadweight of 26,500 tonnes. The navy said the investigation is ongoing. An official from the Indonesia Foreign Ministry confirmed Saturday that they had received word of this case and said the embassy in Yangon was handling it. "It is the boat that was arrested; the Indonesians are just the boat crew," Lalu Muhammad Iqbal, director at the ministry's Indonesian citizens protection department, told AFP. MyanmarNavy personnel boarded the vessel to investigate the situation this week
Ministers from a dozen Latin American nations start a two-day meeting in Ecuador Monday on how they can cooperate to end the massive Venezuelan migrant crisis that has jolted the region. Officials will discuss calls for international funding for overwhelmed public services and whether to impose tighter restrictions to curb migrant flows in the first concerted drive to agree a common policy on the crisis. The two-day meeting is scheduled to conclude with a joint statement on Tuesday, the host Ecuador said. "A regional effort will help our countries respond better to these situations, so that we can coordinate efforts and provide humanitarian assistance to people on the move," Ecuador's Foreign Minister Jose Valencia told reporters ahead of the talks. Colombia, Ecuador and Peru have all called for more funding from developed countries to assist their utterly overwhelmed public services. The three countries have received the bulk of migrants flowing out of Venezuela. The EU announced a $35 million aid package on Friday to support Venezuelans both at home and in host countries. Ministers from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay will be present at the Quito meeting, Ecuadoran officials said. Venezuela and its ally Bolivia have also been invited, but by late Sunday had not signalled they would attend, officials here said. Hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans are teeming into neighboring countries, fleeing a collapsing economy under President Nicolas Maduro, with falling oil prices and mismanagement leading to shortages of food and medicine. "It is essential that each country take its share of responsibility," said Santiago Chavez, Ecuador's Deputy Minister of Human Mobility. Chavez said that would include Venezuela, which will be asked to "implement policies" so that Venezuelan migration "can at least be adequately addressed in the host country." Countries across the South America traversed by Venezuelan migrants have vastly differing entry requirements, with some requiring no more than an ID, while others have toughened their restrictions to try to control the flow of migrants. Ecuador's ombudsman, Ernesto Pazmino, said "all governments should make their countries more flexible in order to cushion this humanitarian crisis." - International pressure - Human rights lawyer Daniela Salazar said governments needed to attack the causes of migration, and not only look at its consequences. "As governments feel that this is affecting them, at least that will help them not to look the other way, and really put enough international pressure in place to urge change in the political situation in Venezuela," said Salazar, a professor at Quito's San Francisco University. Chavez said an extraordinary meeting of the Organization of American States (OAS) on September 5 would be the appropriate setting for a political discussion on Venezuela. "In Quito, we are going to focus on the issue on more pragmatic, less political issues," he said. Chavez said the Quito meeting would focus on countries' funding needs for migrant health, education and development projects. Salazar said he was concerned that despite the fact that an immigration crisis had been coming "until now there is no real plan by governments to welcome people." Pazmino said the exodus "exceeded all expectations and countries of the Americas have to establish strategies, a regional contingency plan, to alleviate this crisis caused by the wave of emigration." People walk past the "Without Borders" migrant shelter, in northern Lima on August 31, 2018. Venezuelan migrants ride on the back of a pickup truck as they leave the binational border attention centre (CEBAF) in Huaquillas, Southern Ecuador in the border with Peru on August 24, 2018. Ecuador opened a "humanitarian corridor" to allow masses of migrants escaping Venezuela's free-falling economy to stream towards the Peruvian border Friday, hours before Lima puts new restrictions on entry into effect. Nacari, 16, awaits in Huaquillas, Ecuador, border with Peru, after travelling across the country in a bus provided by Ecuadoran authorities as part of a "humanitarian corridor" for Venezuelans fleeing their country's economic crisis on August 25, 2018.
Lionel Messi has admitted he was surprised by Cristiano Ronaldo's decision to leave Real Madrid and join Juventus. Messi also believes the transfer will leave Madrid worse off and says Juve are now among the clear favourites to win this season's Champions League. Ronaldo swapped Spain for Italy in a deal worth 100 million euros ($117 million) in July, after securing a third consecutive European crown, and his fourth in five years with Real. But Messi, who missed out on a three-man shortlist for FIFA's world player of the year award on Monday, feels the balance may have shifted following the 33-year-old's exit. "I was surprised, I didn't imagine him leaving Madrid or that he would go to Juve because there was talk of many clubs (interested). The truth is I was very surprised but Juve are also a very good team," Messi told Catalunya Radio. "Real Madrid are one of the best teams in the world and they have a great squad but it's obvious the departure of Ronaldo makes them less strong while Juve have become a clear favourite for the Champions League. "They already had a good team and now they also have Cristiano Ronaldo." Madrid's dominance in Europe has made failure even harder to swallow for Barcelona, whose shock defeat by Roma in April meant crashing out in the quarter-finals for a third consecutive season. Even winning both La Liga and the Copa del Rey last term for a domestic double was not enough to extinguish the disappointment. "It's time to win the Champions League," Messi said. "We've been knocked out in the quarter-finals three seasons in a row and maybe the last one was the worst of all because of the result and how the match was played. "I think we have to aim for that, as a club, as a team and as a collective. We have a spectacular squad and we can do it." Ronaldo's move was the latest example of increasingly lavish spending by Europe's biggest clubs, with Neymar, Kylian Mbappe, Philippe Coutinho and Paul Pogba all snapped up for more than 100 million euros over the past two years. Messi believes the lure of Barcelona and Real Madrid is now being neutralised by the mouth-watering sums on offer. "There are clubs now with a lot of money and players move for that reason," he said. "Wherever the most money is, that's where they end up going. Things have changed and now the owners of clubs are multi-millionaires. "Before, everyone wanted to play for Barca or Madrid, who were the best, but now everything's tighter and there's not much of a difference between the teams in Manchester, PSG, Madrid, us, Bayern (Munich) and the Italian (teams)." Barcelona signed four players this summer, with Arthur Melo, Clement Lenglet, Arturo Vidal and Malcom all arriving at the Camp Nou. Messi singled out Arthur, the 22-year-old Brazilian playmaker, for special praise. "If I have to say one, I'll go with Arthur, who surprised me because I did not know much about him," Messi said. "He has a style very similar to Xavi's, he always wants the ball, does not lose it, plays short passes and is very reliable. "He has the style we always look for here." Messi scored twice as Barcelona thrashed La Liga new boys Huesca 8-2 at the weekend Ronaldo has failed to score in his first three Serie A matches for Juventus


A young mum is the only survivor of a tragic kayak accident that killed her husband and her three children.

Cari Mews-Fryman, 29, had travelled to Lake Superior in her home state of Wisconsin, US, with her husband, Eric Fryman and their children, Kyra, 9, Annaliese, 5, and Jansen, 3.

The group had visited the lake the year before and were excited about seeing it again, the survivors sister, Bobi Jo Mews, told local media.

The family had set out on a six-kilometre paddle across the lake from Madeline Island to Michigan Island when the wind picked up, capsizing the kayak.

Eric Fryman (left), Annaliese, 5, Jansen, 3, Cari Mews (right) and Kyra, 9, in front. Source: Facebook/Eric Fryman

Ms Mews-Fryman was able to text her sister a message of distress from her phone, which she had stored in a waterproof bag.

I got a text message that said 911, and then immediately following, Michigan Island, Bobi Jo Mews told WCCO.

I knew that they were going kayaking that day I just knew I had to call the police to see if they could go look for them.

Nearly six hours after the accident, at 10pm, rescue crews located the young mother, who became separated from her family while trying to swim to shore.

Eric Fryman and Cari Mews-Fryman. Source: Facebook

A further two hours later, rescuers found Mr Fryman, 39, and the two youngest children dead in the frigid water. All of them were wearing lifejackets.

The body of nine-year-old Krya was located by National Park authorities on the shore of Michigan Island the following morning.

Coast Guard officials said hypothermia was probably a major factor in the deaths, especially of the children.

Bob Krumenaker, superintendent of the Apostle Islands National Lakeshore, told the Star Tribune of Minneapolis that it was a sobering reminder of the vastness and danger of the largest of the Great Lakes.

The family were attempting to paddle from Madeline Island to Michigan Island, a distance of about 6km. Source: Google Maps

Some of the places that people want to go kayaking are incredibly attractive but also deceptively dangerous, he said.

This particular incident happened in a place that is not often traversed by people on kayaks, and for good reason.

You need to have a healthy respect for how cold the water can be.

Paddlers crossing open water between islands can become exposed to strong winds and waves, he said. Storms can also come up fast, although the one that capsized the kayak was predicted in advance.

Lake Superior borders Canada to the north and is the largest of the Great Lakes of North America, measuring 560km long and 257km wide.
Around 2.3 million Venezuelans -- 7.5 percent of the population -- live abroad, and 1.6 million of those have emigrated since the economic crisis worsened in 2015 -- the vast majority to other Latin American countries. Here is a look at how Venezuela's hard-pressed neighbors have dealt with the issue so far, as ministers from a dozen Latin American states meet in Quito to try to forge a common response. - No common policy - In the absence of a coordinated policy, each country adopted its own measures to cope with what has bloomed into a major humanitarian crisis. Venezuelans could previously move through nearby countries simply using their ID cards, but now, some countries have introduced visa or passport requirements to try to control the influx. "It's a framework of restrictive measures that goes against human mobility, violates rights and increases the possibilities of insecurity via the threat of human trafficking," said Maria Amelia Viteri, migration researcher at Quito's San Francisco University. - Open Borders? - COLOMBIA: The migrants' main destination has taken in nearly a million Venezuelans so far, handing temporary residency status to 820,000. Venezuelans just need an ID card to enter. ECUADOR: The country planned to introduce a passport requirement but was forced to suspend the move by a court order. It now requires an additional certificate issued by Venezuelan authorities -- or an international organization -- to authenticate the ID document. Between January and August 2018, more than 641,000 Venezuelans entered Ecuador, with more than 524,000 moving on, according to the foreign ministry. PERU: A booming economy makes it a magnet. Lima has tightened its border controls and imposed a passport requirement. In the last three years, 414,000 Venezuelans have entered. CHILE: Chile introduced a visa requirement in April. It ensures residence for one year and access to employment contracts. In the first six months of 2018, 124,450 Venezuelans entered Chile, compared to some 177,000 in all of 2017. BRAZIL: Also lets Venezuelans enter the country with just an ID. Reports of growing xenophobia and violence against migrants in the border state of Roraima has prompted the government to deploy troops. Some 110,000 Venezuelans have arrived since last year, according to the most recent figures released in May. BOLIVIA: Allows entry to Venezuelans with an ID card for a 90-day tourist visa. Since 2014, it has received some 25,600 Venezuelans. As everywhere else, the numbers are increasing here too. URUGUAY: Allows in Venezuelans with an ID card, though those arriving by plane must carry a passport. In 2015, 1,100 Venezuelans applied for residence permits in Uruguay and the figure is increasing by 20 percent a year. ARGENTINA: Home to 95,000 Venezuelans, including some 30,000 currently trying to regularize their stay. CENTRAL AMERICA: With the exception of Costa Rica, all the Central American countries -- including the Maduro government's close ally Nicaragua -- demand a visa. -Asylum - Last year, 27,000 Venezuelans asked for asylum in the United States -- almost twice as many as the year before and five times more than in 2016. "Asylum claims have skyrocketed in recent years," Michael Bars, spokesman for the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) told AFP. "Our system is prone to legal loopholes, fraud and abuse, and this prevents legitimate asylum seekers from being prosecuted quickly," he said. So far in 2018, nearly 16,000 Venezuelans have requested asylum. Some 300,000 Venezuelans live in the United States, almost half in Florida. Nacari, 16, waits in Huaquillas, Ecuador, after traveling across the country in a bus provided by Ecuadoran authorities as part of a "humanitarian corridor" for Venezuelans fleeing their country's economic crisis A policeman takes fingerprints of a Venezuelan migrant at an Interpol facility in Lima, Peru Eliana Balza, 19, shows her damaged Venezuelan identity card, after the Ecuadoran authorities banned her from entering the country Richard Lomelly, 30, carries baby Tiago along the highway between Pasto and Ipiales in Colombia, on their way to Peru
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has apologised for comparing himself to Hitler, will pay respects at Israel's Holocaust memorial on Monday after meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Duterte steered clear of further controversial remarks on meeting the Israeli premier, saying they "share the same passion for peace" ahead of their working lunch. "But we also share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who have the corrupt ideology who knows nothing but to kill and destroy," he said in English. Netanyahu noted the Philippines' support for Israel at the United Nations and said that his father had been cared for by a Filipino in his later years, as is the case with many elderly Israelis. Duterte's visit to the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem later Monday led to criticism even before it took place, mainly due to comments in 2016 when he likening himself to Adolf Hitler. Duterte later apologised and said he had been misunderstood. Israeli newspaper Haaretz published an editorial headlined "A Hitler admirer at Yad Vashem," while left-wing politicians questioned why Netanyahu would welcome Duterte with open arms. Netanyahu "is willing to whitewash an illegitimate leader, who took pride in massacring his citizens and violating human rights, and why?" Tamar Zandberg, head of the leftist Meretz party, wrote on Facebook. "Because Duterte is willing to support the occupation (of the West Bank)," she said. - 'Great importance' - Netanyahu is always on the lookout for allies who will support Israel in international forums, where the country often faces criticism over its occupation of Palestinian territory. In recent months, he has found common cause with a number of nationalist leaders, including Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The Philippines was among the countries that abstained from a UN General Assembly vote rejecting US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December. Israel's government has focused on what it sees as the positive aspects of Duterte's visit, the first by a Philippine leader in more than 60 years of diplomatic ties. Topics expected to be discussed include defence deals, a key industry for Israel which is among the world's biggest arms exporters. The Philippines emerged as a significant new customer in 2017 for Israel, with sales of radar and anti-tank equipment worth $21 million. It is also an important provider of labour to Israel, where some 28,000 Filipinos live including many working as care providers for the elderly. On Wednesday, Duterte will inaugurate a memorial near Tel Aviv commemorating the Philippines' acceptance of 1,300 Jews fleeing the Holocaust. "We assign great importance to this visit, which symbolises the strong, warm ties between our ?two peoples as well as the enormous potential for developing and strengthening the relations," Israel's foreign ministry said. - 'I am sorry' - All visiting leaders pay their respects at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial, usually without much fanfare. But Duterte's Hitler remarks and other controversial actions, including his internationally condemned drug crackdown that has killed thousands, has led to increased attention. "Hitler massacred three million Jews. Now there are three million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I'd be happy to slaughter them," Duterte said in 2016. Duterte later apologised and said the comments were aimed at critics who had likened him to the Nazi leader. Historians say six million Jews died in the Holocaust. On Sunday night while speaking to Filipinos in Israel, Duterte expressed regret over previously calling former US president Barack Obama a "son of a whore". Duterte lobbed the insult in 2016 in response to steady criticism from the United States over his violent drug crackdown. "It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr. Obama that you are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words," Duterte said Sunday. Duterte heads to Jordan on September 5, where he is expected to meet King Abdullah II. burs-mjs/rsc Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte waves on his arrival in Jerusalem at the start of an official visit to Israel, on September 2, 2018 Filipinos wave their flag and the Israeli one as they wait for Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte to arrive in Israel for an official visit, on September 2, 2018 A member of the Filipino community poses next to an image of Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte in Jerusalem on September 2, 2018
The Saudi-led coalition battling rebels in Yemen insisted Monday that an August air strike that killed dozens of civilians including 40 children had a "legitimate" target. Spokesman Turki al-Maliki told reporters in Riyadh that a coalition investigation into the August 9 raid found that "the target was legitimate but there was an error in the timing" of the strike. On Saturday, the coalition admitted "mistakes" had been made in the strike, a rare admission of guilt in the three-year conflict, following international criticism over the deadly raid. The bombing on a crowded market in rebel-held northern Yemen killed a total of 51 people, according to the Red Cross. Fifty-six children were also among the 79 people wounded in the strike on Saada province, a stronghold of Huthi rebels backed by Saudi Arabia's arch-rival Iran. The incident sparked a wave of international anger and calls by the United Nations Security Council for a "credible and transparent" investigation. On Sunday, the United States and Britain welcomed the results of the coalition's investigation. London also called for clarifications on other deadly operations. Maliki said that in light of the probe, the coalition would revise its rules of engagement to avoid civilian casualties, as well as offering compensation to the families of the victims. The Saudi-led coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 after the Huthis ousted President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi's government from the capital Sanaa and seized swathes of the country. The devastating conflict has since left nearly 10,000 people dead and sparked what the United Nations has described as the world's worst humanitarian crisis. Yemenis dig graves for children killed in a Saudi-led coalition air strike on August 9 on a market in the Huthi stronghold of Saada
The sister of a man fatally shot outside his home near Brisbane on Fathers Day desperately tried to save him.

Clinton Pollock, from Deception Bay  north of Brisbane, was gunned down at his front gate on Sunday.

A gang pulled up on Thompson Street about 11.30pm and lured the 37-year-old man from his home before opening fire.

Deception Bay man Clinton Pollock was gunned down at his front gate on Sunday. Source: Clinton Pollock / Facebook

His sister, Jodie, was inside with her son and managed to drag her brother from the lawn into the living room where she tried to save his life.

We just heard the gunshot then the car taking off  it was pretty quick, a neighbour said.

Another neighbour Jade Cronin added: When his sister was doing CPR he was trying to push her hands away, telling her that it was hurting. But they told her to keep the pressure on there.

Homicide detectives are closing in on an armed gang who shot and killed a man outside his Queensland home. Source: AAP

He was [talking] at one stage and then just deteriorated pretty quickly.

Paramedics arrived within six minutes of the first triple-0 call but had to wait another five minutes for police to ensure the scene was safe.

Theyve just parked up the road, and me and my niece ran up there and told them Well he doesnt look good, neighbour Scott Murrihy said.

Homicide detectives believe the men who ambushed Mr Pollock in his front yard were no strangers to the victim who they suspect was targeted over a drug debt.

Police outside the house at Thompson Street, Deception Bay, where Clinton Pollock was shot and killed on Sunday. Source: AAP

Its a time especially around Fathers Day when families come together. Its an absolute tragic event, Detective Senior Sergeant Michael Hogan said.

Weve received a lot of assistance from the public and Id encourage the public to keep coming forward with that information.

Its really appreciated, it has progressed the investigation very well.

Police took several men into custody in nearby Rothwell on Monday afternoon, with at least one of them led away in handcuffs.

Anyone with information is encouraged to contact Crime Stoppers on 1800 333 000 or use the online reporting page.
Thousands of supporters of Mali's leader Ibrahim Boubacar Keita marched through the capital Sunday, a day after opponents held a protest against his re-election in a disputed presidential run-off. Demonstrators brandished banners reading "Long live President IBK", "We want peace" and "Mali is one and inseparable". "Mali belongs to all its sons, we need to avoid trouble," Aissa Traore, 35, told AFP. Sunday's non-violent rally came two days ahead of Keita's inauguration for another five-year term. The opposition refused to accept the outcome of the August 12 run-off election that pitted Keita against former finance minister Soumaila Cisse, charging voter fraud. But the Constitutional Court rejected Cisse's petition against the result as being inadmissible or unsupported by evidence. "The Constitutional Court has issued its verdict, everyone has to respect it. That too is democracy," Idrissa Coulibaly of Mali's National Youth Council, one of the organisations behind Sunday's rally, told AFP. Organisers said "tens of thousands" of Keita supporters had turned up, while a police source spoke of "thousands of people". Keita's swearing-in on Tuesday will be "a great celebration", a young female demonstrator told AFP. The president won last month's ballot with 67.16 percent of the vote, while Cisse polled 32.84 percent. The opposition has been organising regular weekend protests over the result. It claims some 200,000 people joined Saturday's march in what it said was the "largest mobilisation" since the vote, but the authorities did not provide official figures. Malians will go to the polls again in legislative elections on October 28, officials announced this week. A second-round election is scheduled for three weeks later on November 18 in constituencies where no candidate receives an absolute majority of the votes. Sunday's rally in support of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita came two days ahead of his inauguration Security forces in Bamako line up to hold back the crowd at Sunday's march in support of President Ibrahim Boubacar Keita
The United States accuses Pakistan of playing a dangerous double game, taking billions in US aid since 2002 while supporting the Taliban and other militants who attack American forces in Afghanistan. Its decision announced Saturday to cut $300 million in military aid is part of a broader aid suspension announced in January, as US President Donald Trump tries to pressure Islamabad over its alleged support for militant safe havens. The cut came days before Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is due to touch down in Islamabad for his first visit since the election of new Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has vowed to seek better relations with the US amid a new push for Afghan peace talks. Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi played down the cut. Analysts have said the move highlights the difficulties of trying to control a quasi-ally whose support is vital in the long-running Afghan conflict. What does the US want from Pakistan? Washington accuses Pakistan of supporting militant groups including the Afghan Taliban. It says the insurgents have safe havens in Pakistan's border areas and links to its shadowy military establishment, which aims to use them as a regional bulwark in Afghanistan against arch-nemesis India. Pakistan's support for these groups must end, Washington says. Islamabad has repeatedly denied the accusations, insisting it has eradicated safe havens and accusing the US of ignoring the thousands killed on Pakistani soil and the billions spent fighting extremists. What has the US done? On Saturday the Pentagon announced it was cutting $300 million in aid to Pakistan "due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy". The request was pending Congressional approval. Qureshi said the money was part of the Coalition Support Fund. The funding, worth $900 million, is set aside to refund Pakistani spending on counter-terrorist operations and helps pay Pakistan for allowing US and other NATO supplies into Afghanistan. In January Washington announced it was freezing payments from the fund as part of a broader suspension of up to $2 billion in aid. US officials have said that aid could be restored if Washington sees decisive action from Pakistan. The $300 million cut and comments by a Pentagon spokesman suggest Washington does not feel this has happened and is ratcheting up the pressure. "It is not a new aid cut. It is a just an implementation of former aid suppression," analyst Huma Yusuf of the Wilson Center in Washington told AFP. Why didn't Washington axe aid earlier? US figures show that more than $33 billion has been given to Pakistan in direct aid since 2002. Cutting the money off seems an obvious step. It has been suspended before, notably after the US raid in Pakistan in 2011 that killed Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, which drew suspicions that he had been sheltered there for years. But the US does not want a complete break in ties with Pakistan. It needs access to its roads and airspace to get supplies into Afghanistan. Pakistan is also still believed to have the strongest influence over the Afghan Taliban, making its cooperation necessary for any peace talks. Momentum for fresh negotiations has been growing in recent weeks. Pakistan also holds the Muslim world's only known nuclear arsenal. The US wants to prevent it from going to war with rival nuclear power India, or allowing the weapons to fall into the hands of extremists. Will the US strategy work? "This is something which of course has got Islamabad's attention, but (is) not sufficient enough to rattle the current government," Pakistani political scientist Maria Sultan told AFP. Some analysts have said there is no real way to pressure Pakistan, which believes it is more important to keep Afghanistan out of India's orbit than to clamp down on cross-border militancy. Others say the US risks driving Pakistan further into the orbit of China, which is investing heavily in the country. The announcement, and Pompeo's visit, come weeks after Khan took office amid concerns he would remain tolerant of militant groups. When the aid freeze was first announced in January, Khan, then in opposition, called for Pakistan to close the US supply lines to Afghanistan. Since coming to power he has called for a more balanced relationship with the US. But questions remain over how much influence he will have in a country where foreign, defence and security policies are widely seen as controlled by the powerful military. Qureshi says the two countries have "shared objectives" and vowed to raise concerns with Pompeo when he visits this week. In the end, observers say, until the US addresses Pakistan's fears over India, it will not shake its support for militant proxies. Pakistani demonstrators burn the US flag at a protest in Quetta on Jan 4 as Washington escalated its criticism over militant safe havens
The Auburn YMCA will hold a health fair from 7 to 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 8.

Quest Diagnostics will offer blood screen panels until 10 a.m. Those interested can call (800) 234-8888 to schedule an appointment. There will also be workshops on back pain, arthritis, diabetes and health care at the YMCA, 27 William St., Auburn. Admission is free and open to the public.

Additionally, the YMCA will partner with the Cayuga Community Health Network to present a National Diabetes Prevention Program information session at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 11, at the YMCA. Participants will learn about the program and the award-winning Fighting Insulin Resistance with Strength Training program.

Then, at 6 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 18, the network will begin a Prevent Type 2 Diabetes class at the YMCA.

The class consists of 16 weekly sessions in its first six months, followed by monthly sessions for the next six months. Participants in the program will have goals of losing 5- to 7-percent body weight, increasing physical activity to 150 minutes or more a week, and living a healthier lifestyle.

The class fee is $25 and can be covered with cash, Medicare or an agency scholarship.

For more information, call the YMCA at (315) 253-5304 or visit cayugahealthnetwork

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Its hard to believe weve come to the unofficial end of summer. Why do summers go by so fast, and winters drag on? If you want to hang on to a little bit more of summer, this months Book Report has a few books that will help you do that.

Miriam Parkers delightful debut novel, The Shortest Way Home, begins as Hannah and her boyfriend, Ethan, are celebrating their impending business school graduation with a trip through Sonoma wine country before their move to New York City, where Hannah will begin a coveted job at Goldman Global Investment Research.

They end up at a lovely small family-owned winery, Bellosguardo, where Hannah becomes enchanted by Tannin, the family dog, and the beautiful setting. Hannah strikes up a conversation with the owners son, William, and after awhile, she begins to brainstorm some terrific ideas to drum up more business for the small winery.

Hannah is the kind of person who likes to talk to the locals to find out where the best places are; Ethan likes to research and plan, and follow that plan to the letter. Ethan prefers to observe, Hannah prefers to interact.

Hannah cant get the small winery out of her head, and when she discovers that she left her wallet at the winery, she returns and meets Williams mother, Linda, who offers Hannah a summer job at the winery working on marketing.

Her excitement gets the best of her, and Hannah decides to take the job, which doesnt pay much, but allows her to live in a sweet little cottage at the winery. Ethan is dumbfounded that Hannah is willing to give up a high-paying job in New York to work at the small winery. He is also concerned what this will do to their relationship, as he loves Hannah and hopes to marry her.

I adored The Shortest Way Home. If you are a wine lover, as I am, this book is for you. It will have you planning a trip to beautiful wine country, or in the case of central New Yorkers, heading over to one of the many lovely local wineries in the Finger Lakes region to taste the best of what it has to offer.

I also think Parker realistically portrays the difficulties of owning a small family business, and the incredibly hard work it is to keep a business afloat. I related to Hannah and Ethans habit of looking at a business and coming up with ways to make it more successful (my husband and I like to do that, too).

The Shortest Way Home is the perfect book to end with this summer. Pour a glass of your favorite white wine, take it out to your comfy front porch chair and settle in for an enchanting read.

Elin Hilderbrand sets most of her books in Nantucket, and her latest book, The Perfect Couple, is no exception. What is different is that this book has a murder mystery at its center. Celeste is about to marry Benji, whose wealthy family has a summer home on Nantucket.

Benjis mom is a popular author, having written a series of mysteries for 20 years, although her last book was rejected by her publisher. His dad owns a successful hedge fund. Celestes parents are solidly middle-class, her dad works at a clothing store in a mall in Pennsylvania, and her mom is suffering from breast cancer and not doing well.

When the maid of honor is found drowned the morning of the wedding by Celeste, the police are sent in to discover if it was an accident or a murder. Everyone at the wedding seems to be hiding something, from the married man who was having an affair with the maid of honor, to the best man who is keeping a big secret from the groom, to the family friend (frenemy?) lurking at the edges of the wedding festivities.

Characters from Hilderbrands previous books pop up to give her fans an added level of enjoyment. I liked the sunny setting of the wealthy Nantucket enclave and the juxtaposition of the relationships of Benjis wealthy parents and Celestes middle-class parents.

Hilderbrand has written a classic beach read with a twist, and if you bring this book to the beach to read, be sure to put on plenty of sunscreen because you wont be leaving your chair until you finish every last page of this intense novel.

Diane La Rue is a member of the National Book Critics Circle and blogs about books at http://bookchickdi.blogspot.com. You can follow her on Twitter @bookchickdi, and she can be emailed at laruediane2000@yahoo.com.

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Part of Bridge Street in the town of Geddes near the New York State Fairgrounds was closed Sunday afternoon after a pickup truck hit a pedestrian.

The New York State Police said the accident occurred at approximately 2:40 p.m. A 2006 Honda pickup truck driven by Eric A. Kwiek, 40, of Syracuse, was traveling southbound on Bridge Street when a pedestrian began to cross Bridge Street and entered the path of the truck.

Police said the pedestrian is Christopher L. Alesci, 28, of Ridgewood. He was transported to Upstate University Hospital in Syracuse with non-life threatening injuries.

Kwiek was not injured in the crash.

State police said the investigation is continuing.

Bridge Street has reopened after the car-pedestrian crash.

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WASHINGTON, D.C.In case you hadn't heard, the U.S. Senate canceled most of its traditional month-long August vacation this year, ostensibly because Sen. Majority Leader Mitch McConnell and the Republican majority wanted to "pursue legislation [to] advance Trump's and their agenda."

Now, we know you're all broken up about thatyou who probably get at most four weeks' vacation per year total, while the Senate is only in session an average of six and a half months per yearbut the truth is, that decision had nothing to do with their passing legislation; it was all about confirming ultra-conservative/religious judges to the nation's federal courts, including one to the U.S. Supreme Court ahead of the November midterm elections, when there's a decent chance that Democrats will become the majority in the Senate.

"Cancelling [sic] August recess resulted in the most productive Senate work period in recent memory. Today alone we confirmed seven more judges & 27 executive branch nominees," tweeted former presidential candidate Sen. Marco Rubio on August 29.

In fact, the Senate has confirmed a total of 60 federal judges since Trump was elected, and it's got 80 more nominees pending (27 of them in the Ninth Circuit), out of 148 current vacanciesand McConnell is pushing hard to get all of them confirmed before the mid-term election, November 6. And rest assured, the conservatives and libertarians of the reactionary rightwing Federalist Society are the ones who are (and have been) picking those nominees, just as candidate Trump promised in the lead-up to the 2016 election that he would allow them to do.

"Whoever Trump chooses will not simply be vetted by the Federalist Society; that nominee will be a Federalist Society loyalistas he explicitly said, a Federalist 'pick,'" Slate.com noted of Trump's list of Supreme Court nominees back in January of 2017but it's just as true of Trump's "lesser" judicial nominees as well. And Trump's choice of Brett Kavanaugh to replace Anthony Kennedy on the Supreme Court is a fulfillment of that promise. (True, DailyKos reported that Kennedy only resigned after having been promised that his former law clerk Kavanaugh would be the nominee, but that doesn't change the political philosophy behind the nominationor the nominee.)

In case you were wondering, Kavanaugh, whose confirmation hearings begin Tuesday:

1) Opposes net neutrality

2) Opposes allowing an undocumented immigrant in federal custody to have an abortion

3) Believes that Trump has the power to fire the head of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau even though the law establishing that agency says that the current director chooses his/her successor

4) Believes that religious organizations are too burdened by being required to fill out the five blank spaces on a one-page form in order to deny their employees contraception coverage under their health insurance plans

5) Believes the District of Columbia shouldn't be able to ban assault rifles

6) Doesn't believe Roe v. Wade is "settled law" (despite what Sen. Susan Collins says)

7) Doesn't believe Trump can be indicted, sued or investigated while in office

8) Believes that Thomas Jefferson's concept of a "wall of separation between church and state" is "based on bad history" and that "the wall metaphor was wrong as a matter of law and history"and he'd support state-funded religious schools and reintroducing prayer to public school classrooms.

(There may be plenty more issues of concern, but thanks to Trump classifying more than 100,000 documents involving Kavanaugh, we may never know.)

And just to help things along, within the last year, the Senate voted to overturn its long-standing rule that a nominee for the Supreme Court needed a two-thirds majority to be approved for the position. Now it's a simple majorityand to "help" things along even further, earlier this year, they passed a resolution cutting the number of hours a district court judge and some lower-level executive positions could be debated from 30 down to just two!

One other point: The vast majority of the current judicial nominees are in their forties or early fifties, so get ready for many of these people to be influencing law and public policy for at least the next 40 years. (After all, Kennedy was 82 when he retired, and Ruth Bader Ginsburg is currently 85.)

"By the end of his first term, Trump could end up filling over 20 percent of the judges in the federal courts," noted economist Robert Reich. "And even if hes removed from office, these judges will be around long after hes gone. Trump has identified young candidates who could serve for decades."

And a bit closer to home: "We've seen the kind of judge that Trump has selected and he clearly is looking for somebody conservative, so as is obvious to everyone else in the country, the court will become staunchly conservative with the next appointment, and probably remain so for any moons," said prominent First Amendment attorney Paul Cambria. "Unless there is a Democratic president at the next election and Thomas and some of the others resign, it seems to me that we're in for a rough road when it comes to civil rights and individual liberties."

So why should the adult industry care about this? Well, on the off-chance there are a few naifs among the industry populace who haven't yet figured this out, it's well-established that most Republicans in positions of power, either legislative, judicial or executive, don't like the idea of people fucking on cameraand the religious ones are even worse, and they'll do anything in their power to shut the industry down, or failing that, shut down access to the explicit material.

But, you say, didn't the Supreme Court rule that non-obscene pornography is legally protected speech? Of coursebut the Supreme Court also ruled, in 1986 in Bowers v. Hardwick, that sex between two homosexual men was a criminal act, and it took another Supreme Court ruling 17 years later, in Lawrence v. Texas, to overturn that ruling. And guess what? Yet another Supreme Court ruling could take that right away again!

The point is, the U.S. Supreme Court, from whose decisions no appeal can be taken, is the final step in the judicial process, and barring an act of Congress overturning one of those decisions, what it says, goesbut it can (and has) overturn(ed) its own rulings. Hence, what's to say a Supreme Court with five staunch conservativesRoberts, Alito, Thomas, Gorsuch and (likely) Kavanaugh, and not a "swing vote" among themwouldn't vote to overturn Obergefell v. Hodges, thus taking marital protections away from same-sex couples? Or how about reversing its 1972 decision Eisenstadt v. Baird, which established the right of unmarried persons to possess contraception on the same basis as married couples? And of course, there's the biggie: Roe v. Wade, which established nationwide a woman's right to abortion before fetal viabilityand which the Religious Right has been trying its damnedest to overturn since it was decided in 1973?

Hell, they could even overturn Stanley v. Georgia, which guaranteed citizens' right to possess even obscene sexual material in the privacy of their homes!

If Trump is able to replace any liberal or moderate justice "with someone like Gorsuch," said Mat Staver, head of the religio-conservative Liberty Counsel in early May, "that means the abortion decision, the same-sex marriage decision, all of those things that went the wrong way will ultimately be in the balance to be reversed. So literally we are a few months away."

But beyond decisions that would directly affect the adult industry, how about the ones that could easily affect industry members in their personal lives?

F'r'instance, take Masterpiece Cakeshop. This was a situation where the shop's owner, Jack Phillips, decided that he'd refuse to make a wedding cake for a same-sex couple, even though making wedding cakes was part of his normal business and he had no problem making one for any hetero couple that walked through the door.

The gay couple complained to the Colorado Civil Rights Commission about Phillips' refusal, and that body fined Phillips for violating the couple's civil rightsbut with the help of the religio-conservative Alliance Defending Freedom, Phillips appealed that fine all the way up to the Supreme Courtwhich just a couple of months ago made the ludicrous ruling that because some members of the civil rights commission made disparaging remarks about Phillips' religiona religion which reiterated its bigoted beliefs throughout its own "holy" book, the BiblePhillips therefore didn't have to treat all of his customers and potential customers the same, relegating gays to second-class citizenship in his store.

Now, the Supreme Court's decision to let Phillips slide on his bigotry apparently gave him the "courage" to deny yet another potential customer equal access to his baked goods. On the same day the Supreme Court handed down its Masterpiece Cakeshop decision, June 4, a young woman named Autumn Scardina asked Phillips to make her a birthday cake that was blue on the outside and pink on the inside, in part to celebrate the seventh anniversary of her coming out as transgender. As one might guess, Phillips refused, again claiming that his religious beliefs precluded his baking such a cake, and again the Colorado Civil Rights Commission fined him for that decision. Phillips has now sued the commission, and rest assured that that case will wind up in front of the Supreme Court. Any guesses which way the five conservative Catholic justices will vote when it does?

But again, this is exactly the type of decision that establishes public policy that could easily affect adult industry members. As industry members know, despite the occasional phony "study" that gets trotted out by pro-censorship groups about how porn is "addictive" or "causes divorce" or makes men (and perhaps women) into insensitive scumbags, the real opposition to the availability of sexually explicit material comes from The Savedreligious people, predominantly Christians and conservative Jews, who are sure that such material is "sinful" and that its very existence may damn them to Hell forever.

But the point is, while those groups are working to make adult content illegal, what they can now do, following Jack Phillips' example, is begin discriminating against adult industry members in their everyday businesses. We've already had reports about how actresses and producers have had their bank accounts closed, credit cards canceled and loan applications denied simply because they're members of the adult industry. So who knows what other businesses will suddenly decide that adult performers are "too sinful" to patronize their shops or use their services? "Say, aren't you that porn actress who's suing Donald Trump, claiming he paid you not to talk about his affair with you? Sorry, because of my religious beliefs, you can't buy your meal here."

And how about the number of adult industry personnel who use the services of Planned Parenthood for their contraceptive, mammogram, pelvic exam, pap smear, STI testing and abortion needs? All that costs more than a couple of bucks, and before Trump, much of that was paid for by what's called Title X fundingbut the latest guidelines from the Department of Health and Human Services that determine eligibility for Title X funding say that no organization that also provides abortion services is eligible for that Title X fundingwhich lets Planned Parenthood out of its share of the $286 million in otherwise available fundsand some states are already trying to cut them off. They're suing, of course, but if it winds up at the Supreme Court, any guesses which family planning organization(s) will get screwed?

Now, liberals and progressives who are hoping to turn all this Republican bullshit around by scoring congressional seats in the mid-term election might have a bit of a problem doing so if their right to vote is taken awayas it has been for many in Ohio, thanks to the Supreme Court's decision in Husted v. A. Philip Randolph Institute. Seems that in Ohio, the Republicans in charge decided that if a person hadn't voted in six years, and didn't bother to return a postcard they send him/her stating that the person hadn't moved, that person could be removed from the list of registered voterswithout telling them, of course, so when they showed up at the polls, they would only be able to cast a provisional ballot, which might or might not eventually be counted. Oddly enough, it turned out that of the roughly 144,000 people who've been kicked off the rolls in the last 20 years, twice as many Democrats were kicked off as Republicansbut the Supreme Court didn't have a problem with that form of voter discrimination, saying the move didn't violate federal law. And now there's no reason other states can't follow the same course.

"Voting is not mere policy," wrote attorney Elie Mystal on the blog AboveTheLaw.com. "Its the wellspring from which the entire government gets its legitimacy. To suggest that the Supreme Court is somehow ill-equipped to settle this disagreement on who should be allowed to vote is to suggest that the government is allowed to choose its people, as opposed to the people being allowed to choose their government."

And speaking of the government choosing its people, let's talk about gerrymandering. That's the situation where the party in power in a particular state gets to redraw the bounds of the state's voting districts, and guess what? With a little finagling, it's possible to isolate the voters of one partylet's say Democrats, since that's been mostly the caseto a small number of districts in which they are the majority, while allowing the other party to have majorities in a larger number of districts, often to protect incumbents from being voted out or prevent candidates from the "minority party" from winning districts.

One might guess that the concept of one political party redrawing boundaries to make sure it wins elections would be something the Supreme Court would want to look atbut essentially, one would have guessed wrong. In one such case that's come before the high court, Gill v. Whitford, the court found that the group of Democratic voters in Wisconsin who brought the lawsuit against the Republican gerrymander of the state "lacked standing" to challenge the districts statewide, with Chief Justice John Roberts ruling that the dilution of the Democrats' vote power is an injury that is specific to their voting districts, and that "Remedying the individual voters harm, therefore, does not necessarily require restructuring of all the states legislative districts." In other words, an aggrieved party would have to file a lawsuit in each district where it feels it was unfairly gerrymandered, at a cost of millions of dollars and years of litigation, instead of, say, requiring that each state put together a non-partisan committee which would redraw all of the state's districts fairly to each party.

"[T]he Courts action is likely to signal that ruling parties in supermajority state legislatures are free to tinker with the rules of voting and elections as they see fitto preserve their power," wrote Steven Rosenfeld of the Independent Media Institute.

But it's not only cases the Supremes decide that may be problematic; it's ones they reject as well. Take the case of Charles Rhines, a gay man convicted of murder in South Dakota in 1993. The Supreme Court refused to hear his recent appeal of his death sentence, even though the jurors in the case, after they'd convicted him, asked questions of the judge like, "If they didnt vote for the death penalty, what would his life in prison look like? Would he be 'allowed to mix with the general inmate population'?" One juror overheard another comment that life in prison would mean "sending him where he wants to go." So, essentially, the jurors voted for the death penalty because if the guy were sent to prison for life, they thought he'd have a good time fucking the other prisoners.

So here's the bottom line, as well put by political commentator Amanda Marcotte: "If they can capture the judiciary, Republicans realize, it won't much matter if the voters turn against them. Not only will they be able to enact their agenda through the courts, they will also be able to depend on those judges to support gerrymandering and other vote-suppression efforts that may well prevent the voters from kicking them out in the first place."

Think about that real hard as November 6 approaches.
Should Beaufort County's commissioners be resolved to ask the federal government to defend our Southern Border by ending the Biden /Harris Open Border policy in regards to that one border that is intentionally made OPEN?

Yes, Illegal Migrants are a huge expense to local governments.

No, the cost of Undocumented Immigrants is insignificant in our providing a pathway for the "Browning of America".
We provide transparency to the State Health Plan through the State Health Plan's independent, third-party auditors, through the detailed claim data that we provide, and through our online cost transparency tool. The State Health Plan's independent, third-party auditors are able to come onsite and work with our Operations area to verify that the providers' contracted rates are applied correctly to State Health Plan medical claims. The State Health Plan auditors conducted such an audit in 2016.

We also provide the State Health Plan with all of their claims data. The data is fully transparent and includes the billed amount, allowed amount, and paid amount for each claim. However, certain contract details are critical competitive trade secrets for all payers and health systems. Sharing trade secret information is not in the interest of Blue Cross NC or the State Health Plan.

State Treasurer Dale Folwell says the State Health Plan is paying UNC Health Care too much for member services and treatments. He just doesn't know how much the potential waste, fraud, and abuse is, and the health care system refuses to give him information needed to correct the overpayments.Folwell vented his frustration during a Thursday, Aug. 30, meeting of the State Health Plan Board of Trustees. He's made cutting costs, inefficiencies, and unfunded liabilities in both the State Health Plan and N.C. Retirement Systems priorities since being elected in 2016.he told Carolina Journal, referring to a printout with what he called some 200 pages of information blacked out, and other sections liberally redacted.After the meeting, Folwell poked the providers in a press release with portions redacted (excerpt below).Identifying excessive charges is tough. The State Health Plan pays $270 million yearly to UNC Health Care, which provides a significant amount of medical care to many of the State Health Plan's 727,000 members. The plan is only 3 percent funded, one of the nation's five worst state plans.Folwell said he's going to ask State Auditor Beth Wood to audit the State Health Plan, in part to review contracts and look for overbilling. The last audit was done seven years ago.even issuing UNC Health Care an official public records request, Folwell told CJ.The State Health Plan is North Carolina's largest consumer of health-care services. It is a self-insured program. Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Carolina is the third-party administrator which negotiates rates with doctors and hospitals. But BCBSNC also refused to give the State Health Plan copies of the contract, especially portions involving fee schedules.In an email, UNC Health Care spokesman Alan Wolf cited a desire to control costs while providing high-quality care.Even so, the statement said,Blue Cross provided a written statement:Folwell isn't satisfied.he said.He said taxpayers and State Health Plan members should be alarmed that the insurance administrator and a major health care provider refuse to release price lists.He also said the state is overpaying UNC Health Care, citing a 2012 Institute of Medicine report showing $750 billion of unnecessary annual spending nationally.Folwell said. But he can't determine how much overspending takes place until he knows what the state is supposed to pay for services.Folwell said.The lack of provider price lists has irritated Folwell, who's pushed for more transparency and lower medical costs. He convened a roundtable of the state's key players in mid-July seeking ways to bring down health-care costs.If State Health Plan members could compare costs among providers, they could save money, the state could save money, and the resulting competition would reduce costs, Folwell said.Even if the State Health Plan determines it overpaid UNC Health Care, by law, the state can't demand refunds for charges more than two years old, he said. Many bad claims would be untouchable.
The continuing court fights over constitutional amendments, congressional districts, and other election issues have placed North Carolina in national headlines. With a host of lawsuits in process and deadlines for absentee ballots looming, Carolina Journal will continually update developments in each of the disputes in this space.As courts take action on the various legal challenges, check here for the latest. CJ will highlight updates through social media. To stay current, follow CJ on Twitter ( @CarolinaJournal ) or Facebook Election Day is Nov. 6, but a host of issues must be settled long before then.The Bipartisan State Board of Elections and Ethics Enforcement says it needs roughly 21 days to produce, proofread, and print the more than 1,400 ballot styles used in different parts of the state. According to Gerry Cohen, a longtime staff attorney for the General Assembly, about 10 counties have only one ballot style; Wake County has 95.N.C. law requires absentee voting to begin 60 days before an election, but because of the ongoing legal disputes, the state Supreme Court delayed the start of absentee voting to 45 days before the election - the latest date voting can begin under federal law. The lag time is needed to make sure military voters, citizens living overseas, and their families have a chance to receive and return mail ballots. Given the time needed to prepare ballots, that work should have started Sept. 1.Cohen told The News & Observer the elections board could go ahead and prepare ballots for all the uncontested races and then do separate versions once legal challenges are resolved. If so, voters might get several pieces of paper when they enter the voting booth or open their mail ballots.North Carolina's congressional districts were redrawn in 2016 under court order after federal judges threw out two of the 13 districts, calling them illegal racial gerrymanders. A subsequent lawsuit filed by Common Cause NC and the League of Women Voters claimed the new districts were drawn with such partisan bias that they denied the constitutional principle of one person, one vote.The three-judge panel agreed with the advocacy groups, but in June the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal and returned the case to the lower court.Aug. 27, the three-judge panel issued a 321-page decision tossing out all 13 districts as illegal gerrymanders and ordered new districts before this year's election.The panel ordered the parties to file responses by Aug. 31.UPDATE, Aug. 31, 5:00 p.m.: The plaintiffs asked the court to declare all 13 congressional districts unconstitutional gerrymanders but not require new maps until after the Nov. 6 election. See the filing here In a July special session, the General Assembly placed six constitutional amendments on the November ballot.Constitutional protections for the right to hunt and fish.An expansion of the constitutional rights of crime victims and their families.A requirement for voters to provide a state-approved ID at the polls.A reduction in the top income-tax rate allowed from 10 percent to 7 percent (the current rate is 5.499 percent).A change in the way members of the state elections and ethics board are appointed and reducing the board's size from nine members to eight.A change in the way judicial vacancies are filled.The first two amendments weren't challenged in court. The NC NAACP and Clean Air Carolina filed lawsuits challenging the other four. The groups claimed the amendments were misleading. The NAACP also argued the General Assembly elected in 2016 was unconstitutional, since members ran in illegally gerrymandered districts. Even though the NAACP argued lawmakers were "usurpers" who could not legally enact legislation, the only actions by the 2017-18 session the group challenged were the constitutional amendments.A three-judge Superior Court panel said the voter ID and tax cap amendments weren't misleading and left them on the ballot. The court also said it did not have jurisdiction to decide if the usurper argument was valid. That lawsuit was before the N.C. Court of Appeals at press time.Separately, Cooper challenged the elections board and judicial vacancy amendments, also claiming they were misleading. Cooper's legal team said the amendments would violate the constitution's separation of powers provision as well.The panel accepted the governor's arguments and struck the amendments from the ballot.Rather than appeal, the General Assembly convened another special session in August to rewrite the amendments and address the court's concerns.Cooper challenged the new amendments, saying they were misleading, too.On Aug. 31, the same three-judge panel that agreed with Cooper's first complaint unanimously rebuffed the governor's new lawsuit and left the new amendments on the ballot (read the order here ). Cooper appealed to the state Supreme Court.During a July special session, lawmakers passed Senate Bill 3 , a measure barring judicial candidates from changing party affiliations less than 90 days before the filing period. The bill affected Chris Anglin, a longtime Democrat who changed his affiliation to Republican a few weeks before filing for a Supreme Court seat, and several other judicial hopefuls.Anglin sued, saying S.B. 3 violated his rights to run under the party affiliation he chose based on the law in effect at the time he filed. In August, the N.C. Court of Appeals sided with Anglin and the other challengers. The General Assembly didn't challenge the decision. Anglin will appear on the general election ballot as a Republican, along with incumbent Republican Justice Barbara Jackson and Democratic challenger Anita Earls.The General Assembly in June passed Senate Bill 486, a measure barring losers in primary elections from running on another party's ticket in the fall general election. The law affected the Constitution Party, which was certified for the fall ballot in June, after the March primary.The party challenged the law in federal court, saying it would prevent candidates who otherwise could have run on the Constitution Party line from doing so. U.S. District Court Judge Louise Flanagan agreed. The ruling hasn't been appealed.
A three-judge Superior Court judge panel handed Gov. Roy Cooper a victory over the General Assembly in a continuing battle over appointments to state boards and commissions.The ruling , published late Friday, Aug. 31, said the legislature violated separation of powers by claiming the right to pick the majority of the members of five state boards: the Clean Water Management Trust Fund Board of Trustees; the Child Care Commission; the State Building Commission; the N.C. Parks and Recreation Authority; and the Rural Infrastructure Authority.The court - comprising Superior Court Judges Henry Hight, Jay Hockenbury, and Nathaniel Poovey - said the governor won the separation-of-powers challenge by meeting a three-part test: The legislature appointed a majority of the members of the board; the governor had limited power to remove board members; and the board had the final say on executing the laws in the areas it regulates.In this instance, the court agreed with the governor, who argued he had too little control over the operation of the boards.Attorneys for Senate leader Phil Berger, R-Rockingham, and House Speaker Tim Moore, R-Cleveland, asked the court to delay its ruling until after the Nov. 6 election. Attorneys argued the ruling could influence voters' opinion of a constitutional amendment changing the makeup and the appointment process for the state board of elections.The court denied the request, saying it had no way of knowing how the election might turn out.The opinion is an extension of the 2016 McCrory v. Berger and Cooper v. Berger opinions, which rejected the legislature's ability to appoint the majority of members to a coal ash commission and an earlier version of the elections board, respectively.At press time, the legislative leaders had not indicated if they would appeal.
Like many other states, Vermont has a relatively new crime against nonconsensual pornography (NCP) dissemination. A lower court ruled that the crime was facially unconstitutional. The state appealed. In this ruling, the Vermont Supreme Court grants the extraordinary relief of declaring the crime constitutional. Equally remarkably, the court concludes that the crime doesnt fit into any of the existing categorical exclusions from the First Amendment, such as obscenity, but the law nevertheless survives strict scrutiny.

Distinction from Obscenity: The offending disclosures pursuant to Vermonts statute, by contrast, need not appeal to the prurient interest or be patently offensive. Typically, their purpose is to shame the subject, not arouse the viewer.Given the ill fit between nonconsensual pornography and obscenity, and the Supreme Courts reluctance to expand the contours of the category of obscenity, we conclude that the speech restricted by Vermonts statute cannot be fairly categorized as constitutionally unprotected obscenity.

No New Exclusion for Extreme Invasion of Privacy.

The broad development across the country of invasion of privacy torts, and the longstanding historical pedigree of laws protecting the privacy of nonpublic figures with respect to matters of only private interest without any established First Amendment limitations, distinguish the kinds of privacy-protecting laws at issue here from the law prohibiting depictions of animal cruelty at issue in Stevens, 559 U.S. at 460. In that respect, nonconsensual pornography seems to be a strong candidate for categorical exclusion from full First Amendment protections. Notwithstanding these considerations, we decline to predict that the Supreme Court will add nonconsensual pornography to the list of speech categorically excluded. We base our declination on two primary considerations: the Courts recent emphatic rejection of attempts to name previously unrecognized categories, and the oft-repeated reluctance of the Supreme Court to adopt broad rules dealing with state regulations protecting individual privacy as they relate to free speech.

Compelling State Interest. The states interest in the crime is compelling because of the U.S. Supreme Courts recognition of the relatively low constitutional significance of speech relating to purely private matters, evidence of potentially severe harm to individuals arising from nonconsensual publication of intimate depictions of them, and a litany of analogous restrictions on speech that are generally viewed as uncontroversial and fully consistent with the First Amendment.

Narrow Tailoring. Section 2606 defines unlawful nonconsensual pornography narrowly, including limiting it to a confined class of content, a rigorous intent element that encompasses the nonconsent requirement, an objective requirement that the disclosure would cause a reasonable person harm, an express exclusion of images warranting greater constitutional protection, and a limitation to only those images that support the States compelling interest because their disclosure would violate a reasonable expectation of privacy. The court clarifies the knowledge element of the crime requires knowledge of both the fact of disclosing, and the fact of nonconsent, and law doesnt reach depictions made in public or that the subject has publicly distributed.

The Dissent. The dissent disagrees that the law survives strict scrutiny. It says the state cant protect people from their own folly (a wince-inducing victim-blaming remark), and a civil remedy would be less restrictive than a crime.

Implications

Whats Next. The lower court dismissed the claim on facial grounds, so it didnt resolve any as-applied issues. In an odd response, the Vermont Supreme Court doesnt remand the case back to the lower court to evaluate the as-applied issues. Instead, the court orders the parties to brief the issues directly to it, presumably so it can rule on the as-applied issues for the first time. I dont understand why the Supreme Court will be doing this front-line work itself. Maybe its a quirk of Vermont procedure? Maybe they dont trust the lower court to do it right?

I believe the defendant could appeal this ruling to the US Supreme Court due to its First Amendment implications, but the odds of the US Supreme Court taking it are super-low.

Opinion Persuasiveness. This is a well-constructed opinion that echoes many arguments made by supporters of new NCP laws. I expect they will cite this case heavily in other future cases. I also think its standing as a state supreme court ruling will enhance its importance.

Comparison to Texas. In April, in Ex Parte Jones, a Texas appellate court ruled that Texas NCP law was unconstitutional. The Vermont opinion didnt cite that ruling, and I didnt compare the statutes to identify any material differences.

Like the Vermont opinion, the court held that the NCP law was a content-based speech restriction and the obscenity exclusion didnt apply. Like Vermont, it applied strict scrutiny, and it presumed a compelling state interest.

Unlike the Vermont court, the Texas court unsurprisingly held that the law didnt pass strict scrutiny. The Texas court said the knowledge requirement didnt apply to lack of consent (so a successful enforcement action could occur when the defendant had no scienter about any lack of consent), while the Vermont court casually added that requirement as a qualifying limitation. The Texas statutes absence of this scienter requirement supported an overbreadth conclusion.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has agreed to hear the Jones case, so the appellate court ruling may not be the final word. If it stands, it suggests that the Vermont court was more willing to interpose a limiting interpretation rather than strike down the law. The Vermont court did so because of the policy considerations; the Texas court may have taken a less flexible statutory construction approach (which isnt necessarily inappropriate when were circumscribing First Amendment-protected speech). Its hard to guess today whether future courts will be more focused on policy like Vermont or less tolerant of legislative drafting limitations like Texas.

Least Restrictive Means. While I didnt love the VanBuren dissent, I think the least restrictive means issue deserves serious consideration by any judge reviewing NCP statutes. I continue to believe that many of the sui generis NCP statutes primarily overlap with existing law; and where the statutes dont overlap, they extend existing law unconstitutionally. As Angie Jin and I documented in extensive detail, NCP plaintiffs have successfully used many other legal doctrines dozens of times. In the facts at issue in the VanBuren case (which I omitted from this post for simplicity), the criminal defendant almost certainly broke other laws or committed other torts (especially IIED), so the real question is why we need an overlapping/duplicative crime to supplement those. In light of the First Amendment concerns, the overlapping and duplicative nature of NCP laws is relevant to any facial challenge because it demonstrates that other less restrictive means are available.

Case citation: State v. VanBuren, 2018 VT 95 (Vt. Sup. Ct. August 31, 2018).
The B2 Spirit Stealth Bomber looks like one of Batman's rides. In service since the mid-1990s, the B2's distinctive flying wing shape, even after decades in service, still looks like the future  and an expensive future, at that. Each B2 costs $2.1 billion. As such, only 21 of the stealthy aircraft were ever made.

Congress, even in the heyday of "what about potential war with Russia," refused to pay for any more. It's an aircraft with a mystique that comes both from its exotic design and how little information we have on the pilots who fly it, and their experience of flying one of them.

Recently, journalist William Langewiesche was given the opportunity to become familiar with the bomber and those that pilot it. More intriguingly, given that the bomber scarcely has space in its cockpit to accommodate a pilot and co-pilot, Langewiesche, by the sound of things, was allowed to join a B2 flight crew on a mission that would take them all the way from the United States to a bombing run on an ISIS camp in Libya.

From The Atlantic:

Night came quickly after a short day. Once they passed into the Mediterranean, the pilots used their radar to find three tankers that had come from Germany to meet them for their second refueling, and to map some thunderstorms that were active in the area at the time. Because of its composite structure, the B-2 is particularly vulnerable to static discharges and lightning strikes, and is required to stay 40 miles away from thunderstormstwice as far as other airplanes. During the refueling and afterward, the B-2 pilots spoke with European air traffic control. The skies cleared. Approximately 250 miles north of the Libyan coastline, the pilots turned south, switched off their transponders, and disappeared from air-traffic-control radar. They had now been flying for 15 hours. Still offshore, they went into a holding pattern that had been planned as a cushion to allow them to get the timing just right. It was nearly midnight Zulu Timetwo in the morning local time. They heard the mission controller order the drones to clear out to the south, and authorize them to return immediately after the strike to kill anyone who survived. The drones were MQ-9 Reapers armed with laser-guided supersonic Hellfire missiles. Their pilots were sitting in front of control panels back in the United States. Scatter was surprised by the blanket authorization to fire. He had never heard that one before.

I'm not a warmonger by any means: the indiscriminate horrors that modern weapon systems can unleash on soldiers and non-combatives alike are unspeakable. But the window of insight that Langewiesche provides into the little known world of some of the most elite pilots on the planet, the billions of dollars of hardware they're responsible for and the greasy politics that keep the plane flying made for an absolutely fascinating read.

Image by Staff Sgt. Bennie J. Davis III  This Image was released by the United States Air Force with the ID 060530-F-5040D-22 Public Domain, Link
Popular US bishop Charles Ellis was forced to issue a public apology after he was caught on camera squeezing musician Ariana Grande's breasts.

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Ellis was in charge of officiating queen of soul Aretha Franklin's funeral when the man of cloth decided to embrace Ariana so tightly the young lady kept cringing.

READ ALSO: Farm murders: Police head asked to investigate Julius Malema

In a viral video seen by TUKO.co.ke on Sunday, September 2. Ariana was spotted fussing and faking a smile as she desperately tried to get off the pastor's clutch.

"I do not know, maybe I put my arm around her. Maybe I crossed the border. Maybe I was too friendly or familiar but again I apologise. I hug all female and male artistes. Everybody that was up, I shook their hands and hugged them. That is what we are all about in the church. We are all about love," the cleric said.

In a desperate attempt to save his skin, Ellis framed his apology to look like a justification for what he did as he hinted his actions were not wrong to begin with.

According to the preacher, that is how he hugs everyone he meets.

He also stated he did not want to distract people from the fact that that was Aretha's day and all attention was to be directed to the fallen musician.

The pastor had his arm wrapped around the beauty's back and extended to her right bosom.

Ellis, despite the multitude watching him kept squeezing Ariana's chesticles as he addressed the crowd and joked around on the pulpit.

He held onto his microphone and stole a glance of Ariana's face a few times.

It was however as clear as day the soft spoken pop star tried her best to free herself from the man's embrace but tried to hide her fear and uncomfortability.

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Top 5 richest men in South Africa on Briefly. Everyone, quick: off the top of your head, name a billionaire. Now, think hard and name two or three South African billionaires. How about more? Dont worry, we have gathered this extremely interesting information for you!

Source: Briefly.co.za
News / National

by Staff reporter

OPPOSITION MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa reportedly faced serious legal obstacles in mounting his Constitutional Court (ConCourt) challenge against the presidential results last month, with fresh details emerging that the ConCourt bench demanded a lot of supporting evidence, which legally could not have been obtained within the given time-frame.Chamisa's lead lawyer Thabani Mpofu told NewsDay in an exclusive interview at the weekend that his team avoided seeking a recount of the votes because it was not the focus of their case and that it would have been impossible to access the residue within seven days. He cited a 2013 Supreme Court case where he represented Chamisa's chief election agent Jameson Timba, who then had lost in the Mt Pleasant parliamentary election, but was denied access to the ballot boxes."I represented Timba in 2013. What the Supreme Court upheld was that if you want residue in harmonised elections, you have to cite everyone involved - councillors to presidential candidates - because this involved opening all the ballot boxes. So technically, it means you can't get the residue in seven days to challenge the results," Mpofu said.If Chamisa wanted to access election residue, he would have had to serve, over 3 000 respondents 48 hours after announcement of the results, get the residue and challenge the election results within seven days.Chamisa had indicated to the ConCourt that he had sufficient evidence, including V11 forms, whose tallies when added together, gave him a little over 2,6 million votes, beating Mnangagwa by over 400 000 votes.Mpofu said the V11 forms had been placed before the ConCourt, but the Chief Justice Luke Malaba-led bench insisted on evidence adduced from ballot papers and other electoral residue, which they ruled was the only avenue to get substantial evidence to prove the rigging allegations."The exchange that I had with the judges was not about the V11, it was about the residue and what it means was what was in the ballot boxes. So when they were saying after the elections, if you decided that you wanted to challenge, you should've opened all ballot boxes, you obviously know that's not possible. We had our V11 forms and presented them before the courts," he said.Chamisa reportedly faced a hostile judicial system, where his lawyers alleged that the deputy sheriff and registrar connived to ensure that their case would collapse.Said Mpofu: "We had an unco-operative and hostile system to contend with, you know what the sheriffs did on instructions. You know the complaint that we had with the registrar refusing to accept process. If you go to court with a subpoena, nobody should ask you why you are issuing the subpoena, it just should be issued. It is for the person who has been subpoenaed to then object when they come before a court, so the subpoena must be issued. The person must come to court, if there is an objection, they must raise it. We cannot have a system which says to a litigant you can't issue legal process. One thing that is completely unacceptable, much the same way you cannot have a system which says you instruct the sheriff to issue service and he deliberately doesn't do so, and he tells you he was ordered not to do so. He had eight hours within which to effect service, and he completely refused. It's totally objectionable. So that is the kind of system that we had to come up against, not only did we do our best."Mpofu added that their case also hinged on the Zimbabwe Electoral Commission (Zec)'s server, but they could not access it because the registrar refused to issue processes and Chief Justice Malaba had indicated that he would not accept any court applications, leaving Chamisa's case hanging on the strength of Zec's own admissions of its faulty election figures."So before the case, we had a case management meeting and the Chief Justice had indicated that no application would be heard at courts on the hearing day. If any application was heard, it would be dismissed. So technically, when we went to court on that day, we had an option of making an application to have the registrar compelled to issue the subpoena, but we knew that it would be dismissed, because clearly that is what we had been told. So we knew the state of that application and also we knew that it was clear that the registrar had refused to issue the subpoena, which would've told the truth, a truth which would have declared Chamisa as the winner," he said.Mpofu, whose eloquence failed to win the argument of the day, said the case was strong and did not need residue back-up."So this issue that has gotten the country crazy about the fulcrum and the pith, it comes in that context of saying that once you want to show that he (Mnangagwa) did not win, that's the fulcrum of the case and it does not depend on the residue and I think you can see that. It depends on Zec's own numbers," he said. MDC Alliance has since uploaded the evidence on the Internet to prove that they had all the V11 forms and that they did not challenge the poll result from the blues.
News / National

by Staff reporter

PROGRESSIVE Teachers' Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) has urged the government to provide adequate teaching resources for the reviewed education curriculum when schools open tomorrow.PTUZ Matabeleland South provincial chairperson Urgent Moyo yesterday said: "The crucial issue of resources to facilitate gradual and successful implementation of the updated curriculum is important."Moyo said there was need to constantly review the curriculum."In the foregoing, there is need to allocate resources to this effect in the 2019 budget and harness donor funds to this effect," he said.PTUZ's concerns came after Primary and Secondary Education minister Paul Mavima last year declared that there was no going back on the new curriculum which was implemented by his predecessor, Lazarus Dokora.Parents and guardians had hoped that Mavima would do away with the new curriculum when he replaced Dokora.However, Mavima said the new curriculum was a product of recommendations made by the Nziramasanga Commission set up in 1998 under the Presidential Commission of Inquiry into Education and Training.The commission was chaired by veteran educationist Caiphas Nziramasanga.Government released $9 million for the new educational materials to be used, particularly by schools in rural communities.The new curriculum was introduced at the beginning of 2017 and transitional classes  early childhood development, Grade 1, Grade 3, Form 1, Form 3 and Lower Six  are implementing it.Teachers and pupils have been complaining that the new curriculum had increased their workload at the same time the government has not provided adequate resources for the full implementation of the programme.
News / National

by Staff reporter

JOSTLING for Cabinet posts by Zanu PF members has taken a nasty turn, with the party's "Young Turks" urging their seniors to politely excuse themselves from the race ahead of announcement of a new Cabinet by President Emmerson Mnangagwa, most likely this week.This came amid fears that Mnangagwa could recycle old ministers in an effort to appease them after they helped elevate him following former President Robert Mugabe's ouster last November.A top party insider yesterday said there was massive campaign to force the party's "career ministers" to excuse themselves from the race and allow Mnangagwa to freely choose new brooms for his new government."We are having this conversation in the party. For instance, look at most of them, they are old now, but it would be difficult for the President to dump them without causing some discord. If they volunteer to say, 'Please President, don't consider me for selection', it makes it easier," the source said.Zanu PF's United Kingdom branch chairperson Nick Mangwana, who is currently in the country, confirmed the fierce fights, without naming any targeted party bigwigs."I would expect some of my leadership to make life easy for my President by making themselves 'unavailable' for selection to Cabinet posts. There is a lot to cherish in retirement. If one didn't put a stash aside all these years, then in all likelihood, it ain't (sic) gonna happen now," he said.Mangwana said he believed that only technocrats and Young Turks had the capacity to fulfil Mnangagwa's new governance thrust.Contacted for comment, Zanu PF spokesperson Simon Khaya Moyo said selection of Cabinet ministers was Mnangagwa's prerogative, adding none of the top party officials could turn down an appointment. "I have not heard of that conversation within the party, but what I know is that it's the prerogative of the President to appoint the Cabinet, so we can't speak on issues of speculation on things that have not yet happened," he said.Khaya Moyo said he would not turn down a Cabinet post offer."I have not been offered a ministerial position and I will not speculate. I am not that kind of person who discounts themselves in advance," he said.Khaya Moyo has been a survivor in the Zanu PF political matrix, after surviving the purge against then Vice-President Joice Mujuru and later survived another onslaught targeting former President Robert Mugabe's allies although he had read out a statement announcing then Vice-President Mnangagwa's expulsion at the height of Zanu PF internal fights last year.He ironically, as both party and government spokesperson, had the invidious task of announcing the expulsion of Mujuru, Mnangagwa and Mugabe, but miraculously survived the purges.
News / National

by Staff reporter

A 73-YEAR-OLD Epworth man was on Friday sentenced to 12 years in jail by a Harare magistrate for bedding a minor.The convict, Joshua Wadyehwata, who was convicted after a full trial, will effectively serve seven years after magistrate Bianca Makwande suspended five years on condition that he was not found guilty of the same offence in the next five years.The court heard that sometime in June this year, the victim, who is not named to protect her identity, was at home washing plates when Wadyehwata signalled her to come over.The victim complied and Wadyehwata led her to his house, where he locked the door, raped her, gave her 50 cents and persuaded her not to reveal the abuse.During the same month and on another date, Wadyehwata again invited the victim to his house and raped her, giving her 50c in the process.A woman from the community suspected that the girl was being abused after seeing her emerging from the convict's house on several occasions and she informed the victim's school head, who interrogated her and she divulged the matter to him.A report was made to the police, leading to the rapist's arrest.The victim's medical affidavit was produced in court as evidence of the abuse.
News / National

by Stff reporter

ZIMBABWE Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) secretary-general Japhet Moyo has challenged the ruling Zanu PF government to honour its pre-election promises, which he described as "fake"."Towards the elections, we were told of mega deals and pledges of $16 billion, including 15 000 jobs in one company. Now that the election is over, everyone is anxious to see these promises materialising. This is not time for political gatherings for those declared winners, but (time) to fulfil pre-election promises," Moyo told a recent stakeholders' meeting in Gweru."The tendency of blaming others or looking for a scapegoat for not delivering on the promises will not be accepted this time. Our neighbours or those with their monies should not be our focus, especially when we are endowed with a good weather, fertile land and abundant minerals."ZCTU president Peter Mutasa echoed similar sentiments and lamented the deteriorating working conditions, saying most workers were now earning "a fraction of the gazetted minimum salaries".Mutasa said it was time workers demanded better working conditions."We face a number of problems that range from poverty, inequality, wage theft and unfair labour practices. We cannot overcome these if we do not come together and stand up to our oppressive employers," he said.Mutasa said workers were enduring long working hours only out of desperation."Let us put aside all our political affiliations, sectoral interests and focus on our collective interests as workers. We are workers first and we sustain our families through what we get from our labour, not from political parties," he said.The ZCTU leader slammed President Emmersson Mnangagwa's administration, saying it had failed to protect workers from pro-capitalists."We need to be on guard, as government has abandoned one of its fundamental duties, the protection of citizens in favour of advancing sectoral interests of businesses," he said.The biggest culprits to come under attack for abusing workers were Zimbabwe's all-weather friends, the Chinese. This has been blamed on Zimbabwe's Look East policy.Mnangagwa's mantra of "Zimbabwe is open for business" has also been blamed for worsening the workers' situation, as the State is seen as unwilling to punish exploitative foreign employers in order to lure investment.
News / National

by Staff reporter

RESPECTED Catholic priest, Father Fidelis Mukonori, has called on youths from both Zanu PF and the MDC Alliance to lobby their warring party leaders to set aside their differences and form another Government of National Unity (GNU) to end the current stalemate, which he said was crippling economic transformation.In an interview with NewsDay yesterday, the cleric, who facilitated former President Robert Mugabe's stepping down last November, said the current polarised environment was compromising the national agenda."It is probably the duty of young people right across Zimbabwe to say we want a government of national unity as a way forward, not this environment," he said."If the young people resoundingly, on daily basis, sing that song to the opposition parties and the ruling party and say this is what we want, we young people feel that it is necessary for you to sit down and come up with a solution, none of them would say no because they have a listening ear."Mukonori urged youths to desist from stoking political tensions, but channel their energy to good use.With the British government and other Western governments already pushing for dialogue between MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa and Zanu PF's President Emmerson Mnangagwa, Mukonori said the two leaders would gain respect if they considered that option."A government of national unity is dependent on the two leaders, if they think it is worth it. We had a GNU and something happened, but that chance was also lost as some people were taking the opportunity to enrich themselves instead of making it a workable solution," he said in reference to the 2009-2013 GNU formed between Zanu PF and the two MDC formations.
News / National

by Sithabile Mafu

MDC Alliance leader Nelson Chamisa's lead counsel in his electoral petition, Advocate Thabani Mpofu has dismissed reports that he received $500 000 in legal fees for handling the case. Mpofu said that he had taken on the case on a pro bono (no charge) basis because he believed in the case.Asked over the allegations that he was seen smiling all the way to the bank pocketing over $500 000, Mpofu refuted the allegations."That's ungodly nonsense peddled by sub-humans who are capable of any species of iniquity. I have not taken any cent and am not going to take anything out of this. I acted pro bono and out of conviction and those who know me, know that when I am doing something pro bono, I do it out of conviction. I fight as if I have been promised the whole world. But what I can assure you is that I have not and will not take a cent out of this. Far be it from me that I should sin against people's dreams by protecting them for hire", said Mpofu.He added that neither nobody charged nor nobody was paid and there are no plans to charge or to pay anyone.Thabani Mpofu was one of Nelson Chamisa's lawyers who were at the Constitutional Court on 22 August.
News / Press Release

by ARTUZ

The hullabaloo of the inconsequential routine rituals of elections is now over. The political elites find themselves on different polar ends, the citizens are petrified and are slowly accepting the new reality, realizing that they are not in control of the so called democratic processes. The majority of the poor still feel robbed of what they never had and would never had realized under whatever outcome, it is thus imperative for the working class to raise consciousness bar of the poor majority and lead them in the battle against exploitation. The teachers like other workers find themselves in a slave like reality, working in an unfulfilling environment. As schools open teachers will be forced to dose learners with a lifeless curriculum in return they will receive meals and accommodation not to mention threats of being fired if they fail to comply.It will be naive to try to solve all the fundamental problems of our society at one go, we will be practical and adopt a systematic approach, grab low hanging fruits as we get ladders to go to the top. Our Red Struggles will persist, focusing on immediate challenges and we are confident that one day we will confront the bedrock of our teething problems.Red struggles victories to date.The Union salutes all partners and friends who walked shoulder to shoulder with us as we confronted injustice against both the teachers and the learners.At the workplace we achieved a pay rise, although the pay remains paltry. We thank our FOZEU allies for their commitment to duty in that struggle.The Union also boldly stood up against the stinking ZANU PF culture of abusing teachers, learners and school property in pursuit of private political interests. We thank Veritas for their support in the safe schools campaign.We challenged ZEC's tradition of disenfranchising civil servants of their right to vote. Although 40 000 failed to vote we are proud to have averted wholesale disenfranchisement born out of the polling station based voting model. We did well by following this up in the Constitutional court and in future we will be armed with better tactics. Thanks to Zimbabwe Lawyers for Human Rights, ZLHR for walking with us through this route.Struggles 3&4 were important for us as we sought to play our civic role of pushing for the democratic transition of our country. Unions can only freely organize in a democratic dispensation. Thus the struggle for better working conditions is inseparable from the fight for democracy.Third term context.Third term is likely going to be very busy as teachers prepare learners for the November exams, the first to be written under the new curriculum. The second term was cut short so the third term will also seek to compensate for lost learning time.The economic challenges confronting our country will further erode teacher salaries by up to 100%. Teachers will further sink on the poverty index. Morale will reach a new low and learning will virtually stop in most schools.Parents will fail to raise money for school fees and learning materials for their kids and thus turnout will be low in most schools.The ruling party and state will likely go after teachers in retribution of their role in the 2018 election. Teachers are likely to face one form of victimization or the other.Our immediate Interventions.Teacher Security and safety is our priority, we will continue with our safe schools campaign through multiple advocacy strategies. We will be engaging our partners to set a rapid response team to attend to the security and safety needs of all teachers.The Union will work with organizations working on Child Protection to ensure that no learner loses learning time because of failing to pay fees. We will further force education authorities to guarantee the right to education as espoused in section 75 of the constitution of Zimbabwe.On teacher welfare we will be confronting the National Social Security Authority, NSSA to provide more social security to our members. The Authority is giving money to banks and is involved in a series of profit making initiatives but is failing to give basic services such as health and accommodation. Our research department is seized with coming up with models of affordable health care and housing that can be offered by NSSA. We note that PSMAS is shortchanging civil servants hence the need for an alternative model. The current packages being offered by NSSA are profit driven.The battle for a review of both salary and rural allowance is still on the cards. We also be pushing the regarding of educators.Organizing for future battles.At the end of third term, the Union will host its annual conference from 7-9 December in Manicaland. The conference will be held under the theme, " Consolidating our Red victories and redefining the teachers' role in national discourse."The conference will attract representatives from all rural districts in Zimbabwe. Delegates will be expected to evaluate our work in 2018 and plan for the year 2019. We remain committed to our revolutionary duty of fighting for pro poor education.We wish all stakeholders in the education sector a successful third term 2018.Like new? Join ARTUZ!!Released byARTUZ INFORMATION DEPARTMENT+263776129336/717141081/775643192
Opinion / Columnist

The President set up the commission of enquiry into what happened on August the 1st when 6 people died as opposition supporters went on a rampage burning vehicles and destroying property. Naturally those who support the government of the day felt that he had done well by bringing in reputable foreign commissioners into the enquiry.Those opposed to his presidency and his government made noises about the inclusion of University of Zimbabwe professors Charity Manyeruke and Lovemore Madhuku. Also some Zimbabweans who are "politically neutral" questioned the inclusion of the two UZ professors.Charity Manyeruke is an unapologetic ZANU-PF supporter who is also in the ruling party structures. Many in the opposition ranks are also unhappy because Madhuku was a presidential candidate in the recent harmonised elections. However, the President's reasoning could have been that if Madhuku was opposed to him in the election as a contestant, then he is reputable enough for the commission job. We might never know why he chose him unless one day he lays it down for the nation to know.More importantly, recently I spoke about how political inclusion (not to be confused with a GNU) was important for the MDCA, Nelson Chamisa and the nation.If Nelson Chamisa had not been disagreeable to President Mnangagwa's presidency, he could have legitimately pushed for names of his own choice to be included on the commission team. That is the bedrock of political inclusion, he doesn't have to be in President Mnangagwa's Government to have that political influence. He could have put forward names that could have balanced-out the inclusion of people like Charity Manyeruke. However, he can't have this privilege while denigrating the person mandated at law to set up such a commission. It is not possible to not concede defeat after the highest court in the land has ruled and refusing to acknowledge President Mnangagwa's presidency and at the same time want him to do as you wish.As long as the MDCA is opposed publicly or otherwise to the Constitutional Court ruling on President Mnangagwa's presidency, their only voice will be found in the 63 MDCA members of the National Assembly.That political voice will be inconsequential because it will be competing with and against 145 ZANU-PF National Assembly members and a ZANU-PF executive led by President Mnangagwa and his two deputies, Constantino Chiwenga and Kembo Mohadi. This will reduce the MDCA and Nelson Chamisa to a fringe protest movement and not a political outfit of any meaningful consequence.This will be made worse for the MDCA if the Mnangagwa administration starts delivering on some of its promises. As I have always argued, this will not be healthy for the country because every nation and democracy needs a critical and solid opposition whose voice is of political relevance, a voice that the government will be forced to listen to once it speaks. If the MDCA fails to get its act together, they would have subjected the country to a one-party State because their solutions or lack thereof are not enhancing anything politically towards the social and economic development of the country at present.There will be more instances where commissions or outfits of national importance will be required to be in place; the composition of these commissions will remain politically tilted unless the opposition decides to sit on the national table and be part of the social and political discourse. You can't expect to be heard when you are not on the table where matters of national importance are being discussed.The argument about President Mnangagwa's legitimacy is long gone and any citizen or political party opposed to him and ZANU-PF has to start thinking about 2023 or being part of the solution making process now. This is why you find that great Africans of international repute like former South African president Kgalema Motlanthe and former Commonwealth Secretary-General Chief Emeka Anyaoku of Nigeria have agreed to work with President Mnangagwa. These African luminaries would never have accepted President Mnangagwa's brief if his legitimacy was in any doubt.The international community in Africa and countries like Britain and Germany have publicly started working with Mnangagwa, with Germany sending its Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development, Gerd Muller, to Zimbabwe days after President Mnangagwa's inauguration.The longer Chamisa takes to resolve his opposition to Mnangagwa's presidency, the quicker he will sink into political oblivion. Many around him point to the economy being President Mnangagwa's Achilles heel and as an instrument that will force him to defer to Nelson and the MDCA.This assumes that the key to the economy is rooted in the MDCA's nod to President Mnangagwa's presidency. However, the real key to unlocking the economy will be the Zimbabwe Democracy and Economic Recovery Act (ZDERA), which is the designated pathway for Zimbabwe to reconnect with the US and the rest of the world. All that the Mnangagwa administration needs to do is unlock the key elements mentioned in the ZDERA Act through reforms and proceed accordingly.Last week, the President met with James Manyika who used to advise President Barack Obama. This is a sign that Zimbabweans of global relevance are starting to have the all-important conversations about where to take the country and how to fix the country's problems.These reforms and solutions will require more commissions to implement them while Chamisa is not on the table. He will once more miss out on being part of the reformation programme and his solutions will not be part of that reformation.ZANU-PF will not be obligated to add reforms that will disadvantage them as only Chamisa and his party can push for what they believe to be fairer. How will they do this when they are not on the table? So while people like Manyeruke are known to be partisan and rooted in ZANU-PF politics, President Mnangagwa can only choose those willing to work with him. Those unwilling to do so can't expect a president they don't recognise to appoint them to commissions and boards of national importance.There is a choice and a big decision to be made by Chamisa and the MDCA, either be part of the national political process or relegate yourselves to posting entertaining social media messages like how many of Zimbabwe's pimpernels now do from lands afar. Either of the two decisions will have a bearing on whether 2023 will be free and fair for them. As someone mentioned, there are consequences to every decision we make and these consequences cannot be chosen.They are fully dependent on the decisions that one chooses to make and inevitably they determine the long-term effects of your desired outcomes. Our expectations must not only be rooted in the literacy to read what the law and constitution say, but in the critical thinking of understanding where we are coming from and how low we had sunk as a nation.Hopewell Chin'ono is an award- winning Zimbabwean international journalist and documentary filmmaker.
A 17-year-old girl was arrested in St. John's Saturday for vehicle theft and a hit and run collision.

The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary was called to the city's downtown area at 3 p.m. on the theft report, and while investigating, a call came in that the stolen vehicle was involved in a hit and run collision on Campbell Avenue.

Members of the Criminal Investigation Division in the area apprehended the girl and made the arrest.

Police said the teen was brought into custody where she's scheduled for a court appearance on Sunday. The girl will answer to charges of theft of a motor vehicle, dangerous driving, failing to remain at the scene of an accident and breach of a court order.

The RNC said there was also an outstanding arrest warrant for the accused.

Read more articles from CBC Newfoundland and Labrador
Rob Toohey has worked as a location scout for plenty of wild and unusual film shoots over the years, but he's got vivid memories of one in particular  an obscure 1992 Hong Kong martial arts movie made largely in, of all places, Atlin, B.C.

"It was just insanity," Toohey recalled from his home in Gibsons, B.C.

"We just laughed and laughed every day, because nobody knew what was going on."

Last week, the bizarre film that resulted  Saviour of the Soul 2  was publicly screened in Atlin for the first time since soon after its release.

It did not disappoint.

"It was as weird this time as it was that time," said Heather Keny, artistic producer at Atlin's Globe Theatre.

"There was a lot of people laughing and shaking their heads throughout the movie and then afterwards, I think everybody that walked out of the room was like, wow  kind of lost for words."

5 days of filming become more

The way Toohey tells it, the filmmakers didn't intend to make the whole movie in the area.

Toohey was working as a Yukon and Alaska location scout for TV and film crews in the 1990s, and he remembers getting a call one day from a producer friend in Vancouver.

"He said that a Hong Kong crew wanted to come to the Yukon, for five days of filming on a glacier," he said. "So I took these guys to Atlin, down to the Llewellyn Glacier."

The filming went well  so well that the "five days of filming" turned into a month, with more sequences shot around Atlin, as well as Whitehorse and Carcross in Yukon.

"Every day was going to be the last day, and we just kept going on and on and on," Toohey said. "The whole film became an Atlin-, Carcross-based film."

The filmmakers spoke little English, so Toohey said it was sometimes a challenge to help them realize their ideas.

"They would sketch out on a napkin what they wanted for the next day and then they would hand this to me," he said. "I would look at this drawing, and I would count heads, and say, 'oh my God, this is how many extras we need.'"

Story continues

'Nameless place, presumable future'

Saviour of the Soul 2, directed by Corey Yuen and David Lai, is described on Wikipedia as a "martial arts action romance film."

An awkwardly-translated plot summary on the online movie database IMDb.com is confusing, at best  "Andy was a guy in a nameless place, presumable future. He knew anyone who got the ice on a mountain would get the money from the king," the website reads.

There's a princess frozen in a big ice cube, dozens of demonic, fighting mimes, and plenty of high-flying martial arts.

Toohey recalls a fantastical scene where the film's heroes fall into a glacier crevasse.

"Then they come out in a bubble bath in Hong Kong, where the heroine is having her bath. So once you start doing that type of stuff, it really opens up the spectrum," he laughed.

Several people in town remember serving as extras, supplying props and artwork, or building set pieces.

Atlin-based pilot Jamie Tait flew planes in some scenes, including one filmed in Carcross.

"They wanted shots of the Beech 18 flying down Main Street in Carcross, like at rooftop height, and we went right over top of the police station. I was sure that we were going to go to jail over it," Tait laughed.

"It was a pretty wild time, absolutely. But lots of fun."

'Look at all my stunt men!'

Sometimes the ambitious filmmakers had to be reined in.

Toohey says the film's stunt co-ordinator didn't seem to like him because Toohey would say no to some of the things he wanted.

"At one point, he wanted to hang a guy from a piece of wire, very thin wire, and just troll him around the glacier. And I said no, he can't do that.

"He said, 'look at all my stunt men!' And there's about ten of these guys laying around on crash pads on the glacier."

Keny said it was great to watch the film again this week, and see some beautiful shots of the mountains around Atlin, and the MV Tarahne.

It was just as baffling, though.

"Most of the subtitles are white, on a white background, so it's hard to follow the story plot. It's kind of a bizarre story to begin with," she said.

With files from Dave White
Toronto and Montreal city councils have called for it, Toronto's mayor has demanded it, the federal government is examining it, but the head of Toronto's police union says a handgun ban won't stop shootings.

After a string of gun-related deaths and injuries in Toronto this summer, the city called on Ottawa to ban the sale of handguns in the city and asked the province to halt the sale of handgun ammunition. Montreal made a similar plea soon after, calling for a nationwide end to private ownership of handguns and assault weapons.

In the following weeks, federal officials avoided giving a straight answer on whether that ask was in the government's plans  only saying they would "consider" looking into a gun ban.

Bill Blair, the new minister of organized crime reduction, told CBC News the Liberals were open to exploring all options, but stopped short of revealing what that list of possibilities included.

Then at the end of August, a section on a handgun ban appeared in Blair's mandate letter.

"You should lead an examination of a full ban on handguns and assault weapons in Canada, while not impeding the lawful use of firearms by Canadians," it read.

That passage has Toronto Mayor John Tory celebrating, but not everyone is praising the move.

"There's no way in my world or any world I know that this would have an impact on somebody who's going to go out and buy an illegal gun and use it to kill another person or shoot another person," Mike McCormack, the president of the Toronto Police Association, said Friday.

"It really has no impact on the psyche of a gunman."

The intention is noble, he added, but it's "A notional gesture at best."

Instead, McCormack would rather see more resources poured into policing and social services.

He said his years of experience in policing have taught him something about gun crime  individuals who steal, sell or use guns illegally are already facing mountains of jail time, so they're unfazed by one more law that condemns their actions.

Story continues

Shootings have been on the rise for the past few years in Canada, and in 2016 more people were killed by guns than by knives.

The majority of Canadians don't meet requirements to legally own a handgun. Currently, licences for those types of firearms are restricted to collectors, target shooters and those whose employment might require them to own a handgun.

Handgun crime on the rise

Handguns, specifically, are at the heart of the country's gun statistics.

There were 130 homicides committed with a handgun in 2016, according to a recent Statistics Canada report  the highest number in more than a decade.

Handguns accounted for 21 per cent of the total homicides that year and more than half of shooting homicides.

Toronto police Chief Mark Saunders told city council earlier this summer that 50 per cent of firearms that are used for crimes are from domestic sources.

"Usually straw purchasing. So lawful owners who purchase large amounts of firearms and then distribute them to the criminal entities that are out there," he said.

However, neither the RCMP nor Statistics Canada collect national statistics on whether guns are smuggled into the country or sourced domestically.

"We don't know the origin of firearms involved in gun crime in Canada," said Lynn Barr-Telford, director-general in charge of justice surveys at Statistics Canada.

The government has repeatedly acknowledged gun violence is not a one-solution problem. Even examining a handgun/assault weapons ban will take time and careful consideration.

Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale warned earlier this summer that further gun laws would require "significant remodelling of the Criminal Code."

Even if the implementation is slow and lacklustre, Toronto's Mayor Tory wants to see a ban in place.

"If it's going to help even a little bit to stop one death from occurring in this city or one shooting, then to me it's a step that's worth the consideration that Minister Blair has been asked to give to it," he said.

But McCormack says studying and passing a handgun ban diverts resources away from other answers.

"It's a more complex issue and people are just looking for an easy fix," he said

"It's not just saying a full gun ban is going to make this magic panacea. It's a much more complex problem that really requires an honest dialogue."

New gun legislation already in the works

In response to this criticism that a ban will be ineffective, a spokesperson from Blair's office said they remain committed to examining the option of a handgun/assault weapon ban.

"People are very concerned about gun violence. They want and expect their government to take effective measures," they said in a statement, pointing to the work they say the government has already done.

Handguns and other firearms are already heavily restricted by the Criminal Code, but critics have long called for a further tightening both on handguns and certain semi-automatic weapons.

This spring, the Trudeau government introduced new firearms legislation, Bill C-71, that would expand background checks to look for warning signs over the entire life history of anyone applying for a gun licence, instead of the current laws which only examine the past five years.

That legislation, if passed, would also require gun retailers to keep inventory and sales records.
Mohamad Moesli smiles as he installs a new case on a cell phone in his downtown Edmonton storefront, nearly eight years after his previous shop and home were destroyed in the Syrian war.

Moesli, 34, and a partner opened the electronic repair shop on Jasper Avenue more than a year ago, and he says business is good. His partner works the business side while Moesli focuses on repairs and customer service.

He credits interactions with customers for developing his English skills. His work doesn't leave him much time to enrol in language classes.

'A big change in our life'

Moesli says the store represents stability and resiliency for him, his wife Jamilah Kanakree and their children Yara, 9, and Yazan,12.

Since moving to Edmonton nearly three years ago, they've bought a vehicle and a house.

Kanakree has enrolled in an accounting program.

"Those years were the most beautiful three years that we spent in our life," Kanakree said of their time so far in Canada. "It is a big change in our life."

Prior to 2013, the family lived in Homs, Syria where their home and business were destroyed in a civil war that continues today. They moved to Damascus, the country's capital city.

Nine months later, after watching a bomb demolish the city's central bank, Moesli led his family to Jordan where they lived as refugees.

Moesli eventually opened a repair shop in Jordan, but the operation was short-lived. He soon received notice that the family been granted leave to enter Canada.

The family had 20 days to get ready, so they sold what they had in a rush, excited to start over again.

After a warm welcome, they feel confident about their future in Canada.

"People here in Edmonton were so welcoming," said Kanakree. "They helped us with everything that we need.

"Because we are here we feel hope. Hope in the future, and a better one. We see that in Canada. It's providing big opportunities for us."

Story continues

Entrepreneurial challenges for others

While many refugees are enjoying life in Canada, putting roots down in a different country comes with new challenges.

In August 2016, CBC News spoke with Najm Al-tameemi, a Syrian refugee, about his business plan to sell local honey to growing communities from Iraq and Syria.

- Sweet business proposal for refugee with eyes on the honey market

Two years later, his plan has changed. He's run into more challenges than he expected.

He's working on patenting a honey vinegar product, which he says is good for health and wellness.

But marketing the product and getting it approved for sale has been a challenge.

He hasn't found a full-time job but receives provincial government assistance to help support his large family.

He's a skilled Arabic calligraphy artist. He's taught it in a few classes but there isn't a high demand and it hasn't translated into income.

Despite the hurdles, Al-tameemi says he will resist the urge to give up on his entrepreneurial dream.

"One day I will be selling honey vinegar to all of Canada," he said.

His son, Abdullah Al-tameemi, 25, has found full-time work managing Babylon Restaurant, which specializes in Middle Eastern cuisine.

Business has been slow but he's hoping to turn things around so he can focus on his goal of becoming a mechanical engineer.

"I want a better life for my family, Abdullah Al-tameemi said. "That's a big goal for me."

The Al-tameemi family has fled violence in two countries. In 2007, they left their home country of Iraq and moved to Syria before immigrating to Canada three years ago.

Abdullah said the family lived in more than 25 homes to survive the civil war that continued to move. Buying a home in Edmonton with his family is an important goal.

Refugees on the move

From November 2015 to June 30, 2018, 2,585 Syrian refugees moved to Edmonton. A total of 6,370 Syrian refugees moved to Alberta.

Of those living in Edmonton, 1,465 were government-assisted, 915 were privately sponsored and 205 relied on a blended sponsorship.

After a year of settlement in Canada, federal assistance ends and refugees can apply for provincial supports if needed.

The Edmonton Mennonite Centre For Newcomers has been helping refugees who've struggled to find employment after their first year in the city.

"The hope is that it's not so much a wake-up call as a smooth transition into Canadian life," said Erick Ambtman, executive director of the Edmonton Mennonite Centre For Newcomers. "For some though that's obviously not an option if there's still a need to learn the language."

A common issue he sees is refugees having difficulty balancing English classes while working or searching for employment.

He says some Syrian refugees who have established independence in the city have already started to contribute to the community.

"Refugees are often so grateful," Ambtman said. "They're always looking forward to contributing to the community that has welcomed them, from starting brand-new pavilions at the Heritage Festival to volunteering at homeless shelters. [They're] trying to give back to the community that has really given them a life."

As for Moesli, he plans to turn Xtratech into a franchise with three more locations. His extended family lives in Edmonton, but he wants to eventually sponsor his wife Kanakree's family to offer them the same opportunities to build a life in Edmonton.

@Travismcewancbc

Travis.mcewan@cbc.ca
DONETSK, Ukraine (Reuters) - The funeral in eastern Ukraine's Donetsk of a pro-Russian rebel leader killed in an explosion last week drew vast crowds of mourners on Sunday, Reuters footage from the breakaway region showed. Alexander Zakharchenko was fatally injured in an explosion in a cafe in Donetsk on Friday. Russia's foreign ministry accused Ukraine of his murder, while Kiev blamed his death on separatist infighting. The official media outlet of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic said 200,000 people had gathered for the funeral of Zakharchenko, the republic's leader since 2014. Reuters was unable to verify that figure. Footage showed long queues of mourners, many carrying red carnations, lining up to pay their respects outside the city's main opera theater, where Zakharchenko's coffin stood. "I am here because I really respected him. He did everything for the people ... A good person is gone," Anna, a member of the crowd, said through tears. A woman who described herself as Zakharchenko's former neighbor, Natalya, was also crying. "It is such a shame, such a waste. He was everything to us ... He left, he left fighting for his country. There are no words," Natalya said. "We will not forgive this," she added. His coffin, draped in the separatist region's flag and the flag of the Russian Airborne Troops, a division of Russia's armed forces, was carried out of the theater to silent applause, footage showed. It was placed on the gun-carriage of a large artillery weapon, which was then towed past the crowds by a truck. "I didn't know him personally but he was a leader to all of us," Katya, a young woman attending the funeral, said. At least five other leading separatist commanders have been killed in unexplained circumstances not connected to front-line combat since the conflict started in 2014, when Russian-backed rebels threw off Ukrainian central rule in an armed uprising. A shaky internationally-brokered ceasefire has been in force since 2015, halting large-scale fighting, but frequent outbreaks of shooting on the front line between the separatist and Ukrainian forces continue. (Writing by Polina Ivanova; Editing by David Evans)
President Donald Trump walks down the steps after arriving on Air Force One, Friday, Aug. 31, 2018, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

U.S. President Donald Trump renewed his threat to withdraw entirely from the North American Free Trade Agreement on Saturday and warned Congress to butt out of negotiations with Canada.

The latest Twitter volley came as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau sought the advice of a man who understands the pressure-cooker of high-stakes trade negotiations  former prime minister Brian Mulroney.

Trudeau worked the phones Saturday in the aftermath of Friday's deadlocked trade negotiations with Washington.

The Prime Minister's Office confirmed the conversation with Mulroney, whose government delivered the Canada-U.S. Free Trade deal, a predecessor to NAFTA, after similarly hard bargaining.

A spokesperson said Trudeau also spoke with Jerry Dias, the president of the Unifor union which represents autoworkers, and Hassan Yussuff, the president of the Canadian Labour Congress.

Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on Canadian auto imports, which could lead to job losses in the auto sector.

The consultations took place after Canadian and American negotiators failed to reach a deal by Friday's deadline amid reports that Trump had said he would not compromise at all to get a deal with Canada. They agreed to resume talks on Wednesday.

The deadline had been set by the Trump Administration, because the White House is trying to sign a new trade pact before Mexican President Enrique Pena Nieto leaves office on Dec. 1.

Trump, however, kept up the pressure on social media, saying "there is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal."

"If they can't strike an agreement that is good to the U.S. "Canada will be out," he went on to write.

Trump also warned U.S. lawmakers, who have become increasingly uneasy that the new trade deal, formally signalled in a letter to Congress Friday, might not include Canada. The deal would then not be a reworked version of NAFTA, but a bilateral U.S.-Mexico trade deal.

Story continues

"Congress should not interfere [with] these negotiations or I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely [and] we will be far better off..." Trump tweeted.

Both Republicans and Democrats have objected to a straight up bilateral deal with Mexico. Republican Senate Majority Whip John Cornyn was quoted by the American media on Wednesday saying that, without Canada, it would, "reduce the likelihood that it would actually be approved."

Canadian officials, speaking on background Saturday, said they were not going to respond to tweets. They said it's not the first time the tactic has been used and the comments are "designed to pressure us and it's not going to work."

A spokesperson for the prime minister was asked for comment on the threats, but declined to address them directly.

"As we've said all week, we're working toward a modernized NAFTA, a modernized NAFTA that will be good for Canada and the middle class," said Cameron Ahmad. "We will only sign a good deal and we will not negotiate in public."

Under NAFTA's withdrawal rules, Trump must give six months' notice to the leaders of Canada and Mexico, the other stakeholders in the current pact, for the U.S. to pull out. He also must seek the support of Congress to pass such a change.

The Conservative Opposition grew more impatient on Saturday and described the absence of a deal as a "botched" negotiation where Canada was left on the sidelines.

"The Mexicans simply outhustled us," said Lisa Raitt, the Conservative Party deputy leader.

"They knew they needed to get a deal, how important it was to their country. And when they had the opportunity to move their auto talks on bilateral standards  or auto tariffs  to the next level of talking about everything else, including intellectual property and sunset clauses, they took the opportunity."

Correction : An earlier version of this story identified John Cornyn as Senate majority leader. In fact, he is the Senate majority whip.(Sep 01, 2018 9:00 PM)
Photo - Amy Manners runner-up in the 2018 Australian Basil Sellers Awards

Adelaides Amy Manners was the Australian runner up in the 2018 Basil Sellers Awards with the Panellists points only marginally tipping Amy into second place. The awards were part of Saturday at the Christchurch Salvation Army Centre - annual young writers conference.

Press Service International in conjunction with Christian Today established the young writer ministry in 2009 whereby each young writer is published in their own column 10 times a year, once every 5 weeks. Five groups of panellists marked all the young writers from January to July  their marks were then collated by a statistician.

There is an illustrious list of runners up over the years and this year was no different, alas the Kiwi young writers were not allocated a runner-up award as Richard Kwon had already been awarded the Youth Development Award.

Photo - Amy Manners with Melissa and Roshan Ramoo

Amy Manners - Adelaide

Amy Manners loves spending time with God in nature and capturing it all through the lens. She holds a BA in Creative Writing and Media. As a videographer / photographer she is blessed to collaborate on professional projects alongside her mum and brother. You can see her commercial work here: www.fruitfulmarketing.com.au and her personal photography here: www.instagram.com/amy_manners_

Amy Manners previous articles may be viewed

https://www.pressserviceinternational.org/amy-manners.html

Photo - Kristen Dang presented with the Australian Chairmans Award by Well-Being Australias Russell Modlin

Chairmans Awards

Each year the Chairman of Well-Being Australia nominates young writers who helped ion the program for the team  one from each section.

Australia - Kristen Dang

New Zealand - Daniel Jang

Internationals - Josh Robbie

Kristen Dang is from Adelaide, a family doctor who updated the young writer Style Guide, Daniel Jang was a speaker at the conference who has assisted the young writer progam over many years and Josh Robbie who has assisted the international program.

Young people 18-30 years interested in writing for Christian Today with your own column please connect with Dr Mark Tronson timeout@bushorchestra.com 0419 917 713.

Photo - Josh Robbie being presented the International Chairmans Award by Russell Modlin

Dr Mark Tronson is a Baptist minister (retired) who served as the Australian cricket team chaplain for 17 years (2000 ret) and established Life After Cricket in 2001. He was recognised by the Olympic Ministry Medal in 2009 presented by Carl Lewis Olympian of the Century. He mentors young writers and has written 24 books and enjoys writing. He is married to Delma, with four adult children and grand-children. Dr Tronson writes a daily article for Christian Today Australia (since 2008) and in November 2016 established Christian Today New Zealand.

Mark Tronson's archive of articles can be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/mark-tronson.html
The last few years has in many ways been defined by the rising tide of 'religious' violence across the globe, and in particular the violence perpetrated by those who claim Islam as their religion.

While the claim of ISISs self-proclaimed Caliphate in Iraq and Syria has perhaps had been the focal point of the worlds attention, there has been a seemingly endless string of religiously motivated terrorist attacks taking place all over the globe.

Inevitably, these incidents have brought to the forefront of many peoples minds the questions as to why people are prepared to kill and be killed in the name of God. From my own personal conversations, observations from the media, and trawling through discussions (in the broad sense of the term!) on social media, I see one argument come up again and again: that it is not one particular religion that is responsible for religious violence, but rather it is a trait common to all those who are fundamentalist or extremist in their beliefs, regardless of what their religion is.

From a cursory glance, this indeed appears to be a strong argument. Islam may have more pressing problems with extremists within its ranks at this point in history, but if we turn back the pages of history a few chapters, well find that Christianity has dished out more than its fair share of death and destruction in the name of God as well.

What about the Spanish Inquisition?

The Spanish Inquistion, and Crusades? Is Christianity just as susceptible as Islam to producing religious militants? That question is beyond the scope of this article, but I would like to explore in a little detail the precedent set by Jesus and Muhammad for their followers to live by.

For Muslims, Muhammad (b. 570 A.D. in Mecca) is seen as the last and most esteemed prophet sent by God to mankind. However, throughout the course of his ministry, Muhammad did far more than just simply preach. As well as a spiritual leader to his followers, he was also a political and military leader. From humble beginnings as the leader of a confederation of tribes in Medina, Muhammads community of believers (the umma) expanded to encompass almost the entirety of the Arabian Peninsula by the time of his death in 632.

Much like Kingdom of Israel in the Old Testament, the umma was a political entity  with a constitution, a legal system, and a military to defend and further its political interests. However, the umma was not confined just to one particular ethnic group, but rather it was Gods community for people from all nations to belong to. To some degree then, the umma had a mandate to spread their influence beyond their immediate community, and under the right circumstances warfare was considered a legitimate means of doing so.

Kingdom emphasis

Like Muhammad (570 years after Jesus), when Jesus began his ministry he set about proclaiming the arrival of a kingdom as well. Like Muhammad, this was no ordinary kingdom. It was the Kingdom of God, an eternal kingdom with dominion over all peoples, of which Jesus himself claimed to be the king. Like Muhammad, Jesus is a political leader. However, unlike Muhammad, Jesus polis is of an altogether different nature than Muhammads umma. His kingdom is not of this world.

Because it does not belong to this world, it does not operate in a way the other kingdoms of the world operate. In his ministry, Jesus did not run for political office, he did not draw up borders for his kingdom, and he did not recruit an army to defend it. Jesus fought battles, but his enemies were not Roman armies, but rather were Sin and Death itself, which he triumphed over at the cross.

Looking back at the history of Christianity over the last two thousand years, we will regrettably find examples of Christians committing acts of violence in the name of God. However, this does not lead us to automatically conclude that Christians who take Gods Word seriously are inherently prone to violence. Rather, it reveals an errant understanding of what the Kingdom of God is about.

As Christians in the world, we belong to a variety of different communities, nations and states. Ultimately though, these identities pale in comparison to the identity we have in Christ and as citizens in his kingdom. We may be at war, but our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms (Ephesians chapter 6 verse 12).

Tim Newman lives in Nelson, New Zealand. He holds an MA in History. He spoke at the 2018 Press Sservice International young writer's conference in Christchurch on 1 September 2018 on the teansition from university student yopung wirter to a professional journalist.

Tim Newman's previous articles may be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/tim-newman.html
I dont know." Theyre three tiny words, but in our culture, they are strangely divisive.

Our digital age and round-the-clock news reporting is built around opinions, debates and outrage. From the casual Facebook user to the political pundit on cable news, admitting that you dont know something is to lose your high ground.

Certainty in God

Christians tend to celebrate certainty, too. If youre like me, you will have seen a person who is rock solid in their convictions about Jesus, and said, That person is a mature Christian. Theyre principled and studied. They dont change their minds, they dont budge on their doctrines and they have the answers.

This certainty in God is good. Absolutely no doubt in my mind of that. But there is a dark side to this certainty  when we become certain of ourselves instead of God - and it can become sin.

Certainty in us

What Im talking about is what happens when we start to confuse being certain in God with being certain about our interpretation of the Bible and our faith. Many Christians are threatened by doubts and questions about their beliefs. They feel as though, by questioning, they are disrespecting God - and they can be intolerant of others who question for the same reason.

By knowing that God has all the answers, some Christians can fall into the trap of pretending that we have all the answers. But what this thinking does is - often - make us intolerant of differing opinions, and even arrogant.

You can see this in many of the excesses of the church that people criticise  the anti-intellectualism, the self-righteousness and the judgmental outlook.

Doubting Christians can start to feel guilty for their struggles. Christians who dont have the curiosity or self-awareness to question themselves can pride themselves on their strong faith. Non-Christians wonder why they're told to "just believe" instead of interrogating their questions.

And it can have dire consequences. But is this the model we see in the Bible?

The value of I dont know

You can see an example of Jesus response to certainty  and uncertainty  in John 9 .

Among the key players in the scene are our old friends, the Pharisees  a group who prided themselves on their encyclopaedic knowledge of scriptures. If faith is based in knowledge and unshakable conviction, then the Pharisees had the strongest faith of them all.

What scandalises them in todays episode is that Jesus has performed a miracle on the Sabbath. A man, born blind, had been given back his sight.

For the Pharisees, this presents a conundrum. In their legalistic thinking, they cant believe that a holy man could perform a miracle on the Sabbath  for it wasnt lawful. On the other hand, heres a man in front of them who was clearly blind, and now is not. How could a sinner do that?

So perplexed are the Pharisees that they try multiple tactics to cure their cognitive dissonance. First, they try to prove that the man wasnt really born blind  that it was a hoax. Second, they attempt to make the blind man confess that hes lying. Neither works, but the Pharisees continue to be rigidly unbelieving of what was right in front of them.

In the end, the Pharisees are so upset by the blind man that they throw him out, refusing to listen to him. So convinced are they that the blind man is steeped in sin that they dont even give him a hearing, even as he speaks sense to them.

The irony of the story, of course, is in the question, Who is really blind here? I can sense the weariness in Jesus tone:

Jesus said, For judgment I have come into this world, so that the blind will see and those who see will become blind. Some Pharisees who were with him heard him say this and asked, What? Are we blind too? Jesus said, If you were blind, you would not be guilty of sin; but now that you claim you can see, your guilt remains. ( John 9:39-41 )

The Pharisees claim to have sight, and it makes them guilty  their intellectual arrogance closes their mind to the truth.

The blind man, on the other hand, says three words that more of us should say: I dont know. In fact, he says this more than once in the passage. He experienced who Jesus was, and trusted. Thats all he needed to do.

Wisdom in uncertainty

Socrates said once,

I am the wisest man alive, for I know one thing, and that is that I know nothing.

Sometimes, the greatest wisdom is knowing that you have so much left to learn. The Pharisees were sure they were right, and they became arrogant and blind. On the other hand, the blind man was humble, and managed to see what they couldnt.

Are we that different? When our interpretation of the Bible is threatened  whether were liberal, conservative or anywhere in-between  we tend to feel discomfort. We will withdraw and isolate ourselves from other points of view. Were dismissive of evidence that seems to contradict what we think is true.

We are so certain of our certainty that we miss opportunities to learn from others.

Much like the Pharisees, Christians can be guilty of doubling down on their beliefs, putting their fingers in their ears and refusing to hear others. But if we can trust God in our knowledge, surely we can trust him when we cant answer all of lifes questions?

This isnt a call to lack of conviction. But it is a call to humility and to submitting our convictions to scrutiny. True faith is not having every answer. True faith is knowing that God is more than we can imagine, that he can appear in mysterious ways, and that we don't need to know every answer.

The quote, attributed to Annie Lamott, goes like this:

Doubt isnt the opposite of faith. Certainty is.

Faith saves you - you can be certain of that. But your salvation is not jeopardised by any uncertainty you feel, or by having to admit that you dont know. You dont have all the answers, but you can put your trust in someone who does.

For a fantastic sermon on this topic, listen to Skye Jethani: here .

Cheryl McGrath is a communications professional with a background in editing and publishing. She works as a copywriter at a non-profit in Melbourne, and blogs at Twenty-Six Letters (twentysixletters.org). You can follow the blogs Facebook page.

Cheryl McGraths previous articles may be viewed at http://www.pressserviceinternational.org/jess-currie.html
While there have been many changes to Camacho Cigars following the acquisition by Davidoff, one thing that Camacho cigar enthusiasts have always been able to count on is the annual release of the Camacho Liberty series. Its a cigar usually released to coincide with U.S. Independence Day celebrations. 2017 marked a milestone Camacho Liberty series as it was the fifteenth anniversary of the series. As a result, the Camacho Liberty 2017 would take on the theme Fifteen Years Strong. There was one big change with the Camacho Liberty 2017. Instead of releasing the cigar in the brands signature 11/18 figurado (a 6 x 48/54/48 size) shape, the Liberty 2017 would take on the form of a 6 x 54 Super Toro. Today, we take a closer look at the Camacho Liberty 2017. This is a cigar that was aging in the Cigar Coop humidor for 11 months.

While the vitola has changed, one constant that has remained is the packaging. As with previous editions, each individual cigar is packaged in a coffin. In addition to the cigar, there was a commemorative fifteenth-anniversaryry lapel pin packaged in the coffin.

There were a total of 50,000 coffins released for the U.S. market. This is an increase from the 40,000 coffins that have typically been released. Each coffin is individually numbered.

One other note  around the time the Camacho Liberty 2017 was released, there was some talk it could be the last new Liberty release for some time. In fact, the Camacho Liberty 2018 release brought back the blend from the Camacho Liberty 2005.

Without further ado, lets breakdown the Camacho Liberty 2017 and see what this cigar brings to the table.

SPECIFICATIONS

Blend and Origin

The blend to the Camacho Liberty 2017 remains true to Camachos roots as it features a Honduran Corojo binder. In addition, there is Nicaraguan Corojo 99 tobacco in the filler  along with Dominican Piloto Cubano (a Davidoff staple) in the filler. The cigar is finished with an Ecuadorian Habano wrapper.

Wrapper: Ecuadorian Habano

Binder: Honduran Corojo

Filler: Nicaraguan Corojo 99, Dominican Piloto Cubano

Country of Origin: Honduras

Factory: Diadema Cigars de Honduras, S.A

Vitolas Offered

As mentioned above, the Camacho Liberty 2017 was released in one size  a 6 x 54 Super Toro and each cigar is packaged in its own coffin. A total of 50,000 cigars/coffins were produced. There also was an additional 20,000 cigars produced for the international market.

The Liberty 2017 coffins were sold in 20-count boxes.

The fact the Liberty was not released in the 11/18 shape is not new, but it was the first time since 2004 we have seen a shape other than the 11/18 released in the series.

Appearance

The Ecuadorian Habano wrapper of the Camacho Liberty 2017 had a dark wood color to it. There was a light sheen of oil on the surface. While this was a relatively smooth wrapper, there still were some visible veins. The darker color of the wrapper did a good job at hiding the wrapper seams.

The band of the Camacho Liberty 2017 is black with silver trim and silver font. The center of the band has a star logo commemorating the 15th anniversary of the Liberty. The left side of the band has an image of a flag. The right side contains the following text in landscape mode arranged in individual compartments: LIBERTY CAMACHO HAND MADE IN HONDURAS (with a 20 and 17 surrounding the left and right side respectively), and FIFTEEN YEARS STRONG (with a row of stars above and below the text).

PERFORMANCE

Pre-Light Draw

A straight cut was used to commence the smoking experience of the Camacho Liberty 2017. Once the cap was clipped, I moved on to the pre-light draw ritual. The cold draw delivered a mix of cocoa, a slight fruit sweetness, and wood. I considered this to be a satisfactory pre-light draw. At this point, I was ready to light up the Liberty 2017 and await what the smoking phase would have in store.

Tasting Notes

The Camacho Liberty 2017 kicked off with notes of cocoa, natural tobacco, and a slight black pepper note. Early on the cocoa and natural tobacco flavors became primary. There were notes of dusty earth and fruit that also surfaced in the forefront. The black pepper remained in the background, but was prominent on the retro-hale. The retro-hale also had a slight natural tobacco sweetness to it.

Throughout the first third, the combination of the cocoa and dusty earth alternated in intensity with the combination of the natural tobacco and fruit sweetness. Once the Camacho Liberty reached the second third, the cocoa notes started to diminish. The dusty earth and natural tobacco became primary notes. The fruit sweetness and cocoa settled in the background with the black pepper. By the second half, the fruit and cocoa were replaced by a floral note.

Later in the second third, the dusty earth maintained its position as the primary note. The natural tobacco diminished joining the pepper and floral notes. This flavor profile held into the final third. This is the way the Camacho Liberty 2017 came to a close. The resulting nub was cool in temperature and slightly soft to the touch.

Burn

In terms of burn, the Camacho Liberty 2017 performed very well. This is a cigar that had little trouble maintaining a straight burn path and at the same time required low maintenance to maintain a straight burn line. The resulting ash had a salt and pepper complexion to it. This is a burn that was firm where the ash came off the cigar in clean chunks. Meanwhile, the burn rate and burn temperature were both ideal.

Draw

The draw also performed very well to the Camacho Liberty 2017. It had a touch of resistance to it  which is something that I like. At the same time, I found this cigar to be a low maintenance cigar to derive flavor from.

Strength and Body

In recent years, I have found the Camacho Liberty releases to have a profile of medium to full strength and flavors that are medium to full or full-bodied. The Camacho Liberty 2017 was no exception. This was a cigar that started out medium to full in strength and remained that way throughout the smoking experience. I didnt find much in the way of variance of the intensity level. At the same time, the Camacho Liberty 2017 also started out medium to full-bodied, but that built up in intensity and by the second half, the cigar was in full-bodied territory.

When looking at strength versus body, this was a cigar where I found the body had the edge throughout the smoking experience.

OVERALL ASSESSMENT

Final Thoughts

I was a bit perplexed on why the Camacho Liberty 2017 had a different size than the traditional 11/18 format that has been associated with this release for many years. The only thing I could infer is that the blend selected for the Liberty 2017 worked better in 6 x 54 Super Toro format than the 11/18 figurado. In a way, I had higher expectations with this blend. While the blend delivered a solid and enjoyable cigar, it is one that fell short in terms of a wow factor. Still, this is a cigar I would smoke again. This is a cigar Id recommend to a more seasoned cigar enthusiast. However, its a more expensive cigar  priced around $20.00. In this case, Id probably recommend trying one of these first to see if this cigar that meets your profile.

Summary

Key Flavors: Dusty Earth, Natural Tobacco, Cocoa, Fruit, Floral, Black Pepper

Burn: Excellent

Draw: Excellent

Complexity: Medium Plus

Strength: Medium to Full

Body: Medium to Full (1st Half), Full (2nd Half)

Finish: Very Good

Rating

Value: Try a Sample

Score: 89

References

News: Camacho Liberty 2017 Celebrates 15 Years

Price: $20.00

Source: Purchased

Brand Reference: Camacho

Photo Credits: Cigar Coop, except where noted
It was a big year for Drew Estate at IPCPR. It was as big a year as Ive seen a company have  and Drew Estate has had a lot of big IPCPR Trade Shows.

Most of Drew Estates announcements were made prior to the opening of the trade show through a series of daily press releases. Each day brought news of something exciting to see at the trade show, and each day seemed to top the previous day. As a result, going into IPCPR I felt the bar was already high for Drew Estate. It was a combination of strong innovation, excellent brand development, and commemorating two big anniversaries (Liga Privadas 10-year milestone and Joya de Nicaraguas 50-year milestone) that raised expectations. In the end, Drew Estate delivered and exceeded those high expectations earning the Cigar Coop honors for best performance by a large company at IPCPR.

We broke down the details why we felt Drew Estate would have a big IPCPR prior to the trade show.

Lets look at what Drew Estate delivered this year:

Liga Privada

Given it was Liga Privadas tenth anniversary, this was the featured brand by Drew Estate  and there was plenty of activity to support that. There are two new Liga Privada blends that were introduced. These were the Cigar Coop Predictions for #1 and #2 hottest cigars at the 2018 IPCPR. They also showcase the company as being an innovation leader as each of these new offerings showcase a unique wrapper.

The Liga Privada  10 Year Aniversario was the Cigar Coop pick for the hottest cigar. Its highlighted by a. Connecticut-grown Criollo wrapper  a tobacco that region is not known for. The remainder of the blend consists of a San Andres Otapan Negro Ultimo Corte binder, and a core blend of well-aged Nicaraguan and Honduran tobaccos.

The cigar will initially be released in one size 6 x 52 Toro  featuring a unique Cola de Pescado head and a Pies Tapado foot. The Liga Privada  10 Year Aniversario will be presented in ten-count boxes. The production has been limited to 1,000 boxes (10,000 cigars).

Meanwhile, our selection for the second hottest cigar at IPCPR was the Liga Privada H99 Connecticut Corojo. As the name indicates, its a cigar that features a Connecticut grown Corojo wrapper  another tobacco Connecticut is not known for. The remainder of the blend features an Andres Otapan Negro Ultimo Corte binder over the brands core Nicaraguan and Honduran tobacco. It also is being offered in one size  a 6 x 52 Toro with other sizes planned.

The H99 is expected to be more limited than the Liga Privada 10 Year Aniversario and word is retailers will be selected via lottery on who will receive the initial allocation.

Meanwhile, the existing Liga Privada No. 9 and Liga Privada T52 lines received three new sizes. The new line extensions include a Petite Corona (4 1/4 x 46), Short Panatela (4 1/2 x 40), and Corona Viva (6 x 46). The Corona Viva size was one that was originally introduced to the Undercrown line back in 2012.

Finally, the Liga Pravda Unico Series receives a new addition with Nasty Fritas. Like the current Liga Privada Unico Series Papas Fritas offering, Nasty Fritas is a short filler offering produced from trimmings of the tobaccos used for the Liga Privada No. 9 and while Papas Fritas was a 4 1/2 x 44 corona offering, the Nasty Fritas uses a 4 x 52 figurado format made popular from Drew Estates ACID Nasty offering. It has been a cigar previously made available to participants of Drew Estates Cigar Safari da

The blend for the Liga Privada Unico Serie Nasty Fritas is also similar to Papas Fritas. It features a Connecticut Broadleaf Oscuro wrapper, Brazilian Mata Fina binder, and Honduran and Nicaraguan tobaccos that make up the tripa corta, Nasty Fritas will be packaged in 50-count boxes.

Undercrown

Undercrown saw one line extension to the Undercrown Maduro line called Dogma. The Undercrown Dogma was originally a limited edition cigar released in 2014. It was a project done in conjunction with Cigar Dojo and was sold exclusively through Smoke Inn. Now it will be available on a nationwide basis to Drew Diplomat retailers.

The cigar is a 6 x 56 Box Pressed Gran Toro that features a San Andres Mexican wrapper, Connecticut Stalk Cut Habano binder, and a combination of Nicaraguan and Brazilian Mata Fina filler. Dogma is based off the Undercrown Corona Viva!, a slightly tweaked version of the original Undercrown line. It will be sold in ten-count soft bundles.

The packaging of the cigar still maintains elements of Cigar Dojo.

Herrera Esteli

While I wouldnt call it a major overhaul, the Herrera Esteli brand is getting an overhaul. This is the namesake brand for Drew Estate Master Blender Willy Herrera.

First up, the original Herrera Esteli line has now been rebranded as the Herrera Esteli Habano. Meanwhile, Norteno officially joins the Herrera Esteli family as it will be known as the Herrera Esteli Norteno.

Herrera Esteli Miami, a limited edition line that Willy Herrera did in conjunction with his old stomping grounds, El Titan de Bronze, is returning. This time its on-going limited production. It will still come out of El Titan de Bronze and will feature the same blend: Ecuadorian Habano wrapper, Ecuadorian Sumatra wrapper, and a combination of Nicaraguan and Dominican filler. One change is the original size of the Herrera Esteli Miami, the Corona Larga is not returning. Instead there will be an expanded line consisting of five sizes: Robusto Grande (5 1/4 x 52) Toro Especial (6 x 52) Lonsdale (6 x 44), Piramide Fino (6 x 52, and ) Short Corona Gorda (5 7/8 x 46). These are the same sizes as the Herrera Esteli Habano line.

Finally, there is a new addition to the brand with the Herrera Esteli Brazilian Maduro. The cigar is highlighted by a Brazilian Mata Fina wrapper. The blend also features a Connecticut Broadleaf binder and fillers from Nicaragua. The cigar will be available in five sizes in 25-count boxes  and the packaging and branding will be consistent to the new-look Herrera Esteli brand being rolled out at the 2018 IPCPR Trade Show. It will also be available in the same five sizes as Herrera Esteli Habano: Robusto Grande (5 1/4 x 52) Toro Especial (6 x 52) Lonsdale (6 x 44), Piramide Fino (6 x 52, and ) Short Corona Gorda (5 7/8 x 46).

Finally, all of the Herrera Esteli packaging will have a common look and feel in terms of packaging  differentiated by color scheme  although Norteno keeps its existing green and white band with the motmot bird on it.

Kentucky Fire Cured

Drew Estates Kentucky Fire Cured (KFC) line saw the introduction of a sweet-tipped cigar over a blend containing its signature fire-cured tobacco known as Kentucky Fire Cured Sweets.

Kentucky Fire Cured Sweets is a completely different blend. It features Kentucky seed tobacco that is grown and fired cured in Hopkinsville, Kentucky combined with Nicaraguan fillers and finished with a Mexican San Andres wrapper with a sweetened cap. Kentucky Fire Cured Sweets is available in three sizes packaged in soft count bundles that can be used in refillable boxes: Chunky (4 x 46), Fat Molly, (5 x 56), and Just a Friend (6 x 52).

One note is that while the original Kentucky Fire Cured branded cigars featured MUWAT branding, the Sweets does not incorporate this.

Factory Smokes

This is a new brand in the Drew Estate portfolio that will introduces a value-priced bundle offering into the portfolio. Factory Smokes by Drew Estate will consist of four distinct blends: Factory Smokes Sweet, Factory Smokes Maduro, Factory Smokes Shade, and Factory Smokes Sun Grown.

Pricing will be quite aggressive. The Factory Smokes Sweets will range from $36.00 to $48.00 for a 20 count bundle while the other three blends will be priced $40.00 to $52.50 for a 25 count bundle.

Isla del Sol

While it was somewhat of a quieter year for Drew Estates infused brands, one brand that got some focus this year was Isla del Sol  a value priced line that has been a staple in the Drew Estate portfolio for many years.

This year, Drew Estate added the Isla de Sol Maduro. Its the first maduro offering in the brand and it will also feature a sweetened cap. it will be available in four sizes: Robusto (5 x 52, MSRP $50/box); Toro (6 x 52, MSRP $54.00/box); Gran Corona (5 x 44, MSRP $46/box), and Churchill (7 x 50, MSRP $58.00).

With the introduction of the Isla del Sol Maduro, the current Isla del Sol line is being re-branded as Isla del Sol Sun Grown. This year, Drew Estate has also added a 6 x 60 Gordito offering into Isla del Sol Sun Grown.

Coronets

Last year, Drew Estate introduced a series of 4 x 32 offerings packaged in tins across several of its brands known as Coronets. This year 14 new offerings were introduced. This includes 11 new Drew Estate offerings across six more of its brands as well as three Joya de Nicaragua offerings. This will bring the total number of Coronet offerings to 27.

Undercrown Sun Grown Coronets

Deadwood Baby Jane

La Vieja Habana Maduro Bomberito

La Vieja Habana Shade Bomberito

La Vieja Habana Sun Grown Bomberito

Isla del Sol Sun Grown Breve

Isla del Sol Maduro Breve

Ambrosia Clove Tikis

Kentucky Fire Cured Sweet Ponies

Kentucky Fire Cured Swamp Thang Ponies

Kentucky Fire Cured Swamp Thang Sweet Ponies

JOYA Black

JOYA Red

Joya de Nicaragua Antano 1970

There were a few additional items that were unveiled at the trade show. The Coronets cover a wide range of brands from value priced to premium ones. In order to offset the price point on some of the more value ones, there will be soft-packs introduced for brands falling into this category. The more premium offerings will remain in tins priced at $18.00 while the soft-packs are priced at $13.00. The premium offerings introduced in 2018 include Undercrown Sun Grown, Deadwood Baby Jane, and the Joya de Nicaragua Antano 1970.

The new Coronet offerings still fit into the Water display tower that was introduced last year.

In addition, there were other water tower displays introduced designed to help retailers display the coronets who might not have the space available in their shops.

Joya de Nicaragua

We covered details of Joya de Nicaragua in our Spotlight on Joya de Nicaragua at the 2018 IPCPR Feature Story.

Debonaire

We covered details of Debonaire in our Spotlight on Debonaire House at the 2018 IPCPR feature story.

Who is Rick Ross?

As I was touring the Drew Estate booth, a crowd starting forming and a storm of cameras formed. I was curious to see what was happening at the booth, and the next I saw Drew Estate President and co-Founder Jonathan Drew engaged in a conversation with someone. I was not sure who that person was. When I was told it was Rick Ross, I replied Who is Rick Ross.

I was extremely confused because Ross badge said William Roberts on it. I learned Rick Ross is the stage name for Roberts who Hip Hop artist and producer.

This was the second time in three years we saw someone of celebrity status a the Drew Estate booth. Two years ago, then World Flyweight Champion Ramon Chocolatito Gonzalez showed up at the booth.

2018 Product Reports

Photo Credits: Cigar Coop, except where noted
MONDAY, Sept. 3, 2018 (HealthDay News) -- All children 6 months of age and older should have a flu shot, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) says.

A flu shot significantly reduces a child's risk of severe illness and flu-related death, according to the policy statement published online Sept. 3 in the journal Pediatrics.

"The flu virus is common -- and unpredictable. It can cause serious complications even in healthy children," said Dr. Flor Munoz of the AAP Committee on Infectious Diseases. "Being immunized reduces the risk of a child being hospitalized due to flu."

The 2017-2018 flu season was one of the most severe on record, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

As of Aug. 18, 2018, thousands of U.S. children were hospitalized and 179 kids died of flu-related causes. About 80 percent of the children who died had not had a flu shot, according to the CDC.

Pediatricians should offer flu vaccine injections to all children 6 months and older as soon as it becomes available, preferably by the end of October, the AAP said in a news release.

An injection is the best choice, because it has provided the most consistent protection against all strains of the flu virus in recent years, the AAP advised.

The nasal spray vaccine has been less effective in the past few flu seasons. But it can be used for children who would otherwise not receive flu vaccine, as long as they are 2 years of age or older, are healthy and do not have an underlying medical condition, the AAP said.

For example, the nasal spray would be appropriate if a child refuses an injection or if a doctor's office runs out of flu shots.

The number of doses of flu vaccine depends on a child's age and vaccine history. Children between 6 months and 8 years of age require two doses the first time they are vaccinated against flu. Children 9 years of age and older require only one dose, regardless of their vaccination history, the AAP said.

Children with egg allergy can receive flu vaccine with the same precautions considered for any vaccine. Pregnant women can be given the injected flu vaccine at any time.

Video courtesy: American Academy of Pediatrics

More information

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has more on children and flu vaccination.
MONDAY, Sept. 3, 2018 (HealthDay News) -- Homelessness threatens young children's health, even if it occurs while they're still in the womb, a new study shows.

"These findings back up what we already knew about how the stress of homelessness affects children's heath, but this helps us determine which children are at greatest risk, and makes the argument that policymakers and providers need to intervene to change the trajectory of a child's development," said study author Dr. Megan Sandel. She's from Children's HealthWatch, based out of Boston Medical Center.

The study included 20,000 low-income caregivers of children under the age of 4 at outpatient pediatric clinics in five U.S. cities between 2009 and 2015. The caregivers were asked about the children's exposure to homelessness.

The children were assessed to determine their overall health, if/how often they'd been in hospital, and if they had any developmental delays.

More than 3 percent of caregivers said children experienced homelessness while still in the womb (prenatal), 3.7 percent said children experienced homelessness after birth (postnatal), and 3.5 percent said children experienced both prenatal and postnatal homelessness.

Children who experienced homelessness for more than six months were at high risk of poor health, as were those who had both prenatal and postnatal exposure to homelessness, according to the study.

The results show that the earlier and longer children experience homelessness, the greater the risk to their health and development, according to the researchers.

"As pediatricians, we should be regularly screening families for housing insecurity, including past history and future risk of homelessness," senior study author Dr. Deborah Frank said in a medical center news release.

"Interventions that prevent homelessness for families and pregnant women can be extremely effective, and with data on the housing status of our patients, we can better advocate for more resources to drive innovations in addressing housing instability," Frank said.

The study was published online Sept. 3 in the journal Pediatrics.

More information

The American Psychological Association has more on how poverty, hunger and homelessness affect children.
Puducherry: Artificial reef helps restore lost Pondy beach

September 03,2018 | Source: Deccan Chronicle

The construction of the 900 tonne reef, measuring 125x100 metres, was immersed 2.5 metres below sea level on the northern side of the coast. The project to restore the lost beach in Puducherry town limits has yielded fruitful results with the successful immersion of an artificial reef structure, made of steel caisson with rock bottom, on the northern side.



The construction of the 900 tonne reef, measuring 125x100 metres, was immersed 2.5 metres below sea level on the northern side of the coast. The Chennai-based National Institute of Ocean Technology (NIOT), an autonomous body under the ministry of earth sciences, constructed and immersed Indias first wedge-shaped near shore artificial reef, at Puducherry coast.



The pilot project is estimated to cost Rs 65 crore and is jointly funded by the Puducherry government the ministry of earth sciences and NIOT.



How Puducherry lost its sandy beach



Puducherry lost its sandy beaches, including the most visible stretch of bay down the historic Goubert Avenue, with the construction of the port. Almost within a decade of the construction, in 1989, of its under-performing port, which is used more as a fishing harbour, erosion of sand started.



With the absence of naturally occurring sand barriers, wave action erodes the coastline drastically. The local authorities then put up rock walls and groynes that hold back the sea in much the same way a ports breakwater does, pushing the unresolved issue of erosion further up and down the coast. Puducherry government constructed a seawall from the northern side of the harbour to a distance of about 6km after the city began witnessing coastal erosion due to natural disasters and exploitation. The sandy beach to a distance of about 200m was lost.



The government attempted to restore the beach with dredged sand, but dropped the project midway. Later in March 2017 the government started beach nourishment project with Sanctuary Beach, a Singapore-based consultant, which was selected for the nourishment plan for the promenade stretch starting from the northern side of the harbour.



Disappearing beaches



In a 14-minute documentary titled Indias Disappearing Beaches - A Wake Up Call by wildlife and conservation filmmaker Shekar Dattatri Puducherrys fading beaches are representative of the effect of human intervention along India's coastline.



Within four years of the construction of the harbour in 1986, the coastal town found its beach had vanished. To protect against erosion, an ugly sea wall was built to hold the coastline, but they also obstructed the free flow of sand drift, the documentary says. The documentary was made in public interest for the Pondy Citizens Action Network (PondyCAN)..



Beach nourishment project



As part of the Shoreline Management Plan for Puducherry, the ministry of earth sciences, NIOT, and the Puducherry government have designed a project estimated at Rs 65 crore. The project has two parts - beach restoration and shoreline stabilisation. As part of beach restoration, the sand which is stuck in and around the harbour will be removed, while a submerged reef will be built as part of the stabilisation process.



The pilot project will feature one artificial four metre-high, 28,540 sq. mt. nearshore wedge reef opposite the Chief Secretariat, which will serve as a mild barrier to sediment losses and enable sand to move naturally to the north. A similar 4,200 sq. mt. offshore reef placed at the southern end will create the effect of a tombolo (a sand bar) to hold sand on the citys foreshore, a report of NIOT said.



Dredging is being undertaken by the Dredging Corporation of India and Puducherry Public Works Department is supervising the project. Around 0.3 million cubic metres of sand will be required for the beach nourishment. The sand which was dredged from the sea mouth will be put alongside the promenade beach, an NIOT report says.



NIOT is also planning to launch the submerged structure to reduce wave activity into the shore. While answering to the question on the sustainability of the project Mr Schiavina said, Beaches are our primary concern and they have to be protected. We have been pushing the government for the past 15 years and something has been materialised now. We have no options left other than the beach nourishment project to save the coastline.



PondyCan has been actively involved in initiating and facilitating the beach restoration project.



What is artificial reef and how it will prevent erosion



An artificial reef is a man-made, underwater structure, typically built for the purpose of promoting marine life in areas of generally featureless bottom. Artificial reefs may also serve to improve hydrodynamics for surfing or to control beach erosion.



A wedge-shaped reef, which will be made of steel caisson with rock bottom, is a submerged soft structure that allows the sand to bypass, thereby helping beach formation on the either side. On the other hand, hard shoreline protection structures like breakwaters and groynes bring relief at one end while shifting erosion further up the shoreline. Coastal erosion in the fishing village of Chinna Mudaliyar Chavady near here worsened when groynes were constructed in Thandirayankuppam to its south, said Aurofilio Schiavina, co-founder of PondyCAN, an advocacy group working on coastal erosion.



The submerged structure will reduce wave activity and allow sand to freely move towards the north and prevent erosion along the coastline. Artificial reefs are one among a range of engineering solutions to uplift the deteriorating life below water. Since fish are attracted to any kind of structure; they aggregate at reefs, thereby multiplying rapidly and thus a valuable experiment in terms of conserving marine life. Artificial reefs are thus going to support the fishermen community equally, he said.



Beach nourishment, a boost to tourism



Tourists as well as residents are excited that sand will replace the rocks in the promenade and there won't be any rocks to prevent them from entering the sea. I used to walk along the sandy beach and when I was young and we used to play here in the sand. Everything has changed over years. Now I am happy that we are getting our beaches back, said 60-year-old Arulselvan, who came to visit the beach along with his family.



Ishan and Arav from Bangalore also shared their excitement over the sandy beach. We used to visit Puducherry on our weekends and it is one of the best places to hang out with friends. But one thing that we were not happy about the beach is that we cannot enter the sea or play with the water. Now, we are happy to know that things are changing. Puducherry will now beat Goa in the number of international tourists if the government is maintaining things well, Ishan said. The tourism department also hopes that the beach nourishment programme will attract more tourists to the Union Territory.



We will get more tourists after the successful implementation of the project and we have no doubt in that. The pilot project will boost the number of domestic as well as international tourists. Along with this we will also take action to develop our airport. These developments will have surely a positive change in the economy and financial status of the state, said a senior official of tourism department.
Pakistan: Fish exports up 27.94pc, netting $451.026 million in FY18

by Shahid Shah

September 03,2018 | Source: The International News

Pakistans seafood exports have increased 27.94 percent to 198,420 tons fetching $451.026 million for the national exchequer in fiscal year 2017-18, according to market officials. The countrys export value increased 14.57 percent from $393.662 million off 155,091 tons in 2016-17. However, as per officials, the countrys fisheries exports declined 7.35 percent in value to $11.837 million tons in July 2018 from $12.776 million in the same month last fiscal. The quantity was down 2.87 percent to 5,452 tons from 5,613 tons.



Industry stakeholders complain that Pakistani seafood fetches lower value in the international market as the quantity of exportable fish has depleted due to various reasons, including overfishing. Faisal Iftikhar, former president, Pakistan Fisheries Exporters Association, said, Pakistans fish and fish preparations exports fetch $2.27 to $2.5 per kilogram, which is lowest in the regions average price of around $7/kg. He blames it on the lower quality of fish meal. Our prices show that we export more fish meal and our prices are lower than quality fish meal price, which fetches $3/kg.



He said quality seafood stocks were depleting in Pakistani waters because of overfishing and use of destructive nets. Pakistan mostly exports to China at lower rates, although the European Union has lifted ban from two factories amid political pressure, without inspecting the factories on the ground, he informed.



Revival of exports to EU had no significant impact over Pakistans total seafood exports, the official said, adding that only one factory exported to EU, and that too on lower prices at par with China. China is one of the largest buyers of Pakistans fish and fish preparations. Other buyers include Hong Kong, Indonesia, Egypt, Middle East, UK, Thailand, South Korea, Bangladesh etc.



Capt Akhlaque, whose factory is the only one exporting seafood to EU, said, We are not in a bargaining position. India is controlling the prices, with 200 factories exporting to the European Union countries. According to Marine Fisheries Department, there are around 150 fish and seafood exporting firms in Pakistan, of which 35 operate in the premises of Karachi Fish Harbour.



Akhlaque said commercial fish stocks had not depleted completely. When ban on fishing is fully implemented during the breeding season in June and July, better stocks develop, he said, adding that since the ban was implemented there were chances of better fishing in the current fiscal year.



Muhammad Ali Shah, chairmen Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum, a representative body of fishermen, said processing and transportation of fish to the harbour was poor, which deteriorated the fish quality resulting in lower prices in the international market. Fish caught at Keti Bunder is transported to Karachi Fish Harbour in a poor manner, which deteriorates its quality, he added. Shah said that deep-sea fishing and overfishing had affected the commercial fish stocks, which were rapidly reducing in Pakistani waters. Marine pollution and use of harmful nets are increasing the woes, he added. The Fisheries Resources Appraisal in Pakistan Project, a Unilateral Trust Fund project of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the UN and the government of Pakistan have also pointed to depletion of seafood resources.



The overall status for all the major fish stocks of Pakistan is that they are all below target biomass levels and nine of the species groups are below the depleted threshold, said the project report. Only two species groups out of 14 show any indication that fishing mortality is at or below the limit. All of Pakistan's marine fisheries are over-exploited.



The report said the prospects for an economically vibrant and growing fishery were poor, and reduced exports, value, and food fish production were all to be expected even as fish meal production increases. Over fishing is the major cause behind depletion of fish resources. In the 1980s it was estimated that the fleet was approximately 6,500 vessels and it is now over 11,500. In the 1980s it was judged that 550 shrimp trawlers would be sufficient to economically harvest the shrimp. Now, there are over 2,400 trawlers, most have switched from shrimp to 'trash' fishing as a result of the depleted stocks, and more are still being built.



It is recommended that policy and regulatory steps be taken to reduce the fleet size overall to less than 6,000 vessels and the trawler fleet should be specifically limited to less than 600 out of the total, recommended the project findings.
Nagaland: Floods, Rains claim 12 lives while China issues warning to North East

by Elton Gomes

September 03,2018 | Source: QRIUS

After Kerala was battered by incessant rain, Nagaland is also witnessing its worst floods due to torrential rain. A primary cause of the flooding has been the excess amount of rain in the upper reaches of Nagaland  this has resulted in the rise of the water level at the Doyang Hydroelectric project in Wokha District. The release of additional water from the dam has led to flooding in the downstream areas including in Assams Golaghat district.



Kiphere, a district that shares its border with Myanmar is the worst affected. Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio visited Kiphere on August 28 and appealed for help via Twitter.



The death toll stands at 12



Torrential rains in Nagaland over the past one month has claimed 12 lives, while a thousand others have been displaced due to floods. Beginning in late July, rains wrecked havoc in the North Eastern state and resulted in the displacement of 3,000 families across 400 villages.



The damage this year is unprecedented in the (sic) history, said Temjen Toy, Chief Secretary of Nagaland. The state contributed Rs. 1 crore towards the Kerala flood relief fund, Hindustan Times reported.



In an interim report to the Centre, the Nagaland government has demanded Rs 219 crore for immediate help. However, officials feel that the demand could rise to up to Rs 400 crore, although the damage is estimated to be around Rs 800 crore as of now.



Home Minister Rajnath Singh takes stock of the situation



Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh on Thursday spoke to Nagaland Chief Minister Rio about the damage caused by floods and landslides in several places of the state. NDRF teams are being rushed to the state by the MHA to carry out rescue and relief operations, Singh said on Twitter, as per the Indian Express. Nagaland officials have said that major roads, including NH-29, have been cut off and that there is a power failure due to the rising water level at the Doyang hydroelectric project.



China issues warning; North East on high alert



China has alerted India as water levels continue to rise in river Tsangpo, known as Siang in Arunachal Pradesh and the Brahmaputra in Assam. Arunachal Pradesh MP Ninong Ering said the rising water levels could indicate the possibility of floods in downstream areas. Ering said that China shared the news after heavy rains led to swelling waters in Tsangpo. The local authorities told me that the Chinese government has conveyed to the Indian government that there is a possibility of floods in parts of Arunachal Pradesh. We have taken the alert seriously and cautioned people, he told PTI, the Indian Express reported.



In Arunachal Pradesh, people living in low-lying areas like Jarku, Paglek, SS Mission, Jarkong, Banskota, Berung, Sigar, Borghuli, Kongkul, Namsing, and Mer along the Siang river have now been asked to remain on alert after Chinas warning. The administration has warned people to not venture into the Siang river for fishing, swimming, or other activities. Assam will also be on high alert as it tends to be highly flood-prone even under normal monsoon conditions.



Kerala overview



Starting around mid-August, Kerala witnessed innumerable damages after torrential rain wreaked havoc in several places of the state. Kerala received aid from numerous sources and is recently getting back on its feet. During a special Assembly session to discuss relief measures, Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said that a total of 483 people lost their lives in the floods, landslides, and other rain-related incidents. Around 140 people were said to be admitted to hospitals, while 14 people are still missing. Vijayan said that the losses due to the floods and landslides are more than Keralas annual plan. In the fiscal year 2017-18, Keralas annual plan outlay amounted to Rs 26,500 crore.
Kerala: Rebuilding Kerala: Lessons from Aceh

by JOHN KURIEN

September 03,2018 | Source: Deccan Chronicle

The deluge in Kerala and the challenge to rebuild a New Kerala reminds me of my four-year involvement in post-tsunami efforts at Aceh Province of Indonesia to build back better  the phrase coined by US President Clinton when visiting Aceh.



I learnt in Aceh that disaster management has five phases: rescue, relief, rehabilitation, reconstruction and redevelopment. The first four are part of common discourse in Kerala. By redevelopment, however, we are alluding to using the context of a disaster to re-envision a change in the composition, pace and direction of the development process.



In Aceh, reconstruction was coordinated by a specially created agency, decreed by the President of the Republic of Indonesia. The Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR) was designated to operate for four years, with competent full-time staff and two oversight boards. The Agency's mission was to restore livelihoods and strengthen affected communities by designing and overseeing a coordinated, community-driven reconstruction programme implemented according to the highest professional standards.



There was a master plan for Rehabilitation and Reconstruction. BRR matched donor funds to specific community needs through a process that was rigorous, sensitive to local concerns and priorities, and well-monitored. BRR coordination was essential to ensure timely delivery of support and eliminate legal and institutional uncertainties in reconstruction.



BRR recognized the important role of local community input and participation in reconstruction. Local government bodies, customary and community leaders, academics, religious leaders and NGOs were continuously consulted and involved in re-shaping the reconstruction plan whenever needed. Mechanisms to trigger community-based reconstruction initiatives were critical to ensure participation  and more importantly to eliminate perception of bias or corruption.



The lesson for Kerala is that reconstruction is best achieved with a separately designated, time-bound and focussed entity for execution, with sanction of the legislature and accountability to it, but with the freedom to function according to the highest professional and ethical standards. This entity should be viewed as a public-private-people partnership for building back better.



Its mission should be to create a part fixed, part flexible physical master plan from a judicious amalgamation of participatory ward/panchayat-level physical rehabilitation and reconstruction plans. Each ward/panchayat should provide a vision statement for their rebuilt reality. This amalgam must then be meshed with macro-assessments of reconstruction needs which have taken seriously the geo-physical and environmental factors in nature made amply visible in the wake of the deluge.



Aid Coordination



With aid pouring into Aceh (it reached USD 8 billion), the Government of Indonesia requested the World Bank to establish a multi-donor trust fund (MDF) to pool donor contributions. The MDF activities had to be consistent with, and guided by, the Governments Master Plan and under the leadership and direction of BRR.



The MDF helped all donors allocate funds judiciously. It provided detailed spatial and financial information on the specific needs of the survivors. Procurement procedures were made simpler and transparent, shortening implementation time. Smaller donors with limited overseas experience or administrative capacity also used MDF as a channel for their aid.



In Kerala, a multi-donor profile is gradually evolving for assisting in reconstruction. Aid from central government, foreign nation states and international development agencies and banks have fixed arrangements and channels to reach the coffers of the state. Kerala can also make project proposals for specific short and long-term needs, availing of soft loans and grants from a range of sources including the World Bank and the United Nations system.



The Kerala Diaspora is ready to answer the Chief Ministers call to pledge a months earnings for this cause. They will pledge more if the state can guarantee that hard-earned money they contribute can, if they so indicate, be utilised for specific projects intended for designated places and people.



Kerala needs a special purpose financial trust facility for overall and nuanced aid coordination. This facility should have the Chief Minister and Finance Minister at its helm, but the operational charge needs to be given to qualified bureaucrats and experts with experience in dealing with the financial management of disaster reconstruction.



Linking Aid to Execution



In Aceh, when dealing with the post-tsunami relief, information technology and local expertise was not as developed as in Kerala today. The BRR depended on e-mail, SMS, satellite phones, GIS, and regular ground-checks. Matching funds and personnel to exact locations for reconstruction work took time due to complete destruction of road infrastructure. Delays gave rise to doubts about credibility of the process. Local-level coordination and execution were dependent on physical meetings with paper charts. At BRR there were the occasional power-point presentations and rare video conferencing arrangements. Despite these shortcomings, credibly linking aid and execution helped form strong partnerships and investments were thereby effectively utilised. Information about quantum, location and utilisation of aid was made more transparent.



In Kerala today, the ubiquitous smart phone, provides transparency, accountability and empowerment. Citizens photos of damage or progress of restoration can spread through social media networks. Our talented IT personnel, equipped with open source and open hearts, can make a one-to-one match between anyones donation with the specific reconstruction needs of a village, a people or special cause of her choice. The twinning offers, both donor and recipient and transparency and accountability at almost zero marginal costs. This enhances the trust of individual and institutional donors. The result is more aid.



Redevelopment Challenges



For Aceh, the gift of the tsunami was total provincial autonomy granted by Government of Indonesia in matters of political governance, customary, cultural and social expression and management of natural resources, among others. The Government of Aceh became open to a new development paradigm for natural resources giving serious consideration to co-management  where state, community and market  coalesce from the lowest level upwards to protect and utilise the real wealth of society for a just, participatory, sustainable and self-reliant process of development.



In Kerala, our settlement pattern, food grains, cash crops, tourism, power sources, fisheries, and easy access to fresh water are a few essential attributes which arise innately from the special geophysical contours of the state. The recent floods have highlighted once again the inevitable need for greater partnership of state and community to utilise and manage these precious natural resources. We must utilise the golden opportunity, thrown up by crisis, to re-imagine and re-design how we situate ourselves within the context of Keralas salubrious natural environment.



In the context of global climate change, if we do not wish another deluge, let us forge a measured balance between deep ecological activism for conserving nature on the one hand, and on the other, a well-planned reconstruction of our habitations, our choice of cash crop agriculture, a re-look on our dams, a willingness not to disturb the banks and sand o four rivers, and an agreement to leave our beaches as playgrounds for the sea.



To achieve this, we need, like Aceh, a renewed political engagement, in a new framework, where our commitment is not to narrow political, class and caste identities but open to envisioning and co-creating a new Kerala, within the purview of its natural bounties, with the pledge to build back better.



Tsunami of private aid



The Aceh tsunami was the first major disaster seen worldwide on live TV reportage. The impact on hearts and purse strings of viewers was without parallel. In Aceh, after the tsunami their next problem was the tsunami of aid. Direct private aid, channelled through local and religious institutions, was hard to stop, but they created their fair share of contentious issues on the ground. Allegations of corruption, unwarranted compensation to those who suffered less or did not suffer at all, were rampant.



In Kerala too, NGOs and religious organisations have their clientele and obligations towards them. They may not be willing to pool their resources into any common kitty, particularly if controlled by the state. It is hard to trample on the rights of such organisations. However, these acts of kindness and favouritism must be recorded at the local panchayat level, to discourage their beneficiaries making duplicate claims to aid from public funds. Affected households, from upper echelons of our society, may not lay claim to government financial assistance. They need to be separately registered. Along with others they will require assistance for getting duplicates of legal documents, linking back to the electricity grid and road network. Thus, dealing with the official reconstruction apparatus becomes inevitable.



How to turn this crisis into an opportunity of sorts?



Aceh Province bears close resemblance to Kerala in physical features  west facing coastline, hills in the east running parallel to the coast and a plenitude of rivers flowing westwards. Some common socio-cultural traits make a Keralite nostalgic. They include the kadai kopi (coffee shop) with the single newspaper and contentious political arguments in the morning. Many Acehnese trace their origins to Ponnani in Malabar. In Aceh, the monster 8-metre tsunami wave of December 2004 swallowed over 150,000 persons in less than 30 minutes, often reaching over 5 km inside the coastline. It totally wiped out coastal towns and villages, leaving the traumatised survivors in a state of shock.



In Kerala, the well-coordinated and heart-rending rescue phase is over. Relief emanated from every corner of the state, country and abroad. Undoubtedly, the best in us manifests in the worst of times. The floods are receding, relief camps closing and people slowly trudging back wearily to their silt-and-mud-filled homes. Rehabilitating people is marked by an up-swell of universal goodwill and fraternal feeling without any consideration of the barriers and identities that divide us in good times.



The narrative of the discourse at all levels  affected households, local communities, and various tiers of governance -- has shifted to thinking about priorities and strategies for reconstruction. How can Kerala turn this crisis into an opportunity of sorts?
A mentally ill Mexican national with claims of brain damage is set for execution in November, more than two decades after he was convicted of killing his wife and two youngest children near the southern border.





Robert Moreno Ramos is scheduled to die by lethal injection on Nov. 14, according to Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jeremy Desel.





The 64-year-old immigrant was sent to death row in 1993 for the slayings of his wife Leticia and their children, Abigail and Jonathan, who were found buried beneath the bathroom floor in the couple's Hidalgo County home.





For years, his lawyers have contended that his execution would be a violation of international treaty as he wasn't properly notified of his right to tell the Mexican consulate about his arrest and request legal assistance from his country. On top of that, they argue, Ramos had abysmal legal representation during trial and jurors never learned about his severely abusive childhood, brain dysfunction, bipolar disorder and low IQ.









In February 1992, a neighbor in Progreso heard screams coming from the Ramos home. It wasn't until two months later that investigators unearthed the family's remains.





That April, Ramos was picked up on an outstanding traffic ticket, then questioned without a lawyer. Eventually, he gave authorities the OK to search his home - and they found blood inside.





Under further questioning, records show, Ramos drew police a map to bathroom, where the bodies were buried.





But Ramos told investigators he didn't kill his wife and children. Instead, he said that he came home to find his family slain and decided to hide the bodies so his surviving eldest son wouldn't find out.





He didn't get a lawyer until three months after his arrest, according to defense filings. During his trial, prosecutors argued that he'd beaten to death his wife and two children with some type of blunt instrument and then married another woman days later.





Defense lawyers argued in the 1993 case that unknown drug dealers committed the triple slaying. After the state introduced testimony implying he'd killed his first wife in Mexico, Ramos was convicted and sentenced to death in a matter of hours.





In the punishment phase, attorneys for Ramos didn't cross-examine the state's witnesses, offered no evidence and didn't ask the jury to spare their client from the death penalty, according to court records.





Mexican authorities learned of Ramos' arrest through news reports nearly a year after the fact, according to court records. During appeals, attorneys for Ramos said that late notification could have made a difference because Mexico often provides extra defense support in capital cases and might have done so had they known sooner.





But the state argued that extra help from Mexico wouldn't have resulted in a different outcome.









FIND related content here On appeal, Ramos raised concerns about earlier bad lawyering, and also alleged that the state had violated Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations by not telling him about his right to speak to his nation's consulate.





Ultimately, the courts refused to grant him relief in part because the Vienna Convention is only enforceable between countries - it's not up to American federal courts to enforce the application of international treaties in individual criminal cases.





More than 15 years ago, Ramos was one of 54 death row inmates named in a complaint to the United Nations World Court, when Mexico accused the U.S. of violating international treaties and asked for a stay in all of the cases. The international court decided the prisoners should get their cases reviewed. But the U.S. Supreme Court in 2008 deemed that decision unenforceable, unless Congress takes legislative action.





Neither Ramos' defense counsel nor Hidalgo County prosecutors responded to requests for comment Friday.





The case bears some similarities to that of Ruben Cardenas, another Mexican national who was executed last year amid international outcry and claims of global treaty violations.





Despite pushback from Mexico and Cardenas' claims of innocence, the 47-year-old was put to death in November for the murder of his teenage cousin.





"It is as if the United States were thumbing its nose at the government of Mexico and the United Nations," Sandra Babcock, a Cornell Law School professor specializing in international issues surrounding capital punishment, told the Chronicle last year. "And when I say the U.S., I should be clear that we're talking about Texas."





The Lone Star State has executed eight men this year, and another seven - including Ramos - are scheduled for the remainder of 2018.

 | 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



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"One is absolutely sickened, not by the crimes that the wicked have committed,

but by the punishments that the good have inflicted." -- Oscar Wilde
Vedanta Resources' new chief executive Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan believes the oil-to-aluminum group can turn into one of the world's largest resource companies by expanding outside India without compromising on growth within the country.

New Delhi: Vedanta Resources' new chief executive Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan believes the oil-to-aluminum group can turn into one of the world's largest resource companies by expanding outside India without compromising on growth within the country.

Venkatakrishnan, a highly regarded mining executive, took over as the chief executive officer of Vedanta Resources on August 31, replacing Tom Albanese, the former head of Rio Tinto.

The 53-year-old, who worked at AngloGold, one of the world's biggest gold producers, for 18 years - the past five as chief executive - wants to give it back to India by building the company into a giant producer of commodities that India needs to curb its reliance on imports, create jobs and reduce poverty.

In an interview to PTI, Venkatakrishnan, known in industry circles as Venkat, said huge opportunities exist and Vedanta can be turned into one of the largest resource companies.

"If you look at diversified companies, they come with a bright and strong heritage. Vedanta has a strong heritage in terms of India. Exxon has roots as an American company, BP as a UK company. Likewise, Vedanta starting its root in India I believe can actually grow broader than India without compromising the growth in India, looking elsewhere as well and becoming one of the largest resource companies. I believe this is possible," he said.

The company has already demonstrated the potential in terms of the growth trajectory it has witnessed in past few years, he said. The goal is to invest in more local production of all commodities. Vedanta will invest USD 8 billion in the next two-and-a-half years, bigger than miners such as Rio Tinto Group and Anglo have pledged to spend over a similar period.

On the shutdown of copper smelting plant at Tuticorin in Tamil Nadu following the killing of protesters in police firing, Venkat said he believes that issue can be resolved through proper consultations and dialogue. Vedanta has a "very good track record for sustainability," he said without elaborating.

Mining mogul Anil Agarwal, who controls Vedanta, said Venkat is a widely respected business leader in the global resources space and has a strong record managing a complex portfolio of operating assets and projects across Africa.

"I am very pleased that he has joined. Everybody knows about him," Agarwal told PTI. Vedanta is due to start production at a big zinc mine in South Africa later this year and Venkat said opportunities in Africa are huge.

"Mr Agarwal is the single biggest foreign investor in South Africa," he said. "Outlook is bright. I am very optimistic in terms of future." He said he wants to give back to his motherland. "Certainly Mr Agarwal and Vedanta could have picked up anybody but he picked up. I certainly want to give back to India what India gave to me. This is a chance to pay back," he said.

Venkat said he was born in India and lived in the country till 1988 before moving to the UK and then to Africa. "I am hugely excited in joining Vedanta. Certainly what Mr Agarwal has achieved by building this group into multi-commodity resource company which is not just one of the biggest in India but competing at world stage has been phenomenal and has attracted me hugely to it," he said.

Under Venkatakrishnan - an accountant by training, AngloGold completed two new mining projects and achieved significant reductions in costs and debt at the same time as improving productivity Vedanta owns power plants as well as oilfields and aluminium smelters. It has operations in zinc, lead, silver and iron ore crossing four continents.
The accused claimed that she considered the infant responsible for their family's 'medical and financial problems.' (Representational image)

New Delhi: The Delhi Police has arrested a 27-year-old woman for allegedly strangling her seven-month-old daughter and passing it off as an accidental death. The accused claimed that she considered the infant responsible for their family's "medical and financial problems."

On August 20, Hazrat Nizamuddin police station received information of a girl child been brought dead at the Moolchand Hospital. On reaching hospital, the police found that the infant was brought to the hospital by her parents - Israr Khan (father) and Adiba (mother). Later on inquiry, the parents stated that the girl had drowned in a bucket.

However, during observation of the dead body, the police noticed that neck of the baby had doubtful marks on the front portion. Hence, the body was shifted to All India Institute for Medical Sciences (AIIMS) Mortuary for port-mortem.

Following that, on August 27 the post-mortem report stated "the cause of death is fatal pressure over the neck." Also, as per the report there was no water in the internal organs of the deceased.

Taking a lead from that, the police later investigated the crime scene i.e bathroom of deceased's house. From there, water bucket having yellowish water and other exhibits were lifted and seized.

Later, Adiba was examined as she was the only person present at home when the incident took place. On sustained interrogation, she broke down and confessed about the murder of her daughter. She said that since her daughter's birth, their entire family was facing medical and financial problems. She considered her death the only solution for elimination of their financial crunch and other problems. Therefore, she planned to kill her.

On the day of incident, no one was present at her home and the deceased child was sleeping. Adiba strangulated her neck with the help of a dupatta and killed her. After that she put deceased child's body in the bucket of water to show her death due to drowning. After that she pulled the deceased out of the bucket and kept her on the bed and rushed to her husband's tailor shop and informed him about the same.

Accused Adiba has been arrested in the case for murder of her daughter and the dupatta used for strangulation has been recovered by the police.
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Dak Nong police found an employee of Loan mixing coffee bean skin with a black liquid made from battery powder and dirt. Photo acquired by VnExpress

Authorities have wrapped up investigation into an establishment that produced impurities for a trading firm to contaminate its pepper.

Its owner Nguyen Thi Thanh Loan, 43, and her accomplices would be charged with "violating regulations on food safety and hygiene", prosecutors in the Central Highlands province of Dak Nong said.

According to investigators, Phan Thi Dung, 56, from the southern province of Binh Phuoc, opened an agricultural products trading company a few years ago.

The company's customers accepted pepper with up to 2 percent impurity whereas Dung found that she was able to buy pepper from farmers with impurity levels below this threshold.

So she hatched a plan to add impurities to pepper until it reached the 2 percent limit for more profit, investigators said.

Through an intermediary she contracted Loans establishment in Dak Nong to produce impurities by dyeing a mixture of coffee bean skin and gravel with battery chemicals.

In three years until they were busted last April Loan had managed to sell 15-20 truckloads of impurities, with 15-20 tons of impurities per truck, at VND9,000-12,000 per kilogram ($0.38-0.51 per 2.2 pounds), investigators said.

The intermediary, Le Thi Hong Tho, 39, director of another trading company in Dak Nong, received VND1,000-3,000 per kilogram.

Dak Nong environmental police and agriculture inspectors had raided Loan's establishment in April and found an employee mixing coffee bean skin with a black liquid made from battery powder and dirt.

They seized 21 tons of the mixture, 192 kilograms of crushed batteries, 35 kilograms of a black powder derived from them and 40 liters (10.6 gallons) of dyeing liquid.

A week later police raided Dung's company in Binh Phuoc and seized nine tons of pepper mixed with the concoction she had bought from Loan.

Tests showed that the impurity rate of the seized pepper was up to 18.34 percent, and it contained many substances banned from use in foods such as manganese dioxide, zinc chloride and ammonium chloride.

Dak Nong authorities are also completing procedures to charge Loan, Dung, Tho, Loan's husband, and their truck driver with violating food safety regulations, which is punishable by up to 20 years in jail.
A photo provided by the police shows guns and other evidences seized during a search of Le Quoc Binh's home.

Police in central Vietnam arrested a man Wednesday for allegedly smuggling weapons from Cambodia, the Ministry of Public Security said.

Le Quoc Binh, 48, from the central province of Binh Dinh, was described as a member of the terrorist group Viet Tan, which seeks to subvert the Vietnamese government.

The police merely said they had caught him with military guns without providing further details.

A search of Binh's home yielded seven guns, over 500 cartridges and documents speaking about undermining the government, they said.

The police said Binh has admitted to smuggling weapons from Cambodia into Vietnam.

Earlier this month a court in Nghe An Province in central Vietnam sentenced Le Dinh Luong, 53, to 20 years in prison and five years of probation for carrying out 'activities aimed at overthrowing the peoples administration.'

The indictment said Luong was also a member of Viet Tan and recruited many people through Facebook, helping develop the organization in Vietnam.

In April a Hanoi court sentenced six members of the Brotherhood for Democracy, an organization accused of trying to overthrow the government, to nine to 15 years in prison.
A new book details how a Vietnamese firm spurned a multibillion dollar buyout and stood on its own.

The book is the first work by a Vietnamese author released by U.S.-based publishing house ForbesBooks.

Titled Competing with Giants, the book tells the story of Tan Hiep Phat (THP), a Vietnamese firm established during the difficult times that followed the Vietnam War, and its experience in competing with multinational giants.

150 guests watched musicians performing traditional Vietnamese music with Dan Bau - a single-stringed musical instrument at the book launch event. Photo: Khanh Anh

The book is also a research work on the business environment in Vietnam as it transited to a market economy in the late 1980s.

One of the highlights of the book is how THP rejected Coca Colas offer to buy a majority of its shares for $2.5 billion.

THP went on to increase its shares in the soft drink industry by focusing on bottled herbal tea and directly competed with foreign behemoths like Coca Cola, Suntory PepsiCo and URC.

Tran Uyen Phuong, co-author of the book, was well placed to get inside information as the daughter of THP chairman Tran Qui Thanh.

Tran Qui Thanh aka Dr. Thanh with his two daughters author Tran Uyen Phuong and Tran Ngoc Bich posed for a photo at the launch event. Photo: Khanh Anh

She said she was inspired to write the book by theencouragement she received from her professors at the Harvard University.

After she finished her training at the Ivy League university in 2012, she spent four years researching material for the book, which is co-authored by a British journalist Jackie Horne and U.S. economist John Kador.

My professors and fellow students were mostly business owners, so they were interested in knowing why a local business could say no to a billion-dollar offer from a global soft drink company, Phuong said at the books release in New York

Through the story of her familys company and in-depth research of Vietnams economy, the book seeks to convey a key message  nothing is impossible, Phuong said.

Indigenous knowledge combined with international business ideas can make a local company surpass multinational giants, she added.

ForbesBooks director of business Justin Batt said Competing with Giants has great value for global readers, especially businesspeople and students of economics.

Justin Batt, Chief revenue officer of ForbesBooks stated the book was well-received by entrepreneurs and students of economic studies.

The book provides practical information on how and why a Vietnamese business gradually rose up and found its place in the international market, he added.

Dang Dinh Quy, Permanent Representative of Vietnam to the United Nations, said that the book has significant value in introducing the image of a new Vietnam that is rising up to integrate globally.

Phuong will introduce her book to international readers in the Philippines and Singapore before returning to Vietnam. Vietnamese version of the book will be published in October.

The publisher released 20.000 copies of the book on its debut. It is also available on Amazon.com.

Established in 2016, ForbesBooks promotes authors by providing them with the opportunity to publish their content across the Forbes Media platform.

ForbesBooks has thus far published over 50 books on business and economics.

Anh Tuyet
Onam@Saigon in Vietnam was a vibrant celebration of Indian diversity that raised funds for flood victims in Kerala.

There is an old story that still does the rounds in India.

When Neil Armstrong lands on the moon for the first time, a Keralite tea stall owner greets him, saying, "Would you like a cup of tea, sir?"

The story is a humorous reference to ubiquitous presence of Keralite diaspora. Kerala is a small south Indian state from where people have branched out to every corner of the globe.

The Keralites are present in Vietnam, too, and they have been marking their presence for 18 years with Onam@Saigon, one of the liveliest Indian festival celebrations of the year in the country.

This year, there was an unfortunate twist to the festival, with the state making global headlines after it was struck by unprecedented flooding that killed close to 400 people and, marooned millions in their homes and thousands of relief camps.

The organizers of the festival, Onam@Saigon, who had already made all the preparations, including arranging for perfomers and a cook to fly from Kerala to Saigon, and selling tickets to the popular event, were in a quandary. They took the simplest way out, and turned the event into a very successful fund raiser recently.

The festival also turned out to be a vibrant cultural event that lifted the spirits of Malayalees (Keralites). That the event was peppered with Vietnamese participation lent it a special flavor.

Vietnamese women dressed in traditional Kerala attire (offwhite and gold), who performed a folk dance, pose with a Vietnamese woman who attended the event in a blue saree. Photo courtesy of Onam@Saigon18

"Happy Onam!", was a greeting heard constantly as people arrived for Onam@Saigon 18. It attracted some of the most amazing Indian fashionistas. Many festival-goers and performers came beautifully dressed in the saree, a traditional attire for Indian women all over the country.

The event commenced with the traditional ritual of lighting the lamp, signifying something good and auspicious. Light represents abundance, fortune, and auspiciousness in Hindu culture.

Vietnamese sophomore students from the University of Social Sciences and Humanities performed the Thiruvathirakkali, a Kerala folk dance. The students are majors in Indian Studies at the Department of Oriental Studies. "It is not easy for foreigners to perform this dance without putting a foot wrong. They did a wonderful job, smiling throughout," the emcee of the show said, to resounding applause. Photo by Sen

Anupama Jha Kumar, who performed the classic Indian dance of Kathak, celebrated the monsoon with her performance. Explaining her exquisitely painted hands and feet, she said that the red colored powder, extracted from flowers, is used in religious functions to pay respect to the Gods. Photo by Sen

Joy was the only standing chef at Onam@Saigon18. He made sure everyone received a hot Appam, an Indian rice bread that is scooped out of the pan. It is typically served with a spicy curry cooked in coconut milk. Photo courtesy of Onam@Saigon18

A highlight of the event was the Onasadhya, the traditional Onam feast served on banana leaves, with more than 20 dishes eaten with relish using hands  no forks, no chopsticks. Photo courtesy of Onam@Saigon18

A large group of festival-goers added to the excitement with their freestyle dancing to the upbeat melodies of the performers. Photo by Sen

The atmosphere at Onam@Saigon 2018 was a combination of jubilance and excitement. With songs in at least five languages and dances from different parts of the country, Indians attending the event spoke confidently and proudly about their countrys cultural diversity.

Organizers later said that with more than 750 people attending the festival, the event was more successful than they expected. They raised around $20,000, the bulk of which ($16,500) was handed over to the Indian Consul General in HCMC, and the rest to a Vietnamese orphanage and a center for specially-abled people.
China says has culled over 38,000 hogs due to African swine fever

Piglets are seen by a sow at a pig farm in Zhoukou, Henan province, China June 3, 2018. Picture taken June 3, 2018. Photo by Reuters/Stringer

China culled more than 38,000 hogs as of September 1 due to African swine fever outbreaks, the agriculture ministry said on Sunday.

China, where pork is a staple meat, has reported five swine fever cases in five different provinces in a month, prompting authorities to cull hogs to contain the outbreak.

Epidemic culling and harmless treatment has basically finished in Liaoning, Henan, Jiangsu and Zhejiang provinces, where a total of 37,271 hogs were culled, while another 1,264 hogs were put down by Saturday in Anhui province.

Live hogs from provinces with outbreaks are banned from being transported outside and live hog markets in those provinces will be shut, the ministry said.

Live hogs from unaffected provinces cannot be transported through infected provinces, it added.

The ministry said on Wednesday it cannot rule out the possibility of new outbreaks as concerns grow over the deadly diseases spread in the worlds largest hog herd.
State-owned enterprise Research and Production Complex Iskra is Ukraine's leading developer and manufacturer of ground radar equipment.

According to ImportGenius, a website tracking import/export operations at shipping docks, the U.S. Army Contracting Command received the 3D mobile air-defense radar system from Ukraine.

The notice by the ImportGenius said that the U.S. Army Contracting Command center in Orlando has received 3D mobile air-defense radar system, called the 36D6M1-1, from Ukraine through SFTC Progress, according to Defence Blog.

The 36D6M1-1is a mobile 3D airspace surveillance radar system that was developed by the SE Scientific and Production Complex Iskra and is designed to be used as a part of modern automated Air Defense systems, Anti-Aircraft Missile Complexes and to detect low flying air targets under active and passive jamming as well as to provide Air Traffic Control both for military and civil purpose.

However, it is expected that the Ukrainian-made 3D mobile air-defense radar system could be used for technologies analysis and operational OPFOR training.

Read alsoUkraine's air shield: Taking off to 21st century

It is worth noting that previously business structures associated with Russia tried to disrupt the contract for supply Ukrainian 3D radar system to the United States.

According to the notice by the Ukrainian industrial group UkrOboronProm, LLC KIT tried to cripple the production process at SE Iskra through fake accusations in 2017 of non-payment of patent royalties.

The Ukrainian defense group added that LLC KIT was in fact a fictitious firm, with which the former management of the company entered into an agreement, for the sake of money siphoning. The court declared this contract invalid as LLC KIT failed to meet UkrOboronProm's requirements, received no UOP accreditation, and had nothing to do with the defense complex of Ukraine as such.

State-owned enterprise Research and Production Complex Iskra is Ukraine's leading developer and manufacturer of ground radar equipment. The company is part of UkrOboronProm Concern.
Expert estimates Ukraine's loss over decline of Russia trade

Problems in foreign trade relations with Russia first emerged in 2011.

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Ukrainian hryvnia celebrates 22nd anniversary

Today, the country has in circulation cash hryvnia worth UAH 373.6 billion.

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Injured people as result of traffic accident on Grigor Lusavorich Street

On September 3, at 01:00, the "911" hotline received an alarm that the car accident occurred near the Russian Embassy in Grigor Lusavorich Street. It turned out that the Nissan Sunny and Lada Priora had collided near the Russian Embassy in Grigor Lusavorich Street, after which the latter left the highway and hit the tree. Before the rescuers arrived at the scene, the passengers of the Lada Priora were taken to the Heratsi hospital complex N1 by the help of the citizens. The doctors assessed the health of the injured as satisfactory. The driver of Lada Priora had left the car by himself before the rescuers arrived in the scene, so they brought him near the ambulance. The driver was hospitalized at Heratsi hospital complex N1 , where he was discharged after being examined. The rescuers disconnected the Nissan Sunny car and closed the gas cylinder.
Developing international best practice. Ombudsman participates in execution of European Court of Human Rights judgments

At the initiative of the Ombudsman and with the support of the European Court of Human Rights, consultations have been initiated in Yerevan relating the implementation of the European Court of Human Rights judgments on the rights of the servicemen, the right to life and the torture. The participation of the Armenian National Human Rights Institute in the European Court of Human Rights judgments is an example of best international practice, and the Ombudsman will participate in this case in collaboration with public sector and civil society partners. Human Rights Defender Arman Tatoyan and Head of the European Court of Human Rights Office in Yerevan Natalia Vutova made opening speeches at the event organized by the European Court of Human Rights Office in Yerevan within the framework of the "Strengthening the application of European human rights standards in the armed forces in Armenia" program. The event was also organized within the framework of the Copenhagen Declaration of 2018. Vahe Demirchyan, representative of the court's judicial execution department of the European Court of Human Rights, participated in the discussion, too. During the consultation, the execution procedure of the judgments of the the European Court of Human Rights were presented to the Ombudsman's Staff and the peculiarities of the National Human Rights Institution's participation in the process.
Yasmina Reza's theater to arrive in Armenia

The Sate-Atre Theater Union in France, together with the Armenian Ministry of Culture, the French Embassy in Armenia and the International Organization of La Francophonie, will represent number of events dedicated to the drama of Yasmina Reza in Armenia. Within the framework of the Francophonie Summit, Sate-Atre Theater Union aims to make the renowned French contemporary dramatist Yasmina Reza's theater and works famous for the Armenian reader and audience. Yasmina Reza is one of the most-translated and featured modern French playwrights in the world who, unfortunately, is almost unknown to the Armenian reader and audience. Our project includes the following events: The play "God of Carnage" will be staged at Hovhannes Tumanyan State Puppet Theater. The same play will also be shown in French twice, exclusively for the Francophonie audience. The invited artists will also hold master classes for the students of the Yerevan State Institute of Theater and Cinema and for the professional actors of Hovhannes Tumanyan State Puppet Theater. Master Classes will also be available for French learners, which will help learn French through the Theater. Zangak Publishing House will publish the translations of six plays by Yasmina Reza. The presentation of the book will take place at the Zangak Publishing House. Theatrical reading of Reza's "Art" play will also be held at the same location. "Three Options of Life" play will be staged at LOFT, which will feature three directors. The union will also take master classes in Sevan. The supporters of our project are the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Armenia, the French Embassy in Armenia, the Metropole de Lyon, the CDI, the Overne-Rhone-Alps region, the IRAPA platform and the International Organization of Francophonie (OIF) as well as H. Tumanyan State Puppet Theater, Zangak Bookstore and Publishing House, LOFT, Av. Isahakyan Central Library and Yerevan City Hall.
Galaxy Group of Companies expands its activities in Belarus: a new TIME and Pandora store launched

I think its a good moment to invest in Armenia. Head of Markets at Symbiotics Vincent Lehner

Ameriabank has Raised USD 17.5M Tier 2 Capital

UNIGHT TO UNITE. UCOM CELEBRATED ITS REBIRTH

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Ameriabank and HSBC Armenia to provide their customers access to each others ATMs without additional fees

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

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"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

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
Lavrov: Russia is worried that the situation in Armenia is "boiling" (video)

According to Russian minister of foreign affairs Sergei Lavrov, Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will meet soon. "It is interesting for us to hear how the new leader of Armenia himself is assessing the prospects of developments of the situation in his country. Of course, we arent indifferent at all as to what Armenias obligations towards the CSTO look like in this situation, we are proceeding from the fact that these obligations are functioning, they are required to be implemented fully, including in terms of what relates to the strengthening of our common organizations conduct and reputation," he said. Lavrov added: "We are worried that the situation in Armenia is 'boiling,' in particular, investigations into cases of ten years are being investigated. It is Armenia's internal affair, but we want the law to be clearly kept in the process, and the constitution to be quickly overcome, so that Armenia will have the opportunity to focus on creative issues. "
The National Bank of Ukrainian (NBU) has presented a draft anti-corruption program of the central bank for 2018-2019 to be discussed in public.

The NBU said on its website that the anti-corruption program has a range of activities to prevent, detect and combat corruption at the NBU and to ensure the observation of anti-corruption legislation by the central bank officials.

The NBU policy on preventing and combating corruption is based on the principles of the rule of law, integrity in the public service, the formation of "zero tolerance" for any manifestation of corruption, the inevitability of punishment for corruption offenses, transparency and openness of activities, the NBU said in the report.

"The main goal of the program is to take additional measures and strengthen existing measures aimed at further improving the system of preventing, detecting, eliminating and combating corruption in the National Bank of Ukraine. Priority is given to the implementation of preventive anti-corruption measures," the NBU said.

The document is designed to fulfill the requirements of Article 19 of the law on the prevention of corruption.

The NBU accepts comments and proposals for the document before September 7.
You are true hero of America, you are true hero of Ukraine - President bidding farewell to U.S. Senator McCain

President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko took part in the farewell ceremony for United States Senator John McCain in Washington.

"Senator, we are very grateful to you. And that is why, now, expressing the thoughts and sympathy of the great 45 million people, I am here today," the presidential press service quoted the president as saying after the ceremony.

Poroshenko noted that on this sad day he, as President of Ukraine and as friend of Senator McCain, was supposed to be at the ceremony "in order to pay tribute and respect to my friend and a great friend of Ukraine, a true American and a true fighter for the ideals of democracy and freedom."

The president especially noted that Senator McCain was together with Ukraine and Ukrainians in the critical moments of our history.

"We all remember him on Maidan during the Revolution of Dignity, when at a temperature of minus 26 degrees he went undressed, turned to hundreds of thousands of people who stood on Maidan in order to express the necessary words of support. That the whole world and the United States of America are together with Ukrainians. And when it was necessary to consolidate the world during the Munich Security Forum - he was the leader and helped us," the head of state noted.

Poroshenko also recalled one of his last meetings with the Senator, when they, together with John McCain, decided to visit the Ukrainian marines who were holding the line in Shyrokyne district.

"Ten kilometers away from the area, the Security Service informed me that the artillery shelling started in the area we were driving to. I told the Senator that I, as President and Supreme Commander-in-Chief, must be there, but I am concerned about the security of the Senator and Americans. I asked him not to go. And I remembered his words forever: "In the most difficult and most dangerous times of your history, Mr. President, I am with you."

"Thank you once again. You are a true hero of America, but you are also a true hero of Ukraine. Thank you," the president said.
The Verkhovna Rada will begin the ninth session of the eighth convocation with European integration bills, in particular, in the field of intellectual property and national security protection, Parliament Speaker Andriy Parubiy has said.

"It is proposed for the first plenary week that we consider a number of euro integration bills, in particular, bills on intellectual property. It is proposed that we consider a number of national security issues on Thursday, and I also want to say that we have a large debt on ratifications. I suggest that we will be able to consider these bills not only on Wednesday, but also on Thursday," he said at a meeting of the conciliatory council of the faction leaders, committees and parliamentary groups on Monday.

In addition, the speaker of Parliament noted that the Verkhovna Rada on Wednesday will begin to consider the draft law on the business ombudsman and finalize it on Thursday.

As it is known, on Tuesday, September 4, the ninth session of the Verkhovna Rada of the eighth convocation opens.
Fourteen countries of the world demonstrate solidarity with Ukraine on the issue of territorial integrity by their participation in the multinational exercises Rapid Trident 2018, U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch has said.

"Today 2,200 participants from 14 nations  spanning continents and oceans  stand in solidarity with Ukraine, for Ukrainian security, Ukrainian sovereignty, and Ukrainian territorial integrity," Yovanovitch said during the opening ceremony of the exercises Rapid Trident 2018 in Lviv region, the U.S. embassy said on Twitter on Monday.

The largest joint land exercises in Ukraine between the Ukrainian Armed Forces and army divisions of foreign states are held annually in the territory of the International Center for Peacemaking and Security of the National Academy of the Land Forces named after Hetman Petro Sahaidachny (Starychi village, Yavorivsky district, Lviv region).
Russia's hybrid military forces have mounted 16 attacks on Ukrainian army positions in Donbas in the past 24 hours, with eight Ukrainian soldiers reported as wounded in action (WIA), the press centre of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation has reported.

"The Russian invaders fired 16 times on the positions of our troops, while the enemy did not use weapons prohibited by the Minsk agreements. The enemy fired from grenade launchers of various systems, large-caliber machine guns and small arms," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO) said in its update on Facebook on Monday.

Russian occupation forces opened fire from grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms to attack the defenders of the town of Krymske, Shumy, Pivdenne, Kamianka, Maryinka, and the villages of Berezove, Pavlopil, Hnutove, Lebedynske, Vodiane, and Shyrokyne.

"Four Ukrainian servicemen were wounded, another four got minor injuries. All of them were evacuated from positions on time, delivered to medical institutions and receive the necessary treatment," the headquarters noted.

Since Monday midnight, Russian-led forces have mounted four attacks on the Ukrainian positions outside the villages of Pisky, Vodiane, Pavlopil and Krymske.

According to Ukrainian intelligence, three enemy troops were killed and another six were wounded.
The Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security and Defense is preparing a bill that will allow the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine to be directly an importer of weapons from the United States.

"A very important factor is the possibility of cooperation between the Ministry of Defense directly with the Pentagon and the U.S. Department of State on the supply of military equipment, weapons and dual-use goods," Ivan Vinnyk, a member of the Verkhovna Rada Committee on National Security and Defense (Petro Poroshenko Bloc) said in Kyiv on Monday at a meeting of the conciliation council of the parliament.

He said that in connection with this, in pursuance of the decision of the National Security and Defense Council, "we will introduce a bill that will allow the Ministry of Defense to directly import equipment and weapons from the U.S. bypassing special exporters, because this to some extent creates obstacles for effective work."
Ukraine will not prolong its friendship and cooperation agreement with Russia, but will not denunciate it either, First deputy chairwoman of the Verkhovna Rada, Ukraine's representative in the humanitarian subgroup of the TCG, Iryna Gerashchenko has said.

"No one is talking about denunciating the pact, because we are demanding in all international courts that Russia abide by it Because they have violated the agreement," she said at a meeting with parliament party faction and group leaders on Monday.

Gerashchenko said denunciation and non-prolongation are not synonymous.

"We are only talking about not prolonging the agreement," she said, adding that Kremlin leaders want Ukraine to officially break the agreement.

According to Gerashchenko the situation is as follows: the Ukraine-Russia friendship agreement needs to be extended this autumn. Usually this has been done automatically, "but there can be no discussion about doing this now."

"What's important is adopting a law on reintegration, which would firmly put into law that Russia is an occupying force and bears full responsibility for the security and humanitarian situation in Donbas. Therefore, the president ordered Ukraine's Foreign Ministry to draft recommendations for ending (that is, no prolonging) the law. We are not talking about denunciating it, because in 2014 when the friendship agreement was working, Russia grossly violated it."

"It's impossible to continue abiding by the agreement because there is no friendship or cooperation with Russia, just war and Russian aggression," she said.

As earlier reported, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko on August 28 said he is waiting for the Foreign Ministry to provide him with documents for starting the procedure of ending the Ukraine-Russia friendship agreement.
Jerusalem, Sept 2, 2018 (AFP)

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met on Sunday with a US envoy for Syria for talks on the war-ravaged country and Iran, his office said.

Netanyahu discussed "the situation in Syria and the joint effort to stop Iran's terror and aggression" with James Jeffrey, the US special representative for Syria engagement, said a statement.

Ahead of the visit, the US State Department said Jeffrey, accompanied by US special envoy for Syria Joel Rayburn, would discuss "maintaining Israel's security while countering Iran's destabilising activity throughout the region".

Jeffrey and Rayburn would travel on to Jordan and Turkey, where they would reiterate the US position against a military offensive in Idlib, the State Department said.

The two "will also address Russia's specious allegations of international plans to stage a chemical weapons attack in Syria" in their meetings across the region, according to the State Department.

Iran is backing Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his country's civil war along with Russia and Lebanese Shiite group Hezbollah.

Israel has sought to avoid direct involvement in the conflict but acknowledges carrying out dozens of air strikes in Syria to stop what it says are deliveries of advanced weaponry to its Lebanese enemy Hezbollah.

It has also pledged to prevent its arch foe Iran from entrenching itself militarily in Syria, and a series of strikes that have killed Iranians in Syria have been attributed to Israel.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have 113 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Sept. 3.

Armenian armed forces were using heavy 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, Sept. 3

Trend:

Azerbaijan expects that Russia's efforts towards resolving the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will be continued, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said.

He was making press statement in Sochi Sept. 1 together with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

I would like to note that among the issues we have discussed, an important place is held by the issues of regional security, first of all the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Ilham Aliyev said. It has been ongoing for a very long time and has led to great suffering for the Azerbaijani people. The internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan have been under Armenian occupation for many years.

More than a million Azerbaijanis have become refugees and internally displaced persons as a result of this conflict, the Azerbaijani president said. The soonest settlement of the conflict will allow our citizens to return to their historical lands, and bring peace, stability and cooperation to our region.

Russia, as a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group dealing with the settlement of the conflict, plays an important role in the conflict settlement, Ilham Aliyev noted.

Russia is our neighbor, our historical partner and friend, and we expect that Russia's efforts towards resolving the conflict will be continued, the Azerbaijani president said.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

Todays talks will give an additional impetus to further developing the entire complex of Russian-Azerbaijani relations, said President of Russia Vladimir Putin Sept. 1 at a press conference following his meeting with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev in Sochi.

Russia and Azerbaijan are bound by strong traditions of friendship and cooperation, Putin said. The relationship between our states is a partnership that is mutually beneficial and is based on the principles of neighbourly relations and respect for each others interests.

I am convinced that todays talks, in which the heads of our key agencies and business leaders took part, will give an additional impetus to further developing the entire complex of Russian-Azerbaijani relations, he noted. This is the aim of the joint statement the President of Azerbaijan and I have signed along with a substantial set of intergovernmental and interdepartmental agreements.

First of all, I would like to highlight the Action Plan on Developing Key Areas of Cooperation. This programme document includes roadmaps on such important issues as increasing trade and mutual investments, creating new transport routes and expanding humanitarian cooperation, including cultural and tourism exchanges, Vladimir Putin added.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

The 6th Summit of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States has kicked off at the "Rux Ordo" Cultural Center named after Chingiz Aitmatov in Cholpon-Ata town of Kyrgyz Republic.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev is attending the Summit.

President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sooronbai Jeenbekov welcomed President Ilham Aliyev, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Republic of Tatarstan (Russian Federation) Rustam Minnikhanov and Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban.

Heads of state and government toured the territory of "Rux Ordo" Cultural Center named after Chingiz Aitmatov where they viewed statues of prominent personalities of the Kyrgyz people as well as monuments reflecting the history and culture of Kyrgyzstan.

Then, they posed together for photographs.

In his opening remarks, chairman of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev expressed gratitude to the Kyrgyz president for the high level organization of the event and hospitality.

President Nursultan Nazarbayev said that the participation of Uzbekistan and Hungary at the 6th Summit is indicative of the expansion of the organization's activity and the strengthening of solidarity. The strengthening of the Turkic Council's activities will make a significant contribution to achieving the emerging goals, he said.

Then, President of Kyrgyzstan Sooronbai Jeenbekov, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and other heads of state and government made speeches.

The summit continues its work.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

The next summit of the Cooperation Council of the Turkic Speaking States (CCTS) will be held in Baku in 2019, according to the decision of its members, Secretary General of the organization Baghdad Amreev said, Kabar reported.

He noted that a Joint Declaration, which reflects all the activities of the organization, as well as the concept of development of the Turkic states have been signed today.

"Today's documents help us to reformat the work, to optimize the existing institutions of Turkic integration and to centralize our activities," he said.

Amreev said another important point of the summit is the acquisition by Hungary of the official observer status in the CCTS. But the issue of Uzbekistan's membership in the Council has not yet been resolved.

"Uzbekistan is not a member of the the CCTS, but participates in the summits as an observer. We hope that Uzbekistan's membership in the Council will be formalized in the near future. There is every reason for this," he concluded.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sep. 3

By Anvar Mammadov  Trend:

Implementation of the project for the restoration and development of beekeeping in Azerbaijans Jojug Marjanli village is proceeding quite successfully, Badraddin Hasratov, chairman of Azerbaijan Beekeepers Association, told Trend.

He said that the conditions in this region are very favorable for the development of beekeeping, so the project can be expanded in the future.

"The project, which is being implemented jointly with the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), is proceeding quite successfully," Hasratov said. "Fifteen beekeepers were selected, and each was issued ten bee families. Before that, we conducted a one-week training for all beekeepers, and we keep in touch with them by phone. In autumn we plan to conduct monitoring before wintering of bees. We hope that as a result of this projects implementation, the selected beekeepers will be able to provide themselves with stable income. This zone is very favorable for beekeeping, so in the future we want to issue bees to 15 more families."

He added that in the near future, in the north-west districts of Azerbaijan it is planned to implement another pilot project - the development of beekeeping among women.

"The project will be implemented jointly with the US Agency for International Development (USAID) and should start in September," Hasratov said. "We have already selected five women from Azerbaijans Balakan, Sheki, Zagatala and Gakh districts each. Training will be conducted with them, after which bee families and the necessary funds for $1,000 will be allocated to each woman. During the year, a specialist will work with them, who will monitor and report on the implementation of the project."

Hasratov noted that preparations for the exhibition of honey, which usually takes place in the autumn, continue. He added that this year a number of new conditions will be put before potential participants.

"We are looking for a place to hold a fair," he said. "We are likely to refuse from holding the fair at the AMAY shopping center, where it was held in the previous years. We are counting on the participation of about 350 beekeepers who will supply approximately 100 tons of honey to the fair."

"This year, we introduced new requirements to the participants," he noted. "For example, one beekeeper will be able to showcase no more than 500 kilograms of honey at the fair. This was done in order to ensure that all beekeepers can sell their goods completely and in order to avoid monopoly. Besides, there will be restrictions regarding the number of bee families  the beekeepers who have less than 20 or 30 bee families wont participate in the fair."

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Follow the author on Twitter: @Anvar_Mammadov
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

Turkey has changed the conditions for vessels passage through its territorial waters, Turkish media reported Sept. 3.

In line with the changes, the vessels in Turkish waters wont be able to approach bridges by more than 100 meters, and the vessels that transport military cargo will also have the status of warships.

It is also noted that if any problems arise, the Turkish Coast Guard Command will have the right to intervene in the incident without the permission of the vessels captain.

In line with other changes, the Turkish Coast Guard Command must be informed about the vessels with length exceeding 300 meters ten days before their entry into the Turkish bays.

It is also noted that the vessels carrying liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) will be able to pass through the Turkish bays only in the daytime.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

The State Oil Fund of Azerbaijan (SOFAZ) sold $733.7 million at currency auctions organized by the Central Bank in August 2018, the Fund said in a message Sept. 3.

SOFAZ sold to banks $536.6 million in July. Since the beginning of the year, Azerbaijani banks have bought about $4 billion from the Fund.

The Oil Fund will continue the sale of foreign currency through auctions in 2018.

The sale of currency is carried out as part of SOFAZ transfers to the state budget of Azerbaijan, which are planned to stand at 10.966 billion manats in 2018.

The official rate of manat for the next day is determined on the basis of the weighted average rate under transactions concluded with commercial banks in the interbank currency market and auctions. Auctions are held in the format of one-sided currency sale.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

Russia will export the planned volume of oil to Uzbekistan by the end of 2018, despite the problems associated with the capacity of the transport system, Deputy Chairman of the Board for advanced processing of "Uzbekneftegaz" JSC Odil Temirov told Kun.uz.

"The supplies are being received. We have already imported 700,000 tons of oil and oil products. We adhere to the plan for the import of crude oil. We have the tasks that we have set until the end of the year, they will be fulfilled," Temirov said.

Earlier, the former Deputy Minister of Energy of Russia Kirill Molodtsov said that Gazprom Neft PJSC company is studying the feasibility of supplying up to one million tons of oil to Uzbekistan next year, but everything will depend on the capacity of the transport system.

The discussion of the intergovernmental agreement on oil supplies to Uzbekistan is also at the final stage.

According to the data of the Central Dispatching Department of Fuel and Energy Complex of the Russian Federation, in 2017, the Russian oil export to Uzbekistan amounted to 68,200 tons, in JanuaryApril 2018  to 36,000 tons.

A bilateral Memorandum on the supply of 500,000 tons of Russian oil to Uzbekistan was signed in April 2017, during the visit of President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Moscow.
Baku, Azerbaijan. Sep. 4

Trend:

Italian Interior Minister Matteo Salvini intends to meet in Rome with Tony Blair, advising on the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline, which is designed to transport natural gas from Azerbaijan to Europe, The Guardian reported.

"Italy's rightwing Interior Minister Matteo Salvini will meet with former British Prime Minister Tony Blair in Rome to discuss a controversial extension plan for the gas pipeline that will run from Azerbaijan to Apulia in southern Italy," the newspaper says.

The date of this meeting is not specified in the article.

TAP project, worth 4.5 billion euros, is one of the priority energy projects for the European Union (EU), and has already attracted 1.5 billion euros from the European Investment Bank (EIB), which approved the loan in early February 2018.

Connecting with the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) at the Greek-Turkish border, TAP will cross Northern Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea before coming ashore in Southern Italy to connect to the Italian natural gas network.

The project is currently in its construction phase, which started in 2016.

Once built, TAP will offer a direct and cost-effective transportation route opening up the vital Southern Gas Corridor, a 3,500-kilometer long gas value chain stretching from the Caspian Sea to Europe.

TAP shareholders include BP (20 percent), SOCAR (20 percent), Snam S.p.A. (20 percent), Fluxys (19 percent), Enagas (16 percent) and Axpo (5 percent).
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

By Huseyn Veliyev - Trend:

The second telecommunications satellite of Azerbaijan - Azerspace - 2/Intelsat 38, will support platform for DTH (Direct-to-Home) satellite broadcasting, the Arianespace S.A. company said in a statement Sept. 3.

The satellite is designed to provide a number of telecommunication services and will serve two operators - Intelsat S.A. and Azerkosmos OJSC companies.

"The satellite will provide coverage of the growing demand for DTH services in Europe, Central and South Asia, the Middle East and in the part of Africa south of the Sahara desert for "Azerkosmos" OJSC company, and will provide continuity of service from the orbital position of 45 degrees for the Luxembourg office of the Intelsat S.A. company, as well as will ensure the delivery of DTH services to Central and Eastern Europe, the Asia-Pacific region, and the provision of communication services in Africa", the message says.

As previously reported, the maintenance of the Direct-to-Home broadcasting capability in the process of implementing the second satellite program contributes to the emergence of DTH operators in Azerbaijan, which in turn will increase competition in the TV broadcasting market. Operators do not need to lay a cable, as the satellite signal will be able to cover the country's entire territory.

The new service will open up new opportunities for both broadcasters and TV viewers. The DTH TV signal is transmitted directly to the viewer, bypassing cable operators.

The scheme for receiving DTH TV signals is as follows: the program channels transmit the signal to the broadcasting station, which in turn sends it to the satellite. The satellite compresses the received signal, converting it into a suitable format for transmission to receivers, which the end user acquires from his DTH-provider.

The launch of the Azerspace-2/Intelsat 38 satellite has been scheduled for September 18, 2018, according to the working plan. The timing can be adjusted depending on weather conditions.

The second satellite will be put into geostationary orbit at 45 degrees east longitude. Its service zone will include countries of Europe, Central and South Asia, Middle East and Africa.

Azerbaijans first communications satellite Azerspace/Africasat 1a was launched into geostationary orbit at 46 degrees east longitude on Feb. 8, 2013. The satellite was launched from the Kourou space base by Arianespace.

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Follow the author on Twitter: @h_veliyev
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

By Anvar Mammadov - Trend:

The signing of the agreement on cooperation in tourism between Azerbaijan and Russia will give an impetus to further rapprochement between the two countries in this area, Chairman of the Azerbaijan Tourism Association (AzTA) Nahid Bagirov told Trend Sept. 3.

The chairman of AzTA noted that Russia is an interesting market for Azerbaijan in terms of tourism.

"Russia has always been an attractive tourism market for Azerbaijan," Bagirov said.

He noted that for further development of tourism relations between Azerbaijan and Russia, it is necessary to increase the advertising of Azerbaijan as a tourism destination not only in Moscow, but also in the regions of Russia.

"Russia is a big country with a significant number of population. Therefore, it is necessary to actively promote the tourism potential of Azerbaijan in Russia, in particular in its regions. It is also necessary to develop direct airline service between the regions of Russia and Azerbaijan. But before that, it is necessary to conduct good advertising, study the market and analyze the interest," Bagirov said.

A ceremony of signing documents with participation of President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and President of Russia Vladimir Putin took place Sept. 1 in Sochi.

In particular, Agreement between the Government of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the Government of the Russian Federation on Cooperation in Tourism was signed.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

The Kazakh citizens' overdue debt on loans to second-tier banks amounts to almost 700 billion tenge, the National Bank of Kazakhstan told "Kazinform".

"As of July 1, the loans (principal debt) issued to individuals has amounted to 4,544 billion tenge with a share of 33.7 percent of the loan portfolio of the banking sector. The total amount of loans issued to individuals with overdue debts has amounted to 691.9 billion tenge," said the bank.

As of July 1, the total number of individuals-borrowers has amounted to 4.58 million people.

In addition, in the reporting period, the total debt of individuals-borrowers of microfinance institutions amounted to 188.1 billion tenge, the total number of individuals-borrowers of microfinance institutions is 306,800 people.

"As of July 1, 379,200 people have loans with overdue debt of over 90 days (8.3 percent of the total number of individuals-borrowers)," the National Bank of Kazakhstan said in the message.

The official exchange rate as of September 3 is 363.43 KTZ / USD.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

Kyrgyzstan supports the implementation of the tour package, covering Turkey, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.

We are ready to make every effort to successfully implement the tour package entitled "Modern Silk Road", which covers Turkey, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan, President of Kyrgyzstan Sooronbay Jeenbekov said at the summit of the Cooperation Council of Turkic-speaking states in Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyzstan, Kyrgyz Kabar news agency reported.

"Gradual joining of Uzbekistan and Hungary to this project will make this package even more attractive," Jeenbekov said, adding that Kyrgyzstan actively supports the dynamic development of tourism among our countries.

The president also proposed to pay special attention to the expansion of ties among young people of the countries.

I initiate joint implementation of special economic and humanitarian projects to strengthen the interest of young people in innovative projects and entrepreneurship, he added. For this purpose, I propose to create an ad-hoc working group of the secretariat of the Turkic Council.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

The Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of China, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Colonel-General Xu Qiliang will visit Dushanbe on September 4-6, Asia-Plus reported.

His visit will take place in the framework of the implementation of important agreements reached by Chinese President Xi Jinping with the leader of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, the Department of Information, Press, Analysis and Foreign Policy Planning of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Xu Qiliang will hold meetings and talks with Emomali Rahmon, the Minister of Defense Colonel-General Sherali Mirzo, and will visit one of military units of the Defense Ministry of Tajikistan, the Ministry of Defense of Tajikistan told Asia-Plus.

This visit will help to strengthen the strategic trust between Beijing and Dushanbe, contributing to the promotion of pragmatic cooperation in the military sphere, the Defense Ministry of the country said in a statement.

The Chinese President Xi Jinping is the Chairman of the Central Military Commission of China.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sep. 3

Trend:

Tajikistan has increased the export of electricity to Uzbekistan by almost four times, Tajik media reported citing Monitoring and early report in Tajikistan.

The increase in electricity exports from Tajikistan to Uzbekistan began in 2H2018, according to the report.

In July, 417 million kilowatt hours of electricity were supplied.

Earlier, 110-120 million kilowatt hours were exported to Uzbekistan monthly.

Tajikistan restored supplying electricity to Uzbekistan since April 2018 after a nine-year hiatus.

Tajikistan is expected to export at least 1.5 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity to Uzbekistan by the end of 2018.

According to agreements reached by the electric power companies of the two countries, in summer, Uzbekistan purchases electricity from Tajikistan for $0.02 per kilowatt, in winter - $0.025 per kilowatt.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

Uzbekistan intends to join the Cooperation Council of Turkic-Speaking States (CCTS), Sputnik reported referring to the Press Service of the President of the Kyrgyz Republic.

The intention of Uzbekistan to become a member of the Turkic Council became known during the 6th summit of the heads of Turkic-Speaking States in Kyrgyzstan.

"On behalf of the CCTS member states, I would like to welcome President of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev, who is among us. I would like to note and support Uzbekistan's intention to join the Turkic Council as a member state," President of Kyrgyzstan Sooronbay Jeenbekov said.

"This step will create favorable conditions for expansion of our union, will increase its credibility on international arena," he added.
Tehran, Iran, Sept. 3

Trend:

Muhammad Dawood Sultanzoy, a senior advisor to the president of Afghanistan, and the secretary of Irans High Council of Free Trade Zones explored ways to enhance bilateral economic ties.

During a recent meeting in Tehran, Sultanzoy and Morteza Bank agreed to boost mutual economic and transit cooperation in a bid to link Afghanistan to other countries through the Indian Ocean, the port of Chabahar, and the high seas, IRIB news agency reported on September 3.

Sultanzoy described the political ties between Tehran and Kabul as very good, calling for the development of relations in the fields of industry, transit, tourism, and banking and financial services.

Bank, for his turn, voiced the Islamic Republics resolve for enhanced ties with its neighbors and stressed the importance of closer ties with Afghanistan as an old friend.

We have made every attempt to develop our free trade zones and pave the way for Afghan investors, he said.

Chabahar is the closest and best access point of Iran to the Indian Ocean and Iran has devised serious plans to turn it into a transit hub for immediate access to markets in the northern part of the Indian Ocean and Central Asia.

It aims to create a reliable transport corridor for the smooth transport and transit of goods and services through Chabahar Port between Afghanistan, India, and Iran.
Tehran, Iran, Sept. 3

Trend:

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said Syrias territorial integrity must be preserved and the process of reconstruction of the war-stricken country should begin soon.

The territorial integrity of Syria must be maintained, Zarif, who was on an official visit to Damascus, said on September 3, Tasnim news agency reported.

Noting that reconstruction process of the Arab country should begin under the Syrian flag, he said all those displaced should return home.

The remnants of terrorists in the remaining regions of Idlib must be flushed out of the areas, he said.

The foreign minister also pointed to an upcoming summit in Tehran between the presidents of Iran, Russia and Turkey, and said the talks aim to bring a lasting solution to the ongoing crisis in Syria.

The three countries have so far held several rounds of peace talks in Kazakhstans Astana and elsewhere to help end the conflict in Syria. The fourth round of those talks in May 2017 produced a memorandum of understanding on de-escalation zones in Syria, sharply reducing fighting in the country.

Diplomatic efforts to end fighting in Syria gained momentum in 2017 with the announcement of a ceasefire in the Arab country in early January.

According to a report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people, injured 1.9 million others, and displaced nearly half of the countrys pre-war population of about 23 million within or beyond its borders.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

Trend:

A parliamentary delegation comprised of several Iranian lawmakers has left Tehran for Europe to hold meetings with European parliamentary officials.

Iranian parliamentary delegation is headed by the head of Iranian Parliament Research Center (IPRC) Kazem Jalali, who is also the vice president of Inter-Parliamentary Union, Mehr news agency reported Sept. 3.

Other lawmakers in the delegation included Gholamreza Tajgarddon, head of Parliament's Commission on Plan, Budget and Calculations; Kamal Dehghani Firoozabadi, Vice Chairman of National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of Iranian Parliament; Siamak MoraSadegh, a member of the Parliaments Health Commission; and Zahra Saei, a member of the Parliaments Social Affairs Commission.

The delegation is expected to meet with European Parliament, Belgium and Luxembourg lawmakers and parliamentary officials.
After three years of war with Daesh and three months of a vote recount, Iraq can now form a new government and begin the process of rebuilding, Sputnik reports.

Sixteen political groups in Iraq, including those of Shiite cleric Muqtada Al-Sadr and outgoing Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, reached an agreement Sunday to form the largest bloc in the Iraqi parliament.

This agreement, reached just before the first session of the Iraqi Parliament on Monday, gives Al-Sadr the exclusive right to form a government.

Prime Minister Haider Al-Abadi, reportedly backed by the West, is also a part of the coalition. Al-Abadi is purportedly interested in extending his position into a second term, but as he is no longer the only candidate from the alliance, it is uncertain whether he will succeed.

"If the alliance holds, it means that Iran and its allies have failed to take the lead in shaping Iraq's political landscape and would have to join the Al-Sadr alliance if they want to be part of the next government," Arab News reported.

Al-Sadr, who positions himself as a nationalist and a fighter against US and Iranian influence in the country, has, according to reports, plans to create parliamentary blocs, a move which is reportedly intended to break the cycle of corruption and conflict that has plagued Iraqi politics.

While the first bloc would be responsible for the formation of an administration and a government, the other would act as opposition and would oversee the performance of the government. Both blocs are expected to include Shiite, Sunni and Kurdish parties.

"The ruling coalition will form the government in all areas, including the positions of the president and the speaker, so we seek to achieve a complete separation between the [political] forces that will be with us and the forces that will be in the opposition," a senior Al-Sadr negotiator told Arab News.

"We will not repeat the previous scenario and we will not allow any forces to participate in the government and in the opposition at the same time."

On Monday, the nation's new parliament will hold its inaugural session during which it must elect a speaker as well two deputy speakers, the Daily Mail reported. Following that, the parliament will have 30 days to elect a new Iraqi president, a position that goes to a member of the Kurdish minority with at least two-thirds of the vote. The new president will then have 15 days to task the largest parliamentary bloc to form a new government.

The new government will face the task of rebuilding Iraq after three years of war with Daesh terrorists. The vote took place in May, but a recount process delayed the results for three months.
Egyptian president President Abdel-Fattah el-Sissi ratified a law allowing authorities to supervise social media accounts in the country, Spurnik reported.

The legislation, approved by the Egyptian parliament in July, allows the country's Supreme Council for Media Regulations to supervise bloggers, websites and social media accounts with more than 5,000 followers. The council will thus be able to suspend online accounts that publish what they consider to be fake news, Channel News Asia reported Sunday.

In August, Sisi also ratified a new anti-terrorism law that gives authorities power that many have noted could be in violation of basic human rights.

The decree toughens punishment for crimes that are decreed as relating to terrorism, Sputnik reported in August.

According to a statement released by the Human Rights Watch (HRW), the "terrorist acts" list defines "terrorism" so broadly that it also could easily be used to criminalize civil disobedience.

"The government has equipped itself with even greater powers to continue stamping out its critics and opponents under its vague and ever-expanding war on terrorism," HRW Deputy Middle East and North Africa Director Nadim Houry said, quoted in the statement, Sputnik reported at the time.

The law gives Egyptian authorities greater power to conduct wide-ranging surveillance and to detain terrorist suspects without a court order. The decree also increases prosecutors' power to press heavy sentences for dissent, including the death penalty.

According to HRW, the repressive move goes against fundamental principles of international law; every detainee must be brought before an impartial judge to review their detention and every suspect must be provided with access to legal assistance.
Chinas financial oversight body has discussed with experts ways to improve communications with market participants and stabilize market expectations, the central bank said on Monday, Reuters reports.

The office of the cabinets Financial Stability and Development Committee (FSDC), which is based at the central bank, held a meeting with experts including former central bank chief Zhou Xiaochuan, the central bank said in a statement.

The meeting was chaired by central bank governor Yi Gang, who is also a deputy head of the FSDC, the central bank said.
The European Commission said on Monday it was asking EU countries for a negotiating mandate to settle a dispute with the United States over beef imports into Europe, Reuters reports.

The dispute concerns an existing agreement allowing the import of 45,000 tonnes of hormone-free beef, which was granted to the United States, but also to other beef-exporting nations.
Israel signaled on Monday that it could attack suspected Iranian military assets in Iraq, as it has done with scores of air strikes in war-torn Syria, Reuters reports.

Citing Iranian, Iraqi and Western sources, Reuters reported last week that Iran had transferred short-range ballistic missiles to Shiite allies in Iraq in recent months. Tehran and Baghdad formally denied that report.

Israel sees in Irans regional expansion an attempt to open up new fronts against it. Israel has repeatedly launched attacks in Syria to prevent any entrenchment of Iranian forces helping Damascus in the war.

We are certainly monitoring everything that is happening in Syria and, regarding Iranian threats, we are not limiting ourselves just to Syrian territory. This also needs to be clear, Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman told a conference hosted and aired live by the Israel Television News Company.

Asked if that included possible action in Iraq, Lieberman said: I am saying that we will contend with any Iranian threat, and it doesnt matter from where it comes ... Israels freedom is total. We retain this freedom of action.
Established in 1818, the National Museum of Brazil - the oldest scientific institution in the country with more than 20 million priceless exhibits and artifacts - was hit by a severe fire Sunday night after its closure, according to Sputnik local media reported.

According to media reports, the fire engulfed the entire central building and firefighters dispatched to the scene desperately battled the raging flames.

The scientific institution is one of the largest museums of natural history and anthropology in Latin America. Founded by King John VI of Portugal some 200 years ago, the museum hosts a vast collection encompassing the most important records regarding Brazil's natural history and invaluable items produced by ancient civilizations throughout the world.

According to the Globo TV Broadcaster, there was no immediate information on potential deaths or injuries. The National Museum's press service told local reporters that no one was injured and four security staffers had been evacuated in time. However, eyewitnesses claim there can be no chance to rescue many pieces of the priceless collection.

"This is a tragic day for Brazil," Brazilian President Michel Temer said in a statement quoted by AFP. "Two hundred years of work and research and knowledge are lost." The director of the National History Museum told Globo TV that "this is a cultural tragedy."
Foreign Minister of Pakistan Shah Mehmood Qureshi and his Afghan counterpart Salahuddin Rabbani on Monday agreed to continue cooperation for peace and stability in Afghanistan, IRNA reported.

Foreign Minister of Afghanistan Salahuddin Rabbani called Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi today, and congratulated him on his appointment as Foreign Minister, a foreign ministry statement said.

It said expressing the greetings and best wishes of the government and people of Afghanistan for Pakistan, Rabbani said that he was looking forward to strengthen Pak-Afghan bilateral relations.

It added while thanking his Afghan counterpart, Foreign Minister reiterated that as close neighbors, peace and prosperity of the two countries are interlinked while highlighting the need to work together for achieving lasting regional peace.

The statement added both sides appreciated recent improvement in relations since the launch of Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) in May 2018. It was noted that the framework provided the most comprehensive institutional mechanism to discuss all mutual issues.

The two leaders agreed that the next round of APAPPS would be soon held in Islamabad. They also welcomed the holding of joint Pak-Afghan Ulema Conference in Islamabad, the dates for which are being finalized, the statement said.

The issue of closure of the Pakistan Consulate General in Jalalabad due to a security crisis was also discussed. Qureshi requested the Afghan Government for restoring the previous security arrangements existing till 28th August 2018, so that the Consulate Generals normal functioning could be resumed at the earliest.

The statement said Foreign Minister Rabbani reassured a positive outcome soon in this regard and mentioned his meeting with the Ambassador of Pakistan in Kabul yesterday.

Till resolution of the issue, Pakistan in the meantime would continue issuing visas to patients or students residing in the jurisdiction of the Consulates as an emergency measure, it said.

The statement further said Foreign Minister Rabbani also extended an invitation to Shah Mahmood Qureshi to visit Afghanistan at an early date, which he accepted.
Moscow police are searching for a suspect in the murder of a law enforcement officer at the city's Kurskaya metro station, the police press service said Monday, Sputnik reported.

"Today, around midnight, at the Kurskaya metro station, an unidentified man from a firearm wounded a police officer who died of his injuries. The police are searching for suspect to detain him," the statement said.

The suspect is a man of Caucasian or Asian appearance, about 40-45 years old, heavily-built, about 160-165 centimeters (5"3'-5"5') tall, wearing a gray jacket, blue jeans and a gray cap.

Moscow police quickly launched an investigation into the deadly assault. According to the statement, Moscow law enforcement imposed its Siren mode to find the alleged perpetrator.

The siren mode triggers the urgent mobilization of the entire police force in a particular area with a tightening of security measures and is applied only for the identification and arrest of dangerous criminals.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on Monday the situation in the rebel-held Syrian province of Idlib could not be tolerated indefinitely, Reuters with reference to the RIA news agency reported.

Speaking to university students in Moscow, Lavrov said the Syrian government, Russias ally, had every right to wipe out militants in northern Idlib, Interfax news agency reported.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sep. 3

Trend:

Meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is planned to be held in the near future, RIA Novosti reported citing Russian FM Sergey Lavrov.

"Another meeting between President Putin and PM Pashinyan is planned to be held in the near future. I think that it will be important for us to hear how the new leader of Armenia assesses the prospects for the improvement of the situation in his country," Lavrov said.

"Of course, we are concerned about Armenia's obligations before Collective Security Treaty Organization. We proceed from the fact that these obligations are in effect and must be fully implemented, including the ones related to strengthening the reputation and prestige of our common organization," he noted.

Previously, Lavrov, commenting on the case on the protests on March 1, 2008, had said that the events in Armenia are contrary to the statements of the country's new leadership about the refusal to pursue political predecessors.

According to him, Moscow has always been interested in Armenia's stability, and therefore what is happening there bothers Russia as well.

Pashinyan, commenting on Lavrov's words, said that his Russian colleagues should adapt to the new situation in Armenia.
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

By Rufiz Hafizoglu  Trend:

A shootout occurred between a police officer and a serviceman in Istanbul, Turkish media reported Sept. 3.

The police officer was killed, and a serviceman, as well as one civilian, were injured, according to the report.

A criminal case has been launched into the incident, investigation is underway.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sept. 3

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

Turkey supports the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said at the 6th summit of the Cooperation Council of the Turkic-Speaking States in Kyrgyzstan, Turkish media reported Sept. 3.

Erdogan noted that Turkey, as before, will support Azerbaijan in all spheres.

He also said all Turkic-speaking states should contribute to the resolution of conflicts and the establishment of stability in the world.

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: @rhafizoglu
Baku, Azerbaijan, Sep. 3

By Rufiz Hafizoglu - Trend:

Syrian refugees are leaving Turkey, Turkish media reported on Sep. 3.

More than 200 Syrian refugees have left Turkey on September 3, according to the reports.

According to media reports, Syrian refugees mostly return to the territories liberated by the Turkish armed forces in the Syrian district of Afrin.

On January 20, the Turkish Armed Forces had launched a joint military operation with the Free Syrian Army called the Olive Branch in the Syrian district of Afrin.

On August 24, 2016 units of the Turkish Armed Forces launched Operation Euphrates Shield against militants of the Islamic State and with the support of the Syrian opposition liberated the border town of Jarabulus in the north of Syria, as well as the city of Al Bab.

On Aug. 24, 2016, units of the Turkish Armed Forces began the Operation Euphrates Shield against the "Islamic State" and with the support of the Syrian opposition liberated the border town of Jarabulus in northern Syria, as well as the city of al-Bab.

Presently, there are more than 3.5 million Syrian refugees in Turkey.

---

Follow the author on Twitter: @rhafizoglu
As Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attempts to turn military success into postwar reconstruction, Western sanctions are a major obstacle that could scare off foreign companies, Reuters reports.

Syria has suffered immense physical destruction, while millions of workers have fled, been conscripted or killed. A U.N. agency estimates the war has cost $388 billion.

Extensive reconstruction still looks far off. Assads allies Russia and Iran, as well as China, have made some investments in the country, but they cannot afford the cost of rebuilding and want other countries to share the burden.

Western countries say they will not approve reconstruction funding for Syria, or drop sanctions, without a political settlement. Meanwhile, sanctions are making it hard for foreign companies to work there.

Although some have managed to do business in Syria, the wide scope of the sanctions and broad U.S. powers to enforce them mean companies risk inadvertent breaches.

Most Western companies are steering clear. One that hopes for future work in Syria, German pipe manufacturer Ostendorf Kunststoffe, exhibited at an international trade fair in Damascus and is building relationships with potential customers.

However, it has not agreed any contracts yet and its local representative, Nabil Moughrabie, based in Beirut, said the company was waiting for the political climate to clear.

We have obstacles. There isnt any direct shipping from Germany to Syria. There are Syrian banks that cannot receive any money from Europe, and European companies that are afraid to receive any more from Syria, he said.

U.S. sanctions on Syria predate the crisis, but were extended after Assads crackdown on protests in 2011 and again as the country slid into war.

The sanctions have frozen the assets of the Syrian state and hundreds of companies and individuals, including government figures, military and security personnel and others accused of involvement in making or using chemical weapons.

They ban exports, sales or supply of services, along with any new investments, into Syria by any U.S. person. They also bar any dealings by U.S. persons in Syrian oil and hydrocarbon products, or their import into the United States.

U.S. persons cannot finance or facilitate any transactions by foreigners that would fall under sanctions if done by Americans.

European Union sanctions were imposed in May 2011, for Syrias brutal repression and violation of human rights, and have been updated several times since.

They are not as sweeping as the U.S. sanctions, but are still extensive and include asset freezes, travel bans, trade restrictions, financial sanctions and an arms embargo.

They bar trade in items that could be used militarily or for repression, luxury goods, precious stones and metals and equipment or technology for some oil and gas sectors including exploration and production, refining and gas liquefaction.

The European sanctions also target Syrias electricity network, banning E.U. companies from building power plants, supplying turbines or financing such projects.

U.S. and E.U. sanctions include exceptions for humanitarian supplies, and for items needed by United Nations missions in Syria.

The E.U. also allows companies to carry out work in the energy and power sectors covered by contracts signed before the sanctions were imposed.
KYODO NEWS - Sep 3, 2018 - 22:12 | All, Japan

A major candidate running for governor of Okinawa in an election this month with the backing of Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and the Liberal Democratic Party did not clarify his stand on the single most contentious issue when releasing his campaign pledges Monday.

Atsushi Sakima, the former mayor of Ginowan, did not clarify where he stands on the controversial plan to relocate a major U.S. military base within the prefecture.

(Atsushi Sakima)

Sakima is running with the backing of Abe and his ruling coalition, which is pressing to move the U.S. Marine Corps Air Station Futenma from a crowded residential area of Ginowan, to the less populated coastal district of Henoko in Nago.

"I will realize the return (of the base premises) as soon as possible and seek a revision of the Japan-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement," Sakima told a press conference where he unveiled his campaign platform.

But Sakima did not make clear whether he supports the plan to move the base to Henoko, which many Okinawans strongly oppose as they want it moved somewhere outside Japan's southernmost prefecture, where the bulk of U.S. military facilities in Japan are located.

In the Sept. 30 election, Sakima, 54, is running against Denny Tamaki, 58, an opposition member of the national parliament in Tokyo who is opposed to the transfer plan, and other candidates.

(Denny Tamaki)

The election is being held to fill the post left vacant by the recent death of former Gov. Takeshi Onaga, who fiercely confronted the central government over the relocation plan and led efforts to reduce the U.S. military presence in Okinawa.

Following Onaga's instruction, the prefecture last week retracted its approval for landfill work at the relocation site, claiming illegality in the application process. Doing so has stopped the Defense Ministry from restarting construction work.

In his campaign pledges, Sakima said he would invite a U.N. organization to utilize the U.S. base site in Ginowan once it is returned. He also promised to promote the local economy and increase Okinawa's per-capita income, the lowest among Japan's 47 prefectures.
KYODO NEWS - Sep 4, 2018 - 07:43 | All, Japan

A powerful typhoon is headed toward Japan's southern Pacific coast and is likely to rip through western Japan on Tuesday, with the national weather agency warning it may be the strongest typhoon to make landfall in 25 years.

The Japan Meteorological Agency said a wide area of Japan should be on high alert for strong winds, high waves and heavy downpours.

(Shirahama, Wakayama Prefecture)

As of 10 p.m. Monday, Typhoon Jebi was traveling north around 240 kilometers southeast of Tanegashima island at a speed of 25 kilometers per hour, with an atmospheric pressure of 945 hectopascals at its center and packing winds of up to 216 kph, according to the agency.

Categorized as "very strong" by the agency based on the strength of its top winds, Jebi would be the strongest typhoon to make landfall in Japan since 1993 if it maintains its force, an agency official said at an emergency press conference.

"Rainstorms will likely intensify suddenly as the typhoon is approaching while picking up speed," the official said, urging people not to go out unless necessary and prepare for evacuation.

Japan has been hit by a succession of typhoons recently, with western parts of the country devastated by massive flooding and landslides that left more than 220 people dead.

The weather agency has called for vigilance against flooding, mudslides and high tides caused by the typhoon as well.

Fearing potentially massive damage, airline companies and railway operators are expected to cancel services on Tuesday.

At least 600 flights in western and central Japan are expected to be canceled.

All Nippon Airways Co. expects to cancel 229 domestic flights, and Japan Airlines Co. 180 flights, many being to and from Osaka.

Skymark Airlines Inc. and Fuji Dream Airlines Co. expect to cancel 52 and 38 flights respectively.

Railway services in areas most affected by the storm will also be severely affected.

West Japan Railway Co. said it plans to halt train services Tuesday, including over 240 limited express train runs. Shikoku Railway Co., Keihan Electric Railway Co. and Nankai Electric Railway Co. will also suspend all or part of their train services.

(JR Osaka train station)

USJ Co., the operator of Universal Studios Japan in Osaka, also announced the park will be closed Tuesday because of the storm.

Prime Minister Shinzo Abe told a meeting of the government and ruling parties, "We've seen typhoons and torrential rains. The government will do its utmost to prevent disaster."

After making landfall somewhere on the main island of Shikoku or the Kii Peninsula on Tuesday, the typhoon is expected to pass over the Sea of Japan, the agency said, adding it will likely weaken to an extratropical cyclone there.

The agency said strong gusts of up to 216 kph could hit the Shikoku and Kinki regions, and gusts of up to 162 kph could affect a wide area including the Tohoku, Tokai and Hokuriku regions.

In the 24-hour period through 6 p.m. on Tuesday, up to 400 millimeters of rain may fall in the Shikoku, Kinki and Tokai regions and 250 mm in the Kanto-Koshin region, the agency said.

The Tokyo metropolitan area may see strong winds, although the typhoon is unlikely to pass close to the capital.
KYODO NEWS - Sep 3, 2018 - 20:39 | World, All

President Xi Jinping pledged Monday that China will extend $60 billion of financing to Africa in an attempt to build a "China-Africa community with a shared future," with Beijing aiming to bolster its influence in the region.

Xi called for joint responsibility and win-win cooperation between China and Africa, in his keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing.

The Chinese president also voiced opposition to "protectionism and unilateralism," warning against U.S. President Donald Trump's higher tariff policy that has raised concern over the outlook for the global economy.

China has sought to expand infrastructure networks in Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa to achieve its goal of connecting countries along the ancient Silk Road trade routes more closely, under the "One Belt, One Road" initiative.

Beijing has been trying to capitalize on economic growth in Africa, which has a wealth of natural resources and a large population, foreign affairs experts say.

Leaders from around 50 African countries are participating in the summit slated to end Tuesday. They are expected to discuss and approve the "Beijing Declaration," specifying China-Africa economic cooperation, and an action plan for 2019-2021.

The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation was launched in 2000. Its summit meeting is being held for the first time since 2015.

In Asia, Japan has hosted a Japan-Africa meeting known as the Tokyo International Conference on African Development since 1993.

TICAD has focused on development issues in Africa, while the China-led forum has concentrated on discussions about investment and trade matters on the continent.
The Government of India on Thursday announced an excise duty reduction on petrol and diesel.
Sat., Nov. 13, 7-8:30 p.m. and Sun., Nov. 14, 2-3:30 p.m.

UIS Performing Arts Center One University Plaza, Springfield Lake Springfield Area

Film & Television

Presented by the University of Illinois Springfield. The generation that fought hardest to come out, is going back in. "Gen Silent" follows the lives of six LGBT seniors living in the Boston area who must choose if they will hide their sexuality in order to survive in the long-term health care system. AgeLinc and the Phoenix Center are co-Hosting along with Illinois HIV Care Connect, Illinois Assistive Technology Program and KW Capital, Keller Williams Realty as sponsors. Seating is limited. Registration is required. AgeLinc, Your Link to Aging Well. 217-787-9234
The Australian dollar fell on Monday

Investing.com - The Australian dollar fell on Monday after data showed retail sales were flat month-on-month in July while analysts expected a 0.3% growth.

The AUD/USD pair fell 0.2% to 0.7190, after hitting 0.7166 earlier in the day and hovering near a 22-month low.

Data from the Australian Bureau of Statistics revealed on Monday that July retail sales were flat, following a 0.4% gain in June. clothing and footwear sales led declines with a 2% fall and household goods retailing faltered 1.2%.

The decline in the Aussie dollar came ahead of the Reserve Bank of Australias September meeting, in which the central bank is widely expected to keep its overnight cash rate at the record low of 1.50%.

Meanwhile, The NZD/USD pair fell 0.2% to 0.6608 as analysts look ahead to Reserve Bank of New Zealands next meeting on September 27. Earlier reports suggested that the central bank may be ready to trim its benchmark rate.

The U.S. dollar index that tracks the greenback against a basket of other currencies inched up 0.02% after the U.S. and Canada failed to reach an agreement on trade last Friday.

There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal. If we dont make a fair deal for the U.S. after decades of abuse, Canada will be out, Trump said on Twitter on Saturday. Congress should not interfere w/these negotiations or I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely & we will be far better off.

The U.S. currency, widely seen as a safe-haven asset nowadays, usually gains in times of market turmoil and political tensions.

The USD/CNY pair gained 0.04% as the People's Bank of China (PBOC) set the yuan reference rate at 6.8347 vs Friday's fix of 6.8246.

The USD/JPY pair lost 0.2% to 110.91.

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Forex - Weekly Outlook: September 3 - 7
Investors who want to cash in on China Travel International Investment Hong Kong Limiteds (HKG:308) upcoming dividend of HK$0.03 per share have only 2 days left to buy the shares before its ex-dividend date, 05 September 2018, in time for dividends payable on the 27 September 2018. What does this mean for current shareholders and potential investors? Below, I will explain how holding China Travel International Investment Hong Kong can impact your portfolio income stream, by analysing the stocks most recent financial data and dividend attributes.

See our latest analysis for China Travel International Investment Hong Kong

5 checks you should use to assess a dividend stock

When assessing a stock as a potential addition to my dividend Portfolio, I look at these five areas:

Is its annual yield among the top 25% of dividend-paying companies?

Has it paid dividend every year without dramatically reducing payout in the past?

Has it increased its dividend per share amount over the past?

Can it afford to pay the current rate of dividends from its earnings?

Based on future earnings growth, will it be able to continue to payout dividend at the current rate?

SEHK:308 Historical Dividend Yield September 2nd 18

Does China Travel International Investment Hong Kong pass our checks?

China Travel International Investment Hong Kong has a trailing twelve-month payout ratio of 40.2%, which means that the dividend is covered by earnings. In the near future, analysts are predicting a higher payout ratio of 45.7%, leading to a dividend yield of 4.3%. However, EPS is forecasted to fall to HK$0.20 in the upcoming year. Therefore, although payout is expected to increase, the fall in earnings may not equate to higher dividend income.

If theres one type of stock you want to be reliable, its dividend stocks and their stable income-generating ability. Whilst its per-share payments have increased during the past 10 years, there has been some hiccups. Shareholders would have seen a few years of reduced payments in this time.

Story continues

Compared to its peers, China Travel International Investment Hong Kong has a yield of 3.3%, which is high for Hospitality stocks but still below the markets top dividend payers.

Next Steps:

Keeping in mind the dividend characteristics above, China Travel International Investment Hong Kong is definitely worth considering for investors looking to build a dedicated income portfolio. Given that this is purely a dividend analysis, I urge potential investors to try and get a good understanding of the underlying business and its fundamentals before deciding on an investment. There are three fundamental factors you should further examine:

Future Outlook: What are well-informed industry analysts predicting for 308s future growth? Take a look at our free research report of analyst consensus for 308s outlook. Valuation: What is 308 worth today? Even if the stock is a cash cow, its not worth an infinite price. The intrinsic value infographic in our free research report helps visualize whether 308 is currently mispriced by the market. Other Dividend Rockstars: Are there better dividend payers with stronger fundamentals out there? Check out our free list of these great stocks here.

To help readers see past the short term volatility of the financial market, we aim to bring you a long-term focused research analysis purely driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis does not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements.



The author is an independent contributor and at the time of publication had no position in the stocks mentioned. For errors that warrant correction please contact the editor at editorial-team@simplywallst.com.
Sir Venki Ramakrishnan, who is one of the founders of the fund, is a Nobel prize laureate and president of the Royal Society -  2016 David Levenson

Eight of Cambridge's top scientists have created a 100 million fund to invest in "young and hungry" UK technology companies.

Ahren Limited Partners has been formed by a group of researchers from the city's thriving start-up scene including Sir Shankar Balasubramanian, inventor of a variety of genome sequencing techniques.

The fund has already raised 100m over the summer with contributions from insurance company Aviva and Wittington Investments.

Ahren, which expects to raise further cash over the next few months, plans to invest in companies that focus on four areas of research: the brain and artificial intelligence, genetics technologies, space, robotics and clean energy technology.

Because the fund is controlled by scientists who have seen financial success with their own inventions and research, Ahren aims to help entrepreneurial scientists to create immense business and societal value.

Professor Zoubin Ghahramani, who is head of the Machine Learning Group at Cambridge University and a founder at Ahren, said: Ahren invests in transformative companies with bold vision seeking, sometimes to create, enormous markets for their products and services.

We back young and hungry, highly motivated entrepreneurs that want to win big. We firmly believe that this strategy will generate the strongest returns for Ahrens Limited Partners.

Professor Zoubin Ghahramani, another founder of Ahren, sold his AI technology Geometric Intelligence to car-sharing app Uber for an undisclosed amount.

Other founders include Professor John Daugman, the inventor of IRIS eye recognition technology that has been used to register 1.5bn citizens worldwide, Sir Gregory Winter, inventor of technology leading to the worlds highest grossing drug Humira with $18bn (14bn) sales in 2017, and Sir Venki Ramakrishnan, a Nobel prize laureate and president of the Royal Society, the UKs leading science body.
Laos Central Bank Cryptocurrency

Laos central bank has published a notice cautioning the public against cryptocurrency trading and their usage in payments.

In a notice [PDF], dated 29 August, the Bank of Laos (BOL) said the public is warned against the use of unregulated cryptocurrencies, specifically naming Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin as examples. Addressed to merchants, traders and residents, the notice also urged citizens to research and understand any digital assets. The notice warned against the purchase and sale, or trading of digital assets, talking up the risks in crypto-related investments.

According to the Laotian Times, the central bank pointed to the current Law on Payment Systems (last revised in November 2017) that refutes cryptocurrencies as payment instruments after claiming they do not meet the standards required for classification as a currency.

As things stand, there is no provision in Lao law to recognize cryptocurrencies nor are they regulated by any legislation in the country.

Still, businesses in the country have already begun acceptance of payment for goods and services in cryptocurrencies, the report added.

A senior central bank official sought to distinguish cryptocurrencies from fiat currencies, telling the Vientiane Times:

It is not [a] real currency like Lao kip or Thai baht, because it is unable to pay debt. It is a digital record of a transaction. It is not yet regulated by law. People who get involved in the use of cryptocurrencies are taking risks if the digital system fails.

Despite the public notice, which is intended to caution Lao citizens of risks in cryptocurrency investments, there is no explicit ban on cryptocurrency trading domestically.

Laos Central Bank

Laos neighbor to the east, Vietnam, has taken a more hostile approach in regulating cryptocurrencies in recent times. In October 2017, Vietnams central bank issued a notice that effectively outlawed cryptocurrency payments in the country. Legislation toward that effect kicked in at the turn of 2018 wherein bitcoin adopters could stand to face fines up to $9,000 as well as criminal prosecution. Vietnam has also moved to suspend imports of cryptocurrency miners into the country.

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Laos would do well to take a cue from Thailand, its other neighbor. Recognizing the potential of cryptocurrency markets and initial coin offering (ICO) fundraising, Thailands securities regulator published ICO regulations in July while notably approving seven cryptocurrencies for operators to receive payments in. They are: Bitcoin, Ethereum, Ripple, Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum Classic, Stellar and Litecoin.

As Thailands largest movie theater chain begins accepting cryptocurrencies as payments for seats and popcorn across 600 screens nationwide, the countrys securities firms are also exploring the possibility of establishing and operating a joint cryptocurrency exchange in Bangkok.

Laos banknote image from Shutterstock.



The post Laos Central Bank Warns Public Against Cryptocurrency Trading appeared first on CCN.


Sept 3 (Reuters) - The following are the top stories on the New York Times business pages. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

- Liu Qiangdong, the billionaire founder of JD.com Inc , one of China's largest and most successful online retailers, was arrested Friday in Minnesota for alleged sexual misconduct before being released a day later, police records show. https://nyti.ms/2Q0RGz9

- Some corporate leaders say the U.S. government is making it harder to hire foreigners by denying visas, asking for more information and delaying approvals. https://nyti.ms/2LQwzw4

- A fire engulfed the National Museum of Brazil on Sunday night, ravaging the stately, 200-year-old museum in Rio de Janeiro and threatening the years of history encapsulated inside. https://nyti.ms/2NaO9Qs

(Compiled by Bengaluru newsroom)
Here are all the top Facebook executives who have announced their departure so far this year

At least seven senior Facebook executives have announced their departures this year.

None are leaving on bad terms, a company spokesperson told CNBC, and some will remain on in advisory positions.

It's a major shake-up for a company that prides itself on keeping executives around  and that's pretty consistently been answering to scandal and public scrutiny in recent months.

Facebook FB executives have long called the company's top ranks a "family," but after a series of high-profile exits, the family is about to get a lot of new faces.

At least seven senior Facebook executives have announced their departures this year. None are leaving on bad terms, a company spokesperson told CNBC, and some will remain on in advisory positions.

The company is looking at the planned exits in part as an opportunity to improve diversity among leadership, the spokesperson said.

It's not entirely shocking  on-lookers have often speculated that Facebook's many "could-be-CEOs" would eventually move on.

Still, it's a major shake-up for a company that prides itself on keeping executives around  and that's pretty consistently been answering to scandal and public scrutiny in recent months.

Here are all the executives who have said they're leaving Facebook so far in 2018:

Jan Koum , co-founder of Facebook-owned WhatsApp, announced his exit in April in a Facebook post saying it was time to "move on."

"I've been blessed to work with such an incredibly small team," Koum said in a statement at the time. "The team is stronger than ever and it'll continue to do amazing things. I'm taking some time off to do things I enjoy outside of technology, such as collecting rare air-cooled Porsches, working on my cars and playing ultimate frisbee."

Koum led WhatsApp for nearly a decade and joined Facebook's leadership team in 2014 when the social media giant bought WhatsApp for $19 billion.

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Elliot Schrage , head of communications and public policy, said in June he was leaving Facebook after more than 10 years.

"I've decided it's time to start a new chapter in my life," Schrage said in a post to his Facebook page . "Leading policy and communications for hyper growth technology companies is a joy  but it's also intense and leaves little room for much else."

Schrage didn't address his next steps, but did include lengthy praise and words of gratitude for Facebook, Mark Zuckerberg and Sheryl Sandberg .

In July, Colin Stretch , Facebook's top lawyer, announced he'd be leaving the company after more than eight years.

"When my wife Alyse and I made the decision a few years ago to move back to DC from California, we knew it would be difficult for me to remain in this role indefinitely," he said in a Facebook post . "As Facebook embraces the broader responsibility Mark has discussed in recent months, I've concluded that the company and the Legal team need sustained leadership in Menlo Park."

As general counsel, Stretch represented Facebook before Congress to address Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

"I often stop myself and ask how I got so lucky to be a part of this," Stretch said in the post announcing his exit.

Alex Stamos , formerly chief security officer at Facebook, formally stepped down in August following earlier rumors of his departure and an internal memo to staff .

In the memo  reported by Buzzfeed news  Stamos said a re-organization of his team left him eyeing a transition:

I initiated the discussion of changing the structure of the InfoSec team just before Thanksgiving 2017. This was due to my concerns that organizational issues impaired our election security work in 2016. While the outcome of this discussion was not one I proposed, at the time I committed myself to making the transition as smooth as possible and trying to set the new teams up for success. I am genuinely proud of the capable, diverse security teams we have built and I truly want my colleagues to continue to be successful in their vital work.

The re-org, did, however, leave me with a challenge, in that it created a big mismatch between the responsibilities I felt carrying the Chief Security Officer title and the potential for big impact I could have from my redefined role. This conundrum was pretty obvious to many, and when people internally asked if I was leaving I rather openly told them that I was committed to staying through August.

Stamos had been at Facebook since 2015. He's now teaching at Stanford University.

"For the last three years, I have been proud to work with some of the most skilled and dedicated security professionals in the world in one of the most difficult threat environments faced by any technology company," Stamos said in a Facebook post confirming his departure .

Also in August, Dan Rose , one of Facebook's earliest executives and VP of partnerships, said he was leaving. Rose joined Facebook in 2006, and is leaving to join his family in Hawaii.

"Over the past 12 years, this company has become my second family. When people ask me why I'm still at Facebook after so long, my answer is always simple  I love the people I work with and I believe deeply in our mission," Rose said in a Facebook post .

"Mark and Sheryl changed my life and my career. I would walk through fire for them, or fly across the ocean on a regular basis. But they deserve someone in my role who is present and fully engaged every day in the many opportunities and challenges that lie ahead," he said.

Earlier this week, Netflix announced it had poached Rachel Whetstone , a top communications executive at Facebook.

Whetstone had only been at the company for a year. She is the only executive on this list not to comment on her exit on her personal Facebook account. She follows her boss, Schrage, in leaving.

That brings us to Wednesday, when Alex Hardiman , head of news products, announced her departure. Hardiman had been at Facebook for what she called "two deeply gratifying years," and will join The Atlantic.

"I've always been a news person. It's my passion during the workday and my guilty pleasure on nights and weekends," Hardiman said on her Facebook page . "It's why I spent a decade at The Times before coming to Facebook to help tackle some of the company's formidable news challenges, and it's why I'm now joining The Atlantic at a unique moment in its history."

"Facebook has given me so many things for which I'm profoundly grateful: wildly talented colleagues, great relationships with news organizations that are reinventing their future, and deep humility for the difficulty of solving nuanced problems at Facebook's scale," she said.





More From CNBC


Archer-Daniels-Midland (ADM) seems to be a good value pick, as it has decent revenue metrics to back up its earnings, and is seeing solid earnings estimate revisions as well.

Residential real estate investment trust (REIT) UMH Properties, Inc. UMH recently closed the acquisition of an Indiana community for a total price of $3,500,000. The buyout is a strategic fit for the company as it enables UMH Properties to strengthen its position in the Indiana market.

Notably, the community was developed in the early 2000s. It encloses 134 developed homesites on a land parcel spanning 58 acres. Further, it is 60% occupied.

Per management, the community was originally designed for 300 sites. Further, it sees significant upside potential by commencing development of additional 166 sites and renting the community to full. Moreover, the company anticipates leveraging on its robust platform to spur demand and occupancy at the property.

Per Samuel A. Landy, president and chief executive officer, "We are pleased to announce another acquisition in the Indiana market. Indiana has been one of our best performing markets."

Notably, the company has been making concerted efforts to capture the Indiana market through strategic acquisitions. In late May, it purchased a portfolio of two communities situated in Anderson. The company shelled out nearly 20.5 million for this buyout.

It consists of two all-age communities that offer a total of 669 homesites. The weighted average occupancy of the portfolio stands at 91%. Furthermore, this acquisition offers the company an opportunity to develop another 270 sites at the community.

Such densification efforts will help the company fortify its footprint in the market and command higher rents. Additionally, during second-quarter 2018 earnings call, the company announced an acquisition pipeline worth $81.5 million. This consisted of six properties which offer 2,100 home sites.

Nonetheless, growth through acquisitions requires large capital outlays and may dent the companys liquidity position in the near term. In addition, it may require borrowing debt in order to execute such strategic moves, thereby increasing debt levels.

Story continues

Shares of this Zacks Rank #3 (Hold) company have outperformed its industry over the past three months. While its shares have rallied 8.8%, the industry has gained 5.7%, during the same time period.





Nevertheless, over the last month, the companys 2018 funds from operations (FFO) per share has been revised nearly 10% downward.

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Better-ranked stocks from the REIT space include VICI Properties VICI, Park Hotels and Resorts, Inc. PK and PS Business Parks, Inc. PSB. All three stocks carry a Zacks Rank of 2 (Buy). You can see the complete list of todays Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

VICI Properties Zacks Consensus Estimate for 2018 FFO per share has been revised upward by a cent over the past 60 days. Its shares have gained 7.4% in the past six months.

Park Hotels and Resorts FFO per share estimates for 2018 witnessed 1.3% upward revision in 60 days time. Its shares have appreciated 34% over the past six months.

PS Business Parks FFO per share estimates for the current year moved up marginally in the past 30 days to $6.39. The stock has rallied 16% in six months time.

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Zacks Investment Research
Author and columnist Gordon Chang said on Sunday that President Trump should impose the tariffs on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods, a plan he has reportedly considered moving on in the coming week.

He should do it at the 25 percent rate, rather than the 10 [percent rate], Chang, author of The Coming Collapse of China, said during an interview on Sunday Morning Futures. I would even go higher, and the reason is the Chinese have been stealing hundreds of billions of dollars of U.S. intellectual property each year. Thats what these tariffs are intended to remedy. And the Chinese are not stopping. So clearly weve got to make the costs higher.

Trump plans to move forward with what would be the next round of tariffs when a public-comment period ends next week, according to Bloomberg, which cited six people familiar with the matter. So far, the U.S. has imposed tariffs on $50 billion worth of Chinese goods, to which Beijing has responded in a similar fashion.

The U.S. president has previously threatened to impose duties on nearly all goods that China imports to the U.S. each year, approximately worth $500 billion, an idea that Chang said might have to become reality.

If tariffs dont work, then we have to go to something even more drastic which would be just banning Chinese imports, he said.

Chang added that Chinas theft of intellectual property from the U.S. needs to be stopped, warning that it could have a devastating effect on the American economy.

Weve got to stop Chinas theft because we have an innovation-based economy, he said. If we cannot commercialize that innovation we dont have very much of an economy.

Meanwhile, U.S. companies  specifically Apple  could be used as bargaining chips in the trade war between the two nations, according to Chinas state-backed Peoples Daily newspaper, which published an article in early August saying that the tech giant benefits from the countrys ample supply of cheap labor and needs to share more of its profits with the local population in China.

Story continues

China is by far the most important overseas market for the US-based Apple, leaving it exposed if Chinese people make it a target of anger and nationalist sentiment, the opinion piece read. If the US company wants to earn good money in China, its needs to share its development dividends with the Chinese people.

The article noted that sales to the greater China region in the companys fiscal third quarter gained 19 percent to $9.6 billion. However, it said Chinese processors only receive 1.8 percent of the total profits created by the iPhone. Apple recently became the first publically traded U.S. company to reach a market capitalization of $1 trillion.

The real reason why Apple has a problem is because it has a supply chain thats very difficult to move, Chang said. Its got Foxconn, its contract manufacturer, theyre in China. It would take a number of years for Foxconn and Apple to move elsewhere. Other companies, basically they can move a lot quicker  So Chinas threats against other companies are pretty hollow. Against Apple its a real threat.

Related Articles
A 19-year-old Afghan man is scheduled to appear in a Dutch court after allegedly stabbing two American citizens at Amsterdam's central train station in a suspected terrorist attack.

Amsterdam police said the suspect, identified only as Jawed S., "will appear before a judge [on September 3] and until then no further details will be released."

The two American males were seriously injured on August 31 when a man with a knife attacked people in the crowded train station near Amsterdams city center.

Police at the station quickly shot the man in the lower body. He was taken to the hospital, as were the two injured men.

Thousands of commuters and tourists were evacuated from the train station after the attack. The site is a major hub for international tourists visiting Amsterdam.

"Following an initial statement by the suspect, it has emerged that the man had a terrorist motive," Amsterdam City Hall said after police questioned the suspect.

The authorities said Jawed S. has a German residency permit and that German police raided his apartment on September 2. Police did not reveal the location of the residence.

Based on reporting by AFP and Channel News Asia
A helicopter owned by a Moldovan company has crashed in northern Afghanistan, killing at least 12 people, including two Ukrainian crew members and 10 Afghan soldiers, officials say.

The Mi-8 helicopter crashed on September 2 after takeoff from a military base near Mazar-e Sharif, the capital of Balkh Province, Moldovas aviation authority said.

A statement said that two people onboard survived -- a Ukrainian member of the crew and an Afghan serviceman.

It also said that the aircraft was operated by Moldova's Valan International Cargo Charter Co.

An Afghan security source was quoted as putting the death toll at 13, with only the Ukrainian surviving the crash.

Nazer Khuda Pamiri, deputy commander of Afghan forces in northern Afghanistan, said the helicopter crashed in Dehdadi district due to "technical problems."

He said the aircraft was transporting Afghan security forces from a military base to the northwestern province of Faryab.

Defense Ministry spokesman Mohammad Radmanish said the helicopter was hired by the ministry.

The Western-backed government in Kabul has been struggling to fend off the Taliban and other militant groups since the withdrawal of most NATO combat troops in 2014.

Based on reporting by AFP, TASS, and Interfax
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In a dusty town in the Uzbek desert, a collection of once-banned Soviet-era art worth hundreds of millions of dollars is finally attracting the worlds attention.
Yampah Spa and Vapor Caves

When you think of Colorados legendary hot springs, you dont think of them as rock chambers. Yampah Spa and Vapor Caves doesnt fit the traditional picture, yet the Glenwood Springs operation sells itself on the geothermal waters flowing at 125 degrees beneath the hard floors, creating the steamy enclosures. While other such therapeutic caves are man-made, these claim to be the only all-natural ones in North America.

The Utes settled the area long before Capt. Richard Sopris came to the now-famous mountain retreat town and claimed the land to be Grand Springs for the mineral spouts all around. Yampah is the native term meaning Big Medicine. They held the vapor caves sacred for how they emerged out of them feeling better, their aches and illnesses sweated out. They were pushed out of their home in the late 1890s, following the Meeker Massacre.

In 1993, three years after the caves were sold to the current corporate ownership, representatives of the three Ute tribes returned to Glenwood Springs. The spa celebrated with them in its centennial year.

A lot changed in the caves after the Utes, with marble benches being installed along with electricity. The three chambers are still an escape from the modern age, still dark and with the dominant sound of slow trickling water. The caves average temperatures between 110 and 112 degrees. Patrons step down a rock passageway to reach them, soaking for a max of 12 minutes before cooling in another room.

Address: 709 E. Sixth St., Glenwood Springs, 81601

Hours: 9 a.m.-9 p.m. every day

Contact: 970-945-0667, yampahspa.com

Getting there: Go west on Interstate 70 and take exit 116 for Colorado 82 east for Glenwood Springs. Turn right onto North River Street, continuing straight at traffic circle. In less than a half-mile, turn right onto E. Sixth Street and follow to spa.
In this Tuesday, July 17, 2018, photograph, applicants chat with potential employers during a jobs fair at Minneapolis International Airport in Minneapolis. On Tuesday, Aug. 6, the Labor Department reports on job openings and labor turnover for June. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski)
PRESS RELEASE

3 September 2018

WENTWORTH RESOURCES LIMITED

("Wentworth" or the "Company")

Payment update

Wentworth, the Oslo Stock Exchange (OSE: WRL) and AIM (AIM: WRL) listed independent, East Africa-focused oil & gas company, today provides an update to shareholders.

The Company is pleased to inform shareholders that payments received during August 2018 for gas sales generated from the Mnazi Bay Concession in Tanzania totalled $3.4 million net to Wentworth. Payments were received from both Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation ("TPDC") and Tanzania Electric Supply Company Limited ("Tanesco") for one month's gas sales to TPDC and two months' gas sales to Tanesco.

The Company is also pleased to report that gross production volumes during August 2018 from the Mnazi Bay gas field averaged 87.9 MMscf/d.

-Ends-

Enquiries:

Wentworth Eskil Jersing,

Chief Executive Officer







Katherine Roe,

Chief Financial Officer eskil.jersing@wentworthresources.com

+44 7717 847623







katherine.roe@wentworthresources.com

+44 7841 087 230

Stifel Nicolaus Europe Limited AIM Nominated Adviser and Broker (UK)

Callum Stewart

Ashton Clanfield



+44 (0) 20 7710 7600 Peel Hunt LLP Broker (UK)

Richard Crichton

Ross Allister



+44 (0) 20 7418 8900 FTI Consulting Investor Relations Adviser (UK)

Sara Powell

Kim Camilleri wentworth@fticonsulting.com

+44 (0) 20 3727 1000

About Wentworth Resources

Wentworth Resources is a publicly traded (OSE: WRL, AIM: WRL), independent oil & gas company with: natural gas production; exploration and appraisal opportunities; and large-scale gas monetisation initiatives, all in the Rovuma Delta Basin of coastal southern Tanzania and northern Mozambique.

Inside Information

The information contained within this announcement is deemed by Wentworth to constitute inside information as stipulated under the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) no. 596/2014 ("MAR"). On the publication of this announcement via a Regulatory Information Service ("RIS"), this inside information is now considered to be in the public domain.

Cautionary note regarding forward-looking statements

This press release may contain certain forward-looking information. The words "expect", "anticipate", believe", "estimate", "may", "will", "should", "intend", "forecast", "plan", and similar expressions are used to identify forward looking information.

The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are based on management's beliefs, estimates and opinions on the date the statements are made in light of management's experience, current conditions and expected future development in the areas in which Wentworth is currently active and other factors management believes are appropriate in the circumstances. Wentworth undertakes no obligation to update publicly or revise any forward-looking statements or information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, unless required by applicable law.

Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information. By their nature, forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties that contribute to the possibility that the predicted outcome will not occur, including some of which are beyond Wentworth's control. These assumptions and risks include, but are not limited to: the risks associated with the oil and gas industry in general such as operational risks in exploration, development and production, delays or changes in plans with respect to exploration or development projects or capital expenditures, the imprecision of resource and reserve estimates, assumptions regarding the timing and costs relating to production and development as well as the availability and price of labour and equipment, volatility of and assumptions regarding commodity prices and exchange rates, marketing and transportation risks, environmental risks, competition, the ability to access sufficient capital from internal and external sources and changes in applicable law. Additionally, there are economic, political, social and other risks inherent in carrying on business in Tanzania and Mozambique. There can be no assurance that forward-looking statements will prove to be accurate as actual results and future events could vary or differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. See Wentworth's Management's Discussion and Analysis for the year ended December 31, 2017, available on Wentworth's website, for further description of the risks and uncertainties associated with Wentworth's business.

Notice



Neither the Oslo Stock Exchange nor the AIM Market of the London Stock Exchange has reviewed this press release and neither accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this press release.

This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to section 5-12 of the Norwegian Securities Trading Act.
hogann wrote:

While political discourse and the media in the United States have focused on the rise of job outsourcing, few have mentioned the sharp fall of talent insourcing, or the drop in enrollment of foreign-born graduate students since 2001, and its dire results. The decrease in such insourcing will hurt Americas competitiveness in basic research and applied technology, with serious consequences for years to come. The de-internationalization of graduate programs across the country will also negatively affect the global outlook and experience of the American students remaining in those programs; they will not have the opportunity to learn about foreign cultures directly from members of those cultures. What distinguishes the decline of talent insourcing from the rise of job outsourcing is that the former can be easily rectified by a policy change of the United States government.



The answer to which of the following questions would be most useful in evaluating the authors claim regarding the impact of decreased insourcing in America?



A. What is the cost to reverse the trend of insourcing in America?

B. How does insourcing replace domestic jobs lost from outsourcing?

C. Since 2001, what has been the decrease in the number of foreign-born students in America?

D. What opportunities do American graduate students have to interact regularly with foreigners who are not students?

E. What effect would a government policy have on the number of foreign graduate students?

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

(D) CORRECT.

The author claims that the "decrease in such insourcing will hurt America's competitiveness in basic research and applied technology, with serious consequences for years to come." In addition, the author claims that the decline in insourcing will "negatively affect the global outlook and experience of American students" because they will "not have the opportunity to learn about foreign cultures directly from members of those cultures." We are asked to find a question whose answer would provide information useful to evaluating the claims of the argument.(A) The focus of the argument is not on the financial costs of insourcing.(B) The focus of the argument is not on how insourcing can compensate for outsourcing.(C) The focus of the argument is not on the specific numbers of foreign-born students, but on the decline in their number instead.The argument assumes that the students will not have contact with foreigners through channels other than school. This choice asks whether the students have such contact elsewhere. If the answer to this question is "yes", the author's claims carry less weight.(E) A government policy might have an effect on insourcing, but it would not necessarily have an effect on the specific claims of the argument._________________
karlfurt wrote:

Farmers in developing countries claim that the United States government, through farm subsidies, is responsible for the artificially low global price of wheat. Because the U.S. government buys whatever wheat American farmers are unable to sell on the open market, American farmers have no incentive to modulate the size of their crops according to the needs of the global market. As a result, American farmers routinely produce more wheat than the global market can absorb and the global price of wheat is kept low. Without these subsidies, the farmers in developing economies claim, American farmers would produce only the amount of wheat that they could sell on the open market and the global price of wheat would rise.



Which of the following, if true, most weakens the claims of the farmers in developing countries regarding the price of wheat?



(A) Wheat that is not processed for consumption can be used for certain industrial applications.



(B) Non-governmental buyers of wheat and wheat products are able to predict how much wheat they will need several years in advance.



(C) The United States government offers similar subsidies to soybean farmers, though the global price of soybeans is significantly higher than that of wheat.



(D) Other countries, such as Canada and Russia, are likely to produce more wheat if the United States were to reduce its output.



(E) The price of sorghum, a crop for which the United States government offers no subsidies, is lower than that of wheat.

OFFICIAL EXPLANATION

(D) CORRECT.

Farmers in developing countries claim that the global price of wheat is low because American farmers produce too much of the grain. They also claim that American farmers produce too much wheat because they have no incentive to manage their crops, since the U.S. government will buy whatever wheat American farmers cannot sell on the open market. We are asked to find a choice that weakens the claims of the farmers in developing countries that removing the American subsidy would cause the price of wheat to rise.(A) That there are uses for wheat that is not eaten is irrelevant here. This does not address any aspect of the farmers' claims.(B) The fact that buyers of wheat can predict their needs in advance is irrelevant here, because the text indicates that American farmers do not pay attention to actual demand for wheat.(C) In this argument, the global market for soybeans is irrelevant to the global market for wheat, which is a different commodity with different demand, supply, and pricing structures.The farmers assume that the sole cause of the wheat surplus is the United States. This answer choice suggests that other countries would modify their output to counterbalance any reduction on the part of the United States, keeping prices constant instead of allowing them to rise.(E) The price of another crop is largely irrelevant. Moreover, the fact that the price of sorghum, a non-subsidized crop, is lower tends to support, rather than weaken, the claims of the farmers._________________
akanksha26 wrote:

Akanksha Sharma, Indian, Female, 28



Hello,

I have taken the GMAT three times (640, 660: Q49 V32, final: 720) with a Q47 V41 finally. I did my undergrad from Purdue University in computer engineering and graduated with a 3.2 GPA. During university I did a 4 term coop (3 summers 1 semester) as a software developer at the vfx company Technicolor. I graduated from Purdue in Dec 2015 and worked at the Georgia Department of Revenue (Atlanta) as a consultant for 2 years. Now, I am considering applying to B-schools for Fall 2019, and I see the top 10 B schools in USA have a GMAT average of 720+

My question is:

1) Should I retake the GMAT and try to get a 740+ or begin my applications for Round 2 to the B schools. Consequently, based on your experience and expertise with student profiles, does my profile have the potential for a top 10 school in the USA of which some of my dream schools are Wharton, Harvard, Colombia, Yale, Booth and Berkeley?



2) Is the Harvard HBX core program beneficial to significantly strengthen MBA application acceptance at the top 10?



Will be greatful if I could get some insight from you to decide how to proceed: retake GMAT and apply; apply to B-schools after a few more years if my aim is the top 10; and hence get more work experience;



Thank you,

Akanksha Sharma



mbaMission Senior Admissions Consultant

Chicago Booth Alum, 60 5-star reviews on GMAT Club

Sign up for a free 30-minute consultation at https://www.mbamission.com/consult/mba-admissions/

Read our Insider's Guides to the top b-schools: http://www.mbamission.com/guides.php?category=insiders



Kate RichardsonmbaMission Senior Admissions ConsultantChicago Booth Alum, 60 5-star reviews on GMAT ClubSign up for a free 30-minute consultation at https://www.mbamission.com/consult/mba-admissions/Read our Insider's Guides to the top b-schools: http://www.mbamission.com/guides.php?category=insiders Signature Read More

Hi Akanksha,Thanks for reaching out. Those are impressive improvements you already made on your GMAT! Given that you have already taken it three times, and likely had to put significant effort to reach 720, my guess is that it's going to be quite difficult to raise your score to the 740 level. Especially if it's been more than 6 months since you last took the exam. But if not, and if you were practicing over 720 at any point, then it's probably worth one more shot. Otherwise, I would focus on your applications. HBX is considered beneficial -- especially for applicants who need to boost their academic profile and/or have not taken much prior business coursework. Right now, I think you have a shot at some top schools (though Harvard will always be a super reach), but I'd feel better about you having 1 or 2 safer schools on your list too. You raise a good point about timing -- do you only have 2 years post college work experience? If so, then I lean towards waiting another year to build up work experience, do the HBX coursework, possibly retake GMAT.Hope this helps!Kate_________________
Special education refers to instruction or assistance in traditional academic areas such as math, language arts, etc. Related services, on the other hand, are aids to a childlike speech therapy, occupational therapy, and physical therapy. These services indirectly improve a childs ability to learn, but are separate from traditional academic curricula. HSLDA believes that parents whose children receive related services at a public school are still home educators.

Because HSLDAs board of directors desires to focus our resources on guarding the freedom of homeschoolers from public school oversight, we cannot help homeschooled students obtain access to special education in public schools. However, HSLDA may assist member families seeking related services that have been denied because of homeschooling. We view this as a basic fairness issue, since according to the U.S. Department of Education, homeschooled students are entitled to related services in states where homeschools are considered to be private schools, but in other states, they are not. You can learn about your states provisions here.




IceViking strongly condemns physical attacks and harassment directed towards them.





They are also often victims of the Islamic idea. This is true when it comes to the cruel and tragic treatment of Muslim women and children when it is in accord with the Koran, the example of Mohammed and Islamic law, Sharia, which may be applied regardless of where a Muslim male may find himself in the world, whether in a Muslim or non-Muslim country.





However, in no way, shape or form should one judge all Muslim men because of what is in Islamic scripture and what constitutes the Islamic law, Sharia.





"Race", ethnicity or basically anything that you are "merely" born with should never be a basis for bigotry and discrimination.





Apostates from Islam have been executed for 1400 years in accord with the Koran and the words and actions of the Islamic prophet Mohammed and Islamic law, Sharia.





They should be lovingly helped.





Furthermore, approximately as many as 11,000,000 Muslims may have been killed by other Muslims since 1948.





To quote the website The Religion of Peace (TROP), edited by Glen Roberts:





While it may be safe to say that a true Muslim would not intentionally kill another true Muslim ( 4:92-93 ), the Quran places no such value on the life of a Muslim who is not true. Consider verse 9:73 :

Strive hard against the disbelievers and the hypocrites, and be harsh against them, their abode is Hell.

The Arabic for strive hard uses the same root as Jihad - and the context in this sura is holy war (see v. 86 and 91). Thus, there are two distinct classes of people that a true Muslim is to target with harshness: disbelievers and hypocrites.



A disbeliever obviously refers to a non-Muslim, so a "hypocrite" must be a Muslim of some sort. In fact, hypocrites are those who say they believe, but do not act as they should. In other words, they are "Muslims", but not true Muslims. They will go to hell just as unbelievers do, and so, according to the verse, their lives matter for naught.



The same sura says that a hypocrite can be recognized not just by lack of piety (reluctance to follow Sharia), but by fear of death ( 9:56 ), reluctance to fight ( 9:44-45 ) and even friendliness toward non-believers ( 9:67 ). A true Muslim would thus be a pious person who relishes martyrdom, is eager to fight, and shuns non-believers.



Even the Quranic passage that warns against killing "believers" ( 4:88-94 ) is more complicated than it first appears. It never says that a true Muslim is incapable of killing another Muslim, just that it should not be done. In fact, it makes exceptions for the unintentional killing of "believers" in war and mandates the killing of "hypocrites."



Verse 17:33 says, "Do not kill anyone which Allah has forbidden, except for a just cause" . The greatest cause of all is that Islam be superior ( 9:33 ), which is exactly what Islamic terrorists say is their goal. Thus believing Muslims are allowed to be collateral damage in the war on unbelievers.









There is sadly a phenomena that I`ve noticed in Sweden and elsewhere of people using true facts about Islamic doctrine and history as a cover for all sorts of irrational targeting of Muslims, ranging from xenophobia and racism to verbal abuse and physical attacks.





This is strongly condemned by this website and does not in any way serve serious criticism of orthodox Islam and other important work.





It`s also important that one tries to express oneself in a civilized way. Words matter.





In this bloggers humble opinion the root cause of the problem is the ancient doctrine of orthodox Islam.













In simple terms a non-Muslim is a Kafir.





" The Koran defines the kafir and kafir is not a neutral word. A kafir is not merely someone who does not agree with Islam, but a kafir is evil, disgusting, the lowest form of life."





An exact quote, as stated in the writings of Dr. Bill Warner in the article "Kafir" at http://www.politicalislam.com/kafir .





In the perfect Koran (Allah`s direct and literal word as revealed to Mohammed through the angel Jibril), Muslims are told 89 times to emulate Mohammed in all ways (see Koran 33:21 for instance).





Mohammed`s example, the Sunna, is found in the Hadith (stories of what Mohammed said and did) and the Sira (biographies of Mohammed).





Islamic law, Sharia , is directly derived from these unchanging scriptures. It is based on the Koran`s numerous commands to obey Allah and obey the Messenger, that is Mohammed (see Koran 4:59 for instance).









Islam is Sharia. Sharia is Islam.





It is a capital crime for Muslims to deny Sharia in any way.





A Muslim is someone who submits to Islam and submitting to Islam means obeying the Sharia of Allah.





Sharia law includes pronouncements for both Muslims and non-Muslims (Kafirs).









Islam is a "complete way of life", a "complete code of life", a "complete system of life".





Islam is not just a religion but also a comprehensive ideology.





Islam is a supremacist ideology.





Islam is a totalitarian and imperialistic ideology akin to Communism and Nazism.





Islam is a civilization.

Islamic law, Sharia, is a manual for a civilization.





Islamic law, Sharia, governs every aspect of life.

It has a say about every conceivable human act .





Non-Muslims are morally and legally inferior in Islam. Women are morally and legally inferior in Islam.

























The History of Jihad: From Muhammad to ISIS by Robert Spencer is the first one-volume history of jihad in the English language and a great book on the topic.





Allah guarantees Paradise to those who "kill and are killed" for him (Koran 9:111).





A hadith depicts a Muslim asking Muhammad: "Instruct me as to such a deed as equals Jihad (in reward)." Muhammad replied, "I do not find such a deed." (Bukhari 4.52.44)





Muhammad himself said:

I have been commanded to fight against people so long as they do not declare that there is no god but Allah, and he who professed it was guaranteed the protection of his property and life on my behalf except for the right affairs rest with Allah. (Sahih Muslim 30)









Freedom of speech, human rights, democracy, science and human lives are all at stake in the fight against the Islamic Jihad.




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The full text of the article by Alejo Vidal-Quadras is as following:

The International Committee In Search of Justice (ISJ) exposes the intensifying measures of the Iranian regimes Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) to demonize the Peoples Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI or MEK) in a bid to prepare the ground for terrorist acts against the main democratic opposition to the religious dictatorship ruling Iran.

The covert and unannounced videotaping by the British Channel 4 of the residence of the Iranian refugees  members of the PMOI  in Albania on August 10, and the publication of these pictures in less than 24 hours, on the websites of Iranian intelligence ministry known as Iran-Interlink, has caused deep concern about the security and safety of these refugees. Specifically, that Channel 4 has refused to respond to letters by the PMOI spokesperson, a copy of which has been sent to the ISJ.

Three weeks after Channel 4s suspicious visit to the refugees residence, its International Editor Ms Lindsey Hilsum notified the PMOI spokesman the day before yesterday in a letter devoid of journalistic impartiality that they plan to broadcast a report about the organization on 3rd of September. After outlining the items of the program, she demanded the PMOIs written comments.

According to Ms Hilsums letter, the items of the program will be comprised of false remarks and slanders against the PMOI that we have heard repeatedly from the representatives of the Iranian regime and the agents of Iranian intelligence ministry over the past two decades.

This is far from journalistic ethics that, while for several weeks, the reporter interviewed a colorful spectrum of Iranian agents and secretly filmed the residence of the refugees, at the last minute and on the eve of broadcasting the program, she asks the PMOI to respond to these falsehoods and to send it to the TV station within half a working day.

The letter was sent to the PMOI on Friday 31 August, and the program is scheduled to be broadcast on Monday 3 September. This is reminiscent of the Kangaroo courts of the religious dictatorship in Iran where a single clergy acting as the judge, the prosecutor and the lawyer, gives the defendant only the opportunity to either repent or go to the gallows.

The Iranian regime, while engulfed by widespread discontent and popular uprisings and facing growing international isolation, is in desperate need of programs similar to that of the British Channel 4. Especially when its terrorist plot against the PMOI in Albania in March 2018, and another bomb plot against the massive gathering of Iranian opposition in Paris in June 2018 has been thwarted by European security agencies.

An Iranian terrorist diplomat was arrested in Germany in July 2018 and two Iranian regime agents spying against the PMOI in the United States were arrested in August 2018. Only last week the cyber network of the Tehran mullahs that was pumping false information and misleading international policies was exposed and hundreds of accounts were blocked by Facebook, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Google Plus and YouTube for coordinated manipulation of the media.

The French Foreign Ministry few days ago urged its diplomats not to travel to Iran as their diplomatic immunity cannot be guaranteed.

All of the claims in Ms Hilsums letter against the PMOI are well-known falsehoods that we have experienced over the past two decades.

We have investigated them in the past. President of the ISJ, Dr Alejo Vidal-Quadras, in his previous capacity as Vice-President of the European Parliament (1999-2014) plus a large number of other parliamentarians and political dignitaries repeatedly visited Camp Ashraf between 2003 and 2009; and since 2013, they have visited the PMOI premises in Albania, and met with them closely and directly.We are well aware of the whole set of claims presented in Ms Hilsums letter which we have found to be absolutely false.

For example, we met with Ms Somayeh Mohammadi, whose father Mostafa Mohammadi is one of the main subjects of the Channel 4 program. We met her both in Camp Ashraf, Iraq between 2005  2008, and in Albania after 2014 and talked to her directly. We have also examined the documents revealing Mostafa Mohammadis commitment to the Iranian intelligence services.

Ms Hilsums report, as it appears from her letter asserting that Ms Mohammadi is held in PMOI Camps against her will, technically speaking, amounts to collaboration in the psychological torture of Ms Mohammadi. Ms Hilsum simply casts a blind eye on the fact that even the Iraqi courts under Malikis rule had rejected Mostafa Mohammadis claim that his daughter was forcibly held by the PMOI.

She closes her eyes on the fact that US officials, the UNHCR, the UNAMI, the Red Cross, and European delegations and other parliamentarians, have interviewed Ms Mohammadi in camps Ashraf and Liberty in Iraq, and in Albania, and she has explicitly said she did not want to meet her father, who is now an agent of Iranian Ministry of Intelligence.

Ms Hilsum ignored the fact that the Canadian authorities insisted that Ms Mohammadi had remained in her own right in Camp Ashraf while in Iraq. In addition to all these, the Albanian prosecutor in August 2018 rejected the complaint by Mostafa Mohammadi who had alleged that his daughter was abducted and taken hostage by the PMOI, saying she is a 38-year-old woman who has remained in the PMOI at her own will.

Some, who follow the Iranian regimes practices closely, view such reports as a prepayment for securing release of British nationals held by the regime as hostages in Iran. Such attitude will only embolden the regime to continue with its terrorism abroad and suppression of people at home.

The experience has shown that whether in Camps Ashraf, or Liberty in Iraq, or in Albania and elsewhere, such demonization has been the preamble for military, missile, or terrorist bomb attacks against the PMOI. Therefore, ISJ asks Channel 4 not to fall into the conspiracies of the mullahs regime and not to pave the way for unhindered terrorist acts of the mullahs by broadcasting such a program.
- John Lloyd Cruz shared a new photo of Ellen Adarna

- Ellen seemed to be tired or sleepy when the picture was taken

- A few netizens speculated that the actress just woke up to breastfeed and care for her baby

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John Lloyd Cruz continued to share glimpses of his life outside showbiz with his partner Ellen Adarna.

KAMI learned that the actor recently shared a new photo of Ellen.

The photo shows a black and white photo of the actress, who seemed to be tired or sleepy when the picture was taken.

Here is the photo shared by John Lloyd:

Netizens on Fashion Pulis had mixed reactions towards the photo, with a few of them speculating that Ellen just woke up to breastfeed her baby:

Ang weird ni John Lloyd mag picture. Parang hindi naman gusto mag papicture ni Ellen

Parang gumising si Ellen to nurse the baby, it must have been one touching and beautiful photo subject for JL.

She is wearing a nursing cover.

In a previous report by KAMI, actress Beauty Gonzalez visited the baby of John Lloyd and Ellen.

John Lloyd Cruz is a Kapamilya actor who is in a relationship with Ellen Adarna.

Ellen gave birth to her first child on June 27, 2018.

The celebrity couple is currently on leave from show business.

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Today we are going to ask Philippines strangers some very funny Tagalog tricky questions! Do you think you can answer them correctly? These individuals from the Philippines have their answers! Who Is Neil Armstrong? These question might sound easy, but in reality, they are pretty tricky and it is easy to make a mistake!  on KAMI HumanMeter YouTube channel!

Source: Kami.com.ph
- KC Concepcion revealed that she visited the house in Paris, France of her French boyfriend Pierre-Emmanuel Plassart

- Photos and a clip of her special visit went viral on social media

- She even cooked pasta for her foreigner boyfriend

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The relationship between KC Concepcion and French filmmaker Pierre-Emmanuel Plassart seems to be getting deeper by the day.

KAMI learned that the Filipina actress visited Pierres home in Paris, France.

Photos and a clip of their bonding moments in Paris went viral on social media.

The clip shows KC showing off the food that she cooked for her boyfriend.

Netizens got giddy after seeing the sweet moments between KC and Pierre:

Bagay kau. Eto ung bet ko compare sa naging ex mo..

palagay ko siya na ang the one na para sau forever

Let them enjoy their renewed relationship. If it destine to happen it will happen. But I am praying that till the end both of you will hold each others hand for the rest of your life. Be well always and happy. I love you both.

In a previous report by KAMI, KC attended the birthday celebration of his stepdad, Senator Kiko Pangilinan, in the Philippines.

KCs biological father is actor Gabby Concepcion, the ex-husband of her mother Sharon Cuneta.

Sharon and Kiko got married in 1996. They have two daughters and an adopted son.

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Using free basics app to access internet for free? Now you can read KAMI news there too. Use the search option to find us. Read KAMI news while saving your data!

Today we are going to ask Philippines strangers some very funny Tagalog tricky questions! Do you think you can answer them correctly? These individuals from the Philippines have their answers! Who Is Neil Armstrong? These question might sound easy, but in reality, they are pretty tricky and it is easy to make a mistake!  on KAMI HumanMeter YouTube channel!

Source: Kami.com.ph
Docs hand over licences to Medical Council

Doctors aligned with Nepal Medical Association (NMA) on Sunday submitted around 6000 signatures and their licences to Nepal Medical Council (NMC).
Organizers say they warned the fans about fraud and advised them to buy only from official distributors.

While 50,000 people were enjoying the American rock band Imagine Dragons' performance at Kyivs Olimpiysky Stadium on a Friday night, hundreds of fans were shocked to learn as their tickets bought online were in fact invalid.

Some people were crying. Many came from other cities and countries, recalled Tatiana Ivanova, who also fell for the scam, according to the Kyiv Post.

She bought two tickets for UAH 2,999 ($110) each in March from an online ticket vendor called e-ticket.in.ua. The website looked genuine. They had customer support and security measures. They used LiqPay (a service for instant money transfers), Ivanova said.

At least 1,500 people bought tickets from the same website that was registered on Jan 25, a few weeks after tickets to Imagine Dragons gig officially went on sale. Screenshots show that it continued to sell tickets on Sep 1, after the concert had finished, and was taken down in the evening.

Naturally, the customer support phone number no longer worked. Ivanova and others who bought fake tickets went to check the address listed on the website.

Read alsoUkraine cyberpolice bust phishing scammer in Kyiv

It was a regular office building, and there werent any ticket-selling companies, Ivanova said. The security guards told us that, over the weekend, crowds of people came here to look for the same company.

Ivanovas post on Facebook on Aug 31 drew dozens of comments from other victims with similar stories.

We came from Minsk. We also bought three tickets for over Hr 6,000 from e-ticket.in.ua, wrote Facebook user Irina Slavnikova. Fans came from all over Ukraine, Poland, Belarus, and Moldova.

Some, like Lviv resident Igor Balitskyi, also reported having been scammed by ticket resellers. He bought two tickets for him and his wife from a reseller on OLX, a Ukrainian site for private vendors.

The tickets werent fake. They were duplicated. Those people came first, they went through the gates, and we didnt, Balitskyi said. He is still unsure whether he and his wife or the other people had the original tickets.

The tickets to Imagine Dragons first-ever concert in Kyiv went on sale on Jan 9. The demand was so high that the organizers had to launch an electronic queue. On the first day, nearly 50,000 people signed up for the waiting list, according to the UNIAN news agency.

The ticket scam was a huge issue we have had to deal with, the concert organizers, GAS Concert, told the Kyiv Post. The demand was unprecedentedly high for Ukraine from the day the tickets went on sale. We dont know how many hundreds or thousands people purchased fake tickets, but we warned the fans about fraud and advised them to buy only from official distributors.
Parts of Chile are facing a growing water crisis.

The Reuters news agency reports the government is taking steps to protect the countrys water supplies from mining operations. But for many years, the Chilean government approved water extraction rights with little consideration for their effect on the environment.

Mining companies were quick to claim the water available in the salt flats of the Salar de Atacama. The Salar sits in the worlds driest desert. The water trapped below feeds the biggest copper mine in the world.

The mine holds more than one-third of the worlds known supply of lithium, a very light metal. Lithium is used to power batteries in electric vehicles. It also is used in mobile phones and laptop computers.

Lithium can be extracted from water found in mines. However, demand for water has grown so much that the Chilean government is trying to limit its usage. No one really knows how much water there is in the Salar de Atcama area.

Oscar Cristi was recently appointed head of Chiles water authority. He says the development agency Corfo hopes to provide more information after it releases a study in December. Corfo helps to oversee lithium mining in the Salar.

A war for water

The government, Cristi said, has been unwilling to propose bans on water extraction. The mining industry is paying attention to what he says. A few weeks ago, his agency ordered a ban on new permits to extract water from an aquifer that supplies water to BHPs Escondida mine, the worlds largest copper mine.

The agency is also preparing to create a drinking water reserve near the operations of top lithium producers SQM and Albemarle. The move would enable the government to further limit water use there.

SQM and Albemarle say they have all the water rights they need and do not expect new limits to affect their current or future production of lithium.

International demand for lithium is growing. Chile is home to nearly 50 percent of the worlds reserves of the metal.

However, there is plenty of competition for the water needed to mine lithium. Native groups, SQM and Albemarle, local copper miners and newcomers to the area are all competing for water.

Recently, SQM and Albemarle both signed deals with the government to sharply increase the amount of lithium they can remove from the Salar. The two businesses say they will not use any more water than the amount already approved. New companies like Wealth Minerals, New Energy Metals, and Lithium Chile have also announced projects in the salt flats.

Little information available

On a computer, Christi shows line after line of the water rights approved many years ago in the southernmost part of the Salar. When added up, they represent water supplies six times greater than the government now believes is available.

Past governments did not correctly map how much water is available, says Cristi. Now, observation wells are being built in some areas.

Our (understanding) continues to be limited now, but back then, it was very limited, he said.

The combined effect of water rights approved over the years to copper and lithium miners in the worlds driest desert has never been considered, notes Ingrid Garces.

Garces studies salt flats and serves as a professor at Chiles University of Antofagasta.

Were managing lithium as though it were a type of hard-rock mining, she said. But were mining water, not rock. This is a watershed.

Take too much water from one place, she said, and it may affect another.

Another problem affecting water extraction in Chile is who should deal with legal questions.

The brine from which miners extract lithium is water. In Chile, brine is considered a mineral like copper. Environmental officials act on requests for permits of brine, but the water authority manages freshwater pumping.

A lack of communication between the two authorities, combined with a lack of understanding the relationship of the two substances, has made it difficult for authorities to act, says Cristi.

Im Phil Dierking.

David Sherwood reported this story for the Reuters news agency. Phil Dierking adapted the story for VOA Learning English. George Grow was the editor.

Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

aquifer - n. a layer of rock or sand that can absorb and hold water

authority - n. a government organization that has control of a specified activity or area

brine - n. the salty water of the ocean

extract - v. to remove (something) by pulling it out or cutting it out

mobile - adj. able to be moved

reserve - n. an area of land where animals and plants are given special protection

watershed - n. a line of hills or mountains from which rivers drain 
When visitors arrive in Serbia, they find that all official signs are written in Cyrillic script.

But while the internet is becoming a popular way to supply information to many Serbs, use of the script is decreasing across the country.

All younger people are starting to use Latin because of their phones and computers, so I dont know if there is a future for Cyrillic, says Lazar Nikolic, a 14-year-old student.

The Cyrillic alphabet was created in the second half of the ninth century in what is now the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. Cyrillic is used in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, Mongolia and a few Central Asian republics. It also is used Bulgaria and some of the countries that formed after the break-up of Yugoslavia: Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and parts of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Cyrillic was recognized as Serbias official alphabet in the countrys 2006 constitution. It states that communication between public institutions, or between such agencies and the public at large, must be in Cyrillic, except for official communication with national minorities.

However, the Latin-based script has become so common in Serbia that the government is fighting back.

The Ministry of Culture and Information, led by culture minister Vladan Vukosavljevic, have proposed tightening language laws. The ministry has suggested creation of a Council for the Serbian Language, and fining people who do not respect Serbias mother script.

The Cyrillic alphabet is being used less and less, Vukosavljevic said. Its not about enacting Draconian measures but about a reasonable correction.

Take the Serbian capital Belgrade, for example.

While government buildings have signs written in Cyrillic, Belgrades business center is full of signs in Latin script.

To fight the Latin invasion, the city government approved measures designed to help businesses that use Cyrillic. Under the plan, companies and individuals who sign rental agreements with the city can save five percent on their rent if their signs are in Cyrillic script.

Starbucks and McDonald's have their own Cyrillic names in countries where this is the official script. If they feel that this is in their interest, I think it will be accepted, said Andreja Mladenovic, an adviser to Belgrades Mayor Zoran Radojicic. He spoke to the Beta News Agency.

The city will look much nicer, Mladenovic added. This will give a nice picture for our city to foreign tourists. And its also a way to encourage our institutions to protect the Cyrillic script.

But Ranko Bugarski, a language expert and professor at the Faculty of Philology in Belgrade, is not sure that more laws will make a difference.

Bugarski notes that Cyrillic already has a place in the constitution, while Latin script does not. He adds that, in Serbia, students are first taught Cyrillic characters, and its almost impossible to finish high school without a good knowledge of the alphabet.

Students in all schools first learn Cyrillic, and only after that Latin. All school textbooks are in Cyrillic. That is already a very strong degree of protection. As long as there are schools in Serbia, people will know Cyrillic he told Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty.

Dunja Jasovic of Belgrade agrees. The 21-year-old student says that she always writes in Cyrillic, a skill she developed during her early years in school.

Now, when I study at college or write notes, I always use Cyrillic. But online, or when we do something on a laptop, it's always easier to use Latin, she adds.

A majority of Serbias website publish stories in Latin script. The Serbian National Internet Domain Registry shows that 101,648 websites have been registered on the .rs Latin-script domain. The number seems huge compared to just 2,512 for the registers Cyrillic-script domain.

However, Jasovic says that Serbs should be proud of their language, whichever script is used.

I think it is a gift that we know both letter types and that we do not make a big difference between them. For some, its easier to use Cyrillic. Others prefer to use Latin. Thats not a deficiency. Thats something good.

Im Phil Dierking.

Alan Crosby and Iva Martinovic reported this story for RFE/RL. Phil Dierking adapted their report for VOA Learning English. RFE/RL and VOA are both part of the U.S. Agency for Global Media (USAGM), formerly called the Broadcasting Board of Governors. George Grow was the editor.

Do you think people should protect their original scripts or change to Latin? Write to us in the Comments Section or on our Facebook page.

_________________________________________________________________

Words in This Story

alphabet - n. the letters of a language arranged in their usual order

character - n. a symbol (such as a letter or number) that is used in writing or printing

deficiency - n. a lack of something that is needed

domain - n. a section of the Internet that is made up of computers or sites that are related in some way

draconian - adj. very severe or cruel

online - adj. done over the Internet

proud - n. very happy and pleased because of something you have done, something you own, someone you know or are related to, etc.

rental - n. something that is paid for in return for being able to use temporarily

script - n. a way that a particular set of letters, numbers, etc., is written or printed

tourist - n. a person who travels to a place for pleasure
An attempt by United Airlines to duck the sticky issue of Taiwan has invited rebuke from Chinas foreign ministry. After China told global carriers earlier this year to tweak their websites and list the separately ruled island as part of China  a directive the White House termed Orwellian nonsense  American airlines are still finding themselves in the crosshairs of China. United Continental Holdings Inc. has resorted to using currency codes instead for Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau, a move the Middle Kingdom isnt too pleased with.

However flexible they may try to get, theres simply no way to sidestep the one-China principle, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters in Beijing Thursday, referring to overseas firms operating in the country. Theres only one China in the world and Taiwan is part of China. This is the objective fact, common sense and international consensus.

As the geopolitical tussle for supremacy intensifies between the U.S. and China, global businesses are finding themselves in a spot over Taiwan  long among the fraught issues between Washington and Beijing. The island has now reemerged as a key friction point between the two powers, especially amid the Trump administrations more vocal support for President Tsai Ing-wen, a leader pushing to maintain the islands de-facto independence.

China and Taiwan have been ruled separately since Chiang Kai-sheks Nationalist government fled to Taipei in 1949. Chinas Communist Party regards the island as its territory to be taken by force if necessary.

The Civil Aviation Administration of China asked 44 foreign airlines to change their online references to Taiwan, Hong Kong and Macau to reflect these locations as part of China. For instance, Taiwan should be referred to as China Taiwan or the China Taiwan region. While almost all the airlines complied with the demand, China has said changes by United, Delta Air Lines Inc., American Airlines Group Inc., and Hawaiian Airlines are still incomplete.

A spokeswoman at the CAAC said the regulator had no comments to offer at the moment. United declined to comment.

In the drop-down menu of Uniteds China website, the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan are respectively referred to by the Chinese Yuan, Hong Kong Dollar and New Taiwan Dollar. Other destinations are still identified by country name.

Under Uniteds options for departure and arrival cities, country codes have been removed for cities in China and Taiwan, a change also adopted by the other three U.S. carriers.

While that has failed to sway Beijing, United has a won a fan elsewhere.

We welcome measures that honor Taiwans sovereignty, Andrew Lee, the foreign ministry spokesman in Taipei, said by phone. We thank United Airlines for flexibility in handling the issue. Bloomberg
African leaders will likely press their Chinese hosts at a conference this week to help narrow their trade deficits with Beijing by shifting more manufacturing to their continent, the chief executive of the biggest African bank said.

China has passed Europe and the United States as the biggest trading partner of most African countries. Most run large deficits with Beijing, exporting minerals and buying Chinese manufactured goods.

The question of the trade imbalance is one that I think will be placed firmly on the table by the African delegates, the chief executive of South Africas Standard Bank Group, Sim Tshabalala, told reporters.

Chinas commercial presence in Africa has prompted complaints in some countries that the continent gets too little from the relationship. Africa is a major target of Beijings Belt and Road initiative to build ports, highways and other trade-related infrastructure, but some critics in Tanzania, Kenya and other countries say they leave hosts with too much debt.

I would expect African leaders to put on the table the opportunity that arises from building the African continents manufacturing capability in a way that is in the best interests of the African continent but benefits china as well, Tshabalala said Saturday.

The Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, opening today, brings together leaders from China and more than 50 African countries. Dozens of African leaders have met with Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of the conference.

The participants are looking for ways to advance common growth and development, said South Africas foreign minister, Lindiwe Sisulu.

Some Chinese manufacturers are expanding to Africa but the bulk of Chinese investment goes into mining or construction of roads and other infrastructure. A state-owned automaker, BAIC Group, announced plans this year to start producing electric cars in South Africa.

As Chinese manufacturers move to making higher-value products, the slack that is produced as a consequence can be taken up by African economies, according to Tshabalala.

Standard Bank represents the biggest Chinese investment in Africa to date, after state-owned Industrial and Commerce Bank of China Ltd. agreed in 2007 to buy 20 percent of the African lender for $5.5 billion. Since then, the two banks say they have collaborated on channeling billions of dollars of Chinese investment into Africa.

Some 300 companies account for the majority of Chinas business activity in Africa, but the region also has some 30,000 smaller Chinese firms that are of growing importance, said Francois Gamet, head of Standard Bank Groups Asian operation.

Asked about concerns over Africas rising debts to China, the banks said those still are relatively small and most countries can repay them.

The reality is that Chinese debt as a percentage of total African debt is still relatively small, said Kenny Fihla, Standard Banks chief executive for corporate banking.

Governments in the region have fiscal discipline, said Tshabalala.

Wars, pestilence, violence and conflict have declined, he said. We are quite comfortable that most of these countries have both the ability and the willingness to meet their obligations. AP
The price of the large yellow diamond alternately shrank and spiked by about a million dollars as it moved across the globe.

The three-carat gem was shipped at least four times between shadowy companies allegedly controlled by Indian billionaire Nirav Modi over about five weeks in 2011, according to a report by a U.S. bankruptcy examiner. The practice of round-tripping  trading a good repeatedly to give the appearance of distinct transactions  was central to the largest bank fraud in Indian history and ensuing criminal charges against celebrity jeweler Modi, according to the report filed Aug. 25.

The rapid-fire sales were described as part of a plan in which Modi and associates fraudulently borrowed approximately USD4 billion over a period of years by manufacturing sham transactions purportedly to import diamonds and other gems into India using a web of more than 20 secretly controlled shell entities, wrote John J. Carney, the examiner in the bankruptcy case of three U.S. jewelry companies indirectly owned by Modi.

The firms sought protection from creditors in February in New York as the celebrity jewelers empire unraveled. Authorities brought criminal charges against him and alleged accomplices, and Modi became an international fugitive. Hes denied doing anything wrong.

The fancy vivid yellow orange cushion cut diamond was first sold by Firestar Diamond Inc., a U.S. company indirectly owned by Modi, and shipped to Fancy Creations Company Ltd., a foreign shell company in Hong Kong also allegedly controlled by Modi, in August 2011, the report says. The price was almost $1.1 million.

The colorful stone was then shipped out two weeks later by Solar Export, a partnership formed by the Nirav Modi family trust, back to Firestar Diamond in the U.S., for closer to what it was really worth: $183,000, the examiner wrote.

Less than a week later, Firestar, which has offices on Fifth Avenue in New York City, shipped the diamond back to Fancy Creations in Hong Kong, this time for $1.16 million, the report asserts.

And two weeks after that, A. Jaffe, the New York City-based diamond company owned by Modi, sold the diamond to World Diamond Distribution, which the report describes as a Modi shell company in the United Arab Emirates, this time for more than $1.2 million.

The practice of round-tripping, which ultimately totaled $213.8 million between 2011 and 2017, the alleged duration of the fraud, generated shipping invoices that were given to the Indian state-owned Punjab National Bank to obtain short-term loans using letters of undertaking, according to Carney.

The proceeds were then used to fund Modis lifestyle and business entities as well as using the funds from new loans to repay the old ones as they came due, the report states, citing a real-estate trust controlled by Modi that paid $25 million in cash for a luxury apartment in the Ritz Carlton on Central Park South in 2017.

Some of the shipments were so large and high-priced that the packing slips alone should have raised suspicion, wrote Carney, a former investigator and prosecutor for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Department of Justice. Carney was appointed in April to investigate links between the Modi-owned U.S. companies and other Modi-controlled entities.

In a break with industry practices, the Modi-owned U.S. companies exported diamonds via FedEx instead of with a bonded courier  including a 17-carat stone sold for $1.7 million and sent from New York City to Hong Kong  even though FedEx insures packages only up to $150,000, the report states.

There is no legitimate business reason to ship diamonds worth millions of dollars without obtaining appropriate insurance, Carney wrote, citing a gem expert retained by the bankruptcy trustee. The report found substantial evidence to back up Indian criminal and civil authorities who say Modis U.S. companies and senior officials were involved in transactions related to alleged bank fraud and money laundering.

Modi has previously denied wrongdoing, and a lawyer representing him declined to comment on the examiners report. The U.S. companies, Firestar Diamond, A. Jaffe and Fantasy Inc., which all operate out of the same New York offices, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February. (And the three companies still owe Federal Express about $86,000 in unpaid bills, according to a court filing in their bankruptcy case.)

The U.S. examiners report strengthens PNBs position as a victim of a complex, multi-year fraud, and the lender is expected to argue for a share of the sale proceeds once Firestars assets are sold and secured creditors are satisfied, said Seth R. Freeman, San Francisco-based senior managing director at financial services advisory firm GlassRatner. Josh Saul, Bloomberg

Gem cutters

Modi, 47, comes from a family of specialist gem cutters, and he has draped his jewels on Hollywood and Bollywood stars, including Kate Winslet, Naomi Watts and Priyanka Chopra. He bought A. Jaffe, an iconic engagement ring company founded in Manhattan in 1892, to add to his collection of brands in 2007 and opened eponymous boutiques in New York City, Macau, Singapore, Beijing and London. Now, he is reportedly in the U.K. and the Indian government has asked authorities there for his extradition. The charges against Modi have sent shockwaves through Indian banking and politics as well as the international jewelry industry. The alleged crime undermined the prime ministers anti-graft image and Punjab National Bank posted Indias biggest-ever quarterly bank loss this year after it took a $2 billion hit.
Macaus gaming revenue topped analyst forecasts for the first time in four months, a result that may ease investor concerns about a slowdown in gambling by high rollers.

Receipts in the worlds largest gaming hub climbed 17 percent in August from a year earlier to MOP26.6 billion (USD3.3 billion), above estimates for a median 15 percent expansion, according to data from the Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau issued on Saturday. Analysts forecasts ranged from an increase of 12 percent to 18 percent.

Casino revenue in the enclave has shown 25 straight months of growth. Yet a string of shortfalls has weighed on the industry as concern grows over Chinas economic slowdown and a deepening trade war. Wynn Resorts Ltd. in early August reported steep declines in second-quarter results for its first casino in Macau, driven by a drop in betting by high-rollers.

While the Bloomberg Intelligence index of Macau casino stocks tumbled as much as 31 percent from a four-year high in May, with MGM China Holdings Ltd. and Wynn Macau Ltd. leading declines, shares have been rebounding in recent weeks on speculation that the selloff was overdone.

Gross gaming revenue in Macau should grow by about 13 percent in the third quarter, according to Bloomberg Intelligence analysts Margaret Huang and Caitlin Noselli. While gains in the mass-market sector will continue to outpace VIP, the high-rollers segment still accounts for most of Macaus casino revenue, they said. Part of the weakness in VIP revenue is due to tough comparisons with year-earlier figures. MDT/Bloomberg
Wilson Fung, Hong Kongs former deputy secretary for Economic Development and Labor, and Cheyenne Chan, the former director and shareholder of three companies including Helicopters Hong Kong Limited, Hong Kong Express Airways Limited and Heli Express Limited, will face charges by the Independent Commission Against Corruption (ICAC). The ICAC concluded a probe into graft complaints over flat-

swap deals and other related matters that involved an alleged bribe in the amount of HKD510,000.

According to the ICACs press release last Friday, Fung will face two charges, including accepting an advantage as a public servant and misconduct in public office.

Chan, who is the sister-in-law of gaming tycoon Stanley Ho, faces a charge of offering an advantage to a public servant.

In the statement by the ICAC, after the investigation concluded, based on the findings and advice from the Department of Justice, the ICAC has decided to proceed with the charges.

The anti-graft bureau of Hong Kong also noted that at the material time, Fung, being Deputy Secretary for Economic Development and Labor and head of the Aviation Division of the Economic Development and Labor Bureau, was responsible for, inter alia, air service negotiations, designation of carriers and allocation of air traffic rights, a position which he had allegedly taken unlawful advantage of in accepting the sum from Chan, as a reward for being or remaining favorably disposed to her and/or the three companies controlled by her or related to her.

According to the ICAC investigation, the money was then used by Fung as an initial deposit for the purchase of an apartment unit on Robinson Road.

Following the news, Fung was suspended from his current post as executive director of corporate development at the Airport Authority.

The same statement states that the ICAC has decided to drop charges against other people potentially involved in case, such as the Fungs wife, Betty Ching, who is the head of the governments Policy Innovation and Co-ordination Office, based on legal advice, that concluded that, there is insufficient evidence to prefer prosecution against other persons involved in the investigation.

The defendants have been released on ICAC bail, pending their court appearances at the Eastern Magistracy tomorrow, for transfer to the District Court for plea. RM
A 19-year-old Afghan citizen had a terrorist motive for allegedly stabbing two Americans at the main train station in Amsterdam, city authorities in the Dutch capital said Saturday. Amsterdam police shot and wounded the suspect after the stabbings Friday at Central Station. The local government said hours later it appeared the people injured werent targeted for a specific reason, but added that investigators had not ruled out terror as an aim or any other possibilities.

After the U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands identified the victims as American tourists Saturday, Amsterdam City Hall gave an update.

Based on the suspects first statements, he had a terrorist motive, the city administration said in a statement that did not elaborate on what the statements were or how they showed intent.

The wounded Americans were recovering in a hospital from what police termed serious but not life-threatening injuries. Their identities have not been released. The suspect, who was identified only as Jawed S. in line with privacy rules in the Netherlands, also remained hospitalized.

Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte confirmed on Twitter that the investigation focused Saturday on exploring the extremist ideas that allegedly inspired the train station attack.

The Netherlands counter-terror chief, Dick Schoof, tweeted that the countrys threat level would remain at number four on a scale that tops out at five. Sadly, this reprehensible act fits into the current threat assessment, he said.

W. had a residency permit from Germany. German authorities searched his home and seized data storage devices that would be analyzed as part of the investigation, the city government statement said.

He was scheduled to be arraigned during a closed-door hearing with an investigating judge on Monday. Dutch officials did not disclose the charges he could face.

A statement issued late Friday by Amsterdams city council said the Americans did not appear to have been victims of a targeted attack. Amsterdam authorities also said Friday that it appeared from initial inquiries that the victims werent chosen for a clear reason.

The local government said Saturday it had no immediate plans to beef up security in the city, saying the swift action by police shows that Amsterdam is prepared for this kind of incident.

A passerbys dramatic photo showed two police officers pointing guns at a man in blue jeans and sneakers lying on the ground inside a train station tunnel.

Earlier Saturday, the U.S. ambassador to the Netherlands confirmed that the two people injured Friday were Americans visiting the Netherlands when they were stabbed at the station.

Ambassador Pete Hoekstra issued a written statement saying U.S. Embassy officials had been in touch with the victims or their families.

We wish them a speedy recovery and are working closely with the City of Amsterdam to provide assistance to them and their families, Hoekstra said.

Central Station is a busy entry and exit point for visitors to Amsterdam, with regular trains linking it to the citys Schiphol Airport. Friday is one of the busiest days of the week for train travel as tourists arrive for the weekend. The station is patrolled by armed police and other security staff. AP
Six people were honored Friday as this years winners of the Ramon Magsaysay Awards, known as Asias version of the Nobel Prize, including a Cambodian genocide survivor who helped document the Khmer Rouge atrocities and an Indian psychiatrist who led the rescue of thousands of mentally ill street paupers.

The others who received the prize at a ceremony in Manila were a Filipino who led peace talks with communist insurgents, a polio-stricken Vietnamese who fought discrimination against the disabled, an East Timorese who built care centers for the poor amid civil strife and an Indian who tutored village students to help them pass exams.

The awards, which were announced last month, are named after a Philippine president who died in a 1957 plane crash.

All this effort that I have been trying for so many decades is not in vain, its been recognized, said Youk Chhang, who lost his father, five of his siblings and nearly 60 of his relatives during the genocidal Khmer Rouge regime and subsequent civil war in the 1970s. He escaped as a refugee to the United States before returning home to head a center that documented the horrific violence in aid of Cambodian war crimes trials.

Youk Chhang said in an interview earlier this week that his recognition is also a message to other institutions, to other countries around the world that learning from the past mistakes is significant, is important even though Cambodia has a long way to go.

The massive scope of his groups work included collecting more than a million documents, producing digital maps of more than 23,000 mass graves and excavating remains for forensic examination. Youk Chhang, 57, is currently involved in a project to develop a museum, archives and library and a graduate program on crimes against humanity.

In India, where an estimated 400,000 homeless people struggle with mental illness, psychiatrist Bharat Vatwani started a mission in 1988 that by now has rescued, treated and reintegrated into their families more than 7,000 of them.

Vatwanis healing compassion affirmed the human dignity of even the most ostracized in our midst, the award foundation said.

Nobody understands in India, or nobody understands in Asia, what exactly is the issue [] about mental illnesses, Vatwani said. That drew us to the cause and that has kept us moving forward and forward.

Among the other recipients are Filipino businessman Howard Dee, who served as a government negotiator in peace talks with communist rebels in the 1990s, and Vietnamese Vo Thi Hoang Yen, who contracted polio when she was 2 years old and helped found a nonprofit group in 2005 that has helped about 15,000 people with disabilities get jobs. Her showcase project involved a motorcycle taxi service designed for the disabled.

Maria de Lourdes Martins Cruz from East Timor was recognized for leading efforts to help the poor get access to health care, education, farming and livelihood in the midst of East Timors tumultuous transition to independence in 2001.

Sonam Wangchuk, from the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir, was lauded for fighting discrimination against minorities and founding a movement in 1988 that pursued educational reforms and helped tutor poor village students so they could pass exams. AP
South Korean President Moon Jae-in will send both his national security adviser and top spy as special envoys on a one-day mission to Pyongyang Wednesday ahead of a possible inter-Korean summit this month. President Moon named a five-member delegation to North Korea on Sunday, led by National Security Office chief Chung Eui-yong, Yonhap News Agency reported. The team includes National Intelligence Service head Suh Hoon and Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung.

South Koreas presidential office said it is unsure whether there will be a meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un during the delegations visit, according to Yonhap. Its likely the date of inter-Korean summit will be set during the special envoys trip and the delegations will discuss agendas for the declaration of the end of war and the denuclearization of Korean Peninsula, according to Yonhap.
Britain and France are at war with Germany following the invasion of Poland two days ago.

At 1115 BST the Prime Minister, Neville Chamberlain, announced the British deadline for the withdrawal of German troops from Poland had expired.

He said the British ambassador to Berlin had handed a final note to the German government this morning saying unless it announced plans to withdraw from Poland by 1100, a state of war would exist between the two countries.

Mr Chamberlain continued: I have to tell you now that no such undertaking has been received and consequently this country is at war with Germany.

Similarly the French issued an ultimatum, which was presented in Berlin at 1230, saying France would be at war unless a 1700 deadline for the troops withdrawal was adhered to.

King George has called upon my people at home and my peoples across the seas.

He continued: I ask them to stand calm, firm and united in this time of trial. The task will be hard. There may be dark days ahead and war can no longer be confined to the battlefield. But we can only do the right as we see the right and reverently commit our cause to God.

A War Cabinet of nine members has been set up with two new ministers, including Winston Churchill as First Lord of the Admiralty, the post he held at the outbreak of World War I. Lord Hankey becomes Minister without Portfolio.

Anthony Eden will take over as Dominions Secretary with special access to the War Cabinet. Mr Eden resigned from the post of Secretary of Foreign Affairs last year because he disagreed with the policy of appeasement.

The National Service (Armed Forces) Act has been passed making all men between 18 and 41 liable for conscription. The armed forces have already been mobilized for war and in July the first Territorial Army conscripts were called up.

Latest reports from Poland say the Germans have bombed a number of towns and cities, some with little or no strategic importance. About 1,500 are reported to have been killed or injured in the attacks on Friday and Saturday.

In his broadcast to the nation, Mr Chamberlain spoke of his sadness that the long struggle to win peace had failed.

He continued: I cannot believe that there is anything more or anything different that I could have done and that would have been more successful.

Yesterday there was anger in the House of Commons over the Governments apparent delay in taking action against Germany.

Labours deputy leader Arthur Greenwood had accused the Prime Minister of vacillating when Britain and all that Britain stands for are in peril.

Todays declaration of war was received with rousing cheers. As Mr Chamberlain informed the House Britain could not take part in a five-power conference proposed by Italy while Poland was being invaded.

It has also been received with great enthusiasm in the Polish capital, Warsaw, where crowds took to the streets outside the British and French embassies cheering and singing.

Courtesy BBC News

In context

Hitlers increasingly aggressive foreign policy led to the invasion of the Czech lands (Bohemia and Moravia) in March 1939.

Britain and France subsequently agreed to support Poland in the event of a German invasion.

But their agreement did little to deter Hitler, who attacked Poland on 1 September 1939.

The outbreak of war led to large-scale evacuation of women and children from London and other large cities. Other emergency measures were also declared.

For months there were no air raids during the period now known as the phoney war and many evacuees returned home.

Fighting on the mainland began in earnest when Germany attacked Norway in April 1940 followed by the Low Countries and finally France on 21 June.
Japans finance minister and Chinese officials have pledged support for the multilateral system of global trade regulation ahead of a possible new round of U.S. tariff hikes in a battle over Beijings technology policy.

Taro Aso, who was in Beijing for financial talks, made no mention of Chinas tariff war with President Donald Trump but said Friday that the two sides agreed protectionist measures help no country.

Aso gave no indication whether they discussed Chinese industrial policies and curbs on foreign business that are the core of disputes with Washington, Europe and other trading partners.

Trump has raised tariffs on USD50 billion of Chinese imports in a spiraling dispute over Beijings plans for state-led creation of champions in robotics and other fields and complaints the communist government steals or pressures companies to hand over technology.

The Trump administration is poised to impose penalties on an additional $200 billion of Chinese imports. Beijing has said it will retaliate.

Trumps decision to take action under U.S. law instead of through the World Trade Organization prompted complaints from Japan, Europe and other American allies that he is undermining the global trading system.

Aso met Friday with his Chinese counterpart, Liu Kun. On Thursday, he had talks with Beijings chief envoy in the dispute with Washington, Vice Premier Liu He, and another vice premier, Han Zheng.

Asos comments reflected the effort by other governments to express support for trade while avoiding a formal alliance with Beijing. The European Union and other trading partners echo U.S. complaints about Chinese market barriers and industrial policy.

On trade, we agreed that protectionist measures that lead to inward-looking policies do not benefit any country, and to maintain and propel a multilateral, free and open rules-based trade system, said Aso at a news conference.

Chinese leaders have tried without success to recruit Germany, France, South Korea and other governments as allies against Washington.

Han, the vice premier, issued a similar endorsement of trade in comments reported Thursday by the official Xinhua News Agency. It said Han promised China would promote trade and investment liberalization but gave no details.

Other governments including Germany complain Beijing is hampering business activity by blocking foreign purchases of most Chinese assets at a time when the countrys own companies are on a global acquisition spree.

Beijings relations with Tokyo have been strained in recent years over territorial disputes and Chinas military ambitions. But Beijing has downplayed those disagreements this year, possibly in an effort to win Japanese support against Trump. AP
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

As he grew older, Dale Kunitomi paid closer attention to his healthand to his doctor's advice. When he noticed rectal bleeding in 2010, he went to see his physician, who ordered a colonoscopy.

The diagnosis: colon cancer.

Kunitomi, now 74, underwent surgery, radiation and chemotherapyand now he has been cancer-free for seven years. "The things that are said about early detection and living a healthy lifestyle are important," said Kunitomi, a resident of Ventura County, Calif. "You are foolish if you don't pay attention."

Californians are living longer with most types of cancer, due to earlier detection and more effective treatments, according to new research from the University of California, Davis. But racial, ethnic and socioeconomic disparities persist, the report found.

The study, published in August, shows that 65 percent of people diagnosed with cancer between 2006 and 2010 survived five years or more from the time their disease was discovered, up from 58 percent for those diagnosed between 1990 and 1994. The researchers drew from data on 1.4 million California adults diagnosed with 27 different kinds of cancer. They found improved survival rates for patients with all but five types of cancer.

Non-Latino whites had the highest five-year survival rate for all cancers combined, followed by Latinosthough Pacific Islanders and Asians, like Kunitomi, had the highest rates for 13 of the cancers studied, including breast, colon, liver and lung. African-Americans had the worst overall prognosis.

The California numbers echo a national trend of significant improvement in cancer survival, one also tempered by racial and ethnic disparities. A recent analysis in the journal Cancer, which relied on death rather than survival rates, found a 26 percent decline in cancer mortality in the United States between 1991 and 2015translating to nearly 2.4 million cancer deaths avoided. The study showed mortality rates declined for all the major cancers, including breast, colorectal and prostate.

Dr. Otis Brawley, one of the authors of that report and chief medical and scientific officer of the American Cancer Society, attributed the improvement to better screening, detection and treatmentand a decline in smoking. He said cancer deaths likely would drop even further if there were more equal access to prevention, diagnosis and treatment.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the UC Davis data show that poor Californians don't live as long with cancer as those of greater means. About three-quarters of the patients at the highest socioeconomic level, with all cancers combined, survived five years or more. Just over half the patients at the lowest levels lived that long. Age was also a major factor: The younger patients were at the time of the diagnosis, the better their chance of survival.

Separate research from UC Davis, published in 2015, showed the impact of health insurance status: Uninsured patients and those on Medi-CalCalifornia's version of the federal Medicaid program for low-income peoplehad worse cancer care and outcomes than people with private insurance.

The research published in August showed the most critical factor in survival was finding the cancer early, which the report said underscores the importance of screening. One hundred percent of breast cancer patients survived at least five years if their disease was detected at stage 1. Only 28 percent of patients lived that long if their cancer was found when it was at stage 4, the most advanced stage. Most types of cancer show similarly stark disparities.

Stages, which depend in part on the size of the tumor and whether the cancer has spread, are a gauge of how serious the disease is.

"The earlier things are picked up, the more likely it is that treatment is successful," said Dr. Kenneth Kizer, senior author of the study and director of the University of California, Davis Institute for Population Health Improvement.

Cancer screening and treatment for African-Americans lag behind other racial and ethnic groups, said Dr. Nancy Lee, who is on the board of Black Women's Health Imperative, a national organization that seeks to improve the health of black women. Long-standing and sometimes unrecognized bias in the health care system disadvantages black patients in a way that can compromise their medical outcomes, said Lee, who previously led the cancer division of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

White women in California are more likely to get breast cancer, the most common cancer among women, but black women are more likely to die from it, the UC Davis report found.

Bobby Smith's wife, an African-American, died 13 years ago after her breast cancer moved into her lymph nodes and eventually metastasized to her brain. Smith said he doesn't believe doctors gave her all the information she needed to make the best decisions about her treatment. "Health care professionals treat and serve people of color differently," said Smith, who lives in Los Angeles.

The UC Davis report used data from the California Cancer Registry, a repository of data on cancer patients dating to 1988 that contains information on patient demographics, diagnosis, initial treatment and outcomes.

The rates reported in the study measure "relative" survival, which represents survival in the absence of other causes of death. The study showed patients with prostate, breast, melanoma and uterine cancers had among the highest survival rates: More than 80 percent of them lived at least five years after their diagnosis.

Survival did not improve for patients with some cancers, including bladder, cervical and testicular. And fewer than 20 percent of patients with cancers of the lung, liver, pancreas and esophagus lived past five years.

For breast cancer patients, five-year survival improved from 85 percent among those diagnosed between 1990 and 1994 to 90 percent among those diagnosed between 2006 and 2010.

The patterns were similar for lung cancer, the second most commonly diagnosed cancer in California and the leading cause of cancer deaths nationwide. The disease tends to be diagnosed late, and patients with stage 4 cancer had just a 4 percent survival rate after five years.

Kizer of UC Davis said new treatments offer great promise for cancer patients, but how much money they have and who their insurers are may well determine whether or not they reap the benefits.

Cancer is hard enough for people with means and education, said Susan Lasker Hertz, 61, a Colorado nurse who was diagnosed with stage 2 breast cancer in 2009 and then developed leukemia three years later. Hertz, who is now in remission from both cancers, said her knowledge and experience helped her navigate the health care system and get treated quickly after her diagnosis. But it wasn't easy.

"I am an educated, white, highly knowledgeable health care professional," she said, "and it is still overwhelming."

2018 Kaiser Health News

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
A promising new drug that almost entirely eliminates the risk of contracting HIV might fail to control the epidemic in New Zealand if not enough people are using it.

New research, published in today's New Zealand Medical Journal, praises the benefits of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) medication, but questions the number of barriers to getting it into the right hands.

On 1 March 2018 New Zealand became one of the rst countries internationally to publicly fund PrEP. Eligible people include gay and bisexual men (GBM) and transgender people at high risk, and the partners of people living with HIV. PrEP reduces the risk of contracting HIV by about 86 per cent in GBM individuals, with correct daily timing of the medication that protection can rise to 99 per cent.

Overseas figures are already showing the effectiveness of PrEP, with New South Wales recording a 29 per cent reduction in in HIV cases. London reported a 32 per cent decline in recent HIV cases after implementing large scale PrEP services.

In the article: "Implementing HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP): Let's not get caught with our pants down", lead author Dr. Peter Saxton of the University of Auckland says while PrEP may be the latest HIV prevention technology, it is unfamiliar to most health practitioners in New Zealand.

"New Zealand was quick off the mark to fund PrEP. Now we're looking to GPs and to DHBs to seize the opportunity and help reverse the HIV epidemic. They play a critical role getting PrEP to individuals in their communities at highest HIV risk before they're exposed."

Dr. Saxton and study coauthors, including the New Zealand AIDS Foundation, and Auckland Sexual Health Service, say the barriers include low awareness of PrEP among the community and GPs. A slow PrEP roll-out will mean fewer HIV cases prevented.

"PrEP is a hugely promising new tool in the HIV prevention toolkit but it won't stop transmission if it's sitting on the shelf."

"Our concern is that people most at risk of HIV haven't heard about PrEP; sexual health clinics are struggling from underfunding and don't have capacity; GPs aren't offering PrEP to their eligible patients; and we aren't monitoring PrEP roll-out well enough," he says.

They also cite new estimates that 5,816 individuals could be eligible for PrEP under the highly targeted publicly funded programme. Since PrEP requires a screening visit and 3-monthly follow-up appointments, that number translates to roughly 29,000 annual clinic encounters nationwide. Half of these would be in Auckland.

"Such numbers are well beyond current sexual health service capacity, meaning PrEP delivery in primary care is crucial to meeting these scale-up targets."

Dr. Saxton says another hurdle facing PrEP roll-out is that many GPs don't know who their gay and bisexual male patients are, or how to raise sexual health issues.

"GPs obviously don't want their patients contracting HIV. But many struggle to offer prevention advice because there are few opportunities to improve their training in sexuality and in sexual health."

"Now that PrEP can be prescribed, it could in fact trigger a revolution in primary care for the gay community and for sexual health. There are plenty of opportunities for innovation in GP practices and plenty of New Zealanders wanting providers who offer safe, relevant and timely healthcare."

Previous research by University of Auckland authors Peter Saxton and Adrian Ludlam found that only half of gay and bisexual men had disclosed their sexuality to their GP.

Having recently returned from the 2018 International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam, Dr. Saxton says that PrEP, alongside condom use, regular HIV and sexually transmitted infection (STI) screening, and prompt treatment for people living with HIV are key to reducing HIV transmission in concentrated epidemics like New Zealand.

"HIV transmission is still too high in New Zealand so implementing PrEP early and fully is critical." said Saxton.

Explore further Researcher identifies barriers impacting PrEP use among Latino gay and bisexual men

More information: Implementing HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP): Let's not get caught with our pants down" NZMJ, Vol 131, No 1481, 31 August 2018. Journal information: New Zealand Medical Journal Implementing HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP): Let's not get caught with our pants down" NZMJ, Vol 131, No 1481, 31 August 2018.
Credit: CC0 Public Domain

It's that time of year again. Store shelves are stocked full of back-to-school items and parents are making decisions about what to buy.

At the top of many shopping lists is a new school bag, but parents often struggle over finding the safest option for their child.

"Every September, we start to hear controversy about whether backpacks are to blame for back and neck pain in children," says Brock University Assistant Professor of Kinesiology Michael Holmes. "To put parents' minds at rest, recent literature suggests there is little evidence to support links between backpack use and pain."

As a Canada Research Chair in Neuromuscular Mechanics and Ergonomics, Holmes asserts while several systematic reviews have been done, it has been difficult to link usage of backpacks to poor biomechanics and ultimately back pain or damage.

"My philosophy is that, for the most part, as a parent you don't have to worry too much about it," Holmes says. "If a backpack has a reasonable amount of weight in it and fits correctly, children are not wearing it long enough for long-term damage to occur."

To assist with the myth busting, Holmes offers a scenario to help put parents' concerns into context.

"For a nurse, who lifts hundreds of patients a day over a long career, there is a cumulative loading effect on the spine that will eventually cause damage to the spine. It's a main reason why back pain in nurses or caregivers is so prevalent," Holmes explains. "By comparison, kids are strong and resilient. In the event that fatigue does occur, they recover fast."

However, when given the choice, Holmes does recommend backpacks over shoulder bags, messenger bags or purses, as they keep the body balanced.

"Bags worn on one shoulder create an asymmetry of what muscles are being used, which can load the spine in undesirable ways," Holmes explains.

While he wants to alleviate concerns, there are still best practices from an ergonomics stand point which can be beneficial for long-term spinal health.

"There are a lot of good ergonomic principles in modern packs today, so if there is one item to invest in, it's a good backpack," Holmes says. "Simply purchasing a good pack is only half the battle; it needs to be worn properly. We are all guilty of just throwing a bag over one shoulder and going, so even the best-designed pack and interventions are not going to prevent human nature."

Holmes and Associate Professor of Kinesiology Gail Frost have compiled a list of tips and considerations for parents and students.

Good backpacks will have:

A waist strap to distribute the load more to the hips, as well as keep it closer to the body to improve balance and reduce demands on muscles.

Wide, padded shoulder straps, which are more comfortable on the shoulders and neck and prevents the weight from being concentrated on one area, which could impair circulation and nerve function.

A padded back.

Compartments so weight can be evenly distributed.

Other considerations:

The pack should be light when it's empty, not loaded down with fancy hardware that adds weight before anything is even put into it.

It should have a reflective strip so the child can be seen in car headlights.

For sizing, the pack should be proportional to the size of the person. Smaller children should have smaller packs and parents should avoid over packing.

The bottom of the pack should sit at waist level.

Parents should encourage children to:

Wear the backpack appropriately, with both shoulder straps on to encourage balance across two strong muscle groupsthe back and abdominal muscles.

Be mindful of what's carried daily. Encourage children to use desks and lockers effectively.

Be active, movement is good. Regular physical activity helps to prevent injury.

Explore further Take the back pain out of backpacks
Daniel Hinshaw presenting. Credit: University of Notre Dame

Life is not possible without death and yet, modern medicine has waged an unending war against death. Now, a Notre Dame Institute for Advanced Study (NDIAS) residential fellow is exploring how the concept of kenosis might create a common ground for personal growth, mutual understanding, civil discourse and productive policymaking in today's diverse and polarized society.

Daniel Hinshaw, M.D., professor emeritus of surgery and consultant in palliative medicine at the University of Michigan Medical School, has joined the NDIAS for the 2018-2019 cohort to discuss kenosis in his upcoming book. In Classical Greek, "kenosis" meant "depletion" or "emptying," and in Christian theology, the term was used to describe the voluntary self-emptying of God in becoming a human being in the person of Jesus Christ.

"With the recent shift to the non-communicable diseases of aging as the major sources of morbidity and mortality world-wide, it is the first time in human history when, for the majority of people, death will come through the aging process, which is essentially a process of kenosis, first on a physical level but also extending to the psychological, social, and spiritual aspects of the person," said Hinshaw. "The kenosis of aging is in a very real sense the 'choreographer' of the suffering experienced by human beings confronted by their mortality. Elements common to the kenotic process of aging include progressive functional decline, diminished autonomy, and the increasing likelihood over time of developing one or more of the diseases of aging (e.g., cancer, heart disease, diabetes, or dementia), all of which are associated with enormous healthcare costs that are spiraling out of control."

Hinshaw says that rather than being a source of despair, a voluntary embrace of kenosis, and thus our mortality, can become a tutor or mentor that guides each of us to reconsider our priorities.

"If we really accepted the limitations inherent to our mortality, how would this affect our decisions not only on a personal level but also on a societal and political level? This is what I am tackling at the NDIAS," said Hinshaw. "Addressing this one fundamental and common aspect of our humanity that transcends every category of demographics may provide people a mirror to see themselves honestly and to perceive their neighbor in a new light."

Hinshaw proposes to explore the broad implications of kenosis beyond its impact on personal reflection and spiritual growth to also include the potential transformation of priorities in healthcare, biomedical research, education, ethics, politics, culture, the arts, as well as stewardship of the earth and its resources. For example, he argues that if people began to accept their inevitable kenosis, they might take more personal responsibility for their health. With this more realistic understanding, Hinshaw believes there is the potential to improve healthcare through greater use of preventive medicine and increased health education from an early age, which could ultimately lead to better health as well as a reduction in costs as the use of expensive rescue strategies in the advanced stages of disease would decline.

Further, he worries that although documents such as the Declaration of Independence and U.S. Constitution focus almost exclusively on the individual's right to pursue happiness, such a philosophy, if not balanced by a concern for the other, could make "monsters of us all." However, reflection on the unavoidable nature of suffering and death, with the kenosis of aging as a reminder, is a commonality everyone shares and may guide a more altruistic form of human exchange in all aspects of life.

Throughout Hinshaw's stay at the NDIAS, he also plans to explore the deeper existential opportunities presented to those who make use of their kenosis to redefine their lives.

"Notre Dame has an environment that encompasses an ethos where ideas like this can be explored, which is why the NDIAS and their fellowship program was such an appealing opportunity for me to create this book," said Hinshaw. "The Institute also provides important support and perspectives that will be essential to the development and writing process throughout my semester-long stay."

Hinshaw previously authored two books titled Suffering and the Nature of Healing and Touch and the Healing of the World. To learn more about Hinshaw and his fellowship at the NDIAS, please visit https://ndias.nd.edu/fellows/hinshaw-daniel-b/.

Explore further ADHD rates rising sharply in US kids
For picture posts from 2010 and earlier, see the Earlier Picture Posts Page
ARCHIVED - Foreign visitor numbers in Spain down by 4.9 per cent in July



But UK tourist spending increased, reaching 3.2 million euros per hour!

The figures regarding international tourism in Spain during July, which were published by the governments central statistics unit on Monday morning, show that there were again fewer visitors to this country than in the same month last year, indicating that the slowdown reported during the spring continued to be apparent during the first of the two peak beach tourism months of the summer.

The data indicate that the number of people visiting from outside Spain during the seventh month of 2018 reached 9.98 million, with decreases being reported in respect of the three largest individual markets. As usual by far the highest figure relates to visitors from the UK, who accounted for almost 2.2 million (or 22 per cent) but this was 5.6 per cent fewer than in July 2017, while the number of German visitors fell by 6.2 per cent to 1.3 million and French tourists numbered 1.38 million, 11.4 per cent fewer than in the same month last year.

Among the main markets only Scandinavia bucked the trend, with a minimal 0.2 per cent increase seeing the number of visitors reach 758,000, while among minor markets the figure for the USA was 12.7 per cent higher than in July 2017 at 357,000.

Further confirmation that the long period of double-digit year-on-year increases appears to be over can be gleaned from the cumulative data for the year, which show an increase of just 0.3 per cent over the total reached in the first seven five months of 2017.

In terms of preferred destinations the July figures also show decreases in most of the major tourist regions of Spain, the only exception being Madrid (no doubt due in part to the increase in the number of visitors from the USA). At the same time, though, it is worth noting that among the six major destinations the UK was the most important source of foreign visitors in July in four, contributing 28.8 per cent in the Comunidad Valenciana, 39 per cent in the Canaries, 28.1 per cent in the Balearics and 27.3 per cent in Andalucia.

As ever, though, even more important in economic terms is the amount of money these foreign tourists spent while in Spain, and in July the figure dropped but only by 0.9 per cent, reaching 11,747 million euros. In the first five months of the year the cumulative total has reached 50,691 million euros, 3 per cent higher than at the same point in 2017.

Logically, it was the UK which claimed the largest share of the spending in July (2,373 million euros, up by 1 per cent despite there being 5.6 per cent fewer visitors and equating to an incredible 3.19 MILLION EUROS PER HOUR!, and it is also interesting to note that in the year to date 3.6 million Scandinavian visitors are calculated to have spent 4,360 million euros in Spain, significantly more than the 6.2 million who have come from France (3,907 million euros).

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The South African Post Office (SAPO) has a reputation of very poor service levels, which includes slow delivery times, lost packages, website downtime, and poor communication with clients.

In fact, the Post Office has become so poor that many South Africans avoid using the service unless they have no other choice.

Despite the problems, SAPO CEO Mark Barnes recently punted the performance of his organisation, saying 87% of all mail was reaching its destination within the acceptable time frame of five days.

He blamed recent delivery problems on a strike at the Post Office, which ended on 18 July 2018.

What the Post Office promises

The Post Offices licence conditions, which are set by ICASA, require it to achieve a 92% rate of delivering ordinary mail within five days.

The SA Post Office also lists the expected service levels on its website.

Letters generally take two days within the same town or city to reach their destination, three days between two cities in the same province, and four days between cities in different provinces.

Fastmail is a letter service in South Africa with a one-day delivery standard in the same city or town, a two-day delivery standard for all other destinations.

These service levels set clear benchmarks of what South Africans can expect of the Post Office  and MyBroadband tested these benchmarks.

Post Office test

Over the last month, MyBroadband tested SAPOs ordinary mail and Fastmail services.

For the test, MyBroadband members sent letters from across South Africa to the Lyttelton Post Office, and we tracked how long these letters took to arrive.

The results showed that the Post Office failed to meet a single of its requirements  it had a 100% failure rate for both Fastmail and ordinary mail.

While all the Fastmail letters were delivered within three weeks, not one of the letters met the 2-day delivery promise.

The situation with ordinary mail was even worse. Only half of the letters arrived within a month, and it is unclear when the other half will arrive.

The Post Office silent on delivery problems

MyBroadband contacted the Post Office regarding the letter delivery problems, but the company did not provide feedback on our questions.

The Post Office also did not answer questions about its Fastmail service.

Post Office test results

The graphic below provides an overview of the results of MyBroadbands Post Office Test.
The Presidency has told the Department of Telecommunications (DTPS) to speed up its decision on the allocation of critical radio frequency spectrum for wireless networks.

This is according to Robert Nkuna, director-general of the department, who was speaking at Telkoms annual SATNAC in Hermanus.

Nkuna said they will allocate a lot of spectrum in the 2.6GHz, 700MHz, and 800MHz frequency bands.

Once allocated, the ICASA will be able to invite network operators to apply for licences to use the spectrum.

It is worth noting that the 700MHz and 800MHz that Nkuna mentioned fall within the digital dividend. These frequencies will be available when South Africa completes its migration from analogue to digital TV broadcasting.

The former Minister of Communications, Mmamoloko Kubayi, most recently set the deadline for the migration to June 2019.

The DTPS previously said it aims to license outstanding 4G and digital dividend spectrum by March 2019.

The DTPS has also released its Amendment Bill for the Electronic Communications Act, which is set to be tabled in Parliament.

This bill states that ICASA needs to license a wholesale open access network operator, after being directed to do so through a DTPS policy direction. It also states that the DTPS must develop a national radio frequency plan.

There is therefore a lot of work that the DTPS must complete before ICASA may issue invitations to apply for spectrum licences.

5G spectrum

Another band that the DTPS is aiming to license is 3.5GHz, a popular initial band for 5G.

Nkuna said there are some views that the DTPS should allocate all four of these spectrum bands  the 700MHz and 800MHz, 2.6GHz, and 3.5Ghz  at the same time.

However, they need to move faster and allocate the first three bands as soon as possible.

They can then allocate the remaining 3.5GHz band soon after the World Radio Conference (WRC-19) in November next year, with the aim to make South Africa among the first countries to roll out 5G.

On the agenda for the conference is a discussion around radio frequencies which are earmarked for use by 5G networks.

Telkom recently told MyBroadband that WRC-19 will decide on the frequency bands for 5G, as well as the associated technical and regulatory requirements.
To me, one of the fascinating things about genealogy is getting to meet your ancestors and learn about their times. In my journey into the past, I have found ordinary people, some doing extraordinary things. And you get to share, vicariously, in some of the joys, excitement and tragedy of their lives.

The story I tell you today is one of sorrow, because in 1692, a tragedy happened in the family of my 10th great grandfather, William Towne in the Salem, Massachusetts area.

William was born in Great Yarmouth, Norfolk, England. His wife, Joanna Blessing, was also born in England around 1600. William and Joanna were married March 25, 1620 and sailed to the colonies around 1635 with their six children. They settled in Salem. In 1651, he purchased 40 acres in the neighboring town of Topsfield. In 1652, he sold his property in Salem and bought additional property in Topsfield in 1656. This land got him involved in land disputes with the Putnam family of Salem, which may have had some impact on his family some 40 years later.

During this time, William served as a constable in Salem and was made a Freeman. He and Joanna also had two more children. He died in 1671 and Joanna, in 1682.

In the 17th century colonies, the supernatural was considered part of everyday life; many people believed that Satan was present and active on Earth. As this witchcraft craze rippled through Europe beginning in the 15th century, tens of thousands of supposed witches, mostly women, were executed.

Men and women in Salem believed that their misfortunes  infant death, crop failures, or social friction  could be attributed to the devil.

In 1689, English rulers, William and Mary, started a war with France in the American colonies. King Williams War ravaged regions of New York, Nova Scotia and Quebec, sending refugees into the county of Essex and, specifically, Salem Village. The displaced people created a strain on Salems resources and aggravated rivalries between families.

In January of 1692, four girls from Salem started having fits, and under pressure from local magistrates, they blamed three women for afflicting them:

Tituba, a Caribbean slave who ran the household of Vicar Parris;

Sarah Good, a homeless beggar with a child;

Sarah Osborne, an impoverished elderly woman.

The women were interrogated and jailed. Two claimed innocence, but Tituba confessed and said there were other witches in Salem looking to destroy the Puritans.

The group of afflicted girls eventually grew to eight or 11, and the stream of accusations that followed eventually touched the Towne family.

A special court was established and the first case brought before them was Bridget Bishop. Although she pleaded innocent, she was found guilty and, on June 10, became the first person hanged on what was later called Gallows Hill.

Rebecca (Towne) Nurse, my ninth great aunt (and the sister of my ancestor, Jacob Towne, the son of William), was a 71-year old grandmother and wife of a prominent businessman when she was accused of witchcraft, arrested, and put in chains on March 24, 1692. This arrest came as a surprise to the citizens of Salem because Goody Towne was considered such a pious and upstanding citizen, but she was accused of witchcraft by the girls and several adults who claimed to have seen her spirit torment a local woman, Ann Putnam Sr.

Many historians believe that the root of the hysteria began in the Parris household with Tituba and the girls exploring sorcery, which Tituba had brought from her native Jamaica, and that the Putnam family was behind much of the accusations. Rebecca and her husband, Francis, had a longstanding dispute with the Putnam family over a boundary of their adjoining lands, and all of her accusers were either members of the Putnam family or friends of the family.

In addition, Rebecca had often criticized the afflicted girls for dabbling in fortune-telling and was not a supporter of Vicar Parris, the fire and brimstone head of the Salem Village Church.

Although Rebecca was known for her piety and a member of the Salem Church, she was also known for occasionally losing her temper. She stood trial, but the jury found her not guilty. The verdict was not surprising; 39 people had risked their lives to sign a petition in support of her.

After the verdict, the afflicted girls began having fits and cried out against Rebecca again, according to the book The Salem Witch Trials: A Reference Guide. She was brought before the court again and this time she was found guilty of witchcraft. Rebecca, at 71, had partial deafness and it is thought that her hesitation in answering questions was due to this. Again, there was an intersession, and Gov. William Phips granted her a reprieve.

Almost immediately, her accusers renewed their fits. She was sentenced to death and executed on July 19, 1692. She was excommunicated from her church, which she had faithfully attended over the years. Rebecca went to the gallows without anger, but with forgiveness and a prayer on her lips. Four other women were hung at the same time.

Because those accused of being witches were not allowed a proper burial, so under darkness of night, her family retrieved her body and buried her secretly on their family farm. The location of this burial has never been established.

Rebeccas two sisters, Mary Towne Easty and Sarah Towne Cloyce, were also accused of witchcraft after coming to Rebeccas defense. During a sermon that Rev. Parris preached on witchcraft, Sarah had walked out and slammed the door. Mary was arrested April 21 and hung on Sept. 22, while Sarah managed to escape and run away with her husband. Her case was later dismissed.

In Salem, between 1692 and 1693, more than 200 people were accused of practicing witchcraft and jailed. Twenty-four were executed. Many others died in prison.

On Aug. 25, 1706, Ann Putnam Jr. apologized for the accusing of several persons of a grievous crime, whereby their lives were taken away from them. Whom now I have just grounds and good reason to believe they were innocent persons. She named Rebecca Nurse specifically.

In 1711, the church and community changed their mind, and three gold sovereigns were given to Sarah and the family in reparation. In 1712, the Salem church reversed the excommunication of Rebecca Nurse.

An article published in 1976 in Science by psychologist Linda Caporael, blamed the abnormal habits of the girls on the fungus ergot, which can be found in rye, wheat and other cereal grasses. Toxicologists say that eating ergot-contaminated foods can lead to muscle spasms, vomiting, delusions and hallucinations. This fungus thrives in warm, damp climates, not unlike the swampy meadows in Salem Village.

Could this have contributed to one of our most notorious cases of mass hysteria and subsequent horrors? Was it a case of ergot, or misogyny and envy?
Asha Napa Valley has a strong team of supporters ready to break fundraising records while celebrating some huge milestones on Saturday, Sept. 8.

Asha, India is celebrating 30 years of working in the slums of Delhi, India and Asha, Napa Valley is celebrating 20 years of giving. The pairing of these two groups has brought Asha (hope) to over 600,000 people.

Asha, Napa Valley is teaming up with Congressman Mike Thompson and his wife Jan Thompson, Chris Indelicato and his team at Black Stallion Estate Winery and Jeet Bhangoo of Aroma, Indian Cuisine, in Napa for a festive event to raise the funds that have worked miracles on the other side of our planet. One hundred percent of the funds raised at this event go directly to helping desperately poor children and their families in the slums of Delhi, India.

What began with the efforts of one person, Dr. Kiran Martin, to raise money to give the children in the slums of India their immunizations (and an increased chance of survival) has morphed into a myriad of services that offers Asha (Hope) to slum dwellers. Children who played in open sewers now have paved streets and real homes instead of cardboard hovels. Women have been empowered and included in the financial life of their communities.

Ashas recent programs in higher education are enabling young people to sustain themselves and to ensure a better future for themselves and their families. Through the funds raised in the U.S., U.K., Australia and New Zealand, Asha has enabled more than 1,500 students to enter higher education in colleges and universities throughout Delhi.

One of these students, Usha, will be a special guest speaker at the Asha Napa Valley event. Until now, it was completely unheard of for a slum dweller to attend a university and land a job in a big company. Usha will share her journey of growing up in the slums and graduating with a degree in broadcast journalism.

Vintage High School students Kaylani Bresee and Liliann Tibbits were so moved by Dr. Martin and Sundeep and Babitas visits (past guest student speakers from India) to Vintage High School, that they planned a visit to help in the slums over Christmas vacation. The girls set up a marketplace at the Asha, Napa Valley event last year and raised funds that they used to buy school supplies and little toys to bring to the children as gifts during their visit.

Kaylani remembers their visit. Working with the children and touring the slum was an eye-opening experience. The people welcomed us into their homes, usually smaller than my bedroom, and offered us tea and fruit. It was amazing. People with next to nothing offering us something to eat and greeting us with huge smiles.

Liliann added, I went into this thinking I would see and experience another culture, but the take away was something that has impacted me for life. It makes me think of how fortunate we are and that we can do so much more to help.

We are so thankful to Chris and his team at The Black Stallion Estate Winery for hosting us this year, said K.C. (Kailash) Chaudhary of Chaudhary and Associates, event sponsors. They have truly gone above and beyond to make this years event a special celebration and the committee is excited to make this our best year yet.

We approached them (Black Stallion) with the request of hosting this event and there was no hesitation. Of course, we can help out was the word we got back from Chris the same day! Their winery is so beautiful and will be a wonderful setting for the 30 Years of Serving and 20 Years of Giving Celebration.

There was also no hesitation from Jeet and Joti Bhangoo, owners of Aroma, Indian Cuisine. They jumped right in with their commitment to donate all the food. Their generosity is exceptional and extends from our community to India. In addition to helping with the Asha event, they have donated food during the fires, continue to donate Sunday dinners at the homeless shelter in South Napa and offer meals to low income Napa residents, said Chaudhary.

We dont want people to have to go without eating because they are experiencing a difficult time in their lives, Jeet Bhangoo said. Our hope is that we bring some Asha to our community as well as others around the world. We know that all of our collective efforts can bring about change for the better here locally and in India.

The schedule of events includes: a Meet and Greet with Congressman Mike Thompson and his wife Jan, Indian appetizers by Aroma with Black Stallion Estate wine, silent auction (with a variety of donated gift baskets, wine, beer and art) an Indian marketplace (with shawls, bangles, henna tattoos and other items), instant wine cellar, live auction and Bollywood dance lesson.

Tickets are still available for this years event to be held on Saturday, Sept. 8, 2018 starting at 4:30 p.m. at the Black Stallion Estate Winery. Your $100 donation includes appetizers, wine, dinner and dancing. Tickets can be reserved by contacting Susan at 707-255-2729 or texting Rita at 707-337-9046. More information on Asha, India and details of this organization are available on the Asha website at: http://Asha-india.org/
Napas Lighted Art Festival showed residents and visitors how city streets could be transformed into a large-scale gallery not with paints and stone, but with projectors and video cameras. In January, the festival will return  accompanied by music, lectures and even a parade.

The city parks department announced plans last Tuesday for the sequel to the December 2017 open-air exhibition, in which various Napa buildings became the backdrops to artworks formed from light and video displays. Napas second Lighted Art Festival will run from Jan. 12-20, with between 12 and 15 installations around town, Recreation Manager Katrina Gregory said during a meeting of the Public Arts Steering Committee.

In addition to creative works formed by video and light projectors, pieces on display in Napa may feature illuminated sculpture, three-dimensional video mapping and interactive technology, according to Gregory. The January exhibition will be subtitled Beyond with a focus on ideas outside our physical limits, surpassing our imagination or demonstrating something that is greater or apart from us, she wrote in a pre-meeting memorandum.

The Lighted Art Festivals debut last year featured nine installations in which projected light and sound systems turned city landmarks into giant canvases. Exhibits ranged from the pulsating geometric patterns of Line at Napas Riverfront to the time-lapse blooming of flowers on the side of the Historic Napa Mill to the bowing of cellos displayed in the Napa Valley College auditorium lobby.

New to the 2019 celebration will be a slate of activities taking place during the nine-day run  including a Lantern Parade on Jan. 18 that will lead participants past the festivals downtown artworks. Guests of all ages will be asked to make their own lanterns for the parade, with some lamp templates to be posted online in advance.

Napa also is organizing several discussions touching on art, light, stained glass and other topics, and musical performances are planned at various downtown clubs, wine tasting rooms and streets. A possible companion event with the Rail Arts District, Art after Dark with RAD, would illuminate six murals along the Napa Valley Wine Train during the festival to allow nighttime walking tours on the Vine Trail.

Theres more things people can enjoy on multiple days we added to the festival, because we wanted community engagement, Gregory said Wednesday.

Shifting the Lighted Art Festival from December to January should make the event more enticing to would-be visitors during a less hectic part of winter than the Christmas season, predicted Gregory.

Although December is a relatively slow period that were trying to energize, we want to separate (the festival) from the holidays  some people expect to see holiday lights but the reality is that this is an art exhibition, she said Wednesday.

City staff members and a four-person jury will work with local property owners to select artworks for the 2019 festival, with the full slate expected to be chosen by early October, according to Gregory.

One of the exhibits from the 2017 event, The Language of Love by the German artist Birgit Zander, is expected to return to First Presbyterian Church on Third Street for the new festival. The Language of Love, which has been displayed in several other cities since December, overlaid the words for love in numerous languages and colors on the facade of the historic sanctuary, which dates to 1874 and reopened two years ago following extensive repairs after the 2014 earthquake.

Displays will be illuminated from 6 to 9 p.m. from Monday to Thursday, and from 6 to 10 p.m. Friday to Sunday.

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Chris Burditt looks back on his long career teaching mathematics at Napa Valley College as helping career-minded students to become more confident with data and algorithms.

I believe that if you had a problem with math, its probably a problem with the teaching you had years ago, rather than your real ability, said Burditt, who started teaching at NVC 50 years ago this fall.

Burditt was recently honored during a Napa Valley College Foundation luncheon for his decades of teaching at the college and his contributions to the Foundation.

Retiring from full-time teaching in 2003, he continues to support the Napa Valley College Foundation and recently provided the first half of a $50,000 unrestricted matching grant to support Foundation activities. He also supports District Auxiliary Services at NVC.

In the past, I learned to save. Now I have something to share. I want to give students recognition for accomplishing something special, beyond what a letter grade provides. The Napa Valley College Foundation is my favorite charity. I give through my Schwab Charitable account and QCDs (direct IRA distributions to charity).

Throughout the years, I learned that gratitude is really the most important reaction to life. Being grateful for what I have is what inspires me to give back, through the Foundation. Former students of mine are now supporting the Foundation. There is no greater feeling than making a difference in the lives of others.

There is nothing were doing in math that you cant do, says Burditt, who uses M&Ms to teach statistics. If you start experiencing success in math, it snowballs. I try to create early successes and a supportive place to learn.

Burditt grew up in Saginaw, Michigan, during its heyday when 150,000 residents enjoyed economic prosperity and excellent public schools, thanks largely to the auto industry. Then he watched the town shrink to 70,000 as union jobs moved out of state and jobs became more automated.

He credits his seventh-grade math teacher, Ruby Gibbs, for inspiring him to choose a career in mathematics, his 12th-grade teacher, Donald McPhee, for teaching him trigonometry and pre-calculus, and his Arthur Hill High School journalism teacher, Mattie Crump, for teaching him how to write.

Although he did well in high school, he wasnt well-informed about scholarships and applying to college.

My mother and I were struggling financially. She made $30 a week and paid $10 a week in rent.

She knew about hard work  she had assembled machine guns during World War II. She emphasized how important attending college was for her son.

Then Mattie Crump recruited him to work on the school newspaper, and sent him to a one-week workshop for journalism students at the University of Michigan before his senior year.

Since he had that experience living at the University of Michigan, he applied there. He accepted $50 from his older brother Byron to pay the application fee. He repaid his brother when he won the door prize at his high schools senior party  a $50 bill. In the spring, he applied for a four-year tuition scholarship to Michigan and got it.

When I got good grades in the fall of my freshman year, Michigan gave me more financial support beyond the tuition fees, he recalls. Michigan showed a belief in my ability to succeed. Ive never forgotten that.

After graduating in 1967 and doing student teaching, he refocused his teaching interest to community colleges. That required a Masters degree. Following studies at Michigan, he began searching for community college work in California in 1969.

Nobody wanted to hire me, he said.

So I joined a program at Cal for new community college teachers. Luckily Napa Valley College wanted me for the one-year internship. I interviewed with President George Clark at his residence, the Ink House.

Chris also earned his doctorate in 1973 from Cal and later taught mathematics for the U.S. State Departments Fulbright Program in England and Mexico. He won the NVC Foundations McPherson Distinguished Teaching award in 1989.

My favorite courses are statistics and general math, he said. Students never ask, What is this good for? 

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Who founded the city of Napa? Who operated the first commercial winery here? Who were the first couple married in Napa? What infamous former Governor of Missouri is buried here? Why was a famous civil rights worker buried here?All this and more can be seen and discovered on a guided tour of Napas Tulocay Cemetery, conducted monthly by the Napa County Historical Society. Here, the notable and the notorious lie side by side.

If you enjoy nothing more than walking around old cemeteries wherever you find them, this is the perfect activity. There are so many things to see and learn here. Its a virtual tour of the history of the American West, said Napa County Historical Society (NCHS) Executive Director Nancy Levenberg.

Levenberg and Presley Hubschmitt, research librarian for the NCHS, conduct the monthly tours. About 20 people typically brave the morning chill to come along on the fascinating and informative tours. Its great exercise; too, walking up and down the hills Tulocay is built upon.

Napa has been around a long time, and a large majority of its historical residents rest in peace in the sprawling facility. And yet, only 20 of the cemeterys 48 acres are in use, according to Levenberg, so there is plenty of room to grow.

First stop on the tours, appropriately, is the family plot of Don Cayetano Juarez of Old Adobe fame. Don Juarez donated 48 acres of land from his Rancho Tulucay, which was deeded to him by General Mariano Vallejo in the mid-1800s. Juarez is buried here along with his wife Maria, and several family descendants.

An interesting feature of his plot is a large, above-ground cement and brick vault, which cemetery records show but have no information as to who might be inside. There are other nameless vaults like this around the cemetery, as we would discover, along with many other interesting facts, on our tour. Hubschmitt said that over 200 Juarez descendants still live in the Napa area today.

But Juarez was not the first recorded burial at Tulocay; that distinction goes to a 1-year-old child named Ester E. Hatton, who was laid to rest in 1873, according to cemetery director Peter Manasse. He also pointed out that as the cemetery opened in 1859, other burials likely preceded Hattons but were not recorded.

Hubschmitt noted that Tulocay was also not the first cemetery in Napa, the first being located on the other side of town in the Browns Valley area.

The old cemetery became overcrowded, and in 1858, the city of Napa formed a committee to determine where to put a new cemetery, she said.

According to a book about the history of the cemetery by noted local historian, Nancy S. Brennan, the original cemetery was located near the intersection of Browns Valley Road and a road leading to the Kilburn tract, and was situated on the sunny side of a hill.

According to the book, during heavy rains the road to the cemetery became not only impassable, but bodies were also occasionally washing down the hill.

The next stop on our Tulocay tour was a plot whose occupant is a name many Napans would recognize immediately: Boon Fly. If you have wondered about the Boon Fly Cafe west of town on the Sonoma highway, and thought it a curious name, you might be surprised to learn the name is actually referencing a Napa historical figure. The restaurant says their name honors Flys pioneer contributions to the Carneros District, once known as the Fly District.

He was originally from North Carolina and literally walked from there to Napa via Missouri and Salt Lake City, according to Hubschmitt. He became a sought-after carpenter in the area. Not everyone rode on a wagon in a wagon train, she said. In fact, very few did.

A former governor of Missouri buried in Tulocay?

Yep: Lilburn Boggs, who served from 1836-1840.

Boggs infamously issued an executive order in 1838 ordering all Mormons be driven from the state, and later, though seriously wounded, survived an assassination attempt before fleeing West in 1846.

Among Boggs party of emigrants was the infamous Donner Party, who unwisely split from the main group to take the dangerous Hastings Route to California, and everyone knows what happened to them.

Many rescue attempts, including the successful one, were mounted right here in Napa County, said Levenberg. A number of the survivors ended up settling right here.

Boggs served as the first alcalde, a Spanish-era position equivalent to mayor or chief magistrate, of Sonoma before later moving to Napa. Boggs second wife was Panthea Boone, a granddaughter of the famous mountain man, Daniel Boone.

James Clyman, another mountain man who traveled with the likes of Jim Bridger and others, is buried here. Clyman famously survived a vicious grizzly bear attack on the way to Napa where he settled in 1845. The following year, he was guiding a wagon train west and fell in love with 26-year-old Hannah McCombs.

Clyman, 30 years her senior at the time, and McCombs were married in what is said to be the first wedding celebrated in Napa. Their first house, built in 1857 at 2243 Redwood Road, still stands today, according to Hubschmitt.

An imposing headstone belonging to early Napa winemaker John Patchett, was the next stop.

Patchett bought land in the Napa Valley after coming west for the Gold Rush, Hubschmitt said. He became the first person to plant vineyards for commercial purposes, not just personal use. His vineyards were located where the Embassy Suites sits today. In 1858, Patchett hired a winemaker whose name is well known today, Charles Krug, to help him. Krug brought along his cider press which was used instead of stomping the grapes.

Hubschmitt next led our tour group into an area with beautiful and ornate family mausoleums. Several well-known Napa family names are represented here, including the Migliavaccas and the Goodmans.

Levenberg pointed out that well-known developer George Altamura is currently constructing the largest mausoleum ever built at Tulocay.

The vaults were meant to be mansions for the dead, Hubschmitt said, and indeed they are every bit as elaborate as any grand home, just on a smaller scale. Some of the finest examples of stone carving and stained glass you will see anywhere are found on and in these vaults.

Goodman, of course, constructed the old Goodman Library downtown, only now reopening after extensive earthquake repair.

Giacomo Migliavacca was an award-winning winemaker in the late 1800s, his operation being located where the Napa County Library stands today. His descendants are still operating a green grocers in Napa today.

No tour would be complete without a stop at the crypt of the man who founded the city of Napa, Nathan Coombs. Literally carved into a rock wall facing, appropriately, Coombsville Road, the crypt holds many of his early descendants. Curiously, as Hubschmitt pointed out, Coombs himself is buried in an above-ground vault just outside the crypt.

A second tour, led by Levenberg, featured two Scandinavian boat captains who plied the Napa River in the late 1800s. One was Captain Andrew Sampson from Norway, whose beautiful house still stands across the street from the Napa County Library. No coincidence that the home was located just one block from the Napa River, Levenberg said.

The other featured boat captain was Niels Hansen Wulff from Denmark. He was involved in ferrying people and goods aboard his river steamer, the Zinfandel, up the Napa River from the Bay. Wulffs home still stands at 549 Brown St., even closer to the river than Sampsons home.

A large monument erected in 2003, appropriately featuring a large sloop carved into a giant stone imported from Norway, honors two Norwegians buried at Tulocay who came to America in 1825 on the sloop Restauration.

Jacob Anderson Slogvik and Serena Madland were part of the group known as sloopers, and are distinguished as the two Restauration passengers who traveled furthest west. The ship was nicknamed the Scandinavian Mayflower.

There are also some prominent plots in the cemetery belonging to early Chinese immigrants to Napa, including the family Chan, who Levenberg noted are considered to be the first Chinese family to settle in the Valley. The Chans owned several retail businesses, including a bank, restaurants and, yes, a Chinese laundry in what used to be known as China Camp in Napa. The flood bypass project made the land China Camp was built on disappear.

The Chan family also built the first Napas first Buddhist temple in 1886. There are many Chan descendants buried in the large Tulocay plot, and the gold Chinese characters, which are status symbols in Chinese culture, distinguish all headstones. The family is still present in the Napa area today.

Another stop featured the grave of an African-American woman who was prominent in the Civil Rights movement in California, although she was not particularly connected to Napa other than being buried here. Mary Ellen Pleasant died destitute in 1904, but her friend, Olive Sherwood of Napa, had her interred in the Sherwood family plot at Tulocay. She was known as the Mother of Civil Rights in California, and won a famous lawsuit that desegregated public transportation in San Francisco after she and a friend were unceremoniously kicked off a streetcar.

Clearly, Napa history is alive and well in this expansive province of the dead.
A predawn fire erupted early Monday at a home in the Browns Valley area, scorching its garage and rendering the house unlivable, according to Napa Fire.

The blaze was reported at 3:27 a.m. in the 1200 block of Buhman Avenue near the citys southwest corner, Napa Fire said in a news release. Firefighters arrived to find flames consuming a three-car garage and impinging on the attached two-story dwelling.

After ensuring that all the residents were out of the house, crews stopped the fires spread into the residential area in 15 minutes, the department reported. A second alarm dispatched other on-duty Napa Fire crews to the scene.

Three pets, a cat and two birds, were removed from the threatened house, but the cat died after 15 minutes of resuscitation efforts, Napa Fire said.

Despite the flames not reaching the main house, smoke and firefighting efforts left the living area uninhabitable, and residents were receiving assistance from the American Red Cross, according to the Napa Fire statement.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Firefighters went to the scene from Napa Fire Station No. 5, which opened in March at 3001 Browns Valley Road to serve western neighborhoods that previously depended on crews making a much longer trip from Napas downtown Station No. 1.

There is no doubt that the decrease in response time (from Station No. 5) saved the residential portion of this home from significant damage from the fire, Fire Chief Steve Brassfield said in the news release.

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By happenstance, the first political campaign I covered was also one of the strangest in California history because one candidate was dead.

Clem Miller was a very popular Democratic congressman who represented about 350 miles of California coastline  from Marin County north to the Oregon border  after winning the seat in 1958.

In 1962, Miller was headed for another landslide win against a token Republican challenger, Del Norte County Supervisor Don Clausen, when a light plane carrying Miller to a campaign appearance in Crescent City crashed east of Eureka, killing him, the pilot, and the pilots young son.

The fatal crash occurred just a month before the election and it was too late to take Millers name off the ballot. Republicans, sensing an opportunity to pick up a seat, poured money into Clausens campaign while Democrats called on voters to vote for Millers name and in death, he won reelection.

Scarcely two months later, however, Clausen won a special election to fill the remainder of Millers term and went on to serve two decades in Congress.

Democrats had erred by choosing Millers field representative, Bill Grader, as their special election candidate. While Grader was politically shrewd, his almost scary personal demeanor repelled voters.

This snippet of political history underscores a somewhat similar situation this year at the other end of the state, in the sprawling 50th Congressional District.

Republican Congressman Duncan Hunter may not be physically dead, but his political career is on life support because last month, he and his wife, who also is his campaign finance manager, were indicted on 60 federal counts of misusing campaign funds for personal expenses.

Hunter, who succeeded his father eight years ago, denies culpability and blames his wife, Margaret, for spending campaign money.

Its too late to remove Hunters name from the November ballot, so it would seem that Democrats have a golden opportunity to pick up one of the two dozen GOP-held seats they must capture to retake control of the House.

However, Democratic leaders, who were well aware that Hunter was being investigated and could face possible indictment, may have erred by not having a viable Democratic candidate waiting in the wings should Hunter be charged.

Instead, with scarcely 17 percent of the primary vote, a very left-wing Democrat, Ammar Campa-Najjar, is his partys candidate in the 50th Congressional District, which covers rural stretches of San Diego and Riverside counties and is arguably the most conservative, pro-Donald Trump district in all of California.

Thus, even while under indictment, Hunter is favored to prevail against Campa-Najjar in November, creating the scenario of a special election sometime next year should a re-elected Hunter be compelled to resign. And given the very rightward tilt of the 50th Congressional District, if that scenario comes to pass, the GOP would be highly favored to retain the seat.

Names of possible GOP successors are already circulating, including conservative activist and former San Diego City Councilman Carl DeMaio, who had weighed running against Hunter, and Congressman Darrell Issa, who had decided not to seek reelection this year in the adjacent, less conservative 49th Congressional District rather than face possible defeat.

Its even possible that what happens to Hunter and the 50th Congressional District could be decisive in determining which party controls the House, should Republicans need the seat to stay in power and Democrats need it to retake power.

That also would be a campaign for the history books.

CALmatters is a public interest journalism venture committed to explaining how Californias state Capitol works and why it matters. For more stories by Dan Walters, go to calmatters.org/commentary.
President Donald Trump is doomed for sure. Special counsel Robert Mueller is tightening the rope around the 45th president. It's only a matter of time before he delivers the evidence necessary to impeach and remove Trump from office, some pundits predict.

News of Trump's political demise has been greatly exaggerated in the past, so it's always wise to approach such pronouncements with skepticism. But suppose it's true.

Suppose the Aug. 21 conviction of Trump's former campaign manager Paul Manafort on eight counts of tax and bank fraud  charges that had nothing whatsoever to do with Trump  is a critical hit. Suppose the announcement of a plea deal with former Trump attorney Michael Cohen  on charges related to payoffs to a former Playboy playmate and a porn star  really does implicate the president in a felony.

Suppose the vaunted "blue wave" sweeps away the Republican House majority on Nov. 6, and Democrats impeach the president posthaste. Let's even suppose the Senate comes up with the two-thirds supermajority necessary to remove Trump. Then what?

Then Vice President Mike Pence becomes president, of course.

But what about the movement that put Trump in office in the first place? Those voters aren't simply going to shrug their shoulders and go back to voting for people like Hillary Clinton or Jeb Bush. Not a chance.

To understand why, read Salena Zito and Brad Todd's book, "The Great Revolt: Inside the Populist Coalition Reshaping American Politics."

Zito, a writer for the Washington Examiner, the New York Post and The Atlantic, offered the key insight of the 2016 Trump campaign: "The press takes him literally, but not seriously; his supporters take him seriously, but not literally." Todd, a Republican pollster, developed a way of quantifying why.

What really makes the book work, though, is Zito's reporting from 10 counties that switched from supporting Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012 to Trump in 2016. These are the voters who have felt abandoned and unmoored in a globalized economy. They don't trust "big banks, big Wall Street, big corporations, the establishment of both parties and their lobbyists, and the big media corporations," as one Pennsylvania voter put it.

That voter, it turns out, is a former labor union leader and a lifelong Democrat. "The more he listened as the campaign went on," Zito writes, "the better he understood that the Democrats definitely hated Trump, and the Republican establishment hated Trump. All the lobbyists on K Street hated Trump. The Chinese came out against him. India came out against him, Mexico came out against him."

There's plenty more in that vein. The upshot is, millions of Americans voted for Trump in 2016, not because they're racist or sexist, though they clearly reject the paint-by-numbers identity politics of the modern Democratic Party. They voted for Trump because they were tired of the same old crap. They were tired of feeling condescended to and ignored. They wanted their vote to matter.

That is why impeachment will not be enough to wipe Trumpism from the history books.

Robert Reich, a former U.S. labor secretary who is now a public policy professor at the University of California, Berkeley wrote the other day for Newsweek to argue that impeachment (a constitutional tool) doesn't go far enough. Assuming Mueller's findings are "so compelling" that "even Trump's loyalists desert him," Reich argues that the only remedy is "to annul" his presidency.

Annul, as in "repeal all of an unconstitutional president's appointments and executive actions" and "eliminate the official record of the presidency."

Reich admits that the Constitution doesn't "specifically provide" for annulling a presidency. But no matter; it's probably in a penumbra of an emanation of the Constitution somewhere.

And what about the 62 million people whose votes would be "annulled" along with Trump's time in office?

Those people aren't going away. And they're not about to embrace another establishment creature who says one thing to well-heeled audiences and something else to the rubes.

"Trumpism" is a dumb term to describe the movement that emerged with Trump. The man, himself, was always more of a means to an end  a disrupter who would shake up the status quo and make politics possible again. But ideas have a way of taking on lives of their own.

If Trump himself isn't especially popular  his approval rating has never quite broken 50 percent  the agenda he articulated is a winner: vigorous enforcement of immigration laws, trade agreements that put American interests above international interests, rethinking Cold War-era alliances and a patriotic nationalism best summed up as "America First."

If you think that will disappear with Trump, you're dreaming.

Ben Boychuk is a columnist for The Sacramento Bee.
First, thank you for publishing Time To Listen to Voters-Loud and Clear (Our View, Aug. 26).

Napa Valley Marijuana Growers has uncovered a lurking issue with our policy on prohibition in Napa Valley that you may find of interest.

We decided to ask some questions of our local tourist trade in Napa Valley as we have a significant amount of amazing hotels, inns and resorts that follow us on Twitter @NVMG69. Take a look please.

Our goal was to visit and speak with the manager/concierge about guests requesting marijuana.

We thought it should be divulged to the public about what is going on with visiting tourists and their disappointments and alternative changes they might make on where to lodge, dine and shop on their future trips instead of Napa Valley.

We were told that guests were equally disturbed to find out their visit to Napa wine country could not include a trip to a local dispensary where they could purchase California's legal recreational marijuana and edibles etc. "But it is supposed to be legal in California, right? Whats up with that?

We went to an exclusive Napa Valley resort. There, the concierge told us he receives daily inquires from guests and has to explain that there are no dispensaries in Napa County.

I was told how some of the visitors were extremely disappointed and annoyed that they booked their vacation trip to Napa Valley and never realized that Napa, unlike Sonoma, didnt offer them their California expected experience.

One concierge told of a guest being upset because he didnt think to inquire first before arranging his trip and assumed the hotel could direct him to a local dispensary. The concierge had to tell him that marijuana dispensaries are prohibited in Napa County. The guest said possibly a holiday in neighboring Sonoma might work the next time around.

We are talking high-end resorts and visitors spending big bucks then going home with a story to tell their friends and acquaintances that prohibition is still alive and well in Napa Valley.

Can a county that supports prohibition remain a world-class wine destination? Sonoma County has abandoned the backward days of temperance, constraint, and even the worry of incarceration.

Who is to blame for the future loss of equity in our county? Voters throughout Napa County have clearly said No" to prohibition of marijuana. We keep waiting and our elected officials keep delaying and disrespecting voters. Could it be because they support the prohibition of marijuana because they are in bed with alcohol? Really?

Napa County should never say Yes to prohibition. Prohibition has destroyed Napa Valley and its families in the past. Lets not revisit that and learn from our prior mistakes, as author Lin Weber of St. Helena writes in her terrific book Prohibition in the Napa Valley; Castles Under Siege.

For over eight years Napa Valley Marijuana Growers has encouraged our valley to stand against racism and the prohibition of marijuana. Whats in your glass?

Crane Carter, President

Napa Valley Marijuana Growers

St. Helena
I grew up white, in the public housing projects on Batchelder Street in Brooklyn, N.Y. When I was 16 years old, my parents moved from the projects to Trump Village, a lower middle class housing development in Coney Island, Brooklyn. It was definitely a step up. The rent was also reasonable.

Trump Village had seven 23 story buildings with approximately 20 apartments on each floor. Lots of government money went into its development.

Much of the rest of Coney Island had thousands of Afro- Americans and other people of color living in less desirable living conditions.

I hardly ever saw a person of color at Trump Village.

By 1967, state investigators found that out of some 3,700 apartments in Trump Village, seven were occupied by African-American families.

Trump Village was built by Fred Trump, Donalds father.

In an article by Jonathan Mahler and Steve Eder they reported that, Over the next decade, as Donald J. Trump assumed an increasingly prominent role in the business, the companys practice of turning away potential black tenants was painstakingly documented by activists and organizations that viewed equal housing as the next frontier in the civil rights struggle.

"The Justice Department undertook its own investigation and, in 1973, sued Trump Management for discriminating against blacks. Both Fred Trump, the companys chairman, and Donald Trump, its president, were named as defendants

I ask you, the reader, to imagine the racial prejudice of 50 years ago, to acknowledge the racial prejudice of our current time, and to draw your own conclusions as to the prejudice in the heart of our current president.

David Ross

Napa
A Turkish teacher in Mongolia who was the victim of a suspected kidnapping attempt has asked a United Nations agency to arrange asylum, his lawyer says, France24 reported.

Veysel Akcay was seized last month from outside his home and bundled onto a small passenger jet, which Mongolian authorities grounded for eight hours until he was freed.

The 50-year-old is associated with US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen, whom Ankara accuses of orchestrating a botched 2016 coup against President Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

In a letter written by his lawyer and seen by AFP Tuesday, Akcay calls on the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees to intervene and let him leave Mongolia so he may seek asylum.

"Initial encouraging steps by the government of Mongolia have been subsequently followed by actions, which have clearly exposed Mr Akcay to the imminent risk of illegal transfer to Turkey," the lawyer wrote, adding that Akcay had twice in the past week been stopped from leaving the country.
Aram Sargsyan's Republic Party and Samvel Babayan's Liberal Party sign coalition memorandum in Meghri

Armenia MOD ex-spokesperson to join parliamentary standing committee on defense and security as expert

NEWS.am daily digest: 03.11.21

National Hero of Armenia Tatul Krpeyan's daughter Aspram Krpeyan to become MP of opposition faction

Armenia justice minister: New penitentiary institutions to be built in 2022

Ombudsman: Some Armenia villages do not have water at all because of Azerbaijan

Armenia ombudsman: Do officials realize accountability for their statements about road sections?

Premier, IMF Mission Chief to Armenia confer on cooperation agenda

Dollar drops in Armenia

Belarus proposes creating roadmap for developing relations with Azerbaijan

Member of Armenian initiative Vahagn Chakhalyan apprehended again, declares sitting strike

Armenia Ombudsman: Azerbaijanis have opportunity to establish control over road leading to Kapan

Armenia obtains another consignment of Sinopharm COVID-19 vaccine from China

Georgia defense minister visits Armenian Genocide Memorial Complex

Armenia Supreme Judicial Council: Courts are overloaded

Missing soldiers families reopen street in front of Armenia government building

Numerous Azerbaijan criminals to be released from prison on anniversary of occupation of part of Artsakh

Armenia Security Council secretary should be held accountable for his statements, says ombudsman

Relatives of missing Armenian soldiers shut down street near government building

Armenia State Revenue Committee chief, Russia ambassador underscore active contacts between tax, customs authorities

Armenia justice minister: We have first death from Covid in penitentiary

102 new cases of coronavirus reported in Karabakh

Congressman Pallone: US must push Minsk process forward to achieve settlement that keeps Artsakh Armenian

Armenian PM staff chief says has no information on Armenia, Russia, Azerbaijan leaders possible meeting

Armenia ombudsman: Security zone needed at all areas of contact with Azerbaijan

Head of Markets at Symbiotics: I think its good moment to invest in Armenia

How much funding will several Armenia state institutions get next year?

Armenia premiers office expenses to be reduced by 34.5% in 2022

2,045 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Armenia justice minister, World Bank official discuss collaboration

Russia peacekeepers ensure safe travel of about 1,000 transit vehicles in Karabakh in 1 month

Armenia PM, Artsakh President discuss Karabakh conflict

World oil prices falling

Newspaper: On what grounds Armenia prosecutors are being rewarded?

Newspaper: What Artsakh authorities are worried about?

2 high-ranking officers detained by NSS testified refuting charge against Armenia ex-defense minister, his lawyers say

Biden says not worried about possibility of armed conflict with China

ARF-D to run in local self-government elections in Armenia's communities

Attorney: Result of Robert Kocharyan's PCR test is negative

Russia Security Council Secretary meets with U.S. CIA Director

At least 19 killed after attack on military hospital in Kabul

Russia, Azerbaijan FMs discuss implementation of agreements on Karabakh

Armenia FM, US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State underscore need for Karabakh conflict settlement

Body of teenager found under bridge in Yerevan

Armenia Deputy PM receives US Deputy Assistant Secretary of State-led delegation

Armenia Constitutional Court declares article dismissing ex-chief of army's General Staff constitutional

Deputy head of Yerevan's Nork-Marash district is arrested

Armenia State Revenue Committee envisages increase of ratio of tax and state duties to GDP in 2022

Dutch Ambassador presents embassy's programs and overriding directions in Armenia's Kotayk Province

Armenia sets up governmental commission for funeral of writer, statesman Vano Siradeghyan

Armenian official: Government plans to increase wine production by several times within 5 years

Karabakh Defense Army: Azerbaijani army opens irregular fire in direction of Karmir Shuka

NEWS.am daily digest: 02.11.21

Man run over by train and dies in Armenia's Armavir Province

One of 16 Armenian children with COVID-19 is in critical condition at university hospital

Armenia opposition faction MPs meet with Russia Ambassador

Armenian, Georgian defense ministers discuss cooperation

Deputy Mayor of Armenia's Goris: Azerbaijanis are building fortifications in Armenian territory

Pashinyan: There is high dynamics in Armenia-Georgia relations

Dollar continues losing value in Armenia

About 300 new apartments expected to be put into operation in Stepanakert by years end

Armenian official: According to 1920s map Al lakes are marked as Armenia territory

Ardshinbank clients can win AMD 10,000

Armenia to attend CSTO PA plenary session

Mishustin: Eurasian Intergovernmental Council to hold next session in mid-November in Yerevan

Possible reopening of Turkey border not taken into account in projected economic growth, says Armenia official

4 more persons die of coronavirus in Karabakh

Azerbaijan hands over 11 more remains to Armenian side

Azerbaijan is interested in purchasing Pakistani JF-17 Thunder fighters

Armenia minister: Construction of Yerevan-Gyumri highway will be almost fully ready by late 2022

Urgent court hearing on imprisoned Armenia opposition lawmakers health condition reconvenes

Armenia opposition MP meets with Finland Ambassador

More than 600 kg of cocaine seized in Guatemala

Armenia Finance Ministry considering possibility of increasing turnover tax for small businesses

Minister: Armenia government plans to change economy structure

Armenia deputy attorney general, EU-funded program representatives discuss collaboration

Turkish intellectual who fought for Armenian Genocide recognition, condemnation dies in Germany

Number of delayed and canceled flights at Moscow airports exceed 200

'Armenia' faction MP Artur Ghazinyan not elected parliamentary standing committee deputy chairman again

Armenia ex-President Kocharyan, former deputy PM and now MP Gevorgyan case court hearing rescheduled again

Armenia President attending Glasgow conference, speaks with Biden, Macron, some other world leaders

France envoy to Armenia: 2nd delivery of coronavirus vaccines being prepared

Armenia former President Kocharyan, ex-deputy PM and now lawmaker Gevorgyan case court session resumes

Refinancing rate left unchanged in Armenia

How much funding will Armenia state agencies get from 2022 budget?

Dates of Macron's visit to Yerevan not determined yet

New France ambassador to Armenia provides details on expected Macron visit, donation of Covid vaccines

1,232 new cases of COVID-19 confirmed in Armenia

Karabakh state minister is hosted at Los Angeles City Council, discusses prospects of collaboration

Yerevan ambulance drivers staging protest

Turkeys Erdogan says Azerbaijans Aliyev talked to Armenias Pashinyan

Russia peacekeepers in Artsakh ensure 50 pilgrims safe visit to Amaras Monastery

World oil prices fluctuate

US Deputy Assistant Secretary Olson to visit Armenia

Armenia deputy police chief to head for Istanbul

Newspaper: Ruling power MPs engaged in countering opposition on every issue

Brazil police kill 25 people suspected of robbing banks

Newspaper: Diplomatic scandal on official website of Armenia embassy in US

Elon Musk ready to sell Tesla shares if UN can prove $6B would solve hunger crisis

Disciplinary proceedings against Armenia judge for not self-recusing under PM's daughter's case
We hope that the political changes that took place in Armenia will bring about the resolution of the visa liberalization matter, as fast and as effectively as possible.

Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan stated the aforesaid during his Facebook livestream on Sunday evening. He noted this in response to a followers query with respect to the process of Armenias visa liberalization with European Union (EU) countries.

This is a task of the [respective] negotiation process, he said, in particular. During her visit to [capital city] Yerevan, the German chancellor stated that she will do everything so that this process goes as quickly as possible, and [that] the visa liberalization process for the Republic of Armenia citizens takes place as quickly as possible. And if those processes that have started [in Armenia] continue, in out view, we will have such a situation quite quickly.

Pashinyan added that he highly values the German chancellors recent visit to Armenia because, as per the PM, Armenia-Germany relations will be brought to a new level, as a result of this visit, and these relations will continue to grow in the future too.
The human rights organization Amnesty International condemned the verdict against Reuters journalists in Myanmar and demanded their immediate release.

Todays appalling verdict has condemned two innocent men to years behind bars. Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo face lengthy jail terms simply because they dared to ask uncomfortable questions about military atrocities in Rakhine State. These convictions must be quashed, and both men immediately and unconditionally released, the organization said in a statement.

On September 3, Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, have been sentenced to seven years in jail after being found guilty of breaching Myanmars Official Secrets Act.

At the time, the two men had been investigating military operations in northern Rakhine State.

The two journalists were held incommunicado for two weeks before being transferred to Yangons Insein prison. The Official Secrets Act  one of a number of repressive laws in Myanmar  carries a maximum sentence of 14 years in prison.
Two Armenian children, whose mother was deported last year from Netherlands, have gone into hiding as they face imminent deportation, BBC reported.

Earlier, the court ruled the Justice Ministry may not grant a residence permit for Howick and Lily, whose mother was deported from the country last August. In a letter to Dutch newspaper Algemeen Dagblad, the children's mother said they were currently in hiding and in a safe place.

"The stress is so high that I'm scared my children will break down if this goes ahead," she wrote.

The children were on a talk show on Dutch TV, where they said they were really shocked at the news of their deportation.

We belong here. They say you're going back to Armenia but where am I going back to? said Lily.

The children only have the right to asylum in the Netherlands if they fear they will be persecuted or endangered by the Armenian authorities and there is no question of this, the court ruled. In addition, help is available for the children when they return if their mother is unable to care for them, as has been claimed. The children will not end up on the streets, the court said.

Last yer it was decided to deport Armina Hambartsjumianthe mother of Lily, 11, and Howick, 12to Armenia from the migrant center, where they lived. The children were not at home when their mother was picked up and their whereabouts are unknown. She has also refused to say where they are. Armina was deported in August last year. Her children were found a week later.
Princess Laurentien, the wife of Prince Constantijn of the Netherlands, has voiced her support for the two Armenian children, whose mother was deported last year from Netherlands, Dutch News reported.

The Princess calls for two Armenian children who are facing deportation to be allowed to stay and said that the children deserved stability and the feeling that they belong here.

I cant and dont want to judge the situation, but I have a great deal of sympathy for what these children are going through, she told NPO Radio 5.

As reported earlier, two Armenian children, whose mother was deported last year from Netherlands, have gone into hiding as they face imminent deportation.

The children only have the right to asylum in the Netherlands if they fear they will be persecuted or endangered by the Armenian authorities and there is no question of this, the court ruled. In addition, help is available for the children when they return if their mother is unable to care for them, as has been claimed. The children will not end up on the streets, the court said.

Last year it was decided to deport Armina Hambartsjumianthe mother of Lily, 11, and Howick, 12to Armenia from the migrant center, where they lived. The children were not at home when their mother was picked up and their whereabouts are unknown. She has also refused to say where they are. Armina was deported in August last year. Her children were found a week later.
A serviceman of the Artsakh Defense Army has died Sunday at around 9pm.

Vanik Gevorgyan died in a military unit, and under still completely undetermined circumstancesbut according to preliminary theory, he committed suicide.

An investigation is underway to find out the details of this incident.

Armenias Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan will soon head to Moscow and meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, Pashinyan said this during a Facebook livestream on Sunday evening.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said that during the meeting it will be important for us to hear how the new Armenian leader himself assesses the prospects for the development of the situation in his country.

Of course, we cannot be completely indifferent to how Armenia's obligations to the Collective Security Treaty Organization look like in this situation, he said.

Lavrov said Moscow is concerned that the situation in Armenia is still boiling but added that it is the countrys domestic affair. He added that the events that took place ten years ago are being investigated and arrests are taking place We believe that it is Armenias domestic affair and would like these domestic affairs to remain based on the countrys laws and constitution so that they can be resolved as soon as possible and Armenia can focus on creative tasks.

Snap parliamentary elections should be held in Armenia either in May or within the first ten days of June of next year, at the latest, Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan said during on Sunday.

Pashinyan recalled that the current constitution specifies that in order to hold a snap parliamentary election in Armenia, the Prime Minister must resign, whereupon the National Assembly should not elect a new PM twice within two weeks, and then the parliament shall be dissolved by law.

Now we are working on the constitutional amendments. The package will be ready soon, and we will send it to the parliament. In this context, we will have political discussions as well as come to common decisions, as a result of discussions with the people.

Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono, who has arrived in Armenia on an official visit, on Monday paid a visit to the Armenian Genocide Memorial in capital city Yerevan. He was accompanied by Armenian Deputy Foreign Minister Armen Papikyan, and Japanese Ambassador Jun Yamada.

Speaking during a joint briefing with Armenian FM Zohrab Mnatsakanyan, Kono said Japan has always underscored the importance of having friendly relations with Armenia. He added that Japan decided to lift visa requirements for the citizens of Armenia.

https://news.am/eng/news/469081.html

In line with the first six months of 2018, the biggest economic growth has been recorded in Armenia, over the past eight years; it totals 8.3 percent, Economy Minister Artsvik Minasyan said.

In his words, trade and services are the largest contributors to this economic growth in the country.

Minasyan added that the economic activity index of Armenia was 9.3 percent, in the first half of the current year.

Former Armenian deputy defense minister, chair of Martik foundation Arthur Aghabekyan has been charged with embezzlement.

According to investigators, part of the funds raised by the organization was misused. Preliminary reports suggest that over 54 million drams (over $111 thousand) was spent on restaurants, hotels and gifts. Arthur Aghabekyan, who was chairman of the board of trustees in the mentioned period, was in fact the sole manager of the funds. Aghabekyan rejected accusations saying he is ready to work with investigators.

William Saroyan house-museum has opened in the city of Fresno, in commemoration of playwrights 110th birthday on August 31.

It may look like an ordinary house in the district but Saroyans house is now completely renovated to contain a big digital archive of his photos and works.

The museum features Saroyans hologram with a setup of his desk and part of the house in its original way as Saroyan lived there.
YEREVAN.  The President of Armenia Armen Sarkissian received Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono and his delegation on Monday.

The President welcomed the Japanese Foreign Minister, expressing confidence that it would give a new impetus to the development of bilateral relations.

According to the President, last year we marked the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia and Japan, which is a good opportunity to sum up the cooperation and outline the directions and perspectives of deepening cooperation between the two friendly countries.

The sides also exchanged views on the areas which have great potential for mutually beneficial cooperation and can enrich bilateral agenda.

They highlighted the importance of cooperation in banking, information technology, cultural exchange, scientific and educational programs.
YEREVAN.- Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan received on September 3 Foreign Minister of Japan Taro Kono who is in Armenia on an official visit.

The PM welcomed the first visit of Japans Foreign Minister to Armenia and noted that it takes place in an important period for Armenia in terms of democratic changes. Last year we marked the 25th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Armenia and Japan, which could be described as productive and dynamically developing. At the same time I think we have real chances to raise bilateral cooperation to a new level and particularly to foster economic relations, PM Pashinyan said.

Japans FM shared the opinion of the Armenian PM over the issue that the two countries have a great potential for developing and deepening the partnership in different spheres. Its an honor for me to visit Armenia. Today I visited Tumo center for creative technologies and I am impressed by the Armenias educational model of technologies. Tumo is one of the areas where we can collaborate. We are ready to discuss the prospects for economic cooperation, he said.

PM Pashinyan referred to the newly established political and economic situation in Armenia and the reforms underway, particularly fight against corruption and improvement of business and investment environment. The Foreign Minister of Japan saluted the democratic changes in Armenia and expressed readiness to support the Armenian Government in that process.

Speaking about the development of economic relations the interlocutors highlighted the signing and ratification of the agreement on Liberalization, Encouragement and Protection of Investments between the Government of Armenia and the Government of Japan.

The Head of the Executive assessed promising the development of partnership in high technologies, tourism, infrastructures and innovations.

The sides highlighted the necessity of holding culture days of both countries in Armenia and Japan, as well as deepening of inter-parliamentary relations. The interlocutors reached an agreement to set a joint agenda and to actively work to bring it to life.

Nikol Pashinyan also highlighted the deepening of humanitarian ties and the privileged visa regime for the citizens of Japan visiting Armenia, in the sidelines of which they can visit Armenia without entry visa.

The sides also exchanged ideas on regional and international issues. The Armenian Premier noted that Armenia highly appreciates Japans balanced position on Nagorno Karabakh conflict.
The ArtSakh Fest Contemporary Art Festival will be held in Stepanakert, Artsakh, on 5-7 October, with participation of around thirty artists from Artsakh, Armenia and abroad.

The festivals program includes contemporary dance, audio-visual installations, interactive public art, performances and much more.

The festival will be held at the Stepanakert Vahram Papazian Drama Theatre, which is currently in poor condition having last been renovated 38 years ago.

Hetq talked about the festival with the author and curator of the project Anna Kamay, event and artist residency manager at the Institute for Contemporary Art (ICA).

How did you come up with the idea of ARTsakh Fest?

I decided to move to Artsakh last autumn, while doing research for my future projects.

Even before that, during the four-day war in April 2016, I went to Artsakh with my child, while many left their homes, moving women and children to safer places. I was interested in the people's way of thinking and their daily life in such an extreme situation. I needed to feel what the locals experienced every day.

I lived in Martuni for around seven months. My daughter attended a local kindergarten, getting used to it after a while. I spent most of my time writing and working at home, and there was nothing to do except entertaining guests. I started to miss the community - a place where people gather, discuss and make joint decisions and this made me think about a cultural initiative, which is called ARTsakh Fest today.

At first, I was planning to do something in the Martuni Cultural House (it is a small copy of the Opera House in Yerevan), but then a friend of mine, Ani Gharabaghtsyan, showed me the abandoned building of the Stepanakert Drama Theater.

Why are you holding the festival at the Stepanakert Drama Theater, which is in such bad shape?

This building, built in the 1930s, is amazing from outside and inside. The locals call it "the beauty of Stepanakert".

The theater staff temporarily moved to the Palace of Culture in Stepanakert because of the buildings poor condition.

For the first time in my life, I had to deal with government agencies, since permission was required to make changes to the building. The employees and ministers of the Ministry of Culture of Artsakh (both current and former) were very friendly, greatly appreciating my project.

It is difficult to comprehend that there are more than 15 theaters in Yerevan and only one in Artsakh. And that one is in such bad shape. The theatre building can become an open center for designing and producing contemporary art projects, a cross-link network of people and ideas.

People live, create and dream in Artsakh. There is a huge potential, but unfortunately there are no platforms to work with that potential and turn Artsakh into an emerging cultural center.

Our festival attempts to restore the action accompanied by words  just like the theater in terms of its structure and content.

Whos participating in the festival?

We want to bring as many international artists to Artsakh as possible, to introduce them to the local culture and exchange experiences. But our main goal is reactivating local artists and communities and including them in the festival.

There are many artists in Artsakh, but most of them work with traditional media. Isolation and absence of school are to blame for that. However, there is a conceptualist from the old school, Robert Abrahamian, who has already broken this isolation, at least in his own village - Metz Tagher.

Photographer Areg Balayan from the younger generation also does this, and his works are famous in Armenia as well. Both artists will participate in the festival. Well try to locate more local artists for the festival.

Most of the international artists involved in the festival are our residents of the ICA art shelter, old and new, who got interested in interacting with local artists and the idea of the festival in general.

The majority of artists invited from abroad are working with media that are not yet known in Artsakh (sound arts, public art, etc.).

Thus, we will try to boost the possible dialogue between foreign and local artists, which will hopefully continue in the future.

What are the distinctive features of Artsakh as a platform for the festival environment?

Its one of the most militarized corners of the world, which has been in an isolation for 30 years.

The international media is silent about it. Its already the third generation witnessing and participating in the war in Artsakh - a place where people live and dream about the future, while they are ready for a new war every minute.

People need spiritual nourishment that will enable them to overcome isolation. There can be no progress without cultural development. Its modern art thats responsible for creating a critical outlook in the society to help them seek and find new approaches.

In collaboration with the local community, the theatre troop and invited art practitioners, we want to revitalize this theater space by reviving the greatness of the building and its history and transform Stepanakert into an innovative arts center. In the future, we will try to organize artistic initiatives in other settlements of Artsakh.

Main photo: Stepanakert Drama Theatre

Photos provided by Anna Kamay
As part of its investigation of the March 2008 post-election protests in Yerevan, Armenias Special Investigative Service (SIS) announced today that it has launched a new criminal case regarding the dispersal of peace protesters in the morning of March 1, 2008 who had camped out in Yerevans Liberty Square.

In a statement, the SIS writes that it has uncovered evidence that the police overstepped its authority when it used physical force and other "special measures" to disperse some 1,300 protesters from the square that day and then chased the protesters from the streets in downtown Yerevan, thus violating their right to free assembly.

The mass protests followed the February 2008 election of Serzh Sargsyan as president of Armenia. Eight civilians and two police officers were killed in the ensuing violence when police and army units attacked peaceful protesters who contested the election results.

After the vote, hundreds of civilians, many supporters of presidential candidate Levon Ter-Petrosyan, pitched tents in Liberty Square and basically occupied the site for days.

Police moved in to disperse them on the pretext that some of the protesters were armed.

The SIS says that two fact-finding committees (one launched by President Sargsyan and the other by the parliament, allegedly set up to investigate the March 1-2, 2008 events, used evidence falsified by top police officials at the time to justify their excessive use of force.

The SIS says the new case involves charges of Abuse of Official Authority (Criminal Code Article 308), Exceeding Official Authority (Article309) by the use of violence and other extraordinary means, and Official Forgery (Article 314).

The investigation is ongoing, and no one has yet been indicted.
42 individuals have applied for the job of executive director of the Hayastan-All Armenian Fund.

The post has been vacant ever since the Funds former executive director, Ara Vardanyan, was charged with embezzlement in July.

In a statement, the Fund says that interim Executive Director Bedros Terzian will head a committee to select the organizations next director at a vote scheduled for September 10.

The committee will be comprised of the presidents of Armenia and Artsakh, representatives of the Armenian prime minister, and Albert Boghosian, a member of the Funds Board of Trustees.

Applications have been received from Armenia, Russia, the U.S., France, Great Britain, Lebanon and Switzerland.


President Trumps proposed tariffs on $200 billion worth of imported goods from China, which could hit in early September, has unnerved many American businesses and customers who think that Trump is causing unnecessary economic damage.

But Art Laffer, renowned economist and former advisor to President Ronald Reagan, argues that its all for the better because Trump is using tariffs to pressure China to behave in regard to globally-connected trade.

Trump is doing a great job with Mexico and, I believe, with Canada as well. But the real goal is to get China into the free trade world and to behave like a proper country should behave in a free trade world, Laffer, who advises Trump on tax policy, told Yahoo Finances Midday Movers on Friday. Dont steal our [Intellectual Property]. Dont have tariffs against our products. Dont manipulate currency. Just trade, and trade fairly.

Laffer added that China is a huge plus to the U.S. because without China there is no Walmart [WMT], and without Walmart there is no middle class or lower class prosperity in America.

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks during a roundtable discussion on the Foreign Investment Risk Review Modernization Act (FIRRMA) in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., on Thursday, Aug. 23, 2018. (Photo: Yuri Gripas/Bloomberg)

China is going to be left out in the cold

President Trump made progress with a bilateral trade deal with Mexico early this week, while discussions with Canada are ongoing. Laffer, sometimes called the father of supply-side economics, sees Trumps work with Mexico and Canada as a necessary step to eventually pull China back to the table.

Once we get the deals with these other countries, China is going to be left out in the cold, Laffer said. And they really depend upon trade.

Chinas economic growth depends more on trade than the U.S. Exports of goods and services account for about 20% to the 2017 GDP of China, the worlds second-largest economy, compared to 12% of U.S. GDP in 2017.

(Photo: KEI)

Consequently, Laffer believes the economic miracle of 21st century China  driven by mass manufacturing meeting globalization  could be the weak spot when it comes to a trade war. In July, Laffer, whose thinking has been influential with President Trump, sent an analysis titled The Great Fall of China to the White House. He argued U.S. tariffs on Beijing were causing substantial risk of derailing much of the past 50 years of growth in China, the Wall Street Journal reported.

Story continues

Laffer reiterated the point on Midday Movers, warning that China could ill afford a setback in a trade war scenario.

I believe deep down that hes a free trader

Laffer, a staunch free-trade advocate who called Trump an amazing negotiator, sees Trump borrowing a page from Reagans playbook by first imposing tariffs and then suggesting zero tariffs.

Now what hes told me and what I believe is happening is the threats of protection have brought these people to the table. And he said to me personally he has very little leverage except by threatening tariffs, said Laffer. And I have to trust him that hes telling me the truth because I believe deep down that hes a free trader. Any chief owner of an international business has to be a free trader if they know how to do business and he does.

Art Laffer in Washington, DC on Sunday, March 8, 2015. (Photo: Sarah L. Voisin/The Washington Post)

Despite singing praises for President Trumps negotiation tactics, there is one thing Laffer doesnt stand with the president: that a trade war is easy to win.

A trade war is the exact opposite of anything I want to see, Laffer said, citing the lessons of Nixons presidency. Trade wars are horrible and that is the one thing we may need to make sure we avoid, and free trade is the only real answer.

Krystal Hu covers technology and economy for Yahoo Finance. Follow her on Twitter.

Read more:

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Iran may resort to various ways of reducing the impact of the U.S. sanctions on its oil exports, and those tactics include secret oil shipments without trackers on tankers, bartered trades, discounts, and extended credit periods on oil sales, analysts tell Bloomberg.

During the previous round of sanctions, Iran disabled tracking on its tankers, resulting in millions of barrels of oil exports that were unaccounted for, according to Bloomberg and analysts.

During this next round of sanctions, nearly 200,000 bpd of Irans oil exports could be undisclosed, Robin Mills, CEO at consultancy Qamar Energy in Dubai, told Bloomberg. While this volume will not have a significant impact on the global oil market, it could be helpful to Iran in offsetting some of the sting from the U.S. sanctions that kick in in early November, according to the expert.

Smaller Chinese refiners could take some of the undisclosed oil shipments, Iman Nasseri, Managing Director Middle East at FGE London, told Bloomberg, adding that China, India, and Turkey are likely to continue buying Iranian oil after November 4.

According to Nasseri, Iran may export around 800,000 bpd of its oil well into 2019.

Last month, all signs pointed to significantly reduced Iranian oil exports compared to previous months.

Between August 1 and 16, Irans oil exports plunged by 600,000 bpd compared to July loadings, Platts preliminary tanker tracking data showed.



Crude oil and condensate exports were set to drop to a total of 64 million barrels in August, or 2.06 million bpd. It would be the first time that monthly crude and ultra-light oil shipments out of Iran fell below 70 million barrels since April 2017, according to preliminary trade flows data by Thomson Reuters Eikon.

Ship tracking data crunched by Bloomberg confirmed Reuters data that Iranian oil and condensate exports were below 2.1 million bpd in Augustthe lowest levels since March 2016, with crude oil exports at their lowest since January this year.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

More Top Reads From Oilprice.com:
PetroChinathe countrys largest oil and gas produceris betting big on boosting natural gas production in line with the Chinese policy to increase its gas production and industrial and residential gas use.

Yet, planned production increases at the biggest upstream company will not even come close to reducing Chinas dependence on oil and natural gas importsthey are set to further rise as the countrys energy demand grows, while domestic oil and gas production capacities struggle in vain to keep up with growth.

PetroChina will also look to raise its crude oil production as the worlds largest oil importing country tries to reverse a decline in its domestic crude oil production while its oil demand continues to grow.

To this end, PetroChina is planning to raise natural gas production at a faster rate than oil production.

Domestic oil and gas resources are not good enough for significant production increases, PetroChinas vice chairman Zhang Jianhua told S&P Global Platts on the sidelines of the firms first-half earnings briefing last week.

Like the other Chinese state oil majors, PetroChina has also benefited from the higher crude oil prices and strong refining margins this year, reporting doubled net profit for the first half of 2018 and the best quarterly performance in the second quarter since Q2 2015.

PetroChinas domestic crude oil production dropped by 1.3 percent in the first half of 2018, but domestic natural gas production rose by 2.5 percent, the company said in its H1 2018 earnings filing.

Over the next five years, PetroChina targets to raise its natural gas production by around 4-5 percent, while it sees oil production up 1 percent, the companys managers said. Related: Saudis Boosted Oil Production To 10.424 Million Bpd In August

Chinas overall crude oil production has been falling over the past two years as output at ageing fields declines. Gas production, while rising, is not enough to meet soaring demand amid the government efforts to cut pollution by having industries and residents switch to natural gas from coal.

Chinas crude oil production dropped 2.6 percent on the year in July, and fell by 2.1 percent annually between January and July, according to data by the National Bureau of Statistics of China.

Although natural gas production increased, China will import growing volumes of gas to support its cleaner-fuel, cleaner-air policies.

According to the Gas 2018 report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), as domestic production cant keep pace, China will become the worlds largest natural gas importer by 2019. Due to the countrys policy to reduce air pollution, China is expected to account for 37 percent of the global increase in natural gas consumption between 2017 and 2023, more than any other country, the IEA analysis shows. Related: Survey: OPECs August Production Rises

Last year, global natural gas demand rose by 3 percent, which was the highest increase since 2010. In China, demand jumped by 15 percent, accounting for nearly a third of the global increase. Chinas liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports surged, resulting in China surpassing South Korea and becoming the worlds second-largest LNG importer behind Japan.

By 2023, Chinas natural gas demand is expected to rise by an average 8 percent per year, accounting for over a third of global demand increase, the IEA said in its report. The share of imports in Chinas natural gas supply is seen rising from 39 percent to 45 percent by 2023, the Paris-based agency forecasts.

By boosting natural gas production, PetroChina aims to seize market opportunities while following Chinas cleaner-fuel policies. Yet, Chinas gas demand will vastly outpace domestic production growth, making China an even more important player on the global natural gas and LNG markets than it is now.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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Four years have passed since the European Union and the United States imposed economic sanctions on Russia for its annexation of Crimea and its military involvement in Ukraine. Although the economy has suffered with the ruble falling by 50 percent against the greenback, the oil industry, as strange as it may seem, has benefited from these developments.

The latest piece of evidence is that in the first half of this year, as the United States added more sanctions to its list, Russias five biggest oil companies booked a combined profit increase of 50 percent to US$18 billion (1.25 trillion rubles), Bloomberg has calculated.

The thing is that the cheaper the ruble, the lower the production costs of local oil companies. At the same time, the oil they pump becomes more expensive in dollar terms, which is how they sell it abroad. In other words, Russias top oil producers actually have reason to hope that the sanctions will stay in place forever.

If you ask analysts, however, the sanctions are dampening their share price. Rosneft, for examplethe leader of the packis trading at seven times its estimated 12-month earnings, which compares to 11 times that for Shell, more than 12 times that for BP, and 15 times that for Exxon. Still, Rosnefts first-half results have been a lot more robust than the supermajors, which provides some food for thought.

On the other hand, Rosnefts stock is up 44 percent since the start of 2018 and up 55 percent over the last 12 months, according to TheStreet, so even the negative effect of sanctions on the stock performance of Russias Big Oil is not as bad as might have been expected when the sanctions were imposed.

More sanctions, specifically targeting Russias oil industry, are being considered in Congress following accusations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential elections. They would likely hurt Russian oil, but at the same time they would hurt Russian oils partners from the West. There is already active lobbying against the DETER bill from the U.S. energy sector. According to a Reuters report from July, the new sanctions would hurt U.S. oil companies, providing European rivals with an advantage over them. Related: The Bullish Case For Gas In Europe

Yet given that the European supermajors are also global companies, further sanctions targeting the domestic and international operations of Russian companies, some of which involve partnerships with Western Big Oil, would hurt pretty much everyone.

So for now, the effect of further sanctions is negative but hypothetical, while the effect of existing sanctions has turned out to be positive. A lot has been said about the lack of access to international funding and production technology as per EU and U.S. sanctions from 2014, but the financial data from Russias producers suggests that they are somehow making do without these and are increasing their production.

In August, Russia pumped 11.21 million barrels of crude daily, almost the same as the July daily production rate and close to the highest since the disintegration of the Soviet Union: 11.25 million bpd from October 2016. Between June and July Russia added 250,000 bpd to its crude production, and remained the worlds top producer as Saudi Arabia stalled on its pledged production boost.

Rosneft is buying back stock to the tune of US$2 billion, and is cutting capex by 20 percent while raising working capital by US$3.15 billion by the end of the year. Gazprom, which like Rosneft is under sanctions, has the biggest spending plans in the global oil and gas industry, ahead of Sinopec and Shell. Lukoil, Russias number-two oil producer, has been cutting its exposure to high-cost projects, and this strategy is paying off. All in all, Russian oil is doing well despite the sanctions or even because of them.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Iraq set a new record for oil shipments from its southern ports in August, sending out 3.583 million bpd of oil last month and beating the July record of 3.543 million bpd, data by Iraqs oil ministry showed over the weekend.

Iraq, OPECs second-largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia, has been boosting its oil exports since June, after OPEC and its Russia-led non-OPEC partners in the deal agreed to reverse some of their production cutsor as they frame it, to ease compliance rates to 100 percent.

Iraqs federal government exported 3.583 million bpd in August, or a total of 111,061,618 barrels from central and south Iraq, reaping a total of US$7.73 billion in revenues at the price of its oil averaging US$69.593, the oil ministry quoted the Iraqi State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) as saying this weekend.

Iraqs exports from the south were set on a record pace in August, judging from the high levels of exports in the first 19 daysaround 3.7 million bpd, an industry source who compiled ship-tracking data told Reuters earlier this month.

Iraq has been ramping up exports from its southern ports not only in a sign that OPECs second-largest producer is following through with the cartels decision to ease compliance rates, but also to compensate for lost exports in the north. Around 300,000 bpd of crude oil previously pumped and exported in the Kirkuk province have been shut in since the Iraqi federal government moved in October to take control over the oil fields in Kirkuk from Kurdish forces. The dispute between Iraqs federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) over oil exports via Turkey has yet to be resolved.



Related: Analysts: Iran May Use Secret Oil Shipments To Skirt U.S. Sanctions

KRG saw its August oil exports from the Turkish Mediterranean port of Ceyhan surge by 40 percent compared to Julys 320,000 bpd exports, sources in the Kurdistan region to S&P Global Platts.

Kurdistan exported a total of 445,000 bpd from Ceyhan in August, of which 370,000 bpd was by way of the KRGs independent pipeline through Turkey. The remainder was drawn from storage at Ceyhan, according to Platts sources.

By Tsvetana Paraskova for Oilprice.com

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More than a hundred protesters were dispersed by police forces using tear gas at the entrance of the Nahr Bin Omar oilfield near Basra amid continuing riots in the country, The Gulf Today reports. Protesters are demanding access to drinking water, better public service, and an end to widespread corruption as well as more jobs and an end to the power outages that became more frequent during the summer season of peak demand.

Last week, protesters tried to enter forcefully the headquarters of the Basra provincial government, Reuters reported on Friday, setting fire to tires in front of the building and throwing gasoline bombs at it.

The group dispersed at Nahr Bin Omar has focused its demands on clean drinking water and an improvement in basic public services. We will not allow the oilfield to operate unless we get clean water. No services, no jobs and now no clean water. We are fed up, one of the protest organizers said as quoted by The Gulf Today.

The Basra province, where many of the protests are taking place, is home to Iraqs largest oilfields and accounts for more than 95 percent of the countrys state revenues thanks to oil exportsa fact that makes the area vital for OPECs second-largest oil producer. However, it is also as underdeveloped as most of the rest of Iraq, Al Jazeera notes in a recent overview of the protests, with chronic blackouts, lack of access to clean drinking water, and unemployment.

The oilfields in the province are a natural target for protesters, as any production outage hits export revenues. In July, when the protests began, protesters gathered at three fields in southern IraqRumaila, West Qurna-1, and West Qurna-2but were quickly dispersed by the police.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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Mauritius told the UN's top court Monday that the British-ruled Chagos Islands are "integral" to its territory and that the Indian Ocean island chain was handed to London "under duress". Hearings opened Monday before the International Court of Justice in The Hague where judges are to hear arguments over the future status of the remote archipelago -- home to a strategic joint US military base but territory claimed by Mauritius. "More than 50 years after independence... the process of decolonisation of Mauritius remains incomplete," former Mauritian president Anerood Jugnauth said. This was "as a result of the unlawful detachment of an integral part of our territory on the eve of our independence," he told the judges. In a diplomatic blow to Britain, the UN General Assembly in June last year adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the ICJ to offer a legal opinion on the island chain's fate. The ICJ's 15 judges on Monday started listening to arguments on the "legal consequences of (Britain's) separation of the Chagos Archipelago from Mauritius" in 1965, shortly before Port Louis' independence from its colonial ruler. The African Union and a remarkable number of 22 countries -- which also includes the US, Germany and several Asian and Latin American nations -- are to make statements during the four-day hearing. After the hearings, the ICJ will hand down a non-binding "advisory opinion", but the judges' ruling may take several months or even years. An opinion in favour of Mauritius may strengthen Port Louis' hand in future negotiations or could lay the foundation for an eventual formal claim before the ICJ -- set up in 1946 and which also rules in disputes between countries. - 'Immense pressure' - Britain detached the islands from Mauritius, then a semi-autonomous British territory, using decolonisation talks as leverage and paying 3 million for them at the time. On Monday Jugnauth said Mauritian officials were given "no room for any choice" in keeping the Chagos Islands during the 1965 independence talks. During secret meetings at the time in London, then British prime minister Harold Wilson aimed to "frighten" Mauritian officials into handing over Chagos in return for independence, Jugnauth said. Wilson told the officials they could return to Port Louis "either with independence or without it" and that the "best solution of all may be independence and detachment by agreement", said the veteran politician, who was then part of the Mauritian delegation. "It is against that backdrop of immense pressure and in the circumstances amounting to duress, that less than five hours later, four of the five Mauritian representatives yielded to the detachment of the Chagos Archipelago," he said. - Strategic base - As the Cold War with the former Soviet Union intensified, London the established a combined military base with the US on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands. The Indian Ocean base plays a key strategic role in US military operations. In the 1970s, it offered proximity to Asia during the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge takeover in Cambodia, and as the Soviet navy extended its influence in the region. In recent years it has served as a staging ground for US bombing campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq. Britain in the early 1970s also evicted the archipelago's residents -- some 2,000 in total -- to Mauritius and the Seychelles to make way for the base. Last year's vote before the UN whether to refer the matter to the ICJ was also seen as a test for Britain's ability to rally support from fellow Europeans at the world body, after its shock vote to leave the European Union. The matter was passed 95-15, with 65 abstentions -- most by European member states including France, Italy and Spain. London, ahead of Monday's hearings, pledged to mount a "robust defence" saying the move was bound to hurt relations with Port Louis. Port Louis however say it recognised "the existence of the base and accepts its continued and future functioning in accordance with international law," a point stressed by Jugnauth on Monday.
President Xi Jinping told African leaders Monday that China's investments on the continent have "no political strings attached", pledging $60 billion in new development financing, even as Beijing is increasingly criticised over its debt-heavy projects abroad. Xi offered the funding at the start of a two-day China-Africa summit that focused on his cherished Belt and Road initiative. The money -- to be spent over the next three years -- comes on top of $60 billion Beijing offered in 2015. The massive Belt and Road scheme is aimed at improving Chinese access to foreign markets and resources, and boosting Beijing's influence abroad. China has poured billions in loans for roads, railways, ports and other major infrastructure projects in Asia and Africa. But critics warn that the Chinese leader's pet project is burying some countries under massive debt. "China's investment in Africa comes with no political strings attached," Xi told a high-level dialogue with African leaders and business representatives ahead of the summit. "China's cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects, but in places where they count the most." But Xi admitted there was a need to look at the commercial viability of projects and make sure preparations are made to lower investment risks and make cooperation "more sustainable". Belt and Road, Xi said, "is not a scheme to form an exclusive club or bloc against others." Later, at the start of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Xi announced $60 billion in funds for eight initiatives over the next three years, in areas ranging from industrial promotion, infrastructure construction and scholarships for young Africans. He added that Africa's least developed, heavily indebted and poor countries will be exempt from debt they have incurred in the form of interest-free Chinese loans due to mature by the end of 2018. - 'New colonialism' - A study by the Center for Global Development, a US think-tank, found "serious concerns" about the sustainability of sovereign debt in eight Asian, European and African countries receiving Belt and Road funds. But South African President Cyril Ramaphosa defended China's involvement on the continent, saying FOCAC "refutes the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa as our detractors would have us believe." During a visit to China last month, Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamed warned against "a new version of colonialism", as he cancelled a series of Chinese-backed infrastructure projects worth $22 billion. Rwandan President Paul Kagame, current chairman of the African Union, also rallied behind China's involvement in Africa. "Africa is not a zero sum game. Our growing ties with China do not come at anyone's expense," he told the summit. - 'Fractured world' - At the last three-yearly gathering in Johannesburg in 2015, Xi announced $60 billion of assistance and loans for Africa. Nations across Africa are hoping that China's enthusiasm for infrastructure investment will help promote industrialisation on the continent. Ramaphosa noted that Africa exports its minerals to China while the Asian country exports to the continent what its factories produce. "This obviously limits ability African countries to extract full value of abundant natural resources and create work for its people. It is through platforms like FOCAC that we should work to balance the structure of trade between Africa and China," he said. Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will oversee the signing of a telecommunication infrastructure deal backed by a $328-million loan facility from China's Exim bank during his visit, his office said. China has provided aid to Africa since the Cold War, but Beijing's presence in the region has soared with its emergence as a global trading power. Chinese state-owned companies have aggressively pursued large investments in Africa, whose vast resources have helped fuel China's transformation into an economic powerhouse. African Union Commission chairman Moussa Faki acknowledged that concerns have been expressed about debt, but said "the risks must be put into perspective" as "Africa's financing needs are such that it must seize every opportunity offered to it." Djibouti has become heavily dependent on Chinese financing after China opened its first overseas military base in the Horn of Africa country last year, a powerful signal of the continent's strategic importance to Beijing. Locals in other countries have complained about the practice of using Chinese labour for building projects and what are perceived as sweetheart deals for Chinese companies. An editorial in Kenya's Daily Nation said Monday that African leaders "should use the summit to ask tough questions. What are the benefits in this relationship? Is China unfairly exploiting Africa like the others before it?"
For a long time, pro-democracy marches in the city finished at the Hong Kong governments headquarters.

More recently they have been making their way to Sai Wan, where the Liaison Office of the Central Peoples Government is located.

Here, protesters regularly hit out at what they see as increasing interference by Beijings representative office in Hong Kongs internal affairs.

Indeed, the liaison office has made its presence felt to such an extent in the political, social and even educational arenas that critics claim Hong Kong is now run from Sai Wan, not Admiralty, where Chief Executive Carrie Lam Cheng Yuet-ngor and her cabinet are based.

Wang Zhimin, the Beijing official who took over as director of the liaison office a year ago, raised hackles in January when he said many friends had told him they were pleased to see his office and the Hong Kong government working together more than before.

His remarks sparked debate over the presence of the office, its expanding staff, involvement in local elections and growing influence, and whether it was increasingly overstepping what it was supposed to do in Hong Kong.

Seething pan-democrats have accused it of meddling in the citys affairs, and breaching the principle of one country, two systems under which Hong Kong has been governed since it was handed back to China by Britain in 1997.

Political scientist Dr Chung Kim-wah, of Polytechnic University, thought the liaison office had already crossed the line.

The enormous financial resources and political capital which the liaison office enjoys have allowed it to twist the power balance in Hong Kong, he said.

All of this has led pro-establishment heavyweight and former Legco president Jasper Tsang Yok-sing to float an idea that shocked Hong Kongs political circles last week.

He proposed introducing a new article in the Basic Law, the citys mini-constitution, to clearly define the status, functions and responsibilities of the Beijing liaison office so that it can discharge its duties in a legitimate and justifiable manner.

Story continues

He said there is no problem with the presence of two central government departments with offices in Hong Kong  the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Peoples Liberation Army  as their roles and functions have been spelt out clearly in the Basic Law.

But the position of the liaison office was never made clear. Instead of squabbling, he said, it is time Hongkongers did some soul-searching over what the office is supposed to do.

Others disagree, and say Wang and his office just ought to curb their enthusiasm.

Liaison offices growing presence

Beijing has maintained a presence in Hong Kong for decades, with the official Xinhua News Agency acting as Chinas de facto headquarters in the city since 1947. It was only in 2000, three years after Hong Kong was returned to China, that Beijing renamed it the liaison office and acknowledged its long-standing political status.

The State Council also laid down five key functions of the office: to liaise with the two other central government offices in Hong Kong; to assist mainland authorities in managing Chinese enterprises in the city; to foster cooperation between Hong Kong and the mainland, and channel Hongkongers views to Beijing; handle issues that touch on Taiwan; and lastly  the most ambiguous function  to carry out tasks assigned by the central government.

Veteran China watcher Johnny Lau Yui-siu said: The liaison office used to remain very low profile after the handover. Its officials would avoid appearing at the same occasion with the Hong Kong leader and they would refrain from commenting on local issues.

But that changed after 2003. That year the political landscape of Hong Kong was reshaped after half a million of people took to the streets to protest against a proposed national security bill they feared would curtail their rights and freedoms.

The protests forced the government to shelve the legislation, a setback which prompted Beijing to tighten its grip through the liaison office.

First to feel the change were the city governments close allies in the pro-Beijing camp.

Lawmaker Michael Tien Puk-sun, a delegate to the national legislature, confirmed that the liaison office coordinated the pro-Beijing camps efforts during District Council and Legco elections, when internal strife among different parties intensified.

Sometimes one party would quote its polls and argue that its candidates had outperformed others, while another group would cite its own surveys and hit back, Tien said. It is not a bad thing to have a middleman coordinating [among the parties] with convincing data.

Tien did not think this amounted to interference, and insisted that the liaison office never influenced or intimidated election hopefuls to run or not run.

Lawmaker Paul Tse Wai-chun has also said openly that his election bid in 2012 received the support of the liaison office.

It is very natural that Beijing would like certain candidates to be elected, he said. I would say the foreign forces in Hong Kong, such as the United States and Britain, are doing the same through their representatives.

The liaison office has also supported Beijing-friendly parties financially, albeit indirectly.

In 2016, former liaison office director Zhang Xiaoming raised eyebrows when he donated one of his own works of calligraphy to the pro-Beijing Democratic Alliance for the Betterment and Progress of Hong Kong (DAB).

The artwork was auctioned for HK$18.8 million at the partys fundraising dinner, which raked in a total of HK$70 million  a stark contrast to the HK$5 million which the Democratic Party raised at its event this year.

The large amount was a big boost to the DAB  the biggest pro-establishment party with more than 180 offices across Hong Kong. But critics said the auction showed how Beijing-friendly businessmen were trying to curry favour with the liaison office.

If there is one thing even pro-Beijing lawmakers have found annoying, it is the aggressive lobbying by the liaison office to garner support for the Hong Kong government, especially during periods when the administration has been in a weak position.

It was especially active when former chief executive Leung Chun-ying was in charge and struggled to gain the support of lawmakers.

Tien recalled: During Leungs term, the liaison office was quite heavy-handed as many people refused to comply with him.

He said liaison office staff would track down lawmakers to secure votes for certain motions or bills, and would find them one by one for issues considered highly significant and political.

Wong Kwok-kin, a Beijing-friendly lawmaker, sees nothing wrong with any of that. Wong, who sits on the Executive Council which advises Lam, defended such lobbying as very normal political activities and said the liaison office stepped in only when invited to do so by the administration.

No money and no intimidation is involved, he said. It is nothing illegal and all foreign governments do the same.

The charm offensive

The chief of the liaison office, Wang, is no stranger to Hong Kong. He spent almost a decade at the office from 2006, before returning to Beijing briefly, and since being appointed director last September has maintained a higher profile than his predecessor, Zhang.

On his first day of work, Wang showed off his Cantonese when he met the press, and called Hong Kong his second home.

In the 11 months since, he has attended 29 events and delivered 21 speeches compared to just seven speeches made by Zhang at 25 events over the same period a year earlier.

In April, the office opened its doors to the public for the first time in a bid to demystify its functions and build trust with locals. People were allowed into its 41-storey premises at The Westpoint in Sai Ying Pun, where they mingled with officials, wandered through the well-stocked library, and sampled staff meals.

What remains unclear, however, is how many people work there, and how many properties it owns.

Reuters reported that it spent HK$70 million on at least 62 new flats in the 12 months after the pro-democracy Occupy movement ended in 2014.

Last year, it bought 14 flats in Kennedy Town, hinting at a possible expansion in its establishment.

Earlier this year, it was revealed that the office controls Hong Kongs biggest publishing conglomerate Sino United Publishing (SUP), which runs 53, or more than half, of all bookstores around the city. Teaching materials published by SUP have been criticised for being one-sided and pro-government.

Liaison office staff were also reported to have met secondary school principals last October to discuss the Chinese history curriculum.

Beijing loyalist Wong said that by boosting its presence, Wang might be seeking to underline Beijings authority in Hong Kong.

However, Wangs efforts have touched a raw nerve among pan-democrats, who argue they violate Article 22 of the Basic Law, which stipulates that no central government department may interfere in Hong Kongs internal affairs.

Lam appears determined to shake off the image of the government needing the liaison offices support, but the chief executive has said that its work  including its publishing business  should not be interfered with as long as it abides by the law.

The liaison office did not respond to the Posts inquiries.

Time to draw a line?

Nearly two decades after the liaison office was established, has the time come to spell out its duties and draw clear lines?

Jasper Tsang certainly thinks so. He also argues that Article 22 of the Basic Law does not apply to the liaison office because it was specifically set up in Hong Kong, and is not a central government department.

However, members of both the pan-democratic bloc and the pro-establishment camp heaped scorn on Tsangs suggestion to define the roles of the office.

Pro-democracy heavyweight Martin Lee Chu-ming, founding chairman of the Democratic Party, said such a move would only create more grey areas.

He said the Basic Law already states clearly that Hong Kong will be vested with executive, legislative and independent judicial power, and enjoy a high degree of autonomy except on issues related to foreign affairs and defence.

There is either intervention or no intervention, he said, adding he feared Tsangs idea would only legitimise meddling by the liaison office.

Would the government take concrete action if the liaison office crosses the line which has been drawn? Who would be the law enforcer or the referee? It is just not going to work, he said.

Beijing-friendly lawmaker Wong also brushed aside Tsangs idea.

Any amendment to the Basic Law is a political issue rather than an academic study, he said. Any changes would lead to social disputes.

Lawmaker Paul Tse, however, thought Tsangs idea should not be dismissed outright and said it might be good to test the waters to see how society perceives the suggestion.

His intention, I guess, is to make the role [of the liaison office] clear in terms of law  and make it more legally tenable to respond to social concerns, he said.

However, he did not believe that political disputes would disappear even with such laws in place, as there was no persuading critics who believe the liaison office has no right to get involved in local affairs.

Chung felt it would be inappropriate to insert new articles in the Basic Law to spell out the roles of the liaison office, as that would contradict Article 22 which already makes it clear that Beijing should not meddle in the citys internal affairs.

Instead, he said, Hong Kong could consider spelling out the roles of the liaison office  what it should and should not do  in the form of a memorandum or document.

But Eric Cheung Tat-ming, a principal lecturer at the University of Hong Kongs law school, said it would be very difficult to implement a law on the roles of the liaison office if Beijing chose to disregard it.

The best solution, he felt, was for Beijing to exercise self-restraint.

But, pro-democracy veteran Lee saw little chance that Beijing would hold back in its dealings with Hong Kong, saying its officials tended to use power to the fullest, even without legal basis.

The senior counsel, who helped draft the citys mini-constitution, recalled a candid exchange with a Beijing official during the handover talks in the 1980s.

Lu Ping told me that the Xinhua News Agency office was actually the de facto Chinese consulate in Hong Kong during colonial times, but the central government could not name it as such as they did not recognise the unequal treaties [which ceded Hong Kong to British rule], Lee said.

He was referring to the late head of the State Councils Hong Kong and Macau Affairs Office (HKMAO).

According to Lee, Lu said there was no need for the Xinhua office to remain after the handover as Hong Kong would officially be part of China, and other matters could be handled easily by the Office of the Commissioner of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China in Hong Kong, or the HKMAO in Beijing.

But Beijings position had changed by 2000, and today the liaison office, as part of its mandate, keeps an eye on more than 4,000 Chinese enterprises in the city, more than double the 1,800 that existed in 1997.

Lee said he was unconvinced.

The fact is, there is no need for such a liaison office to exist in Hong Kong and the amendments floated by Tsang are not going to help, he said. What we need is to get the implementation of one country, two systems back on the right track.

This article Will defining role of Beijings liaison office in the Basic Law ease societys fears or legitimise meddling in Hong Kong affairs? first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has apologised for comparing himself to Hitler, visited Israel's Holocaust memorial on Monday and said he hoped the world learned lessons from the "horrific" period in history. The controversial leader held talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on the second of a four-day visit to Israel, with defence deals and other areas of cooperation on the agenda. All visiting leaders pay their respects at the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem, usually without much fanfare. But Duterte's Hitler remarks and other controversial actions, including his internationally condemned drug crackdown that has killed thousands, had led to increased attention. He spoke twice during his visit to the solemn memorial perched high in Jerusalem's hills, saying he "could not imagine a country obeying an insane leader". "And I could not ever fathom the spectacle of a human being going into a killing spree... I would like to say that we are one in saying that this will not happen again." He later read out what he wrote in the memorial's guest book, saying "may the world learn the lessons of this horrific and benighted period of human history." On Wednesday, Duterte will inaugurate a memorial near Tel Aviv commemorating the Philippines' acceptance of 1,300 Jews fleeing the Holocaust. Duterte's visit to Yad Vashem led to criticism even before it took place, mainly due to comments in 2016 comparing himself to Adolf Hitler. "Hitler massacred three million Jews. Now there are three million drug addicts (in the Philippines). I'd be happy to slaughter them," Duterte said then. Historians say six million Jews died in the Holocaust. Duterte later apologised and said the comments were aimed at critics who had likened him to the Nazi leader. - 'Hitler admirer' - Israeli newspaper Haaretz published an editorial headlined "A Hitler admirer at Yad Vashem," while left-wing politicians questioned why Netanyahu would welcome Duterte with open arms. Netanyahu "is willing to whitewash an illegitimate leader, who took pride in massacring his citizens and violating human rights, and why?" Tamar Zandberg, head of the leftist Meretz party, wrote on Facebook. "Because Duterte is willing to support the occupation (of the West Bank)." Israel's government focused on what it sees as the positive aspects of Duterte's visit, the first by a Philippine leader in more than 60 years of diplomatic ties. Netanyahu noted the Philippines' support for Israel at the United Nations and said his father had been cared for by a Filipino in his later years, as is the case with many elderly Israelis. Duterte, speaking alongside Netanyahu ahead of their lunch, said they "share the same passion for peace". "But we also share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who have the corrupt ideology who knows nothing but to kill and destroy," he said in English. He thanked Israel for supplying him with unspecified defence equipment that was "critical" in "winning the war" -- presumably a reference to his government's battle against jihadists in the city of Marawi last year. Netanyahu is always on the lookout for allies who will support Israel in international forums, where the country often faces criticism over its occupation of Palestinian territory. In recent months, he has found common cause with a number of nationalist leaders, including Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban. The Philippines was among the countries that abstained from a UN General Assembly vote rejecting US President Donald Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December. It also emerged as a significant new customer in 2017 for Israel, with sales of radar and anti-tank equipment worth $21 million. Beyond that, the country is an important provider of labour to Israel, where some 28,000 Filipinos live including many working as care providers for the elderly. On Monday, the two countries signed agreements related to Filipino caregivers, scientific cooperation and bilateral investments. - 'I am sorry' - Immediately after Duterte's arrival on Sunday night, he revived one of his previous foul-mouthed remarks that have caused anger, saying he was sorry for calling former US president Barack Obama a "son of a whore". Duterte lobbed the insult in 2016 in response to steady criticism from the United States over his violent drug crackdown. "It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr. Obama that you are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words," Duterte said Sunday while speaking to Filipinos in Israel. On Wednesday, Duterte heads to Jordan, where he is expected to meet King Abdullah II. burs-mjs/dv Facebook
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Dwelling in a political echo chamberwhere you encounter only people who agree with youis hardly conducive to a healthy democracy.

But it turns out that broadening your horizons by perusing opposing points of view on social media may just make the partisan divide worse.

That's the depressing result of an unusual experiment involving 909 Democrats and 751 Republicans who spend a lot of time on Twitter.

"Attempts to introduce people to a broad range of opposing political views on a social media site such as Twitter might be not only ineffective but counterproductive," researchers reported this week in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Political polarization is on the rise in America, and the results aren't pretty, the study authors said.

"Americans are deeply divided on controversial issues such as inequality, gun control, and immigration," they wrote. "Partisan divisions not only impede compromise in the design and implementation of social policies but also have far-reaching consequences for the effective function of democracy more broadly."

The researchers, led by Duke University sociologist Christopher Bail, set out to do something about this problem by harnessing the power of Twitter.

They already knew people become more inclined to compromise on political issues when they spend time with people who hold opposing views. Face-to-face meetings can override negative stereotypes about our adversaries, paving the way for negotiation.

But whether these dynamics would extend to virtual interactions through social media was unknown.

So Bail and his colleagues hired YouGov to survey active Twitter users who self-identified as either Democrats or Republicans. Participants indicated the extent to which they agreed or disagreed with 10 statements like, "The best way to ensure peace is through military strength," and "Stricter environmental laws and regulations cost too many jobs and hurt the economy."

The researchers learned even more about the participants' partisan leanings by checking who they followed on Twitter and other publicly available information.

A week later, some of the Democrats were randomly selected to receive an apparently unrelated offer: For $11, would they be willing to follow an automated bot that retweets 24 items every day?

These Democrats weren't told that the retweets would originate from Twitter accounts belonging to politicians, pundits, nonprofit advocacy groups and media organizations aligned with Republicans.

Meanwhile, a randomly selected group of the Republican survey-takers got the same offer, and their Twitter bot retweeted messages from accounts aligned with Democrats.

The word most commonly retweeted by the liberal bot was "Trump," which appeared in its feed 256 times over the course of one month. "Tax" came in a distant second, showing up 93 times.

As it happened, these were also the two favorite words of the conservative bot, which mentioned "tax" 125 times and "Trump" 123 times.

After a month of reading tweets from the other side of the political spectrum, the participants re-took the original 10-item survey. So did the people who were not asked to follow the bots.

Compared to the Democrats who did not follow the conservative bot, those who did "exhibited slightly more liberal attitudes." The more they had paid attention to the bot's retweets (as measured by additional surveys), the more liberal their attitudes became. However, none of these changes were large enough to be statistically significant.

It was a different story for Republicans. Compared to those who did not follow the liberal bot, those who did "exhibited substantially more conservative views" after just one month. The greater the number of liberal tweets the Republicans absorbed, the more conservative they became. These results were statistically significant.

In other words, the experiment backfired.

But Bail and his colleagues from Duke, Brigham Young University and New York University said it's too soon to give up on the idea that social media can help bridge the partisan divide.

Twitter is certainly popular, but the majority of Americans still don't use it. That means the results of this experiment wouldn't necessarily predict how things would go if a similar initiative were rolled out to Americans as a whole, the researchers wrote.

Another cause for optimism: The bots retweeted messages from "elites," who tend to be "significantly more polarized than the general electorate," the study authors wrote. If instead the tweets had come from regular folks, people might have been more receptive to their messages.

Perhaps.

Future research should determine "which types of messages, tactics, or issue positions ... might be more effective vehicles to bridge America's partisan divides," the team concluded.

Explore further Neutral news perceived as biased depending on who shares it

More information: Christopher A. Bail et al. Exposure to opposing views on social media can increase political polarization, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2018). Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Christopher A. Bail et al. Exposure to opposing views on social media can increase political polarization,(2018). DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1804840115

2018 Los Angeles Times

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Researchers developed a rapid-sensing gel to measure a molecular marker of eye injury in a teardrop. From left: Carle opthamologist Dr. Leanne Labriola, Illinois visiting scholar Ketan Dighe and professor Dipanjan Pan. Credit: L. Brian Stauffer

A new point-of-care rapid-sensing device can detect a key marker of eye injury in minutes  a time frame crucial to treating eye trauma.

University of Illinois researchers developed a gel laden with gold nanoparticles that changes color when it reacts with a teardrop containing ascorbic acid, released from a wound to the eye. In a new study published in the journal Biosensors and Bioelectronics, the researchers used the sensor, called OjoGel, to measure ascorbic acid levels in artificial tears and in clinical samples of fluid from patients' eyes.

"We expect a significant potential impact of this biosensor for evaluating the eye in post-surgical patients as well as trauma patients," said study leader Dipanjan Pan, a University of Illinois professor of bioengineering and the Carle Illinois College of Medicine.

Pan's group collaborated with Dr. Leanne Labriola, an ophthalmologist at Carle Foundation Hospital in Urbana, to develop OjoGel.

"OjoGel technology may allow for faster identification of serious eye injuries," Labriola said. "With a rapid point-of-care device such as this, anyone in an emergency department could perform a test and know within minutes if the patient needs urgent surgery to save their vision."

Previous work by the group found that ascorbic acid concentration in tears is a good measure for determining extent of injury to the eye. Ascorbic acid, also known as vitamin C, is found in high concentrations in the fluid inside the eye, called aqueous humor, but normally has very low concentration in tears.

"Deep damage to the cornea from trauma or incisional surgery releases aqueous humor into the tear film, which increases the concentration of ascorbic acid in tears to a measurably higher level than that found in normal eyes," said Pan, also affiliated with the Beckman Institute for Advanced Science and Technology at Illinois. "OjoGel offers a unique biosensing technique that provides an effective and simple method for testing ascorbic acid in a point-of-care delivery system."

A tiny teardrop is all that's needed to cause a color-change reaction in the OjoGel. The extent of the color change correlates to the concentration of ascorbic acid in the tear sample, shifting from pale yellow to a dark reddish-brown as the concentration increases.

The researchers did extensive testing to determine the concentrations associated with each degree of color change. They developed a color key and guidelines for using a mobile phone app, Pixel Picker, to precisely measure the concentration indicated by a reacted gel sample.

Next, the researchers plan to continue refining OjoGel technology in hopes of producing a low-cost, easy-to-use clinical device. They also will perform clinical studies to determine whether OjoGel readings reliably evaluate eye damage.

"In addition to continuing to develop the technology, in the next year we will be working to help health care providers understand the value this new device may bring to their practice over the current methods they use for evaluation," Labriola said.

The National Science Foundation, the American Heart Association and Carle Foundation Hospital supported this work. Postdoctoral researcher Santosh Misra, visiting scholar Ketan Dighe, graduate student Aaron Schwartz-Duval and summer scholar Zaixi Shang also contributed to the study.

Explore further Portable device can quickly determine the extent of an eye injury

More information: Santosh K. Misra et al. In situ plasmonic generation in functional ionic-gold-nanogel scaffold for rapid quantitative bio-sensing, Biosensors and Bioelectronics (2018). Journal information: Biosensors and Bioelectronics Santosh K. Misra et al. In situ plasmonic generation in functional ionic-gold-nanogel scaffold for rapid quantitative bio-sensing,(2018). DOI: 10.1016/j.bios.2018.08.019
Scott Morrison has an honours degree in economic geography, and it shows. On Thursday the prime minister split apart the ministerial responsibilities for energy and climate, which were previously part of a united portfolio under Josh Frydenberg.

The new federal environment minister Melissa Price is now responsible for climate policy, whereas the incoming energy minister Angus Taylor has been described by Morrison as the "minister for getting energy prices down."

Splitting the energy and environment portfolios may seem like a step backwards, given the significant greenhouse emissions produced by the electricity sector and other energy industries. But by separating two significant areas, Morrison is following good economic practice: creating a "dynamically efficient" economy.

You've got to be dynamic

The first Nobel Prize in Economics was awarded to Jan Tinbergen and Ragnar Frisch for their contributions to the development of dynamically efficient economies.

Tinbergen's Nobel Prize-winning advice was simple: if you want your nation to prosper, use separate policy instruments to achieve separate policy objectives.

Better still, put responsibility for climate and electricity in separate departments and charge each with responsibility for the delivery of each outcome as cheaply and efficiently as possible.

Price's new challenge is to come up with the best greenhouse gas reduction program she can. Rather than putting lots of money into subsidies, fiddling with renewable energy targets and embracing expensive schemes such as Snowy Hydro 2.0, she is relatively free to design a dynamic, economy-wide scheme that can be described confidently as being robust enough to serve Australia well in the centuries to come.

Sharing it around

One of the best options available to Price is to set up a nationwide "climate-sharing" system. We already have this system for water  for example, the water-trading system that operates through much of the Murray Darling Basin.

To set up a sharing system, essentially the government would have to issue shares to each significant greenhouse gas emitting company, in proportion to its recent emissions. A large power station, for example, might be given ten million shares.

Every year emissions permits can be issued in proportion to the number of shares held, and the company would then need to decide whether or not it had enough permits  just like a standard emissions trading system. There are, however, two differences between an emissions trading system and a climate sharing system.

Bottom-up investment and a community return

First, shares tend to be very valuable and, as has been shown repeatedly with water, can be used to fund investments in emissions-reduction technologies. Once these have been made, shares can be sold to pay for the change.

Second  and overcoming the common objection to rewarding polluters by giving them valuable shares  a community return can be introduced. This would require all shareholders to surrender a percentage of their shares every year.

Companies can decide either to let these shares go or to buy them back. In practice, this would operate much like a carbon tax  but it is determined on the industry's rather than the government's assessment of the long-term cost of dealing with climate change in the most innovative way possible.

The question then is what to do with the resulting annual return. One option (arguably the best available) is to share this equally between federal, state and local governments in proportion to recent emissions. Those communities most affected by the need to reduce emissions would then be given the resources necessary to plan for and build an alternative future. The annual reduction of each shareholding by 1-2% would be sufficient to do this.

Real stability

Sharing systems already increase wealth, drive innovation and stimulate investment in our fisheries and rivers. We may still fight over the details of the water markets, but the foundations of these systems as a way to manage uncertainty are rock solid. Why not do the same with climate?

Well-designed sharing systems give local communities and local businesses a stake in a game that otherwise is played out largely in political arenas.

Whenever such a system is put in place, two markets quickly emerge. The market for shares is used to protect investments, fund innovation and empower local communities. The market for permits enables each power station to search for the most efficient way to meet ever-changing demand and supply conditions.

As is the case for water, the number of permits to be issued per share could be flexibly managed by a board of stakeholders.

How fast we move towards the Paris emissions target (and whatever targets follow) can be worked out adaptively as we go. If the cost of compliance goes up, more permits per share can be issued. If the development of non-polluting sources of energy continue apace, the cost of meeting our Paris commitments many not be as great as many think.

Implementation

Pragmatically, Price could start by issuing shares to the electricity sector. But once feasibility has been proven, this could quickly expand to iron ore, cement and other stationary industries. Having done this, the logical next step would be to include transport and other sectors.

Early on in the roll-out of a climate sharing scheme, farmers could be offered the opportunity to sell carbon-sequestration permits into the scheme. Once they see the value of climate shares, however, I would not be surprised if many farmers start arguing for full inclusion in the scheme.

(Farmers, by the way, would be likely to recommend setting up a central register and making it possible to mortgage climate shares.)

Then, and as has happened with water, the banks can be get involved in helping to fund a transition to a low-carbon economy while creating jobs and driving innovation.

Explore further A climate sharing system to end the Australian power crisis

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.
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Chances are in the past few months you may have had a message or two pop up on a major website informing you of an update in their privacy policy or asking if you understand that the company is using cookies to collect data about you.

Although it may be a U.S.-based company doing the asking, the increased disclosure is most likely the result of a new law in Europe: the General Data Protection Regulation.

Researchers from the University of Michigan School of Information and Ruhr-Universitat Bochum who studied the impact of the European General Data Protection Regulationin effect since May 25have seen use of these cookie notices skyrocket in 28 European Union member states.

They say that many of these notices, however, likely don't meet legal requirements.

They also note that while some companies aren't discriminating with regard to location of customers who receive the notices, some global enterprises are targeting these privacy notices specifically at the EU states where the new law is in place.

"For instance, WashingtonPost.com created a special 'tracking-free' subscription to European readers that you don't see when visiting from the United States, and companies like Netflix let European users personalize their cookie preferences so they can disable targeted adsan option not available in the U.S.," said Florian Schaub, U-M assistant professor of information and of electrical engineering and computer science. "But if you go to Forbes.com you'll be treated the same, regardless of where you are signing in from.

"The bottom line is that without regulation companies in the United States are not likely to give more privacy choice to customers, so many will find ways to adapt their sites to comply where they must but continue to operate business as usual elsewhere."

Schaub and a team from the Ruhr-Universitat Bochum analyzed how the changes required by the GDPR have been implemented by various enterprises. They examined the privacy policies of the 500 most frequented websites in each of the 27 EU member countries6,357 web pages in totalbetween January and June 2018. They also looked at 450 of the top 500 most visited websites in the United States.

The researchers collected the privacy policies and cookie notices of those websites and analyzed which changes were made over time.

In many EU states, the presence of privacy policies was lowbetween 60 and 70 percentprior to the law. In some countries, that rose by as much as 15 percent under the new regulations. However, approximately 74 percent of the websites did not have their respective privacy policies amended until shortly before May 25.

"The analysis has, moreover, shown that a certain percentage of web pages in some of the countries did not have a policy of that sort at all before the GDPR came into force," said Martin Degeling, first author of the study and a researcher at the Ruhr-Universitat Bochum. "However by the deadline, approximately 85 percent of the websites we analyzed had a privacy policy in place."

Among the popular websites in the different European countries were many large U.S. websites. Of those, 96 percent had a privacy policy. This percentage remained unchanged during the study period, likely because those are largely multinational companies, such as Facebook and Google.

After the GDPR came into force, about 62 percent of the websites provided cookie notices16 percent more than in January 2018. Accordingly, cookie notices have been the crucial element that has been on an increase in connection with the implementation of the GDPR. But, the researchers say that many of the cookie notices they found likely do not meet the GDPR's legal requirements, because they do not offer users the option to deactivate cookies.

Other authors were Christine Utz, Christopher Lentzsch, Henry Hosseini and Thorsten Holz of Ruhr-Universitat Bochum.

Explore further WhatsApp bans European under-16s from using app

More information: Study: We Value Your Privacy  Now Take Some Cookies: Measuring the GDPR's Impact on Web Privacy, Study: We Value Your Privacy  Now Take Some Cookies: Measuring the GDPR's Impact on Web Privacy, arxiv.org/pdf/1808.05096.pdf
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As many as six humpback whales were spotted in Boston Harbor on Wednesday, a rare sight in the congested shipping port. But the whales probably weren't lost, according to Joseph Ayers, a professor at Northeastern's Marine Science Center in Nahant, Massachusetts. They were probably just looking for a snack.

"There appear to be a lot of bait fish in the area right now, like pogies, and that seems to be attracting the whales," he said. Ayers, who specializes in marine science and neurophysiology, said that whales are usually feeding whenever people see them close to shore.

Ayers said that in the past, he has seen humpbacks as close as "50 yards off the wharf in Nahant." But while it might be normal for these whales to come close to shore, it's not common for them to swim into Boston Harbor. In fact, Ayers said it could be quite dangerous.

"Boats are the biggest problem for whales. If a whale swims into the propeller of a boat, especially something as big as a shipping vessel, it could be deadly," he said. Since the whale sightings earlier this week, the U.S. Coast Guard in Boston has warned boaters to be aware of the animals.

Boaters might be able to avoid whales by steering clear of large flocks of birds because, according to Ayers, "Whenever you see a flock of birds, it means there are fish around." And where there are fish, there could be humpback whales.

Ayers speculated that these recently-spotted whales are looking for food based on their behavior. "The displays that they've been making are definitely feeding displays," he said.

Humpback whales use a unique hunting method that involves blowing air bubbles around schools of fish. Once the fish are trapped in the air bubble rings, the whales swim up from below the fish and consume them.

No one knows for certain what the whales are doing in Boston Harbor, but Ayers knows one thing for sure. "It's their ocean, and they feed where they find food. It's a very opportunistic lifestyle," he said.

Explore further Endangered whale seen off Iceland, 3rd there in 30 years
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American workers' occupational status reflects that of their parents more than previously known, reaffirming more starkly that the lack of mobility in the United States is in large part due to the occupation of our parents, finds a new study by New York University's Michael Hout.

"A lot of Americans think the U.S. has more social mobility than other western industrialized countries," explains Hout, a sociology professor. "This makes it abundantly clear that we have less."

Previous research had used occupation metrics that relied on averages to gauge social status across generations. This dynamic, also called "intergenerational persistence," is the degree to which one generation's success depends on their parents' resources.

While these studies showed a strong association between parental occupation and intergenerational persistence, they understated the significance of parents' jobs on the status of their children.

The new findings, which appear in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, reveal a more powerful link as they rely on data that use medians, or middle points, as opposed to average socioeconomic status, in gauging occupations.

The findings, which take into account pay and education of those in a given occupation, are based on General Social Survey (GSS) data from 1994 through 2016.

To measure occupation, GSS interviewers asked respondents for detailed descriptionsof their current occupation, their father's occupation when they were growing up, and (since 1994) their mother's occupation while they were growing up. Their replies were coded to 539 occupational categories, following protocols established by the U.S. Census Bureau, and then given a socioeconomic score ranging from 9 (shoe shiner) to 53 (flight attendant) to 93 (surgeon).

"The underlying idea is that some occupations are desirable and others less so," explains Hout.

Notably, the study shows that the sons and daughters of high-status parents have more advantages in the labor force than earlier estimates suggested.

For example, half the sons and daughters whose parents were in the top tier of occupations now work in occupations that score 76 or higher (on a 100-point scale) while half the sons and daughters of parents from the bottom tier now work in occupations that score 28 or less on that scale.

Hout notes that earlier measurestracking averages instead of medianswould underestimate that range and show less stark distinctions between the top and bottom tiers of occupation status.

Specifically, in the above instance, using averages would show half the sons and daughters whose parents were in the top tier of occupations work in occupations that score only 72 or higher while half the sons and daughters of parents from the bottom tier work in occupations that score up to 33 or less.

"Your circumstances at birthspecifically, what your parents do for a livingare an even bigger factor in how far you get in life than we had previously realized," observes Hout. "Generations of Americans considered the United States to be a land of opportunity. This research raises some sobering questions about that image."

More information: Americans' occupational status reflects the status of both of their parents, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (2018). Journal information: Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences Americans' occupational status reflects the status of both of their parents,(2018). www.pnas.org/cgi/doi/10.1073/pnas.1802508115
Monsoon rainstorms bring moisture from the tropics to the arid lands of the Desert Southwest, supporting a landscape that is much more biodiverse than most other deserts in the world. Credit: Deborah Lee Soltez/Public Domain

Analyzing traces of leaf waxes from land plants that over millennia accumulated in deep sea sediments, a team of researchers led by the University of Arizona reconstructed the history of monsoon activity in northern Mexico. Their results, published online on Sept. 3 in the journal Nature Geoscience, help settle a long-standing debate over whether monsoon activity shut down completely under the influence of cooling brought about by the ice sheets that covered much of North America, or was merely suppressed.

During the Last Glacial Maximum, about 20,000 years ago, when mammoths and other prehistoric beasts roamed what is now northern Mexico and the southwestern United States, summer rains contributed a 35 percent of the annual rainfall, compared with about 70 percent today, according to the new study.

By diverting moisture from the tropics, the summer monsoon brings relief from months-long intense summer heat and drought to the arid lands of the American Southwest and northwestern Mexico. If the region depended on winter rains alone, the Sonoran Desert would not be known as one of the world's most biodiverse deserts.

"The monsoon is such an iconic feature of the desert Southwest, but we know very little about how it has changed over thousands and millions of years," says Tripti Bhattacharya, the study's first author. "Our finding that the Southwestern monsoon was suppressed, but not completely gone under glacial conditions, points to the dramatic variability of the atmospheric circulation at the time, but suggests it has been a persistent feature of our regional climate."

Previous studies had yielded inconclusive results, in part because the records used to infer evidence of past monsoon rainfall tend to be more like snapshots in time rather than providing more continuous climate records. For example, researchers have gained valuable glimpses into long-vanished plant communities based on plant parts preserved in packrat nests called middens, or by analyzing the chemical signatures they left behind in soils. Those studies suggested persistent monsoon activity during the last ice age, whereas other studies based on climate modeling indicated it was temporarily absent.

By applying a clever method never before used to study the history of the monsoon, Bhattacharya and her co-authors discovered the equivalent of a forgotten, unopened book of past climate records, as opposed to previously studied climate archives, which in comparison are more like single, scattered pages.

Forming a vast natural vault almost 1,000 meters below the sea surface, the seafloor of oxygen-poor zones in the Gulf of California contains organic material blown into the water for many thousands of years, including debris from land plants growing in the region. Since the deposits remain largely undisturbed from scavengers or microbial activity, Tierney and her team were able to isolate leaf wax compounds from the seafloor mud.

Co-author Jessica Tierney, an associate professor in the UA's Department of Geosciences and Bhattacharya's former postdoctoral adviser, has pioneered the analysis of the waxy coatings of plant leaves to reconstruct rainfall or dry spells in the past based on their chemical fingerprint, specifically different ratios of hydrogen atoms. The water in monsoon rain, according to Tierney, contains a larger proportion of a hydrogen isotope known as deuterium, or "heavy water," which has to do with its origin in the tropics. Winter rains, on the other hand, carry a different signature because they contain water with a smaller ratio of deuterium versus "regular" hydrogen.

"Plants take up whichever water they get, and because the two seasons have different ratios of hydrogen isotopes, we can relate the isotope ratios in the preserved leaf waxes to the amount of monsoon rain across the Gulf of California region," Tierney explains.

Piecing together past patterns of the monsoon in the Southwest can help scientists better predict future scenarios under the influence of a climate that's trending toward a warmer world, not another ice age, the researchers say.

"The past is not a perfect analog, but it acts as a natural experiment that helps us test how well we understand the variability of regional climate," says Bhattacharya, who recently accepted a position as assistant professor of earth sciences at Syracuse University. "If we understand how regional climates responded in the past, it gives us a much better shot at predicting how they will respond to climate change in the future."

One way scientists can take advantage of past climate records is by applying climate models to them, using the records to "ground-truth" the models.

"The problem is that right now, our best climate models don't agree with regard to how the monsoon will change in response to global warming," Tierney says. "Some suggest the summer precipitation will become stronger, others say it'll get weaker. By better understanding the mechanics of the phenomenon, our results can help us figure out why the models disagree and provide constraints that can translate into the future."

To test the hypothesis of whether colder times generally weaken the monsoon and warmer periods strengthen it, Tierney's group is planning to investigate how the monsoon responded to warmer periods in the past. Future research will focus on the last interglacial period about 120,000 years ago, and a period marked by greenhouse gas levels similar to those in today's atmosphere: the Pliocene Epoch, which lasted from 5.3-2.5 million years ago.

Having better records of the Southwestern monsoon also helps scientists better understand how it compares to monsoons in other parts of the world that are better studied.

"We now know that our monsoon appears to be much more sensitive to the large-scale configuration of the atmosphere, whereas other monsoon systems are tied more closely to local ocean conditions," Bhattacharya says.

The study, "Ice sheet modulation of deglacial North American Monsoon intensification," is co-authored by Jason Addison at the U.S. Geological Survey in Menlo Park, California, and James Murray at the School of Oceanography at the University of Washington. Support for this research comes from the David and Lucile Packard Foundation Fellowship in Science and Engineering to Tierney and NSF grant OCE-1651034 to Tierney. Addison is supported by the USGS Climate Research and Development Program.

Explore further East Asian monsoon dynamics discovery

More information: Tripti Bhattacharya et al, Ice-sheet modulation of deglacial North American monsoon intensification, Nature Geoscience (2018). Journal information: Nature Geoscience Tripti Bhattacharya et al, Ice-sheet modulation of deglacial North American monsoon intensification,(2018). DOI: 10.1038/s41561-018-0220-7
Vince Lovko, a phytoplantkon ecologist at Mote Marine Lab, crisscrossed the waters off Longboat Key in his lab's Yellowfin fishing boat with a crew of researchers, sampling sea water from a red tide that has slushed around Southwest Florida for nearly a year and littered beaches with dead manatees, sea turtles and rotting marine life.

Every few yards, dead herring, grass eels and pinfish floated by, peppering the water like a toxic stew. The water, cloudy and yellowish, looked like it was flushed from a toilet.

Lovko is part of a team tracking the tide and trying to fine-tune widely circulated satellite maps that show much of the state's Gulf coast glowing bright red with toxic tide. But as Florida's summer of slime winds into fall, scientists like Lovko have also found themselves caught in an uncomfortable position: trying to referee a complicated and contentious political fight amid a heated election year where their research is getting twisted by competing interestsand sometimes leaving the public confused.

Just after Lake Okeechobee exploded with a massive blue-green algae bloom and water managers began flushing it to the coast, the red tide that started months earlier deepened, with the worst of the fish kills appearing in coastal waters fed by the vast lake's western relief outlet, the Caloosahatchee River.

The agriculture industry and some state regulators pushed back on any connection, calling red tide "naturally occurring." That's true. Outbreaks have been reported for centuries.

But a federal study going back more than a decade concluded man-made pollution worsens red tide. That makes the lake, laced with high levels of the fertilizer nutrients phosphorus and nitrogen, a likely source. What's not clear, since the same nutrients get flushed from the coast, is whether it's definitely a source.

"That's some of the work that still needs to be done to conclusively answer, or at least somewhat conclusively answer," Lovko said.

One reason for that continuing uncertainty: Despite decades of recurring problems, the state has focused mostly on tracking red tides once they arrive, not on the pollution that's driving them. Over the last decade, the state gutted water quality monitoring that might help scientists understand red tide dynamics while shrinking agencies that investigate water and regulate pollution. Even those satellite maps Lovko is working on contain a fair amount of inaccuracy when toxic waters wash ashore.

"We think we understand this but we're flying blind," said University of South Florida oceanographer Bob Weisberg, echoing the frustration felt by University of Florida blue-green algae expert Karl Havens last month. "We've never been able to get the state of Florida to commit and it's further hampering our ability to predict red tide."

Too much money gets spent on bureaucracy, he said, and too little on actual investigation.

"That's been the problem in Florida as long as I've lived here," said Weisberg, whose lab issues annual red tide forecasts. "It's all political."

That's because some of the state's biggest political players have also been blamed for some of its worst pollution.

U.S. Sugar issued a press release last month insisting lake water had nothing to do with the red tide.

"The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission(FWC) states in its frequently asked questions that red tide is not caused by nutrient pollution (urban or agricultural) and additionally, is not made worse by it, either," the release said. It also quoted Mote scientists from a Palm Beach Post story saying lake water did not "initiate" the tide.

In fact, FWC's web page clearly states that once red tides near shore, "they are capable of using man-made nutrients for their growth." And two days later, Mote environmental engineer Tracy Fanara tweeted a clarification saying lake releases could help sustain a bloom.

"If you have a (freshwater) cyanobacteria bloom, you know you have excess nutrients but (the cyanobacteria) might be lessening it as it gets out," she said. "But it's still a sign. That's an environmental ecological response to high nutrients."

Scientists widely agree red tide, made up of Karenia brevis algae, gets seeded offshore at the bottom of the Florida shelf, then carried inshore by bottom currents. As the algae gets close to coastal waters polluted by a host of sources, from farm and lawn fertilizer to leaky septic tanks, it can grow more intensely and create toxic blooms.

"Once it's blooming, it does require nutrients to sustain a bloom," Weisberg said. Rotting fish can help feed it, but algae can also use nutrients flowing off land, he said. "So the lake run-off will not cause the red tide, but it can help sustain a red tide."

After a 2005 red tide exploded and persisted for 17 months, spreading fish kills across three states including Florida, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration launched a six-year research project. Researchers concluded the sources of nutrients that feed red tides are "multiple, diverse and complex," and included run-offs from estuaries like the one fed by the Caloosahatchee.

What's not well understood is why and how much those coastal nutrients influence outbreaks, Weisberg said.

In a 2007 study, Larry Brand, a University of Miami Rosentstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science phytoplankton ecologist argued that increasing pollution has worsened red tide.

"It's a natural thing. You can go back 500 years. What I argue is that it's much worse today and that's the result of human-generated nutrients," he said. "Obviously, it's political. There's no one source and obviously some sources are more important than others."

But Lovko, the Mote ecologist, isn't convinced and said Brand reached his conclusion based on records that included inconsistent sampling.

"One of the things we don't know because there's not measurements, or sufficient measurements of it, is how much, for example, nutrients flowing through the Caloosahatchee from Lake Okeechobee actually make it out to the coastal system," he said. "It's easy to make the assumption. ... That's what the public has been assuming. But we can't. That's not how science works."

But in his study, Brand said he accounted for differences in sampling methods and potential increase in monitoring that might skew numbers. And he still found that between 1954 and 1963 and 1994 and 2002, algae amounts increased by 13 to 18 times.

What's not well understood, Brand said, is why red tide explodes some years and not other years, and whether other species of phytoplankton are beating the red tide to the nutrient soup.

Ocean water is filled with a host of phytoplankton that can consume nutrients and battle each other for dominance. Karenia brevis, named for retired algae expert Karen Steidinger who spearheaded research at the state's St. Petersburg marine lab, exists throughout Gulf waters, not just on the bottom offshore. Scientists routinely find it at background concentrations near shore in years where there are no fish kills.

"We don't have a good understanding of what exactly is controlling the outcome of that competition, so that explains the year to year variability," Brand said. "There's no consensus at this point."

But understanding why is not what the state of Florida is paying Mote to do.

"What we're funded to do is monitor. We're not funded to answer specific questions," Fanara said.

Lovko says there are also unanswered questions about the relationship between offshore and inshore populations of red tide phytoplankton.

"What we don't know is how the offshore population is any different, the supposed seed population that initiates and starts moving toward shore as opposed to the cells we already have increasing," he said.

Which is exactly the kind of information could help Weisberg, who bases his yearly forecast on the pattern of currents that carry algae ashore. When the Gulf's shifting Loop Current crosses the West Florida Shelf, it pushes nutrients from the deeper bottom onto the shelf to fuel the Karenia algae, he said.

"What is terribly missing is the ability to go offshore on a regular basis where we believe the red tide forms and sample the organism itself as well as the nutrients," he said.

There are other knowledge gaps.

Scientists use satellite imagery that looks at surface water to monitor the density of red tide, but images tend to be less precise the closer they get to shore, where information is most needed. Near shore, tannins from mangroves and shoreline vegetation and other organic molecules can interfere, Lovko. And it only works on sunny days.

This year's red tide first appeared in October off Sarasota. In June, it deepened. Massive fish kills began littering beaches and clogging canals with bait fish and larger marine life, including sea turtles, dolphins, manatees and even a whale shark.

The turn for the worse followed record-breaking rain that prompted the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to begin flushing water from the lake, already filled with blue green algae, down the Caloosahatchee River. Water from sugar fields on the east side of the lake was also allowed to backflow into the lake from swelling canals, enough to cover about 48-square miles with a foot of water. The tides also coincided with a wave of Saharan dust, another source of nutrients for different algae that can feed red tide.

"Last year we had a bloom and it never fully went away," Weisberg said. "What's happening this year is the confluence of two things: residual cells from last year and new cells coming to the coast from the middle of the Continental Shelf where conditions were conducive to bloom development."

Beyond polluted runoff from yards, farms, ranches and even phosphate mines, researchers are examining other suspects that could have helped feed the latest bloom.

- One notion is that Saharan dust, the same wind-borne material that can dry out potential tropical storms, could play a role. Researchers say the iron-rich dust can feed Trichodesmium, a saltwater cyanobacteria that pulls nitrogen from the air allowing it to grow in water with few nutrients. When African dust is heavy, it can fuel Trichodesmium, which can then become food for red tide algae both offshore and inshore.

The problem is the theory has never been tested, said Joe Prospero, a professor emeritus at the University of Miami's Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science who is nicknamed the "father of dust."

"We have these various pieces and there have been measurements of iron, and it's been modeled. But in real life there's been no close study," said Prospero, who was among the first scientists to recognize the global impacts of African dust. "It's just based on the fact that we have seasonally measured dust here in Miami. But no one has gone, to my knowledge, to the west coast of Florida and actually seen if there's a response and an increase of iron in water.Some scientists also believe that hurricanes, like Irma, may have an influence. In addition to dumping heavy rain and washing nutrients off land, a hurricane, especially one as large as Irma, can move huge amounts of water around the Gulf. As Irma headed up the Gulf coast for a second landfall on Marco Island, it sucked water off the southwest coast, said Rosenstiel oceanographer Nick Shay. When water flowed back ashore, it came from the bottom layers where Karenia brevis thrive.

"We have to understand not only the surface currents, but the bottom currents," he said. "When we start piecing this together, maybe the whole Irma thing was a preconditioning state."

Deepwater oscillations generated by hurricanes can also continue for a prolonged period and potentially push more algae toward the coast, he said.

"So while the surface layer may be back to normal, what's happening in the deeper layers can last a month or more," he said.

Whether the lake releases worsen red tide or not, scientists stress that the damaging blue green algae blooms fouling inshore waters alone argue for an overhaul of water quality research and standards and the solutions to each may be different.

"You take red tide out of that picture completely and it doesn't in any way lessen the compelling argument for reducing (pollution) in Lake Okeechobee," Lovko said. "That's something that needs to happen."

Scientists instead say more research needs to be directed at finding causes and not just monitoring. Since this year's red tide evolved into a full-scale crisis damaging businesses and drawing national headlines, Scott has declared a state of emergency and ordered $6 million spent to help with clean-up and tourism. But Weisberg worries that's just election-year grandstanding.

"I've been very successful at making people mad at me, but at some point how do you make a change? It's politics. Mote got a bunch of money. Why? Because they're plugged in," he said. "Unless we get more in-depth reporting on serious problems, we're never going to make a change."

Explore further Six things to know about Florida red tide

2018 Miami Herald

Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
Credit: Ocean Exploration Trust/Nautilus Live

An expedition that will help NASA search for life in deep space launched today  not with a rocket's roar, but with a gentle splash into the deep Pacific Ocean. The project, called the Systematic Underwater Biogeochemical Science and Exploration Analog, or SUBSEA, will use underwater robots to explore the biology, geology and chemistry of the environment around a deep-sea volcano off the coast of Hawaii. Scientists believe this is similar to what may exist on Saturn's moon Enceladus. Studying the extreme conditions where life can survive on Earth will help them understand the potential for life to exist on other ocean worlds in the solar system.

For SUBSEA, NASA is teaming up with ocean research partners from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the Ocean Exploration Trust and more. The two robotic explorers, remotely operated vehicles Hercules and Argus, pictured here, are operated by OET and were launched from aboard their exploration vessel, Nautilus. The SUBSEA team will spend three weeks at sea, both studying the volcano and simulating human-robotic exploration for future deep-space missions.

Learn more about the SUBSEA project and follow the 2018 expedition on the livestream as the team dives deep into the search for life.

Explore further NASA dives deep into the search for life
4 hours ago

Paycom May Look Expensive But You Should Buy it Anyway

Earnings Will Continue to Propel Paycom Stock Higher There are many reasons that investors could look at Paycom (NYSE: PAYC) and think its better to stay away. PAYC stock is up 21% for the year which closely approximates the 24% gain in the S&P 500.

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Eastern Partnership Countries

Satenik Hayrapetyan, Armenia

Satenik has more than 10 years of experience as a journalist, first preparing news for Shant TVs Horizon news program, and since 2018 writing articles for the Shantnews.am web site. A graduate of the Journalism Faculty at Northern University in Yerevan, Satenik speaks Russian and English in addition to her mother tongue, Armenian.

Hanna Malashenia, Belarus

Hanna is currently working for the Polish paper Gazeta Wyborcza as a freelance journalist and correspondent in Belarus, writing articles for both the printed and online editions of the newspaper. Hanna previously worked for Intex-press in the city of Baranavichy, writing articles on political, education, and fashion topics. A graduate of the University of Warsaws Faculty of Journalism, Journalism and Media Studies, Hanna is bilingual in Russian and Belarusian, fluent in Polish, reads and understands Ukrainian and speaks English.

Ivan Petrov, Belarus

Ivan started his professional career doing social media marketing for LSTR Adziennie, organizing photo sessions, selecting texts and visuals for publication, and maintaining social media presences on Facebook, Instagram, VKontakte and Odnoklassniki. Ivan later worked for two NGO organizations, Art Siadziba and Hodna.by; since July 2020, he has worked for RFE/RLs Belarus Service as a social media marketing specialist. Ivan earned a bachelors degree in geography from Immanuel Kant Baltic Federal University in Kaliningrad, Russia and has attended several professional courses in social media management and design. Ivans native languages are Russian and Belarusian, he has an basic knowledge of Polish and English.

Tamuna Chkareuli, Georgia

Tamuna is a documentary photographer and photojournalist who worked as a staff writer for OC Media and freelanced for Chai Khana. Tamuna earned a bachelors degree in Arts History and Theory from Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University and completed her masters degree at the University of Westminster, London majoring in Documentary Photography and Photojournalism. She has been a grantee of the Tbilisi Photography and Multimedia Museum in 2018, and been selected to attend the Nikon-NOOR Academy 2019. Tamuna is currently supported by Women Photograph. Tamunas work has received several awards and been exhibited, among others, at the Kolga International Photography festival. Tamunas native language is Georgian, and she speaks fluent English and Russian.

Yuliia Turchynska, Ukraine

Yuliia is currently news author for the online publication lb.ua, selecting topics, writing texts, and conducting fact checking. Previously, Yuliia worked for the agency Ukrayinska politychna arena as a political journalist writing news, articles, and photo reports and organizing and conducting interviews, before serving as a Thoughts section editor for LigaBusinessInform, responsible for selecting, checking and editing materials, creating headlines, structuring, and adapting texts. Yuliia, who has earned a masters degree in political science from Taras Shevchenko National University in Kiev, speaks Ukrainian, Russian and English.

Western Balkans Countries

Sara Velaga, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Sara is a journalist, writer, PR manager and translator who started her career as a correspondent for the portal Balkan Diskurs. She worked as a translator for PhD students from Canada and from Japan, carrying out interviews, research and analysis, and translating interviews into English. She has also worked as PR manager for EURO EXPRESS Brza Posta, as a journalist at Lola magazine writing and editing articles for web and local networks, and for the Banja Luka portal Buka, where she conducted interviews, did research, and wrote stories. Sara currently works as a journalist for the youth magazine KARIKE. Sara graduated from the Cappa Phi College of Communications in Banja Luka, majoring in communications and public relations; in addition to her native Bosnian, she speaks English and German.

Bojana Moskov, Montenegro

Bojana is an investigative journalist working as a project assistant and journalist for the crime and corruption reporting network LUPA. She previously worked for the Portal za mlade - Makanje.me, where she was a journalist, social media manager, web content manager and project assistant. Bojana also volunteered for Radio Krs, where she was an on-air host and assisted with projects and marketing. Bojana earned a bachelors degree in communication sciences from the University of Bari Aldo Moro in Italy, and took part in a six-month Erasmus program at the University of Malta; Bojana is now pursuing a bachelors degree from the University in Montenegros Faculty of Political Science. Bojanas mother tongue is Montenegrin, she is a fluent speaker of Italian and English, and is learning French.

Nemanja Stevanovic, Serbia

Nemanja, a member of the Independent Journalists Association of Vojvodina, works as an independent audio and video journalist writing for Autonomija.info and VOICE; he is also a podcast journalist for Reaguj. Nemanja previously worked as a journalist associate at the Media and Reform Center in Nis, writing articles for the news portal mediareform.rs and also working in video production. Nemanja is currently finishing his studies to earn a bachelors degree in Serbian studies from the Faculty of Philosophy at the University in Nis, and has attended a number of trainings on corruption reporting, fact checking and mobile journalism. In addition to his native Serbo-Croatian, Nemanja also speaks English.
Former teen pop star Kevin Jonas has finally unloaded his Montville mansion.

Set on more than two acres along Quarry Lane Road, the five-bedroom, six-and-half-bathroom property sold earlier this summer for $2.25 million, according to state property records.

The sale was completed July 9.

The home was previously taken off the market briefly in November 2017 before being put back on in January of this year. First listed in the spring of 2017, the original asking price was $2,488,000.

The home, which is located in the exclusive Valhalla Estates neighborhood, is at the end of a cul-de-sac and includes a large saltwater pool and waterfall.

Inside, the home features "state-of-the-art amenities and attention to detail throughout," highlighted by a large glass-walled wine cellar off the formal dining room, a billiards room and a gourmet kitchen with high-end appliances, according to the home's listing.

The second floor of the home, according to its listing, features a "magnificent master suite," which includes a fireplace, two walk-in-closets, a dressing room and a "luxurious master bath."

Property taxes for the home are $44,797.38. Listing agent Joshua Baris declined to comment on the sale.

Jonas, who grew up in Wyckoff, burst onto the scene in 2007 with his brothers, Joe and Nick, when their band, the Jonas Brothers, released their pop rock album, which rose to number five on the Billboard Hot 200 chart.

Kevin Jonas, the oldest of the brothers, is no stranger to the New Jersey real estate market. The Montville home is the third New Jersey home he sold in the last five years, according to previous reporting by NJ Advance Media. The most recent previous transaction was selling his Boonton home for $1.95 million in March 2017.

He is married to New Jersey native Danielle Deleasa, and the couple have two young daughters.

NJ Advance Media staff writer Joe Atmonavage contributed to this report.

Jeff Goldman may be reached at jeff_goldman@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @JeffSGoldman. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
With United States mid-term elections approaching, a lot of attention is being devoted to the public feud between Trump and the billionaire Koch brothers, the traditional mega-donors for Republicans. Tradition is being defied at nearly every corner, these days, thoughincluding where it concerns the Koch brothers allies.

Now the billionaire brothers are openly supporting Democrats who have shown favor for their agenda.

In late July, Koch network declined to endorse Republican Kevin Cramer who was challenging democratic Senator Heidi Heitkamp for her Senate seat in North Dakota.

Trump was livid and played it out on Twitter, saying the Koch network had become a "total joke" and insisting that he "never sought their support because I dont need their money or bad ideas."

The month before, the Koch brothers said they were funding a multi-million dollar campaign against Trump's trade tariffs, with the help of three cashed-up political groups (Freedom Partners, Americans for Prosperity and The LIBRE) that they back. Its a massive advertising, lobbying and grassroots campaign pushing the benefits of free trade.

Theyre ready and willing to spend big on this. Theyve already pledged some $400 million for campaign contributions and policy initiatives ahead of the midterms. Back in 2016, they spent well under half of that. Back then, the Koch brothers were rather fond of Trump and his tax cuts and deregulation push. But as the owners of the second largest privately held company in the U.S.Koch Industriestariffs hurt. Related: Germany Could Use $55B Budget Surplus To Cut Taxes

They were also fond, just last year, of Trumpcare, offering Republicans bounties in campaign financing if they voted for the plan.

But it was the trade war that started this relationship off on the wrong path, and it was likely retaliation for that which prompted the Koch brothers in May to criticize Trumps immigration policy that had seen thousands of children separated from their parents at the border.

Even on-again-off-again Trump ally Steve Bannon is taking up arms against the Koch brothers now, warning Republican candidates not to take money from the network because it was going to be toxic, CNBC reported.

If you take money from people who are against the president and are looking to put a knife in the back of the president, you are going to pay, Bannon said without elaborating on what the punishment would look like.

Bannon, often called the architect of Donald Trump's presidential victory, is currently in cruising the Europe where he is trying to boost far-right sentiment with a new foundation that plans to hand out resources to Euroskeptics and anti-EU populists. Bannon is setting up a Brussels-based non-profit NGO called "The Movement", which hopes to take on billionaire George Soros and other liberal donors and establishments.

Related: Cannabis Stock Valuations Are Spiraling Out Of Control

The Koch brothers arent batting an eye at Trumps tweets, though.

On Friday, Freedom Partners urged the White House to give up its plans next week to impose another round of tariffs on Chinathis time to the tune of $200 billion.

"The costs of this trade war are mounting on our consumers and businesses," said Freedom Partners Executive Vice President Nathan Nascimento, as reported by the Washington Examiner. "Just ask the farmers who are losing profits and market share. Washington imposes tariffs with one hand, while offering government aid with the other."

"Yet the administration appears already committed to inflict even more pain, before the public debate has concluded," he added. "Its like a judge declaring a guilty verdict in the middle of a trial."

By David Craggen for Safehaven.com

More Top Reads From Safehaven.com
Iraqi hospitals were overcrowded last week, as people fell ill after drinking contaminated drinking water in the city of Basra. And this was the starting point of a conversation between SciDev.Net and Hassan Janabi, the Iraqi Minister of Water Resources, during World Water Week which took place in Stockholm, Sweden (August 26-31).

The discussion touched on the countrys water crisis  including soil salinisation in irrigated areas and conflict with neighbouring countries over rights to the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. We also discussed solutions, the effect of Syrian refugees hosted by Iraq, and how the government manages to provide clean drinking water in a country that suffers from water scarcity.

Excerpts

Not long ago, polluted water in Basra poisoned thousands of people. Could you elaborate on this incident and the reasons behind it?

We have very old infrastructure, and the drinking water distribution network in the ancient city of Basra is very outdated. The city has been a victim of many wars, and also abandonment, which has led to a neglect of the water network and its maintenance. As a result, sewage has leaked into drinking water in some areas, causing this incident of contamination.

The only way to avoid this problem is to invest in a new drinking water network with modern pipelines, and to improve treatment of Basras drinking water at the source. The water supply depends on the waters of the Shatt al-Arab river, which unfortunately has been heavily affected by salinisation due to several reasons  so fishing, agriculture and drinking water are no longer as they used to be in that area. There is a need to move towards seawater desalination, but of course this needs time, scientific research and investment.

What is your plan to address the rapidly growing soil salinity in Iraq?

Salinity in Iraqi territory is an old phenomenon. Salt is deposited and accumulated over time due to irrigation techniques. When we irrigate plants water evaporates, and some of the salt that was dissolved in that water gets left behind. If the salts are not continuously washed away from the soil, there will be a high salt content causing a major problem.

Because Iraq is an ancient country, and the practice of irrigation goes back to more than four thousand years ago, we need to inform and guide farmers on how to wash salt away from the soil.

All of Iraq's arable land  about 13 million acres  needs reclamation. Right now we are in the process of rehabilitating five million acres and clearing it of excess salinity.

To solve the problem of salinisation, funding must be provided. Reclaiming lands will impact positively on the country and the economy, thus creating jobs and increasing agricultural productivity, all of which contribute directly to improving economic and social life.

But for the time being, with the problems Iraq faces, the countrys finances leave no space for such steps. We hope that the provisions of Iraq's water and land resources strategy 2015-2035, which shape future water policy, will soon be implemented.

How does the Tigris and Euphrates get affected by dams in the region?

The water of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers is shared. It comes from upstream countries  Turkey  and passes through transit countries, such as Syria, and then the downstream countries  and unfortunately we are a downstream country.

In the old days, we were fortunate that this water came exclusively to us. But since the 1970s, and as our neighbours began to build dams on the two rivers, we lost a large share of it.

From our side, we believe that these dams are too large and that they are unsustainable projects  that they are not science-based, and do not take into consideration the countries obligations towards international conventions. That is why we are suffering from water scarcity now. Iraq's water share has fallen from 55 per cent to 60 per cent.

What are the Ministrys efforts to provide water during a crisis of scarcity?

The Ministry of Water Resources is concerned with all matters related to source (untreated) water, and supplying the agricultural sector with water  but providing drinking water is the responsibility of other departments and institutions, which are tasked with treating and pumping water into distribution networks, then collecting sewage and then treating the water again for reuse.

Generally speaking, there is currently no problem with the availability of drinking water in Iraq, except in the Basra area where the water contamination occurred this [last] week. We hope to control and improve the performance of the drinking water sector in Iraq.

This article has been produced by SciDev.Net's Middle East & North Africa desk.
Julian Assange associate and author of Information Security for Journalists Arjen Kamphuis has disappeared, the Norwegian police is working on the case.

Media agencies worldwide are reporting the strange disappearance of Arjen Kamphuis, the Julian Assange associate. The news was confirmed by WikiLeaks on Sunday, the man has been missing since August 20, when he left his hotel in the Norwegian town of Bodo.

.@JulianAssange associate and author of "Information Security for Journalists" @ArjenKamphuis has disappeared according to friends (@ncilla) and colleagues. Last seen in Bod, #Norway, 11 days ago on August 20. pic.twitter.com/dV75NGKpgI  WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) August 31, 2018

According to WikiLeaks, Kamphuis had bought a ticket for a flight departing on August 22 from Trondheim that is far from Bodo.

His friends believe he disappeared either in Bodo, Trondheim or on the way to the destination.

Update on the strange disappearance of @ArjenKamphuis. Arjen left his hotel in Bod on August 20. He had a ticket flying out of Trondheim on August 22. The train between the two takes ~10 hours, suggesting that he disappeared in within hours in Bod, Trondheim or on the train. https://t.co/t4OTJZGBeT  WikiLeaks (@wikileaks) September 2, 2018

A website set up to gather information on the missing person says: He is 47 years old, 1.78 meters tall and has a normal posture. He was usually dressed in black and carrying his black backpack. He is an avid hiker. reported the German website dw.com.

At the time of writing, there have been two unconfirmed sightings, one in Alesund, Norway, and the other in Ribe, Denmark.

The Norwegian authorities have started an investigation on the case on Sunday.

We have started an investigation, police spokesman Tommy Bech told the news agency AFP. At the time, the police would not speculate about what may have happened to him,.

Hi everyone, small update about #FindArjen; The Norwegian police is working hard on the case now. We are keeping all options open, and hoping he will soon be found  Ancilla (@ncilla) September 3, 2018

According to the Norwegian Verdens Gang tabloid newspaper, the Norwegian authorities cannot access location data collected by the Kamphuiss mobile phone until he is officially reported missing in the Netherlands.

Stay tuned 

Pierluigi Paganini

( Security Affairs  Kamphuis, wikileaks)

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A Swedish, UK and EU flag together at the European Council building in Brussels (Getty)

Swedens foreign minister says she believes theres still a chance Brexit could be called-off and the UK could remain a member of the EU.

Speaking at the start of a meeting of EU foreign ministers in Austria, Annika Soder said she was following British polls closely and sensed hesitation among voters over Brexit.

We hope that we can find a way forward to have a soft Brexit because a hard Brexit wouldnt serve anyone, she told journalists as she arrived.

But still, and this may be not very polite, we hope there can be a solution where the UK still be in Europe.

MORE: Barnier ends market optimism with warning over no-deal Brexit

Negotiations are important and Mr Barnier and his team are working hard to find a good solution. So, we will not give up on a soft Brexit even if that tiny hope is still there.

Asked explicitly if she wanted the UK to remain in the EU, she replied: Wouldnt that be a good idea.

Soder stopped short of endorsing a second referendum, saying the Swedish government didnt want to interfere in British politics.

But she was clear that the EU and Sweden still want to have the UK as a partner.

In response, Conservative MP Nigel Evans, a prominent Vote Leave campaigner, said Soder should focus on Swedens upcoming elections rather than British politics.

Austrian foreign minister Karin Kneissl at the summit in Austria (Getty)

Brexit was not formally on the agenda for the meeting of ministers but was inevitably raised on the sidelines given the looming deadline for a deal.

The meeting was being hosted in Gymnich, Austria, because the country is chair of the European Council until the end of the year.

Austrias foreign minister Karin Kneissl, who recently got married at a ceremony at which Russian president Vladimir Putin was a guest, was more upbeat about Brexit than her Swedish counterpart.

Im convinced that there were much worse times in British history, she said. Im very confident that Britain and the continent will overcome that and will hopefully start a solid, new working relationship.

Story continues

MORE: Pro-Brexit politicians from Austria among ministers now leading the EU Council

She said she finds comfort in difficult times from history and compared Brexit to Britains break with Rome under Henry VIII.

That was also the beginning of global Britain under his daughter Elizabeth, added Kneissl.

Foreign secretary Jeremy Hunt is using the summit to discuss Brexit with the half of his continental counterparts he hasnt visited since taking over from Boris Johnson on July 9.

He said: Our priority here is to make sure there is political will on all sides.

We believe it is possible to come to an agreement. We think that is in the interest of the EU as well as the UK.

But its going to need a huge amount of effort in the weeks we have now left to us.




MP Seah Kian Peng. (File photo: Wong Casandra/Yahoo Singapore)

This story was updated at 12.15pm on Monday (3 September) to reflect Seah Kian Pengs comments in his subsequent Facebook post.

A group of Singapore civil activists have called on PAP Member of Parliament (MP) Seah Kian Peng to retract a Facebook post, put up on Saturday (1 September), in which Seah allegedly made misleading statements about a number of Singaporeans and the Singapore Democratic Party.

In its post on the Community Action Network, Singapore website, the group, which apparently includes Alfian Saat, Roy Ngerng, Martyn See, Constance Singam and Terry Xu, also called for Seah to issue an apology.

In his post referring to Singaporean historian Thum Ping Tjins 30 August meeting with Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, Seah said Dr Thum invited Dr Mahathir to bring democracy to Singapore.

Seahs claim appeared to be a wide departure from Thums own post on meeting with Mahathir, in which Thum said, I met with Malaysian Prime Minister Tun Dr Mahathir today. I urged him to take leadership in Southeast Asia for the promotion of democracy, human rights, freedom of expression, and freedom of information.

An image of Thums post was also shared by Seah. The Marine Parade GRC MP also referred to an unrelated Facebook comment made by former political detainee Teo Soh Lung  in which the latter said Singapore is a part of Malaya la  and lumped that in with Thums separate post.

Inflammatory and dangerous

In calling for Seahs retraction, activists said that despite reminders from concerned citizens, Seah had not amended nor removed his post. They pointed out that the comments to his post were becoming increasingly inflammatory and dangerous.

The activists calling for Seahs apology pointed out that (nothing) in Dr Thums post suggests that hed invited Dr Mahathir to bring democracy to Singapore'.

They were also deeply disappointed that an elected official and member of the Select Committee on Online Falsehoods is himself propagating misinformation.

Story continues

Even if Seah harboured no malicious intent, it was clear that he has trouble discerning facts from falsehoods and should resign, apologise and retract his post immediately, said the group.

On Monday, Thum took to Facebook to respond to the controversy, stating that (any) notion that I am a traitor to my country is ridiculous and unfounded.

Malaysia is now a beacon of hope for democracy in Southeast Asia, and I expressed to Dr Mahathir the hope that many of us feel, he added.

Thum also reiterated that he did not want Singapore to do a Malaysia  referring the Pakatan Harapan coalitions surprise victory in the recent Malaysian general election  but rather that I want Singapore to do a Singapore.

The solution to many of Singapores problems lie with Singaporeans. But that does not preclude us from learning from others experiences to make our country better, said Thum.

Seah responds

In a Facebook post on Monday, Seah called for those commenting on his initial post to remain civil in their discourse.

It is regretful that I see all kinds of abusive remarks that are made by many different individuals (and trolls) against each other. I do not support such types of comments, regardless of what views or positions they take, he wrote.

Related stories:

Mahathir meets with Singaporean political dissidents, activists

That KL meeting: And the winner is Dr M
A 19-year-old Afghan man suspected in last week's stabbing of two American tourists at Amsterdam Central Station said Monday was motivated by insults to Islam, prosecutors said Monday. "The man is of the opinion that in the Netherlands 'the Prophet Mohammad, the Koran, the Islam and Allah have often been insulted'," the Dutch prosecution service said in a statement. The suspect, identified as "Jawed S., "had a terrorist motive and travelled to the Netherlands with that aim," the statement added. The Afghan teenager mentioned far-right Dutch MP Geert Wilders, according to the prosecutor's office. Friday's attack came a day after an announcement by anti-Islam politician Wilders that he was cancelling moves to stage a cartoon competition to caricature the Prophet Mohammad, a plan that had angered many Muslims. Known for his virulent anti-Islamic views, Wilders on Thursday said he was nixing plans to stage the competition to "avoid the risk of making people victims of Islamist violence". - Suspect behind bars - Earlier Monday Jawed S. appeared before a Dutch judge in connection with the case. He was remanded in custody and will appear again before judges in two weeks, while police continue their probe. He remains behind bars under maximum security and is only be allowed visits by his lawyer. Two American tourists were seriously injured when a knife-wielding man attacked bystanders around noon on Friday at the busy train station next to Amsterdam's historic city centre. Police reacted quickly and shot the man in the lower body. He and the injured tourists, both men aged 38, were taken to hospital. The US State Department on Sunday condemned what it called an "unprovoked, horrifying attack" and offered full support to Dutch authorities, both in their investigation and "in our common fight against terrorism in all forms". Both of the wounded American men remained in a satisfactory condition in hospital Monday, according to Dutch media. German police on Saturday raided the suspect's home, which Dutch newspapers said was located in the western Rhineland-Palatinate state. A German foreign ministry official Monday confirmed the suspect is an asylum seeker who was appealing a decision to reject his claim. The man had a German residency permit. German police had no information linking the alleged attacker to any terror groups, the official said. The Netherlands has been largely spared the kind of terror attacks which have rocked its closest European neighbours in the past few years. But amid a number of scares and reports that people linked to some of those attacks may have crossed briefly into the country, top Dutch security and intelligence officials have stressed that the threat level is substantial.
Chinas children ordered to watch Saturday night television  and then made to sit through 12 minutes of advertising

Schools across China ordered their pupils to sit down in front of the television at 8pm on Saturday night, only for them to be subjected to a lengthy series of commercials.

Notices were sent to pupils and their parents instructing them to watch a government-made programme called The First Lesson before school classes resumed on Monday.

But the programme on China Central Television, the state broadcaster, began with 12 minutes of advertising  prompting an outcry from parents.

Please take your children to watch it on time, one primary school in Beijing told parents. A photo showing the student watching the programme must be submitted to the online chat group.

Thousands of parents used social media and news websites to complain about CCTVs non-stop commercials after schools had notified them that the public-interest educational programme made by the Ministry of Education would be broadcast at 8pm sharp.

It has no credibility  The First Lesson has taught students that they do not need to keep time, a parent from Jiangsu province in eastern China commented on the news portal NetEase.

Another added: As this shows, money is the most important.

The state broadcaster apologised on Sunday via the social media platform Weibo. We sincerely apologise to parents and students for the long TV commercials and the delay of the programme, it stated.

The screening of the adverts, mainly promoting online tutoring courses or stationery sales, is the latest controversy to hit the programme, which education authorities have deemed must-see viewing since its launch in 2008.

Many parents also questioned the choice of celebrities used in the programme  on this occasion action movie star Jackie Chan  to share their thoughts about study, success and life.

Xu Mei, the education ministrys spokeswoman, said the schedule had been in the hands of the state broadcaster.

Story continues

We were told that there were some special circumstances for this programme, she told The Economic Observer. The preceding news programme was more than 20 minutes longer than usual, so all the subsequent programmes were delayed accordingly.

Xinwen Lianbo, a daily news programme broadcast at 7pm, had devoted a lot of time to the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, a prearranged summit which will be attended by 53 African leaders and begins in Beijing on Monday.

This article Chinas children ordered to watch Saturday night television  and then made to sit through 12 minutes of advertising first appeared on South China Morning Post

For the latest news from the South China Morning Post download our mobile app. Copyright 2018.
A white female rhino named Carol is seen after she was dehorned by the Animal and Wildlife Area Research and Rehabilitation (AWARE) at Lake Chivero Recreational Park in Norton, Zimbabwe August 25, 2016. REUTERS/Philimon Bulawayo/Files

(Corrects headline to make clear Zimbabwe donating to Congo)

HARARE, Democratic Republic of Congo (Reuters) - Zimbabwe is donating 10 white rhinos to Democratic Republic of Congo to re-establish a population driven to extinction by poachers a decade ago, Zimbabwe's wildlife authority said.

The rhinos were being captured and would be moved from Victoria Falls later this week or early next, Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) spokesman Tinashe Farawo said on Monday.

Congo's white rhinos lived in Garamba National Park near the border with South Sudan but it was not clear where the animals would be located.

Wildlife protection is complicated in Congo by lawlessness and militia violence that endures 15 years after the end of a war that killed millions, mainly from hunger and disease.

"The Zimbabwean Government was satisfied that the pre and post-translocation conditions in ... (Congo) met the requisite standards for a successful re-establishment of rhinos," a ZimParks statement said.

ZimParks and conservationists said moving the rhinos from Zimbabwe would strengthen the gene pool. Zimbabwe had about 800 black and white rhinos in 2016 and is one of just four countries with nearly all the world's white rhinos.

Their horns are prized in China and southeast Asia.

"Moving rhinos from one place to another is essential to ensure good genetic diversity across the population," said Emma Pereira, a spokeswoman for Save the Rhino, a London-based group. "We hope any move between countries is done with the correct expertise and thoughtful planning."

Poachers also target mountain gorillas, one of the world's most endangered species which is found only on a spine of volcanic mountains straddling Congo, Uganda and Rwanda.

Their numbers have recovered in recent years thanks to intensive conservation efforts.

The head of Congo's wildlife authority could not be immediately reached for comment.

(Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe in Harare and Fiston Mahamba in Goma; Writing by Sofia Christensen; Editing by Aaron Ross and Matthew Mpoke Bigg)
Brazilian officials on Monday blamed years of government cutbacks for an inferno that gutted the treasured National Museum, described by President Michel Temer as a "tragic" loss of knowledge and heritage. Even before the embers had begun to cool Monday, grief over the huge cultural loss gave way to anger at funding cuts many say are threatening Brazil's multi-cultural heritage. The museum's destruction caused a social media outcry and a crowd of around 500 protesters gathered to form a human chain around its still-smoldering remains. "It's not enough just to cry, it is necessary that the federal government, which has resources, helps the museum to reconstruct its history," director Alexandre Keller said in front of the devastated building. The fire, the cause of which remains unknown, broke out late Sunday around 7:30 pm (2230 GMT). The majestic edifice was swept by flames after closing to the public as plumes of smoke shot into the night sky, while scores of firefighters battled into the early morning to control the blaze. The fire had been largely smothered early Monday, but not before it had torn through hundreds of artifact-packed rooms in the 13,000-square-meter (139,930-foot) building. By morning, the extent of the losses were still unclear -- although a fire department spokesman told AFP there were no reports of victims so far. - Charred ruins - Firefighters combed the charred ruins to see what might be salvageable. "The facade is resistant, but a lot of material fell from the roof," a fire spokesman said. "We are going to proceed with great care, to see if we can save something." The natural history and anthropology museum -- founded in 1818 and home to more than 20 million valuable pieces before the disaster -- has suffered from funding cuts, forcing it to close some of its spaces to the public. The head of finance and planning at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, on which the museum depends, described the destruction as "a loss to the whole world." "We are not going to put up with this strangulation of public resources anymore," Roberto Antonio Gambine Moreira told AFP. "This is a sign of the lack of investment, a lack of resources and the consequences that brings." The museum's collection included art and artifacts from Greco-Roman times and Egypt, as well as the oldest human fossil found within today's Brazilian borders, known as "Luzia." "Luiza is a priceless loss for everyone interested in civilization," said Paulo Knauss, director of Brazil's natural history museum. It also housed the skeleton of a dinosaur found in the Minas Gerais region, along with the largest meteorite discovered in Brazil, which was named "Bendego" and weighed 5.3 tons. Pieces covering a period of nearly four centuries -- from the arrival of the Portuguese in the 1500s until the declaration of the first Brazilian republic in 1889 -- were also stored there. "This is a tragic day for Brazil," Temer said in a statement. "Two hundred years of work and research and knowledge are lost." - 'Culture is grieving' - "There will be little or nothing left of the palace and the exhibits," Culture Minister Sergio Sa Leitao tweeted. A deputy director at the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, voiced "profound discouragement and immense anger" as the treasured institution burned, accusing Brazilian authorities of a "lack of attention." He said the museum, a former palace that was once the official residence of the Portuguese royal family, had always lacked necessary support. The fire comes as campaigning for October's critical presidential vote gets underway, one of the most uncertain Brazilian elections in decades. Senator Lindbergh Farias of the country's leftist Workers' Party blamed the institution's lack of funding on spending cuts ordered by the government. - 'Lobotomy' of national memory - Sa Leitao, who in July 2017 became culture minister under Temer -- a deeply unpopular center-right leader -- acknowledged that "the tragedy could have been avoided" but said "the problems of the National Museum have been piling up over time." The minister recalled that in 2015 under the government of leftist Dilma Rousseff the museum had been closed for maintenance. In a tragic irony, Leitao also said the fire struck just after the South American country's National Development Bank had signed a sponsorship contract aimed at revitalization. He said a reconstruction project would be set in motion, adding "this tragedy serves as a lesson." "Brazil needs to take better care of its cultural heritage and the collections of its museums," he said. Marina Silva, a former environment minister who is running for president, called the blaze "equivalent to a lobotomy of the Brazilian memory." The collection, she said, "contains objects that helped define the national identity -- and are now turning to ashes."
In April, Grab raised US$1 billion for expansion into Indonesia, where it would go head-to-head with its key rival Go-Jek

About five months after securing a whopping US$1 billion in Series H round of funding, Southeast Asias ride-hailing giant Grab is in talks to raise another massive financing, as per a FinanceAsia report.

Grab is on track to swiftly raise another US$1 billion for its expansion drive across Southeast Asia, the report (paywalled) said, citing its President Ming Maa.

In April this year, Grab scored a US$1 billion from OppenheimerFunds, Ping An Capital, Macquarie Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Mirae Asset-Naver Asia Growth Fund, Cinda Sino-Rock Investment Management, All-Stars Investment, and Vulcan Capital. A significant portion of that capital would be used fund Grabs expansion into Indonesia, where it would go head-to-head with its key rival Go-Jek.

Two months later, Grab announced a partnership with Toyota to strengthen and expand their existing collaboration in the area of connected cars to drive the adoption of new mobility solutions across Southeast Asia. Grab would work with the automotive giant on how connected car services on the Toyota Mobility Service Platform (MSPF)  such as telematics-based insurance, financing programme and predictive maintenance  could enrich the experience for drivers on the Grab platform.

Started in 2012, Grab has since forayed into various Online to Offline (O2O) categories, providing access to food and package delivery, mobile payments and financial services. Grab currently offers services in Singapore, Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Myanmar and Cambodia.

The post Grab in talks to raise another US$1B for expansion in Southeast Asia appeared first on e27.
American Ben King, of the Dimension Data team, claimed his second stage win of the Tour of Spain on Sunday after riding solo to victory on stage nine. Britain's Simon Yates (Mitchelton) took over the leader's red jersey from Frenchman Rudy Molard (Cofidis) following the 200-kilometre race to the ski resort of La Covatilla. Yates now leads Spanish veteran Alejandro Valverde (Movistar) by one second in the overall standings ahead of Monday's rest day. Nairo Quintana, also of Movistar, finished among the chasers to move up to third place overall at 14sec behind Yates. Days after breaking his Grand Tour victory duck on the race, King laid the foundations for his second stage win when he broke free from an 11-strong leading group around 10km before the start of the final climb. The American's bid looked to be hanging in the balance when Dutchman Bauke Mollema (Trek) launched an audacious bid to reel him in. Starting the climb a minute and a half behind King, Mollema dug deep to haul himself to within 15sec of the 29-year-old American, who appeared to be tiring in the final kilometres. But the road -- in the shape of flatter gradients -- came to King's rescue, handing the American respite and a chance to recover before the final push for the finish. King was in disbelief as he crossed the line solo in triumph for the second time in a week. "I've never suffered that much in my entire life, Im still a little foggy in my mind, but Im sure it will sink in soon what an accomplishment this is," said King after requiring several minutes to regain his composure. "To get one stage win was a dream come true. I made winning a Grand Tour stage a major career goal, so today was really nice to show that first one wasn't a random thing." Yates, meanwhile, has pulled on the leader's jersey at a second Grand Tour race for the second time this season. "Of course I'm very happy to be here in the red jersey," said Yates. "It's a bit of a surprise, but I'm happy. I was just trying to follow the best guys in the race." Last June, the Englishman wore the pink jersey at the Giro d'Italia and looked to be on his way to a career-defining victory before collapsing on stage 19, prompting an attack by Chris Froome that earned the Team Sky leader overall victory. With more than half of this race to come, Yates added: "I don't know what the plan is now. We have the rest day to sit down with the team and make a plan." The Tour of Spain resumes Tuesday with a 10th stage held over 177 km between Salamanca and Fermoselle that should be decided by the sprinters. Froome, the reigning Vuelta champion, has chosen to ride in the Tour of Britain instead with Tour de France winner Geraint Thomas.
Land Transportation Franchising and Regulatory Board (LTFRB) member Aileen Lizada filed on Friday, August 31, a case before the Office of the Ombudsman against three staff members of LTFRB Chairman Martin Delgra III in relation to a proposed fare hike for the Iloilo province.

The case stems from a PHP2.50 fare hike recommended by the regional director of the LTFRB, which the Region 6 office of the National Economic and Development Authority (NEDA) said is too high, suggesting that the hike be limited to PHP1.50 instead.

LTFRB Aileen Lizada

In the affidavit filed by Lizada, she noted that as she was looking for the Order of the proposed fare hike to make changes to a statement in it that Department of Trade and Industry (DTI) Undersecretary Ruth B. Castelo said were inaccurate, she was told that the it had been released without her signature and without her planned revision based on Castelos comment.

To Lizadas surprise, she discovered that the Order was already attested by LTFRB Executive Director Samuel A.M. Jardin and that it was docketed for release even if the folder of the Order was still in her office for the compulsory review, concurrence or dissent and signature.

Based on Lizadas investigation, Nikki Rose M. Gener, a staff member of LTFRB Chairman Delgra, took a copy of the Order from the folder without Lizadas permission on the order of Delgras Chief of Staff, Manolo Labor. With the help of another one of Delgras staff, Martin Angelo V. Afante, Gener had the Order routed to the LTFRB Executive Directors office for Jardins signature and then to the agencys Docket Section for it to be docketed notwithstanding that said Order was still in the process of review and revision.

According to Lizada, the release of the fare hike order without her revisions and signature, and its submission for docketing minus its folder violated the agencys procedures. As such, Lizada submitted the names of Labor, Gener, and Afante to the Ombudsman for violating Section 4 of Republic Act 6713 or the Code of Conduct and Ethical Standards for Public Officials and Employees and Sections 3(a) and (e) of R.A. 3019 or the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act.

Story continues

Kawawa and unfair sa riding public at sa Office po kung ganito ang style ng pag-issue ng mga Orders for fare hikes (It is a pity and it is unfair to the riding public and the Office if this is the style in which fare hikes are issued), Lizada said to select members of the media.

When we do orders for fare hikes, kailangan hong tandaan marami hong matatamaan, maraming maaapektuhan, kaya we need not rush (we have to remember that a lot of parties will be hit, a lot will be affected, thats why we need not rush), Lizada added. I need to do this. Why am I doing this? I need to do this to put things in order. There are other petitions for fare hikes pending in the office and I do not and will not accept this kind of deportment sa mga tao (from people). We have a mandate. We have to protect the riding public. And ganitong mga proseso (these kinds of processes) is not and will not be allowed to proceed without any sanctions.

Like we said back in July, theres something amiss in the LTFRB.

LTFRB Members Aileen Lizada and Martin Delgra

The post LTFRB Member Lizada Files Case with Ombudsman vs Chairman Delgras Staff appeared first on Carmudi Philippines.
Looks like Nas Daily videos will stick to the setting of Singapore for a couple more days  not that his Singaporean fans will object. In a fan meet up event yesterday held at Mediacorps MES Theatre, the Facebook star revealed that hell be extending his stay here as his visa application to Indonesia has been rejected.

The 26-year-old travel vlogger  whose real name is Nuseir Yassin  revealed to The Straits Times that he could see why the visa application to his next destination was rejected.

Its too sensitive to admit an Israeli right now, he said to ST. And Im not just a normal tourist, Im a video blogger I can see how my presence would get politicised.

The Israeli-Palestinian uses an Israeli passport to travel, which means tough access to countries that do not recognize the state of Israel  including neighboring Malaysia, which Yassin made a video about during his time here. A visa is required for Israeli passport holders into Indonesia, but its difficult for them to even obtain one, considering the absence of diplomatic relations between the two countries. In June, Indonesian immigration authorities denied visas to 53 Israeli citizens, simply citing sensitive grounds behind the decisions.

But seeing how Nas Daily clips rack up millions of views each day, and how his content leans on the more positive and inspirational side of things, (plus the fact that Yassin is Muslim), one would think that the Indonesian authorities would let him in. In a Facebook post only visible to Indonesians, he wrote a tearful explanation on why he was not able to visit the country, which is the only country I wanted to put an effort to visiting.

I wanted to show the world the beauty of Indonesia in the most apolitical, pure way possible, he wrote.

Nas Daily (a Facebook celebrity who has 7.8 million subscribers including me) got denied his visa to visit Indonesia! pic.twitter.com/IKV4WDs3Up  Trinity #69CaraTravelingGratis (@TrinityTraveler) September 1, 2018

He arrived in Singapore back on Aug 22 and has been pretty busy churning out his trademark one-minute videos about the city-state  amidst accusations that he was being handsomely paid by the Singapore Tourism Board to portray the nation in good light.

Story continues

Its unclear for now where Yassin is taking off next, but for now, hes staying in Singapore for another three or four days  and that means more local content from the man. The latest one published this morning focuses on NEWater, the countrys high-grade, ultra-clean, potable water thats reclaimed from treated wastewater.

The post Nas Daily planning to stay on in Singapore for few more days after visa application to Indonesia rejected appeared first on Coconuts.
Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte has apologised to former US president Barack Obama for calling him a "son of a whore" in 2016, which sparked a new low in their nations' long alliance. Duterte lobbed the insult in response to steady criticism from the United States over his violent drug crackdown, which has been a target for international condemnation. However, the Philippine president said his nation's relationship with America has since improved under President Donald Trump, who he described as a "good friend" who "speaks my language". "It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr. Obama that you are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words," Duterte said Sunday in a speech before Filipinos in Israel. Duterte landed in Israel on Sunday for a four-day stay as the Philippines seeks to develop new sources of military hardware and nail down protections for its overseas workers. "If it is (in) your heart to forgive, you forgive. I have forgiven you, just like my girlfriends when I was still a bachelor... I have forgiven them also," the Philippine leader said in the same speech. After his election in mid-2016, Duterte quickly earned a reputation for using vulgar language against critics which his aides have tried to minimise or explain away. He branded Pope Francis and the then US ambassador to Manila "sons of whores". He also fired expletives at the United Nations and during a speech in the Philippines raised his middle finger in defiance to the European parliament. Duterte often rails at critics of his campaign to rid the Philippines of narcotics, which police say has killed 4,410 alleged drug dealers or users. Rights groups say the actual number of dead is triple that and could amount to crimes against humanity. Duterte cursed Obama ahead of a regional summit in Laos two years ago prompting the US to cancel a meeting between the two leaders there. Obama later described Duterte as "a colourful guy" as he urged him to conduct his anti-narcotics campaign "the right way". Duterte sparked new criticism ahead of his departure for Israel, blaming the high number of rapes in his hometown of Davao on the large number of beautiful women there. "They say there are many rape cases in Davao," Duterte said in a speech on Thursday. "For as long as there are many beautiful women, there will be many rape cases, too." Duterte has on several occasions made rape jokes in public since his presidential campaign. The latest comment was denounced by women's rights defenders. "Beauty doesn't cause rape, rapists do," said Philippine lawmaker Risa Hontiveros, a Duterte critic.
As internal divisions over Brexit plague Britain's ruling Conservative Party, a recent surge in membership has left some fearing the new recruits have ulterior motives. The Tories have seen thousands of new members apply to join its ranks this summer, according to lawmakers and reports. But this newfound popularity has not been welcomed by all within the centre-right bastion of British politics. "There clearly is a movement of people joining the Conservative Party but for exactly what purpose it's impossible to say," Dominic Grieve, a pro-European MP, told AFP. In his constituency in southeast England it has grown by around 100 people to 1,200 members in recent months -- alongside his suspicions. "I'm sure there's a deselection agenda by some members of my association towards me," he added. "The Conservative Party's always been a broad church and tolerant of difference. But I'm afraid at the moment we're going through a political crisis which is reducing tolerance." MPs who back remaining in the European Union -- so-called Remainers -- suspect hardcore Brexit supporters from the right-wing UK Independence Party (UKIP) are joining the Tories to remake its leadership. Their concerns stem from businessman Arron Banks, the single largest bankroller in the 2016 EU referendum campaign, calling for the roughly 90,000 members of his Leave.EU group and its 1.4 million social media followers to join the Conservatives. He admits wanting to ensure the party's next leader -- and therefore prime minister -- is a hardliner if Theresa May is ousted amid fierce opposition to her plans for a post-Brexit "common rulebook" with the EU. Under Conservative rules new members are able to vote in leadership contests within three months of joining. "The best way to secure Brexit and our country's future is via the Conservative Party," Banks wrote in last week's Sunday Times, noting "it is in government and, for now, calls the shots. "A grassroots rebellion in the Tory party is possible. In the right conditions a new leader can be swept to power, and sanity can prevail. Our aim is to unite the right," he added. - 'Extremist infiltration' - Conservatives last month rejected Banks' own bid to join, reportedly judging he would likely bring them into disrepute. "He is not a Conservative and he supports a rival political party," pro-Remain MP Anna Soubry said in welcoming the move. She urged Tory Chairman Brandon Lewis "to show the courage and determination to stop the extremist infiltration". Brexiteer lawmakers disagreed and said they welcome the converts, noting Banks was a member as recently as 2013. Conservative Party headquarters declined to comment on Banks or provide new member numbers. A party source said: "We have been driving up membership steadily through a recruitment drive." Insiders added the spike was anticipated due to a new centralised membership system and nationwide campaign managers working to recruit. Lawmakers like Grieve and Soubry cannot see the national picture, they said. George Evans, 64, of Wirral in northwest England, is among the new members from UKIP but insisted he is a lifelong Tory voter and "far from being a subversive negative influence". He briefly left the party "to put pressure on them" to hold the 2016 referendum, and rejoined in August to influence Brexit "if there is a leadership challenge". Evans said the growing campaign for a second referendum spurred his decision as much as Banks. "My vision of Brexit is being lost to a Remainer PM (prime minister), Remainer cabinet and majority-Remainer Parliament," he told AFP. - 'Pure entryism' - Tim Bale, politics professor at Queen Mary University of London, said a spike in ardent Brexiteers joining the Conservatives was "almost inevitable". "If it is being coordinated in some way then that will help the process along," he added, noting its sign-up criteria is "pretty loose". Bale said the Tories are just the latest British political party targeted by energised activists in recent years, following membership surges for Labour and the SNP in Scotland. And its impact could be limited. He estimated Conservative membership may have risen up to 140,000, while UKIP peaked in 2015 with a mere 40,000 members. "It still couldn't constitute a UKIP takeover," Bale said of the recent crossovers. But Grieve believes the party must "protect itself" from the Banks-led "pure entryism" -- infiltration of a party by rivals to subvert policy. "If you leave the centre ground you are most unlikely to win," he said. The former attorney general conceded the party is relatively powerless to prevent entryism, invoking a wartime British mantra for worried Tory centrists: "Keep calm and carry on."
It is common for companies to organize various informal events where workers can come with their partners. One of those...
Asia Nader didn't know whether to worry more about being diagnosed with a hole in her heart at the age of 21, or having to wait a year for Swedish doctors to fix it. "I completely fell apart when I found out," she told AFP, remembering the long agonising months until she finally had her operation in June this year, one month before her 23rd birthday. Sweden has the fifth-highest life expectancy in Europe and cancer survival rates are among the continent's highest, according to 2017 OECD figures. But Swedes are frustrated over their universal healthcare, one of the main pillars of their cherished welfare state, with long waiting queues due to a shortage of nurses and available doctors in some areas. "Swedes have little confidence that politicians will solve this," said Lisa Pelling, chief analyst at progressive think tank Arena Ide. "There is a risk their faith in the welfare state will be eroded," she told AFP. Swedes, who on average pay more than half of their income in tax, see access to healthcare as the most important issue in the September 9 general election, polls suggest. Prime Minister Stefan Lofven's Social Democrats, the largest party, are on course for a record low score, after losing voters disgruntled over rising immigration putting a strain on the welfare system to the far-right Sweden Democrats. - 'Lose time'- Swedish law stipulates patients should wait no more than 90 days to undergo surgery or see a specialist. Yet every third patient waits longer, according to government figures. Patients must also see a general practitioner within seven days, the second-longest deadline in Europe after Portugal (15 days). Yet waiting times vary dramatically across Sweden's 21 counties responsible for financing hospitals. One dental patient in central Dalarna county told AFP six months passed before his check-up, while emergency room queues at Stockholm's largest hospitals average four hours. The 2016 nationwide median wait for prostate cancer surgery was 120 days, but 271 days in the northern county of Vasterbotten, official figures show. Swedes also complain about not being able to see their own regular general practitioner -- and the ensuing lack of continuity -- as a growing number of doctors and nurses are temporary hires employed by staffing companies. Some 80 percent of the healthcare sector is in need of nurses, according to official data. Online services where patients see a doctor via webcam, have mushroomed as a result. "Every time you seek help you also see a new doctor... This makes us lose time on assessments and follow-ups," Heidi Stenmyren, president of the Swedish Medical Association, told AFP. - World's most expensive hospital - In Solleftea, the premier's northern hometown with nearly 20,000 residents, the only maternity ward was shut down last year to save money. With the closest maternity ward now 200 kilometres (125 miles) away, midwives offer parents-to-be classes on how to deliver babies in cars -- which some have since done. Sweden has the EU's third-highest spending on healthcare -- 11 percent share of its GDP -- and the heart attack survival rate is above the OECD average. "I get worried sometimes when people disparage Swedish healthcare as if it didn't work at all... It's not black or white," Lofven told Swedish television SVT. But the number of hospital beds has declined in recent years, as has the average length of stay. Frustrations peaked this year when it emerged that the bill for Stockholm's over-budget state-of-the-art New Karolinska Hospital would tick in at 61.4 billion kronor (5.8 billion euros, $6.7 billion) -- the most expensive hospital in the world. And yet patients have had to be transferred to other overcrowded hospitals because some of the facilities are unusable. Making matters worse, Sweden's ageing population has growing healthcare needs. "In only five years, we will have 70,000 more people aged 75 or older... and that comes with more frequent illnesses," Lofven told AFP. His Social Democrats have vowed to spend three billion kronor to hire more healthcare staff if re-elected. The opposition Moderates, which governed for two consecutive terms before the Social Democrats took power in 2014, meanwhile want to reintroduce a law that rewards counties for shortening queues. But critics say this just encourages doctors to prioritise easily-solved cases.
2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming Digest #35

Posted on 2 September 2018 by John Hartz

Calls to Action... Story of the Week... Editorial of the Week... El Nino/La Nina Update... Toon of the Week... Coming Soon on SkS... Climate Feedback Reviews... SkS Week in Review... Poster of the Week...

Calls to Action*...

Looking ahead...

Sat Sep 8 is an extremely important day for climate activists because they will be gathering in cities throughout the world to Rise Up for Climate. If you re not already plugged into an event in your area, you can easily do so by going to the official Rise Up for Climate website. From the global campaign's website:

On September 8, were planning thousands of rallies in cities and towns around the world to demand our local leaders commit to building a fossil free world that puts people and justice before profits. No more stalling, no more delays: its time for a fast and fair transition to 100% renewable energy for all. Real climate leadership rises from below. It means power in the hands of people not corporations. It means economic opportunity for workers and justice and dignity for frontline communities that are the hardest hit by the impacts of the fossil fuel industry and a warming world.

Looking inside...

Be sure to check out the next two sections of this digest  Story of the Week and Opinion of the Week. They address two inter-related issue re the human race's ability to come to grips with the reality of man-made climate change and the need to effectively mitigate it starting now.

Looking behind...

Something that flew under my radar screen when it was released earlier this year...

Narrated by Danny Glover, A documentary special reveals how climate change science has been under systematic attack; the multi-million dollar campaign allowed a climate change denier to be elected president (a new version with updated content and music)

TRNN Documentary: Trump, The Koch Brothers and Their War on Climate Science, May 23, 2018

TRNN = The Real News Network, Baltimore, MD

*The views expressed in this section are those of John Hartz and do not necessarily reflect consensus views of the SkS author team  it's nearly impossible to achieve consensus within a herd of cats.

Story of the Week...

The Swedish 15-year-old who's cutting class to fight the climate crisis

Following Swedens hottest summer ever, Greta Thunberg decided to go on school strike at the parliament to get politicians to act

Greta Thunberg leads a school strike and sits outside of the Swedish Parliament, in an effort to force politicians to act on climate change. Photograph: Michael Campanella for the Guardian

Why bother to learn anything in school if politicians wont pay attention to the facts?

This simple realisation prompted Greta Thunberg, 15, to protest in the most effective way she knew. She is on strike, refusing to go to school until Swedens general election on 9 September to draw attention to the climate crisis.

Her protest has captured the imagination of a country that has been struck by heatwaves and wildfires in its hottest summer since records began 262 years ago.

Every day for two weeks, Thunberg has been sitting quietly on the cobblestones outside parliament in central Stockholm, handing out leaflets that declare: I am doing this because you adults are shitting on my future.

Thunberg herself is a diminutive girl with pigtails and a fleeting smile  not the stereotypical leader of a climate revolution.

I am doing this because nobody else is doing anything. It is my moral responsibility to do what I can, she says. I want the politicians to prioritise the climate question, focus on the climate and treat it like a crisis.

When people tell her she should be at school, she points to the textbooks in her satchel.

I have my books here, she says in flawless English. But also I am thinking: what am I missing? What am I going to learn in school? Facts dont matter any more, politicians arent listening to the scientists, so why should I learn?

The Swedish 15-year-old who's cutting class to fight the climate crisis by David Crouch, Science, Guardian, Sep 1, 2018

Opinion of the Week...

Would you put your child or grandchild on a plane that has a one chance in 20 of a disastrous crash?

Its hard imagining anyone doing that, but it is essentially what we are doing to our kids and grandkids by not raising our voices about climate change and the 1-in-20 chance that disaster lies ahead for them. It is bad enough that we are likely on the path to exceed the 3.6 degree Fahrenheit goal stated in the Paris Agreement, which will result in dire consequences such as increasing droughts and wildfires and inundation of low lying coastal areas because of sea level rise.

If we continue on that path without taking the necessary actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, there is a 5 percent chance of catastrophic consequences  even an existential threat to humanity by mid-century, according to experts at the Scripps Institute.

Uncontrolled climate change could result in disaster for our kids. Will we do something?, Opinion by Mike Hoffman, USA Today, Aug 1, 2018

El Nino/La Nina Update...

With all signs highlighting a switch, from the La Nina to the forecast El Nino (formally called El Nino Southern Oscillation or ENSO) climate pattern for this fall 2018, and winter too, meteorologists and climatologists expect to have a better idea of how strong this El Nino event will become by late October into November.

"Looking at the latest 30-day and 90-day maps generated (for this Autumn 2018 which the Climate Prediction Center issued Aug. 16, 2018) it appears we're witnessing the incorporation of an El Nino event into the outlooks," said Allen Dutcher, associate state climatologist, Nebraska State Climate Office-Lincoln. "During the past four weeks, there's been a subtle shift toward a wetter pattern across the southern Plains, while the northern Plains has slipped towards the dry side."

Most weather signs are pointing to an El Nino weather pattern this fall and winter by Amy G. Hadachek, The Fence Post, Aug 31, 2018

Toon of the Week...

Coming Soon on SkS...

Burned by record fires, California upped its clean energy targets (Dana)

(Dana) Rising CO2 levels could push hundreds of millions into malnutrition by 2050 (Daisy Dunne)

(Daisy Dunne) An alternative to propping up coal power plants: Retrain workers for solar (Joshua Pearce)

(Joshua Pearce) Guest Post (John Abraham)

(John Abraham) New research this week (Ari)

(Ari) 2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #36 (John Hartz)

(John Hartz) 2018 SkS Weekly Climate Change & Global Warming News Roundup #36 (John Hartz)

Climate Feedback Reviews...

[To be added.]

SkS Week in Review...

Poster of the Week...
California's response to record wildfires: shift to 100% clean energy

Posted on 3 September 2018 by dana1981

In America today, its rare to see political leaders respond to a threat with an appropriate evidence-based policy solution. At the national level, more often we see actions that aggravate existing problems or create new ones. California  the countrys most populous and economically powerful state  has been a welcome exception.

California has been battered by extreme weather intensified by climate change. From 2012 to 2016 the state was scorched by its worst drought in over a millennium. Weather whiplash struck in 2017, when much of the state broke precipitation records. This combination led to devastating mudslides and created the conditions for the most destructive and costly wildfire season on record in 2017, followed by the states largest-ever wildfire in 2018, which broke the previous record (set in 2017) by more than 60%.

All of these impacts have been exacerbated by global warming. The past five years have been Californias five hottest on record. And so, the states leaders decided to do something about it. California had already set a renewable portfolio standard in 2002, strengthened by Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggers 2008 executive order requiring that 33% of electricity be generated by renewable sources by 2020. Governor Jerry Brown signed Senate Bill (SB) 350 in 2015, expanding the requirement to 50% renewables by 2030.

Last week, California state lawmakers passed State Senator (and candidate for US Senate) Kevin de Leons SB 100, which amps up the target to 50% renewables by 2026, 60% by 2030, and 100% from renewable energy resources and zero-carbon resources by 2045.

The more aggressive clean energy targets are justified. Not only does California need to make up some of the climate slack created by the Trump administration, but the state is now ahead of its targets, with 29% of electricity last year generated from renewables and over 50% from zero-carbon sources (including nuclear and hydroelectric power).

Percentage of Californias electricity generated by renewables (black) and zero-carbon sources (gray) to date, based California Energy Commission data. The previous renewable target is shown in blue and targets under SB 100 in green. Illustration: Dana Nuccitelli

Smart leaders are responding to climate change impacts

According to the latest California Climate Change Assessment Report, global warming impacts will continue to batter the state:

The water supply from snowpack is expected to decline two-thirds by 2050

Heatwaves in cities could cause 23 times more deaths by 2050

The average area burned annually by wildfires will increase by as much as 77% by 2100

3167% of Southern California beaches may completely erode by 2100 without large-scale human interventions

$17.9 billion worth of residential and commercial buildings could be inundated statewide by sea level rise by 2050

Kevin de Leon specifically cited the record-breaking wildfires as a key factor in generating the votes to pass SB 100, which had been under debate for nearly two years.

RL Miller (@RL_Miller) "Our state is one big tinderbox," says @kdeleon in closing on #SB100. "Wildfires are not longer seasonal." @HunterCutting, in case you're still wondering whether #cawildfires affect #SB100 debate.

Similarly, with its air badly polluted by smoke from wildfires, the Spokane, Washington City Council approved an ordinance setting a goal to get 100% renewable electricity by 2030. And after being struck by Hurricane Harvey in 2017, an increasing number of Houston-area residents accept human-caused global warming (64%) and are concerned about its impacts (52%).

Houston-area survey questions about climate change. Illustration: Kinder Institute for Urban Research

Its hard to deny the reality and adverse impacts of human-caused climate change when theyre hitting people at home.

Click here to read the rest
On Sunday night, a fire ripped through Brazils National Museum in Rio de Janeiro, destroying the countrys most valuable storehouse of natural and anthropological history within hours.

Most of the 20 million items housed insideincluding the skull of Luzia, the oldest human remains ever found in the Americas; one of the worlds largest archives of South Americas indigenous cultures; more than 26,000 fossils, 55,000 stuffed birds, and 5 million insect specimens; and a library of more than 500,000 booksare thought to have been destroyed.

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The loss of the National Museum collection is incalculable for Brazil, President Michael Temer said on Twitter on Sunday night. Two hundred years of work, research and knowledge have been lost. Brazilians mourned on social media; Cariocas watched the inferno from the streets. Outside, scientists clutched artifacts and records theyd grabbed before the building was consumed.

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The building was home to the Brazilian emperors of the 19th century. The countrys independence was signed there. Its a little like if the U.S. lost Independence Hall and the Smithsonian overnight.

A plaque marking a time capsule that was buried at the entrance of the museum in 1972, on the 150th anniversary of Brazilian independence, seems now to function as an unheeded warning: All those who pass, protect this slab, because it guards a document that reveals the culture of a generation and a mark in the history of a people who knew how to build their own future.

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The outlook is dimmer now. Brazil is a couple years into an economic austerity program that has frozen funding for safety net programs, health care, and education on the heels of the countrys worst-ever recession. The situation is worse in the state of Rio de Janeiro, which has been all but broke since the eve of the 2016 Summer Olympics. Hospitals have been short on supplies. Crime is surging, cutting into a decade of public safety gains. Public-sector workers have gone months at a time without paychecks.

And then there are the universities: In Rio, thousands of research projects have been cancelled as federal and state support for research vanishes. Undergraduate courses at Rio de Janeiro State University were shut down for months. And at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), which oversees the National Museum, scientists and graduate students are fleeing for jobs abroad, or working without pay. Last year, Nature reported that Ph.D. students in the quantum-optics department at UFRJ were afraid to turn on the labs main laser: If it breaksand lasers do breakthats it. Theres no money to replace it. the president of the Brazilian Academy of Sciences told the magazine.

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Last year, the National Museum was forced to shut briefly when the federal university couldnt pay its contracts. The museums annual maintenance budget is just $126,000 in U.S. dollars, according to a May interview with director Alexander Kellner, but because of budget cuts the museum had not received the full sum since 2014. Exposed wires and flaking paint were everywhere. This spring, 10 of its 30 halls were closed. A popular room featuring a Maxakalisaurus skeleton was closed after a termite infestation. The museum was crowdfunding its reopening.

Upon the institutions 200th anniversary this year, the National Bank of Social and Economic Development agreed to finance a $5 million maintenance packagebut the money would not be available until October. Kellner estimated a full rehabilitation would have taken $70 million.

A vice director, Cristiana Serejo, said the plan had been to install fire protections. People were conscious of how fragile the museum was, she said after the fire. But we didnt have time.

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Its impossible to separate the museums demise, and its battle for funding, from the larger crisis of public funding in Rio. The newspaper Folha de Sao Paulo reported that the fire hydrants around the museum didnt work.* Firefighters had to pump water from a nearby lake.

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The conflagration, then, is more than a metaphor for Brazils austerity politicsits the result of them. At least Caesar burned the Library of Alexandria by accident.

Since the country is preparing for a presidential election next month, accusations and defenses were being prepared as the fire still raged. The minister of culture, Sergio Sa Leitao, said the tragedy was the result of negligence in previous years.

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The catastrophe that struck the National Museum this Sunday is the equivalent to a lobotomy of Brazilian memory, argued Marina Silva, the leading left-wing presidential candidate and history professor, on Twitter. Unfortunately, given the state of financial deprivation of the [Federal University of Rio de Janeiro], and other public universities in the last three years, this was a tragedy foretold.

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In Rio, meanwhile, the cityscape is littered with reminders of what could have been. As the National Museum languished in the citys neglected Zona Norte, expenditures for the Olympics drained enormous amounts of funds from the public coffers; today, a bridge built for Olympic bus traffic is used primarily by fishermen. Meanwhile, tens of millions went towards the Museum of Tomorrow, a steel rib cage on the waterfront designed by the budget-busting Spanish architect Santiago Calatrava. The museum is a glitchy and dull tool of neighborhood revitalization, reflecting a long-standing Brazilian obsession with looking ahead. Brazil, the joke goes, is the country of the future and always will be.

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Supporting teachers, archivists, librarians, and scientists rarely produces any high-profile ribbon cuttings. No Brazilian president had been to the Museu Nacional since Juscelino Kubitschek, whose term ended in 1961, toured its halls. Still, the decimation of higher ed institutionsmuseums and allis stunting Brazils social progress. The students who have borne the brunt of the cuts tend to be those from poorer families.

That the future starts with inquiries into the past, at dusty centers of learning and research, is a commencement-speech cliche. In the case of natural history museums, it is also literally true. Fossil and specimen collections offer a precious glimpse at how giant atmospheric changes affect the lives of plants and animals. That record, too, went up in smoke on Sunday.
After five days of national mourning, Sen. John McCains journey ended Sunday with a private ceremony and burial at the U.S. Naval Academy, where his life of public service began. Hundreds of people lined the streets, many of whom were waving American flags, to pay their respects as a hearse carrying McCains casket went into the academy. Family and his closest friends then participated in a private ceremony at the academys chapel.

McCains son, Jack McCain, delivered a eulogy while wearing his fathers Navy wings. Longtime friend Sen. Lindsey Graham and retired Army general and former CIA director David H.

Petraeus also spoke at the service.

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McCain was then buried in a plot next to his best friend, U.S. Navy Adm. Charles Chuck Larson, who was his classmate at the Naval Academy. In his recent memoir, McCain said he wanted to be buried next to his friend, near where it began.

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After the ceremony, McCain was honored with the missing man flyover formation aerial salute, which marked the final event in the week honoring the six-term Arizona senator. Four F-18 planes moved through the sky above the U.S. Naval Academy in the shape of a V before the lead plane pulled up vertical, signalizing the passing of the fallen aviator and statesman, explains the Arizona Republic. That formation is reserved for funerals and memorial events for pilots and other military personnel.
A judge in Myanmar, on Monday, found two Reuters journalists guilty of unlawfully possessing state secrets, sentencing them to seven years in prison, in a decision that is widely considered to be retribution by the government for the pairs reporting on the killing of 10 Rohingya men and boys by state security forces. The case has heaped additional international pressure on the government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, which has already faced withering criticism for its treatment of the Muslim minority Rohingya that many international observers have deemed ethnic cleansing. The U.N, after conducting a fact-finding mission, said last week that Myanmars military was guilty of carrying out mass killings and gang rapes of Muslim Rohingya with genocidal intent. As a result, according to the U.N., some 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled into neighboring Bangladesh.

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The Reuters reporters, 32-year-old Wa Lone and 28-year-old Kyaw Soe Oo, pleaded not guilty to the charges that were fishy from the start. The reporters had told the court two police officials handed them papers at a restaurant in the city of Yangon moments before other officers arrested them, Reuters reports. One police witness testified the restaurant meeting was a set-up to entrap the journalists to block or punish them for their reporting of a mass killing of Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine. The court then determined the documents to be confidential and could be used to aid enemies of the state and terrorist organizations, which Judge Ye Lwin ruled was a breach of the colonial-era Official Secrets Act.

We know we did nothing wrong. I have no fear. I believe in justice, democracy and freedom, Wa Lone said after the verdict was delivered.
The 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil in Rio De Janeiro was engulfed in flames on Sunday night, the New York Times reports, as firefighters battled for hours to save the building and its collections. Footage from Latin American network TeleSUR shows the fire rising through the exposed roof beams of the gutted museum building, a former royal palace that has housed the museum collections since 1892:

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No one is believed to have been injured in the fire, but the potential losses are still incalculable: The museum had important and irreplaceable natural history and archaeological holdings, including the largest collections of both Egyptian and Greco-Roman artifacts in Latin America, significant pre-Columbian holdings, and a wide and deep natural history collection including the regions oldest human fossil and the Bendego meteorite. President of Brazil Michel Temer tweeted that his country had lost 200 years of work, research and knowledge and it was a sad day for all Brazilians.

Incalculavel para o Brasil a perda do acervo do Museu Nacional. Foram perdidos 200 anos de trabalho, pesquisa e conhecimento. O valor p/ nossa historia nao se pode mensurar, pelos danos ao predio que abrigou a familia real durante o Imperio. E um dia triste para todos brasileiros  Michel Temer (@MichelTemer) September 3, 2018

The museums collections included more than 20 million items.
The daughter of President Donald Trumps former campaign chairman, Paul Manafort, has filed the paperwork to legally change her last name. Jessica Anne Manafort filed all the paperwork to make the name change legal in the Manhattan Supreme Court on Friday. The move came a few weeks after Paul Manafort was found guilty on eight fraud charges.

I would like my new name to be Jessica Anne Bond, in place of my present name, the 36-year-old said in the legal filing. Bond, which is her mothers maiden name, more closely suits my profession, she added. In an interview with the New York Post, the independent filmmaker said she wants the name change to separate myself and my work from a public perception that has nothing to do with the person that I am.

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The name change doesnt come as a shock considering she had already used the name Jess Bond professionally when she released a movie called Rosy in July. At the time she said she used the name Bond not to hide, but to separate myself from everything going on because it has nothing to do with me or my work. Manaforts daughter said in a statement provided to the Los Angeles Times that she was in the process of changing her last name. I am a passionate liberal and a registered Democrat and this has been difficult for me. Although I am the daughter of, I am very much my own person and hopefully people can realize that, she said.
This post contains spoilers for Sorry to Bother You.

On Monday, millions of Americans are commemorating Labor Day with backyard barbecues and trips to the beach, while a faithful few march in parades to commemorate our countrys working people. This year might call for the start of a new, cinematic tradition. What Its a Wonderful Life is for Christmas and Groundhog Day is to Groundhog Day, Sorry to Bother You should be to Labor Day.

Boots Rileys film, released earlier this summer, is a funny and insanely inventive trip that has been accurately described as science fiction with a dollop of magical realism. But from the perspective of workers rights, its frighteningly accurate in its depiction of the world we are heading toward.

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In the film, the main character, Cassius Greenplayed by Lakeith Stanfieldand his friends work at RegalView, a telemarketing company. The employees get only commissions and no wages at all. So far, this doesnt depart from whats legal in the real world: Generally, employers are allowed to pay salespeople on a commission basis (although what theyre paid has to add up to minimum wage and in some cases overtime too). In this case, the reality of what is happening in the real-life labor market is actually sometimes worse than the fiction. For example, supermarket baggers or other similar workers have sometimes been paid only in tips, which is plainly illegal. And Amazons Mechanical Turk website allows people to assign tasks for as little as a penny. In such cases, many workers end up with paltry earnings. And then there are the gig economy companies that fraudulently treat their workers as independent contractors, paying only commissions to their workforce, who alone bear most of the expenses and virtually all the risk.

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When the workers in Sorry to Bother You begin to organize a union, RegalView offers a promotion to Cassius (divide and conquer), relentlessly battles the union, and never considers the possibility of actually allowing the workers to have a collective voice. Science fiction, this is not.

Our legal system has recently been headed toward a deification of any document purporting to be a contract.

Throughout the movie, a company named WorryFree comes to play a prominent role. WorryFree offers people the opportunity to sign lifetime contracts to work in exchange for three meals a day and a place to live around the clock in the same building where they work. Sounds kind of like  modern-day slavery. But in the movie, its perfectly legal, because after all, they signed a lifetime contract.

Of course, our current employment contracts dont go nearly as far as WorryFrees. But they do go well beyond what fairness or decency would allow. For example, some employers use contracts in ways that effectively prevent workers from leaving their jobs. The Sinclair Broadcast Group, which owns television stations nationwide, requires workers to pay money to the company if they want to leave their jobs and has actually sued workers for taking new positions. Many more employers indiscriminately (and sometimes unlawfully) use overly broad noncompete clauses, preventing their low- and middle-level workers from moving on in life and getting a better job in their field.

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Our legal system has recently been headed toward a deification of any document purporting to be a contract, at the expense of other relevant considerations. The Supreme Court has repeatedly blessed employers who force their workers to give up the right to bring a court case or class action. More than half of employees cant sue their employer in court, because of these forced arbitration agreements, which workers basically have to accept if they want a job. In a recent Michigan case, a worker suing for race discrimination was kicked out of court because of an arbitration clause she had not seen or received. The court found that she had nonetheless agreed to it, because there was a link to clickwhich she had not doneas part of the job application.

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So, in the real world, companies use contracts to keep their workers in place, and important workplace rights are waived when a link is presented that isnt even clicked on. Were not at WorryFrees lifetime contracts yet, but the trend line isnt good.

In the film, the stock markets embrace of WorryFree also echoes todays reality. When Cassius reveals that the company is genetically modifying its workers to make them more efficient, he believes the revelation will bring shame and outrage, and cause the business to close. But of course, the opposite occurs: Stock prices surge because of the companys effective use of its workforce. Its the mirror image of what happened last spring when American Airlines gave raises to pilots and flight attendants: Stock prices fell. One JPMorgan analyst called it a worrying precedent and wrote to clients, we are troubled by [Americans] wealth transfer of nearly $1 billion to its labor groups. Raised wages are seen not as an investment in a companys team or workforce, but rather as a transfer to labor groups (meaning those pesky outside agitators, the pilots who fly the planes.) This zero-sum, short-term shareholder-versus-worker thinking skews corporate decision-making in harmful ways, and results in phenomena like companies using their tax-cut windfalls for stock buybacks instead of raising wages.

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Finally, the movies shocking finale is the most wild and dystopian ending imaginable, but also ultimately reflects a sorry truth. It turns out that WorryFree has also been modifying its workers genes to make them into equi-sapiens: half horse, half human. This allows them to work harder, faster, more efficiently and effectively.

Its totally bizarre, and to be sure, we havent seen any equi-sapiens in real life (yet). But this crazy twist reveals the sad and enraging reality of how too many companies view the people who perform the work that allows their business to function and flourish. Amazon workers allegedly pee into bottles because they cant take breaks from their working time (the company has denied this). Pork processing workers are made to kill more than 1,000 pigs per hour; the Trump administration has proposed allowing companies to speed that up even more. People are expected to work through the heat and the cold. (See Justice Neil Gorsuchs frozen trucker dissent in the case of an employee who was fired for choosing to save his own life over staying with his companys truck in freezing temperatures.) And of course, theres no national paid family or sick leave.

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Workers corporeal bodies, their flesh and blood and skin and faces, are an inconvenience and a terrible inefficiency to too many employers. Andy Puzder, former CEO of CKE Restaurants, the parent company of Hardees and Carls Jr., and Donald Trumps original nominee for labor secretary, famously said he prefers machines over employees: Theyre always polite, they always upsell, they never take a vacation, they never show up late, theres never a slip-and-fall, or an age, sex, or race discrimination case.

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Our countrys workers are not equi-sapiens, but far too often theyre not quite treated as human beings, either. Theyre an expense to be minimized, not people deserving of decency and dignity, and certainly not a force to be reckoned with.

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Throughout Sorry to Bother You, the RegalView workers organizing for better conditions come together and support each other, showing tremendous courage while fighting for dignity and justice. They are aiming for what nearly half of workers in a recent survey said they wanted: a union. This vision of collective action and depiction of raised political consciousness reflect some of the best things actually happening in our country today, from fast-food workers fighting for $15 to public school teachers marching on state capitols on behalf of themselves and their students.

In this way, Sorry to Bother You hits the mark not only in its depiction of whats badly amiss in our society but also in its vision of where well find the solution.
Two gay women in Malaysia were convicted by a court of sexual relations between women, an illegal act in the country, and caned six times each Monday in the Shariah High Court in the Malaysian state of Terengganu. The punishment meted out by the court in the Muslim-majority country was carried out in front of more than 100 people, according to local reports. The two women, aged 22 and 32, were arrested by Islamic enforcement in April while attempting to have sex in a parked car.

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The conviction for same-sex relations was the first in the state and the first public caning, an official told the BBC. Human rights groups decried the punishment as torture, raising concerns about the treatment of the gay community in the Southeast Asian nation. Both women pleaded guilty and were ordered to pay an $800 fine along with the corporal punishment. The women were led to a stool where two female officers from the Kajang Womens prison carried out the sentence in turns, the Daily Star reports. The older woman, aged 32, did not wince when the cane hit her back with the strength almost similar to a forceful tap. However, the younger woman, aged 22, started to sob when the cane hit her. Observers also noticed that this time, the force was slightly stronger than the one applied on the older woman.

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The punishment follows a raid last month on one of Kuala Lumpurs only gay clubs, which saw around 20 men charged for illicit behavior, and a brutal attack on a trans woman in a city close to the capital, CNN reports. The punishment, while handed down by the Sharia court, has the backing of PAS (The Malaysian Islamic Party, or Parti Islam Se-Malaysia), the dominant party in the state.

The sentence, delivered four months after an election that saw Malaysias governing party ousted for the first time since the country was founded in 1957, reflects the countrys deeply conservative culture despite a liberalization in its politics, the New York Times notes.

Representatives of the Terengganu government and Shariah law advocates said that the women were fully clothed while caned, and that the punishment was not meant to injure them but to provide a lesson for the public on Islamic law.
For kids, families, and the young at heart, the water gun is a summertime staple. The water pistol transformed poolside shenanigans and has proven to be a most refreshing form of hot weather warfare. More than 200 million Super Soakers alone have been sold, totaling more than $1 billion in sales over the years, according to the National Toy Hall of Fame, which inducted it in 2015. More recently, those sales have dropped, likely due to a combination of fewer brick-and-mortar stores (R.I.P. Toys R Us) and stagnant innovation in the water-gun arena. While it has undergone some transformations through the years, the idea of the water gun is well over a century oldand it could be due for a refresh.

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Early mentions of water pistols date back to the late 1800s. The USA Liquid Pistol is one of the first known commercial water guns. Released in 1896, the pistol itself was made of cast iron, lending it a realistic resemblance to firearms of the day. Water squirted out from a rubber squeeze bulb (similar in concept to an eye dropper). Rather than a toy for children, though, the gadget was intended as a form of self-protection: In an advertisement, its maker, Parker, Stearns & Sutton, highlighted its usefulness in stopping the most vicious dog (or man) without permanent injury.

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By the early 20th century, the squirt gun had become a favorite as a toythe yellow and red Buck Rogers XZ-44 Liquid Helium Toy Water Pistol, manufactured in 1936, was modeled after the gun used by the character in the eponymous sci-fi comic strip, for example. This gun had a metal body with a leather pouch hidden inside for storing water.

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In 1977, the water gun made its next big leap in the form of the Cosmic Liquidator. This epic-sounding water pistol was the first to boast an air-pressure pumpthe better for shooting out a higher-pressure stream of H2Oand had a more modern-style water reservoir. Its air-pressure water pump was battery-powered, and a squeeze from its trigger could shoot water for roughly 30 seconds. By the mid-80s, other battery-powered water guns had emerged, and as in the water guns early days, they mimicked the looks of real-life weaponry, complete with detachable magazines that stored water. One model, made by LJN Toys, could shoot water up to 30 feet.

The water guns breakthrough moment came with the launch of the Super Soaker in 1989. NASA engineer Lonnie Johnson first stumbled upon the idea while working on a cooling pump seven years earlier. He made a prototype out of Plexiglas, which his 6-year-old daughter and her friends thoroughly enjoyed, and began looking for partners. The Super Soakers genius was in the separate water chamber positioned above the barrel, which allowed for a large amount of liquid ammo, and a hand pump rather than a battery-powered pump, which allowed pressure to build up for a super strong, super accurate stream of water. One of Johnsons last prototypes used a 2-liter soda bottle atop PVC piping, but the finished product (the Air Pressure Power Drencher) featured a bright yellow body, neon-green water reservoir, and orange spray nozzle. It could build up to 60 psi of pressure and shoot water up to 50 feet. However, it didnt start flying off store shelves until a marketing overhaul, which included a name change to the Super Soaker and a TV ad campaign. Sales reached more than 2 million by 1991.

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Since then, the Super Soaker has become synonymous with the water gun, and it has evolved into a huge array of models. The Super Soaker also moved from its original air pressure system, which only properly fired when held upright, to a constant pressure system, which used internal rubber chambers to build up water pressure and allow successful firing from any angle. According to Super Soaker enthusiast site iSoaker, many consider this constant pressure technology, which debuted in 1996, to be the current pinnacle of stock water blaster performance. Most recently, the now Hasbro-owned brand merged brandingand in some cases, functionalitywith Nerf, but we havent seen any notable water gun technological leaps in a decade or more.

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The Spyra One, however, offers a glimpse of what the future of the water gun could be. The Spyra One is a $133 water pistol thats raised more than $400,000 over its funding goal on Kickstarter. It has a sleek, almost unibody appearance, but its differentiator is how it works. The water pistol charges via USB-C and, rather than shooting a water stream, emits 30-milliliter water bullets. Technology-wise, shooting water bullets across long distances without letting the water break up is really, really tricky and requires a specifically designed nozzle-valve combination, Spyra co-founder Rike Brand told Slate. Its ideal shooting distance is 15 to 25 feet, but it can hit a target up to 40 feet, according to its Kickstarter page. Since its water reservoir isnt clearly visible, it includes a digital ammo counter to let you know how many shots youve got left till you need to refill. To reload it with water, you simply dunk the front end (a water filter ensures particulates dont clog its nozzle) and press a button. The Spyra One appears to be a rare breed: not just the first USB rechargeable water gun, but the first to rethink the general functionality of the water gun in years.

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Whether the Spyra One will meet its August 2019 ship dateor successfully ship at allis unknown. Its worth noting that Kickstarters that raise funds astronomically higher than their goals can have trouble fulfilling demand in a timely fashion, and unforeseen production challenges can also delay a project. This is the first product Spyra has produced, but the company does have an 11-person team already, including several engineers, a rocket scientist, marketers, and business staffers. It also has support beyond Kickstarter. Brand said that the team consulted partners and suppliers in Germany in establishing their production timeline and plans to manufacture in an Asian branch run by one of their partners.

The Spyra One has generated plenty of buzz and renewed interest in a toy space thats suffered from a dearth of innovation. The Kickstarters huge success seems to indicate theres still a market for absurdly powerful water weaponry. The water gun finally looks like its getting the 21st-century update it deserves.
Western Slovakia hit by torrential rain

In central Slovakia, storms disrupted power in some places. More storms and rain are expected Monday afternoon and evening.

The Ruzinovska-Bajkalska crossroad in Bratislava is impassable after torrential rains of September 1, 2018. (Source: TASR)

The torrential rains accompanied by storms and strong winds which hit western Slovakia on Saturday, September 1, flooded roads, cellars and basements and felled several trees, the Pravda daily wrote on September 3.

In Bratislava, public transport was also affected, as the heavy rainfall interfered with several crucial crossroads and roads. The recently reconstructed Trnavske Myto underpass crossing was also flooded.

Meteorologists have issued second- and third-degree warnings against rain and floods, while fire-fighters have reported more than 100 operations to help alleviate the situation.

Torrential rain caused problems in the Ruzinov Hospital as well: work at the central reception office was suspended and as the basement was flooded, the lifts were not working.

Although the hospital continued to function, it had to send patients requiring urgent hospitalisation to other hospitals, mostly to Kramare and Petrzalka, Slovak media wrote.

video //www.sme.sk/vp/36996/

Central Slovakia hit by storms

The next day, central Slovakia and especially some places in the Zilina and Banska Bystrica regions (e.g. Detva, Pohorela) saw intense storms that caused blackouts and suspended electric power, the TASR newswire wrote, adding that these were caused by overvoltage, cracked insulators, broken wiring and tree branches falling on the electric lines.

Since the afternoon of Monday, September 3, however, the flaws and obstacles should be removed and power supplies renewed.

video //www.youtube.com/embed/VIoCO3dqR0c

Forecast and current situation

By Monday noon, all roads in the capital were passable, the consequences of the heavy rains having been cleared and the Trnavske Myto underpass was fully functional again, TASR wrote, citing city officials. They added that after the June 2018 torrential rains which hit Bratislava so hard, the city has focused on the worst-hit sites and on cleaning the sewer inlets. In 2019, the capital plans to invest more than one million euros in the maintenance of the sewer systems and in increasing the quality of sewer inlets and drain areas.

More rains and storms are expected for September 3 in the late afternoon and evening.

3. Sep 2018 at 13:41 | Compiled by Spectator staff
Slovak military police officer saved life of US citizen

A member of the Slovak contingent with the Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan saved the life of a US civilian contractor last week.

Afghanistan and NATO soldiers hold their flags before the start of the change of command ceremony at Resolute Support headquarters, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sunday, September 2, 2018 (Source: AP/SITA)

Slovak military police officer Radovan Januska saved the life of an American citizen in Afghanistan last week, the TASR newswire informed on August 31.

A member of the Slovak contingent with the Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan, Januska saw the American lying unconscious in a washroom in one of the buildings. The Slovak serviceman immediately gave the man first aid, put him in the recovery position and called for help to the ROLE 2 on the HKIA base.

Im extremely proud of every single military police officer and professional soldier who represent us in this way either at home or abroad... said Defence Minister Peter Gajdos, adding that Januskas deed should serve as an example for every member of the Slovak Armed Forces.

The Resolute Support operation is aimed at training the Afghan armed forces to serve their own country and protect it, Defence Ministry spokeswoman Danka Capakova informed TASR.

3. Sep 2018 at 13:54 | Compiled by Spectator staff
A second-tier Bioness (Brian Sears, $33.80) made one decisive move on Sunday afternoon (Sept. 2), winning the $120,000 final of Yonkers Raceways French-American Trotting Club Series.

The finale, wrapping a four-race series for imported French-breds, went at the mile and a half and the first of the four added-distance races.

Away sixth (fifth after a breaker) from post position No. 9, Bioness made the lead from 47-1 Adagio De La Tour (Jason Bartlett) between the :28.3 opening quarter-mile and the :59.1 half.

He then fought off Uhlan Noir (Brent Holland), with Deo (George Brennan) wide behind that one. While this was going on, 6-5 favourite Versachet (Jordan Stratton) found himself going wide to nowhere, while second choice Ursis Des Caillons (Joe Bongiorno) was done in by an early break.

After subsequent substations of 1:28.3, 1:58 and 2:28, Bioness opened to three lengths into the lane.

Though tiring, Bioness did hold sway over a handful of pursuers, winning by a length in 2:58. Adagio De La Tour (Jason Bartlett) closed from a loose pocket and wound up second, with Alpha DUrzy (Louis-Philippe Roy) third. Ursis Des Caillions did recover for fourth, with first leader Barry Black (Austin Siegelman) lasting for the last pay envelope.

For fifth choice Bioness, a seven-year-old Sam Bourbon gelding owned by Northfork Racing Stable and trained by Chris Oakes, the win was his third in 13 seasonal starts (a second and two thirds in series prelims). The exacta paid $1,004, the triple returned $6,978 and the superfecta paid $43,653 (base $2 payout).

The weeks $44,000 Open Handicap Trot, at the old-fashioned flat mile, was won by down-the-road Obrigado (Mark MacDonald, $5.90) in 1:55.2.

Sundays final-for-a-while summer stock presentation of the New York, New York Double featured a winning combination of 4-Ruler of the Nile (Saratogas 1st race) and 6-Lord Cromwell (Yonkers 3rd race), returning $18.70 for every correct $1 ticket. Total pool was $7,490.

The next Sunday matinee is November 4 (post time TBA).

Note that the Raceway is dark for live racing Monday and Tuesday nights (Sept. 3 and 4), returning Thursday night (Sept. 6), with the evening norm first post of 6:50 p.m.

(With files from Yonkers Raceway)
Just as vivo Malaysia's 9.9 Super Deals on Shopee Malaysia platform, the company is also having the same promotion over at their online store in Lazada Malaysia. This will start on 6 September until 9 September 2018 and you may use the promo code VIVO5PRNTOFF.

The promo code will grant the buyer a 5% discount with a minimum spending of RM500. It's also applicable to all vivo accessories and selected vivo phone models such as the vivo V5s, Y69, Y65, V7 and the V7+.. As mentioned, the promotion will only start on 6 September 2018 so make sure you bookmark their online store here as I'm quite sure stocks are limited.

Meanwhile, vivo Malaysia is also preparing to reveal the vivo V11. So far, we know that it's featuring a Qualcomm Snapdragon 660 AIE processor, 6GB of RAM, 6.4-inch Super AMOLED Halo FullView display, two brand new Fusion Colours and more. Stay tuned for more vivo news at TechNave.com.
Texting under the table should be a thing of the past when French children return to class Monday following a nationwide ban on mobile phones in schools. Should this directive also be proposed with the Luxembourg school system?

Texting under the table should be a thing of the past after French children returned to class Monday following a nationwide ban on mobile phones in schools.

The new rule, a campaign pledge of President Emmanuel Macron, was brought in under a law passed in July which for primary and junior schools also banishes tablets and smart watches.

High schools, which teach students aged 15 to 18, can introduce partial or total bans on electronic devices as they reopen after the summer break, though this will not be obligatory.

Proponents say the law, which has prompted vigorous debate, will reduce distraction in the classroom, combat bullying, and encourage children to be more physically active during recess.

"I think it's a good thing," Marie-Caroline Madeleine, 41, told AFP after dropping her daughter off for the first day of middle school in Paris.

French President Emmanuel Macron made an election campaign pledge to ban mobile phones in school /  AFP/File

"It's a good signal that says 'school is for studying', it's not about being on your phone," she added. "It's hard with adolescents, you can't control what they see and that's one of the things that worries me as a parent."

Nearly 90 percent of French 12- to 17-year-olds have a mobile phone, and supporters hope the ban will limit the spread of violent and pornographic content among children.

Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer has hailed the legislation as "a law for the 21st century" that would improve discipline among France's 12 million pupils.

"Being open to technologies of the future doesn't mean we have to accept all their uses," he said in June, as the bill was going through parliament.

- PR 'stunt' -

But critics dismiss the measure as a public relations exercise, and predicted it will be difficult to apply.

The government has left schools to decide how to implement the new rules, recommending that they store students' phones in lockers during the day -- but some schools don't have them.

Research shows that in French schools that have already banned phones, many pupils admit to breaking the rules.

Schools all over the world have struggled to adapt to the rise of pocket-sized devices as parents grow increasingly anxious about the amount of time their children spend glued to the screen.

Children returned to school after the summer holidays across France on Monday /  AFP

In 2015 New York Mayor Bill de Blasio lifted a ban on phones in his city's schools on security grounds, saying parents should be allowed to stay in touch with their children.

Macron, a 40-year-old centrist, pledged widespread reforms when he was elected, and education has been no exception.

Along with the mobile phone ban, he has halved primary school class sizes in disadvantaged areas to 12 in a bid to narrow a massive gap in outcomes between children from poor families and those from wealthy ones.

On the other end of the age spectrum, a shake-up of the higher education system to make university access more selective prompted a wave of student sit-ins this year.
TokyoGirls'Update

Omiyage: Japans Souvenir Culture

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Souvenirs are a universal concept. You go on a trip, and buy something to bring home as a token of the memories from your time. In Japan, the word omiyage isnt just a direct translation for souvenir. It is a custom, a culture, an industry. Omiyage represents an entire culture of give-and-take and an industry that shows nothing but the best in design and variety. The common definition is an edible souvenir, usually a small snack representative of the place it was made in.

Being such an important and quintessential token in Japanese society, omiyage typically comes in boxes that contain individually wrapped portions. This is precisely so because of the notion that omiyage is bought to be distributed, to family and friends and co-workers. It is a small act of generosity that exists to keep good relations with others by showing them that you thought of them. In Japan, many people have the common idea that there is an obligation to bring souvenirs back for the people around them. No matter how small and simple it may be, it is treated as an act of courtesy to bring a token of their travels. This etiquette is bred in Japanese culture, thus founding a whole industry of omiyage.

It isnt just reserved for overseas vacations, either. Even just hopping over the regional borders to visit another prefecture warrants a souvenir. The virtue of picking out souvenirs in different prefectures though, can be found in the variety. Japan has 47 prefectures, and each of them have their own specialties and characteristics that become a unique motif in the omiyage they offer. Aomori, for example, is famous for being the biggest producers of apples in Japan and thus have many apple-flavored souvenirs. In Yamanashi, on the other hand, you might see Mount Fuji printed across the packaging all over due to their reputation as a popular spot for viewing the famous mountain. Or you might go to Osaka, and find snacks imprinted with their distinctive Kansai dialect.

Omiyage is found not only at airports, but at train stations and local souvenir shops where they are stacked in colorful abundance. Whether theyre taking their time while milling about or rushing to pick up a box before their departure time, it isnt rare to see people crowded around the boxes of omiyage piled up on the shelves. There are so many varieties and designs that youd need to take your time to pick out a suitable box. Which has the nicest packaging? Which is the most popular flavor? Which contains enough to feed the entire office? Many factors can go into choosing the most suitable omiyage to bring back.

There are, of course, popular omiyage that serve as the go-to souvenir. What are some of the famous products of Japan?

Tokyo Banana (Tokyo)

To many foreigners, Tokyo Banana is synonymous with Japanese souvenirs. The fluffy, custard-filled cake is one of the most popular sweets manufactured in Japan, famous for its trademark banana shape and numerous flavors. While the original banana custard flavor set the benchmark, its descendants can be found in all sorts of varieties from maple to honey to caramel custard that come in unique patterns.

Official website: https://www.tokyobanana.jp/language/en/

Hato Sable (Kanagawa)

When visiting Kamakura its hard not to spot the Hato Sable, one of the regions most popular souvenirs. The buttery cookie is known for its iconic dove shape, and has been manufactured by confectionery maker Toshimaya since 1894. Over a century later, it continues to be a delicious emblem of Kamakura and a highly recommended omiyage of the region. Rich in both taste and tradition, Hato Sable is an exquisite yet affordable delicacy beloved by locals and visitors alike.

Official website: https://www.hato.co.jp/hato/index.html

Shiroi Koibito (Hokkaido)

Originating from Hokkaido, Shiroi Koibito is manufactured by Japanese confectionery company Ishiya. The Langue de chat cookie is beloved for its White Lover branding, packed in its signature green wrapping and presented in a box that depicts Hokkaidos Mount Rishiri. With a white chocolate layer sandwiched between two thin cookies, the gentle flavor and soft yet crisp texture of Shiroi Koibito has whetted appetites and melted hearts for years.

Official website: http://www.ishiya.co.jp/language/en/shiroi_koibito/

ROYCE Nama Chocolate (Hokkaido)

Chocolate lovers will want to get their hands on this fine line of chocolatefor decades chocolate manufacturer ROYCE has made a name for themselves with their first-class technique and produced chocolate of the highest quality. Their Nama Chocolate is famous for their velvety, featherlight texture that melts in the mouth. Youd be sure to impress anyone with the refined flavors that define the enjoyment of this unique chocolate.

Official website: https://www.royce.com/contents/english_product/

Potato Farm (Hokkaido)

Not a sweet tooth? Snack company Calbee packs a punch with their Potato Farm line up, a collection of potato snacks that each have plenty of crunch and flavor. These are a fail-proof gift, because who wouldnt want to receive snacks that they can easily munch on any time? Potato Farm comes in easy pocket portions, but theyre so addictive that they could make anyone want to eat more. Theyre great gifts, but you might want to buy an extra pack or two for yourself.

Official website: http://www.calbee.co.jp/potatofarm/en/about/

Some might see it as an obligation, or an unnecessary transaction between acquaintances. But omiyage continues to thrive as a tradition, because of the social value it brings to the table. Its a great opportunity to share memories with people, or even just express some goodwill. Besides, who wouldnt like delicious snacks? Whether youre the giver or receiver, omiyage is a treat made with the care and pride of its hometown.

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Author Sharuru College student in Tokyo and lover of Ghibli and Hello! Project.

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Tonight on A Current Affair Tracy Grimshaw goes head-to-head with newly-installed Prime Minister, Scott Morrison.

Viewers will be taken inside the Morrison home in the Sutherland Shire region of Sydney and get a glimpse of family life for the countrys 30th Prime Minister.

In his first at-home television interview, Morrison will respond to the hard-hitting questions from Australias preeminent journalist as well as taking us through the bewildering sequence of events that led the 50-year old to assume the top job at the Lodge.

Tracy will grill the PM on what his vision is for the country and how he plans to save his beleaguered party before the Federal election next year.

Morrisons wife, Jenny, will also meet with Tracy and give us her insight into what makes her Pentecostal Christian husband tick.

7pm tonight on Nine.
Episodes of Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown that feature actress Asia Argento have been pulled in the US by CNN in wake of sexual harassment allegations against her.

Argento, who was dating the shows host Anthony Bourdain at the time of his death, appeared in two episodes of the series and directed a third.

A CNN spokesperson confirmed that all three episodes have been removed from CNNs streaming service, CNN Go.

In light of the recent news reports about Asia Argento, CNN will discontinue airing past episodes of Parts Unknown that included her, until further notice, the spokesperson said.

Argento had reportedly paid off actor Jimmy Bennett, who claims Argento assaulted him when he was 17 and she was 37. The New York Times published an expose claiming Argento reached a $380,000 settlement with Bennett last year, months after Argento came forward with rape allegations against Harvey Weinstein.

Argento has denied having any sexual relationship with Bennett, and said Bourdain urged her to reach a financial settlement to end Bennetts long-standing persecution of her.

Argento as also been also axed as a judge on The X Factor in Italy.

Source: Variety
In recent years Seven has cherry-picked short-run UK dramas some of which have been a great watch: Liar, Little Boy Blue, Hard Sun, Mrs. Biggs and more.

The latest is a 4 part 2017 thriller Bancroft to screen as double episodes across 2 weeks. Ripe for modern audiences, it propels two female actors into the lead roles.

Sarah Parrish (Monroe, Broadchurch, The Pillars of Earth, Mistresses) stars as Detective Superintendent Elizabeth Bancroft, investigating a gang over drug-related crimes led by a local mastermind.

Faye Marsay (The White Queen, Black Mirror) plays Katherine Stevens an ambitious young police officer assigned a file of cold cases to investigate by Superintendent Clifford Walker (Adrian Edmonson).

It emerges that both Bancroft and Walker have eyes on a promotion to replace their outgoing Detective Chief Superintendent (Art Mallik), creating something of a competition within the station.

But when Katherine decides to investigate the unsolved 27 year old murder of a local girl in her home -stabbed 18 times and bizarrely bitten  it is Bancroft whose back is up. It seems she was the young policewoman who discovered the slain body, but is now doing her level best to bury the case -just what is she hiding?

Katherines determination, aided by forensics expert Anya (Amara Karan), sees her finding holes in the original investigation as well as uncovering family members. It only leads to Bancroft bringing her enemies closer, by introducing Katherine to her son Joe (Adam Long). Writer Kate Brooke (Mr. Selfridge, The Ice Cream Girls) strategically intertwines the professional with the personal lives for our central characters, carefully upping the jeopardy.

The pairing of Parrish and Marsay as older / younger colleagues works well here, with Parrish commanding in her scenes, duplicitous at every step. Linus Roache (Priest, Law & Order, Vikings) also appears. The cast is uniformly strong, and there are touches of #metoo themes such as a male colleague propositioning Katherine in the workplace.

Bancroft is a cool customer of a drama that will appeal to those who liked Doctor Foster and Line of Duty, albeit without matching the brilliance of either. But Im happy to admit that as soon as episode 1 was over I decided to dive into episode 2. You may well want to do the same.

Bancroft double episode 8:30pm Monday September 10 on Seven.
The three biggest mistakes made by writers in pitching their ideas to producers and TV executives are failing to encapsulate the premise in one sentence, using too much detail, and not bringing enough passion to the pitch, according to writer Holly Lyons.

Too much detail is a rookie mistake. Nobody wants to listen to a beat by beat outline of your pilot episode, says Lyons.

Choose your most exciting scene, perhaps the inciting incident or your cold open, and describe that. You need to prove that your idea has legs, so pitch the big picture.

And dont be shy. Bring your personality to the pitch. Its not just your project youre selling, its You. Are you the kind of person theyll want to work with? Make eye contact, make a joke, make a connection with your listener. Know your material off by heart.

Lyons is a script editor and screenwriting lecturer at the Australia Film Television & Radio School, with over twenty years industry experience. Her credits include Home and Away, Emmerdale, Help Im a Teenage Outlaw, Danis House and Fireman Sam.

According to Lyons, writers constantly debate whether its a good idea to reference other shows or films. But while it may convey tone, there is a risk it makes projects seem unoriginal and generic.

The worst scenario is to refer to another show and later discover the producer youre pitching to was fired from it, she explains.

Lyons currently runs Screenwriting Scriptease, a script assessment and script editing service for projects at all stages  including story work as well as draft scripts.

Screenwriting Scriptease offers help with development, including crafting two page treatments and shaping bibles right through to pitching skills. Recently Lyons also introduced a mentoring service, to give advice to emerging writers on how to navigate the industry.

Book a feedback session today and receive 20% discount for all of September, she added.

screenwritingscriptease.com

Sponsored post.
This week Dateline visits the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia turning former drug traffiicking camps into eco-tourism.

How do some of the worlds most notorious guerrilla fighters integrate back into society after putting down their guns? The Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) are attempting to make their former jungle camps a tourist haven, and using a YouTube channel to tell their stories.

Eighteen months since the FARC guerrillas signed a peace deal ending one of the worlds longest -running guerrilla insurgencies, this Tuesday, Dateline reporter Evan Williams travels to Tierra Grata, Colombia, to meet some of the former revolutionaries as they try to figure out what a normal life might look like.

In decades of war, seven million people were displaced and 250,000 killed  most of them by the right-wing paramilitaries fighting for the government against FARC. At its height FARC had 20,000 fighters and is thought to have earned $300 million a year from extortion, bank robberies, taxing and trafficking cocaine and kidnapping for ransom.

No longer able to rely on drugs, extortion and kidnapping to fund their cause, theyve come up with the kind of business solutions popular amongst 21st century millennials  eco-tourism and their own YouTube Channel.

Dateline visits a FARC camp where, instead of forcing people to pay ransom to leave, theyre charging tourists to get in. Its meant to be a tourist destination, but for these FARC fighters its their ticket to making a new kind of living.

The idea is that people have the full experience of the activities we performed in our daily routine, of the way we used to live when we were combatants, former FARC guerrilla Lucas tells Dateline.

Most Colombians only knew about the conflict through the mainstream media. We want people to see it from a different perspective, from another angle. So they can have a full understanding of the conflict and be able to make a critical analysis of what happened and why.

An online news service set up by ex-FARC fighters, New Colombia TV, is continuing the FARC agenda by championing the poor and dispossessed. The team learnt about TV production by making FARC propaganda videos during the war.

I stopped shooting with a rifle to shoot with a camera, their star reporter, Paula, tells Dateline.

Our editorial policy is to work within vulnerable sectors, places where there are social struggles, where they are still fighting for social justice. There are a lot of people who link us with FARC, although New Columbia News is not the propaganda agency of FARC.

While many guerrillas are keen for a fresh start and acceptance, much of the population still carries the scars of the war. Dateline discovers reconciliation and rebranding is not a simple process.

Tuesday 4 September at 9.30pm on SBS.
New rules requiring streaming services operating in the European Union to dedicate at least 30% of their catalogues to local content are are on track to be approved in December.

The proposal was outlined in April but is about to become enshrined in law.

We just need the final vote, but its a mere formality, Roberto Viola, head of the European Commission department that regulates communications networks, content and technology, said at the Venice Film Festival.

Netflix, Amazon and other streamers will be required to fund TV series and films produced in Europe by commissioning content, acquiring it or paying into national film funds through a small surcharge added to their subscription fee.

By December, the EUs 28 member states would have 20 months to apply these new norms and that countries could choose to raise the quota from the 30% minimum to 40%. EU nations can each choose whether the 30% includes sub-quotas on original productions in their countries and whether they want or follow a German model of adding a small surcharge on subscription fees.

Flmmakers including Mike Leigh, Paolo Sorrentino, Jacques Audiard and Laszlo Nemes are among 165 signatories of a Venice Declaration calling on the EU parliament members to pass the proposal on September 12.

Source: Variety
Ministers from a dozen Latin American nations start a two-day meeting in Ecuador Monday on how they can cooperate to end the massive Venezuelan migrant crisis that has jolted the region.

Officials will discuss calls for international funding for overwhelmed public services and whether to impose tighter restrictions to curb migrant flows in the first concerted drive to agree a common policy on the crisis.

The two-day meeting is scheduled to conclude with a joint statement on Tuesday, the host Ecuador said.

"A regional effort will help our countries respond better to these situations, so that we can coordinate efforts and provide humanitarian assistance to people on the move," Ecuador's Foreign Minister Jose Valencia told reporters ahead of the talks.

Colombia, Ecuador and Peru have all called for more funding from developed countries to assist their utterly overwhelmed public services.

The three countries have received the bulk of migrants flowing out of Venezuela.

The EU announced a $35 million aid package on Friday to support Venezuelans both at home and in host countries.

Ministers from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay will be present at the Quito meeting, Ecuadoran officials said.

Venezuela and its ally Bolivia have also been invited, but by late Sunday had not signalled they would attend, officials here said.

Hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans are teeming into neighboring countries, fleeing a collapsing economy under President Nicolas Maduro, with falling oil prices and mismanagement leading to shortages of food and medicine.

"It is essential that each country take its share of responsibility," said Santiago Chavez, Ecuador's Deputy Minister of Human Mobility.

Chavez said that would include Venezuela, which will be asked to "implement policies" so that Venezuelan migration "can at least be adequately addressed in the host country."

Story continues

Countries across the South America traversed by Venezuelan migrants have vastly differing entry requirements, with some requiring no more than an ID, while others have toughened their restrictions to try to control the flow of migrants.

Ecuador's ombudsman, Ernesto Pazmino, said "all governments should make their countries more flexible in order to cushion this humanitarian crisis."

International pressure

Human rights lawyer Daniela Salazar said governments needed to attack the causes of migration, and not only look at its consequences.

"As governments feel that this is affecting them, at least that will help them not to look the other way, and really put enough international pressure in place to urge change in the political situation in Venezuela," said Salazar, a professor at Quito's San Francisco University.

Chavez said an extraordinary meeting of the Organization of American States (OAS) on September 5 would be the appropriate setting for a political discussion on Venezuela.

"In Quito, we are going to focus on the issue on more pragmatic, less political issues," he said.

Chavez said the Quito meeting would focus on countries' funding needs for migrant health, education and development projects.

Salazar said he was concerned that despite the fact that an immigration crisis had been coming "until now there is no real plan by governments to welcome people."

Pazmino said the exodus "exceeded all expectations and countries of the Americas have to establish strategies, a regional contingency plan, to alleviate this crisis caused by the wave of emigration."

(AFP)
AMSTERDAM (Reuters) - A man who stabbed two American tourists at Amsterdam's central station last week named Dutch, anti-Islam lawmaker Geert Wilders during police questioning and said he was motivated by perceived insults to Islam in the Netherlands, prosecutors said on Monday.

The man, identified by Dutch media as Jawed S., is a 19-year-old Afghan with residency in Germany, who travelled to Amsterdam to carry out an attack because of what he said were repeated insults to God, the Koran and Islam's Prophet Mohammed, prosecutors said in a statement.

The attack came after Wilders, a far right campaigner against Islam, cancelled plans to hold a competition last week of cartoons depicting the Prophet Mohammed and had a clear "terrorist motive", prosecutors said.

"He named Wilders, but did not say anything about the cartoon competition," a statement said. "Up to now there is no evidence the suspect worked with others."

The victims, both 38-year-old men, are still being treated in hospital, while the stabber, who was shot and wounded by police, was also being treated while his custody was extended for two weeks on Monday.

Prosecutors said that German police had searched the man's home in Germany and seized computer memory devices.

(Reporting by Toby Sterling; Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg)
Mauritius has gone to court to claim Britain used undue pressure to force it to give up the Chagos Islands in exchange for independence.

In 1966, the year after the UK got control of the Indian Ocean archipelago, it leased the biggest island Diego Garcia to the US.

America built an air base there, requiring the forced removal of around 1,500 people, and in the wake of 9/11 was controversially accused of using the island to detain - and even torture - terror suspects.

Mauritius' case at the International Court of Justice got under way in The Hague on Monday.

"The choice we were faced with was no choice at all: it was independence with detachment (of the Chagos archipelago) or no independence with detachment anyway," the minister mentor of Mauritius, Anerood Jugnauth, told the 14-judge panel.

The case comes after Mauritius asked the United Nations in 2017 to seek an advisory opinion from the ICJ.

The court's decision will not be binding, but carries great influence under international law.

The case is seen by some as an important test of whether deals struck by colonial powers are legitimate given the power imbalance.

The UK is expected to argue that Mauritius is improperly using the international court to settle a bilateral dispute.

In 2016, Britain extended the US lease on Diego Garcia to 2036 and said the displaced islanders would not be around to return.

A small group of Chagossians gathered outside the court in the Netherlands and unfurled a banner reading "modern slavery".

More than 20 interested parties, including the African Union, have asked to have their say in the case.
By Antoni Slodkowski and Shoon Naing

YANGON (Reuters) - The Myanmar military issued a rare apology on Monday, acknowledging that two photographs it published in a book on the crisis over the Rohingya Muslim minority were "published incorrectly".

Reuters published an exclusive report on Friday revealing that two of the pictures in the book that aimed at illustrating the army's account of last year's events in the western Myanmar state of Rakhine, were in fact archive pictures of different conflicts, and one was posted with an incorrect caption.

The erroneous publication of the photographs comes amid a series of government steps against what it has seen as media abuses, including a report on army activity in an ethnic minority guerrilla zone and the flying of a drone in the capital, Naypyitaw.

On Monday, a court jailed for seven years two reporters from Reuters on a charge of violating a secrets law.

Reuters found that two of the photographs in the military book on the Rohingya crisis were actually taken in Bangladesh and Tanzania and a third was falsely labelled as showing Rohingya entering Myanmar from Bangladesh, when in reality the picture was of refugees leaving Myanmar.

The military's official newspaper, the Myawady Daily, issued a statement on Monday from its publishing arm, which produced the book 'Myanmar Politics and Tatmadaw: Part I', apologising for two of the photographs.

"It was found that two photos were incorrectly published," the publishing arm said in a statement carried by the newspaper, referring to the photograph from Tanzania and another showing victims of Bangladesh's 1971 war of independence.

"We sincerely apologise to the readers and the owners of the photographs for the mistake," it said.

It did not mention the photograph incorrectly captioned as showing Rohingya entering Myanmar when the picture was of them leaving.

Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay and military spokesman Major General Tun Tun Nyi could not be reached for comment.

Story continues

The army's department of public relations and psychological warfare published the book in English and Burmese in July.

'HEINOUS'

Of the 80 images in the book, most were recent pictures of army chief Min Aung Hlaing meeting foreign dignitaries or other officials visiting Rakhine.

Of eight photos presented as historical images, Reuters found the provenance of three to be faked and was unable to determine the provenance of the five others.

One faded black-and-white image shows a crowd of men who appear to be on a long march with their backs bent over. "Bengalis intruded into the country after the British Colonialism occupied the lower part of Myanmar," the caption reads.

The photo is apparently intended to depict Rohingya arriving in Myanmar during the colonial era, which ended in 1948. Reuters determined the picture is in fact a distorted version of a colour image taken in 1996 of refugees who had fled the genocide in Rwanda.

Another picture, also printed in black-and-white, shows men aboard a rickety boat. "Bengalis entered Myanmar via the watercourse," the caption reads.

Actually, the original photo depicts Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants leaving Myanmar in 2015, when tens of thousands fled for Thailand and Malaysia. The original has been rotated and blurred so the photo looks granular. It was sourced from Myanmar's own Ministry of Information.

The Myawady's publishing arm, in its statement, made no mention of an alterations of images.

The prime minister of neighbouring Bangladesh, where about 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled from a Myanmar military crackdown launched after Rohingya insurgent attacks in August last year, denounced the use of the photographs when she was asked in a news conference about them.

"What Myanmar has done is simply heinous. They have lowered their reputation," Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina told a news conference in Dhaka on Sunday.

"They are diminishing their position in the international arena."

The 117-page book gives the army's account of the crackdown last year which led to reports of mass killings, rape, and arson.

Much of the content is sourced to the military's "True News" information unit, which since the start of the crisis has distributed news giving the army's position, mostly via Facebook.

The book is on sale at bookstores across the commercial capital of Yangon.

(Reporting by Shoon Naing and Antoni Slodkowski, additional reporting by Aye Min Thant and Ruma Paul in DHAKA; Editing by Robert Birsel)
Helicopters were called in to help tackle a wildfire sparked by a plane crash on Slide Mountain in Nevadas Washoe Valley on Sunday, September 2.

Fox 11 reported reported roads near the Slide fire had been closed and campers and hikers had been evacuated. Credit: Kris Swaczyna via Storyful
FILE PHOTO: A man walks past South African petrochemical company Sasol's synthetic fuel plant in Secunda, north of Johannesburg, in this picture taken March 1, 2016. REUTERS/Siphiwe Sibeko/File Photo

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Workers from South Africa's mainly-white Solidarity union staged a go-slow protest at the petrochemicals firm Sasol <SOLJ.J> on Monday over a share scheme offered exclusively to black staff, and said they would begin a full strike on Thursday.

South African companies are required to meet quotas on black ownership, employment and procurement as part of a drive to reverse decades of exclusion under apartheid. Meeting the rules makes a company more likely to qualify for government tenders.

Solidarity has been waging a challenge against racial quotas in the workplace, and lodged a complaint against the policy in 2016 with the U.N. Human Rights Commission.

Sasol, the world leader in technology that converts coal and gas to fuel, has sold 25 percent of its local operations to qualifying black employees, a foundation and the black public in a 21 billion rand (1.1 billion) deal financed by the company.

It has said the scheme is not a benefit but a mechanism designed to meet the rules on black economic empowerment, and was backed by shareholders.

But Solidarity said the scheme was discriminatory and that it would file a complaint to U.S. regulators. Sasol also operates in the United States.

The union said 6,300 of its members would hold a go-slow at Sasol's facilities in South Africa, and then strike on Thursday.

"We are not against the scheme, we just want it to be inclusive of all workers. If the company makes it inclusive, the majority will still be black, so we see no need to exclude white workers as this is discrimination," said Dirk Hermann, Solidarity's chief executive.

Sasol, which employs around 26,000 people in South Africa, said it was aware of Solidarity's intent to strike, and that it had made contingency plans.

SHARES SLIP

Sasol's shares were 1.4 percent lower at 568.14 rand, with the market expecting the dispute to be resolved without affecting earnings.

A Sasol spokesman said parts of the flagship Secunda and Sasolberg plants, which produce fuel and chemicals respectively, were anyway undergoing scheduled maintenance shutdowns, but that both plants otherwise continued to operate.

Story continues

The ruling African National Congress said in a statement that it was concerned by the "obsession with perpetuating racial polarization" triggered by Solidarity's protest.

Solidarity's Hermann said the union was not promoting racism and had backed schemes at AngloGold Ashanti <ANGJ.J> and iron ore mining firm Kumba <KIOJ.J> that treated white and black workers equally.

But it was in court challenging an empowerment scheme at the cement firm PPC <PPCJ.J> that grants each black worker twice as many shares as a white worker.

Herman said Solidarity had also challenged a similar scheme at South Africa's biggest mobile operator, Vodacom <VODJ.J>, but had been hampered by its low members' roll at the firm.

The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration, which mediates in labour disputes, ruled that Solidarity did not have a legal right to challenge Sasol's scheme in court, but could push its cause through industrial action.

"We expect Sasol to come to the negotiating table," Hermann said.

(Reporting by James Macharia; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe is donating 10 white rhinos to Democratic Republic of Congo to re-establish a population driven to extinction by poachers a decade ago, Zimbabwe's wildlife authority said.

The rhinos were being captured and would be moved from Victoria Falls later this week or early next, Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) spokesman Tinashe Farawo said on Monday.

Congo's white rhinos lived in Garamba National Park near the border with South Sudan but it was not clear where the animals would be located.

Wildlife protection is complicated in Congo by lawlessness and militia violence that endures 15 years after the end of a war that killed millions, mainly from hunger and disease.

"The Zimbabwean Government was satisfied that the pre and post-translocation conditions in ... (Congo) met the requisite standards for a successful re-establishment of rhinos," a ZimParks statement said.

ZimParks and conservationists said moving the rhinos from Zimbabwe would strengthen the gene pool. Zimbabwe had about 800 black and white rhinos in 2016 and is one of just four countries with nearly all the world's white rhinos.

Their horns are prized in China and southeast Asia.

"Moving rhinos from one place to another is essential to ensure good genetic diversity across the population," said Emma Pereira, a spokeswoman for Save the Rhino, a London-based group. "We hope any move between countries is done with the correct expertise and thoughtful planning."

Poachers also target mountain gorillas, one of the world's most endangered species which is found only on a spine of volcanic mountains straddling Congo, Uganda and Rwanda.

Their numbers have recovered in recent years thanks to intensive conservation efforts.

The head of Congo's wildlife authority could not be immediately reached for comment.

(The story was refiled to remove extraneous words from the dateline)

(Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe in Harare and Fiston Mahamba in Goma; Writing by Sofia Christensen; Editing by Aaron Ross and Matthew Mpoke Bigg)
Specialist fishing tackle and equipment retailer Angling Direct announced on Monday that its new store in Guildford opened on 1 September, bringing the total number of stores operated by the company to 23.

The AIM-traded firm said the Guildford store is a leasehold, newly-built property which occupied a 6,500 square foot display area.

It was the first destination store of its kind in the Guildford area, with the board saying it catered for all disciplines of angling, while also providing excellent support through the company's local and knowledgeable staff.

The new store, which would create six full and part-time positions, was in a popular fishing area with strong angling communities, reportedly strengthening Angling Direct's presence across the UK.

It also said the planned opening of the Peterborough site was progressing well, and was on track to open in the coming weeks.

A significant amount of lake and river fishing takes place within the surrounding areas of Guildford, and the latest store opening supports our strategy to roll out new stores to service popular fishing destinations and angling communities, said chief executive Darren Bailey.

As we seek to cater for all anglers across the UK with a new and modern retail offering, we will continue to strategically expand our geographical footprint, as well as enhance our online offering in terms of products, experience and education to help drive angling recruitment.
E-commerce business EU Supply has won a contract with an unnamed European Union funded aid organisation.

EU Supply, which has an established, market-leading, multilingual e-procurement platform for e-sourcing, e-tendering and contract management, will provide the mystery firm with its software-as-a-service offerings and related services.

The Swedish-based, AIM-listed company expects to generate revenues of more than 110,000 during the contract's three-year lifespan.

Just last week EU Supply won two new contracts in Denmark with Damgaard Radgivende Ingenirer - an advisory firm - and Fiskeri Styrelsen, a government entity regulating the countrys fisheries.

It also secured another contract win in the UK healthcare sector.

EU Supply expects that contract to generate revenues of around 74,000.

As of 1200 BST, EU Supply shares had shot up 14.29% to 12p.
British oil and gas company Hurricane Energy has seen Spirit Energy farm-in to half of its Lincoln and Warwick licences in the Greater Warwick Area.

The AIM-listed firm said the 50% GWA farm-in opened up a "significant new work programme" across its assets, widening strategic options and accelerating their potential monetisation by targeting reserve growth.

Hurricane and Spirit, which pledged up to $387m to the GWA project, committed to a work programme which envisages first oil by 2020 and a final investment decision on the development's first phase by 2021.

The pair hopes to unlock initial reserves of 500m barrels of oil from the project's current resources.

Hurricane's chief executive Dr Robert Trice, said: "We are delighted to be working with Spirit Energy. We share a common vision for the development of the Greater Warwick Area and more importantly a shared understanding of the potential of fractured basement in the UKCS. Their prior experience of basement in Norway and elsewhere underpins this understanding."

As of 1010 BST, Hurricane Energy shares had taken off 11.09% to 54.70p.
Most markets in Asia finished lower on Monday, as trade concerns lingered in both North America and around ongoing tension between the US and China.

In Japan, the Nikkei 225 was down 0.69% at 22,707.38, as the yen weakened 0.09% to last trade at JPY 111.13.

On the mainland, the Shanghai Composite was off 0.17% at 2,720.74, and the smaller, technology-heavy Shenzhen Composite closed 0.17% lower at 1,448.93.

Bourses in China headed lower after the unofficial Caixin purchasing managers index came in at 50.6 - its weakest reading since June last year - with export sales falling for the fifth month in a row.

South Koreas Kospi lost 0.68% to finish at 2,307.03, while the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong slid 0.63% to 27,712.54.

Trade concerns were the theme of the day in the region, with ongoing tension between the US and China being evidenced by the weak Caixin PMI reading in the Peoples Republic.

There was also consternation over the state of trade in North America, after Ottawa and Washington failed to meet the US-dictated deadline of Friday to reach a trade deal to replace NAFTA.

That deadline was set days after the US and Mexico had reached agreement on a new trade partnership.

Talks between the White House and Parliament Hill are due to continue this week.

With heightened US-China trade tensions running in the background - with the consult on another $200bn of tariffs on China - any relief that NAFTA might present this Wednesday, assuming Canada reaches an agreement, could prove to be fleeting, noted Mizuho Bank head of economics and strategy Vishnu Varathan.

Varathan added that if Trump tightened the screws on China, risks in emerging markets could flare up once more.

Oil prices were higher, with Brent crude last rising 0.77% to $78.24 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate adding 0.21% to $69.95.

In Australia, the S&P/ASX 200 slipped 0.14% to settle at 6,310.90, while across the Tasman Sea, New Zealands S&P/NZX 50 was 0.6% weaker at 9,257.29.

The down under dollars were a mixed affair, with the Aussie last 0.35% stronger on the greenback at AUD 1.3857, while the Kiwi retreated 0.26% to NZD 1.5144.
Stocks finished slightly higher on Monday despite news over the weekend that trade negotiations between the US and Canada were still ongoing, with investors sitting on their hands given that US markets were set to remain closed in observance of the Labor Day holiday.

"The optimism about a Canada deal may well be misplaced given reported private comments from the US President that appear to suggest he's only interested in a deal on his terms, or no deal at all. Further disparaging comments about Canada from President Trump on Twitter over the weekend dont bode well in terms of progress in this weeks upcoming negotiations, however we'll have to wait until tomorrow for a US stock market reaction, given US markets are closed for Labour Day," said CMC Markets UK's Michael Hewson.

"If it turns out to be true that President Trump doesn't even want a deal then last weeks optimism could well soon give way to the pessimism that has seen European stocks experience rather contrasting fortunes last month, where we saw the FTSE100 fall to a four-month low, while European stocks also finished the week and month lower as well."

By the end of trading, the benchmark Stoxx 600 had edged higher by 0.07% or 0.25 points to 382.51, alongside a rise of 0.62% or 126.32 points for Milan's FTSE Mibtel to 20,395.79, albeit alongside a dip of 0.14% or 17.65 points to 12,346.41 on the German Dax.

Weighing on the Dax was a 0.14% gain in euro/dollar to 1.16188, with the single currency jumping 0.82% to 0.90256 against the pound after the EU's chief trade negotiator said he was "strongly" opposed to Britain's bid for a common rulebook governing trade in goods with a separate one covering services.

Helping to bolster sentiment perhaps, Morgan Stanley's Graham Secker reportedly told clients that in relative terms, Europe was looking "increasingly attractive".

To take note of, some media reports in Spain were suggesting that the ruling Socialist party might bring forward the date of the next general elections if it failed to secure approval of the 2019 Budget law.

In parallel, the yield on the benchmark 10-year Italian Treasury note was down by seven basis points at 3.16%.

That was despite one of Italy's Deputy Prime Ministers, Matteo Salvini, saying on Sunday that the country's budget deficit would double in 2019 and "touch" 3.0% of GDP.

"[The government] will try to respect all the hurdles Europe imposes, but the well-being of Italian citizens comes first," he reportedly said.

Nevertheless, two days before ratings agency had Fitch refrained from cutting the rating on the country's long-term debt, although it did lower its outlook from 'stable' to 'negative', citing political uncertainty in the country.

Helping to contain concerns around the country's budget outlook, on Sunday finance minister Giovanni Tria reportedly told daily La Repubblica that budget stability would be "respected", adding that Italy was not the 'sick man of Europe'.

Elsewhere on the economic side of things, IHS Markit confirmed its preliminary reading showing a drop in its Eurozone manufacturing PMI from a reading of 55.1 for July to 54.6 in August, as expected.

In corporate news, shares of Casino Guichard were again lower - after Friday's violent sell-off - after Standard&Poor's cut its rating on the grocer's long-term debt from BB+ to BB.

On 31 August, short-seller Muddy Waters Capital had called attention to a delayed regulatory filing by one of the company's subsidiaries, sending the shares plummeting.
London's FTSE 100 was up 1.1% to 7,512.03 in afternoon trade on Monday, propelled higher by a weak pound amid Brexit concerns and following weak UK manufacturing data.

Royal Mail was on the front foot as it announced the acquisition of parcel delivery company Dicom Canada from Chicago-based private equity firm Wind Point Partners for around CAD360m (213m) on a debt and cash free basis.

On the downside, United Utilities and Severn Trent were in the red as they submitted their business plans to Ofwat for the next five-year period, 2020-2025. Severn Trent's included a bill reduction of 5% in real terms, while UU claimed a reduction of 10.5% in average bills.

Imperial Brands and British American Tobacco were under the cosh as RBC Capital Markets downgraded them both to 'underperform' from 'sector perform'. It said big tobacco companies' newfound enthusiasm for vaping threatens the groups' profits.

For both companies, RBC expects next-generation products (NGPs) such as ecigarettes, which are lower margin than cigarettes, will continue to outgrow the core tobacco business and so lead to a "negative mix effect on profitability"

Whitbread was on the back foot following stellar gains on Friday after it announced that it was selling the Costa coffee chain to Coca-Cola for 3.9bn. The company, which also owns Premier Inn, said that once the deal completes it will return "a significant" majority of the net proceeds to shareholders.

Goodbody said this was a "great" deal for Whitbread and the multiple being paid is significantly ahead of the higher end of market expectations. It said Premier Inn is attractive on a standalone basis and although there is some turbulence it the UK hotel market at present, the business is relatively resilient given its market-leading presence in the budget branded hotel market.

FTSE 100 - Risers

Smurfit Kappa Group (SKG) 3,228.00p 3.13%

Evraz (EVR) 509.80p 2.47%

Royal Mail (RMG) 458.47p 2.34%

Royal Dutch Shell 'B' (RDSB) 2,597.00p 2.22%

Royal Dutch Shell 'A' (RDSA) 2,554.50p 2.12%

Anglo American (AAL) 1,571.60p 1.95%

Admiral Group (ADM) 2,120.00p 1.92%

Standard Life Aberdeen (SLA) 322.95p 1.91%

BT Group (BT.A) 221.30p 1.82%

Centrica (CNA) 145.78p 1.73%

FTSE 100 - Fallers

United Utilities Group (UU.) 727.60p -1.89%

Severn Trent (SVT) 1,974.00p -1.35%

Imperial Brands (IMB) 2,712.00p -1.17%

Whitbread (WTB) 4,548.00p -1.04%

TUI AG Reg Shs (DI) (TUI) 1,409.07p -0.91%

British American Tobacco (BATS) 3,692.00p -0.79%

Fresnillo (FRES) 891.20p -0.67%

Randgold Resources Ltd. (RRS) 4,997.00p -0.50%

British Land Company (BLND) 632.60p -0.47%

Schroders (SDR) 3,063.00p -0.39%
Alaska, Fairbanks: A young mother allegedly researched the internet to find ways to kill her babies and then avoid being caught. She faces charges over the deaths of two children, one in 2015 and one in 2017. The 2015 death was not initially investigated as a Crime. However, police now suspect the four-month-old baby was deliberately suffocated. The child from 2017 was 13-months old. CNN reported the woman, identified as Stephany Lafountain, 23, called the Fairbank Emergency Services saying her child was not breathing. The police referred to the two children who passed away under similar circumstances as C.P.

and J.L.

Murdered babies were completely healthy at the time of death

USA Today noted that LaFountain's husband who serves in the military was on deployment at the time of the death of JL who passed away at Fairbanks Memorial Hospital following a lack of oxygen. The husband was not the father of the first child who died in 2015. According to KMOV4, both the children were "entirely healthy, with no genetic abnormalities, no diseases, and no injuries." After the death of J.L police became suspicious about the first death. It took nine months to fully investigate the case.

The family had to keep quiet about the circumstances of J.L's death as the investigation was ongoing. Police Chief Eric Jewkes noted that it must have been very difficult for the family.

However, he hoped that the release of the news means that they can find some "closure." The family was involved with J.L's death as Stephany called them and they tried to administer CPR. Presumably, they had to give their statements to the police, suffer the tragic loss, and suspect there was a killer close to them.

Discuss this news on Eunomia

Woman allegedly searched the internet for ways to kill and get away with it

CNN wrote that police said in the hour before the murder, the accused woman had researched a number of things on the internet. Forensic examination established that she had searched for "Drowning and Forensics, Ways to Suffocate, and 16 steps to kill someone and not get caught." There were more searches about drowning, perfect murders and suffocation.

It took time to gather the necessary evidence to charge the woman but on Thursday, August 30, police arrested her. She was charged with second and first degree murder. The first child accounted for one of the charges. KMOV4 noted that the court records show she was assigned an "unidentified public defender."
A new policy has been put into effect making you less likely to get arrested for smoking herb in public. This follows a report by the citys Department of Health, which endorsed legalizing recreational Marijuana because of its many benefits. Finally, we have some progress concerning New York's battle to legalize the usage of marijuana. This is good news for New York, a state that can really use a bit of chilling out.

Although the recreational use of marijuana is still (unfortunately) illegal in New York State, a new plan was implemented by the NYPD this past Saturday, September 1.

Officers are now able to decide whether or not they will arrest people caught smoking marijuana. In some case, arrests will be made. These cases include anyone caught driving while smoking, those with outstanding warrants, and/or anyone who refuses to show identification when requested by an officer. However, those with a clean record found smoking marijuana in public are likely to receive a court summons rather than an arrest. According to NBC New York, you can have up to 25 grams of the drug in your possession and still qualify for a summons. That said, however, a summons could result in a $100 fine.

Ill smoke to that

Officials claim that this new policy was implemented due to the fact that most arrests pertaining to marijuana have nothing to do with public safety.

There have also been numerous complaints of racial profiling associated with these petty arrests. According to NBC New York, Brooklyn District Attorney Eric Gonzalez stated: "The glaring racial disparities in who is and is not arrested have contributed to a sense among many in our communities that the system is unfair. This, in turn, contributes to a lack of trust in law enforcement, which makes us all less safe." The New York Times also reported that African-Americans were eight times more likely to be arrested on low-level marijuana charges.

Discuss this news on Eunomia

With this new policy in effect, the city expects upwards of 10,000 fewer arrests.

For the record

A summons is a written order issued by the court after a criminal or traffic complaint has been filed, requiring the person named in the complaint to appear in court on a specific date to answer to the alleged charge. A summons could result in fines of up to $100. So, basically, it's a marijuana ticket. While this is progress, we still have a long way to go before marijuana is legalized outright.
Spoiler alerts for "General Hospital" indicate that JaSam fans will have to wait a little longer to find out if their favorite couple will reunite. Soaps She Knows states that this coming week Jason will be diplomatic and give no details about his relationship with Sam. Soap Hub, however, teases that it will look as if Jason and Sam are headed to the long-awaited reunion, but things will shift. Instead of growing closer, there will be new challenges that keep the dynamic duo apart. This will not be good news for loyal viewers who have been patiently waiting for close to a year to see their favorite couple reunite.

JaSam fans have been misled

Last summer, "General Hospital" executive producer Frank Valenti said that a very intriguing storyline was coming in October and that it would be wrapped up in nine months. Patient Six was revealed as Jason, and the man Sam was married to turned out to be his twin, Andrew. It has now been 11 months without a clear sign that JaSam will get back together. In addition, Drew still does not have the flash drive with his original memories.

Soaps She Knows provides details for the coming week regarding other Port Charles residents but the spoiler only says that Jason will be diplomatic. No hint is given as to what situation this refers to. Soap Hub only teases that JaSam fans will be misled, and once again will be cheated out of the long-awaited reunion.

First, Sam decided to stay with Drew but kissed Jason on New Year's Eve. She admitted she loved him and divorced Drew, but decided to take time to find herself without either man.

Sam and Jason can overcome the obstacles

it's unclear why the "GH" writers are prolonging this storyline, as Drew and Sam are over and she never stopped loving Jason.

Discuss this news on Eunomia

The duo has remained in each other's orbits and even worked on cases together, but neither has shown any hint of the passion they once shared. They have overcome obstacles in the past so whatever the spoiler alerts are alluding to can easily be dealt with.

Faithful viewers are becoming weary and deserve much better from the powers that be.

For this reason, perhaps they will wrap all of this up very soon. Drew needs his memories and JaSam need closure so they can all move forward. Be on the lookout for updated spoilers regarding this storyline, and make sure that you don't miss one episode of "General Hospital" by tuning in on weekday afternoons at 2:00PM EST on ABC.
by Ashutosh Jogalekar

I met him at a Starbucks outside the Tower of London. It was pre-arranged. I had told him I was an independent blogger. He told me he preferred to talk to independent writers these days; the mainstream media was more trouble than what it was worth. It helped that I wrote for a site that he regularly read and admired.

The complexities of the London tube have thwarted me on more than one occasion, and this time was no different. I was a full fifteen minutes late. He was sitting in a cafe, his signature fedora on his head, but still dressed inconspicuously enough so as to seem like one of the many people thronging the cafe.

Mr. Naipaul, I said, extending my hand. Its a real pleasure to meet you.

Oh yes, please, I was expecting you. Please, call me Vidia

Taken a little aback by the very informal moniker I was supposed to address him by, I exclaimed, Ok, thank you. And so sorry, I said, I have to admit that the tube, as wonderfully efficient as it is, challenges me every time I visit the city.

Indeed. It was difficult to get around the first time I visited too, more than fifty years ago. Often when I thought I had made it to my destination, I realized I was back where I started. Shall we?

We passed several tourists on our way inside the Starbucks. Inside, we ordered a regular coffee for Vidia and, for me, an American bastardization I had gotten used to since my graduate school days  a caramel macchiato. Vidia insisted on paying. Then, with a conspiratorial wink at me and the barista  a woman who seemed like she had been around since before the advent of coffee shops  Vidia started toward the direction of the restrooms.

Come with me, Vidia said, leading the way. I was a bit confused: werent we supposed to get a table either inside or outside, where the weather was gorgeous, especially for a London summer? But I followed his lead.

At the very end of the hallway in which the restrooms were located Vidia stopped. Making sure nobody was around he pressed what seemed like a small photo frame of a bucolic mountain landscape hung on the wall. Suddenly the narrow wall swung open, and with a quickness belying the girth of his aging figure, Vidia disappeared into the void and beckoned me in. I was too stunned to say anything, and I followed him almost as a reflex action.

The door in the wall swung back and closed as fast as it had opened, and a bright light suddenly illuminated the hallway.

Sorry about the mischief, but I have to guard against unexpected knocks on the door, even when I am seemingly past my prime.

I still remained rather stunned to say anything.

There was another brown door at the end of the hallway. Vidia walked up to it and knocked. A few seconds later the door opened. Nadira Naipaul was gently smiling at us and welcomed us in. She was warm and welcoming, the picture of grace.

Nadira, we have a guest with us today. Vidia introduced me and briefly told Nadira about my background. I followed the two of them into the living room. The elegance of the room belied its simplicity. The walls were cream colored and easy on the eyes, and photos of various and sundry landscapes hung on the wall; a street scene in Trinidad, a sea of grass from Englands Lake District, and a weekend market in Agra with the Taj Mahal in the background. The apartment behind the wall seemed spacious. What caught my eye the most, however, was the low-slung Japanese table in the middle.

Vidia saw me staring at it and quickly said, Thats where I write these days. I used to write at a desk for decades, but I have found recently that a low Japanese desk, a desk where you must sit cross-legged, imposes a kind of contemplative discipline that is hard to achieve with other seating arrangements. Would you like to give it a try?

Of course, I said. I sat on one side, Vidia on the other. Nadira asked me if I would like some tea and went inside to fetch some. So, what is it that you wanted to talk about? Vidia asked.

Well, I must apologize in advance, because this is undoubtedly a topic that many must have discussed with you, but I wanted to talk about identity. I wanted to talk about this both because it has been a central part of all your writings, and also because its something I can identify with myself.

Ah, identity, Vidia exclaimed, a look of wistful familiarity compounded with some sadness evident in his eyes. Yes, we all must grapple with identity at one point or another. We can certainly talk about it.

Well, I said, I must give you some personal background regarding why I wanted to bring up this specific topic. Vidia indicated that he wanted me to continue at length.

I am an Indian transplant in America. I came to the country for graduate school. I was steeped in American history, American science, American politics, throughout my upbringing in India. My parents were both college professors, both highly educated and literate, and our house was full of books, intellectual discussions, social occasions, laughter. America, especially, figured prominently in our dinnertime conversations, and people like Edison, FDR and George Washington Carver were greatly admired figures and regular topics of discussion. When I came to America, I realized I knew about many aspects of the country as well as the natives.

For the first few years I never felt the so-called identity crisis that is often talked about by immigrants, and I even laughed when other Indians in the United States indicated that they felt it. I felt at home in America. The public libraries, the basic rule of law, the respect for science and technology, the clean air, all left me feeling ecstatic; left me feeling that this was the greatest place in the world. Naturally during the first few years, just like other immigrants, I was eager to assimilate. However, in a somewhat paradoxical way, as I spent more time here, I started to ask myself, who am I, exactly, Indian or American or something in between, and does this even matter? And then  quite recently, I must admit  I read your wonderful book, The Enigma of Arrival, and that drove home the dilemma of identity in a fresh manner. My parents are no more now, and I certainly think of myself as American  or least Indian-American  and proudly call America home, but it is hard to let go of the dilemma entirely

Vidia was quiet as I was saying this, nodding almost imperceptibly. Yes, he said, the feelings you noticed werent alien to me, and I am sure you realized them when you were reading my book. I can certainly understand the gnawing dilemma of identity you must have felt. I am sure you understand that with me it was a case of a triple identity crisis, if you will. My grandfather came to Trinidad as an indentured Indian laborer, so I grew up with a motley collection of brown, black and white-skinned people in a very heterogeneous culture. Ideally I should have appreciated the cornucopia of racial and cultural complexity, but I was desperate to leave. Then I won a scholarship to Oxford, and I have lived in England for the last forty years. As you know, I have even been knighted, which is as English as it gets. And yet, if you ask me if I feel English alone, I would say no. There is a deep sense in which my mixed Indian-Trinidadian-English identity is indelible, and no amount of denial will peel away those layers and reveal a shining singular self.

Glad to hear that he empathized with my thoughts regarding identity, I suddenly noticed Nadira standing next to us, holding a tray on which teacups made of elegant China were kept. I took a cup and added two spoonfuls of sugar in spite of the warnings about diabetes from my doctor; I wanted to make sure I was alert and attuned to anything Vidia was saying. Can I join both of you?, Nadira asked, Of course, I said. Company this charming was always welcome.

Vidia and I were talking about identity, I said. Yes, Nadira replied. Its a topic that Vidia and I never tire of discussing, especially in the context of his book, The Enigma of Arrival. Exactly, I said, delighted that Nadira and I shared the same taste in all things Naipaul. I recounted to Nadira what I had told Vidia. I do understand, Nadira said, Each one of us has to square with different dilemmas of identity. As Vidia mentioned, he had to deal with a triple identity, I had to deal with a mixed Pakistani-English identity myself, and it seems you went through a similar experience.

I did. And as I told Vidia, I wonder sometimes whether its even worth feeling as if you have a conflict of identify, whether its something you should simply take in and become comfortable with rather than rationalize and overthink. And you know, you wonder about this even in the smallest instances; whether to speak in an American accent, how much to celebrate festivals from the old country, even something as seemingly trivial as whether to respond in your native language in kind on social media.

Yes, there is something to be said about the challenge of adopting to your new culture while being true to yourself., said Vidia, empathizing with my sentiment.

Theres also something else I want to ask you about. What is identity, after all? How specific is it to ones upbringing and family as opposed to ones country? I say this especially in the context of the so-called values that we speak of. For instance, if I ask myself what specific values I inherited from India, I would feel hard-pressed to find an answer. I would say that all the important values I have inherited are specific to my parents and family rather than to my country. At least the deep ones. The fundamental values I have gotten from my parents are ones like hard work, honesty, a thirst for knowledge and basic human decency. Is there something in here specific to India? I would think these are universal values, imparted by conscientious parents to their children around the world, in any country. If the deep and fundamental values I have are not specific to India, then what are? Diwali and Holi and Butter Chicken? Those sound rather superficial.

Both Vidia and Nadira looked contemplative, and for a moment I worried whether I was boring them with my extended monologue. I want to agree with you in principle; at least in terms of the notion of universal values that you speak of., remarked Vidia. That being said, I think you are being too rational in your analysis here. It is quite difficult to truly speak of the values you imbibe when you grow up in a certain place, especially when you spend your impressionable years there. The real value of values, if you would forgive the expression, is intangible. It is the sum total of formative influences imparted by both your family and your country, the little things that you take for granted, the almost unconscious tics that you display; these are the lasting influences that are going to shape you as a person and contribute to your so-called identity.

I agree, Nadira said. There are all kinds of hidden influences that contribute to your identity, and through your actions later in life, you drop little hints here and there regarding those influences. For instance, as I am sure you know, Vidias father had a very deep and rather ambivalent influence on him; Vidia never even read the collection of letters between him and his father that was published a few years ago. This influence was a joint combination of his fathers identify as the son of an indentured Indian laborer in Trinidad and as an English-language journalist growing up as a subject in an English colony. Now of course, Vidias grandfather himself had been imported from India as a British colonial subject into a country where he became a different kind of British colonial subject. And he is also a Brahmin to boot, so there is another kind of caste-based identity embedded in this forest of identities. So you see how complicated this layering of identities gets?

Vidia seemed a bit uncomfortable with Nadiras explication, looking like he resoundingly agreed with it in principle while trying to stay away from the particulars. But he retorted, Shes right. I think the best thing to say is that one always has many different identities; identities layered upon identities; identities fortifying identities; even identities contradicting other identities. Its the essence of Walt Whitmans quote about a person containing multitudes. Thats the way we all are. And we have to be comfortable with these splinters of identities.

I took a cue from this discussion. As someone trained as a scientist, I thought I could bring a different idea of identity to the table. I agree. Beyond a certain point it seems like it may be futile to analyze identity too rationally and minutely. But please humor me a bit here. I think of identity as something that goes beyond caste, creed, nationality, ancestry. I always think of human identity as embedded in a tapestry of biological identities, and I think we have to consider this aspect of identity at some point. I mean, think about it: whether as Indians or Americans or Englishmen, we are all part of a vast identity called Homo sapiens. And as Homo sapiens, we bear, as Darwin so memorably put it, the indelible stamp of our lowly origins. Our identities are intertwined with the identities of starfish and bears and orchids and earthworms and hummingbirds and barnacles that make up the grand edifice of evolution. The point I am making is that whatever our feelings about our national or ethnic identities, these are but a speck compared to the four billion years of identities that have manifested on our planet.

Wonderful, wonderful., Vidia remarked, and his face showed genuine appreciation. I must confess I have always had trouble appreciating you scientific types. You know, during my travels in India, whenever people I met seemed quite confused about my identity as a Trinidadian-Indian-Englishman, I always took the easy way out and told them I was a chemistry teacher. Fortunately nobody asked me what I exactly taught, otherwise I would have been in trouble. Now, listening to you, I think perhaps I should have paid more attention to those meager science classes I attended in high school. The indelible stamp of mans lowly origins. Wonderful. I could not agree more. However, I would say that its not always easy to subsume your proximate identity of caste and country, if you will, to this ultimate identity that you speak of. Everyone grapples with their own particular brand of identity. That differentiation of identities is itself a dilemma within a dilemma which we should all confront, much like the riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma which that blue-blooded imperialist Churchill talked about in reference to the Soviet Union.

The tea and pastries had gotten cold, the hour was late, Vidia seemed tired. I think that if there is one take-home lesson from this discussion, I said, it would be that all of us, without exception, have to deal with multiple identities. Even if its not an identity of caste, its an identity of nationality. And even if its not one of nationality, even if your ancestors have lived in a country for hundreds of years and have never married outside their specific ethnicity, they still have to live with the multiple identities that have been bequeathed to them by evolution. We are all connected to each other in that regard.

Yes, as much as they try to deny it, not even those fervent evangelicals that I saw at the 1984 Republican convention in Dallas can escape from these multiple layers of identity!, said Vidia. Nadira laughed.

Indeed!, I exclaimed. Well, I think I dont want to take up too much of your time. This has been a delightful conversation, and I am deeply grateful to you for your time.

We feel the same way. Make sure you send us your article, please., Vidia said. After bidding him and Nadira goodbye, he again walked me through the secret passageway and pressed a little button that opened the door in the wall. I grasped his hand and said goodbye, and made my way through the dimly lit Starbucks. Opening the door, I stepped out into the London night. The city was still alive, its multiplicity of identities glowing with anticipation.

Note: I never met V. S. Naipaul, although I am sure I would have loved to. But I did have a delightful dream about meeting him, about the secret passageway at the end of which was his home, about his charming wife Nadira, about a vigorous discussion about identity and his book The Enigma of Arrival (which, after waking up, I read enthusiastically). This is an elaboration of that dream. RIP, V. S. Naipaul.
by Gabrielle C. Durham

I like playing Scrabble, and part of the reason is creating new words. That and the smack talk. I played a game with the swain of the day decades ago, and he challenged my word, which was not in and of itself surprising. As you may recall, if you lose a challenge, you lose a turn. With stakes so stupendously high, you mount a vigorous defense. I ended up losing the battle (and probably won the war) and thought no more of it. The ex-boyfriend brought it up a few years ago; I think he has put that on-the-spot coinage next to a picture of me in his mind. It is a shame that the word he will forever associate with me is beardful.

My linguistic brain coined this neologism by merging noun + common suffix ful, as in words such as youthful, fearful, and handful, to create an adjective. Easy and legit, right?

A neologism is a new word or a new way of using a word and is not yet commonly accepted; it may never be mass-accepted, and it may stay new for decades. To survive its infancy, it needs to identify a durable, meaningful concept. The word or usage has to be relevant.

One form of a neologism is a back formation, which is typically shortening an existing word and changing the part of speech. An example is the verb burgle from the noun burglar. Burglar has been with us for centuries as a noun, and someone  lets blame Shakespeare  realized that a verb would make the world shimmer that much more brightly. Thus was burgle begat.

In some cases, the part of the word, or affix, that is removed in a back formation is not a standard suffix, such as er or or to mean a person who, but is actually part of the root word. Huh? Orator, for example, is not originally a person who orates, and a lecher is not a person who leches, until more recent vintage anyway. The verbs orate and lech are the new coinages based on the nouns that already existed.

Other glorious examples of back formation are these newishly minted verbs: diagnose, televise, babysit, enthuse, evanesce, and laze. These words fill a need, at least to some, although there is a tendency for business-speak to take over this delightful phenomenon and nauseate the more sensitive among us. Does aggress really need to exist? No, I aver. There are purists who detest diagnose, but to this layperson, it deserves its place in our lexicon.

Some more dubious back formations are variations on words that already exist and serve admirably, making these formulations useless. For example, administrate serves no higher purpose than administer does. The same goes for cohabitate to stand in for cohabit, conversate for converse, orientate for orient, or remediate for remedy. These words are superfluous and overly Latinate. Off with their capita!

You can always create more words in English, although they may not be the most legitimately pedigreed. Russian is actually similar because of the use of so many suffixes. Weve all encountered the canonical Russian novel that leaves us wondering if there are indeed 3,000 characters because of the languages naming conventions. How does Sergei Feodorovich Bastanin become Seryozhichka? It happens in parts, with the base name of Ser- and then appending three different diminutives: yozh, ich, and ka. The string of diminutives is quite contrived, so chances are you will not hear such a construction, but it is a possibility.

If you are a sort who likes to play with words, in Scrabble or otherwise, you may enjoy this list of little lexical snacks.

Why does any of this matter? Ah, the hill of beans argument. Ultimately, my thinking, playing, and writing on neologisms and back formation do not amount to much in the world beyond. But these activities, however diverting or inutile, are how new words genesize. (That could totally be a word.)
by Thomas ODwyer

The career of Kenneth Widmerpool defined an era of British social and cultural life spanning most of the 20th century. He is fictional  a character in Anthony Powells 12-volume sequence, A Dance to the Music of Time  but he is as memorable as any historical figure. In the first volume, he is a colourless Eton public schoolboy. Across the series, he tunnels his way under British upper-class and bohemian society. A powerful and sinister self-made monster, he even gains a life peerage. In the final volume, the aged Widmerpool joins a hippie cult and dies naked while chasing girls in the woods. Widmerpool lived and prospered in the solid certainties of his acquired culture. He died in the midst of its fragmentation.

Widmerpool was an original snowflake  one who believed that he was so unique that greatness and adulation were his destiny. His lowly father sold fertilisers. His mother raised him to be this snowflake with an inflated uniqueness that would override his mediocrity. The metaphor then was poetic  snowflakes are lovely, and no two are alike.

Today, we have a snowflake generation, defined by British author Claire Fox in her 2016 book I Find That Offensive!: It is a derogatory term for one deemed too vulnerable to cope with views that challenge their own, particularly in universities and other forums once known for robust debate. With some irony, these delicate modern snowflakes are also called new Victorians.

The collapse of cultural certainties was most clear in Britain but rippled through all Western societies. The origin of certain culture-war debates, which erupt from time to time like temperamental volcanoes, is pinned on one Englishman, Lord Charles Percy Snow. A chemist and novelist, Snow in 1959 published The Two Cultures and the Scientific Revolution. He first delivered it as a lecture at Cambridge University. Snow observed that a group of educated people talking in a room would make allusions drawn from books and the arts. Not one of them would be expected to make, or understand, a reference to the second law of thermodynamics. Half of human culture  science  appeared to be non-existent for literary intellectuals.

Snow found this odd and alarming, and he considered it a problem whose solution was obvious.

In an advancing civilisation, science should have an equal place in schools alongside literature and the arts. A bi-cultural snowflake should be well-rounded  like Snow himself, although he never implied that. (Wags remarked that he was so well rounded he was almost spherical). When considering Snow, its impossible not to think of Widmerpool. Snow and Anthony Powell were friendly acquaintances and Snow too wrote a sequence of novels, Strangers and Brothers. It ran to 11 volumes, one less than Powells work. Powells magnum opus is still read and well regarded, but Snows has vanished onto the forgotten bookshelves of history. It is for his cultural theory he is still known and debated.

For academics, The Two Cultures is a convenient old hat rack, of little value in itself, parked in the office of the Chronicle of Higher Education for them to hang their grievances upon it  tenure, nerds, corporate hegemony, wars on science, snowflake students and, oh, the inhumanities. (A sample of Chronicle article titles this year  The Two Cultures Fallacy; The End of Literary Studies?; The Intellectual War on Science). These are the Snow-flakes now. Old theories never die, but they do sometimes reverse themselves like a magnetic field. In a world where technology geeks dominate and classical humanities have withered, Snows theory has flipped.

The average person can pass through daily life without being aware of any such cultural divide. The world has definitely moved on. It was moving even in Snows day, as he acknowledged in a less well known second look edition of his book in 1963. Even in 1959, reviewers noted that Snow was revisiting a debate that had developed during the Industrial Revolution. English philosopher William Whewell coined the words scientist and physicist only in the 19th century. Before him, those investigating nature were natural philosophers. Friedrich Nietzsche tried to put science in its place. It is totally dependent upon philosophical opinions for all of its goals and methods, though it easily forgets this, he wrote. Before the newly invented scientists and physicists forked off into a world of their own, culture was just life, in all its variety of attitudes, behaviours and ideas.

Away from the world of academic snarling, the concept of two cultures does look flaky. Scientists continue to do their science and relax with one of the arts  a novel, a concert, a movie. The artists continue to practice their crafts. Giving thanks for the gifts of science, they also check their smartphone apps for ideas and information, or to schedule medical appointments. In The Third Culture, in 1995, John Brockman added a new concept. His third culture was a group of well-known scientists who directly explained their new ideas to the public in plain English. The late Stephen Hawkings A Brief History of Time and Yuval Hararis Sapiens, prove that these bridge-builders exist and thrive. Their book sales would not shame Stephen King or John Grisham.

But where does that leave nerds, economists and politicians on Snows updated spectrum of Western ideas? There is another fly in the cultural ointment that many in the debate ignore  religion. Snow himself did not attack religion, but ignorance. And yet its interference is still with us, the unwanted preacher at the party. Traditional Christians could not abide the fact-based meddlings of scientists in their dogmas. With its philosophy and art, religion hovered for a while on the humanities side of the cultural divide, before forking off on its own road to nowhere. Now, when allied to politics, religion lends pernicious fervour to creationists, climate-change deniers and elected hypocrites. The triumphant scientists, engineers and their postmodern acolytes, the computer nerds, have created our modern world. It does seem odd that scientists created their engineering, medicine and gadgetry under the noses of an ever more educated public who remained oblivious to how they were doing it. As civilisation in the West became more comfortable, the leisured middle classes would continue to chatter about their books, plays, concerts and movies. None or few, as the science-educated Lord Snow griped, argued over the second law of thermodynamics.

There is, of course, more general interest in all the sciences now, with the plethora of popular books, magazines and videos on its various topics. Science fiction has blurred the line in literature but science facts also offer us mysteries as profound as any ancient legends. In the movie Arrival, a linguist and a physicist together investigate the nature of an alien race. The much loved Big Bang Theory exposed a mass audience to more science than theyd never heard of in a television sitcom. We can see modern culture in careers people choose, not in some random sample of arty types failing to discuss quantum physics. (Thank you at least, Mr. Schrodinger, for the folksy quantum-cat riddle). If you are going into medicine, manufacturing or the military, youd better be able to manage mathematics and physics, including that damn second law. If your inclination is writing, music, movie-making or modern dance, you can survive without mathematics. You can even play with a mere artists concept of second-law entropy or the arrow of time.

So is the cultural convergence of the arts and sciences a done deal? In the room, do women come and go, talking of science and C.P. Snow? Not quite, for the passe wrangling remains alive and unwell in dreary schools and universities. Schools fret because girls remain reluctant to take STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering, maths). The two cultures, apparently, are stubbornly gender dependent. In universities, the debates are about funds and relevance. The humanities were once masters of their universe with their Greek, Latin, Shakespeare and French critical theories. Now they are an impoverished former aristocracy, discredited orphans of Jacques Derrida and postmodern mumbo-jumbo. The shiny new offices and stunning laboratories go to the science faculty, administrators burgeon. The business types, opportunist as ever, have merged their dismal empiricism with the scientists. If its not measured, its not managed, so business is a science now, not the art of the deal it once was. Scientists may disagree; so too may the rest of us when billionaires burrow into politics.

Some intellectuals think literati are still too ignorant about science. Many of the scientists Ive met have read all the novels Ive read, have been to the opera, know the partitas of Bach, British author Ian McEwan said in a 2010 interview. They know our stuff and we dont know their stuff, and I do feel a little flush of intellectual embarrassment about this.

Yet, Snows division was always too simple. Scientist Noam Chomsky wrote: It is quite possible  probable, one might guess  that we will always learn more about human life  from novels than from scientific psychology. And there was G.H. Hardy, who explained the mathematicians mind: A mathematician, like a painter or a poet, is a maker of patterns  I am interested in mathematics only as a creative art.

Britain was quite an anti-intellectual philistine place in the 1960s. Even for middle and upper-class snobs like the fictional Widmerpool, learning was a veneer. Beneath the Greek odes and Latin aphorisms, these elites were boorish, selfish, bigoted and misogynist. C.P. Snow was not an elitist and did not elevate them. What he lamented was a time when serious literature was also popular literature, and he hoped only to add some science to the intellectual mix. Dickens, Thackeray, Tolstoy, Gogol, Flaubert, Zola were best-selling authors in the 19th century.

A few decades on, technology is the flavour of the new century. Being a nerd has never been so cool. In academia, humanities and arts have been not only dethroned, but sent to the basement. Culture is no longer an exploration of humanity, but a means to impoverish it with diversion. T.S. Eliot wrote in Four Quartets that we are distracted from distraction by distraction. Pop culture has triumphed in most artistic fields. In many places, the very idea of artistic permanence is scorned and material wealth has allied with cultural degradation. Much of Western culture depends now on celebrity, shock, instant gratification  and avoiding intellectual effort. Literature, cinema, music may be labelled lite  even the effort to write the correct word light is too much. Its a what the people want culture for the Twitter feeds of snowflakes.

Snow cannot be blamed for this any more than a canary can be blamed for a mine explosion. Now, snowflakes might be a fourth culture  if so, its time to declare enough already. In 2016 some lecturers at the University of Oxford introduced so-called trigger warnings. These alert students to subjects that might upset them. (Presumably, this would include frog dissection and the gouging of the Earl of Gloucesters eyes in King Lear). This practice has expanded to students who react  with religious fervour?  against anyone or anything that could offend them, including political opinions. Their no-platforming tactics prohibit speakers on controversial topics from even setting foot on a campus. When you hear the word controversy, reach for your trigger.

In 2015, an angry confrontation took place between screaming, weeping, almost hysterical Yale University students and their faculty Head of College over culturally insensitive Halloween costumes. The video footage went viral and caused widespread outrage. Claire Fox described the students behaviour as classic generation snowflake.

While we were keeping a wary eye on the dangerous right, our cultural defences were being ouflanked on the extreme left. Authoritarian, narcissistic, and fanatical snowflakes threaten to coalesce into an avalanche of intolerance when anything jangles their delicate nerves or infallible certainties. At this point, we might permit C.P. Snow or Kenneth Widmerpool an elitist harumph from beyond the weed-covered graveyard of their classical culture. It would be in Latin  Horace, of course.

Odi profanum vulgus et arceo  I hate the unholy rabble and keep them at a distance.
by Jeroen Bouterse

The past years have seen many debates about the limits of science. These debates are often phrased in the terminology of scientism, or in the form of a question about the status of the humanities. Scientism is a notoriously vague term, and its vagueness can be put to the advantage of either side. If you position yourself among the ranks of those fighting against scientific overreach, it helps to define scientism as the easily refuted view that there is no knowledge outside of science; dont the humanities produce knowledge as well? If, on the other hand, you believe that the methods and results of science can still profitably be exported to new markets, you will need as harmless a definition as possible  scientism becomes nothing more, for instance, than the claim that science encourages us to make an effort to understand things.

Are we bound to talk past each other, then, adapting our language to fit our intuitions? Not necessarily. Scientism can be the label for a well-defined philosophical position, and several articles in a recent volume on the subject manage to prep it for conceptual analysis. This is never a waste of time. However, interesting discussions can also take place in the grey zone between philosophical analysis and vague intuitions.

My favorite example of this comes from the 19th century. It concerns an exchange between Thomas Henry Huxley and Matthew Arnold. Neither of them use the term scientism, or provide a formal definition of the issue, but both manage in a delightful way to have a productive debate about the reach of science.

Huxley is now most famous as Darwins bulldog: the enthusiastic promoter and exegete of Charles Darwin. Darwin himself took care not to go beyond defending the content of his new theory of evolution, which was radical and controversial enough as it stood. To his friend Asa Gray he confessed that he found his knowledge of the more gruesome phenomena in nature hard to square with belief in a good and omnipotent God; but when he received letters from eager theology students asking him to clarify the implications of his theory for divinity, he tended, ever-politely, to evade them.

His younger friend Huxley was more belligerent: upon reading the Origin of Species, he ensured Darwin that he was already sharpening up my claws & beak in readiness. In practice, this meant not just defending Darwins claims, but also spelling out their broader repercussions in well-attended public debates. Science for Huxley was not just a body of theories, but a vocation, a way of life, and the center of gravity of his naturalistic worldview.

This worldview he advocated tirelessly, against everyone who tried to belittle science and its fruits. In 1880 Huxley was asked to speak upon the occasion of the opening of a new college, whose benefactor, Josiah Mason, had explicitly demanded that the college not limit itself to mere literary instruction and education. Huxley knew that this was a controversial demand  the nineteenth century had seen vigorous debates on the topics best suited for education  and he decided to defend it, pre-emptively striking against the classical scholars who were bound to object to it.

How often have we not been told that the study of physical science is incompetent to confer culture; that it touches none of the higher problems of life; and, what is worse, that the continual devotion to scientific studies tends to generate a narrow and bigoted belief in the applicability of scientific methods to the search after truth of all kinds. (Italics mine.)

As a representative of this anticipated humanist objection, Huxley chose the poet and literary critic Matthew Arnold. Arnold had recently defended the study of literature  the best that has been thought and said in the world  as the means of a criticism of life. Huxley dealt with this statement in all seriousness: Arnold and Huxley were good friends, who knew, respected and on occasion defended each others views on education. Which is not to say that the differences between them were not principled.

In his lecture, Huxley agrees that culture requires more than technical skill; it implies a view of life in its fullness. However, this does not settle the question, for science is a source of culture too. The knowledge we have acquired in recent centuries simply has greatly altered our perspective on the big questions: the place of the earth in the universe, the place of man in the world, the history of this world  on all of these issues it has become impossible to believe the things our forefathers believed. In this sense, science has delivered the most potent criticism of life conceivable, going further than any study of letters, because it is unique in not relying upon authority but only on nature. It bids the learner seek for truth not among words but among things. This is not to say that there is no place for literature or classical study; it is just to make the point that the life that science has on offer is far richer than those old-fashioned humanists tend to assume.

Huxleys celebration of science resonates well with the arguments of recent defenders of scientism, and he makes a strong case that science is quite plainly too significant to be confined to the status of a mere instrument. Its findings and its procedures bear upon our deepest convictions, our noblest ideals, our highest values.

Now imagine that you feel you need to push back against this. Several options are available. You could contend that Huxley has not cared to define science, so in a sense there isnt a real case to answer. You could say that his implicit definition of science is essentialist and utopian. You could point out the gap between statements of fact and statements of value. All of these are pertinent objections, yet they dont seem to cut it. They seem to pale in significance before Huxleys contention that our whole theory of life has long been influenced, consciously or unconsciously, by the general conceptions of the universe, which have been forced upon us by physical science. It matters if the earth is not the center of the cosmos, if elementary particles behave according to mathematical laws, if life evolves according to the Darwinian mechanisms of mutation and natural selection.

Matthew Arnold takes none of these routes. He responds to Huxley a few years later, using the occasion of the Rede Lecture in Cambridge (reference below; a similar version of the argument can be read online here). To be fair, Arnold does define science, namely as systematic learning traced back to its original sources. He relates this definition to the broader sense that the term has in German scholarship. Under this definition there is no immediate conflict between letters and natural science; a genuine humanism is scientific (219). But the main thrust of his argument is less semantic and far more generous. Yes, among the best that has been thought and said in the world we also need to count the great observers of nature; yes, the results of science are a part our culture; yes, the habits science encourages are most valuable.

It is only late in his lecture, and carefully, that Arnold parts ways with Huxley. To this end, he distinguishes between knowledge that is primarily instrumental and knowledge that we can relate to our sense for conduct, to our sense of beauty (222).

Do you think you know where this argument is heading? Then brace yourself. Arnold is not going to make the worn-out case that science is a tool and letters are the end. The natural sciences are emphatically not instrument-knowledges. On the contrary. People find themselves interested in natural phenomena, much more than in obscure intricacies of grammar. When Darwin teaches us that our ancestor was a hairy quadruped, or when Huxley says that nature is the expression of a definite order with which nothing interferes, we feel a strong instinctive desire to make something of this; we need to relate our new-found knowledge to our ethics and our aesthetics.

Science is culturally relevant, there is no question about it; but the ways in which it is relevant are not self-explanatory, and scientists dont usually deign to explain them. When older syntheses of knowledge, morality and beauty become obsolete, we need humane letters, or the humanities (a term Arnold uses less frequently but interchangeably) all the more urgently. Huxley says that new scientific notions are fatal to those of our forefathers. Well, says Arnold:

Grant to him that they are thus fatal, that they must and will become current everywhere, and that every one will finally perceive them to be fatal to the beliefs of our forefathers. The need of humane letters, as they are truly called, because they serve the paramount desire in men that good should be for ever present to them,  the need of humane letters to establish a relation between the new conceptions and our instinct for beauty, our instinct for conduct, is only the more visible (225)

We need to absorb this new science; but almost all of us will also need sources outside of science in order to make sense of the new world we live in. Arnolds lecture is, in the end, not apologetic, but quite sanguine about the place of letters in our culture. They will survive, and even remain prominent, because the need for them is firmly grounded in our nature.

There is more to this than we can unpack here, and obviously there are many conceivable objections to Arnolds argument as well. How does the classical literary canon help us to come to grips with 19th-century science, for instance? Arnold believes quite literally that it is in our nature to need to learn Greek, in which case our nature seems to be in some trouble after all.

Still, Arnolds lecture is quite remarkable in building a positive case for the need of literature and the humanities that does not depend on playing down the importance of science. There are no limits to the epistemic, moral and aesthetic repercussions science can have in principle; it is not excluded from relevance on a priori grounds; no skeptical arguments are being brought against its more ambitious claims. The only thing is that the cultural relevance of science is not self-explanatory; it requires interpretation.

We can put a less philhellenic, slightly more democratic spin on Arnolds argument, and bring it back to the 21st century. There have, in the meantime, been plenty of robust scientific and technological discoveries that seem to force upon us a rethinking of our place in the world and our values. We can modify DNA, we can scan our brain in action, we can assess our impact on global climate and temperatures, we can build computers that beat us at quiz games. These and many more facts, in Arnolds terms, relate to our sense for conduct, our sense for beauty; the notion that we can wall them off, that science and technology cant or shouldnt touch our values, seems slow and weak  its the tortoise explaining why Achilles cant catch it.

At the same time, the world doesnt tell us what all of this means, and our scientific informers of it have no inherent claim to more wisdom. Not one of our new discoveries and inventions detracts from Arnolds claim that we are in need of sources of criticism, that there will always be use for the best that has been thought and said in the world. On the contrary. But this best does not need to be an ancient Greek or Western canon. Arnold is at his best when he provides us with literary examples that do not rely on their status as part of an authoritative tradition for their strength, but rather whose very power encourages us to wonder if there is more where that came from.

Science seems simply irresistible  No wisdom, nor counsel, nor understanding, against the Eternal, says Arnold (217). And simply by doing that, by letting ancient literature (the Bible, book of Proverbs) evoke the irresistibility and inevitability of his subject rather than merely stating it flatly, he is making a point. The humanities arent even optional; the hold that letters have over us is as overpowering as the scientific truths about us that Huxley has been listing in his lecture. And so we have turned in favour of the humanities the No wisdom, nor understanding, nor counsel, against the Eternal! Which seemed against them when we started (229), Arnold summarizes  with some deserved pride.

Reference:

Matthew Arnold, Literature and Science, The Rede Lecture. The Nineteenth Century: A Monthly Review. Aug. 1882, 216-230.
Wings defenseman Hugo Allais follows unlikely path from France

The defenseman from Amiens, France was in his fifth year in Quebec when the league he was playing in wasnt allowed a regular season.
This Labor Day, we should honor the western worlds oldest form of occupational training  apprenticeships. By learning first-hand from an experienced tradesperson, an apprentice acquires mastery of a trade. This hands-on method equips participants with the right skills and experience to transition directly into a job. Apprenticeship programs are the answer to the construction industrys skilled-labor shortage.

Unfortunately, there are misconceptions surrounding apprenticeship in the construction trades. Perhaps the biggest obstacle is a blue-collar image that stifles interest among young people, along with the widely held view that a college degree is the first step in entering the workforce. This thinking is misguided. College degrees do not produce the same quality of worker as intensive, on-the-job apprenticeships. Employers see a real lack of skill level from college graduates as opposed to apprenticeships where on-the-job training along with teaching the theory produces highly skilled workers. Mike Rowe, best known for the show Dirty Jobs, is one of the popular advocates for apprenticeship, and he works daily to challenge the belief a college degree is the only pathway to success.

The earn while you learn apprenticeship model is an ideal win-win for the employer and the employee. An apprentice comes out of the program with a job and virtually no college debt because the program is paid for by the employer. The employer wins because employers find apprenticeships help with retention, as workers who come up through apprenticeships see the investment their employers are making in their career and reciprocate with a greater sense of loyalty. Additionally, they are getting an employee who has been trained in world-class safety  an essential for any worker.

At Associated Builders and Contractors, we train in seven of the building trades  electrical, plumbing, carpentry, sheet metal, masonry, HVAC and laborer. Every day we see success stories; apprentices buying homes, taking care of their families, experiencing the American dream. Our apprentices see the opportunities ahead, along with a clearly defined career path in their chosen trade.

With experts predicting a growth in the construction industry that will see building returning to pre-recession levels by 2020, now is the time to train workers to fill the skilled-labor shortage being produced by retiring baby boomers.
Joaquin Oliver would have turned 18 years old on Aug. 4 had he not been killed on Valentines Day, along with 16 other students and staff, at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland, Fla. Like many student survivors of the Parkland massacre, Joaquins parents, Manuel and Patricia Oliver, have become gun control activists. Had Joaquin lived, Aug. 4 would have been a day of celebration. Instead, Manuel and Patricia joined other activists outside the headquarters of the National Rifle Association in Fairfax, Va. Manuel wore a shirt that day that read, Books not Magazines. The artful play on words included a stylized AR-15 semi-automatic rifle embedded in the word Magazines, highlighting the large ammunition capacity of the weapon  the gun of choice of mass shooters in the U.S.

The phrase took on another meaning when it was reported Education Secretary Betsy DeVos was considering allowing federal education funds to be used to buy guns to arm teachers in the classroom.

This proposal is, to put it in simple terms, outrageous, Adam Skaggs, chief counsel at the Giffords Law Center to Prevent Gun Violence, told us on the Democracy Now! news hour. The organization was founded by Gabby Giffords, who, when a member of Congress, survived a mass shooting in her home district in Tucson. At a time when we are seeing schools that lack the resources to buy books, to buy school supplies for our classrooms, the idea of diverting federal funds to be used to arm teachers is not only a terrible idea, he said, we believe it violates federal law.

At least 170 Democratic members of Congress agree DeVos diversion of funds from the Student Support and Academic Enrichment Grants program would violate both the letter and the intent of the law. Rep. Bobby Scott of Virginia spearheaded a joint letter instructing DeVos that Congress never contemplated, and thus never intended that these Department of Education funds would be used for the procurement of firearms. 

Democratic Sen. Chris Murphy of Connecticut has introduced a bill that would prevent these funds, intended to enrich this nations poorest schools, from being used to buy weapons.  He had been a congressman representing Newtown, Conn., when the Sandy Hook Elementary School massacre took place. Murphy, questioning DeVos during her confirmation hearing, asked, You cant say definitively today that guns shouldnt be in schools? DeVos, citing a school in Wyoming, said I would imagine that theres probably a gun in the school to protect from potential grizzlies.

Randi Weingarten, president of the American Federation of Teachers, calls the DeVos plan insane. She said on Democracy Now!: Its reprehensible. Its morally outrageous.  The funds that she wants to use, first off, last year she tried to get rid of these funds. These go for summer school programs, after school programs, guidance counselors, restorative justice, helping kids learn how to defuse crisis, mental health supports. 

Teachers are striking in Washington state, following teachers strikes across the country, from West Virginia to Kentucky to Oklahoma, where teachers are paid some of the nations lowest salaries. Teachers are demanding not only higher pay, but adequate funding for their schools as well.

Weingarten said: Think about it: A kindergarten teacher wearing a holster with a handgun, what does that say to her children? The only entit(ies) it seems to help (are) the NRA and the gun manufacturers.

Currently, DeVos is reportedly at the research stage of using public education funds to buy guns. Opposition, from Congress, educators and grass-roots groups, will be crucial to block it. As Manuel and Patricia Oliver wrote recently, before protesting outside the NRAs headquarters on what would have been their son Joaquins 18th birthday, We dont want thoughts. We dont want prayers. We want change.
As an entrepreneur or small-business owner, finding money to grow your business is hard, and looking for a small-business loan is often a lonely and confusing search.

Luckily, there are organizations in New Mexico whose goal is to support these people as they develop and expand their businesses.

One such organization is Three Sisters Kitchen, which was founded as a direct response to small, local farmers and food entrepreneurs asking for training and commercial kitchen space to experiment, test, and develop food businesses in an accessible location. Three Sisters director, Anzia Bennett, got wind of these challenges, and helped them by creating a culinary-friendly space and a unique loan option  Nusenda Credit Unions Co-op Capital program, which works with community organizations to vet and set loan terms for businesses in their networks.

The challenges these farmers and aspiring food entrepreneurs face in their search are not unique. Co-op Capital is a program that was borne out of many months of listening to the challenges that small-business owners in Albuquerque commonly faced when trying to secure loans  they didnt perform well on traditional criteria for creditworthiness or didnt have business models that the lenders understood. As a result, they were offered packages with limited financing and challenging rates and repayment terms, or they had their loan requests outright declined. Nusenda recognized this barrier to access is a critical hurdle for Albuquerque as it builds its local economy. To try and address this, Co-op Capital decided to turn the question of Who deserves a loan? on its head.

Nusenda saw and heard stories of businesses both in Albuquerque and around the state that were stagnant because theyre not able to access capital. So in designing the Co-op Capital program, the credit unions approach was to leverage its relationships with existing partners to create an option that redefines who deserves a loan, and for what purpose.

Through the Co-op Capital program, Nusenda works with trusted organizations like Three Sisters that already bank with the credit union and can serve as a trusted connector between funding and the small businesses in its network. Each connector organization works with Nusenda to develop its own loan evaluation criteria and set loan terms, and then uses their depository accounts to guarantee loans made to small businesses in their networks.

Three Sisters plans to offer Co-op Capital loans to graduates of their Food Business Training Program who will have received a variety of training in ways to bring their products and businesses to market successfully. All involved have a strong incentive to set terms that are fair and reasonable. These business owners and entrepreneurs are part of the Three Sisters community, and helping businesses grow is part of the Three Sisters mission. There are incentives to repay the loan because they rely on the Three Sisters network for customers and relationships as well as business advice.

Community and networks have proven to be powerful collateral. Co-op Capital had a humble start as a pilot program in 2012, and since then it has made more than $600,000 in loans to nearly 300 entrepreneurs, with a delinquency rate of only 1 percent, significantly outperforming the national average.

As we open our doors, we are so excited to be offering Co-op Capital as a wraparound service to our training program graduates, Bennett says. These loans address the issues of access and equity by providing opportunities for our graduates to thrive in the food industry that otherwise would not be available to them.

Thanks to support from the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, this year the Co-op Capital program expanded to include 10 new affiliate organizations, including Three Sisters, the South Valley Economic Development Center, Family Independence and the Street Food Institute. These partner organizations will support city-wide goals for entrepreneurship, economic development, and family financial mobility.

With so many success stories from the past few years, Nusenda Credit Union is excited to explore how the Co-op Capital model can help a wider range of small business owners pursue their goals in New Mexico.
The Sandoval County Fire Department is on the scene of a large brush fire at the Santo Domingo Pueblo.

According to the departments Facebook page, the fire has blackened about 12 acres and is still growing as of 7:40 p.m. Sunday.

There are numerous resources on the scene containing the fire. No structures have been lost.

Resources have been requested from other fire agencies to assist.

The pueblo is about 40 miles north of Albuquerque.

This is a developing story.
Copyright  2018 Albuquerque Journal

A subtle new work of art will soon add to the magic of the National Hispanic Cultural Center campus while paying tribute to a couple who were instrumental in its creation.

After a request for qualification was issued in March for a project for the Plaza Mayor, New Mexico-based artist Paula Castillo was chosen to install her work at the center.

The request for qualification said the art couldnt be on the actual Plaza Mayor, Castillo said. Then I started to look around and see what else is there. I saw a shadow being cast and wondered if I could design something around it. I obviously didnt want to encroach or change the beautiful facade to the building.

Three pieces will be installed between the two outdoor staircases of the main building: una cupola oculta, or hidden dome; la sentinela; and an argosy bench.

The hidden dome will be made of cut steel with a motif iteration of the tree of life designed to look like an Easter lily. The sentinela will be cast concrete. The argosy bench will also be cast concrete and able to hold six people.

The site-specific piece is to commemorate the substantial contributions of Virginia and Edward Lujan to the creation and continued significance of the NHCC. Completion of the project is expected by the end of the year.

The Lujans are known for their solid, yearslong support of the NHCC and community. Virginia Lujan passed away in early 2018.

Edward Lujan served as chair of the NHCC and NHCC Foundation boards for many years and was a major player in the establishment of the cultural center, a state government agency in the Department of Cultural Affairs.

Rebecca Avitia, NHCC executive director, said about the piece, I believe it will be a focal point to the campus. It adds a little bit of femininity to the angular and masculine campus.

Avitia said the exciting part about the piece is that is will be interactive.

On Virginia Lujans birthday, the piece will cast a shadow, and what will be seen are four Easter lilies, Avitia said. On Edward Lujans birthday, a shadow will be cast in a different way.

Castillo said the goal was to create a memorial to honor the Lujans.

Their personal values and daily lived lives are fundamental to their familial and community legacy, Castillo said. An important artistic goal is to personalize their contributions, while maintaining respect for their larger overarching legacy.

Avitia said she loves that the piece captures the humble leadership of the Lujans.

Virginia and Edward are very familial, Avitia said. They have used that particular approach of leadership and have infused it into the cultural center. This piece is prominent and invites for private reflection.

Castillo says all pieces will physically exploit the facets of the architecture, art and solar system.

The cupola will provide a contrast of a form that offers a hidden experience but will not dissipate original architecture.

The cost for the entire project is $75,000.

Our hope is to have an event revealing the piece and celebrating it on Dec. 24, Avitia said. Were aiming for an install after our major events in September.
Copyright  2018 Albuquerque Journal

Editors note: The FBI and federal prosecutors relied on cooperators to take down more than 120 members and associates of the notorious Syndicato de Nuevo Mexico prison gang. More than a dozen were convicted at trial or pleaded guilty to murder in aid of furthering the gangs racketeering activities. Some cooperators had criminal histories as violent as the men they testified against. Roy Paul Shadow Martinez is a case in point. This story is the second in a two-day series, and contains graphic content that describes violence some may find offensive.

Roy Paul Martinez credits Matthew Cavalier with saving his life in prison in 1995.

He told me, Man, I like you, youngster. Youre a good dude and they ordered me to hit you by Sunday and I cant do it, man. 

That good deed haunted Martinez when the Syndicato de Nuevo Mexico prison gang ordered him to kill Cavalier five years later.

I could talk to him, and, also, he was a good dude, Martinez testified earlier this year in U.S. District Court.

Martinez told federal court jurors he and Cavalier became friends while in neighboring prison cells. When the time came for him to kill Cavalier in 2000, he testified, I kind of wanted to tell him (about the SNM hit), the way he did to me. He spared my life; he tried to warn me. But my loyalty was to the SNM, and I had feared the consequences of not taking care of that. So I made a ligature.

Even as he braided torn jail sheets into the ligature used to strangle Cavalier, Martinez testified, Im thinking about attempting to go tell him.

Martinez, who rose to be a high-ranking SNM leader, testified as a government cooperator in a massive federal prosecution aimed at dismantling the 38-year-old violent prison gang. It marked the first time Martinez, now 45, publicly detailed his role in two Albuquerque murders that made headlines from 1998 to 2001.

Back in 1995, Martinez was 21 when he arrived at the state Penitentiary in Santa Fe on an aggravated assault conviction. He wasnt an SNM gang member yet, but found himself in a dispute with an inmate from another prison gang that was negotiating a peace treaty with the SNM.

To settle the matter, SNM agreed to kill Martinez.

But Martinez testified that SNM member Cavalier, also known as Moscow, campaigned to spare his life.

By August 2000, Cavalier had been released from prison but was back in jail in Albuquerque on a parole violation.

Some years earlier, SNM leaders branded Cavalier a snitch for cooperating with law enforcement in a prior prison slaying, and he was greenlighted by the gang, or marked for death.

So Martinez, awaiting trial on a 1998 murder charge at the time, joined two other SNM members at the then-Bernalillo County Detention Center to carry out the hit. We (decided) we couldnt let him leave alive.

It all went according to plan, he testified. They entered Cavaliers cell to smoke a cigarette together. When Martinez, also known as Shadow, tossed the cigarette into the toilet, that was the signal for the others to jump up and grab Cavalier.

My back was turned (at the toilet) but I knew what was happening. I could hear it  the scuffle  and I heard Rabs (Samuel Silva) put that grip on. I call it a death grip.

With one inmate holding Cavaliers legs and Silva his upper body, Martinez pulled the homemade ligature off his waist to wrap around Cavaliers neck.

And hes staring at me all the time. I tried not to look at him. I tried to avoid him, and he says, Dont do it, Roy.

Those were his last words. That Ill never forget. But I tuned it out.

Cavalier, trying to keep his chin down, was struggling and fighting. With one hand, Martinez pulled back Cavaliers head.

I put my knee on the back of his head and held it there because I was losing strength, Martinez testified. I was wearing down. Then it was slow motion. I heard his neck pop.  So he kind of went limp, and, then, I dont know, seconds later he died.

It was 14 hours before jail guards discovered Cavaliers body.

Martinezs hands were swollen with ligature marks. He and three other SNM members, including Gerald Styx Archuleta, were initially charged in Cavaliers murder. All but Silva pleaded guilty.

Martinez took the rap, he said, so charges would be dismissed against his SNM brother Silva.

We call it carnalismo,' Martinez testified.

Not his first murder

Cavalier wasnt Martinezs first murder victim. In 1998, Martinez fatally shot his girlfriend of two months, Albuquerque Police Department Sgt. Cheryl Tiller.

Martinez, then 25, had just been released from prison when he met Tiller through her niece, who worked near an Albuquerque truck stop where Martinez sold drugs.

Tiller was aware of his criminal activity, he testified, and said she would help connect me with people she knew could help me grow bigger and do more things (as a drug trafficker).

Martinez was on the run after breaking parole by cutting off his ankle bracelet. But one night, Tiller was off duty and wanted to go for a drive. He thought it strange when she told him to leave his ID at home.

We went through a couple of (law enforcement) checkpoints, and she flashed her badge at them, and we went right through, he testified.

Tiller parked her truck near the Petroglyphs National Monument, and Martinez noticed a car parked 100 yards away. The car had its headlights off and was facing them.

Thats where people go to hide away their little sins, he testified. I had a bad vibe.

His fears mounted. So he hugged and kissed Tiller to get close enough to grab her APD service revolver from her waistband. He told her to confess that she had set him up to be killed, but she resisted. He shot her three times.

There were no headlights. The only thing was the moonlight. And I just seen the shadow disappear.

Though news reports of his murder trial in Tillers death make no mention of a set-up, Martinez told a federal court jury earlier this year that he found out later that she was in debt to Mexican drug dealers for $70,000.

The people I met with her were these hard-core Mexicans that were big-time in Albuquerque, and they were some scary people. Those people dont care. Theyll bury you.

Tired of gang life

Martinez is serving a life sentence in state prison in Tillers death. His 15-year prison sentence in Cavaliers murder is running concurrently.

As a prosecution witness in the Syndicato racketeering case, Martinez testified that he no longer uses heroin.

After the murder of Moscow (Cavalier), I just stopped doing everything. I stopped everything.

He said he was also tired of the gang life.

I had already wrote letters (to Corrections officials) trying to ask a way out. I wanted a way out. But people like me, I was a leader, I guess they really didnt give a way out.

Why cooperate? one defense attorney asked Martinez.

My daughter, already in her 20s, pleaded with me, crying. She asked me when I am going to change my life?

After being indicted in the SNM racketeering case in 2015, Martinez pleaded guilty a year later to conspiring with other top ranked SNM members to kill then-state Corrections Secretary Gregg Marcantel and another top prison official.

I wanted him dead, Martinez said of Marcantel, who placed gang members on lockdown after the 2014 murder of an SNM member at Southern Correctional Facility in Las Cruces.

He told us that he decided to lock us down and keep us on restriction until we decide were not going to kill each other anymore, Martinez testified.

SNM leaders in turn began discussing a hit on Corrections officials. And Martinez wrote letters, beginning in early 2015, to recruit SNM hitmen in Albuquerque. Those letters ended up in the hands of Corrections and, ultimately, the FBI.

Martinez could face up to 20 years in federal prison for his role in the conspiracy but hasnt yet been sentenced.

While waiting to testify in the racketeering case, Martinez and other former SNM members-turned-informants attended a special philosophy class in state prison.

There, the instructor wanted us to change our thinking because of who we once were. Because we were used to thinking the gangster life and taking aggression out on certain things instead of talking out and trying to approach things differently.

And the classes helped, he testified, adding that hed like to take more.

Like dealing with the administration. When we dont get what we want, we used to go off and burn and do some pretty bad things to make their lives miserable. Now I just  I wait, be patient.  I just got to talk to them.

In late 2016, Martinez attended a prison pizza party Corrections officials threw for some SNM cooperators and their families.

FBI agents attended, and Corrections administrators gave speeches, he recalled.

They said they were happy we chose a different life. That were not the ruthless gangsters that they were used to dealing with, being they were having real serious problems with us over the years.

Some were real surprised the former SNM members had become cooperators, Martinez testified.

They said they never thought they would shake some of our hands. They know we have done very harmful things. They know we put hits on their bosses, and they know our records.

We are killers, you know.
BREAK IN THE CONSTRUCTION ACTION:

As the New Mexico State Fair, Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta and holiday shopping season  and all the resultant traffic  near, it is time once again for a road construction moratorium in certain parts of town.

It, and weather, are the big reasons so very much of the Metro-areas road work is done in the summer and orange barrels pop up like weeds after a monsoon. Now is the time of year we trade orange barrels for out-of-towners and Black Friday maniacs.

Johnny Chandler, public information coordinator for the citys Department of Municipal Development, explains in a news release that The Department of Municipal Development wants to make sure that all the roadways are clear and available for roadway users headed to and from these events. The construction moratorium adds more stringent control of construction and barricading activities within public right-of-ways by adding additional restrictions that are not currently in effect.

And that means:

 Today through Sept. 16 there will be the New Mexico State Fair Moratorium. That includes all streets bounded by, and including Menaul on the north, Pennsylvania on the east, Southern Blvd., on the south and San Mateo Blvd., on the west, plus key arterial and collector routes commonly used by attendees of this event.

 From Oct. 1 through Oct. 14 is the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta Moratorium. That includes all streets bounded by, and including, Roy/Tramway on the north, Interstate 25 on the east, Osuna on the south and Second on the west, plus key arterial and collector routes commonly used by attendees of this event. Additionally, the moratorium applies to the Old Town area, the Uptown area  Winrock and Coronado Shopping Malls  and the northwest area  Cottonwood Shopping Mall.

 From Nov. 21 through Jan. 1 is the Holiday Shopping Moratorium. That includes in the Old Town area all streets bounded by, and including, Mountain on the north, 19th on the east, Central on the south and Rio Grande on the west, plus key arterial and collector routes commonly used by shoppers to this area.

Also, in the Uptown area all streets bounded by, and including, Menaul on the north, Pennsylvania on the east, Interstate 40 on the south and San Pedro on the west, plus key arterial and collector routes commonly used by shoppers to this area.

And in the Northwest and Downtown areas  you guessed it  key arterial and collector routes commonly used by shoppers in these areas.

WHAT AM I NOT ENTERING ON ALAMEDA? G. Filion emails theres a Do Not Enter sign in the median on eastbound Alameda some distance past Ellison that has been there for years, but its not apparent what we are not to enter as theres no point of entry near this sign. The sign is clearly facing the eastbound traffic. Do you have any clue what this sign is restricting entry to?

Chandler does. He says the sign is from a time period on Alameda before the median was installed at that location. City of Albuquerque Traffic Engineering thanks this community member for bringing this to our attention, and we are going to remove that now unnecessary sign.

IN THE DARK UNDER THE BIG I: Bill Lord reports via email that there used to be coordinated color lights on three sections of columns under the Big I that are no longer working. Could you check on those?

Diane Wikler, marketing manager/public information officer for the citys Solid Waste Department, did. On Aug. 21 she said the Solid Waste Management Department is currently evaluating the technology available for this project as well as the costs associated with revamping the lights.

And as of Aug. 27, The Solid Waste Management Department has repaired all but one of these lights. We are continuing to work on this.

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.
Bernalillo County Commissioner Steven Michael Quezada and Albuquerque City Councilor Klarissa Pena are sponsoring a two-day career event offering job searching advice and a job fair  and participants can even get a free haircut.

The first day of the event Sept. 11 features 20-minute Steps to Success workshops designed to help job seekers spruce up their resume, interviewing skills and appearance.

Job seekers who sign up for the seminars will be eligible for a complimentary haircut, courtesy of The Avenue Academy.

Quezada said the event is a great chance to help people feel good about themselves and look good, too.

Its the perfect combination of ability and opportunity, Quezada said in a statement. We want to give people all of the personal tools to succeed.

The career fair will take place Sept. 14. Events on both days will take place at the South Valley Multipurpose Community Center at 2008 Larrazolo SW.

Interested job seekers can register online at EcoDevEventRSVP@bernco.gov or in person at Westside, Los Padillas, Mountain View and South Valley multipurpose community centers. More information can be found at www.bernco.gov/jobfair.

BROADBAND CHALLENGES: Bernalillo County Commissioner James Smith is sponsoring a panel discussion and open conversation about challenges to achieving reliable, consistent internet service in the East Mountains.

The program is slated for Saturday, Sept. 8, from 8:30 a.m. to noon at Los Vecinos Community Center, 478 NM 333 in Tijeras. Registration starts at 8 a.m.

This is an opportunity to have a frank and open discussion about the future of internet service in the East Mountain area, Smith said in a statement. The prime players and companies that have the insight and ability to effect change will be front and center in the discussion.

Scheduled panelists for the event are: Bernalillo County Sheriff Manuel Gonzales; Bernalillo County Fire Chief Greg Perez; Leo Baca, New Mexico government affairs director at CenturyLink; Damian Donckels, director of engineering at AT&T; and Steven Grabiel, president at Higher Speed Internet.

Interested residents can register at either East Mountain community center or by email to: Shawn Perry Turner at EcoDevEventRSVP@bernco.gov.

INPUT NEEDED: The city of Albuquerque is seeking public feedback about its official website, www.cabq.gov. Residents can complete an online survey at www.cabq.gov/survey of what they like and dislike about the website, as well as share ideas for improvement.

Public computers with free internet access are available at the citys libraries and community centers. The deadline to submit feedback is Sunday, Sept. 9.

Steve Knight: sknight@abqjournal.com
YANGON, Myanmar  A Myanmar court sentenced two Reuters journalists to seven years in prison Monday on charges of illegal possession of official documents, a ruling met with international condemnation that will add to outrage over the militarys human rights abuses against Rohingya Muslims.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo had been reporting on the brutal crackdown on the Rohingya when they were arrested and charged with violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, punishable by up to 14 years in prison. They had pleaded not guilty, contending that they were framed by police.

Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere, Stephen J. Adler, Reuters editor-in-chief, said in a statement. He said the charges were designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press.

The case has drawn worldwide attention as an example of how democratic reforms in long-isolated Myanmar have stalled under the civilian government of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, which took power in 2016. Though the military, which ruled the country for a half-century, maintains control of several key ministries, Suu Kyis rise to government had raised hopes for an accelerated transition to full democracy and her stance on the Rohingya crisis has disappointed many former admirers.

As the verdict was announced in the hot Yangon courtroom, Kyaw Soe Oos wife started crying, leaning into the lap of the person next to her. Outside the court, police and journalists shouted as the two Reuters reporters were led to a truck to be taken away.

This is unfair, Wa Lone told the crowd. I want to say they are obviously threatening our democracy and destroying freedom of the press in our country.

Kevin Krolicki, Reuters regional editor for Asia, said outside the court that it was heartbreaking for friends and colleagues and family of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who in addition to the outrage many will feel, are deprived of their friends and colleagues, husband and father.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, both testified they suffered from harsh treatment during their initial interrogations after their arrests last December. Their several appeals for release on bail were rejected. Wa Lones wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to the couples first child in Yangon on Aug. 10, but Wa Lone has not yet seen his daughter.

The two journalists had been reporting last year on the brutal crackdown by security forces on the Rohingya in Myanmars Rakhine state. Some 700,000 Rohingya fled to neighboring Bangladesh to escape the violence targeting them after attacks by Rohingya militants killed a dozen members of the security forces.

Investigators working for the U.N.s top human rights body said last week that genocide charges should be brought against senior Myanmar military officers over the crackdown.

The accusation of genocide was rejected by Myanmars government, but is the most serious official recommendation for prosecution so far. Also last week, Facebook banned Myanmars powerful military chief and 19 other individuals and organizations from its site to prevent the spread of hate and misinformation in connection with the Rohingya crisis.

Todays verdict cannot conceal the truth of what happened in Rakhine state, Tirana Hassan, Amnesty Internationals director of crisis response, said in a statement Monday. Its thanks to the bravery of journalists like Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, that the militarys atrocities have been exposed. Instead of targeting these two journalists, the Myanmar authorities should have been going after those responsible for killings, rape, torture and the torching of hundreds of Rohingya villages.

U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley said in a statement the convictions were another terrible stain on the government of Myanmar.

It is clear to all that the Burmese military has committed vast atrocities, she said. In a free country, it is the duty of a responsible press to keep people informed and hold leaders accountable.

The new U.N. human rights chief, former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, called the trial a travesty of justice and said she would urge the Myanmar government to release the journalists immediately.

Dozens of journalists and pro-democracy activists marched Saturday in Yangon, Myanmars biggest city, in support of the reporters. But in the country at large, with an overwhelming Buddhist majority, there is widespread prejudice against the Rohingya, and in the government and military, there is near-xenophobic sensitivity to foreign criticism.

Myanmars courts are one of the countrys most conservative and nationalistic institutions, and the darkened political atmosphere had seemed unlikely to help the reporters cause.

The court earlier this year declined to stop the trial after an initial phase of presentation of evidence, even though a policeman called as a prosecution witness testified that his commander had ordered that documents be planted on the journalists. After his testimony, the officer was jailed for a year for violating police regulations and his family was kicked out of police housing.

Other testimony by prosecution witnesses was contradictory, and the documents presented as evidence against the reporters appeared to be neither secret nor sensitive. The journalists testified they did not solicit or knowingly possess any secret documents.
MIAMI BEACH, Fla.  Tropical Storm Gordon lashed South Florida with heavy rains and high winds on Monday and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane when it hits the central U.S. Gulf Coast.

Gordon formed into a tropical storm near the Florida Keys early Monday as it moved west-northwest at 17 mph (28 kph). The storm is expected to reach hurricane strength when it hits the Gulf Coast, including coastal Mississippi, by late Tuesday. From there, it is forecast to move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley on Wednesday.

The National Hurricane Center said at 11 p.m. EDT that the storm was centered 330 miles (530 kilometers) east-southeast of the mouth of the Mississippi River. Maximum sustained winds were clocked at 60 mph (95 kph).

A hurricane warning was put into effect for the area stretching from the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border. As much as 8 inches (20 centimeters) of rain could fall in some parts of the Gulf states through late Thursday.

The Miami-based center said the storm is also expected to bring life-threatening storm surge to portions of the central Gulf Coast. A storm surge warning has been issued for the area stretching from Shell Beach, Louisiana, to Dauphin Island, Alabama. The warning means there is danger of life-threatening inundation. The region could see rising waters of 3 to 5 feet (0.9 to 1.5 meters).

The deepest water will occur along the immediate coast near and to the east of the landfall location, where the surge will be accompanied by large waves, the center said.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency Monday and said 200 National Guard troops will be deployed to southeastern Louisiana.

The storms predicted track had shifted slightly east as of Monday evening, meaning Louisiana is currently just outside the area under the hurricane warning. Still, the southeastern part of the state remains under a tropical storm warning and residents need to be prepared for the storm to shift west, Edwards said.

This storm has every possibility to track further in our direction, Edwards said during a news conference Monday evening.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell held an afternoon news conference and said the city has the pumps and the power needed to protect residents. But authorities issued a voluntary evacuation order for areas outside the citys levee protection system, including the Venetian Isles, Lake Saint Catherine and Irish Bayou areas.

Cantrell urged residents within the levee protection area to stock up on supplies and shelter in place.

Miami Beach Police said via Twitter that the Labor Day holiday was NOT a beach day, with rough surf and potential rip currents. Red flags flew over Pensacola-area beaches in Floridas Panhandle, where swimming and wading in the Gulf of Mexico was prohibited. More than 4,000 Florida Power & Light customers lost power Monday due to weather conditions.

The National Weather Service said conditions were possible for tornadoes in the affected parts of South Florida on Monday night.

The storm left many businesses on Floridas Gulf Coast feeling shortchanged by the holiday weekend. The area has already been heavily impacted by this summers so-called red tide massive algae blooms that have caused waves of dead marine life to wash up along the coast.

Jenna Wright, owner of a coffee shop in Naples, Florida, told the Naples Daily News that she had expected higher numbers for the Labor Day weekend.

This is normally a decent weekend, but the storm and red tide arent helping, Wright said. Were a beach coffee shop, and if people cant go to the beach, then we wont get any customers.

Separately, Tropical Storm Florence continues to hold steady over the eastern Atlantic. Forecasters say little change in strength is expected in coming days and no coastal watches or warnings are in effect.

___

Associated Press writer Ben Nadler in Atlanta contributed to this report.
PHD India has strengthened its leadership team in Delhi to accommodate the demands of fresh growth from North India, including the appointment of Vivos digital mandate earlier this year. The agency has appointed Dipika Bhasin as Head of the Delhi office while Anuj Madan has been elevated to Delhi Digital Lead.

Bhasin brings over 17 years of experience, joining from sister-agency, OMD, where she spent six years and most recently served as Vice President for the Delhi office. Prior to joining Omnicom Media Group in 2011, Bhasin developed extensive media experience through roles at Zee Telefilms, Carat and Aircel.

Madan is an award-winning digital professional with well-rounded experience in transforming digital businesses for brands like Renault, HP India, Samsung, Amex, Lufthansa and Swatch, among others, over the last 12 years. Prior to joining Omnicom Media Group in 2015, Madan served as a Business Director at Cheil Worldwide and Mindshare, leading the digital business to build brands by driving high performance marketing.

Speaking on the appointment, Jyoti Kumar Bansal, CEO of PHD India, commented, The appointments reflect the growing demands of our clients based in North India and the volume of activity the Delhi office now manages, especially after the Vivo digital account win and the growth in mandates from HP, SC Johnson and other clients. With Dipikas deep-rooted knowledge of the North India market and how to make brands thrive there, as well as Anujs digital prowess, I am confident that we will continue to see more impressive wins come out of our office in Delhi.

Bhasin said, PHD has demonstrated impressive growth, having been recognised as Campaigns Agency of the Year last year and won prominent international and local business in recent years. I am excited to be joining the team and continuing the momentum in Delhi and North India.

Madan added, Its been great to have played a part in PHDs growth journey in Delhi during my role at Omnicom Media Group, with the recent Vivo win a testament to the agencys superior digital offering in the market. I look forward to working with Vivo and our other clients in North India on raising their digital credentials and driving real business performance for them as a result.
Zenith has won the media duties of Indias leading jeanswear brand Spykar. The business was won as part of a competitive multi-agency pitch.

Spykar was established in 1992. It is now part of the Lord Bagri promoted Metdist Group, a global conglomerate with interests in diverse range of industries, including metals, fashion, hospitality & technology. Spykar is among the top three denim brands in the country and has been at the forefront of the jeanswear business both in terms of scale and innovation.

Commenting on the win, Tanmay Mohanty, Group CEO, Zenith India, said, We couldnt be more thrilled to partner with Spykar, which is Indias own home-grown contemporary jeanswear brand and needs no introduction. Our ROI-focused approach will drive maximum business growth for Spykar, on the back of strong tech, analytics, content and consumer-centric insights. This win is testament to our scale and ability to bring in astute media strategies for powerful, integrated brand campaigns.

Sanjay Vakharia, CEO Spykar, said, Spykar has been Indias leading denim brand for 25 years. Great product coupled with wide spread distribution has given us exemplary growth. In the last 3 years, our revenues have doubled. This has encouraged us to pursue aggressive growth plans and we were looking for a partner who can help us in achieving our goals. We have selected Zenith after a comprehensive pitch process. They have dived deeply into our business and impressed us with their vision and proficiency in delivering effective, data-driven, personalised plans. Lifestyle clothing is a dynamic, high-growth business and we are sure that Zeniths strategic insights will unlock new opportunities for us. Their culture of innovation is akin to our own and we look forward to working with them.

Spykar has denim apparel for men & women and is available pan-India across 220 standalone stores, across 140 cities and over 700 SIS (shop in shops) and 700 multi-brand outlets across 350 cities of the country. It is also available on its own e-commerce platform, apart from all online fashion portals.
Grandi in Douma: Many have returned

UN High Commissioner for Refugees Filippo Grandi last week visited Douma, eastern Ghoutas main city, which was retaken by Syrian government forces earlier this year.

Although of course a lot of people are still displaced from their homes, many have returned, Grandi said. They are trying to live a normal life amidst the ruins, with very little resources, struggling to normalize life that has been disrupted by so many years of war.

More than 750,000 Syrians displaced by the war  11% of the total 6.6 million internally displaced people (IDPs) in Syria  have returned to their areas of origin, according to UNHCR. A much smaller number of refugees, 90,000 out of a total of 5.6 million (or 1.6%) living in neighboring countries, have trickled back to Syria in the past three years, although UNHCR is ramping up to assist a larger-scale organized return.

Grandi acknowledged the [Syrian] governments statement of last month welcoming refugees back, according to UNHCR. Both he and his government interlocutors agreed that refugee repatriation can only be based on a voluntary decision by refugees themselves, and needs to take place in safe and dignified conditions, and to be sustainable for the longer-term. Grandi conveyed to the Syrian officials the concerns refugees cite regarding return.  According to UNHCR surveys and focus group interviews in neighboring countries, these include the fragility of the security situation in some parts of the country, the presence of unexploded ordnance and physical risks in other areas, and the need for guarantees that they will remain safe on return and that their rights will be respected.

Last stand in Idlib for regime-rebel "narrative"

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo conveyed his serious concerns related to possible military activity in Idlib to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in an Aug. 23 phone call, saying the United States would hold the Syrian regime accountable for its use of chemical weapons, implying the threat of military force.

On Aug. 29, in an urgent appeal to the government of Syria and all parties to exercise restraint and to prioritize the protection of civilians in Idlib, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres said, Any use of chemical weapons is totally unacceptable.

Maxim Suchkov reported, The issue of the threat of force over the use of chemical weapons that popped up rather unexpectedly yet again makes Russia's leadership wary that the United States intends to derail what Moscow had been seeing as a clear-cut path to Russia's next Syria success. A senior Kremlin official told Al-Monitor on condition of anonymity that American officials want to play spoiler big time. They are disgusted that weve gotten an upper hand in dealing with this crisis and now they want to put spokes in every wheel we are trying to make roll.

While the seemingly imminent siege of Idlib could risk what Guterres called a humanitarian catastrophe, missing from US statements is what to do about Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, the terrorist group and al-Qaeda affiliate, and other dead-ender jihadis and foreign fighters who have taken refuge in Idlib. These groups have been mostly abandoned by their former regional backers in the Gulf and Turkey, while imposing Islamic law in the neighborhoods they control and holding the people of Idlib hostage to their doomed-to-fail last stand.

UN Syria Envoy Staffan de Mistura, who has offered to escort Idlib residents to safety in the event of an attack, said Aug. 30 that the northwestern Syrian province includes an extremely high concentration of foreign fighters, adding that this amounted to approximately 10,000 al-Nusra or al-Qaeda members, who have been recognized as terrorists by the UN, according to UN News.

Ankara seems to have so far tried and failed to hold off a seemingly imminent attack by trying to accommodate and peel off some off some of the armed groups from Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, as Al-Monitor has reported. Turkey may have painted itself into a corner in Idlib by not paying enough attention to the growing jihadi presence there and by concentrating solely on trying to curb Syrian Kurdish aspirations, writes Semih Idiz, leaving the initiative in Idlib to Russia, which has shown greater success in enticing armed opposition groups to consider reconciliation with the government, as reported Sept. 1 by The Wall Street Journal.

The failed sectarian "narrative" propagated by Turkey and some of the Gulf backers of Syrian armed groups, which got a bit of a second wind with Washingtons renewed emphasis on Irans "malign" activities in Syria and elsewhere, maintains an odd hold in parts of the media, which often cast the battle of Idlib as between regime and undistinguished bands of rebels as if it were 2011 and the rebels in Idlib were the brave Syrians who took to the streets seven years ago to protest the Assad regime rather than the sordid mostly jihadi lot pointed out by de Mistura and well-known to readers of Al-Monitor.

Although Turkey and the Gulf have backed off from support of most of the armed groups in Idlib, there may still be an interest, and need, for some face-saving for some of the Sunni governments and elites before the die is cast, and in order to smooth the post-conflict transition process.

With that in mind, Russia has accelerated its efforts to press ahead on the Sochi dialogue between the Syrian government and opposition on constitutional reform, which could lead to eventual reductions in presidential powers which, interestingly, have been on the table since before the Syrian uprising.

On Aug. 29, the day before Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallems visit to Moscow, Lavrov hosted Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Adel al-Jubeir. That same day, Mikhail Bogdanov, Russia's deputy foreign minister and special presidential representative for the Middle East and Africa, spoke with Nasr al-Hariri, chief negotiator for the opposition Syrian Negotiations Commission, which is backed by Saudi Arabia. Bogdanov stressed in the call with Hariri that it is necessary to completely eradicate the Islamic States and Jabhat al-Nusra "terrorist groups on Syrian territory, ensure Syrias unity, territorial integrity and sovereignty, establish a steady negotiations process between the Syrian government and the constructive opposition in the interests of restoring national accord; create the Constitutional Committee so that it can start working according to resolutions of the Syrian National Dialogue Congress in Sochi, and create adequate conditions for a speedy return of the Syrian refugees to their country.

After Jubeir left Moscow, Muallem arrived the following day for discussions of the Sochi process, Idlib, and related issues.

Lavrov said at a press conference with Muallem that Russia and Turkey have been discussing how to resolve issues related to the "Idlid de-escalation zone to preclude further use of the area by terrorists, mainly by Jabhat al-Nusra, to separating terrorists from the armed opposition, which is ready for dialogue with the Syrian government." Lavrov added, "We do not have any artificial schedules or deadlines, but this needs to be done as soon as possible.

One key deadline to note, however, is the summit in Tehran on Sept. 7 between Russian President Vladimir Putin, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iranian President Hassan Rouhani.
Birmingham police are investigating an early-morning shooting in west Birmingham.

The shooting appeared to be a running gun battle between two vehicles on the city's Third Avenue West. Birmingham police spokesman Sgt. Johnny Williams said the shooting happened about 3 a.m. It stretched from the 700 block of Third Avenue West to the 900 block of Third Avenue West.

Two people were injured. The victims, Williams said, are ages 24 and 18. Though one was initially thought to be life-threatening, Williams on Monday said both are expected to recover.

At least one suspect was being questioned.

Anyone with information is asked to call Birmingham police at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.

Birmingham police are investigating an early-morning shooting in west Birmingham.

The shooting appeared to be a running gun battle between two vehicles on the city's Third Avenue West. Birmingham police spokesman Sgt. Johnny William said the shooting happened about 3 a.m. It stretched from the 700 block of Third Avenue West to the 900 block of Third Avenue West.

Two people were injured. The victims, Williams said, are ages 24 and 18. Though one was initially thought to be life-threatening, Williams on Monday said both are expected to recover.

At least one suspect was being questioned.

Anyone with information is asked to call Birmingham police at 205-254-1764 or Crime Stoppers at 205-254-7777.
Friends and family are grieving the loss of a 50-year-old Birmingham man stabbed to death Saturday night.

Antonio Pettaway was a son, father, brother, uncle, cousin and a friend to many. "He loved his family,'' said his cousin, Shakeema Murphy-Hill. "He was caring and he never met a stranger."

North Precinct officers responded about 9:20 p.m. Saturday to 2525 37th Avenue North on a report of a person stabbed, said Birmingham police spokesman Sgt. Johnny Williams Jr. Once on the scene, they found Pettaway suffering from at least one stab wound.

Pettaway was taken to UAB Hospital where he later died from his injury. His girlfriend of at least six years was taken into custody at the scene. As of Sunday night, police had not yet announced formal charges nor released additional details about the deadly altercation.

Pettaway grew up in Birmingham and was the father of three sons. Family said he loved to barbecue and was always funny. "He was an all-around tell-it-like-it-is guy,'' Murphy-Hill said. "He will be truly missed."

Antonio Pettaway

"Praying for our family and hers,'' she said. "Two lives are gone."

Pettaway is the 77th homicide in Birmingham in 2018. Of those, five have been ruled justifiable and therefore are not considered criminal by Birmingham police. In all of Jefferson County, there have been 109 homicides including the 77 in Birmingham.
Limestone County authorities and the Alabama Fire Marshal's Office are investigating a fatal blaze this morning in Athens.

Limestone County Coroner Mike West said a 79-year-old woman was found dead inside a home at 1302 Pruitt St. in Athens about 4:30 this morning that was fully involved in a house fire.

The coroner's office did not identify the woman, but WHNT reported her name was Ada Yarbrough.

The body has been transported to the state forensics lab for an autopsy.
Memorial Day and Labor Day - in the U.S. the two holidays are the traditional bookends of summer.

And while there's sometimes confusion over what the holidays are for, the two days commemorate very different things.

Memorial Day is a time to remember all those who have died in service to their country.

The day traces it roots to the period after the Civil War when groups began honoring Confederate and Union soldiers who died in the war. Memorial Day, celebrated on the last Monday in May each year, was declared an official holiday in 1967 and, a year later, moved to its current date as part of the Monday Holiday Act.

Memorial Day is traditionally seen as the start of summer. Labor Day, celebrated the first Monday in September, is the traditional end of summer.

According to the U.S. Department of Labor, Labor Day is a creation of the labor movement and is dedicated to the social and economic achievements of the America worker.

The first governmental recognition of the holiday came through municipal ordinances passed in 1885 and 1886. The first state bill to commemorate Labor Day was introduced into the New York legislature but the first to become law was passed in Oregon in February 1887.

During 1887 four more states -- Colorado, Massachusetts, New Jersey, and New York -- created the Labor Day holiday by legislative enactment. By the end of the decade Connecticut, Nebraska, and Pennsylvania had followed suit. By 1894, 23 more states had adopted the holiday, and on June 28, 1884, Congress passed an act making the first Monday in September of each year a legal holiday in the District of Columbia and the territories.

There is still doubt about who founded Labor Day.

According to the Labor Department, some records show that Peter J. McGuire, general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and a co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, was first in suggesting a day to honor those "who from rude nature have delved and carved all the grandeur we behold." Others credit Matthew Maguire, a machinist and later secretary of the Local 344 of the International Association of Machinists in Paterson, N.J., who reportedly proposed the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York.

The first Labor Day holiday was celebrated on Sept. 5, 1882, in New York City, in accordance with the plans of the Central Labor Union. The Central Labor Union held its second Labor Day holiday just a year later, on Sept. 5, 1883.

Today, the day is often celebrated with cookouts and family gatherings.
Alabama could have a hurricane on its hands on Tuesday.

Tropical Storm Gordon appeared to be gathering strength as it moved farther into the southeastern Gulf of Mexico on Monday night, and the National Hurricane Center's forecast track takes the core of the storm very close to Alabama by Tuesday night or early Wednesday.

Forecasters are now saying Gordon will be a Category 1 hurricane at the time of landfall. A hurricane warning is now in effect for the Alabama coastal counties of Mobile and Baldwin.

Gordon's winds were up to 60 mph in the last hurricane center update at 10 p.m. CDT Monday.

The hurricane center's forecast track has shifted some on Monday, and parts of Alabama's Mobile and Baldwin counties are in the so-called cone of uncertainty.

If the current track holds that will put Alabama on the east side of Gordon as it makes landfall, which is where a lot of the action will be as far as wind, rain and tornadoes go.

So what should those in Alabama expect from Gordon?

"We have concerns that the storm is intensifying," said Jason Beaman from the National Weather Service in Mobile. "It has the potential to become a minimal hurricane prior to landfall."

But don't let your guard down even if Gordon doesn't reach hurricane status, he said Monday afternoon.

"There's not a lot of difference between a strong tropical storm and a minimal hurricane," he said. "You can get scattered power outages, downed trees. Trees will be the main concern as far as the winds go."

Gordon is not a large storm, so that could lead to a sharp drop-off for wind and rain impacts across Alabama, Beaman said.

"It's a relatively small storm, so you could go one or two counties away from you and it wouldn't be the same impacts. It may be really bad in one area and not so bad in others as far as the wind goes," he said.

"So it's really going to depend on where the core of that storm goes in, where the highest wind impacts are."

South Alabama has gotten a lot of rain over the past few weeks, and that could help bring down a few more trees, he said.

Then there's the potential for even more rain.

"We're going to be on the right or east side of the system, which puts us on the stormier side and the wetter side," Beaman said.

"So there's the potential for flooding, widespread 2-5 inches of rain with local amounts of 8 inches are possible. And that could happen in a very short duration, so we're concerned about some possible flooding, especially in the more urban areas of Mobile and Baldwin counties particularly."

Storm surge is also a concern.

"We'll have to watch for storm surge," he said. "Two to 4 feet of inundation, really across the western and northern parts of Mobile Bay and the vulnerable areas there, around Bayou La Batre, Coden and the west end of Dauphin Island ... those have the most concerns for storm surge."

A storm surge warning has been extended eastward as of Monday and now includes part of the Alabama coast from the Mississippi border to Dauphin Island.

The hurricane center had been nudging Gordon's path slightly to the east on Monday, although it was moved a bit back to the west in the last update. But could an eastward trend re-emerge?

"I don't think it can go a whole lot farther east than the forecast cone represents," Beaman said. "Remember the forecast cone does include parts of Mobile and Baldwin counties. A high pressure area to our north and east is going to prevent a dramatic shift to the east.

"However, it's even moved a bit east of the current forecast track just watching it on radar. So certainly any further eastward adjustment puts the core of the storm closer to Mobile and Baldwin counties and would increase all the threats associated with it."

This all means that today is the time to get your supplies and a plan in place. The clock is ticking before Gordon makes its presence known.

"I think the initial rain bands could even be hitting the coast by midday tomorrow," Beaman said. "And there could be gusts to tropical storm force and if not sustained along the coast with those bands. And then those conditions (will spread) inland across the entire area Tuesday afternoon into Tuesday night."

Be prepared for the forecast to change as far as track, timing and intensity goes.

"It has sped up just a bit; the latest National Hurricane Center forecast has it just south of us over the Gulf waters at 8 o'clock tomorrow night, that's not a certainty, it could speed up an hour or two from that," he said.

"So we'll have to watch it closely. So certainly by midday tomorrow along the coast things are going to start going downhill and then cross the rest of the area as we get into tomorrow evening to tomorrow night."

Gordon's effects might not amount to all that much for the rest of Alabama, especially central and northern parts of the state.

The National Weather Service in Birmingham said widespread, heavy rain isn't expected and winds will stay on the lighter side. While there is a threat for tornadoes with landfalling tropical systems the threat for central Alabama appears to be on the low side.

Same goes for north Alabama. The National Weather Service in Huntsville said little to no impact is expected for the region from Gordon.
Muslims who lost relatives in attacks, stress the difference between their faith and the fighters.

Spaniards like Mohamed Azahaf remember the day, on March 11, 2004, that armed attacks came to Europe. That morning, during Madrids rush hour, 10 bombs ripped through four commuter trains. The simultaneous, coordinated blasts killed more than 190 people and wounded some 2,000 more.

Azahaf was employed as a social worker for the Madrid City Hall and had been called to counsel and provide assistance to families who were gathering to learn the fate of their loved ones.

Since then, attackers have killed civilians in London, Paris, Brussels, Manchester, Toulouse, Nice, Barcelona and Berlin. People have been assassinated in offices, shot in restaurants, bombed in nightclubs and run over on pedestrian thoroughfares. All of the attacks were committed in the name of Islam and have led to heightened racial and religious discrimination against European Muslims.

Loubna Lafquiris life was cut short in the 2016 Brussels metro attack. The 34-year-old was a wife, mother, Belgian Moroccan and a Muslim [Al Jazeera]

In a pavilion in Madrids city centre, Asahaf noticed that some of those killed had Muslim names.

The stress of working around the clock to counsel victims of the violence coincided with the realisation that the attacks might create a backlash against European Muslims like him.

When a friend called him to suggest that the attacks might be linked to groups claiming Islam, he collapsed.

The tension was too much and I cried, he told Al Jazeera. It was the first time of many that I cried

after the attacks.

As the hours and days wore on, more Muslim names appeared on the lists of the dead and wounded  it was clear that the killing had indiscriminately targeted civilians, irrespective of religion or nationality. The pattern would repeat itself in Paris in 2015 and again in the 2016 truck attacks in Nice, where more than a third of the 86 killed were Muslim.

In the Al Jazeera documentary, Twice a Victim, filmmaker Paula Palacios interviews four main characters  Muslims who lost loved ones only to experience heightened discrimination in the wake of the attacks.

They are people like Mohamed El Bachiri, whose wife Loubna died in the 2016 metro attack in Brussels. El Bachiri went on to give a TEDx talk and write a book in which he pays homage to his late wife and sets out to expose violent attacks on civilians as foreign to the teachings and mainstream observance of Islam.

I needed to tell the whole world the difference between the van driver and my mum and that they are different people. One is a true Muslim and the other talks about Islam, but it's not Islam. Hanane Charihi, activist/author

Hanane Charrihis mother, a middle-aged woman in traditional Muslim dress, was among the first to be run over in the 2016 truck attack in Nice. Charrihi co-authored a book in which she explores what it means to be French, Muslim and a victim of attacks.

All four characters below offer testimonies about bereavement, identity and loss at a time when armed groups have murdered their loved ones, undermined their faith and threatened their ability to live among their neighbours.

Hanane Charhihi





Hanane Charrihi was in Paris the night her mother, Fatima, was run over. The mother of six had been strolling with members of her family after a Bastille Day fireworks display commemorating French independence. Fatima was wearing a hijab and was one of the first people the attacker would have seen through the windshield of his 19-tonne rented truck:

They really showed they werent Muslim because the first person they killed was Muslim, she says. For me, that just confirmed their ignorance.

The attacker was Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel, a Tunisian man living in France. According to French police, he had been radicalised extremely quickly, in only a few weeks over the internet. He had a history of assault, drug and alcohol abuse.

When the French press began reporting that the attacker appeared to have been inspired by ISIL propaganda, the angle for her book exploring her experience and identity came into focus.

The thought occurred to me that I needed to tell the whole world the difference between the van driver and my mum and that they are different people. One is a true Muslim and the other talks about Islam, but its not Islam.

The first time I went to the place my mother died, a man passed behind us and said, We dont want your kind here, we dont want your type any more. Then, 10 minutes later, a man was waiting for us near a cafe. He said, Great, youve all come out in a herd. Herd is used only for animals. In French, you dont say a herd of people. We told him, Leave us alone, weve just lost our mum. He replied, Good. Theres one less of you now.

Charrihi co-authored her book, My Motherland, with French journalist Elena Brunet. Passages by Charrihi are excerpted below.

Hanane Charrihi, from My Motherland:

Last night, when the fireman trying to resuscitate my mum said Its finished, my father fainted. He lost consciousness for some seconds and when he opened his eyes, our world had changed.

Fatima Charrihi, left, was the first to be run over in the 2016 truck attack in Nice.

That night, the reaper did not advance slowly. He was neither bony nor dressed in black. He was white, weighed 19 tonnes and was driving 90km per hour.

On the Promenade des Angalis, facing his wifes body lying on the ground, my father violently beat his fists against his chest as if his heart had stopped beating and he were trying to start it again.

I dont want to have to choose between my nationality and my religion. Both are part of my identity. I dont feel out of place with the French republic. I am French and Muslim. Both form an equal part of my identity. I am French and I wear the hijab. These two are not at odds. When secularism is co-opted and misdirected, it impacts my life. France is a free country. People can choose to believe or not to believe. If religion does not factor into political affairs then nothing forbids it from expressing itself in society. Thats what secularism is. I dont try to impose my religion on others with my hijab just as a Jew would not impose his religion by wearing a kippa. Asking me to take it off is a violation of my freedom.

And if the veil were forbidden in public I still would come out with my head covered perhaps with a hood, a wig or even a hat from Nice. It wont stop me from living my life.

We must not sacrifice our light to this fear  Do not yield to the dictatorship of terror or let it overtake reason. Let us stand united, which is the key to a rich and powerful nation ready to defend against those who are trying to take it away.

Mohamed El Bachiri

Mohamed El Bachiri lost his wife Loubna in the 2016 Brussels metro bombing. He wrote a book to show the difference between Islam and violent radicalism [Al Jazeera]

On the morning of March 22, 2016, Mohamed El Bachiri said goodbye to his wife, Loubna. It was the last time he would see her alive.

It was Mohameds day off and he was watching the couples three children while Loubna went off to work. Loubna died when a suicide bomber detonated an explosive belt on a train in the Brussels metro.

The bombing was one of three coordinated suicide bombings in the Belgian capital, with two more attackers detonating explosive vests at the Brussels airport in Zaventem. In all, 32 civilians were killed and more than 300 were wounded in the attacks. The Islamic State of Iraq in the Levant, (ISIL, also known as ISIS) claimed responsibility.

Loubna Lafquiri was 34, a Belgian Moroccan mother of three and a popular physical education teacher. Mohamed lost the love of his life that day.

Loubna was an extreme beauty. She was an extraordinary woman with a big heart, he says in Twice a Victim. Extremely beautiful. Loubna was my Nefertiti. My Helen of Troy who does not provoke war but responds with love even after her death. Loubna is the love of my life. She is an eternal love.

El Bachiri is now routinely detained at airport checkpoints.

Loubna was my Nefertiti. My Helen of Troy who does not provoke war but responds with love even after her death. Loubna is the love of my life. She is an eternal love. Mohamed El Bachiri, author

He says his Muslim name automatically raises a red flag with authorities, who suspect him of terrorism. And they become more suspicious when they learn he is from Molenbeek, a Muslim-majority neighbourhood in Brussels with high unemployment that is known as a haven for foreign fighters returning from Iraq and Syria.

I take it in context, thinking that its just the situation and hoping that one day it will change.

El Bachiri wrote a book and gave a TEDx talk  both titled, A Jihad for Love  to highlight the difference between his late wife and the attackers. He says he wanted to reveal Islam as it is taught and observed by the vast majority of Muslims, and to restore jihad to its noble meaning  a completely disarmed jihad that does not know about violence but which means right effort. Its a word accompanied by love and human values that accepts all kinds of differences and recognises human life as sacred.

If these things hadnt happened, Id still be driving my metro and no one would listen to me. Id hear people speak about Islam in a negative way. So, if Im seen as a Muslim and a potential terrorist, I make an appeal to people to gain a real knowledge of what Islam is.

For El Bachiri, the tragedy of March 22, 2016, left him no option but to write about the teachings and mainstream observance of Islam. In passages from A Jihad for Love, he also pays homage to his wife Loubna and makes a plea to youth at risk of being influenced by armed groups.

Passages in A Jihad for Love are excerpted below:

Homage to Loubna

Mohamed El Bachiri and his wife, Loubna. The couple led a happy life as Belgians of Moroccan origin [Al Jazeera]

My children, Mum has left. But what she leaves behind is imperishable and will disappear only at the end of time. Her message will travel to future generations. It will be stronger and will have more impact than any destructive weapon.

A mum who says goodbye, kisses her kids and goes to work, but then theres no more Mum. They dont fully understand. They saw their mum in the papers. I told the children that their mum was in heaven that bad people had planted a bomb in the metro that God had wanted to protect her and that was why hed picked her up and taken her with him to heaven.

El Bachiri to the attackers

If you think that taking innocent lives and creating trauma is a form of justice even of Gods justice then you and I dont belong to the same religion.

But now you call us to war. With a nihilist ideology and a nihilist purpose. We can be against a system,

and we can disagree. We can criticise capitalism and society and we can be angry, but never through violence or hatred.

So you want to get out of Molenbeek? Fine, but dont go straight to Syria. Go to the four corners of the earth, see how beautiful the world is. Discover other cultures. And if you go to Damascus, the city that Ibn Battuta called a paradise on earth, then dont go there to destroy it, go there to admire it.

Abdullah Saadi





Abdullah Saadi recalls the night, on November 13, 2015, that his younger sisters, Halima Saadi Endga and Houda Saadi, were shot dead outside La Belle Equipe restaurant in Paris. The sisters had been celebrating Halimas 35th birthday on the restaurant terrace when armed men drove up and opened fire. Nineteen people died, including Houda and Halima.

Abdullah Saadi, a French citizen who has lived in France for more than 40 years, believes that the attacks have painted Muslims in a bad light. In France, I think that one out of two people have a negative view towards this religion which is full of love and fraternity, he says.

He tells his story, below:

I was born in France, so I have French nationality. My parents are from Tunisia. Theyve lived in France for 44 years. Im completely Muslim. I dont practise much but Im a believer. Its my religion.

Houda Saadi was one of 19 people killed outside the Belle Equipe restaurant in Paris in 2015 [Al Jazeera]

Since the attacks on Charlie Hebdo and the Mohammed Mehrah attacks its not easy for us in France. We dont feel racism or anti-Muslim sentiment directly, but indirectly.

I wouldnt exactly say that Muslims have been marginalised, but two or three days after the attacks I was at La Belle Equipe and a man came up to me. He said, Its the fault of people like you that this is happening.

He told me this after my sisters had been killed. And there were about 12 people I knew quite well who also died in the attacks.

I do think that some people will jump at a chance to blame Muslims. For me, different issues are at play.

One is religion, which is very personal and belongs to all of us. The other is terror attacks and those who commit them in the name of religion.

The Quran is a holy book that goes back to ancient times and has been translated into many languages. So before judging it, it would simply be better to read this great book. People would see theres nothing calling for violence like this or the attacks weve seen in France, Europe and other countries.

As Muslims, of course, we can say that clearly, we have nothing to do with this. But since we love our religion, I believe we should also defend it. If we had one million Muslims in the streets tomorrow to say that these events have nothing at all to do with our religion I think people would see us differently.

Mohmed Azahaf





Mohamed Azahaf was a social worker who assisted grieving families after the 2004 train bombings in Madrid.

He feared that people might associate the attacks with Islam and that life for him, and many European Muslims of mixed identity like him, might never be the same.

The bombings were the first in a long string of attacks on European soil. At a time when discrimination based on race and faith have been on the rise in Europe, Azahaf speaks on the difference between the stated identity of the perpetrators and Muslims like him.

Were people just like any other and there is nothing bad or dangerous in our religion. The fact that Muslims were among the victims and killed by terrorists who claimed to be Muslim struck those of us who intervened. There was confusion between the victim and the perpetrator in that their own people were also victims. It occurred to me that this could give us strength  to actually deny the stated identity of the perpetrator. Those killed had been victims of a murderer and that is it.

I cant say that being a Muslim in Europe or Spain is difficult because you can practise your religion.

No one forbids it. But in many ways, it does make people look closer at you and observe what you do or say.

Before March 11, some were discriminated against for being named Mohamed, for having a different religion or for eating different foods. But after March 11, the discrimination followed a different line: Are you going to plant a bomb, What kind of belt is that?, Does it have explosives?.

The discrimination was linked to terrorism. I am a Muslim and a Catalan; I am not a terrorist. Islam is peace.

Azahaf on the Barcelona and Cambrils attackers:

I think that when someone commits a bad act, he or she is fully liable for the pain theyve caused. Because that discourages others from doing the same. At the same time, I dont think that anyone is born bad and that some things can be corrected.

If I had worked with these children, they wouldnt have committed this barbarity. And though there is no justification for the act from a criminal point of view, I do believe they must have experienced some injustice that helped turn them from being victims to committing murder.

Its difficult to express, because there have been other victims, the innocent people they killed. These cannot be put on the same level. But we need to know that todays victim can become tomorrows terrorist. And we must work to ensure that doesnt happen.

When there is an attack from someone in the name of my religion many people say that, as a Muslim, I should come out to condemn it. Because theyre equating me with the terrorist. Theyre saying that the terrorist is one of my kind.

If I protest saying not in my name Im admitting he is one of us. But he isnt one of us. He doesnt do it in my name. I work every day to live in harmony and to make the [country] Im living in a better place.
By cutting the funding to the UNRWA, Trump wants to eliminate the Palestinians demand for the right to return.

President Donald Trump appears to enjoy experimenting on human beings.

First came the separation of young children from their parents. In May 2018, Trump ordered the United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement Agency (ICE) to send all adults caught crossing the border to federal jail to await trial, while transferring their children to either foster care or detention centres. Most of these children have been kept in what are essentially cages, and some have even been given psychotropic drugs without parental consent.

The assumption is that pain, agony and suffering alter human behaviour, and that traumatising a large group of children and their parents serve to deter other people, even those fleeing life-threatening conflict zones, from trying to enter the US. The moral perspective is that the end justifies the means, even if the means include cruel and inhuman policies.

Now comes Trumps latest experiment, this time with education, medical care, and famine. Adopting warped rhetoric, this experiment is presented as part of a groundbreaking Israeli-Palestinian peace plan.

The idea is to cut all funding to the United Nations Relief Works and Agency (UNRWA), which, for the past 70 years, has been providing lifesaving assistance to more than five million Palestinian refugees in the Gaza Strip, West Bank, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan.

UNRWAs spokesperson, Chris Gunness, spelled out the repercussions of such actions: Let there be no mistake, he said, this decision is likely to have a devastating impact on the lives of 526,000 children who receive a daily education from UNRWA; 3.5 million sick people who come to our clinics for medical care; 1.7 million food insecure people who receive assistance from us, and tens of thousands of vulnerable women, children and disabled refugees who come to us.

Indeed, if the funding gap is not covered by other countries, Trumps decision will have a devastating impact on the lives of millions of Palestinians.

This experiment seems to have two distinct  if related  goals.

First, Trump apparently wants to see if a policy of destruction and anti-humanitarian intervention can be used as a peacemaking device in this protracted conflict.

This is an inversion of parts of the Oslo paradigm, where the European Union and other international players decided to spend hundreds of millions of dollars each year on Palestinian state-building projects. Even though Oslos goal may never have been the creation of an independent Palestinian state, Palestinian life was still considered to have some value.

As it turns out, the idea informing the 1993 peace accords was to transfer control of a number of institutions and policies  such as education, healthcare, and food security  to the Palestinians in order to free Israel from the responsibility of managing the daily lives of the population it had colonised. And, while Israel abdicated responsibility for the Palestinian people, it continued to retain its hold over most of their land.

Trumps current idea, by contrast, is to simply force a peace process by destroying all of the institutions that modern states use to manage their population while bringing the inhabitants to the brink of social death.

Therefore, it is no coincidence that at exactly the same moment that Trump is cutting all funding from UNRWA, he has also decided to cut aid to the Palestinian Authority. The strategy is straightforward: the Palestinians must first be reduced to what Italian political theorist Georgio Agamben has called bare life in order to force them to accept the great deal that President Trump intends to offer them.

The experiments second goal is to erase Palestinian refugeehood.

It is important to remember that UNRWA was set up to assist the 700,000 Palestinian refugees after the creation of Israel in 1948. Whether these Palestinians fled or were forcibly expelled from their towns and villages may be a point of contention, but there is no argument that, after the war had subsided, Israel refused to allow the Palestinians to return to their homes, thus violating article 11 of United Nations Resolution 194. This is how Israel created the refugee problem.

Today, the descendants of these refugees number over five million people and it was always assumed that their status would be resolved through the creation of a Palestinian state. Since it is extremely unlikely that a viable Palestinian state is a component of Trumps peace deal, the strategy now endeavours to erase the vast majority of Palestinian refugees from the historical and contemporary record.

Parroting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahus accusation of fictitious Palestinian refugees who threaten the state of Israel by perpetuating the right of return, Trump is currently claiming that only the people born and who had actually lived in Mandatory Palestine before the 1948 war  people who are now more than 70-years old  can be considered refugees. Their descendants cannot.

The logic here, too, is clear. If the funding to the agency that feeds millions of refugees is stopped, then they will no longer be considered refugees, thus paving the way for a deal on Israels terms. Stopping US funding, in other words, merely attempts to reinforce the deranged post-truth reality that has become Trumps trademark: in this case, that refugees are not refugees.

While, the notion that property rights can be abrogated after one generation would seem anathema in Trumps business world, actually, viciously attacking the downtrodden fits perfectly with his modus operandi. His world view is perhaps best expressed in a recent tweet posted by his ally Netanyahu:

The weak crumble, are slaughtered and are erased from history while the strong, for good or for ill, survive. The strong are respected, and alliances are made with the strong, and in the end, peace is made with the strong.

From Cambodia to China and all the way to Europe, the 20th century saw its share of experiments on humans, all of which had horrific consequences. Tragically, Trump is no student of history. He is trying hard to present his introduction of new experiments as the pursuit of a peace deal, but as Gideon Levy recently wrote in Haaretz, it is actually a declaration of war against the Palestinian people.

The views expressed in this article are the authors own and do not necessarily reflect Al Jazeeras editorial stance.
Al Jazeera Media Network calls for the immediate and unconditional release of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe oo.

The Al Jazeera Media Network has condemned prison sentences of seven years handed down by a Myanmar court to two Reuters news agency reporters and called for their immediate release.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who have been jailed since their arrest on December 12, 2017, were found guilty on Monday of breaching a law on state secrets during their reporting of a massacre of Rohingya men.

The ruling sparked international outcry and described as a blow for Myanmars transition to democracy.

In a statement, Al Jazeera urged all those concerned with media freedom to play an active role in Demand Press Freedom, the Qatar-based networks international campaign calling for the protection of journalists and media institutions.

We take this opportunity to call for the release of all imprisoned journalists, including Bangladeshi photojournalist Shahidul Alam and Al Jazeeras Mahmoud Hussein, who is being held for more than 620 days in an Egyptian prison without any charges.

Managing Director of Al Jazeera English Giles Trendle said: Its a travesty of justice and a shameless attack on media freedom. We stand by our @Reuters colleagues in condemning it and call for their immediate and unconditional release. #DemandPressFreedom #FreeWaLoneKyawSoeOo pic.twitter.com/6mMZz0T8o7  Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) September 3, 2018

Giles Trendle, managing director at Al Jazeera English, described the Myanmar courts ruling a shameful attack on media freedom.

We stand by our Reuters journalist colleagues  and we call for the immediate and unconditional release, Trendle said.
Michel Temer calls tragic fire at Rio de Janeiro museum sad for all Brazilians.

By
Xi Jinping pledges $60bn in financial aid to African countries and pledges to write off debt for poorer nations.

Chinas President Xi Jinping has offered $60bn in financial support to African countries and written off debt for the continents poorer nations.

Speaking at the opening of a major summit with African leaders in Beijing on Monday, Xi said the figure included $15bn in grants, interest-free loans and concessional loans, a credit line of $20bn, $10bn for development financing and $5bn to buy imports from the continent.

Chinese companies will be encouraged to invest no less than $10bn in African countries in the next three years, he added.

Government debt from Chinas interest-free loans due by the end of 2018 will be written off for indebted poor African countries, as well as for developing nations in the continents interior and small island nations, Xi said.

China-Africa cooperation must give Chinese and African people tangible benefits and successes that can be seen, that can be felt, he said.

China will carry out 50 projects on green development and environmental protection in Africa, focusing on fighting climate change, desertification and wildlife protection, the Chinese leader said.

Xi pledged, without giving details, that China would set up a peace and security fund and a related forum, while continuing to provide free military assistance to the African Union.





The offer of more funds comes after a pledge of a similar amount at the previous Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) in South Africa three years ago.

Chinese officials say this years summit will strengthen the continents role in Xis Belt and Road initiative, which has already seen billions of dollars loaned to countries in Asia and Africa for roads, railways, ports and other major infrastructure projects.

Debt-trap diplomacy?

Al Jazeeras Adrian Brown, reporting from Beijing, said economists and some international financial institutions worry that Chinese loans are burying some countries under massive debt.

Its hard to think of any country in Africa that has not been touched by China, he said, adding that China rejects the claim of debt-trap diplomacy.

Beijing loaned around $125bn to the continent from 2000 to 2016, according to data from the China-Africa Research Initiative at Washingtons Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies.

Every African country is represented at the business forum apart from eSwatini, self-ruled Taiwans last African ally that has so far rejected Chinas overtures to ditch Taipei and recognise Beijing.

African leaders in attendance include South Africas Cyril Ramaphosa, Egypts Abdel Fattah el-Sisi, Zambias Edgar Lungu and Gabons Ali Bongo.

Ramaphosa defended Chinas involvement on the continent, saying FOCAC refutes the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa as our detractors would have us believe.

Before FOCAC, Rwandan President and current chair of the African Union Paul Kagame had also dismissed the concerns, telling the official Xinhua news agency talk of debt traps were attempts to discourage African-Chinese interactions.

However, Aly-Khan Satchu, an economic analyst based in Kenyas capital, Nairobi, told Al Jazeera the concerns over debt-trap diplomacy were real.

There are worries that this infrastructure has been inflated in price, and that it is highly unlikely to make a return on investments that is necessary for these countries to get in order to pay back the debt, he said.

The future of China-Africa relations is going to depend entirely on how China manages this debt situation, which is now spiralling out of control, he added.

No vanity projects

Speaking earlier in the day, Xi said Chinas investments on the continent have no political strings attached. Chinese funds are not for vanity projects in Africa but are to build infrastructure that can remove development bottlenecks, he said.

China does not interfere in Africas internal affairs and does not impose its own will on Africa, Xi told his African counterparts and business leaders at a forum before the FOCAC.

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Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will oversee the signing of a telecommunication infrastructure deal backed by a $328m loan facility from Chinas Exim bank during his visit, according to his office.

China has provided aid to Africa since the Cold War period, but Beijings presence in the region has grown exponentially with its emergence as a global trading power.

Chinese state-owned companies have aggressively pursued large investments across the continent, whose vast resources have helped fuel Chinas transformation into an economic powerhouse.

While relations between China and African nations are broadly positive, concerns have intensified about the impact of some of Beijings deals in the region.

Djibouti has become heavily dependent on Chinese financing after China opened its first overseas military base in the Horn of Africa country last year, a powerful signal of the continents strategic importance to Beijing.

Locals in other countries have complained about the practice of using Chinese labour for building projects and what are perceived to be sweetheart deals for Chinese companies.
Deadly dangers of a refugees journey to Europe increase

The UN refugee agency says the voyage is more deadly now though the overall number of crossings and deaths has plunged compared with last year.
Israeli leader welcomes first Philippine president to the country as critics slam Dutertes human rights record.

The Philippine president praised Israels prime minister for his critical help in ending a five-month siege by rebels in a southern city as they held talks in Jerusalem amid criticism of the Filipino leaders human rights record.

Rodrigo Duterte told Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday the conflict in Marawi on Mindanao island could have dragged on were it not for the very substantial and crucial equipment from Israel. He did not elaborate.

It was the first time Duterte acknowledged publicly Israels help in ending the Marawi siege in 2017.





Mr Prime Minister, I can only thank you so much especially at the critical help that you have extended my country in time when we needed it most, Duterte said.

In the recent trouble in the Philippines, the extent of the help that you extended was very critical in winning the war.

The Marawi siege took place between May and October 2017, when fighters who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, known as ISIS) took over the city.

The battle killed more than 1,000 rebel fighters, soldiers and civilians  and displaced hundreds of thousands of people.

Passion for peace

The visit was the first by a Philippine president to Israel since the countries established diplomatic relations in 1957. Duterte compared the two in peace and conflict.

We share the same passion for peace, we share the same passion for human beings. But also we share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who  know nothing but to kill and destroy, he said.

Duterte is eager to improve security cooperation with Israel, which has sold the Philippines three radar systems and 100 armoured vehicles. Manila is now eyeing an aircraft deal.

Duterte and his daughter Sara attended a ceremony at Israels Holocaust Memorial [AP]

Hitler admirer

Duterte visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem on Monday, and later a monument commemorating the Philippines rescue of Jews during the Holocaust.

In 1939, then President Manuel L Quezon issued 10,000 visas for European Jews, but only about 1,300 actually made it to the Southeast Asian nation.





Netanyahu noted how the Philippines took in the refugees who fled the Nazis, as well as its lone vote from Asia for the establishment of an Israeli state.

Recently, the Philippines also abstained in a UN vote rebuking US President Donald Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

We remember our friends and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years, Netanyahu told Duterte.

Deadly drug war

Netanyahu has worked to cultivate allies in Asia, Africa and Latin America, where many countries have historically shunned Israel over its treatment of the Palestinians.

But Netanyahu has come under fire for embracing Duterte, whose forces are accused of killing thousands in anti-drug raids since he took office in June 2016.

Duterte also caused outrage that year when he compared his campaign to the Holocaust and himself to Hitler, saying he would be happy to slaughter three million drug addicts. He later apologised.

Israeli newspaper Haaretz published an editorial headlined A Hitler admirer at Yad Vashem, while left-wing politicians questioned why Netanyahu would welcome Duterte with open arms.

Netanyahu is willing to whitewash an illegitimate leader who took pride in massacring his citizens and violating human rights, and why? Tamar Zandberg, head of the leftist Meretz party, wrote on Facebook.

Because Duterte is willing to support the occupation [of Palestine], she said.
Surge in disease comes after torrential rains that began in May killed nearly 500 people in beleaguered Kerala state.

Rotting carcasses of livestock contaminating water in the aftermath of devastating floods in Indias Kerala state have given way to a new challenge  battling an infectious disease such as leptospirosis or rat fever.

At least 34 deaths in the state since August are suspected to be from leptospirosis. Deepu, an official at the ministry of health in Keralas capital Trivandrum, told Al Jazeera that 515 cases were reported in the past 17 days, 196 of those confirmed.

Doctors say rat fever symptoms include high fever, severe muscle and abdominal pain, nausea and vomiting.

This is a direct consequence of the flood. The host of this disease is the rat, hence the name rat fever, said Rajeev Sadanandan, chief secretary at Keralas health department.

But there are secondary hosts like cattle and dogs. Once they get infected, their urine carries the bacteria. Since a lot of these infected animals died during the floods, the bacterial levels in the water is high.

The disaster  the worst floods the tourist haven has witnessed in a century  killed nearly 500 people, drove one million out of their homes, knocked down buildings, washed away farmland, and destroyed major roads and bridges.

Infection in the fields

Among the latest disease victims was Ujesh, 38, a part-time farmer who died on Saturday in Vadakara, which is among the worst-hit regions.

He was suffering from high fever and severe headaches. He probably caught the infection in the fields. He was working even when the heavy rains hit, Ujeshs brother-in-law Suresh, told Al Jazeera.





The outbreak of disease following the devastating floods is causing concern, despite the government announcing it will seek to borrow more than 100bn Indian rupees ($1.4bn) to finance reconstruction work.

At the state assembly on Thursday, Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the economic losses from the deluge would exceed $3.73bn.

Severe calamity

The focus has now shifted to clean-up efforts and hospitals preparing to deal with possible outbreaks of water and airborne diseases as people return home from relief camps.

The potential spread of leptospirosis has health officials worried.

It can be fatal unless detected early. We had anticipated this so Doxycycline, which is an antibiotic, was prescribed to people across flood relief camps as preventive care. But we now know that many people simply failed to take the medication, Dr V Jayashree told Al Jazeera from Kozhikode district.

The state government has deployed special units of doctors and nurses to flood-affected areas, officials said.

In New Delhi, Indias central government classified the floods as a calamity of severe nature and has committed $84.3m so far.

Muhammed Sabith contributed to this report from Kerala
Parts of central Nigeria have seen a spate of killings recently amid growing violence between herdsmen and farmers.

Nigerian police say gunmen have killed at least 11 villagers in an attack in Plateau state, a central region riven by conflicts over land rights between mainly Christian farmers and Muslim nomadic herdsmen.

The incident occurred late on Sunday in Lopandet Dwei Du village just outside state capital Jos, Terna Tyopev, police spokesperson, said in a statement on Monday.

Tyopev said at least 11 people were also wounded in the attack and transferred to hospital.

Plateau and other parts of central Nigeria have witnessed a spate of killings in recent months as herdsmen in search of grazing land and water for their cattle attack villages inhabited by farmers and retaliatory assaults.

The conflict has killed 1,500 civilians in the first half of 2018, six times more than the Boko Haram armed campaign, according to the International Crisis Group (ICG).

Since the violence escalated in January, an estimated 300,000 people have fled their homes, the group said.

The growing violence between the herdsmen and the farming communities further heighten ethnic and religious tensions in advance of Nigerias general elections scheduled for early next year.
Sadr-Abadi alliance claims it has majority of seats, which is contested by ex-Prime Minister Nouri al-Malikis bloc.

Iraqs newly elected parliament held its first session on Monday as two rival blocs, both claiming to hold the most seats, vied for the right to form a new government.

The parliament meeting followed more than three months after the May 12 polls, the first since Iraq declared victory over the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group late last year.

On Sunday, Iraqi political groups, including those led by Shia leader Moqtada al-Sadr and Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi, formed a 16-group alliance to create a parliamentary bloc.

With 54 seats, Sadrs Sairoon coalition had won the elections, while Abadis al-Nasr coalition came in third with 42 seats. However, no electoral coalition secured a clear majority in the polls.

The new bloc includes religious and ethnic groups, such as Shia and Sunni Arabs and Turkmen, as well as Yazidi and Christian minorities.

A total of 166 MPs are required to form a coalition in the 329-seat parliament, which in turn would form the countrys new government and name the new prime minister.

The Sadr-Abadi alliance claimed it had a majority of the seats, which was contested by former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, who formed an alliance with militia commander Hadi al-Ameri.

Neither alliance included the two main Kurdish parties, placing them to reprise the kingmaker role they have historically played, as their combined 43 seats would give whichever alliance they join a sizable numerical advantage.

I don't think the Americans will accept any role for the Iranians in Iraq. Ahmed Rushdi, former Iraqi parliamentary speaker

Protracted process

Ahmed Rushdi, a former parliamentary speaker and a member of the House of Iraqi Expertise Foundation told Al Jazeera that due to these differing claims of majority seats, there is still no clear vision yet as to which bloc will end up forming the government.

The most important thing is that until now [parliament] still hasnt managed to [put forward] candidates for the prime minister, president and the parliamentary speaker, he said.

After the US-led invasion that toppled Saddam Hussein in 2003, the leadership positions are held by Iraqs three largest ethnic-sectarian components  a Shia, Kurd and Sunni respectively.

Rushdi said that a protracted process in forming a government is likely, pointing out that in the previous 2010 election, it took 11 months for a government to be made.

This time around, however, there are two foreign players on the ground: Iraqi allies and archrivals, the Iranians and the Americans.

I dont think the Americans will accept any role for the Iranians in Iraq and have been threatening to use economic blockage if the next Iraqi government will be close to Tehran, he said.

Al-Ameri and al-Maliki are Irans two most prominent allies in Iraq. Abadi is seen as the preferred candidate of the US, while Sadr portrays himself as a nationalist who rejects both American and Iranian influence.

Rebuilding the country

In addition to balancing relations between Iran and the US, the new government will be tasked with rebuilding the country after a three-year war with ISIL.

Furthermore, uncertainty over the composition of the new government has raised tensions at a time when public impatience is growing over poor basic services, high unemployment and the slow pace of reconstruction.

Nader Hashemi, a professor at the University of Denver, told Al Jazeera that there is hope that al-Sadr and al-Malikis alliance, as the most inclusive and representative since the 2003 US invasions will begin to address these issues.

Most of the key players have a nationalist political agenda that is geared towards developing Iraq for all of Iraqi citizens not catering to the ethnic or sectarian interest of a particular group, he said. So in that sense, theres a lot to be optimistic about.

Mamoon Alabbasi, a political analyst focusing on the Middle East and North Africa, was more cautious about just how representative al-Sadrs alliance would be.

It is common for Shia-led political alliances to include members of other communities, he told Al Jazeera.

How much influence do these members have or what kind of treatment their communities will receive is the real test. Otherwise, the diverse makeup is cosmetic.

Stakes are huge

Hashemi acknowledged however that whether al-Sadr alliance will be able to address the immense political and socioeconomic challenges that Iraqi society is afflicted with, such as unemployment, corruption, and the delivering of public services, remains to be seen.

The stakes are huge, he explained. Iraq is a failed state. Its been deeply affected by a sectarian war and by the rise of ISIL  which has been comprehensively crushed but not defeated, Hashemi added.

Abbasi said that the rebuilding of Sunni-majority provinces, especially Anbar and Nineveh, has taken a backseat.

Talk of reconstructing these areas was abundant following Iraqs victory against the ISIL, and it peaked during the donor conference in Kuwait early this year, he said.

But now the focus for the current and incoming governments is on dealing with the protests in the Shia-majority south.

People gather during a protest near the main provincial government building because of the water pollution and poor services in Basra [File: Essam al-Sudani/Reuters]

For several months now, tens of thousands of Iraqis, in several provinces such as Basra, Najaf and Karbala, have been demonstrating against the lack of clean drinking water and electricity cuts, but their demands have yet to be met.

The incoming government will likely start by making short-term fixes for the unemployment and poor services crises, Abbasi said.

However, if the government wants to go deeper than merely addressing the symptoms of some of Iraqs problems, then there will be no escaping the fight to root out corruption.
Tripoli gripped by deadly tribal violence as militias vie for control of Libyas state funds and vast natural resources.

Renewed clashes between rival armed groups in Tripoli have plunged Libya in yet deeper chaos, casting serious doubt as to whether the war-wracked country is ready to hold planned elections later this year.

On August 27, fierce fighting erupted in the capitals southern districts after the Seventh Brigade, an armed group based in Tarhouna, 65km southeast of Tripoli, launched a surprise offensive against rival militias.

At least 39 people have been killed so far, including 18 civilians in gun battles and indiscriminate shelling hitting densely populated areas. Hundreds more have been wounded.

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A truce was reached on August 28 but clashes resumed shortly after, forcing authorities to close Tripolis only functioning airport.

The Seventh Brigade has since assumed control of the airport.

The UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA) in Tripoli declared a state of emergency on Sunday, saying in a statement it was necessary to protect and secure civilians, public and private possessions and vital institutions.

Divisions along regional, tribal and linguistic lines have complicated the North African countrys transition to democracy since the overthrow of long-standing leader Muammar Gaddafi nearly seven years ago.

Arms groups now clashing in and around the capital played an integral part in the NATO-backed mission to topple Gaddafi.

Successive governments failure to integrate these militias into the formal security structure has led to some groups strengthening their position in the capital  and elsewhere  where they control oil terminals, airports, military barracks and other crucial infrastructure.

The existence of two rival legislatures  the internationally recognised GNA and the eastern-based House of Representatives (HOR)  each with its own central bank and national oil company  highlights another challenge in the countrys plight to enact the necessary reforms and, ultimately, hold elections.

The GNA (Libya's internationally recognised government) is a paper government with no influence of events. Emadeddin Muntasser, political analyst and human rights campaigner

In May, Prime Minister Fayez al-Serraj of the GNA and General Khalifa Haftar of the self-styled Libyan National Army  who control much of eastern Libya  met in Paris and agreed on a timeline to hold nationwide polls by the end of the year.

With a September 16 deadline to establish a constitutional and legal basis for polls looming, Al Jazeera takes a look at the different groups vying for power and the prospects for an election this year.

At least 39 people have been killed so far, including 18 civilians [Ismail Zitouny/Reuters]

Whos fighting who?

The Seventh Brigade, otherwise known as the Kanyat  named after three brothers who hail from Tarhouna  is the only armed group to control an entire town.

The groups stated aim in the latest surge of violence is to cleanse Tripoli of corrupt militias  who use their influence to get bank credits worth millions of dollars while ordinary people sleep outside banks to get a few dinars.

Joined by fighters from the Misrata and Zintan regions, the group is targeting four armed brigades inside Tripoli which it accuses of usurping power and pursuing its interests at the expense of the Libyan state.

According to Emadeddin Muntasser, a Libyan political analyst and human rights campaigner, the behaviour of armed groups inside the capital  their grip on virtually all economic activity  has prompted the current crisis.

Lack of bank liquidity, corruption, and interruptions of all basic services have made living conditions quite desperate, Muntasser said.

These conditions formed the backdrop for the current military action, he added.

The United Nations Panel of Experts has already warned of the threat that armed groups pose to vital state institutions, such as the Central Bank, the National Oil Company or even the Libyan Investment Authority.

A report by the Small Arms Survey report (SAS) in June said the Seventh Brigade  which operates under the banner of the GNA  had expanded significantly since mid-2017.

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But armed groups pledging allegiance to the GNA doesnt mean that they will also heed civilian authorities orders, analysts say.

Everybody is under the GNA government because the Ministry of Interior and Ministry of Defence pay out salaries but nobody takes orders from them, said Tarek Megerisi, a political researcher specialising in Libya.

What happened about six or seven months ago is an alliance that formed between Zintan, Misrata, Tarhouna and Tajura, and they have been planning to attack Tripoli for a long time, he added.

Megerisi said other fighters, including from smaller groups, are also participating in the current violence. They too had been pushed out from the capital in the past.

Why are they fighting?

In a paper brief published in April, Wolfram Lacher, a senior associate at the German Institute for International and Security Affairs, warned of a worrying trend among Libyan armed groups; the rise of a militia cartel or oligopoly.

According to Lacher, four groups, in particular, exerted a disproportionate influence on the government.

These are the Tripoli Revolutionary Brigade, the Nawasi Brigade, the Special Deterrence Force and the Abu Slim unit of the Central Security apparatus.

The pillaging of state funds  a hallmark of Libyas political economy  now benefits a narrower group than at any previous point since 2011, said Lacher.

Actors excluded from this arrangement are building alliances to alter the balance of power in Tripoli by force.

When the Presidential Council of al-Serraj arrived in Tripoli in 2016 by boat, the four groups were among the many that were already active in the city.

According to analysts, the four entities won the favour of the weak UN-backed government because they actively defended it.

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At the same time, they benefited from the legitimacy that comes with being associated with a government.

Experts say recent events show the governments inability time and again to demobilise irregular forces and integrate them into its defence and security apparatus.

This failure, in conjunction with the consolidation of military brigades to a handful of powerful factions, has angered rival militias who feel like they have been dealt with unjustly and marginalised, as well as being at risk of losing access to state funds.

In the short run, the consolidation helped make Tripoli safer by decreasing the risk of armed skirmishes but actors who were sidelined were working behind the scenes on making a comeback.

Smoke rises during heavy clashes in Tripoli [Hani Amara/Reuters]

What is the international community saying?

The United States, France, Italy and the UK said in a joint statement on Saturday that they condemned the escalation of violence and warned, Those who tamper with security in Tripoli or elsewhere in Libya that they will be held accountable for any such actions.

These attempts to weaken the legitimate Libyan authorities and hinder the ongoing political process are not acceptable, the statement published by the French foreign ministry said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres also condemned the violence but for many Libyans, the UN-backed GNA has no real authority on the ground.

The GNA is a paper government with no influence of events, lamented Muntasser.

Plagued with incompetence, corruption and infighting, the GNA will come apart as soon as the armed gangs that offer it protection are driven out.

This, in turn, complicates efforts by the international community and France especially to hold a vote before the end of the year.

Italy, the former colonial power in Libya, has voiced its readiness to host the warring parties in Rome for reconciliation talks that it says would set the stage for elections but not before mid-2019.

Is Libya ready for elections?

In May, when al-Serraj and Haftar met in the French capital, powerful armed groups in western Libya that officially fell under the GNAs authority rejected the move.

They said it went against their interests.

Analysts told Al Jazeera at the time that political leaders agreeing to organise nationwide polls would not necessarily be a popular measure among their supporters, especially in Tripoli where al-Serraj has to appease armed groups backing the government.

Some of these armed groups are now fighting to take over the capital.

Experts say they may well be able to break through Tripolis defences and establish a foothold in the government where they will try to renegotiate their relationship with the GNA.

Megerisi said the Seventh Brigade employ a populist narrative of wanting to curb corruption and improve life for the average citizen but there is no guarantee that this is what they will do once in power.

Everybody is vying for a piece of the pie, he added.

A more immediate concern is the absence of a constitution to govern the electoral process and set out the mandate of executive, legislative and judicial branches of government.

Muntasser, the Libyan political analyst, suggests authorities take a different approach altogether by holding elections in regions that are under civilian control and deemed to be free and secure enough for a vote.

He said that as elections progress and are held in qualifying regions, a new parliament would be gradually formed.

The new parliament will possess sovereignty and will have full legislative powers, including the authority to form a government, regardless of the number of members who will be voted in.

This process will continue and more elections shall be held in an incremental fashion with districts electing their representatives to join the newly formed and functioning parliament, Muntasser added.
Further details regarding exhibition of the worlds most expensive painting will be announced soon, authorities say.

The exhibition of a 500-year-old painting, Salvator Mundi, by Leonardo da Vinci at the Louvre, Abu Dhabi, has been temporarily postponed, Abu Dhabis Department of Culture and Tourism announced on Monday.

The painting was initially scheduled to be displayed on September 18.

The celebrated 14th-century painting, at one time bought for $40, was sold for $450m at an auction in New York at Christies in November 2017.

It has now surpassed the second-highest-priced painting in the world (Willem de Koonings Interchange, 1955) by around $150m, granting it the indisputable title of the worlds most expensive painting.

The buyer of the once-lost painting, according to the New York Times, is Saudi prince Bader bin Abdullah bin Mohammed bin Farhan Al Saud.

However, the AP news agency did not confirm the identity of the buyer and instead quoted a Western diplomat, who said he was a Saudi Royal acting as a proxy for the Saudi prince, with close ties to Abu Dhabis Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed.

Mystery has surrounded how Abu Dhabis Louvre museum acquired it. The Saudi embassy in Washington said the Saudi royal purchased the painting on behalf of the museum in Abu Dhabi.

It was temporarily caught in an anonymous bidding war between a Saudi and a UAE prince, according to the Daily Mail tabloid. Quoting an anonymous source, the British tabloid said that each prince thought their rival was Qatar.

The bidding started to get high, and each of them thought they were bidding against the Qataris, and didnt want them to get it, the tabloid reported, quoting a source close to the Emirati leader.

Savior of the World

Salvator Mundi will be the second da Vinci painting to be displayed at the Louvre in Abu Dhabi, the other one being La Belle Ferronniere (1490), a portrait of an unknown French woman.

The painting itself is a depiction of Jesus Christ holding a crystal orb in his left hand while giving a blessing with his right hand. The phrase Salvator Mundi is Latin for Savior of the World.

King Louis XII of France and Anne of Brittany are believed to have commissioned the painting after the conquests of Milan and Genoa in 1500. Since then, it went in and out of the hands of various European kings, until 1763, when it went missing and did not surface again for 150 years.

After that, it was in the hands of various art dealers initially in London and subsequently the US, where last year it was put up for sale for $450m at Christies.

Since the record sale was announced almost 30,000 people flocked to see it in exhibitions across Hong Kong, New York and San Francisco  which is the first time the painting has ever been shown to the public in Asia or the Americas.

Abu Dhabi is eager to display the most expensive piece of art, painted by one of the most well-known painters of the Renaissance period. However, some scholars dispute that is Leonardo da Vincis work.

Oxford Art historian Matthew Landrus argues in an upcoming book that Leonardos assistant, Luini, painted the majority of Salvator Mundi. He estimates Leonardo only drew around 20 percent of the painting, particularly in places where you can spot his sfumato technique.

However, academics and art historians widely believe the painting can be attributed to da Vinci.
The case is seen by some as a test of whether colonial-era deals struck by world powers are legitimate.

Mauritius has told the United Nations top court that former colonial power the UK unduly pressured it in 1965 to give up a remote Indian Ocean island chain in exchange for independence.

Judges at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on Monday began hearing arguments for an advisory opinion the UN General Assembly requested on the legality of British sovereignty over the Chagos Islands.

The largest island, Diego Garcia, has housed a major US airbase for decades.

More than 50 years after independence  the process of decolonisation of Mauritius remains incomplete, Anerood Jugnauth, former Mauritian president, told the judges at The Hague.

This was as a result of the unlawful detachment of an integral part of our territory on the eve of our independence, he told the judges.

Judges at the ICJ, or World Court, are expected to spend three more days hearing representatives from 22 countries and the African Union arguing over colonial history and the rights of exiled islanders to return.





The majority of these states oppose Britains assertion that it has sovereignty over the island, but the United States, Australia and Israel are expected to support the UK.

No date has been set for a decision. Although the ICJs opinions are not binding, they carry great weight under international law.

We are still suffering

The case is seen by some as a test of whether colonial-era deals struck by great powers and weaker states are legitimate, given the power imbalance.

Britain in 1965 detached the Chagos Islands from Mauritius, a British colony that became independent three years later.

It leased Diego Garcia to the US in 1966, clearing the way for the construction of the airbase that required the forced removal of around 1,500 people. The islanders have never been allowed to return home.

Mauritius government claims this was in breach of UN resolution 1514, which banned in 1960 the breakup of colonies before independence.

Today, Diego Garcia is believed to be hosting one of the largest US military bases in the world, and home to an estimated 4,000 troops.

The UK, which has yet to respond, is expected to argue that Mauritius is trying to improperly use the ICJ to settle a bilateral dispute.

Its position is that it has the right to use the islands as long as they are needed for military purposes and refuses to give a date for when it plans to return the islands.

The people displaced from the Chagos Islands have lobbied for years for their return. But in 2016, the UKs foreign ministry extended Diego Garcias lease until 2036, and declared the expelled islanders would not be allowed to go back.

Outside the court, a small group of Chagossians gathered to protest.

They unfurled banners denouncing modern slavery and called for Chagossians to be allowed self-determination.

I want the world to see that we are still suffering, Isabelle Charlot, whose father was born on Chagos, told the Reuters news agency.

Speaking to Al Jazeera from London, Tom Guha, chairman of the UK Chagos Support Association, which has campaigned for years for the islanders right of return, said Britain and the US need to take responsibility for their actions over the last 50 years, even if sovereignty is given to Mauritius.

We believe the question of sovereignty has no bearing whatsoever on the question of return. We know that the right of return is practically feasible and whichever way the decision goes, the right of return must be granted.
For every 18 arrivals this year, one has died while trying to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe, UN data shows.

More than 1,600 people have died or gone missing while attempting to reach Europe so far this year, UNCHRs new Desperate Journeys report shows.

The report released on Monday reveals that while the number of crossings has fallen, the deaths have risen, making the voyage more deadly in percentage terms for those who venture across.

According to the report, people smugglers are taking greater risks in the journey due to increased surveillance.

A total of 2,276 people died last year while trying to cross, this represented one death for every 42 arrivals.

This year, it is 1,095 deaths, or one out of every 18 arrivals. In June alone, the proportion hit one death for every seven arrivals. About 500 people have gone missing.

This report once again confirms the Mediterranean as one of the worlds deadliest sea crossings, said UNHCRs director of the Bureau for Europe, Pascale Moreau.

With the number of people arriving on European shores falling, this is no longer a test of whether Europe can manage the numbers, but whether Europe can muster the humanity to save lives, she added.

People travelling to Europe continue to do so for different reasons.

Some continue to flee armed conflict and human rights violations, while others seek international protection on account of religious, ethnic or political persecution or to escape different forms of sexual or gender-based violence, the report revealed.

On the Central Mediterranean route so far this year, there have been 10 separate incidents in which 50 or more people died  most after departing from Libya.

The reason the traffic has become more deadly is that the traffickers are taking more risk, because there is more surveillance exercised by the Libyan coast guards, said Vincent Cochetel, UNHCRs special envoy for the central Mediterranean.

Seven of those incidents have been since June alone, UNHCR said.

This is not new, we have highlighted this for a while now, Maria Jesus Vega a spokesperson from UNCHR in Spain told Al Jazeera.

We need a regional response, this not an exclusive problem from those countries that are in the outer border, such as Italy, Greece or Spain.

And while people risk their lives in the journey, this is not the only time they are at risk.

People aiming to reach to Europe risk their lives multiple times, Vega said.

They risk their lives when they try to flee conflict in their countries, when they need to cross the borders with no authorisation, and when they fall in the hands of traffickers and mafias that promise to take them, she explained.

Monetising tragedy

Libyan authorities intercepted or rescued 18,400 people between August last year and July this year  a 38-percent increase from the same period of 2016 and 2017.

Arrivals by sea from Libya to Europe plummeted 82 percent in those comparable periods, to 30,800 in the more recent one.

UNHCR says a growing worry these days is deaths on land by people trying to get to Libya in the first place, or getting stuck in squalid, overcrowded detention centres.

Many are returned there after failing to cross by sea to Europe.

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The problems after disembarkation (is that) those people are sent back to detention centres and many disappear, Cochetel said.

Many are sold to militias, and to traffickers, and people employing them without paying them.

He said the drop in departures means that traffickers attempt to monetise their investment, which means they have to exploit more people.

That results in more cases of slavery, forced labour, prostitution of those people  because they (smugglers) want to make money off those people.

And while this route is deadly, this is not the only one that raises a red alert.

The route of Morocco or Algeria to Spain has also shown an increase in the death rate, Vega said.

So far this year more than 300 people have died.

Last year, we had a total of 200 deaths, this is very worrisome, and a lot of this has to do with the mafias that are operating the route, they are taking greater risks every day, she added.

Spain is the third-busiest point of arrival for all refugees and migrants entering Europe by sea, behind Italy and Greece, accounting for 23 percent of all such arrivals to the EU.
US midterm elections: A surge in women vying for office

Labor Day Monday is the unofficial start of heavy campaigning and many of the record numbers of female candidates are running against, or on, President Trumps relatively short time in office.
Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo found guilty of breaching state secrets law during their reporting on a massacre of Rohingya.

A Myanmar court has sentenced two Reuters news agency journalists to seven years in prison for illegal possession of official documents, a ruling that comes as international criticism mounts over the militarys alleged human rights abuses against Rohingya Muslims.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who investigated the massacre of 10 Rohingya men, had pleaded not guilty to violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

They contended they were framed by police.

Calling the decision unfair and one-sided, Wa Lone, 32, said the verdict threatened Myanmars democracy.

It directly threatens our democracy and freedom of the press, he said as he was driven away along with Kyaw Soe Oo to begin their sentence.

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I would like to say its very disappointing as its destroyed the system [democracy] of our country and the way we would like to be. We will continue to face it.

Delivering the sentence presiding judge Ye Lwin said the defendants  have breached Official Secrets Act section 3.1.c and are sentenced to seven years.

He said the time served since the two reporters were detained on December 12 would be taken into account. The defense can appeal the decision to the regional court and then the supreme court.

As the judge spoke, several reporters cried as they took notes.

Kyaw Soe Oos wife, Chit Su Win, burst into tears after the verdict, and family members had to support her as she left the court.

Little credible evidence

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Al Jazeeras Wayne Hay, reporting from Bangkok in neighbouring Thailand, said that throughout the course of this trial there was very little, if anything, in the way of credible evidence that could justify such conviction.

The reporters had told the court two police officials handed them papers at a restaurant in the city of Yangon moments before other officers arrested them.

One police witness testified the restaurant meeting was a set-up to entrap the journalists to block or punish them for their reporting of a mass killing of Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine.

After his testimony, the officer was jailed for a year for violating police regulations and his family was kicked out of police housing.

Other testimony by prosecution witnesses was contradictory, and the documents presented as evidence against the reporters appeared to be neither secret nor sensitive.

The journalists testified they did not solicit or knowingly possess any secret documents.

Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere, Reuters editor in chief Stephen J Adler said in a statement.

We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo both testified they suffered from harsh treatment during their initial interrogations.

Their several appeals for release on bail were rejected. Wa Lones wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to the couples first child in Yangon on August 10, but Wa Lone has not yet seen his daughter.

Hammer blow

Many nations, including the US, UK, Denmark and Bangladesh, as well as human rights group have called for the reporters immediate release.

Phil Robertson, deputy deputy director of Human Rights Watchs Asia division, called the verdict a hammer-blow against media freedom.

Speaking to Al Jazeera, Robertson said Myanmars military, also known as the Tatmadaw, wanted a guilty verdict against the two reporters in order to intimidate other journalists to avoid reporting on human rights violations by the army.

This is clearly a situation when the Tatmadaw has won the day, he said.

This is a court system that has been very close to the Burmese military, [and] has done its dirty work in the past. We do not really see the kind the of independent judiciary that we would expect in a modern democracy.

The verdict comes amid mounting pressure on the government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi over a security crackdown sparked by attacks by Rohingya Muslim insurgents on security forces in August 2017.





It also comes a week after the release of an explosive United Nations-led study into abuses in Rakhine, accusing Myanmars army chief of heading a campaign of genocide and crimes against humanity against the Rohingya.

About 700,000 Rohingya fled to neighbouring Bangladesh to escape the violence targeting them after attacks by Rohingya figthers killed a dozen members of the security forces.

UN investigators said genocide charges should be brought against senior Myanmar military officers over the crackdown, and strongly criticised Suu Kyi for failing to use her moral authority to stand up for the stateless minority.

The same day, Facebook shut down the pages of Myanmars army chief Min Aung Hlaing and other military top brass, in what the company said was a bid to prevent them from further fanning ethnic and religious tensions.

The accusation of genocide was rejected by Myanmars government, but is the most serious official recommendation for prosecution so far.

Dozens of journalists and pro-democracy activists marched Saturday in Yangon, Myanmars biggest city, in support of the reporters.

This is a major step backward in Myanmar's transition to democracy, cannot be squared with the rule of law or freedom of speech. Stephen J Adler, Reuters Editor-in-Chief

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar Knut Ostby said the UN was disappointed by todays court decision.

The United Nations has consistently called for the release of the Reuters journalists and urged the authorities to respect their right to pursue freedom of expression and information, he said.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be allowed to return to their families and continue their work as journalists.
Pakistan FM says $300m cancelled by the US was money which Pakistan spent through its own resources.

Islamabad, Pakistan  The significance of United States cancelling $300m in security assistance to Pakistan has been downplayed by the countrys foreign minister who said the amount was a reimbursement and not assistance.

Relations between the US and Pakistan have been increasingly frayed since January, when US President Donald Trump suspended more than $1.1bn in security assistance to the country over allegations that it was not acting against armed groups such as the Afghan Taliban.

Pakistan denies the charge, saying it has conducted indiscriminate military operations against all armed groups operating on its soil.

On Sunday, Pentagon spokesperson Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner confirmed that the US would be finally cancelling $300m in Coalition Support Funds (CSF), which was part of the $1.1bn suspended in January, reassigning the funds to other projects, due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy.

This $300m was neither any aid nor assistance, said Pakistans new foreign minister, Shah Mahmood Qureshi, on Sunday evening.

It is our share in CSF. This is the money which Pakistan has already spent through its own resources and [the US] was to reimburse it to us.

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US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, accompanied by US military chief General Joseph Dunford, is due for a visit to Islamabad on Wednesday.

Qureshi said that ties between Pakistan and the US are currently almost non-existent, but he hoped this would change after Pompeos visit.

With the visit of the US secretary of state we have an opening and a beginning can be made, and we will try to build a consensus in areas of mutual interest, he said.

It is our shared objective to cleanse the region and the world of terrorism.

We will listen to their point of view, and we will present our position to them, he said. Our objective is that we move our relationship forward based on trust, respect and understanding.

Pompeo visit

Pompeo and Dunford are expected to hold talks with the newly elected government, led by longtime opposition politician Imran Khan, and military chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa.

For over a decade, Pakistan has received CSF assistance to reimburse its military for expenditures incurred in its war against armed groups, including the Pakistan Taliban.

Afghanistan and the US accuse the country of offering safe haven to leaders of the Afghan Taliban and Haqqani Network, which have been waging a 17-year war since the US invasion of Afghanistan in 2001.

Pakistan denies that it has aided the Afghan Taliban and its allies.

In 2016, Akhtar Mansour, then-chief of the Afghan Taliban, was killed in a US drone strike on Pakistani territory, while travelling in the southwestern province of Balochistan using Pakistani identity papers.

Asad Hashim is Al Jazeeras digital correspondent in Pakistan. He tweets @AsadHashim.
Israeli forces kill 28-year-old Palestinian near the Kiryat Arba settlement, east of Hebron, in the occupied West Bank.

Israeli forces have shot dead a Palestinian man after he allegedly attempted to stab a soldier at a checkpoint near the entrance of an illegal settlement in the occupied West Bank city of Hebron, according to Israels military.

The Palestinian health ministry confirmed that 28-year-old Wael Abdulfattah al-Jaabari was killed on Monday by the entrance of Kiryat Arba, a Jewish settlement on the eastern outskirts of Hebron, the West Banks most populous city.

No Israelis were wounded.

A Palestinian Red Crescent ambulance was prevented from reaching the scene by Israeli soldiers who had blocked off the area, local media reported.

Kiryat Arba is home to a few hundred Jewish settlers who live under heavy army guard and among several hundred thousand Palestinians.

Settlements are considered illegal under international law and are a major sticking point for peace efforts between Israel and the Palestinians.

A Palestinian assailant approached an Israeli security crossing near Kiryat Arba  with a knife in his hand. In response, IDF troops neutralised the assailant, the Israeli military said in a statement.

Following an initial inquiry: A Palestinian assailant approached an Israeli security crossing near Kiryat Arba, east of Hebron, with a knife in his hand. In response, IDF troops neutralized the assailant.  Israel Defense Forces (@IDF) September 3, 2018

Videos from the scene of the incident circulated on local news outlets and social media showed al-Jaabari lying on the floor, his body covered in blood and surrounded by Israeli soldiers and settlers.

One video appeared to show Israeli forces wrapping the 28-year-olds body in a black plastic bag.

According to witnesses, the body was then loaded into an army vehicle that left the scene to an unknown location, Maan news agency reported.

Al-Jaabari is survived by his wife and two children, whose house is reportedly located about 15 metres away from the entrance of the settlement.

A number of local and international human rights groups have raised concerns that Israeli security forces have employed a shoot-to-kill policy when confronting Palestinians.

The Israeli police relaxed its open-fire regulations in December 2015, permitting soldiers to open fire with, live ammunition, on those throwing stones or firebombs as an initial option, without having to use non-lethal weapons first.
Several hundred angry Brazilians attempt to storm the burned-out museum to see what ancient artefacts were lost.

Rio de Janeiro riot police fired tear gas and pepper spray on Monday to keep a large angry crowd from entering the remains of Brazils National Museum after it burned down.

Several hundred people tried to forcibly get inside the museum  Latin Americas largest  in an attempt to see what ancient pieces were destroyed by the major blaze on Sunday night.

The rising tensions reflect anger over the destruction of the much-loved yet dilapidated museum, which suffered from declining federal funding in recent years.

Outside the entrance to the elegant park that houses the 200-year-old former Imperial Palace, angry protesters called on the government to rebuild the museum while trying to make their way through the gates that surround the grounds.

Our community is very mobilised and very indignant, said Roberto Leher, the rector of the Rio de Janeiro Federal University, which administers the museum. We all knew the building was vulnerable.

On Monday firefighters were trying to put out the last of the flames.

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Ancient artefacts

The museum had a collection of 20 million items, including Egyptian and Greco-Roman artefacts and the oldest human skull found in the Western hemisphere.

Although the walls remained standing, much of the inside of the building appeared to be gutted.

The museum had suffered significant budget cuts, leading it to close in 2015 because of maintenance issues.

The building, which opened in 1818, was once the home of the Portuguese royal family.

Students and National Museum employees protest outside the institution on Monday [Silvia Izquierdo/AP]

Authorities have yet to say what caused Sundays fire.

Brazils Culture Minister Sergio Leitao told the Estado de S Paulo newspaper the blaze was likely started by either an electrical short-circuit or a homemade paper hot-air balloon that may have landed on the roof.

Launching such balloons is a long-held tradition in Brazil and they routinely cause fires.

Tragedy foretold

The museum also boasted a large collection of fossils, 26,000 in total. Among them were a dinosaur skeleton discovered in Brazils central Minas Gerais and several specimens of species that have now disappeared, such as giant sloths and sabre-toothed tigers.

The fire stirred emotions in Brazil, whose angry electorate is reeling from a frail economy, widespread corruption, and rising violence ahead of an unpredictable presidential election in October.

Renato Rodriguez Cabral, a teacher in the geology and palaeontology department, said the museums decline did not happen overnight.

This was a tragedy foretold, Cabral said as he hugged students and co-workers. Successive governments would not provide funds, they would not invest in infrastructure.
When 27-year-old student and refugee Ananya Azad heard that he had been selected for a scholarship to attend Central European University (CEU) in Hungary, he quit his job in Germany and gave notice on his flat.

He had been chosen as a part of an initiative to provide education to migrants and asylum seekers in Europe.

A blogger and published author who fled from Bangladesh, Azad had hoped to use develop his expertise on the right to freedom of speech when the academic year begins on Monday.

But last week, CEU was forced to suspend the programme after a new law went into effect imposing a hefty immigration surtax, equal to 25 percent of the entire budget of institutions that in any capacity directly or indirectly promotes immigration.

For Azad and dozens of other students who had benefited from the programme, it is a devastating blow in a region with few options for refugees and migrants wishing to pursue higher education.

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This is very difficult for me. I dont know this language and now I am having to do this totally alone, he said. I think this world is for humans and we should respect all of them.

Wafa, 52, a doctor from Yemen currently residing in Budapest, joined the programme for a year in 2016.

She said that she had planned to rejoin the school, but is now unsure where to go to continue her work.

Many of us will complain about this. Many refugees depend on this university to study or get work, she said.

The government says that a pro-migrant stance is not in the best interests of Hungarians.

The issue of migration is an issue of European democracy; there is a gap between the utopian, pro-immigration concept of left-wing elites and the interests of the people, government spokesman Zoltan Kovacs said in a statement on Tuesday.

Hungarian-born American billionaire George Soros, who funds the programme, has been a persistent target of the nationalist government led by populist Prime Minister Viktor Orban.

The programmes have provided educational training only for persons legally admitted to Hungary. We are proud of this work and of our research on refugee and migration issues in Europe and will seek all possible ways to continue this work in the future, CEU says on ts website.

We may see more projects fold

In June, parliament overwhelmingly passed a package of legislation known as the Stop Soros bill that would allow for the imprisonment of anybody aiding migrants, despite pleas from international bodies including the European Union and United Nations not to do so.

The latest bill which has drawn similar criticism from rights organisations, is the most recent attack on migrants and civil society actors attempting to help asylum seekers fleeing from war-torn countries.

It comes as pressure mounts on the European Union to impose sanctions on the straying member state.

Unless EU institutions make it clear to the Hungarian government that taxing and criminalising work with asylum seekers, migrants, and refugees is unacceptable and an affront to EU laws and values, we may see more valuable programmes and projects fold, Lydia Gall, an Eastern Europe researcher at Human Rights Watch, wrote on Wednesday.

The bill has also been criticised for being intentionally vague, forcing CEU to close its migrant programme while it seeks tax advice, the university wrote in a statement on August 28.

This is a law that has to be seen in two contexts; one as a part of a series of punitive measures against asylum seekers and refugees in Hungary, and secondly as a part of the famous illiberal turn, so [my] feeling is one of frustration, said Prem Kumar Rajaram, a volunteer and administrator of the programme.

Petra Bard, an expert on EU constitutional law and EU criminal justice and visiting professor of the Central European University (CEU), said that while the government has continued to repress the rights of migrants, Prime Minister Orban is clamping down on education in general to stamp out any curriculum that could be seen as a breeding ground for liberal thought.

Last month, the government moved to ban gender studies at universities on the basis that it served to no benefit among employers looking to hire students.

One way to control people is to not grant them access to education, Bard said.
Spring brings heavy snow and landslips to both the North and South Islands.

It may be spring in New Zealand, the weather is still stuck in a wintry rut.

A blast of polar weather is battering the country, bringing torrential rain, damaging winds and heavy snow.

The rain has already triggered two minor landslides in the Wellington area with more downpour expected.

Snow has been falling to as low as 500m on the South Island and blizzards have forced the closure of Canterbury ski fields, with some locations expecting well over 50cm of snow.

Severe weather at this time of year is not unusual for New Zealand. In spring, the weather to the north of the country warms fairly quickly and this contrasts starkly with the bitter cold to the south of the islands.

This conflict in temperature can produce some fairly explosive weather, and strong winds are a frequent problem.

During the current severe weather outbreak, damaging winds are again the main threat, with New Zealands MetService warning that the winds in the Wellington area could gust up to 120kmph in the coming hours.

Heavy rain warnings are also in force for the lower half of the North Island.

On Tuesday, the area of low pressure responsible for the damaging weather will gradually move offshore, allowing the weather to gradually improve.

However, the rest of the week will remain unsettled, with plenty of wet and windy weather on the cards.
Judge Brett Kavanaugh will be grilled over four days on abortion, gun rights and other key US political issues.

US Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh is expected to face tough questions during four days of hearings this week over his stance on controversial issues, including womens rights and corporate power.

Democrats will grill President Donald Trumps pick for the Supreme Court on his endorsement of presidential immunity and his opposition to abortion.

Kavanaugh is nominated to replace Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy who retired at the end of July.

About two dozen witnesses will be summoned in front of Congress to argue for and against confirming Kavanaugh, who could swing the nine-member high court decidedly in conservatives favour for years to come.

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Brett Kavanaugh praised the dissent in Roe v Wade. He called Justice Rehnquist, who authored the dissent in Roe, his judicial hero, California Senator Dianne Feinstein said on Twitter.

Theres no mystery as to where he stands on Roe v Wade, she added, referring to the landmark 1973 Supreme Court case that granted women the right to an abortion.

In a later tweet, Feinstein highlighted a different case in which Kavanaugh, 53, also ruled in favour of restricting womens choice regarding reproductive rights.

In 2017, Kavanaugh mischaracterized and failed to follow Supreme Court precedent in Planned Parenthood v. Casey. We've already seen him discard precedent on women's reproductive freedom.  Senator Dianne Feinstein (@SenFeinstein) September 2, 2018

Conservative Catholic Kavanaugh, who hails from a wealthy Washington, DC suburb, has the backing of powerful right-wing judicial groups and deeply religious evangelical Christians.

Both groups are pro-gun and anti-abortion rights and form a key part of the Republican voter base.

Trumps alleged wrongdoings

Other issues to come into play during the hearings are his support for corporations against regulation, and the judges belief that a sitting president should not be distracted by legal proceedings against him.

Kavanaughs thoughts on the last issue are especially important as Trump was alleged to have taken part in late 2016 in making payments to an adult film star and a Playboy model in possible violations of election laws.

Those allegations, recorded in a recent plea deal by Trumps former lawyer Michael Cohen, implicated then-candidate Trump directly in the payment.

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The elephant in the room Tuesday is going to be the presidents implication as an unindicted co-conspirator in very, very serious criminal wrongdoing, said Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal.

Democrats are also angry the Trump administration has not released all the records of Kavanaughs work while he was in the White House.

Republicans argue that Kavanaughs judicial history shows he is well-suited for the job.

The American Bar Association has determined by a unanimous vote that Judge Kavanaugh is Well Qualified for the position of Associate Justice of the Supreme Court  its highest possible rating. Leading Democrats have called this the Gold Standard.  Leader McConnell (@senatemajldr) August 31, 2018

Kavanaugh needs 50 votes for confirmation but, according to US media, currently, only 47 Republicans have said they will vote in favour of him, with 41 Democrats in opposition.

The Supreme Court nominee started his career as a clerk in Justice Kennedys office.

In the 1990s, Kavanaugh worked with special prosecutor Kenneth Starr in his probe of Democratic President Bill Clintons affair with White House intern Monica Lewinsky, which led to Clintons impeachment trial.

In 2001, he joined former President George W Bushs White House legal team, where his role in key terrorism-related decisions, such as permitting the torture of detainees, remains unclear.

As a US Court of Appeals judge in Washington, DC for the past 11 years, Kavanaugh has ruled and written on some of the nations most sensitive cases, including when he opposed the Affordable Care Act  the signature health reform by ex-president Barack Obama that Trump has sought to dismantle.
Tokyo: Recapturing the past

As Japans capital celebrates its 150th anniversary, one photographer is hoping to bring the past to life by using a photography form that dates back more than 150 years.
Republicans face credible challenges in 62 congressional districts in November while Democrats face competition in four.

Washington, DC  Republican Congressman Mike Bosts big political moment this election year came in July when he and President Donald Trump toured the Granite City Steel Works near St Louis in the US heartland.

The president, appearing at a rally with Bost and other Illinois congressional Republicans, touted his steel tariffs and promised to bring industrial jobs back to the Midwest.

People in Illinois 12th district voted 55-40 percent for Trump over Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election. Yet Bost, who has embraced Trump, is in a tight race for re-election this year.

This is a competitive race that leans maybe slightly Republican is the way I would rate it, said John Jackson, a political science professor at the Paul Simon Institute of Public Policy at the University of Southern Illinois in Carbondale.

In a telling sign, the Granite City steelworkers union threw their support to Bosts Democrat challenger, Brendan Kelly, a former state prosecutor and political moderate.

On November 6, some 80 million voters  perhaps more depending on turnout  will cast ballots for all 435 seats in the House of Representatives where Republicans currently hold a 23-seat majority.

Historically called midterm elections, the vote is essentially a referendum on the party of the president, whose performance in office is watched closely.

Trumps job approval is one of the critical factors and thus there is some reason to believe a Democratic wave is coming, Jackson told Al Jazeera.

Recent polls show US voters increasingly hold negative views of the president. Sixty percent of registered voters in a joint August 29 poll by The Washington Post and ABC News disapproved of the job the president is doing, up from 54 percent in April.

Democrat revival?

Now, as Republicans begin their re-election campaigns in earnest, most analysts are predicting that the Democrats will gain control of the House, an outcome that would match historical norms.

My forecast is that the Democrats will pick up a net of about 30 House seats. I dont see a huge wave. But I think they will take the House, said Greg Valliere, chief global strategist and Washington analyst at Horizon Investments LLC, a financial advisory firm.

Republican losses, however, easily could be higher depending on the depth of a potential backlash against Trump.

Republicans face credible challenges from Democrats in 62 congressional districts while Democrats face competition in only four, according to The Cook Political Report, a non-partisan publisher of US political analysis.

In the state of California, affluent suburban voters in Orange County have historically provided Republicans with a reliable base of support. Not so this year.

We used to be the county that Ronald Reagan said all good Republicans go to die [in], Dan Chmielewski, publisher of TheLiberalOC, an Orange County political blog, told Al Jazeera.

Hillary won Orange Country in 2016, the first time a Democrat has taken this county since Franklin Delano Roosevelt. There are significant cities that have voter registrations that are majority Democrat now, he said.

House battlefield

Three Orange County Republicans face Democratic challengers in races analysts rate as toss-ups.

In the agricultural San Joaquin and San Fernando valleys, where Hispanics make up one-third or more of voters and Trumps anti-immigrant policies hurt migrant workers, two more Republicans face competitive races.

In particular, Representative Dana Rohrbacher, now in his 15th term as a congressman, faces criticism at home for his connections to Russians amid the US Department of Justices special investigation into Trumps campaign and potential collusion with Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election.

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Rohrbacher blames a deep state conspiracy for the investigation of Trump and says he doubts the veracity of criminal charges brought against Russians by Special Counsel Robert Mueller.

Rohrbachers opponent Harley Rouda has aggressively tied him to Trump and argued the Republican congressman has failed to hold the president accountable, a campaign theme that plays well in California.

Nationwide, a combination of demographic change and disaffection with Trumps brand of politics  particularly among suburban white, college-educated women  has created a challenge for incumbent House Republicans who four years ago might have counted on easy re-elections.

The House battlefield is largely in districts that either Clinton won, or where Trump didnt really run that far ahead. There are a lot of suburban districts where they like Republicans but maybe not a Republican like Trump, Kyle Kondik, who analyzes House races for the University of Virginia Center on Politics, told Al Jazeera. And so, I dont think the president is an asset.

Gift to the wealthy

Democrats have led Republicans in national congressional preference polls all year. The average spread has widened recently to 8.4 percent, according to RealClearPolitics.com.

House races in Texas are emblematic both of the depth of Republican troubles this year and how American politics are shifting at the grassroots level in response to Trump.

Representative John Culberson has held the wealthy Texas 7th district in suburban Houston for 18 years. Its a district that was held by former President George H W Bush when he began his political career. Today, it is more diverse, with a population that is 44 percent white, 32 percent Hispanic, 13 percent black, and 10 percent Asian.

Culberson now faces a tough challenge by Democrat Lizzie Fletcher, a relatively inexperienced, progressive liberal who is focusing her campaign on organising local turnout and resentment about the federal response to Hurricane Harvey, a category-4 storm that caused $125bn in damage in August and September 2017.

A senior member of the House committee that doles out federal money, Culberson played a key role in delivering billions in federal aid to Texas after Harvey but hasnt been personally visible in the district. Like many other Republicans, his hopes of campaigning on the popularity of a huge tax cut enacted in 2017 under Trump have fallen flat.

An awful lot of Republicans thought the tax cuts would be a major plus for them in the election, Valliere said. Weve seen a lot of Republicans abandoning campaign advertising, bragging about the tax cuts. People, especially the Trump base, feel that the tax cuts were a gift to the very wealthy and the corporations.





Unpopular policies

Other pieces of the Republican agenda in Congress have proven unpopular, particularly the 2017 repeal of Obamacare  the 2010 Affordable Care Act  that set up mandated health insurance markets designed to cut costs and make healthcare more accessible for Americans.

In Illinois, Bost was forced to discontinue holding town hall meetings to avoid irate constituents.

The National Republican Congressional Committee, which is the political arm of the House Republican party, adopted the theme, Protecting Our Historic Republican Majority in its campaign and fundraising communications. One by one, it is attempting to paint Democrats as radical leftists opposed to conservative values.

But without a popular national platform, the anti-Trump political climate has left Republicans scrambling to play on local issues or, in some cases, use tricks to weaken the appeal of Democratic opponents.

In Virginias 7th district, defined by suburbs of the state capital Richmond, Tea Party darling Dave Brat is in a tough fight against Democrat challenger Abigail Spanberger, a former CIA operative whose security clearance application was improperly leaked by a political group tied to Republican House Speaker Paul Ryan.

Ryans working-class Wisconsin district outside of Milwaukee was carried by Trump 53-42 percent over Clinton in 2016. He announced in April he would not seek re-election, one of 39 House Republicans choosing to retire rather than face voters this year.

Theres where the Achilles heel in the Trump movement is, Jackson said.
UN: 11 million people in urgent need in Lake Chad region

Three years after the discovery of the first cases of famine, thousands are suffering from acute and severe malnutrition in Nigerias northeast.
A Myanmar court has found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets during their reporting of a massacre of Rohingya and sentenced them to seven years in prison, sparking an international outcry.

The US and British ambassadors who were present at the sentencing of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo on Monday called the verdict a blow for Myanmars transition to democracy.

Scot Marciel, US ambassador to Myanmar, said he was sad for Wa lone and Kyaw Soe Oo and their families, but also for Myanmar.

Its deeply troubling  one has to ask will this process increase or decrease the confidence the people of Myanmar have in their justice system, he said.

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Dan Chugg, British ambassador to Myanmar expressed extreme disappointment and lambasted presiding Judge Ye Lwin over the verdict.

The judge has appeared to have ignored evidence and to have ignored Myanmar law. This has dealt a hammer blow for the rule of law, he said.

Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, media adviser to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, also strongly condemned the verdict.

It is now an open secret that any media or any person who wants to reveal the atrocities of the Myanmar army and administration against the Rohingya people will face persecution by the Myanmar government, he said.

Bangladesh hosts more than 700,000 Rohingya who fled Myanmar following a security crackdown by its army in Rakhine State last year.

Unfair and one-sided





Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo had pleaded not guilty to violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, punishable by up to 14 years in prison. They contended they were framed by police.

The Reuters reporters were arrested on December 12 while investigating the killing of 10 Rohingya and other abuses involving soldiers and police in Inn Din, a village in Rakhine State.

Myanmar has denied allegations of atrocities made by thousands of refugees against its security forces, saying it conducted a legitimate military operation against Rohingya fighters.

But the military has acknowledged the killing of the 10 Rohingya men and boys at Inn Din after arresting the Reuters reporters.

Wa Lone, calling Mondays decision unfair and one-sided, said it directly threatens Myanmars democracy and freedom of the press.

Speaking to reporters on the court steps after the sentencing, Wa Lone gave a defiant thumbs up and said: We will face it [the verdict] with stability and courage.

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Kyaw Soe Oo also said the reporters had committed no crime and that they would maintain their fight for press freedom.

What I want to say to the government is: you can put us in jail, but do not close the eyes and ears of the people, he said.

The case has drawn worldwide attention as an example of how press freedom is suffering under the government of Myanmars de facto leader and Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

Kristian Schmidt, EU ambassador to Myanmar, in a post on Twitter, said the prison sentences of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be reviewed and they should be released immediately and unconditionally.

EU: The prison sentences of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be reviewed and they should be released immediately and unconditionally.  Kristian Schmidt (@EUAmbSchmidt) September 3, 2018

Expressing his disappointment, Knut Ostby, UN resident and humanitarian aid coordinator in Myanmar, also called for the release of the journalists.

The United Nations has consistently called for the release of the Reuters journalists and urged the authorities to respect their right to pursue freedom of expression and information, he said.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be allowed to return to their families and continue their work as journalists.

Denmark, in a statement, urged Myanmars government to undo this injustice, while a spokesman at the Dutch embassy in Myanmar called on President Win Myint to release the two journalists as soon as possible.

A new low for Myanmar

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Stephen J Adler, Reuters editor-in-chief, called the ruling a major step backward in Myanmars transition to democracy and said it must be corrected by the Myanmar government as a matter of urgency.

He denounced the charges against the reporters as false and designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press.

We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum, he added.

Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director for the Human Rights Watch, called the sentence an outrageous injustice and said Myanmars military, also known as the Tatmadaw, wanted a guilty verdict against the two reporters in order to intimidate other journalists to avoid reporting on human rights violations.

This is clearly a situation when the Tatmadaw has won the day, he told Al Jazeera.

This is a court system that has been very close to the Burmese military, [and] has done its dirty work in the past. We do not really see the kind the of independent judiciary that we would expect in a modern democracy.

No words for this outrageous injustice against @Reuters reporters Wa Lone & Kyaw Soe Oo. How can #Myanmar judicial system justify sending reporters doing their job to a longer prison sentence than the #Tatmadaw soldiers who killed the 10 #Rohingya in their story in cold blood? pic.twitter.com/lI2Qp0k6ub  Phil Robertson (@Reaproy) September 3, 2018

The Committee to Protect Journalists also condemned the sentencing of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, saying it marked a new low for Myanmar.

The process that resulted in their convictions was a travesty of justice and will cast Myanmar as an anti-democratic pariah as long as they are wrongfully held behind bars, said Shawn Crispin, CPJs senior Southeast Asia representative in a statement.

Amnesty Internationals Tirana Hassan called the verdict a politically motivated decision with significant ramifications for press freedom in Myanmar.

It sends a stark warning to other journalists of the severe consequences that await should they look too closely at military abuses. This amounts to censorship through fear, she said.

Thant Myint-U, Myanmar historian and commentator, said the verdict marked a tragic day for media freedom and an intimation of whats to come.

In the Kutupalong refugee camp in Bangladesh, Mohib Ullah, a Rohingya leader, said he hoped the two journalists are freed soon.

This is not justice. I would like to see them free as soon as possible. They did nothing wrong, he said.
About the show

A weekly programme that examines and dissects the worlds media, how they operate and the stories they cover. Watch The Listening Post every Saturday at 0830GMT
The Pursuit of Happiness in the Trump Economy

His life started on a dairy farm. Apart from a stint in the United States Navy, he spent the better part of the next five decades eking out a modest sustenance from milk production. Then come the summer of 85, a young boy was killed in a tractor accident behind the barn. A few months later it was almost the loss of his own hand: mangled in a hay bailer. The attending surgeon, a veteran medic in Vietnam, said it was one of the worst injuries he had ever seen. That was when Dad began to wonder if he should still be a farmer.

Maybe it was providential. The drought of 1986 wiped out many farms across America. By then Dad had found employment at a granite quarry, where he rose to become the head of maintenance before he retired in 2008. But none of that was ever Dads career. He discovered his true calling in the early 90s. A book about knifemaking caught Dads eye. It became something he wanted to take a stab at, pun irresistibly intended. Those first forays were crude: little more than filings from rusted bits of saw blade. But over the next two decades Dad dedicated himself to the art. He built a shop in which to practice his hobby. He always took advantage of opportunities to learn more about knifemaking technique. In time he became a master of multi-layered Damascus steel. When Dad wanted to install a power hammer in the shop, he designed and built one. So too did he build his own propane-fueled forge. And his anvil. And he devised a way to produce Damascus steel with greater speed and precision than before. By the time Dad passed away before Thanksgiving in 2014, none had doubt about what his lifetime career had been. The knives he had made as commissioned works were innumerable. Those he had made simply for the joy of giving to friends and family, even more beyond count. And they were as beautiful to the eye as they were practical in the hand. Toward the end of Navy service Dad was given an opportunity to become involved with computer technology at its very beginning. He chose to return to North Carolina. To start a family and find some happiness. He ended up with more fulfillment and fame than many men get to have or ever bother to pursue. I dont think Dad ever read anything by Joseph Campbell, but in its own way his life magnificently fulfilled the criteria of the heroic archetype. Follow your bliss, said the author of The Hero With A Thousand Faces. Campbells understanding of the drive for self-completeness has even greater bearing on the average person than it did for mythical warriors such as Perceval. For each of us there is a Grail to achieve. We deserve the freedom to pursue it. Hillary Clinton lost the 2016 presidential election because even on a subconscious level, we new that Americans had lost unforgivably too much of that freedom. Something we once had was gone and we were frantic to get it back. For decades Republicans and Democrats alike had promised, in their respective vernaculars, comfortable conditions of being. Too many of them had already forgotten the lessons of communist Russia, that had also guaranteed its citizens a safe existence. Then the people of the Soviet Union became sick and tired of mere existence. That wasnt life. They wanted blue jeans. They wanted Michael Jackson tapes. They wanted toilet paper that wasnt semi-raw wood pulp. They didnt want to have to spend hours in line at the GUM department store in downtown Moscow to buy that toilet paper. They wanted to forge their own destinies. That is what Ronald Reagan and Margaret Thatcher and John Paul II understood and tapped into. It was a rising tide of the need to grow and become more than what one already was and when the Politburo could hold it back no more, it burst with abandon across Eastern Europe. More than either of the two parties would like to admit, Americans have felt denied that same freedom. Those feelings are justifiable. For decades, Washington has assumed that people want government-mandated comfort. Americans saw Hillary Clinton as the embodiment of that assumption. And they turned against it. People remembered that America had once been better, before a generations worth of choking buildup. And for whatever flaws the man possessed, they saw Donald Trump as a break from the pattern. As a desperate arrow to fire toward a chink in the dragons scale. Eighteen months after Trump took office, the domestic economy has roared to life as few dared imagine. Long-dormant factories have been aroused and new factories are being built, including Foxconns new facility in Wisconsin that will employ 13,000 people. Unemployment rates are at the lowest in decades, especially among the black and Hispanic communities. Wages are improving. Taxes are being slashed. There are long-needed competitive tariffs and trade policies. Retailers are reporting record profits. And yet all of those are measly dividends compared to the true riches about to be poured forth. The American people are beginning to discover the pleasure of having both more money and more time. They are getting to devote more of their free hours to their families, to their communities, or to their hobbies. For many this is will be enough for contentment, and that is good. For others, they will want to know if they can go further. They are driven to find their limits and dreaming to exceed them. They are daring to evolve and discover the individual that he or she is meant to be. The American people love this improving economy, because its enabling them to improve themselves. They have not been able to enjoy that in a very long time. For President Trump, that alone has almost certainly assured his re-election. However beleaguered the man has become to the press and late-night comedians, many more Americans than before are too busy with their own lives to care. They ignore the chicanery inside the Beltway and consider their own aspirations, for a change. It is an inebriating freedom and thus far, no opposing political figures have proposed an attractive counter to it. Indeed, the more that the pundits and the celebrities ridicule Trump and his supporters, the more they themselves are becoming ignored. The politicians erred in thinking that people want mere work. They require work, but they need purpose and they want to follow their dreams. Yes, there are jobs. And yet more important than jobs, there are callings. Americans are increasingly becoming free again to pursue those callings. And as their spirits revitalize, so too will American culture with it. Case in point: the film industry has stagnated. Hollywood isnt taking risks. But throughout the hinterlands there is undiscovered talent. The major studios will ignore that new talent at their peril. All that has held them back is the need to make a living. Once there is a surplus of their own time and money they are going to lead the way to a box-office renaissance. That the Trump-era economy figures into the equation will be largely ignored. Then again, few ever note that Reagans policies brought a lot of vibrancy into the 80s. All kids today seem to know is that it was the only decade cool enough to set Stranger Things during. Its that pursuit of happiness thing quill-penned into the Declaration of Independence. Its the freedom to not be content with ones station in life, and to be able to do something about it. A person may be born into a place and circumstance, but nobody has to be locked in for life as a prisoner to that circumstance. Its the difference between mere job and a lifes career. Thats what Dad did. He wasnt content to merely exist. He began his life as a dairy farmer and when he passed he had become a renowned and respected artisan. That so many knives stamped R.R. KNIGHT have found their way across America and even Canada and Europe is testament to that. He followed his bliss and found it. That is what any of us should be able to follow after, too. Maybe we are getting to afford to learn how to again. Christopher Knight has been a writer, filmmaker, teacher, politician, computer technician, reporter, meat slicer, plastic factory worker, and too many other things. He still doesnt know what he wants to be when he grows up. Visit his blog and find him on Twitter.
Politicians aren't saviors or messiahs. Devoutly secular worship of government  the belief that the State (capital S) is God  is inherent in the Democratic Party's ideology and marketing.

The president has been busy keeping many of the promises he made as a candidate, so perhaps my request is unfair. I'm mindful, however, that he has similarly ambitious and entrepreneurial children, who are active on social media.

Politics is sales, and here's my pitch.

Americans Are Powerless

From Dennis Prager to The New York Post to Alex Jones, among others, we've watched the Big Tech Industrial Complex purge speech and rhetoric with which it disagrees.

It's no small irony that the same tech companies that manipulated search data, such as Google, to work to help Hillary Clinton  she of the faux socialist resistance to the rich and powerful  constitute an absurdly rich and absurdly powerful Brahmin-like conglomerate of omnipotent tech demigods.

Think long and hard about this: what, really, can we the American people do about shadowbanning? Or sudden, abrupt removals of comments or posts? Or popular videos that are placed on page 425 of a search engine, or, worse, are blocked from public viewings due to creepily arbitrary "hate speech" standards? Perhaps most disheartening is that we don't know what we don't know, and now that the toothpaste is out of the tube, it's likely that the tech companies will never be able to restore trust in their impartiality and integrity  much the same way many Americans will never again trust the DMIC (Democrat Media Industrial Complex). People buy and decide based on perception, and the irreversible perception the Big Tech Industrial Complex has cultivated is a very un-American hostility toward conservative political beliefs.

Sure, conservatives and America First voters could cease use of tech and social media platforms  which, in a way, is a win for Big Tech.

What about regulation, First Amendment lawsuits and antitrust litigation? All sound promising, in theory, but do we really want the federal government anywhere near the Internet? How, exactly, would the Federal Trade Commission and Federal Communications Commission keep up with the 24-7 flow of data and content created by billions of users? Answer: They won't, and Big Tech regulation would just be more Big Government  an information superhighway iteration of Cash for Clunkers. Big Tech would be, at any given moment, years ahead of even the most rigorous regulatory requirements, and don't get me started on Attorney General Jefferson Sessions.

Furthermore, is there really an antitrust or First Amendment case to be made? When the federal government won its landmark antitrust suit against Microsoft in 1998, it won on the legal basis that Microsoft was stifling its competition. Pray, tell: how do the current tactics of Big Tech stifle competition? Prager, Jones, and The New York Post all have their own websites; I'm unaware of any evidence that Big Tech has done anything to directly obstruct their abilities to get noticed and found on any internet search engine.

As John Stossell, one of my favorite Fox personalities, remarked recently, the tech companies likely have the constitutional right to kick whomever they want off their platforms and app markets. Want to sue them? Go right ahead. Taking down, for example, Apple, the world's first trillion-dollar-valued company, would be easy-breezy, wouldn't it? Though I'm not a bettin' man, I suspect that the same justices who sided with baker Jack Phillips would side with Big Tech.

Trump the Tech Icon?

So if more government, lawyers, and playing nice won't work, what would?

This is where the president steps in. He and his family have made a vast fortune. Providing a viable alternative to his tens of millions of unwavering supporters  in which users post, comment, and upload free of the tyranny of Big Brother-ish uncertainty that no one will see their content due to manipulation of algorithms designed by foreign workers who can't even vote in our elections  would make an Earth-quaking impact overnight.

The president himself had said that without Twitter, he might not be president. If true, that's a testament to him and his former digital media director (and current 2020 campaign chairman) Brad Parscale, more than Twitter.

Trump Valley. Trumpbook. Trumpitter. TrumpTube. Trumpterest. Trumpagram. Hell, create a new search engine, free of manipulation: Trumpoogle. Name me one Trump-supporter you know who wouldn't utilize the full suite of the Trump Valley platform; you can't. (This is the part where Ben Shapiro and Senators Jeff Flake and Ben Sasse lament the "echo chamber.")

I have a two-reason theory as to why we've not seen a Trump-branded mode of online communication: first, the president and family don't know how to make the many moving parts synchronize (I do, but I won't yet reveal; as The Joker said in The Dark Knight, if you're good at something, never do it for free); second, he and his family don't know how to monetize it.

Like everything else they touch, Democrats have destroyed speech on the internet, irrespective of its erudition or asininity. But there's never been a better time to use technology to continue strengthening the America First political movement that has so frightened Big Tech, it's gone to, and continues to go to, great lengths to suppress and make vanished anything even remotely resembling pro-Trump or conservatism.

Mr. President, please consider what I'm saying. It all sounds impossibly daunting, but so was your electoral win  a win that was America's political black swan event. At the 2016 RNC convention, in which you were formally named the GOP nominee, your daughter, Ivanka, boldly stated that the election could make the impossible possible.

Trump needs to embolden and unify his side. Let him send the Tessio Republicans, eager to betray us, as Sal Tessio did to Michael Corleone, as well as the Democratic Party and their corporate sycophants, reeling further into their downward spiral. Let him channel your inner Sonny Corleone and take it personal, as many of your supporters have.

Big Tech and their Democrat sympathizers in Congress are on the ropes, and they know it. Do you think they all recently convened a meeting to discuss their daughters' weddings and yoga? This is no time for rope-a-dope; rather, it's a time to relentlessly attack, in the spirit of General George Patton, whom Trump is fond of quoting at your rallies and pressers. With the midterms fast approaching, and the 2020 election heating up, time is not our friend; urgency, with a sense of urgency, is necessary to defang the Democrats. The opposition seeks to subvert our will and our Constitution by impeaching Trump, for the crime of winning more than 270 electoral votes.

The Democrats and Tessios thought our victory was just a fad, and that we'd lose interest once the new car smell waned; the Democrats, in particular, viewed the defeat of The Original but Now Second Chosen One as a bump in the road en route to owning the presidency, federal and supreme courts, and the internet forever. Much to all their chagrin, what seemed guaranteed to fade away has moved in the opposite direction, steered by a fired up and excited voting base.

It's time for Trump to redefine what it means to be a Man of the People. This, perhaps even more than any legislative achievement, will unequivocally ensconce his standing as a visionary and revolutionary president and American.

Rich Logis is host of The Rich Logis Show, at TheRichLogisShow.com and author of the upcoming book 10 Warning Signs Your Child Is Becoming a Democrat. He can be found on Twitter at @RichLogis.
Labor Day, the Holiday in Need of an Update

Among American holidays, Labor Day is probably the one in most need of an update. The idea of a labor day holiday was conceived in the 1880s by union labor leaders who sought recognition for the social and economic achievements of American workers. Finally in 1894, U.S. Congress voted to establish Labor Day as a national holiday to celebrate workers and their contributions to the strength, prosperity, and well-being of the country. Most dont realize it, but attitudes toward labor are more progressive and respectful among Americans than they are in much of the rest of the world. European societies, for instance, generally view leisure as being more honorable than work. In the classic, The Arab Mind, the Fahlawi Personality, which deemphasizes the importance of personal responsibility and physical labor, contributes to fairly widespread attitudes of indolence among Middle Eastern men. Throughout Latin America, people who are educated generally look down on those in the laboring class.

It was Alexis de Tocqueville, whose ever-relevant classic Democracy in America pointed out that Americans regard work as positively honorable. The suggestion that work is good for the soul and necessary to a fulfilling life is also found in the Bible, which makes over 450 specific references to the value and importance of work -- considerably more than its references to love, hope, joy, grace, or peace. Labor union membership peaked as a percentage of the entire American labor force at 26% in 1953. Today only about 11.2% of the total labor force belongs to a labor union. But what is most striking in the face of general decline in private sector union membership has been the growth of union membership among government employees. Some 36% of the public sector is unionized, while approximately 6.6% of business employees now belong to unions. Labor Day is perhaps what might be called an unfinished holiday in need of broader perspective. What is distinct about the U.S. economy is the strong and widespread entrepreneurial tradition, wherein there is frequent crossover from being a laborer to becoming a business owner -- who seeks upward mobility for himself, but who also creates new jobs for others. Its certainly important to commemorate those who labor. But the people who create new jobs by taking risk in developing new products, services and market opportunities should also be recognized. It is these visionary entrepreneurs who have been the primary drivers of progress and wealth creation that took the country from colonial poverty to world economic superpower in a little more than 200 years -- making the United States the envy of the world. Four of the five largest employers in the United States -- Walmart, Amazon, Yum Brands, and Home Depot -- were founded within the last 50 years while unionized labor was declining. Each of these companies was founded by visionary entrepreneurs who transformed different sectors of the consumer products retailing industry -- to deliver a wider variety of products with greater efficiency and at lower prices. As the U.S. economy has evolved from a manufacturing to a service and information economy, it should come as no surprise that the four largest companies in terms of market capitalization -- Apple, Amazon, Google, Microsoft -- are all in the business of information technology. Each has greatly increased efficiencies for individuals and businesses, while also catalyzing a multiplier effect spawning the formation of a vast number of new companies and new jobs. If the patterns of past economic history prevail, the development and application of automation and artificial intelligence should not be feared as they are likely to create as many new jobs as those made obsolete. For all of us, the challenge is to embrace change, recognize opportunity, and stay on game with training and incorporating technologies of a continuously changing economy. So as we celebrate on the first Monday in September with that last beach party or barbecue to commemorate those who labor, let us also remember and celebrate the entrepreneurs who drive renewal and progress -- creating the new labor and employment opportunities of tomorrow. Scott Powell is senior fellow at the Discovery Institute and managing partner at RemingtonRand LLC. Reach him at scottp@rrand.com
RIP, VS Naipaul: A Great Conservative Writer

V.S. Naipaul died on August 9 at his home in London. Winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2001, Naipaul was one of the great conservative writers of our time. Among his best known novels are A House for Mr. Biswas, A Bend in the River, and The Enigma of Arrival. He will be remembered not just for the superb skill as a novelist, but also for his acute analysis of society in Britain, the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa, and India. The guiding principle of Naipaul's work was always his fierce artistic independence and honesty. In an era of political correctness in which many writers succumbed to pressure to soften their opinions of political corruption in the postcolonial world, Naipaul brought clarity and understanding to what was happening in Trinidad, Argentina, the Congo, and other developing countries. He was also one of the first major commentators to speak frankly about the dangers of Islamic extremism.

According to reports, the Nobel Committee was not eager to award its highest accolade to a writer who had fearlessly criticized the failed political culture of developing countries in Africa and Latin America and, at the same time, lauded the democratic capitalism of the West. Were it not for the sheer scale of Naipaul's achievement as a writer, the prize would never have been awarded to him. Even so, his critics were quick to denigrate the awarding of the prize, dismissing it as an undeserved honor. The fact is that the honor was long overdue. Naipaul was not merely the most accomplished novelist of our time; he was also a social critic who brought common sense to a range of burning issues. His works include the extraordinary account of his father's life, A House for Mr. Biswas, and the compelling record of his own transplanted existence in Britain, The Enigma of Arrival. In a dozen other novels, he portrayed the perilous condition of modern life in both the developed and the developing worlds, perilous especially for those who have forsaken their birthright of inherited values or who have never possessed such a birthright to begin with. His journalistic writing on India and the Middle East changed the way many readers view these regions while his harsh criticism of African corruption, and by implication of the involvement of Western aid workers, intellectuals, and other facilitators, forced a reassessment of the entire postcolonial relationship. It has not been sufficiently understood, I think, that the basis of Naipaul's great success was his unflinching honesty. A Bend in the River, his unsparing record of post-liberation tribalism and brutality in central Africa, and of the complicity of those Westerners who facilitated it, was a courageous book published at the height of the rule of political correctness, a period characterized by moral complacence and worse in the African writings of liberals such as Nadine Gordimer. As Naipaul made clear in A Writer's People, such honesty would not have been possible in the absence of a clear sense of self. Unfortunately, an unequivocal sense of self is not something most of us are born with. It must be earned by honest reflection  reflection that requires a great deal of courage in facing the truth of one's own role in the scheme of things. As Naipaul wrote in A Writer's People, his origins were to be found among "a transplanted peasant India" among a people recruited to serve as indentured laborers in Trinidad. It was not an easy thing, I suspect, for an ambitious young man to admit that his grandparents had been recruited to a squalid life of service halfway around the globe from their homeland or that his own parents had grown up as members of an impoverished, utterly provincial minority on an inconsequential speck of land in the Caribbean. This, in any case, was Naipaul's sense of his own background. But by seeing and accepting it for what it was, a poor thing but his own, the writer gained "a base of feeling and cultural knowledge." That knowledge was the basis of many of his finest books. Had Naipaul remained in Trinidad, he would have been a very different writer. A large part of his "way of seeing," an aspect of his life that made it possible for him to perceive the Caribbean and much else with such lucidity, was derived from a lifetime spent in Britain. Though he has written of it often, few can really appreciate the author's Herculean effort to establish himself as a writer. It took decades before Naipaul's writing afforded a comfortable living. More than monetary success, however, was the enormous cultural reward of Naipaul's labors after emigrating to Britain: the ability to view the moral condition of both Britain and the Caribbean, and beyond this of the West and the world as a whole, with unmatched clarity. What Naipaul gained was an intense appreciation for the value of liberal democracy. It is ironic that Naipaul, whose own heritage was quite distinct from that of Britain or America, should have become their foremost defender among contemporary intellectuals. Within the Western democracies, for all of their moral confusion and waste, there still exists a legacy of tolerance, individual rights, and freedom. As a cultural outsider, Naipaul was actually in a good position to estimate the value of this legacy and, after his arrival at Oxford as a scholarship student, to register the complacent disregard of many in the First World for these values. Throughout his long career, Naipaul drew attention to what he termed the "universal civilization" of legal rights, rationality, and opportunity that, having spread from Western Europe to the Americas, Asia, Africa, and even the Middle East, is now the ideal of human beings around the globe. Sadly, those residing within the cosmopolitan centers of Europe and America are now the least likely to appreciate that invaluable heritage of freedom. In this respect, as Naipaul put it in A Writer's People, "the people who wrote as though they were at the centre of things might be revealed as the provincials." Those who failed to appreciate Naipaul's standard of honesty would do well to consider his understanding of the writer's profession. For Naipaul, this profession entailed a demand for accuracy, candor, and realism. Now that he is gone, one can only express a great sense of admiration and gratitude. As Naipaul once told me, he felt no connection whatsoever with the direction of contemporary culture and especially with the work of those writers who promoted themselves as victimized postcolonials. V.S. Naipaul was far from being just another postcolonial or third-world writer. He was a great writer working from within the grand tradition of Austen, Dickens, and Conrad, and he should be remembered as the supreme exponent in our time of the inherited values of Western civilization. In a time when so many were bent on undermining that civilization, Naipaul was a heroic champion of its humane values and civilizing institutions. He understood the dangers of moral anarchy as few in our time have, and he issued a warning that the loss of those values and institutions would be disastrous and irrevocable. Dr. Jeffrey Folks taught for thirty years in universities in Europe, America, and Japan. He has published nine books and several hundred articles on American culture and politics in national journals and newspapers. Image: Faizul Latif Chowdhury via Wikimedia Commons.
Long going, unresolved refugee crises are not unique to the Mideast  think of the Rohingya in Myanmar (Burma), which conflict is partially rooted in British colonial era policies, or the Lhotshampas from Bhutan.

President Trump seems determined to shut down UNRWA (the United Nations Relief and Works Agency), the organization singularly preoccupied with caring for the Arab refugees, and their descendants, of the 1947-49 war between Jewish and Arab forces for control of Mandatory Palestine. While the idea seems good  a final nail in the coffin of Palestine dreams  there might be unintended consequences.

The Mideast crisis gets more pressure because it explodes into open world politics. The usual response given is that UNRWA aggravates the situation by promoting a right of return for Palestinians.

While complaints against UNRWA are accurate, there may be few happy alternatives.

What should UNRWA encourage these stateless people to accept? Even were they now to be refused the term "refugee," as most were born outside the borders of Israel, that still does not get rid of their existence. One cannot seriously expect UNRWA schoolbooks to educate them as follows: "You are a stateless people without civil rights in the countries where you now reside! Be happy!"

Take, for example, Lebanon, a country that was once majority Christian, and where the percentage of Christians in the population seems to be rebounding. The Muslims in Lebanon are split between violently hostile Shia and Sunni. Into this fractious country came Hezb'allah, sponsored by Iran, to take de facto control of the country.

The naturalization of 400,000 (primarily Sunni) Palestinians into Lebanon would be a demographic disaster and would toss the country into civil war again. Moreover, such a naturalization would bring a call by the approximately 1 million plus  primarily Sunni  Syrian refugees for naturalization. Neither the Lebanese Christians nor the Lebanese Shia would tolerate it.

There is no way those Palestinians in Lebanon will ever be granted any rights. If the Palestinian refugee crisis is a threat to Israel, it is an even more immediate threat to Lebanon.

UNRWA schoolbooks might start blaming the host countries for not naturalizing these Palestinians, but how long would UNRWA be tolerated after that?

Some would counter, "If Arab countries wouldn't tolerate a non-compliant UNRWA, why should Israel?"

The sad fact is, Israel gets a benefit out of UNRWA.

If, tomorrow, all funding from UNRWA stopped, would this solve Israel's problems? Apparently, some of Israel's generals think otherwise. According to the Likud-leaning Israel Hayom:

COGAT [the Office of the Coordinator of (Israeli) Government Activities in the Territories] objects to cuts in aid to UNRWA on practical grounds. ... [T]he defense establishment ... is afraid that if UNRWA is unable to help hundreds of thousands of needy Palestinians due to budget cuts, Israel will see rioting, an escalation in violence, and terrorist attacks.

There it is in a nutshell. For all the complaints against UNRWA, there is a body of opinion that UNRWA keeps the pot from boiling over, if for no other reason than that UNRWA feeds the Palestinians in Gaza and Judea and Samaria (the West Bank). Remove that lifeline, and either Israel will have to feed the Palestinians or hunger-fueled violence will increase.

Many in the Zionist community howl against UNRWA, but as Israel Hayom has noted:

A decade later, [COGAT Maj. Gen. Amos Gilad], as head of the Diplomatic-Security Branch of the Defense Ministry ... coordinated with then-Israeli Ambassador to the U.S. Michael Oren to torpedo a congressional initiative against the [UNWRA] organization. UNRWA might be bad, Gilad told Oren, but Hamas is worse. Gilad's successors have kept to that line, and like the IDF they see the UNRWA as the lesser of two evils.

Israel played both sides of the debate against U.S. funding. The U.S. was excoriated for subsidizing UNRWA, but in quiet chambers, the congressmen were encouraged to vote for it.

The sad fact is, Israel, as much as the Palestinian Authority, benefits from UNRWA, though Israel likes to pretend otherwise. What the U.S. does not provide to keep the peace, Israel may have to provide to some degree. This can be easily observed in Palestinian purchasing habits. Newsweek noted that "[m]any Palestinians have little choice but to purchase Israeli products." Cut UNRWA funding, lay off Palestinians, and it will also be Israeli manufacturers who are hurt.

Like it or not, indirectly, subsidies to UNRWA also subsidize Israel. One can see why Israel quietly supported funding UNRWA.

All of this is a perpetual treating of the symptom, not the problem.

The problem is the "refugees," including their descendants. No one wants them. Despised and disenfranchised people tend to get angry in response, and so we have violence.

The usual response is that the Palestinians have brought it on themselves, and to a certain extent, that is true. But a lot of that bad behavior of the Palestinians is a response to their situation. Imperial Germany and Italy exported their poor and troublemakers to America, where, once treated better, these social problems became upstanding Americans. The same was true of other ethnic groups. Ironically, the complaints against Palestinians among Arabs echo the early 20th-century complaints against Jews among Europeans.

While I agree that cutting UNRWA funding might be good, that still does not get rid of the 400,000 Palestinians in Lebanon, a Lebanon that could not safely absorb them. There are roughly a half-million in Syria (or from Syria). Syria under Alawite and Shia Baathist rule would never naturalize those Sunni Palestinians. And so on, for the rest of the Arab world. Nor will cutting UNRWA get rid of the Palestinians in Judea and Samaria, nor Gaza.

Everyone is treating the symptom, not a root cause.

To those who say the root cause is Islam, ask yourselves: if these Palestinians all became Catholic or Eastern Orthodox, would Israel take them all back?

No, Israel wants to remain a Jewish state. Islam is a menace, but the statelessness of the Palestinians is a root cause.

I do not ask Israel to divide Jerusalem, nor to divide its patrimony, but the problem will not go away with UNRWA. As I have said many times, the Palestinians have to be relocated and settled into other communities. I am not suggesting Europe, as Europe is already dying out.

Strong diplomatic pressure should be put on the two areas of the world that could absorb these people: the Arab world and South America, which has a history of absorbing Arabs. In the latter case, those wanting to go to South America must either be Christian or agree to convert.

Strong diplomatic and financial pressure should be brought to bear, with strong financial incentives for agreement. And yes, the world Jewish community, which would be the chief beneficiary, should contribute substantially. In 2010, the N.Y. Post reported million-dollar bar mitzvahs. If they really wanted to celebrate their Jewish heritage, they could have gone to a kosher restaurant and used the saved money to relocate some Palestinians out of Judea and Samaria, thus making the Jewish state more Jewish.

It will cost.

This is the only solution. Anything else is Band-Aids.

Mike Konrad is the pen name of an American who wishes he had availed himself more fully of the opportunity to learn Spanish better in high school, lo those many decades ago. He runs a website about the Arab community in South America at http://latinarabia.com.
A warning to Texans

As an outsider, moving from Portland -- yes, that Portland --- to Texas Hill Country, it would be a shame to see such a unique region of the country be absorbed into the global postmodernist culture. But that is exactly what District 21 of Texas faces if conservatives dont remain vigilant. Elections matter more for conservatives than for liberals. Why? The simple answer is that liberals want more change at a faster pace than conservatives. And once things change it is nearly impossible to return to a prior status quo. Unfortunately, the cultural tide trends postmodern/nihilistic. But, what does that mean? It means there is no truth. And, as history would demonstrate time and memorial, leftists challenging the truths of previous generations undermine established social orders causing chaos, in the name of progress. Progress towards what? Modern movements like socialism, a secularized Christianity, promises to create heaven on earth. And if you are a sceptic, the enlightened central planners will make the decisions on your behalf. In the tumultuous year of 1848, Tocqueville noted that socialists hold that the State must not only act as the director of society, but must further be master of each man, and not only master, but keeper and trainer. Today is no different.

Case in point, the Democrat nominee for TX District 21, Joe Kopser, goes to great lengths on his website to establish himself as a bona fide progressive by outlining policy commitments that will drastically change the governance and culture in Texas Hill Country. Here are just a few commitments. Promises to fight against bath-room bills, which restrict people to the bathrooms that match their biological sex, by amending the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to include gender identity. Label abortion as a fundamental right and fight legislation that would condemn abortion. Mandate insurance companies to cover birth control. Universal healthcare. Universal background check for gun purchase (this would be a national gun registry). Kopser intends to usurp local governing bodies and markets in every policy initiative listed. Meanwhile, Kopser dismisses any pragmatic initiatives that could assist Hill Country. For starters, District 21 lies within 60 miles of Mexico. Kopser argues that the Proposition of a border wall is ridiculous but at the same time he wants to pursue manned excursions to Mars, a distance of 34 million miles. If the United States can fund a program to send man to Mars, why couldnt the federal government build a wall? Kopsers intention to utilize federal power to manipulate identity politics but ignore the porous border reverses the federal governments responsibilities and relationship with its citizens. Voters in District 21 should vote for candidate who wants to represent them and their interests, not change their character. As a newcomer to Texas, its refreshing to see proud individuals with a unique culture not entrenched in postmodernism. But Texans are not impervious to the liberal tide and should take every election seriously. Postmodernism has crept into every major institution in the United States. In Texas, the left has taken the four cities and the border counties. Kopser and the Democrats intend to change Texas, and with it the country. Citizens of Hill Country who value their culture and freedoms must vote. Like anybody, Republican candidate Chip Roy isnt perfect, but hes qualified and a true conservative. He respects the people of Hill Country as they are, not what they could be.
So now that we have a revisionist movie coming out called "First Man," from the Canadian director of La-La Land, which omits the American flag from its history of first man on the moon, astronaut Neil Armstrong, it's heartening to see the big guns - the big, big, guns, come out and declare it the phony garbage it is.

Yeager, for one, directly tweeted out his disgust at the whole revisionist spectacle. Here is an assemblage of tweets and coverage from Weaselzippers:

Aldrin, who was most famously photographed for saluting the flag on the moon, made his views clear through tweeted pictures and a tshirt. Breitbart has coverage here.

Always fun to visit my friends @KellySlater, John Moore & Co at their Outerknown clothing line party. Is it time for a space attire line yet?!  #spacesuitsaretrendy #roadtoapollo50th #5decadesofapollo pic.twitter.com/I34t42hbxf  Buzz Aldrin (@TheRealBuzz) September 1, 2018

And if that was not clear enough, through tweets such as this here:

Daily Mail has additional coverage here.

Aldrin, by the way, is quite a stupid choice of people to make angry through the spouting of phony history. In 2002, Aldrin socked a crackpot in the face outside a hotel who claimed the 1969 moon landing he was on, was fake. Cops refused to arrest Aldrin and told the clown he had it coming.

The right to speak of these men is absolutely unassailable.

What's more, neither Yeager, nor Aldrin, are people we hear from all that often. They aren't publicity seekers or media hounds, and while they have stood up for the military and space exploration, both have stayed out of petty politics. So the fact that they are coming out now carries much greater weight than the pronouncements of the Hollywood types.

You have to ask yourself why the flag would be this important to these heroic men that they would come out and say something. Why is the flag so important?

Well, as someone who, as a six-year-old, was there in Cape Kennedy at pretty much all of the Apollo launches since my father worked as a pocket-protectored engineer in the space program, I recall that the patriotism of the moment was extremely important. The flag was everywhere, not just as a counterweight to the Russians, which didn't seem all that visible to me, but because flags are what people die for.

And we knew that the missions were dangerous as hell, and not just in outer space. Everyone remembers how three astronauts, including Gus Grissom (an easily memorable name for a four year old) died on the launch pad on an awful day in 1967. Everyone has since realized that the moonshot took place before the existence of pocket calculators -- it was done on slide rule calculations, in an era of zero cell phones, no personal computers, and black and white television sets. For those who remember a bit further back from that, they also know that breaking the sound barrier was terrifying.

And everyone knows we have not been back since those Apollos  because one thing we learned from it is that it was  so incredibly dangerous.

People don't put their lives on the line for just nothing - they do it if there is a critical mission of great importance to all of their country and it's something worth doing it for. And well, that is what the breaking of the sound barrier and the moonshot itself was. Yet it was inextricably linked to the flag, because otherwise nobody would have done it. Yes, there was 'we came in peace' and talk of 'for all mankind' in the atmosphere, too. But that was just magnanimity, it not the driving essence of what was going on. I never heard any of that kind of talk during the space effort, just in the aftermath, a sort of nice-sounding addendum. The flag was paramount. Just look at it on the astronauts's uniforms, and in every vintage photo from the era. Look at the most famous photo from the moon landing, that of Buzz Aldrin saluting the flag on the moon.

The flag meant something to these men and they have the biggest standing to say it. It's heartening for all of us in this era of revisionist history, statue-toppling, and other crap designed to make America smaller that they were still here to say something.

Living statues who were not for toppling.
Chicago police have offered the protesters alternatives, but it looks like some kind of confrontation is inevitable.

Protesters billing themselves as "anti-violence" will march along the Kennedy Expressway in Chicago to O'Hare airport where they say they plan to shut the facility down.

USA Today:

Any disruption could cause major headaches for travelers headed home from holiday weekends. Major David Byrd, spokesman for the Illinois State Police, said authorities will not allow the protest to interrupt traffic. Byrd said authorities had offered protesters alternative venues for the march, adding that he hoped no arrests would need to be made. But he provided no details on how marchers would be stopped. "We are prepared for all contingencies," he said. Livingston has a list of demands ranging from Mayor Rahm Emanuel's resignation to repurposing closed schools for businesses and other uses that stabilize neighborhoods. He also wants economic investment on the South and West sides "commensurate" with spending on the North Side and downtown, legislation to encourage hiring of released inmates and resources for black-led anti-violence efforts. "Id would rather see my people marching on the expressways than dying in the streets," Livingston tweeted Sunday.

You can "repurpose" a school all you want but what business in their right mind would move to a shooting gallery? The "demands" of protesters for investment and jobs all hinge on the streets being relatively safe and given the problems with police in recent years, that isn't likely to happen anytime soon.

In the past few months, protesters have shut down busy Lake Shore Drive, and the Dan Ryan Expressway. Rather than arrest the lot of them, the police have tried to reroute traffic or create a single lane for cars to get by.

These efforts met with limited success and the cops ended up simply shutting down the highways.

But O'Hare is a very sensitive transportation hub for the city and it is doubtful protesters will get all the way there. And while the protesters have remained peaceful, if push comes to shove - and the Chicago police are not known for their gentleness toward protesters - there may be a violent confrontation.
Born to run: Beto's bad-boy bona fides

Texas Democrat Senate candidate Roberto (Beto) ORourke seemed to have been forthcoming about his criminal arrests for attempted burglary and DUI. Well, except that he hasnt. In fact, it would seem that Betos mea culpas about his bad-boy behavior failed to include the most damaging information: that according to a witness quoted in the police report, in the immediate aftermath of his serious drunken driving incident, young Beto attempted to flee the scene. Thats right, the current Democratic candidate to represent Texas in the United States Senate, had he been left to his own instincts, might well have been a drunken hit-and-run driver, a type of fleeing felon with which too many Texas voters are extremely familiar and for very good reasons. In a recently released study of hit and run deaths from the American Automobile Association, Texas ranks eighth in the nation, exceeded only by California, Delaware, Arizona, Nevada, Florida, Louisiana, and numero uno, New Mexico. Looking at that list, would you care to hazard a guess what most of those states have in common? If you guessed theyre in our southern tier, proximate to our southern border, that would be a good start, as four of those states do share borders with Mexico, and that is indeed a factor. But its a federal government report, according to the Federation for American Immigration Reform that gets closer to the truth: that it is the higher numbers of young illegal males in these states operating motor vehicles without either legitimate drivers licenses or required insurance who account for a disproportionate number of such accidents. Interestingly, FAIR notes that Mexico has no law against leaving the scene of an accident, which could account for some of this statistical evidence, but Im inclined to believe that geography plays a larger role than culture, especially in the four border states and states like Nevada and Oklahoma where safe haven in Mexico is at most a few hundred miles away for a unlicensed, uninsured, intoxicated illegal who wants to avoid a possible prison sentence for any crime from DUI to vehicular homicide.

So Beto, whose father was a prominent border-area attorney and judge, which could well explain the lack of charges filed in the burglary and the relatively light treatment in the DUI offense, has bad-boy bona fides which could make any Democrat green with envy if he were running for the Senate in some state other than Texas, where news reports and headlines about innocent Texans being killed in hit-and-run accidents with jackrabbiting illegals are too frequent to be scoffed at and swept under urban, liberal, media carpets. Its hard to imagine that Betos Democratic handlers actually believed they could keep a lid on this almost hit and run by their candidate, that it could remain undiscovered when its in a police report. Of course, the most intriguing aspect of that account is the phrase, tried to leave. DUI is one thing that many voters can forgive, but Hit and Run is a despicable offense, something else entirely, although apparently not with some Democratic kingmakers. Youd think the Ted Cruz campaign could get a copy of that police report.
They use as a case study the gubernatorial race in deep blue Maryland which pits GOP incumbent Larry Hogan against the former head of the NAACP Ben Jealous.

Interesting piece in the National Journal about how Democrats are failing to take full advantage of all their electoral advantages and may be blowing several winnable races across the country by nominating kooks and crazies.

Hogans ability to build a broad coalition is testament to his engaging personality, record of economic growth during his tenure, and an eagerness to split from President Trump on myriad issues. But the governors commanding lead over Democrat Ben Jealous is also a product of the Democratic Partys leftward lurch in Maryland, a dynamic that is replicating itself in other pivotal governors races across the country. Democrats nominated Jealous, a former NAACP president, to face Hogan. Hes a dream candidate for progressives: a Bernie Sanders acolyte who advocates for single-payer health insurance, free college tuition, and the legalization of marijuana among other liberal priorities. He defeated a relatively moderate, business-friendly opponent in Prince Georges County executive Rushern Baker III, making the argument that the only way to defeat the popular Hogan was by rallying the base across a liberal state like Maryland. So far, that strategy hasnt panned out. Republican-aligned groups have spent millions tagging Jealous as an extremist, targeting his single-payer health care proposal. He dropped an expletive at a Washington Post reporter who asked if he was a socialist at a press conference. Public polls show his negatives unusually high for a first-time candidate, and hes struggling to consolidate support in majority-minority Baltimore City and Prince Georges County. Jealous hasnt raised money to match his national profile, and is running low on campaign cash, according to new campaign finance filings.

Hogan is an outlier for the GOP - a true moderate running in a heavily Democratic state. In fact, most Democrats running in blue states and blue districts are expected to win with relative ease.

And therein lies the Democrat's problem. If they want to take control of the House and Senate as well as win more governorships, they are going to have to win in some red states and some red districts.

There are pluses and minuses this electoral season for Democrats. The pluses include running against a first term president - historically, a big advantage for the party out of the White House. Then there are more than 40 open seats, most of them in Republican districts, where the advantage of incumbency has been negated. Finally, the Republican party is in bad odor - even with many Republicans. This may tamp down GOP turnout in races where it is vital for the base to rally behind the candidate.

But the Democrats are none too popular either. More to the point, they have nominated far left candidates in many red states and districts. While this may enthuse their base, it will cost them dearly with swing voters and disaffected Republicans.

So the question of who controls the House next year may come down to how many voters in conservative districts will cast a ballot for a far left candidate? By definition, the liberal base vote in those districts is much smaller than the GOP base vote. They may have all the enthusiasm in the world to get out and vote, but the math is against the Democratic candidate.

Democrats could potentially pick up 30-50 seats, needing 24 to take control. But they won't. If they manage to win the House, it will be by a far narrower margin than it could be, simply because they are running the wrong kind of candidates in many districts where a less radical Democrat would have a better chance of success.
How much backlash will there be to the 8 days of McCainapalooza?

I dont know about you, but when the video coverage of the death of Senator John McCain began a week ago Saturday, I reached satiation well before the live coverage concluded with his burial at the United States Naval Academy. Yes, he was a brave war hero that endured years of brutal captivity in North Vietnam, and all of us honor that. But as a politician, his main legislative legacy is a failed campaign finance act, one of those bipartisan feel-good efforts that backfired and made things worse. So, how is it that his passing and a weeks worth of scheduled events merited wall-to-wall coverage? President Kennedys assassination required two days of live coverage for the death and funeral. I am hopeful that the Media Research Center will tabulate the total hours of coverage and compare it to the live coverage of events around the death of President Ronald Reagan. My impression is that McCain received more hours.

Or, compare the passing of Admiral James Stockdale to that of John McCain. Admiral Stockdale was a POW in Hanoi for over 7 years, a year-and-a-half longer than McCain. Like McCain, he was a very special prisoner in the eyes of the North Vietnamese, for he was the senior officer among the POWs. His prominent status was based on his achievements and consequent promotion, whereas McCain was regarded as important because of who his father and grandfather were. Like John McCain, Admiral Stockdale ran an unsuccessful campaign on a national presidential ticket  as Ross Perots running mate. Unlike McCain, Admiral Stockdale was a Medal of Honor recipient. So, did you even know that Admiral Stockdale passed away in 2005? Thankfully, his funeral was televised  by C-SPAN. But I do not recall any regular programming on Fox News or anywhere else being interrupted to honor Admiral Stockdale. Maybe I missed some, but there is no comparison with the coverage afforded McCain, whose military heroism was no greater, and probably less than that of Stockdale. My breaking point, when anger overcame every other reaction was August 29, when Senator McCain lying in state in the Arizona capitol was televised, and then the procession of his hearse to the airport was televised live, from helicopters and a camera mounted on a car in front of his hearse, and driven down the endless streets of Phoenix. There was a respite while the presidential fleet 757 offered by President Trump to carry his body the DC was airborne. I guess a spotter jet to televise the airliner in flight was impractical due to Air Traffic Control considerations. Bur fear not, the landing of the 757, the transfer of the coffin to a hearse, and then the drive into the US Capitol was televised. Endlessly. I know because I flipped over from Netflix from time to time to see if it was still going on. It was. Screen grab Channel 12, Phoenix A beloved president like Reagan gets such fawning coverage (for a couple of days); an ordinary one, maybe not. Nixon, definitely not. Now, in terms of manners, it is wrong to complain about honors to a war hero. So my assumption is that a lot of unspoken discontent and anger are out there over the psy-ops campaign that has been waged for over a week to tell us how noble it is to pick fights with President Trump. The anger is justified because a very human response of honoring the dead has been perverted by the DC establishment and all the news networks into a propaganda campaign against {resident Trump and his supporters. We remember when McCain called us wacko birds, and we understand the message that all these excessive honors and coverage is really sending to us. Repressed anger tends to linger in the mind and heart. I hope that it lasts until November 6.
Liberals can no longer be mugged by reality

We used to be told that conservatives are liberals who have been mugged by reality. The problem is that the propaganda and the brainwashing of the left has become so intensive, so pervasive, that "mugging" has no effect. Liberals can be assaulted again and again by reality, but will still hold true to whatever has been programmed into them by primary and secondary schools, by the media, by popular culture, by universities and by their peers. Take the case of Mollie Tibbetts, the young girl who was brutally murdered by an illegal alien. Any normal father would have been outraged about the lack of controls of our border which directly contributed to her death. Instead, Mollie's father, Rob Tibbetts is incensed that people are "using" his daughter's murder to call for better border security. He claims that those who want to enforce the law are racist against Hispanics, conveniently blurring the lines -- most illegal aliens are Hispanic, but many Hispanics are not illegal aliens. Tibbetts spouts the standard liberal talking points that illegal aliens contribute to the American "tapestry" in "all its color". Except that sometimes they don't contribute to the tapestry at all, and they are mostly coming in only one color and more importantly one culture, a failed culture, and they are coming in such numbers without any kind of assimilation that they are actually displacing American culture.

Tibbetts refuses to see any of that. If the rest of his family were murdered, no doubt he would say the same thing, despite that fact that if we had control over our borders, his daughter would almost certainly be alive today. He is a liberal whose mind cannot be changed by being mugged by reality. The same goes for liberal blacks who complain about police brutality. Ninety percent of black murder victims are murdered by... other blacks. While there may be a handful of rogue policemen out there, it is undeniable that, statistically speaking, a black person is a hundred times safer in the company of a policeman than he is in another black person (especially a young black man ages 18-29). Liberal blacks ignore the slaughter of blacks by other blacks. Instead of demanding more police protection, they want less. Reality, in the form of the death of their peers, has no effect on them. The same can be said of the liberal Europeans, personified in human dumpling form by Angela Merkel, who welcome millions of Islamists, whose culture is entirely alien and incompatible with their host countries. When an Islamist rapes a German woman, or beheads a man in London, or runs over a crowd in France, liberal Europeans call for knife control, or truck control. The same goes for the latest craze, so-called transgenderism, which has a huge 40% suicide rate. But death no longer deters liberals. They are determined to promote this lifestyle no matter how much unhappiness it causes, no matter how many it kills, instead of trying to treat it like the mental illness it is. I think liberals can no longer be mugged by reality because their belief system has become so intense, so cultlike, so laden with virtue and yet so barren of facts. They are so far from reality that truth seems like a fantasy to them. Ed Straker is the senior editor of the Newsmachete Twitter Feed.
McCain, Trump and eulogies

If John McCain was so great, why did most of the media along with other Democrats call him a racist in 2008 when he was running against Obama, when he was 72 years old? They treated McCain just as they treat Trump and as they treated Bush and Reagan. The Democrats always play the race card because big government, socialist policies aren't that popular. Did McCain change between age 72 and 82 or are the media and other Democrats just hypocrites? The answer is easy. Of course if a Republican is running against a woman they switch from playing the race card to calling Republicans sexists.

It is truly a shame that so many in the media chose to ignore their previous treatment of McCain in order to trash Trump, simply because the agenda today is to trash Trump, nothing else. It is truly disgusting to use people who died to push an agenda. I believe if Trump died today his eulogy should read (but wouldn't because of outright prejudice by the media): Trump sought policies that would allow all people to move up the economic ladder, no matter what race, creed, sexual preference and no matter what education level. His policies proved that you could reduce government dependence if only you transferred the purse, power and freedom back to the people from the greedy politicians and government. As president, Trump moved to enforce the rule of law as the previous administration had dictatorially ignored laws Congress passed and allowed politicians in cities and states to ignore laws they didn't like. Trump sought equal treatment under the law, as the previous administration, with the help of a complicit media, clearly protected one party and powerful people while targeting those they disagreed with. Trump stopped the practice of illegally spying and unmasking. Trump did not seek to shut up political opponents with the help of the IRS. If the media had a shred of honesty, they would report accurately. Sadly they appear only to have an agenda and facts haven't mattered for a long time. Therefore they just spew forth names to gin up hate while they pretend they want unity.
Given the reaction from the rabid left to other businessmen who dare support Republicans, we can expect calls to boycott Allen's team, the Seattle Seahawks, very soon.

An NFL owner and Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen donated $100,000 to a committee that will help the GOP keep control of the House.

In past years, Allen has donated to both parties, but far more to Democrats than Republicans. This gift to the Protect the House committee is the largest single federal donation Allen has ever given.

Seattle Times:

FEC records show the largest chunk of Allens $100,000 was sent to the National Republican Campaign Committee (NRCC), which received $33,900. An additional $5,000 went to the Great America Committee, a PAC created by Vice President Mike Pence. More than a dozen other congressional Republicans from Iowa to New York received about $2,600. Overall in the 2017-18 election cycle, Allen has donated $173,500 to Republican congressional candidates and PACs compared with $45,900 to Democratic candidates and PACs, FEC records show. The GOP tilt represents somewhat of a turnabout from Allens past political giving on the federal level, which has tended to be more bipartisan  and even Democratic-leaning in most years. In the 2016 election cycle, he donated $74,500 to federal Democratic candidates compared with $52,400 to Republicans. Allens representatives declined to discuss the reasons for the shift in his political donations or what policies of the House Republicans he appreciates this year. Paul Allen has supported both Republicans and Democrats over the years, and he will continue to support candidates on both sides of the aisle, said John Pinette, a spokesman for Allen, in an emailed statement. In a follow-up email, Pinette listed an additional $43,400 in contributions he said Allen has made to 21 congressional Democrats, including U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell and all six Democratic House members from Washington state. Allen already has donated to the re-election campaigns of the states House Republican members.

It's hardly unusual for a wealthy businessman to hedge his bets and donate to both parties. But it could very well be that the leftward drift of the Democratic party is too much for many businessmen who hear the anti-capitalist rhetoric coming from the likes of Elizabeth Warren and Bernie Sanders.

Seattle is about as far left a city as there is in the nation. Perhaps Portland, Oregon has them beat. But even in Seattle, socialist schemes are resisted by less radical businessmen. The recent battle over a "corporate head tax" that would have taxed large corporations by the employee was successfully scotched by Amazon and other tech giants.

The tech giants may be greener than most people, supporting all sorts of environmental activism. They also support some left wing social justice causes.

But when it comes to making money, they want little or no interference from radical left city councils who see businesses not as engines of economic growth but as piggybanks to rob.

Good for Allen in setting a fairly independent course. I just hope he has the guts to stay the course when leftist bullies gang up on him.
Tallahassee Tremors: A Florida dynasty ends and a state capital worries

Poor Gwen Graham, daughter of legendary Florida Governor and Senator Bob Graham, who spent more than a quarter of a century in those two statewide elective offices. She desperately wants a government job, but not just any government job. In fact, she had one. She once was the House of Representative District Two Congresswoman for two years. From all appearances, she did a competent job. That was until the Florida Legislature gerrymandered her out of it. The district was divided into such a way that the newly created districts mostly favored Republican voters. Gwen didnt have a chance and didnt run for any of them. Poor Gwen. She quietly went back into private life, until she woke up one day and decided to become governor. She ran hard and had the political winds to her back. She had a record to run on, a strong base of support, money, a campaign apparatus still in place and a legendary last name. That was until the lowly upstart Mayor of Tallahassee kept her from it.

Mayor Andrew Gillum had trailed throughout the primary season. In fact, Mayor Gillum trailed a distant fourth place and was in no shape to overcome two millionaires and a billionaire ahead of him. It wasnt until the final election night that Mayor Gillum did the impossible. He snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. It was a glorious evening for him and his supporters. Poor Tallahassee. The people of Tallahassee think they belong to an underappreciated quiet metropolis of sorts that belongs on the main stage. The Tallahassee underbelly is many Tallahasseans are liberals and believe in a benevolent dictator-style leadership. They despise rough and rumble (small d) democratic politics where people can say what they think and do what they please. No, instead, the city succeeds in perpetuating group think by using an unlimited supply of taxpayer cash for television commercials reminding people to pick up their pets poop, or to recycle. Forget about any discussion of the effectiveness of these programs -- I cant count how many friends I have lost because I voted for Trump. This town is bent on accepting whatever mantra is spouted from the DNC or any other liberal organization. Old and New State Capitol in Tallahassee (Wikimedia Commons) However, this town is home to Mayor Gillum. Both of which are unfortunately under FBI investigation. He is being investigated for his alleged acceptance of sporting tickets, plane trips, junkets in New York City and, unbelievably, how his close aide landed a nicely taxpayer subsidized contract for prime commercial real estate in a newly developed section of downtown. The City of the Tallahassee is being investigated for its Community Redevelopment Authority (CRA). It is a nice name with a nice mission description, but in reality, it is nothing more than a slush fund for city officials to award taxpayer subsidized contracts to friends, family and contributors, usually three in one. The timing could not be worse for Mayor Gillum or Tallahassee. Mayor Gillum is exactly the kind of governor this city wants. He is comfortable with handing out political favors and jobs and he seems to see himself as a kind of political lord with a serfdom to manage. He would easily move across the street from City Hall into the Governors Office. He would appoint those most loyal to him and will expect favors in return. This is how things used to be run in Tallahassee until Republicans showed up and won elections. The primary election of Mayor Gillum will shine a spotlight so intense on this town, and I hope that Tallahassee will melt in the glare. It has too many political skeletons in its closet and will gladly accept a Gillum defeat in November. More than anything else, Tallahassee does not want a dose of reality to force it to change its ways. Like most other liberals I know of, they like to live in a world of make believe. Poor Tallahassee.
The political fight was uneven in strength, but both sides got knocked down and are still trying to get up off the canvas. The leadership of Catalonias independence movement is either in jail or exiled and PM Mariano Rajoy got sent home, even though he held the reins of the States power apparatus. Catalan society is recovering progressively and is perusing the names of the newcomers, at home as well as in Spain, where the clash with the independence movement has also taken its toll on the political system. The Spanish governments inability to engage Catalonia politically and the weakness of its political foundations were exposed when direct rule was imposed by invoking article 155 of the Spanish Constitution. On an international level, Madrids position has been weakened by the judicial construction of a case that is crassly political.

Turning a new page is proving difficult for both sides. De-escalating requires political gestures which show that mutual trust can be rebuilt after it was shattered well before the ruling on the Catalan Statute, handed down in 2010. It remains to be seen whether PM Pedro Sanchez will have the courage to do politics and start a serious negotiation about the most pressing issue currently on his agenda: Spains institutional design. To prevent him from taking any steps, Ciudadanos leaders Albert Rivera and Ines Arrimadas (and the masterminds of social confrontation) are striving to raise their head in a silly contest which involves tearing down yellow ribbons and calling failed demonstrations with the goal of lending credence to the poisonous, irresponsible narrative of an allegedly conflict-gripped Catalonia. Pressure from the reactionary forces is threatening Sanchezs socialist party, which might miss the opportunity that the competition between the PP and Ciudadanos locking horns over who gets to lead unionism has presented them with.

The prisons strategy

The outlook for the new political year assuming the previous one ever came to an end is stormy. The calendar will fuel tension and rallying in Catalonia, despite renewed threats of direct rule and Miquel Icetas warning about the danger that a hostile atmosphere might influence the outcome of the trial. The ridiculous charges faced by Catalonias political prisoners will set the tone for this autumn and the strategy with which the pro-independence movement intends to oppose it suggests that the Catalan prisoners will be playing a major role. In his first months in office Catalan president Quim Torra made it very clear that his priority are the prisoners and exiles. After holding meetings this summer in Waterloo and Lledoners, this week president Torra will outline his views on the current state of affairs. Presumably he wont focus on the much-needed governance that appears to have been put on the back burner. Torra has stated that he wont accept a guilty verdict, but has not clarified what the consequences of that might be. His position is consistent with that of the prisoners and his lack of trust in a fair trial has been abundantly substantiated by how the case has proceeded. They claim that a fair trial could only bring a non-guilty verdict and their goal is to create the widespread feeling that will allow them to expose the weaknesses of Spanish democracy and bring new allies to the cause of democratic regeneration. In other words, they aim to call on all citizens, regardless of their political preference, to rally for the sake of democracy itself.

In an interview with this newspaper the Speaker of the Catalan parliament, Roger Torrent, states that the key to bringing back the spirit of October 3 is to bring together the civic majority that opposes violence and favours a solid democracy and a peaceful, legally-binding referendum. The aim is to expose this judicial farce supported by the broadest majority possible.

Long-term outlook

In the interview the Speaker mentions a long parliamentary term that will rest on how these ideas take shape and how consensus-building and a united front are established to face the coming months. He echoes the words of Josep Rull, in an interview from prison that we will publish on Monday, but he admits that the climate that we are able to create will determine the outcome. The new political year kicks off with a public address by the president, followed by Catalonias national holiday on September 11, and the first anniversary of the independence vote and the October events. Presumably, the prisoners will be moved back to Madrid for the start of the trial. The coming months will see a fresh rallying bid during which the governance of Catalonia mustnt be put on hold, if we want a better country, whilst broadening and consolidating the pro-sovereignty movement as the best political option to bring progress to Catalonia and her people. Now that Catalans have regained self-government with the lifting of direct rule, not only is it necessary to protect it from new threats but it must be exercised for the sake of Catalonias progress.
The approval comes after Joramco obtained similar approval for this type from the Jordanian Civil Aviation Authority (JCARC) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in April of this year.

Jeff Wilkinson, Chief Executive Officer of Joramco said: "We are very pleased to gain our EASA approval for the Boeing 787. This approval allows us to broaden our service offerings to a wider base of customers as we continue to build on Joramco's success as a leading MRO facility offering a globally competitive suite of MRO services."

Firoz Tarapore, Chief Executive Officer of DAE said: The EASA approval for the Boeing 787 further recognises Joramcos extended capability set in maintaining new technology aircraft. This achievement reflects DAEs goal of developing a regionally-based world class competitive MRO and services platform to complement its top tier leasing platform.
The new menus will be available to First and Business Class passengers travelling from Qatar Airways four gateways in Australia (Adelaide, Melbourne, Perth, Sydney) to Doha, Qatar. Qatar Airways is also working with Chef Calombaris to feature his signature touch in the Economy Class menu, due to debut in the first quarter of 2019.

This marks the second time Qatar Airways has partnered with Calombaris to present his signature dishes at 30,000 feet. In 2017, Qatar Airways and Calombaris jointly presented an exclusive in-flight menu to celebrate the introduction of the A380 service on the Melbourne-Doha route last year.

Qatar Airways Group Chief Executive, Akbar Al Baker, said: At Qatar Airways, we are committed to offering our passengers the finest cuisine in the sky. We are delighted to work with one of Australias best-loved chefs, George Calombaris, for the second time following the success of the limited run menu to commemorate the launch of our A380 service in Melbourne last year. We are excited to be able to bring Calombaris signature dishes to more Australian passengers this time around with our year-long partnership, and are certain his flair for creating dishes showcasing classic Greek flavours accompanied by fresh local produce will once again be a hit with our passengers.

Chef George Calombaris said: I am thrilled to work with Qatar Airways for the second consecutive year and make my cuisine available to even more Australian passengers travelling with the airline. It is a privilege to work with a brand that is so committed to excellence, and I am honoured that our partnership is continuing into 2018. We look forward to continuously surprise and delight passengers onboard with these delicious Greek-inspired dishes.

Every quarter, passengers can look forward to Calombariss new signature dishes that will be introduced and integrated with Qatar Airways in-flight menus. Among the dishes making their debut on Qatar Airways flights is one of Calombariss personal favourites, Avgolemono (a classic Greek egg and lemon soup). For the main courses, First and Business Class cabin passengers can choose between the Bastourma Beef shortrib with onions and Potato a la greque, or the lighter but no less flavourful Fraser Island Crab with lemon marmalade and tabbouleh. The classic Greek mousakka will also feature in the new Greek-inspired menu.

The new menu debuts in Adelaide, Sydney and Perth from 1 September, followed by Melbourne from 1 October 2018.
Posted On Wednesday, 26 September 2018 13:42

Researchers at the U.S. Army Research Laboratory (ARL) developed a new type of thermal imaging camera that allows soldiers to see hidden objects that were previously undetectable, as reported by ARL Public Affairs. Dr. Kristan Gurton, an experimental physicist in the Computational and Information Sciences Directorate, and Dr. Sean Hu, an electronics engineer in the Sensors and Electron Devices Directorate, are leading this effort for the laboratory.

Read more ...
According to the Defense magazine Australian Defence Business Review ADBR website, the South Korean Company Hanwha Defense Systems will offer its new generation of tracked armored IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle) AS21 Redback for the Land 400 Phase 3 program of the Australian army, to replace the old M113AS4 tracked APC (Armored Personnel Carrier) vehicles.



Drawing of the future South Korean AS21 Redback tracked armored IFV Infantry fighting Vehicle (Picture source Defence Technology Review)

The South Korean Company Hanwha Defense Systems was established in 1937 to provide comprehensive defense solutions including infantry fighting vehicles, air defense weapons, guided weapons, launching systems, high-precision navigation, and laser weapons.

The AS21 Redback will be developed based on the K21 tracked armored IFV (Infantry Fighting Vehicle) which is in service the South Korea Army. The project of the new vehicle will be presented during a conference at the Land Forces 2018, an international defense exhibition that will take place from the 4 to 6 September 2018, in Adelaide, Australia.

The AS21 Redback will be enhanced version of the standard K21 offering more protection against current ballistic and mine threats. It will have a larger internal volume to accommodate 8 dismount troops and a crew of three soldiers including driver, commander and gunner.

According to our first analysis, the general layout of the Korean AS 21 Redback seems very similar to the German-made KF41 that was unveiled during the International Defense Exhibition Eurosatory in June 2018, with driver position and engine compartment at the front, a two-man turret in the middle and troops area at the rear.

As the original K21 IFV, the AS21 Redback could be armed with one 40mm automatic cannon, one 7.62mm coaxial machine gun and one 12.7mm machine gun mounted on the top of the turret. The back side of the roof turret seems to be fitted with launchers for anti-tank guided missile.

A Hanwha Defense Systems spokesman said, With such heritage, Hanwha Defense Systems is able to customize its armored solutions to a variety of specifications in order to meet future warfare requirements of any country.

According to Hanwha Defense Systems, the vehicle will be fitted with new generation of APS (Active protection System)designed to prevent line-of-sight guided anti-tank missiles/projectiles from acquiring and/or destroying a target.
Do it yourself if you can We accept  in principle  that private equity can deliver (somewhat) excess returns over most other asset classes. But there are a lot of qualifications attached to that, and most of them are very relevant to whether and how pension funds should invest in private equity.
Pharmacist with his wife and 3 kids want to immigrate to australia any suggestion for what visa he can apply,?

Does he need Rma from australia to help him?
Or one would assume thats the case. One man from Mexico did just that  and his only justification is that he happened to pass by the car and see the keys in the ignition, so he thought to himself, Why not?According to The Tlaquepaque police writing on Facebook , the incident happened at the weekend, in Guadalajara, central Mexico. The car was reported stolen minutes after the fact, which gave officers a head start and a good reaction time.In other words, the thief didnt get too far. He was caught on the highway and plainly admitted that he took the hearse because he saw it had the keys inside. To put it simply: he took the car because he, no other reason.He either didnt know or didnt care that there was a dead body inside.Police say that the body of an 80-year-old man had been placed inside the hearse to be transported to a local funeral home. The hearse driver mustve stepped out of the vehicle for a few minutes, and when he got back, the car and the body were gone.Both were recovered in a timely manner and damage was done to neither. The police report identified the hearse as a white Chevrolet Silverado with Escalade front conversion, a 2010 model. Its a beautiful car that clearly caught the eye of the wannabe thief, dazzling him beyond any common sense  or sense of decency.The thief has been identified as Annibal Saul N., 40, and hes already been handed over to prosecutors.
That changed last week after a Nissan Leaf driven by a human rear-ended a Lexus RX450h driven by Apples self-driving algorithm.According to BBC , citing a report filed with the California Department of Motor Vehicles, the incident occurred on the Lawrence Expressway South, in Santa Clara, California.As per the report, Apples Lexus was trying to merge onto the expressway when the driver of the Leaf decided to give the companys secretive project a bit of media exposure. The Lexus was driving at 1 mph when it was hit by the Leaf at 15 mph, so obviously, no one was injured in the incident.Following initial investigations, the cause of the crash was attributed to human error, but the DMV does not officially blame anyone for the crash.As said, this is the first time an Apple autonomous car project is involved in a road incident. The company has been testing hardware and software for self-driving vehicles for some time now and, according to info leaked from a criminal complaint against a former employee charged with stealing trade secrets, some 5,000 people are involved.Apple never openly talked about the project, rumored to be called Titan. At the end of the project, some see Apple launching its own electric autonomous car, while others hope for autonomous tech packs which will be sold to established manufacturers.So far, Apple is said to have gotten involved at one point or another in the development of the project with BMW, Nissan, BYD, McLaren and most recently Volkswagen.With VW, Apple is said to be working on creating a fleet of autonomous T6 vans to be used as shuttles for the American companys employees.
* "Most Popular Intellectual Property Law Blawg" of all time according to Justia rankings , October 2021.

* "Most Popular Copyright Blawg" of all time according to Justia rankings , October 2021.

* PermaKat Eleonora Rosati listed as one of the World Intellectual Property Review's "Influential Women in IP" of 2020.

* PermaKat Eleonora Rosati listed as one of the Managing Intellectual Property magazine's "Fifty Most Influential People" of 2018.

* IPKat founder and Blogmeister Emeritus Jeremy Phillips listed as one of the Managing Intellectual Property magazine's "Fifty Most Influential People" of 2005, 2011, 2013, and 2014.

* Recommended by the European Patent Office as reading material for candidates for the European Qualifying Examinations, 2013.

* Listed as "Top Legal Blog" in The Times Online, March 2011.

2010 ABA Journal 100. * One of the only two non-US blogs listed in the Blawg100.

* Court Reporter Top Copyright Blog award winner, November 2010.

* Number 1 in the 2010 Top Copyright Blog list compiled by the Copyright Litigation Blog, July 2010.

* Selected by the United States Library of Congress for inclusion in its historic collections of Internet materials related to Legal Blawgs as of 2010.

* Top Patent Blog poll 2009: 3rd out of 50 in the "Favourite Patent Blog" poll and 2nd out of 50 in the "Most-read" poll.

Blog of the Year, 20 August 2008. * ComputerWeekly IT Law and Governance, 20 August 2008.
Enter Nicola Materazzi, the mastermind behind the F40 and the man responsible for the Lancia Stratos and 288 GTO . Speaking to Davide Cironi, the father figure of the twin-turbocharged supercar takes his time to explain the whole process, right from the drawing board.Even though Materazzi and Cironi speak Italian throughout the 24-minute interview, the English subtitles make up for the language barrier. When compared to all the information listed on Wikipedia and enthusiast website, the insight given by the 79-year-old engineer would make even grown men blush with appreciation.After graduating the University of Naples, Materazzi spent a year working as an assistant professor, then landed a job at Lancia in the automaker's technical department. Here, the Caselle in Pittari-born engineer dealt a lot with mathematical approaches to engineering problems. A tough job, more so if you remember that computers werent exactly a thing in the 1970s.Following the Stratos, Materazzi went on to develop the Formula Fiat Abarth racing car. Then Osella came up on his agenda, where the visionary engineer was responsible for two single-seater projects. For Formula 2 and Formula 1, to be precise. Come 1979, the man landed at Ferrari as head of the technical department within the racing division.Materazzi convinced Enzo and the rest of the engineers to experiment with turbochargers, landing projects such as the 208 Turbo, 328, 412 GT, Testarossa, and the Tipo 268 engine used by Lancia in the LC2 prototype racing car. Following the Prancing Horse, he went to Cagiva, after which Nicola jumped to Bugatti, Industria Motociclistica Laverda, as B Engineering.Similar to the Stratos, the F40 is one of the most fulfilling projects Materazzi worked on during his professional life. To find out what were the challenges of developing the most extreme supercar of the 1980s, grab some popcorn, press play, and enjoy the story.
The video was released the other day by the Texas Department of Public Safety , but the chase and subsequent arrest actually took place in June. You can see that in the video at the bottom of the page, starting with minute 4:20.The woman was wanted on several outstanding warrants and its clear from the video that she thought she could just speed her way out of trouble.The aerial video shows her driving at speeds of up to 100 mph in Bexar County, nearly crashing a couple of times, weaving in and out of traffic. Police deployed spikes to bust her tires, but she kept going for quite the distance even afterward.At one point, after driving into oncoming traffic and running red lights, she lost control of the car and crashed into a pickup truck. Youd think this would be where shed call it a day, but no: the woman got out of the car and rushed to the back, to retrieve her baby in the car seat.Then, baby in hand, she ran into traffic, across lanes, desperately trying to find another way of fleeing. She thought she saw it when she arrived by a car stopped in traffic, so she got in and tried to hijack the vehicle. By that time, troopers had arrived on the scene as well, pulling their cars in front of the other so she couldnt flee one more time. Fox News reports that, after the incident, the woman was charged with evading arrest, possession of controlled substance and endangering a child. Her identity wasnt made public, but at least we know the child wasnt harmed during this insane chase.
In China  and even all over the world  there is strengthening demand for SUVs in the market. To meet growing demands, Volkswagen has opened a new plant located in Tianjin, China. The new production facility will produce SUV models not only for the Volkswagen brand but also for Audi, expanding the VW Group's production capability in the region. They will also be producing plug-in hybrid electric (PHEV) variants of these SUVs.

Together with the Volkswagen FAW Platform Tianjin Branch, the FAW-Volkswagen Tianjin plant is an important cornerstone of Volkswagen Group Chinas localization strategy in China. I am also very proud of our great progress in green production and synergy processes, for which these two new facilities stand, said Prof. Dr. Jochem Heizmann, president and CEO of VW Group China.

The FAW-Volkswagen plant is said to have a daily production capacity of 1,200 units. Annually, Volkswagen's latest plant can churn out 300,000 SUVs. It is also located near the Volkswagen FAW Platform Tianjin branch and Volkswagen Automatic Transmission Plant Tianjin to reduce delivery times.

With 23 months completion time, the factory has set a new construction record. Efficient cost and investment management before and during development was a key factor. This success is also based on our diversity: Chinese managers and Volkswagen colleagues from six different countries ensured expertise with a global and local perspective in the plant management, said Dr. Jurgen Unser, Vice President and Board Member of FAW-Volkswagen.

Some of the SUVs currently being produced by the VW Group in China include the Audi Q3, Q5, and the Volkswagen T-Roc, Tiguan (both old and new models are still offered in country), and the Teramont (Atlas in the USA). Currently, almost all of Volkswagen Philippines' model line up come from China as well. It is possible that the China-produced T-Roc and other SUV could also be offered locally.
The pilot and builder of the one-of-a-kind Jet Eze aircraft was killed in the crash of the airplane on approach to the airport in Covington, Tennessee, on Saturday afternoon. Lance Hooley, who adapted the canard design of Burt Rutans Long Eze to take a GE-T58-8 engine, died when the aircraft crashed 2,000 feet short of the runway in Covington. None of the local media stories included witness accounts. Although the aircraft looked like a Long Eze, it was substantially altered with a wider cockpit, beefed-up internal structure and integrated winglets. It stood a foot taller than the Long EZE.

Hooley told Kitplanes Magazine the aircraft took off at 80 knots and that was the approach speed. It cruised at 250 knots true on 31 GPH and had a 4.5 hour range. The crash occurred about 5:26 p.m. and a post-crash fire consumed much of the wreck. Hooley debuted the aircraft at Sun n Fun 2017 and AVwebs Geoff Rapoport prepared this video report.
Bloomberg is reporting that Pratt & Whitney has been quietly assessing excessive vibration in its new-design geared turbofan engines in the latest of a string of teething problems with the fuel-sipping design. Bloomberg says a vibration issue has caused cockpit alerts in A320neos that have been delivered to airlines all over the world. Pratt told Bloomberg its working on the problem. The FAA has confirmed its working with Pratt to identify the cause but it hasnt issued any orders or bulletins to operators.

Bloomberg says its sources estimate that about 10 A320neos are grounded at a time while engineers probe the cause. Like most major technological leaps, the geared turbofan has suffered a series of service entry problems and Pratt is under pressure to get them fixed. The engine uses about 30 percent less fuel than previous generation engines and since fuel is the largest cost for airlines its a big attraction. Airbus has kept its chin up through the difficulties, which also affect its newly acquired A220 line of jets that it took over from Bombardier, but there are cracks appearing in that brave face as stock prices dropped more than a full percentage point on the latest news. Airbus says it still plans to deliver 800 A320neos this year. The risk is that the series of issues with the GTF engine may have begun to test investors patience, Bloomberg reported Jeffries International analyst Sandy Morris as warning clients.
President Obama, after mostly staying out of the spotlight since leaving office, plans to campaign in coming weeks in California, Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania  meaning there'll be a frequent fall contrast between Presidents 44 and 45.

What to watch for: Look for other travel and more endorsements. During a speech in Illinois on Friday, Obama will preview top themes for the campaign trail. These include the importance of turning out to vote at this particular moment, especially given that Dems are notorious for sitting out during midterms or when Obama isnt on the ballot.

On Friday at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, Obama will receive the Paul H. Douglas Award for Ethics in Government and deliver remarks on the state of our democracy.

Obama communications director Katie Hill said: "President Obama will offer new thoughts on this moment and what it requires from the American people."

said: "President Obama will offer new thoughts on this moment and what it requires from the American people." "He will echo his call to reject the rising strain of authoritarian politics and policies."

his call to reject the rising strain of authoritarian politics and policies." "His post-presidency is the next chapter in the cause of his life  bringing people together to change the world for the better."

Obama will also headline a fundraiser in New York City this month for the National Democratic Redistricting Committee (NDRC), which is chaired by Eric Holder, his former attorney general.
With an escalation in President Trump's trade war possible as early as Thursday, retaliatory tariffs threaten U.S. companies employing some 11 million workers, according to an Axios analysis.

Why it matters: Industries affected by the brinksmanship are mostly concentrated in rural, deeply red, already-struggling parts of the country, with political consequences for Trump and Republicans in 2018 and beyond.

Explanation of the map: The map tracks the geographical impact of both current and threatened retaliation. The darker a county, the higher the concentration of affected industries there.

Driving the news: On Thursday, a public comment period ends on Trump's threat to quadruple tariffs on China, slapping them on $200 billion in Chinese goods, up from $50 billion in force today. If Trump proceeds this week or later, as experts expect him to, China has said it will retaliate with tariffs on $60 billion in U.S. exports.

That's on top of 25% and 10% tariffs enacted, respectively, on steel and aluminum imports from Canada, China, Mexico and the European Union, and by those countries against the U.S.

Employment in rural and low-population counties can be exceptionally vulnerable to gyrations in the global economy, said Mark Muro, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. "In a small county, a single meat packing establishment can provide hundreds of jobs and make up a large share of that county's total employment," he told Axios. A prior report by Muro and others at Brookings inspired this analysis.

Against these impacts, the Trump administration has provided a $4.7 billion bailout to soybean farmers, hit with retaliatory tariffs by China, their biggest customer. Republicans have criticized the compensation.

Methodology: We calculated the concentration of industries in each county compared with the national average. To get there, we gathered lists of goods facing tariffs from Canada, China, Mexico, and the European Union. The data is from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and the Bureau of Labor Statistics' Quarterly Census of Employment Wages.

Go deeper
An American service member was killed in eastern Afghanistan by an Afghan security member Monday, the N.Y. Times reports.

The big picture: This is the second "insider attack" in two months and the sixth American service member killed in Afghanistan this year. President Trump's new strategy in Afghanistan primarily involves American troops training the Afghan National Army and supporting security forces with air power, per the Times.

The Defense Department has identified the service member as Command Sgt. Maj. Timothy Bolyard, 42, from Thornton, West Virginia. Bolyard died in Logar Province, Afghanistan from wounds sustained from small arms fire. According to the Pentagon, the incident is under investigation.

Editor's note: This story has been updated to reflect the latest updates from the Defense Department.
Around two weeks ago, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu privately conveyed a message to the White House stressing that Israel's position regarding the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) has changed  and that it now supports a complete cut of all U.S. funding to the agency, which gives aid to Palestinian refugees, Israeli officials told me. The officials added Netanyahu communicated with the Trump administration without consulting Israel's security chiefs.

Why it matters: As with almost every past U.S. administration, Israel's position plays important part in White House's decision making on Israeli-Palestinian issues. Until several weeks ago, the Israeli policy was that any cut in American funding of UNRWA should be gradual and without any aid cuts to Gaza, thanks to the fear of a humanitarian collapse and an escalation on the ground. This position was supported by the IDF, the Shin Bet intelligence service and by the Israeli Ministry of Defense. For a long time, this was also the position conveyed to the White House and Congress by Israeli officials.
One of the most-esteemed museums in Latin America  Brazil's Museu Nacional, which was founded in 1818 and had around 20 million artifacts  went up in flames Sunday evening, destroying many of the nation's most prized cultural and historical artifacts.

Why it matters: Most of the museum's prized collection is assumed to be lost. "Very little will be left," preservation director Joao Carlos Nara told Agencia Brasil, per CNN. The collection included one of the Americas' oldest human fossils  the skull and bones of a 25-year-old "Luzia" who died around 11,500 years ago, according to National Geographic.

It also held the largest meteorite ever found in Brazil, bones of Brazilian dinosaurs as well as Latin America's oldest collection of ancient Egyptian mummies and artifacts.

ever found in Brazil, bones of Brazilian dinosaurs as well as Latin America's oldest collection of ancient Egyptian mummies and artifacts. The museum housed one of the best collections of indigenous literature, Guardian journalist Jonathan Watts wrote on Twitter. Urutau Guajajara, a leader and researcher of indigenous right, told Watts, This is the greatest loss of indigenous writing in Latin America... Our memory has been erased."

Guardian journalist Jonathan Watts wrote on Twitter. Urutau Guajajara, a leader and researcher of indigenous right, told Watts, This is the greatest loss of indigenous writing in Latin America... Our memory has been erased." There were also pre-Colombian, Incan treasures , according to the museum's website, and extensive collections of ancient Greek and Roman artifacts.

, according to the museum's website, and extensive collections of ancient Greek and Roman artifacts. Some items were brought to Brazil by the country's founder and first ruler Dom Pedro I, according to the Guardian.

by the country's founder and first ruler Dom Pedro I, according to the Guardian. The building itself was once a royal palace.

A tweet previously embedded here has been deleted or was tweeted from an account that has been suspended or deleted.

What has survived: Fish and reptile specimens, herbarium and library which were in a different building, according to NatGeo, as well as part of the mollusk specimen collection, according to a biologist at Brazil's Federal University of Rio Grande on Twitter.

The museum's vice director blamed the fire on lack of funding from the federal government, per Reuters. The lack of funding may have resulted in inadequate fire warning systems.

from the federal government, per Reuters. The lack of funding may have resulted in inadequate fire warning systems. " We never got anything from the federal government ... We recently finalized an agreement with BNDES [a state-run development bank] for a massive investment, so that we could finally restore the palace and, ironically, we had planned on a new fire prevention system," he said.

... We recently finalized an agreement with BNDES [a state-run development bank] for a massive investment, so that we could finally restore the palace and, ironically, we had planned on a new fire prevention system," he said. The initial cause of the fire is still unknown.

There will be absolutely nothing left of the National Museum. The country's 200-year history has been burned.

 Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte

The president of Brazil, Michel Temer, tweeted, Two hundred years of work research and knowledge were lost... it's a sad day for all Brazilians.
China wants to link a string of megacities into a "Greater Bay Area" to rival San Francisco, New York and Tokyo, the Financial Times Ben Bland reports.

Why it matters: "Along with the Belt and Road Initiative, a signature project for [Xi Jinping], Beijing sees the Greater Bay Area as a way not just to further integrate Hong Kong and Macau, which were handed back by the UK and Portugal respectively in the late 1990s... It is also hoping to turbo-charge growth in one of the countrys most economically vibrant regions and accelerate the nationwide transition from manufacturing and exports to services and domestic demand."

What's new: Beijing wants to pull Hong Kong closer by integrating it with Macau, the worlds most lucrative casino gambling destination  and nine neighboring urban areas. It's pouring cash into infrastructure projects and trying to lure investment and talent from Hong Kong to the mainland.

By the numbers:

70 million people live in this area , the FT notes, with a $1.5 trillion economy that could nearly double by 2025.

, the FT notes, with a $1.5 trillion economy that could nearly double by 2025. The region boasts three of the world's 10 busiest container ports: Shenzen, Guangzhou and Hong Kong.

Shenzen, Guangzhou and Hong Kong. The Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau bridge , scheduled to open this year, is 22 miles long and cost nearly $20 billion.

, scheduled to open this year, is 22 miles long and cost nearly $20 billion. The Shenzhen-Zhongshan project is currently under construction. It uses a combination of bridges, tunnels and artificial islands.

is currently under construction. It uses a combination of bridges, tunnels and artificial islands. China spent $11 billion linking Hong Kong to the mainland's high speed rail.

Between the lines: "A senior Hong Kong official... admits that it will be very difficult to improve the 'flows of information and capital' between the city and the mainland without the city losing its 'uniqueness.'"

Go deeper: China is the greatest, growing threat to America
Facebook has added Inupiaq, a indigenous language spoken in northern Alaska, as an option to its community translation tool, per the AP.

The details: It's only available on the Facebook website, not its app  at least for now. Facebook spokeswoman Arielle Argyres told the AP that the social media giant will soon add Cherokee and Canadas Inuktut language. "Its important to have these indigenous languages on the internet. Oftentimes theyre nowhere to be found. So much is carried through language  tradition, culture  and so in the digital world, being able to translate from that environment is really important," Argyres said.
If you read one long thing today, read Jeffrey Toobin's profile of Rudy Giuliani in The New Yorker "The former mayors theatrical, combative style of politics anticipated  and perfectly aligns with  the Presidents."

Key quote: "Before Giuliani joined the defense, [Trump's former lawyer John] Dowd and Mueller came close to an agreement for the President to voluntarily testify. They even scheduled a date and a location: January 27, 2018, at Camp David. ... Talks between the Trump and the Mueller teams later broke down..."

"If the negotiations over a voluntary interview fail, as now seems likely, Mueller may decide to subpoena the President. Giuliani has weighed in on the legality of Presidential subpoenas in the past."

over a voluntary interview fail, as now seems likely, Mueller may decide to subpoena the President. Giuliani has weighed in on the legality of Presidential subpoenas in the past." "In 1997, a unanimous Supreme Court ruled that President Clinton was legally obligated to submit to a deposition in Paula Joness sexual-harassment case against him. As the special prosecutor Kenneth Starrs investigation of Clinton intensified, the following year, Charlie Rose put the question to Giuliani in an interview: Would the President have to obey a grand-jury subpoena for his testimony? 'Hes gotta do it. He doesnt have a choice,' Giuliani responded. 'Under the criminal law, everyone should be treated the same. ... As far as the criminal law is concerned, the President is a citizen.'"

Go deeper: How Rudy Giuliani Turned Into Trumps Clown in The New Yorker
Cities are increasingly marketing themselves as "smart cities"  hyper-connected, sensor-equipped communities  in their latest economic development pitch to attract workers and businesses.

Why it matters: Metropolitan areas across the country are trying to take advantage of new technologies to become more efficient and sustainable  two qualities that appeal to younger generations of workers, as well as the startups and big corporations who want to employ them.

"Smart city" is the buzzword adopted by tech firms and mayors to describe areas that mash together fast internet, sensors and automation to power "smart" streetlights, energy meters, water monitors and transportation systems.

If marketing materials are to be believed, smart cities will use gigabit-speed internet and future 5G networks to transform how citizens interact with schools, utilities, their neighbors and and local governments.

smart cities will use gigabit-speed internet and future 5G networks to transform how citizens interact with schools, utilities, their neighbors and and local governments. For example, sensors at downtown intersections can monitor pedestrian traffic and direct stop lights when to turn red, while dimming street lights and monitoring weather and rush-hour patterns to send notifications to commuters and public transit drivers.

can monitor pedestrian traffic and direct stop lights when to turn red, while dimming street lights and monitoring weather and rush-hour patterns to send notifications to commuters and public transit drivers. Google, Microsoft, Panasonic, Siemens, IBM, Oracle, Cisco, Verizon and AT&T are all pitching their services to cities.

The reality: Making cities smarter is more of a business model challenge than a technological one, says George Karayannis, who's leading Panasonic's smart city project near Denver's airport. Aligning the interests of everyone involved  utilities, telecom providers, builders, city officials  is the hardest part. "It's like a seven-legged race," he said.

What's happening: Denver, for example, has become a test-bed for smart city projects, driven by a booming economy, a dwindling water supply and increasing traffic.

On the city outskirts, Panasonic has created a 400-acre mini smart city as a laboratory for easing congestion and reducing energy consumption.

It has built its own microgrid, a model "smart" apartment, a mini-downtown with connected streetlights that automatically dim based on natural light.

a model "smart" apartment, a mini-downtown with connected streetlights that automatically dim based on natural light. Light posts can also house 5G antennas, sensors and cameras. Self-driving shuttles circle the project.

Near the foothills, a master-planned development called Sterling Ranch will become the first "gigabit smart city" built from scratch  a 12,000-home community with its own downtown and schools.

Each home is wired with two gigabit-speed fiber connections for broadband and a home automation system to manage energy use.

with two gigabit-speed fiber connections for broadband and a home automation system to manage energy use. Smart irrigation systems monitor soil quality and weather to conserve water.

monitor soil quality and weather to conserve water. Most homes are equipped with solar panels, with the goal of sharing energy with nearby businesses.

"For small businesses and entrepreneurs, developments like this  especially the broadband connectivity aspects  are critical to persuading them to set up shop in Colorado," said J.J. Ament, CEO of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation, at an Axios event last week.

Major U.S. cities tend to tackle smart city projects that solve their specific problems. Two common themes: increasing sustainability to meet environmental goals and improving transportation to reduce gridlock, according to Brooks Rainwater, Director of the Center for City Solutions at the National League of Cities.

The other side: Cities are being pitched on a range of newfangled technologies and apps intended to provide free Wi-Fi at bus shelters, smart parking systems, or sensors to clear intersections faster. But there are privacy and security questions around who gets access to data generated by those tools, said Ginger Ambruster, Chief Privacy Officer for Seattle.

It's also a question of priorities, such as balancing spending on social issues or technologies.

"It feels like a lot of smart-city technology is nice to have, but not necessarily vital to the continuance of city processes. When faced with homelessness, immigration, major critical infrastructure issues  those things take priority over making life easier for people trying to park, for example."

 Ginger Ambruster, City of Seattle

What to watch: Big cities are in the lead, but the next five years will see small and medium-sized cities jump on the bandwagon and coordinating with larger neighbors for regional benefits, Rainwater said.
The Vatican's former spokesman issued a statement Sunday challenging claims made by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano regarding Pope Francis' 2015 meeting with Kim Davis, the Kentucky clerk who refused to sign same-sex marriage licenses, reports the AP.

Why it matters: Vigano has also claimed that Francis knowingly covered up sexual misconduct allegations against Cardinal Theodore McCarrick. His statements last week that Francis approved of the meeting with Davis further turned up the heat against the Vatican, which has so far remained silent on the McCarrick allegations.

The details of the "he said, he said" surrounding the Davis meeting:

Vigano claimed that he was summoned to Rome but praised by Francis after news leaked of the pope's meeting with Davis during a 2015 trip to the United States.

Rev. Federico Lombardi, the former Vatican spokesman, and his English-language assistant released notes from a contemporaneous conversation with Vigano showing that Vigano said he'd been scolded by the pope for not being clear about the potential political implications of meeting with Davis.

Go deeper: Cover up claim against Pope Francis shakes a Church in crisis.
Armenia is willing to take part in the reconstruction of friendly Syria, Armenian Parliament Speaker Ara Babloyan said on Monday during a meeting with Syrian ambassador in Yerevan Mohamed Haj Ibrahim.

Aided by the Russian military the Syrian government forces have managed to restore control over much of the territory of the Middle Eastern country torn by years of war and internal strife, but economic recovery and reconstruction still appear to remain a vital concern for the authorities in Damascus.

Russia has recently sought a greater Western involvement in the rebuilding of Syria. The United States and its allies, meanwhile, believe that reconstruction assistance should be tied to a process that includes U.N.-supervised elections and a political transition in Syria. Washington blames the regime of Bashar al-Assad for Syrias devastation.

Since the start of the conflict in Syria in 2011 hostilities have also affected a sizable ethnic Armenian conflict in Syria. Tens of thousands of Syrian Armenians fled their homes, with many of them given refuge in Armenia during recent years.

During the meeting with the Syrian ambassador Babloyan expressed hope that peace, internal political stability and public solidarity will soon be established in Syria.

He also expressed his gratitude to the Syrian legislature for its activities towards the recognition of the Ottoman-era massacres of Armenians as genocide.

Many of the Syrian Armenians are descendants of survivors of the 1915 massacres who found refuge in Aleppo and other Syrian cities and towns.

Ambassador Haj Ibrahim attached importance to the role of the Syrian-Armenian community, which he described as an integral part of the Syrian society that has vastly contributed to the countrys development.

What the Syrian people have seen during these recent years is like what Armenians saw in Western Armenia [the part of historical Armenia, which is now in Turkey], the Syrian diplomat said, according to the Armenian parliaments official website.
Retired general Artur Aghabekian, who once served as Armenias deputy defense minister and currently advises the ethnic Armenian leader of Nagorno-Karabakh, denies charges of large-scale embezzlement from the fund where he has served as chairman of the board of trustees.

The charges were pressed against Aghabekian over the weekend as part of a criminal case initiated still in July.

The retired general is accused of misappropriating over $110,000 from the Martik (Worrier) Foundation, which was set up for training and retraining of officers of the armed forces of Armenia, assisting military science, providing scholarships to talented students and some other education-related activities.

According to the Investigation Committee of Armenia, in separate cases Martik directed funding for programs not related to the goals of the foundation. In particular, large sums of money were spent on organizing hospitality parties at restaurants and hotels for individuals, purchasing premium-grade gasoline for vehicles having nothing to do with the foundation, purchasing valuable presents for different persons, the Committee said. Sufficient data were obtained to show that some of the money were spent on the organization of hospitality parties at restaurants in recreational zones where Aghabekian owns 40 percent of shares.

Investigators allowed Aghabekian to remain free, but confined him to country limits pending investigation.

The retired general insisted on Monday that he has acted within the framework of the charter of the foundation. I think that during further investigative actions the bodies conducting the investigation will also come to this conclusion, he said. I myself wrote the charter [of the foundation] in 2002 and in doing so I realized what kind of programs I would be carrying out in the future.

Aghabekians is the latest in a series of prosecutions against senior former officials launched after anticorruption campaigner Nikol Pashinian came to power as prime minister on the wave of street protests in April-May. Pashinian has vowed to root out corruption and carry out reforms in the South Caucasus country.
Armenia and Japan have real opportunities to bring their bilateral relations at a new level, Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian said on Monday as he received visiting Japanese Foreign Minister Taro Kono.

Kono arrived in Yerevan on Sunday on an official three-day visit during which he also met with his Armenian counterpart Zohrab Mnatsakanian and President Armen Sarkissian.

Pashinian described the diplomatic relations between the two countries as efficient and dynamically growing. At the same time, he pointed out the existing potential particularly for stimulating economic ties.

According to the Armenian prime ministers official website, Pashinian spoke about the new political and economic situation in Armenia and the reforms that are being carried out in the country, in particular, the anti-corruption campaign, efforts to improve the environment for investments and entrepreneurship.

Minister Kono reportedly welcomed the democratic changes taking place in Armenia and expressed readiness to assist the government in that process. The top Japanese diplomat agreed about the presence of a great potential for developing and deepening relations between Japan and Armenia in different areas. He said he visited the Tumo center for creative technologies in Yerevan and was impressed by Armenias education model for the field of technologies.

Tumo is one of the places where we can also work together. We are ready to discuss prospects of deepening our cooperation in the economic sphere, he said.

Within the context of developing economic ties the two officials attached importance to the signing and ratification of an agreement between the Armenian and Japanese governments on liberalization, encouragement and protection of investments. Among possible fields where Yerevan and Tokyo can develop their cooperation Pashinian singled out information technologies and hi-tech, tourism, infrastructure and innovations.

The Japanese foreign minister welcomed the offer of the Armenian prime minister, expressing willingness to discuss steps in this direction. Both officials stressed the need to hold culture days of the two countries in Armenia and Japan and also attached importance to the development of inter-parliamentary relations. The two agreed to form a joint agenda and actively work to realize it.

Prime Minister Pashinian and Minister Kono also exchanged views on current regional and international issues. The head of the Armenian government said he highly appreciated Japans balanced position in the issue of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

During an earlier joint press conference today Japanese Foreign Minister Kono and his Armenian counterpart Zohrab Mnatsakanian also said that the two countries will, in particular, seek to cooperate in the fields of innovations and information technologies.
By Trend

Over the past 24 hours, Armenian armed forces have 113 times violated the ceasefire along the line of contact between Azerbaijani and Armenian troops, the Azerbaijani Defense Ministry said Sept. 3.

Armenian armed forces were using heavy 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.

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By Sara Israfilbayova

Economic and governance reforms in Azerbaijan are deep and comprehensive, MP Tahir Mirkishili said in an interview with Azernews.

Strategic Road Map on Major Sectors of National Economy, approved by the decree of President Ilham Aliyev dated December 6, 2016, defines the strategy of economic reforms. The main objective of the ongoing reforms is to ensure the further increase of competitiveness, inclusiveness and social welfare of the economy on the basis of sustainable economic development in the country, the MP noted.

He went on to say that according to the results of the first half of 2018, Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in Azerbaijan increased by 1.3 percent. Moreover, the non-oil sector increased by 2 percent, non-oil industry - by 8.8 percent, agricultural production - by 7.6 percent.

Mirkishili stressed that the increase in the economy has led to an increase in foreign trade, adding that during this period foreign trade turnover increased by 35 percent.

The volume of exports increased by 34 percent, including export of non-oil products by 20 percent. Exports in foreign trade exceeded $4.2 billion, which has a positive impact on the countrys balance of payments, the MP underlined.

Speaking of industrial development, deputy pointed out that industrial parks, created in recent years, have increased the volume of foreign investment in the country, provided people with new jobs, and began to replace imports by increasing the volume of industrial production.

Currently, more than 50 residents are operating in industrial parks. The growth by 8.8 percent is a very high indicator for non-oil sector. The development of the chemical industry in Sumgayit, light industry in Mingachevir and automotive industry in Neftchala lead to significant changes in the product structure of the economy. New industrial enterprises not only will replace imports, but will also increase the volume of exports and strengthen the flow of currency to the country, according to him.

Further, touching upon the economic growth, Mirkishili said that it is expected to reach 1.5 percent by the end of the year.

Opening of new enterprises (SOCAR Polymer in Sumgayit, nitrogen fertilizer plants, etc.) will further enhance alternative sources of economic growth. The innovations in the agricultural sector will change the structure of the agrarian sector. In general, the Azerbaijani economy, which is at a steady economic growth stage, will gradually become more and more able to improve the living conditions of the population, he concluded.

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Sara Israfilbayova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Sara_999Is

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Srinagar: A youth was killed after the government forces fired live ammunition into protesters in Gusoo village of south Kashmirs Pulwama district on Monday.

Reports said that youth hurled stones on the forces vehicles during a cordon-and-search-operation in the village.

The forces, they said, responded by firing tear gas, pellets and live ammunition.

A youth, identified as Fayaz Ahmad Wani, son of Muhammad Ahsan Wani of Chewa-Kalan, sustained a firearm injury during the clashes.

Reports said that the injured has been shifted to district hospital Pulwama where from he was referred to SMHS hospital in critical condition.

Dr Saleem Tak, Medical Superintendent SMHS hospital, said the youth was declared dead on arrival at the facility. He had suffered a bullet injury in head, said Dr Tak.
By Sara Israfilbayova

There is a progress in the negotiation process for the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict.

Italian Foreign Minister Enzo Moavero Milanesi made the remarks at a meeting of the Permanent Council of the OSCE, TASS reported.

The minister noted that the progress of the negotiation process between Azerbaijan and Armenia on the settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, despite the past elections in both countries, adding that the OSCE should be a platform for a constructive dialogue between the West and the East.

The idea of security used to be based on the principle of possessing and acquiring information, today security and the response to the challenges of our time depend on the exchange of information and cooperation, the minister stressed.

Since 1992, the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict has become predominantly a problem of international importance. After Azerbaijan became a member of the Conference for Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE), in accordance with the principles of this organization, the solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict was in the focus of public participants. Soon it was established the OSCE Minsk Group for settlement of the conflict.

Negotiations for a peaceful settlement of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict are underway within the framework of the OSCE Minsk Group. Azerbaijan insists on maintaining its territorial integrity, Armenia defends the interests of the unrecognized Nagorno-Karabakh Republic and rejects implementing four UN Security Council resolutions on withdrawal of its armed forces from Nagorno-Karabakh and surrounding regions.

The Nagorno-Karabakh conflict 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 regions. More than 20,000 Azerbaijanis were killed and over 1 million were displaced as a result of the large-scale hostilities. The 1994 ceasefire agreement was followed by peace negotiations.

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Sara Israfilbayova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Sara_999Is

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By Sara Israfilbayova

Turkey supports the resolution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said addressing the 6th summit of the Cooperation Council of the Turkic-Speaking States in Kyrgyzstan.

The Turkish leader also said that the solution of the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict should be found within the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, a fair solution of the issue should be found.

Erdogan noted that Turkey, as before, will support Azerbaijan in all spheres.

Nagorno-Karabakh conflict is the longest unresolved conflict between the two states of the South Caucasus region in the post-Soviet space and Turkey has always supported the solution of this conflict.

Official Ankara has always proved a friendly attitude towards Baku, which was formed due to the traditional closeness of two nations and constant mutual support.

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.

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Sara Israfilbayova is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Sara_999Is

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Trend:

Azerbaijan is interested in the establishment of joint ventures with the United Arab Emirates (UAE) in the fields of industry, logistics and transport, trade representative of Azerbaijan in Dubai Elnur Aliyev told Trend.

"At the same time, we are interested in attracting a big number of Arab companies to the country, because Azerbaijan is an ideal market for foreign investors because it has access to key markets of neighboring countries in the region," he said.

To date, more than 250 companies from the UAE work in Azerbaijan. Baku-Dubai-Baku, Baku-Sharjah-Baku flights operate between the countries.

"In general, Azerbaijan and the UAE have great potential for cooperation and may successfully develop cooperation in the spheres of industry, transport, trade, investment, agriculture, tourism and high technologies," he added.

"Currently, the work is being carried out to accelerate the dynamics of trade turnover between the countries," Aliyev said. "The main share of export of Azerbaijani products to the UAE accounts for Dubai, to which mainly agricultural products are supplied."

"Vegetables and fruits in big volumes, while meat in small volumes, are exported to Dubai," he said. "We intend to maximally increase meat supplies in the future, taking into account the needs of the Dubai market and the growing opportunities for production of this kind of products in Azerbaijan."

"Azerbaijan mainly imports high-tech products, electronics, industrial goods and building materials from the UAE," he said. "Taking into account that the UAE is one of the biggest importers of agricultural products, we expect that our high-quality products will have a niche in this promising market."

"As the UAE has a big potential for re-export, the supply of Azerbaijani goods to the UAE market, may contribute to the supply of our domestic products to the markets of other countries of the Persian Gulf in the future," he added.

"Besides agricultural products, Azerbaijan intends to increase supplies of various types of industrial goods, namely, aluminum plates, pipes, etc. to the UAE," Aliyev said.

According to the Azerbaijani State Customs Committee, the trade turnover between Azerbaijan and the UAE amounted to $28.457 million in January-July 2018, which is 67 percent more than in the same period of 2017.

At the same time, exports from Azerbaijan to the UAE amounted to $12.317 million (an increase of 58.8 percent), while imports - $16.139 million (by 73.8 percent).
By Trend

Todays talks will give an additional impetus to further developing the entire complex of Russian-Azerbaijani relations, said President of Russia Vladimir Putin Sept. 1 at a press conference following his meeting with President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev in Sochi.

Russia and Azerbaijan are bound by strong traditions of friendship and cooperation, Putin said. The relationship between our states is a partnership that is mutually beneficial and is based on the principles of neighbourly relations and respect for each others interests.

I am convinced that todays talks, in which the heads of our key agencies and business leaders took part, will give an additional impetus to further developing the entire complex of Russian-Azerbaijani relations, he noted. This is the aim of the joint statement the President of Azerbaijan and I have signed along with a substantial set of intergovernmental and interdepartmental agreements.

First of all, I would like to highlight the Action Plan on Developing Key Areas of Cooperation. This programme document includes roadmaps on such important issues as increasing trade and mutual investments, creating new transport routes and expanding humanitarian cooperation, including cultural and tourism exchanges, Vladimir Putin added.

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By Naila Huseynli

New pilot project is planned to implement on the development of beekeeping among women in the north-west regions of Azerbaijan in the near future, said Badraddin Hasratov, chairman of Azerbaijan Beekeepers Association.

The project will be implemented jointly with the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and should start in September.

We have already selected five women from Azerbaijans Balakan, Sheki, Zagatala and Gakh regions each. Training will be conducted with them, after which bee families and the necessary funds for $1,000 will be allocated to each woman. During the year, a specialist in this field will work with them, who will monitor and report on the implementation of the project, the chairman said.

Moreover, restoration and development of beekeeping in Azerbaijans Jojug Marjanli village is proceeding quite successfully. The conditions in this region are very favorable for the development of beekeeping, so the project can be expanded in the future.

The project, which is being implemented jointly with the Turkish Cooperation and Coordination Agency (TIKA), is proceeding quite successfully. Fifteen beekeepers were selected, and each was issued ten bee families. Before that, we conducted one-week training for all beekeepers, and we keep in touch with them by phone. In autumn we plan to conduct monitoring before wintering of bees. We hope that as a result of this projects implementation, the selected beekeepers will be able to provide themselves with stable income. This zone is very favorable for beekeeping, so in the future we want to issue bees to 15 more families, Hasratov explained.

Furthermore, the chairman mentioned that preparations for the annual honey exhibition, which usually takes place in the autumn, continue. Also, this year a number of new conditions will be put before potential participants.

We are looking for a place to hold a fair. We are likely to refuse from holding the fair at the AMAY shopping center, where it was held in the previous years. We are counting on the participation of about 350 beekeepers who will supply approximately 100 tons of honey to the fair, he said.

New requirements were introduced to the participants. For example, one beekeeper will be able to showcase no more than 500 kilograms of honey at the fair. This was done in order to ensure that all beekeepers can sell their goods completely and in order to avoid monopoly. Besides, there will be restrictions regarding the number of bee families. Thus, the beekeepers that have less than 20 or 30 bee families wont participate in the fair, he concluded.

The rich climate of subtropics, the riotous diversity of flora and the valuable qualities of local bees - these are the favorable natural conditions of Azerbaijan, which contributed to the maintenance of the centuries-old tradition of beekeeping in Transcaucasia.

During the excavation in The Azokh Cave, where one of the most ancient settlements of the primitive man was discovered, a bowl with the bee depicted on it was found, which once again proves that beekeeping has deep roots in Azerbaijan.

From 1990 to 1999, beekeeping in the country decreased by 45 percent. There were many reasons for that. Most apiaries were destroyed in the area of military operations.

Currently, the Azerbaijani government does all its best to contribute to the rehabilitation and further development of beekeeping with creating favorable conditions for beekeepers.

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By Trend

The 6th Summit of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States has kicked off at the "Rux Ordo" Cultural Center named after Chingiz Aitmatov in Cholpon-Ata town of Kyrgyz Republic.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev is attending the Summit.

President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sooronbai Jeenbekov welcomed President Ilham Aliyev, Kazakh President Nursultan Nazarbayev, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, President of the Republic of Tatarstan (Russian Federation) Rustam Minnikhanov and Prime Minister of Hungary Viktor Orban.

Heads of state and government toured the territory of "Rux Ordo" Cultural Center named after Chingiz Aitmatov where they viewed statues of prominent personalities of the Kyrgyz people as well as monuments reflecting the history and culture of Kyrgyzstan.

Then, they posed together for photographs.

In his opening remarks, chairman of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States, President of Kazakhstan Nursultan Nazarbayev expressed gratitude to the Kyrgyz president for the high level organization of the event and hospitality.

President Nursultan Nazarbayev said that the participation of Uzbekistan and Hungary at the 6th Summit is indicative of the expansion of the organization's activity and the strengthening of solidarity. The strengthening of the Turkic Council's activities will make a significant contribution to achieving the emerging goals, he said.

Then, President of Kyrgyzstan Sooronbai Jeenbekov, President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev and other heads of state and government made speeches.

The summit continues its work.

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By Trend

President of the Kyrgyz Republic Sooronbai Jeenbekov has hosted an official reception in honor of heads of state of the member countries of the Cooperation Council of Turkic Speaking States in the city of Cholpon-Ata.

President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev attended the reception.

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By Trend

Azerbaijan expects that Russia's efforts towards resolving the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict will be continued, Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev said.

He was making press statement in Sochi Sept. 1 together with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

I would like to note that among the issues we have discussed, an important place is held by the issues of regional security, first of all the settlement of the Armenia-Azerbaijan Nagorno-Karabakh conflict, Ilham Aliyev said. It has been ongoing for a very long time and has led to great suffering for the Azerbaijani people. The internationally recognized territories of Azerbaijan have been under Armenian occupation for many years.

More than a million Azerbaijanis have become refugees and internally displaced persons as a result of this conflict, the Azerbaijani president said. The soonest settlement of the conflict will allow our citizens to return to their historical lands, and bring peace, stability and cooperation to our region.

Russia, as a co-chair of the OSCE Minsk Group dealing with the settlement of the conflict, plays an important role in the conflict settlement, Ilham Aliyev noted.

Russia is our neighbor, our historical partner and friend, and we expect that Russia's efforts towards resolving the conflict will be continued, the Azerbaijani president said.

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By Trend

The next summit of the Cooperation Council of the Turkic Speaking States (CCTS) will be held in Baku in 2019, according to the decision of its members, Secretary General of the organization Baghdad Amreev said, Kabar reported.

He noted that a Joint Declaration, which reflects all the activities of the organization, as well as the concept of development of the Turkic states have been signed today.

"Today's documents help us to reformat the work, to optimize the existing institutions of Turkic integration and to centralize our activities," he said.

Amreev said another important point of the summit is the acquisition by Hungary of the official observer status in the CCTS. But the issue of Uzbekistan's membership in the Council has not yet been resolved.

"Uzbekistan is not a member of the the CCTS, but participates in the summits as an observer. We hope that Uzbekistan's membership in the Council will be formalized in the near future. There is every reason for this," he concluded.

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By Trend

The Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission (CMC) of China, member of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, Colonel-General Xu Qiliang will visit Dushanbe on September 4-6, Asia-Plus reported.

His visit will take place in the framework of the implementation of important agreements reached by Chinese President Xi Jinping with the leader of Tajikistan Emomali Rahmon, the Department of Information, Press, Analysis and Foreign Policy Planning of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Tajikistan said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Xu Qiliang will hold meetings and talks with Emomali Rahmon, the Minister of Defense Colonel-General Sherali Mirzo, and will visit one of military units of the Defense Ministry of Tajikistan, the Ministry of Defense of Tajikistan told Asia-Plus.

This visit will help to strengthen the strategic trust between Beijing and Dushanbe, contributing to the promotion of pragmatic cooperation in the military sphere, the Defense Ministry of the country said in a statement.

The Chinese President Xi Jinping is the Chairman of the Central Military Commission of China.

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Foreign aid and state building

This short comment aims to look at the trend of foreign investment in Nepal in the midst of its transition from a war-torn to a post-conflict nation, and emphasise the opportunity to shift the traditional state building paradigm to a more context-driven, responsive and accountable path.
By Kamila Aliyeva

Tajikistan increased electricity exports to Uzbekistan from the second half of the year, Asia-Plus reported.

Thus, in July this year, Uzbekistan supplied Tajikistan with 417 million kilowatt-hours of electricity. Before that, 110-120 million kilowatt-hours were exported to Uzbekistan monthly, the report titled Monitoring and early warning in Tajikistan said.

The report is prepared monthly by the Tajik Ministry of Economic Development and Trade with the financial support of the OSCE.

In July 2018, Tajikistan exported 30.2 percent of electricity produced in the country.

So, in the first month of the second half of the year, the country generated 2.4 billion kilowatt-hours of energy. As many as 617 million kilowatt-hours out of this volume went for export.

In addition to Uzbekistan, Tajik electricity was exported to Afghanistan in July in the amount of 200 million kilowatt-hours.

Also, until June of this year, Tajikistan exported electricity to Kyrgyzstan in relatively small amounts. However, the report does not contain data on supplies to this country in July.

Tajikistan has restored electricity supplies to Uzbekistan since April this year after a nine-year break. In total, according to the agreements, Tajikistan will supply up to 1.5 billion kWh of electricity to the neighboring country.

Tajikistan exports electricity to Uzbekistan at a price of 2 U.S. cents per kilowatt.

Tajikistan can export up to 5 billion kWh of electricity. Seasonal recipients of Tajik electricity are Afghanistan and Kyrgyzstan (1.5-2 billion kWh) along with Uzbekistan.

Over 18 billion kilowatt hours of electricity, which allowed the country to provide electricity without imposing a limit, were produced in Tajikistan in 2017.

Previously, Central Asia had a unified energy system. It included 83 power plants with total capacity of 25,000 megawatts in the territory of Uzbekistan, Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and southern Kazakhstan.

In winter, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan accumulated water in reservoirs and received electricity and energy resources (coal and natural gas) from Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. In summer, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan sent water to Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan for irrigation farming.

However, after Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan left the unified energy system of Central Asia in 2003 and 2009, respectively, the system ceased to function.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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By Trend

The Kazakh citizens' overdue debt on loans to second-tier banks amounts to almost 700 billion tenge, the National Bank of Kazakhstan told "Kazinform".

"As of July 1, the loans (principal debt) issued to individuals has amounted to 4,544 billion tenge with a share of 33.7 percent of the loan portfolio of the banking sector. The total amount of loans issued to individuals with overdue debts has amounted to 691.9 billion tenge," said the bank.

As of July 1, the total number of individuals-borrowers has amounted to 4.58 million people.

In addition, in the reporting period, the total debt of individuals-borrowers of microfinance institutions amounted to 188.1 billion tenge, the total number of individuals-borrowers of microfinance institutions is 306,800 people.

"As of July 1, 379,200 people have loans with overdue debt of over 90 days (8.3 percent of the total number of individuals-borrowers)," the National Bank of Kazakhstan said in the message.

The official exchange rate as of September 3 is 363.43 KTZ / USD.

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By Kamila Aliyeva

Russia will export the planned volume of oil to Uzbekistan by the end of 2018 despite the problems associated with the throughput of the transportation system, said Deputy Chairman of the Board of Uzbekneftegaz JSC Odil Temirov, Uzbek media outlets reported.

We have already imported 700,000 tons of oil and oil products. We adhere to the plan for the import of oil raw materials. Until the end of the year we have the tasks that we set, they will be fulfilled, he said.

Earlier, former Russian Deputy Minister of Energy Kirill Molodtsov informed that Gazprom Neft is exploring the possibility of supplying up to one million tons of oil to Uzbekistan next year, but everything will depend on the throughput of the transportation system.

A discussion of an intergovernmental agreement on the supply of oil to Uzbekistan is also at the final stage.

According to the Russian Central Dispatch Office of the Fuel and Energy Complex, in 2017, Russian oil exports to Uzbekistan amounted to 68,200 tons, in January-April 2018  36,000 tons.

In 2017, the export of Russian oil to Uzbekistan amounted to 68,200 tonnes. In particular, in November, 30,000 tons of oil was sent to Uzbekistan, while in December the figure increased making 38,200 tons.

In April 2017, during the state visit of Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev to Moscow, a bilateral memorandum on the delivery of 500,000 tonnes of Russian oil to Uzbekistan was signed.

On November 20, 2017, Kazakh company Kaztransoil began shipping Russian oil to Uzbekistan. Oil is pumped via the KazTransOil pipeline system en route Omsk-Pavlodar-Shymkent-Shagyr oil loading point, from where it is poured into railway tanks and then transported by rail to Uzbekistan.

In Uzbekistan, gasoline production decreased by 26.2 percent, diesel fuel - by 8.3 percent, while imports of hydrocarbons increased 1.3 times in 2010-2016.

In late April 2017, Uzbekistan started construction of a new refinery in Zafarobod district of the countrys Jizzakh region, which is expected to operate using the crude imported from Kazakhstan and Russia.

The refinery has design capacity of processing of five million tons of oil per year, production of 3.7 million tons of car fuel, over 700,000 tonnes of aviation fuel and 300,000 tonnes of associated oil products.

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Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

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By Trend

A parliamentary delegation comprised of several Iranian lawmakers has left Tehran for Europe to hold meetings with European parliamentary officials.

Iranian parliamentary delegation is headed by the head of Iranian Parliament Research Center (IPRC) Kazem Jalali, who is also the vice president of Inter-Parliamentary Union, Mehr news agency reported Sept. 3.

Other lawmakers in the delegation included Gholamreza Tajgarddon, head of Parliament's Commission on Plan, Budget and Calculations; Kamal Dehghani Firoozabadi, Vice Chairman of National Security and Foreign Policy Committee of Iranian Parliament; Siamak MoraSadegh, a member of the Parliaments Health Commission; and Zahra Saei, a member of the Parliaments Social Affairs Commission.

The delegation is expected to meet with European Parliament, Belgium and Luxembourg lawmakers and parliamentary officials.

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By Kamila Aliyeva

Against the backdrop of tense situation in Yerevan and strengthening worries of Moscow, a meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is planned to be held in the near future.

Another meeting between President Putin and PM Pashinyan is planned to be held in the near future. I think that it will be important for us to hear how the new leader of Armenia assesses the prospects for the improvement of the situation in his country, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said, RIA Novosti reported.

He also said that Russia is concerned about Armenia's obligations before Collective Security Treaty Organization.

We proceed from the fact that these obligations are in effect and must be fully implemented, including the ones related to strengthening the reputation and prestige of our common organization, Lavrov noted.

This meeting with Vladimir Putin will be the third in the career of the Armenian prime minister. However, one cannot say that it will be effective.

Pashinyan himself, while commenting on the visit, was quite laconic.

I do not want to say that we will solve all the issues, but I want to say with confidence that our cooperation continues and will continue in a natural way, he said.

Considering todays relations between the two states it is difficult to imagine what actually a natural way means.

Previously, Lavrov, commenting on the case on the protests on March 1, 2008, had said that the events in Armenia are contrary to the statements of the country's new leadership about the refusal to pursue political predecessors.

Moscow has always been interested in Armenia's stability, and therefore what is happening there bothers Russia as well, he noted.

According to Lavrov, during the political crisis in Armenia in May this year Moscow noted with great satisfaction that as a result the solution to this crisis was found on the basis of a compromise with the participation of all leading parties.

We hoped that, based on this result, all political forces, first of all the new leadership of Armenia, the new authorities, will continue to promote unifying approaches, will strengthen the national accord, he said.

"But the events of recent days clearly violate such a positive attitude, run counter to the recent statements by the new leadership of Armenia that it has no intention to organize the persecution of its predecessors for political reasons, he concluded.

The statement of the Russian government followed immediately after the recent arrest of ex-President Robert Kocharian and the criminal prosecution of the CSTO Secretary General Yuri Khachaturov.

In this regard, it is also appropriate to recall the mass discontent in Armenian society over the presence of the Russian military base in Gyumri, the mass oppression of Russian business in Armenia, and the anti-Russia hysteria of the public of that country on social networks.

Pashinyan, commenting on Lavrov's words, said that his Russian colleagues should adapt to the new situation in Armenia.

---

Kamila Aliyeva is AzerNews staff journalist, follow her on Twitter: @Kami_Aliyeva

Follow us on Twitter @AzerNewsAz
Chandan Kumar Mandal is the environment and migration reporter for The Kathmandu Post, covering labour migration and governance, as well as climate change, natural disasters, and wildlife.
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Joseph Luiz can be reached at 395-7368 or by email at jluiz@bakersfield.com. You can also follow him on Twitter @JLuiz_TBC.
EDWARDSVILLE  Plans are moving forward for a planned senior living center at the site of the former Anna Henry Nursing Home on Hillsboro Avenue.

The Edwardsville Senior Living Center  which has also been referred to as Hillsboro Senior Living  would consist of two apartment buildings and a clubhouse and be located at 637 Hillsboro Ave. Each of the buildings would be three-stories tall and have 24 apartments. The total site will break out to 12 one-bedroom units and 26 two-bedroom units. The facility would have at least 63 parking spaces, according to plans submitted to the city.

The developer, Phoenix Real Estate Services, has valued the development at $10 million.

The property has been zoned R-2, for multi-family residential buildings.

The Planned Unit Development carries a 30-year restriction that the developer will commit to operating the housing for seniors 55 years of age and older and over a period of 30 years.

The city has been involved in the project since mid-April when the citys Plan Commission first began discussing the proposal. Several residents in the neighborhood spoke out against the proposal at that time. Many residents have continued to speak out at various city meetings over the summer, citing concerns ranging from the possibility that several old growth trees might be taken down to concerns that property values in the Hillsboro neighborhood would decrease.

In July, Gretchen Ackerman sent the developer a list of suggested improvements. She attended Tuesdays meeting of the Edwardsville Public Services Committee and said she had gathered approximately 170 signatures against the proposal. A low-income complex such as ESLC, she said, has no business being built in an established neighborhood near downtown Edwardsville. Kurt Ackerman voiced concern that property values in the neighborhood would decline.

But city officials have said the developer has been working with neighbors near the site to incorporate suggested improvements into the design and to address their concerns.

At Tuesdays meeting, PRES president Dan Barnard clarified that the facility is aimed at seniors age 55 and older. He added, Our target market is anyone whos a senior who needs this kind of housing. Our typical resident is in their early-to-mid 70s. Once in a while you get someone who is 56 who is still working, but a vast majority are women in their early-to-mid 70s.

Phoenix Real Estate Services has built and operates similar senior living facilities in the Metro St. Louis area. Barnard said those facilities typically dont have much traffic moving in or out of the complex. Its very low impact as far as those things are concerned, he said.

A few of the units would be set aside to be rented for $350 a month but most would range from $350 to $825. All prospective tenants would have to meet income requirements so its a very narrow range that actually fits.

Alderman Janet Stack asked for clarification about the requirements. Only 55 and older? So, lets say a grandson came in and wanted to live with grandma  that wouldnt happen?

No, Barnard responded. Everyone is very sensitive to that.

Barnard also clarified that the facility would be completely independent living.

We dont do assisted living.

The proposal will get another airing at the citys Administrative & Community Services Committee meeting. The meeting is at 5:30 pm at Edwardsville City Hall.
Health State Minister Yadav summons doctors

State Minister for Health and Population Surendra Kumar Yadav on Monday summoned the doctors who have been protesting against the provisions of the newly enforced Criminal Code.
Texas workers celebrating Labor Day got some potentially good news from the renegotiated trade deal between the United States and Mexico, but members of Congress from Texas must read the fine print. Texas will probably be affected by this agreement more than any other state because we have so much trade with Mexico. Thats all the more reason to vet it carefully during the approval process  and make sure that Canada is included later.

Even though Canada doesnt have a lot of trade with Texas now, that could change if the Keystone XL pipeline is ever finished. It would bring Canadian oil to refineries in Port Arthur and Houston, either for processing here or export. Either option boosts the economy of Southeast Texas.

The pipeline is less important now with the surge in domestic oil production, but that picture could change in five or 10 years. What matters is that Canada has a resource it wants to sell (tar sands oil in the Alberta province) and the U.S. has refineries that can process it. If the pipelines path can overcome objections in Nebraska, it could be finished soon. The southern half of it, from Oklahoma to the Gulf Coast, has been operational for years.

The first part of renegotiating NAFTA was significant. Texas does more trade with our southern neighbor than any other state, and not so coincidentally, has the longest border, 1,254 miles. While our country as a whole has a trade deficit of $63 billion with Mexico (small for the size of our economy), Texas has a surplus of $8.5 billion. That supports a lot of jobs and tax revenues in Texas, and state officials should make sure it continues.

None of this can be taken for granted. The agreement with Mexico must be approved by both countries before a new Mexican president takes office on Dec. 1, or it might have to be renegotiated. It was hard enough to revise NAFTA once, and a second effort might not succeed.

The next Mexican president, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, is just as skeptical of foreign trade deals as President Trump, even though Obrador is a leftist and Trump is a Republican. Yet most economists agree that NAFTA has benefited all three countries over the past 24 years with more trade that helps all of them, even if some jobs have moved from one side of the border to another.

As is so often with these trade agreements, citizens of one country tend to discount the benefits they receive (export jobs or cheaper consumer goods) while complaining about factors like that which help another country.

And as the Mexican economy has improved, fewer Mexicans feel compelled to emigrate to the United States (legally or illegally) in search of better paychecks. Immigration is also a major concern of Trumps, and he can do something about it by concluding this renegotiation with Mexico, and then bringing Canada aboard.

All three countries seem close to a final deal. Strong political leadership can nail it down for the benefit of consumers and workers in all three nations.
A Northern Ireland company has announced it has introduced a trade finance option for clients.

Upstream said the option allowed firms to finance their capital needs at short notice.

Managing director Judith Totten said the businesses had financed over 2m in trade finance transactions in four months.

"It isn't a new concept, but it's something that up until now hasn't been available to local businesses," she added.

She said the trade finance option worked well alongside the firm's core invoice financing.

"We're very excited to be the first to bring this type of finance solution to Northern Ireland as it has the potential to unlock growth for SMEs struggling to keep up with demand and those at risk of losing crucial order pipelines due to the unnecessary delays and box-ticking exercises associated with some traditional lending streams," she added.
UK Tourism Minister Michael Ellis (centre) has praised a multi-million pound project at Hillsborough Castle. He is joined byTerence Brannigan (Chairman of the NI Tourist Board) and Patricia Corbett (Head of Hillsborough Castle)

A multi-million pound project to turn Hillsborough Castle into a major international tourism destination in Northern Ireland has been praised by the UK's tourism minister.

Michael Ellis visited the historic building as part of a two-day trip to Northern Ireland to see how businesses and attractions are working to encourage more visitors to the region.

Hillsborough Castle will reopen to the public as a year-round tourist destination next Easter following a 20m refurbishment.

Historic Royal Palaces, which took over the management of the castle in 2014, wants to increase the number of visitors from about 5,000 to 200,000 next year.

It plans to target key international markets such as China and the United States, as well as local audiences in Northern Ireland and Ireland.

Mr Ellis, UK Minister for Arts, Heritage and Tourism said: "The transformation of Hillsborough Castle into a major international tourism destination will bring a huge boost to the region.

"This project not only preserves the history of this 300-year-old castle, but is creating local jobs, supporting local businesses and contributing to the Northern Ireland economy."

Patricia Corbett, who is head of Hillsborough Castle, Historic Royal Palaces, said: "We look forward to welcoming visitors from around the world and to share with them the fascinating stories of Hillsborough Castle and its remarkable history."

She added: "There is huge potential for the tourism sector in Northern Ireland and we recognise the wealth of opportunity not only in the local domestic market but also markets from further afield such as America and emerging markets in the rest of the world like China and South America."

Inbound tourism in Northern Ireland was worth almost 215m in 2017.
From left, Brian McErlain of Genesis Crafty, M&S head of region in NI Ryan Lemon, and JP Lyttle, also of Genesis Crafty

McErlain's Bakery, the Co Londonderry firm rescued from insolvency under two weeks ago, is set to create 40 new jobs.

After a last-minute intervention from the boss of crisp maker Tayto, 260 jobs were saved at the Magherafelt-based business last month. Now it has announced 40 new positions.

The company had been sold to Paul Allen, the managing director Tayto, just as it was put into administration by business advisers EY after suffering trading difficulties.

The bakery produces products including breads, buns and cakes for UK supermarkets as well as for the Genesis Crafty range. Last year, it announced an extension to its existing contract with Marks & Spencer.

Some of the new jobs offer an immediate start, the company said. Grace Cahoon, human resources manager, said the jobs on offer would suit a wide range of people. "It is great to be looking for new staff to join us in this latest phase of the company's development," she added.

"We have a wide range of posts, from full-time permanent jobs to part-time temporary posts, which might suit students or those looking for extra money in the run-up to Christmas."

Last month, McErlain's new owner said he was pleased to secure the jobs of those who worked in the factory. "I'm delighted that the jobs at the factory have been secured and that Brian McErlain will be staying on as managing director," added Paul Allen.

Brian McErlain is the son of founding owners Joe and Roberta.

Despite speaking of his sadness at seeing the business change hands and dealing with "mixed emotions", Mr McErlain said he could now look forward to the future.

"Paul Allen's ability is very well respected in the business community, not just in Northern Ireland but further afield, and I believe that his involvement will be a real benefit to the company," he said.

Glyn Roberts, chief executive of Retail NI, said many of its members had supported Genesis Crafty in the early years of its growth.

The bakery's debts to suppliers were wiped out as part of the pre-pack administration deal between Mr Allen's new company, Hatch Bros, and EY.
Mya and Jackson Ferguson ready for their first day at pre-school with their mum Kate

The day a child takes their initial steps in education can be nerve-wracking and tear-filled - and that's just for the parents. Here, three writers reveal what the build-up to this landmark event was like and how they felt about their little ones starting to grow up.

Claire McNeilly: There will be tears ... thats one thing I can confidently predict

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Of course, I ignored the warnings. It's a shoe shop, for goodness sake, and one I'd visited many times before. Really, how bad could things be?

But Clarks on a mundane Monday during the year and Clarks on a Monday in mid-August, two weeks before the new school term, are vastly different animals.

For functionality, read hysteria. It's every parent (and child) for themselves; fortune favours the brave and all that.

To be fair, the young staff at the heaving Forestside branch - which gave a more than passing impression of being ransacked - managed the mayhem brilliantly.

For them, it's the same thing every year at this time.

For me, it's a fraught, frightening first.

Okay, that's not strictly true; this was actually my second attempt at buying my four-year-old daughter her first pair of school shoes.

Indeed, the pre-primary countdown has brought plenty of tears, traumas and flailing around the floor - and that's just me.

There have been many significant firsts since Soley came along in 2014: her first words, unaided steps, milk teeth, the first, nervous, foray into a nappyless world, foreign holiday, swimming lesson - and even the first terrifying, potentially life-changing injury.

Where on earth did the time go? Surely it wasn't so long ago I could hold her (born weighing just 6lbs 4oz) in one hand...

As milestones go, however, the first day of primary school takes some beating.

My no-longer-little princess is, naturally excited beyond belief; some day I'll explain that mummy wasn't feeling exactly the same way.

First item on the list: black shoes (Who knew how vast that selection was going to be, never mind how expensive!).

After stretching the shop assistant's patience to the outer limits, Soley settled on a pair: "Look at the dinky buckles, mummy!" she trilled. Even better, they were a couple of quid cheaper than their rivals.

So, an hour or so later, we left with shoes (and PE trainers) in an upbeat mood.

Next task: jumper, tie, PE shorts and tracksuit bottoms. This seemingly effortless mission was thwarted by the fact that the stockist didn't have anything in her size, apart from the jogging bottoms, which, despite what the label says, are far too big. So we ordered in the sweater and shorts ("It'll be two weeks") and were then (wrongly) informed that the tie could only be purchased at the school itself.

Thank goodness I'd had the foresight to buy the shirts and skirts (well, pinafores...fingers crossed!) during the Marks and Spencer sale some weeks earlier.

My smugness, however, evaporated precisely one hour later, over lunch, when I came across a hitherto unread section of the school's guide book, stating: "Velcro on shoes and trainers are essential."

Desperately, I grappled with the word 'essential'. Like, does it mean 'essential'?

I phoned my mum for a second opinion. She delivered the devastating news: those perfect shoes had to go back.

And, naturally, it took a lot longer to get served during this unplanned, late afternoon visit.

Moreover, they didn't have the replacement shoes in her size so we had to place yet another order. Back to Bedlam in a few days; oh, the joys!

There I was, thinking the stress had gone in April with the letter confirming that Soley had been accepted by our first-choice school. Welcome to the world of primary-school-era parenting.

No one will be prouder on September 11, however, when she's standing outside that building alongside scores of others, in her pristine uniform, waiting to begin a wonderful new chapter of her young life.

There'll be tears from her emotional mum that Tuesday morning - and that's the one episode of this roller-coaster ride I can confidently predict.

Lisa Smyth: It was a wrench as she took her first steps into the big bad world

Expand Close Best friends: Lisa Smyth with daughter Grace / Facebook

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This week marked one of the most important milestones in my daughters life to date  her first day at school.

I know Grace (5) has already completed a year at playschool and a year at preschool  both of which were extremely valuable experiences  but her time at primary school will naturally play a much more significant part in her life.

Parkgate Primary School will be the place where she will forge lifelong friendships and where her desire to learn will be fulfilled.

But it will also be her first real exposure to the trials that come with growing up, where I wont be immediately beside her to wipe away her tears when things go wrong.

You see, Grace is my eldest child and the first few years of her life were a challenge for both of us.

Within days of her being born, the darkness of postnatal depression consumed me and while I knew I loved her with all my heart, I only felt numb.

As the fog began to clear in my head, her daddy suffered a number of strokes and, while he recovered, the lions share of childcare fell to me, and the bond between Grace and I grew strong.

My job allows me to do most of my work at night, so unlike so many families where the mum works, Graces time in childcare has been minimal.

Im by no means unique as a mum in that Grace is my best friend, and my world, but my working arrangements mean that Ive been in the fortunate position of spending much of the past five years with her.

So, watching her take her first steps into the big bad world this week was a wrench to say the least. Id like to say that her steps were tentative, that she at least looked over her shoulder as she left my side, but that simply didnt happen.

Ill admit there were tears, but they were mine  not hers.

Thankfully, Grace has been oblivious to my trepidation  her main concern about the whole experience being what I put in her packed lunch and how she would find out where the toilets were.

The past few weeks have been spent stopping her from putting on her new uniform so it would at least look smart on her first day.

Born in July, most of her friends started primary one last September, so she had to watch as her play pals took that big step without her.

Have you ever tried explaining academic cut-off points to a disappointed and bewildered four-year-old?

It does mean, however, that she is more than ready, emotionally and intellectually, for primary school, and my husband and I are already delighted with our choice.

Discipline, education and pastoral care are all equally important at Parkgate Primary School and, with it being a small school, she was welcomed on her first day by name  something that meant a lot to a very emotional mum.

Paul Ferguson: Its the start of independence, a time to have fun and to learn

Expand Close Mya and Jackson Ferguson ready for their first day at pre-school with their mum Kate / Facebook

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Whatsapp Mya and Jackson Ferguson ready for their first day at pre-school with their mum Kate

My three-year-old daughter Mya seemed overly excited for a Saturday morning school uniform shopping spree.

Her beautiful blue eyes were gleaming and there was a sense of anticipation akin to Christmas morning.

Jackson, her older twin brother (by one minute) appeared nonplussed, not sharing his fashionista sisters love of clothes. He was only too happy with his selection of jeans, jogging bottoms, t-shirts and tops already in his wardrobe.

Mya, my wife Kate and I assumed, couldnt wait to try on her new uniform.

On reaching the doors of the shop Mya strode in, cast her eyes around and then, having not found what she was looking for, simply asked: Where is the school unicorn?

So much for my wifes all-important groundwork earlier in the week about going to buy their first school uniform.

Disaster had struck for unicorn loving Mya and her bitter disappointment somehow affected her ability to try on her new uniform.

Usually, in these situations, Jackson is the cool and calm head, able to reason with his sister and say just a few inspirational words to get her back on side.

But inside the shop Jackson suddenly turned into Gok Wan, rummaging through the rails until he found the colours he liked best and deciding he wanted to go to a particular school because it had a nice pale blue t-shirt along with navy jogging bottoms and jumper.

Forget the fact his mummy and daddy had to visit pre-schools, fill in endless forms and then wait a few months on tenderhooks to see if the twins managed to secure their first pre-school choice or even any choice at that. Dark green jogging bottoms, a grey t-shirt and a bright red jumper just didnt cut it for Jackson.

Mya, still smarting from a lack of unicorn, was further disgusted by the colours on offer to her, refusing to believe they matched and immediately starting to enquire about a uniform in pink.

But if thats Mya and Jacksons biggest concern during their pre-school year, then Ill be more than happy.

This is a huge moment in their lives  their first steps into the real world and even though pre-school is just two-and-a-half hours each day, its the start of independence. A time to have fun, learn and develop those all-important social skills.

Of course, there is a sadness that they are growing up quickly and a realisation that daddys influence on their lives may be diluted due to the impact of their three new teachers. But there is also a pride that since Kate and I were given the job on February 3, 2015 of looking after our precious babes, they have developed into great kids  full of fun and laughter, reached all their milestones and with the bond they have formed over the last three-and-a-half years, they should hopefully settle in at school when it starts next Monday.

Mya, since the day she was born, has always been strong and confident. Due to her weight, a little bit over 4lbs, she was supposed to go straight to the neo-natal ward, as they feared she would struggle outside the womb, but she showed immediate strength and soon had her arm around her big brother, who was at least a pound heavier, in the incubabtor.

Jackson, despite being a decent size for his age, is that little bit more sensitive, but in recent months has developed an inner confidence that will hopefully hold him in good stead as the year develops.

Nowadays, with modern technology, you can actually track their daily school progress with an online system as they chart their way through the curriculum  all a far cry from my day when a creaky wooden slide in a church hall and a few building blocks were the main features of pre-school.

But Jackson and Mya will be following in my footsteps, going to the same school I attended as a child and last darkened the doors of some 26 years ago.

In the intervening years it has undergone a much-needed facelift but as a school, if so desired by Jackson and Mya, it will allow them to achieve academic excellence, sporting prowess, musical mastery and dramatic performances on stage.

However, thats in the future.

The coming year is all about having fun while starting their learning process... and finally accepting the colours of the uniform.
Hospital closure hits patients hard

Hundreds of thousands of patients were affected on Sunday as the Nepal Medical Association closed non-emergency hospital services across the country, protesting against the provisions of the newly enforced Criminal Code.
A protest has been planned for Belfast City Hall tonight ahead of a council meeting which will discuss "serious" problems surrounding the roll-out of Translink's new Glider transport network.

It follows a meeting of angry residents and retailers in west Belfast last week which was attended by over 100 people who branded the scheme a "complete disaster".

The new Glider system officially starts today, but new 12 hour bus lane restrictions started being enforced a number of weeks ago.

People Before Profit councillor Matthew Collins will propose a motion seeking to highlight "serious issues" associated with the introduction of the 90m Belfast Rapid Transport (BRT) project.

Mr Collins hopes that the demonstration will put pressure on the local authority to act, in the absence of a Stormont Executive.

"These are serious problems which must be addressed and I hope people turn out to make their grievances known," he said.

"This was a flagship project for Sinn Fein and the DUP, who have been largely silent on the very real fears of local business owners, residents and schools."

The motion cites examples of elderly and disabled residents having access to their homes impaired, parents being unable to drop their kids off to school safely and the adverse impact on businesses which have had access to their stores restricted, as issues of concern.

It also expresses fears that a reduction in parking spaces and plans to extend double yellow lines into residential areas will exacerbate problems stemming from major congestion caused by the introduction of 12 hour bus lanes.

Mr Collins is calling for the council to introduce urgent measures to mitigate the problems. But it is unclear if Belfast City Council has any power to intervene.

"Ultimately, this is a central government issue," a spokesperson said.
An angler from Northern Ireland who was rushed to hospital after being bitten by a shark off the Cork coast on Saturday is already back fishing again.

Robert Malcolmson (40), from Belfast, was sea angling with a group of friends on Saturday evening when a Blue Shark they were landing turned on the line and bit his lower arm.

He received a four inch gash to his arm, but due to its depth he started to bleed profusely and become dizzy.

The boat was more than 12 miles off Roche's Point and a decision was made by the skipper of the Deora De boat, Jim Linehane, to contact the Coastguard to assist getting Mr Malcolmson to hospital.

Crosshaven RNLI lifeboat launched and raced to the scene, while angler Jonny Penny helped with first aid on the boat.

Mr Malcolmson was brought to shore before being transferred to Cork University Hospital by a waiting ambulance.

His wounds were cleaned, stitched and bandaged and Mr Malcolmson resumed the fishing trip with his friends yesterday.

"We were fishing for Blue Shark and had one on the line, and when we were taking it in it just flipped over and snapped at Robert," one of the angling party said.

"It wasn't a huge cut, but he was losing a good bit of blood and he started to feel a bit dizzy and sick so we thought it best to get him seen to," he added.

"But he's back out with us today, and everything is fine," he explained.

Blue sharks rank as amongst the most numerous shark species in Irish waters.

"A Blue Shark is a wild creature, and you always have to be cautious when bitten by a wild animal," skipper Jim Linehane said.

"And because we were at sea it wasn't like we could drive to the hospital so we decided to call the coastguard and meet the boat so we could get the lad to hospital."

A RNLI spokesman added: "This was more of an angling accident than a shark attack. There was a bit of a struggle when pulling the shark on board.

"The injury is absolutely not life changing and it was a repairable flesh wound."
Former SDLP leader Margaret Ritchie has spoken about the draining impact of her treatment as she battles breast cancer.

The former South Down MP revealed that she has had six sessions of chemotherapy and is now undergoing radiotherapy, which is due to end this month.

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The Downpatrick woman was diagnosed months after losing her Westminster seat at the 2017 General Election.

In an interview with the Belfast Telegraph, she said: "After I lost my seat I had decided to do something, to use the skills that I'd gained over the years.

"But then, in February of this year, I was due for my three-year mammogram. So I went for that.

"I was called back and diagnosed with breast cancer. I had a mastectomy and I've since had chemo - six sessions of chemotherapy.

"And I'm now getting radiotherapy."

Ms Ritchie (60) said the treatment has been exhausting, but was nearing its end.

"The last couple of chemo made me extremely tired. All you want to do is lie down."

The former MP was critical of Arlene Foster for not attending or sending a representative to the Pope's Dublin visit.

And warning of the potential impact of Brexit, she hit out at the ongoing Stormont impasse.

"I think it's totally unacceptable," she said.

"People are not being properly represented.

"My SDLP colleagues and others who want to do a proper job as legislators are not being given the opportunity to do so - and there are necessary decisions that require ministerial, strategic and policy direction that have not been taken.

"As a result, our health, our education, the infrastructure of our economy, particularly at a time when Brexit is looming, are being placed in grave jeopardy.

"And that is a major disservice towards the people of Northern Ireland," the former party leader said.

But she remains upbeat about the prospects for political development in Northern Ireland

"Sometimes bad things do happen," she said.

"But I'm an optimist at heart."
Northern Ireland Secretary of State Karen Bradley with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar at the All-Ireland final between Tyrone and Dublin

The Secretary of State has been urged to finally end Northern Ireland's "political groundhog day".

Ulster Unionist leader Robin Swann MLA called on Karen Bradley to take decisive action to move the political process forward as the Northern Ireland Secretary enjoyed a weekend taking in a Co Antrim air show and the All-Ireland GAA final.

Northern Ireland has now begun its second autumn without a devolved government, after the Executive collapsed amid recriminations early in 2017.

"Last week's banner protest by the DUP has shown that they have now reverted from being a party of power to a party of protest and are now the match of their last Executive partner Sinn Fein, where both fed off the other in their negativity," Mr Swann said.

"In the last short-lived Executive, headed up equally by Sinn Fein and the DUP, the lack of delivery is now playing out in our health service, in our education service, in investment and strategic delivery for the people of Northern Ireland."

Mrs Bradley watched Tyrone lose to Dublin at Croke Park yesterday in the company of Taoiseach Leo Varadkar.

She was also a guest at the Portrush air show on Saturday.

"Delighted my family and I were able to support another great tourist event at the Portrush Air Show," she tweeted.

"Once again, Northern Ireland has proved why it is such a terrific destination for tourists and a thriving part of the UK. Well done to all involved!"

With no confirmation of any talks so far, Alliance has urged other parties to get around the table this week.

In the absence of a local Executive, paralysis is growing in the political arena, with civil servants unable to sign off key decisions.

There have been calls from both the UUP and the DUP for the Government to make more decisions, but it refuses to do so.

Mr Swann said he was "frustrated and angry" at the current political impasse.

"The mutual public positioning and rhetoric from both (Sinn Fein and the DUP) has meant that Northern Ireland ministers are missing while their Scottish and Welsh counterparts are at the table for Brexit discussions - which may suit them as they can avoid any responsibility," he said.

"But maybe it suits the Government as well - they have less hassle as they don't have a troublesome Northern Ireland voice at those tables and that is the real reason we see so little action from the Secretary of State.

"She needs to dispense with hesitancy and lay out plans for all-party talks regardless of the Brexit timetable or the RHI inquiry. Now that the politics of protest has returned to the DUP and Sinn Fein, those of us who still believe in the power of politics to deliver for the people of Northern Ireland are as equally frustrated and angry about the current situation.

"The almost perpetual cycle of it being a political groundhog day in Northern Ireland must be broken and the Secretary of State has the power to do that if she acts decisively."

A Government spokesperson said: "The Secretary of State shares the frustration of the people of Northern Ireland and is working on options to resolve the current impasse.

"The UK Government's priority is to secure a basis for political talks and re-establish a locally-elected, democratically-accountable devolved government at the earliest opportunity."
Kamil Rozyneck and Kinga Pelc at Lady Dixon Park just days before the accident

A motorist whose careless driving caused the death of his girlfriend in a south Belfast car crash has been given 160 hours community service.

Kamil Rozynek, 24, had only passed his test weeks before the two-car collision in May 2015 which claimed the life of 21-year-old Kinga Pelc.

Belfast Magistrates' Court heard the exact reasons for the fatal accident on the Annadale Embankment may never be fully established.

But Deputy District Judge Joe Rice told Rozynek the victim's family had suffered "immense and immeasurable" loss.

He said: "It's a tragic case, everybody accepts that.

"It came from careless or inconsiderate driving, probably arising from a momentary lapse of attention."

Rozynek, of Beechmount Avenue in the city, was behind the wheel of a Renault Megane which crashed into a four-wheel drive vehicle travelling in the opposite direction.

Ms Pelc, a Polish national who had been living in Belfast at the time, had been a front seat passenger in his car.

She was rushed to the Royal Victoria Hospital, but died later from her injuries.

Rozynek was also knocked unconscious in the collision, as well as suffering a broken leg and trauma.

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A woman and her adult daughter who had been in the other vehicle also received hospital treatment.

Engineering experts who examined the scene were unable to provide an explanation for Rozynek's sudden loss of control.

Prosecution counsel Natalie Pinkerton said Rozynek told police he couldn't recall what had happened in the lead up to the crash.

But earlier this year he pleaded guilty to causing death by careless driving.

It emerged in court that he had passed his test two weeks before the accident.

As the victim's mother listened at the back of the court, a defence barrister offered Rozynek's "genuine, sincere and heartfelt apologies" to her family.

Expand Close Kinga Pelc was killed following a car crash on Friday night Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph / Facebook

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Chris Sherrard said: "He's very conscious of the fact there's nothing he can do or say to bring back the deceased.

"It's a tragic, tragic incident."

Submitting that his client poses no risk of harm to the public, Mr Sherrard contended that the case was in the bottom category of the relevant offending.

Now a married father-of-two, Rozynek works as a production operative in Belfast.

Judge Rice agreed that his level of culpability was on the "low side", but also acknowledged the suffering and consequences for Ms Pelc's family.

Imposing 160 hours community service, he also disqualified Rozynek from driving for 18 months.
JV of Raman and GIETC bags Dharahara rebuilding contract

The deadlock over reconstruction of Dharahara has come to an end, at least for now, with the government on Sunday awarding the contract to Raman Construction Pvt Ltd and its Chinese Joint Venture Partner GIETC.
A Northern Ireland woman was told she would lose her eye due to pressure on the NHS, her family have claimed.

Jennifer Shirlow suffered a detached retina and was admitted to the Royal Victoria Hospital's eye casualty department on Friday. Although an operation was arranged for today, it was cancelled - as another patient with just one eye needed the same procedure.

Mrs Shirlow was told she would have to wait until Thursday for her operation, but by then it was unlikely her eye could be saved.

Instead, she had to go to a private clinic in the Republic.

Her distraught daughter-in-law Sorcha Eastwood, who works for the Alliance Party, posted about the incident on Twitter.

"We just couldn't believe in this day and age the NHS are having to make those sorts of critical decisions whereby an otherwise healthy woman's eye could have been saved, but there aren't enough surgeons," she said.

The family looked to the private sector in Northern Ireland, but the specialised nature of the operation meant there still weren't enough surgeons available.

"We were shocked to be told, 'The woman we're treating only has one eye, so if you lose one at least you still have one left'," Ms Eastwood added. Eventually, the family found a private clinic in the Republic and arranged for an operation yesterday.

"This only happened because I decided I couldn't sit back and let this happen," Ms Eastwood said.

She has since been contacted by other local families with similar stories.

"Hopefully, please God, the operation will be a success," she said. "Sometimes these operations need to happen two or three times.

"My fear is this could happen to anybody.

"It could happen to your eye, your leg or your hearing.

"It's not an unusual case - I've been contacted by so many people overnight who said, 'This happened to my relative'.

"It's just blown me away. This is meant to be our health service we all pay for, you expect it to be there for you in your hour of need.

"This woman has worked all her life in the public sector, paying her taxes. You expect her to be able to get care. It's not the fault of the staff, who are flat out and under immense pressure."

Ms Eastwood said despite plans for reform, "nothing has happened... it's costing us all".

Speaking before Mrs Shirlow went privately for her operation, a spokesperson for the Belfast Health Trust said: "We understand this can be an anxious time for patients and families. We will do our best to make sure Mrs Shirlow gets her operation as soon as possible."

Last month, Department of Health figures showed more than 56,000 people here were waiting longer than the official target of nine weeks for diagnostic tests. Nearly 90,000 were waiting for over a year.

The Royal College of Surgeons warned that the figures were a symptom of long-standing problems "exacerbated by capacity issues, workforce shortages, uncertainty over long-term budgets and the political stalemate".

The Health and Social Care Board (HSCB) said the overall findings show the health system is under huge pressure and that waiting times experienced by many patients continue to be unacceptable.

An older population and increased demand for services were among the reasons cited for the delays.

"While funding and staffing pressures are relevant factors, the fundamental cause remains the way services are currently organised," an HSBC spokesperson said at the time.

"While additional investment will allow us to take action on waiting lists in the short to medium-term, the only long-term answer is to continue to transform services."
A Nazi saluting passenger who tried to grab an airline pilot by the throat has been jailed for three months in Northern Ireland

Dismissing the appeal by 51-year-old Paul Anthony Burgoyne, Judge Melody McReynolds said given his bullying behaviour on the EasyJet flight, a deterrent sentence is entirely appropriate.

The judge told Antrim County Court she had no hesitation in affirming every aspect of the order of the learned District Judge who had originally jailed Burgoyne for three months last June.

Burgoyne, originally from Northern Ireland but now living at Temple Close, Shepshed in Loughborough, pleaded guilty to nine offences arising from the incident in February 11 this year including four counts of common assault, one of which related to the captain of the flight, damaging the captain's 600 wrist watch, using disorderly behaviour at Belfast International Airport, behaving in an abusive, insulting or threatening manner towards cabin crew and recklessly endangering the safety of an aircraft.

The court heard that Burgoyne was high on a cocktail of alcohol and cocaine when he boarded the flight to Birmingham.

A prosecuting lawyer told the court that when a member of the cabin crew asked Burgoyne to raise the window blind for take off, he gave her a Nazi salute and told her alright Mein Fuhrer.

He was told that he would be removed if there were further issues but he continued to be aggressive and swearing, said the lawyer adding that having been spoken to by the aircraft captain, Burgoyne was deemed unfit to travel.

Burgoyne continued to be aggressive, shouting and swearing at staff, causing both the captain and a female member of the cabin crew to believe he was going to punch them.

The court heard that at one stage, Burgoyne tried to grab the captain by the throat but grabbed him by the shirt collar which resulted in s struggle during which the pilot 600 watch was broken.

Ejected from the plane, which was still attached to the tug vehicle, Burgoyne kicked the vehicle and then tried to get in it, grabbing the joystick and steering wheel before kicking a member of the ground crew who tried to intervene.

Arrested and interviewed, Burgoyne accepted it was himself in the CCTV footage but denied that he assaulted anyone.

As well as the jail sentence, District Judge Nigel Broderick fined Burgoyne 500 and ordered him to pay 600 to the planes captain and, defence barrister Neil Moore revealed the fine had already been paid and was in keeping with his expressions of remorse and regret.

The lawyer told the court Burgoyne had come back to Northern Ireland for a family meeting which unfortunately had become toxic and coupled with issues dating back to childhood, this was the straw that broke the camels back.

Since being freed on bail pending todays appeal, the court heard Burgoyne had been undergoing counselling to deal with this issues.

Submitting that Burgoyne could be dealt with by a less serious sentence than imprisonment, Mr Moore argued his case suffered from other air rage cases in that his offences were committed on the tarmac rather than whilst in the air.

Jailing Burgoyne in the Magistrates Court three months ago, Judge Broderick warned there must be an element of deterrence and that warning was repeated by Judge McReynolds.

She told Burgoyne his offences would have been quite terrifying for his fellow passengers and warned: He behaves in a bullying manner to the staff and a deterrent sentence is entirely appropriate.
A notorious Northern Ireland child killer John Clifford is unlawfully at large after failing to return to Maghaberry Prison.

Clifford (56) had been released on Sunday to attend an appointment but failed to return when expected. His offences include murder, indecent assaults and cruelty to children.

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He was originally jailed in 1989 for murdering his niece Sue Ellen.

Clifford raped and strangled the eight-year-old, before leaving her on a deserted railway line in 1988.

He was freed in 2005 but thrown back behind bars in 2007 for breaching the terms of his probation.

Inspector Paul Noble said: We have initiated enquiries to locate John Clifford. He is described as being 1.75m tall with green eyes and fair hair. He is of medium build with a fresh complexion. When last seen he was wearing a black beanie style hat, heavy black coat, grey trousers and black dress shoes.

"He was last seen using a distinctive three-wheel mobility scooter bearing the registration plate EXZ4974.

Members of the public or anyone with information about his whereabouts should contact us immediately on 101.

A spokesperson for the Northern Ireland Prison Service said: The Prison Service is investigating the circumstances surrounding the abscondment of John Clifford. At this time we are focused on returning him to custody and we would ask anyone with information to contact the PSNI immediately.

If you see anyone matching this description please call your nearest police station or contact Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

There are currently 10 people listed as being unlawfully at large from the Northern Ireland prison service.

More details can be found at www.justice-ni.gov.uk/unlawfully-at-large/
Schools in Northern Ireland have been told they will have to live within their shrinking budgets - despite a warning from head teachers that the current financial situation is unworkable.

Several school principals, accompanied by SDLP Daniel McCrossan MLA, recently met with the permanent secretary at the Department of Education, Derek Baker, to voice their concerns ahead of the new school term.

Geri Cameron, the head of Loughshore Educational Centre and president of the National Association of Head Teachers (NAHT) in NI, said head teachers here are already operating firm financial management.

She warned that unless there is a major reform of the current system, the ramifications may be felt for generations.

"We are well aware that the department is facing significant pressures and NAHT has been campaigning for more funding for the overall education budget. However such pressures could be eased if funding was more effectively targeted towards front line services rather than central administration," she said.

She warned schools are being forced to cut class sizes, narrow curriculum choices and make key staff redundant, the ramifications of which "may be felt for generations".

"In contrast to the rest of the UK, where 2-10 per cent is retained at centre, schools in Northern Ireland only receive a maximum of 59 per cent of the overall education budget directly," she added.

"Spending on pre-school, primary and secondary education per pupil is 46 per cent higher in Scotland, 18 per cent higher in England and 31 per cent higher in Wales.

"The recently launched Northern Ireland Affairs Committee Inquiry into education funding will partly look at how funding can be most effectively deployed. In the absence of democratic oversight in Northern Ireland we will be urging Westminster MPs to instigate immediate reform of the current system to ensure more funding can go directly to schools.

"This must be a top down process driven by the highest level of government. The burden cannot solely be placed on schools, those in power must take responsibility or children and young people will suffer immeasurably."

Mr McCrossan said that at this time last year a 100m black hole was revealed in the education budget.

"That hole is now only partially plugged with cuts to schools budgets across the North becoming a mainstay," he said.

"This cannot continue and schools and their principals can no longer be expected to balance their books and provide the same service.

"Schools are getting less money per child, special needs provision is not delivering and extra-curricular activities have halted.

"Education here is broken, it is at a cliff-edge and about to plunge into the unknown."

Mr McCrossan added: "There is a clear consensus that the show can no longer go on, especially with a politics vacuum in having no functioning Assembly.

"I have written to the Secretary of State, Karen Bradley, to urge intervention for immediate reconvening of talks here to tackle this problem and many more head on."

The Department of Education said it was well aware of the financial pressures facing schools, but warned difficult decisions would have to be taken.

"It is recognised that in the longer term the education sector requires significant and radical transformation if it is to be put on a sustainable financial footing," a spokesperson said.
Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured in the Titanic area of Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured in the Titanic area of Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured in the Titanic area of Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured in the Titanic area of Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured in the Titanic area of Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured in the Titanic area of Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured in the Titanic area of Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured in the Titanic area of Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

Pacemaker Press Belfast 03-09-2018: The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". They will run approximately every seven to eight minutes, linking east Belfast, west Belfast and the Titanic Quarter with the city centre. Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast. Picture By: Arthur Allison.

The new 90m Belfast Rapid Transit Glider service has become fully operational. The Glider buses have been described as "a tram on wheels". Glider buses pictured on the Falls road in Belfast - Credit: Arthur Allison / Pacemaker

Cars have been spotted parking in the new Glider bus lanes outside a primary school in west Belfast.

It comes on the first full day of operation for the Glider service with continued confusion for parents trying to leave their children to school.

Cars were seen flouting the new regulations outside of St Kevin's Primary at the upper end of the Falls Road, with temporary signage outside warning against parking in front of the school.

Images from outside the school were posted to Twitter by BBC journalist Eve Rosato.

Another social media user noted traffic along the Falls Road appeared to be freely flowing, despite a few parents pulling in to leave their children off.

There were two press photographers at St Kevin's Primary School. Taking pictures of the Glider as it zoomed by on an otherwise empty road. I stopped for a brief chat.  Borghert Jan Borghmans (@StripyMoggie) September 3, 2018

The enforcement of 12-hour bus lane restrictions came into effect last week ahead of Monday's launch of Translink's Glider service, which links the east and the west of the city.

Ahead of the launch, principal of St Kevin's Primary School principal Fiona Keegan said the restrictions resulted in chaos outside the school as parents realised they were unable to pull in due to the lanes on both sides of the road.

"It was mayhem and it resulted in absolute dismay among parents who are right to be concerned because lives are potentially at risk," she said.

"I was outside the school meeting with anxious parents in an effort to reassure them that I'm aware of this health and safety issue and I am doing all I can to find a solution."

She has called for the Department for Infrastructure to relax restrictions.

The Department for Infrastructure has been contacted for comment.
Police said the victim received a stab wound to his back somewhere between Larne Road and Queen Street in Ballymena (Joe Giddens/PA)

A man was stabbed in the back in Ballymena in the early hours of yesterday morning.

Police are appealing for information and witnesses following the attack in the Co Antrim town shortly before 4am, somewhere between Larne Road and Queen Street in the town.

It is understood the victim was found close to Harryville bridge.

He received stitches to his injury at hospital.

Police have urged anyone who has information that could assist police to contact officers at Ballymena on the non-emergency number 101, quoting reference 346 02/09/18, or contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

Meanwhile, detectives are appealing for information and witnesses after an assault in the Loughside Drive area of Ballynahinch early yesterday.

Just before 5.40am, police received a report that a 21-year-old man had been assaulted. He was taken to hospital for treatment.

A 41-year-old man was arrested on suspicion of several offences, including grievous bodily harm with intent, the PSNI said.
Desertmartin sits at the foot of the Slieve Gallion, part of the Sperrin Mountains

Residents of the village have voiced concern over an Australian mining companys search for gold in the area

Desertmartin sits at the foot of the Slieve Gallion, part of the Sperrin Mountains

A plan to search for precious metals including gold in the hills of Mid-Ulster is angering locals.

Slieve Gallion, which forms part of the Sperrin Mountains, has become the latest focus for an Australian mining company carrying out gold exploration.

Earlier this year, Walkabout Resources said it had made "very exciting" discoveries while searching for precious metals in the area.

In March, Walkabout said it had found the presence of cobalt-copper-silver in the area while searching for gold.

It said analysis of regional data for Slieve Gallion meant it was one of the highest priority areas in Northern Ireland for base metal and gold exploration.

While the company insists the work being carried out on Slieve Gallion is at the embryonic stage, people living in the tiny village of Desertmartin, which sits at the foot of the mountain, are not happy.

A series of community meeting in recent weeks demonstrated the depth of feeling on the issue.

Robert James Austin said: "I think this will be an awful wrecking match for all they might get out of it.

"I like those mountains because I can get up in the morning and look out at them.

"I wouldn't like to see them destroyed and I don't think there would be enough jobs created that would be worth it."

Marion McIntyre was equally concerned about the possible damage.

She said: "I don't like the idea that our environment could be destroyed. I think the mountain should be left the way it is - it is part of our natural heritage.

"I have a lot of family living around here and we all think the same.

"I know they will talk about jobs, but how long will those jobs last? Yet the damage will be done and that might last a lot longer than the jobs.

"There are a lot of walkways up there which are well used and I would be concerned that those would be taken from people."

Many members of the local farming community are particularly concerned about the potential damage the exploration work could do to the water supplies.

Derek McKinney is a farmer as well as an Ulster Unionist councillor for the area.

He said: "I think people will be concerned until they actually know what is going to happen.

"Farmers I have spoken to are concerned about the effect the product used for mining will have on the water courses and the surrounding area.

"This is what I am hearing from the farming community, who are also worried about the natural beauty of the area being damaged.

"Even with wind farms, there has been an issue with the character of Slieve Gallion being lost."

Nearly 800 people who have concerns about the prospect of mining Slieve Gallion have signed a petition.

A spokesman for Protect Slieve Gallion, the group behind the petition, said: "We are small group of people from the Desertmartin, Moneymore and Draperstown areas.

"We were formed after a series of public meetings that were held in Desertmartin back a few weeks ago to find out more information regarding what the plans were for this area.

"What we heard at those meetings drove us to start looking into the issue of this further and this has us really afraid of what could potentially lay ahead should this get going.

"The implications to the health of the people of this area is enormous, not to mention the devastation to the countryside and effect it will have on housing prices.

"This can only be seen as a short-term gain for foreign investors, which will inevitably change the lives of our future generations."

A cross-party delegation of Mid-Ulster MLAs met with the Department for the Economy, Northern Ireland Environment Agency and the Geological Survey NI after the public meetings.

SDLP MLA Patsy McGlone said: "People from the local community have expressed a number of concerns ranging from environmental issues, health concerns and the impact that this will have on the general wellbeing of the community from the activities of the international companies involved in prospecting in the area.

"Officials from the agencies have committed to ensuring that any activity will be strictly regulated and assurances sought about the impact on the community before any follow-up work is authorised.

"However, many in the local community will be sceptical about such assurances and will need more convincing. They have justified concerns about the proposed activities and the future intentions of the companies involved.

"In the absence of a functioning Executive, I will continue to lobby the relevant agencies on their behalf."

DUP MLA Keith Buchanan said he would reserve his judgment on the issue until he received more information.

He said: "I wasn't able to attend the meeting with the Department organised by Pasty McGlone because of another appointment but I am due to meet with Walkabout Resources later.

"I am well aware of the concerns my constituents have but I think it is important to have all the available information before I make up my mind."

Sinn Fein MLA Ian Milne said his party's position on gold mining and processing was set out at the Ard Fheis last year.

He said: "Sinn Fein recognises the environmental damage caused by precious metals mining and the extraction of Ireland's non-renewable natural resources with little or no benefit to local communities."

A spokesman for Walkabout Resources said work on Slieve Gullion to date has consisted of soil sampling and a limited airborne survey to aid in the determination for potential mineral deposits. He added: "In this early phase of exploration, our plans within our awarded licence areas, only extend to collecting soil and rock chip samples at surface to shallow depths and on a very limited scale.

"Preliminary exploration work has been carried out in these licence areas. No chemicals of any type are used in the work we are doing.

"In any area where work is carried out, Walkabout will meet with relevant stakeholders and landowners to inform them of our work. We should stress again, this is merely early stage soil sampling as per our licence.

"Walkabout will assess the results of its exploration surveys before making any further decisions about how to proceed with our work in Northern Ireland."

ceived more information.

He said: "I wasn't able to attend the meeting with the Department organised by Pasty McGlone because of another appointment but I am due to meet with Walkabout Resources later.

"I am well aware of the concerns my constituents have but I think it is important to have all the available information before I make up my mind."

Sinn Fein MLA Ian Milne said his party's position on gold mining and processing was set out at the Ard Fheis last year.

He said: "Sinn Fein recognises the environmental damage caused by precious metals mining and the extraction of Ireland's non-renewable natural resources with little or no benefit to local communities."

A spokesman for Walkabout Resources said work on Slieve Gullion to date has consisted of soil sampling and a limited airborne survey to aid in the determination for potential mineral deposits.
Leaders pledge to amend laws limiting free press

Leaders of various political parties have pledged to lobby their party lawmakers to make amendments to the laws that restrict press freedom.
Businessman Gavin Duffy has received the first nomination from a local authority to contest the presidential election.

The Dragons Den investor secured the backing of Meath County Council after councillors held a vote on Monday.

Mr Duffy received 17 votes, defeating fellow businessman and Dragons Den star Sean Gallagher, who gained seven votes, and Independent Senator Joan Freeman who received two.

Video confirming my decision to seek a nomination as an Independent candidate for the 2018 Presidential Election pursuant to Article 12 of the Constitution. pic.twitter.com/h1tVPCCrxx  Sean Gallagher (@seangallagher1) August 29, 2018

Mr Duffy secured votes from Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Independent politicians, which he says confirms his cross-party appeal.

Sinn Fein councillor Caroline Lynch confirmed that Sinn Fein abstained from the vote as did four others.

In order to run for president, candidates require the support of at least four county councils or 20 elected representatives.

Local authorities in Kerry, Cork, Leitrim, Wexford and Wicklow will also all be addressed by prospective candidates.

Reacting to his nomination, Mr Duffy tweeted: Thank you to the Councillors of Meath for giving me the first nomination in the 2018 Presidential Election.

Thank you to the Councillors of Meath for giving me the first nomination in the 2018 Presidential Election. #Aras18 #Aras2018  Gavin Duffy (@GavinDuffy) September 3, 2018

The presidential election will be held on October 26 and nominations have to be submitted by September 26.

Current president Michael D Higgins will nominate himself as an Independent candidate for another seven years in office.

He has also secured the backing of both Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, who have both agreed not to field candidates from their own parties.

Sinn Fein is due to field a candidate later in the month.
Drew Harris took up his role at 00.01 on Monday (An Garda Siochana/PA)

New Garda Commissioner Drew Harris has said protecting the vulnerable and making the Gardai a more transparent force will be his top priorities as he started the job on Monday.

The 53-year-old spoke following his attestation just after midnight in a private meeting at Kevin Street Divisional Headquarters in Dublin.

"I am very honoured and privileged to have become Garda Commissioner," he said.

"Throughout its history An Garda Siochana has played an important role in Ireland. Its focus on community policing has created strong bonds with the people.

"I will be particularly focused on ensuring that we do all we can to protect the vulnerable.

"I know at first hand the commitment, dedication and sacrifice that has been made by members of An Garda Siochana in securing the state, particularly from the threat of terrorism.

"This has saved lives and protected communities on both sides of the border.

"That work must and will continue to be a priority for the organisation and me as Commissioner.

"We need to move quickly to adapt to a changing society to ensure that we are strongly positioned to protect the state, communities and the vulnerable.

"We will deliver to the highest possible operational and ethical standards, improve our systems, processes and training so our people have the right tools and skills to do their job effectively.

"We will have a workplace of openness and transparency, of equality of opportunity, and of management at all levels speaking with and listening to the people they work with.

"We will be more open to concerns raised internally and externally.

"Most critically, people in An Garda Siochana are fully committed to ensuring the organisation develops to meet the needs of society.

"This is a strong foundation from which to build on."

Mr Harris said he wanted to have his attestation at the first possible minute as he wanted to start the job straight away.

He added that An Garda Siochana is a 24-7, 365 service and it showed the connection between the leadership of the organisation and members on the front line.

Mr Harris also referred to the concerns raised when he was chosen for the role due to his previous experience in the RUC (Royal Ulster Constabulary), later the PSNI (Police Service Northern Ireland), and his oath of allegiance to the Official Secrets Act of the UK.

"There has been some talk about my team.

"An Garda Siochana is now my team. It is my responsibility to lead the organisation and I very much look forward to working with all Garda members, Garda staff and Garda reserves to provide this country with the high-quality policing and security service it wants and deserves."

Speaking at the attestation, Deputy Garda Commissioner, Policing and Security, John Twomey welcomed Commissioner Harris's vast experience to the role.

"On behalf of An Garda Siochana, I would like to welcome Mr Drew Harris to An Garda Siochana as Commissioner.

"Throughout his career in his different roles, he has always shown a great concern for the protection of the vulnerable and for promoting the very important role that police services have to play in doing this.

"I want to wish Drew all the best as Garda Commissioner and let him know that the organisation is here to support him and work with him to make Ireland a safe place to work, live and visit."

Mr Harris had been PSNI deputy chief constable for the past four years.

He has now relinquished his sworn oath to serve Northern Ireland and the United Kingdom, and has switched allegiance to the Garda and Republic of Ireland.

Mr Harris has also applied for an Irish passport.
Presidential hopeful Peter Casey has back-tracked from a tweet in which he expressed support for Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's controversial drugs clampdown.

Derry-born Peter Casey is a former investor on the Irish edition of Dragons' Den and, as a millionaire, has promised not to take the 1.7m salary offered for the seven-year term.

Mr Duterte has been criticised by human rights organisations amid allegations of extra-judicial killings and more than 7,000 deaths in his "war on drugs" in the first six months of his presidency.

Businessman and former Dragons' Den star Mr Casey said last night that he does not remember sending the 2016 Twitter post and insisted he "abhors" Mr Duterte's policies.

In September 2016, the Philippines leader saw a meeting with Barack Obama cancelled after he made personal insults against the then US president.

Mr Obama had warned he would raise the issue of extrajudicial killings at the meeting. Mr Duterte later apologised.

In the following days, Mr Casey tweeted: "Totally support Philippine President Duterte clamping down on drug dealers but he should not have apologised to Obama."

Mr Casey confirmed through a spokesperson that the @CaseyPeterJ Twitter account where the post appears is his.

"Can I say, categorically, that this is not how I feel about President Duterte or Barack Obama," he said.

"I have no recollection of making this tweet two years ago but I have to take responsibility for it if it's up there on my account.

"I do think that drugs are a curse in our society but, genuinely, I abhor Duterte's policy of using his police as vigilantes."

He said he knows "little or nothing" about Mr Duterte and certainly would not support the policies that have been criticised by human rights groups.

Mr Casey added: "I think Barack Obama is a very good and decent man."

Meanwhile, Gavin Duffy is favourite to scoop the first local authority nomination to contest the presidential election.

Meath County Council is set to vote today on whether to support a nomination.

Mr Duffy, who lives in the county, is strongly tipped to get its backing through a combination of votes from Independent and Fine Gael councillors.

President Michael D Higgins can nominate himself, but challengers must win the support of four local authorities or 20 Oireachtas members.

Mr Duffy was among eight potential candidates who made a pitch to Meath County Council last week.
Simon Coveney said he will emphasise that Ireland wants the closest possible relationship between the EU and UK (Brian Lawless/PA)

The Tanaiste has embarked on a two-day visit to Finland, Estonia and Lithuania.

During the trip, Simon Coveney is set to meet with the foreign ministers of each of the nations.

The implications for Ireland from the UKs imminent departure from the European Union is set to be high on the agenda during those meetings.

EU foreign policy and the future of Europe are also expected to be among the topics discussed.

In a statement, the Department of Foreign Affairs said the Tanaistes visit aims to further strengthen Irelands bilateral relations with key Nordic and Baltic EU member states.

This visit is a valuable opportunity for me to meet in person with those foreign ministers in their own capitals and to express our appreciation for the solidarity on Brexit which they continue to demonstrateSimon Coveney

Speaking ahead of the trip, Mr Coveney said he will emphasise that Ireland wants the closest possible relationship between the EU and UK.

Our relationships with Finland, Estonia and Lithuania are important and they are strong, he said.

This visit is a valuable opportunity for me to meet in person with those foreign ministers in their own capitals and to express our appreciation for the solidarity on Brexit which they continue to demonstrate.

I will emphasise that Ireland wants the closest possible relationship between the EU and the UK, including on trade, in order to minimise the impact on our trade and economy, and that it is vital that the EUs single market and customs union are fully protected.

We will also discuss key issues of international importance on the EU external agenda, particularly the Middle East peace process and the EUs engagement with the US and with Russia.
The son of TV chef Rachel Allen faces a Garda investigation after he was arrested following the seizure of cannabis worth almost 30,000.

The seizure followed a Garda raid after a joint Garda-Revenue operation when a Customs & Excise officer at Portlaoise Mail Centre became concerned about a parcel destined for a specific address in Cork.

In a statement, Rachel Allen said she was "absolutely devastated" at the detention of her son, Joshua (18).

The chef said the family were issuing a statement purely because of the "frenzy of inquiries" in relation to Joshua from the media.

"He has been arrested on suspicion of possession of drugs (marijuana) with intent to supply them to others," she said.

"He has admitted his guilt immediately and co-operated fully with the Gardai."

"A file has been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions and when formally charged Joshua will be pleading guilty at the first opportunity."

"We are absolutely devastated at this turn of events."

"Our son is eighteen years old, has never been in trouble with the Gardai, and has made a huge mistake, which will have profound consequences for him.

"We do not in any way condone his actions, in fact, we utterly condemn them, but it is not for us to condemn him."

"We must now try to look after our son and our family, the best way we can.

"We would ask that the legal process would be allowed to proceed to deal with this matter, without interference, and that we would be allowed to deal with this, like any other parents, in a similar position."

The statement was issued to the Irish Mirror on Monday evening.

The Garda raid was ordered amid suspicions over a parcel which had been labelled "clothing".

On Thursday evening, a property in the Shanagarry area was searched by Gardai on foot of a warrant.

The teen was detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996.

A file on the matter is now being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
At least 80,000 people in the UK are estimated to pose a sexual threat to children online, the Home Secretary will warn today.

At least 80,000 people in the UK are estimated to pose a sexual threat to children online, the Home Secretary will warn today.

Sajid Javid will disclose the figure and describe his shock at discovering the scale of the danger posed by paedophiles on the internet.

In a flagship speech, he will outline his "personal mission" to tackle child abuse.

Mr Javid is expected to say: "It was when I visited the National Crime Agency's Child Exploitation Online Protection Command that the full horror of the scale and evolving nature of child sexual abuse was really brought home to me.

"One officer I met, who had worked in counter-terrorism for over 20 years, told me how in all his years of working he's never been so shocked by the scale of the threat or the determination of the offenders as he is in his current job."

In particular, Mr Javid will describe his horror at discovering the National Crime Agency estimates there are up to 80,000 people in the UK who "present some kind of sexual threat" to children online.

Operational experts say that is a conservative estimate.

Other new statistics reveal referrals of child abuse images to the NCA have surged by 700% in the last five years. Images are getting more graphic, with abuse of babies and children under 10 more regularly documented, the Home Office said.

The department also warned that live-streaming of abuse is an increasing trend due to faster internet speeds, smartphone technology and the growing ease of money transfers across borders.

Separate figures indicate that police in England and Wales recorded around 23 child sexual offences involving the internet every day in 2017/18 - up from a rate of around 15 a day in the previous 12 months.

The scale of the offending has prompted demands for internet giants to take more action to stop access to sexual abuse images and videos.

There have also been calls for offenders who download indecent images of children to get tougher sentences.

Last month, Solicitor General Robert Buckland said the use of the internet to download or share images of child abuse is "as insidious a crime as direct sexual assault".

In his speech, Mr Javid is expected to commit to prioritising urgent work to crack down on online child sexual abuse. This will build on previous Government measures, including a 600,000 investment in a project that trawls the web to identify pages with suspected abuse content.

The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF), which assesses and removes online child abuse material, said it fully supports Mr Javid in his warning.

Susie Hargreaves, chief executive of the IWF, added: "Sadly, our most recent annual report showed that the severity of the images we identified were up and it appeared that offenders were becoming more sophisticated in their crime."
Kweku Adoboli was released after serving half of his seven-year sentence (Lewis Whyld/PA)

A former UBS trader jailed for fraud in 2012 is facing deportation to Ghana after being detained at a police station.

Kweku Adoboli was found guilty of two counts of fraud that resulted in losses of 1.4 billion and was released after serving half of his seven-year sentence.

He was detained during a fortnightly check-in at Livingston Police Station, West Lothian, on Monday and is understood to have been taken to Dungavel Immigration Removal Centre.

His lawyer Jacqueline McKenzie said he has been told he will not be deported before September 10.

She said: He was detained in Livingston when he went to report today.

He has been told he wont be deported to Ghana before the 10th of September and after that he will be removed without any further notice.

We are doing a fresh claim submission for him which we will be putting to the Home Office.

She said Mr Adoboli left Ghana at the age of four and considered himself settled in the UK, having gone to boarding school here from the age of 12.

He was reporting to the police station on a monthly basis, but a couple of weeks ago this was increased to once a fortnight, she said.

A Home Office spokesman said: All foreign nationals who are given a custodial sentence will be considered for removal.

Foreign nationals who abuse our hospitality by committing crimes in the UK should be in no doubt of our determination to deport them and we have removed more than 42,800 foreign offenders since 2010.
Local administration undermined gravity of Kanchanpur rape, murder case: NC

Main opposition Nepali Congress (NC) said the rape and murder of a teenage girl in Kanchanpur was taken lightly by the local administration.
New Scotland Yard went for 370 million to investors from Abu Dhabi (Nick Ansell/PA)

Britains largest police force has sold more than 1 billion worth of property over the past six years, amid claims funding cuts are leading them to breaking point.

Scotland Yard crossed the 10-figure mark after netting 41 million in the last financial year, selling off police stations and residential blocks, according to data obtained by the Press Association under Freedom of Information requests.

Weve sold the Crown Jewels, so to speak. Weve run out of things to sell. This is really, really, worrying for society, said Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation.

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He told the Press Association: At the end of the day they have all been sold so that we dont have to cut police officers. That is shocking.

The Government talk a good talk, always praising us and saying how brilliant we are.

But when it actually comes to it, you know, theres officers around the country using food banks.

Hundreds of flats and buildings, some owned by the Met since the 19th century, have been bought from the force since 2012.

They included New Scotland Yard, which went for 370 million to investors from Abu Dhabi for luxury flats two years ago.

Expand Close Hampstead police station, which was sold by the Met for 14.1m in 2014 (David Mirzoeff/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

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It comes as Mr Marsh, whose organisation represents more than 30,000 rank-and-file officers, warned police were working amid a breakdown in society with footage showing officers apparently being assaulted as they arrested a man in a fast-food restaurant.

The Met has had to make 600 million of savings since 2010, and must find a further 400 million by 2021, according to the London Mayors office.

Last year, Mayor of London Sadiq Khan closed 38 police station front counters to save 8 million per year, and warned Scotland Yard was running out of options regarding resources.

Mr Marsh added that police have had to take on an expanded role which is causing strain.

He said: You get to breaking point because were not social workers, were not mental health specialists  but now my colleagues are having to deal with all these things on a daily basis.

That just has a massive drain on your resources. It will eventually crack.

There were 21,331 fewer police officers in England and Wales as of March this year compared with the same point in 2010, according to the Home Office.

Expand Close A new school building for the Maria Fidelis Catholic School FCJ, built on the site of 1-39 Drummond Crescent, Euston  land which was sold by the Met for 12.9m in 2014 (David Mirzoeff/PA) PA Wire/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp A new school building for the Maria Fidelis Catholic School FCJ, built on the site of 1-39 Drummond Crescent, Euston  land which was sold by the Met for 12.9m in 2014 (David Mirzoeff/PA)

Total officer numbers across the 43 police forces were at 122,404 as of March, the lowest number since comparable records began in 1996.

The Metropolitan Police has said that sales mean more resources are available for effective and accessible policing and that money would be invested in updating remaining buildings and improving IT services.

A Home Office spokesman said: Police have the resources they need to carry out their vital work.

However, we know the nature of crime is changing. That is why we provided a strong and comprehensive settlement that is increasing total investment in the police system by over 460m in 2018 -19, including increased funding for local policing through Council Tax precept.

Funding for the Metropolitan Police is increasing by 110m this year compared to 2017-18  This means the Metropolitan Police is receiving over 2.5 billion in direct resource funding this year.

A spokeswoman for the Mayor of London said: Closing police stations is the stark reality of crippling Government cuts to the police budget which has contributed to officer numbers dropping below 30,000 in London for the first time in 15 years.

Money saved from closing front counters will be used to protect frontline policing as much as possible, but quite frankly the Government has got to recognise it has cut policing and preventative services to the bone and instead begin investing properly to keep Londoners safe.
Recriminations are flying after fire tore through Brazils National Museum resulting in the loss of at least part of Latin Americas largest archive of historical artefacts, objects and documents.

The museums director said part of the collection was destroyed but that it was not possible yet to detail what was lost.

The museum had a collection of 20 million items  including Egyptian and Greco-Roman artefacts and the oldest human skull found in the Western hemisphere  and was once the home of the Portuguese royal family.

Expand Close Fire burns inside the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil (Leo Correa/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

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It was not clear what was at the site when the building caught fire on Sunday night.

But the fire quickly led to criticism over dilapidated infrastructure and budget deficits as Brazilians prepare to vote in national elections in October.

Just crying doesnt solve anything, Alexander Kellner, the museums director, told reporters at the scene.

He became emotional as he listed the funds and support he said he would now demand from authorities to salvage what was left of the collection and rebuild the museum.

Mr Kellner said that the institution had recently secured approval for funds for a planned renovation of the museum, including an upgrade of the fire prevention system.

Look at the irony, the money is now there, but we ran out of time, he said.

Roberto Robadey, a spokesman for the fire department, said firefighters got off to a slow start fighting the blaze because the two fire hydrants closest to the museum were not functioning. Instead, trucks had to be sent to get water from a nearby lake.

Mr Kellner said there were fire extinguishers on site, but it was not clear if there were sprinklers since they are problematic for museums because water can damage objects.

Asked by a reporter why such a disaster doesnt happen at cultural institutions in other countries, Mr Kellner, replied: Ask yourself that. Thats a good question, ask yourself that.

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The building was still standing on Monday morning, but much of it appeared to have been gutted. A few hundred people, including some in tears, gathered at the gates of the site.

On the massive site where the museum sits, the fencing was dilapidated, stonework was cracked and lawns appeared untended.

This fire is what Brazilian politicians are doing to the people, said Rosana Hollanda, a 35-year-old high school teacher, who was crying at the gates of the museum on Monday. Theyre burning our history, and theyre burning our dreams.

Roberto Leher, the rector of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, of which the museum is a part, told reporters that the building needed an upgrade to its electrical and water systems and a new fire prevention plan.

We all knew the building was in a vulnerable state, he told reporters. He added that officials had been working with firefighters to reduce those risks.

A fire of this scale, the reality unfortunately showed this, we needed a systematic intervention, he said.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte rekindles the eternal flame during a memorial ceremony at the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial in Jerusalem (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte called Adolf Hitler insane during a visit to Israels national Holocaust memorial.

Mr Duterte, who once compared himself to Hitler, lamented the Nazi genocide of an estimated 6 million Jewish people,

The comments marked a dramatic turnaround for Mr Duterte, who just two years ago had compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust and said he would be happy to slaughter 3 million addicts. He later apologised.

I could not imagine a country obeying an insane leaderPhilippine President Rodrigo Duterte

Mr Duterte, known for his profane outbursts and accused of committing widespread human rights abuses, spoke quietly and respectfully during his stop at the Yad Vashem memorial. He said the Holocaust should never be repeated and that despots have no place in the modern world.

I could not imagine a country obeying an insane leader, and I could not ever fathom the spectacle of the human being going into a killing spree, murdering old men, women and children. I hope this will not happen again, he said.

There is always a lesson to learn: that despots and leaders who show insanity, they should be disposed of at the first instance, he said.

Expand Close Mr Duterte was softly spoken and respectful at the Holocaust memorial (AP Photo/Oded Balilty) AP/PA Images / Facebook

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Mr Duterte, the first Philippine president to visit Israel, has received a warm welcome from the government, despite criticism that it is embracing a leader accused of rights abuses in his deadly crackdown on drug dealers. The agenda reportedly is also expected to include an arms sale to the Philippines.

Mr Duterte and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu oversaw the signing of three agreements in trade, science and care-giving.

Mr Netanyahu highlighted the countries long friendship, how the Philippines took in Jewish refugees after the Second World War and was the only Asian nation to vote for Israels establishment. He noted how in recent years Filipino health aides have assisted the elderly in Israel, including Mr Netanyahus own father.

We remember our friends, and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years, Mr Netanyahu told Mr Duterte.

Expand Close Mr Netanyahu, right, spoke of Israels close friendship with the Philippines (Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp Mr Netanyahu, right, spoke of Israels close friendship with the Philippines (Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP)

There has been a remarkable phenomenon in Israel where thousands and thousands of families have taken heart from the support given by Filipino caretakers for the elderly.

Mr Duterte thanked Israel for hosting some 28,000 Filipino workers and for assisting his country in its times of need.

At a joint appearance with Mr Netanyahu, he said: We share the same passion for peace, we share the same passion for human beings but also we share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who have the corrupt ideology, who know nothing but to kill and destroy.

And in this sense Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extend to your country.

The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1957. Mr Netanyahu has worked to cultivate allies in Asia, Africa and Latin America, where many countries have historically shunned Israel over its treatment of the Palestinians.

But Netanyahu has come under fire for embracing Mr Duterte, whose forces are accused of killing thousands in anti-drug raids since he took office in 2016.

Mr Duterte drew outrage that year when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust, and himself to Hitler, before being forced to apologise.
Israels Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has extended a warm welcome to controversial Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte at the start of an official visit.

The two leaders oversaw the signing of three agreements in trade, science and care-giving.

Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extendRodrigo Duterte

Mr Netanyahu highlighted the countries long friendship, how the Philippines took in Jewish refugees after the Second World War and was the only Asian nation to vote for Israels establishment.

We remember our friends and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years, Mr Netanyahu told Mr Duterte.

Mr Duterte said: Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extend.

Expand Close Mr Netanyahu, right, spoke of Israels close friendship with the Philippines (Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp Mr Netanyahu, right, spoke of Israels close friendship with the Philippines (Ronen Zvulun/Pool Photo via AP)

Mr Duterte has been accused of condoning human rights abuses in his deadly drug crackdown and has made controversial comments about the Holocaust.

He drew outrage in 2016 when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Nazi genocide of Jews and said he would be happy to slaughter 3 million addicts. He later apologised.

Official Philippine police tallies place the number of suspects killed in police-led anti-drug raids at more than 4,500 since Mr Duterte took office in June 2016.

International human rights watchdogs have cited far higher death tolls.

Mr Duterte, a 73-year-old former government prosecutor, denies condoning extrajudicial killings but has openly threatened drug dealers with death.
The Pentagon has taken final steps to cancel $300 million (230m) in US aid to Pakistan.

The move reflects the Trump administrations dissatisfaction with Pakistans commitment to assisting the US strategy for pressuring the Taliban, whose leaders use Pakistan as a sanctuary.

Pentagon officials say a request was submitted to Congress this summer for authorisation to use the $300 million for other purposes. The request has not yet been approved.

A Pentagon spokesman said the request to Congress was made in June or July and was due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the US strategy for bringing the Afghan conflict to a political solution.

The Pentagon announced in January that it was suspending aid, known as coalition support funds, to Pakistan, and subsequently the Congress cancelled $500 million (385m) in such aid.

But the Pentagon did not take final steps on the $300 million until this summer.
Misplaced attention

The 4th Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit concluded last week with member states approving an 18-point Kathmandu Declaration.
Donald Trump has escalated his attacks on attorney general Jeff Sessions, suggesting the Department of Justice had put Republicans in mid-term jeopardy with recent indictments of two congressmen.

In his latest broadside against the Justice Departments traditional independence, the president tweeted that Obama era investigations, of two very popular Republican Congressmen were brought to a well publicized charge, just ahead of the Mid-Terms, by the Jeff Sessions Justice Department.

He added: Two easy wins now in doubt because there is not enough time. Good job Jeff

The first two Republicans to endorse Mr Trump in the Republican presidential primaries were indicted on separate charges last month, Duncan Hunter, of California, on charges that included spending campaign funds for personal expenses, and Chris Collins, of New York, on insider trading.

Both have proclaimed their innocence.

Another blow in Mr Trumps long-running feud with Mr Sessions, the presidents complaint fits with his pattern of viewing the Department of Justice less as a law enforcement agency and more as a department that is supposed to do his political bidding.

The president  who did not address the specifics of the charges, just the political impact  has previously pressed Mr Sessions to investigate his perceived enemies and has accused him of failing to take control of the Justice Department.

Mr Trump has also repeatedly complained that Mr Sessions recused himself from the Russia investigation.

Expand Close Jeff Sessions insists he will not be forced out (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP) AP/PA Images / Facebook

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Whatsapp Jeff Sessions insists he will not be forced out (Manuel Balce Ceneta/AP)

Some of the issues the president has raised have either already been examined or are being investigated.

The tension between the pair boiled over recently with Mr Sessions punching back, saying he and his department will not be improperly influenced by political considerations.

He has made clear to associates he has no intention of leaving his job voluntarily despite Mr Trumps constant criticism.
Officials from Mauritius have told United Nations judges that the UK pressured its leaders into giving up the Chagos Islands as a condition of independence.

The claim by the Indian Ocean island nation about its former colonial power could have an impact on a strategically important US military base.

Judges at the International Court of Justice began hearing arguments for an advisory opinion the UN General Assembly requested on the legality of British sovereignty over the Chagos Islands.

The largest island, Diego Garcia, has housed the US base since the 1970s.

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Mauritius defence minister Anerood Jugnauth told judges: The process of decolonisation of Mauritius remains incomplete as a result of the unlawful detachment of an integral part of our territory on the eve of our independence.

Mauritius argues that the Chagos archipelago was part of its territory since at least the 18th century and was taken unlawfully by the UK in 1965, three years before the island gained independence. Britain insists it has sovereignty over the archipelago, which it calls the British Indian Ocean Territory.

Mr Jugnauth said that during independence negotiations, then-British prime minister Harold Wilson told Mauritiuss leader at the time, Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, that he and his colleagues could return to Mauritius either with independence or without it and that the best solution for all might be independence and detachment (of the Chagos Islands) by agreement.

Mr Ramgoolam understood Mr Wilsons words to be in the nature of a threat, Mr Jugnauth said.

British Solicitor General Robert Buckland described the case as essentially a bilateral dispute about sovereignty and urged the court not to issue an advisory opinion.

Mr Buckland also disputed Mauritiuss claim about coercion, citing Ramgoolam as saying after the deal that the detachment of the Chagos islands was a matter that was negotiated.

The UK sealed a deal with the US in 1966 to use the territory for defence purposes. The United States maintains a base there for aircraft and ships and has backed Britain in the legal dispute with Mauritius.

Mauritius recognises its existence and has repeatedly made it clear to the United States and the administering power that it accepts the future of the baseMauritius defence minister Anerood Jugnauth

However, Mr Jugnauth said the base should not be affected by his countrys claim against Britain.

Mauritius has been clear that a request for an advisory opinion is not intended to bring into question the presence of the base on Diego Garcia, he told the UN judges.

Mauritius recognises its existence and has repeatedly made it clear to the United States and the administering power that it accepts the future of the base.

Representatives from about 20 nations, including the US, and from the African Union are due to speak in the case this week.

Judges are expected to take months to issue their advisory opinions on two questions: Was the process of decolonisation of Mauritius lawfully completed in 1968 and what are the consequences under international law of the UKs continued administration, including with respect to the inability to resettle Chagos residents on the islands?

Britain evicted about 2,000 people from the Chagos archipelago in the 1960s and 1970s so the US military could build an air base on Diego Garcia. The islanders were sent to the Seychelles and Mauritius, and many eventually resettled in the UK.

The Chagossians have fought in British courts for years to return to the islands. A small group of Chagossians protested outside the court on Monday holding banners including one that read: Chagossian sacrifice to protect the world but our reward is slow death.

Another Chagossian, Marie Liseby Elyse, recorded a video that was shown to judges. In it, she recalled being taken by boat from her home island.

We were like animals and slaves in that ship, she said. People were dying of sadness.

Mr Buckland expressed the UKs deep regret at the way the Chagossians were removed.

The UK fully accepts the manner in which the Chagossians were removed from the Chagos Archipelago and the way they were treated thereafter was shameful and more, he said.
Shea Simpson before his first full day at Rainey Endowed

When Shea Simpson was born prematurely he weighed just 1lb 1oz, and doctors warned his parents that he might not survive his first day.

However, he did survive, but he later faced the enormous challenges of autism, blindness and, at one stage, pneumonia.

Miraculously, he overcame all those setbacks and today the 11-year-old is attending Rainey Endowed Grammar School for the first time.

What a proud day this is for Shea and his parents, and what an inspiring example it is for all of us.

Due to the care of his parents and family, and the medical and nursing teams, Shea has come through it all.
While Stormont remains out of action, the likes of Britain First continue to fill the political void

While Stormont remains out of action, the likes of Britain First continue to fill the political void

For 20 years, Northern Ireland has been a model for peace and post-conflict reconciliation. As of last weekend, it has, however, collected a more dubious distinction: Northern Ireland has technically achieved the world record for the number of consecutive days a country has existed in peacetime without a functioning government, eclipsing Belgium, which went government-less for 589 days back in 2010 and 2011.

One key difference from the Belgian situation is that Northern Ireland is part of the wider UK political framework, so, strictly-speaking, it has a government. The local political class can be relieved they will dodge a Guinness World Record for political ineptitude on a technicality.

Nonetheless, this political vacuum in Northern Ireland is inexorably being filled by a resurgence of extreme voices, as agitators seek to take advantage of Stormont's empty benches. This is translating into a growth in street-level violence, civil unrest and paramilitary influence.

Today, rabble-rousers in Northern Ireland have an array of modern tools with which they can spread their extremist ideology. Research by the Counter Extremism Project (CEP) has revealed that, in the online world, the spread of violent, hate-driven ideology happens relentlessly and around the clock and that tech companies are unwilling to meaningfully address the problem without pressure from government and law enforcement agencies.

Our worry is that not enough attention is being paid in Northern Ireland to the peculiarities of sectarian extremism on social media platforms, forums and other online spaces.

There is greater potential for extremist ideology to spread online between strangers, rather than through geographically bound communities. This issue, however, has been left completely unexplored in the Northern Ireland context.

A persistent lack of governmental legitimacy not only makes extremism more likely, but also makes the task of effectively countering it online more urgent and harder to achieve. The online recruiting ground today is more fertile for extremist points of view than at any time since the Troubles.

Both nationalist and unionist communities in Northern Ireland have been subjected to persistent economic hardship over many decades, fuelling sentiments of disenfranchisement.

Dissatisfaction is amplified by the current power and legitimacy vacuum and extremism is left to thrive.

In nationalist areas that never signed on to the long-term survival of Northern Ireland, opportunists are riding on a long-held sense of injustice that has been exacerbated by the Brexit vote.

The nationalist community voted 88% for Remain, yet they are being taken out of the European Union. Tensions are expected to hit boiling point in the likely scenario of border checks being imposed after March 2019.

The dismissive attitude of Brexit-supporting politicians in Britain exacerbates nationalist frustrations and threatens to reignite the violent activism of the past.

In loyalist communities, the new brand of online extremism has been characterised by an emerging far-Right ideology. This has more closely mimicked the extremism that is being seen throughout the UK.

Generation Identity, for instance, has held a protest roughly every two months in Belfast since last August and has been growing its online following in the region.

Far-Right activists in eastern Europe have been targeting British social media, promoting groups like Britain First, who caused a stir with their Belfast rally last year that led to the arrest of two of their leaders.

This new form of far-Right extremism and its attendant tactics of online advocacy supported by international co-ordination risks exacerbating tensions between all communities in Northern Ireland and bringing back the type of tension and violence that was all-too-common in the past.

Community-rooted violent organisations and international extremist groups like Generation Identity share a focus on spreading their message and encouraging young people to share their world views through social media.

It is possible to track the spread of extremist content online. CEP used its own proprietary hashing technology, eGLYPH, and an online web crawler to monitor YouTube for the uploading of illegal content.

In just a three-month period, focusing on Islamist extremism, last year, the tool detected 1,348 video uploads by Isis and sympathisers, which garnered 163,391 views. Some 91% of these Isis videos were uploaded more than once.

The question is: are the security authorities really keeping up with more sophisticated methods employed by online extremists?

Are they prepared for the next generation of technologies and what they make possible?

The growing trend shows that extremist groups are becoming a lot more direct in their mission and stated intent.

Internet providers and platforms not only need to be on guard for such content appearing on their sites, but also must be mindful that online social networks allow extremists to engage individuals with little effort, or mobilisation.

Thus far, the Independent Reporting Commission (IRC), set up under the Fresh Start Agreement, have shown no sign of tackling online extremism as part of their work to end paramilitary influence in Northern Ireland.

A good start would be to follow the lead of Westminster and put in place legislation forcing tech companies to remove extremist content specifically aimed at exacerbating tensions in Northern Ireland.

Governments around the world are cracking down on tech companies who see themselves as outside the laws governing behaviour in the "real" world.

Northern Ireland needs to follow suit, to tell these companies that they cannot profit from providing a platform for extremists looking to resurrect the violence of the past.

To do so, however, Northern Ireland's political leaders must put aside their political differences for the sake of their communities and finally form a devolved government.

Without one, Northern Ireland's past could become its future.

David Ibsen is executive director of the Counter Extremism Project, a not-for-profit, international policy organisation formed to combat the growing threat from extremist ideologies. For more details see www.counterextremism.com
A controversial preacher who worked as a security guard at the Belfast Primark store has been branded "despicable" for saying the blaze was "an act of God".

Pastor Colin Houston told Sunday Life he believed the fire was "not a coincidence" as it came just a month after the store had a pro-LGBT display in its front window for Pride week.

Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott) Kevin Scott Aerial view over Bank Buildings following Tuesdays fire. Photo by Gregory Weeks. Photo by Gregory Weeks. Aerial view over Bank Buildings following Tuesdays fire.. Photo by Gregory Weeks. Aerial view over Bank Buildings following Tuesdays fire.. Aerial view over Bank Buildings following Tuesdays fire. Photo by Gregory Weeks. Photo by Gregory Weeks. Aerial view over Bank Buildings following Tuesdays fire.. Photo by Gregory Weeks. Aerial view over Bank Buildings following Tuesdays fire.. Photo by Gregory Weeks. Aerial view over Bank Buildings following Tuesdays fire.. Photo by Gregory Weeks. Aerial view over Bank Buildings following Tuesdays fire.. / Facebook

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Whatsapp Aerial views showing the aftermath of the fire in the Bank Buildings - Primark Belfast - August 29th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott)

Last night, the former Ulster Unionist Party council candidate defended a post on Twitter in which he said the inferno "was an act of God".

But gay Belfast UUP councillor Jeff Dudgeon slammed his remarks as "despicable" and said he would be "better keeping his thoughts to himself". The landmark 118-year-old listed building in the heart of the city centre has been left a smouldering ruin after a fire ripped through it on Tuesday last week.

Hundreds of jobs at the store, one of the busiest in the city, have been put at risk and it's still not known if the facade of the building can be saved.

Mr Houston, who has appeared on the Nolan shows on TV and radio, told Sunday Life: "God is not mocked, they had two windows exploiting this and telling people to come in and buy their clothes.

"You can't tell me that is a coincidence, many years ago I worked in it as a security guard for a number of years so I understand that everybody loves it, that it was a great shop.

"But once you go down that line, that you show your window off and use it as a political stunt to try to get custom, that's not the right way to live."

Mr Houston (right), who once stood for the UUP in a local election, is currently serving a 30-day ban from Facebook for a post about an LGBT event in Belfast.

He refused to accept that his remarks may be hurtful to members of the LGBT community.

"Why would it be hurtful? I'm a minister, 26 years ago somebody said to me that I was living the wrong way," he said.

"I carried on living the way I wanted to live but I realised it was not a fruitful lifestyle, so I changed my lifestyle, it might be hurtful at the time but it's the truth.

"They can choose whatever way they want to live but there's consequences, when you mock God, God does not just sit back and watch.

"He holds hands back for so long then what happens is he turns round and shows you, he's not doing it to harm them but to show them this is not the right way to go."

Mr Houston stressed that though he believes homosexuality to be wrong, it was people's right to live that way without fear of violence or persecution.

Last night, Mr Dudgeon, who took a landmark case to the European Court of Human Rights which led to the decriminalising of homosexuality in Northern Ireland, said his remarks were "mindless".

Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Expand Previous Next Close Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Compsite showing the fire from 11:06 am to 4:35 pm Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service are attending an incident in Belfast city centre. The Northern Ireland Fire and Rescue Service are attending an incident in Belfast city centre. Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph Firefighters deal with a major blaze at Primark in Belfast on August 28th 2018 (Photo by Kevin Scott for Belfast Telegraph) Kevin Scott / Belfast Telegraph / Facebook

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"It's pretty obvious that it's a despicable remark," he said.

"You could say 1,000 things criticising it. Blaming every catastrophe on somebody's sins, where do you stop? Whose sins brought down the Titanic?

"It's just unconvincing. It would be better if they kept their thoughts to themselves."

Pastor Houston was one of several Christian fundamentalists who took to social media to claim the Primark fire was God's revenge for the company's promotion of Belfast Pride.

Fermanagh man Wesley Rutledge posted on Facebook on Thursday: "We have seen the judgment hand of God in this mighty fire and devastation.

"It sends a clear message to the business and retail community of Belfast and Northern Ireland that God is not mocked.

"Don't think that you can flaunt and promote the sodomy of gay pride in the faces of the population and society in general and think that you'll get off with it... You were warned before the fire that God is not pleased."

And Magherafelt man William Brown closed his Facebook page after he received a barrage of criticism and personal abuse over a post in which he claimed the Primark fire was God's wrath. Mr Brown later posted a message saying he wanted his Facebook page closed as he no longer felt safe on the site.
A Belfast holidaymaker has told of his Thai prison terror after being banged-up abroad accused of stealing a crocodile skull.

Waleed Bradley (31) was on holiday with his pals in southern Thailand in 2014 on a booze-fuelled party rampage when he landed himself in a Thai jail.

"There were lots of cockroaches, it was dark, the walls smelled like faeces. It was really grim.

"Within about 10 minutes I was crying," admitted Waleed.

The young marketing man and his friends were on the last night of their holiday in 2014, drinking heavily and hopping between bars and clubs, when he began larking around with a crocodile skull on sale in a bazaar.

He has now revealed his nightmare in a episode of Channel 5 Star's programme Young, Dumb and Banged Up in the Sun.

"We were going all out knowing it was the last day of the holiday," he said.

"Every night we were partying, in a nutshell a bit of a crazy trip.

"We were completely hammered walking through a market and came across this random stall.

"There was a sign that said, 'Do not touch' but it wasn't really a legitimate sign so I lifted up the skull, held it up to my friend's face and held it up to my face pretending it's biting my neck, just jesting.

"My first reaction was not to put it back (but) to stash it for possible later robbery. We just went on our way and continued the night. Banter."

The boys went on bar hopping into the night and thought nothing more of their antics with the skull, but Waleed was in for a shock the following morning.

After waking up naked in a hotel room with a girl, whose name he couldn't remember, Waleed stumbled back to where he was staying and passed out after searching a nearby beach for his missing phone.

"We just heard this boom boom boom at the door. At that moment I completely crapped myself. I was in serious trouble," said Waleed.

"All I could see in the light was the officer standing there with handcuffs in his hand. I knew the Thai police didn't mess about, then I started thinking something serious had happened last night. I was really scared, really scared."

Under Thai law theft carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison, however, this increases to a possible five years if the offence occurs in the evening.

After being driven to a nearby police station on the back of an officer's moped, Waleed was accused of stealing the crocodile skull and shown CCTV images of his behaviour the previous evening.

The owner of the stall demanded he pay the equivalent of 8,000, which Waleed refused to pay, pleading with cops that he was due to leave the island that day.

But he was locked up by the police and faced a potentially hefty jail term.

He said: "At that point I was told it was a minimum of four days and I was just thinking how am I gonna spend four days in this cell.

"I was thinking if I do four days here and then I have to do four months in another jail, how am I gonna survive?"

Before travelling to Phi Phi island for their final blow-out, the lads met a pair of Israeli girls and ended up partying with them in a Buddhist shrine. They ended up offering to pay for the crocodile skull with the stall owner accepting 3,500.

Waleed was forced to take a picture with the stall owner so he could be publicly shamed as part of his punishment.

"When I got out of the police station I just ran towards the sea and dove in. We got a few more beers and wrote 'freedom' in the sand.

"How could they do that to me, like? How could messing around with a crocodile skull end with me having to bail myself out of jail?

"Thailand is corrupt in that sense," he told Young, Dumb and Banged Up in the Sun.

Waleed later reimbursed his two Israeli rescuers with the 3,500 they had paid to secure his freedom.
BBC presenter Noel Thompson caused a stir after asking a teenage schoolgirl if she knew about 'Netflix and chill'.

Unknown to the 61-year-old broadcaster, the term is an internet slang term for some form of sex, with Wikipedia describing it as "either as part of a romantic partnership or as a booty call".

Good Morning Ulster's Noel was interviewing a 17-year-old Co Antrim schoolgirl who spends most of her spare time volunteering and is the latest recipient of a Diana award, named in memory of the late Princess Di and which recognises a young person's social action and humanitarian work.

The schoolgirl was explaining her educational work with Women's Aid on topics such as domestic violence as well as work with Children In Need.

But the youngster was stunned to be interrupted by Noel asking: "Do you even recognise the term Netflix and chill?"

When she nervously replied "um, yeah" he laughed: "I'm just wondering with your schoolwork and all that other stuff, do you have down time, do you just sit around chatting to your friends, watching a bit of telly."

Listeners took to Twitter to tell Good Morning Ulster about the cringe-making gaffe with Mark Reel tweeting them: "Noel obviously doesn't know what 'Netflix and chill' actually means".

He also tweeted them a link to an internet description of it and Simon McCrory commented "so awkward". Tony Ferris said: "I think someone needs to explain Netflix and chill to Noel hahahaha". And a Twitter user called Aisling said: "Someone pull Noel from @BBCgmu to one side and tell him about 'Netflix and chill'. Oh no you didn't just ask a young girl about that! Lol."

Another called Kate asked "Did Noel just say Netflix and chill???" while Victor Sullivan said: "Middle aged man on @radioulster just asked a 17-year-old girl if she'd ever heard of Netflix and chill. Creeped me out."

A BBC spokeswoman said: "Noel was clearly not aware of any other connotation of this term and expanded his question immediately to ask the interviewee how she managed to fit watching television and relaxing with all her school and volunteering work."
The couple cannot be named for legal reasons.

THE tourist board is taking two people to court for renting their houses out as tourist accommodation without approval from Tourism NI.

David Stewart and Stuart Campbell both face charges of letting out their properties without a certificate under the Tourism Order (NI) 1992.

Mr Stewart is accused of letting out an apartment in Cabin Hill Close, off the Upper Newtownards Road in east Belfast, between March 26 and April 17 this year.

Mr Campbell is alleged to have committed the same offence with his property on Richardson Street, close to the Ravenhill Road, in the south of the city between March 26 and May 15 this year.

Both cases are due to be heard at Belfast Departmental Magistrates Court on Tuesday.
Myanmar court jails Reuters reporters for seven years in landmark secrets case

A Myanmar judge on Monday found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and jailed them for seven years, in a landmark case seen as a test of progress toward democracy in the Southeast Asian country.
- Introduces rear cylinder deactivation technology

- Rear cylinder is deactivated when the bike is standstill

Indian Motorcycles has introduced a new rear cylinder deactivation technology. This new tech will be first seen on the 2019 Springfield, Roadmaster and the Chief.

When the system detects that the bike is at a standstill, the ambient temperature is above 15 degrees Celsius and the engine has reached its operating temperature, the rear cylinder is deactivated. To activate that cylinder, the rider needs to just twist the throttle. The company claims that this technology reduces engine heat which increases the overall rider comfort. It also burns less while idling or riding in traffic.

The American brand has also equipped these three cruisers with three riding modes tour, standard and sport. Each of these riding modes has its own custom throttle map. In touring mode, the throttle response is relaxed for laidback cruising. The standard offers slightly aggressive throttle response for urban riding. The sport mode is where the throttle response is aggressive.
Technology has enabled and equipped millions around the world with a digital presence.

Immunization is one of the most cost-effective interventions to prevent the suffering that comes from avoidable sickness, disability and death. However, every year, five lakh children die in India due to vaccine preventable diseases and another 89 lakh remain at risk due to partial or no immunization.

One of the key challenges is that children are still being missed from the immunization coverage. The government counts as missed those who have either not had any vaccinations or those who have had incomplete vaccinations. Government data shows that in percentage terms, the number of children and mothers who are missed, has not dropped drastically.

To achieve full immunization coverage in India, meticulous planning, strong logistics and cross-functional innovation to transport a vaccine from its manufacturing site to administration in the field is required. First, we need to build our existing capacity like increasing the ability of our technical staff to handle complex vaccine environment and familiarize them with best practices in supply chain management. Second, vaccines under all conditions, need to be carefully temperature managed so that they dont lose their potency. At the heart of a robust delivery system is the cold chain infrastructure. Cold chains help preserve vaccines at prescribed temperatures and maintain product-specific environmental parameters including air quality levels. They are the primary source for transporting and storing vaccines, more so in tropical climate of developing countries like India. Third, we need efficient collection of reliable data for informed decision-making in planning for vaccine distribution, improving supply chains and introducing newer vaccines in the future.

A major challenge being faced is that nearly 10 million children around the globe do not have their existence formally registered. Recognising this global challenge, the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) has an indicator for the same to ensure that everyone has a legal entity by 2030. This is crucial especially for those living in remote or vulnerable areas. Unregistered births are a big deterrent to achieving the SDG which is aimed at ending preventable deaths for children below the age of five years by giving them access to affordable vaccines. However, Technology has enabled and equipped millions around the world with a digital presence. These innovations could also help in aiding the public-health community in vaccinating every child. For example, Khushi Baby is a digital platform that helps in providing health records through a necklace worn by the infant which carries a unique identification number on a communication chip. The community health workers can access this chip through a mobile phone for updating the childs digital record.

Full immunization against vaccine-preventable diseases is the right of every child. Artificial Intelligence and data are playing a key role in achieving immunization as the Ministry of Health and Family Welfare in partnership with The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is implementing the eVIN (Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network) as a step towards enhancing immunization coverage. This technology is an indigenously developed system that digitizes vaccine stocks and monitors the temperature of the cold chain through a smartphone application. The Electronic Vaccine Intelligence Network aims to strengthen the evidence base for improved policy-making in vaccine delivery, procurement and planning for new antigens. This will be a powerful proposition in the days to come for strengthening health systems through easy and timely availability of vaccines to all children.

The government is also contributing to the aim of immunizing every child in the country. The Government of India launched the Universal Immunization Programme (UIP) in 1985, one of the largest health programme of its kind in the world. Being operational for over 30 years, UIP has been able to fully immunize 65% children in the first year of their life. The increase in coverage has stagnated in the past 6-7 years to an average of 1% every year. To strengthen and invigorate the programme and achieve full immunization coverage (FIC) for all children at a rapid pace, the Government of India launched Mission Indradhanush in December 2014. Acknowledging the impact of MI, Government of India in 2018 introduced Mission Indradhanush (IMI) in aspirational districts of the country to achieve the target of more than 90% full immunization coverage(FIC). The goal of 90% FIC has now been advanced to December 2018.

The future of vaccines and attaining immunization in India lies in collaboration, innovative technological solutions and intelligent delivery designs.

Dr Davinder Gill, Chief Executive Officer, MSD Wellcome Trust Hilleman Laboratories
PMJAY is not possible without the engagement of the private sector. We need to create a pipeline of specialists and private sector can help in filling that gap

Union Health & Family Welfare Minister J P Nadda said that the government was keen to formalise a multi-stakeholder forum to arrive at policy decisions and formulate implementable strategies to make healthcare affordable and accessible to all. He was addressing FICCI HEAL 2018 with the theme 'Healthcare at Crossroads', jointly organised by FICCI and NITI Aayog.

"There is no formal structure for policy interaction and very soon we will have a forum where multi-stakeholders will join hands with the government for policy decisions and program implementation plans," he said and added that such synergies would be important to achieve a hepatitis-free India by 2030.

The Minister added that Ayushman Bharat (Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojna) looks at health holistically with twin pillars of Health and Wellness Centres for comprehensive Primary health Care and financial protection for secondary and tertiary care hospitalisation.

Dr. V K Paul, Member (Health), NITI Aayog, Government of India said that as course correction in healthcare takes place, quality and ethics will be the guiding force. He urged the private sector to engage with the government in providing quality care at reasonable rates, monitored by the government. He said, "PMJAY is not possible without the engagement of the private sector. We need to create a pipeline of specialists and private sector can help in filling that gap."

Sangita Reddy, Vice President, FICCI and Joint MD, Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Ltd. said, "India is no longer at crossroads with the launch of Ayushman Bharat. Healthcare has entered the Universal Collective Super Highway."

Setting theme of the conference, Brig. Dr Arvind Lal, Chair, FICCI Health Services Committee and CMD, Dr Lal PathLabs said that in order to ensure appropriate costs for procedures covered under the Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Abhiyaan, while maintaining the quality of services, it is important to derive rational and sustainable package rates. "There is a strong need to understand costs from the perspective of all relevant stakeholders, the government, the providers and the consumer."

Prof. (Dr.) Dinesh Bhugra, CBE, President, British Medical Association said, "There is need to shift the focus from secondary healthcare and hospitals to primary care. There is also a need to change the way we train the next generation of doctors and medical students."

The Health Minister also released the 'FICCI Code of Ethics for the Health Services Industry. A FICCI White Paper 'Demystifying Healthcare Costs', was also released during the session.

A major concern that the healthcare sector is facing today is the rising trust deficit - between the private sector and the government as well as between the provider and the patient. FICCI recognises the need for transparency and accountability in the functioning of all healthcare establishments - whether private or public.

Hence, the FICCI Task Force on Accountability, along with the stakeholders from the government and industry, has developed the 'Code of Ethics for the health services industry', which encourages members to voluntarily and collectively commit to ethical professional conduct for patient care.

Already, 7 other Associations, with more than 30,000 institutional and individual members and more than 15 healthcare organizations from across India, have endorsed the FICCI Code of Ethics.
NADA Auto Show slated for Sept 11 kick off

The 13th edition of Nepal Automobile Dealers Association (NADA) Auto Show 2018, Nepals biggest automobile exhibition, is scheduled to begin from September 11 at Bhrikutimandap Exhibition Hall in Kathmandu.
OMG! 14 Worms Were Removed From This Womans Left Eye! Life oi-Syeda Farah

What happens when your eyes itch and you decide to rub it hard? The only thing you can think about during this time is how to get some relief. However, what happens when you rub your eye and feel something unusual and when you try to pull it out, what if it is a worm?

Sounds crazy, right? However, this is precisely what happened to Abby Beckley who had 14 worms in her left eye!

Most Bizarre Things Doctors Have Removed From Humans; #3 Is Shocking!

Check out this bizarre incident and the factors that caused the worms to live in her eye...

She Had An Itchy Eye For A While According to reports, Abby Beckley felt a prick under her eyelid, and she assumed it to be a stray lash. She visited the doctor when she realised that she was pulling out worms from her eyes! She Discovered She Was Removing Worms From Her Eyes She revealed that she accidentally discovered that she had worms in her eyes while she was rubbing her eye. She added: "I put my fingers in there in kind of a picking motion and I pulled out a worm, I looked at my finger, and it was moving, and I was shocked." Women You Won't Believe Exist!! Her Condition Only Got Worse Over a period, since she was not sure of the foreign object to be a worm, she ignored the condition and had pulled out about six more of the tiny worms over the next few days. She decided to visit the doctor only when it got painful, and the discovery of the worms was becoming a standard issue. The Doctors Examined Her Condition It was diagnosed that she had worms in her eye and these worms were Thelazia gulosa, which is a parasite that is typically found in cow eyeballs. It Took 20 Days To Remove All The Worms The doctors revealed that all the worms could not be pulled out in a single shot as they had to wait until they showed up and were visible before pulling them out. The worms that were pulled out were less than half-inch long in size. It Was Caused By Medics believe that Beckley was infected when a fly had landed on her eye while she was travelling through cattle fields. It is also reported that this is the 11th case of a human being infected in the USA. Whatever may be the reason, the thought of having worms in your eyes can leave us to feel creepy. Mind-game: Choose An Eye And Learn About The Secret Of Your Mind For more interesting stuff, please check our section Insync.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 18:45 [IST]
What Were The Six Things That Only Lord Hanuman Could Do? Faith Mysticism oi-Renu

Shiv Puran says that Lord Hanuman was the incarnation of Lord Shiva. Lord Ram was the incarnation of Lord Vishnu. It is said that Lord Hanuman took birth just to help Lord Ram, in his aim of establishing Dharma on the earth.

Scriptures mention that there were a few things only Lord Hanuman could do. Take a look at what those six things were.

Crossed The Massive Sea

Lord Hanuman, Angad, Jamvant etc. came to the sea, while on their search for Goddess Sita. As they saw the extreme size of the sea, they were left spellbound. None of them could gather the courage to cross such a big sea. Upon this, Jamvant, a member from his army, recalled that Hanuman was the only one who was blessed with such wonderful strength. He made Hanuman understand his capabilities, after which Lord Hanuman is believed to have crossed the sea in one go.

Found Goddess Sita

Lord Hanuman was on his search for Goddess Sita. As he reached Lanka, the kingdom of Ravana, he met the demoness Lankini at the gates of the kingdom. The demoness was so powerful that no one other than Lord Hanuman could have defeated her. He used his mental and physical strength rightly, and thus successfully found out Goddess Sita sitting under the tree in the Ashoka Vatika. The incarnation of Goddess Lakshmi, Goddess Sita also took no time to recognise him. None other than Lord Hanuman could have reached her at that time.

Killed Akshay Kumar

After conveying the message of Lord Ram to Goddess Sita, Lord Hanuman destroyed most of the parts of Lanka. When Ravana sent his son Akshay Kumar to him, Lord Hanuman killed him as well. This brought tensions in the entire kingdom. Ravana called Hanuman to his court and still failed in making him his captive. Hanuman finally put the whole Lanka on fire. He did so, just to make him realize the prowess of the enemy, Lord Ram. Only Hanuman could do it that efficiently.

Trusted Vibhishan & Took Him To Lord Ram

When Lord Hanuman heard somebody chanting the name of Lord Ram, he took the form of a priest and appeared before him. As Hanuman asked, he came to know that the man was, Vibhishan, the brother of Ravana but a supporter of Lord Ram. When Vibhishan expressed the desire to meet Lord Ram, no one but Lord Hanuman showed trust in him and thus, took him to meet Lord Ram. Vibhishan later helped Lord Ram in killing Ravana.

Carried The Sanjeevani Booti

Indrajeet, the son of Ravana, had used Brahmastra during the battle between Lord Ram's and Ravana's army. Majority of the army, as well as Lord Ram and Lakshman, had fainted because of its effects. Sanjeevani Booti was the only remedy for it. And none other than Hanuman could get it from the Himalayas in time. Lord Hanuman, carried the whole mountain on his arms.

Killed Many Other Demons & Defeated Ravana Once

Lord Hanuman killed many demons during the battle. This includes demons such as Dhumraksh, Ankpan, Devantak, Trishira, Nikukbh etc. It is said that a fierce battle between Lord Hanuman and Ravana had also taken place. Ravana was defeated and the entire army of Hanuman rejoiced when he defeated him once. But Ravana could not die at the hands of Lord Hanuman since Ravana was destined to be killed by Lord Ram.
Tika R Pradhan is a senior political correspondent for the Post, covering politics, parliament, judiciary and social affairs. Pradhan joined the Post in 2016 after working at The Himalayan Times for more than a decade.
Officials, Army defend BIMSTEC drill plans Joint military exercise

The joint military exercise among the armies of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (BIMSTEC) member countries scheduled for next week in the Indian city of Goa has been mired in controversy, amid new details that plans for the exercise were never discussed during the summit in Kathmandu.
Party palace sealed for selling substandard food

The Department of Supply Management and Protection of Consumers Interest sealed on Saturday, Naya Bazaar Multi Venuea banquet and an event venue in the Valley, on the charge of selling substandard food items posing risk to the consumers health.
Rite of reform

The new constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal aims for a complete transformation of governance, a paradigm shift from a unitary system to the devolution of power.
SC orders release of CPN spokesperson Bishwakarma

The Supreme Court (SC) on Monday ordered the Home Ministry to release Khadga Bahadur Bishwokarma, spokesperson of Netra Bikram Chand-led Communist Party of Nepal (CPN).
By Padraig Hoare

Career guidance services are under-resourced, offer disjointed support to individuals later in life and are out of tune with the needs of employers, according to Ibec.

A new report by the business organisation called for a major overhaul of the national career guidance system so that individuals of all ages can make better, more informed choice about their futures.

The report called for a new national strategy for lifelong career guidance to provide career guidance support for individuals throughout their entire lives.

It said a specialist careers advisory service should be supported through the National Training Fund to supplement current school guidance provision.

A single national web portal for career guidance was also needed, Ibec said.

The report also called for labour market intelligence to be better tailored for use by career guidance professionals, and more engagement by business with the careers services in schools and colleges.

Ibec senior executive for labour market and skills policy, Kara McGann said: Irelands current career guidance provision is fragmented and inconsistent.

It is not meeting the needs of people faced with a changing world of work, despite the commitment of careers guidance professionals.

The world has changed fundamentally over the last two decades.

"We have seen the departure of the job for life, the emergence of roles that never existed before and the loss of many unskilled and semi-skilled jobs to globalisation, digitalisation and technological changes.

We need a new world-class model of career guidance which embraces lifelong learning and changing career paths throughout individuals lives."

Ms McGann said better support for post-primary school career guidance is particularly urgent.

We need to supplement current provision with a specialist careers advisory service that works with schools guidance counsellors.

This would enable students to identify their interests, skills and competences, manage transitions and make the appropriate decisions to meet their needs time and again.
A leading international expert has told an event on gender equality in Cork today that organisations are experiencing gender fatigue when it comes to implementing gender diversity.

Carol Kulik, Research Professor of Human Resource Management, University of South Australia Business School told the conference at UCC that, despite a sense of urgency from external pressures over implementing gender diversity, the opposite is happening in organisations.

Ms Kulik said: It is getting hard to generate enthusiasm in organisations with regard to gender diversity and many businesses are experiencing gender fatigue. It is hard to keep gender diversity issues on the boil and thats a shame.

The conference heard that organisations that have females in senior management roles have higher sales and higher levels of creativity and innovation.

Minister of State at the Department of Justice and Equality, David Stanton, told the conference that he can see improvements in how business is done in Leinster House now that there are more female politicians.

Minister Stanton said: When a critical mass of women are in decision-making, the culture of an organisation changes.

I have seen at first-hand within Leinster House the benefits of greater gender balance.

"While we are far from reaching gender parity in political representation, the culture in Leinster House has transformed with the increase in the number of women TDs and senators at the last election."

He explained how TDs in Leinster House do their day-to-day business differently.

He said: It is much more common for mixed groups of female and male politicians to sit down together to discuss issues and to work collaboratively to devise solutions.

"Our priorities have broadened too, to accommodate the interests of women as well as men.

"Having more women as politicians is enabling the democratic process to become more truly representative of Irish society.

Ms Kulik said that in Australia now there are around 28% of females on company boards, whereas that figure is 16% in Ireland. She said that that is where Australia was around four years ago.

Ms Kulik also spoke about the impact of implementing flexible work practices and appointing more females on company boards.

She said some research shows that when there are fewer females on company boards the gender pay gap in organisations is much greater, up to 50%.

Ronan Carbery of the HRRC said: While historically there has been relatively low labour force participation amongst women in Ireland, this has markedly improved over the last 20 years where we are now in a position where over 60% of adult women are in employment.

"However we still have a constitution that refers to the State recognising that a womans life is played out in the home."

"In addition, over a third of women in the Irish workforce have considered leaving or left their professional positions due to opportunity inequalities in their company.

"Organisations that have females in senior management roles have higher sales, and higher levels of creativity and innovation.

Ms Kulik said progress may be plateauing, and that visible increases in gender diversity at the top may be masking deeper, systemic gender equality.

The question today  in Ireland, as it is in many developed countries  is not whether women can or should work," said Professor Kulik.

"The question is whether the work women do is valued as much as the work men do, and whether womens work is as likely as mens to lead to senior management roles.
Software aims to help teachers plan aspects of the new Junior Cycle, writes Trish Dromey.

Maynooth start-up SchoolWise is confident it will get top marks from schools for new technology designed to make the implementation of the new Junior Cycle as painless as possible.

The performance and learning management platform for secondary schools developed by the three-year-old company is currently being used in over 50 schools around Ireland.

By the end of this academic year we aim to grow the number to over 120  we are now actively fundraising and plan to pilot software in UK this academic year and launch in the UK market in the 2020/21 academic year, says company co-founder Leslie Turner.

Explaining that the key change being introduced by Junior Cycle reform is a shift away from a teaching system based on course content to one where the focus is on learning outcomes, he says that the companys platform allows teachers to plan the curriculum and guides them through the entire process step by step.

The platform also allows for the delivery of lesson plans, for assessment and academic tracking of student performance and enables teachers to meet the new reporting and compliance requirements.

It ensures that students reach the specified targets set out in the new Junior Cycle added Mr Turner.

While the platform has been specifically designed to suit the Irish curriculum, the company has already begun making plans to expand in to the UK market.

We exhibited at BETT, Europes largest education technology event last year to test the market. We estimate that only 10% of the platform needs to be adapted to suit the UK curriculum, he said.

Mr Turner says that educational reform and the adoption of stricter performance and compliance requirements has created a growing demand for this type of technology globally.

Five years ago when Junior Cycle reform was still at the planning stages, Mr Turner and company co-founder Liam Fennelly identified an opportunity to develop the technology which could be used to help implement the changes.

Friends who both had companies providing training and consultancy services, and developing technology solutions for the education sector, the two men decided to team up and set up new company for this purpose.

Leslie Turner

We talked to school management, principals and the NCCA  the department of education body responsible for developing the new Junior Cycle and they gave us guidance, said Mr Turner.

SchoolWise, which according to Mr Turner, was the first Irish company to develop curriculum management software specifically for the Irish education system, was established at MaynoothWorks incubation in February 2015.

Using their own funding, the founders hired a developer and set to work on developing the curriculum planning software, which was piloted at 15 schools around Leinster the following academic year.

We had assistance from principals and schools to build out the platform and in September 2017 we were ready for launch, said Mr Turner, adding that the company received 50,000 in funding from Enterprise Ireland which helped it employ four additional people bringing the staff size up to seven.

SchoolWise used a combination of mail shots and cold calling to get the attention of school management starting with schools in Leinster before targeting others around the country.

We sell to schools with 15 students as well as some with over 1,000. Clients include the Presentation College in

Athenry, Sion Hill in Blackrock as well as Gael Colaiste in Limerick, said Mr Turner.

With the reopening of schools, he says that SchoolWise is now busy training teachers in schools which signed up the platform last year as well as targeting new schools.

CompuB has now become a reseller for the software which is sold on an annual licence to schools based on the number of students.

Talking to potential investors with a view to raising over 750,000, Mr Turner says the company is planning to grow the staff size to 12 over the next 18 months.

Our aim is to be the dominant player in the Irish market and to get a foothold in the UK market, he said.
By Padraig Hoare

The top-three priorities for business in Cork are a housing stimulus, capital investment, and tax reforms, according to Cork Chambers latest economic survey.

The bodys third quarterly economic survey of 2018, which asked 1,200 Cork Chamber members about upcoming budget priorities, found that more businesses favour tax reforms to improve competitiveness (46%) over increased spend on public services (25%).

The survey pinpointed Brexit as the top threat to business growth, followed by the availability of housing and rental accommodation for employees, and the availability of skills.

Cork Chamber chief executive, Conor Healy, said that housing had to keep up with Corks economic growth, or the region would lose out to competitive regions.

The Cork economy has returned to considerable strength, with a very robust business outlook and strong growth opportunities.

Nationally, alongside Dublin, the south-west region has the lowest unemployment rate in the State, while Cork continues to attract more talent and investment, which is encouraging, at a time when we are poised to become the fastest-growing city in Ireland.

That said, we are still unable to meet demand for urban accommodation for rent for the many companies that are now expanding in Cork.

If unaddressed, a shortage of rental accommodation will cause Irish city regions to lose investment opportunities, both inward and indigenous.

As the Government finalises Budget 2019, we ask that more stimulus towards urban rental accommodation is prioritised and we will be formally submitting this request, as part of the budget-consultation process.

Meanwhile, at 95%, business confidence remains high in Cork, up 4% on the second quarter, the survey found.

Just under half of those surveyed expect to hire more staff over the coming 12 months, while 70% expect an increase in net profits in the next year, survey results showed.
A leading planning consultancy based in the North has announced the opening of a new, fully staffed office in Dublin.

Gravis Planning's expansion will initially create three new posts and has been announced in response to the companys growing Irish client base, as demand for its services continues to increase.

The firm currently works with a range of clients throughout the UK and Ireland including private developers, housebuilders, landowners, local authorities, public sector bodies and financial institutions.

An important aspect of the firms offering is its in-house Strategic Communications team, which handles all engagement relating to new development proposals, including community consultation, stakeholder engagement and media relations.

Its Dublin office will be led by Ed Barrett, who has successfully delivered planning permission for a wide range of landmark developments in both the UK and Ireland.

"Were very excited to formally enter the Irish market, as we believe we bring an approach and level of service that isnt currently on offer elsewhere," Mr Barrett said.

"Good planning is going to play a central role if the scale of development and infrastructure required in Ireland over the coming years is to be delivered.

"We are strategic and commercially focussed in everything we do. That, coupled with the fact that we are an independent consultancy, with senior staff working on every project we undertake, means we are perfectly positioned to meet the needs of our clients.

"Were currently working with a number of clients in Ireland and look forward to growing our Dublin-based team to mirror the scale of our practice in Northern Ireland."

Gravis Plannings Strategic Communications team will be overseen by Daniel McLaughlin, expanding on his current role with the company in Belfast.

He says their experience in Northern Ireland shows that development proposals now need specialist strategic communications support from the outset.

"Public interest in development and how land is being used has never been greater, Mr McLaughlin said.

"We know from experience that good communication with key stakeholders from an early stage helps avoid delays in the planning system and ultimately results in higher quality approvals.
Sinead Dunphy believes the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival can grow again to emulate the success of major international events, writes Padraig Hoare.

For Guinness Cork Jazz Festival director Sinead Dunphy, the city has every right to think itself as a major player on the global arts scene.

Having worked in a pub to put herself through UCC where she studied drama and theatre, the Waterford native worked her way to the top of the tree in the Cork arts world over the past 18 years, managing bands and organising concerts, heading up business development and marketing at Cork Opera House, in between stints in a bank and accounting firms.

After a successful tenure as Cork Choral Festival manager, where market research indicated it was worth 11.5m to the local economy in 2017 with over 47,000 attendees, Ms Dunphy was headhunted to lead the team for the revered jazz festival, one of Corks most anticipated annual events.

Highly regarded for her financial, data, marketing and business acumen, Ms Dunphy is convinced Cork should be looking to emulate the likes of New Orleans and Montreal in terms of jazz, not live in their shadow.

In the development of my vision for the festival, I created a vision statement.

"One of the things was to foster an awareness of jazz but also to establish a hub of the genre.

"Im meeting all these festivals across the world to create partnerships in the long-term.

"Were looking at some significant international partnerships going forward. New Orleans is on the radar, Montreal is on the radar.

As Cork people, we have such pride and we should never undermine what we are capable of in any genre.

"That is the most important part of the festival for me, it is to strive to be bigger and better, Ms Dunphy said.

Cork can be synonymous with jazz all over the world, she said.

Across the world, a lot of jazz festivals have gone down the commercial route.

"Cork has gone a little more commercial in the last couple of years, and for very valid reasons.

"Im trying to bring it back to the essence of the festival, which is jazz music.

"This years programme is testament to that, and I hope people can agree with it and support it.

"We have the possibility of being the segue between transatlantic and continental, she said.

Retaining the 9% Vat rate for the hospitality sector in the upcoming Budget will help the likes of the Guinness Cork Jazz Festival grow internationally, according to Ms Dunphy  but valid criticism of skyrocketing hotel prices for major events needs addressing, she said.

To retain the 9% would be the most beneficial thing. Ive done a lot of work with hoteliers and Failte Ireland over the years and it is them we need to be supporting.

"Theyre helping bring in the people with festivals.

"Were creating experiential packages for these visitors, who ultimately have a good time and continue to go back.

A by-product of that is the spending in the restaurants and the shops, and also supporting indigenous industry that is the fabric of local life.

"Were not talking about spending in an international chain in Cork when they can simply do that at home, were talking about small indigenous shops that are creating something incredibly valuable.

"Retaining the 9% is really important to allow that happen.

However, I do agree that hotels in terms of when big events happen, they need to look at themselves. Prices shoot up.

"Ive met with the Cork Convention Bureau and the Irish Hotels Federation and they have been very supportive in creating and retaining reasonable rates for my artists, so we are creating this big experience for everyone together.

At the same time, you look at the Ed Sheeran concerts which forced the Cork Choral Festival to move. It had a massively negative impact simply because the hoteliers increased prices to such high rates that it was physically impossible for us [at the Choral Festival] to bring thousands of people to the city. They couldnt afford hotels.

Maybe there should be an understanding that if the 9% Vat rate was to be retained, that negotiation should happen that a strict top line be put in place as to the rates that can be increased.

"That will ultimately bring everyone together singing off the same sheet, she said.

An event centre for Cork would be transformative, according to Ms Dunphy.

Additional infrastructure, whether it be hotels, event centres or concert halls is massively important to the growth of festivals.

"Im sure there would be smaller festivals who feel it may harm what they are doing, but if you look at somewhere like Dublins docklands, youll see that the 3Arena has led to the absolute regeneration of that area.

"It was so important to the overall infrastructure of Dublin.

I believe an event centre in Cork could do the same for Cork. We should always be aiming higher and higher for Cork.

"The Jazz Festival could bring in the likes of Jamiroquai, a massive acid jazz fusion band with an international reputation.

"We have wonderful venues but an event centre would allow us to compete monetarily to bring the likes of Jamiroquai here, which means in turn that the festival can get bigger.
Update 11.10am: The Tanaiste says he has no issue with people protesting over the visit of US President Donald Trump to Ireland in November.

But Simon Coveney says people need to respect the office of the US President.

Several politicians, including some government ministers, say they will boycott the visit.

Speaking to Cork's 96fm the Foreign Affairs Minister says that protests are part of a democracy.

"When President Trump comes to Ireland I'm sure there will be some protests highlighting concerns and issues that Irish people have," he said.

I certainly have no problem with that, that's part of a very healthy democracy.

"President Trump is a controversial president. He does divide opinion. He does attract protests when he travels outside of the US and I'm sure that's not unexpected from their perspective."

Digital Desk

Earlier: Denis Naughten on Donald Trump protests: 'We should respect office of US President'

Update 8.52am: The Minister for Communications has warned that people need to respect the office of the US President.

Denis Naughten has refused to directly criticise fellow Government Ministers who have threatened to demonstrate during Donald Trump's planned visit here in November.

He has said that protesting will not solve any problems.

The Taoiseach claims there is a standing invitation for any US President to come to Ireland, despite the visit coming "out of the blue".

Mr Naughten agrees that President Trump is welcome here.

"People will make their own decisions in relation to whether they want to protest in relation to Donald Trump or not.

"I believe, and strongly believe, that we should respect the office of the President of the United States, he does represent the people of the United States and we have strong ties and engagements with communities right across the United States.
State 2 minister joins protest against holiday defiance

Province 2 Minister for Internal Affairs and Law Gyanendra Kumar Yadav is on a mission to enforce public holidays to all and sundry.
Gardai have seized over 34,000 from a home in Dublin.

Cannabis worth 3,000 and 500-worth of cocaine were also seized during the search of an apartment was searched at Falcon View, Blanchardstown on Saturday.

The search was part of an ongoing investigation by gardai into the sale and distribution of controlled substances in the Blanchardstown area.

A man, 31, was arrested and detained at Finglas Garda station under the provisions of section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act 1996 as amended.

He was charged and is due to appear at Blanchardstown District Court this morning.

Digital Desk
By Tom Tuite

A Dublin supermarket has been ordered to pay 750 to charity to avoid a conviction and a larger fine for hiring a foreign employee who did not have a permit to work in Ireland.

The Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) prosecuted the St Marys Supermarket, trading as Gala, at Collins Avenue, Whitehall Dublin, after an inspector visited the premisses on two dates last year.

The supermarket pleaded guilty at Dublin District Court to one charge under the Employment Permits Act which can result in a conviction as well as fine of up to 4,000. The WRC did not proceed with a second charge which was withdrawn.

WRC inspector Caroline Halpin agreed with prosecuting solicitor Edel Muldowney that on October 12, 2017 she visited the premises where one member of staff, an Indian national, was working on the shop floor.

She left her card for the manager to contact her and on November 3 last the director of the supermarket agreed to forward her documentation.

The employee had a stamp three status, however, that did not grant him permission to work in the State, the inspector said.

She told the court that on November 7 last she went back there to return the documents and the same employee was still working in the supermarket. She then wrote to the company to inform it of a breach of the employment permit legislation.

She agreed with defence counsel Patrick Jackson that the firm was polite and mannerly.

Judge John Cheatle noted the firm had no prior convictions.

Pleading for leniency, Mr Jackson asked the court to note three directors from the supermarket had come to court. He said they too were Indian nationals but two of them had become Irish citizens.

Counsel said he had explained to them the legal requirements which they had not known.

Mr Jackson said they were apologetic and asked the judge to note the business was not making a raging income.

Judge Cheatle noted the firms previous good character and the co-operation of its directors.

He said he was minded to apply the Probation Act, sparing the business a recorded conviction, if there was a donation of 750 to the Grace O'Malley Foundation, a charity helping elderly people.

The case was adjourned until a date in October.
Update 5.20pm: Businessman and Presidential hopeful Gavin Duffy has expressed his delight at securing the nomination of Meath Co Council to contest this year's Presidential election.

Mr Duffy said he was very appreciative of those councillors who proposed and seconded his nomination and the other councillors who voted for him and gave him "the honour of being the first individual to have secured a nomination by a local authority".

He went on: In declaring my candidacy earlier this Summer I indicated I would pursue a nomination through the local authorities. Over the last number of weeks, I have addressed councils up and down the country and I have been heartened with the courtesy afforded me and others during these hearings.

"I believe this process has been enriching for both the councillors and the prospective candidates as it has provided a platform where those putting themselves forward have been probed on their ambitions for the role as First Citizen. I have found the question and answer sessions with Councils enriching and informative."

Mr Duffy said he has never taken the support of any Council for granted and with that in mind has been determined to address as many Council meetings as logistics and time allows.

"Today alone I addressed Kerry Co Council in Tralee this morning, an afternoon meeting of Wicklow Co Council and conclude the day with an address to Cork City Council."

The former Dragons Den said securing the nomination of Meath Co Council was a significant step towards my goal of winning the backing of four local authorities.

"I look forward to addressing other councils in the coming weeks and outlining my vision for the Presidency, including my five pillars which centre on establishing an International Youth Corps; expanding Age Friendly Initiative; commitment to diversity and inclusion; the need to engage in a national conversation in restoring respect for one another and my commitment if elected President to boost investment into Ireland and help Irish companies increase overseas exports.

Update 4pm: Meath County Council give Gavin Duffy first nomination to contest presidential election

Businessman Gavin Duffy has received the first nomination from a local authority to contest the presidential election.

The Dragons Den investor secured the backing of Meath County Council after councillors held a vote on Monday.

Mr Duffy received 17 votes, defeating fellow businessman and Dragons Den star Sean Gallagher, who gained seven votes, and Independent Senator Joan Freeman who received two.

Video confirming my decision to seek a nomination as an Independent candidate for the 2018 Presidential Election pursuant to Article 12 of the Constitution. pic.twitter.com/h1tVPCCrxx  Sean Gallagher (@seangallagher1) August 29, 2018

Mr Duffy secured votes from Fianna Fail, Fine Gael and Independent politicians, which he says confirms his cross-party appeal.

Sinn Fein councillor Caroline Lynch confirmed that Sinn Fein abstained from the vote as did four others.

In order to run for president, candidates require the support of at least four county councils or 20 elected representatives.

Local authorities in Kerry, Cork, Leitrim, Wexford and Wicklow will also all be addressed by prospective candidates.

Reacting to his nomination, Mr Duffy tweeted: Thank you to the Councillors of Meath for giving me the first nomination in the 2018 Presidential Election.

Thank you to the Councillors of Meath for giving me the first nomination in the 2018 Presidential Election. #Aras18 #Aras2018  Gavin Duffy (@GavinDuffy) September 3, 2018

The presidential election will be held on October 26 and nominations have to be submitted by September 26.

Current president Michael D Higgins will nominate himself as an Independent candidate for another seven years in office.

He has also secured the backing of both Fine Gael and Fianna Fail, who have both agreed not to field candidates from their own parties.

Sinn Fein is due to field a candidate later in the month.

- Press Association

Earlier: Dragons Den star Gavin Duffy received the first nomination from a local authority to contest the presidential election.

The businessman received the nomination from Meath County Council.

Mr Duffy secured 17 votes, businessman Sean Gallagher seven, and Independent Senator Joan Freeman two votes.

He said the votes he received conform his "cross-party appeal".

He still needs another three local authorities or 20 members of the Oireachtas to support his candidacy.

"Thank you to the Councillors of Meath for giving me the first nomination in the 2018 Presidential Election," Mr Duffy said.

"I am particularly pleased that I secured votes from FF, FG and Independents confirming my cross-party appeal."

Thank you to the Councillors of Meath for giving me the first nomination in the 2018 Presidential Election. #Aras18 #Aras2018  Gavin Duffy (@GavinDuffy) September 3, 2018

Digital Desk
By Elaine Loughlin, In Cavan

Update 12.10pm: Sinn Fein are to table a motion of no confidence in Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy.

Hitting out at the Government for failing to address the housing and homeless crisis, Sinn Fein president Mary-Lou McDonald has also challenged Fianna Fail to back the motion.

Speaking at the party's think-in in Cavan this morning, Ms McDonald said: "The policy of this government is failing the homeless, failing those renting and those who strive to own a home.

We have a Minister who is failing and out of touch.

"This is a scandal. It is time to call a halt.

"It is time for Eoghan Murphy to go."

She told those attending the two-day event that there is now an entire generation of workers who will never afford to own a home.

Ms McDonald said the 10,000 people currently homeless is the equivalent of the entire population of Longford town, and claimed the situation is getting worse.

.@MaryLouMcDonald said Sinn Fein will table a motion of no confidence on Housing Minister Murphy in the coming weeks #LeCheile pic.twitter.com/KT0iaZR0VF  Sinn Fein (@sinnfeinireland) September 3, 2018

"We will table a motion of no confidence in Minster Murphy in the coming weeks. It will be decision time. It will be decision time for the government and for Fianna Fail.

"Does the government and Fianna Fail stand over the Minister and his appalling record or do they stand with us and say its time to go? Do they stand with the people or not?" she asked.

Ms McDonald added:

A new Ireland is not worthy of the name if it is a place of inequality, of homelessness and hardship. It must be a place that we all call home.

Earlier: Fianna Fail will not support motion of no-confidence in Housing Minister

Update 11.22am: Fianna Fail has confirmed they will not support a motion of no confidence in Eoghan Murphy.

Party leader Micheal Martin joined Sean O'Rourke on RTE Radio 1 to discuss the ongoing housing crisis in Ireland.

"There simply has to be more construction and again there will have to be additional funding for social housing but more critically for affordable housing and all of the government targets so far, their own initiatives that they took, they have failed to reach their own targets," he said.

Micheal Martin.

"Rapid bill, for example, we were meant to have 1800 units built by the end of this year, only 208.

"In terms of the repair and lease scheme, zero achievement in relation to that.

"So we do have to, in terms of affordable housing, working people who are above the income threshold to get local authority housing cannot afford to buy houses in the cities, in Dublin, Cork, Galway, Limerick or anywhere and we need to create an affordable housing scheme which we had back in 2011 which was axed a number of years ago.

It's a crisis.

Mr Martin said the Housing Minister needs to acknowledge that the government's policies are not working.

"He needs to stop saying that their policies are working, he needs to acknowledge they are not working and that we need a far greater degree of urgency and intervention to get houses built and to at a very basic level get rid of the bureaucracy that is slowing up the building of local authority houses," he said.

He confirmed his party will not support a motion of no-confidence in Minister Murphy.

"Motions of no confidence will not build a single house," he said.

Listen here:

Digital Desk

Earlier: Sinn Fein plan motion of no-confidence in Housing Minister

Update 10.50am: Sinn Fein has confirmed they will table a motion of no-confidence in Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy.

Almost 10,000 people are now homeless which the party says is unacceptable.

The party is holding its annual conference in Cavan today and tomorrow.

The Budget, restoration of power-sharing in the North and Brexit are also on the agenda.

Deputy David Cullinane says they will be tabling the no-confidence motion in Eoghan Murphy in the coming weeks.

"The bottom line is that this minister and this government have failed on housing," he said.

"They have failed people on rising rents; they have failed people who want to own their own home, there are no affordable homes; and they have failed people who are on long social housing waiting lists.

"Most of all they've failed those families and those children who are stuck in emergency accommodation.

It's not right. It's not the type of society that we in Sinn Fein want. It's not the type of society that the vast majority of people want.

Digital Desk

Earlier: Brexit, Budget and Irish unity on agenda for Sinn Fein think-in

Update 7.40am: Brexit, the economy and Irish unity are on the agenda for Sinn Fein over the next 48 hours.

The party is in Cavan holding its annual 'think-in'.

Leader Mary Lou McDonald will address delegates later this morning as its end-of-summer planning meeting gets underway.

Elected Sinn Fein representatives are set to debate and plan their vision of a new Ireland over the next two days at the party's annual think-in.

They will be looking at Brexit and the devolved Government, and how both are affecting the human rights of people living in the North.

Irish unity in the context of a new Ireland remains on their agenda.

Also up for discussion is the upcoming Budget with the party proposing an 'alternative budget' to ease the health and housing crisis.

Sinn Fein has confirmed it's going to table a motion of no confidence in the Housing Minister, Eoghan Murphy, in the coming weeks.

The party previously postponed plans to proceed with a motion of no confidence in the Minister.

Meanwhile, the party has confirmed it will not be announcing a presidential hopeful until later this month.

Digital Desk
By Gordon Deegan

Luas operator, Transdev, has sacked one of its drivers after finding that he was moonlighting as a taxi-driver in his wifes licensed taxi.

In response to a tip-off over the drivers moonlighting, Transdev hired a private investigator (PI) who placed the driver under surveillance across two evenings.

The PI observed the Luas employee accepting a number of fares and also hailed down the taxi-driver to become a passenger in his cab and paid a 5 fare.

After an internal investigation and disciplinary process, the Luas driver was sacked for gross misconduct after two internal appeals, including one to Transdevs Managing Director, failed.

In dismissing the driver, Transdev found the moonlighting as gross misconduct as it viewed the additional demands placed on the drivers time as a threat on his capacity to carry out his highly responsible role as Luas driver.

Transdev also pointed out that the drivers contract of employment contains explicit exclusion of moonlighting work.

Transdev stated that the decision to dismiss was a proportionate sanction in the circumstances, in particular as the drivers union accepted in a 2009 collective agreement that such conduct as gross misconduct.

In response the Luas driver sued for unfair dismissal and the Workplace Relations Commission (WRC) has found that the dismissal was fair, upholding Transdevs decision.

As part of the Transdev investigation, the driver said that he didnt know how many times he had driven his wife's taxi.

He said: It was really ad hoc, so I would just help her out. No set criteria, no set anything.

He said he did not collect any fares, and that these would be forwarded to his wife later.

The Luas driver didnt accept that his conduct was a potential challenge to his capacity to discharge his duties with Transdev in a safe manner.

However, the whistle-blower in the case that the Luas driver arrived on a regular basis (Friday and Saturday) at the taxi base where he swaps from his private car and into his wifes taxi and works til 2-3am.

The un-named Luas driver told the WRC that the dismissal was not proportionate and the actions of Transdev were unreasonable.

The Luas driver stated that what occurred should be viewed as a minor infringement of company policy,

On the tip-off received by Transdev, the driver claimed that the complaint was malicious and possibly written by another Luas employee to cause him damage.

The driver stated that the level of knowledge of his movements would not be known to a person who had simply casually observed them and that the person making the complaint was aware of detail about the wifes taxi business and other details suggesting that this was someone who knew the driver well and set out to cause him harm.

WRC Adjudication Officer, Pat Brady said that the manner in which the matter came to the employers attention is suspicious indeed.

Mr Brady said that the reference in the tip-off that the whistle-blower had seen an individual that "is the spitting image" of the man driving the Luas a good while back "was understandably scorned by the Luas drivers representative as entirely lacking in credibility.

Mr Brady said: Ultimately, this does not matter. The respondent has a duty to apply its own rules once any alleged breach of them comes to its attention and regardless of the motives of any person doing so.

Transdev stated that the motive of a person making the report is irrelevant and that there was no breach of the Luas drivers privacy as the activity alleged took place in a public place.

Mr Brady said that the drivers position as a public transport driver requires a high level of application and concentration. He may have the safety of a very large number of members of the public who are his passengers in his hands.

Mr Brady said that the employer bases its case on its obligation to monitor and prevent driver fatigue, primarily through enforcement of its rest periods.

Mr Brady stated: Any external work unknown to the company in addition to permitted overtime would create an even greater risk to passenger safety.

The driver can appeal the decision to the Labour Court and Transdev on Monday declined to comment on the WRC ruling.
A major restoration project on one of Irelands landmark bridges will dampen its famous shake  but not eliminate it.

The assurance has come from engineers overseeing the restoration and conservation work designed to save the iconic Daly Bridge in Cork  known to generations of locals as the Shaky Bridge because of its wobble  for which planning is being sought today.

They said while the bridge will shake a little less afterwards, most people will not even notice the difference.

Confirmation that the shake will be retained comes as Cork City Council embarks today on the formal Part 8 planning application process for the restoration of the unique suspension footbridge which links Fitzgeralds Park to Shanakiel on the northside.

Opened in 1927 to replace an earlier ferry crossing at the same location, it is the only suspension bridge in Cork City and one of only four nationally. It is the only surviving pedestrian suspension bridge of its type and age in the country.

Pending approvals, it is hoped that tenders will be awarded by the end of the year, that work will start weeks later, and that the restored bridge will reopen to the public by mid summer 2019.

City council engineer Fergus Gleeson, who is overseeing the scheme, said repairs have been required for some time to address extensive corrosion and damage to the 50.9m structure.

However, he said thanks to funding from the Department of Transport, the project will include a lot more than repairs.

"This is a mini-public realm project, said Mr Gleeson. We will also be improving the setting of the bridge, improving access routes, improving lighting by installing lights on the handrails and towers."

We have consulted extensive historical documents to ensure that we restore the bridge as close to the original as possible. We feel a great responsibility to restore it as close as possible to the original.

Its a one-of-a-kind structure in Ireland. It is a rare opportunity to work on a structure like this. The entire team feels fortunate and honoured to be able to work on it.

Amid concerns about the condition of the structure, a detailed structural assessment was ordered in December 2016 which highlighted a range of issues, including corrosion of its lattice steel work and the need for cable replacement.

Experts warned that urgent repairs were needed to save the bridge from load restriction or closure.

Engineers will have to dismantle the bridge and remove it for work off-site.

Key steel elements will be repaired and repainted, including the latticed deck.

Mr Gleeson said dismantling for off-site repairs is best practice.

"Inclement weather conditions during the winter would also prevent this work being carried out on site, as would concerns around site personnel working at height for prolonged periods of time over the river, he said.

Working off-site also serves to reduce potential impact on the environment as the likelihood of blast debris entering the river is reduced.

Landscaping works will be undertaken on the north and south side of the bridge, and lighting improved.

Works will also be carried out on the north and south side approaches, including the removal of palisade fencing on the north approach, and railings on the southern ramp, and replacement with original-style railings.

RPS Consulting Engineers were awarded the contract for the design and construction supervision of the works, with conservation architects JCA providing expertise.
Presidential challenger Sean Gallagher has blamed the RTE TV debate of the 2011 election for Aras an Uachtarain as a vote changer which altered the outcome of that race.

The Dragon's Den Star outlined to Leitrim County Council today some of the ambitions he has if he was first nominated for the race and then elected at the October 26 vote.

The businessman pledged to prioritise concerns around the marginalised.

He also outlined initiatives to support the disabled nationwide, including a work placement programme.

The arts would also be prioritised, he said, and Mr Gallagher pledged to visit Irish peacekeepers abroad.

However, he launched an attack on RTE during his speech to councillors over a controversial Tweet put to him in the 2011 presidential debate about fundraising and Fianna Fail.

He told the meeting that the RTE Frontline debate just days before the 2011 vote changed the outcome of the election.

Sean Gallagher spends some time going over Tweetgate and RTE TV presidential debate of 2011, which he says changed outcome of that election

Many changed their mind that night.#aras18 #iestaff pic.twitter.com/H9jgHMRAgY  Juno McEnroe (@Junomaco) September 3, 2018

What happened in studio changed the outcome of the presidential election. On that evening, I let myself down and let you councillors down.

Mr Gallagher said that it was an unprecedented event, a false Tweet presented to him as if it was fact.

This allowed the Sinn Fein candidate to level an accusation against him, he said, which caused him to doubt his memory.

It also made him look unconvincing and many changed their mind on the night, councillors were told.

The businessman said he felt compelled to hold RTE accountable for their actions.

Mr Gallagher sued RTE over the events that night and received an apology and a substantial payout.
By Louise Walsh

'Where's my seat - I've got sore feet,' was the message on placards to Bus Eireann this morning as 12 stranded Meath post-primary students walked some 10km to get to school.

Parents and their children - mostly first year students - staged a walking protest after 7am after they were refused access onto the school bus from their home in Kildalkey to their school in Trim.

They left the village at the same time as the school bus that they had hoped to be on departed but walked the more direct route into Trim.

Angry parents claim they have been left high and dry with no transport for their children and some may now face going to the library in Trim after school until their parents can finish work to collect them.

Children walking in Kildalkey with FG Cllr Noel French, Sinn Fein Cllr Caroline Lynch and Sinn Fein Deputy Peadar Toibin.

One of the students had been on the bus for the four years but was told that this year, there is no place for her.

Mum Una Swords from Moyview is now looking for an end to the so-called concessionary seats and ensure a pupil has a place on the bus for the duration of their second-level education.

She was told that there is no room for either of her daughters on the bus this year, despite paying fees upfront.

"I received an email telling me that not only will Caoimhe (13) not be able to get the school bus to start post-primary this year but that my 17-year old daughter Aoife, who has been getting the bus for the last four years is no longer eligible either.

"Each year, we have to apply and pay up front 300 per child for a place on the bus and then wait until last minute for approval. We're told the seats for everyone are concessionary which means the student isn't guaranteed a seat for the full duration of their education.

This is just madness. My daughter has, in effect, been kicked off the bus for who or why I don't know, after four years and my youngest now can't get a seat to start a new school.

Una said that the Department of Education have informed some of the parents that the catchment school for the area is in Athboy.

"There's only about a mile in the difference and why can't parents have a choice in where their children receive secondary education. We shouldn't have to go to just one school. We choose schools for various reasons and the majority of pupils go to secondary school from here to Trim."

"Most parents work and have to leave early so it would mean dropping their child to walk the streets of Trim at 7 in the morning. That's just no on.

"Some parents really have no alternative way of getting children to school from here.

"Kildalkey is growing in population, with a brand new national school about to open. This problem is going to get worse as more and more kids each year graduate to post-primary level.

"The Department of Education should review the bus situation and have one that just caters for children in this area, given the numbers that have applied and will in the future

"They should have been aware from the number of applications involved well in advance of this month and have had plans in place to transport these children.

"But without forward planning, what are we going to do in the meantime," she asked.

The parents also called a meeting last Thursday night to highlight to other parents the problem they could face when their own children start post-primary.

"We had about 40 parents there and some local representatives who are going to call for an end to these concessionary places."

Local Cllr Noel French said: "This can't go on that parents in rural areas are left unsure from year to year, if their children can get to school.

Sinn Fein Deputy Peadar Toibin who also walked with the parents said: "This is absolutely wrong that seats get taken off children two weeks before school starts and some of these children have been on the bus for years.

"It's another attack on rural Ireland and the Government needs to start reinstating and improving services in our villages and small towns."

It's a situation that occurs each year all over the county and the whole system needs to be reviewed.

A spokesperson for the Department for Education and Skills said: "Children who are eligible for school transport and who have completed the application process on time will be accommodated on school transport services where such services are in operation.

"Children who are not eligible for school transport, but who completed the application process on time, will be considered for spare seats that may exist after eligible children have been facilitated: such seats are referred to as concessionary seats.

"Where the number of applications for school transport on a concessionary basis exceeds the number of spare seats available, tickets are allocated using a random selection process.

"Under the terms of the scheme, the availability of concessionary transport varies from year to year, based on the space capacity on the buses running on all of the various routes.

Bus Eireann has confirmed that, following the random selection process for concessionary seats, a number of children from the Kildalkey area who are not eligible for school transport to Trim have not been allocated a ticket.

They added: "The terms of the school transport schemes are applied equitably on a national basis."
By David Raleigh

Tributes have been paid to a pensioner killed in a hit and run in Co Limerick.

The victim, named locally as Danny Brosnan, from Rylands, Ballingarry, was found dead about 100 yards from his home Sunday night.

Mr Brosnan, 76, was pronounced dead at the scene, after he had apparently earlier been struck by a vehicle.

Gardai have sought help from the public in tracing the driver and vehicle involved.

Its understood Mr Brosnan, who was a keen walker, had gone for a late evening stroll when he was critically injured.

Its understood he was discovered by two women.

The R518 between Ballingarry and Rathkeale, where the fatal incident occurred, was closed Sunday night and Monday to allow for a Garda Forensic Collision Inspector conduct a detailed examination of the scene.

Gardai at Newcastle West garda station are investigating the incident and have appealed for anyone with information to contact them in confidence.

Ballingarry Parish Priest, Fr Dan Lane, offered his deepest sympathies to Mr Brosnans family.

Mr Brosnan is survived by his wife Brigid known as Biddy and their five children.

Fr Lane said he received a phone call to go to the scene shortly after emergency services had responded to Mr Brosnan.

I prayed over him and I gave him his Last Rites and then I went to see his family, Fr Lane said.

Danny is from Rylands. He may have been out on a walk. He was found close to his home.

He regularly walked, and he had a lovely dog who he nearly always took with him on his walks He walked the dog a couple of times a day.

Fr Lane said Mr Brosnan was a lovely , lovely mana beautiful man.

Id often meet him and have a chat. He would pass my own house a lot when he was out walking.

Hes very well known. Its very tragic, Fr Lane added.

It is understood Mr Brosnan had earlier on Sunday, attended Knockaderry GAA Club, to see members of the Limerick All-Ireland Hurling winners parade the Liam MacCarthy Cup on its tour of the county.

Appealing for witnesses, a garda spokesman said: Gardai in Newcastle West, Co Limerick are investigating a fatal hit and run road traffic collision at Ballingarry, Co Limerick on the 2nd of September 2018.

The collision occurred shortly before 11pm at Rylands, (on the Ballingarry to Rathkeale Rd) R518.

A male (76 years) was fatally injured and pronounced dead at the scene.

Mr Brosnans body was removed from the scene to Limerick University Hospital Limerick where a post mortem was expected to take place later.

The road is currently closed to facilitate a forensic collision examination and local diversions are in place, the garda spokesman said.

Gardai are appealing for witnesses, for anyone with information in connection with the collision or anyone who may have been on that stretch of road between 10.30pm and 11.15pm on the 2nd of September to contact them on 069 20650, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any Garda station.

Funeral arrangements posted online at rip.ie stated: Mr Brosnans body will repose at his residence in Rylands Ballingarry on Wednesday, September 5th, from 4pm until 7pm.

Requiem Mass on Thursday, September 6th, at 12 noon in the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Ballingarry.

Burial afterwards in St. Marys New Cemetery, Ballingarry.

House private on Thursday morning. Family flowers only. Donations, if desired, to Limerick Animal Welfare.

Mr Brosnan is survived by his wife Biddy (nee Steele), sons William, Anthony and Donie, daughters Noirin and Shirley, as well as his loyal canine companion "Spot".
One man has been treated in hospital for shock and slight injuries after a mortar attack on a British army base in Derry last night.

The area was evacuated and sealed off and bomb disposal experts are currently examining the scene.
Woman suffers burn injuries in husbands attack

A woman from Jhapa is fighting for her life after she suffered critical burn injuries when her husband poured kerosene over her body and set her on fire on August 28.
Two Malaysian Muslim women convicted under Islamic laws of attempting to have sex were caned today in a rare public whipping that was slammed by lawmakers and rights activists as a form of torture.

Lawyers and activists said the women, aged 22 and 32, were seated on stools facing the judges and given six strokes from a light rattan cane on their backs by female prison officers.

More than 100 people witnessed the caning in a Shariah courtroom in northeast Terengganu state, they said.

Muslim Lawyers Association deputy president Abdul Rahim Sinwan said unlike caning under civil laws, the punishment under Islamic laws isnt painful or harsh and was meant to educate the women so they will repent. The women, dressed in white headscarves and clothing, didnt cry or scream but showed remorse, he said.

Repentance is the ultimate aim for their sin, he said.

Human rights groups slammed the punishment as a setback for human rights and said it could worsen discrimination against people in Malaysias lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender community.

Caning is a form of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and may amount to torture, Amnesty International Malaysia said in a statement.

People should not live in fear because they are attracted to people of the same sex. The Malaysian authorities must immediately repeal repressive laws, outlaw torturous punishments and ratify the U.N. Convention Against Torture.

The public caning of the two women in #Malaysia is a dreadful reminder of the depth of discrimination #LGBTI people face in the country and a sign that the new government condones the use of inhuman and degrading punishments, much like its predecessor. pic.twitter.com/YQEQlJWec1  Amnesty International Malaysia (@AmnestyMy) September 3, 2018

Malaysia follows a dual-track justice system. Nearly two-thirds of Malaysias 31 million people are Muslims, who are governed by Islamic courts in family, marriage and personal issues. The two unidentified women were discovered by Islamic officials in April and sentenced last month by a Shariah court to six strokes of a cane and a fine after pleading guilty.

Thilaga Sulathireh, from the group Justice for Sisters who witnessed the caning, said she was shocked by the public spectacle. She said Malaysian laws were inconsistent because civil laws prohibit corporal punishment against female prisoners.

Its a regression of human rights in Malaysia. Its not about the severity of the caning. Corporal punishment is a form of torture regardless of your intention, she said.

Lawmakers also joined in the chorus of condemnation against the public caning.

Islam teaches us to look after the dignity of every human being. And that mercy is preferable to punishment, opposition lawmaker Khairy Jamaluddin tweeted.

Banyak lagi cara untuk menangani isu LGBT. Walaupun termaktub dalam undang2, tak wajar dilaksanakan sebatan di khalayak ramai. Islam teaches us to look after the dignity of every human being. And that mercy is preferable to punishment. https://t.co/FqkTqeoZeA  Khairy Jamaluddin  (@Khairykj) September 3, 2018

Lawmaker Charles Santiago said the government must repeal all laws that criminalize homosexuality.

And this is because we really need to make sure that no one is publicly caned let alone because of their sexuality, he said.

Malaysia is seen as a moderate and stable Muslim-majority country, but Islamic conservatism is on the rise.

The caning occurred amid a climate of fear and discrimination against Malaysias lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. A few weeks ago, authorities removed the portraits of two LGBT rights activists from a public exhibition. Malaysia religious minister Mujahid Yusuf later said the government doesnt support the promotion of LGBT culture. A transgender woman was also beaten up by a group of people in a southern state this month.
How much do you want to tip? is often a question at the end of a pleasant night out with friends as we throw our credit cards on the table. My response of I dont think we need to tip in Australia provokes a range of responses that none of us want to pick up because we are now on our way out and the waiter is close by. Nor do I ever want to bring this subject up at the beginning of an evening  a sure-fire dampener.

So when do we explore this?

Tipping seems to be an imported practice that, in a country that has a pretty fair wages system, should not be allowed to grow. Credit:Jessica Shapiro

With the issue of wage theft in our hospitality industry being discussed again, it may be a good opportunity to look at this closely-related subject of tipping. Victorian Labor is considering taking the issue of wage theft to the next election and making it a crime. NSW and South Australia are also looking at it.

The most common response to why do we tip? is that the poor service staff are underpaid. However, in Australia, they are covered by the same award system as every other worker. It is just generally accepted that these employees, many of whom are backpackers or recent immigrants or students, are being underpaid and that we, the customer, should make up the difference. Will it ever change if we keep covering for the employer who is paying them illegally?
1. Yes. If a city of 150,000 cant provide safe drinking water for 10 days, a probe is needed.

2. Yes. Not only should there be a state investigation, but customers should get a rebate.

3. No. The city will be working with TCEQ to develop an after-action plan. That will suffice.

4. No. The whole episode was just an annoyance. An outside investigaton is unnecessary.

5. Unsure. Its hard to say without knowing more details about the issue.

Vote

View Results
Kathleen Turner has described the amount of money paid to A-list actors as "essentially immoral".

The actress, who rose to fame in hit 1980s films including Body Heat and Romancing The Stone, told The Observer funds should instead be used to improve the quality of scripts and performances by investing in writers and rehearsal time.

Movie budgets for the biggest blockbusters can run into the hundreds of millions of dollars, with 2011's Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides the most expensive ever made, according to officially recognised figures.

The film, starring Johnny Depp, had a budget of $US380 million ($A526m).
Kerri-Anne Kennerley is returning to morning TV, with a hosting gig on Ten's Studio 10.

The network revealed the star will be a regular co-host on the morning show, joining the panel two days a week on Mondays and Tuesdays.

The announcement comes just weeks after longtime host Denise Drysdale revealed she'd be taking a "little break" from the program.

Kennerley's first appearance on the show will be on Monday September 10.
Support for the Berejiklian government's proposed Sydney marine park reaches as high as 90 per cent in four coastal electorates, a result supporters hope will counter opposition from angler groups.

A ReachTEL poll of almost 2600 people in four coastal electorates conducted for the NSW Nature Conservation Council last Monday found 89 per cent support in Manly and 87 per cent in Coogee. Backing exceeded three-quarters in Gosford and Terrigal.

Environmental groups fear the NSW government will buckle in face of a concerted campaign by conservative talk-back radio hosts and angler groups. Credit:James Brickwood

"Contrary to the claims of some lobbyists, the vast majority of people support the government's proposed marine park for the Sydney region," Sharnie Connell, Sydney Marine Park Campaign spokeswoman, said.

Environmental groups say there are worrying indications from within the government that it may be willing to shelve the long-awaited marine plan. They blame a concerted campaign by conservative talk-back radio hosts and angler groups against the proposed network of protected off-shore sites between Newcastle and Wollongong, and taking in part of Sydney Harbour.
On the subject of wedding rings (C8), Robert Nicol of Miranda has found there are issues of equality at play. While looking through a recipe container, he discovered this offering from the Letters page from a copy of Woman magazine from October, 1954: Why dont Australian women ask their churches to make it a rule for men to wear a wedding ring when they marry? It would make for equality and it would help socially to know at once if a man is married. When a woman marries she has a ring and the title of Mrs to prove she is not free. A married man has none. Mrs S. George, Mitcham, Victoria. For the record, it was on the back of recipes for Raisin Spice Cake, Coconut Cake, Picnic Cake, Dough Cake and Apple Sauce Cake.

Joan Brown of Orange writes: "There would not be many people who would instantly think of a funeral when winning over $1000 in Lotto, but an elderly relative did just that, saying it would be put toward his cremation cost. Talk about being in deadly earnest."

"Australian-Canadians have a problem," writes Mike Millard of West Vancouver. "For years, local supermarkets have regularly stocked Vegemite. But for several months now, shelves have been devoid of it, and no one locally has been able to explain it. They all carry a variety of Marmite  an execrable substitute! Do any C8-ers have an idea why this has come to pass?" Could be time to acquire a taste for Maplemite.

"I don't know what was so funny about Theresa May's dancing. That's exactly how I dance," says Coral Button of North Epping.

Kev Condell of West Wollongong says that "mention of Arthur Mailey (C8) reminds me of his best first-class figures, against Gloucestershire in 1921, taking all 2nd innings wickets for 66 runs which he said he could have taken for 56 but wanted a ready-made title for his autobiography '10 for 66 and all that.' His worst figures were for NSW against Victoria in 1926/27. The Vics scored 1107 and he bowled 64 overs for the figures of 4/362, which he said would've been better if two sitters weren't dropped by the man in the pavilion with the top hat."
Making a potentially life-changing decision about blood cancer treatments could become easier for Queensland patients, with cutting-edge DNA sequencing now able to predict the best treatments for individual cancers.

Queensland University of Technology researchers at the Australian Translational Genomics Centre can now sequence genetic mutations in blood cancer DNA, providing personalised information about the make-up of each cancer.

A new testing service at Metro South is hoped to be available state-wide predicting suitable blood cancer treatments. Credit:File

The testing service means patients have a four-week wait to find out what treatments their blood cancer will most likely respond to, cutting out much of the uncertainty.

Blood cancers including leukaemia, lymphoma and myeloma are the third-largest causes of cancer deaths in Australia, above breast and skin cancers.
A 54-year-old Queensland police officer is under investigation and has been stood down from official duties.

On Monday police said the male senior sergeant from the southern region was the subject of an investigation relating to alleged fraud, disobeying directions, providing false and misleading information and failing to comply with policy whilst in the performance of his duty.

He will be tasked to perform non-operational duties.

According to the Queensland Police website, there are 1280 police officers and 276 unsworn staff working in the southern region, which spreads east to Bribie Island, south to the New South Wales border, west to the South Australian border and north to Winton.

Police said the investigation did not mean the allegations against the officer had been substantiated.
Two men have been charged after a woman was stabbed when she intervened in an argument at a Brisbane unit.

The incident occurred about 12.30pm on Monday after the 46-year-old woman went to a neighbouring unit at an East Brisbane complex to investigate the fight.

She was stabbed once in the chest, and was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

The two men fled the unit but were caught by police a short time later.

A 25-year-old Woolloongabba man will appear in the Brisbane Magistrates Court on Tuesday charged with wounding, enter premises with intent, and possession of Ritalin and a metal cone piece.
The "2 million" label came out of the blue. The then governor, Sir Rohan Delacombe, had picked Lorettas number from a barrel of 1319 marbles, each representing a baby born between June 24 and July 7. The whopping (for 1963) 1000 "prize" paid for Lorettas education until age 15. She was given free baby food for a year and years of free school jumpers. Reflecting on the years since, Loretta, (now Loretta Hill), who grew up near the beach in Parkdale and later Chelsea, reckons she went on to be lucky in life. She and siblings Joanne and Peter had an "extremely happy" childhood. Happy with our lot: Judy Johnston and daughter Loretta Hill say they like Melbourne having a populatiohn of 5 million. Credit:Joe Armao After she left school at Kilbreda College, Mentone, she studied art and design.

She worked in signwriting, displays and exhibitions but is now a teachers aide and does graphic design at a girls college. Today, her drive to work at Springvale from home in Lysterfield takes 35 minutes  five to 10 minutes longer than a decade ago. Mrs Hill loves learning about the cultures of her students, as diverse as Sudanese and Indian. Its so multicultural. So beautiful, she said. Loading After she married in 1992 and had two children, Mrs Hill continued to work, something less common in her mothers generation.

Mrs Johnston said that after Loretta went to school, she worked part time in her husbands stores, but it wasnt thought well of. "The man was the breadwinner," she says. Mrs Johnston says there were few cafes in the '60s. After dropping the kids at school, mothers had a pot of tea at each other's houses. You held dinner parties rather than dining out. Family dinners were meat and three veg.

It was very plain food, but home cooked. You would shop at little stores near home. Mrs Johnston says there is one butcher shop left in Chelsea  there used to be seven. Loading In the 1960s, Mrs Johnston would shop for clothes in the city, but she can now head for much closer malls, such as Southland, where she goes to the movies. She says there are more council services for seniors and more trains and buses in today's Melbourne.

She loves the range of migrants near her Edithvale unit  ranging from Sri Lankan to Greek. Theres a lot from the Philippines. My chemist is Vietnamese. Shes wonderful. Its much more interesting with people from other countries, I think. Daughter Loretta says Melbourne having 5 million people doesn't bother her. ''The more the merrier,'' she says. She wants to move closer to the city, with husband Craig, daughter Georgia, 22, and son Matthew 19, because we all love it. When Mrs Hill goes into the CBD, it's to go to a gallery or the theatre. She doesn't drive in and park the car as she would decades ago  its too expensive. She drives to a station and takes the train.
Seedy parks, spooky laneways and run-down shopping strips should be livened up to make them more welcoming to the public and less inviting for petty criminals, Victorias Opposition says.

The Coalition will use urban design to reduce street crime if it wins November's state election, pledging to spend $38 million over four years on crime prevention, with most of the money to go to public infrastructure.

Wilson Avenue in Brunswick has been redesigned with a rock climbing wall in a push to curb street crime. Credit:Joe Armao

Local councils would advise the state government on places where anti-social behaviour was a problem and use environmental design to make them safer places.

Wilson Avenue, in Brunswick, is one example of a street that has been heavily redesigned to reduce crime, including break-ins, graffiti and illicit drug use.
Yangon: Two Reuters reporters who uncovered a massacre of Rohingya villagers in Myanmar were found guilty on Monday of possessing secret documents and sentenced to seven years in prison.

The judge in the case, U Ye Lwin, announced the verdict before a courtroom crowded with journalists and foreign diplomats who have closely followed the case as a test of press freedom in the country.

The two journalists, Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were arrested in mid-December after a police officer insisted on meeting them at a restaurant in Yangon and handed them some rolled-up papers.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo contended during the trial that the police entrapped them. They testified that they were arrested so quickly that they never had a chance to read the documents.
Baghdad: Rival Iraqi political factions say they have each formed alliances capable of forming a government in the new parliament after months of political uncertainty following a May election.

Politicians led by cleric Moqtada al-Sadr and Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi said they created an alliance that would give them a majority bloc in parliament.

Supporters of Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr carry his image as they celebrate in Tahrir Square, Baghdad, in May. Credit:AP

A rival grouping led by militia commander Hadi al-Ameri and former Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki responded by saying it had formed its own alliance that would be the largest bloc in parliament after it got some lawmakers to defect from the other group.

Ameri and Maliki are Iran's two most prominent allies in Iraq. Abadi is seen as the preferred candidate of the United States, while Sadr portrays himself as a nationalist who rejects both American and Iranian influence.
Latest News Auswide Bank breaks with convention and slashes rate Bank becomes first lender to move after cash rate hold, slashing interest rates

Judo Bank hits ASX and catapults to $2.5bn valuation All the reaction from the first bank IPO since 1996

Brokers can expect business as usual, now that a deposit bond provider is re-entering the market.

Deposit Power was forced to cease trading after CBL Insurance went into interim liquidation in February 2018.

Deposit Power acted as an authorised manager and agent of CBL Insurance, which provided all the deposit guarantee bond products sold by Deposit Power in Australia.

The deposit guarantee company had offered products assisting Australian borrowers and investors to buy residential and commercial properties without the need to provide a cash deposit.

In making its return, the company is now backed by international bonding and commercial insurance provider, Lombard Insurance Company who has provided underwriting capacity to the Australian market for more than ten years.

Grant Bailey, general manager, Deposit Power, said, CBLs liquidation has been highly disruptive for all concerned. We extend our sincere apologies to those impacted and are actively committed to helping support affected customers.

Were now focussed on re-engaging with our long-standing partners and the general broking community to reinstate our position as Australias leading supplier of deposit bonds. Weve also implemented some key initiatives to mitigate future risk and strengthen the product offering.

As such, an independent custodial fund with Perpetual Corporate Trust Limited (Perpetual) has been established to ensure a reliable and expedient claim payment process.

Deposit Power will receive and process all claims and instruct Perpetual to process claim payments locally.

In addition, a majority reinsurance facility (80%) with S&P A/ AA rated global reinsurance companies has been created.

Bailey said, These two measures are a powerful combination that significantly reduces customer exposure.

Deposit Power has retained the same online application and approval system, with the issuance of guarantees electronically in real-time to authorised users.

The fee structure and qualification criteria will also remain the same, as will the multi-level broker

training programs, complete back-end support and direct access to assessors.

Bailey said, Weve been very fortunate to retain many of our long-standing team members, including assessors, operations and broker support BDMs  so brokers can expect to continue business as usual with familiar systems, faces and processes.
Latest News Auswide Bank breaks with convention and slashes rate Bank becomes first lender to move after cash rate hold, slashing interest rates

Judo Bank hits ASX and catapults to $2.5bn valuation All the reaction from the first bank IPO since 1996

A specialist lender to small and medium businesses (SME) has announced it has joined the lending panel of another aggregator.

GetCapital has been appointed to the lending panel of leading aggregator PLAN Australia, which began on 20 August.

This follows the announcement in June that the lender would be joining FASTs panel.

PLAN has more than 1,650 members and a total loan book value close to $70 billion. The aggregators commercial and asset finance volumes reached $990million in the six months to March 2018.

The partnership will see GetCapitals multi-product offering of business loans, equipment finance and trade finance become available on PLANs extensive broker network across Australia.

CEO of GetCapital, Jamie Osborn, said, We welcome the opportunity to work with PLAN as part of our commitment to support the growth of Australian SMEs.

We look forward to delivering real value to PLANs experienced brokers, their customers and their businesses.

PLAN has one of the largest partnership manager (PM) workforces in Australia, with PMs across all states providing personalised support and business advice.

They work with established financial planners, accountants and property business owners to find a sustainable way of delivering both end-to-end advice and lending services.

Anja Pannek, CEO of PLAN Australia, said, We are delighted to partner with GetCapital and have them join our panel.

This will further strengthen our commercial and asset finance options for our brokers and their customers.

GetCapital prides itself in approving loans in less than 24 hours, thanks to its technology and range of finance solutions.

This complements PLANs broker support offering through technology, professional and business development, based on its four Cs: customer first, compliance focused, commercially oriented, and committed to the industry.
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The board will meet Tuesday to decide on the modalities for increasing stake in debt-ridden to 51 per cent, a move that will provide the behemoth entry into the space.

The board will discuss timeline for the open offer, board-level appointments and future strategy for revitalising Bank, sources said.

Besides, sources said, the board will also authorise Life Corporation of (LIC) to appoint a merchant banker and a legal advisor to carry out the acquisition process.

The board will also ask the insurer to do due diligence of the and then proceed for various regulatory clearances, sources added.

Meanwhile, is in the process of picking up additional 7 per cent stake in through preference shares. With this, total holding in the bank would rise to 14.9 per cent. At present, holds 7.98 per cent stake in the

The stake increase by LIC will help the lender to meet the intimidate capital requirement that will enable to meet regulatory norms at the end of second quarter.

In August, the had approved LIC's proposed acquisition of up to 51 per cent stake in debt-ridden IDBI Bank.

The bank, in which the government holds 85.96 per cent stake, had posted a net loss of Rs 24.09 billion in the quarter ending June 2018. It had a gross non-performing asset (NPA) of about Rs 578.07 billion.



The board of Regulatory and Development Authority of (Irdai), at its meeting held in in June, had permitted LIC to increase its stake from 10.82 per cent to 51 per cent in IDBI Bank.

As per current regulations, an insurance company cannot own more than 15 per cent in any listed financial firm.

LIC has been looking to enter the space by acquiring a majority stake in IDBI Bank as the deal is expected to provide business synergies despite the lender's stressed balance sheet.

With the culmination of the deal, LIC will get about 2,000 branches by which it can sell its products, while the bank would get massive funds of LIC.
Killeen, TX (76540)

Today

Rain, heavy at times early. Thunder possible. High 54F. Winds NNE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 100%. 1 to 2 inches of rain expected..

Tonight

Showers early, then cloudy overnight. Thunder possible. Low 46F. Winds NNE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 40%.
Manipal Group, which runs a chain of multi-speciality hospitals, is buying strategic stake in Cigna TTK Health Insurance Company from TTK Group for an undisclosed sum.

As per the deal, will hold 16.04 per cent stake, while TTK Group will own the balance 34.96 per cent stake in the health insurance venture.

Consequently, and TTK Group will jointly hold 51 per cent stake in the company.

In September last year, Cigna TTK had filed an application with the insurance regulator for a change in partnership from the TTK Group to It had proposed for the Manipal Group to buy out 51 per cent stake of TTK Group.

However, the had to revise the proposal after the insurance regulator asked them to rework the shareholding structure.

While announcing the deal on Monday, Cigna TTK Health Insurance Company (Cigna TTK) said it has now received necessary regulatory approvals, from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (IRDAI) to partner with Manipal Group.



"As per the new structure, Cigna Corporation will continue to hold its 49 per cent stake in the Indian health insurance venture, while Manipal Group and TTK Group will jointly hold 51 per cent stake in the joint venture," Cigna TTK Health Insurance Company said in a statement.

"The new partnership will help Cigna TTK bridge the gap between healthcare delivery and healthcare financing, enabling the company to provide customers with a more comprehensive, innovative, personalized, and affordable suite of healthcare solutions," the company said said.

Cigna TTK Health Insurance, a joint venture between global health services firm Cigna and TTK, launched its operations in India in February 2014.

Cigna TTK, at present, has more than 19 branches and is present in more than 8,000 point of sale locations across India through its distribution network.
This will be a near three-fold jump from its current sales volume and the auto major, which sits on a cash pile of $13 billion (including Marutis $5 billion) is getting ready to invest further in its most promising market. It expects the Indian market to grow to 10 million units annually by 2030 and it intends to control half the market then, like it does now. The group will reinforce the ...

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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.

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Ahead of Lok Sabha elections, Chief Minister on Sunday reached out to the voters assuring them relief from the recently hiked fixed charges on electricity bills.

Addressing a gathering in New Delhi after inaugurating an SDM office, the chief minister said electricity rates were the "lowest" under the (AAP) regime in the national capital while other state governments have increased power tariffs.

"I assure you today that we will provide relief to you from fixed charges that have been recently increased. I am working on it," Kejriwal told the gathering.

In March this year, Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) had increased fixed charges for every consumer, but brought down the unit cost of power.

At the public event, Kejriwal asked people to reject the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the 2019 general elections and urged them to vote for the AAP to ensure speedy development in the national capital.

AAP MPs will never allow metro fare hikes and sealing drives if they are voted to power, Kejriwal claimed.

In the 2014 Lok Sabha polls, the BJP had won all the seven seats in the national capital, defeating Congress and AAP candidates.
The (RBI) Monday asked all scheduled commercial with more than 10 branches to appoint an internal ombudsman (IO).

The apex bank has, however, excluded (RRBs) from appointing IOs.

The internal ombudsman scheme was introduced by the to strengthen the internal grievance of and to ensure that the complaints of the customers are redressed.

In order to further enhance the independence of the IO and also to strengthen the monitoring system over functioning of the IO mechanism, the central bank said it has reviewed the arrangement in the form of 'Internal Ombudsman Scheme, 2018'.

"The IO shall examine customer complaints which are in the nature of deficiency in service on the part of the bank, that are partly or wholly rejected by the bank," said in a release.

The scheme covers, appointment/tenure, roles and responsibilities, procedural guidelines and oversight mechanism for the IO.

The central bank further said as the banks shall internally escalate all complaints, which are not fully redressed to their respective IOs before conveying the final decision to the complainant, the customers need not approach the IO directly.

The implementation of IO Scheme, 2018 will be monitored by the bank's internal audit mechanism apart from regulatory oversight by the apex bank.



ALSO READ: Number of banking outlets in villages drops amid financial inclusion push

In May 2015, the had advised all public sector and select private and foreign banks to appoint IO as an independent authority to review complaints that were partially or wholly rejected by the respective banks.
The slammed public sector Monday for granting crores of rupees as loans without sufficient security to several firms "when people are begging for educational and farm loans".

The court's stinging observations came when it was hearing a plea filed by the in the Rs 8.20 billion debt recovery proceedings against Kanishk Gold Private Limited seeking quashing of attachment proceedings by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) against the firm.

When the petition by the SBI's Stressed Assets Management branch came up, Justice R Mahadevan posed a host of questions to the counsel for the bank.

The court said it will issue necessary orders to arrest all the officials and persons involved in the "scam."



"It is public money. The people are begging for education and farm loans after offering security.

"Do not try to safeguard the officials of the bank in this case and nobody can escape under the Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Securities Interest Act, 2002 (also known as SARFAESI Act). We will set an example by passing order in this case to whole country," the court said.

The judge asked whether bank officers verified documents before sanctioning loan to the firm.

"What is the total amount of loan sanctioned? What is the worth of properties offered for security?" it asked.

The court directed counsel for the ED, who filed a counter affidavit, to collect details about the "involvement of officials, investigate and file a report in detail."



The matter was posted for further hearing to September 17.

The counsel for the submitted that there was "dereliction" of duty on behalf of the officers who investigated the case.

In its counter, the ED said: "As per the forensic audit, there are misrepresentation/falsification of records, diversion of funds and disposal of the stocks by the company."



"The total loss caused to the due to the above fraud works out to the tune of Rs 8.2415 billion (outstanding as on December 31, 2017 plus interest). The security available with to cover the said loss is to the tune of Rs 1.5865 billion only, being realisable value of the immovable properties," it said.

The matter relates to the loan granted to the firm by the public sector banks, including the SBI, to the tune of Rs 7.0 billion which accumulated to Rs 8.2 billion with interest up to March 15, 2018.

The banks took action under the SARFAESI Act and took symbolic possession of nine properties.

The and its consortium banks also lodged a complaint before the CBI, it was submitted.

Bhupesh Kumar Jain, one of the directors of the firm, was arrested by the Directorate General of Goods and Service Tax Intelligence for alleged evasion of duty.

The ED director had passed an order freezing the properties during search and seizure under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

The agency had also passed a provisional attachment order attaching all secured properties under the PMLA.

The moved the court, submitting that by effecting the provisional attachment order, the ED had "scuttled the frantic efforts" of the banks from realising public money.

The ED counter said it is indicated that the bank officials failed to "exercise their due diligence before sanctioning and extending the bank loans to the borrowers named in the FIR registered by CBI, BS & FC, Bangalore,"



"Hence, it is not only case of NPA, but a case of criminal conspiracy, cheating, fraudulence by the said borrowers along with officials of the consortium of banks herein, and others and therefore the loan proceeds are nothing but proceeds of crime involved in money laundering."



Instead of availing statutory remedy available under section 8(1) of the PMLA, the petitioners filed the plea, which is liable to be dismissed, the counter said.
Around 45 per cent of total bad loans worth Rs 10.2 trillion standing in the books of the top 500 debt-heavy corporates are likely to be resolved by the end of 2018 under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (IBC) Act, while the balance is to be resolved largely during 2019. The bad loans include total borrowings of entities within the top 500 borrower universe as on March 2017, with either a credit rating of C or ...

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.



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Pakistan claimed Sunday that the $300 million aid the Pentagon has decided to scrap was not a military aid as the US owed this money to Islamabad for its support in the war on terror and was supposed to reimburse it.

At a hurriedly called press conference after the Pentagon announced that the US will cancel $300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to take actions against terror groups, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said the matter will be taken up during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to the country on September 5.

"The $300 million is neither aid nor assistance - it is the money Pakistan spent from its resources against militants and in the war against terrorism. This is the money they (US) are supposed to reimburse, but now either they are not willing or unable to pay back, he said.

"It was all our money that we spent and they (US) were merely reimbursing it," he said.

Earlier he told the BBC Urdu that the US in principle should pay back the money to Pakistan because it was spent for a common objective to defeat militancy and create peace and stability.

"We will sit and discuss this with him (Pompeo). We will try to improve bilateral ties between the two countries. We will listen to him and present our point of view to him as well," he said.

In a fresh blow to the deteriorating ties between the two nations, the Pentagon announced that the US will cancel $300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to take "decisive actions" to support President Donald Trump's new South Asia policy and act against terror groups like the Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Taiba.

The announcement comes just days before Pompeo is due to visit Pakistan to meet the country's new Prime Minister The US and others have long complained that Pakistan provides safe haven to militant networks, allowing them to carry out cross-border attacks in Afghanistan.

The Pentagon's move, which needs to be approved by the US Congress, is part of a broader suspension of aid announced in January.

To a question about options for Pakistan to get the stopped funds, Qureshi said Pakistan will talk to the US because the money was already spent by Pakistan.

If they don't want to reimburse for future spending, it may be a different thing. But morally and in principle, they should reimburse what we spent in the past, he said.

He said Pakistan welcomes the forthcoming visit of Pompeo as it will help to understand each other's point of view.

There are two sides of a picture. They (US) are showing only one side of it; we will show the other side, he said.

He added that there is a trust deficit between Pakistan and the US but the government wants to improve the ties and build trust between the two countries.

Qureshi said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government was not responsible for the latest tension or suspension of funds by the US as the deal to reimburse Pakistan the cost of the war on terror was agreed in past.

He also blamed the government of former premier Nawaz Sharif for current tension with the US. Qureshi said the new government of will take all decision keeping in mind the interests of Pakistan.

US President since assuming office has been tough on Pakistan over its inaction against terror groups, saying Washington has got "nothing but lies & deceit" in return for millions of dollars in aid over the years.

Trump in August last year unveiled his new South Asia policy and asked Pakistan to do more against such groups.
The sight of five burly guards blocking the way out of her dorm filled Ren Liping with rage.

It was 3 am on a recent Saturday and the thin, bespectacled 26-year-old Chinese graduate student was exhausted. Her mind raced back to earlier in the day when she had tried once again to publicly protest her alleged rape.

Again, the police had stopped her and held her at a station for hours. Again, she was escorted back to campus.

Now this.

She pounded on the glass door with her fist, but the men ignored her. "This is illegal!" she shouted, to no response. She felt nauseous. Her face was numb. She picked up a bicycle pump in the corner and smashed it against the glass.

The door shattered.

"Whoever tries to suppress my case will end up like this door," Ren said to the men.

More than a year after she accused an ex-boyfriend of raping her on the China University of Petroleum campus in the coastal city of Qingdao, this had become Ren's life: a series of attempts to protest the university and authorities' mishandling of the case.

At every turn, Ren has been stymied by the school's guards or the police, who say there's no evidence of a crime. She was even detained in a hotel for six days at one point.

Her efforts highlight at once the challenges of reporting in China and the determination of a new generation of Chinese women pushing the country into its own #MeToo moment despite attempts to silence them.

The movement has gathered considerable steam in China, with dozens of men, including prominent media personalities, non-profit advocates and even a top monk, publicly accused of or sexual misconduct in recent months. But like any social campaign, #MeToo poses a challenge to President Xi Jinping's administration, which has waged an unprecedented crackdown on civil society groups and activism that the ruling Communist Party deems as threats to its rule. Ren accuses Liang Shengyu, her ex-boyfriend, of raping her on campus last summer. Liang denies the allegation. They are suing each other for defamation.

In what legal experts say is unprecedented, Ren is also suing the police for what she's described as a mishandling of the investigation and the use of force against her.

"She is a representative for the #MeToo movement," said Lyu Xiaoquan, a Beijing lawyer who helped Ren prepare her initial complaints.

Ren and Liang met in 2013 when they were undergraduates at the university's geosciences department. Liang says he was attracted to Ren's strength and independence. They dated for two years, experiencing for the first time the freedom of a romance far from their parents' scrutiny.

After a bitter breakup, Liang and Ren rarely spoke. But last summer they got back in touch, and on the evening of July 28, 2017, agreed to walk back to their dorms together after Liang completed an assignment in the lab. Their accounts of the rest of the night diverge.

Ren said Liang asked her if they could get back together, but that she said no because she liked someone else. Liang then cornered her in a bicycle parking lot, she said, pinned her against a concrete wall and put his hand inside her denim shorts.

Stunned and terrified, Ren tried to choke him but wasn't strong enough.

"You're dirty," she told him.

"You've been with me before," he said, according to Ren. "You didn't think I was dirty then," she alleges he said.

Ren said Liang ignored her protests, pulled down her shorts and raped her. She was sobbing in pain, she said.

"Do you want to destroy me?" she cried at the time.

That's when he stopped, picked his cap up off the ground, and walked away, Ren said.

According to Liang, however, Ren had been pestering him for weeks because she thought he had a new girlfriend.

Liang said Ren tried to convince him to break up with this woman and that all they did that night was argue.

"We did not have any physical contact whatsoever that night," he said. "And there was no so-called rape or or behavior of that kind." At first, Ren did not plan on reporting her alleged rape.

"I didn't know what people would think of me," she said.

When it continued to haunt her five days later, she told the school, but administrators encouraged her to keep quiet. Then she went to the local police station, where a female officer told her to drop her claim, saying that not all sexual experiences are pleasurable, according to Ren.

Frustrated, Ren filed lawsuits against the police and started holding protests.

But the authorities' resolve to silence her only grew with her efforts. In June, after she shouted in the middle of a campus square about being raped, Ren said security detained her inside a hotel room in Qingdao for six days while the city hosted a major summit.

Her parents were also ordered to stay in the hotel with her. Her mother, a wheat farmer from rural Henan, said university officials dangled vague job offers and study abroad opportunities to get Ren to drop her case. Their promises to investigate Liang's conduct never materialized, according to her mother, who requested that she only be identified by her surname, Zhang.

"Everyone lied to us," Zhang said. "It's because our family has no money or power if we did, things wouldn't have reached this stage." School officials declined repeated requests to comment. Police in a district in Qingdao that oversees the campus said investigators examined the case closely, interviewing Ren and Liang, their family members, teachers and classmates, and concluded that no crime had taken place. In a statement faxed to The Associated Press, the district police bureau said investigators asked Ren about the alleged rape multiple times but found inconsistencies in her description of the circumstances.
There have always been irritants in relations between India and the United States. But few have been as perplexing to New Delhi, or left as bitter a taste, as President Trumps tendency to mock Prime Minister Narendra Modis accent in English. A video of Mr. Trump imitating Mr. Modi has gone viral in New Delhi. So have reports that Mr. Trump often mimics his Indian counterpart in internal discussions. Theres a general understanding here that Modi is not sure he can do business with Trump, said Suhasini Haidar, foreign affairs editor of The Hindu. ...
By Ritah kemigisa.

Government has been asked to do a complete overhaul of the current governance system if problems affecting the health sector are to be addressed.

This comes at a time many Ugandans and legislators have forsaken using medical facilities in Uganda and are opting for medical treatment abroad.

According to the shadow health minister and also Kapelebyong MP Ochen Julius, unless governance puts people and professionals like doctors at the center of planning, the Ugandan medical facilities shall continue to be shunned.

He adds that the limited fund allocated to the sector and the little pay to doctors and consultants will see them continue to go for greener pastures abroad leaving the country with a shortage of medical personnel.
Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa met on Monday and discussed various security-related issues with the Prime Minister ahead of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to Islamabad on September 5.

Bajwa held his first formal meeting with Prime Minister Khan on August 27 and discussed efforts to ensure long-lasting peace and stability in the region.

"Matters related to security were discussed," the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement about Monday's meeting.

The meeting is significant for its timing due to Pompeo's scheduled visit to the country as the US Secretary of State is expected to demand support from Pakistan to bring Taliban to the negotiating table.

US-Pakistan tensions have flared before Pompeo's trip with Islamabad dismissing as "incorrect" reports the US has cancelled USD 300 million in aid to the country, saying Washington owed the money to Islamabad for expenses incurred on fighting terrorism.

Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi made the remarks a day after the disclosed it decided to scrap the funds because Pakistan was not doing enough against terrorist groups inside its borders.

ALSO READ: With the new regime in Pakistan, will Washington's' $300 mn aid cut work?

Qureshi confirmed his American counterpart will visit Pakistan and downplayed suggestions the funding row has fuelled mutual tensions.

This will be Washington's first high-level dialogue with Islamabad since Khan was sworn-in as the 22nd premier of Pakistan on August 18.
The jailing of two Reuters journalists shreds what remains of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi's reputation as a rights champion, critics say, after she failed to come to their defence or speak up for the persecuted Rohingya minority.

was once a staunch advocate for the free press and a darling of the foreign media.

During her long years of house arrest under the former junta -- which choked the media inside Myanmar -- it was foreign correspondents who carried her message of peaceful defiance to the outside world.

Glowing profiles burnished her image, with comparisons made to the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King.

remains adored inside Myanmar. Supporters of her democracy battle say she has limited control over the military, which ceded full control in 2015 after almost 50 years in power.

But her response to the Rohingya crisis has sent her reputation into a tailspin.

Former friends and supporters have looked on aghast at her lack of criticism of last year's military campaign against the Rohingya.

UN investigators last week said that campaign was pursued with "genocidal intent".

Monday's conviction of two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and their seven-year sentence has sent a chill through Myanmar's already embattled press community.

ALSO READ: Myanmar court jails two Reuters journalists for 7 yrs in state secrets case

Yet throughout the trial has been unmoved by calls to intervene, or even criticise the court case.

Bill Richardson, a US diplomat and until recently a Suu Kyi confidante, alleges that she denounced the two journalists when he tried to raise their plight in person.

"Suu Kyi's response was filled with anger, referring to the journalists as 'traitors'," the former New Mexico governor told AFP.

Shortly after the set-to in January, Richardson quit his position on an advisory body into the Rakhine crisis, labelling it a whitewash.

Another person at the same meeting could not remember whether Suu Kyi used the word "traitors" but said there was shouting and a "charged atmosphere".

"In that heated exchange I wouldn't dismiss that the word was used," said retired Thai lawmaker and ambassador Kobsak Chutikul, who was secretary for the panel and who also later resigned.

"It would have fitted the emotions and sentiments at the time," he added.

Since sweeping to power three years ago, Suu Kyi's relationship with the press has been fraught.

Prosecutions of journalists and media intimidation more redolent of the junta years have been common.

Around 20 journalists were prosecuted in 2017, many under a controversial online defamation law.

At the same time Suu Kyi has been accused of backing misinformation and distorted reports about the Rakhine crisis.

State media published by the Suu Kyi-controlled Ministry of Information has continuously echoed the military line, rejecting allegations of atrocities against the Rohingya as "fake news".

That has put her at odds with a mountain of evidence and an community calling for justice.

"To say that Aung San Suu Kyi's star has faded is a massive understatement," said Matthew Burgher from free speech advocacy group Article 19.

Suu Kyi's defenders say her hands are tied by an army that still controls all security matters as well as 25 per cent of parliamentary seats.

The stateless Rohingya are also a deeply unpopular cause among the Buddhist-majority public in Myanmar, where Islamophobia has surged in recent years.

That reality gives Suu Kyi little political incentive to defend the Muslim minority -- or reporters who write about their plight.

But some analysts note a transformation in Suu Kyi in recent months, from trying to avoid talking about them to supporting the military's kickback against "terrorists".

At a speech in Singapore last month she referred to generals in her cabinet as "rather sweet". UN investigators have accused the army of genocide.

"We who are living through the transition in Myanmar view it differently from those who observe it from the outside and who will remain untouched by its outcome," she said.

Given that an appeal could take years, the best hope for early release for Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo may be a pardon from President Win Myint, a key aide to Suu Kyi.

Aaron Connelly, a Myanmar expert at Australia's Lowy Institute, said the notion that Suu Kyi is powerless to counter the military's excesses is a "myth" since she uses her political leverage on issues she deems worthy.

"Unfortunately, she does not consider the safety and dignity of Rohingya to be among them," he added.
Five people have been detained for allegedly conspiring to kill leaders of Hindu outfits.

On the basis of a tip-off from the intelligence department, five persons who reportedly came from Chennai to allegedly execute a conspiracy to kill three Hindu leaders in Coimbatore, were detained by the police on September 1 and sent to prison on Sunday.

As per the police, the arrested persons, identified as Ismail, Salavudeen, Jabar Sadik Ali, Samsudeen and Ashiq, are members of an Islamic terrorist organisation.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has neutralized a smuggling network in Gujarat and Mumbai and seized around 8000 kg of shark fins meant for illicit export. Four persons, including the mastermind, have also been arrested.

Acting on an information, the DRI on September 1, seized 3000 kg of shark fins from a godown at Sewri, Mumbai and 5000 kg from a godown in Veraval, Gujarat.

The shark fins were intended to be illegally exported to China and Hong Kong on the pretext of exports of dried ray skins, dried marine products, fish maw to evade detection.

The Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT) under the Ministry of Commerce has prohibited the export of shark fins of all species through a notification issued in February 2015.

Shark fins are used for preparing a delicacy called the 'Shark fin soup' which is a traditional soup or stewed dish found in Chinese cuisine and Vietnamese cuisine. It is commonly served at special occasions such as weddings and banquets and is considered as a luxury item in Chinese culture. One bowl of Shark fin soup costs over 100 dollars.

In August 2013, Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change (MoEF&CC) has also approved a Policy on Shark fining that prohibited the removal of shark fins on board a vessel in the sea. The policy prescribes that any possession of shark fins that are not naturally attached to the body of the shark would amount to hunting of a Schedule I species.

In September 2014, India became a signatory of Convention of International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and listed five more shark species for conservation.

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An apparent "insider attack" in eastern Afghanistan on Monday killed a United States service member and injured another member.

A statement from the NATO-led armed forces coalition in Afghanistan - Resolute Support said that the deceased service member was the sixth US national to be killed in Afghanistan in 2018. The wounded service member is in stable condition. The statement did not confirm the identity of the deceased.

"The sacrifice of our service member, who volunteered for a mission to Afghanistan to protect his country, is a tragic loss for all who knew and all who will now never know him. Our duty now is to honor him, care for his family and continue our mission," read the statement of the commander of the Resolute Support, Army General Scott Miller.

Miller took over as the commander of the US and allied forces in Afghanistan from Army Gen. John Nicholson on Sunday.

In July, an insider attack in southern Afghanistan led to the death of Army Cpl. Joseph Maciel of South Gate, California and wounded two more US service members. A Romanian NATO soldier was killed in another insider attack in August 2017.

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On the auspicious occasion of Janmashtami on Monday, Bollywood celebrities extended greetings on the festival. From Amitabh Bachchan to Preity Zinta, celebs took to social media to wish their fans and netizens.

Veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan took to Twitter and wrote, "Janamashtami ki anek shubhkamanayein."

Actor Preity Zinta also wrote, "On this auspicious day, let's celebrate the spirit of selfless giving... wishing you all a very #HappyKrishnaJayanthi!KrishnaJanmashtami."

Sidharth Malhotra took to Instagram and shared his childhood picture dressed as Krishna, writing, "#happyjanmastami #krishnajanmashtami to all, me dressed as Krishna by my beloved Dadi. #throwback #delhihouse #festivaloutfit .........P.S- for some reason placed next to a tall plant. Height reference maybe? "

Rishi Kapoor also took to Twitter to wish his fans, writing, "Wishing everyone a Happy Janmashtami."

Janmashtami is a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna. As per the Hindu calendar, Lord Krishna, an avatar of Lord Vishnu, was born on the eighth day of the month of Bhadra. The day mostly falls in the months of August or September as per the Western calendar.

The festival is celebrated by offering prayers to Lord Krishna, with beautifully decorated swings, dance and music performances and Dahi Handi competition.

In Mathura, which is considered to be the birthplace or 'Janmabhoomi' of Lord Krishna, devotees thronged temples in large numbers to offer prayers on the auspicious occasion.

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The Bombay High Court on Monday came down heavily on Maharashtra Police for holding a press conference and elaborating on the evidence against activists arrested in the Bhima Koregaon case.

The court questioned the police for holding a media interaction when the case is sub-judice.

During the course of the hearing, the court criticised the cops for disclosing details of the matter, even after the police themselves had sought strict confidentiality in the proceedings.

The high court was hearing a petition filed by the alleged victim of the Bhima Koregaon violence, Satish Gaikwad, who wants the case to be handed over to the Investigative Agency. The court, however, adjourned the hearing for September 7, after it was pointed out that copies of the petition were not served to all concerned parties.

Maharashtra Police, on August 28, had arrested five activists, claiming they had links to the outlawed Communist Party of India (Maoist). The raids triggered strong criticism against the police, leading the cops to defend and claim that they had strong evidence against the arrested activists.

The arrests can be traced to the violence that erupted between the Dalit and Maratha groups, earlier this year near Pune, during the bicentenary anniversary of the Bhima Koregaon battle. The clashes killed one person and left several injured, including 10 policemen.

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A man died in Bagaha city of Bihar's West Champaran district after an ambulance of a sub-divisional hospital allegedly failed to reach him in time.

Saral was referred in a critical condition for higher medical treatment to another hospital. However, the ambulance did not reach him in time which allegedly led to his death.

Complaining lack of proper medical facility in hospital, one of Saral's relatives alleged, "There is no proper medical facility available in hospitals. The ambulance did not reach in time which indicates lack of medical facility. He eventually died because of the delay."

When asked about the allegation leveled by the relative of the deceased, hospital in-charge SP Agarwal said, "we have demanded senior authorities to probe the matter.

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Former host of the famous auto show 'Top Gear' Richard Hammond got robbed in Saint Tropez on Sunday.

Richard's wife Mindy Hammond, who confirmed the news to TMZ, said that a group of 15 friends who were staying along with them at a villa in Saint Tropez for the weekend, had been robbed after each one of them was knocked out by anesthetic gas.

Mindy further said that the burglars barged into the villa as the door of every guest's room was open.

Two robbers have been nabbed by the police after they were caught on CCTV.

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By Ritah Kemigisa.

The Uganda Peoples defense forces have allayed the fears of City dwellers who have over the recent days expressed concern and fear over the heavy deployment of soldiers in Kampala.

Speaking to KFM, the forces spokesperson Brig. Richard Karemire says Ugandans should not be worried about the men in army uniform because Kampala is not a war zone and as such should not be a cause of alarm.

He adds that the army is heavily deployed in all areas around the country and some outside countries like Somalia.

He alsoreveals that there are no plans of deploying more soldiers in the city insisting that the ones the people see have always been there.

Quoted by the Sunday Monitor, Karemire justified the armys deployment in quelling the recent riots saying an assessment was done by [police and it show d there was need for them to swing in action and support them.
A day after unidentified miscreants hurled stones at his vehicle, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan termed the attack unprecedented and accused the Congress party of baying for his blood.

Addressing reporters, Chouhan labeled charges against the Congress saying, "The Congress is clearly baying for my blood. Such an attack is unheard of in Madhya Pradesh. There are differences of opinion, ideologies, but this is an unprecedented one." Chouhan is busy touring the state ahead of the assembly polls later this year.

"I want to ask Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Congress state president, in which direction do they wish to take the Congress? Is it fine with what their leaders and workers are doing?" asked Chouhan while tearing into the top brass of the Congress party.

On Sunday, stones were hurled at Chouhan's vehicle while he was conducting the 'Jan Aashirwad Yatra' in the state's Sidhi district. The incident reportedly occurred in Churhat area in the assembly constituency of Congress' Ajay Singh.

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A Mumbai sessions court on Monday remanded Sharad Kalaskar, suspect in rationalist Narendra Dabholkar murder case in 2013, into the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) custody for further investigation.

The new development comes after the court had denied CBI's application seeking Kalaskar's custody on August 29. According to reports, CBI wanted to confront him along with another accused Sachin Andure. Accused Andure was nabbed by the police from Aurangabad after a tip-off from the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). Kalaskar was also remanded into ATS custody until Monday.

On Saturday, two accused, namely Rajesh Bangera and Amit Degwekar were sent to the CBI custody by a Pune sessions court. They were sent to the custody for 10 days.

Dabholkar, the founder of Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (MANS), was shot dead on August 20, 2013 by bike-borne assailants, while he was returning home from a morning walk.

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The United Kingdom Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson, who is on a three-day visit to Kabul and Mazar-e-Sharif on Monday, expressed concern about Daesh fighters in Afghanistan, stating that the terrorist organisation poses a threat to the UK.

The Minister revealed that the terrorist organisation fighters are in contact with cells in the UK and Western Europe, reported Sky News.

Sky News quoted Williamson as saying, "What we see is a real threat posed by these groups to the UK and we've got to be acting as we are to ensure that we do not see future Manchester-style attack. We consistently see terrorist groups operating here in Afghanistan, [and] evidence of their links back not just to the United Kingdom but to the whole of continental Europe."

Williamson also met with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and reiterated UK's support to Afghanistan.

The UK embassy in Kabul in a tweet wrote,""We remain absolutely committed": In visit to #Afghanistan, Defence Secretary @GavinWilliamson met President @AshrafGhani, CEO Dr. Abdullah, Minister of Defence Tariq Shah Bahrami & NSA @hmohib. He reiterated #UK's support & commitment to strengthening & mentoring ANDSF.

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A bad news for all the Drax fans, American actor Dave Bautista might not return for the 'Guardians of the Galaxy Vol.3'.

In an interview on 'The Jonathan Ross Show', the Hollywood star, who plays the role of Drax in the films, spoke against Disney and revealed how they fired 'Guardians of the Galaxy' director James Gunn after his controversial tweets came out-- which he shared nearly a decade ago on topics like paedophilia and rape.

The actor continued to speak in defence of the director, reported Deadline.

When the show's host asked him about his future in the third film of the franchise, Bautista said, "It's a bitter-sweet conversation, um, no it's a bitter-bitter conversation because I'm not really happy with what they've done with James Gunn."

The star further said he is not sure if he wants to continue with Disney, "They're putting the movie off, it's on hold indefinitely. To be honest with you I don't know if I want to work for Disney," he added.

Kevin Hart, who was also a guest on the talk show, jokingly said, "I'll tell you what. I don't want to be here when gets upset so I suggest we change the subject."

Bautista was completely honest about his feelings as he said that it has been pretty nauseating to work for Disney now. Host Ross pointed out that it is quite unusual in Hollywood, to which Bautista replied, "I don't think I'm your typical Hollywood guy."

It might be easy for Bautista to quit since his character was one of the victims of Thano's Infinity Gauntlet snap at the end of 'Avengers Infinity War', but it would be a major loss for fans.

However, the entire 'Guardians of the Galaxy' cast, including Chris Pratt, Zoe Saldana, Bradley Cooper and Vin Diesel extended their support and asked for Gunn to be reinstated as 'Guardians of the Galaxy: Vol 3' director.

The official release date of the film is yet to be revealed.

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Former World No. 1 Novak Djokovic on Monday outclassed his Portuguese opponent Joao Sousa in straight sets to book his spot in the quarter-finals of the men's singles event in the ongoing US Open.

The Serbian ace maintained his 100 per cent win record against the Portuguese, having emerged victorious in the four previous clashes with Sousa without conceding a single set, with a 6-3, 6-4, 6-3 scoreline.

Serving first, Sousa, who entered the round-of-16 for the first time in his career, started the match positively and won the first game having held Djokovic to love. However, Djokovic won the successive game 40-0 and got the first break in the next.

A double fault from Sousa, with Djokovic having three set points and the score at 5-3, ensured the first set went the Serbian's way.

The second set saw an improved showing from Sousa, who claimed his first break point in the third game after a double fault from Djokovic. The Serbian made amends in the next game and with the match level at 4 games each, the current World No. 6 won consecutive games to wrap up the second set.

Djokovic made light work of the Portuguese World No. 68 in the third set and won three back-to-back games with the scores level at 3-3 to cruise into the quarter-finals. The two-time US Open champion will be looking to win his second grand slam of the year after lifting the 2018 Wimbledon title.

Meanwhile, Japan's Kei Nishikori, Argentina's Juan Martin del Potro, and John Isner of the United States booked their spots in the quarter-final round of the men's singles event. Croatian Marin Cilic's clash against Belgium's David Goffin is underway.

World No. 2 and five-time US Open champion Roger Federer is set to face John Millman of Australia on Tuesday for the last quarter-final berth.

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Elan Group, one of the leading commercial real estate developers of Gurgaon, has entered into a strategic partnership with Mitsubishi Elevator India Private Limited (hereafter called Mitsubishi Elevator).

Mitsubishi Elevator India Private Limited's mother factory in Japan, called Mitsubishi Electric Corporation Inazawa Works, is one of the leading global manufacturers of elevators and escalators. This partnership will help Elan Group deliver high-end commercial properties in Delhi-NCR.

"Elan Group believes in delivering lasting quality coupled with luxury to its customers. We believe in using high-end products and technology in all our projects. Elan Group is privileged to be associated with the world-renowned Mitsubishi Elevator," said Ravish Kapoor, Director, Elan Group.

The deal was finalized in August 2018 under the mentorship of Raj Singhal, CEO, Elan Group. Elan will be using Mitsubishi elevatora in all its commercial projects. Under this agreement, a letter of intent (LoI) has been signed with Mitsubishi Elevator, wherein, Mitsubishi Elevator will supply elevators to Elan for the development of Elan Mercado in Sector-80 and Elan Town Centre in Sector-67 at Sohna Road, both of which are nearing possession. The same will also be supplied for Elan Miracle located at Sector-84 Dwarka Expressway and their upcoming project in Sector-70, Gurgaon.

Ko Tanaka, Managing Director of Mitsubishi Elevator said, "India is an attractive emerging market with exponentially growing commercial and residential sectors. In the times to come, the demand for the high-performance elevators will continue to increase strongly in various segments, especially in the real estate sector. Through this association, we will continue to leverage our existing, strong sales and marketing network in India.

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Do you want to know what an ideal vacation looks like? Head to actor Soha Ali Khan's Instagram and you will know!

Soha's latest post has everything you need to make for a happening beach-cation. Soha, along with her husband Kunal Khemu, brother Saif Ali Khan and sister-in-law Kareena Kapoor Khan, is vacationing in Maldives.

Little munchkins of both the couples- Taimur Ali Khan and Inaaya Naumi Khemu, are also accompanying their star parents.

In the many photos shared by Soha, Kareena looks every bit of the diva that she is. Dressed in a hot pink bikini, the 'Heroine' actor looks ethereal.

In one post, the two couples can be seen enjoying some pool time and making the most of it with their kids. It definitely makes for one happy family photo!

Soha captioned it as, "Make a splash! @discoversoneva #discoversoneva#familygoals"

In another picture, Kareena and Kunal can be seen helping out Taimur and Inaaya as the tiny tots try a hand at colouring. As Kunal and Inaya smiled and posed for the camera, Bebo being a dotibng mother is engrossed in helping out her little one.

Upping the style quotient, Kareena teamed her bikini with a star-printed kimono as she held hands with her husband Saif Ali Khan in another still. On the other hand, Saif looks casual in plain t-shirt and shorts along with a hat.

On the work front, Saif is currently shooting for Navdeep Singh's 'Hunter', while Kareena will next seen be in Raj Mehta's 'Good News' and Karan Johar's multi-starrer 'Takht'.

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ministers and experts from countries in WHO (World Organisation) South-East Asia Region on Monday began five-day deliberations on priority issues, emphasising on universal coverage for ensuring health for all.

"Universal Health Coverage is at the core of Sustainable Development Goal 3 and can be a very powerful tool for social, gender and economic equity," said J P Nadda, India's Minister of Health and Family Welfare, inaugurating the Seventy-first session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia here.

"The year 2018 is also the 40th anniversary of the historic Alma-Ata Declaration, and due to our collective efforts, the Region is better prepared, and is accelerating progress toward the shared global vision of health for all through universal health coverage," he added.

Nadda said India has fast-tracked many initiatives aimed at achieving all the core tenets of universal health coverage - strengthening health systems, improving access to free medicines and diagnostics and reducing catastrophic healthcare spending.

Speaking at the inauguration, Dr Poonam Khetrapal Singh, Regional Director WHO South-East Asia, said, "WHO's new global thrust aims to have one billion more people benefitting from universal coverage; one billion more people protected from disaster, and one billion more people enjoying better health as we tackle the many determinants of ill health that lie beyond the reach of the health sector."

The WHO South-East Asia Region's priority programmes are already aligned to these goals and the Region is witnessing growing support for health from the highest levels of government, and impressive progress and achievements.

Amitabh Kant, Chief Executive Officer of National Institute of Transforming India, and Preeti Sudan, Health Secretary, Ministry of Health and Family Planning, spoke at the inaugural and shared the various initiatives being taken by India to improve health and wellbeing of people.

Representatives of a number of partner organisations and civil society are participating in the meeting that is expected to adopt resolutions on key health issues.

The Regional Committee session, the highest policy making body of WHO in the Region, is hosted annually by any one of the 11 Member countries in the region, or the WHO South-East Asia Regional Office. The session this year is being hosted by the Regional Office.

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Bollywood's multi-talented actor Farhan Akhtar who teased his fans about releasing a new single a few days back, has revealed its release date.

The 'Rock On' actor took to Instagram on Monday to share that on September 07 a new single 'Rearview Mirror' from his 11-song album titled 'Echoes'" will be released.

In his post, he said that it gives him "much happiness to share" what he is been working on for the "past 15 months".

He even posted a video where he can be seen playing a guitar and recording the song. The video ended with a message that read "4 DAYS TO GO", indicating the release date of his new song.

He wrote, "It fills my heart with much happiness to share with you what I've been working on for the past 15 months. How something that started off as merely scribbling thoughts down onto pages evolved into consuming my need for creative expression is difficult to understand or explain. And now the time has come to hand these creations over to you, in the form of an 11 song album titled 'Echoes'. The first single 'Rearview Mirror' releases 7th Sept. Hope you will like it. #Echoes #Rearviewmirror #4daystogo #musiclove #expressyourself"

Currently, Farhan is on a musical tour in Vancouver along with Bollywood musical trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.

The 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag' actor will next be seen in Shonali Bose's debut directorial 'The Sky is pink', alongside Priyanka Chopra.

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India and Cyprus signed two Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on Monday on 'Combating Money Laundering and Cooperation' in the field of Environment, in presence of the Presidents of both the countries.

Indian President Ramnath Kovind, who is in Cyprus as a part of his three-nation tour to Europe spanning over eight days, met with his counterpart Nicos Anastasiades to hold wide range of discussions today on the issues of mutual interest, including promotion of business collaboration in the fields of IT and IT Enabled Services, tourism, shipping and renewable energy.

Kovind also addressed the Parliament of Cyprus and expressed his gratitude for the invitation to visit the country.

While talking about bilateral relations between the two countries, Kovind asserted that Cyprus and India hardly disagree on any major issues.

"The strong connection between the citizens of Cyprus and India is the most important source of our bilateral energy. From people-to-people contacts, we build economic and trade links, educational and intellectual connections, and a fruitful bilateral partnership," President Kovind said.

During his address, President Kovind thanked Cyprus for its unstinted backing of India's candidature for expanded United Nations Security Council (UNSC) and Nuclear Suppliers' Group (NSG) during his address.

He further appreciated the landscape of the country and talked about the "shared values" of the two countries.

"In New Delhi, a major road is named in honour of the venerable Archbishop Makarios. Shortly before coming here, I paid tribute before a bust of Mahatma Gandhi placed in the adjoining park. Mahatma Gandhi was not only the leader of our freedom movement and that of the entire Indian subcontinent," he said.

President Kovind also addressed the Indian diaspora in Cyprus on Sunday and termed the community as true cultural ambassadors.

From Cyprus, President Kovind will proceed to Bulgaria on September 4, where he is scheduled to meet Bulgarian President Radev and Prime Minister Boyko Borissov. In the last leg of the journey, President Kovind will visit the Czech Republic from September 6 to 9, where he will hold a discussion on issues of mutual concern with Czech President Milos Zeman.

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Chinese billionaire and founder of the country's biggest online retailer JD.com, Richard Liu, was reportedly arrested by Minneapolis authorities over the weekend on suspicion of alleged sexual misconduct.

Liu was released late Sunday. JD.com later released a statement saying the CEO was questioned by the police in relation to an unsubstantiated accusation and upon determining that there was no substance to the claims against Liu, he was released, TechCrunch reported.

Even as the 45-year-old, who is worth nearly USD 8 billion, has been released, the investigation in the matter remains reportedly active.

In the past, Liu reportedly tried to keep himself away from a sexual assault conducted by one of his guests at his penthouse in Australia. The guest was found guilty of seven charges, including non-consensual sex.

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Tthe Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) is planning to fight in the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union election for the first time this year, according to sources.

Party sources revealed that after a discussion, former deputy chief minister of Bihar Tejashwi Yadav and RJD leader Tej Pratap decided to contest the student election, as according to them, the party has support of the youth.

It also said, both the leaders, who are currently in the capital, have stamped the name of Jayant Kumar as the student leader candidate. They are likely to name of the candidate very soon.

Sources further revealed, a discussion is likely to take place between the leader and the Member of Parliaments (MP) on Monday night.

The JNUSU elections of this year are scheduled to be held on September 14. Left candidate Geeta Kumari won the president's post in 2017, defeating Nidhi Tripathi of Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) by 464 votes.

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At least eight people were injured in an acid attack during a procession following the victory of Congress candidate Inayatullah Khan in Tumkur in Karnataka local body elections.

The injured people have been admitted to a nearby hospital.

The mass acid attack took place in ward no 16 baseline road, from where Inayathullah Khan won. The police have started an investigation into the incident. More details are awaited.

Out of the total 2664 seats, the results for 2267 have been announced and the Congress has managed to win 846 seats, while the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) bagged 788, and the Janata Dal (Secular) won 307 seats, with the remaining going to independent candidates.

The polling was held in 2,529 wards, spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities, 23 town panchayats and in 135 wards of three city corporations of the state.

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Karle Infra Pvt. Ltd., a real estate and urban infrastructure company, was felicitated at the at the Worldwide Achievers Realty Leaders' Summit and Awards 2018 in both the residential and commercial categories.

Karle Infra was awarded the "Most Promising Developer - Luxury Residential in Bengaluru" and HUB 1 and HUB 2 was bestowed with "Best commercial Property Developer of the Year (Southern India)". The awards were presented in recognition of Karle's properties matching the highest standard of development.

Zenith Residences is the very first offering of the Karle Town Centre and is located in Nagavara, Bengaluru. Embracing a new level of luxury living, Zenith is ideally located and is close to some of the cities' best facilities. Facilities at this property include a yoga and meditation lawn, clubhouse, gymnasium and swimming pool. The entirety of space in homes at the Zenith Residence, from the bedroom to the bathroom, is designed with attention to the smallest detail. The concept of a harmonious living with nature is embraced with the provision of a natural environment to residents.

At 'Karle Town Centre', office spaces have been designed keeping the user at the centre, where the belief is 'a free mind is a productive mind'. This is important as employee needs are met with lower stress levels and consequently they are found to be highly productive at work. Once fully built, this campus will play host to over 45,000 motivated, loyal workforce.

The first phase of office buildings comprises of two eleven storeyed buildings namely HUB 1 & HUB 2, summing up to one million sq. ft of leasable space with the typical office floor plate being about 40,000 sq. ft. Each office floor has a central core area which houses the elevators, stairways, MEP, BoH areas and other services. None of the building services extend into tenant areas, thereby offering the tenants high fidelity in setting up their office interiors.

Design of these floors enables easy divisibility into two separate tenants considering the average offtake of office spaces within SEZs being not less than 20,000 sq. ft. For smaller tenants, plug and play incubation areas are made available. In designing the central core, the width to depth ratio of the floor plates has been delicately balanced to ensure maximum daylight penetration thereby improving the indoor work environment.

Facade of these office buildings feature a built-in geometric extrusion which acts as a sun-shading device which in turn reduces the incident heat gain and regulates glare within the workspace. This is a critical factor to ensure user comfort by reducing optical strain while working on reflective digital screens/monitors. The entire ground floor of all office buildings are treated as an inviting social space and is conceived as a plush lobby with F&B services. The idea was to provide the occupant multiple avenues for social engagement and also to create a pride of ownership while at the office. Buildings are interconnected at the ground floor by 'The Street', a miniature concept of high-street dining along with easy-reach-facilities.

Apart from functional space planning, the buildings boast of destination-control-elevators, solar power generation roof, occupancy based HVAC system, integrated firefighting and safety systems, sensor based building services monitoring and maintenance system etc.

HUB 1 & HUB 2 comprises of 3 basements, ground floor, 11 floors and has a double height atrium and is currently occupied by multi-national companies like: Diageo, Epsilon, Resource Pro, Arcadis, Concentrix, Rocket Software, HCL, Dufry, Anvizent, Xylem and Clairvolex.

85 per cent of the clientele are Fortune 500 companies.

P. P. Madappa, Member of Group Executive Board (GEB) said: "At Karle, we are constantly striving to maintain the highest standards in the industry. Being honoured at such a prestigious event such as this, in not 1 but 2 categories, reassures our belief in delivering quality products. Meticulous planning and patience along with an adherence to the guidance of Sudharshan Karle (Managing Director) have made us the company that we are today. Winning the Most Promising Developer - Luxury Residential in Bengaluru and Best commercial Property Developer of the Year (Southern India) instills a great sense of pride within us and will fuel our pursuit of excellence.

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The Madras High Court on Monday upheld the Tamil Nadu government's decision to prohibit holding protests at Chennai's Marina Beach. The court observed that the beach cannot be used for agitations as public order is equally important.

On April 28, the Madras High Court had allowed farmer leader P Ayyakannu to stage a protest at Marina Beach demanding setting up of a Cauvery Management Board. Following the orders, the state government moved the court for a stay.

An order prohibiting to protest at Marina Beach was put in place after the Jallikattu protests took place in Tamil Nadu in 2017.

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Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal and Florida International University, USA signed a Memorandum of Understanding at the University Board Room on Friday to provide quality collaborative learning opportunities for its students and promote academic research.

The MoU was signed by Dr Meredith Newman, Vice Provost for Faculty & Global Affairs and Dr Joanne Li, Dean College of for FIU and for MAHE, Dr Raghu Radhakrishnan, Director International Collaborations and Dr Sandeep Shenoy, Prof and Head, Department of Commerce were the signatories.

Both Universities consider the MoU will promote and support teaching, research and community outreach to be of primary importance in the fulfillment of their mission, goals, and objectives. The Universities will promote mutual cooperation in in medicine, engineering, humanities, social sciences, management and others. FIU is interested in expanding their collaborations in the field of Forensic Medicine and International as well.

Study tours to India and vice versa, exchange of graduate or undergraduate students, dual degree programs, summer school programs, exchange of academic personnel, cooperative development activities, cooperative design of courses, conferences, symposia or academic programs and Exchange of academic or scientific materials and publications of common interest are some of the areas both universities have agreed to collaborate.

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At least one 'govinda' lost his life during Janmashtami Dahi-Handi celebrations here on Monday. He died in the Sion Hospital. Dahi Handi is celebrated by forming human pyramids on the eve of Janmashtami which is celebrated with fervour in the state.

The deceased was at the first level of the pyramid when he suddenly collapsed. According to the police, he died due to an epileptic fit.

Meanwhile, at least 36 'govindas' were injured till 2 pm while participating in Dahi-Handi celebrations across Mumbai. The Dahi-Handi ritual is part of the Janmashtami festival in the state in which youngsters (called Govindas), dressed in colourful costumes, make a human pyramid to reach the earthen pot having buttermilk, suspended in mid-air, and break it.

Meanwhile, the Mumbai Police had tweeted to alert people and advised the govindas to take precautionary measures by wearing safety gears to avoid any injuries. "Break Dahi Handi. Not Your Head. Let your being on top of the world feeling not get shattered by unnecessary carelessness! #AwareGovindaAalaRe #WearSafetyGear," the Mumbai police tweeted.

The Disaster Management Cell of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) was alerted to deal with any untoward incident, while hospitals were asked to keep their medical staff and facilities on standby.

In 2017, the Supreme Court and the Bombay High Court had restricted the participation of children below 14 years in the Dahi Handi celebration.

Last year, two persons lost their lives while 197 got injured at different places in the event related incidents.

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Hotel chain, OYO on Monday announced the launch of its mid-market offering 'OYO Townhouse' in Jaipur.

The 44 room property located in C-Scheme, Ahimsa Circle was inaugurated by Rajpal Singh Shekhawat, Honourable Minister for Industry, Government of Rajasthan. The launch further reinforces OYO's commitment to the beautiful state of Rajasthan, by providing the customers with an offering that combines experience and value at a scale that has never been attempted before in the hospitality landscape.

"With this launch, OYO has further strengthened its commitment towards creating beautiful living spaces and offering them to customers at an affordable cost. OYO Townhouse defines a unique hospitality experience as it combines our state-of-art technology and designed processes," said COO OYO Townhouse, Ankit Tandon.

"It is my utmost pleasure to launch OYO's first Townhouse hotel in Jaipur. OYO has established itself as a force to reckon with and we are happy to see it grow in Rajasthan. I am glad to be a part of this celebration and wish the team best for their future journey," said Rajpal Singh Shekhawat.

Adding to this Ankit said that Jaipur remains a priority market for us. The city is among the top leisure destinations in India and is also a traders hub. It holds immense potential and long-term prospects for the Indian travel and hospitality sector.

"We are sure that our customers will love this property which combines an impeccable design, offers world-class experience, facilities and a location, all at one place. We look forward to building strong relationships with our existing and future hotel partners in Jaipur and welcoming them to the OYO Townhouse family," he added.

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The Pakistan Chief of Army Staff General Qamar Javed Bajwa on Monday called on the newly-elected Prime Minister Imran Khan at his office on Monday to discourse on security matters.

The Dawn quoted the Prime Minister Office statement revealing that security issues were discussed by the two in the meeting.

This is the third meeting between the two Pakistan officials; however, this came ahead of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the US Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Gen Joseph Dunford's visit to Islamabad on Wednesday to meet their counterparts.

The two US officials are also scheduled to meet Imran Khan during the course of their visit which is slated for September 5.

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Teachers play a vital role in the process of learning as they impart and encourage students towards reaching their ambition.

The disruption in the sector and living in an age where digital learning has impacted almost everyone around us. Virtual Tutors have gained popularity due to its effective teaching methods where a student is not bound to time or location.

These methods have been very fruitful for this digitally influenced generation as it creates a platform where a student can interact, learn and grow along with the learners from different parts of the world.

Here are a few platforms who are emerging as virtual tutors:

Udacity

Udacity is a silicon valley based lifelong learning platform that co- creates courses with industry giants for future technologies. From mentoring, project reviewers to structured guidance, Udacity provides assistance to variety of learners for courses in Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Data Analytics, etc for both tech and non-tech background.

Edx

Leading massive online course provider Edx, it caters students with presence in various countries. It hosts online university-level courses in a wide range of disciplines to a worldwide student body, including some courses at no charge. Acting as virtual tutors to large number of students they are deeply committed to understanding the barriers that learners face when looking to advance or change their careers.

Imarticus

It incorporates a variety of delivery methodologies -online, classroom and blended - that are managed by a fully integrated state-of-the-art online learning management and governance system. The curriculum for each course is designed by industry experts to ensure relevance and industrial applicability, and to equip trainees with the pertinent skills that ensure employability upon completion. Imarticus has educated 30,000+ individuals globally.

Toppr

It emphasizes on adaptive practice through machine learning algorithms, personalized tests, and goal-based pedagogy. Therefore, facilitating learning for students at their own pace and in their own space. Toppr currently caters to over 4.5 million registered students. With a community of 15000+ educators across India that works 24x7, Toppr ensures that no doubts for students remain unanswered even past mid-night.

Next Education

Founded in 2007, Next is a fast-growing, technology-driven company revolutionizing the K-12 education system in India. Every day, its innovative products and solutions transform the lives of 10% of India's private-school-going children. It has created innovative products which make teaching easy, engaging and effective.

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Liquor baron Vijay Mallya's lawyer on Monday sought more time to file reply on the Enforcement Directorate's notice in connection with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Appellate Tribunal case.

The lawyer argued that he has not received some of the notices till date despite him sharing his Mauritius address.

In response to this, the ED lawyer argued that as per the law, no more time could be given to Mallya for response on the application, adding that even the court is powerless to give time beyond one week as mandated by the Fugitive Offenders law.

On August 25, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) countered charges leveled by Mallya that condition in Mumbai's Arthur Road Jail is "inhuman" by submitting a video in London's Westminster Magistrates Court, which showed proper facility in the Cell Number 12, where the absconding businessman would be lodged after extradition.

This video was submitted after Mallya's lawyers in the court on July 31 raised question on the condition of toilet and natural light in Arthur Road Jail.

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President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday extended greetings to the nation on the occasion of Janmashtami.

Taking to his twitter handle, President Kovind appealed to citizens to follow the path of virtue and righteousness in thought, word, and deed.

"Greetings and good wishes to fellow citizens on the auspicious occasion of Janmashtami. The teachings of Lord Krishna have a universal message - Nishkam Karma. May this festival inspire us to follow the path of virtue and righteousness in thought, word and deed," the President tweeted.

The Prime Minister tweeted "Janmashtami greetings to everyone."

Janmashtami is a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna. As per the Hindu calendar, Lord Krishna, an avatar of Lord Vishnu, was born on the eighth day of the month of Bhadra. The day mostly falls in the months of August or September as per the Western calendar.

The festival is celebrated by offering prayers to Lord Krishna, with beautifully decorated swings, dance and music performances and Dahi Handi competition.

In Mathura, which is considered to be the birthplace or 'Janmabhoomi' of Lord Krishna, devotees thronged temples in large numbers to offer prayers on the auspicious occasion.

In Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district, children were seen dressed up in festive attire.

Delhi's ISKCON temple was also decked up on the occasion.

In Nepal, a Krishna temple in Lalitpur, which was damaged by the earthquake in 2015, reopened after three-years on the occasion.

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Congress leader and Member of Parliament Jyotiraditya Scindia on Monday slammed Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan after one of the ruling party MLA's son threatened to shoot him.

"The mentality of the BJP leaders and real face of the party have been exposed with this threat," Scindia told ANI. He further said, "The main objective of the party and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan is to demolish Congress at any cost."

Making it clear that such a threat will never throw him or his family into a panic, Scindia stated, "I would like to tell them that the Scindia scion never bowed down to such threats and will never do that as well."

The remark for the BJP MLA's son comes ahead of Scindia's public rally in Madhya Pradesh's Hatta district on September 5.

The post shared on Facebook read, "Jyotiraditya Scindia, you have Jiwajirao's blood running in your veins, who killed Jhansi ki, Rani. If you step in Hatta then I will shoot you. Either you will die or I will.

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Formulating some change in the daily working of universities across Bihar, newly sworn-in Governor Lalji Tandon on Monday issued directives regarding the schedule and dress code of the convocation to be held in state universities.

According to a circular, the newly issued dress code consists of Salwar-kurti for the female graduates, whereas the male graduates would be required to wear dhoti kurta for the convocation ceremony. The dress code has also been changed for other dignitaries attending convocation, ranging from Chief guest to the Chancellor of the university. The Malviya turban has been made mandatory for all the dignitaries to be present during the convocation.

The Governor house has asked the universities to ensure no relaxation in the same as the convocation is one of the most important part of a university curriculum. The convocation also plays a crucial role in determining the ranking of a university.

The universities in Bihar don't have a culture of holding convocation on a regular basis. Other universities of the state observe convocation with a considerable delay except for Nalanda University, Patna University and few others. The Governor house has also charted out a calendar for convocation ceremony of all universities across the state.

Guidelines have been issued to the Universities that on the basis of the prescribed calendar to organise convocation in November. The same has been issued to all the universities by the order of the Chancellor. The statutory order related to organising the Convocation and the costume design has been approved by Raj Bhawan.

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The Australia stock market closed lower on first trading session of week and month, Monday, 3 September 2018, as risk sentiments muted after reports that U. S.-Canada trade talks ended with no deal and data showed China's manufacturing sector recorded the weakest growth in 14 months in August. The benchmark S&P/ASX200 index ended the day down 8.6 points, or 0.14%, at 6,310.9 points, while the broader All Ordinaries was down 11.3 points, or 0.18%, to 6,416.5 points.

Shares of materials and resources declined on renewed trade tensions between the world's two biggest economies, the US and China. Fortescue Metals fell 4.2% to A$3.68 while BHP Billiton shares closed 0.5% lower at A$33.03 and Rio Tinto fell 1.4% to A$71.76.

Northern Star Resources lifted 16.7% to a record high of $8.12 after its shares resumed trading after the gold miner raised the cash to buy the A$347 million Pogo underground gold mine in Alaska. The miner raised its gold output guidance for the 2019 financial year from between 600,000 and 640,000 ounces, to between 850,000 and 900,000 ounces.

Financial stocks were lower with ANZ leading falls, down 1% to A$29.21, while Bendigo and Adelaide Bank dropped 2.8% to A$11.27 after trading ex-dividend.

Suncorp shares slipped 0.3% to A$15.44 after raising mortgage rates on Friday.

Shares of telecommunications sector closed mixed, with Speedcast International advancing 7.3% to A$4.55 on bargain hunting, while Telstra shares fell 2.3% to A$3.03. TPG Telecom shares fell 2.9% to A$8.40 on reports that internet service provider and NBN rival, Uniti would fast-track its expansion into Sydney.

ECONOMIC NEWS: Australia manufacturing sector growth quickens up in August-- Latest survey results from the Commonwealth Bank showed Australia's manufacturing sector grew at a faster pace but the pace of growth was slower compared with historical averages. Seasonally adjusted Commonwealth Bank Purchasing Managers' Index increased to 53.2 in August, from 52.4 in July.

CURRENCY NEWS: The Australian dollar was lower against the U. S. dollar on Monday, after trade talks between Canada and the United States ended on a sour note. The Aussie dollar was at 71.9 US cents, its lowest level since the start of 2017, down from 72.53 US cents on Friday; 79.75 Japanese yen, from 55.71; 61.98 euro cents, from 62.10; 55.66 British pence, from 55.71; and 108.77 NZ cents, from 109.13.

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Brickwork withdraws 'D' ratings for Reliance Infrastructure's NCDs totalling Rs 468.70 cr

Brickwork Ratings (BWR) has withdrawn its 'D' ratings for non-convertible debentures of Reliance Infrastructure totalling Rs. 468.70 crore.

BWR has withdrawn the rating of D for the NCD amounting to Rs. 418.70 crore and BWR C for the NCD amounting to Rs. 50 crore of Reliance Infrastructure as the company has repaid the NCDs from the funds received from the sale of Integrated Mumbai Distribution Business to Adani Transmission.

The company last week completed a transformational transaction of sale of its Mumbai Power Business and entire proceeds was used to pay debt including the above mentioned NCDs. The company had informed the bond holders that they would be paid out of the proceeds of the transaction.

Reliance Infrastructure Chairman Anil D Ambani recently said he expects top-end ratings for the company with the closure of the deal for the Integrated Mumbai Distribution Business and drastic fall in debt liabilities.

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From Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai

Dynacons Systems & Solutions has won a contract worth Rs 58 crore of Hospital Management Information System (HMIS) from the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM).

The objective of this project is to implement HMIS at MCGM's network which comprises of 3 Major Hospitals, 1 Dental Hospital, 18 Peripheral Hospitals, 5 Speciality Hospitals, 28 Maternity Homes, 161 Dispensaries and 183 Health Posts. The total capacity is approximately 13000 beds which amount to 28% of the total bed capacity in Mumbai. Approximately 54000 outpatients are treated every day at MCGM health facilities.

This order covers the 5 major hospitals of Mumbai Nair Hospital, Cooper Hospital, Rajawadi Hospital, Babasaheb Ambedkar Hospital & Kasturba Hospital, as a part of phase I of the entire HMIS initiative. Under this initiative citizens (patients) record will be maintained with unique id & available across the Network Hospitals. The HMIS-infra contract covers the setup of the IT Infrastructure, Network, Connectivity, Enterprise Management System, PACS software, Radiology systems and software. It also includes services and support for a period of 5 years.

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Through its Netherland based subsidiary - Graphite International BV

Graphite India through its wholly owned subsidiary in Netherlands, Graphite International BV has signed a definitive agreement for investment upto US$ 18.6 million in cash in General Graphene Corporation (General Graphene). This investment would constitute approximately 46% stake in General Graphene and is aligned to the Company's core business segment of Carbon and Graphite.

General Graphene, a US based unlisted company located in Knoxville (Tennessee), has developed a breakthrough proprietary technology which would allow them to produce large area, low cost graphene sheets industrial volumes for commercial applications. The investment will be made in multiple tranches over 2 to 3 years, based on the achievement of agreed milestones in the process of commercial production of graphene sheets.

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The total gross GST revenue collected in the month of August, 2018 is Rs. 93,960 crore of which CGST is Rs. 15,303 crore, SGST is Rs. 21,154 crore, IGST is Rs. 49,876 crore (including Rs. 26,512 crore collected on imports) and Cess is Rs. 7,628 crore (including Rs. 849 crore collected on imports). The total number of GSTR 3B Returns filed for the month of July up to 31st August, 2018 is 67 lakh. This is slightly higher than 66 lakh returns of the month of June filed up to 31st July, 2018. The last date of filing return of July, 2018 in the State of Kerala was extended upto 5th October, 2018.

The total revenue earned by Central Government and the State Governments after settlement including provisional settlement of Rs. 12,000 crore in the month of August, 2018 is Rs. 36,963 crore for CGST and Rs. 41,136 crore for the SGST.

For the bi-monthly period June-July, 2018, compensation of Rs. 14,930 crore has been released to the States.

The revenues collected in August, 2018 of Rs. 93,960 crore is slightly lower than July, 2018 collection of Rs. 96,483 crore, and June, 2018 collection of Rs. 95,610 crore. The chart shows trends in revenue during the current year.

One of the main factors for the dip in tax revenues is probable postponement of sale of items for which tax rate was reduced by the Council as the decision to reduce the tax rate was taken in meeting held on 21st July while the notification of the reduced rate came into effect only from 27th July, 2018. Since it would have taken some time for the market to pass on the benefit of reduced taxes, consumers would have postponed their decision to buy expecting the benefit. The actual impact of reduction of rate of taxes would be observed only from next month onwards as the rate reduction would have got affected only in last few days of the month.

Even past trend of indirect tax collection shows that while July collections are 8.2% of the total annual collections, August collections are at a lower level of 7.7% of the total annual collections. This is another reason for lower collections during the month of August as compared to that in July.

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Trading for the week began on a positive note as the key benchmark indices edged higher in early trade. At 9:30 IST, the barometer index, the S&P BSE Sensex, was up 48.94 points or 0.13% at 38,694.01. The Nifty 50 index was up 6.55 points or 0.06% at 11,687.05.

The S&P BSE Mid-Cap index was up 0.3%. The S&P BSE Small-Cap index was up 0.35%. Both these indices outperformed the Sensex.

The market breadth, indicating the overall health of the market, was strong. On the BSE, 929 shares rose and 452 shares fell. A total of 56 shares were unchanged.

Overseas, Asian stocks were trading on a mixed note. US stocks closed mixed on Friday, 31 August 2018 as the Trump administration and Canada were said to plan on resuming trade talks next week after discussions Friday ended with no deal.

Back home, Maruti Suzuki India fell 0.63% after the company said that its total sales declined 3.4% to 158,189 lakh units in August 2018 over August 2017. The announcement was made on Saturday, 1 September 2018.

Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) rose 0.24%. M&M announced that its auto sales for August 2018 stood at 48,324 vehicles, compared to 42,207 vehicles during August 2017, a growth of 14%. The announcement was made on Saturday, 1 September 2018.

Wipro jumped 5.74% after the company announced that it has won a 10-year engagement to provide a comprehensive suite of solutions and services to Lincolnshire, Illinois-based Alight Solutions LLC, a leader in technology-enabled health, wealth, HR and finance solutions. This deal will result in revenues of $1.5 to $1.6 billion for Wipro over the tenure. This is Wipro's largest win to date. The announcement was made on Sunday, 2 September 2018.

This engagement will enable the digital transformation of Alight's offerings across health, wealth, HR and finance solutions, and enhance the employee experience of Alight's clients by leveraging Wipro's industry-leading strengths in digital technologies, cognitive automation and data analytics.

On the macro front, India's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth accelerated sharply to nine-quarters high level of 8.2% in the quarter ended June 2018, while showing consistent improvement from a low of 5.6% in the quarter ended June 2017. The data was released by the government after market hours on Friday, 31 August 2018.

The production of eight core infrastructure industries comprising 40.27% of the weight of items included in the Index of Industrial Production (IIP) increased 6.6% in July 2017 over July 2017. The cumulative output improved 5.8% in April-July 2018-19. The data was released by the government after market hours on Friday, 31 August 2018.

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Two persons were arrested for illegally withdrawing cash from various ATMs in the national capital, police said on Monday.

The accused, Aniket (23) and Gulshan (22) -- residents of Sangam Vihar in south Delhi -- were arrested on Sunday from the same area.

The matter came to light after a victim, S. Murghen, an employee in the Border Security Force (BSF), complained to the police about illegal transaction of Rs 10,000 made from his account, the police said.

He had hinted at the possible role of two youths -- later identified as Aniket and Gulshan -- in the illegal withdrawal of money from his account.

"During interrogation, the accused confessed their involvement in illegal transaction from the account of Murghen. They also admitted their involvement in various other ATM card thefts," Deputy Commissioner of Police Vijay Kumar said.

"Seven ATM cards and cash worth Rs 10,000 were recovered from their possession," he added.

--IANS

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At least six militants were killed and four others injured in a clash in Khakriz district of Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province, police spokesman Abdul Bashir Khaksar said on Monday.

According to the official, the clash erupted after Taliban militants stormed some security checkpoints in Mandozai area of Khakriz district early on Sunday, triggering a gun battle which lasted for a few hours leaving six rebels dead, forcing militants to flee, Xinhua news agency reported.

Four more insurgents sustained injuries, the official said. However, he did not make comment on possible casualties of security personnel.

Taliban outfit has yet to make comment.

--IANS

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In an embarrassment to the Maharashtra government, the on Monday demanded to know why the police addressed the media on the arrests of five rights activists when the matter was sub-judice.

"How can the police do this? The matter is sub-judice," a division bench comprising Justice S.S. Shinde and Justice Mridula Bhatkar observed while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL).

Petitioner Satish Surgiv Gaikwad, who calls himself a victim of the January 1 Koregaon-Bhima caste riots, filed the PIL seeking a Investigation Agency (NIA) probe into the incident and restraining the Pune Police from investigating it.

When the was seized of the matter, how can the police read out documents which could be produced as evidence in the case, the court said, terming the police action as "wrong".

As Public Prosecutor Deepak Thakare assured the court that he would discuss the issue with the concerned police officials and seek their response, the judges posted the matter for further hearing on September 7.

Petitioner Gaikwad also urged the to take over the investigations into the Pune Police's action against several well-known rights activists in June and August in different parts of India.

In June, the police had arrested Sudhir Dhawale, Rona Wilson, Surendra Gadling, Shoma Sen and Mahesh Raut. The August swoop led to the arrests of P. Varavar Rao, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Fereira, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha.

While a PIL on the second round of arrests of August 28 was heard by the on August 29, two days later on August 31, Maharashtra's Additional Director-General of Police Param Bir Singh addressed a media conference in Mumbai.

In that briefing he showed documents and reiterated that a conspiracy was allegedly hatched by the five arrested activists in connivance with the banned CPI (Maoist) "to overthrow the central government" and carry out "a Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination" to end the rule of (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi.

The police media briefing evoked widespread criticism from lawyers, activists and eminent personalities and even the Shiv Sena.

The police action followed a probe into the Elgar Parishad of December 31, 2017, organised by the Kabir Kala Manch, which allegedly led to the Koregaon-Bhima violence in Pune district on January 1.

Presently, the five arrested activists are under house arrest till September 6.
In an embarrassment to the Maharashtra government, the Bombay High Court on Monday demanded to know why the police addressed the media on the arrest of five rights activists when the matter was sub-judice.

"How can the police do this? The matter is sub-judice," a division bench comprising Justice S.S. Shinde and Justice Mridula Bhatkar observed while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL).

Petitioner Satish Surgiv Gaikwad, who calls himself a victim of the January 1 Koregaon-Bhima caste riots, filed a PIL seeking a National Investigation Agency (NIA) probe into the incidents and to restrain the Pune Police from investigating it further.

When the Supreme Court was seized of the matter, how can the police read out documents which could be produced as evidence in the case, the court asked, terming the police action as "wrong".

As Public Prosecutor Deepak Thakare assured the court that he would discuss the issue with the concerned police officials and seek their response, the judges posted the matter for further hearing on September 7.

The petitioner Gaikwad also urged the NIA to take over the investigations into the Pune Police's action against well-known rights activists in June and August in different parts of India.

In June, the police had arrested Sudhir Dhawale, Rona Wilson, Surendra Gadling, Shoma Sen and Mahesh Raut. The August swoop led to the arrests of P. Varavar Rao, Vernon Gonsalves, Arun Fereira, Sudha Bharadwaj and Gautam Navlakha.

While a PIL on the second round of arrests of August 28 was heard by the Supreme Court on August 29, two days later on August 31, Maharashtra's Additional Director-General of Police Param Bir Singh addressed a media conference in Mumbai.

In that briefing, he showed documents and reiterated that a conspiracy was allegedly hatched by the five arrested activists in connivance with the banned CPI (Maoist) "to overthrow the central government" and carry out "a Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination" to end the rule of (Prime Minister) Narendra Modi.

Earlier, on August 29, Pune Deputy Commissioner of Police Shirish Sardeshpande addressed the media, first revealing the alleged conspiracies, along with a statement. On August 30, Pune Police Commissioner K. Venkatesham also spoke to the media on the same matter.

Singh on August 31 spoke of weapons allegedly being procured from Russai and China.

The police media briefings had evoked widespread criticism from lawyers, activists and eminent personalities and even the Shiv Sena.

The police action followed a probe into the Elgar Parishad of December 31, 2017, organised by the Kabir Kala Manch, where allegedly inflammatory speeches were made, culminating in the Koregaon-Bhima violence in Pune district on January 1.

Presently, the five arrested activists are under house arrest till September 6, as per the apex court orders.

--IANS

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The Andhra Pradesh Economic Development Board (APEDB) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Alibaba Cloud to adopt cloud computing frameworks within the government model.

The MoU envisages leveraging Alibaba's Cloud and Smart City technologies for sustainable farming, integrated traffic management, smart city management, small and medium enterprises and skill development programmes.

The MoU was signed by APEDB Chief Executive Officer J. Krishna Kishore and Vivek Gupta, Director - Business Development, Alibaba Cloud India, in the presence of Dr. Alex Li, General Manager, Alibaba Cloud India, and N. Chandrababu Naidu, the Chief Minister of Andhra Pradesh.

The APEDB promotes sustainable economic growth through trade, investments, partnerships and collaborations.

Alibaba Cloud, the cloud-computing arm of Alibaba Group, provides cloud-computing services to businesses of all sizes globally.

According to a statement, this MoU is a result of ongoing discussion that took place at World Economic Forum 2018, Davos between Simon Hu, Senior Vice President of Alibaba Group and President of Alibaba Cloud, and the Chief Minister.

The APEDB and Alibaba Cloud also recently concluded a multi-stakeholder workshop between Alibaba Cloud and key government departments.

"The government is ensuring that SMEs in Andhra Pradesh are integrated with global value chains. This MoU with Alibaba Cloud helps to foster greater economic growth through tech-empowered SMEs," said Kishore.

The Alibaba Cloud team also visited the state's Real Time Governance Command Control Center at the Secretariat. Li noted that Andhra Pradesh is a pioneer in adopting and implementing latest technologies in its governance model.

"We are pleased to collaborate with a progressive state such as Andhra Pradesh and we are confident to leverage the Alibaba Cloud's ET City Brain Solution for furthering the state's digital transformation and deploying advanced ICT technologies," he said.

The group is likely to extend co-operation in real-time governance functions such as traffic management, cyber surveillance, disaster management and sustainable farming, among others.

Vivek Gupta, Director - Business Development, Alibaba Cloud India, said that they would leverage Alibaba Cloud's platform to help facilitate Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the state to establish online presence, provide global market access and enable the businesses to double their incomes.

--IANS

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"Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown" episodes featuring actress Asia Argento have been pulled out by CNN following the sexual assault allegations made by musician Jimmy Bennett against the actress.

A source told TMZ that CNN will discontinue the telecast of the travel and food show's past episodes which included Argento, until further notice.

The episodes include one from Season 8 called "Rome", another from Season 10 called "Southern Italy: The Heel of the Boot", and a final one from Season 11 called "Hong Kong".

Argento, who was also accused of settling the accusation with Bennett for a sum of $380,000, got expelled as a judge from the twelfth season of the show "X Factor Italy".--IANS

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Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Bhupendra Singh on Saturday said the attack on the "Rath" (campaign vehicle) of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan during his "Jan Ashirwad Yatra" was part of a conspiracy to kill him.

Talking to mediapersons here, the Home Minister said: "Stones were thrown at the vehicle of the Chief Minister in a pre-planned manner. The stones hit the glasses of bus, which could have hit him (Chouhan) as well.

"It was clearly a pre-planned attack on the life of the Chief Minister but alert security personnel thwarted the attempt."

Three persons have been arrested in connection with the attack, he added.

On the other hand, the Congress has said that the incident was a result of intelligence failure and therefore, the Home Minister should resign.

Ajay Singh, Leader of the Opposition in state Assembly and MLA from Churhat constituency in Sidhi district where the incident took place, said: "Bhupendra Singh is a complete failure as the state's Home Minister. He should resign and the Chief Minister should look for another person to take the responsibility."

The Congress leader said his party and its workers have no role in the attack. "On the contrary, it's a conspiracy hatched by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) itself."

On Sunday night, some miscreants threw stones at the Rath carrying Chief Minister Chouhan -- who is touring the state ahead of Assembly elections -- in Churhat area, said the police.

--IANS

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Australia's largest honey producer Capilano has been accused by testers of using fake honey in one of its products, media reports said on Monday.

Capilano's Allowrie-branded Mixed Blossom Honey, which sources its products from Australia and overseas, claims to be 100 per cent honey.

However, lab tests have found a majority of its samples to be "adulterated", meaning they contain something other than bee nectar, Xinhua news agency reported.

Trevor Weatherhead, executive director of the Australian Honey Bee Industry Council said he was not sure why anybody would want to pass fake honey off as the real thing. But cost cutting might be a reason.

So far Capilano has denied the accusations and questioned the testing method. "There is no consensus in the industry about the reliability of the Nuclear Magnetic Resolution (NMR) test that has led to the reports," Managing Director Ben McKee said in a statement.

--IANS

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The Bangladeshi government on Monday approved the draft of a law banning child labour in the country with provisions for stringent punishment to offenders.

The draft was approved at a cabinet meeting with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in the chair, Xinhua quoted Cabinet Secretary Mohammad Shafiul Alam as saying.

The proposed "Bangladesh Labour (Amendment) Act" stipulates that anybody who engages child labour will be fined about $60.

In line with the draft, children aged 14-18 will only be allowed to do light work. The country's existing labour law allows the minimum age for light work at 12.

The move comes as the phenomenon of child labour in Bangladesh is on the rise in various informal sectors, including small factories and workshops, on the street, in home-based businesses and domestic employment.

According to the International Labour Organisation definition, there are about 3.2 million child labourers in Bangladesh.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Yoon Ja-young



South and North Korea should use a single currency to form an economic union in the mid to long term, the Korea Institute of Finance (KIF)noted in a report Sunday.



"When investment increases in North Korea along with inter-Korean trade of goods and services, the flow of capital will naturally follow. It will lead to problems such as settlements and which currencies should be used," said Lee Yoon-sok, a senior research fellow at the KIF.



To deal with such problems, the two governments may allow residents to exchange their money with other currency when traveling North or South.



They may also allow the currencies of the two countries to be freely used in both countries. The researcher added that some North Koreans are known to be holding South Korean currency, expecting economic integration.



In the long run, however, the two countries should consider unifying the two currencies.



"Just as the European Union (EU) introduced the euro in its final stages while heading toward economic union, North and South Korea will be able to complete their economic community by introducing a unified currency," he said.



Currencies of both the South and North are called "won" but they are totally different from each other.



He expects a financial infrastructure will be set up in North Korea.



"South Korea has experience in setting up a financial infrastructure in developing countries, and North Korea is also seeing expanding financial transactions, including mobile payments. It won't be difficult to set up a financial infrastructure in North Korea."



He expected sanctions on North Korea to be eased gradually while economic cooperation between South and North will soon gain momentum.



"U.S. President Donald Trump needs an important external accomplishment ahead of the interim elections in the U.S., while the North Korean leader Kim Jong-un needs sanctions eased for economic development."



Lee said that economic reconstruction of North Korea as well as development projects that will lead to economic growth in Northeast Asia will become a new growth momentum for the South Korean economy which has entered a phase of slow growth.



"It is time to see the fruit of inter-Korean economic cooperation, the ultimate goal of which will be setting up an economic union," he said.


The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday blamed Karnataka's ruling coalition partners Congress and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) for its defeat in the state civic polls held across 22 districts.

"The BJP should have won more seats but we could not perform the way we wanted to because of the Congress-JD-S coalition," BJP state unit President B.S. Yeddyurappa told reporters here.

The party, however, is confident of winning a majority in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Yeddyurappa said.

"People's mandate is with the BJP and we are confident of a majority in the next year's general election," he added.

In the civic body polls held on August 31, the BJP won 929 seats, with a majority in seven districts including coastal regions of Udupi and Dakshina Kannada, while the Congress won 982 seats with a majority in 10 districts including the northern region of the state.

The civic election verdict shows the BJP performed well in its traditional bastions of coastal districts while Congress retained its position in its strongholds of northern districts.

The ruling coalition partner JD-S, on the other hand, won 375 seats getting a majority in its strongholds of Hassan, Mandya and Tumakuru districts.

--IANS

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A 35-year-old Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Panchayat member from Uttar Pradesh was shot dead here on Monday, police said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Chinmoy Biswal said Dilshad Khan, from Meerut, was shot by two men who came wearing helmets at around 6 p.m. at Batla House here.

He was taken to Holy Family Hospital where he was declared dead.

"Enquiry revealed that the attackers fired at Dilshad four rounds and escaped," the officer said.

--IANS

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Former Union Minister and PMK leader Anbumani Ramadoss on Monday demanded a probe by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) into the organ transplant scam in Tamil Nadu.

In a statement here, Ramadoss citing a news report said that at a time when several Indian patients were waiting for organ transplant, organs harvested from a person declared brain dead in Salem were transplated to foreign nationals admitted in two hospitals here.

Ramadoss said a Keralite youth, P. Manikandan, was declared brain dead by a private hospital in Salem after he met with an accident in Tamil Nadu in May 2018.

The PMK leader said the family members of Manikandan was forced to agree for organ harvest by the hospital officials.

The relatives of the deceased then complained to Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, who then wrote to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister K. Palaniswami who instituted a probe.

As per the probe report, the heart and lung of Manikandan were harvested.

The heart, which was orginally meant for a Ukranine national, was transplated to a Lebanese national in a private hospital and the lung was transplated to an Israeli patient, Ramadoss said.

Although there were Indian patients who were ahead in the wait list for organ transplant, the two harvested organs were given to foreign patients.

Ramadoss said a senior government official had directed transplant of an organ to a foreign national.

According to the PMK leader during the past one year alone, 95 foreign nationals got 127 organs violating the organ donation/transplant norms.

Ramadoss said, the probe report by putting the blame on two outsourced staff Transplant Authority of Tamil Nadu (TRANSTAN) has provided an escape route for others involved in this scam.

He said on an average Rs 12 crore was charged from foreigners for organ transplants.

According to Ramadoss, the scam running into hundreds of crore was being perpertrated in Tamil Nadu.

--IANS

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Taking the attack further against Prime Minister Narendra Modi over crony-capitalism, the Congress on Monday targeted the centre over a stalled probe against the Adani Group and demanded a time-bound, independent probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into an alleged Rs 29,000-crore scam involving over-valuation of coal imports.

Days after Adani Group moved the Bombay High Court seeking to quash all Letters Rogatory (LRs) issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), the Congress launched a frontal attack on the Prime Minister and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for being silent on the scam involving "Modi's industrialist friend" Gautam Adani.

"Jailtley writes blogs on every issue, but he is silent on this. He should write a blog on this. He doesn't have the power to take any action," said Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh.

Earlier, a Singapore court had rejected Adani Global's plea, seeking a stay to produce documents pertaining to coal imports to India mostly from Indonesia. After that, the group moved the Bombay High Court on August 28.

The DRI had alleged that the companies inflated the price of coal they were importing from Indonesia to siphon off money abroad and to avail higher power tariff compensation.

"In October 2014, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence announced that there was a huge scam on coal import and a probe was initiated on the over-invoicing of import of coal. On March 31, 2016, DRI gave a new statement that 40 companies are involved in this scam and it is worth Rs 29,000 crore," said Ramesh.

In September 2017, a PIL was filled at the Delhi High Court by an NGO run by (Advocate) Prashant Bhushan and it demanded a Special Investigative Team (SIT) probe.

"On March 9, 2018, DRI in a litigation in the Delhi High Court said there was no need for an SIT and that it was probing the 40 companies and showcause notices were issued to four companies," he said, adding the companies given notices belonged to Gautam Adani, Anil Ambani and the Essar group. Seventy per cent coal import in our country is done by Adani Group of Companies, he said.

"Adani Group filed a litigation in the Singapore court urging the documents, which are available with SBI (State Bank of India) Singapore branch, on the issue should not be given to the Indian government," he said.

On May 20, 2016, the then Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia (now Finance Secretary) wrote to SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya saying the bank should provide those documents to DRI so that the probe could be completed, he said.

"After four days, she replied to Adhia saying the documents can't be provided because it was against Singapore law," the Congress leader added.

Taking a dig at Modi, Ramesh said the Prime Minister went to Singapore three times in four years but could not get the documents.

"Did the PM raise this issue with them? We want to ask him even after meeting Singapore Prime Minister (Li Hsein Loong) four times, why he couldn't get those documents from Singapore SBI. It is not a Singapore government-run organisation. Even Singapore PM came to India once. They have a good rapport," he said.

"The probe has been stalled for four years. But no action has been taken against the company so far," Ramesh said. He also stated that the CBI had registered an FIR in the case on January 22 this year.

He asked the Prime Minister what action had he taken to get those papers from Singapore SBI. "They will keep writing letters but nothing will happen to the investigation because it is a case of crony capitalism," Ramesh said.

"We demand the the DRI probe should be impartial and time-bound. The government should talk to the Singapore government and all papers should be provided to the DRI," he said.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Karnataka's ruling coalition partner the Congress won majority of the seats across 10 of 22 districts during vote count for 105 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) on Monday, the State Election Commission (SEC) said.

In the civic body polls held on August 31, the Congress has won 982 seats out of the total 2,662 seats, with a majority in 10 districts including Ballari, Bidar, Gadag, Mysuru, Uttara Kannada and Raichur, the SEC said in its website.

On the other hand, the Congress' leading ally in the state government, Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S), trailed behind winning 375 seats and a majority in its strongholds of Hassan, Mandya and Tumakuru districts.

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 929 seats, with majority in seven districts including the coastal districts of Udupi and Dakshina Kannada.

Independents won 329 seats across the 22 districts, while other fringe parties and regional outfits won another 34.

The civic election verdict shows the BJP performed well in its traditional bastions of coastal districts, while the Congress retained its position in its strongholds of northern districts.

The result in Vijayapura district in the northern part of the state threw a hung verdict, with both Congress and BJP winning eight seats each of the total 23 seats, while JD-S won two seats and Independents five.

In the event of no party getting majority on its own in the election, the Congress and the JD-S have decided to forge a post-poll alliance to keep the BJP out of power, similar to May 12 state Assembly election which threw up a hung verdict, a JD-S official told IANS earlier.

Polling took place last Friday across 22 districts of the state spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities, 23 town panchayats and 135 wards of three city corporations -- Mysuru, Shivamogga and Tumakuru.

A record average of 67.5 per cent voter turnout was registered across the state for the civic polls.

The polling in 45 seats of Kodagu district's civic bodies has been postponed due to recent heavy rains and flooding in the region.

In the 2013 ULB elections held in 4,976 seats, the Congress had won 1,960 seats, while BJP and JD-S had won 905 seats each, and Independents bagged the remaining 1,206 seats.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Accusing the West Bengal police of harassing their party workers, hundreds of CPI-M activists on Monday held a demonstration near North 24 Parnagas district's Amdanga block, where three villagers were killed over the formation of state panchayat boards last week.

The Left-wing activists led by CPI-M MP Mohammad Selim and other party leaders blocked the National Highway-34, paralyzing movement of vehicles for more than an hour after being stopped by police on their way to Amdanga.

"Nobody had objected to our programme till yesterday, but today police stopped us from entering the villages," CPI-M leader Tanmoy Bhattacharya alleged.

Three persons, including two of state ruling party Trinamool Congress and one activist of CPI-M, were killed in armed clashes at Amdanga over the formation of panchayat boards in a number of villages in the block.

The Police have so far arrested 25 persons for perpetrating violence and seized a large number of crude bombs, arms and ammunition.

The Left leaders on Monday accused the police of arresting and harassing their party workers.

Ten people have allegedly been killed since August 25 in political clashes over the panchayat board formation in various Bengal districts.

The situation in several districts has been tense over the last few days over the panchayat boards' formation after the Supreme Court permitted the notification of the results of 20,159 un-contested seats in the state panchayat polls.

--IANS

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A 42-year-old priest has been arrested for allegedly molesting a minor girl here, police said on Monday.

Deputy Commissioner of Police (South) Romil Baaniya said a complaint of a priest assaulting a minor girl at Kholi Mandir in south Delhi had been filed.

The accused, a resident of Bhati Khurd, also in south Delhi, was arrested on September 2.

The complainant alleged that she had visited the temple with her 15-year-old niece, when the priest -- Nabbe Bhagat -- asked her to bring four pebbles from outside.

"When she returned with the pebbles, she noticed that Bhagat was behaving inappropriately with her niece," the police officer said.

"On August 30, a case was registered under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and relevant sections of the Indian Penal Code."

The allegations have been substantiated by both child and the complainant in the court, said Baaniya.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Actor Idris Elba says directing his first movie "Yardie" was a "nerve-wrecking" experience.

"'Yardie' is a small project. It's not designed to be a big money-making film. Of course, this is a business and I want to be proud of it. I think there's a misconception that the higher you get, the less the success matters. That's not true," Elba told Irish Times newspaper.

"Are you kidding me? I've directed this thing. I've conjured it and to watch it go out into the public domain is great. I mean, it's nerve-wrecking. But I can cover up my nerves by just ploughing on," he added.

"Yardie" is based on the 1992 novel of the same name by Victor Headley, which tells the story of a young Jamaican who is sent to London to facilitate a drug deal.

Elba has been determined to avoid glamourising violence in the new movie, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

He said: "There's a lot of violent energy in the book that I was nervous about portraying on screen because of the type of violence it is.

"I had to ask, 'What am I saying about this? What am I saying about this culture?' The term 'yardie' is a derogatory term in the first place. So the energy I wanted was cultural energy. I wanted to feel like I've just gone to Jamaica. I wanted to I feel like I'm in the 1980s."

--IANS

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Film: "Once Again"; Director: Kanwal Sethi; Cast: Shefali Shah, Neeraj Kabi and Rasika Dugal, Rating: ****

After watching Netflix's two back-to-black -- and I do mean black, dark, dingy, murky, depressing -- crime dramas that had a lot in common besides the omnipresent Radhika Apte, what an undisguised blessing it is to see a film that pervades your senses with a sense of exhilaration and with the aromas of food and feelings that can only be experienced in Mumbai, the city that never sleeps even as the sleepless citizens seek some assurance that there is peace and harmony beyond the grind of the hub-hub.

Two such restless souls are film actor Amar Kumar (Neeraj Kabi) and single mother and restaurateur Tara Shetty (Shefali Shah), both played by such magnificent actors that we can't see the acting at all. They are lonely... Oh gosh, yes, they are lonely as hell! It's in their eyes. The longing, the need to find that comforting cuddle in the suffocating puddle of life.

"Once Again" is a pre-autumnal love story set in the heart of "heartless" Mumbai where everyone is so busy living their lives, they forget their dreams. Tara cooks Amar's meals. Eating her culinary creations are the highlight of his day. He savours the morsels like little portions of nectar dropped into his mouth from heaven.

The couple hardly gets the time to go past pleasantries to explore their growing relationship. He breaks protocol and arrives at her restaurant's doorstep with a handful of aromatic flowers, freshly plucked it would seem, though bought from a shop. The moment he sets his eyes on her, Amar, without any trace of drama or flourish, comments on how beautiful Tara is.

There are no cascading violins. Only the distractingly reassuring noises of daily bustle captured with such a fine ear for the normal and the routine. A big shout out for the sound design and the cinematography, which pulls no punches.

The three heroes of the film -- Shefali Shah, Neeraj Kabi and Mumbai (in no particular order) -- are captured with a casual grace that leaves no space for adornments and brush-ups.

As Amar and Tara's relationship finds breathing space in the suffocating environment of the humdrum, the romance reminded me... No, not of Ritesh Batra's wee overrated "The Lunchbox" (just because she cooks, he eats and they don't meet for a while), but Guru Dutt's "Kagaz Ke Phool".

I almost expected the couple to be caught in the glare of arclights to the aching sound of "Waqt ne kiya kya haseen sitam".

Alas, there are other 'haseen sitam' (beautiful offences) that await this film.

In the second movement, the narrative simply falls apart under the weight of conventions -- the ones that are imposed on the widowed mother's growing affection for the film star, and then those conventions that director Kanwal Sethi thrusts on the film: the disapproving son (played by the talented Priyanshu Painyuli who was so good in the title role of "Bhavesh Joshi Superhero"), his impending wedding and the moral sanctions therein.

By the time Tara's son's mother-in-law sniggers, "So are we having two weddings in the family?", the cringe benefits are up for keeps.

The end-game where the director plays a they-are-together-they-are-not mind game, is not just a sighing compromise. It is also not clear whether the Tara-Amar relationship has a future.

This is a pity, really. Because "Once Again" raises a lot of hope in us. Its hopeful, restrained and mature attitude towards mid-life romance, bolstered by solid central performances, gives us a reason to believe that Indian cinema is going past puberty.

Just then, the film faces a mid-life crisis of its own.

--IANS

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, during his speech to Filipino workers here on Sunday, apologised for abusing former US President Barack Obama.

Referring to his stern language towards Obama in 2016, Duterte, who arrived in Israel on September 2 on a four-day official visit, said it would be appropriate to say at this time that "Obama, you're a civilian. I am sorry for uttering those words".

At the same time, he described Obama as a "cold" person who was "always at a distance", adding that the current US President Donald Trump is his "good friend", Sputnik news reported.

In 2016, Duterte warned Obama against questioning his extrajudicial drug-war-related killings of alleged criminals.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Jhoo Dong-chan



KB Financial Group will launch an asset management unit through KB Asset Management in China next week as part of efforts to strengthen its foothold abroad, an industry source said Thursday.



"KB Asset Management will establish a corporate body in Shanghai in a week or so," said a source close to the matter asking for anonymity.



"KB Financial and its subsidiaries have eagerly looked for opportunities abroad. KB Asset Management's move to expand its foothold into China is part of such efforts," the source added.



KB Financial Group Chairman Yoon Jong-kyoo
Notwithstanding the suspense maintained by his father and Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, state IT Minister K.T. Rama Rao has hinted at the party eyeing early Assembly polls to cash in on its performance in the last four years.

He also appeared to keep all the options open at the national level where it seeks to play a decisive role in the formation of next government at the Centre after the 2019 Lok Sabha elections.

In interview to IANS, Rama Rao, whose party held a massive rally on Sunday, said the time has come for the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to go back to the people and seek their support.

He also said the party will contest the assembly and Lok Sabha polls on its own and work for formation of a federal front that will be opposed to both the BJP and the Congress.

He said there was a lot of speculation in the media about the party going for early dissolution of state assembly and seeking a fresh mandate from the people.

"Certainly there are advantages (of early election). Once a decision is taken, when it is taken, if it is taken, I will be able to say a lot more," Rama Rao told IANS.

Addressing the rally, the Chief Minister, who said the state cabinet has authorised him to take any decision in the interest of the state, kept up suspense over whether the party would go for early polls merely saying would soon form an election manifesto committee which will come out with several new promises.

There is speculation that the assembly could be dissolved by September 10 and Telangana would go for elections along with four other states by December this year. The term of Telangana assembly comes to an end in June next year and the assembly polls in normal course would be held along with those to the Lok Sabha.

Rama Rao claimed that if elections are held early, the party will win both the state as well as Lok Sabha polls convincingly.

"It will give us room to talk to potential partners and friends for 2019 polls. We will play a decisive role in the national level," Rama Rao said.

He said TRS would win at least 100 of 119 seats in the state assembly and 16 of 17 Lok Sabha seats in the state.

"Last time we won 11 Lok Sabha seats and this time we hope to improve our performance," he said.

Rama Rao said neither BJP nor Congress will be able to form government on their own in 2019 and there are many parties which want to be equidistant from the two.

"We will bring together strong regional parties that want to be equidistant from the Congress and BJP. We will form an agenda and move forward in the interest of the country.

"We believe both Congress and BJP have let down the people of the country. There is a strong need for an alternative force to emerge in the country in the form of a federal front. And like TRS there are other a number of other parties which believe in the same theory, same ideology of non-Congress, non-BJP federal front. I believe it is imminent and possible" Rama Rao said.

He said that there was "no national party" and Congress with 48 MPs was also a regional party.

"We are confident that when 2019 election results come, there can be several possibilities and TRS will have an important role. Post election we will do, what we have to," he said.

Asked if Chandrashekar Rao could move to the Centre after the Lok Sabha polls, Rama Rao said: " He (KCR) has a lot of work to do here and the state needs his leadership. I am keen that he should stay as CM for at least 10 more years. This is in the interest of the state and the party."

Answering a query, he said the party will contest the assembly and Lok Sabha on its and there will be "no coalition, no partners, no alliances."

Asked about possibility of a tie-up with BJP for the Lok Sabha polls, he said: "none whatsoever."

Answering a query, Rama Rao said the party's effort was to convert its support among people into votes.

He said Telangana was witnessing a strange situation where the ruling party is signalling readiness for elections while the opposition appears against early polls.

Asked about the charge that TRS was practising dynastic with him and his sister K. Kavitha, MP, given important roles, Rama Rao said they had to work hard to make their way up and had come through an agitation.

(Prashant Sood was in Hyderabad at the invitation of the TRS. He can be reached at prashant.s@ians.in)

----IANS

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Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik on Monday inaugurated the Fakir Mohan Medical College and Hospital at Balasore.

The Chief Minister said with the opening of the medical college, a long-cherished dream of Balasore and nearby areas has come true.

Paying tribute to legendary Odia poet and novelist Fakir Mohan Senapati, he said the state government is committed to providing quality health service to all the citizens of the state.

The admission for 100 MBBS seats in the medical college has already begun for the 2018-19 academic session.

Union Minister of State for Health Ashwini Kumar Choubey said the Central government is taking steps to upgrade the district headquarters hospitals to medical colleges to provide quality health service.

He said five medical colleges were approved in Odisha - Balasore, Baripada, Balangir, Koraput and Puri - and funds of Rs 558.6 crore has been released by the Central Government.

The Minister said it has been decided to establish one medical college each under Bhadrak, Jajpur and Dhenkanal parliamentary constituencies in Odisha.

Choubey requested the state government to identify land for the proposed medical colleges.

He also requested the Chief Minister to implement Ayushman Bharat scheme in Odisha.

Notably, the state government is implementing Biju Swasthya Kalyan Yojana from its own fund after rejecting the Central government scheme.

Odisha Health Minister Pratap Jena, Industries Minister Ananta Das and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Buyoed by an absence of a tighter gun control policy despite increased mass shootings, more and more gun owners in the US are joining the political process, not only in voting but in donating money to candidates and contacting elected officials, researchers have revealed.

According to a study by University of Kansas political scientists, gun owners have increasingly become more politically active.

Conservatives seem to have done a better deal at realising this trend and seeking to politically mobilise gun owners in campaign ads and other actions.

"Part of the reason majority opinions on gun control legislation aren't turning into policy is that gun owners are a very strong political group who hold a lot of weight and hold a lot of influence despite being a minority in American politics," said Abbie Vegter, a graduate student in political science.

Vegter collaborated on the research with political science professors Don Haider-Markel and Mark Joslyn. The team presented their findings as part of the American Political Science Association's annual meeting in Boston on Sunday.

In the study, the researchers examined the political behaviour of gun owners versus non-gun owners in presidential election years from 1972 to 2012.

"Our major conclusion establishes gun owners as a distinct social group, and we see how that social group influences their likelihood of participating in politics," Vegter said.

The researchers are still exploring what has driven this shift in attitude among gun owners, whether it was in response to past gun control legislation at the state level or a reaction to certain candidates who were elected who had stronger views about gun control.

"There are a couple of lessons. For individuals, especially individual gun control advocates, in order to make a difference, you need to match this level of mobilisation and participation," Vegter said.

"There is also a lesson there for politicians who I think traditionally have not seen gun owners as a political group to be addressed," she added.

The findings could be key in determining why major gun control legislation in Congress has remained elusive, even after mass shootings such as Newtown in 2012 and others, even when a majority of people tend to support stricter gun laws.

--IANS

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Actor Sumedh Mudgalkar feels blessed to play Lord Krishna in the show "RadhaKrishn", which will replace "Saam Dham Dand Bhed" in October.

"RadhaKrishn" will be launched on October 1 on Star Bharat.

The upcoming show will bring alive the epic love saga of Lord Krishna and Radha.

On the occasion of Janmashtami on Monday, the show's theme song was launched.

"Janmashtami is an auspicious occasion as it marks the beginning of 'RadhaKrishn'. There could have been no better day to start our journey than today," Sumedh said in a statement to IANS.

"A musical promo has been launched. It depicts Radha-Krishn's love. I feel blessed to be able to play the role of Lord Krishna and represent his life journey," he added.

It stars Mallika Singh as Radha.

--IANS

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Well-known to Hindi television viewers as Arohi of "Kitani Mohabbat Hai" and Nidhi of "Kuch Toh Log Kahenge", actress Kritika Kamra is now taking the Bollywood plunge with "Mitron". She says she has been on the verge of making a film debut a couple of times, but somehow things didn't work out then.

Set in a Gujarati milieu, "Mitron" also features Jackky Bhagnani, and is a slice-of-life film directed by Nitin Kakkar of "Filmistaan" fame. It is a remake of the Telugu film "Pelli Choopulu".

Is "Mitron" the kind of launchpad Kritika hoped for?

"Can I be honest? I have been close to making a debut a few times in the past now. I had signed things, we had almost gone on floors and the films did not happen... Sometimes the film did not take off... And they were all, according to me, logical decisions. I was very cautious that I wanted to do a film with a good director, with a great script, with a production house wherein you would know the film won't get canned... But I found that even films with big studios sometimes don't literally take off.

"But I had my own journey, and when I got to do this film 'Mitron', it happened very fast. I signed the film and in 15 days we were shooting. There was prepping up, reading... I was so engrossed in that process. But now when I look back, I am very grateful that this happened to be my first film because I can very proudly say that I am doing a film I believe in," Kritika told IANS over phone from Mumbai.

The film's colourful poster features three men and Kritika.

"Films are very male-centric unlike TV, which is very female-centric, but even in a male-centric medium, I am getting to do a very good female part. So I am really happy that my film debut is this ('Mitron')," said the actress, who was also loved for her role as Ananya in "Reporters".

After years of dabbling in the television industry, Kritika was happy to land an "important" role in a film as "refreshingly real" as "Mitron", which was shot in Ahmedabad.

"There's attention to detail, which I was creatively very happy about," she said of the movie, which she describes as being more about friendship and companionship.

From the look of it, the movie caters to the youth.

"Young people will be able to relate to the film and I play a very relatable youth character. It's a very's today woman, independent, ambitious... A woman who wants to do a lot with her life and she is well-educated," said Kritika, who is glad that it's not a "hardcore potboiler" and is instead reflective of "stories of real people".

What about TV projects as of now?

"Not right now... I was busy doing this film, and I want to wait to see how this unfolds for me. I want to be a part of the promotions... I have done a lot of TV, and I have been able to do some short films... This is my first project in the film space, and I am excited."

(Radhika Bhirani can be contacted at radhika.b@ians.in)

--IANS

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With speculation about Justice Ranjan Gogoi becoming the next Chief Justice of India nearly over, the next 19 working days will witness pronouncement of judgments on a series of significant issues such as Aadhaar, Ayodhya title suit, prohibition to the entry of menstruating women in Sabrimala temple, the "discriminatory" adultery law and the reservation in promotion for SC/ST.

Another important verdict would be at what stage a politician, facing criminal cases, would be considered disqualified from entering the electoral fray. This judgment would go a long way in cleansing the legislatures of politicians with criminal antecedents.

All these important matters are awaiting judgment from the constitution benches headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra who is going to demit office on October 1 though his last day in office is October 2, Mahatma Gandhi's birth anniversary.

These 19 days will also see conclusion of the hearing on the challenge to female genital mutilation, a practice among Dawoodi Bohra community; and whether a Parsi woman after marrying a non-Parsi be debarred from participating in religious activities of the community including the last rites of her father.

On the practice of 'female genital mutilation' (FGM) in Dawoodi Bohra community, the Centre has stated that it was violative of bodily integrity which is a part of right to privacy and dignity.

The Ayodhya matter is limited to the question whether challenge to 2010 Allahabad High Court judgment would be heard by a three-judge bench or a larger bench.

The Muslim litigants have contended that challenge should be heard by larger bench as 2010 Allahabad High Court verdict relies on a 1994 top court judgment which had held that mosques were not an integral part of religious practice of offering prayers.

They are seeking reconsideration of 1994 verdict.

Apparently, there is nothing unpredictable in the position of the court.

The while juncking the instant triple talaq had said that the fundamental rights would prevail over the religious practice that teases them.

No matter which way the verdict goes, the crux of it would be data protraction as during the course of the hearing, the court had repeatedly underlined the need for data protection pointing to its great commercial value and of immense interest to non-State actors in business world.

The draft data protection bill as suggested by Justice S.N. Krishna is yet to be brought before Parliament and it is unlikely to happen soon.

Emphasising data protection, Justice D.Y. Chandrachuid speaking for the majority, in right to privacy judgment, had said, "These are matters of policy to be considered by the Union government while designing a carefully structured regime for the protection of the data."

On the discriminatory adultery law, the court had questioned the Centre's stand on the challenge to the constitutional validity of Section 497 and Section 198(2) of the Code of Criminal Procedure that prosecute man for adultery and spares woman.

The Centre had defended the "discriminatory" provision saying that any contrary view would adversely impact the family life.

Brushing aside the stand of the Centre in the course of the hearing, the Chief Justice Misra had said, "The sanctity of marriage is dependent on mutual reciprocity, willingness for adjustment and accommodation and when we marry, there is no permanent consent for sex by wife."

Pointing to the time society has travelled since 1860, Justices Rohinton Fali Nariman had observed that in 1860, the concept was that woman was a chattel, and thus this provision for consent by the husband to take away the criminality in extramarital sexual relationship between a married man and married woman."
India on Monday thanked Cyprus for extending support to New Delhi's bid for permanent membership in a reformed UN Security Council and also for the Nuclear Suppliers' Group.

"The salience of national sovereignty and the essential need to defeat radicalism and terrorism unites us," President of India Ram Nath Kovind said in an address to the Cyprus House of Representatives here.

"In this regard, India has called for finalising the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism at the United Nations and we count on your support," Kovind said.

"I would also like to thank Cyprus for its unstinted backing of India's candidature for an expanded UN Security Council as well as for the Nuclear Suppliers' Group," he added.

India is a member of the G4, that also includes Japan, Germany and Brazil, seeking permanent membership in a reformed UN Security Council.

China has been blocking India's bid for membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group on the ground that for a nation to become a member of the 48-nation bloc, it should be a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

In his speech, Kovind also promoted India as an appealing business destination. "India's overriding mission is its economic growth and modernisation, with the fruits of development reaching all sections of our people," he said.

"Cyprus, as a trusted partner and as one of the largest investors in India, is critical to this process. India is at an exciting juncture and offers appealing business opportunities," Kovind said.

Cyprus is the eighth largest investor in India with a cumulative investment of around $9.2 billion.

Kovind said that tax reforms to galvanise India's widespread manufacturing and business capacities and large domestic market have also helped.

"The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax has led to uniform, simpler and digitally-enabled taxation in all of our 29 states. It has integrated the country into one business system," he said.

Earlier in the day, India and Cyprus signed two agreements on anti-money laundering and on cooperation in the field of environment following a meeting between Kovind and Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades here.

"We welcome the signing of the MoU (memorandum of understanding) between Financial Intelligence Unit, India, and the Unit for Combating Money Laundering of Cyprus," Kovind said while addressing the media after a bilateral meeting with Anastasiades.

In his address to the House of Representatives, the Indian President said that the anti-money laundering agreement "will be useful for both of us".

He also invited Cyprus to partner in the Digital India mission, saying: "You can come as investors and you can come as stakeholders, you can come to buy or to sell, you can come with your expertise and you can come with your brands and your skills. India is open for business - and India is open for Cyprus."

Kovind arrived here on Sunday on the first leg of his eight-day three-nation tour of Central Europe that will also see him visiting Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

His visit to Cyprus comes after Anastasiades's visit to India in April last year.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
In a bid to make Internet safe and secure in India, US-based nonprofit The Internet Society and the Internet Service Providers Association of India (ISPAI) on Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will look into securing routers which is vital for a healthy Internet infrastructure.

The partnership would promote the Mutually Agreed Norms for Routing Security (MANRS) -- a global initiative to implement the crucial fixes needed to reduce the most common threats to the Internet's routing system -- and safeguard the enterprises and the government from cyber threats.

"The need of the hour is to incorporate MANRS in the academic curriculum of the country so that when the youth join the workforce, they will know what measures to take and would not be vulnerable to Internet threats," Rajnesh Singh, Regional Bureau Director-Asia Pacific, The Internet Society, told IANS.

According to the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in), 44,679, 49,455 and 50,362 cyber security incidents took place in India during 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively. These include phishing, website intrusions and defacements, virus and denial of service attacks, among others.

Routing security is vital to the future and stability of the Internet and MANRS would provide simple but concrete steps for network operators that enable dramatically improved Internet security and reliability.

"MANRS will not be limited to the members of Internet security providers in the country but will also be imparted to the elderly, youth and people especially in the rural areas," Rajesh Chharia, President, ISPAI, told IANS.

"However, there are growing concerns over cyber security and data security and the recent malware threats have impacted many globally," Chharia added.

In joining MANRS, participants commit to implement actions to address common challenges related to routing security such as filtering and anti-spoofing.

As part of the MoU, both ISPAI and ISOC will focus on capacity building to undertake initiatives and activities to promote adoption of MANRS in India, to cooperate and render mutual assistance and to encourage the attendance of ISPAI members to meetings, seminars, workshops and conferences on routing security.

The MoU will also see both organizations exchanging research information and training materials related to routing security.

"Cyber security is one of the top concerns for Internet users in the Asia Pacific region and unsecured routing is one of the most common reasons for malicious threats," Singh noted.

Virginia-headquartered The Internet Society was founded in 1992 by people involved with the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).

It is governed by a diverse board of trustees that is dedicated to ensuring that the Internet stays open, transparent and defined by the people who use it.

-IANS

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Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in the Syrian capital Damascus on Monday to hold talks with President Bashar al-Assad ahead of a tripartite meeting between Turkey, Iran, and Russia on the situation in Syria.

Zarif told the media that the militants of the Levant Liberation Committee (LLC), also known as the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, must leave Syria's Idlib province, the last major rebel bastion in Syria, Xinhua news agency reported.

The summit, that will take place in Tehran on Friday, will discuss ways to confront the extremist groups including the Nusra Front. Coordination to continue the political process and counter-terrorism in Syria will also be discussed, he said.

"After the victories achieved by the resistance front (Syria, Iran, Hezbollah) against the extremist groups in Syria, it's about time to rebuild this country and the countries of the strategic alliance with Syria are contributing to this matter," Zarif said.

Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said that the liberation of Idlib is the major subject at the tripartite summit in Tehran.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Iraq's newly-elected parliament held its first session on Monday, more than three months after the country's legislative elections.

Lawmakers are expected to vote for a parliamentary speaker and are to elect a new president within a month, Efe reported.

Iraqi President Fuad Masum said in the opening session that he hoped the new parliament would choose a strong and efficient government capable of fulfilling Iraqis' demands.

On Sunday, Shiite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr, whose coalition with the Iraqi Communist Party won the largest number of seats in the May 12 polls, announced an agreement with other political alliances to create the largest parliamentary bloc.

This year's elections were the first since the Iraqi government declared in Dec. 2017 that the Islamic State terror organization had been completely eradicated from the large swaths of northern and western Iraq that it controlled since mid-2014.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
By Jhoo Dong-chan



Shinhan Financial Group is strengthening its non-banking sector in Vietnam, laying the groundwork to become a comprehensive financial group in the Southeast Asian country.



According to Shinhan Financial Group, Shinhan Card decided to give 216.4 billion won ($195.1 million) in credit to Prudential Vietnam Financial Company (PVFC), its capital subsidiary in the country.



In a bid to improve the group's non-banking business there, Shinhan Financial spent 161.4 billion won to acquire PVFC specializing in retail loans from Prudential Group in January.



PVFC was launched in 2006 by the U.K.-based group as the first foreign non-bank financial institution licensed for consumer financing in Vietnam. It was also the country's fourth-largest consumer finance company by outstanding loan balance.



Shinhan Financial plans to improve PVFC's financial soundness through the capital offering.



Using the money, Shinhan Card plans to shift high interest loans carrying double-digit rates PVFC borrowed from Prudential Vietnam Assurance Private Limited, another Prudential Group's subsidiary, into low interest loans with single-digit rates.



"Shinhan Financial Group Chairman Cho Yong-byung aims to strengthen not only the banking sector but also the non-banking sectors in Vietnam to amplify synergy between its subsidiaries there," said a Shinhan Financial official said.



"PVFC will be a valuable asset in Shinhan's business network _ it will greatly contribute to the group's earnings in the country."



PVFC has seen stable earnings growth for three years, posting 63.7 billion won in 2015, 77.2 billion won in 2016 and 82 billion won last year. Its market share has reached nearly 10 percent.



The move is also believed to be seeking to widen the gap in its fierce competition against other Korean card firms.



Lotte Card was approved by the Vietnamese government to acquire Techcom Finance, another local Vietnamese financial firm specializing in retail loans, in March.



Hana Card also concluded an MOU with the National Payment Corporation of Vietnam (NAPAS) and payment solution provider Alliex to expand its payment settlement services business in the month.



Although facing tough challenges from peer Korean financial firms, Shinhan is still said to be the most influential foreign financial firm in Vietnam.



The group's banking subsidiary Shinhan Bank established its local corporate body Shinhan Vietnam Bank in 2009, and in the retail finance sector acquired Australian-based banking firm ANZ Vietnam under Cho's leadership last April.



Shinhan Vietnam Bank is now the largest foreign bank there with assets worth a combined total of $3.3 billion. It also has about 900,000 customers.


People thronged decorated temples across Punjab, Haryana and Chandigarh on Monday to mark Janmashtami, the birthday of Lord Krishna.

Temples were decorated with fancy lights and flowers.

People gathered at temples to get a glimpse of the tableaus (jhankis) depicting the life of Lord Krishna.

The Durgiana Temple in Amritsar, ISCON temple in Chandigarh and other temples were decked up for the occasion.

"People have been coming since Sunday evening to offer prayers and see the jhankis," Prem Sharma, a priest at Chandigarh's Sector 15 temple said.

Children were particularly excited to be part of the Janmashtami festivities.

"With the use of technology, the jhankis have also improved in the last few years," said Hardik Sinha, 14.

Tight security arrangements, including metal detectors, were installed at popular shrines as a precautionary measure.

--IANS

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Activists of the Joint Committee on Inner Line Permit System (JCILPS) on Monday nabbed 12 persons, who had illegally entered Manipur, near the Imphal-Dimapur National Highway-2.

The nabbed persons are believed to be Bangladeshi nationals who were planning to go to Noney district.

"They carried fake Aadhar cards. The government should find out who issued them the fake documents," W. Rabi, an activist of the JCILPS, said.

According to the police, all the 12 persons are being questioned.

In August, the Manipur Police stepped up vigilance against non-locals entering the state and rounded up several human traffickers in Jiribam district bordering Assam.

The police also dismantled over ten bamboo bridges across the Jiri river used by the illegal migrants for sneaking into Manipur.

The Manipur government intensified the patrolling as officials suspected that many persons not included in the National Register of Citizens in Assam may come to Manipur to take shelter.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Kashmir Editors Guild (KEG) on Monday asked the Jammu and Kashmir Police to make public the charges against an arrested Srinagar-based journalist, Aasif Sultan.

Sultan was formally arrested after six days in detention.

"There are disturbing reports about reporters being asked to disclose (their) sources," the Guild said.

"The law enforcing agencies must understand the reality that every journalist's laptop will have 'incriminating' material because data collection is the fundamental activity of reporters.

"KEG reiterates that a reporter cannot be forced to reveal his sources and it is considered illegal across democracies of the world," a statement from the editors' body said after a meeting here.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress party in Kerala on Monday expressed strong reservation about selecting the international professional service company KPMG as consultant partner for rebuilding Kerala in the wake of flood disaster in the state.

During a cleaning drive launched by the Congress party in Alappuzha, Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala warned the Kerala government against engaging the KPMG for consultancy service.

"I have already written to State Industries Minister E.P. Jayarajan, who is spearheading the rebuilding operations, to first verify the numerous complaints that have surfaced against the KPGM, even if their offer is free consultancy service. Instead the government should accept the offer of the Netherlands government who have offered to help us rebuild Kerala," said Chennithala.

Former state Congress President V.M. Sudheeran on Monday wrote on his Facebook that the Kerala government should be extremely cautious in tying up with the KPMG as a few cases were registered against them.

"There are reports in public domain against this firm and hence the Kerala government should be extremely careful in seeking this firm's support," said Sudheeran.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on August 31 that the international management consultant KPMG had agreed to provide free consultancy service and would be the consultant partner for rebuilding Kerala.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Mining major Vedanta Resources' Chairman Anil Agarwal will take the London-listed company private on October 1, Agarwal's family trust announced on Monday.

The wholly family trust-owned Volcan Investments Ltd, which held about two-thirds of Vedanta Resources prior to announcing an around $1 billion buyout offer in July, said it now held or had received acceptances of its offer on 92.31 per cent of Vedanta Resources share capital and the cash offer had now become unconditional in all respects.

It said the offer remains open for acceptances until further notice, while holders of 26 per cent of shares had agreed to sell.

Agarwal has said he wanted to buy out the London listing, which is much smaller in comparison with Vedanta's Indian operations, in order to simplify the company structure.

Vedanta's international operations are copper mines in Zambia and Vedanta Zinc, with operations in South Africa and Namibia.

Meanwhile, US rating agency Moody's Investor Service has said the proposed delisting of the Vedanta Resources from the London Stock Exchange will have no immediate impact on its credit profile, although cash extraction risks remain from the complete takeover of Vedanta by Volcan Investments.

"The delisting will not immediately affect Vedanta's credit profile or rating. This is based on our expectation that Volcan will not extract incremental cash from Vedanta to provide additional liquidity for itself.

"However, if Volcan requires Vedanta to pay higher dividends to service its cash needs, it will tighten Vedanta's cash flow, adding pressure to the Ba3 corporate family rating," Moody's said in a statement.

"Vedanta's rating is based on the consolidated credit profile of Vedanta and its subsidiaries and does not take into account Volcan's indebtedness. Any change in Vedanta's policies, such that Vedanta is used as a financing vehicle for Volcan, will be viewed negatively and will also weigh on Vedanta's credit profile and rating," it added.

The American rating agency said Volcan is a private company with limited public information on its finances.

In 2017, Volcan raised an estimated $4.4 billion debt through the issue of convertible notes to buy a 19.35 per cent equity stake in Anglo American plc pledging 33 per cent of Vedanta shares as security for annual interest payments of $185 million.

Vedanta has a requirement under its bank loans to remain a listed company and will, therefore, need approval or waivers from its lenders prior to delisting.

"The reporting and disclosure requirements for private companies are less stringent than for London-listed public companies," Moody's said.

For instance, private unlisted companies are not required to report when any of their shareholding is pledged against any borrowings.

"However, given its substantial access to international capital markets with $5.9 billion in debt outstanding at the holding company in the form of US dollar bonds and loans, we expect Vedanta to maintain its hitherto transparent reporting on operations even after it becomes a private entity," it said.

"When successful, the proposed offer will result in Volcan as Vedanta's sole shareholder, but Vedanta's corporate structure remains highly complex with less than 100 per cent ownership in its key operating assets," it added.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Security forces started a massive search operation on Monday in around two dozen villages of Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, police said.

The operation began following reports about the presence of militants in the villages of Putrigam, Rohmu, Rajpora, Matrigam, Goosu, Frasipora and others.

"So far, there has been no reports of any exchange of fire in any of the villages included in the search," a police officer said.

This is not the first such operation in the south Kashmir area undertaken by the security forces.

These operations known as area domination operations are usually undertaken to keep the militants on the run and prevent them from establishing a foothold in the region.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Island nation Mauritius is expecting about 89,000 Indian tourists this year and several Indian movie makers to take advantage of its expense rebate scheme for shooting there, said a top official of Mauritius Tourism Promotion Authority (MTPA) here on Monday.

He said one the latest Indian movie projects to be shot in Mauritius is Ram Yug based on epic Ramayana directed by Kunal Kohli. Curiously, a major portion of Ramayana epic happened in another island nation Sri Lanka.

"We offer 30 per cent rebate on expenses incurred in Mauritius by a movie producer for shooting the film in our nation," Arvind Bundhun, Director, MTPA told IANS.

He said there is a steady growth in Indian tourists to Mauritius and this year about 89,000 Indian tourists are expected to visit the island nation.

"We are looking at the MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions), honeymooners, high net worth people and wedding segments from India. The number of Indian tourists to visit Mauritius is expected to touch 1,20,000 by 2020," Bundhun added.

Last year, about 86,000 Indians visited Mauritius.

He said a pharmaceutical company and an insurance company will be having their conference in Mauritius with several hundreds of people participating in it.

According to Bundhun, the dip in Chinese tourists to Mauritius is being offset by tourists from other countries.

Comparing the tourists from India with that from Europe Bundhun said: "Indian tourists if they come on seven nights stay would go out to see various places for six nights. On the other hand, a European tourist would stay put in his hotel for six nights and venture out only on one night."

He also said the hotels in Mauritius have now tuned their offering to Indian habits like eating the breakfast a bit late in the morning.

Meanwhile the Mauritius High Commissioner to India Jagdishwar Goburdhun who was present at the MTPA roadshow here told IANS the bilateral trade between India and his nation is growing.

He said Mauritius is happy with India for supporting its resolution on the Chagos island in the United Nations last year and added that the island nation is not tilting towards China.

Last year Mauritius brought a resolution in the UN to refer the dispute with the UK over Chagos island to International Court of Justice. Ninety four countries voted in favour and 15 countries opposed the resolution.

Goburdhun said Mauritius does not want its land to be a military base for any nation.

--IANS

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Consolidating its presence in the Middle-East, Business Process Services (BPS) provider Intelenet Global Services on Monday announced it has set up a global delivery centre in Jordan.

The state-of-the-art centre with a capacity of 200 seats will help the company expand its operations across all sectors and provide low-cost Arabic delivery location based on emerging client demands, the company said in a statement.

Backed by The Blackstone Group, a leading global private equity player, Intelenet has four centres in the Middle-East catering to clients across travel, logistics, telecom, financial services and public sectors, BPS service offerings in English and Arabic.

"With this strategic presence in Amman, our continuous endeavour is towards operational excellence and delivering customer satisfaction by providing digital transformation based new age innovations," said Piety Gonsalves, Managing Director-Middle East, Intelenet Global Services.

The centre is in the process of expanding to a 500-seater facility and will be a pivotal center for driving growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region.

Intelenet has a global footprint with presence in eight countries with a combined strength of over 40 service centres and 55,000 employees.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Two Reuters reporters were jailed on Monday for seven years for violating a state secrets act during their reporting of the Rohingya crisis, a court said, in the case that has drawn outrage for its attack on freedom.

The two journalists were being tried since 2017 for breaching Myanmar's Official Secrets Act while investigating violence against Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine state by the army, the BBC reported.

Reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were arrested on the night of December 12 after meeting with two police officers who, according to the defendants, handed them confidential documents, the Efe news reported.

Since then, both have been held without bail and have appeared 30 times before the court, which started a preliminary investigation on January 9 and formally filed charges on July 9.

The case has been widely seen as a test of press freedom in Myanmar.

They have maintained their innocence, saying they were set up by the police.

"Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and press freedom anywhere," said Reuters editor-in-chief Stephen Adler.

The verdict comes a year after the crisis in Rakhine state came to a head when a Rohingya militant group attacked several police posts. The military responded with a brutal crackdown against the Rohingya minority.

The UN has said leading army figures in Myanmar should be investigated and prosecuted for genocide.

access to Rakhine is strictly controlled by the government so it is difficult to get reliable news from the region.

--IANS

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A 10-member diving team from Eastern Naval Command has been roped in to search for five members of a family who met with an accident when their car fell into the Dikhow river in Assam's Sivasagar district on Saturday night, officials said on Monday.

The accident took place in Dechial village. The victims have been identified as Haren Bora and four of his family members.

Although the State Disaster Rescue Force (SDRF) and National Disaster Rescue Force (NDRF) launched a search operation the same night, nothing has been recovered so far.

"The 10-member team of Indian Navy divers along with associated diving equipment have been airlifted from Visakhapatnam by IAF AN32 aircraft for search operation this morning. The team is expected to arrive in Sivasagar district around 5.30 p.m. today (Monday)," said a spokesperson of the Indian Army.

The spokesman added: "The search could not locate the car due to difficult conditions posed to divers. Later, the Army divers were requisitioned by state administration. A team of 14 divers of Army Special Forces unit under the Spear Corps based at Dimapur commenced the search early morning on Monday.

"The river is 70-80 metre wide with strong currents. Due to the rains, the water has become muddy which is also delaying the search."

--IANS

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NITI Aayog Vice Chairman Rajiv Kumar on Monday said the slowdown in India's GDP growth rate is not solely due to demonetisation but because of the exponential rise in the non-performing assets (NPAs) which began way before the note-ban announcement.

He also dismissed reports of him blaming former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan for the declining growth rate beginning FY 2016-17.

"GDP growth peaked at 9.2 per cent in January to March 2016 but declined successively for six quarters. NPAs rose exponentially to Rs 10.5 lakh crore -- for loans given out during 2010-11 to 2013-14 -- and commercial banks virtually stopped lending to industry. Medium and small industry was particularly hit," Kumar said in a tweet.

Earlier, various media reports claimed that Kumar blamed Rajan's policies for the declining growth rate over the last three years.

The NITI Aayog Vice Chairman responded: "My views on GDP's decline being unrelated to solely demonetisation and having begun way before with stricter norms of NPA by RBI under Mr Rajan are fact-based and self-explanatory, but some misleading headlines have coerced me to reiterate that the discussion is on policies not people."

Rajan joined as the RBI Governor only in September 2013 and was instrumental in instituting new mechanisms to identify non-performing assets.

--IANS

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One person has been killed and 15 others injured after a bomb exploded in the Philippine city of Isulan, army said.

Commander of the 6th Infantry Division, Cirilito Sobejana, confirmed to the media that an improvised explosive device was used in the late Sunday blast outside a department store in the city centre, Xinhua news agency reported.

The blast late on Sunday was the second such incident in a week. Three persons were killed and over 30 were injured on August 28 in a similar incident during the harvest festival celebrations.

No armed group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack. However, authorities pointed to the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF), an ally of the Islamic State (IS), who have already taken responsibility for the bombing that took place five days earlier.

National Police Chief Oscar Albayalde on Monday said vigil has been increased in the Muslim-majority region of Mindanao, known as Bangsamoro, which has suffered four attacks in a month.

On August 31, a group of armed unidentified men kidnapped the head of a civilian armed movement and his wife from Sirawi town in Bangsamoro, where they murdered six other people.

The attacks have come after the government of Rodrigo Duterte approved late in July the Bangsamoro Organic Law, which extends the autonomy of the area with the aim of establishing peace and putting an end to decades of separatist conflict.

This law was necessary to implement the peace agreement signed in 2014 with the Moro Islamic Liberation Front (MILF), the country's largest Muslim rebel group, which will govern the region in exchange for giving up their armed struggle and renouncing its independence aspirations.

--IANS

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Pakistan does not agree with the US view that India has a role to play in bringing peace to Afghanistan, Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhry has said.

Saying both Prime Minister Imran Khan and Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa were on the same page on internal and external security issues, the Minister said Pakistan was quite clear "that India has no role to play in Afghanistan".

The new Prime Minister and the Army chief have held detailed discussions on various issues.

The News International on Monday quoted Fawad as saying that the US wanted to give a role to India in Afghanistan but Pakistan was not in agreement.

But both Islamabad and Washington agreed that the US should leave behind a stable Afghanistan, he added, quoting from the deliberations in the meeting.

At the same time, Pakistan wanted good relations with all the countries in the region.

The Minister said that while a section of India wanted to make Pakistan weak, the other section wished to peacefully co-exist with Islamabad, the daily said.

He said that with Lok Sabha elections due next year in India, the Indian leadership might not be inclined to respond positively to Pakistan's desire for talks to resolve various issues.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Prices of petrol and diesel, already at unprecedented levels in the country, rose for the ninth consecutive day on Monday, even as analysts said the dual impact of rising prices and the depreciating rupee increases regulatory risks for state-run and firms.

In the capital, petrol was sold at Rs 79.15 per litre, up from Rs 78.84 on Sunday.

In Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai, the fuel was priced at Rs 82.06, Rs 82.24 and Rs 86.56 per litre, respectively, all a new record, against Rs 81.76, Rs 81.92, Rs 86.25 on Sunday.

The surge in is largely attributed to the rise in crude prices and high rate of excise duty in the country. Brent crude oil is currently priced over $78 per barrel.

The recent slump in rupee also has lifted the import cost of crude oil, subsequently raising

Petroleum Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has blamed "external" factors for the rise in petrol and diesel prices.

"I would like to mention two points, and both these subjects are external. OPEC (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) had promised that it will raise production by one million barrels per day, which was not raised," he told reporters in Surat on Sunday.

"Apart from that, crises in countries like Venezuela and Iran are increasing. There is a pressure on oil prices due to decrease in production. Secondly, global currencies have weakened against the US dollar," he said.



Domestic credit rating agency Icra said in a report on Monday that global oil prices have risen by about 10 per cent over the past two weeks on declining inventories and faster than anticipated decline in Iranian exports as the countdown to the enforcement of US sanctions begins.

"While China and EU intend to continue imports from Iran, banking channels and re-insurers are increasingly shying away, leading to sharp cut in purchases. The dual impact of rising oil prices and depreciating Rupee does not auger well for PSU (public sector unit) oil and companies as it will increase their regulatory risks," it said.

"As for the Rupee, it has depreciated by about 11 per cent against the US dollar since the beginning of this calendar year owing to its sensitivity to crude oil prices and significant outflows of foreign investment.

"Due to the high dependence on imports of crude oil to meet domestic consumption, an increase in crude oil prices increases the current account deficit which is weighing down on the Rupee," it added.

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Shiroman Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday urged the State Election Commission (SEC) to ensure that the candidates aspiring to contest from seats reserved for scheduled castes and backward classes (SCs and BCs) for the Zila Parishad and Panchayat Samitis are issued required caste certificates at the earliest, so that no aspirant is deprived of his right to contest.

In letter written to the Commission, SAD spokesman and senior vice president Daljeet Singh Cheema pointed out that the elections were announced on August 29 in the afternoon and publicised the next day through newspapers.

"Since then the government offices in the state are closed and would open on Tuesday - September 4, when the process of nomination would begin, leaving the aspirant with no time to obtain mandatory certificates," he pointed out.

Cheeema said that all officers concerned from District Magistrate down to Kanungo and Patwari be directed to ensure that such certificates are delivered instantly.

"If this is not possible, the candidates should be allowed to file nominations along with an affidavit with an explicit provision to submit such caste certificates later," he said.

Expressing shock and surprise, Cheema said that district administration notified the reserved for SCs and BCs for the ensuing polls only after announcement of the polls schedule.

"Moreover, the voting lists are not available till date to political parties. How can anybody file without cross-checking his name on the voters' list?" Cheema asked.

"This hasty action only smacks of a conspiracy of the ruling party Congress to deny opportunity to the rivals to contest the polls by denying their candidates the mandatory certificates and the Commission has willy-nilly become a partner in this nefarious game of the ruling party," he alleged.

Cheema also said that the Commission had announced the poll schedule in gross violation of established precedent of convening an all-party meeting to have their inputs on the poll arrangement and instead totally relied on the reports of the ruling Congress or state administration.

Punjab has a Congress government since March 2017.

--IANS

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National Award-winning actor Rajkummar Rao has been signed as the brand ambassador of Singapore-based active leisure brand Actimaxx.

The move showcases Actimaxx's endeavour to consolidate its market position in the Indian subcontinent, said a statement.

"Fashion for me is comfort. It is something that makes you feel confident. Actimaxx is one such brand which makes you 'feel fit', sharp and edgy. We are confident of building the brand as one of the most successful active leisure brand," said the actor.

On the association with Rajkummar, Divya, brand director of Actimaxx, said: "It is a matter of great pride for us. Mr Rao shares the brand's ethos of innovation in execution and the spirit of challenging the conventional."

The brand is owned by Actibrands PTE Singapore.

--IANS

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Kerala was put on high alert for three weeks as two more people succumbed to rat fever on Monday, taking the death toll to nine in the past three days following unprecedented floods.

Seventy-one others were said to be carrying the disease in Kozhikode and Pathanamthitta districts.

The disease transmits from animals to humans and the risk of getting it is high during floods.

Barring Kasargode district, rains and floods had affected all the other 13 districts of the state. Around two million people in the state have come in contact with the flood waters, forcing the government to ask the people to take preventive care.

Addressing reporters here after presiding over a review meeting, Health Minister K.K. Shailaja said Kerala would be on high alert for the next three weeks.

"There is no need to panic... The high incidence is on account of the floods. Despite several advisories, people are not listening and taking preventive medicines as advised," she said.

She said that all the hospitals had been equipped with medicines to the needy.

With Kozhikode reporting the maximum number of cases, an isolation ward has been opened at the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital.

--IANS

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A person was arrested on Monday for opening fire in a bar in South Goa after he was refused more drinks by the staff, police said.

According to the police, an inebriated Mubarak Khan opened fire in a popular bar in the beach village of Colva.

"We received a complaint from the manager of 49Rs bar and restaurant, Felix Fernandes, that Khan fired a bullet and threatened security personnel and hotel staff after he was refused more alcohol, as he was already drunk.

"The accused has been arrested," Police Inspector in-charge of the Colva Police Station Filomena D'Costa told reporters.

He said the weapon used by the accused has not been traced so far.

--IANS

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South Pasadena city officials have cautioned the public against making preliminary judgments about the fatal shooting of "ER" actress Vanessa Marquez at her home.

In a statement, city officials said two separate, independent investigations are being conducted by the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department and District Attorney's Office into the officer-involved shooting, reports variety.com.

"We believe our officers acted appropriately under a tragic set of circumstances," South Pasadena City Manager Stephanie DeWolfe said in a press release.

"We are asking the public to respect the investigative process and allow the Sheriff's Department and D.A.'s office to gather and release the facts," DeWolfe further said.

The incident occurred on Thursday at Marquez's home in Pasadena, California, after a landlord called the police to check on her well-being. When officers arrived at her apartment, they said she was suffering seizures and appeared unable to take care of herself, so they called for paramedics and a mental health clinician.

After an hour and a half, Marquez armed herself with a BB gun and pointed it at the officers, causing them to open fire, according to Sheriff's Lt. Joe Mendoza.

"We look forward to hearing the results of the investigation. In the meantime, we are asking the public to be patient and wait until the facts of the case are confirmed before making judgements about the incident," DeWolfe said.

In addition to her work opposite George Clooney on "ER," Marquez appeared with Edward James Olmos in 1988's "Stand and Deliver," along with the series "Malcom & Eddie" and "Wiseguy."

Last October, she alleged that she was blacklisted from "ER" by Clooney after she complained of racial discrimination and sexual harassment.

--IANS

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The Editors Guild of India (EGI) on Monday said the arrest and imprisonment of two Reuters journalists was a "big blow to democracy" and demanded their release at the earliest.

The Editors' body issued the statement after a Myanmar court on Monday sentenced the two journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, to seven years in prison after pronouncing them guilty of having breached the country's Official Secrets Act.

"The arrest and imprisonment of two Reuters journalists is a big blow to democracy. The two journalists were investigating the death of 10 Rohingya Muslims," said the Editor's body in a statement.

Expressing anguish over the arrests, the EGI said that it opposed the use of provisions under the Official Secrets Act in any country to throttle the voice of the media.

--IANS

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Doing as little as possible at all times and thoroughly enjoying life in doing so...
Saudi Arabia on Sunday intercepted a missile fired from Yemen toward the border city of Jazan, Saudi Press Agency reported.

The latest attack has brought the number of missiles shot from Yemen targeting various Saudi cities to 197, Xinhua reported.

Turki Al Maliki, spokesman of the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, said the missile was launched by Houthi militias from Yemen's Saada Governorate at 4:49 p.m. and destroyed by the Saudi air forces.

Although the frequency of the missile attacks has increased recently, most of them were intercepted and destroyed without causing injuries.

Saudi Arabia has been targeted by Yemeni Houthi rebels for having been leading a war against them since 2015. The Houthis say their missile attacks were launched in response to the coalition airstrikes on Houthi-controlled lands in Yemen.

--IANS

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The Shiv Sena on Monday targeted the Maharashtra Police for the arrests of five left activists last week claiming they were reportedly "hatching a conspiracy to overthrow the central and state governments" besides allegedly "plotting a Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi", among others.

"The police contentions behind the arrests are ridiculous... The erstwhile government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was voted out and removed by the people -- not by the Maoists.

"As of now... at least, it is still possible to change the government through the democratic processes," the Sena said.

"The (Pune) police must not shoot off their mouths like this and the government must bar them from such statements... It's sheer stupidity," the Sena said in sharp edits in the party mouthpieces, "Saamana" and "Dopahar Ka Saamana".

While the practice of "using the police" for different aims is nothing new for the politicians and government, in the present instance, "the faster the truth emerges, the better," (remove the 'mukhota') for the police, demanded the Sena.

The second argument of the Pune police was that Modi was allegedly being targeted in a "Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination", at which the Sena clawed at the Pune police.

"The former PMs, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi were fearless and courageous leaders... It was their boldness which claimed their lives... But Modi will never indulge in such adventures.

"He is already provided the best security in the world and not even a bird can overfly him," the Sena pointed out.

Dismissing the police contentions, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party ally in Maharashtra and the Centre, the Sena said that "if these handful of Maoists had so much political strength", they would never have lost their (Communist) governments in West Bengal, Tripura, Manipur, etc.

Urging the government to rein in the police, it said the action last week was one of the biggest attack on Maoism by the Pune police culminating in the arrests of five "urban-naxals" in simultaneous nationwide raids.

The Maoist movement is spread across Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal, Karnataka, Odisha and Maharashtra's Gadchiroli and Chandrapur areas.

In many of these areas they run parallel governments, killing many security personnel and even top politicians like Congress leader V.C. Shukla and others.

The edit said the Pune police arrested P. Varavara Rao, Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Fereira and Vernon Gonsalves -- intellectuals in different fields of life, rights activists, considered extremely influential persons moving about in high society circles.

"There are some doubts that something is wrong somewhere with these arrests... The facts must come out before the BJP becomes the butt of new jokes," the Sena concluded.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Several Taliban fighters on Monday laid down their weapons and joined the peace process in Afghanistan's Jalalabad.

The move came as part of an amnesty scheme sanctioned earlier by both the former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and the US, Efe reported.

Hundreds of insurgents have handed over arms to the state security forces since the amnesty was rolled out in 2004.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) officially ended its military campaign in Afghanistan in 2015, but around 16,000 troops from member states remained in an advisory capacity for the Afghan security forces.

Afghanistan is going through one of its bloodiest phases since the end of NATO's combat mission.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Shiv Sena on Monday targeted the Maharashtra Police for the arrest of five so-called "urban-Naxals" on charges that they were a plotting a Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi among others.

"The police contentions behind the arrests are ridiculous. The erstwhile government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was voted out and removed by the people - not by Maoists. As of now... at least, it is still possible to change the government through the democratic processes," the Sena said.

"The (Pune) Police must not shoot off their mouths like this and the government must bar them from such statements. Its sheer stupidity," the Sena said in editorials in the party organs "Saamana" and "Dopahar Ka Saamana".

The editorial also took on the Pune Police over claims that Modi was allegedly being targeted for a 'Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination'.

"The former PMs, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi, were fearless and courageous leaders. It was their boldness which claimed their lives. But Modi will never indulge in such adventures. He is already provided the best security in the world and not even a bird can overfly him," the Sena pointed out.

Dismissing the police contentions, the Sena, a BJP ally in Maharashtra and Centre, said that "if these handful of Maoists had so much political strength", they would never have lost their (Communist) governments in West Bengal and Tripura.

The Pune Police arrested P. Varavara Rao, Sudhar Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Fereira and Vernon Gonsalves from different cities.

"There are some doubts that something is wrong somewhere with these arrests. The facts must come out before the BJP becomes the butt of new jokes," the Sena said.

--IANS

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(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Wildlife officials in Sri Lanka will soon be armed with assault rifles to protect elephants from poachers and to save human lives in the long standing human-elephant conflict.

The weapons are to be bought on a recommendation by the Sustainable Development, Wildlife and Regional Development Minister, Field Marshal Sarath Fonseka said. The total number of weapons to be imported is 2,568, Xinhua news agency reported.

Deputy Minister of Wildlife Palitha Thewarapperuma said the purchase of assault rifles would be connected with the human-elephant conflict, caused mainly as a result of people encroaching into the jungle habitat of elephants.

"At present wildlife officials are reluctant to intervene when civilians and elephants are threatened," he said.

Cabinet spokesperson Gayantha Karunathilaka said in August that the death toll from Sri Lanka's human-elephant conflict has hit a record high with over 375 people killed by wild elephants and over 1,100 elephants killed by humans within the last five years.

Karunathilaka said that in order to find a solution to the bitter battle, the government had decided to extend electric fences near national parks and vulnerable villages as part of a new drive to protect people and wild elephants.

Elephants in Sri Lanka are protected by law. Killing wild elephants is a punishable offence, but there have been regular reports of angry villagers poisoning or shooting them.

Official records show the population of wild elephants is estimated at 7,500 in Sri Lanka.

--IANS

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Stones were hurled at Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's chariot while he was conducting the 'Jan Aashirwad Yatra' in Sidhi district, police said on Monday.

The incident occurred in Churhat area late on Sunday in the assembly constituency of Congress's Ajay Singh. "The miscreants hid in the dark and pelted stones," Bhartiya Janta Party state media cell chief Lokendra Parashar said.

Parashar and the BJP have accused the Congress for the attack, while the Congress refuting it have blamed Chouhan's own party for staging the attack to malign Singh's name.

The Chief Minister on Monday dared the Congress leader to come out in the open and fight him.

Rejecting this, Singh said: "The Congress does not follow the culture of violence. I suspect that it is a well-planned conspiracy hatched to defame me and the people of Churhat."

--IANS

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Former Bihar Chief Minister and Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief Lalu Prasad Yadav on Monday requested the authorities of Rajendra Institute of Medical Science (RIMS) here to shift him to another ward as he cannot sleep due to the incessant barking of dogs near the super speciality ward of the hospital.

According to RJD legislator Bhola Yadav, Lalu Yadav cannot sleep due to barking of dogs and it has had an adverse impact on his health.

He said Lalu Yadav has requested the hospital authorities to shift him to a paying ward of the RIMS.

Bhola Yadav also said that the RJD chief's sugar level was above normal limit and he needed to walk.

Lalu Yadav surrendered on August 30 in a special CBI court of Ranchi. On the same day he was shifted to RIMS from Birsa Munda Central Jail for treatment.

The Jharkhand High Court on August 24 had directed him to surrender by August 30. He was out on provisional bail since May 11.

He was in Ranchi's Birsa Munda Central Jail after being convicted in December 2017 in a fodder scam case.

He was convicted in two more cases in January and March this year and awarded 14 years imprisonment.

In 2013, Lalu Yadav was convicted in the first fodder scam case and sentenced to jail for five years.

The multi-million-rupee fodder scam had surfaced in the 1990s when Lalu Yadav was Bihar's Chief Minister. At the directive of Patna High Court, the probe was handed over to the Central Bureau of Investigation.

--IANS

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At least two persons were killed, one is reported missing and more than 85 were injured in various incidents as Maharashtra witnessed 'dahi-handi' celebrations in Mumbai and others parts of the state on Monday.

One youth died in 'dahi-handi' related incident in Sion, central Mumbai, while another drowned in Bhayander in Thane. One youth is missing in the Arabian Sea at Versova Beach in Andheri, while four were rescued.

Besides, at least 87 youngsters fell and were injured at various venues while forming human pyramids, the BMC Disaster Control said.

Earlier, Lord Krishna's birthday was heralded amid prayers, chanting of hymns, ringing bells and aartis at the two main venues in Mumbai, the ISKCON temples in Chowpatty and Juhu, at midnight of Sunday-Monday, with a welcome drizzle in many parts of Mumbai.

"Thousands of devotees prayed here. The temple is decorated with a Rajasthani theme and has 1,008 items offered to Lord Krishna as 'bhog' today, prepared by over 500 volunteers," said ISKCON Radha Chowpatty head, Radhanath Swami.

'Dahi-handi' festivities started in a big way with big and small 'Govinda' groups of men and women, attired in colourful clothes, fanned out all over the city to try their 'pot luck', with film stars like Raveena Tandon, Suniel Shetty, Varun Kapoor, and many more joining the celebrations, and Maharashtrian 'laavni' dance performers regaling the crowds.

Thousands of 'Govindas' also trooped out in other cities like Pune, Nagpur, Kolhapur and others to form human pyramids and break the 'dahi-handi', an earthen pot having a deliious mixture of curd and butter, commemorating the birth and symbolizing the spirit of Lord Krishna.

At many major venues in Borivali, Andheri, Dadar, Ghatkopar, Mulund and others, the govindas attempted to build up around five tiers to grab the 'dahi-handi' pot, and safety measures were evident. In some venues in Mumbai and Thane, the pyramids were as tall as nine tiers.

Among several large groups having political backing, the emphasis this year was less on doling out huge prize monies, but more on deriving hefty political mileage, with eyes on the 2019 general elections.

"This is the first year it is being celebrated as a 'sport' event with the participation of around 1,000 registered organisations in Mumbai, Thane, Palghar and Raigad districts. They must strictly adhere to all safety precautions," Bala Padelkar, head of Dahi-Handi Coordination Committee, told IANS.

However, watchdog Lok Jagruti Samajik Sanstha President Swati Patil said in most venues, safety measures were blatantly flouted and children aged below 14 were being foisted on top of the human pyramids.

"During a practice session in Khar four days ago, 12-year old Chirag Patekar from Khar fell and is in a coma at a Bandra hospital. Who is responsible for his future now?" Patil asked. The Mumbai BJP has announced Rs 100,000 assistance to the boy's family.

She accused several groups and organisers in Dadar and Chembur of flouting the Bombay High Court directives by not providing safety belts and harnesses.

At a venue in Dadar, after forming the pyramids, the 'govindas' saluted the martyred soldiers, while in one group in Walkeshwar, south Mumbai, the topmost 'govinda' was clad in an Army-style suit in a tribute to Indian soldiers.

Some organisations and groups also announced donations of their full or part winnings to the victims of the recent Kerala floods.

--IANS

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A young woman who shouted slogans against the "fascist" Modi government in an aircraft in the presence of Tamil Nadu BJP President Tamilisai Soundararajan was on Monday arrested when the plane landed here.

Sophia (25), who is said to be pursuing research in Canada, was returning home and was seated behind Soundararajan's third row seat. Suddenly she got up and shouted slogans against the BJP and the "fascist" government at the Centre, creating a flutter in the aircraft.

On landing here, the BJP leader got into a verbal duel with the student and lodged a complaint with the police who arrested her.

Soundararajan later told the media that the girl student rose in a "menacing" manner against her and felt there was a threat to her life in the manner in which she protested.

"She is not an ordinary person," the BJP leader said, adding she suspected her "background" and that there must be some "organisation" behind her protest which should be probed.

Leaders of various political parties including the CPI-M, CPI and PMK criticized the police "high handedness" and demanded the woman's immediate release.

They also said Soundararajan should have handled the issue in a mature manner without resorting to gimmicks. The incident only showed that young people in the country were angry with the Central government, they said.

--IANS

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Against the backdrop of severe and record heatwaves, bushfires, droughts and floods across the world, governments are convening a supplementary six-day meeting here from Tuesday to prepare the implementation guidelines of the Paris Climate Change Agreement.

The guidelines are needed to make the 2015 Paris Agreement work fairly and transparently for all.

Following a two-year negotiation process, the implementation guidelines are set to be adopted at the annual climate conference, COP24, to be held in Katowice, Poland in December.

While the talks have made modest progress, the Bangkok meeting is the last opportunity before COP24 to accelerate negotiations.

"Building on progress made, countries now need to take a decisive step forward in preparing the ambitious and balanced outcome that we need in Katowice," Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), told reporters here.

Achieving success at COP24 will be challenging without the preparation of an official negotiating text on the implementation guidelines.

"It will be critical for negotiators in Bangkok to produce solid text-based output that can function as the basis for the concluding negotiations in Katowice and be turned into the final implementation guidelines of the Paris Agreement at COP24.

"The texts capturing progress to date are not yet refined enough for this purpose," Espinosa said.

"With only six additional days for negotiations in Bangkok, the UN Climate Change is carefully coordinating demands to fully support countries in their important task," she added.

Highly technical in nature, the implementation guidelines are needed to monitor progress on climate action.

Such action includes measures to deal with climate impacts such as droughts or floods and urgent support to enable developing countries to contribute to climate action.

They are also essential for determining whether emissions are being reduced at an ambitious rate to achieve the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting the global temperature increase to well below 2 degrees Celsius, and as close to 1.5 degrees as possible this century.

Importantly, the guidelines are also needed to make the agreement's institutions fully operational beyond COP24.

"Every year, the impacts of climate change are getting worse. This means that every year, the poorest and most vulnerable, who have contributed almost nothing to the problem, suffer more," Espinosa said.

Chair of the Least Developed Countries (LDC) Group Gebru Jember Endalew said: "This additional Bangkok session will be critical to the delivery of a robust, balanced and comprehensive set of implementation guidelines for the Paris Agreement at COP24.'

"Negotiators have one week in Bangkok before Katowice; time to develop these rules is running out and there remains a lot of work to be done. A last-minute rush in Katowice must be avoided so that the voices of poor and vulnerable countries are fully heard."

The LDC Group looks forward to working with other countries to develop a strong package of guidelines to implement the Paris Agreement.

The 2018 Climate Weeks in Africa, Asia and Latin America, the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco in mid-September and Climate Week in New York towards the end of September, to name a few, are all events that rally both governments and non-Party stakeholders around climate change.

"These events clearly demonstrate global momentum. They show that the world is ready to implement the Paris Agreement in the way world leaders envisaged in Paris in 2015," Espinosa added.

With 197 Parties, the UNFCCC has near universal membership and is the parent treaty of the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement.

--IANS

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Monday, September 3, 2018

From South China Morning Post:

Chinas new gaming regulator has been revealed after a months-long halt on approvals for new videos games triggered by a massive government shake-up. The State Administration of Press and Publications, directly under the publicity department of the Chinese Communist Party, will take over the role, highlighting the Partys tightening grip over the gaming industry.

...

All games, even those offered for free, will be required to obtain a license to get published in China, the worlds largest gaming market, worth an estimated US$2 billion in revenue this year. However, authorities have not approved any new game licenses since the end of March, contributing to the slowest first half growth in the countrys games industry in at least a decade, according to data from researcher CNG.

China has the most rigorous game approval process of any major market, an extension of broader restrictions on television, newspapers and the internet.

Read more here.

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/family_law/2018/09/gaming-regulation-in-china.html
The is looking at the alliance route in southern India to augment the numbers of the ruling Democratic Alliance (NDA) during the Lok Saha elections with its leaders saying that the party is keen to keep its options open in case it requires support from more parties to return to power in 2019.

In states like Tamil Nadu, and Telangana, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is working to ensure that it either goes to the polls in alliance with a strong regional party or keep its ties with them warm enough so that it can get their support if such a need arises.

In the two remaining states of the south, the has traditionally done well in while alliances led by the Congress and the CPI(M) are the main forces in where the saffron party has been struggling to make its electoral presence felt.

With the not a major force in any of these states except Karnataka, the party wants to maintain a degree of cordiality with regional parties in south India, a party leader said while giving the example of where it has refrained from going all out against the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam

(DMK) despite maintaining warm ties with its Dravidian rival All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK).

visited an ailing patriarch M Karunanidhi last year and had flown to Chennai last month following his death.

BJP sources said they are well-placed in Telangana where the ruling Telangana Rashtriya Samithi (TRS) has indicated that it may join hands with the saffron party with its supremo and state Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao keeping the Congress in his line of fire.

The BJP-led Democratic Allaiance (NDA) had weakened in after N Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party walked out earlier this year but its managers believe that the YSR Congress, the main opposition in the state, will do well in the polls and may back it.

Both the and the YSR Congress are founded on strong anti-Congress sentiments and would not be very comfortable in an anti-BJP alliance where the Congress would be a lead player, they said.

BJP president Amit Shah has been working to broaden his party's base in southern states but it remains to be seen how much it may improve its tally.

It had won 15 of 25 seats in Karnataka, two of 20 in Andhra Pradesh, one of 17 in Telangana, one of 39 in and none of 20 in in 2014.
The said on Monday that the people of Karnataka have accepted the development policies of the Congress-JD(S) government in the state and have rejected the 'jumlas' (rhetoric) of the BJP, after the party emerged as the single largest in the local body polls.

chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, while thanking the people of the state, said that they have once again reposed their faith in the

"People of Karnataka have once again reposed their faith in Congress by making it the No.1 party in Urban Local Bodies.

"People have accepted development policies of Congress+JDS Govt & have rejected Jumlas of Many thanks to every @INCKarnataka worker!," he tweeted.

According to the state election commission, the Congress has secured 966 seats and the (BJP) bagged 910 seats in the elections held on Saturday. The Janata Dal (Secular) has won 373 seats.



People of Karnataka have once again reposed their faith in Congress by making it the No.1 party in Urban Local Bodies.



People have accepted development policies of Congress+JDS Govt & have rejected Jumlas of



Many thanks to every @INCKarnataka worker!#KarnatakaULBVerdict  Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) September 3, 2018

Results for 2,628 seats out of 2,709 have been declared so far.

Both the Congress and the JD(S) contested the polls separately despite being partners in the state government, but they have already declared that they would tie up post-election in urban bodies.

JD(S) leader Danish Ali termed the poll result as a defeat of the BJP, noting that the civic elections were held in 104 urban assembly constituencies, out of which the had won 69 in the state elections held in May.

"The Congress and the JD(S) will coordinate to form urban local bodies since we are in alliance and this will help in further assimilation of the cadres," he said.
The Uttar Pradesh police has arrested 11 persons for their alleged roles in the leakage of questions papers for tubewell operators recruitment tests, which was to be held by the UP Subordinate Services Selection Commission on Sunday.

All the arrests were made on Sunday by the Special Task Force of the state police in Merrut, a day after the UPSSSC postponed the test following the surfacing of the leaked Hindi question paper for the test on Saturday, a senior police officer said Monday.

The arrested accused included mastermind of the racket and five job aspirants, who all were remanded in judicial custody for 14 days by the court of Meerut chief judicial magistrate.

The district police probing the case would soon move the appropriate court for seek the police custody of the accused for their custodial interrogation and investigation aimed at adducing further evidence in the case against them, the officer said.

Detailing the findings of the preliminary probe into the matter, the officer said with the arrest of the accused, a racket of selling question papers to the aspirants and ensuring their selections for the menial government job for a hefty sum of Rs 6 to 7 lakh has been unearthed by the STF.

The STF in a statement said three hand-written answer sheets, 5 admit cards, 13 mobile phones and Rs 1,48,000 were also recovered from the arrested persons.

The STF identified the arrested mastermind of the racket as Sachin, a teacher from Amroha district in UP, who told the sleuths during interrogation that he had been involved in leaking question papers of various examinations for the last two years.

Sachin disclosed to the police that he has already received Rs 3 lakh from each of the aspirants for the post of tubewell operators, who would have given him another sum of Rs 3 to 4 lakh after their selection, the STF officer said.

After the leakage of question papers from a Meerut Cantonment centre, Sachin had called all the aspirants, said the STF officer, adding a case of cheating and forgery has been registered against all the accused in Meerut.

According to the reports, the UPSSSC exam paper was leaked a day before the exam was to be conducted on Sunday. The test was cancelled after the authorities got to know of the paper leak. The announcement was made on Saturday night. The exam was to be held for recruiting a total of 3,210 tubewell operator across the state.

The test for the tubewell operators was postponed after the Hindi question paper was leaked on Saturday. Announcing the decision to postponed the exam, the Lucknow district magistrate said the fresh dates for the UPSSSC tubewell operator exam would be announced soon.

Over the years, Uttar Pradesh has gained notoriety for frequent leaks of question papers for various competitive examinations for the government jobs.

The latest instance has come close on the heels of the leakages of question papers for recruitment of assistant teachers in July and for those of police constables in June this year.

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Police have rescued three children who were allegedly employed by a farmer to work in his field in a village here, an official said Monday.

The children belonged to Madhya Pradesh's Singoli district. They were employed by a farmer to work in his field in Budina Kalan village, Sub Inspector Vijaypal Atri said.

The trio were rescued Sunday based on information provided by the Madhya Pradesh Police, he said.

Atri said the children were produced before a child welfare board, which recorded their statements.

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A blast in an illegal cracker factory being run in the residential area in this city on Monday left six people injured, police said.

The blast took place in Kot Khalsa locality where an illegal cracker unit was being run in a house, they said.

The blast, caused when explosive material caught fire, was so severe that it damaged roofs of three neighbouring houses, police said.

While three people were injured in the house where the blast took place, three others in the neighbouring houses whose roofs collapsed due to the impact of the explosion, they said.

Police said illegal storage of crackers was also found in the same locality just a few yards from the spot of blast.

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The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) said Monday it has seized 8,000 kgs of shark fins from Mumbai and Gujarat meant for export to China and Hong Kong.

The seized shark fins were meant for illicit export by mis-declaring them as dried ray skins, dried marine products and fish maw, among others, a DRI statement said here.

Export of shark fins of all species is prohibited under the law.

"The DRI on September 1 seized around 8,000 kgs of shark fins...In all, 3000 kgs of shark fins were seized from a godown at Sewri in Mumbai and 5,000 kgs from Veraval in Gujarat. The DRI has intercepted four persons in this operation, including the mastermind," the statement said.

Investigations by the DRI Mumbai unit have indicated the entire quantity was intended to be exported to China and Hong Kong, it said.

"It has come up during the investigations that the stocks of shark fins are replenished regularly," the statement said.

Exports of shark fins are mis-declared as dried ray skins, dried marine products and fish maw, among others, avoid detection and circumvent prohibition, said the Central government agency.

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Nine suspected Congress workers were arrested on Monday for allegedly pelting stones on Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's vehicle in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district.

No one was hurt in the incident on Sunday night near Churhat town, around 540 km from Bhopal, but a windowpane of the vehicle was damaged, police had said.

Churhat is the assembly constituency of Congress leader Ajay Singh, who is also the leader of Opposition in the assembly. The party has denied any role in the incident.

"Nine office-bearers of the Congress were arrested for hurling stones at Chouhan's vehicle," state Home Minister Bhupendra Singh told PTI.

It has been made on the basis of eyewitness accounts and more arrests cannot be ruled out, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader said, adding that Chouhan's security had been ramped up.

District Superintendent of Police Tarun Nair identified the nine accused as Rambhilas Patel (52), Pankaj Singh Chauhan (32), Gaurav Singh Chauhan (21), Roshan Singh (18), Saurabh Dwivedi (19), Shivedra Singh (24), Saurabh Singh (21), Charan Singh (21) and Sanjay Singh (28). They were charged with rioting and on other counts.

Hitting out at the opposition party, the home minister alleged, "The Congress has started a new of violence. The Congress knows it cannot come to power in the state due to Chouhan. That is why, Congress leaders are hatching conspiracies to kill Chouhan."



Addresing a rally after the incident, Chouhan dared Ajay to come out in the open and fight with him. "I am physically weak but I won't be bogged down by your deeds. The people of the state are with me," the chief minister had said.

Ajay, however, had said no Congressman was involved in the incident, terming it a well-thought-out conspiracy to defame him and the people of Churhat.

State Congress spokesperson Bhupendra Gupta on Monday accused the BJP of running a smear campaign against the party. "The home minister is accusing Congress leaders of hatching conspiracies to kill Chouhan. Why is he not asking the police to arrest such Congress leaders?



"They are claiming the arrested accused are Congress office-bearers. The home minister, please give us details of the accused with their positions in the Congress," Gupta added.

The chief minister is touring the state as a part of his 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra'. The BJP is in power since 2003 and will be seeking a record fourth term in the assembly polls, due later this year.

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Ahead of the maiden two-plus-two dialogue between India and the United States, top homeland security officials of the two countries have worked on a draft plan related to six areas, including anti-terror cooperation in intelligence sharing, terror financing and cyber security.

During the Indo-US Homeland Security Dialogue, held recently, senior officers deliberated on a draft work plan relating to the activities of the six sub-groups, an official privy to the development said Monday.

The six sub-groups formed under the Indo-US homeland security dialogue cover the areas of (i) Illicit finance, Illegal smuggling of cash, financial fraud and counterfeiting, (ii) cyber information, (iii) megacity policing and sharing of information among federal state and local partners, (iv) global supply chain, transportation, port, border and maritime security, (v) capacity building and (vi) technology upgradation.

Cooperation in matters related to counter terror initiatives and intelligence sharing were given stress during the recent meeting, the official said.

Both the sides agreed to work out the modalities to address these issues and agreed to maintain sustained interactions to enhance security cooperation between the two countries, another official said.

The Indian delegation was led by Additional Secretary in the Home Ministry Rajni Sekhri Sibal while the US side was led by Deputy Under Secretary in the Department of Homeland Security, James McCament.

The Indo-US homeland security dialogue was launched in 2010 as the mechanism to a sequel to the signing of the India-US counter-terrorism initiative.

The maiden two-plus-two dialogue between India and the United States is scheduled to be held in New Delhi on Thursday.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis will be meeting their Indian counterparts, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, to discuss enhancing America's engagement with India on critical diplomatic and security priorities.

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Chinese researchers say they have developed an artificial intelligence (AI) model with medical imaging to accurately determine whether patients with severe brain damage might regain consciousness.

Severe brain injury can lead to disorders of consciousness (DOC), said researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Some patients can recover from an acute brain injury, but others fall into chronic DOC, also known as a vegetative state. They cannot communicate or act consciously.

Most doctors assess the chances of recovery based on three main indicators: the patient's age, the cause and the duration of the disorder, according to the research published in the international journal eLife.

Studies have shown that patients with traumatic brain injury have a higher likelihood of recovery than those with non-traumatic brain injury, and young patients are more likely to have a favourable outcome than older ones.

Doctors also observe patients' actions, with tests such as clapping hands or tracking eyes, to find any evidence of awareness, Xinhua reported.

However, behavioral assessments are subjective and vulnerable to personal interpretation.

Researchers, including those from PLA Army General Hospital and General Hospital of Guangzhou Military Command, developed the AI model, which can make an assessment based on images of brain functional networks.

"When a brain functions, multiple brain regions are involved, and they form a network, working together," said Song Ming, lead researcher of the study.

Using functional MRI (fMRI), a medical imaging technique, Song and his team found typical features seen in the brain functional networks of DOC patients, which can be biomarkers to trace the level of consciousness and predict the possibility of recovery.

To train the AI, the researchers fed it tens of thousands of brain images of 63 DOC patients at least one month after their brain injury.

The model diagnosed patients who would recover consciousness and those who would not with an accuracy of 88 per cent in 100 cases.

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Friday, August 31, 2018

A federal court in Texas today denied a request for a preliminary injunction by Texas and nine other states seeking to block renewals of grants of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA).

In August, Judge Andrew S. Hanen of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas held a hearing on a motion for a preliminary injunction to force the federal government to cease accepting new DACA applications, and to prevent renewals of current grants of deferred action pending resolution of the lawsuit. Judge Hanen had granted the injunction barring the implementation of the Deferred Action for Parents of American policy, which ultimately was affirmed by an equally divided Supreme Court.

Read Judge Hanens ruling denying the request for a preliminary junction here. CNN reads the ruling as suggesting that, even though he did not do so now, Judge Hanen might strike down DACA in the future.

KJ

https://lawprofessors.typepad.com/immigration/2018/08/federal-district-court-.html
Senior TMC leader Anubrata Mandal courted controversy yet again as he was caught on camera purportedly instructing his party workers to get a party rebel and a woman BJP leader arrested on a false case of possessing cannabis.

Mandal, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) Birbhum district president, was presiding over a meeting in the Aushgram assembly constituency in neighbouring Burdwan East district on Sunday when the purported video was shot.

Mandal is the party's observer in three assembly constituencies -- Mangalkot, Ausgram and Ketugram -- in East Burdwan district.

The video went viral Sunday night and kicked up a political storm in the state with the opposition accusing the ruling TMC of using the police to settle the score with the opposition.

Under the anti-narcotics law, a minimum jail term of six months is awarded for possessing up to 1 kg of cannabis, while the punishment for possessing a larger quantity could lead to prison term of up to 20 years.

"Arrest the man whom we have excluded from the five-member committee. Also, that woman, that plump one. What's her name? The one owning a garment shop, get her arrested too. She is a BJP worker. Can you control them? Tell me if you can control them, otherwise we will arrest them in a cannabis case and put them behind bars," Mandal was purported heard instructing party workers in the video clip.

State Agriculture Minister and TMC leader Ashis Bandopadhyay was also present in the meeting.

The five-man committee, which was mentioned in the clip, is the one formed by the district TMC to look after the development work in the constituency.

Reacting to Mandal's threat, Sangita Chakraborty, a BJP leader in Aushgram, said the video clip proves how the TMC uses police to settle the score with political opponents.

"This is how political opponents are being put behind bars in the TMC regime. What do they mean by cannabis case? Does that mean all the cannabis cases against politicians of opponent parties are false and fabricated?" she questioned.

Asked for his reaction to Mandal's assertion, TMC secretary general Partha Chatterjee said he had not seen the video and so he could not comment on it.

The vice-president of the TMC's Birbhum district, Avijit Sinha, said the video had been "fabricated" to malign Mondal and the party.

"We feel that the video that has gone viral is a fabricated one. It has been done to malign the party," Sinha said.

Mandal had courted controversy in July 2013 when he asked his supporters at a public meeting in Birbhum to hurl bombs at the police and burn down houses of rebel TMC candidates in panchayat elections.

Ahead of the 2016 assembly election in the district, the Election Commission had taken note of Mandal's controversial comments and put him under 24-hour surveillance.

The BJP and the CPI(M) said the video was an example of how police were being used by the TMC to stifle dissent in the state.

"We have been saying this (using the police) for a long time and now this video has proved how police are being used to attack us. The people of the state will give a befitting reply," BJP state president Dilip Ghosh said.

CPI(M) leader Sujan Chakraborty also expressed similar view and demanded that action be taken against Mandal.

The TMC had won all the 42 zilla parishad seats in Birbhum in the May rural polls in West Bengal without any contest.

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There has been a significant increase in the number of searches by job seekers for artificial intelligence (AI) related sectors in India with data scientist profile leading the top slot, says a report.

According to data from global job site Indeed, there has been an increase of 179 per cent in the number of searches by job seekers for AI related jobs in India between June 2016 and June 2018.

AI-related jobs have seen an increase as companies are increasingly working towards integrating new technology into their core functions, creating new openings for skilled professionals.

"While firms across industries are adopting a technology-forward approach, it is crucial that we also prepare the workforce by reskilling and upskilling talent in the requisite capabilities," said Venkata Machavarapu, Head of Engineering, India and Site Director at Indeed India.

"Our focus needs to be not only on finding talent with the right skills, but also on equipping existing employees with the required skills to work with AI-powered solutions," Machavarapu added.

According to the report, employer demand for AI skills outstrips job seeker supply by 2.2 times, indicating the need for skill development in the larger science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) sector and the technology sector in particular.

Apart from the wider technology industry, the automotive sector is a key driver of the application of AI in India. Companies are increasingly looking at leveraging AI for data management, analytics and programming.

Quoting a BCG study, the report said India is the third country after USA and China in terms of AI implementation in the automotive sector and this is indicative of the scope of work that is yet to be tapped in the sector going forward.

Data scientist profile was the most searched AI related jobs in the past year, followed by software engineer and machine learning engineer in the second and third place, respectively.

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Five people died and 20 others were injured Monday when a bus crashed into the pillar of a viaduct in northern Spain, authorities said.

The accident took place in Aviles in the Asturias region, a spokeswoman for emergency services told AFP.

"Five people have died," a spokesman for the central government's representative office in Asturias added -- all of them passengers.

Among the 20 injured was the driver, who had to have a limb amputated, the spokesman said.

Photos published in local media showed the front of the bus split in half by the pillar.

The bus was travelling on a highway at the base of the viaduct when the accident happened, the causes of which are still unknown.

It is the worst bus crash since March 2016, when 13 foreign students, most of them from Italy, died in a bus accident in the northeastern region of Catalonia.

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com will foray into Australia by the end of this fiscal as part of expanding its overseas business, Adhil Shetty, CEO, said.

It is an online marketplace that provide customers with an option to choose from different range of financial products such as loans, credit cards or any other personal finance products, which are been offered by a large number of banks and financial services on a single platform.

"By the end of this fiscal, we are going to launch our business in Australia. We look for markets where we can scale up quickly and Australia is one such place," Shetty said in an interaction with PTI.

Currently, the company has overseas operations in Singapore and Malaysia which contribute to around 10 per cent of its business.

The company is eyeing a 100 per cent growth in its revenues in the current fiscal. In the last fiscal ended March, it had witnessed 91 per cent rise in its turnover, he added.

Being a company running on digital platform, he said is seeing a tremendous growth due to mobile internet.

Currently, consumers can avail as many as 16 financial products from BankBazaar.com, including credit card, debit card, insurance and mutual funds as well as home loans.

The company gets nearly 35 million visitors on its Website per month and has 85 financial firms on its board.
The BJP hit out at the BJD government in Odisha on Monday, accusing it of playing "cheap politics" and "disrespecting" Union minister Ashwini Kumar during his visit to the state to inaugurate a medical college.

BJP legislature party leader K V Singhdeo said the state government has been accusing the Centre of neglecting Odisha "but in reality it is cleverly attempting to hijack central schemes and to project them entirely as its own programmes".

Alleging that the Odisha government had failed to show "minimum courtesy" and respect to Union Minister of State for Health Ashwini Kumar Choubey during his visit last week, Singhdeo said his name was missing on invitation cards sent to guests on the occasion of inauguration of the Fakir Mohan Medical College and Hospital in Balasore.

Choubey's name also did not figure in advertisements by the state government though the Centre is providing 60 per cent funds for setting up five medical colleges and hospitals in Odisha, including the one in Balasore, Singhdeo said.

Failure to acknowledge it in advertisements of the state government showed lack of "minimum courtesy" despite getting "substantial" assistance from the Centre for establishment of medical colleges, he said.

"Instead of being thankful to the Centre for extending necessary assistance and support to improve medical education and healthcare, the state government is indulging in cheap politics," the BJP leader said.

The BJP leader also alleged that "no proper security cover" was provided to Choubey, who is entitled to 'Y' category security, during his visit to Odisha.

"There was nobody from the state government to receive the union minister who had come to the Odisha as a guest, when he arrived at the airport here and was also not provided proper security during his journey from here to Balasore," Singhdeo claimed.

State Health Minister Pratap Jena has dismissed BJP's allegation and claimed that "everything was done in accordance with protocol".

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An appellate court lifted a court-ordered suspension of licenses in Brazil for products containing glyphosate, an industrial weedkiller in common use in Latin America's agricultural powerhouse.

Federal appeals court judge Kassio Marques ruled that "nothing justified" the suspension by a lower court, saying it had been abruptly imposed "without previous analysis of the grave impact it would have on the country's economy and on production in general.

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A 35-year-old BSP panchayat member from Uttar Pradesh was shot dead allegedly by two unidentified men in southeast Delhi's Batla House Monday, police said.

The deceased was identified as Dilshad, who was living in Jogha Bai Extension in Jamia Nagar, they said.

Police were informed about the incident at 6.05 pm, following which Dilshad was rushed to Holy Family Hospital where he died during the course of treatment, said Chinmoy Biswal, Deputy Commissioner of Police (southeast).

Local enquiry has revealed that two persons, who were wearing helmets and were on foot, fired four rounds at him, he said.

Police said a case had been registered and investigation was underway.

Dilshad is survived by wife, an eight-year-old daughter, two sons, aged seven years and seven months, respectively.

He was involved in real estate business in Okhla and was also connected to the Bahujan Samaj Party in Meerut, police said.

It is suspected that the murder was a fallout of personal enmity, they said.

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Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Raman Singh will launch the second phase of his "Vikas Yatra" from September 5 to highlight the achievements of the BJP's 15-year rule in the state.

The yatra has been renamed "Atal Vikas Yatra" in the memory of late Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee and would be flagged from Dongargarh, a popular religious destination in Rajnandgaon district, by BJP national president Amit Shah.

A statement from Singh Sunday also informed that the yatra would begin following prayers at the Maa Bamleshwari temple in Dongargarh, and would culminate on October 5.

Singh's statement added that Prime Minister Narendra Modi would participate in the yatra at Janjgir-Champa district on September 22.

The first phase of the yatra was flagged off by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh from Dantewada on May 12 this year and had culminated on June 14 in Bhilai town in the presence of PM Modi.

While the first phase of the yatra covered 5,000 kilometres across 55 Assembly constituencies, the second phase is expected to cover about 6,000 kilometres.

Singh further said that his government will draft an "Atal Vision Document" to create a "new" Chhattisgarh by the year 2025 when the state would be celebrating the silver jubilee of its formation.

The Atal vision document would be created with suggestions from people in order to make the state a smart and green one where every citizen is empowered, prosperous and happy, Singh said.

He informed that an Atal memorial would be built in Atal Nagar (the new name for the state's upcoming capital Naya Raipur) on five acres of land and soil from every village in the state would be collected for the purpose.

The memorial complex would also have a library and museum, he said.

The opposition Congress, meanwhile, accused the state government of misusing public funds and official machinery to conduct the yatra.

"In its 15-year rule, the BJP did nothing for the farmers, poor and youth of the state. Now they are misusing public funds for the vikas yatra. It is unconstitutional to use government machinery for such a mass campaign ahead of the polls," said Congress' state spokesperson Sushil Anand Shukla.

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A letter was sent to Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik demanding Rs 50 crore ransom, following which an inmate of Bilaspur district jail was identified as its sender, a police official said Monday.

In the letter, the prisoner, Pushpendra Nath Chouhan (40), had demanded Rs 50 crore from Patnaik, Bilaspur Superintendent of Police Arif Sheikh said but refused to divulge the content of the letter and the exact threat mentioned in it, asserting the matter was under investigation.

He said the letter, sent through post, was received by the Odisha Police on August 25 who in turn informed their Bilaspur counterparts Sunday.

The Bilaspur Police swung into action after being alerted, following which the officials identified and interrogated Chouhan, who hails from Janjgir-Champa district in Chhattisgarh and was currently serving jail term in dacoity and murder cases since 2009, Sheikh said.

Chouhan has confessed to have writing the letter to Patnaik, the SP said, adding that his objective was only to "garner public attention".

"On Sunday, Odisha Additional Director General (Intelligence) in a letter informed Bilaspur police about the threat letter written to Patnaik," he said.

Bilaspur Additional Superintendent of Police Neeraj Chandrakar interrogated Chouhan yesterday, he said.

As per preliminary investigation, Chouhan is mentally unstable, Sheikh said.

He said police will conduct a detailed investigation and send a report to the Odisha Police who will take further action in the matter.

Additional SP Chandrakar said Chouhan told him that he had a habit of writing such letters and had sent a similar communication to a district collector of Odisha in the past.

Chhattisgarh Director General (Jail) Girdhari Nayak visited Bilaspur Jail Monday and directed the authorities to probe the matter.

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Global alternative asset manager The Carlyle Group on Monday said it has appointed Vikram Nirula as managing director of Carlyle Asia private equity.

Based in Mumbai, Nirula will advise on Carlyle's investment activities in India, it said in a statement.

He joins Carlyle from Indian PE firm, True North Managers, which he helped found.

"As one of our key strategic markets, India presents attractive investment opportunities, particularly in financial services, healthcare and consumer, amid robust economic growth and structural reforms. Vikram's extensive on-the-ground experience in India's PE industry and strong market insights well place him to bolster Carlyle's continued growth and success in India," Carlyle Asia buyout team managing director and co-head Greg Zeluck said. ************* Mahindra Logistics appoints Yogesh Patel as CFO *



Mahindra Logistics on Monday said it has appointed Yogesh Patel as its chief financial officer.

He will take over the reins from Nikhil Nayak, who will be retiring shortly, the company said in a statement.

He has held senior leadership position in finance with organisations like E&Y, IBM, Wipro. *********** Paytm sees 100cr+ monthly sessions spurred by money transfers *



One97 Communications, which owns Paytm, announced on Monday that it is witnessing upwards of 100 crore sessions monthly on its platform, resulting from a rapid adoption of money transfers.

In August 2018, over 9.2 crore Paytm users used its services for regular payments in both online and offline domain, the company said in a statement.

The platform offers its customers all payment methods including cards, net banking, wallet and UPI for frequent payments. The company claimed to clock over Rs 29,000 crore gross merchandise volumt (GMV) in August 2018. ************ PhonePe, PayU tie up to expand online merchant coverage *



Digital payments platform PhonePe on Monday announced a partnership with the PayU, which will expose it to the latter's four lakh plus online merchants spread across their enterprise and SMB businesses.

PayU is active in the travel space, claiming to cover nearly 60 per cent of the airline business as well as a large traction in e-commerce. This partnership will further help PhonePe in growing their online merchant base and boost digital payments. *********** OYO opens first OYO Townhouse in Jaipur *



Hospitality chain OYO on Monday announced the launch of its 44 room 'OYO Townhouse' in Jaipur in Rajasthan.

"With this launch, we have further strengthened our mid-market offering. We look forward to building strong relationships with our existing and future hotel partners in Jaipur and welcoming them to the OYO Townhouse family," OYO Townhouse COO Ankit Tandon said in a release here.

OYO entered the Jaipur market in January 2015 and currently offers 5,000 rooms as a part of its 240 hotels in the city.

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A city court on Monday granted the custody of arms haul accused Sharad Kalaskar to the CBI for probing his alleged role in the killing of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar.

Kalaskar was arrested last month by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in connection with the seizure of arms and ammunition from different parts of the state.

Kalaskar and three other accused in the arms haul case -- Vaibhav Raut, Sudhanwa Gondhalekar and Shrikant Pangarkar -- were produced before Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Padalkar after their police remand ended.

The judge, responding to an application filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), allowed the agency to take the custody of Kalaskar in the Dabholkar killing case.

The CBI had sought Kalaskar's custody on the ground that his custodial interrogation is required to ascertain his alleged role in the Dabholkar killing case.

The agency also needs to find his "incriminating" link with Sachin Andure, the alleged main shooter arrested last month, the CBI had said in its application.

It came to light during Andure's interrogation that Kalaskar was the second shooter and had fired two bullets at Dabholkar, the CBI said.

The 67-year-old anti-superstition crusader was shot dead by two motorcycle-borne men while he was on a morning walk on the Onkareshwar Bridge in Pune on August 20, 2013.

Kalaskar's alleged role in Dabholkar's killing came to light during his interrogation by the ATS in the arms seizure case. The ATS passed on the relevant information to the CBI, which is probing Dabholkar's killing since 2014.

The ATS had earlier claimed the arms haul accused were suspected right-wing activists who were planning to trigger blasts at various places in Maharashtra.

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The Competition Commission has dismissed a complaint alleging abuse of dominance against Haryana government's Department of Agriculture and Farmers Welfare with regard to stipulations in a tender for testing soil.

According to a CCI order, the department floated a tender in April for outsourcing of soil testing, data entry on portal and printing of cards under the Soil Health Card (SHC) scheme of the Indian government. The tender involves testing of eight lakh soil samples.

The complaint related to an alleged infraction of the provisions of Section 4 of the Competition Act by the purported "unfair conditions/ clauses" imposed by the department in the stipulations of the tender.

Section 4 pertains to abuse of dominant market position.

For the case, the Competition Commission of India (CCI) considered the "market for provision of soil testing services in the Territory of India" as the relevant one.

Noting that the department "does not have a dominant position" in the relevant market, the CCI said that the case does not fall within the ambit of the provisions of Section 4 of the Act.

Accordingly, the regulator dismissed the complaint.

"The Commission has held in several previous cases that it is the prerogative of the procurer to decide the tender conditions/technical specifications/ conditions/ clauses in the tender document as per its requirements," the CCI said in the order dated August 30.

The commission holds that no case is made out against the department for making a reference to the Director General for conducting investigation into the matter, it added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
China has blocked access to the website of Australia's national broadcaster for breaching Beijing's internet rules and regulations, ABC said on Monday.

It comes a year after the Australian Broadcasting Corporation began running a Chinese-language service.

ABC said access to its website and apps was blocked on August 22 and it has since been trying to find out why.

After repeated requests for clarification, an official from China's Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission dictated a statement to the broadcaster.

"We welcome internet enterprises from all over the world to provide good information to the netizens of China," said the official, who declined to give his name, according to ABC.

"However, state cyber sovereignty rights shall be maintained towards some overseas websites violating China's laws and regulations." The official said these included websites "spreading rumours, pornographic information, gambling, violent terrorism and some other illegal harmful information which will endanger state security and damage national pride".

ABC said it had not been told what laws it had violated or which content sparked the ban.

However, ties between Canberra and Beijing have been strained recently over allegations that China is interfering in Australia's domestic politics and using donations to gain access.

The claims infuriated China, which has dismissed local media stories -- including by ABC -- about infiltration as hysteria and paranoia.

The ABC also recently reported on Beijing's push into the Pacific through "soft diplomacy", which Australia and New Zealand fear could potentially upset the strategic balance in the region.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
Super hybrid rice output in test fields in China's southwestern Yunnan Province has set a new world record by reaching an average yield of 1,152.3 kg per mu (about 0.07 hectare), local authorities said Monday.

A group of experts from agricultural and scientific universities and research institutions randomly selected three plots on the rice fields and supervised the harvest.

Proper annual precipitation and flat terrain also contribute to the harvest of hybrid rice, Xie Hua'an, leader of the research team said.

The latest output of three plots at a super hybrid rice demonstration base located in Datun Township in the city of Gejiu reached an average yield of 1,152.3 kg per mu (about 0.07 hectares).

The demonstration base started to plant hybrid rice in 2009, state-run Xinhua agency reported.

With an average temperature of 20 degrees Celsius, the base lies at an altitude of more than 1,200 metres above sea level.

Hybrid rice, also known as super rice in China, is produced by crossbreeding different kinds of rice.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
President told African leaders Monday that China's investments on the continent have "no political strings attached", pledging $60 billion in new development financing, even as Beijing is increasingly criticised over its debt-heavy projects abroad.

Xi offered the funding at the start of a two-day China- summit that focused on his cherished Belt and Road initiative. The money -- to be spent over the next three years -- comes on top of $60 billion Beijing offered in 2015.

The massive scheme is aimed at improving Chinese access to foreign markets and resources, and boosting Beijing's influence abroad.

It has already seen loan billions of dollars to countries in Asia and for roads, railways, ports and other major infrastructure projects.

But critics warn that the Chinese leader's pet project is burying some countries under massive debt.

"China's investment in comes with no political strings attached," Xi told a high-level dialogue with African leaders and business representatives ahead of the summit.

"China's cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects, but in places where they count the most." But Xi admitted there was a need to look at the commercial viability of projects and make sure preparations are made to lower investment risks and make cooperation "more sustainable".

Belt and Road, Xi said, "is not a scheme to form an exclusive club or bloc against others. Rather it is about greater openness, sharing and mutual benefit."



Later, at the start of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), Xi announced $60 billion in funds for eight initiatives over the next three years, in areas ranging from industrial promotion, infrastructure construction and scholarships for young Africans.

He added that Africa's least developed, heavily indebted and poor countries will be exempt from debt they have incurred in the form of interest-free Chinese loans due to mature by the end of 2018.

A study by the Center for Global Development, a US think-tank, found "serious concerns" about the sustainability of sovereign debt in eight Asian, European and African countries receiving Belt and Road funds.

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa defended China's involvement on the continent, saying FOCAC "refutes the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa as our detractors would have us believe."



During a visit to last month, Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamed warned against "a new version of colonialism," as he cancelled a series of Chinese-backed infrastructure projects worth $22 billion.

Ahead of FOCAC, Rwandan President Paul Kagame, currently the chair of the African Union, also dismissed the concerns, telling the official Xinhua news agency talk of "debt traps" were attempts to discourage African-Chinese interactions.

At the last three-yearly gathering in Johannesburg in 2015, Xi announced $60 billion of assistance and loans for Africa.

Nations across Africa are hoping that China's enthusiasm for infrastructure investment will help promote industrialisation on the continent.

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari will oversee the signing of a telecommunication infrastructure deal backed by a $328-million loan facility from China's Exim bank during his visit, his office said.

Xi said Belt and Road comply with norms, and "welcomes the participation of other capable and willing countries for mutually beneficial third-party cooperation".

China has provided aid to Africa since the Cold War, but Beijing's presence in the region has grown exponentially with its emergence as a global trading power.

Chinese state-owned companies have aggressively pursued large investments in Africa, whose vast resources have helped fuel China's transformation into an economic powerhouse.

While relations between China and African nations are broadly positive, concerns have intensified about the impact of some of China's deals in the region.

Djibouti has become heavily dependent on Chinese financing after China opened its first overseas military base in the Horn of Africa country last year, a powerful signal of the continent's strategic importance to Beijing.

Locals in other countries have complained about the practice of using Chinese labour for building projects and what are perceived as sweetheart deals for Chinese companies.

The concerns are likely to grow as countries in other parts of the world -- especially Southeast Asia -- begin to question whether Chinese aid comes at too high a price.

"Time has come for African leaders to critically interrogate their relationship with China," an editorial in Kenya's Daily Nation said Monday.

African leaders, "should use the summit to ask tough questions.
Jailed RJD president Lalu Prasad, currently admitted in a Ranchi hospital for medical assistance, has complained about poor hygiene, mosquito menace and barking by stray dogs and requested he be shifted to another ward, a close aide of the former chief minister said Monday.

RJD lawmaker and national general secretary Bhola Yadav told PTI that an application has been submitted to the director of the RIMS hospital, where Prasad is admitted, with the plea that he be moved to the 100-bed paying ward, which at present has only three patients.

"We have cited the reasons also for making such a request. The waste pipe of a toilet close to his ward is clogged, emitting foul smell. This imperils the health of our leader who suffers from infections," Yadav, a close confidant of the RJD chief, said.

Yadav, who has been beside the RJD supremo for most of the time since he was sent to jail in December last year, said the lack of hygiene also leads to the menace of mosquitoes which is another potential health risk, "especially in the rainy season. Besides there is also the problem of excessive noises."



"The post-mortem house is nearby which attracts a large number of stray dogs. Their barks and howls is a nuisance and cause immense discomfort to the septuagenarian," the RJD MLA said.

The MLA also said that being a diabetic, Prasad needs to go for regular walks but the location of the cardiology department ward where he is lodged is "not suitable" for that.

"We have, therefore, requested that he be shifted to the paying ward, which is newly built and comparatively more clean and tidy. We hope the authorities will not have a problem with that since we are ready to pay the room rent and other charges. We did that when Lalu ji was admitted to AIIMS earlier this year," Yadav stated.

After spending a few months out of the jail, the RJD supremo surrendered before a CBI court in Ranchi on August 30 upon the expiry of the provisional bail granted to him by the Jharkhand High Court for medical treatment.

The former Bihar Chief Minister had recently undergone a fistula operation at a Mumbai hospital. A heart patient, he is also said to be suffering from kidney ailments.

Meanwhile, the RJD supremo's expression of discomfort at the Ranchi hospital has drawn snide remarks from the ruling JD(U) in Bihar.

"Now you have begun to fear dogs and mosquitoes. The people of Bihar had feared a lot while you were in power", JD(U) MLC and spokesman Neeraj Kumar tweeted, alluding to the crime rate during the 15-year-long rule by Prasad and, subsequently, his wife Rabri Devi for which the RJD has been drawing flak over the years.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
CNN has pulled episodes of Anthony Bourdain's "Parts Unknown" on which Italian actor Asia Argento appeared, following accusations of sexual misconduct.

"In light of recent reports about Asia Argento, CNN will discontinue airing past episodes of 'Parts Unknown' that included her, until further notice," the network said in a statement.

Argento, who was dating host Bourdain at the time of his death by suicide in June, appeared on a number of episodes of the travelogue series.

In August, a report in the New York Times alleged Argento, who was a primary accuser of disgraced Hollywood mogul Harvey Weinstein and a prominent voice in the #MeToo campaign, had herself sexually assaulted former child actor Jimmy Bennett when he was 17. It was also reported that she paid Bennett USD 380,000 to silence claims in 2013.

Argento denied the allegations, but confirmed that Bourdain offered to pay off Bennett so that the accusations would not be an issue for her publicly at a time when she was getting a lot of attention for her allegations against Weinstein.

The actor was also recently axed as a judge for the back half of "X Factor Italy" this season.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
India's export of coconut products has increased to Rs 6,448 crore in value terms during the first four years of the NDA government as against Rs 3,975 crore in the ten years of the UPA, the agriculture ministry said Monday.

A quantum leap in the export of coconut products is expected in the near future as the price of coconut products is increasingly becoming highly competitive, it said.

The government is promoting coconut product exports by giving 5 per cent incentive under the new Foreign Trade Policy for 2015-20.

"Income earned from export of coconut products was Rs 3,975 crore during 2004-14, which increased to Rs 6,448 crore during 2014-18," the ministry said in a statement.

With the government's efforts, India has started exporting coconut oil to Malaysia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Till last year, India used to import coconut oil from these countries, it said.

Besides, for the first time, India is exporting large quantities of dry coconut to US and European countries, it added.

According to the ministry's data, the annual coconut production of India is 2437.80 crore and the productivity is 11,616 coconuts per hectare.

The crop is cultivated in 20.98 lakh hectare. The crop contributes Rs 34,100 crore to the GDP. More than one crore people depend on this crop for their livelihood.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The Congress on Monday accused the central government of shielding its "favourite" industrialists in an alleged scam in import of coal worth Rs 29,000 crore and demanded a "fair and impartial" probe by SIT in a time-bound manner.

Senior party leader Jairam Ramesh also took on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking why he did not take up the matter with his counterpart in Singapore where the coal import transactions took place.

Ramesh said Modi has met the Singapore PM three times in as many years after the probe began. He also accused Finance Minister Arun Jaitley of being silent on the issue, while remaining vocal on others.

"In October 2014, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) revealed about a scam on coal import and a probe was initiated on the over-invoicing of import of coal," Ramesh claimed



On March 31, 2016, the DRI said 40 companies are involved in this scam and it is worth Rs 29,000 crore, the Congress leader alleged.

The DRI, he said, also issued letter rogatory to Singapore seeking its help to access documents lying with overseas branches of the SBI bank where coal import transactions took place.

But the probe has remained stalled, he said, adding that showcause was issued against four out of the 40 companies by the DRI.

"It is clear that after four years, no result of the probe has come because favourite industrialists are involved in it. If you act against the industrialist, then the government will fall," he told reporters here.

"The four companies are owned by favourite industrialists," Ramesh alleged, and named a few business houses who were allegedly issues notice by DRI.

"A Special Investigation Team (SIT) should investigate the scam as has been demanded in September 2017 in a PIL filed by senior advocate Prashant Bhushan's NGO in the Delhi High Court and it should be time-bound.

"All obstacles coming in the way of DRI should also be removed and the government should hold discussions with Singapore to make the documents available to DRI," the Congress leader demanded.

Ramesh alleged that a business house had moved the Singapore High Court to stop sharing of documents available with SBI Singapore branch with the DRI, though the plea was quashed recently.

It has now moved the Bombay High Court to restrain the DRI probe, he claimed.

Ramesh said 70 per cent of the coal imports into the country happen through the companies of this business house.

He also displayed a letter dated May 20, 2016 where Revenue Secretary Hashmukh Adia had requested the then SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya to share the documents with DRI.

However, Bhattacharya refused to do so saying it was against Singapore law, Ramesh said expressing his dismay over her refusal.

Referring to an FIR filed by the CBI against some officers of NTPC and others in connection with the investigation, he asked as to why the "big players" involved in the "scam" are being spared.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
A Congress candidate and his nine supporters were injured in a suspected acid attack on Monday during a march to celebrate his victory in the Karnataka urban local body elections.

Inayatullah Khan, who won the election from ward No. 16 in Tumakuru -- around 70 km from Bengaluru, was taking out the procession in the morning when an unidentified person sprayed some liquid on the crowd and fled the scene, police said.

Around 10 people felt a burning sensation and were rushed to a nearby hospital where they were administered first-aid. They suffered minor injuries, among which Khan had the maximum burns on his face, Tumakaru Superintendent of Police Divya V Gopinath said.

Doctors said the liquid might be some low-intensity acid like bathroom cleaner, the SP said



Police suspect the incident to be a handiwork of Khan's rival, whose name they did not disclose.

Nobody has been arrested so far and no complaint has been lodged, the officer added.

The urban local body election results were announced on Monday, where the Congress was locked in a close fight with the BJP, but set to gain control of majority of the local bodies with a post-poll tie-up with ruling coalition partner JD(S).

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
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Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail Sarah

Registered User

User ID: 257528

09-03-2018 02:33 PM



Posts: 3,992









Post: #1 Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

Advertisement

Anjeanette Damon, Reno Gazette Journal Published 2:14 p.m. PT Aug. 31, 2018

Updated 5:38 p.m. PT Aug. 31, 2018







Locked away in the Mineral County Jail for failing to take care of her traffic tickets, 27-year-old Kelly Coltrain asked to go to the hospital. Instead, as her condition worsened, she was handed a mop and told to clean up her own vomit. She died in her jail cell less than an hour later.



Despite being in a video-monitored cell, Mineral County Sheriff's deputies did not recognize that Coltrain had suffered an apparent seizure and had not moved for more than six hours. When a deputy finally entered her cell and couldn't wake her, he did not call for medical assistance or attempt to resuscitate her. Coltrain lay dead in her cell until the next morning when state officials arrived to investigate.



Details of Coltrain's death 13 months ago came to light this week with the release of a 300-page report compiled by state investigators. The investigation found that Coltrain's jailers violated multiple policies when they denied her medical care after she informed them she was dependent on drugs and suffered seizures when she went through withdrawals.



continued

https://www.rgj.com/story/news/2018/08/3...145643002/ Denied medical care while detoxing, Texas woman dies in a rural Nevada jailAnjeanette Damon, Reno Gazette Journal Published 2:14 p.m. PT Aug. 31, 2018Updated 5:38 p.m. PT Aug. 31, 2018Locked away in the Mineral County Jail for failing to take care of her traffic tickets, 27-year-old Kelly Coltrain asked to go to the hospital. Instead, as her condition worsened, she was handed a mop and told to clean up her own vomit. She died in her jail cell less than an hour later.Despite being in a video-monitored cell, Mineral County Sheriff's deputies did not recognize that Coltrain had suffered an apparent seizure and had not moved for more than six hours. When a deputy finally entered her cell and couldn't wake her, he did not call for medical assistance or attempt to resuscitate her. Coltrain lay dead in her cell until the next morning when state officials arrived to investigate.Details of Coltrain's death 13 months ago came to light this week with the release of a 300-page report compiled by state investigators. The investigation found that Coltrain's jailers violated multiple policies when they denied her medical care after she informed them she was dependent on drugs and suffered seizures when she went through withdrawals.continued LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 460207

09-03-2018 03:38 PM











Post: #2 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

Xanax LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 460206

09-03-2018 05:04 PM











Post: #3 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

The victim is white, so the cop will probably get a medal. Archangel

Michael

User ID: 441975

09-03-2018 05:07 PM



Posts: 14,103









Post: #4 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

I hope Nevada is sued so hard they have to hold bake sales to buy new pencils. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 268543

09-03-2018 05:34 PM











Post: #5 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

Nothing of value was lost. King Malice

Registered User

User ID: 444764

09-03-2018 06:38 PM



Posts: 26









Post: #6 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-03-2018 03:38 PM) Xanax

Nah, opiates. Its fd up jail and most prison facilities are like this now. 90% of COs have no idea how horrible withdrawals can be & I wouldnt wish it on my worst enemy; maybe my ex wife but not my enemy.... I was taking around 15 30mg Oxycodone a day along with Fentanyl patches, some Xanax at times and Ambien. I went through detox withdrawals several times. I was in withdrawal for 6 months (no BS) lost 40lbs and was starting to have problems from throwing up so much before a great addiction specialist sat with me and explained because of my tolerance and how long I took em that it was possible my body would never be able to make the same chemicals it did prior to my addiction and I started Methadone Maintenance Treatment to slowly taper it down to prevent the bad withdrawals. Some people think its just replacing one drug for another but I can assure you 70-75% of people that go that route will say its nothing like taking opiates to get high and Ive seen countless people completely change their lives for the better once they start treatment.



If anybody here reads this and has a problem with addiction feel free to pm me if you want to talk about it or addiction in general. Nah, opiates. Its fd up jail and most prison facilities are like this now. 90% of COs have no idea how horrible withdrawals can be & I wouldnt wish it on my worst enemy; maybe my ex wife but not my enemy.... I was taking around 15 30mg Oxycodone a day along with Fentanyl patches, some Xanax at times and Ambien. I went through detox withdrawals several times. I was in withdrawal for 6 months (no BS) lost 40lbs and was starting to have problems from throwing up so much before a great addiction specialist sat with me and explained because of my tolerance and how long I took em that it was possible my body would never be able to make the same chemicals it did prior to my addiction and I started Methadone Maintenance Treatment to slowly taper it down to prevent the bad withdrawals. Some people think its just replacing one drug for another but I can assure you 70-75% of people that go that route will say its nothing like taking opiates to get high and Ive seen countless people completely change their lives for the better once they start treatment.If anybody here reads this and has a problem with addiction feel free to pm me if you want to talk about it or addiction in general. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 268543

09-03-2018 06:45 PM











Post: #7 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

Hans Ocelot Wrote: (09-03-2018 06:10 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (09-03-2018 05:34 PM) Nothing of value was lost.

Strange, I've never seen a condolence card with that sentiment. Karma is a bit*h. I hope your parents, family and friends(?) never hear that about you.

PS: how come we don't hear more from you since you're perfect?

One does not even have to be perfect to get addicted to drugs.



If Karma is real what did that lady do?



Apparently something terrible. One does not even have to be perfect to get addicted to drugs.If Karma is real what did that lady do?Apparently something terrible. Blastbeat Industries

Registered User

User ID: 453134

09-04-2018 12:23 AM



Posts: 1,695









Post: #8 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

Nevada is terrible. Over 85% of that state's population lives in three counties (Clark, Washoe, and Lyon). Never go to rural Nevada. You're asking for it if you do. Kanye West used to be the real vice-president.

Censorship is still un-American. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 441947

09-04-2018 12:34 AM











Post: #9 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

King Malice Wrote: (09-03-2018 06:38 PM) LoP Guest Wrote: (09-03-2018 03:38 PM) Xanax

Nah, opiates. Its fd up jail and most prison facilities are like this now. 90% of COs have no idea how horrible withdrawals can be & I wouldnt wish it on my worst enemy; maybe my ex wife but not my enemy.... I was taking around 15 30mg Oxycodone a day along with Fentanyl patches, some Xanax at times and Ambien. I went through detox withdrawals several times. I was in withdrawal for 6 months (no BS) lost 40lbs and was starting to have problems from throwing up so much before a great addiction specialist sat with me and explained because of my tolerance and how long I took em that it was possible my body would never be able to make the same chemicals it did prior to my addiction and I started Methadone Maintenance Treatment to slowly taper it down to prevent the bad withdrawals. Some people think its just replacing one drug for another but I can assure you 70-75% of people that go that route will say its nothing like taking opiates to get high and Ive seen countless people completely change their lives for the better once they start treatment.



If anybody here reads this and has a problem with addiction feel free to pm me if you want to talk about it or addiction in general.

This is a good, empathic response to this post. Thank you for sharing. This is a good, empathic response to this post. Thank you for sharing. LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 429525

09-04-2018 12:54 AM











Post: #10 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

Why risk time in jail by not paying traffic tickets? LoP Guest

lop guest

User ID: 456704

09-04-2018 01:09 AM











Post: #11 RE: Denied Medical Care While Detoxing, Texas Woman Dies in a Rural Nevada Jail

LoP Guest Wrote: (09-04-2018 12:54 AM) Why risk time in jail by not paying traffic tickets?

She did not expect it would be a death sentence. She did not expect it would be a death sentence.
















The opposition Congress demanded Monday that President's rule be imposed in Goa in the wake of the absence of chief minister Manohar Parrikar, who is currently in the US for a medical treatment.

Congress' Goa spokesman Ramakant Khalap said the state is facing a "constitutional crisis", and that he has sought an appointment with Governor Mridula Sinha to press for his party's demand for President's rule.

Parrikar has been "constantly absent" from the state because of health reasons, without handing over his charge to anyone, he said.

Also, Goa's power minister Pandurang Madkaikar and urban development minister Francis D'Souza have been down with ailments, he noted while talking to reporters here.

There is no deadline when the CM and these ministers will be back in the state, Khalap said, adding "it is time for Governor Mridula Sinha to intervene in the matter as the state is facing a constitutional crisis".

Parrikar, 62, underwent treatment at a US hospital for a pancreatic ailment between March and June this year.

He flew to the US again on August 10 for a follow-up and returned on August 22, but was admitted to a private hospital in Mumbai the next day.

He left for the US again last Thursday on doctors' advice and is expected to return on September 8, a senior BJP leader said Friday.

D'Souza also went to USA for a medical treatment last month while Madkaikar is admitted to a hospital in Mumbai since June 5 after he suffered a brain stroke.

Khalap alleged that Parrikar and the two other ministers have violated the oath taken by them to discharge their duties towards the state.

"If you are sick and not able to pay attention to your duties then it is a violation of the oath...this tentamounts to failure of the constitutional machinery," he claimed, demanding that the Goa government be dismissed and President's rule be imposed in the state.

Khalap said his party has sought an appointment with Sinha to discuss the "crisis" prevailing in Goa, and listed various issues, like halting of the mining industry, the Mahadayi river water dispute and the alleged failure of law and order to check crimes in the state.

"We can understand the chief minister's temporary absence, but if it is more than 24 hours, then powers are given to someone else," he claimed.

"There is no government existing in Goa," he said, and asked how many times has the council of ministers met.

Democracy requires a stable government led by the chief minister, he added.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The opposition Congress Monday announced that it would contest all the seats of the by-elections of the three-tier panchayat, which fell vacant due to mass scale resignation of the office bearers after the BJP-Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura came to power.

The state election commission has fixed by-elections to panchayat seats on coming September 30.

Polls would be held in 3207 seats in gram panchayats, 161 seats in panchayat samities and 18 seats in zila parishads.

President of the Tripura Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC), Birajit Sinha said, To maintain law and order in the state is the responsibility of the state government. If healthy democratic atmosphere does not prevail during the election, the Congress would not keep mum and appropriate actions would be initiated.

He said the process for selection of candidates for the by-elections in the block level has already started.

Besides, we have also declared the names of in-charges of Congress in all the blocks of the state. We have also geared up our party machinery for the September 30 by-elections, Sinha told reporters.

Earlier on August 20 state party secretary of CPI (M) Bijan Dhar said, We are well aware that the state election department has taken initiative to hold the by-elections for the vacant posts in the three tier Panchayat bodies. We demand before conducting the by-polls the concerned authority must ensure proper democratic atmosphere in the state, so that opposition parties could participate in the elections without fear.

He also said due to political pressure of ruling BJP activists a huge number of people representatives had resigned after BJP-IPFT government was formed in Tripura in March last.

Abnormal vacancies were created due to resignations under duress, Dhar told reporters.

Ashoke Sinha, BJP spokesperson said, CPI-M allegation of forced resignation is baseless.

CPI-M lost organizational support after defeat in the state assembly elections that is why people had resigned. Nobody exercised any force on them. I am confident that our party would make good results in the by-elections, he said.

In a separate event, Sinha said, Congress would submit a memorandum to the Tripura Governor Kaptan Sing Solanki on September 20 alleging that Rafale aircraft deal was a scam of the ruling BJP.

On September 20 we would organize a huge rally from Congress Bhavan here, which would move in different parts of the Agartala town and submit a the memorandum to the governor as part of our nationwide protest. We named this campaign Bharat Bachao Rafael Ghotala, he said.

All India youth congress president Keshav Chand Jadav and Vice President Srinibah B.V will also join the rally.

(This story has not been edited by Business Standard staff and is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)
The in comes out against the CPI-M led LDF government's decision to mobilise resources to rebuild the flood-ravaged state, from non-resident Keralites, by deputing ministers to collect funds.

Attacking the government over its decision, leader K V Thomas said Monday, "the state government should not humiliate the people of by going abroad seeking aid with a begging bowl."



Urging Chief Minister to drop the plan, Thomas said, "Do not send ministers and officials with begging bowls to foreign countries.

This will dent the self respect and prestige of Keralites."



"Do not humiliate Indians and Keralites who live abroad with dignity, he added.

He also put forward suggestions for rebuilding the infrastructure destroyed in the floods.

KPCC President M M Hassan has said with ministers and officials going on foreign tours, the rehabilitation in the flood-hit districts would be affected badly.

"It is better for ministers to give up their tour plan," he said.

leader and former Chief Minister also wanted the state government to put off the foreign tour plan and said instead the ministers should take charge of districts and coordinate the rehabilitation efforts.

"It is not the time for foreign trips," he added.

The state cabinet had last week decided to seek financial aid from abroad through non-resident Keralites and from major cities in the country.

It also decided to depute a special team comprising a minister and officials to mobilise funds from abroad.

As many as 483 people have lost lives in the state since the onset of the monsoon on May 28 and 14 were still missing.
With the arrest of a 23-year-old man, the Gautam Buddh Nagar Police Monday claimed to have cracked an alleged case of rape of a minor.

The arrested accused is a cousin of the victim, police said. Initially, a complaint of gang rape had been filed in the case, they said.

On August 24, a 16-year-old girl, resident of a village in Jewar area, was returning home after sewing classes when she was "kidnapped and raped", police said.

An FIR was registered at Jewar police station on August 29 amid allegations of "delay" in filing the case, which officials refuted.

The accused was arrested from Jahangirpur bus stand this morning and is a cousin of the victim from her maternal side, Station House Officer SS Bhati said. The arrested man is a resident of Munda Kheda village in Bulandshahr district's Khurja area, he added.

He has confessed to having made the girl drink beer and raped her at an isolated spot near Dastampur, the SHO said.

"On inputs received from the accused, police went to the spot and recovered the beer cans and also impounded the motorcycle used in the crime," he added.

According to the FIR lodged at Jewar police station, the victim was kidnapped by "two" men who assaulted and raped the girl before dumping her near her home the next day.

The FIR was registered and charges under Indian Penal Code section 376 (rape) besides the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Scheduled Castes and Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, the official said.

However, charges under the SC/ST Act were dropped since both belong to the same community, Bhati said.

Asked about the "delay" in registering an FIR, Superintendent of Police (Rural) Vineet Jaiswal said it was filed immediately after the victim reached them.

"The incident took place on August 24, but the girl did not come to the police immediately, she may have been under some pressure or something. The day she along with her father approached the police at Jewar police station, the FIR was lodged and probe taken up, Jaiswal told reporters.

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CPI(M) activists Monday staged a rally in North 24 Parganas district to protest the arrest of party workers for their alleged involvement in the killing of TMC workers in Amdanga area.

The CPI(M) had called for "gherao of Amdanga Police station" to protest the arrests of "innocent" CPI(M) activists.

The police tried to stop the CPI(M) activists from marching towards the Amdanga police station. Following which a heated argument broke out between the police and the CPI(M) leaders.

The CPI(M) leaders and workers staged a protest rally and squatted on the Santoshpur area of National Highway 34. The Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel were deployed in the area.

"We demand release of CPI(M) workers who have been arrested in false cases. The TMC is not only running a corrupt but also a authoritarian government in the state," CPI(M) politburo member Mohammed Salim said while addressing the rally.

Later the police persuaded the CPI(M) leaders to lift the the road blockade.

Three persons were killed and 17 others injured in group clashes over formation of a panchayat board in West Bengal's North 24 Parganas district on August 29. The TMC had claimed that the three deceased persons were active members of their party.

Several people were arrested and detained in connection with the killings of three persons.

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Curfew has been lifted in violence-hit Malpura town of the Tonk district in Rajasthan, police said Monday.

Curfew was in force in the town since August 24, a day after some miscreants hurled stones on kanwariyas while they were passing through a Mulsim-dominated area here.

The situation in the town is normal now and the curfew was lifted on Sunday night, Station House Officer at Malpura Police Station Navneet Bihari said.

Additional policemen have been deployed at a few places as a precautionary measure, he said.

The SHO informed as many as 41 people have been arrested in this connection.

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The birth of Lord Krishna was rung in with religious fervour and gaiety in Maharashtra and it was followed Monday by colourful 'dahi handi' celebrations which saw enthusiastic participation by youngsters in Mumbai and other parts of the state.

The dahi handi ritual is part of the Janmashtami festival in Maharashtra, where youngsters (called Govindas), dressed in colourful attire, make human pyramid to reach an earthen pot containing buttermilk and suspended in mid-air, and break it.

Religious institutions, political leaders and Govinda mandals took part in the dahi handi celebrations which were marked by frequent chants of "Govinda aala re" (Govinda has come).

Several organisers roped in celebrities to pull the crowd in their dahi handi events.

The celebrations began amid strict vigil by personnel from the Mumbai police who were out on roads to ensure compliance of the Bombay High Court's guidelines on the age of participating Govindas (they should not be below 14) and insurance for them.

Maharashtra BJP leader Ram Kadam said his team organised dahi handi in suburban Ghatkopar and followed all laid down procedures.

Shiv Sena MLA Prakash Surve, NCP leaders Sachin Ahir and Pratap Sarnaik, among others, also organised the popular event in different parts of the metropolis.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and megastar Amitabh Bachchan wished people on the occasion through posts on Twitter.

Areas like Dadar, Worli, Wadala, Ghatkopar, Andheri, Lokhandawala, Borivali, Kandivali, Jogeshwari, Mulund and Vile Parle were hotspot of dahi handi celebrations.

Female Govindas also hit the streets in large numbers and broke dahi handis.

The ISKCON temple in suburban Juhu celebrated the birth of Lord Krishna and organised a mega event to mark the occasion. At the event, actor-turned-MP Hema Malini and actor Gracy Singh paid tribute to the lord with their classical dance performances.

The Radha Gopinath temple of the Indian Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) at Girgaum in South Mumbai Sunday started its three-day-long Janmashtami celebration with fanfare and enthusiasm.

The theme of Janmashtami celebrations at the temple this year is "makhan chor" set in the backdrop of Rajasthani art, culture, murals, palace scenes and origami paper decorations made by children and devotees.

The temple management said distribution of more than 3,000 kgs of 'varai halwa' as 'prasad' (offering) was underway to devotees visiting the temple.

ISKCON's spiritual guru Radhanath Swami said, "The Bhagavad Gita teaches the process by which we can achieve the highest joy of Bhakti Yoga and also share it with others.

"When we celebrate Janmashtami, it should be a time when we commit and dedicate ourselves to live by the will of Lord Krishna. This is real celebration."



The Mumbai police cautioned revellers against making high human pyramids and advised Govindas to wear safety gears to avoid any injuries while falling during attempt to break pots.

"Break Dahi Handi. Not Your Head. Let your being on top of the world feeling not get shattered by unnecessary carelessness! #AwareGovindaAalaRe #WearSafetyGear," the police tweeted.

The Disaster Management Cell of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) remained alert to deal with any eventuality, while hospitals were asked to keep medical staff on standby. In the past, several Govindas were injured after falling off human pyramids.

Rajaram Humne, founder of the Govinda Mitra Mandal, said, "Our team members followed all guidelines laid down by the court, government and police."



Dahi handi celebrations were also reported from districts adjoining Mumbai and other parts of the state.

In Nashik, about 200km from Mumbai, devotees thronged temples in large numbers to offer prayers to Lord Krishna.

A week-long religious programme has been organised at the famous Murlidhar temple in Nashik.

Various social groups organised dahi handi programmes across the North Maharashtra city.

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The Delhi government's home department is looking at a 'microdot technology' to curb incidents of motor vehicle thefts in the city, an official said.

In a meeting last month, Delhi Lt Governor Anil Baijal had instructed authorities to explore the provision of making installation of various safety devices like anti-vehicle theft equipment a "mandatory condition" for registration of vehicles in the national capital.

This year, till August 15, 27,780 cases of motor vehicle thefts were reported.

The official said the Delhi government is looking at various technologies to curb motor vehicle thefts, one among them is the 'microdot technology'.

The technology is being used in countries like South Africa, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Taiwan, Canada, the US and the European Union (EU), among others.

Microdots are nano size particles in unique shapes having a covert marking and unique numbers, the official said.

The use of marking vehicles with microdots is called Whole of Vehicle Marking (WoVM) and the technology is being used world over to prevent and reduce motor vehicle thefts, the official added.

"Under the WoVM, thousands of metal microdots having unique IDs are marked on vehicles. The unique ID of microdots are linked with the registration number of the vehicles," he said.

Since each part of the vehicle is linked to the registration number of the vehicle, even if the vehicle is dismantled, it can be traced back to its owner, he added.

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Display and visual collaboration solutions provider Prysm has said it expects to see strong demand coming in from areas like smart cities, education and enterprises in India, which already ranks among its top three global markets.

The company has recently launched its large format, single display laser phosphor display (LPD) 6K series in India in two variants -- 135-inch and 190 inch (diagonally) -- priced between USD 150,000-300,000.

"In India, the number one market for us would be the enterprise segment and we already have a good install base of enterprise customers using our first generation of LPD displays... Government is very big market and we are initiating discussions..," Prysm founder and CEO Amit Jain told PTI.

Education market has been global success and we are again handling education India - primarily focused at the university level than high school or middle schools, he added.

He declined to disclose revenue numbers but said India is among its top three global markets - the other two being the US and China.

He said the newly launched product can be used for presentations and collaboration, as well as be used in boardrooms, customer experience centres and innovation and R&D centres.

"It can also be utilised in application and command centers - especially in smart cities that have very interesting command centres. Another big market is the high-end education sector," he said.

The company manufactures the panels -- which are rollable -- in the US with the final assembly happening at the customer site.

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Necessary disciplinary action against corrupt government employees can be taken along with criminal proceedings, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has said.

The Commission while examining some disciplinary cases has noticed that simultaneous action of prosecution and initiation of departmental proceedings are unduly delayed by departments/organisations by keeping them in abeyance on the ground that the matter is under trial in court.

"Such an approach in finalising disciplinary matters is a matter of serious concern and is also not a correct approach," it said in a recent directive to banks, insurance companies and all other central government organisations.

The CVC said that disciplinary authority of an organisation needs to ensure that the simultaneous departmental proceedings are undertaken against employees facing a criminal trial.

Citing a verdict by Supreme Court, the probity watchdog said, "There is no bar in conducting simultaneous criminal and departmental proceedings."



It said a view as to whether simultaneous disciplinary proceedings are to be initiated need to be invariably taken by the competent authorities at the time of considering the request for grant of sanction for prosecution itself.

"The Commission would, therefore, advise all concerned administrative authorities that in cases where it is appropriate to initiate disciplinary proceedings along with criminal prosecution, the disciplinary proceedings must be initiated simultaneously," the CVC said.

The probity watchdog has recommended probe on various high-profile corruption cases involving officials of public sector banks and central government departments among others.

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Six doctors organisation Monday said that they would stop all work at the OPD section of private hospitals in West Bengal if no action was taken against the police officer who had allegedly assaulted a junior doctor at a city hospital.

"We demand strict action against the police officer who assaulted one of our junior doctor. If the police does not act proper we will stop all operations at the OPDs of all private hospitals in the state for an hour on Wednesday," Association of Health Service doctors general secretary Dr Manas Kumar Gumta said.

He said that all other operations will not be affected by their movement.

"The police today asked for a fortnight's time to take action against the accused. This is a simple case and we have given them 48 hours' time to take proper legal action against the officer," he said.

Gumta said that doctors at state-run hospitals would wear black batches to protest against the act.

On August 29 night, a junior doctor at a private hospital here had lodged a complaint of physical assault against a police officer, who had taken admission at the plastic surgery department for a wrist surgery.

In his complaint at Alipore police station, Srinivas Geddam, a postgraduate trainee doctor with CMRI, had alleged that the Jadavpur police station officer-in-charge (OC) Pulak Kumar Dutta hit him when he was attending to his medical case.

An official at CMRI said Geddam, a resident of Andhra Pradesh, was attacked while he trying to understand Dutta's medication routine from the prescriptions submitted to the hospital during admission.

The state Indian Medical Association (IMA) unit had written to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee seeking her intervention into the matter and action against the accused police officer.

However, no action was taken against the officer as the officers of the Alipore Police station have been saying that a "probe was on".

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Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who once compared himself favorably to Adolf Hitler, paid a solemn visit to Israel's national Holocaust memorial on Monday, branding the Nazi leader "insane" as he lamented the genocide of 6 million Jews.

The comments marked a dramatic turnaround for Duterte, who just two years ago had compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust and said he would be "happy to slaughter" 3 million addicts. He later apologized.

Duterte, known for his profane outbursts and accused of committing widespread human rights abuses, spoke quietly and respectfully during his stop at the Yad Vashem memorial. He said the Holocaust should never be repeated and that "despots" have no place in the modern world.

"I could not imagine a country obeying an insane leader, and I could not ever fathom the spectacle of the human being going into a killing spree, murdering old men, women and children. I hope this will not happen again," he said.

"There is always a lesson to learn: that despots and leaders who show insanity, they should be disposed of at the first instance," he said.

Duterte, the first Philippine president to visit Israel, has received a warm welcome from the government, despite criticism that it is embracing a leader accused of rights abuses in his deadly crackdown on drug dealers.

The agenda reportedly is expected to include an arms sale to the Philippines. Israel agreed in the past to sell assault rifles to the Philippines national police force.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu remarked Monday on the countries' long friendship. He said the Philippines took in Jewish refugees after World War II and was the only Asian nation to vote for Israel's establishment. He noted that Filipino health aides now assist the elderly in Israel, including Netanyahu's father.

"We remember our friends, and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years," Netanyahu told Duterte. "There has been a remarkable phenomenon in Israel where thousands and thousands of families have taken heart from the support given by Filipino caretakers for the elderly." Duterte thanked Israel for hosting some 28,000 Filipino workers and for assisting his country in times of need.

"We share the same passion for peace. We share the same passion for human beings. But also we share the same passion of not allowing our country to be destroyed by those who have the corrupt ideology, who know nothing but to kill and destroy," he said at a joint appearance with Netanyahu.

"And in this sense, Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extend to your country." The two countries established diplomatic relations in 1957. Netanyahu has worked to cultivate new allies in Asia, Africa and Latin America, where many countries have historically sided with the Palestinians in their conflict with Israel, to help chip away at the number of anti-Israel votes at the United Nations.

But Netanyahu has come under fire for embracing Duterte, a 73-year-old former government prosecutor whose forces are accused of killing thousands in anti-drug raids since he took office in 2016.

Duterte drew outrage that year when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Holocaust and himself to Hitler. More recently, he forcibly kissed a woman on stage and said there would be many rape cases in a Philippine city "if there were many beautiful women." In its lead editorial Monday, the liberal Haaretz daily accused Netanyahu of selling out Israeli values for dubious allies.

"Under the shadow of Duterte's visit, Israel once again proves it's willing to overlook leaders' human rights violations for the sake of opportunities for arms deals and defense contracts," the newspaper said.

Duterte, who calls US President Donald Trump a friend and in 2016 cursed President Barack Obama for alleged meddling, offered the former occupant of the White House an apology of sorts.

"I said, 'Son of a bitch, Obama you can go to hell. You son of a bitch.' I said that because he was not a civilized person," Duterte said in Israel. "It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr Obama that, 'You are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words.'" Duterte has been criticized for a brutal crackdown on the Philippine drug trade. Reports of extrajudicial slayings of alleged dealers surfaced during Obama's presidency.

Official Philippine police tallies put the number of suspects killed in police-led drug raids at more than 4,500 since Duterte took office. International human rights watchdogs have cited far higher death tolls.

Duterte denies condoning extrajudicial killings, but has openly threatened drug dealers with death.

His visit to Israel was to include a stop at a monument commemorating the Philippines' rescue of Jews during the Holocaust.

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Police in Bangladesh have arrested a man for his alleged involvement in the murder case of his former daughter-in-law who worked as a TV journalist, according to a media report.

Subarna Akter Nodi, 32, was hacked to death with a sharp-edged weapon by some unidentified assailants at her home last week.

She worked as a correspondent of private channel Ananda TV and also for the Daily Jagroto Bangla newspaper.

Industrialist Abul Hossain, father of Nodi's former husband Rajib Hossain, has been sent to judicial custody by a court in Pabna district, Dhaka Tribune reported.

The victim's mother had filed a murder case accusing Nodi's husband Rajib and his father Abul, and four to five people. The case was handed over to the Detective Branch of police.

Nodi, who lived in Radhanagar area of Pabna district -- some 150 kms from Dhaka -- is survived by a nine-year-old daughter. She was awaiting divorce from her husband.

The assailants, said to be around 10 to 12, came riding motorcycles and rang the doorbell of her house at around 10:45 PM on August 29, police said, adding that when she answered the door, they indiscriminately hacked her and fled the spot.

Journalists in Bangladesh condemned the killing and demanded that the murderers be immediately brought to justice.

In her complaint, Nodi's mother claimed that her daughter had named her ex-husband as one of the attackers before she died. Nodi had sued Rajib in a dowry case.

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The hacking of Facebook accounts of some residents of the border areas in Jaisalmer district has prompted police to advise people here not to use their mobile numbers as their ID or password.

The police issued the directive, suspecting that the social media accounts might have been hacked by the Pakistan-based hackers.

Jaisalmer Superintendent of Police Jagdish Chandra Sharma told PTI Monday that the cases of hacking have been reported from Nachna area in Pokharan which is close to the Indo-Pak border.

Most of the complaints had used their mobile numbers as their passwords, said Sharma.

The accounts were hacked and their password, profile pictures as well as names were changed, he said, adding that miscreants from across the border are suspected to be behind it.

Sharma said the Cyber Cell of the state police has been asked to probe into the matter.

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Filmmaker Kabir Khan says despite having access to rich literature, the industry fails to have good scripts because not enough writers are nurtured.

Kabir, who adapted Hussain Zaidi's book "Mumbai Avengers" for his 2015 Saif Ali Khan-Katrina Kaif starrer "Phantom", believes there are not enough adaptations happening in the industry.

In an interview with PTI, Kabir says "We are still depending on the original scripts written by the writers we have. We have a huge dearth of scripts, dearth of material that can go on screen.

"In Hollywood an A-list director is usually confused between ten scripts, as to which film he should do in a year. Here, we are dying to get that one script that excites us."



He further adds, the industry is not picking up enough from our history and that is something we really need to start doing."



Having dearth of scripts mirrors an irony of the Indian film industry, touted to produce the most number of films in a year all over the world. This irony, Kabir says, has to be looked in context.

"We also have to look into the quality in most of those films. Story is not really the backbone in most of those films. Most of the times a lot of those films are just proposals. Some actors come in together with a director trying to make a spectacle out of it."



Kabir was speaking on the sidelines of the 'Word To Screen Market' an initiative by Jio MAMI Mumbai Film Festival with Star.

The "Bajrangi Bhaijaan" director said the team is doing a great job by getting filmmakers and authors together but it is time the industry step forward and take charge in converting books into films.

"The process of taking it from the book and bringing it on screen is the responsibility of the industry. The industry needs to devote resources and finances in developing screenplay writers who have the ability to convert a book into a screenplay."



Kabir says adapting a book into a film is a "huge process" and one needs specialised skills to do the task, which is where Hollywood excels.

"The conversion of a book into a screenplay is a huge process. One has to make sure it moves you on screen as it did while reading it on paper. The reason why Hollywood is able to do it so well is because they have a pool of screenplay writers who have that skill.

"It's a huge skill set. We can't just pick up a book and say 'this can be easily done for screen.' We unfortunately don't have a large pool of screenplay writers. As an industry, we have not nurtured screenplay writers over the years. Now we need to do that.

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The Jaipur Literature Festival (JLF) will be held here for the first time as part of the larger umbrella of the literary event in the US, its organisers have said.

Indian politician and writer Shashi Tharoor and Indian ambassador to the US, Navtej Sarna, are expected to attend the event in Houston, Texas, from September 14 to 15. Sarna is one of the chief guests.

Hailed as one of the greatest literary shows globally, the JLF after Houston, will be held in New York from September 19 to 20 and from September 21 to 23 in Boulder, Colorado.

"We're so excited to be collaborating on the first JLF at Houston for the first time in Texas," Bonna Kol, president of the Asia Society's Texas centre, said.

Producer JLF Teamwork Arts would be organising the event in association with the society and Inprint.

"Engaging our diverse city in an array of international topics and speakers aligns perfectly with our deep commitment to promoting cultural understanding," Kol said.

The Asia Society promotes mutual understanding and strengthening partnerships among people and institutions of Asia and the west.

Executive director, Inprint, Rich Levy said as this the inaugural edition of the JLF in Houston, it makes clear that it is a city of brilliant writers and passionate readers.

Inprint, a literary arts non-profit, supporting and engaging readers and writers, is proud to be at the epicenter of the Houston literary life, he said.

"What an honour and a joy to work with JLF on making JLF at Houston a reality," Levy said.

Since its inception in 2006, this is the first Texas visit for the JLF, which will bring together acclaimed authors, thinkers and humanitarians to champion the freedom to express and engage in thoughtful debate and dialogue.

"The Jaipur Literature Festival has a fair representation of American authors and audience. The American audience comes from across states, but one has noticed a larger share from New York and Texas.

"Hence, the selection of Houston as one of the venues. There is also a sizable Indian diaspora concentrated in these places," Sunil Varma, senior vice president, marketing and sponsorship, at Teamwork Arts told PTI.

He said the Houston event will showcase south Asia's rich literary and oral heritage. It will have authors from across the world as well as local literary figures, Varma said.

In Houston, participating speakers and writers include Chitra Banerjee Divakaruni, Namita Gokhale, Sonal Mansingh, Omar El Akkad, Robin Davidson, Jay Aiyer, Kurt Heinzelman, Lacy M Johnson and McKenna Jordan.

Ruben Martinez, Jovan Mays, Jasminne Mendez, Marcus Moench, Rajesh Parameswaran, Sharad Paul, Daniel Pena, Shobha Rao, Kathy Reichs, Anis Shivani, Mimi Swartz, Marina Tristan, Roberto Tejada, Novuyo Rosa Tshuma and Milan Vaishnav, are also expected at the JLF here.

The programme includes an opening and closing night musical performance and vigorous panel discussions.

The audience will also get an opportunity to listen to conversations such as those on the continuities of Mexican and American experiences and narratives, the violence of cross-border realities and of pluralism and diversity.

Indian myths and their impact on the collective faith of the people; forensic anthropology, genetics and health; a crucial session on water, climate change, and social issues are also in the programme.

Readings and conversations on poetry are also part of the JLF in the US.

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With fuel prices touching new levels Monday, petroleum dealers in Tamil Nadu said they were closely monitoring the situation.

"We too are concerned. We have no choice but to follow the order of oil marketing companies on dynamic pricing. In the last three days, the price of petrol increased by Re 1," Tamil Nadu Petroleum Dealers Association Vice President Suresh Kumar told PTI.

"The situation is precarious," he said.

Petrol and diesel prices in the country climbed to their highest levels due to dramatic fall in rupee and sharp rise in crude oil rates.

In Chennai, petrol costs Rs 82.41 per litre, while the diesel price is Rs 75.21 per litre.

Kumar also opined that use of private vehicles may decline and people may opt for public transport for commuting if the fuel prices continue to increase.

Meanwhile, DMK President M K Stalin flayed the Centre and State governments, saying the fuel prices were "unconscionable."



In a statement here, he sought to know whether it was right on part of the Centre to export fuel at cheaper rates while it was being retailed at 'exorbitant' rates in the domestic market.

Stalin urged the Centre to 'reduce' the excise duty on fuel and asked the Tamil Nadu government to bring down sales tax 'immediately'.

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The Gauhati High Court on Monday set aside constitution of Justice K N Saikia Inquiry Commission that had indicted the erstwhile Prafulla Kumar Mahanata government for extra-constitutional killings of ULFA leaders' family members.

The commission was set up in 2005 by the then Congress government led by Tarun Gogoi to inquire into secret killings in the state.

Justice Ujjal Bhuyan set aside the Saikia panel's constitution saying two notifications issued in this regard violated provisions of the Commission of Inquiry Act, 1952.

Mahanta, an Asom Gana Parishad (AGP) leader, had challenged the constitution of the commission by the state government through a notification on August 22, 2005, and another one dated September 3, 2005.

Advocate Rajib Baruah and Advocate General D Mazumdar appeared for the petitioner and the state respectively.

In its report tabled in the Assam assembly in November 2007, the Saikia Commission had indicted chief minister Mahanta, and the then police top brass for extra-constitutional killings of family members of leaders and cadres of the militant outfit ULFA in Assam during 1998-2001.

The AGP is part of Assam's current ruling alliance.

With the commission's constitution annulled, its report tabled in the assembly may also be cancelled, legal sources said.

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AICC general secretary Ashok Gehlot on Monday asked Rajasthan Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje what account of herself was she giving by travelling in a helicopter for her 'gaurav yatra'.

She should apologise to the people (during the yatra) for not doing any work in these five years, even though the people gave her a massive mandate, Gehlot said.

Gehlot arrived in Jodhpur on Monday, two days ahead of the 'sankalp rally' of Congress which will be held in Pachpadra village of Barmer district.

Calling Raje's campaign a 'helicopter yatra',



Gehlot asked why was the CM scared of mingling with the common people of the state.

The former Congress CM accused Raje of spreading terror through the gaurav yatra and creating a curfew-like environment in the state by stopping protesting persons from raising black flags at campaign venues.

Reportedly, persons were barred from staying on roofs and balconies of their houses when Raje's meetings were being held in the vicinity, which Gehlot referred to as curfew-like environment.

People wanted to see her and meet her. Why is she so scared? What kind of democracy is this, Gehlot questioned.

He also held her responsible for delaying the refinery project for four years in the name of reviewing it and slammed her for re-laying the foundation stone.

Today there is only a wall in the name of refinery construction. Had it not been delayed, the refinery would have taken full shape by now, Gehlot said.

Holding her responsible for delaying and aborting a number of projects across the state, Gehlot said every section of society is angry with her and is desperate for change.

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GMR Infrastructure said Monday it has divested entire stake in four Indonesian coal mining entities through its step down subsidiaries.

"...PTBSL Group entities have ceased to be subsidiaries of the company," GMR Infrastructure said in a filing today.

The company had announced in May 2017 regarding signing of conditional share and mandatorily convertible bonds purchase agreement by the step down subsidiaries of the company, GMR Infrastructure (Overseas) Limited and GMR Energy (Netherlands) B.V., for divestment of their entire stake in the 4 Indonesian entities, PT Barasentosa Lestari, PT Duta Sarana Internusa, PT Dwikarya Sejati Utama and PT UNSOCO -- together PTBSL Group Entities, to PT Golden Energy Mines Tbk.

Shares of GMR Infrastructure closed at Rs 20.25 a unit on the BSE, down by 4.03 per cent from previous close.

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The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines announced on Monday that it will come out with the final report of its probe in connection with the Chinese commuter jet that overshot the main runway of the Ninoy Aquino International Airport on Aug. 16. This developed shortly after the readout of the flight data recorder and the cockpit voice recorder of the disabled Xiamen Air flight MF-8667 has finally arrived in Manila from Singapore last Friday. CAAP chief information officer and spokesperson Eric Apolonio said under international and Philippine aviation rules, substantial content of the FDR and CVR readouts still cannot be disclosed until the final report. The CAAP Aircraft Accident Investigation and Inquiry Board investigators confirmed that the black box data recording was of good quality. The CAAP-AAIIB will release an official report once the investigation and analysis are concluded, said Apolonio. He added that the black box, which was sent to Singapore for analysis, was already submitted to the AAIIB to match with the interview and earlier investigation of the flight crew. The AAIIB personnelRommel Ronda and Renier Baculinaowere instructed by CAAP Director General Capt. Jim Sydiongco to hasten their investigation and told he wants results as soon as possible. Two weeks ago, the AAIIB officials brought with them the device to Singapore get all the information they want to know, particularly the conversations between the pilots and personnel of the Manila Control Tower, and the status of the Boeing 737-800 prior to its landing at the runway 06-24 during heavy downpour. Simultaneously, the CAAP Flight Safety Investigation Committee is also conducting its own regulatory investigation to determine civil air regulation violations of Xiamen Airlines, in reference to the accident. Apolonio said the AAIIBs and FSICs investigations are completely independent and separate from each other. The AAIIBs investigation is meant to identify safety breaches and is not punitive in nature, while the FSIC investigation aims to determine possible breaches against civil air regulations.The CAAP initially came out with a result of the drug test on two pilots as standard requirements by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO). The results of the drug tests were negative, Sydiongco said. The pilot in command or the captain is a Korean male, who is 50 years old and has a grand total time of 16,000 flying hours with 7,000 hours on the Boeing B737-800 aircraft type. The First Officer or the co-pilot is a Chinese male, 28 years old, with a grand total time of 950 flying hours and 750 hours on the Boeing B737-800 aircraft type, he added. The pilots sustained no injuries; however, both were required to undergo post-flight accident medical examination by the CAAP. Sydiongco said the two pilots were summoned by the aviation regulator to explain their side, and had told them to what actually happened after the aircraft landed in a heavy downpour. The Xiamen aircraft encountered runway excursion before midnight of Aug. 16, and caused thousands of passengers stranded at the NAIA after the incident because of cancellation, diversion of flights, and delays. Runway excursion is the aviation term for aircraft that skidded off the runway. The incident also blocked larger aircraft like Boeing B747, B787, Airbus A330, A340, as well as A350. The CAAP is closely working together with Manila International Airport Authority (MIAA), the Civil Aeronautics Board (CAB) and the airline operators in creating proactive measures in order to prevent an event like this from happening.
Brazilian officials on Monday blamed years of government cutbacks for an inferno that gutted the treasured National Museum, described by President Michel Temer as a "tragic" loss of knowledge and heritage.

Even before the embers had begun to cool Monday, grief over the huge cultural loss gave way to anger at funding cuts many say are threatening Brazil's multi-cultural heritage.

The museum's destruction caused a social media outcry and a crowd of around 500 protesters gathered to form a human chain around its still-smoldering remains.

"It's not enough just to cry, it is necessary that the federal government, which has resources, helps the museum to reconstruct its history," director Alexandre Keller said in front of the devastated building.

The fire, the cause of which remains unknown, broke out late Sunday around 7:30 pm (2230 GMT).

The majestic edifice was swept by flames after closing to the public as plumes of smoke shot into the night sky, while scores of firefighters battled into the early morning to control the blaze.

The fire had been largely smothered early Monday, but not before it had torn through hundreds of artifact-packed rooms in the 13,000-square-meter (139,930-foot) building.

By morning, the extent of the losses were still unclear -- although a fire department spokesman told AFP there were no reports of victims so far.

Firefighters combed the charred ruins to see what might be salvageable.

"The facade is resistant, but a lot of material fell from the roof," a fire spokesman said. "We are going to proceed with great care, to see if we can save something."



The natural history and anthropology museum -- founded in 1818 and home to more than 20 million valuable pieces before the disaster -- has suffered from funding cuts, forcing it to close some of its spaces to the public.

The head of finance and planning at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, on which the museum depends, described the destruction as "a loss to the whole world." "We are not going to put up with this strangulation of public resources anymore," Roberto Antonio Gambine Moreira told AFP.

"This is a sign of the lack of investment, a lack of resources and the consequences that brings." The museum's collection included art and artifacts from Greco-Roman times and Egypt, as well as the oldest human fossil found within today's Brazilian borders, known as "Luzia."



"Luiza is a priceless loss for everyone interested in civilization," said Paulo Knauss, director of Brazil's natural history museum.

It also housed the skeleton of a dinosaur found in the Minas Gerais region, along with the largest meteorite discovered in Brazil, which was named "Bendego" and weighed 5.3 tons.

Pieces covering a period of nearly four centuries -- from the arrival of the Portuguese in the 1500s until the declaration of the first Brazilian republic in 1889 -- were also stored there.

"This is a tragic day for Brazil," Temer said in a statement. "Two hundred years of work and research and knowledge are lost."



"There will be little or nothing left of the palace and the exhibits," Culture Minister Sergio Sa Leitao tweeted.

A deputy director at the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, voiced "profound discouragement and immense anger" as the treasured institution burned, accusing Brazilian authorities of a "lack of attention."



He said the museum, a former palace that was once the official residence of the Portuguese royal family, had always lacked necessary support.

The fire comes as campaigning for October's critical presidential vote gets underway, one of the most uncertain Brazilian elections in decades.

Senator Lindbergh Farias of the country's leftist Workers' Party blamed the institution's lack of funding on spending cuts ordered by the government.

Sa Leitao, who in July 2017 became culture minister under Temer -- a deeply unpopular center-right leader -- acknowledged that "the tragedy could have been avoided" but said "the problems of the National Museum have been piling up over time."



The minister recalled that in 2015 under the government of leftist Dilma Rousseff the museum had been closed for maintenance.

In a tragic irony, Leitao also said the fire struck just after the South American country's National Development Bank had signed a sponsorship contract aimed at revitalization.

He said a reconstruction project would be set in motion, adding "this tragedy serves as a lesson." "Brazil needs to take better care of its cultural heritage and the collections of its museums," he said.

Marina Silva, a former environment minister who is running for president, called the blaze "equivalent to a lobotomy of the Brazilian memory." The collection, she said, "contains objects that helped define the national identity -- and are now turning to ashes.

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The Shiv Sena has dubbed as "stupid" the Maharashtra police's claim that the five arrested Left-wing activists were involved in an alleged Maoist plot to overthrow the Modi administration.

The BJP's carping ally said the police assertion about security threat to Prime Minister Narendra Modi from Maoists was just a "conspiracy theory".

The Uddhav Thackeray-led party said Modi's security remains robust and there is no need to worry on that front.

"The government should stop stating that these so called Maoists could potentially topple the sitting government at the Centre. This is a stupid statement," the Sena said in an editorial published in its mouthpiece 'Saamana', Monday.

"Manmohan Singh's (Congress-led UPA) government was brought down by the people of this country not by Maoists or Naxalites. In recent times, governing parties were changed through democratic process alone," the Marathi daily said.

The saffron outfit asked the police to exercise restrain while making claims.

"Had these Maoists possessed power to topple governments, they would not have lost control in West Bengal, Tripura and Manipur.

"The police (must) exercise restrain while making claims or else Modi and the BJP will be ridiculed once again," the Sena cautioned.

The party, which has ministers in the BJP-led governments in Maharashtra and also at the Centre, said there is nothing to worry about Modi's security.

"Another conspiracy theory of the police is about threat to the life of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. His security is of very high standard and there is nothing to worry about," the party said.

"(Former prime ministers) Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi had an element of adventurism (in them), which went wrong and they lost their lives. (However), Modi would not engage in such adventurism," said the Sena publication.

The saffron party also took a dig at the people who have been criticising the arrest of five Left-wing activists late last month for alleged links with Maoists.

"Urban Maoists" are involved in philosophising the acts of Naxals in remote areas of Chhattisgarh, Telangana, Andhra Pradesh, West Bengal and Odisha.

Naxalites run their own parallel governments in remote areas and several people, including government officials and Congress leader Vidya Charan Shukla, have lost their lives in attacks carried out by them, the Sena said.

"These were the same people who instigated the violence at Koregaon-Bhima (a village in Pune district on January 1, 2018). They want to create some unrest in every state and are hardly bothered about democracy. Their thoughts are violent," the editorial read.

"People like Varavara Rao, Arun Ferreira, Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navalakha and Vernon Gonsalves (all arrested last month for alleged Maoist links) enjoy high social standing.

"Mao is from China and whoever attempts to topple the government there is put behind bars or disappears. In our country, such people get support.

"From Congress president Rahul Gandhi to Sharad Pawar (NCP), Prakash Ambedkar (a Dalit leader) to Akhilesh Yadav (former UP chief minister), all are strongly supporting these people.

"If these people are facing charges of plotting to kill PM Modi, how can anyone support them?" the party asked.

Maoist sympathisers take a different stand when it comes to the arrest of right-wing activists in connection with the killing of rationalists Narendra Dabholkar, Govind Pansare and journalist Gauri Lankesh, it said.

"They are willing to accept Hindutvawadis or right- wing supporters as terrorists but (for them) Maoists mean intellectuals and rebel poets. Having such double standards is in itself sedition," the Sena said.

The party also slammed Congress leader and former Union Home Minister P Chidambaram over the phrase "saffron terror".

"Chidambaram has rejected the urban Naxal terminology. He claims it is an attempt to divert peoples attention from the Rafale jet deal, failure of note-ban and other burning issues. But it was he who supported saffron terror terminology a few years back and defamed Hindus," the Sena said.

Naxalism is a far more serious security threat than terrorism in Jammu and Kashmir as it is weakening the country from inside, the party said.

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The government spent Rs 1.32 billion on advertisements for GST, an agency under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has said in reply to an RTI query.

As per the Bureau of Outreach and Communication under the ministry, the "expenditure on GST advertisements through this bureau" on print media stood at Rs 1.26 billion.

It, however, said there was "nil" expenditure for the same on electronic media.

For outdoor media, the expenditure for GST advertisement stood at Rs 54 million the bureau said in its RTI response dated August 9, 2018.

The bureau was replying to query on the sum spent by the Centre on advertising and awareness campaigns on GST.

The (GST) was implemented on July 1, 2017. Ahead of its rollout, the Centre had gone for a media blitz to create awareness about the new tax regime.

Days ahead of the implementation, the government started coming out with full-page advertisement in leading dailies explaining various procedures and processes to be followed by industry for complying with GST rules.

The government had also roped in Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan as brand ambassador to promote GST and inform people about its benefits.

The Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) had also issued a set of 50 FAQs on various provisions of GST in the form of full-page advertisements in newspapers, answering queries of traders and business.
The government is in the process of identifying 25 export-oriented clusters to boost India's shipments from the handicraft sector, a top official said.

The exports of handicrafts during the April-June period registered a growth of 3.52 per cent in rupee terms and stood at Rs 5,797 crore. However, in dollar terms, there was a marginal decline of (-) 0.39 per cent with exports of USD 865 million.

"We are in the process of identifying 25 handicraft export-oriented clusters to boost shipments from the sector. We can even organise reverse buyer-seller meets in these clusters," Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) Shantmanu told PTI.

Besides, he said, in the last two years, 25 lakh artisans have been identified for issuance of 'pehchan' (identity) card which enables them to avail direct benefit transfer facility under schemes, and 20 lakh artisans have already been issued such cards.

Office of Development Commissioner (Handicrafts) comes under the administrative control of the Textiles Ministry.

"25 handicrafts cluster will be added advantage as backward integration of exporters to provide them quality and novelty handicraft products to enlarge the export basket to aim for a quantum jump in exports. Export Promotion Council for Handicrafts (EPCH) will be catalyst in marketing to provide them forward linkage with overseas buyers," said Rakesh Kumar, Executive Director, EPCH.

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A teenage girl, along with her friend, attempted suicide after she was allegedly raped by the latter's relative near Bodeli in Gujarat's Chhota Udepur district, over 200 kilometres from here, police said Monday.

Police said that the 17-year-old girl and her friend tried to end their lives Thursday by consuming pesticide.

The victim has told Bodeli police that two persons, identified as Sajanbhai Naika and Rohit Naika, approached her and her friend while they were on their way to school last Thursday and persuaded the two girls to accompany them to a temple nearby, an official said.

"While the victim sat on Sajanbhai's two-wheeler, her friend rode pillion on Rohit's motorcycle. En route, while Rohit rode ahead with the friend, Sajanbhai took the victim to an isolated spot out of town and raped her at knife-point," the official said.

The accused dropped the girls to Bodeli where they consumed pesticide out of fear, he added.

The victim and her friend were rushed to Bodeli government hospital from where they were shifted to Vadodara civil hospital in a critical condition, police said.

"At Vadodara civil hospital, the victim gave a statement to police revealing the incident that took place on Thursday and the subsequent sequence of events following which we registered a case yesterday," the official said.

He said that Sajanbhai has been booked for rape and criminal intimidation under relevant sections of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Indian Penal Code.

Rohit Naika has been charged under section 114 (abettor present when offence is committed) of the IPC, the official said.

Both the accused are absconding and efforts were on to nab them, the Bodeli police official said.

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The Calcutta High Court Monday directed the CID to file a report in a month on the progress of probe into the extortion case against former IPS officer Bharati Ghosh and the alleged involvement of her husband M A V Raju in it.

A division bench, comprising justices Joymalyo Bhattacharya and R K Kapoor, directed the CID to file the report on October 1 in connection with a bail prayer moved by Raju, who is in custody for the last 26 days.

Raju was arrested by the CID immediately after the high court rejected his anticipatory bail prayer on August 8.

Moving his bail prayer, Raju's counsels claimed that he worked in a respectable position in a reputed organisation and has been a regular tax payer. They claimed that he was in possession of money earned by him.

Opposing the bail prayer, public prosecutor Saswata Gopal Mukherjee submitted that Rs 2 crore have been recovered from a flat, which was in Raju's possession, at Madurdaha in Kolkata and the source of the money is yet to be known.

Releasing Raju on bail at this juncture would be detrimental to the investigation, they said.

The court adjourned the hearing for four weeks, while directing the CID to file a progress report into the case against Raju and Ghosh



Ghosh, who was the West Midnapore superintendent of police (SP) for more than six years, was transferred as commandant of the third battalion of the state armed police on December 26 last year. She resigned from service two days later.

She was once considered close to West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and was also awarded a service medal on August 15, 2014.

The civil servant was transferred twice, once by the Election Commission before the 2014 Lok Sabha polls and the second time by the state itself before the 2016 Assembly election.

She was, however, reinstated as West Midnapore SP as soon as the election got over on both the occasions.

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Heavy rains lashed several parts of the national capital on Monday causing waterlogging and traffic snarls in the city.

The Delhi Traffic Police posted alerts on its Twitter handle to inform commuters about routes to be avoided.

According to the police, streets were waterlogged in areas near Ganesh Chowk Mother Dairy towards Laxminagar Metro Station, Punjabi Bagh, Moti Nagar flyover, DM office Nala Road in Geeta Colony, Yusuf Sarai Market near IIT and Sri Aurobindo Marg.

Breakdown of a bus at Lajpat Nagar flyover added to traffic woes near AIIMS, they said



Waterlogging was also reported in other areas like Kalindi Kunj, Nirman Vihar, Indramohan Bhardwaj Marg, Vikas marg and Ring Road, they said.

Streets near Batra hospital and Pul Prahladpur underpass on Mehrauli-Badarpur, Vasundhara Enclave near Shaheed Budh Ram Singh Marg and Raja Ram Kohli Marg in Geeta Colony were also waterlogged, the traffic police said, adding areas near Rajdhani Park and Rohtak Road were also waterlogged.

Heavy traffic was reported near Mundka Metro Station due to waterlogging, causing inconvenience to commuters.

Delhi has received 35.9 mm rainfall in last 24 hours and the weatherman predicted the downpour to continue throughout the day.

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A woman health worker has been gunned down with an assault rifle by her sister's husband over "honour" in Pakistan's Punjab province, a media report said today.

Bushra Parveen, 35, is survived by two children.

The suspect, Khawar Imran, a vice-chairman of a local government body, had suspicion about the character of Parveen who lived in Chakrian village of Gujrat district, Dawn reported.

According to the police, Imran entered Parveen's house and opened fire at her with assault rifle Kalashnikov, killing her on the spot on Sunday.

He managed to flee after committing the crime.

A case of murder has been lodged against the suspect on the report of Mazhar Iqbal, the husband of the deceased woman.

Police said that Parveen worked as a woman health worker.

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The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has issued an advisory to all private satellite TV channels, urging them to refrain from using the nomenclature 'Dalit' for people belonging to Scheduled Castes in compliance with a Bombay High Court directive.

The advisory urges channels that they may refrain from using the term 'Dalit' while referring to people belonging to Scheduled Castes.

The letter, addressed to all private TV channels on August 7, referred to a June directive by the Bombay High Court asking the ministry to consider issuing a direction to the media to stop using the word 'Dalit'.

The court directive had come over a petition filed by Pankaj Meshram before the Nagpur bench of the high court.

"It is accordingly advised that media may refrain from using the nomenclature 'Dalit' while referring to members belonging to Scheduled Castes in compliance with the directions of the Hon'ble Bombay High Court and the Constitutional term 'Scheduled Caste' in English, and its appropriate translation in other national languages should alone be used for all official transactions, matters, dealings, certificates, etc. for denoting the persons belonging to Scheduled Castes," it said.

The advisory had also cited a Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment circular of March 15, advising the central and state governments to use the term 'Scheduled Caste'.

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Three Rafale fighter jets are engaged in an exercise with the Indian Air Force in Gwalior and Agra, amid a raging controversy over the Rs 58,000-crore deal to procure 36 of them by the government.

Officials said around 100 French aviators, one Atlas A-400M military transport aircraft, one C-135 refuelling plane and an Airbus A310 cargo aircraft have also come to India along with the Rafale jets on a four-day visit.

They said a batch of IAF pilots have got an opportunity to train on the Rafale jets. The aircraft landed in India on Saturday after visiting Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Singapore.

India had inked an inter-governmental agreement with France in September 2016 for procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets at a cost of around Rs 58,000 crore. The delivery of the jets is scheduled to begin from September 2019.

The Congress has raised several questions about the deal including alleged inflated rate of the aircraft but the government has rejected the charges.

In a statement, the French embassy here said that joint flights and exchanges between the French and Indian Air Forces will be conducted as part of the four-day tour by the French contingent.

"This mission in India is yet another illustration of the depth of the Indo-French strategic partnership, which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year, and the great trust that prevails in the relations between our respective armed forces, it said.

It said operational aim of the 'Mision PEGASE' is to reinforce France's presence in the region of strategic interest and deepen its relations with its main partner countries.

The French contingent is here days after it participated in 'Operation Pitch Black', a multilateral air exercises which took place in Australia recently.

The Indian Air Force was also part of the mega exercise.

"This mission succeeds a major exercise in Australia, where our aircraft have carried out joint drills with those of the Indian Air Force," the French Embassy said.

A senior IAF official said the visit of the Rafale jets as well as other aircraft will further boost cooperation between the two forces.

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Dont take the President seriously when he makes jokes about rape. A joke can be taken differently in Luzon, Visayas and Mindanao, so said Harry Roque. This is the presidential spokesman talking about his boss in a feeble attempt to defend President Rodrigo Dutertes latest controversial comment about women and rape. Critics have suggested President Duterte should take a rest from running the country. It seems, however, it is Harry Roque who needs to take a break from his job. Hes running out of punch lines to defend his chiefs erratic behavior. Harry Roque should have stopped at dont take the President seriously. Period. Going into the second half of his presidency, Du-Dirty should know that Filipinos have stopped taking him seriously when he unleashed profanities against Pope Francis and US President Barack Obama, told government soldiers to shoot captured communist women between the legs, and unleashed vitriolic words against the US, the United Nations and the European Union. This is a man who hates everybody and everything. Dont get me wrong. Its not personal. I dont have any fixation to loathe Harry Roque. His job is difficult enoughdefending Duterte who spews mouthful of profanities and sick jokes about women and now rape. And what is this latest joke? We have many beautiful women in Davao that is why we have a lot of rape incidents, said Mr. Duterte. It was said in Visayan. But no matter what dialect Digong said it, its still a sick joke done in very bad taste. Militant group Gabriela and the Philippine Commission on Women are furious Duterte can joke about such a sensitive subject. We hope Davao does not use the Duterte joke as a tourism promotion slogan. Come to Davao where we have many beautiful women to rape. But of course, tourists who might be enticed to terrorize the women of Davao will have to deal with Mayor Inday Sara Duterte. She has a reputation for having mean knuckles, gained when she punched a sheriff on the face. The sheriff was serving an eviction notice to Davaos homeless.The beauty of women and tourism spots are used by other countries as come-ons. Hungary ran a tourism ad in the New York Times with a beautiful blonde as illustration. The copy (text) says: Beauty, we have more like her per square miles more than any other country. Hungarian women are really beautiful. Take it from someone who had been assigned as Philippine ambassador based in Budapest for six years. Yet Hungary has never won a world beauty pageant title, while the Philippines has three Miss Universe titlists in Pia Wurztbach, Gloria Diaz and Margie Moran. My appreciation of Hungarian womens beauty was responsibly kept at a distance. There are other things more beautiful in Hungary such as the River Danube that flows along Austria, Hungary and Romania. Then of course there is the musicthat can soothe the savage beastcomposed by such masters as Franz Liszt, Bela Bartok and Zoltan Kodaly. I had my fill of the music of these world famous composers during the many concerts the diplomatic community was invited to by the host government. Come to our island before the tourists discover it. Now, that catchy and imaginative tourism promo ad comes from a little-known country. The text was original and NOT plagiarized from another countrys. But back to Digongs latest rape remark, which has drawn a backlash from womens groups and netizens. The joke is adding insult to injury considering that Davao recorded 42 cases of rape from April to June 2018 alone. This is according to the Philippine National Police. Quezon City came in a close second for the same period, according to the same PNP report. Manila is third with 42 rape cases, followed by Cagayan de Oro with 34, and Zamboanga City, 21. The overall number of rapes committed in the country is alarming, From 4,712 in 2012, the figure jumped to 10,000 in 2015! This, despite the governments anti-crime campaign and focus on illegal drug trafficking. Since there are allegations of rampant extrajudicial killings of drug suspects, perhaps its time for Congress to legislate the return of the death penalty to put the fear of God on rapists and drug traffickers.
Rating agency Icra Monday said it has placed long-term ratings for Rs 4,286.20 crore upper tier II bonds programme and Rs 1,708.80 crore basel II compliant perpetual bonds of IDBI Bank on Rating Watch with Developing Implications (RWD).

"The ratings on the upper tier II bonds and basel II compliant perpetual bonds are placed on RWD due to the deterioration in the capital adequacy ratios, which were below the regulatory levels," Icra said in a release today.

Maintaining the capital ratios above regulatory levels is critical for servicing the banks Basel II debt capital instruments2



In May 2018, the rating agency had highlighted the banks weak capital ratios and had noted that it would require regular capital infusion from the government to keep its capital ratios above regulatory levels.

In June 2018, IRDAI approved life insurance major LIC's proposal to take over 51 per cent stake in IDBI.

LIC is proposed to increase it's stake to 51 per cent from 7.98 per cent, through fresh capital infusion and secondary market purchase.

On August 28, 2018, LIC has given in principle approval to infuse capital in the bank, raising its shareholding to 14.90 per cent, before the acquisition of majority ownership from the government.

"The transaction, which would raise the capital ratios to the regulatory levels in the immediate term and thereby enable the servicing of the Basel II capital instruments, requires approval of the banks shareholders," the rating agency said.

In the first quarter of FY19, the banks asset quality ratios deteriorated with GNPAs and NNPAs at 30.78 per cent and 18.76 per cent, respectively.

It's profitability remains under pressure with compressed net interest margins (NIMs) and net interest income (NII) coupled with high credit costs.

The rating agency said the banks profitability, and consequently its capital position is expected to remain weak.

The outlook may be revised to stable if there is a significant improvement in its capitalisation, solvency and asset quality indicators.

The ratings, however, may be downgraded if the bank is unable to raise sufficient capital in a timely manner to augment the capital adequacy ratios, thereby impacting its ability to service its debt capital instruments, it said.

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The Indian Institute of Management Kozhikode (IIMK), one of India's top ranked business schools, Monday announced collaboration with Stanford University for its premier Executive Post Graduate programme, (EPGP).

IIMK had pioneered the Interactive Learning (IL) programme for working executives in Asia Pacific in 2001.

Having started with 300 contact hours in 2001-02, the two year long diploma programme is presently the most rigorous and the most sought-after executive programme in management in the country with 738 contact hours



IIMK is the first IIM to collaborate with an Ivy League University in an Executive Programme.

The Masterclass Webinar Series in Design Thinking & Innovation provides a cohesive educational experience tailored to the goals of IIMK.

Five webinars, provided over the course of one year, will allow participants to receive live lectures from Stanford faculty, a release said.

The participants will also receive individual certificates of participation from Stanford University.

Speaking about the association with Stanford University, Prof Debashis Chatterjee, Director, IIMK, said IIMKs contribution in the field of Executive was very significant and it has been consistently updating the curriculum to provide the best to the participants.

"Partnering with Stanford is another step in taking forward the Executive to a new horizon.

This surely will enable the working professionals from various fields gain competency and leadership skills to fast-track their career growth in their organisations', he said.

The Dean (Extension Programmes), Prof C Raju, said the strategic alliance with Stanford University would go a long way in giving exposure to the latest Design Thinking Techniques to the participants of EPGP and will help them as well as the organisations they work with.

This is only a beginning of such great international collaborations, he said.

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The central government said Monday that the had issued necessary severe weather warnings for Kerala rains last month, refuting the charge that there were lapses on its part.

(IMD) representatives apprised the state authorities about the strong monsoon conditions with heavy rainfall activity in a meeting convened by Chief Minister Pinayari Vijayan on August 9, according to a statement issued by the Ministry of Earth Sciences (MoES).

"Also the Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue and Disaster Management) was briefed orally over phone on all occasions. Member Secretary, SDMA (State Disaster Management Authority) was briefed on August 10. District collectors of Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram were briefed on August 14. Briefings were sent to media also during this period," the statement said.

The MoES said the had issued all necessary severe weather warnings through its office in Thiruvananthapuram and extended forecast range was issued two weeks in advance.

On August 30, the chief minister in the state assembly had said there were "lapses" on the part of the IMD's rain forecast during this period. The had forecast an estimated 98.5 mm rain in the state between August 9 and 15.

But, the actual rain received was 352.2 mm, Vijayan said, adding he purpose was not to find fault with anyone.

Weather forecasts for five days and outlook for subsequent two days, which also include heavy rainfall warning and wind warning, were sent through e-mail to Chief Secretary, Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue and Disaster Management), SDMA, Navy, Special Marine enforcement, print and electronic media, the statement added.

Short and medium range forecasts (five days in advance) were also issued by the IMD unit in Thiruvananthapuram, it said.

The ministry said orange alerts, which mean authorities should prepare for action, were issued with effect from August 6 and applicable from August 8 onwards while red alert, which means authorities start taking necessary action, was issued with effect from August 9.

"Further, for showing the severity of rainfall intensity expected, heavy (7-11 centimetres in 24 hours) to very heavy (12-20 cm in 24 hours) rainfall warning for Kerala state was issued with effect from August 10 for August 14 with orange alert to Idukki and Alappuzha, red alert to Wayanad district.

"On August 11, heavy to very heavy rainfall warning was extended for August 15 with orange alert to Idukki and Wayanad districts," the statement said.

On August 14again, heavy to very heavy rainfall warning was issued for that day and a day later with red alert and orange alerts for most of the districts, the statement said.

On August 15, extremely heavy rainfall warning was issued for Kerala state with red alert to all districts for August 16 and red for seven districts and orange for the remaining seven districts for August 17.

"It may be noted that the 'Red' alert is the highest alert for issuing heavy rainfall warning and no other alerting criteria than this is adopted by IMD. The weather bulletins issued from Delhi office also carried warnings for Kerala in 'Orange' and 'Red' colours about 2-3 days in advance of the event, advising the disaster managers to be alert and initiate action respectively," the IMD said.
There is an immense scope for cooperation in medical tourism between India and the Netherlands, Union Minister of State for Ayush Shripad Yesso Naik said today.

The healthcare system in the Netherlands is one of the best in Europe, and there is a lot of potential to integrate traditional knowledge from India, he said at a seminar titled 'India-Netherlands collaboration in Healthcare, including Ayurveda' at Leiden.

Ayush refers to traditional and non-allopathic medical systems in India. It includes ayurveda, yoga, unani, siddha, and homoeopathy.

"India is the world's largest producer of generic medicine and there is wide scope for medical value travel to India, both in conventional and alternative medical treatments such as Ayurveda," Naik said at the seminar organised by the Indian Embassy here.

Emphasising that the scope for cooperation in the health sector between the two countries is immense, he said, "India and the Netherlands can work together closely to promote healthy living."



Asserting that both the countries have top class medical practitioners, Naik said the Netherlands with its 2.25 lakh Indian origin population can lead the way in promoting Indian traditional medicine across Europe.

Addressing the seminar, Dutch minister for Medical Care and Sport Bruno Bruins said Ayurveda's approach for healthcare differs for individuals and being healthy does not only mean being free from illness but also being independent, functional and participating in society.

"Cooperation between India and the Netherlands in healthcare can become stronger with both countries working together to deal with the issue of antibiotic resistance," he added.

Alojz Peterle, former Prime Minister of Slovenia and current member of European Parliament, said Ayurveda is considered as the mother of modern medicine.

He further said Indo-European strategic cooperation should also include healthcare.

The Indian Ambassador to the Netherlands, Venu Rajamony, pointed out that the biggest health challenge the Netherlands faces is high costs and the need for care for an ageing population.

"Ayurveda and Yoga can help reduce costs and promote healthy ageing," Rajamony said.

The seminar was the concluding event of the 4th International Ayurveda Congress organised by the Indian Embassy in the Netherlands in collaboration with International Maharishi Ayurveda Foundation, Netherlands, All India Ayurvedic Congress, New Delhi and the International Academy of Ayurveda, Pune.

Naik is on an official four-day visit to the Netherlands from September 1. He is leading a delegation of senior officials from Ministry of Ayush, including the Pharmacopoeia Commission of Indian Medicine and Homeopathy.

The minister will meetthe Deputy Mayor of the City of The Hague in charge of healthcare, witness a yoga demonstration by Dutch yoga enthusiasts and visit the Samadhi Sthal of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Vlodrop tomorrow.

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A high-level meeting between the border forces of India and Bangladesh began here on Monday where the two sides are expected to discuss action against insurgent groups and movement of displaced Rohingyas, a senior BSF official said.

"The 47th border co-ordination conference, the DG-level talks between Border Security Force and Border Guard Bangladesh, began today," a BSF spokesperson said.

The spokesperson had yesterday said India will take up issues like BSF personnel being attacked by Bangladeshi criminals and those related to cross-border smuggling.

It is expected that the two sides will also share updates about the movement of Rohingyas in their respective jurisdictions.

A 13-member delegation of the Border GuardBangladesh(BGB), led by its Director General(DG) Maj Gen Md Shafeenul Islam, had arrived in India yesterday to hold the bi-annual talks with their counterparts -- BSF -- as part of their six-day tour.

The 13-member Border Security Force(BSF) side will be led by DG K K Sharma.

The bi-annual meeting comes at a time, the spokesperson had said, when relations between India and Bangladesh are at an all-time high.

"Issues like preventing attacks on BSF personnel by Bangladeshi criminals, joint efforts to prevent trans-border crimes, action against Indian insurgent groups (operating from the other side) among others are part of the agenda for the DG-level talks," he had said.

Issues related to border infrastructure, simultaneous coordinated patrol in vulnerable areas of the border and mutual sharing of information are also part of the BSF subjects, the spokesperson hadsaid.

TheDhaka-headquartered BGB is expected to take up issues like smuggling of various types of drugs/narcotics from Bangladeshand arrest or apprehension of Bangladeshi nationals by the BSF among others, the spokespersonsaid.

A joint record of discussion will be signed between the two forces on September 7. The visiting delegation is expected to return the next day.

This is the 47th DG-level conference between the two sides since it began in 1975.

The last time the two forces met for such a meeting was in April this year inDhaka.

The two countries share a 4,096-km border.

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India and Cyprus signed two agreements on combating money laundering and cooperation in the field of environment on Monday as President Ram Nath Kovind met his Cypriot counterpart Nicos Anastasiades and held wide-ranging talks here.

President Kovind is in Cyprus on the first leg of his three-nation visit to Europe to continue India's high-level engagements with European countries.

Kovind and Anastasiades exchanged views on economic cooperation during their talks.

India happens to be the fastest growing major economy in the world today with a growth rate of 8.2 per cent last quarter, the President said.

"In this context and given Cyprus' niche expertise in financial services and investment banking, both of us agreed that there was much scope to deepen our investment partnership," Kovind said in a statement.

"We welcomed the signing of the MoU between Financial Intelligence Unit, India and Unit for Combating Money Laundering of Cyprus.

"This agreement would further strengthen the institutional framework to facilitate investment cross-flows. We also emphasised that the revision in the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement made in 2016 provided greater opportunities for our investment partnership to grow," Kovind said.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said in a tweet: "India and Cyprus signed two MoUs (memorandum of understandings) today on Combating Money Laundering and Cooperation in the field of Environment in the presence of Presidents of both countries".

Kovind and Anastasiades held discussions on issues of mutual interest including promotion of business collaboration in the fields of IT and IT enabled services, tourism, shipping and renewable energy, Kumar said.

"President Anastasiades and I held detailed discussions on the way forward for our long-standing and excellent relations. I reaffirmed India's un-wavering support to Cyprus for upholding its sovereignty and territorial integrity.

"We reviewed our ongoing bilateral and multi-lateral engagements and discussed issues of regional and global concern. We underlined our common objectives to negotiate the challenges that lie ahead. And we committed ourselves to further step-up our mutually beneficial ties, especially in the economic field," Kovind said in the statement.

The President also paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi's bust.

"Our founding fathers, Archbishop Makarios and Mahatma Gandhi have blessed our partnership with timeless values, wisdom and foresight. We have the greatest respect for Archbishop Makarios in India," Kovind said.

"India's Father of Nation in #Cyprus! Before his address to the Parliament of Cyprus, President of India #PresidentKovind offered floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi's bust at its premise," Kumar said in another tweet.

President Kovind yesterday praised the Indian community in Cyprus for strengthening people-to-people relations between the two nations.

Apart from Cyprus, Kovind will also visit Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

This is his first overseas state visit in the second year of his presidency.

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Union Health Minister J P Nadda Monday said India has fast-tracked initiatives for universal health coverage (UHC) and his ministry is working "very hard" for effectively implementing the Ayushman Bharat scheme - the largest government-funded health scheme in the world.

At the 71st session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia here, he said India supports the regional and global health agenda and stands ready to work with fellow member states and the international community to achieve the common goal of 'Health for All'.

Ayushman Bharat rests on the twin pillars of Health and Wellness Centres for provision of comprehensive primary healthcare services and the Prime Minister's National Health Protection Mission for secondary and tertiary care to 100 million families.

"Under the first pillar of Pradhan Mantri Jan Arogya Yojana, we are reaching out to approximately 40 per cent of country's population roughly covering 500 million individuals, who will be provided an insurance cover of Rs 5 lakh to cover secondary and tertiary health-care.

"Initially spanning almost 1,300 procedures under 20 different specialties, this will be the largest government funded health protection scheme in the world," the Health Minister said.

He pointed out that under the second pillar, 1,50,000 health and wellness centres would bring healthcare closer to people, so that every Indian can have timely access to health care, including diagnostic services and free essential drugs.

"The Health Ministry is working very hard for effective implementation of Ayushman Bharat for a healthy, productive and prosperous India," Nadda said.

The member countries of the WHO's Regional Office for South-East Asia (SEARO), including India, are meeting to brainstorm on measures against vector-borne diseases and improving access to essential medicines.

The minister said, "India has fast-tracked many initiatives aimed at achieving all the core tenets of UHC i.e, strengthening health systems, improving access to free medicines; diagnostics and reducing catastrophic healthcare spending."



Nadda said India firmly believes in the objective of attainment of the highest possible level of health -- a state of complete physical, mental, spiritual and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.

"Moving toward this objective, we have adopted the National Health Policy 2017 with the aim to provide affordable healthcare for all," he asserted.

Highlighting the initiatives of the government, Nadda said although the WHO has fixed 2030 as the timeline for elimination of tuberculosis, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has exhorted the ministry to achieve it five years ahead of target in 2025.

"In line with this ambitious plan, India is on track for the implementation of the National Strategic Plan for Tuberculosis and we have recently introduced supplementary nutritional support for the complete duration of treatment for patients, he added.

The Health Minister said India has already initiated universal screening for prevention and management of five common NCDs including hypertension, diabetes and three common cancers of oral cavity, breast and cervix across the country.

He pointed out that the Health Ministry has started a unique initiative called AMRIT Deendayal, an acronym for Affordable Medicines; Reliable Implants for Treatment - Centres that provide medicines for cancer; cardiovascular diseases and cardiac implants at significantly reduced prices.

The government has also opened Jan Aushadhi (peoples' medicines) stores to make available quality affordable essential medicines to people in need, he said.

"India has always supported regional and global public health issues whether it be advocacy, technical collaboration, research and development, partnerships or improving the accessibility and affordability of health services and high quality essential medical products.

"India supports the regional and global health agenda and stands ready to work with fellow member states and the international community to achieve our common goal of Health for All," the minister added.

Ambassadors and High Commissioners from the member countries, senior officers of the ministry and representatives and delegates from across the globe were also present during the event.

Ministers of Health from the countries of the WHO South East Asia Region (SEAR), NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, Secretary (Health) Preeti Sudan, WHO South-East Asia Region Regional Director Poonam Khetrapal Singh, and WHO DDG Jane Allison were also present at the inaugural session.

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India has made rapid progress in increasing access to sanitation in schools, the United Nations said in a report, noting that the proportion of schools without any sanitation facility has decreased at a fast pace in the country.

A new joint UN agency study, 'Drinking Water, Sanitation and Hygiene in Schools: 2018 Global Baseline Report,' says that good hygiene facilities in schools provide the basis of a healthy learning environment, and that girls are more likely to attend when they are on their period.

The annual report is produced by the World Health Organization/UN Children's Fund Joint Monitoring Programme, or JMP, which has been monitoring global progress on drinking water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH) since 1990.

It looks at the progress made towards reaching the targets of two of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs): Goal 6 (Clean water and sanitation), and Goal 4 (Ensure inclusive and equitable quality and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all).

WASH in schools programmes provide an entry point for the education, awareness-raising and behaviour change required to achieve the SDG6 target of ending open defecation by 2030, the report said.

It said India "has made rapid progress in increasing access to sanitation facilities in schools."



Between 2000 and 2016, the proportion of schools in India without any sanitation facility decreased even faster than the proportion of the population practising open defecation, it said.

Based on these trends, the JMP estimates that almost all schools in India had some type of sanitation facility in 2016, while 10 years earlier half the schools in India reported having no sanitation facility at all. Between 2000 and 2016, the number of school-age children in India increased from 352 million to 378 million.

The report said that a recent survey in India also collected information on the availability of facilities for menstrual hygiene management. The proportion of schools with bins with lids for the disposal of sanitary materials varies widely across states in India, from 98 per cent in Chandigarh to 36 per cent in Chhattisgarh. Mizoram is the only state where more than 50 per cent of schools have a functional incinerator for the disposal of sanitary waste.

It said the Government of India issued national guidelines on menstrual hygiene management in 2015 but a survey in 2016-2017 showed that only two thirds of schools in India provide menstrual hygiene with wide variations between states.

The repot further said that millions of children globally are going to school without basic hygiene facilities, and the goal of universal access to basic water, sanitation and hygiene remains "a huge challenge".

Over 30 per cent of schools worldwide do not provide safe drinking water; a third of schools do not provide the most basic of toilet facilities (such as septic tank, pit latrines or composting toilets); and nearly 900 million children go to schools with no handwashing facilities with soap and water.

It said children who pick up good hygiene habits at school can reinforce positive life-long behaviours in their homes and communities, says the report.

Global Chief of Water, Sanitation and Hygiene at UNICEF Kelly Ann Naylor said that if is the key to helping children escape poverty, access to water and sanitation is key to helping children safely maximize their education. "To neglect this is to be careless with the well-being and health of children," Naylor said.

Universal access to basic water, sanitation and hygiene in schools is part of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, but achieving this ambitious target presents a huge challenge. The JMP has designed tools to make it easier to track progress across countries, towards a basic level of drinking water, sanitation and hygiene service.

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Islamic State fighters are in communication with the UK-based terrorist cells with the aim of carrying out terror attacks in Britian and Europe, Britain's defence minister Gavin Williamson has said.

Williamson, who in the northern Afghanistan's Mazeer-i-Shareef city to visit British troops, said the UK must act to prevent another Manchester-style attack - in reference to the ISIS-inspired suicide bombing at an Ariana Grande concert in May last year which claimed 23 lives.

"What we see is a real threat posed by these groups to the UK and we've got to be acting as we are to ensure that we do not see future Manchester-style attacks," he said.

"We consistently see terrorist groups operating here in Afghanistan, [and] evidence of their links back not just to the United Kingdom but to the whole of continental Europe," Williamson told 'Sky News'.

In recent months there have been "countless times when there have been links back to the UK from terrorists in Afghanistan," he said over the weekend.

The minister said that additional troops were sent to Afghanistan last month to combat the growing terrorist threat posed to Britain as well as to Afghan civilians.

Islamist militants pushed out of Iraq and Syria were regrouping in Afghanistan, he warned.

The focus of the US and British special forces in Afghanistan is now believed to be on a group known as IS-Khorasan or IS-K, which is seen as a rival to the Taliban and al-Qaeda.

Its latest leader Abu Saad Erhabi was killed in a US airstrike a week ago - the fourth ISIS leader to be killed in the country in the past few years.

Williamson hinted that a small number of British foreign fighters may have joined ISIS in Afghanistan, saying that "a similar spread of foreign fighters" who travelled to Iraq and Syria had appeared in Afghanistan.

The extra 440 British troops in Afghanistan follows a request from the US, bringing the total number of British personnel in the country to 1,100, the third-largest behind the United States and Germany.

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The Jharkhand government would fully support the farmers who would approach it through agricultural co-operative societies, Chief Minister Raghubar Das said Monday.

Cooperative societies would provide them the opportunity to use modern agricultural technology and their profit from agriculture produce would increase, Das said in tweets from China.

After visiting a farmers' cooperative society in China's Shunyi, he said the peasants there are producing good agriculture produce through such societies.

Farmers in Jharkhand also can benefit through Cooperative Society in agriculture, Das said.

The chief minister is on a 5-day visit to China to obtain information about latest technology. Several ministers and officials are accompanying him.

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Qatar is looking to pump in Germanys economy billions of dollar of investment as it seeks to deepen its foothold in the European Union (UE) economic powerhouse.

A report by Handelsblatt, a German newspaper specialized in economic news, revealed that the tiny Gulf country is targeting German medium size companies and newspapers for investment drive.

Diplomatic and corporate sources told the media Doha, through its Investment Authority (QIA) and the private sector, will direct investment towards Mittelstand manufacturing companies.

Qatar is already present in Germany through shareholdings in several German entities including Volkswagen (VOWG.DE), Deutsche Bank (DBKGn.DE), Siemens (SIEGn.DE), Hochtief (HOTG.DE) and SolarWorld (SWVKk.F).

The information about Qatars new investment interest in the EUs top economy has been confirmed by the Gulf countrys Finance Minister, Ali Sharif al-Emadi.

We see Germany as a key player in the world economy and are looking at the German market with great optimism, the Qatari official told Handelsblatt in an interview.

Our delegation will be announcing big new investments, he added.

The two countries are to hold a joint Business and Investment Forum in Berlin on Sept. 7.
Japan's defence chief on Monday warned the country faces a tough security environment, with China and Russia stepping up military activity and North Korea posing "imminent threats".

Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said China had been "unilaterally escalating" its military activities in the past year, including carrying out new airborne operations around Japan and running a nuclear submarine near disputed East Coast isles.

"China has been rapidly improving its military strength and fast increasing its military activities," Onodera told an annual gathering of the top brass of Japan's Self-Defense Forces.

"It is unilaterally escalating its military activities in the sea and aviation spaces around our country. This has become a significant concern for our country's defence," he said.

Onodera made the remarks as Tokyo attempts to improve its tense diplomatic ties with Beijing, with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expected to visit Japan's biggest trade partner next month.

On coming to power, Abe took a firm position on Japan's claims to a disputed island chain in the East China Sea, aggravating tensions with Beijing.

But he has since softened his rhetoric, and called on China to press North Korea to give up its nuclear and missile programmes.

Japanese businesses have also voiced desire for closer ties with China to boost trade. Onodera said Russia was also flexing its military muscle.

Moscow is planning to hold its biggest drill since the Cold War era and is bringing powerful weapons, including ground-to-air missiles, to the disputed Southern Kuril islands, he said.

"We are seeing movement to again push forward its military activities in the Far East," he said.

Onodera also repeated that North Korea continues to pose a "serious and imminent threat" to Japan, despite international diplomacy intended to convince Pyongyang to denuclearise.

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Leading integrated steel manufacturer plans to scale up the capacity of its manufacturing plant in Vijayanagar, Karnataka to 18 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), its chairman and managing director has said.

"Our plan is to take to the next step to 18 MTPA from 13 MTPA," Jindal told PTI.

In June, had announced its plans to invest Rs 75 billion until March 2020 to increase the production capacity at its Vijayanagar facility to 13 MTPA.

"Hopefully, in the next two years we will start the work there," he said.

When asked as to how much money is the company going to invest in the expansion, he said, "I don't know the money numbers."



Deputy Managing Director Vinod Nowal also said the company is planning to expand capacity of its Vijayanagar facility to 18 MTPA.

The plant currently has a 13 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) capacity.

When asked about the timelines for expansion, he said that it "totally depends upon the acquisitions. Suppose something comes then we will take a little pause and ...if suppose Essar and Bhushan is not happening then we can go earlier also for Vijayanagar".

ALSO READ: JSW Steel once again becomes largest buyer of NMDC iron ore in Karnataka

Explaining about the expansion of the company's Dolvi unit in Maharashtra, Nowal said, "Now we are expanding our Dolvi plant close to Bombay from 5 million tonnes to 10 million tonnes and that is our target to achieve by March 2020. Progress is at full swing actually."



The company, he said, is planning to spend around Rs 430 billion in the next three years in these expansions, besides downstream facilities.

JSW Steel is a part of the diversified USD 13 billion JSW Steel is the leading integrated steel company in India with an installed steel-making capacity of 18 MTPA.

JSW Steel's plant at Vijayanagar in Karnataka is the largest single location steel producing facility in the country with a capacity of 12 MTPA.
The Karnataka government announced Monday a grant worth Rs 50 lakh forstartups providing solutions for rural development in the state.

"To encourage any innovation that will be focused at rural development and well-being with a strong social impact, my department will be willing to support startups across the state with a grant of Rs 50 lakh," Social Welfare Minister Priyank Kharge said at a conferenceorganised by Shell E4, the company's startup hub.

The hub featured a unique gathering of energy focused startups, Venture Capitalists, Energy Experts and Academia, among others, the company said.

The day also served as the graduation event for Shell E4's first cohort of energy and sustainability start-ups.

Launched in 2017, Shell E4 Startup Hub aims to foster a vibrant ecosystem of energy entrepreneurs by bringing togethertalent, technology, capital and know-how to accelerate India'stransition towards a sustainable energy future, it said.

Earlier this year, Shell selected five startups - Detect Technologies, ION Energy, IoTrek, Trashcon and Ossus Biorenewables that are working on a diverse range of solutions.

They are working on solutions including realtime pipelinemonitoring, creating safer infrastructure, automatingsegregation of municipal solid waste and infrastructure forelectric vehicles, it said.

These start-ups are successfully integrating technologies like IoT and Artificial Intelligence within their core products.

Shell Companies in India Chairman Nitin Prasad said the company is committed to be a trusted partner in India's growthstory through its people, partnerships and innovations.

"We will continue to evolve Shell E4 to foster solutions that can help India access more and cleaner energy and drive sustainable growth," he added.

The company would continue to liaison with them through Shell's alumni network to help them further develop and deploy their technologies at a larger scale, Prasad said.

Shell E4 Startup Hub General Manager James Unterreiner said the E4 incubator invests in the most promising startups to develop early insights in critical innovations and to buildalignment and commitment with companies that it likes topartner with.

The startups were offered a seed funding of USD 20,000 each and access to state-of-the-art testing and prototyping laboratories for product development and testing Bootcamps aimed at customer discovery and improving the product, he said.

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The Kashmir Editors Guild (KEG) on Monday expressed regret over the police not filing a charge sheet in the murder case of senior journalist Shujaat Bukhari who was shot dead by suspected militants in June this year.

"The KEG regrets that the police have not been able to file a charge sheet in the broad daylight murder of the senior journalist so far. This was despite the fact that the police claimed to have solved the case," a spokesman of the guild said in a statement here.

Bukhari, 48, the editor-in-chief of Rising Kashmir, was killed by gunmen at the Press Enclave here when he was leaving his office for an iftar party on June 15.

Police had later said the conspiracy to kill Bukhari was hatched by Lashker-e-Toiba (LeT) in Pakistan and three cadres of the banned outfit executed the plan.

Referring to the reports of media persons in the valley allegedly being asked by security agencies to disclose their sources, the KEG said a journalist cannot be forced to reveal his source of information and "it is considered illegal across the democracies of the world".

"Freedom of speech cannot be suspended even if the assembly is in suspended animation. While the newspapers have routinely started getting 'notices' to explain things that have gone into print, there are very disturbing reports about reporters being asked to disclose sources, something that has not happened even during the emergency," the spokesman said.

The KEG asked the police to make public the charges against a magazine journalist Aasif Sultan who was recently detained by the police.

"Police have registered a formal FIR after retaining him for six days. The KEG believes the police must make public the charges against him. The 'incriminating material', the police have stated in a routine statement, is too vague to be accepted as a reason.

"The law enforcing agencies must understand the reality that a journalist's laptop will have 'incriminating' material because data collection is the fundamental activity of the reporters," it said.

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Kevin Spacey's former co-star Robin Wright says the actor should be given the chance to ''reform'', following his sexual assault scandal.

The 58-year-old actor is facing several accusations that he sexually assaulted men including actor Anthony Rapp, who claimed the star made unwanted advances on him when he was just 14-years-old. Spacey addressed the allegations and came out as gay.

The allegations caused the star to be removed from Netflix drama "House of Cards", which also stars Wright.

"I don't know how to comment on that, I really don't. I believe every human being has the ability to reform. Has the ability to reform. In that sense, second chances, or whatever you are going to call it absolutely, I believe in that. It's called growth," Wright told Net-A-Porter.

The 52-year-old actor, who will be leading the final and last season of "House of Cards", said she does feel sorry for Spacey.

"I feel sorry for anybody whose life is in the public arena. It's a nightmare, can you imagine? We do a job, we share (a performance) with viewers. Why does our private life have to be public? I hate that part of this industry. I'm talking about media. The exposure. It's an awful feeling," she said.

Wright, however, said she has not been in touch with Spacey since his exit from the series.

"He'll reach out when he's ready, I'm sure. I think that's the way it should go," she said.

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During the shooting of a documentary film on veteran journalist Kuldip Nayar, he had given complete freedom to the crew to showcase the journey of his life and exuded "overwhelming warmth", recalls its director.

Delhi-based filmmaker Meera Dewan, who helmed the film -- 'In his Inner Voice: Kuldip Nayar', commissioned by the Films Division, said, "Nayar sahab fully trusted us during the making of the project."



"He gave us complete freedom, to touch his books in the library, arrange and rearrange the papers lying on his desk, as we wanted or the setting we wanted to shoot him in. He obliged us during the filming in the most humble way," she told PTI.

A portion of the nearly hour-long documentary, completed earlier this year, was screened at the Press Club of India during a memorial meet held last Friday.

Dewan, who attended the meet, said, in the hindsight, it was a comforting feeling that "Nayar sahab saw the film and liked it".

"The premier had taken place at the IIC and the auditorium was jam-packed, people sat on the aisles. His instant reaction on seeing the turnout was -- 'How come so many people here?' Such was his humility," she said.

Ajmal Jami, veteran cameraman, who did the cinematography for the film recalled the ease with which he shot the film, thanks to the "trust" the eminent journalist and author had in the team.

"I have shot so many well-known personalities and multifarious subjects. But, in very few cases, the subject is such that the camera is able to gracefully capture the person filmed. In Nayar sahab's documentary the feeling that exuded from his side was of overwhelming warmth," he said.

Jami said the film draws a trajectory of life, from his birth in 1923 in Sialkot, Pakistan to the brunt of the partition his family suffered and also shines a light on his career as a journalist, his arrest during the Emergency and his works as an author.

"Lot of old, black and white footage and photographs have been used from the archival records, to portray the journey of his life. Besides, there are interviews of Nayar sahab, and few other eminent people," he said.

Nayar, a fierce crusader for press freedom and civil rights, died aged 95 on August 23.

Incidentally, in the film, he narrates a poetry, in which one of the lines read 'I had to sacrifice this life, for yet another span of life'.

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The strike by lawyers of Cuttack city entered the sixth day on Monday, hampering judicial activities in all courts, tribunals as well as Orissa High Court.

The lawyers are abstaining from judicial work in courts in Cuttack city as part of their agitation.

The lawyers are on strike over an alleged assault on an advocate by policemen here last Tuesday.

"Our agitation will continue till the erring policemen and a private person, against whom FIRs have been registered, are arrested," said Orissa High Court Bar Association president Srikant Kumar Naik after a general body meeting of the association here Monday afternoon.

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Some 400 prisoners escaped from a jail in the Libyan capital, authorities said, as recent fighting between rival militias that has killed dozens compelled the UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency in and around Tripoli.

The inmates overwhelmed guards and forced open the gates of the Ain Zara prison after riots broke out there, police said yesterday in a statement posted on Facebook.

The prisoners included many supporters of the late Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi who had been found guilty of killings during the 2011 uprising that ended his rule and plunged the country into chaos.

The fighting in Tripoli erupted last week when the Seventh Brigade, militias which hail from Tarhouna, a town about 40 miles (60 kilometers) south of Tripoli, attacked southern neighborhoods of the capital.

The Tripoli Revolutionaries' Brigades and the Nawasi Brigade, militias which support the UN-backed government, have come to the city's defence.

At least 47 people, including civilians, have since been killed, and another 130 have been wounded, the Health Ministry said.

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Libya, Maria Ribeiro, said the fighting has forced families to flee their homes and she voiced concern for the safety of internally displaced people, refugees and migrants in Tripoli.

Yusuf Jlala, the minister of state for displaced affairs, said the fighting has displaced more than 1,800 families in the Ain Zara neighborhood since the clashes began on August 27.

Many have taken shelter in schools or with relatives, while others have left the city, he told The Associated Press today.

Some families, he said, refused to leave city fearing that their properties would be looted. Most of those families are in need of food and drinking water, he said.

At least 1,000 families are expected to be displaced from the Abu Salim district in the coming days if the fighting escalates, he warned.

He said his ministry has received more than 2000 distress calls from residents in the capital over the past two days because of indiscriminate shelling.

Jlala said relief teams and paramedics have been attacked and ambulances looted amid the chaos in the city. Residents also described scenes of chaos.

"It is not safe to stay at home due to the shelling, and it is not safe to go outside as militias and criminals are wandering around the area, looting whatever they can get their hands on," said Salem Taleb, a 33-year-old resident of Ain Zara.

The government declared a state of emergency in and around Tripoli, saying the fighting is "an attempt to derail peaceful political transition" in the country.

The government said it "could not remain silent over the attacks on Tripoli and its suburbs, which is a violation of security in the capital and of citizens' safety."



UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the violence in and around Tripoli and called on all sides to abide by a UN-brokered cease-fire.

The UN mission in Libya called on "the various concerned parties" to meet tomorrow for an "urgent dialogue on the security situation" in Tripoli. It said a venue for the meeting will be announced later.

Libya is currently governed by rival authorities in Tripoli and the country's east, each of which are backed by an array of militias.

Other armed groups have carved out fiefdoms across the country, with many profiting from smuggling and extortion.

Elsewhere in Libya, a rocket fell on a camp for people displaced from the town of Tawergha, killing two and wounding 15 others, according to the municipal council.

A powerful militia from the nearby city of Misrata drove Tawergha's residents from their homes during the uprising, accusing them of siding with Gadhafi's forces, which had used the town as a staging ground for attacks on the city. Many have been living in makeshift camps since then.

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LIC Housing Finance will offer loans up to Rs 15 lakh at concessional rate of 8.5 per cent to customers in flood affected areas of Kerala.

Under the scheme, loan up to Rs 15 lakh will be extended for properties located in the flood affected areas of Kerala for the purpose of reconstruction, repair, renovation or up-gradation of dwelling units, the company said in a statement.

Announcing the plan Monday, LIC Housing Finance said 'Kerala Flood Scheme' will be offered at 8.5 per cent special rate of interest.

Customers can apply for loan till October 31.

Also as a relief for its existing customers, the company has decided not to levy any additional charges arising due to late payment of EMI for the month of August and September 2018, it said further.

All ancillary charges resulting from such late payments and recovery charges also have been waived till September 2018.

"We have sensitised our teams in the state to support the customers in every possible way. LIC Housing finance stands strong in support of Kerala and its people," said MD & CEO Vinay Sah.

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The Maharashtra police told a city court on Monday that former Shiv Sena corporator Shrikant Pangarkar, arrested in the arms haul case, was in touch with an accused who is in custody of their Karnataka counterparts in connection with a high-profile murder case.

According to sources, the said accused is Amol Kale, arrested in connection with the killing of Gauri Lankesh, a Bengaluru-based journalist, in September last year.

Pangarkar and three other accused in the arms haul case -- Sharad Kalaskar, Vaibhav Raut, Sudhanwa Gondhalekar -- were produced before Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Padalkar after their police remand ended.

The fifth accused Avinash Pawar is in ATS custody till Tuesday.

They were arrested last month by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in connection with the seizure of arms and ammunition from different parts of the state.

Seeking extension of Pangarkar's remand, the ATS told the court they had received a report from the Karnataka police that his name was found in a diary seized from an accused who is in their custody in connection with a high-profile murder case.

The anti-terror agency told the court that Pangarkar was using two mobile phones. One of them had certain text messages which showed his connection with the man who is in custody of the Karnataka police.

The ATS added that it also needs to find out whether the Karnataka accused attended an arms training camp allegedly run by Pangarkar in Jalna, his home district in central Maharashtra.

The court extended Pangarkar's police custody till September 6. It sent Raut and Gondhalekar to 14-day judicial custody after the ATS said their police remand was not required.

It also granted the custody of Kalaskar to the CBI for probing his alleged role in the killing of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar in 2013.

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The Emir of Kuwait is flying Monday to Washington where he will hold talks with President Donald Trump on several issues including trade and security cooperation.

Sheikh Sabah al-Ahmad al-Jaber al-Sabah is flying this Monday to the U.S. for a meeting with President Donald Trump, reported the Kuwait state-run news agency KUNA.

The two leaders will discuss trade, investment and security cooperation when they meet on Sept.5, the White House said in a statement Sunday.

The trip is taking place one year after the Kuwaiti rulers last Washington trip, at the heart of the ongoing diplomatic crisis between Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain and Egypt on one side and Qatar on the other side.

The Saudi-led quartet has cut off ties with Qatar over its alleged support for terrorism- charges vehemently rejected by Doha.

Kuwait, which remains consistent with its regional neutrality, has led mediation to defuse the diplomatic crisis.

The Trump Administration is pushing its allies in the Gulf region for the formation of a joint force known as the Middle East Strategic Alliance designed in part to counter Irans influence in the region and to shoulder more responsibility for the security of the region.
Home-grown auto major Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) today launched its new utility passenger vehicle Marazzo at a starting price of Rs 9.99 lakh, which will compete with segment leader Toyota Innova Crysta.

The vehicle has been developed from engineering collaboration between Mahindra Automotive North America (MANA), Detroit and Mahindra Research Valley (MRV) Chennai, and designed by Pininfarina, Italy and Mahindra Design Studio in Mumbai, according to M&M executive chairman Anand Mahindra.

"We have launched globally developed Marazzo for the Indian market," Mahindra told reporters here.

The company has spent around USD 200 million to develop this product, he said, adding it hopes to launch more luxury vehicles in collaboration with MANA, MRV and Pininfarina in the future.

The new vehicle will be manufactured at the company's Nashik facility, and besides Innova Crysta, will also be competing with other brands in the segment such as forthcoming second-gen Maruti Ertiga and Ranault Lodgy.

Replying to a query on the rising competition, Mahindra said, "We are not focused on market share but making sure our products are a hit."



Marazzo will be available at Mahindra dealerships across the country starting today, at a launch price of Rs 9.99 lakh (ex-showroom) for the M2 variant, and will go up to Rs 13.99 lakh for M8 top end model for a limited period, according to M&M managing director Pawan Goenka.

It will be available in four variants - M2, M4, M6, M8 - and in six colours Mariner Maroon, Poseidon Purple, Aqua Marine, Iceberg White, Oceanic Black and Shimmering Silver.

"The Marazzo turns a new leaf in Mahindra's evolution in the UV segment; it embodies Mahindra's new, increasingly global approach to product development. It will use nearly 10 per cent of imported components," said Goenka.

The vehicle is powered by a 1.5 litre, four-cylinder D15 diesel engine, and will come in seven and eight-seater options, with the seven-seater option offering captain seats in the second row.

Goenka said the company hopes to launch petrol version once the BS-VI gets implemented by 2020.

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West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee on Monday left for a three-day visit to Darjeeling hills where she is scheduled to take part at several meetings on development works and inaugurate a university, state secretariat sources said.

Banerjee is scheduled to hold an administrative review meeting with members of the Gorkhaland Territorial Administration (GTA) on Tuesday, the sources said.

On Wednesday, she will attend a programme to celebrate the Teachers' Day to be held at the Mall in Darjeeling.

Besides honouring teachers from the hills in that progarmme, the chief minister will be inaugurating the new university at Jogighat in Mungpoo, around 30 km from Darjeeling, the sources said.

Banerjee is likely to return to Kolkata on Thursday.

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A Ranchi-bound passenger was apprehended Monday by the CISF at the Delhi airport for allegedly carrying two live bullet rounds in his baggage, an official said.

A CISF official, deputed at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport to scan the baggage of commuters, detected bullet-like objects on the x-ray monitor on Sunday while checking the bag of passenger A K Sinha.

"Two live bullet rounds of 0.32 mm calibre were recovered from the passenger who was travelling to Ranchi," the official said.

The passenger was not allowed to take the flight and subsequently handed over to the police as he could not produce any documents for carrying the ammunition, the official said, adding the man was later booked under sections of the Arms Act.

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A 35-year-old man's hand was allegedly chopped off by members of a family when he went to their residence to enquire about his missing cow here, police said Monday.

The victim, Kallu Sahu, went Saturday evening to the home of Sattu Yadav in Pipalwali village, situated about 40 km from the district headquarters, in search of his missing cow, Sultanpur police station's Assistant Sub-Inspector Malkhan Singh Meena said.

However, a simple enquiry about the animal turned into a heated argument when Yadav did not give a satisfactory reply on the matter following which Sahu allegedly abused him, he said.

The enraged family members of Yadav then caught Sahu and tied him to a tree. They allegedly thrashed Sahu mercilessly, attacked him with a sword and chopped off one of his hands and caused severe injuries to the other, Meena said.

Sahu's kin rushed to the spot and freed him from captivity, he said, adding that they later admitted him to the community health centre at Sultanganj from where he was referred to a hospital in Bhopal.

Police registered a case in connection with the incident and arrested Yadav and his son on Sunday, Meena said.

A search was on for three others - Yadav's wife, his another son and a servant - who were also allegedly involved in the incident, he added.

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Taking a dig at Manipur University Vice-Chancellor AP Pandey, who ordered a ban on two associations at the institute, former Manipur Chief Minister O Ibobi Singh sought to know Monday if the HRD ministry was consulted before the issuance of the notification.

The senior Congress leader also asked Pandey to clarify if he has received orders to rejoin office as vice chancellor on September 1.

Pandey, who was sent on leave on August 2 over allegations of irregularities, issued a notice Saturday to announce that he has resumed his charges.

In the statement, he also said that "Manipur University Teachers Association (MUTA) and Manipur University Staff Association (MUSA) were hereby being banned with immediate effect as the Manipur University Act 2005 does not have provisions for existence of employees' bodies".

The students, teachers and staff members, who had been demanding the VC's removal for over three months now over alleged financial and administrative irregularities, threatened to intensify their protests Sunday if action was not taken against him.

The agitators had called off their 85-day-long agitation on August 23 after signing an agreement with the HRD ministry, which formed a fact-finding committee last month to look into their allegations.

The state government, too, had requested the agitators on several occasions to have faith in the HRD committee.

Ibobi told reporters Monday that both the state and the central governments have made a "mockery of the issue".

"When the institute was made a central university during the UPA rule, the then prime minister Manmohan Singh and former Congress president Sonia Gandhi assured the state that every burden will be borne by the Centre," he said.

In a related development, Assistant Registrar H Tonsin Marring wrote to Manipur DGP Sunday, asking him to ensure that no untoward incident takes place at the institute or its vicinity in view of the fresh threats issued by the agitators.

Academic activities resumed at Manipur university on August 24, following the suspension of the strike which lasted for almost three months.

In a statement, the protesters said Sunday that they would not allow Pandey to enter the university and claimed that the notification issued by him was "null and void".

No state government official, however, could be contacted for their reaction on the matter.

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Active presence on the social media is one of the eligibility criteria for the aspirants seeking to contest the upcoming Assembly polls in Madhya Pradesh on Congress tickets, a party functionary said Monday.

Madhya Pradesh is going to polls later this year along with Chhattisgarh and Rajasthan.

"It is essential for the candidates seeking nomination for the assembly polls to be active on the social media," state Congress' social media and IT president Abhay Tiwari told PTI.

He said the party won't consider the inactive aspirants eligible for tickets.

Explaining the logic behind this pre-condition, Tiwari said voters are active on the social media and can be accessed effectively through internet.

"The social media activity of ticket seekers will be gauged from their presence on Facebook, twitter and WhatsApp groups," he said.

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MTNL's plans to seek approval of shareholders for raising authorised share capital to Rs 10,000 crore and borrowing powers by almost 40 per cent will aid the state-owned corporation's 4G plans and provide it the firepower to compete in the market, its chairman P K Purwar has said.

At a time when the sector that has seen shuffling of the top deck with the recent completion of Vodafone and Idea Cellular merger, Mahanagar Telephone Nigam Ltd (MTNL) has lined up an annual general meeting on September 28 to raise the authorised share capital to Rs 10,000 crores from Rs 800 crores, as an enabling provision.

It has also sought shareholders' approval for raising the borrowing powers of the board to Rs 25,000 crore from the current Rs 18,000 crore, and issue of non-convertible debentures on private placement basis.

Much of this is being done in anticipation of 4G spectrum allocation by the government as and when it happens, Purwar said adding that increase in borrowing powers would be crucial to meet the capital expenditure needs for roll-out of such services.

All private operators that MTNL competes with in the market already have aggressive 4G offerings and, in fact, India is now making an compelling pitch to be a frontrunner in the global 5G space.

Once a household name, MTNL, which provides services in Delhi and Mumbai, has been relegated to a distant fourth operator in the market alongside Bharat Sanchar Nigam Ltd, another telecom PSU. The one billion subscribers-plus mobile market in India - incidentally world's second largest after China - is growing exponentially as private operators like Vodafone Idea Ltd (merged entity), Bharti Airtel and Reliance Jio compete fiercely to lure subscribers with rock-bottom data tariffs and attractive offers.

MTNL admits it should have "entered 4G services 1-1.5 years ago" but that non-availiblity of spectrum posed a roadblock.

"The market is changing significantly from 3G for 4G. So, we have submitted a prpopsal to the Telecom Department for allottment of 4G spectrum. The proposal is that spectrum should be given by the government as licensor, and, secondly, as a promoter (of MTNL) it (government) should render the support in terms of infusion of equity (in lieu of 4G spectrum allocated)," Purwar told PTI.

Hence the proposals being placed before MTNL shareholders later this month will be enabling provisions in anticipation of 4G plan execution.

"In case, government accepts our proposal, MTNL should be able to execute it. We have asked for 5MHz spectrum in Mumbai and 10 MHz in Delhi, the value of spectrum is Rs 8,600 crore...this requires issue of equity and so it is an enablement provision...the notice to shareholders mentions that this is subject to allotment of spectrum by the government," he said.

Similarly, the raising of borrowing powers would help the company tide over the capex needs involved in 4G roll-out.

"Once we get the 4G spectrum, investment will be required for services and capital expenditure to the tune of Rs 1,300-1,500 crore beyond the cost of spectrum. For that, we would like to utilise borrowing and are hence increasing the borrowing limits of MTNL," he said.

Even after the necessary approvals and grant of the spectrum, it will take almost 9-12 months for MTNL to roll out 4G network and commercial services to customers, he noted.

On the issue of non-convertible debentures (NCDs) on private placement, MTNL has said that approval of members is being sought to authorise the board "to offer or invite or invite subscriptions for government guaranteed/ unsecured/ listed/ redeemable non-convertible debentures in the nature of bonds (NCDs), in one or more series / tranches, aggregating up to Rs 5,500 crore on private placement basis..."



Today, most of MTNL's loans are from banks, which are expensive as compared to soverign guarantee bonds, Purwar explained.

"So we are asking Telecom Department and the Finance Ministry to provide us a window to raise bonds from the market on the strength of sovereign guarantee. If it comes through, then our cost of borrowings will decrease by almost one per cent, which will give us saving of Rs 50 crore annually, reducing MTNL's financial burden," Purwar added.

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The National Commission for Women (NCW) has asked the Assam DGP to update it about the status of a probe into the alleged abduction and gang rape of a woman in Nagaon district, an official said Monday.

The woman, in her twenties, was allegedly abducted, gang-raped, and dumped on a national highway in Nagaon district.

In a complaint filed with police last week, the woman had said she was riding pillion on a motorcycle driven by her male friend.

She had alleged they were waylaid and forcibly taken away by four men in their vehicle.

The four abductors raped her at Amoni near the Kalong river and abandoned her near a petrol pump on NH 37 after she passed out, police said.

An oil-tanker driver spotted her and informed police, who rushed to the spot and admitted her to the Nagaon civil hospital.

The woman is undergoing treatment for trauma and severe injuries in her private parts.

Taking suo motu cognisance of the case, the NCW has written to Assam Director General of Police Kuladhar Saikia to apprise it of the investigation and give feedback on the matter at the earliest, according to an NCW official.

An FIR has been registered under Sections 341 (wrongful restraint), 376D (gang rape), 324 (injuring with dangerous weapons), police had said earlier.

The two-wheeler in which she was travelling has been recovered.

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Even as Dahi Handi festival was celebrated with gaiety Monday, one Govinda (reveller) died and 121 others injured in separate incidents in Mumbai and suburbs, the police said.

In Thane district neighbouring Mumbai, 13 Govindas, including two children--one a 10-year-old and other 12-year-old--suffered injuries, a Region Disaster Management Cell (RDMC) official said.

He said the injured Govindas were admitted to different hospitals in Thane and Kalwa.

In Mumbai, Kush Khandare (20) suffered an epileptic attack when he climbed the first layer of a human pyramid in Dharavi in Central Mumbai this afternoon, police said.

He was taken to Sion Hospital where doctors declared him dead before admission, a senior police officer said.

The deceased was a resident of a chawl in Dharavi.

In separate incidents in the island city and suburbs, 121 Govindas suffered injuries, as per the reports received till 8 PM, the officer said.

He said 25 of the injured Govindas remain hospitalised while 91 were discharged after first aid.

The festival, which marks the birth of Lord Krishna, was celebrated with enthusiasm across Mumbai, including in areas like Ghatkopar, Dadar, Lalbaug and Bhandup.

The dahi handi ritual is part of the Janmashtami festival in Maharashtra, where youngsters (called Govindas), dressed in colourful attire, make human pyramid to reach an earthen pot containing buttermilk and suspended in mid-air, and break it.

Religious institutions, political leaders and Govinda mandals took part in the dahi handi celebrations which were marked by frequent chants of "Govinda aala re" (Govinda has come).

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Suspected Islamic State group jihadists shot dead a man as he emerged from prayers at a mosque north of Baghdad and wounded three others, police said on Monday.

The attack took place late Sunday in the village of Khanouka near Ash-Sharqat, one of the last areas retaken by government forces from IS last year, 100 kilometres (62 miles) north of the capital, a police officer said.

"The man, aged 80, had just finished praying (and was leaving the mosque) when the jihadists opened fire at him," the officer said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

"Three other people were wounded in the shooting," he added.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

According to the police officer, IS holdouts are still present in the hills of Khanouka and other mountainous and desert regions of Iraq.

Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi declared "victory" in December in the fight against IS, which seized nearly a third of the country in 2014.

But sleeper cells continue to launch attack from sparsely populated areas.

According to Hisham al-Hashemi, an expert on radical Islamist groups, about 2,000 IS jihadists are still active in Iraq.

The elusive leader of the jihadist group, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, called on Muslims to wage "jihad" in a purported new audio recording released on August 22.

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President Rodrigo Duterte of the Philippines started Sunday a four-day state visit to Israel for talks on bilateral cooperation with arms sales being part of the agenda.

Talks with Israeli authorities will revolve around defense and security, law enforcement, economic development, trade (and) investments and labor.

The Philippine leader is seeking to purchase Israels military equipment to offset reluctance by America and Canada to supply Manila with military hardware, over Dutertes war on crime and drug trafficking judged by human rights groups and UN watchdogs as brutal.

Around 5,000 Filipinos have died in the crackdown on alleged crime and drug trafficking. The crackdown started when the 73-year old President came to power in 2016. According to state figures,.over 50,000 have been arrested in the campaign.

Nearly 60 percent of Israels defense exports go to the Asia-Pacific region, according to Israeli defense ministry data.

Israel has already sold radar and anti-tank equipment worth $21 million to the Asian country since last year. Dutrete appears to fancy Israeli manufactured military equipment.

On the matter of arms, I said, do not buy from anyone except from Israel, he said in 2016.

Israeli rights groups have reportedly called on President Reuven Rivinand not to host Dutrete over the brutality of the clampdown campaign.

Dutrete in 2016 drew outarge after comparing himself to Adolf Hitler after saying that he would be happy to slaughter three million addicts as the Nazi leader slaughtered the Jews. He later apologized in face of the barrage of condemnation.
Cash and ornaments worth around Rs 45 lakh were stolen from a temple here in Maharashtra, a police official said Monday.

Six people, including a couple, have been arrested in connection with the theft, he said.

The accused broke open the rear door of the Gopal Krishna Temple, located in the city's Jambli Naka area, on the intervening night of Saturday and Sunday.

They decamped with ornaments and cash kept in a cupboard there, Additional Commissioner of Police (ACP) Satya Narayan told reporters here.

The theft came to light Sunday morning when the management of the temple opened the premises and found the valuables missing.

The accused also disconnected the CCTV installed in the premises, Narayan said.

However, police analysed footages of other CCTVs installed in the area outside the temple and on that basis, they managed to nab the main accused, Santosh Kamble (26), from Shil Phata in Diva township here on Sunday, he said.

The police later arrested the other five accused, including Kamble's wife, while they were planning to fled the city with the booty.

The police recovered ornaments and cash worth Rs 44.76 lakh, and also a car and an auto-rickshaw in which the accused were planning to escape, Narayan said.

Some of the ornaments, which were displayed before the media persons, were more than 150 years old, the police said, adding the temple management had kept all the valuables at the religious place instead of a bank locker.

Kamble was into scrap selling business near the temple and was well aware of the routine followed at the religious place, the police said.

The accused along with his wife Rekha Kamble (21) did a recce of the place before the offence.

The four others - Arun Chotelal Sonkar (19), Sahjad Nashibali Khan (25), Zulfikar Samiruddin Mansuri (22) and Aazad Mashukh Saha (19) - assisted in the theft, the ACP said.

The accused were booked under IPC sections 454, 457 (lurking house-trespass or house-breaking by night in order to commit offence) and 380 (theft), he said.

An inquiry was on to ascertain if the accused were involved in similar crimes earlier also, the police added.

To a question, Narayan said there is a police outpost at a stone's throw distance from the temple and that they will inquire into the role of the policemen on duty there at the time of the crime.

He said the booty recovered from the accused will be handed over to the temple management after completion of due legal procedures.

The police team which cracked the case has been given a reward of Rs 21,000, he added.

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Pacific leaders opened their annual diplomatic summit in Nauru Monday, but the ceremony was overshadowed by allegations that children of asylum-seekers on the tiny Pacific island have been traumatised by systemic abuse.

Nauru President Baron Waqa formally welcomed delegates to the 18-nation Pacific Islands Forum, saying the summit was a chance to demand the world take urgent action on global warming.

However, when the Nauruan leader faced a rare grilling from the media, questions centred on the plight of those detained on the remote island under an agreement with Australia.

A report released Monday said the mental health of asylum-seekers was buckling under the strain of indefinite detention, adding that "those who have seen this suffering say it is worse than anything they have seen, including in war zones."



"People are broken," said the report, co-authored by the Refugee Council of Australia and the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.

"Children as young as seven and 12 are experiencing repeated incidents of suicide attempts, dousing themselves in petrol, and becoming catatonic."



The report estimates there are 900 asylum-seekers on Nauru, including more than 100 children.

They are in Nauru as part of Canberra's tough immigration policy, which sees asylum-seekers who try to reach Australia by boat detained and processed in remote camps on Nauru and Papua New Guinea.

Psychiatrist Louise Newman said many children on Nauru -- the report estimates at least 30 -- were suffering from "traumatic withdrawal syndrome" because they could see no end to their plight.

"(It) is found in children exposed to ongoing trauma where they feel hopeless and helpless, resulting in a giving up on engagement with the world," she said.

Waqa said he had seen no evidence of mental health syndromes among refugee children.

"They're living among us and running their lives just like any other Nauruans," he said.

"They're provided all the services that are provided to Nauruans and we live together very happily."



The summit will continue until Thursday, with delegates expected to issue a communique calling for action on climate change.

The Pacific is on the frontlines of the issue, with some island nations fearing they will be swallowed by rising seas and others repeatedly lashed by fierce storms that grow more intense as the weather changes.

"Climate change is already here, it's not just coming in the future," Waqa told reporters.

"We're working extremely hard, especially the small island states, to advocate to the world that something has to be done right away."



Other issues on the agenda include regional security, fighting obesity in the world's fattest region and China's rising influence in the region.

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Police in Pakistan claimed to have thwarted a terrorist attack planned on the upcoming Defence Day and said on Monday they have arrested three Islamic State militants in Punjab province.

Muhammad Iqbal, Usman Zia and Hasnain Muavia had plans to target an event on the Defence Day in Multan on Thursday, the Counter Terrorism Department (CTD) of Punjab police said.

On the Defence Day, Pakistan marks the anniversary of the 1965 war with India by holding nationwide ceremonies and special prayers.

A CTD official said that the three terrorists were arrested during a raid near Basti Shorkot in Multan, some 350 kms from here.

"The CTD personnel acting on intelligence information raided a house on the outskirts of Multan city and arrested the three suspects.

"Four hand grenades, explosive material and other weapons have also been recovered from their possesision," he said.

The arrested terrorists belong to the Islamic State (also known as ISIS or ISIL) terror group.

A case under terrorism charges has been registered and the suspects have been shifted to an undisclosed place for interrogation.

Last month, the security agencies had arrested two ISIS terrorists from Multan. They had plans to bomb the buildings that house offices of Inter-Services Intelligence and Intelligence Bureau in Multan.

The Pakistani government often claims that there is no presence of ISIS in the country but at times the security agencies arrest suspects belonging to the dreaded terror group.

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Pakistan's Supreme Court was on Monday informed that Pakistanis own properties and assets worth a whopping $150 billion in the United Arab Emirates.

A report compiled by chartered accountancy firm A F Ferguson was submitted by Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in the court during the hearing of a case pertaining to the properties of Pakistanis in foreign countries.

Chief Justice of Mian Saqib Nisar expressed surprise over the massive amount still parked abroad despite the amnesty scheme by the previous government which allowed declaration of the undocumented assets by paying a meagre 5 per cent tax.

State Bank of (SBP) Governor Tariq Bajwa told the court about a separate list of 225 Pakistani nationals who have properties in London.

Notices have been issued to the 125 people who have assets in the UAE, Bajwa was quoted as saying in a local media report.

He said measures were being taken to recover the funds held abroad with the help of FIA, the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and other agencies.

Expressing dissatisfaction on the progress of the case, the chief justice asked the attorney general Mansoor Ali Khan about the measures being taken by the new government to bring the money stashed abroad.

Khan assured the court that the new government was serious and a task force has been constituted under Prime Minister Imran Khan to address the issues.

Noting that most of the amount was looted, Justice Umar Ata Bandial inquired why the authorities had not taken stern action against the individuals, The Express Tribune reported.

These individuals should be penalised for hiding the money, he said while addressing Chairman FBR Mohammad Jahanzeib Khan, the report said.

Later, the court adjourned the hearing till September 5 after the attorney general said that he will meet the prime minister to discuss the measures and inform the court.
The opposition Congress tapped the popular festival of 'Dahi Handi' being celebrated Monday in Maharashtra to protest against the alleged 'sins' of the BJP-led governments in the state and at the Centre.

Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan broke a 'dahi handi' (an earthen pot), symbolising the alleged 'sins' of the two governments, while leading the protest at Karad here in the state.

Party leaders and activists carried banners, having a message that the handi of government's "sins" has got filled to the brim.

"Now people will break the dahi handi of sins of this government in 2019," Chavan said.

Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and ex-state ministers Balasaheb Throat and Harshvardhan Patil also took part in the demonstration and shouted slogans against the two governments.

'Dahi Handi' is a ritual observed during 'Janmashtami', wherein young boys and girls form a human pyramid and one of them climbs on top of it to break the earthen pot carrying curd, symbolising victory through unity.

The Congress' protest is part of the first phase of its 'Jan Sangharsh Yatra', a public outreach exercise to highlight the alleged failures of the governments at the Centre and in Maharashtra, ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

The outreach programme was launched Friday in Kolhapur and it will culminate in Pune on September 8.

The Congress intends to carry out similar drives in North Maharashtra (beginning October 2), Marathwada, Vidarbha and Konkan, including Mumbai.

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Philippine leader Rodrigo Duterte has apologised to former US president Barack Obama for calling him a "son of a whore" in 2016, which sparked a new low in their nations' long alliance.

Duterte lobbed the insult in response to steady criticism from the United States over his violent drug crackdown, which has been a target for international condemnation.

However, the Philippine president said his nation's relationship with America has since improved under President Donald Trump, who he described as a "good friend" who "speaks my language".

"It would be appropriate also to say at this time to Mr. Obama that you are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words," Duterte said Sunday in a speech before Filipinos in Israel.

Duterte landed in Israel on Sunday for a four-day stay as the Philippines seeks to develop new sources of military hardware and nail down protections for its overseas workers.

"If it is (in) your heart to forgive, you forgive. I have forgiven you, just like my girlfriends when I was still a bachelor... I have forgiven them also," the Philippine leader said in the same speech.

After his election in mid-2016, Duterte quickly earned a reputation for using vulgar language against critics which his aides have tried to minimise or explain away.

He branded Pope Francis and the then US ambassador to Manila "sons of whores". He also fired expletives at the United Nations and during a speech in the Philippines raised his middle finger in defiance to the European parliament.

Duterte often rails at critics of his campaign to rid the Philippines of narcotics, which police say has killed 4,410 alleged drug dealers or users.

Rights groups say the actual number of dead is triple that and could amount to crimes against humanity.

Duterte cursed Obama ahead of a regional summit in Laos two years ago prompting the US to cancel a meeting between the two leaders there.

Obama later described Duterte as "a colourful guy" as he urged him to conduct his anti-narcotics campaign "the right way".

Duterte sparked new criticism ahead of his departure for Israel, blaming the high number of rapes in his hometown of Davao on the large number of beautiful women there.

"They say there are many rape cases in Davao," Duterte said in a speech on Thursday. "For as long as there are many beautiful women, there will be many rape cases, too." Duterte has on several occasions made rape jokes in public since his presidential campaign.

The latest comment was denounced by women's rights defenders.

"Beauty doesn't cause rape, rapists do," said Philippine lawmaker Risa Hontiveros, a Duterte critic.

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French children who are going back to school today after summer vacation will have to do so without their mobile phones.

The government passed a law banning phone use in all primary and middle schools for the entire day, including during breaks with exceptions in cases of emergency and for disabled children.

Pupils are requested to shut down their mobiles or put them in a locker.

High schools can also voluntarily implement the measure.

Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer said it aims to help children focus on lessons, better socialize and reduce social media use. The ban is also designed to fight online bullying, and prevent thefts and violence in school.

The law allows teachers to confiscate phones until the end of the day in cases of non-compliance.

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The birth of Lord Krishna was rung in with religious fervour and gaiety across the country on Monday as devotees thronged temples, while in Maharashtra 'dahi handi' celebrations on the occasion saw enthusiastic participation by youngsters.

In Mathura, which according to mythology, is the birthplace of Lord Krishna, lakhs of pilgrims paid obeisance at major temples amid tight security.

According to the secretary of Sri Krishna Janmasthan, Kapil Sharma, nearly 20 lakh pilgrims paid obeisance at temples in Mathura, Vrindaban, Barsana, Govardhan, Nandgaon, Baldeo, Mahaban and Gokul.

Vrindaban was the centre of attraction for pilgrims in the noon, where the festival was celebrated in three major temples -- Radha Raman temple, Radha Damodar temple and Shah Ji temple.

In Maharashtra, 'dahi handi' ritual is part of Janmashtami festival, where youngsters (called Govindas), dressed in colourful attire, make human pyramid to reach an earthen pot containing buttermilk suspended mid-air, and try to break it.

Religious institutions, political leaders and Govinda mandals took part in the 'dahi handi' celebrations which were marked by frequent chants of "Govinda aala re" (Govinda has come). Several organisers roped in celebrities to pull crowd to their 'dahi handi' events.

The celebrations were held amid strict vigil by the Mumbai police who were out on roads to ensure compliance to the Bombay High Court's order on the age of participating Govindas (they should not be below 14), insurance for them, and the height of the human pyramid.

The Disaster Management Cell of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) remained alert to deal with any eventuality, while hospitals were asked to keep medical staff on standby. In the past, several Govindas were injured after falling off human pyramids.

President Ramnath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi took to Twitter to extend their greetings to the nation on the occasion.

"Greetings and good wishes to fellow citizens on the auspicious occasion of Janmashtami. The teachings of Lord Krishna have a universal message - Nishkam Karma. May this festival inspire us to follow the path of virtue and righteousness in thought, word and deed #PresidentKovind," a tweet by the president read.

Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Bollywood megastar Amitabh Bachchan also wished people on the occasion through Twitter posts.

In rain-soaked Delhi, thousands of devotees thronged temples to offer prayers to Lord Krishna.

Famous Krishna temples in the national capital -- Laxmi Narayan Mandir, ISKCON temple, Amar Colony, Krishna Pranami Mandir, Hare Krishna Mandir among others -- were specially decorated for the festival.

Colourful tableaux depicting the story of Lord Krishna's birth were put on exhibition. In several residential complexes, cultural groups displayed special 'Jhankis' of Lord Krishna.

In Rajasthan, people thronged famous temples like Govind Devji temple in Jaipur among others since early morning.

Elaborate arrangements for security and crowd management were made at the Govind Devji temple which is the centre of attraction among the devotees, police said.

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Underling Cyprus' contribution to India's economic growth, President Ram Nath Kovind today invited the businesses in the Mediterranean nation to invest in the country in the areas of digitalisation, Smart Cities, infrastructure and tourism.

Cyprus is the eighth largest investor in India and bilateral trade stands at around USD 8.2 billion.

During his address to the House of Representatives of Cyprus, the President said India is at an exciting juncture and offers appealing business opportunities.

He said massive outlays and attractive and viable projects are evident in the Digital India mission, Smart Cities mission and in key infrastructure sectors such as power and energy, highways, and ports and shipping.

India is also promoting tourism in a big manner, including by way of simplifying visa provisions and augmenting infrastructure and facilities, Kovind said.

"In all these areas, we look to Cyprus for partnership. You can come as investors and you can come as stake-holders, you can come to buy or to sell, you can come with your expertise and you can come with your brands and your skills," he said.

"India is open for business - and India is open for Cyprus," Kovind added.

The President said India's overriding mission is its economic growth and modernisation and "Cyprus, as a trusted partner and as one of the largest investors in India, is critical to this process".

Hailing Cyprus as a responsible country, Kovind also thanked the island nation for its unstinted backing of India's candidature for expanded UN Security Council and the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).

India along with Brazil, Germany and Japan -- which constitutes the G-4 grouping -- has been seeking expansion of the permanent seats of the UNSC to make the powerful UN body more representative and reflective of the changing global order.

India is also mounting strong bid for admission to the NSG, an elite club of 48 countries that deal with fissile materials and nuclear technology.

"As responsible nation-states, both Cyprus and India are alive to the challenges in the international system...The salience of national sovereignty and the essential need to defeat radicalism and terrorism unites us," the President said during his address to the House of Representatives of Cyprus.

He further said India is counting on Cyprus' support for finalising the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism at the United Nations.

"I would also like to thank Cyprus for its unstinted backing of India's candidature for an expanded UN Security Council as well as for the Nuclear Suppliers' Group," Kovind said.

Noting that both the countries share issues of common concern and are committed to peace, security and sovereignty, he said, "Inevitably we find ourselves on the same side. In fact, there are hardly any major issues on which Cyprus and India disagree."



Shortly before his address to the Cypriot parliament, the President paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi's bust and Archbishop Makarios's statute at its premise. Archbishop Makarios is Cyprus' first president.

Earlier in the day, Kovind and his Cypriot counterpart Nicos Anastasiades signed two agreements on combating money laundering and cooperation in the field of environment.

The President is in Cyprus on the first leg of his eight-day three-nation visit to Europe to continue India's high-level engagements with European countries.

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Reporters Without Borders called Monday on Myanmar's leader Aung San Suu Kyi to free two Reuters journalists jailed for seven years in a case seen as a major blow for press freedom.

In a statement the Paris-based media rights watchdog condemned the sentencing of Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, as a "dark day for press freedom in Myanmar."



"This grossly unfair ruling, coming at the end of a sham trial, clearly calls into question Myanmar's democratic transition," the watchdog's secretary general Christophe Deloire said in a statement in French.

"The justice system clearly being at the beck and call (of the government) in this affair, we call on the highest authorities in the land, starting with the head of government Aung San Suu Kyi, to free these journalists, whose only crime was to do their job", he added.

The case of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo has sparked an outcry among the international community, being seen as an attempt to muzzle reporting on last year's crackdown by Myanmar's security forces on the Rohingya Muslim minority in Rakhine State.

The two were accused of breaching state secrets law while reporting on the extrajudicial killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in a Rakhine village.

Reporters Without Borders ranks Myanmar 137th out of 180 countries in its 2018 press freedom index.

Deloire specifically took aim at Suu Kyi, who has dismayed many longtime foreign supporters by failing to criticise the military's anti-Rohingya campaign.

"The Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi backs up the massacres and now backs up the oppression of the press," he tweeted in English.

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: The Travancore Devaswom Board Monday dismissed as "impractical" the proposal to regulate flow of devotees at the famed Lord Ayyappa temple in Sabarimala by implementing mandatory online booking.

A suggestion was made to intervene into the age-old customs and rituals of the hill shrine and the TDB, which manages the temple, will not allow that at any cost, a top official said.

Pampa, the base station from where pilgrims trek to the temple atop Sabarimala, had suffered massive destruction in the deluge.

There were reports that the police department had recently submitted a proposal to the state government to implement the virtual queue system, in view of the post-flood situation in Pampa.

TDB president A Padmakumar said efforts are being made on a war-footing to restore the basic infrastructure on the banks of Pampa, which had been washed away in the floods, but there was no need to regulate the flow of pilgrims.

The TDB has decided to go for complete eco-friendly development, sans any concrete structures on the banks of the River Pampa, in view of the devastation.

"There are proposals to make online booking mandatory for Ayyappa devotees in Sabarimala on the lines of Tirumala shrine in Tirupati," Padmakumar told PTI.

But that Tirupati model is difficult and impractical to implement in Sabarimala because of its peculiarities and unique circumstances, he said.

Padmakumar said he was also against charging money for the darshan under the online system to regulate the high inflow of pilgrims.

"The suggestion is to regulate the number of pilgrims to 20,000 to 30,000 a day. Over 4 lakh people visited Sabarimala on a single day during the last Makaravilakku season. How can the so-called restriction be practical in our temple?" the official asked.

Padmakumar also made it clear that TDB is the final authority in taking decisions regarding Sabarimala temple.

"We will not let others to intervene in the temple affairs. But, the Board is ready to cooperate with any practical suggestions to make the darshan more smooth without hurting the sentiments of pilgrims," the TDB head added.

He also said the police could regulate the number of pilgrims at the Pampa and Nilackal, the base stations on the foothills, during the peak days of pilgrimage and ensure better crowd monitoring.

Meanwhile, the TDB recently constructed a temporary footbridge 'Ayyappa Sethu,' across river Pampa by placing stones and sand sacks.

The Pampa-Triveni bridge-over-river, which got submerged in the floods was restored yesterday.

The Pampa river had breached its banks at several places, submerging many shops, damaging buildings, flooding pathways and uprooting electricity posts.

The toilet complex and parking facilities were washed away. A pump house and hospital building were also damaged.

The state government had decided to appoint a senior IAS official as special officer to coordinate infrastructure development works at Pampa.

It has also decided to rope in an expert agency to carry out a study on infrastructure development to be taken up in the region and to start construction work on a war-footing.

The objective was to reinstate basic infrastructure facilities before the beginning of the three-month-long annual pilgrimage season beginning this November.

The government had already decided to entrust with the Army construction of three bailey bridges at Pampa before the pilgrimage season.

The total loss and damage caused by the floods in Pampa was estimated to be Rs 100 crore.

The Lord Ayyappa shrine attracts lakhs of devotees from across the country and abroad during the annual Mandalam-Makaravillaku pilgrimage season in November-January.

Over 480 people lost lives in the state since the onset of the monsoon on May 28 apart from massive damage to property and infrastructure.

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The public meeting organised by ruling TRS in Telangana to present its report card to people was a "flop" and Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao skipped key election promises in his speech, the opposition Congress and BJP alleged Monday.

"The 'Pragati Nivedana Sabha' (meeting to report progress) of TRS yesterday was an utter flop show... A hype was created by spending hundreds of crores that people would come in huge numbers. People were warned to alter their travel plans. In the end, it left KCR (Rao) disappointed," state BJP president K Laxman told reporters.

The ruling party indulged in "misuse of power" for the meeting, he alleged.

Rao's speech was disappointing and he did not talk about crucial election promises like two bed room houses for poor, jobs for unemployed youth and hike in reservation for STs, the BJP leader claimed.

He took exception to Rao's comments on how he questioned Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the issue of Centre giving approval to the new Zonal system (concerning government employment) in Telangana.

Alleging "misuse of power and public money" for the past one week in the run up to the public meeting, Congress leader and former MP Ponnam Prabhakar sought to know why Rao did not raise promises, including reservation for Muslims and STs, with the Prime Minister.

TDP's Telangana unit president L Ramana claimed that the ruling party has failed to respond to issues concerning farmers and employment.

Dismissing the opposition criticism, Animal Husbandry Minister T Srinivas Yadav said Congress did not address issues like drinking water and electricity though it was in power for long.

It is the TRS government which is giving 24x7 free power to farmers, he claimed.

In the meeting yesterday, Rao spoke on various development and welfare initiatives of his government and asserted that the public again wanted TRS government in the state.

He had sought their support to continue the welfare and developmental works undertaken by the government.

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Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi today urged his Afghan counterpart to provide proper security to the country's consulate in Jalalabad so that it can resume its operation at the earliest.

Pakistan has temporarily closed the consulate in Afghanistan, citing lack of security and accusing authorities of interfering in the work of the diplomatic facility.

During a telephonic conversation with Afghanistan Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani, Qureshi "requested the Afghan government for restoring the previous security arrangements" which was in place till August 28, "so that the Consulate General's normal functioning could be resumed at the earliest, a Foreign Office (FO) statement said.

Rabbani assured a positive outcome in this regard, it said.

Qureshi said till resolution of the issue, Pakistan would continue issuing visas to patients or students residing in the jurisdiction of the Consulate as an emergency measure.

Rabbani also said he look forward to strengthen Pak-Afghan bilateral relations.

Both sides appreciated recent improvement in relations since the launch of Afghanistan-Pakistan Action Plan for Peace and Solidarity (APAPPS) process in May.

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Congress MP from Assam Gaurav Gogoi said Monday that the Rafale deal is a sordid saga of compromising national security and "stealing" of taxpayers' money.

The son of former Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi said that the mega defence deal was originally signed with Dassault Aviation of France during the previous UPA government but the earlier terms were violated when Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited the European country in 2015.



The previous deal included purchase of 126 fighter aircraft to thwart any external aggression against the country and the number was arrived at after due consideration and assessment by the Defence Ministry and the forces.

The deal also included cost of initial purchase, transfer of technology and licensed production, Gogoi said at a press conference here.

However, in violation of the original deal, Modi settled for a purchase of just 36 aircraft and that too at a much higher price, he said.

Terming it as a "unique scam", Gogoi said that the price of each jet was Rs 526 crore and that 18 jets out of the total 126 were to be bought immediately and the remaining was to be manufactured in the country with the Public Sector undertaking - Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL).

He alleged that the deal was re-negotiated without prior consent from the Defence Ministry and the Foreign Ministry and that only 36 fighter jets were to be purchased for Rs 1,600 crore, a huge hike in prices.

"The Rafale jets were also sold to Egypt and Qatar at a much lesser price and that the country had to endure a loss of Rs 350.9 crore for each aircraft and Rs 12,632 crore for the total 36 aircraft purchased," he said.

Modi also bypassed HAL and gave the technology knowhow to a private company which has no prior experience in manufacturing fighter aircraft. He further claimed that the company was opened just 10 days prior to Modi's visit to France.

This was a blow to the country's defence as HAL was highly experienced and would have benefited from the technological know-how and designing of high power jets.

He said that ever since Congress president Rahul Gandhi took up the issue, the NDA government has been trying to deflect the attention and started intimidating the opposition.

The private company is even serving legal notices to Congress MPs, referring to the defence offset contract that went to Reliance Defence led by Anil Ambani.

He also said the re-negotiated deal is tantamount to looting of the taxpayers' money and betrayal of the Indian Defence Forces.

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Reliance Infrastructure today said it has paid all outstanding electricity duty and other taxes amounting to Rs 2,640 crore to the Maharashtra government last week on closure of deal to sell its integrated Mumbai power distribution business to Adani Transmission Ltd.

"Reliance Infrastructure has reduced debt liabilities by Rs 13,800 crore from the deal proceeds. Regulatory Assets under approval of Rs 5,000 crore will flow entirely to Reliance Infrastructure making the company debt-free in 2019,' the company said in a BSE filing.

This was the largest ever debt reduction for any company in the Indian power sector, the company said, adding that with this deal, it is set to achieve top-end ratings.

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The RSS and its allied organisations will start a mass movement for environmental awareness and water conservation in the country, a senior Sangh functionary said on Monday.

"Discussions on starting such a movement were held during the Sangh's three-day all India coordination meeting which concluded on Sunday at the Raghavendra Swamy Mutt here," RSS Joint General Secretary Manmohan Vaidya told PTI.

The meeting was attended by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat and BJPpresident Amit Shah.

"During the meeting, it was felt that there is a need to spread awareness about water conservation, and minimizing plastic waste," Vaidya said.

"Various organisations which are part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) family are already working in this direction. And there is a need to make it a movement by taking the society together," he said.

The issues related to the and how it can be conserved will now also be discussed in RSS shakhas, he said.

The coordination meeting was attended by all executivemembers of theRSSand national office-bearers of its affiliated organisations, Vaidya said.

Around 200 workers attended the meeting and shared their experiences, views and discussed contemporary issues.

The top brass of the RSS also complimented the relief work carried out by its cadres in flood-affected Kerala.

"There was no specific agenda of the meeting. It was a coordination meeting which takes place twice a year - in September and January," Vaidya said.

No specific decisions are taken in this meet.

This time, the meeting was organised at Raghavendra Mutt on the coast of river Tungbhadra, and was also addressed by its head,Swami Subudhendra Teertha.

The Sangh had earlier given indications that it may invite leaders from across the political spectrum to attend a three-day lecture series of Bhagwat later this month.

There were reports that it may invite Congress chief Rahul Gandhi to the programme.

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SBI, LIC Housing Finance and Muthoot Home Monday offered loans at concessional rate for repairing and renovation of homes to help people in flood-affected Kerala.

State Bank of India (SBI) said it will offer the special term loan at 8.45 per cent for borrowings up to Rs 10 lakh for repair and renovation of homes for flood-affected victims in Kerala.

The bank will levy no processing fee on such loans.

The special rate will be applicable for home loan applications for repair and renovation submitted on or before November 30, 2018, SBI said.

LIC Housing Finance will offer loans up to Rs 15 lakh at a concessional rate of 8.5 per cent under Kerala Flood Scheme.

Under the scheme loan up to Rs 15 lakhs will be extended for properties located in the flood affected areas of Kerala for the purpose of reconstruction, repair, renovation or up-gradation of dwelling units, LIC Housing Finance said in a statement.

Customers can apply for loan till October 31.

Also as a relief for its existing customers, the company has decided not to levy any additional charges arising due to late payment of EMI for the month of August and September 2018, it said further.

All ancillary charges resulting from such late payments and recovery charges also have been waived till September 2018.

Muthoot HomeFin, subsidiary of Muthoot Finance, under its Punarnirman Kerala, will offer special loans for the renovation and reconstruction of houses in the flood affected areas.

The loans up to Rs 10 lakh will be processed with easy documentation and for longer tenure, the company said.

The scheme is valid till December 31, 2018. The maximum loan term shall be for a period of 20 years, Muthoot HomeFin said.

PMAY (Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana ) subsidy is also available for eligible cases, it added.

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Responding to Singapore government's initiative for making it "easy lifestyle" for construction workers at dormitories, the State Bank of India has set up a remittance centre in the suburb Punggol district.

"This is in line with the Singapore government's initiative of providing doorstep facilities for the workers living in dormitories," Soma Sankara Prasad, SBI's Country Head, told PTI after opening the centre on Sunday.

Construction and marine industry workers can remit to their homes in India and Bangladesh in rupee and taka, respectively, he said. The centre will operate late in the night.

The centre was opened by India's High Commissioner to Singapore, Jawed Ashraf, on Sunday.

This reduces the worker's time to travel to main banks and branches in city areas, he pointed out.

Depending on demand for the centre, SBI plans to open more outlets serving the South Asian workers. These centres will be in addition to the 25 ATMs and branches SBI is allowed as a full qualifying bank by the Monetary Authority of Singapore.

Rupee remittance was about SGD856 million as end of last year. Thirty-five per cent of the 285,000 construction workers in Singapore are from India.

Rupee remittances have been becoming easier with online transactions and the spread of remittance points in Singapore.

The multiple modes of money transfers include Rupee Remittance App for Rupay-NETS which was launched by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on May 31, 2018, during his visit to Singapore.

Thirty banks in India will be managing the UPI Rupay-NETS (Singapore's Network for Electronic Transfers) by end of this month, according to Prasad. It is currently handled by 10 banks.

He also noted the success of Jan Dhan programme with all Indian workers here holding accounts, which makes it much easier for remittances.

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The principal of a residential school in Gujarat's Narmada district has been arrested on charges of molesting girl students, police said Monday.

Four girls, in the age group of 14 to 17 years, alleged that the principal, Harshad Patel (36), molested them on several occasions in the recent past, Assistant Superintendent of Police Achal Tyagi said.

Based on a complaint filed by one of the students of the government-funded school, located in Garudeshwar town, Patel was arrested Saturday, he said.

He was booked under IPC section 354 (assault or criminal force on woman with an intent to outrage her modesty) and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The incident came to light on Saturday when an unidentified person called the women's helpline number '181', alleging that the principal had been molesting girl students at the school.

When police along with officials of the helpline talked to girls at the school, it came to light that Patel had allegedly been molesting students for the last some months, Tyagi said.

The principal had also called some of the victims to his house and touched them inappropriately, he said.

"During the counselling, at least four girls told us that they were molested by Patel. They even claimed that few students who had left the school were also physically exploited by the principal. We have made one of the girls as complainant in the case and arrested Patel," Tyagi said.

Meanwhile, the accused was produced Sunday before a local court which remanded him in police custody for five days, Tyagi added.

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UN-backed Presidential Council (PC) of Prime Minister Faiez Serraj has declared the state of emergency in the Libyan capital, Tripoli, turned into a battle field between militias since last week.

Tripoli and its surroundings have witnessed sporadic fighting between powerful militias aligned with the PC. The fighting, according to the ministry of health controlled by the UN, has killed over 30 persons, and injured at least 100 people.

The clashes, which occurred in the capital and its suburbs, have affected oil facilities and forced the Government of National Accord (GNA) to close Mitiga airport after some rockets were fired in its direction, reports say.

The clashes erupted after militias from the city of Tarhouna located to the south of the Libyan capital, attacked other militia groups on the outskirts of Tripoli.

Efforts by the UN to establish a ceasefire have turned fruitless.

Saturday, the United States, France, Britain as well as Italy issued a joint statement condemning the clashes which, they said, weaken the PC.

These attempts to weaken the legitimate Libyan authorities and hinder the ongoing political process are not acceptable, Washington, Paris, Rome and London said in the joint statement.

We are calling on the armed groups to immediately stop all military action and warn those who seek to undermine stability, in Tripoli or elsewhere in Libya, that they will be made accountable for it, the statement said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on his part condemned the escalation of violence in and around Tripoli and called on all parties to immediately cease hostilities and grant humanitarian relief to those in need.

In a statement issued by his spokesperson, Secretary-General Guterres raised particular alarm over the use of indiscriminate shelling by armed groups leading to the death and injury of civilians, including children.

In the statement, the UN chief also called on all parties to abide by the ceasefire agreement brokered by the UN and the Reconciliation Committees.

It added that Ghassan Salame, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Libya will continue to offer good offices and work with all parties to reach a lasting political agreement acceptable to all to avoid further loss of lives and for the benefit of the people of the country.

Turkey also on Sunday voiced concern over the clashes. The Turkish foreign ministry said it supports all ceasefire efforts seeking to restore peace and security in Tripoli.
An Army team Monday searched the Dikhow river for the five members of a family who went missing after their vehicle fell into the river in Sivsagar district, a Defence release said.

A team of 14 divers of Army Special Forces unit under the Spear Corps based at Dimapur in Nagaland started the search operation in the early hours on Monday, it said.

Personnel of National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and local villagers are also assisting the Army in the search operation at Dechial village in Sivasagar District.

"The search could not locate the car due to difficult conditions posed to divers", it added.

Heavy current of the river was hampering the rescue personnel to locate the exact area where the vehicle fell into the river, sources said.

An eight-member team of Indian Navy with their special equipment have also arrived from Vishakapatnam on the request of the state government to search for the missing five-member family, official sources said.

Five members of a family are missing after their vehicle fell into a river in Sivasagar district of upper Assam Saturday evening.

The family was travelling from Sivasagar to Guwahati when their vehicle plunged into the Dikhow river after breaking a dyke at Gaurisagar Dikhowmukh, the sources said.

They five were identified as Haren Bora, his wife Phunu Bora, daughters Simpi Bora and Munmi Bora, and mother Ponou Bora.

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Search operations by Army, NDRF and SDRF teams continued Monday for five members of a family who went missing after their vehicle fell into the Dikhow river in Assam's Sivsagar district, officials said.

The search teams are yet to locate the car or its occupants because of the strong undercurrent in Dikhow river which is on a spate and muddy water was blocking the vision of the divers under water, a state government release said.

Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has spoken to the Prime Minister's office and the Union Home Ministry regarding the search and rescue operation of the missing family, the release said Monday.

The chief minister has also taken up the matter with National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the Defence Ministry for help, it said.

A total of 32 deep divers are engaged in the rescue operation. Divers are going as deep as 40 ft in some areas and ten boats have been pressed into service, it said.

The search teams include three teams from the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), six teams from the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), one each from Dibrugarh and Sivasagar, apart from one team from the Para Commando of the Indian Army.

A team of eight Indian Navy divers with equipment from Visakhapatnam will be joining shortly in the search operation, the release said.

Five members of a family are missing after their vehicle fell into a river in Sivasagar district of upper Assam Saturday evening.

The family was travelling from Sivasagar to Guwahati when their vehicle plunged into the Dikhow river after breaking a dyke at Gaurisagar Dikhowmukh, the sources said.

They five were identified as Haren Bora, his wife Phunu Bora, daughters Simpi Bora and Munmi Bora, and mother Ponou Bora.

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Separatists in Kashmir on Monday called for a boycott of panchayat and urban local bodies polls scheduled to be held from next month.

A statement in this regard was issued after a meeting of the so called Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) comprising separatists Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik at Geelani's residence in Hyderpora.

It alleged that the Centre wants to thrust and enforce panchayat and municipal elections upon the people of Kashmir and that "New Delhi has never believed in empowering the people of J&K or the institutions here".

Elections have "only been a means" to further strengthen "New Delhi's hold on J&K", the statement alleged.

Despite similar boycott calls by separatists, Jammu and Kashmir registered its highest voter turn-out in 2014 assembly elections in the last 25 years with an estimated 65 per cent of electorate casting their votes.

The last panchayat elections in the state were held in April-May 2011 with a record voter turnout of 80 per cent.

The panchayat elections were scheduled to be held in 2016 but were put off due to unrest in the Valley after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani.

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The Congress in Telangana Monday claimed that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao may have dropped his plans to go for early Assembly elections in the state after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Election Commission (EC) did not back his idea.

There has been speculation in recent days that Rao may recommend dissolution of the Assembly, favouring clubbing of the state elections along with that in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram later this year.

But, yesterday, keeping the suspense alive, the Chief Minister had said he has been authorised by the party to take a final call on the issue.

Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee chief spokesperson Sravan Dasoju said, "on early polls, Modi and EC have not given him (Rao) permission. As a result of that, he has gone back; he actually wanted to dissolve the House and he had told so to many of his close aides".

Charging Rao with being a 'katputhli' (puppet) and 'slave' of Modi, he said the Chief Minister's "remote control" is with Prime Minister, who did not say 'yes' to his idea of early poll.

"It (early Assembly polls in Telangana) does not (now) look like a possibility," he said, adding update electoral rolls would be ready only by October-end. "How is that before the electoral roll is finalised, he (Rao) can call for a schedule?"



Telangana Assembly elections are unlikely to happen by November-December, he said, adding, Modi and Rao, however, may advance Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, respectively, due in April-May next year, by one or two months and club the elections in the four States.

On the Chief Minister's statement yesterday that the people of the state should not become "slave to Delhi parties," Sravan said Rao himself has become a "slave" of Modi, pointing to his support to the Centre on demonetisation and GST, and to NDA nominees in the elections to the post of President and Vice-President.

Rao had yesterday said, "Just like in Tamil Nadu, we should also make sure that power is vested in our hands for self-respect rather than Delhi leadership dictating our state... don't become slaves to Delhi parties".

Sravan termed this type of promotion of "Tamil Nadu" model as "day-dreaming" by Rao.

Before the 2014 Assembly polls, Rao coined the slogan "Bangaru Telangana" (golden Telangana), and is now trying to evoke "anti-Delhi kind of sentiment," he alleged.

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Three women members of a family were allegedly raped by a man who forced them to drink drug-laced fruit juice before committing the crime in Assam's Hojai district, police said on Monday.

The man was known to them as he lived in the same village as them and the incident took place on the intervening night between Saturday and Sunday at their home in Uttar Dimarupar village, the victims said in their complaint to the police.

The complaint said the man had brought sugarcane juice to their residence on Saturday morning and had requested them to store it in their refrigerator.

The woman's husband works in Saudi Arabia and the two girls are her relatives.

The complaint said the man had returned that night and forced the woman and the two girls to have the juice after which they fell unconscious.

The woman was raped first and when she regained consiousness she saw the man committing the crime on the two girls. When she tried to stop him, the man had allegedly threatened to kill her with a knife, it said.

They filed their complaint with the police with the help of villagers and an investigation has been initiated into the incident.

The man, who has another rape case against him, is absconding, the police said.

Meanwhile, the police have apprehended six persons who were allegedly involved in the gang-rape of a woman near Amoni in Nagaon district on August 28 night.

The police have arrested the person on whose motorcycle the woman was travelling when they were waylaid by four persons and following his interrogation apprehended five others who were allegedly involved in the crime.

Search is on for another culprit, the police said adding the vehicle used by them was also found.

The woman in her complaint to the police had claimed she was allegedly whisked away by four men in their vehicle, gang-raped and left on NH 37.

An oil tanker driver had found her and took her to the nearby Jakhalabandha police station in the district.

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Three out of a group of four boys were rescued Monday evening from the sea off the coast of Versova in western Mumbai, a civic official said.

The search for the fourth boy was continuing, the official said, adding that the condition of one of the three rescued was critical.

The BMC disaster management cell official said that its control room received an alert at 5:50pm claiming that four boys, in the age group of 12-13 years, were in distress off the Versova coast.

Fire Brigade and police personnel were deployed for the rescue operations and were assisted by people living in the vicinity, he added.

"Aaysuh Khanduraindar (13) and Harsh Amol Koli (12) were rescued by the residents there. The third person, Rehan Ansari (13), is admitted in the ICU of Cooper hospital in Vile Parle," the civic official said quoting local police.

He added that the fourth boy, identified as Vaibhav Rakesh Gaud (13), is still missing and a search operation was underway by fire brigade and coastal police personnel.

A Versova police station official said that the four had ventured out for a swim but were soon caught in the sea waves.

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Two members of an arms-smuggling racket have been arrested at Manipur's Churachandpur district during a search operation, a police officer said.

The two accused, who were arrested Saturday, confessed to have brought arms from Behiang village at the India-Myanmar border to Churachandpur town via Singngat, the sub-divisional headquarters of the district, he said.

Based on their statements, police raided a storage vault at Sumchinvum village in Churachandpur and seized two rifles and several magazines, the officer said, adding that more details in the case would be available after further investigation.

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Congress leader Sachin Pilot Monday said the government's silence on the Rafale deal was "baffling" and asserted that the opposition was united in getting answers from the Centre on the aircraft procurement.

Addressing a press conference at the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) headquarters here, Pilot said the Congress wants a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the matter.

"Congress has sought a JPC to probe the matter. I see no reason why the government should hesitate to form it," he said.

The party will launch a nationwide campaign covering "every state, district and block" and submit petitions, right from the Governor to the President, seeking a probe into the matter, he said.

The demand for a JPC will be taken up whenever Parliament convenes, added Pilot, who is the Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee president.

Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government of not answering questions on the deal Pilot said, "I think the silence is more baffling. If anything that we are saying is wrong factually, then the government must come forward and clarify."



"The fact that they choose to remain silent tells you that there is much to hide," said Pilot, adding "the entire opposition is united" on getting answers from the government.

On whether the Congress plans to move the court on the issue, he said "all options are open...if we get no answers, including the JPC, then all our options are open."



Asked if his party would disclose the cost of the deal if it was voted to power, he said such details have been revealed "historically," including that of the Mirage fighter aircraft.

Giving a recap of defence deals under the UPA government, he said they had shortlisted Rafale and Typhoon aircraft and had "settled" Rs 526 crore as the price for a single Rafale aircraft.

The Modi government was however buying the same aircraft for Rs 1,670 crore, which was three times more, he alleged.

Due processes to be followed in such deals like going through the Price Negotiation Committee, Cabinet Committee on Security, the mandatory Defense Procurement Procedure and getting the Cabinet Committee on Security nod were "set aside."



"This was done in complete disregard to the conventions and transparency all defence purchases are put through."



On the one hand, the government was using the "shield of urgency" to buy the aircraft, but had gone in for only 36 aircraft while the IAF's requirement was 126.

If there was urgency, "why has a single aircraft not landed in the country?" he asked.

Pilot further said all indicators like the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited not being taken on board pointed to "malpractice."



UPA had talked about making the aircraft in India through Tranfer of Technology, lower price and offset going to HAL.

However, such aspects were set aside and a private entity was encouraged, he said.

Accusing the government of hiding behind the confidentiality clause, Pilot said that as per the Indo-French confidentiality agreement of 2008, the commercial cost of the aircraft can be revealed.

"There is nothing in law that prevents the current government from disclosing the price," Pilot said.

Once the announcement was made to buy Rafale, the other contender Eurofighter had agreed for a 20 per cent discount, said Pilot as he wondered why the government had not re-negotiated the price to lower the cost of the aircraft.

Had HAL been given the offset, it would have led to creation of plenty of job opportunities in the defence sector for the youth of the country, he said.

TNCC President Su Thirunavukkarasar said the state unit would this month embark on a reach-out campaign on the Rafale deal, covering all the districts.

Governor Banwarilal Purhoit will also be petitioned on the issue, he said.

Meanwhile talking to reporters in Puducherry, Congress leader Jaipal Reddy accused Modi of throwing to the winds all procedures governing defence deals and defence procurement.

He alleged that the country had incurred a loss of Rs 41,000 crore by striking a new deal with a French company for purchase of the aircraft.

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A BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh Monday accused Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis of not following Prime Minister Narendra Modi's "Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas" motto in recent appointments to state corporations.

The criticism came in the wake of political appointments made by the chief minister last week to various state corporations and statutory bodies.

The MP Ram Charitra Nishad, who visited Palghar and Thane districts neighbouring Mumbai, told PTI that the chief minister has "sidelined" north Indian BJP leaders from Mumbai while making these appointments.

The Maharashtra government had on August 31 announced appointments to 21 vacant posts in various state-run corporations, boards and authorities.

Almost half of these posts have gone to leaders of the Shiv Sena, the ruling BJP's bickering ally.

"The chief minister has completely sidelined the Maharashtra BJP leaders who hail from Uttar Pradesh, which is against the PM's motto of 'Sabka Sath Sabka Vikas'. If proper representation is not given to our own party leaders, how would we face our voters (from UP)?" questionned Nishad, who represents Machhalishahar constituency in Jaunpur district.

Nishad said Uttar Pradesh migrants settled in Mumbai, Thane and Palghar districts are used only as a vote bank.

Prominent political parties always try to woo north Indian electorates, as their voters can swing results in certain constituencies in Mumbai.

Nishad said he would raise the issue with Fadnavis.

"I will discuss this issue with Devendra Fadnavisji. He has done a good job for the people of Maharashtra. He needs to do the same for his own party workers from Uttar Pradesh. I hope he will definitely do something for our leaders," the MP said.

Politicians who cannot be accommodated in the council of ministers are generally absorbed in corporations like the Cidco (City and Industrial Development Corporation), Mhada (Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority) to name a few.

The appointees enjoy the status of a cabinet minister and a minister of state, and are entitled to perks such as official vehicles, office and staff etc.

Another prominent BJP leader from Uttar Pradesh said, "Finding no leaders from UP in recently announced list has baffled us. However, we are hoping for the best, as the chief minister is yet to announce heads for over 30 boards and corporations in Maharashtra".

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Prominent Ugandan opposition lawmaker Robert Kyagulanyi arrived in the United States over the weekend for medical treatment following accusations he was tortured while in military custody in the East African nation.

Kyagulanyi, a popular musician known by his stage name Bobi Wine, was initially prevented from leaving the country. He was cleared to fly out on Friday after the government sent a team of nine doctors to examine him.

Bobi and 32 opposition militants were charged with treason last week over the alleged stoning of President Yoweri Musevenis convoy.

Bobi Wine was arrested on August 13 after an electoral campaign rally in the north-western town of Arua where the presidential convoy was allegedly stoned. His driver had been shot dead by police, according to local media.

The musician was initially to be tried in a military court over accusations of unlawful possession of firearms but the charge was dropped. A civilian court, however, charged him with treason. He was freed on bail on August 27.

Global musicians, including Chris Martin, Angelique Kidjo, Chrissie Hynde and Brian Eno last week issued an open letter condemning the treatment of Bobi Wine. The musicians legal team says he suffered multiple fractures and injuries while in detention.

The Afrobeats star has been a thorn in the side of Musevenis government since his election to Parliament last year. He has emerged as a formidable threat to the president.

Museveni, a key US security ally, has been elected five times. The last vote in 2016 was marred by allegations of fraud.
The US continues to press Pakistan to "indiscriminately target" all terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network, the Pentagon said on Sunday, claiming that recent reports distorted details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF).

The remark comes amid reports that the US has suspended USD 300 million in military aid to Pakistan as Islamabad was not doing enough to tackle militant groups.

"Unfortunately, recent reporting has distorted the details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) by stating several things out of context. The suspension of security assistance to Pakistan was announced in January 2018, Pentagon spokesman Lt Col Kon Faulkner said.

He said, "The CSF is included in the suspension and it remains in place. This is not a new decision or a new announcement, but an acknowledgement of a July request to reprogram funds before they expire."



Faulkner said since January, they have consistently engaged with Pakistani military officials at the highest levels, based on both a shared commitment to defeat all terrorist groups that threaten regional stability and security, as well as on a shared vision of a peaceful future for Afghanistan.

"We continue to press Pakistan to indiscriminately target all terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network an LeT, and we continue to call on Pakistan to arrest, expel or bring the Taliban leadership to the negotiating table," he said.

Faulkner noted that the 2018 DoD Appropriations Act, published on March 23, details USD 500 million was rescinded by the Congress.

Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy, the remaining USD 300 million was reprogrammed by the Department of Defense (DoD) in July 2018 time frame for other urgent priorities before the funds expire on September 30, he said.

The department is awaiting congressional determination on whether this reprogramming request will be approved or denied.

"The DoD will have a congressional response before September 30, 2018, to allow the DoD to implement the reprogramming actions, the spokesman said.

Fresh reports about suspension of the CSF is expected to further strain US-Pak relationship, which comes ahead of the Islamabad visit of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The top American diplomat is expected to raise issues related to counter terrorism during his meetings with the top Pakistani leaders.

Pakistan has dismissed all such reports about suspension in US aid, arguing that the United States owed the money to it for expenses incurred on fighting terrorism.

"It is not a cut in any [US] aid, it is not assistance. This is our own money which we have used for improving regional security situation and they had to reimburse it to us, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told reporters in Islamabad.

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Director Corin Hardy says "The Nun" gave him an opportunity to incorporate classic horror imagery to tell an origin story in the Conjuring universe and he is confident that the film will take the audiences on a terrifying journey.

The director, best known for his "The Hollow", said it was important for him to honour what has already been done in the previous "Conjuring" films but at the same time create something new.

"I loved that The Nun is set in 1952 and in a castle in Romania - making the story feel both new and ancient. I wanted to take audiences on an unholy, terrifying journey.

It gave me a real opportunity to incorporate classic horror imagery this time around. Using castles, convents, cemeteries, hanging fog, gaslight, candlelight, stained glass and gothic horror, we created a rich, contrasting and immersive cinematic atmosphere," Hardy said in a statement provided by the Warner Bros.

The director said having grown up on classic horror films such as "Dracula", "The Exorcist" and "Evil Dead", he wanted to incorporate some references in his film.

"The Nun contains all the elements I relish as a storyteller," he said.

The film, slated to be released in India on September 7, follows an exorcist, a novitiate nun in training and a French-Canadian guide on a journey that takes them to an abbey in the mountains of Romania, to investigate the apparent suicide of a nun. They end up discovering a sinister secret that may endanger everything that they hold dear.

Hardy said shooting the film in a place like Romania helped him tick a lot of boxes off his list.

"It was a wonderful opportunity to actually make a movie in Transylvania, which was home to the classic Dracula. We started production in Bucharest, where we had our studio and built certain sets. But we also travelled to far-reaching locations up in the Transylvanian mountains, to Corvin Castle, Sighisoara, and rural Romanian villages. It was as authentic as I could hope for. I was able to tick a lot of boxes off my list, after working in and around ancient crumbling convents, an ice house and a castle.

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Health ministers and experts from member-countries of the WHO South East Asia region, including India, began on Monday deliberations on "priority" health issues and laid emphasis on universal health coverage.

The 71st session of the WHO Regional Committee for South-East Asia was inaugurated by Union Health Minister J P Nadda.

"Building on the Region's achievements we look to the many challenges ahead and our agenda this week draws our discussions to a wide range of vital subjects; from the need to improving civil registration and vital statistics to increasing action on improved vector management for better control of malaria and dengue; from progress in child survival to the promotion physical activity," a statement quoted WHO Deputy Director General Jane Elizabeth Ellison as saying.

The regional committee session, the highest policy-making body of the World Health Organization (WHO) in the region, is hosted annually by any one of the 11 member-countries, or the WHO South-East Asia Regional Office.

The session this year is being hosted by the Regional Office.

"WHO's new global thrust aims to have one billion more people benefitting from universal coverage, one billion more people protected from disaster, and one billion more people enjoying better health as we tackle the many determinants of ill health that lie beyond the reach of the health sector," WHO South-East Asia Regional Director Poonam Khetrapal Singh said.

Marking 70 years of WHO in South-East Asia Region, a special commemorative document was released.

WHO Director-General Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus will be joining the Regional Committee session later in the week, according to the WHO statement.

The WHO in an earlier statement had said the meet would brainstorm on measures against vector-borne diseases and improving access to essential medicines.

With the region prone to disasters and public health emergencies, the WHO and member-countries will discuss strengthening of emergency medical teams, an important initiative to fortify response capacities.

"To address the significant increase in dengue cases in recent years, health experts will discuss measures against all vector-borne diseases including chikungunya and zika," the earlier statement had said.

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The United States accuses of playing a dangerous double game, taking billions in US aid since 2002 while supporting the Taliban and other militants who attack American forces in

Its decision announced Saturday to cut $300 million in aid is part of a broader aid suspension announced in January, as US President Donald Trump tries to pressure Islamabad over its alleged support for militant safe havens.

The cut came days before Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is due to touch down in Islamabad for his first visit since the election of new Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has vowed to seek better relations with the US amid a new push for Afghan peace talks.

Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi played down the cut. Analysts have said the move highlights the difficulties of trying to control a quasi-ally whose support is vital in the long-running Afghan conflict.

accuses of supporting militant groups including the Afghan Taliban.

It says the insurgents have safe havens in Pakistan's border areas and links to its shadowy establishment, which aims to use them as a regional bulwark in against arch-nemesis India.

Pakistan's support for these groups must end, says.

Islamabad has repeatedly denied the accusations, insisting it has eradicated safe havens and accusing the US of ignoring the thousands killed on Pakistani soil and the billions spent fighting extremists.

On Saturday the announced it was cutting $300 million in aid to "due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy". The request was pending Congressional approval.

Qureshi said the money was part of the Coalition Support Fund. The funding, worth $900 million, is set aside to refund Pakistani spending on counter-terrorist operations and helps pay Pakistan for allowing US and other NATO supplies into

In January announced it was freezing payments from the fund as part of a broader suspension of up to $2 billion in aid.

US officials have said that aid could be restored if Washington sees decisive action from Pakistan. The $300 million cut and comments by a spokesman suggest Washington does not feel this has happened and is ratcheting up the pressure.

"It is not a new aid cut. It is a just an implementation of former aid suppression," analyst Huma Yusuf of the Wilson Center in Washington told AFP.

US figures show that more than $33 billion has been given to Pakistan in direct aid since 2002. Cutting the money off seems an obvious step.

It has been suspended before, notably after the US raid in Pakistan in 2011 that killed Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, which drew suspicions that he had been sheltered there for years.

But the US does not want a complete break in ties with Pakistan. It needs access to its roads and airspace to get supplies into Afghanistan.

Pakistan is also still believed to have the strongest influence over the Afghan Taliban, making its cooperation necessary for any peace talks. Momentum for fresh negotiations has been growing in recent weeks.

Pakistan also holds the Muslim world's only known nuclear arsenal. The US wants to prevent it from going to war with rival nuclear power India, or allowing the weapons to fall into the hands of extremists.

"This is something which of course has got Islamabad's attention, but (is) not sufficient enough to rattle the current government," Pakistani political scientist Maria Sultan told AFP.

Some analysts have said there is no real way to pressure Pakistan, which believes it is more important to keep Afghanistan out of India's orbit than to clamp down on cross-border militancy.

Others say the US risks driving Pakistan further into the orbit of China, which is investing heavily in the country.

The announcement, and Pompeo's visit, come weeks after Khan took office amid concerns he would remain tolerant of militant groups.

When the aid freeze was first announced in January, Khan, then in opposition, called for Pakistan to close the US supply lines to Afghanistan.

Since coming to power he has called for a more balanced relationship with the US. But questions remain over how much influence he will have in a country where foreign, defence and security policies are widely seen as controlled by the powerful

Qureshi says the two countries have "shared objectives" and vowed to raise concerns with Pompeo when he visits this week.

In the end, observers say, until the US addresses Pakistan's fears over India, it will not shake its support for militant proxies.




Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday announced a whopping USD 60 billion in new development financing for the African nations as he sought to refute criticism that the massive funding under Beijing's Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) drawing the countries into a debt trap.

The funds - - announced on top of USD 60 billion that Beijing offered to the African nations in 2015 - - will be provided in the form of government assistance as well as investment and financing by financial institutions and companies.

The finances to be made under the BRI include USD 15 billion grants, interest-free loans and concessional loans, USD 20 billion credit lines, setting up of a USD 10-billion special fund for development financing and a USD 5 billion-special fund for financing imports from Africa, Xi said at the start of a two-day Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) attended by the 53 heads of the African states and organisations.

The African nation heads and their officials gathered at the Great Hall of People to attend the meeting and gave a standing ovation to Xi as he made the financial commitments.

China is investing billions of dollars in aid and projects, making Africa the most focussed destination under the BRI.

This is the third-time China is hosting the Africa summit. The inaugural 2006 summit was held in Beijing and followed by another one in 2015 at Johannesburg.

At the Johannesburg summit, Xi announced USD 60 billion in funding support for infrastructure development in Africa.

"Africa is an extension of the Belt and Road development historically and naturally and an important participant in the initiative," Xi said.

Xi said China will implement eight major initiatives with African countries in the next three years and beyond, covering fields such as industrial promotion, infrastructure connectivity, trade facilitation, and green development.

A China-Africa economic and trade expo will be set up in China and Chinese companies will be encouraged to increase investment in Africa.

Chinese companies are also encouraged to make at least USD 10 billion investment in Africa in the next three years, he said.

He said that China will carry out 50 agricultural assistance programs, provide emergency humanitarian food aid amounting to USD 147 million to African countries affected by natural disasters, and send 500 senior agricultural experts to Africa.

He also said that China will work with the African Union to formulate a China-Africa Infrastructure Cooperation plan and support Chinese companies in taking part in Africa's infrastructure development by way of investment-construction-operation or through other models.

China's growing clout in Africa has drawn criticism that more African nations are getting to Chinese debt trap.

The only African country still remained outsides Beijing's fold was the tiny kingdom of Swaziland which is still with Taiwan spurning China's overtures



Speaking against criticism that China don't match its public announcements with the spending on the ground, Xi said China has honoured its 2015 promise to provide Africa with funding support totalling USD 60 billion.

The financing has been either delivered or arranged, he said.

The Chinese projects in Africa include the Ethiopia-Djibouti railway and Kenya's standard gauge railway from Mombasa to Nairobi besides major highways and bridges connecting various countries.

In an apparent dig at the criticism that China is driving smaller countries into its fold with debt trap diplomacy by doling out huge loans, Xi said China followed a "five-no" approach in its relations with Africa - - No interference in African countries' pursuit of development paths that fit their national conditions, no interference in internal affairs, no imposition of China's will, no attachment of political strings to assistance and no seeking of selfish political gains in investment and financing cooperation.

"No one can undermine the great unity between the Chinese and African people," he said.

In a bid to refute criticism that China is importing only raw materials from Africa, Xi said Beijing will increase imports, especially non-resource products, from Africa and support African countries in participating in China International Import Expo being held in November in Shanghai.

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By Kate HoltonLONDON (Reuters) - WPP named company veteran Mark Read as its new CEO on Monday to steer the world's biggest advertising company through a period of unprecedented change and following the acrimonious exit of its founder Martin Sorrell.The 51-year-old takes charge of the $21 billion company at a tough time following a year-long sharp downturn in trading sparked by competition from Google and Facebook and pressure from clients to simplify the business and cut pricing.He also knows that Sorrell, still a major WPP shareholder and his one time mentor, will be looking over his ...
By Leika KiharaTOKYO (Reuters) - Manufacturing activity in major Asian economies took a hit from weak export orders in August, a sign firms are starting to feel the pinch from intensifying trade friction between the United States and China that many fear could derail global growth.Surveys of purchasing managers released on Monday showed persistent pressure on key exporting destinations China, Japan and South Korea.In China, its vast manufacturing sector grew at the slowest pace in more than a year in August, with export orders shrinking for a fifth month.Export orders also shrank in Japan and ...
India is allowing state refiners to import Iranian oil with Tehran arranging tankers and insurance after firms including the country's top shipper Shipping Corp of India (SCI) halted voyages to Iran due to U.S. sanctions, sources said. New Delhi's attempt to keep Iranian oil flowing mirrors a step by China, where buyers are shifting nearly all their Iranian oil imports to vessels owned by National Iranian Tanker Co (NITC). The moves by the two top buyers of Iranian crude indicate that the Islamic Republic may not be fully cut off from global oil markets from November, ...
By Darya Korsunskaya and Vladimir SoldatkinMOSCOW (Reuters) - Russia's oil industry is awash with cash and will be able to withstand the planned 1 trillion roubles ($15 billion) in extra taxes over the next six years, Alexei Sazanov, the head of the tax department in the finance ministry, said in an interview.The government is looking for extra money to implement President Vladimir Putin's pledges of higher social spending and better infrastructure over the next six years, expected to cost around 8 trillion roubles.The new oil tax changes will see an increase in the mineral extraction tax and ...
BEIJING (Reuters) - A lawyer for JD.com Inc CEO Richard Liu, who was arrested on suspicion of criminal sexual misconduct in the U.S. state of Minnesota and later released, said on Monday that Liu denies any wrongdoing, and also said he does not expect charges to be brought against his client.Earl Gray, a Minnesota-based lawyer, said Liu was released without charges or a bail requirement, and was able to return to China, where the e-commerce firm is based."Under these circumstances based on our substantial experience in the criminal justice system in Minnesota charges are highly unlikely in ...
Tbilisi City Hall Suspends Construction of Hotel at Turtle Lake

By Tea Mariamidze

Tbilisi Mayors Office has suspended the construction of the hotel on the territory of the Turtle Lake, located at the outskirts of the capital.As the Mayor Kakha Kaladze explained, the construction was illegal. According to him, the City Hall suspended the construction permit of the company Armeland& Associates a few months ago, but the company continued the process illegally.The removal of the land foundation was inadmissible. The supervision service received a notice and responded instantly. There is no construction permit on this object. Previously it was issued, but later the permit was annulled. It is not allowed to implement construction projects on such places, especially in the Turtle Lake Forest, Kaladze stated when he arrived at the spot himself.Kaladze says he understands the land owners position as well and instructed his deputies to work on finding another place for the owner of the land, where construction of the hotel was planned.We should take into account the position of the landowner as well. He bought this land some time ago. My deputies will contact him and discuss the issue, he added.A notice on the ongoing construction works on the territory adjacent to the restaurant Otumi at the Turtle Lake was received by the hotline of Tbilisi City Hall on Wednesday, after which the City Supervision Service immediately reacted to the fact.Media outlet Tbilisis Matsne says before preparing the foundation on at the construction site, some trees had also been cut there.According to the representative of the Supervision Service, they will carry out legal measures against the company after studying the case.
By Cate Cadell and Adam JourdanBEIJING/SHANGHAI (Reuters) - Richard Liu, founder and chief executive of JD.com, has kept tight control of the business as he takes aim at the likes of Amazon.com, but faces a battle on a new front after being arrested in the United States following an accusation of sexual misconduct.The Chinese company has said the accusation against Liu, 45, is unsubstantiated. Police in Minneapolis say they are investigating, though Liu was released after a night in jail, and JD.com said on Monday he had returned to China.But the case is likely to put pressure on Liu, who has ...
By David MillikenLONDON (Reuters) - Britain's finance ministry is in talks with the Bank of England over whether Governor Mark Carney is willing to stay beyond his planned departure date of June 30 next year, amid difficulties finding a successor, the BBC reported on Monday.Carney originally planned to serve just five years of a maximum eight-year term as governor, but in October 2016 he agreed to stay an extra year, until mid 2019, to see Britain past its expected departure from the European Union.Now it appears he is being asked to delay his departure again, albeit possibly by less than a ...
By Kate HoltonLONDON (Reuters) - WPP named insider Mark Read as its new chief executive on Monday tasked with replacing its founder Martin Sorrell and steering the world's biggest advertising company through a period of industry change. The 51-year-old digital boss and former board member takes charge of the $21 billion company at a difficult time following a year-long sharp downturn in trading due to new competitors and cautious clients.The softly-spoken Read, who joined WPP in 1989, said the industry was going through "structural change, not structural decline" and he plans for the company ...
The Purchasing Managers' Index has not been below the 50-mark which separates growth from contraction since July 2017, when manufacturing took a hit from the hasty implementation of a goods and services tax.



Growth in India's manufacturing sector unexpectedly slowed in August as domestic demand softened

Data on Friday showed India's economy expanded 8.2 per cent in the April-June quarter. This was its fastest pace in more than two years, driven by solid growth in manufacturing and consumer spending.

But the Nikkei Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index, compiled by IHS Market, suggested a slight loss of momentum last month.

The benchmark indices ended nearly 1 per cent lower today after India's manufacturing growth eased in August and on concerns over the escalation of the global trade war.

That apart, the sentiment was impacted by reports that the government and the capital market regulator Sebi are discussing fresh criteria to stop dubious money flowing into the country. This is particularly, in the run up to the 2019 elections. The S&P BSE Sensex ended at 38,313, down 333 points while the broader Nifty50 index settled at 11,582, down 98 points.

In individual stocks, fast moving consumer goods giant Hindustan Unilever (HUL) slipped 4.5 per cent to Rs 1,700 levels on the BSE. That apart, shares of private banks such as ICICI Bank and Axis Bank also declined 2.3 per cent and 2.5 per cent, respectively. Car-maker Maruti Suzuki too settled 2.1 per cent lower at Rs 8904.

Among sectoral indices, the Nifty FMCG index settled over 2.5 per cent lower weighed by HUL and Britannia Industries.

The IPO market has seen heavy activity so far this year as 21 companies have mopped-up close to Rs 280 billion through initial share-sale.

As many as 11 firms, including AGS Transact Technologies and ASK Investment Managers, have approached capital market regulator Sebi in August to raise over Rs 70 billion through IPOs. This was largely to fund their expansion projects and working capital requirement.

Studds Accessories, Senco Gold, Harsha Engineers, Mrs Bectors Food Specialities, Sansera Engineering, NDairyihilent, Dodla and Shyam Metalics and Energy and Xelpmoc Design and Tech are the other companies that have filed preliminary papers with market watchdog. Together, these companies are estimated to garner over Rs 72 billion through initial public offers.
Vedanta Resources Plc's new CEO, Srinivasan Venkatakrishnan, has big plans to build the company into a giant producer of commodities, with main focus on Africa and India.

"If you look at diversified companies, they come with a bright and strong heritage," he told PTI in an interview yesterday. "Exxon has roots as an American company, BP as a UK company. Likewise, Vedanta starting its roots in India, I believe, can actually grow broader than India without compromising the growth in India - looking elsewhere as well and becoming one of the largest resource companies."

According to him, the mining mogul Anil Agarwal-led company has already demonstrated the potential in terms of its growth trajectory over the past few years. So Venkatakrishnan, or Venkat as he is known among peers, aims to invest heavily in more local production of all commodities. In fact, Vedanta will invest $8 billion in the next two-and-a-half years - a bigger kitty than miners such as Rio Tinto Group and Anglo have pledged to spend over a similar period.

Vedanta hopes to gain from Venkatakrishnan's South African experience in leveraging the strength of its copper mines in the country. The company is due to start production at a big zinc mine in South Africa later this year. Moreover, there's talk of a merger between Vedanta and Anglo American Plc's South African business. Agarwal is already the largest shareholder of the international miner through his holding firm Volcan Investments.

According to Venkatakrishnan, Africa spells a huge opportunity, where Agarwal is the single biggest foreign investor. "Outlook is bright. I am very optimistic in terms of future," he said. The new CEO will be spending the next 90 days understanding the company, where he wants to "spend time right up to retirement" and leave a strong legacy.

Venkatakrishnan spent the last 18 years of his life with AngloGold, one of the world's biggest gold producers. He is known to have turned around the company's fortunes during his stint as the CEO. When he took over the reins in 2013, commodity prices were collapsing and debt was threatening to bury the firm. He not only brought down the company's total costs by 30% and nearly halved its debt, but also managed to improve the company's productivity. AngloGold completed two new mining projects in his tenure.

"The [Vedanta] group already has good cost savings measures in place and ambitious cost targets. I believe I can, with the experience that I have, bring an additional catalyst to the party..not that the group cannot achieve it without me," Venkatakrishnan told the daily.

However, Agarwal is seeking more than just tangible financial gains from his new CEO. "He [Venkatakrishnan] is a huge brand for safety all over the world and it will be one of his priorities to make sure that our consciousness for the environment shines through," Agarwal told the daily. "People will think twice before they put a finger [on the company] on the issue of environment and safety."

This comes against the backdrop of the increasing flak Vedanta has received from the government and local communities for flouting environmental norms in the past few years. Its anti-green image took a the latest hit in May after protests in Tuticorin - demanding closure of the 400,000-tonne copper smelting plant, on water pollution grounds - claimed 13 lives.

Edited by Sushmita Choudhury
Fuel prices in all metro cities are once again at an all-time high. A litre of petrol costs maximum in Mumbai where it is available at Rs 86.56. The price of petrol in Delhi today is Rs 79.15, in Kolkata Rs 82.06, and in Chennai Rs 82.24. Petrol price had previously hit its highest level five months ago on May 29.

Diesel is being sold at Rs 71.15 in Delhi, Rs 74 in Kolkata, Rs 75.54 in Mumbai and Rs 75.19 in Chennai. Fuel prices have been on the rise since August 16 after the rupee dipped to its lowest value against the US dollar.

Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan yesterday blamed 'external factors' for the rise in domestic prices of petrol and diesel, but said that the hike was temporary. He also said that the factors responsible for drop in production of crude oil have caused a spike in fuel prices in India.

Explaining the causes behind the recent hike in fuel prices, the Minister said: "I would like to mention two points, and both these subjects are external. OPEC (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) had promised that it will raise production by one million barrels per day, which was not raised. Apart from that, crises in countries like Venezuela and Iran are increasing. There is a pressure on oil prices due to decrease in production. Secondly, global currencies have weakened against the US dollar."

Iran, which is the second biggest oil exporter to India and the third-largest oil producer in the OPEC Group, is likely to plunge into crisis once the United States' sanctions come into effect on November 1. The US sanctions on Iran is not the only reason for India to be worried about a possible spike in petrol and diesel prices. Saudi Arabia, which is world's second largest oil producer, too is contributing to keep the prices on an upward trend. It has started cutting production just a month after agreeing to increase the output. In July, it cut its oil production by an average of 200,000 barrels per day - a move that has created oil shortage in global market.

Pradhan said that the government was planning to put diplomatic pressure. "A high-level American delegation is visiting India, and India's two senior representatives - defence minister and external affairs minister - will talk to them. All these factors will be discussed. I consider this period (of high petrol, diesel prices) temporary," he said while referring to the 2+2 dialogue between the two countries scheduled later this week in Delhi.

Earlier, France-based BNP Paribas had said that because of the US sanctions on Iran, oil production from the OPEC would come down from an average of 32.1 million barrels per day in 2018 to 31.7 million in 2019. This year in May, Bank of America Merrill Lynch observed that the deteriorating conditions in Iran may push the crude oil prices to USD 100.

Petroleum prices, which are determined by the cost of crude oil in global markets, may continue to go up as the international markets are under pressure due the US sanctions on Iran and Saudi Arabia's decision to cut oil production.
The state of employment in the country can be gauged from the following scenario: in Uttar Pradesh, 81,700 graduates applied for 62 vacant positions in the telecom department of the UP Police. To fully understand the implications of this, one must further know that out of the 81,700 graduates, 28,000 are post graduates and 3,700 are PhD holders. Moreover, the qualification asked by the employers for the post of messenger is only Class 5th.

The starting salary for the position is Rs 20,000.

Perplexed at the overly-qualified applications received, the department has postponed the hiring process.

"Around 93,500 applicants have applied for 62 vacant posts. This includes graduates, post graduates, MBAs, MCAs, PhDs and people holding other highly qualified degrees," Director General-Telecom Department of UP Police Pramod Kumar Tiwari said, as mentioned in a report in India Today.

Further commenting on the applications, Tiwari also said that earlier if a candidate knew how to ride a bicycle, he was picked for the job. "However, now the written examination is also mandatory," he said.

He also said that with so many applications, they have now requested the government to provide funds so that an agency could be hired for getting offline examinations conducted. Tiwari added that now the hiring process has been put on hold for the time being.

The Samajwadi Party has criticised the Yogi Adityanath-led UP government for failing to provide employment opportunities to the youth of Uttar Pradesh.

SP spokesperson Abdul Hafiz Gandhi said to India Today: "UP Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's statement was insulting when he said that qualified youths are not there. However, the fact is that the youths of UP are qualified but the government is not able to provide them jobs."

Continuing the blame game, UP BJP leader Rakesh Tripathi said, "During the tenure of the SP government, applicants for hiring in all departments used to approach the court alleging discrepancies. The hiring used to happen only on the basis of money power or caste. Since the BJP has come to power, there is full transparency in the hiring process."

(Edited by Anwesha Madhukalya)
Holding former Reserve Bank of India (RBI) governor Raghuram Rajan accountable for slowdown in the economy, Niti Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar today said that it wasn't demonetisation but deleveraging of credit under Rajan's tenure that led to economic slowdown.

In an interview to news agency ANI, Kumar said that growth rate came down not because of demonetisation but there was a declining trend. "Starting from last quarter of 2015-16, the growth rate had come down for six successive quarters," he said.

"This was simply a continuation of a trend and not because of a shock given to it by demonetisation as has been claimed. There is no evidence to show the direct link between demonetisation and slowdown in the growth rate," Kumar added.

Pinning the blame squarely on Rajan's policies as governor of central bank, Kumar said the economic growth was declining due to rising NPAs in the banking sector. "When this government came into office, this figure was about 4 lakh crore. It rose to 10.5 lakh crore by the middle of 2017," he added.

"Under the former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan, they had instituted new mechanisms to identify stressed and non performing assets. This is why the banking sector stopped giving credit to the industry. In fact, in some cases like MSMEs, credit growth shrank. Even in the large industries, the growth of credit came down to measly 1 per cent in some quarters," claimed Niti Aayog vice chairman.

"This has been the highest deleveraging of commercial credit to the industry in India's economic history," Kumar said, while adding that this is what is being compensated by the government by rampnig up of public capital expenditure.
Homegrown utility vehicle maker Mahindra and Mahindra on Monday launched its most ambitious product till date--the Marazzo, at Rs 9.99-13.90 lakh (ex-showroom Delhi).

Developed jointly by Mahindra's R&D team in Chennai and its North American Technical Centre, the Marazzo sits just below its existing top-of-the-line offering XUV5OO that is priced between Rs 12.48-19.19 lakh.

Built on a completely new platform, Marazzo comes with a new 1.5-litre diesel engine that develops 123 PS power at 3500 rpm and 300 NM of torque at 1600 rpm, mated to a six-speed manual transmission. It is offered in four variants. Mahindra said it is working on automatic variants as well as a petrol engine with BS VI emission norms that will be enforced in 2020.

"The journey of the Scorpio began from our factory in Nashik and it has become an iconic product. I hope ten years from now we would be able to say the same about the Marazzo as well," said Pawan Goenka, managing director, Mahindra and Mahindra automotive division.

The Marazzo, which means shark in Basque a sub-language in Spanish, is also a product of collaborative design by Italy's design house Pininfarina and Mahindra Design Centre. The design house was snapped up by the Indian firm in December 2015. Mahindra has spent $200 million to develop the product.

"Marazzo is a milestone launch for us and signals our global aspirations," said Anand Mahindra, chairman, Mahindra and Mahindra. "It is inspired by the shark as it is the only predator in the sea that is unchallenged and so it lives the longest. Similarly, we hope the Marazzo will swim through the waters of its segment like a shark, smoothly silently, unchallenged and for many many years."

Once India's undisputed king of utility vehicles, Mahindra has lost its mojo in recent times due to its ill-preparedness in the compact SUV segment and increasing competition in other segments. Its last big success was the XUV5OO in 2011. Since then it has launched at least two significant products in the sub-4-metre utility vehicle space--the KUV1OO and TUV 3OO. Both have failed to live up to the expectations. As a result, the company's market share between fiscal 2012 and 2018 has more than halved from 55.6 percent to 26.32 percent.

The Marazzo is the first of the company's three big launches in this financial year as it seeks to regain its stature in the market. In fiscal 2018, it lost its crown in the utility vehicle segment to Maruti Suzuki, which had a higher 28 percent share in the market thanks to the success of its compact SUV--Vitara Brezza. There is little to suggest a change in the script in this fiscal so far. Mahindra's sales in UVs in the first five months of this fiscal grew by only 1 percent to 91,845 units. Maruti registered a 3.7 percent increase in its utility vehicle sales at 108,230 units during the same period.

Later this year, Mahindra is expected to launch a sub Rs 10 lakh compact SUV codenamed S201 that will compete with the likes of Hyundai Creta and Renault Duster. Further, it is also expected to bring in the G4 Rexton from its subsidiary Ssangyong in South Korea. Between these new launches, Mahindra hopes to sell incremental volumes of around 9000 units every month. The company is also expected to extend their SUV line-up with a premium offering, Y400 in the near future.

"Market leadership is a crown of thorns. We are not focussed on market share but making sure our products are a hit," Mahindra said. "If we look at the true blue ladder on frame SUVs, then we are still very strong there but if you add every monocoque wannabe crossover vehicle in the mix then the segment really expands. So we are not in that game anymore."
The employees of Reserve Bank of India (RBI) will go on a two-day mass leave on September 4 and 5. The strike, called by United Forum of Reserve Bank Officers and Employees (UFRBOE) over pension issues, is likely to affect RBI's day-to-day functioning.

While the strike is expected to hit the operations of country's apex bank, it is unlikely to affect public and private sector banks. "It's only the RBI employees who are going on mass casual leave on September 4-5 for demands related to to Provident Fund and pension. This will not have much impact on the day-to-day operations of the other public and private sector banks," National Organization of Bank Workers Vice President Ashwani Rana told news agency IANS.

Even though all other state-run banks and private lenders will function normally, the strike may affect services like RTGS and NEFT, which are used to transfer money.

All India Reserve Bank Employees Association General Secretary Samir Ghosh told FE Online that ATM services will not be affected, but it will seriously affect RTGS & NEFT operations thereby it will affect big payments, business transactions, stock markets etc.

RBI employees had earlier rejected Governor Urjit Patel's request to withdraw their two-day mass leave programme. The employees of the Reserve Bank of India are demanding pension updation for about 21,000 retirees and one more chance to switch from Contributory Provident Fund (CPF) to pension for 2600 CPF retainers.

The banks will remain open on Thursday and Friday as both are regular working days. However, banks will remain closed on September 8 due to second Saturday holiday.
Lelectricite est devenue, de nos jours, un besoin dune importance majeure, et cela, dans tous les domaines dactivite. Que ce soit dans les maisons ou []
Commercial property specialists CBRE today released their latest bi-monthly report focusing on the latest trends and transactions in all sectors of the Irish commercial property market.

The property experts believe the Irish commercial property market is now gearing up for what promises to be an extremely strong Autumn season.

While very few new properties were formally launched for sale during the last two months, there was considerable activity underway behind the scenes during July and August, concluding various transactions as well as preparing assets that will be formally launched or sale over the coming months. Activity in all of the occupier markets (office, industrial, retail, hotels) remains strong.

Meanwhile, from an investment perspective, following a very strong first half, there are several transactions due to complete over the coming months and more than 1 billion of new stock due to be released for sale. CBRE say there has been a remarkable increase in appetite for residential investment opportunities over recent months, which is evident from recent investment sales and development land sales alike.

The report shows that the bulk of activity in the Dublin office market continues to emanate from the expansion of existing occupiers, many of whom are technology companies. There is also strong demand from flexible office providers who between them accounted for more than 15% of overall take-up in the Dublin market in the first half of 2018.

Investment spend in the Irish market surprised on the upside in the first half of 2018 with more than 1.86 billion invested in the six-month period, buoyed to a large degree by 8 transactions in excess of 100 million, some of which were residential forward-funding transactions. PRS/Build to Rent is becoming increasingly mainstream, having accounted for 25% of investment spend in the Irish market in the first half of 2018.

Source: www.businessworld.ie
The 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation will be held on Sept. 3 and Sept. 4 in the Chinese capital. Photo: VCG

When the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) was established in 2000 to strengthen China-African economic cooperation and trade, the rest of the world was perhaps bemused. Bilateral trade and investment was minimal and African economic prospects unpromising. Chinas embrace of Africa  as framed by FOCAC  has ushered in exponential growth in commercial ties. Now, just 18 years later, China is Africas largest trade partner and bilateral trade and investment ties are growing rapidly.

Africas markets matter more to China every year. China has been recalibrating the destination of its sales abroad; and Africa needs well-made, low-cost products. Though sales have moved sideways since 2015, Chinas exports to Africa more than doubled in the five years between 2009 and 2015, from $47 billion to $106 billion. Africa has proven a resilient market for China, with exports to Africa rising five percentage points faster than Chinas sales elsewhere since 2010, at 14% year-on-year. In fact, 10 of Chinas 15 fastest-growing export markets since 2009 are in Africa.

Fast export growth across numerous African nations has offset soft demand for Chinese products in recent years from Africas two largest economies Nigeria and South Africa; though, promisingly, year-on-year sales to these countries in 2017 rose for the first time since 2015, by 17% and 13%, respectively. Total China-Africa trade returned to growth in 2017, increasing 11.4% year-on-year to $169 billion. This was in large part thanks to the upturn in demand in Nigeria and South Africa as well as a recovery in global commodity prices  especially metals and hydrocarbons  which resulted in Chinese imports from Africa rising 32% year-on-year to $75 billion.

Although bilateral trade has grown rapidly in recent years, Africa has started to run a significant trade deficit with China since 2015. Only five African countries have a trade surplus with China. Kenya is a case in point. It shipped just $166 million of goods to China in 2017 but imported $5 billion goods in return, including the steel and equipment used for the $4 billion Chinese-built railway in the country.

Loans as a spearhead

The case of Kenya is illustrative of a broader trend of China-Africa economic cooperation. Chinas policy banks  ExportImport Bank of China and China Development Bank  have spearheaded Chinese investments in large African infrastructure projects, with these two institutions alone having lent around $100 billion to African government and state-owned enterprises (SOEs) to date. Often specified in the master faculty agreements, such Chinese loans commonly lock up new markets for Chinese capital goods and equipment as well as employment opportunities for Chinese labour.

In 2017 alone, the newly signed value of Chinese contracted projects in Africa registered $76.5 billion. However, despite a sizeable remaining infrastructure deficit on the continent, there is a concern that African countries debt-service ability will soon dissolve. Debt to China accounts for about 14% of the stock of total debt contracted by sub- Saharan African countries, excluding South Africa.

Chinese foreign direct investment (FDI) into Africa  contrary to popular perception  remains small. According to official figures, annual FDI inflows from China into Africa have averaged just $2.1 billion over the last 15 years, with the countrys total FDI stock on the continent estimated in 2016 to be around $40 billion.

Official data on capital investment is based on the total investment the company makes at the time of the project announcement or opening. As companies can raise capital locally, phase their investment over time and channel their investment through different countries, the real value of FDI inflows is likely to be higher than official data figures. Calculating using this methodology, Chinese interests in Africa likely actually reached $95 billion in 2017, expanding at an average of 33% per annum since 2003.

South Africa hosts the lions share of Chinas FDI, in large part owing to the investment made by the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China (ICBC) into Standard Bank in 2008. Seven other African countries have attracted a cumulative total of more than $1 billion in investment from China in the past decade: Zambia, Nigeria, Zimbabwe, Congo, Ghana, Kenya and Ethiopia; though two-thirds of African nations have hosted at least 30 deals over the same period  with the average deal size generally below $10 million  evidence of the broad reach of Chinas engagement in Africa.

Chinas Ministry of Commerce database captures over 3,500 Chinese-owned firms in Africa. However, these numbers underestimate reality on the ground. A recent study conducted by Standard Bank in Uganda, for example, estimates over 500 Chinese businesses in the country  more than 10 times the official figure  which together employ over 25,000 Ugandans. Across Africa, there may actually be over 30,000 active Chinese-owned firms, the vast majority of which are smaller privately-owned businesses.

Around 300 Chinese firms account for most Chinese investment and projects in Africa. Around one-third of these are SOEs. Approximately one quarter of the 98 SOEs directly under central State-Owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission supervision have made material investments across Africa since 2003, tallying an estimated $29 billion. Probably twice as many other SOEs that are managed by local authorities have made another $20 billion in greenfield investment in Africa. These deals tend to be smaller in size, averaging around $240 million.

SOEs across a diverse range of sectors have invested in Africa. These include automakers, such as BAIC Group; financial institutions, such as Bank of China, ICBC and China Construction Bank; consumer electronics firms, such as Hisense and Hikvision; and industrial machinery manufacturers, such as Liugong, XCMG Construction and Zoomlion.

Predictably, those firms responding to economic incentives to invest in Africa most swiftly have been privately-owned firms  especially since 2013. Their foray into Africa is a sea-change from a decade ago when Chinese interests in Africa were predominantly driven by commodity acquisitions and large-scale government-to-government negotiated construction contracts.

There is a material difference in the sector distributions of Chinese investments in Africa. SOEs are more likely to invest in the construction and mining sectors, which respectively constitute 35% and 25% of their investment. Private firms, on the other hand, invest predominantly in manufacturing and services industries, which respectively constitute 36% and 22% of their investment. Indeed, out of $53 billion identified by private firms, as much as $19 billion has been earmarked for manufacturing. This is important for African development as manufacturing investment is proving a critical job creator, delivering twice as many jobs as extractive projects.

The most frequently cited motivations for investment in Africa are to gain access to the local consumer markets and to avoid competition in an increasingly saturated Chinese market. Africa has numerous advantages. These include significantly lower labour costs, an abundance of natural resources and essential inputs in production, its fast-growing domestic market, and favourable demographics. Although the internal conditions on the continent  from the business environment to government efficiency and infrastructure  remain challenging, they compare favourably to China in the 1990s when many Chinese multinationals cut their teeth. Chinese corporates are primed for increased engagement and success in Africa.

Jeremy Stevens is a China economist with the Standard Bank Group
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Accusations our supermarkets are selling "fake" honey adulterated with vegetable syrups to consumers more concerned about price than quality are a timely reminder of why it is best to buy local. The allegations, detailed in a joint Fairfax-ABC investigation on Monday, were based on tests commissioned by King and Wood Mallesons on behalf of horticulturist, Robert Costa. The results have been forwarded to Interpol. The tests, conducted in Germany at the Quality Services International laboratory, indicated 12 of the 28 samples supplied were not pure. Six Allowrie bottles, four IGA Black and Gold bottles, and two Aldi bottles failed the nuclear molecular resolution testing regime (NMR). NMR testing is intended to detect impurities and is different to the standard tests conducted by Australian food regulators. Australian regulators began testing imported honey samples for adulteration with vegetable sugars such as sugar cane and corn syrups in October 2015. Capilano, the company which markets Allowrie as a budget brand that usually undercuts 100 per cent Australian sourced product by one or two dollars for a small bottle, has strongly denied claims of adulteration. Up to 70 per cent of the honey in a jar of Allowrie can be sourced from overseas. Capilano's CEO, Ben McKee, told Choice in 2016 countries of origin included China, Argentina and Mexico. Honey could not be imported into Australia until 2004. The restrictions were eased as a result of a local product shortage brought about by the "millennium drought". Britain, the European Union and the US banned all honey imports from China in 2002 in the wake of an antibiotic contamination scandal. The honey adulteration allegations, which saw Aldi withdraw some suspect product from its shelves last week, is just the latest in a long line of food contamination concerns affecting Australian consumers. While those allegations are still in dispute, it's a timely reminder to consumers of the benefit of buying locally grown or produced foods, where possible. Not all countries share the high standards of quality and purity that have made Australian produce highly soughtafter in overseas markets. But an increasing number of goods on supermarket shelves are appearing from overseas sources, often undercutting the local alternative on price. While there do not appear to any immediate health concerns about the allegedly adulterated honey products named by the joint Fairfax-ABC investigation, the fact remains that if the test results are correct local consumers aren't getting what they pay for. Honey, unlike sugar cane and corn syrups, is highly regarded as one of the most pure and natural products you can buy. Given even the cheapest honeys retail for 50 per cent more than a premium cane sugar syrup, there is a strong incentive for overseas suppliers to attempt substitutions. The best way to counter such tactics is to spend an extra one or two dollars and go with the 100 per cent Australian product. Doing so is not just a choice about quality, it puts money back into the economy and supports Australian industries and the jobs those industries create.

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It was once Australia's "mountain bike Mecca", but riders say Mount Stromlo has slowly fallen off the radar as a world-class facility since the world's best tackled its terrain. Stromlo Forest Park was regarded as one of the world's premier mountain biking destinations when it hosted the sport's most prestigious event, the Union Cycliste Internationale World Mountain Bike Championships, in 2009. Riders believe the reason it has failed to retain its status is simple: barely any new trails have been built in the past five years. Canberra mountain biker Josh Kentwell said people had "ridden the hell out of Stromlo". While it remained popular, experienced riders had felt for the past three or four years they had reached the limits of what they could do at Stromlo. "As more people come into the sport, they want different trails to advance their skills," Mr Kentwell said. "Stromlo used to be the pinnacle of mountain biking in Australia, but now it's fallen way behind." Mr Kentwell, who has been riding at Mount Stromlo for about five years, has joined fellow Canberra riders Michael Clark and Ryan Walsch in starting a petition calling on the ACT government to help fund new, more advanced trails. Mr Kentwell said Stromlo Forest Park and track development specialists Makin Trax had done "a terrific job" with the limited funding they had, but the facility was unable to keep pace with the standards being set elsewhere unless more money came in. The petition, which calls for more natural and "raw" trails that present technical challenges and require little effort to build and maintain, has attracted more than 1400 signatures since it went live on August 20. "Those sorts of trails would be for better riders, who know how to handle the trails and look after them," he said. "It would definitely thin out the traffic [using existing trails], so there would be less need for maintenance." An ACT government spokesperson said a number of new features and trails had been designed in consultation with users and off-road cyclists since 2010, and there were more than 40 kilometres of trails in total at Stromlo Forest Park. The new features included Willo Link for cross country riders, skill development course the Playground, downhill racing track Up the Ante, advanced jumps trail the Vapour Trail, and the "pump track". The spokesperson said the government consulted with riders and had contacted those behind the petition to inform them of the planning process required to develop trails. "Venues Canberra is in the process of developing its '18-19 program for the park and will continue to engage with stakeholders as part of this process," the spokesperson said.

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news, act-politics

It's two years until the ACT's next election but minor parties are already making battle plans to overcome the tough odds they face to win a seat in the Legislative Assembly. Members from the Australian Progressives, Reason Party ACT, Sustainable Australia and Liberal Democrats ACT will host a question and answer session at King O'Malley's pub at 6pm on Thursday. Australian Progressives national president Robert Knight said ACT Labor had no interest in sharing power. "We see Labor as on the nose, fairly arrogant about where they sit in political leadership in the ACT and I strongly feel the Canberra community would like to see them taken down a peg or two," Mr Knight said. Voters in the ACT faced a choice between a union, factional-led Labor party or a staunchly conservative, backwards-looking Liberal party, Mr Knight said. "We need people to know who we are and with limited resources you can't advertise like the big parties," he said. "This is less about a political alliance and more about working together to raise the profile for minor parties." Minor parties and independents face an uphill battle in the ACT after the government introduced five-member electorates in 2014. In 2012, the Assembly had 17 seats up for grabs, with two five-member electorates and one seven-member electorate. The latter meant candidates needed to get a smaller proportion of votes - about 12 per cent - to win a seat, making it comparatively easier for independents and minor parties. The Assembly was expanded to 25 seats before the 2016 election, and voters now have five five-member electorates. Under the ACT's Hare-Clark voting system, candidates need 16.6 per cent of the vote to win a seat in these electorates. Mr Knight said it would mean minor parties would have to score 4000 first preference votes. "It is a big ask and it is part of the reason why we're doing this to raise our profiles," Mr Knight said. At the time of the rehaul, Greens leader Shane Rattenbury welcomed the expansion of seats but described the changes to electorates as an "electoral stitch up" by Labor and the Liberals. The same year the Assembly passed laws allowing parties to receive $8 per vote from the electoral commission rather than $2 per vote. "We have the major parties who are effectively entrenching themselves in the political landscape," Mr Knight said. "It builds their own war chest to carry out their own campaigns later on down the line." Mr Knight said minor parties faced other challenges too, such as Australian Electoral Commission audits and registration administration. "That type of work, it takes a lot of effort as a minor party with limited resources," Mr Knight said. Former independent MLA Michael Moore said five-member electorates made it more difficult but minor parties had been able to score wins in smaller electorates before. Mr Moore was voted into the Assembly in 1989 for the now defunct Residents Rally party before leaving the party and sitting as an independent. He had won the seat, along with another independent, in the then seven-member electorate of Molonglo. Mr Moore said independents and minor parties helped, in Australian Democrats founder Don Chipp's words, to "keep the bastards honest". "They can push the major parties to deliver on their promises that they were going to leave on the shelf," Mr Moore said. He defended the government's changes to allow them to collect $8 a vote from the electoral commission, saying it allowed them to be less reliant on political donations. Referring to the spate of politicians defecting from minor parties in the federal parliament, Mr Moore said it was a risk voters would take by supporting non-major parties. Mr Moore said another plus side to minor parties was they were likely to have more people with real life experience. "One of the frustrations we have with the major parties is - by and large - someone who joins the party becomes a staffer for a member and moves into the party, they take a political path and don't know anything else," he said.

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Our Promise: Welcome to Care2, the world's largest community for good. Here, you'll find over 45 million like-minded people working towards progress, kindness, and lasting impact.

Care2 Stands Against: bigots, racists, bullies, science deniers, misogynists, gun lobbyists, xenophobes, the willfully ignorant, animal abusers, frackers, and other mean people. If you find yourself aligning with any of those folks, you can move along, nothing to see here.

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The National Testing Agency (NTA) has released the UGC NET December 2018 exam dates and started the registration process on September 1. The National Eligibility Test (NET), which is conducted for determining the eligibility for Assistant Professor and Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) posts in Indian universities and colleges, is held twice a year. NET is conducted for 84 subjects in 91 cities across the country.

This national-level exam will be conducted as a computer-based test (CBT). As NTA has started accepting the application forms for UGC NET December 2018, candidates should know some key points before they apply. Here are some of the important points you should know prior to registering for UGC NET December 2018.

Explore The Best Career Options After Passing UGC NET

Difference Between JRF And Assistant Professor In UGC NET

Candidates who qualify for the Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) post are eligible to pursue research in their respective postgraduate subject and are also eligible for the post of Assistant Professor. On the other hand, candidates who qualified exclusively for the Assistant Professor post will not be considered for the post of JRF.

UGC NET Eligibility

Candidates who have secured at least 55% marks in their master's degree or equivalent examination from the UGC-recognised institutes are eligible for this test. For OBC, SC and ST candidates, 50% marks in their master's degree or equivalent are required.

UGC NET Exam Pattern

The UGC NET paper consists of two objective-type question papers and each question carries two marks. The duration of paper-I is one hour and will be of general nature to assess the teaching and/or research aptitude. The duration of paper-II is two hours and will be conducted on the respective subject selected by the candidate. UGC NET is conducted for a total of 300 marks.

UGC NET Age Limit

The upper age limit for JRF is 30 years. An age relaxation of up to 5 years is provided to candidates belonging to the non-creamy OBC layer besides SC/ST/PwD/transgender categories and women applicants. However, there is no upper age limit for candidates applying for the post of Assistant Professor.

UGC NET Exam Fee

Candidates belonging to general categories have to pay INR 800 as application fee, which is INR 400 for OBC category students. For SC/ST/PWD/transgender candidates, the application fee is INR 200. GST/processing charges & GST are to be paid by the candidate, as applicable.

Test Practice Centres (TPCs)

The HRD ministry has mandated that NTA set up the test practice centres across India, specifically in rural and/or remote areas to make aspirants to familiar with the CBT. This is available for free of cost. Candidates are advised to register to take a practice test in a TPC. This will be available in November.

UGC NET Syllabus

UGC NET Syllabus Paper-1: As we stated above, paper-I is common to all the candidates. It tests the candidates on their teaching/research aptitude. It is designed to test the reasoning ability, comprehension, divergent thinking and general awareness of the candidate. There are 94 subjects in paper-2. Click here to download the detailed syllabus.

UGC NET December 2018 Exam Dates

Mode of examination: Computer-based

Registration dates: September 1 and 30, 2018.

Download of admit cards: November 19, 2018

Date of examinations: December 9 to 23, 2018

Date of announcing results: January 10, 2019

The HRD ministry has formed NTA recently to conduct the entrance examinations such as JEE Main and NEET (UG) along with UGC NET.

UGC NET 2018: Explore The Preparation Tips For Paper-I
Step 1

Log on to the BHEL official website.

Step 2

Click on the Register tab.

Step 3

The terms and conditions will be displayed on the screen. Read them carefully.

Step 4

Click on the checkbox against I HAVE READ AND UNDERSTOOD THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS.

Step 5

Click on the button that reads, I AGREE.

Step 6

The registration form will be displayed on the screen. Enter your details in the fields provided.

Step 7

Click REGISTER and complete the registration process.

Step 8

Click on the Login tab.

Step 9

Enter your credentials in the login form.

Step 10

Click LOGIN and complete the application process.
Border Security Force (BSF), one amongst the five Central Armed Police Forces in India, has released a recruitment notification for the post of Constable in General Operator, Generator Mechanic and Lineman positions. The notification was released for a total of 65 vacancies.

The recruitment will be done on All India Basis. The selection of the candidates will be based on the written examination followed by a physical standard test and physical efficiency test. The selected candidates can earn up to INR 69,100 per month. Interested candidates who meet all the prerequisites set by the BSF can apply before October 1, 2018.

BSF Constable Vacancy Details

Constable (Generator Mechanic): 30 vacancies

Constable (Lineman): 12 vacancies

Constable (General Operator): 23 vacancies

CRITERIA DETAILS Name Of The Posts Constable (General Operator), Constable (Lineman) and Constable (Generator Mechanic) Organisation Border Security Force (BSF) Educational Qualification Matriculation or recognised from a recognised board with ITI certificate in the required field. Job Location Across India Salary Scale INR 27,100 to INR 69,100 per month Industry Defence Application Start Date September 1, 2018 Application End Date October 1, 2018

Age Limit

The minimum age limit for candidates is 18 years and the maximum age limit is 25 years. The upper age limit is relaxable to the candidates belonging to the SC, ST, OBC and ex-servicemen categories.

Application Fee

Candidates from the general category have to pay INR 100 as the application fee. However, there is no application fee for the SC/ST/ex-servicemen/female candidates.

Click here to download the application form

Click here for the official notification

How To Apply

Candidates have to download the application form from the official website. After duly filling the application form, candidates should send the application form to the BSF address. The application should reach before October 1, 2018.

Diploma Engineers Invited To Become Sub-Inspectors At Border Security Force
Indeed, these days social media is the medium through which people get to know each other. From being a mode of one-to-one communication to connecting an individual to thousands of others, social media assumes the form we want it to take up. In such a situation, firms and brands often take to social media in order to establish their popularity. In a similar fashion, people who need popularity in order to grow in their profession (like lawyers, politicians, actors and musicians) take to social media in order to increase their reach.

It will not be far-fetched to say that a growing fraction of millennials are dependent on social media for their job-hunting activities. Other than the aforementioned people, there are also some other people who get a sense of achievement for having a decent social media reputation.

Irrespective of which of the above-mentioned categories you fall in, the fact is that it is not that easy to become popular on social media. Even if you do become popular, maintaining the same is no child's play. This is because there are too many people out there who are fighting for that limited amount of attention.

So, this article talks to you about 5 easy ways in which you and grow your reputation on social media.

1. Follow Influencers

This is a great tip for you irrespective of whether you are trying to market yourself or your business. Understand that the audience of an influential person is much larger than that of yours and by joining in you will be able to tap into the same audience base. The trick here is to avoid indulging in too much of self-branding and go with the flow.

However, make it a point to be active and provide insights into the things that might interest the influencer. Always make it a habit to try to turn your comments into a conversation. This will ensure that people not just notice your presence but also your views and opinion will gain credibility.

This will in turn pave the way for you to have a fan base of your own and will lead to greater social media popularity.

2. Include Links

No matter which field or profession you are in, merely stating all that you have done or achieved is not enough. If you do that, people will not trust your work. If you really want to make a difference and stand out in the crowd, you have to show people how good you actually are.

The best way to do that would be to include links to your works. The links may lead to photos, documents presentations or anything else that you deem fit enough to be showcased. Most social media profiles like that of LinkedIn and Facebook give you the option to upload these.

While uploading links, make sure that they are as diverse as possible. That will help your audience get an idea of the breadth and depth of your capability and achievements.

3. Create A Twitter List

Any person has more than one interest and it is often seen that the interests are not really related. Thus, in such a situation, when you want to discuss the different topics that interest you in a common platform like that of Twitter, it is a good idea to have a list.

If you want to gain popularity in Twitter, the first thing that you need to do is choose an area that interests you and one where you would like to be an expert. Then create a list and get people who are interested in that area to join the list.

This will ensure that every time you open Twitter, all your attention can be focused on catering to this relevant group of people which will in turn play an important role in improving your popularity amongst them.

4. Use Linkedin's Recommendations

Understand that no one really trusts a person who goes about blowing his own trumpet. One easy way to make people have faith in your abilities is to make others speak for you. LinkedIn provides an option wherein your peers may recommend you and you can then endorse other people as well.

Make sure that you make the most of this particular feature. This provides your potential employers with an opportunity to evaluate you before hiring you for the said position. Naturally, this increases your chances of bagging the job.

Understand that how you interact with others, and the light in which people view you, speaks volumes about your teamwork abilities. This is an essential skill that one looks for in a potential employee and that is why this particular social media activity is so crucial in your career.

5. Be Engaging

Understand that merely having a certain number of friends, followers or connections will not suffice if you really want to make it big. If you are not able to connect with your audience, they will soon lose their interest in you and will divert the same to someone else.

Hence, irrespective of the platform you are in, if you wish to maintain your popularity, it is important for you to participate in chats, use hashtags, post things and participate in surveys. All of these activities will help you establish your digital presence and make sure people who are associated with you remain interested in your life.

The golden role of gaining social media popularity is to first ensure the retention of the current fan base and then focus on expanding the same.

The above points are no hardcore rules that you will have to follow if you want to become popular; these are mere tips listed out by industry experts which if followed will give you an edge over your peers. The rest is for you to work your magic and gain popularity
or legendary GTA 6 He may be further away from his release than we expected. According to Rockstar Mag, the...
Now is a great time to visit Cancun and other favorite vacation spots in Mexico  that is if you can get past the seaweed infestation. In June 2018, the aftermath of Tropical Storm Alberto brought a surge in Sargassum seaweed to beach towns across the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean, causing tourism in some areas to plummet.

It isnt the first time beach cities like Cancun and Riviera Maya have experienced a surge in seaweed. Its a regular occurrence for some resort towns. However, according to BBC, some experts believe 2018 could be worse than years past. On satellite images, the quantity thats being picked up is greater than ever before, Professor Hazel Oxenford, an expert in fisheries biology and management at the University of West Indies told BBC in July 2018. Certainly weve had it for longer and in huge amounts. And some of the islands are getting it for the first time.

What is Sargassum

From its stench to its removal process, some could argue that Sargassum is the worst of its kind. However, it has some benefits to marine life. The seaweed species is reddish brown in color and belongs to the Fucale algae family. It often lives in shallow water and starts out in the Gulf of Mexico before currents sweep it across the North Atlantic. And while it might scare tourists off  especially when it shows up in large quantities  it can nourish beaches and bind together to create raft-like structures that double as feeding and breeding grounds for various types of marine life.

That said, once it reaches the beaches of Cancun and other destinations along the Gulf of Mexico, it starts to decompose and stink. The stench is so bad that, in some cases, it can deter tourism and cause financial loss to towns populated by tourists. In July, the Yucatan Times reported local businesses in Cancuns Playa Gaviota Azul resort reported up to 95 percent loss in sales in just two weeks.

On top of its stench and impact on tourism, removing Sargassum is a nightmare. Removing the invasive seaweed is costly and can damage beaches.

Current seaweed conditions in Mexico

With large rafts and rancid smells stinking up beach resorts, the current seaweed conditions in Mexico and the Caribbean is a growing topic of concern for tourists. Some experts believe the current Sargassum bloom will continue through September, and worry about the years to come. However, these concerns vary from town to town. See reports of the current seaweed conditions in Mexico, below.

Cancun

In the case of seaweed, Cancun has received quite a lot of attention over the years. One TripAdvisor reviewer recalls a 2015 experience, stating: The Sargassum is in the entire water column, not just on the surface. However, another  who visited Cancun at the end of July 2018  said We are currently staying on the beach in Cancun and have been swimming amongst the seaweed without concern. The water is still clear blue, beautiful and warm and the seaweed has not been in the least unpleasant. Today looks as though its migration is finished. We expect clear water in the morning.

Because the seaweed tends to fluctuate, many advise calling a resort ahead of booking your trip to get an idea of the seaweed conditions. According to experts  and several reports on TripAdvisor  seaweed tends to die down in October and November.

Tulum

According to several reports, Tulum is also an area of concern. On July 28th, one traveler said it is still an issue along the beaches and said they had to swim out about 40 feet to get past the seaweed line. Another shared a video of the seaweed conditions in Tulum.

Like Cancun, the Sargassum bloom in Tulum can vary, and many recommend contacting a resort regarding the current seaweed conditions in Mexico.

Riviera Maya

Riviera Maya has also seen a rise in seaweed in 2018. According to one tourist, as of August 26, 2018, the seaweed is still piling up down in Riviera Maya. I see workers with wheel barrel after wheel barrel filled with sea weed [sic], it just keeps on coming  

Playa del Carmen

Tourists traveling to Playa del Carmen are also met with similar issues, with some describing the situation as pretty bad. Another report from August 28th states, just returned from 2 week [sic] honeymoon as sandose playacar [sic]. There was a lot of seaweed unfortunately the water was brown and murky. If you walked about 45 minutes to the right there was some clearer water.

For current updates on seaweed conditions in Mexico  along with the Caribbean  click here.

Solving the seaweed problem

As we previously mentioned, it wont be the last time these popular tourist destinations see an influx of seaweed. It is important to note that most beach towns do what they can to remove as much Sargassum as possible. After an invasive Sargassum bloom in 2011, removal operations have improved and continue to get better every year.

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The latest chapter of the Conjuring film universe is The Nun, which opens in theaters nationwide this Friday. Yes, the Conjuring universe is now a thing. So, you might be asking yourself, is it necessary to see the other movies before seeing this one? What exactly is the Conjuring universe, and how does The Nun factor into it?

The short answer is that this appears to be a standalone movie that you can watch without seeing anything else, but dont be surprised if it features some light tie-ins to The Conjuring 2, the movie that it is a direct prequel to, as well as Annabelle: Creation. Just so that youre up to speed in case youve missed any of these films or dont remember them well, lets break down the Conjuring universe up until this point.

It all started in 2013 with The Conjuring, a horror movie by James Wan in which paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren help a family experiencing supernatural occurrences at their home. During that film, we see that Ed and Lorraine have an entire room filled with haunted artifacts theyve collected from their various cases, one of which is a creepy doll, Annabelle. In the opening scene of The Conjuring, its explained that Annabelle was terrorizing a group of young nurses in their apartment in 1968, and the Warrens took it off their hands. The doll ends up in their artifact room, where it remains at the end of The Conjuring.

In 2014, there was a prequel movie, Annabelle, which is set one year before those young nurses get their hands on the doll. This wasnt exactly an origin story about Annabelle, though, as much as it was a separate movie that featured the doll as the main antagonist. This isnt like a Chucky situation where the doll actually moves and goes around killing people, though. Its just used as a conduit for a demonic presence. The main characters are John and Mia, and in an early scene, a woman named Annabelle Higgins breaks into their home and slits her throat while holding the Annabelle doll, and we later find out she did so as part of a satanic ritual.

In 2016, there was The Conjuring 2, and this is the one you really need to know about before seeing The Nun. Ed and Lorraine in this sequel go to investigate a haunting in Enfield, England. For a while, the Warrens and the family theyre helping, the Hodgsons, think the house is being haunted by the ghost of its former owner, but it turns out its a demon named Valak. Its important to note that Valak takes numerous forms in the movie, one of which is a creepy-looking nun. But Valak doesnt actually look like a nun; Lorraine Warren says its only taking this form to test her faith because she is extremely religious. At the end of the film, we see the demons true form, and it looks like this:

The demon also takes the form of The Crooked Man, a character from one of the kids toys. Valak is seemingly defeated at the end of The Conjuring 2, being sent back to hell after Lorraine figures out its name and says it aloud.

Last year, Annabelle got its own sequel, Annabelle: Creation, which is mostly a standalone story about two young orphans who are terrorized by Annabelle, as well as an origin story about the doll itself. Basically, a dollmaker named Samuel Mullins makes it, and its just a normal doll at first. He and his wife then tragically lose their daughter in an accident. Theyre desperate to see her again, and in an attempt to do so, they get tricked into allowing a demon to enter the Annabelle doll. They lock the doll in a room covered in pages from the Bible, which keeps it at bay for a few years.

But then, during the present timeline of the actual movie, an orphan girl named Janice accidentally unleashes the demonic presence again. After becoming possessed by the demon herself, Janice runs away, gets adopted by the Higgins family, and takes the name Annabelle. Years later, she murders both of her parents and kills herself while holding the Annabelle doll, transferring the demons spirit back into the doll again, as seen in the first Annabelle.

One of the main characters in Creation is Sister Charlotte, and at one point, she explains that she spent some time at a convent of cloister nuns in Romania, becoming very close with three of them: Sister Maria, Sister Anna, and Sister Lucia. She shows Samuel a picture of the four of them together, but we can see the creepy Valek nun from The Conjuring 2 on the far right side of the photo. Whos this? Samuel asks. Charlotte responds, I dont know. I dont think I even met her. By this point, the Conjuring universe has gone full Marvel by putting scenes into the movies that serve no purpose other than to set up the next one, and this was obviously a teaser for The Nun.

Speaking of going full Marvel, Annabelle: Creation ends with a post-credits scene. At the Abbey of St. Carta in 1952 Romania, the demon nun slowly approaches the camera while the candles all go out around her.

Now we have The Nun, which takes place, you guessed it, in Romania in 1952. After a nuns mysterious suicide, the Vatican sends a Catholic priest and a young novice to investigate. It seems that this will mainly be a standalone horror film in the same way that Annabelle and, to a lesser extent, Annabelle: Creation was.

But it also exists in the broader context of the Conjuring universe, in which we already know that the characters will be up against a demon named Valek, and the creepy nun is only one form that it takes. We probably shouldnt expect a happy ending, considering that based on The Conjuring 2, we know Valek will still be terrorizing people into the 21st century.
Costco is one of Americas favorite stores. People cant get enough of the low prices, vast selection, and generous return policy. But one thing they may not love is big-box retailers limited hours.

Unlike chains like Walmart, which often keep stores open 24/7, Costco opens relatively late and closes early. Most stores dont open their doors until 10 a.m., and locations close as early as 6 p.m. on some days. And if you want to run in and pick up a mega-pack of hot dog buns or a case of beer before you head to your Labor Day barbecue? Forget about it.

Costcos holiday hours

These days, most retailers celebrate Labor Day by offering customers discounts, not giving workers a day off. But not Costco. Labor Day is one of seven holidays when the chain shuts its doors. Thats unusual. Though many retailers are closed on major holidays like Thanksgiving and Christmas, few shut down as often as Costco.

All Costco locations are closed on the following holidays:

New Years Day

Easter

Memorial Day

Independence Day

Labor Day

Thanksgiving

Christmas

Rival Sams Club is also closed on New Years Day, Easter, Thanksgiving, and Christmas, but is open on Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day.

In the past, Costco has described its decision to close on major holidays as part of its commitment to its workers. Our employees work especially hard during the holiday season and we simply believe that they deserve the opportunity to spend Thanksgiving with their families. Nothing more complicated than that, a Costco spokesperson told ThinkProgress in 2014.

When does Costco open?

Not closing on holidays and embracing longer hours might help bring more people into Costcos stores, but the chain seems perfectly happy to keep things the way they are.

Here are the hours for most Costco warehouses:

Monday-Friday: 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m.

Saturday: 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Sunday: 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Some Costco stores do open before 10 a.m. Roughly two dozen Costco stores in California, plus one in Reno, Nevada, now welcome shoppers at 9 a.m. Costco gas stations also tend to have longer hours. Some open as early as 5:30 a.m. and do not close until 9:30 p.m. The tire service center opens as early as 7 a.m. in some locations. Unlike Sams Club, Costco doesnt have early opening hours for those with a premium membership.

Hoping to beat the crowds on your next Costco trip? Insiders report that many Costco stores actually open 15 or 30 minutes before the posted time. My location often opens at 9:45 even though its posted 10, said Reddit user Narudatsu. Unless we are extremely busy stocking we usually open 9:45. I mean if were all done cleaning up in the morning, theres nothing really else to do. Might as well let people come in.

Earlier in 2018, Costco also hosted a special shopping day for military members. On March 24, active duty military, veterans, and their families were able to shop two hours before the store opened. Theres no word yet on whether Costco will repeat the event for 2019.

Not being able to make an early-morning Costco run might frustrate members, but theres a good reason for the shorter hours. The typical Costco is open for fewer than 70 hours a week, noted the Motley Fool, 100 fewer hours than the average Walmart. Fewer opening hours helps the chain keep labor costs under control, even while paying its workers one of the highest wages in retail. Workers start at $14 an hour, and its been named one of the best places to work in America.
Kathy DeNiro and Matthew Cranswick lead D60 race

Kathy DeNiro and Matthew Cranswick were leading the race for District 60 school board as of 9 p.m. on election night with 24.4% of ballots counted.
In 2020, we were the church on our heels. A global pandemic shut down much of our world. But the church has been on the move since it was birthed; it will continue to be on the move until God makes all things new.
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One thing is certain with the presidency of Donald Trump. The good is really good and the bad is really bad. Just consider some of the big news recently. Some of it is wonderful and some of it is terrible. And all of it is related to President Trump.

On August 29, the Huffington Post bemoaned, "Democrats Just Confirmed Lots Of Trump's Judges So They Could Skip Town. The resistance wilts in August."

According to the article by Jennifer Bendery and Igor Bobic, "Senate Democrats just gave a huge gift to President Donald Trump: They agreed to expedite votes on 15 of his nominees to lifetime federal court seats because they wanted to go home."

The implications of this are massive: "It's a major win for Trump and McConnell, whose No. 1 priority is filling up federal courts with conservative judges  many of whom are incredibly anti-abortion, antiLGBTQ rights and antivoting rights. Trump has gotten 26 circuit court judges confirmed, more than any other president at this point in his term. Another way of putting it: 1 in 7 U.S. circuit court seats is now filled by a judge nominated by Trump."

Add in the pending nomination of Justice Kavanagh, and "you've got a president drastically reshaping the nation's courts for generations."

This alone would be a an incredible accomplishment for the president. This alone would merit the votes of many a conservative American. Talk about leaving a positive legacy.

But that was just one piece of big, positive news. (Shall we label it "huge"?)

The president also called out the social media giants, accusing them of unfairness towards conservatives. How many leaders have the gumption to do that? And who better to tackle such a massive issue than the President of the United States, with the help of Congress?

Also this week, Nikki Haley, US Ambassador to the United Nations, publicly questioned "Palestinian claims to a 'right of return' to modern Israel, saying she believed that the hot button issue should be taken 'off the table.'"

This is something that should have been done years ago, since talk about the "right of return" not only hinders the peace process, but it has no legitimacy at all.

And then there was the announcement of the new trade agreement with Mexico, which caused the stock market to soar.

For all this (and more), Trump supporters have reason to feel good. The man we voted for is doing a great job. Kudos to the president!

At the same time, Trump supporters have reason to feel ashamed. The man we voted for is acting in ways that are totally unbecoming for the president. In fact, if one of my grandchildren acted like this (they range in age from 11-17), I would feel ashamed. But the President of the United States? This should not be.

There is simply no justification for Trump to call veteran journalist Carl Bernstein "a man who lives in the past and thinks like a degenerate fool."

Yes, it does appear that Bernstein blatantly lied about Trump. And Bernstein's apparent lie was quite damaging, buttressed by the fact that Bernstein came to fame as one of the major Watergate reporters. The great journalist was about to bring down another president!

So I can understand Trump's ire toward both Bernstein (and CNN).

But for the President of the United States (or any civil person) to refer to another public professional in such terms as "degenerate fool" is wrong and uncalled for. It also hurts the president's cause, alienating those who might have been miffed at the lies they were being told.

Must the president always be so divisive? Must he always be so inflammatory? Can he not be strong and clear-headed and courageous without such nasty displays?

I'm personally hoping that candidates who support Trump's agenda will be elected in the fall. And, despite my lack of confidence in the Republican Party as a whole, I'm hoping that Republicans will maintain their Congressional majorities. And, to say it once more, if Trump were running against Hillary today, I'd vote for him without hesitation.

At the same time, I will urge him to step higher and I will bemoan his destructive words and actions. How can I not do both?

My ultimate loyalty as a follower of Jesus is to someone higher than the president (and to something greater than America). So I will stand with the president however and whenever I can, but I won't lose my conscience in the process.

Because the relationship between evangelicals and President Trump is so complex I've written a new book addressing it, titled Donald Trump Is Not My Savior: An Evangelical Leader Speaks His Mind About the Man He Supports As President. I truly hope the book will help us get greater clarity in our dealings with this unique leader as the midterm elections approach. So much hangs in the balance, and much of it sits on the shoulders of a very flawed, very strong, very human president. How should we respond?
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The term "social justice" has become quite a buzz word in evangelical circles in recent years. Social matters like immigration, racial reconciliation, and sexuality are taking center stage in conferences and online discussions, with loud voices expressing strong options.

Other voices are beginning to object to the direction of such discussions, expressing concerns over the impact of secular leftist political and social thought upon some of these evangelical movements. John MacArthur and others are starting to weigh in, and all signs indicate that these debates aren't going to calm down any time soon.

As I've followed with interest these controversies over the past few years, I've come to see that although there is a lot of discussion about these things, most of it has involved throwing terms and philosophies around with little clarity, and there are very few places to go that carefully explain the nature of concerns with where these recent evangelical "social justice" movements appear to be headed.

I count myself among those with concerns about much of what is being said by these "social justice" evangelicals, and I would like to simply lay out the nature of my concerns. I do not mean to speak for all who are concerned, but I think what I write here summarizes many of the problems with these recent developments within some quarters of evangelicalism. This essay is meant to inform, not necessarily fully explain or defend.

A little background

First, where are these discussions happening?

I think two cultural matters sparked recent tensions within evangelicalism over social issues, and they were occurring around the same time: immigration policy (especially with Islamic refugees attempting to enter the US) and prominent shootings of African Americans (including Trayvon Martin and Michael Brown). Sexuality entered the mix with claims that some evangelicals were starting to soften their views concerning homosexuality. These funneled into the 2016 Presidential election, with Donald Trump's personal behavior and rhetoric adding fuel to an already growing fire.

Several prominent evangelicals raised strong opinions about immigration, refugees, shootings, and Trump, creating tension among evangelicals over political and social matters that appears to be unprecedented.

Within the last year, some of these evangelicals have organized conferences that further sparked debate. Conferences like MLK50 (sponsored by the Ethics and Religious Liberty Commission of the SBC along with the Gospel Coalition), Together for the Gospel (with several message explicitly addressing social justice and racial reconciliation) and Revoice (a conference "supporting, encouraging, and empowering gay, lesbian, same-sex-attracted, and other LGBT Christians so they can flourish while observing the historic, Christian doctrine of marriage and sexuality") have brought the tension to maximum combustibility.

Don't we support social justice?

So why are some of us concerned about these recent conferences and discussions? Are we against justice? Are we in favor of racism?

Hardly. It is simply irresponsible and dishonest to claim, as I have seen many times on social media, that those who are concerned about recent evangelical "social justice" movements are in favor of injustice or racism. Such a claim is an unfortunate straw man.

What we are concerned about is how such discussions are being framed, how terms are being redefined, and the influence of secular leftist ideology on such discussions.

Confusing race, ethnicity, and culture

The first concern I have with recent social justice movements is that many evangelicals have seemingly adopted very secular (i.e., not biblical) categories of race, ethnicity, and culture. For one thing, according to Scripture, there is only one racethe human race (Acts 17:26). The whole notion of racial distinctions based on genetic and physical distinctiveness comes from Darwinian evolutionary theories and is simply unbiblical (not to mention scientifically disproven).

Scripture does have the category of ethnicity, which biblically refers to various people groups unified by geography, politics, heritage, and culture (e.g. Rev. 7:9). But the problem is that many evangelicals have also adopted the common practice of equating ethnicity and culture, which is also invalid biblically. Ethnicity refers to a group of people united and living together, while culture refers to the common behaviors of a group of people. The two categories are not equivalent. All people of every ethnicity are equally good and made in God's image, while cultures (understood as systems of behavior) are produced by beliefs, values, and worldviews, and thus may be better or worse when compared to the values, beliefs and patterns of behavior advocated in Scripture (1 Peter 1:13-19).

Secular racists (like white supremacists) and leftists (like multiculturalists) perpetuate these confusions over race, ethnicity, and culture. The former assumes that one group is genetically superior to another. The latter assumes that all ways of life are equally good and valid. Neither is biblical.

This also broadens considerably what should be accurately defined as racism. With these secular definitions, any criticism of one set of behaviors as wrong or inferior to another is considered racist.

It would do evangelicals well to re-evaluate their definitions of these categories based on how Scripture discusses them. The rest of the problems I am going to elucidate are, I believe, symptoms of this fundamental problem, which is why I devoted a chapter to the subject in By the Waters of Babylon and have written several articles and blog posts on the issue, including the following:

Intersectionality

A related problem is the notion of intersectionality. This perspective divides various groups into segments based on these faulty notions of race, ethnicity, and culture, along with other issues such as sexuality and economic status, ultimately pitting the groups against each other. One group's flourishing tends to mean another group's oppression. Furthermore, the needs, beliefs, perspectives, and values of each group are entirely different from one another, and only members of a group are capable of understanding what the group needs, further exacerbating tensions between each group.

What's more, this perspective teaches that a person's individual identity is actually bound up in the intersection of various characteristics of who they are, leading to further fragmentation of groups. In other words, an identity group made up of white heterosexual middle class males is entirely distinct from a group of black heterosexual middle class males, which is completely different from a group of black heterosexual middle class females, and so forth.

An assumption inherent to this view is that if a particular group has flourished more successfully than another group, this is incontrovertible proof that the more successful group has oppressed the less successful group and possibly even used its power to create a system within which the less successful group can never flourish. Advocates of this position are convinced that whole societies have been engineered to give unfair advantage to a certain intersectional group, such as so-called "white privilege," and inherently suppress other groups, rendering whole political systems, societies, cultures, and even religious convictions as "systemically racist." This is sometimes also called critical race theory.

What this results in is a multiplicity of intersectional social groups competing for power and influence, some considered more dominant, and others considered more marginalized. The more "victimized" a particular intersectional group is determined to be, the louder voice they are afforded in policy decisions and cultural discussions. This also means that racism exists only in the direction of a more powerful "race" toward an oppressed "race"; racism, in this view, cannot happen in the reverse direction. Further, the sins of individuals (racist or otherwise) within a particular intersectional group renders the entire group guilty.

This is class warfare through and through, what some have rightly observed to be "cultural marxism," that is, the intentional division of groups into various classes and pitting the ostensibly oppressed classes against those perceived to be more powerful or privileged. It wrongly assumes that flourishing or not is a result of systemic privilege or oppression, not a result of individual decisions or cultural practices that actually hinder human flourishing. If there are economic disparities, for example, between different kind of groups, this has nothing do with systemic racism or oppression, as Thomas Sowell has brilliantly argued in his trilogy of books, Race and Culture, Migrations and Cultures, and Conquests and Cultures. Economic disparity is a result, rather, of differences in culture, and some cultures are simply not as able to sustain human flourishing as others are.

This is simply biblical thinking. Individuals or groups whose cultural behavior runs contrary to the natural created order and God's moral law will inevitably find themselves in disorder and ruin (Romans 1:26-32). Conversely, those who live accordingly to God's moral principles will flourish (Prov 14:34).

Identity

This all leads to the problem of where one finds ultimate identity, especially a Christian. Secular intersectionality argues that true identity is found in the intersection of one's racial, ethnic, cultural, sexual, economic, and social status, each of these already defined unbiblically.

The problem with this idea is that, while each person's perspective is certain impacted by his or her background, experiences, and personal values, these never bind a person. And a Christian's ultimate identity must always be found in his or her relationship to Christ, not any of these secular categories. Unity in the church, for example, is rooted in a Christian's identity in Christ, not in how well a church caters to particular intersectional identity. Christians are a new ethnicity (1 Peter 2:9-10) united by shared values, beliefs, and behaviors that have little to do with the old ethnic divisions. In Christ there is no Jew nor Greek, no slave nor free, no male nor female (Gal 3:28).

Bottom line: intersectionality ignores two biblical principles: first, individual and collective behavior (not systemic oppression) is what results in flourishing or not; second, ultimate group identity for a Christian should be found in Christ and his church rather than something else external.

Redefining "justice"

The tragic result of allowing all of these categories to be defined, not by Scripture, but by secular ideology, is that it has led to a redefining of biblical justice to fit into the secular idea of "social justice" as framed by these secular categories.

"Justice," for many evangelical social justice advocates, has become characterized by tearing down traditional structures deemed to be evidence of "systemic oppression" and by marginalized intersectional groups "standing up to power," that is resisting and even fighting against the influence, control, and values of more powerful majority intersectional groups. Those more powerful groups, then, are expected to withdraw their influence, repenting of and making reparations for their group's collective oppression of minority groups, and give the marginalized groups a more prominent voice, which usually takes the form of "affirmative action" hirings and appointments to leadership positions based on the color of one's skin rather than competency, character, and skill.

On the contrary, biblical justice is simply choosing to do what is right. If there is something that is wrong, justice makes it right. Justice biblically does not entail blaming the sins of individuals on "systemic" problems, unless of course you consider original sin a systemic problem, which I suppose it is for the entire human race (Eph 2:2-3). In fact, Scripture is very clear that true justice will mean favoring neither the majority, powerful, or privileged group nor the less privileged group (Exodus 23:2-3). Justice is simply doing right without any notion of intersectionality.

What creates injustice in the world is sin, plain and simple, and sin is a problem for every individual of every group of individuals. The only solution to injustice in the world is belief in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Mission drift

A final related problem is mission drift within churches. Christ was clear: the mission of the church is to make disciples (Matt 28:19-20). This means faithfully proclaiming the gospel to unbelievers, baptizing new converts into churches, and teaching them to observe everything Christ commanded them. This central mission should control everything a church (or its leadership) does in its official capacity.

The problem is that dealing with even admittedly debatable social and political matters, such as immigration policy, what to do with refugees, poverty, or which political candidate to support falls outside this mission. The church (or its official leaders) have no business speaking authoritatively on these matters. Likewise, parachurch ministries that are funded by and meant to represent autonomous local churches should likewise resist speaking authoritatively on such matters. To do so inevitably leads to forsaking the unique mission of the church in favor of political activism in debatable matters.

Even with issues like racism, poverty, and other terrible societal realities, the ultimate solution is the gospel of Jesus Christ. Only when people come to faith in Christ and find their ultimate identityincluding their beliefs, values, and cultural behaviorin the church will any of these tragedies be resolved. And ultimately, they will not be solved completely until Jesus comes again, when he will eliminate the only truly systemic problem of all humanitysin.

Making problems worse

No thoughtful Christian who has expressed concerns over these recent trends approves of true racism, injustice, or oppression when it exists. But I truly believe that by adopting these secular, leftist categories, which are rooted in ideologies explicitly intended to divide people, well-meaning Christians are making divides within Christianity and even broader society worse rather than better.

The more biblical solution would be to resist secular ideologies and simply preach Christ to those who do not believe and to teach believers to observe all that Christ has commanded them, which includes teaching all Christians, whether they believe they are flourishing or not, to celebrate their oneness in Christ and resist all divisions within Christ's body.

This essay was originally published at Religious Affections Ministries.
Alan Kurdi anniversary: Faith leaders press UK government to do more for child refugees

UK faith leaders have used the anniversary yesterday of the death of three-year-old Alan Kurdi to urge the government to do more to help child refugees.

The image of the Syrian boy's body washed up on a Turkish beach caused international outrage when it was shared around the world and sparked calls for a solution to the migrant crisis.

Tens of thousands of people from African and the Middle East have died attempting to cross the Mediterranean to Europe.

The letter signed by 42 Christian, Jewish and Muslim faith leaders including former Archbishop of Canterbury Rowan Williams says: 'Three years ago today, Alan Kurdi, a three-year-old Kurdish refugee, drowned because he had no safe route to sanctuary in Europe. The lives of more than 9,000 people fleeing war and persecution have been lost in the Mediterranean since that little boy's death.

'This autumn Britain will mark a more hopeful anniversary. Eighty years ago, the Kindertransport was launched, a rescue operation that saved 10,000 Jewish and other refugee children from Nazi persecution.

'Now it is our turn to honour that legacy by helping more child refugees to find safety here. On this anniversary we call on the government to match the efforts of the Kindertransport and establish a lasting route to protection in the UK for 10,000 child refugees in future years.'

The plight of child refugees has recently been highlighted by reports from the Greek island of Lesbos, where the refugee camp of Moria, designed for 2,000 people, is attempting to house 10,000. Children as young has 10 have attempted suicide there. Hundreds of refugee children are sleeping rough on the streets of Paris.
Are we on the threshold of cloning humans?

God created man in His image. Are we on the verge of man making man in his own image?

The latest issue of Vanity Fair has an article on what may be the ultimate form of conspicuous consumption: cloning your dead pets, specifically dogs.

Most Americans were unaware such a thing was possible, never mind commonplace, until Barbra Streisand mentioned it in passing during an interview with Variety magazine that her two current dogs were clones of her dog Samantha, who died last year. As Streisand later explained in the New York Times, "every time I look at [the faces of Samantha's clones], I think of my Samantha . . . and smile."

Streisand isn't the only person who has cloned her dead pet. When the Vanity Fair article calls dog cloning "very big" and "very controversial," it's correct on both counts.

Take, for instance, the Sooam Biotech Research Foundation in Seoul, South Korea. In the last ten years, Sooam has produced more than 1,000 clones of deceased dogs.

As you may have guessed, dog cloning is very expensive. The cost runs from about $50,000 to $100,000 per birth and the clientele mostly reflects it: superstar divas, "Middle Eastern royalty," and the "billionaire founder of Phoenix University," to name but a few.

Sooam's founder is Hwang Woo-Suk. In 2004, he claimed to have successfully cloned a human embryo. His claim was later shown to be a "spectacular hoax," and he was sentenced to two years prison. He escaped actually serving time because the judge ruled that he "has truly repented for his crime."

Perhaps he had. What's clear is that Hwang hasn't lost any enthusiasm for cloning. While he insists that "Here in Sooam we are steadfastly against human cloning," he insists that "Animal-cloning ethics and human-cloning ethics have completely different values." He adds that "animal cloning can bring us benefits and help us contribute socially."

Many ethicists disagree. They cite the "pain and suffering" involved in producing a single canine clone, such as potentially dangerous hormone treatments and genetic abnormalities. This exceeds the suffering in natural reproduction.

Then there's the elephant in the room: human cloning. Earlier this year, scientists in China announced that they had "created two cloned monkeys," using the same technique used to create "Dolly the sheep," two decades ago.

The head researcher at Sooam told Vanity Fair that "These monkeys are very close to us genetically . . . which means you should be able to clone a human."

The head of the Stem Cell Program at Boston Children's Hospital told the Times, "We are closer to humans than we've ever been before . . . That raises questions of where we would want to go."

Assuming the technical obstacles can be overcome, the answer should be obvious: If people are willing to pay $50-100 thousand dollars to assuage their pain over losing a pet, imagine what they would be willing to pay when we're talking about family members and loved ones.

As Vanity Fair put it, "If distraught parents think a clone would resemble 85 percent of their child's appearance and personality . . . it's only a matter of time until pressure will inexorably mount to give it a shot. If there's enough demand, the market will do its best to respond."

And that's the "best-case scenario." The worst-case scenario is something akin to Kazuo Ishiguro's novel "Never Let Me Go," where clones are created to provide their "owners" with spare body parts.

If this sounds like science fiction to you, so did cloning your pets until recently.

Pet Clones: On the Threshold of Cloning Humans?

The history of technology suggests that cloning won't be confined to dogs or monkeys. And with each advancing step of cloning technology, the culture's valuation of human life depreciates. As followers of the God who created us in His image, we have the responsibility to speak out for the sacredness of the gift of life and oppose the manufacturing of a commodity.

Copyright 2018 by the Colson Center for Christian Worldview. Reprinted with permission.
CARE launches new campaign encouraging people to consider organ donation

It's Organ Donation Week 2018 this week and to get people thinking about the issue, CARE has launched a new online campaign.

The Christian organization is asking people to think about whether organ donation could be something they would be prepared to do. The online campaign also celebrates those who have already donated an organ.

CARE spokesperson, James Mildred, 'We know that organ donation saves lives and it represents a beautiful gift when someone chooses to voluntarily donate their organs so others can benefit.

'This week is a great opportunity to encourage everyone to start having conversations within their families about organ donation and whether we want to donate or not.

'Last year during organ donation week, more than 34,000 people joined the organ donation register which is simply fantastic and shows what can be achieved through raising public awareness.'

The NHS is making families a focus of Organ Donation Week this year as, in the UK, family opposition remains the main reason why organ donations are unable to proceed.

According to NHS figures, around 6,000 people are on the waiting list for an organ donation and transplant.

The NHS holds Organ Donation Week as a way of getting people talking about organ donation. Last year, over 34,000 people joined the NHS Organ Donor Register during Organ Donation Week.

According to the Government, at least 50,000 people in England are alive today because they received an organ donation and transplant. However, it is concerned by the shortage of consenting organ donors and is consulting on whether to change the law in England so that people are automatically considered willing to donate an organ unless they take steps to opt out.

CARE is urging the Government away from this proposal. The Christian advocacy group fears that the opt-out system may lead to fewer organ donors if people take offence at the idea of the state presuming their consent.

It says the Government should instead prioritise its resources on increasing the availability of specialist organ donation nurses.

Mr Mildred said: 'It is right to seek ways to increase organ donation levels. CARE understands the desire to increase organ donation levels and we have always argued that we should be doing so in an ethically responsible way and in a way that is proven to be effective.

'In this connection, the Government's plans to move to an opt-out system are deeply concerning. Both ethically and from the point of view of the international evidence, shifting to an opt-out system is problematic and not guaranteed to work.

'In fact, it diverts money away from measures that have been proven to work in increasing the number of organs available for transplantation.

'That's why we are calling on the Government to instead recruit more specialist nurses because we believe this is one measure that is proven to help increase the number of organ donations.'

In 2017, research by the Nuffield Council found that when a trained organ donation nurse spoke with families, rates of family consent were 68.6 per cent. By comparison, only 27.5 per cent of families gave their consent when they were approached by staff who had not undergone specialist training.

Hugh Whittall, director of the council, said previously: 'The evidence points very strongly to the fact that decisions about deceased organ donation are most effective when they are based on the known wishes of the donor, and involve discussions between trained professionals and relatives.

'Whilst there continue to be calls to introduce an opt-out system for organ donation, more evidence needs to be gathered over a longer period before deciding whether to extend this system to other countries.

'The key issue appears to be knowledge of the deceased's intentions and skilled support in discussing the possibility of donation with the family, rather than the legal basis for donation.'
Chilean prosecutors say Church abuse investigations have tripled

The number of cases of abuse in Chile's Roman Catholic Church under investigation by prosecutors has more than tripled to 119 in the past month, the national prosecuting authority said on Friday.

Among the 167 people under investigation are seven bishops and 96 priests, accused of unspecified abuses of 178 alleged victims, including 79 minors, the authority said.

A report from the authority sent to journalists on Friday did not specify the type of abuse but clergy have been accused by prosecutors of sexually abusing members of their congregations or covering up abuse.

The prosecuting authority did not respond to request for comment.

In July civil prosecutors referred to 36 investigations involving an unspecified number of priests and bishops.

In May, Pope Francis summoned Chile's 34 bishops to Rome following a report by the Vatican's senior sex abuse investigator that accused them of 'grave negligence' in investigating allegations that children had been abused and suggested evidence of sex crimes had been destroyed.

Chile is one of several countries including the US and Ireland where the Catholic Church is under huge pressure because of decades-long safeguarding failures. Despite his declared 'zero tolerance' policy towards abuse by clergy, Pope Francis himself has come under attack from a former senior Vatican figure, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, who said Francis had covered up wrongdoing by former cardinal Theodore McCarrick, the retired archbishop of Washington DC. The pope has refused to respond to the allegations, saying he 'would not say one word' about them, and Vigano's credibility has been attacked by his supporters.

Additional reporting by Reuters.
Pastor Andrew Stoecklein Was Inside Church When He Attempted Suicide, Police Reveal

Megachurch Pastor Andrew Stoecklein was at work inside the Inland Hills Church his father founded in Chino, California, when he attempted to take his life last Friday, which ultimately led to his death a day later, local police have revealed.

Church officials who announced the pastor's passing late Sunday did not previously disclose that Stoecklein attempted suicide in the church.

When contacted for further details on what may have triggered the suicide attempt, a church official who identified himself only as Pastor Chris, told that he was unable to immediately discuss the situation.

Tamrin Olden, crime prevention supervisor with the City of Chino Police Department declined giving any detailed specifics from the formal police report but told CP late Tuesday that police received a call from the church about Stoecklein's suicide attempt at about 11:08 a.m. last Friday.

"Someone called in and said that they'd seen him or discovered him at the church. I don't know the details of where he was at," Olden said. "He was inside the building somewhere but I don't know exactly."

When asked if the information isn't recorded in the police report, she said "we don't release those types of details." She also declined to reveal how the 30-year-old pastor took his life.

Olden would later disclose in her interview that the police department had been personally affected by Stoecklein's death because a number of officers are members of the church. She also shared that the department regularly works with Inland Hills on faith-based initiatives.

"Obviously it's a devastating situation regardless of who is involved but the fact that we have a connection to that congregation makes it even more impactful. We are a very small, tight-knit community. We have a lot of personnel who are familiar with the church, who attend the church. We have family and friends from the church who live in the community. It's definitely been a large impact. A lot of people were familiar with the congregation. We have a small hometown feel. So we're going to be impacted by those types of tragedies even more so because of our connection to them," Olden said.

Stoecklein, who leaves behind his wife, Kayla, and three sons, took his life approximately two weeks after he returned to work as Inland Hills Church's lead pastor. He had been away on an involuntary four-months-long break to deal with depression and anxiety.

In his first message back from the sabbatical on Aug. 12, Stoecklein revealed that even though his church was doing well financially and they were attracting record-setting attendance, he was falling apart for several months.

After his father died from cancer in 2015, Stoecklein, who turned 30 in May, took on leadership of the megachurch. He and his family were soon forced to move in recent months, however, after threatening encounters with stalkers. He also developed health complications, which led to a mental breakdown in April. He was forced by the elders of his church to take a sabbatical at that point.

"... About seven months before this Thursday breakdown, it really began this downward spiral where physically I was not OK. I, in that period, had two surgeries to remove a softball-sized mass from my chest. I've passed 60 kidney stones now which I'm very excited about. Those are my babies. Oh yeah," he quipped.

He explained that in March, he began experiencing panic and anxiety attacks while on a trip overseas.

"I thought on top of all of this. We should go to India and Africa for three weeks. So I hopped on a plane and I'm overseas and I started to experience panic attacks and anxiety attacks and was working with a wellness doctor on this and then we thought, let's get back from India and then a few days later I spoke at seven Easter services," he said.

On Good Friday, he experienced an extreme panic attack at church.

"For the first service, one of the security guards, who helps follow me around, found me on the bathroom floor in the offices just with this extreme panic. And that's when we really started to know that something wasn't right. And then we got through Easter.

"I was trying to say 'you know, it's jetlag.' And 'I'm OK. I can keep going ...' And then Thursday afternoon happened," he said.

The Thursday afternoon is the day in April when the elders asked him to take some time off to get better.

"I was upstairs at the time. Kayla and the boys were downstairs and I just, I freaked out. It was actually the flooring guy who called and said the flooring wasn't going to be installed in time and it triggered me and I went in this full-on panic attack," Stoecklein said.

"And if you've ever been in one or around someone who's is in the middle of a full-on panic attack, it's a scary thing. I was in fear for my life. I thought I was going to die. I was pacing back and forth. I wasn't making sense. Kayla was begging me to go to the hospital. I was refusing. I was refusing to take any medication. I was like 'girl, I got a message to preach on Sunday. I'm not going to the hospital.' And I was just totally whacked out of my mind," he revealed.

Stoecklein said it took two doctors on the phone to convince him to allow his wife to take him to the ER.

"I wasn't even able to walk. They put me in a wheelchair, wheeled me in and I had my sunglasses on. I still remember. I had sunglasses on because I thought that everybody at Inland Hills Church was going to be at the hospital watching me go through this breakdown. And I was thinking these wild thoughts and I thought that someone was going to kill me. And so I was hiding and they rushed me immediately right to the back. And they put me in this hallway and they were telling me that there was no room," the young pastor continued.

He noted that he said "some pretty outlandish stuff" which he didn't remember saying but his wife told him about.

In the Aug. 12 message, Stoecklein also encouraged his congregation to be more aware of the mental health crisis in America and used the story of Old Testament prophet Elijah to illustrate that mental health is a common subject in the Bible.

"Elijah, he pinpoints the pain. He acknowledges that he is filled with anxiety and depression and suicidal thoughts. And you see mental illness on display. Now that is something that we don't like to talk about much, do we? Especially not the church. And what's odd to me about that is from cover to cover in Scripture, it's filled with men and women who've struggled with their emotions and feelings and have been honest and we have these Scriptures that have been preserved to read and relate to these feelings and emotions," he said.

Olden told that while they have not yet been informed of details concerning a memorial service for Stoecklein, the church will be supported by the faith-based and law enforcement community.

"We have not received those details yet ... I know that we do have some individuals in our department that are in contact with the congregation. We've offered our support and condolences and what the nature of our involvement will or won't be, we haven't determined that," Olden said. "I'm sure we'll have personnel who will be attending the services."
Washington 'no longer impartial' between Israelis and Palestinians after slashing aid

Millions of Palestinian refugees have been placed in 'serious jeopardy', a spokesman for one of the UK's largest Christian relief organisations said on Monday, hitting back at a US aid cutoff.

There are around 5 million Palestinian refugees across Jordan, Lebanon, Syria and the West Bank and Gaza. Most are descendants of some 700,000 Palestinians who were driven out of their homes or fled fighting in the 1948 war that led to Israel's creation.

The growing refugee count was cited by Washington in its decision last week to withhold funding from the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), and has potential ramifications for the Palestinians' pursuit of a right of return to land now in Israel.

Successive Israeli governments have ruled out such an influx, fearing the country would lose its Jewish majority.

Christian Aid's spokesman William Bell said the US 'cannot present itself as an impartial peace broker between Israel and the Palestinians' as a result. 'The primary motive appears to be to challenge the number of eligible Palestinian refugees who can claim the right of return to their former homes in what is now Israel and the occupied Palestinian territory. With one stroke, the status of millions of Palestinian refugees and the humanitarian lifeline they depend upon for vital health, social and education services is in serious jeopardy,' he said.

'Such a move will clearly send shockwaves through a population who have endured 70 years of vulnerability and insecurity throughout the Middle East, including Syria.'

He stressed Christian Aid's support for Israel's right to a secure and peaceful existence, but said: 'We cannot stand by and watch as Palestinian lives are consistently treated as second class.'

'By threatening the vital humanitarian services that UNRWA provides and challenging people's identity, the US is condemning millions to even greater insecurity. A peace process is not a blunt instrument to bend people against their will. It must be the path that leads all to security, prosperity and hope,' he concluded.

UNRWA Commissioner-General Pierre Krahenbuhl said in an open letter to Palestinian refugees and the agency's staff: 'I express deep regret and disappointment at the nature of the US decision.'

However, appearing to echo Israel's view that descendants of the 1948 refugees should not share that status, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert criticised UNRWA on Friday over its 'endlessly and exponentially expanding community of entitled beneficiaries'.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described UNRWA on Sunday as 'the refugee perpetuation agency' whose money 'should be taken and be used to really help rehabilitate the refugees, whose real number is a sliver of that reported by UNRWA'.

But Krahenbuhl said 'the protracted nature of the Palestine refugee crisis' was not unique. He said the children and grandchildren of long-displaced refugees in Afghanistan, Sudan, Somalia, Congo and elsewhere are also recognised as refugees and assisted by the United Nations.

Schools open

'No matter how often attempts are made to minimise or delegitimise the individual and collective experiences of Palestine refugees, the undeniable fact remains that they have rights under international law and represent a community of 5.4 million men, women and children who cannot simply be wished away,' he said.

The United States paid out $60 million (46.5 million) to UNRWA in January, withholding another $65 million, from a promised $365 million for the year. Krahenbuhl said Gulf states had injected funds but UNRWA still needed more than $200 million.

In Lebanon on Monday, UNRWA opened its school year as scheduled. Studies in UNRWA-run schools in the occupied West Bank and the Gaza Strip got under way on Wednesday.

Claudio Cordone, director of UNRWA Affairs in Lebanon, told Reuters that funds would last only until the end of the month but the agency would continue to raise money to ensure the schools remain open.

Washington's move against UNRWA was the latest in a series of US and Israeli policy decisions that have angered Palestinians and raised international concern.

They include Trump's recognition of Jerusalem as Israel's capital in December, the moving of the US Embassy to the contested city in May and Israel's adoption of a 'nation-state' law in July that says only Jews have the right of self-determination in the country.

Additional reporting by Reuters.
The first International Horology Forum comes to Christies

Dubai Watch Week and Christies to host the first International Horology Forum in London on 11 and 12 September, facilitating discussion between leading figures from the watch world

The Horology Forum has become an integral part of the Dubai Watch Week experience. An original concept created to foster free-flowing conversation covering a broad spectrum of industry topics, these sessions have become what Christies International Head of Watches John Reardon describes as the leading global platform in non-biased dialogue on all things horological. On 11 and 12 September in London, Christies and Dubai Watch Week will partner on the first International Horology Forum, a special event at our King Street headquarters that will continue these in-depth conversations and debates among the worlds leading watchmakers, authors, historians, collectors, brands and industry professionals.

An Horology Forum during Dubai Watch Week in November 2017

Dubai Watch Week launched in 2015 and Christies has been a partner in this leading event for the past three years. The November 2017 edition drew major watch brands, collectors, experts and influencers from all over the world to discuss and debate the art of horology and the future of the watch industry. The exchange of ideas among academics and leading voices in the watch world is pivotal to the future of our field, says John Reardon. The Horology Forum has proved itself time after time and Christies is honoured to host this exciting educational event with all our friends from Dubai Watch Week. What is horology, and why do watch collectors need to attend this event? John Reardon: Watch collectors are now a tightly-knit global community of horological enthusiasts and experts who devote a huge amount of their time to studying and comparing varied elements of their timekeepers. From studying the market to the near microscopic examination of watch escapements, there is something for everyone in the world of horology. It is where art, micromechanics, and global trade all intersect.

Being surrounded by individuals from different elements of the industry and every niche of the collecting world is always stimulating  John Reardon

Topics for discussion at the Horology Forum at Christies London will include the fork in the road between mechanical and artificially intelligent watches. What are the defining factors that keep mechanical watches in existence? And is the recent revival of the vintage market an indication that mechanical will be forever timeless? Among the other areas we'll be exploring are watch-buying patterns, which are are fast changing due to the easy access to information in the digital age, and the David v Goliath aspect of brands within the watch industry.

Topics for discussion include watch-buying patterns, which are fast changing all around the world due to the easy access to information in the digital age

Who will be on the panels at the Horology Forum event at Christies London? JR: The panels are set to bring together renowned watchmakers, industry icons and collectors, and knowledge, expertise and insights will be exchanged. Among those taking part are Stephen Forsey, co-founder of Greubel Forsey; respected collector Claude Sfeir; the author Stacy Perman; Edouard Meylan of H. Moser & Cie; Aurelie Picaud, Director of Timepieces for Faberge; Dario Spallone of D1 Milano; Gregory Dourde of HYT Watches; and master watchmaker Roger W. Smith. Which areas of the watch industry and watch-collecting are you looking forward to discussing? JR: The conversations between key influencers and collectors about the current state of the market fascinate me most. We are living through a renaissance of watch design and technological innovation and it is fascinating to explore the intersection of past, present and future.

Christies International Head of Watches John Reardon (second from right) with his fellow panellists (left to right), Alexander Friedman of The Watches Network, Francois-Henry Bennahmias, CEO of Audemars Piguet, and Cara Barrett of Hodinkee and after an Horology Forum at Dubai Watch Week in November 2017
Roughneck oil workers, bohemian artists, men dressed as vikings and women dressed as Barbarella have all crossed the threshold of Rudyards British Pub.

Whether they drank a cold one by the wood panel windows overlooking Waugh Drive, threw steel tip darts for an official league, or hollered along with a live band in the upstairs music room, Rudyards staff and owner have strived to make guests of every stripe and creed feel at home.

Celebrating 40 years, the so-called living room of Montrose remains a testament to how a bar can adapt to changing tastes while preserving its history.

Opened in 1978 on Kipling Street by two British ex-pats, Rudyards immediately set itself apart from the local bar scene by offering imported beers when domestic brands ruled the market.

For ex-pats and global oil rig workers, the nine imported labels on tap were a godsend. When the bar temporarily closed to relocate to its current Montrose address in early 1980, regulars took up seats at T.K. Bittermans predecessor.

DANSBY'S TAKE: Great gigs, tasty tots

As the story goes, they couldnt wait for Rudyards to re-open, said current owner Lelia Rodgers. But the good days came to a screeching halt in January of 1986. Oil went to $10 a barrel. The regulars lost their jobs.

The world in Houston fell apart, Rodgers recalls.

The original owners saw no other recourse.

They sold [Rudyards] to a bartender for a song, Rodgers said.

Mark and Bernadette Kromholz ran the place from 1986 to 1993 changing up the clientele. They tapped into their existing connections with the local art scene and brought in the street skating legends, the Urban Animals. They even added live bands as a new draw. Performers would play in the background with the drummer sitting on kegs.

By 1993, the Kromholz were ready to sell. At that point, Rodgers business acumen was built entirely around the corporate world. Yet when friends offered her a partnership owner deal, she signed on.

In 1995, the building went up for sale and Rodgers, who was between jobs at the time, felt they needed to fully invest in the business by buying the property. After presenting options to her partners, Rodgers ended up buying them out.

In 1996, she got a loan package together and with the funds added a kitchen and turned second-floor apartment units into the music room that stands today.

AUTHENTICITY: The first name in Montrose bars is Rudyard's

It was a change that pretty much positioned Rudyards to be dragged into the 21st century sort of kicking and screaming, she said.

Featured performers have included Alejandro Escovedo, Richard Buckner, the Meat Puppets, The Strokes, The Decemberists and more.

In 2001, Rodgers staff opened the corner Nextdoor bar and gallery space and in 2010 Rudyards absorbed the first floor space previously taken up by a frame shop.

It took some getting used to having more space. Regulars werent too thrilled with so many facelifts. Yet the changes were needed to keep the bar relevant and thus profitable, Rodger said.

Last year, for instance, she added a mural on the side of the building meant to draw in those looking for an Instagram moment, Rodgers said.

Other changes have included improvements to its food and drink offerings.

Rudyards was an early adopter of the microbreweries that were then popping up along the west coast.

In August of 1994, Saint Arnold Brewing Co. delivered its first keg at Rudyards. Later in 1996, Rudyards became the first tap in Houston for Real Ale Brewing Co.

The bar now boasts 36 taps, 28 of which are craft beers and the rest are a mix of ciders, imports and Shiner Bock.

ENJOY THE SHOWS: Explore Houston's favorite live music venues

Over the last ten years Rudyards has also distinguished itself from the competition through its monthly beer dinners. Started by chefs Joe Apa, and now run by Jordan Economy, the Thursday event offers guests a collection of dishes paired with a featured beer.

Rodgers hopes to rebrand the event as Rudyards Chef Table, adding spirits nights, craft cocktails, even potentially offering cooking classes.

Other possible additions including a deck on the first floor roof, permits to allow dogs on the patio all day, and trivia night. In considering all these changes, Rodgers has conducted focus group meetings with bar patrons and has even sent out staff to observe competitors offerings and jot down notes in prepared forms.

The world is changing and we want to cherry-pick some of the best parts of those changes that work for us and feel right, Rodgers said.

Pressure to keep Rudyards on top of consumer trends comes in part due to increasing competition in town, especially the growing number of breweries opening their own taprooms.

Rodgers noted that these taprooms save a lot more on taxes by serving in-house and can count on a loyal label fanbase.

Then theres the real estate market.

In 2009, Rodgers said she paid $28,000 in property taxes. Last year, she said, that total was $72,000.

Five years ago, Rodgers had no doubt the bar would remain open until the sun sets in the east.

Now as the Montrose real estate market has gotten stronger, and more townhomes populate the neighborhood, Rodgers thinks there may be a 20-35 percent chance of Rudyards disappearing.

But Ive been doing this for 25 years, she said, And Id like to say that Ive got a few more years in me to keep figuring it out.

After all, she has several regulars she cant let down.

There are the music fans who will stay upstairs all night, only passing through the first floor pub space to get in and out. There are the dart players with the Houston Darts Association who care not for whatever act plays above them. The members of the Saint Arnolds bike team grabbing a bite to eat after a ride. The foodies perusing the menu at the bar. The newbies getting to know the regulars. The longtime bartenders keeping the peace.

On a recent Sunday afternoon, Duane Salinas, 56, assembled a dart collection at the first floor bar. He used to live in Montrose, but as many other Rudyards regulars he moved out to EaDo for more affordable living options.

But people still come back, he said.

As he finished up his drink, bartender and stand-up comic, Slim Bloodworth, greeted some newcomers. She then offered food and beer pairing suggestions to a couple from Kingwood, after closing the tab for cyclists from Tomball.

Bloodworth has been a Rudyards customer since the late 90s and a bartender there since 2014.

To Bloodworth, Rudyards is home.

Dont write on my walls, she reminds a group of dart throwers.

She then picks up the bar phone.

Rudyards home of lost credit cards how can I help you?

ileana.najarro@chron.com

twitter.com/IleanaNajarro
Discounts, bartering and smuggling are among the tactics Iran may lean on to keep almost 800,000 barrels a day of its oil exports flowing after U.S. sanctions resume in November.

Irans Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh alluded to this toolbox, which was used in the past, when he said Iran will find other ways to keep its crude in the market. The measures wont be enough to blunt the full impact of sanctions on oil exports, which have already slumped to the lowest level since March 2016.

In the last era of oil industry sanctions, the OPEC nation disabled tracking systems on its fleet of tankers, concealing destinations and volumes of oil exports. Millions of barrels of Iranian oil were unaccounted without the trackers.

SECURITY: Industrial group warns Congress of gas pipeline threat

Almost 200,000 barrels a day of the countrys post-sanctions oil sales could be undisclosed, according to Robin Mills, chief executive officer of consultancy Qamar Energy in Dubai. Exports at these levels will be important in cushioning the financial blow to Iran, but will not have a major impact on the world market.

China, Turkey and India will likely continue to buy Iranian oil after the resumption of sanctions on November 4, with Chinas smaller refineries taking some of the murky, undisclosed shipments, according to Iman Nasseri, managing director of the middle east at FGE London. In total, Iran could export 800,000 barrels of oil a day well into 2019, including some 20,000 barrels sent by trucks to Iraq, Afghanistan and Pakistan, he said.

History shows that Iran can keep exports going, albeit at a far lower rate, even as Japan, South Korea and most European countries shun its oil months before the resumption of sanctions in November. Many buyers wont be able to resist steep discounts, and some may revamp a barter trade that was effective earlier this decade.

OFFSHORE: Exxon Mobil, Hess make another discovery by Guyana

Barter trade and special funding mechanisms are among ways that could allow payments to Iran to continue within the framework of the sanctions, said Ehsan Khoman, head of Middle East and North African research at Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group Inc. He said India devised agreements between 2012 and 2016 to buy Iranian oil with rupees, and then Iran used the proceeds to import goods from India.

Despite access to these tactics, there is little doubt that Irans energy industry and economy will be hurt by the U.S. penalties. The countrys exports to Europe have already plunged 45 percent, or 226,000 barrels a day, since May, and Total SA and Royal Dutch Shell Plc have completely stopped buying the countrys oil.

2018 Bloomberg L.P.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka on Sunday poured cold water on President Donald Trump's nascent trade agreement with Mexico, saying that any effort by the administration to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement should include Canada as well.

In an interview on "Fox News Sunday," Trumka said that the economies of the United States, Mexico and Canada are integrated, and that "it's pretty hard to see how that would work without having Canada in the deal."

"We're anxious to move forward with it and anxious to have all three countries involved, because NAFTA has had a devastating effect on the working people of this country for the last 25 years," he said.

As the head of the country's largest federation of labor unions, Trumka is an influential voice on trade issues, and the prospects for passage of any legislation promoted by Trump are likely to dim without his support.

It is unclear whether the president has the legal authority to withdraw from NAFTA without congressional approval.

Even so, Trump announced last week that he was proceeding with plans to abandon the agreement and was working out the specifics of a new bilateral trade deal with Mexico. Talks between the White House and Canadian leaders faltered Friday, the same day that the Toronto Star published explosive off-the-record comments Trump made the previous day in an interview with Bloomberg News.

Trump later tweeted his displeasure that the comments were leaked and followed up with a tweet Saturday in which he said that there is "no political necessity" to make Canada part of any new NAFTA.

Republican lawmakers have signaled that they are wary of any plan that does not include Canada.

Trumka said that his organization has been "aggressively pursuing an agreement that works for the workers in all three countries, and I can say we're not done yet."

Talks between the United States and Canada are set to resume Wednesday.

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The Washington Post's Damian Paletta contributed to this report.
BUDAPEST - Next week, 1,500 students from more than 100 countries will converge in the heart of this regal city on the Danube to prepare for classes at a university that enjoys respect among Hungarian academics, top international rankings and an American accreditation.

The only thing Central European University lacks is assurance that this year's back-to-school rush in Budapest won't be its last. The university's right to admit new students expires in January, and a hostile Hungarian government shows no sign of granting a reprieve.

"We've been taken hostage," said Michael Ignatieff, a Canadian human rights scholar and former politician who, as the university's president, may soon have to lead its retreat into exile. "I don't want to do that. But we're coming up to crunchtime."

There is no precedent for a European Union member state expelling an entire university. But Central European University - founded and funded by Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban's favorite boogeyman, liberal Hungarian-American investor George Soros - has become the prime target of Orban's campaign to dismantle Europe's multicultural, tolerant liberalism and cement a culture that is unapologetically Christian, conservative and nationalist.

Orban has repeatedly attacked the university, known as CEU, as an agent of Soros' alleged plots, including a plan to create "a mixed population" in Europe.

Since winning a landslide re-election in April, Orban's siege of academia has expanded to include a blitz against gender-studies programs, an attempted takeover of scientific-research funding and a push to remake the nation's literary canon.

His ambitions for a cultural counterrevolution extend beyond his nation's borders. Across Europe, he proclaimed in a speech at a July youth festival, he foresees a chance to "wave goodbye" to liberal democracy - and with it to a generation of intellectual and artistic elites who advanced an "ideology of multiculturalism" and "adaptable family models."

"We are on the threshold of a great moment," he declared.

Orban has found allies for his cultural crusade in a far-right movement that is ascendant across Europe, in Russian President Vladimir Putin and in the White House. President Donald Trump's former chief strategist, Stephen Bannon, has celebrated the Hungarian leader as "a hero."

After years of isolation from the United States under presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, Trump called to congratulate Orban on his re-election. Hungary's foreign minister was welcomed at the State Department in May. And the United States has dangled a possible meeting with Trump - a recognition Orban has long craved.

This willingness to engage, even as Hungary becomes increasingly autocratic, has generated criticism among democracy advocates. But it also gives the United States leverage in determining the future of CEU.

The new U.S. ambassador in Budapest, Trump appointee David Cornstein, is due to discuss the university with Orban in early September in a meeting that could be pivotal.

Cornstein has made clear that Washington wants Hungary to back off its attacks and allow CEU - which has dual accreditation in Hungary and the United States - to remain in Budapest.

"I hope it will continue to connect our two countries for many years to come," Cornstein said in a visit to the university shortly after his arrival in June. The CEU campus - a collection of handsome stone-and-glass buildings in Budapest's elegant Fifth District - is bedecked with blue banners featuring the slogan "#IstandwithCEU" in both English and Hungarian.

A bipartisan group of senators has voiced support for the university, saying the departure of CEU from Budapest could set a dangerous precedent for American academic institutions worldwide - and cause grievous harm to the U.S.-Hungarian relationship.

Orban still may shrug off the Americans, as he has ignored repeated appeals from European leaders to allow CEU to stay. But to Ignatieff, American pressure is the university's last hope.

Ignatieff, who was leader of Canada's Liberal Party and has written extensively on autocratic regimes as both a journalist and a scholar, considers himself to have a grasp on Orban's strategy.

"He understands that you can't have stable, long-term domination of a political system unless you have an ideological project," Ignatieff said.

Orban's project involves visceral opposition to anything Soros touches. The prime minister's re-election campaign was focused almost singularly on whipping up hatred toward the 88-year-old Soros, who has advocated what he describes as a humane approach toward the settlement of refugees.

Soon after Orban's election to his fourth term, Soros' nonprofit Open Society Foundations announced it could no longer protect its staff in Budapest and was shifting operations to Berlin.

But CEU - Soros's other great philanthropic endeavor in his native city - has hung on.

The university was founded in 1991 to support Central and Eastern European nations as they transitioned to democracy after the fall of communism. CEU has graduate programs that are among the top-ranked in the world. It leads all Hungarian universities in attracting European research grants.

It is not, Ignatieff emphasizes, Orban's enemy.

"He's got us wrong," the 71-year-old said. "A university is a university. We're not his political opposition."

In April 2017, the Orban government rammed legislation through parliament that appeared tailor-made to target CEU. It dictated that foreign universities are not allowed in Hungary unless they also offer classes in their home countries. In response, CEU launched an academic program at Bard College in New York.

But the government has refused to sign an agreement acknowledging the arrangement, leaving the university in limbo.

Ignatieff said that without clarity soon, the university will be forced to shift its home base to Vienna, where it is building what had been intended as a satellite campus.

Laszlo Palkovics, the minister of innovation and until recently the government's point person on higher education, said he considers Ignatieff's threat to move to be a bluff.

"I don't think he'll do that," Palkovics said in an interview in which he drew a distinction between the American-accredited legal entities and the Hungarian ones that make up the university.

The latter is welcome, he said. "We don't want the Hungarian CEU to leave. They are a valuable member of the community."

But Palkovics would not say when or whether the Hungarian government would sign the agreement that CEU needs to keep operating as a U.S.-accredited institution.

"This is a diplomatic issue," Palkovics said. "Diplomacy is always complicated."

The CEU controversy is not the only one that has unsettled Hungarian academic and cultural circles. Earlier this month, the government said it would stop funding gender studies programs, with Orban's chief of staff telling reporters that "people are born either men or women" and the issue is not worth studying.

The pages of pro-government newspapers, meanwhile, have lately been filled with attacks on authors who are perceived to be insufficiently supportive of Orban. Writers once scorned because of Nazi ties or connections to other right-wing groups have been rehabilitated.

"It's not about the books," said Krisztian Nyary, a writer and creative director at one of Hungary's largest publishers. "They've started to categorize writers according to their real or presumed political leanings."

At the Hungarian Academy of Sciences this summer, researchers have been in an uproar over a government plan to take direct control of funding. Palkovics, the innovation minister, said the plan was aimed at focusing taxpayer money on areas that can generate a payoff for society.

Laszlo Lovasz, a prizewinning mathematician who leads the academy, said members feared it was an attempt to steer research findings in a government-friendly direction.

"I hope that was not the goal," said Lovasz, who has been negotiating a potential compromise.

Even during communist times, he noted, the academy's researchers had a relatively free hand to pursue their studies.

"It's in the government's interest," he said, "to get an unbiased opinion."

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Gergo Saling and Andras Petho contributed to this report.
BEIJING - Chinese president Xi Jinping announced $60 billion in aid and loans for Africa on Monday while hosting more than 40 of the continent's leaders in Beijing, saying that the money came with no expectation of anything in return.

Beijing pushed back on criticism that it was shackling poorer countries with heavy debt burdens they will struggle to pay back, portraying the Chinese government as a magnanimous one motivated only to share its experience of rapid industrialization.

"China's investment in Africa does not come with any political conditions attached, and will neither interfere in internal politics, nor make demands that people feel are difficult to fulfill," Xi said during a keynote address to the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation on Monday.

The money would be focused on infrastructure to help speed African countries' development, not on "vanity projects," Xi said.

Details were vague but the $60 billion included $15 billion in grants, interest-free loans and concessional loans, $20 billion in credit lines, and a $10 billion special fund for development financing. Chinese companies would also be encouraged to invest at least $10 billion in Africa over the next three years, state media reported.

The package outlined by Xi also includes medical aid, environmental protection, agricultural training and assistance, and government scholarships and vocational training for more than 100,000 young Africans.

At the last forum, held in Johannesburg three years ago, Xi had also pledged $60 billion in investment. He said Monday that this money had already been granted or earmarked, so the latest announcement represented a second round of $60 billion.

The program is part of Xi's broader Belt and Road Initiative, an ambitious $120-billion-plus project that aims to link 65 countries in Europe, Asia and Africa - together accounting for almost two-thirds of the world's population - through infrastructure projects and trade.

At a time when President Donald Trump is picking trade fights with the United States' neighbors and allies, the Chinese leader has appeared to relish the opportunity to appear as a popular international statesman and champion of the liberal economic order.

For two days in a row, every headline on the front page of the state-run People's Daily started with the words "Xi Jinping ..." as the president met with the leaders of countries from Angola and Gabon to Mauritius and Senegal. He also hosted Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who has been indicted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes and crimes against humanity.

Over the last two decades, China has gone from being a relatively small investor in Africa to becoming the continent's largest economic partner, with bilateral trade growing at about 20 percent annually, according to a report from McKinsey, the consultancy, last year. Foreign direct investment has grown even faster over the past decade, at about 40 percent a year, it found.

But critics say that, with many of its infrastructure projects, China is luring needy countries into "debt traps."

Take Sri Lanka, which last year had no choice but to grant China a 99-year lease for a Belt and Road Initiative port, after it failed to attract enough business to make its loan payments.

Last month, Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad canceled more than $20 billion worth of planned Chinese infrastructure projects, saying he was concerned about paying for them. "We do not want a situation where there is a new version of colonialism happening because poor countries are unable to compete with rich countries," he said during a visit to Beijing.

Analysts have raised concerns about African countries, many of which are subject to the whims of commodity markets, not being able to repay Chinese loans.

The three countries most vulnerable because of large debts owed to China are Djibouti, Congo and Zambia, say academics at the China-Africa Research Initiative at Johns Hopkins University. Zambia, which has a gross domestic product of $19.5 billion, according to the World Bank, had taken about $6.4 billion in loans from China, the researchers wrote in a briefing paper last month.

But Rwandan President Paul Kagame, who currently chairs the African Union, said that rather than viewing the investment as a "debt trap," other countries should be asking why they're not giving Africa as much assistance as China.

"We have benefited a lot from China's support in our social and economic programs, and that has continued to strengthen the partnership between China and Rwanda," Kagame told the Chinese state-run People's Daily.

He also got in a dig at Trump, saying the forum "can show the world how countries can work collaboratively at a time when issues like trade protectionism continue to brew."

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa also rebuffed suggestions that China is taking advantage of the continent. The leaders "refute the view that a new colonialism is taking hold in Africa, as our detractors would have us believe," he told the forum.

Chinese state media has been aggressively explaining why such investment is good for the continent - and positioning Xi as the champion of the African people.

"Africa is still at the initial stage of industrialization, and the process is very likely to collapse without sustainable investment growth," the state-linked Global Times reported Monday. Chinese loans can help African countries improve their infrastructure, it said.

"We believe African people, instead of Western observers, know best what is most needed by the continent," the paper, which often reflects official thinking, said. In an editorial, the paper said that the West just had "sour grapes" over China's good relations with Africa.
In the late 1800s, many Americans toiled 12 hours a day, seven days a week, often in physically demanding, low-paying jobs. Children worked too, on farms and in factories and mines. Conditions were often harsh and unsafe.

It was in this context that American workers held the first Labor Day parade, marching from New York's City Hall to a giant picnic at an uptown park on Sept. 5, 1882.

In a New York Times article, which appeared on the last page, it was reported that 10,000 people marched "in an orderly and pleasant manner," far fewer than the organizers had predicted would attend.

Because it wasn't yet an official holiday, many of the attendees risked their jobs by participating in the one-day strike.

The American labor movement was among the strongest in the world at the time, and in the years that followed, municipalities and states adopted legislation to recognize Labor Day. New York did so in 1887, and The Times reported that that year's parade was larger than ever, even amid political tension over the role of socialist groups.

But it took several more years for the federal government to make it a national holiday  when it served a greater political purpose. In the summer of 1894, the Pullman strike severely disrupted rail traffic in the Midwest, and the federal government used an injunction and federal troops to break the strike.

It had started when the Pullman Palace Car Co. lowered wages without lowering rents in the company town, also called Pullman. (It's now part of Chicago.)

When angry workers complained, the owner, George Pullman, had them fired. They decided to strike, and other workers for the American Railway Union, led by firebrand activist Eugene V. Debs, joined the action.

During the crisis, President Grover Cleveland signed a bill into law on June 28, 1894, declaring Labor Day a national holiday. Some historians say he was afraid of losing the support of working-class voters.

In recent decades, Labor Day has been dominated more by barbecues, sales and last-chance beach days than strident labor protests. The labor movement has weakened, and in New York, the large West Indian American Day Parade in Brooklyn takes place Monday.

This year's Labor Day parade in New York will be on Sept. 8.
Two people were killed in a car accident in Dickinson Sunday night, the Dickinson Police Department said.

The accident occurred at FM 517 and Houston Avenue, the department said on its Facebook page. Police said the accident, which occurred around 8:30 p.m., would completely close FM 517 for several hours.
Acevo has launched a membership programme to offer support to women who are aspiring chief executives, in memory of former chief executive of the Foyer Federation Jane Slowey.

The Jane Slowey memorial membership programme will offer free support, guidance, advice and mentoring for women who are aspiring chief executives, or are in their first two years as a chief executive at a charity or social enterprise.

It will prioritise applications from women under 45, from a BAME background and/or who have a disability, in keeping with the passions and priorities that Jane held throughout her working life.

It is being funded through a crowdfunding campaign hosted on BT MyDonate which aims to raise 10,000. It will run in two cohorts of eight individuals supported per cohort. The first will take place from January 2019 to December 2020, and the second from January 2021 to December 2022.

The programme will be delivered by Acevo and has been developed in partnership with those who knew Slowey, and who benefitted from her generous leadership and friendship.

Slowey led the Foyer Federation for 13 years up until her retirement in early 2017 and died from cancer shortly after. Prior to that she spent six years as chief executive of Birmingham Voluntary Services Council, and had served as vice chair of NCVO. She was awarded a CBE in 2009 for services to disadvantaged young people.

The programme

The application process opens today and closes on 30 November. Participants of the programme will receive:

Full Acevo membership.

A mentor - eight charity chief executives will mentor the first cohorts throughout the two year programme.

Four learning/networking/training days.

Two annual dinners with fellow cohorts, hosted by Prospectus

The eight chief executive mentors for the first cohort are: Rosie Ferguson from Gingerbread; Charlotte Hill from Step up to Serve; Matt Hyde from The Scouts; Matt Stevenson-Dodd from Street League; Thomas Lawson from Leap Confronting Conflict; Nick Wilkie from NCT; Helen Marshall from Brook; and Rosemary Watt-Wyness from London Youth

Ferguson from Gingerbread, the charity for single parents, was both a friend of Janes and benefited from her support. She was involved in the creation of the programme. She said: We believe this is a fitting tribute to a truly inspirational woman who was a mentor and role model to so many of us. She was fiercely passionate about equality and encouraging new generations of sector leaders to dream big for social change.

Vicky Browning, chief executive of Acevo, said: It is a privilege to be delivering this programme in memory of Jane Slowey who was an inspiring woman who made a huge impact on everyone she worked with. Jane believed in building a strong pipeline of women in leadership and I am proud of Acevos role in continuing Janes work in her memory.

In order for civil society to grow, strengthen and thrive, its leadership needs to become more representative. This programme is an opportunity to support the talent of people with a diversity of lived experiences and we look forward to receiving applicants from a broad group of people with different experiences and expertise.

Candidates will be shortlisted by a steering group consisting of those who knew Jane and a representative of Acevo.

Further details are available here.
People living in London are volunteering and donating less than they did five years ago, according to a report by the Centre for London.

More, better, together: A strategic review of giving in London, has been published today and reviews the scale impact of different types of giving and volunteering.

The think tank is now calling on funders, charities, corporates and the public sector to work more collaboratively to better understand Londons needs as well as to encourage more giving with the view of developing a whole city approach.

The report warns that over the past five years there has been a decline in giving and volunteering.

It said that the proportion of Londoners who regularly donate has fallen by 8 per cent from 81 per cent in 2013/14 to 73 per cent in 2017/18, and that this figure is now 2 percentage points below the figure for the rest of England.

The proportion of people who volunteer at least once a month has fallen by 3 per cent to 21 per cent over the same period.

Uneven spread

The report also found that the local charities are unevenly spread across the capital, with most boroughs experiencing a fall in the number of local charities.

London is sometimes presented as a hotspot of charitable activity and contrasted to cold spots or charity deserts in other parts of the country. But this picture fails to fully recognise the difference between where charities are based and where they operate: London is home to many large charities that dont confine their activity to the capital, with some (particularly international charities) operating entirely outside of it, the report said.

Analysis of Charity Commission data showed that the total number of charities based in London has risen by 7 per cent and the capital accounts for 47 per cent of the sectors income, but the number of charities focused on London causes has not grown.

There are also fewer local charities per head of the population in London than elsewhere in the country. In London there are 1.4 per 1,000 population compared to 1.9 per 1,000 population for England as a whole.

Some boroughs have seen an increase in local charities over the last five years. For example Hackney and Tower Hamlets saw increases of 7 per cent and 8 per cent respectively. But the report notes that outer London boroughs such as Croydon and Kington have seen falls of 7 per cent and 5 per cent. The report says that austerity and cuts to local authority funding are likely to have contributed to the decline.

Whole city approach

Centre for London is now calling for a whole city approach.

It said that as giving leaders the Mayor of London, the City of London, London Funders, Trust for London, London Councils, Londons two Community Foundations, and the new London Plus, should develop a better understand of needs.

To encourage philanthropy these giving leaders should create London Giving Day to galvanise giving from the public, work more closely with corporates and the very rich and do more to promote legacy giving.

It also called for more support to help smaller local charities to build their fundraising skills.

Ben Rogers, director, Centre for London said: We know that people and organisations are more likely to give when they are confident that their time and money will be well-directed. Thats why we think the greatest opportunity lies in encouraging a more joined-up approach to giving across the city.

At the centre of this, the Mayor should step up his role as a champion of giving, celebrating philanthropists and volunteers, and promoting giving across the capital  especially to London-focused charities and local causes.

Other recommendations

Centre for London also called on funders to be more transparent and publish grant data on 360Giving. It suggested London Funders publish a regular state of giving report.

It called on the mayor to establish a function that has authority and resource to speak on philanthropy, harness the mayors convening power, and leverage philanthropic support to address important London issues.

The mayor, London Funders and City of London Corporation should also look at how to recognised Indi duals and organisations for their giving.

Lessons for other cities

The Institute of Fundraising said that the recommendations in the report could be applied to other cities.

Peter Lewis, chief executive of the Institute of Fundraising, said: This is the best piece of research I have seen on how to increase place-based giving in the UK. Although focused on London, there are lessons for every city in the UK in relation to gathering the evidence, convening leaders from all sectors, and being more proactive at engaging and directing philanthropy to meet specific, identified needs.




Charity finance directors say that pension liabilities is high on their agenda, according to a survey of the largest 100 charities published today by Charity Finance magazine.

Charity Finance, published by Civil Society Media, found that the median age for the most senior finance professionals at organisations in the Charity 100 Index was 52 years and two months, up from 47 years and nine months when the survey published in 2008.

The full Top 100 Finance Directors Survey has been published online and features in the September issue of the magazine.

The survey also found, compared to 2008, finance directors at the largest charities have become more transient, with their average time in post reduced from five years and eight months to four years and seven months.

Also, compared to 10 years ago, finance directors charity sector experience has reduced from 10 years and four months to nine years and seven months.

Finance directors at the 10 largest charities:

Jenny Dillon, Nuffield Health Nigel Armitt, Cancer Research UK Peter Vermeulen, National Trust Mike Dixon, CAF Alison Hopkinson, Oxfam Sam Sharpe, Save the Children Tim Livett, Wellcome Trust Louise Johnston, United Church Schools Trust Major Judith Hilditch, Salvation Army Martin Miles, British Heart Foundation

Pensions

Many respondents to this years survey named pension liabilities as high on their agenda.

Rajeev Arya, chief financial officer at Age UK, said: One of my biggest concerns is the volatility in the markets and how this affects investment performance and pensions.

Similarly, Sandra Kelly, finance director at the Canal & River Trust, said she was concerned about a potential pension deficit on the defined benefit scheme and lower investment returns than historically, reducing the income available to spend on the waterways.

And Michael Corcoran, director of finance at the Woodard Corporation, said he was concerned by pension liabilities and the extent to which charities have been affected by legislation that has been brought in without proper consideration for the impact on the sector.

Brexit

This is the first survey of finance directors since the EU Referendum vote in June 2016.

Some directors felt this presented them with an extra challenge to tackle in the coming years, although many admitted they still did not know what the effects would be.

Jonathan Davis, finance director at Girls Day School Trust, said Brexit would cause more volatility in investment returns, alongside uncertainty in the independent education sector.

Martin Halliwell, chief financial officer at British Red Cross, said: In what is already a challenging environment for fundraising, this is an additional factor that we need to plan for.

We maintain a watching brief on developments and always aim to be on the front foot as information pertaining to the financial environment becomes clearer.
Among Senator John McCains many accomplishments, weve learned in recent days, was weaving canny stagecraft into his own funeral. Charting out a four-day procession from Arizona to Washington to Annapolis, choosing symbolic eulogists and pallbearers, the Arizona Republican sought to hearken back to a mythic era of politics. And the Washington press corps lapped it up.

By the time his hearse rolled up to the Capitol Building on Fridaythe word dignity written on its rear windowthe portrait of McCain as the champion of anti-Trumpism, pressed into duty one last time, had been clearly and definitively etched into public consciousness. In death, Mr. McCain found a way to have the last word, The New York Times reported Thursday in a front-page breakdown of the arrangements.

It was a parting flourish by a clever media operator who was both a longtime fixture of Sunday shows and a favorite of reporters roaming the Senate hallways. And it worked: Personalized tributes, special reports, news alerts, live analysis, live blogs, and livestreams veered toward McCains integrity rather than comprehensive examinations of his record. His humanity propelled a week of saturation coverage in a media climate where news cycles tend to wither on the vine within hours.

But there was more to this flood of reminiscences than one mans belief in the American ideal. McCain wrote a script that the political press corps was predisposed to follow. The death of a man many journalists personally liked provided firm footing to throw coded jabs against a man they overwhelmingly loath. It was a chance to eulogize and restore, however briefly, the rhetorical balance that establishment Washington craves, and that Donald Trump has thrown completely out of whack.

ICYMI: The FBIs secret investigation of a journalist

Take CNN, the outlet that often mirrors its foil in the Oval Office by turning sub-text into text. Breaking-news chyrons followed McCain to the grave as the cable-panel industrial complex revved into high gear. Analysis published on CNN.com informed us in its headline how Trump ignores lessons from John McCains life. Chief Political Correspondent Dana Bash went so far as to attribute the storybook details of the lawmakers funeral proceedings to divine intervention.

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The angels were crying. Here at CNN  just a few blocks away  no rain. Just there. https://t.co/0Pw2xWb90R  Dana Bash (@DanaBashCNN) August 31, 2018

As Senators Mitch McConnell and Chuck Schumer jointly lay a memorial wreath next to McCains body in the Capitol Rotunda, a Bash-led roundtable oozed with nostalgia for the norms that Trump has effectively demolished.

I think what has been so nice in this really difficult week for so many people in Washington and around the country is to see that those moments are still possible, said Julie Pace, Washington bureau chief for the Associated Press.

Politicos Rachel Bade added later: You have to wonder if anybodys stopping and saying, OK, McCain was the best of bipartisanship. What can we learn from him? Are we going to take this forward? And I think that is what a lot of people are wondering. I dont know if it changes anything here on Capitol Hill, but at least for a day we have that solidarity.

Solidarity in the face of what, exactly? Or to be more precise: Who?

McCain made clear that Trump would not be welcome at his funeral, and the president, unable to help himself, took the snub with a characteristic lack of class. In this sense the contrasts between old and new Washingtonteased out from Politico Playbook to nightly newscasts throughout the weekwere self-fulfilling. And they continued through a final celebration on Saturday that was complete with two headliners, former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama, who seasoned it all with a familiar duality.

Ringing through Washington National Cathedral on a dreary morning were paeans to bipartisanship, compromise, and civility of the sort that seem to be under daily assault from all corners of the country, especially from the White House, The Washington Post reported.

Mike Allen, dean of Washington insiderism, added Sunday in Axios that the celebration reflected a broader dream that the United States is still capable of a saner politics.

But absent from it all was any interrogation of just how this new Washington came to be. The Republican Party is now Trumpsnot McCainsand the shows of unity so eagerly applauded by the press were carried out by many of the same men who both enable the president and appear continually uninterested in keeping him in check: McConnell, House Speaker Paul Ryan, and Vice President Mike Pence foremost among them. These powerful men, who said all the right things as news cameras rolled, were in turn rewarded with portrayals as mere bystanders.

Their pageantry gave off the aura of a more comfortable political world in which journalists are hands-off referees between politely warring factions. This alternate reality also provides the media class more daylight to absolve itself from sharing any guilt for harmful outcomes like, say, the erosion of democratic institutions.

Which is why at-times moving coverage in recent days centered on McCains significant virtues, as the war hero intended. His work as a lawmaker was steeped in honor and decorum; his personal bravery and commitment to pluralism were unquestionable. He exhibitedto borrow a term often misused by Trump and his acolytespolitical correctness.

Its a comforting narrative as the establishment finds itself under siege. Whats more, its easier to produce on deadline than reckoning with the legacy of a man who defended the invasion of Iraq for more than a decade and nominated a proto-Trumpian running mate in 2008. For all of McCains powerful rhetoric about putting country before party, he endorsed Trumps candidacy (before unendorsing it), pined for the GOP blockade of Supreme Court nominee Merrick Garland, and voted in favor of a hastily assembled tax cut that exacerbated a budget deficit now being used to rationalize proposals for a pay freeze for federal employees and even entitlement cuts.

Celebrating McCains civility is far easier than parsing such contradictions. But Washingtons problems go far deeper than the way the president conducts himself. What he understandsand what the media establishment would do well to learnis that civility, for all its value, is not everything.

This piece has been updated to clarify McCains political record.

ICYMI: A student journalist uncovers a big story

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David Uberti is a writer in New York. He was previously a media reporter for Gizmodo Media Group and a staff writer for CJR. Follow him on Twitter @DavidUberti.
BROOK PARK, Ohio -- As a means of streamlining city government, Brook Park Councilmen Rick Salvatore, Ed Orcutt, Rich Scott and Greg Stemm sponsored an ordinance that would reduce City Council's size by one at-large representative.

It would also allow the council president to vote during meetings.

The ordinance met with defeat, however, at an Aug. 30 special council meeting when they were not able to garner at least five votes in favor of suspending its third public reading. Suspension would have led to council's voting on the measure that night, with passage enabling Brook Park voters to make a final decision on the Nov. 6 ballot about the proposed council reorganization.

Councilmen Jim Mencini, Brian Poindexter, Carl Burgio and Scott voted against suspension of the third reading. The ordinance was then placed back in committee, where it likely will remain indefinitely.

Brook Park currently has three at-large council seats and four ward positions. The council president is the eighth member of the group, but he currently facilitates the meetings without having a vote, unless there is a tie.

"When times are lean, you start at the top and work your way down," Salvatore explained to cleveland.com prior to the special meeting. "We should start with ourselves. There is no shift in power or ulterior motive. You still have seven people who are active and vote."

Perhaps contributing to the ordinance's defeat was the fact that Brook Park voters will be selecting a new Charter Review Commission during the November General Election. It will be a long time before that body ultimately determines if any change to the city charter should occur in regard to council's size -- and then gets City Council's approval to send it to voters.

Any voter-approved charter changes wouldn't go into effect for at least three years, Salvatore said.
OLMSTED FALLS, Ohio -- Not only are students returning to school this week going to find the initial phase of Olmsted Falls High School's ongoing $21.9 million expansion and renovation completed, but for the first time the district has scheduled an all-day freshman orientation, which will take place Thursday at the Bagley Road building.

"A couple of years ago, we brought the freshmen in for half a day, with the rest of the students attending the remainder of the school day," Principal Holly Schafer said.

"This year, we decided to just spend the whole day with our ninth-graders to help with their transition."

The orientation, which is for 325 freshmen and any other students new to the district, will begin with an activity fair and mini-pep rally before students break into small team groups to meet with two faculty members and two upperclassman student ambassadors. This will be followed by a tour of the building, a cookout and time for them to walk their schedule.

"At the end, we have another small group sit-down and talk," Schafer said. "Overall, we're hoping that our new freshmen feel part of our school community right out of the gate. We're trying to set them up for success and jump into the school year with a positive attitude."

The high school staff helped create the all-day freshman orientation. The effort was led by Assistant Principal Patrick Griffis, with teacher team members Brittany Rasmussen, Jessica Jones, Jenelle Hughes, Chris DeLisio, Taylor Wharton, Justin Zrenner, Janet Gregg, Alex Lintner, Hannah Sparks and Christie Cutarelli.

"Because we have a new classroom numbering system this year, all of the students are going to have to get used to a new building," Schafer said. "So, it's almost like everybody is in the same boat."

The first regular day of school for all grades is Friday. Schafer said looking ahead, odds are the high school will continue the full-day freshmen orientation.

"We feel that this is absolutely necessary for us to just give everything we've got to our ninth-grade class and our new students coming in," Schafer said.
SHAKER HEIGHTS, Ohio -- Thanks to an additional $100,000 grant, the city will renew its efforts to convert a small brownfield site on Larchmere Boulevard into a "green" infrastructure parking lot.

What started out in early 2016 as a $135,000 project has been on hold for about a year after contaminated soil was discovered last summer on the former gas station property at Larchmere and Kendall Road.

"On the first day, we dug into the ground and immediately smelled gasoline," City Public Works Director Patti Speese told City Council Aug. 27, calling it a "game-changer" that brought in the Bureau of Underground Storage Tank Regulations ("BUSTR").

While there was no longer an actual tank buried on the site, remnants of a gas pump island were still there and had never been remediated properly, taking the base bid up to over $227,000.

This has also increased the city's local share from $13,500 to a total of more than $51,000, along with some in-kind services, as the Northeast Ohio Regional Sewer District reimburses the rest of the cost.

The city had already paid about $45,000 to the original contractor for labor and materials, such as pervious pavers, which can still be used for the project. The work had to be rebid and was awarded to RJ Platten Contracting of North Royalton.

Plans call for installation of bioswales and bioretention basins, as well, using plants and soils to filter stormwater and increase water quality by dramatically reducing pollutants and contaminants, according to the American Society of Landscape Architects.

Fernway-Ingleside sanitary sewer

In other work with the regional sewer district, the city is moving forward with design plans for the $800,000 Fernway-Ingleside sanitary sewer overflow (SSO) project.

Under a new stormwater management program to address the SSO problem -- in which antiquated infrastructure can send untreated sewage into the environment during heavy rains -- the sewer district will reimburse the city for half of the project cost.

"We would get reimbursed $400,000," Speese told council, noting that this would be the first of seven similar projects that need to be undertaken around the city. Shaker has also applied for funding for a similar project on Huntington Road.

Council on Aug. 27 approved a $79,000 contract with GPD Engineering to design the Fernway Road sewer project. Council members noted that in addition to submitting the lowest bid, GPD also scored the highest on a technical merit evaluation.

Speese called it a multi-pronged approach designed to reduce infiltration and inflow ("I&I") into sewer mains along Norwood and Maynard roads, as well as a portion of Parkland Drive.

"The introduction of I&I into the sanitary sewer causes the 'overflow' to activate, resulting in flow discharging into Doan Brook," Speese said.

The reduction would be accomplished by performing spot repairs in sanitary and storm pipes that are structurally compromised and installation of a sewer pipe liner and manhole rehabilitation, she added.

"As part of the design effort, we will determine if it is possible to redirect the flow to the sanitary sewer," Speese noted in a memo to council, referring to a study that will include connectivity analysis, review of existing utilities and possible monitoring of flow capacity.

In keeping with its grant funding policy, the regional sewer district will reimburse the city about $39,500, or half of the engineering and design, as part of the overall cost.
CLEVELAND, Ohio -- Here is the preview and pitching matchups for the Indians' series against the Royals

Where/when: Progressive Field, Monday through Wednesday.

TV/radio: SportsTime Ohio, WTAM and WMMS will carry the series.

Pitching matchups and starting times: RHP Jakob Junis (7-12, 4,53) vs. RHP Adam Plutko (4-4, 4.94) on Monday at 4:10 p.m.; LHP Danny Duffy (8-11, 4.72) vs. RHP Mike Clevinger (10-7, 3.17) Tuesday at 7:10 p.m. and RHP Brad Keller (7-5, 3.26) vs. RHP Corey Kluber (17-7, 2.80) Wednesday at 1:10 p.m.

Series: The Indians lead the Royals, 8-4, this season. The Indians lead, 366-332, overall.

Hot pitchers: Kluber is 5-1 with a 2.57 ERA in his last seven starts. His only loss came against the Royals on Aug. 25. Kevin McCarthy has allowed two earned runs in 20 1/3 innings in one-run games for the Royals.

Hot hitters: Right fielder Melky Cabrera is hitting .369 (24-for-65) with five homers and 19 RBI since Aug. 12 for the Indians. Whit Merrifield is hitting .368 (32-for-87) with 15 runs, nine extra base hits and 14 RBI over his last 22 games for the Royals.

Team updates: The Indians started this 10-game homestand by winning three out of four from the Twins, but lost two out of three to the Rays over the weekend. The Royals just finished an eight-game homestand by going 7-1 against the Indians, Detroit and Baltimore. It's the first time they've won three straight series since July 2017. In the series, they Royals slashed .332/.389/.597 with 15 homers and 51 runs.

Disabled list: Royals: 3B Cheslor Cuthbert (back), RHP Jesse Hahn (right elbow), RHP Nate Karns (right elbow), RHP Ian Kennedy (left oblique), LHP Eric Skoglund (left elbow), OF Jorge Soler (left foot) are on the disabled list. C Salvador Perez (left thumb) is day to day.

Indians - LHP Andrew Miller (left shoulder), RHP Trevor Bauer (right fibula), OF Leonys Martin (illness), CF Tyler Naquin (right hip), OF Lonnie Chisenhall (left calf), RHP Nick Goody (right elbow), RHP Danny Salazar (right shoulder) and RHP Cody Anderson (right elbow) are on the disabled list.

Next: Indians open a seven-game trip on Thursday night against Toronto at Rogers Centre to start a three-game series.
DUBLIN -- Pope Francis faced a lukewarm reception and scattered protests Saturday on his trip to Ireland, with even his vow to rid the church of the "scourge" of sexual abuse and his outrage at those "repugnant crimes" dismissed as an insult by Ireland's wounded victims.

The abuse scandal -- which has convulsed Ireland since the 1990s and has exploded anew in the U.S. -- took center stage on the first day of Francis' two-day trip to Ireland. The visit was originally intended to celebrate Catholic families but has been overshadowed by the renewed abuse crisis.

Francis sought to respond to the outcry by vowing to end sex abuse during a speech to Irish government authorities at Dublin Castle.

"The failure of ecclesiastical authorities -- bishops, religious superiors, priests and others -- to adequately address these repugnant crimes has rightly given rise to outrage, and remains a source of pain and shame for the Catholic community," he told them. "I myself share these sentiments."

He cited measures taken by his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI, to respond to the crisis. But while Benedict is credited with cracking down on abusers, he never acknowledged the Vatican's role in fueling a culture of cover-up or sanctioned bishops for failing to protect their flocks from predator priests.

Francis followed his promise with a half-hour meeting with eight survivors of both clerical and institutional abuse and prayed quietly before a candle lit for victims in Dublin's cathedral. But neither his words nor the meeting with victims is likely to assuage demands for heads to roll over the abuse scandal.

"Disappointing, nothing new," was the reaction from Irish abuse survivor Marie Collins, a former member of Francis' sex abuse advisory panel who quit last year in frustration. She later took part in Francis' meeting with seven other abuse survivors, including two priests and a public official.

Colm O'Gorman, who is leading a solidarity rally on Sunday in Dublin for abuse victims, said Francis' remarks about sharing the shame felt by Catholics were an "insult to faithful Catholics, who have no reason to feel shame because of the crimes of the Vatican and the institutional church."

The reception that Francis received in Dublin contrasted sharply with the raucous, rock star welcome that greeted St. John Paul II in 1979 in the first-ever papal visit. No one from the public was at the airport or the roads nearby when Francis arrived Saturday and the streets near a church-run homeless shelter that Francis visited were practically empty despite barricades designed to hold back crowds.

At one protest, people tossed baby shoes to remind the pope of the poor treatment the Catholic church doled out to the children of unwed mothers.

Crowds did throng Francis' popemobile route and gathered outside Dublin's cathedral, basking in the sunny weather.

Deeply Catholic Ireland has had one of the world's worst records of clergy sex abuse, crimes that were revealed to its 4.8 million people over the past decade by government-mandated inquiries. The reviews concluded that thousands of children were raped or molested by priests or physically abused in church-run schools -- and Irish bishops worked for years to hide those crimes.

After the Irish church enacted tough new norms to fight abuse, it had been looking to the first visit by a pope in 39 years to show a different, more caring church.

More than 37,000 people -- most of them young Catholics -- signed up to attend a Vatican-sponsored World Meeting of Families that ends Sunday in Dublin, more than twice the number of a rally in Philadelphia three years ago.

And many did remain hopeful that Francis' appearance would bring healing.

"I see a lot of new life amongst young people who have a deep committed faith," said Sean Ascogh, a churchgoer in Blessington, southwest of Dublin. "Obviously, they are very disappointed by what has been happening in the church in the last few years, particularly the whole abuse scandals, but I think people can see beyond that."

Francis urged the Irish to recognize that for all its failings, the Catholic Church educated and cared for generations of Irish children in times of famine and great poverty.

Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar concurred, saying the church stepped in to care for Irish children when the state did not. But in his speech to the pope at Dublin Castle, he said both church and state had a history of "sorrow and shame," and he urged the pope to ensure that victims of sex abuse find "justice and truth and healing."

Varadkar cited the recent Pennsylvania grand jury report, which found 300 priests had abused more than 1,000 children over 70 years in six dioceses, in urging Francis to "ensure that from words flow actions."

"In recent weeks, we have all listened to heart-breaking stories from Pennsylvania of brutal crimes perpetrated by people within the Catholic Church, and then obscured to protect the institution at the expense of innocent victims," Varadkar said. "It's a story all too tragically familiar here in Ireland."

Ireland's tortured history of abuse has left its mark. Irish voters in recent years have turned their backs on core Catholic teachings. They have overturned a constitutional ban on abortion and legalized divorce, contraception, previously banned homosexual acts and same-sex marriage.

Irish abuse victims and their supporters were to hold a solidarity rally Sunday in Dublin at the same time Francis is celebrating Mass.

Separately, survivors of Ireland's wretched "mother and baby homes" -- where children were exiled for the shame of having been born to unwed mothers -- were to hold their own demonstration Sunday. The location is Tuam, site of a mass grave of hundreds of babies who died at a church-run home.

Francis will be nearby, visiting the Marian shrine at Knock, but has no plans to visit the grave site.

He did, however, hear about Tuam on Saturday from Ireland's minister for children, Katherine Zappone. Their conversation wasn't released but Francis said her words "still echo in my ears."

An amateur Irish historian, Catherine Corless, traced the deaths of 796 children at the Tuam home to a grave in the orphanage's sewage area. Corless and survivors of the home and their families want to unearth the site and give the children -- all of whom were baptized -- proper Christian burials.

Zappone's ministry is to recommend this fall whether to accept that proposal or build a memorial at the site.

By Nicole Winfield and Maria Grazia Murru, Associated Press. AP video journalist Luigi Navarra contributed.
Embakasi East Member of Parliament Babu Owino has vowed to fight for the rights of all Kenyans on the critical matter of the 16 percent VAT on petroleum products.

Kenyans had heaved a sigh of relief when Parliament last Wednesday voted to postpone the implementation of the VAT until 2020, but the joy was shortlived as Treasury Cabinet Secretary Henry Rotich effected the new tax pending the Presidents assent of the Finance Bill, 2018.

The move has sparked a nationwide outrage, with a section of legislators from the Orange Democratic Movement (ODM) party threatening to impeach the CS if the new fuel levy is not rescinded in coming days.

ODMs Babu Owino, in particular, has declared that he will fight the tax to the bitter end.

On his socials, the firebrand politician talked tough saying he will deal the government ruthlessly to protect the interest of the oppressed. However, Kenyans will have to wait a little longer until Babu Owino is done living large in South Africa.

When I come back from where I am I will start dealing with the government ruthlessly to protect the interest of the oppressed, wrote Babu on social media. He also shared pictures from his excursion at the Table Mountain, a prominent tourist attraction landmark overlooking the city of Cape Town in South Africa.

In another post, Babu Owino wrote: We cant be slaves in our own country. The 16% VAT tax on fuel must FALL. An increase in the said tax leads to an increase in transport cost hence Wanjiku suffers.

While in South Africa, Babu also met with the Economic Freedom Fighters(EFF) Party Secretary-General Godrich Gardee to discuss the unity of Africa. Babu said South Africas firebrand politician and EFF leader Julius Malema would be coming to Nairobi soon.

The photos
Banco de Credito del Peru has turned data into a business asset for its customers, delivering new B2B services that generate incremental revenue streams. Implementing Cloudera on Microsoft Azure allowed it to get to market very quicklyreducing development time by 80 percent.

Banco de Credito del Peru (BCP), part of the Credicorp Group, is the leading supplier of integrated financial services in Peru. The bank has approximately US$39 billion in total assets, and a market share of 30.4 percent in total loans and 33.5 percent in total deposits.

Challenge

One of BCPs guiding principles is customer centricity, which is demonstrated daily through its innovative products and services. BCPs Crecemas (meaning Grow More in Spanish) is a prime example.

This web-based business intelligence (BI) application allows BCP commercial clients to view key performance indicators (KPIs) about their business, their clients, and, even, their competition. The platform analyzes a wealth of anonymized financial and transactional data, including 50 percent of all national credit card transactions, to support business decisions.

However, to make applications like Crecemas possible, BCP had to break down data silos.

We needed to modernize our architecture to accompany our digital transformation, said Erick Jaramillo Salazar, manager of BCP's Big Data Center of Excellence.

Solution

BCP powers its business intelligence tool, Crecemas, with Cloudera on Microsoft Azure. 90 terabytes of data from the companys mainframe and data warehouse is combined and uploaded to Cloudera on Azure for analysis. An automated process encrypts and anonymizes data before its loaded into the cloud for analysis and visualization of KPIs based on customer debit and credit transactions.

As a result, Crecemas users now have the following insights:

Business insights including frequency of visit, total amount of sale, and average ticket

Customer insights segmented by gender, age, place of origin, income level, digital profile, type of card, and loyalty

Competitive insights from establishments that are considered competition based on their type of sale and physical distance

Weve turned information into a business asset that delivers substantial value to our clients, said Erick Jaramillo Salazar.

Salazars team is also using Cloudera to create new data towns to drive other digital products, as well as a new corporate data lake to enable self-service analytics and empower a data-driven culture focused on continuous improvement and innovation.

By changing the way we manage the data, we can promote more collaborative work and are closer to the needs of our customers, said Erick Jaramillo Salazar.

Implementation

Fast time-to-market for new products and services is vital in todays rapidly moving marketplaces. Using Cloudera on Microsoft Azure, BCP could reduce development time by 80 percent and efficiently deploy the solution in just fourteen weeks, with its personal data protection and security policies replicated in the cloud.

Cloudera SDX is very important because it can help us maintain data governance and security in a hybrid environment, said Erick Jaramillo Salazar. Our Cloudera data lake is primarily on prem, but we have implemented Cloudera on Azure for Crecemas as it offers the elasticity along with innovative AI tools and libraries that we need.

Results

Crecemas stands as a prime example of BCPs work to transform data into a business asset to better serve customers and generate incremental revenue. Approximately 970 businesses currently use this innovative service. Customer satisfaction scores have soared to 91 percent, exceeding the companys goals. Additionally, BCP has gained US$76 million (S/250 million) in new deposits annually.
Jeff Bezos has spent the past 36 years thinking about how to launch us all into space. Bezos may be best known as the CEO of e-commerce giant Amazon and as the world's richest person, with a net worth of $165 billion, per Bloomberg's latest estimate. But, the billionaire's private aerospace company, Blue Origin, might be Bezos' true passion project based on the subject of the speech he delivered at this 1982 high school graduation. That year, Bezos was preparing to attend Princeton University, where he would study electrical engineering and computer science. At Miami's Palmetto High school, Bezos had finished first in a class of 680 students, and so he was chosen to speak at his class' graduation. The Miami Herald printed a roundup of speeches from local high school valedictorians in an article published on June 20, 1982. The Herald included a few sentences summarizing Bezos' address, which now serves as proof that the future tech industry titan has been thinking for years about the future of civilization in space. "[Bezos] wants to build space hotels, amusement parks, yachts and colonies for two or three million people orbiting around the earth," the Herald's article says. "'The whole idea is to preserve the earth,'" he said, according to the newspaper, which notes of Bezos that his "final objective is to get all people off the earth and see it turned into a huge national park."

Amazon founder Jeff Bezos in 1997. Paul Souders | Hulton Archive | Getty Images
The latest earnings reports from China's big four banks showed improvements across key financial metrics, but some investors remain worried that things could get worse for lenders in the world's second-largest economy.

Such concerns arose after the country's central bank, the People's Bank of China, made several moves to loosen monetary conditions as economic growth slows and as trade tensions with the U.S. worsen. That made investors fear that Chinese authorities may abandon plans to reduce harmful debt in the economy, which could hurt the banking industry.

"It may mean helping the struggling corporates ... If that's the case then we will be less optimistic about the outlook because, eventually, we will be going back to a couple of years ago when Chinese corporates struggled and relied on credit to sustain," Frank Tsui, fund manager at asset manager Value Partners, told CNBC's "Street Signs" last week.

"That will put pressure on the banks," Tsui added.

Three of the big four Chinese banks saw their shares in Hong Kong fall last week. Industrial and Commercial Bank of China tumbled 0.87 percent, China Construction Bank declined 0.58 percent and Bank of China was down 0.28 percent. Agricultural Bank of China bucked the trend with a 2.15 percent climb on stronger earnings.

Their Shanghai-listed shares fared better. CCB was up 1.28 percent over the week, and ABC and BOC both inched up around 0.6 percent. ICBC was the only big four bank that ended the week in the red on the mainland after declining 0.91 percent.
The risk of declining Chinese demand for oil is worrying Middle East officials more than Iran's supply curbs as a result of U.S. sanctions.

Bahrain and Oman's oil and gas ministers both told CNBC Monday that China's demand for oil could decline on the back of its trade dispute with the U.S. that has seen tariffs imposed on a wide range of Chinese imports.

"I think there is a risk on the demand side," Bahrain's Oil Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa told CNBC's Hadley Gamble in Muscat, Oman. "Is demand going to continue as strongly as it did?"

"Obviously the trade issue is going to impact demand in a negative fashion if it continues and persists. You've got the strong dollar, which is another factor."

Oil prices have stabilized over the last two years largely thanks to a deal between OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers, including Bahrain and Oman, to curb oil output. The deal has worked with prices now between $70 and $80 a barrel.

However, the deal has come under fire from President Donald Trump, who said in July that higher oil prices are hitting consumers too hard. OPEC and Russia, the world's largest producers, promised to boost supply a few days afterwards.

Nonetheless, Trump's decision-making is affecting oil market stability too. His decision to re-impose sanctions on major OPEC oil producer Iran (with the restrictions due to kick in in November) could push prices even higher as Iran's contribution to global oil supply is restricted.

But Trump's attack on cheap Chinese imports, and his decision to impose trade tariffs on a wide range of Chinese goods entering the U.S., could damage China's economic growth and in turn lower its demand for oil.

Oman's oil minister, also speaking to CNBC, said not enough attention was being paid to how trade tensions could damage China's demand for oil.
On the face of it, the idea of hostility between the two East Asian neighbors is sharply at odds with excellent trade numbers and Japan's unrelenting efforts to keep open the bilateral flows of commerce and finance.

Here is the latest: The Japanese sold to China 35.2 percent of all the goods they dumped on the rest of Asia in the first seven months of this year. And that was a 10.6 percent increase from the year earlier.

For all of 2017, the Japanese export business to China literally flourished, soaring 20.5 percent after a 6.5 percent decline in 2016.

The China business remains the key lifeline to the Japanese economy, where net exports contributed exactly one-third of Japan's economic growth since the beginning of 2017.

Japan's Prime Minister Shinzo Abe was profoundly convinced of that simple truth all along. Here is what he said in his first press conference following his party's landslide victory in December 2012: "China is an indispensable country for the Japanese economy to keep growing. We need to use some wisdom so that political problems will not develop and affect economic issues."
European stocks ended the first trading session of a brand-new month on a relatively mixed note, amid heightened concerns of an escalating trade war between the world's two largest economies. The pan-European STOXX 600 provisionally closed up 0.07 percent, with sectors pointing in opposite directions by the end of trade.

Despite a negative session in Asia, markets in Europe were mixed by Monday's close. The U.K.'s FTSE 100 jumped 0.97 percent, while France's CAC 40 ended just a touch higher, up 0.13 percent, and Germany's DAX sank 0.14 percent. Peripheral bourses were relatively mixed. Markets are closed stateside as Americans celebrate Labor Day. Europe's automakers were the worst performers, finishing down 1 percent as trade tensions continued to bubble away. Last week, the European Union said it would respond in kind if President Donald Trump reneged on his pledge not to impose car tariffs. Faurecia, Porsche and Volkswagen all ended down over 1.5 percent. Looking at individual stocks, SBM Offshore was the European benchmark's top gainer, jumping 10.7 percent, after the Dutch company announced a final settlement to resolve alleged improper sales practices. Another top performer was Britain's Royal Mail, which popped 3 percent, after it announced that one of its subsidiaries had acquired Dicom Canada, a parcel delivery firm based in Canada, from Wind Point Partners for $360 million Canadian dollars (US$275 million). Meanwhile, Britain's Dechra Pharmaceuticals slumped to the bottom of the index amid earnings news, down 21.4 percent. The company, which produces pharmaceutical products for animals, said that while the new fiscal year had started well, it had implemented contingency plans for a hard Brexit.

Trade tensions
In recent months, technology companies have come under increasing public scrutiny as they aim to strike a delicate balance between allowing free user expression on their platforms and preventing abuse.

Last Tuesday, U.S. President Donald Trump took aim at Facebook, Google and Twitter as he said the platforms were "treading on very, very troubled territory and they have to be careful."

Trump's remarks came after he alleged that Google had "rigged" its search engine to prioritize left-leaning media outlets as well as negative news about him and other conservatives.

Representatives from Facebook, Google and Twitter are set to testify before Congress this week to discuss issues such as censorship and election meddling.
The family of former Garissa Finance CEC Idriss Mukhtar has claimed that they have been receiving death threats from unknown people via calls and text messages.

Mukhtar was shot in the head two weeks ago in Nairobi and is currently fighting for his life at a Nairobi hospital.

Speaking during a press briefing, Aden Mukhtar, the father of Idriss, said they are living in fear and accused police of lethargy.

As a family we are very hurt and we are praying that justice will be served for our son. We are even receiving threats but we hope those involved will be charged, said Mukhar.

He added that the former CEC is still in the intensive care unit in a very critical condition,

The familys lawyer, Charles Kanjama, confirmed the death threats saying the family has since recorded statements with the police.

We want to see all the suspects in court and charged because we cannot allow people to be taking or attempting to take other peoples lives in a country where we are governed by law. Idriss is now fighting for his life while those who wanted to kill him are just outside there trying to run away from their actions, Kanjama said.

They spoke three days after David Mwai, the prime suspect in the shooting, was found dead in a cell at Parklands Police Station. Mwai had reportedly confessed to having been hired to kill Idris, who was shot on August 19 at Kileleshwa in Nairobi.

According to police, Mwai committed suicide but the family is convinced there is an attempt to cover up the murder.

We are concerned about the mysterious death of David Mwai, who was going to provide critical evidence, the disappearance of his wife, and the testimony of the sister, which seems to give direction that there was an attempt to cover up a critical piece of the investigations, the lawyer said.

Let me say that my son was shot because of investigating corruption, Aden said, adding that the release of some suspects was proof of interference in the investigations.

There were people calling him, giving him information on his movements, where he spent time, where he prayed, telling him that they were sent by someone prominent from his county to eliminate him, Aden said.

He said the attackers had asked Idris to part with more money for them to spare him.
Much of the empire built by Alex Jones, the Infowars founder and social media shock jock, vanished this summer when Facebook suspended Mr. Jones for 30 days and took down four of his pages for repeatedly violating its rules against bullying and hate speech. YouTube, Apple and other companies also took action against Mr. Jones. But a private Infowars Facebook group with more than 110,000 members, which had survived the crackdown, remained a hive of activity.

In Mr. Jones's absence, the group continued to fill with news stories, Infowars videos and rants about social media censorship. Users also posted the sort of content  hateful attacks against Muslims, transgender people and other vulnerable groups  that got Mr. Jones suspended. And last week, when Mr. Jones's suspension expired, he returned to the group triumphantly.

"My 30-day Facebook ban is up!" Mr. Jones announced.

Mr. Jones built his Facebook audience on pages  the big public megaphones he used to blast links, memes and videos to millions of his followers. In recent months, though, he and other large-scale purveyors of inflammatory speech have found refuge in private groups, where they can speak more openly with less fear of being punished for incendiary posts.

Several private Facebook groups devoted to QAnon, a sprawling pro-Trump conspiracy theory, have thousands of members. Regional chapters of the Proud Boys, a right-wing nationalist group that Twitter suspended last month for its "violent extremist" nature, maintain private Facebook groups, which they use to vet new members. And anti-vaccination groups have thrived on Facebook, in part because they are sometimes recommended to users by the site's search results and "suggested groups" feature.

Facebook's fight against disinformation and hate speech will be a topic of discussion on Capitol Hill on Wednesday, when Sheryl Sandberg, the company's chief operating officer, will join Jack Dorsey, Twitter's chief executive, to testify in front of the Senate Intelligence Committee.

When it comes to public-facing pages, Ms. Sandberg will have plenty of company actions to cite. Facebook has taken many steps to clean up its platform, including hiring thousands of additional moderators, developing new artificial-intelligence tools and breaking up coordinated influence operations ahead of the midterm elections.

But when it comes to more private forms of communication through the company's services  like Facebook groups, or the messaging apps WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger  the social network's progress is less clear. Some experts worry that Facebook's public cleanup may be pushing more toxic content into these private channels, where it is harder to monitor and moderate.

Misinformation is not against Facebook's policies unless it leads to violence. But many of the private groups reviewed by The New York Times contained content and behavior that appeared to violate other Facebook rules, such as rules against targeted harassment and hate speech. In one large QAnon group, members planned a coordinated harassment campaign, known as Operation Mayflower, against public figures such as the actor Michael Ian Black, the late-night host Stephen Colbert and the CNN journalist Jim Acosta. In the Infowars group, posts about Muslims and immigrants have drawn threatening comments, including calls to deport, castrate and kill people.
Funding Circle founders from left to right: Samir Desai, James Meekings and Andrew Mullinger.

Peer-to-peer lending platform Funding Circle announced plans for an initial public offering (IPO) on Monday.

The British start-up, which connects small and medium-sized businesses to investors, said it was looking to raise around 300 million ($387.4 million) by issuing new shares. Funding Circle's potential listing would happen on the London Stock Exchange.

Heartland A/S, the private holding company of Danish billionaire Anders Holch Povlsen, has agreed to buy 10 percent of the issued share capital up to a maximum valuation of 1.65 billion. Povlsen is a major investor in online retailers Asos and Zalando.

"At Funding Circle our mission is to build a better financial world. Today's announcement is the start of the next stage in our exciting and transformational journey. Over the last eight years, we have worked hard to build a platform that is number one in every market we operate in," Samir Desai, CEO of Funding Circle, said in a statement on Monday.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley and Numis Securities have been signed up to act as bookrunners.

Funding Circle operates in the U.K., the U.S., Germany and the Netherlands.
Oil prices are unlikely to break out of the mid-$70 level, Oman's oil and gas minister told CNBC Monday, adding that he thought prices were currently "fair."

"I think for the rest of this year we should see stability between $70 and the high 70s (dollars a barrel), or low 70s to high 70s," Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy, said.

"Because this is the wish of all of us who are cooperating with OPEC to provide the market with enough crude to make sure that the consumers are not impacted and we think that the current price is a fair price," he told CNBC's Hadley Gamble in Muscat, Oman.

He said current oil prices, around the $70-$80 mark per barrel, "will enable us to sustain our investment, and continue the business that will give us a guarantee of some form that the future is brighter than when the price was in the $30s and $40s a few years ago."

Asked whether he agreed with analyst expectations that oil prices could rise to $90 a barrel, he answered, "I don't think so."

Oman is the largest non-OPEC producer in the Middle East and it was severely affected by the oil price slump that took hold in 2015. It signed up to a late-2016 deal between OPEC and non-OPEC producers, notably Russia, to curb oil output in a bid to support prices.

The agreement continues and has worked to stabilize markets, with prices currently around the mid-$70 mark, although the U.S. has criticized increasing prices. Prices have also come under pressure from the U.S.'s decision to re-impose sanctions on major OPEC oil producer Iran  which will stifle its oil industry and curb its supply, potentially causing prices to rise higher.
DJ Koh, president of mobile communications at Samsung Electronics Co., speaks during the Samsung Unpacked product launch event in New York, U.S., on Thursday, Aug. 9, 2018. Samsung Electronics unveiled the Galaxy Note 9 in New York Thursday, banking on the larger-screen device to rejuvenate sales of a struggling flagship line and fend off Apple Inc.'s upcoming iPhones over the holidays.

Samsung Electronics plans to overhaul its smartphone strategy at the mid-range price point in order to appeal more to millennials, the company's mobile CEO has told CNBC.

DJ Koh said the South Korean giant is changing its smartphone strategy for its mid-priced Galaxy A series of smartphones amid a slowdown in the handset market.

Instead of introducing new technology into the flagship Galaxy S and Note series of devices, Koh said Samsung will look to bring in cutting-edge features to its cheaper models first. The first of these devices will come later this year.

"In the past, I brought the new technology and differentiation to the flagship model and then moved to the mid-end. But I have changed my strategy from this year to bring technology and differentiation points starting from the mid-end," Koh told CNBC in an exclusive interview last week.
Washington is going to lose the ability to get anything done if the Democrats seize control of the House during the midterms, and the situation on trade will only get worse, not better, according to businessman and trade expert Steven Okun.

"The midterms aren't going to change anything. If anything, it's going to get worse after the midterms, because you have now for example the (North American Free Trade Agreement) negotiations," Okun, senior advisor at McLarty Associates and board member of the American Chamber of Commerce in Singapore, told CNBC on Monday. He said if the deal is not concluded in the next 30 days, it will probably carry over to the next Congress.

Most projections show that the Democrats have a good chance of taking control of the House on the back of multiple victories in November. That, according to Okun, would mean little progress for President Donald Trump's agenda.

"They are not going to approve anything that the president wants. They are going to be investigating the president over and over and over again, and the entire administration over and over and over again," he said.

Last week, the U.S. and Mexico struck a trade deal that is set to replace NAFTA, the current agreement between the two nations and Canada. On Friday, talks between the U.S. and Canada failed to reach a deal, and they're set to continue this week. Trump has made clear he plans to strike a new deal within 90 days  with or without Canada.

Okun added that the trade war with China would probably get worse as well.

He explained that Washington is "going to have the inability to get anything done," given that the entire administration will be affected if the Democrats take over.

Pointing to when Republicans seized control of both the House and the Senate in the 1994 midterms, Okun said that the administration would have to "drop everything" to comply when it gets investigated on policy, politics and other areas.

"So you lose the ability to control quite a bit of your agenda, and that applies across the entire administration," Okun concluded.

"The president still has some authority under trade, he's going to be able to put on the auto parts tariffs if he wants, he's going to be able to hit China with $200 billion and another $200 billion on top of that. So I see things getting worse for trade, not better, after the midterm elections," he said.

The U.S midterm elections are set to take place on November 6.

Simon Lester, associate director at the Center for Trade Policy Studies at think tank the Cato Institute, echoed Okun's sentiment on trade. He added that it's difficult to predict what might happen to trade negotiations if the Democrats are voted in.

The NAFTA deal, for instance, would have to be tailored to make it appealing to the U.S. Congress. Currently, the Republicans are in control of both chambers, so the agreement would be made to appeal to them, he said.

"But what if those people get voted out of office and, next year, the people who are voted in are Democrats," he asked. "So the text you come up with appeals to the wrong group. So it's really difficult for the Trump administration right now to know exactly what should be in this agreement."

With the uncertainty surrounding trade, Okun issued a warning: "Investors and businesses should be extraordinarily nervous going into this season."

 CNBC's Yen Nee Lee and Javier David contributed reporting to this story.
President Donald Trump is starting his Labor Day with an attack on a top union leader.

Trump tweeted Monday that AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka "represented his union poorly on television this weekend." He added, "It is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!"

Trumka appeared on "Fox News Sunday," where he said efforts to overhaul the North American Free Trade Agreement should include Canada. He also said of Trump: "the things that he's done to hurt workers outpace what he's done to help workers."

Trump also touted the economy Monday, saying "Our country is doing better than ever before with unemployment setting record lows."

Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO, represented his union poorly on television this weekend. Some of the things he said were so againt the working men and women of our country, and the success of the U.S. itself, that it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!

While the unemployment rate of 3.9 percent is not at the best point ever, it is near the lowest in 18 years.

Happy Labor Day! Our country is doing better than ever before with unemployment setting record lows. The U.S. has tremendous upside potential as we go about fixing some of the worst Trade Deals ever made by any country in the world. Big progress being made!
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Johnson: Chequers means capitulation even before we begin to fight our corner

He also dismisses Boless plan  Daily Telegraph

20 MPs pledge to StandUp4Brexit, and oppose Mays approach  The Times

Who they are  The Times

Barnier says Chequers is unacceptable as it would end the Single Market  Daily Telegraph

Farmers call for Government to maintain sugar tariffs  Daily Telegraph

Ding ding! Seconds out! And we begin the final round of that international slug fest, the Brexit negotiations. Out of their corners come Dominic Raab and Michel Barnier, shrugging their shoulders and beating their chests  and I just hope you arent one of those trusting souls who still thinks it could really go either way. The fix is in. The whole thing is about as pre-ordained as a bout between Giant Haystacks and Big Daddy; and in this case, I am afraid, the inevitable outcome is a victory for the EU, with the UK lying flat on the canvas with 12 stars circling symbolically over our semi-conscious headThey have been rumbled. People can see Chequers means disaster.  Boris Johnson, Daily Telegraph

>Today: ToryDiary: Opposing Chequers is not enough

Downing Street and the whips hint to Remainers that there will be further concessions

Cabinet ministers have been quietly reassuring Conservative MPs that Theresa Mays Chequers proposals could evolve to keep Remainers on board. While most of the attention over the summer has focused on growing anger from Brexiteers, Downing Street and Tory whips have been hinting to Remain supporters of Mrs May that she could make further concessions. Many Tory Remainers are keen to secure a Brexit deal that is as business friendly as possible and which minimises disruption to the economy. Ministers will be urged to allow generous visa-free access to EU workers or sign up more closely to EU rules but both moves would be resisted by Brexiteers. Downing Street is desperate to avoid a cascade of Tory MPs copying Justine Greening, who called the Chequers deal disastrous a week after it was agreed and demanded a second referendum, or Nick Boles, who called Mrs Mays plan a humiliation yesterday.  The Times

May must ask for more time if she needs it  The Times Leader

Davis says she is giving the EU an open invitation to demand even more from the UK  The Sun

He promised to vote against any Chequers-based deal  FT

No more concessions would be acceptable  The Sun Says

The EU should demonstrate its prioritiesby abolishing Daylight Saving Time  FT Leader

A new centrist party would be a coalition of losers  Matthew dAncona, The Guardian

>Yesterday:

Javid: Fighting paedophiles is my personal mission

I am making it my mission to crack down on and raise awareness around the shocking sexual abuse and exploitation of children. And today I will be giving a speech setting out the way we intend to do it. This Government has done more to tackle child sexual exploitation than any other. But I want to go much, much, further, ensuring no stone is left unturned and give law enforcement the tools they need to tackle these sick offenders. I am also clear that all parts of society must play their part in this battle. This is a complex issue and perpetrators are continually evolving to satisfy their depraved activities. But we owe it to children to do more.  Sajid Javid, The Sun

A Help to Buy extension is being planned, despite doubts

Government sources have disclosed that the Help to Buy equity initiative will finish in 2023, rather than the original closing date of 2021, the second time it has been extended. The programme was introduced in 2013 to help to get more people owning property and to ramp up housebuilding. It has since proved so successful for Britains biggest housebuilders that it supports between 40 to 50 per cent of their sales each year. However, the scheme has come under criticism for being increasingly dominated by better-off households who use the programme simply to buy more expensive properties. Government data have shown that 6,717 households with a six-figure income have used Help to Buy since its introduction.  The Times

We must improve borrowers financial education  Clare Foges, The Times

Debt helpline reports rise in arrears on household bills  FT

Pressure on Carney to reveal whether he wants to extend his term at the Bank of England  FT

The personal cost of becoming a Conservative MP can exceed 120,000

More new Conservative members report being rejected without being given a reason  Daily Telegraph Letters

Only 100 people acted on Arron Bankss advice to join up  The Sun

It emerged last night that MPs lose tens of thousands of pounds of their own money when they stand for Parliament. Conservative candidates who won in marginal seats lost the most  an average of 121,467 each  when they were forced to cut back work in their previous jobs, on top of unreimbursed travel expenses. Labour candidates in marginal seats spent 19,022 of their own money. The findings come in a book, Why We Get The Wrong Politicians, by journalist Isabel Hardman.  The Sun

>Today: George Freeman on Comment: Come to our Big Tent Ideas Festival next weekend. And help build conservatism and capitalism for a new generation.

>Yesterday: Line Kristensen on Comment: To win next time, the Conservative Party must make recruiting and training activists its priority

HS2 legislation pushed back by a year

The Times has learnt that the legislation needed to pave the way for the second section of HS2 to serve northern England has been put on hold for a year. The bill enabling the line to be built to Manchester and Leeds will now be tabled in 2020. The government insisted that the delay was needed to ensure that HS2 was linked into a proposed upgrade of the main east-west railway line across the Pennines, which is still on the drawing board. It was claimed that the change would not affect the ultimate timetable for the high-speed line, which is supposed to be opened in 2033. However, the claims were met with scepticism by political leaders in the north, with fears that any delay to the parliamentary process would have an inevitable knock-on effect on the projects completion. It will also cast further doubt over the project after it was reported last week that some senior cabinet ministers were calling for the line to be scrapped to save money.  The Times

Crackdown on motorists with poor eyesight  Daily Mail

India launches moon mission as the UK hands over yet more aid  Daily Mail

ISIS has direct links from Afghanistan to UK cells, the defence secretary warns

The Armys armoured vehicles are breaking down in the Afghan heat  The Times

Is Williamsons plan for a new British fighter jet real, or just a pipe dream?  FT

Concentrate on the economy and education, not indyref2, Davidson tells Sturgeon

Islamic State in Afghanistan has established direct links with British terrorist groups, provoking fears about new Manchester-style attacks, the defence secretary has warned. Gavin Williamson said that 440 British troops were sent to the country last month to combat the growing terrorist threat posed to Britain as well as to Afghan civilians. Islamist militants pushed out of Iraq and Syria were regrouping in Afghanistan, he said. Intelligence reports showing a real threat to Britain from Afghan-based militants were consistently being generated, Mr Williamson said. In recent months there have been countless times when there have been links back to the UK from terrorists in Afghanistan.  The Times

Ruth Davidson has described independence as the SNPs only real plan as she launched a scathing attack on Nicola Sturgeons record in government. The Sottish Conservative leader accused the First Minister of failing to fight for the future of Scottish children and claimed her government had presided over a steady decline in the countrys education system. She issued the critique ahead of Ms Sturgeon unveiling her new programme for government when Holyrood returns on Tuesday. Ms Davidson said she should use the occasion to rule out indyref2, and announce that she would concentrate on the economy and education instead.  Daily Telegraph

SNP leader puts Catalonia trip on hold  Daily Mail

Scallop wars show the auld alliance is misty-eyed nonsense  Brian Monteith, The Scotsman

The threat of a Corbyn government has forced British Jews to consider leaving the UK, the former chief rabbi warns

Labour has just days to cleanse the stain from its soul, Brown warns  Daily Telegraph

Thornberry endorses IHRA definition  FT

Lansman suggests training  The Sun

This is their week of reckoning  Daily Telegraph Leader

Field receives death threats after resigning  The Times

Momentum supports rule change to enable deselections  The Guardian

Watson offered graveyard slots at Labour conference as a punishment  The Times

Jonathan Sacks said he knows Jewish families who are making plans to quit Britain because they fear the Labour leader could unleash a new wave of anti-Semitism. And he said Mr Corbyns past ties to terror groups abroad mean he risks sparking flames of hatred. Lord Sacks this week compared the Labour boss to the racist rhetoric of far-right politician Enoch Powell because of his failure to tackle anti-Jewish hatred within his party. Asked if he regretted his attack, the ex-chief rabbi told the BBCs Andrew Marr Show: You can judge him by his impact. Jews have been in Britain since 1656  I know of no other occasion in these 362 years when Jews, the majority of our community, are worrying, Is this country safe to bring up our children?  The Sun

Opinion

>Yesterday:

Trump calls Merkels position ridiculous as war of words escalates

US President Donald Trump has branded Angela Merkel ridiculous in his latest attack on European leaders. During an explosive interview with Bloomberg, the US leader also rejected the EUs proposal to scrap auto tariffs as simply not good enough. President Trump intensified his rhetoric against Brussels, claiming that the EUs trade policies were as bad as China. He agreed in July to hold back on his proposed 25 percent tariffs on cars to allow the EU to develop ways to cut down trade barriers.  Daily Express

>Today: Chloe Westleys column: Identitarianism  an ugly word for an ugly belief

News in Brief
Hustings meetings being held across London for candidates shortlisted to be the Conservative candidate for Mayor

While many of us were fortunate enough to enjoy some holiday in August, the three individuals shortlisted to be the Conservative candidate for Mayor of London have been busy. London Assembly members Shaun Bailey and Andrew Boff and Ealing councillor Joy Morrissey have taken part in several hustings meetings held by constituency associations. You can listen to their debate on LBC, which took place on August 22nd, here.

Each candidate has a website. Baileys is here. Boffs is here. Morrisseys is here.

But now the contest gets into full swing. Voting opens on September 17th  with the option of voting online or being sent a ballot paper. Under the three month rule you must have joined before June 26th to be able to vote. The deadline to vote by September 26th will allow a winner to be announced before the Conservative Party Conference opens in Birmingham on Sunday September 30th

There are also six official hustings taking place across the capital, starting this evening.

They are as following:

September 3rd at 7.30pm in Croydon

September 4th at 7.30pm in Hendon

September 5th at 7.30pm in Ilford

September 6th at 7.30pm in Eltham

September 7th at 7.3pm in Northwood

September 8th at 7.30pm in Richmond

Tickets are free, but you must be a member of the Conservatives in London to attend. More details about the venues and how to apply for tickets here.
Chloe Westley is the Campaign Manager of the TaxPayers Alliance.

Im speaking for the benefit of all people. This is how Kanye West responded to criticism last week that he wasnt doing enough to stand up for the black community in America. The presenter came back, and pleaded with him that white people always have a head start in life. The rapper calmy paused before thoughtfully responding: But theres a lot of poor white people too.

In 2018, thats a bold acknowledgement to make. Individualism  the idea that the human individual should be emphasised over the collective  is increasingly rejected by Western institutions. Instead, we are being taught to reduce ourselves to a single characteristic, in order to be divided into groups of victims and villains, so that we may be resentful or ashamed accordingly.

Identity politics has infected political discourse in Britain. Instead of engaging with the substance of an argument being engaged with, bigotry is inferred on opponents. So it is that those concerned about Britains discriminatory immigration policy are branded as racist. And those who express concerns about gender-neutral toilets are merely bigots and transphobes  and their case is therefore invalid.

Ive been guilty of indulging in identity politics myself. A few weeks ago, I was appalled by the assertion of some men that I had no right to criticise the burka. I thought: its all very well for you to defend the covering up of women  youre not a woman, and you dont have to wear it. But perhaps in retrospect that was unfair. Someones gender or physical characteristics shouldnt determine their right to speak freely on a matter. I regret making that cheap shot.

But its not just our political discourse that is made worse by identity politics. Im concerned that instead of teaching young people to judge each other on merit, this new collectivist mentality encourages judgements based on a single characteristic like race or gender. I dont think its healthy to instill a sense of victimhood or shame on children for something they have nothing to do with  i.e: what theyre born with. Yes, there are those who are advantaged and disadvantaged in society. But can privilege simply be reduced to single characteristics?

Im not saying that it isnt important to discuss and confront discrimination in society. I would never seek to belittle or disregard cases of racism, sexism, xenophobia, homophobia  or prejudice of any kind. But I disagree with those who advocate positive discrimination as a means of balancing the scales.

Recently, the BBC advertised a job interview open only to those from a non-white background. The corporation defended its decision by claiming that this was a move to give those from under-represented backgrounds a leg up. Not only is this patronising to those who would prefer to be judged on their merit instead of their skin colour, but it also ignores the point that Kanye made in his radio interview: there are disadvantaged white people too.

I think its fantastic that the Conservative Party want to get more women elected to Parliament. But I hope this can be achieved without the introduction of quotas or all-female shortlists. I dont want to be given opportunities because of my gender, but because Im the best person to do the job. Far from promoting equality, quotas and all-female shortlists place doubt in peoples minds that women are as capable as men. When given the opportunity to prove ourselves in a meritocratic society, we can prove that we are.

I believe that as human beings we are more complex than identitarians give us credit for. We are a combination of so many things  our parents, our place of birth, experiences out of our control, and choices along the way. No combination of characteristics, experiences and choices are the same; and there are as many combinations as there are people on the planet.

As much as identitarianism likes to split society into segments to pit against each other, people dont fit nearly into boxes. We should strive to debate ideas without resorting to insults and ad hominem attacks about the background of our opponent. We should strive instead to live in a meritocratic society, where each of us can be judged on the content of our character.
The Off-Payroll tax that HMRC is looking to impose on the private sector threatens to undo all of the work put into Governments Good Work Plan, by actively inciting exploitation of the UKs most vulnerable workers.

Off-Payroll tax will nullify Governments Good Work Plan

Low paid workers are being forced to pick up hirers employers NI bills

No means of appeal other than tribunal means no access to proper justice

Government needs to consider aligning taxation with employment rights.

A response to the Taylor Review, the Good Work Plan aims to promote fairness in the labour market. Central to this is Governments vow to protect those who it refers to as dependent contractors from exploitation.

Ironically, the biggest threat to achieving this is proposed legislation in the form of the Off-Payroll tax. A misguided attempt at tackling perceived abuse of the tax system through bogus self-employment, the Off-Payroll tax, in fact, stokes non-compliance at the other end of the spectrum, enabling unscrupulous hirers to exploit low paid workers further.

How Off-Payroll incites exploitation of low paid workers

Government is tasked with addressing a perceived tax shortfall from false self-employment while attempting to level the playing field for low paid workers, the majority of whom are self-employed.

Its biggest mistake with Off-Payroll has been handing all the cards over to hirers, who have most to gain from flexible working arrangements. There are two key financial advantages to engaging self-employed labour for hirers, compared with hiring an employee:

Avoiding employers National Insurance (NI) at 13.8%

Not having to provide employment rights.

The first of these costs accounts for the vast majority of HMRCs perceived tax shortfall, for which the hirer is now liable under Off-Payroll when a contractor is deemed employed for tax purposes.

But, as the public sector has shown, hirers are more than willing to blanket assess their workers as employed  to mitigate their own tax risk  while passing on the employers NI cost to the worker. This behaviour creates a significant burden for contractors.

So, what happens to those in precarious work with no bargaining power? The Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy estimates there to be some 2.8m gig-economy workers in the UK, a large portion of whom have been forced into false self-employment for lack of a better alternative.

For them, the options are to either accept low paid work with an excessive and unfair tax deduction or go without. Despite the criminally unjust working conditions, many are forced to take the former option.

No access to justice, no employment rights

The matter is made worse by the fact that those affected have no realistic means of appealing their unfair tax treatment. HMRC maintains that contractors can contest their tax status at tribunal, or take their hirer to court. But what about those who dont have thousands of pounds to spare for an appeal which will almost certainly outweigh any tax refund? These workers arent even provided with access to proper justice.

And, not only are these individuals overtaxed, they are also underprivileged. You would think that being treated as an employee for tax purposes would result in eligibility for the requisite employment rights, and this is an argument that was rightly put forward within the Taylor Review. Introducing this measure would reduce exploitation of precarious workers while providing a disincentive for those whom HMRC believes to be tax cheats from working off-payroll.

Yet, somehow, HMRC hasnt seen fit to consider this proposal within its Off-Payroll consultation. Consequently, everybody loses out, but none more so than the low paid self-employed.

HMRC puts Good Work Plan in jeopardy

The inevitable fallout from the Off-Payroll tax is further non-compliance. By creating an additional tax burden for low paid workers, HMRC has made it significantly more difficult for them to pay their rent and bills and feed their families.

Some will be introduced to credible-looking schemes which promise a tax rate much closer to what they should realistically be paying. With little understanding of tax, many contractors unwittingly enter into what turn out to be tax avoidance schemes. And, just like that, the taxman has turned a cohort of low paid workers into tax cheats.

Everything outlined above is already rife in the public sector, yet HMRC still seems intent on introducing the Off-Payroll tax, and all of the collateral damage that comes with it, into the private sector.

If the Off-Payroll tax goes ahead, it will completely nullify the Good Work Plan. I have stressed these points face-to-face with HMRC. The taxman cannot continue to turn a blind eye to this issue. If it does, and we wind up several years down the line with nothing to show from the Governments efforts, we will know why.
12:52

Jailed RJD president Lalu Prasad has put in a request that he be shifted to another ward at the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences in Ranchi, where he is currently admitted, citing poor hygiene, mosquito menace and barking by stray dogs, a close aide of the former chief minister said.





The RJD lawmaker and national general secretary Bhola Yadav told PTI on Monday that an application has been submitted to the director of the RIMS hospital, where Prasad is admitted, with the plea that he be moved to the 100-bed paying ward, which at present has only three patients.





"We have cited the reasons also for making such a request. The waste pipe of a toilet close to his ward is clogged, emitting foul smell. This imperils the health of our leader who suffers from infections," Yadav, a close confidant of the RJD chief, said.





Yadav, who has been beside the RJD supremo for most of the time since he was sent to jail in December last year, said the lack of hygiene also leads to the menace of mosquitoes which is another potential health risk, "especially in the rainy season. Besides there is also the problem of excessive noises."





"The post-mortem house is nearby which attracts a large number of stray dogs. Their barks and howls is a nuisance and cause immense discomfort to the septuagenarian," the RJD MLA said.





The MLA also said that being a diabetic, Prasad needs to go for regular walks but the location of the cardiology department ward where he is lodged is "not suitable" for that.





"We have, therefore, requested that he be shifted to the paying ward, which is newly built and comparatively more clean and tidy. We hope the authorities will not have a problem with that since we are ready to pay the room rent and other charges. We did that when Laluji was admitted to AIIMS earlier this year," Yadav stated.



The ruling JD(U) in Bihar retorted, "Now you have begun to fear dogs and mosquitoes. The people of Bihar had feared a lot while you were in power," JD(U) MLC and spokesman Neeraj Kumar tweeted, alluding to the crime rate during the 15-year-long rule by Prasad and, subsequently, his wife Rabri Devi for which the RJD has been drawing flak over the years. PTI
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The following editorial appeared in Sunday's Yomiuri Shimbun:

- - -

It is important to continue to gradually and steadily reduce the excessive burden of hosting U.S. bases on Okinawa. In contrast, the approach of the Okinawa prefectural government, which appears to position base-related issues as a point of contention in the gubernatorial election, is extremely questionable.

The Okinawa prefectural government has revoked its permit for land reclamation as part of the planned relocation of the U.S. Marine Corps' Futenma Air Station in Ginowan to the Henoko district in Nago. Work will be suspended.

The policy of revoking the permit was stated by Gov. Takeshi Onaga, who died last month. Okinawa's Vice Gov. Kiichiro Jahana said at a press conference that the prefectural government "will act with all its strength to stop the construction of a new base in Henoko."

It will be officially announced on Sept. 13 that the gubernatorial election will take place on Sept. 30, with ballots to be counted on the same day.

Groups that supported Onaga and others had called on the prefectural government to decide quickly to revoke the permit. By maintaining the wishes of Onaga, they are apparently aiming for an advantage in the election.

Hasn't the prefectural government taken too much advantage of its decision to revoke the permit for political purposes? It is not understandable that the prefectural government has responded in a way to inflame hostility among people in the prefecture just prior to the election.

It is obvious that the prefectural government is trying to rehash an issue that has been settled judicially. In 2015, Onaga nullified the approval, claiming the procedures taken earlier were legally flawed. The following year, the Supreme Court ruled that Onaga's judgment was illegal.

This time, the prefectural government has asserted, as reasons for the revocation, that environmental preservation measures worked out after the approval was issued, including measures for coral, were found to be insufficient and that soft ground had been discovered at the site after the approval.

The central government has been moving ahead with the transplantation of coral reefs and a boring survey. The assertion made by the prefectural government can be called unreasonable.

The central government plans to file a suit to get a stay of the withdrawal. Now that the prefectural government has used strong-arm tactics, such an action would be inevitable. Should the court approve it, the central government will be able to resume work within a few weeks or about a month.

The central government has put off the injection of soil and sand at the landfill area. By doing so, the central government is believed to have avoided having the gubernatorial election focus on base-related issues more than necessary.

The relocation to Henoko is a realistic option to eliminate the risk posed by the Futenma base and maintain the U.S. military's deterrent capability. The government must steadily move the work forward.

The election is expected to be effectively a one-on-one fight between former Ginowan Mayor Atsushi Sakima, endorsed by the ruling parties, and House of Representatives member Denny Tamaki, backed by groups that supported Onaga and opposition parties.

With regards to the planned relocation to Henoko, Sakima said he will respect a judicial ruling. Tamaki has taken a stance of opposing the relocation. It is important to discuss base-related issues level-headedly.

In 2022, Okinawa Prefecture will celebrate a watershed year marking the 50th anniversary of its reversion to Japanese sovereignty. During the election, candidates need to wage a battle of words from a broad perspective with the future of Okinawa in mind, ranging from the promotion of local industries to infrastructure development.
WEST CHESTER  The helicopter flight paramedic arrested last year by West Goshen police for sexually molesting a young recruit will spend a minimum of three months in Chester County Prison as part of a plea agreement worked out between the prosecution and his defense attorney.

Kenneth T. Mason of Wilmington, Del., pleaded guilty Thursday before Common Pleas Court Judge Patrick Carmody to charges of indecent assault and corruption of minors. He was sentenced to three to 23 months in county prison and three years of consecutive probation on the charges, which are misdemeanors.

But Mason, 51, who at the time of the offense was working with Penn Medicine Chester County Hospitals Medic 91 service, will also be required to register as a sex offender under the states Megans Law for a period of 15 years, according to Assistant District Attorney Emily Provencher, who handled the case for the DAs Child Abuse Unit.

Mason was placed on unpaid suspension by the medic service at the time of his arrest. His current status could not be determined.

Defense attorney Mark Conte of West Chester, who represented Mason, said his client expressed remorse and praised the victim for having the courage to come forward. We were able to negotiate with the District Attorneys Office a very fair result in a case that was extremely difficult for all involved, he said following the proceeding.

According to the facts laid out for Carmody by Provencher and detailed in a criminal complaint by West Goshen Sgt. Darren R. Sedlak, the incident occurred Aug. 9, 2017.

The victim, who was 17 at the time, had been volunteering in a ride-along program at the hospital in hopes of pursuing his goal of becoming a paramedic. He would spend shifts on duty with the Medic 91 group, observing the work the EMTs and paramedics do on a routine basis.

He had been assigned to work with Mason on more than one occasion. Mason is very interesting and filled a mentor role as the victim had dreams of becoming a flight paramedic and wanted to learn anything about the career from (him), Sedlak wrote in his complaint.

On the night of the incident, the youth had been scheduled to ride along with Mason on the 11 p.m. to 7 a.m. shift at the hospital. They left the station at 3 a.m. to go on patrol, and soon drove to the Greystone Hall Estate on Phoenixville Pike. He parked in a remote area of the wooded grounds, which made the youth nervous, although he did not say anything because he was following Masons directions.

The youth fell asleep around 3:45 a.m., he told Sedlak in an interview, seated next to mason. About one hour later he woke up to feel Mason massaging his clothing. The victim pretended to wake up then and not know what was happening. He suggested they get breakfast, and Mason agreed. The youth told Sedlak that, he was scared to do anything because he was in the middle of the woods, it was completely dark and he was afraid if he said anything, Mason would harm him.

Mason was arrested and charged in October. He had been free on bail pending trial, and was given permission to begin serving his sentence on Sept. 28.
Anam Zakaria's Between the Great Divide brings forth multiple voices from Pakistan-administered Kashmir, voices that are usually lost in politics and militarism, to explore the human dimension of the Kashmir conflict.

In this edited excerpt, Anam speaks with Shams Rehman to understand the nationalist struggle for a united independent Kashmir. While the nationalists are few in number in Pakistan-administered Kashmir, they offer an important perspective on the region and its future.

(Shams Rehman is a UK-based researcher, activist and broadcaster. He hails from Mirpur in Pakistan-administered Kashmir and is the author of Maqbool Bhat: Life and Struggle and Azad Kashmir and British Kashmiris)

***

(Edited excerpt featured with the permission of HarperCollins India)

Through my research I found that one of the effective ways to crush the independence sentiment was by including or incorporating the pro-independence activists into mainstream politics. Shams explained that Pakistani political parties play an important role in this. They are the newest form of control. In the 1970s, when the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) rose to power, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto came to (Azad) Kashmir and told local people that if they wanted to be in the government they had to join the PPP At that time a lot of activists in (Azad) Kashmir were progressive and liberal. They had socialist aspirations and the PPP claimed to be a socialist party. They thought it was going to revolutionize Pakistan and make it a socialist country so many of them happily joined.

The 70s stance: ZA Bhutto came to (Azad) Kashmir and told people that if they wanted to be in government, they had to join the PPP. (Credit: Twitter)

Today, I am told, parties like the PPP and the PML-N attract  and at times coerce  anyone with an independent vision with lucrative salaries, benefits and occasional blackmail. Young people from this part of Kashmir  disillusioned with the lack of success of the independence movement become perfect consumers



The next layer of control Shams spoke about was financial. All banks in (Azad) Kashmir are Pakistani banks. The capital is invested not in Azad Kashmir but in Pakistan. (Azad) Kashmiris living in the UK send back a lot of money but all of this is deposited in Pakistani banks, benefiting them.

It was the last instrument of hegemonic control that Shams referred to on our call, however, that stood out as the most formidable one for me. It is the control over the education system, which shapes the mindset of thousands of Azad Kashmiris every year.

When I was in school we were taught that Azad Kashmir is already a part of Pakistan  which goes against what the constitution of Pakistan says  and that when we say Kashmir, we are referring to the part under Indian occupation. The textbooks told us that freedom only had one meaning; getting azadi from Indian occupation and merging it with Pakistan. This is what I believed until I left Mirpur. Apart from that, little else was taught about Kashmir. This mindset has only deepened over the years. People who complete their education in AJK up to FA or BA level have no alternative views about Kashmir. They believe that Kashmir belongs to Pakistan. They are taught that because the Maharaja was Hindu, he acceded to India and India, being a Hindu state, is now controlling Kashmir and our role is to free Kashmir and make it a part of Pakistan.

Hard lines as far as the eye can see. (Credit: Reuters)



I asked Shams how he broke through the layers and layers of control he had spoken about  He told me that his unlearning process began one day in the mid-1980s, in the city of Karachi.



I went to Karachi University in 1981 after completing my FA from Mirpur College. When I left Mirpur, I was a very religious type of person  I wasnt interested in politics. I was a typical, ordinary boy who wanted to go to Karachi. When I got there, for the first two years I was in complete cultural shock. I couldnt register boys and girls sitting together and talking. I spent most of the time trying to figure out where I was and what was going on. Then, on February 11, 1984, I coincidentally became part of a protest against the hanging of Maqbool Bhat. All I knew about Maqbool Bhat until then was that he was not for Pakistan (because he spoke of an independent Kashmir) and therefore it was assumed that he worked for India. I was confused to see the reaction against his hanging. My friends  Kashmiri students  organised protests

JKLF members march on the anniversary of the hanging of Maqbool Bhat. Srinagar, February 11, 2010. (Credit: Reuters)



I had to go to the railway station that day to buy a ticket to visit home and my friends convinced me to come with them. They said that after the protest wed go and buy the ticket, so I tagged along. When we reached the office of an Indian airline  the students jumped out of the bus ... and started throwing stones  then we went to the Indian embassy, where they continued to throw stones. But I didnt get out. I was very scared and refused to take part. It was only when a tear-gas shell fired by the police landed inside the bus that I jumped out. I was naive I just ran out and stood with the other spectators on the footpath...

Maqbool Bhat, a Kashmiri nationalist and co-founder of the Jammu and Kashmir National Liberation Front (JKNLF) which advocated freedom from both India and Pakistan, was hanged in Tihar Jail in New Delhi on 11 February 1984. Accused of being an agent by both India and Pakistan at different points of time, and periodically arrested by both countries, Bhat was finally awarded the death sentence in India for the killing of inspector Amar Chand of Kashmir CID in 1966 Bhats body was not handed over to his family and Kashmiris on both sides of the LoC continue to demand it till today, commemorating his death anniversary as a black day every year on 11 February. For many Azad Kashmiris, he serves as a symbol of freedom and several pro-independence Kashmiris continue to consider him as their leader.

Maqbool Bhat. For many, he serves as a symbol of freedom. (Credit: Wikimedia Commons/Arqureshi)

I could hardly see anything because of the tear gas. Suddenly I felt someone lift me in the air from the back It was only when he started walking towards the police pick-up van that it suddenly occurred to me that he was taking me to the police! I jerked and freed myself and ran back...

He laughed at his sheer innocence before continuing. This time that guy came and picked me up from the front and threw me in the police van and the policemen in the van started to beat me up. I was beaten really, really badly. There were four policemen inside the van and three of them were hitting me, swearing at me, humiliating me. They said, You Kashmiris do this, you Kashmiris do that. I kept saying I was not for independence but they werent listening. They demanded that I shout Kashmir Banega Pakistan and I did that instantly, thinking that they wouldnt hit me again, but they continued. And then one big blow flattened me on the floor. I was still not unconscious but I pretended to be so, in the hope that they would stop beating me. It was then that a Sindhi policeman, who had not hit me, quietly said, Baba isko kyun mar rahe ho? Ye mar jayega. Saeen, isko thaney le chalo (Baba, why are you hitting him? He will die. Saeen, lets take him to the police station.) After that they kicked me on my side once more while I was still lying flat on the floor and then they stopped. They took the money from my wallet, took off my watch, but I didnt care about anything. I just wanted them to stop hitting me After maybe 30-40 minutes they took me to the police station, where there were other arrested students too. That was the day I started thinking of these things: Why did this happen to me? What was this? Before that, whenever my roommates would talk of independence, I would say no, forget it, but after that day I started asking questions that was the day the unlearning process started.

Between the Great Divide by Anam Zakaria (HarperCollins India).

AUTHORS DISCLAIMER: This book is an attempt to study a region  Azad Kashmir  that has often been neglected in conversations about the present and future of Jammu and Kashmir. I have used interviews with locals and various stakeholders in Azad Kashmir to explore the Kashmir conflict through their eyes. In most cases, I have chosen to present the terms and statements as conveyed by my interviewees to me to provide readers with a better understanding of how Azad Kashmiris experience the ongoing conflict. These statements and terms do not necessarily reflect my views or those of the publisher.

I also recognize that Kashmir is referred to with different names and titles both locally and internationally, some acceptable in India and others in Pakistan. While India refers to Pakistan-administered Kashmir, which comprises Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan (formerly known as Northern Areas), as Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, Pakistan refers to Indian-administered Kashmir, known as the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India (constituting Jammu, Kashmir Valley and Ladakh), as makbooza (occupied) Kashmir. In the popular parlance, however, when people in Pakistan say makbooza Kashmir, they are often mainly referring to the Kashmir Valley, not Jammu and Ladakh. Similarly, in India, when people say Pakistan-occupied Kashmir, they sometimes mean only Azad Kashmir, treating Gilgit-Baltistan separately but still seeing it as a part of India. Occupied and azad are both loaded terms and as the author, my hope is to understand what constitutes freedom and occupation for Kashmiris, without imposing my labels.

I have thus chosen to use the terms Pakistan-administered and Indian-administered Kashmir to explore what freedom and occupation mean for Kashmiris. However, while I have employed the term Pakistan-administered Kashmir in parts of the book, Azad Kashmir has been used more frequently to distinguish it from Gilgit-Baltistan. The two regions have unique histories, politics and cultural realities. While the book makes certain references to Gilgit-Baltistan, the region is not the books focus, which remains firmly on Azad Kashmir. Further, Azad Kashmir is how the people of the region commonly refer to the area and it is their voice that the book seeks to highlight. Where I have used the term Azad Kashmir or Azad Kashmiris, I have placed Azad within inverted commas (unless I am quoting someone or using an excerpt which implies otherwise) to denote that the label of freedom  like that of occupation  in itself needs to be deconstructed to fully explore peoples experiences in the region.

I take full responsibility for the nomenclature used in the book.

Also read: On retracing Mughal emperor Jehangir's trail through Jammu and Kashmir
Serious Pakistan watchers are baffled by Prime Minister Imran Khans stark indifference towards his foreign policy. Although it hasnt been even a month since he assumed the premiership of a complex country like Pakistan, a large section of the countrys polity, as well sceptics in the region, are surprised that he hasnt embarked upon any foreign policy initiatives.

Imrans announcement that he would not undertake any trips to foreign countries and accord more priority to his domestic matters has left many intrigued. It has raised questions over whether he has deliberately desisted from visiting China after taking over as PM.

Imran Khan has decided to remain focused on the country's internal affairs for now. (Source: Reuters)

It is important to note the visiting China has become fairly common for Pakistans PMs in the recent past.

Its equally puzzling to see that Imran is still undecided over whether he should go and address the United Nations in September as it is not only customary but is also expected to give the new Prime Minister an opportunity to meet all world leaders and project Pakistans view point.

Imran Khan has lost an opportunity in not reaching out to the global community and the reasons are absolutely unknown.

It is also pertinent to point out that Khans foreign minister, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, who has not only been educated in the west, but is also suave, experienced and articulate, has said that nobody other than Pakistan Foreign Ministry is responsible for formulating the foreign policy of the country.

What was the provocation for this statement?

Some security analysts and experts on Pakistan reckon that this was possibly to dispel the general impression that its the deep state or the armed forces who are calling the shots reducing the foreign ministry to a toothless tiger.

What is quite clear is that Khan is still trying to find a firm feet with regards to foreign policy.

Pakistan has not made public the details of the conversation Khan had with US secretary of state Mike Pompeo. It has also not cleared the air over whether Pompeo is visiting Pakistan at all.

Quite naturally there are a lot of speculations and conjectures over the issue. Things look murkier in the absence of any definite road map.

No matter how many times Khan denies the charge, it is quite clear that it is the military which has been in control from day one when it prevailed upon Khans plan to invite foreign dignitaries for the swearing-in ceremony. The move deprived Khan the opportunity to come close to or forge a personal rapport with regional leaders.

In the domain of foreign policy, Afghanistan has not seen any forward movement by Islamabad to strengthen bilateral ties. There was a cautious optimism after Khan took over but its traces soon evaporated. This is surely an unhealthy sign as Afghanistan is facing massive terror attacks both from within and outside. It is believed that the attacks being launched from outside are the handiwork of non-state actors in Pakistan.

Ignoring the global community may not prove to be a good strategy in the long run. (Source: AP)

While Taliban is believed to be the main culprit, thousands of Islamic State leaning supporters have firmed up their operations on the Afghan soil.

Khan needs to come one step forward and either play the mediator or issue and unambiguous call to the Taliban cadres, both in Afghanistan and Pakistan, to put a moratorium on the ongoing terror assaults.

This will give Khan the much needed credibility as a leader working for establishment of peace. This will help Khans image not just in Afghanistan but the entire region.

Khan, however, should not be expected to bring in any radical changes to improve relations with India.

Given the pressure from the military establishment, it is unlikely Khan will be able to do anything substantial on the front.

However, it would augur well for him if he comes up with some conciliatory statements once in a while. Any hardened stance will cost him the goodwill in India.

Many had hoped that Khans rise to power would prove a silver lining for Indo-Pak relations. However, the prospects dont look too good now.

Khan has no choice but to toe the Chinese line on external matters. China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) is a priority. The Chinese are watching him closely. Given how Pakistan leaders have behaved in the past, there is little hope Khan will behave any different.

Khan, therefore, needs to reach out to the world leaders without losing any time. He has to realise Pakistans external ties are just as worrisome as the internal problems.

Also read: Why I am convinced Imran Khan's Pakistan stands for peace
Unit Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the exploration, acquisition, development, and production of oil and natural gas properties in the United States. It operates through three segments: Oil and Natural Gas, Contract Drilling, and Mid-Stream. The Oil and Natural Gas segment explores for, acquires, develops, and produces oil and natural gas properties. Its producing oil and natural gas properties, unproved properties, and related assets are primarily located in Oklahoma and Texas, as well as in Arkansas, Colorado, Kansas, Louisiana, Montana, New Mexico, North Dakota, Utah, and Wyoming. The Contract Drilling segment is involved in the contract drilling of onshore oil and natural gas wells for a range of other oil and natural gas companies primarily in Oklahoma, Texas, Wyoming, North Dakota, Colorado, and Utah. It has 55 drilling rigs in its fleet. The Mid-Stream segment buys, sells, gathers, processes, and treats natural gas for third parties. This segment operates 3 natural gas treatment plants, 14 processing plants, 22 gathering systems, and approximately 1,475 miles of pipeline in Oklahoma, Texas, Kansas, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. Unit Corporation was founded in 1963 and is headquartered in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

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Sony Corporation designs, develops, produces, and sells electronic equipment, instruments, and devices for the consumer, professional, and industrial markets worldwide. The company distributes software titles and add-on content through digital networks by Sony Interactive Entertainment; network services related to game, video, and music content; and home and portable game consoles, packaged software, and peripheral devices. It also develops, produces, markets, and distributes recorded music; publishes music; and produces and distributes animation titles, game applications based on animation titles, and various services for music and visual products. In addition, the company offers live-action and animated motion pictures, as well as scripted and unscripted series, daytime serials, game shows, animated series, television movies, and miniseries and other television programs; operates a visual effects and animation unit; manages a studio facility; and operates television and digital networks. Further, it researches, develops, designs, produces, markets, distributes, sells, and services video and sound products; interchangeable lens, compact digital, and consumer and professional video cameras; display products, such as projectors and medical equipment; mobile phones, tablets, accessories, and applications; and metal oxide semiconductor image sensors, charge-coupled devices, large-scale integration systems, and other semiconductors. Additionally, it offers Internet broadband network services; creates and distributes content for various electronics product platforms, such as PCs and mobile phones; and provides life and non-life insurance, banking, and other services, as well as batteries, recording media, and storage media products. It has collaboration with The UNOPS. The company was formerly known as Tokyo Tsushin Kogyo Kabushiki Kaisha and changed its name to Sony Corporation in January 1958. The company was founded in 1946 and is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan.

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H&R Block, Inc. engages in the provision of tax preparation and other services. The firm offers assisted income tax return preparation and related services through a system of retail offices operated directly by the company or by franchisees. It also develops and markets DIY income tax preparation software online, as well as through third-party retail stores and direct mail; and provides DIY tax services, including federal and state income tax returns, access to tax tips, advice and tax-related news, use of calculators for tax planning, and error checking and electronic filing. In addition, the company offers Refund Transfers and H&R Block Emerald Prepaid Mastercard, which enables clients to receive their tax refunds; Peace of Mind extended service plans; H&R Block Emerald Advance lines of credit; Tax Identity Shield that provides clients assistance in helping protect their tax identity and access to services to help restore their tax identity; refund advance loans; H&R Block Instant Refund; and H&R Block Pay With Refund services. The company was founded by Henry W. Bloch and Richard A. Bloch on January 25, 1955 and is headquartered in Kansas City, MO.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Ingersoll Rand: 211 E. Russell Road LLC, Air-Relief, Belliss & Morcom Brasil, Belliss and Morcom, Boardwalk Enterprises, Charm Merger Sub Inc., CompAir, CompAir (Hankook) Korea Co. Ltd., CompAir Acquisition (No. 2) Ltd., CompAir Acquisition Ltd., CompAir BroomWade Ltd., CompAir Canada, CompAir Finance Ltd., CompAir GmbH, CompAir Holdings Limited, CompAir Holman Ltd, CompAir International Trading (Shanghai) Co Ltd, CompAir Korea Ltd, CompAir South Africa (SA) (Pty) Ltd., CompAir UK Ltd, CompAir USA, Consolidated Distribution Holdings Ltd., DV Systems Inc., Emco Wheaton, Emco Wheaton GmbH Branch, Emco Wheaton Gmbh, Emco Wheaton UK, Emco Wheaton USA Inc, Enza Air Propriety Limited (South Africa), GD Aria Holdings #2 Limited, GD Aria Holdings Limited, GD Aria Investments Limited, GD First UK Ltd, GD German Holdings GmbH, GD German Holdings I Gmbh, GD German Holdings II GmbH, GD German Investments GmbH, GD Global Holdings, GD Global Holdings II, GD Global Holdings UK II Ltd., GD Global Ventures I B.V., GD Global Ventures II B.V., GD Global Ventures III B.V., GD Industrial Products Malaysia SDN. BHD., GD Investment KY, GD UK Finance Ltd., Gardner Denver (Thailand) Co. Ltd., Gardner Denver Austria GmbH, Gardner Denver Bad Neustadt Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Belgium NV, Gardner Denver Brasil Industria E Comercio de Maquinas Ltda., Gardner Denver CZ + SK sro, Gardner Denver Canada Corp, Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments II Ltd., Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments II Ltd. - US Branch, Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments Ltd., Gardner Denver Cyprus Investments Ltd. - US Branch, Gardner Denver Deutschland GmbH, Gardner Denver Engineered Products India Private Limited, Gardner Denver FZE, Gardner Denver Finance II LLC, Gardner Denver Finance Inc & Co KG, Gardner Denver France SA, Gardner Denver France SAS, Gardner Denver Group Services Ltd, Gardner Denver Group Svcs Ltd, Gardner Denver Hoffman, Gardner Denver Holdings, Gardner Denver Holdings Limited, Gardner Denver Hong Kong Investments Limited, Gardner Denver Hong Kong Ltd, Gardner Denver Iberica, Gardner Denver Industries Ltd., Gardner Denver Industries Pty Ltd., Gardner Denver Industries Pty Ltd. Branch, Gardner Denver International, Gardner Denver International Ltd., Gardner Denver Intl Ltd Middle East Regional Rep Office, Gardner Denver Investments, Gardner Denver Italy Holdings S.r.L., Gardner Denver Japan, Gardner Denver Kirchhain Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Korea, Gardner Denver Korea Ltd, Gardner Denver Ltd, Gardner Denver Ltd South Africa, Gardner Denver Ltd., Gardner Denver Ltd. Branch (Ireland), Gardner Denver Machinery (Shanghai) Co, Gardner Denver Machinery (Shanghai) Co., Gardner Denver Nash Brasil Industria E Comercio De Bombas Ltda, Gardner Denver Nash Deutschland GmbH, Gardner Denver Nash LLC, Gardner Denver Nash Machinery Ltd, Gardner Denver Nash Machinery Ltd., Gardner Denver Nederland BV, Gardner Denver Nederland Investments B.V., Gardner Denver Oberdorfer Pumps, Gardner Denver Oy, Gardner Denver Petroleum Pumps, Gardner Denver Polska Sp z.o.o., Gardner Denver Pte Ltd., Gardner Denver S.r.l., Gardner Denver Schopfheim GmbH, Gardner Denver Schopfheim Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver Schweiz AG, Gardner Denver Slovakia, Gardner Denver SudAmerica S.r.l., Gardner Denver Sweden AB, Gardner Denver Taiwan Ltd., Gardner Denver Thomas, Gardner Denver Thomas GmbH, Gardner Denver Thomas Pneumatic Systems (Wuxi) Co., Gardner Denver Thomas Real Estate GmbH & Co KG, Gardner Denver UK, Gardner Denver Water Jetting Systems, Garo Dott. Ing. Roberto Gabbioneta S.r.l., Hamworthy Belliss & Morcom, ILMVAC (UK) Ltd., ILS Innovative Labor Systeme, ILS Inovative Laborsysteme GmbH, Indonesia Foreign Trade Representative Office, LeROI, LeRoi International Inc, MP Pumps Inc., Mako Compressors, Nash, Nash Elmo, Oina VV, Oina VV Aktiebolag, Robuschi, Rotary Compression Technologies, Runtech Systems, Runtech Systems (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Runtech Systems Inc., Runtech Systems OY, Shanghai CompAir Compressors Co Ltd, Shanghai Compressors & Blowers Ltd., Syltone, TCM Investments, TIWR Real Estate GmbH & Co. KG, TODO AB, Tamrotor Marine Compressors AS, Thomas Industries, Thomas Industries Inc., Tri-Continent Scientific, Welch Vacuum Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Zinsser Analytic, Zinsser Analytik GmbH, and Zinsser NA.
4 hours ago

Burning Mortgage Question: Should You Retire, Then Pay Off Your Mortgage?

A common question: Should you pay off your mortgage before you retire? A less common question: Should you retire, then pay off your mortgage? If you've hemmed and hawed over the benefits of paying off your mortgage versus keeping it, you're not alone.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft: 87 Leonard Development LLC, ABFS I Incorporated, ABS MB Ltd., Acacia (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Accounting Solutions Holding Company Inc, Alex. Brown Financial Services Incorporated, Alex. Brown Investments Incorporated, Alfred Herrhausen Gesellschaft mbH, Amber Investments S.a r.l., Ambidexter GmbH, Ambidexter GmbH i.L., Argent Incorporated, BHW - Gesellschaft fur Wohnungswirtschaft mbH, BHW Bausparkasse Aktiengesellschaft, BHW Holding GmbH, BHW Kreditservice GmbH, BNA Nominees Pty Limited, BT Globenet Nominees Limited, BTAS Cayman GP, BTD Nominees Pty Limited, Baincor Nominees Pty Limited, Bainpro Nominees Pty Ltd, Baldur Mortgages Limited, Bankers Trust Investments Limited, Barkly Investments Ltd., Bayan Delinquent Loan Recovery 1 (SPV-AMC) Inc, Bayan Delinquent Loan Recovery 1 (SPV-AMC) Inc., Berkshire Mortgage Finance, Betriebs-Center fur Banken AG, Biomass Holdings S.a r.l., Birch (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Blue Cork Inc, Blue Cork Inc., Borfield Sociedad Anonima, Breaking Wave DB Limited, Cape Acquisition Corp., CapeSuccess Inc., CapeSuccess LLC, Cardales UK Limited, Cardea Real Estate S.r.l., Career Blazers LLC, Career Blazers Management Company Inc, Career Blazers Management Company Inc., Career Blazers Personnel Services Inc, Career Blazers Personnel Services Inc., Career Blazers Personnel Services of Washington D.C. Inc. Washington D.C., Caribbean Resort Holdings Inc, Caribbean Resort Holdings Inc., Carpathian Investments Designated Activity Company, Cathay Advisory (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Cathay Advisory (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Cathay Asset Management Company Limited, Cathay Capital Company (No 2) Limited, Cedar (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Centennial River 2 Inc., Centennial River Corporation, Chapel Funding, Charlton (Delaware) Inc, China Recovery Fund LLC, China Recovery Fund LLC, Cinda - DB NPL Securitization Trust 2003-1, City Leasing (Thameside) Limited, City Leasing Limited, Consumo S.p.A., Consumo Srl in Liquidazione, Cyrus J. Lawrence Capital Holdings Inc., Cyrus J. Lawrence Capital Holdings Inc., D B Investments (GB) Limited, D&M Turnaround Partners Godo Kaisha, D.B. International Delaware Inc., D.B. International Delaware Inc., DAHOC (UK) Limited (in members' voluntary liquidation), DAHOC Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, DB (Barbados) SRL, DB (Malaysia) Nominee (Asing) Sdn. Bhd., DB (Malaysia) Nominee (Tempatan) Sendirian Berhad, DB (Pacific) Limited, DB (Pacific) Limited New York, DB (Pacific) Limited New York, DB Abalone LLC, DB Alex. Brown Holdings Incorporated, DB Alps Corporation, DB Aotearoa Investments Limited, DB Asia Pacific Holdings Limited (in voluntary liquidation), DB Asset Finance I S.a r.l., DB Asset Finance II S.a r.l., DB Aster II LLC, DB Aster III LLC, DB Aster Inc., DB Aster LLC, DB Beteiligungs-Holding GmbH, DB Boracay LLC, DB Capital Investments Sarl, DB Capital Markets (Deutschland) GmbH, DB Capital Partners Inc., DB Capital Partners Inc., DB Cartera de Inmuebles 1 S.A.U., DB Cartera de Inmuebles 1 S.A.U., DB Chestnut Holdings Limited, DB Commodity Services LLC, DB Consorzio S. Cons. a r. l., DB Corporate Advisory (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., DB Covered Bond S.r.l., DB Credit Investments S.a r.l., DB Delaware Holdings (Europe) Limited, DB Direkt GmbH, DB Elara LLC, DB Energy Commodities Limited (in members' voluntary liquidation), DB Energy Trading LLC, DB Enfield Infrastructure Holdings Limited, DB Equipment Leasing Inc., DB Equipment Leasing Inc., DB Equity Limited, DB Finance (Delaware) LLC, DB Finance (Delaware) LLC, DB Finance International GmbH, DB Ganymede 2006 L.P., DB Global Markets Multi-Strategy Fund I Ltd., DB Global Technology Inc., DB Global Technology Inc., DB Global Technology SRL, DB Group Services (UK) Limited, DB HR Solutions GmbH, DB Holding Fundo de Investimento Multimercado Investimento no Exterior Credito Privado, DB Holdings (New York) Inc., DB Holdings (New York) Inc., DB Holdings (South America) Limited, DB IROC Leasing Corp., DB Immobilienfonds 1 Wieland KG, DB Immobilienfonds 2 KG i.L., DB Immobilienfonds 4 KG i.L., DB Immobilienfonds 5 Wieland KG, DB Impact Investment (GP) Limited, DB Impact Investment Fund I L.P., DB Impact Investment Fund I L.P., DB Industrial Holdings Beteiligungs GmbH & Co. KG, DB Industrial Holdings GmbH, DB Intermezzo LLC, DB International (Asia) Limited, DB International Investments Limited, DB International Trust (Singapore) Limited, DB Investment Managers Inc., DB Investment Managers Inc., DB Investment Partners Inc., DB Investment Partners Inc., DB Investment Resources (US) Corporation, DB Investment Resources Holdings Corp., DB Investment Services GmbH, DB Io LP, DB Litigation Fee LLC, DB London (Investor Services) Nominees Limited, DB Management Support GmbH, DB Managers LLC, DB Municipal Holdings LLC, DB Nexus American Investments (UK) Limited (in members'voluntary liquidation), DB Nexus Investments (UK) Limited (in members' voluntary liquidation), DB Nominees (Hong Kong) Limited, DB Nominees (Singapore) Pte Ltd, DB Omega BTV S.C.S., DB Omega Holdings LLC, DB Omega Ltd., DB Omega S.C.S., DB Operaciones y Servicios Interactivos Agrupacion de Interes Economico, DB Overseas Finance Delaware Inc., DB Overseas Finance Delaware Inc., DB Overseas Holdings Limited, DB PWM, DB Portfolio Southwest Inc., DB Print GmbH, DB Privat- und Firmenkundenbank AG, DB Private Clients Corp., DB Private Wealth Mortgage Ltd., DB RC Holdings LLC, DB Re S.A., DB Service Centre Limited, DB Service Uruguay S.A., DB Services Americas Inc., DB Services Americas Inc., DB Servizi Amministrativi S.r.l., DB Strategic Advisors Inc., DB Strategic Advisors Inc., DB Structured Derivative Products LLC, DB Structured Derivative Products LLC, DB Structured Finance 1 Designated Activity Company, DB Structured Finance 2 Designated Activity Company, DB Structured Holdings Luxembourg S.a r.l., DB Structured Products Inc., DB Structured Products Inc., DB Trustee Services Limited, DB Trustees (Hong Kong) Limited, DB U.S. Financial Markets Holding Corporation, DB UK Bank Limited, DB UK Holdings Limited, DB UK PCAM Holdings Limited, DB USA Core Corporation, DB USA Corporation, DB Valoren S.a r.l., DB Value S.a r.l., DB VersicherungsManager GmbH, DB Vita S.A., DBAB Wall Street LLC, DBAH Capital LLC, DBAH Capital LLC, DBCIBZ1, DBCIBZ2, DBFIC Inc., DBFIC Inc., DBNZ Overseas Investments (No.1) Limited, DBOI Global Services (UK) Limited, DBOI Global Services Private Limited, DBR Investments Co. Limited, DBRE Global Real Estate Management IA Ltd., DBRE Global Real Estate Management IB Ltd., DBRE Global Real Estate Management IB Ltd., DBRE Global Real Estate Management US IB L.L.C., DBRMS4, DBRMSGP1, DBUK PCAM Limited, DBUKH No. 2 Limited, DBUSBZ1 LLC, DBUSBZ1 LLC, DBUSBZ2 S.a r.l., DBUSBZ2 S.a r.l., DBX Advisors LLC, DBX ETF Trust, DBX Strategic Advisors LLC, DBO Vermogensverwertung GmbH, DEBEKO Immobilien GmbH & Co Grundbesitz OHG, DEE Deutsche Erneuerbare Energien GmbH, DEUFRAN Beteiligungs GmbH, DEUKONA Versicherungs-Vermittlungs-GmbH, DEUTSCHE BANK A.S., DG China Clean Tech Partners, DI Deutsche Immobilien Treuhandgesellschaft mbH, DIB-Consult Deutsche Immobilien- und BeteiligungsBeratungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., DISCA Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, DNU Nominees Pty Limited, DSL Portfolio GmbH & Co. KG, DSL Portfolio Verwaltungs GmbH, DTS Nominees Pty Limited, DWS Alternatives France, DWS Alternatives Global Limited, DWS Alternatives GmbH, DWS Asset Management (Korea) Company Limited, DWS Beteiligungs GmbH, DWS CH AG, DWS Distributors Inc., DWS Distributors Inc., DWS Far Eastern Investments Limited, DWS Group GmbH & Co. KGaA, DWS Group Services UK Limited, DWS Grundbesitz GmbH, DWS International GmbH, DWS Investment GmbH, DWS Investment Management Americas Inc., DWS Investment Management Americas Inc., DWS Investment S.A., DWS Investments Australia Limited, DWS Investments Hong Kong Limited, DWS Investments Japan Limited, DWS Investments Shanghai Limited, DWS Investments Singapore Limited, DWS Investments UK Limited, DWS Management GmbH, DWS Real Estate GmbH, DWS Service Company, DWS Trust Company, DWS USA Corporation, De Heng Asset Management Company Limited, De Meng Innovative (Beijing) Consulting Company Limited, DeAM Infrastructure Limited, Deloraine Spain S.L., Delowrezham de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Deposit Solutions, Deutsche (Aotearoa) Capital Holdings New Zealand, Deutsche (Aotearoa) Foreign Investments New Zealand, Deutsche (Mauritius) Limited Port, Deutsche (New Munster) Holdings New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Access Investments Limited, Deutsche Aeolia Power Production Societe Anonyme, Deutsche Alt-A Securities Inc., Deutsche Alt-A Securities Inc., Deutsche Alternative Asset Management (France) SAS, Deutsche Alternative Asset Management (UK) Limited, Deutsche Asia Pacific Holdings Pte Ltd, Deutsche Asset Management (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Asset Management (Japan) Limited, Deutsche Asset Management (Korea) Company Limited, Deutsche Asset Management S.A., Deutsche Asset Management S.G.I.I.C. S.A., Deutsche Australia Limited, Deutsche Bank (Cayman) Limited, Deutsche Bank (Chile), Deutsche Bank (China) Co. Ltd., Deutsche Bank (China) Co. Ltd., Deutsche Bank (Malaysia) Berhad, Deutsche Bank (Suisse) SA, Deutsche Bank (Uruguay) Sociedad Anonima Institucion Financiera Externa, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft, Deutsche Bank Americas Holding Corp., Deutsche Bank Bauspar-Aktiengesellschaft, Deutsche Bank Capital Finance LLC I, Deutsche Bank Capital Finance Trust I, Deutsche Bank Europe GmbH, Deutsche Bank Financial Company, Deutsche Bank Holdings Inc., Deutsche Bank Holdings Inc., Deutsche Bank Insurance Agency Incorporated, Deutsche Bank Insurance Agency of Delaware, Deutsche Bank International Limited, Deutsche Bank Investments (Guernsey) Limited, Deutsche Bank Luxembourg S.A., Deutsche Bank Luxembourg S.A. - Fiduciary Deposits, Deutsche Bank Luxembourg S.A. - Fiduciary Note Programme, Deutsche Bank Mutui S.p.A., Deutsche Bank Mexico S.A. Institucion de Banca Multiple, Deutsche Bank Mexico S.A. Institucion de Banca Multiple, Deutsche Bank National Trust Company, Deutsche Bank National Trust Company Los, Deutsche Bank Nominees (Guernsey) Limited, Deutsche Bank Nominees (Jersey) Limited, Deutsche Bank Polska Spolka Akcyjna, Deutsche Bank Representative Office Nigeria Limited, Deutsche Bank S.A. - Banco Alemao, Deutsche Bank S.A. - Banco Alemao Sao, Deutsche Bank SPEARs/LIFERs Series DBE-8011 Trust, Deutsche Bank Securities Inc., Deutsche Bank Securities Limited, Deutsche Bank Services (Jersey) Limited, Deutsche Bank Sociedad Anonima Espanola, Deutsche Bank Sociedad Anonima Espanola, Deutsche Bank Societa per Azioni, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Americas, Deutsche Bank Trust Company Delaware, Deutsche Bank Trust Company National Association, Deutsche Bank Trust Company National Association, Deutsche Bank Trust Corporation, Deutsche CIB Centre Private Limited, Deutsche Capital Finance (2000) Limited, Deutsche Capital Hong Kong Limited, Deutsche Capital Management Limited, Deutsche Capital Markets Australia Limited, Deutsche Capital Partners China Limited, Deutsche Cayman Ltd., Deutsche Colombia S.A.S., Deutsche Custody N.V., Deutsche Domus New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Equities India Private Limited, Deutsche Finance Co 1 Pty Limited, Deutsche Finance Co 2 Pty Limited, Deutsche Finance Co 3 Pty Limited, Deutsche Finance Co 4 Pty Limited, Deutsche Finance No. 2 Limited, Deutsche Foras New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Immobilien-Leasing mit beschrankter Haftung, Deutsche Gesellschaft fur Immobilien-Leasing mit beschrankterHaftung, Deutsche Global Markets Limited, Deutsche Group Holdings (SA) Proprietary Limited, Deutsche Group Services Pty Limited, Deutsche Grundbesitz Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Deutsche Grundbesitz Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., Deutsche Grundbesitz-Anlagegesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Deutsche Holdings (BTI) Limited, Deutsche Holdings (Grand Duchy), Deutsche Holdings (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., Deutsche Holdings (Malta) Ltd., Deutsche Holdings Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 2 Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 3 Limited, Deutsche Holdings No. 4 Limited, Deutsche Immobilien Leasing GmbH, Deutsche India Holdings Private Limited, Deutsche International Corporate Services (Ireland) Limited, Deutsche International Corporate Services Limited, Deutsche International Custodial Services Limited, Deutsche Inversiones Dos S.A., Deutsche Inversiones Limitada, Deutsche Investments (Netherlands) N.V., Deutsche Investments India Private Limited, Deutsche Investor Services Private Limited, Deutsche Knowledge Services Pte. Ltd., Deutsche Leasing New York Corp., Deutsche Mandatos S.A., Deutsche Master Funding Corporation, Deutsche Mexico Holdings S.a r.l., Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group Limited, Deutsche Morgan Grenfell Group Public Limited Company, Deutsche Mortgage & Asset Receiving Corporation, Deutsche Mortgage Securities Inc., Deutsche Mortgage Securities Inc., Deutsche Nederland N.V., Deutsche New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Nominees Limited, Deutsche Oppenheim Family Office AG, Deutsche Overseas Issuance New Zealand Limited, Deutsche Postbank, Deutsche Postbank Finance Center Objekt GmbH, Deutsche Postbank Funding LLC I, Deutsche Postbank Funding LLC II, Deutsche Postbank Funding LLC III, Deutsche Private Asset Management Limited, Deutsche Securities (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Securities (Proprietary) Limited, Deutsche Securities (SA) (Proprietary) Limited, Deutsche Securities Asia Limited, Deutsche Securities Australia Limited, Deutsche Securities Inc., Deutsche Securities Israel Ltd., Deutsche Securities Korea Co., Deutsche Securities Mauritius Limited, Deutsche Securities Menkul Degerler A.S., Deutsche Securities S.A., Deutsche Securities S.A. de C.V. Casa de Bolsa, Deutsche Securities S.A. de C.V. Casa de Bolsa, Deutsche Securities Saudi Arabia, Deutsche Securities SpA, Deutsche Securities Venezuela S.A., Deutsche Securitisation Australia Pty Limited, Deutsche Services Polska Sp. z o.o., Deutsche StiftungsTrust GmbH, Deutsche Strategic Investment Holdings Yugen Kaisha, Deutsche Trust Company Limited Japan, Deutsche Trustee Company Limited, Deutsche Trustee Services (India) Private Limited, Deutsche Trustees Malaysia Berhad, Deutsche Wealth Management S.G.I.I.C. S.A., Deutsches Institut fur Altersvorsorge GmbH, Durian (Luxembourg) S.a r.l., EC EUROPA IMMOBILIEN FONDS NR. 3 GmbH & CO. KG i.I., Elba Finance GmbH, Elizabethan Holdings Limited, Elizabethan Management Limited, Emerald Asset Repackaging Designated Activity Company, Erste Frankfurter Hoist GmbH, European Value Added I (Alternate G.P.) LLP, Exinor SA, FARAMIR Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungs GmbH, FRANKFURT CONSULT GmbH, Fiduciaria Sant' Andrea S.r.L., Finanzberatungsgesellschaft mbH der Deutschen Bank, Franz Urbig- und Oscar Schlitter-Stiftung Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-037, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-039, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-040, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-041, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-043, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-044, Freddie Mac Class A Taxable Multifamily M Certificates Series M-047, Funfte SAB Treuhand und Verwaltung GmbH & Co. Suhl "Rimbachzentrum" KG, G Finance Holding Corp., G.O. IB-US Management L.L.C., G918 Corp., GAC-HEL Inc., GWC-GAC Corp., Galene S.a r.l., Gemini Technology Services Inc., German American Capital, German American Capital Corporation, Gladyr Spain S.L., Global Markets Fundo de Investimento Multimercado, Global Markets III Fundo de Investimento Multimercado - Credito, Greenwood Properties Corp., Grundstucksgesellschaft Frankfurt Bockenheimer Landstrae GbR, Grundstucksgesellschaft Kerpen-Sindorf Vogelrutherfeld GbR, Grundstucksgesellschaft Leipzig Petersstrae GbR, Grundstucksgesellschaft Wiesbaden Luisenstrae/Kirchgasse GbR, HTB Spezial GmbH & Co. KG, Hollandsche Bank-Unie, IOS Finance EFC S.A., ISTRON Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungs-GmbH, IVAF I Manager S.a r.l., IVAF I Manager S.a r.l., Immobilienfonds Buro-Center Erfurt am Flughafen Bindersleben I GbR, Immobilienfonds Buro-Center Erfurt am Flughafen Bindersleben II GbR, Immobilienfonds Mietwohnhauser Quadrath-Ichendorf GbR, Immobilienfonds Wohn- und Geschaftshaus Koln-Blumenberg V GbR, J R Nominees (Pty) Ltd, Joint Stock Company Deutsche Bank DBU, Jyogashima Godo Kaisha, KEBA Gesellschaft fur interne Services mbH, Kidson Pte Ltd, Konsul Inkasso GmbH, Kradavimd UK Lease Holdings Limited, LA Water Holdings Limited, LAWL Pte. Ltd., Latitude Australia Secured Personal Loans Trust, Leasing Verwaltungsgesellschaft Waltersdorf mbH, Leonardo III Initial GP Limited, Lindsell Finance Limited, London Industrial Leasing Limited, MEF I Manager S. a r.l., MEF I Manager S. a r.l., MHL Reinsurance Ltd., MIT Holdings Inc., MIT Holdings Inc., MPP Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Maher Terminals Holdings (Toronto) Limited, Morgan Grenfell & Company, MortgageIT, MortgageIT Inc., MortgageIT Inc., MortgageIT Securities Corp., Motion Picture Productions One GmbH & Co. KG, NCW Holding Inc., Navegator - SGFTC S.A., Navegator - SGFTC S.A., New 87 Leonard LLC, Nordwestdeutscher Wohnungsbautrager Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, OOO "Deutsche Bank TechCentre", OOO "Deutsche Bank", OPB Verwaltungs- und Beteiligungs-GmbH, OPB Verwaltungs- und Treuhand GmbH, OPB-Holding GmbH, OPB-Nona GmbH, OPB-Oktava GmbH, OPB-Quarta GmbH, OPB-Quinta GmbH, OPB-Septima GmbH, OPPENHEIM Capital Advisory GmbH, OPPENHEIM Flottenfonds V GmbH & Co. KG, OPPENHEIM PRIVATE EQUITY Manager GmbH, OPPENHEIM PRIVATE EQUITY Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, OPS Nominees Pty Limited, OVT Trust 1 GmbH, OVV Beteiligungs GmbH, Opal Funds (Ireland) Public Limited Company, PADUS Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, PARTS Funding LLC., PB Factoring GmbH, PB Firmenkunden AG, PB International S.A., PB Spezial-Investmentaktiengesellschaft mit Teilgesellschaftsvermogen, PBC Banking Services GmbH, PCC Services GmbH der Deutschen Bank, PT Deutsche Sekuritas Indonesia, PT. Deutsche Verdhana Sekuritas Indonesia, Pan Australian Nominees Pty Ltd, Peruda Leasing Limited, Plantation Bay Inc., Plantation Bay Inc., Postbank Akademie und Service GmbH, Postbank Beteiligungen GmbH, Postbank Direkt GmbH, Postbank Filialvertrieb AG, Postbank Finanzberatung AG, Postbank Immobilien GmbH, Postbank Immobilien und Baumanagement GmbH, Postbank Immobilien und Baumanagement GmbH & Co. Objekt Leipzig KG, Postbank Leasing GmbH, Postbank Service GmbH, Postbank Systems AG, QR Tower 2 LLC, Quantiguous, R.B.M. Nominees Pty Ltd, REO Properties Corporation, RREEF, RREEF America L.L.C., RREEF China REIT Management Limited, RREEF European Value Added I (G.P.) Limited, RREEF Fund Holding Co., RREEF India Advisors Private Limited, RREEF Management L.L.C., RTS Nominees Pty Limited, Reference Capital Investments Limited, RoPro U.S. Holding Inc., RoPro U.S. Holding Inc., Route 28 Receivables LLC, Route 28 Receivables LLC, SAB Real Estate Verwaltungs GmbH, SAGITA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, SAPIO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, SCUDO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., SEDO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., SENA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. Objekt Kamenz KG, SIFA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, SOLIDO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, SP Mortgage Trust, SPINO Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., SPV I Sociedad Anonima Cerrada, SPV II Sociedad Anonima Cerrada, STATOR Heizkraftwerk Frankfurt (Oder) Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Sal. Oppenheim, Sal. Oppenheim Alternative Investments GmbH, Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. AG & Co. Kommanditgesellschaft auf Aktien, Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. Beteiligungs GmbH, Sal. Oppenheim jr. & Cie. Komplementar AG, Sechste Salomon Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, Sechste Salomon Beteiligungs- und Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., Service Company Four Limited, Sharps SP I LLC, Singer Island Tower Suite LLC, Somkid Immobiliare S.r.l., Stelvio Immobiliare S.r.l., Structured Finance Americas LLC, Structured Finance Americas LLC, Swabia 1. Vermogensbesitz-GmbH, Suddeutsche Vermogensverwaltung Gesellschaft mit beschrankter Haftung, TAKIR Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, TELO Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, TEMATIS Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., TERRUS Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH i.L., TESATUR Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. Objekt Halle I KG i.L., TESATUR Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH & Co. Objekt Nordhausen I KG i.L., TOSSA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, TRIPLA Grundstucks-Vermietungsgesellschaft mbH, TRS Aria LLC, TRS Leda LLC, TRS Maple II LTD, TRS Oak II LTD, TRS SVCO LLC, TRS Scorpio LLC, TRS Tupelo II LTD, TRS Venor LLC, TRS Walnut II LTD, Tagus - Sociedade de Titularizacao de Creditos S.A., Tasfiye Halinde Deutsche Securities Menkul Degerler A.S., Tempurrite Leasing Limited, Thai Asset Enforcement and Recovery Asset Management Company Limited, Tianjin Deutsche AM Fund Management Co. Ltd., Treuinvest Service GmbH, Triplereason Limited, UKE Beteiligungs-GmbH, UKE Grundstucksgesellschaft mbH, UKE s.r.o., Ullmann - Esch Grundstucksgesellschaft Kirchnerstrae GbR, Ullmann - Esch Grundstucksverwaltungsgesellschaft Disternich GbR, Ullmann Ullmann Krockow Krockow Esch GbR, VCJ Lease S.a r.l., Vesta Real Estate S.r.l., VOB-ZVD Processing GmbH, WEPLA Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, WEPLABeteiligungsgesellschaftmbH, Wealthspur Investment Ltd., Whale Holdings S.a r.l., World Trading (Delaware) Inc., World Trading(Delaware)Inc., Zumirez Drive LLC, db PBC, and norisbank GmbH.
GlaxoSmithKline Plc is a healthcare company, which engages in the research, development, and manufacture of pharmaceutical medicines, vaccines, and consumer healthcare products. It operates through the following segments: Pharmaceuticals; Pharmaceuticals R&D; Vaccines and Consumer Healthcare. The Pharmaceuticals segment focuses on developing medicines in respiratory and infectious diseases, oncology, and immuno-inflammation. The Pharmaceuticals R&D segment focuses on science related to the immune system, the use of human genetics and advanced technologies, and is driven by the multiplier effect of Science x Technology x Culture. The Vaccines segment produces pediatric and adult vaccines to prevent a range of infectious diseases including, hepatitis A and B, diphtheria, tetanus and whooping cough, measles, mumps and rubella, polio, typhoid, influenza, and bacterial meningitis. The Consumer Healthcare segment develops and markets brands in the oral health, pain relief, respiratory, nutrition and gastro intestinal, and skin health categories. The company was founded in 1715 and is headquartered in Middlesex, the United Kingdom.

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Wall Street analysts have given Harte Hanks 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 Harte Hanks wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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The Toronto-Dominion Bank, together with its subsidiaries, provides various personal and commercial banking products and services in Canada and the United States. It operates through three segments: Canadian Retail, U.S. Retail, and Wholesale Banking. The company offers personal deposits, such as chequing, savings, and investment products; financing, investment, cash management, international trade, and day-to-day banking services to businesses; and financing options to customers at point of sale for automotive and recreational vehicle purchases through auto dealer network. It also provides credit cards; real estate secured lending; auto finance; consumer lending; point-of-sale payment solutions for large and small businesses; wealth and asset management products, private banking, investment advisory, and trust services to retail and institutional clients; and property and casualty insurance, as well as life and health insurance products. The company also provides capital markets, and corporate and investment banking services, including underwriting and distribution of new debt and equity issues; advice on strategic acquisitions and divestitures; and trading, funding, and investment services to companies, governments, and institutions. It offers its products and services under the TD Bank and America's Most Convenient Bank brand names. The company operates through a network of 1,085 branches, 3,440 automated teller machines, and 1,223 stores, as well as offers telephone, digital, and mobile banking services. The Toronto-Dominion Bank was founded in 1855 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

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United Technologies Corporation provides technology products and services to building systems and aerospace industries worldwide. Its Otis segment designs, manufactures, sells, and installs passenger and freight elevators, escalators, and moving walkways; and offers modernization products to upgrade elevators and escalators, as well as maintenance and repair services. The company's Carrier segment provides heating, ventilating, air conditioning, refrigeration, fire, security, and building automation products, solutions, and services for commercial, government, infrastructure, residential, and refrigeration and transportation applications. This segment also offers building services, including audit, design, installation, system integration, repair, maintenance, and monitoring. Its Pratt & Whitney segment supplies aircraft engines for commercial, military, business jet, and general aviation markets; and provides aftermarket maintenance, repair, and overhaul, as well as fleet management services. The company's Collins Aerospace Systems segment provides electric power generation, power management, and distribution systems; air data and aircraft sensing systems; engine control, intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance systems; engine components; environmental control systems; fire and ice detection, and protection systems; propeller systems; engine nacelle systems; aircraft lighting, seating, and cargo systems; actuation and landing systems; space products and subsystems; avionics systems; flight controls, communications, navigation, oxygen, and training systems; food and beverage preparation, and storage and galley systems; and lavatory and wastewater management systems. The company offers its services through manufacturers' representatives, distributors, wholesalers, dealers, retail outlets, and sales representatives, as well as directly to customers. United Technologies Corporation was founded in 1934 and is headquartered in Farmington, Connecticut.

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The following companies are subsidiares of WESCO International: 1502218 Alberta Ltd., ALLNET Technologies Pty. Ltd., AXE Distribution Solutions Trinidad Ltd., Accu-Tech Corporation, Anixter (Barbados) SRL, Anixter (CIS) LLC, Anixter (Switzerland) Sarl, Anixter (U.K.) Limited, Anixter Argentina S.A., Anixter Asia Holdings Limited, Anixter Australia Pty. Ltd., Anixter Austria GmbH, Anixter Bahamas Limited, Anixter Belgium B.V.B.A., Anixter Cables y Manufacturas S.A. de C.V., Anixter Canada Inc., Anixter Canadian Holdings ULC, Anixter Chile S.A., Anixter Colombia S.A.S., Anixter Communications (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Anixter Communications (Shanghai) Co. Limited, Anixter Costa Rica S.A., Anixter Czech a.s., Anixter Danmark A/S, Anixter Deutschland GmbH, Anixter Distribuidor de Soluciones Empresariales e Industriales S.A., Anixter Distribution Ireland Limited, Anixter Dominicana SRL, Anixter Egypt LLC, Anixter Espana S.L., Anixter Eurotwo Holdings B.V., Anixter Fasteners Deutschland GmbH, Anixter Financial Inc., Anixter France SARL, Anixter Guatemala y Compania Limitada, Anixter Holdings Inc., Anixter Holdings Mexico LLC, Anixter Hong Kong Limited, Anixter Iletisim Sistemleri Pazarlama ve Ticaret A.S., Anixter Inc., Anixter India Private Limited, Anixter Information Systems LLC, Anixter International, Anixter Italia S.r.l., Anixter Jamaica Limited, Anixter Japan KK, Anixter Jorvex S.A.C., Anixter Limited, Anixter Logistica do Brasil LTDA, Anixter Logistica y Servicios S.A. de C.V., Anixter Magyarorszag Elektronikus Halozati Rendszer Kereskedelmi es Szolgaltato Kft, Anixter Mid Holdings B.V., Anixter Middle East FZE, Anixter Morocco SARL AU, Anixter Nederland B.V., Anixter New Zealand Limited, Anixter Norge A.N.S., Anixter Operaciones y Logistica s De RL De CV, Anixter Panama S.A., Anixter Pension Scheme Trustees Limited, Anixter Pension Trustees Limited, Anixter Peru S.A.C., Anixter Philippines Inc., Anixter Poland Sp.z.o.o., Anixter Portugal S.A., Anixter Power Solutions Canada Inc., Anixter Power Solutions Inc., Anixter Procurement Corporation, Anixter Puerto Rico Inc., Anixter Real-Estate LLC, Anixter Receivables Corporation, Anixter Saudi Arabia Limited, Anixter Singapore Pte. Ltd., Anixter Slovakia s.r.o., Anixter Sub Holdings B.V, Anixter Sverige AB, Anixter Thailand Inc., Anixter U.S. LLC, Anixter Venezuela Inc., Anixter de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Anixter do Brasil Ltda, Atlanta Electrical Distributors, Atlanta Electrical Distributors LLC, Atlas Gentech (NZ) Limited, Avon Electrical Supplies, B.E.L. Corporation, Brews Supply, Brown Wholesale Electric, Bruckner Supply, CBC LP Holdings LLC, CDW Holdco LLC, Calvert Wire & Cable Corporation, Carlton-Bates Company, Carlton-Bates Company (CBC), Carlton-Bates Company de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Carlton-Bates Company of Texas GP Inc, Central Security Distribution Pty. Ltd, Communication Cables LLC, Communications Supply Corporation, Conney Investment Holdings LLC, Conney Safety Products, Conney Safety Products LLC, Distribuidora Materiales Electricos E-Supply Limitada, EECOL Electric, EECOL Electric Bolivia Ltda, EECOL Electric Corp., EECOL Electric Peru S.A.C, EECOL Industrial Electric (SudAmerica) Limitada, EECOL Industrial Electric Ecuador Limitada, EECOL Industrial Electric Limitada, EECOL Power S.A., EECOL Properties Corp, Eurinvest B.V., Eurinvest Cooperatief U.A., Fastec Industrial, HMH Pension Trustees Limited, Hazmasters, Hazmasters Inc., Herning Underground Supply, Hi-Line Utility Supply, Hi-Line Utility Supply Company LLC, Hill Country Electric Supply, Hill Country Electric Supply L.P., ICV GP Inc., Infast Group Limited, Inner Range Pty. Ltd, Itel Container Ventures Inc., Itel Corporation, Itel Rail Holdings Corporation, J-Mark Inc., LaPrairie, Liberty Wire & Cable Inc., Monti Electric Supply, Needham Electric Supply, Needham Electric Supply LLC, Obras Y Servicios Sunpark S.A.C., PT Anixter Indonesia, Potelcom Supply, Pro Canadian Holdings I ULC, RECO LLC, RS Electronics, Reily Electrical Supply, SASK Alta Holdings S.A., Services Voice Video and Data Distribution de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Servicios Anixter S.A. de C.V., Signal Capital Corporation, Signal Capital Projects Inc., Stone Eagle Electrical Supply GP Inc., Stone Eagle Electrical Supply Limited Partnership, TVC Communications, TVC Communications L.L.C., TVC Espana Distribucion y Venta De Equipos S.L., TVC International Holding L.L.C., TVC UK Holdings Limited, Tri-Ed Puerto Rico Ltd. Inc., Trydor Industries, Voice Video and Data Distribution de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., WDC Holding Inc., WDCH LP, WDCH US LP, WDI USVI LLC, WDI-Angola LDA, WDINESCO B.V., WDINESCO II B.V., WDINESCO III B.V., WEAS Company S. de R.L., WESCO (Suzhou) Trading Co. Ltd., WESCO Australia Pty Ltd, WESCO Canada GP Inc., WESCO Canada I LP, WESCO DC Holding I LP, WESCO DC Holding II LP, WESCO DC Holding III LP, WESCO DC Holding IV LP, WESCO Distribution Canada Co., WESCO Distribution Canada LP, WESCO Distribution HK Limited, WESCO Distribution II ULC, WESCO Distribution III ULC, WESCO Distribution IV Inc., WESCO Distribution Inc., WESCO Distribution Ireland Limited, WESCO Distribution NL B.V., WESCO Distribution Pte. Ltd., WESCO Distribution de Mexico S. de R.L., WESCO Distribution-International Limited, WESCO Enterprises Inc., WESCO Equity Corporation, WESCO Holdings LLC, WESCO Integrated Supply Inc., WESCO Integrated Supply Polska Spolka z o.o., WESCO Netherlands B.V., WESCO Nevada Ltd., WESCO Nigeria Inc., WESCO Procurement Canada ULC, WESCO Real Estate I LLC, WESCO Real Estate II LLC, WESCO Real Estate III LLC, WESCO Real Estate IV LLC, WESCO Receivables Corp., WESCO Services LLC, WESCO TLD Holdings Co. Ltd., WND Nigeria Limited, WireXpress Ltd., Xpress Connect Supply Hong Kong Limited, XpressConnect Holdings B.V., XpressConnect International B.V., XpressConnect Supply B.V.B.A., XpressConnect Supply Colombia S.A.S., XpressConnect Supply Inc., XpressConnect Supply Mexico S.A. de C.V., and XpressConnect Supply do Brasil Ltda.
Schlumberger NV engages in the provision of technology for reservoir characterization, drilling, production and processing to the oil and gas industry. It operates through the following business segments: Digital and Integration; Reservoir Performance; Well Construction; and Production Systems. The Digital and Integration segment combines the company's software and seismic businesses with its integrated offering of asset performance solutions. The Reservoir Performance segment consists of reservoir-centric technologies and services that are critical to optimizing reservoir productivity and performance. The Well Construction segment includes the full portfolio of products and services to optimize well placement and performance, maximize drilling efficiency, and improve wellbore assurance. The Production Systems segment develops technologies and provides expertise that enhances production and recovery from subsurface reservoirs to the surface, into pipelines, and to refineries. The company was founded by Conrad Schlumberger and Marcel Schlumberger in 1926 and is headquartered in Houston, TX.

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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.

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The Bank of New York Mellon pays an annual dividend of $1.36 per share and currently has a dividend yield of 2.27%. The Bank of New York Mellon does not yet have a strong track record of dividend growth. 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 30.22% next year. This indicates that The Bank of New York Mellon will be able to sustain or increase its dividend.

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The Boeing Co. is an aerospace company, which engages in the manufacture of commercial jetliners and defense, space and security systems. It operates through the following segments: Commercial Airplanes; Defense, Space and Security; Global Services; and Boeing Capital. The Commercial Airplanes segment includes the development, production, and market of commercial jet aircraft and provides fleet support services, principally to the commercial airline industry worldwide. The Defense, Space and Security segment refers to the research, development, production and modification of manned and unmanned military aircraft and weapons systems for global strike, including fighter and combat rotorcraft aircraft and missile systems; global mobility, including tanker, rotorcraft and tilt-rotor aircraft; and airborne surveillance and reconnaissance, including command and control, battle management and airborne anti-submarine aircraft. The Global Services segment provides services to commercial and defense customers. The Boeing Capital segment seeks to ensure that Boeing customers have the financing they need to buy and take delivery of their Boeing product and manages overall financing exposure. T

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Wall Street analysts have given iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but iShares Russell Mid-Cap ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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WEX Inc. provides financial technology services in North America, the Asia Pacific, and Europe. It operates through three segments: Fleet Solutions, Travel and Corporate Solutions, and Health and Employee Benefit Solutions. The Fleet Solutions segment offers fleet vehicle payment processing services. Its services include customer, account activation, and account retention services; authorization and billing inquiries, and account maintenance services; premium fleet services; credit and collections services; merchant services; analytics solutions with access to web-based data analytics platform that offers insights to fleet managers; and ancillary services and tools to fleets to manage expenses and capital requirements. This segment markets its products directly and indirectly to commercial and government vehicle fleet customers with small, medium, and large fleets, as well as with over-the-road and long haul fleets; and indirectly through co-branded and private label relationships. The Travel and Corporate Solutions segment provides payment processing solutions for payment and transaction monitoring needs. Its products include virtual cards that are used for transactions where no card is presented and that require pre-authorization; and prepaid and gift card products that enables secure payment and financial management solutions with single card options, access to open or closed loop redemption, load limits, and with various expirations. This segment markets its products directly and indirectly to commercial and government organizations. The Health and Employee Benefit Solutions segment offers healthcare payment products and software-as-a-service consumer directed platforms for healthcare market, as well as payroll related and employee benefit products in Brazil. The company was formerly known as Wright Express Corporation and changed its name to WEX Inc. in October 2012. WEX Inc. was founded in 1983 and is headquartered in Portland, Maine.

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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..
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.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Danaher: AB SCIEX, AB Sciex Germany GmbH, AB Sciex LLC, AB Sciex LP, AB Sciex Pte Ltd., Accu-Sort Systems, Acme Cleveland Corporation, Advanced Vision Technology, American Precision Industries, Applied Biosystems, Applitek NV, Aquatic Infomatics ULC, Aquatic Informatics, Armstrong Tools, BC Distribution BV, Beckman Coulter, Beckman Coulter Australia Pty Ltd, Beckman Coulter Biotechnology (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Beckman Coulter Biyomedikal Urunler Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited [irketi], Beckman Coulter Canada LP, Beckman Coulter Commercial Enterprise (China) Co. Ltd., Beckman Coulter France S.A.S., Beckman Coulter G.m.b.H., Beckman Coulter Genomics Inc., Beckman Coulter Hong Kong Limited, Beckman Coulter Inc., Beckman Coulter India Private Limited, Beckman Coulter International SA, Beckman Coulter International Shanghai Trading Co., Beckman Coulter Ireland Inc., Beckman Coulter K.K., Beckman Coulter Korea Ltd., Beckman Coulter Laboratory Systems (Suzhou) Co. Ltd., Beckman Coulter Limited Liability Company, Beckman Coulter Mishima KK, Beckman Coulter Nederland B.V., Beckman Coulter Nippon GK, Beckman Coulter S.L.U., Beckman Coulter Saudi Arabia Co.Ltd., Beckman Coulter Srl, Beckman Coulter Taiwan Inc., Beckman Coulter United Kingdom Limited, Beckman Coulter de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Beckman Coulter do Brasil Ltda., Beckman Finance ApS, Beckman Holdings Ltd., BioTector Analytical Systems Ltd, Biosafe S.A., Blue Software LLC, Cepheid, Cepheid AB, Cepheid Europe SAS, Cepheid GmbH, Cepheid HBDC SAS, Cepheid UK Ltd., ChemTreat, ChemTreat Inc., ChemTreat International Inc., Cispus Hong Kong Holding Limited, Cytiva, Cytiva BioProcess R&D AB, Cytiva Biotechnology (Guangzhou) Co. Ltd., Cytiva Biotechnology (Hang Zhou) Co. Ltd., Cytiva Europe GmbH, Cytiva Sweden AB, Cytiva Sweden Holding AB, DH Europe Finance II Sarl, DH Europe Finance Sarl, DH Holding Italia SRL, DH Japan Finance Sarl, DH Life Sciences LLC, DH Netherlands BV, DH Technologies Development Pte Ltd., DHKAB Company AB, DTIL Ireland Holdings Ltd., Danaher (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd., Danaher Hong Kong Limited, Danaher Medical ApS, Delta Consolidated Industries, Devicore Medical Products Inc., Easco Hand Tools, Esko, Esko BV, Esko Finance BV, Esko Graphics BV, Esko Software BV, FHAB Company AB, Fluke, G. Lufft Mess- und Regeltechnik GmbH, GE Biopharma, Gelman Sciences Inc., Gendex, Genetix Group, Gilbarco Veeder Root, Gilzoni Ltd., Global Life Sciences Solutions Austria GmbH & Co. KG, Global Life Sciences Solutions Germany GmbH, Global Life Sciences Solutions Korea Ltd., Global Life Sciences Solutions Manufacturing UK Ltd, Global Life Sciences Solutions New Zealand, Global Life Sciences Solutions Operations UK Ltd, Global Life Sciences Solutions Singapore Pte Ltd, Global Life Sciences Solutions USA LLC, Global Life Sciences Technologies (Shanghai) Co Ltd., Global Life Sciences Technologies Japan KK, Hach Company, Hach Lange Finance GmbH, Hach Lange GmbH, Hach Lange Sarl, Hach Sales & Services Canada LP, Hach Ultra Japan KK, Hach Water Quality Analytical Instru. (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., HemoCue AB, HyClone Laboratories LLC, Hybritech Incorporated, Hyclone Life Sciences Solutions India Private Limited, IDBS Group, IRIS International, Imaging Sciences International, Immunotech SAS, Immunotech Sro, Intabio LLC, Integrated DNA Technologies, Integrated DNA Technologies BVBA, Integrated DNA Technologies Inc., Integrated DNA Technologies Pte. Ltd., Iris International Inc., Joslyn Holding Company LLC, KVHG GmbH, KaVo, KaVo Kerr, Kaltenbach & Voigt, Keithley Instruments, Kipp & Zonen BV, Kollmorgen, Labcyte Inc., Laetus, Leica Biosystems Imaging Inc., Leica Biosystems Melbourne Pty Ltd, Leica Biosystems Newcastle Limited, Leica Biosystems Nussloch GmbH, Leica Biosystems Richmond Inc., Leica Instruments (Singapore) Pte Limited, Leica Microsystems, Leica Microsystems (UK) Limited, Leica Microsystems CMS GmbH, Leica Microsystems Cambridge Limited, Leica Microsystems IR GmbH, Leica Microsystems Inc., Leica Microsystems Limited, Leica Microsystems Ltd. Shanghai, Leica Mikrosysteme Vertrieb GmbH, Life Sciences Holdings France SAS*, Lifschultz Industries, Linx Printing Technologies, Linx Printing Technologies Limited, MDS Analytical Technologies, Marconi Data Systems, McCrometer Inc., Microtest, Molecular Devices, Molecular Devices (Austria) GmbH, Molecular Devices LLC, Navman Wireless, Navman Wireless OEM Solutions, Nihon Pall Ltd., Nihon Pall Manufacturing Limited, Nobel Biocare, OTT Hydromet Corp, Pall, Pall (Canada) ULC, Pall (China) Co. Ltd., Pall (Schweiz) GmbH, Pall Aeropower Corporation, Pall Artelis BVBA, Pall Asia Holdings Inc., Pall Australia Pty. Ltd., Pall Austria Filter Ges.m.b.h, Pall Corporation, Pall Europe Limited, Pall Filtersystems GmbH, Pall Filtration Pte. Ltd., Pall Filtration and Separations Group Inc., Pall France SAS, Pall GmbH, Pall India Pvt. Ltd., Pall International Sarl, Pall Italia Srl, Pall Korea Ltd., Pall Life Sciences Belgium BV, Pall Life Sciences Puerto Rico LLC, Pall Manufacturing UK Limited, Pall Medistad BV, Pall Netherlands BV Irish Branch, Pall Technology UK Limited, PaloDEX, Pantone LLC, Pelton & Crane, Phenomenex, Phenomenex Inc., Precision NanoSystems, QHC Ireland Finance Limited, Radiometer, Radiometer Basel AG, Radiometer K.K., Radiometer Medical ApS, Radiometer Medical Equipment (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Radiometer Turku Oy, Raytek, Reytek Corporation, SH Switzerland Finance Sarl, Sea-Bird Electronics Inc., SenDx Medical Inc., Shanghai AB Sciex Analytical Instrument Trading Co. Ltd., Sutron, Sybron Dental Specialties, TCIL Ireland Finance Ltd., Tektronix, Thomson Industries, Tianjin Bonna-Agela Technologies Co. Ltd., Trojan Technologies, Trojan Technologies Group ULC, VSS Monitoring, Videojet Do Brasil Comercio de Equipamentos Para Codificacao Industrial Ltda., Videojet Technologies (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Videojet Technologies Europe B.V., Videojet Technologies Inc., Viridor Waste Management Limited, Vision Systems Limited, Willett International, X-Ray Optical Systems Inc., X-Rite, X-Rite Europe GmbH, X-Rite Incorporated, X-Rite Switzerland GmbH, XOS, Yukon Hong Kong Holding Limited, and Zhuhai S.E.Z. Videojet Electronics Ltd..
Duck Creek Technologies, Inc. provides software-as-a-service core systems to the property and casualty insurance industry in North America. It offers Duck Creek Policy, a full lifecycle solution for the development of products and quoting, binding, and servicing of policies across various channels from agents and brokers to end-users; Duck Creek Billing that provides payment and invoicing capabilities, such as billing and collections, commission processing, disbursement management, and general ledger capabilities for insurance lines and bill types; and Duck Creek Claims that supports the entire claims lifecycle from first notice of loss through investigation, payments, negotiations, reporting, and closure. The company also provides Duck Creek Rating that allows carriers to develop new rates and models and deliver accurate quotes in real-time based on the complex rating algorithms; Duck Creek Insights, an insurance analytics solution that allows carriers to gather and analyze data from internal and external sources and facilitate rapid analysis and reporting on a single system; Duck Creek Digital Engagement that offer digital interactions between property and casualty insurers and their agents, brokers, and policyholders; and Duck Creek Distribution Management that automates sales channel activities for agents and brokers, including producer onboarding, compliance, and compensation management. In addition, it offers Duck Creek Reinsurance Management that automates critical financial and administrative functions; and Duck Creek Industry Content that provides pre-built content, including base business rules, product designs, rating algorithms, data capture screens, and workflows for insurance lines of business. The company serves insurance carriers and leaders. Duck Creek Technologies, Inc. was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in Boston, Massachusetts.

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The following companies are subsidiares of NOV: AG Holding UK, APL France SAS, APL Management Pte Ltd, APL Norway AS, APL do Brasil Ltda., ASEP Group Holding B.V., ASEP Otomotiv Sanayi Ticaret Ltd., Ackerman Holdings C.V., Ackerman Holdings GP LLC, Ackerman International Holland B.V., Advanced Production and Loading, Advanced Wirecloth, Aggregate Plant Products Co., American Pipe and Construction International, Ameron B.V., Ameron Holdings Pte. Ltd., Ameron International, Ameron International Corporation, Ameron Pole Products LLC, Ameron Polyplaster Industria E Comercio de Tubos Ltda., Ameron Singapore Holding, Ameron Singapore Poly Holdings Pte. Ltd., Ameron Trading Holdings Pte. Ltd., Andergauge Limited, Andergauge Redback, Andergauge USA, Arabian Rig Manufacturing Company, Axiom Process Limited, Belco Manufacturing Company, Big Red Tubulars Limited, Bondstrand Ltd., Bowen Downhole Inc., Bowen Downhole LLC, Brandt Interests, Brandt Oilfield Services (M) Sdn. Bhd., C.M.A. Canavera S.R.L., CJSC Fidmash, CJSC Novmash, CSI Inspection, Camco Drilling Group Limited, Chemineer, Coil Services Middle East LLC, Containment Solutions, Containment Solutions Services, Couoperatie Intelliserv Holding U.A., Couoperatie NOV NL U.A., Danco AS, Denali Incorporated, Denali Management, Devin International, Dreco Canada L.P., Dreco DHT, Dreco Eastern Europe ULC, Dreco Energy Services ULC, Dreco International Holdings ULC, Dreco LLC, E.C. Motors, Elmar Far East Pty Ltd, Enerflow Industries, Enerpro de Mexico, Environmental Procedures LLC, Ershigs, Fabricated Plastics Acquisitions Limited, Fabricated Plastics Limited, Fiber Glass Systems, Fiber Glass Systems (Qingdao) Composite Piping Co., Fiber Glass Systems Holdings, Fiber Glass Systems Oman L.L.C., Fiber Glass Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Fiberspar, Fiberspar Australia Pty. Ltd., Fiberspar Corporation, Fiberspar Linepipe Canada Ltd., Fibra Ingenieria y Construccion S.A., FidService, Fjords Processing (Shanghai) Co., Fjords Processing 1 AS, Fjords Processing AS, Fjords Processing Australia Pty Ltd, Fjords Processing France SAS, Fjords Processing Korea Co. Ltd., Fjords Processing Limited, Fjords Processing UK Ltd., Fryma S.a.r.l., GOT German Oil Tools GmbH, GP USA Holding LLC, GPEX, German Oil Tools (Middle East) FZE, Grant Prideco (Jiangsu) Drilling Products Co., Grant Prideco (Singapore) Pte Ltd, Grant Prideco AB TCA Holding LLC, Grant Prideco European Holding, Grant Prideco Holding, Grant Prideco III C. V., Grant Prideco Inc., Grant Prideco Jersey Limited, Grant Prideco L.P., Grant Prideco Mauritius Limited, Grant Prideco Netherlands B.V., Grant Prideco PC Composites Holdings, Grant Prideco S. de R.L. de C.V., Grant Prideco USA, Grant Prideco de Venezuela, Greystone Technologies Pty. Ltd., GustoMSC B.V., GustoMSC U.S., Hebei Huayouyiji Tuboscope Coating Co., Hitec AS, Hydralift AmClyde, Hydralift France SAS, Hydralift Holdings UK Limited, Inspecciones y Pruebas No Destructivas, IntelliServ Norway AS, Intelliserv, Intelliserv GP Holdings LLC, Intelliserv International Holding, Intelliserv LLC, Interval LLC, JiangYin Tuboscope Tubular Development Co., Merpro Group Limited, Merpro Products Limited, Merpro Tortek Limited, Midsund Bruk AS, Mono Group Pension Trustees Limited, Mono Pumps New Zealand Company, Monoflo NOV S.A.I.C., Moyno Inc., Moyno de Mexico S.A. de C.V., NKT Flexibles I/S, NOV (Asia), NOV (Barbados) Holding SRL, NOV (Barbados) SRL, NOV (Caymans), NOV (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., NOV - Oil Services Angola LDA., NOV APL Limited, NOV ASEP Elmar Mexico, NOV Africa Pty Ltd, NOV Australia Pty Ltd, NOV Azerbaijan LLC, NOV Brandt Europe France, NOV Brandt Oilfield Services Middle East LLC, NOV CV1 GP LLC, NOV CV2 GP LLC, NOV Completion Tools AS, NOV Completion Tools LLC, NOV Completion and Production Solutions Korea Ltd., NOV DH de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., NOV DHT Canada Holding ULC, NOV Denmark Cooperatief U.A., NOV Downhole Argentina, NOV Downhole Bolivia S.R.L., NOV Downhole Colombia, NOV Downhole Comercializacao de Equipamentos para Petroleo Ltda., NOV Downhole Congo, NOV Downhole Eurasia Limited, NOV Downhole Europe B.V., NOV Downhole Germany GmbH, NOV Downhole Italia S.R.L., NOV Downhole Kazakhstan, NOV Downhole Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., NOV Downhole Pty Ltd, NOV Downhole Thailand, NOV Dreco GP LLC, NOV EU Acquisition SNC, NOV Elmar (Middle East) Limited, NOV Elmar NL B.V., NOV Elmar Pte. Ltd., NOV Enerflow ULC, NOV Eurasia Holding LLC, NOV European Holding LLC, NOV Expatriate Services, NOV FGS Malaysia Sdn Bhd, NOV FGS Singapore (Pte.) Ltd, NOV Fiber Glass Systems Fabricacao De Tubos E Conexoes Ltda, NOV Flexibles Equipamentos E Servicos Ltda., NOV Flexibles Holding ApS, NOV Floating Production AS, NOV Fluid Control B.V., NOV GEO GP LLC, NOV GEO LP1 C.V., NOV GEO LP2 C.V., NOV GP Holding L.P., NOV GP1 Holding LLC, NOV Gabon SARL, NOV Germany Holding GmbH, NOV Ghana Limited, NOV Grant Prideco Drilling Equipment Manufacturing LLC, NOV Grant Prideco Drilling Products Middle East FZE, NOV Grant Prideco L.L.C., NOV Holding Danmark ApS, NOV Holding Germany GmbH & Co KG, NOV Holding Germany Management GmbH, NOV Holdings B.V., NOV Hydra Rig Pte. Ltd, NOV India Private Limited, NOV Intelliserv UK Limited, NOV International Holdings C.V., NOV International Holdings GP LLC, NOV Intervention & Stimulation Equipment US LLC, NOV Intervention and Stimulation Equipment  Aftermarket Comercio de Equipamentos e Servicos Ltda., NOV Kenya Limited, NOV Kostroma LLC, NOV Kuwait Light & Heavy Equipment Repairing & Maintenance Co., NOV LP (Trading), NOV MSI Pipe Protection Technologies Inc., NOV MSI Pipe Protection Technologies Mexico, NOV Mexico Holding LLC, NOV Middle East FZCO, NOV Mission Products UK Limited, NOV Mozambique Limitada, NOV NL Mexico Holding B.V., NOV Netherlands Finance Holding C.V., NOV Netherlands Finance Holding LLC, NOV North America I/P, NOV Oil & Gas Services Egypt (S.A.E), NOV Oil & Gas Services Uganda Limited, NOV Oil and Gas Services Ghana Limited, NOV Oil and Gas Services Namibia (Proprietary) Limited, NOV Oil and Gas Services Nigeria Limited, NOV Oil and Gas Services South Africa (Pty) Limited, NOV Oilfield Services Tanzania Limited, NOV Oilfield Services Vostok LLC, NOV Oilfield Solutions Ltd., NOV Park II B.V., NOV Process & Flow Technologies AS, NOV Process & Flow Technologies Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., NOV Process & Flow Technologies Pte. Ltd., NOV Process & Flow Technologies UK Limited, NOV Process & Flow Technologies US, NOV Rig Solutions Pte. Ltd., NOV Romania, NOV Saudi Arabia Co. Ltd., NOV Saudi Arabia Trading Co., NOV Services Ltd., NOV Servicios de Personal Mexico, NOV Subsea Products AS, NOV TV2 LLC, NOV TVI LLC, NOV Tanajib Kuwait for Services and Maintenance of Oil Rigs Refineries and Petrochemicals, NOV Tuboscope Italia S.R.L., NOV Tuboscope Middle East LLC, NOV Tuboscope NL B.V., NOV Tubulars and Connectors Ltd., NOV UK (Angola Acquisitions) Limited, NOV UK Finance Limited, NOV UK Holdings Limited, NOV UK Korea LP, NOV Wellbore Technologies Norway LLC, NOV Wellbore Technologies do Brasil Equipamentos E Servicos Ltda., NOV Wellsite Services Germany GmbH, NOV Worldwide C.V., NOV-BLM SAS, NOVM Holding LLC, NOW Downhole Tools, NOW International LLC, NOW Nova Scotia Holdings LLC, NOW Oilfield Services, NQL Holland B.V., National Oilwell (U.K.) Limited, National Oilwell Algerie, National Oilwell DHT, National Oilwell Middle East Company, National Oilwell Services de Mexico, National Oilwell Varco (Beijing) Investment Management Co. Ltd., National Oilwell Varco (Thailand) Ltd., National Oilwell Varco Algeria, National Oilwell Varco Almansoori Services, National Oilwell Varco Bahrain WLL, National Oilwell Varco Belgium SA, National Oilwell Varco Denmark I/S, National Oilwell Varco Egypt LLC, National Oilwell Varco Eurasia, National Oilwell Varco Guatemala, National Oilwell Varco Guyana Inc., National Oilwell Varco Hungary Limited Liability Company, National Oilwell Varco Korea Co., National Oilwell Varco MSW S.A., National Oilwell Varco Mexico, National Oilwell Varco Muscat L.L.C., National Oilwell Varco Norway AS, National Oilwell Varco Peru S.R.L., National Oilwell Varco Petroleum Equipment (Shanghai) Co., National Oilwell Varco Poland Sp.z.o.o., National Oilwell Varco Pte. Ltd., National Oilwell Varco Rig Equipment Trading (Shanghai) Co., National Oilwell Varco Romania S.R.L., National Oilwell Varco Solutions, National Oilwell Varco UK Limited, National Oilwell Varco Ukraine LLC, National Oilwell Varco de Bolivia S.R.L., National Oilwell Varco de Chile - Servicios Limitada, National Oilwell Varco do Brasil Ltda., National Oilwell de Venezuela, National-Oilwell Pte. Ltd., National-Oilwell Pty. Ltd., PT Fjords Processing Indonesia, PT H-Tech Oilfield Equipment, PT NOV Oilfield Services, PT National Oilwell Varco, PT PROFAB INDONESIA, Pesaka Inspection Services SDN.BHD., Pipex Limited, Pipex PX Limited, Pipex Structural Composites Limited, Pridecomex Holding S. de R.L. de C.V., Pridecomex TA Industries, Procon Engineering Ltd., Profab Engineering Pte. Ltd., Profab Services Pte Ltd, Quality Tubing FSC, R&M C.V., R&M Canada Cooperatief U.A., R&M Energy Systems Australia Pty Ltd., R&M Energy Systems de Argentina S.A., R&M Energy Systems de Venezuela, R&M Environmental Strategies, R&M Singapore Holding LLC, R&M UK Holding LLC, RE.MAC.UT. S.r.l., RHI Holding LLC, ReedHycalog, ReedHycalog International Holding, ReedHycalog LLC, ReedHycalog UK Limited, Robannic Overseas Finance A.V.V., Robbins & Myers, Robbins & Myers (Suzhou) Process Equipment Company Limited, Robbins & Myers B.V., Robbins & Myers Foundation, Robbins & Myers GP LLC, Robbins & Myers Holdings, Robbins & Myers Holdings UK Limited, Robbins & Myers Inc, Robbins & Myers Italia S.R.L., Robbins & Myers N.V., Rodic S.A. de C.V., Romaco S.a.r.l., STAR Sudamtex Tubulares S.A., STBH2O TUNISIE, STSA, Screen Manufacturing Company Unlimited, Seabox AS, Slip Clutch Systems Limited, Smart Drilling GmbH, Soil Recovery A/S, South Seas Inspection, Subseaflex Holding ApS, T-3 Energy Preferred Industries Mexico, T-3 Energy Services, T-3 Energy Services Cayman, T-3 Energy Services Cayman Holdings, T-3 Energy Services India Private Limited, T-3 Energy Services Mexico, T-3 Investment Corporation IV, T-3 Mexican Holdings, TVI Holdings, Telluride Insurance Limited, Tianjin Grant TPCO Drilling Tools Company Limited, Tube-Kote, Tubo-FGS, Tuboscope & Co. LLC, Tuboscope (Holding U.S.) LLC, Tuboscope Brandt de Venezuela, Tuboscope Machining Services AS, Tuboscope Norge AS, Tuboscope Pipeline Services Inc., Tuboscope Services, Tuboscope Vetco (Deutschland) GmbH, Tuboscope Vetco (France) SAS, Tuboscope Vetco (Oesterreich) GmbH, Tuboscope Vetco Canada ULC, Tuboscope Vetco Capital Limited, Tuboscope Vetco Moscow CJSC, Tuboscope Vetco de Argentina S.A., Tubular Coatings Solutions Ltd., Tucom Composites Polyester Sanayi Ticaret Ltd., Varco BJ B.V., Varco CIS, Varco Canada ULC, Varco I/P, Varco International de Venezuela, Varco L.P., Varco US Holdings LLC, Vetco Coating GmbH, Vetco Enterprise GmbH, Vetco Saudi Arabia Ltd., Visible Assets, Wilson International, Woolley, XL Systems, XL Systems Antilles, XL Systems Europe B.V., XL Systems International, voestalpine Middle East Free Zone Establishment, voestalpine Tubulars Corporation, voestalpine Tubulars GmbH, and voestalpine Tubulars GmbH & Co KG.
SRC Energy Inc., an oil and natural gas company, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and production of oil, natural gas, and natural gas liquids primarily in the Denver-Julesburg Basin of Colorado. As of December 31, 2018, it had net proved oil and natural gas reserves of 88 million barrels of oil and condensate, 771.9 billion cubic feet of natural gas, and 89.1 million barrels of natural gas liquids; and operated 985 net producing wells, as well as had 95,200 gross and 86,200 net acres under lease in the Wattenberg Field. The company was founded in 2005 and is headquartered in Denver, Colorado.

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American Water Works Co., Inc. engages in the provision of complementary water and wastewater services. It operates through the following segments: Regulated Businesses; Market-Based Businesses; and Other. The Regulated Businesses segment provides water and wastewater services to customers. The Market-Based Businesses segment is responsible for Military Services Group, Contract Operations Group, Homeowner Services Group, and Keystone Operations. The Other segment includes corporate costs that are not allocated to the Company's operating segments, eliminations of inter-segment transactions, fair value adjustments and associated income and deductions related to the acquisitions that have not been allocated to the operating segments for evaluation of performance and allocation of resource purposes. The company was founded in 1886 and is headquartered in Camden, NJ.

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Wall Street analysts have given iShares MSCI Australia ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but iShares MSCI Australia ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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Wall Street analysts have given UBS ETRACS Linked to the Wells Fargo Business Development Company Index ETN 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 UBS ETRACS Linked to the Wells Fargo Business Development Company Index ETN wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Global Payments: ACTIVE Network - Communities and Sports, Active Network (HK) Limited, Active Network IPICO (CA) Inc., Active Network IPICO (US) Inc., Active Network IPICO Holdings (US) LLC, Active Network IPICO Holdings (US) LLC, Active Network IPICO Innovation Inc., Active Networks LLC, AdvancedMD, Athlaction Intermediate LLC, Athlaction Topco LLC, AuctionPay, Comercia Global Payments Entidad de Pago S.L., DEBITEK INC, Digital Dining LLC, Dinerware LLC, DolEx Europe S.L., Educational Computer Systems Inc., Ematters Australia Pty Ltd., Equifax Credit Services LLC, Ezi Holdings Pty. Ltd., Ezi Management Pty Ltd., Ezidebit, Ezidebit (NZ) Limited, Ezidebit HK Ltd., Ezidebit Pty Ltd., GP Finance LLC, GPC Financial Corporation, GPS Holding Limited Partnership, GPUK LLP, Global Payment Holding Company, Global Payment Systems Asia-Pacific (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd., Global Payment Systems LLC, Global Payment Systems of Canada Ltd., Global Payments - Caixa Acquisition Corporation S.a.r.l., Global Payments - Realex Payments Holding Limited, Global Payments - Servicos de Pagamentos S.A., Global Payments Acquisition Corp. 1 B.V., Global Payments Acquisition Corp. 2 B.V., Global Payments Acquisition Corp. 3 B.V., Global Payments Acquisition Corporation 2 LLC, Global Payments Acquisition Corporation 2 S.a.r.l., Global Payments Acquisition Corporation 3 LLC, Global Payments Acquisition Corporation 3 S.a.r.l., Global Payments Acquisition Corporation 4 S.a.r.l., Global Payments Acquisition Corporation 6 S.a.r.l., Global Payments Acquisition Corporation 7 LLC, Global Payments Acquisition Corporation 7 S.a.r.l., Global Payments Acquisition Corporation HK Holding Limited, Global Payments Acquisition PS 1 C.V., Global Payments Acquisition PS 2 C.V., Global Payments Acquisition PS 3 C. V., Global Payments Acquisition PS1-Global Payments Direct S.e.n.c., Global Payments Asia-Pacific (Hong Kong Holding) Limited, Global Payments Asia-Pacific (Hong Kong) Limited, Global Payments Asia-Pacific (India) Private Limited, Global Payments Asia-Pacific (Shanghai) Limited, Global Payments Asia-Pacific (Singapore Holding) Ltd., Global Payments Asia-Pacific Lanka (Private) Limited, Global Payments Asia-Pacific Limited, Global Payments Asia-Pacific Macau Limited, Global Payments Asia-Pacific Maldives Private Limited, Global Payments Asia-Pacific Philippines Incorporated, Global Payments Asia-Pacific Processing Company Limited, Global Payments Australia Pty 1 Ltd., Global Payments Australia Pty 2 Ltd., Global Payments Canada GP, Global Payments Canada Inc., Global Payments Card Processing Malaysia Sdn. Bhd, Global Payments Check Recovery Services Inc., Global Payments Check Services Inc., Global Payments Direct Inc., Global Payments Europe d.o.o. Sarajevo, Global Payments Europe s.r.o., Global Payments Gaming Canada Inc., Global Payments Gaming International Inc., Global Payments Gaming Services Inc., Global Payments Integrated, Global Payments Limited, Global Payments Process Centre Inc., Global Payments South America Brasil-Servicos de Pagamentos S.A., Global Payments UK 2 Ltd., Global Payments UK Ltd., Global Payments s.r.o., Greater Giving Inc., Heartland Acquisition LLC, Heartland Payment Solutions Inc., Heartland Payment Systems, Heartland Payment Systems LLC, Heartland Payroll Solutions Inc., IPICO South Africa (Pty) Ltd., JumpForward LLC, Maximum Solutions LLC, Merchant Services U.S.A. Inc., Modular Data Inc., NDC Holdings (UK) Ltd., NDPS Holdings Inc., PCAmerica LLC, Pay and Shop Limited, PayPros LLC, Payment Processing, Payroll 1 Inc., Realex Payments, SICOM Systems, Sabrir Invest S.L., Sentral Education, Spolecnost pro informacni database a.s., Storman Holdings Pty Ltd., Storman Software Inc., Storman Software Limited, Storman Software Ltd., Storman Software Pty Ltd., TeamPages Inc., The Active Network (Asia) Pte. Ltd, The Active Network (Aus-NZ) Pty. Ltd., The Active Network (EU) Ltd., The Active Network Ltd., The Active Network Ltd. (Chengdu), The Active Network Ltd. (Xian), Total System Services, TouchNet Information Systems Inc., UCS Terminal Joint Stock Company, United Card Service Joint Stock Company, VEPF III AIV VI-C Corp., VEPF IV AIV VII-C Corp., VFF I AIV IV-C Corp., Web Active Corporation Pty Ltd., Xenial Inc., Xpient LLC, eWAY, eWay Europe Limited, eWay Payments Asia Pte Ltd., eWay Payments Inc., eWay Payments New Zealand Limited, eWay Payments North America Inc., and eWay Payments Pty Ltd..
Ingredion, Inc. manufactures and sells sweetener, starches, nutrition ingredients, and biomaterial solutions derived from the wet milling and processing of corn and other starch based materials. Its activities include turning corn, tapioca, potatoes and other vegetables and fruits into value added ingredients and biomaterials for the food, beverage, paper and corrugating, brewing, and other industries. The firm operates through the following geographical segments: North America, South America, Asia-Pacific and Europe, Middle East, and Africa (EMEA). The North America segment includes businesses in the United States, Mexico, and Canada. The South America segment involves businesses in Brazil, the Southern Cone of South America (which includes Argentina, Peru, Chile, and Uruguay), Colombia, and Ecuador. The Asia-Pacific segment pertains businesses in South Korea, Thailand, China, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, Indonesia, Singapore, the Philippines, Malaysia, India, and Vietnam. The EMEA segment focuses businesses in Pakistan, Germany, the United Kingdom and South Africa. The company was founded in 1906 and is headquartered in Westchester, IL.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Masco: A&J Gummers, Airex 3 LLC, Arrow Fastener, BEHR PAINTS IT! INC., BSI Holdings, Behr (Beijing) Paint Company Limited, Behr Paint (Beijing) Commercial Co. Ltd., Behr Process, Behr Process Canada Ltd., Behr Process Corporation, Behr Process Paints (India) Private Limited, Behr Sales LLC, BrassCraft Manufacturing Company, Brasstech Inc., Bristan, Bristan Group Limited, Cambrian Windows, ColorAxis Inc., Davenport Insulation Group, Delta Faucet (China) Co. Ltd., Delta Faucet Company, Delta Faucet Company India Private Limited, Delta Faucet Company Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Delta Faucet Company of Tennessee, Diversified Cabinet Distributors Inc., Duraflex, Duraflex Limited, Erickson Framing, Glass Idromassaggio, Guy Evans Inc., Hans Grohe Pte. Ltd., Hansgrohe, Hansgrohe A.B., Hansgrohe A/S, Hansgrohe AG, Hansgrohe Armature Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Hansgrohe B.V., Hansgrohe Brasil Metals Santitarios Ltda., Hansgrohe CS s.r.o., Hansgrohe Deutschland Vertriebs GmbH, Hansgrohe Handelsges.mbH, Hansgrohe Inc., Hansgrohe India Private Ltd., Hansgrohe International GmbH, Hansgrohe Japan K.K, Hansgrohe Kft., Hansgrohe Ltd., Hansgrohe N.V., Hansgrohe Pty Ltd, Hansgrohe S. de R. L. de C. V., Hansgrohe S. a r.l., Hansgrohe S.A., Hansgrohe S.A.U., Hansgrohe SA (Pty) Ltd., Hansgrohe SE, Hansgrohe Sanitary Products (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Hansgrohe Sanitary Products W.L.L., Hansgrohe Sp. z.o.o., Hansgrohe Wasselonne S.A., Hansgrohe d.o.o., Hansgrohe ooo, Hansgrohe s.r.l., Hot Spring Spa Australasia Pty Ltd, Hot Spring Spas New Zealand Limited, Huppe B.V., Huppe Belgium S.A., Huppe GmbH, Huppe Insaat Sanayi ve Ticaret A.S., Huppe S. a r.l., Huppe S.L., Huppe Spolka z.o.o., Huppe s.r.o., IDI Group inc, Inrecon, Jet Acquisition LLC, Kichler Lighting LLC, L.D. Kichler Lighting Services (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Landex of Wisconsin Inc., Liberty Hardware Asia Co. Ltd., Liberty Hardware Mfg. Corp., Liberty Hardware Retail & Design Services LLC, Masco Beteiligungsgesellschaft mbH, Masco Building Products Corp., Masco Cabinetry Hong Kong Limited, Masco Canada Limited, Masco Capital Corporation, Masco Chile Limitada, Masco Corporation Limited, Masco Corporation of Indiana, Masco Europe Inc., Masco Europe S. a r.l., Masco Europe SCS, Masco Framing Corp., Masco Germany Holding GmbH, Masco HD Support Services LLC, Masco Home Products Private Limited, Masco Home Products S.a r.l., Masco Retail Sales Support Inc., Masco Singapore Pte. Ltd., Masco WM Support Services LLC, Mascomex S.A. de C.V., Masterchem Industries, Masterchem Industries LLC, Mercury Plastics LLC, Milgard Manufacturing, Mill's Pride, Mirolin Industries Corp., My Service Center Inc., NCFII Holdings Inc., Newport Brass, Oz Acquisition LLC, Peerless Sales Corporation, SCE Unlimited, Service Partners, Shanghai Hansgrohe International Trading Co. Ltd., SmarTap, SmarTap A.Y. Ltd., Tapicerias Pacifico SA de CV, Tempered Products Inc., Texwood Industries, The Faucet-Queens, The GMU Group, The L.D. Kichler Co., Tvilum, Vapor Technologies Inc., Vapor Technologies Shenzhen Co. Ltd., Watkins Distribution UK Limited, Watkins Europe BVBA, Watkins Manufacturing Corporation, and Wellness Marketing Corporation.
Wall Street analysts have given BlackRock Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund 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 Floating Rate Income Strategies Fund wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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The following companies are subsidiares of NRG Energy: 3279405 Nova Scotia Company, 3283764 Nova Scotia Company, 7549709 Canada Inc., 7644868 Canada Inc., 7711565 Canada Inc., AC Solar Holdings LLC, Ace Energy Inc., Agua Caliente Borrower 1 LLC, Agua Caliente Solar Holdings LLC, Agua Caliente Solar LLC, Allied Home Warranty GP LLC, Allied Warranty LLC, Arthur Kill Gas Turbines LLC, Arthur Kill Power LLC, Astoria Gas Turbine Power LLC, Bayou Cove Peaking Power LLC, Beheer-en Beleggingsmaatschappij Plogema B.V., Berrians I Gas Turbine Power LLC, BidURenergy Inc., Big Cajun I Peaking Power LLC, Bluewater Wind Delaware LLC, Bluewater Wind Maryland LLC, Bluewater Wind New Jersey Energy LLC, Boquillas Wind LLC, Cabrillo Power I LLC, Cabrillo Power II LLC, Camino Energy LLC, Carbon Management Solutions LLC, Carlsbad Energy Center LLC, Carlsbad Energy Holdings LLC, Chester Energy LLC, Chickahominy River Energy Corp., Cirro Energy Services Inc., Cirro Group Inc., Citizens Power Holdings One LLC, Commonwealth Atlantic Power LLC, Connecticut Jet Power LLC, Cottonwood Development LLC, Cottonwood Energy Company LP, Cottonwood Generating Partners I LLC, Cottonwood Generating Partners II LLC, Cottonwood Generating Partners III LLC, Cottonwood Technology Partners LP, Delaware Power Development LLC, Devon Power LLC, Doga Enerji Uretim Sanayi ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Doga Isi Satis Hizmetleri Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Doga Isletme ve Bakim Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Dunkirk Gas Corporation, Dunkirk Power LLC, EHI Development Fund LLC, EME Eastern Holdings LLC, EVgo Services LLC, Eastern Sierra Energy Company LLC, Ecokap Power LLC, El Segundo Energy Center II LLC, El Segundo Power II LLC, El Segundo Power LLC, Elkhorn Ridge Wind II LLC, Energy Alternatives Wholesale LLC, Energy Choice Solutions LLC, Energy Curtailment Specialists, Energy Plus Holdings LLC, Energy Plus Natural Gas LLC, Energy Protection Insurance Company, Everything Energy LLC, Forward Home Security LLC, GCP Funding Company LLC, GenOn Energy, Geostellar Inc., Gladstone Power Station Joint Venture, Goal Zero, Goal Zero Europe GmbH, Goal Zero LLC, Granite II Holding LLC, Granite Power Partners II L.P., Green Mountain Energy, Green Mountain Energy Company, Green Mountain Energy Sun Club, Gregory Partners LLC, Gregory Power Partners LLC, Hanover Energy Company, Huntley IGCC LLC, Huntley Power LLC, Independence Energy Alliance LLC, Independence Energy Group LLC, Independence Energy Natural Gas LLC, Indian River Operations Inc., Indian River Power LLC, Intellastar LLC, Ivanpah Master Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project I Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project II Holdings LLC, Ivanpah Project III Holdings LLC, James River Power LLC, Kaufman Cogen LP, LSP-Nelson Energy LLC, Long Beach Generation LLC, Long Beach Peakers LLC, Long Beach Power LLC, Louisiana Generating LLC, MEC Esenyurt B.V., MEC San Pascual B.V., Maplekey UK Finance Limited, Maplekey UK Limited, Meriden Gas Turbines LLC, Middletown Power LLC, Midway-Sunset Cogeneration Company, Midwest Finance Company LLC, Midwest Generation EME LLC, Midwest Generation Holdings I LLC, Midwest Generation Holdings II LLC, Midwest Generation LLC, Midwest Generation Procurement Services LLC, Midwest Peaker Holdings LLC, Mission Bingham Lake Wind LLC, Mission Del Cielo LLC, Mission Energy Construction Services LLC, Mission Energy Holdings International LLC, Mission Energy Wales LLC, Mission Funding Zeta LLC, Mission Midway-Sunset Holdings LLC, Mission Midwest Coal LLC, Mission Minnesota Wind LLC, Mission Watson Holdings LLC, Mission Wind Boquillas LLC, Mission Wind New Mexico II LLC, Mission Wind Owaissa LLC, Mission Wind Pinnacle LLC, Mission del Sol LLC, Montville IGCC LLC, Montville Power LLC, NEO Chester-Gen LLC, NEO Corporation, NRG Acquisition Holdings Inc., NRG Advisory Services LLC, NRG Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Alexandria LLC, NRG Arroyo Nogales LLC, NRG Arthur Kill Operations Inc., NRG Asia-Pacific Ltd., NRG Astoria Gas Turbine Operations Inc., NRG Astoria Power LLC, NRG Audrain Generating LLC, NRG Audrain Holding LLC, NRG Bayou Cove LLC, NRG Berrians East Development LLC, NRG Bluewater Holdings LLC, NRG Bluewater Wind Massachusetts LLC, NRG Bourbonnais Equipment LLC, NRG Bourbonnais LLC, NRG Brazoria Energy LLC, NRG Business Services LLC, NRG CTA Holdings LLC, NRG Cabrillo Power Operations Inc., NRG Cadillac Inc., NRG Cadillac Operations Inc., NRG California Peaker Operations LLC, NRG Capital II LLC, NRG Carbon 360 LLC, NRG Cedar Bayou Development Company LLC, NRG Chalk Point CT LLC, NRG CleanTech Investments LLC, NRG Coal Development Company LLC, NRG ComLease LLC, NRG Common Stock Finance I LLC, NRG Common Stock Finance II LLC, NRG Connected Home LLC, NRG Connecticut Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Connecticut Peaking Development LLC, NRG Construction LLC, NRG Cottonwood Tenant LLC, NRG Curtailment Solutions Canada Inc., NRG Curtailment Solutions Inc., NRG DG Development LLC, NRG Development Company Inc., NRG Devon Operations Inc., NRG Dispatch Services LLC, NRG Distributed Energy Resources Holdings LLC, NRG Distributed Generation PR LLC, NRG Dunkirk Operations Inc., NRG ECOKAP Holdings LLC, NRG ESA Joint Development LLC, NRG El Segundo Operations Inc., NRG Energy Center Eagles LLC, NRG Energy Center Oxnard LLC, NRG Energy Fuel LLC, NRG Energy Fuel Services LLC, NRG Energy Gas & Wind Holdings Inc., NRG Energy Holdings II Inc., NRG Energy Holdings Inc., NRG Energy Inc., NRG Energy Labor Services LLC, NRG Energy Petroleum LLC, NRG Energy Services Group LLC, NRG Energy Services International Inc., NRG Energy Services LLC, NRG Equipment Company LLC, NRG Fuel Cell CA1 LLC, NRG Fuel Resources LLC, NRG Fuel Transportation LLC, NRG GTL Holdings LLC, NRG Gas Development Company LLC, NRG Generation Holdings Inc., NRG Gladstone Operating Services Pty Ltd, NRG Granite Acquisition LLC, NRG Greenco LLC, NRG HQ DG LLC, NRG Holding Leasing Vehicle 7 LLC, NRG Home & Business Solutions LLC, NRG Home Services LLC, NRG Home Solutions LLC, NRG Home Solutions Product LLC, NRG Homer City Services LLC, NRG Huntley Operations Inc., NRG Identity Protect LLC, NRG Ilion LP LLC, NRG Ilion Limited Partnership, NRG Independence Solar LLC, NRG International LLC, NRG Kaufman LLC, NRG Latin America Inc., NRG Lease Co LLC, NRG Lease Development LLC, NRG Limestone 3 LLC, NRG Maintenance Services LLC, NRG Mesquite LLC, NRG Mextrans Inc., NRG MidAtlantic Affiliate Services Inc., NRG MidCon Development LLC, NRG Middletown Operations Inc., NRG Middletown Repowering LLC, NRG Midwest Holdings LLC, NRG Midwest II LLC, NRG Montville Operations Inc., NRG NE Development LLC, NRG Nelson Turbines LLC, NRG New Roads Holdings LLC, NRG NewGen LLC, NRG North Central Operations Inc., NRG Northeast Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Norwalk Harbor Operations Inc., NRG Ohio Pipeline Company LLC, NRG Operating Services Inc., NRG Oswego Harbor Power Operations Inc., NRG Oxbow Holdings LLC, NRG PacGen Inc., NRG Peaker Finance Company LLC, NRG Portable Power LLC, NRG Potrero Development LLC, NRG Power Marketing LLC, NRG Procurement Company LLC, NRG Project Company LLC, NRG Reliability Solutions LLC, NRG Renter's Protection LLC, NRG Repowering Holdings LLC, NRG Residential Solar Solutions LLC, NRG Residential Solar Solutions Leasing II LLC, NRG Retail LLC, NRG Retail Northeast LLC, NRG Rockford Acquisition LLC, NRG Rockford Equipment II LLC, NRG Rockford Equipment LLC, NRG Saguaro Operations Inc., NRG Security LLC, NRG Services Corporation, NRG Sherbino LLC, NRG SimplySmart Solutions LLC, NRG Solar Arrowhead LLC, NRG Solar CVSR Holdings 2 LLC, NRG Solar Dandan LLC, NRG Solar Guam LLC, NRG Solar Ivanpah LLC, NRG Solar Ring LLC, NRG Solar SC Stadium LLC, NRG Solar Sunrise LLC, NRG South Central Affiliate Services Inc., NRG South Central Generating LLC, NRG South Central Operations Inc., NRG South Texas LP, NRG Sterlington Power LLC, NRG Storage Fabrication & Delivery LLC, NRG Storage on Demand NY LLC, NRG SunCap Leasing I LLC, NRG Telogia Power LLC, NRG Texas C&I Supply LLC, NRG Texas Gregory LLC, NRG Texas Holding Inc., NRG Texas LLC, NRG Texas Power LLC, NRG Texas Retail LLC, NRG Trading Advisors LLC, NRG Transmission Holdings LLC, NRG ULC Parent Inc., NRG Victoria I Pty Ltd, NRG Warranty Services LLC, NRG West Coast LLC, NRG Western Affiliate Services Inc., NRG Wind Development Company LLC, NRG Wind Force LLC, NRG Wind LLC, NRG dGen Advisory Services LLC, NRGenerating German Holdings GmbH, NRGenerating International B.V., NRGenerating Luxembourg (No. 1) S.a.r.l., NRGenerating Luxembourg (No. 2) S.a.r.l., New Genco GP LLC, New Jersey Power Development LLC, Norwalk Power LLC, O'Brien Cogeneration Inc. II, ONSITE Energy Inc., One Block Off The Grid Inc., Oswego Harbor Power LLC, Pacific Generation Company, Petra Nova CCS I LLC, Petra Nova Holdings LLC, Petra Nova LLC, Petra Nova Parish Holdings LLC, Petra Nova Power I LLC, Pure Energies Group, Pure Energies Group ULC, Pure Energies Installation Inc., Pure Energies Solar Services Inc., Pure Group Inc., RDI Consulting LLC, RERH Holdings LLC, Reliant Charitable Foundation, Reliant Energy, Reliant Energy Northeast LLC, Reliant Energy Power Supply LLC, Reliant Energy Retail Holdings LLC, Reliant Energy Retail Services LLC, Restoration Design LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar Holdings LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar and Electric LLC, Roof Diagnostics Solar and Electric of NY LLC, Saguaro Power Company a Limited Partnership, Saguaro Power LLC, San Gabriel Energy LLC, San Joaquin Energy LLC, San Juan Energy LLC, San Pascual Cogeneration Company International B.V., Sherbino I Wind Farm LLC, Solar Partners I LLC, Solar Partners II LLC, Solar Partners VIII LLC, Solar Power Partners, Solar Pure Energies ULC, Somerset Operations Inc., Somerset Power LLC, South Texas Wind LLC, Station A LLC, Sunrise Power Company LLC, Sunshine State Power (No. 2) B.V., Sunshine State Power B.V., TCV Pipeline LLC, Tacoma Energy Recovery Company, Taloga Wind II LLC, Texas Coastal Ventures LLC, Texas Genco GP LLC, Texas Genco Holdings, Texas Genco Holdings Inc., Texas Genco LP LLC, Texas Genco Services LP, US Retailers LLC, Valle Del Sol Energy LLC, Vienna Operations Inc., Vienna Power LLC, WCP (Generation) Holdings LLC, Watson Cogeneration Company, West Coast Power LLC, XOOM Alberta Holdings LLC, XOOM British Columbia Holdings LLC, XOOM Energy BC ULC, XOOM Energy California LLC, XOOM Energy Canada ULC, XOOM Energy Connecticut LLC, XOOM Energy Delaware LLC, XOOM Energy Georgia LLC, XOOM Energy Global Holdings LLC, XOOM Energy Illinois LLC, XOOM Energy Indiana LLC, XOOM Energy Kentucky LLC, XOOM Energy LLC, XOOM Energy Maine LLC, XOOM Energy Maryland LLC, XOOM Energy Massachusetts LLC, XOOM Energy Michigan LLC, XOOM Energy New Hampshire LLC, XOOM Energy New Jersey LLC, XOOM Energy New York LLC, XOOM Energy ONT ULC, XOOM Energy Ohio LLC, XOOM Energy Pennsylvania LLC, XOOM Energy Rhode Island LLC, XOOM Energy Texas LLC, XOOM Energy Virginia LLC, XOOM Energy Washington D.C. LLC, XOOM Ontario Holdings LLC, XOOM Solar LLC, and eV2g LLC.
The following companies are subsidiares of Pentair: Aplex Industries Inc., Aqua Membranes Inc. , Aquion, Aquion (Xi'an) Water Treatment Equipment Co. Ltd., Aquion Hong Kong Limited, Aquion Inc., Be the Change Labs Inc., Bylin Engineered Systems Inc, Century Mfg. Co., Chansuba Pumps Private Limited , Clean Process Technologies, ClearWater Tech L.L.C., ETE Coliban Pty Limited, Enviro Water Solutions LLC, Epps Ltd., Erico Global, Everpure Japan Kabushiki Kaisha, FARADYNE Motors (Suzhou) Co. Ltd , Faradyne Motors LLC , FilterSoft LLC, Fleck Controls Inc., Goyen Controls Co. Pty. Limited, Goyen Valve LLC, Greenspan Environmental Technology Pty Ltd, Haffmans B.V., Haffmans North America Inc., Hawley Group Canada Limited, Holding Nijhuis Pompen B.V., Hypro EU Limited, Infinite Water Solutions Private Limited, Jung Pumpen GmbH, Ken's Beverage, Lincoln Automotive Company, MECAIR S.r.L., McNeil (Ohio) Corporation, Milperra Developments Pty Limited, Mobile Pool Builder Inc., Moraine Properties LLC, Nano Terra Inc., Nijhuis Pompen B.V., Nuheat, PES Pty Ltd, PFAM Inc., PTG Accessories Corp., Panthro Acquisition Co., Pelican Holding Corporation, Pentair (NZ) Limited, Pentair Aquatic Eco-Systems Inc., Pentair Australia Holdings Pty Limited, Pentair Canada Inc., Pentair Clean Process Technologies India Private Limited, Pentair Denmark Holding ApS, Pentair Environmental Systems Limited, Pentair Epsilon Limited, Pentair Federal Pump LLC, Pentair Filtration Sales & Service Company LLC, Pentair Filtration Solutions LLC, Pentair Finance Group GmbH, Pentair Finance Holding GmbH, Pentair Finance S.a.r.l., Pentair Flow Control International Pty Limited, Pentair Flow Services AG, Pentair Flow Technologies LLC, Pentair Flow Technologies Pacific Pty Ltd, Pentair Flow Technologies de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Pentair France SARL, Pentair Germany GmbH, Pentair Global Holdings B.V., Pentair Global S.a.r.l., Pentair Group (Thailand) Limited , Pentair Holdings Inc., Pentair Holdings S.a.r.l., Pentair Housing Inc., Pentair Housing LP, Pentair Inc., Pentair International (UK) Ltd, Pentair International Holding S.a.r.l., Pentair International Sarl, Pentair Investments Switzerland GmbH, Pentair Ireland Limited, Pentair Janus Holding LLC, Pentair Janus Holdings, Pentair Kenya Limited, Pentair Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Pentair Management Company, Pentair Manufacturing Belgium BV, Pentair Manufacturing Italy S.r.L., Pentair Middle East FZE, Pentair Nanosoft US Holdings LLC, Pentair Netherlands Euro Finance B.V., Pentair Netherlands Finance B.V., Pentair Netherlands Holding B.V., Pentair Pacific Rim (Water) Limited, Pentair Pacific Rim Limited, Pentair Philippines Inc., Pentair Residential Filtration LLC, Pentair Sales LLC, Pentair Services France S.A.S., Pentair Sudmo GmbH, Pentair Tamimi LLC, Pentair Trading (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Pentair Transport Inc., Pentair Tubing Limited, Pentair UK Group Limited, Pentair UK Holdings Limited, Pentair US LLC 1, Pentair US LLC 2, Pentair US LP, Pentair Valves & Controls del Uruguay S.A., Pentair Water (Suzhou) Company Ltd., Pentair Water Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd., Pentair Water Australia Pty Ltd, Pentair Water Belgium BV, Pentair Water Brazil LLC, Pentair Water France SAS, Pentair Water Group Inc., Pentair Water Holdings LLC, Pentair Water India Private Limited, Pentair Water Italy S.r.l., Pentair Water LLC, Pentair Water Latinamerica S.A., Pentair Water Operations Australia Pty Ltd, Pentair Water Polska Sp.zoo, Pentair Water Pool and Spa Inc., Pentair Water Proces Technologie Holding B.V., Pentair Water Process Technology B.V., Pentair Water Purification Systems (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Pentair Water Spain S.L., Pentair Water Treatment (OH) Company, Pentair Water Treatment Company, Pentair Water Treatment Private Limited, Pentair Water do Brasil Ltda., Pentair Water-Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Penwald Insurance Company, Pigeon Point Systems Inc., Plymouth Products Inc., Porous Media Corp., Procam Controls Inc., Rocean, Seneca Enterprises Co., Sta-Rite Industries LLC, Sta-Rite de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Sta-Rite de Puerto Rico Inc., Surface Logix LLC, Tupelo Real Estate LLC, Tyco Flow Control, Union Engineering (NingBo) Co. Ltd., Union Engineering A/S, Union Engineering Holding II A/S, Union Engineering Holding LLC, Union Engineering Latam Ltda, Union Engineering North America LLC, Urban Organics Pentair Group LLC, Urban Organics Schmidt Real Estate Group LLC, Urban Organics St. Paul LLC, Voltea Ltd., Water Ingenuity Holdings Corp., Webster Electric Company LLC, Wicor Industries (Australia) Pty. Ltd., and X-Flow B.V..
The following companies are subsidiares of The Procter & Gamble: "Procter & Gamble Services" LLC, "Procter & Gamble" LLC, Agile Pursuits, Agile Pursuits Franchising, Arbora, Arbora & Ausonia, Arborinvest, Billie, Braun (Shanghai) Co., Braun GmbH, Braun-Gillette Immobilien GmbH & Co. KG, Celtic Insurance Company, Compania Procter & Gamble Mexico, Compania Quimica S.A., Corporativo Procter & Gamble, Cosmetic Products Pty. Ltd., Detergent Products B.V., Detergent Products SARL, Detergenti S.A., Eurocos Cosmetic GmbH, FPG Oleochemicals Sdn. Bhd., Fameccanica Data S.p.A., Fameccanica Industria e Comercio Do Brasil LTDA., Fameccanica Machinery (Shanghai) Co., Fater S.p.A., Fountain Square Music Publishing Co., Gillette (China) Ltd., Gillette (Shanghai) Ltd., Gillette Aesop Ltd., Gillette Australia Pty. Ltd., Gillette Canada Holdings, Gillette Commercial Operations North America, Gillette Diversified Operations Pvt. Ltd., Gillette Egypt S.A.E., Gillette Group UK Ltd, Gillette Gruppe Deutschland GmbH & Co. oHG, Gillette Holding Company LLC, Gillette Holding GmbH, Gillette India Limited, Gillette Industries Ltd., Gillette International B.V., Gillette Latin America Holding B.V., Gillette Management LLC, Gillette Nova Scotia Company, Gillette Pakistan Limited, Gillette Poland International Sp. z.o.o., Gillette Poland S.A., Gillette U.K. Limited, Gillette del Uruguay, Giorgio Beverly Hills Inc., Hyginett KFT, Industries Marocaines Modernes SA, LLC "Procter & Gamble Novomoskovsk", LLL "Procter & Gamble Distributorskaya Compania", Laboratorios Vicks, Liberty Street Music Publishing Company, Limited Liability Company 'Procter & Gamble Trading Ukraine', Limited Liability Company with foreign investments Procter & and Gamble Ukraine, MDVIP, MERCK KGAA NPV, Marcvenca Inversiones, Modern Industries Company - Dammam, Modern Products Company - Jeddah, New Chapter, New Chapter Canada Inc., Olay LLC, Oral-B Laboratories, P&G Distribution Morocco SAS, P&G Hair Care Holding, P&G Industrial Peru S.R.L., P&G Innovation Godo Kaisha, P&G Israel M.D.O. Ltd., P&G K.K., P&G Northeast Asia Pte. Ltd., P&G Prestige Godo Kaisha, P&G Prestige Service GmbH, P&G South African Trading (Pty.) Ltd., PGT Health Care (Zhejiang) Limited, PGT Healthcare LLP, PPI ZAO, PT Procter & Gamble Home Products Indonesia, PT Procter & Gamble Operations Indonesia, Phase II Holdings Corporation, Procter & Gamble (Chengdu) Ltd., Procter & Gamble (China) Ltd., Procter & Gamble (China) Sales Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble (East Africa) Limited, Procter & Gamble (Egypt) Manufacturing Company, Procter & Gamble (Enterprise Fund) Limited, Procter & Gamble (Guangzhou) Consumer Products Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble (Guangzhou) Enterprise Management Service Company Limited, Procter & Gamble (Guangzhou) Ltd., Procter & Gamble (Health & Beauty Care) Limited, Procter & Gamble (Jiangsu) Ltd. China, Procter & Gamble (L&CP) Limited, Procter & Gamble (Malaysia) Sdn Bhd, Procter & Gamble (Manufacturing) Ireland Limited, Procter & Gamble (Shanghai) International Trade Company Ltd., Procter & Gamble (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Acquisition GmbH, Procter & Gamble Administration GmbH, Procter & Gamble Algeria EURL, Procter & Gamble Amazon Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Amiens S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Argentina SRL, Procter & Gamble Asia Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Australia Proprietary Limited, Procter & Gamble Azerbaijan Services LLC, Procter & Gamble Bangladesh Private Ltd., Procter & Gamble Blois S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Brazil Holdings B.V., Procter & Gamble Bulgaria EOOD, Procter & Gamble Business Services Canada Company, Procter & Gamble Canada Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Chile , Procter & Gamble Chile Limitada, Procter & Gamble Colombia Ltda., Procter & Gamble Commercial LLC, Procter & Gamble Commercial de Cuba S.A., Procter & Gamble Czech Republic s.r.o., Procter & Gamble DS Polska Sp. z o.o., Procter & Gamble Danmark ApS, Procter & Gamble Detergent (Beijing) Ltd., Procter & Gamble Deuttschland GmbH, Procter & Gamble Distributing (Philippines) Inc., Procter & Gamble Distributing New Zealand Limited, Procter & Gamble Distribution Company (Europe) BVBA, Procter & Gamble Distribution S.R.L., Procter & Gamble Eastern Europe, Procter & Gamble Ecuador Cia. Ltda., Procter & Gamble Egypt, Procter & Gamble Egypt Distribution, Procter & Gamble Egypt Holding, Procter & Gamble Egypt Supplies, Procter & Gamble Energy Company LLC, Procter & Gamble Espana, Procter & Gamble Europe SA, Procter & Gamble Export Operations SARL, Procter & Gamble Exportadora e Importadora Ltda., Procter & Gamble Exports, Procter & Gamble Fabricacao e Comercio Ltda., Procter & Gamble Far East, Procter & Gamble Finance (U.K.) Ltd., Procter & Gamble Finance Holding Ltd., Procter & Gamble Finance Management S.a.r.l., Procter & Gamble Financial Investments LLP, Procter & Gamble Financial Services Ltd., Procter & Gamble Financial Services S.a.r.l., Procter & Gamble Finland OY, Procter & Gamble France S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Germany GmbH, Procter & Gamble Germany GmbH & Co. Operations oHG, Procter & Gamble GmbH, Procter & Gamble Grundstucks-und Vermogensverwaltungs GmbH & Co. KG, Procter & Gamble Gulf FZE, Procter & Gamble Hair Care, Procter & Gamble Hellas Ltd., Procter & Gamble Holding (Thailand) Limited, Procter & Gamble Holding France S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Holding GmbH, Procter & Gamble Holding S.r.l., Procter & Gamble Holdings (UK) Ltd., Procter & Gamble Home Products Private Limited, Procter & Gamble Hong Kong Limited, Procter & Gamble Hungary Wholesale Trading Partnership (KKT), Procter & Gamble Hygiene & Health Care Limited, Procter & Gamble Inc., Procter & Gamble India Holdings, Procter & Gamble Indochina Limited Company, Procter & Gamble Industrial - 2012 C.A., Procter & Gamble Industrial Colombia Ltda., Procter & Gamble Industrial S.C.A., Procter & Gamble Industrial e Comercial Ltda., Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Costa Rica, Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Guatemala, Procter & Gamble Interamericas de Panama, Procter & Gamble International Operations Pte. Ltd., Procter & Gamble International Operations SA, Procter & Gamble International Operations SA-ROHQ, Procter & Gamble International S.a.r.l., Procter & Gamble Investment Company (UK) Ltd., Procter & Gamble Investment GmbH, Procter & Gamble Italia, Procter & Gamble Japan K.K., Procter & Gamble Kazakhstan Distribution LLP, Procter & Gamble Kazakhstan LLP, Procter & Gamble Korea, Procter & Gamble Korea S&D Co., Procter & Gamble Lanka Private Ltd. Sri Lanka, Procter & Gamble Leasing LLC, Procter & Gamble Levant S.A.L., Procter & Gamble Limited, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing (Thailand) Limited, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing (Tianjin) Co. Ltd., Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Belgium N.V., Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Berlin GmbH, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing GmbH, Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Procter & Gamble Manufacturing SA (Pty) Ltd, Procter & Gamble Marketing Romania SRL, Procter & Gamble Marketing and Services doo, Procter & Gamble Maroc SA, Procter & Gamble Mataro, Procter & Gamble Mexico Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Mexico Inc., Procter & Gamble Middle East FZE, Procter & Gamble Nederland B.V., Procter & Gamble Netherlands Investments B.V., Procter & Gamble Netherlands Services B.V., Procter & Gamble Nigeria Limited, Procter & Gamble Nordic, Procter & Gamble Norge AS, Procter & Gamble Operations Polska Sp. z o.o., Procter & Gamble Overseas India B.V., Procter & Gamble Overseas Ltd., Procter & Gamble Pakistan (Private) Limited, Procter & Gamble Partnership LLP, Procter & Gamble Peru S.R.L., Procter & Gamble Pharmaceuticals France SAS, Procter & Gamble Philippines, Procter & Gamble Polska Sp. z o.o, Procter & Gamble Portugal - Produtos De Consumo, Procter & Gamble Product Supply (U.K.) Limited U.K., Procter & Gamble Production GmbH, Procter & Gamble Productions, Procter & Gamble Productos de Consumo, Procter & Gamble RHD, Procter & Gamble RSC Regional Service Company Ltd., Procter & Gamble Retail Services BVBA, Procter & Gamble S.r.l., Procter & Gamble SA (Pty) Ltd, Procter & Gamble Satis ve Dagitim Ltd. Sti., Procter & Gamble Seine S.A.S., Procter & Gamble Service GmbH, Procter & Gamble Services (Switzerland) SA, Procter & Gamble Services Company N.V., Procter & Gamble Services Ltd., Procter & Gamble Share Incentive Plan Trustee Ltd., Procter & Gamble South America Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Spol. s.r.o. (Ltd.), Procter & Gamble Sports and Social Club Ltd., Procter & Gamble Sverige AB, Procter & Gamble Switzerland SARL, Procter & Gamble Taiwan Limited, Procter & Gamble Taiwan Sales Company Limited, Procter & Gamble Technical Centres Limited, Procter & Gamble Technology (Beijing) Co., Procter & Gamble Trading (Thailand) Limited, Procter & Gamble Tuketim Mallari Sanayii A.S., Procter & Gamble UK, Procter & Gamble UK Group Holdings Ltd, Procter & Gamble UK Parent Company Ltd., Procter & Gamble Universal Holding B.V., Procter & Gamble Verwaltungs GmbH, Procter & Gamble Vietnam, Procter & Gamble d.o.o. za trgovinu, Procter & Gamble de Venezuela S.C.A., Procter & Gamble de Venezuela S.R.L., Procter & Gamble do Brasil S/A, Procter & Gamble do Brazil, Procter & Gamble do Nordeste S/A, Procter & Gamble-Rakona s.r.o., Progam Realty & Development Corporation, Redmond Products, Richardson-Vicks Real Estate Inc., Richardson-Vicks do Brasil Quimica e Farmaceutica Ltda, Riverfront Music Publishing Co., Rosemount LLC, SPD Development Company Limited, SPD Swiss Precision Diagnostics GmbH, Scannon S.A.S., Series Acquisition B.V., Shulton, Surfac S.R.L., Sycamore Productions, TAOS - FL, TAOS Retail, Tambrands Inc., Temple Trees Impex & Investment Private Limited, The Art of Shaving - FL, The Dover Wipes Company, The Gillette Company, The Gillette Company LLC, The Gillette co., The Procter & Gamble Distributing LLC, The Procter & Gamble GBS Company, The Procter & Gamble Global Finance Company, The Procter & Gamble Manufacturing Company, The Procter & Gamble Paper Products Company, The Procter & Gamble U.S. Business Services Company, This is L., US CD LLC, Vidal Sassoon (Shanghai) Academy, Vidal Sassoon Co., WEBA Betriebsrenten-Verwaltungsgesellschaft mbH, Walker & Company Brands, and iMFLUX Inc..
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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, XTO Energy Canada, and XTO Holdings LLC.
Systemax Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a direct marketer of brand name and private label industrial and business equipment and supplies in North America. It sells a range of maintenance, repair, and operation products, including storage and shelving, material handling, janitorial and maintenance products, furniture and office products, workbenches and shop desks, HVAC/R and fans, safety and security products, outdoor and grounds maintenance products, tools and instruments, and office and school supplies. The company also sells plumbing products and pumps, packaging products and supplies, electrical and lighting products, food service products and appliances, raw materials and building supplies, motors and power transmission products, pneumatics and hydraulics, medical and laboratory equipment, metalworking and cutting tools, vehicle maintenance products, and fasteners and hardware. It offers its products under the Global, GlobalIndustrial.com, Nexel Paramount, and Interion brand names. The company offers its products to businesses, educational organizations, and government entities through relationship marketers, catalogs, and e-commerce sites. Systemax Inc. was founded in 1949 and is headquartered in Port Washington, New York.

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Vitamin Shoppe, Inc., through its subsidiaries, operates as a omni-channel specialty retailer and contract manufacturer of nutritional products in the United States and internationally. It operates in two segments, Retail and Manufacturing. The company provides custom manufacturing and private labeling services for vitamin, mineral, and supplement products, as well as develops and markets own branded products. It offers vitamins, minerals, herbs, specialty supplements, sports nutrition products, and other health and wellness products of approximately 900 brands, such as own brands comprising The Vitamin Shoppe, BodyTech, True Athlete, Mytrition, plnt, ProBioCare, Next Step, and Betancourt Nutrition; and national brands, including Optimum Nutrition, Cellucor, Garden of Life, Quest Nutrition, Solaray, Solgar, Megafood, and Nature's Way. The company sells its products through Vitamin Shoppe and Super Supplements retail stores, as well as through its vitaminshoppe.com Website. As of November 7, 2018, it operated 775 company-operated retail stores under the Vitamin Shoppe and Super Supplements retail banners. It also operates franchise stores. The company was formerly known as VS Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. in November 2009. Vitamin Shoppe, Inc. was founded in 1977 and is headquartered in Secaucus, New Jersey.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Bristol-Myers Squibb: 1096271 B.C. ULC, 345 Park LLC, A.G. Medical Services P.A., AHI Investment LLC, AbVitro LLC, Abraxis BioScience Australia Pty Ltd., Abraxis BioScience Inc., Abraxis BioScience International Holding Company Inc., Abraxis BioScience LLC, Abraxis BioScience Puerto Rico LLC, Acetylon Pharmaceuticals Inc., Adnexus, Adnexus a Bristol-Myers Squibb R&D Company, Allard Labs Acquisition G.P., Amira Pharmaceuticals, Amira Pharmaceuticals Inc., Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Apothecon LLC, B-MS Generx Unlimited Company, BMS Benelux Holdings B.V., BMS Bermuda Nominees L.L.C., BMS Data Acquisition Company LLC, BMS Forex Company, BMS Holdings Sarl, BMS Holdings Spain S.L., BMS International Insurance Designated Activity Company, BMS Investco SAS, BMS Korea Holdings L.L.C., BMS Latin American Nominees L.L.C., BMS Luxembourg Partners L.L.C., BMS Omega Bermuda Holdings Finance Ltd., BMS Pharmaceutical Korea Limited, BMS Pharmaceuticals Germany Holdings B.V., BMS Pharmaceuticals International Holdings Netherlands B.V., BMS Pharmaceuticals Korea Holdings B.V., BMS Pharmaceuticals Mexico Holdings B.V., BMS Pharmaceuticals Netherlands Holdings B.V., BMS Real Estate LLC, BMS Spain Investments LLC, BMS Strategic Portfolio Investments Holdings Inc., Blisa Acquisition G.P., Bristol (Iran) S.A., Bristol Iran Private Company Limited, Bristol Laboratories Inc., Bristol Laboratories International S.A., Bristol Laboratories Medical Information Systems Inc., Bristol-Myers (Andes) L.L.C., Bristol-Myers (Private) Limited, Bristol-Myers Middle East S.A.L., Bristol-Myers Overseas Corporation, Bristol-Myers Squibb (China) Investment Co. Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (China) Pharmaceuticals Co. Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (Israel) Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (NZ) Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb (Proprietary) Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (Singapore) Pte. Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb (Taiwan) Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb (West Indies) Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb A.E., Bristol-Myers Squibb Aktiebolag, Bristol-Myers Squibb Argentina S. R. L., Bristol-Myers Squibb Australia Pty. Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb Axia Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb B.V., Bristol-Myers Squibb Belgium S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb Business Services Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Canada Co., Bristol-Myers Squibb Canada International Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Delta Company Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Denmark Filial of Bristol-Myers Squibb AB, Bristol-Myers Squibb EMEA Sarl, Bristol-Myers Squibb Egypt LLC, Bristol-Myers Squibb Epsilon Holdings Unlimited Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Farmaceutica Ltda., Bristol-Myers Squibb Farmaceutica Portuguesa S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb GesmbH, Bristol-Myers Squibb GmbH & Co. KGaA, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holding Germany GmbH & Co. KG, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings 2002 Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings Germany Verwaltungs GmbH, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings Ireland Unlimited Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Holdings Pharma Ltd. Liability Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Ilaclari Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb India Pvt. Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb International Company Unlimited Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb International Corporation, Bristol-Myers Squibb Investco L.L.C., Bristol-Myers Squibb K.K., Bristol-Myers Squibb Kft., Bristol-Myers Squibb Luxembourg International S.C.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb Luxembourg S.a.r.l., Bristol-Myers Squibb MEA GmbH, Bristol-Myers Squibb Manufacturing Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Marketing Services S.R.L., Bristol-Myers Squibb Middle East & Africa FZ-LLC, Bristol-Myers Squibb Norway Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb Nutricionales de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Bristol-Myers Squibb Peru S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma (HK) Ltd, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma (Thailand) Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma EEIG, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma Holding Company LLC, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharma Ventures Corporation, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceuticals Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Pharmaceuticals Unlimited Company, Bristol-Myers Squibb Polska Sp. z o.o., Bristol-Myers Squibb Products SA, Bristol-Myers Squibb Puerto Rico Inc., Bristol-Myers Squibb Puerto Rico/Sanofi Pharmaceutical Partnership Puerto Rico, Bristol-Myers Squibb Romania S.R.L., Bristol-Myers Squibb S.A.U., Bristol-Myers Squibb S.r.l., Bristol-Myers Squibb SA, Bristol-Myers Squibb Sanofi Pharmaceuticals Holding Partnership, Bristol-Myers Squibb Sarl, Bristol-Myers Squibb Service Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb Services Sp. z o.o., Bristol-Myers Squibb Spol. s r.o., Bristol-Myers Squibb Theta Finance Ltd., Bristol-Myers Squibb Trustees Limited, Bristol-Myers Squibb Verwaltungs GmbH, Bristol-Myers Squibb de Colombia S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb de Costa Rica Sociedad Anonima, Bristol-Myers Squibb de Guatemala S.A., Bristol-Myers Squibb de Mexico S. de R.L. de C.V., Bristol-Myers Squibb/Astrazeneca EEIG, Bristol-Myers Squibb/Pfizer EEIG, Bristol-Myers Squibb/Sanofi Pharmaceuticals Partnership, Bristol-Myers de Venezuela S.C.A., CHT I LLC, CHT II LLC, CHT III LLC, CHT IV LLC, CR Finance Company LLC, Cardioxyl Pharmaceuticals, Cardioxyl Pharmaceuticals Inc., Celem LLC, Celem Ltd., Celgene, Celgene A.B., Celgene AS, Celgene Ab (Finland), Celgene Alpine Investment Co. II LLC, Celgene Alpine Investment Co. III LLC, Celgene Alpine Investment Co. LLC, Celgene ApS, Celgene B.V., Celgene BVBA, Celgene Brasil Produtos Farmaceuticos Ltda., Celgene CAR LLC, Celgene CAR Ltd., Celgene Chemicals Sarl, Celgene China Holdings LLC, Celgene Co., Celgene Corporation, Celgene Distribution B.V., Celgene EngMab GmbH, Celgene Europe B.V., Celgene Europe Limited, Celgene European Investment Company LLC, Celgene Financing Company LLC, Celgene Global Holdings Sarl, Celgene GmbH [Austria], Celgene GmbH [Germany], Celgene GmbH [Switzerland], Celgene Holdings East Corporation, Celgene Holdings II Sarl, Celgene Holdings III Sarl, Celgene Ilac Pazarlama ve Ticaret Limited Sirketi, Celgene Inc., Celgene International Holdings Corporation, Celgene International II Sarl, Celgene International III Sarl, Celgene International Inc., Celgene International Sarl, Celgene K.K., Celgene Kft., Celgene Limited [Hong Kong], Celgene Limited [Ireland], Celgene Limited [New Zealand], Celgene Limited [Taiwan], Celgene Limited [UK], Celgene Logistics Sarl, Celgene Ltd, Celgene Luxembourg Sarl, Celgene Management Sarl, Celgene NJ Investment Co, Celgene Netherlands B.V., Celgene Netherlands Investment B.V., Celgene Pharmaceutical (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Celgene Pte. Ltd., Celgene Pty Ltd, Celgene Puerto Rico Distribution LLC, Celgene Quanticel Research Inc, Celgene R&D Sarl, Celgene RIVOT LLC, Celgene RIVOT Ltd., Celgene RIVOT SRL, Celgene Receptos Limited, Celgene Receptos Sarl, Celgene Research Incubator At Summit West LLC, Celgene Research S.L.U., Celgene Research and Development Company LLC, Celgene Research and Development I ULC, Celgene Research and Development II LLC, Celgene Research and Investment Company II LLC, Celgene S. de R.L. de C.V., Celgene S.L.U., Celgene S.R.L., Celgene SAS, Celgene Sarl AU, Celgene Sdn Bhd, Celgene Services Sarl, Celgene Sociedade Unipessoal Lda, Celgene Sp. Z.o.o., Celgene Sro [Czech Republic], Celgene Summit Investment Co, Celgene Switzerland Holding Sarl, Celgene Switzerland II LLC, Celgene Switzerland Investment Sarl, Celgene Switzerland LLC, Celgene Switzerland Sarl, Celgene Tri A Holdings Ltd., Celgene Tri Sarl, Celgene UK Distribution Limited, Celgene UK Holdings Limited, Celgene UK Manufacturing II Limited, Celgene UK Manufacturing III Limited, Celgene UK Manufacturing Limited, Celgene d.o.o., Celgene sro [Slovakia], Celmed LLC, Celmed Ltd., ConvaTec Divestiture, Cormorant Pharmaceuticals, Cormorant Pharmaceuticals AB, Crosp Ltd., Delinia Inc., Deuteria Pharmaceuticals Inc., DuPont Pharmaceuticals, E. R. Squibb & Sons Inter-American Corporation, E. R. Squibb & Sons L.L.C., E. R. Squibb & Sons Limited, EWI Corporation, EngMab Sarl, F-star Alpha, FermaVir Pharmaceuticals L.L.C., FermaVir Research L.L.C., Flexus Biosciences, Flexus Biosciences Inc., Forbius, Galecto Biotech, GenPharm International L.L.C., Gloucester Pharmaceuticals LLC, Grove Insurance Company Ltd., Heyden Farmaceutica Portuguesa Limitada, IFM Therapeutics, Impact Biomedicines Inc., Inhibitex, Inhibitex L.L.C., Innate Tumor Immunity Inc., JuMP Holdings LLC, Juno Therapeutics GmbH, Juno Therapeutics Inc., Kosan Biosciences, Kosan Biosciences Incorporated, Linson Investments Limited, Mead Johnson (Manufacturing) Jamaica Limited, Mead Johnson Jamaica Ltd., Medarex, Morris Avenue Investment II LLC, Morris Avenue Investment LLC, MyoKardia, O.o.o. Bristol-Myers Squibb, Oy Bristol-Myers Squibb (Finland) AB, Padlock Therapeutics, Padlock Therapeutics Inc., Pharmion LLC, Princeton Pharmaceutical Products Inc., Receptos LLC, Receptos Services LLC, RedoxTherapies Inc., Route 22 Real Estate Holding Corporation, SPV A Holdings ULC, Seamair Insurance DAC, Signal Pharmaceuticals LLC, Sino-American Shanghai Squibb Pharmaceuticals Limited, Societe Francaise de Complements Alimentaires(S.O.F.C.A.), Squibb Middle East S.A., Summit West Celgene LLC, Swords Laboratories, VentiRx Pharmaceuticals Inc., Westwood-Intrafin SA, Westwood-Squibb Pharmaceuticals Inc., X-Body Inc., ZymoGenetics, ZymoGenetics Inc., ZymoGenetics LLC, ZymoGenetics Paymaster LLC, iPierian, and iPierian Inc..
Deutsche BArse AG operates as an exchange organization in Europe, the United States, and the Asia-Pacific. The company operates through seven segments: Eurex (Financial Derivatives), EEX (Commodities), 360T (Foreign Exchange), Xetra (Cash Equities), Clearstream (Post-Trading), IFS (Investment Fund Services), and Qontigo (index and analytics business). The company engages in the electronic trading of derivatives, electricity and gas products, emission rights, and foreign exchange; operating of Eurex Repo over the counter (OTC) trading platform and electronic clearing architecture; and operating as a central counterparty for on-and-off exchange derivatives, repo transactions, and OTC and exchange-traded derivatives. It also operates in the cash market through Xetra, BArse Frankfurt, and Tradegate trading venues; operates as a central counterparty for equities and bonds; and provides listing services. In addition, the company offers custody and settlement services for securities; investment fund services; global securities financing services; and global securities finance and collateral management, as well as secured money, market transaction, and repos and securities lending transaction services. Further, it develops and markets indices, as well as portfolio management and risk analysis software; markets licenses for trading and market signals; provides technology and reporting solutions for external customers; and offers link-up of trading participants. Deutsche BArse AG was founded in 1585 and is headquartered in Eschborn, Germany.

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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.

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Unum Group is engaged in providing financial protection benefits. It operates through the following segments: Unum US, Unum International, Colonial Life, Closed Block and Corporate. The Unum US segment comprises of group long-term and short-term disability insurance, group life and accidental death and dismemberment products, and supplemental and voluntary lines of business. The Unum International segment engages in the operations of UK business, which includes insurance for group long-term disability, group life, and supplemental lines of business that include dental, individual disability, and critical illness products; Poland business primarily includes insurance for individual and group life with accident and health riders. The Colonial Life segment includes insurance for accident, sickness, disability products, life products, and cancer and critical illness products. The Closed Block segment consists of individual disability, group and individual long-term care, and other insurance products no longer actively marketed. The Corporate segment refers to investment income on corporate assets and other corporate income and expenses not allocated to a line of business; and interest

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The LIC board will meet on Tuesday to decide on the modalities for increasing stake in debt-ridden IDBI Bank to 51 per cent, a move that will provide the insurance behemoth entry into the banking space.

New Delhi: The LIC board will meet on Tuesday to decide on the modalities for increasing stake in debt-ridden IDBI Bank to 51 per cent, a move that will provide the insurance behemoth entry into the banking space.

The board will discuss timeline for the open offer, board-level appointments and future strategy for revitalising IDBI Bank, sources said.

Besides, sources said, the board will also authorise Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) to appoint a merchant banker and a legal advisor to carry out the acquisition process.

The board will also ask the insurer to do due diligence of the bank and then proceed for various regulatory clearances, sources added.

Meanwhile, LIC is in the process of picking up additional 7 per cent stake in IDBI Bank through preference shares. With this, total holding in the bank would rise to 14.9 per cent. At present, LIC holds 7.98 per cent stake in the public sector bank.

The stake increase by LIC will help the lender to meet the intimidate capital requirement that will enable IDBI Bank to meet regulatory norms at the end of second quarter.

In August, the Union Cabinet had approved LIC's proposed acquisition of up to 51 per cent stake in debt-ridden IDBI Bank.

The bank, in which the government holds 85.96 per cent stake, had posted a net loss of Rs 2,409.89 crore in the quarter ending June 2018. It had a gross non-performing asset (NPA) of about Rs 57,807 crore.

The board of Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority of India (Irdai), at its meeting held in Hyderabad in June, had permitted LIC to increase its stake from 10.82 per cent to 51 per cent in IDBI Bank.

As per current regulations, an insurance company cannot own more than 15 per cent in any listed financial firm.

LIC has been looking to enter the banking space by acquiring a majority stake in IDBI Bank as the deal is expected to provide business synergies despite the lender's stressed balance sheet.

With the culmination of the deal, LIC will get about 2,000 branches by which it can sell its products, while the bank would get massive funds of LIC.
Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) on Monday made an offering of Rs 1.1 crore to the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara at nearby Tirumala. (Photo: PTI)

Tirupati: Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) on Monday made an offering of Rs 1.1 crore to the famous hill shrine of Lord Venkateswara at nearby Tirumala.

It also requested that the money be used for the temple-run Sri Venkateswara Praanadaana Trust here. A representative of the company handed over a Demand Draft of Rs 1.1 crore to a temple official.

The donation would be utilised for the SV Pranadana Trust that was established in 2001, a temple official told PTI. The trust was set up to provide free medical facilities at the temple run Super Speciality Hospital here for those suffering from life-threatening diseases.
Their father, Dimas Coronado, 47, is a person of interest in the disappearance of the children, according to Sergeant Armando Carbajal of the Phoenix Police Department.

According to the amber alert, Phoenix was taken into a dark or black sedan with dark tinted windows, but police are also searching for a red, older model mini-van.

"He is considered armed and unsafe", Sgt. Armando Carbajal of the Phoenix Police Department told the station in an email.

Authorities in Arizona are searching for a man who they say killed the mother of his two little boys and another man before abducting them on Saturday. Still, police consider him armed and risky, the Arizona Republic reported. Phoenix police have developed probable cause to arrest Coronado for three counts of homicide, including Nunez, Gonzalez, and Nunez's unborn child. 1 for two young brothers and their biological father missing since the boys' mother and a male housemate were found fatally shot in the Phoenix home where police said the victims and boys lived. They were pronounced dead shortly after.

The mother and Coronado were married but became estranged, and it's not clear whether they remained married, Carbajal said. He has black hair and brown eyes. The truck has a State of Chihuahua license plate with the number ZUD 7164.

The female, Oralia Nunez, was 24 years old and believed to be the boys' mother.

Police were initially looking for Coronado's white Chevrolet pick-up truck, but found it near the house Saturday with no sign of the boys or their father.

Victor is described as 4 feet tall, brown eyes and black hair.

"Dimas Coronado is described as a Hispanic male, 46, 5'6", 190 lbs, with a mustache, brown eyes and gray hair, wearing glasses at times.

Authorities are encouraging the public to contact the Phoenix Police Department at 602-262-6151 or Silent Witness at either 480-WITNESS (948-6377) or 1-800-343-TIPS (8477).
During Q4, Wipro signed a strategic partnership with Alight Solutions to acquire its India operations for $117 million.

Bangaluru: Wipro Limited has won its largest-ever single deal. The tech major bagged a 10-year contract from Illinois-based Alight Solutions LLC, the company said on Sunday. The deal will bring revenues in the range of $1.5 billion to $1.6 billion for the company over the next 10 years.

Clearly, this is Wipros largest win to date. In 2014, it signed a $1.1 billion outsourcing deal with a Canadian logistics firm ATCO for 10 years that will be ending in 2024.

Under the new engagement, Wipro will provide a comprehensive suite of solutions and services to Alight Solutions, a leader in technology-enabled health, wealth, HR and finance solutions. It will also enable digital transformation of Alights offerings across health, wealth, HR and finance solutions, and enhance the employee experience of Alights clients by leveraging Wipros industry-leading strengths in digital technologies, cognitive automation and data analytics.

During Q4, Wipro signed a strategic partnership with Alight Solutions to acquire its India operations for $117 million. Alight has delivery centres in Gurgaon, Noida, Mumbai and Chennai.

Commenting on Sundays mega deal, Wipro CEO and ED Abidali Z Neemuchwala, said, We are delighted to be chosen by Alight as their long-term strategic partner in their enterprise transformation journey to bring digital experiences and offerings to employees and employers globally. This is testimony to the capabilities we have built through our strategic investments in Wipro Digital, cloud platforms and cognitive platform Wipro HOLMES.

Chris Michalak, CEO, Alight Solutions, said, Our industry-leading partnership with Wipro will enhance our client experience by drawing on Wipros leading position in automation and innovation, while allowing Alight to invest in its health, wealth and cloud-based solutions to meet the needs of our clients,.

Analyst community believes that the problem with Wipro is the inordinate amount of time it has been spe-nding in internal restructuring that begun four years ago and is still not completed.

However, Phil Fersht, CEO of Seattle-based HfS Research said, Wipro took hard punches early on and this deal will help it reap some rewards now.
Mumbai: Shahid Kapoor shot for his next film Batti Gul Meter Chalu directed by Shree Narayan Singh in Tehri, Uttarakhand. While shooting they stayed at a hotel with bare necessities and no luxuries, instead of a five-star hotel. Shahid being a fitness freak had set up his gym at the hotel they stayed.

According to a source, "As this small hotel had no fitness facilities, he set up his own gym on the premises. His instructor had taken a lot of expensive equipment from Mumbai and set them up in a room. A day before they packed up, the hotel guys requested Shahid to leave his gym equipment behind for them and other guests."

Shahid agreed and the hotel bought the equipment from the actor.

Batti Gul Meter Chalu also stars Shraddha Kapoor, Yami Gautam and Divyendu Sharma. The film produced by T-Series and Kriti Pictures is slated to release on 21st September.
Aamir Khan will be next seen in 'Thugs of Hindostan.'

Mumbai: Beat your Sunday night blues with Bollywood actor Aamir Khan's special Instagram post.

Ending his weekend in a perfect way, Aamir took to his Instagram account to share an adorable picture of wife Kiran Rao and son Azad Rao Khan, captioning it as "Lazy Sunday". Well, don't we all love Lazy Sundays?

Lazy Sunday A post shared by Aamir Khan (@_aamirkhan) on Sep 1, 2018 at 9:30pm PDT

Efficiently balancing his personal and professional life, Aamir always make sure to spend some quality time with his wife and children.

On the work front, the multi-talented actor will be next seen in the Vijay Krishna directorial 'Thugs of Hindostan', scheduled to release on November 7.

The star cast of the film also includes Amitabh Bachchan, Katrina Kaif, and Fatima Sana Shaikh.
The director has confirmed the senior actor to step in as the father of Salman Khan for the period film.

Mumbai: The cast of Ali Abbas Zafar directorial Bharat gets bigger as Jackie Shroff joins the team as Salman Khan's father.

The director has confirmed the senior actor to step in as the father of Salman Khan for the period film.

Bharat depicts the eternal bond shared by a father and son, which is quite evident in the teaser. Dropped on Independence day, the teaser spread like a wild fire creating a frenzy across quarters raising the anticipation for the film.

Talking about Jackie Shroff, director Ali Abbas Zafar shares, "We met Jaggu da in London and discussed his dates and looks. I have wanted to work with him for a long time as I feel he is the perfect amalgamation of a star and actor. I was very glad as Jackie sir instantly agreed with the story to do the film in just 20 mins of narration."

The film that traces the journey 60 years, boasts of an ensemble cast with names like Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Disha Patani, Sunil Grover, Tabu and Jackie Shroff.

After wrapping the first schedule in Mumbai, the team has recently concluded the second schedule in Malta. The cast has been sharing pictures from the sets piquing the interests of the audience for the much anticipated film.

Bharat shot for a grand circus sequence in the first schedule with a song choreographed by Vaibhavi Merchant featuring Salman Khan and Disha Patani. The film showcases Disha Patani as a trapeze artist and involves action sequences and stunts with fire for which the actress geared up months before the film went on floors.

Pictures of Salman Khan doing daredevil stunts on a motorbike amidst a ring of fire in the circus set up added to the excitement of the film.

Recently, Salman Khan shared a still fetauring himself and Katrina Kaif which looked straight out of a fairy tale, which became the talk of the town in no time.

Bharat's release brings back Salman Khan and director Ali Abbas Zafar for an Eid release after the 2016 Blockbuster Hit, Sultan. The hit director-actor duo will be marking a hattrick with Bharat after their last outing Tiger Zinda Hai.

Salman Khan will yet again treat the audience on the festive season of Eid next year with the release of Bharat.

The film will feature Salman Khan sporting five different looks spanning 60 years, wherein a crucial part will showcase the actor in his late 20s, looking much leaner and younger. Salman Khan will be recreating his 'Karan-Arjun' look which has created immense excitement amongst the audience.

The film is set to have a character-driven story spanning across many periods. Bharat will be shot across exotic locations in Malta and Abu Dhabi, besides Punjab and Delhi.

Directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, 'Bharat' is produced by Atul Agnihotri's Reel Life Production Pvt. Ltd and Bhushan Kumar's T-Series releasing Eid 2019.
Following the massive floods that caused large-scale devastation in the state of Kerala, there has been an outpouring of support from the entire country. And legendary music composer AR Rahman is the latest celebrity to chip in. After singing a song to raise awareness about the plight of the Kerala, Rahman and his team of artistes, who are currently touring the USA, have donated Rs 1 crore to Gods Own Country.

Sharing the news on Facebook, the maestro writes, From my artistes and me touring the USA to our brothers and sisters of Kerala! May this small offering help in providing you some relief! (sic).

And his generosity doesnt end there. Reportedly, Rahmans concert to be held on September 9 at Orlandos CFEs Arena will be a charity fundraiser for Kerala flood victims. He was accompanied on the occasion by Javed Ali, Hariharan, Mano, Udit Narayanan, Ranjith Barot, Jonita Gandhi and Neeti Mohan.

HT03
People watch as flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (Photo: AP)

Rio De Janeiro: A massive fire tore through a 200-year-old museum in Rio de Janeiro late Sunday, lighting up the night and sending plumes of smoke into the air as firefighters tried to save historical relics from the flames.

The esteemed National Museum in northern Rio, which houses artefacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman art and some of the first fossils found in Brazil, was closed to the public at the time of the fire and there were no reports of injuries, it said in a statement.

It wasn't immediately clear how the fire began. The museum said the blaze began around 7:30 pm.

Flames engulf the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil, in Rio de Janeiro, Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. According to its website, the museum has thousands of items related to the history of Brazil and other countries. The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro. (Photo: AP)

President Michel Temer said it was "a sad day for all Brazilians."

"Two hundred years of work, investigation and knowledge have been lost," Temer said in a statement.

According to the museum's website, it has more than 20,000 items related to the history of Brazil and other countries, and that many of its collections came from members of Brazil's royal family.

Roberto Robadey, a spokesman for the fire department, said 80 firefighters were working to put out the blaze and that some pieces had been spared.

"We were able to remove a lot of things from inside with the help of workers of the museum," he told Globo News.

Connected to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, the museum has expositions that include anthropology, archaeology and paleontology, among others.

The vice director of the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, told Globo news the museum suffered chronic underfunding.

"Everybody wants to be supportive now. We never had adequate support," he said.

Latin America's largest nation has struggled to emerge from its worst recession in decades. The state of Rio de Janeiro has been particularly hard hit in recent years thanks to a combination of falling world prices of oil, one of its major revenue sources, mismanagement and massive corruption.

Just over a month before national elections, even before the flames were put out, the fire was leading to recriminations about dilapidated infrastructure and budget deficits in the city that hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics.

"Unfortunately, given the financial straits of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and all the other public universities the last three years, this was a tragedy that could be seen coming," Marina Silva, one of the leading presidential candidates, tweeted.

On Instagram, Rio Mayor Marcelo Crivella called on the country to rebuild.

"It's a national obligation to reconstruct it from the ashes, recompose every eternal detail of the paintings and photos. Even if they are not original, they continue to be a reminder of the royal family that gave us independence, the (Portuguese) empire and the first constitution and national unity," he said.
Excavations have revealed a network of tunnels used for Christian worship, marked with crosses and references to Kyrie Iesou, a Greek phrase meaning Lord Jesus.

In a revelation of Biblical proportions, academics claim to have solved the millennia-old mystery, bolstering the case for the New Testaments historical accuracy.

According to a news published in Daily Star, the Gospel of John, Jesus Christ had turned water into wine during the Wedding at Cana.

The account goes that Jesus, his mother Mary and his disciples were invited to a wedding, and when the wine ran out, Jesus delivered a sign of his glory by turning water into wine.

While pilgrims have, for hundreds of years, believed the miracle site to be Kafr Kanna, a town in northern Israel near the Sea of Galilee, archaeologists now believe the Cana of biblical times to actually be a dusty hillside five miles further north.

According to academics, a number of compelling clues suggest the site is actually Khirbet Qana, a Jewish village which existed between the years of 323 BC and AD 324.

Excavations have revealed a network of tunnels used for Christian worship, marked with crosses and references to Kyrie Iesou, a Greek phrase meaning Lord Jesus.

There was also an altar and a shelf with the remains of a stone vessel, plus room for five more.

Six stone jars like this held the wine in the biblical account of the miracle.

According to Dr Tom McCollough, who is directing excavations at the site, there were three other sites with a credible claim to being the Cana of scripture.

But none has the ensemble of evidence that makes such a persuasive case for Khirbet Qana, he said according to Daily Star.

He went on to add, We have uncovered a large Christian veneration cave complex that was used by Christian pilgrims who came to venerate the water-to-wine miracle.

Dr McCollough went on to add that the complex was used at the beginning of the late fifth or early 6th Century and continued to be used by pilgrims into the 12th Century Crusader period.

The pilgrim texts we have from this period that describe what pilgrims did and saw when they came to Cana of Galilee match very closely what we have exposed as the veneration complex, he said.

As part of his evidence, Dr McCollough points to the work of first-century Jewish historian Flavius Josephus.

He said that Josphus references to Cana align geographically with the location of Khirbet Qana and align logically with his movements.

As for the better-known site at Kafr Kanna, Dr McCollough is sceptical.
Washington: Cheating in exams and submissions always seems like an easier option. This has become much more convenient with technological development where students now can even hire people to write their papers for them.

According to a latest study, the use of contract cheating, where students pay someone else to write their assignments is rising rapidly around the world.

The researchers analysed 71 survey samples from 65 studies dating back as far as 1978, covering 54,514 participants. This new study systematically reviewed findings from prior 'self-report' research papers, questionnaire-based studies wherein students were asked if they had ever paid someone else to undertake work for them.

Because the products of essay-mills, a business that enables customers to buy an original piece of writing on a particular topic, hence commit academic fraud, are designed to be difficult to detect, it is hard to develop objective measures of contract cheating.

This new study therefore systematically reviewed findings from prior 'self-report' research papers; questionnaire-based studies wherein students were asked if they had ever paid someone else to undertake work for them.

The findings of the research show that as many as one in seven recent graduates may have paid someone to undertake their assignment for them, potentially representing 31 million students across the globe.

Across the sample, contract cheating was self-reported by a historic average of 3.5 per cent of students, but this was shown to be increasing significantly over time.

In studies from 2014 to the present, the percentage of students admitting to paying someone else to undertake their work was 15.7 per cent. Cheating, in general, also appeared to be on the rise according to the studies reviewed.

Professor Newton, one of the researchers, suggested that the data he found is likely to underestimate levels of contract cheating, for the simple reason that students who engage in contract cheating are less likely to volunteer to participate in surveys about cheating.

Essay-mills are currently legal in the UK, although they are banned in the USA and New Zealand, while other countries are actively developing legislation.

Professor Newton, director of learning and teaching at Swansea University Medical School said, "These findings underscore the need for legislation to tackle essay-mills, alongside improvements in the way students are assessed and awareness-raising of the fundamentals of academic integrity. We need to utilise assessment methods that promote learning and at the same time reduce the likelihood that contract cheating can happen."

Earlier research from Professor Newton showed that academic integrity is not a topic that is routinely covered in teacher training programmes for staff and that students have a poor understanding of the consequences of engaging in contract cheating.

The full findings are present in the journal- Frontiers in Education.
85-year-old Ruth Rose is proud to be Britain's oldest person to have had gender reassignment surgery.

She opted for the surgery four years ago after doctors gave her the green light to be able to undergo the full procedure, The Sun reported.

"It is only in the past 15 years that this has become acceptable. Before that people thought it was just for freaks," she told the BBC.

Ruth went by the name James before she came out after retirement. Rose was an ex-RAF navigator, mechanical engineer and financial consultant.

She had even gone on to marry but her wife discovered pictures of her wearing women's wear in 1973. They eventually divorced in 2003.

Ruth revealed she wanted to be a female when she was nine-years-old.

The NHS funded the 4,000 cost of the surgery, which she did not expect. "I was surprised to be given the chance for a medical transition. Its like starting my life all over," she revealed.
Police reached the spot after a villager found Sahu being tied to a tree in an unconscious state. (Representational Image)

Bhopal: A 35-year-old man was tied to a tree by a family of five and his arms were chopped off at a village in Raisen in Madhya Pradesh after he strayed in search of missing cows.

On Sunday, Prem Narayan Sahu went to Sattu Yadavs farm to look for his cows missing since Friday evening. When Sahu inquired about his cows, Sattu ignored, but soon a heated ensued between the two during which Sahu hurled abuses at Sattu.

Minutes after this, family members of Sattu joined the brawl. They caught Sahu and tied him to a tree and after beating him mercilessly, they chopped off his arms with a sword. One arm was severed completely.

Sahu cried loud for help but some villagers gathered there stood mute spectators to the assault.

"When the victim entered the residential premises of Sattu Yadav in order to inquire about his missing cow, a fight followed and the two started abusing each other," NDTV reported police officer Rajendra Kumar Dhurve saying.

Police reached the spot after a villager found Sahu being tied to a tree in an unconscious state.

There was lots of blood on the spot. We untied him, collected the severed arm and sent him to a government hospital from where he was referred to Bhopal for further treatment. He is said to be in a critical condition, The Times of India quoted a police officer saying.

Two men  Sattu Yadav and Rajpal Yadav - have been arrested while three others identified as Shakul Bai, Rahul and Ramu are on the run.

The family has been charged with attempted murder.
Autopsies showed that both children were "entirely healthy, with no genetic abnormalities, no diseases, and no injuries". The little girl died four days later.

Among the search terms: "how to commit the flawless murder", "ways to suffocate', "ways to kill human with no proof", "best ways to suffocate", "16 steps to kill someone and not get caught", "can drowning show in an autopsy report", "drowning and forensics" and "suffocating and smothering". LaFountain told dispatchers that her 4-month-old child wasn't breathing.

"This is just an unimaginable tragedy", Fairbanks Police Chief Eric Jewkes said at a press conference. She will make her first court appearance on Friday.

Amid their investigation into the death of LaFountain's second child, forensic teams uncovered a series of suspicious search entries logged on the mother's computer just an hour before she called 911.

When LaFountain's 4-month-old died September 15, 2015, police thought it was an accident, an isolated tragedy. She's a high risk prisoner, and her bail is set at 2 million dollars.

As she did with the 13-month-old, LaFountain called emergency responders and said the baby had stopped breathing.

Fairbanks detectives took the case from U.S. Army Criminal Investigation Command because the child and her mother were not in the military, according to a police statement. Fairbanks police say that Stephany LaFountain's online searches before the death of her second child are more than revealing. When questioned about her wages, LaFountain said she wasn't sure how much she made previous year but had recently received a raise and made $1,600 every two weeks. The father, who had been deployed, returned on emergency leave, police said.

He praised detectives who he said spent thousands of hours investigating the case in a five-person department that handled several other homicides in the course of the investigation.

Jewkes thanked the family for keeping silent over the nine months it took to investigate the case and arrest Lafountain. Cops say the woman called her husband's family, who rushed to her home and started CPR on the girl.

The child's death caused investigators to look into the death of LaFountain's other child in 2015. Lafountain also searched whether drowning could show up in an autopsy report, "suffocating and smothering" and how to commit the ideal murder, police said.

The father of the 4-month-old was a former boyfriend of Stephany LaFountain, police said.

When LaFountain appeared over CCTV at the jail for her August 31 arraignment, according to reporting from The Daily News Miner, she was wearing an anti-suicide smock.
According to the police, R Ashik, I Jafar Sadiq Ali, S Ismail, S Samsudeen and S Shalavuddin were detained by the sleuths of Special Intelligence Unit at Coimbatore railway junction on Saturday afternoon. (Representational Image)

Coimbatore: The Special Investigation Unit of the Coimbatore police arrested five Muslim youth who had hatched a plot to murder Hindu Makkal Katchi (HMK) leader Arjun Sampath and Hindu Munnani leader Mookambikai Mani among others.

According to the police, R Ashik, I Jafar Sadiq Ali, S Ismail, S Samsudeen and S Shalavuddin were detained by the sleuths of Special Intelligence Unit at Coimbatore railway junction on Saturday afternoon.

Acting on a tip off, the police detained four people who arrived here from Chennai, on Saturday. Another person who had come to receive them was also picked up for questioning.

The police interrogated them for over 24 hours after which they were arrested and produced before Fast Track Court I. They have been remanded in judicial custody toll September 4.

Security to the leaders of the Hindu Munnani, Sakthi Sena and allied outfits has been increased by the police, sources said. The conspiracy was unearthed after closely following their social media activities, the release added.

All the five were booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and conspiracy.
Officials said around 100 French aviators, one Atlas A-400M military transport aircraft, one C-135 refuelling plane and an Airbus A310 cargo aircraft have also come to India along with the Rafale jets on a four-day visit. (Representational Image)

New Delhi: Three Rafale fighter jets are engaged in an exercise with the Indian Air Force in Gwalior and Agra, amid a raging controversy over the Rs 58,000-crore deal to procure 36 of them by the government.

Officials said around 100 French aviators, one Atlas A-400M military transport aircraft, one C-135 refuelling plane and an Airbus A310 cargo aircraft have also come to India along with the Rafale jets on a four-day visit.

They said a batch of IAF pilots have got an opportunity to train on the Rafale jets. The aircraft landed in India on Saturday after visiting Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam and Singapore.

India had inked an inter-governmental agreement with France in September 2016 for procurement of 36 Rafale fighter jets at a cost of around Rs 58,000 crore.

The delivery of the jets is scheduled to begin from September 2019.

The Congress has raised several questions about the deal including alleged inflated rate of the aircraft but the government has rejected the charges.

In a statement, the French embassy in the national capital said that joint flights and exchanges between the French and Indian Air Forces will be conducted as part of the four-day tour by the French contingent.

"This mission in India is yet another illustration of the depth of the Indo-French strategic partnership, which is celebrating its twentieth anniversary this year, and the great trust that prevails in the relations between our respective armed forces, it said.

It said operational aim of the 'Mision PEGASE' is to reinforce France's presence in the region of strategic interest and deepen its relations with its main partner countries.

The French contingent is here days after it participated in 'Operation Pitch Black', a multilateral air exercises which took place in Australia recently. The Indian Air Force was also part of the mega exercise.

"This mission succeeds a major exercise in Australia, where our aircraft have carried out joint drills with those of the Indian Air Force," the French Embassy said.

A senior IAF official said the visit of the Rafale jets as well as other aircraft will further boost cooperation between the two forces.
Bhopal: A day after unidentified miscreants hurled stones at his vehicle, Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan termed the attack unprecedented and accused the Congress party of baying for his blood.

Addressing reporters, Chouhan labelled charges against the Congress saying, "The Congress is clearly baying for my blood. Such an attack is unheard of in Madhya Pradesh. There are differences of opinion, ideologies, but this is an unprecedented one."

Chouhan is busy touring the state ahead of the assembly polls later this year.

"I want to ask Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and Congress state president, in which direction do they wish to take the Congress? Is it fine with what their leaders and workers are doing?" the chief minister asked while tearing into the top brass of the Congress party.

On Sunday, stones were hurled at Chouhan's vehicle while he was conducting the 'Jan Aashirwad Yatra' in the state's Sidhi district. The incident reportedly occurred in Churhat area in the assembly constituency of Congress' Ajay Singh.
Bengaluru: Congress general secretary in-charge of Karnataka K.C. Venugopal on Sunday disclosed that the party will organise a week-long protest from September 6 -15 across the state to create public awareness about the failures of the Bharatiya Janata Party led NDA government's ill-timed policies like demonetisation and the controversial Rafale deal.

Speaking to reporters after holding a series of meetings with party leaders here, Mr Venugopal said, The protest will be launched simultaneously in the state in order to ensure a systematic campaign against the Union government's failures. The Rafale deal will be our main focus, but we will not let go of issues that are affecting farmers; price rise and unemployment too will be part of this campaign.

According to him, the Union government is under tremendous pressure owing to the Congress party's demand to constitute a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to look into the Rafale deal. The union government under Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, is petrified to even discuss this. Defence Minister, Nirmala Sitharaman misguiding Parliament on the issue is still fresh in people's minds," he said. Hitting out at the Prime Minister, Mr Venugopal stressed that demonetisation was a complete disaster which wrecked the informal economy besides killing several hundreds across the country. Where is the black money which he had promised to bring to light? Demonetisation was showcased as the biggest assault on black money. But on the contrary, it turned out to be a major assault on the country's economy, he claimed.
Hyderabad: The Congress on Sunday termed the TRS public meeting at Konganara Kalan as an utter flop.

TPCC chief N. Uttam Kumar Reddy said that Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao had boasted of holding the meeting with 25 lakh people but in reality not even five lakh people turned up even after the TRS government misused power and official machinery.

It is clearly evident that not even 5 lakh people have turned up for the meeting. They have booked over 8,000 TSRTC buses. They threatened managements of private schools and colleges through RTA officials and forcibly used their buses for transportation. They also threatened private tour operators and forcibly took their vehicles. Despite doing all this, they could not gather even 5 lakh people, he said.

The meeting clearly reflects how people are fed up with the misrule of the TRS government and KCR. The meeting proved beyond doubt that TRS would bite the dust in elections, whether they are advanced or held as scheduled, the TPCC leader said.

Addressing a press conference here, he alleged that Mr Raos speech at the meeting was a bunch of lies.

KCR made false claims on power, irrigation and agriculture. The fact remains that the TRS government could not start even a single power plant after it came to power. All the projects that started power generation were planned and executed during the Congress regime while the TRS only did inaugurations, Mr Reddy stated.

He also mocked at the CMs statement that he threatened Mr Modi to approve the new zonal system. If that was so, why he could not do the same in the case of 12 per cent reservations for Muslims? he asked.

He said that with his pale speech and dejected look, the CM had openly admitted TRS defeat in the ensuing elections.

There was no enthusiasm seen among the CM, ministers, TRS MLAs, MPs in the meeting. It was not a victory rally but a despair rally of TRS, Mr Reddy quipped.
Chennai: Turkish Tourism, which has been participating in few important trade exhibitions since the last couple of years, has planned to rev up its tourism campaign in India targeting mainly the wedding and MICE segments. Turkey will come to woo Chennai and other important metros starting this month.

Turkey is home to the iconic Hagia Sophia, with its soaring dome and Christian mosaics, the massive 17th century Blue Mosque and the circa-1460 Topkap? Palace, former home of sultans are other attractions. Turkish Tourism hopes to have its share of the tourism pie as Indians from Chennai and other cities have been evincing interest in exploring new overseas destinations abroad, while also showing a tendency to loosen their purse strings while holidaying abroad.

Around 15 big Indian weddings have been confirmed in 2018. Our focus is to showcase Turkey beyond Istanbul. The messaging would be to look beyond Istanbul, Mr. H. Deniz Ersoz, Culture & Tourism Counsellor, Embassy of Republic of Turkey in India, said.

About 90 percent of the hotels on the Mediterranean coast work on all-inclusive packages. This is yet not known in the Indian market. Therefore, efforts would be to make this messaging spread across all trade hubs in India.

This month will see Turkish Tourism commence joint promotional campaigns with leading tour companies in the country, to tap the weddings market, corporates and MICE. The campaign will cover Mumbai, Delhi, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Chennai, Kolkata and few tier-II cities.

Foreign tourist arrivals in the first six months of 2018 increased by 30 percent compared to the same period of the previous year, reaching around 16 million, as per official statistics. Tourism revenue in the first six months of this year rose from US$ 8.7 billion to US$ 11.4 billion.

India inbound to Turkey grew 100 percent between January and June this year, compared to the corresponding period last year. Turkey has targeted two lakh Indian visitors this year. The maximum number of Indian visitors to Turkey was in 2015 and it stood at 1.32 lakhs. Mr. Ersoz had meetings with Union Tourism Ministry officials in India, on reviving the mechanism to explore scope of mutual cooperation in tourism. Turkey is also exploring a JWG meeting in Istanbul in October- November this year.
Chennai: We will form alliance only with a party that will guarantee cabinet berths for the AIADMK, declared state dairy minister KT Rajenthra Bhalaji, thereby dropping yet another of his bombshells in the post-Jaya phase of political conundrums from the ruling party. He said no party can form the government at the Centre without AIADMK support in the 2019 elections.

The minister had caused a mini-storm of sorts when he proudly announced at a public meeting at Virudhunagar some months ago, at the height of the tussle with the TTV Dhinakaran camp, that the AIADMK Government remained safe and strong because we are taken care of by someone above. He elaborated on the 'entity above' saying it was Modi's support that was keeping his party going.n P4

In his latest piece of delightful rhetoric delivered at the close of an AIADMK cycle rally for highlighting the 'achievements of the government, at Virudhunagar late Sunday evening, minister Bhalaji said, Our party now has a total of 50 MPs, including 13 in the Rajya Sabha. The BJP Government survives only with our support, yet the Centre ignores us. Are we, with 50 MPs, to be the Centre's bonded labourers?

When Amma (Jayalalithaa) was there, she functioned bravely with the policy -'We shall honour relationship but will also fight for our rights'. The present EPS-OPS dispensation too is functioning in the same manner while delivering great administration for the people, said minister Bhalaji while insisting that the AIADMK will rule Tamil Nadu for another 100 years just as Amma had predicted.

And then he came to the big proclamation. Our focus now is on Delhi. What's wrong in our expecting berths in the Central Government since we have 50 MPs? We will form an alliance only with the party that will promise to accommodate us in the cabinet, said the minister, explaining that sharing power at the Centre is absolutely necessary for securing the rights and needs of the TN people.

In his latest piece of delightful rhetoric delivered at the close of an AIADMK cycle rally for highlighting the achievements of the government, at Virudhunagar late Sunday evening, minister Bhalaji said, Our party now has a total of 50 MPs, including 13 in the Rajya Sabha. The BJP Government survives only with our support, yet the Centre ignores us. Are we, with 50 MPs, to be the Centres bonded labourers?

When Amma (Jayalalithaa) was there, she functioned bravely with the policy -We shall honour relationship but will also fight for our rights. The present EPS-OPS dispensation too is functioning in the same manner while delivering great administration for the people, said minister Bhalaji while insisting that the AIADMK will rule Tamil Nadu for another 100 years just as Amma had predicted.

And then he came to the big proclamation. Our focus now is on Delhi. Whats wrong in our expecting berths in the Central Government since we have 50 MPs? We will form an alliance only with the party that will promise to accommodate us in the cabinet, said the minister, explaining that sharing power at the Centre is absolutely necessary for securing the rights and needs of the TN people.
Hyderabad: The Centre filing a special leave petition before the Supreme Court seeking a separate High Court for Andhra Pradesh has given hope to lawyers of the two Telugu states that their dream of having separate High Courts will be realised soon.

The bifurcation of the court was stuck following the May 1, 2015, ruling of a division bench of the Hyderabad High Court which said that constitution of a High Court for AP in any part of Telangana state would not be permitted by law.

The bench held that under the provisions of the AP Reorganisation Act, 2014 there was no contemplation, nor did the legislature have any intention, to create the AP High Court temporarily at any place other than the existing one at Hyderabad.

After remaining silent for three years, the Centre challenged the High Court order and told the Supreme Court that the Act placed no bar on bifurcating the High Court pending the construction of a High Court building within the territory of AP.

It also did not place any embargo on bifurcating the existing premises to accommodate the two High Courts, the Centre said.

The Union ministry for law and justice in its affidavit argued that the Hyderabad High Court had erred in holding that the building where the common High Court for the two states is functioning cannot be bifurcated like the Secretariat and other official buildings.

The Telangana state government had informed the High Court that it was prepared to shift to some other premises at Gachibowli. The High Court rejected this proposal and ruled that if the existing building was bifurcated for establishing the HC of AP it would be violative of provision of sub-section (1) of Section 31 of Act, 2014 as the same would amount to constitution of the AP High Court within the territory of Telangana state.

The Union law ministry contended before the Supreme Court that though Rs 500 crore had been released to AP as back as on March 31, 2015, for the construction of buildings for the Raj Bhavan, Secretariat and the High Court, the AP government had not taken effective steps for their construction.

Attorney General K.K. Venugopal appearing for the Centre told the apex court that the existing High Court building has a sufficient number of court halls for the two High Courts to function separately. Since the bifurcation Act states that Hyderabad is the common capital for both the states for 10 years, such an arrangement can be made.

Mr Mukul Rohatgi, former attorney general, appearing for the Telangana state government submitted that there were 24 additional court halls in the existing building which could be utilised for the separate High Court. If the AP government was not willing, the Telangana state government was willing to move out.
New Delhi: In an advisory to the media, the Union Information and Broadcasting ministry has asked media to refrain from using the word Dalit and instead use Scheduled Caste. The order came after the Nagpur bench of the Bombay High Court asked the ministry to consider issuing a directive to the media to stop using the word Dalit.

Media should refrain from using the word Dalit while referring to the members belonging to the Schedule Caste community in compliance with the directions of the Bombay High Court and the constitutional term Schedule Caste in English and its appropriate translation in other regional languages should alone be used for all official transaction, certificate matters etc, for denoting the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes notified in the Presidential orders issued under Article 341 of the Constitution of India, the I&B ministry said.

Sources stated that the I&B ministry is expected to ask the Press Council of India to take a call on the issue. The PCI advisory on the issue is expected within a month. The Narendra Modi government had also recently issued a similar directive. In the March circular, the BJP government said: The central government/state governments and its functionaries would refrain from using the nomenclature 'Dalit' for the members belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes as the same does not find mention in the Constitution or any statute.
Thoothukudi: A young lady passenger who reportedly shouted "fascist BJP government down down" on a flight on seeing the BJP Tamil Nadu president, Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan in the aircraft on Monday, was later arrested and remanded to judicial custody here.

Pudukottai police in Thoothukudi registered a case against the young woman research scholar Luois Sophia, who voluntarily picked up a quarrel with the BJP leader during the flight from Chennai to Thoothukudi.

A case under IPC sections 290 (creating public nuisance), 505 (1)(b) for causing fear to the public in the flight and at the airport, besides under section 75 of the Madras City police act, sources told DC here. The young lady was produced before Thoothukudi judicial magistrate court-3 and remanded.

Thoothukudi police suspect that the research scholar from Canada, a close relative of advocate Athisayakumar, one of the leading activists in the anti-Sterlite movement, might have vented her anger against the Union government on seeing BJP's state president in the flight, as it is generally perceived that the police firing at the anti-Sterlite protesters here in May was allegedly carried out at the Centres behest.

The accused, Louis Sophia (23) daughter of Samy, doing her PhD in Canada, was on her way to her native port-city Thoothukudi by air.

On boarding the flight, she saw Dr Tamilisai in the same flight, prompting her loud reaction. Sophia, said to have strong political opinion against the BJP and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, according to one of the passengers, started shouting hysterically, fascist Modi government down down. Tamilisai, however remained cool inside the flight, but politely asked later whether her in-flight behaviour was decent, after both got down at Thoothukudi airport at around 12 noon. The PhD scholar, however without any expression of remorse, justified that she has the freedom of speech.

This arrogant attitude of Sophia, irritated the supporters of the BJP leader Tamilisai Soundararajan, who surrounded the lady and her mother and demanded an apology.

The young lady, however, refused to apologise, despite her mother advising her to do so.

Hence the BJP president preferred a complaint at the police outpost at the Thoothukudi airport and left for Tenkasi to attend a party function.

On information of the ruckus created by the lady, one of her close relatives, a lawyer, along with two of his colleagues rushed to the airport and held talks with the police. Since the lady has to return back to Canada to continue her studies, the lawyers persuaded the police not to file any complaint.

The police, however, expressed their helplessness to do so unless the BJP state president withdrew her complaint against the lady. Police also do not rule out the possibility of her act being politically motivated. As the accused is a Dalit (from Devendra Kula Vellala community), her act might have been to direct the Dalits ire against the BJP and its state president, Dr Tamilisai, who was on way to participate in a party function at Tenkasi where about 1,000 Dalits from various parties joined the BJP.

Speaking to media on the lady passengers behaviour, Dr Tamilisai Soundararajan later said that she did not feel threatened by her shouting as being in politics she has the guts to face any adverse situation.

But it is highly indecent to shout inside the flight for the simple reason that she saw a leader, who belongs to a party that she dislikes flying with her, said the BJP state president, who too suspected that the lady passenger might have some organisational background to createsuch ruckus disturbing the public.
Four judges out of a seven-member panel denied Lula the right to stand for election following a tedious seven-hour debate.

Da Silva who once enjoyed wide spread popular support in Brazil had been convicted and incarcerated since April 2018 for receiving bribes.

Brazil's top electoral court has barred jailed former president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva from running in this year's presidential election because of his corruption conviction. Lula had been the Workers' Party nominee for the presidential elections set for October.

He relied on Lula's recent backing from the UN Human Rights Committee, which ruled that the former leader can not be disqualified from the elections as his legal appeals are ongoing.

PT officials also vowed to "fight with all means" to secure Lula's candidacy.

"We will present all appeals before the courts for the recognition of the rights of Lula provided by law and worldwide treaties ratified by Brazil", said the party in a statement.

"We have a clearer picture that Lula's candidacy is doomed", said David Fleischer, a politics professor at the University of Brasilia. Lula is likely ineligible for office under Brazil's "Clean Slate" law, which prohibits candidates from running if they have convictions that have been upheld on appeal.

Da Silva, serving a 12-year-sentence for corruption and money laundering, is the front-runner despite being in jail.

Lula was found guilty in July 2017 and then lost a first appeal in January. The PT manifesto recalled that the UN Human Rights Committee has instructed the Brazilian State to guarantee Lula's political rights, including being a presidential candidate, and Brazil has an obligation to comply, because it signed the Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

His nearest rival, far-right candidate Jair Bolsonaro, has 19%.

"It is a political calculation that Lula and his partners at the Worker's Party will have to make".

Vice-presidential running mate Fernando Haddad, a former mayor of Sao Paulo, is expected to head the ticket hoping to inherit the bulk of Lula's votes. Polls say the support for his bid as replacement is minimal so far, but da Silva's resilient popularity could boost the former mayor's hopes.

His Workers' Party said it would appeal the electoral court's ruling.
Hyderabad: The Owaisis (MIM leaders) have been given valuable land in the city at a subsidised rate for a hospital. Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao approved sanctioning of 6,250 sq. yards at Midhani in Bandlaguda mandal for Rs 3.75 crore for the Owaisis to construct a hospital and the Cabinet met on Sunday and reportedly approval the allotment. The present market value of land in Bandlaguda is nearly Rs 40,000 per square yard, and 6,250 square yards would cost Rs 24 crore. The government set the price at just Rs 6,000 per sq. yard, which is the registration value.

The MIM has had good ties with the ruling Telangana Rashtra Samiti since 2014 and Mr Rao sees the MIM as a friendly party. The land has been in dispute between the Owaisis and the state government for nearly a decade. While the Owaisis claim it is abadi land (gifted land) revenue officials claim it as government land. The Owaisis obtained an NOC (no objection certificate) from the government on the grounds that it is abadi land during the Congress regime in undivided AP.

However, when Mr N. Kiran Kumar Reddy was Chief Minister, before the state was divided, the then chief commissioner of Land Administration, Ms Minnie Mathew, cancelled the NOC on the grounds that it is government land. Since then, MIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi has been requesting the government to allot the land parcel at least at a nominal rate for construction of a hospital for the poor. Mr Owaisi met Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Rao on Saturday evening and repeated this request. He pointed out that several corporate hospitals in the city were allotted land at subsidised rates.

Interestingly, his request was approved in the cabinet meeting held the very next day. Sources said the Owaisi land issue was taken up for discussion in the Cabinet not as an agenda item but a table item and approved instantly. A Government Order in this regard is expected to be issued by the revenue department in a day or two. Being one of the biggest mandals in the city, Bandlaguda has large tracts of land that are under dispute.

Vast tracts of ceiling and abadi lands in the area are falling prey to land grabbers as no proper land records have been maintained. The Owaisis complained to the government that these lands are being encroached upon by land grabbers which allegedly led to an attack on Akbaruddin Owaisi, the MIM's Chandrayangutta MLA, in April 2011. Private individuals are claiming ownership of these abadi lands saying that the then Nizam's government had gifted these lands to their ancestors.
Social occasions, like weddings, birthdays and house warming ceremonies, are where volunteers of Green Army promote environmentally responsible lifestyle for maximum impact.

The self help group from Gadag, which is active since 2015, encourages those attending these functions to plant saplings and shun the use of plastic items during special occasions.

Mr Jaipal Reddy, secretary of the Green Army, said that the group could not have thought of a better way to encourage people to lead an environmentally friendly life in the most cost-effective manner. "When those dear to the invitees take a vow to follow a green lifestyle, the effect it has is immense. When a sapling is planted or a call is made to avoid plastic, more people who attend these events tend to follow the trend," he said, adding that the idea for the initiative came during a wedding ceremony of a one of their volunteers at Naregal panchayat in Gadag.

Till now, the team has attended over a hundred weddings, 50 birthdays and over 70 housewarming ceremonies.

Members of the Green Army planting saplings as part of their afforestation campaign

But the story behind the inception of the group is heartrending. In early 2015, Mr Chandru Rathod, the founder of the group, lost his mother after foxes attacked her at his hometown in Gajendragad taluk. "Her death shocked the entire community and the tribal families in surrounding areas. His suffering led to the birth of Green Army, whose branches have spread far now," said Mr Reddy. The group is now working in Gadag-Hubballi-Dharwad areas.

The eco-group distributes saplings that suit the local conditions and soil to ensure maximum survival rate. Neem, Indian beech, and badam are the most commonly distributed.

By tying up with local societies, other NGOs and government offices, the group has managed to plant over 19,000 saplings and also monitor their growth.

The 100-strong active team has entrepreneurs, educators, techies and students as its members. Recently, 5,000 saplings were distributed at Naregal Gramadevate Jatrotsava and 2,500 plants at the Annadaneshwar Rathotsava, both religious events.

The volunteers hold special sessions at schools to encourage youngsters to join the Green Army. The students are given a presentation on how environment has degraded from the times of their parents. "These children actively spread the green message among elders and also motivate them to adopt environmentally sustainable methods," explained Mr Reddy, who is also a PU College lecturer.

He said that volunteers clean local wells and ponds regularly and plant saplings around them to stop the overflow and to maintain soil moisture.

The NGO is now busy designing modules for a special subject to be taught in schools to expose students to various species of plants and to also give them a hands-on experience in farming methods.

Interested can contact 9980846151, 8147578055 and write to jaipal.alavandi@gmail.com to help Green Arm initiatives.
Hyderabad: The lakhs of people, TRS workers and leaders who had gathered for Sundays Pragathi Nivedana Sabha missed Chief Minister K. Chandrasekhar Raos punch dialogues, humour and trademark use of the Telangana dialect.

These are aspects of Mr Raos speeches which attract people. Besides, Mr Rao has his own style to criticise the Opposition but largely held his fire.

On Sunday, the people and TRS leaders had a different Mr Rao on view. In his nearly hour-long speech, Mr Rao confined himself to telling the people about the achievements of the TRS government over the past four years.

TRS senior leaders were surprised that Mr Rao departed from his usual style. He is known for his hard-hitting lines and cutting jokes even at press conferences. Rural audiences hang on to his use of the Telangana idiom and nuance. Mr Rao is the only mass leader in the state who can attract people with his oratory.

A senior leader said, I was surprised at KCRs speech, I saw a different KCR for the first time. I dont know why he spoke like that.

Speaking in Mr Raos defence, some TRS leaders said the aim of the Pragathi Nivedana Sabha was to inform the people about the achievements of the TRS government and he confined himself to that agenda.

Mr Rao is a strong critic of the Congress and the BJP but on Sunday did not make any comment against the two parties except taking an indirect dig at the Congress regarding ghulamgiri.

He did not speak about the Centre or the BJP, and did not even bring up the issue of 12 per cent reservations for Muslims which is pending with the Centre for several months.
Detained journalist Wa Lone speaks to the media after exiting the court on July 9, 2018. (Photo: AFP)

Yangon: A Myanmar judge on Monday found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and sentenced them to seven years in prison, in a landmark case seen as a test of progress toward democracy in the Southeast Asian country.

Yangon northern district judge Ye Lwin said Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, breached the colonial-era Official Secrets Act when they collected and obtained confidential documents.

The defendants...have breached Official Secrets Act section 3.1.c, and are sentenced to seven years. The time already served by the defendants from December 12 will be taken into consideration, the judge said.

The reporters had told the court two police officials handed them papers at a north Yangon restaurant moments before other officers arrested them on December 12, 2017, in what one police witness testified was a set-up to entrap the journalists.

"It is found that the culprits intended to harm the interests of the state. And so they have been found guilty under the state secrets act," Judge Ye Lwin told the packed Yangon court.

I have no fear, Wa Lone, one of the two journalists, said after the verdict. I have not done anything wrong....I believe in justice, democracy and freedom.

The verdict means Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo - who both have young daughters and have not seen their families outside of prison visits and court hearings for nearly nine months - remain behind bars. Kyaw Soe Oo has a three-year-old daughter and Wa Lones wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to their first child last month.

Reuters Editor-in-Chief Stephen J Adler has condemned the conviction, and said that the verdict "must be corrected by the Myanmar government as a matter of urgency". He called it "a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere".

"This is a major step backward in Myanmar's transition to democracy, cannot be squared with the rule of law or freedom of speech,"he said.

News agency, AFP reported that the United Nations in Myanmar had called for release of the imprisoned journalists.

On Saturday, more than 100 journalists and activists had marched through Yangon in support of the reporters, whose trial echoes the treatment of government critics during the long years of military rule in Myanmar.

The case has sparked an outcry among the international community too as an attempt to muzzle reporting on last year's crackdown by Myanmar's security forces on the Muslim Rohingya minority in Rakhine state.

Army-led "clearance operations" drove 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, carrying with them widespread accounts of atrocities -- rape, murder and arson -- by Myanmar security forces.

The army has published its version of events at Inn Din village, conceding the Rohingya men were killed while in custody but saying it was a one-off act of abuse by a mix of security forces and ethnic Rakhine locals.

The verdict comes amid building pressure on the administration of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi over a security crackdown sparked by militant attacks in August 2017.

(With inputs from agencies)
President Ram Nath Kovind on Sunday praised the Indian community in Cyprus for strengthening people-to-people relations between the two nations.

Addressing the Indian Community here, the president said, "India is proud of its diaspora and their achievements. They are true cultural ambassadors of India and will deepen our ties with Cyprus."

Kovind arrived in Cyprus on Sunday on the first leg of his three-nation visit to Europe to continue India's high-level engagements with European countries.

The president and his wife arrived at the Larnaca International Airport. They were received by Georgios Lakkotrypis, Cyprus' Minister of Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism.

"Happy to begin my visit to Cyprus, one of our closest and most steadfast partners in the international community. My delegation and I bring warm and friendly currents from the Indian Ocean to the waters of the Mediterranean. Looking forward to a productive visit," Kovind tweeted.

Apart from Cyprus, Kovind will also visit Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

This is his first overseas state visit in the second year of his presidency.
Shouting Fascist BJP down, down, on a flight with Tamil Nadu BJP chief Tamilisai Soundararajan on it and again at the Tuticorin airport, earned a 28-year-old scholar a 15-day jail stay.

Lois Sophia, who was travelling to her hometown Tuticorin from Canada where she is pursuing research, via Chennai, was sent to 15 days judicial custody on Monday night, hours after Tamilisai filed a complaint with the airport police alleging that the girl could have acted at the instance of a terror group. Sophia, whose father is a doctor from Tuticorin, is doing research at the University of Montreal, Canada.

I am on a flight with Tamilisai Soundarajan and really want to shout "-BJP-RSS    ". Will I be kicked off the flight?

We received a complaint (from Tamilisai Soundararajan) in the afternoon and we registered an FIR as the first step. After initial questioning, necessary steps were taken, Tuticorin district superintendent of police Murali Ramba told DH. After Sophia was booked under sections 290 (punishment for public nuisance in cases not otherwise provided for) and 75 (1) (C) of the Madras City Police Act, she was produced before a Mahila Court judge, who sent her to judicial custody.

This is the latest case of arrest for criticising politicians and the government of the day. The Tamil Nadu police have come under fire from various courts for arresting people, including during the Sterlite protests in May, without any valid reason.

The incident created a political uproar with Opposition Leader M K Stalin demanding the release of Sophia. You will have to arrest lakhs of people who raise slogans like this. I will also raise the slogan Fascist BJP govt down, down, he said in a tweet.

.@Red_Pastures , the research scholar who shouted slogans against @DrTamilisaiBJP , being ushered from #Tuticorin airport on Monday. #BJP | @DeccanHerald pic.twitter.com/f2XTXNSaz3

Sophias father Samy alleged that she was kept at the womens police station for eight hours on the pretext of questioning. She never said anything derogatory against Tamilisai or the BJP. She was just exercising her freedom of opinion, he said.

Though the police acted quite fast on Tamilisais complaint, Samy alleged that his complaint against BJP workers of abusing her daughter did not receive any response.

According to eye-witnesses, Sophia shouted, Fascist BJP down, down after spotting Tamilisai in the flight but the BJP chief seems to have ignored the comment. However, Sophia took to sloganeering at the arrival area of the Tuticorin airport, which is when the comment snowballed into a controversy.

Video clips show Tamilisai losing her cool, yelling at the girl for having behaved in a vulgar manner.

#Video of #TamilNadu #BJP chief @DrTamilisaiBJP aruguing with a girl at #Tuticorin Airport for terming #BJP as "fascist". The young girl had allegedly shouted slogans against BJP at the airport. | @DeccanHerald pic.twitter.com/nQUlwWfLJK

Since the incident took place inside an aircraft, I did not raise my voice. But the same girl shouted similar slogans when I was waiting to collect my check-in baggage at the Tuticorin airport. Since she repeated her act and her slogans were not normal in nature, I suspect that her behaviour was instigated by some group. I suspect that she behaved in an odd manner at the instance of a terrorist group, Tamilisai claimed.

The video, which has gone viral, shows Tamilisai arguing with the girl in a loud voice seeking to know how she can term the BJP fascist in a public place. Police personnel at the airport are seen asking the BJP leader not to take it seriously since the girl does not look that matured.
A civilian was killed and two others suffered injuries during clashes between protesters and security forces at Gusoo village of south Kashmirs Pulwama district on Monday.



Reports said the clashes erupted during a cordon-and-search-operation (CASO) in Gusoo. As security forces were moving in the area, protesters tried to disrupt the CASO by throwing stones at them.



The forces, they said, responded by firing tear gas, pellets and bullets, in which a youth identified as Fayaz Wani received serious head injury. He was rushed to SMHS hospital in Srinagar, where doctors declared him brought dead.



Two more protesters received pellet wounds and have been hospitalized, reports said. When reports last came in the clashes were going on.



The clashes erupted at number of places in southern district after security forces launched massive anti-militancy operations in 20 villages of Pulwama Monday morning.



The coordinated offensive against militants by the security forces was launched in the backdrop of increasing incidents of attacks on police and political workers. Assisted by drones, hundreds of troops and policemen were carrying house-to-house searches in Rohmu, Below, Mitrigam, Gasu, Chek, Mirgund, Chek, Sheikhpora, Hanjan, Frasipura and Kamrazipura villages of Pulwama, reports added.



Sources said the search operation began following reports about presence of militants in these villages. However, so far, there have been no reports of any exchange of fire from any of these villages.



This is not the first such operation in south Kashmir undertaken by the security forces. The operation is a routine anti-militancy and area domination exercise. Such operations will continue as we have inputs about the presence of dozens of militants in the area, an army official said.



After summer unrest of 2016, militant outfits, especially indigenous Hizb-ul-Mujahideen have strengthened their ranks and militants have surfaced in open several times in south Kashmir to garner support from the people.



Also, militants have been seen roaming around freely in villages of South Kashmir, attracting the attention of the youth. A senior police officer said militants have constructed a narrative of heroism around Hizbul commander Burhan Wanis pursuits and killing in July 2016.



According to a report compiled by J&K police, the number of listed militants in Kashmir has crossed 300 for the first time in nearly a decade. Last year 126 locals picked up guns - which was the highest number since 2010 and this year till August over 130 have joined the militant ranks, the report reveals.



Of the listed 327 militants, it says, 181 are active in the volatile south Kashmir districts. Most of the locals joining militancy belong to four south Kashmir districts of Shopian, Pulwama, Kulgam and Anantnag. The militant handlers are using social media to reach out the Internet-savvy youth of the Valley with their jihad obligation message, a senior police officer said.
In one of the biggest swoops, the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) has seized over 8,000 kg of shark fins from Mumbai and Veraval on Gujarat coast, worth several crores.

The consignment was part of a wildlife smuggling racket and was to be sent to China and Hong Kong.

While 3,000 kg were seized from a godown at Sewri in Mumbai, the rest were seized from a godown in Veraval fishing town in Gujarat.

Investigation by Mumbai office of DRI has indicated that the entire consignment was bound for export to China and Hong Kong. Wildlife inspectors have confirmed the seized goods to be shark fins. Investigation revealed that stocks of shark fins are replenished regularly, DRI officials said on Monday.

The modus operandi involved export of shark fins by wrong declaration as Dried Ray Skins, Dried Marine Products and Fish Maw to avoid detection and circumvent prohibition.Shark fins of various species of sharks are prohibited from export.

Shark fin soup

Shark fins are used for preparing a delicacy called the Shark fin soup. It is a traditional soup or stewed dish found in Chinese and Vietnamese cuisine.

The shark fins provide texture, while the taste comes from the other soup ingredients. It is commonly served at special occasions such as weddings and banquets, and is considered a luxury item in Chinese culture. One bowl of Shark fin soup costs upwards of $100.

Shark finning is an act of removing fins from sharks, often while the shark is alive. Fishermen choose to keep just the shark finsonly 1 to 5 % of a sharks weightand throw the rest of the shark away rather than have the less valuable parts take up space on the boat.

These sharks without their fins are still alive when they are discarded back in the ocean. Without the fins they are unable to swim and sink to the bottom of the sea/ocean, where they often die of suffocation or are eaten up by other predators.

The carcass often gets washed up on the shores. When shark populations decrease, a ripple effect can spread throughout the rest of the ocean ecosystem, according to the officials.


The Bombay High Court on Monday questioned as to why the Maharashtra police held a press conference on the issue of arrest of activists arrested for Maoists links when the matter was sub judice.

How can the police do this? The matter is sub-judice. When the Supreme Court is seized of the matter then revealing information is wrong, the Bombay High Court observed.

The statement came during the hearing of a PIL filed by Pune-based businessman Satish Surgiv Gaikwad, who had contended that the probe of Elgar Parishad-Koregaon Bhima riots be transferred to the National Investigation Agency (NIA).

Last week, five civil right defenders and human rights activists - P Varavara Rao, Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira - were arrested by the Pune police for alleged Maoists links, however, the Supreme Court ordered all five of them to be placed under house arrest - after commenting - "dissent is the safety valve of democracy".

The next date of hearing in the apex court is scheduled for 6 September.

Last Friday, the Maharashtra police held a press conference in Mumbai - that was addressed by Additional Director General of Police (Law & Order) Parambir Singh.


Both political parties, BJP and JD(S), suffered a setback in the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) elections due to rebel candidates.

The rebel candidates were successful in defeating the party candidates with a huge margin.

JD(S) suffered a setback with JD(S) rebel K Harishgowda fielding candidates in 12 wards. JD(S) leader, also city unit president K T Cheluvegowda, who was a corporator, was defeated by Srinivas, a supporter of Harishgowda, by a margin of 500 plus votes.

It may be mentioned that Harishgowda, who was with the JD(S), distanced himself since the Assembly elections as the party denied him a ticket to contest from Chamaraja segment. Harishgowda had contested independently against JD(S) candidate K S Rangappa.

Similarly, BJP KR constituency MLA S A Ramdas too suffered a jolt as BJP rebel M V Ramprasad won the polls independently. Ramprasad won by a margin of 1,800 against BJP candidate S Purushottam.

The party had denied a ticket to Ramprasad and had also expelled him from the party. The MLA had also advertised Ramprasads termination from the party in a section of the media. However, Ramprasad was elected as Corporator for the second time.

JD(S) candidate S Balu suffered a defeat against M Shivakumar in Ward 42. Balu was pushed to the third place. Shivakumar won by 1,446 votes against his opponent K Devaraju of the BJP. Similarly, the supporters of Harishgowda managed to obtain the second place in many wards.
Recently in July, during Chinese President Xi Jinping's visit to Africa, China signed cooperation documents with Senegal and Rwanda.

Besides the FOCAC Summit, Uhuru is expected to hold bilateral talks with his host, President Xi Jinping focused on trade, infrastructure, investments, education and technology.

President Muhammadu Buhari along with his wife and daughter have left Abuja to China where the President is expected to participate in a summit. At the summit's conclusion, South Africa will hand over the co-chairship of Focac to a new African country, having served six years (2012 to 2018) in this role.

Expectations are high between China and Africa that the 2019-2021 Focac Beijing Action Plan will cement the cooperation of the two.

Chinese companies will be encouraged to invest no less than $10 billion in the continent in the next three years, he said.

While Beijing-backed investment has provided African governments much-needed infrastructure without the West's political and fiscal demands, it has also generated complaints about China's preference for loans and reluctance to use local labour.

What future are we sharing with China? He thanked China for its massive support.

Chinese officials have vowed to be more cautious to ensure projects are sustainable. "China and African countries are destined to be good friends, good brothers and good partners", he told the BRICS Business Forum.

"China's cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development". Beijing is increasingly facing criticism over its debt-heavy projects overseas.

The narrative of "Africa Rising" - the rapid economic growth in Africa since 2000 - is inextricably tied to the rise of China and the formation of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) 18 years ago.

Xi said that the plan, which Beijing has pledged $126 billion for, would help provide more resources and facilities for Africa and would expand shared markets.

"Established 18 years ago, FOCAC has led worldwide cooperation with Africa and has become a significant marker of South-South cooperation", said Li Dan, director of Africa Studies Center of China Foreign Affairs University.

The exemption, he said, will be granted to Africa's least developed countries, heavily indebted and poor countries, landlocked and small island developing countries that have diplomatic relations with China.

This is third-time China is hosting its Africa summit. The discussions will also cover financing for the Western Bypass in Nairobi.

Every African country is represented at the business forum apart from eSwatini, self-ruled Taiwan's last African ally that has so far rejected China's overtures to ditch Taipei and recognize Beijing.

The world's second-biggest economy will be hosting the China-Africa summit starting on Monday and South Africa will co-chair that meeting.

Bashir is wanted by the Hague-based International Criminal Court on charges of war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide related to the war in Darfur. "We are on the same page in this regard", a Chinese foreign ministry spokesman said here in July. China is not a party to the court.
HAVERFORD  Three Haverford high school grads have launched a scholarship program for township students who propose and enact significant and meaningful change to their school.

The Haverford High School Student Impact Award was created by Simon Krauss 07, his brother Sam 06, and Sara Shaw 06 and will award up to $1,000 to any student who proposes a change and successfully achieves the implementation of their proposal in the Haverford school system.

Students often have great ideas about how their educational experience could improve, but not the time or experience effecting change in large organizations, said Simon Krauss, one of the cofounders who now works as a product manager for a data analytics firm in suburban Washington. This award encourages students to pursue these ideas and gives them structure and support for doing so.

The three, all Princeton University graduates, discussed their scholarship with high school administrators, though the scholarship program is not directly affiliated with the school district.

Anna Deacon, communications coordinator at Haverford School District, said the district does have a format for students to present ideas for change through the administration and school board as well as a program for creating new school clubs and organizations and is viewable at https://www.haverford.k12.pa.us/site/Default.aspx?PageType=6&SiteID=474&SearchString=creating%20a%20scholarship

Krauss said during his time at Haverford he did have ideas on how things could be better but was hesitant to move forward because of the daunting challenge of changing the complex system like a school district.

He became intrigued by the idea of a scholarship and mentor program after he saw an acquaintance from a high school summer program start a similar science-based program at E. L. Meyers High School in Wilkes-Barre. You can view it here, http://www.isemanfoundation.com/best-award

We want to recognize and award students who come up with meaningful ideas, said Krauss. Were trying to get the word out, were looking for more ways to build awareness with students and their parents.

Krauss said they are looking for ideas beyond just starting a new club. The scholarship website uses the example of establishing a new AP class.

My mind tends to go into the more academic realm, but were open to other areas of school, Krauss said. If someone was able to get rid of the dress code, for example.

The program would include mentoring students through the challenge of working with the district.

What we bring as mentors, is people who have worked in the real world, Krauss said. We will give them feedback.

Sam Krauss is now a graduate student in philosophy at the University of Texas at Austin, while Shaw does education policy at the Illinois State Board of Education.

Simon Krauss said the awards are currently being funded by himself, his brother and Shaw to get the program up and running with plans to start fund-raising as they gather more interest.

I am unaware of any award like this being offered in the area and we are excited about encouraging students to think about how to improve their educational experience, Krauss said.
Ingrid Hausner, a nursing major at Neumann University and resident of Folcroft, was recently selected as a 2018 American Psychiatric Nurses Association (APNA) Board of Directors Student Scholar.

More than 100 students applied for the national award and 30 scholarships were awarded: 15 for graduate students and 15 for undergraduate/pre-licensure students.

The scholarship includes registration, travel and lodging expenses to attend the APNA 32nd Annual Conference, October 24-27, 2018, in Columbus, Ohio. In addition, she will receive a one-year complimentary membership in APNA, which will provide the opportunity to network with others in the profession.

Hausner hadnt considered the psychiatric nursing field until she took a course in mental health. She credits her mental health professors at Neumann for her interest in the field. They are really good professors. I learned that every word you use with these patients matters. You have to be on your feet, mentally.

Her clinical experience at Temple University Hospital on the psychiatric floor further intensified her interest. Hausner dealt mostly with schizophrenic patients. The psych ward feels like home to me, she said. Its welcoming.

Nursing faculty and APNA member, Marina Lutz, requested that faculty teaching the Mental Health Nursing practicum course submit names of students who demonstrated excellent clinical skills as candidates for nomination for the scholarship. This is the first time a NU student has been nominated, said Lutz, and we feel extremely proud and happy for Ingrid.

Hausner was excited to be selected for the scholarships, saying, I was so happy to get Neumann Universitys name out there among the other schools.

While at the conference in October, she is looking forward to attending the programs offered and networking to make connections for her future. After she graduates in May, shed like to land a job in medical-surgical nursing and eventually pursue a masters degree in Psychiatric Nursing.
SALT LAKE CITY  A Southern California mans weekend turned rather bitter.

A 69-year-old man was arrested in Southern California for allegedly stealing hundreds of pounds of lemons from a nearby farm, according to NBC San Diego.

Dionicio Fierros was pulled over Friday night and he was arrested after police officials said they found 800 pounds of fresh lemons in his vehicles.

The sheriffs officials said the lemons were stolen, The Associated Press reported.

An agriculture theft spree has plagued much of the area, police officials said, according to NBC 4 New York.

In 2011, a string of thefts targeted local farms. Thieves stole grapes, bees and expensive farm equipment at the time.

According to The New York Times, a high unemployment rate and the ongoing drug epidemic fueled the string of thefts.

In fact, some thieves focused their efforts in Napa Valley, hoping to steal valuable grapes that helped grow the wine industry in that area.

Farmers were among the thieves looking to steal from the farms, according to The New York Times.

Its typical during certain times of the year: youll see a surge in theft from bigger farms, said Deputy Sheriff John H. McCarthy, a rural crime investigator for Santa Barbara County, told The New York Times. Chemicals, fuel and the type of things you need to put in a new crop.
SAN JUAN  In a little over two weeks, Puerto Ricans will mark a historic first anniversary  but dont expect cake, parties or dancing on this Caribbean island renowned for its festive spirit.

Last Sept. 20, Hurricane Maria slammed into this U.S. territory, bringing with it death and devastation. Life will never be the same following that historic catastrophe  but it can be better.

That was the hopeful message delivered by President Russell M. Nelson at Sundays devotional for Puerto Rican members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and their guests at the Coliseo de Puerto Rico.

As you individually grow to become more of the person God wants you to be, you can know for yourself that better days are ahead for the people of Puerto Rico, he said. You can face your tomorrows with great optimism, knowing that the best days of your life are ahead for you and for your loved ones.

The 93-year-old church president then shifted into Spanish, testifying of Christ and bestowing an apostolic blessing in the native tongue of his vast audience who traveled to San Juan from all parts of the island.

Sunday marked the second time in as many days that President Nelson shared remarks in Spanish. He offered his entire talk en espanol at a member devotional Saturday afternoon in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Its believed to be the first time a president of the church has delivered an extended message in a formal meeting in a language other than English.

For many members in the Caribbean lands, listening to the man they consider a prophet testify in Spanish was a thrilling surprise. People responded at each gathering with audible delight.

Accompanying President Nelson on Sunday was Elder Dale G. Renlund of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife, Sister Ruth Renlund.

President Nelson began his remarks by reminding the Puerto Rican members of his admiration for their charitable actions and spiritual grit in the aftermath of the hurricane.

Its been nearly a year since Hurricane Maria came, he said. You have not given up. We are proud of you. You faithful Saints have lost much, but through it all, you have fostered your faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. You have learned that he is aware of you and that He loves you. And he will continue to help you as you keep his commandments.

Members of the Church worldwide have prayed for the Puerto Rican people, he said. Many have volunteered in relief efforts. The leaders of the Church at all levels remain mindful of the Puerto Rican members and are committed to their care.

Most important, the Lord knows you, he said. Puerto Rico and other islands of the sea are very important to the Lord. These islands are rich with the blood of Israel. You are a vital part of Gods promises. Those promises are to be fulfilled by people from the islands of the sea. Those prophecies pertain to the gathering of Israel.

That gathering is spiritual, he added. People of the world are being gathered into the fold of Jesus Christ in each of their respective lands. And in their native lands, they take upon Christs name, are baptized and faithfully keep Gods commandments.

Even with those blessings, all of Gods children have difficulties. That is part of life. Its why were here. We are here to have a body and to be tried and tested. Some of those tests are physical, some are spiritual, and your trials here have been both physical and spiritual.

President Nelson then testified of Christs anointed role in making immortality a reality  and eternal life in Gods presence a possibility. His blessings are available to all who seek him. By keeping Gods commandments, we can find joy even in the midst of our worst circumstances.

The church president counseled Puerto Rican members to keep their families united and strong in faith. Husbands should be kind and considerate of the wives. The best thing you can do for your children is to love their mother. Your highest priesthood duty is to care for your wife.

And to the wives: Love your husbands. You are partners.

Personal revelation is essential in times of difficulty and trial, said Elder Renlund during his remarks on Sunday. I dont need to tell you that life doesnt always turn out the way we expected.

Still, even people who are dealing with harsh difficulties can find strength in Christ. Joy and hope, he said, reside in Christ, who gives life direction and purpose.

Christ being the center of our lives changes everything, he said. It gives us power, stability and direction. And no matter whats going on in our lives, if we focus on [Christ], were safe.

Life also offers many choices, he added. Seek and follow the direction of the Holy Ghost. Do what God would have you do.

That is the course to follow, said Elder Renlund.

Other speakers Sunday included Sister Renlund, along with Elder Walter F. Gonzalez, a General Authority Seventy, and his wife, Sister Zulma Gonzalez. Each encouraged the Puerto Rican members and their friends to follow the example and counsel of President Nelson and their other prophets.

Esteban Ojeda lives on the south end of the island and traveled Sunday morning to be in the capital city. The terrifying memories of Maria remain fresh for Ojeda. Spending a sunny Sunday morning with President Nelson, he said, was a singular, healing experience.

I could not stop crying, he said. His testimony of Christ touched me on a personal level.
BIG COTTONWOOD CANYON Abandoned campfires are becoming a bigger problem each and every summer in the state.

So far in 2018, Utah has had about 1,000 fires. Utah fire officials say about half of those were caused by humans.

According to Jason Curry, spokesman for the Utah Division of Forestry, Fire and State Lands, as of Aug. 15, 11 percent of wildfires were caused by campfires.

This is putting forests and even homes at risk. With the Labor Day weekend upon us, he said its important for people to know how to snuff out the flames of a campfire.

When Ryan Love builds a campfire, he looks first for a steel drum or designated campfire ring. He makes sure there is no vegetation or low-hanging branches near the campfire site, but notes that trees nearby will block any wind.

When there isnt a steel drum, building a ring of stones works. But first, he uses a shovel he brings with him to dig down to bare mineral earth.

Love always has a shovel or hoe with him and a bucket of water. He works for Unified Fire Authority, and on a recent day he was visiting one of Utahs many canyons. The temperatures are cooling, but that didnt mean the fire danger is over.

The relative humidity is still quite low, meaning it is still dry, said Love.

Soon his campfire was crackling. But Love says dont build it too big. Cities restrict the size and theres risk of fallout or the wind picking up.

In the West, there are more dry flashy fuels. Theyve had problems with abandoned campfires there, but also on forest land. This week the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest tweeted a picture of one of many abandoned campfires that they have found left behind.

Fire prevention officer Reid Shelley says even a fire ring is not always safe.

Whats in them is still hot, and all you need is a good breeze and a few sparks and it can take off. If its too hot to touch, its too hot to leave, Shelley said.

If you feel comfortable touching it, its OK to leave, agreed Love.

If you can, stay with a campfire until it burns to ash. Then stir it and check if its cool. That could take hours, so you could use that bucket you brought and put water on it. Then stir it up.

If you put water on hot stuff, it just bounces up. You need to stir it up, Shelley advised.

You could use ice from your camping cooler and shovel dirt on top. Douse it again if you need to, then stir again.

Mix this and stir this again to make sure its cool, said Love, as he put his hand right on the logs to check if they are cool.

They say its just not worth taking a chance to walk away too soon.
MANILA, Daggett County  Police say a man who was swimming with friends and family died Sunday at Flaming Gorge Reservoir.

Emergency responders were called to Cedar Springs Marina at the reservoir about 2:10 p.m., where they found the man unresponsive, the Daggett County Sheriff's Office said. He later died.

Emergency workers were told the man had been transported by boat from another part of the reservoir, said Daggett County Sheriff Erik Bailey. Exactly how the man died was still being investigated Sunday, according to Bailey.

The man's name was not immediately released.

No other details about the incident were available Sunday night.
John McCain's memorial at the Arizona Capitol on Wednesday.

The symbol was striking: the flags on Capitol Hill lowered to honor Sen. "Oh, let them have their thing", Inhofe said.

McCain was known for his temper and short fuse but, while he often got into tiffs with fellow senators, reporters, and others he usually would get over the disagreement and form a working relationship. Former Presidents George W. Bush and Barack Obama are expected to speak at the service.

McCain clashed openly with Trump, who mocked McCain for getting captured during the Vietnam War.

The U.S. flag flying over the White House was brought back down to half-staff Monday afternoon after an outcry over the decision to raise it just two days after the death of Arizona Sen.

USA president Donald Trump has relented under pressure by recognising the late senator John McCain's "service to our country" and lowering the White House flag again as a mark of respect.

McCain was the son and grandson of admirals and followed them to the U.S. Naval Academy.

Graham said that he would "need time to absorb this" but that the McCain family "are in my prayers". 'The flag is down'.

When veterans' groups launched appeals for a more fitting salute to McCain, a Navy veteran who was imprisoned for more than five years in Vietnam, the Republican leader - who had no love lost for the Arizona senator - blinked. Trump told some advisers he believed the television coverage of McCain's death was over the top, according to one person familiar with internal deliberations.

In a statement released late Monday, Trump announced he ordered the re-lowering of the flags that were up again on Monday after being lowered for Saturday, the day of McCain's death, and Sunday. That seemed to be the breaking point for a key Trump constituency, veterans.

However, according to The Washington Post, "presidents have the power to issue proclamations extending that period".

Others in the administration - chief of staff John Kelly, defence secretary James Mattis and national security adviser John Bolton - will also represent the administration.

His words of patriotism, gratitude and love of country also contained a rebuke to th president.

Arizona senator Mr McCain had been an infuriating foil for the United States president in a long-running feud over style and policy.

The war-hero Arizona senator, who died of brain cancer Saturday, and the notoriously sharp-tongued president were bitter rivals, with Trump regularly lobbing insults while McCain opposed his initiatives and slammed his policies.

In the years since, McCain was Trump's loudest Republican critic, especially as the president disrupted America's long-time alliances.

In Washington, McCain will lie in state Friday in the Capitol Rotunda with a formal ceremony and time for the public to pay respects.

"Words can not express the sorrow I feel at John McCain's passing", wrote Republican Sen. Before he died, McCain's closest associates reportedly requested that President Donald Trump, who has feuded with the senator, not appear at the ceremony, which will be streamed online. John McCain from 10 a.m.to noon Thursday.

Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer has proposed renaming the Russell Senate Office building in McCain's honor, but some Republicans are wary of that idea. "I don't want to establish a precedent where somebody is unhonored in the future".
SALT LAKE CITY  A large majority of surveyed Utah construction businesses say they have difficulty filling positions due to a shortage of available labor, according to findings released Wednesday by a national trade group.

In-state responses match closely with national results obtained by the Associated General Contractors of America, as 81 percent of Utah construction businesses said they were "having a hard time filling some or all positions" that are paid hourly, compared to 80 percent of such businesses in the United States.

More than 2,500 business replied to the survey from Associated General Contractors of America, including 33 in Utah.

Forty-six percent of all respondents and 58 percent of Utah businesses said a shortage of available construction labor led to projects taking longer than anticipated.

Mark Knold, senior economist with the Utah Department of Workforce Services, said the construction industry has outpaced the overall state economy in adding jobs for several years. That included from March 2017 to March 2018, when the number of Utah jobs grew by 3.3 percent, but construction jobs increased by 8.6 percent.

"Only within the last year or two has the whole economy kind of been gelling pretty good to the point where  it's tough to find the workers that they want in the construction industry," Knold told the Deseret News. "It doesn't mean they're not finding them  it probably means they're just having a hard time doing it."

The report said 71 percent of Utah respondents indicated they have increased pay rates for hourly employees, and 39 percent said they improved benefit packages for those workers as ways to address shortages in the labor pool.

Twenty-seven percent of Utah businesses said they changed their standards for hiring construction workers with regard to "education, training, employment or arrest record," and 55 percent "initiated or increased in-house training."

Forty-eight percent of Utah respondents anticipated it would become harder to hire hourly workers in the next 12 months, though 81 percent of them still anticipated making hires in that time frame.

Knold said the numbers indicate that "right now it's a seller's market" in the construction industry, with workers as the sellers of their services and businesses as the buyers. With that being the case, companies are "having to be more aggressive getting the labor they want by doing it with dollar bills," he said.

"It's a tight labor pool and the employers want to buy that labor and they have to bid for it and the prices are going up for the labor," Knold said.

But he reiterated that while economic data suggests construction companies currently "really have to work hard to find the labor," it's still the case that "the growth rates are suggesting they're getting it."

Dennis Cigana, executive vice president of pre-construction for Salt Lake-headquartered Jacobsen Construction, said managing costs has become a concern in the past two to three years amid a dearth of workers to fill valuable jobs.

"We found that for instance, just over the last month, reinforcing steel  cost per pound has increased substantially as a percentage, and that's just the pure demand on that specific (specialty)," Cigana told the Deseret News. "That trade is being spread thin.  So in order for the subcontractors to get their right guys, they have to pay their guys a little bit more to get them on the project."

Cigana said paying for projects in Utah locations outside the Wasatch Front has changed the most significantly in recent years because subcontractors are loath to take on the extra travel costs themselves during periods of favorable market conditions.

The General Contractors of America report found that the number of construction jobs increased in 281 out of 358 studied metropolitan areas from July 2017 to July 2018. But an insufficient labor pool could pose a "significant risk to future economic growth," the organization said in a release.

"Labor shortages in the construction industry remain significant and widespread," said Ken Simonson, chief economist for General Contractors of America, in a statement. "The best way to encourage continued economic growth, make it easier to rebuild aging infrastructure and place more young adults into high-paying careers is to address construction workforce shortages."

The organization also submitted a written plan for improving the construction labor pool, suggesting a doubling of public funding for career and technical education training in the next five years and making it possible for more immigrants with construction skills to legally enter and work in the United States.

"The lack of a legal visa program for construction workers and a recent tightening of legal immigration will worsen worker shortages if not addressed comprehensively," the group's written plan says.
Confirmed: Jackie Shroff To Play Salman Khan's Father In Bharat, Confirms Ali Abbas Zafar

The cast of Ali Abbas Zafar directorial Bharat gets bigger as Jackie Shroff joins the team as Salman Khan's father.

The director has confirmed the senior actor to step in as the father of Salman Khan for the period film.

Bharat depicts the eternal bond shared by a father and son, which is quite evident in the teaser. Dropped on Independence day, the teaser spread like a wild fire creating a frenzy across quarters raising the anticipation for the film.

Talking about Jackie Shroff, director Ali Abbas Zafar shares, "We met Jaggu da in London and discussed his dates and looks. I have wanted to work with him for a long time as I feel he is the perfect amalgamation of a star and actor. I was very glad as Jackie sir instantly agreed with the story to do the film in just 20 mins of narration."

The film that traces the journey 60 years, boasts of an ensemble cast with names like Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Disha Patani, Sunil Grover, Tabu and Jackie Shroff.

After wrapping the first schedule in Mumbai, the team has recently concluded the second schedule in Malta. The cast has been sharing pictures from the sets piquing the interests of the audience for the much anticipated film.

Bharat shot for a grand circus sequence in the first schedule with a song choreographed by Vaibhavi Merchant featuring Salman Khan and Disha Patani. The film showcases Disha Patani as a trapeze artist and involves action sequences and stunts with fire for which the actress geared up months before the film went on floors.

Pictures of Salman Khan doing daredevil stunts on a motorbike amidst a ring of fire in the circus set up added to the excitement of the film.

Recently, Salman Khan shared a still featuring himself and Katrina Kaif which looked straight out of a fairy tale, which became the talk of the town in no time.

Bharat's release brings back Salman Khan and director Ali Abbas Zafar for an Eid release after the 2016 Blockbuster Hit, Sultan. The hit director-actor duo will be marking a hattrick with Bharat after their last outing Tiger Zinda Hai.

Salman Khan will yet again treat the audience on the festive season of Eid next year with the release of Bharat.

The film will feature Salman Khan sporting five different looks spanning 60 years, wherein a crucial part will showcase the actor in his late 20s, looking much leaner and younger. Salman Khan will be recreating his 'Karan-Arjun' look which has created immense excitement amongst the audience.

The film is set to have a character-driven story spanning across many periods. Bharat will be shot across exotic locations in Malta and Abu Dhabi, besides Punjab and Delhi.
6.8 million people have taken advantage of a free NHS Health Check over the last five years, however, another 8.7 million have so far missed out on the check, according to a new report.

The NHS Health Check is available to people aged between 40 and 74. The check includes answering some simple questions, having height, weight and waist circumference measured, having blood pressure taken and giving a sample of blood.

The check helps to assess whether people have, or are at risk of, a number of conditions that are relatively common in people over 40. These conditions include type 2 diabetes, heart disease, stroke, kidney disease and dementia.

Some of these conditions can develop without presenting obvious symptoms and the health check helps to spot these conditions at an early stage. The tests also helps to show whether you are at higher risk of developing any of these conditions in future. The checks can therefore be very useful for people to improve their health and prevent the conditions, including type 2 diabetes, from developing.

The analysis, which was carried out by charity Diabetes UK, showed that there is regional variation of in the numbers of people receiving the health checks across the country. For example, attendance was at 50% in the East of England, but significantly lower in the South West at 35%. Walsall has helped 99% of eligible people receive the health check, whereas only 18% of people eligible have received the check in East Riding of Yorkshire and in Croydon.

Robin Hewings, Head of Policy at Diabetes UK, said: The success of the programme in certain areas is due to local councils working hard to make it easier for people to attend these free health checks that only take 15 minutes and can help keep people healthy.

The charity is urging local authorities to take more action to encourage more people to receive the health check. There are over 12 million people that have an increased risk of diabetes.

If you are at high risk of diabetes or have been newly diagnosed with the condition, there is a lot of hope and tackling lifestyle changes early can make a huge difference towards improving your health.

For this reason, Diabetes.co.uk has developed the very successful Low Carb Program which has helped thousands of people to improve their overall health. Many people with diabetes have been able to come off some of their diabetes medications as a result of improved blood sugar control and many people at risk of type 2 diabetes have been able to lose weight and reduce their risk of developing diabetes.
The FBI has arrested five residents of a compound in Amalia, in Taos County, N.M. (Amalia Compound), on a federal criminal complaint charging them with violating the federal firearms and conspiracy laws.

Authorities say that Abdul-ghani, the deceased boy found at the property, initially was reported missing by his mother past year from Jonesboro, Georgia, after Siraj Ibn Wahhaj said he was taking the child to a park and didn't return.

The associated criminal complaint charges Leveille, "a Haitian national illegally present in the United States, with being an alien unlawfully in possession of firearms and ammunition in the District of New Mexico from November 2017 through August 2018", the press release states. The other four defendants are charged with aiding, abetting and conspiring with her in the alleged offense.

Prosecutors in New Mexico accused the five defendants of plotting attacks against schools and other institutions the group deemed "corrupt".

Child abuse charges against them were dropped because prosecutors missed the 10-day limit for an evidentiary hearing to establish probable cause. Three of the defendants, Hujrah Wahhaj, Subhannah Wahhaj, and Lucas Morton had been released from jail on Thursday. However, those charges were dropped earlier in the day Friday in anticipation of taking the case to a grand jury for indictments later this month, Taos County District Attorney Donald Gallegos said.

The boy's father, Siraj Wahhaj, is suspected of abducting him from his Georgia home in December and was one of the five arrested.

Three of the adults from the compound had been released Wednesday after state judges dismissed child neglect charges, noting that prosecutors missed deadlines to present evidence and that charges may have been improperly filed by the sheriff and prosecutors.

Taos County Sheriff's deputies discovered 11 children at the compound, who were taken into the custody of state child-welfare workers.

The prosecution argued that all five adults were risky and claimed they had trained the children to use weapons and prepare to carry out school shootings.

The source, who asked to remain anonymous, said they were waiting to get a new ID, when two law enforcement officers entered through the front door, drew their weapons and detained a "tall black man" who was hiding in a bathroom.

One of the children also said that Leveille "was the head of the household, and would order Siraj Ibn Wahhaj to recite scripture over the ailing Abdul-Ghani, which he did on a regular basis".

Investigators say the pair denied the child medication and subjected him to prayer rituals they believed would dispel "demons or devils" from the boy's body.

Several guns, ammunition and a bulletproof vest were found at the compound. The remains of a three-year-old had been discovered in one of the tunnels beneath the compound.

The 13-year old also revealed some details about his mother's weird behavior, telling Federal Bureau of Investigation agents that she believes she receives orders from God.

Gallegos said in a Facebook post that he dropped the child abuse resulting in death charges against Leveille and Siraj Ibn Wahhaj in favor of grand jury proceedings to avoid holding a rushed preliminary hearing on the charges.
The fighting erupted last week between armed groups from Tripoli and rivals from a town to the south.

Around 400 prisoners also escaped from a facility near Tripoli amid the deadly violence between the militia groups.

They added that guards, fearing for their lives, were unable to prevent the breakout following riots at the jail.

"The detainees were able to force open the doors and leave" as fighting between rival militias raged near the prison of Ain Zara, police said in a statement on Sunday, without specifying what crimes the escapees had committed.

Numerous prisoners were reportedly supporters of Gaddafi and found guilty of killings during the 2011 uprising, according to Agence France-Presse.

The U.N. -backed government in Tripoli has declared a state of emergency, while the U.N. Mission in Libya invited the "various concerned parties" to meet on Tuesday for an "urgent dialogue on the security situation".

In a separate incident on Sunday, two people were killed and seven injured after a missile landed in a camp housing displaced people, Reuters quoted activist Emad Ergeha as saying.

A rocket also hit the Waddan Hotel in central Tripoli near the Italian embassy. Three people were wounded, staff said.

On Saturday, a rocket hit a state oil firm NOC's diesel depot that supplied energy to a power station.

Numerous armed militias have attempted to wrest control of the city since the ouster of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011.

The country is now governed by two rival authorities backed by an array of powerful armed groups: the Tripoli-based GNA, which is recognised by the United Nations as Libya's official government; and the Tobruk-based House of Representatives in the east of the country, which has the support of renegade General Khalifa Haftar.

These attempts to weaken the legitimate Libyan authorities and hamper the course of the political process are not acceptable. S., France, Italy and Britain on Saturday condemned what they called an escalation of violence in and around the Libyan capital Tripoli, warning that armed groups which undermined Libyan stability would be made accountable.
Wipro wins $1.6 bn, 10-year project from US-based Alight Solutions

Wipro Ltd, Indias fourth-largest information technology company, has won a 10-year $1.5-billion deal from the Illinois-based Alight Solutions, which is also Wipro's largest, translating into revenues of $1.5 -1.6 billion over a decade, the company said in a statement.

Wipro said its long-term association with Alight Solutions, a leader in technology-enabled health, wealth, HR and finance solutions, will reshape the HR services industry by providing Alights clients with the breadth and depth of capabilities from the two industry-leading organisations.

The strategic partnership will enable Alight to accelerate investment in consumer-facing technologies and services across its health, wealth and cloud businesses by leveraging Wipros industry-leading strengths in automation, machine learning and data analytics, Wipro stated.

Abidali Z Neemuchwala, Chief Executive Officer and Executive Director, Wipro, said this long-term partnership will help Alight in its business transformation journey. Alight provides benefits administration and cloud-based HR and financial solutions.

Wipros deal win is significant because most outsourcing deals are shrinking both in value and duration, Neemuchwala added.

Starting next year, Wipro is assured of at least $150 million in annual revenue, which is also a shot in the arm for business-starved CEO Abidali Neemuchwala, who since taking over in February 2016 has been trying to put Wipro back on the growth path.

The contract that will bring in revenues of $1.5-1.6 billion over the 10-year term on the contract, is the largest since Wipro won a more than $1.1 billion order from Canadian logistics firm ATCO in June 2014.

Since December last year, Wipros larger rival, and Neemuchwalas former employer, Tata Consultancy Services Ltd (TCS) has won three such multi-year mega-deals, which together bring in over $5.6 billion in revenue. This has made the TCS management confident of achieving double-digit growth in the current financial year.
China's belt and road projects jam nations' finances: report

Nations that opened up for Chinas massive infrastructure investment trade through the much touted Belt and Road project are now seeking cover for rising debt burden after Beijing invested billions of dollars in road, railway and port projects.

The initiative, also known as the "new Silk Road," envisions the construction of railways, roads and ports across the globe, with Beijing providing billions of dollars in loans to cash-starved countries.

First announced in 2013 by President Xi Jinping, China's massive infrastructure trade projects, however, are running into speed bumps as some countries begin to feel the weight of debt buried under Chinese investments.

Xi himself admitted of the huge debt burden the projects impose on recipients when he said Chinas trade with 'Belt and Road countries had exceeded $5 trillion, with outward direct investment surpassing $60 billion.

Perhaps the first to acknowledge the fact is Malaysia, which raised doubts about the real worth of the projects.

During a visit to Beijing in August, Malaysias Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said his country would shelve three China-backed projects, including a $20 billion railway project.

Sri Lanka had to grant a 99-year lease on a strategic port to Beijing over its inability to repay loans for the $1.4-billion project the previous government had contracted - a heavy price for being highly indebted to China.

The new prime minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, has vowed more transparency amid fears about the countrys ability to repay Chinese loans related to the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

In Maladives, with Bejing grabbing 80 per cent of the countrys debt, the exiled leader of the opposition, Mohamed Nasheed, has said Chinas actions in the Indian Ocean archipelago amounted to a land grab and colonialism.

The problem with China is it does not have any reliable and remunerative investment vehicle for its huge cash surplus that have accumulated over years of trade.

It is left to politicians to decide how, when and where to invest that surplus. This makes Chinese investments more political than economic.

This combined with its ambiguous trade practices make Chinese investments unwelcome in most countries, unless they are totally dependent and needy.

Reports citing a research study by the Centrefor Global Development, a US think-tank, found serious concerns about the sustainability of the sovereign debt in the eight countries receiving Silk Road funds.

These include Pakistan, Djibouti, Maldives, Mongolia, Laos, Montenegro, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.

The cost of a China-Laos railway project  $6.7 billion  represents almost half of the Southeast Asian countrys GDP, according to the study.

In Djibouti, the IMF has warned that the Horn of Africa country faces a high risk of debt distress as its public debt jumped from 50 per cent of GDP in 2014 to 85 per cent in 2016.

China has long been active in Africa and as the continents largest trading partner, is also the biggest investor in Africa. A number of African leaders have gathered in Beijing for a summit focused on the "Belt and Road" programme.

At a daily press briefing on Friday, Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying denied that Beijing was saddling its partners with onerous debt, saying that its loans to Sri Lanka and Pakistan were only a small part of those countries' overall foreign debt.

"It's unreasonable that money coming out of Western countries is praised as good and sweet, while coming out of China it's sinister and a trap," she said.
The billionaire founder and chief executive of Chinese e-commerce firm JD.com Inc, Richard Liu, was arrested in the U.S. state of Minnesota on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct and later released after what the company said was a false accusation.

A Chinese billionaire has been arrested in Minneapolis on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct. He declined to provide details of the arrest. The businessman has been released pending complaint.

John Elder, a spokesman for the Minneapolis Police Department, said, however, that "an active investigation" was underway but it was possible for Liu to leave the United States.

Liu, whose net worth of $9.4 billion earned him the Forbes rank of 18th richest Chinese man previous year, was released without bail and is free to leave the city, state and even the country, police said.

The arrest comes shortly after Liu was in the spotlight for another incident involving sexual misconduct.

Liu founded JD.com, one of China's leading e-commerce sites in 2004.

JD.com said in a statement on the Chinese social media platform Weibo that Mr Liu arrest in Minnesota was based on an "unsubstantiated accusation".

"We are confident that we will be able to get in touch with him as the time becomes necessary", Elder told the Wall Street Journal.

While the businessman himself has not issued any comment regarding the allegations or the goal of his trip to Minnesota, the University of Minnesota has confirmed that Liu was studying for a doctor degree and traveled to Minnesota to complete the residency part of his business leadership curriculum among other students.

In that case, Liu had hosted a party in late 2015 at his luxury home in Sydney, after which one of his guests accused another guest of sexually assaulting her at a hotel.

Liu built JD.com from scratch. While Liu was not accused of wrongdoing, he asked an Australian court to block release of his name, citing potential harm to his company and marriage.
Genetics and pollution drive severity of asthma symptoms

Asthma patients, with a specific genetic profile, exhibit more intense symptoms following exposure to traffic pollution, according to researchers at the National Institutes of Health and collaborators. The study appeared online in Scientific Reports.

The research team, made up of scientists from the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), part of NIH, and Rice University, Houston, also found that asthma patients that lack this genetic profile do not have the same sensitivity to traffic pollution and do not experience worse asthma symptoms. The work brings scientists closer to being able to use precision medicine, an emerging field that intends to prevent and treat disease based on factors specific to an individual.

Co-lead author Shepherd Schurman, MD, associate medical director of the NIEHS Clinical Research Unit, stated the results are based on genetic variation, the subtle differences in DNA that make each person unique. He further added that to understand the concept, one should think of human genes, which are made up of DNA base pairs A, C, G, and T, as written instructions for making proteins.

"All humans have the same genes, in other words the same basic instructions, but in some people one DNA base pair has been changed," Schurman says. "This common type of genetic variation is called a single nucleotide polymorphism or SNP, and it can alter the way proteins are made and make individuals more or less prone to illness."

Schurman is also head of the Environmental Polymorphisms Registry (EPR), the DNA bank in North Carolina that provided volunteers for the study. The EPR studies how SNPs impact disease risk in combination with environmental exposures.

Together with NIEHS colleague and lung disease expert Stavros Garantziotis, M.D., medical director of the NIEHS Clinical Research Unit, the two scientists examined four SNPs that are involved in a biochemical pathway that leads to inflammatory responses in the body.

They explained that SNPs are usually studied one at a time, but they wanted to learn if different combinations of these SNPs, along with pollution exposure, could worsen symptoms in a person with an inflammatory disease like asthma.

Schurman and Garantziotis gathered information about the SNPs, severity of asthma symptoms, and residential addresses of 2,704 EPR participants with asthma. Using the SNPs data, they divided the participants into three groups: hyper-responders, or those very sensitive to air pollution and likely to develop inflammation; hypo-responders, or those insensitive to air pollution and less likely to develop inflammation; and those in between.

With the help of collaborators at Rice University, the team used the participants' addresses to calculate their distance from a major road. Participants were categorized depending on whether they lived more or less than 275 yards from a major roadway. Data suggest that air pollution levels are elevated closer to major roads.

The researchers found that asthma sufferers who were hyper-responders and lived closer to heavily travelled roads had the worst asthma symptoms, such as difficulty breathing, chest pain, cough, and wheezing, compared to the other groups. In contrast, asthma patients who were hypo-responders and lived further away from busy roads had milder symptoms. Garantziotis concluded the work could greatly enhance the quality of life for people with asthma.

"Based on this research, we could propose that hyper-responders, who are exposed to traffic pollution, receive air purification intervention, such as HEPA filters, for their home," Garantziotis says.

NIEHS Clinical Director Janet Hall, M.D., says the results emphasize the importance of gene-environment interactions in the progression of disease.

"This research is a great example of how we can approach disease prevention on a personal level, and tailor our treatments to suit individual patients," she says. "That way we can be more efficient with our treatments and preventative measures, while at the same time cutting health care costs."
Two new priests have been ordained for the Diocese of Derry and Raphoe at a service in St Columbs Cathedral in Derry.

The Reverend Sean Hanily  a native of Roscommon  and Enniskillen-born Reverend Lindsey Farrell were ordained by the Bishop of Derry and Raphoe, Rt Rev Ken Good, who described them as "stars" whom the Diocese was blessed to receive.

Reverend Farrell has been appointed Curate of the Grouped Parishes of Inver, Mountcharles, Killaghtee and Killybegs in south west Donegal, while Reverend Hanily will serve as Curate-assistant of the Parish of Drumragh and Mountfield in Tyrone.

Both priests families were in church for the service, along with new colleagues from the diocese, representatives of their new parishes and of parishes where they had served previously.

In his sermon, the Reverend Canon John Merrick, said he had sought the heart and mind of God for a meaningful word that both ordinands could carry with them through the years of labour in the fields of harvest to which they had been assigned.

Canon Merrick said he thought of the need to maintain a ministry that would operate always as a well-oiled machine that would continue through the years to fulfil their commission. We know from the scriptures that oil is always representative of the Holy Spirit, Canon Merrick said, so in a sense we know we must keep a fresh anointing of His spirit operating continually in and through our hearts, our minds and even the members of our body.

Three of the manifestations of the continual filling of His spirit can be seen in the acronym for the word oil, the Preacher said, obedience, integrity and love. And so, my message to Lindsey and Sean, to these warriors to be ordained today, is to be sure to keep your ministry well-oiled with obedience, integrity and love.

It is easy to obey, Canon Merrick said, when that obedience seems reasonable and pleasing to our own understanding and desires  and particularly when its found pleasing to those around us. But will we waver when we dont see the results anticipated, though we still believe this is Gods will?

He shared a remark made by the former US President, John Quincy Adams, whose repeated attempts to have slavery abolished in the 1830s proved fruitless: Duty is mine, results are Gods.

Ministry is a call to abide in Him, Canon Merrick said, to serve His will and step out in obedient faith, knowing that duty is ours, results are Gods.

The two ordinands, Rev Lindsey Farrell (left) and Rev Sean Hanily kneel before Bishop Ken Good during the Service of Ordination

Canon Merrick said ministry was also a call to integrity. We must always be careful not to use people to build His church, but to serve people as He builds His church among us. And in all these things, we must be the same person behind the pulpit as we are when we are at home with the family and when we are alone in the study. That is what characterises the woman or man of integrity.

Ministry was also a call to love, Canon Merrick said. The call to love was not always easy but it always resulted in Gods peace and that was priceless.

My prayer for you this evening, Canon Merrick told the two ordinands, is that your work will always be characterised by obedience, integrity and love, as a well-oiled machine continually advancing the Kingdom of God until the coming of the Kingdom.

The choir and choristers of St Columbs Cathedral provided music for the two-hour long Service of Ordination, after which the congregation made their way to St Augustines Parish Hall, on the City Walls, for refreshments and speeches.

Reverend Hanily said he and Reverend Farrell needed peoples prayers more than ever now, while Reverend Farrell asked family, friends and parishioners to affirm them both in their ministries. Bishop Good said Derry and Raphoe was blessed to have both new priests joining the Diocese. Weve got two stars, the Bishop said.
However, more recently, the company also launched the 350 Signals edition. This motorcycle wears a similar design to the Pegasus 500.

The signals 350 also comes with unique numbers stencilled on the tanks, similar to the Pegasus 500. What's more, the Signals 350 is not a limited edition model and it also features dual-channel ABS as standard.

Now, customers of the Royal Enfield Pegasus 500 feel cheated, with some of them even having written to the company expressing their disappointment. The Pegasus 500 owners in the letter to the company, have stated the consequences of their Pegasus 500 models if Royal Enfield begins deliveries of the Signals edition.

They stated that the owners of the Pegasus 500 would donate the motorcycles to their respective city municipalities, contributing to the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan.

Some of the owners, stated, "We've decided that if the Signals 350 is delivered to customers with this same design (with stencilled serial nos. & positioning of 2 logos at the front of fuel tank), we all will DONATE our Pegasus to the respective Municipalities of our respective cities & we will contribute to Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan."

They further added, "If the company doesn't keep the value of their prestigious customers, we too will not keep the value of their most hyped bike."

Royal Enfield representatives have in defence, replied to the unhappy Pegasus 500 customers.

The company stated, that although, both the Pegasus 500 and the Signals 350 share the same platform, both motorcycles are uniquely distinct in both inspiration and design. However, the response doesn't address the actual concerns of the Pegasus 500 owners.

The Royal Enfield Pegasus 500 is based on the classic 500 model. The motorcycle pays homage to the British Armyand the company's contribution during World War II. The Pegasus 500 is limited to a 1000 units globally, with India receiving just 250 of them.

Recommended Video - Watch Now! Mahindra Marazzo: Details, Features & Things To Know DriveSpark

Meanwhile, the Royal Enfield 350 Signals edition pays homage to the Indian Army. However, this Signals 350 is not a limited edition model, like the Pegasus 500. Also, the Signals 350 now comes standard with dual-channel ABS, while being priced at almost half of what the Pegasus 500 costs.

The Pegasus 500 is priced at Rs 2.49 lakh,ex-showroom (Maharashtra). While the Signals 350 comes with a price tag of Rs 1.62 lakh, ex-showroom (Pune).

Thoughts On The Royal Enfield Signals 350

Royal Enfield introduced the Pegasus 500 as a limited edition model. The company even priced the motorcycle at a premium for its exclusive graphics and design. However, with the launch of the 350 Signals edition, Royal Enfield offered similar graphics and design as the limited edition Pegasus 500. This beats the main point of a vehicle being Limited Edition'.
Dundalk Chamber of Commerce say they have had a record number of entries for the Louth Business Awards 2018.

A spokesperson said: "With 20 categories to choose from there really was a great mix for businesses to enter making the task for the judging panel increasingly more difficult."

The winners will be announced at the Dundalk Chamber of Commerce Annual Gala Dinner will take place on Saturday 20th October 2018 in the Carrickdale Hotel.

Last years event was a sellout and the Chamber has already received bookings from companies who would like to attend this years Gala Night. The cost of the night will be 50 per person plus vat and includes a champagne reception, four-course meal with wine, and dancing until late with the impressive band Sugartown Rd..

Local dignitaries, business leaders and fellow members of the Chamber will attend what promises to be one of the highlights of the social calendar in Dundalk. Last years event attracted over 590 guests to this glittering, black-tie occasion.

Tickets for this event are limited so booking early is recommended and can be reserved by calling Brenda on: 042 9336343 or email brenda@dundalk.ie to book same.

The 2018 finalists are as follows:

Best Shop Front both interior and exterior sponsored by Net1.ie

Smyths Life Pharmacy

The Crafty Rock

Justin Casey Salon

Treet & Green



Best Customer Service Independent Retailer sponsored by The Argus

Terry Kelly Wallpapers & Paint

Toolfix

Backhouse Pharmacy

Sybil Boutique

Hollands Hardware



Best Customer Service Multiple Retailer sponsored by the Carrickdale Hotel

Colourtrend Paints

Inglot Cosmetics Dundalk

Name IT

Vodafone Talk to Me

Neola Boutique

McCormacks Pharmacy



Best Cafe/ Fast Food Outlet sponsored by AV Direct

Greenmount Restaurant

The Copper Kettle Restaurant

Mullens Takeaway/ Castletown Road

Bagel Bar Coffee House

Mullens Takeaway Roden Place

Kingfisher Restaurant



Best Dining Experience sponsored by Dundalk Stadium

Lennons Gastro Pub

McGeoughs Bar & Restaurant

Four Seasons Hotel, Spa & Leisure Club

PJ O Hares ( Anchor Bar Ltd)

Carrickdale Hotel & Spa

The Rum House



Best Bar sponsored by Diageo

The Rum House

Cluskeys Bar, Restaurant & Guesthouse

The Market Bar

Russells Saloon Gin Emporium

McKeowns Bar

The Bartender



Tourism Award Attraction & Activities sponsored by Value Centre Cash & Carry Dundalk

Carlingford Oyster Festival

Farm Tours Ireland

Scenic Carlingford Ferry

Blackrock Tourism & Development Group

The Glyde Inn



Community Award sponsored by Dundalk Credit Union

Louth Volunteer Centre

Special Needs Active Parents

Cara Cancer Support Centre

St Patricks Parish Soup Kitchen & Food Parcels

Dundalk Special Olympics Club

Irish Wheelchair Association Resource and Outreach Service



Start-up Business of the year sponsored by AIB Bank Dundalk

Dundalk Study Academy

OMD Consultancy

Jevens Design- IT Tape

Unglu-d



Best Emerging Business sponsored by Local Enterprise Office Louth

GECKO Governance

Loughran Family Malt

Smarmore Castle Private Clinic

Nova Leah



Fastest Growing Company ( 21 plus employees) sponsored by Vhi Healthcare

WaterWipes

Hydroscand Ireland Ltd

Ecological Waste Management Ltd

Bryan Lynch Finest Salads

The Greath Northern Distillery Ltd



Best Marketing Campaign Strategy sponsored by Oriel Hub

McArdle Skeath

Vavavoom.ie

Comfort Keepers Home Care, a Sodexo Brand

ECC Design & Engineering Ltd



Employee Development Award sponsored by LMETB

McArdle Skeath

Bellurgan Precision Engineering

Intact Software

Prometric

DKIT Sport



Environmental Awareness Award sponsored by Recruitment Plus

McArdle Skeath

Bellurgan Precision Engineering

Ecological Waste Management Ltd

Leinster Environmentals

Foxpak Flexibles Ltd



Best Family Business Award sponsored by Prometric

Farm Tours Ireland

Industrial & Farm Machinery Ltd

National Tile Ltd

McEvoys Dundalk

Lallys Electrical



Professional Services Award sponsored by M1 Document Solutions

Servisource

Dash

SMC Food Safety Management Consultants

Cuchulainn Credit Union

Osborne Recruitment

McGinley Quinn Solicitors



Best Indigenous Manufacturing Company of the year sponsored by Bank of Ireland

Leinster Environmentals

Bellurgan Precision Engineering

WaterWipes

Eliteform Manufacturing Ltd



Employee of the year Award sponsored by Recruit Island

Mark Byrne of Leinster Environmentals

Garry Byrne of McKeown Auto Services Ltd

Madeline Owens of Tres Belle Salon

Shannon Casey of Keystone Insurance



Best Exporter of the year award sponsored by Enterprise Ireland

Horseware

Suretank Ltd

Foxpak Flexibles Ltd

The Greath Northern Distillery Ltd



Lifetime Award for the contribution for Louth sponsored by PayPal

To be announced on the night!
Dutch aid organisation Simavi presented the first results of a study on social inclusion in WASH programmes. The study reveals that in many areas in the world different minority or vulnerable groups are not yet included in WASH-projects.

Development organisations should have a more distinct approach towards inclusion of minority groups and vulnerable people when realizing water supply and sanitation projects, the study advises.

The study was presented by Simavi at the Netherlands Pavilion at the Stockholm World Water Week on 30 Augustus.

Sara Ahrari of Simavi (right) called for tools fo get to a complementary approach for future WASH proiects.

Inclusion of vulnerable groups

This years Stockholm World Water Week focussed on nature based solutions and ecosystem services, but some sessions and presentations already preluded on next years theme, being Leave no one behind.

Anticipating on the future theme, Simavi published a study on the available strategies for social inclusion in WASH programmes.

The study is not finished yet, said Sara Ahari of Simavi at the presentation. It is a working document and we all invite you to add your insides and experiences.

More awareness

If you build a water kiosk, be aware that for disabled and elderly it will be difficult to go there. The same goes for women to reach a water well deep down in a valley, Ahrari added. She considered it already a big step forward if development organisations would start to recognise this default in their projects.

It takes time and money to be inclusive for vulnerable groups, Ahrari raised. Time and money is not always available, but more awareness can be a first step to change the prevailing mind set.

The cover of the report that was presented in Stockholm.

New roadmap

The study mapped and assessed the distinct approaches, methods and tools used for social inclusion in WASH initiatives by a selected number of development organisations, some of which have a strong track record in this area.

According to Ahrari the study shows in practise it is difficult to be fully inclusive. We need new tools to be able to develop an complementary approach, and formulate a road map.

Persistent gaps

The study revealed unequal progress and persistent gaps, for example slower progress in accessing improved sanitation for female headed households in Bhutan and slower rates of progress for households with people with disabilities in Zambia in terms of the proportion of households in which everyone is able to conveniently and easily use the toilet.

In Tanzania, slippage has been a challenge, with initial impressive rates of progress declining due to the basic nature of toilets that poor households built after demand creation and their inability to withstand multiple rainy seasons.

Organisations involved in the preparation of the study are: World Bank, WaterAid, GIZ, Sida, Unicef, WSSCC and Brac; Dutch organisations Simavi, IRC, Wetlands International, Plan Nederland and VEI.

Download the executive summary or full study: Socially inclusive WASH programming.

Read also on this website

 Stockholm World Water Week 2018: A look back on an inspiring event to get SDG6 on track, 7 September 2018

 SWWW 2018: Blue deal seeks wisdom on water management from both sides, 6 September 2018

 SWWW 2018: Latest generation water-related apps for small farmers shown at African Spatial Delight, 4 September 2018

 SWWW 2018: Potential of blending finance remains untapped for water infrastructure in developing countries, 31 August 2018

 SWWW 2018: Water.org joins Finish Mondial to team up for affordable toilets worldwide, 31 August 2018

 SWWW 2018: Delft biotech pioneer Mark van Loosdrecht receives Stockholm Water Prize, 30 August 2018

 SWWW 2018: Open data on water availability can prevent that water scarcity leads to conflicts, 29 August 2018

 SWWW 2018: Forge strong partnerships to scale up action, 28 August 2018

 Meet the Dutch water delegation in the Netherlands pavilion at Stockholm World Water Week (booth 1 )

 IRC Wash receives Osprey grant for collective action towards universal WASH access, 6 April 2018

 Universal access to water: How do we make sure no one is left behind?, 4 May 2018

More information

Stockholm World Water Week

wwws.worldwaterweek.org

Simavi

Amsterdam, the Netherlands

+31 88 313 15 00

www.simavi.nl


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The Internet of Things may be in its infancy, but the U.S. government has been gearing up to determine what the proper federal role should be, both for encouraging and for regulating the use of IoT technology.

Two recent developments have underscored the government's interest in IoT.

On the regulatory front, the Consumer Product Safety Commission has launched an initiative to determine a framework for regulation related to IoT. The agency finished taking comments from IT providers, other affected businesses and the public last month. The comment period followed a public hearing this spring, during which major interested parties presented their views on potential IoT regulation.

The second action was the recent introduction of the SMART IoT Act in the U.S. House of Representatives. The bill includes two major elements. First, it directs the U.S. Commerce Department to conduct a comprehensive study of virtually all aspects of the "Internet-connected devices industry" -- also referenced in the bill as the "Internet of Things."

The legislation further directs the Commerce Department to describe, in a comprehensive fashion, what various federal agencies have been doing with regard to the development and potential regulation of IoT.

Currently the CPSC, the Federal Trade Commission, the Federal Communications Commission, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration, and the National Institute of Standards, among other federal entities, have embarked on some kind of IoT program.

The bill is designed to provide lawmakers with the appropriate background to shape federal policy regarding the IoT. A key sponsor of the bill, Rep. Bob Latta, R-Ohio, noted that "because IoT is increasingly becoming ubiquitous, it is very difficult to know who is doing what -- both in the federal government and in the private sector."

The bill, H.R. 6032, is pending a vote by the full House.

Actions Reflect Caution

However, the IT community should not be overly concerned that a robust federal regulatory regime is looming -- at least not at this point.

Take the actions by the CPSC, for example. In its invitation for public comment, the agency specifically sought information on how Internet-connected products might be hazardous to consumers, and what actions the commission could take to eliminate or mitigate those hazards.

In addition to discussing potential safety hazards resulting from connecting consumer products to the IoT, the hearing was meant to address the CPSC's role in addressing them.

With its latest actions, the CPSC appears more interested in exploring the impact of IoT than in contemplating any specific set of regulations.

"I think it's appropriate for CPSC to take a look at the IoT and how cyberthreats can lead to product safety issues and [consider the] agency's oversight function," said Ari Schwartz, executive director of the Cybersecurity Coalition, which includes AT&T, Cisco, Microsoft and Symantec.

"Of course, we would favor the use of industry standards in any regulatory regime," he told the E-Commerce Times.

"Right now, it's too early to tell what direction the CPSC will take. The agency has to determine how broad its scope will be," Schwartz said.

"I think CPSC is currently in the exploratory phases as to its role with IoT. The agency is genuinely interested in just learning more about IoT and its impacts," said Rachel Weintraub, general counsel for the Consumer Federation of America.

In its comments to the CPSC, the Cybersecurity Coalition stressed that safety and security standards for loT devices were inextricably linked and should be addressed in tandem, and that any standards should be set through a voluntary, consensus-based, and industry-led approach.

The wide array of IoT products and applications mitigate against any one-size-fits-all approach to standardization and regulation, the group contended.

A single standard "runs counter to where the industry is going," Schwartz said at the CPSC hearing.

"While best practices and voluntary standards are helpful, they may not be adequate to protect consumers from the potential safety risks of using connected devices," CFA's Weintraub said at the hearing.

"The IoT raises questions about whether current product safety and product liability laws need to be rethought," she noted, referencing a report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Mandatory vs. Voluntary

"Mandatory standards have an inherent enforceability and stronger compliance element," Weintraub told the E-Commerce Times.

Still, by statute the CPSC's regulatory approach generally centers on the use of voluntary standards, she acknowledged, although mandatory actions are permitted under certain circumstances.

That issue aside, CFA strongly recommends two actions designed to get ahead of any formal regulatory scheme, Weintraub said.

First is that producers should strive to incorporate safety into the original design of any connected device, product or application. Second is that all federal agencies with a stake in IoT regulation should cooperate in a working group to determine jurisdictional scope, adequate risk analysis, and a truly outcome-oriented approach, to ensure that nothing falls through the cracks in the federal effort to protect consumers from IoT related risks.

The focus of the SMART IoT Act appears to be striking a balance between regulation and connected technologies development -- with a tilt toward encouraging innovation. The act explicitly refrains from setting out a stringent national regulatory program.

At the federal level, the legislation "will help promote interagency discussions and help avoid conflicting or duplicative obligations or requirements that may slow innovation and progress," said sponsor Latta.

Private Sector Engaged

At the industry level, the SMART IoT Act "will help innovators and businesses know how entities are developing, using and promoting use of IoT solutions," Latta noted.

The bill also will "highlight industry-based efforts to self-regulate and provide industry with a one-stop-shop for a compilation of industry-based standards -- both ones already in effect and those currently being developed," he said.

While the SMART IoT Act can be helpful in describing federal efforts related to the technology, significant actions already are under way within and between agencies, and between agencies and the private sector, the Cybersecurity Coalition's Schwartz noted.

The Commerce Department itself has organized an internal Internet policy task force composed of NTIA, NIST, the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, and the International Trade Administration to keep tabs on Internet commerce, including IoT.

The NTIA, for example, last week conducted a multi-stakeholder public dialogue on software component transparency related to IoT. Representatives from Rapid 7, Microsoft, and the Atlantic Council assisted in coordinating the meeting.

NTIA also has initiated an effort to ensure the integrity of IoT software, including the establishment of adequate patching mechanisms and security functions, and in the process has engaged with the private sector.

Recent federal developments clearly indicate that IoT is firmly on the radar screen of federal agencies charged with electronic commerce policy, but the current posture is consistent with that of the previous administration.

Just days before the Obama administration left office, the Commerce Department released a green paper examining the benefits and challenges of the evolving IoT landscape, and suggesting that the federal government should continue to nurture innovative technology.

John K. Higgins has been an ECT News Network reporter since 2009. His main areas of focus are U.S. government technology issues such as IT contracting, cybersecurity, privacy, cloud technology, big data and e-commerce regulation. As a freelance journalist and career business writer, he has written for numerous publications, including The Corps Report and Business Week. Email John.


In order to improve the protection of the country and its infrastructure, the German government is founding an agency for cyber security. But it has several birth defects

The German government has announced the establishment of an Agency for Cyber Security. It is to start work at the beginning of 2019 and will later consist of 100 employees. The budget is 200 million euros for the next five years. With 80 percent of this sum, the agency is to fund research projects on cyber security. The aim: to improve the protection of state institutions and infrastructure against cyber attacks. It will also make Germany less dependent on technologies from other countries. The German government is also driven by fears of public opinion being influenced by Russia, as seems to have happened before the US elections.

The agency reports to the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Defense. Conflicts are inevitable. Both the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Defense have a fundamental interest in carrying out cyber attacks themselves. This is also perfectly legitimate: the German military must be able to develop deterrent potential in the event of cyber attacks and the police must be up to date in order to combat organized crime and terrorism. An agency that is to research and develop defensive measures against precisely such attacks is incorrectly located with the ministries mentioned, because elementary conflicts of interest become inevitable thereby. The fact that two ministries also share the authority to issue directives suggests that the distribution of responsibilities was not based on factual reasons but rather on some kind of proportional representation or that political considerations or personal vanity played a role..

It may be legitimate for an agency for cyber warfare or cyber espionage to be set up at the Ministry of the Interior and the Ministry of Defense. An organization that is to ensure cyber security must be independent of ministries. The Federal Office for Information Security (Bundesamt fur Sicherheit in der Informationstechnik, BSI), which reports to the Federal Ministry of the Interior, is already facing the same dilemma. Why is the BSI not entrusted with the tasks of the cyber security agency? Possibly because it has failed catastrophically in the fight against the cyber attack on the intranet of the Bundestag in 2015?

However, this failure is not due to the employees, but because the BSI is chronically underfunded. The 100 employees who will make up the agency for cyber security would certainly be in good hands at BSI. However, such employees do not stand in line to apply there. Even well-paying industrial companies have difficulties finding experts in cyber security. So if you want to do something for cyber security in this country, then instead of setting up another agency, you should make the BSI independent and enable it to do its job. For example, it would be necessary to break down public service tariffs and pay competitive salaries.
The White House plans to notify Congress today of its intention to enter into a new free trade agreement, to provide the required 90 days notice that would allow NAFTA 2.0 to be signed by 1 December, when Mexico will install a new president.

"If we don't make a fair deal for the USA after decades of abuse, Canada will be out", Trump said via Twitter, threatening to terminate the 24-year-old trilateral trade deal.

On Friday, the Trump administration notified Congress of its proposed bilateral deal with Mexico, triggering a 90-day review that could allow the U.S.to sign a deal with Mexico before that country's new president takes office December 1.

Continetti said the key to Trump's recent trade negotiations was concentrating on Mexico and leaving Canada to one side.

"We've been told for over 25 years, trust us, this agreement will be good for workers. At the end of the day, it will be up to Congress to decide whether we can proceed with a bilateral deal as opposed to a trilateral". Dispute settlement, Canada's cultural exemption and access to Canada's dairy market continue to be obstacles to a deal.

But the hit predicted to the wallets of Canadian consumers is not just a product of the NAFTA negotiations, said Ciuriak, who once worked as deputy chief economist at Canada's Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

"Once that agreement was basically negotiated then Canada was in the position having to join or else what are they going to do?" The U.S. -Canada talks will resume Wednesday. "For Canada, the focus is on getting a good deal", she said, "and once we get a good deal for Canada, we will be done". Trump struck a preliminary deal with Mexico earlier this week, signaling that NAFTA, which Trump has long railed against, could be replaced.

The uncertainty created in the business world by Trump over global trade generally is already hurting Canadians and will be felt for some time, he said.

"Off the record, Canada's working their ass off".

Ms Freeland said she had remained in close touch with her Mexican and United States counterparts throughout the summer and had already achieved "a high-level agreement with the US" on some of the pending issues on autos and labour rights. Mr. Trump has complained for over a year about the Canadian supply management system - which imposes tariffs up to 275 per cent on foreign imports to guarantee revenues for Canada's farmers - and a rule that effectively prevents US farmers selling ultrafiltered milk, a cheese-making ingredient, in Canada. "If I say no, then you're going to put that, and it's going to be so insulting they're not going to be able to make a deal". "What we need is an agreement that we can enforce no matter who's in the White House", he said. The deal also proposes requiring a significant portion of automobile parts - 75 percent - be made in the US and Mexico.

On Friday, Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, issued a statement stressing that a revised NAFTA must include all three countries.

"Big progress being made!" Trade between the three countries surged.

According to The Wall Street Journal, the dispute between USA and Canada hinges on agricultural and media protection policies, as well as the installation of a system that would allow any of the three countries in the agreement to challenge tariffs imposed by one of the others.
Scientists have developed a way to see brain cells talk - to actually see neurons communicate in bright, vivid color. The new lab technique is set to provide long-needed answers about the brain and neurological diseases such as Alzheimer's disease, schizophrenia and depression. Those answers will facilitate new and vastly improved treatments for conditions that have largely resisted scientists' efforts to understand them.

"Before we didn't have any way to understand how [such neurotransmissions] work," said researcher J. Julius Zhu, PhD, of the University of Virginia School of Medicine. "In the case of Alzheimer's, in particular, we spent billions of dollars and we have almost no effective treatment. ... Now, for the first time, we can see what is happening." Understanding Neurological Diseases

To demonstrate the technique's effectiveness, Zhu's team in Charlottesville and colleagues in China have used it to visualize a poorly understood neurotransmitter called acetylcholine. "Acetylcholine has an important role in how we behave because it affects our memory and mood," Zhu explained. "It affects Alzheimer's, schizophrenia, emotions, depression, all kind of emotion-related diseases and mental problems." (Acetylcholine also plays critical roles elsewhere in the body, such as regulating insulin secretion in the pancreas and in controlling stress and blood pressure.)

Drugs designed to combat Alzheimer's disease actually inhibit acetylcholinesterase, an enzyme that degrades acetylcholine, to boost the effect of diminishing acetylcholine released in the brain, Zhu said. But doctors haven't fully understood how the drugs work, and there's been no way to determine just how much inhibition is needed. "These drugs are not very effective," he said. "They only offer a minor improvement, and once you stop the drug [the symptoms] just seem much worse. So probably in trying to treat these patients, you temporarily enhance them but you actually make them even worse."

By being able to see acetylcholine and other neurotransmitters in action in fluorescent color, doctors will be able to establish a baseline for good health and then work to restore that in patients with neurological diseases.

"We want to first measure how [the neurotransmitters] normally do the job. We've already found that there are acetylcholine transmissions very different from what we would expect," said Zhu, of UVA's Department of Pharmacology. "Then we also want to find how the patient differs. That comparison will provide us important answers."

###

Findings Published

The researchers have published their findings in the scientific journal Nature Biotechnology. The project is directed by Yulong Li, PhD, at Peking University in China and Zhu at UVA. PhD student Miao Jing at Peking University and postdoctoral fellow Peng Zhang at UVA are the co-first authors. The other research team members include Guangfu Wang, Huoqing Jiang, Lukas Mesik, Jiesi Feng, Jianzhi Zeng, Shaohua Wang, Jess C. Looby, Nick A. Guagliardo, Linda W. Langma, Ju Lu, Yi Zuo, David A. Talmage, Lorna W. Role, Paula Q. Barrett, Li I. Zhang, Minmin Luo and Yan Song.

The work was supported by the National Basic Research Program of China, the General Program of National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Junior Thousand Talents Program of China and National Institutes of Health grants NS103558, DC008983, MH104227, MH109475, MH109104, NS022061, LH089717, NS053570, NS091452, NS094980, NS092548 and NS104670.

To keep up with the latest medical research news from UVA, subscribe to the Making of Medicine blog at http://makingofmedicine.virginia.edu.
1. Nalbuphine may help manage opioid-induced urine retention

Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/L18-0387

URLs go live when the embargo lifts

Nalbuphine may help to manage opioid-induced urine retention. Findings from a brief case report are published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Urine retention is common in the hospital setting and is sometimes caused by the use of opioids. Once opioid-induced urine retention develops, resolving it without interfering with pain control can be problematic.

Clinicians from Southern Illinois University School of Medicine saw a patient with a history of alcoholic cirrhosis who was hospitalized for right-sided abdominal pain, and diagnosed with portal vein thrombosis and hepatocellular cancer. The patient was treated with hydromorphone for pain and quickly developed urine retention. The patient did not respond to -1 blockers and found a catheter to be effective but inconvenient. The clinicians gave the patient a dose of intravenous nalbuphine, an opioid used to treat moderate to severe pain that has a different mechanism of action than other opioids. The patient responded well to the medication and was able to urinate within the first 6 hours.

According to the authors, these findings suggest that clinicians should consider offering nalbuphine to patients with opioid-induced urine retention that does not respond to -1 blockers who prefer not to continue using bladder catheterization.

Media contact: For an embargoed PDF, please contact Lauren Evans at laevans@acponline.org. To interview the lead author, Abdisamad M. Ibrahim, MD, please contact him directly at qalbinoor@gmail.com 2. Cost a key consideration of WHO guidelines for diabetes treatment intensification

Recently published guidelines make recommendations on use of medicines for treatment intensification of type 2 diabetes and type of insulin in type 1 and type 2 diabetes

Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-1149

Editorial: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-1148

URLs go live when the embargo lifts

The World Health Organization (WHO) recently issued guidelines on the selection of medicines for treatment intensification in patients with type 2 diabetes and on the use of insulin in patients with type 1 or 2 diabetes. A synopsis of the guidelines is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

Type 2 diabetes is highly prevalent in most settings, and the increase in prevalence has been greatest in low- and middle-income countries in the past few decades. WHO develops guidelines for settings with limited health system resources where the health care budget can be quickly exhausted with widespread use of expensive brand-name medications. WHO guidelines also apply to high-income countries where patients with limited resources need evidence-based care that takes into account costs and value.

WHO made the following five recommendations:

Give a sulfonylurea to patients with type 2 diabetes who do not achieve glycemic control with metformin alone or who have contraindications to metformin.

Introduce human insulin treatment to patients with type 2 diabetes who do not achieve glycemic control with metformin and/or a sulfonylurea.

If insulin is unsuitable, a dipeptidyl peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitor, a sodium-glucose cotransporter-2 (SGLT-2) inhibitor, or a thiazolidinedione (TZD) may be added.

Use human insulin to manage blood glucose in adults with type 1 diabetes and in adults with type 2 diabetes for whom insulin is indicated.

Consider long-acting insulin analogues to manage blood glucose in adults with type 1 or type 2 diabetes who have frequent severe hypoglycemia with human insulin.

The authors of an accompanying commentary by members of the High Value Care Committee of the American College of Physicians (ACP) consider the nuances of clinical decision-making in the face of limited evidence and limited resources. They also compare key differences between ACP and WHO guidelines. The authors suggest that the decision to name sulfonylureas as the single best second-line agent for type 2 diabetes largely reflects the prioritization of cost and the recognition that WHO guidelines must apply to low-resource settings. ACP also acknowledges cost in its guideline, but places a priority on shared decision making between physicians and patients and on quality of life. ACP's guideline recommends that clinicians and patients discuss benefits, adverse effects, and costs when considering second-line therapy options, including sulfonylureas, which present a higher risk for hypoglycemia, and the newer agents, which may have a more favorable side-effects profile but are more expensive.

Media contact: For an embargoed PDF or to interview the editorialist from ACP's High Value Care Committee, please contact Steve Majewski at smajewski@acponline.org. 3. Patient says ALS took away control over his body; court ruling took away control over his life

Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-1719

URLs go live when the embargo lifts

Michael Danielson (photo available), a terminally ill patient in San Diego, says that ALS took away control over his body and then the court's decision to overturn California's End of Life Option Act took away control over his life. Danielson's essay is published in Annals of Internal Medicine.

When Danielson was diagnosed with ALS, he was pragmatic about his prognosis. Knowing that the disease would eventually kill him, he told his friends and family that when the time came, he would end his life on his own terms. At the time, California was one of a handful of states that allowed physicians to legally assist patients in dying. The law was written so that a person's underlying illness and not "medical aid in dying" would be recorded as the cause of death on the death certificate. In Danielson's case, it would be ALS. This is a very important distinction for insurance companies, families, and patients going through a terminal illness.

On May 24, California's End of Life Option Act was overturned, a decision that has caused Danielson a great deal of anxiety knowing how much he will suffer. As for the Hippocratic oath doctors take that begins, 'First, do no harm,' Danielson says that doctors are doing more harm by keeping terminally ill patients alive needlessly than by allowing them to take control and have a dignified passing of their choice.

Media contact: For an embargoed PDF, please contact Lauren Evans at laevans@acponline.org. For an interview with the patient, please contact Sara Gianella Weibel at gianella@uscd.edu. To speak with Dr. David Grube from Compassion and Choices, please contact him directly at dgrube@compassionandchoices.org.

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Also new in this issue:

PRISMA Extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR): Checklist and Explanation

Andrea C. Tricco, PhD, MSc; Erin Lillie, MSc; Wasifa Zarin, MPH; Kelly K. O'Brien, PhD, BScPT; Heather Colquhoun, PhD; Danielle Levac, PhD, MSc, BScPT; David Moher, PhD, MSc; Micah D.J. Peters, PhD, MA(Q); Tanya Horsley, PhD; Laura Weeks, PhD; Susanne Hempel, PhD; Elie A. Akl, MD, PhD, MPH; Christine Chang, MD, MPH; Jessie McGowan, PhD; Lesley Stewart, PhD, MSc; Lisa Hartling, PhD, MSc, BScPT

Research and Reporting Methods

Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-0850

Scoping Reviews and Systematic Reviews: Is It an Either/Or Question?

Stephanie Chang, MD, MPH

Editorial

Abstract: http://annals.org/aim/article/doi/10.7326/M18-2205
What if social behavior affected the progression of even noncontagious diseases? This is precisely what has been demonstrated by French CNRS teams,(1) with support from the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD), Paris-Sud University, the University of Montpellier, the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), and colleagues from Spain and Australia. Using a fly model of intestinal cancer, the researchers have shown that disease progression is impacted both by social isolation--which has a negative effect--and the composition of the social group with which individuals associate. Their findings are published in Nature Communications (September 3, 2018).

For many animals, humans included, social behavior can play a critical role in the survival of individuals. The effect that interactions between individuals can have on the spread of communicable diseases is well known. But is there any connection between social interactions and the progression, within sick individuals, of noncommunicable diseases like cancers? To address this question, the scientists chose the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as their research model. Control of the social environment and experimental induction of disease (an intestinal cancer in this case) are both easily achieved when working with drosophilas. The team sought to determine whether the social environment of diseased individuals altered the speed of tumor progression and if these flies could choose their social environment to slow this progression.

They observed that disease progression in sick flies was faster in social isolation than when interacting with other flies. Even more surprisingly, the very structure of a diseased fly's social group could affect the progression of its illness. When a sick fly is in the company of healthy ones, its tumor spreads more quickly than when interacting with other sick individuals. Detailed analyses of interactions between flies, monitored through video, suggest that sick flies interact less with healthy ones in their presence--effectively exhibiting a sort of isolation in the midst of the healthy crowd.

It is interesting to note that, when given the choice between a sick or healthy group, a sick fly will choose to join other sick flies--at least during the early stages of illness. Once the tumor is in an advanced state, the fly no longer shows any preference. The behavior of healthy flies is different. Though they make no distinction between healthy flies and sick flies at an early stage of disease, they will avoid sick flies with more advanced tumors and prefer the company of other healthy flies. The exact reasons for such avoidance are still poorly understood and currently under study. It may reflect a nonspecific response to the risks posed by diseases in general--such as contagion, compromised reproductive potential, and greater vulnerability to predators.

Though these findings cannot yet be extrapolated to humans, they suggest that social environment plays a substantial, even major, role in the development of a disease like cancer.

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(1) The CNRS research units involved were EGCE (CNRS / IRD / Paris-Sud University), the Institute for Integrative Biology of the Cell (CNRS / Paris-Sud University / CEA), and MIVEGEC (CNRS / IRD / University of Montpellier).
The quest to find new ways to harness solar power has taken a step forward thanks to new research in the field of semi-artificial photosynthesis

The quest to find new ways to harness solar power has taken a step forward after researchers successfully split water into hydrogen and oxygen by altering the photosynthetic machinery in plants.

Photosynthesis is the process plants use to convert sunlight into energy. Oxygen is produced as by-product of photosynthesis when the water absorbed by plants is 'split'. It is one of the most important reactions on the planet because it is the source of nearly all of the world's oxygen. Hydrogen which is produced when the water is split could potentially be a green and unlimited source of renewable energy.

A new study, led by academics at St John's College, University of Cambridge, used semi-artificial photosynthesis to explore new ways to produce and store solar energy. They used natural sunlight to convert water into hydrogen and oxygen using a mixture of biological components and manmade technologies.

The research could now be used to revolutionise the systems used for renewable energy production. A new paper, published in Nature Energy, outlines how academics at the Reisner Laboratory in Cambridge developed their platform to achieve unassisted solar-driven water-splitting.

Their method also managed to absorb more solar light than natural photosynthesis.

Katarzyna Soko?, first author and PhD student at St John's College, said: "Natural photosynthesis is not efficient because it has evolved merely to survive so it makes the bare minimum amount of energy needed - around 1-2 per cent of what it could potentially convert and store."

Artificial photosynthesis has been around for decades but it has not yet been successfully used to create renewable energy because it relies on the use of catalysts, which are often expensive and toxic. This means it can't yet be used to scale up findings to an industrial level.

The Cambridge research is part of the emerging field of semi-artificial photosynthesis which aims to overcome the limitations of fully artificial photosynthesis by using enzymes to create the desired reaction.

Soko? and the team of researchers not only improved on the amount of energy produced and stored, they managed to reactivate a process in the algae that has been dormant for millennia.

She explained: "Hydrogenase is an enzyme present in algae that is capable of reducing protons into hydrogen. During evolution this process has been deactivated because it wasn't necessary for survival but we successfully managed to bypass the inactivity to achieve the reaction we wanted - splitting water into hydrogen and oxygen."

Soko? hopes the findings will enable new innovative model systems for solar energy conversion to be developed.

She added: "It's exciting that we can selectively choose the processes we want, and achieve the reaction we want which is inaccessible in nature. This could be a great platform for developing solar technologies. The approach could be used to couple other reactions together to see what can be done, learn from these reactions and then build synthetic, more robust pieces of solar energy technology."

This model is the first to successfully use hydrogenase and photosystem II to create semi-artificial photosynthesis driven purely by solar power.

Dr Erwin Reisner, Head of the Reisner Laboratory, a Fellow of St John's College, University of Cambridge, and one of the paper's authors described the research as a 'milestone'.

He explained: ""This work overcomes many difficult challenges associated with the integration of biological and organic components into inorganic materials for the assembly of semi-artificial devices and opens up a toolbox for developing future systems for solar energy conversion."

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President Trump's stance against Pakistan has officials in the country hastening to show that they have been annihilating terror hotbeds.

He said further funding stripped from Pakistan aid earlier this year brought the total withheld to $800m (617m).

The so-called Coalition Support Funds (CSF) were part of a broader suspension in aid to Pakistan announced by U.S. President Donald Trump at the start of the year, when he accused Pakistan of rewarding past assistance with "nothing but lies & deceit".

"We continue to press Pakistan to indiscriminately target all terrorist groups", Col Faulkner said in a statement on Saturday, adding that the NZD$450m aid - which had earlier been suspended - should be used elsewhere due to "a lack of Pakistani decisive actions" in tackling the issue.

If Congress approves the latest announced suspension, the U.S. would withhold a total of US$800 million that had earlier been earmarked for Pakistan's defense forces, the reports said.

However, Pakistan has denied any such charges.

Though the funds have been withheld this year, Pakistan could again be eligible next year for CSF, with United States officials saying that Islamabad could win back that support if it changed its behaviour.

Pompeo and the top U.S. military officer, General Joseph Dunford, are scheduled to visit Islamabad on September 5.

Qureshi said that it is hoped that the discussion will be done in an amicable manner, strengthening the ties.

Khan has repeatedly blamed Pakistan's participation in the USA -led anti-terror campaign for the surge in terrorism on home soil over the last decade and has vowed to rebalance Islamabad's relationship with Washington.

Some analysts warn there may be no real way to pressure Islamabad and say a suspension in aid could see the US lose crucial influence over Pakistan which will instead look to other countries for support, particularly its longtime ally China.

"They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help".

"There was no mention at all in the conversation about terrorists operating in Pakistan".

Meanwhile, a few months ago, the US Congress had also suspended its financial aid of 500 million United States dollars to Pakistan.

A Pakistani official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said he was unaware of a formal notification of the USA decision on assistance but said one was expected by the end of September. He had said Pakistan is not doing anything to stop terrorism.

Despite the provocations, the USA does not want to completely rupture its relationship with Pakistan, where anti-American sentiment already runs high.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters on August 28 that the fight against militants would be a "primary part of the discussion" when the US officials meet with new Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Kahn and others.

The Pentagon made similar determinations on CSF in the past, but this year's move could get more attention from Islamabad, and its new prime minister, Imran Khan, at a time when its economy is struggling.
Stanford University School of Medicine researchers have demonstrated that gene therapy can be effective without causing a dangerous side effect common to all gene therapy: an autoimmune reaction to the normal protein, which the patient's immune system is encountering for the first time.

The researchers showed this in a mouse model that accurately recapitulates Duchenne muscular dystrophy. One in every 5,000 boys is born with this crippling disease, which leaves patients wheelchair-bound by mid-adolescence and is typically fatal by young adulthood. It stems from a genetic defect that deprives skeletal and cardiac muscles of a working version of a protein called dystrophin.

"Gene therapy is on the cusp of becoming a mainstream approach for treating single-gene disorders," said Lawrence Steinman, MD, professor of neurology and neurological sciences and of pediatrics at Stanford. "But there's a catch: If you give a gene that's a recipe for a normal protein to someone with a faulty version of the gene, whose body never made the normal protein before, that person's immune system will mount a reaction -- in some cases, a lethal one -- to the normal protein, just as it would to any foreign protein. We think we've solved that problem."

The findings are described in a study to be published online Sept. 3 in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. Steinman, who holds the George A. Zimmermann Professorship, is the study's senior author. The lead author is senior research scientist Peggy Ho, PhD.

Going viral

Duchenne muscular dystrophy is the result of a single defective gene, making it an excellent candidate for gene therapy in which a patient's faulty gene is replaced with the correct version. One way to do this is by co-opting viruses, which are simple entities that are adept at infecting cells and then forcing every invaded cell's reproductive machinery to copy their own viral genes. For gene therapy, viruses are modified by ridding them of unwanted genes, retaining the ones necessary for infectivity and adding the therapeutic gene to be delivered to a patient.

The gene encoding dystrophin is far too big for a gene-hauling virus to take onboard. Fortunately, a mere fraction of the entire gene is enough to generate a reasonably functional version of dystrophin, called microdystrophin. The abridged gene fits snugly into a viral delivery vehicle designed some time ago by Jeffrey Chamberlain, PhD, a co-author of the study and a professor of neurology, medicine and biochemistry at the University of Washington.

Inducing tolerance

But there's still that sticky autoimmunity problem. To get around it, Steinman and his colleagues spliced the gene for microdystrophin into a different kind of delivery vehicle called a plasmid.

Plasmids are tiny rings of DNA that bacteria often trade back and forth to disseminate important traits, such as drug resistance, among one another. The particular bacterial plasmid the investigators co-opted ordinarily contains several short DNA sequences, or motifs, that the immune system recognizes as suspicious and to which it mounts a strong response.

But some years ago, Steinman and a few other Stanford scientists -- including Ho and study co-author William Robinson, MD, PhD, professor of immunology and rheumatology -- figured out how to replace those troublesome DNA motifs with another set of DNA sequences that, far from exacerbating the immune response, subdue it. This immune-tolerance-inducing plasmid has been deployed in clinical trials for two different autoimmune conditions, with promising results.

For the new study, the researchers used a one-two punch to deliver gene therapy and protection against autoimmunity to the mice: viral delivery of the microdystrophin gene, followed by the plasmid-assisted induction of tolerance to microdystrophin.

Fifteen 6-week-old mice -- an age roughly equivalent to that of a young child -- bioengineered to lack functioning dystrophin were injected with the virus carrying microdystrophin. Starting a week later, they were divided into three groups and given weekly injections for 32 weeks of either a dummy solution; the dummy solution plus the tolerance-inducing plasmid absent the microdystrophin gene; or the plasmid with the microdystrophin gene.

At the end of the 32-week period, by which time the mice were the human equivalent of young adults, the ones that got the microdystrophin-loaded plasmid had significantly greater muscular strength and substantially more dystrophin-producing muscle fibers. They had lower levels of key bloodborne signaling chemicals that carry inflammatory messages between immune cells, and they had weakened antibody responses to normally immunogenic portions of microdystrophin.

"It's still early days here -- this was, after all, a mouse experiment -- but it seems we can induce tolerance to a wide assortment of formerly immunogenic proteins by inserting the gene for the protein of interest into the plasmid," Steinman said. "We've seen this with the insulin precursor, in people who have Type 1 diabetes, and with myelin, in people who have multiple sclerosis. It now looks as if the concept may hold for gene therapy, too."

###

Steinman is a member of Stanford Bio-X, the Stanford Child Health Research Institute and the Stanford Neurosciences Institute.

Steinman is also chair of the board of Tolerion Inc., a biotechnology company that shares rights to the tolerance-inducing plasmid with Stanford University's Office of Technology Licensing. He said he is seeking partners to move the tolerance-inducing plasmid into clinical trials as an adjunct to gene therapy.

Other Stanford co-authors of the study are graduate students Lauren Lahey and Klas Magnusson; senior research scientist Antonio Filareto, PhD; life science research professional Peggy Kraft; and Helen Blau, PhD, professor of microbiology and immunology.

Researchers at the University of Washington, the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Mainz, in Germany, also contributed to the work.

The study was funded by the National Institutes of Health (grant HL122332) and the Muscular Dystrophy Association.

Stanford's Department of Neurology and Neurological Sciences also supported the work.

The Stanford University School of Medicine consistently ranks among the nation's top medical schools, integrating research, medical education, patient care and community service. For more news about the school, please visit http://med.stanford.edu/school.html. The medical school is part of Stanford Medicine, which includes Stanford Health Care and Stanford Children's Health. For information about all three, please visit http://med.stanford.edu.

Print media contact: Bruce Goldman at (650) 725-2106 (goldmanb@stanford.edu)

Broadcast media contact: Margarita Gallardo at (650) 723-7897 (mjgallardo@stanford.edu)
By tracking migratory marine species, scientists reveal movements through different countries' waters and in the open ocean beyond areas of national jurisdiction

The leatherback sea turtle is the largest living turtle and a critically endangered species. Saving leatherback turtles from extinction in the Pacific Ocean will require a lot of international cooperation, however, because the massive turtles may visit more than 30 different countries during their migrations.

A new study uses tracking data for 14 species of migratory marine predators, from leatherback turtles to blue whales and white sharks, to show how their movements relate to the geopolitical boundaries of the Pacific Ocean. The results provide critical information for designing international cooperative agreements needed to manage these species.

"If a species spends most of its time in the jurisdiction of one or two countries, conservation and management is a much easier issue than it is for species that migrate through many different countries," said Daniel Costa, professor of ecology and evolutionary biology at UC Santa Cruz and a coauthor of the study, published September 3 in Nature Ecology & Evolution.

"For these highly migratory species, we wanted to know how many jurisdictional regions they go through and how much time they spend in the open ocean beyond the jurisdiction of any one country," Costa said.

Under international law, every coastal nation can establish an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) extending up to 200 nautical miles from shore, giving it exclusive rights to exploit resources and regulate fisheries within that zone. The high seas beyond the EEZs are a global commons and are among the least protected areas on Earth. Discussions have been under way at the United Nations since 2016 to negotiate a global treaty for conservation and management of the high seas.

First author Autumn-Lynn Harrison, now at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute in Washington, D.C., began the study as a graduate student in Costa's lab at UC Santa Cruz. Costa is a cofounder, with coauthor Barbara Block of Stanford University, of the Tagging of Pacific Predators (TOPP) program, which began tracking the movements of top ocean predators throughout the Pacific Ocean in 2000. Harrison wanted to use the TOPP data to address conservation issues, and as she looked at the data she began wondering how many countries the animals migrate through.

"I wanted to see if we could predict when during the year a species would be in the waters of a particular country," Harrison said. "Some of these animals are mostly hidden beneath the sea, so being able to show with tracking data which countries they are in can help us understand who should be cooperating to manage these species."

Harrison also began attending meetings on issues related to the high seas, which focused her attention on the time migratory species spend in these relatively unregulated waters. "Figuring out how much time these animals spend in the high seas was directly motivated by questions I was being asked by policy makers who are interested in high seas conservation," she said.

The TOPP data set, part of the global Census of Marine Life, is one of the most extensive data sets available on the movements of large marine animals. Many of the top predators in the oceans are declining or threatened, partly because their mobility exposes them to a wide array of threats in different parts of the ocean.

Leatherback turtle populations in the Pacific could face a 96 percent decline by 2040, according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species, and leatherbacks are a priority species for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). Laysan and black-footed albatrosses, both listed as near threatened on the IUCN Red List, spend most of their time on the high seas, where they are vulnerable to being inadvertently caught on long lines during commercial fishing operations.

White sharks are protected in U.S. and Mexican waters, but the TOPP data show that they spend about 60 percent of their time in the high seas. Pacific bluefin tuna, leatherback turtles, Laysan albatross, and sooty shearwaters all travel across the Pacific Ocean during their migrations.

"Bluefin tuna breed in the western North Pacific, then cross the Pacific Ocean to feed in the California Current off the United States and Mexico," Costa said. "Sooty shearwaters not only cross the open ocean, they use the entire Pacific Ocean from north to south and go through the jurisdictions of more than 30 different countries."

International cooperation has led to agreements for managing some of these migratory species, in some cases through regional fisheries management organizations. The Inter-American Tropical Tuna Commission (IATTC), for example, oversees conservation and management of tunas and other marine resources in the eastern Pacific Ocean.

The first session of a U.N. Intergovernmental Conference to negotiate an international agreement on the conservation of marine biological diversity beyond areas of national jurisdiction will be held in September. Harrison said she has already been asked to provide preprints and figures from the paper for this session.

"These migratory species are a shared heritage, and this paper shows their international travels better than ever before," Harrison said. "The first step to protect them is knowing where they are over their annual cycle and promoting international agreements to manage the threats they may face across several countries."

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In addition to Harrison, Costa, and Block, the coauthors of the paper include Arliss Winship at NOAA's National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science; Scott Benson, Steven Bograd, Heidi Dewar, Peter Dutton, and Suzanne Kohin at NOAA Fisheries; Michelle Antolos and Patrick Robinson at UC Santa Cruz; Aaron Carlisle at the University of Delaware; George Shillinger at Upwell; Sal Jorgensen at the Monterey Bay Aquarium; Bruce Mate at Oregon State University; Kurt Schaefer at the IATTC; Scott Shaffer at San Jose State University; Samantha Simmons at the Marine Mammal Commission; Kevin Weng at the Virginia Institute of Marine Science; and Kristina Gjerde at the IUCN Global Marine and Polar Program.

Funding for this work was provided by the Sloan Foundation's Census of Marine Life program. TOPP research was funded by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, David and Lucile Packard Foundation, and the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, with additional support from the Office of Naval Research, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the E&P Sound and Marine Life Joint Industry Program, donors to the Oregon State University Marine Mammal Institute, and the Monterey Bay Aquarium Foundation.
A study from the Annenberg School for Communication shows that exposure to anonymous, bipartisan social networks can lead liberals and conservatives to improve their forecasting of global-climate trends

Social media networks, which often foster partisan antagonism, may also offer a solution to reducing political polarization, according to new findings published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences from a team led by University of Pennsylvania sociologist Damon Centola.

The Penn researchers asked 2,400 Republicans and Democrats to interpret recent climate-change data on Arctic sea-ice levels. Initially, nearly 40 percent of Republicans incorrectly interpreted the data, saying that Arctic sea-ice levels were increasing; 26 percent of Democrats made the same mistake. However, after participants interacted in anonymous social media networks--sharing opinions about the data and its meaning for future levels of Artic sea ice--88 percent of Republicans and 86 percent of Democrats correctly analyzed it, agreeing that sea-ice levels were dropping.

Republicans and Democrats who were not permitted to interact with each other in social media networks but instead had several additional minutes to reflect on the climate data before updating their responses remained highly polarized and offered significantly less accurate forecasts.

"New scientific information does not change people's minds. They can always interpret it to match their beliefs," says Centola, director of Penn's Network Dynamics Group and author of the new book "How Behavior Spreads." "But, if you allow people to interact with each other in egalitarian social networks, in which no individual is more powerful than another, we find remarkably strong effects of bipartisan social learning on eliminating polarization."

To test this notion for politically charged topics like climate change, Centola, along with Penn doctoral student Douglas Guilbeault and recent Penn Ph.D. graduate Joshua Becker, constructed an experimental social media platform, which they used to test how different kinds of social media environments would affect political polarization and group accuracy.

Their study was motivated by NASA's 2013 release of new data detailing historical trends in monthly levels of Arctic sea ice. "NASA found, to its dismay, that a lot of people were misinterpreting the graph to say that there would actually be more Arctic sea ice in the future rather than less," Guilbeault explains. "Conservatives in particular were susceptible to this misinterpretation."

The researchers wondered how social media networks might alter this outcome, so they randomly assigned participants to one of three experimental groups: a political-identity setup, which revealed the political affiliation of each person's social media contacts; a political-symbols setup, in which people interacted anonymously through social networks but with party symbols of the donkey and the elephant displayed at the bottom of their screens; and a non-political setup, in which people interacted anonymously. Twenty Republicans and 20 Democrats made up each social network.

Once randomized, every individual then viewed the NASA graph and forecasted Arctic sea-ice levels for the year 2025. They first answered independently, and then viewed peers' answers before revising their guesses twice more. The study outcomes surprised the researchers in several respects.

"We all expected polarization when Republicans and Democrats were isolated," says Centola, who is also an associate professor in Penn's Annenberg School for Communication and School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, "but we were amazed to see how dramatically bipartisan networks could improve participants' judgments." In the non-political setup, for example, polarization disappeared entirely, with more than 85 percent of participants agreeing on a future decrease in Arctic sea ice.

"But," Centola adds, "the biggest surprise--and perhaps our biggest lesson--came from how fragile it all was. The improvements vanished completely with the mere suggestion of political party. All we did was put a picture of an elephant and a donkey at the bottom of a screen, and all the social learning effects disappeared. Participants' inaccurate beliefs and high levels of polarization remained."

That last finding reveals that even inconspicuous elements of a social media environment or of a media broadcast can hinder bipartisan communications. "Simple ways of framing a political conversation, like incorporating political iconography, can significantly increase the likelihood of polarization," Guilbeault says.

Instead, Centola says, put people into situations that remove the political backdrop. "Most of us are biased in one way or another. It's often unavoidable. But, if you eliminate the symbols that drive people into their political camps and let them talk to each other, people have a natural instinct to learn from one another. And that can go a long way toward lessening partisan conflict."

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Funding for the research came, in part, from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Pioneer Grant, and the National Institutes of Health's Tobacco Centers for Regulatory Control.

Damon Centola is an associate professor in the Annenberg School for Communication and the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, director of the Network Dynamics Group, and author of "How Behavior Spreads" (Princeton University Press, June 2018).

Douglas Guilbeault is a doctoral candidate at the Annenberg School for Communication.

Joshua Becker earned his doctoral degree from the Annenberg School for Communication in 2018. He is currently a postdoctoral fellow at Northwestern University.
Astronomers from the Department of Physics at the University of Tokyo discovered a dense disk of material around a young star, which may be a precursor to a planetary system. Their research could vastly improve models of how solar systems form, which would tell us more about our own place in the cosmos.

Early in 2017, Assistant Professor Yoko Oya gave graduate student Yuki Okoda some recent complex data on a nearby star with which she could begin her Ph.D. Little did she realize that what she would find could unlock not only the secrets of how planets form but possibly her career as a professional astronomer.

The star in question (only known by its catalog number IRAS 15398-3359) is small, young and relatively cool for a star. It's diminutive stature means the weak light it shines can't even reach us through a cloud of gas and dust that surrounds it. But this doesn't stop inquisitive minds from exploring the unknown.

In 2013, Oya and her collaborators used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile to observe the star in submillimeter wavelengths, as that kind of light can penetrate the dust cloud - for reference, red light is around 700 nanometers. A painstaking analysis revealed some interesting nebulous structures, despite the images they worked from being difficult to comprehend.

"The greatest academic challenge I've faced was trying to make sense of grainy images. It's extremely difficult to know exactly what you're really looking at." says Okoda. "But I felt compelled to explore the nature of the structures Dr. Oya had seen with ALMA, so I came up with a model to explain them." The model she produced came as a surprise to Okoda and her colleagues, but it fit the data perfectly. It describes a dense disk of material that consists of gas and dust from the cloud that surrounds the star. This has never before been seen around such a young star.

The disk is a precursor to a protoplanetary disk, which is far denser still and eventually becomes a planetary system in orbit around a star.

"We can't say for sure this particular disk will coalesce into a new planetary system," explains Oya. "The dust cloud may be pushed away by stellar winds or it might all fall into the star itself, feeding it in the process. What's exciting is how quickly this might happen."

The star is small at around 0.7 percent the mass of our sun, based on observations of the mass of the surrounding cloud. It could grow to as large as 20 percent in just a few tens of thousands of years, a blink of the eye on the cosmic scale.

"I hope our observations and models will enhance knowledge of how solar systems form," says Okoda. "My research interests involve young protostellar objects, and the implication that protoplanetary disks could form earlier than expected really excites me."

Okoda began this project a year-and-a-half ago to hone her skills as an astronomer, but mirroring the young star she observed, the practice evolved quickly and became a full research project, which will hopefully earn her a Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo.

The observations and resultant model were only possible thanks to advancements in radio astronomy with observatories such as ALMA. The team was lucky that the plane of the disk is level with our own solar system as this means the starlight ALMA sees passes through enough of the gas and dust to divulge important characteristics of it.

"We were also lucky to be given time with ALMA to carry out our observations. Only about 20 percent of applications actually go ahead," explains Oya. "With highly specialized astronomical instruments, there is much competition for time. My hope is our success will inspire a new generation of astronomers in Japan to reach for the stars."

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Journal article

Yuki Okoda, Yoko Oya, Nami Sakai, Yoshimasa Watanabe, Jes K. Jrgensen, Ewine F. Van Dishoeck, and Satoshi Yamamoto

"The Co-evolution of Disks and Stars in Embedded Stages: The Case of the Very-low-mass Protostar IRAS 15398-3359" - Astrophysical Journal Letters

http://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2041-8213/aad8ba

DOI 10.3847/2041-8213/aad8ba

Research contact

Yuki Okoda - okoda@taurus.phys.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp

Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Hongo 7-3-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, JAPAN

Public relations contacts

Rohan Mehra - press-releases.adm@mail.u-tokyo.ac.jp

Division for Strategic Public Relations, The University of Tokyo, Hongo 7-3-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8654, JAPAN

Kristina Awatsu - kouhou.s@gs.mail.u-tokyo.ac.jp

Office of Communication, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo, Hongo 7-3-1, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, 113-0033, JAPAN

Related links

Department of Physics, Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo http://www.phys.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/

Graduate School of Science, The University of Tokyo

https://www.s.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/

About the University of Tokyo

The University of Tokyo is Japan's leading university and one of the world's top research universities. The vast research output of some 6,000 researchers is published in the world's top journals across the arts and sciences. Our vibrant student body of around 15,000 undergraduate and 15,000 graduate students includes over 2,000 international students. Find out more at http://www.u-tokyo.ac.jp/en/ or follow us on Twitter at @UTokyo_News_en
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Although the Philippines has a special bond with Israelis for giving refuge to some 1,300 Jews fleeing the Holocaust, Duterte drew global condemnation after likening his anti-drugs crackdown to Nazi leader Adolf Hitler's efforts to exterminate Jews.

It is the first visit by a Philippine president in over six decades of diplomatic ties between the two countries.

A government statement Friday said Rodrigo Duterte will meet Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and tour the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial early next week.

Philippine police say more than 4,500 suspects have been killed in anti-drug raids since Duterte took office in 2016.

"We assign great importance to this visit, which symbolizes the strong, warm ties between our two peoples", Israel's foreign ministry said in a statement.

Mr Duterte has led the Philippines away from the USA, its former colonial master, and towards closer diplomatic and business ties with China and Russian Federation. But so far deals with Israel have gone smoothly.

"I leave today for landmark visits that underscore our vision for our country - a responsible member of the world community - a Philippines that is a friend to all and an enemy to no one", Duterte said in his departure speech at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) Terminal 2.

Israel is among the world's top arms dealers, with almost 60 percent of its defense exports going to the Asia-Pacific region, according to Israeli defense ministry data. "If Germany had Hitler, the Philippines would have." he said, pausing and pointing to himself.

Duterte, who has been president since 2016, in that year compared his campaign against drug dealers to the Holocaust, and said he would kill dealers like Hitler killed Jews, Haaretz reported.

Among the agreements and MOUs to be discussed and signed during the visit is a groundbreaking deal concerning thousands of Filipino caregivers working in Israel, which will protect the workers' rights and regulate their employment in Israel.

"Hitler massacred three million Jews".

Duterte is also expected to hold a reception in Tel Aviv for the more than 28,000 overseas workers from the southeast Asian country, who constitute a major voting block for the Filipino president.

Duterte later apologized for his remarks, which he said were aimed at critics who had likened him to the Nazi leader.

Late previous year, the Philippines abstained from a vote at the United Nations General Assembly rebuking the USA for moving its embassy to from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, a controversial decision that sparked widespread worldwide condemnation and large-scale protests.

Palestinians see the eastern part of the disputed city as the capital of their future state.

Netanyahu says he wants the Palestinians to govern themselves, but has recently declined to specify whether that would mean an independent Palestinian state or some diluted form of autonomy, which many right-wing Israelis advocate.

From Israel, Duterte will fly to Jordan upon the invitation of His Majesty King Abdullah II.
U.S. President Donald Trump is warning Congress not to interfere with his plans for a new North American Free Trade Agreement, lest he cancel the deal entirely.

US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said the negotiations over the past four days were "constructive, and we made progress". "But we're not there yet". It will hold another round of talks on Wednesday that would suggest whether Canada will agree to the US' demands, said an analyst in Geneva, who asked not to be quoted. "Or we won't do anything, which is OK too".

President Donald Trump slammed AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka early Labor Day morning, accusing him of speaking against working people and the United States in a weekend TV appearance.

"And I said, off the record, and I made a statement about Canada, which is fine".

NAFTA, which came into effect at the beginning of January 1994, lifted tariffs on virtually all goods traded among the US, Canada and Mexico.

The Trump White House on Friday refused to confirm or deny the authenticity of the president's remarks - although it seems the president himself has since confirmed them. "At least Canada knows how I feel", he said. But many manufacturers responded to the agreement by moving factories south of the border to take advantage of low Mexican wages, then shipping goods north to the United States and Canada.

But for Trump, failing to get Canada on board would set up a showdown with Congress in which all parties would be in murky legal territory.

Per the leaked remarks published Friday, the president was discussing negotiations with Canada on a trade deal that could replace NAFTA and indicated an unwillingness to compromise, saying any deal would be "totally on our terms".

NAFTA now contains three chapters with so-called dispute-resolution mechanisms in a range of cases, such as company complaints or anti-dumping disputes.

"As we've said all week, we're working toward a modernized NAFTA, a modernized NAFTA that will be good for Canada and the middle class", said Cameron Ahmad. Ottawa introduced retaliatory taxes on United States imports of steel, aluminum and such goods as whiskey, orange juice and other food products.

The Trump administration had insisted that it wanted a deal by Friday, beginning a 90-day countdown that would let Mexico's Nieto sign the pact before leaving office.

Foreign leaders "keep underestimating Trump on trade", said Dan DiMicco, a former steel executive and trade adviser to Trump who was with the president Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina.

Others caution that Trump's tactics have badly damaged Canada-U.S. relations.

The withdrawal process would require Trump to give Mexico and Canada 6 months' notice of his intent to leave the pact.

The US wants Canada to open up access to American dairy products, extend patent protections for medicines and agree to eliminate worldwide panels to resolve most disputes between investors and governments. Beijing's tactics include cyber-theft and a requirement that American companies hand over trade secrets in exchange for access to China's market.

But simply granting more American access to Canada's dairy market "is something where I think that you wouldn't necessarily see big movements in terms of benefits to consumers".
It is fitting that Susan Beavin, president of the San Antonio Conservation Society, lives in a cottage built in 1905 that her mother purchased and moved to prevent its demolition.

On workdays, Beavin sets off from the cottage, in Grey Forest, on an hourlong drive to another historic building: the nearly 150-year-old Anton Wulff House in King William where the conservation society has its headquarters.

When Beavin became the societys president in 2017, she inherited a legacy that began in 1924, when local women founded the organization because they feared that San Antonios roaring growth was threatening its historic buildings.

It gives me goosebumps, because what the ladies who established the conservation society were fighting for and what was going on in San Antonio was rampant destruction of buildings, and other buildings were coming, streets widening and everything else, she said. It is very similar to what were experiencing.

The conservation society has done much to shape modern San Antonio. In the 1940s it kept San Pedro Springs Park from being turned into a college campus; in the 1950s it fought against parking garages that the city wanted to build under Travis Park, Main Plaza and Alamo Plaza; in the 1960s it helped keep historic buildings intact on the HemisFair 68 site; and in the 1980s it preserved the Rand Building, the current headquarters of Geekdom.

Quick facts about Susan Beavin Where do you live? I live in Gray Forest. The house I live in, the core of the house is 1905 and it has 12-foot ceilings with crown molding and everything. I absolutely love it. You've got all the wildlife. It's set a thousand feet off the road, so it's very quiet. What is your typical daily routine? I leave the house at quarter to seven. I don't drive on the freeway, so it gives me a lot of time to think. I'm usually here at quarter of eight in the morning. Everybody else usually arrives at 8:30, so it was like when I was teaching - it kind of gives me that time alone where I can scramble around and get things done without having to talk to anybody. If you could take a time machine back to any year in history, which year would it be? That's a hard choice. I think the 1850s would have been great. I think the other year that I would pick would be 1924, which is when the conservation society was founded. It was a very strong period of change, looking at what's right and what's appropriate, what's the hill to die on and what is not. What's your favorite work of architecture? I appreciate everything in King William. I really can't say I have a favorite style. It's like, "Oh, I really like that. Oh, but I like that too!" There are a lot of Craftsman (-style buildings) that are very appealing. The midcentury modern, I've really learned what that style meant and how you would identify that not too many years ago. I think that's fascinating. Who is your favorite historical figure? I'm not one of these people that's just locked on this person, or locked on this architecture, because I really have a great appreciation for all of those. It's what's makes San Antonio unique, all the people who have lived here, the different styles of architecture. See More Collapse

In recent years, the conservation society played a big role in blocking a 23-story hotel tower from being built atop the Joskes building, and it has been a major voice in the debate over city and state plans to revamp Alamo Plaza.

Beavin grew up in the historic Monte Vista neighborhood before leaving San Antonio in 1962 to attend college. She has lived all over Texas, and spent 20 years in Vermont, building a varied career that included stints as a science teacher, an insurance agent and a co-manager of a construction business. For a while, she helped run a restaurant and bar.

After she moved to Grey Forest, she got a postcard in the mail asking if she wanted to get involved in turning the town into a historic community. That led to her becoming a member of the Grey Forest Historical Society, through which she got to know members of the San Antonio Conservation Society.

The San Antonio Express-News recently sat down with Beavin in her office in the Anton Wulff House, where the conservation society has had its headquarters since 1975. What follows is an edited transcript of the conversation.

Q: How has San Antonios attitude toward its history changed over the years?

A: I dont think theyve changed their attitude toward history. You have so many people  I think very much like 1924  coming in now, who are like, Oh, thats an old building. Lets put something new up. Show me something new that really looks new and different.

Q: Are you happy with the amount of support that San Antonio shows for preserving its historic buildings?

A: Theres room for improvement. One good example is Beacon Hill Elementary. Its a really solid building and the school district  I dont think theyve been really open with the parent group, and there have been some things that have happened that I dont think are particularly fair. They let it go foul for about 20 years!

Q: Were in the middle of this big debate over the future of Alamo Plaza. Ideally, what would you want it to look like?

A: Well, we have a petition, and were at 6,600 signatures. What we have asked for is keep the buildings (on the other side of the plaza from the Alamo) and repurpose them. I think theres a lot that they can do with all three of those. What theyre finally doing, after all these years, is the restoration and repair of the Alamo and the Long Barracks. Thats what people really want. Everything else can be secondary.

I think Losoya Street would be an absolute disaster to be two-way; I mean, really, are you kidding?

Q: Do you support moving the Cenotaph?

A: Let me put it this way  Two years ago, we had a split board on the Cenotaph. Last year, in October, it came up again at board. Someone made a motion to support the Cenotaph staying in place. The board supported it.

What I do not like is that fact that certain people  we all know who they are  have said that it blocks the view. It doesnt block the view of the Alamo. It partially blocks of the view of the Long Barracks; a wall, really. So, I dont think thats enough of an excuse.

Our plaza has evolved over all this time to be what it is. It is a (place for) freedom of speech. It is a place where everybody goes to protest. And the powers that be do not want that. They want a very controlled environment.

Q: When you look around the city, are there any historic structures that you think really need saving?

A: Well, the Institute of Texan Cultures is one. They are waffling, as far as what they want to do with that. The (federal) courthouse (at Hemisfair) is another.

We just kind of keep our running list. When (conservation society CEO Vince Michael) came over two years ago, I handed him a list and said weve been watching these properties. I said, Play the newbie. Youre now kind of catching up. Youre new to town. Youre following up on these things.

Q: The city has done a lot over the last couple years to protect the mission World Heritage sites. Is it enough?

A: I think its a start for right now. (Councilwoman Rebecca) Viagran, when we talked to her last year  on the west side (of her district), its just wall-to-wall signs. So I know thats been a big concern of hers, appropriate businesses (around the missions), so you dont continue to have all the big car shops and the bars and stuff.

(The city) is having some of these meetings where they are like, We want you to look at this map and tell us what you want for lighting and art (around the missions). And were like, How about road repair. How about streetlights, so you can see where youre going when youre driving at night. Lets not do the foo-foo stuff now. Lets do the basics.

Q: Are there any other policies that you would want the city, county or state to put in place regarding historic structures?

A: I think theyve done a pretty good job, as far as theres a process now that wasnt in place for demolition. And you also have the vacant building program, which has been very successful.

Austin doesnt have the tools. They dont have anything like HDRC (Historic and Design Review Commission). We have such a great process. It may not be 100 percent perfect but, boy, its so much further ahead than other cities. Houston has none. Houston has no zoning.

Q: Developers say that San Antonios historical regulations, especially downtown, make it difficult to build things and add cost to construction. What do you say to that?

A: What else are they going to say? Its like the (tree preservation ordinance)  Not another mitigation, well have to suffer. Sorry, they whine. Thats what theyre going to do. Construction is always going to be expensive.

San Antonio is more than generous with giving out grants and kickbacks and whatever else you want to call it. They are always going to complain. Developers live down there. They live at City Hall and they schmooze every time weve gone to City Hall. I can name them all on one hand, the ones that are there. Thats what they do. They just whine. Ive seen that with the tree ordinance for the last almost 15 years.

Richard Webner 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. | rwebner@express-news.net | Twitter: @RWebner
At a time when energy companies are positioning themselves for a lower-carbon world by investing heavily in natural gas, it would seem relatively easy to sell them on developing huge reserves of the cleaner-burning fuel. That is, unless those reserves are in the territorial waters of Israel.

Nearly a decade after natural gas was discovered off its coast, Israel is still struggling to enlist foreign firms to explore its vast deposits in the Mediterranean Sea, in part because oil and gas companies are wary of alienating Arab countries in which they have long done business. So far only one foreign company, Houston-based Noble Energy, is operating there. And last year, when Israel launched its first-ever auction of offshore blocks, it attracted just two bidders  a Greek company and a group from India.

This history is what brought Shay Luvshis to Houston. Luvshis, 38, is Israels energy consul, sent to Texas to recruit American and international oil and gas companies to explore Israeli waters in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. About year after opening an office, the Energy Ministrys first outside of Israel, Luvshis says he and other officials have held advanced talks with Exxon Mobil, the French oil major Total and the Australian oil and gas company Woodside Petroleum, among others.

Exxon Mobil and Total declined to comment. Woodside said it regularly reviews opportunities around the world.

If everything had gone well in the past, Luvhsis said, we wouldnt be here. Israel is the new kid on the block as an emerging energy region.

Israel has long been the odd man out, energy-wise, in the Middle East, home to some of the worlds biggest oil producers, and the subject of wisecracks about ending up in one of the few places in the region without oil. All that changed in 2009, when Noble Energy discovered natural gas in the Tamar field about 50 miles off the Israeli coast, in waters more than 5,000 feet deep. Noble followed that in 2010 with another discovery in the Leviathan field, about 30 miles southwest of Tamar.

Israel and Luvshis are now searching for the next Noble or, more precisely, the next several Nobles, a search that runs headlong into geopolitics. One large oil company, which Luvshis declined to name, refused to take a meeting with him out of fear of damaging its relations with Arab countries, most of which dont recognize Israel. At a recent cocktail party, he said, the companys executives admitted as much to him.

Middle East politics, however, have not been the only hurdle for Israels efforts to attract international energy companies. Israels regulatory framework for developing the gas fields is new and untested, as Nobles experience illustrated.

Amid public uproar and litigation over who should benefit from Israels s natural resources, the Israeli government eventually forced Noble to reduce its ownership stake and banned the producer from participating in bidding for more offshore blocks to promote competition.

Noble earlier this year sold 7.5 percent of its holdings in the Tamar project, reducing its stake to 35 percent. It holds approximately 40 percent in the Leviathan development.

Despite the controversies and shifting regulatory climate, Noble says it is happy working in Israel. But its roller coaster ride has added another level of unease about doing business in Israel among energy companies, analysts said.

Israel has a pretty tough sell in the current environment, said Jim Krane, a Rice University fellow for energy studies in the Middle East. Its resolved now, but Noble was pretty unhappy. A lot of companies that might have been attracted to Israel were turned off by that.

A Noble story

Noble, founded more than 85 years ago as Samedan Oil Corp., acquired its first offshore block in the Gulf of Mexico in the late 1960s. As it grew over the years, it sought to extend its success to international waters and found willing partners in Israel, including its partner in the Tamar and Leviathan field, the Delek Group, one of Israels largest oil and gas companies.

Noble made small natural gas discoveries in 1999 and 2000, but it took 10 more years of advances in seismic imaging technologies before Noble found the vast reserves of the Tamar and Leviathan beneath salt formations. Those finds combine for more than 30 trillion cubic feet of gas, enough to power Israel for decades.

For Noble, the fields will equate to almost 20 percent of its global production after the $4 billion Leviathan project comes online at the end of 2019. Nobles Leviathan platform is under construction near Corpus Christi.

Its really the emergence of a new deep-water basin, said Keith Elliott, Nobles senior vice president for the Eastern Mediterranean.

But with the big discoveries came a lot of attention from politicians, regulators and the Israeli public. Suddenly, Israel was rich in energy, and for the first time, it had to wrestle with how it would develop the resource and who would benefit from it. Noble had the backing of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, but other politicians and citizens criticized the terms of the governments contract with Noble as too generous, arguing that they essentially gave the Houston company a monopoly on the production of natural gas. Some called for the government to nationalize the oil and gas industry.

Ultimately, Noble agreed to less generous terms, divested some of its holdings and moved forward with its development of Leviathan. Noble can continue to expand within its existing blocks in Israeli waters as well as explore other sections of the Mediterranean under the jurisdiction of other nations, such as Egypt. The region looks promising. In 2015, off Egypt, the Italian oil and gas company Eni found the Zohr field, which could prove more bountiful than Leviathan.

Elliott said Noble has no hard feelings. Rules, regulations and business practices of the U.S. oil and gas industry have developed over more than 100 years, he noted, while Israel is just getting started.

It can be kind of frustrating for us, Elliott acknowledged. But that they were able to get through that whole process in five years is pretty phenomenal.

Looking forward

Luvshis and his team also had a rocky start in Houston. Just two days they arrived, Hurricane Harvey made landfall, forcing their evacuation to Dallas and contributing to delays that kept them from getting their office in Greenway Plaza really running until the beginning of 2018.

Since then, Luvshis, who worked eight years in Economy Ministry before becoming Israels first energy consul last year, has pushed ahead with efforts to convince oil and gas companies to invest in Israels nascent industry. Those efforts received a boost in June, when Israel and the U.S. Energy Department agreed to establish a joint Center of Excellence in Energy, Engineering and Water Technology, to develop, share and disseminate technologies in areas important to the energy industry, including fossil fuels, cybersecurity, and energy storage and efficiency.

This collaboration with the U.S. industry should be bolstered by a sturdy, certain regulatory regime put in place for the development of Israels energy resources, Luvshis said. Israeli officials believe another 75 trillion cubic feet of gas is waiting to be discovered in its territorial waters, as well as several billion barrels of crude oil.

Israel plans to put another 20 or so offshore blocks up for auction in November. It has also sweetened the deal for foreign energy companies by allowing them to export more of the natural gas they produce in Israel.

Earlier this year, for example, Delek and Noble signed a $15 billion deal to sell natural gas to Egypt. Noble also has its on eye of two liquefied natural gas processing plants in Egypt, which would allow Noble to export more of the natural gas produced in the region.

In addition, Israel is developing the $7 billion Eastern Mediterranean gas pipeline, nicknamed East Med, that would run to Western Europe through Cyprus and Greece. Ultimately, it could reduce the European dependence on natural gas from Russia, a major concern given the Wests tense relations with the government of President Vladmir Putin.

Its a very ambitious project, Luvshis said. A couple years ago when we talked about this project, people thought we were hallucinating because it sounds like a dream.

For now, Luvshis faces the reality of selling the energy story of his home country. He sees it as a long-term prospect but added that the time could be ripe for U.S. oil and gas companies to look overseas with commodity markets healthy again. After all, he said, there are more oil and gas fields than just the booming Permian Basin in West Texas.

Prices are rising, and companies are looking for other opportunities beyond the Permian and the unconventional shale, he said. Israel is very keen to promote the arrival of new oil and gas companies. We want competition.

Collin Eaton contributed to this report.
During the Cold War, Washington feared that Moscow was seeking to turn microwave radiation into covert weapons of mind control.

More recently, the U.S. military itself sought to develop microwave arms that could invisibly beam painfully loud booms and even spoken words into peoples heads. The aims were to disable attackers and wage psychological warfare.

Now, doctors and scientists say such unconventional weapons may have caused the baffling symptoms and ailments that, starting in late 2016, hit more than three dozen U.S. diplomats and their family members in Cuba and China. The Cuban incidents resulted in a diplomatic rupture between Havana and Washington.

The medical team that examined 21 affected diplomats from Cuba made no mention of microwaves in its detailed report published in JAMA in March. But Douglas H. Smith, the studys lead author and director of the Center for Brain Injury and Repair at the University of Pennsylvania, said in a recent interview that microwaves were now considered a main suspect and that the team was increasingly sure the diplomats had suffered brain injury.

Everybody was relatively skeptical at first, he said, and everyone now agrees theres something there. Smith remarked that the diplomats and doctors jokingly refer to the trauma as the immaculate concussion.

Strikes with microwaves, some experts now argue, more plausibly explain reports of painful sounds, ills and traumas than do other possible culprits  sonic attacks, viral infections and contagious anxiety.

In particular, a growing number of analysts cite an eerie phenomenon known as the Frey effect, named after Allan Frey, an American scientist. Long ago, he found that microwaves can trick the brain into perceiving what seem to be ordinary sounds.

The false sensations, experts say, could account for a defining symptom of the diplomatic incidents: the perception of loud noises, including ringing, buzzing and grinding. Initially, experts cited those symptoms as evidence of stealthy attacks with sonic weapons.

Members of JASON, a secretive group of elite scientists that helps the federal government assess new threats to national security, say it has been scrutinizing the diplomatic mystery this summer and weighing possible explanations, including microwaves.

Asked about the microwave theory of the case, the State Department said the investigation had yet to identify the cause or source of the attacks. The FBI declined to comment on the status of the investigation or any theories.

The microwave idea teems with unanswered questions. Who fired the beams? The Russian government? The Cuban government? A rogue Cuban faction sympathetic to Moscow? And, if so, where did the attackers get the unconventional arms?

Microwaves are ubiquitous in modern life. The short radio waves power radars, cook foods, relay messages and link cellphones to antenna towers. They are a form of electromagnetic radiation on the same spectrum as light and X-rays, only at the opposite end.

While radio broadcasting can employ waves a mile or more in length, microwaves range in size from roughly a foot to a fraction of an inch. They are seen as harmless in such everyday uses as microwaving foods. But their diminutive size also enables tight focusing, as when dish antennas turn disorganized rays into concentrated beams.

The dimensions of the human head, scientists say, make it a fairly good antenna for picking up microwave signals. Frey, a biologist, said he stumbled on the acoustic effect in 1960. The Soviets took notice  and furtively, globally, the threat grew.

Soviet research on microwaves for internal sound perception, the Defense Intelligence Agency warned in 1976, showed great promise for disrupting the behavior patterns of military or diplomatic personnel. Washington, too, foresaw new kinds of arms: In Albuquerque, New Mexico, Air Force scientists sought to beam comprehensible speech into the heads of adversaries.

Russia, China and many European states are seen as having the know-how to make basic microwave weapons that can debilitate, sow noise or even kill. Advanced powers, experts say, might accomplish more nuanced aims such as beaming spoken words into peoples heads. Only intelligence agencies know which nations actually possess and use such unfamiliar arms.

The basic weapon might look like a satellite dish. In theory, such a device might be hand-held or mounted in a van, car, boat or helicopter. Microwave arms are seen as typically working over relatively short distances  across the length of a few rooms or blocks. High-powered ones might be able to fire beams for several miles.

In January, the spooky impact of microwaves on the human brain never came up during an open Senate hearing on the mysterious crisis at the U.S. embassy in Havana. But in a scientific paper that same month, James C. Lin of the University of Illinois, a leading investigator of the Frey effect, described the diplomatic ills as plausibly arising from microwave beams.

In his paper, Lin said high-intensity beams of microwaves could have caused the diplomats to experience not just loud noises but nausea, headaches and vertigo, as well as possible brain-tissue injury. The beams, he added, could be fired covertly, hitting only the intended target.

In February, ProPublica in a lengthy investigation mentioned that federal investigators were weighing the microwave theory. Separately, it told of an intriguing find. The wife of a member of the embassy staff, it reported, had looked outside her home after hearing the disturbing sounds and seen a van speeding away. A dish antenna could fit easily into a small van.

The medical team that studied the Cuba diplomats ascribed the symptoms in the March JAMA study to an unknown energy source that was highly directional. Some personnel, it noted, had covered their ears and heads but experienced no sound reduction. The team said the diplomats appeared to have developed signs of concussion without having received any blows to the head.

In May, reports emerged that U.S. diplomats in China had suffered similar traumas. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called the medical details of the two groups "very similar and entirely consistent" with one another. By late June, the State Department had evacuated at least 11 Americans from China.

For his part, Frey says he doubts the case will be solved anytime soon. The novelty of the crisis, its sporadic nature and the foreign setting made it hard for federal investigators to gather clues and draw conclusions, he said, much less file charges.

Based on what I know, he remarked, it will remain a mystery.

This article originally appeared in The New York Times
Since she was in elementary school, Nia Clements has been thinking about ways to treat cancer.

When she was in fifth grade, her grandfather was diagnosed with gastric cancer, an aggressive disease that shows few symptoms early on. He wasted away before her eyes, looking like a skeleton, Clements said, and died less than three months after diagnosis.

She was baffled by the dearth of treatment options and eventually resolved to study the disease, learning that it was an inflammatory condition that was linked to, and possibly caused by, certain bacteria. At the time, Clements was using East Indian sandalwood oil, both an antibacterial and anti-inflammatory agent, to treat her acne.

She made the connection  could the oil have any effect on cancer cells? By age 13, she was ready to test that question.

But there was a problem. She was far too young to work independently in a laboratory environment.

I wanted to do it myself, said Clements, now 18 and a freshman at Trinity University.

Undeterred, she managed to advance through several phases of preclinical research for a potential cancer treatment by partnering with scientists, all while managing her high school studies at Keystone School, a well-regarded private school in San Antonio.

Working with researchers from the Center of Innovative Drug Discovery, an initiative between UT Health San Antonio and the University of Texas at San Antonio, she was able to gauge the oils ability to withstand the human stomachs inhospitable environment.

The next step was determining how the oil would interact with cancer cells and healthy cells. Based on analysis conducted in conjunction with UT Health San Antonios pharmacology department, Clements collected preliminary data showing the oil, at low concentrations, did indeed kill cancer cells  and spared healthy ones.

While Clements was still a high school freshman, her father, Ian Clements, was diagnosed with Non-Hodgkin lymphoma  the same illness her maternal grandmother had fought into remission when Clements was around 4  and her mother, Diane Clements, received a breast cancer diagnosis.

Simultaneously, Nia Clements parents underwent treatment during her sophomore and junior years, when she was engrossed in her cancer research. Shortly after Diane Clements received radiation and a partial mastectomy, Nia Clements herself was diagnosed with a breast tumor that turned out to be benign. Ian Clements illness was prolonged, involving relapses and a STEM cell transplant.

Nia Clements juggled her schoolwork with hospital visits and hours in the research lab. Her passion for the project was fueled by her desire to have an effect on studying human disease and the deeply personal way in which cancer had come to touch her immediate family.

Working on my research made me feel like I was making a difference to my parents and their sicknesses, Clements said.

She wanted to understand how the oil killed the cancer cells, which led her to ion channels, proteins in cellular membranes that can be targeted for the development of therapeutic drugs. By then a sophomore, Clements began working with technology developed by the CytoBioscience company.

There, she also found a mentor in Susan Judge, who worked with the company and held an adjunct faculty position in UT Health San Antonios biochemistry department. Judge was also interested in ion channels and their use in treatment of neural diseases such as multiple sclerosis. She remembers, from her first meeting with Clements, how the girl had assiduously collected her findings into a binder that must have been 2 inches deep.

Judge guided and supervised Clements as she began working with CytoBiosciences automated patch clamping system. The technology helped her pinpoint an ion channel, TRPM7-like, on the cancerous cells that was necessary for their survival but obstructed by the sandalwood oil, leading to their deaths. Clements preliminary research found that the oil affected breast, colon and oral cancer cells.

In doing this work, Clements was collaborating in a lab with senior investigators, Judge said, and even reached out to a senior researcher in South Korea whose work overlapped with hers. The research arrangement, Judge said, was highly unusual, one much more common for college-aged students. Clements, she said, demonstrated inquisitiveness and maturity beyond her years.

For someone at a young high school age to be convinced that thats what they want to do and driven enough to pull together ideas, to connect dots between an oil as a possible cancer treatment  I mean this is remarkable, Judge said. Its amazing that she could do that.

Despite her youth, Clements work was taken seriously. In 2016, after being awarded the Distinguished Scientist Award by the then-Cancer Therapy and Research Center, she gave a presentation to a roomful of scientists and clinicians. Her father, in bed battling his illness, watched her speak over FaceTime.

It lifts your spirits, said Ian Clements, who works as an executive for a startup dermatology company. Oh my god, my daughter can do this, and shes this age? It gives you extra fight in what youre going through.

Clements work has garnered her attention at national science fairs. In 2016, she was one of 36 students to attend the White House Science Fair, where she met Bill Nye and former Vice President Joe Biden, talking with him shortly after his son had died of brain cancer.

Her senior year, she won $3,000 in the biomedical and health sciences category at the Intel International Science and Engineering Fair and was named a scholar in the 2018 Regeneron Science Talent Search.

At Trinity, Clements lives in Entrepreneurship Hall, alongside other enterprising students hoping to form their own companies or produce their own products. She hopes to develop her research to the point where she can officially publish her findings, as well as start developing therapeutic products using the sandalwood oil, such as a mouthwash for patients with oral or throat cancer. Already, she carries with her a small glass jar filled with golden capsules containing doses of the pharmaceutical-grade oil.

Shes running. Shes not stopping, Judge said. Im delighted. Im going to enjoy the next few years, sitting back and seeing how she evolves.

Lauren Caruba covers several school districts, charter schools and private universities in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read her on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | lcaruba@express-news.net | Twitter: @LaurenCaruba
There were many challenges, big and small, that Thomas Evans faced in his first year as president of University of the Incarnate Word.

He had to acquaint himself with a sprawling institution that had undergone incredible growth over the previous decade. He had to learn a new city and the Catholic universitys place in it. But one of the most persistent challenges was completely out of Evans control.

Mother nature.

By the first day of classes last fall, Hurricane Harvey was ravaging portions of Texas. While the storm spared San Antonio, UIW officials watched to see how it might impact its employee assistance program site in Corpus Christi.

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Weeks later, an 8.1 magnitude earthquake rattled the Mexican state of Oaxaca, where UIW students were participating in mission work, and another quake the same month damaged a UIW satellite campus in Mexico City. In December, during one of the universitys biggest annual fundraising events, it snowed in San Antonio. Then an ice storm canceled the first day of the spring semester.

These were challenges that really were, in many ways, life and death challenges involving communications, logistics and emergency planning across the university, Evans said. It makes everything else seem easy.

With a year of unforeseen obstacles under his belt, this week Evans entered the second academic year of his presidency, prepared to jump a different set of hurdles: laying out his vision for the future of a private university that has been no stranger to change.

His administration is in the process of preparing a strategic vision for UIW, on track to be presented to the universitys board in October and approved by the end of the year. It has also formed a task force on campus planning to study infrastructure and resources, a committee to work on student retention and a presidents council for equity, diversity and inclusion.

RELATED: UTSA ramping up civil engineering Ph.D. program

Evans has already voiced several goals, first laid out during his official inauguration in March.

He wants better cohesion and a sense of a unifying identity across UIWs various components. Besides the main campus in Alamo Heights, they include health profession schools scattered across the city, as well as international campuses and study centers.

Because UIW also manages Incarnate Word High School and St. Anthony Catholic High School, Evans says the institution has the opportunity to educate the whole person. The pathways for those students to go on to attend UIW for undergraduate and graduate studies should be deliberate, he said.

Along with that, Evans said he would like to see UIW design degree paths that marry different disciplines, such as health and politics or philosophy and biomedical ethics. In doing so, he said UIW would be really creating ways in which our students in pursuing their chosen profession really can appreciate and understand, with the benefit of all the humanities and the liberal arts strengthening their understanding.

Evans also wants to bolster student services, such as mentoring and advising and opportunities like studying abroad or participating in research on campus, as well as work closely with sponsored ministries through the Sisters of Charity of the Incarnate Word.

So far, his buoyant personality and collaborative style have set the tone for faculty and students alike, who have noted his ability to listen and connect with both groups. Aaron Chavez, former president of the Student Government Association and a communication arts senior, said Evans has been visible and engaged with students since he came to campus. Hes definitely recommitted to us as students, he said.

Chavez also called Evans pledge to increase endowed scholarships for low-income students absolutely tremendous, a promise that was accompanied by a call to double UIWs endowment over the next decade.

The goal, Evans said, is to increase the number of low-income students who attend UIW and shrink the debt burden for graduates, an urgent matter for many institutions of higher education as the cost of a college degree has continued to climb.

He has also voiced the desire to make UIW the premier provider of educational service for military veterans and those on active duty.

RELATED: Central Catholic fills in its footprint

Evans tenure marks a major shift for the university, which grew accustomed to the leadership of Louis Agnese over the course of his presidency of more than three decades. Under Agnese, UIW grew so rapidly, it could be fatiguing, said Denise Doyle, the former chancellor and provost, who served as acting president while the university conducted a search for a new leader.

She said there has been a desire among faculty and administrators to shift gears from full-tilt expansion to improving UIWs student services and facilities.

Provost Kathi Light, who has been with the university since 1981, said Evans first year presented an opportunity to pause and reflect on the universitys mission.

We had all become tired because we had grown so fast. It was hard to see some days where we were going, Light said as the 2017-18 academic year ended. (Evans has) given us all permission to sort of pause and say, OK, weve done a lot of good. But what do we need to do more? And are there things that we can do better?

Taken together, Evans plans for UIW reflect a desire to make the university accessible, relevant and unique, Light said.

Hes been very aware of some of the best practices and issues that are facing higher education, Light said. Private schools have been experiencing some enrollment decline. And one of the ways private schools will survive in the coming decades is to be distinctive, to provide something that students cant get someplace else.
A memorable exchange during Sen. John McCains 2008 presidential run came to mind as the nation said farewell to the American patriot, a former prisoner of war in Vietnam who was mourned even in that country.

It was McCains response to a supporter expressing distrust for then-presidential candidate Barack Obama at a rally.

I have read about him, she said, and hes not, hes not  hes an Arab.

What she had read about Obama was a dog whistle, inaudible to some voters but presumably anti-Muslim. She sought affirmation McCain was unwilling to give.

No maam, he said. Hes a decent family man, a citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues, and thats what this campaign is all about.

Throughout the rest of a campaign McCain desperately wanted to win, he defended Obama against extremist views that questioned his patriotism, faith and birth certificate.

Another episode of Islamophobia surfaced in San Antonio a few weeks ago when a Muslim teen attempted to register at Cornerstone Christian School.

After being turned away because of her religion, her family created a video on Facebook shared 2,000 times, viewed more than 164,000 times and which has received 768 comments since Aug. 18.

Imad Khalil is seen inside a vehicle, sitting next to his 15-year stepdaughter Pamela Moubarak, her mother in the back seat. Some people couldnt help but notice how they looked, casually dressed, and wondered why a Muslim family would even consider a Christian school.

Khalid had ready answers. In Lebanon, a lot of other Muslims look and dress just like him. Twenty percent of them may have tattoos, he ventured, and some, like his wife and stepdaughter, are blonde.

In most of the Muslim world, he added, private Christian and Catholic schools are preferred by Muslims for their academics and because they allow prayer in school.

Though the family didnt know much about the Rev. John Hagee or his church, they assumed a private school wouldnt bar a Muslim because other U.S. private, parochial schools generally dont.

In France, there are Catholic schools where the majority of students are Muslim, said Sakib Shaikh, a spokesman for the Muslim Children Education and Civic Center, one of the citys largest mosques.

It issued a statement in support of the family that said it was saddened to learn that a Muslim child, in San Antonio, was denied admission into the school of her choice, strictly due to her religious beliefs.

MCECC invited San Antonians to its mosque and programs, regardless of individual beliefs, as we firmly believe that this fosters a culture of inclusion and understanding amongst our multicultural community.

Khalil, who came to San Antonio from Lebanon as a teen and attended Clark High School, said his nieces and nephews have attended TMI and St. George Episcopal, Central Catholic College Prep and Incarnate Word and Holy Spirit high schools.

Cornerstone Christian School popped onto the familys radar because its near the Dominion, where they live. After a tour, his stepdaughter was eager to register. Then the question of faith came up. She answered honestly, and the school representative promptly closed her file.

Its a private school, and its a free country, Khalil said. The problem is how they did it. They tried to convince her that this was the right school for her.

They saw a blonde girl with green eyes, and nothing on her head, he added. They were operating on stereotypes, on how youre supposed to look if youre Muslim.

It was her third day in San Antonio, having just arrived from Lebanon, where she had good marks and played volleyball.

Their video went viral, and San Antonio promptly responded as San Antonio can. Several Catholic and other private schools and some of their alumni reached out, hoping to recruit Pamela. In the end, she chose Lutheran Christian High School.

She started classes last week, and shes going to play volleyball.

Pamela, a junior, says she learned a valuable lesson. In life, there will be disappointments and you dont always get what you want.

Those are things Senator McCain taught us, too, becoming a Republican statesman respected, even beloved, among Democrats.

Sometimes when you dont get what you want, you might get something that lasts a lifetime.

Elaine Ayala covers religion and minority affairs in the San Antonio and Bexar County area. Read her on our free site, mySA.com, and on our subscriber site, ExpressNews.com. | eayala@express-news.net | Twitter: @ElaineAyala
As we said from the outset, our objective in these talks is to update and modernize NAFTA in a way that is good for Canadians, good for Americans and good for Mexicans.

As Common Dreams reported, Trump indicated on Monday that he is willing to leave Canada out of the trade negotiations entirely, in favor of a bilateral deal with Mexico that he called the "United States-Mexico Trade Agreement".

USA senators Marco Rubio and Bill Nelson quickly warned that the agreement needs to better protect the state's agricultural industry, and state Agricultural Commissioner Adam Putnam said Trump's newly negotiated agreement "wasn't quite the deal we hoped it would be" in Florida. A Business Insider report from April said USA sanctions on Russian Federation hit it "where it hurts".

The talks with Canada were "constructive, and we made progress", Lighthizer said in a statement Friday.

Peter Clark, a trade consultant and president of Ottawa-based Grey, Clark, Shih & Associates, said Chapter 19 is worth a lot to Canadian exporters, but that recent trade victories through other channels "are examples of how the system can work".

Trump notified Congress on Friday of his intent to sign a revamped deal in 90 days with Mexico - and Canada too, if Ottawa chooses to join in.

"We know that a win-win-win agreement is within reach", Canadian Foreign Minister Chrystia Freeland told reporters after a week of talks to rewrite the 25-year-old Nafta.

"He hates any form of decision making from outside the United States telling Americans what to do", said the NAFTA expert, who asked not to be named.

While the exact new timetable is not clear for when Canada will join the pact, people familiar with the process estimate the new deadline could extend to September 30.

President Donald Trump has threatened to leave Canada on the sidelines since announcing a breakthrough with Mexico on Monday, but the United States president and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have both expressed optimism a deal is close.

NAFTA, which came into effect at the beginning of January 1994, lifted tariffs on virtually all goods traded among the US, Canada and Mexico.

The controversial remarks come amid increased tensions between the US and Canada, in part over trade.

Both he and Horlick said the evidence indicates that, despite complaints, there is no evidence that the courts rule along the lines of the country that has the majority on a given case. The deal also proposes requiring a significant portion of automobile parts - 75 percent - be made in the US and Mexico.

Trump added that any deal to include Canada would be "totally on our terms", according to the report.

But the official said Washington could go ahead with just Mexico if Canada decides not to sign on to the near trade deal. "We were far better off before NAFTA - should never have been signed".

Even while gripped in negotiations with Mexico and now Canada over a new North American trade pact, the administration has been fighting major trading partners on other fronts.

Since March, for example, Trump's team has applied new tariffs of up to 25 percent on almost $85 billion worth of steel and aluminum on the grounds that these imports pose a threat to America's national security.

The administration has also applied taxes to $50 billion in Chinese products, mostly goods used in manufacturing.

But the history of the "Chapter-19" NAFTA dispute courts tells a surprising story: American exporters have arguably benefited from the tool as much as or more than their Canadian counterparts.

The Trump administration's trade decisions have infuriated a number of USA allies this year. Beijing's tactics include cyber-theft and a requirement that American companies hand over trade secrets in exchange for access to China's market.
Japan Airlines (JAL) is considering serving points in Eastern Europe through its newly established long haul low cost airline, giving airports in the former Yugoslavia an opportunity to be linked with Tokyo. The airline has not disclosed which routes will be served first. However, it noted that destinations which can be visited by young travellers with more restricted budgets during peak season will be the airlines first targets. It added that routes in Eastern Europe, Asia and North America are all being considered at this point. The newly established carrier will commence operations during the summer of 2020 in time for the Olympic games in Tokyo. It will operate with a fleet of two Boeing 787-8 Dreamliners.





Slovenia, Croatia and Serbia are all seeking flights to Japan. Both the Slovenian and Croatian governments have held talks with JAL's rival All Nippon Airways (ANA) over potential services to Ljubljana and Zagreb. Slovenia has seen a steady flow of Japanese tourists over the past few years, with the Slovenian Tourist Board putting Japan amongst the country's key overseas markets. Over 30.000 Japanese travellers visited Slovenia last year, which is up some 1% on 2016. They are most likely to visit the country in May, August and October and spend almost half of their time in Ljubljana. On the other hand, the Croatian government has authorised the Minister for Sea, Transport and Infrastructure, Oleg Butkovic, to commence talks with his Japanese counterpart over the establishment of scheduled flights between Zagreb and Tokyo. The two sides will first have to sign a Bilateral Air Service Agreement, which has already been drafted, with Mr Butkovic expressing hope for negotiations to be swift in order for flights between the two capitals to be launched in the near future. In 2017, a total of 142.043 holidaymakers from Japan arrived in the country, representing an increase of 17.4% on 2016. The majority of those stayed in Dubrovnik, followed by Zagreb, Plitvice Lakes, Split and Opatija.





The Serbian Minister for Construction, Transport and Infrastructure, Zorana Mihajlovic, said that a new Bilateral Air Service Agreement with Japan will be inked in the near future in order to facilitate the introduction of new services. The future operator of Belgrade Nikola Tesla Airport, VINCI, holds a concession, as part of a consortium with Japanese partners, for two airports in Osaka, and this year added Kobe Airport to its portfolio. VINCI has said it plans to link Belgrade with a number of its other airports across the world. Serbia and Japan do not require visas for each others' nationals. In 2017, there were 5.769 Japanese visitors to Serbia, which, although light, was still ahead of arrivals from much closer markets such as Portugal, Finland and Ireland.





JAL has a limited presence in the former Yugoslavia. This year it operated one charter flight to Ljubljana in August and previously maintained charters to Zagreb as well. The new long haul low cost carrier is part of JALs strategy of expanding the number of cities it serves. The group wishes to increase the number of cities from 343 to 500 as well as making non-Japanese revenues hit a target of 50%. This strategy is aligned with Japans current social crisis, where more than 30% of the Japanese population is 65 or older. The airline plans to stimulate the overseas market and bring people into Japan.
Qatar Airways will be hiring new cabin crew members in Bosnia and Herzegovina and Macedonia this September. The Doha-based airline will host an open day in Sarajevo on September 15 at the Radon Plaza Hotel (Dzemala Bijedica 185) at 09.00 sharp and in Skopje on September 16 at the Holiday Inn (Filip Vtori Makedonski 5) also at 09.00. Those interested must register beforehand. Requirements include a minimum age of 21 years, arm reach of 212 cm on tip toes, high school education with fluency in written and spoken English, as well as excellent health and fitness. Benefits include a tax-free salary, international health insurance, complimentary shared accommodation in Doha, thirty days of annual leave and one free return ticket per year to your country of origin. Further details, as well as the application form, for the Sarajevo event can be found here and for the Skopje open day here
GREENWICH  Rebecca Smith Ford freely admits shes covetous of art.

Walking through a museum or gallery, Ford might spy a work that speaks to her so loudly that she wants to make it her own by incorporating it into her painting.

Its about looking and loving the image, making the image mine by painting it, the Greenwich artist said. Its a lot like consuming. They become mirrors. I will literally look at one of my own paintings and think I am looking at myself.

Art lovers will get a peek inside Fords imagination at Looking Forward, Looking Back, a new exhibition opening Sept. 6 at the Greenwich Librarys Flinn Gallery. Kicking off the gallerys 90th anniversary season, the show will feature work from four artists, including nine paintings Ford completed over the last three years.

Ford, a Pittsburgh native, earned art degrees at Carnegie Mellon and Yale universities, but she said the realist style she employs these days had fallen out of favor when she was in school. She has taught herself through trial and error over the last several years.

As an undergrad, she worked in assemblage and installations, moving on to flat-tone painting in graduate school. But she says shes found her true calling in realism since she went back into the studio in 2010.

I really had to knuckle under and teach myself, said Ford, who works from a Port Chester studio.

More for you Flinn Gallery celebrates 90 years of amazing art

Works in the Flinn exhibit will highlight Fords interest in melding elements of other paintings into her work, juxtaposing and integrating elements and often employing exquisite still life flowers or trompe loeil in her oils on canvas.

They become meditations or devotional, she said.

Though shes been working in art for decades  she spent about 10 years as an art dealer representing emerging artists in New York City  Ford said many of her Greenwich friends might not realize shes an artist. Many know her as the woman who manages the Christ Church bookstore and directs the churchs Courage & Faith speaker series.

Though she did exhibit and sell some of her earlier work, she doesnt know what became of much of it.

I dont know where a lot of it is, she said. Im not that precious about my early work.

Her most recent creations are a different story. The nine paintings in the Flinn show represent the largest grouping she has ever shown and reveal her style in a way she has always wanted to paint.

Shes excited to share her work with the Greenwich community.

I want to shout from the rooftops, she said, laughing. This is what I do when Im not selling books!

Looking Forward, Looking Back runs from Sept. 6 through Oct. 17. The public is invited to an opening reception from 6 to 8 p.m. Sept. 6. Also, at 2 p.m. Sept. 16, Ford will take part in an Artist Talk at the gallery with the other three artists in the show, Rebecca Clark, Hilary Irons and Alexandra Rozenman.

For more information, visit http://flinngallery.com/looking-forward-looking-back/.
STAMFORD Tranquil harbor waters Sunday betrayed what sailors called a days long slog in the weekends 84th iteration of Stamford Yacht Clubs Vineyard Race.

The 238-mile contest, with nearly 100 yachts zigzagging between Long Island and Connecticuts coasts this weekend to curry a strong easterly winds favor, had accomplished sailors sweating, they said. The wind, which took one three-hulled trimaran  70-foot Argo  to the Cape Cod coast and back in a course record of just more than 14 hours, spelled slow-sailing for smaller vessels in the competitive fleet.

Several boats were still on the water Sunday afternoon after the wind that carried Argo home in Saturdays wee hours died down that noon.

But after a windy day of surprises, the big trophy, the Vineyard Lightship, awarded to sailors completing the 238-mile course in the best corrected time, went to a usual suspect  Spookie, a TP52 owned by Steve and Heidi Benjamin.

Spookie has now won four of the last five lightship trophies, a coveted award from Stamford Yacht Club.

Race chairman Jonathan Asch, who has sailed in nearly 30 Vineyard Races, said this years winds made for interesting sailing after previous Labor Day weekends of fair weather, a helpful breeze and record times.

Bigger boats were aided by the steady breeze while the smaller boats suffered, Asch said.

Seventy-foot Argo, for example, was able to gain speed by swerving between the coasts on the trip out past Block Island and around the light tower at the entrance to Buzzards Bay. Smaller boats, meanwhile, struggled to make headway.

That wind was still going upon Argos venture back to Stamford, propelling the yacht in what sailors call spinnaker weather, when the wind at your back merits using the mainsail.

The wind that drove Argo back to Shippan, died before many other boaters on the Vineyards long, 238-mile loop could take advantage of it.

Stephen Hutchins, one of seven crew members on 38-foot Kekoa which raced on a shorter loop, said he was also aided by the wind after early tough sailing, but his boat came nowhere near the speeds of Argo or Spookie.

(Argos crew) were basically going 30 miles an hour, he said.

Hutchins and fellow Kekoa crew members snagged the wind in time because their yacht was on a shorter circuit, the Cornfield Point Course, which is less than half the length of the race for the lighthouse trophy.

Kekoa, with a corrected time of around 12.5 hours won the Gillespie Memorial Trophy with the best corrected time on the course for its class, according to early results.

Another racer was Linda Moran, whose weekend experience was far more dramatic and difficult than she had anticipated.

This years race was her first long-distance venture, she said, and she quickly became acquainted with the rain and winds that make such lengthy races all the harder.

It was daunting right away, she said. I clicked myself in and was wearing hazardous weather gear."

Moran said waves broke over her head and four-foot swells made for quick adjustments during the races first several hours.

She recalled being on the wrong side of the yacht, locked to the vessels side with a carabiner and lax line as the boom headed her way.

She ducked just in time, she said.

It gave me a lot more experience," she said.

By Sunday evening, as sailors and friends readied for the award ceremony, some two dozen yachts were still out on the sound, struggling to make it back to the harbor.

Several sailors back at the Stamford Yacht Club wondered if the boaters would drop out and motor in for fear of missing the shindig.

Meanwhile, early winners began racking up honors.

For a sailing-season with the best average score in the years contests, Spookie Sunday also took home the Northern Ocean Racing Trophy, one of the most prestigious trophies, Asch said.

barry.lytton

@stamfordadvocate.com; 203-964-2263; @bglytton
5 1 of 5 Tyler Sizemore / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 2 of 5 Michael Cummo / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 3 of 5 4 of 5 Michael Cummo / Hearst Connecticut Media Show More Show Less 5 of 5









STAMFORD  Public schools in Stamford will dismiss early on Tuesday due to hot weather, Superintendent Earl Kim said in a tweet.

The announcement on Monday evening, also on the schools website, comes following a similar action on Thursday, the first day of classes where temperatures exceeded 90 degrees.
Insider attacks, often known as "green on blue" attacks, in which Afghan service members or attackers wearing Afghan uniforms fire on U.S. or coalition troops, have been a regular feature of the conflict in Afghanistan, although their frequency has diminished in recent years.

Kabul: A United States soldier was killed and another wounded in an "apparent insider attack" in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, NATO said, marking the sixth American service member death in the war-torn country this year.

The service member, whose identity has not yet been released, is the sixth American to be killed in Afghanistan this year, according to a statement from the NATO-led coalition in Afghanistan, Resolute Support.

The death is the first of a USA soldier since Miller on Sunday assumed his new position. A second USA service member was wounded in the incident and was in stable condition, North Atlantic Treaty Organisation said.

Currently, there are about 14,000 United States troops in Afghanistan, providing the main component of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation mission there to support and train local forces.

Miller took over Sunday from Gen. John Nicholson, who held the post for more than two years, at a ceremony attended by senior Afghan officials and foreign ambassadors.

"To be successful, we must continually learn and adapt to the enemy and the environment", Miller said at a ceremony at Resolute Support's headquarters. "We can not afford to be complacent".

American casualties have fallen dramatically since the withdrawal of US-led North Atlantic Treaty Organisation combat troops at the end of 2014.
Equinor ASA engages in the exploration, production, transport, refining, and marketing of petroleum and petroleum-derived products. It operates through the following segments: Exploration and Production Norway, Exploration and Production International, Exploration and Production USA, Marketing, Midstream, and Processing, and Other. The Exploration and Production Norway segment includes the commercial development of oil and gas portfolios on the Norwegian continental shelf. The Exploration and Production International segment covers offshore and onshore activities in the USA, Mexico, and other operations worldwide. The Exploration and Production USA segment covers both onshore and offshore exploration, development, and Production of oil and gas in USA. The Marketing, Midstream, and Processing segment markets and trades of oil and gas commodities. The Other segment includes new energy solutions; global strategy and business development; technology; projects and drilling; and corporate staffs and services. The company was founded on September 18, 1972 and is headquartered in Stavanger, Norway.

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Wall Street analysts have given iShares MSCI Finland ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but iShares MSCI Finland ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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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.

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Vivint Solar, Inc. provides distributed solar energy primarily to residential customers in the United States. It owns and installs solar energy systems through long-term customer contracts. The company also sells photovoltaic installation products, as well as solar renewable energy certificates. As of December 31, 2019, it had an aggregate capacity of 1,294.0 megawatts covering approximately 188,300 homes. The company was formerly known as V Solar Holdings, Inc. and changed its name to Vivint Solar, Inc. in April 2014. Vivint Solar, Inc. was founded in 2011 and is headquartered in Lehi, Utah.

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Wall Street analysts have given Enel Generacion Chile 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 Enel Generacion Chile wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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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.

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It is "more imperative than ever" for farmers to be adequately covered following the sustained hot summer which sparked a hike in crop values.

Farmers are being warned that they are running the risk of being underinsured, according to a rural insurer.

The value of wheat, hay, straw, cereals, and other arable crops has soared following months of hot, dry weather.

It has prompted insurers Lycetts to urge farmers to check their insurance cover is adequate, particularly when it comes to crop storage.

For example, average hay and straw prices have almost doubled in some parts of the UK, yet many policies only insure stacks up to the value of 30,000.

Farmers can take steps, such as splitting up stacks and ensuring they are kept at least 20 metres apart, but they also advised to contact their insurance provider to check they have the correct level of cover.

'Low crop yields'

William Nicholl, head of rural at Lycetts said this summer has been a "challenging one" for many farmers.

"The adverse weather resulted in low crop yields, which has inevitably pushed up prices and affected market values," Mr Nicholl said.

With so much to deal with, insurance may be the last thing on farmers minds but it is even more imperative that farmers are adequately covered, given the trying times.

Some farmers may not be aware that the increase in wheat values, for example, means that their grain store is holding a higher value of wheat than in previous years, which would have an impact on the policy limit."

Mr Nicholl said that if a fire ripped through underinsured hay stacks, farmers could face losing thousands of pounds on a claim.
A notorious British chilli pepper grown by a Bedfordshire farmer has become even spicier thanks to abundant sunshine.

The British-grown hot chilli pepper, the Carolina Reaper, is set to be up to 20 per cent more potent this year because of recent weather conditions.

The chilli is the worlds hottest commercially grown pepper, and is 400 times fiercer than a Jalapeno.

The chills, on sale at Tesco, are only available for about three months  from July until the end of September.

The tiny peppers pack a punch  and measure, on average, 2.2 million Scoville Units.

By comparison Tabasco sauce is measured at between 2,500 and 5,000 Scovilles.

'More potent'

They are exclusively grown by Bedfordshire farmer Salvatore Genovese, who is the UKs largest chilli pepper grower.

Mr Genovese said: Through more than 15 years growing experience Ive found that chilli peppers become more potent the hotter the weather.

Basically if the plant gets stressed because of extra sunshine and hotter temperatures or through drought then it will bear hotter fruit.

The farmer started growing chilli peppers after he took over his parents cucumber business and now grows around one million, or 15 tonnes of chillies each week for the UK market.

Other chilli peppers grown by Mr Genovese include the previously hottest UK grown variety, the Komodo Dragon, as well as the Scotch Bonnet and Habanero in red, green, chocolate and yellow; Flavia, Purple Valentina; Cayenne; Fresno in yellow, green, red and orange and his own favourite the Serenade.

Not only are these also likely to be hotter than usual but there will also be about 20 per cent more this year because of the extra sunshine.
An unlikely new weapon in farmings battle with the multi-million pound slug menace has been revealed  Swiss-style muesli.

Crop experts at Scotlands Rural College (SRUC) say the breakfast dish is the best thing to attract the molluscs into traps, which will then allow farmers to gauge whether they need to take further action.

According to figures from AHDB, if slugs were left totally uncontrolled, the creatures would cause annual losses of around 25 million in wheat and 18m in oilseed rape.

Although slugs will not have been enjoying the dry summer, and numbers waiting to feed on autumn-sown cereals and oilseed rape will have taken a hit, farmers are being warned not to be complacent and assume that there will be no slug problems this autumn.

Farmers can assess the risk from slugs for themselves by using slug traps following rain, or drench the area around the trap with water, as this tempts slugs up on to the soil surface at night.

Swiss-style muesli

To get the best from slug trapping, the bait placed under the trap needs to grab the slugs interest and to keep them there.

Dr Andy Evans, from SRUCs Crop and Soil Systems team, says the best option is a dry food bait such as Swiss-style muesli, or chicken feed.

A tablespoon of the bait should be placed under the trap, which can be a slate, fertiliser bag, an upturned flower pot base, wooden board or something similar, Dr Evans said.

If slug numbers exceed five per trap, especially if conditions have been suitable for slugs to be feeding on the soil surface (damp soil and humid nights) then the following winter wheat crop is likely to be at risk from slug damage. Only one slug per trap is enough to put winter oilseed rape at risk.

Dr Evans said: Slugs can pose a real problem for farmers so its important to gauge the size of the problem before taking any further action. Slug traps are an easy, cost-effective way of doing this and theres no doubt that Swiss-style muesli is the best way to attract them.

Reducing slug damage

If there is a slug risk, SRUC recommends farmers to create a fine, firm seedbed for the autumn crops, as good soil cultivation can reduce the risk of slug damage, as can deeper sowing of cereal seed (3-4cm).

Some cereal seed treatments primarily used for barley yellow dwarf virus protection can provide protection from seed hollowing by slugs.

As these seed treatments contain the neonicotinoid insecticide clothianidin, this autumn will be the last opportunity for these to be used before they are revoked.
A ground-breaking British project to cultivate grass pea in drought-prone areas has been awarded 1.2m funding.

The bid to unlock the potential of the resilient and highly nutritious legume is one of nine important projects which receive a total of 10m under the Sustainable Agriculture for Sub-Saharan Africa (SASSA) fund.

The projects were informed by the needs of countries in Sub-Saharan Africa, raised in a Global Challenges Research Fund workshop held in Kenya in March 2017.

Professor Cathie Martin a project leader in metabolic biology at the John Innes Centre and the UK lead of the grass pea project said grass pea is "especially beneficial" to smallholder farmers as an insurance crop.

"We are also working on introducing agronomically important traits which could lead to the expanded cultivation of grass pea in areas most affected by climate change, Prof Martin said.

Enhanced food security

The John Innes Centre project is called 'Unlocking the Potential of Grasspea for Resilient Agriculture in Drought-prone Environments (UPGRADE)'.

It has developed new safe lines of grass pea that are low in a toxin which causes paralysis when it is the main food consumed because there is nothing else to eat.

The nine funded projects aim to enhance food security in Sub-Saharn Africa through collaborative research that combines the expertise of UK science with research involvement in the region.

The focus is on African farming systems in which crops are grown, primarily for local human consumption, and their interactions with the environment.

'Sustainable agriculture'

Research was particularly encouraged on regionally important crops relevant to the needs of smallholder farmers in multiple African countries.

Professor Sir Mark Walport, Chief Executive of UK Research and Innovation said: Stresses such as drought, and the restriction of vital resources including nutrients and water are among the challenges affecting the development of sustainable agriculture in Sub-Saharan Africa.

By bringing together UK researchers with partners in the region, these projects will play an important role in addressing these challenges and unlocking the potential of sustainable agriculture to transform food production and improve lives.

These projects are funded from the UK Governments Global Challenges Research Fund, which aims to deploy the UKs world-leading research capability to address challenges faced by developing countries.
New 6m fund to help expand woodland in England

Grants of 250,000 to 500,000 will be awarded
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Salman Khan  Katrina Kaif starrer Bharat manages to make headlines almost every day with some new interesting updates. Helmed by Ali Abbas Zafar, Bharat is a period drama based on the Korean film, Ode To My Father. Coming as a new big update on the project is an addition to films starcast. Bharat will be showcasing the beautiful bond shared by a father and son, which is why director Zafar has roped in Jackie Shroff to play Salman Khans dad in the film.Confirming the same, Ali Abbas Zafar said, We met Jaggu da (Jackie Shroff) in London and discussed his dates and looks. I have wanted to work with him for a long time as I feel he is the perfect amalgamation of a star and actor. I was very glad as Jackie sir instantly agreed with the story to do the film in just 20 mins of narration.Team Bharat had started their first schedule in Mumbai post which Salman and Disha shot a song for the film. After that, the team headed to Malta for the next schedule which they wrapped up recently. As per the reports, they will all soon head to Abu Dhabi for the next schedule.Initially, Priyanka Chopra was to play the lead opposite Salman in the film. After her waking out, it was Katrina Kaif who was confirmed as the new female lead.
Kangana Ranaut's Manikarnika Controversy: Apurva Asrani lashes out | FilmiBeat

In a cryptic tweet, screenwriter Apurva Asrani took a sly dig at Kangana Ranaut for hijacking a film and described it as 'the worst form of hara-kiri'. Without taking any name, Apurva's tweet alluded to the controversy surrounding the historical-drama Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi, which saw Sonu Sood exiting the project.

"A star hijacking a film and running down the hard work of crew member/s is the worst form of hara-kiri there is. When affected filmmakers cannot control this and instead put on a facade of a 'dignified silence', they allow a monstrous ego to go on a rampage and eventually kill the film," the "Aligarh" writer wrote.

On Friday, after Sonu announced his departure from the film, Kangana had said that he'd decided to quit the project because she was directing the reshoots and patchwork. In his response, the actor said even though Kangana is a good friend, making the entire issue about male chauvinism is 'ridiculous'. "The gender of the director is not the issue, competence is," he'd previously said, regarding his decision to quit the film.

Rajkummar Rao-Shraddha Kapoor's Stree To Have A Sequel, Here Are All The Details!

Last year, Apurva had alleged that Kangana, who has been credited as additional dialogue and story writer in her last release, Simran, tried to discredit his work in public by saying that she developed the story with director Hansal Mehta from a one-line script. The actor, however, dismissed the claims.
The cast of Ali Abbas Zafar directorial Bharat gets bigger, as Jackie Shroff joins the team as Salman Khan's father. The director has confirmed the senior actor to step in as the father of Salman Khan for the period film.

Bharat depicts the eternal bond shared by a father and son, which is quite evident in the teaser. Dropped on Independence day, the teaser spread like wild fire, creating a frenzy across quarters, raising the anticipation for the film.

Talking about Jackie Shroff, director Ali Abbas Zafar shares, "We met Jaggu da in London and discussed his dates and looks. I have wanted to work with him for a long time as I feel he is the perfect amalgamation of a star and actor. I was very glad as Jackie sir instantly agreed with the story to do the film in just 20 mins of narration."

The film boasts of an ensemble cast with names like Salman Khan, Katrina Kaif, Disha Patani, Sunil Grover, Tabu and Jackie Shroff.

After wrapping the first schedule in Mumbai, the team recently concluded the second schedule in Malta. The cast has been sharing pictures from the sets, piquing the interests of the audience for the much anticipated film.

The team shot for a grand circus sequence in the first schedule with a song choreographed by Vaibhavi Merchant, featuring Salman Khan and Disha Patani. The film showcases Disha Patani as a trapeze artist and involves action sequences and stunts with fire, for which the actress geared up months before the film went on floors.

Apurva Slams Kangana; Says 'Star Hijacking Film Worst Form Of Hari-Kiri'

Pictures of Salman Khan doing daredevil stunts on a motorbike amidst a ring of fire in the circus set up added to the excitement of the film. Recently, Salman Khan shared a still featuring himself and Katrina Kaif that looked straight out of a fairy tale, which became the talk of the town in no time.

Bharat's release brings back Salman Khan and director Ali Abbas Zafar for an Eid release, after the 2016 Blockbuster Hit, Sultan. The hit director-actor duo will be marking a hattrick with Bharat after their last outing Tiger Zinda Hai. Salman Khan will yet again treat the audience on the festive season of Eid next year with the release of Bharat.

The film will feature Salman Khan sporting five different looks, spanning 60 years, wherein a crucial part will showcase the actor in his late 20s, looking much leaner and younger. Salman Khan will be recreating his 'Karan-Arjun' look, which has created immense excitement among the audience.

Directed by Ali Abbas Zafar, 'Bharat' is produced by Atul Agnihotri's Reel Life Production Pvt. Ltd. and Bhushan Kumar's T-Series that is all set for a Eid 2019 release.
Saumya Shares Memories From Childhood

Remembering Janmashtami celebrations from her childhood, Saumya said, "This is the only day that we observe fast which later turns into feast with my mom's special Janmashtami thali. This thali and all the dishes that are part of it, are absolutely delightful. During childhood, all my friends and neighbours used to come home to enjoy this thali."

She Misses Her Mother

Who wouldn't love the festive food? Saumya couldn't resist her temptations when she said, "Some of the dishes that mom used to make were kotu ke aate ki puri, kele ke sabzi, makhane ki kheer, sabudane ki tikki and khus khus ka halwa. This year, I will miss all the delicious food as my mom is in London."

Saumya Is Scared Of Human Pyramids

"As far as the dahi handi celebrations, I am not really the kind of person to enjoy it. Looking at kids climb up so high, I feel scared for them. I just feel that anything that is unsafe or a threat to someone's life, shouldn't be encouraged," the actress further added.

Ayush On Enjoying The Delicacies

Perfect Pati actor Ayush Anand said his mother is a devotee of Lord Krishna, and begins the rituals at midnight by offering sweets to baby Krishna. "This is followed by puja and lovely delicacies that I love to gorge on. When I used to stay in Delhi, we used to travel to Vrindavan to celebrate the festival with my aunt and uncle," he further added.

Abhishek Looks Forward To The Breaking Of Dahi Handi

Bitti Business Wali actor Abhishek Bajaj said that he looks forward to the breaking of Dahi Handi, which is the highlight of the festival. He feels the human pyramids make the festival more special.
The Nani-hosted Bigg Boss Telugu Season 2 kicked off nearly two months ago amidst much fanfare. While the opening episode managed to create a great deal of buzz amongst the fans, a section of the audience complained about the Natural Star's hosting style and added that he was not as good as Jr NTR. Despite this criticism, the show has remained a force to be reckoned with ever since the first episode. Nani too has shown tremendous improvement.

Now, Bigg Boss Telugu Season 2 is in the limelight for a shocking reason. As it so happens, Nutan Naidu was eliminated from the show on Sunday (September 2, 2018). And, his elimination added fuel to a popular conspiracy theory involving Kaushal.

In case you did not know, Kaushal is the darling of the fans and some of his supporters feel that the people behind Bigg Boss Telugu Season 2 do not want him to win. Nutan was his only ally and his eviction has added fuel to the fire. Many fans have claimed that this was just another trick to make life difficult for Kaushal.

Interestingly, all unofficial polls had indicated that Nutan would be safe. As such, his eviction was unexpected and encouraged fans to use the hashtag 'dishonest bb telugu team' on Twitter. Apparently, some people from the live audience even claimed that Kaushal gave some good counters to Geetha, but they were not aired on TV. These developments have indeed brought the show under a cloud and it will be worth watching what happens next.

Bigg Boss Telugu Season 2: Fans Are Disgusted With Samart And Rolla Rida For Kissing A Married Woman




Taiwanese electric vehicle company Xing Mobility is launching a funding round to commercialise a frontier battery technology it hopes will see widespread adoption from companies that want to turn vehicles electric from trucks to jet-skis.

Founded in 2015 by car enthusiasts Azizi Tucker and Royce Hong, the company began with a rally-inspired supercar called Miss R which has a projected acceleration from 0 to 100kmh in 1.8 seconds marginally better than the Tesla Roadsters 1.9 seconds. Xing means movement in mandarin.

But it is the companys battery technology that the founders say promises a wide range of applications, and has drawn interest from vehicle makers internationally....
Regulatory News:

Emmanuel Laillier is joining the alternative investment and asset management group Tikehau Capital (Paris:TKO) as Head of Private Equity, effective from 5th September 2018.

Emmanuel Laillier, a highly regarded midcap private equity expert, will contribute to the development of this particular asset class within Tikehau Capital, and will also supervise the management of the latest funds launched by the group. Private equity has been a key focus of Tikehau Capital since the company's inception in 2004.The acquisition of Salvepar in 2012 represented a major milestone for Tikehau Capital in this field of expertise. Emmanuel Laillier has been recruited to provide further dynamic growth momentum in this field.

Tikehau Capital's co-founder, Antoine Flamarion, declared: "We are delighted to welcome Emmanuel Laillier to the team. He is a highly-respected investment professional who fully understands Tikehau Capital, having previously been a member of the investment and audit committees from 2004 2016. His appointment at Tikehau Capital, is the outcome of many years of mutual confidence. He will enable us to significantly enhance the development of our private equity business".

Emmanuel Laillier, aged 45, has been a board member and managing director at Eurazeo PME since 2011. From 2002 2011, he was an Associate Director at EPF Partners, a major independent company in the small midcap private equity market in France. Between 1999 and 2002, he was part of the Fonds Partenaire Gestion investment team (Lazard), after starting his career in corporate finance at Nomura. He has almost 20 years' experience in midcap private equity. He graduated from Ecole Polytechnique in 1994.

About Tikehau Capital

Tikehau Capital is an asset management and investment group with 14.2bn (at March 31, 2018) worth of assets under management and equity of 2.5bn (as at December 31, 2017). The Group invests in various classes of assets (private debt, real-estate, private equity and liquid strategies), particularly through its asset management subsidiary Tikehau IM, on behalf of both institutional and private investors. Tikehau Capital is controlled by its managers and leading institutional partners and employs 220 staff (as at March 31, 2018) in its Paris, London, Brussels, Madrid, Milan, New York, Seoul and Singapore offices.

Tikehau Capital is listed on Euronext Paris, compartment A (ISIN code: FR0013230612; Ticker: TKO.FP)

www.tikehaucapital.com

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180903005018/en/

Contacts:

Press:

Tikehau Capital:

Julien Sanson, +33 1 40 06 18 40

press@tikehaucapital.com

or

Finsbury:

Arnaud Salla Charles O'Brien

+44 207 251 3801

tikehau@finsbury.com

or

Shareholder and Investor:

Louis Igonet, +33 1 40 26 11 11

shareholders@tikehaucapital.com
HONG KONG, Sept 3, 2018 - (ACN Newswire) - According to South China Morning Post's report, the interim results posted by Legend Holdings Corporation for the six months to the end of June show continuing strong performance for its main business sectors and subsidiaries. Steady revenue growth was achieved in financial services and IT, as well as innovative consumptions and related services.



There were also solid gains in advanced manufacturing, professional services and, especially large growth in agriculture and food.



This confirms the success of plans and policies implemented in the three years since listing and points to further opportunities for expansion and strategic investment.



In the first half, the company realised revenue of RMB 156.5 billion yuan (HK$ 180 billion), a 10 per cent increase compared with the equivalent period last year. Net profit attributable to shareholders came to RMB2.83 billion, up 5 per cent year on year, putting basic earnings per share at RMB1.21 yuan.



With China's economy continuing to show consistent growth, spurred by increasing domestic consumption, the company remains confident about overall prospects in the near to medium term.



In other respects, Legend Holdings became the first pilot enterprise for the H-share Full Circulation Project and relevant domestic shares have been converted to H shares and listed in Hong Kong Stock Exchange during the reporting period. The move is seen as contributing to China's overall capital market reforms and, more specifically, should help the company's own business development.



In IT services, the reporting period saw the planned transformation of Lenovo Group taking effect. The PC and smart equipment business recorded strong growth, losses were trimmed in the mobile division, and the data centre business once again showed a positive upward trend.



This resulted in a 7 per cent increase in realised revenue to just over RMB143.9 billion yuan and net attributable profit of RMB231 million yuan, a significant improvement. These figures show that efforts to give Lenovo Group a more efficient organisational structure, a more attractive portfolio of products and a more customer-oriented outlook are clearly paying off.



In the area of financial services, significant events during the last few months included the acquisition of over 89.9 per cent of the shares of Banque Internationale a Luxembourg S.A. The transaction, which was officially completed on July 2, is in line with the stated objective of building up the pillar asset to bring reliable returns for shareholders. It also marked the first time a Chinese non-financial enterprise has acquired a systematically important bank supervised by the European Central Bank. This can be taken as recognition of the strength of Legend Holdings by the relevant regulators and a sign of enhanced cooperation between China and Luxembourg.



Subsidiary Zhengqi Financial showed the benefits of intensified efforts to understand evolving client needs and optimise asset allocation.



First-half income of RMB637 million yuan was up 8 per cent year on year, which translated into a 25 per cent increase in net profit to RMB396 million yuan. This performance is underpinned by a long-term strategy of investment-loan linkage which, over the past four years, has proved a source of consistent profit growth.



In parallel, another subsidiary, Koala Technology, consolidated its leading position in the financial technology sector, continuing to provide services for SMEs, businesses linked to personal consumption, and community finance initiatives. At the end of June, its credit balance stood at nearly RMB6.4 billion yuan and its net profit for the period of RMB249 million yuan represented a 75 per cent jump compared with the prior year.



There were a couple of key developments in the innovative consumption and services business.



Firstly, the company entered into an agreement with Taikang Life Insurance Co. to provide funding support for Bybo Dental. This will also lead to further cooperation on insurance products for oral health, marketing, and insurance payment procedures.



Secondly, Better Education continued to expand. It now runs 110 kindergartens, up from 91 at the same time last year, employing over 4,800 staff and with an enrolment of more than 32,000 pupils.



Separately, the company's diverse agriculture and food businesses kept performing well. Through Joyvio Group and other subsidiaries, interests range from fruit, seafood and dried bean curd products.



Notably, KB Food is now a leading supplier of seafood for the Woolworths supermarket chain in Australia and has signed a five-year contract with Compass Group, which provides restaurant services in 50 countries. KB is looking to invest in marine fishing boats.



The company has also expanded its role in the financial investments sector through Legend Star, Legend Capital and Hony Capital. Legend Star manages five funds with a total value in excess of 2 billion yuan. These include investments in projects such as intelligent machines, biotechnology and medical equipment.



"The company will continue to focus on the changing external environment, exploring development opportunities in our fields of strategic focus," says Zhu Lina, president of Legend Holdings. "By promoting healthy development and value improvement in our enterprises, we are creating long-term returns for shareholders."



Liu Chuanzhi, Chairman of Legend Holdings added the group, "Legend Holdings will not miss opportunities arising from the rapid growth of China's economy that pays more attention of the quality instead of speed, and support the development of the real economy by direct investments."









Copyright 2018 ACN Newswire . All rights reserved.





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Two days after the Tripoli airport was hit by a rocket, the UN-backed government announced a state of emergency in the city as the death toll from fighting in recent days reached 39, including civilians caught in the crossfire.

The fighting erupted last week between armed groups from Tripoli against others from a town to the south vying for power in Libyas capital. The Health Ministry said the fighting has also wounded 96 others.

Sundays statement by the government urged rival militias to stop the fighting and abide by a U.N.-brokered ceasefire.

Rival armed groups have killed at least 18 civilians, including four children, since clashes broke out in the southern suburbs of Tripoli on August 26, 2018, Human Rights Watch said.

United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the escalation of violence in and around Tripoli, and has called on all parties to immediately cease hostilities and grant humanitarian relief to those in need.

In a statement issued by his spokesperson, Guterres raised particular alarm over the use of indiscriminate shelling by armed groups leading to the death and injury of civilians, including children and called on all parties to abide by the ceasefire agreement brokered by the UN and the Reconciliation Committees.

The statement added that Ghassan Salame, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Libya will continue to offer good offices and work with all parties to reach a lasting political agreement acceptable to all to avoid further loss of lives and for the benefit of the people of the country.

Libya is currently governed by rival authorities, the GNA, based in Tripoli and another one based in the east and backed by the House of Representatives. Each authority is backed by an array of militias that wield real power on the ground.
Marcia Riman Selz's new book of historical fiction

LOS ANGELES, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- How could a medieval Jewish cemetery cause so much debate? "At Vitoria" by Marcia Riman Selz transports the reader from 1950's Bayonne, France back to medieval Spain and weaves a story of success, love, terror, tragedy, shame, and honor. The historical and cultural details make for an evocative narrative that draw the reader in and provide an engaging sense of realism.

Photo - https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/737060/At_Vitoria_Book_Cover_Archway_Publishing.jpg

"At Vitoria" introduces the reader to the CREVAGOS, a Jewish family that copes with adversity and trauma amid joy and daily needs, while living under the shadow of the Spanish Inquisition. Hard work, intelligence and clever spirit create a family of survivors. "At Vitoria" is also the story of how, in 1492 when Jews are expelled from Spain, the Christians of Vitoria, grateful to Jewish physicians for saving lives, take an oath to preserve the Jewish cemetery. Almost 500 years later, this promise draws raw emotions from both Christians and Jews.

"'At Vitoria' is based on actual historical events and has relevance for today's world," said Selz. "The medieval Christians and Jews of this novel and their descendants show that respect for individual differences, honor, and strength of spirit can generate very desirable results."

Kirkus Review calls the book "a well-constructed, highly informative historical novel."

"The novel's strength is in its descriptions of the traditions and daily living of a medieval Jewish family," stated a BlueInk Review.

"At Vitoria" is a heart wrenching, but ultimately heart-warming read, with a life-affirming message. It is sure to cause smiles, tears, and renewed pride in humanity.

"At Vitoria: A City's Medieval Promise between Christians and Sephardic Jews"

By Marcia Riman Selz

ISBN: 9781480852976 (softcover); 9781480852983 (hardcover); 9781480852969 (eBook)

Available at the Archway Publishing Online Bookstore, Amazon and Barnes & Noble

About the author

Marcia Riman Selz, PhD has had a long career as a marketing consultant to financial institutions. However, after a vacation in Spain, she felt compelled to write about Vitoria and the extraordinary events surrounding the city's medieval Jewish cemetery. Selz is working on her next novel about growing up on the south side of Chicago. To learn more, please visit www.marciarimanselz.com.

General Inquiries:

LAVIDGE - Phoenix

Bryan Beach

480-306-6554

bbeach(at)lavidge(dot)com
Regulatory News:

The Autorite des Marches Financiers (AMF) has granted its visa to the first supplement to Veolia Environnement's (Paris:VIE) base prospectus in relation to the 16 billion euros Euro Medium Term Notes (EMTN) programme on August 31st, 2018.

The base prospectus and its first supplement (granted AMF visa n18-258 on June 22nd, 2018 and AMF visa n18-409 on August 31st, 2018) is available on the website of the company at www.veolia.com ("finance area", section "debt and notation" under "financial information"), at its head office, from the paying agent in Paris (as provided in the base prospectus) and on the website of the AMF at www.amf-france.org.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180903005284/en/

Contacts:

Veolia Environnement
Toronto, Ontario--(Newsfile Corp. - September 3, 2018) - Buffalo Coal Corp. (TSXV: BUF) (JSE: BUC) ("Buffalo" or "the Company") announced today that STA Coal Mining Company Proprietary Limited ("STA"), a mining contractor engaged by the Company to provide contract mining services at the Company's Magdalena underground mine in South Africa, has provided notice to the Company of its intention to not renew the contract mining services agreement (the "STA Agreement") dated October 31, 2015 entered into by STA, the Company and certain subsidiaries of the Company, following the expiry of such contract in accordance with its terms on October 31, 2018. Under the terms of the STA Agreement, STA currently conducts all underground coal mining operations at the Magdalena mine under the supervision of the Company.

In light of the foregoing, and given the Company's current financial position, the Company is initiating a restructuring process at its Magdalena mine operations aimed at ensuring the viability of the business going forward. If no feasible alternatives are found, such process may ultimately result in employee retrenchments and may involve the closure of the Magdalena mine operation. A consultation process has commenced in South Africa with organised labour and relevant stakeholders, as required pursuant to section 189A of the South African Labour Relations Act. Further details on the outcome of this process will be announced at the appropriate time.

About Buffalo

Buffalo is a coal producer in southern Africa. It holds a majority interest in two operating mines through its 100% interest in Buffalo Coal Dundee, a South African company which has a 70% interest in Zinoju. Zinoju holds a 100% interest in the Magdalena bituminous mine and the Aviemore anthracite mine in South Africa. Buffalo has an experienced coal-focused management team.

Cautionary Notes:

This press release contains "forward-looking information" within the meaning of applicable Canadian securities legislation. Forward-looking information includes, but is not limited to, information relating to the Company's restructuring initiatives and the impact of such initiatives on the Company's operations and financial condition. Generally, forward-looking information can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as "plans", "expects" or "does not expect", "is expected", "budget", "scheduled", "estimates", "forecasts", "intends", "anticipates" or "does not anticipate", or "believes", or variations of such words and phrases or state that certain actions, events or results "may", "could", "would", "might" or "will be taken", "occur" or "be achieved".Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause the actual results, level of activity, performance or achievements of Buffalo to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to: general business, economic, competitive, foreign operations, political and social uncertainties; a history of operating losses; delay or failure to receive board or regulatory approvals; timing and availability of external financing on acceptable terms; not realizing on the potential benefits of the proposed transaction; conclusions of economic evaluations; changes in project parameters as plans continue to be refined; future prices of mineral products; failure of plant, equipment or processes to operate as anticipated; accidents, labour disputes and other risks of the mining industry; and, delays in obtaining governmental approvals or required financing or in the completion of activities. Although Buffalo has attempted to identify important factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in forward-looking information, there may be other factors that cause results not to be as anticipated, estimated or intended. There can be no assurance that such information will prove to be accurate, as actual results and future events could differ materially from those anticipated in such statements. Accordingly, readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking information. Buffalo does not undertake to update any forward-looking information, except in accordance with applicable securities laws.

Neither the Toronto Venture Exchange, nor its regulation services provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the exchange), accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT:

Rowan Karstel

Chief Executive Officer

Email: rowan.karstel@buffalocoal.co.za

Graham du Preez

Chief Financial Officer

Email: graham.dupreez@buffalocoal.co.za
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.
Transurbanand its consortium of investors have been given the green light to purchase a majority stake in WestConnex.It comes as Transurban, a part of the Sydney Transport Partners, was given Foreign Investment Review Board (FIRB).The parties are planning to buy 51 per cent of the 33-kilometre motorway.Transurban, is snapping up a 50 per cent stake, of the consortiums total purchase of $9.3 billion.At the same the time, the toll road operator wrote to shareholders about taking part in its $4.2 billion equity raising.The purchase should be completed in late September.Transurbanshares last traded at $12.06.
The IPO market has seen heavy activity so far this year as 21 companies have mopped-up close to Rs 28,000 crore through initial share-sale.

New Delhi: As many as 11 firms, including AGS Transact Technologies and ASK Investment Managers, have approached capital market regulator SEBI in August to raise over Rs 7,000 crore through IPOs largely to fund their expansion projects and working capital requirement.

Studds Accessories, Senco Gold, Harsha Engineers, Mrs Bectors Food Specialities, Sansera Engineering, NDairyihilent, Dodla and Shyam Metalics and Energy and Xelpmoc Design and Tech are the other companies that have filed preliminary papers with market watchdog.

Together, these companies are estimated to garner over Rs 7,200 crore through initial public offers (IPOs), merchant banking sources said.

Equity shares of these firms are proposed to be listed on BSE and NSE.

Most of the funds raised through the IPOs will be used for expansion plans, repayment of loans availed by these firms and to support working capital requirement, according to the draft papers filed by the respective companies with Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI).

Besides, some of the firms believe the listing of equity shares on bourses will enhance their brand name and provide liquidity to existing shareholders.

Further, some of the firms are taking the IPO route to provide exit to their existing shareholders like private equity and venture capital firms.

The IPO market has seen heavy activity so far this year as 21 companies have mopped-up close to Rs 28,000 crore through initial share-sale.

"The IPO market is buoyant for good quality company issues which are priced cautiously. There is investor appetite for companies which price their IPOs keeping money-on-table for investors, J Kalyaniwala, vice president of investment banking at Prabhudas Lilladher said.

Experts said that proactive regulatory environment coupled with uplifted investor sentiment has helped the IPO market.

Further, SEBI in its board meeting in June, had decided to reduce the timeline for announcement of initial share-sale price band, which is further going to aid the IPO market. Under the new rules, the timeline for announcing price band for initial share-sale offer will be reduced to two days from the current five days.

2017 saw 36 companies collectively raising a record of over Rs 67,000 crore through their respective initial share-sales. The previous high being in 2010 when Rs 37,535 crore was garnered, almost half the amount.
ICICI bank board has asked BN Srikrishna to examine whether properties and assets acquired by the Kochhar family were purchased at concessional or lower than prevailing market prices

The Justice BN Srikrishna panel, which is probing certain allegations against Chanda Kochhar, will also go through all property dealings by the Kochhar family since she took over as CEO of ICICI Bank, a media report said.

ICICI Bank board has asked BN Srikrishna to examine whether properties and assets acquired by the Kochhar family were purchased at concessional prices, The Economic Times reported.

That is correct. I am heading an investigation into several allegations made by a whistleblower against her, Justice Srikrishna was quoted as saying by the newspaper.

The ICICI Bank MD and CEO currently is on an absence of leave from office, pending the probe against her on the allegations of favouring family members in lieu of providing loans to a corporate house.

Kochhar is facing allegations of impropriety in ICICI Bank for allegedly extending loans to some companies and enjoying reciprocal benefits.

It has been alleged that her family members, including her husband Deepak, got financial favours from the bank's borrowers against the loans the private lender sanctioned.

Market regulator Securities Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has already served a notice to Kochhar on dealings of the bank with Videocon Group and Nupower -- a firm controlled by her husband.

In June, former Supreme Court judge BN Srikrishna had accepted the lender's request to preside over an independent investigation.

On 30 May, ICICI Bank, in a regulatory filing to the BSE, said that the scope of its enquiry would be comprehensive and include all relevant matters arising out of and in the course of examination of the facts and wherever warranted, "use of forensic/email reviews and recordal of statement of relevant personnel, etc." would be done.

The enquiry would also cover all connected matters in the course of the investigation to bring it to a final close.

"In keeping with the Whistle Blower Policy of the bank, Board has mandated its audit committee to take all further actions in the matter to operationalise this decision -- including in particular, appointment if an independent and credible person as Head of the Enquiry, determining the terms of reference of the Enquiry, the period which will be covered by the Enquiry," the bank said.

With inputs from agencies
Non-existence of the nationalised banks head office and the representative directors of the nationalised banks from Bihar has created lots of problems for the people of the state, the chamber said

Patna: Bihar Chamber of Commerce and Industries (BCCI) has urged the Centre to set up at least one nationalised bank head office in the economically backward state of Bihar. The chamber also requested the Centre to consider appointing a representative director from Bihar in any of the 21 nationalised banks in the country.

"Overall development of India is only possible when economically backward state like Bihar is developed at par with the economically advanced states, where banking sector also plays a major role," Chamber president P K Agrawal said in a release issued on Sunday.

Urging Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, Agrawal said that "for the benefit of the people of Bihar and all-round development of the industries, business and economic activities of the state, there is a need to establish a nationalised bank head office and a representative director of the nationalised banks from the state."

Agrawal said that currently there are 21 nationalised banks in India whose head offices are situated in the bigger cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Kolkata, Chennai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Pune, Baroda, Mangalore and Manipal. Of these cities, Mumbai alone has six head offices while Delhi and Kolkata have three each. Chennai and Bengaluru have two head offices each, he said. Cities like Hyderabad, Pune, Baroda, Mangalore, and Manipal have one head offices each, he said.

Agrawal also said that the central government appointed public representative directors of the nationalised banks mostly from these big cities. Out of 41 public representative directors of the nationalised banks, Delhi has 14 directors; Mumbai and Bengaluru have six each, while Kolkata, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad and Pune have two each.

"Non-existence of the nationalised banks head office and the representative directors of the nationalised banks from Bihar has created lots of problems for the people of the state while restricting the economic development/growth of the state.
India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) aims to take banking to the doorstep of every citizen by arming three lakh postmen and 'Grameen Dak Sewaks' with digital aids to deliver financial services.

Chennai: Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday appealed to people to make use of the India Post Payments' Bank to reap the benefits offered by the Centre and state governments.

After formally launching the scheme in Tamil Nadu, Sitharaman said the Opposition was saying the Prime Minister was going on launching various schemes like Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana and Mudhra Loans. "All these (schemes) are linked together. He wants the benefits also to reach the poor instead of being only reaped by the rich," she said.

Handing over the QR Code card of the bank to a few beneficiaries as part of kickstarting the scheme here, Sitharaman said one can avoid middlemen and directly receive the benefits offered by the Centre and state governments. "I appeal to all to utilise the service," she said.

"...The bank is coming to your home. With this scheme, a postman is not only delivering letters, he is also delivering banking services to you," she said. Despite the advent of technology, a human interface is required, she said.

India Post Payments Bank (IPPB) aims to take banking to the doorstep of every citizen by arming three lakh postmen and 'Grameen Dak Sewaks' with digital aids to deliver financial services.

State fisheries minister D Jayakumar said he discussed offering the service to fisherfolk with the Chief Post Master General (Tamil Nadu circle) M Sampath as the relief given by the state government can directly reach their bank accounts.

"For the fisheries department, it will be of great use as the government provides funds totalling Rs 170 crore to fishermen under the fishermen savings scheme," he said.

Chief Post Master General Tamil Nadu circle, M Sampath said around 50,000 accounts have been opened as part of pre-launch activities of the scheme.

"In Tamil Nadu circle, there are totally 11,745 access points (of India Post) offering this service and the entire launch will be covered by December," he said.

A street play, rally and road shows would be conducted to create awareness about the scheme among the public, he added.
The Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad told the court that former Shiv Sena corporator Shrikant Pangarkar was using two mobile phones. One of them had certain text messages which showed his connection with the man who is in custody of the Karnataka Police.

Mumbai: The Maharashtra Police told a Mumbai court on Monday that former Shiv Sena corporator Shrikant Pangarkar, arrested in the arms haul case, was in touch with an accused who is in custody of their Karnataka counterparts in connection with a high-profile murder case.

According to sources, the said accused is Amol Kale, arrested in connection with the killing of Gauri Lankesh, a Bengaluru-based journalist, in September 2017.

Pangarkar and three other accused in the arms haul case  Sharad Kalaskar, Vaibhav Raut, Sudhanwa Gondhalekar  were produced before Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Padalkar after their police remand ended.

The fifth accused Avinash Pawar is in ATS custody till Tuesday.

They were arrested in August by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in connection with the seizure of arms and ammunition from different parts of the state.

Seeking extension of Pangarkar's remand, the ATS told the court that it had received a report from the Karnataka police that his name was found in a diary seized from an accused who is in their custody in connection with a high-profile murder case.

The anti-terror agency told the court that Pangarkar was using two mobile phones. One of them had certain text messages which showed his connection with the man who is in custody of the Karnataka Police.

The ATS added that it also needs to find out whether the Karnataka accused attended an arms training camp allegedly run by Pangarkar in Jalna, his home district in central Maharashtra.

The court extended Pangarkar's police custody till 6 September. It sent Raut and Gondhalekar to 14-day judicial custody after the ATS said their police remand was not required.

It also granted the custody of Kalaskar to the CBI for probing his alleged role in the killing of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar in 2013.
Morocco has called for a tripartite cooperation with China benefiting Africas social and economic development, one of the end-goals of the Kingdoms new African policy.

Morocco is ready to work together with its African and Chinese partners to push forward the continents social and economic development, said Minister Delegate for Africa, Mohcine Jazouli.

Speaking at the 7th China-Africa forum (FOCAC), Jazouli underlined the importance of the Belt and Road initiative, which, he said, would have a beneficial impact on Africa.

Last January, Morocco and China agreed to establish an academic institute tasked with conducting studies on the Belt and Road initiative. Morocco was the first African nation to join the initiative in 2013.

Morocco and the China Association for Industrial Cooperation (CAIC) have agreed in late 2017 to set up an economic zone in Fez offering a platform for various industries. The deal reflects Chinas increasing interest in Morocco.

The once-every-three-year FOCAC typically sees China unroll large loan packages for the continent.

Chinese President Xi Jinping announced 60 billion dollars in assistance and loans for Africa during the last summit in Johannesburg, South Africa, in 2015.

Chinas economic data shows trade between Beijing and the continents countries rose 14 percent last year to $170bn.
The plea, filed by the Global IIM Alumni Network, sought to further a case for social justice in education by advocating that IIM-Ahmedabad, like its sister institutions in Lucknow and Bengaluru, apportion a fixed number of seats for applicants from SC, ST and OBC categories.

In response to a public interest plea furthered by the Gujarat High Court, the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A), a premier educational institution and in middle-class imagination, the doyen of what a university should be, expressed its vociferous reservations against affirmative quota in its celebrated Fellow Programme in Management (FPM).

The plea, filed by the Global IIM Alumni Network, sought to further a case for social justice in education by advocating that IIM-Ahmedabad, like its sister institutions in Lucknow and Bengaluru, apportion a fixed number of seats for applicants from Scheduled Caste (SC), Scheduled Tribe (ST), Other Backward Classes (OBC) categories, as also for students with disabilities  this, the association argued, would make management education more inclusive and diversely variegated, inaugurating a welcome break with the courses history of educational exclusion from its inauguration in 1971. Commenting on his alma maters stance, Anil Wagde, a member of the alumni network, said, "IIM Ahmedabad has no respect for the constitutional spirit of social justice. Other IIMs are giving reservation in the fellow programme. The stand taken by IIM Ahmedabad is a violation of the law.

The FPM, to understand first the course programme, is a pre-doctoral preparation for the writing of a doctoral thesis, and is, to that end, a research programme in configuration, beginning with a research question on a critical matter of management and culminating in an exposition on its engagement. It has remained an illustrious programme peopled by the illustrious. In its research-concentration, it has delivered students and researchers to academic and research positions in universities and industrial faculties. In its rejection of quota, the university has certainly made an affront against social justice, but there is something more substantial, and in that, more insidious in the rhetoric that the university itself has used in its defence.

IIM-As objections to the proposed reservations are, at one level, merely logistical. In that vein, the university has expressed its inability to earmark a certain number of positions in the course because of the courses fundamentally ad-hoc nature -- "FPM is not like a regular programme at any university where certain seats are fixed and they are filled by regular tests, so it goes, there are no fixed numbers of seats for the FPM course at IIM Ahmedabad.... Without fixed seats, it is impossible to provide for reservation of fixed seats for any category of social strata.

In a more problematic restatement, however, the university made two comments.

First, that although skeletally a government institution, the university is no longer publicly funded, having become self-sufficient in fiscal function, and so divested of the public responsibility of obeisance to constitutional structures and provisions. This is an appalling statement, unmindful not only of the avowed universality of constitutional vision but the pre-history of the IIM as a publicly instated and propelled institution  while the IIT was born of Nehrus grandiose conception of technology as an ornament of modern aspiration, the IIM was sired from practical and however self-construed, noble considerations of constructing an able intelligentsia to manage the nations rapidly developing public economy.

Whatever ones problems with Nehrus visions and misdeeds, education finds itself today in debilitating times of hollow institutional vision. The university of contemporary India is besieged from two ends  first, from a government violently intolerant of students unwilling to be unthinking subjects, and second, from an economic structure whose primary, and only, interest in education is in the generation of a faithful workforce and whose bidding the IITs and IIMs have willingly lapsed to do. It is interesting that IIM-Ahmedabad should surrender its veneer of public education at this political juncture, for public universities across the country are, at precisely this juncture, confronting the spectres of an impending privatisation which would, whether they are able or otherwise, force educational institutions towards a self-sufficiency from government endowment.

In this process of falling against itself and its own feet, academics and activists of public universities have asserted, educational institutions will have to evolve new avenues of funding, heralding the possibility of education becoming a private luxury for private individuals who can afford to enjoy it. The stories of public universities as emancipatory sites for the marginalised, reiterated year after year, are an effort to compel the citizenry into democratic realisation. Evidently, we are not listening.

IIM-As second statement deserves some consideration, for it is an exercise in self-reflection.

"It may kindly be appreciated, the report tells us, that neither the Constitution of India nor any law envisages reservation for courses/programme at high level of specialisation. Even the candidates from reserved category, by the time they reach the stage of applying for programme such as FPM, would have had the benefit of reservation policy in education at graduation and PG (specialisation) level courses. Therefore the law does not mandate any further reservation in high-level specialisation programmes," said the affidavit filed in court by IIM Ahmedabad director Errol D'Souza.

D'Souza argued that for the FPM the IIM seeks candidates with an outstanding academic background, intellectual curiosity and discipline needed to make a scholarly contribution.

Such a statement in instructive in reading what, or who, can be from an outstanding academic background, be intellectually curious and disciplined, and more fundamentally, make a scholarly contribution. One dubs this as a call for self-reflection for it militates against the afore-developed case for the public university as only a site of emancipation for subaltern groups, revealing its deep fractures and ancient prejudices. The public university, even before liberal economic change, emerges from this encounter as a place of prejudice and exclusion, treating some of its constituents of caste and class with tragic alterity. As Dalit narratives on media of the internet recount in reflection after reflection, this remains an unchanged template.

To oppose IIM-Ahmedabads rejection, thus, is a more difficult critique than one imagines, for it spares no entity  not even the public university. Yet, at its barest essentials, it remains a case for a public university, and more critically, particularly in terms of privacy and the celebration of being private, of a public individual.
Journalist and photographer Aruna Chandarajus debut book, Forgotten Composers: Carnatic Music: The Lives and Contributions of Forgotten and Lesser Known Composers unearths 15 composers in the last few centuries whose redoubtable skills failed to lend immortality to their verses.

Few people, even connoisseurs of Carnatic music, have heard of Ajjada Adibhatla Narayana Das (1864-1945). A colossus, celebrated in his time as Layabrahma or monarch of rhythm, a polyglot proficient in eight languages and a vaggeyakara (composer) with several hundred compositions to his credit, he has been largely forgotten and remains an uncelebrated hero. Such was his genius that his unparalleled achievement, Dasa Vidha Raga Navati Kusuma Manjari with panchamuki thala and 90 ragas, was performed only once after he first demonstrated it during his lifetime.

Why does no one remember an artist of such virtuosity? While Carnatic music is full of compositions which are hundreds of years old, many talented composers have been relegated to the footnotes of history. Journalist and photographer Aruna Chandarajus debut book, Forgotten Composers: Carnatic Music: The Lives and Contributions of Forgotten and Lesser Known Composers unearths 15 composers in the last few centuries whose redoubtable skills failed to lend immortality to their verses.

Musicians like Tirupati Narayanaswamy Naidu or Duddu Seetharama Sastry, were immensely celebrated during their lifetime but their vaggeyams (compositions) were lost over time and the composers rendered to oblivion.

Rediscovering the lost and forgotten

The book was initially conceived in 2000 but it was around 2009 that the author set off on a meticulous research into the lives of these composers. Chandaraju shares that the seed of the book was sown by her mother, My mother, who was trained in classical music, and my first teacher, had learned many of the compositions of these forgotten composers. I heard her sing many of these lyrics while growing up. However, when I began learning from other teachers later on and attending concerts I never heard any of these compositions. That gave me an insight into the fact that many compositions, however beautiful, had disappeared from the concert scene and lessons of teachers. This kindled my interest.

The author zeroed in on composers based on their musical merit, availability of their work and reliable sources of information. Chandaraju confesses that she tried to provide an interesting mix, There are composers who belonged to and composed on different places in Andhra Pradesh, Telangana and Karnataka. There are composers who created technologically complex, esoteric works and then there are the ones who created simple compositions employing colloquial language. There are many more worthy composers not included in this book purely for space reasons. As Thyagaraja said, "Endaro Mahanubhavulu, Andariki Vandanalu (There are many great people, I salute all of them).

Unearthing the information on these musicians is no mean feat and it is little wonder that the book took nearly a decade to culminate. Chandaraju travelled extensively to glean information which involved a lot of physical effort, research and money. She recounts her painstaking journey over the past couple of years, I went to libraries and books shops across the two Telugu states (Telangana and Andhra Pradesh), the ashram in Kaiwara, Karnataka, and Tamil Nadu. I had to sift through hundreds of pages to get to a few lines of useful information. Some of these books and manuscripts were so yellowed and dusty, that I had to wear gloves to avoid itching while handling them! I also relied on a few books that belonged to my mother. I spoke to hundreds of people. Only two or three out of every ten had relevant information.

The musical mavericks

The near-forgotten vaggeyakaras included in the book are those whose majority of works have fallen off the musical map. While a few pieces of their works are performed at concerts or workshops by a few musicians of today including the masters, the majority of their work is either forgotten or lost.

While the compositions of Yedla Ramadasu and Kaviram Yogi are occasionally heard at kacheris, the rest of the composers have almost disappeared from the concert scene. Though there are some sources of information for others, the entire life and work of some like Mallekonda Ramadasu are shrouded in obscurity.

These composers have created beautiful pieces which are an artistic blend of music and words, dhaatu and maatu which would have enriched many a concert. They created new ragas (Balasubrahmanya Sarma created Vijayashankari raga while Smritirangajani raga owes its existence to Patrayani Seetharama Sastry).

Chandaraju shares nuggets from the lives of these forgotten doyens who were once the toast of the Carnatic world, Ogirala Veerarghava Sarma gave up a posting in Malaysia to focus on worshipping his muse, goddess Gayatri in his own home and then composed a beautiful piece on this. The gentle Mahendravada Bapanna Sastry, who had a great sense of humor, used to point to the musical howls of his pet dog in order to embarrass his student into practicing harder. The visually challenged MS Balasubrahmanya Sarma would get his students to read notations for new lyrics he heard, listen carefully and quickly master the song.

What made these musicians special was an ability to innovate and their absolute mastery over their craft.

Ajjada Adibhatla Narayana Dasu pioneered the Harikatha and is hence known as Harikatha Pithamaha. He also composed the mindboggling Dasa Vidha Raga Navati Kusuma Manjari which uses 90 ragas and a Panchmukhi thala experiment ie. five rhythm patterns performed simultaneously!

Prayaga Rangadasa wrote very simple, but very sweet lyrics and his Yeme O Chitti is endearingly beautiful, probably the sweetest composition on a parent-child interaction.

Kocherlakota Ramaraju proved the impossible  that one can play a violin both left-handed and right-handed. He composed multi-raga swarajathis, which are generally composed in one raga.

Tirupati Narayanaswamy Naidu composed in a very rare raga-like Pushpalathika and this superb composition not only illuminates the contours of the raga but has also made it famous.

The Forgotten Stories

Carnatic music, like any other classical artform, is a vast ocean and in that are composers who have contributed immensely to its vast repertoire  geetams, varnams, keerthanams, kritis, thillanas, padams, and javalis. Many were recognised during their lifetimes and received patronage from local zamindars and maharajas, but their rich contributions to music fell by the wayside for many reasons.

Chandaraju reels off a long list of plausible reasons for the music of the maestros to pass into oblivion, Lack of proper documentation in books of their compositions; no dedicated line of disciples and/or descendants who could have performed the compositions at concerts and disseminated them, inadequate royal patronage in the erstwhile Andhra region and the modesty of the composer himself who did not believe his works to be worthy of promotion or his general attitude of indifference to documentation and preservation of his work, and so on.

Chandaraju also muses that the compositions of some of these maestros were so technically complex and challenging that they deterred musicians who followed after him from practicing and popularising them.

The author reveals that she initially learned about most of these people in the book through her parents who often made mention of several of these people as great musicians, scholars who had become obscure. Later, her travels and interviews of musicians as a journalist revealed names of more composers.

The future of the past

Chandaraju puts the onus of rediscovering the works of these composers onto younger musicians, family members of the maestros and academic institutions. Considering the tremendous reach of cinema in the twin Telugu states, she suggests music directors introduce some of these works into their compositions.

Calling cinema possibly the most potent mass medium in the country, she gives the example of the Telugu cult classic based on Carnatic music, Sankarabharanam (1980) and the more recent Pawan Kalyan blockbuster Attarintiki Daaredi (2013) which featured a popular composition by Yedla Ramadasu, namely Petrayi Saami Devuda to immense acclaim, Many commoners didn't know the base of Shankarabharanam's songs were Carnatic or the names of their ragas. The point is that despite that ignorance, they savored and encouraged the film and its classical music. That gives the lie to the theory that Carnatic music based songs cant enjoy mass appeal or contribute to a films success. It makes a case for including Carnatic music based songs, at least occasionally.

Each chapter contains a list of the now largely forgotten compositions and a list of YouTube renditions and Chandaraju says that the whole idea of the book is to acquaint the music world including the younger generation with the musical riches that are lying undiscovered and composers who have to be celebrated. She remarks that she remains hopeful that the current and younger generations of musicians will discover these forgotten gems.
Shivraj Singh Chouhan is touring Madhya Pradesh as a part of his 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra'. The BJP has been in power since 2003 in the state.

Sidhi: Nine suspected Congress workers were arrested on Monday for allegedly pelting stones on Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan's vehicle in Madhya Pradesh's Sidhi district.

No one was hurt in the incident on Sunday night near Churhat town, around 540 km from Bhopal, but a windowpane of the vehicle was damaged, police had said.

Churhat is the Assembly constituency of Congress leader Ajay Singh, who is also the leader of Opposition in the Assembly. The party has denied any role in the incident.

"Nine office-bearers of the Congress were arrested for hurling stones at Chouhan's vehicle," state home minister Bhupendra Singh said.

It has been made on the basis of eyewitness accounts and more arrests cannot be ruled out, the Bharatiya Janata Party leader said, adding that Chouhan's security had been ramped up.

District Superintendent of Police Tarun Nair identified the nine accused as Rambhilas Patel (52), Pankaj Singh Chauhan (32), Gaurav Singh Chauhan (21), Roshan Singh (18), Saurabh Dwivedi (19), Shivendra Singh (24), Saurabh Singh (21), Charan Singh (21) and Sanjay Singh (28). They were charged with rioting and on other counts.

Hitting out at the Opposition party, the home minister alleged, "The Congress has started a new politics of violence. The Congress knows it cannot come to power in the state due to Chouhan. That is why, Congress leaders are hatching conspiracies to kill Chouhan."

Addresing a rally after the incident, Chouhan dared Ajay to come out in the open and fight with him. "I am physically weak but I won't be bogged down by your deeds. The people of the state are with me," the chief minister had said.

Ajay, however, had said no Congressman was involved in the incident, terming it a well-thought-out conspiracy to defame him and the people of Churhat.

State Congress spokesperson Bhupendra Gupta on Monday accused the BJP of running a smear campaign against the party. "The home minister is accusing Congress leaders of hatching conspiracies to kill Chouhan. Why is he not asking the police to arrest such Congress leaders?

"They are claiming the arrested accused are Congress office-bearers. The home minister, please give us details of the accused with their positions in the Congress," Gupta added.

The chief minister is touring the state as a part of his 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra'. The BJP is in power since 2003 and will be seeking a record fourth term in the assembly polls, due later this year.
The Shiv Sena on Monday targeted the Maharashtra Police for the arrests of five Left activists last week.

Mumbai: The Shiv Sena on Monday targeted the Maharashtra Police for the arrests of five Left activists last week claiming they were reportedly "hatching a conspiracy to overthrow the central and state governments" besides allegedly "plotting a Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi", among others.

"The police contentions behind the arrests are ridiculous... The erstwhile government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was voted out and removed by the people, not by the Maoists. As of now... at least, it is still possible to change the government through the democratic processes," the Sena said.

"The police must not shoot off their mouths like this and the government must bar them from such statements... It's sheer stupidity," the Sena said in sharp edits in the party mouthpieces, "Saamana" and "Dopahar Ka Saamana".

While the practice of "using the police" for different aims is nothing new for the politicians and government, in the present instance, "the faster the truth emerges, the better," (remove the 'mukhota') for the police, demanded the Sena.

The second argument of the Pune Police was that Modi was allegedly being targeted in a "Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination", at which the Sena clawed at the Pune Police.

"The former prime ministers, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi were fearless and courageous leaders... It was their boldness which claimed their lives... But Modi will never indulge in such adventures. He is already provided the best security in the world and not even a bird can overfly him," the Sena pointed out.

Dismissing the police contentions, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) ally in Maharashtra and the Centre, the Sena said that "if these handful of Maoists had so much political strength", they would never have lost their (Communist) governments in West Bengal, Tripura, Manipur, etc.

Urging the government to rein in the police, it said the action last week was one of the biggest attack on Maoism by the Pune Police culminating in the arrests of five "urban-naxals" in simultaneous nationwide raids.

The Maoist movement is spread across Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal, Karnataka, Odisha and Maharashtra's Gadchiroli and Chandrapur areas.In many of these areas they run parallel governments, killing many security personnel and even top politicians like Congress leader VC Shukla and others.

The edit said the Pune Police arrested P Varavara Rao, Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Fereira and Vernon Gonsalves, intellectuals in different fields of life, rights activists, considered extremely influential persons moving about in high society circles.

"There are some doubts that something is wrong somewhere with these arrests... The facts must come out before the BJP becomes the butt of new jokes," the Sena concluded.
The writ petition was filed by Satish Surgiv Gaikwad, an activist who calls himself a victim of the violence in Bhima-Koregaon on 1 January this year. He moved the High Court seeking to restrain the Pune police from further probing the case and stay the investigations

The Bombay High Court on Monday criticised the Maharashtra Police for holding a press conference on the arrest of five activists, when the matter is subjudice. The move comes after a writ petition was filed on Friday, seeking to restrain the Pune Police from probing the case and demanding an NIA inquiry.

The writ petition was filed by Satish Surgiv Gaikwad, an activist who calls himself a victim of the violence in Bhima-Koregaon on 1 January this year. He moved the high court seeking to restrain the Pune Police from further probing the case and stay the investigations, reported Free Press Journal.

The plea also seeks suspension of ACP Shivaji Pawar, Swargate Division of the Pune city police. Gaikwad had sought directions to the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to forthwith take over the probe launched by the local police against several human rights advocates and activists.

"The Pune city cops have concocted another theory by saying that speeches made at Elgar Parishad conclave on 31 December, 2017 incited the mob to cause violence the next day at Bhima Koregaon. The arrests of Sudhir Dhawale, Surendra Gadling, Arun Ferreira and others are against the Constitution of India and natural principles of life and justice," says the petition, filed through advocates Abdul Kader Millwala, Tosif Shaikh and Kumar Kalel, reported Mumbai Mirror.

Meanwhile, the court adjourned the petition for 7 September because copies of the petition were not served to all concerned persons, reported ANI.

Additional Director-General (Law and Order) Param Bir Singh in a press conference held last Friday, while giving details of its case, read out letters purportedly exchanged between the activists. He said they had "conclusive proof" to link left-wing activists arrested in June and this week to Maoists, saying one of them spoke of a "Rajiv Gandhi-type event to end (Narendra) Modi Raj". Former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi was assassinated in 1991.

The move by the Maharashtra Police was criticised by retired judges and lawyers. Senior counsel Mihir Desai had expressed shock over the manner in which the state police machinery undertook the press conference. "Reading out documents which are supposed to be part of the evidence against the accused persons is wrong. The police have not given the said documents to the court or the defence lawyers," Desai said.

The Pune Police had on 28 August raided the homes of prominent Left-wing activists in several states and arrested five of them  Varavara Rao in Hyderabad, Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira in Mumbai, Sudha Bharadwaj in Faridabad and Gautam Navalakha in Delhi.

The raids were carried out as part of a probe into the Elgar Parishad conclave in Pune on 31 December last year, which allegedly triggered violence at Bhima Koregaon in the district the next day. The Supreme Court has ordered that the five should be kept under house arrest till 6 September.

In June, the Pune Police had arrested Sudhir Dhawale from Mumbai, activist Rona Wilson from Delhi and lawyer Surendra Gadling, professor Shoma Sen and Adivasi rights activist Mahesh Raut from Nagpur.
BJP MP from Ghosi, Harinarayan Rajbhar said demanding a national commission for men is the right thing to do and MP from Hardoi, Anshul Verma said he raised the matter on Saturday before a parliamentary standing committee he is part of.

New Delhi: Two BJP MPs have demanded that a commission be set up to look into the complaints of men suffering at the hands of their wives due to misuse of laws.

Harinarayan Rajbhar, the Bharatiya Janata Partys Lok Sabha member from Ghosi, Uttar Pradesh, and Anshul Verma, the party MP from Hardoi in the state, said they will address a programme in New Delhi on 23 September to gather support for a purush aayog.

The two MPs said they have raised the issue in Parliament too. Men also suffer at the hands of their wives. There are a number of such cases pending before courts. There are laws and a forum for women to ensure that they get justice, but the concerns of men have so far gone unheard. There is a need for a commission for men on the lines of the National Commission for Women (NCW), Rajbhar said.

I am not saying every woman is wrong or every man is wrong. There are people belonging to both the genders that inflict atrocities on the others. So, there should be a front to deal with the issues of the menfolk. I have raised the matter in Parliament too, he added.

Rajbhar said demanding a national commission for men is the right thing to do. Verma said he raised the matter on Saturday before a parliamentary standing committee he is part of.

The parliamentarian said there was a need to amend Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code to prevent its misuse. The provision deals with cruelty to women, including harassment for dowry, by husbands and relatives of husbands.

He claimed that Section 498A has become a tool to harass men. Verma said over 27 lakh people were wrongfully arrested between 1998 and 2015 in such cases. We are talking about equality here. Men should get legal protection in such cases, the BJP lawmaker said.

NCW chairperson Rekha Sharma said, The NCW was formed to give voice to women, to ensure that they get access to justice. If some people are demanding a commission for men, they have the right to do so. But in my opinion, there is no need for such a body.

Women and child development minister Maneka Gandhi had last year said she had been receiving an increasing number of complaints from men regarding false complaints against them, and had asked the NCW to provide a window to such men in the online complaint system of the womens panel.

Gandhi had also said she was aware that this kind of a step may be met with a backlash from women, and men may also be encouraged to make every case of harassment by them look like a false case.

The NCW had said it may not have the mandate to comply with Gandhis request and that it cannot take a stand just like that, without discussing the issue in detail.
Congress' Goa spokesman Ramakant Khalap said the state is facing a 'constitutional crisis', and that he has sought an appointment with Governor Mridula Sinha to press for his party's demand for President's rule

Panaji: The opposition Congress demanded Monday that President's Rule be imposed in Goa in the wake of the absence of chief minister Manohar Parrikar, who is currently in the US for a medical treatment.

Congress' Goa spokesman Ramakant Khalap said the state is facing a "constitutional crisis", and that he has sought an appointment with Governor Mridula Sinha to press for his party's demand for President's rule.

"Parrikar has been constantly absent from the state because of health reasons, without handing over his charge to anyone," he said.

"Also, Goa's power minister Pandurang Madkaikar and urban development minister Francis D'Souza have been down with ailments," he noted while talking to reporters in Panaji.

"There is no deadline when the chief minister and these ministers will be back in the state," Khalap said, adding "it is time for Governor Mridula Sinha to intervene in the matter as the state is facing a constitutional crisis".

Parrikar, 62, underwent treatment at a US hospital for a pancreatic ailment between March-June 2018. He flew to the US again on 10 August for a follow-up and returned on 22 August, but was admitted to a private hospital in Mumbai the next day.

"He left for the US again last Thursday on doctors' advice and is expected to return on 8 September," a senior BJP leader said Friday. D'Souza also went to US for a medical treatment in July

while Madkaikar is admitted to a hospital in Mumbai since 5 June after he suffered a brain stroke.

Khalap alleged that Parrikar and the two other ministers have violated the oath taken by them to discharge their duties towards the state.

"If you are sick and not able to pay attention to your duties then it is a violation of the oath...this tentamounts to failure of the constitutional machinery," he claimed, demanding that the Goa government be dismissed and President's rule be imposed in the state.

Khalap said his party has sought an appointment with Sinha to discuss the "crisis" prevailing in Goa, and listed various issues, like halting of the mining industry, the Mahadayi river water dispute and the alleged failure of law and order to check crimes in the state.

"We can understand the chief minister's temporary absence, but if it is more than 24 hours, then powers are given to someone else," he claimed.

"There is no government existing in Goa," he said, and asked how many times has the council of ministers met adding "Democracy requires a stable government led by the chief minister".
A JD(S) official on Saturday said the ruling JD(S) and the Congress in Karnataka would extend their coalition alliance to the urban local bodies (ULBs) across the state to keep the opposition BJP out of power.

The counting for 102 urban local bodies polls that took place across Karnataka on 31 August has begun, amid tight security. The polling was held in 2,529 wards, spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities and 23 town panchayats, and in 135 wards of three city corporations of the state.

The civic election was earlier scheduled to be held in 105 urban local bodies. However, polling in three areas was postponed due to the onset of heavy rains and subsequent flash floods in Kodagu district.

In all, 8,340 candidates, including 2,306 from the Congress, 2,203 from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and 1,397 from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) contested in the ULBs, while 814 did in three city corporations, including 135 from Congress, 130 from BJP and 129 from JD(S), with the remaining as Independents.

A JD(S) official on Saturday said the ruling JD(S) and the Congress in Karnataka would extend their coalition alliance to the urban local bodies (ULBs) across the state to keep the opposition BJP out of power.

"In the event of either party not getting a majority on its own in the ULB elections, we will have post-poll alliance to rule the local bodies as we did to form the coalition government in the state after the 12 May assembly election threw a hung House with a split verdict," the official told IANS.

Elections to 105 ULBs, including three city corporations, were held on Friday across the southern state, with a record 68 per cent voter turnout.

"Though we are hoping to secure a majority in city, town and panchayat wards in our strongholds, especially in the old Mysuru region, we are ready to take the support of the Congress to run the local bodies with a majority," said the JD(S) official.

The JD(S) is also ready to support the Congress in the local bodies where it will fall short of a majority so as to keep the BJP from ruling them.

"We are expecting to secure a majority in many city and town municipalities across the state though we contested against the JD(S) and the BJP. We hope the JD(S) will reciprocate our gesture to support it in forming the coalition government in the state," a Congress spokesman told IANS.

In the 2013 ULB elections held in 4,976 seats, the Congress had won 1,960 seats, while the BJP and the JD(S) had won 905 seats each, and Independents had bagged the remaining 1,206 seats.

"Though the coordination committee of the alliance partners discussed the prospects of the post-poll tie-up in ULBs, a decision to that effect will be taken after all the results of the wards are declared by Monday night," added the Congress official.

Follow LIVE updates on Karnataka municipal election result here

Follow the latest tally of votes here

With inputs from agencies
The Commission, while examining disciplinary cases, noticed that simultaneous action of prosecution and initiation of departmental proceedings are unduly delayed by departments and organisations

New Delhi: Necessary disciplinary action against corrupt government employees can be taken along with criminal proceedings, the Central Vigilance Commission (CVC) has said.

The Commission, while examining some disciplinary cases, noticed that simultaneous action of prosecution and initiation of departmental proceedings are unduly delayed by departments and organisations, by keeping them in abeyance on the ground that the matter is under trial in court.

"Such an approach in finalising disciplinary matters is a matter of serious concern and is also not a correct approach," the CVC said in a recent directive to banks, insurance companies and all other central government organisations.

The CVC said that disciplinary authority of an organisation needs to ensure that the simultaneous departmental proceedings are undertaken against employees facing a criminal trial. Citing a verdict by Supreme Court, the probity watchdog said, "There is no bar in conducting simultaneous criminal and departmental proceedings."

It said a view as to whether simultaneous disciplinary proceedings are to be initiated need to be invariably taken by the competent authorities, at the time of considering the request for grant of sanction for prosecution.

"The Commission would, therefore, advise all concerned administrative authorities that in cases where it is appropriate to initiate disciplinary proceedings along with criminal prosecution, the disciplinary proceedings must be initiated simultaneously," the CVC said.

The probity watchdog has recommended probe on various high-profile corruption cases involving officials of public sector banks and central government departments among others.
Top law schools of India have expressed solidarity with the cause of the students of HNLU and other universities facing the same issues.

Students of Hidayatullah National Law University (HNLU) in Chhattisgarh's New Raipur city have been protesting since 27 August against Vice-Chancellor Sukh Pal Singh's term being extended, alleged sexual harassment by faculty members, various other administrative matters and arbitrary rules. Even though there were scant details about allegations of sexual harassment, students have alleged that several fundamental demands by the students have been rejected under the leadership of Singh.

On 27 August, the Chhattisgarh High Court had declared illegal the re-appointment of professor Singh as the vice-chancellor of HNLU. The same night, HNLU Student Body Association found out that Singh was planning to appeal against the order. Students held a silent overnight protest. The study body demanded that Singh be immediately removed from his post, India Today had reported.

In the first few days of the protests, the students had demanded removal of hostel curfews and appointment of independent wardens instead of teachers who also serve as wardens. Students believe that this dual role predisposes the teachers with bias against the pupils, reported The Wire.

The women protesting against the university have also alleged moral policing by hostel wardens. Speaking to LiveLaw, students recalled being told off for their clothes and conduct. A student was quoted as saying: I was caught drunk and she (the hostel warden) called my parents and said that I wear party clothes to class and hang out with the wrong sort of boys.

The parents of another student were called up and told that the college authorities had photos of their daughter going to places wearing clothes they wouldnt approve of. However, when asked for proof, the authorities had none.

In another such incident, the parents of a student, who was clinically depressed according to the LiveLaw report, urged the hostel authorities to allot her a room closer to her friends, but their request was denied.

All such instances prompted the students to come together to protest the way college authorities were treating them.

When the protests attracted large crowds, the Student Bar Association (SBA) of the university extended its support to the cause, and a draft listing 13 demands was made after meetings.

As meetings were held among students, several issues came to the fore such as allegations of financial fraud, maladministration and sexual harassment from faculty members. The students also demanded an Inquiry Committee to investigate allegations of sexual harassment by faculty members. The first demand was the appointment of an interim vice-chancellor. The others included formation of a review commission, removal of hostel curfews, release of minutes of executive council meetings, revision and codification of "arbitrary" exam rules, commissioning an SBA constitution, timely organisation of convocations and filling vacancies in several administrative and teaching posts.

On 29 August, the top law universities of India released a statement of solidarity, extending their support to the students of HNLU and other national law schools facing similar issues. This includes National Law School of India University, in Bengaluru, National Academy of Legal Studies and Research in Hyderabad and National University of Juridical Sciences, Kolkata.

It was only on the third day of the protest that the chancellor of the university appointed Ravi Shankar Sharma, the Principal Secretary of the Government of Chhattisgarh as the interim vice-chancellor of the university, reported Live Law.

On 30 August, as a mark of respect to the new vice-chancellor, students agreed to resume classes but wore black outfits and arm bands as a sign of continuing protest, according to The Wire. After meetings between the vice-chancellor and student representatives, a silent flashlight march was also held across the campus. HNLU students have asked the administration for written assurances that their demands will be met and said they plan to continue the protests until they are.

So far, the HNLU administration has not accepted the agitation, despite its peaceful nature, and according to the students, it has threatened to disperse the protesters by calling security forces, reported Bar and Bench.

The protest at HNLU, which has been going on for seven days now, has garnered attention on social media because of hashtags like #HNLUKiAzaadi. Lawyers, activists and other law schools have extended their support to the protesting students. The Chhattisgarh Congress tweeted:

We extend the hand of sympathy and solidarity to the young champs of HNLU who are fighting against corruption, oppressive rules, sexual harassment by faculty, and a crony VC. Let's Unite and Fight Together! Long Live Revolution!!#HNLUkiAzaadi pic.twitter.com/WYUTnHTcMu  INC Chhattisgarh (@INCChhattisgarh) September 3, 2018

Commenting on the protests, Congress leader Shashi Tharoor said:

Law students on strike in Raipur. Why arent the authorities stepping in to resolve this? https://t.co/4IvMP5jRjw  Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) September 2, 2018

In fact, several known social media faces weighed in on the subject:

HNLU         !  ,   - ''          !           ! https://t.co/mC1PZUSaPU  Kavita Krishnan (@kavita_krishnan) September 2, 2018

One more Students protest in university campus, the HNLU this time. One more case of treating University students, especially girl students, as infants. I salute the grit and determination of the protesting students.@yuvahallabol https://t.co/9fhuewCiPG  Yogendra Yadav (@_YogendraYadav) September 2, 2018

These are the students of #HNLU, #Raipur, currently on their 136th+ hour of continuous protest against oppressive rules, sexual harassment by faculty, and a crony VC. (1/n) pic.twitter.com/vNrJmKLgcT  Raghu Karnad (@rkarnad) September 2, 2018

It began when women hostelers defied the curfew imposed on them & sat outside through the night, 'to stake our claim at accessing campus space beyond 1030pm'. (2/n)  Raghu Karnad (@rkarnad) September 2, 2018
A delegation from the European Parliaments Committee on International Trade (INTA) starts this Monday a visit to Morocco to see first-hand the positive impacts of the Morocco-EU fisheries accord on the population of the southern provinces.

Chairman of the Moroccan-EU Joint Parliamentary Committee Abderrahim Atmoun welcomed the MEPs visit, saying it is in line with the provisions of the renewed fisheries deal, which enables the local inhabitants to benefit from the Morocco-EU agreement and promotes sustainable fisheries.

The trip will enable INTA members to see in person and be assured that the extension of preferential trade tariffs to the region, as proposed by the European Commission and the European Council, will benefit the population living in the Moroccan Sahara.

The MEPs Mission comes few days after debates at the European Parliament on the renewal of the EU-Morocco Fisheries accord. EU Commissioner for Economic & Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici told INTA members that the new deal is in line with the ruling of the European court of Justice, supports the local development and does not interfere with the UN political settlement process of the Sahara issue.

He also said that the new accord was reached after conducting an inclusive consultation including all the stakeholders. The extension of tariff preferences to the products coming from the southern provinces of Morocco will contribute to the socio-economic development of the region, he insisted.

According to the European Commissioner, 45,000 local jobs depend directly or indirectly on fisheries and 14,000 jobs depend directly on agriculture.

End of July, the EU and Morocco sealed a new fisheries deal which replaces the one that expired on July 14. Under the new agreement, the financial compensation paid by the EU to Morocco will go up from 40 million a year to  52.2 million.

Morocco succeeded in including the Moroccan Sahara in the agreement, while all attempts made by its opponents to question this exclusive jurisdiction have been foiled and rejected by the EU.
The victim, Kallu Sahu, went Saturday evening to the home of Sattu Yadav in Pipalwali village, situated about 40 km from the district headquarters, in search of his missing cow, Sultanpur police station's Assistant Sub-Inspector Malkhan Singh Meena said.

Raisen: A 35-year-old man's hand was allegedly chopped off by members of a family when he went to their residence to enquire about his missing cow in Raisen, police said Monday.

The victim, Kallu Sahu, went Saturday evening to the home of Sattu Yadav in Pipalwali village, situated about 40 km from the district headquarters, in search of his missing cow, Sultanpur police station's Assistant Sub-Inspector Malkhan Singh Meena said.

However, a simple enquiry about the animal turned into a heated argument when Yadav did not give a satisfactory reply on the matter following which Sahu allegedly abused him, he said. The enraged family members of Yadav then caught Sahu and tied him to a tree. They allegedly thrashed Sahu mercilessly, attacked him with a sword and chopped off one of his hands and caused severe injuries to the other, Meena said.

Sahu's kin rushed to the spot and freed him from captivity, he said, adding that they later admitted him to the community health centre at Sultanganj from where he was referred to a hospital in Bhopal.

Police registered a case in connection with the incident and arrested Yadav and his son on Sunday, Meena said. A search was on for three others - Yadav's wife, his another son and a servant - who were also allegedly involved in the incident, he added.
Sarbananda Sonowal has spoken to the Prime Minister's office and the Union Home Ministry regarding the search and rescue operation of the missing family in Assam

Guwahati: Search operations by Army, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) and State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams continued Monday for five members of a family who went missing after their vehicle fell into the Dikhow river in Assam's Sivsagar district, officials said.

"The search teams are yet to locate the car or its occupants because of the strong undercurrent in Dikhow river which is on a spate and muddy water was blocking the vision of the divers under water," a state government release said.

The release said on Monday, "Assam Chief Minister Sarbananda Sonowal has spoken to the Prime Minister's office and the Union Home Ministry regarding the search and rescue operation of the missing family."

The chief minister has also taken up the matter with National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) and the Defence Ministry for help, according to the release. A total of 32 deep divers are engaged in the rescue operation. Divers are going as deep as 40 ft in some areas and ten boats have been pressed into service.

The search teams include three teams from the NDRF, six teams from the SDRF, one each from Dibrugarh and Sivasagar, apart from one team from the Para Commando of the Indian Army. "A team of eight Indian Navy divers with equipment from Visakhapatnam will be joining shortly in the search operation," the release said.

Five members of a family are missing after their vehicle fell into a river in Sivasagar district of upper Assam Saturday evening.

According to sources, the family was travelling from Sivasagar to Guwahati when their vehicle plunged into the Dikhow river after breaking a dyke at Gaurisagar Dikhowmukh. They five were identified as Haren Bora, his wife Phunu Bora, daughters Simpi Bora and Munmi Bora, and mother Ponou Bora.
Robert Vadra and former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda were on Saturday booked by Haryana Police for alleged irregularities in land deals in Gurugram after Sharma an FIR against Vadra, Hooda and two companies  DLF and Onkareshwar Properties.

Surendra Sharma, who filed an FIR against Congress leader Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Vadra in the Gurugram land deals case, has been called for questioning by the Gurugram Police. He has been summoned by the Gurugram Commissioner of Police on Tuesday at 10 am, to present evidence, reported News18.

Robert Vadra and former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda were on Saturday booked by Haryana Police for alleged irregularities in land deals in Gurugram after Sharma an FIR against Vadra, Hooda and two companies  DLF and Onkareshwar Properties.

In February, Hooda and 33 others were charged by the CBI in another case of alleged corruption. That chargesheet was related to land deals in Manesar, Naurangpur and Lakhnoula villages of Gurugram, alleging a scam totalling Rs 1,500 crore.

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) had made the land deals scam a major poll issue in 2014, alleging that Vadra benefited through questionable land use permissions granted by the earlier Congress government in the state.

The new FIR said that Vadra's company Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd purchased 3.5 acres of land in Gurugram's Sector 83 from Onkareshwar Properties for Rs 7.50 crore in 2008, when Hooda was the chief minister and also held the portfolio of the Town and Country Planning Department.

Later, Skylight Hospitality sold this land to realty major DLF at a price of Rs 58 crore, after procuring a commercial licence for the development of the colony with the influence of Hooda, Sharma alleged. The company thus made a profit of about Rs 50 crore, according to the allegation which has been denied in the past by Vadra.

In return, the state government allotted 350 acres of land to DLF at Wazirabad in Gurugram in violation of rules, Sharma claimed. In the alleged quid pro quo, the realty major made Rs 5,000 crore.

The Manohar Lal Khattar-led BJP government had on 14 May, 2015, set up a one-man commission to probe the grant of licences by the Department of Town and Country Planning for developing housing and commercial colonies in Gurugram's Sector 83. This included the alleged deals between Skylight Hospitality and DLF.

The Justice SN Dhingra Commission, formed under the Commission of Inquiry Act, had examined the licences given by the then Hooda government for developing real estate in four Gurugram villages of Sihi, Shikohpur, Kherki Daula and Sikanderpur Bada.

Vadra and Hooda have now been booked under sections 420 (cheating), 120 B (criminal conspiracy), 467 (forgery), 468 (forgery for the purpose of cheating), 471 (using as genuine a forged document) of the IPC, and Section 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act. The complainant said the payment to Onkareshwar Properties was through a cheque, which was mentioned in the registered deed. Onkareshwar Properties never deposited the cheque, the complainant alleged. It indicated that it was a shell company, Sharma claimed in the FIR.

Hooda, however, termed the new FIR as "political vendetta" on Saturday. The Congress also attacked the Modi government over the FIR. Congress' communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala in a statement accused the government of serving a new set of "manufactured lies" through "false and fake FIRs against political opponents". This, Surjewala alleged, was being done to divert attention from the the Rafale deal, the demonetisation "scam", the 12 lakh crore "loot" through hike in prices of petrol and diesel, and the rapidly falling rupee and "failing" economy, among other things.

With inputs from PTI
Bihar was recently rocked by the reports of sexual abuse of girls in a state-run shelter home in Muzaffarpur.

Begusarai: A 12-year-old girl inmate of a state-funded shelter home was hospitalised after she allegedly swallowed glass shards in a bid to commit suicide due to the 'torture' inflicted upon her.

Hailing from Assam's Kamrup district, the girl was admitted to Sadar hospital by the shelter home staff on Sunday evening after she told them about it, the superintendent of the welfare home Anuja Kumari said.

Talking to media persons in the hospital, the girl alleged that inmates were beaten and not given adequate food at the shelter home run by an NGO in Ratanpur area of Begusarai.

She further claimed that the shelter home's warden had threatened to strip and thrash her for not admitting to stealing a shampoo pouch. The fear of being physically assaulted forced her to think of committing suicide, the girl said, adding that she did not wish to return to the welfare home.

However, the District Social Welfare Department Assistant Director (Child Protection Unit) Vasudev Kashyap claimed that the girl had raised a false alarm.

No glass pieces were found in the ultrasound test of the girl, Kashyap said, adding that no police case was filed in the matter.

Although, Sadar Sub-Divisional Police Officer (SDPO) Sanjiv Kumar Choudhary said the case was being investigated.

Officials of the social welfare department were sent to the site to probe the matter. Stern action will be taken against those found guilty, the SDPO said.

According to police sources, the girl was recovered from Lakhisarai district three months ago after she left her home due to a love affair.

The children welfare committee, Lakhisarai sent her to the girl's shelter home in Begusarai.

Bihar was recently rocked by the reports of sexual abuse of girls in a state-run shelter home in Muzaffarpur. Later, the death of two inmates in an another welfare home in Patna had again thrown the spotlight on sordid tales of child abuse at such places.
The AAP will not ally with the Congress in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, said Gopal Rai, a Cabinet minister in the Delhi government.

New Delhi: The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) will not ally with the Congress in the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, Gopal Rai, a Cabinet minister in the Delhi government, has said, adding that being a part of a post-poll grand alliance will depend on the manner in which the electorate votes.

"No," the Delhi State Convenor of the party snapped when asked during an interview with IANS whether there was any chance of an AAP-Congress alliance for the polls. He said his party aimed to end the dictatorship of the BJP, which created hurdles in the development work of the Delhi government and made the national capital suffer.

"There is no 'Mahagathbandhan' before the elections. There will be one post elections and being its part or not will depend totally on the situation. Our aim is very clear, we want the Modi government to go. We will do all we can to remove the BJP government," he said.

"We want an end to the dictatorship of the BJP. It has destroyed Delhi. Not helping us in our work is one thing. But they have created hurdles in our work. So, the favourable thing for Delhi will be that BJP should go."

The party will focus on Delhi, Haryana and Punjab during the 2019 elections.

"We will work hard on the seats where we have a winning trend," said Rai.

The AAP is also focusing on the 12 September Delhi University Students' Union (DUSU) polls and towards this end, its Chhatra Yuva Sangharsh Samiti (CYSS) student's wing has joined hands with the left-wing All India Students' Association (AISA).

"AISA is a common students platform and it too fights against the hooliganism of ABVP. They harass not only students but teachers as well," said Rai, who had begun his career with the AISA, said. "Our government has changed the face of school education in the city. A good atmosphere at university and colleges will have an impact on the city's atmosphere. We have ensured good education and environment of study for students till Class 12, but when they go to university, they get a negative environment. People also want a positive change in Delhi University," the minister said.

He also shrugged off accusations that the AAP had been playing caste politics after its potential candidate for the Lok Sabha elections from East Delhi, Atishi, dropped her 'Marlena' surname as it apparently "sounded Christian".

The use of a surname, Rai contended, is a "personal matter" and a political party cannot decide an individual's choice. "Using or not using a surname is a personal matter. A political party cannot decide an individual's choice. The party is only responsible for political decisions and not personal ones," Rai said.

The caste factor emerged after Ashutosh, one of the founding members who resigned from the party on 15 August, accused it of forcefully using his surname. "The party has not accepted the resignations of Ashutosh and Ashish Khetan," Rai said, adding that the party cannot do anything if they want to move on. He also said the party will welcome them if they change their minds and come back.
Several areas of the national capital witnessed waterlogging and traffic snarls for the second consecutive day on Sunday after heavy rains lashed the city.

New Delhi: Several areas of the national capital witnessed waterlogging and traffic snarls for the second consecutive day on Sunday after heavy rains lashed the city. Waterlogging was reported from various areas in Delhi, including Shalimar Banquet Hall, Ekta Sthal and Shanti Path area.

Earlier on Sunday, heavy traffic congestion was reported in places such as Rani Jhansi Road, Qutub Road, Old Iron Bridge, Kishan Ganj Road and Lajpat Nagar Metro Station. According to traffic police, the situation became normal in several areas in the evening. A road near Kaushik Enclave in north Delhi's Burari reportedly caved in following which the Delhi Traffic Police alerted commuters not to take that route, a traffic police official said.

Delhi Traffic Police is posting alerts on its Twitter handle to inform people about routes to be avoided. According to control room of civic bodies, waterlogging was reported in nearly 16 areas such as Vikas Puri, Mayapuri, Lodi Colony, Lajpat Nagar, Jangpura, Mathura Road and Govingpuri among others. The civic bodies also said uprooting of trees were also reported from several parts, including Raghubir Nagar, East of Kailash, Okhla, Mathura Road, Lodhi Road and CR Park main road.

This is the second consecutive day when several areas of the city were watterlogged due to heavy rains also affecting traffic movement. Hitting out at the AAP government and BJP-led municipal corporations, Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) chief Ajay Maken alleged that both have "failed" to come out with the permanent solution for waterlogging in the national capital. The national capital of India has become the capital of water logging, Maken said. "AAP government and the MCDs seems to be fighting with each other just for show-off. Had both worked to come out with the permanent solution of waterlogging in Delhi, Delhi, the Capital of India would not have become 'Capital of waterlogging'," he said in a statement.
The advisory urges channels that they may refrain from using the term 'Dalit' while referring to people belonging to Scheduled Castes.

New Delhi: The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting has issued an advisory to all private satellite TV channels, urging them to refrain from using the nomenclature 'Dalit' for people belonging to Scheduled Castes in compliance with a Bombay High Court directive.

The advisory urges channels that they may refrain from using the term 'Dalit' while referring to people belonging to Scheduled Castes.

I&B advisory for media. Compliance with HC order for refraining from using word 'Dalit' while referring to members belonging to Scheduled Castes. pic.twitter.com/gbEUqKBzyx  Mumbai Press Club (@mumbaipressclub) September 3, 2018

The letter, addressed to all private TV channels on 7 August, referred to a June directive by the Bombay High Court asking the ministry to consider issuing a direction to the media to stop using the word 'Dalit'.

The court directive had come over a petition filed by Pankaj Meshram before the Nagpur bench of the high court.

"It is accordingly advised that the media may refrain from using the nomenclature 'Dalit' while referring to members belonging to Scheduled Castes in compliance with the directions of the Hon'ble Bombay High Court and the constitutional term 'Scheduled Caste' in English, and its appropriate translation in other national languages should alone be used for all official transactions, matters, dealings, certificates, etc. for denoting the persons belonging to Scheduled Castes," it said.

The advisory had also cited a Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment circular of 15 March, advising the central and state governments to use the term 'Scheduled Caste'.
A 182-metre-high tribute to independence icon Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Gujarat, named the Statue of Unity, will be the first to dwarf the Spring Temple Buddha in China, currently the world's biggest statue at 128 metres in height.

The world's biggest statue is rising in a remote corner of India to honour an independence hero but it could quickly be outdone by a monument to a Hindu warrior king in the sea off Mumbai. In a burst of nationalist fervour, around one billion dollars is being spent on the two giant effigies, each more than twice as tall as the Statue of Liberty.

A 182-metre-high tribute to independence icon Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in Gujarat state will be the first to dwarf the Spring Temple Buddha in China, currently the world's biggest statue at 128 metres in height.

Pick-axes are also swinging for a 212-metre-high likeness of 17th-century king Chhatrapati Shivaji, resplendent on a horse and brandishing a sword, which should dominate the Mumbai shoreline from 2021.

An army of 2,500 workers  including several hundred Chinese labourers  is toiling around the clock to put 5,000 squares of bronze cladding on the figure of Patel so it can be ready for inauguration on 31 October by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The Rs 29.9 billion ($430-million) Statue of Unity overlooking the isolated Sardar Sarovar Dam is a pet project of Modi. He has predicted it will attract "hordes" of tourists, as the Statue of Liberty does in New York. Visitors will be able to access a viewing gallery 153 metres up  about chest height on the huge standing figure. However, they will have to travel 250 kilometres from the state's main city of Ahmedabad to get there.

'Iron Man' emerges

There is also a political motive to the mega-project, with India heading into a campaign for a national election early next year.

Patel was deputy to India's first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru after independence in 1947 and Modi's nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) says his name has been unfairly overshadowed by the dominant Nehru dynasty. Patel became known as the "Iron Man of India" by persuading  through talks and a hint of force  some 550 princely states to become part of India after independence from Britain in 1947. He died three years later.

Many Hindu nationalists feel it was a slight when Patel was asked to step aside to let the secular Nehru become the country's first leader. "Every Indian regrets Sardar Patel did not become the first prime minister," Modi said while campaigning in 2013.

"Modi has used Patel's legacy a lot in his election campaigns," said Ghanshyam Shah, a former professor of class politics at Jawaharlal Nehru University in New Delhi. "He is very likely to use the Statue of Unity during the upcoming campaign but I am worried about how it will influence voters," Shah added.

The opposition Congress party says that a plan to change the Nehru Memorial Museum in New Delhi into a centre devoted to all of India's prime ministers is another bid to taint Nehru's name.

In 2016, Modi laid the foundation stone in Maharashtra state for the statue of Shivaji, a hero of the 80 million strong Marathi community which is based in the state. Hindu nationalists have also adopted Shivaji, who made his name battling the Muslim Mughal empire. Critics say the Rs 36 billion ($515-million) statue is a way of winning Marathi votes in next year's election.

Fuelling the fervour, the government announced last week that the word "Maharaj", or king, had been added to the title of Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji International Airport.

Statue politics

"The BJP has been appropriating icons for some time," said Sudha Pai of the Indian Council of Social Science Research. "Patel has been used to wipe out the Nehru legacy. The BJP wants to change the way history is perceived and show that the right wing was as important in India's freedom struggle."

Preliminary work has started on the controversial project  with a museum, park and helipad  on reclaimed land two kilometres out to sea.

Environmentalists and thousands of fishing workers oppose the statue because of the threat to fishing stocks.

The price of the monument is certain to rise, analysts say and the state government has already changed the design to bring down costs. How it will eventually look and when it will be finished remains in doubt.

India's statue politics often fall victim to "hard economic reality", according to Badra Narayan, a professor at the Pant Social Science Institute in Allahabad.

An overrun is inevitable, according to IC Rao, head of a Mumbai citizens' group, which has questioned the cost and safety of the Shivaji design. He said finishing the statue on time, would be "an impossibility even for the Trojans".
People feel strongly about this. Photo: Bill Clark/CQ-Roll Call,Inc.

Six years ago, John Roberts and four liberal justices upheld the Affordable Care Act as constitutional, in a dramatic Supreme Court ruling that saved the law from one of its many brushes with death. But, in its infinite wisdom, the court also ruled that states were not legally obligated to expand Medicaid, the portion of the law that expanded coverage for poor Americans to those who make up to 138 percent of federal poverty-level income  about $16,000 a year for a single person and $33,000 for a family of four.

Still, there was huge incentive for states to cooperate. As set out by the ACA, the federal government would cover the entire cost of Medicaid expansion for the first three years of the laws existence, with states shouldering an increasing but still miniscule portion of the burden thereafter  only 10 percent starting in 2020.

And yet, plenty of states turned down this sweetheart deal. The ones that opted out tended to have something in common beyond their hardheadedness: Republican governors and state legislatures who wanted no part of cooperating with a law that was championed by a president they disdained. (To be fair, Republicans natural revulsion to government-assisted health care likely also played a role in their defiance.)

In the meantime, Medicaid expansion proved to be the biggest success story of the Affordable Care Act. It has covered at least 15 million people, whose financial health care burden has been greatly reduced. A growing body of evidence shows that both access to health care and the quality of that care improved measurably in places that expanded the program, while the damaging financial repercussions its detractors feared  or claimed to fear  failed to materialize.

But most of the holdout states  17, to be exact, with a population of more than 100 million people still havent budged.

Over the last year, voters in multiple such states have banded together to change this sad state of affairs. Last November, after a successful petition drive, voters overwhelmingly voted to expand Medicaid in Maine, the one Northeast state that hadnt yet gotten on board. (Paul LePage, the states proto-Trumpist governor, is still resisting implementing the program, but hes fighting a losing battle.)

It was the first time Medicaid expansion had been achieved through a popular referendum, and it proved an inspiration for voters elsewhere  including in some unlikely places.

Below, a rundown of the four Republican-dominated states where Medicaid is on the ballot in November:

Utah

Back in April, Utahs Republican government attempted to expand Medicaid in the state, but with a big catch. The bill signed by Governor Gary Herbert would make the program eligible for people making up to 100 percent of the federal poverty level  far short of the Obamacare guidelines. Like a few other red states, Utah also passed work requirement for those seeking to gain benefits. (Previously, the state had granted Medicaid eligibility to about 6,000 Utahns who are homeless or struggle with substance-abuse or mental health problems.)

Because the plan falls outside the strictures set forth by the original law, it needs to be approved by the Trump administration, which has not yet weighed in. The administration has declined to approve a similar move by Arkansas, which wanted to roll back its previously full-bore expansion. Even if the administration does give the green light, the twisting of the law means it would be vulnerable to court challenges.

In any case, a lot of Utahns dont want to settle for half-baked measures: they want the real thing, and they want it now. The activist group Utah Decides Healthcare gathered 147,280 contributed signatures to get the issue on the ballot this November. Thats about the number  roughly 150,000  who would become newly eligible for Medicaid if the referendum passes.

A Utah Policy poll released in June showed that 63 percent of Utah residents approve of the bill.

Idaho

In July, Idahos Secretary of State announced that activists had gathered the requisite 56,192 signatures to force a referendum, which could expand coverage for up to 62,000 people, according to the measures backers.

Deep-red Idahos existing Medicaid program is among the strictest in the country. Over the past several years, the states legislature has toyed with the idea of expanding it in a much more limited way than Obamacare calls for, but such proposals have gone nowhere.

Lame-duck Governor Butch Otter and most of the state legislature opposes Obamacare, but Republican Brad Little, who is the favorite to succeed outgoing Otter, has said he will respect the results of the referendum.

Recent polling on the issue has been all but non-existent, but two older surveys indicate that Medicaid supporters have reason to be optimistic. A 2015 poll showed that 61 percent of Idahoans favored expansion. And, after the state legislature declined to expand it in 2016, a poll showed that 64 percent of residents disagreed with the decision.

Nebraska

Nebraskas hard-right governor, Pete Ricketts, is an ardent foe of Medicaid expansion, repeatedly helping to block a legislative path to health care for about 90,000 Nebraskans over the last several years. But, as in Idaho and Utah, activists gathered far more signatures than needed to put Medicaid expansion on the ballot  in late August, 104,477 were deemed valid by the Secretary of States office, more than 20,000 over the legal threshold. Unlike in those two states, though, opponents of the law put up a major legal fight.

A Nebraska state senator, joined by a former state senator, filed suit to keep the question off the ballot, charging that the proposal included more than one subject and failed to disclose one of the initiatives sponsors, in violation of state law.

Last week, a judge tossed that lawsuit out. The case may yet be appealed, but it would need to be expedited and decided favorably toward the plaintiffs by September 14 for the Medicaid question not to appear  seemingly a longshot, given the spurious nature of the challenge.

There has been no public polling of the question, but given the public-opinion trends in Idaho and Utah, Medicaid supporters have grounds for confidence.

Montana

Montanas legislature already expanded Medicaid to about 96,000 people in 2015, but the law is set to expire next year. Voters will get to decide whether to make it permanent, in large part by raising taxes on tobacco products. Organizers gathered 40,000 signatures, 15,000 more than were needed to put the question on the ballot.

Beyond the referendums, the midterm elections themselves are of vital importance to Medicaids future. Over the last four years, Pennsylvania, Alaska, Louisiana, Virginia have all expanded Medicaid following the election of Democratic (and in the case of Alaska, Independent) governors. Of particular interest is Florida which, along with Texas, is one of the two major states that have refused Medicaid expansion, and where progressive Democrat Andrew Gillum has enthusiastically endorsed expansion. Though the deep-red state legislature is unlikely to go along with that idea anytime soon, a Gillum win would nevertheless breathe new life into the idea. A similar dynamic exists in Georgia, where Democratic candidate Stacey Abrams has called Medicaid expansion a day one priority.

And with Democrats poised for gains in statehouses across the country , Medicaid expansion may just get a little closer to becoming a reality everywhere.

A previous version of this story mistakenly stated that the Obama administration set out the Affordable Care Acts Medicaid funding structure after the 2012 Supreme Court ruling; in fact, it was in the original text of the law.
A statement in this regard was issued after a meeting of the so-called Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) comprising separatists Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik at Geelani's residence in Hyderpora.

Srinagar: Separatists in Kashmir on Monday called for a boycott of panchayat and urban local bodies polls scheduled to be held from October.

A statement in this regard was issued after a meeting of the so-called Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL) comprising separatists Syed Ali Geelani, Mirwaiz Umar Farooq and Mohammad Yasin Malik at Geelani's residence in Hyderpora.

It alleged that the Centre wants to thrust and enforce panchayat and municipal elections upon the people of Kashmir and that "New Delhi has never believed in empowering the people of Jammu and Kashmir or the institutions here".

Elections have "only been a means" to further strengthen "New Delhi's hold on Jammu and Kashmir", the statement alleged.

Despite similar boycott calls by separatists, Jammu and Kashmir registered its highest voter turn-out in 2014 Assembly elections in the last 25 years with an estimated 65 percent of electorate casting their votes.

The last panchayat elections in the state were held in April-May 2011 with a record voter turnout of 80 percent.

The panchayat elections were scheduled to be held in 2016 but were put off due to unrest in the Valley after the killing of Hizbul Mujahideen militant Burhan Wani.
In Kerala, volunteer groups which include experts in social work, bioinformatics and psychology have pooled in resources to create the Kerala Floods Mental Health Support Group, to provide emotional support and psychological rehabilitation for the flood survivors.

Editor's note: Described as one of the worst since 1924 by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the rains in Kerala have left over 350 dead and rendered thousands of people homeless. According to the latest tally, 80,000 have been rescued so far. Over 1,500 relief camps have been set up across the state that currently house at least 2,23,139 people. In a multi-part series, Firstpost will attempt to analyse the short-term and long-term impact of these unprecedented floods on the lives of the people, economy of the state, and the environment.

***

During a training session in Bengaluru with 34 volunteer participants, Dr Aravind E Raj, Associate Professor, National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS) tells the motley group assembled that self-care is important when you are volunteering in a disaster zone. He also talks about the importance of listening.

Dr Aravind and his fellow trainers  psychologists from Training and Research Initiative (TRI), Bengaluru  are no strangers to the importance of empathy and support during a disaster situation. The result is a training session for volunteers working in flood ravaged Kerala and Kodagu on Psychological First Aid. The training session is much needed, given the importance of psycho-social care in the aftermath of a disaster.

While professionals from the mental health industry have always known that, what makes this PFA training stand out are the participants from non-psychology backgrounds. They believe that being trained in PFA will equip them better as volunteers.

PFA for volunteers

What is Psychological First Aid? According to experts, Psychological First Aid covers both psychological and social support. "PFA is meant to aid individuals in the immediate aftermath of a disaster. Even after surviving, the person is struggling to cope with new challenges. It is designed to try and reduce initial stress and help people with short and long-term adaptive functioning and coping," says Nisha Menzies Rao, director, TRI.

As relief trucks with aid materials rush to disaster zones, emotional distress, which isn't always visible, is often overlooked. But the impact can be long drawn. Kerala has already reported three cases of suicide. Given the scenario, disaster relief work needs to make psycho-social aid as important as physical and financial one.

Thankfully, the lack of awareness around this seems to be changing.

In Kerala, volunteer groups which include experts in social work, bioinformatics and psychology have pooled in resources to create the Kerala Floods Mental Health Support Group, to provide emotional support and psychological rehabilitation for the flood survivors.

The response to the TRI workshop was overwhelming. "Our participants included teachers from Kerala, a nun who is managing a shelter for evacuated people in Kerala and members of Civil Defence already involved with rescue and relief work in Kodagu," says Dr Shailaja Shastri, founder of TRI. Dr Shastri sees the response as a welcome acknowledgement that we are finally discussing the importance of mental health support during a crisis.

So how can training in PFA help volunteers go a step further?

"Volunteers have the right intention but PFA trains them in the right technique to deal with people in emotional distress," she adds.

Help doesn't just mean rescuing someone from a flooded house or getting them clean clothes and food, though that is often a matter of life and death. Sometimes, it also means finding a safe and private space for a lactating mother or looking after children whose parents have gone out to collect aid materials.

At other times, it could be assuring them that the support you are providing comes from a place of true empathy, as two teachers volunteering in Kerala found out. After sharing a meal with some of the survivors, they were looking for a place with clean water to wash their hands, when they realised people were simply rinsing their hands in the gutter. They shared their experience in the training session: "We had never done that before but went ahead and did it, to show our support and empathy".

"These are different aspects of psycho-social care," says Dr Aravind. "Sometimes volunteers need to learn how to address people who are crying; sometimes it is just listening empathetically rather than talking."

It takes a village

PFA training can be done at the community level and doesn't require the participants to have a background in psychology. Rao and Shastri both clarify that PFA is not counselling. "It's about assessing the persons' current mental state and helping them with what they are going through. We also asses if they are able to take care of themselves," Rao adds.

Training the community helps it to reach a wider section. In Andaman, teachers were trained to provide psycho-social support to traumatised students after the December 2004 Tsunami. "Just like physical efforts have three stages - rescue, relief, rebuild; psycho-social care has to be more of long term services than short term counselling," Dr Aravind insists.

Training sessions for PFA at community-level includes experience sharing and role playing. Participants are asked to work with local NGOs so that they can provide actual on ground support. It could mean helping someone get back their lost documents, an action that could significantly reduce their anxiety and help their psychological condition. In fact, one of the suicides in Kerala was by a 19-year-old who lost all his documents.

"The idea is to orient them with available support and give them useful information, whether it is about documents, or the water receding in their area or the availability of anti-venom in their nearby hospital. Anything that can take care of their anxiety and emotional needs can make them feel better," Dr Aravind points out.

The need for care

Psychological effects of disasters remain a largely ignored aspect in India, where there is a severe paucity of mental health professionals (a 2015 WHO report said that there are only three psychiatrists per million people in India). Mental health isn't a big part of the conversation here. In fact, the National Programme for Mental health received only 0.07 percent of India's 2017-18 health budget.

Despite the dismal numbers, the open conversations and psycho-social interventions in the aftermath of Kerala and Kodagu floods is a step forward, especially when you compare it to the Bhopal Gas Tragedy, the first disaster in India to be studied systematically for mental health effects. Back then, mental health professionals got involved only after eight weeks, according to a paper by R Srinivasa Murthy in Industry Psychiatry Journal.

Given that scenario, we seem to have covered some ground since then, both Dr Raj and Dr Shastri agree. "There is lack of awareness," says Dr Raj, "but the situation has improved." He points towards the guidelines on psycho-social care produced by the National Disaster Management Authority in collaboration with NIMHANS in 2009. "We need to train and equip government workers in PFA to take away the stigma from mental health problems and address emotional distress."

"This time I see a mobilisation of psychological support," Dr Shastri adds. "E.g., there is a WhatsApp group in Kerala that enables you to register your organization as a community of mental health workers, apart from other initiatives. The response to our training from people with completely non-psychological backgrounds is also a positive factor."

"Not every team that goes for relief work can have a psychologist," says Dr Raj, "but it is great if they can have the mindset of a psychologist. Developing this mindset is most important now."
Former chief minister Oommen Chandy has urged the chief minister to cancel the trip of his ministers and instead ask them to camp in the districts and oversee the rehabilitation programme.

Editor's note: Described as one of the worst since 1924 by Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the rains in Kerala have left 483 dead and rendered thousands of people homeless. According to the latest tally, 80,000 have been rescued so far. Over 1,500 relief camps have been set up across the state that currently house at least 2,23,139 people. In a multi-part series, Firstpost will attempt to analyse the short-term and long-term impact of these unprecedented floods on the lives of the people, economy of the state, and the environment.

***

The decision by Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan to appoint global consultants KPMG to prepare a master plan for reconstruction and send ministerial delegations to 14 countries, where Keralites live in large numbers, on a fund-raising drive has raised apprehension in the minds of different sections of people about the governments intentions.

KPMG CEO Arun Kumars statement that they will help the state government build a modern Kerala as per global standards has confounded the apprehension. Earlier, the opportunity given by ruling CPM to three anti-green MLAs to speak in the Assembly by sidelining two legislators, who were critical of the governments handling of the rescue operation, had created doubts about the partys commitment towards sustainable development.

Joseph C Mathew, IT advisor to former chief minister VS Achuthanandan, has pointed out that the current disaster was the result of the modern development that the state has been pursuing for the last 50 years and added that the governments decision to leave the task of planning the post-flood reconstruction to the global agency would send a wrong message.

People from all walks to life are coming forward to generously contribute to the Chief Ministers Distress Relief Fund (CMDRF) after seeing the miseries of the people displaced by the flood. They may not continue to support the reconstruction if the government is planning to create concrete jungles with the help of international agencies, he added.

Mathew said what people need is a new Kerala in harmony with nature. He said he is hopeful that everybody will support the government if it comes out with a clear policy and strategy to build the state in an environment-friendly manner. People will doubt the rebuilding process if any multi-national agency comes forward to support it that too free of cost, Mathew added.

John Samuel, former head of UN Global Programme on Democratic Governance Assessment, said local level consultation was the ideal approach for rebuilding a region devastated by calamities. With many efficient men in the Planning Board and strong local bodies, Kerala has a large pool of in-house talent to rebuild the state better than an external agency, he said.

Moreover, Kerala has already developed a strong foundation for decentralised development through the participatory peoples planning and the subsequent decentralisation of powers to the local self-governments. This may help the government in reconstructing the state in a decentralised manner.

CV Ananda Bose, former chairman of UN Affiliate Habitat Alliance and current advisor to Meghalaya government, said there was no harm in seeking the help of international agencies if they go by the governments policy and directions. However, if they are allowed to transplant international models it may not suit the state.

Even while wreaking havoc, the flood has opened myriads of opportunities to Kerala. It has washed away all pollutants, including pesticides from our rivers and water bodies and cleaned them. The silt and sediments brought by the flood water have made our land fertile. If we make use of these natural resources we can regain whatever we have lost in the flood, Bose told Firstpost.

He said that an external agency need not understand the resources locally available to rebuild the state. The Netherlands, which is the globes number two exporter of food, has a lot of similarities with Kuttanad region, the rice bowl of Kerala, and perhaps they could help in reviving the agriculture sector.

Netherlands has revolutionised agriculture by adopting innovative methods of organic farming. Kerala has already made a start in organic farming. The flood can give a big boost to the organic farming and this will in turn spur agri-entrepreneurship, he said.

The agri-entrepreneurship can bring the youths who are looking for white collar jobs back to agriculture. This may also help Kerala to absorb millions of Keralites working outside the country whenever crisis push them out. He said a massive exodus from West Asia can be expected when fusion energy replaces oil in the near future.

When we rebuild a new Kerala, we must plan for next 100 to 200 years. The world population is expected to rise above 10 billion by 2050. The planet needs to produce more food in the next four decades than all farmers in history have harvested over the past 8,000 years, he said.

Bose, who has served Kerala in various capacities, said that Kerala can convert the impending crisis into an opportunity if it plans the rebuilding strategy with farsightedness. If the state creates the required infrastructure, investments will flow in a big way.

He does not think that mobilisation of the fund for rebuilding the state will be difficult since there is enough money locked in various departments. The government only need to converge them. Apart from this, there are also many international agencies plush with money. If they are approached with well-prepared projects, the government may not need to send its ministers abroad for collecting funds, Bose said.

Former Planning Board member and head of the department of Economics in Kerala University BA Prakash said donors may not give funds without empirical study report and a proper strategy. He said that the foreign trip even before assessing the loss and estimating the fund required for the reconstruction would be a futile exercise.

The donors may also not like to place the fund in the hands of the government if it is planning to undertake reconstruction under the existing bureaucratic network. A separate fund for rebuilding and a special purpose vehicle to implement the project may inspire confidence among the donors, he said.

Many have also criticised the move to send the ministers abroad before rehabilitating the displaced people. The chief minister has already left for the US for medical treatment. If the ministers will also leave the state it will throw the rehabilitation haywire.

Former chief minister and senior Congress leader Oommen Chandy has urged the chief minister to cancel the trip of his ministers and instead ask them to camp in the districts and oversee the rehabilitation programme. He said the relief and rehabilitation have been in total disarray after the government took over the control of relief camps.

"Today, the most important thing to do is to see that the rehabilitation of the displaced people is done quickly. The state needs the ministers to take the lead in ensuring drinking water, clean and safe homes and availability of critical healthcare facilities to the affected people, Chandy said.

NRKs have also termed the trip at this stage unwarranted. In all the countries where the ministers proposed to go, NRKs have launched relief campaigns and have collected as much money and relief materials as possible, said Thomas Joseph, who lives at Jeddah.

Sharjah-based Pravasi Bandhu Welfare Trust chairman KV Shamsudheen said this was not the time for ministers to undertake foreign trips. They should sit in their office and coordinate the relief and rehabilitation works. The money earmarked for the trip should be used for providing relief to the victims, he said.

Shamsudheen said that the government could invite members of the Loka Kerala Sabha and representatives of the NRK organisations in various countries to the state and give them targets for mobilising funds instead of the ministers going to them.
Madras High Court upheld Tamil Nadu government's decision to prohibit holding protests at Chennai's Marina Beach stating that public order is equally important as agitiation.

The Madras High Court on Tuesday upheld Tamil Nadu government's decision to prohibit holding protests at Chennai's Marina Beach. The court observed that the beach cant be used for agitations as public order is equally important, reported ANI.

Farmers' association leader P Ayyakannu had filed a petition in April in the Madras High Court after the police had refused permission to hold protests at the Marina beach for Cauvery water dispute, reported CNN-News18.

Ayyakannu moved the high court after the city police refused to let him protest at the beach. In his petition, Ayyakannu had said that there were plans for a 90-day hunger strike on the Cauvery matter and only if it was held at Marina, would it attract attention. However, the court had allowed the leader to stage only a day-long protest. Additional Advocate-General of Tamil Nadu Arvindh Pandian had responded saying that with the exception of the jallikattu protests in 2017, no protests had taken place at the beach since 2003.

In March 2018, a group of individuals converged at the Marina beach in Chennai and staged a flash protest urging the Centre to immediately set up the Cauvery Water Management Board in compliance with a 16 February Supreme Court order on the decades-old river water-sharing dispute.

Ever since the massive pro-jallikattu protests that rocked the Marina for more than a week last year, the popular beach has been kept out of bounds by police for any kind of agitation. The police department has also been issuing frequent prohibitory orders, banning any kind of congregation.
Madras University has released the re-totalling result for degree examination held in April 2018 for Undergraduate courses. The results are available on the official website, unom.ac.in.

The Madras University has released the re-totalling result for degree examination held in April 2018 for its Undergraduate courses. The results are available on the official website: unom.ac.in.

Students who appeared in the degree examination will need their registration number to check their respective results.

Here is how to check the results:

- Visit Madras University official website: unom.ac.in.

- Click on the "Announcements" link provided on the homepage.

- On next page, click on the results link given as "UG Degree Examination Re-totalling Results - April 2018".

- Enter your registration number in the box provided.

- Submit and view your result.

- Download the same and take a printout for future reference

The Bachelor of Commerce (BCom), Bachelor of Sciences (BSc) and Bachelor of Computer Application (BCA) degree Choice Based Credit System examinations of the Madras University were held on 10 April. The Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree Choice Based Credit System examinations and BCom (Honours) degree examinations, however, had begun on 11 April.
The complaint said the man had returned that night and forced the woman and the two girls to have the juice after which they fell unconscious.

Nagaon(Assam): Three women members of a family were allegedly raped by a man who forced them to drink drug-laced fruit juice before committing the crime in Assam's Hojai district, police said on Monday.

The man was known to them as he lived in the same village as them and the incident took place on the intervening night between Saturday and Sunday at their home in Uttar Dimarupar village, the victims said in their complaint to the police.

The complaint said the man had brought sugarcane juice to their residence on Saturday morning and had requested them to store it in their refrigerator.

The woman's husband works in Saudi Arabia and the two girls are her relatives.

The complaint said the man had returned that night and forced the woman and the two girls to have the juice after which they fell unconscious.

The woman was raped first and when she regained consciousness she saw the man committing the crime on the two girls. When she tried to stop him, the man had allegedly threatened to kill her with a knife, it said.

They filed their complaint with the police with the help of villagers and an investigation has been initiated into the incident.

The man, who has another rape case against him, is absconding, the police said. Meanwhile, the police have apprehended six persons who were allegedly involved in the gang-rape of a woman near Amoni in Nagaon district on 28 August.

The police have arrested the person on whose motorcycle the woman was travelling when they were waylaid by four persons, and, following his interrogation, apprehended five others who were allegedly involved in the crime.

Search is on for another culprit, the police said adding the vehicle used by them was also found.

The woman in her complaint to the police had claimed she was allegedly whisked away by four men in their vehicle, gang-raped and left on NH 37.

An oil tanker driver had found her and took her to the nearby Jakhalabandha police station in the district.
The development in investigation comes after the Mumbai court had denied CBI's application seeking Kalaskar's custody on 29 August

Mumbai: A Mumbai sessions court on Monday remanded Sharad Kalaskar, suspect in rationalist Narendra Dabholkar murder case in 2013, into the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) custody for further investigation.

The new development comes after the court had denied CBI's application seeking Kalaskar's custody on 29 August. According to reports, CBI wanted to confront him along with another accused Sachin Andure. Accused Andure was nabbed by the police from Aurangabad after a tip-off from the Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS). Kalaskar was also remanded into ATS custody until Monday.

Kalaskar was arrested in August by the Maharashtra ATS in connection with the seizure of arms and ammunition from different parts of the state. Kalaskar and three other accused in the arms haul case - Vaibhav Raut, Sudhanwa Gondhalekar and Shrikant Pangarkar were produced before Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Padalkar after their police remand ended.

On Saturday, two accused, namely Rajesh Bangera and Amit Degwekar were sent to the CBI custody by a Pune sessions court. They were sent to the custody for 10 days.

Dabholkar, the founder of Maharashtra Andhashraddha Nirmoolan Samiti (MANS), was shot dead on 20 August, 2013 by bike-borne assailants, while he was returning home from a morning walk.

The ATS had earlier claimed the arms haul accused were suspected right-wing activists who were planning to trigger blasts at various places in Maharashtra. Kalaskar's alleged role in Dabholkar's killing came to light during his interrogation by the ATS in the arms seizure case. The ATS passed on the relevant information to the CBI, which is probing Dabholkar's killing since 2014.
HNLU students have been demanding withdrawal of hostel curfews as well as a host of changes to administrative rules.

Raipur: The Chhattisgarh High Court's order on 27 August, which rendered illegal the extension of Dr Sukh Pal Singh's tenure as the vice-chancellor of Hidayatullah National Law University (HNLU), prompted the long-perturbed student body to come out in protest at the varsity and seek immediate implementation of the ruling.

The protests that kicked off that very night blew up into a week-long agitation against various repugnant policies of the administration. The students have put forth a set of 13 demands, including "appointment of an able and competent individual as the new vice-chancellor" and the right for all students to have free access to every part of the campus at all hours. Their movement also has the hashtag #HNLUKiAzaadi trending on Twitter.

Even a year ago, HNLU students had protested against different hostel timings being assigned for boys and girls, but the varsity's empty assurances and inaction over the complaints registered so far pushed the students to utilise this agitation to get their pending demands met. While the HNLU administration has postponed examinations at the varsity due to the ongoing agitation, the students are planning to sit on a hunger strike starting 5 September if their demands are not fulfilled.

After Singh was removed from the vice-chancellor's office, the Principal Secretary to the Chhattisgarh government (Department of Law), RS Sharma, was appointed the interim vice-chancellor on 28 August. Sharma spoke to students last Tuesday and assured them that the decision over their demands will be made after all parties concerned are consulted. Although the interim vice-chancellor approved all the students' demands, they decided to continue their agitation till a final verdict is delivered in the matter in tangible form.

Contentious hostel curfew

The hostel curfew, which gives students a 10.30 pm deadline to return to their halls of residence, has been the most contentious of issues, besides lack of transparency in HNLU's administrative decisions. Students are contesting that the "arbitrary" timing was imposed without following the guidelines defined under the HNLU, Chhattisgarh, Act 2003. They are of the view that students should be allowed access to the entire campus at all hours without any discrepancies or exceptions.

In a demand letter put together by the Student Bar Association (SBA), HNLU, students said that many of them on campus identify with different genders, and therefore, reside in different hostels. Imposing such rules hinders the academic, as well as extra-curricular, activities that students wish to undertake, such as moot court competitions, collaborative research papers and access to the library and other resources.

While students are not allowed to go out after 10.30 pm, the university does not provide them with any source of food between 10.30 pm and 7.30 am. Those studying or working beyond the deadline have to find alternatives to satiate their hunger, or live with the irrational rule. Even getting deliveries from eateries located outside the campus is not allowed post 10.30 pm, students said.

They also want the closing hour of the library to be extended from 10.00 pm to 3.00 am to best utilise the resources provided. "This is not only about the time of arrival and departure in the hostel. We want to be able to use the campus library till late at night," said Swati Bhargava, vice-president of the SBA.

Apart from these, another critical demand is that the hostel wardens be individuals independent of academic authority, the students said, specifying that they should not be a teacher or associated in any manner  directly, indirectly or incidentally  with academic activities or programmes.

Students claimed there have been multiple occasions wherein wardens, when reprimanding students for alleged violations of rules, have also threatened them with dire academic consequences such as a cut in marks in exams and attendance. The students want a permanent registrar to be appointed according to the rules laid down for the same.

SBA president Snehal Ranjan Shukla said, "The discussion (with the interim vice-chancellor) led to positive assurances, but our protest will continue till our demands are accepted."

Gathering support on social media

The week-long agitation by the HNLU student community has gathered support from various corners of the country, with people posting messages of solidarity on social media.

Kavita Krishnan, secretary of the All India Progressive Women's Association and Communist Party of India politburo member, expressed her support on Twitter. "Hundreds of students of Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur, are demanding freedom from curfew timings, discriminatory rules against women and democratic functioning of the university! As someone who grew up in Bhilai, next to Raipur, I'm thrilled at your protest HNLU," Krishnan wrote.

Hundreds of students of Hidayatullah National Law University, Raipur are demanding freedom from curfew timing, discriminatory rules against women and democratic functioning of the University!

As someone who grew up in Bhilai, next to Raipur, I'm thrilled at your protest HNLU! pic.twitter.com/ySHtZHEZbE  Kavita Krishnan (@kavita_krishnan) September 2, 2018

Denying any threat from varsity authorities regarding police action against protesting students, Achyut Tiwari, a third-year student at HNLU who is also the SBA public relations officer, said the interim vice-chancellor had only warned them to not be undisciplined, after which they assured him that the demonstration will remain peaceful.

Geeta Kumari, chairperson of the Jawaharlal Nehru University Students' Union (JNUSU), voiced her support on Facebook: "Caretaker JNUSU stands in solidarity with the ongoing students' movement at HNLU, Raipur... Students are also demanding an end to discriminatory curfew timings in hostels for girls and moderation in wardens' appointment to end personal targeting of students. We have seen that administrations across universities are closing down democratic dialogue with students' communities and imposing unilateral academic and infrastructural decisions on them. On behalf of the JNUSU (caretaker), we extend our revolutionary greetings to the struggling students of HNLU, Raipur."

HNLU Registrar Ayan Hazra said the interim vice-chancellor was out of Chhattisgarh, but he had "already discussed the issues with the students and the university management... The students are stuck on their movement. A final decision can be made only after the interim vice-chancellor returns."

The author is a Raipur-based freelance writer and a member of 101Reporters.com
Underlining Cyprus' contribution to India's economic growth, President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday invited the businesses in the Mediterranean nation to invest in the country.

Nicosia: Underlining Cyprus' contribution to India's economic growth, President Ram Nath Kovind on Monday invited the businesses in the Mediterranean nation to invest in the country in the areas of digitalisation, smart cities, infrastructure and tourism.

Cyprus is the eighth largest investor in India and bilateral trade stands at around $8.2 billion.

During his address to the House of Representatives of Cyprus, the president said India is at an exciting juncture and offers appealing business opportunities.

He said massive outlays and attractive and viable projects are evident in the Digital India mission, Smart Cities mission and in key infrastructure sectors such as power and energy, highways, and ports and shipping.

India is also promoting tourism in a big manner, including by way of simplifying visa provisions and augmenting infrastructure and facilities, Kovind said.

"In all these areas, we look to Cyprus for partnership. You can come as investors and you can come as stakeholders, you can come to buy or to sell, you can come with your expertise and you can come with your brands and your skills," he said.

"India is open for business  and India is open for Cyprus," Kovind added.

The president said India's overriding mission is its economic growth and modernisation and "Cyprus, as a trusted partner and as one of the largest investors in India, is critical to this process".

Hailing Cyprus as a responsible country, Kovind also thanked the island nation for its unstinted backing of India's candidature for expanded UN Security Council and the Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG).

India along with Brazil, Germany and Japan  which constitutes the G-4 grouping  has been seeking expansion of the permanent seats of the UNSC to make the powerful UN body more representative and reflective of the changing global order.

India is also mounting strong bid for admission to the NSG, an elite club of 48 countries that deal with fissile materials and nuclear technology.

"As responsible nation-states, both Cyprus and India are alive to the challenges in the international system... The salience of national sovereignty and the essential need to defeat radicalism and terrorism unites us," the president said.

He further said India is counting on Cyprus' support for finalising the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism at the United Nations.

"I would also like to thank Cyprus for its unstinted backing of India's candidature for an expanded UN Security Council as well as for the Nuclear Suppliers' Group," Kovind said.

Noting that both the countries share issues of common concern and are committed to peace, security and sovereignty, he said, "Inevitably we find ourselves on the same side. In fact, there are hardly any major issues on which Cyprus and India disagree."

Shortly before his address to the Cypriot Parliament, the president paid floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhi's bust and Archbishop Makarios's statute at its premise. Archbishop Makarios is Cyprus' first president.

Earlier in the day, Kovind and his Cypriot counterpart Nicos Anastasiades signed two agreements on combating money laundering and cooperation in the field of environment.

The president is in Cyprus on the first leg of his eight-day three-nation visit to Europe to continue India's high-level engagements with European countries.
Taking to his twitter handle, Ram Nath Kovind appealed to citizens to follow the path of virtue and righteousness in thought, word, and deed.

New Delhi: President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Monday extended greetings to the nation on the occasion of Janmashtami.

Taking to his twitter handle, President Kovind appealed to citizens to follow the path of virtue and righteousness in thought, word, and deed.

Greetings and good wishes to fellow citizens on the auspicious occasion of Janmashtami. The teachings of Lord Krishna have a universal message - Nishkam Karma. May this festival inspire us to follow the path of virtue and righteousness in thought, word and deed #PresidentKovind  President of India (@rashtrapatibhvn) September 3, 2018

Prime Minister Narendra Modi also tweeted "Janmashtami greetings to everyone."

Janmashtami is a Hindu festival celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna. As per the Hindu calendar, Lord Krishna, an avatar of Lord Vishnu, was born on the eighth day of the month of Bhadra. The day mostly falls in the months of August or September as per the Western calendar. The festival is celebrated by offering prayers to Lord Krishna, with beautifully decorated swings, dance and music performances and Dahi Handi competition.

In Mathura, which is considered to be the birthplace or 'Janmabhoomi' of Lord Krishna, devotees thronged temples in large numbers to offer prayers on the auspicious occasion. In Jammu and Kashmir's Poonch district, children were seen dressed up in festive attire. Delhi's ISKCON temple was also decked up on the occasion. In Nepal, a Krishna temple in Lalitpur, which was damaged by the earthquake in 2015, reopened after three-years on the occasion.
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The broad agreement on the world's biggest trade deal, called the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP), may be reached at a summit of leaders from participating nations in November this year, Singapore hinted after a meeting of regional economic ministers. This will be six years after the negotiations began during the 21st ASEAN summit in Phnom Penh, Cambodia in November 2012.

After the meeting held on 30 and 31 August in Singapore, trade ministers of 16 nations instructed their negotiators to "exert utmost efforts" for early conclusion of the talks for the proposed mega trade deal. RCEP aims to cover goods, services, investments, economic and technical cooperation, competition and intellectual property rights.

RCEP includes the 10 members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), Australia, India, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand and China.

The deal does not include the United States, which is locked in a trade spat with China and had pulled out of another broad, international trade agreement in 2017 called the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). The White House has said that US president Donald Trump would skip the November gathering of leaders in Singapore.

With Trump considering another round of tariffs on Chinese goods, Philippines' secretary of trade and industry Ramon Lopez told CNBC that it has "actually given us the urgency" to press on with negotiations to reach an agreement.

At the 6th RCEP ministerial meeting, ministers adopted a package of year-end deliverables developed by the trade negotiating committee and welcomed the plans to achieve the targets set out in the package, a joint statement said. Commerce and industry minister Suresh Prabhu also participated in the meeting.

"The ministers tasked negotiators to leverage on the positive momentum to expeditiously bring negotiations to a mutually beneficial and fair conclusion.

"To this end, the ministers instructed negotiators to exert utmost efforts to achieve each of the targets in the package by the end of this year," it said.

They expressed hope that completion of the package would signify the substantial conclusion of the negotiations this year.

The statement also said that the ministers agreed to keep the lines of communication open to provide prompt guidance and support to the negotiations, including through intensified domestic consultations, so as to achieve the targets set out in the package.

Further they underscored the significance of establishing the world's largest free trade area among 16 countries under RCEP amidst the escalating trade frictions.

The 16 RCEP participating countries account for almost half of the worlds population, contribute about 30 percent of global GDP and over a quarter of world exports. When completed, the RCEP would account for about one-third of the global economy.

India and RCEP

India is holding comprehensive stakeholder consultations with industry as well as different ministries and departments on the pact as the grouping includes China, with which India has a huge trade deficit.

Sectors including textiles, steel and food processing have raised serious objections over removal or significant reduction of customs duties on these items under the pact. They want these segments to be out of the purview of RCEP.

They have apprehensions that removal of duties would led to flooding of Chinese goods in the Indian market. But without any Free Trade Agreement (FTA), India has a trade deficit of $63.12 billion in 2017-18 with China as compared to $51.11 billion in the previous year.

RCEP members want India to eliminate or significantly reduce customs duties on maximum number of goods it traded globally. India's huge domestic market provides immense opportunity of exports for RCEP countries.

But lower levels of ambition in services and investments, a key area of interest for India, do not augur well for the agreement that seeks to be comprehensive in nature.

India has a trade deficit with as many as 10 member countries, including China, South Korea and Australia, of the RCEP grouping. According to the commerce ministry data, India's trade deficit  the difference between imports and exports  with seven countries (Indonesia, Thailand, China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand) of RCEP has in fact increased in 2017-18 as compared to the previous fiscal.

However, as The Hindu noted, walking out of the talks at this stage would cut India out of the rules-making process for RCEP and give China further space in the regional trade and security architecture.

RCEP is significant for India and as an industry expert told PTI, trade deficits is only for goods. "India would get greater market access in other countries not only in terms of goods, but in services and investments also."

The deal would also complement India's existing FTAs with ASEAN nations and as The Diplomat pointed out, it would also help India achieve its goal of greater economic integration with countries east and south east of India through better access to a vast regional market ranging from Japan to Australia.

ASEAN also sees the accord as a catalyst for deepening the partnership with India, according to Livemint. At the ASEAN-India Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (non-resident Indian) conference, Singapores foreign minister Vivian Balakrishnan said, "India will be positioned as the largest country in terms of population and the largest source of growth with its middle-class for the next 20 years. And because India remains young, for the next two-to-three decades, this is a historic opportunity for India."

RCEP would also help India in its 'Act East' policy. As The Diplomat report pointed out, this is important because India is not a party to two either the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation or the Trans-Pacific Partnership. The RCEP would, hence enable India to strengthen its trade ties with Australia, China, Japan and South Korea, and reduce the potential negative impacts of TPP on the Indian economy.

TPP and RCEP

Trump formally withdrew from the TPP in January last year saying, "great thing for the American worker, what we just did." His decision to withdraw from the 12-nation deal that had been negotiated under former president Barack Obama brought the focus back on RCEP.

According to a private bank Brown Brothers Harriman, it's hard not to view China as the main beneficiary of Trump's decision. The bank said, in a report, the US' apparent retreat from the liberal global order it was instrumental in creating left a leadership vacuum that also works in China's interest, according to a CNBC report. This necessarily brought the RCEP, advocated by China, into the mainstream again.

After the TPP turned out to be a disappointment, countries want a deal they can sign to boost their economic growth and RCEP fills that vacuum. "Vietnam believes that when (RCEP) comes into effect, it will create a new momentum for economic and commercial cooperation among countries, thus contributing to the integration of the Asia-Pacific region," the foreign ministry was quoted as saying by Financial Times in Hanoi.

With inputs from agencies
The Punjab Police suspect that Charant Garg was murdered due to a dispute over money, but the Shiromani Akali Dal blamed the Congress.

Chandigarh: The Punjab Police launched a manhunt on Monday after a prominent Shiromani Akali Dal activist and businessman was shot dead along with his wife in Sangrur town in Punjab. The police have registered a case against four people, including a former Congress councillor, for the attack.

The incident took place late on Sunday night after the victim, Charant Garg and wife Pooja, left their house.

They were followed by four people in another car who intercepted Garg's car near Sardar Basti locality. They were shot dead from point-blank range, the police said. Both victims were shot in the head.

The police have booked four people  Jaidev, Rakesh Sharma, Pradeep Sharma and former councillor Pompy. Investigators believe that the reason behind the double murder is a dispute over money that the attackers owed Garg.

A realtor by profession, Garg was considered close to senior Akali Dal leaders Sukhdev Singh Dhindsa (a former Union Minister) and Parminder Singh Dhindsa (a former finance minister in Punjab).

Shiromani Akali Dal leaders blamed the ruling Congress for the growing lawlessness in the state.

The police said Garg bore injury marks on his body, which indicated that he was assaulted before being shot dead.
Stones were hurled at Shivraj Singh Chouhan's vehicle in Churhat area which is the Assembly constituency of Leader of Opposition Ajay Singh.

Sidhi: Miscreants threw stones on the vehicle carrying Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan, who is touring the state ahead of Assembly polls, in Churhat area near Sidhi district, a police official said.

Chouhan was not hurt in the incident, Churhat's Police Inspector Ram Babu Choudhari told PTI over phone. He did not give any more information, saying he was busy discharging his duties at a public meeting of the chief minister in the district.

Stones were hurled at Chouhan's vehicle in Churhat area which is the Assembly constituency of Leader of Opposition Ajay Singh, Madhya Pradesh BJP spokesman Rajnish Agrawal said.

Churhat is about 25 kilometres from the district headquarters.

Later addressing a public meeting in the district as part of his 'Jan Ashirwad Yatra', Chouhan dared Singh to come in the open and fight with him. "Ajay Singh, if you have strength come in open and fight with me," he said. "I am physically weak but I won't be bogged down by your deeds. People of the state are with me," he added.

In a press release, Singh said no Congressman was involved in the stone-pelting incident. He said his party does not follow the culture of violence. "I suspect that it was a well thought and hatched conspiracy aimed at defaming me and people of Churhat," he added.

Chouhan is touring the state in a bus modified as a chariot.
The Kashmir Editors Guild (KEG) on Monday expressed regret over the police not filing a chargesheet in the murder case of senior journalist Shujaat Bukhari who was shot dead by suspected militants in June.

Srinagar: The Kashmir Editors Guild (KEG) on Monday expressed regret over the police not filing a chargesheet in the murder case of senior journalist Shujaat Bukhari who was shot dead by suspected militants in June.

"The KEG regrets that the police have not been able to file a chargesheet in the broad daylight murder of the senior journalist so far. This was despite the fact that the police claimed to have solved the case," a spokesman of the guild said in a statement.

Bukhari, 48, the editor-in-chief of Rising Kashmir, was killed by gunmen at the Press Enclave when he was leaving his office for an iftar party on 15 June. Police had later said the conspiracy to kill Bukhari was hatched by Lashkar e-Taiba (LeT) in Pakistan and three cadres of the banned outfit executed the plan.

Referring to the reports of media persons in the Valley allegedly being asked by security agencies to disclose their sources, the KEG said a journalist cannot be forced to reveal his source of information and "it is considered illegal across the democracies of the world".

"Freedom of speech cannot be suspended even if the Assembly is in suspended animation. While the newspapers have routinely started getting 'notices' to explain things that have gone into print, there are very disturbing reports about reporters being asked to disclose sources, something that has not happened even during the Emergency," the spokesman said.

The KEG asked the police to make public the charges against a news magazine journalist Aasif Sultan who was recently detained by the police. "Police have registered a formal FIR after retaining him for six days. The KEG believes the police must make public the charges against him. The 'incriminating material', the police have stated in a routine statement, is too vague to be accepted as a reason.

"The law enforcing agencies must understand the reality that a journalist's laptop will have 'incriminating' material because data collection is the fundamental activity of the reporters," it said.
This comes after at least three people died when their houses collapsed due to landslides in Uttarakhand's Kot village on Wednesday.

Around 180 tourists were rescued by the police from the Kempty Falls in Mussoorie, which was flooded after heavy rain on Sunday. The 40-feet high waterfall in Tehri Garhwal District saw a deluge following heavy rains in the evening.

The police helped rescue tourists after a sudden rise in the water flow at Kempty falls. I have never seen the waterfall like this. I called police immediately after I saw that the tourists who were stuck," Nagendra Panwar, who runs a shop near the Kempty Falls, told The Times of India.

#WATCH: Rise in water flow of Kempty Falls in Tehri Garhwal district following heavy rainfall. Shops closed, tourists rescued by the police. #Uttarakhand pic.twitter.com/kryQ4sPGvm  ANI (@ANI) September 2, 2018

The waterfall had seen a rise in water level on 27 July also, reported NDTV. Earlier in July, the waterfall was closed because of heavy rain.

A 100-meter long and 50-metre deep lake has also formed near the Tehri Garhwal-Dehradun border, as a consequence of the continuous rainfall and landslides in various parts of the state, forcing the people living in nearby houses to vacate the area, on the instructions of the authorities.

This comes after Wednesday's incident where at least three people died when their houses collapsed due to landslides in Uttarakhand's Kot village. The weather condition in the state is not expected to get better anytime soon as the India Meteorological Department (IMD) has predicted that Uttarakhand will continue to receive "heavy rain" over the next four-five days.

With inputs from agencies
In his first year in office, M Venkaiah Naidu visited 28 states in India and set a record for vice-Presidents of India. In another record engagement, he visited all the seven north-eastern states during this period.

Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu, who completed his first year in office on 11 August, set a record for Vice-Presidents of India for visiting 28 of 29 states in the country during his term in office. He was supposed to visit the 29th state, Sikkim, but the trip was cancelled once he reached Bagdogra airport in West Bengal due to bad weather, reported The Hindu.

In yet another record engagement, he visited all the seven north-eastern states during this period, his office said in a 'round up' of the year in office, reports have said. To mark the occasion, the official account of the Vice President Secretariat tweeted five tweets of M Venkaiah Naidus one year in office with the hashtag #VPIVenkaiahAtOne. The tweets gave a summary of Naidu's outreach during the last one year.

Highlighting the focus of his engagements, 60 percent of the total of 313 major outdoor events of Naidu during the last one year were related to students and youth, farmers, science and research and culture. He visited 56 Universities and addressed 29 convocations urging the students and youth to look forward to the future with a sense of confidence seizing the emerging opportunities within and outside the country as complete individuals rooted in Indian cultural ethos while at the same time imbibing modern vision.

The vice-president also visited 15 leading centres of science and research in the country for interacting with scientists and researchers and urging them to compete with the best in the world and to aim at focussing their efforts to better the lives of common people by taking the outcomes of the laboratories to the lands and the people.

Through his 60 domestic visits outside Delhi and 313 major outdoor events and daily engagements of over 12, Naidu has reached out to over 450 countrymen everyday during the last one year motivating them towards inspired actions.

On his sole foreign visit, Naidu visited three Latin American countries of Guatemala, Panama and Peru and held wide-ranging discussions on bilateral and multilateral issues with the Presidents and senior ministers of those countries. He was the first high-level dignitary from India to visit Guatemala and Panama. He also met in Delhi 22 visiting foreign leaders including the Presidents of Germany, Switzerland, Belgium, the Prime Ministers of Nepal, Cambodia and Italy.

Naidu launched his book, 'Moving on...Moving forward: A year in office' on Sunday. The event was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former prime ministers  Manmohan Singh and H D Deve Gowda, Lok Sabha speaker Sumitra Mahajan, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Rajya Sabha's deputy leader of Opposition Anand Sharma.

With inputs from agencies
Maharashtra ADGP (Law and Order) Param Bir Singh had addressed the media on the case and read out letters allegedly exchanged between the activists.

Mumbai: Congress leader Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil on Monday demanded that Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis act against senior police officials after the Bombay High Court questioned them for holding a press conference in connection with the recent arrests of Left-wing activists.

State Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Param Bir Singh had addressed the media on the case last Friday and read out letters allegedly exchanged between the activists.

A division bench of Justices SS Shinde and Mridula Bhatkar on Monday questioned how the police could read out such documents which may be used as evidence in the case.

"How can the police do this? The matter is sub judice. The Supreme Court is seized of the matter. In such cases, revealing information pertaining to the case is wrong," Justice Bhatkar said.

"The chief minister should act against them, now that the high court has censured the police. The police tried to pressurise the court even before they produced evidences before it," Vikhe-Patil, Leader of Opposition in the Maharashtra Assembly, claimed.

"My observations, in a way, have been confirmed by the court. The chief minister should take action against these officials now or it will be obvious that the press conference was at his (Fadnavis) behest," he said.

Vikhe-Patil had Saturday objected to ADG Singh's press briefing and asked the if the officer was a "spokesperson" of the Maharashtra government.
There has been speculation in recent days that Chandrashekar Rao may recommend dissolution of the Telangana Assembly, favouring clubbing of the state elections along with that in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram later in 2018

Hyderabad: The Congress in Telangana Monday claimed that Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao may have dropped his plans to go for early Assembly elections in the state after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Election Commission (EC) did not back his idea.

There has been speculation in recent days that Rao may recommend dissolution of the Assembly, favouring clubbing of the state elections along with that in Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Chhattisgarh and Mizoram later in 2018.

But, Sunday, keeping the suspense alive, the chief minister had said he has been authorised by the party to take a final call on the issue. Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee chief spokesperson Sravan Dasoju said, "On early polls, Modi and EC have not given him (Rao) permission. As a result of that, he has gone back; he actually wanted to dissolve the House and he had

told so to many of his close aides".

Charging Rao with being a 'katputhli' (puppet) and 'slave' of Modi, he said the chief minister's "remote control" is with prime minister, who did not say 'yes' to his idea of early poll.

"It (early Assembly polls in Telangana) does not (now)look like a possibility," he said, adding update electoral rolls would be ready only by October-end. "How is that before the electoral roll is finalised, he (Rao) can call for a schedule?"

"Telangana Assembly elections are unlikely to happen by November-December," he said, adding, Modi and Rao, however, may advance Lok Sabha and Assembly elections, respectively, due in April-May 2019, by one or two months and club the elections in the four States.

On the chief minister's statement Sunday that the people of the state should not become "slave to Delhi parties," Sravan said Rao himself has become a "slave" of Modi, pointing to his support to the Centre on demonetisation and GST, and to NDA nominees in the elections to the post of President and Vice-President.

Rao had Sunday said, "Just like in Tamil Nadu, we should also make sure that power is vested in our hands for self-respect rather than Delhi leadership dictating our state... don't become slaves to Delhi parties".

Sravan termed this type of promotion of "Tamil Nadu" model as "day-dreaming" by Rao. Before the 2014 Assembly polls, Rao coined the slogan "Bangaru Telangana" (golden Telangana), and is now trying to evoke "anti-Delhi kind of sentiment," he alleged.
The Congress, which is part of the ruling coalition in Karnataka, emerged as the party which won the most seats in the urban local body (ULB) elections in the state.

The Congress, which is part of the ruling coalition in Karnataka, emerged as the party which won the most seats in the urban local body (ULB) elections in the state. The party bagged 982 out of a total of 2,662 seats.

After a close fight with the Congress, the BJP came second in the race by winning 929 seats. On the other hand, the Congress' ally in the state government, Janata Dal (Secular), trailed behind, winning 375 seats. However, it secured a majority in its strongholds of Hassan, Mandya, and Tumakuru districts.

The Congress emerged victorious in 10 out of 22 districts including Ballari, Bidar, Gadag, Mysuru, Uttara Kannada and Raichur, according to the State Election Commission. The BJP secured a majority in seven districts, including the coastal districts of Udupi and Dakshina Kannada. Independents won 329 seats across the 22 districts, while other fringe parties and regional outfits won another 34.

As the party appeared set to get the most seats, Karnataka Congress chief Dinesh Gundu Rao said that the state's urban voters "reinforced their faith in us".

Reacting to the victory, Congress communications in-charge Randeep Singh Surjewala said that the people of Karnataka have accepted the development policies of the Congress-JD(S) government in the state and have rejected the "jumlas" (rhetoric) of the BJP.

People of Karnataka have once again reposed their faith in Congress by making it the No.1 party in Urban Local Bodies. People have accepted development policies of Congress+JDS Govt & have rejected Jumlas of BJP. Many thanks to every @INCKarnataka worker!#KarnatakaULBVerdict  Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) September 3, 2018

Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy said that the urban voters, who used to earlier favour the BJP, have now shown "full support" to the coalition government with the ULB elections.

City voters normally vote for BJP, but with the outcome of this result, now even city voters have shown full support for the coalition govt led by Congress & JDS: HD Kumaraswamy, Karnataka CM, on #KarnatakaLocalBodyElections results pic.twitter.com/BoaDsQAoVF  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

Meanwhile, BJP state unit president BS Yeddyurappa said in Bengaluru, "The BJP should have won more seats but we could not perform the way we wanted to because of the Congress-JD(S) coalition."

The party, however, is confident of winning a majority in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Yeddyurappa said. "The people's mandate is with the BJP, and we are confident of a majority in the next year's general election," he added.

In Hassan City Municipal Council, the JD(S) bagged 17 out of 35 seats. The BJP won 13 seats, while the Congress could get only two seats as Independents won the remaining three.

Meanwhile, the BJP won the Udupi City Municipal Council, bagging 31 seats out of a total of 35 seats, while the Congress got only four seats and conceded defeat.

The Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) headed towards a hung house with no party in a position to secure majority in the 65-member civic body.

In the Tumakuru City Corporation that has 35 seats, Congress and JD(S) secured 10 seats each, the BJP won 12, while Independents won three seats. Of the three ULBs that went for polls in Dakshina Kannada, BJP bagged Puttur and Congress managed to sweep Ullal.

During a press conference, the Congress said that the party will join hands with the JD(S) in civic bodies where the results showed no clear majority, like Mysuru and Tumakuru. Both the Congress and the JD(S) had contested the polls separately despite being partners in the state government.

JD(S) leader Danish Ali termed the poll result as a defeat of the BJP, noting that the civic elections were held in 104 urban Assembly constituencies, out of which the BJP had won 69 in the state elections held in May .

A total of 8,340 candidates, including 2,306 from the Congress, 2,203 from the BJP and 1,397 from the JD(S), contested the ULB elections in Karnataka, with around 800 fighting for the three city corporations. The elections were held in 21 of the 30 districts across the state. A total of 105 ULBs went to the polls which include 29 city municipal councils, 53 town municipal councils and 23 town panchayats. Voting in three places in Kodagu was postponed because of floods. The remaining districts, including Bengaluru, will vote later in November.

In 2013, the ULB elections were held in 4,976 seats in which the Congress had won 1,960 seats and the BJP and the JD(S) had secured 905 seats each. The remaining 1,206 seats were bagged by Independent candidates.
BJP preens itself as a party enjoying a near-monopoly of support in urban pockets, but the results that we are talking about are of elections to urban local bodies and not rural panchayats.

The outcome of local body elections anywhere in India is like putty in the hands of politicians. They can twist and turn it, maul and mutilate it, shape and reshape it into anything to suit their convenience in their public postures. You can have a party winning local body elections celebrating it and claiming its a pointer to the next Assembly or Lok Sabha poll. And you can expect a losing party to shout from rooftops that local body polls are fought only on local issues that will have no bearing on general elections.

But parties go into a song and dance or some philosophical humbug about local issues only for public consumption. Privately, they admit that, though local personalities and issues weigh heavily in such elections, they are a reasonably good barometer for peoples mood. The 2019 Lok Sabha poll will no doubt have the inevitable Narendra Modi factor and other national issues playing their role. But Karnatakas parties can ignore at their own peril the warnings thrown up by the results of the urban local body elections announced on Monday.

It should come as no surprise that, for the record, both BJP, as well as Congress and Janata Dal (Secular), are going to great pains to interpret the results in Karnataka as their respective victories. But there was only one problem: nobody really won the polls. BJP and Congress are more or less neck-and-neck while JD(S) came up a poor third.

Parties retain Assembly strongholds

Of the 2,662 constituenciesor wardsin the 105 urban local bodies, Congress won 982, followed by 929 of BJP and 375 of JD(S). And of the 22 districts where elections were held, BJP did better than Congress in seven, Congress did better in eight, while the two parties scored almost equally in seven. Despite being part of the alliance that rules Karnataka, Congress and BJP have had a friendly fight in these elections.

If this voting pattern continues when polls for urban local bodies are held in the remaining eight districts in the second phase, probably in February next, Congress and JD(S) will still be somewhat on an equal footing. In broad terms, BJP and Congress did well in the places where their performance was good in the Assembly elections despite some surprises in a few areas.

It must have come as a disappointment to JD(S) that it hasnt done as well as it should have in its bastions like Hassan, the home district of chief minister HD Kumaraswamy and his father and former prime minister HD Deve Gowda.

What BJP must ponder over

Its the very levelling out of results between the two main parties that BJP should worry about. Having emerged as the single largest party with 104 seats in the 224-member Karnataka Assembly in elections held three and a half months ago, the party should have notched up more local body seats. Instead, BJP is trailing, though closely, behind Congress that only has 80 seats in the Assembly.

It is possible for BJP to argue that though it was far ahead in the number of Assembly seats, its vote percentage was actually marginally less than that of Congress in the May Assembly poll and that it has retained its popular support. The BJPs Assembly vote share was 36.3 percent, against 38.1 percent of Congress.

Such an argument falls flat for two reasons. One is that BJP preens itself as a party enjoying a near-monopoly of support in urban pockets, but the results that we are talking about are of elections to urban local bodies and not rural panchayats. Clearly, BJP should have done better than it has. State BJP president BS Yeddyurappa admitted as much in his very first reaction to the results on Monday, though he later sang a different tune saying the outcome amounted to a victory for his party.

The second reason why BJP leaders should lose sleep is that its campaign about what was clearly an opportunistic alliance that Congress and JD(S) struck to rule the state after the Assembly election made little impact. Any hopes that BJP leaders may have had that it would be swamped with a sympathy vote from people for being denied the chance to form the government have been dashed.

An important lesson that BJP must learn from this is that Karnataka is showing no signs of turning Congress-mukt (free). Even if Congress cuts an abysmal figure in most of the rest of India because of a bankrupt leadership starved of ideas to counter BJP, the party continues to be a force to reckon with in Karnataka and is showing no signs of being finished off.

Only hope for BJP

The only thing that BJP can perhaps take comfort from is that these elections were held less than four months after the Assembly elections and that the Congress-JD(S) coalition government will commit more blunders in the coming weeks and months to change things for the better for the party before the Lok Sabha poll. If BJP banks on such an eventuality, its hopes may not be entirely misplaced.

The coalition has been tottering along like a blunderbuss without a direction or any seeming purpose other than that it wants to keep BJP out of power. Stories of infighting within and between Congress and JD(S) appear in the media on a daily basis. The fact that Kumaraswamy is the chief minister though his JD(S) has fewer than half the Assembly seats of alliance partner Congress is at the root of the predicament that the coalition is in.

Former chief minister Siddaramaiah of Congress hasnt beenand will perhaps never be able to come to terms with the fact that Kumaraswamy, his long-time arch enemy, is occupying the top job as part of an arrangement that is totally one-sided in favour of JD(S). The coalition has still not recovered from the convulsions caused by Siddaramaiahs recent statement that he would like to be the chief minister again.

That Congress and JD(S) have fought the local body elections separately in spite of their alliance may have been a good thing for the morale of the workers of the two parties. But this also has exacerbated tensions and rivalry between workers, hardly what the parties need if they are fighting the 2019 Lok Sabha poll together, which they say they will.

The author tweets @sprasadindia
The UN-backed government in Tripoli tried to bring about a ceasefire and instructed two of its most senior military commanders to mediate between the militias.

According to a health ministry toll, at least 39 people have been killed and some 100 injured since clashes, including rocket fire, broke out among rival militias Monday in suburbs south of Tripoli.

Libya announced on Sunday a state of emergency in and around the capital Tripoli, amid escalating violence between warring militias.

"The detainees were able to force open the doors", local police said.

Numerous prisoners held at the Ain Zara facility in south-east Tripoli were reportedly supporters of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, and had been found guilty of killings during the uprising against his government in 2011.

Guards did not intervene as they feared for their own lives.

Destiny 2 headlines PlayStation Plus' September games

This month's selection is headlined by two heavy-hitters in the form of Destiny 2 and God of War III - Remastered . Matt Davidson is a freelance writer for IGN - he's available on Twitter , if that kind of thing does it for you.

An estimated 39 people, including civilians, have been killed and 96 wounded in the ongoing clashes.

Libya is governed by rival authorities - the internationally recognized government operates from Tripoli in the west, while the other is based in the eastern city of Tobruk.

Human Rights Watch has also condemned the violence, adding that at least 18 of the dead were reportedly civilians, among them four children.

The UN refugee agency said it moved about 300 refugees and migrants out of a detention centre in Ain Zara, one of the focal points for conflict.

Most of the prisoners were supporters of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who was removed from power following a NATO-backed uprising against his government in 2011, the BBC reported. We call on all actors to refrain from any action that would jeopardize the political framework established by the UN-led mediation to which the global community is fully committed.

These attempts to weaken the legitimate Libyan authorities and hamper the course of the political process are not acceptable.
The Congress edged a close battle in the Karnataka municipal elections but it was the Bharatiya Janata Party that took giant strides ahead of next year's general election.

Bengaluru: The Congress edged a close battle in the Karnataka municipal polls but it was the Bharatiya Janata Party that took giant strides ahead of next year's general election.

The BJP bagged 929 seats of the 2,664 seats34 percentthat were up for grabs in the Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) that went to the polls on Friday, while the Congress won 982 seats. Compare that to 2013 when the BJP won only 18 percent of seats that were up for grabs (ULB elections were held in all 4,976 seats in 2013: Congress won 1,960 seats and the BJP and the JD(S) secured 905 seats each).

The Janata Dal (Secular), which won 30 percent of seats in 2007 and 18 percent of seats in 2013, secured 375 seats (13 percent). The Congress' winning percentage slid by 4 percent compared with its 2013 performance. To be noted: This year, only half the seats witnessed elections. The remaining ULBs will see polls next year and the BJP lost some seats to the Karnataka Janata Paksha (KJP).

The polls also saw Independent candidates and small parties such as the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) making their mark. The SDPI, which has its base in Kerala, won seats in communally sensitive areas such as Ullal (six seats) and Bantwal (four seats) and in coastal areas of Dakshina Kannada. The Congress could not obtain a majority in these ULBs despite being the single largest party due to the performance of the SDPI, the JD(S) and Independent candidates.

Ullal is the Assembly constituency of Congress leader and Urban Development and Housing Minister UT Khader. The Congress saw its margins shrink the mostcompared to 2013in Dakshina Kannada district. Khader said the Congress would not forge an alliance with a communal party such as the SDPI and is content to sit on the Opposition benches. Reportedly, the newly-elected councillors met Khader on Monday afternoon and requested that he consider an alliance with the JD(S) to claim power in the Ullal city municipal council. District leaders placed the blame for the party's poor performance squarely on Khader and his former cabinet colleague B Ramanatha Rai.

Leaders feeling the heat

Likewise, many Congress leaders along the coast, Old Mysore region, Bayaluseeme and Northern Karnataka have been blamed for the partys poor showing. Veteran Congress leader Mallikarjuna Kharge said ULB elections are a small affair and this result should not be considered as peoples mandate against the party. Anand Asnotikar, a politician who has dabbled with both the BJP and the Congress in Uttara Kannada, shared Kharge's opinion.

The Congress' underwhelming performance in the constituencies of party heavyweights RV Deshpande and Deputy Chief Minister G Parameshwara has also seemingly left them feeling the heat. In Tumakuru (Parameshwara's Assembly constituency) and Uttara Kannada (Deshpande's constituency), the party threw its weight behind them.

In Shivamogga, the stronghold of former chief minister BS Yeddyurappa, the BJP emerged as the largest single party with 19 out of 35 seats. Senior party leader and former chief minister KS Eshwarappa is reportedly happy with the partys performance, though he believes it could have been better. With more than half the seats in its kitty, Yeddyurappa said the BJP would form the council in Shivamogga.

In the 65-seat Mysuru City Corporation, the BJP bagged 22 seats and emerged as the single largest party. Both the JD(S) and Congress won 19 seats each. JD(S) leaders are in talks with Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy about joining hands with the Congress to be on the ruling bench. Congress leaders said this is the obvious decision.

Who won what

In Haverithe northern part of the statethe Congress bagged 66 of 136 seats while the BJP won 43. The Congress also won a majority in the town municipal councils of Hanagal and Savanur in Haveri district.

In Uttara Kannada district, no party gained a majority in Ankola town municipality council though Congress won the most seats, followed by the BJP. The Congress recorded a thumping win in Yellapur and the BJP secured a majority in Mundgod for the first time.

In Karwar, the BJP and Congress won 11 seats each, while the JD(S) and Independents won four and five seats respectively. This is reminiscent of the last election, when the BJP and Congress won 13 seats each. In Sirsis 31 wards, the BJP won 17 and the Congress nine. Independents won in four wards while the JD(S) bagged just one seat.

In Dandeli, the BJP won 11 seats after having no presence there until the last Assembly election. However, the Congress won 16 seats and claimed victory while four independent candidates were elected councillors.

In Kumta town municipality, the BJP dominated the Congress and the JD(S) by winning 16 of 23 seats; the Congress won six and the JD(S) just one. In Haliyal town municipality, the Congress won 14 seats and the BJP seven. One Independent candidate and one JD(S) candidate also secured victory.

In Yellapur town, the Congress won 12, BJP five and the JD(S) won one. Two Independent candidates won one seat each. In Mundgod the BJP won 10 of 19 seats and the Congress bagged the rest. Next year, polls will be held for the high-stakes city corporation in Bengaluru, apart from ULBs in Mangaluru, Davanagere and Hubli-Dharwad.

M Raghuram is a Mangaluru-based freelance writer. He is a member of 101Reporters

With inputs from S Shankar Patil. Deepak Kumar, Basavaraj M, Ravi Kumar, Ranjini S and Lakshmi B.
Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, while thanking the people of the state, said that they have once against reposed their faith in the Congress.

New Delhi: The Congress said on Monday that the people of Karnataka have accepted the development policies of the Congress-JD(S) government in the state and have rejected the 'jumlas' (rhetoric) of the BJP, after the party emerged as the single largest in the local body polls.

Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, while thanking the people of the state, said that they have once against reposed their faith in the Congress.

"People of Karnataka have once again reposed their faith in Congress by making it the number one party in urban local bodies," he said.

"People have accepted development policies of Congress+JDS Govt & have rejected Jumlas of BJP. Many thanks to every @INCKarnataka worker!," he tweeted.

According to the state election commission, the Congress has secured 966 seats and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) bagged 910 seats in the elections held on Saturday. The Janata Dal (Secular) has won 373 seats.

Results for 2,628 seats out of 2,709 have been declared so far.

Both the Congress and the JD(S) contested the polls separately despite being partners in the state government, but they have already declared that they would tie up post-election in urban bodies.

JD(S) leader Danish Ali termed the poll result as a defeat of the BJP, noting that the civic elections were held in 104 urban assembly constituencies, out of which the BJP had won 69 in the state elections held in May .

"The Congress and the JD(S) will coordinate to form urban local bodies since we are in alliance and this will help in further assimilation of the cadres," he said.
Tripura election commission has fixed by-elections to panchayat seats on 30 September. Polls would be held in 3,207 seats in gram panchayats, 161 seats in panchayat samities and 18 seats in zila parishads.

Agartala: The opposition Congress Monday announced that it would contest all the seats of the by-elections of the three-tier panchayat, which fell vacant due to mass scale resignation of the office bearers after the BJP-Indigenous Peoples Front of Tripura (IPFT) came to power.

The state election commission has fixed by-elections to panchayat seats on coming 30 September. Polls would be held in 3,207 seats in gram panchayats, 161 seats in panchayat samities and 18 seats in zila parishads.

President of the Tripura Pradesh Congress Committee (TPCC), Birajit Sinha said, "To maintain law and order in the state is the responsibility of the state government. If healthy democratic atmosphere does not prevail during the election, the Congress would not keep mum and appropriate actions would be initiated."

He said the process for selection of candidates for the by-elections in the block level has already started. "Besides, we have also declared the names of in-charges of Congress in all the blocks of the state. We have also geared up our party machinery for the 30 September by-elections," Sinha told reporters.

Earlier on 20 August state party secretary of CPM Bijan Dhar said, "We are well aware that the state election department has taken initiative to hold the by-elections for the vacant posts in the three tier Panchayat bodies. We demand before conducting the by-polls the concerned authority must ensure proper democratic atmosphere in the state, so that opposition parties could participate in the elections without fear."

He also said due to political pressure of ruling BJP activists a huge number of people representatives had resigned after BJP-IPFT government was formed in Tripura in March 2017. "Abnormal vacancies were created due to resignations under duress," Dhar told reporters.

Ashoke Sinha, BJP spokesperson said, "CPM allegation of forced resignation is baseless. CPM lost organizational support after defeat in the state assembly elections that is why people had resigned. Nobody exercised any force on them. I am confident that our party would make good results in the by-elections."

In a separate event, Birajit Sinha said, "Congress would submit a memorandum to the Tripura Governor Kaptan Singh Solanki on 20 September alleging that Rafale aircraft deal was a scam of the ruling BJP."

"On 20 September we would organize a huge rally from Congress Bhavan in Agartala, which would move in different parts of the town and submit a memorandum to the governor as part of our nationwide protest. We named this campaign Bharat Bachao Rafael Ghotala," he said. All India youth congress president Keshav Chand Jadav and Vice President Srinibah BV will also join the rally.
Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu Sunday called for deciding a national policy on the need for Upper House in state legislatures.

New Delhi: Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu Sunday called for deciding a national policy on the need for Upper House in state legislatures. He also urged political parties to evolve a consensus on the code of conduct for their members both inside and outside legislatures.

He made the remarks during the launch of the book 'Moving on...Moving forward: A year in office' on his first year as vice president and Rajya Sabha chairman. The event was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former prime ministers Manmohan Singh and HD Deve Gowda, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Rajya Sabha Deputy Leader of Opposition Anand Sharma. Naidu broadly suggested five reforms to improve the functioning of Parliament and state legislatures.

"In my view, political parties must evolve a consensus on the code of conduct for their members both inside the legislature and out of it. Otherwise, people might soon lose faith in our political processes and institutions," he said. Talking about political defections, he said the anti-defection laws should be implemented in letter and spirit expeditiously, within three months. "I know that this is absolutely feasible, since I could dispose off the petitions that I received within this time frame," Naidu asserted.

The election petitions and criminal cases against political leaders need to be disposed off within a reasonable timeframe by constituting, if required, special benches of high courts and the Supreme court, he said. "It is time that we consider and decide upon a national policy on the need for Upper House in state legislatures," Naidu said. Some Indian states such as Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Bihar have bicameral legislatures, while other states have unicameral legislative set up. All efforts should be geared towards creation of a cleaner polity and a transparent people-centred governance, the vice president said.

Noting that the last session was called the "Session for Social Justice", Naidu said it was important to consider and pass legislations that reflect collective commitment to social justice. "In order to build a more inclusive society, there is a need to move towards ensuring proportional representation of all groups, especially those which have till now been under represented," he said.
Nearly 65,000 'cyber warriors' of the BJP are all set to take on 'Rajiv Ke Sipahi' of the Congress in cyber space.

With the advent of YouTube, Facebook, Twitter and WhatsApp, social media has changed the way politicians reach out to the public and vice-versa. From Barack Obama in 2008 to Narendra Modi in 2014 and Donald Trump in 2016, politicos and political parties have used social media to mobilise their base, create swathes of new followers and get their message out.

According to several media reports, the latest example of the prominence assigned to social media in this brave new world comes from the Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC), which has written a letter to ticket aspirants and said that candidates in upcoming polls must have 15,000 likes on their Facebook page, 5000 Twitter followers and a WhatsApp group of booth-level workers. Aspirants were also instructed to like and retweet every post on the MPCC Twitter account.

Madhya Pradesh Congress Committee (MPCC) writes in a letter to ticket aspirants, 'candidates in upcoming polls must have 15,000 likes on their FB page, 5000 followers on Twitter,& a WhatsApp group of booth-level workers.They must like&retweet every post on MPCC's twitter account' pic.twitter.com/tvrh9aAVJp  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

The letter begins by saying that the Congress party is taking strict steps towards improving its social media campaign and the same conditions will also apply for office bearers and lawmakers of the party in Madhya Pradesh, NDTV reported.

According to a report in The Indian Express, the MPCC set 15 September as the deadline for interested candidates to submit details of their social media presence if they want their names to be considered for party tickets.

Nearly 65,000 'cyber warriors' of the BJP are all set to take on 'Rajiv Ke Sipahi' of the Congress in cyber space to woo young voters on social media platforms in the upcoming Madhya Pradesh Assembly polls.

The BJP's state Information Technology (IT) cell in-charge, Shivraj Singh Dabi, said about 65,000 'cyber warriors' have been deployed by the party in the last three months and 5,000 more will be deputed shortly.

The state Congress has set up a team of around 4,000 'Rajiv Ke Sipahi' (named after their leader and former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi credited with the digital revolution in India) to battle it out against the BJP on social media.

The Congress will train 5,000 more people for the task, the state party's IT cell in-charge, Dharmendra Bajpai, said. "We are going to hold training sessions in the state's revenue divisions from 25 June," he said.

Both the leaders said they were going to reach out to people on popular social media platforms like Facebook and Twitter. They would especially focus on WhatsApp, owing to its wide reach.

"During elections, our biggest weapon is going to be WhatsApp", Bajpai said. Commenting on the BJP's strategy, Dabi said, "We are going to be doubly active on WhatsApp as it's the biggest communication tool, specially to reach out to commoners and villagers."

He said the party used social media to counter the Congress' 10-day Gaon bandh during the farmers' agitation in MP from 1 June to 10 June. The BJP's IT cell had highlighted the central and state governments' welfare schemes for farmers during the agitation, Dabi said, claimimg that the party had thwarted the Congress' bid to capitalise on the farmers' agitation. In contrast, Bajpai said their 'Rahul with farmers' hash-tag on Twitter was a 'huge success'.

It was trending for 23 hours on Twitter when Congress chief Rahul Gandhi visited Madhya Pradesh's Mandsaur district and addressed a farmers' rally on 6 June, he said. 'The hash-tag recorded participation of more than 1.25 lakh people on the widely used social networking site', Bajpai claimed.

Both the parties said through the use of social media, they would try to dispel misunderstandings and false propaganda of their rivals in the run-up to the state polls. A BJP leader said party president Amit Shah, during his visit to Jabalpur in MP on 12 June, held a meeting with 'cyber warriors' and discussed with them on how to take on the Congress in the social media space.

With inputs from PTI
Indo-Asian News Service

A Japanese start-up linked to the University of Tsukuba is set to launch small satellites with commemorative titanium plaques carrying love messages into space by the end of 2019, the company said on 3 September.

Those interested would be able to engrave messages of their choice on the plaques, which would be 1.8 centimetres long and 0.8 centimetres wide, set to be carried to space aboard the satellites and orbit around the Earth for around two years before being destroyed, Efe reported.

Around 10 centimetres in size, the CubeSat satellites would be able to carry up to 600 pure titanium plaques and would be transported to the International Space Station (ISS) by a rocket of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency.

In the ISS, the astronauts stationed there will take photographs of the ultra-small satellite which would be then sent to the couples to prove that their messages have reached space, Warspace CEO Toshihiro Kameda said.

The start-up had planned to offer this service exclusively to the couples getting married at a hotel in Tsukuba, in Ibaraki prefecture, for the price of $270, but in the face of growing demand, it decided to expand its offer and set up an online order facility in September.

Although they have not determined the number of people interested in the service yet, couples from Japan, the US and Taiwan have contacted the company.

The minisatellites and the plaques would be destroyed after two years by burning up when they come in contact with Earth's atmosphere, said Kameda, a professor who teaches the mechanics of materials at the University of Tsukuba.

If this service receives a good response, Warspace would expand its business and will send out more commemorative objects into space which would later return to Earth, the head of the project said.
Indo-Asian News Service

A year after its launch, Microsoft has announced it is withdrawing its Surface Plus financing programme, which was introduced to help US-based users and businesses get a Surface device with low monthly payments.

The company introduced the programme that allowed customers to spread the cost of a new Surface Pro over two years with a payment plan called "Klarna Financing".

"After much thought and consideration, Microsoft has decided to end new enrollment into the Surface Plus Program, financed by Klarna, starting August 31, 2018. For existing Surface Plus customers, please see the FAQs and the Surface Plus Program terms and conditions," the tech giant said in a statement late on Sunday.

The programme would have also allowed them to upgrade to a new device after 18 months, provided that the customers returned their devices in good condition.

The tech major has said it would also shut down its Surface Plus Portal on September 30 and costumers with questions regarding the Klarna programme will be required to contact the company directly.
Agence France-Presse

Pope Francis on Saturday issued a call to clear up oceans threatened by plastic waste and underscored the need to provide drinking water to all as a basic right.

"We cannot allow our seas and oceans to be littered by endless fields of floating plastic," the pontiff said in a message on the fourth World Day of Prayer for the Care of Creation.

"Sadly, all too many efforts fail due to the lack of effective regulation and means of control, particularly with regard to the protection of marine areas beyond national confines."

The pope also said that access "to safe drinkable water is a basic and universal human right" and deplored that for many it was "difficult if not impossible".

"Our world owes a great social debt towards the poor who lack access to drinking water, because they are denied the right to a life consistent with their inalienable dignity," he said.
IndiaSpend

- By Charu Bahri

November is when Delhis 16.3 million residents feel the worst effects of agricultural fires in Punjab and Haryana, crop stubble or waste set ablaze to clear land for the next crop. These fires cause about half of Delhis air pollution, according to a Harvard University study published in March 2018, not 20 percent as Indias former environment minister had claimed in 2017 (a scientist at the earth sciences ministry had estimated farm fires as contributing to 70 percent).

Now, Green Screen, a US start-up co-founded by Daniel Cusworth, one of the Harvard studys co-authors, proposes a solution by converting the farm waste that is usually burned into cooling panels that can protect the poor in the Delhi urban agglomeration from extreme summer heat. The screens, expected to cost no more than Rs 350 ($5) per piece measuring just under one square metre  or about half the size of a standard door  will be made with a new material technology that involves using a natural binding agent, such as certain kinds of fungi, to convert crop stubble into a moldable substance.

Indias urban poor are among the most vulnerable people during the summer months, a season that is expected to gradually become longer, especially in the Gangetic plains, potentially peaking at eight months by the 2070s if greenhouse-gas emissions are not cut to limit the global temperature increase to 2 degrees Celsius, IndiaSpend reported in January 2018.

About a tenth of Delhis population lives in slums, according to the 2011 census. However, in 2012, the capitals civic body estimated that nearly half its people lived in slums and unauthorised colonies devoid of civic amenities.

Air pollution  held responsible for one in every four deaths (24.4 percent) caused by non-communicable diseases in 2015  affects the poor and rich alike.

Last November, plumes of acrid smoke that drifted down to Delhi from the northern agricultural states were implicated in the rise in cases of severe breathlessness, asthma and allergy (see this report from 2017 and this from 2016). Growing pollution has also been implicated in the rising occurrence of non-communicable diseases such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, cancer and diabetes (see this 2017 global study published in the Lancet).

Green Screen hopes that its solution can offer some respite from the summer heat and help reduce air pollution. Cusworth, 30, an atmospheric chemist at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, said the enormity of Delhis air-pollution problem prompted him and his co-founders  Alex Robinson and Ramya Pinnamaneni, global health practitioners from the Harvard Chan Public Health School, and Gina Ciancone, an urban planner at the Harvard Graduate School of Design  to get directly involved.

We are all interested in the intersection of human health and the environment, I am also interested in climate change and climate policy, said Cusworth, a data scientist and applied mathematician. What makes the issue of agricultural burning especially interesting is it is very complex due to the tradeoffs between air pollution, farming efficiency, and regulation.

Yet, Cusworth has never visited India or experienced Delhis pollution.

Im prepping for my maiden visit, he said. I am really excited to experience India firsthand.

Your study, published in the March 2018 issue of the journal Environmental Research Letters, concluded that about half of the air pollution observed in Delhi in the fall season could be attributed to agricultural fires. Since this research is your starting point for Green Screen, can you tell us how you arrived at this conclusion? Is the air pollution in other northern cities also caused by those fires?

We estimated that about half of the particulate pollution in Delhi during October-November was due to upwind agricultural fires. We came to this conclusion through two analyses. In the first analysis, we aggregated all particulate matter (PM 2.5) observations available from 2012-2016, which included the Central Pollution Control Board, the United States Embassy in Delhi, and your (IndiaSpend) own network. [In December 2015, IndiaSpend launched#Breathe, a network of low-cost sensors to measure the air quality in many Indian cities, including Delhi, based on the density of particles smaller than 2.5 microns, scientifically called PM 2.5.] We analysed the PM 2.5 concentrations in Delhi before and after fires to get a background estimate of the general state of pollution in Delhi. This background was about half the PM 2.5 observed during the fire events.

In the second analysis, we used satellite images of fire hotspots to derive PM 2.5 emission estimates of the regions upwind of Delhi. We combined these emissions with a fluid dynamics model to simulate the flow of this pollution towards the urban centre. The concentrations of this modelled PM 2.5 agreed with the observed PM 2.5 during most peak burning events. Again, we found about half of the pollution during these events was attributable to fires.

As you said, this research was the trigger for Green Screen. Quantifying the influence of upwind agricultural fire emissions on Delhi air pollution showed us the potential health benefits of changes in farming practices to reduce fires.

And to answer your other question, yes, the large quantity of smoke emitted by the agricultural fires also contribute to air pollution across other parts of the heavily populated Indo-Gangetic plain located downwind of the fires.

How did you move from your research to the concept of Green Screen, the portable, lightweight screen made of agricultural waste? Who conceptualised Green Screen? Can you describe the design of the screen? How much agricultural waste would you be using in the production of a screen?

Green Screen developed during a course at Harvard University, which aimed at creating viable solutions to intractable problems facing developing countries, such as India. Alongside Alex Robinson and Ramya Pinnamaneni, global health practitioners from the Harvard Chan Public Health School, and myself, Gina Ciancone, an urban planner at the Harvard Graduate School of Design led the development of Green Screen as a solution that could simultaneously address the interconnected problems of air pollution and extreme heat. Our team cuts across disciplines, as you can see.

Green Screen is a zero-electricity consuming, air-cooling panel approximately 36 x 36 x 4 in size (but those dimensions may be adjusted based on the needs of the residential communities), made entirely of agricultural waste, which would have otherwise have been burned by farmers and further contributed to air pollution. Our solution simultaneously incentivises an alternative use for excess agricultural waste and transforms waste into a product used to cool those most at risk from extreme heat.

We will produce bio-pulp from the waste, and mould it into the conical-cooling geometry of the screens. The screen will cool through two processesairflow and evaporation. If the panel isnt watered, it will cool via the flow of air through the conical geometry. Using bio-pulp allows for watering which would further cool through evaporation.

Concept drawings of Green Screen.

Green Screen is designed to cover gaps and openings in incomplete structures, providing insulation and shade during the oppressive summer months. Since Green Screen is installed through a hinge system, it has the added benefits of functioning as a method of privacy and security for residents.

Although these are early days, we are considering potential design modifications, such as cowl, to adapt Green Screen for roof panelling. We will need to adjust the size of the panelling and test it for load-bearing and durability to determine its potential to replace larger portions of the structure.

While the exact amount of agricultural waste needed to optimise the impact of Green Screen is still being determined, early projections aim to produce 100 screens from one tonne of bio-pulp, which would prevent one tonne of carbon dioxide from entering the air. To give you some perspective on the pollution saving, a typical passenger vehicle emits about 4.6 metric tonnes of carbon dioxide per year.

What happens next? Do you have a product ready to launch in India?

We have had early prototypes of Green Screen fabricated from materials sourced in the USA to test the geometry of the product. Obviously, we want to develop an optimised product, this involves getting the size of the conical shape right.

Next, our partners, two not-for-profits, the Delhi-based Chintan and the UK-based WIEGO, will work with us to install (for free) and test the effect of these screens at the household level within specific slums in New Delhi. This will enable us to better determine product suitability, feasibility and usefulness. This will occur during the products pilot phase in 2019. We are currently developing a deployment strategy with our partners.

While all this is going on, we plan to enlist a domestic team in order to better coordinate all the prototyping and piloting efforts. Our goal is to manufacture and produce the screens in as close proximity to Delhi as possible to minimise outsourcing.

Eventually, obviously Green Screen will be sold. We aim to produce an affordable product. Our goal is to sell Green Screen products for less than 1 percent the cost of a conventional air conditioner, no more than Rs 350 ($5) per screen.

I say products because the plan is to scale up and diversify Green Screen production in future to include ventilated portable tents for day labourers and small-scale buildings.

You have modelled how the smoke and pollution generated in Punjab and Haryana would be impacted if farms in different regions did not burn their stubble, to pinpoint which farms you should target to procure agricultural waste for production. Were these farms in any particular area of Punjab or nearer Delhi?

We will be sourcing the agricultural stubble from farms outside of New Delhi for the next phase of development happening later this year. We are working with Chintan to determine the location of agricultural farms with which to coordinate. The exact farms and locations have not been finalised.

Actually, this is an ongoing project of ours to pinpoint which farms have the largest potential air quality benefit, and then to use that information to form partnerships with farmers. We cant comment yet about specific farms, but below is a figure from my recent paper that shows the median 2012-2016 sensitivity of urban pollution in Delhi to upwind fire emissions. From a map such as this, you can deduce which regions (darkest colours) would influence pollution in Delhi the most.

Sensitivity Of Urban Pollution In Delhi To Upwind Fire Emissions

Do you anticipate any challenges? Are you looking for government support?

While challenges are always part of the development process, we are confident that the variety of skill sets within the Green Screen team will convert these challenges into unforeseen opportunities that will ultimately lead to a better product. We look forward to cooperating closely with the Delhi Pollution Control Committee, Environment Department, and relevant municipal authorities to ensure our targets are in line with broader, ongoing greening efforts in the city.

The author is a freelance writer and editor based in Mount Abu, Rajasthan.

Indiaspend.org is a data-driven, public-interest journalism non-profit/FactChecker.in is fact-checking initiative, scrutinising for veracity and context statements made by individuals and organisations in public life.
European Union diplomats said his aim was to talk up the trade deal in order to entice Britain into accepting it and an Irish border emergency plan - a key sticking point in Brexit talks.

The EU's chief negotiator, who has been strident on the issue during the behind-the-scenes negotiations, made public his request for the information as he warned he needed an agreement on Northern Ireland and other outstanding withdrawal issues "by November at the latest".

Barnier has made clear there will be no deal without a backstop and said Thursday: "British politicians must take responsibility for their own decisions".

"It's a matter of some urgency".

The EU and United Kingdom agreed a Joint Report last December which provides for a "backstop" to take effect if no other solutions were found to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland.

"All in all I think the contours of an agreement and a deal on the withdrawal agreement are becoming clearer and clearer, which is a positive", he said.

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With seven months to go until Britain leaves, its government has been ramping up its no-deal preparations, and negotiators on both sides increasingly expect an informal October deadline for reaching an agreement to slip into November. The UK is due to leave the European Union on the March 29 next year. "It's as simple as that".

Standing alongside Dominic Raab, the Brexit secretary, Mr Barnier said this was one of the "salient points which are still outstanding".

Raab, whose predecessor David Davis resigned in July over differences with Prime Minister Theresa May's negotiating strategy, said he was "stubbornly optimistic" that a deal could be reached.

Raab said: "On Northern Ireland we remain committed to giving effect to the joint report, continuing the work on the potential solutions, working with Michel and his team on some of the issues he's raised and continuing to drive that forward".

After weeks of warning of growing risk of a damaging no-deal Brexit and signalling delay was expected if there is to be any Brexit deal, the EU's strategy is now to highlight how close cooperation with Britain is possible after Brexit to make London more willing to accept divorce terms.

He said: "We must remember beyond Brussels and the Westminster village, that actually there are real people affected by the trade negotiations".
Agence France-Presse

United Nations member states on Tuesday kick off long-awaited talks on a 2020 treaty that would regulate the high seas, which cover half the planet yet lack adequate environmental protection.

Four sessions of talks, each lasting two weeks, are planned to take place over two years, with the goal of protecting marine biodiversity and avoiding further pillaging of the oceans.

"The negotiations will relate to spaces beyond national jurisdictions, or areas that belong to no country in particular," said Julien Rochette of the Paris-based think tank Iddri, or the Institute of Sustainable Development and International Relations.

Talk will focus on "the high seas and the international zone of marine waters, or about 46 percent of the planet's surface," he added.

In 1982, the UN adopted the Convention on the Law of the Sea, but left the high seas free from restrictions.

"All States enjoy the traditional freedoms of navigation, overflight, scientific research and fishing on the high seas," it said.

The convention took effect in 1994, without the participation of the United States.

Since then, shipping routes have expanded considerably, and the resources of the ocean deep have aroused significant interest, whether by fishing or mineral extraction.

"Marine life is already reeling from the impact of industrial fishing, climate change and other extractive industries. We have a shared responsibility to protect our global oceans before it is too late," said Sandra Schoettner, a marine biologist with Greenpeace.

Talks will focus on creating protected areas on the high seas, more sharing of maritime resources and technology, and research on environmental impacts.

Ocean sanctuaries

Some whale-hunting nations, like Japan, Iceland and Norway, are expected to be more cautious than others because they fear overly strict fishing restrictions.

The United States is also reticent "because they are opposed to all regulation of marine genetic resources and they did not ratify the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea," said Rochette.

"Russia has also been dragging its feet for a long time."

Liz Karan, an ocean expert at the US-based Pew Charitable Trusts, called the negotiations "a critical turning point."

"We now understand so much more about the interconnectedness of the world's ocean with the health of the planet," Karan said.

"It's time for the global community to take action to develop a treaty to protect the high seas."

According to Schoettner, "the life of our seas depends on the outcome of the next two years of negotiations, from the tiniest life-giving plankton, to dolphins, turtles and the great whales.

"A strong global ocean treaty would allow us to create a network of ocean sanctuaries to protect wildlife, ensure food security for billions of people and help us to tackle climate change," she added.
At a hurriedly called press conference after the Pentagon announced that the US will cancel $300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to take actions against terror groups, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said the matter will be taken up during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to the country on 5 September.

Islamabad: Pakistan claimed on Sunday that the $300 million aid the Pentagon has decided to scrap was not a military aid as the US owed this money to Islamabad for its support in the war on terror and was supposed to reimburse it.

At a hurriedly called press conference after the Pentagon announced that the US will cancel $300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to take actions against terror groups, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said the matter will be taken up during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to the country on 5 September.

"The $300 million is neither aid nor assistance  it is the money Pakistan spent from its resources against militants and in the war against terrorism. This is the money they (US) are supposed to reimburse, but now either they are not willing or unable to pay back, he said. "It was all our money that we spent and they (US) were merely reimbursing it," he said.

Earlier he told the BBC Urdu that the US in principle should pay back the money to Pakistan because it was spent for a common objective to defeat militancy and create peace and stability. "We will sit and discuss this with him (Pompeo). We will try to improve bilateral ties between the two countries. We will listen to him and present our point of view to him as well," he said.

In a fresh blow to the deteriorating ties between the two nations, the Pentagon announced that the US will cancel $300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to take "decisive actions" to support President Donald Trump's new South Asia policy and act against terror groups like the Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Taiba.

The announcement comes just days before Pompeo is due to visit Pakistan to meet the country's new prime minister Imran Khan. The US and others have long complained that Pakistan provides safe haven to militant networks, allowing them to carry out cross-border attacks in Afghanistan. The Pentagon's move, which needs to be approved by the US Congress, is part of a broader suspension of aid announced in January.

To a question about options for Pakistan to get the stopped funds, Qureshi said Pakistan will talk to the US because the money was already spent by Pakistan.

If they don't want to reimburse for future spending, it may be different thing. But morally and in principle, they should reimburse what we spent in the past, he said.

He said Pakistan welcomes the forthcoming visit of Pompeo as it will help to understand each other's point of view. There are two sides of a picture. They (US) are showing only one side of it; we will show the other side, he said. He added that there is a trust deficit between Pakistan and the US but the government wants to improve the ties and build trust between the two countries.

Qureshi said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government was not responsible for the latest tension or suspension of funds by the US as the deal to reimburse Pakistan the cost of war on terror was agreed in past. He also blamed the government of former premier Nawaz Sharif for current tension with the US. Qureshi said the new government of Imran Khan will take all decision keeping in mind the interests of Pakistan.

US President Donald Trump since assuming office has been tough on Pakistan over its inaction against terror groups, saying Washington has got "nothing but lies and deceit" in return for millions of dollars in aid over the years. Trump in August last year unveiled his new South Asia policy and asked Pakistan to do more against such groups.
Boris Johnson launched a fierce broadside at the prime minister to kick off Parliament's return to business after its summer break.

London: British prime minister Theresa May's Brexit blueprint came under heavy attack on Monday, with pro-Brexit figurehead Boris Johnson calling it a surrender that hands "victory" to European Union (EU).

Johnson, who resigned as foreign secretary in July over May's proposed future relationship between London and Brussels, launched a fierce broadside at the prime minister to kick off Parliament's return to business after its summer break.

Meanwhile 20 MPs in May's centre-right Conservative Party publically pledged to reject her so-called Chequers plan, which would keep Britain close to the EU on trade. The unrest comes as Parliament returns on Tuesday, with just weeks to go before the mid-October deadline set by London and Brussels to strike a withdrawal agreement.

May's sea of troubles swelled after the EU's Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier strongly opposed her blueprint, saying it could lead to the downfall of European integration.

Writing in The Daily Telegraph newspaper, Johnson  the bookmakers' favourite to take over from May  said Britain has "gone into battle with the white flag fluttering over our leading tank". "The inevitable outcome is a victory for the EU, with the UK lying flat on the canvas with 12 stars circling symbolically over our semi-conscious head," he said.

Johnson claimed the real "scandal" was "not that we have failed, but that we have not even tried" on Brexit.

'Serious plan'

Responding to Johnson's attack, May's official spokesman said, "Boris Johnson resigned over Chequers. There's no new ideas in this article to respond to. "What we need at this time is serious leadership with a serious plan and that's exactly what the country has with this prime minister and this Brexit plan."

The plan envisages Britain leaving the single market but staying in a free trade area for goods and agri-foods through a customs deal and common rule-book with the EU. Johnson and his fellow hardline Brexiteers think the Chequers plan, named after the prime minister's country residence, keeps Britain too closely aligned to the bloc.

20 Conservative MPs made a joint public commitment on Monday to block May's proposal, joining the StandUp4Brexit campaign. They said Chequers would hamper Britain's ability to strike its own free trade deals, cut Northern Ireland off from the rest of the UK and keep the European judiciary ruling over Britain.

May's Conservative minority government has a working majority of nine votes in Parliament's 650-seat lower House of Commons, thanks to the backing of Northern Ireland's nine Democratic Unionist Party MPs.

However, the Commons chamber is broadly split into four camps. Some MPs ultimately want Britain to remain in the EU; some want a complete break with Brussels; some back Chequers, while others want a different type of Brexit.

Barnier, May standing firm

Former Brexit secretary David Davis, who like Johnson quit over Chequers, backed May to stay in her post. "It is absolutely possible to dump Chequers without changing leader," he told The Times newspaper.

Barnier opened the door to a brief extension of talks to nail down a deal, saying negotiations must be completed "by mid-November". But, speaking to German newspaper The Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, he reiterated his hostility to Chequers. "I strongly oppose the British proposal," he said. "We have a coherent market for goods, services, capital and people - our own ecosystem that has grown over decades. You can not play with it by picking pieces."

May insisted on Sunday that she would not be railroaded by Brussels as the talks come to the crunch. "I will not be pushed into accepting compromises on the Chequers proposals that are not in our national interest," she wrote in The Sunday Telegraph newspaper.

Britain is due to leave the EU at the end of March.
By Christian Shepherd and Ben Blanchard BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping offered another $60 billion in financing for Africa on Monday and wrote off some debt for poorer African nations, while warning against funds going towards 'vanity projects'. Speaking at the opening of a major summit with African leaders, Xi promised development that people on the continent could see and touch, but that would also be green and sustainable. China has denied engaging in 'debt trap' diplomacy, and Xi's offer of more money comes after a pledge of another $60 billion at the previous summit in South Africa three years ago.

By Christian Shepherd and Ben Blanchard

BEIJING (Reuters) - Chinese President Xi Jinping offered another $60 billion in financing for Africa on Monday and wrote off some debt for poorer African nations, while warning against funds going towards "vanity projects".

Speaking at the opening of a major summit with African leaders, Xi promised development that people on the continent could see and touch, but that would also be green and sustainable.

China has denied engaging in "debt trap" diplomacy, and Xi's offer of more money comes after a pledge of another $60 billion at the previous summit in South Africa three years ago.

Xi, addressing leaders at Beijing's Great Hall of the People, said the new $60 billion will include $15 billion of aid, interest-free loans and concessional loans, a credit line of $20 billion, a $10 billion special fund for China-Africa development, and a $5 billion special fund for imports from Africa.

Chinese companies will be encouraged to invest no less than $10 billion in the continent in the next three years, he said.

Government debt from China's interest free loans due by the end of 2018 will be written off for indebted poor African countries, as well as for developing nations in the continent's interior and small island nations, Xi said.

"China-Africa cooperation must give Chinese and African people tangible benefits and successes that can be seen, that can be felt," he said.

China will carry out 50 projects on green development and environmental protection in Africa, focusing on fighting climate change, desertification and wildlife protection, Xi said.

He pledged, without giving details, that China would set up a peace and security fund and a related forum, while continuing to provide free military assistance to the African Union.

Chinese officials have vowed to be more cautious to ensure projects are sustainable. China defends continued lending to Africa on the grounds that the continent still needs debt-funded infrastructure development.

Speaking earlier at a business forum, Xi said China had to be careful about where money was spent.

"China's cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects but in places where they count the most," he said.

Beijing has also fended off criticism it is only interested in resource extraction to feed its own booming economy, that the projects it funds have poor environmental safeguards, and that too many of the workers for them are flown in from China rather than using African labour.

'AFRICA KNOWS BEST'

Chinese officials say this year's summit will strengthen Africa's role in Xi's Belt and Road initiative to link China by sea and land with Southeast and Central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa through an infrastructure network modelled on the old Silk Road.

Xi said the plan, for which Beijing has pledged $126 billion, would help provide more resources and facilities for Africa and would expand shared markets.

China loaned around $125 billion to the continent from 2000 to 2016, data from the China-Africa Research Initiative at Washington's Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies shows.

State media has accused the West of sour grapes over China's prominent role in Africa and has angrily rejected claims of forcing African countries into a debt trap.

"In terms of cooperation with China, African countries know best," widely read tabloid the Global Times wrote in an editorial on Monday.

"Western media deliberately portray Africans in misery for collaborating with China and they appear to have discovered big news by finding occasional complaints in the African media about Sino-Africa cooperation," it said.

Every African country is represented at the business forum apart from eSwatini, self-ruled Taiwan's last African ally that has so far rejected China's overtures to ditch Taipei and recognise Beijing.

African presidents in attendance include South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa, Egypt's Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Zambia's Edgar Lungu and Gabon's Ali Bongo.

There are some controversial guests.

Sudan President Omar al-Bashir, who has been in power for nearly 30 years, is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes over killings and persecution in Sudan's Darfur province between 2003 and 2008.

Xi told him on Sunday that "foreign forces" should not interfere in Sudan's internal affairs, China's Foreign Ministry said. China is not a party to the court.

"China has always had reservations about the International Criminal Court's indictment and arrest order against Sudan's president. We hope the ICC can prudently handle the relevant issue," Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters.

(Reporting by Ben Blanchard and Christian Shepherd, additional reporting by Michael Martina; Editing by Paul Tait, Darren Schuettler and Himani Sarkar)

This story has not been edited by Firstpost staff and is generated by auto-feed.
The Libya government has declared a state of emergency in and around Tripoli, saying the fighting is 'an attempt to derail peaceful political transition'.

Benghazi: Some 400 prisoners escaped from a jail in the Libyan capital, authorities said, as recent fighting between rival militias that has killed dozens compelled the UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency in and around Tripoli.

The inmates overwhelmed guards and forced open the gates of the Ain Zara prison after riots broke out there, police said on Sunday in a statement posted on Facebook.

The prisoners included many supporters of the late Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi, who had been found guilty of killings during the 2011 uprising that ended his rule and plunged the country into chaos.

The fighting in Tripoli erupted last week when the Seventh Brigade, militias which hail from Tarhouna, a town about 60 kilometres south of Tripoli, attacked southern neighborhoods of the capital.

The Tripoli Revolutionaries' Brigades and the Nawasi Brigade, militias which support the UN-backed government, have come to the city's defence.

At least 47 people, including civilians, have since been killed, and another 130 have been wounded, the Health Ministry said.

The UN Humanitarian Coordinator in Libya, Maria Ribeiro, said the fighting has forced families to flee their homes and she voiced concern for the safety of internally displaced people, refugees and migrants in Tripoli.

Yusuf Jlala, the minister of state for displaced affairs, said the fighting has displaced more than 1,800 families in the Ain Zara neighborhood since the clashes began on 27 August.

Many have taken shelter in schools or with relatives, while others have left the city, he told The Associated Press on Monday.

Some families, he said, refused to leave city fearing that their properties would be looted. Most of those families are in need of food and drinking water, he said.

At least 1,000 families are expected to be displaced from the Abu Salim district in the coming days if the fighting escalates, he warned.

He said his ministry has received more than 2000 distress calls from residents in the capital over the past two days because of indiscriminate shelling.

Jlala said relief teams and paramedics have been attacked and ambulances looted amid the chaos in the city.

Residents also described scenes of chaos. "It is not safe to stay at home due to the shelling, and it is not safe to go outside as militias and criminals are wandering around the area, looting whatever they can get their hands on," said Salem Taleb, a 33-year-old resident of Ain Zara.

The government declared a state of emergency in and around Tripoli, saying the fighting is "an attempt to derail peaceful political transition" in the country. The government said it "could not remain silent over the attacks on Tripoli and its suburbs, which is a violation of security in the capital and of citizens' safety".

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres has condemned the violence in and around Tripoli and called on all sides to abide by a UN-brokered ceasefire.

The UN mission in Libya called on "the various concerned parties" to meet tomorrow for an "urgent dialogue on the security situation" in Tripoli. It said a venue for the meeting will be announced later.

Libya is currently governed by rival authorities in Tripoli and the country's east, each of which are backed by an array of militias.

Other armed groups have carved out fiefdoms across the country, with many profiting from smuggling and extortion.

Elsewhere in Libya, a rocket fell on a camp for people displaced from the town of Tawergha, killing two and wounding 15 others, according to the municipal council.

A powerful militia from the nearby city of Misrata drove Tawergha's residents from their homes during the uprising, accusing them of siding with Gaddafi's forces, which had used the town as a staging ground for attacks on the city. Many have been living in makeshift camps since then.
Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa met Imran Khan on Monday and discussed various security-related issues with the prime minister ahead of US secretary of state Mike Pompeo's visit to Islamabad on 5 September.

Islamabad: Pakistan Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa met Imran Khan on Monday and discussed various security-related issues with the prime minister ahead of US secretary of state Mike Pompeo's visit to Islamabad on 5 September. Bajwa held his first formal meeting with the prime minister on 27 August and discussed efforts to ensure long-lasting peace and stability in the region. "Matters related to security were discussed," the Prime Minister's Office said in a statement about Monday's meeting.

The meeting is significant for its timing due to Pompeo's scheduled visit to the country as Pompeo is expected to demand support from Pakistan to bring Taliban to the negotiating table. US-Pakistan tensions have flared before Pompeo's trip with Islamabad dismissing as "incorrect" reports the US has cancelled $300 million in military aid to the country, saying Washington owed the money to Islamabad for expenses incurred on fighting terrorism.

Pakistan foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi made the remarks a day after the Pentagon disclosed it decided to scrap the funds because Pakistan was not doing enough against terrorist groups inside its borders. Qureshi confirmed his American counterpart will visit Pakistan and downplayed suggestions the funding row has fuelled mutual tensions.

This will be Washington's first high-level dialogue with Islamabad since Khan was sworn-in as the 22nd premier of Pakistan on 18 August. Khan, the chairman of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) won the 25 July general election amidst the perception that the Pakistan Army, a major player in Pakistan's politics, has thrown its weight behind his party.

Bajwa had congratulated Khan on assuming the top ministerial job during their first meeting at the Prime Minister's Office. The powerful military has ruled coup-prone Pakistan for nearly half of the country's history since independence in 1947. Khan visited the General Headquarters (GHQ) on 30 August and assured that his government would provide all resources to maintain the capability and capacity of the army.

Khan told reporters on Friday that his government will hold talks with Pompeo's delegation to seek a "mutually beneficial" relationship with the US that will be based on "mutual respect". The visit is already marred by a controversy over a telephonic conversation between Khan and Pompeo. The two sides issued divergent statements after the telephonic conversation.

Pakistan contested the state department's version that Pompeo had raised the issue of the presence of terrorist groups on the Pakistani soil with the new prime minister.

Meanwhile, former Senate chairman Raza Rabbani has said that Khan should not meet Pompeo during his visit and the country's foreign minister should instead meet his US counterpart.

The senator opined that the recent cut in 'aid' was part of measures to put pressure on Pakistan and mentioned Pompeo's recent statement, in which he discouraged the International Monetary Fund from providing Pakistan with a bailout, alleging the money would be used to repay Chinese loans as a previous measure.
Apart from Arif Alvi, the Pakistan Peoples Party's Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan and Jamiat-e-Ulema (F) chief Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman are also in the race. The joint Opposition was to field a single candidate to give Alvi a tough time but failed to do so.

Islamabad: Pakistani lawmakers are set to choose a new President on Tuesday, an election in which the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf party's candidate Arif Alvi is expected to win as the Opposition parties failed to field a joint candidate.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday completed preparations for the election. Polling stations have been set up in all four provincial assemblies in addition to the National Assembly. Chief Election Commissioner Sardar Raza Khan will serve as the Returning Officer.

Outgoing President Mamnoon Hussain's tenure ends on 8 September. He had declined for re-election to a second -year term.

Apart from Alvi, the Pakistan Peoples Party's Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan and Jamiat-e-Ulema (F) chief Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman are also in the race. The joint Opposition was to field a single candidate to give Alvi a tough time but failed to do so. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) last month nominated renowned lawyer and veteran politician Ahsan as a candidate. Other opposition parties including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) opposed the move. As the differences persisted, they nominated Rehman.

The Opposition parties excluding the PPP met in Lahore on Sunday to discuss the presidential elections. Rehman sought the support of PML-N to convince PPP to withdraw its nominee. He asked the PPP to withdraw its candidate and avoid damaging the joint Opposition.

PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira said that the division in the ranks of the Opposition will only benefit the ruling party. He also hinted that the PPP could meet incarcerated former premier leader Nawaz Sharif to get his party's support for Ahsan. The PML-N has opposed the candidature of Ahsan as he had used harsh language against Sharif.

Since the PTI controls the National Assembly and has a majority in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab, and has the support of the ruling party in Balochistan, its candidate Alvi is in a strong position. However, the Opposition parties are in majority in Senate. A joint opposition candidate can change the whole game if he gets the support of some PTI back-benchers or disgruntled lawmakers. At least two PTI lawmakers have recently criticised its leadership for neglecting them.

Being the highest elected official, the president is a symbol of the federation in Pakistan but exercises powers on the recommendations of the prime minister. The president of Pakistan is elected in a secret ballot by the provincial and national assemblies. There are total 706 assembly members who will elect the president. The ruling party has the highest number of party votes in the electoral college for elections to the office of the president scheduled for 4 September.

PTI is now the only party with members in all the elected houses. It has a total of 251 votes of its party members in the 706-vote-strong electoral college and its tally goes up to 314 if the votes of members of its allied parties  the Balochistan Awami Party, Grand Democratic Alliance, Pakistan Muslim League, Awami Muslim League, Balochistan National Party, BNP-Awami and Jamhoori Watan Party  are also counted.

On the other hand, the joint tally of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the PPP comes to 260 and if votes of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal, Awami National Party, Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party and National Party are added, it climbs to 321.

The MQM had voted for the PTI candidate in the election of prime minister. Of the independent votes, 15 senators had defeated the PML-N candidate in the election of Senate chairman. It is likely that most of these 42 votes will go in favour of Alvi, making him unbeatable.

Alvi is a Karachi-based dentist-turned-politician, who reportedly stood by prime minister Imran Khan during his political career.
Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has been accused of condoning human rights abuses in his deadly drug crackdown and who has made controversial comments about the Holocaust, received a warm welcome in Israel when he arrived Sunday for an official visit.

Jerusalem: Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, who has been accused of condoning human rights abuses in his deadly drug crackdown and who has made controversial comments about the Holocaust, received a warm welcome in Israel when he arrived Sunday for an official visit.

Before his departure from Manila, Duerte said he "looks forward to broader cooperation on a broad range of mutually important areas  defence and security, law enforcement, economic development, trade (and) investments and labour." Sales of Israeli weapons to his government are high on the agenda, according to Israeli media. Filipino officials have said the Philippines has recently acquired Israeli-made arms such as Galil assault rifles and pistols for its 120,000-strong police force, which is on the front line of Duterte's battle against illegal drugs and other crimes.

His four-day visit begins with a Filipino community event Sunday evening. An estimated 28,000 Filipinos live in Israel, mostly as health aides. A Filipino living in Israel, Lisa Levi, told Channel 10 TV that she is "excited" and "proud" he is visiting. Speaking in Hebrew, she said "I wish I could hug him and thank him for everything he does." She said her home country is safer now and that accusations of rights abuses are "untrue."

Duterte, who has made foul-mouthed attacks against former US President Barack Obama and even God, will receive a warm welcome in the Holy Land meeting prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials. Duterte drew outrage in 2016 when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Nazi genocide of Jews in World War II and said he would be "happy to slaughter" 3 million addicts. He later apologized.

He is scheduled to visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem on Monday and later a monument commemorating the Philippines' rescue of Jews during the Holocaust. In contrast to the warm official welcome, Israeli human rights activists plan to protest the visit and have encouraged President Reuven Rivlin not to meet him over accusations of rights abuses at home.

Official Philippine police tallies place the number of suspects killed in police-led anti-drug raids at more than 4,500 since Duterte took office in June 2016.

International human rights watchdogs have cited far higher death tolls. Duterte, a 73-year-old former government prosecutor, denies condoning extrajudicial killings but has openly and repeatedly threatened drug dealers with death.

Relatives of several people slain in the president's anti-drug campaign last week asked the International Criminal Court to prosecute him for alleged crimes against humanity, in the second such request for a ruling on the deaths that have occurred during the crackdown. Duterte's visit is the first by a Philippine president to Israel since the countries established diplomatic relations in 1957.
President Ram Nath Kovind and Nicos Anastasiades held discussions on issues of mutual interest including promotion of business collaboration in the fields of IT and IT-enabled services, tourism, shipping and renewable energy

India and Cyprus signed two agreements on combating money laundering and cooperation in the field of the environment on Monday as President Ram Nath Kovind met his Cypriot counterpart Nicos Anastasiades and held wide-ranging talks in Nicosia.

President Kovind is in Cyprus on the first leg of his three-nation visit to Europe to continue India's high-level engagements with European countries.

Kovind and Anastasiades exchanged views on economic cooperation during their talks. India happens to be the fastest growing major economy in the world today with a growth rate of 8.2 percent last quarter, the President said. "In this context and given Cyprus' niche expertise in financial services and investment banking, both of us agreed that there was much scope to deepen our investment partnership," Kovind said in a statement.

"We welcomed the signing of the MoU between Financial Intelligence Unit, India and Unit for Combating Money Laundering of Cyprus.

"This agreement would further strengthen the institutional framework to facilitate investment cross-flows. We also emphasised that the revision in the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement made in 2016 provided greater opportunities for our investment partnership to grow," Kovind said.

External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said in a tweet:

India and Cyprus signed two MoUs today on Combating Money Laundering and Cooperation in the field of Environment in the presence of Presidents of both countries.#PresidentKovind #NicosAnastasiades pic.twitter.com/NsDumxEih1  Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) September 3, 2018

Kovind and Anastasiades held discussions on issues of mutual interest including promotion of business collaboration in the fields of IT and IT-enabled services, tourism, shipping and renewable energy, Kumar said. In a statement, Kovind said: "President Anastasiades and I held detailed discussions on the way forward for our long-standing and excellent relations. I reaffirmed India's unwavering support to Cyprus for upholding its sovereignty and territorial integrity. We reviewed our ongoing bilateral and multilateral engagements and discussed issues of regional and global concern. We underlined our common objectives to negotiate the challenges that lie ahead. And we committed ourselves to further step-up our mutually beneficial ties, especially in the economic field."

The President also paid tributes to Mahatma Gandhi's bust. "Our founding fathers, Archbishop Makarios and Mahatma Gandhi have blessed our partnership with timeless values, wisdom and foresight. We have the greatest respect for Archbishop Makarios in India," Kovind said. Kumar said in another tweet:

Paying tributes to India's Father of Nation in #Cyprus ! Before his address to the Parliament of Cyprus, President of India #PresidentKovind offered floral tributes to Mahatma Gandhis bust at its premise. pic.twitter.com/2ebs66pzNC  Raveesh Kumar (@MEAIndia) September 3, 2018

President Kovind on Sunday praised the Indian community in Cyprus for strengthening people-to-people relations between the two nations.

Apart from Cyprus, Kovind will also visit Bulgaria and the Czech Republic. This is his first overseas state visit in the second year of his presidency.
New United Nations rights chief Michelle Bachelet said Monday she was 'shocked' by Myanmar's jailing of two Reuters journalists for seven years and called for their immediate release.

Geneva: New United Nations rights chief Michelle Bachelet said Monday she was "shocked" by Myanmar's jailing of two Reuters journalists for seven years and called for their immediate release.

"I was shocked," the former Chilean president told reporters on her first day as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. "The trial was a travesty of justice." "I urge Myanmar to immediately and unconditionally release Kyaw Soe Oo and Thet Oo Maung," she said in a statement.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, who have been held in Yangon's Insein prison since their arrest in December, were charged with breaching Myanmar's state secrets law while reporting on a massacre of Rohingya Muslims.

The case has sparked an outcry among the international community as an attempt to muzzle reporting on last year's crackdown by Myanmar's security forces on the Muslim Rohingya minority in Rakhine state.

Army-led "clearance operations" drove 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, carrying with them widespread accounts of atrocities  rape, murder and arson  by Myanmar police and troops.

The reporters denied the charges, insisting they were set up while exposing the extrajudicial killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine village of Inn Din in September 2017.

"Their coverage of the Inn Din massacre by the military  for which the military subsequently admitted responsibility  was clearly in the public interest as it may otherwise never have come to light," Bachelet said.

"Their conviction follows a legal process that clearly breached international standards," she said.

"It sends a message to all journalists in Myanmar that they cannot operate fearlessly, but must rather make a choice to either self-censor or risk prosecution.

"I call for their conviction to be quashed and for them to be released, along with all other journalists currently in detention for their legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of expression."
AT&T, which pushed hard against the California bill through its local lobbyists, has called for a national "Internet Bill of Rights" that would cover internet providers and online platforms alike, such as Google and Facebook.

The law would be the strictest for internet providers in the United States, and put California at odds with the federal government. The bill, SB822, not only restores the net neutrality rules that were put into place by former President Barack Obama, but goes even to ban internet service providers from practices like throttling in favor of select content and zero-rating services. As of now 30 total states have introduced bills to save net neutrality, as well as state governors in NY and Montana signing executive orders to ensure that communications providers must treat all data on the internet equally. FCC chairman Ajit Pai, who, in case you forgot, thinks you're a complete idiot, has justified this by saying that it's merely taking the Internet back to its early days (which to him means you can still use Instagram and watch Game of Thrones, just like in 1999).

In what comes as a major blow to opponents of net neutrality, the state of California has succeeded in passing a bill that would effectively protect a free and open internet, joining four states including Washington and OR in doing so.

More than 20 states are suing the FCC to overturn the agency's decision on net neutrality and almost three dozen states have introduced bills to replace the defunct regulations with three states have already approved them.

Martin Truex Jr.: 'Right now we need sponsorship' for No. 78 vehicle

Busch once won three consecutive times on the Tennessee track and was considered the best in the business on the concrete oval. UP NEXT: The Cup Series is off next weekend and races again September 2 in the Southern 500 at Darlington Raceway in SC .

A patchwork of state laws could make compliance more hard for internet providers and lead to a legal challenge focusing on the power of the federal government to preempt state laws. Nevertheless, the sway companies such as AT&T and Verizon have over lawmakers, in the end, could not compete with the outpouring of support from California residents, who are equally fired up about this issue. He has not taken a public stance on it, according to policy analysts, but the bill passed both Democrat-dominated state chambers by wide margins. "We support an open internet, but this bill move us no closer to that".

Internet providers also argue it could lead to higher prices for consumers. Almost three dozen other states are working on their own laws, and supporters hope California's bill will inspire even more states to follow suit. Supporters of net neutrality rules have been fighting the FCC's ruling on multiple fronts.

The FCC did not reply to a request for comment. "They're still paying attention".
Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo are both Reuters reporters and Myanmar nationals, who have been held in Myanmar's Insein prison since their arrest in December. They gave brief but emotional statements on the court steps as they were led to the waiting prison van.

Two Reuters journalists accused of breaching Myanmar's state secrets law during their reporting of a massacre of Rohingya Muslims were jailed for seven years Monday, drawing outrage over the attack on media freedom and calls for their immediate release.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, who have been held in Yangon's Insein prison since their arrest in December, were charged with violating the Official Secrets Act, a draconian British colonial-era law which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years.

The case has sparked an outcry among the international community as an attempt to muzzle reporting on the 2017 crackdown by Myanmar's security forces on the Muslim Rohingya minority in Rakhine state. Army-led "clearance operations" drove 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, carrying with them widespread accounts of atrocities  rape, murder and arson  by Myanmar security forces.

The reporters denied the charges, insisting they were set up while exposing the extrajudicial killing of ten Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine village of Inn Din in September 2017. They said they were arrested after being invited to dinner by police in Yangon who handed them documents. As they left the restaurant, the pair were detained for possessing classified material.

Judge Ye Lwin was unmoved by their testimony. "It is found that the culprits intended to harm the interests of the state. And so they have been found guilty under the State Secrets Act," he told the packed Yangon court.

"They are sentenced to seven years in prison each." As they were led to the waiting prison van the handcuffed duo, both Myanmar nationals, gave brief but emotional statements on the court steps. "The government can detain us in the prison but... don't close the ears and eyes of the people," Kyaw Soe Oo said.

Wa Lone, who gave a defiant "thumbs up" to the massed ranks of reporters, said, "we will face it (the verdict) with stability and courage."

Defence lawyer Khin Maung Zaw said that an appeal would be lodged "as soon as possible" against the verdict which Reuters denounced as based on "false charges".

"Today is a sad day for Myanmar... and the press everywhere," Stephen J. Adler, Reuters editor-in-chief, said in a statement, adding that the outcome was "designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press".

The army has published its version of events at Inn Din village, conceding the Rohingya men were killed while in custody but saying it was a one-off act of abuse by a mix of security forces and ethnic Rakhine locals.

Monday's ruling comes a week after the release of an explosive United Nations-led study into abuses in Rakhine, accusing Myanmar's army chief of heading up a campaign of "genocide" and "crimes against humanity" against the Rohingya. It also strongly criticised de facto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi for failing to use moral authority to stand up for the stateless minority.

The same day, Facebook pulled down the pages of Myanmar's army chief Min Aung Hlaing and other military top brass, in what the company said was a bid to prevent them from further fanning "ethnic and religious tensions".

As calls for Myanmar's military leaders to face an international tribunal mount, they have remained defiant, insisting last year's crackdown was a proportionate response to attacks by Rohingya militants.

Suu Kyi's reputation as a defender of human rights has been eviscerated by her refusal to speak out against the military for its handling of the Rohingya crisis or in support of the jailed reporters.
The Catalan regional Parliament voted to declare independence on 27 October, prompting Spain to sack the regional government and put Catalonia under Madrid's direct rule.

Madrid: Spain's prime minister on Monday proposed holding a referendum in Catalonia on greater autonomy for the wealthy region but ruled out allowing a vote on independence as demanded by Catalan leaders.

Socialist Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who since coming to power in June has attempted to defuse tensions over Catalonia's independence drive by holding talks with Catalonia's separatist president Quim Torra, told radio Cadena Ser the dialogue should lead to "a vote... on the reinforcement of Catalonia's autonomy".

"It is a referendum for autonomy, not for auto-determination," he added, without giving a timeline for the proposed vote.

Catalonia, which has its own distinct language, was granted autonomy under Spain's 1978 Constitution adopted three years after the death of longtime dictator Francisco Franco.

In 2006, a statute granting even greater powers to the northwestern region, boosting its financial clout, was approved by the Spanish and Catalan parliaments. And in a referendum at the time, over 73 percent of voters in Catalonia approved it.

But in 2010 Spain's Constitutional Court struck down several articles of the charter, among them attempts to place the distinctive Catalan language above Spanish in the region and a clause describing the region as a "nation". The ruling sparked a rise in support for independence in Catalonia, which is home to some 7.5 million people and accounts for about one-fifth of the Spanish economy.

"Catalonia currently has a statute which it did not vote for, so there is a political problem," Sanchez said.

Sanchez's minority government, which relies on the support of Catalan separatist parties to pass legislation, has distanced itself from the hardline approach adopted by its conservative predecessor against Catalonia's separatist drive, which sparked a major political crisis.

The Catalan government pressed ahead with an independence referendum on 1 October  even though it had been banned by the courts  and the vote was marred by police violence.

Catalonia's regional Parliament then voted to declare independence on 27 October, prompting Madrid to sack the regional government and put the region under direct rule from Madrid.

The current regional president Torra was handpicked by his predecessor Carles Puigdemont, who is in self-imposed exile in Belgium to avoid being tried for rebellion in Spain.

Polls show Catalans are divided on the question of independence, but an overwhelming majority backs a referendum to settle the question.
Pentagon spokesman Lt Colonel Kon Faulkner said that US will continue to press Pakistan to 'indiscriminately target' all terrorist groups. Faulkner also claimed that recent reports distorted details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF).

Washington: The US continues to press Pakistan to "indiscriminately target" all terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network, the Pentagon said on Sunday, claiming that recent reports distorted details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF).

The remark comes after the Pentagon on Saturday said it will reprogramme $300 million of its Coalition Support Fund (CSF) for Pakistan due to its failure to tackle militant groups. The Pentagon's move, which needs to be approved by the US Congress, is part of a broader suspension of aid announced in January.

"Unfortunately, recent reporting has distorted the details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) by stating several things out of context. The suspension of security assistance to Pakistan was announced in January 2018, Pentagon spokesman Lt Col Kon Faulkner said. He said, "The CSF is included in the suspension and it remains in place. This is not a new decision or a new announcement, but an acknowledgement of a July request to reprogram funds before they expire."

Faulkner said since January, they have consistently engaged with Pakistani military officials at the highest levels, based on both a shared commitment to defeat all terrorist groups that threaten regional stability and security, as well as on a shared vision of a peaceful future for Afghanistan. "We continue to press Pakistan to indiscriminately target all terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network an LeT, and we continue to call on Pakistan to arrest, expel or bring the Taliban leadership to the negotiating table," he said.

Faulkner noted that the 2018 DoD Appropriations Act, published on 23 March, details USD 500 million was rescinded by the Congress.

Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy, the remaining USD 300 million was reprogrammed by the Department of Defense (DoD) in July 2018 time frame for other urgent priorities before the funds expire on 30 September, he said.

The department is awaiting congressional determination on whether this reprogramming request will be approved or denied. "The DoD will have a congressional response before 30 September, 2018, to allow the DoD to implement the reprogramming actions, the spokesman said.

Fresh news reports about suspension of the CSF is expected to further strain US-Pak relationship, which comes ahead of the Islamabad visit of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The top American diplomat is expected to raise issues related to counter terrorism during his meetings with the top Pakistani leaders.

Pakistan has dismissed all such reports about suspension in US aid, arguing that the United States owed the money to it for expenses incurred on fighting terrorism. "It is not a cut in any [US] aid, it is not assistance. This is our own money which we have used for improving regional security situation and they had to reimburse it to us, Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told reporters in Islamabad.
Xi Jinping promised development that people on the continent could see and touch, but that would also be green and sustainable.

Bejing: Chinese president Xi Jinping offered another $60 billion in financing for Africa on Monday and wrote off some debt for poorer African nations, while warning against funds going towards vanity projects.

Speaking at the opening of a major summit with African leaders, Xi promised development that people on the continent could see and touch, but that would also be green and sustainable. China has denied engaging in debt trap diplomacy, and Xis offer of more money comes after a pledge of another $60 billion at the previous summit in South Africa three years ago.

Xi, addressing leaders at Beijings Great Hall of the People, said the new $60 billion will include $15 billion of aid, interest-free loans and concessional loans, a credit line of $20 billion, a $10 billion special fund for China-Africa development, and a $5 billion special fund for imports from Africa.

Chinese companies will be encouraged to invest no less than $10 billion in the continent in the next three years, he said.

Government debt from Chinas interest free loans due by the end of 2018 will be written off for indebted poor African countries, as well as for developing nations in the continents interior and small island nations, Xi said. China-Africa cooperation must give Chinese and African people tangible benefits and successes that can be seen, that can be felt, he said.

China will carry out 50 projects on green development and environmental protection in Africa, focusing on fighting climate change, desertification and wildlife protection, Xi said. He pledged, without giving details, that China would set up a peace and security fund and a related forum, while continuing to provide free military assistance to the African Union.

Chinese officials have vowed to be more cautious to ensure projects are sustainable. China defends continued lending to Africa on the grounds that the continent still needs debt-funded infrastructure development. Speaking earlier at a business forum, Xi said China had to be careful about where money was spent.

Chinas cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects but in places where they count the most, he said.

Beijing has also fended off criticism it is only interested in resource extraction to feed its own booming economy, that the projects it funds have poor environmental safeguards, and that too many of the workers for them are flown in from China rather than using African labour.

'Africa knows best'

Chinese officials say this years summit will strengthen Africas role in Xis Belt-Road initiative to link China by sea and land with Southeast and Central Asia, West Asia, Europe and Africa through an infrastructure network modelled on the old Silk Road.

Xi said the plan, for which Beijing has pledged $126 billion, would help provide more resources and facilities for Africa and would expand shared markets. China loaned around $125 billion to the continent from 2000 to 2016, data from the China-Africa Research Initiative at Washingtons Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies shows.

State media has accused the West of sour grapes over Chinas prominent role in Africa and has angrily rejected claims of forcing African countries into a debt trap. In terms of cooperation with China, African countries know best, widely read tabloid the Global Times wrote in an editorial on Monday.

Western media deliberately portray Africans in misery for collaborating with China and they appear to have discovered big news by finding occasional complaints in the African media about Sino-Africa cooperation, it said.

Every African country is represented at the business forum apart from Eswatini, self-ruled Taiwans last African ally that has so far rejected Chinas overtures to ditch Taipei and recognise Beijing.

African presidents in attendance include South Africas Cyril Ramaphosa, Egypts Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Zambias Edgar Lungu and Gabons Ali Bongo.

There are some controversial guests.

Sudan president Omar al-Bashir, who has been in power for nearly 30 years, is wanted by the International Criminal Court (ICC) for war crimes over killings and persecution in Sudans Darfur province between 2003 and 2008.

Xi told him on Sunday that foreign forces should not interfere in Sudans internal affairs, Chinas Foreign Ministry said. China is not a party to the court. China has always had reservations about the International Criminal Courts indictment and arrest order against Sudans president. We hope the ICC can prudently handle the relevant issue, Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying told reporters.
Prime Minister Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh of Mongolia Meets with Wang Yi

2018/08/25

On August 25, 2018, Prime Minister Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh of Mongolia met with State Councilor and Foreign Minister Wang Yi at Ikh Tenger Complex in Ulaanbaatar.

Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh asked Wang Yi to convey his greetings to Premier Li Keqiang. Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh expressed that Mongolia and China are everlasting neighboring countries and comprehensive strategic partners. China-Mongolia relations have enjoyed smooth development recently, and have become a model of friendly coexistence for neighboring countries. Mongolia firmly adheres to the one-China policy and insists that Taiwan and Xi Zang are inalienable parts of China. Taiwan-related and Xi Zang-related affairs are China's internal affairs. There are no political, economic, territorial, or religious issues between Mongolia and China. The two countries enjoy great potential and broad prospects for cooperation. The Mongolian side is committed to promoting the integration of the Development Road Initiative and the Belt and Road Initiative, and hopes to deepen cooperation with the Chinese side in such fields as agriculture, animal husbandry, energy, and infrastructure construction, so as to elevate the level of cooperation between the two countries. The Mongolian side sincerely thanks the Chinese side for its support and assistance to Mongolia's development and people's livelihood for many years, and highly appreciates the Chinese side's support for the construction of a wastewater treatment plant in Ulaanbaatar, which will make important contributions to improving the ecological environment of Ulaanbaatar City and the quality of life of the Mongolian people. The year of 2019 marks the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Mongolia and China. It is hoped that the two sides will take it as an opportunity to sum up the development progress of bilateral relations, map out a new blueprint for future cooperation, and make joint efforts to elevate bilateral relations to new highs.

Wang Yi conveyed Premier Li Keqiang's sincere greetings to Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh. Wang Yi said that China and Mongolia are friendly neighboring countries connected by mountains and rivers, and that strengthening the all-round cooperation and deepening the comprehensive strategic partnership between the two countries is the only right choice for the two sides. The Chinese side respects the independence, sovereignty and territorial integrity of Mongolia, and appreciates the Mongolian side's adherence to the one-China policy and its confirmation that it will always support each other on issues concerning respective core interests with the Chinese side. As long as China and Mongolia establish strong political mutual trust, bilateral relations will develop in a rapid and healthy manner. The Chinese side appreciates the Mongolian side's active response to and support for the Belt and Road Initiative, and is willing to work with the Mongolian side to formulate a cooperation outline on the basis of the memorandum of understanding on cooperation signed by the two countries, and promote the implementation of more projects at an early date. The Chinese side is willing to help the Mongolian side translate its resource endowments into development advantages, improve independent development capabilities, achieve diversified economic development and effectively improve people's livelihood in the process of the joint construction of the Belt and Road Initiative. The two sides should make joint efforts to accelerate the process of negotiating and signing a bilateral free trade agreement and strive for an early realization of bilateral trade exceeding 10 billion US dollars and personnel exchanges hitting 3 million person-times per year. The Chinese side is willing to work with the Mongolian side to seize the important opportunity of the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries next year that inherits the past and ushers the future to cement exchanges at all levels, deepen cooperation in various fields, and enhance communication on state governance and administration, so as to push China-Mongolia comprehensive strategic partnership for constant and new progress and benefit the two peoples.

On the same day, Wang Yi and Ukhnaagiin Khurelsukh also jointly attended the launching ceremony of construction of a wastewater treatment plant in Ulaanbaatar. Wang Yi and Minister of Foreign Affairs Damdin Tsogtbaatar of Mongolia jointly inspected a special lane to enhance customs clearance facilitation under the Belt and Road Initiative at the Chinggis Khaan International Airport in Ulaanbaatar.
Samsung has launched the Portable SSD X5, its first NVMe 1-based portable solid state drive (SSD) with Thunderbolt 3 support after it was introduced last week. Thunderbolt 3s 40Gbps bandwidth is up to four times faster than USB 3.13  the X5 offers a read speed of up to 2,800 MB/s, which is up to 5.2 times faster than the widely used SATA interface portable SSDs and up to 25.5 times faster than external HDDs. It offers fastest maximum write speed of 2,300 MB/s5, enabling users to transfer a 20GB-sized 4K UHD video in just 12 seconds.

It has full-metal body with a glossy finish and non-slip bottom mat. It has shock-resistant internal frame and rugged metal housing that can withstand accidental drops of up to two meters (6.6 feet). The Dynamic Thermal Guard technology and a heat sink, a mechanical internal solution can safeguard the X5 from overheating, ensuring reliability while maintaining optimal operating temperatures.

Samsung Portable SSD X5 Specifications

Capacity  2TB/1TB/500GB

Thunderbolt 3 (40Gbps)

Transfer Speed  Up to 2,800 MB/s sequential read speeds, Up to 2,300 MB/s sequential write speeds (500GB: up to 2,100 MB/s)

Strong, shock-resistant metal case and internal support frame

AES 256-bit hardware encryption

Requires Macs and Windows PCs with Thunderbolt 3 ports (Not backward compatible / Not compatible with PCs only with USB interface), MacOS Sierra (10.12) or higher, Windows 10 64 bit RS 2 or higher

Certification  CE, BSMI, KC, VCCI, C-tick, FCC, IC, UL, TUV, CB

RoHS2 Compliance

Dimensions: 119 x 62 x 19.7 mm ; Weight: 150 grams

Limited 3-year warranty

The Samsung Portable SSD X5 is priced 27,999 for the 500GB model, Rs. 48,999 for the 1TB model and the top-end 2TB version costs Rs. 97,999 for the 2TB model. Samsung already said that it will roll out globally starting today, September 3rd. It should go on sale in India soon.
Boeing (NYSE:BA) has emerged victorious in the competition to build the U.S. Navy's first carrier-based drone, a major shot in the arm for a contractor that, despite its size and aeronautics expertise, has struggled in recent high-profile aircraft competitions.

The U.S. Navy on Thursday announced an $805 million contract for the "design, development, fabrication, test, verification, certification, delivery, and support" of four MQ-25A Stingray drones. Assuming all goes well, the Navy is expected to order upward of 72 of the aircraft at a cost of more than $10 billion.

Boeing beat out competing bids from Lockheed Martin (NYSE:LMT) and privately held General Atomics to win the award. General Atomics was seen by many as the favorite to win the competition due to its expected cost advantages, and Boeing in February hedged its bets by signing on as a subcontractor on the GA effort.

Northrop Grumman unexpectedly dropped out of the competition last October, leaving three finalists.

A long route to sea

The award comes 12 years after the Navy started talking about bringing drones to the carrier deck and represents a much less ambitious project than what was originally envisioned. The Navy had originally wanted an aircraft with stealth characteristics and the ability to carry a large payload of weapons and later focused on long-range surveillance and intelligence missions.

The final competition was for a tanker aircraft, with the Stingray designed to increase the effective strike range of a Navy carrier's air wing by up to 400 nautical miles, nearly doubling a carrier's air attack range. It would also decrease the wear and tear on other Naval aircraft, most notably the F/A-18 Super Hornet fleet. The Hornets are currently the primary carrier tanker, with the Navy estimating that upward of 30% of the Hornet fleet is devoted to aerial refueling.

The Navy hopes to have the first four Stingrays operational on carrier decks by 2024, an aggressive timeline. In addition to the final design, production, and testing work required of the drones, the Navy is also working to develop a carrier-based control station and to network the drones to the other carrier aircraft.

A much-needed win

Boeing is a powerhouse when it comes to designing and building aircraft and has significant expertise in aerial refueling thanks to its work on the KC-46 tanker. But for all the company's resources, its recent track record when it comes to defense aircraft is mixed at best.

The KC-46 tanker is over budget and behind schedule, leading Air Force Secretary Heather Wilson in March to lash out at Boeing and question whether the company is overfocused on its commercial operations to the detriment of defense projects. Boeing has also lost out in some recent high-profile competitions, including the joint strike fighter, which went to Lockheed Martin, and the long-range strike bomber, which went to Northrop Grumman.

The company's defense unit also was caught up in tariff and commercial aircraft disputes with Canada that could cost it a $12 billion Super Hornet contract and future business.

Thanks to the Stingray contract, Boeing Defense is getting a high-profile, morale-boosting win at a moment in time when the business could use one.

Value in diversification

The Stingray contract in and of itself isn't a reason to go out and buy shares of Boeing, but it does help make the case for why Boeing is a good long-term investment. An extended up cycle in commercial aerospace, including massive demand for Boeing's 737 and 787 models, has made the company lopsided. Today Defense, with space and security included, only accounts for about one-fifth of total Boeing revenue.

That commercial sales surge will fade eventually, and as it does, Boeing will want to lean on its Defense unit to pick up some of the slack. Boeing has an impressive array of military platforms, but some of the most successful items, including the Super Hornet, the F-15 Strike Eagle, and the Apache helicopter, were added via acquisition. And as noted, Boeing's internal designs in the joint strike fighter and strike bomber competitions fell short.

Winning this Navy competition shows Boeing Defense can compete and win high-profile military aircraft awards, and the internal expertise the company develops in the years to come as the Stingray is finalized should only strengthen Boeing's chances of winning future drone competitions.

It's only one contract, but this competition is a major victory for Boeing.
The airline industry remains solidly profitable in the U.S., but rising fuel prices are taking a bite out of earnings even at the strongest U.S. airlines, such as Southwest Airlines (NYSE:LUV).

Nevertheless, a start-up airline based in Southern California recently finalized plans to make its long-awaited debut on Nov. 1. California Pacific Airlines believes it can profitably serve a niche that other airlines are ignoring. That said, another airline start-up that also thought it had found a comfortable niche was forced to suspend all flights last week. This highlights the difficult odds that California Pacific must overcome.

Cleared for takeoff after years of delays

California Pacific Airlines has been working to get off the ground for many years. I first wrote about the company in early 2014, when it was one of three airline start-ups looking to begin operations by the end of that year. In fact, the start-up had been tentatively scheduled to take flight as early as 2010.

The airline's commercial launch was postponed repeatedly due to problems ranging from FAA certification delays to funding problems to lack of authority to operate at its planned home base: Carlsbad, California's McClellan-Palomar Airport. California Pacific now appears to have overcome all of those hurdles, in part by buying a small airline that already has FAA certification.

Back in 2014, California Pacific Airlines envisioned flying from Carlsbad to six destinations: Oakland, San Jose, Sacramento, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and Cabo San Lucas. However, its plans have changed somewhat. The carrier now plans to begin service from Carlsbad to San Jose and Reno on Nov. 1 and to add a route to Las Vegas on Nov. 15. It expects to announce at least one additional route soon.

The initial flight schedule published last week calls for two roundtrips a day to San Jose on weekdays and one roundtrip a day on weekends. California Pacific will fly four times a week to Reno (Mondays, Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays) and three days a week to Las Vegas (Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays).

Management expects the San Jose and Reno routes to cater primarily to business travelers, while the Las Vegas flights will attract more leisure travelers. All flights will be operated with 50-seat E145 regional jets for now.

Does California Pacific Airlines have a competitive advantage?

Operating at McClellan-Palomar Airport is the crux of California Pacific Airlines' business plan. It will be the only airline operating there, due to the abrupt shutdown of fellow start-up Cal Jet earlier this year.

McClellan-Palomar Airport is located more than 30 miles north of downtown San Diego. It's the only commercial airport in the "North County" region, which has a substantial population between 500,000 and 1 million (depending on the exact geographic definition used). California Pacific Airlines is touting the airport's convenient location, dirt-cheap parking (just $5 a day), and short security lines in a bid to attract customers.

As a result, California Pacific Airlines believes it can charge a premium. For example, it will charge $99 one-way for nonrefundable tickets on the San Jose route, whereas ticket prices start at $59 one-way for most San Diego-San Jose flights on Southwest Airlines: San Diego's dominant carrier. The pricing gap relative to Southwest is similar on the other two initial routes.

Luckily for California Pacific, established carriers would have trouble taking advantage of the convenience factor of McClellan-Palomar Airport, because the runway is too short for most mainline commercial jets. But that may not be enough of a competitive advantage.

Southwest Airlines flies up to 12 times a day from San Diego to San Jose and up to 10 times a day from San Diego to Las Vegas. It also operates two daily nonstops between San Diego and Reno, with numerous additional one-stop options. For many travelers -- especially the business travelers that California Pacific Airlines is targeting -- the convenience of Southwest's high flight frequency will outweigh the convenience of a short trip to the airport.

Even with a niche, it's hard for airline start-ups to succeed

PEOPLExpress and Eastern Air Lines -- the two other airline start-ups that were trying to begin service in 2014 -- both managed to launch operations years ahead of California Pacific Airlines. In an ominous sign, both went out of business quickly, even as the U.S. aviation industry was earning record profits. PEOPLExpress only lasted a few months, while Eastern Air Lines survived for two and a half years.

California Pacific Airlines may be better positioned than these carriers, because its ability to operate at McClellan-Palomar Airport gives it a unique niche. Yet that still may not be enough to allow California Pacific to hold its own with behemoths like Southwest Airlines.

For example, in recent years, airline start-up OneJet appeared to find a profitable niche offering business travelers nonstop service between midsize cities on small planes. It had no direct competition. However, the carrier had trouble sustaining the profitability of its routes, perhaps because of rising fuel prices. In any case, it abruptly suspended service on all of its routes last week.

OneJet says it expects to start taking bookings again on Oct. 1. But historically, when airlines suspend service, they rarely take off again. OneJet is also facing a federal tax lien for $622,000 and a lawsuit from the local airport authority in Pittsburgh, which wants to recover $763,000 of incentives provided for routes that OneJet isn't operating.

I wish California Pacific Airlines the best of luck with its plan to restore commercial airline service to the underserved North County region. It's going to need a lot of luck to survive.
The prime minister is on the final leg of a three-country tour, which has seen her visit South Africa and Nigeria in an effort to maximise trade opportunities after the United Kingdom leaves the European Union next year.

It's also the second time on the trip that May has caught dancing fever, after visiting a school in South Africa. you have to admit, she's nothing if not committed.

Mrs May is the first British prime minister since Margaret Thatcher in 1988 to visit the country.

British Prime Minister Theresa May (L, front) and Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta address a joint media briefing at State House in Nairobi, capital of Kenya, Aug. 30, 2018.

Whatever they assume about Britishers being stern and tight-lipped in their behaviour was proved wrong by UK Prime Minister Theresa May on her visit to Africa.

Kenyatta said two agreements signed on Thursday - one to enhance military cooperation, the other for Britain to return assets and proceeds of corruption to Kenya - indicated the close ties between the two countries.

"I don't see Brexit as meaning anything detrimental towards the strong trade ties we have", Kenyatta said.

Come and play for me! Warnock's offer to Ozil

The Gunners have had a tough start to the season, losing to Manchester City and Chelsea but beat West Ham last weekend. Arsenal pressed forward but couldn't find the crucial second goal as Cardiff equalised just before half-time.

May said that Kenya holds a special place in the hearts of British people.

In Nigeria on Wednesday, May met with President Muhammadu Buhari and oversaw the signing of a security partnership agreement and establishment of an economic development forum.

During a visit to Nigeria, May announced a new plan to support victims of modern slavery in the country, as well as bordering Niger, alongside a series of new measures which also aim to reduce irregular migration from the region into Europe.

Visits to Kenya and South Africa became part of an African tour and the first official visit of Theresa may to the continent.

In the furtherance of the fight against terrorism, Mrs May said Kenyan and British soldiers will now train jointly, with the UK PM expected to witness a joint training session in Laikipia after the briefing.

Her trip also comes barely a week after President Kenyatta and First Lady Margaret made a historic official trip to the US and met President Donald Trump.
The value of China-Africa trade hit the US$16.5 billion mark in January 2018.

Also speaking at the meeting was the People's Republic of China's Foreign Affairs Minister Wang Yi, who said China hoped "to create synergy between the Belt and road initiative, as well as national development strategies of African countries".

Adesina in the statement said the President will be accompanied to Beijing by his wife, Aisha, to participate in a Spouses' Programme on China-Africa at the Great Hall of the People, under the theme, "Joining Hands for a Future of AIDS".

President Muhammadu Buhari arrived Beijing Saturday, September 1, to attend the Beijing summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) holding between September 3 and 4, 2018 and would secure a bank facility of $328 million for the development of ICT infrastructure.

African leaders and the chairman of the African Union (AU) will be in attendance, and the United Nations (UN) Secretary-General will be the esteemed guest, joined by 27 worldwide and African groups as observers.

"The Summit is also expected to adopt the Beijing Declaration and the Action Plan for the development of China-Africa cooperation and fashion out new opportunities to grow Nigeria-China comprehensive strategic partnership from 2019 to 2021".

BRI includes the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) over which India has protested to China as it traverses through Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK).

Sanusha Naidu, from the Centre for Chinese studies said, "I think South Africa can definitely shape that relationship now by showing that we can actually shape and influence the way we want to engage with China".

Madison Keys advances, Caroline Wozniacki falls at US Open on Tuesday

She appeared to hurt her right forearm early in Wednesday night's match, and a trainer came out for a massage at changeovers. It was a major advantage for the 29-year-old who took a 5-2 lead with the opportunity to serve for the match.

China's economic data shows trade between Beijing and the continent's countries rose 14 percent a year ago to $170bn.

The documents are expected to build on the outcomes of the Johannesburg summit, during which Xi announced 10 major cooperation plans to promote industrialisation and agricultural modernisation in Africa.

Critics say Africa is loading itself up on Chinese debt that countries may struggle to repay, with estimates ranging in the tens of billions of dollars.

"Chinese financing being available as an option for African economies is a welcome relief, especially looking at how the International Monetary Fund has tried to dictate areas of potential development for African governments", said Michael Omouyi, executive director of the Centre for Nigerian Studies at Zhejiang Normal University. It has also helped in the financing and construction of the Standard Gauge Railway with the first phase from Mombasa to Nairobi already operational.

Agenda four is playing the melody that connects the people of China and Africa as close as a family.

In addition to leaders of African countries, the Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission is expected to be in attendance.

Chinese officials have played down reports of India-China competition in Africa.
"For more than two years, the coalition has claimed that JIAT was credibly investigating allegedly unlawful airstrikes, but the investigators were doing little more than covering up war crimes", said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "Many of my friends died".

The New York-based group said it spoke by phone to 14 witnesses, including nine children, who said that shortly before 8:30 a.m. on August 9, a bomb fell on the market in Dhahyan, a town north of Saada in Houthi-controlled northwestern Yemen, 60 kilometers (37 miles) from the Saudi border.

Earlier this week, the coalition rejected the findings of a United Nations report which said that war crimes may have been committed by all parties in the conflict.

"There was a clear delay in preparing the fighter jet at the appropriate time and place, thus losing [the opportunity] to target this bus as a military target in an open area in order to avoid such collateral damage", said legal advisor of the Joint Incident Assessment Team, Mansour Ahmed al-Mansour.

The coalition said it will "undertake legal proceedings to hold the ones who committed mistakes accountable", and said it would work with the Yemeni government to identify the injured and the families of the dead in order to arrange for compensation.

LG introduces 8K OLED TV at IFA

Samsung is entering the 8K TV market with a new Q900R QLED 8K complete with 8K AI Upscaling . That is the same standard employed by top Hollywood film studios.

Yemen's civil war has pitted the Saudi-led coalition, which supports Yemen's government, against Houthi rebels backed by Saudi Arabia's regional rival Iran.

The coalition has faced criticism for its campaign of airstrikes that has killed civilians and destroyed hospitals and markets.

Preparations are under way to transfer Yemen's President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to the United States tonight to receive medical treatment, a Yemen government source told Reuters on Sunday. The Houthis, meanwhile, have been accused of using land mines, killing and wounding civilians.

The head of the country's internationally-recognized government, who has lived in exile in Riyadh since the Iranian-aligned Houthi group captured the Yemeni capital in 2015, has been treated for a heart condition since 2011. They have also targeted religious minorities and imprisoned opponents. The UN says the conflict has become the world's worst humanitarian crisis, with more than 22 million people in desperate need in what is already the Arab world's poorest country.
Galveston, TX (77553)

Today

Partly cloudy skies this morning. Thunderstorms likely during the afternoon. High 78F. Winds ESE at 10 to 20 mph. Chance of rain 70%..

Tonight

Rain likely. Thunder possible. Low 57F. Winds NE at 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 90%.
The financing will be provided in the form of government assistance as well as investment and financing by financial institutions and companies, Xi said in a keynote speech at the opening ceremony of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

The summit, scheduled for September 3-4, aims to build a closer China-Africa community with a shared future, further dovetail China's Belt and Road Initiative with African development, set a new path for a higher level of China-Africa cooperation, and deepen people-to-people exchanges.

In this regard, we look forward to cementing an even stronger China-Africa partnership through win-win cooperation at the 2018 Focac Summit.

From 2000 to 2016, China loaned around US$125 billion to the continent, data from the China-Africa Research Initiative (CARI) at Washington's Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies shows.

These African leaders will be treated like kings, fed plenty Chinese curry, alcohol and given all sorts of toys and tokens while the Chinese looks at their begging bowls and how to further suffocate them with debt.

Some 300 companies account for the majority of China's business activity in Africa, but the region also has some 30,000 smaller Chinese firms that are of growing importance, said Francois Gamet, head of Standard Bank Group's Asian operation. On the 5th he will hold a bilateral meeting with President Xi Jinping and in the evening he will hold a meeting with the chairman of China Communist Party who is the equivalent of the Speaker of Parliament.

His Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, said yesterday that the loan is for the "development of NICTIB 11 project which is consistent with the current administration's commitment to incorporating the development of ICT into national strategic planning under the National Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP)". In that period More than 800 million Chinese had been lifted out of poverty.

China has passed Europe and the United States as the biggest trading partner of most African countries.

California Legislature Passes Bill That Would Increase Bar Hours

Supporters of net neutrality rules have been fighting the FCC's ruling on multiple fronts. The FCC did not reply to a request for comment. "They're still paying attention".

Xi is expected to launch a similar facility for the 2018-21 period.

China will extend a total of 60 billion USA dollars of financing to Africa, Chinese President Xi Jinping announced Monday.

Liberian President George Weah has said that his country is ready to align its "pro-poor agenda" with the China-proposed initiative.

All 53 African countries that have established diplomatic relations with China will send representatives to the conference, said Jiang. The Chinese dream meets the African dream in Agenda 2063, the continent's development blueprint.

Rwandan President Paul Kagame, now the chair of the African Union, dismissed such concerns, saying talks of "debt traps" were attempts to discourage African-Chinese interactions.

China will carry out 50 projects on green development and environmental protection in Africa, focusing on fighting climate change, desertification and wildlife protection, Xi said. "We should provide a good environment for young Africans to start up businesses, get jobs and learn skills".

"In terms of cooperation with China, African countries know best", widely read tabloid the Global Times wrote in an editorial on Monday.
Welcome to my genealogy blog. Genea-Musings features genealogy research tips and techniques, genealogy news items and commentary, genealogy humor, San Diego genealogy society news, family history research and some family history stories from the keyboard of Randy Seaver (of Chula Vista CA), who thinks that Genealogy Research Is really FUN! Copyright (c) Randall J. Seaver, 2006-2021.
Donald Trump's trade talks with Canada were in trouble on Friday morning after an "off the record" conversation with a Bloomberg reporter was leaked. Trump was not invited.

President Donald Trump has threatened to leave Canada on the sidelines since announcing a breakthrough with Mexico on Monday, but the U.S. president and Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau have both expressed optimism a deal is close.

Also, Congress must approve any rewrite of NAFTA, signed under President Bill Clinton, and might refuse to endorse a deal that leaves longtime ally Canada on the sidelines.

"Our officials are continuing to work toward agreement", US Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer said in a statement, stressing the benefits to US workers and businesses.

US and Canadian negotiators worked throughout the week on adding Canada to Friday's notice, but the negotiations failed to produce an agreement ahead of Trump's own Friday deadline. Congress would have to approve any agreement.

"We'll see whether or not Canada gets into it, otherwise we'll do something separately". "At the same time, we are concerned that excluding Canada from a final agreement will limit our export opportunities and hurt the USA economy".

He then noted the nation was far better off before NAFTA and suggested either we make a new deal with Canada or go back to pre-NAFTA.

The Toronto Star reported on Friday that Trump made those comments to Bloomberg News with the intention of them being off the record.

Freeland tried to brush off the controversy in a news conference.

The negotiation tactics of the Trump administration is "a classic power play", says Evenett. "He has brought good faith and good will to the table".

400 inmates escape from prison in Libya's Tripoli

These attempts to weaken the legitimate Libyan authorities and hamper the course of the political process are not acceptable. An estimated 39 people, including civilians, have been killed and 96 wounded in the ongoing clashes.

But Ottawa could offer United States dairy farmers a small increase in market share as it did with the European Union in a free trade pact past year, in exchange for U.S. concessions on the NAFTA chapter on dispute resolution. "We know that a win-win, win, agreement is within reach and that's what we're working towards".

Ottawa and Washington seem upbeat about the chances of reaching a deal, but Mr Trump is due to leave Washington just after midday, local time, for an event in North Carolina, which may add to the time pressures if the USA president wants to be the one to announce any agreement.

The U.S. and Mexico negotiated a new pact to replace NAFTA, snubbing Canada in the process. The three countries in North America, the economies are pretty integrated.

Mexican officials have made clear that they prefer an agreement that includes Canada.

Trump has charged that the deal wiped out American factory jobs. Ottawa introduced retaliatory taxes on United States imports of steel, aluminum and such goods as whiskey, orange juice and other food products.

The talks were constructive, and we made progress.

President Donald Trump never misses an opportunity to vilify the press or insult Canada, which has been one of the United States' closest allies over the years-and this week, he has managed to accomplish both. The deal announced Monday would, among many other things, require that 40 percent to 45 percent of a vehicle be made in a North American country where auto workers made at least $16 an hour - that is, not in Mexico - before qualifying for duty-free status.

Peter Clark, a trade consultant and president of Ottawa-based Grey, Clark, Shih & Associates, said Chapter 19 is worth a lot to Canadian exporters, but that recent trade victories through other channels "are examples of how the system can work". Neither U.S. nor Canadian negotiators are talking publicly about the issues that divide them.

But Daniel Ujczo, a trade attorney of the law firm Dickinson Wright in Columbus, Ohio, and others say the flashpoints include trade barriers that protect Canadian dairy farmers and Ottawa's insistence on keeping NAFTA provisions for resolving disputes.

"We are also going to be unequivocal about always standing up for Canadians' rights and Canadians' interests".
Price and availability

The Xiaomi Mi Wireless Charger will be available in China via Mi stores and Xiaomi official e-commerce website for 69 Yuan (Rs 700). Considering the price point, the Mi Wireless Charger is the most affordable wireless fast charging pad from a reputed brand. As of now, there is no information about the launch of the Xiaomi Mi Wireless Charger in India.

Do note that the Xiaomi Mi MIX 2s is the only Xiaomi smartphone that supports wireless charging. As this is a Qi-standard wireless charger, it can be used with smartphones like the Apple iPhone 8, iPhone X and the Samsung Galaxy Note9.

Salient features

Fast wireless charger (10W)

Temperature protection

USB type C Interface

Metal body

Contact-less charging up to 4mm

Mi Wireless charger specifications

The Xiaomi Mi Wireless charger a normal 10W adapter, Qualcomm Quick Charger 2.0 or the Qualcomm Quick Charge 3.0 adapter via USB type-C interface. Upon connecting the wireless charger to a standard 10W charger, it gives an output of 5W. The Quick Charge 2.0 and the Quick Charge 3.0 adapters can offer 7.5W, and 10W output, which is the highest rated output on a Qi charger to date.

The wireless charging pad also has a multi-colored LED light, which changes the color depending on the charging status of the smartphone or if the charger is in idle condition. The charger also supports contact-less charging (up to 4mm), so this charger can be used to charge smartphones without removing the skin or the case.

The charger also has an added layer of security, where the charger can protect the smartphone from high-temperature, voltage fluctuation, and short-circuit. It has also a special mechanism, where the charger stops working if the temperature of the surface reaches more than 40-degree centigrade.
PlayStation5 might be in works under codename Erebus: Report News oi-Karan Sony seems to be working on its upcoming PlayStation 5, and the new reports claimed that the console is codenamed as Erebus. All you need to know about PS5.

PlayStation 5 is the most awaited console from the company, as Sony has taken a long pause after releasing the PS4. Now the reports claim that the company is planning to launch the PS5 and it may be codenamed as Erebus. The codename is discovered by eagle-eyed users on popular gaming forum ResetEra in the latest release of Unreal Engine 4.

The name appears along with the PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, and other platforms in Unreal Engine 4's code. If you remember, the PS4 was codenamed as Orbit and the PS4 Pro's was Neo, and PS VR was Morpheus. This means Erebus might be the upcoming console from the company.

According to Greek mythology, Erebus was the god of darkness and it was considered as one of the first five being in existence, born of chaos. This makes perfect sense as Sony is the market leader in terms of console and quickly figures out the world's demand for every game. It will be very interesting to see what sony is going to bring this time as its latest gaming experience.

"It looks like it's hinting at a new console. In engines you tend to have like a bunch of values to tell you which platform you're on because they all need to run slightly differently," claims a source speaking to VG247, "The whole Erebus being a god thing makes sense with the Sony codename branding.

It's not a surprise that Sony is working on a new console, and if the recent leaks turn out to be true then we can soon see the released games hitting the new console too.

According to the job listing, discovered by VGR for Infinity Ward - the studio behind Call of Duty Modern Warfare, the 2019 Call of Duty might be the next-generation game.

Considering Call of Duty 2019 is being directed by Infinity Ward, which is yet to be announced, then it might be focusing on the PS5 and next-generation Xbox. Hope we will get to know more about the PS5 in the near future. We will keep you update once we get to know about the upcoming console.

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Supported devices (Honor)

Honor 10

Honor View10

Honor Play

Supported devices (Huawei)

Huawei P20 Pro

Huawei P20

Huawei Mate 10 Pro

Huawei Mate 10

The company will add more devices to the list in the upcoming days. Do note that, all seven smartphones that will receive EMUI 9 update are based on Kirin 970 SoC. The company should include the next set of Honor/Huawei smartphones with different SoC (Kirin 710, Kirin 659) in the next batch.

Also note that the Huawei Mate 20, Huawei Mate 20 Pro are expected to come with EMUI 9 skin as well, which are pegged to launch on the 16th of October 2018, in London.

EMUI 9 top features

Natural UX design with the implementation of natural sound and color to offer an unparallel user experience

GPU Turbo 2.0

Improved AI with the ability to detect up to 33API

One hand operation in contact, Album, and contacts

Password vault to secure usernames and passwords for different apps and services

Use of Fingerprint sensor and Face Recognition to login into an app

Availability

The EMUI 9 beta will be made available for all seven Honor/Huawei smartphones running on the Kirin 970 SoC. Other featured Huawei/Honor smartphones like the Honor 7x, Honor 9i, Honor 9 Lite, Huawei Nova 3, Huawei Nova 3i will receive the update shortly. However, as of now, there is no information about the exact date of availability of the EMUI 9 OS for any of these smartphones.
OnePlus might be prepping up to launch its 5G smartphone News oi-Vishal Kawadkar OnePlus joins the race for the 5G smartphone.

OnePlus has been setting new goals for itself and aims to achieve the feat by January 15. The company through its official Weibo account has confirmed the news. The post highlights a OnePlus phone with the said date.

The company seems to have a big goal considering the target has been set a few months away. Since major smartphone makers such as OnePlus, Oppo, Xiaomi, Vivo, and Lenovo are aiming to launch their first 5G phones in 2019. It's likely that the company might be planning to launch a 5G smartphone in January next year.

OnePlus and Oppo belong to the same mother company named BBK Electronics.

Hence, both companies share their resources. This is also the reason both firms have similar products. The recently launched OnePlus 6 resembles the OPPO R15 in terms of design. The Dash Charge fast charging used on the OnePlus 6 is a version of VOOC rapid charge by Oppo.

Recently, Oppo's assistant VD head claimed that the company would be the first to launch a 5G smartphone in 2019. The same week, an image of a modified OPPO R15 with Snapdragon X50 LTE modem that supports 5G connectivity made an appearance on Weibo.

Since Oppo is poised to launch a 5G smartphone, its technology might help OnePlus in developing its own 5G device. There were reports floating around about the OnePlus 7 to be the first device with 5G connectivity.

OnePlus usually launches its devices in the second quarter, which makes the goal for January 15 more intriguing. OenPlus 6T is expected to debut later this year. There could be a 5G variant of the phone that would launch on January 15. We expect to get more clarity on the topic in the coming days.

OnePlus is said to be launching the 6T in October through its usual online portal, reports CNET. The smartphone will also be sold via T-Mobile stores. This will also mark as the first time in the US a carrier store will sell a OnePlus device.

OnePlus was reportedly negotiating with at least one of the US carriers to partner for its upcoming flagship. It was assumed to be either T-Mobile or AT&T, given the fact that no OnePlus devices work on Sprint or Verizon. Now it's confirmed that T-Mobile will be the official partner to sell the OnePlus 6T.

According to CNET, OnePlus isn't just going to sell the global variant of the OnePlus 6T in T-Mobile stores. Instead, the company will make a T-Mobile specific model which will be optimized for the carrier's network. The model will also support 600mHz bands, otherwise known as band 71.

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Over 200 4G smartphone models now support Airtel VoLTE News oi-Priyanka VoLTE enables customers to experience HD quality voice calling and superfast data on a wide range of smartphones on its network.

India's largest telecom service provider Bharti Airtel today said that over 200 4G smartphones now support its Voice over LTE (VoLTE) services.

The telco said that all popular 4G smartphones like Oppo, Vivo, Apple, Samsung, OnePlus, Nokia, Panasonic, Xiaomi, Karbonn, Lava and Panasonic can now converse on the HD quality voice calling offered on Airtel VoLTE.

Airtel VoLTE calls will automatically fall back on the 3G/2G network to ensure that customers continue to stay connected at all times. Airtel VoLTE will also allow customers to continue with their data sessions at 4G speeds while the call is in progress.

VoLTE enables customers to experience HD quality voice calling and superfast data on a wide range of smartphones on its network.

How to get Airtel VoLTE:

Check mobile device compatibility by logging on to www.airtel.in/volte.

Upgrade the mobile device's operating software to the latest version that supports VoLTE. This update is provided by the handset manufacturer.

Now, enable VoLTE by following the instructions on www.airtel.in/volte-switch.

Customers with Dual-SIM handsets have to ensure that the Airtel 4G SIM has been inserted in the data SIM slot/slot 1 and network mode has been set as "4G/3G/2G (Auto)"

Airtel's strong 4G presence across the country offers seamless connectivity for VoLTE services and enables customers to experience parallel sessions of seamless voice calling and superfast data.

To recall, the company has launched its Volte services last year in September.

Airtel has also deployed 4G Advanced Carrier Aggregation technology in Mumbai that enables data speeds of up to 135 Mbps by combining spectrum capacities in 2300 Mhz (TD LTE) and 1800 Mhz (FD LTE).

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Change of Command at NATO-led Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan

NATO - North Atlantic Treaty Organisation

02 Sep. 2018

Today (2 September, 2018), General Austin Scott Miller assumed command of the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission from General John ''Mick'' Nicholson at a ceremony at mission headquarters in Kabul, Afghanistan. General Miller will oversee the continued efforts by NATO Allies and operational partners to further develop effective and sustainable Afghan security forces and institutions through the train, advise and assist mission.

General Miller previously commanded the US Joint Special Operations Command. At the change of command ceremony in Kabul, he said: "We must enable our Afghan partners in building their security and military capacity so that they are able to deny safe havens to terrorists in a long-term, and sustainable way." He stressed the strength of the Resolute Support Mission, which includes 41 NATO Allies and partners: "Forty-one. That number sticks with me. It's powerful and I want to recognize NATO and the operational partners for building and sustaining such an inspiring team."

General Nicholson, who commanded the Resolute Support Mission for two and a half years, said all the nations involved in Resolute Support support the peace process: "These nations are here on a conditions basis, not a calendar. Peace in Afghanistan is in everyone's best interest. It not only ends the suffering of the Afghan people. Peace in Afghanistan makes the entire world safer."

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said, "I'm looking forward to working closely with General Miller as the new Commander of our Resolute Support Mission, and I thank General Nicholson for his outstanding service." He stressed that "NATO remains committed to supporting Afghan security forces as they create the conditions for lasting security and peace."

At the NATO Summit in Brussels, on 11-12 July 2018, Heads of State and Government of all Allies and operational partners contributing to the Resolute Support Mission decided to sustain the mission until conditions on the ground indicate a change is appropriate, and to extend financial support for the Afghan security forces through 2024. They reaffirmed their support to an Afghan-led and Afghan-owned peace and reconciliation process.

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US military can intervene in Venezuela: Senator Rubio

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 05:47PM

The US military can take necessary actions to remove Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro from power as his government has become a threat to US national security, says Republican Senator Marco Rubio.

In an interview with Univision, an American Spanish-language TV network, Rubio, who is a vocal opponent of Maduro, said a military intervention by Washington was not out of question.

"I believe that the Armed Forces of the United States are only used in the event of a threat to national security. I believe that there is a very strong argument that can be made at this time that Venezuela and the Maduro regime has become a threat to the region and even to the United States," he said.

The 55-year-old Maduro, who took power in 2013 after the death of Hugo Chavez, has survived massive anti-government protests during the past two years.

Earlier this year, he managed to win a second six-year term. The president has since warned of foreign plots against his country, accusing the opposition of seeking to topple his socialist government with support from Washington.

In recent months, the US has sanctioned dozens of top Venezuelan officials, including Maduro, over allegations of human rights abuses, drug trafficking and the erosion of democratic safeguards.

It was reported in July that US President Donald Trump had even considered invading the South American country last year, asking his advisers about the possibility of a "military option" against oil-rich Venezuela.

Additionally, Trump raised the issue with Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos and then brought it up again during talks with leaders of four Latin American countries at the United Nations General Assembly in September last year.

In May, Rubio accused Maduro of being a "dictator" and, under his watch. The situation in Venezuela was gets worse and worse, right here in our own hemisphere."

Venezuela, which sits atop the world's largest oil reserves, has been struggling with a worsening economic situation during the past years, causing civilian cross-border journeys into Colombia to purchase basic commodities and foodstuffs.

Maduro says Washington's plots against him are part of a wider offensive against Latin American leaders defying the US hegemony.

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Yemeni forces fire missile at Saudi military forces in Jizan border region

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 03:34PM

Yemeni army forces, supported by allied fighters from Popular Committees, have launched a domestically-designed and manufactured ballistic missile at a military base in Saudi Arabia's southwestern border region of Jizan in retaliation for the Riyadh regime's devastating military aggression against their country.

A Yemeni military source, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Arabic-language al-Masirah television network that the short-range Zelzal-1 (Earthquake-1) missiles hit Mashal base with great precision on Sunday.

There were no immediate reports about possible casualties or the extent of damage caused.

Later in the day, Yemeni army forces, supported by allied fighters from Popular Committees, fired a barrage of mortar shells at Saudi-backed Yemeni militiamen loyal to former president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, who had gathered in a military camp on Jabal al-Qais mountainous area in Jizan region. No reports of fatalities were quickly available.

Moreover, Saudi fighter jets carried out a string of airstrikes against residential buildings and properties in the Shada'a district of the northwestern Yemeni province of Sa'ada, leaving substantial damage behind. There were no immediate reports about possible casualties.

Saudi Arabia and a number of its regional allies launched a devastating military campaign against Yemen in March 2015, with the aim of bringing the government of Hadi back to power and crushing the country's Houthi Ansarullah movement.

Some 15,000 Yemenis have been killed and thousands more injured since the onset of the Saudi-led aggression.

More than 2,200 others have died of cholera, and the crisis has triggered what the UN has described as the world's worst humanitarian disaster.

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Yemen ex-govt., Houthis will not have face-to-face peace talks in Geneva: officials

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 02:49PM

Yemen's warring parties, including the Houthi Ansarullah movement and the so-called government of former President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, will not meet "face-to-face" at the upcoming peace negotiations brokered by the United Nations in the Swiss city of Geneva, Hadi's officials say.

According to Hadi's foreign minister Khaled al-Yamani on Sunday, the talks, that will likely focus on a prisoner exchange deal, "will not be face-to-face and depend on how well the UN envoy manages the two sides."

"Our expectations are limited to the possibility of progress in the question of prisoners and detainees," he said, adding, "I think this is the chance to succeed in securing the release of prisoners, and I believe the other party is also willing and ready."

The world body has already invited the two sides to the Swiss city for negotiations, which open on Thursday. Last month, the UN special envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths, said that the consultations were due to begin in Geneva on September 6 on a framework for peace talks and confidence-building measures.

The UN, Griffiths said at the time, was primarily trying to reach an agreement between the Saudi-backed side and Yemen's ruling Houthis "on the issues essential to ending the war and on a national unity government in which everyone participates."

He has also said that the talks are focused on carving a path forward to revive UN-backed negotiations, which broke down in two years ago.

Both parties have confirmed that they are sending high-level delegations to Geneva, but Hadi's officials believe that expectations of a breakthrough are low.

Hadi's officials say the talks might also be on the fate of embattled city of Hudaydah, which is now the frontline of the Yemen war, with Saudi and Emirati-led forces ceaselessly pounding it in a bid to seize it from the fighters of the popular Houthi movement.

Meanwhile, Abdullah al-Olaimi, head of Hadi's office and a member of the Geneva delegation, said that "the consultations will be indirect, unless there is some progress that can be made directly."

The UN, for its part, also set a low bar for the success of negotiations, the first since 106 days of talks in Kuwait failed to yield an agreement between Hadi's delegation and that of Houthis back in 2016.

"The aim of this first round of consultations is to better understand how committed both parties are to the framework for formal negotiations... and to come to some conclusions about how those negotiations may start," said UN spokesman Stephane Dujarric on Sunday.

Saudi Arabia and some of its allies, including the United Arab Emirates, Morocco and Sudan, launched a brutal war, code-named Operation Decisive Storm, against Yemen in March 2015 in an attempt to reinstall Hadi and crush the Ansarullah movement, which plays a significant role in aiding the Yemeni army in defending the impoverished country against the invading coalition.

The movement has been running state affairs in the absence of an effective administration since the onset of the imposed war.

The imposed war initially consisted of a bombing campaign, but was later coupled with a naval blockade and the deployment of ground forces to Yemen.

Some 15,000 Yemenis have been killed and thousands more injured since the onset of the Saudi-led aggression.

The Saudi-led war has also taken a heavy toll on the country's infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, and factories. The United Nations has said that a record 22.2 million Yemenis are in dire need of food, including 8.4 million threatened by severe hunger.

Several Western countries, the US and Britain in particular, are also accused of being complicit in the ongoing aggression as they supply the Riyadh regime with advanced weapons and military equipment as well as logistical and intelligence assistance.

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FBI tried to flip Russian oligarch into informant: Report

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 09:37AM

The FBI and Justice Department sought to turn Russian oligarch Oleg Deripaska, who had close ties to the Kremlin, into an informant between 2014 and 2016, a report says.

The two US agencies offered Deripaska assistance in getting visas for the United States in exchange for information on Russian organized crime and, later, on possible Russian aid to Donald Trump's 2016 presidential campaign, The New York Times reported, citing current and former officials and associates of Deripaska.

The move aimed to measure the possibility of flipping several of Russia's wealthiest men, most of whom have close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Justice Department official Bruce Ohr, who has been frequently attacked by Trump on Twitter recently, and former British spy Christopher Steele are believed to have played a role in the effort to recruit Russian oligarchs.

In one encounter, FBI agents showed up unannounced and uninvited at a home Deripaska has in New York and questioned him about whether Paul Manafort, a former business partner of his who later became chairman of Trump's campaign, had worked as a liaison between Russia and the Trump campaign.

During the interrogation, Deripaska described the theories about Manafort's role on the campaign as "preposterous," dismissing any potential connections between the Kremlin and the Trump campaign.

The anonymous officials told the Times they were afraid that disclosing the attempt could undercut national security, however, they also said they did not want the secret nature of the program to let Trump and his Republican allies "cherry-pick facts and present them, sheared of context, to undermine special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation" into the alleged Russian interference.

Trump and the key members of his team have been under investigation for allegedly "colluding" with Moscow during the 2016 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.

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Saudis admit 'mistakes' in Yemen bus carnage, then defend it

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 07:21AM

Saudi Arabia has finally admitted "mistakes" in a recent airstrike which killed children on a school bus in Yemen, but still insisted that the vehicle was carrying Houthi fighters.

In a statement, the kingdom said Saturday it "expresses regret over the mistakes, extends its sympathies, condolences and solidarity to the families of the victims" of the August 9 attack in northwestern Sa'ada Province.

The Saudi air raid hit the school bus as it drove through a market in the town of Dhahyan, killing a total of 51 people, among them 40 children, and injuring 79 others, mostly kids.

In the statement carried by the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), Saudi Arabia vowed to "revise and enhance its rules of engagement according to operational lessons learned, in a manner that guarantees non-recurrence of such incidents."

Saudi military spokesman Mansour al-Mansour said a probe into the incident had found errors prior to the strike, which "caused collateral damage," but repeated that the bus had been "transporting Houthi leaders."

The incident sparked a wave of international outrage and led the UN Security Council to demand a "credible and transparent" investigation.

Munitions experts told CNN that the bomb used by Saudi Arabia in the attack was an American-made 227-kilogram laser-guided MK 82 bomb.

Last week, UN human rights experts raised the alarm at the high rate of civilian casualties in Saudi Arabia strikes on Yemen, saying the air raids "may amount to war crimes."

"Coalition airstrikes have caused most direct civilian casualties. The airstrikes have hit residential areas, markets, funerals, weddings, detention facilities, civilian boats and even medical facilities," the Group of International and Regional Eminent Experts on Yemen said in a 41-page report.

HRW condemns Saudi war crime, US complicity

On Sunday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) denounced the Sa'ada attack as an apparent war crime and blasted the countries that export arms to Saudi Arabia.

The attack "on a bus full of young boys adds to its already gruesome track record of killing civilians at weddings, funerals, hospitals, and schools in Yemen," said Bill Van Esveld, senior children's rights researcher at HRW.

"Countries with knowledge of this record that are supplying more bombs to the Saudis will be complicit in future deadly attacks on civilians," he added.

He also called on the US and its allies to immediately stop arms sales to Saudi Arabia, saying they should "support strengthening the independent UN inquiry into violations in Yemen or risk being complicit in future atrocities."

"Any US official who thinks the way to prevent Saudi Arabia from killing more Yemeni children is to sell it more bombs should watch the videos of the bus attack in Dhahyan," he added.

'US complicit'

Colin Cavell, former lecturer at the University of Bahrain, told Press TV that Saudi Arabia is killing the Yemeni people in cahoots with the United States and then is trying to deny it.

"This regime in Saudi Arabia is killing many thousands of people in Yemen and the world is condemning this illegal undemocratic regime on a daily basis. So, they have to come up with some sort of plausible denial," he said.

"The United States' government is in cahoots with this illegal Saudi regime. It wants to make profit by selling as much arms as possible to this regime and they have been depending on the monarchs of the Persian Gulf for long time."

Cavell further urged the UN Security Council to issue an "outright condemnation" of the Saudi attack and act in accordance with international opinion.

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The Delhi government is planning to introduce various measures to steer the people towards electric vehicles in the national capital. To achieve this goal, the Kejriwal government could provide 100 per cent exemption on road tax, incentives on replacement of old vehicle and charging stations across the stations. The state government is ready with a comprehensive electric vehicle policy which will be made public very soon.

According to a report in the Times of India, State Transport Minister Kailash Gahlot recently held a meeting to discuss steps that need to be taken to provide a robust support infrastructure in the city for promoting electric mobility. "All stakeholders, including the power grid, discoms and Indian Oil Corporation, were present," the TOI quoted Gahlot as saying. The government is planning charging stations across the city like the way it has petrol and CNG stations.

The report said that the government was planning to provide subsidy to those opting for electric vehicles as these are more expensive than diesel or petrol ones at present. "Major incentives will be given for buying electric vehicles," the State Transport Minister told the daily.

Earlier in July, the Delhi government approved the hiring of a consultant to run 1,000 electric buses. Announcing the decision, Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a tweet said: "Cabinet approves hiring of consultant to run 1000 electric buses in Delhi. A big step in modernizing Delhi's transport sector and reducing pollution."

The move came after the Supreme Court questioned the Kejriwal government over its proposal to procure low-floor electric buses and about the time required to set up charging stations for the fleet. The court directed the government to explore the possibility of using hydrogen fuel cell powered buses that are considered more cost-effective than electric buses.

Deputy Chief Minister Manish Sisodia in his 2018 budget had promised to roll out electric buses by April 2019. Presenting the budget, he said: "We will be the only nation besides China to have a fleet of 1,000 electric buses. The move is an important aspect of the 26-point programme and will largely help in reducing air pollution."

Last year in November, the Supreme Court had observed that comprehensive plan was needed to deal with the problem of severe air pollution in Delhi-NCR and asked the Environment Pollution Control Authority to look at long-term measures.
30 soldiers killed in militant ambush in Nigeria

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 04:47AM

Suspected militants have ambushed a military base in northeastern Nigeria, and killed as many as 30 soldiers.

The attack targeted a base in Zari village in the Guzamala local government area of Borno State on Thursday.

But details emerged later because the village is located in a remote area near the border with Niger.

"The battle lasted for about two hours and our colleagues fought them, but things became bad before the fighter jets arrived. We lost about 30 of our soldiers and about 10 were wounded," an unidentified military source confirmed on Saturday.

The violence, which has been attributed to a militant group identified as ISWA, undermines Nigeria's ongoing efforts to improve security and defeat militancy in the region, ahead of the upcoming presidential election.

ISWA is an offshoot of Boko Haram, the notorious group linked to the Takfiri terrorist group Daesh.

The Zari attack highlights the challenge to secure the northeast, months ahead of the February election in which security looks set to be a main issue.

President Muhammadu Buhari, a former general, who came to power in 2015 on a platform of stamping out rampant militancy, plans to seek a second term in office in the upcoming vote.

Militancy is still rife in the West African country despite the government's announcement in late 2015 that militants in the region had been largely defeated.

In July, Nigeria appointed the fourth commander in 14 months to lead the campaign against militancy.

Since 2009, the militants have killed 20,000 people and left over 2.6 million others homeless.

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New U.S. General Takes Over Command Of NATO Forces In Afghanistan

RFE/RL September 02, 2018

U.S. Army General Scott Miller has assumed command of NATO forces in Afghanistan as Washington faces growing questions over its strategy to force the Taliban into peace talks with the Western-backed government in Kabul.

"To be successful, we must continually learn and adapt to the enemy and the environment," Miller said at a change-of-command ceremony at the headquarters of the NATO-led Resolute Support mission on September 2.

"There is no room for status quo. We cannot afford to be complacent," Miller said.

The United States is now a year into its strategy of stepping up pressure on the Taliban by increasing air strikes and sending thousands more troops to train and advise Afghan forces.

However, there is no clear signs of success so far, as militants continue to attack government and military targets and civilian casualties are running at record levels.

Afghan forces, meanwhile, are understrength because of heavy casualties and high levels of desertion and continue to face problems with organization and logistics.

While the Taliban has not managed to take any major urban centers, it controls large areas of the countryside.

Speaking at the ceremony in Kabul, the outgoing commander, John Nicholson, urged militants to listen to demands of peace from the Afghan people.

"I believe that some of the Taliban want peace also, but they are being encouraged to keep fighting," he said. "It is time for this war in Afghanistan to end."

In June, a report by the Pentagon's Lead Inspector-General offered a downbeat view, saying there was little publicly available evidence that "actions to increase pressure on the Taliban were having a significant impact."

An unprecedented cease-fire over the Eid holiday in June raised hopes for a breakthrough in achieving peace talks. However, optimism was dampened by the Taliban's assault on the city of Ghazni in July.

Miller commands some 16,000 NATO troops -- including about 14,000 U.S. forces -- under the Resolute Support mission that is focused on training, advising, and assisting Afghan forces.

On the eve of the change-of-command ceremony, NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg tweeted that "NATO remains committed to supporting Afghan security forces as they create the condition for lasting security and peace."

Afghan National Security Adviser Hamdullah Mohib, who attended the ceremony said: "Together we will eliminate the menace of terrorism from Afghanistan and the region."

Mohib, who had been ambassador to Washington, was named by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani to his post on August 25, replacing Mohammad Hanif Atmar, who had resigned.

Atmar's departure, reportedly because of policy differences with Ghani, raised concerns about stability among the Afghan security services. Three other senior security officials also offered their resignations, but they were rejected by the president.

He asked Atmar for his support to show "continuationnot just on the American side but on ours as well."

Potentially easing some concerns, Mohib praised Atmar, who was also at the ceremony, saying, "Yours are difficult shoes to fill."

The first U.S. troops arrived in Afghanistan in 2001 as part of a campaign to topple the Taliban following the September 11 terrorist attacks in the United States.

Former U.S. President Barack Obama announced an additional 30,000 troops in 2009 and by 2011 there were 100,000 U.S. troops in Afghanistan.

The NATO combat mission, which numbered more than 130,000 in 2011, ended in December 2014.

With reporting by Reuters, dpa, and RFE/RL's Radio Free Afghanistan

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/new-u-s-general-takes-over-command-of -nato-forces-in-afghanistan/29466380.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.

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Moldovan Helicopter Crashes in Afghanistan, Killing Ukrainian Crewmembers, Afghan Soldiers

RFE/RL September 02, 2018

A helicopter owned by a Moldovan company has crashed in northern Afghanistan, killing at least 12 people, including two Ukrainian crew members and 10 Afghan soldiers, officials say.

The Mi-8 helicopter crashed on September 2 after takeoff from a military base near Mazar-e Sharif, the capital of Balkh Province, Moldova's aviation authority said.

A statement said that two people onboard survived -- a Ukrainian member of the crew and an Afghan serviceman.

It also said that the aircraft was operated by Moldova's Valan International Cargo Charter Co.

An Afghan security source was quoted as putting the death toll at 13, with only the Ukrainian surviving the crash.

Nazer Khuda Pamiri, deputy commander of Afghan forces in northern Afghanistan, said the helicopter crashed in Dehdadi district due to "technical problems."

He said the aircraft was transporting Afghan security forces from a military base to the northwestern province of Faryab.

Defense Ministry spokesman Mohammad Radmanish said the helicopter was hired by the ministry.

The Western-backed government in Kabul has been struggling to fend off the Taliban and other militant groups since the withdrawal of most NATO combat troops in 2014.

Based on reporting by AFP, TASS, and Interfax

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/moldovan-helicopter- crashes-in-afghanistan-killing-ukrainian -crewmembers-afghan-soldiers/29466712.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.

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Serbia, Macedonia Leaders Hail 'One-Stop Shop' Border Project

RFE/RL September 02, 2018

Serbia's president and Macedonia's prime minister have expressed satisfaction with the implementation of a joint border project aimed at facilitating the transit of people and goods between the two countries.

Aleksadar Vucic of Serbia and Macedonia's Zoran Zaev hailed the project, dubbed One-Stop Shop, when they met at the Tabanovce-Presevo border crossing on September 2.

Speaking at a joint press conference, Zaev said transit through the border crossing will be significantly facilitated thanks to the establishment of one single customs office for the two neighbors.

Hailing the friendship between Macedonia and Serbia, he voiced hope that the same approach of joint border management will in the future be implemented in other crossings between Macedonia and Serbia.

"The project means that we will have a joint custom post that will facilitate cross-border travel for tourists and significantly reduce waiting time at the crossings," Macedonia's prime minister said.

"The project is important so that people do not waste time and do not stay too long," Vucic said. "This is very important for the economy of both countries and will encourage tourists to go through our countries."

Zaev said the project will officially be inaugurated after the two countries' customs administrations, Interior Ministries, phytosanitary offices, and veterinary services sign bilateral agreements.

Vucic said he expected the inauguration to take place before then end of the year.

With reporting by MIA

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/serbia-macedonia-leaders-hail- one-stop-shop-border-project/29466787.htmll

Copyright (c) 2018. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave., N.W. Washington DC 20036.

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Moldovan Helicopter Crashes in Afghanistan Leaving 12 People Dead - Authorities

Sputnik News

20:57 02.09.2018(updated 21:00 02.09.2018)

CHISINAU (Sputnik) - A Moldovan MI-8 MTV helicopter, belonging to the Valan International Cargo Charter carrier, crashed in the Afghan northern province of Balkh, killing two crew members and 10 passengers, the Moldovan civil aviation authorities said on Sunday.

"There were three crew members, Ukrainian nationals, and 11 passengers, Afghan nationals, on board Two crew members and 10 passengers were killed," the authorities said in a statement.

An investigation has been launched to find out the causes of the crash, the authorities added. The Valan International Cargo Charter operator provides air carriage services in isolated, hard-to-reach areas and difficult conditions.

The news about the incident comes after another helicopter crashed in Balkh province earlier in the day. The tragedy, which occurred at an Afghan military base, led to the death of three people, while four were injured.

 Sputnik

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US Replaces Head of Resolute Support Mission in Afghanistan

Sputnik News

16:37 02.09.2018

MOSCOW (Sputnik)  US Gen. John Nicholson has been replaced by US Gen. Austin Scott Miller as head of the US Forces-Afghanistan and the NATO-led Resolute Support Mission in the country.

At the official ceremony of handing in the mandate, Nicholson pointed out that the coalition's goal in Afghanistan was to support people of the country.

"Peace in #Afghanistan is in everyone's best interest. It not only ends the suffering of the Afghan people  peace in Afghanistan makes the entire world safer," Nicholson said, as quoted by the Resolute Support mission.

Nicholson called on the Taliban* Islamist group to join the peace process. The former head of the US Forces-Afghanistan also thanked the National Unity Government's officials, military personnel and leaders for their support.

The mission has congratulated US General Austin Scott Miller on Twitter.

On September 1, NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg thanked Nicholson for his outstanding service. US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo also thanked him for over two years of service as head of the US Forces-Afghanistan.

The Resolute Support mission comprises over 13,000 servicemen, who are providing training and advice to the Afghan security personnel in their fight against terrorism and militant insurgency, particularly the Taliban group. The mission was launched in 2015.

*Taliban is a terrorist group banned in Russia

 Sputnik

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Military Helicopter Crashes in Afghanistan, Three People Dead - Reports

Sputnik News

08:33 02.09.2018(updated 10:49 02.09.2018)

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - On September 2 a military helicopter crashed at an Afghan military base in the country's northern province of Balkh, with some people feared to be dead, Khaama Press news reported.

The incident occurred at 7:30 a.m. local time (03:30 GMT), which was confirmed by a spokesman for the 209th Shaheen Corps Mohammad Hanif Rezaie, the Khaama Press news agency reported.

The official pointed out that the helicopter, which belonged to a foreign company, was set to leave for Faryab province.

Four public order policemen, four army soldiers, and two national police officers were reportedly on board when the helicopter crashed.

Three people, a foreign pilot and two army soldiers have died as a result of the crash. Four people have been injured, according to a representative of the military command.

According to other officials, the helicopter is likely to have crashed due to a technical failure.

 Sputnik

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Saudi-led Coalition's Announcement on Reviewing Rules of Engagement in Yemen

Press Statement

Heather Nauert

Department Spokesperson

Washington, DC

September 2, 2018

The United States regards the Saudi-led Coalition's announcement that it will review their rules of engagement, hold those at fault accountable, and compensate victims following the Joint Incident Assessment Team's finding that last month's Sa'ada air strikes lacked justification as an important first step toward full transparency and accountability. We continue to call on all sides to abide by the Law of Armed Conflict, to mitigate harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure, and thoroughly investigate and ensure accountability for any violations. It is imperative that all parties work toward a comprehensive political solution to avoid further harm to the Yemeni people. We fully support UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths as he prepares to convene parties in Geneva. All sides must engage constructively and in good faith in order to work toward a secure, stable, and peaceful Yemen.

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17th US Commander Takes Over America's Longest War

By Ayesha Tanzeem September 02, 2018

The 17th commander to lead the NATO and United States forces in Afghanistan in what has become America's longest war took charge in a change of command ceremony in Kabul Sunday morning.

General Austin Scott Miller of the U.S. Army is taking over at a time when Afghanistan is experiencing a combination of hope, apprehension, and uncertainty.

A first-ever cease-fire between the warring factions during the Muslim holy festival Eid-al-Fitr in June, followed by direct contacts between Taliban and U.S. officials in Qatar, raised hopes that a start of negotiations with the Taliban for a political settlement of the 17 year old conflict could be imminent.

Those hopes were dashed last month when the Taliban failed to reciprocate President Ashraf Ghani's offer for a second cease-fire during the holy festival of Eid-al-Adha.

General John Nicholson, the outgoing commander, indicated that the Taliban decision may have been influenced by their foreign backers.

"I believe that some of the Taliban want peace also, but they are being encouraged to keep fighting," he said while addressing the ceremony. He appealed to the Taliban's sense of nationalism.

"To the Taliban I say, you don't need to keep killing your fellow Afghans. You don't need to keep killing your fellow Muslims. . . . Whose voice is more important? The outsiders who are encouraging you to fight? Or the voice of your own people who are encouraging you to peace."

U.S. officials as well as Afghans have long accused Pakistan of providing safe havens to the leadership of the Afghan Taliban  a charge Islamabad denies.

During June's cease-fire, Taliban fighters headed to the cities and hung out with Afghan civilians. Some of them even went to the extent of offering Eid prayers and taking selfies with their battlefield enemies in the Afghan security forces. Many of them admitted to journalists that they were tired of fighting but also reaffirmed their loyalty to their Amir in the Afghan Taliban, whom they consider their holy leader.

The brief respite from violence did not last long. The Taliban attacks after the cease fire were just as bloody as before. One of them, the attack on Ghazni, a provincial capital close to Kabul, was so organized and bloody that it rattled Afghan forces and led to the forced resignation of the National Security Adviser Hanif Atmar.

It took Afghan forces backed by U.S. airpower several days to clear the city of Taliban fighters.

Still, the emphasis in Washington and in Kabul continues to be to push the Taliban to negotiate. General Miller acknowledged it in his speech.

"We know the military component is only one part of this conditions-based strategy. It's necessary in order to create space for political progress," he said.

However, if these efforts fail to bear fruit soon, some in Washington fear President Donald Trump, who said while announcing his South Asia policy last year that he was going against his instinct to pull out, would lose patience.

According to The Washington Post, President Trump told Senator Rand Paul of Kentucky that he wanted to pull out of Afghanistan. One of the reasons for his impatience is the high price tag. The U.S. Congress has year marked more than $46 billion for next year's military operations. In the last 17 years, the U.S. has spent more than $1 trillion in the country, according to Congressional Research Service.

General Miller, like commanders before him, is in favor of a continued U.S. military presence in Afghanistan, at least till the country stabilized.

"There are groups in Afghanistan that want nothing more than to harm others. These groups thrive in ungoverned spaces. . . . We must maintain pressure on them. We must ensure that terrorists can never use Afghanistan as a safe haven to threaten the world," he said, re-iterating his predecessors.

Afghanistan is not a new territory for Miller, who served here as the head of Special Operations a few years back. He was also among the American soldiers to be deployed to the country when the war started in 2001.

In his last job he served as the head of Joint Special Operations Command, which overseas some of the U.S. military's elite units like SEAL Team 6  the unit involved in the highly risky operation that killed Osama Bin Laden deep inside Pakistan.

The strength of U.S. and NATO forces he now leads is around 23,000, down from a one-time high of close to 150,000 troops but slightly more than the almost 9,000 forces operating in the country by the time President Barack Obama left office. About half, or around 14,000, of these are American troops.

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US Forces in Afghanistan Target IS Leader

By Ayesha Tanzeem September 02, 2018

U.S. forces in Afghanistan say they targeted and killed the leader of Islamic State Khorasan Province last month in eastern Afghanistan.

ISKP is the branch of IS operating in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and the vicinity.

Abu Sayeed Bajaur, also known as Abu Saad Orakzai, is the third ISKP leader killed by coalition forces in the past two years.

The announcement came Sunday, when a new U.S. commander took charge of the NATO and U.S. forces in Afghanistan. General Scott Miller said a vital part of his mission in Afghanistan is to keep the country from becoming a safe haven for terrorist groups.

"America and her allies are in Afghanistan to maintain pressure on the networked, trans-regional terrorists attempting to plot, resource and direct attacks from here," he said.

While ISKP has been facing pressure in Afghanistan and the area under its direct control has been reduced by increased U.S. air strikes, including dropping the biggest non-nuclear bomb called a Massive Ordinance Air Blast last year, it has managed to carry out more brazen attacks in various parts of the country.

Last month, a deadly attack in a Shi'ite neighborhood killed dozens of students giving university entrance exam. Shiites have been frequent targets of ISKP in Afghanistan.

In 2017, Nangarhar, parts of which have been an ISKP stronghold since 2015, proved to be the deadliest place on earth for the U.S. forces. This was where they lost one third of the 21 U.S. service members killed in battle that year.

Despite the violence, General John Nicholson, who handed over command to General Miller, insisted the group is not growing.

"They have been able to replenish a portion of their losses by recruiting from other violent extremist organizations," he said in an email statement to VOA. "Despite this recruiting, they are losing fighters and losing ground."

Jeff Seldin contributed to this report.

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Recently, Bombay High Court ordered Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) to put red flags around open manholes in the city so that people don't fall into it. Time and again, manholes have made headlines for causing accidents. However, while the authorities are taking precautions for safeguarding passersby, little action has been taken when it comes to manual scavengers, who have to dive into these manholes for cleaning them. Though, manual scavenging is prohibited in India under "The Prohibition Of Employment As Manual Scavengers And Their Rehabilitation Act, 2013", it is still practiced in the country. According to human rights organisation, Safai Karamchari Andolan, there have been 1,560 scavenging-related deaths since 1993 in India.

In November 2015, a manhole accident in Kozikode caused outrage across the state of Kerala and drew attention of authorities. A man, who was measuring the depth of drainage before he could enter and clean it, fell into it and fainted. Another worker who tried to save him too fell, and then a third person, an auto rickshaw driver, was also sucked in while trying to save them. All three men died due to suffocation. The incident made authorities look for a solution to end manual scavenging in the state.

The incident was a trigger for robotics start-up Genrobotics, which after a request by the authorities, built a manhole cleaning robot. The start-up, founded by engineering graduates Arun George, Vimal Govind, N.P. Nikhil NP and Rashid K, has been supported by Kerala Start-up Mission. After two years of extensive research and trial, they launched the product in February 2018.

Called 'Bandicoot', the four units of the robot have so far been deployed by the states in Kerala, Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. And now the company, which plans to sell 800 units in next two years in India, is trying to expand it to other states as well.

According to co-founder Rashid K, one unit of Bandicoot costs around $36,000 or Rs 25 lakh and can clean 300 manholes per month. Rashid says that the robots have been designed in a way that they could be handled by the manual scavengers. The company will provide training to them.

Genrobotics has been funded by Unicorn India Ventures and individual investors such as Google India MD Rajan Anandan and Lalit Jain and has already generated half a million revenues so far. Recently, the company was chosen winner at TiE Delhi-NCR hosted Start-up Jerusalem competition in New Delhi. It will represent India at the Startup JLM Festival, held in Israel's capital in November this year. It is also one of the ten start-ups selected by Google for its first batch of start-up accelerator programme in India. Going ahead, the company plans to tie-up with large companies for deployment of these robots across the country.
Media Report: US Considers Shutting Down Counterterrirsm Units in Africa

By VOA News September 02, 2018

The Pentagon is looking at pulling nearly all U.S. commandos from Niger and shutting down most elite counterterrorism units across Africa, according to a media report.

Pentagon officials tell The New York Times U.S. military outposts in Cameroon, Kenya, Libya and Tunisia would also be closed if Defense Secretary Jim Mattis approves the plans, but the U.S. would still have a large military presence in Nigeria and Somalia.

According to the Times, the move is part of a shift in U.S. strategy from battling insurgents to focusing on potential large-scale fighting.

But it also comes after a militant attack on U.S. soldiers in Niger last year left four Americans dead, which the Pentagon admitted was a failure on its part.

The newspaper reports hundreds of U.S. troops across Africa would be reassigned under the plan. But General Thomas Waldhauser, head of the African Command, had previously told the Times the U.S. would not "walk away" and abandon its mission to train local forces in counterterrorism operations.

Some U.S. defense officials oppose the plan to close down military posts in Africa, saying it could cut U.S. influence at a time when China and Russia are looking to bolster theirs.

But one official told the Times that African countries have developed extremely capable counterterrorism forces and many do not need a permanent U.S. presence.

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UN Palestinian Overseer Promises Continued Aid

By VOA News September 02, 2018

The chief of the United Nations agency that helps Palestinian refugees is promising continued aid for Palestinians, even as the United States says it is ending its financial contribution to the agency.

In the letter late Saturday, Pierre Krahenbuhl, commissioner-general of the U.N. Relief and Works Agency, said the U.S. decision "will only strengthen our resolve." He said, "The funding decision of an individual member state - albeit our historically most generous and consistent donor - will not modify or impact the energy and passion with which we approach our role and responsibility towards Palestine refugees."

But on Sunday, Israel's ambassador to the United Nations, Danny Danon, said his country welcomed the end to U.S. funding, saying the relief agency "has proven itself an impediment to resolving the conflict by keeping the Palestinians in perpetual refugee status. The Palestinian attempt to approach the U.N. is another empty statement. It's about time that the Palestinian leadership abandoned its victimhood and incitement campaign, and takes concrete steps to improve the Palestinians' future."

The Trump administration cut funding to the UNRWA Friday, calling the organization "irredeemably flawed." U.S. State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the U.N. agency's "endlessly and exponentially expanding community of entitled beneficiaries is simply unsustainable and has been in crisis mode for many years."

Krahenbuhl said in his letter, "The responsibility for the protracted nature of the Palestine refugee-hood, the growing number of refugees and the growth in needs, lies squarely with the parties and in the international community's lack of will or utter inability to bring about a negotiated and peaceful resolution of the conflict between Israel and Palestine. The attempt to make UNRWA somehow responsible for perpetuating the crisis is disingenuous at best."

UNRWA provides health care, education and social services to Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. The agency provides services to more than 5 million Palestinian refugees, most of whom are descendants of Palestinians who fled or were forced from their homes during the war that led to Israel's establishment in 1948.

The U.S. supplied nearly 30 percent of the total budget of UNRWA and donated $355 million to the agency in 2016. However, in January, the Trump administration withheld millions of dollars, releasing only $60 million in funds to the agency.

Krahenbuhl said that represented a $300 million reduction in income, "which confronted our organization with an existential crisis. At no time over the past eight months were we notified of the specific reasons for the dramatic cut. It appeared clearly related however to the tensions between the United States and the Palestinian leadership following the U.S. announcement on Jerusalem and not to UNRWA's performance. It therefore represented an evident politicization of humanitarian aid."

The UNRWA chief also acknowledged "with deep appreciation the over 25 countries that advanced their expected annual contributions to earlier in the year to help us sustain operations" and his "immense gratitude to the 30 donors who have provided additional contributions to UNRWA's core and emergency activities this year and those who have signed new multiyear agreements with us."

He said, however, the agency is "still in critical need of over $200 [million] to survive this year's crisis."

Nabil Abu Rudeneh, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas, said the U.S. decision to end decades of UNRWA funding "does not serve peace but rather strengthens terrorism in the region."

UNRWA is seen by Palestinians and most of the international community as providing a valuable safety net. The U.N. agency, however, is seen very differently by Israel.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has said UNRWA promotes the unrealistic Palestinian demand that refugees have the "right of return" to long-lost homes in what is now Israel. He has said UNRWA should be abolished and its responsibilities taken over by the main U.N. refugee agency.

"There is sadly nothing unique in the protracted nature of the Palestine refugee crisis. ... Enshrined in the principle of humanity and the international law norm of family unity is the commitment to continue serving communities affected by war until a political solution has been found," Krahenbuhl said in his open letter. "It is the failure to end conflicts that prolongs refugee situations and denies refugees the choice to define a dignified future of their own."

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Berlin's Bundestag Approves 'Well-Equipped' German Cybersecurity Agency

Sputnik News

23:15 02.09.2018(updated 23:21 02.09.2018)

Chancellor Angela Merkel's cabinet has proposed a new cybersecurity branch of the German government, to be overseen by both the the Interior and the Defense ministries, according to Defenseone.com.

Projected to see an annual operating budget of some 200 million ($230 million) between 2019-2022, the so-called Agency for Innovation in Cybersecurity (AIC) will encompass 100 employees and follow an as-yet-undetermined mandate.

The Bundestag  the German parliament  will fine-tune the cabinet's proposal and, after funds are made available, the AIC will begin work in early 2019, according to sources in the government.

The potential creation of the AIC is noted by Bundestag watchers to represent a political commitment by Merkel's cabinet to address the seemingly inescapable truth that cyberspace is where much of the more devastating future attacks of warfare will occur.

Berlin's Defence Ministry took a hawkish stance in describing the new defensive cyber policy, noting that government, security and business tools lag far behind pervasive and sophisticated online attacks that can result in far more than just simple network shutdowns and spoofs.

"The existing government processes pertaining to research are too slow," stated Defense Minister Ursula von der Leyen, cited by Defense One.

"We have to be at least as quick and as well equipped as the perpetrators," she observed.

By injecting venture capital into cutting-edge research, AIC hopes to nurture new cyberdefenses to support military and security forces, a methodology that will  in the words of Van der Leyen  require "courage" and, tellingly, patience on the part of the German politic.

 Sputnik

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China, Egypt to advance comprehensive strategic partnership

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 09:03, September 02, 2018

BEIJING, Sept. 1 (Xinhua) -- Chinese President Xi Jinping on Saturday held talks with Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah al-Sisi ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).

The two leaders agreed to jointly advance the China-Egypt comprehensive strategic partnership for greater development in the new era.

Egypt is a representative of Arab states, Africa, Islamic countries, major developing nations and emerging economies, with increasing influence in international and regional affairs, Xi said.

Noting that China highly values developing the comprehensive strategic partnership with Egypt, Xi pledged to continue to support Egypt in its efforts to maintain stability, develop economy and improve people's livelihood, in pursuing a development path in line with its national conditions, and in playing a bigger role in international and regional affairs.

China is willing to strengthen strategic communication and coordination with Egypt and safeguard their common interests, Xi said.

He called on both sides to continue to support each other on issues involving their respective core interests, timely exchange views on bilateral relations and major issues of common concern, share the experience of governance, and strengthen exchanges at all levels and in various fields.

Stressing that China views Egypt as an important and long-term partner of cooperation in the development of the Belt and Road Initiative, Xi said China is willing to align the initiative with Egypt's Vision 2030 and Suez Canal Corridor Development Project, promote pragmatic cooperation between the two countries, and enhance collaboration in counter-terrorism and security areas.

Both as countries with ancient civilizations, China and Egypt should jointly promote dialogue and communication in this regard, Xi said.

Noting that Egypt and China maintain traditional friendship and a high level of mutual trust, and hold similar positions and closely coordinate with each other on major international issues, Sisi said Egypt places priority on the comprehensive strategic partnership with China.

As one of the earliest countries that support the Belt and Road Initiative, Egypt firmly believes that the initiative will create enormous opportunities for their bilateral cooperation as well as international and regional cooperation, he said.

The president said Egypt will continue to support and participate in the Belt and Road Initiative and, as the incoming holder of the African Union rotating presidency, it will also continue to promote cooperation between Africa and China.

Stressing that development is what African nations need most, Sisi said the Beijing Summit of the FOCAC demonstrates that China attaches great importance to Africa's development. Egypt fully supports China in hosting a successful summit, he said.

Egypt speaks positively of China for upholding a just stance on the Middle East issues and is ready to strengthen coordination with China in multilateral areas, Sisi said.

After the talks, the two leaders witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents.

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Report: Experts Suspect Microwave Weapons Injured US Diplomats in Cuba

By Ira Mellman, Ken Schwartz September 02, 2018

Experts are growing more and more suspicious that microwave weapons were responsible for inflicting brain damage on nearly 40 U.S. diplomats and their families in Cuba and possibly China, the New York Times reports.

The Americans reported strange high-pitched sounds outside their Havana homes and hotels in 2016 and 2017, followed by severe headaches, nausea, fatigue, dizziness and hearing loss.

A report on the injuries earlier this year did not mention a cause.

But after examining more than 20 victims, the report's author, Dr. Douglas Smith, head of the brain injury center at the University of Pennsylvania, tells VOA a microwave weapon looks more and more like the culprit.

"What kind of mechanical forces can change the brain in the way that's ultimately very similar to a head blow, but there is no evidence of having that very large mechanical injury," he asked.

Dr. Smith said he and his team examined the victims at the request of the State Department and all had the same symptoms as if they suffered concussions.

Smith brushed off suggestions that this may have been some kind of mass hysteria among the diplomats, saying they were examined separately and that no one can fake such injuries as balance and cognition problems.

Allan Frey, a U.S. scientist, discovered in 1960 that the human brain can perceive microwaves as sounds.

According to the New York Times, the United States had researched using microwaves as weapons, including ways to beam speech into an enemy's head and possibly paralyze him.

U.S. intelligence warned more than 40 years ago that the Soviet Union was also looking into microwave weapons.

The Times also reported that a Washington lawyer obtained a National Security Agency statement saying that a foreign power built a weapon "designed to bathe a target's living quarters in microwaves, causing numerous physical effects, including a damaged nervous system."

The precise cause of the sonic attacks on the Americans is still unknown, including who was behind them and why.

President Donald Trump has directly blamed Cuba and, and last year expelled 15 Cuban diplomats from Washington.

Cuba denies any involvement and calls Trump's move political.

The U.S. also brought home a number of Americans from the consulate in Guangzhou, China, in June after diplomats there showed the same symptoms of a sonic attack. A Chinese spokesman said officials investigated and found nothing suspicious.

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India Successfully Tests Russia-Designed Tank Shells

Sputnik News

06:48 02.09.2018(updated 07:19 02.09.2018)

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - The first shipment of Russian 125-millimeter Mango tank shells produced in India under license agreement successfully passed check tests, and the producer began to supply them to the Indian army, the press service of shells' developer, Russia's Techmash, told Sputnik.

"The first shells produced in India passed check test with positive results. The Indian manufacturer is already testing and supplying Mango shots under its brand," the company said.

They specified that since the beginning of 2017, Techmash experts have installed the supplied equipment and helped launch their own production on the basis of artillery plants of the Indian Defense Ministry.

"Personnel training to produce Mango shells, as well the implementation of a comprehensive audit of the readiness and equipment of production, certification of employees, were also included in the contract works," Techmash added.

A joint Russian-Indian enterprise producing Mango tank shells began operating in India earlier this year.

Acting General Director of the Russian Mechanical Engineering Research Institute Alexander Gorduhin told Sputnik in December that the enterprise was expected to manufacture some 200,000 shells.

 Sputnik

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Leader office's top official visits domestically-made fighter jet

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Sept 2, IRNA -- Head of the Supreme Leader's military office paid a visit to the domestically-made fighter jet dubbed "Kowsar".

Brigadier General Mohammad Shirazi paid a visit to an exhibition on Iran's defense industries' achievements.

The official also toured an exhibition showcasing Iran's defense achievements.

Iran unveiled its first domestically-made fighter aircraft during a defense exhibition in Tehran last Tuesday, with President Hassan Rouhani attending the ceremony held to mark the country's defense achievements.

The Kowsar fighter jet has been designed and manufactured in collaboration with experts of Iran Aviation Industries Organization (IAIO), other industrial organizations of the Ministry of Defense, Iranian Air Force, universities and knowledge-based companies.

The domestically-developed fighter aircraft, utilizing a wide network of the Iranian knowledge-based companies and industrial organizations of the Ministry of Defense along with other academic and research centers in the country, has optimized combat capability of the pilot, localized avionics and advanced 4th generation fire control as well as mechanical and hydraulic systems and the engine.

The fighter jet features an advanced integrated architecture and fire control avionics, the 4th generation digital data network, multi-purpose digital display technology, computerized ballistic calculations of weaponry and the HUD system to increase the accuracy of weapons and ammunition hits, advanced multi-objective fire control radar to enhance the detection of targets and threats, accurate radio and navigation independence and a smart mapping system.

The jet will be produced in single seat and twin seat versions with the twin seat expected to be used in training pilots.

9191**2050

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Iran warns Europe against lack of JCPOA commitments

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Sept 2, IRNA -- Imposition of sanctions against Iran, putting the country under pressure and Europe's failure to implement its commitment pertaining to the Iran nuclear deal will lead to serious consequences, the head of Iran's Foreign Policy Strategic Council said.

'The three European parties to the Iran Deal, formally known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), have so far failed to do enough to safeguard Iran's interests under the nuclear deal,' Kamal Kharrazi said during a meeting with the visiting Britain's Minister of State for the Middle East at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office Alistair Burt on Sunday.

Kharrazi also urged cessation of Saudi bombardment of Yemen and called on London to stop supplying arms to Riyadh.

'If Britain is looking for an end to the war in Yemen, it should stop selling arms to Saudi Arabia and ask the Saudi-led coalition to end aggressions against the country,' he said.

'It is the natural right of the popular forces in Yemen to participate in the next government in Yemen,' he added.

The head of Iran's Foreign Policy Strategic Council went on to criticize Europe for backing supporters of terrorists in Syria, describing the Europe's approach as a terrible mistake.

All the parties should try to pave the ground for holding peaceful elections in Syria and respect the people's votes, Kharrazi said.

He also reiterated that Iran and Britain can cooperate in an array of different fields, but he added that to do so the two sides need to build confidence.

UK's minister of State for the Middle East at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, for his part, emphasized that London is after strengthening its cooperation with Tehran.

Referring to the significant regional role maintained by Iran, Burt added that Britain is seeking for continuation of parliamentary talks and relations to build mutual confidence.

Both Iran and Europe are victims of US wrong policies, he said.

The British official stressed that London's stance on the JCPOA is quite different from that of Washington.

He said they are looking for a European mechanism for the success of the JCPOA.

2044**2050

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Iran, Iraq to broaden defense cooperation

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Baghdad, Sept 2, IRNA -- Deputy chief of staff of the Armed Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran Brigadier General Qadir Nezamipour conferred on Sunday with Iraqi Defense Minister Irfan Mahmoud Al-Hayali on expansion of defense cooperation between the two neighbors.

During the meeting, the two sides called for expansion and deepening of mutual cooperation.

They examined quadrilateral security dialogue between Iran, Russia, Iraq and Syria and also exchanged views on Arba'een religious ceremony (The Day of Arbaeen marks forty days after the Day of Ashura, the day Hussain ibn Ali was martyred in the Battle of Karbala ) which is to be held in Iraq.

Iraqi defense minister, for his part, voiced his country's readiness to implement already reached agreements and protocols signed between the two sides top military officials.

The Iraqi Defense Minister also thanked the Islamic Republic of Iran for its cooperation in fight against Daesh terrorist group, adding that the two neighboring countries enjoy a high level of relation and cooperation.

Iranian military delegation led by Brigadier General Nezamipour is now in Iraq to attend the quadrilateral security dialogue between Iran, Russia, Iraq and Syria.

1430**2050

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Iran Leader hails role of Army's air defense

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Sept 2, IRNA -- Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei said on Sunday that Khatam al-Anbiya air defense base affiliated to the Iranian Army is a sensitive part of the armed forces and is at the frontline of the fight against the enemies.

Speaking during a meeting with the commanders and senior officials of Khatam al-Anbiya air defense base, Ayatollah Khamenei urged the need to increase the preparedness of the Base and upgrade the capabilities of its staff members.

Noting that political calculations suggest that there is no chance for conducting a military confrontation, the Leader, however said that the armed forces need to remain vigilant and update their capabilities day after another.

Brigadier-General Alireza Sabahi Fard, the commander of Khatam al-Anbiya air defense base, also briefed the Supreme Leader on the latest acts and plans of the Base.

9341**2050

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Income Tax dept to wait till September 7 for Walmart to pay tax on Flipkart deal

Indian software services exporter Wipro Ltd has won its biggest-ever contract worth more than $1.5 billion with U.S.-based Alight Solutions LLC for digital services as reported by Reuters. Wipro would earn $1.5-1.6 billion in revenues over the tenure of the deal, which will include services in health, human resources and finance.The deal is expected to be completed in the quarter ending September.The Income Tax Department will wait till September 7 for settlement of withholding tax by Walmart on payments made to about 44 shareholders exiting e-commerce firm Flipkart before it proceeds in the case. As per the provisions of the I-T law, Walmart has to deduct withholding tax on payments made to sellers and deposit it with the Indian authorities on the seventh day of the subsequent month, which falls on September 7. Walmart has not yet approached the tax department to ascertain the withholding tax liability, although some shareholders of Flipkart who are exiting the e-commerce company have sought guidance on their tax liabilityWhile the excitement around Ikea's first Indian store has not abated, the company seems to be having its first brush with trouble. Last week, a customer claimed he found a worm in the in-house restaurant of the Swedish furniture giant's first Indian store in Hyderabad. A customer named Abeed Mohammad took to Twitter to complain about finding a caterpillar in the vegetable biryani served to him. He also tagged the Hyderabad police, Telangana Minister for Municipal Administration and Urban Development. The Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) issued a notice to the firm and also imposed a fine of Rs. 11,500 for flouting norms related to waste segregationMauritius remained the top source of foreign direct investment into India in 2017-18 followed by Singapore, whereas total FDI stood at USD 37.36 billion in the financial year, a marginal rise over the USD 36.31 billion recorded in the previous fiscal, according to RBI data. The provisional data for the financial year ended March revealed that foreign direct investment (FDI) into the manufacturing sector witnessed a substantial decline, while FDI into communication services rose to USD 8.8 billion in 2017-18.The government plans to have examinations for individuals who want to become independent directors as part of bolstering the corporate governance framework, according to Union Minister P P Chaudhary. At a time when the government is making efforts to make its role minimal in the affairs of corporates, the role of independent directors is more vitalThe price of petrol rose to a shocking new high of Rs 86.56 a litre in Mumbai today, September 3. The last all-time high witnessed by the city was Rs 86.06 on September 01. In Delhi, the petrol price touched Rs 79.15 per litre. Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan has blamed "external factors" for the rise in domestic prices of petrol and diesel, but has said the increase is only temporary.Suzuki Motor Corp. plans to invest at least ? 9,000 crore to build a new car plant in Gujarat as reported by Mint. The investment will double Suzuki's annual capacity in Gujarat to 1.5 million vehicles. The Japanese auto maker has ambitious plans for India where its unit, Maruti Suzuki India Ltd, is the market leader.
Iran FM spokesman explains details of Zarif-Le Drian phone call

ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency

Sun / 2 September 2018 / 16:28

Tehran (ISNA)  Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi stressed that phone call between Iranian and French Foreign Ministers has been held in the framework of frequent contacts between the authorities of Iran and European countries including France.

About the contents of the phone conversation between Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and his French counterpart Jean-Yves Le Drian, Mr. Qassemi added, "Generally, the text of diplomatic dialogues wouldn't be released and it is a usual work in the world".

Stating that France is one of the important partners of Iran in the Europe and Tehran has good relation with the country and the other states in the EU, Mr. Qassemi stressed, "without doubt, having good relations does not mean that the two countries have the same point of views on all issues. The two countries can have good relations, but be at odds on some issues".

"In order to resolve the differences or reduce them the administrations use different means in accordance to diplomacy framework," the spokesman added.

"The last night phone call between Mr. Zarif and Mr. Le Drian was held in the framework of frequent contacts between the authorities of Iran and European countries including France. We use the opportunity to introduce our views and positions and the other side also brings up its views about different issues and it is diplomacy," Mr. Qassemi went on to say.

About the latest development in Iran`s talks with EU on JCPOA, he said, "Regarding the issue, we must wait and be patient. European has political will to preserve the JCPOA following US` withdrawal from the nuclear deal. In fact, we expect European fills the gap caused by the US' withdrawal and the other members of the deal implement their obligations regarding to Iran especially in the economic field".

Stating that the dialogue would be continued and Europeans offer various proposals, he said, "These proposals are not enough and we have not yet received necessary and operational guarantees. We are waiting to receive indispensable proposals. After receiving such proposals, Iran will take decision about JCPOA issue".

About the latest visit of British Minister of State for the Middle East and North Africa, Alistair Burt to Tehran and his meeting with Iran`s deputy Foreign Minister for Political Affairs, Abbas Araghchi, Mr. Qassemi added, "We have had political dialogue with many European countries include UK. With some of the countries these talks hold periodical and every six months including UK. The previous talks between the two countries held in London and this time British diplomats came to Tehran".

"The UK delegation had detailed dialogue with Mr. Araghchi. Both sides discussed many interested issues. They exchanged views on bilateral issues in political, economic, and consular fields," the spokesman added.

Stating that regional and international issues were also among the topics negotiated during meeting, he clarified, "The two sides discussed JCPOA and the duties which the European countries would implement and in general, I think a good result has been achieved from these consultations".

End Item

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Iraq: Reuters report of Iran moving missiles to Baghdad 'without evidence'

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 02:06PM

Iraq's Foreign Ministry says it was "astonished" at a Reuters report, which claimed that Iran had moved missiles to Iraq, saying the claim lacked any "tangible evidence."

"Iraq is not obliged to respond to media reports that lack tangible evidence backing up their claims and allegations," the ministry said in a statement on Sunday, adding, "All state institutions in Iraq uphold Article 7 of the constitution, which prohibits the use of Iraqi land as a base or passage to be used in operations targeting the security of other states."

According to the statement, the Iraqi Foreign Ministry said it was "astonished at the allegations" contained in the Reuters article.

In an exclusive report on August 31, Reuters quoted unnamed sources as claiming that Iran has given ballistic missiles to Shia fighters in Iraq and is developing the capability to build more there to deter attacks on its interests in the Middle East.

The report alleged that Iran had transferred short-range ballistic missiles to its allies in Iraq over the last few months.

Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi on Saturday vehemently rejected as "false, meaningless and ludicrous" the missile claim, saying it aimed to stoke Iranophobia in the region.

"What has been raised and published by some infamous cells and certain media about the transfer of Iranian missiles to Iraq is a nonsensical statement and sheer lie," Qassemi said.

He added, "The report is solely aimed at creating fears among regional countries" and is in line with Iranophobic policies.

Iran has been lending military advisory support to Iraq and Syria as per requests by the two Arab countries' governments in the face of foreign-backed Takfiri terrorism.

The Islamic Republic's missile program and its regional presence has been the target of intensified Western propaganda over the past few months.

The Iranian and Iraqi reactions to the Reuters article came as US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo expressed his deep concern over the possible transfer of Iran's ballistic missiles to Iraq, saying the move was a "gross violation" of the Iraqi sovereignty and UN Security Council Resolution 2231.

"Baghdad should determine what happens in Iraq, not Tehran," Pompeo said on his Twitter account.

The United States is unhappy with close relations between the two neighboring countries of Iran and Iraq, which have grown exponentially since the fall of former Iraqi dictator, Saddam Hussein.

Lately, Saudi Arabia has gone on a charm offensive to woo Iraq away from the Islamic Republic by inviting Iraqi leaders to Riyadh and pledging to invest in the country.

Iran's Defense Minister Brigadier General Amir Hatami said in April that the country's relations with Iraq are so deep and strong that they will not be affected by "mischievous interventions" of other parties.

"The Islamic Republic considers it as its responsibility to join in Iraq's reconstruction," he said, noting, "It is the Islamic Republic's policy to assist the Iraqi people and government under all circumstances."

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Iran Rejects Reports It Has Transfered Missiles To Militias In Iraq

RFE/RL September 02, 2018

Iran has rejected a report by Reuters that it has provided ballistic missiles to its Shi'ite militia allies in Iraq and is developing the capacity to allow them to build missiles there.

"Such false and ridiculous news has no purpose other than affecting Iran's foreign relations, especially with its neighbors," Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qasemi said on September 1, according to Iran's IRNA news agency.

"This news is solely aimed at creating fears in the countries of the region," Qasemi added.

Reuters on August 31 cited three Iranian officials, two Iraqi intelligence sources, and two Western intelligence sources in reporting that Iran had sent short-range ballistic missiles to allies in Iraq over the past few months.

The report added that several of the officials said Tehran was helping the groups in Iraq to begin manufacturing the missiles themselves.

U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wrote on Twitter on September 1 that he was "deeply concerned of reports" that Iran was transferring ballistic missiles into Iraq.

"Baghdad should determine what happens in Iraq, not Tehran," he added.

The Iraqi government and military declined to comment.

A Western source told Reuters that several dozen missiles had been shifted to Iraqi Shi'ite militias.

Reuters quoted an Iraqi source as saying it was difficult for Baghdad to persuade the groups to go against Tehran or to stop cooperating with their Shi'ite allies.

The Zelzal, Fateh-110, and Zolfaqar missiles have ranges of about 200 to 700 kilometers. That would put the capital of Shi'ite Iran's bitter Sunni rival Saudi Arabia and the Israeli city of Tel Aviv within range from western Iraq.

The overseas branch of Iran's powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) -- the Quds Force  has bases in those areas.

The action, if confirmed, would increase already high tensions between Washington and Tehran.

President Donald Trump in May pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal Iran signed with six world powers, accusing Tehran of violating the spirit of the accord by continuing to test ballistic missiles and for supporting militant activity in the Middle East.

Tehran has denied the allegations.

A missile transfer could also anger France, Germany, and Britain, which tried unsuccessfully to persuade Trump to remain a part of the deal.

The three countries, along with Russia and China, have so far vowed to remain part of the nuclear deal, which provided Tehran with relief from some sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear programs.

With reporting by Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-rejects-report-m issile-transfer-militias-iraq/29466064.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.

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Iraqi Military Hosts Counterparts From Russia, Iran, Syria

RFE/RL September 01, 2018

Iraq says its senior military commanders have met in Baghdad with their counterparts from Russia, Iran, and Syria to discuss regional security and the fight against Islamic State (IS) and other militants.

The Defense Ministry on September 1 said it hosted delegations led by the country's deputy chiefs of staff to "strengthen cooperation and coordination in terms of security and intelligence between these countries."

Russia and Iran have provided support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in his seven-year fight against Western-backed rebels.

IS militants also entered the fighting and are opposed by all other sides.

The militants captured large chunks of territory in Syria and Iraq before being pushed out of their strongholds mainly by U.S.-led coalition forces and are now confined to small enclaves in the two countries.

Iran is also a close ally of the government in Baghdad, which is attempting to balances its relations with bitter rivals Washington and Tehran.

Iraq, Iran, Russia, and Syria have created a joint-operation effort to coordinate the fight against the estimated 2,000 IS fighters still active.

Meanwhile, the U.S. State Department on September 1 said Secretary of State Mike Pompeo spoke with the Iraqi prime minister and vice president to express support for Baghdad's efforts to form a "moderate, nationalist" government that would serve all Iraqis.

Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Pompeo made clear to Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi "the importance of safeguarding Iraq's sovereignty during this critical time" amid current political rambling following the recent national elections.

Nauert said Pompeo also spoke with Vice President Ayad Allawi. Abadi and powerful Shi'ite cleric Muqtada al-Sadr announced on June 23 that they had agreed on a political coalition to form a new government.

Sadr's political bloc, which includes communists, won 54 seats in the legislative elections, making it the largest grouping in Iraq's 329-seat parliament.

The political uncertainty helped raise tensions amid growing public anger over poor basic services, unemployment, and the slow pace of rebuilding following the long battle with IS.

With reporting by AFP, AP, and Reuters

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/iran-iraq-syria-russia- commanders-meet-baghdad/29465653.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.

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Iran, Russia, Iraq, Syria hold security meeting in Iraq

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Baghdad, Sept 2, IRNA -- Iran, Russia, Iraq, and Syria security committee meeting was held at Baghdad on Saturday to facilitate intelligence coordination among these countries.

It has been three years that the quadrilateral security committee holds regular meetings to facilitate intelligence coordination among Iran, Russia, Iraq, and Syria to fight against Daesh (ISIS) in Iraq and Syria.

"Cooperation among the countries benefits all of the members, especially in security and intelligence activities against terrorism", said Deputy Head of International Affairs Department of the General Staff of the Armed Forces Brigadier General Ghadir Nezamipour on the sidelines of the meeting.

The members of this intelligence committee have followed up the activities of terrorists along Syria-Iraq borders and have prevented Daesh infiltration into Syria and Iraq through intelligence cooperation.

"Daesh spread hatred among the people of the world and was a threat against world peace and its defeat was not a win for Iraq only, but for all of the nations", said Iraqi Defense Minister Irfan al-Hayali in the meeting.

He added, "Iraqi people fought against Daesh by all means and spread the spirit of peace and amity through their sacrifices.'

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Iran, Russia, Iraq, Syria hold quartet meeting in Baghdad

ISNA - Iranian Students' News Agency

Sun / 2 September 2018 / 12:42

Tehran (ISNA)  Iraqi sources announced that senior military commanders from Iraq, Russia, Iran and Syria have met in Baghdad and exchanged views on security and intelligence cooperation.

Senior Iraqi military commanders hosted their Russian, Iranian and Syrian counterparts in Baghdad to discuss security cooperation and information-sharing in the Middle East, where Daesh continues to carry out attacks.

The Iraqi defense ministry said it had received delegations led by their respective deputy chiefs of staff, to strengthen cooperation and coordination in terms of security and intelligence between these countries.

Lieutenant General Salim Harba, head of the Syrian delegation to the conference, said that the four countries are in agreement over tackling terrorism, which is a threat to humanity.

He also warned that US proxies were planning a new chemical attack in Syria to pin the blame on Damascus and justify a new aggression against the Arab country.

The four countries had created joint operations rooms to coordinate the fight against Daesh, now driven out of all urban centers in Iraq and largely confined to desert holdouts in Syria.

At the request of Damascus, Iran has been offering advisory military assistance to the Syrian government fighting an all-out militancy.

Russia, too, has military advisers in the Arab country, beside carrying out aerial bombardments on behalf of the Syrian government.

The support by Tehran and Moscow has enabled the Syrian army to speed up its gains on various fronts against Takfiri militants, AFP reported.

End Item



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Pompeo talks to Abadi, Allawi amid public anger over US meddling in Iraq's affairs

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 09:18AM

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo has spoken to Iraqi Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and Vice President Ayad Allawi amid public frustration with Washington's interference in Baghdad's affairs.

Iraq's political parties are locked in talks to form a government following the May parliamentary elections which propelled anti-American blocs to victory much to Washington's chagrin.

In a phone conversation with Abadi on Saturday, Pompeo "emphasized the importance of safeguarding Iraq's sovereignty during this critical time," according to US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert.

The top American diplomat also spoke with Allawi, a pro-Saudi figure, expressing Washington's hope that the new Iraqi government "includes all communities and serves all of the Iraqi people."

Pompeo also spoke with Brett McGurk, Washington's envoy to the US-led coalition, and took to Twitter to say, "Doing a great job. Forming a strong Iraqi government on national basis is essential to the enduring defeat of #ISIS (Daesh)."

The remarks came one day after hundreds of Iraqis held a protest in the capital, Baghdad, to vent their anger at the US meddling in their country's domestic affairs.

Earlier this week, Abadi sacked Falih Alfayyadh, his national security adviser and head of the Popular Mobilization Units (PMU) also known by its Arabic name as Hashd al-Sha'abi.

The decision has largely been attributed to the country's ongoing efforts to form a new government following elections in May.

Predominantly Shia blocs won most seats at the Iraqi parliament, but they have so far failed to reach a consensus over the formation of the next government.

The US, backed by the UK, invaded Iraq in 2003 under the pretext that the former regime of Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction. No such weapons, however, were ever found in the country. The invasion plunged Iraq into chaos and led to the rise of terrorist groups.

The US and a coalition of its allies further launched a military campaign against purported Daesh targets in Iraq in 2014, but their operations in many instances have led to civilian deaths.

On Friday, NBC News reported that the administration of US President Donald Trump is planning to send hundreds of Daesh captives to Iraqi prisons and the notorious US military prison, Guantanamo, in Cuba.

Citing US officials and European diplomats, the report said the terrorists "would be drawn from a group of about 600 currently held by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF)" in Syria's militant-held areas.

Many Daesh elements were formerly held in US prisons where they formed the foundation of their brutal group before going on a campaign of terror and destruction across the region after their release.

In July, the US began the construction of its largest consulate building in the city of Erbil. The new US consulate, which will be built on a 200,000 square meter piece of land, will cost $600 million.

Back in 2009, the US inaugurated the largest and most expensive embassy in the world in Baghdad, suggesting that Washington was set for a long haul in the Arab country.

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Iraq, Russia, Iran, Syria military chiefs discuss security, intel cooperation

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 05:09AM

Senior military commanders from Iraq, Russia, Iran and Syria have met in Baghdad and exchanged views on security and intelligence cooperation.

The commanders from the four countries, which have joint operation rooms to coordinate the fight against the Daesh terror group, attended the conference on Saturday.

The Iraqi Defense Ministry said it had received delegations led by deputy chiefs of staff to "strengthen cooperation and coordination in terms of security and intelligence among these countries."

Lieutenant General Salim Harba, head of the Syrian delegation to the conference, said that the four countries are in agreement over tackling terrorism, which is a threat to humanity.

He also warned that US proxies were planning a new chemical attack in Syria to pin the blame on Damascus and justify a new aggression against the Arab country.

At the request of Damascus, Iran has been offering advisory military assistance to the Syrian government fighting an all-out militancy.

Russia, too, has military advisers in the Arab country, besides carrying out aerial bombardments on behalf of the Syrian government.

The support by Tehran and Moscow has enabled the Syrian army to speed up its gains on various fronts against Takfiri militants.

Daesh started its campaign of terror in Iraq and Syria in 2014, occupying territory in the two Arab countries and establishing a self-proclaimed "caliphate."

The Takfiri group was gradually driven out of all the land it had occupied in Iraq and Syria and both countries announced Daesh's territorial collapse in December 2017.

Daesh remnants, however, are now believed to be hiding in the Iraqi-Syrian border region.

A recent report by the United Nations estimates that between 20,000 and 30,000 Daesh members are still holed up in Iraq and Syria.

Iraq risks Daesh re-emergence

On Saturday, a study warned that extremist groups such as Daesh may re-emerge in Iraq if the country fails to tackle a critical drought and other climate-related issues.

The study, conducted by the Expert Working Group on Climate-Related Security Risks, was presented to the UN Security Council.

"The combination of its hydrological limitations, increasing temperatures and extreme weather events puts pressure on basic resources and undermines livelihood security for Iraq's population," the report said.

"Failure to monitor and manage these climate-related risks will increase the risk of Daesh and post-Daesh terrorist groups gaining support and regaining strength within resource-constrained communities."

In a purported audio recording in Arabic released last month, Daesh ringleader Ibrahim al-Samarrai, aka Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, called on his followers to keep up their terror attacks.

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Pentagon cuts military aid to Pakistan over failure to act against militants

Iran Press TV

Sun Sep 2, 2018 04:48AM

The US military has declared it is canceling $300 million in aid to Pakistan over what it calls Islamabad's failure to take decisive measures against militant forces, marking a further deterioration in ties.

"Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy the remaining $300 (million) was reprogrammed," Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner said Saturday, according to Reuters.

The suspension was part of a broader cut in the so-called Coalition Support Funds announced by US President Donald Trump early this year, when he accused Islamabad of rewarding past American aid with "nothing but lies & deceit."

According to Faulkner, the US Defense Department aimed to spend the $300 million on "other urgent priorities" if approved by Congress. He further noted that another $500 million in CSF was stripped by Congress from Pakistan earlier this year, to bring the total withheld to $800 million.

US officials, however, have held out the possibility that Pakistan could win back that support if it changed its behavior.

Defense Secretary James Mattis, in particular, had an opportunity to authorize $300 million in CSF funds through this summer - if he observed concrete Pakistani measures to go after the militants, but he chose not to, Reuters said in its report.

The disclosure came ahead of an anticipated visit by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the top American military officer, General Joseph Dunford, to Islamabad. Mattis stated on Tuesday that combating militants would be a "primary part of the discussion."

Washington has for years accused Islamabad of allowing militants and terrorist groups to operate relatively freely in Pakistan's porous border regions to carry out operations in neighboring Afghanistan, an allegation Pakistan denies.

Pakistan's new Prime Minister Imran Khan, who has previously suggested that he might order the shooting down of US drones entering Pakistani airspace, has opposed the American open-ended presence in Afghanistan. In his victory speech, he said he wanted "mutually beneficial" relations with Washington.

Pakistan, the report said, has received more than $33 billion in US assistance since 2002, including more than $14 billion in CSF, a Pentagon program to reimburse allies that have incurred costs in supporting counter-insurgency operations.

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Pentagon Cancels $300 Million Military Aid To Pakistan Ahead Of Pompeo Visit

RFE/RL September 02, 2018

The U.S. military says it has decided to cancel $300 million in aid to Pakistan that had been suspended due to Islamabad's perceived lack of action against militants, raising tensions ahead of a visit by Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and the top U.S. general.

President Donald Trump suspended the so-called Coalition Support Funds, along with other aid to Pakistan, at the start of the year.

The Trump administration accuses Islamabad of harboring insurgents who are waging a 17-year-old war in neighboring Afghanistan, a charge Pakistan denies.

"Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy the remaining $300 (million) was reprogrammed," Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner said on September 1.

Faulkner said the Pentagon aimed to spend the $300 million on "other urgent priorities" if approved by Congress.

He said another $500 million in CSF was stripped by Congress from Pakistan earlier this year, to bring the total withheld to $800 million.

The Pentagon's remarks come ahead of a planned visit on September 5 to Islamabad by Pompeo, who will be accompanied by the top U.S. military officer, General Joseph Dunford.

Defense Secretary Jim Mattis told reporters on August 28 that the fight against militants would be a "primary part of the discussion" when the U.S. officials meet with new Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Kahn and others.

Mattis is not expected to make the trip to Pakistan, but he is scheduled to travel with Pompeo to Pakistan's rival, India, later in the week for a summit with their counterparts.

Trump earlier this year wrote on Twitter that the "United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools."

"They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!" he added.

In March, a senior U.S. official said Islamabad had "done the bare minimum to appear responsive to our requests."

Pakistan has rejected allegations it is not doing enough to fight terrorism or that it provides safe haven for insurgents operating in Afghanistan.

It points out that thousands of its citizens and soldiers have been killed and billions of dollars have been spent in the fight against terrorists.

Pompeo's visit also comes after Islamabad disputed the readout of an August 23 phone call by the secretary of state with Kahn.

A description of the call released by the State Department said Pompeo raised "the importance of Pakistan taking decisive action against all terrorists operating in Pakistan and its vital role in promoting the Afghan peace process."

But Islamabad said that "no issue relating to terrorists in Pakistan" was raised.

"Pakistan takes exception to the factually incorrect statement issued by U.S. State Department" on the phone call, a Foreign Ministry spokesman said on Twitter.

"There was no mention at all in the conversation about terrorists operating in Pakistan. This should be immediately corrected."

The State Department said the U.S. government stood by its statement.

With reporting by Reuters, AFP, Geo TV, and Dawn

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/pentagon-cuts-pakistan-aid- ahead-of-pompeo-dunford-visit/29466078.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.

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The Pratt & Whitney engine jinx reared up yet again on Saturday with a GoAir flight from Bengaluru to Pune being forced to return as the Airbus A320 Neo plane developed a technical snag. According to sources, the engine failed mid-air and the flight returned with full emergency measures being put in place for its landing at the Bengaluru airport.

There were 169 passengers on board. The pilots are reported to have got a mid-air indication of vibration in an engine followed by oil chip detection alarm going off, eventually leading to its shutdown. The GoAir spokesperson said, Flight G8-283 BLR-PNQ suffered a technical glitch.

As a standard operating procedure the captain returned back to Bengaluru. Post landing, all passengers were cared for and accommodated on alternative flights. The latest incident comes barely a week after Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu had sought a report from the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on the grounding of the A320 neo planes.

IndiGo and GoAir have grounded nine A320 neo planes due to Pratt & Whitney engine issues, aviation regulator DGCA had disclosed last month. While seven of these were from the IndiGo fleet, the other two belonged to GoAir.

DGCA had admitted that IndiGo and GoAir have been grappling with P&W engine problems for many months. The manufacturers have taken measures to address significant problems of engines related to combustion chambers distress and No 3 bearing issues by replacing Block B combustion chambers with Block C and providing dry face bearing seals. These measures have significantly reduced the engine problems, the DGCA added.

The regulator also said there are no safety concerns as such distress is found during routine scheduled boroscope inspections of these engines. There are 60 A320 Neos with P&W engines operating in Indian skies as of now. Of them, 41 are with IndiGo and 19 with GoAir.

GoAir had on Thursday announced commencement of its overseas flights from October. "We already have 19 Airbus A320 new engine option (Neo) planes in the fleet, and we have 13 more such planes to come this year," Cornelis Vrieswijik, chief executive officer, GoaAir, told journalists in Mumbai. Four of these planes will be joining the fleet next month.

On the issue of frequent glitches in the Pratt & Whitney engines, which power these planes, the GoAir chief executive said: "The faulty engines are major issues when it comes to operations." However, he also said that all aircraft, except one or two, have the engines of latest standard, with the block seal.

Vrieswijik said that the airline had spare engines to replace the faulty engines to avoid flight disruptions. "We are depending upon engine modifications provided by the enginemaker. As an airline, we are having negotiations with aircraft and engine manufacturer and other suppliers. For compensation, we are always in negotiations with Airbus and Pratt & Whitney," he said.

The GoAir official also said that the airline was looking to sub-lease up to nine A320 Ceos, which burn 20 per cent more fuel compared with A320 Neos, as part of its cost cutting measures.
US Cuts $300 Million in Aid to Pakistan Over Failure to Tackle Terrorists

Sputnik News

08:11 02.09.2018

Combined with earlier cuts, the total amount of aid cut off to Pakistan has reached $800 million.

The US Department of Defense has canceled $300 million worth of aid to Pakistan citing Islamabad's failure to decisively engage terrorists on its soil.

"Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy the remaining $300 (million) was reprogrammed," Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner said, according to The Independent.

Earlier this year, the US stripped Pakistan of $500 million worth of aid, making the total loss $800 million.

The announcement comes months after US President Donald Trump blasted Islamabad for rewarding the country with "nothing but lies and deceit," despite Washington's repeated help.

The US accuses Pakistan of granting safe haven to terrorists and militants who are waging a 17-year-old war in neighboring Afghanistan, a charge Islamabad vehemently denies.

The allocated money will be spent on "other urgent priorities" if approved by Congress, Faulkner added.

Experts have noted that this decision will increase pressure on Islamabad's security apparatus at a time when Pakistan's economy continues to struggle, The Independent reports.

"It is a calibrated, incremental ratcheting up of pressure on Pakistan," says Sameer Lalwani, co-director of the South Asia program at the Stimson Center think tank in Washington. "They are squeezing them when they know that they're vulnerable and it is probably a signal about what to expect should Pakistan come to the IMF for a loan," Mr. Lalwani said, referring to Islamabad mulling turning to the IMF for a bailout.

As Sputnik earlier reported, heavy Chinese investment into Pakistani infrastructure boosted Islamabad's GDP growth by six percent, but took down the national currency 19 percent, threatening the country's economy with massive destabilization. Pakistan has reportedly been thinking of turning to the IMF for a bailout in order to pay its debts to Beijing, which US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo warned against. Should the IMF reject a Pakistani request for monetary assistance, Islamabad will have to somehow restructure its debt to China.

 Sputnik

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US-Pakistan Tensions Flare Before Pompeo Trip

By Ayaz Gul September 02, 2018

Pakistan has dismissed as "incorrect" reports the United States has canceled $300 million in military aid to the country, saying Washington owed the money to Islamabad for expenses incurred on fighting terrorism.

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood made the remarks a day after the Pentagon disclosed it decided to scrap the funds because Pakistan was not doing enough against terrorist groups inside its borders.

"It is not a cut in any [U.S.] aid, it is not assistance. This is our own money which we have used for improving regional security situation and they had to reimburse it to us," Qureshi told reporters Sunday in Islamabad.

The controversy is the latest to hit Islamabad's troubled relationship with Washington, coming a few days before Secretary of State Mike Pompeo together with General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, are scheduled to visit the South Asian nation.

This will be Washington's first high-level dialogue with Islamabad since the new government of Prime Minister Imran Khan assumed office following recent elections.

Qureshi confirmed his American counterpart will visit Pakistan Wednesday and downplayed suggestions the funding row has fueled mutual tensions.

The aid the Pentagon has decided to scrap was to come from a so-called U.S. Coalition Support Funds established to help Pakistan counter terrorism and secure its volatile porous border with Afghanistan.

"Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy the remaining $300 million was reprogrammed," said Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner on Saturday.

The spokesman explained the plan will be submitted to Congress for approval and it will bring the total amount withheld from Pakistan under the Coalition Support Funds to $800 million since early this year.

Pressure on Taliban

Observers see the cancellation of Coalition Support Funds funds as pressure on Islamabad to prevent Taliban insurgents from using Pakistani soil for plotting attacks inside Afghanistan.

"This is not something that we were not expecting," a senior Pakistani security official told VOA on condition of anonymity, citing continued deterioration in bilateral ties. In January, U.S. President Donald Trump suspended all military assistance to Pakistan accusing the country of rewarding past assistance with "nothing but lies and deceit."

Pakistani officials defend their counterterrorism record and cite "massive human and economic losses" militancy has inflicted on the country after it joined the U.S. war. Islamabad rejects U.S. accusations of inaction, saying they stem from Washington's military failures in Afghanistan.

Prime Minister Khan told reporters on Friday his government will hold talks with Pompeo's delegation to seek a "mutually beneficial" relationship with the United States that will be based on "mutual respect."

Senator Mushahid Hussain, who heads the foreign affairs committee of the upper house of parliament, tells VOA the stoppage of $300 million will undermine Pompeo's visit.

"On the eve of the most important visit to Pakistan by an official American [delegation] since the new government took office, Pakistan-American relations are hanging by a thread," Hussain cautioned.

The influential Pakistani Senator alleged an"outmoded, zero-sum "ideologically-driven" U.S. foreign policy is making Washington "increasingly less relevant to Asia than before." Hussain cited tension in the U.S. relations with China, Russia, and Iran.

Pakistani officials insist that Coalition Support Funds funds also cover the costs on maintenance of the country's ground and air lines of communications, commonly known as GLOCS and ALOCS respectively, U.S. and NATO use to ferry key supplies to their troops in the landlocked neighboring country. They say Pakistan is using its own funds and fencing the country's long porous border with Afghanistan to promote regional stability.

New alliances

Trump's decision to suspend military assistance to Pakistan has also shut training and educational programs for Pakistani military officers under the bilateral cooperation.

In a rare cooperation agreement with Pakistan last month, Moscow agreed to open doors of its military institutions for training Pakistani army officers, underscoring intensified efforts Russia has been making to seek closer relations with Islamabad.

China has also deepened ties with Pakistan in all fields and is investing unprecedented billions of dollars in the country to help its traditional ally overcome its economic and energy challenges.

Beijing, Moscow, Tehran and Islamabad have lately increased political and security cooperation to jointly fight the emergence of Islamic State in Afghanistan.

But top American military commanders accuse Russia of trying to destabilize and undercut international gains in Afghanistan by maintaining ties to the Taliban insurgency, charges Moscow denies.

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Russians Protest 'Cannibalistic' Pension Reform, Despite Putin's Concessions

RFE/RL's Russian Service September 02, 2018

Thousands of people across Russia have protested against a deeply unpopular pension reform, despite concessions offered recently by President Vladimir Putin.

"Today, we are holding an all-Russia protest against this cannibalistic reform," Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov told a crowd of several thousand protesters gathered in Moscow on September 2.

Demonstrations were reported in many other cities, including St. Petersburg, Russia's second-largest city, Yekaterinburg in the Ural Mountains, Novosibirsk in Siberia, and the Far Eastern port city of Vladivostok.

In July, Russia's parliament gave preliminary backing to a government plan to raise the retirement age to 63 for women by 2034 and to 65 for men by 2028.

Tens of thousands have rallied against the proposed reform in recent weeks, and Putin's popularity in opinion polls has noticeably decreased.

In response to the outburst of public anger, Putin promised in a televised address on August 29 to soften the controversial measures.

The president proposed raising the state pension age by five years to 60 years for women, instead of the earlier proposed eight-year hike, while a five-year increase for men would stay.

He also proposed allowing women with at least three children to retire earlier.

Currently, the retirement age is 55 for women and 60 for men.

Russian men and women have life expectancies of 66 and 77, respectively, according to the World Health Organization, and critics have warned that many won't live long enough to claim a pension.

The issue of raising the retirement age has turned into the biggest domestic challenge Putin has faced since winning another term as president in March.

On September 2, around 9,000 people took part in a protest in Moscow's Sakharov Avenue, according to White Counter, an independent activist group that tracks turnout at demonstrations, while the Interior Ministry put the numbers at 6,000.

Many participants carried the red flags and banners of the main organizer of the rally, the Communist Party.

One of the banners displayed at the rally read, "We do not trust United Russia," the country's ruling party.

A separate demonstration in Moscow, organized by the Just Russia party, attracted a further 1,500 people on Suvorovskaya Square, police said.

One activist was reportly detained during the protest.

Elsewhere in Russia, reports said that at least 1,500 demonstrators took to the streets of St. Petersburg.

In the Volga city of Samara, some protesters in a 1,000-strong crowd called for Putin's resignation, the AFP news agency reported.

Reports said that 2,500 people joined a similar rally in Novosibirsk.

In Vladivostok, the city administration said more than 200 people gathered for a protest, but organizers said they numbered about 2,000.

In Yekaterinburg, around 450 people took part in a protest during which demonstrators held portraits of politicians who have voiced support for pension reform, according to local newspaper Nasha Gazeta.

In the south, rallies took place in the Black Sea port of Novorossiisk, Astrakhan, Rostov-on-Don, and in the capitals of the North Caucasus regions of Karachayevo-Cherkessia and Kabardino-Balkaria, the Interfax news agency reported.

Demonstrators also took to the streets in the capital of Simferopol in Crimea, the Black Sea peninsula annexed by Russia from Ukraine in March 2014.

Opposition politician Aleksei Navalny called for more mass protests against the pension reform on September 9.

Ahead of the planned demonstrations, Navalny was sentenced to 30 days in jail on August 27 for helping to organize an unsanctioned street rally in Moscow in January.

With reporting by AFP, Reuters, and Interfax

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/russians-protest-cannibalistic-pension-reform -despite-putin-s-concessions/29466700.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.

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Russia-Eritrea Relations Grow with Planned Logistics Center

By Salem Solomon September 02, 2018

Russia and Eritrea expanded their diplomatic relationship Friday when Moscow announced plans to build a logistics center at a port in the East African country.

Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov disclosed the plans at a meeting with a high-level delegation from Eritrea, according to RIA, a Russian state-owned news agency.

The scope, location and timeline of the project have not been announced, but the diplomatic development is an important milestone for both countries, each of whom has sought to expand its bilateral ties.

For Russia, it's the latest effort to forge alliances with countries in Africa, following multiple trips to the continent this year by Lavrov to discuss military, economic and diplomatic partnerships.

In late August, Russia signed a military cooperation agreement with the Central African Republic. That deal focuses on training armed forces in the CAR.

For Eritrea, a deepening Russia alliance is the latest sign that decades of isolation may be ending, after a historic peace deal in July with neighboring Ethiopia. Since that agreement was signed, Eritrea's president, Isaias Afwerki, has met with leaders from Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Somalia and South Sudan. He's also received delegations from Japan and Germany.

For Friday's meeting, Eritrea sent a delegation led by Foreign Minister Osman Saleh and Yemane Ghebreab, a senior presidential advisor, to Sochi, Russia, about 3,100 kilometers north of the Eritrean capital, Asmara. It's the latest get-together in the countries' 25-year diplomatic relationship.

Strategic location

Eritrea's two ports, in Massawa and Assab, occupy strategic points along the Red Sea. Access to those ports is one benefit Ethiopia, a landlocked country, may reap from the peace deal.

Ethiopia and Eritrea began talks about the possibility of joint port development immediately following the deal. Such a cooperation could involve an existing facility or one that hasn't yet been conceived.

Meanwhile, specifics on the purpose of the planned Russian logistics facility haven't been announced, but Russian and Eritrean leaders said the project would invigorate trade and business deals between the countries.

If Russia follows through on its plans for a logistics center, it won't be the first time a foreign player has set up shop in Eritrea.

Assab is already home to a United Arab Emirates naval base, and Eritrea has allowed the U.A.E. to launch planes from Assab to fight Houthi rebels in Yemen. The port, at the mouth of the Red Sea, has a particularly strategic location less than 200 kilometers north of an array of international military bases in Djibouti.

Decades earlier, in the 1940s, the United States established a military and logistics base at Kagnew Station in Asmara for reconnaissance missions in Word War II and the Cold War.

Last year, U.S. Congressman Dana Rohrabacher called for renewed military ties with Eritrea in the fight against terrorism.

Sanctions next?

Eritrea faces U.N. sanctions against specific individuals, along with an arms embargo. It's hoping to use evolving diplomatic relationships to build momentum to remove the penalties.

Talk of lifting the sanctions has accelerated since the peace deal with Ethiopia, but Eritrea's sanctions, in place since 2009, were imposed not because of that conflict, but rather separate concerns with other regional neighbors, including alleged support of al-Shabab in Somalia and a border dispute with Djibouti.

The al-Shabab issue is all but settled, with the United Nations deciding last November to disband the monitoring group that was tasked with investigating Eritrea's links to the armed extremist group, after years of inquiries produced no evidence of ties.

Objections over the border with Djibouti, however, have persisted, with Mohamed Siad Doualeh, Djibouti's ambassador to the United Nations, writing a forceful letter to the U.N. Security Council in late July outlining his country's grievances, which include occupation of Djiboutian land and prisoners of war who have not been accounted for or returned.

Lifting sanctions will require nine of 15 Security Council votes, including the support of all five permanent members  China, France, Russia, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Lavrov said Friday that sanctions against Eritrea should be lifted, according to TASS, a Russian state-owned news agency.

It's the first time a permanent member of the Security Council has addressed the sanctions issue since the peace deal with Ethiopia and, backed by aspirations for bilateral business deals, increases Eritrea's odds before a potential vote.

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Syria FM refutes US allegations about chemical weapons

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Sept 2, IRNA -- Syrian Foreign and Expatriates Minister Walid al-Moallem, affirmed the allegations made by the US and its allies on the use of chemical weapons have become exposed to the world public opinion and its aim is to justify any potential aggression on Syria.

In an interview with Russia-24 channel, al-Moallem said that the best proof of this is what happened last April in Douma, where Washington deliberately blocked the arrival of the investigation team to the region and rushed to anticipate the launching of the tripartite aggression on Syria which proves that the accusations are just an excuse to justify aggression and that the US is not interested in any investigation that is inconsistent with its policies, SANA reported from Moscow.

The Minister affirmed that everything promoted by the US will not affect the morale of the Syrian people and the plans of the Syrian Arab Army to liberate Idleb and eliminate the terrorists in Syria.

He stressed that the US presence in Syria is illegal and Washington cannot justify it in any way. Although it has assured Russia that it will withdraw from al-Tanf area, it has not implemented this promise and it is also training groups with different names.

"The US presence claimed the lives of thousands of Syrian and in every time terrorists were besieged by the Syrian Arab Army, Washington was providing them with protection. As it became clear that Washington's main objective was to prolong the crisis in Syria in the interests of Israel the minister said.

"As a people and a leadership in Syria, we hope that the crisis will end today, but the Washington-led external intervention hinders achieving that," he added.

On the return of the displaced due to terrorism, al-Moallem expressed Syria's keenness on the return of its citizens, stressing that this voluntary return is safe and that the Syrian government is exerting utmost efforts to provide the requirements of a decent life for them.

He added that Damascus and Moscow are making great efforts in this regard, as more than 20,000 citizens have returned from Lebanon recently.

"The West is hindering the displaced return because it wants to use this file to exert pressure on the Syrian government in the final settlement of the crisis and this will not work because they will fail in the policy as they failed on the ground, the minister said.

The Minister expressed his satisfaction with the results of his visit to Moscow, which embodied the joint will of the two friendly countries to intensify coordination, consultation and cooperation relations in all fields aiming at achieving a strategic partnership.

He stressed that the reconstruction process represents a golden opportunity for Russian companies to implement this cooperation between the two countries, especially that the Russian Federation and friendly countries will have priority in reconstruction projects in recognition of their positions in support of Syria against terrorism.

1396**1396

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Army destroys terrorists rocket launching pads in Hama

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Tehran, Sept 2, IRNA -- Units of the Syrian Arab Army on Sunday conducted intensive strikes against gatherings for Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist organization and its affiliated groups in the northern countryside of Hama.

SANA's reporter said that an army unit destroyed rocket launching pads of terrorists of "Turkistan Party" in al-Mashik village on the eastern part of al-Ghab plain, killing scores of terrorists.

The reporter added that the army's artillery carried out concentrated strikes on al-Nusra gatherings in the area surroundings of al-Sermania and al-Qarqour towns on the administrative border between Hama and Idleb provinces, killing a number of terrorists and destroying rocket launching pads.

A number of al-Nusra terrorists were killed or injured and their vehicles were destroyed due to army's raids on the northern outskirts of Khirbet al-Naqous town, in parallel with the killing of two terrorists from the so-called "Ezza Battalions" and destroying their fortified site on the western outskirts of al-Latmineh town.

1396**1396

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Military official dismisses attack on airport in Damascus

IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency

Damascus, Sept 2, IRNA -- The accident in Mezzeh airbase was an explosion that happened in the ammunition depot, a senior Iranian military official told the Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) on Sunday.

'The explosion heard in Damascus was due the short circuit that happened in the ammunition depot,' said the official speaking on the condition of anonymity.

Dismissing the rumors on the social media about Maher al-Assad, Syrian President's brother, who is also the commander of the Republican Guard, to have been injured in the incident, he said, 'There was no reason for him to be present in the ammunition depot; it is not true.'

Social media activists claimed that in the explosion Maher al-Assad, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad's brother had been injured in the incident.

9417**2050

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Syria denies foreign attack on airbase west of Damascus

People's Daily Online

(Xinhua) 11:03, September 02, 2018

DAMASCUS, Sept. 2 (Xinhua) -- The Syrian army denied reports that an Israeli missile attack targeted a Syrian airbase west of Damascus early Sunday, saying a short circuit caused an explosion in an arms depot near the airbase, according to the state TV.

The statement of the Syrian army comes less than an hour after at least two explosions were heard at the Mazzeh airbase in the Mazzeh neighborhood west of Damascus. The explosions reverberated across the capital of Damascus.

Pan-Arab al-Mayadeen TV and some pro-government activists in Syria said the explosions were the result of a missile attack by Israel on the airbase, which has been previously targeted by Israel.

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Syria Confirms Blasts at Ammunition Depot Near Damascus Caused by Short Circuit

Sputnik News

21:49 02.09.2018

MOSCOW (Sputnik) - Over the past several years, Syria has repeatedly accused Israel of attacks on the Mezzeh military airport. According to Tel Aviv, Israel strikes the Iran-supplied Hezbollah arms depot at the Mezzeh facility to prevent the Lebanese movement from obtaining advanced weapons for terrorist aims.

"In fact, from what we understood from sources in the Syrian Defense Ministry, the cause of these explosions was a short-circuit due to overheating These expositions were not the result of illegal Israeli aggression," Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem told the Russia-24 broadcaster on Sunday.

Earlier in the day, a source in Syrian intelligence services told Sputnik that the outskirts of Damascus were subject to a missile attack. The Syrian air defense systems repelled the blows, he said, adding that Mezzeh military airfield near Damascus was not affected by the strike, but there were explosions at an ammunition depot near it as a result of the attack. The Times of Israel newspaper reported, citing sources, that the strikes had been conducted by Israeli aircraft.

 Sputnik

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Turkey Will Not Ask for Permission on S-400 Deal With Russia - Erdogan

Sputnik News

14:16 02.09.2018

Turkey is eyeing a long-range missile defense system of its own as part of its current effort to enhance the country's defensive strategic military capabilities.

Ankara will not ask for anyone's permission to purchase S-400 surface-to-air missile systems from Russia, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan told participants of a business forum in the Kyrgyz capital Bishkek.

"We made a deal with Russia on the S-400. Some are concerned about this. Sorry, but we will not ask permission from anyone," the newspaper Milliyet quoted Erdogan as saying.

Earlier, Erdogan said that the country expects to receive the SAM in the near future, despite the pressure from the US.

In July, The Washington Times wrote that the United States had officially barred deliveries of the fifth-generation F-35 Joint Strike Fighter to Turkish forces, inserting the ban into the final version of the Pentagon's budget blueprint for the upcoming fiscal year.

The legislation, adopted by both the House of Representatives and the Senate, prohibits shipments of the advanced, multi-role jet fighters to Ankara until the Pentagon delivers "an assessment of a significant change in Turkish participation in the F-35 program, including the potential elimination of such participation."

According to The Hill, the Pentagon will have to report to Congress within 90 days about how the termination of Turkey's participation in the F-35 program could affect relations between Ankara and Washington, as well as the country's plans to acquire Russian S-400s.

Earlier, Pentagon chief Jim Mattis urged congressmen to abandon the idea of banning supplies of the F-35.

In December 2017, Turkey said it had inked an agreement with Russia for the delivery of two batteries of S-400 air defense missiles by early 2020.

Russia also agreed to provide technological know-how for the production of a new generation of Turkish air defense systems.

However, in April 2018, the two sides agreed on the early delivery of the state-of-the-art system.

Washington and its Western allies are seriously concerned about Ankara's push to buy the S-400 Triumph long-range anti-aircraft missile system with the ability to carry three types of missiles capable of destroying targets, including ballistic and cruise missiles, flying up to 400 kilometers (248 miles) away at an altitude of up to 30 kilometers (18.6 miles).

 Sputnik

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Budget carrier IndiGo is offering domestic air tickets for as low as Rs 999 and international ones for Rs 3,199. The airline, which is offering all-inclusive discounted flight tickets, has already kicked off its four-day sale beginning today.

A domestic one-way ticket from Delhi to Jaipur can be booked for Rs 999. A one-way international flight ticket from Kolkata to Dhaka can be booked for Rs 3,199.

Customers are required to book tickets before September 6 for the travel period between September 18 and March 30 next year. Around one million seats are up for grabs under IndiGo's latest sale. It is also the second such sale in as many months when IndiGo has offered discounts on about a million seats.

"We are delighted to announce this four-day festive sale across our network, effective from September 3 till September 6, 2018. We are sure customers will quickly grab the seats we have available, starting at fares as low as Rs 999," IndiGo's chief commercial officer William Boulter said.

While customers can book domestic flights starting as low as Rs 999, international flights can be booked at Rs 3,199. Customers can also opt for SuperCash facility that will offer 20% discount (Rs 600) if the payment is made through MobiKwik wallet on the IndiGo website or mobile app.

These discounts will be kicked in only if bookings are made 15 days prior to the date of flight departure and the date of travel should be no later than March 30 next year.

The Gurugram-headquartered airline had recorded a dip in net profit of 96.6 per cent to Rs 27.8 crore in the June quarter. The airline had attributed this fall in profit to adverse impact of foreign exchange and high fuel prices.
Tens Of Thousands Attend Funeral For Slain Ukraine Separatist Leader Zakharchenko

RFE/RL's Russian Service September 02, 2018

Tens of thousands of people gathered on September 2 in the separatist stronghold of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine to mourn a top rebel leader who was recently killed in a bomb attack.

Aleksandr Zakharchenko, the head of the separatists who control the city of Donetsk, was killed in an explosion at a cafe on August 31.

The killing was the latest in a series of violent deaths of separatist officials and commanders in eastern Ukraine, where the Moscow-backed separatists have been fighting Ukrainian forces since April 2014 in a war that has killed more than 10,300. Many of the assassinations have been blamed on fellow separatists.

Kyiv and Moscow have traded blame for Zakharchenko's death.

On September 2, mourners formed a huge line to view the flag-draped casket of Zakharchenko, whose body was lying in state in the separatist-held city of Donetsk's Opera and Ballet Theater.

The self-proclaimed Donetsk authorities said at least 100,000 people attended, while the AFP news agency estimated that more than 30,000 turned up.

There were some reports saying that people were bused to Donetsk and forced to attend the event.

Zakharchenko was later buried in a ceremony at the Donetskoye More cemetery, Russia's state-run TASS news agency reported.

The leader of Georgia's breakaway region of South Ossetia, Anatoly Bibilov; Natalya Poklonskaya, a member of the Russian State Duma; and Sergei Aksyonov, the head of the Russian-imposed government in Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula, which Moscow illegally annexed in March 2014, were among those who paid their respects to the late separatist leader.

Aleksandr Zaldostanov, the leader of the Night Wolves, a Russian motorcycle club known for its allegiance to the Kremlin, and several other members of the club also turned out, according to AFP.

During the ceremonies, the center of Donetsk was cordoned off by armed men in fatigues and public transport was temporarily suspended.

Billboards erected in the streets showed pictures of Zakharchenko with slogans such as "All of us have one Motherland  Russia."

In a statement carried by the separatists' official news agency, Russian President Vladimir Putin's adviser, Vladislav Surkov, called the separatist leader a "brother" and a "true hero."

Putin expressed his condolences for the "vile murder," the Kremlin has said.

Russia and the separatists were quick to blame Kyiv for Zakharchenko's death, but Ukraine's security service said it believes the attack was the result of a conflict between "terrorists and their Russian sponsors."

"We do not exclude an attempt by the Russian special services to eliminate a rather odious figure who, according to the information we have, was meddlesome for the Russians," the Ukrainian security service was quoted by state media as saying on September 1.

Meanwhile, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that international talks over the conflict in eastern Ukraine could no longer be considered following Zakharchenko's killing.

Lavrov said the bombing was "Ukraine's provocation...obviously aimed at derailing the implementation of the Minsk agreements," referring to the September 2014 and February 2015 pacts aimed at putting an end to the fighting in Ukraine's eastern regions of Donetsk and Luhansk, according to TASS.

One of Zakharchenko's bodyguards also died as a result of the August 31 blast in Donetsk, while a dozen others were injured.

Dmitry Trapeznikov, a top separatist official, was named as acting leader.

He said a number of suspects have been detained since the explosion.

The separatist movement has been plagued by infighting, with several leaders fleeing the region after saying they had been subject to threats from former comrades.

With reporting by AFP and the BBC

Source: https://www.rferl.org/a/tens-of-thousands- attend-funeral-for-slain-ukraine-separatist- leader-zakharchenko/29466598.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.

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India Post Payments Bank is finally operational and with it comes one of the biggest banking entity in the country, giving existing Payments Bank like Paytm and Airtel a run for their money. Though the new banking services will be offered on a person to person basis, the Payments Bank also has an app to help transact online.

Currently, the application is only available on Android's Play Store. To look for the application, one will have to enter 'India Post Payments Bank' which will yield an app by 'India Post Payments Bank Ltd' by the name 'IPPB Mobile Banking'.

When you install the application, on the first page you will have the option to log-in with your userID password. If you don't have an account, click on 'open your account now'. This will take you to the next page which asks for your mobile number, the product name you want to subscribe to and PAN details. Once filled, you'll have to click on 'continue'.

On the next page, you'll be asked to enter and re-enter your Aadhaar number. You will also be asked to agree to the terms and conditions. The application will then send an OTP (one-time password) on your registered number.

The application seems to have a problem while processing the OTP. On submitting the password for the registered mobile number and Aadhaar number, the app gives an error message stating, "something went wrong & resident authentication failed."

However, if you manage to complete the registration process by creating a user ID and password, you'll have to register for mobile banking service. To register for mobile banking, you'll have to provide details like your new IPPB account number, customer ID, date of birth and the registered number. Once entered, the app will send another OTP to the registered number. You will then have to create an MPIN to complete the mobile banking registration process.
Xiaomi is conducting a launch event on September 5 and the company is expected to launch three new smartphones during the event. The Chinese company has released a new teaser for the launch event which gives a hint of what to expect from Xiaomi's next line-up of the ever so popular Redmi series.

Going by the teaser shared by Redmi India on their Twitter handle, the new phones will have something called dual-VoLTE which according to the company will give guaranteed high-speed video data performance.

The company will be introducing the Redmi 6 line-up in India which will succeed the popular Redmi 5 series. Xiaomi also released a video teaser which shows three people using three different smartphones. This indicates that we might get Redmi 6, Redmi 6A and Redmi 6 Pro on September 5.

Out of the three phones, two will come with a tall display whereas the third phone will be bigger and sport a notch on top. The bigger Redmi 6 Pro is expected to come with a notch.

Xiaomi has also released a new teaser that shows an all-new colour Red. There is no clarity if it will be available on one of the three devices or with all three.

One of the biggest departures from last year's Redmi phones will be that the Redmi 6 and Redmi 6A are expected to launch with a MediaTek chipset. The Redmi 6 might come with a MediaTek Helio P22 chip whereas the Redmi 6A is expected to feature a Helio A22 chipset. The devices will be based on MIUI 10 based on Android Oreo 8.1.

The Redmi 6 and Redmi 6 Pro are expected to feature a dual-lens camera whereas the entry-level Redmi 6A will sport a single lens camera.

Edited by Danny D'Cruze
In the world of mobile commerce, every second counts. Even the slightest delay can cost your site conversions and your business money. With Google now seriously homing in on site speed as a ranking factor, the adoption of progressive web apps (PWAs) is looking more attractive to any website operator/business owner, and especially to those running ecommerce sites.

For those unaccustomed to the advantages of PWAs -- or even what they look like -- the easiest way to define them is a website modeling the features, user interface and user experience an app. This includes mimicking the layout, home screen icon, push buttons and notifications you would usually associate with an app, but all operating from your browser, and offering the same usability on mobile as on desktop.

They are also significantly easier to build compared to native apps, as they don't rely on complex coding: They can be built using the same code as your site and work the same way across iOS and Android phones.

Here are some more of the advantages of using a PWA over a native app for your business.

Related: A Step-by-Step Guide To Building Your First Mobile App

Push notifications

One of the biggest advantages of PWAs is they can offer your customers push notifications, alerting them to new products, sales and updates. The benefits of getting your message and products/services immediately into the hands of your consumer can't be overstated. The savings on marketing spend alone makes obvious business sense, along with the boost to your branding, keeping your business at the forefront of your market's minds.

Caching

Through the use of a service worker and cache API, PWAs can function offline, meaning your customers don't need a mobile connection to access your site or store. The caching function stores your layout elements and loads them into the browser, significantly increasing load times and decreasing bounce rates, which is -- let's face it -- the death of any conversion opportunity. The faster your visitors and potential customers traverse their way through the purchasing journey, the more likely they are to not just make the purchase but return in the future (more on conversions below).

Related: 15 Useful Tech Tools for Your Business

App market saturation

PWAs serve as an excellent means of rising above the saturated app market. There are approximately 2 million apps available on iPhones and nearing 4 million on Android phones. Among the retail giants stands Amazon, the only retail app among millions within the top 100 downloaded apps. Cutting through those numbers to get on the radar of your customers is a tricky feat, and there is never a guarantee they will download an app for your store. A progressive web app offers the benefit of working across all devices, requiring less upfront cost.

Related: 8 Online Careers You Can Start Today From Home

Increased conversions

There's a lot that can be said for making your customers' purchasing journey as easy as possible, and those businesses that have implemented PWAs have seen the benefits. For example, Best Western River North (in Chicago) saw a 300 percent increase in revenue and 500 percent in bookings compared to the conversion rates of its old website.

In summation, PWAs are simpler and typically cheaper to build, effortlessly work across the majority of smartphones and browsers, are more likely to be adopted and used by consumers, are faster to load, and lead to increased conversions. It's clear to see these are game-changing benefits with lower risk and investment required. And it's a safe bet that we'll see a substantial rise in businesses adopting them throughout the year and years to come.

Related:

How Progressive Web Apps Could Change the Mobile Landscape

Does Your Website Have This Important Lead-Generation Feature?

Improve Your Conversion Rate and Increase Revenue With These User Experience Design Essentials



Copyright 2018 Entrepreneur.com Inc., All rights reserved
Thailand's two major political parties, which have battled viciously over the past decade, are open to joining hands after the next election to blunt the power of unelected officials.

In separate interviews last week, a top leader of the Pheu Thai party affiliated with former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra and Democrat party head Abhisit Vejjajiva didn't rule out an alliance after the election planned for February, if certain conditions were met. Thailand has been under military rule since a 2014 coup by former army chief Prayuth Chan-Ocha.

While any collaboration would be fragile, Pheu Thai and the Democrat party may have a common interest in preventing unelected members of parliament from installing Prayuth or another military figure as premier after the vote. Under a constitution written after the last coup -- Thailand has had about a dozen military takeovers since 1932 -- a 250-member Senate appointed by the junta will have a say in picking the next prime minister.

"I am trying to persuade political parties to not support the NCPO leader in becoming the next prime minister after the election," said Chaturon Chaisang, a prominent Pheu Thai member, referring to the National Council for Peace and Order, the official name of the junta. "I personally have not shut the door for working together with any other party, including the Democrats."

Chaturon said he expects Pheu Thai to win the most seats in the election. Although it would be "very difficult" for Pheu Thai and the Democrats to join hands, he said, at the same time it would be challenging for a single party to gain a majority under the current electoral system.

"If one of the parties, any party, decides not to ally itself with any other parties, political parties might not be able to form a government," Chaturon said. "That's why I personally never say that we will never work together, or ally ourself with any party."

Thaksin's allies have won the most seats in every election dating back to 2001, with the military or courts intervening to overturn the results on several occasions. Thaksin fled the country and has lived overseas since a 2008 conviction for abuse of power -- a verdict he says was politically motivated.

Abhisit, who led Thailand from 2008 to 2011, said that the 250 senators should respect the will of the people in picking the prime minister. His Democrat party has finished second in every election it's participated in since 1992, and he became prime minister only after parties in Thaksin's ruling coalition switched sides in 2008 after protesters seized Bangkok's international airport.

"What would be the point of having elections if they are not going to be meaningful," Abhisit said in an interview. "We are all responsible for where the country is today."

He indicated that it wouldn't be easy for the Democrats to align with Pheu Thai.

"We will only join a government that we believe will best serve the interests of the people," Abhisit said. "We don't yet know how Pheu Thai is going to evolve, but I have said before that if Pheu Thai cannot step out of the shadow and the interests of the Shinawatra family, and do not learn the lessons of the abuses of the past, it will be difficult for us to work with them."

Prayuth has said an election may take place on Feb. 24, but the date isn't confirmed. The military administration has repeatedly pushed back the timeline for the vote and still continues to ban political campaigning, although it plans to relax some other rules.

Investors are watching for progress toward a poll. Standard Chartered Bank expects further clarity in the election timeline to bolster prospects for greater capital inflows to Thailand.

But there may be longer term risks after the vote. Prayuth will likely return as prime minister, but the falling popularity of the junta means social stability could deteriorate, BMI Research wrote in July.

Chaturon said Thaksin was still contributing to Thai politics and Thai society, but the party had to learn to operate without him.

"This constitution and the relevant organic laws prohibit him from getting involved with the party," Chaturon said of Thaksin. "If he is allowed by the party to have influence on the party, the party will be dissolved. The party must learn to pursue its duty independently of him."
Xiaomi co-founder and president Lin Bin has been taunting other brands (and teasing consumers) with how awesome the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 is going to be. First the Oppo Find X-like pop-up camera now 5G support.

His latest photo shows the phone with its status bar reading 5G. The phone is in front of what appears to be a 5G testing station, NR5G refers to to the 5G New Radio standard, which encompass the sub-6GHz and mmWave technologies.

The N257 band specifically is in the 28GHz band, so its mmWave tech (the faster, but shorter range of the two technologies). Qualcomm already has two modems that support the new 5G standards and promise speeds up to 2Gbps and 5Gbps. Presumably one of those is inside the Mi Mix 3 (though there are other vendors offering 5G-capable modems).

Bin suggested that the Xiaomi Mi Mix 3 can launch in late October, so the notch-free, 5G-powered future could be less than two months away.

However, the same photo was tweeted by Xiaomi's Director of Product Management, saying that the rollout will be next year (is that for the phoen or for the networks?).

We've successfully tested 5G data connections on Xiaomi phones, and we can't wait for the official rollout of 5G next year! 



5G download speeds are more than 10X faster than 4G speeds. What's everyone looking forward to the most?  https://t.co/vLAH3wosni  Donovan Sung (@donovansung) September 3, 2018

Source (in Chinese) | Via
Imran Khan launched countrywide tree plantation drive

Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived in Haripur on Sunday to launch a countrywide tree plantation drive. "Today we launch our tree plantation drive #Plant4Pakistan across the entire country," he said in a message on Twitter. "I want everyone to join this #GreenPakistan drive so we can counter the twin threats of climate change and pollution confronting our future generations."



According to the pictures shared by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on its Twitter page, people from Peshawar, Kohat, Charsadda, Lower Kohistan, Toba Tek Singh, Shikarpur, Malakand and other locations took part in the campaign on Sunday.



"There are 200 points at which the campaign is being started," said PM Khan while talking to the media, adding that it would be spread throughout the country. "This campaign will go on for five years and we will make all of Pakistan green."



"This is not the job of the government or one person; this is the whole nation's problem. If we don't start planting trees now, the whole country can become a desert," he said, emphasising the need to tackle pollution and smog through this plantation. Some 1.5 million trees are to be planted as part of PTI-led government's 10 billion tree tsunami 2018 drive.
Im sorry it happened, Morton told ABC, adding that the council adhered to due process.

In March, Morton came clean to the council, upon orders of the Regional Conduct Review Panel, regarding his error of using his council email account for personal business.

As reports of the incident surfaced in the media last week, the mayor no longer explained the reason behind the photos. He was unsure, however, why the IT staff decided to share them with other councillors.

The council IT expert was trawling through my council email account and found them and deemed it that he should share them with other people and also inform the CEO of their whereabouts, Morton said.

The review panel heard the complaint against Morton, and ordered the mayor be counselled by an appropriately qualified IT person about how not to repeat the misconduct.
Sharon Horgan has revealed that the upcoming fourth series of Catastrophe will be the last, saying she "lost my s**t" while reading the final scene.

The series, which also stars American actor Rob Delaney, has been a success with fans and critics alike.

Horgan said she thinks it's a good idea for her and Delaney to go out on a high.

"We just wrapped three weeks ago so we're in the edit now. It's incredibly stressful. Lots of running around Soho," she said.

"It's weird because it's the last series. Sometimes I feel like it's a good idea to quit while you're ahead. The stories came to us really easily and we really enjoyed writing it, and I suppose we thought we didn't want to push that.

"We didn't want to be forcing the story. It's kind of a tricky show to write because a lot of it comes straight from ourselves and that isn't always easy."

It won't be an easy goodbye for the actress, who wrote every episode of the series along with Delaney.

"When we did our read-through, because you're reading all six scripts and everyone's there and most people have been involved with it from the very beginning, we got to the last scene of the sixth episode and really, really embarrassingly, I kind of lost my s**t a little bit. I just couldn't read it," she said.

Emotional

Horgan spent plenty of time thinking about the final scene before the time came to write it.

She became so emotional while it was filming that she couldn't speak to Delaney.

"On set, when Rob did his last scene, I couldn't even talk to him," she told Second Captains on RTE Radio One.

"I was just like, 'I'm going to email you. Everything I'm feeling now I've got no way I can express it'. I haven't done the email yet."

Horgan expects the final series to come to our screens next year.

"But we haven't got a set date yet. We're just editing it at the moment," she said.

"It'll be ready soon, but there's all sorts of stuff you need to work out with Channel 4 first."

The show follows characters Sharon and Rob, who have a one-night stand after meeting in a bar in London.

Sharon soon finds out she's pregnant and the pair decide to raise the child together, with Rob moving to the UK from America to be with her.

Horgan, who was born in London and raised in Co Meath, is juggling a number of projects at the minute.

She is involved in the upcoming comedy Women On The Verge.

It was also recently announced that she will direct her first feature film, A New World, with actress Olivia Wilde slated to produce.
'The terrified transit worker handed over the box, which contained around 50,000, before the raider fled the scene.' Photo: Stock Image

A Garda manhunt is under way for a masked raider armed with a lead pipe who stole around 50,000 from a cash-in-transit van.

The daylight robbery happ-ened in north Dublin as the cash van made a delivery to a bank that had a similar sum stolen in a previous raid.

Delivery

Detectives are continuing to hunt for the thug, and are investigating the possibility that he may have been helped by at least one other man waiting nearby.

The robbery happened at around 2.40pm on Thursday on Main Street, Finglas.

A security van was making a delivery to the Permanent TSB branch when the raider struck.

He threatened security workers with what was described by witnesses as a lead pipe before demanding the contents of the cash box.

The terrified transit worker handed over the box, which contained around 50,000, before the raider fled the scene.

Gardai are appealing for anyone with information to contact them.

No arrests have yet been made and efforts are being made to identify a number of suspects.

A source told the Herald that two men may have been involved in the robbery, and that the second thief was also wearing a balaclava.

"A male approached the cash-in-transit employee while armed with a pipe-like weapon and demanded the cash box be handed over," a garda spokesman said.

"The male left the scene with the cash box in a vehicle which was later found burnt-out.

"A large amount of cash was stolen in the incident. No injuries were sustained and investigations are ongoing."

Shotgun

In April 2016, an armed raider approached security workers and threatened them with a shotgun before demanding cash outside the same bank.

He then made off with around 50,000 in a blue Ford Transit Connect, which was later found abandoned in the Glasnevin area.

It is not yet known if there is any connection between that raid and the robbery last Thursday.
Jonny Penny and friend Robert Malcolmson (right) fishing after Robert was bitten by a blue shark

An angler who was rushed to hospital after being bitten by a shark on Saturday was back out fishing yesterday on the same boat.

Robert Malcolmson (40), from Belfast, was sea angling with a group of friends off the Cork coast on Saturday evening when a blue shark they were landing turned on the line and bit his lower arm.

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He suffered a four-inch gash to his armand started to bleed heavily and became dizzy.

The boat, the Deora De, was around 20km off Roche's Point and a decision was made by skipper Jim Linehane to contact the Coast Guard and organise getting Mr Malcolmson, also known as 'Milky', to hospital for treatment.

Also on the boat was angler Jonny Penny, who helped administer first aid.

Crosshaven RNLI lifeboat launched and raced to the scene.

Mr Malcolmson was treated on board and taken to shore.

Snapped

He was then transferred to Cork University Hospital by a waiting ambulance.

His wounds were cleaned, stitched and bandaged and an undaunted Mr Malcolmson resumed the fishing trip with his friends yesterday.

"We were fishing for blue shark and had one on the line, and when we were taking it in it just flipped over and snapped at Robert," one of the angling party told the Herald.

"It wasn't a huge cut, but he was losing a good bit of blood and he started to feel a bit dizzy and sick so we thought it best to get him seen to," he added.

"But he's back out with us today, and everything is fine," he explained.

Blue sharks rank among the most numerous of shark species in Irish waters.

However, they are not counted among species known to attack humans such as tiger, mako and great white sharks.

While people have been bitten by them, these are usually the result of fishing incidents.

However, because of its rows of razor sharp teeth, a bite from a blue shark can be exceptionally dangerous.

"A blue shark is a wild creature, and you always have to be cautious when bitten by a wild animal," skipper Jim Linehane said.

"Because we were at sea it wasn't like we could drive to the hospital, so we decided to call the Coast Guard and meet the boat so we could get the lad to hospital," he added.

Crosshaven RNLI issued a post on Facebook saying its volunteers received the information about the incident at 6pm on Saturday and launched immediately.

"The deep sea angling boat Deora De steamed towards Crosshaven from about 13 miles offshore and rendezvoused with the Crosshaven lifeboat about four miles south of Roche's Point," it said.

"The casualty had been given immediate first aid by the crew of the angling boat before being transferred to the lifeboat where further casualty care was given on board.

"The lifeboat was met at Crosshaven by a NAS Paramedic crew which transported the casualty to University Hospital.

"We wish the patient well," it added.

Helm on the rescue mission on Saturday was James Fegan with Jenna O'Shea, Derek Moynan and Vincent Fleming.

The shore crew included Kevin McCarthy, Robbie O'Riordan, Peter Lane and Hugh Mockler.
Presidential hopeful Peter Casey has back-tracked from a tweet in which he expressed support for Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte's controversial drugs clampdown.

Mr Duterte has been criticised by human rights organisations amid allegations of extra-judicial killings and more than 7,000 deaths in his "war on drugs" in the first six months of his presidency.

Businessman and former Dragons' Den star Mr Casey said last night that he does not remember sending the 2016 Twitter post and insisted he "abhors" Mr Duterte's policies.

In September 2016, the Philippines leader saw a meeting with Barack Obama cancelled after he made personal insults against the then US president.

Mr Obama had warned he would raise the issue of extrajudicial killings at the meeting. Mr Duterte later apologised.

In the following days, Mr Casey tweeted: "Totally support Philippine President Duterte clamping down on drug dealers but he should not have apologised to Obama."

Responsibility

Mr Casey confirmed through a spokesperson that the @CaseyPeterJ Twitter account where the post appears is his.

"Can I say, categorically, that this is not how I feel about President Duterte or Barack Obama," he said.

"I have no recollection of making this tweet two years ago but I have to take responsibility for it if it's up there on my account.

"I do think that drugs are a curse in our society but, genuinely, I abhor Duterte's policy of using his police as vigilantes."

He said he knows "little or nothing" about Mr Duterte and certainly would not support the policies that have been criticised by human rights groups.

Mr Casey added: "I think Barack Obama is a very good and decent man."

Meanwhile, Gavin Duffy is favourite to scoop the first local authority nomination to contest the presidential election.

Meath County Council is set to vote today on whether to support a nomination.

Mr Duffy, who lives in the county, is strongly tipped to get its backing through a combination of votes from Independent and Fine Gael councillors.

President Michael D Higgins can nominate himself, but challengers must win the support of four local authorities or 20 Oireachtas members.

Mr Duffy was among eight potential candidates who made a pitch to Meath County Council last week.
Drew Harris is in the top job

Drew Harris began his new career as Garda Commissioner at one minute past midnight.

Acting commissioner Donall O Cualain stepped down from his role at 00.01am, and in line with the Garda Siochana Act, Mr Harris immediately took up the role.

The attestation took place in Kevin Street Divisional Headquarters.

In keeping with tradition for such occasions, it was a private meeting with a small number of people present.

Mr Harris (53) was attested by a Peace Commissioner and signed the Garda Code of Ethics and the Official Secrets Act.

He will now take charge of the general direction and control of An Garda Siochana from his office in Garda Headquarters in Phoenix Park.

Mr Harris, the former deputy chief constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI), is a father-of-four who joined the Royal Ulster Constabulary (RUC) in 1983.

Murdered

His father, RUC superintendent Alwyn Harris, was murdered in an IRA car bombing in 1989.

Mr Harris has been PSNI deputy chief constable for the past four years. He has relinquished his sworn oath to serve the UK and has applied for an Irish passport.

With a salary of 250,000, he will travel in an armoured vehicle, under escort, as he is considered a target for dissident republicans.

The appointment of Mr Harris has been the subject of much controversy.

Last month, Ciaran MacAirt, whose grandmother was killed by a loyalist bomb, applied to the High Court to conduct a judicial review into the appointment of Mr Harris.

He argued that Mr Harris' oath to the UK's Official Secrets Act meant he could not independently stand over an inquiry involving alleged collusion between British security services and loyalist terrorists, but the court rejected this.
'The suspected drugs have since been sent for testing and initial enquiries have led gardai to believe they may be steroids, as well as legal health supplements.' (stock photo)

Suspected steroids were found in a soldier's room after he became violent, lashed out and was hospitalised.

The soldier is now under investigation after the incident at a Dublin barracks.

No other individuals were involved.

The soldier's firearm was later recovered from his room.

Military police carried out a search of his room and found an unidentified substance, before alerting gardai.

Firearm

The suspected drugs have since been sent for testing and initial enquiries have led gardai to believe they may be steroids, as well as legal health supplements.

No arrests have been made and investigations are ongoing. Meanwhile, a spokesman for the Defence Forces denied rumours that had circulated on social media that someone was threatened with a gun in the incident.

"At no stage was any individual threatened with a firearm," the spokesman said.

He added the matter was currently under investigation.

"Following a search on Friday night, a quantity of an as yet unidentified substance was discovered which was handed over to gardai for examination.

"A member of the Defence Forces was transferred to hospital for medical examination where he remains under medical care," he said.

A source told the Herald a small amount of damage was caused to property when the soldier initially became violent.

"On August 31, military police contacted gardai stating they had found a quantity of suspected controlled substances in a military barracks," a garda spokesperson said.

"The substances were seized by gardai and brought to Rathmines Garda Station.

"The substances will be forwarded for forensic examination in due course."
Jam Kamal vowed to use CM houses for public purpose

Newly elected Balochistan chief minister Jam Kamal Khan Alyani has vowed to use the two CM houses in Quetta and Hanna Orak for public purpose instead of using it himself.



In an interview Jam Kamal said: "A second 16-room CM house is being constructed behind the current CM house at a cost of Rs650 million. Then another is being built in Hanna Orak at a cost of Rs460m. There was no need for such big houses.



"More than a billion rupees were spent on their constructions. We will use it for the benefit of the people."



He identified "governance" as the biggest problem of Balochistan. "Capable people were ignored [but we] are now investigating people involved in corruption and removing them from important positions."



The Balochistan CM said he would fix the education and health sectors of the province by the way of meritocracy. "Where there are students, there are no schools, and where there are both, the teachers are absent," he said. "In the education department there will be 10,000 appointments on merit.



"There are no [decent] hospitals in Balochistan either. We are working to resolve this. We will fulfill the needs of our doctors so they could perform their duties."



Jam Kamal said that instead of having dialogues with estranged leaders "who use Balochistan's lack of progress for political gains", he would instead use his term to address the real issues.



"Those who have done politics on the basis of Balochistan's deprivations have done nothing practical," he said. "Dr Malik and Sanaullah Zehri wasted their time in having dialogues with such people. Instead of doing the same, we will address the real issues of Balochistan."



The CM said that if he would talk with estranged leaders, then he would so "with only those who acknowledge Pakistan and its Constitution. We will not talk to people working on external agendas."



However, he said that dialogue is the way to go in Pakistan's legal battle with Chilean mining company Antofagasta plc over the Reko Diq mining lease disagreement.
Pakistan to raise concern over cancellation of $300 million before Mike Pompeo: Shah Mehmood Qureshi

Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi Sunday said that Pakistan would raise its concern over the cancellation of $300 million Coalition Support Fund (CSF) before US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who is scheduled to land in Islamabad on September 5.



Replying to a query by reporters regarding cancellation of $300 million of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF), the minister clarified that it was not an aid but in reality the amount was spent by Pakistan in the ongoing fight against terrorism and the United States had to reimburse it. And this deal was done even before this government came into being, he added.



Qureshi said that currently Pak-US ties are suspended. He hoped that the discussion with the visiting US dignitaries will be done in an amicable manner.We will sit and discuss this with him [Pompeo]. We will try to improve bilateral relations. We will listen to him and present our point of view to him as well, Qureshi said.



On Saturday, the Pentagon had announced to cancel $300 million in aid to Pakistan. Qureshi said Pakistan and the US had the shared objectives of ensuring peace in the region and beyond. During meeting with the US secretary, we will raise our concerns and discuss the shared objectives and will like to move forward, he added.



Blaming the previous PML-N government for the current state of ties with the US, Qureshi said, The last government had no engagement, no dialogue [with the US administration]  in fact there was an almost total breakdown of talks. But we will try to revive the talks.



Qureshi said Pakistan had rendered immense sacrifices and made matchless contributions in the war against terror. Pakistan Army, law enforcement agencies and civilians had given huge sacrifices in this fight, he said.



About the issue of closure of Pakistans consulate in Jalalabad, the minister said it was decided over security concerns of the staff deputed there and due to undue interference by the Afghan authorities. However, he added, they have been assured by the Afghan authorities that corrective measures were in place to address the concerns of the consulate staff.
Senate to hold discussion on poll rigging

ISLAMABAD: Amidst a fresh debate on the issue of alleged failure of the Results Transmission System (RTS) during the July 25 general elections, the Senate is set to hold a full-fledged discussion on the issue of poll rigging when it will go into the session on Monday (today) after a two-day recess.



A discussion on the admitted adjournment motion moved by Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) Senator Javed Abbasi regarding the issue of rigging in general elections 2018 is part of the 24-point agenda issued by the Senate Secretariat for Mondays private members day.



Last week, the Senate chairman had to adjourn the proceedings twice due to lack of quorum after the opposition members walkout when they were not allowed to speak on the RTS fiasco.



Through a calling attention notice, Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf Senator Azam Swati had drawn the attention of the house to the alleged failure of the RTS in the elections, and the performance of the Election Commission of Pakistan following the fiasco. He had said that the ECP and the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) were blaming each other for the systems failure.



Pakistan Peoples Party Senator Raza Rabbani had alleged that Mr Swati was only presenting his side of the story and that he should have moved an adjournment motion as the whole house wanted a debate on the matter.



Mr Rabbani said the opposition had already demanded that a parliamentary commission be formed to probe the allegations of rigging in the elections.



Senate Deputy Chairman Saleem Mandviwala, however, pointed out that rules allowed Mr Swati to speak on his calling attention notice for 10 minutes. This prompted the opposition members to stage the walkout and point out lack of quorum.



On Friday, Information Minister Fawad Chaudhry and Senator Azam Swati held a news conference and stated that the federal government had decided to launch an inquiry into alleged manipulation in election results as they believed that top officials of Nadra were involved in twisting the system.



The two PTI leaders claimed that there was no rigging in the elections, but the flow of the results was deliberately delayed by Nadra.
How many COVID tests do you think Meritus has done? Here's the answer

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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
As Nepal hosted the fourth Bimstec summit last week, its geopolitical implications were glaring. It clearly pointed at regionalism that is in flux, with competing interests at play. For Nepal, whether it could make its mark in such a fluid situation, would depend on how it maintains a degree of autonomy in the India and China geopolitical race.

Nepals Prime Minister, KP Oli, thanked visiting leaders from the six member states  Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Sri Lanka and Thailand  for attending the summit at short notice. Unlike the Saarc summit held in Kathmandu in 2014, when the major roads were dug up and reconstructed, this looked every inch a hurried affair. Never an easy job during the monsoon, the potholes to the conference venue, the Presidents office and the airport were being plugged as guests arrived in Kathmandu. It was an audacious undertaking even by our brave standards.

But that hardly was a major concern. Nepal is currently the Saarc chair and the Saarc, headquartered in Kathmandu since its establishment in 1985, rests firmly in the Nepali publics imagination. To most Nepalis, Bimstec is still a vague regional grouping that puts distant Asean members (Myanmar and Thailand) together while some Saarc members (Pakistan, Maldives and Afghanistan) are left out. When Oli was elected the prime minister in February, the first head of the government to visit Kathmandu was Pakistani Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abassi. Abassi was here to solicit Nepals good offices as the Saarc chair to get the long-stalled 19th Saarc summit in Islamabad off the ground.

In their summit address last week, no leader mentioned Pakistan, a south Asian neighbour, or China, now a south Asian player. But they were both conspicuous by their absence.

Connectivity was the buzzword at the summit. Buddhism was a binding force, with Sri Lanka, Myanmar and Thailand in tow. Nepal and India have sizeable Buddhist populations and Nepal takes a lot of pride in being the birthplace of the Buddha, a message Prime Minister Oli delivered repeatedly during the summit. Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi, said that India would host an international Buddhist conference in two years. The summit agreed to develop a Buddhist tourist circuit and a temple tourist circuit, and connect ancient cities in the regiona clear emphasis on deepening the common cultural values shared by the member states.

What happened on the sidelines was politically symbolic, too. The Indian and Nepali Prime Ministers signed a memorandum of understanding for a preliminary survey of a 100-km Raxaul-Kathmandu railway. Modi visited Pashupatinath temple, as he invariably does while in Nepal, where Oli and he jointly inaugurated a 400-bed Nepal-Bharat Maitri Pashupati Dharmashala.

In Kathmandu, public opinion on the Bimstec summit has been mixed. Many welcome it as an opportunity for Nepal to secure additional investments on connectivity and raise its international profile. But there is a broad consensus that the India-led regional grouping should not come at the expense of Saarc  a view echoed by the officials from other smaller Saarc member states. They are wary of the big-power rivalries between India and China and dont want to get caught up in the high-powered game.

For Nepal, India has been the most important trading partner but its economic engagement with China has deepened in recent years. In 2012, China overtook India as Nepals largest contributor of foreign direct investment. Since 2015, a period when the Nepal-India border was blocked and the relations between the neighbouring countries were at a low point, the Himalayan country has actively sought Chinese assistance to strengthen its trade and transit relations with China. In May 2017, Nepal signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with China to participate in the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) but the biggest breakthrough came this year in June when Oli visited Beijing. The two sides agreed to build the trans-Himalayan Kerung-Kathmandu railways. Though there are more than 50 flights a week connecting Kathmandu with Chinese cities, the railways are expected to be a game-changer in bilateral relationsa point made in the joint communique after Olis visit.

Since the 1950s, Chinas primary concern in Nepal has been to prevent it from being used as a base for Tibetan activism. But the Chinese engagement has broadened in recent years. China wants to see that Nepal, like other smaller south Asian countries, becomes an important participant in the economic networks it is creating across Asia. India is doing the same with regional groupings such as Bimstec. How well does Nepal and other smaller south Asian countries balance these relationships will depend a lot on the India-China tango.

Akhilesh Upadhyay is a Kathmandu-based senior journalist who has written extensively on regional geopolitics related to Nepal

The views expressed are personal
The US has emerged as Indias most important partner. The inaugural India-US two-plus-two ministerial dialogue will help highlight the growing convergence of their interests in the Indo-Pacific region. However, in Indias neighbourhood, Washington and New Delhi are still not on the same page.

For example, after gratuitously assassinating the third consecutive chief of the Pakistani Taliban this summer to please Pakistans military generals, the US held face-to-face talks with the Pakistan-backed Afghan Taliban in Qatar. While the Pakistani Taliban is the Pakistan militarys nemesis, the Afghan Taliban is Americas main battlefield foe in Afghanistan, yet the group is still missing from the US list of foreign terrorist organisations.

More broadly, the US and India have become key partners in seeking to create a free, open and democracy-led Indo-Pacific. The critical missing link in this strategy, however, is the South China Sea, which connects the Indian and Pacific oceans. US reluctance to impose tangible costs on Chinas continued expansionism in the South China Sea has emboldened Chinese inroads in the Indian Ocean.

One issue likely to figure prominently in the two-plus-two meeting is how India has emerged as a prime victim of two new sets of US economic sanctions  on Iran and on Russia. The new sanctions directly impinge on India, a longstanding significant buyer of Russian weapons and the second-largest importer of Iranian oil after China.

The twin US pressures on the energy and defence fronts have made India acutely aware of the risks of aligning itself closer with Washington. After ensnaring India in its Iran and Russia sanctions, Washington has sought to save the promising Indo-US strategic partnership by throwing in concessions. In reality, the concessions are intended as tools of leverage.

For example, the Pentagons top Asia official, characterising Indian media reports as misleading, has made it clear that India can expect no waiver from Russia-related sanctions if it signs major new defence deals with Moscow. The congressional waiver crimps Indias leeway with its stringent conditions, including a six-monthly presidential certification specifying the other sides active steps to cut its inventory of Russian military hardware.

On the Iran-related sanctions, no waiver for India is still in sight. With global shipping operators already pulling back from business with Iran and oil prices rising, Indias energy-import bill is increasing. US sanctions threaten to affect even Indias Pakistan-bypassing transportation corridor to Afghanistan via Iran, including the Chabahar port project.

The Trump administration is clearly seeking to influence Indias arms-procurement and energy-import policies. This is in keeping with its increasing unilateralism, including dictating terms to allies and friends. Canada, for example, has been warned to accept USs terms or face exclusion from the new NAFTA. Japan is buying a $2.1 billion US missile-defence system, not because it can effectively protect it from missile attacks, but because of US pressure to buy more American military hardware.

Washington is similarly pressuring New Delhi to buy more American weapons, although the US has already emerged as the largest arms seller to India. But, while the US basically sells defensive military systems, Russia has armed India with offensive weapons, including a nuclear-powered submarine and an aircraft carrier. Washington is also seeking to sell more oil and gas to India, besides pressing it to switch imports from Iran to Saudi Arabia and other US allies. However, next-door Iran, offering discounted pricing, will remain critical to Indias energy- diversification strategy.

Meanwhile, the US  after its success in getting India to accept a logistics assistance pact, which includes access to designated Indian military sites  has pushed for India to endorse the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA), which the Indian armed forces initially feared could compromise their network. India, instead of leveraging its ties with Washington, appears set to announce at least an in-principle agreement on a modified COMCASA during the two-plus-two meeting, if not sign it.

Why is it that, in the run-up to any important summit or high-level meeting, India agrees to make a key concession to the other side? And why is that the other side doesnt feel similarly pressured to make a concession to India? Isnt reciprocity the first principle of diplomacy? Before finalising COMCASA, India should clinch some major defence deals with Russia, including for the S-400 system, so as to test the US response. Instead, it is concluding new defence deals with the US.

The US and India will remain close friends. Washington, however, must fully address Indian concerns over the extraterritorial effects of its new sanctions on Iran and Russia. Make no mistake: Washington has introduced a major irritant in the bilateral relationship that the twice-postponed two-plus-two dialogue cannot purge.

Brahma Chellaney is a geostrategist and author

The views expressed are personal
At least 180 tourists were evacuated from Mussouries famous Kemty Falls after heavy rains resulted in flood-like situation on Sunday evening.

The water from 40-feet fall spilled on to the main road after debris from landslides accumulated at the origin of the fall. The flooding of the road forced tourists to take cover by climbing the hills. Water even surged into shops in the area.

Water came rushing through the fall and within seconds, the road was flooded. People made hue and cry. But, we collected ourselves, informed the police and started rescue operation, said Rakesh Kumar, a local shopkeeper.

With the help of shopkeepers and locals, the police led the rescue operation and safely took out all the tourists, said Prakash Pokhriyal, station officer Kempty said. Top officials also carried out inspection of the area.

The situation at the Falls, however, has returned to normal but the weather condition in the state is not expected to get better anytime soon as the met office has predicted that Uttarakhand will continue to receive heavy rain over the next four-five days.

The famous waterfall was closed in July during another bout of rainfall in the state.

Last week, seven people were killed in Tehri in a landslide triggered by heavy rainfall. Two brothers were also buried under debris after landslide in Chamoli district.
Policing along the borders of Delhi is the most unsafe and challenging task, records pertaining to the number of Delhi Police personnel killed or attacked on duty over the last five years show.

Of the 16 Delhi Police personnel who died on duty  while trying to stop or arrest cattle thieves, robbers and absconding criminals  over this period, 10 were killed near the border areas, especially in either Outer Delhi or North-eastern Delhi, which share its border with Haryana and Uttar Pradesh.

Last September, head constable Vijay Saini, who was posted at the Vijay Vihar police station, was found dead  with a bullet wound on his neck  outside his office. Despite registering a murder case almost a year ago, police are yet to identify Sainis attacker(s).

A year before Sainis death, constable Anand Singh  posted at the Bawana police station  was returning home from work on his motorcycle when he saw three men attempting to rob a woman at gunpoint. As he rushed to the womans rescue, the assailants shot him dead.

Police records also show that most of the attacks against police officers also take place in the border areas. Earlier this year, at least 30 rounds of gunfire were exchanged between alleged cattle thieves and a police team in outer Delhis Chhawala.

It is a challenge to work in the border areas. The rate of crime in those areas is much more compared to the ones in Central Delhi, New Delhi or South Delhi. Moreover, the four corners of Delhi share its borders with urban villages of Uttar Pradesh and Haryana, which are notorious for its crime rate, a senior police officer said.

According to records, police stations along the borders such as the ones in Aman Vihar and Mangolpuri, for example, registered around 1,300 and 1,500 cases of crime over the last one year respectively. In comparison, a single police station in South, Central or New Delhi register less than 400 cases per year.

Speaking on the problems of police along the border areas, another police officer said that another challenge that the police face in the border areas in the vast expanse of the districts.

While a police station such as the ones in Aman Vihar, Chhawala or Najafgarh have, under their jurisdiction, responsibility of 10 lakh people and cover an area of 24km, police stations in Hauz Khas or Saket are likely to be responsible for less than 3 lakh people and have to cover an area of three-four sq km. Hence, it is not possible for the police control room vans to patrol every area under their jurisdiction to patrol round-the-clock. So, it becomes easier for criminals to throw around their clout and commit crimes. The problem starts only when policemen try to stop them, the officer said.
India has made a strong pitch for enhanced connectivity between the seven member states of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (Bimstec) at the groupings summit in Kathmandu. Prime Minister Narendra Modi said this should include connectivity in trade, economics, transport, digital networks and people-to-people. This fits in well with two key policies of the dispensation in New Delhi  neighbourhood first and Act East  considering that Bimstec member states account for 22% of the worlds population and have a combined Gross Domestic Product of nearly $2.7 trillion. For the other members, Bimstec holds the potential of gaining access to Indias vast market, while New Delhi sees the grouping as a bridge between South Asia and Southeast Asia.

It is clear that India is looking to the two-decade-old Bimstec to get around the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc), which has become dysfunctional because of differences between New Delhi and Islamabad, and to counter Chinas creeping influence in countries around the Bay of Bengal due to the spread of its Belt and Road Initiative. Most of the members of Bimstec have either formally signed on for President Xi Jinpings ambitious plan to build a modern Silk Road or closely aligned their developmental plans and programmes with those of Chinas, thanks to investment lavished on infrastructure projects.

India, as the solitary holdout, realises the need to offer its neighbours a viable alternative to the One Belt, One Road project. In this, it is better placed as the neighbours and even outside powers such as the United States and Japan are expected to have no concerns about connectivity projects mooted by India, as these will come without hidden costs.

Indias renewed push for Bimstec, which has held only four summits since it was founded in 1997, has coincided with a sharp downslide in relations with Pakistan. This is largely because policy makers in New Delhi believe it will be easier for India to work through a grouping not affected by the continuous tensions with Pakistan. But India must keep in mind that key players in Bimstec, such as Nepal, have pointed out they see the grouping and Saarc as complementary to each other.

However, the grand connectivity plans mooted by India will require sound planning and considerable funding, an area in which India cannot match the largesse shown by China. Indias ability to fashion more equitable solutions and build a framework that works without violating international norms should go some way in overcoming this handicap.
The Union home ministrys National Emergency Response Centre said on Monday that 1400 people have died from rain and flood related causes since May 28, a number that is almost as high as the 1480 and the 1420 deaths due to such causes in all of 2015 and 2016, making this years monsoon one of the most destructive in recent years.

The Kerala floods alone accounted for 488 deaths.

Between August 8 and 28, flash floods ravaged all but two of the states 14 districts and led more than a million people to seek shelter at relief camps. According to chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan, the state has suffered estimated financial losses of Rs 19,500 crore.

Uttar Pradesh recorded the second-highest number of fatalities at 254. On Monday, 10 people died in Uttar Pradesh and 13 were killed in Uttarakhand.

The statistics include fatalities due to drowning, landslides, fallen houses and lightning strikes since May 28, when monsoon made landfall in Kerala.

Last year, 2,015 people died due to rain, flood and landslide. Bihar recorded the highest number of deaths  more than 500  due to floods, according to figures disclosed in parliament in March.

On Monday, the casualties in UP were due to lightning strike and building collapse across five districts  Jhansi , Etawah, Firozbad, Raebareli, Auraiya and Shamli  which have been hit by heavy rain since late last week. The deaths in Uttarakhand were of passengers travelling on a vehicle that fell into a gorge after being hit by a landslide.

The India Meteorological Department (IMD) said in a release that weather in northern India is under the influence of three cyclonic circulations  over Haryana and adjoining Punjab, central-south Uttar Pradesh and neighbouring north Madhya Pradesh, and north-east Jharkhand.

Heavy rainfall in these regions and adjoining states will continue for the next two-to-three days, the IMD said.

On Sunday, around 180 tourists were evacuated from Mussoories famous Kempty Falls after heavy rain made water from the 40-foot fall spill onto the main road.

West Bengal recorded the third highest number of deaths at 210 in West Bengal, while in Karnataka, 170 died. Maharashtra was the fifth state with more than 100 fatalities.

Forty-three people have been missing  15 in Kerala, 14 in Uttar Pradesh, five in West Bengal, six in Uttarakhand and three in Karnataka, while 386 have been injured in rain-related incidents in the 10 states.

Indian Navy supplies Food and materials to the flood-affected people of Chengannur district of Kerala. (PTI File Photo)

In Assam, 11.47 lakh people have borne the brunt of the rains and floods, which have also hit crops on 27,964 hectares of land. In West Bengal, the deluges have hit 2.28 lakh people and damaged crops on 48,552 hectares of land.

According to data presented by the water resources ministry in Rajya Sabha in March this year, between 1953 and 2017, as many as 1,07,487 people have lost their lives due to floods and heavy rains, also leading to overall loss on account of damages to crops, houses and public utilities to the tune of Rs 3,65,860 crore.

The data has been compiled by the Central Water Commission (CWC) on the basis of figures provided by the states. The government clarified that the figures for years between 2013 and 2017 were tentative.

(With agency inputs)
A 29-year-old man with a masters degree in business administration and son of a state government engineer, has allegedly joined terror outfit Hizbul Mujahideen, police said on Monday, citing a widely circulated picture of him holding an assault rifle.

Haroon Abbas Wani of Ghat in Doda district joined a militant outfit two days ago, DIG, Doda-Kishtwar-Ramban range, Rafiq-ul-Hassan Qadri told HT.

He has been given code name of Moin-ul-Islam by the Hizbul.

Of course, it is shocking for everybody. He is a well qualified youth, an MBA from Shri Mata Vaishno Devi University. His father is a serving engineer and one of his brothers is an MA. He comes from a very good and qualified family, Qadri said, adding that the police are looking into it.

They are four brothers, one step-brother and three sisters. Their father Ghulam Abbass Wani is an engineer in rural development department. The entire family is well educated, police sources said.

Wanis uncle Farooq Wani has appealed him to return.

As per the picture, Wani appeared to be in Shopian in south Kashmir. The DIG said Wani was reported missing from Bhatindi area in Jammu city where he had been residing and later surfaced on social media.

It has been learnt that Wani was working with a pharmaceutical company in Jammu before his disappearance from Bhatindi.

Calling it a wrong tendency, the DIG said there were regular attempts everywhere to radicalise youths and that the state DGP S P Vaid had stressed on the need to bring back misguided youth to the mainstream.

It is the second case from Doda, Qadri said. The first one happened in July when another youth had picked up arms. He got killed in an encounter last week.

In July, Abid Hussain Bhat aka Abbu Turab from Doda had allegedly joined Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) militant outfit and his picture too had gone viral on social media.
The BJP accused Congress leader Ajay Singh of Sundays attack on Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhans bus in Sidhi district during his tour of the state ahead of the assembly elections, a charge denied by the leader of opposition in the state assembly.

The chief minister said he couldnt be frightened off by any power in the world without naming Ajay Singh, who is the son of former Union minister Arjun Singh, in a public meeting after the incident in Patpura under the Congress leaders Churhat assembly constituency. Patpura is 672 kilometres northeast of state capital Bhopal.

Ajay Singh, if you have strength come in open and fight with me. I am physically weak but I wont be bogged down by your deeds. People of the state are with me, Chouhan said.

The BJPs state unit president Rakesh Singh said those who were shaken because of the massive support of people to the Jan Ashirvad Yatra in Patpura resorted to stone pelting like cowards.

Ajay Singh, however, condemned the incident in a handwritten statement issued to the media late at night and said it was not Congress and his culture to resort to violence against his opponents.

Yeh ghatna nindniya hai. Isme ek bhi Congressjan shamil nahi hain. Mujhe ashanka hai ki yeh jaan boojhkar rachi gayi sajish hai jo Churhat ki janata aur mujhe badnaam karne ke liye rachi gayi hai (The incident is condemnable. Not a single Congressman is involved in this. My apprehension is that this is a well thought out conspiracy hatched to defame the people of Churhat and me, he said in the statement.

The BJPs state media in charge Lokendra Parashar said Chouhan was sitting in the bus, which has been modified as a chariot for the Jan Ashirvad Yatra, when stones were hurled at it in Patpura. No one was injured in the incident but the window pane on the drivers side was damaged, Parashar said.

Sources in the BJP said a group of protesters waved black flags and shouted slogans against Chouhan and reservation at his public meeting earlier in the day in Mayapur of the same district.

Inspector general of police (Rewa zone) Umesh Joga said they have arrested 28 people in connection with the stone pelting and the slogan shouting incidents so far.

Eight persons have been arrested for pelting stones at the chief minister, while 20 persons, including women, have been arrested for showing black flags, he said.

Joga said the arrested people had wrapped the stones in black cloth making the police believe that they would just wave them when the chief minister went by. But suddenly they started pelting stones. Some of the group members also made the video of stone pelting viral on social media, the senior official added.

(With input from Harendra Singh Parihar in Rewa and Amit Singh in Satna)
The Centre said on Monday that the India Meteorological Department (IMD) had issued necessary severe weather warnings for Kerala rains last month, refuting the charge that there were lapses on its part.

IMD representatives apprised the state authorities about the strong monsoon conditions with heavy rainfall activity in a meeting convened by CM Pinayari Vijayan on August 9, according to a statement issued by the ministry of earth sciences (MoES).

Also the Additional Chief Secretary (Revenue and Disaster Management) was briefed orally over phone on all occasions. Member Secretary, SDMA (State Disaster Management Authority) was briefed on August 10. District collectors of Kollam and Thiruvananthapuram were briefed on August 14. Briefings were sent to media also during this period, the statement said.

The MoES said the IMD had issued all necessary severe weather warnings and extended forecast range was issued two weeks in advance.

On August 30, the CM had said there were lapses on the part of the IMDs rain forecast during this period. The IMD had forecast an estimated 98.5 mm rain in the state between August 9 and 15. But, the actual rain received was 352.2 mm, Vijayan said.

However, the ministry said orange alerts, which mean authorities should prepare for action, were issued with effect from August 6 while red alert, which means authorities start taking action, was issued with effect from August 9.
Telangana sentiment, which brought Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) to power in the newly formed state in 2014 assembly elections, is likely to be its main poll plank again in the ensuing elections, albeit in a different form.

TRS president and chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao is all set to fight the coming elections, which are most likely to be advanced, on the political platform of safeguarding Telangana self-respect.

He indicated his strategy by raking up the Tamil regionalism sentiment at Sundays mega public meeting. Like in Tamil Nadu, where people elect only the Tamil parties to power and never allow Delhi to thrust its decisions on them, the people of Telangana, too, should be able to take decisions on their own without looking up to Delhi, he said.

He was referring to the political situation in Tamil Nadu, where the people have been electing either Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) or All India Anna DMK (AIADMK) to power in the state for the last several decades.

KCR said: This is our Telangana and we shall rule ourselves with self-respect, rather than waiting for decisions to be taken in Delhi, he said.

During the Telangana movement, the Congress, the Telugu Desam Party and the BJP had their own political interests in both Telangana and Andhra. The TRS was the only party having the sole agenda of achieving statehood to Telangana region. That was why, the people of the Telangana voted the TRS to power, reasoned KCRs son and Telangana IT minister KT Rama Rao.

He said the TRS, in the last four years, had achieved tremendous progress only because it had no other interests, except developing Telangana. It would not have been the case had the Congress been voted to power in 2014. For every decision, it would have been forced to look up to Delhi, KTR pointed out.

The Congress described this Tamil regionalism talk by KCR as a dangerous sign. It is very much against the federal spirit of the nation. National parties had been in power in several states for several years and they have all been contributing to the development in their own way, senior Congress leader Marri Shashidhar Reddy said.

Telangana BJP official spokesman Krishnasagar Rao said: More than drawing political comparison, KCR is trying to compare himself with former Tamil Nadu CM late J Jayalalithaa, who was behaving like a monarch..., he said.

Former Osmania University professor K Nageshwar said: Tamil Nadu has a different political history. Its regionalism dates back to several decades with the emergence of Dravidian movement. KCR is trying to whip up regional passions this time, as Telangana sentiment is no more an election issue now, he said.
Chinas ministry of foreign affairs (MFA) on Monday said it was closely following the arrest of one of the countrys richest businessman, Liu Qiangdong, on sexual misconduct charges in the United States over the weekend.

The state-controlled media has remained mostly silent but social media is abuzz with hundreds of thousands of internet users discussing and dissecting the case.

Liu, 44, also known as Richard Liu, was arrested for allegedly assaulting a Chinese student in the University of Minnesota on Friday. Liu--founder and CEO of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com--and who is worth some $8 billion--was released over the weekend and given permission to travel outside the US.

The MFA said it was looking into the circumstances surrounding his arrest. The Chinese consulate in Chicago was closely following the relevant situation and trying to verify facts regarding the situation, said MFA spokesperson Hua Chunying at the regular ministry briefing on Monday.

A Minneapolis police department spokesperson said over the weekend that the investigation was active but Liu hadnt been charged with a crime.

We are confident that we will be able to get in touch with him as the time becomes necessary, the spokesperson told the Wall Street Journal.

The website of the US Hennepin county said that he was released from custody on Saturday and the status of the charge is released pending complaint.

Chinese e-commerce giant JD.coms founder and CEO Liu Qiangdong was wrongly charged with sexual assault during a business trip in the US, the company said on its official Sina Weibo account on Sunday.

Such allegations about Liu Qiangdong sexually assaulting female students are inaccurate, and the CEO will continue his trip in the US as planned, said the statement, noting that JD.com will take necessary legal action against such false reports and rumor mongering, the Global Times quoted the company statement as saying.

Liu is registered as a student in the University of Minnesotas Carlson School of Management doctor of business administration China program.

The police havent released the name of the complainant, but Chinese social media users circulated photos of a young woman, naming her as the victim.

Hundreds of thousands of Chinese were discussing the development and it remained as Weibos (Chinese Twitter) hot topic in the last 24 hours.

Born into a poor farming family in northern Jiangsu province, Liu is arguably less well-known outside China than his fellow billionaire countrymen like Alibaba Group Holdings Jack Ma Yun, Tencent Holdings Pony Ma Huateng and Baidus Robin Li Yanhong, who recently made the cover of Time magazine, the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

Liu began his e-commerce business after he was forced to shut down a computer shop in Beijing after the severe acute respiratory (SARS) syndrome struck China, forcing people to stay indoors for weeks.

Lius wife, Zhang Zetian, some 19 years younger, is a businesswomen and internet celebrity. At 24, she became Chinas youngest female billionaire in 2017.

Zhang gained instant fame on the internet in 2009--while still in school--when her photo in which she was holding a cup of milk tea went viral. Since then, she is popularly known as sister milk tea.
Results of elections held to 105 urban local bodies in Karnataka on Monday pointed to the resilience of the Congress-Janata Dal (Secular) alliance, which is currently in power in the state, although the Bharatiya Janata Party made clear inroads in the southern regions of the state.

As of 3 pm, results were announced for 2,661 wards out of 2,664 across 22 districts in the state. Of these the Congress won 982 wards, with the BJP coming a close second at 929, and the JD(S) finishing a distant third, winning 375 wards.

While the alliance partners Congress, JD(S) and the Bahujan Samaj Party decided to fight independently, it was announced on Friday that the partners would form alliances in urban local bodies (ULB) where there was a hung mandate.

While the states overall results pointed to a close fight between the Congress and BJP, it masked the latters good show in some districts, especially, in the northern districts of the state. In Bagalkote district, BJP won 161 wards out of 312; in Belagavi, the BJP won 104 wards, higher than the Congress, which won 85, but lower than independents, who won 144 of the 343 wards. In Gadag district, also in the Mumbai-Karnataka region, the Congress won 57 wards, while the BJP won 54.

Apart from this, the BJP managed a victory in the Chamarajanagar city municipal council, in an area where it has traditionally been weaker than the Congress. However, in the Kollegal CMC, the Congress and the Bahujan Samaj Party together won a majority.

In the central districts, the BJP continued its good showing from the recently concluded assembly elections where it won 66 of the 148 wards, followed by the Congress with 44, and the JD(S) with 21 wards.

The Congress delivered good numbers in the Uttara Kannada district on the coast, where it won 87 wards out of 200, while the BJP won 85. The BJP had swept this district, and the entire coastal region, in the recently held assembly elections, where the Congress could win only two out of six seats.

In the Hyderabad-Karnataka region, meanwhile, the Congress maintained its lead over the BJP. The party won 299 wards out of 595, with the BJP finishing second with 184 wards.

The JD(S), though, proved its might in its traditional strongholds of Hassan, Mandya and Tumakuru districts. While in Hassan the JD(S) won 91 out of 135 wards, in Mandya it won 64 out of 117 wards, and in Tumakuru it won 51 out of 115 wards.

Significantly, the BJP did well in the three city corporations to which elections were held. Surprisingly, it emerged as the single largest party in the Mysuru City Corporation, where it bagged 22 of the 65 wards. However, the alliance partners put together had a majority, with the Congress winning 19 wards and the JD(S) 18. In the Mysuru Corporation previously, the BJP and JD(S) had been in an alliance.

The results were similar also in Tumakuru city, where the BJP won more wards than the alliance partners, winning 12 out of 35 wards, but the Congress and JD(S) won 10 seats each, helping the alliance sail through. In Shivamogga city, the BJP sailed through easily, winning 20 out of 35 wards.
The Congress gained an edge over the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in closely fought elections to 105 urban local bodies (ULBs) in Karnataka, appearing set after Mondays results to control a majority of the wards with its ruling coalition partner, the Janata Dal (Secular).

The polls were seen as the first test of popularity of the Congress-JD(S) government after the coalition came to power following a hung verdict in the state assembly elections in May. The BJP had emerged as the single largest party.

Of the 105 ULBs, the Congress won a clear majority in 37 ULBs, the BJP in 31 and the JD(S) in 12, according to the state election commission. The Congress-JD(S) combine won majorities in 12 other ULBs, while 13 of them threw up hung mandates.

Out of the 2,664 wards across 22 districts, the Congress won 982 wards, with the BJP coming a close second with 929 seats and the JD(S) a distant third with 375 wards, official figures showed. The others, including 329 independent candidates, bagged the remaining seats. Elections for the remaining seats, totalling to more than 2,300, are likely be held early next year.

While Karnataka alliance partners Congress, JD(S) and Bahujan Samaj Party had decided to contest independently, former chief minister Siddaramaiah announced on Friday that the parties would form alliances in ULBs that produced hung verdicts.

Elections were held for three city corporations, 29 city municipal councils (CMC), 52 town municipal councils (TMC) and 20 town panchayats (TP).

There were some reasons for the BJP to cheer following Monday results. It continued an impressive performance in the coastal districts, winning seven of the 15 ULBs. In the central districts, the BJP won five of the seven ULBs. The party performed better compared to the previous ULB elections in 2013. In the previous polls conducted for 4,976 seats, the Congress had bagged 1,960 seats and BJP and JD-S 905 seats each.

Congress party workers celebrate their win in Karnataka Urban Local Body Election 2018, in Mysuru. (PTI Photo)

The Congress performed well in its stronghold in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region, where it won 13 of the 24 ULBs. In the Mumbai-Karnataka region, too, the Congress managed to pip the BJP, winning majorities in 18 of the 38 ULBs, against the BJPs tally of 13.

The JD(S) swept the southern region, winning 12 of the 21 ULBs. It continued impressive performances in the districts of Hassan and Mandya, winning eight of the 10 ULBs.

The BJPs state president, BS Yeddyurappa, hailed the partys showing as impressive. We have substantially increased our tally in hundreds of ULBs across the state. This is proof of the BJP continuing to enjoy the support and confidence of the people, he said.

Yeddyurappa said the ULB polls will have no bearing on the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The outcome of this ULB elections is neither an indication nor trend-setter for the Lok Sabha elections. Parliamentary elections are fought on a different notes, he said.

He also highlighted his partys victory in the Shivamogga city corporation. In the three city corporations of Mysuru, Shivamogga and Tumakuru, the BJP performed the best, though it could only manage a majority in Shivamogga, its traditional stronghold.

Karnatakas cooperation minister and JD(S) leader Bandeppa Kashempur said the results showed that the people were pleased with the ruling coalition. The coalition government has won the confidence of the people of the state and it is for this reason that the JD(S) has won in many ULBs. This proves that ours is a secure government, he said.

Congress state president Dinesh Gundu Rao thanked the voters. These results are heartening for the party, and all talks of the Congress becoming weaker have been proved to be untrue, he said.

Rao said it was made clear before the polls that the Congress and JD(S) would form alliances wherever there was a hung verdict. If we had contested together, the BJP would have lost everywhere but we respected the sentiments of our party workers and contested the elections independently, he said.

Political analyst Narendar Pani, a faculty member at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, said: There is no clear mandate and none of the three parties can claim that the results favour them, except for the fact that it is the Congress that has performed better than the others, unlike in the assembly polls, where the BJP did better. However, locally, these polls will have an impact on the parties, he said.

Pani said these results were not likely to have a bearing on the Lok Sabha polls. it may have implications for the seat-sharing between the Congress and the JD(S). The JD(S) may not be able to justify its demand of getting 10 seats out of 28 with these results, he said.
Authorities are working overtime to rebuild damaged infrastructure at Sabarimala temples base camp in Kerala to ensure that the annual, three-month pilgrimage to the shrine in November is smooth. The base camp on the banks of the Pambha river is located five km from the shrine atop a hill in Pathanamthitta district.

Last month, the worst floods in Kerala for nearly a century cut off the hill shrine and left over 300 dead besides uprooting around 10 lakh people.

Pilgrims have to cross a pedestrian bridge over the river before trekking to the shrine. Slush and uprooted trees had buried the bridge at Triveni. Public works department officials said a thorough inspection was needed before it could be reopened. Gushing flood waters washed away many buildings and uprooted power and communication towers at the base camp.

The temple is dedicated to Lord Ayyappa and located about 3,000 feet above sea level. Devotees trek to the shrine through thick forests. The temple opens on the first day of every month as per the Malayalam calendar while the annual pilgrimage in November is one of largest religious gathering in the world.

The Travancore Devasom Board (TDB), which manages the temple, expects at least four crore people to trek to the temple for the pilgrimage this year.

TDB president, Padma Kumar, said relief workers have built a temporary passage named Ayyapa Sethu across the river by placing stones. He said as of now machines cannot be taken there because of the hilly terrain and damaged infrastructure.

Our first priority is to restore power and water supply. Work is progressing on a war footing. For the Ayyappa Sethu, 350 workers worked for more than a week. We will overcome all hurdles like this, he said.

The temple was cut off for over two weeks. We managed to enter it through Ayyapa Sethu on Monday. We will seek the armys help to build a bridge. Power and water plants will be restored on a war footing.

Kumar said they would ensure eco-friendly constructions in rebuilding the base camp. We have learnt a lesson. Things would not be the same in Sabarimala. We will not allow big concrete constructions either at base camp or the hilltop, he said. He said the temples sanctum sanctorum remained safe.

It is nothing but Gods grace. I have been visiting the temple on the first of every month (Malayalam calendar) for the last 14 years. I am eager to visit the temple in the second week of September, said Padmanabhan Nair, a businessman from Thiruvananthapuram.

Pambha, Keralas third largest river after Bharatapuzha and Periyar, changed course across several stretches in hilly Pathanamthitta from August 15-22. Efforts were on to ensure the 176-km long river regains its original route, which covers a vast area below the temple.

Pilgrimage to Sabarimala is open to people of all faiths. But women aged 10 to 50 are banned from entering the temple. The Supreme Court is hearing a petition against the ban.
Divers of the Indian Army and Navy have been called to locate a family of five who are feared to have drowned after their car plunged into a river in Sivasagar district of Upper Assam on Saturday.

A diving team of Indian Navy is on its way while Indian Armys Special Forces are already involved in the search operations after request from the administration.

Police said the Guwahati-based family of Haren Bora, a 58-year-old businessman, was visiting their ancestral village, Dichial in Sivasagar.

The driver seemed to have lost control and the car fell into Dikhow river after breaking a dyke right next to the village, said Bolin Deori, additional superintendent of police.

Instead of turning right at the embankment, the car just drove straight into the river, Deori said.

The occupants of the car included Bora, his wife, Phunu Bora, a government official in Guwahati, daughters Dikhsita Bora, an MBA student, Nikshita Bora, a student of higher secondary first year, and the businessmans 80-year-old mother, Punon Bora.

There is a strong current. The waters are muddy and the river is up to 60 feet deep at places, Deori said, adding how divers were not able to get to the bottom.

Around 100 personnel including 32 deep divers, including of the National Disaster Response Force and the State Disaster Response Force, along with 10 boats searched the river, but were unable to locate the car, following which assistance was sought from the Army.

A team of 14 divers of Army special forces from the Spears Corps at Dimapur commenced the search early morning on September 3, a defence spokesperson said.

Meanwhile, a 10 member naval diving team has been airlifted from Visakhapatnam by an IAF AN32 aircraft for search operations. The team is expected to arrive by Monday evening.
A mini restaurant in Allahabad is all set to serve a pure vegetarian Yogi Thali for Rs 10 on the first day of every month.

The thali will be available at Baba Da Dhaba near Attarsuiya crossing from September 1. The meal will be free for the differently-abled, saints and the poor. For others it will cost Rs 10, said Dilip Kumar Kakay , owner of the restaurant and district president of Akhil Bharatiya Khatri Mahasabha.

Kakay said the meal will include rice, pulses, a seasonal vegetable, two tandoori roti or four kachaudi, pickle, salad etc. It will be a pure vegetarian thali without onion and garlic. The thali will cost us Rs 30-40. Usually, the customers get this thali for Rs 50 or more. Once we get more funds, we will serve a sweet also.

A part of the profit, which we will make on other days, will be set aside to serve the Yogi thali on the first of every month. We have not asked for any financial aid from anyone. However, if people come forward to donate food grains etc, we can provide the meal for Rs 10 on a daily basis, he added.

Kakay further said he has named the thali after the CM because he feels that Yogi Adityanath is working for the welfare of common man.

Kakay, who is also the joint secretary of Jeev Kalyan Evam Shiksha Samiti said if the government supports him, he is willing to serve the Yogi thali at the Kumbh Mela 2019. This thali will be free for saints, seers and the disabled. Well charge Rs 5 from rural pilgrims and Rs 10 from others, he shared.
The ministry of information and broadcasting (MIB) has advised TV channels to use the term Scheduled Castes (SC) instead of Dalit in compliance with directions from the Bombay high court, according to a government order.

The court had in June asked the ministry to consider asking the media to stop using Dalit.

The advisory has so far been issued to private TV channels alone. It was unclear whether newspapers and magazines will also have to consider following the guideline in the future.

It is accordingly advised that the media may refrain from using the nomenclature Dalit while referring to members of the Scheduled Caste in compliance with the direction of the Bombay high court and the Constitutional term Scheduled Caste in English and appropriate translation in other national languages should alone be used for all official transaction, matters, dealings, certificates, etc. for denoting the persons belonging to the Scheduled Castes notified in the Presidential Orders issued under Article 341 of the Constitution of India, the MIB said in its order.

The ministry did not specify that the order was binding and did not list any action against those who did not comply.

The MIB had asked the Press Council of India in June to take a call on whether media can use the term Dalit after the courts order.

The Bombay high courts Nagpur bench had issued the order while hearing a petition seeking removal of the word Dalit from government documents and communication.

Former Congress MP, Bhalchand Mungekar, had told HT in April that the term Dalit has been used to denote all socially, economically and educationally exploited and politically backward communities. He said the direction to consider dropping the term, which is now used internationally, is an attempt to divide the Dalit movement.

The ministry of social justice and empowerment had on March 15 issued a circular advising ministries, departments and state governments to refrain from using the term Dalit in official communications and to opt for constitutional term Scheduled Castes instead.
Outcome of elections held to 105 urban local bodies in Karnataka on Monday reflected the assembly election results in throwing up a mixed bag, with no party emerging as a clear winner.

As per data put out by the Karnataka State Election Commission, of the 105 ULBs, the Congress won a clear majority in 37 ULBs, the BJP in 31, the JD(S) in 12 and the Congress-JD(S) alliance together won a majority in 12 other ULBs. There were hung mandates in 13 ULBs.

Looking at the state-wide data, out of 2,664 wards across 22 districts, the Congress won 982 wards, with the BJP coming a close second winning 929, and the JD(S) finishing a distant third, winning 375 wards.

While alliance partners Congress, JD(S) and the Bahujan Samaj Party decided to fight independently, former chief minister Siddaramaiah announced on Friday that the parties would form alliances in ULBs, where there was a hung mandate.

For the BJP, which emerged as the single largest party in the state assembly elections, there were some reasons to cheer, not least its performance in some ULBs in the southern districts, where the Congress and JD(S) had been the dominant players. The party continued its stellar performance in the coastal districts, winning seven of the 15 ULBs. Even in the central districts, the BJP won five of the seven ULBs.

The Congress, meanwhile, performed well in its stronghold in the Hyderabad-Karnataka region, where it won 13 of the 24 ULBs. In the Mumbai-Karnataka region, too, the Congress managed to pip the BJP, winning majorities in 18 of the 38 ULBs, against the BJPs tally of 13.

However, in the southern region it was all JD(S), with the party sweeping the region, winning 12 of the 21 ULBs there. In fact, in the districts of Hassan and Mandya, it continued its outstanding performance winning eight of the 10 ULBs.

Among the three city corporations of Mysuru, Shivamogga and Tumakuru, the BJP performed best, although it could only manage a majority in Shivamogga, a traditional stronghold. In Mysuru city, it pulled up a surprise by winning 22 wards, but could not manage a victory, with the Congress-JD(S) alliance getting a comfortable majority.

In Tumakuru city, too, the BJP managed to win 12 of the 35 wards, but the alliance partners managed to win 10 seats each, ensuring that they can cobble together a majority.

BJP state president BS Yeddyurappa issued a statement hailing the partys showing as impressive, highlighting its victory in the Shivamogga city corporation. We have substantially increased our tally in hundreds of ULBs across the state. This is proof of the BJP continuing to enjoy the support and confidence of the people, he said.

Yeddyurappa added that there was no bearing of these polls on the upcoming Lok Sabha elections. The outcome of this ULB elections is neither an indication nor trend-setter for the Lok Sabha elections. Parliamentary elections are fought on a different note, he said.

Meanwhile, JD(S) leader and the states cooperation minister Bandeppa Kashempur said the results showed people were very pleased with the coalition government. The coalition government has won the confidence of the people of the state and it is for this reason that the JD(S) has won in many ULBs. This proves that ours is a secure government, he said.

The BJP had claimed that it would follow up on its assembly election showing, but this shows that the people trust the people. These results are heartening for the party, and all talks of the Congress becoming weaker have been proved to be untrue, Congress state president Dinesh Gundu Rao said.

On the Congress-JD(S) tie-up, Rao said it was made clear before the polls that the two would form alliances wherever there was a hung verdict. If we had contested together the BJP would have lost everywhere but we respected the sentiments of our party workers and contested the elections independently, he said.

Political analyst Narendar Pani, faculty at the National Institute of Advanced Studies, said the results reflected the state assembly election results. There is no clear mandate and none of the three parties can claim that the results favour them, except for the fact that it is the Congress that has performed better than the other, unlike in the assembly polls where the BJP did better. However, locally these polls will have an impact on the parties, he said.

Pani said these results were not likely to have a bearing on the Lok Sabha polls. Although it might have implications for the seat sharing between the Congress and the JD(S). The JD(S) might not be able to justify its demand of getting 10 seats out of 28 with these results, he said.
Everybody agrees that employment generation is Indias biggest political-economy challenge. It is likely to be one of the main issues in the 2019 parliamentary elections. But not many understand the nuances involved. Indias job problem is not that people do not have jobs. It is about lack of well-paying jobs.

The biggest reason for this is the employment-income mismatch in agriculture. While the share of agriculture in Indias GDP has been coming down, its share of employment has been relatively constant. The result has been a decline in income share of workers engaged in agriculture. Chart 1 shows the relative share of income for workers engaged in three broad sectors of the Indian economy. Relative share can be defined as a sectors share in GDP divided by its share in employment. The relative share being greater than one will mean that the sectors income share is greater than its employment share in the economy. Higher the value, the greater is the well-being of the workers in a given sector. As can be seen, agricultures relative share in income has been more or less stagnant around 0.4 since the 1990s.

Agriculture still employs more than 40% of Indias workforce. For industry and services, the relative share of income has been greater than one in this period (See chart below). The annual employment share numbers used in these calculations are based on International Labour Organisations estimations. The biggest takeaway from these figures is that even after 25 years, economic reforms have not been able to address the biggest structural inequality in Indias job-market.

What explains the persistence of this sector-wise inequality in relative share of income? The concept of employment elasticity of income is useful here. Simply speaking, employment elasticity can be defined as change in employment per unit change in GDP. As is obvious, it measures job-creation (or the lack of it) associated with economic growth.

A 2014 Reserve Bank of India (RBI) working paper gave sector-wise estimates of employment elasticity for the Indian economy between 1999-00 and 2011-12. The overall employment elasticity for the Indian economy during this period was 0.2. This means that rate of growth of increase in employment was one-fifth the rate at which GDP increased during this period. The term jobless growth in the great Indian employment debate has its origins in these statistics.

To be sure, there are significant sector-wise divergences in employment elasticity during this period (See chart below). The value is negative for agriculture, which signifies a welcome shift of workers away from agriculture without compromising agricultural growth. The only sectors where the value is greater than one are construction and utilities. Given the fact that construction sector has seen the biggest growth in employment in this period, this should be a welcome trend. However, statistics from the KLEM (Capital with a K, Labour, Energy, Material) database released by the RBI earlier this year shows a disturbing trend on this count. Construction has been experiencing a fall in value added per worker and is headed towards convergence with the corresponding values in agriculture.

This author had argued in an earlier piece that such a development can weaken the ability of the construction sector to gainfully employ the agricultural workforce. This can worsen the sector-wise relative income inequality which has been discussed above.

With construction reaching its limits to accommodate the agricultural workforce, what are the other options? There are no easy answers to this question. In fact, some of the commonly peddled answers are not useful. Three of these are worth highlighting here.

Self-employment is often cited as the solution to Indias job-shortage. Ironical as it may sound, self-employment is actually a part of the problem. According to the latest economic census, which was conducted between January 2013 and April 2014, the average jobs created by an economic establishment in India was just 2.2. Only 30% of these economic establishments employed six or more people. While these figures should not be used to negate the presence of a large (in absolute terms) formal sector workforce, they capture the dominance of informal sector low income petty production employment in the Indian economy. Statistics from International Labour Organisations recently released India Wage Report give a useful context to these figures. Only 74 million out of the 402 million workers in India had regular/salaried jobs in 2011-12. 206 million were self-employed, and 121 million were wage labourers dependent on casual work.

While much of Indias low-paying job problems can be attributed to lack of enough well-paying jobs, we are also slowly but steadily heading towards a situation where lack of qualified workers for well-paying jobs is emerging as an important constraint.

Industry-surveys lamenting the poor employability of Indias engineering graduates are common knowledge now. Technological innovations in the field of artificial intelligence and increasing automation are likely to eat into existing relatively low-skilled formal sector jobs. We will need to significantly enhance the skill-set of our workforce to be able to maintain even the current pace of job-creation in the days to come. While headline numbers on educational enrolment show improvement, statistics on even elementary learning outcomes are extremely disappointing. According to the latest Annual Status of Education Report (ASER) learning outcome surveys conducted by not-for-profit Pratham, less than half of class VIII students could do a simple division in 2016. These statistics underline the misplaced optimism around hopes of India exploiting the knowledge economy route to overcome its employment challenge. And last but not the least is the issue relating to the job-creating abilities of the public sector. Economic reforms have often been associated with a decline in public sector employment in the Indian economy. While this could be true in the case of public sector jobs in core-economic activities, it need not be the case in activities which deal with provision of public goods.

India has a huge deficit in terms of public provision of social facilities such as health and education. Even in areas such as policing and administering of justice, which are unlikely to be outsourced to the private sector, we lag many countries. For example, India had just 135 police personnel per lakh people in 2013 (latest year for which data is available) according to statistics from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime. These figures were much higher for advanced countries (United Kingdom: 318) and even emerging market peers such as Brazil (262). Few will disagree that our police force is understaffed.

A significant expansion of employment in these sectors can easily be undertaken with an increase in government spending on wages and training. While bulk of this money has to come from additional revenue receipts, it is worth asking whether there is a case for restructuring of government expenditure to increase its employment creation potential. For example, the state-owned airline Air India loses more than ?5000 crore every year. Were this public money to be used for running primary health centres or polytechnic institutes, how many more present/future jobs could have been created? This is not to argue for wholesale disinvestment of public sector units, but there is definitely a case for prioritising government spending so that it is spent on sustainable and egalitarian job-creation.

This is the first in a five-part series on Indias employment challenge. The next part will examine whether the Indian economy added 12.8 million jobs in 2017.
Ahead of the maiden two-plus-two dialogue between India and the United States, top homeland security officials of the two countries have worked on a draft plan related to six areas, including anti-terror cooperation in intelligence sharing, terror financing and cyber security.

During the Indo-US Homeland Security Dialogue, held recently, senior officers deliberated on a draft work plan relating to the activities of the six sub-groups, an official privy to the development said Monday.

The six sub-groups formed under the Indo-US homeland security dialogue cover the areas of (i) Illicit finance, Illegal smuggling of cash, financial fraud and counterfeiting, (ii) cyber information, (iii) megacity policing and sharing of information among federal state and local partners, (iv) global supply chain, transportation, port, border and maritime security, (v) capacity building and (vi) technology upgradation.

Cooperation in matters related to counter terror initiatives and intelligence sharing were given stress during the recent meeting, the official said.

Both the sides agreed to work out the modalities to address these issues and agreed to maintain sustained interactions to enhance security cooperation between the two countries, another official said.

The Indian delegation was led by Additional Secretary in the Home Ministry Rajni Sekhri Sibal while the US side was led by Deputy Under Secretary in the Department of Homeland Security, James McCament.

The Indo-US homeland security dialogue was launched in 2010 as the mechanism to a sequel to the signing of the India-US counter-terrorism initiative.

The maiden two-plus-two dialogue between India and the United States is scheduled to be held in New Delhi on Thursday.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Defense Secretary Jim Mattis will be meeting their Indian counterparts, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, to discuss enhancing Americas engagement with India on critical diplomatic and security priorities.
Kashmiri separatists on Monday called for a boycott of the local bodies polls in Jammu and Kashmir, saying peoples participation in elections are propagated as a verdict in Indias favour.

The municipal and panchayat polls are being held in the state after over a decade in October and November. The state government has deputed over 15,000 additional paramilitary forces to conduct the polls amid a spike in the militant violence.

Syed Ali Geelani, Yasin Malik and Mirwaiz Umar Farooq issued the poll boycott appeal under the banner of Joint Resistance Leadership (JRL). Separatists have routinely issued poll boycott calls since elections were conducted first in 1996 following the beginning of an armed insurgency in Kashmir in the 1980s.

India uses it (polls) as a means to dilute Jammu and Kashmirs disputed status and to undo the holding of a referendum as promised at the United Nation, the three said in a statement after a JRL meeting.

The statement referred to the petition in the Supreme Court against the Constitutions Article 35 that allows the Jammu and Kashmir assembly to define the states permanent residents and confers special rights on them. It added the states identity and disputed status was at stake and the provision was sought to be done away to alter its demography. While a Sword of Damocles is kept hanging over us on this issue, they now want to thrust and enforce panchayat and municipal elections upon us through the additional deployment of lakhs of forces

Hizbul Mujahideen, Jammu and Kashmirs biggest indigenous militant group, had last week warned the people of acid attacks if they participated in the local bodies polls. As many as 16 sarpanches (panchayat heads) and panchs (rural bodies members) have been killed over the last four years. A record 75% voter turnout was recorded when panchayat polls were last held in 2011.

The elections were due in January but they were deferred after the Peoples Democratic Party-Bharatiya Janata Party coalition government told the Centre the situation was not conducive for them.
Hanan, the 21-year old college student who was trolled for selling fish to raise money for her studies, suffered injuries in an accident in Thrissur district on Monday, police said.

The accident occurred when the car she was travelling in hit an electric pole in Kothaparambu near Kodungallur, police said adding she was returning after a stage show.

She has been rushed to a private hospital in Kochi, sources said.

A B.Sc student at a private college at Thodupuzha in Idukki district, Hanans story had gone viral after a Malayalam daily reported her struggles.

However, a section of social media users expressed doubts about her struggles and claimed it was fake.

Hanan, a college student from Kochi, had contributed Rs 1.5 lakh towards the Chief Ministers Disaster Relief Fund.
Flood -battered Kerala needs Rs 30,000 crore to rebuild, Finance Minister Thomas Isaac said on Monday.

We require Rs 20,000 for capital expenditure and Rs 10,000 for revenue expenditure, Isaac told IANS, adding it would be raised through various means, including cash and kind.

The capital expenditure would go into rebuilding roads, bridges, buildings, while the revenue expenditure would meet the compensation towards agriculture crops besides damage caused to homes and the Rs 10,000 to every family who were devastated by the floods.

Rs 6,000 crore is expected in cash to come through the various public contribution, besides another Rs 4,000 crore will be in kind through various centrally sponsored schemes like the The Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act 2005 and National Rural Livelihood Mission, programmes, Isaac said.

For raising the other Rs 20,000 crores, Isaac said the state would approach the Centre and pressurise them to give the nod for borrowings and such modes.

On Monday, Isaac launched a special lottery, with each ticket costing Rs 250. The draw would be held on October 3. It is expected to raise around Rs 100 crore.
Kerelas chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan has literally been in the eye of the storm for the past three weeks as his state recovers from its worst flood in a century. In the middle of the relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction process, Vijayan spoke to Manoj Ramachandran about generating funds, foreign aid, dam management, the way forward, and the opportunity to build a new Kerala. Edited excerpts:

The daunting task of rehabilitation and reconstruction after the floods poses a huge challenge. The world is watching. Will you involve international agencies in the building of a new Kerala?

Kerala has put the worst behind it. This was the worst flood in a century. All but two districts in the state were severely affected. At its peak, more than 1.4 million people were in relief camps. The deluge has so far claimed more than 400 lives. The rains and the resultant floods have destroyed tens of thousands of homes. For the first time in history, almost all the major and minor dams in the state had to be opened. Rescue -- the first phase of disaster management -- has been completed. Efforts were taken to ensure that even the last stranded person was rescued. Rehabilitation is also progressing well. As per data on August 31, there are now only 28,000 people from 8,039 families in relief camps.

The people have shown great resilience during the time of crisis. Kerala has set an example for the world to emulate. We will bounce back in record time. The world is about to witness one of the greatest comeback stories. We will put to work the best ideas for our rebuilding efforts. If that requires the service of an international agency, we will seek it. Our aim is not merely a restoration of the state to pre-flood times, but the creation of a new Kerala. We have already decided to engage KPMG to appoint as partner -consultant for the rebuilding. It has offered its services free of cost and we accepted it.

You have said that the estimated loss is much more than Rs 20,000 crores, as projected earlier. With the National Democratic Alliance government announcing Rs 600 crores in aid, how are you looking to generate the money needed?

That amount of Rs 20,000 crore was based on a rapid preliminary assessment before August 17. If we take into account the loss of houses, crops, buildings, roads, bridges, cattle stock, poultry, electricity installations and water supply plants, the actual loss would be manifold. It would surpass the size of the annual plan of the state. We believe that the Rs 600 crore announced was an immediate measure and expect more in aid from the Union government. I have personally briefed both the Prime Minister and the home minster about the grave situation. I want to believe that the Centre has understood the gravity. I did make it clear many a time that the situation warranted unity in action. Of course , the Centre will have to extend all possible assistance considering the situation. We will soon submit a detailed report of the losses.

At the same time, I want to underline the aspect of resilience of our state. The rebuilding of Kerala is not going to suffer from shortage of money. Keralas strength is not the size of its state exchequer, but it is the support of Malayalis from all over the world and others who love Kerala. There is support flowing in from every nook and corner of the world. Kerala has always evoked the curiosity of the world at large. We have contributed immensely in enriching such ideals which an egalitarian world would cherish to uphold. With the cooperation from all, we will surmount the challenges.

You have made a request to Malayalis across the world to give one months salary to raise funds. How has it been received?

My intention was to ensure the larger participation of all. As you can very well understand, it would be difficult for a salaried employee to contribute his or her monthly salary at a go. I suggested that one may contribute the salary of three days each for 10 months. There has been tremendous response to this. Many sections have voluntarily come forward to contribute. Some people even went beyond. I am sure many will follow the call in the coming days.

There are suggestions that there must be transparency in relief funds and letting the public know of the expenditure involved. What steps do you intend to take towards it?

Kerala has little tolerance for corruption. We have also made our governance as transparent as much as possible. We have been constantly updating our fund collection records. We put out data on a day-to-day basis. And there are well-established procedures in spending the money. If it is required to bring in more provisions, we will not hesitate. We will update the public on regular intervals the developmental activities carried out with those funds.

Kerala was hailed for the coordinated relief and rescue work by locals, fishermen, young people and politicians working in a bipartisan manner. Now that the worst is over, Opposition parties allege that the government with allegations of mismanagement of the situation and the relief camps.

Kerala has set an example to the world as such how a calamity needs to be faced. During the hour of crisis, we demonstrated unity of action. All sections, irrespective of religion, caste, creed, gender, politics and profession worked together to pull up the state. Various central agencies also pitched in wholeheartedly. You would have seen the way the state expressed its gratitude to different sections.

The fact that the Opposition is back in attack mode is proof of the return of normalcy in the state. It is not because of any particular fallout. It is politics as usual. Come another crisis, we will get the bipartisanship mode back.

But your government has been criticised on the dam management front. Will there be any audit on its functioning?

We have an efficient dam authority under the chairmanship of retired justice CN Ramachandran Nair. All positive suggestions to improve its operations will be considered. However, there will not be any review based on allegations of shortfalls in dam management. One has to realise that the state experienced heavy rainfall, which led to the filling of dams. However, we will definitely conduct a study on how to manage dams during crisis like this in the future.

A war of words is playing out with the Centre on the supposed offer of the Rs 700 crore aid by United Arab Emirates and help from Thailand. The UAE ambassador to India has said that no official aid has been communicated so far. How does Kerala plan to take on this issue with the Centre?

UAE has formally conveyed their interest in assisting Kerala. In fact, I understand that this was conveyed to the Prime Minister. It is an undisputable fact. However, it is for the Centre to take a decision on accepting the UAE aid. I believe that the Union government will take a positive stance and support Kerala at these difficult times. UAE has talked about the contribution of Indians, especially Malayali diaspora, in their nation-building. I dont want to discuss this topic any further as our position has been put across without any ambiguity.

Has the Centre short-fused Kerala as it is governed by the Left Democratic Front and not by a like-minded party?

Kerala has been one of the most vocal voices of federalism, and it will remain so. The question of which party is ruling at the Centre or state should be insignificant on matters of disaster management. The stance of Union government has been very positive during the calamity and I have personally appreciated it. We are in constant touch with Centre on this issue.

Kerala and Tamil Nadu have been trading charges over the release of water from the Mullaperiyar Dam. Did TN turn a deaf ear to the request to not release water from the dam?

There were some issues regarding the management of Mullaperiyar dam. We have raised our concerns. However, Tamil Nadu and Kerala share a deep friendship, so these issues will be resolved in an amicable way. During the crisis, the people of TN and its government supported Kerala in a big way.

Do you attribute to the recent tragedy to the lack of proper dam management or the heavy downpour that the state witnessed, or was it a combination of both the factors?

People who blame the management of the dams are obfuscating. The floods were a result of the unprecedented, extreme and severe rains. It was further aggravated by the three-day storm in the second week of August. Almost all rivers were overflowing. In fact, proper dam management helped to prevent a bigger catastrophe. There is no ambiguity on this, science and data are clear.

Keralas youth have shown courage and poured out to help the needy. How do you intend to harness their skills, ideas and minds in Keralas reconstruction?

Keralas inclusive model has helped the state attain high levels of human development indices at par with the developed world. These gains are not going to get washed away in one flood. At present, the mood in Kerala is not what one normally expect from a state affected by a disaster of this scale. There is lot sorrow for the lost ones, despair over the losses, but hopes and aspirations are also high.

There is a saying, in every crisis also lies an opportunity. The crisis has instilled new vigour and vitality that we can build a new trajectory. It is not just the youth, but the people of Kerala as a whole have committed to the rebuilding of state. One of the most memorable images from the flood affected areas include that of a 73-year-old lady who has lost everything but is not willing to be defeated, she promises that she will fight back and will win everything she has lost. There are many like her and they will ensure that Kerala will sail through its present difficulties.

We are a now months away from the General Elections. Will a Federal Front be a reality? Do you think that such a political grouping will be able to take on the Bharatiya Janata Party-led NDA?

This is not the right time to discuss a Federal Front. The CPI(M) -- Communist Party of India - Marxist -- believes that there is no need for a Federal Front now. A decision for a larger national alliance rises only after elections. Such formations have taken place in the past and there will be more like them in the future. The CPI(M) is committed to removing the BJP from the Centre. The BJP is following and implementing policies detrimental for the country. Their policies are only an extension of those followed by the Congress.
A 35-year-old mans right hand was chopped off by a family after a dispute over missing cows in a village in Madhya Pradeshs Raisen district, police said on Monday.

Sultanpur police stations assistant sub-inspector Malkhan Singh Meena said two people have been arrested while three are absconding in connection with the incident in Pipalwali village on Saturday.

Kalu Sahu went to Sattu Yadavs house to look for his two cows which were missing since Friday. Sahu, who was not satisfied with Yadavs reply about his cows, allegedly abused Yadav and an altercation followed. The enraged Yadav family tied Sahu to a tree, beat him up and then allegedly chopped off his right hand with a sword and badly damaged his left hand.

None of the villagers allegedly came to Sahus help while he was being attacked. A video of the incident showing Sahu lying on the ground with his arm severed and legs tied asking for water has emerged.

Sahus family rescued him after they came to know of the attack and also informed the police. Sahu was first taken to a local community health centre and then sent to state capital Bhopal.

Meena said they have arrested Sattu Yadav and his son Rajpal Yadav, while the other three other members of the family, including a woman, are absconding. All of them have been charged with attempted murder, the police officer added.
The fortnight-long annual pilgrimage to the glacier-fed Manimahesh Lake, began on Monday from the tribal Bharmour sub-division of Chamba district amid religious fervour.

The auspicious time of the first holy dip from Sunday at 8:48 pm marked beginning of the yatra, which coincided with Janmashtami.

Every year, hundreds of pilgrims from Himachal Pradesh, Jammu and Kashmir, Punjab, Haryana and others parts of the country trek to the oval-shaped lake to catch a glimpse of Mount Kailash, the abode of Lord Shiva.

The 14km arduous uphill journey starts from Harsar base camp and concludes at the Maimahesh Lake, located at 13,500 feet in Pir Panjal range of the Himalayas.

The Bharmour administration has put in place elaborate security arrangements for the pilgrimage. At least 700 police and home guard jawans have been deployed on various locations on the trek.

The entire trek has been divided into 13 sectors with health camps and rescue posts in each sector, said Chamba deputy commissioner, Harikesh Meena.

Helicopter services are also available and two private operators have been awarded the tender to ferry pilgrims during the yatra.

It is believed that the devotees can view Mount Kailash and sun shining behind the peak only if Lord Shiva is pleased. When the sun shines behind the peak it is called lord Shivas Mani (jewel).

Three killed on day 1

Three pilgrims including a woman were killed on first day of the yatra.

A 65-year-old woman, Guddo Devi, resident of Dalhousie died at Sundrasi after being hit by a falling stone.

Another pilgrim, Hemraj, from Ghumarwin village in Bilaspur district was killed near Dunali after he suffered from breathing issues during the trek.

A third pilgrim, Shingara Singh,70, from Amritsar also died due to a heart attack.
The principal of a residential school in Gujarats Narmada district has been arrested on charges of molesting girl students, police said Monday.

Four girls, in the age group of 14 to 17 years, alleged that the principal, Harshad Patel (36), molested them on several occasions in the recent past, Assistant Superintendent of Police Achal Tyagi said.

Based on a complaint filed by one of the students of the government-funded school, located in Garudeshwar town, Patel was arrested Saturday, he said.

He was booked under IPC section 354 (assault or criminal force on woman with an intent to outrage her modesty) and provisions of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

The incident came to light on Saturday when an unidentified person called the womens helpline number 181, alleging that the principal had been molesting girl students at the school.

When police along with officials of the helpline talked to girls at the school, it came to light that Patel had allegedly been molesting students for the last some months, Tyagi said.

The principal had also called some of the victims to his house and touched them inappropriately, he said.

During the counselling, at least four girls told us that they were molested by Patel. They even claimed that few students who had left the school were also physically exploited by the principal. We have made one of the girls as complainant in the case and arrested Patel, Tyagi said.

Meanwhile, the accused was produced Sunday before a local court which remanded him in police custody for five days, Tyagi added.
A civilian was killed while five others were injured after security forces allegedly fired at a group of people who were pelting the police with stones in protest against a search operation in militancy-hit Jammu and Kashmirs Pulwama district on Monday, officers said.

Securitymen cordoned off around 15 villages and launched in the morning what locals described as one of the biggest search and cordon operations in Pulwama in the recent times.

Officials said more than 1,000 troopers from three Rashtriya Rifles units, the Jammu and Kashmir police and the Central Reserve Police Force were involved in the operation, which was called off in the evening.

We touched some 15 villages...we also interacted with people. A medical camp was organised, some sweets were also distributed. There were no arrests. We have closed the operation, Pulwama superintendent of police Chandan Kohli said.

A three-tier cordon was placed around villages spread over more than 10 square kilometres. Officers said the area is frequented by militants. The operation came against the backdrop of militants abducting, and later releasing, 11 relatives of police personnel in apparent retaliation to the polices detaining of families of three Hizbul Mujahideen militants amid mounting tension.

After the cordon and search operation, tension broke out in Gusoo village where a mob started pelting stones at the security team. Fayaz Ahmad Wani, suffered bullet injuries and died at Srinagars SMHS Hospital.

Protests broke outside the hospital after word spread about Wanis killing. Protests and stone-pelting were also reported in Ruhmoo and Muran areas. SMHS doctors said four people were provided treatment.
Madhya Pradesh chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhans bus was attacked with stones on Sunday in Sidhi district during his tour of the state ahead of the assembly elections, police said.

Stones were hurled at Chouhans vehicle in Churhat area, which is the assembly constituency of Madhya Pradeshs Leader of Opposition Ajay Singh, the Bharatiya Janata Partys spokesperson Rajnish Agrawal said. Churhat is about 25 km from the district headquarters.

#WATCH: Black flags shown to Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan & stones hurled at his vehicle in Sidhi during Jan Ashirwad Yatra. (02.09.18) pic.twitter.com/OVHoPVy7Hx  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

Chouhan was not hurt in the incident, Churhat Police inspector Ram Babu Choudhari told news agency PTI over the phone. He did not give more information, saying he was busy discharging his duties at a public meeting of the chief minister in the district.

Chouhan dared Singh to come in the open and fight with him while addressing the public meeting in the district as part of his Jan Ashirwad Yatra. Chouhan is touring the state in a bus modified as a chariot.

Ajay Singh, if you have strength come in open and fight with me. I am physically weak but I wont be bogged down by your deeds. People of the state are with me, he said.

Singh said in a press release no Congressman was involved in the stone-pelting incident and that his party does not follow the culture of violence.

I suspect that it was a well thought and hatched conspiracy aimed at defaming me and people of Churhat, he added.
Rajya Sabha Chairman M Venkaiah Naidu has called for deciding a national policy on the need for Upper House in state legislatures. He also urged political parties to evolve a consensus on the code of conduct for their members both inside and outside legislatures.

He made the remarks during the launch of the book Moving on...Moving forward: A year in office on his first year as vice president and Rajya Sabha chairman.

The event was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, former prime ministers Manmohan Singh and H D Deve Gowda, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and Rajya Sabha Deputy Leader of Opposition Anand Sharma.

Naidu broadly suggested five reforms to improve the functioning of Parliament and state legislatures.

In my view, political parties must evolve a consensus on the code of conduct for their members both inside the legislature and out of it. Otherwise, people might soon lose faith in our political processes and institutions, he said.

Talking about political defections, he said the anti-defection laws should be implemented in letter and spirit expeditiously, within three months.

I know that this is absolutely feasible, since I could dispose off the petitions that I received within this timeframe, Naidu asserted.

The election petitions and criminal cases against political leaders need to be disposed off within a reasonable timeframe by constituting, if required, special benches of high courts and the Supreme court, he said.

It is time that we consider and decide upon a national policy on the need for Upper House in state legislatures, Naidu said.

Some Indian states such as Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra and Bihar have bicameral legislatures, while other states have unicameral legislative set up.

All efforts should be geared towards creation of a cleaner polity and a transparent people-centred governance, the vice president said.

Noting that the last session was called the Session for Social Justice, Naidu said it was important to consider and pass legislations that reflect collective commitment to social justice.

In order to build a more inclusive society, there is a need to move towards ensuring proportional representation of all groups, especially those which have till now been under represented, he said.
Garment shop owner Abdul Kalam Azads six-member family sat pretty in Assams Bongaigaon district expecting to make it to the National Register of Citizens (NCR) for confirmation of their Indian citizenship. They hoped their genuine paperwork would see them through. But Azad was shocked to see his family excluded from the draft. Inquiries revealed that there had been a mix-up. The acknowledgement number allotted in response to their application for the inclusion in the NRC has been registered under the names of one Bilat Alis family. I have complained. But they are still to rectify it..., said Azad.

Azads family is not alone. Many families have been unable it to make it to the NRC because of data entry errors. Complaints have been pouring since the final NRC draft left out over 40 lakh people on July 30. There have been cases wherein some members of a family have been excluded and others included in the draft.

Azads family is waiting for the claims and objections exercise to begin for having their names included in the NRC. The Supreme Court is yet to decide on a procedure for the exercise. It has asked different stakeholders for their views on the issue.

In an order last month, the court suggested re-verification of 10 per cent of 2.89 crore people included in the draft. This is likely to further delay the final NRC. The court has underlined the need for considering verification after going through the district wise data of exclusions.

Indigenous groups have been complaining that the exclusion rate in several districts is lower and it shows illegal immigrants have made it to the NRC.

For former chief minister Prafulla Kumar Mahanta, it is worth waiting for. It may mean more delay but a correct NRC should be prepared. Even indigenous people have been left out of the draft, said Mahanta, who led the Assam agitation in the 1980s for the expulsion of foreigners from Assam.

The agitation culminated into the Assam accord under which it was agreed to weed out the foreigners, who had entered Assam after March 1971.

Morigaon deputy commissioner Hemen Das has confirmed that over 200 declared and suspected foreigners have been included in the draft in his district. He has promised to delete their names from the final.

There is a problem with the exercise, with the software, with how it is being carried out, said Abhijeet Sarma of NGO Assam Public Works.

The Supreme Court had ordered the updating of the NRC on Sarmas petition.

There is a need to make sure the officials do not act in a biased way, said All Assam Minorities Students Union advisor Azizur Rahman.

We are also against the entry of Bangladeshis. But if all the people in Dhubri, for example, have been included in the NRC draft after submitting proper documents, it does not mean they are Bangladeshis, he said.

The people excluded from the NRC draft are facing a backlash even as the Supreme Court and the Centre has said it is not the final list.

The Mizo Zirlai Pawl, a students organisation, has pushed back as many as 450 people, who did not have NRC documents.

A similar exercise was undertaken in Meghalaya and Arunachal Pradesh. We want to save Mizos from illegal immigrants, said MZP general secretary Lalnunmawia Pautu. The exercise will continue, he said.
A woman has alleged she was forced to undergo nikah halala and marry her father-in-law who raped her following which a case was registered against five people, including her husband, police said Sunday.

Under nikah halala, a man cannot remarry his former wife unless she marries another man, consummates the marriage, gets a divorce and observes a period of separation period called iddat.

Apart from her husband and father-in-law, the others booked include her husbands uncle and two unidentified clerics, a senior police official said.

Bareilly Zone Additional Director General of Police Prem Prakash said the woman, a resident of Moradabad district, got married to a resident of Turtipura under the Nakhasa police station on December 7, 2014.

The woman alleged that she was thrown out of her in-laws house on December 25, 2015, he said.

Following which on January 3, 2016, the woman registered a case against her in-laws for harassing her. However, on December 24, 2016, both the sides reached an agreement and she went back to her in-laws house, Prakash said.

The woman in her complaint said at her in-laws place, her husband, his father, his uncle and two clerics claimed that as she was out of the house, they had a divorce and she have to undergo nikah halala.

The victim claimed that she had objected to nikah halala but the two clerics, brought by her husbands uncle, had said that she will be married to her father-in-law for nikah halala process.

Later, she was locked in a room with her father-in-law who raped her. In the morning, she was given divorce by her father-in-law. After which she was raped by her husband, and she became pregnant, police said quoting the FIR.

After this she went to her maternal home, and gave birth to a boy on October 6, 2017.

The victim also alleged that she had submitted an application in this regard with the district magistrate, following which she and her family were receiving death threats from her husband and a few clerics.

The ADGP said, A case of gang-rape has been registered against the womans husband, father-in-law, uncle-in-law and two unknown clerics.

The case was registered on Saturday (September 1), and investigations are underway, the senior police officer said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday blamed Karnatakas ruling coalition partners Congress and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) for its performance in the state civic polls held across 22 districts.

The BJP should have won more seats but we could not perform the way we wanted to because of the Congress-JD-S coalition, BJP state unit president BS Yeddyurappa told reporters in Bengaluru.

The party, however, is confident of winning a majority in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Yeddyurappa said.

Peoples mandate is with the BJP and we are confident of a majority in the next years general election, he added.

In the civic body polls held on August 31, the BJP won 929 seats, with a majority in seven districts including coastal regions of Udupi and Dakshina Kannada, while the Congress won 982 seats with a majority in 10 districts including the northern region of the state.

The civic election verdict shows the BJP performed well in its traditional bastions of coastal districts while Congress retained its position in its strongholds of northern districts.

The ruling coalition partner JD-S, on the other hand, won 375 seats getting a majority in its strongholds of Hassan, Mandya and Tumakuru districts.

(This story has been published from an agency feed without modifications to the text. Only the headline has been changed.)
Pune The industrial township of Pimpri-Chinchwad, is once again, reeling under the outbreak of swine flu with the civic bodys health department registering 47 positive cases of H1N1 virus only in August.

According to data released by the Pimpri Chinchwad municipal corporations (PCMC) health department, from January 1 to August 31 this year, the city witnessed 65 cases of patients infected with the H1N1 virus. Out of these, 47 were registered in August alone, while 15 patients were tested positive during the two days of September.

Till date, nine cases of swine flu deaths were registered, while 15 patients were kept on ventilator, according to civic officials. The data released by the civic body states that PCMC witnessed 41,087 residents suffering from influenza like illness (ILI) between the said time period.

PCMC officials pointed out that higher number of positive cases in a one month was due to the wet conditions that prevailed throughout the month which inturn creates a favourable condition for the H1N1 virus.

Laxman Gophane, PCMC health officer, said, The virus has infected 47 people in August month alone and has claimed nine live till date this year. As many as 41,087 people were examined and the throat swab samples of 166 patients was sent to the National Institute of Virology and other private laboratories for tests.

There is no need not to worry about it, because we have an adequate stock of tamiflu tablets, Gophane added.

Dr Pradip Awate, Maharashtra state surveillance officer, said, August witnessed an outbreak of swine flu in Maharashtra, because of increased rainfall and wet conditions. Till July end, we vaccinated around 1,28,000 patients all over Maharashtra. Many patients have been treated on time with tamiflu tablets. People have developed an immunity against the disease when it remains around them for long time, added Awate.

Civic officials claimed that the death toll has remained under control due to the door-to-door survey and efforts taken by health officers. Experts said, swine flu is a disease like any other flu which is responsible for the weakening of the immune system.

As a part of the secondary infection, the flu leads to failure of vital organs and finally death. Symptoms of swine flu are similar to those in any other influenza. Fever, coughing, lack of appetite, lethargy are some of them; some people also reported cold, vomiting and diarrhoea, informed Dr Awate.
Sachin Andure, one of the alleged shooters in the murder of Pune rationalist Narendra Dabholkar in 2013, was absent from his workplace on the day- August 20 - the rationalist was murdered, the attendance register of the garment store in Aurangabad where he was working shows.

The Central bureau of investigation (CBI), probing the case, has recovered the attendance register which shows, Andure, 26, had taken leave on August 20, 2013. A day before Dabholkars murder, on August 19, 2013, Andure did not come to work as it was his weekly off, as per the records.

Andures employer Dilipkumar Saboo said, I dont exactly remember for what reason Andure was on leave that day, but the attendance book shows he was absent. Once we found the book, we gave it to the CBI.

Saboo owns the garment shop in Nirala bazaar, Aurangabad, where Andure has been working for the past 10 years.

According to records, Andure also went on leave on August 8, 9 and 25, 2013. The Hindustan Times has a copy of the attendance record.

The attendance book can be crucial evidence in court against Andure, said a CBI official requesting anonymity. CBI counsel Vijaykumar Dhakane said he is not authorised to speak to the media in this case.

Besides Andure, CBI has arreated Amit Digvekar and Rajesh Bangera, the two suspects in journalist Gauri Lankesh murder, into Dabholkar case. The federal agency is also probing if the pistol recovered from Andures friend in Aurangabad was used in Lankesh and Dabholkar case. The pistol has been sent for ballistic examination.

CBI has accused Andure and Sharad Kalaskar, another suspect in the case, of being the two assailants who shot Dabholkar dead. The duo came to Pune on a motorbike and fired two bullets each at Dabholkar near Omkareshwar bridge, Shaniwar peth, while he was returning home from his morning walk. Dabholkar succumbed on the spot.

Andures wife Sheetal and elder brother Pravin have claimed that the agency has falsely implicated him in the case. The CBI was under pressure from the high court, as the court had given the investigators a deadline. Under that pressure, they implicated my husband, alleged Sheetal.
Rural police on Monday arrested two people in Phillaur and recovered 900 litre of a chemical that is used to prepare intoxicant liquor.

The five-member gang was active in the Doaba and Majha region for past few months. Three accused managed to flee the spot before the police conducted the raid. Those arrested have been identified as Supinder Singh, 27 and Yadwinder Singh, 37, of Rampur village in Amritsar.

Superintendent of police (SP) Balkar Singh said acting on a tip-off that a gang was coming from Ludhiana to supply chemical in Jalandhar and Amritsar areas, a special checking point was deployed on the national highway in Phillaur.

During the check, the police recovered 27 cans containing 900-litre chemical from a tempo traveller. The SP said they have recovered the Mahindra XUV (PB 08-CN-2859) in which three of the accused fled. The tempo traveller (PB 01- 5598) carrying the chemical was also seized.

He said the accused confessed that they have formed a gang of five members and were in this business for past few months. They had purchased this chemical from Ambala.

Senior superintendent of police (SSP) Navjot Singh Mahal said as per the accused, with one litre of this chemical, they can prepare 10 litres of intoxicant liquor of various brands. With this calculation, they can make around 9,000 litre of liquor from 900 litre chemical that can be filled in 1200 liquor bottles for sale in the market.
A 38-year-old man, who had gone to Saudi Arabia a year ago with the help of a local travel agent has been lodged in Safar Jail there since a month now.

The Gurdaspur resident Kamal Manjinder Singh, had gone to Saudi Arabia on 18 September, 2017. His father, Budh Singh, has contacted Aam Aadmi Party, Punjab president and Sangrur MP Bhagwant Mann for help.

He came to know about his sons condition through a video in which Kamal along with three to four youths, including a Bathinda resident Hardeep Singh, can be seen appealing to Bhagwant Mann to get them released from the jail. The video has been made from the jail itself.

Mann has promised to take up the case with the Indian Embassy in Saudi Arabia to get his son released.

Kamal, who is a matric pass, is married with two children. His wife Sonia,32, and two kids Manjit Singh,7, and Jasmine Kaur, 2, are living in Gurdaspur.

Mandeep,who runs a travel agency  Guru Kirpa Travels  in Gurdaspur took Rs 1.5 lakh cash and a cheque of Rs 50,000 from us to send Kamal abroad, said Budh Singh.

Mandeep had promised us that Kamal will get 1,400 Riyal a month from the company for which he would work as a driver, his father said.

They did not pay my son, just gave him food and kept him at the company campus, he said.Travel agent Mandeep refuted the allegations and said that he had a proof of Kamal getting salary from the company.

He must have done something illegal that is why he is lodged in the jail, Mandeep said.

Budh Singh said that his son had got a driving licence from Kingdom of Saudi Arabia Ministry of Interior about a month ago, but his company took away the licence after a week.
China has blocked access to the website of Australias national broadcaster for breaching Beijings internet rules and regulations, ABC said on Monday.

It comes a year after the Australian Broadcasting Corporation began running a Chinese-language service.

ABC said access to its website and apps was blocked on August 22 and it has since been trying to find out why.

After repeated requests for clarification, an official from Chinas Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission dictated a statement to the broadcaster.

We welcome internet enterprises from all over the world to provide good information to the netizens of China, said the official, who declined to give his name, according to ABC.

However, state cyber sovereignty rights shall be maintained towards some overseas websites violating Chinas laws and regulations. The official said these included websites spreading rumours, pornographic information, gambling, violent terrorism and some other illegal harmful information which will endanger state security and damage national pride.

ABC said it had not been told what laws it had violated or which content sparked the ban.

However, ties between Canberra and Beijing have been strained recently over allegations that China is interfering in Australias domestic politics and using donations to gain access.

The claims infuriated China, which has dismissed local media stories -- including by ABC -- about infiltration as hysteria and paranoia.

The ABC also recently reported on Beijings push into the Pacific through soft diplomacy, which Australia and New Zealand fear could potentially upset the strategic balance in the region.
One of Chinas richest businessmen, Liu Qiangdong, has returned home after his arrest for alleged sexual misconduct in the US over the weekend, with the foreign ministry here saying on Monday it is closely following the matter.

Liu Qiangdong, who uses the English name Richard, is the billionaire founder of e-commerce giant JD.com. He was brought in by police in Minnesota late on Friday on an accusation of criminal sexual conduct and released more than 16 hours later, according to arrest records.

A Minneapolis police department spokesman declined to provide further details about the reasons for the arrest, adding authorities decided not to keep Liu in custody. No travel restrictions were imposed on him while police conducted their investigation.

The state-run media remained mostly silent on the matter but social media was abuzz with hundreds of thousands of users discussing and dissecting the case.

Reports in China suggested 44-year-old Liu, who is worth $8 billion, was arrested for allegedly assaulting a Chinese student at the University of Minnesota.

The foreign ministry said it is looking into the circumstances surrounding Lius arrest. The Chinese consulate in Chicago is closely following the relevant situation and trying to verify facts regarding the matter, foreign ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying told a regular news briefing on Monday.

A Minneapolis police department spokesperson said over the weekend the investigation was active but Liu hadnt been charged. We are confident that we will be able to get in touch with him as the time becomes necessary, the spokesperson told the media.

The website of Hennepin county in Minnesota said Liu was released from custody on Saturday.

JD.com denied the charge against Liu. JD.coms CEO was wrongly charged with sexual assault during a business trip in the US, the company said on its official Sina Weibo account.

Such allegations about Liu Qiangdong sexually assaulting female students are inaccurate, and the CEO will continue his trip in the US as planned, said the statement, adding JD.com will take legal action against false reports and rumor mongering.

Liu is registered as a student of the University of Minnesotas Carlson School of Managements doctor of business administration China programme.

Police in the US havent released the name of the complainant but Chinese social media users circulated photos of a young woman whom they said was the victim.

The development remained Weibos (Chinese Twitter) hot topic since Sunday.

Born into a poor farming family in northern Jiangsu province, Liu is arguably less well-known outside China than his fellow billionaire countrymen like Alibaba Group Holdings Jack Ma Yun, Tencent Holdings Pony Ma Huateng and Baidus Robin Li Yanhong, who recently made the cover of Time magazine, Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post reported.

Liu began his e-commerce business after he was forced to shut down a computer shop in Beijing when the severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) struck China, forcing people to stay indoors for weeks.

His wife, Zhang Zetian, some 19 years younger, is a businesswomen and internet celebrity. At 24, she became Chinas youngest female billionaire in 2017. Zhang gained instant fame on the internet in 2009  while still in school  when her photo in which she was holding a cup of milk tea went viral. Since then, she is popularly known as sister milk tea.
The jailing of two Reuters journalists shreds what remains of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyis reputation as a rights champion, critics say, after she failed to come to their defence or speak up for the persecuted Rohingya minority.

Suu Kyi was once a staunch advocate for the free press and a darling of the foreign media.

During her long years of house arrest under the former junta  which choked the media inside Myanmar  it was foreign correspondents who carried her message of peaceful defiance to the outside world.

Glowing profiles burnished her image, with comparisons made to the Dalai Lama, Nelson Mandela and Martin Luther King.

Suu Kyi remains adored inside Myanmar. Supporters of her democracy battle say she has limited control over the military, which ceded full control in 2015 after almost 50 years in power.

But her response to the Rohingya crisis has sent her international reputation into a tailspin.

Former friends and supporters have looked on aghast at her lack of criticism of last years military campaign against the Rohingya.

UN investigators last week said that campaign was pursued with genocidal intent.

Mondays conviction of two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and their seven-year sentence has sent a chill through Myanmars already embattled press community.

Yet throughout the trial Suu Kyi has been unmoved by calls to intervene, or even criticise the court case.

Bill Richardson, a US diplomat and until recently a Suu Kyi confidante, alleges that she denounced the two journalists when he tried to raise their plight in person.

Suu Kyis response was filled with anger, referring to the journalists as traitors, the former New Mexico governor told AFP.

Shortly after the set-to in January, Richardson quit his position on an international advisory body into the Rakhine crisis, labelling it a whitewash.

Another person at the same meeting could not remember whether Suu Kyi used the word traitors but said there was shouting and a charged atmosphere.

In that heated exchange I wouldnt dismiss that the word was used, said retired Thai lawmaker and ambassador Kobsak Chutikul, who was secretary for the panel and who also later resigned.

It would have fitted the emotions and sentiments at the time, he added.

Since sweeping to power three years ago, Suu Kyis relationship with the press has been fraught.

Prosecutions of journalists and media intimidation more redolent of the junta years have been common.

Around 20 journalists were prosecuted in 2017, many under a controversial online defamation law.

At the same time Suu Kyi has been accused of backing misinformation and distorted reports about the Rakhine crisis.

State media published by the Suu Kyi-controlled ministry of information has continuously echoed the military line, rejecting allegations of atrocities against the Rohingya as fake news.

That has put her at odds with a mountain of evidence and an international community calling for justice.

To say that Aung San Suu Kyis star has faded is a massive understatement, said Matthew Burgher from free speech advocacy group Article 19.

Suu Kyis defenders say her hands are tied by an army that still controls all security matters as well as 25 per cent of parliamentary seats.

The stateless Rohingya are also a deeply unpopular cause among the Buddhist-majority public in Myanmar, where Islamophobia has surged in recent years.

That reality gives Suu Kyi little political incentive to defend the Muslim minority -- or reporters who write about their plight.

But some analysts note a transformation in Suu Kyi in recent months, from trying to avoid talking about them to supporting the militarys kickback against terrorists.

At a speech in Singapore last month she referred to generals in her cabinet as rather sweet. UN investigators have accused the army of genocide.

We who are living through the transition in Myanmar view it differently from those who observe it from the outside and who will remain untouched by its outcome, she said.

Given that an appeal could take years, the best hope for early release for Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo may be a pardon from President Win Myint, a key aide to Suu Kyi.

Aaron Connelly, a Myanmar expert at Australias Lowy Institute, said the notion that Suu Kyi is powerless to counter the militarys excesses is a myth since she uses her political leverage on issues she deems worthy.

Unfortunately, she does not consider the safety and dignity of Rohingya to be among them, he added.
Forty-eight soldiers were killed in a Boko Haram attack in remote northeast Nigeria, military sources said on Monday, in the latest strike that raises questions about the groups apparent resurgence and troops ability to fight back.

Scores of jihadist fighters in trucks stormed the base on Thursday in Zari village in northern Borno state and briefly seized it after a fierce battle.

Boko Haram, which has been waging a deadly insurgency in northeast Nigeria since 2009, has intensified attacks on hard military targets in recent months, undermining repeated claims by the military that they have the upper hand.

Troops have even protested that they are stretched to breaking point by constant security duties and the attacks that analysts tracking the conflict say have become more sophisticated and planned.

At least 30 Nigerian soldiers were initially said to have been killed in Thursdays raid, which was claimed by a Boko Haram faction backed by the Islamic State group.

The casualty toll now stands at 48 with the recovery of 17 more bodies of soldiers in surrounding bushes in Zari by search and rescue teams, a military source who did not want to be named told AFP.

Search operations are still ongoing and more bodies are likely to be recovered. Another military source confirmed the new death toll.

So far (the) bodies of 48 troops have been recovered. Yesterday rescue teams found 17 bodies of fallen soldiers, he said, adding that they included two officers and 46 soldiers.

When the troops were overwhelmed by the terrorists they withdrew in different directions.

The militants were said to have taken weapons and military equipment before they were pushed out of the base by troops with aerial support. The sources said the extremists were pursued and bombarded by a fighter jet.

The terrorists also suffered heavy casualty from the bombardment, one of the military officers said.

Zari is located 30 kilometres (20 miles) from the town of Damasak, on the border with Niger, which has seen an upsurge in Boko Haram activity.

The jihadists are thought to have attacked the base from the nearby Garunda village, where 17 troops were killed and 14 injured in an attack on another military base last month, the sources said.

In a statement late Friday the Nigerian military confirmed troops fought Boko Haram insurgents... on (a) rampage to loot the community and extort money from villagers. But no death toll was given.

The intensified armed campaign in recent weeks, primarily against military targets, has claimed the lives of dozens of troops, providing the government with a headache as it looks to trumpet its security achievements before elections next year.

On July 14, militants overran a military base in Jilli village in neighbouring Yobe state. Dozens of troops were said to have been killed, wounded or missing. The army at the time conceded the base was attacked but again said troops remobilised and succeeded in repelling the attackers.

In a short statement last Wednesday, IS-affiliated Boko Haram jihadists claimed to have killed several Nigerian troops in separate mortar strikes on a military base in the town of Arge in the Lake Chad area.

AFP could not independently verify the claim.

The Boko Haram insurgency, which is in its ninth year, has left 20,000 people dead and displaced 2.6 million.
Texting under the table should be a thing of the past when French children return to class Monday following a nationwide ban on mobile phones in schools.

The ban, a campaign pledge of President Emmanuel Macrons, was brought in under a law passed in July which also banishes tablets and smart watches from French primary and junior high schools.

High schools, taking students aged 15 to 18, will also be allowed to initiate partial or total bans as they reopen after the summer break, though they will not be obligatory.

Proponents say the law, which has prompted vigorous debate, will reduce distraction in the classroom, combat bullying and encourage children to be more active during recess.

Nearly 90 percent of French adolescents aged between 12 and 17 have a mobile phone, and supporters hope the ban will help limit the spread of violent and pornographic content among children.

Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer has hailed the legislation as a law for the 21st century that would improve discipline among Frances 12 million schoolchildren.

Being open to technologies of the future doesnt mean we have to accept all their uses, he said in June when the bill was going through parliament.

PR stunt

But critics have dismissed the ban as a public relations exercise and predicted it will be difficult to apply.

The government has left schools to decide how to implement the new rules, recommending that they store students phones in lockers during the day -- but some schools dont have them.

Research shows that in French schools that had already declared their own ban, many pupils admitted to breaking the rules and using their phones anyway.

Schools all over the world have struggled to adapt to the rise of pocket-sized devices as parents grow increasingly anxious about the amount of time their children spend glued to the screen.

In 2015 New York Mayor Bill de Blasio lifted a ban on phones in his citys schools on security grounds, saying parents should be allowed to stay in touch with their children.

Macron, a 40-year-old centrist, pledged widespread reforms when he was elected and education has been no exception.

Along with the mobile phone ban, he has halved class sizes in high-priority areas to 12 in a bid to narrow the massive gap in attainment between children from poor and wealthy families.

The scheme, which covered children aged six to seven this year, will be expanded in this new school year to cover those aged seven to eight.

At the other end of the age spectrum, a shake-up of the higher education system making university access more selective prompted a wave of student sit-ins this year.
Britain ended traditional aid to India years ago, but continues to fund projects in some states, prompting ruling party MPs to ask: when India can finance a project to Moon, why spend money there when it is badly needed in the UK?

A favourite of the tabloid press, the story made its appearance again in the Daily Express and the Daily Mail, with headlines such as Anger at 98m aid for India and Were sponsoring their Moon launch! over the weekend.

According to the Department for International Development (DFID), its budget for India in the current year includes 52 million and 46 million in 2019-20, to help stimulate prosperity, generate jobs, develop skills and open up new markets for both countries.

But the tabloids reported angry quotes from MPs, who see an equivalence between the total amount of 98 million to that earmarked by the Indian government for the Chadrayaan-2 project. They also point out that India has been a net donor in recent years, not a recipient.

The Indians dont want or need our money. In effect we are sponsoring an Indian Moon launch, said David Davies, Conservative MP for Monmouth, as public services such as health in the UK continue to be hit by funding cuts.

DFID ended traditional aid to India in 2015. The UK now provides the country with world-leading expertise and private investment which boost prosperity, create jobs and open up markets, while generating a return for the UK at the same time, said a DFID spokeperson.

This is firmly in our interests. Not a penny of British taxpayers aid money has gone on Indias space programme.

The UK is among few countries that spend 0.7 per cent of their national income to international aid. DFID has not been subjected to swinging funding cuts that other departments have faced under Conservative governments since 2010.

Another Tory MP, Philip Davies (Shipley), added: Here we are spending money in a country that has not only got its own space programme but is developing its own overseas aid programme. To be honest, the government needs looking at if its thinks that is an appropriate way of spending taxpayers money.

It needs to get out of Whitehall and appreciate the public is not just sick and tired of this but angry too. It is completely unjustifiable and truly idiotic, he said.

It is difficult to explain to the British taxpayer that aid is being sent to a country that can afford its own space programme, said Andrew Bridgen, Conservative MP for North West Leicestershire.

DFID said it worked in partnership with other departments to deliver joint economic development priorities in India, and insisted that the money is an investment that will generate a return for the British taxpayer.

Britain sent aid to India for decades after independence, at times linking it to major commercial and defence deals with New Delhi, as reflected in classified documents released by National Archives, particularly those related to the prime ministership of Margaret Thatcher.
NASA has launched a public competition that asks people to find solutions to turn carbon dioxide into molecules that would help astronauts endure the harsh atmosphere on the Red Planet.

Called the CO2 Conversion Challenge, the competition asks public to discover ways to develop novel synthesis technologies that use carbon dioxide as the sole carbon source to generate molecules that can be used to manufacture a variety of products, including substrates for use in microbial bioreactors.

Because CO2 is readily abundant within the Martian atmosphere, such technologies will translate into in-situ manufacturing of products to enable humans to live and thrive on the planet, said NASA in a statement on Sunday.

It will also be implemented on Earth by using both waste and atmospheric CO2 as a resource, read the information on NASA Conversion Challenge website.

The challenge asks individuals, teams and organisations to design and develop technology that has the potential to be useful on Mars and on Earth.

The NASA competition has two phases, with a total prize of up to $1 million.

In the first phase, which is the concept challenge, five finalists will receive an award of $50,000 each.

In the second phase, where the selected candidates would have to build and demonstrate their solutions, the prize is up to $750,000, said NASA.
New United Nations rights chief Michelle Bachelet said on Monday that she was shocked by Myanmars jailing of two Reuters journalists for seven years and called for their immediate release.

I was shocked, the former Chilean President told reporters on her first day as UN High Commissioner for Human Rights. The trial was a travesty of justice. I urge Myanmar to immediately and unconditionally release Kyaw Soe Oo and Thet Oo Maung, she said in a statement.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, who have been held in Yangons Insein prison since their arrest in December, were charged with breaching Myanmars state secrets law while reporting on a massacre of Rohingya Muslims.

The case has sparked an outcry among the international community as an attempt to muzzle reporting on last years crackdown by Myanmars security forces on the Muslim Rohingya minority in Rakhine state.

Army-led clearance operations drove 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, carrying with them widespread accounts of atrocities  rape, murder and arson  by Myanmar police and troops.

The reporters denied the charges, insisting they were set up while exposing the extrajudicial killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine village of Inn Din in September last year.

Their coverage of the Inn Din massacre by the military  for which the military subsequently admitted responsibility  was clearly in the public interest as it may otherwise never have come to light, Bachelet said.

Their conviction follows a legal process that clearly breached international standards, she said.

It sends a message to all journalists in Myanmar that they cannot operate fearlessly, but must rather make a choice to either self-censor or risk prosecution.

I call for their conviction to be quashed and for them to be released, along with all other journalists currently in detention for their legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of expression.
S outhall in west London should see an 8.5 per cent uplift in house prices when Crossrail eventually arrives next year, according to estate agent JLL.

Perfectly positioned for travel west to Heathrow as well as east to the City, journey times from Southall to the airport will be cut by 16 minutes, while eight minutes will be trimmed off the journey east to Bond Street.

This boost will be coming to an area  often referred to as Little India  with comparatively low house prices. The average property value in Southall is 410,413 according to Rightmove, but rises of 15 per cent on 2016 and 32 per cent on 2015 are already arousing buyer interest.

For years this part of London has been overlooked but there are high hopes for a Woolwich effect off the back of a planned mega development.

The 88-acre Southall Waterside scheme by Berkeley Homes is the redevelopment of the old gasworks and will deliver not only 3,750 new homes, but is also set to be instrumental in the regeneration of the wider area.

The colossal scheme will fuel the creation of a new high street, schools, community centres and green spaces.

Prices are not yet available but there are plans to deliver 618 one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments in the first phase, 186 of which will be affordable. This first slice of development is set to be completed by the end of next year to coincide with the launch of Crossrail.

Damian Leydon, operations director, Southall Waterside, says: Plans for Southall Waterside will see the former gasworks transformed into a new neighbourhood of 3,750 new homes alongside a new retail and leisure hub, community facilities and extensive open public realm.

Over half of Southall Waterside will comprise designed open space, landscaped public parkland, leisure and play spaces, piazzas and courtyards, with a revitalised kilometre of canalside walkway.

The scheme will also unlock a waterside trail along the Grand Union Canal and introduce a network of new pedestrianised routes, cycle paths (each home will be within a five-minute cycle of a station) and exercise trails to improve connections to Minet Country Park, which borders Southall Waterside towards the west.

The development will introduce up to 500,000sq ft of new commercial space that includes a mix of retail, restaurants and cafe amenities into Southalls town centre and provide a new cinema, leisure and community facilities with a two-form entry primary school.

The station is currently the site of major renovation and expansion in readiness for the arrival of Crossrail next year which will provide direct links to Bond Street in 17 minutes and Canary Wharf in 30 minutes.

Completion of the first phase of affordable Southall Waterside homes are anticipated late this year, with private sale homes from mid-2019. The overall development at Southall Waterside is set to be delivered in phases over a 25-year period.
Pipeline

3 September 2018

Castle Resorts & Hotels, one of Hawaii's largest hotel and resort management companies, continues to expand its portfolio in Auckland, New Zealand with the Liberte Hotel. The project is a hotel conversion of one of Auckland's most iconic buildings in a historic section of the Central Business District, and adjacent to the city's art and theatre district.

The building will be converted into a 125-room lifestyle boutique hotel unlike anything currently in the New Zealandmarket, with its first phase slated to open in March 2019. Comprehensive renovations are underway, and Shine Communications Group Limited, one of the most creative and well-known branding firms in New Zealand, was commissioned to design and develop the new Liberte brand.

"We're excited to build on our presence in New Zealand with the full management of this new lifestyle boutique hotel that will set a new standard for Auckland," said Alan Mattson, president and CEO of Castle Resorts & Hotels. "The Liberte Hotel offers visitors a limitless sense of freedom to explore, relax and create unforgettable memories right in the heart of the Aotea Quarter, Auckland's epicenter of art and creative expression. There is growing demand for unique experiences in Auckland and this project is going to be one of the most exciting hotels to open in the region in many years."

The hotel conversion will take place in two phases, with the first phase consisting of 51 guest rooms and a small cafe restaurant and bar. Upon full completion, the property will feature 125 guest rooms, a signature restaurant and bar, along with a rooftop bar and infinity pool. The rooftop bar will have a panoramic view of the Auckland central city skyline, and a commanding view of the majestic and historical central city Myers Park that is adjacent to the property. The park itself is also going through renovation and rejuvenation, with the addition of an outdoor amphitheater as a natural extension of the nearby performing arts district.

"We are delighted to partner with Castle Resorts & Hotels on this truly remarkable redevelopment project," said Simon Curran, founder and CEO of Shine Communications. "Inspired by the ambition of this venture and the free spirit of the artistic district that borders the property, the Liberte is named after the French derivative of the Latin word for 'liberty,' and fully embodies the essence of freedom, comfort and global sophistication."

The Liberte Hotel will be Castle Resorts & Hotels' second property in New Zealand. The company also manages the 4.5-star Spencer on Byron Hotel at Takapuna Beach.
Supplier News

3 September 2018

Quality content marketing and a strong social media presence is helping brands build loyal customer bases and underpinning more effective sales and marketing funnels according to EyeforTravel's new Converting the Customer report, which can be downloaded here.

Strong content can not only be used to make travellers aware of a destination or brand but it also gives brands critical clues about consumer intent that can then be used to build out their marketing. Combining this effectively with social media strategy and sharing tools turbocharges it and is giving brands a critical edge.

"What helped us boost conversion is that we managed to build up a sustainable brand loyalty over social media so people are in contact with our brand every day or when they see things in their news feed," says David Armstrong, CEO of HolidayPirates. "That's why we have managed to have a lot of brand traffic and organic traffic on our website and on our mobile app, which helps conversion."

HolidayPirates, however, has taken social to another level building its brand almost entirely through the medium. "We invest in content and viral content on social media [and] after six years we have over 30 million monthly visits, almost 10 million Facebook fans, over 10 million app downloads and last year an estimated TTV [total transaction value] of 362m," Armstrong told the EyeforTravel Europe summit 2018. This growth has come despite not spending anything on search engine marketing and last year, his business reckons it only paid for 7% of its traffic.

It helped, he said, that the business started as a travel blog recommending fantastic deals. Now, algorithms and technology do much of this leg work, and the results are posted on social media to hook in customers and stimulate viral sharing.

"Our recipe for virality has four components - an entertaining tone of voice, transparency, to be relevant with content deals and a call to action, and being controversial to foster engagement," he added. "You have to inspire people."

This shows that social media advertising and viral content can draw eyes to you, even if you are a smaller operator, such as Eurail, which sells all-in-one train tickets for Europe.

"Our struggle is our brand awareness," said Roel Verhagen, head of e-commerce. "We are not top of mind when you think about travelbut we do have 2,500,000 in traffic a month. Our return on -investment on ad spend is hugely important."

They came up with the marketing idea of creating two videos telling the story of a pair who met by chance in Amsterdam and travelled Europe together - with longer-play and short versions for paid adverts and social media pages. At the same time, the team started using Facebook Pixel to track customer response to this advertising and finding out where people fell out of the funnel through seven stages, from being made aware of Eurail, to having purchased a ticket.

"At a certain moment, the return on advertising spend was better on our own channels like Facebook, and we had success with the engagement rate," says Verhagen. The videos of Chloe's story and Justin's story rose to 11 million views, and now the next video is in production with the firm Boomerang, and a permanent part of marketing policy.

Adding social and review functionality onto your digital experience doesn't have to be intimidating either. A growing number of new digital media companies in this space allow smart partnerships to help host, monitor and improve social interactions.

Dan Christian, chief digital officer of The Travel Corporation, believes in harnessing the potential of advertising via social media recommendation. "Mary Meeker's latest trend report says selling on social platforms is very real - people see social content and make purchases," he told the EyeforTravel Europe Summit 2018 in London. "We were looking to get all of our travel directors active on social media."

For his group - comprising 30 international brands - the solution was a partnership with a Toronto-based start-up, PostBeyond, which connects enthusiastic employee advocates with potential customers on social media, and Feefo, an independent online review site.

"PostBeyond was a tool that our team could use and with one click could share - their SaaS [software as a service] model worked perfectly. We also needed user generated reviews - independent reviews from people who had been on our trip [with Feefo]. We see consumer behavior changing and we won't be relevant if we aren't where they are spending their time, and we need the tools to do that."

These case studies from the report demonstrate that content and social are intertwined with success in the marketing funnel for brands of all shapes and sizes. To learn more about how to drive up your conversion rates and revenues download the new Converting the Customer report for free now by clicking here. This report includes findings on:

How to measure and understand intent to purchase.

What content and marketing will drive up conversions.

How to retarget and remarket in a way that brings customers back.

How to use different channels effectively.

Why social proof is critical and how it can dramatically raise revenues.

This report is part of our Behavioral Analytics Report Series, where we seek to uncover how brands can understand the modern traveler to drive higher conversion rates, lower acquisition costs, and ultimately give them the best possible product at the right price. You can find the first report, Understanding the Travel Consumer by clicking here. You can also sign up to EyeforTravel's newsletter to be notified when our third report in the series, which covers dynamic and personalized pricing, is released.
Just a few weeks ago, Lil Xan and Noah Cyrus made their debut as one of the cringiest couples in all of Hollywood. Their displays of public affection even wounded up making Xan into a meme, smushing his face into inanimate objects in elaborate displays of Photoshop prowess. Well, it's looking as though their relationship could be extremely short-lived. The two released a song together recently but that may be the last track they'll make together with Diego revealing his thoughts about their relationship on his Instagram story.

Without much warning, the highly-controversial artist took to his social media to remark his doubts about Noah Cyrus' loyalty to him. The two have only been dating for a few weeks but the leader of Xanarchy believes he's being cheated on, or so he says in a new addition to his story. He aired out his feelings, writing, "I feel like I'm probably being cheated on," before he elaborated, "Bad things always happen to the good guys so ima be an asshole from now on if you ain't gang."

Noah and Xan have been very public about their relationship online, regularly creeping up in each other's comments sections. There has to be a better way of suspecting your partner is cheating on you than to write it for your millions of fans to see but then again, this is coming from the guy who keyed his own Benz during a break-down earlier this year. Hopefully, the two are working things out privately and get back to normal soon.
Since Bob Marley's untimely death in 1981, many fans have been in denial about its cause. Though his passing was officially declared as stemming from cancer, people still believed the reports were falsified and that the icon's life must have been taken in a more sinister, calculated way.

This theory was revived when a report stated that a former CIA agent had confessed to Marley's murder. Today, T.I. shares this news with his fans through a screenshot of a headline, typo-included:

"Bob Marley was murdered by CIA, admits ex-officer from deathbed. Bill Oxley, speaking from his deathbed, claimed that he murdered Marley along with 17 other assassinations for the for the American Government."

Although the rapper often includes lengthy captions in his posts, he kept it simple this time: "I'm just gon leave this here..."

The upload opened the floor for discussion amongst his social media following. Many commenters simply paid their respects to the reggae legend while others engaged in a healthy debate. Other conspiracy theories were brought forth, including the deaths of Eazy E and Lisa "Left Eye" Lopes. Some fans were skeptical of the situation as a whole, saying that they would still like to see medical records to confirm Bob Marley's cause of death while they don't necessarily buy into the CIA conspiracy theory.
Houston corporate lawyers Robin Fredrickson and Jeff Munoz were driving to an early Fourth of July dinner with friends and clients in Austin last year when the Latham & Watkins couple received a call.

ArcLight Capital Partners wanted its portfolio company, Bruin E&P Partners, to buy 104,000 acres in North Dakotas Williston Basin owned by Houston-based Halcon Resources for $1.4 billion. The Boston-based private equity firm said the deal required urgency. Fredrickson and Munoz needed to have the necessary paperwork done in a matter of days.

The couple cut the trip short and drove back to Houston the next morning. Munoz drove while Fredrickson drafted the documents on her laptop.

Quit jerking the car, Fredrickson told her partner.

But the road is curvy, Munoz answered.

The duo had the legal documents ready for ArcLight by that Sunday night and the deal was announced less than a week later on July 11. In fact, the transaction closed by the Sept. 7 deadline, even though Houston was thrown into complete chaos for weeks in August because of Hurricane Harvey and the subsequent massive flooding in the city.

Fredrickson and Munoz are the dealmaking power couple in the oil patch. Since 2012, they have represented energy companies and private equity firms in more than 100 big-dollar, complex mergers, acquisitions and joint ventures with a combined deal value of $60 billion, according to The Texas Lawbook.

They are super smart, business-oriented lawyers who have a lot of experience, says former Consol Energy/CNX Gas corporate counsel Ryan Purpura, who is now a partner at McGuireWoods. They know how to get things done.

Fredrickson has been busy so far this year. Recent deals shes handled include:

 Riverstone Holdings on its $1.6 billion purchase of Lucid Energy Group II;

 Total on its $339 million acquisition with Statoil of a 60 percent interest in the Gulf of Mexicos North Platt discovery from bankrupt Cobalt International Energy;

 Global Infrastructure Partners on its $3.12 billion purchase of Devon Energys interests in the EnLink midstream entities; and

 Hess Corp. on its agreement in June to sell Utica shale assets in Ohio it owned with CNX Resources Corp. to Ascent Resources-Utica for $800 million.

Munoz has been equally busy. In May, he represented Morgan Stanley Infrastructure unit North Haven Infrastructure Partners II on the purchase of the Delaware Basin units of Brazos Midstream for $1.75 billion.

Weve worked on a lot of deals together, Fredrickson says. It just depends on whether it needs to be done super fast.

Adds Munoz: The only time we work on deals together is when theyre really big or really fast.

They often split up the work on deals so they can do them faster - and so that neither one of them is working for the other, he says.

Usually the client will email us both to see which one has the time, Fredrickson says.

Michelle Hicks, an assistant general counsel at Exelon unit Constellation in Houston, has known the couple since they were at V&E - and not yet a couple.

Fredrickson has been a great mentor and always happy to help out - even when Hicks went in-house, she says.

She really cares. Shes willing to take the time to go through a markup with associates and explain why you do certain things, like provisions, Hicks says. She also really wants to help women, which, when I started, was rare.

Hicks says Munoz is more of a political animal than Fredrickson.

She doesnt have the patience for the internal politicking you have to do, which is why sometimes she comes across as tough, Hicks says. But once you get to know her, shes really a softy - she loves babies - but she doesnt want anyone to know that.

Fredrickson grew up in Albuquerque. Her father was a professor of dermatology. She followed him into the medical field, working as a nurse for five years, but she didnt much care for it.

I hated nursing from day one, Fredrickson says. I didnt like people telling me what to do. And you met a lot of unhappy people because people were sick.

Fredrickson took the GRE and went to law school instead with the plan to go into medical malpractice. But after graduating from the University of Houston Law Center in 1988, she ended up at V&E working on energy cases.

I never intended to be an oil and gas lawyer, she says. But once I got on the train, it was hard to jump off.

Munoz, meanwhile, grew up in Houston. His father worked for Eastern Air Lines. He went to Bellaire High School and then to the University of Texas, earning a degree in accounting. After graduation, he worked for Arthur Andersen - Way before it fell apart, he notes - doing oil and gas accounting and auditing work.

While I liked accounting, it wasnt exactly what I wanted to do for the rest of my life, he says.

Munoz says a lot of his friends went to law school and told him how fun and interesting it was - "how the lawyers got to structure deals while the accountants only papered them," he adds - so he submitted some applications.

"I decided that I better go to a really good law school or just stay and be an accountant," he says. "So I went to Stanford.

Having worked at Arthur Andersen, I really did like the oil and gas industry, he says. Houston made a lot of sense and all of my family was still there.

The two met at V&E but initially didnt work on a lot of deals together, as Munoz was four or five years behind Fredrickson and he was working more on the financing end.

The first transaction they handled together was in 1998 for Range Resources, which was putting together a joint venture with utility First Energy out of its Ohio office. They ended up being there for a week - at an Akron hotel that was previously a Quaker Oats silo.

The rooms were all curved, Fredrickson says. I would come downstairs and they would be bussing people in to see it.

Fredrickson and Munoz eventually began dating and moved in together in 2006. Theyve been together ever since.

Were best friends, Fredrickson says.

V&E had a policy that employees couldnt date if they were in a boss-subordinate situation. Fredrickson and Munoz were not even in the same practice group at the firm, but they didnt go around trumpeting their relationship either.

I had a friend who was dating another lawyer at her firm who called me one day and said she thought they should announce it, Fredrickson says. I said that was ridiculous. What, are you going to mug on each other at work? If someone asks, just say yes. You dont need to make a big deal about it. 

Six years ago, the two moved their law practices to Latham & Watkins, which had opened in Houston two years earlier. They admit the move wasnt easy, as Munoz had spent 18 years at V&E and Fredrickson had been there 24 years. The two also had a lot of good friends at the firm, some of whom they considered like family.

Its hard to almost start over, Munoz says. Latham didnt have as strong a reputation for being an oil and gas/energy firm, and there was hesitancy from some clients who werent sure we would have the support we would need. But we came in hard with deals going on."

Fredrickson says at the end of the day it was a great platform for the two lawyers.

Latham did a lot of power work but hadnt been able to help clients with oil and gas needs until we came in, she says.

Fredrickson says shes seeing a lot of large companies trying to determine what their core assets are and selling whats not so they can put the proceeds into the ground.

Theres still a lot of private equity money floating around looking for a home, she says. So whats not core to companies may be core to them.

Midstream deals have been particularly hot, with buyers stretching to win these auctions, Munoz says.

For a longer version of this article, please visit TexasLawbook.net.
Three-day weekends are lovely, but four-day workweeks can be intense.

For those lucky enough to enjoy Labor Day weekends, as I do, there lurks the reality that a full week's worth of work will need to be compressed into four days. I know Ill still meet my deadlines; it will just take more concentrated effort.

Most office workers will do the same, which begs the question: If we can get our work done in four days, why not permanently add Monday to the weekend? We could finally make those Garfield comic strips about hating Mondays a thing of the past.

Employers and governments have experimented with four-day workweeks for decades, but the changing nature of work is making the idea more viable. Some industries can afford to focus on accomplishing tasks rather than how many hours someone worked.

RELATED: Despair and addiction are taking Americans out of the workforce

Psychologists have long known, after all, that people dont work a full eight hours. In a 2016 survey, United Kingdom office workers admitted that they probably stay on task a little less than three hours a day. The rest of the time is spent socializing, eating, smoking, browsing websites and searching for new jobs.

Proponents of the four-day week argue that if people only work a fraction of the assigned 40 hours, then why not concentrate that work and promote a better work-life balance? Experiments have shown that when people have more time for themselves, they work harder when on the job.

A wealth management firm in New Zealand, Perpetual Guardian, put the four-day week to the test this year. The company's founder, Andrew Barnes, brought in a human resources professor from the University of Auckland to measure what happened.

They worked out where they were wasting time and worked smarter, not harder, the professor, Jarrod Harr, told The New York Times in July. Supervisors said staff were more creative, their attendance was better, they were on time, and they didnt leave early or take long breaks. Their actual job performance didnt change when doing it over four days instead of five.

Employees, for example, found ways to reduce two-hour meetings to 30 minutes. They developed ways to signal co-workers not to distract them. But the real motivation was Barnes paying his employees the same salary for 32 hours as he did for 40 if they did the same amount of work.

Barnes experiment should not be confused with Frances 35-hour workweek. The Socialist Partys goal in 2000 was to force French companies to hire more workers, not boost productivity. Frances shorter workweek lowered unemployment, but businesses ended up spending more, according to academic studies.

RELATED: Trump labor plan hits the mark, should include higher wages

Some jobs lend themselves more to shorter workweeks than others. Job search site Flexjobs.com analyzed 50,000 job postings and identified those where a four-day week could make sense.

Unsurprisingly, they were mostly white-collar, task-oriented positions, including sales, information technology, health care, education, accounting, marketing and human resources.

Companies are competing in a tight labor market, and in order to attract and retain top talent, they need to better meet employees expectations  and at the top of that list is the desire for work flexibility, Sara Sutton, founder and CEO of FlexJobs, explained. We have seen and expect to continue seeing the flexible job marketplace diversify.

If an employee has a work quota, then the number of hours spent in the office makes no difference. And if an employee is paid by the piece of work, then why not hire them as an independent contractor instead of an employee?

This is where utopian visions of a four-day workweek can end in a sweatshop dystopia.

RELATED: Labor groups waste time and money campaigning for municipal ordinances

Many people dream of working for themselves, but as a former freelance writer, I can testify that running a small service business is tough. And the early results of the so-called gig economy, where people work on short-term contracts, are disheartening.

People forget the benefits that an employer provides, from health insurance to retirement plans to legal protections, until they have to pay for them. Ask any taxi driver, especially those with ride-hailing companies, how much money they make. Not very much.

Visit TaskRabbit.com and post a job for a handyman and watch the gig workers bid each other down to an unsustainable fee. When there are limited buyers of labor, and plenty of workers, the value of labor plummets.

The construction industry has long employed independent contractors, paying them by the job rather than the hour. Exploitation is far too common.

Thats why workers formed unions, fought for better treatment and now celebrate Labor Day. A shorter workweek may make sense, but only if workers can protect their wages and benefits.

Chris Tomlinson writes commentary about business and economics.

chris.tomlinson@chron.com | twitter.com/cltomlinson
Sandra Calderon and her kids were not feeling well.

It was nearly a year after Hurricane Harvey hit, particularly devastating the East side of Houston where she lived, and she felt her health crumbling. Calderon and her three kids  ages 13, 11 and 10  were experiencing chronic headaches. Her allergies worsened. She started getting hot flashes. The 34-year-old single mother hadnt had her period in a year.

Calderon, who was born in Fort Worth but lived in Mexico until 13 years ago, hadnt seen a doctor in two years. She doesnt have insurance. She normally works in the service industry, but is currently unemployed. Her options seemed nonexistent.

While picking up donated backpacks for her kids at her church, Christian Tabernacle on Wallisville Road, she came across United Health Partners, which is trying to fill health care needs in northeast Houston,

Thats when I met Ania (Bravo) and I confided in her that I havent been feeling well, Calderon said in Spanish through an interpreter.

Bravo, a medical assistant at the nonprofit health clinic, told Calderon to come to their clinic located on the East Freeway for a checkup and pap smear exam.

I said, I dont have any money, and she said, Its ok, we can cover the costs. Just come get an exam, Calderon said, her voice breaking as tears streamed down her cheeks. In such a short time, this clinic has really taken care of me.

Calderon received a five-point blood test and pap smear exam at UHP, free of charge. She also ended up discovering the verdict on her headache and those of her children: mold in the air ducts and walls of her trailer home, that grew after the trailer flooded during Harvey.

Calderon is one of over 860 patients UHP, founded in 2015 by Bernice Koko, has provided with health services for little to no cost since it opened its second clinic in northeast Houston in June (the first is located northwest). The largely low-income, minority area was in dire need of such a clinic, especially with residents increased health issues after Harvey.

And with the nearest health services  low-income or not  located at least 10 miles away, UHP is in the middle of what some community members feel to be a medical desert. But being the sole healthcare provider in the community has proved to be a double-edged sword, with the clinic struggling to find enough funding and resources to keep up with the demand in the area.

(Koko) began to do a pop-up shop with a local church (Casa de Amor y Restauracion) in December of last year, and out of that clinic she saw 275 patients over three months, said Patrina Pelton-Smith, a nonprofit business consultant. Thats when we realized theres more of a need here than we anticipated.

Koko founded UHP with the goal of providing underprivileged populations access to proper health care and education  a challenge shes experienced firsthand.

Koko was three months pregnant in 2004 when she arrived in Houston from the Ivory Coast. The expecting mother struggled to keep up with her checkups, especially when her husband  a member of the U.S. Military  was on duty.

I was living on Bissonet, I had to drive all the way to Riverside and take three buses, she said, her voice cracking. I would get lost on the bus, I didnt know the city, I didnt speak any English.

A few years and a Masters degree in healthcare management later, Koko met another expecting mother, five months into her pregnancy, who had never seen a doctor because she didnt know where to go.

I started with healthcare education on how to access resources, but I realized that even though clinics say they are low-income, theyre not  they just give you prices, Koko said.

In addition to being accommodating to low-income patients, though, Kokos clinics seek to make her majority-minority patients feel a little more at ease with a multilingual, diverse employees hailing from countries like Cuba, Venezuela, Cameroon, Nigeria and the Ivory Coast.

The first UHP clinic opened on Antoine Drive in 2016, which the community mainly used for school vaccinations. (For six or seven vaccines, Koko never charges more than $60.)

The northeast clinic, located on the East Freeway, is a different  and much worse  story, because of health problems patients have been facing as a result of Hurricane Harvey.

The exposure to dirty water has caused a high number of skin infections among her patients. Many have had spikes in their blood pressure from the trauma and stress of the recovery process. And because of food affordability issues, Koko said there has been more diabetes and cholesterol issues.

At her revenue-based northwest clinic, Koko operated on a lean budget of just over $100,000. But her budget ballooned to $467,000 with the opening of the new northeast clinic. She and her staff of five are struggling to find funding to keep the clinic operating. So far, it has received about $80,000 in donations from local churches and organizations, and expects to bring in about $100,000 in revenue  leaving about $200,000 left to raise, or else they face fewer days of operation, or even a complete shutdown.

Were already turning away a lot of patients because we dont have a doctor on Tuesdays and Thursdays, Koko said. The need is there because of Harvey.

massarah.mikati@chron.com
Texas Southern University is joining the states $3 billion assault on cancer.

The historically black university in Houstons Third Ward is getting more than $5 million from the Cancer Prevention and Research Institute of Texas for a center to conduct analyses of drug candidates necessary before they can be tested in people, a big need in a city known for its medical research but not the commercialization of it.

This grant fills a major gap in the pre-clinical phase of drug development, said Dong Liang, Texas Southerns chairman of pharmaceutical sciences and the project leader. It will allow us to expand our services to more institutions, labs and small companies in the Texas Medical Center and around the state.

The $5.1 million grant is TSUs first ever from CPRIT, the taxpayer-funded agency now its ninth year awarding state money to accelerate the war on cancer.

TSU has no medical school but does have a college of pharmacy, which will carry out the CPRIT grant. The college has conducted such pre-clinical drug research  studying drugs chemical properties and pharmacological fate after theyve been administered in experimental animals  for the past 20 years.

Observers said the project could improve Houstons drug development, a sore spot. The city has made strides since a 2005 Brookings Institute report ranked its research activity as above average and its commercialization activity as well below average, but the latter still lags behind.

"This is a great opportunity for Houston," said Kirstin Matthews, a fellow in science and technology policy at Rice University's Baker Institute for Public Policy. "It will expand and complement existing Texas Medical Center work. Ultimately it should lead to more clinical trials in the TMC and, hopefully, approval of new drugs therapies."

Though TSU already has conducted such preclinical work for researchers from the University of Texas at El Paso, UT Medical Branch at Galveston, Texas A&M and Texas Childrens Hospital, many scientists in the medical center and the state contract with private companies to do such work, typically expensive.

Expense is one reason for the so-called valley of death that strands much research before pharmaceutical companies see enough evidence of potential benefit to invest. Project leaders said they think the state-funded center will save Texas researchers money and expedite a process that typically takes 15 years before a drug candidate identified in the lab gets approved by the Food and Drug Administration. Most efforts die before then.

Under the TSU grant, selected research would be partially funded by the state.

Partners in the deal include MD Anderson Cancer Center, the University of Houston and the Gulf Coast Consortia for Quantitative Biomedical Science, a medical center-based organization that pushes for greater collaboration among area scientists, researchers and clinicians. UHs College of Pharmacy will provide modeling for the testing.

The testing determines how drugs impact the body and how the body impacts the drug. It also estimates safe and effective dosages.

Huan Xie, a TSU pharmacy professor and grant investigator, noted the grant also will bring unprecedented opportunity for minority students to participate in the research. Texas Southern is one of the nations largest historically black universities and only four of the others have pharmacy schools  Florida A&M, Howard University in Washington, Xavier University in Louisiana and Hampton University in Virginia.

This will allow TSU to provide training to the next generation of cancer investigators, said Xie.

The CPRIT award is not the TSU college of pharmacys first such major grant. Liang said it has previously received big grants from NASA and the National Institutes of Health.

The five-year grant will emphasize expanding TSUs preclinical drug research equipment and lab space in the first year and fully engaging the research and development services the last four. The new equipment will have greater capability, Liang said.

We already have a big facility here and this is only going to expand it, said Liang. It will allow us to accommodate many more studies and ultimately move more Texas cancer investigators discoveries closer to clinical trials, resulting in more patents. Itll be great for the medical center and the state.

The grant was one of 64 CPRIT awarded late last month for a total of more than $177 million, bringing its nine-year total to $2.15 billion of the $3 billion Texas voters approved in 2007. The first grants were awarded in 2009.

todd.ackerman@chron.com

twitter.com/chronmed
In Texas, where the popularity of unions rivals the general affection for dry brisket, you may be tempted to spend Labor Day reflecting on doorbuster sales and whether you really need to mothball that new pair of white pants.

We encourage you to take a few moments to remember the folks who brought you this blessed Monday off  and the blessed Saturday and Sunday as well. The U.S. labor movement, through the struggle and sacrifice of the workers and leaders, is the reason we have the regular two-day weekend and the eight-hour work day.
Last year, more than 80,000 people in the state of Texas joined unions. As national unions pump tens of million of dollars into organizing teachers, nurses and construction workers in Texas, most of the public remains uninformed of the progress being made.

This is a failure of not just the media but of the labor movement for failing to support a unionized press able to tell the story of workers rising up all over the South.

In the 1930s, when the modern labor movement was established, unions employed hundreds of reporters all over the country. Their task was to inspire workers with the tales of their co-workers rising up.

During the general strike of 1934 in Minneapolis, for example, there were weekly labor publications printed in eight languages. These publications gave readers daily examples of how folks much like themselves beat the odds and won victories in their workplaces.

Todays labor movement has no modern equivalent of the labor press of the 1930s. In my opinion as a veteran labor reporter, unions wont achieve significant new gains until we rebuild that media infrastructure.

When workers read about people like themselves earning unlikely successes against their bosses and corporate owners, it makes them feel like they can too. We as reporters know this first hand. Successful attempts at organizing more than two dozen publications, including the L.A. Times, the Chicago Tribune and the HuffPost, received widespread media attention. Each unionized workplace encouraged other reporters to organize their own offices.

However, the broader lessons of the digital media unionization movement appear lost on the labor movement as a whole, which struggles to illustrate how workers can inspire each other.

While many labor leaders complain about how the media portrays workers, few offer a concrete solution to build the labor press in order to tell their own stories.

Its not as if they lack the resources. Unions spend hundred of millions every year to fund politicians, who then use that money to purchase campaign ads and, ironically, subsidize the profits of corporate media.

Its time for the labor movement start talking seriously about rebuilding our own press and start covering the incredible organizing in places like Texas  because the stories are out there, waiting to be told.

Its not even a question of unions providing money. Sometimes it is enough to merely engage members.

Unions have large social media presences with thousands upon thousands of followers who can easily make news go viral. And in the age of crowdfunding, unions could encourage their members to support labor press projects.

The labor movement must get unionized workers to think about the role that they too can play in shaping their presence. Public trust of the press is at an all time low, according to the Knight Foundation. Far too many believe President Donald Trump when he says the press is the enemy of the people.

A mass effort to engage in union members rebuilding the labor press could help reestablish media outlets as community-trusted publications  the kind of publications that speak in the voice of workers.

For far too long, the labor movement has relied on others to tell our story. Its time we took back our ability to tell our own story. Its time we rebuild the labor press.
A study of 5,000 rail passengers in London found more than half of commuters (54%) use the Wi-Fi network on the train to send work emails. Some rely on their mobile data network.

Whether one is headed to the office or returning home, the commute allows workers to get up to speed on incoming tasks or continue working on unfinished ones, the researchers said.

Because of mobile technology, theres now a blurring of boundaries between ones work and their personal life, said Dr. Juliet Jain, a researcher from the universitys Centre for Transport and Society, and co-author of the study.

People end up working extra hours before or after their work day. The situation raises concerns, however, when work begins to eat into ones downtime and prevents them from plugging off.

If travel time were to count as work time, there would be many social and economic impacts, as well as implications for the rail industry, said Dr. Jain.
Imperial Valley News Center

Attack on American Citizens in Amsterdam

Washington, DC - The Department of State extends its concern and support for two U.S. citizens injured in an attack Friday in Amsterdam. We ask that all parties respect the privacy of the victims and their families at this difficult time. Dutch authorities have announced that investigations are focused on a terrorist motive for this unprovoked, horrifying attack.

The United States stands with our Dutch allies and others in our common fight against terrorism in all forms. We stand ready to assist Dutch authorities in their investigations as appropriate. We thank the Dutch police and medical personnel for their effective and courageous efforts to apprehend the assailant and care for our citizens.
Imperial Valley News Center

Firefighters Get Free Admission in September at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park

Escondido, California - Throughout September, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park is honoring the hard-working firefighters who help to protect people, animals and structures across the region. Through the support of California Coast Credit Union, the San Diego Zoo Safari Park is offering free admission to all active firefighters and up to three accompanying guests during the entire month of September.

To take advantage of this unique offer, firefighters will need to present an active firefighter identification card with photo, such as a department or union ID, plus a personal ID, at a Safari Park ticket window. They will then be provided with a 1-Day adult pass and up to three additional guest passes for family members or friends.

Safari Park officials said providing free admission to firefighters is just one small way to express the gratitude of the entire San Diego Zoo Safari Park staff to the brave men and women who battle dangerous fires every dayespecially during a year when fires have already burned more than 500,000 acres in California.

Within a span of three weeks, we had three wildfires that threatened our propertya scary prospect when thinking about the safety of our animals, guests and employees, said Lisa Peterson, director of the San Diego Zoo Safari Park. Providing free tickets to these brave men and women and their families is a way for us to recognize all they do for our communities. Firefighters run towards the danger that everyone else runs from, and for that courage we are grateful.

Fire is an important element in maintaining diverse ecosystems, however climate change, habitat loss and invasive plant species have created situations where fires are occurring much more frequently. In addition, fires are occurring repeatedly in the same areasresulting in long-term challenges for native wildlife, uprooting animals from their homes and altering the dynamics of already fragile ecosystems. San Diego Zoo Global continues to work with local wildlife agencies to monitor native habitats, at times stepping in to help replant habitats and relocate vulnerable species. The organization supports more than 140 conservation projects in Southern California and worldwideand encourages everyone to respect wildlife, help preserve their habitats, plant native plants and prevent wildfires.

Firefighters free tickets were made possible through generous support from California Coast Credit Union and are valid for same-day use only at the San Diego Zoo Safari Park, located at 15500 San Pasqual Valley Road in Escondido. Firefighters are true heroes, and we are proud to join San Diego Zoo Global in recognizing them for their tremendous efforts to keep us all safe from fires, said Cal Coast President and CEO Todd Lane. As part of our partnership with the city of San Diego, we will continue to look for ways to serve and support San Diego Fire Department personnel.

Guests visiting the Safari Park over Labor Day weekend (Sept. 13) are invited to help celebrate Vulture Awareness Day. The weekend-long event will include special keeper talks, an adopt-an-animal booth and other activities to help promote better understanding of vulture specieswhich are vulnerable, yet play a vital role in their ecosystems.

Bringing species back from the brink of extinction is the goal of San Diego Zoo Global. As a leader in conservation, the work of San Diego Zoo Global includes on-site wildlife conservation efforts (representing both plants and animals) at the San Diego Zoo, San Diego Zoo Safari Park, and San Diego Zoo Institute for Conservation Research, as well as international field programs on six continents. The work of these entities is inspiring children through the San Diego Zoo Kids network, reaching out through the internet and in childrens hospitals nationwide. The work of San Diego Zoo Global is made possible by the San Diego Zoo Global Wildlife Conservancy and is supported in part by the Foundation of San Diego Zoo Global.
Imperial Valley News Center

Energy Department Selects 13 Projects for High Performance Computing to Advance Applied Science and Technology in Manufacturing

Washington, DC - The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), in partnership with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, announced nearly $3 million for 13 projects to stimulate the use of high performance supercomputers to advance U.S. manufacturing. Manufacturer-laboratory partnerships help the U.S. bring technologies to the market faster and gain a competitive advantage in the global economy.

DOEs national laboratories have some of the most significant high performance computing (HPC) resources available, including some of the fastest supercomputers in the world. There is great potential for the U.S. manufacturing industry to use the power of HPC to solve key challenges, but many manufacturers lack access to supercomputing resources.

The High Performance Computing for Manufacturing (HPC4Mfg) program, supported by DOE's Advanced Manufacturing Office, unites DOEs supercomputing capabilities and expertise with American manufacturers to optimize production processes and designs, enhance product quality, predict performance and failure, and speed up design and testing cycles while decreasing energy consumption. Manufacturer-laboratory partnerships leverage expertise in advanced modeling, simulation, and data analysis to accelerate innovation and shorten the time of adoption of new technologies in U.S. manufacturing.

Selected projects will be awarded up to $300,000 in federal funding to cover the costs associated with using the supercomputers and technical expertise provided by the laboratory partners. Industry partners will provide a participant contribution of at least 20% of the DOE funding for the project.

The following projects were selected for awards:

3M - This project will optimize the design of emissive films on building windows for cooling via modeling of glass bead filled polymers.

3M - This project will minimize energy consumption of the fiber spinning manufacturing process using computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and machine learning.

Alliance for Pulp & Paper Technology - This project will help create a fundamental understanding of alkali reactivity with wood components using molecular modeling.

Arconic, Inc - This project will study the thermomechanics of micro-pores during the rolling process of aluminum slabs to improve yield.

GE Global Research Center - This project will extend GE Global Research Centers TRUCHAS model to large-scale casting simulation of turbine blades.

KeraCel - This project will model a new plan to push energy density in Li batteries with lithium oxide garnet with the goal of lowering the required temperature to reduce porosity in sintering.

Seurat Technologies - This project will use the ALE3D software to optimize Seurats innovative laser energy flux distribution to reduce spatter during laser powder bed fusion.

SFP Works, LLC - This project will use computational effort to understand phase transformations that occur during the flash heat treating process in order to better control parameters to obtain the desired phase distribution and chemistry.

Steel Manufacturing Simulation and Visualization Consortium - This project will create a shared database of heat exchange in 140 steel reheat furnaces whose inconsistencies lead to significant energy loss.

The Dow Chemical Company - This project will model methods to reduce the thermal conductivity of Dows insulating foam polyurethane products while using less polymer in products.

Transient Plasma Systems - This project will build a comprehensive numerical model for use in understanding and optimizing key parameters in electrical pulse generation of plasmas for dilute burn combustion.

United Technologies Research Center - This project will develop a novel heat treatment scheme that eliminates deleterious phases from the microstructure additively manufactured aerospace components while reducing the annealing time.

VAST Power Systems, Inc. - This project will optimize gas turbine combustors by developing and validating surrogate models using CFD.

The HPC4Mfg program is managed by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, with support from Oak Ridge National Laboratory and Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, and has supported more than 40 projects and provided more than $15 million for these public-private partnerships. Additionally, the National Renewable Energy Laboratory and Argonne National Laboratory provide computing cycles to support this program.

The Advanced Manufacturing Office (AMO) supports early-stage research to advance innovation in U.S. manufacturing and promote American economic growth and energy security.
Saudi-led Coalition's Announcement on Reviewing Rules of Engagement in Yemen

Washington, DC - The United States regards the Saudi-led Coalition's announcement that it will review their rules of engagement, hold those at fault accountable, and compensate victims following the Joint Incident Assessment Team's finding that last month's Sa'ada air strikes lacked justification as an important first step toward full transparency and accountability.

We continue to call on all sides to abide by the Law of Armed Conflict, to mitigate harm to civilians and civilian infrastructure, and thoroughly investigate and ensure accountability for any violations. It is imperative that all parties work toward a comprehensive political solution to avoid further harm to the Yemeni people. We fully support UN Special Envoy for Yemen Martin Griffiths as he prepares to convene parties in Geneva. All sides must engage constructively and in good faith in order to work toward a secure, stable, and peaceful Yemen.
Kyrgyz Republic Independence Day

Washington, DC - Secretary of State Michael R. Pompeo: On behalf of President Trump and the American people, I extend our congratulations and best wishes to the people of the Kyrgyz Republic in celebration of your 27th anniversary of independence on August 31st.

Today, we celebrate our 27 years of partnership with the Kyrgyz Republic based on trust, equality, and mutual respect, and look back on the work we have done to promote economic opportunities, democratic values, and people-to-people connections between our two countries.

The United States looks forward to deepening this relationship to ensure the success of the Kyrgyz Republic as a secure, prosperous, and democratic state for the benefit of the people of the Kyrgyz Republic.
The festival of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year, is a joyous occasion celebrated by members of the religious community all over the world.

The festival consists of many elements, including prayer services in synagogues and the blowing of an ancient musical horn called a "shofar", which is made from a rams horn.

However, one of the most anticipated aspects of Rosh Hashanah is undeniably all of the delicious, sweet foods that Jewish people eat throughout the festival, which starts this year on the evening of Friday 18 September and ends on Sunday 20 September.

During Rosh Hashanah, Jewish people will frequently say the Hebrew phrases: Shana Tova or Shana Tova UMetukah to one another, meaning: A good year or A good and sweet year.

The sweet foods that are eaten during Rosh Hashanah are therefore meant to symbolise the hope for a sweet and happy year ahead.

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One of the most recognisable food staples that adorns the dinner table during Rosh Hashanah is apple and honey, a traditional combination that has passed down the generations for centuries.

This is accompanied by a song that is taught to young children at cheder (Jewish Sunday school), which goes: Dip the apple in the honey, make a bracha [blessing] loud and clear. LShana Tova UMetuka, have a happy sweet New Year.

In addition to dipping the apple in the honey, Jewish people also frequently eat honey cake, pomegranates and round raisin loaves of challah to see in the New Year.

Read all about the foods that are traditionally served during Rosh Hashanah, from honey cake to a fishs head:

Apple and honey

Apple and honey (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

The dipping of the apple in the honey is one of the most recognisable traditions associated with Rosh Hashanah.

The honey symbolises the excitement for a sweet New Year ahead.

Its believed that centuries ago, the apple was chosen as the fruit that was to be dipped into the honey on Rosh Hashanah due to the symbolic nature of the fruit.

According to a Lexicon of Jewish Cooking, written by Patti Shosteck, in medieval times apples were so revered that people would carve prayers into the apple skins before eating them.

Pomegranate

Pomegranate (Getty Images)

The pomegranate is also a highly symbolic fruit eaten by the Jewish people during the New Year.

The Torah, the Jewish scroll that contains the first five books of the Tanakh, consists of 613 mitzvot, or commandments.

The Jewish Museum in New York City states that a pomegranate supposedly consists of 613 seeds, which is why it is eaten during Rosh Hashanah.

On top of that, its also a sweet fruit, which is why it ties in nicely with the festival.

Jewish people also eat many other types of fruits during Rosh Hashanah, including dates, lychees and star fruits.

Round raisin challah

Round challah (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Challah is a special Jewish bread that is frequently eaten on Shabbat and during religious festivals.

Usually challah loaves are plaited and adorned with different types of seeds, such as sesame or poppy seeds.

However, when Rosh Hashanah comes around, round raisin challahs become especially popular as opposed to long, plaited variations.

Project Genesis, a Jewish education organisation, recommends substituting the raisins for dried cranberries or sour cherries as an alternative to the raisin loaf.

Kiddush wine

Kiddush wine (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

A Jewish celebration isnt complete without an abundance of kiddush wine to mark the occasion.

A kiddush is a type of blessing recited over wine or grape juice during Shabbat or other Jewish festivals.

Kiddush wine is typically much sweeter than other types of wine.

Its explained on the Chabad website that during periods of time when Jewish communities were impoverished, many couldnt afford to buy expensive wine for Shabbat.

Therefore, they would often have to resort to buying cheap, sweet wine that was sometimes made from raisins instead.

Honey cake

Honey cake (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

It should come as no surprise that honey cake is eaten during Rosh Hashanah, what with the festivals focus on sweet food.

Many Jewish people who make honey cake to celebrate the New Year will make batches that they will then give to friends and family to spread love and happiness during the festive occasion.

The cakes ingredients often include cinnamon, ginger and  of course  honey or syrup.

Fish head

Fish's head (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Its customary for some Jewish people to eat the head of a fish during Rosh Hashanah.

Why, you may ask? The reasoning stems from the literal translation of the festivals name.

Since Rosh Hashanah translates literally as Head of the Year, eating a fish head on the holiday became a little joke about the verse, explained Jeremy Kalmanofsky, rabbi of New York Citys Conservative Ansche Chesed.

You should start your year as the head [or leader] and not the tail [or follower]."
One in four student nurses dropped out of their degrees before they graduated last year, exacerbating the NHS staffing crisis, according to new research.

The revelation prompted the Royal College of Nurses (RCN) to warn that trainees were plagued by financial difficulties and exploited as cheap labour, leading them to quit their courses.

Of 16,544 UK nursing students who began three-year degrees due to finish in 2017, 4,027 left their courses early or suspended their studies, giving a drop out rate of 24 per cent in the UK, according to data obtained by industry publication Nursing Standard and research charity the Health Foundation. The figures were provided by 55 out of 74 universities asked.

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The NHS in England has 40,000 unfilled nursing positions, the RCN estimates, and hospitals are reporting growing shortages of nurses along with other healthcare staff.

Applications to study nursing in England have dropped by a third since 2017, when the Government scrapped bursaries, meaning nurses and midwives must pay 9,000 a year in fees.

Anne Corrin, Head of Professional Learning and Development at the RCN, said: These figures are a stark and timely reminder of the need to properly support student nurses.

It is vital that student nurses have the opportunity to learn in placements  where they spend half their time  and are not relied upon to make up shortfalls in staffing numbers. They must not be exploited as cheap labour.

Nursing is a wonderful career, but student nurses face some of the most demanding workloads of any course. This makes financial pressures of student life and placements even harder to bear.

Falling student numbers and rising vacancies in our health and social care services mean addressing these issues has never been more urgent.

NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday Show all 18 1 /18 NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday Nurses test the hearing of a newborn child Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday The waiting room is busy in Milton Keynes University Hospital Reuters NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday On Ward 24, two nurses work at the nurses station Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday In A&E, a porter rushes a patient through the corridor Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday A surgical team prepares a patient for their operation Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday In the physiotherapy department, patients are treated in the hydrotherapy pool Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday On Ward 8, an inpatient awaits visitors Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday In the physiotherapy department, amputees take a class Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday A junior doctor is at work in the staff room Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday A surgical team prepares a patient for their operation Reuters NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday An inpatient has her hair washed by the staff hairdressers Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday In the audiology department, a mother watches on as her son is given a hearing test Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday On Ward 8, staff serve lunch to the patients Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday On Ward 24, a patient waits on their bed Reuters NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday On Ward 8, a cleaner is at work Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday A nurse takes blood from a patient Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday On Ward 8, an inpatient receives a visitor Reuters/Hannah McKay NHS at 70: Pride and worry as free health service celebrates birthday Inpatient Donald Ritson lies in bed in Ward 24 in Milton Keynes University Hospital Reuters

Figures from a Nursing Standard investigation in 2006 found the attrition rate was 24.8 per cent, suggesting efforts to retain nurses and nursing students over the last decade have had little effect, the publication said.

James Buchan, professor in the health and sciences faculty at Edinburghs Queen Margaret University said: Student nurse attrition has been for many years identified as a major problem for the UK, both in terms of the negative impact on individuals who leave programmes early, and also for the system at large, given nursing shortages are so prominent and increasing.

Ben Gershlick, a senior economics analyst at the Health Foundation said: While the attrition rate has remained fairly constant over the last decade, its impact is becoming more severe bearing in mind the overall shortage of nurses, vacancies in nursing posts and rising demand pressures on the NHS.

The need for nurses trained in the UK has also increased as we have seen a recent fall in the inflow of nurses coming from abroad.

Reducing attrition should be a crucial aspect of our overall approach to workforce planning.

The long-term plan for the health service, which is currently in development, and the workforce strategy expected from Health Education England, need to bring a much more joined-up and strategic approach.

A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: The NHS runs on the dedication and commitment of our wonderful nurses, who work tirelessly to provide the highest quality of care for their patients.

There are currently 52,000 nurses in training to work in our NHS, with more to come thanks to our historic 25 per cent increase in training places which will ensure we have the nurses we need for the future.
The globalisation brought about by the internet means that recreational drug use is now a worldwide issue. And for legislators, drug taking is a rapidly moving target. Over the past decades, we have seen changes in how drugs are being used, with new combinations of drugs being used together. But why does this happen?

It has long been known that street samples of heroin often contain a mixture of drugs. In some cases different drugs are added to counter the effects of the drug which has been taken.

Heroin is manufactured from the morphine contained in the latex of the field poppy, Papaver somniferum. The morphine is extracted, reacted with acetic anhydride and turned into diamorphine  the desired drug. This is then mixed with an acid rendering the drug water soluble, heated and then injected.

Street samples of heroin are often mixed with benzodiazepines (commonly temazepam or diazepam) and barbiturates (often phenobarbitone). Benzodiazepines, anti-anxiety drugs, are added to reduce the stress of taking the heroin. When the body clears the heroin from the system the process can induce a pseudo-epileptic fit. Some barbiturates, particularly phenobarbitone, have been used to control epilepsy and they are added to reduce the risk of fitting after taking heroin.

New trends

Sometimes taking drugs or drug mixtures can be part of a trend. What causes these trends is not always understood.

Despite an overall decline in the use of recreational drugs an increase has been reported in cocaine use among younger people, while another recent reported trend is the growth in the use of so-called monkey dust in the UK. This is a synthetic stimulant related to the cathinones, which has similar effects to cocaine and amphetamines.

Sometimes a trend is caused because a drug or drug mixture is sought which has a similar effect to drugs which have become difficult to obtain or which have become too expensive. For example, in 2009 the number of seizures of cathinones increased in Cambridge in the UK, when the world supply of sassafras oil, a precursor of MDMA, dried up. When the supply of the precursor was reestablished, MDMA use returned and the use of cathinones fell.

In Russia, krokodil  a homemade version of the synthetic opioid desomorphine  provides a cheap alternative to heroin. It is readily manufactured from codeine but its use can result in terrible physical injuries as well as the harms associated with drug abuse itself.

A legislative change can sometimes cause a change in the use of drug mixtures. For example, mixtures of piperazines, compounds which cause similar effects to ecstasy, emerged on the drug market as a legal alternative to methamphetamine in New Zealand. As a consequence, mixtures of these drugs emerged as different effects were realised. Some mixtures are still commonly encountered, including benzylpiperazine (BZP) and 1-(3-trifluoromethylphenyl) piperazine. Other drugs in this family have been reported to be mixed with cocaine, ephedrine and caffeine.

Such changes, in response to legislative control, have been observed in older, more established drugs as well as the novel psychoactive substances. In addition, cheaper drug mixtures may be developed for socioeconomic reasons. For example, in South Africa there has been an the emergence of a drug named nyaope. We have found this to contain a mixture of low-grade heroin, cannabis and the antiretrovirals: efavirenz and nevirapine.

Science news in pictures Show all 20 1 /20 Science news in pictures Science news in pictures Pluto has 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen Pluto has a 'beating heart' of frozen nitrogen that is doing strange things to its surface, Nasa has found. The mysterious core seems to be the cause of features on its surface that have fascinated scientists since they were spotted by Nasa's New Horizons mission. "Before New Horizons, everyone thought Pluto was going to be a netball - completely flat, almost no diversity," said Tanguy Bertrand, an astrophysicist and planetary scientist at NASA's Ames Research Center and the lead author on the new study. "But it's completely different. It has a lot of different landscapes and we are trying to understand what's going on there." Getty Science news in pictures Over 400 species discovered this year by Natural History Museum The ancient invertabrate worm-like species rhenopyrgus viviani (pictured) is one of over 400 species previously unknown to science that were discovered by experts at the Natural History Museum this year PA Science news in pictures Jackdaws can identify 'dangerous' humans Jackdaws can identify dangerous humans from listening to each others warning calls, scientists say. The highly social birds will also remember that person if they come near their nests again, according to researchers from the University of Exeter. In the study, a person unknown to the wild jackdaws approached their nest. At the same time scientists played a recording of a warning call (threatening) or contact calls (non-threatening). The next time jackdaws saw this same person, the birds that had previously heard the warning call were defensive and returned to their nests more than twice as quickly on average. Getty Science news in pictures Turtle embryos influence sex by shaking The sex of the turtle is determined by the temperatures at which they are incubated. Warm temperatures favour females. But by wiggling around the egg, embryos can find the Goldilocks Zone which means they are able to shield themselves against extreme thermal conditions and produce a balanced sex ratio, according to the new study published in Current Biology journal Ye et al/Current Biology Science news in pictures Elephant poaching rates drop in Africa African elephant poaching rates have dropped by 60 per cent in six years, an international study has found. It is thought the decline could be associated with the ivory trade ban introduced in China in 2017. Reuters Science news in pictures Ancient four-legged whale discovered in Peru Scientists have identified a four-legged creature with webbed feet to be an ancestor of the whale. Fossils unearthed in Peru have led scientists to conclude that the enormous creatures that traverse the planets oceans today are descended from small hoofed ancestors that lived in south Asia 50 million years ago A. Gennari Science news in pictures Animal with transient anus discovered A scientist has stumbled upon a creature with a transient anus that appears only when it is needed, before vanishing completely. Dr Sidney Tamm of the Marine Biological Laboratory could not initially find any trace of an anus on the species. However, as the animal gets full, a pore opens up to dispose of waste Steven G Johnson Science news in pictures Giant bee spotted Feared extinct, the Wallace's Giant bee has been spotted for the first time in nearly 40 years. 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The bones belonged to two large rodent species and a small shrew-like animal New Mexico Museum of Natural History Science news in pictures Fabric that changes according to temperature created Scientists at the University of Maryland have created a fabric that adapts to heat, expanding to allow more heat to escape the body when warm and compacting to retain more heat when cold Faye Levine, University of Maryland Science news in pictures Baby mice tears could be used in pest control A study from the University of Tokyo has found that the tears of baby mice cause female mice to be less interested in the sexual advances of males Getty Science news in pictures Final warning to limit "climate catastrophe" The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has issued a report which projects the impact of a rise in global temperatures of 1.5 degrees Celsius and warns against a higher increase Getty Science news in pictures Nobel prize for evolution chemists The nobel prize for chemistry has been awarded to three chemists working with evolution. Frances Smith is being awarded the prize for her work on directing the evolution of enzymes, while Gregory Winter and George Smith take the prize for their work on phage display of peptides and antibodies Getty/AFP Science news in pictures Nobel prize for laser physicists The nobel prize for physics has been awarded to three physicists working with lasers. Arthur Ashkin (L) was awarded for his "optical tweezers" which use lasers to grab particles, atoms, viruses and other living cells. Donna Strickland and Gerard Mourou were jointly awarded the prize for developing chirped-pulse amplification of lasers Reuters/AP Science news in pictures Discovery of a new species of dinosaur The Ledumahadi Mafube roamed around 200 million years ago in what is now South Africa. Recently discovered by a team of international scientists, it was the largest land animal of its time, weighing 12 tons and standing at 13 feet. In Sesotho, the South African language of the region in which the dinosaur was discovered, its name means "a giant thunderclap at dawn" Viktor Radermacher / SWNS Science news in pictures Birth of a planet Scientists have witnessed the birth of a planet for the first time ever. This spectacular image from the SPHERE instrument on ESO's Very Large Telescope is the first clear image of a planet caught in the very act of formation around the dwarf star PDS 70. The planet stands clearly out, visible as a bright point to the right of the center of the image, which is blacked out by the coronagraph mask used to block the blinding light of the central star. ESO/A. Muller et al Science news in pictures New human organ discovered that was previously missed by scientists Layers long thought to be dense, connective tissue are actually a series of fluid-filled compartments researchers have termed the interstitium. 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Using sensitive analysis of the chemical composition of sweat, researchers were able to tell the difference between those who had been directly exposed to heroin and cocaine, and those who had encountered it indirectly. Getty Science news in pictures Nasa releases stunning images of Jupiter's great red spot The storm bigger than the Earth, has been swhirling for 350 years. The image's colours have been enhanced after it was sent back to Earth. Pictures by: Tom Momary

The effects of cannabis and heroin are well known. What is less well known is that some antiretrovirals, including those found in this drug, are hallucinogenic and cause dissociative effects. As a consequence of this, and the low cost (30 rand or 1.60 per dose), it is finding widespread use in poor communities. The problem with this drug is that it is also highly addictive and causes extra problems as users resort to crime to finance their habit. In addition, it poses particular challenges to the forensic science community as the mixture of drugs found in nyaope have chemical properties which make them problematic to analyse and profile.

Some people take drug mixtures because they are looking for a new, or more intense high. The National Forensic Laboratory System in the US indicated that in Pennsylvania, for example, there was a trend to mix heroin with fentanyl which declined from 2006 to 2010 (when no such mixtures were observed). This decline then reversed and there was a steady resurgence in this drug mixture between 2011 and 2016, with 65 per cent of heroin cases reported to contain fentanyl in 2016. When the percentage of fentanyl decreased there was an increase in other drugs  benzodiazepines, cocaine, and other non-controlled drugs.

This is a worrying increase. Fentanyl, which is 50-100 times more potent than morphine and up to 50 times more powerful than diamorphine (both found in heroin), is particularly dangerous because it does not need to be ingested  it is readily absorbed through the skin or through inhalation of the drug powder. Not only does this present a risk to anyone using the drug but also anyone attending a victim as a first responder or, indeed, forensic scientists analysing the drug.

The drug is mixed with heroin or cocaine, leading to potent cocktails of drugs which are dangerous in the extreme. One mixture, grey death, contains fentanyl, carfentanil (a synthetic opioid used by vets to treat very large animals), heroin and a synthetic opiate, U-47700. U-47700 is itself seven times more potent than morphine and carfentanil is a staggering 10,000 times more potent than morphine. Two milligrams (a teaspoon of sugar weighs 2,500 times this much) of carfentanil can be fatal. A similar mixture, purple heroin, is a combination of heroin, morphine, fentanyl and carfentanil. Very little of the drug is required to have an effect and even small amounts can cause seizure, arrhythmia, breathing difficulties and death.

Warning label

So what are the consequences of taking drug mixtures? The effect of any drug will depend upon such factors as the age, gender, health status, drug taking history and mood of the user. No two people will be affected in the same way by a drug or drug mixture. Drugs do not simply counteract each other, and alcohol often makes the effect or problem greater  in addition to rendering the user liable to forget how much and which drugs they have taken. While taking drug mixtures may be driven by curiosity or other reasons, given what we do know, the safest bet perhaps is to avoid them altogether.

Michael Cole is a professor of forensic science at Anglia Ruskin University. This article first appeared on The Conversation (theconversation.com)
Blake's 7 and Doctor Who star Jacqueline Pearce has died at the age of 74, shortly after being diagnosed with lung cancer, a friend has said.

The actress, best known for playing villain Supreme Commander Servalan in the popular BBC science fiction series, died at her home in Lancashire.

John Ainsworth, who had been her friend for 25 years and was with her at the time, said: "She was outrageous. She was very honest and very straightforward, which didn't always go down very well, but you knew where you were with her.

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"She liked a glass of champagne and liked everyone to have a good time with her, and of course she was a brilliant actress and everyone who worked with her remembered her very fondly."

He added that Pearce had been diagnosed "a couple of weeks ago" and chose to be cared for at home after leaving hospital.

Alongside her role in Blake's 7, which was expanded from a single episode to a regular role over four series due to her popularity, Pearce was also known for her guest role as Chessene in The Two Doctors episodes of Doctor Who in 1985 - opposite Colin Baker's Time Lord.

After training at the Royal Academy Of Dramatic Arts alongside Anthony Hopkins and John Hurt, she appeared in episodes of Danger Man and The Avengers, as well as children's dramas Moondial and Dark Season, written by Russell T Davies.

In a statement, Davies said: "It was a joy, working with Jacqueline on the first drama I ever wrote, Dark Season.

"She was glorious, vivid, passionate, filthy and the most wonderful company. And underneath the style and the laughter, a truly fine actor."

Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Show all 10 1 /10 Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Maisie Williams  (left: She'll make a special appearance in Doctor Who, right: Game of Thrones  Arya) BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Tobias Menzies (left: Doctor Who  Lieutenant Stepashin, Cold War, right: Game of Thrones  Edmure Tully) BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones David Bradley: (left: Doctor Who  William Hartnell, An Adventure through Space and Time; GoT  Walder Frey) BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Liam Cunningham (left: Doctor Who  Captain Zhukov, right: Cold War & Got  Davos Seaworth) BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Joe Dempsie  (left: Doctor Who - Cline, The Doctors Daughter; right: Game of Thrones  Gendry) BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Thomas Brodie-Sangster (left: Doctor Who - Tim Latimer, Human Nature/The Family of Blood; right: Ggame of Thrones - Jojen Reed) BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Iain Glen (left: Doctor Who  Octavian, Flesh and Stone/The Time of Angels; right: Game of Thrones - Ser Jorah Mormont) BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Julian Glover (Doctor Who - Count Scarlioni/Scaroth, City of Death; Game of Thrones - Grand Maester Pycelle BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Dame Diana Rigg (Doctor Who - Mrs. Gillyflower, The Crimson Horror; Game of Thrones - Olenna Tyrell/Queen of Thorns) BBC/HBO Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Stars in Doctor Who and Game of Thrones Harry Lloyd (Doctor Who  Baines, Human Nature/The Family of Blood; Game of Thrones Viserys Targareyenn) BBC/HBO

Her film roles included White Mischief with John Hurt, How To Get Ahead In Advertising with Richard E Grant and Princess Caraboo with Kevin Kline.

After moving to South Africa for several years, initially to care for orphaned monkeys, Pearce returned to the UK in 2015.
More than 600 police stations have closed in the last eight years, new figures reveal, leaving scores of towns and cities without a visible reassurance for the public.

Budget cuts have led some forces to sell off at least half of their local stations in the largest programme of closures in policing history.

Recommended Drivers who fail roadside eye test to lose licence immediately

In other cases, even where a station remains, the front counters have been closed so people can no longer walk in and speak to officers in person.

Cities such as Bath, which is home to 89,000 people, and St Albans, where the population is 140,000, no longer have a dedicated station. In St Albans, where the police station closed in 2015, residents are directed to a free telephone to police control room outside the council offices.

Gloucestershire Police have closed 21 out of 28 stations, and in the Thames Valley region 24 of 60 stations have been lost, Freedom of Information figures obtained by the Sunday Times showed.

It comes as Scotland Yard admitted it has "run out of things to sell" after more than 1bn worth of property was sold off over the past six years.

This is really, really, worrying for society Ken Marsh

The Metropolitan Police, Britain's largest force, has had to make 600m of savings since 2010 and despite selling off dozens of stations and residential blocks, the force says funding cuts are still leading them to "breaking point".

"We've sold the Crown Jewels, so to speak. We've run out of things to sell. This is really, really, worrying for society," said Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation.

The Police Federation, which represents 100,000 rank-and-file officers, said the mass closures had removed a visible reassurance for the public.

In Lancashire, 11 front counters have closed this year.

Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Show all 10 1 /10 Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Edwardian mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives. Taken between 1903 and 1909, these photos serve as an insight into the criminal class of Edwardian Birmingham. Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Henry Mercer Fraud SWNS.com Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Elie Newman, 41 Forgery 3 months SWNS.com Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Thomas O'Neil Fraud SWNS.com Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Leah Low, 23 Shoplifting 21 days SWNS.com Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Ada Launders, 44 Forgery 3 years SWNS.com Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Emma Brown, 51 Stealing a pair of boots Small fine SWNS.com Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Chester Laughton Forgery 4 years SWNS.com Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Emma Griffiths, 64 Theft 1 day SWNS.com Century old mugshots from the West Midlands Police archives Elie Cole, 72 Stealing a pair of boots Small fine SWNS.com

West Midlands police chiefs plan to shut 24 stations in six years to save 5m a year in running costs, prompting protests and petitions.

Thames Valley Police said that losing stations had little impact as laptops and phones meant the office can be anywhere.

The latest official crime figures, from March this year, show a fall in overall levels of crime, although there was a rise in offences where knives or other sharp instruments were used - the highest level since 2011.

The Home Office said: The nature of crime is changing. Thats why we provided a strong and comprehensive settlement that is increasing total investment in the police system by over 460m in 2018-19.
More than 2.6 million people have abandoned their support for Brexit and now back staying in the EU, a major study has concluded.

If the huge number of Britons who have changed their mind had voted to stay in the EU in 2016, the referendum would have delivered a clear Remain verdict.

The data will add to the debate about whether the country now needs a new referendum, with millions having second thoughts about their Leave vote amid growing fears about Britain crashing out of the EU without a deal.

In a key finding that will particularly intensify pressure on Jeremy Corbyn to take a tougher stance against Brexit, the study found the overwhelming majority of those changing minds are Labour voters in seats the party currently holds.

It comes as Conservative divisions over Brexit deepened, with Theresa May attempting to slap down Boris Johnson after he wrote another article attacking her approach.

The Independent has launched its own campaign for a Final Say referendum, with almost three quarters of a million people having signed our petition demanding one so far.

The new study was carried out by data analysis experts Focaldata for pro-EU campaign group Best for Britain. It was based on two YouGov polls that together surveyed more than 15,000 people.

In total, it concluded that 2.6 million Leave voters have switched their support to Remain, while 970,000 have moved the other way  a net gain for the pro-EU side of 1.6 million.

The majority for Leave in 2016 was around 1.3 million, meaning if all those who have now switched their allegiance had acted in accordance with their new view at the ballot box, Remain would have won the vote by a greater margin.

MPs on both sides of the Commons have already come out in support of the idea, but the new data could act as a catalyst for politicians waiting for signs of a shift in public opinion.

Labour MP Owen Smith, who backs the Best for Britain campaign, said: This new data confirms that Britain is changing its mind about Brexit and Labour voters are leading the change.

They want to see an end to austerity and they are worried that Brexit will mean years more of cuts to the NHS and other public services.

If Jeremy Corbyn wants to be Prime Minister and to rebuild those public services he needs to win those voters by delivering a vote on the final deal and a chance for the country change course on Brexit.

People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Show all 30 1 /30 People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Rex People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal AFP/Getty Images People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal A young protestor shouts as she takes part in the People's Vote demonstration against Brexit Getty Images People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Reuters People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal A protester's pro-EU t-shirt EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal AFP/Getty Images People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal AFP/Getty People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Gina Miller and Caroline Lucas EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Tens of thousands of people march through London EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal EPA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Demonstrators at the People's Vote March Getty People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal 'Two months too young to decide on my future' REUTERS People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal PA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal A young girl joins in the march PA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal An EU flag is draped across the statue of Winston Chruchill in Parliament Square REUTERS People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal AFP/Getty Images People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Vince Cable MP, Pro-EU campaigner Gina Miller, Tony Robinson and Caroline Lucas MP join with crowds PA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal PA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Crowds gather on Pall Mall PA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal A man resembling Britain's Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, joins EU supporters Reuters People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Reuters People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal People gather in Trafalgar Square REUTERS People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal Pro-EU campaigner Gina Miller and Tony Robinson PA People's Vote march  demanding vote on final Brexit deal EU supporters, calling on the government to give Britons a vote on the final Brexit deal, participate in the 'People's Vote' march REUTERS

The study found that Labour voters accounted for 1.4 million of the 1.6 million switchers to Remain, significantly outnumbering the 837,000 Tory voters who switched the other way.

The finding that Labour voters are particularly moving away from Brexit is likely to come as a major boost to pro-EU campaigners, who plan to use the partys annual conference later this month to try to force the Labour leadership to adopt a tougher stance on the issue.

Campaigners believe there would be a further significant shift in opinion among Labour voters if Mr Corbyn changes the partys official position.

YouGov found that 58 per cent of people who voted for Labour in 2017 said they were concerned about the prospect of no-deal. Fifty-six per cent want another poll on the nature of Brexit, compared to 32 per cent who did not.

A majority of all voters in Labour held-constituencies also back a Final Say referendum on the terms of the Brexit deal, by a margin of 45 per cent to 39 per cent.

Of the 262 Labour-voting constituencies, 161 currently support a new referendum, while a further 55 are expected to switch in the coming months.

It places Mr Corbyn on a collision course with Labour members, voters and constituents if he continues to resist calls for a public vote on the terms of Brexit.

In total, 69 Labour constituencies have moved to Remain, while just three have switched to Leave.

The biggest swing to Remain was the 17.2 per cent seen in the Barnsley Central seat held by Labours Dan Jarvis.

Eloise Todd, CEO of Best for Britain, said: The country continues to shift away from supporting Brexit, and people want to have the final say on whether we leave Europe or not.

Most Labour constituencies have majority support for a peoples vote, a clear majority of Labour voters back a peoples vote, and most of the countrys 1.6million people that have shifted support Labour. This research could be a watershed moment in the final say campaign.

We need the Opposition to step up and give a real alternative to governments Brexit deal, starting with a peoples vote with an option to stay, lead and thrive in Europe.

 What does a no-deal Brexit mean?

The swing comes amid growing fears about the impact of Britain crashing out of the EU without a deal.

Forty-eight per cent of voters said they thought a no-deal Brexit would be bad for Britain, compared to just 13 per cent who thought it would be good, with 21 per cent saying it would make no difference.

And in a finding that raises the pressure on on Ms May secure an agreement with the EU, 37 per cent of Tory voters said they were worried about no-deal, while only 19 per cent said they would be relieved.

The prime minister is facing a growing headache as she attempts to convince Conservative MPs to step in behind her and back the governments Chequers plan, which has been widely criticised by Tory Brexiteers.

With an agreement needing to be secured by the end of the year, warfare on the Tory benches has fuelled fears of a no-deal outcome.

Best for Britain data has previously found that 341 constituencies would now back Remain, meaning 112 constituencies had switched from Leave to Remain since the 2016 poll.

The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Show all 8 1 /8 The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Post-Brexit immigration workers sorting radishes on a production line at a farm in Norfolk. One possible post-Brexit immigration scheme could struggle to channel workers towards less attractive roles - while another may heighten the risk of labour exploitation, a new report warns. PA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Customs union A key point in the negotiations remains Britain's access to, or withdrawal from, the EU customs union. Since the referendum there has been hot debate over the meaning of Brexit: would it entail a full withdrawal from the existing agreement, known as hard Brexit, or the soft version in which we would remain part of a common customs area for most goods, as Turkey does? No 10 has so far insisted that Brexit means Brexit and that Britain will be leaving the customs union, but may be inclined to change its position once the potential risks to the UKs economic outlook become clearer. Alamy The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Northern Ireland-Irish border Though progress was made last year, there has still been no solid agreement on whether there should be a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. To ensure borderless travel on the island, the countries must be in regulatory alignment and therefore adhere to the same rules as the customs union. In December, the Conservative Partys coalition partners, the DUP, refused a draft agreement that would place the UK/EU border in the Irish Sea due to its potential to undermine the union. May has promised that would not be the case and has suggested that a specific solution would need to be found. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Transition period Despite protests from a small number of Conservative MPs, the Government and the EU are largely in agreement that a transitional period is needed after Brexit. The talks, however, have reached an impasse. Though May has agreed that the UK will continue to contribute to the EU budget until 2021, the PM wants to be able to select which laws made during this time the UK will have to adhere to. Chief negotiator Michel Barnier has said the UK must adopt all of the laws passed during the transition, without any input from British ministers or MEPs. EPA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Rights of EU citizens living the UK The Prime Minister has promised EU citizens already living in the UK the right to live and work here after Brexit, but the rights of those who arrive after Brexit day remains unclear. May insists that those who arrive during the transition period should not be allowed to stay, whereas the EU believe the cut-off point should be later. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Future trade agreement (with the EU) Despite this being a key issue in negotiations, the Government has yet to lay out exactly what it wants from a trade deal with the EU. Infighting within the Cabinet has prevented a solid position from being reached, with some MPs content that "no deal is better than a bad deal" while others rally behind single market access. The EU has already confirmed that access to the single market would be impossible without the UK remaining in the customs union. Getty The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Future trade agreements (internationally) The Government has already begun trying to woo foreign leaders into prospective trade agreements, with various high profile state visits to China, India and Canada for May, and the now infamous invitation to US President Donald Trump to visit London. However the UK cannot make trade agreements with another country while it is still a member of the EU, and the potential loss of trade with the world's major powers is a source of anxiety for the PM. The EU has said the UK cannot secure trade deals during the transition period. EPA The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU Financial services Banks in the UK will be hit hard regardless of the Brexit outcome. The EU has refused to give British banks passporting rights to trade within the EU, dashing hopes of a special City deal. However according to new reports Germany has suggested allowing trade on the condition that the UK continues paying into the EU budget even after the transition period. Getty

The data suggests that, if current trends continue, a further 71 are likely to switch in the near future.

Two-thirds of the YouGov polling was conducted before Theresa May announced the details of her Chequers plan, while a third was completed after.

It found women made up almost two-thirds of those people ditching their support for Brexit.

Middle-aged voters are also increasingly switching their support due to fears about the impact of Brexit on the economy and the NHS.

The findings come as Ms May hit back at criticism from Boris Johnson, who attacked her Chequers plan and said it had left Britain lying flat on the canvas.

In response, the prime ministers spokesman said the former foreign secretary had proposed no new ideas, adding: What we need at this time is serious leadership with a serious plan, and thats exactly what the country has with this prime minister and this Brexit plan.

Elsewhere, 20 Tory MPs, including former ministers Priti Patel and Iain Duncan Smith, pledged to vote against the Chequers proposals
A Jeremy Corbyn ally has been re-elected to Labours governing body despite claiming that complaints of antisemitism in the party were being made up by Jewish Trump fanatics.

Peter Willsman triggered a storm of criticism in July when his recorded comments were leaked  prompting the pro-Corbyn grassroots group Momentum to withdraw its support from him.

However, the long-standing Corbyn supporter has clung onto his seat on the National Executive Committee (NEC), as the Labour leader retained his iron grip on the party  to the despair of centrist figures.

Party members elected the full nine-strong Corbyn-supporting slate  called the #JC9 on social media  in a clean sweep, prompting anger from the group Labour Against Antisemitism (LAA).

It said none of the nine had publicly supported the full International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (IHRA) document on antisemitism, in the controversy that has dogged the party this summer.

The election of the #JC9 slate by Labour members to the partys NEC raises further concerns about institutional antisemitism in the party, said Denny Taylor, the LAAs spokesman.

Describing the results as highly disappointing, he added: Labour members have chosen to give their support to candidates apparently ambivalent towards tackling what is an existential threat to our party.

In the July recording, obtained by the Jewish Chronicle, Mr Willsman described rabbis warnings of severe and widespread anti-Jewish sentiment in Labour as simply false, insisting he had never witnessed any.

He said: Some of these people in the Jewish community support Trump. They're Trump fanatics and all the rest of it. I am not going to be lectured to by Trump fanatics making up fast information without any evidence at all.

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 recording was made at the meeting when the NEC refused to adopt all the IHRAs examples of antisemitism, because of opposition from Mr Corbyn and his key advisers.

It prompted calls for Mr Willsman to resign, including from former Corbyn aide Matt Zarb-Cousin who tweeted: You've had your time Pete, time to go. Let someone else have a chance, preferably someone who doesn't downplay racism.

Tom Watson, Labour's deputy leader, tweeted: For the avoidance of doubt: Peter Willsman is and always has been a loudmouthed bully. He disgusts me.

The results saw Jon Lansman, the veteran Corbyn ally and Momentum founder, retain his NEC seat. The other winners were Ann Henderson, Claudia Webbe, Darren Williams, Huda Elmi, Nav Mishra, Rachel Garnham and Yasmine Dar.

The leaders opponents had pinned their hopes on independent Ann Black edging out Mr Willsman, although she  in proof of the moderates weakness  is a veteran of the Labour left.

In the end, Ms Black finished 13th, while comedian Eddie Izzard was pushed into 10th place by Mr Willsman, who grabbed the last of the nine seats.

Regardless of the results, the Labour leader would have retained a comfortable majority on the NEC, where most of the big unions are strongly behind him on almost all issues.

The exception is the full adoption of the IHRA document on antisemitism, which is expected to be approved if it comes to a vote on Tuesday.

There was speculation that Mr Corbyn might make an announcement ahead of the meeting, to head off criticism that the unions and Momentum had defeated him.
SNP membership has overtaken the Conservatives for the first time, pushing the governing party into third place.

The SNP have just under 125,000 registered members compared to 124,000 for the Tories, according to House of Commons Library data.

The latest available data shows that membership of the SNP (August 2018) has surpassed the latest reported figures for the Conservatives (March 2018), a spokesperson for the House of Commons Library tweeted.

A Conservative Party source told The Independent: We have been driving up membership steadily since the beginning of the year.

Nicola Sturgeon reacted with amazement to official figures showing her party was now the second largest in the UK by membership.

Wow  the SNP is now officially the second biggest party in the whole of the UK, the Scottish first minister and leader of the SNP said.

SNP membership rose from 118,162 in April to 125,482 in August, according to information provided by the partys headquarters.

However, the latest Conservative membership figure was reported in March and therefore does not account for any possible changes since then.

Labour had 540,000 registered members, the House of Commons Library data showed.

The Liberal Democrats had around 99,200, the Green Party 39,400, Ukip 23,600 and Plaid Cymru around 8,000.

 Nicola Sturgeon says she will restart debate on Scottish independence in coming weeks

SNP business convener Derek Mackay MSP welcomed the figures, which he said were boosted in June by the row over the so-called Brexit power grab on devolved governments.

Over 7,000 people joined the SNP in just five days in June, propelling us ahead of a waning Tory party which is at risk of imploding completely over Brexit, he said.

Like the extraordinary membership surge of 2014 joining the SNP has once again become not just a powerful symbol, but the best way to ensure Scotlands voice is heard.

People were rightly outraged at Tory plans to remove powers from the Scottish Parliament, and that only 15 minutes were given over at Westminster to debate the impact of the EU Withdrawal Bill on devolution.

It comes as a poll revealed Brexit has damaged support for the British union in both Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Almost half of Scottish voters (47 per cent) said they would now vote for independence if the UK leaves the EU.
A British man dubbed the "East Midlands Escobar" for his alleged role in a giant Colombian cocaine racket has been arrested after armed commandos stormed his home.

Andrew Deamer, 52, originally from Barrow upon Soar in Leicestershire, is believed to have run laboratories where the drug was disguised as pet food and industrial fertiliser so that it could be exported.

He ran the 354m cocaine ring in the Colombian town of Rionegro near Medellin, where Pablo Escobar operated a cocaine trafficking ring in the 1970s and 1980s, investigators say.

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Police, army and navy troops also seized his wife Marcela Zapata, 37, in the dawn raid.

Footage from CCTV in their home shows the couple racing through the house as the commandos move in.

Mr Deamer was then filmed climbing down from his loft after his five golden retriever dogs gave away his hiding place by barking at the hatch.

The father of two - also known as El Mono, or the Monkey - is accused of being at the centre of Colombian cartels that are responsible for the production and supply of most of the worlds cocaine.

The drugs rackets could potentially worth 1.2bn, the Sunday Mirror reported.

Accused of being a trusted lieutenant of a violent syndicate, if convicted he could face a lighter 14-year prison sentence in return for helping authorities who smashed the drugs empire.

Mr Deamer, who regularly flaunted his wealthy lifestyle online, is understood to have owned a string of Breaking Bad-style labs where cocaine was disguised as dog and cat food. It was sold in Europe, the UK and the US.

Colombias Office of the Attorney General, known as The Fiscalia, said 2.5 tonnes of the drug were seized in raids dating back three years.

Smugglers hide drugs in food Show all 11 1 /11 Smugglers hide drugs in food Smugglers hide drugs in food Methamphetamine in chocolate bar This July 2012 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows methamphetamine disguised as a chocolate candy bar in Los Angeles. Officials said a California man tried to smuggle more than 4 pounds of methamphetamine out of the country disguised as 45 individually wrapped chocolate bars at Los Angeles International Airport. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Cocaine in coffee This October 2015 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows a packet of cocaine hidden in a bag of ground coffee in Miami. Three bags of roasted, ground coffee arriving at Miami International Airport in a package from Guatemala in October were actually filled with more than 3 pounds of heroin, customs officials said. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Cocaine in powdered milk This November 2014 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows bags of powdered dairy product that contained cocaine in New York. A woman arriving at Kennedy International Airport in New York from Guyana was found with six bags of milk and custard powder that were filled with cocaine. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Cocaine in custard powder This November 2014 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows bags, marked as holding powdered dairy products, that hold cocaine in New York. A woman arriving at Kennedy International Airport in New York from Guyana was found with six bags of milk and custard powder that were filled with cocaine. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Cocaine in various foods This October 2015 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows an array of food products concealing cocaine in Newark, N.J. A U.S. citizen arriving from Peru at Newark Liberty International Airport in October had an assortment of food in his luggage that customs officials found also included 10 pounds of cocaine. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Cocaine in vanilla wafers This April 2015 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows vanilla wafers filled with cocaine in Houston. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Cocaine in vanilla wafers A Guatemalan citizen arrived at George Bush Intercontinental Airport from Guatemala City in April with packages of vanilla wafers. But when customs officials opened them up, they said they found they were filled with cocaine instead of cream filling. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Liquid cocaine in rum bottles This December 2014 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows rum bottles filled with liquid cocaine in New York. A man arriving from Guyana at Kennedy International Airport in New York was found to be carrying the bottles that customs officials said were filled with 18 pounds worth of liquid cocaine. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Cocaine paste in chocolate syrup This February 2012 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows plastic packets of chocolate syrup and salad dressing concealing cocaine paste in Los Angeles. A mother and daughter traveling from Spain were carrying bags of condiments that customs officials at Los Angeles International Airport decided felt unusually thick. They opened it up to find a plastic bag with cocaine paste placed inside, and then found another syrup packet in their checked-in luggage that contained more cocaine paste. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Opium in cinnamon packets This June 2012 photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection shows packets of opium covered in cinnamon hidden inside a rice cooker in Los Angeles. Officials found the rice cooker stuffed with 3 pounds' worth of black opium, which had been coated in cinnamon and wrapped in plastic, being transported by a man arriving at Los Angeles International Airport from Iran. AP Smugglers hide drugs in food Cocaine in frozen meat This undated photo provided by U.S. Customs and Border Protection in October 2015 shows a block of cocaine concealed in a package of frozen meat in New York. A man arrived at Kennedy International Airport from Trinidad with three large packages of frozen meat in his suitcase. AP

They said he is also accused of trafficking six tonnes of cocaine for another syndicate  linking cocaine with a street value of 354m directly to him.

Before moving to Colombia, he lived in Florida for a number of years, where he claimed to work in aviation.

The Foreign Office said: We are providing consular assistance to a British man detained in Colombia.
A moose has drowned in Vermont after a crowd of people taking photographs scared the animal into the water.

Vermont wildlife officials said the moose is believed to have already swum several kilometres to cross Lake Champlain from New York state, which borders the west side of the lake.

When it reached the shore at South Hero  part of Grand Isle in the middle of the lake, it caught the attention of bystanders who reportedly crowded around the animal while it was resting.

The moose crossed a large part of Lake Champlain which divides New York from Vermont (Bernadette Toth)

It then re-entered the water and drowned of exhaustion. Photographs on Facebook showed the body of the large animal bound by the legs and in the back of wildlife officials pickup truck.

Fish and Wildlife Officer Robert Currier told news outlet WCAX3: The best practice is to stay away from it, keep your distance. Dont crowd the moose.

If a moose feels threatened its going to respond by either leaving the area or its going to respond with aggression, and obviously we dont want anybody to be the victim of the latter of those two.

Mr Currier added that it was uncommon for moose to swim across the lake, though not completely unknown.

Bernadette Toth, a teacher who saw the moose emerge from the water, told The Independent the area where it reached land was close to a bicycle path, which was busy during the tourist season. There were numerous boats and vehicles nearby, she added.

Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Show all 8 1 /8 Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Winner  Pikin and Appolinaire Pikin, a lowland gorilla, had been captured and was going to be sold for bushmeat but was rescued by Ape Action Africa. Jo-Anne took this photograph as the gorilla was being moved from her former enclosure within a safe forest sanctuary in Cameroon to a new and larger one, along with a group of gorilla companions. She was first sedated, but during the transfer to the new enclosure she awoke. Luckily, she was not only very drowsy, but she was also in the arms of her caretaker, Appolinaire Ndohoudou, and so she remained calm for the duration of the bumpy drive Jo-Anne McArthur Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Finalist  Elegant Mother and Calf Every year from July to late October southern humpback whales migrate north from their Antarctic feeding grounds to give birth in the warm sheltered waters off Tonga. Ray encountered this humpback mother and calf peacefully floating in the plankton-filled water around the island group of Vavau, Tonga. After Ray gently approached them, the giants swam a bit closer to have a look at him. While they made this elegant turn, Ray took the shot. He later converted the image into black and white which he felt represented the simplicity of the scene Ray Chin/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Finalist  Warm Embrace When polar bear mothers and cubs emerge from their dens in the early spring, the cubs stay close to their mothers for warmth and protection. Once the cubs are strong and confident enough, they make the trek to the sea ice with their mother so that she can resume hunting for seals. Debra waited six days near the den of this family, in Wapusk National Park, Manitoba, Canada, before they finally emerged. In the most challenging conditions she has ever faced, temperatures ranged from -35C to -55C with high winds, making it almost impossible to avoid frostbite and keep her camera gear functioning properly Debra Garside/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Finalist  Roller Rider Lakshitha was on safari in MaasaiMara National Reserve, Kenya, when he spotted an unusual sight  a lilac-breasted roller riding a zebra. Normally they prefer to perch high up in the foliage, but his roller spent an hour or more riding around and enjoying the occasional insect meal. Lakshitha waited for the surrounding zebras to form the perfect background before taking this tight crop Lakshitha Karunarathna/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Finalist  Sloth Hanging Out Luciano had to climb the cecropia tree, in the protected Atlantic rainforest of southern Bahia, Brazil, to take an eye-level shot of this three-toed sloth. Sloths like to feed on the leaves of these trees,and so they are often seen high up in the canopy. Luciano Candisani/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Shortlisted  Reach for the Sky Steven was taking pictures of a small group of adult roseate spoonbills in a rookery in Tampa Bay, Florida, when he noticed a newcomer flying in from afar. With just enough time to back up a few steps, Steven photographed the bird landing exactly square to his camera with its wings in a stunning symmetrical U-shape Steve Blandin/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Shortlisted  Holding On This close-up captures the touching moment an infant lays its small hand in the big hand of its mother. Jami took this photograph while she was in Borneo working on a story about the effects of palm-oil agriculture on orangutan habitat. Loss of primary rainforest is a serious threat to this already critically endangered species Jami Tarris/Wildlife Photographer of the Year Wildlife Photographer of the Year Peoples Choice award Shortlisted  Blood Ivory In a protected area of Zululand, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, a rangers bloody hand rests on a heavily grained ivory tusk, also covered in the blood of an African elephant. The bull had to be destroyed due to a severe tusk infection that couldnt be treated.The tusks were removed to a place of safekeeping, where they were carefully catalogued in accordance with legislation Peter Chadwick/Wildlife Photographer of the Year

Lake Champlain also has a partial border with the Canadian province of Quebec.
The US National Hurricane Centre (NHC) has issued a storm warning for parts of South Florida as Tropical Storm Gordon has formed near the Florida Keys on Monday morning.

The Centre warned that heavy rains are likely, noting the storm had sustained maximum winds of 45 miles per hour.

Gordon is likely to brush the southern tip of the Florida Peninsula on Monday, before moving into the Gulf of Mexico, said AccuWeather Senior Meteorologist Rob Miller.

Tropical Storm Gordon is expected to bring "life-threatening storm surge" to portions of the central Gulf Coast, NHC stated. A hurricane watch has also been issued from Shell Beach, Louisiana to the Mississippi-Alabama border.

"Residents in these areas should listen to advice from their local officials and all preparations to protect life and property should be rushed to completion," officials warned.

Officials have also warned that flash flooding could occur in Louisiana and the southern parts of Alabama and Mississippi, as a result of heavy rainfall caused by Gordon.

Gordon is forecast to pass over the Florida Keys on Monday and reach the northern Gulf Coast by Tuesday night.

 Hajj: Rare storm rages near Mecca hours before Day of Arafat

Florida Governor Rick Scott encouraged residents and visitors to "remain vigilant" in a post published to Twitter on Sunday.

"With the peak of hurricane season upon us, now is the time to get prepared," he wrote. "Make sure that you and your family have a plan in place in case of disaster."

Storm Eleanor: in pictures Show all 25 1 /25 Storm Eleanor: in pictures Storm Eleanor: in pictures Storm Eleanor swept across the country overnight, bringing winds of up to 100 mph in places and carrying rain, hail and thunder and lightning AFP/Getty Storm Eleanor: in pictures The Thames Barrier has been closed to prevent possible flooding in London Rex Features Storm Eleanor: in pictures Cars are seen in a flooded multi-storey car park as flood waters reached up to 1.5 meters and destroyed multiple cars, in Galway Reuters Storm Eleanor: in pictures Repairs are made to the harbour wall that was damaged by Storm Eleanor in Cornwall Getty Storm Eleanor: in pictures A man walks past a fallen tree as it blocks a road in Harrow EPA Storm Eleanor: in pictures Storm Eleanor lashed the UK with violent storm-force winds of up to 100mph PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures A fence around a building yard fallen on parked card in Tottenham Rex Features Storm Eleanor: in pictures A beach patrol vehicle drives past waves crashing against the breakwater in Blackpool EPA Storm Eleanor: in pictures A trampoline blew away in Leeds Iryna Mi/PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures A car drives along a flooded road in New Brighto REUTERS Storm Eleanor: in pictures A partially collapsed harbour wall in Portreath, Cornwall PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures Waves crash over the tidal wall as a motorist travels along the coastal road in New Brighton, north west England AFP/Getty Storm Eleanor: in pictures An uprooted tree falls in the front garden of a house in Haringey, North London Rex Features Storm Eleanor: in pictures A car crushed by falling debris in London Storm Eleanor: in pictures A flooded street in Galway Michael Scott/Twitter/PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures The strong winds have caused damage across the UK Storm Eleanor: in pictures Big waves crash over the sea walls in Blackpool PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures Storm Eleanor at high tide in Weston-Super-Mare Rex Features Storm Eleanor: in pictures Water surrounds parked cars in Galway as storm Eleanor hit Emma Hayward/Twitter/PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures A car driving through flood water in Salthill, Galway The Latin Quarter Galway/PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures Workmen clear debris from the roadside after Storm Eleanor damaged an office construction in Belfast, Northern Ireland Getty Storm Eleanor: in pictures Waves crash against the sea wall in Aberystwyth PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures Storm Eleanor has caused road disruption PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures A car drives through a flooded car park in Salthill PA Storm Eleanor: in pictures Cars stranded in flood water Emma Hayward/Twitter/PA

"It is possible that Gordon could peak as a Category 1 hurricane after 36 hours, just before landfall occurs," NHC stated in its warning. "For that reason, a Hurricane Watch has been issued for portions of the central Gulf Coast."
Kerala, the southern Indian state reeling from its worst flooding in a century, is now battling a fast, progressive strain of leptospirosis, or rat fever, as it is known locally.

Some 200 cases of the infection have been confirmed so far, a health ministry spokesman said, and authorities suspect it is the cause of dozens of deaths since mid-August.

The waterborne bacterial disease can prove fatal and is transmitted by the urine of infected animals, with symptoms including muscle pain and fever.

The outbreak comes after flooding triggered by torrential rain devastated almost the entire state, destroying thousands of homes, killing hundreds of people and running up a bill for at least 2.81bn in damage.

The health ministry began distributing preventative medicine last month and warned about the outbreak of leptospirosis and other waterborne diseases such as typhoid and cholera, health minister K K Shailaja told reporters.

Local media reported three leptospirosis deaths on Monday.

The victims had unfortunately not taken preventive medicine, the minister said.

Overall, nine deaths from the disease have been confirmed, but the number may rise to over 40 pending full medical reports, the ministry spokesman said.

Leptospirosis rarely spreads from person to person and can be treated with common antibiotics.

In the past week, we have seen about 30 deaths in Kozhikode and Wayanad, said Mohammed Javeed, internal medicine specialist at a private hospital in Kerala, referring to two of the worst flood-affected districts on the states southwest coast.

Mr Javeed said the state has leptospirosis cases every monsoon season as paddy fields fill with water, increasing the chance of infection for farmers, especially through wounds such as cuts.

 Volunteers rescue animals in kerala floods

Of particular concern, however, is that some of the victims this year did not have usual symptoms such as mild jaundice, blood in urine or bleeding spots on the skin, he said.

This time it is a fast, progressive infection, Mr Javeed. The recent deaths indicate clearly the threat of an epidemic.

Medical professionals are continuing to dispense preventive medicine in the form of tablets which need to be taken once a week for a month, he added.

According to the World Health Organisation, leptospirosis' incubation period is between five and 14 days. Symptoms can be as mild as a flu-like illness but it can be fatal.

The infection can be transmitted to humans through cuts and abrasions, or through the mucus membranes of the eyes, nose or mouth, the body said.

Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Show all 40 1 /40 Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India A man removes debris from a collapsed house after floods in Paravur Reuters Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India An ariel shot of Kerala from Thiruvanpuram Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Murgan and his family clean up their house in Mundancavu village at Chegannur upon returning home after the flood waters receded Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India People assess damage caused by floods on the outskirts of Kochi AP Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Men paddle their boat through the lawns of a partially submerged church at Kuttanad in Alleppey district Reuters Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Sandhya Biji and her son in front of their damaged house on the banks of Pamba river Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Border Security Force distribute food food and water to the residents who are stuck in their houses as well who have not vacated houses because of the flood water in interior places at Allapy Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India A damaged house on the banks of Pamba river Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Murgan cleaning up his house Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India An aerial view shows partially submerged houses at a flooded area in the southern state of Kerala Reuters Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Murgan and his family clean up their house Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India People are airlifted by the Indian Navy soldiers during a rescue operation Reuters Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India People wait for aid on the roof of their house Reuters Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Indian volunteers and rescue personal evacuate local residents AFP/Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Indian people use a boat to rescue an elderly man in the flooded water in Kochi EPA Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India An aerial view shows partially submerged houses at a flooded area in the southern state of Kerala Reuters Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India An Indian woman watches residents walking through flood streets next to their marooned houses AFP/Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Indian army personal evacuate local residents AFP/Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Indian commuters wade through flooded streets AFP/Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India People move past a flooded road in Thrissur AP Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Water gushes out following heavy rain and landslide in Kozhikode AP Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Fire and Rescue personnel evacuate local residents in an inflatable boat from a flooded area at Muppathadam near Eloor AFP/Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Indian residents look at the Shiva Temple submerged AFP/Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Roads and houses engulfed in water following heavy rain and landslide in Kozhikode. AP Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India People look at vehicles stuck in the mud AFP/Getty Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India A young man wades through a flooded street in Kochi EPA Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Rescue operations being conducted at the landslide location at Kuttampuzha AFP/Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India An elderly woman is rescued in a cooking utensil AP Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Local residents look at a partially destroyed house after heavy monsoon rains led to a landslide in Kannappankund AFP/Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India An Indian woman sits inside her house immersed in flood waters in Ernakulam district of Kochi AFP/Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Indian fire and rescue personnel evacuate local resident AFP/Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India A woman stands at the door of her flooded home in Kochi EPA Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India India residents stand on the shore as Periyar river flooded AFP/Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India An Indian man carries a basket of bananas next to houses immersed in flood waters AFP/Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Laborers hailing from northern states wade through flood waters as they shift to higher ground AP Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Kerala chief minister Pinarayi Vijayan (L) along with opposition leader Ramesh Chennithala (2L) visit relief camp in Chengamanadu Government Higher Secondary School AFP/Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Athirampally Falls EPA Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India EPA Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Indian residents look at houses destroyed by flood waters at Kannappankundu AFP/Getty Images Kerala floods: heavy monsoon rains lead to deaths in India Kochi's International airport apron flooded AFP/Getty Images

Kerala residents returning to their homes have faced another threat, it emerged last month  deadly snakes and scorpions hiding in beds, cupboards and under carpets.

Authorities said thousands of arachnids and reptiles were likely to have been washed into houses that had been submerged.

During the floods more than one million people were evacuated from their homes. Officials said they believed more than 360 people were killed amid the national crisis.

Volunteer fishermen were hailed as heroes after they came inland from the coast with a fleet of about 600 boats to rescue villagers.

Additional reporting by Reuters
Police in India have been forced to issue an embarrassing correction after the discovery of the bodies of 14 newborn babies turned out to be nothing more than a case of some improperly disposed-of medical waste.

A bizarre 24 hours in Kolkata began with the discovery of 14 plastic bags among bushes in an unused plot of land. Police cordoned off the site, their suspicions raised by the fact the bags had been sealed and smelled of chemicals.

But the story really took off, and became a state-wide scandal in the making, when the mayor of Kolkata, Sovan Chatterjee, arrived at the scene of the crime and told reporters he had been informed that the bodies of 14 newborn babies have been found.

The announcement fuelled speculation about an illegal abortion racket and senior city officials started commenting on the discovery. According to the mayor, the citys police commissioner and deputy commissioner both visited the scene.

All nearby nursing homes, private hospitals and clinics are under scanner, Mr Chatterjee added, according to the Indian Express.

Forced to give a press conference, local police chief Nilanjan Biswas backed up the mayors assumption that the bags contained human remains, and added his own speculation that they might be foetuses - the term that later appeared in most news reports.

We will send the plastic bags for post mortem. Only then will we understand if the babies were premature, whether they died before birth or after.

Just a few hours later, on Sunday night, the results came back. The bags appeared to contain no human tissue at all, but rather simple medical waste - used bandages and cotton - although even that is not entirely clear. There was some suggestion they might even be used nappies.

When doctors opened the packets, they found no human tissue, said a now chastened Mr Biswas, on the Indian TV channel NDTV.

What material we don't know. We have sent for forensic teams. May be medical waste but we can't say before forensic [reports], he added.
Two Reuters journalists have been jailed for seven years after a Myanmar court found them guilty of breaching state secret laws while investigating a massacre of Rohingya Muslims.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were arrested in December shortly after being given official documents by police. They have maintained their innocence and say they were framed.

The case has prompted international outrage, with the United Nations, the European Union, the United States and press freedom campaigners around the world all calling for the release of the reporters, who are both Myanmar nationals.

Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere, said the news agencys editor-in-chief Stephen J Adler.

He added: These two admirable reporters have already spent nearly nine months in prison on false charges designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press.

Without any evidence of wrongdoing and in the face of compelling evidence of a police set-up, todays ruling condemns them to the continued loss of their freedom and condones the misconduct of security forces.

The journalists were detained while looking into the killing of 10 Rohingya men by Myanmar soldiers and Buddhist villagers, as well as other abuses by police and troops, at Inn Din, a town in the countrys troubled Rakhine state.

They told a court in Yangon that two police officials handed them papers at a restaurant in the city moments before other officers arrested them.

One police witness testified that the restaurant meeting was a set-up to entrap the journalists to stop or punish them for their reporting.

Sentencing the reporters, who were charged with breaching the Official Secrets Act, judge Ye Lwin said confidential documents found on them were not public information and would have been useful to enemies of the state and terrorist organisations.

Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Show all 30 1 /30 Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya women and children wait in line for a food distribution of super cereal at Action Against Hunger Getty Images Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees gather near the fence in the "no man's land" zone between Myanmar and Bangladesh border AFP/Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya women cry as they shout slogans during a protest rally to commemorate the first anniversary of Myanmar army's crackdown AP Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures A Rohingya Muslim child holding an umbrella while under the rain AFP/Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees cry as they pray during a gathering to commemorate the first anniversary of Myanmar army's crackdown which lead to a mass exodus of Rohingya Muslims to Bangladesh AP Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Police stand near the checkpoint at the Shwe Zar village in Maungdaw township, Rakhine State, western Myanmar EPA Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures A group of Rohingya refugee children stand at a makeshift camp EPA Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugee Juhara, whose name has been changed to protect her identity, poses for a portrait at the Kutapalong refugee camp near Cox's Bazar in southern Bangladesh. Juhara passes her days carting water with difficulty to thirsty bricklayers working in a bustling corner of Cox's Bazar. She has just one hand - the other was cleaved off in a raid on her village after the August 25 clampdown started last year. Her husband and parents were killed. The 40-year-old said she ran for her life but was hunted down and savagely attacked AFP/Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees walk on a road along a makeshift camp in Kutubpalang EPA Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees are seen outside of their makeshift tent in the Kutupalong camp in Cox's Bazar Reuters Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Thousands of Rohingya refugees staged protests for "justice" on August 25 on the first anniversary of a Myanmar military crackdown that forced them to flee to camps in Bangladesh AFP/Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures A Rohingya refugee child looks through a window at a makeshift camp in Teknuf EPA Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugee women hold placards as they take part in a protest at the Kutupalong refugee camp Reuters Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures A young Rohingya boy waits in line for a food Getty Images Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees shout slogans during a protest march AFP/Getty Images Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugee girl with other children at a makeshift camp in Teknuf in Cox's Bazar EPA Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya women protest on the first anniversary of the Rohingya crisis Getty Images Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya women and children receive super cereal at Action Against Hunger Getty Images Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya girls share a laugh in Kutupalong, the largest refugee camp housing the Rohingya Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees gather near the fence in the "no man's land" zone between Myanmar and Bangladesh border AFP/Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees attend a ceremony organised to remember the first anniversary of a military crackdown that prompted a massive exodus of people from Myanmar to Bangladesh AFP/Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rashida Begum, a Rohingya refugee woman walks on the Kutupalong camp in Cox's Bazar Reuters Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures A Rohingya refugee bursts into tears as she shouts slogans during a protest march AFP/Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugee baby Nur Sadek two years old undergoing treatment at a Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) hospital in Teknuf in Cox's Bazar EPA Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees protest Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees perform prayers AFP/Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rashida Begum, a Rohingya refugee woman bathes her son in the Kutupalong camp Reuters Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees protest Getty Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya refugees walk on a muddy road EPA Rohingya crisis one year on  Myanmar camps in pictures Rohingya women and children wait in line for a food distribution of super cereal at Action Against Hunger Getty

Kyaw Soe Oos wife broke down into tears as the verdicts were read out in a small and stifling courtroom packed with at least 50 people, with others crowded outside.

Wa Lone, wearing handcuffs and flanked by police, told supporters not to worry as he addressed a cluster of friends, family and reporters.

We know what we did. We know we did nothing wrong, he said. I have no fear. I believe in justice, democracy and freedom.

Kyaw Soe Oo said the journalists would continue their fight for press freedom.

What I want to say to the government is: you can put us in jail, but do not close the eyes and ears of the people, he added.

Both reporters have young daughters and have not seen their families outside of prison visits and court hearings for nearly nine months.

Kyaw Soe Oo has a three-year-old daughter and Wa Lones wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to their first child last month.

Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay did not respond to requests for comment about the verdict.

He has mostly declined to comment throughout the proceedings, saying the courts were independent and the case would be conducted according to the law.

Reuters journalist Kyaw Soe Oo leaves after being sentenced in Yangon, Myanmar (Reuters) (REUTERS)

The jailing of the journalists comes amid mounting pressure on the government of Nobel Peace Prize winner Aung San Suu Kyi over the alleged genocide of Rohingya Muslim insurgents by Myanmars army.

More than 700,000 Rohingya have fled across the countrys western border into Bangladesh since Myanmars army began a brutal crackdown on the minority in late 2016.

Its thanks to the bravery of journalists like Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo that the militarys atrocities have been exposed, said Tirana Hassan, Amnesty Internationals director of crisis response.

Instead of targeting these two journalists, the Myanmar authorities should have been going after those responsible for killings, rape, torture and the torching of hundreds of Rohingya villages.

She added: Todays verdict cannot conceal the truth of what happened in Rakhine State.

Dozens of journalists and pro-democracy activists marched in Yangon, Myanmars capital and largest city, in support of the reporters on Saturday.

But in the country at large, which has an overwhelming Buddhist majority, there is widespread prejudice against the Rohingya, and in the government and military there is near-xenophobic sensitivity to foreign criticism.

Myanmars courts are one of the countrys most conservative and nationalistic institutions.

Earlier this year the court declined to halt the trial after an initial presentation of evidence, even though a policeman called as a prosecution witness testified that his commander had ordered that documents be planted on the journalists.

After his testimony, the officer was jailed for a year for violating police regulations and his family was kicked out of police housing.

Other testimony by prosecution witnesses was contradictory and the documents presented as evidence against the reporters appeared to be neither secret nor sensitive.

The journalists said they did not solicit or knowingly possess any secret documents.

Dan Chugg, the UKs ambassador to Myanmar, said the verdicts dealt a hammer blow for the rule of law.

Freedom of expression and rule of law are fundamental in a democracy, and this case has passed a long shadow over both today, he added. The judge has appeared to have ignored evidence and to have ignored Myanmar law.

Wa Lone speaks to reporters after being sentenced in Yangon (Reuters) (REUTERS)

US ambassador Scot Marciel, who attended the hearing, said the reporters imprisonment was deeply troubling for everybody who has struggled so hard here for media freedom.

He suggested the verdicts would decrease the confidence the people of Myanmar have in their justice system.

UN humanitarian coordinator in Myanmar, Knut Ostby, said: The United Nations has consistently called for the release of the Reuters journalists and urged the authorities to respect their right to pursue freedom of expression and information.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be allowed to return to their families and continue their work as journalists.

UN investigators, working on behalf of the bodys Human Rights Council, last week declared for the first time that violence against Rohingya in Myanmar was genocide.

They called for the armys commander-in-chief and five other named generals to face prosecution for crimes against humanity and war crimes.

Myanmar rejected the report and said its military had been responding legitimately to attacks by Rohingya insurgents.

The International Criminal Court is considering whether it has jurisdiction over events in Rakhine, while the United States, the European Union and Canada have sanctioned Myanmar over the crackdown.
There has been a sharp rise in the number people dying while trying to cross the Mediterranean to reach Europe, the UN refugee agency has said in its latest report.

While fewer people are making the journey to Europe, the rate of deaths has risen sharply. In the central Mediterranean, one in 18 people has died or gone missing so far this year, compared to one death for every 42 people who crossed in the same period in 2017.

Along the sea route from North Africa to Spain, more than 300 people have perished this year already, a marked increase on 2017  when 200 deaths were recorded in the whole year, the report states.

More than 78 deaths of refugees and migrants have meanwhile been recorded so far along land routes in Europe or at Europes borders, compared to 45 in the same period last year.

Pascale Moreau, director of UNHCRs Europe bureau, said: This report once again confirms the Mediterranean as one of the worlds deadliest sea crossings.

With the number of people arriving on European shores falling, this is no longer a test of whether Europe can manage the numbers, but whether Europe can muster the humanity to save lives.

 Eight migrants die as 86 rescued from sinking boat off Libya

In recent months, the UNHCR has called for a predictable, regional approach for the rescue and disembarkation of people in distress in the Mediterranean Sea.

The organisation is also calling on Europe to increase access to safe and legal pathways for refugees, including by increasing resettlement places and removing obstacles to family reunification  helping to provide alternatives to potentially deadly journeys.

NGOs including Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) and migrant search-and-rescue organisation SOS Mediterranee recently blamed the Italian government, among other European authorities, for the skyrocketing death toll.

Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily Show all 7 1 /7 Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily Refugees and migrants arriving in Italy on MSF rescue ship the Bourbon Argos in Catania, Sicily Lizzie DeardenI Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily Refugees and migrants disembarking from MSF rescue ship the Bourbon Argos in Catania, Sicily Lizzie Dearden Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily Refugees and migrants undergoing health checks after disembarking from MSF rescue ship the Bourbon Argos in Catania, Sicily Lizzie Dearden Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily Refugees and migrants undergoing security checks after disembarking from MSF rescue ship the Bourbon Argos in Catania, Sicily Lizzie Dearden Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily Refugees and migrants being fingerprinted after disembarking from MSF rescue ship the Bourbon Argos in Catania, Sicily Lizzie Dearden Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily Refugees and migrants being fingerprinted after disembarking from MSF rescue ship the Bourbon Argos in Catania, Sicily Lizzie Dearden Refugees and migrants arriving in Catania, Sicily A man being taken to hospital from MSF rescue ship the Bourbon Argos in Catania, Sicily Lizzie Dearden

In June, Italys new populist government shut the countrys ports to all humanitarian boats, calling them a taxi service for illegal immigrants. Interior minister Matteo Salvini called for other EU nations to follow its lead and block migrant rescue ships from landing on European shores.

Italy has accused its partners of not sharing the burden of migrants who arrive on EUs southern border, stoking tensions particularly with France, Malta and Germany.

In July, the European Commission meanwhile offered to pay countries 6,000 (5,346) per person to host migrants in secure centres in their territory as part of a plan to break the deadlock in Brussels over migration policy.
Sean Gallagher has returned to the Irish political scene and will stand as an independent candidate in the upcoming presidential election.

The businessman, who is also a star of Dragons Den in Ireland, ran for the presidency once before in 2011. But after starting out as the favourite, he ended up in second place, losing out to Michael D Higgins.

Who is Sean Gallagher?

Originally from County Cavan, Gallagher founded a home technology business called Smarthomes in 2002, which went on to win various accolades in the business world.

Between 2008 and 2011, he was an investor on the Irish version of Dragons Den, which brought him to greater national attention.

He has been a member of Fianna Fail - a dominant party in Irish politics - initially being part of the youth wing, and later serving on the partys National Executive.

How did he lose the 2011 presidential election?

Upon entering the race for the presidency in 2011, Gallagher attempted to distance himself from Fianna Fail, who were experiencing unpopularity at the time, following the economic crash. He contested the election as an independent, with the support of local councils.

Gallaghers energetic message and his success in business were appealing to the electorate, and he led the polls in the weeks before the election. This all came crashing down just three days before the election, during the final TV debate.

Gallagher was questioned over whether he had collected a cheque from a man for 5,000, for a photograph taken with the Taoiseach at a Fianna Fail fundraiser - an anecdote which appeared symptomatic of a perceived culture of cronyism within the party.

He stumbled while attempting to put the record straight, and was met with laughter from the audience. There, on live TV, his campaign crashed. A further radio interview the following morning, which attempted to put things straight, made the situation even worse.

Having received poll numbers of around 40% during the campaign, Gallagher ended up with 28.5%, coming second to Michael D Higgins.

Why is Gallagher running for president again?

Described as the worst kept secret in Irish politics, Gallagher announced his second bid for the presidency at the end of August.

In a statement he said, Ireland is changing and the next president needs to provide a fresh approach at this important juncture for Ireland. We have as a people an opportunity to redefine the role of president in the context of a changing society, while cherishing all that is unique about Ireland.

Most of Irelands biggest parties are supporting President Higgins in the election, including Fine Gael, Fianna Fail and Labour. Sinn Fein are fielding their MEP Liadh Ni Riada.

This means any aspiring independents have to win the votes of 20 TDs in the Irish parliament, or the support of four county councils. Gallagher has won the backing of the councils of Roscommon, Mayo, Leitrim and Wexford, and was the first independent to secure a nomination.

Curiously, he is not the only investor from Dragons Den who has sought a nomination for this contest - both Peter Casey and Gavin Duffy are also running.

Ireland's presidential candidates Show all 6 1 /6 Ireland's presidential candidates Ireland's presidential candidates Michael D Higgins PA Ireland's presidential candidates Sean Gallagher PA Ireland's presidential candidates Joan Freeman PA Ireland's presidential candidates Peter Casey PA Ireland's presidential candidates Liadh Ni Riada PA Ireland's presidential candidates Gavin Duffy PA

Critics have pointed out that while Gallagher claims he wants to serve Ireland and make it a better country, he has not made any effort to run in general, local or European elections in the past seven years, and has been absent from the referendum debates.

What are his chances of winning?

The entry of Gallagher into the mix for this election is a possible game changer. Polling has showed support for him remains high, and he could perhaps even make second place again. It seems that the public have forgiven the mishap of 2011, and perhaps many even feel he was cheated out of victory.

Even with the Sinn Fein candidate considered, he is likely to be the only tangible threat to the re-election of Higgins.

He would represent a very different style of presidency, not just compared with the incumbent, but with all previous holders of the office. He has not held political office before, and styles himself as a self-made entrepreneur, rather than an aspiring statesman. But in the era of Trump, anything is possible.

The Irish presidential election will be held on 26 October, with inauguration day planned for 11 November.
Benjamin Netanyahu has warmly welcomed the controversial Philippine president, who once compared himself to Hitler, adding to mounting criticism of the Israeli prime ministers close ties with authoritarian world leaders.

Rodrigo Duterte, who is in Israel for a four-day tour, is the first Philippine leader to visit the country since the two nations established diplomatic relations 60 years ago.

The firebrand president is expected to sign a major oil deal with Israel and to purchase Israeli arms, during the short tour in which he has been accompanied by an entourage of security forces.

Mr Duterte has faced widespread criticism for his deadly crackdown on drugs back home which has left thousands dead and for several foul-mouthed comments, including comparing his war on drugs to the Holocaust, and most recently joking about rape.

Despite the many controversies, on Monday Mr Netanyahu highlighted the two countrys historical friendship, including the Philippines decision to vote in favour of Israels establishment in 1947, becoming the only Asian country to do so.

We remember our friends and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years, Mr Netanyahu said, after signing three agreements on trade, science and care-giving.

Mr Duterte, who later visited the countrys Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial and met top officials including President Reuven Rivlin, said they share the same passion for peace.

Israel can expect any help that the Philippines can extend, he added.

We remember our friends and that friendship has blossomed over the years and especially over the last few years Benjamin Netanyahu

The Philippines has enjoyed increasingly strong ties with Israel over the years. In December it abstained from a vote at the United Nations General Assembly rebuking the US for moving its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Washingtons controversial decision recognised Jerusalem as Israels capital despite the fact it is contested city claimed by both Israelis and Palestinians.

The Philippine president is also seeking new sources of military hardware and emerged as a significant new customer in 2017 for Israel, with sales of radar and anti-tank equipment worth $21m.

Mr Netanyahu has been praised for forging ties with new allies abroad, where Israel has often lost support for its occupation of the Palestinian territories.

However, in recent months the Israeli leader has come under fire for the choice of those partners.

Mr Dutertes visit comes just weeks after Netanyahu welcomed Viktor Orban, Hungarys four-time prime minister who was criticised last year for praising Miklos Horthy, Hungarys World War II-era ruler and a Nazi collaborator.

Mr Orban was also accused of employing anti-Semitic tropes against George Soros, a Jewish Hungarian-American billionaire philanthropist, during his re-election campaign. During Mr Orbans visit to Israel in July, Mr Netanyahu praised him for combatting anti-semitism.

Mr Netanyahu was also criticised for striking a deal with Polish President Andrzej Duda over his countrys controversial Holocaust speech law, which would have criminalised blaming the Polish nation for crimes committed against Jews during World War II.

Mr Duterte, who assumed power 2016, did little to assuage fears on Sunday when he kicked off his four-day tour of Israel with a rambling expletive-ladened speech to members of the Filipino community in Jerusalem.

During the hour-long talk he justified comments made on Thursday that the high rape rate in a Philippine city was due to the number of beautiful women. And he apologised for calling former US president Barack Obama a son of a whore.

 Rape joke made by Philippines president Rodrigo Duterte defended by spokesperson

In 2016, Mr Duterte drew worldwide anger when he said he would kill as many drug addicts as Hitler did Jews, adding Id be happy to slaughter them.

In the same speech he had also claimed three million Jews were killed in the Holocaust, half the number agreed by historians. The president later apologised, saying he had been misunderstood.

But his comments were not forgotten in Israel. Left-leaning daily Haaretz on Monday published an editorial headlined A Hitler admirer at Yad Vashem, while The Times of Israel asked why Israel was opening its doors to Mr Duterte in a piece entitled this man has no place in our country. Left-wing politicians, meanwhile, questioned why Mr Netanyahu wanted to whitewash an illegitimate leader.

He took pride in massacring his citizens and violating human rights so why? Tamar Zandberg, head of the leftist Meretz party, wrote on Facebook.

Because Duterte is willing to support the occupation (of the West Bank), she said.

The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Show all 9 1 /9 The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On killing drug addicts These sons of whores are destroying our children. I warn you, dont go into that, even if youre a policeman, because I will really kill you. If you know of any addicts, go ahead and kill them yourself as getting their parents to do it would be too painful The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Message to China I will go there on my own with a Jet Ski, bringing along with me a [Phillipino] flag and a pole, and once I disembark, I will plant the flag on the runway and tell the Chinese authorities, Kill me  AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Christmas message to law-breakers If you do not want to stop, and just continue committing crimes, then this would be your last Merry Christmas AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On sex life I was separated from my wife. Im not impotent. What am I supposed to do? Let this hang forever? When I take Viagra, it stands up AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On the drugs trade None of my children are into illegal drugs. But my order is, even if it is a member of my family, kill him'" AP The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting the Pope We were affected by the traffic. It took us five hours. I asked why, they said it was closed. I asked who is coming. They answered, the pope. I wanted to call him: Pope, son of a wh**e, go home. Do not visit us again AFP/Getty Images The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Joke about rape I saw her face and I thought, 'What a pity... they raped her, they all lined up. I was mad she was raped but she was so beautiful. I thought, the mayor should have been first AFP/Getty The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte Insulting Barack Obama "Mr Obama should be respectful and refrain from throwing questions at me about the killings, or son of a bitch, I will swear at you in that forum" REUTERS The most controversial quotes from Rodrigo Duterte On Abu Sayyaf Islamic militants "If I have to face them, you know I can eat humans. I will really open up your body. Just give me vinegar and salt, and I will eat you. If you annoy me to the fullest... I will eat you alive. Raw" EPA

On Wednesday, Mr Duterte is set to inaugurate a memorial near Tel Aviv commemorating the Philippines acceptance of 1,300 Jews fleeing the Holocaust.

We assign great importance to this visit, which symbolises the strong, warm ties between our two peoples as well as the enormous potential for developing and strengthening the relations, Israels foreign ministry said.

Mr Duterte heads to Jordan on 5 September, where he is expected to meet King Abdullah II.

Mr Duterte has long faced backlash for his word and actions. In the past he has joked about wanting to rape an Australian national who was killed during a prison riot in 1989, he called Pope Francis a son of a whore for causing a traffic jam in the capital Manilla, and labelled God a son of bitch.

He has also advised citizens not to wear condoms despite an HIV crisis, forcibly kissed a woman on stage and told soldiers to shoot female rebels in the vagina.
We train Nato soldiers during the week, said my guide Rene. They are not as good as you would think though; theyre always capsizing or complaining theyre tired. But then, they are training in harder conditions that this.

Welcome to kayaking on the Baltic Sea.

The Nato soldiers in question are posted to Estonia and other Baltic states and have to learn how to kayak to hone their military skills.

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Me? Im on a more leisurely two-day paddle with a group of fellow adventurers from the UK around Vaike-Pakri, the smaller of a set of two islands located in the Gulf of Finland. Its about two miles off Estonias northwest coast and one hour from capital Tallinn.

Our route is to circumnavigate Vaike-Pakri, covering around 12 miles, before returning to the mainland.

Given that my previous kayaking experience is limited to lakes and rivers, 12 miles seems like a long way. Im left wondering if our 10-minute briefing on how to kayak on the sea was enough.

We headed out across the Kurkse Strait, which separates the island from the Estonian mainland, into a strong headwind. I was soon reminded of Renes last words: The waves are your friends.

The Baltic Sea is home to kayaks...and a far-off wind farm (Alex Wright)

They werent so friendly moments later when a huge one almost swept me under. Only a minor setback. I regained my balance, dug my paddle in deeper and pressed on.

Having paddled for what seemed like an eternity (though in reality it was probably 10 minutes) the shore ahead still looked as far away as ever. When we did finally make land on Vaike-Pakri 40 minutes later, it was a welcome opportunity to get out, stretch our legs and admire the scenery around us.

Having caught our breath we set off again, hugging the islands shoreline as we made our way towards a beach about half way up the eastern side of the island, laden with beer and crisps, that would be our camp for the night.

Only a handful of people live on Vaike-Pakri island, so camping is the only option (Alex Wright)

After a quick change of clothes we set off on a two-kilometre hike inland to Suurkula or Big Village (incidentally Vaike-Pakris only village too). It was a scene straight out of Deliverance: stacked woodpiles built for the winter when the temperature drops below freezing and livestock roaming free among the machinery. But the place is devoid of people; the islands 15 inhabitants have got somewhere better to be on a Friday night.

Ushered into the villages communal hall where the residents gather for meals, we sat down to a dinner of veal in sauce, boiled potatoes and vegetables grown in the next-door field.

We didnt hike back. The head farmer pulled up in front in his old Soviet-era tractor and offered us a lift back to the beach. We hitched in a rickety wooden trailer on the back, which felt like it was going to fall apart at any moment.

Back at the camp, we gathered around a beach campfire as our hosts hastily assembled a pop-up sauna tent (when in the Baltics...)

Sitting back and listening to tales of adventure on the River Nile from another of our guides, Kessu, over a beaker of wine. Looking out across the water shimmering in the eternal sunshine overhead that is synonymous with the long days of the Estonian summer, life felt like it couldnt be more perfect.

Or could it? The sauna was ready, so we filed off in threes and fours to go and sweat it out in the tent before racing into the Baltic Sea to cool off.

The next day we were up early, heated by the sun beating down on our tents.

After a breakfast of rye bread, yoghurt and blackcurrants, much of which was spent trying to avoid the local wasp population who had decided to join us, we repacked our kayaks and set off.

Alex Wright kayaked 12 miles around Estonian island Vaike-Pakri (Alex Wright)

With a strong easterly wind buffeting our kayaks, Rene shouted at me to paddle towards the shore after one particularly large breaker almost wiped me out.

As we worked our way along the coast, the landscape suddenly changed, giving way to dramatic limestone cliff faces, which make up the 750-mile Ordovician Period Baltic Klint that stretches all the way from Sweden to Russia.

Legend has it that, in the 18th century, Catherine II had ordered a dam to be built linking Vaike-Pakri to mainland Estonia, but every time her servants tried to lay new foundations they sank without a trace into the seabed.

The next danger was in the form of large rocks just beneath the waters surface, which we had to weave our way through as we turned the corner into the strait between Vaike-Pakri and its larger counterpart Suur-Pakri.

And as we followed the shoreline towards the northern side of Vaike-Pakri, the rusting hulk of a boat reared up in front of us. It was one of the many decommissioned vessels requisitioned by the Soviet Union, which had sailed them into the channel between the two islands and used them as target practice for military aircraft bombing.

A rusting decommissioned Soviet-era boat juts out of the Baltic Sea (Alex Wright)

Dodging the gun cartridges and cowpats strewn along the beach opposite (although I had yet to see a single cow), we tucked into our picnic with gusto in preparation for the final and most gruelling leg that lay ahead  crossing the open sea between Vaike-Pakri and the mainland.

Passing alongside reeds and under low bridges, we meandered our way towards the Kurkse Strait we had crossed a day earlier. Instructed to paddle together as a tight-knit unit to avoid being swept away, we braced ourselves as we headed once more into the full force of the wind.

Setting our sights on the far peninsular jutting out from the mainland so that the tide would sweep us back into shore, we soon settled into our rhythm.

Stretching every sinew, we cut a path through the whitecaps until we reached the calmer waters of the harbour and let the tide do the rest.

Leaping out of our kayaks, we allowed ourselves a moment to float in the warm shallows of Kurkse beach among the Estonian families who had flocked to the beach for the day. The only difference was they hadnt just kayaked 12 miles.

Alex Wright was a guest of Much Better Adventures (020 0333 1176, muchbetteradventures.com). A two-day kayak trip costs 315
Thousands of holidaymakers have been stranded on Greeces islands due to a 24-hour ferry strike by the Panhellenic Seamens Federation (PNO).

Members of the union are reportedly seeking a 5 per cent increase for ferry crews, a request which they claim is long overdue as pay has remained static for eight years.

The strike, which is due to run until 11.59pm today, is predicted to affect around 180,000 people who have booked travel to and from some of Greeces most popular tourist destinations, according to the Greek Shipowners Association for Passenger Ships (SEEN).

A meeting between shipowners and the union that took place on 29 August failed to reach an agreement, with union members being offered only a 1 per cent increase, according to reports by World Maritime News.

The industrial action, which was announced in July, will affect tourists travelling to and from the popular tourist destinations of Crete, Santorini and Mykonos to the Greek mainland.

It comes just one day after ferry operators laid on extra services to cover high demand at the end of the summer holiday period.

Passengers affected by the strike are entitled to a refund and are advised to contact their travel agent.

Greece has around 6,000 islands, 227 of which are inhabited. Many have no air connections with the Greek mainland.

One in five Greek people work in the countrys busy tourism sector, which is popular with holidaymakers around the world.

This year, the country was predicted to welcome 32 million foreign travellers  an almost 100 per cent increase from the 15 million visitors in 2010 and over five times the number of visitors from 10 years ago.

Maintaining the delicate balance between sustainability and overtourism has not been easy. In June this year, the Greek politician and environmentalist Nikos Chrysogelos expressed his concerns about the volume of tourists arriving to the country each year.

We can't keep having more and more tourists, he told the Observer. We can't have small islands, with small communities, hosting one million tourists over a few months.

"There's a danger of the infrastructure not being prepared, of it all becoming a huge boomerang if we only focus on numbers and don't look at developing a more sustainable model of tourism.
A woman and her disabled son were left feeling humiliated after they were asked to disembark a Ryanair flight because staff couldnt fold down his wheelchair.

Kathleen Dunne, 81, and her son Gary, 53, were due to fly to Malta from Liverpool John Lennon Airport on 28 August, but when they went to check in, a member of staff said the rules had changed regarding how wheelchairs were stowed.

The chair would have to be folded down, but Ms Dunne did not have the manual with her and did not know how to do it herself.

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The retired shopkeeper, who is a carer for Gary, told the Liverpool Echo they had travelled with Ryanair many times before and never experienced any issues. They were also not made aware of any rule change before flying.

The pair were eventually allowed to board the aircraft, only to watch ground staff struggling with the wheelchair outside.

They came on the plane and said the wheelchair has got to be a certain height, Ms Dunne said. I am 81, I dont know how to fold it.

They said you will have to get off the plane or leave it. I said he cant walk.

I just said get me off, everyone is looking at me.

Staff eventually managed to work out how to fold the chair, and mother and son were rebooked on the next available flight from Manchester Airport on 29 August.

However, a similar situation arose when she was again asked to leave the plane.

Mr Dunne is deaf as well as having severe mobility issues; Ms Dunne said: It was horrible. I was shaking, and it was so hard to explain what was going on to Gary because he cant hear.

We have been flying with them for years and there has never been any problem. I didnt feel like going on holiday after that.

Ms Dunne claims the pilot said over the intercom, Sorry for the delay, it is not our problem, it is the problem of the lady with the wheelchair.

She added: I am still upset about it now.

Ryanair is not responsible for accessibility services at the airports, which it said are run at great expense to the airlines.

OmniServ, the company that provides special assistance at Liverpool airport, said in a statement: On behalf of the entire Liverpool John Lennon Airport team, we apologise for the inconveniences Kathleen Dunne and her son experienced.

Ryanairs wheelchair size restrictions require that all wheelchairs must fold down to 81cms or less to be safely loaded and stored in the planes hold. Various members of the team worked tirelessly with Ms Dunne to ascertain if the wheelchair could be collapsed to meet the requirements.

Unfortunately, she did not believe it could be collapsed and did not have a manual, so they had to be taken off the flight. After additional trial and error, the team was able to remove a pin and collapse the wheelchair.

Ms Dunne, her son and the wheelchair were able to take a later flight out.

While OmniServ does not create policies around wheelchairs onboard flights, we endeavour to work closely with the airport, airlines and other service providers to ensure a seamless service to all passengers, including those with a disability or reduced mobility.

Ryanairs rules stipulate that the dimensions of wheelchairs when collapsed must not exceed 81cm (height), 119cm (width) and 119cm (depth), and that wheelchairs and mobility scooters weighing more than 150kg require pre-authorisation.
If you want a last blast of summery weather, you dont have to go very far to bask in the sun. September is one of the most pleasant months to travel, as prices start to drop from their August highs but the weather is still marvellously warm. Here are a few ideas if you want a late-summer getaway, as well as some suggestions if youre planning ahead for December.

Go now

Spain

The Catalan countryside and its coastal fishing villages are a joy to explore once the August crowds have dissipated. Discover its medieval villages and wildlife-rich forests on a six-night walking holiday with Headwater. Youll trek along coastal paths, through pine forests and into tranquil villages such as Peratallada. Six nights cost from 989pp for selected dates in September, and the price includes B&B accommodation, four evening meals and luggage transfers. Flights are extra but can be arranged.

Morocco

If Marrakech is a bit hectic for you, soak up the laid-back atmosphere of Essaouira instead. Life is lived at a slightly slower pace in this attractive fishing port, where you can explore the medina and the souks before hitting the beach. Riad Chbanate is a beautifully renovated eight-room riad in the medina, where you can watch life go by from the hot tub on the roof terrace. Fleewinter has four nights B&B from 297pp for dates throughout September, including airport transfers but not flights.

Essaouira has a laid-back vibe (Getty)

Suffolk

Head to the Suffolk coast for a few days in genteel Aldeburgh  home to superb seafood and a huge beach to match. From there its a pleasant stroll up the coast road to the fairy-tale village of Thorpeness. Rural Retreats has September availability in its charming three-bedroom cottage at 7 Brudenell Street, just a few steps from Aldeburghs shingle beach. It has two bedrooms and a single room, and dogs are welcome. Four nights from 17 September costs 796.

Toronto

Summer lingers for a while in Canadas largest city, but usually without the heavy humidity of August. Torontos mosaic of cultures makes it a fascinating and fun place to visit, with practically every country in the world represented in its restaurants. Discover the city, with a quick trip south to Niagara Falls, on a five-night break with Canadian Sky. The price of 939pp includes flights, accommodation and transfers, for selected dates in September.

The Toronto skyline (Tourism Toronto)

Book now for December

South Africa

Take advantage of the new direct flights launched by British Airways to Durban with this 13-night holiday organised by Rainbow Tours. Youll explore the Drakensburg Mountains and Zulu war battlefields before visiting Hluhluwe Game Reserve and finishing with a few days in Durban. Prices start at 2,695pp and include flights, accommodation, some meals and car hire, for 17 December departures.

Berlin is the ideal city break in the lead up to Christmas (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Berlin

Berlin is hard to resist at any time of year, but theres an extra sparkle in December when the city sets up its 50-odd Christmas markets. Even if youre not a fan of markets, Berlins galleries, bars and general vibe are enough of a draw on their own. Fred Holidays has three nights B&B at the Leonardo Royal Alexanderplatz from 425pp, including flights, luggage and transfers.

Valletta is wrapping up its year as capital of culture (Elena Petrova - Fotolia)

Malta

Enjoy Maltas mild climate with a pre-Christmas jaunt to Valletta, which will be winding up its year as a European City of Culture. Valletta Vintage, offered by i-escape, has five self-catering apartments that celebrate the Fifties in their clever yet comfortable design, and also feature roof terraces with fabulous views. Three nights from 8-11 December cost from 129pp, room only; flights are extra.

Mary Novakovich is editor at large at 101holidays.co.uk
Whatever happens on Brexit this time next year, Europe will have a new leadership. New MEPs, a new president of the European Council and European Central Bank. A new high representative for foreign policy. New commissioners and above all a new president of the European Commission.

This leadership team has no easy task ahead of them. The EU will be politically unbalanced. Britain will have left unless Theresa May suspends the Article 50 process to allow a new consultation. Growth is faltering. Italy is in the grip of populists with collapsing economic growth. Spain, under a minority socialist government, has little weight in Brussels. The eastern European illiberal clerical nationalists like Jaroslaw Kaczynski in Warsaw and Viktor Orban in Budapest make headlines but do not want to leave the EU and lose all the transfer payments and foreign direct investment that come with full EU economic integration.

So who is going to run the EU? The European Parliament will see elected more small populists representing xenophobic, anti-capitalist, regional and single issue parties. President Macrons hopes that his En Marche! party would find allies across Europe to create a pan-European political movement have faded. He is on just 34 per cent in current opinion polls, with French economic growth lower than when the socialist Francois Hollande left office 15 months ago.

The conventional wisdom is that Europe is about to fall under the control of right-wing nationalist, populist and xenophobic political parties. In reality the right is divided on most key issues other than verbal abuse of Brussels. Viktor Orban or Austrias Sebstian Kurz can smile and shake hands with Italys Matteo Salvini but turn a deaf ear to the Italian rightists demand that Austria-Hungary take a fair share of refugees currently in Italy. Austrias foreign minister, Karin Kneissl, danced with Vladimir Putin at her wedding last month and both Orban and Salvini are fellow travellers of the Kremlin. But Polands government is ferociously anti-Russian and the countrys prime minister has just announced he wants to see more state control of the Polish economy in the best manner of Jeremy Corbyn.

Left-leaning parties like Spains Podemos, Left Party (France) under Jean-Luc Melenchon, Syriza in Greece; as well as Greens and smaller, radical anti-establishment parties or regional identity parties in Catalonia can win a number of MEP seats under the single-round nationalist proportional system. So, the European Parliament 2019-2024 will not likely be controlled by a single ideological grouping.

But what of Germany? Berlin has already inaugurated a Brussels rumour factory with suggestions that Merkel would like to see a German chosen as successor to Jean-Claude Juncker as president of the European Commission. The German mentioned was the economics minister, Peter Altmaier, Merkels fixer-in-chief. But Brussels already has its fair share of Germans. The secretary general of the commission is German. So is the secretary general of the European Parliament. The president of the centre-right federation, the European Peoples Party, is a German. So is the secretary general of the Party of European Socialists. The chief official running Brexit negotiations for Michel Barnier is German.

So another German transfer of a middle-rank politician to Brussels might overload the German-filled boat. Now Berlin says Manfred Weber, an MEP from the right-wing CSU Bavarian party, can run for the post. He is president of the European Peoples Party and best known for backing Viktor Orban against more moderate European centre-right politicians who dislike the Hungarian strongmans disdain for European values and democracy. All Berlin has done is say Weber can seek the EPP nomination. Even if he obtains that and becomes a so-called Spitzenkandidat it is no guarantee that other EU government heads will back a German rightist who has never held a ministerial job.

Brexit casualties Show all 10 1 /10 Brexit casualties Brexit casualties Andrea Jenkyns - Resigned from Parliamentary Private Secretary at the ministry for housing, communities and local government role May 2018 - The Morley and Outwood MP said: We want to see a new relationship with Europe, with a new model not enjoyed by other countries  nothing that leaves us half-in, half-out. And in order to achieve this, we need to leave the customs union. Ms Jenkyns also said she wished to dedicate more of her time to Parliaments influential Exiting the European Union select committee, after a series of unbalanced reports produced by MPs PA Brexit casualties David Davis - Resigned from Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union role July 2018 - quit following a major row with May over her plans for post-Brexit relations with the EU. Davis resignation letter said: As you know there have been a significant number of occasions in the last year or so on which I have disagreed with the Number 10 policy line, ranging from accepting the [European] Commissions sequencing of negotiations, through to the language on Northern Ireland in the December Joint Report. At each stage I have accepted collective responsibility because it is part of my task to find workable compromises, and because I considered it was still possible to deliver on the mandate of the referendum, and on our manifesto commitment to leave the Customs Union and the Single Market. I am afraid that I think the current trend of policy and tactics is making that look less and less likely. He went on to argue that the general direction of Ms Mays policies would leave the UK in at best a weak negotiating position, and possibly an inescapable one. AFP/Getty Brexit casualties Steve Baker - Resigned from Minister at the Department for Exiting the European Union role July 2018 - Mr Baker, a key Tory figure in the Leave campaign, was David Daviss main lieutenant at Dexeu, and was hailed as courageous and principled by other Brexiteer Tories as he also left. Reuters Brexit casualties Boris Johnson - Resigned from Foreign Secretary role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. In his resignation letter to the prime minister, Mr Johnson said: "On Friday, I acknowledged that my side of the argument were too few to prevail and congratulated you on at least reaching a Cabinet decision on the way forward. "As I said then, the government now has a song to sing. "The trouble is that I have practised the words over the weekend and find that they stick in the throat." Reuters Brexit casualties Conor Burns - Resigned from Parliamentary Private Secretary to Foreign Secretary role July 2018 - A Brexit supporter who worked alongside Boris Johnson stated in his resignation letter: I've decided it's time to have greater freedom. I want to see the referendum result respected. And there are other areas of policy I want to speak more openly on. Rex Brexit casualties Chris Green - Resigned from Department for Transport role July 2018 - The Bolton West MP said: "Parliament overwhelmingly decided to give the decision of whether to leave or remain in the European Union to the British people and they made an unambiguous decision that we ought to leave. "I have always understood the idea in 'Brexit means Brexit' is that the final deal should be clear to me and my constituents - that we have, in no uncertain terms, left the European Union. Twitter Ads info and privacy "The direction the negotiations had been taking have suggested that we would not really leave the EU and the conclusion and statements following the Chequers summit confirmed my fears. "I recognise that delivering Brexit is challenging, however I had hoped at tonight's meeting that there would be some certainty that my fears were unfounded but, instead, they have been confirmed. "I have been grateful for the opportunity to serve as Parliamentary Private Secretary and it is with regret that I offer my resignation with immediate effect." PA Brexit casualties Maria Caulfield - Resigned from Conservative Party vice-chair for women role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. Lewes MP warned that the direction of travel did not fully embrace the opportunities that Brexit can provide. Ms Caulfield said in her letter to the PM: The policy may assuage vested interests, but the voters will find out and their representatives will be found out. This policy will be bad for our country and bad for the party. The direct consequences of that will be prime minister Corbyn. PA Brexit casualties Ben Bradley - Resigned from Conservative Party vice-chair for young people role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. The Mansfield MP said: I admit that I voted to Remain in that ballot. What has swayed me over the last two years to fully back the Brexit vision is the immense opportunities that are available from global trade, and for the ability for Britain to be an outward looking nation in control of our own destiny once again. I fear that this agreement at Chequers damages those opportunities; that being tied to EU regulations, and the EU tying our hands when seeking to make new trade agreements, will be the worst of all worlds if we do not deliver Brexit in spirit as well as in name, then we are handing Jeremy Corbyn the keys to No10. PA Brexit casualties Robert Courts - Resigned from Parliamentary Private Secretary role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. MP Mr Courts said: I have taken a very difficult decision to resign my position as [parliamentary private secretary] to express discontent with the Chequers [plans] in votes tomorrow. I had to think who I wanted to see in the mirror for the rest of my life. I cannot tell the people of Woxon that I support the proposals in their current form. Getty Brexit casualties Scott Mann - Resigned from Parliamentary Private Secretary role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. "I fear elements of the Brexit white paper will inevitably put me in direct conflict with the views expressed by a large section of my constituents. I am not prepared to compromise their wishes to deliver a watered-down Brexit. "The residents of North Cornwall made it very clear that they wish to have control over our fishery, our agricultural policy, our money, our laws and our borders. I will evaluate those principles against the Brexit white paper and ensure that I vote in line with their wishes." Rex

There is a German alternative however, and this is the question being asked in Berlin. Might Angela Merkel herself seek to be the first woman president of the commission? She has the weight, the authority, the proven government record, international reputation and status, and more political experience and skills than all of todays European politicians put together.

A deal with Frances President Macron could see a French central banker installed as president of the European Central Bank to reform the economic policy of the Eurozone in favour of growth and jobs with other key posts being allocated on regional, political and gender balance.

Merkel always says her last great challenge is to restore confidence in and purpose to the European Union. She is the one German who could lead post-Brexit Europe and make presidents Trump, Putin and Xi sit up and realise the EU is now getting serious.

Denis MacShane is the former UK Minister of Europe. His last book was Brexit, no Exit. Why (in the End) Britain Wont Leave Europe (IB Tauris)
Pip pip pip pip pip peep went the Today programme headlines at 6, 7 and 8 oclock this morning. Boris Johnson has savaged the Prime Ministers Brexit strategy, describing it as a fix and claiming that the UK will get two thirds of diddly squat from the negotiations.

Without wanting to sound too much like Donald Trump, there is no surer sign of the descent of public affairs to fully dystopian hellscape when the people reading out the news are compelled by convention not to tell the truth.

Yes, its true that Johnson wrote a column for the The Daily Telegraph, which is a light rewording of his laughable resignation statement of two months ago, in which he is heavily critical of Theresa Mays Brexit proposals. But you only have to have spent about 10 seconds paying any attention to current affairs over the last two years to know that the real story, the one the BBC understandably cannot read out as the transparently obvious truth it clearly is, is that Johnson has still not given up on being prime minister, and has savaged nothing, other than his own basic dignity, yet again.

His column offers no solutions to the complexities of Brexit, because he does not have any. It offers only verbose analogies for the problems he made precisely zero contribution towards solving during his two-year public audition for the job of prime minister which he failed to pyrotechnically spectacular effect.

What might have changed a little however, is the steadfastness of Mays refusal to dance to the Johnson beat. Perhaps she is feeling a little emboldened by the unlikely triumph of her African dance manoeuvres, for which I, by the way, offer nothing but admiration. Let he who has also been compelled into entirely sober mid-afternoon dancing under the full double glare of the African sun and the international public spotlight throw the first shape.

The prime ministers official spokesperson briefs Westminster journalists twice a day, in sessions that are traditionally an exercise in avoiding the questions that have been asked. On Monday morning, that could not have been more different. What is the prime ministers response to Johnsons comments? Boris Johnson has left the government, came the reply. There are no new ideas in this article to respond to.

And indeed there are not. As parliament returns for autumn, we enter Brexits decisive moments. The record has not changed, but the volume is louder, and when the music stops, as it soon will, nobody has a clue what happens next.

Johnson and his hard Brexit acolytes are mobilising to compel parliament to say no the Chequers agreement, but the EU has all but already said no to it. Michel Barnier said in an interview with a German newspaper on Sunday night that it risked compromising the integrity of the single market. Where Schengen and the Euro have been befit with problems, the single market doubles is the EUs single unqualified success story. Monsieur Barnier, who hopes to succeed Jean-Claude Juncker as EU Commission president, will not put it at risk.

And as both Damian Green and Sajid Javid made clear on Monday morning, if parliament says no to Chequers, which it is unlikely to get the chance to in any event, Johnson and friends are yet to offer any kind of plan for an alternative.

These are the kinds of debate that should have been resolved at least two years ago. This eleventh hour chaos is squandering whatever vestigial bits of credibility the UK might still have left. How can the EU meaningfully negotiate with the UK when in plain sight on the UK side are those intent on bringing down whatever might be negotiated? When the negotiations themselves look like they could collapse the government, and what might await, in the form of Jeremy Corbyn, is such a wildly different prospect altogether?

It is a chaos Johnson is entirely content to orchestrate. It is now abundantly clear there is no possible victory in this battle that he would consider to be too pyrrhic. The Conservative party can be broken, Brexit can be broken, even the country, just so long as he is left standing at the end of it. May, clearly, has had enough. It is long past time for the rest of the Conservative party, in its entirety, to say so too.
There is no doubt about it: British politics is about to enter very choppy waters indeed as we come to the end of the preliminary part of the process of exiting the European Union. I say preliminary because even if (and its a very big if) a withdrawal agreement is finalised with the EU and passed by the House of Commons, there will then be detailed negotiation of the future relationship which will go on for many months.

Of course, there is nothing inevitable about this Brexit process that should dictate we leave, which is why The Independent is campaigning for a vote on the final Brexit deal. No Brexit is better than the appalling, chaotic Brexit we are seeing and the people should be the final arbiters of what happens next  not elites in Westminster.

In this column last month I bemoaned the state of British politics after a torrid summer. Since July more information has arisen exposing Brexit for the disaster it is. Boris Johnson kicked off the next Tory leadership election  which is already underway, albeit unofficially  by offending Muslim women. Meanwhile institutional antisemitism continues to pervade the Labour Party, leaving it hamstrung when we should be destroying the Tories for the damage they are wrecking across the country.

Brexit casualties Show all 10 1 /10 Brexit casualties Brexit casualties Andrea Jenkyns - Resigned from Parliamentary Private Secretary at the ministry for housing, communities and local government role May 2018 - The Morley and Outwood MP said: We want to see a new relationship with Europe, with a new model not enjoyed by other countries  nothing that leaves us half-in, half-out. And in order to achieve this, we need to leave the customs union. Ms Jenkyns also said she wished to dedicate more of her time to Parliaments influential Exiting the European Union select committee, after a series of unbalanced reports produced by MPs PA Brexit casualties David Davis - Resigned from Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union role July 2018 - quit following a major row with May over her plans for post-Brexit relations with the EU. Davis resignation letter said: As you know there have been a significant number of occasions in the last year or so on which I have disagreed with the Number 10 policy line, ranging from accepting the [European] Commissions sequencing of negotiations, through to the language on Northern Ireland in the December Joint Report. At each stage I have accepted collective responsibility because it is part of my task to find workable compromises, and because I considered it was still possible to deliver on the mandate of the referendum, and on our manifesto commitment to leave the Customs Union and the Single Market. I am afraid that I think the current trend of policy and tactics is making that look less and less likely. He went on to argue that the general direction of Ms Mays policies would leave the UK in at best a weak negotiating position, and possibly an inescapable one. AFP/Getty Brexit casualties Steve Baker - Resigned from Minister at the Department for Exiting the European Union role July 2018 - Mr Baker, a key Tory figure in the Leave campaign, was David Daviss main lieutenant at Dexeu, and was hailed as courageous and principled by other Brexiteer Tories as he also left. Reuters Brexit casualties Boris Johnson - Resigned from Foreign Secretary role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. In his resignation letter to the prime minister, Mr Johnson said: "On Friday, I acknowledged that my side of the argument were too few to prevail and congratulated you on at least reaching a Cabinet decision on the way forward. "As I said then, the government now has a song to sing. "The trouble is that I have practised the words over the weekend and find that they stick in the throat." Reuters Brexit casualties Conor Burns - Resigned from Parliamentary Private Secretary to Foreign Secretary role July 2018 - A Brexit supporter who worked alongside Boris Johnson stated in his resignation letter: I've decided it's time to have greater freedom. I want to see the referendum result respected. And there are other areas of policy I want to speak more openly on. Rex Brexit casualties Chris Green - Resigned from Department for Transport role July 2018 - The Bolton West MP said: "Parliament overwhelmingly decided to give the decision of whether to leave or remain in the European Union to the British people and they made an unambiguous decision that we ought to leave. "I have always understood the idea in 'Brexit means Brexit' is that the final deal should be clear to me and my constituents - that we have, in no uncertain terms, left the European Union. Twitter Ads info and privacy "The direction the negotiations had been taking have suggested that we would not really leave the EU and the conclusion and statements following the Chequers summit confirmed my fears. "I recognise that delivering Brexit is challenging, however I had hoped at tonight's meeting that there would be some certainty that my fears were unfounded but, instead, they have been confirmed. "I have been grateful for the opportunity to serve as Parliamentary Private Secretary and it is with regret that I offer my resignation with immediate effect." PA Brexit casualties Maria Caulfield - Resigned from Conservative Party vice-chair for women role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. Lewes MP warned that the direction of travel did not fully embrace the opportunities that Brexit can provide. Ms Caulfield said in her letter to the PM: The policy may assuage vested interests, but the voters will find out and their representatives will be found out. This policy will be bad for our country and bad for the party. The direct consequences of that will be prime minister Corbyn. PA Brexit casualties Ben Bradley - Resigned from Conservative Party vice-chair for young people role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. The Mansfield MP said: I admit that I voted to Remain in that ballot. What has swayed me over the last two years to fully back the Brexit vision is the immense opportunities that are available from global trade, and for the ability for Britain to be an outward looking nation in control of our own destiny once again. I fear that this agreement at Chequers damages those opportunities; that being tied to EU regulations, and the EU tying our hands when seeking to make new trade agreements, will be the worst of all worlds if we do not deliver Brexit in spirit as well as in name, then we are handing Jeremy Corbyn the keys to No10. PA Brexit casualties Robert Courts - Resigned from Parliamentary Private Secretary role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. MP Mr Courts said: I have taken a very difficult decision to resign my position as [parliamentary private secretary] to express discontent with the Chequers [plans] in votes tomorrow. I had to think who I wanted to see in the mirror for the rest of my life. I cannot tell the people of Woxon that I support the proposals in their current form. Getty Brexit casualties Scott Mann - Resigned from Parliamentary Private Secretary role July 2018 - resigned over May's Chequers plan. "I fear elements of the Brexit white paper will inevitably put me in direct conflict with the views expressed by a large section of my constituents. I am not prepared to compromise their wishes to deliver a watered-down Brexit. "The residents of North Cornwall made it very clear that they wish to have control over our fishery, our agricultural policy, our money, our laws and our borders. I will evaluate those principles against the Brexit white paper and ensure that I vote in line with their wishes." Rex

I was attacked by Unites general secretary, Len McCluskey, for pointing all this out, neatly illustrating that neither partys establishment is prepared to acknowledge the need to fundamentally change their behaviours. Unless they do this, they cannot properly meet the huge challenges we face as a nation.

We were told Brexit would solve all of the countrys big challenges by Johnson and co. The big story coming out of the summer was that the many problems we have as a country  that led a majority to vote Leave in 2016  simply will not be solved by Brexit. Here is a small selection of what we have learned during the parliamentary recess.

At the beginning of August, a group of international academics and scientists published research in the official journal of the US national academy of sciences telling us, such is the damage we have already done to the planet, even if countries now succeed in meeting their CO2 targets, human-induced global warming could put us on an irreversible pathway to hothouse earth.

This entails the climate settling at around 4-5C above pre-industrial age temperatures (its 1C above now), hotter than at any point for 1.2 million years. This would lead to seas up to 60 metres higher than now, melting ice caps and parts of the world becoming simply uninhabitable. When was the last time you can recall a leading UK politician providing any leadership on this issue on the world stage given the urgency of the situation?

Recommended Brexit to put 1m penguins at risk as Falklands loses EU funding

This news was followed by Shelters release of research showing that since 2011, rent in England has increased 60 per cent faster than wages, with a declaration by the UKs chartered surveyors that private sector rents could rise still further by 15 per cent by 2023. The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors said that government tax changes to buy-to-let investments are responsible and driving small landlords out of the market.

Whatever the reason, this country is still building woefully few homes to buy and there are not nearly enough homes to rent at affordable prices. The intervention by the new communities secretary, James Brokenshire, in the middle of August provided few substantial answers on any of this. Instead he received much derision for coming forward with insubstantial policy proposals devoid of any extra funding.

When surveying the UK economy and the need to change our economic model, Shelters research on housing was the starter to the main course dished up by the Office for National Statistics a few days later which, yet again, underlined the stagnation of wages since the global financial crash. As Ben Chu has pointed out, the ONS figures showed we are witnessing the curious case of an economy with a jobless rate that has sunk to four per cent  its lowest level in over 40 years  and yet wage growth continues to slow when you would expect the opposite to occur. Which of our countrys leaders galvanised the country into action on this during the warm summer months and provided a credible way forward?

And we will need the extra tax revenue to the exchequer that this increased employment, alongside rising wages, could bring, not least because of the growing costs of our ageing population. Last week the Lancet told us that the number of those aged 65 and over needing round the clock care is set to increase by a third between 2015 and 2035. How on earth are we going to pay for all of this? There is no consensus in Westminster on how we address the social care crisis now, never mind an ageing population in the future.

Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis  except themselves Show all 6 1 /6 Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis  except themselves Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis  except themselves The elderly We acknowledge that there are pressures on the health service, there are always extra pressures on the NHS in the winter, but we have the added pressures of the ageing population and the growing complex needs of the population, Theresa May has said. Waits of over 12 hours in A&E among elderly people have more than doubled in two years, according to figures from NHS Digital. Getty Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis  except themselves Patients going to A&E instead of seeing their GPs Jeremy Hunt has called for a honest discussion with the public about the purpose of A&E departments, saying that around a third of A&E patients were in hospital unnecessarily. Mr Hunt told Radio 4s Today programme the NHS now had more doctors, nurses and funding than ever, but explained what he called very serious problems at some hospitals by suggesting pressures were increasing in part because people are going to A&Es when they should not. He urged patients to visit their GP for non-emergency illnesses, outlined plans to release time for family doctors to support urgent care work, and said the NHS will soon be able to deliver seven-day access to a GP from 8am to 8pm. But doctors struggling amid a GP recruitment crisis said Mr Hunts plans were unrealistic and demanded the Government commit to investing in all areas of the overstretched health service. Getty Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis  except themselves Simon Stevens, head of NHS England Reports that key members of Ms Mays team used internal meetings to accuse Simon Stevens, head of NHS England, of being unenthusiastic and unresponsive have been rejected by Downing Street. Mr Stevens had allegedly rejected claims made by Ms May that the NHS had been given more funding than required. Getty Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis  except themselves Previous health policy, not funding In an interview with Sky Newss Sophy Ridge, Ms May acknowledged the NHS faced pressures but said it was a problem that had been ducked by government over the years. She refuted the claim that hospitals were tackling a humanitarian crisis and said health funding was at record levels. We asked the NHS a while back to set out what it needed over the next five years in terms of its plan for the future and the funding that it would need, said the Prime Minister. They did that, we gave them that funding, in fact we gave them more funding than they required Funding is now at record levels for the NHS, more money has been going in. But doctors accused Ms May of being in denial about how the lack of additional funding provided for health and social care were behind a spiralling crisis in NHS hospitals. Getty Images Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis  except themselves Target to treat all A&E patients within four hours Mr Hunt was accused of watering down the flagship target to treat all A&E patients within four hours. The Health Secretary told MPs the promise  introduced by Tony Blairs government in 2000  should only be for those who actually need it. Amid jeers in the Commons, Mr Hunt said only four other countries pledged to treat all patients within a similar timeframe and all had less stringent rules. But Ms May has now said the Government will stand by the four-hour target for A&E, which says 95 per cent of patients must be dealt with within that time frame. Getty Images Everyone the Government blames for the NHS crisis  except themselves No one Mr Hunt was accused of hiding from the public eye following news of the Red Crosss comments and didnt make an official statement for two days. He was also filmed refusing to answer questions from journalists who pursued him down the street yesterday to ask whether he planned to scrap the four-hour A&E waiting time target. Sky News reporter Beth Rigby pressed the Health Secretary on his position on the matter, saying the public will want to know, Mr Hunt. Sorry Beth, Ive answered questions about this already, replied Mr Hunt. But you didnt answer questions on this. You said it was over-interpreted in the House of Commons and you didnt want to water it down. Is that what youre saying? said Ms Rigby. Its very difficult, because how are we going to explain to the public what your intention is, when you change your position and then wont answer the question, Mr Hunt. But the Health Secretary maintained his silence until he reached his car and got in. Getty

An overheating planet, a dysfunctional housing market, stagnant wages and a social care crisis are not an exhaustive list but just some of the policy areas where we have learned something new since the recess started but the Westminster establishment seems too impotent to respond to as the summer break closes.

To the extent there is any response, the populism of left and right  resurgent in both main parties  proffers simple, black and white, tweetable answers to all these problems, inferring that centre-left people like me should stop moaning and get with the programme. The truth is, the answers are not black and white; they are incredibly complex and need modern answers. But British politics has little bandwidth to address them given the huge distraction which is Brexit  a project which certainly provides no solutions and will actually make these problems harder to address.

That is why it is incredible that both main parties should end the summer continuing to sponsor this calamity. The go to excuse for doing so is the so called will of the people, as expressed two years ago. Yet, however people voted back then, they did not vote for this Brexit mess; what they did want was change and for the countrys big challenges to be tackled. So while we will all be convulsed by the drama, the ups and downs of the negotiations and the Brexit votes in the Commons these next few months, it is vital we do not take our eyes off the ball when it comes to tackling these big issues. It is clear, whatever the establishments in both main parties may say, that we need change at home and abroad. Whatever happens with Brexit, the status quo is not an option.
A vote on the sale of the Sean McDermott Street Magdalene Laundry has been adjourned until September 13.

Social Democrat councillor Gary Gannon tabled an emergency motion to prevent the sale of the Dublin site to a Japanese hotel chain.

Mr Gannon argues that as the last Magdalene Laundry of its kind still in the possession of the state, it should not be sold off for commercial interest.

The sale of Sean McDermott St. #MagdaleneLaundry would be act of cultural vandalism. it should be turned into centre to remember & honour those who were incarcerated in laundries & other institutions: @1GaryGannon @DubCityCouncil votes today #StopTheSale https://t.co/xfl2jbUIvD  Social Democrats (@SocDems) September 3, 2018

A Dublin City Council meeting on Monday ran out of time to hold the vote as Mayor Nial Ring attempted to calm councillors angry about the proposal to hold the vote in the final minutes.

In the six minutes left to debate the sale, Mr Gannon declined to speak to save time, but thanked victims and survivors of the Magdalene Laundries in the public gallery.

People who travelled here, and who illuminated the darkest corners of abuse in this country, he said.

Janice Boylan, of Sinn Fein, tabled an amendment although she said the party fully supported Mr Gannons motion.

We believe an appropriate memorial to the Magdalene women should be the centrepiece of the siteJanice Boylan of Sinn Fein

We are completely and utterly opposed to the proposal, and we have stated this from day one.

We have worked closely with survivors and listened attentively to them and worked with residents.

We believe an appropriate memorial to the Magdalene women should be the centrepiece of the site.

The amendment added that the site should be used for social and affordable housing and other needs of the local community.

We said we'd have a recommendation after the working group had a chance to deliver one. I think we should not be agreeing this motion and allow for full debateFine Gael councillor Ray McAdam

The Green Partys Ciaran Cuffe said there may be more than one option as the sites size could manage more than one development.

Its important we get it right, we listen to survivors and listen to what they would like to see.

The site is a large one and there may well be space for many different uses for the site.

Many want to see a memorial but they also want to see housing, and there may be space for a hotel and for jobs to be created, and local people trained.

What we do need is a plan. Lets see what the community want and architect comes up with before we decide.

Fine Gael councillor Ray McAdam was the first to voice real opposition to the motion to stop the sale.

I think Garys motion is pre-emptive for two reasons. We still do not have a firm proposal. Secondly, in your own inaugural address, Lord Mayor, you agreed to establish a working group, of which only one meeting has taken place.

We said wed have a recommendation after the working group had a chance to deliver one. I think we should not be agreeing this motion and allow for full debate.

Tina MacVeigh, of the People Before Profit Alliance, proposed the councillors vote to ensure it could be held before the end of the meeting, which was met by further debate.

Independent councillor Mannix Flynn could be heard shouting: This is outrageous.

Mr Ring attempted to stop the chatter and said repeatedly: There will be no vote because people wont stop talking.

Deirdre Ni Raghallaigh, the senior executive officer for the council, called time on the meeting, telling councillors they could not vote, and it would be voted on in the next meeting on September 13.

Japanese hotel chain Toyoko Inn is the preferred bidder for the site. Its plans include a 35-bed hotel with a meeting room, restaurant and bar, 140 studio apartments, 10 residential units and a car park.

It also plans to convert the chapel into a gallery or event centre, a community centre to the rear and a supermarket.
Corporate passengers travelling from Istanbul to Ireland last week could have been forgiven for doing a double-take in the business cabin.

While regular travellers are used to Turkish Airlines' workhorses on the Dublin route - the Boeing 737-800 and 900 series - it was a case of two very different beasts operating midweek.

First up on the medium-haul flight (just over three and a half hours) was the Airbus A330-200, with capacity for 30 business passengers.

The widebodied jet is well known by business travellers flying to the US west coast, as it's used to the likes of long-haul LA and San Francisco by Aer Lingus.

A day later, it was the turn of the Airbus A321neo, the French planemaker's sleek, and fuel-efficient, narrow-bodied aircraft.

Fresh out of the factory, it's the airline's first of 92 ordered to enter service.

And the arrival, even for one day, of new variants isn't just for plane-spotters, it's a sign of the airline looking closely at the Dublin route, and testing what's best suited to it.

"Last year, 10 years after we started operations in Ireland, it was great for passenger numbers. But this year we sold the highest figures in all categories, and all these figures are pushing us to change our aircraft type or increase the frequency and we are working on it," said Hasan Mutlu, general manager of Turkish Airlines in Ireland.

It's a case of looking at what ground-handling can deal with, as well as customer feedback. "We're trying each and every member of the fleet to see the preference, and it seems we can manage everything," he said, adding that it could be a situation of a large widebody, such as the Boeing 777, which is the workhorse used by rival Emirates on Dublin-Dubai, being tried out too.

Flying double-daily out of Dublin, the current 737s - typically with just over a dozen business-class seats - have had cost advantages, but Mr Mutlu adds of introducing the A321neo that "cost-wise these are the best now; sooner or later we will reach the point, maybe next year, or it could be two to three years".

The big difference for the business traveller would be the MiQ platform seating, designed by US-headquartered Rockwell Collins. One selling point is that the aisle seats can retract downwards, offering extra width in the seat, and enabling passengers to swing their knees into the aisle to let window-seat passengers get by more easily, which is a plus in a single-aisle cabin. The Iowa company's seats also have four-way adjustable headrests, leg rests and a large console for passenger storage.

The big sticking point - for now - is priorities, with the company's focus on the biggest change in its history, switching operations to its Istanbul New Airport, which will be the largest in the world, with capacity of 150 million passengers, and the ability to up that by 50 million more.

"All the focus is on the 29th of October," says Mutlu. "It will be the biggest transfer operation in aviation history. But it will mean more aircraft in the fleet and more capacity, so we'll be more flexible and comfortable then planning strategy, including for Dublin."

n Remember spoof movie Airplane!? Despite being in mortal danger, with comatose poisoned pilots and only a shaky drunk to fly the aircraft, the passengers and crew weren't too bothered.

Until they ran out of coffee - and all hell broke loose. And there's a bit of Airplane! regarding the airline change that has divided opinion.

Yup, coffee is a sticking point with the return of Aer Lingus to the London City Airport route from Dublin.

While CityJet is providing the crews and aircraft, the service will be in Aer Lingus colours and bookable on aerlingus.com. But some regular commuters to the east London airport have taken to social media - where else? - to vent their fury.

While CityJet was all about the business market, with frills and checked bags, Aer Lingus's cheapest Saver fare will offer carry-on only. The next two up, Plus and Advantage, will have 20kg check-in bag as standard and priority boarding, while only the dearest Advantage fare will guarantee lounge access and security fast-track through Dublin Airport.

But none will provide that free cheese sambo or cup of coffee.

Other passengers wonder why the normally pampered can't go an hour without a free Americano. As the debate rages on, it seems quite a few can't do without that early-morning caffeine kick.
Theresa May has again dismissed calls for a second referendum on Britain's decision to leave the EU - a stance described as "nonsensical" by former taoiseach John Bruton.

The British Prime Minister claimed yesterday it would be a "gross betrayal of our democracy" to have another vote.

She said "millions came out to have their say" in the June 2016 vote that set Brexit in motion.

Her embattled government has faced increasingly strident calls for a second vote once the terms of Britain's future relations with the EU are known.

Mrs May used an article in the 'Sunday Telegraph' to defend her "Chequers proposal" that would maintain some ties with the EU and said she would not be pushed around by EU negotiators.

"I will not be pushed into accepting compromises on the Chequers proposals that are not in our national interest," Mrs May wrote.

Expand Close Former Taoiseach John Bruton. Photo: Tom Burke / Facebook

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Whatsapp Former Taoiseach John Bruton. Photo: Tom Burke

"The coming months will be critical in shaping the future of our country and I am clear about my mission."

Britain is expected to leave the EU in March and enter a transitional phase.

However, former taoiseach John Bruton has roundly condemned Mrs May's argument over a second Brexit vote.

He said her description of another referendum as a "gross betrayal of democracy" was "nonsensical" and that insisted that democracy allowed voters to change their minds.

"If she believes that, she does not understand democracy very well," said Mr Bruton. "She seems to suggest that democrats, having made a decision, should not ever change their minds. In fact, democracy is all about creating mechanisms whereby voters can change their minds.

"Democracy allows voters to change their minds, usually through parliamentary elections.

"Totalitarian or dictatorial regimes, who do not hold regular elections, do not a have an inbuilt mechanism for changing their minds. This makes them brittle. Democracy, in contrast, is flexible."

The UK's former Brexit secretary, David Davis, accused Mrs May of opening the door to the EU for any more Brexit concessions. Speaking on the BBC's 'Andrew Marr Show', he claimed that the proposal would leave Britain in a position where the EU would dictate the rules.

He said there was still time and opportunity to talk about a free trade deal and insisted that there had to be alternatives to the Chequers proposal.

Mr Davis also said he believed the Northern Ireland Border issue was not as complex as it was now being made out to be.

He said it was a "much more straightforward issue to deal with" if both the UK and Ireland chose to put the political will behind doing so.

Meanwhile, an influential Remain-voting former minister, Tory MP Nick Boles, who had previously backed the Chequers proposal, has announced that he now opposes what he called "this humiliation".
Sugar is political. Bloodshed has haunted the commodity since the 17th century.

The British, Dutch and Portuguese once fought relentlessly over production in Brazil, the Caribbean and beyond. The history of sugar goes hand-in-glove with the history of slavery and the legacy of colonialism.

The modern industry, which supports close to 10,000 jobs in the UK, is less prone to violence but still a contested frontier in global trade. Sugar has now become a battleground for the future of British trade after Brexit.

The sweet stuff is derived from two sources. Sugar beet is grown throughout northern Europe. Sugar cane is a cash crop in the Caribbean, southern and eastern African states, Asia-Pacific, and South America.

The British sugar industry works both sources and across the supply chain.

Beet is grown and refineries turn partially processed sugar beet and sugar cane into the recognisable end-product.

Expand Close A farmer harvests a sugar beet field in Puits-la-Vallee, northern France, November 17, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier -/File Photo / Facebook

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Whatsapp A farmer harvests a sugar beet field in Puits-la-Vallee, northern France, November 17, 2017. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier -/File Photo

Under EU trade policy, there are several tariffs applied to imports of sugar in its different forms. These tariffs provoked fresh controversy last week when the Prime Ministers tour of southern African states thrust sugar into the spotlight. As Theresa May danced in pursuit of post-Brexit deals, questions were asked over whether a free-trading Britain might drop the EU tariffs.

Brussels tariff and quota structure for sugar is complex, built on a combination of barriers to protect European sugar beet farmers from cheap imports, and duty exemptions for less developed economies.

Sugar beet production quotas in the EU were lifted in October 2017 but it remains a closely guarded sector for growers outside the bloc. The EU market is still very protected. When it was liberalised last year, that only really affected domestic production [through lifting domestic beet quotas], says Ruud Schers, an analyst at Rabobank.

Import tariffs are still in place, with exceptions for the least developed countries.

There was a more than doubling of the white sugar exports out of the EU but when you look at the imports there was a more than halving of what was coming in. Simply because theres more availability of sugar in the bloc, Schers says.

However, Britains ability to reform its sugar market with an alternative, independent and effective policy will put the rhetoric of free trade to the test.

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For politicians keen to back up freewheeling talk with action there is a delicate and controversial balance to be struck.

The UK will have to decide whether to continue to maintain support for domestic production in the face of a falling global sugar price or let the forces of globalised commodity markets do their worst.

Many farmers across the EU have increased production following the lifting of sugar beet quotas last year.

This, combined with strong yields and heavy production subsidies in many nations around the world, particularly India, have forced prices down to their lowest level in two and half years.

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Lifting all tariffs would throw open the floodgates to imports, whether or not other markets are distorted by government interventions.

Thats a worrying prospect for Britains 3,000 sugar beet producers, who fear the end of tariffs would mean the end of their livelihoods.

There are a lot of farmers in east England who are affected by this, says Schers.

I wouldnt be surprised if sugar beet disappears in the UK [if a removal of all tariffs were pursued].

One such farmer, is Cambridgeshire- based Michael Sly. He represents sugar beet farmers in the National Farmers Union (NFU).

We dont want to see product entering the UK that isnt produced to the same high standards, he says.

In lots of places, sugar growing is as much as social policy as anything, that distorts the market.

Sly and the NFU are demanding continued protection for British beet farmers after Brexit to save them being undercut by cheap imports from Thailand, India and elsewhere.

For Mrs May, balancing such domestic lobbying with international trade diplomacy is far from straightforward. She has signalled that after Brexit the UK will seek to combine its trade and aid policies.

In the case of sugar that could mean weighing the prospects of British farmers with the need to forge trade links with countries for which sugar production is a major pillar of their economy.

Fair trade groups are hopeful that development concerns will be placed high up the agenda of trade policy, and sugar in particular.

There is an opportunity to look at it afresh [with Brexit] but its not that easy to find a solution that works for some of the poorest countries, says Helen Dennis of the Fairtrade Foundation.

She says that every time developed countries lift their own production quotas or tariffs, poor countries that rely on the existing order suffer.

This is what weve seen in the banana sector for example, says Dennis. As the EU market has liberalised, it has been very troublesome for some of the smaller Caribbean islands to compete.

The idea of a sudden shift to zero tariffs in the event of a no-deal Brexit horrifies those working in development, as it would hit farmers in poorer countries extremely hard.

It is also very worrying for beet-based producers in the UK. British Sugar is the sole beet-based sugar producer in the UK, and supplies 60pc of the UK market.

If there were one single government policy that Ive heard expressed that I would avoid it would be to unilaterally reduce tariffs to nil, says Paul Kenward, managing director of British Sugar.

I think that would be not to take account of what is a very complicated area of global trade.

Such a move would also remove vital negotiating capital, according to Kenwood. If the UK dropped sugar tariffs on day one, it would have given up a bargaining chip for trade negotiators seeking lower tariff barriers for British exports, he argues.

The sugar industry does not speak with one voice on life after Brexit. Britain has high-quality refining technology for both sugar cane and sugar beet.

But beet doesnt meet all of British demand. The need to import unrefined, or raw sugar, is also a crucial consideration for the Government.

Tate and Lyle sugar refinery employs 800 staff in east London. It is far less keen to see a continuation of the status quo of EU sugar policy, even for an interim period post-Brexit.

The company is highly constrained when it comes to sourcing Fairtrade sugar. Only 75 sugar mills globally meet the highest ethical standards.

Of those 60 are in Brazil and Australia. Under EU policy, buying from these countries involves paying a 140pc tariff, explains Gerald Mason, of Tate and Lyle.

The challenge that we have is that every part of our supply chain is regulated by the EU. Any normal business could choose its supplier based on quality and price.

Were only able to buy product tariff-free from 3pc of the sugar that is traded globally. 

Tate and Lyle wants to see not necessarily complete liberalisation of sugar but a freedom for the sugar cane buyers to purchase whatever they need tariff free.

There could be an overarching quota for all sugar cane imports, in order to protect UK beet farmers interests, but this would free up Tate and Lyle to source the cane wherever it chose to.

Sugar is just one of the tightropes facing trade negotiators as the UK exits the EU, and it reflects the swathes of agricultural and political sensitivities at stake.

Well find solutions that tick most options, Im sure of it. Well end up with something that isnt free trade or the EUs answer, but somewhere in between, Mason says.

He adds: You cant just copy and paste EU rules in post-Brexit Britain.

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
Farmers move their cattle from the lowlands and valleys of Noughval, Co Clare, up to their traditional winter grazing grounds on the Burren's limestone uplands

Fears have been expressed that tracts of land in West Clare will be left abandoned over the coming years due to a chronic shortage of young farmers in the Loop Head Peninsula.

Thats the grim warning from West Clare Rural Social Scheme (RRS) supervisor, Pat Talty who estimates there are only about ten farmers under the age of 30 and another five under 40 from Kilrush back to the Loop Head Peninsula.

Mr Talty has called for a multi-faceted strategy to make it more attractive for young people to remain in West Clare.

This would include new tax incentives for small and medium enterprises who locate in disadvantaged areas and measures to increase the range of social acitivities for young people.

Land abandonment is going to be a big issue because there will be no one to rent it. If you look for a man between 18 and 40 to help do work on a farm, you will not get them.

Agricultural contractors cant get young lads to do work during the summer. Older people are going back doing this work.

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If you are putting in cattle for a herd test in West Clare, you cant get people to help you young or old. People are just not here.

You cant just expect young people to stay around. The nearest disco for a young person living in Loop Head is Ennis, which is up to one and a half hour of a drive.

A disco cant just start up in Kilkee because of city rules for rural places. It costs the same to get a bar extension licence in Kilkee as it is in the heart of Dublin.

You also need the same number of bouncers to open a nightclub. These costs cant be recouped as much in Kilkee.

People cant go to the local pub because of the drink driving laws, he said.

The 2010 Census of Agricultures shows Clare had 6,548 farms. Of those farms, 3,536 farms identified farming as their sole occupation, 968 identified farming as their major occupation and 2,044 identified farming as their subsidiary occupation.

According to official Census figures, the number of Clare farmers fell from 3,574 to 3,237 from 2011 to 2016.

Planting isnt an option on agricultural land from Moveen National School to the end of the Loop Head Peninsula as trees dont thrive properly near the sea.

His concern is shared by ICMSA chairman, Martin McMahon, who said a large number of farmers who are more than 70 and in some cases 80 years of age are still farming.

Farmers are expected to put in longer hours on farms now for less money. Dairy co-ops and meat plants have done extremely well out of farm produce, everyone has done well apart from the farmer, he said.

Clare Local Development Company co-ordinator for the TUS and RRS, Paula OLeary has expressed concern about the increase in rural isolation for RRS participants since they joined the scheme a few years ago.

The demographics have changed. Younger farmers are already working and are farming part-time in their spare time as they need to supplement their income.

The older farmers dont have younger farmers to work alongside. Younger farmers have changed their methods of working on a farm and are working elsewhere.

Having consulted with farmers on the RRS scheme, she is aware of several cases where their children have moved away and made lives in Dublin and Australia and have no interest in taking over the family farm.

It is a huge concern. When the elderly farmer retires there will be no one there to take over from him.

It will be inevitable that we will end up with loads of land and there will be no on there to farm it, she said.
The 2018 harvest is coming to an abrupt halt, with some very disappointing crops. However, there are some exciting prices and, more satisfyingly, some great demand for our produce.

That's an aspect that has been sorely missing over the last few years. Too often our hard efforts to produce to market demands have been met with a 'Meaahh' shrug of the shoulders.

However, this year on many fronts, be it grain, straw, potatoes, vegetables, the phone calls are coming in rather than the other way around. It gives some encouragement for the future. Given the hardships that have been endured over the last year, all encouragement is welcome.

One area we are not getting encouragement in is regulation. Food production at National, EU and international level is under constant pressure from populist thinking that is infiltrating the very structures of society that should be protecting production. The American court ruling with regards to glyphosate, the EU ruling that declared that new breeding techniques are to be classified as GM, and the constant stream of pesticides being removed from the market do nothing to give any producer confidence in the structures of society protecting food production.

When each of these news items were published, there was no shortage of commentators welcoming the news and lambasting food production methods as being archaic and dangerous to all.

There was a shortage, however, on commentary from the other perspective. One question that occurred to me is where are the regulators and authorities when it comes to defending our production methods.

There are armies of people employed all over Europe focused on food safety. There are far more looking at food safety than producing it in the first place. Yet they are strangely silent up against the populist bleating that goes on.

One would think that the very authorities that decide whether a food, a pesticide, a breeding technique is safe or not would have the courage of their convictions, and findings, to stand up to the naysayers in times when the basic systems we have of producing food is being attacked.

But, no, its up to a few farmers interviewed at the mart for the Six One News to defend our production systems that have served us all well for thousands of years.

The very concept of food safety has been hijacked by a self-serving industry that has turned a simple concept into an ever growing futile exercise in box ticking, policy declarations and record-keeping marathons. The concept of food security has been relegated to contempt by the actions of the authorities, not just the trendy commentariat.

The way we treat food production here reminds me of the ancient inhabitants of Easter Island in the Pacific Ocean. The inhabitants of Easter Island at one time had it all: plenty of food, plenty to drink, plenty of fuel, living on an island paradise you only see on the lotto ads. So impressed were they with themselves with the good conditions they found themselves in, they started to build monuments to the most important thing in their lives - themselves. So engrossed did they become on building these monuments to celebrate their own successes that they used up all the resources on the island on producing these monuments. Suddenly, there were no resources remaining, all that was left was the monuments, and the island is now deserted. Resources are finite, more finite than the inhabitant's hubris in this case.

The way the food authorities are treating food production has similarities to these islanders. So impressed have we become with the ability of the EU to produce food, there is ever more elaborate systems to demonstrate to all how 'safe' our food is. No risk is too small or too notional to expend vast resources eliminating, no written procedure is long enough, no policy statement is wordy enough to demonstrate compliance with our lofty notions of what food safety has become.

However, like the resources on the island, the limiting resource that food safety authorities have here, is the food producers. They are a finite resource and if we keep using up this resource on producing the monuments to food safety, eventually there will be no resources left to produce the food. In this case, however, we won't even have the monuments to marvel at.

Richard Hackett is an Agronomist based in north county Dublin and is a member of the ITCA and ACA
A LEADING drugs firm has confirmed a 40 million investment at their Cork plant with the creation of 51 new jobs.

BioMarin unveiled plans to develop a new drug product filling facility at their plant at Shanbally outside Ringaskiddy in Cork.

The investment will bring to BioMarin's workforce to more than 400 people at Shanbally.

Tanaiste Simon Coveney said it was further proof of the attractive nature of Ireland for industrial investment.

BioMarin envisage that the investment will allow them cope with the global demand for treatments for rare genetic disorders impacting children.

This announcement is an exciting development for BioMarin, a company which has thrived in the Cork biopharmaceutical cluster," he said.

"This investment will not only bring opportunities for regional employment but also positive knock-on effects for the local economy."

"It demonstrates the success of the Governments commitment under the Regional Action Plans for Jobs to provide quality jobs in regional locations. I congratulate BioMarin on their success to date and look forward to welcoming future announcements as they continue to further develop their plant here in Cork.

Planning for the new BioMarin facility will be lodged with Cork Co Council within weeks.

During he building phase, more than 100 construction jobs will be created.

BioMarin's Executive Vice-President, Robert Baffi said it was an exciting development for the firm.

The introduction of fill finish capacity at Shanbally provides for fully integrated manufacturing from bulk to drug product onsite," he said.

"During our seven years of operations at Shanbally we have seen tremendous growth at the site. This expansion assures that an increasing amount of our commercial products will be manufactured at the site.

Executive Director of IDA Ireland Mary Buckley said it was further proof of the importance of Ireland's pharmaceutical, chemical and biomedical industries.

As a global leader in the manufacturing of treatments for rare diseases, the company has quickly gone from strength to strength in Ireland," she said.

"The Shanbally operation is ideally positioned to accommodate this latest expansion due to the existing skill base and the proven track record of success in Cork over the past 7 years."

"This high value investment in Cork further consolidates Irelands position globally as a location of choice for biopharmaceuticals.

Since beginning operations in Shanbally in 2011, the company has grown to more than 400 people in Ireland and more than 2,600 employees globally.

Last year ago BioMarin completed an expanded warehouse, new administration and utilities offices, a canteen and conference facilities.
While we are rapidly running out of people who can claim to have been in London in 1925, if you were there and on good terms with someone in Stanley Baldwin's Tory government, you could conceivably have been invited to the Palace of Westminster to witness an experiment that year on how to rid the building of the death watch beetle.

If you were really far-sighted, you might also have been able to buy shares in the company that was conducting this extermination programme, the company that we now know as Rentokil Initial. If you did, you would now be part of a group with revenues of 2.4bn (2.8bn) and a current market value of 6bn.

However, you would have had to endure problems in the years in between, like the shock of seeing the founder of the company, Harold Maxwell-Lefroy, die later in 1925 when one of his chemical experiments produced fatal poisonous gases.

But Rentokil has become part of the culture - if pest control and getting rid of unwanted smells can be considered part of our culture.

Different climates throw up different pest-control problems, so the challenge for Rentokil has been to broaden its own specialist solutions. Interestingly, the pest-control business is still the growth engine of the group, which now operates in 70 countries and is a market leader in most of them.

The pest business last year was strong, up a fifth with revenues of 1.3bn and profits of 240m.

Its other business Initial, is a leading hygiene service business. It installs and maintains equipment like nappy bins, soap dispensers and paper towels for commercial, industrial and public buildings in 44 countries. Initial accounts for 20pc of group sales and operating profits.

Rentokil in the last few years has been on an acquisition spree focused primarily on pest control. It has spent almost 500m on 125 deals in 24 countries, mainly in growth and emerging markets like India, Indonesia, Brazil and China.

Last year, it acquired 41 companies spending 280m and this year it has set aside a 250m war chest.

Recently, it set up a joint venture with the German company Haniel, creating a work-wear and hygiene business in the Benelux countries, as well as Sweden and Central and Eastern Europe.

Rentokil's most important market is the US, the world's largest market for pest control, worth $8bn (6.9bn).

The group is the third-largest pest-control company in the US, where it generates over 40pc of the group's revenues and a third of its profits.

In the last five years, it has doubled revenues, driven by 50 acquisitions.

Given the fragmented nature of the US market and the financial strength of Rentokil, there is no reason that the group cannot continue to take market share.

In line with its pest-control acquisition strategy, the company has begun to implement a policy of hygiene bolt-ons.

Recently, it proposed a merger with Cannon Hygiene, a large UK specialist in hygiene services. Unfortunately for Rentokil, however, the merger has been provisionally turned down by the UK Competition Authority.

Last year, the group was one of the best-performing on the London Stock Exchange, as both revenue and profits showed healthy growth.

Revenue, at 2.4bn, was up 14.5pc and profits, at 350m, rose by a similar percentage. Interestingly, 90pc of its revenues are now derived from outside the UK.

The group is cash-generative, which helps acquisition activities, dividends and debt reduction. While its shares, which hover around 3.30, have done well in the past few years, investors have also rebelled at a proposed increase in directors' payments.

In addition, the chairman, John McAdam, who is also chair of United Utilities, attracted attention for serving beyond the recommended nine years.

There is little to fault this company; trading is going to plan, while earnings are being helped by the strong dollar. But they are unlikely to accelerate next year and the shares, from the risk/reward viewpoint, appear to be balanced.

Nothing in this section should be taken as a recommendation, either explicit or implicit to buy any of the shares mentioned.
Italys deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini said he wants the budget deficit to be close to, but below, 3pc percent of GDP

Italian bond yields edged lower on Monday after Fitch left its credit rating unchanged at BBB, revising only its outlook to negative, though mixed news flow from senior ministers and manufacturing PMI data due later this morning could mean the rally is short-lived, analysts said.

Elsewhere yields edged higher across the euro zone with trade wars and EM currency weakness prompting risk aversion. On Saturday, US President Donald Trump said there was no need to keep Canada in the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

Fitch retained its BBB credit rating for Italy on Friday, in a much-anticipated ratings review. The agency changed the outlook for Italian debt, the world's third-largest pile of state borrowing, to "negative" from "stable", citing concerns about the populist government's "new and untested nature" and its promises to hike spending.

The limited move prompted buying of Italian government bonds after a large sell-off that saw short-end bond yields reach three-week highs last week.

Italys two-year yield fell as much as nine basis points in early trade to 1.4pc having touched highs of 1.49pc last week. Its five-year yield was down around 6 bps to 2.52pc with longer-end bonds remaining around 2 bps lower.

"Italy is benefitting from only the downgrade of the outlook, which was already priced in, though some investors may have expected a one notch downgrade," said Daniel Lenz, rates strategist at DZ Bank.

Analysts say the bid for Italian bonds could be short-lived, however, with conflicting statements from senior officials over Italys commitment to EU budget restrictions keeping investors on their toes, and emerging market currency woes remaining in focus.

"Im still 100pc sure the good start will remain," said Lenz. "Were already seeing pressure on the (Turkish) lira and expect risk aversion will increase."

Italys deputy prime minister Matteo Salvini said on Monday he wants the budget deficit to be close to, but below, 3pc of GDP. On Saturday, investors were further soothed by Economy Minister Giovanni Tria who vowed in Shanghai to respect EU commitments.

"We have commitments to Europe that must be respected, but they essentially are a function of the financial markets," said Tria.

But on Sunday Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio had promised to follow through on his partys main campaign pledge - a universal income for the poor - which could put further pressure on the budget deficit.

In addition, manufacturing PMI data, which may give some indication as to the state of the economy, its outlook  and by extension give some direction to spreads - is due out at 07:45 GMT.

German government bond yields remained pinned around recent lows with its 10-year government bond, the benchmark for the region, at 0.34pc having reached 0.42pc last week. .

Other euro zone government bond yields were a touch higher.
Qatar, the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG), has shareholdings in companies including Volkswagen, Deutsche Bank, Siemens, Hochtief and SolarWorld. Stock photo

Qatar plans to invest billions of dollars more in Germany and will broaden its focus to the country's medium-sized companies, business newspaper 'Handelsblatt' said in a report due to be published today.

Citing diplomatic and company sources, the paper said that the Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) and private sector players would be looking at Germany's "Mittelstand" manufacturing companies.

"We see Germany as a key player in the world economy and are looking at the German market with great optimism," 'Handelsblatt' quoted Qatar's Minister of Finance Ali Sharif al-Emadi as saying.

"Our delegation will be announcing big new investments," he said in an interview in the report ahead of a Qatar Germany business and investment forum in Berlin on September 7.

Qatar, the world's biggest exporter of liquefied natural gas (LNG), has shareholdings in companies including Volkswagen, Deutsche Bank, Siemens, Hochtief and SolarWorld. 'Handelsblatt' calculated they jointly amounted to $20bn (17.2bn).

Mr al-Emadi said Qatar was happy with its investments, despite having incurred some losses from Solarworld and Deutsche Bank engagements.

"We have a lot of stamina, and that goes for all sectors," he said.

Germany's economy ministry did not immediately respond to a Reuters request to comment.

Reuters
The country added nearly 250,000 barrels a day of output in June and July Stock photo

Russia kept pumping oil near post-Soviet records last month as it reaped benefits from a deal with Opec easing output caps and record-high oil prices in rubles.

The nation extracted an average of 11.21 million barrels of crude per day in August, according to data from the Russian Energy Ministry's CDU-TEK unit. Volumes were little changed from July, when the country's output soared to just shy of a peak in 2016.

Russia has been the main beneficiary from its agreement with the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (Opec) made two months ago to unfetter production.

The country added nearly 250,000 barrels a day of output in June and July, while its biggest partner in the pact - Saudi Arabia - has kept supply below the level it was said to have indicated in June amid concerns over strength of global demand.

Still, the Saudis pumped more than 10.42 million barrels a day last month, according to two Opec delegates.

That's an increase of nearly 140,000 barrels from the July output that it has reported to Opec. The cartel is due to disclose its August data on September 12.

Russia plans to maintain production at around 11.2 million barrels a day through the end of this year, a government official said last month.

All Russia's top crude producers showed a modest increase in production in August, the CDU-TEK data showed.

Bloomberg
Family fun: Angela and Justin Moor, from Stradbally, carry twins Tara and Marianne (5) as oldest daughter Sienna (9) also gets in the Electric Picnic party spirit. Photo: Caroline Quinn

Rave icons The Prodigy got 'Everybody In The Place' reaching for the lasers to close Electric Picnic last night.

The festival ended with an eclectic mix of acts, including Garbage, George Ezra and disco legends Nile Rodgers and Chic.

There may have been some late afternoon rain, but festival-goers were undeterred, enjoying the best in music, comedy and food.

At Mindfield, the spoken-word area of the festival, broadcaster Miriam O'Callaghan was joined by economist David McWilliams and comedian Alison Spittle for her 'Sunday Brunch' in the Leviathan tent. On the agenda were the MeToo movement, Brexit, and Donald Trump's impending visit to Ireland.

Later in the afternoon, Blindboy from The Rubberbandits weighed in on the issue, saying: "Let's protest the housing crisis and direct provision and embarrass our Government while Trump is here."

Bearach O Casaide (24), from Leixlip in Co Kildare, said her favourite part was the Rave In The Woods on Friday night.

"There was a very good vibe. We were there until 4am," she said.

Michelle Maher (23), from Galway, said: "The Dua Lipa concert was an empowering, uplifting experience. She's a girl boss."

Electric Picnic has been showcasing the best in emerging Irish talent throughout the event. Dublin rap duo Versatile blew up the Electric Arena on Friday night, while Waterford dance outfit King Kong Company played two sets over the weekend.

A total of 55,000 people attended the annual festival, and tickets for next year go on sale on Friday at the same prices as this year.
Brian Gleeson seen shooting a short movie called Dukes Govern in Temple Bar being watched by his brother Domhnall Gleeson & and comedian Sharon Horgan. In the scene Brian's female companion beats up a man in Temple Bar, Dublin, Ireland - 21.11.17. Pictures: Cathal Burke / VIPIRELAND.COM

Amazon Studios Emmy For Your Consideration Event Held Tonight At The Hollywood Athletic Club...HOLLYWOOD, CA - APRIL 20: Actress Sharon Horgan attends the Amazon Studios Emmy For Your Consideration Event at Hollywood Athletic Club on April 20, 2017 in Hol

Irish actress Sharon Horgan has said that she kinda lost her s*** a little bit while reading the final scene of her popular comedy-drama.

Her show Catastrophe, an awards darling, is inching towards the end of its run - a fact that has made Ms Horgan break down a few times.

Speaking on Second Captains on RTE Radio One, she said that she would greatly miss the show and the characters on the show, Sharon and Rob.

"When we did our read-through - because you're reading all six scripts and everyone's there and most people have been involved with it from the very beginning - we got to the last scene of the sixth episode and really, really embarrassingly, I kind of lost my s*** a little bit, she said. I just couldn't read it."

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The final scene was something that Ms Horgan had in her head for ages, and represented the culmination of the series that won her a BAFTA TV award for Best Comedy Writer, along with her colleague, Rob Delaney, and an Emmy nomination.

She expressed her amazement at working with Rob Delaney, and found it a bit much that the show would have never happened if they had never met each other.

"On set, when Rob did his last scene, I couldn't even talk to him, she said. I was just like, 'I'm going to email you! Everything I'm feeling now I've got no way I can express it'. I haven't done the email yet."

Horgans Catastrophe has six Irish film and TV awards under its belt. With the shows final season in the editing room, Horgan has said that things are incredibly stressful at the moment. She anticipates that the final season will be out next year.

"We think it's going to go out early next year," she said. "But we haven't got a set date yet. We're just editing it at the moment. It'll be ready soon but there's all sorts of stuff you need to work out with the channel [Channel 4] first."

Ms Hogan, who is now a global star, was born in London to an Irish mother while her father hailed from New Zealand. The family moved to Co. Meath in Ireland when she was four years old to run a turkey farm. She was a pupil at Sacred Hearts School in Drogheda, which she reportedly didnt enjoy, according to an interview with The Observer.

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Apart from being an actress, Sharon Horgan also has the experience of being a writer and a producer. Before Catastrophe, she was known for her comedy show Pulling, and is the creator of the ongoing HBO comedy Divorce.
TAKE a look at Irelands most expensive apartment to rent  which has just been snapped up at 8000 a month.

And while some lucky occupant can afford to avail of the penthouse on Dublins quays, others like homeless mother-of-two Sommer OKeefe face a daily battle to find accommodation.

The vast contrast features in the upcoming new series of RTEs hit series Find Me A Home.

Sommer (23), from Tallaght, is shown to be at her wits end after her landlord is selling up and has terminated the lease.

After four months searching for alternative accommodation, she becomes homeless. Emergency accommodation services are so overwhelmed that at one point they suggest she and her two children may have to sleep in a Garda station.

Sommer says: My children have done nothing wrong. What sleeping are they going to do in a Garda station? I knew it wouldnt be the Four Seasons but I thought theyd at least be able to offer us a bed in a hostel.

The former science student trudges to up to 50 viewings a week, where lettings can cost on average 1900 a month rental.

In the city centre, Dublins current talent apartment building on Grand Canal Dock has a stunning two floor penthouse (see gallery above).

Letting agent Owen Reilly boasts that it has amazing viewings of Howth, the Aviva stadium, the Phoenix park and the docklands.

A little over 15 years ago this building was on contaminated land, he says, before explaining that the top soil was sent to Holland for treatment.

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The apartment was once sold for over 2 million before being bought by its current owner for 875,000.

At 8000 this is the highest apartment available to let in Ireland, admits Owen. 90% of our tenants last year were not Irish.

The programme also features the property hunt in Limerick, where rentals have increased by a massive 20pc in the past year.

David Waddell, Executive Producer, Waddell Media who produces the series for RTE said: "With landlords exiting the rental sector in their droves, we see the resulting consequences; leases are being terminated and vulnerable families face eviction with nowhere else to go."

Edel OBrien, series producers says: "In Dublin, rental values are now 30% higher than at the Celtic Tiger peak. In pricey Grand Canal Dock, we give viewers a peek into a rental that holds the title of the highest apartment available for rent in the country.

"The Millennium Tower penthouse is 8,000 a month and for that you get three bedrooms, private lift access and unrivalled views of Dublin city and port."

Across the six episodes a variety of buyers, sellers and renters are followed as they face the lack of supply and affordability.

With location still a huge determinant in values theres a widening gulf between property in urban and rural areas.

'Find Me A Home' introduces viewers to sellers struggling to off-load their losses, while some first time buyers, priced out of their preferred locations, find more space and better value in the commuter belt.

* Find Me A Homes first episode in the new season will be shown on RTE1 on Thursday at 8.30pm
Shake-up: Founder Chris Lauder (left) and principal Michael Ruaidhri Deasy at the opening of the Dublin Academy of Education.

A young entrepreneur is shaking up the Dublin second-level education market with a new independent school on the southside of the city for Leaving Cert students.

The 7,300-a-year Dublin Academy of Education, which is opening today on Lower Kilmacud Road in Stillorgan, has a full intake of 200 fifth- and sixth-year students.

The school is the brainchild of 30-year-old Chris Lauder, who has run the southside Dublin School of Grinds for the past nine years.

Mr Lauder said he had head-hunted 30 of Ireland's best teachers for the school, which will be led by the principal, Michael Ruaidhri Deasy. Mr Deasy said students would benefit from a 'managed-independence' style of teaching that would prepare them for third-level education and beyond.

"Rather than reading from textbooks, teachers will use bespoke classroom materials to spark group discussion and collaborative learning," he said.

In what may be seen as a response to new challenges, this month also sees the long-established Institute of Education moving beyond its city-centre location to provide weekly grind classes in both Deansgrange, south Dublin, and Marino on the northside.

The institute also offers a full-time programme for fourth-, fifth- and sixth-years at its Leeson Street base.

Mr Lauder has raised 4.6m in private investment to make the school a reality. Its consultant director of education is Arthur Godsil, who was principal of the fee-paying St Andrew's College in nearby Booterstown for 23 years.

The academy is entering the market at a time of a growing pupil numbers. Its fees are on a par with the Institute of education, but are about 500-2,000 a year higher than for traditional fee-paying schools.
The business organisation Ibec said the current system was not meeting the needs of people in an uncertain and rapidly changing workplace.

Employers want a radical overhaul of career guidance for second-level pupils to include a new State-funded external advisory service to support what is already available in schools.

The business organisation Ibec said the current system was not meeting the needs of people in an uncertain and rapidly changing workplace, despite the commitment of careers guidance professionals.

It is now seeking the establishment of a network of regional offices, where careers specialists would meet students on a one-to-one basis to supplement the advice provided by guidance counsellors.

In a policy document published today, entitled 'Informed Choices: Career Guidance in an Uncertain World', Ibec calls for a re-imagined national careers guidance service - not only for schools but also for those who are already in jobs.

Ibec's senior executive for labour market and skills policy, Kara McGann, said that better support for post-primary school career guidance was "particularly urgent" to help students to identify their interests, skills and competencies, manage transitions and make the appropriate decisions to meet their needs time and again.

Ibec suggested the service could be financed from the National Training Fund, into which employers pay about 450m a year.
There are moments that you will never forget. That moment when your child is born. Then there's that moment when the midwife takes your baby to one side, counts their fingers and toes and performs the first cursory check of your child's health.

Your sense of joy is matched with a pause in breath until you are presented back with your baby and are grateful to be told that all appears well.

Another moment you never forget is hearing your child's first words. Whether it's ''Dada'' or ''Mama'', it doesn't matter. Your child is trying to connect to you with language.

For our beautiful twin boys, Rory and Dylan, we had those magical moments and more. However, soon after these first words were spoken, things seemed to go silent again. It soon became clear that the boys were not developing as we would have expected. As you become increasingly aware of the fact that things are not as they should be, there is a sense of loss, fear and maybe even guilt. Was it your genetics or something within your control? But along with these feelings there is also a deepening sense of love that I think only a parent of a child with special needs can fully understand.

With the boys' diagnosis of severe autism and intellectual disability there was a feeling of helplessness. What can you do? There are limitations to what can be done, of course, but with that deep love you have for your children you vow to do your best. You will get them the best support services. The best interventions as soon as possible. All the while flooding them with love.

There is no time to feel sorry for yourself. Life is full on in a home like ours. The boys have four wonderful sisters, who all step up like living angels.

Most people who walk into the house would be initially shocked by what seems to us to be quite normal. Dylan never sits still, Rory runs around whistling. Turn your back for 10 seconds and Dylan has stolen your keys and is trying to open the front door to make his escape. Double locks on doors and windows are the norm.

Once you've managed to prevent Dylan's escape, you might return to the living room to find Rory standing on the mantelpiece about to smash a lamp on to the floor. You find humour within all this madness and you regularly console yourself that the main thing is that nobody was hurt. The boys are beautiful, funny and mischievous. As part of their condition, they rarely sleep before 2am. Most visitors I would imagine see the house as utter chaos beyond imagination. For us, we just get on with it.

We wouldn't be able to get on with it, without the support of good people. The boys attended Jonix pre-school soon after diagnosis and the tutors there have done amazing work with them. They show a love for the children that runs deep and can only exist when you have a vocation rather than a job.

The people at St Michael's House have also been a great source of support. Guiding us in how to get the most appropriate help and interventions for the boys.

When they were diagnosed we immediately put the boys on the waiting list for Saplings, a specialist school for autistic children.

In 2016 when it was time for the boys to leave pre-school, working with our Special Education Needs Officer (SENO) there were no suitable places identified in any school in Dublin. At that point they were 64 and 65 on the waiting list for Saplings. Although the boys had a constitutional right to a primary school education, we were forced to allow the boys to stay in the pre-school and the fantastic teachers there adapted their programme for the boys as best they could.

However, in 2017 the same situation happened again and we were once again forced to leave the boys in pre-school. Now in 2018 we were informed that the boys will likely have places in Saplings, but only from 2019. That's six years after being placed on the waiting list. Surely it must be clear to someone within the Department of Education that we have a problem here? There is no way the parent of a typical developing child would tolerate any instruction to keep that child in a pre-school.

However for some reason people in the Department of Education think it's quite acceptable for Rory and Dylan, aged almost eight, to attend a pre-school alongside three- and four-year-olds.

This coming school year the boys were offered places at Jonix's school for primary aged children in Tyrrelstown. This is a school specifically for primary aged children who for the moment cannot find a suitable school and are of school age. The school is located within a State school's property and is fully funded by the State under the Home Education grant scheme. We were informed, however, that this is not a recognised State school and as such doesn't qualify for transport there and back. Travelling to and from the school for drop-off and collection would take almost four hours' travel time and, with both parents working, the boys cannot go to Tyrrelstown without this support.

For many parents around the country at this time of year there were obligatory photos posted on social media of loved little ones making their way to school for their first day. For Rory and Dylan, the Department of Education has no such day planned.

1) There is no suitable place available in ANY State school in Dublin for the boys.

2) There is no suitable place in ANY school in Kildare for the boys.

3) We have been asked to look for suitable places in a State school in Wicklow and Laois for the boys. Bear in mind the disabilities these boys have and what is now being expected of them if there are places available in Wicklow or Laois.

4) There are two suitable places available in Tyrrelstown at a Specialist Primary school for Autism totally funded by the State but we have been refused transport.

We should be excited about the boys' first day at primary school and looking forward to seeing continued progress and improvements. Instead, the level of stress caused by this whole ludicrous situation is overwhelming. The boys don't have a school. The Department of Education has no plan.

Yvonne appeared last week on Lunchtime Live with Dr Ciara Kelly on Newstalk. There seemed to be quite a reaction to the piece and a senior adviser to the Minister for Education reached out to us. We were very hopeful, as they indicated that this was now being taken very seriously at the highest level.

However, as the week progressed it became more and more obvious that the department has no plan and is not treating this matter with the priority it deserves.

The department contacted us and explained that it is working in a vacuum and has not even reviewed the boys' file, has not spoken to our SENO, or researched the most basic information about the boys in order to decide the best solution. It cannot tell us what will happen to the boys tomorrow and is not planning a contingency solution while the longer-term plan for this year is being explored.

When we suggested that they provide transport to Jonix in Tyrellstown until a solution is found, we were gobsmacked to hear the reply: "No, that doesn't suit us."

Have they for a moment considered what might suit Rory and Dylan?

They are acting as if this is a surprise problem that they are now suddenly trying to resolve.

The boys have been due to receive primary education since 2016.

Our children are non-verbal but we have strong resolve and a deep love for them that has no bounds. We will be their voices. Life is challenging enough but we never thought that we would have to fight the system to give our boys the chance of an education.

Like all the other little boys and girls around Ireland, Rory and Dylan, too, deserve the right to go to school.

Who cares?
Parents have withdrawn their children from a national school after it emerged that up to 41 pupils were to be taught in the one classroom.

Scoil Brhide National School in Menlo, Co Galway, informed parents last week that its fifth and sixth classes were merging, and would be taught by one teacher for the new school year.

A number of concerned parents protested outside the school after the announcement, with one claiming that at least 10 parents have pulled their children from the school.

"Putting 41 kids into one class with one teacher is not acceptable," the parent said.

The mother added that the school had offered to teach the year groups separately for the core subjects of English, maths and Irish for 15 hours a week, meaning the class would be split into two between 9.30am to 1pm, and then coming together until 2.30pm when they go home.

A spokesperson for the school refused to comment when contacted.

In a statement, the Department of Education said that the configuration of classes and the deployment of classroom teachers was decided by each school.

"School authorities are requested to ensure that the number of pupils in any one class is kept as low as possible," it said.

"The department also requests school authorities to use their autonomy under the staffing schedule to implement smaller class sizes for junior classes insofar as it is feasible to do so."
Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan has defended the appointment of new Garda Commissioner Drew Harris, saying: "We're not hiring a commissioner from North Korea or Russia. We're hiring an Irish policeman from a police service on our island."

Mr Flanagan rejected suggestions that Mr Harris being bound by the Official Secrets Acts of both the UK and Ireland represents a conflict of interest.

He also dismissed claims that not enough vetting of Mr Harris, a former Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) deputy chief constable, has taken place.

Mr Flanagan added: "We're hiring somebody whose track record we know to be sound, who will do a very good job as Garda Commissioner and in whom both myself and the Government has every confidence."

Mr Harris was sworn in as Garda Commissioner at a minute past midnight in Kevin Street Divisional Headquarters in Dublin last night.

The ceremony involved the new Commissioner signing the Garda Code of Ethics and the Official Secrets Act.

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Acting Garda Commissioner Donall O Cualain was to step down at the same time.

Mr Harris is the first Garda Commissioner appointed from outside the State.

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His officer father, Alwyn, was killed by an IRA bomb in 1989.

Speaking to RTE Radio's 'This Week' programme, Mr Flanagan denied there was a conflict of interest over the Official Secrets Act.

He also said that criticism of the incoming Garda Commissioner has been "unfair" and "politically motivated".

Mr Flanagan said that once attested, Mr Harris would be subject "to the full range of legal obligations as any other member of An Garda Siochana". He praised his "dedication to duty" and "commitment to impartial policing".

Mr Flanagan added: "In fact, he has defended democracy and the rule of law all of his professional life."

He said the Garda and PSNI have worked together closely for many years and the North-south relationship is key to the security on this island.

He said: "The greatest threat to the security of this State comes from dissident Republicans, particularly in the Border area."

Mr Flanagan insisted he is satisfied with the vetting arrangements for Mr Harris's appointment.

Mr Harris takes over a Garda force that has been beset with a series of controversies from whistleblower revelations to the bogus breath test scandal.

He was selected as the new Garda Commissioner following a new process involving the Public Appointments Service on behalf of the Policing Authority.

The salary of the Garda Commissioner was increased to 250,000 a year from 180,000 in order to attract interest in the position.

Mr Harris's appointment comes just under a year after the retirement of former commissioner Noirin O'Sullivan.
Children who developed narcolepsy after being given the swine flu vaccine were affected by such serious sleep-disorder related conditions that some were initially thought to be suffering from schizophrenia.

The revelation came as the solicitors acting for two-thirds of those now suing the State over having received the controversial vaccine Pandemrix warned that a redress scheme was simply not enough and that full accountability was required for what happened.

In severe cases, sufferers can fall asleep at any time - when they are eating, sitting watching TV or even while working in a school classroom.

Many suffer from cataplexy - loss of muscle tone - causing them to collapse like a puppet when experiencing extreme emotions. They also suffer from sleep paralysis, rendering them unable to move while they experience hallucinations.

In many cases, the severity of these dreams and nightmares, and their understandable consequences for young people, led doctors to suspect a form of schizophrenia before narcolepsy was finally diagnosed.

Solicitors Michael Boylan and Gillian O'Connor warned that those patients who developed narcolepsy from Pandemrix now suffered from a life-long condition.

Mr Boylan said what sufferers had endured was simply beyond belief.

"There is no cure. This is something that these people, many of whom are children, are going to have to live with and cope with for the rest of their lives," he said.

"While redress is very important in terms of supporting them as they live their lives, one size does not fit all.

"Redress will not deliver or answer the fundamental issue of how this happened and what accountability there will be.

"This is not Ireland in the 1950s or 1960s. This only happened nine years ago, and people are entitled to answers about what happened."

Ms O'Connor said that a key element was why families were informed a vaccine was perfectly safe for use when health chiefs knew that it had not been fully tested.

She queried why healthcare workers administering the vaccine were advised that it was untested, but the public was told it was safe.

She added that it was further inferred that Pandemrix was as a safe as the ordinary flu vaccine, which had been on the market for 60 years.

Around 100 people are now suing the State over the provision of the Pandemrix vaccine in 2009 and 2010.

A test case is already before the High Court and the Health Minister. The HSE and vaccine makers GlaxoSmithKline have already spent millions of euro in defending it.

Sufferers of Unique Narcolepsy Disorder (Sound), a group which represents those affected by the vaccine, stressed that they accept the State acted with the best intentions in 2009 when the World Health Organisation (WHO) warned of an imminent swine flu pandemic.

"We are not anti-vaccine, and it is very important to stress that," co-founder Tom Matthews said.
Waleed Bradley (31) was on holiday with his pals in southern Thailand in 2014 on a booze-fuelled party rampage when he landed himself in a Thai jail

A Belfast holidaymaker has told of his Thai prison terror after being banged-up abroad accused of stealing a crocodile skull.

Waleed Bradley (31) was on holiday with his pals in southern Thailand in 2014 on a booze-fuelled party rampage when he landed himself in a Thai jail.

"There were lots of cockroaches, it was dark, the walls smelled like faeces. It was really grim.

"Within about 10 minutes I was crying," admitted Waleed.

The young marketing man and his friends were on the last night of their holiday in 2014, drinking heavily and hopping between bars and clubs, when he began larking around with a crocodile skull on sale in a bazaar.

He has now revealed his nightmare in a episode of Channel 5 Star's programme Young, Dumb and Banged Up in the Sun.

"We were going all out knowing it was the last day of the holiday," he said.

"Every night we were partying, in a nutshell a bit of a crazy trip.

"We were completely hammered walking through a market and came across this random stall.

"There was a sign that said, 'Do not touch' but it wasn't really a legitimate sign so I lifted up the skull, held it up to my friend's face and held it up to my face pretending it's biting my neck, just jesting.

"My first reaction was not to put it back (but) to stash it for possible later robbery. We just went on our way and continued the night. Banter."

The boys went on bar hopping into the night and thought nothing more of their antics with the skull, but Waleed was in for a shock the following morning.

After waking up in a hotel room, Waleed stumbled back to where he was staying and passed out after searching a nearby beach for his missing phone.

"We just heard this boom boom boom at the door. At that moment I completely crapped myself. I was in serious trouble," said Waleed.

"All I could see in the light was the officer standing there with handcuffs in his hand. I knew the Thai police didn't mess about, then I started thinking something serious had happened last night. I was really scared, really scared."

Under Thai law theft carries a maximum sentence of three years in prison, however, this increases to a possible five years if the offence occurs in the evening.

After being driven to a nearby police station on the back of an officer's moped, Waleed was accused of stealing the crocodile skull and shown CCTV images of his behaviour the previous evening.

The owner of the stall demanded he pay the equivalent of 8,000 (8,860), which Waleed refused to pay, pleading with cops that he was due to leave the island that day.

But he was locked up by the police and faced a potentially hefty jail term.

He said: "At that point I was told it was a minimum of four days and I was just thinking how am I gonna spend four days in this cell.

"I was thinking if I do four days here and then I have to do four months in another jail, how am I gonna survive?"

Before travelling to Phi Phi island for their final blow-out, the lads met a pair of Israeli girls and ended up partying with them in a Buddhist shrine. They ended up offering to pay for the crocodile skull with the stall owner accepting 3,500 (3,880).

Waleed was forced to take a picture with the stall owner so he could be publicly shamed as part of his punishment.

"When I got out of the police station I just ran towards the sea and dove in. We got a few more beers and wrote 'freedom' in the sand.

"How could they do that to me, like? How could messing around with a crocodile skull end with me having to bail myself out of jail?

"Thailand is corrupt in that sense," he told Young, Dumb and Banged Up in the Sun.

Waleed later reimbursed his two Israeli rescuers with the 3,500 they had paid to secure his freedom.
Three young men are recovering in hospital after they fell 30 feet from a bridge in the early hours of this morning.

The accident happened at around 3.00am in Lisdoonvarna, Co Clare, where the annual matchmaking festival began on Friday.

Gardai on duty in the town at the time received a report that a number of people had fallen into the water at the famous Spa Wells in the town.

Gardai arrived at the scene within minutes and located three young men all of whom had suffered serious injuries. Its understood that all three men were found sitting on the bridge when Gardai arrived.

After speaking to the men, Gardai established that they had all fallen from the bridge into a shallow stream 10 metres (30 feet) below. Its believed tree branches may have broken one or all of the mens falls.

The three are also believed to have made their way safely out of the water and back up to the bridge where they were found by Gardai.

The National Ambulance Service was alerted and three ambulances were sent to the scene. As the men were no longer in the water or needed rescuing, the Coast Guard and Fire Brigade were not required to attend.

All three men were taken to University Hospital Limerick. They are all understood to have suffered serious back and neck injuries which are said not to be life-threatening.

All three are believed to be from the Doonbeg and Cooraclare areas of the county.

A garda spokesman described the falls as accidental in nature and as such they are not investigating the incident.

It appears one man fell from the bridge, and while trying to rescue him the other two also fell, the spokesman said.
A top private Dublin school is conducting an inquiry after two students allegedly engaged in a sex act with prostitutes during an overseas school trip in recent weeks.

Details of the alleged incident are contained in an audio Whatsapp message, which went viral on social media over the weekend.

It was alleged that the two students managed to sneak out of their supervised accommodation during one night, and went to a bar where they got drunk.

The two boys are then alleged to have brought two prostitutes back to their accommodation.

Department of Education officials did not respond to requests for comment when contacted by Independent.ie. Officials also did not respond when contacted to see if the Department was aware of the incident or had launched an independent investigation.

However, it has been reported that disciplinary action is being considered by the school against a teacher who was responsible for the welfare of the teenager during the school trip.

The school trip in question involves a small group of students and teachers travelling to another country to exchange cultural experience and carry out charity work.

Its understood this element of the trip had come to an end, and the students were staying in a nearby city towards the end of the trip which occurred during the summer holidays.

A number of these trips have been carried out over the years and this is the first incident where issues of any sort have occurred.

An account given of the incident included that two students were approached by a man on the street who convinced them to pay for the prostitutes.

They were then brought back to a property where students and teachers were staying at.

Further allegations have been made in relation to the incident, including that one of the prostitutes threatened to extort the teenager following the sexual encounter. It was also alleged that one of the women told the boys she was sick.

One of the students then admitted the incident to a teacher, who then informed fellow colleagues.

The teacher sought immediate medical treatment for the student.

Information on a previous trip relating to the schools trip, which included images of the touring group and a brief biography of the trip, have been removed from the schools website.

The school is considered one of the countrys most respectable fee paying schools with a number of high-profile alumni.

It has been reported that parents were told the trips have been successful, and that further such trips will be considered in the future.

The school was not available for comment when contacted.
The Government will be forced into a Dail vote on providing financial support to rural post offices.

Fianna Fail wants the network to adopt a model similar to the UK where Post Office Ltd is obliged to maintain services over a larger network than would be commercially viable. This is facilitated with government funding.

A Dail vote before the next Budget will also call on the Government to advertise new postmaster contracts, appropriate to each area, in communities where postmasters are retiring.

Communications Minister Denis Naughten has defended the closure of 159 rural post offices. He told the Sunday Independent the entire network was five months from going under before the Government took action in 2016.

"There is nobody more aware of the needs of people in rural Ireland than I am," he said. "I come from one of the most rural constituencies in the country and I fully understand the impact declining business and customer footfall is having on the post office network."

He said restructuring has been key to maintaining the post office network. This included expanding operations to a six-week service and raising the cost of stamps to 1.

"An Post was within five months of going under with the loss of thousands of jobs and the complete shut-down of the postal service and network.

"Under the protocol that I sought and which was agreed between the Irish Postmasters Union and An Post, if a postmaster does not want to continue to provide a service and avails of a voluntary severance package then any retailer or business within that community can apply to take up the post office services but if not, the business would be transferred to the nearest post office."

The national mail carrier said it was open to engaging with shops and businesses in the 159 rural towns and villages if they were willing to offer An Post services.

A spokeswoman for An Post said viable commercial proposals will be fully considered.

It comes as Galway TD Sean Canney, who supports the Government on key votes and budgetary matters, told the Sunday Independent he will question Taoiseach Leo Varadkar about the closures at a meeting next week.

"Where we have our existing post offices, the public needs to support them. There is a change in how we do business in this country and that is a challenge for post offices.

"I will be raising the issue with the Taoiseach at my next meeting and I have also spoken to Minister Naughten."

Meanwhile, it is the Dail vote that will be of most concern to Government. Clare TD Dr Michael Harty has threatened to pull his support for the Government if plans to close post offices continue. He has called for community banking services to be made available to rural communities via An Post outlets.

The Fianna Fail motion which will be voted on when TDs return to Leinster House later this month calls on the Government to ensure everyone has access to post offices, to roll out new services and prevent the loss of post offices in rural communities.

It will also call on TDs to recognise that previous schemes reducing post office numbers were based on population decline and labelled the current closures a "premeditated programme to reduce the number of post offices in rural areas".

However, An Post has committed to opening five new post offices in areas where the population has increased.

Fianna Fail's communications spokesman Timmy Dooley wrote to Mr Naughten last week outlining his "grave concerns" for rural areas affected by the closures.

"The retention criteria being advanced, of a Post Office for every village with a population over 500 and within 15km of citizens, is unacceptable and if implemented would place an intolerable burden on many people including the older and more vulnerable members of rural communities that have already suffered service loss of Garda Stations and smaller schools during the economic downturn," Mr Dooley wrote.
CORK City Council dramatically voted to nominate mental health campaigner Senator Joan Freeman for the Presidential election.

Sen Freeman must now be formally ratified as the council's nominated candidate at a meeting on September 10.

She becomes the second candidate to secure the nomination of a local authority after businessman Gavin Duffy was nominated by Meath Co Council.

The decision came after six candidates addressed a special Cork City Hall meeting from 7pm in a bid to secure a nomination for the October 26 ballot.

The Pieta House founder received the backing of 14 councillors after the council decided by ballot to nominate a candidate.

Political pundits dubbed it 'Super Monday' because of the number of councils holding special briefing meetings for Presidential hopefuls.

A number of hopefuls had addressed councils in Cork, Kerry, Wicklow and Leitrim in a bid to secure the support necessary to get on the October 26 ballot paper.

President Michael D Higgins is seeking a second term while Sinn Fein will run a yet-to-be-named candidate.

Businessman Sean Gallagher is also hopeful of securing support from councils in the midlands and north-west to secure another bid for the Aras.

Cork City Council heard submissions from Mr Duffy, journalist Gemma O'Doherty, actress Sarah-Louise Mulligan, Senator Freeman, Roscommon farmer John Groarke as well as musician and lecturer, James Smyth,

Mr Duffy said he would offer a different, more dynamic type of Presidency to Michael D Higgins.

Ms Mulligan said US President Donald Trump "speaks his mind" and his directness was something many people admired.

Sen Freeman said Cork had a place close to her heart because of the tremendous support shown locally for the Pieta House mental health awareness event, 'Darkness into Light'.

She said she would use the office of President to dramatically revamp Ireland's entire approach to mental health.

Sen Freeman also said the President could offer personal support and encouragement to people by visits to hospitals etc.

Mr Groarke took issue with the demands placed on candidates just to secure a slot on the Presidential ballot paper.

He said Ireland was not the Republic he had believed it to be.

Ms Doherty said she wanted to use the Presidency to highlight corruption, social disadvantage and elites within Irish society.

"I believe that the Irish people are greatly concerned about the toxic culture of corruption and cronyism that has infested our state," she said.

"There is also huge concern at the way their taxes are being squandered by this Government on a daily basis."

Mr Smyth said he was very concerned that some Government departments now refer to people as "customers" rather than "citizens."

He warned that, despite Government claims about a growing economy and increasing wealth, a lot of ordinary Irish people still find themselves struggling on a daily basis.
Dragons Den investor Gavin Duffy has secured the first of four local authority nominations needed to get on the presidential ballot paper.

A major of councillors in his native Meath gave him their support at a special meeting this afternoon.

Six local authorities are holding special meetings to discuss the presidency today  but only Meath, which has already heard from prospective candidates, was in a position to vote.

Mr Duffy got 17 votes, compared to seven for Sean Gallagher and two for Joan Freeman.

Mr Duffy took to the chamber again in Wicklow moments after learning of his nomination in Meath.

He told councillors he is the first person to secure a nomination in the 2018 Presidential Election. The mix of parties who voted for him show he is a "cross party" candidate he said, noting that Fine Gael councillors broke ranks to support him.

Earlier Senator Freeman told the council she believed the Dragons were likely to secure a nomination but appealed for the council to back her, saying the election needed to be about more than business and entrepreneurship.

Mr Gallagher made a pitch to Leitrim County Council today where is expected to win a vote.

Within an hour of his presentation, councillors Mary Bohan (FF), John McCartin (FG) and Enda Stenson (IND) placed separate motions proposing that the council back Mr Gallagher.

They will formally vote next Monday.

Meanwhile, Mayor of Kerry, Councillor Norma Foley, introduced four candidates who travelled to Tralee to personally address council members this morning at a special meeting.

Kerry Co Council will vote on September 17 on whether to nominate any candidate to contest the election with President Michael D Higgins, who is seeking a second term, and a yet-to-be-identified Sinn Fein candidate.

Kerry Co Council was not addressed by Mr Gallagher who is instead focusing on securing nominations from Leitrim, Monaghan, Cavan and Donegal Co Councils.

Four candidates - Mr Duffy, James Smyth, Gemma O'Doherty and William Delaney 1957-1970- addressed Kerry council members on why they should be nominated.

Mr Duffy, who is also addressing Wicklow and Cork councils today, outlined his five pillar election campaign which is focused on youth, age, diversity, respect and working together.

The communications specialist confirmed that, if elected, he will introduce a protocol to ensure there is full transparency on what is spent in Aras an Uachtarain on travel, accommodation, transport and catering.

"In Ireland of today, I see the president's 'soft' power as a combination of advocacy, representation, encouragement and acknowledgement for the people - for those who feel marginalised and for people who might feel they have never really had a president for them.

"And for the many people who want to right a wrong, mobilise a community or lead positive change for a better Ireland."

Mr Duffy was very complimentary of the presidency of Michael D Higgins but said he would offer something different and more focused on harnessing the power of people and their talents.

Musician and lecturer James Smyth appealed for a nomination as he vowed to work to ensure Ireland was a better democratic republic.

Mr Smyth revealed, to laughter, that President Michael D Higgins once worked as his booking agent for music gigs in the Galway area - and his group were once supported by U2.

Artists and musicians, he said, have proudly served as ambassadors for Ireland for years.

"The presidency, it seems it is an easier gig than what I have been doing for the past 45 years."

He also warned that Ireland has to fight hard to retain democratic values and norms.

"I would not want to see a democratic republic turned into a conglomerate," he said.

Journalist Gemma O'Doherty said she would use the presidency to "shine a light" on cases of corruption, social disadvantage and marginalisation in Irish life.

She said she had campaigned to highlight various issues of corruption and injustice in Irish life - and warned that the Dail was not now serving the best interests of the Irish people.

"I have reached a point where I believe I need a louder platform," she said.

Ms O'Doherty, when questioned by one councillor, said she had chosen the presidential election and that a Dail candidacy was "not a consideration" at the moment.

She also said she was "devastated" by some of the things being said about her over the past two weeks.

"I am repulsed at the allegations that have been made against me in recent days," she said.

Ms O'Doherty further claimed that a vendetta was being waged against her.

The fourth and final candidate to speak was Seamas Nolan who has changed his name by deed poll to 'William Delaney 1957-1970' as part of a campaign to honour those who were in State and Church institutions.

William Delaney was a young boy who was sentenced to six years in Letterfrack for stealing bread to feed his hungry family in 1966.

He died in 1970, several days after being struck in the head with a broom handle by a cleric at Letterfrack.

The presidential campaign bid is aimed at honouring William and all those who died while in industrial schools, mother and baby homes and other State and Church institutions.

Between 1869 and 1969, 145,889 Irish children were committed to industrial and reform schools.

In Letterfrack alone, 147 children died.

"This would be a huge symbolic gesture," he told Kerry councillors.

"It would pay an historic tribute to the most vulnerable of our citizens."

"It would be an unprecedented act of respect."

The campaign, he said, would be backed by GoFundIt online donations.

Multiple tributes were paid by councillors to the idea of the campaign and the need to honour those who suffered at the hands of the State and Church.

Kerry Co Council will vote on September 17 about which candidate, if any, to support for the presidential election.
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar is facing a storm over 'fake news' amid an explosive claim he suggested the creation of anonymous online internet accounts to make positive comments about news.

Mr Varadkar is alleged to have floated the idea while he was contesting the Fine Gael leadership race.

The claim - included in a new biography of Mr Varadkar - has been described as "shocking stuff" by Fianna Fail TD James Lawless.

Mr Lawless claimed that suggesting "fake accounts should be deliberately deployed for political advantage" could amount to "electoral fraud" and "fake news".

Last night, a spokesman for Mr Varadkar insisted "the alleged course of action wasn't taken and was never seriously considered".

A detailed account of the Fine Gael leadership contest is included in a new biography - 'Leo: A Very Modern Taoiseach' - by Irish Independent Deputy Political Editor Philip Ryan and Government adviser Niall O'Connor.

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The book outlines how Mr Varadkar brought a team together to make his bid to succeed former Taoiseach Enda Kenny as Fine Gael leader. It describes how the campaign's social media strategy was devised.

The book says: "At one point, Varadkar floated the idea to one TD of creating anonymous accounts to make positive comments under online stories on popular news websites. It's unclear how far the proposal was pushed."

Last night, Mr Lawless accused Mr Varadkar of being "obsessed with spin". He claimed the allegation in the book shows why his proposed Online Advertising and Social Media Bill has stalled. Mr Lawless accused Mr Varadkar of offering "lame excuses" for refusing to support the bill.

Mr Varadkar's spokesman responded to Mr Lawless's claims about his stalled bill.

"The Government isn't supporting James Lawless's bill on social media as parts of it restrict free speech and would even restrict normal political activity like organising protests or meetings," he said, adding the Government is willing to work with Mr Lawless to "improve it".
THE son of TV chef Rachel Allen faces a Garda investigation after he was arrested following the seizure of cannabis worth almost 30,000.

The seizure followed a Garda raid after a joint Garda-Revenue operation when a Customs & Excise officer at Portlaoise Mail Centre became concerned about a parcel destined for a specific address in Cork.

In a statement, Rachel Allen said she was "absolutely devastated" at the detention of her son, Joshua (18).

The chef said the family were issuing a statement purely because of the "frenzy of inquiries" in relation to Joshua from the media.

"He has been arrested on suspicion of possession of drugs (marijuana) with intent to supply them to others," she said.

"He has admitted his guilt immediately and co-operated fully with the Gardai."

"A file has been sent to the Director of Public Prosecutions and when formally charged Joshua will be pleading guilty at the first opportunity."

"We are absolutely devastated at this turn of events."

"Our son is eighteen years old, has never been in trouble with the Gardai, and has made a huge mistake, which will have profound consequences for him."

"We do not in any way condone his actions, in fact, we utterly condemn them, but it is not for us to condemn him."

"We must now try to look after our son and our family, the best way we can.

"We would ask that the legal process would be allowed to proceed to deal with this matter, without interference, and that we would be allowed to deal with this, like any other parents, in a similar position."

The Garda raid was ordered amid suspicions over a parcel which had been labelled "clothing."

On Thursday evening, a property in the Shanagarry area was searched by Gardai on foot of a warrant.

The teen was detained under Section 2 of the Criminal Justice (Drug Trafficking) Act, 1996.

A file on the matter is now being prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).
This is a time of great change in my family. As many of you will know, my eldest has just finished secondary school and is moving into a new phase - the university years. As with every other stage of life, I know I'll get used to it and it'll be no doubt increasingly normal as children further down the line take those same steps - but on your first, every milestone they hit slightly reshapes your world. He'll never be dependent in quite the same way as he was until now, and will probably head off working on his summers to America or London or wherever it is young people head off to these days.

So it was with a little bit of sadness that I approached this year's family holiday, as it struck me that this could be the last time - at least for a number of years - that all four kids might come away. We'll likely be a smaller group next year, so this was very possibly the last family holiday we would have with all of us together. Which felt like the end of an era.

Oh, I admit it was getting harder to keep all of them happy anyway. Last year I could tell the older two were getting bored by the end of the holiday. And what will please an 18-year-old and what will please a nine-year-old are two very different things. So finding stuff to do that wasn't too advanced for one, or too basic for another, had started to become a challenge.

Because of all this, I'd thought idly about those trip-of-a-lifetime holidays that people go on - to Thailand or South African safari parks - but I looked into it and decided coming home to debtors' prison afterwards wasn't the best idea. So I looked a little closer to home for a holiday with hopefully something for everyone - and this year we packed our very tiny, cabin-sized bags and headed off island-hopping in Greece.

I never did the island-hopping thing as a young wan but it'd always sounded like an adventure. To be honest, even travelling with only one small bag is an adventure for me, but I have to say Greece really delivered.

It's only a short hop to Athens, a city that mixes gritty urban edge with vibrant flea markets and stunning, iconic, historical sites. Letting a teenager who'd been there once before on a school trip be our guide was actually really good fun and ceding all control of the itinerary was instantly relaxing.

After some very hot, pleasant wandering there, we took the ferry south-west to Hydra, an island so beautiful I'm reluctant to tell you about it in case you all rush there and ruin it. Its cobbled marble streets and working waterfront with tiny artisan shops and cafes are magical. There are very few motorised vehicles on Hydra, so donkeys are the main mode of transport around the island but its stunning coastline and whitewashed villages and seafood so fresh it near twitched were truly close to perfection.

From here we travelled to Spetses, a little livelier but still very cheap and pretty. And the last island we hit was Paros, where we stayed in an idyll of swimming and sunshine till we were near liquidly chilled.

The trip worked a charm. The constant movement to new places kept everyone engaged. Greece has incredible weather, and even biggish families can eat out thanks to affordable prices. There is a huge amount of historical stuff to see and tons of watersports from paddle-boarding to kite-surfing for small and big people. And I know that even teens who usually miss their friends were still enjoying themselves two weeks into it. If it was the last full family holiday we have, I will always look back on it as wonderful.

Of course life teaches you lessons you don't expect and, not long after we got back, it was Leaving Cert results and CAO offers and more family occasions around all of that. So as well as last holidays this summer, we also had first dinners where one of the brood brought a date!

I realised then that going forward, it isn't that your children peel off one by one and your little family gets smaller. It's actually that, as they fly the nest, they meet new people that they bring with them and add to your number - so your family actually gets bigger. And that's not sad at all.

@ciarakellydoc Ciara presents Lunchtime Live on Newstalk, weekdays 12-2
Fashion has long been a powerful tool, used for self-expression and identity. For centuries, clothes were a statement that separated monarchs from the everyday person. Kings and queens would dress in the finest material and designs, and anyone who laid eyes on them would instantly know that they were royalty. Things have since changed. In 2018, fashion belongs to everyone.

Today, you can easily mirror the style of two of the most iconic members of the royal family, Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle. With their ever-increasing links with Irish designers, their wardrobes are more accessible to us than ever. However, youve got to be quick  once either of these fashionable ladies are seen out and about in anything, it usually sells out extremely quickly.

Two such Irish designers, who have worked with these women and deserve a place in the Irish fashion hall of fame, are none other than Philip Treacy and Orla Kiely.

Philip Treacy

Philip, originally from Co Galway, is one of Irelands most notable designers and milliners. Based in London and known worldwide for his stunning designs and ability to create a masterpiece, he regularly toys with the balance between classic and daring.

Throughout his career, Philips hats have been adored by celebrities and sought after for some of the worlds most exclusive events and red carpets - a chic and subtle Treacy creation will finish off any A-listers outfit perfectly.

Film makers are also fans, with Philip creating the pale blue Beauxbatons Academy hats in the Harry Potter film - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire.

Its been a big decade for royal weddings, and in turn a big decade for Philip Treacy hats. Between the wedding of William and Kate in 2011, and the most recent wedding of Harry and Meghan this year, he created no less than 46 hats for these occasions. Everyone from Victoria Beckham to Oprah Winfrey showed up in one of his designs, each looking as magnificent as the last.

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Philip also has a quirky side, evident by his 2010 telephone hat for the Lady Gaga waxwork at Madame Tussauds, which wowed the world with its off the wall design. This isnt the only time the pop princess has collaborated with Irelands favourite milliner though. He is also the mastermind behind many of her other wacky and wonderful head pieces, such as the now-famed diamond-studded lobster hat.

Perhaps the greatest testament to the scale of his success is the seal of approval he has received from fellow designers and some of fashions most influential people. Philips hats have been worn by the likes of Karl Lagerfeld, Valentino, Ralph Lauren, Donna Karen and Alexander McQueen, to name a few.

Orla Kiely

Often referred to as The Queen of Prints, Orla Kiely is one of Irelands leading fashion exports with stores all over the world - from South Korea to New York. Her bold patterns and designs are easily recognisable, and all carry the same Orla Kiely essence.

Having grown up in Shankhill, Co Dublin, Orla now lives and works in London, a city known for its fashion-forward thinking and style influence over the rest of the world. Orla has taken the city by storm, and is a regular feature at London Fashion Week.

With a background in textiles, wallpaper design and knitting, she has taking a lifetime of skills and transformed them into a growing empire. The Orla Kiely range now includes homeware, stationery, accessories and jewellery. Not to mention the dresses that go straight from the catwalk and into the closets of Hollywoods elite.

Fashionista Alexa Chung is just one of the many stars who has slayed in Orlas designs. Alexa, who is consistently found among the pages of the fashion bible Vogue, is well known for her impeccable style as well as her countless contributions to the fashion industry. Other big names include Oscar nominee Keira Knightley and Golden Globe nominee Kirsten Dunst.

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With an honorary OBE for her services to business and the fashion industry under her belt, it is no surprise that Orlas designs did not go unnoticed by members of the royal family. The Duchess of Cambridge, Kate Middleton, often shows up to public events and occasions in an Orla Kiely creation  promptly leading to it being snapped up and vanishing from store rails around the world.

Orla and Philip are just two of Irelands many gifted designers. With more and more Irish creators on the rise, you can be sure that the Irish will continue to own the fashion world for years to come. To learn more about Irelands creative minds and delve deeper into the story of Orla Kiely and Philip Treacy, visit the Creating and Designing gallery at EPIC The Irish Emigration Museum in Dublin and explore the impact Irish fashion design has had on the world.

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A cute baby okapi has enjoyed its first day in the world after being born at Sedgwick County Zoo in Kansas.

The zoo posted an adorable video of the infants first moments with mum Likimi, at just a few hours old.

Posting to Facebook, Sedgwick County Zoo said: Its an okapi birthday! At 8.13 this morning, Likimi welcomed her fourth calf into the world.

Its an okapi birthday! At 8:13 this morning, Likimi welcomed her 4th calf into the world. Both mom and baby will stay behind the scenes for a while, but well let you know when theyre ready for visitors. Gender reveal will come soon ... keepers and vets are allowing plenty of space for mom and baby to bond and havent yet been close enough to tell. Fun fact: the okapis closest relative is the giraffe. You can certainly see the resemblance in the length of her tongue ... its 12 inches long! Posted by Sedgwick County Zoo on Sunday, September 2, 2018

The new mum and her baby will stay behind-the-scenes in their enclosure until they are ready for visitors following the September 2 birth.

The zoo said they will reveal the babys gender soon, but first they need to allow plenty of space for the family to bond.

Posting a photo of the newborn, the zoo said: We cant resist just one more peek inside the okapi barn before we say goodnight!

We cant resist just one more peek inside the okapi barn before we say goodnight! Posted by Sedgwick County Zoo on Sunday, September 2, 2018

The video of the babys first moments has more than 37,000 views.

Although okapi have markings resembling a zebras, the forest-dwelling mammal native to the Democratic Republic of the Congo is more closely related to the giraffe.

The zoo said: The okapis closest relative is the giraffe. You can certainly see the resemblance in the length of her tongue. Its 12 inches long.
'Taliban Khan': Opponents have attacked Imran Khan for his stance on the militants

The United States has cancelled $300m (260m) of aid to Pakistan - just days before a visit by Washington's top diplomat - amid US frustration that Islamabad is still doing too little to rein in Afghan insurgents.

The Pentagon said it would spend the military aid elsewhere because of a lack of Pakistani action in support of US troops in Afghanistan.

The US has long accused Pakistan, and particularly its military spy agency, of providing a safe haven and support to the Taliban in Afghanistan.

The announcement of the cancelled aid came only days before US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo is due to arrive in Pakistan with a request to help bolster Ashraf Ghani's beleaguered Kabul government.

A year into Donald Trump's revamped south Asia strategy to end the Afghan conflict, US officials say Islamabad has not done enough to clamp down on the Taliban or its Haqqani network faction.

The Taliban continues to control or threaten swathes of Afghanistan and recently launched one of its most ambitious attacks, overrunning parts of the city of Ghazni.

The money was withheld "due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the south Asia strategy", Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner said.

The US had already announced that it was freezing military aid after Mr Trump earlier this year blasted Islamabad for "lies and deceit".

Aid will resume if Pakistan is more co-operative, US officials have suggested.

Mr Pompeo will be accompanied by America's top military officer, Gen Joseph Dunford, for talks with Pakistan's new prime minister, Imran Khan.

Any peaceful solution to America's 17-year-long Afghan conflict relies on Pakistan's help and the White House believes a crackdown by Islamabad could be pivotal in securing a peace settlement.

Islamabad is likely to need US backing for an International Monetary Fund (IMF) bailout to ease its dire economic woes. US aid has also until now helped fund a military that consumes a fifth of Pakistan's government budget.

Faraza Shaikh, a Pakistan expert at the Royal Institute of International Affairs in Chatham House, London, said: "[The visit] is important for both sides. As far as Pakistan is concerned, it is very closely tied to the dire economic crisis. If the country is forced to go to the IMF, it's going to need the US onside."

Mr Khan has often railed against US policy in the region and earned the moniker 'Taliban Khan' among political opponents for his supposed soft stance on militancy.

Since taking office as prime minister, he has said that he wants a more equal relationship with Washington. ( Daily Telegraph, London)

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
Shares in Footasylum crashed on Monday after the premium sports retailer warned over full-year profits and sales.

The company said its revenue growth and earnings will come in significantly lower than previous guidance.

It now expects to bring in less than half of the 12.5 million it booked in earnings last year.

It blamed a challenging August and warned there is no sign of a recovery in the short-term on the high street.

Footasylum shares went into freefall following the update, with the recently-floated groups stock plunging nearly 50% in morning trade to 44p.

The group said in a statement: Trading since the beginning of the current financial year has been impacted by weak consumer sentiment on the high street.

Store performance during July and August was more challenging which, in the context of there being no sign of a recovery in the short-term on the high street, has led the board to reassess its overall expectations for the balance of full-year 2019.

Footasylum sought to reassure investors that its growth plans would keep the group on track ahead of the critical Christmas trading period.

The company is looking to grow its chain from 65 stores currently to around 150 in the UK, while also expanding outlets in key locations.

The group is also boosting its online offering, with the aim of 50% of total turnover coming from online and wholesale revenues.

Executive chairman Barry Bown said: These are undoubtedly challenging times in the retail industry and, in common with many other businesses, Footasylums trading has continued to be impacted by weak consumer sentiment.

On top of that, increased clearance in stores has led to a reduction in gross margin, and we have also had some unforeseen delays in our new store openings and upsizes.

However, we have continued our programme of investment, both in upsizing our stores and in our digital capabilities, and are working hard on a number of initiatives to maximise the companys performance during the upcoming peak trading period.

Footasylum expects to report revenue of 98.6 million for the six months to August 25, an increase of 18.5%.

Store revenue was up 12.4% to 66.3 million, online revenue grew 28.5% to 30.2 million and wholesale revenue trebled to 2.1 million.
One of the fish after the plastic eye fell off

A shop in Kuwait has been closed down by officials after the owners were caught sticking plastic googly eyes onto fish to try to make them look fresher.

Hilarious photographs of one of the 'fresh fish' were shared on social media by Kuwaiti newspaper 'Al Bayan'.

The paper reported that the store had been shut down after the country's Ministry of Commerce spotted the trick.

Images posted online showed the plastic white eye slipping off the fish's face, showing its real eye underneath.

Social media users took to Twitter to ridicule the trick.

One Twitter user said: "The intersection of people who know enough about fish to look at their eyes to judge freshness and people who would be tricked by googly eyes can't possibly be very large?"
'Now it seems doctors are investigating whether the mysterious sickness may have its roots in Cold War technology that once sparked fears scientists were developing mind-control weapons.' Photo: PA

Researchers probing mysterious ailments afflicting more than three dozen diplomats and their families in Cuba and China believe they may be the victims of unconventional microwave weapons.

People affected claim they heard intense high-pitched sounds before falling ill with nausea, dizziness and severe headaches. Doctors said they exhibited symptoms of concussion.

Now it seems doctors are investigating whether the mysterious sickness may have its roots in Cold War technology that once sparked fears scientists were developing mind-control weapons.

Until now experts suggested the affected diplomats may have been targeted with sonic weapons and a paper published in the 'Journal of the American Medical Association' made no mention of microwaves as a possible cause.

But the lead author of that paper, Douglas Smith, the director of the Centre for Brain Injury and Repair at the University of Pennsylvania, told the 'New York Times' that microwave weapons were now the main suspect and that his team is increasingly certain the diplomats suffered brain injury.

"Everybody was relatively sceptical at first," he said, "And everyone now agrees there's something there."

He added that researchers and diplomats joke about the ailments as the "immaculate concussion" because the cause remains so elusive.

Problems first emerged in Cuba in 2016. The US recalled more than half its staff from the recently established embassy and accused Havana of failing to protect American personnel.

Cuba, for its part, denied any knowledge of the incidents.

In June 2018, the State Department announced that eerily similar incidents had happened in China.

The latest theory will revive interest in the use of microwaves as weapons, something both the US and the Soviet Union researched during the Cold War. ( Daily Telegraph, London)

Telegraph Media Group Limited [2021]
AFP

Traders body CAIT wrote to Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Sunday seeking investigation to assess the potential of health hazards allegedly posed by currency notes and urged him to take preventive measures to protect people from diseases due to their contamination. Read more

Here's more top news of the day:





1) Two Journalists Sentenced For 7 Years In Jail For Exposing Rohingya Genocide In Myanmar

Wa Lone 32, (left) and Kyaw Doe Oo, 28 in Reuters office in Myanmar

The Myanmar court on Monday found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on the state secrets and sentenced them to seven years in prison. Read more

2) 81,700 Graduates, Including 3,700 PhDs, Apply For 62 Entry-Level Job Postings In UP Police

Exposing the appalling state of unemployment in Uttar Pradesh, 81,700 graduates applied for a post which only had 62 vacancies. Around 50,000 graduates, 28,000 postgraduates and 3,700 Ph.D. holders have applied for the vacant posts in the telecom department of Uttar Pradesh police. Read more

3) Which Is The Tallest? Billion-Dollar Battle Intensifies Between Shivaji Vs Sardar Patel Statue

The world's biggest statue is rising in Gujarat to honour Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, but it could quickly be outdone by a monument to king Chhatrapati Shivaji in the sea off Mumbai. Read more

4) Kerala Floods: Country's Largest Floating Solar Plant Survives Nature's Fury

BCCL/Representational Image

In a home-grown engineering success story amidst the flood ravage, one of the largest floating solar power plants in the country at Banasura Sagar dam in Wayanad has managed to survive the extreme conditions in the reservoir during last months heavy rains. Read more

5) Demand For A Separate 'Purush Aayog' To Protect Rights Of Men Was Just Raised In Parliament. No Kidding

While assault and abuse on women by their husband, keeps making headlines on a regular basis, men, too, are finding their voice to raise concerns over the assault they face from the wives. Read more
Nagaland has been reeling under heavy rains and floods have devastated most parts of the state, forcing people to evacuate homes and run for shelter.

In a press statement, the Nagaland government said that it requires immediate funds, an estimated Rs 800 crore, for the relief and restoration work. So far, over 12 people have lost their lives, more than 5,000 houses damaged and over 600 people have taken shelter in camps.

PTI





On Saturday, prime minister Narendra Modi spoke to Nagaland Chief Minister Neiphiu Rio and assured him of all the assistance and support to the flood-hit state in the rescue operations.

There is an acute shortage of essential commodities like food grains and medicines. Due to landslides, most roads are blocked and connectivity has been lost. The remote eastern part of the state, said Ruangmei, was the hardest hit by the landslides.

PTI





Relief materials are airdropped by Indian Air Force choppers to areas where road connections had snapped but weather conditions have made that almost difficult.
The Union Human Resource Development Ministry has asked NCERT which decides the curriculum of various subjects in schools in India to include former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayees life, achievements, and poems in its textbooks. The textbooks would contain Vajpayee's long political careers apart from his tenure as PM.

The NCERT books are used in CBSE schools across India. There was a meeting held recently on this where it was decided that the NCERT will explore ways to include more on Vajpayee in school textbooks and that the new books be adopted from 2019, told a senior official in the Department of School Education and Literacy in the Ministry to The New Indian Express. It was also decided that not only Vajpayees political achievements but also some of the poems be included in literature textbooks in various classes, the official added. Vajpayee passed away on August 16 following a prolonged illness that had kept him away from public life since 2009. He was given a state funeral by the Narendra Modi government.

The decision to include Vajpayees achievements follows the BJPs objective to make the former PM an icon in the league of Indias first PM Jawaharlal Nehru and former PM Indira Gandhi.

Rajasthan and Madhya Pradesh governments where BJP is ruling have already announced Vajpayees accomplishments. The Sarva Shiksha Abhiyan, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana, and Golden Quadrangle are main schemes initiated for former PM Vajpayee in his tenure and these two states will include these in state-level school textbooks.

We have started deliberating how more can be included in Vajpayee in political science textbooks for classes XI and XII and chapters on politics in classes IX and X, and a team is already at work, a senior NCERT official confirmed to this newspaper.

Also right poems will be identified for Hindi textbooks.

Presently class XII political science textbook mentions Vajpayee, but neither have details about his political journey nor about his work as PM. HRD minister Prakash Javedkar has asked to the concerned department to reduce the syllabus by almost half in order to reduce the burden on the students.

The portions on Vajpayee will be drafted and included in the textbooks during the ongoing revision process, another NCERT official said.
Congress is looking quite serious to win assembly election in Madhya Pradesh this time as it has asked the ticket aspirants to make sure they have social media influence. In a letter, the MP Congress Committee has asked the aspirants to be famous on social media if they at all want to remain in contention for the ticket.

ANI accessed the letter in which, MPCC has said the aspiring candidate must have 15,000 likes on his or her Facebook fanpage and 5,000 Twitter followers. Other prerequisites include a Whatsapp group of booth-level workers and retweeting every tweet from MPCC twitter handle.

The MPCC has set September 15 as the deadline for the interested candidates to submit details of their social media presence if they want their names to be in contention for the tickets.

Social media is going to play a major role in assembly elections this time as BJP has roped in roughly 65,000 cyber warriors to take on the Rajiv Ke Sipahi of the Congress.

In July, the state BJPs IT cell in-charge, Shivraj Singh Dabi announced that about 65,000 cyber warrior have been deployed by the party in last three months and 5000 more will be roped in shortly to take on a team of 4000 Rajiv Ke Sipahi.

The Congress will train 5000 more as the election gets closer as IT cell in-charge Dharmendra Bajpai said told Indian Express, We are going to hold training sessions in the states revenue divisions from June 25.

ani

He further added about how the party plans to reach out to the people via Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp,

During elections, our biggest weapon is going to be WhatsApp, Bajpai said.

Shedding light on the BJPs strategy, Dabi said, We are going to be doubly active on WhatsApp as its the biggest communication tool, especially to reach out to commoners and villagers.
The Myanmar court on Monday found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on the state secrets and sentenced them to seven years in prison.

Wa Lone 32, (left) and Kyaw Doe Oo, 28 in Reuters office in Myanmar

Yangon northern district judge Ye Lwin sentenced Wa Lone, 32, And Kyaw Doe Oo, 28, to seven years of jail for breaching the colonial era Official Secret Act when they collected and obtained confidential documents.

"The defendants...have breached Official Secrets Act section 3.1.c, and are sentenced to seven years. The time already served by the defendants from Dec. 12 will be taken into consideration," the judge said.

Press freedom advocates, the United Nations, the European Union and countries including the United States, Canada and Australia had called for the Reuters journalists' acquittal.

"Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere," Reuters editor in chief Stephen J Adler said in a statement.

reuters

The reporters told the courts that two officials had given them the papers in questions at a north Yangon restaurant moments before they were arrested. One police witness testified the restaurant meeting and said that it was a trap laid to arrest these journalists who had exposed the mass killings of Rohingya Muslims in the army in their various reports.

"I have no fear," Wa Lone, one of the two journalists, said after the verdict. "I have not done anything wrong...I believe in justice, democracy and freedom."

The verdict means Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo - who both have young daughters and have not seen their families outside of prison visits and court hearings for nearly nine months - remain behind bars.

Kyaw Soe Oo has a three-year-old daughter and Wa Lone's wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to their first child last month. It comes amid building pressure on the administration of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi over a security crackdown sparked by militant attacks in August 2017.

More than 700,000 stateless Rohingya Muslims fled across western Myanmar's border with Bangladesh, according to United Nations' agencies.

The Reuters reporters were arrested on Dec. 12 while investigating the killing of 10 Rohingya and other abuses involving soldiers and police in Inn Din, a village in Rakhine state.

Myanmar has denied allegations of atrocities made by refugees against its security forces, saying it conducted a legitimate counterinsurgency operation against Muslim militants.

reuters

But the military acknowledged the killing of the 10 Rohingya men and boys at Inn Din after arresting the Reuters reporters. The verdict had been postponed for a week because judge Ye Lwin was sick.

A UN-mandated fact-finding mission said last week Myanmar's military carried out mass killings and gang rapes of Muslim Rohingya with "genocidal intent" and called for top generals to be prosecuted. Myanmar rejected the findings.

The International Criminal Court is considering whether it has jurisdiction over events in Rakhine, while the United States, the European Union and Canada have sanctioned Myanmar military and police officers over the crackdown.

Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay has mostly declined to comment throughout the proceedings, saying Myanmar's courts were independent and the case would be conducted according to the law.

(With inputs from Reuters)
They say, shoot for the stars so that even if you fall short you fall on the moon. But, in the case of ISRO, there is no falling short at all.

In what sounds like a herculean task, ISRO is all set to launch 19 missions in the next seven months. After maintaining a relatively low profile for the past five months, ISRO is back to hustling. The 19 missions will include Indias very ambitious Chandrayaan-2, and the GSLV MkIII-D2 aka Bahubali.

ISRO

Theres also a bit of a race going on here. As India looks to launch Chandrayaan-2 somewhere between January 3, 2019  February 16, 2019, Isreal too is going to launch its lunar mission around the same time. The race is, who will become the fourth country after Russia, US and China to make a soft landing on the lunar surface. We bet thats a race you dont get to watch every day.

Indiatimes

TOI quotes ISRO Chairman K Sivan as saying, We are going to conduct 19 missions, including 10 satellites and 9 vehicle launches, between September and March. For ISRO, this will be the highest density period of launches as never before we had launched two satellites within 30 days consecutively for months. We will resume our services on September 15, with the PSLV C42 mission which will totally be a commercial launch.

Cartosat-3, Risat-2BR1, Risat 2B will increase Indias surveillance capabilities. GSAT 7A is a dedicated satellite for the IAF, which will help link their bases, AWACS aircraft and ground radar stations.

Looks like ISRO has a tough 7 months ahead of it, but knowing the folks at the organisation, theyre going to come out with flying colours.
The Singapore-based role will see Grossman take charge of the development and implementation of strategic initiatives and enhance the agencys business activities and profile across Southeast Asia, Australia, and New Zealand.

Prior to the appointment, Grossman spent 18 years at QBE in a variety of roles and locations and was most recently the insurance giants head of distribution for Asia Pacific, based in Singapore. He was also founding CEO of Insurance Brokers Network Australia (IBNA).

With his breadth of insurance experience and knowledge I am delighted to welcome Doron Grossman to our Asia-Pacific rating operations, and very much look forward to working with him to support our franchise growth across the South Asia and Oceania insurance and reinsurance markets, said Jose Ribeiro, managing director at A.M. Best Asia-Pacific.
Spalding said alcohol could impair a pedestrians judgment, balance and coordination  and the risk only gets worse when theres more alcohol in the blood.

The more alcohol in the system, the higher a pedestrians risk of being involved in a crash, Spalding said. Its the same as what we see in driving, alcohol can affect a persons ability to make good decisions, slows their reaction time, and impacts their awareness of their surroundings. That means they may not be able to accurately judge the speed of an oncoming car when they step out to cross the road.

Spalding said Queensland residents should talk to their loved ones about making safe road choices and to plan ahead before consuming alcohol.

Talk to your loved ones about using taxis, ride-sharing services, and public transport, which is available in most places  and dont forget you could always arrange a designated driver, Spalding said. If youre walking home, walk with a sober friend, stay on the footpath, and only cross the road at marked crossings or under street lights where youre clearly visible to motorists. Lets all take a moment to think about our actions when were moving about our roads  so we can all get home safely.
ONeill, who came onboard Swiss Re in 1998, has served as CEO for UKI since 2016  returning to London at the time after taking on senior roles in Zurich, Singapore, New York, and Cape Town from 2002. He was with Liberty Group in Johannesburg prior to joining the reinsurer.

I would like to thank Frank for his tremendous commitment and contribution to Swiss Re over the last 20 years, commented Russell Higginbotham, CEO Reinsurance EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa) at Swiss Re. We wish him every success in his future endeavours.

Swiss Re said the hunt for ONeills successor has been initiated. In the meantime the firms head of life & health UKI Peter Elliott will be in charge.
I am delighted that we have completed the acquisition of Standard Life Assurance, and I would like to extend a warm welcome to our new colleagues joining Phoenix, commented Bannister. This deal will result in Phoenix becoming Europes largest consolidator of heritage life funds, and the ongoing strategic partnership with Standard Life Aberdeen Plc will provide additional growth opportunities.

As previously announced, the completion of the swoop for the UK and European insurance business will also see Barry ODwyer and Campbell Fleming  both from SLA  serving as non-executive directors at Phoenix.

Corporate transformations of this scale require clear vision and huge commitment from all those involved, said Grimstone. Maintaining continuity of service and enhancing optionality for all our customers and clients has been a key imperative.

Taking over the reins at Standard Life Assurance is Phoenix stalwart Susan McInnes.
ONeill, who came onboard Swiss Re in 1998, has served as CEO for UKI since 2016  returning to London at the time after taking on senior roles in Zurich, Singapore, New York, and Cape Town from 2002. He was with Liberty Group in Johannesburg prior to joining the reinsurer.

I would like to thank Frank for his tremendous commitment and contribution to Swiss Re over the last 20 years, commented Russell Higginbotham, CEO Reinsurance EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa) at Swiss Re. We wish him every success in his future endeavours.

Swiss Re said the hunt for ONeills successor has been initiated. In the meantime the firms head of life & health UKI Peter Elliott will be in charge.

The departing executive is a board member of the Association of British Insurers.
The California Supreme Court issued an opinion in late August that utilization review physicians cannot be sued for malpractice, upholding established law that the workers comp system provides injured employees an exclusive remedy against an employer for work-related injuries.

The court considered the application of workers comp exclusivity to claims arising from the utilization review process. Utilization reviewers act on behalf of employers and determine if a treatment plan recommended for an employee injury is medically necessary.

If the reviewer concludes a treatment is not necessary, the treatment request may be denied.

In 2008, Kirk King sustained a back injury while at work, and reportedly suffered chronic pain as a result, which in turn caused anxiety and depression. In 2011, a mental health professional prescribed psychotropic drugs, including Klonopin, to King.

Dr. Naresh Sharma, an anesthesiologist employed by defendant CompPartners Inc., a utilization review management company, conducted a review in 2013 of the Klonopin prescription and determined the drug was medically unnecessary and decertified the prescription.

Sharmas decertification did not provide for a weaning regimen, nor did Sharma warn King of the risks of abruptly ceasing Klonopin and King suffered a series of seizures as a result.

In 2014, King and his wife filed a complaint in court against CompPartners and Sharma among others, asserting claims including negligence, professional negligence, and intentional and negligent infliction of emotional distress.

The defendants demurred, arguing that the Kings claims were preempted by the Workers Compensation Act, and that the negligence claims failed because Sharma owed no duty of care to King.

The trial court agreed with both arguments and sustained the demurrer without leave to amend. The Court of Appeal affirmed the order sustaining the demurrer but reversed the denial of leave to amend. The Court of Appeal also held that Sharma owed King a duty of care.

The California Supreme Court in the August opinion affirmed the Court of Appeals judgment insofar as it affirmed the trial courts sustaining of the demurrer, but it reversed its judgment insofar as it permitted the Kings to amend their complaint to bolster their claim that defendants are liable in tort for failure to warn.

The case has been remanded to the Court of Appeal for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.

Topics California Legislation Workers' Compensation Drugs
Here's your morning bulletin.

GET INFORMED ...

IRELAND: Ireland has a new Garda Commissioner. Donall O Cualain stepped down as Acting Commissioner at midnight last night with Drew Harris immediately taking up the new role.

IRELAND: The Adoption Authority (AAI) sent three reports on illegal birth registrations  including a spreadsheet of 90 cases  to the Department of Children in 2015, three years before the St Patricks Guild scandal.

IRELAND: Low-income households with mortgages will have measures extended to defer property tax payments, under proposals set to go to Cabinet.

WORLD: A Burma court has sentenced two Reuters journalists to seven years in prison for illegal possession of official documents while reporting on violence against Rohingya Muslims.

VIEWS: Eager presidential hopefuls are promising everything, from rail lines to handing ministers their P45s to dressing up as Hollywood icons to entertain foreign dignitaries.

SPORT: Dublins All-Ireland winning captain Stephen Cluxton took the opportunity in his acceptance speech to address claims the county are buttressed by their financial clout and 1.5 million population.

... SOME DISTRACTION

[imgcap=]https://www.irishexaminer.com/remote/image.assets.pressassociation.io/v2/image/production/3a63dd75c328fbe6a657aaed005a345aY29udGVudHNlYXJjaCwxNTM2MDExMzkz/2.31985209.jpg?crop=0,0,3500,1969&ext=.jpg&width=600[/imgcap]

SHOWBIZ: U2 frontman Bono has assured fans nothing is seriously wrong with his voice after he was forced to cut short a concert in Germany.

FEATURE: In advance of her visit to Co Cork, former Hammer and Bond actress Madeline Smith tells John Daly about a very different era of film-making.

CULTURE: As well as delving into the highlights of 25 years of the Leeside company, Alan Foley says the new film also gives insight into the life of a professional dancer.
Here's your lunchtime bulletin.

GET INFORMED ...

IRELAND: Sinn Fein are to table a motion of no confidence in Housing Minister Eoghan Murphy.

IRELAND: Presidential hopeful and Dragons Den star Peter Casey has said that Ireland's neutrality is outdated as he called on the country to align itself with NATO.

IRELAND: Britains departure from the European Union (EU) could trigger Scots to vote for independence and also bring about a united Ireland, new polling has suggested.

IRELAND: The Tanaiste says he has no issue with people protesting over the visit of US President Donald Trump to Ireland in November.

WORLD:French children returning to school after their summer holidays will have to do so without their mobile phones.

VIEWS: Scholars writing for The Conversation have pointed out the complex challenges facing the Catholic Church today and why, as a result, it has been hard to address the issue of clergy sexual abuse. Here are four highlights.

SPORT: Painful memories of Mickey Hartes first defeat in four All-Ireland finals will fade into the mists of time if his players can use the experience to better themselves and close the gap on the four-times champions.

... SOME DISTRACTION

SHOWBIZ: Former Emmerdale star Roxanne Pallett has apologised and said she got it wrong after she claimed that actor Ryan Thomas punched her in the Celebrity Big Brother house.

DISCOVER: With the recent changes in the weather, some are already starting to stock up on turf for the winter. For this Dublin man, his attempt at being proactive led to some hilarious results.

FEATURES: Everybody involved seems to benefit when kids from playschools visit nursing homes.
Low-income households with mortgages will have measures extended to defer property tax payments, under proposals set to go to Cabinet.

Finance Minister Paschal Donohoe will ask colleagues to approve the extension of mortgage interest deferral relief for local property tax (LPT) liabilities. This will benefit close to 2,000 households.

The Irish Examiner understands this relief will only be extended for one year more as the Finance Minister, Revenue, and the Taoiseach among others are examining an overall review of the LPT for all households.

This follows rises in property values and concern about subsequent LPT rates to apply once a freeze on increases ends next year. Mr Donohoe has said he wants LPT bills to remain roughly the same.

Cabinet will be told this week that, as next years property tax payments fall due in November, reliefs need to be extended in legislation this month.

A number of reliefs are available for LPT liabilities, including income threshold, for representatives of a deceased person, for personal insolvency, and for hardship reasons.

Income thresholds for LPT reliefs can be increased by thousands of euro. Thresholds for qualifying for relief can be increased by amounts equivalent to 80% of mortgage interest paid by the liable person.

A single persons income must be below 15,000 for a full deferral. Partial deferral is allowed if income is below 25,000. These rise for couples. The thresholds are also increased by adding the figure equivalent to 80% of the mortgage interest relief, thereby potentially raising it by several thousand euro.

Cabinet will be told there are almost 2,000 deferral claims this year but that this could rise. The move is expected to cost less than 1m. The Government has yet to agree changes to new LPT rates. The freeze on rates ends next year, when households must again assess the values of properties. With huge rises in house values, the fear is that there would be big increases in LPT bills.

The Cabinet is tomorrow also expected to agree to increases in judges pay, in line with agreements to restore public sector rates and unravel Fempi measures introduced in the recession.

Restoration of judges pay must be agreed separately. Salary scales have already been adjusted twice in the last year, when pay restoration was applied for those earning over 110,000, including judges. Under this third round of restoration, new levels for judges appointed before 2012 will see the chief justice paid 247,443, High Court president 229,896 and a Supreme Court judge 215,860.
Arlene Schar Leffler and Dr. David Leffler





By Arlene Schar Leffler and Dr. David Leffler





TASS reports that Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov argues that expenses on the upcoming Vostok-2018 large-scale military drills are justified in order to maintain Russia's defense capability amid the tense international situation. He also said that "...the country's defense capability in the current international situation, which is frequently quite aggressive and unfriendly for our country, is justified, needed and has no alternative." We agree with Dmitry Peskov that high social tensions worldwide indicate that this is a difficult and dangerous time. Where we disagree is that there is no alternative. There is a proven alternative.





It is a scientific, military field-tested alternative. The method comes from the union of social science and quantum unified field theory--not from approaches utilizing weaponry, and not from the field of politics. The quickest and most effective way to implement this alternative would be for President Vladimir Putin as The Supreme Commander-in-Chief of the Russian Armed Forces, to issue an order to the Russian military. Once successfully implemented, a social phase transition would begin in which the high societal stress globally fueling crime, poverty, terrorism, and war would be alleviated. Greatly dissipating these formerly intractable problems nationally and globally would elevate President Putin to the status of world leader and great humanitarian.





Invincible Defense Technology: A Non-Religious, Humane and Beneficial Approach





This approach is called Invincible Defense Technology (IDT). The practical components of IDT are the non-religious Transcendental Meditation (TM) and the more advanced TM-Sidhi programs. When large groups of experts practice these programs together, a powerful field effect of coherence and peace is generated that spills over into the surrounding population. This effect has been shown in extensive scientific research documenting, for example, reductions in verbal hostilities and hostile acts, increased number of cooperative events, and other improvements in quality of life such as reduced accidents, hospital admissions, and infant mortality. Studies also have repeatedly confirmed measurable decreases in war, terrorism, and crime. These are all tangible signs of reduction of societal stress. Due to this research the non-profit organization Global Union of Scientists for Peace (GUSP) advocates this simple and cost-effective approach for reducing social stress (see: https://www.gusp.org/global-peace-summit).





In highly stressed areas of the globe, establishment of large groups of experts in IDT has led to increased prosperity and economic growth, including a decrease in the "misery index," an indicator of socioeconomic stress, and significant increase in competitive growth. These positive changes in social trends have occurred concomitant with implementation of IDT approaches. This coherence-creating effect was documented on a global scale in a study published in the Journal of Offender Rehabilitation. When large assemblies of civilian IDT experts gathered during the years 1983-1985, terrorism-related casualties decreased 72%, international conflict decreased 32%, and overall violence was reduced in nations without intrusion by other governments (summaries of this research are available at: https://davidleffler.com/2011/sapratableii). Due to these positive changes, militaries in South America and Africa are actively field-testing this approach. They established IDT Prevention Wings of the Military to reduce crime, quell violence, create prosperity, prevent the rise of enemies, and create the conditions for lasting peace.





Invincible Defense Technology is Cost-Effective





For the cost of a few modern fighter jets, President Putin could have the military establish a group of at least 15,000 warriors trained in this advanced IDT approach. This Prevention Wing of the Military would practice IDT programs twice a day in large groups to defuse social tension in the Russia and globally. Studies indicate that, once such a program becomes operational, societal conditions in the Russia and other countries worldwide will immediately improve. Collective consciousness of all populations will rise through the influence of greater harmony and peace. Better solutions will occur to the people and their leaders for improving their own living conditions. Those who have engaged in violence will no longer do so. Studies have shown repeatedly that this method works--and will continue to work as long as the peace-creating group is maintained.





Nothing Else has worked. Time for President Putin to Try Something New and Proven





Given the many approaches previously tried by world leaders that have not worked, including many inhumane actions, it is certainly worth giving this benevolent approach a try. It is simple, inexpensive, has a track record of high success. Russia could become the world leader of this cutting-edge brain-based technology. With IDT, President Putin would not only make Russia great once again, but would make Russia greater than before, as well as globally respected and admired.





About the Authors:




By Christy Parker

Cobh, globally renowned for its seaport history, is seeking help to highlight the towns more urban past.

The town is indelibly linked with major maritime events, being Titanics last port of call in 1912 and also having strong connections with the 1915 torpedo attack on the Lusitania.

John (Jack) Flanagan of Glenanaar Place, Cobh, Co Cork, taking his granddaughter Carol Boyle (Stafford), from Westview, for a stroll circa 1968, in West Beach, in the town.

Now the towns museum is developing a street photography exhibition with organisers looking for photographs of townspeople going about their business during the 1950s and 60s.

The voluntary-run Cobh Museum has a vast Victorian era photo collection and has hosted exhibitions of various time periods.

The upcoming showcase will help us compile a social history portfolio of those two decades, for which we have very little photographic material, says museum director Yvonne Allen.

Yvonne believes there are hundreds, if not thousands of street photos in households around the town and even in homes of ex-pats across Ireland and abroad.

A lot of people would have had cameras in those days and Im sure there are people with Cobh connections everywhere who were maybe captured or took photos themselves during those decades, says the director. Wed love to have them for consideration.

Professional photographers from the time may also have prints or negatives.

We have received a couple of photos that were taken by a Mr Hannifan who ran a studio in the Top of the Hill, Sandymount area, Ms Allen reveals, but we dont know if any of his work is out there or who might have it.

She says the exhibition has long-term significance. Like most Irish towns, Cobh was a very different place then and it is important that that period is never forgotten and the photos will be archived for future generations.

The original prints can be posted or hand-delivered before being scanned by museum staff and immediately returned. Email copies are also accepted.

Submissions, before February 1 next must include names, location, approximate date and photographers identity. The exhibition will run April 1-October 31, 2019. Inquiries: Cobh Museum, Scots; Church High Road (021) 4814240; cobhmuseum.com
A woman has died following a crash on the M1 northbound between Junctions 10 and 11.

Gardai in Drogheda are investigating the fatal collision which occurred at approximately 1.20am.
A 30-year-old entrepreneur is opening a pioneering new school in Dublin today worth 4.6million euro.

The Dublin Academy of Education provides full-time education for fifth year, sixth year and repeat Leaving Certificate students in a bespoke building in Stillorgan.

The school opens with a full-intake of 200 students for the 2018/2019 academic year. 130 of these will sit their Leaving Certificate exams in June 2019.

Education entrepreneur Chris Lauder says everyone remembers one incredible teacher who gave them a love for learning and the confidence to succeed and he's trying to recreate that for an entire school, head-hunting 30 full-time peer and student reviewed teachers from across the country.

"Its said that great results start with great teachers. Nearly everyone remembers that one incredible teacher they had who gave them a love for a particular subject and the confidence to succeed," he said.

"Weve developed an entire faculty of teachers that share this same passion to help students to achieve grades they didnt think possible, but also to help them develop the confidence, mindset and skills to be successful at third-level and beyond, realising their true potential and getting the most from life."

He wants the Dublin Academy of Education, to unlocking extra potential in every student, supporting both their physical and mental health.

"There is immense pressure on young people today. We all have memories of our Leaving Certificate experience. These formative years are instrumental to the development of our young people and play an integral role in shaping the adults they become," said Principal Michael Ruaidhri Deasy.

With an ever-increased focus on results, many students are leaving second-level education with low confidence and ill-equipped with the skills to deal with the challenges of third-level and beyond. We want to change that.

Mr Lauder says it is about challenging the norms of learning for young people and re-imagining second level education.
By Joyce Fegan

The sold-out Electric Picnic, which heralds the end of the summer and had Hozier play a surprise gig, came to an electrifying close last night with The Prodigy and their Firestarter.

Festival-goers at the Electric Ireland Throwback Stage during day two of Electric Picnic 2018 at Stradbally in Laois.

This years festival in Stradbally, Co Laois, was a smorgasbord of culture, arts, and politics, with the topics of homelessness and human rights cropping up on several stages, and large crowds not confined to the music tents, with hundreds queuing to hear the likes of Blindboy Boatclub carry out his political cabaret.

The audience included Bonos wife, Ali Hewson, who was there to see their son Eli perform with his band, Inhaler. The Bishop of Kildare and Leighlin, Denis Nulty, also called looking for a ticket on Thursday, and spent Friday at the festival.

Best-selling author Marian Keyes was another draw to the non-music tents, where she chatted about her writing process, the recent referendum on the Eighth Amendment, and housing and homelessness.

In the new podcast tent, comedian Alison Spittle cracked sides as she interviewed Irelands best-known screenwriter, Sharon Horgan, who was home from London for the festival.

Back to music, there was everything from the major headliners such as The Prodigy, Kendrick Lamar, and N.E.R.D., to the Dublin Ukulele Collective and the Dublin Gospel Choir.

A view of the Andy Warhol and Jimi Hendrix campsites at Electric Picnic yesterday.

The Dublin Ukulele Collectives set yesterday was representative of the festivals vibe, with a five-year-old girl pulled from the chock-a-block crowd to lead a rendition of Counting Stars with her tambourine.

Cork band the Frank & Walters also had a guest, when Young Offenders actor Shane Casey joined them for a rendition of After All.

The diverse crowd included all ages and nationalities, consuming everything from cocktails to beer and chai tea.

Overhead hung clothing lines of baby-grows, just one of the many art installations to be found around Stradbally. Others included bicycle wheels hanging from trees, as well as porch rocking-chairs.

The mix of age groups has always been a talking-point of Electric Picnic and this year was no different, with the sight of babies being pulled around in wooden carts becoming commonplace.

Also a common vision were the glitter-covered faces adorned with jewels and worn by men, women, boys, and girls alike.

Gender was another talking point yesterday, with Sara Phillips, chair of the Transgender Equality Network Ireland, discussing the use of pronouns and them and they when it comes to everyday conversations around trans rights.

She said it was important to give people breathing-space when it comes to trans and gender issues, as most people are trying their best but might not have the perfectly correct language with which to discuss the topic.

Face make-up aside, fashion was a sight to behold, with mens suits made from anything and everything, including TV test-card print material, and a large percentage of the women wearing garments covered in sequins. Wellies were not a standout feature of this years festival, but the food was.

As ever at Electric Picnic, you could eat like royalty, with something to suit every palate, including hand-rolled ice-cream and chickpea burgers.

Next years tickets go on sale this Friday, and the plan is to keep the price the same, but perhaps increase the number available by about 2,500.
Gardai are seeking the public's help in locating John Donovan, 15, who has been missing from Dublin 1 since August 31, 2018.

John is described as being 5' 7" tall, with medium build, brown hair and blue eyes.
The Adoption Authority (AAI) sent three reports on illegal birth registrations  including a spreadsheet of 90 cases  to the Department of Children in 2015, three years before the St Patricks Guild scandal.

The revelation comes as the department claims the 126 illegal birth-registration cases discovered by Tusla in May in the files of former adoption agency St Patricks Guild represent the only cases in which clear evidence of incorrect registrations has been found.

The Irish Examiner previously reported that the department was told about illegal birth registrations by the AAI as far back as in 2011, and again in 2013.

However, it has now emerged that the regulatory body for adoption sent the department three separate reports on illegal registrations, including detailed information on 90 cases.

In a cover letter attached to the reports, sent on June 4, 2015, to the principal officer of the departments adoption policy unit, Noreen Leahy, AAI chief executive Patricia Carey stressed the level of detail it was supplying.

Appendix 1 gives a redacted summary of a small number of cases. The final document [names redacted] gives a listing of specific cases the authority is aware of, states the letter.

The AAI told the Irish Examiner this final document contained the spreadsheet of 90 cases, with the names of the individuals redacted. In the letter, Ms Carey said the information had been collected on foot of a 2010 internal review and that all information gathered at that time was sent to the department.

She also indicated that the authority had told the department of the need for an audit of all adoption records.

Without a full review of each and every file related to adoptions/placements, it is not possible to quantify what the actual number of illegal registrations may be, said the letter.

The department announced a scoping exercise, such as an audit of records in May of this year.

The AAI provided the Irish Examiner with a summary of the information in the two other reports it sent to the department in 2015. The first report was an overview of the historical context around illegal birth registrations and pointed out that the practice was carried out by doctors, nursing homes, midwives, priests and some adoption agencies.

Childrens Minister Katherine Zappone

The second report is an analysis of information the AAI holds on illegal birth registration and an overview of the National Adoption Contact Preference Register, which has been in operation since 2005.

The report states that a list was compiled, by the Information and Tracing Unit, of cases where there were no adoption records and it appeared that the persons birth had been illegally registered, states the AAI summary.

Finally, the report gives information on particular entities, which have provided the authority with information on illegal birth registrations and the practice of children being adopted from birth.

This phrase was found marked on the 126 cases discovered by Tusla earlier this year.

In June, Childrens Minister Katherine Zappone said that a validation exercise is underway with respect to 140 cases of illegal registrations reported to her department by the AAI. These include the 90 cases reported in 2015.

Her department said the information supplied to it by the AAI in 2015 related to cases where the appearance of irregular activity suggested the possibility of an incorrect registration having occurred, before pointing out that the 126 cases found by Tusla this year were confirmed cases of illegal birth registration.

The 126 cases currently being dealt with by Tusla were confirmed, once a rigorous process was completed to ensure that the State could be as sure as possible that these individuals births were, in fact, illegally registered, said the department.
A new political party, which plans to campaign for Ireland to leave the EU, will be launched next weekend.

The Irexit Freedom party will hold a conference in Dublin next Saturday with the goal of seeing Ireland exit Europe.
By Niall Murray

Irish heather honey makers could make a sweeter return on their produce as a result of research showing that it has the same health benefits as one of the most expensive types.

Saorla Kavanagh examined 131 honey samples from 78 places in Ireland as part of her PhD research at Dublin City University (DCU).

She found that the honeys collected from bees that forage on pollen from bell and ling heathers had levels of antioxidant compounds similar to those in manuka honey.

These properties help prevent damage in body cells, and its anti-bacterial activity makes manuka one of the most medicinally effective honeys, with a related increase in what customers pay for it.

Ms Kavanagh said the high demand and retail value of manuka honey suggest the potential health benefits of Irish heather honey should now be investigated further.

Being able to identify particular characteristics in honey which are associated with its health benefits, and rapidly assessing these characteristics in Irish honey, could help beekeepers to market their honey appropriately and increase its commercial value, she said.

Most honeys sold are a blend of honeys from two or more sources, like the multi-floral ones that made up the majority of those tested in the research. It was the first comparison of Irish single-origin honeys, with honeys from the nectar of oilseed rape and ivy also included in the sample.

The samples donated to the research at DCUs school of chemical sciences by Irish beekeepers included 55 urban and 69 from rural locations. Ms Kavanagh found that multi-floral honeys produced by urban bees had higher levels of the anti-oxidant phenolic compounds that are important for health, possibly because of the diversity and abundance of flowers surrounding hives.

Honey that originates from pollen in a single plants flowers can be identified by its colour and flavour, but also from chemical markers and sometimes by quantifying microscopic pollen grains in it.

The higher the total phenolic content (TPC), giving it higher anti-oxidant capacity, the darker in colour a honey usually is. However, ivy honey proved an exception, as it was the darkest analysed despite having lower TPC than heather or manuka honeys.

Of the seven Irish single origin honeys in the study, heather honey had the highest TPC, even higher than manuka honey. Like manuka, heather honey from northern Europe also commands a higher price.

Ms Kavanaghs work is funded by the Irish Research Council, and the findings are published in the Food Chemistry journal. The article is co-written with academic supervisors Blanaid White of DCU school of chemical sciences and Jane Stout at Trinity College Dublins school of natural sciences, as well as Jessicaa Gunnoo and Thayse Marques Passos at DCU.
By Michael Clifford

A major row over the right of the State to compulsorily acquire land is threatening the construction of a greenway way regarded as a vital piece of tourist infrastructure.

The greenway, planned to run along an old railway line in south Kerry, taking in spectacular views, is regarded as having the potential to transform the area as a holiday destination.

However, after protracted negotiations with farmers to acquire the land along the disused railway broke down, Kerry County Council is to issue compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) on all the 197 landowners along the 32km proposed route. At least 30 of them, mainly farmers, say they will resist attempts to acquire any of their holding.

The standoff is backed by the Irish Farmers Association (IFA), which says a matter of principle is at issue. Last Wednesday, Kerry County Council sought planning permission for the 4m project. If and when Bord Pleanala grant permission, the CPO process will begin.

The council has already met resistance while trying to enter two of the holdings to conduct site work. Later this month, it will apply in the district court to be granted an order to gain access to the lands in question.

The Irish Examiner understands that, initially, just four to six of the owners refused ti agree to a greenway going through the lands. However, those in dispute has swelled since the council decided in 2015 to go down the CPO route. Originally, the greenway was scheduled to be completed by June 2016.

While we value the importance of tourism we dont think it is critical that a greenway has to be in a set place, said the IFA environment chairman Thomas Cooney.

Chair of the development group in Cahirciveen, Frank Curran, says the greenway would be a gamechanger.

We could have hundreds of thousands coming into the area every year and 70 or 80 jobs created directly.




SAPTARI, Sept 3: Minister for Finance Dr Yubaraj Khatiwada has reaffirmed that the taxation in multi points would be ended very soon.





Inaugurating the office of the Tax Payers Service at Rajbiraj in the district today, Minister Dr Khatiwada said that the federal government would coordinate with the provincial and local government to end the taxation on wider subjects.





Dr Khatiwada said, "There should be single point tax instead of multi point tax but it will be soon ended and the tax payers could pay tax in a single place."

He argued that the taxation should be within the parameter of law and stressed on increased the taxation areas as the development of the country was not possible by foreign aid alone.





The Minister stated that there were false rumours doing rounds among the public but it is imperative to develop the local unit and it is also imperative to develop taxpaying habit.





Minister Khatiwada opined that the public should be aware about the taxation system while the people's representatives should make the best utilization of the tax paid by their public.





On the occasion, Minister Khatiwada handed over the certificates to those service seekers reaching out to the Office of the Tax Payers Service to receive IPAN number.





The recipients were Amrita Jha, Sunita Dev and Shambhudev Chaudhary.

Similarly, Secretary at the Internal Revenue Sishir Kumar Dhungel shared that the newly inaugurated office was set up in Rajbiraj to render services to the tax payers.




Few Irish adults realise how prevalent HPV infection is or how much of a risk it poses to men, research has found.

Just one in three people questioned knew that men and women are equally susceptible to HPV (human papillomavirus) infection and only one in 10 men knew that they are almost certain to be infected by HPV at some stage in their lives.

Doctors and cancer charities have joined forces to try to increase public awareness about HPV which, in its worst form, is chiefly known for causing cervical cancer in women but can also cause a range of other cancers and medical conditions in both men and women.

It is critical that people know that HPV infection doesnt discriminate between males and females, said Liz Yeates, chief executive of the Marie Keating Foundation.

HPV infection affects almost everyone.

Ms Yates and other advocates also want to encourage more parents to ensure their children get vaccinated against HPV infection under the free national immunisation programme.

The programme is currently only open to girls in first year in secondary school, as well as to young men who have sex with men and young men and women who are HIV positive, but the Department of Health has ordered an assessment of the viability of extending it to first-year boys too.

Hiqa, the health service standards watchdog, is examining the costs and impact of vaccinating boys and is expected to present its findings to Health Minister Simon Harris by the end of this year.

Mr Harris has said that if Hiqa backs the idea, he will too.

The survey of public knowledge about HPV that has caused concern to health professionals was conducted among 1,000 adults by polling company Behaviour and Attitudes and was commissioned by pharmaceutical company MSD, which manufactures Gardasil, the HPV vaccine used in Ireland.

Ray OSullivan, consultant in obstetrics and gynaecology at St Lukes Hospital, Kilkenny, said HPV infection rates are rising rapidly among both men and women in high-income countries like Ireland.

It is worrying to see such low levels of HPV awareness, especially when it is possible to prevent certain types of HPV infection that could cause certain cancers, said Prof OSullivan.

HPV is very common and almost all sexually active people will contract it at some point in their life, usually in one of its many harmless forms.

However, it caused, on average, 420 cancers in men and women every year between 2010 and 2014, and kills 100 women and 30 men each year, mainly through cervical cancer but also anal cancer.

Cork-based GP Nick Flynn said people need to educate themselves about HPV and he urged them to raise their questions and concerns with a healthcare professional.

Current uptake of the HPV vaccine is at just 62% nationally in the schools programme, he said.

Immunisation of first year girls began in 2010 and the uptake hit close to 90% in the first few years but it fell to almost 50% after a campaign by a parents group who claims that the vaccine has damaged their daughters health.

Rates are rising again following a concerted public awareness campaign to counter the claims, while the recent cervical cancer screening scandal is also expected to have an impact on numbers by reinforcing the terminal nature of an advanced cervical cancer diagnosis.

As well as cervical cancer, HPV can cause cancers of the vagina, vulva, and anus, along with genital warts.

Irish Cancer Society chief executive Averil Power said: We want to help to increase awareness that almost everyone is at risk of HPV infection and that immunisation can help.
Dart users are angry at Irish Rail over timetable changes which will see fewer trains stopping at three northside stations.

From next Monday, Darts are to run more frequently, meaning there will be a train every 10 minutes in both directions.
By David Raleigh

Update 2.30pm: Tributes have been paid to a pensioner killed in a hit and run in Co Limerick.

The victim, named locally as Danny Brosnan, from Rylands, Ballingarry, was found dead about 100 yards from his home last night.

Mr Brosnan, 76, was pronounced dead at the scene after he had earlier apparently been struck by a vehicle.

Gardai have sought help from the public in tracing the hit and run driver and vehicle involved.

Its understood Mr Brosnan, who was a keen walker, had gone for a late evening stroll when he was critically injured.

The R518 between Ballingarry and Rathkeale, where the fatal incident occurred, was closed Sunday night and into Monday to allow for a Garda Forensic Collision Inspector conduct a detailed examination of the scene.

Gardai at Newcastle West garda station are investigating the incident and have appealed for anyone with information to contact them in confidence.

Ballingarry Parish Priest, Fr Dan Lane, offered his deepest sympathies to Mr Brosnans family.

Mr Brosnan is survived by his wife Brigid known as Biddy and their five children.

Fr Lane said he received a phone call to go to the scene shortly after emergency services had responded to Mr Brosnan.

I prayed over him and I gave him his Last Rites and then I went to see his family, Fr Lane said.

Danny is from Rylands. He may have been out on a walk. He was found close to his home.

He regularly walked, and he had a lovely dog who he nearly always took with him on his walks He walked the dog a couple of times a day.

Fr Lane said Mr Brosnan was a lovely , lovely mana beautiful man.

Id often meet him and have a chat. He would pass my own house a lot when he was out walking.

Hes very well known. Its very tragic, Fr Lane added.

According to a reliable source, Mr Brosnan had, earlier on Sunday, attended Knockaderry GAA Club, to see members of the Limerick All-Ireland Hurling winners parade the Liam MacCarthy Cup on its tour of the county.

He was a quiet man, who would always be out walking his dog. He died about 100 yards from his own house; its terrible, they said.

He had an interest in the GAA and he went to look at the Liam MacCarthy Cup in Knockaderry.

He was a nice quiet man.

Appealing for witnesses, a garda spokesman said: Gardai in Newcastle West, Co Limerick are investigating a fatal hit and run road traffic collision at Ballingarry, Co Limerick on the 2nd of September 2018.

The collision occurred shortly before 11pm at Rylands, (on the Ballingarry to Rathkeale Rd) R518.

A male (76 years) was fatally injured and pronounced dead at the scene.

Mr Brosnans body was removed from the scene to Limerick University Hospital Limerick where a post mortem was expected to take place later.

The road is currently closed to facilitate a forensic collision examination and local diversions are in place, the garda spokesman said.

Gardai are appealing for witnesses, for anyone with information in connection with the collision or anyone who may have been on that stretch of road between 10.30pm and 11.15pm on the 2nd of September to contact them on 069 20650, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any Garda station.

Earlier: Elderly man killed in hit-and-run in Limerick

Update 8.49am: A 76-year-old man was killed in a hit-and-run in Limerick.

The collision occurred shortly before 11pm last night at Rylands on the Ballingarry to Rathkeale Rd.

The man was fatally injured and pronounced dead at the scene.

His body was removed to the mortuary at Limerick University Hospital where a post mortem will take place later today.

The road is currently closed to facilitate a forensic collision examination and local diversions are in place.

Gardai are appealing for witnesses, for anyone with information in connection with the collision or anyone who may have been on that stretch of road between 10.30pm and 11.15pm on September 2 to contact them on 069 20650, the Garda Confidential Line on 1800 666 111 or any Garda station.

Digital Desk
By Caroline ODoherty and Juno McEnroe

US president Donald Trump has been branded dangerous and a menace to democracy by the Labour Party, which is urging the public to protest at his visit to Ireland.

Labour leader Brendan Howlin said that normal diplomatic protocols did not apply to Mr Trump, whose conduct was so far below the threshold of decency he had lost the privilege of red-carpet treatment.

Mr Howlin urged people to harness the spirit of 2003, when more than 100,000 marched in opposition to the Iraq War.

Now is another time where people from all walks of life need to raise their voices together, he said.

The backlash to the announcement that Mr Trump intends coming to Ireland while in Europe for Armistice Day commemorations in November has grown over the weekend.

Two ministers, Finian McGrath and John Halligan of the Independent Alliance, said they would boycott any official engagements with Mr Trump and join opposition demonstrations instead. Fine Gael senator Catherine Noone described Mr Trump as a misogynist whose visit would be a headache for the Government.

People Before Profit TDs said they were already in touch with a ragne of groups to organise mass protests. Mr Howlin said his party would also actively oppose the visit, working with likeminded people.

Under normal circumstances, the president of the USA would be welcomed in Ireland, whether he or she was Democrat or Republican, he said. There are deep and permanent bonds of friendship between the peoples of Ireland and the United States that will long outlast the Trump presidency. But we are not in anything like normal circumstances when it comes to this unwelcome visit.

He said his opposition was based on Mr Trumps policies on immigration, security, and international relations, his habitual lying, and attitudes towards non-whites, women, and media.

Trump... has befriended authoritarian leaders while spurning democratically-elected ones, which has real consequences for human rights around the world as tyrants are emboldened to greater oppression of their people or of minorities, said Mr Howlin.

Trumps values are not our values and there should be no welcome for this man. We must send a clear signal around the world that dangerous politicians will be opposed by all democratic means. Trump is a menace to democracy and our way of life. Trump is not welcome in Ireland.

Campaign group, United Against Racism called on Taoiseach Leo Varadkar to uninvite Mr Trump and said it would organise a mass rally if the visit went ahead.

Accusing Mr Trump of racism, sexism, and war-mongering, group organiser Memet Uludag pleaded: Dont bring the voice of hatred to this land.

Fianna Fail has said that the visit should go ahead but should be used as an opportunity by the Taoiseach to impress upon Mr Trump Irish opposition to his policies.
By Niall Murray and Aoife Moore

The shark that bit an angler on a boat outside Cork harbour at the weekend was nowhere near swimming waters, a lifeboat spokesperson has assured the public.

Described as a nip or a flesh wound, the bite to the fishermans lower left forearm happened around teatime on Saturday, when the visiting fishermen, were around 20km south-east of Cork harbour.

The fisherman, Robert Malcomson, was part of a group from the North fishing for shark on the chartered deep-sea angling boat, Deora De. He was trying to dehook the fish when the bite occured.

The injury is absolutely not life-changing and it was a repairable flesh wound, a Crosshaven RNLI spokesman said.

He was successful in catching the shark, just unlucky in dehooking.

The lifeboat crew was called at around 6pm and the volunteers launched immediately.

The guys on board did everything right, the lifeboat spokesperson said. It was a small nip while fishing. The first aid he received from the men on his boat was second to none.

He said that while blue sharks are common, this was the first shark bite the crew had attended.

Crosshaven RNLI come to the aid of Robert Malcomson, who was bitten on his left arm by a blue shark.

Id like everyone to keep in mind that the shark was nowhere near angling or swimming water levels, he said. This was more of an angling accident than a shark attack, there was a bit of a struggle when pulling the shark on board.

Although blue sharks are the most common species of shark in Irish waters, they rarely bite humans. They usually feed on small fish and squid, and can live for around 20 years.

SHARK BITE - We're speaking to Belfast man Robert who sustained a serious lower arm injury on Saturday evening after being bitten by a Blue Shark whilst angling South of Roches Point. Crosshaven lifeboat came to his aid and brought him to CUH. He says his arm is still bleeding! pic.twitter.com/i9YfOulxAB  Neil Prendeville (@NeilRedFM) September 3, 2018

Until 2013, the blue shark was implicated in only 13 biting incidents with humans, four of which ended fatally.

The operation to get the man to medical attention included direct communication between those on the angling vessel and an emergency doctor at Cork University Hospital (CUH).

Our first aid wouldnt win any beauty awards but... we stemmed the bleeding and got it covered up, said James Linehan, who was also on board the Deora De.

The boat steamed towards Crosshaven and linked up with the Crosshaven RNLI crew about 7km south of Roches Point near the harbour entrance. The mans injury was well strapped before being transferred to the lifeboat, where further casualty care was given.

An ambulance crew met the lifeboat on its return to Crosshaven and took him on to Cork University Hospital for treatment.

Mr Linehan thanked the lifeboat volunteers, Coast Guard teams at Cork and Valentia, the doctor at CUHs Medico Cork service, which provides the medical telephone service to vessels in Irish territorial waters, and the National Ambulance Service.
Justice Minister Charlie Flanagan has dismissed concerns about the appointment of Garda commissioner Drew Harris, saying the Government is not hiring a police chief from North Korea.

Sufficient vetting of the former PSNI deputy chief constable was also conducted, he said, amid criticism that state security services have been unable to properly scrutinise Mr Harriss background.

Donall O Cualain will step down as acting Garda commissioner today and the new Garda commissioner takes up his role. An attestation ceremony will take place at Kevin Street garda HQ.

Mr Harris will be attested by a peace commissioner and will sign the Garda Code of Ethics and the Official Secrets Act. Last month, the High Court dismissed a challenge aimed at stopping Mr Harris from taking up his role. It was brought by a relative of a person killed in the troubles. Researcher Ciaran MacAirt had claimed Mr Harris lacked the independence required to be commissioner due to this PSNI role.

He claimed Mr Harris had signed and is bound by the UKs Official Secrets Act, making it difficult to fully discharge his duties as the next Garda chief. The action was dismissed.

Former gardai and defence force members are also concerned that, while Mr Harris is an Irish citizen, he cannot be securely vetted, as he worked in intelligence roles in another state and that he may have problems overseeing any historical inquiries into the past.

However, the justice minister rubbished the claims and says there was vetting of the new garda chief. He also denied there was a conflict in Mr Harris signing the official secrets act here after doing the same for the UK.

I see this as an attempt to somehow damage the commissioner even before he starts. I think it is very unfair, he said.

Once attested, Mr Harris would be subject to the same legal obligations as any garda, he told RTE. He has defended democracy and the rule of law all his professional life. His father was brutally murdered by enemies of democracy, said the minister, referring to the the IRA killing of Mr Harriss father in a car bombing 30 years ago.

The criticism was politically motivated, said Mr Flanagan, adding: We are not hiring a commissioner from North Korea or Russia. We are hiring a policeman from a police service on our island. We are hiring somebody whose track record we know to be sound.

Meanwhile, the minister has told TDs they must waive any scrutiny of the planned referendum on removing the reference to a womans place in the home from the Constitution or the vote will not go ahead.

He told the Oireachtas Justice Committee, in a letter, that there was only a small window to now arrange for the vote for October 26, as is planned.

TDs will debate tomorrow if a gender-neutral clause or a reference to carers should be inserted into the Constitution instead of a straight deletion of the womans place in the home. However, any scrutiny of the planned vote will derail the referendum, Mr Flanagan has warned. He wrote:

I am greatly concerned that the window of opportunity to hold a referendum to remove Article 41.2 of the Constitution is rapidly closing. The Referendum Commission has indicated that it needs to begin working on the referendum proposal immediately.

The move will add pressure to the committee which meets tomorrow.
By Juno McEnroe and Catherine Shanahan

The husband of a woman who died from cervical cancer has called for an inquiry into the CervicalCheck controversy to be published as soon as possible.

Health Minister Simon Harris is expected to receive the independent report later this week and then possibly publish the inquiry the following week.

The Scally inquiry is likely to recommend a full commission of investigation. It will also examine why 200 women diagnosed with cancer were not told their smear tests were incorrectly read.

Stephen Teaps wife, Irene, died over a year ago of cervical cancer. The Cork mother was diagnosed in 2015, after two undisclosed false tests, in 2010 and 2013.

The widower, who is on the steering committee for the Scally inquiry, said families have waited long enough.

The main thing is that the report is fast-tracked through government and made public as soon as possible. We have waited long enough.

The Scally inquiry will be submitted to Minister Harris later this week. He will then submit this to Cabinet the following week, on September 11, before it is published.

Mr Teap, together with Vicky Phelan, the Limerick woman who exposed the CervicalCheck scandal, is also due to launch the CervicalCheck Patient Support Group (CCPSG) in the middle of September. The purpose of the group is to meet the needs of patients affected by the CervicalCheck controversy and their next of kin. Three years of funding from the Department of Health has been agreed for the group

The support group will be coordinated by the Irish Cancer Society, the Irish Patients Association, as well as the Marie Keating Foundation.

Meanwhile, a planned march on the Dail, over the cervical cancer scandal, will take place on September 18.

The Womens Lives Matter group will lead the protest. The group is also trying to get businesses to assist with sponsorship, transport, and facilities for the march.
Amy Lewis highlights the measures taken in tackling crimes against Irelands wildlife and the need for more action.

Protecting the voiceless victims of wildlife crime is a constant battle.

The ongoing persecution of wildlife overseas is often highlighted but such incidences arent as far away from home as one might imagine. In fact, the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) and Gardai face them each week.

In July, two men were charged before Portlaoise District Court for the trapping of protected wild goldfinches using bait and rat glue.

Meanwhile, an investigation is underway in Louth regarding the unlawful killing of two peregrine falcons nesting in the Cooley Mountains.

However, these and other known cases are only the tip of the iceberg.

Many cases go undiscovered because by their nature, theyre suspicious and secretive activities, says Dr Barry O Donoghue from the NPWS Agri-Ecology Unit.

The stakes are being raised to combat wildlife criminals and their increasingly sophisticated methods.

An Garda Siochana recently announced plans for a wildlife crime training course. Commencing in September, it will equip specially-appointed inspectors from each Garda division with tools to recognise and deal with wildlife crime.

Each inspector will work closely with their opposite number in the NPWS.

Information is key. We want to show [inspectors] what the main offences are and demonstrate how to deal with them and prosecute them in the District Court, says Kildare Superintendent Martin Walker, who previously led the Gardas anti-poaching investigation Operation Bambi alongside the NPWS.

Although the Wildlife Act is the principal legislation regarding wildlife crime, Supt Walker says prosecution powers within it are limited.

Through training, he hopes to encourage Gardai to think laterally about other legislation that relates to these cases.

A surreptitious nature is a common denominator among wildlife crimes but offences take many forms.

According to Supt Walker, the illegal hunting of deer at night using lamps or lurchers is common.

Indeed, the Irish Deer Commission recently reported a significant increase in deer poaching and badger baiting in the Midlands.

Thats particularly cruel. These animals release stress hormones and the meat isnt even fit for human consumption. Its just an absolute bloodlust, says Supt Walker.

Catching finches is widespread, as is hare poaching with hounds.

People are hunting hares across farmers land. Theyve no authority to be there, farmers are afraid and sometimes their livestock is getting injured, says Supt Walker, who says that poachers often use hunts as intelligence-gathering operations for farm theft.

Birds of prey are also regular targets. The RAPTOR (Recording and Addressing Persecution and Threats to Our Raptors) protocol is a collaborative approach between the NPWS, Regional Veterinary Laboratories and the State Laboratory to determine non-habitat related threats to birds of prey.

We needed a mechanism of investigating and recording incidents, as well as using that data to inform and provide intelligence for addressing these issues, says O Donoghue, who is a Project Investigator for RAPTOR.

The sixth and most recently published report showed that in 2016, there were 19 poisonings, six shootings and one incident involving a vehicle collision.

Common buzzards, red kites and peregrine falcons were the most highly-recorded victims.

Niall Hatch of Birdwatch Ireland notes that peregrines are common targets.

While he says some crimes have been at the hand of pigeon-fanciers, he stresses that most people involved in this hobby wouldnt harm peregrines in any way.

Project Manager of the White-tailed Sea Eagle Reintroduction Project Dr Allan Mee adds that peregrine chicks are sometimes taken from the wild by those without a licence.

Buzzards are [also] being targeted because some see them as a threat to pheasants being released. Buzzards arent well-regarded by some gun clubs in parts of the country, continues Mee, stressing that generally, his team have a good relationship with gun clubs.

Buzzards were almost extinct in Ireland but now have spread across the country. Theres no earthly reason for anyone to persecute them, adds Hatch.

People are sometimes worried that theyre a threat to lambs but they couldnt kill a lamb in a million years. Theyre nothing but a benefit to a farm as they kill rats and rabbits.

The RAPTOR report notes that some poisoning incidents, particularly those involving buzzards, red kites and barn owls are the result of bio-accumulation i.e. birds ingesting rodents that have been poisoned with rodenticides.

These cases are considered secondary and unintentional.

Through spreading awareness, Mee has seen that this can be mitigated.

Of 14 confirmed poisoning cases of white-tailed sea eagles, since their reintroduction from Norway commenced in 2007, Mee says not one has taken place since 2015.

He credits this to awareness, education and working with landowners.

In the past when they were poisoned, it was largely because people werent aware that the birds were out there or of a change in their population.

Some other poisoning incidents are more sinister, such the illegal placing of poisoned meat baits.

According to O Donoghue, some have been laced with enough poison to kill a human if touched and accidentally ingested.

To tackle these crimes, its universally agreed that more education and public awareness is key.

A poisoned buzzard

We must engage with local communities so that they have someone they know and trust they can report something to, says O Donoghue.

The 2013 and 2015 Wildlife Crime Conferences organised by Wildlife Rehabilitation Ireland have helped to spread awareness.

The organisation, who run the information website Wildlifecrime.ie, will hold a public Wildlife Rehabilitation Conference in Slane this October which includes talks on wildlife crime.

Additionally, Hatch says that more resources could help.

The NPWS needs to be much better resourced. Theyre doing great work but are struggling because they dont have the resources they need and deserve.

Supt Walker hopes that with the upcoming training, potential plans for a wildlife crime recording system and liaising with various stakeholders, wildlife crime nationwide will be minimised.

This can be aided with the cooperation of the public.

If aware of a suspected wildlife crime, they should report it to the Gardai and local NPWS ranger.

Supt Walker stresses that anyone who reports will have their anonymity fully respected.

www.wildlifecrime.ie/pages/Reporting.html
Travel blogger Sarah Slattery gave up her career as a travel agent to start her blog, TheTravelExpert.ie.

I was a travel agent for 24 years before starting my own business three-and-a-half years ago, Sarah said.

It was a big leap of faith but I could see more and more people were looking to book holidays online.

"I spotted a gap for a travel blog offering destination advice as well as tips on where and how to find the best travel deals so decided to take the plunge.

She set up her website while in her forties and relished the challenge.

I did find it difficult at the beginning, but then most people probably say that when they change career.

I am also a bit older than most of the travel bloggers out there.

"Starting a travel blog at 43 was probably a little crazy, but thankfully it worked!

Sarah says that although she is a married mum-of-two, Luke, 10, and Alex, 7, she has continued touring the world.

I have travelled to 50 countries and thankfully having kids hasnt stopped that.

The kids are really well travelled and come on many trips with me so they have seen a lot of the world at such a young age and take it all in their stride.

I love showing them different places and cultures.

I probably should have started the blog earlier. I had travelled to so many places with Cormac before we started our family.

All I have from trips to places like Australia, Zanzibar, Kenya and Tanzania are great memories and photo albums.

Ill just have to go back, I guess.

Her enviable lifestyle has attracted a lot of interest, and Sarah believes focusing on typical holiday has been key to her success.

Unlike most travel blogs, I focus mainly on Irish consumers and mainstream holidays.

"I write about places where I would holiday myself  not backpacking in Thailand but also not necessarily five-star either.

TheTravelExpert.ie now contains a mixture of city breaks, sun holidays, long-haul destinations, cruise holidays and family holidays.

"I also have lots of travel tips and travel deals.

Speaking from Spain, Sarah said her lifestyle has afforded her much freedom and she is proud of her work.

It is my full-time career now and I love it. I like being my own boss, deciding what jobs I want to take and the freedom it brings.

I am really proud of what I have achieved in such a short space of time.

"My website now has an average of 55k monthly visitors, I have over 35k social media followers and 5500 newsletter subscribers.
By Dan MacCarthy

Here is a perfect rejoinder to anyone who is beginning to test your patience: Unless a proposition is necessary, it is meaningless and approaching meaning zero.

The words were written by philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein who lived adjacent to the Co Galway island of Inishbarna in 1948.

The Austrian fetched up here at the end of Irelands only fjord, Killary Harbour, to think and to write.

This magnificent setting under the brooding hulk of Connemaras highest mountain, Mweelrea, and the winding, 25m-deep channel of Killary Harbour was the perfect antidote to this former soldier who had survived the First World War.

Nowadays, the harbour is a hive of activity, with a huge variety of fish caught here  pollack, wrasse, conger, ray, skate, shark, flounder, dabs, and dogfish, to name a few.

Killarys main industry is shellfish, and acres of mussel, clam, and oyster beds can be seen the 16km length of the harbour.

Pleasure craft cruise from near the lovely village of Leenane to the mouth of the harbour next to Inishbarna.

The island measures 500m by 200m but, in spite of its meagre size, is hilly.

For this reason, a white-tiled beacon was situated on the island aligned with the one on the nearby Donee Island to facilitate safe navigation to the harbour and further to Leenane.

The larger boats take the deeper northern side of the channel, while flat-bottomed boats can take Smugglers Gap to the south.

The west of Ireland has attracted many artists and writers over the years  JM Synge and Heinrich Boll to name a couple, but not many philosophers.

Philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein

Wittgenstein was an analytical philosopher who posited that language is the chief arbiter by which we construct reality.

His Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus has had a huge impact on 20th-century thinking. A Bord Failte plaque on the wall indicates that the philosopher lived and worked in the townland of Rosroe right beside the quay from April 1948 to October 1948.

He went there on the suggestion of an Irish philosophy student whom he had met in Cambridge, Maurice OConnor Drury.

The writer and artist Richard Wall wrote that Wittgenstein, having experienced war as a soldier, was sceptical of everything modern. He sought a simple life in Killary and found peace there in an area more familiar with hillwalkers and scuba divers than Austrian philosophers.

The philosopher developed a fascination with nature and aspired to build a cottage on Inishbarna but was dissuaded by a local man, who said a hut would never withstand the occasional severe gales that blow up there.

However, a writer did live on Inishbarna, Sean Mac Conmara, a poet lived there in the 19th century.

When a British warship visited Killary Mac Conmara composed a ballad to mark the occasion: Neileach

O, is nuair a deirigh me ar maidin ar Ard-Inis Bhearna/

Chonaic me an phlainead faoi dhuifean go mor, /

Ba hairde a cuid deataigh na ceo Bheal an Mhama/

Is gur chriothnaigh si tranntai chondae Mhaigh Eo

When I got up in the morning on high Inishbarna/

I saw the plane under a great cloud,/

Her smoke was higher than the mist of Bellavaum/

And she shook the beaches of county Mayo,

Inishbarna (island of the gap) has the ruins of a cattle enclosure and bothy dating from the 19th century.

An Alexander C Lambert leased the island as part of a 250-acre deal at that time from Alexander Thomson, the owner of the 8,000 acre Salrock Estate, which swept northwest over rugged mountains and glistening lakes towards Renvyle and Cleggan.

The estate is named after a gap in the rocks just above Little Killary Harbour through which the contraband from Smugglers Gap would pass.

There is a deserted settlement here called Foher and at the harbour edge a Famine relief road.

Inishbarna is not habitable but campers could chance a couple of nights perchance.

How to get there: killaryfjord.com; killaryadventure.com

Other: Wittgenstein In Ireland, Richard Wall, Reaktion Books; www.connemarawildescapes.ie; www.killaryfjordshellfish.com
Everybody involved seems to benefit when kids from playschools visit nursing homes, writes Geraldine Walsh.

The giddy laughter of excited four-year-olds is probably the last thing you expect to hear when you tell them that they are visiting the nursing home today.

But that is exactly what Eilish Balfe of Happy Days Montessori in Ratoath, Co Meath, hears every week.

Balfe, manager and montessori teacher, has partnered with the local Ratoath Manor Nursing Home, a part of the Silver Stream Healthcare Group, for the past two years.

She brings her class of bubbling, loud and happy pre-schoolers to play, laugh and tell stories with the residents who ordinarily wouldnt be inundated with 20 excitable kids at once.

The idea originally snowballed after a conversation with the receptionist of the nursing home, as Balfes own father is a resident.

She has now been bringing the children of Happy Days to the nursing home, with Christmas and end of year shows being the highlight, every week.

Silver Steam have been very supportive and welcoming, Balfe says, especially Mairead, the co-ordinator there. She has always guided us through the visits.

"The dementia ward, where my Dad is, can be tricky at times. Mairead supported us through that. They love hearing the children sing so we normally sing songs when we visit the residents there.

It may seem like an unusual combination, mixing an overly energetic group with that of a more sedate life but the research tells us different.

Psychologist and psychotherapist Sally OReilly recognises that the study of intergenerational relationships is becoming easier as our population ages with many more active people to interview and observe.

OReilly explored the research and found that regular contact with grandchildren might enhance the physical, emotional and cognitive well being of grandparents.

Any grandparent or elderly person who has contact with children will tell you that they move a lot more than their more sedentary peers who arent chasing, playing with or simply cuddling little people.

"The benefits to physical health are obvious here," she says. "We are built to move, its good for aging joints and hearts.

The benefits far exceed the physical however, as OReilly continues, Qualitative research tells us that the loneliness and loss of sense of purpose that older people inevitably experience are to some degree mitigated by having contact with children and younger people.

"As we age we have less contact and many of us find that adjustment difficult, or even impossible.

"In my own practice I see how similar aging is to the grieving process because there are so many losses.

"Loss of health, relationships, work, independence, energy, and money.

Balfe is not the only one who has taken this initiative and recognised these benefits for both old and young.

There are a number of Montessori, primary schools and secondary schools collaborating with local nursing homes throughout Ireland with a steady increase in those becoming involved, in part thanks to the TOY (Together Old And Young) Project.

Balfe became involved with the TOY Project after participating in an immersion course in bringing older people and young children together with other practitioners in early childhood education.

In April I took part in a pilot course run by DIT and the TOY PROJECT, Balfe explains.

This was called Intergeneration Learning. It was piloted across seven countries in Europe with 70 participants.

"The course was such a learning experience for me. It will be released this autumn as an online course to early childhood educators and social care workers.

"I would highly recommend it to anyone who is thinking of doing an initiative like the one we are doing with our local nursing home.

The benefits for the older generation are somewhat predictable but how do relationships such as these benefit a younger generation?

In 2014 Stanford University hosted a Pass it On conference, says OReilly, and from that came a really interesting 56 page document illustrating the clear benefits to both children and old people of good quality contact with each other.

"It referred to the positive impact the older generation can have on childrens cognitive social and emotional development.

"When there is good quality contact, the benefits to children are life long with skills like empathy, active listening, critical thinking, respect and awareness of difference.

Children also enjoy and benefit from showing older people how new things work. Its part of developing a sense of worth, of expertise. And of course the act of that teaching benefits both generations.

"My own mother got enormous satisfaction when she discovered she could play bridge online with people from all over the world!

It should be recognised, as OReilly reminds us that, An assumption we have made is that contact with young people is in and of itself a good thing.

"But as with people of all ages, for a relationship to have benefits the people in it must feel respected and valued.

And with that as Balfe says, Children ask lots of questions that only they can get away with. Why are you bald? Why do you shake?

"But the residents dont mind and its breaking down barriers with friendships developing.

For Balfe and her Happy Days children, watching the two generations mingle has been beautiful.

They were both reserved in the beginning, she says, but the children became so familiar that they would be climbing on top of the residents with lots of hugs and high fives with lots of happy faces.
By Kalpana Jain

The Vaticans retired ambassador to the United States, Carlo Maria Vigano, has accused Pope Francis and other officials of covering up that they were aware of sex abuse allegations against Theodore McCarrick, a former archbishop of Washington.

Members of Chiles bishops conference, in May 2018, who say they are open to whatever Pope Francis proposes to overhaul the Chilean church devastated by a clergy sex abuse and cover-up scandal. AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia

The accusation follows a grand jury report in Pennsylvania that revealed a long and shocking scale of sex abuse in the Catholic Church. Francis, who accepted McCarricks resignation last month, after an investigation found the allegations to be credible, has refused to comment on Viganos letter.

Scholars writing for The Conversation have pointed out the complex challenges facing the Catholic Church today and why, as a result, it has been hard to address the issue of clergy sexual abuse. Here are four highlights.

1. Canon laws

An important but poorly understood issue, says Arizona State Universitys Carolyn M. Warner, is church canon law that originated in the early Christian community. These laws govern the church as well as its theology.

Although there have been changes over the centuries, canon law imposes many conditions on punishing priests including, for example, an emphasis on avoiding scandal. Warner, explains,

If a bishop, for example, were to make known that a priest had sexually abused children in his diocese, the bishop, and not just the priest, would be guilty under canon law of causing scandal  because information about the abuse might cause Catholics to question their faith  as indeed, it often has.

Furthermore, priests can only be punished if there is no possibility of reforming them. She does, however, also argue, that as head of the Roman Catholic Church the pope has the power to change the laws.

2. Hierarchy of the Catholic Church

Another challenge facing the Catholic Church, as Holy Cross religion scholar Mathew Schmalz argues, is its hierarchical structure, which often gets in the way of justice. There is a long history, as Schmalz writes, of protecting highly placed Catholic leaders from charges of sexual abuse.

Superiors are given nearly absolute obedience, he notes, which makes the threshold for acting against them high. They can also often end up protecting offending priests.

3. Devil made me do it

Wesleyan Universitys Elizabeth McAlister points out how in some strands of Catholic thought demonic temptation is to blame for priests abusing children, which means they are not accountable for their actions. As she explains,

Under this belief system, in the battle for souls, demons can establish relationships with people who open the door to them through sin and disobedience to God. If someone masturbates, for example, which is a mortal sin, they are opening the door wider to demons of more serious sexual perversion.

She gives the example of one church, where a role-play of hissing demon impersonators is used as a way to govern priestly conduct. While clarifying that this is only one documented example, she argues that it nonetheless points to the Churchs preoccupation with evil spirits.

4. Civil lawsuits for accountability?

Finding justice through Church processes has been not been easy.

Timothy D. Lytton, a legal scholar at Georgia State University says that in the past bishops have quietly referred priests to treatment programs and transferred them to other parishes. It was only successive waves of civil lawsuits that pushed the clergy sex abuse scandal into national headlines.

The change, as he explains, started in the mid-1980s, and was most dramatic, in 2002. Church leaders have lobbied to defeat such legislation. He writes,

Whether the Pennsylvania grand jury report will generate the necessary pressure to convince legislators to extend or suspend the statute of limitations and open up the door to more civil litigation is not clear. But the only realistic path to holding bishops accountable is through that door.

This article was written by senior religion and ethics editor Kalpana Jain.Read the original article here.
There are two sides at the moment in Europe. One is led by Macron, who is supporting migration. The other one is supported by countries that want to protect their borders.

This is how Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban described the European political landscape during his August meeting with the Lega partys Matteo Salvini, the strongman in the Italian government.

If they want to see me as their main opponent, they are right, French president Emmanuel Macron instantly replied.

Both Orban and Macron seem to think that the European Parliament election in 2019 will bring about a political realignment. But will it?

Will the continents voters be presented with a choice between a closed and an open society?

The answer to this question  which is central to the future of Europe and its citizens trust in democracy  is far from certain.

Europes political landscape offers a peculiar combination of idiosyncrasy and commonality.

On one hand, it illustrates the maxim that all politics is local: parties are deeply rooted in national traditions, and pan-European groupings are only loose, non-influential federations.

On the other hand, political spillovers are strong and waves of change regularly cross borders, reaching the entire continent.

European politics has long been structured along a left-right divide.

From the first popular election to the European parliament in 1979, until the latest one in 2014, the Party of European Socialists (PES) and the European Peoples Party (EPP) jointly received between one-half and two-thirds of the vote (with the rest going to centrists, the Greens, the radical left, and, increasingly, a new breed of Eurosceptic parties).

For 40 years, the two dominant players have governed Europe through a grand coalition of sorts.

In more than a handful of countries, however, this divide no longer characterizes the political scene.

In Poland, Hungary, and most of Central Europe, the key confrontation is between illiberal nationalists and pro-European liberals.

In France, the choice in 2017 was not between left and right, but between Macron, the champion of openness (whose campaign I advised), and Marine Le Pen, his exact opposite.

And in Italy, both center-right and centre-left forces have been marginalised by two new anti-system parties with roots in the far right and the far left.

Indeed, todays most divisive issues  economic openness, Europe, and immigration  do not pit the centre left and the centre right against each other.

Both camps have embraced globalisation, although they may have different views about how to manage its consequences.

Both have also been active, if reluctant, participants in European integration.

And while their attitudes toward immigration differ, in Western Europe both have accepted it as a fact.

Choosing between left and right does not enable citizens to uphold or reject the open economy and the open society.

Both groupings actually seem clueless when it comes to empowering disenfranchised working-class citizens, whereas the proponents of identity politics offer at least the guise of a response.

True, the left-right cleavage remains salient in many countries.

It also structures the debate on domestic issues such as income distribution and the role of the state, as well as on some of tomorrows major challenges, such as global taxation or the future of work.

But as British politics vividly illustrates, this does not apply to currently dominant issues: the Tories and Labour are the only protagonists, yet both agonize over the choice that really matters  how to manage Brexit.

For next years European Parliament election to bring greater clarity on the issues that matter for Europe, new camps would need to be formed.

Despite cracks on both sides, this is unlikely to happen.

The left has largely split between a (much weakened) moderate wing and a radical, partly anti-European tendency.

The question now is if the dikes that separate the latter from the nationalist right will be breached.

The Italian governing coalition hints at such a scenario, while the increasingly anti-immigration stance of Sahra Wagenknecht of Die Linke (The Left) and fiercely anti-European diatribes by Jean-Luc Melenchon of La France

Insoumise (France Unbowed) suggest that some radical leftists would rather lose their souls than the working class.

But even if the dikes are being undermined, they havent been breached.

On the right, the EPP, the party of German chancellor Angela Merkel, has refused to draw a red line and tell an

increasingly nationalist, illiberal, anti-Muslim, and even anti-Semitic Orban that he has crossed it.

Unapologetically, Orban now claims that he is the true heir of Helmut Kohl and represents the core of the EPP.

In a speech in June, he set himself the task of taking the party back to its Christian roots.

As a result, the EPP will go to the election as an odd coalition comprising advocates of Europe and nationalists, liberals and illiberals, and supporters of diversity and proponents of Christian identity.

For the old structures to unravel, a strong voice for Europe and openness should emerge.

There has been much speculation that Macron would play this role. But obstacles have appeared.

Domestic reforms and the strengthening of a political base at home are more than enough to occupy a man who gained power without the support of a party.

His eurozone reform efforts have been frustrated by the delayed formation of the German coalition and the loss of Italy as a partner.

Moreover, the asylum battle that Merkel has courageously fought is being lost: two years after claiming that Germany was strong enough to open its borders, she suffered a severe electoral setback, followed by tensions within her coalition and retreat on the European front.

This prevents the would-be champions of openness from speaking up clearly on a defining issue.

The key question now is whether Macron can still hope to disrupt European politics, or must acknowledge the dominance of the powers that be and settle on an alliance.

As things stand, the chances seem high that the May 2019 election will end in a series of obscure, highly tactical fights.

This would be bad for democracy because citizens deserve to be offered clear options on central issues; and it would further undermine the European Unions legitimacy just when the EU needs to redefine itself.

The next nine months will decide if this grim scenario can still be prevented.

Jean Pisani-Ferry, a professor at the Hertie School of Governance (Berlin) and Sciences Po (Paris), holds the Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa chair at the European University Institute and is a senior fellow at Bruegel, a Brussels-based think tank.
Criticism of its apartheid-like Palestinian policy is shouted down as anti-Semitism by Israels right-wing government and by the Jewish lobby in the US, says TP OMahony.

In November, 2006, former US president, Jimmy Carter (1977-1981), published a book, Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, and although it quickly became a New York Times bestseller, it drew vitriolic criticism, not only from right-wing quarters in Israel, but also from the powerful Israeli lobby in the US.

In their book, The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy, John J Mearsheimer and Stephen M Watt said the reaction to the Carter book illustrated how difficult it is, at least in the mainstream media in the US, to criticise Israel without being accused of anti-Semitism.

Americas generous and unconditional support for Israel is rarely questioned, because groups in the lobby use their power to make sure that public discourse echoes its strategic and moral arguments for the special relationship.

They say that while reasonable people may challenge Carters evidence or disagree with his conclusions, his ultimate goal is peace between these two peoples, and he unambiguously defends Israels right to live in peace and security.

Yet, because he suggests that Israels policies in the occupied territories resemble South Africas apartheid regime and said publicly that pro-Israel groups make it hard for US leaders to pressure Israel to make peace, a number of these same groups launched a vicious smear campaign against him.

The Israel Lobby and US Foreign Policy was published in 2007, a year after Carters book and at a time when George W Bush was in the White House.

He was succeeded by Barack Obama and, in the dying days of that administration, the White House allowed the UN Security Council to adopt a landmark resolution, demanding an end to Israeli settlements, defying pressure from US president-elect, Donald Trump, and Israel, who wanted Washington to use its veto.

The US decision to abstain was a relatively rare step by the White House, which usually shields Israel.

The US abstention was a parting shot by Obama, who had an acrimonious relationship with the Israeli prime minister, Binyamin Netanyahu, and who made settlements a major target of peace efforts that ultimately proved futile.

The resolution condemned all Israeli settlements in occupied Palestinian territory as a flagrant violation of international law, which imperilled a future two-state peace.

The reaction from Israel was predictable and swift. We will do all it takes, so Israel escapes unscathed from this shameful decision, said Netanyahu.

In reality, Resolution 2334 was unenforceable. Nobody, least of all the US, will support moves to evict the 430,000 Jewish settlers living in the West Bank, or the 200,000 in East Jerusalem.

And while serious observers of the Middle East dismissed Obamas move as too little too late to drive peace, some conceded that it did have some significance.

In The Guardian, Simon Tisdall wrote that the UN vote highlighted the extraordinary extent of Israels international isolation.

This was the world telling Netanyahu, with one voice, that the expanded settlement policy he has encouraged and justified is wrong: wrong legally, wrong morally, wrong politically, and wrong in terms of Israels future peace and security.

But Tisdalls criticism of Obama stands.

Obama did not push nearly hard enough for peace, when the regional climate might have allowed it . . . Cautious to the end, even Obamas UN demarche was half-hearted. If he really believes settlements are undermining peace, why abstain? Why not go the whole hog and condemn them? Why wait seven years?

Writing in the New York Times international edition, earlier this year, Gideon Levy, a columnist for Haaretz (widely regarded as Israels most respected and influential newspaper), described the decades-long siege of Gaza as an unparalleled collective punishment, and the fate of almost two million human beings, forced to live in a vast cage, mainly because of Israels inhuman policies, doesnt seem to touch the countrys conscience.

This, he said, was because Israelis live in denial. Much of the local media, betraying its mission, hardly covers life there.

Israel has turned right, and nationalist, even racist. Yet, the truth is that Gaza is a disaster zone, and one of Zionisms greatest victims, Levy wrote.

Now, in the age of Trump, Netanyahu and his administration (the most right-wing in Israels history) are cock-a-hoop.

The 45th US president appointed a man with pro-settlement views as his ambassador to Israel, and then, last December, to the dismay of the Palestinians and a wider international audience, announced his intention to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to the contested city of Jerusalem, formally recognising it as Israels capital (the inauguration of the new embassy occurred in mid-May, to coincide with the 70th anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel).

The Palestinians have always claimed part of the holy city as the capital of a future state.

After the UN voted in December to condemn the unilateral action by Trump, Taoiseach Leo Varadkar described the decision by Trump as a misstep and the wrong long-term decision for the region.

Mr Varadkar said the move would make a peaceful settlement in the region very hard to secure.

Rashid Khalidi, the Edward Said professor of Arab studies at Columbia University, in New York, described Trumps error as a disaster.

Every time it seems Donald Trump cannot outdo himself, he does it again. Now, he has announced that his administration will recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital, reversing nearly seven decades of American policy.

Jerusalem is the most important of the so-called final-status issues that have been repeatedly deferred during the Israel-Palestine negotiations, because of their extreme sensitivity.

Trump has ploughed into this imbroglio like a bull in a china shop, zeroing in on the most complex and emotional issue of all those connected to Palestine.

In July, the Knesset (Israeli legislature) passed, by 62 votes to 55, Israel as the nation-state of the Jewish People Law, defining Israel as the historic homeland of the Jewish people, and declaring that the right to exercise self-determination in the state of Israel is unique to the Jewish people.

It also identified further development of Jewish settlements nationwide as a national priority.

The legislation was widely condemned as anti-democratic, and Arab members of the Knesset tore up their copies of the bill, shouting Apartheid!

The internationally-renowned composer and pianist, Daniel Barenboim, published an article in The Guardian, under the heading: This racist new law makes me ashamed to be an Israeli.

The founding fathers, who signed the declaration of independence in 1948, considered the principle of equality to be the bedrock of the society they were building.

"They also committed themselves to pursue peace and good relations with all neighbouring states and peoples. Seventy years on, the Israeli government has just passed a law that replaces the principle of equality and universal values with nationalism and racism.

"This law states that only the Jewish people have a right to national self-determination in Israel, Barenboim wrote.

Meanwhile, the agony of the Palestinians, especially those trapped in the open-air prison that is Gaza, continues.

Six days before the end of August, the US announced it had cut $200m in aid for Palestinians, a move described by a Palestinian government spokesman as part of the policy of blackmail and pressure practised by President Trump towards the Palestinian leadership to force it to accept the so-called deal of the century.

This is a plan, rejected by Palestinians and Arabs, being drafted by Trumps son-in-law, Jared Kushner, for the resolution of the Palestinian-Israeli dispute.

Then, just days after the US said it was withdrawing $200m from programmes based largely in Gaza, where they help tens of thousands of people, the Trump administration announced it would cut all US funding from the main UN programme for Palestinian refugees across the Middle East  essential services helping five million people.

All of this, coming after the decision to relocate the US embassy to Jerusalem, demonstrates that Trump doesnt care about a two-state solution, and that he is more intent on pleasing the most right-wing government in Israels history and the Israel lobby in the US.

It is surely time for Ireland to recognise Palestinian statehood.
By 2015, the department was being told by adopted people, campaigners, and even by its own regulatory body that a full-scale audit was needed, writes Conall O Fatharta.

Since news broke in May that 126 cases of illegal birth registrations were found by Tusla in the files of the former adoption agency St Patricks Guild, the Department of Children and Youth Affairs has been sticking rigidly to a certain line on the matter.

The line is a very simple one  while it knew there were suspicions about illegal registrations, the 126 found in May represent the first time this threshold of a high level of certainty has been reached.

The department said when these 126 cases came to light, they were confirmed as illegal birth registrations once a rigorous process was completed.

However, the department has failed to answer a simple question.

If such a rigorous process was set in motion after Tusla stumbled upon the cases in 2018, why was a similar course of action not taken in 2015 when the Adoption Authority of Ireland (AAI) sent a detailed spreadsheet of 90 cases it felt were illegal registrations?

If the word of Tusla was good enough to launch an investigation into illegal adoptions in 2018, why wasnt the word of its regulatory body for adoption good enough in 2015?

Or in 2011 and 2013 when it also raised the issue?

These 90 cases, which have subsequently risen to more than 130, are the very cases Childrens Minister Katherine Zappone referenced in June when she said a validation exercise is under way with respect to illegal registrations reported to her department by the AAI.

She declined to state that the vast majority of these cases were reported to her department years ago.

Why was nothing done at the time?

This newspaper has reported about St Patricks Guild going back to 2010 and specifically about its involvement in illegal birth registrations when it broke the story of Tressa Reeves, who had evidence of her sons illegal registration since 1997.

The AAI, in its previous incarnation as the Adoption Board, knew of her case as far back as 2001, as did no fewer than three ministers for children.

Tressa even had evidence in writing from the agency itself.

Tressa Reeves and her son Paddy Farrell. Pic: Collins

On November 22, 2001, a letter from Sr Francis Fahy admitted that illegal registration arrangements had been made for numerous children.

As I explained to you previously, I do not know the reasons for the particular arrangement that was made in regard of Andre. In the course of my work here I have found that there were a number of babies for whom this arrangement was made, wrote Sr Fahy.

Despite this, the department continues to insist that the 126 cases from May are the first time the State has obtained evidence of a high level of certainty.

The AAI committed to the first-ever audit of its records in 2010 on foot of Ms Reeves case appearing in the Irish Examiner.

It uncovered approximately 99 cases. A further 20 were identified in the following years. This has subsequently risen to 131.

The regulatory body for adoption has notified the department about the issue on multiple occasions ever since.

Yet the department is determined to say that everything it was told about illegal registrations before May of this year were suspicions.

It is worth examining just how much information about these illegal practices was reported to the department prior to the Tusla discovery this year.

In a report prepared for the department in June 2011, the AAI said it considered carrying out a more comprehensive audit of the cases it uncovered, but because of the transfer of senior personnel and the pressure on resources of the imminent establishment of the Adoption Authority no further action was taken.

Clearly, the regulatory body for adoption in this country felt the number of cases it uncovered in its own files warranted further investigation and a more comprehensive audit, and it had notified the department of its opinion.

This wouldnt be the first time it would stress the need for further investigation into the matter.

In April 2015, the Irish Examiner revealed an AAI delegation told the department in a June 2013 meeting that there were at least 120 [confirmed] cases of illegal registrations.

It specifically named St Patricks Guild in Dublin as being aware of several hundred illegal registrations, stating that the agency are not seeking the people involved but were, rather, waiting for people to contact them.

The AAI delegation also named a well-known former private nursing home  St Ritas in Dublin  where women went to give birth to their children before having to place them for adoption, as a huge source of illegal registrations.

The AAI went further, stating its belief that this could well be the tip of the iceberg and that there may be thousands more.

In short, the AAI was admitting there might be thousands of Irish adults with no idea that their birth certs are fraudulent and that the people they believe to be their natural parents are, in fact, their adoptive parents.

Of note from the record of the meeting was an acknowledgement that none of these people had been informed of the circumstances of their births.

However, no audit or investigation was announced on foot of this meeting.

Five months later, then childrens minister Frances Fitzgerald told the Dail she had no plans to initiate an audit of all [adoption] files and also claimed that all adoptions which the Irish State has been involved in since 1952 have been in line with this [Adoption Act 1952] and subsequent adoption legislation.

This claim was repeated on two separate occasions by her successor, Charlie Flanagan.

Both made the claim despite the fact that no State agency ever examined all the records.

Now, the department may feel the warnings from the AAI in 2011 and 2013 were not sufficient to launch an investigation, but the staggering level of detail supplied to the department by the regulatory body in 2015 seems hard to ignore.

This third notification from the AAI contained not only two reports on illegal birth registrations but also included a detailed spreadsheet outlining some 90 specific cases.

The names of the individuals affected were redacted.

In the cover letter attached to the reports, which were sent to the principal officer of the departments Adoption Policy Unit on June 4, 2015, AAI chief executive Patricia Carey reiterates that the only way to get a handle on the scale of illegal adoptions is to fully audit all adoption records.

As previously discussed, without a full review of each and every file related adoptions/placements, it is not possible to quantify what the actual number of illegal registrations may be, she said.

The AAI provided the Irish Examiner with a summary of the information that is contained in the reports it sent to the department in 2015.

The first report, entitled Illegal Registrations, pointed out that doctors, nursing homes, midwives, priests, and some adoption agencies carried out the practice and that, in many cases, no records were available to the AAI.

As a result, the scale of illegal registrations and the numbers involved are not possible to quantify.

The second report, entitled Report to CEO in respect of illegal birth registrations 1 May 2015 is an analysis of information the AAI holds on illegal birth registrations and an overview of the National Adoption Contact Preference Register, which has been in operation since 2005.

The report states that a list was compiled by the Information and Tracing Unit of cases where there were no adoption records and it appeared that the persons birth had been illegally registered, states the AAI summary.

Finally, the report gives information on particular entities which have provided the Authority with information on illegal birth registrations and the practice of children being adopted from birth.

This phrase was found marked on the 126 cases discovered by Tusla earlier this year.

Indeed, the Irish Examiner revealed in May that Tusla had been recording illegal adoptions and birth registrations in 2016.

The agency had previously denied the existence of keeping a register of illegal adoptions and registrations in 2017.

As well as the spreadsheet of some 90 specific cases, the AAI also sent the department a summary of a small number of cases with names redacted, including correspondence to and from the person who was the victim of a suspected illegal birth registration.

Yet, no investigation was launched at that time.

In short, by 2015, the department was being told by adopted people, campaigners, and even by its own regulatory body that there was a need for a full-scale audit of adoption records to see how widespread the practice of illegal registrations and illegal adoptions was and how many agencies and individuals were involved.

Yet, it kept saying such an audit was not necessary.

It told this newspaper repeatedly that such an exercise would yield little useful information and was of very limited benefit.

Even now, the department response has been to launch a scoping exercise of a sample of records to see if a full audit is worthwhile.

It wont say what the sample size or the methodology is.

However, we know a full audit is a worthwhile exercise.

The States own regulatory body for adoption has said so  repeatedly. Campaigners have said so  repeatedly.

Even the department itself has admitted privately the practice is across multiple agencies but would be an onerous exercise requiring massive resources.

One thing is for sure, without a full inquiry this issue will not go away.
The recent visit by Pope Francis has given us all time for some necessary reflection.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar summed up the situation accurately, bravely, and succinctly and I paraphrase:

It is a history of sorrow and shame. In place of Christian charity, forgiveness and compassion, too often there was judgment, severity and cruelty, in particular, towards women and children and those on the margins.

Magdalene Laundries, Mother and Baby Homes, industrial schools, illegal adoptions and clerical child abuse are stains on our State, society and the Catholic Church. Wounds are still open and there is much to be done to bring about justice and truth and healing.

"Holy Father, I ask that you use your office and influence to ensure this is done here in Ireland and across the world.

Since the mid-1990s, the Catholic church and Vatican have promised to do something about this, but little or nothing has been done and most abusers have not been brought to justice.

Cover-ups have continued up to the present day in several countries.

In many cases, the Vatican authorities called the victims liars, slanderers, troublemakers, and mentally ill and they fought the victims in courts and tribunals.

And furthermore, in Ireland, it was the state and taxpayers who paid most of the compensation, not the Catholic Church, which has vast wealth and treasures.

This is both disgraceful and unjust.

While terrible damage has been done to the Irish people and nation, and other peoples, no effective healing systems have been put in place by governments, due to budget constraints, or more accurately the desperate need to bail out bankers and speculators for many billions of euros/dollars.

And the Catholic Church refuses to spend money on this.

More seriously, the ordinary Catholics, the lay people or faithful have remained quiet, too scared to speak out against these gross injustices.

Many object to anyone speaking out publicly on the subject.

It was the same people or faithful who enforced a climate of silence, looking the other way, and cover-ups for over a hundred years in this country.

Many of these faithful worked for the state and facilitated these cover-ups.

This is moral cowardice, the worst type.

There is an old saying that the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.

Sadly these faithful were just as judgmental and ruthless as the paedophile priests, bishops (who covered up crimes), and Vatican authorities.

The lay people or faithful discriminated against, gossiped about, slandered, isolated, assaulted, and oppressed the unmarried mothers, the children of unmarried mothers, the Magdalene laundry women, women in general, the orphans, the residents of industrial schools, the unemployed, the poor, the Travellers, and those who were

different in any way, including people with mental illness, those of a different religion, those of a different race or colour.

It was and continues to be a highly judgmental country which incites hatred and attack against many innocent people.

I would advise the clergy and Vatican and the lay people or faithful to look in the mirror and sort out their own prejudices, Pharisee-like behaviour, self-righteous

attitudes and moral cowardice which poisoned this country (and other countries) and have created hatred, suspicion and division before they presume to be holy or good people or deserving of heaven.

David Egan

Galway city
The news followed on from the prior weeks statement by the Trump administration that a bilateral deal would be signed with Mexico.

Fridays deadline for agreeing a new trade deal with Canada was always a typical Trump bluff as he blustered to push for an early deal to suit his November mid-term election plans.

It was clear for some time now that Congress would not sign a new Nafta deal without Canada included.

Key issues for the US and Canada are dairy and anti-dumping dispute panels.

The US wants to dismantle Canadas dairy system and kill the panels. Canada has signalled it would compromise on dairy and wants to preserve the so-called Chapter 19 panels.

These panels prevent dumping of surplus US products into Canada, dairy products in particular.

Mr Trump spent much of the June G-7 meeting of the top 7 global economies, complaining about Canadian dairy tariffs, mentioning it repeatedly during a leaders session on trade.

He seized on one number in particular: Canadas 270% tariff on certain products.

However, typical of Trump tactics, the 270% only applies to surplus dumped on the market, the normal US dairy exports carry a tariff of 7.5%.

Recent trade figures show that Canada imports twice as much dairy from the US as it exports.

One would question whether an entire trading relationship needs to be jeopardised to appeal to dairy farmers in a few Trump supporting states.

Fridays announcement is good news for many Irish exporters who ship to Mexico and use their affiliate companies located there to finalise, package and ship products into the US market at the favourable terms available under Nafta.

Kerry Group has subsidiary manufacturing facilities in Mexico and ships from there to the US.

For those exporting to Canada, it is too early say if the new deal will be good or bad.

There will be pressure on Canadian negotiators over the coming weeks to concede some ground on expanding the dairy quota, before a final deal is done.

If this happens, there is likely to be a lower quota available to EU and Irish diary producers shipping to Canada.

However, companies such as Glanbia which have the second largest cheese- producing factories in the US are likely to gain from the new deal.

Pharmaceutical companies based in Ireland and shipping into north America will also welcome the added protection for branded drugs.

Most of Irelands pharmaceutical exports are patented in the US.

For the Trump administration, getting a deal done with Canada and Mexico will be seen as proof positive that its trade tactics are effective.

The Nafta deal follows the US-Japan accord on trade in June when Trump, after White House talks with Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe, said the leaders were working together to improve trading relations and that Abe promised new Japanese investment in the US.

More significantly was the EU-US accord in July, where Trump and Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker pledged to work toward negotiating a broad reduction in tariffs on industrial goods and to co-operate against unfair Chinese trade practices.

The US agreed not to impose tariffs on European cars as long as negotiations are ongoing.

However, beyond a shift in rhetoric, the concrete results so far remain minimal, but they do point to a winding down of the trade war syndrome and perhaps we will see a settlement of the China-US trade disputes in the near future.
Burma A Hammer Blow for the Rule of Law

A campaign poster demanding freedom for Reuters journalists Ko Wa Lone and Ko Kyaw Soe Oo.

YANGON The jailing on Monday of two Reuters reporters for seven years for breaching the outdated British colonial-era Official Secrets Act has been met with deep disappointment and condemned as a blow to the countrys justice system, press freedom and democratic transition.

The two journalists, Ko Wa Lone and Ko Kyaw Soe Oo, had been detained for nine months since their arrest on Dec. 12 while investigating the killing of Rohingya Muslims in a village in Rakhine State.

Right groups, press freedom advocates, the United Nations, the European Union and countries including the US, UK, Denmark and Australia called for the immediate release of the two and an end to the arbitrary prosecution of journalists for doing their jobs.

Here are some reactions to the sentencing:

Scot Marciel, U.S. ambassador to Myanmar

I am sad for Wa Lone, Kyaw Soe Oo, and their families, but also for Myanmar. It is deeply troubling for everybody who struggles so hard for media freedom here. One has to ask if this process will increase or decrease the confidence that people here have in their justice system.

The Embassy of Denmark in Myanmar

This is a tragedy for them and an injustice carried out under a government which came to office based on a strong commitment to rule of law. What we have seen today is not rule of law. The Official Secrets Act violates the right to freedom of expression, a right which many members of government and Parliament fought and went to prison for under the military regime.

Instead of being celebrated for their efforts to expose the conduct of Myanmars military, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo have now been found guilty in spite of the lack of evidence to support the prosecutors claims.

The Embassy of Denmark calls on the government of Myanmar to undo this injustice, release Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo immediately and launch an investigation into allegations that they were set up by Myanmars police force. (from a statement)

Dan Chugg, British Ambassador to Myanmar

Speaking on behalf of the British Government and EU member states, we are extremely disappointed with this verdict and sentencing. This case has cast a long shadow over freedom of expression and the rule of law in Myanmar. In any democracy, journalists must be free to carry out their jobs without fear or intimidation; this verdict has undermined freedom of the media in Myanmar. The verdict has also struck a hammer blow for the rule of law. We have attended the trial throughout and we believe that the judge has ignored the evidence presented to him as well as ruling against Myanmars own laws. This is a bad day for Myanmar and we call for the journalists to be released immediately. (from a statement)

The Embassy of Netherlands in Myanmar

The Embassy of the Kingdom of the Netherlands regrets the conviction of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo and will continue to urge the government to use the means at its disposal to ensure their immediate release. This was not only a verdict to two individuals, but also a milestone verdict on the credibility of Myanmars press freedom. ( from a statement)

Bertil Lintner, veteran journalist and Myanmar analyst

Its a sad day for press freedom in Burma but, at the same time, I want to encourage Burmas many brave and good journalists to carry on their important job. Without them, there would be a great void that cannot be filled by foreign reporters.

Nicholas Coppel, Australia Ambassador to Myanmar

Australia has watched this case very closely. Embassy staff have attended all the hearings and heard the evidence, including conflicting evidence presented by prosecution witnesses. We were therefore disappointed to hear that the journalists were found guilty.

An independent media and an independent judiciary are both vital parts of a well-functioning democracy. Myanmars democratic transition is not complete. Myanmar needs a strong and functioning justice system, and greater media freedom. (from a statement)

Johan Hallenborg, Minister Counsellor to Myanmar, Embassy of Sweden

EU member states are deeply concerned about what happened today. We believe that the two journalists were merely doing their work. They shouldnt have been put to trial in the first place.

Daw Aye Aye Win, former AP correspondent

This has confirmed that there is no press freedom in Myanmar. This Reuters case is proof of it.

And the handing down of a long sentence will have a very negative impact upon the dignity of the government. It seems that the government does not consider [press freedom] as builder of democracy. This is the complete reverse of democratization. It is very disappointing.

When reporters are punished for doing their job, it serves as a warning to all journalists. This will forcibly divide journalists into two groups. One will exercise extra caution [about what they write], and the other will continue writing despite the harmful consequences. [The sentencing of the two reporters] seriously threatens press freedom. Journalists will exercise more caution. As they practice self-censorship out of fear of possible retribution, this will significantly impact their reporting. Im disappointed that the government led by [State Counselor] Daw Aung San Suu Kyi is stepping into a dark era.

U Aung Hla Tun, deputy information minister

I feel a little sorry for them, as I once worked as a journalist. But there is still hope for them. This is not the end. They still have a chance according to the law. They can appeal to the higher courts. I pray for them. Thats all I can say.

There are laws that restrict press freedom. I recognize this fact. Those laws have been in force for years, but they are being reviewed now. On the other hand, journalists have to follow ethics. This is very important. And they must also have professional skills.

Overall, [the press] should have patience. [Reform of these outdated laws] will not take place immediately. [Journalists] should also regulate themselves. Self-regulation is essential. I dont mean self-censorship. Self-censorship comes from fear [of possible retribution]. Self-regulation comes from self-awareness and morality.

[Journalists] should know what they can and cannot do, aside from any possible legal repercussions. They should know the law. There is nothing to be afraid of. They [journalists] have to do their job. But they must be professional and ethical.

Stephen J. Adler, Reuters president and editor-in-chief

Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere. These two admirable reporters have already spent nearly nine months in prison on false charges designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press. Without any evidence of wrongdoing and in the face of compelling evidence of a police set-up, todays ruling condemns them to the continued loss of their freedom and condones the misconduct of security forces. This is a major step backward in Myanmars transition to democracy, cannot be squared with the rule of law or freedom of speech, and must be corrected by the Myanmar government as a matter of urgency. We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum. (from a statement)

Ko Than Zaw Aung, defense lawyer

It is very disappointing. This shows the critical situation facing democracy, freedom of expression and the rule of law in Myanmar, which is said to be undergoing democratization. Well do whatever we can [to secure] the release of the two reporters.

U Sein Win, Myanmar Journalism Institute training director

A guilty verdict without strong evidence is quite disappointing. The prosecution witness testified that the case was a set-up. It couldnt be any clearer.

But the sentencing of the two shows that our judicial system is severely paralyzed. The message of the verdict is that, You should not seek the truth. Press freedom is not important. And you can be safe only by currying favor with those in power. Anything done by those in power is right.

You cant ignore the truth in building a country. If a murder is treated as a state secret in a country, you may realize what type of people the leaders of that country are. Arent we going to do anything to correct the way the country is being built?

Ko Thalun Zaung Htet, Myanmar Press Council member-elect

This indicates that democracy is doomed and there is no press freedom in Myanmar, and that the NLD [National League for Democracy] has become authoritarian. Soon, we journalists will take to the streets.

Foreign Correspondents Club of Myanmar

The Foreign Correspondents Club of Myanmar is gravely dismayed and condemns in the strongest possible terms the sentencing of two award-winning Reuters journalists to a staggering seven years in prison.

The conviction and harsh sentence strike a blow to the journalistic profession and pose a grave threat to press freedom in Myanmar.

We, the FCCM, would like to reiterate our call for the immediate release of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo and also call for an impartial review of the case on appeal.

We further urge the government to ensure that journalists are allowed to carry out their profession without fear of harassment and intimidation. (from a statement)

Assistance Association for Political Prisoners

The case raises real concerns regarding the impartiality of the judicial system in Burma. Both parliaments must review the Official Secrets Act, and make sure that the law should not be applied to journalists. The application of such law to journalists should be condemned and action taken to ensure what happened with Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo cannot happen again.

Journalism is not a crime. This case is another worrying back step for freedom of expression and press freedoms in Burma. There is a need for fair and free reporting, [but] such reporting has become incredibly dangerous in the shrinking space available for freedom of expression within Burma. The government must protect such  investigative journalism and ensure journalists do not get arrested for doing their jobs.

Burma needs a free and fair media. Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo need to be released and returned to their families. Today is a dark day for freedom of expression in Burma. (from a statement)

U Ye Naing Moe, founding director of Yangon Journalism School

The sentencing of the two Reuters reporters shows that this society is going in the wrong direction. To imprison two journalists is the very opposite of building democracy. Democracy needs an ecosystem to thrive in, and journalists are a necessary part of that ecosystem.

There must be a free and independent judicial system in society for journalists to be able to do their job. Without judicial independence, how can journalists have the courage to risk their lives to make investigative reports? The imprisonment of the two reporters has called judicial independence into question.

Every journalist who hears about this mornings sentence of seven years imprisonment will now be placed under considerable pressure [making it difficult] to conduct investigative journalism to serve the people with good intentions. Without judicial independence that guarantees the freedom of journalists, it is very hard to conduct investigative journalism. This creates a chilling effect and spreads fear. Frankly, it is a threat to journalists to step back.

Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch

The outrageous convictions of the Reuters journalists show Myanmar courts willingness to muzzle those reporting on military atrocities. These sentences mark a new low for press freedom and further backsliding on rights under [State Counselor Daw] Aung San Suu Kyis government.

Myanmars leadership should immediately quash the verdicts and release Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo. (from a statement)

Federica Mogherini, spokesperson of the EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy

Todays court decision to sentence Reuters reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo to seven years of imprisonment undermines the freedom of the media, the publics right to information and the development of the rule of law in Myanmar.

Their sentencing and imprisonment under the Official Secrets Act of 1923 for covering allegations of serious human rights violations in Rakhine State also serve to intimidate other journalists who will fear harassment and undue arrest or prosecution for merely doing their jobs.

We therefore reiterate our expectation that the authorities ensure adequate conditions for journalists to carry out their work. The prison sentences of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be reviewed and the two journalists be released immediately and unconditionally. (from a statement)
Burma Legal Aid Center Opens in Naypyitaw

A legal aid center opened in Naypyitaw on Sept 1. / Moe Moe / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYITAW  A legal aid center opened in administrative capital Naypyitaws Pobbathiri Township on Saturday.

The justice center is the sixth of its kind in Myanmar, implemented as part of the My Justice Program, funded by the European Union in partnership with International Bridges to Justice (IBJ).

The centers offer free legal services to anyone whos been charged with a crime and cant afford to hire a lawyer, anyone who is under the age of 18, minorities, and those who are disabled or discriminated against, according to the non-governmental legal aid group.

This center is intended to assist the poor, as Dekkhinathiri District court is close to it, said Jim Taylor of the IBJ.

So far, justice centers have been opened in Mandalay, Shan States Taunggyi and Kalaw, Bagos Toungoo and Karen States Hpa-an.

Since before its official opening, the center provided legal advice for defendants in 23 cases including rape, drug, murder and robbery cases, said Daw Wint Wint Aye, an official with the center.

If those charged with crimes are too poor to hire a lawyer, they can ask for our help. We will assist them for free, she said.

Justice centers aim to improve access to justice and legal aid for the poor and vulnerable, develop the legal capacity of justice sector professionals and strengthen selected rule of law institutions to better fulfill their mandates, according to the IBJ.

According to the justice center, anyone whose monthly income is less than 120,000 kyats is eligible for services. And the monthly income of the family members of the defendants must also be less than 120,000 kyats per month in order to receive assistance from the legal aid group.

They only provide legal services for defendants, and not plaintiffs. Their intentions are good, said Naypyitaw-based lawyer U Khin Maung Zaw.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.
Burma The Reuters Reporters Sentencing, as it Unfolded in the Courtroom

Reuters reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo are led away by police after being convicted and sentenced to seven years imprisonment for violating the Official Secrets Act at Inn Sein Court in Yangon on Sept. 3, 2018. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

YANGON  For possessing the phone number of an officer in an ethnic armed group, the itineraries of visits to Rakhine by Pope Francis and Vice President U Myint Swe, and police reports of violence in northern Rakhine State, Reuters reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were convicted of violating the Official Secrets Act and sentenced to seven years imprisonment by Yangons Northern District Court on Monday morning.

The colonial-era Inn Sein Court Building was crowded with diplomats, reporters, activists and the accuseds relatives, who were on hand to see the resolution of a case that has been closely monitored by both the international and local communities since the surprise arrest of the pair in Htauk Kyant on the outskirts of Yangon on Dec. 12, 2017. Before their arrest the pair was investigating the massacre of 10 Rohingya men in Rakhine States Inn Din village by a group of local villagers, police and Army troops. The following month, the Army announced that seven soldiers had been sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labor in a remote area of Myanmar for participating in the mass killing.

The killings happened during the militarys month-long clearance operations of Rakhine States Rohingya communities following militant attacks on security outposts. The United Nations says the military crackdown has sent nearly 700,000 people fleeing to Bangladesh.

Since their arrests, the two journalists have appeared at numerous trial hearings. This Irrawaddy reporter was allowed to witness the handing down of the verdict in a 50-foot-wide courtroom with a CCTV camera mounted in each corner. As the session began, Northern District Court Associate Judge U Ye Lwin entered the room, then read submissions from the prosecutor and defense lawyers, statements from suspects Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the findings of the Criminal Investigation Department (CID). This took one-and-a-half hours.

The judge said CID officers had found on the reporters mobile phones the travel itinerary and security deployment information relating to Pope Francis visit in November 2017, and the travel itinerary for Vice President U Myint Swes trip in August 2017. He said both of these were considered top secret documents.

Defense lawyers had earlier claimed that reports of the violence in northern Rakhine State and the itineraries of the pope and the vice president were not secrets as they had already been published in newspapers. The judge announced that this argument was invalid because the newspapers only carried brief announcements the visit of the vice president to northern Rakhine. He also said the classified documents of security forces referring to security reinforcements, causality reports and arson attacks in northern Rakhines Maungdaw Township that were found on the reporters mobile phones had not been published in newspapers.

Police Captain Moe Yan Naing, who was a key witness in the case, earlier testified that his superior officer Brigadier General Tin Ko Ko ordered him and his colleagues to arrest the reporters and charge them with violating the Official Secrets Act, but the prosecutor declared him a hostile witness and abruptly sentenced him to one year in prison for violating police discipline.

Judge U Ye Lwin cited the News Media Laws Article (6) (a), drafted by former information minister U Ye Htut. It states that journalists can request documents from authorities with the exception of orders or instruction letters containing information on security matters, including statistics, photographs and records. He also cited the Media Code of Conducts section (3) (b), which deals with the way media professionals handle sensitive information.

He said the classified documents from security forces found in their possession and on their mobile phones showed that the two suspects had violated both the News Media Law and Code of Conduct repeatedly. He said it also had to be taken into consideration that the content of the documents was related to security matters and could be useful, either indirectly or directly, to insurgent groups.

The suspects did not act as ordinary journalists; they acted together with the intent of harming the interest of the state or state security, U Ye Lwin said.

He concluded that these facts, as well as the attitudes of the suspects and the submissions of the prosecutor constituted sufficient evidence that the suspects breached the Official Secrets Acts Article 3 (1) (c). He sentenced them to seven years imprisonment for violating the Act, adding that their time in detention so far would count towards their sentence.

Myanmar Press Council (MPC) member U Myint Kyaw pointed out that Article (6) of the News Media Law enshrines the rights  rather than the restrictions or potential legal punishments  of media organizations, and suggested that perhaps the judge had interpreted the law as he wished. While acknowledging that he is not a legal expert, U Myint Kyaw said that inappropriately citing the News Media Law and Media Code of Conduct while sentencing the Reuters reporters was dishonest.

U Myint Kyaw said, Some lawyers say there might be a danger of classified [documents] falling into enemy hands if the arrest occurred in an armed conflict situation, as opposed to being arrested in Yangon, as the Reuters reporters were.

Within a few seconds of the announcement, police led the convicted pair away in handcuffs. As they did, the mother of Kyaw Soe Oo wept in the courtroom.

Wa Lone raised his hands and told his Reuters colleagues in the courtroom: Its OK. You know what we did. I have no feeling [about this conviction] I believe in justice and democracy.

Before he and Kyaw Soe Oo were escorted to Inn Sein Prison, he cried out, We were unfairly treated and We are sentenced now for having the phone number of [Arakan Army (AA) official] Ko Nyo Tun Aung. And we are jailed for possessing the travel itinerary of vice president U Myint Swe [to northern Rakhine]. Is this fair for us? This is directly threatening and violating the freedom of the press in Myanmar as well as the democratic system.

AA Vice Chief of Staff Nyo Tun Aung could not be reached for comment for this article by press time on Monday.

Defense lawyer U Than Zaw Aung told reporters that the defense consistently told the judge that a map related to Pope Francis trip in the reporters possession was not an official document issued by the Myanmar government; in fact, it was downloaded from a German website. Moreover, details of the trip of the vice president to northern Rakhine State could easily be f0und on social media. However, the judge even included these points in his conclusions and cited them in his decision to imprison the pair for 7 years, the lawyer said.

Defense lawyers said they would appeal the decision to a higher court.

We are total disappointed with todays conviction. This conviction shows that we are in a bad condition, despite the appearance that the country is heading for a functioning democratic system, freedom of expression and rule of law, U Than Zaw Aung said.

Criticizing the judges citing of the Media Law and Code of Conduct in his conclusion, Myanmar Press Council (MPC) member U Myint Kyaw said that maintaining secret information is the responsibility of official organizations; being found in possession of these documents should not be a problem, he said. If a media organization publishes the information, the relevant ministry can complain about the report if it finds a factual problem.

U Myint Kyaw said the case was apparently a trap set by police, pointing to the fact that the documents were given to the reporters by police, who then arrested the pair immediately. Moreover, he pointed out that simply finding out the phone number of a top AA leader and the travel itinerary of Pope Francis should never be considered possession of state secrets.

If they really label such kind of information as top secret, then more than 100 journalists could be arrested. This is nonsense. If they want to do so, they can put us all behind bars.
Burma Two NLD Lawmakers Dismissed from Executive Committee

U Kyaw Zeya and Daw Thet Thet Khine. / The Irrawaddy

YANGON  Two outspoken lawmakers of the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD) were purged from the executive committee of their concerned party township chapter.

The decision was made during a central executive committee meeting of the party on Aug. 25. The two  Yangon regional lawmaker U Kyaw Zeya representing Dagon Township (2) and Upper House lawmaker Daw Thet Thet Khine representing Dagon Township  however, remain party members.

Any party member has the right to disagree but they are not allowed to deviate from the policies and guidelines adopted by the party, NLD spokesperson Dr. Myo Nyunt told The Irrawaddy.

The two have faults in this regard and were disciplined accordingly, he added.

The two lawmakers have been critical of the NLD-led government, which has garnered popularity with some voters.

In an interview with a local media agency in the second week of the August, Daw Thet Thet Khine voiced criticism of the governments economic policy while speaking about the weakening kyat-dollar exchange rate and countrys declining exports.

The interview went viral on the social media and was shared by hundreds of thousands of netizens.

I only want to work for the country. I will continue working in whatever capacity I am allowed, Daw Thet Thet Khine told The Irrawaddy.

Dr. Myo Nyunt said that party leaders had verbally warned Daw Thet Thet Khine several times regarding her criticism of government policies.

I have no comment. I was not warned in advance. They should have told me if I was doing something wrong, said U Kyaw Zeya, who has been vocal in his criticism of the Yangon regional governments urban planning.

Daw Thet Thet Khaing is a member of the Lower Houses Banks and Monetary Development Committee and U Kyaw Zeya is on the economic committee of the Yangon regional parliament.

We have had numerous reports about their actions [deemed to violate party policies]. We waited to see if they would change but they didnt so we terminated their duties, said Dr. Myo Nyunt.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.
News Embassies and Rights Groups Denounce Reuters Convictions

Reuters journalist Ko Wa Lone leaves after listening to the verdict at Yangons Northern District Court, Myanmar, Sept. 3, 2018. / Htet Wai / The Irrawaddy

YANGON  International embassies and rights groups denounced the convictions of two Reuters journalists as devastating and deeply troubling while calling the government to immediately release the journalists and review the case.

Yangons Northern District Court on Monday sentenced Ko Wa Lone and Ko Kyaw Soe Oo to seven years in prison for breaching the Official Secrets Act.

In a statement released on the same day, the US Embassy said the conviction of journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo under the Official Secrets Act is deeply troubling for all who support press freedom and the transition toward democracy in Myanmar.

The two reporters were arrested in December last year for possessing important and secret government documents relating to Rakhine State and security forces. At the time of the arrest, the pair was investigating the killing of Rohingya villagers. Despite the governments accusation of violating the Official Secrets Act, a prosecution witness, Capt. Moe Yan Naing told the court that a police brigadier-general ordered officers to trap the Reuters reporters arrested in December, instructing them to meet the journalists at a restaurant and give them secret documents.

The US embassy said the clear flaws in the case raise serious concerns about rule of law and judicial independence in Myanmar, and the reporters conviction is a major setback to the government of Myanmars stated goal of expanding democratic freedoms.

We urge the Government of Myanmar to release Wa Lone and Kyaw So Oo immediately, and to end the arbitrary prosecution of journalists doing their jobs, said the statement.

Dan Chugg, the British Ambassador to Myanmar, said on behalf of the British Government and EU member states that they were extremely disappointed with the verdict and sentencing and called the journalists immediate releases.

We have attended the trial throughout and we believe that the judge has ignored the evidence presented to him as well as ruling against Myanmars own laws. This is a bad day for Myanmar and we call for the journalists to be released immediately.

The European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy said the conviction undermines the freedom of the media, the publics right to information and the development of the rule of law in Myanmar.

The representative Federica Mogherini said in a statement that the European Union and EU Member State diplomats were among the many international observers present at every court hearing since the journalists arrest on Dec. 12, 2017, and they have continuously raised the matter with the Myanmar government.

We therefore reiterate our expectation that the authorities ensure adequate conditions for journalists to carry out their work. The prison sentences of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be reviewed and the two journalists be released immediately and unconditionally, said the statement.

The Embassy of Denmark said the sentencing day was a dark day for press freedom and rule of law in Myanmar and called on the government of Myanmar to undo this injustice, release Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo immediately and launch an investigation into allegations that they were set up by Myanmars Police Force.

This is a tragedy for them and an injustice carried out under a government, which came to office based on a strong commitment to rule of law. What we have seen today is not rule of law, said the statement.

Meanwhile, rights groups like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International called the convictions politically motivated and HRW urged the government to immediately quash the verdict and release Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo.

Amnesty International said the politically-motivated decision has significant ramifications for press freedom in Myanmar.

It sends a stark warning to other journalists in the country of the severe consequences that await should they look too closely at military abuses. This amounts to censorship through fear.




Guwahati : Guwahati city police on Sunday had busted a highway robbery gang and arrested seven dacoits who had looted the people at highway since long period.





Guwahati city police had recovered over 150 numbers mobile phones, gold ornaments, laptop, TV set, cash, three scooty bikes, weapons in possession from them.





According to the reports, the robbery gang involved several incidents of looting people on highway.





Following a tip-off, a police team of Basistha police station in Guwahati led by Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP) Nandini Kakati had launched operation at Basistha area and arrested seven dacoits.





The arrested dacoits were identified as Abhishek Dey, Baloram Brahma, Sanjay Singh, Joon Ali, Ajit Rabha, Nanta Dhar and Rahul Choudhury.





During the police investigation, they confessed that, they were involved several highway robbery incidents.





We have engaged our sources about the robbery incidents and today launched operation and arrested the gang. We had recovered several mobile phones, weapons in possession from them. They had looted the people on highway, Nandini Kakati said.




News Koh Tao Murder Convicts Living in Fear After Thailand Resumes Executions

Myanmar migrant workers Zaw Lin, left and Win Zaw Htun leave the provincial court in Koh Samui, Thailand on Dec. 24, 2015, after being convicted of the 2014 murders of two British backpackers. / Reuters

MON STATE  Two Myanmar migrant workers sentenced to death by a Thai court for the murder of two British backpackers are living in constant fear after Thailand resumed executing death row prisoners earlier this year, the head of an NGO assisting migrant workers said.

Win Zaw Htun and Zaw Lin were detained in 2014 by Thai police for the murder of a British couple on Koh Tao island, and for raping the woman. They were sentenced to death in May 2016 despite their claims that Thai police coerced their confessions. They are currently detained in Bangkoks Bang Kwang Prison awaiting the result of their final appeal.

According to U Sein Htay, the director of the Migrant Workers Rights Network (MWRN), Zaw Lin has been under a lot of stress and constantly worried about the possibility of being executed since June, when Thailand put to death its first prisoner in nearly a decade. To make matters worse, Zaw Lin has been held in solitary confinement for more than a month after a fight with a prisoner.

They are really scared by what they have seen in prison. Especially Zaw Lin, who is in solitary confinement and is left alone with his thoughts; he is really frightened [of being executed], he said.

U Sein Htay and his team visited Win Zaw Htun and Zaw Lin in prison on Aug. 22. At first, prison authorities told them they would only be allowed to speak via a video call. However, after repeated requests from the team, the authorities allowed them to meet in person. U Sein Htay said both men told him they fear execution.

The NGO director added that Zaw Lin asked him to inform the Myanmar Embassy in Bangkok that he was being held in solitary confinement beyond the one-month punishment period. He said he was being punished for fighting a Thai prisoner who repeatedly cursed his mother.

He requested that the Myanmar Embassy talk to the Thai prison authorities about transferring him back to a normal cell, U Sein Htay said.

The MWRN sent a letter to the Myanmar Embassy conveying Zaw Lins request, U Sein Htay said.

An official from the Myanmar Embassy usually visits Zaw Lin and Win Zaw Htun every 90-120 days, but no visits have been made since Zaw Lins solitary confinement began.

Zaw Lin also requested urgent support from a team from the Lawyers Council of Thailand (LCT) that has been assisting the two migrant workers defense in the Koh Tao murder case, asking them to liaise with the Myanmar Embassy to ensure his immediate release from what he claims is his unfair and unlawfully extended solitary confinement.

Andy Hall, international advisers to MWRN and the LCTs Koh Tao case legal defense team also wrote a letter to the Myanmar Embassy asking it to provide consular assistance to Zaw Lin.

The defense team for the two convictscomprising members of the LCT and members of labor-rights NGOssubmitted a 319-page appeal to Thailands Supreme Court in August 2017.

U Sein Htay said the defense team is still waiting for the Supreme Court to rule on the appeal.
News Ma Ba Tha Changes Name, Still Officially Illegal

Religious Affairs minister U Aung Ko. / The Irrawaddy

NAYPYITAW  The Buddha Dhamma Charity Foundation, formerly called the Association for Protection of Race and Religion, which was better known by its Burmese acronym Ma Ba Tha, will fade away without government intervention, said Union religious affairs minister U Aung Ko, reaffirming its illegitimacy.

Despite the name change, the illegal organization remains illegal, the minister told reporters at the Upper House on Friday.

Ma Ba Tha was born in 2012 out of the 969 movement, a nationalist campaign that called for the boycott of Muslim-owned businesses. In 2013, 969 members rebranded the group as the Association for Protection of Race and Religion, which came to be better known as Ma Ba Tha.

The nationalist group was successful in advocating former president U Thein Sein to approve a controversial set of four laws on race and religion that imposed restrictions on interfaith marriage, birth spacing, polygamy and conversion, believed to be targeted at Muslims.

The row between Ma Ba Tha and the National League for Democracy (NLD) government erupted when Yangon Region Chief Minister U Phyo Min Thein described the group as unnecessary while addressing a gathering of Myanmar residents in Singapore in June 2016.

Later the state-backed cleric organization Ma Ha Na announced that Ma Ba Tha was an unlawful organization and in May 2017, it banned the group from operating under its current name and ordered that its signboards be taken down across the country by July 15 of last year.

Since then, Ma Ba Tha has rebranded itself as the Buddha Dhamma Charity Foundation. However, some Ma Ba Tha chapters in Mandalay and Karen States Hpa-an refused to take down their signboards and still operate under the name Ma Ba Tha.

U Aung Ko said he has no plan to forcibly take down the Ma Ba Tha signboards in Mandalay and Hpa-an, saying that unlawful organizations that do not win public support will fade away over time.

He also criticized a rally of Buddhist nationalists in Yangon in the second week of August against Ma Ha Nas order to the Buddha Dhamma Charity Foundation to take down its signs within 45 days.

They held the rally because there are no supporters or there are only a few supporters, said U Aung Ko.

Ashin Sopaka, the foundations spokesperson, told The Irrawaddy: Our association will never fade away. We will continue working for our race and religion like we are doing now.

The association is working in line with the law, and therefore, nothing can be done to it, said the monk.

I have nothing to say if the foundation is formed with good intentions and it does not incite racial or religious hatred, said U Thant Zin Tun, NLD lawmaker of Naypyitaw Union Territorys Dekkhinathiri Township.

Translated from Burmese by Thet Ko Ko.
Commentary On the Wrong Side of the Law, but On the Right Side of Truth

Activists and journalists call for the release of Ko Wa Lone and Ko Kyaw Soe Oo in Yangon on Saturday. / Aung Kyaw Htet / The Irrawaddy

Myanmars media community was hit by a powerful blow this morning. Its professionals feel sad, disappointed and under siege. Todays events have also damaged the image of the country and the integrity of the government.

On Monday morning, two Reuters reporters, Ko Wa Lone and Ko Kyaw Soe Oo, were sentenced to seven years imprisonment for violating the Official Secrets Act. The two reporters found themselves under arrest on Dec. 12 after gathering information on the killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in Inn Din village in Rakhine States Maungdaw Township during a clearance operation by security forces last year.

Many people have believed since the start that the case filed by police officials was a set-up, as suggested by U Win Htein, a leading member of the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD), right after the arrest of the two reporters. Other NLD members and lawmakers agreed, believing that the journalists were just doing their jobs.

At a hearing in April, even a prosecution witness, Police Captain Moe Yan Naing, told the court that the two journalists were targeted in a police plan to entrap them by offering them secret documents. The officer alleged that Pol. Brigadier-General Tin Ko Ko threatened police officials who failed to take steps to entrap the two reporters.

He told the court that Pol. Brig-Gen. Tin Ko Kos actions were unethical and damaged the integrity of the country on the international stage. However, the allegation was never investigated.

We know the case was handled by the police department, which is under the authority of the Home Affairs Ministry  one of three ministries controlled by the commander-in-chief of the military. We know that Myanmars legal code remains clogged with many oppressive and outdated laws, like the Official Secrets Act, which dates back to the British colonial era, that are in need of repeal or amendment. We also know that the independence of the countrys judicial system is very much in question  a legacy of previous authoritarian regimes. And we know that the attorney general is an ex-military official.

Together with media professionals, diplomats and various democratic institutions, however, we believe that the NLD-led government, which was elected by a majority of the people, should have done something to stand on the side of truth and justice. The government leaders, especially President U Win Myint and State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, should understand how badly this arbitrary prosecution under their government could damage the countrys image and democratic principles.

As a result, the international community, democratic institutions and media organizations have even less confidence than before in the government and its de facto leader, Daw Aung San Suu Kyi. Embassies including those of the U.S., the Netherlands, the U.K. and others have condemned the courts decision and urged the government to immediately release the two reporters.

President U Win Myint, since he took office in March, has underscored the role of the media in the countrys democratic transition. In his inaugural speech on March 30, he said, I wish to urge the media sector, which serves as the ears and eyes of the public, to understand the seriousness of their duties and to hold in high regard the public sector that they serve. But in this important case, which is pivotal for democracy, the president was nowhere to be seen.

Even if they received ambiguous information from their subordinates, there is no reason for the governments senior leaders, especially President U Win Myint and Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, to be confused about this case.

There is nothing wrong in what these particular Reuters reporters did; like any journalists they were simply doing their jobs by attempting to gather information so as to uncover the truth for the public.

I remember reading Daw Aung San Suu Kyis comments in the book The Voice of Hope, a compilation of interviews with her after her release from her first house arrest in 1995: Truth is a powerful weapon. And truthlike anything that is powerfulcan be frightening or reassuring, depending on which side you are on. She added, If youre on the side of truth, its very reassuringyou have its protection.

Sadly, however, those who are now on the side of the truth dont have its protection under her government. This is deeply discouraging, and the blow against the reporters this morning also indicates that the few democratic gains our country has made are being rolled back.

We cannot sit idly by and allow this disgraceful return to the past. We journalists are determined to continue carrying out our mission. Meanwhile, the government must do its part.
Guest Column Ways Ahead in the Peace Process?

Karen National Union chairman Gen Saw Mutu Say Poe shakes hands with Tatmadaw chief Snr-Gen Min Aung Hlaing in Naypyitaw last October. / Karen National Union HQ / Facebook

Between Aug. 30 and Sept. 1, the Myanmar Army (44th Division, 1st and 2nd Battalion) launched attacks in Dwe Lo Township in the Karen National Union (KNU)s Papun District (Brigade 5), forcing more than 200 civilians to flee. These machine-gun and mortar attacks followed similar Tatmadaw (Myanmar military) ceasefire violations in the Ler Mu Plaw area between March and June, in which 2,500 villagers were displaced.

The Tatmadaw seems determined to take control of the last remaining KNU-controlled areas in a campaign of a thousand cuts. This is despite the fact that the KNU signed a bilateral ceasefire with the government in January 2012, and was the leading Ethnic Armed Organization (EAO) to sign the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) in October 2015.

Elsewhere, the militarized state is also pushing into previously autonomous ethnic nationality-populated areas, for example through road-building projects. For now, across most of southeast Myanmar various ceasefires are still holding, and a tenuous negative peace allows villagers to begin rebuilding their lives after decades of conflict. However, in the Papun hills, state-directed violence has increased since the present government took office in 2016. Unsurprisingly therefore, many Karen and other ethnic nationality stakeholders are deeply skeptical about the peace process and fear that widespread fighting may break out again.

The KNU and Karen activist and aid groups are alert to the possibility of further Tatmadaw incursions. This year, Tatmadaw attacks on KNU positions and civilians in Papun District have been by assiduously documented, followed by the speedy publication of hard-hitting advocacy statements. This proactive strategy ensures that Tatmadaw aggression will be costly for the military politically, at a time when the Tatmadaw is under international pressure because of abuses committed against the Rohingya in Rakhine State, and against other civilians in the Kachin conflict.

However, such humanitarian advocacy and activism can only go so far. Salvaging a failing peace process also requires clear political strategy from EAOs and political parties.

Daw Aung San Suu Kyi and her advisers reportedly plan to hold one or two more Union Peace Conferences, and then declare the 21st Century Panglong Process finished. The resulting (so-called) Union Peace Accord would go to Parliament and form the background to election campaigns in 2020. Despite the NLDs reduced popularity among ethnic communities and urban-based political elites, and in the western and international community, the NLD will probably win the next elections.

Once the Union Peace Accord is completed, the Tatmadaw would likely call more strongly for EAOs to disarm and demobilize. This would be virtually impossible for the main EAOs to accept.

Unlike the U Thein Sein government, which invested significant energy and political capital in trust building, the NLD government seems not to regard EAOs as legitimate political actors. Aung San Suu Kyi and colleagues see political legitimacy as a product of participation in elections; in contrast, most EAOs derive their legitimacy from the long years of armed struggle. Although not universally popular among the countrys ethnic nationality citizens, the major EAOs do nevertheless enjoy significant support among the communities they seek to represent.

The NLD government inherited a peace process framed by the NCA and seems determined to see this throughnot least because that is what the Tatmadaw wants. Therefore, the government (and presumably the Tatmadaw) need NCA-signatories and other EAOs to support the 21st Century Panglong Process. For the EAOs, pulling out would be a high-risk move, exposing them to accusations of sabotaging the peace process. However, NCA-signatory groups should be getting more out of the process. The principles agreed so far in the last two UPCs are very weak, and do little to address ethnic grievances and self-determination goals. Key stakeholders have agreed on the need to re-negotiate the Framework for Political Dialogue, with an ambitious plan to achieve federalism and security sector reform by 2030. However, given limited interest on the government or the Tatmadaw side, any renegotiation could end up with another messy and complex framework, which doesnt really work (or benefits the government and military, which is almost the same thing).

Therefore, it could be useful to identify a small number of political priorities, which would help to deliver on some of the ethnic stakeholders key aims. These could be negotiated by EAOs and political parties in a fast-track manner, in exchange for continuing to participate in political dialogue, resulting in a Union Peace Accord which could benefit the government and ethnic stakeholders.

Another area for possible progress is Interim Arrangements, as defined in Article 25 of the NCA. Myanmars main EAOs (both NCA signatories and non-signatory groups) control sometimes extensive territory and deliver services to civilian populations, often in partnership with CSOs. In these areas, EAOs constitute the local government and generally enjoy more legitimacy locally than the Naypyitaw government or Tatmadaw, which are often considered alien, violent and predatory forces. EAOs service delivery and governance functions should be supported, because these are often the only state-like entities providing public goods to vulnerable communities on the ground, in remote and conflict-affected areas. However, the government does not seem to recognize EAOs as governance actors, instead engaging with them underground merely as service providers (similar to CSOs), and/or as private businesses. This contradicts the NCA and undermines the possibility of peace-building efforts that could transform political and economic structures that have driven ethnic violence in Myanmar for decades. Supporting Interim Arrangements could be a key element in building federalism from below in Myanmar.

If EAOs are to continue participating in the 21st Century Panglong Process, they should demand concrete progress on key issues. Benchmarks or indicators would need to be established, and should be kept simple. Areas for possible progress could be education and language policy (recognition of and funding for EAOs extensive school systems; mother tongue teaching in government schools); land issues (recognition of land title documents provided by EAOs; revision of unjust existing land laws; compensation and restitution for people who have had their land unfairly taken); and equitable natural resource management. Furthermore, EAOs should demand that the government and Tatmadaw respect Interim Arrangements as previously agreed in the NCA.

None of the above would prevent other ethnic stakeholders from continuing to campaign for federalism, including changes to the 2008 Constitution. In parallel, they could aim for some short-term political objectives, which could build trust and momentum in the peace process. These peace dividends would help ethnic communities, and also reinforce faltering local support for EAOs; in exchange, the government might be able to deliver a credible peace process. Otherwise, NCA-signatory groups should seriously consider withdrawing from a failing political dialogue.

Ashley South is a Research Fellow at Chiang Mai University, Center for Ethnic Studies and Development. (See www.AshleySouth.co.uk)
Huawei's impressive "Seeds for the Future" program has won the prestigious ACOMMS "Services to Industry  Professional Services" Award in what is definitely a deserved win.

Despite Huawei having issues selling its flagship smartphones in the US, and having been banned from Australia's 5G network, in what has been seen by some as political expediency in the midst of federal leadership turmoil, as covered in iTWire last month, the Chinese tech giant keeps ticking along.

Its P20 Pro smartphone won the "EISA Best Smartphone 2019-2019" award and Huawei has just launched the world's first commercial 7nm SoC, in its new Kirin 980 processor at IFA 2018.

Huawei's Mate 20 smartphone is due to be launched in October, as revealed by Huawei's chief executive at IFA 2018, presumably set to be powered by the newly launched Kirin 980 processor, taking the fight right up to Apple, Qualcomm, Samsung and everyone else.

Now comes Huawei's latest award, for its global Corporate Social Program, or at least one aspect of it, known as "Seeds for the Future".

Well, Seeds for the Future is described by Huawei as "a collaborative undergraduate program offering a unique opportunity for Australias best and brightest information and technology students to train at Huaweis global R&D facilities in China".

In partnership with the Australian Technology Network of Universities and the Federal Governments New Colombo Mobility program, Huawei provides students with "practical and cultural experiences to improve skills, broaden horizons and develop industry networks".

It's a program I'm familiar with, having covered it, at Huawei's invitation and expense, in both 2016 in an article entitled: "VIDEOS 2016: Huaweis Seeds for the Future reap rich harvests" and in 2017, in an article entitled: "VIDEOS: Huawei's Seeds for the Future 2017 delivers biggest harvest yet".

I have no idea whether I'll be invited again to cover this event in 2018, but if so, you'll see an article very similar to the two above, with video interviews of the Australian students, university staff, executives and a video of the graduation ceremony, and if not, hopefully another journalist from whichever Australian tech publication will do something similar.

Thus, having played a tiny part in seeing this program at work over the past couple of years from a media point of view, it's great to see Huawei achieving a win for this very program with its 2018 ACOMMS Award win, with the ACOMMS being part of the Communications Alliance.

Huawei Manager Corporate Relations and Programs, Lisa Connors, said it was an honour for Huawei to be recognised for the work it was doing in Australia.

Connors added: Nurturing Australias emerging IT talent is vital to drive the next generation of digital innovation.

Huawei is one of the worlds R&D powerhouses and the Seeds for the Future students gain access to our leading engineers and training facilities.

ATN executive director Renee Hindmarsh said the award highlighted the importance of student collaboration with industry.

Hindmarsh added: The award recognises a student industry experience that provides hands-on-learning and vital transferable skills at one of the worlds largest telecommunications companies.

This program and our partnership with the New Colombo Plan has provided our students with real-world and practical experience working in China.

Conducted by Communications Alliance and now in its 12th year, the ACOMMS Awards recognise excellence in the wider communications industry.

Communications Alliance reminds us that it is "the most influential association in Australian communications, co-operatively initiating programs for industry development, innovation and growth", and that "the awards were judged by a panel of senior Australia telecommunications executives".

Huawei's Seeds for the Future video from 2017, showing a trailer of the student's experiences from their point of view in four minutes and 28 seconds is below. You can see my interviews with the 2016 and 2017 set of students at my articles linked above.
Japan appears to have plans to follow a similar route as Australia to ban the Chinese telecommunications companies Huawei Technologies and ZTE Corporation from its 5G networks on the grounds of security.

A report in the business newspaper Sakei Shimbun said there was a plan within government to list strict criteria for information security in order to prevent companies that did not meet these criteria from participating in 5G networks.

Australia announced its ban on Huawei and ZTE on 23 August but its statement, issued jointly in the names of Scott Morrison, who was Acting Home Affairs Minister at the time, and Communications Minister Mitch Fifield, did not mention either company by name.

But it was made clear to telecommunications companies that involving either of the Chinese firms may risk failure by the carrier to adequately protect a 5G network from unauthorised access or interference.

While we are protected as far as possible by current security controls, the new network, with its increased complexity, would render these current protections ineffective in 5G," it said.

The governments Telecommunications Sector Security Reforms, which commence on 18 September, place obligations on telecommunications companies to protect Australian networks from unauthorised interference or access that might prejudice our national security."

The Sankei Shimbun report there was apprehension in government circles that any ban would affect Japan-China relations at a time when Prime Minister Shinzo Abe is set to visit China in October.

Additionally, the report said, excluding the Chinese vendors could be in violation of the World Trade Organisation's non-discriminatory principles in trade.

Contacted for comment, a Huawei spokesperson told iTWire that after contacting the company's office in Japan, and finding there was no ban planned, the conclusion reached was that, "Some conservative newspaper wrote an unsubstantiated story."
Global smartphone shipments will decline this year, but market intelligence firm IDC believes there will be low single-digit growth from 2019 through to 2022, according to the company's latest forecast released last week.

According to the IDC Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, global shipments will fall by 0.7 % to 1.455 billion units, compared to 1.465 billion in 2017.

However, a small rise in shipments is seen in the second half of 2018, with volumes rising by 1.1% compared to the second half of 2017. That volume is expected to reach 1.646 billion units by 2022.

The company said large-screen smartphones  5.5 inches and larger  would lead shipments with 841.6 million units (64.7%) shipped in 2018, making up nearly two-thirds of all shipments. The figures for 2017 were 623.2 million units of 42.5%.

By 2022, IDC expects shipments of these types of smartphones to increase to 1.391 billion units or 84.5% of shipments.

The company said as Chinese brands like OPPO, Huawei, vivo and Xiaomi expanded their international presence, the focus on large screens and aspect ratios would be across their entire range.

"With two out of three new iPhones expected to be larger than six inches, Apple will not be left behind in the 2018 race for increased screen real estate," said Melissa Chau, associate research director with IDC's Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Device Trackers.

"You could say the term 'phablet' is becoming less relevant now that most smartphones will ship with larger screens, and when folding screens start coming into play in the medium term, this screen trend will evolve in new directions."

IDC said the Chinese market was showing signs of recovery and while it was expected to be down 6.3% this year - a little worse than the 2017 fall - that would be due to a bad first half that saw smartphone shipments fall by 11%.

The second half of 2018 is expected to limit that fall to 2% before growth was experienced in 2019.

We still believe the smartphone market has some healthy growth in the years to come, although finding and competing in those markets and segments is increasingly more challenging," said Ryan Reith, program vice-president with IDC's Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers.

"With the US-China trade tariffs changing and unfolding daily it is hard to pinpoint what the exact impact on the market will be, but for the time being OEMs are pushing forward with important initiatives that include the previously mentioned traction around bigger and better displays.

"But the industry also has 5G knocking at its doors, and many OEMs, retailers, telcos, and supply chain partners will be working diligently to ensure consumers see the need to upgrade when products and services are readily available."

Graphics: courtesy IDC
National Narrowband Network Co, the Australian company building a national narrowband network in Australia for IoT, has appointed former Vocus chief financial officer Rick Correll to a newly created position as director, corporate development.

Correll has worked in financial and general executive roles for a range of companies including Vocus, Austar, News Limited and Ernst & Young and his appointment follows the recent announcement of Newcastle-based entrepreneur Chris Deeres appointment to the NNNCo Board as well as the appointment of Tony Tilbrook as chief operating officer and chief technology officer.

As the adoption of IoT accelerates in Australia and globally, NNNCo needs to scale the business effectively to meet that growing demand, said NNNCo founder and chief executive Rob Zagarella.

Ricks deep commercial experience and ability to develop an enterprise-wide approach to building sustainable business will be of major importance as we move forward.

Zagarella said that during his tenure as chief financial officer of Vocus, Correll was a key driver of the telecommunications companys journey from pre-IPO state to an ASX 100 company with market capitalisation exceeding $5 bn.

Correll said, Im excited to work with this next big technology revolution that will transform the way we live. The information that enterprises and consumers can obtain through connecting their assets with sensors will not only save them time and money, but also improve the quality of life and work for many people.

NNNCos potential is unlimited. I believe the company can accelerate the take up and value add from successful IoT implementation through its end-to end-product set which allows essentially any IoT device and transmission network to be aggregated for the benefit of the end customer.

Having proved its business model, NNNCo is now ready to scale the business to meet the mass adoption of IoT. I am looking forward to helping NNNCo anticipate and meet the steps required to scale."
Australian insurance company IAG has appointed consumer data analytics expert Bora Arslan to the role of chief analytics officer, to lead its Customer Labs analytics program.

Arslan joins IAGs Australian operation from advertising agency GTB, where he was global chief analytics officer based in Dearborn, Michigan in the US.

Prior to joining GTB, Arslan was chief data and analytics officer at BGL Group in London, where he was responsible for data-driven digital strategy and led the digital technology transformation.

Arslan has also held senior roles at US multinational retail corporation Walmart Labs and US pharmacy giant Walgreens.

IAG chief customer officer Julie Batch said the appointment of Arslan would bring a wealth of experience to IAGs analytics capability.

Bora brings with him an impressive global perspective  from his experience with some of the biggest consumer companies in the world, to his foundations in academic practice at the forefront of the analytics space,

Boras deep expertise in analytics and digital transformation will be pivotal to IAG continuing to focus on how we can better deliver to our customers."

In his new role, Arslan will oversee a team of 70 to uplift the skills needed to drive the future strategic direction of the analytics and artificial intelligence functions within IAG.

Australia is at a really exciting stage for data analytics and corporate technology transformation, and Im looking forward to building on IAGs impressive credentials in the tech and innovation space, Arslan said.

The insurance industry has enormous capacity for enhanced data analytic capability, and IAG is approaching its strategy in a really targeted and ambitious way, so its an opportunity to work with a great team and be part of a real turning point for this industry in Australia.




Kathmandu, Nepal: Prime Minister KP Sharma Oli has instructed the concerned officials to implement the 18-point Kathmandu Declaration issued in the 4th Bay of Bengal Initiatives for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economical Cooperation (BIMSTEC) summit.





Prime Minister Oli made the direction after a cabinet meeting, held today to review the BIMSTEC summit.





It is said that prime minister directed the authorities to implement the activities of the SAARC and BIMSTEC simultaneously.




A small Melbourne-based Internet services provider Telecube has gone into liquidation with effect from 29 August and has asked its NBN clients to obtain a connection elsewhere.

In an email sent to users, Telecube said: "The purpose of this letter is to inform you that Telecube will no longer be offering NBN services from 4th September 2018, after that date the NBN services are in danger of being disconnected.

"Please act promptly and arrange for a new provider as soon as possible."

The chief executive of Tasmania-based ISP Launtel, Damian Ivereigh, had warned a few days ago that smaller RSPs who were selling NBN connections could be forced out of business from October onwards.

Ivereigh put this down to the fact that month was the point at which the bundles sold by NBN Co more or less became the lone way that RSPs could buy bandwidth from the company.

In a blog post on Sunday, Ivereigh said he felt that this was the first part of the issues of the NBN retail industry that he had highlighted.

Telecube's liquidation notice said a general meeting of company members had been held on 29 August and resolved to wind up the company and appoint Matthew Jess of Worrells Solvency & Forensic Accountants as liquidator.

Ivereigh noted that several ISPs were offering discounts to try and attract Telecube's customers.

"Unfortunately this is the typical knee-jerk answer to 'how can we get customers?', which created Telecubes problems in the first place," he commented.

"Our industry has to get out the habit of discounting to get customers, we need to build value in other ways  like customer service!"

iTWire has contacted Telecube for comment.
This Week in Review

A weekly review of the best and most popular stories published in the Imperial Valley Press. Also, featured upcoming events, new movies at local theaters, the week in photos and much more.
Sagarmatha Network Pvt. Ltd. is the organization dedicated in the field of printing, publishing service since 2001. As part of media, we've been publishing Review Nepal, an English medium weekly registered at District Administration Office (DAO) Kathmandu with registration number 130-162-163 and reviewnepal.com as an online digital newspaper, with registration number 849-075-076 at Department of Informational and Broadcasting (DIB) from Kathmandu, Nepal since 2003.
The Washington Post, August 27, 2018

by Annie Gowen

GOVARDHAN, India a The two young men at the leadership camp were soft-spoken yet assured, from well-off families, wearing aviator sunglasses and flip-flops.

The right-wing activists say they have beaten men they suspected of violating core Hindu beliefs and threatened interfaith couples because they fear Muslims are stealing their women. They say theyare ready to kill for their faith if necessary.

aEven if a life is lost, we donat care,a said Ram Kumar, 23.

Itas been a summer of rage in India. Dozens have been killed by lynch mobs, and extremist Hindus continue to assault and kill others, many of them Muslims. In the latest viral video, religious pilgrims angered over a minor traffic incident used sticks to demolish a car as police looked on.

Much blame has been cast on Indiaas governing Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Prime Minister Narendra Modi, with critics charging that they have encouraged violence by Hindu extremists. But Indiaas problem of male rage has roots beyond the strident Hindu nationalism embraced by the current government.

India has more than 600 million people under 25, and they have greater access to technology and education than ever before. Yet millions have little hope of finding decent jobs, and a abachelor bomba of more than 37 million surplus men a a legacy of generations of a preference for sons and aborting female fetuses a threatens social stability for decades.

Ram Kumar, left, and Gaurav Sharma at a leadership camp for Hindu activists in Govardhan in June. (Annie Gowen/The Washington Post)

aPeople are frustrated that they are not being able to get jobs,a a leader from Modias party, Vasundhara Raje, told the channel CNN-News18. aThere is angst, which is spreading across communities and people. .a.a. Itas a reaction to their circumstances.a

More than 1 million job seekers enter the labor market each month, many with inadequate job skills, but the country generated only 1.8 million additional jobs last year, according to the Center for Monitoring Indian Economy, a research company. Modi says the number of new jobs last year was closer to 7 million.

Without solid prospects, many young men are gravitating to Indiaas growing right-wing nationalist organizations, where they find a sense of purpose.

Over time, a stereotype of a right-wing troll has emerged a keyboard jockeys with too much time on their hands, sitting in their childhood bedrooms furiously tweeting about every perceived slight to Hinduism and Modi.

This summer, Kumar attended a leadership camp sponsored by the Hindu nationalist World Hindu Council, where he learned to protect cows, which Hindus regard as sacred, protect womenas modesty and prevent outsiders from converting Hindus to other faiths. The youths did military drills in the baking heat, slept in spartan concrete dorm rooms and ate lentils and rice.

Hindu activists do military marching drills at the leadership camp in Govardhan. (Annie Gowen/The Washington Post)

Kumar, a college graduate who runs a tent rental company, and Gaurav Sharma, 22, a law student, grew up in Agra, the city of the Taj Mahal, which they see not as an ethereal white monument but as a reminder of the Mughal invaders who subjugated Indiaas Hindus.

Kumar said that as a boy, he was shy. But after joining the Hindu nationalist movement, he said, aI have a strange sense of confidence now. The group has taught us what is right, what we need to do for society.a

Before long, he said, he was out on the streets chasing down and threatening interfaith couples, conducting the moral policing he feels is necessary because Muslim men allegedly seduce girls aas young as 14.a The Hindu activists call it alove jihad.a

Kumar said he also prowls the streets at night, searching for cattle traders who might be illegally smuggling cows for slaughter. Recently, he said, he and five others stopped a truck transporting cows and beat the Muslim driver, who pleaded for his life. The man was saved only by the arrival of the police, Kumar said.

aI was raging,a Kumar said. aIf I had a pistol, I would have killed him.a

Sharma said he, too, has participated in assaults, punching one suspected cattle smuggler in the face. Elders have since shown him how to administer a beating without leaving marks on his victim.

aWe have been taught to not hit the head and chest a that can be fatal,a he said. aWe beat them in such a way so they get these serious, silent injuries a on the backs, on the legs a so they do not die. Otherwise, there will be a case against us.a

Since the BJP came to power in their state, Uttar Pradesh, led by the Hindu monk Yogi Adityanath, they do not fear being held accountable by the authorities.

aEarlier, there was a fear that the government would arrest us, but now with the Yogi government, we donat have any fear,a Sharma said. aEven if a smuggler is killed during a fight, we donat have to worry about it.a

He continued, aAll these BJP leaders, theyave said: aDo what you want to do about cow protection. Donat worry. If there is any problem, we are there for you.a a

Modi has said that state governments should deal sternly with these acow vigilantesa and that the government is committed to upholding the law, but other BJP politicians have sent a different message, meeting with or congratulating the alleged killers.

Indiaas government said Aug. 21 Whatsapp had pledged to develop tools to combat the kind of fake messaging that has sparked violence across the country. (Reuters)

The young men harbor a deep sense of victimization and spend a lot of time on Hindu-pride-focused WhatsApp groups and alternate-history websites that recount the glories of Indiaas ancient civilization before the Mughal and British invaders imposed, as Modi puts it, 1,200 years of servitude. Critics say social media is deepening the division between Hindus and Muslims in India that existed before the bloody partition of India in 1947 that created a separate country for Muslims, and ultimately an Islamic republic in Pakistan.

aOur parents never told us anything bad about Muslims. But in madrassas, they learn that Hindus are bad,a Sharma said. aWe will tell the next generations how bad these people are.a

Sharma and his peers face stiff competition for careers because they attended schools where classes are taught in Hindi and because they know only a few phrases of English, the lingua franca of aspirational India. Many of their classmates are struggling, selling vegetables or doing menial labor. Thirty classmates joined the military.

Kumar plans on having a traditional family, if only to have babies and acontribute to the population.a

aThe Hindu population,a Sharma clarified.

Others in their generation may not get the chance. Demographer Christophe Guilmoto estimates that, because of the gender imbalance, 40 million surplus men in India will remain single between 2020 and 2080.

aThere is a saying, aBehind every successful man is a womana? But you donat need women. You can leave them behind and achieve success in life,a Sharma said. For Sharma, the love of his life married someone else. He said he still regrets that he did not ask his parents for permission to marry her. But nobody in his family had ever had a alove marriagea a always arranged unions.

Now he has made a afinal decision,a to the dismay of his parents, to remain single and devote himself to the Hindu nationalist cause a just like his idol, Modi, who, after an early marriage, has long embraced the bachelor lifestyle as a campaigner for Mother India.

Tania Dutta contributed to this report.
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(TeleSur)  Pakistan and Iran started cooperating on border security last year and during this latest meeting, the officials discussed military and security cooperation.

Pakistan newly elected Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan, in a conversation with Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, said that the two countries were connected by inseparable bonds of history, religion and culture.

Both Zarif and Imran Khan also called for enhanced efforts to establish peace and stability in the region by fighting against terrorism and extremism. Terrorism is a regional and global phenomenon and Iran is ready to cooperate with Pakistan in this regard, Zarif said.

Pakistan and Iran started cooperating on border security last year and during this latest meeting, the officials discussed military and security cooperation.

PM Khan emphasized the need to restore complete peace and stability in the region, adding that the two countries remained the key to growth and prosperity through enhancing connectivity and promoting people to people linkages.

The Iranian foreign minister extended an invitation to Khan, from President Hassan Rouhani, to attend the upcoming Asian Cooperation Dialogue (ACD) Summit in Iran, in October.

Khan, in turn, expressed gratitude to the Supreme Leader for showing support for Kashmir as well as celebrating Pakistans Independence Day.

Iran marked the occasion by displaying large greetings along major highways in multiple cities and electronic screens in their public transport system.

Zarif noted that Pakistan is an important neighboring country to Iran and stressed that no third country can negatively affect relations between the two.

In May, United States President Donald Trump withdrew Washington from the Iran nuclear pact, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action and reimposed unilateral sanctions on Tehran citing threatening, destabilizing behavior.

Via TeleSur.

Featured Photo: Imran Khan, h/t Wikipedia.
The next few months will be an incredibly difficult period for Myanmar, dealing a succession of further blows to the image of the country, its transition and its political leaders, notably State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi.

The US State Department will soon release a highly detailed investigation into allegations of human rights abuses in northern Rakhine State. The weight of evidence is such that it may lead to a determination of genocide by the US.

A UN Fact-Finding Mission set up to investigate allegations of rights violations in Rakhine as well as Shan and Kachin states since 2011 has already said in its main findings and recommendations, which were presented to the Human Rights Council on August 27, that there is enough evidence to justify investigating and prosecuting military commanders, including Commander-in-Chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, for genocide. It will release its final report in September.

Myanmar will also come under further pressure at the UN General Assembly, where UN special rapporteur on human rights Ms Yanghee Lee will deliver her report. There will be more reports, more investigations, more determinations. In the background is the International Criminal Courts looming decision on whether it has jurisdiction over the alleged forced deportation of Rohingya Muslims from Rakhine State.

The civilian National League for Democracy (NLD) government has little control over the Tatmadaw (national army). What happened in the past also cannot be undone.

But the government can decide how to respond to these allegations, and to the considerable challenge of creating a better future for all people in northern Rakhine State.

Anniversary

Ahead of the first anniversary of the August 25 attacks by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), Frontier interviewed more than a dozen foreign policy experts, political analysts and government officials from a range of countries, including Myanmar.

There was a consensus that the Myanmar governments response to this complex crisis has not served the country well. The effect domestically has been to unleash a wave of aggrieved nationalism that has hardened attitudes, making reconciliation much more difficult to envision, let alone achieve in practice.

Internationally, the governments response has damaged many of its key relationships. Myanmar has moved closer to China at a time when the need for balanced foreign relations is more acute than ever.

Paradoxically Aung San Suu Kyis handling of the crisis has also hurt her relationship with the military, because it has only fuelled efforts for justice, disengagement and punitive measures like sanctions. At the same time, the military has been empowered and emboldened in the domestic sphere to the detriment of the civilian administration.

It is time for a fresh approach: one that is sincere, inclusive and transparent. Even seemingly small changes in tone and message could make a significant difference to Myanmars relationships and how it is perceived around the world, as well as prospects for repatriation and genuine reconciliation in Rakhine State.

This is not about narrow interests: what is best for the Rohingya or Rakhine, or for the NLD or military. This is about Myanmars national interest. If the government continues on the present path, it will only further entrench its growing isolation and make genuine progress in Rakhine a more remote prospect.

The United Nations Security Council holds a meeting on violence in Rakhine State on September 28, 2017. (AFP)

A significant amount of damage has already been done. While much of it was inevitable, some could have been avoided.

In particular, the governments twin strategies of denial and delay have been disastrous. It has been reactive  waiting and then responding belatedly to pressure  rather than proactive. It has looked to the past  in particular, previous refugee crises  for answers and solutions, without recognising how much Rakhine State, Myanmar and the world have changed.

Accountability for what transpired in Rakhine State will be extremely difficult to achieve in a Myanmar context. But in denying outright the allegations of abuses and refusing to investigate them for nearly a year, the government has been forced repeatedly to adopt irrational and untenable positions. Its attempts to respond to negative international media coverage with its own propaganda have further damaged its credibility.

Trying to avoid responsibility has come at a significant cost. Human rights groups and other organisations have stepped into the vacuum, conducting their own thorough investigations. The government has ceded the ground and lost control over the process. But in the end, under pressure from the United Nations Security Council, it has still been forced to form its own commission of inquiry.

Coming at this juncture, expectations for what this commission can achieve  or is even intended to achieve  are low. Had it been established at Myanmars initiative and in the immediate aftermath, these expectations may have been different.

But the timing of the governments actions over the past year has created the impression that each step is designed only to ease pressure ahead of key United Nations meetings. It reinforces the notion that the government is not sincere.

The memorandum of understanding signed with two UN agencies is another example. If it were indeed a breakthrough, UN staff would not have to wait months for travel authorisation. It will not be greatly surprising if, at the moment the UN is about to walk away from the deal, the authorisation comes through.

These are classic steps out of the military junta playbook. Relent a little, relieve the pressure, then slam the door.

It should also not be surprising then that those in charge of foreign policy alongside Aung San Suu Kyi are veterans of that era. Influential ministers U Kyaw Tint Swe, U Thaung Tun and U Kyaw Htin all cut their teeth in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs defending Than Shwes government from allegations of rights abuses and political oppression.

It is a flawed approach. It prioritises short-term results over long-term progress in Rakhine State, it damages prospects for international cooperation, and it cedes the initiative to other actors.

It is also not compatible with the context. The abuses under military rule could be more easily defended on the grounds they were internal matters, whereas the Rakhine crisis has clear international implications.

Accountability

The push for accountability is not going to blow over any time soon. The US State Department report is designed to preserve evidence. In all likelihood, the issue will hang over Myanmar for decades, influencing its economic and political relationships.

Already the damage to Myanmars reputation is having a material affect. Foreign investment has slowed and important economic sectors like tourism, which creates a large number of jobs, have been hard hit.

But there is an opportunity for Myanmar to change the narrative and begin repairing its image and relationships. An important step on the governments part would be to acknowledge that security forces and vigilantes were almost certainly involved in much of the violence in northern Rakhine State. It would go a long way towards rebuilding trust and confidence.

For all the criticism of Myanmar, the international response so far has been restrained  particularly considering the seriousness of the allegations, the volume of evidence and the scale of the refugee crisis. Sanctions have been limited and symbolic in nature. There has been little real change in foreign policy towards Myanmar.

This is born out of a lack of leverage, but also a desire to stop Myanmar becoming dependent on China and an appreciation of the very serious challenges the government faces. The reality is that nobody wants the NLD government to fail; on the contrary, there is a keen desire to assist.

Displaced Rohingya refugees from Rakhine State walk near the border with Bangladesh on September 4, 2017. (AFP)

The obvious basis for this cooperation is the recommendations of the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State. Led by the late former UN secretary general Mr Kofi Annan, the commission delivered its final report just hours before ARSA launched its attacks last August.

There is a broad consensus that the recommendations offer the best pathway forward  indeed, its one of the few things that Myanmar and its partners agree on. To date though the international community has been mostly locked out of the process, which has been highly opaque. Aung San Suu Kyis recent claim that 81 of 88 recommendations have already been implemented has raised eyebrows, given that many are long-term in nature.

And the point that nearly everyone interviewed for this piece agreed on was that, at its core, citizenship is the answer. That is one of the recommendations that has not been taken up.

Going it alone is not the solution for Myanmar. The government needs to come up with a coherent strategy to engage with all international stakeholders. This doesnt mean giving up sovereignty; it can remain in control of the process. But a clear plan for implementation, with timelines, costings and responsibilities, would find strong international support.

But the most significant change required is in the way the Rakhine issue has been framed domestically.

One of the biggest failings of the past 12 months has been the inability of Myanmars leaders to convince the country that there is an alternative to hatred, exclusion and violence. No one has stood up to the hate speech and incitement, the suggestions that all refugees are terrorist sympathisers and illegal immigrants. Now that those sentiments have been unleashed, they will be incredibly difficult to contain. In this toxic environment, it would be almost impossible for any political leader to challenge the status quo.

Except, that is, for Aung San Suu Kyi. For all the knocks she has taken over the past year, her stature and authority are such that she is still the only politician who can shape the views of vast numbers of people.

She can begin the difficult conversation that needs to take place around citizenship and identity, and what it means to be a citizen of Myanmar. This is going to take time, but beginning the process would be an important signal to everyone that a resolution over the long term is possible.

To date, though, when Aung San Suu Kyi has spoken publicly about the crisis she has appeared dispassionate and disconnected  as though she was discussing an administrative challenge rather than a human tragedy. She has shown seemingly little empathy for the suffering that all communities in Rakhine State have endured. These cues have not been missed, either at home or abroad.

When Aung San Suu Kyi took the stage for her Singapore lecture on August 21, the time was right to signal a new approach.

What she delivered was essentially more of the same. That Myanmar was the victim of terrorism. That it was committed to repatriation and the implementation of the Annan commissions recommendations.

The intention may indeed be genuine. But relying on the methods of the past 12 months is only likely to further damage Myanmars national interests.

This article was first published by Frontier Myanmar
In The Hague, the International Criminal Court (ICC) last week concluded its hearings in the trial of former Congolese militia leader Bosco Ntaganda. And in New York, UN experts called for international prosecution of top Burmese army commanders accused of genocide against the Rohingya.

Former Congolese militia leader Bosco Ntaganda, 44, now awaits the verdict of his ICC judges. On Thursday, the last day of closing arguments, Ntaganda told the court he was a revolutionary, not a criminal. He is charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity for recruiting child soldiers and for having ordered murder, rape and looting committed by his forces in 2002-2003 in Ituri, northeast Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). I am at peace with myself, Ntaganda said at the end of his three-year trial. These allegations are nothing but lies. On Wednesday his lawyers had rejected their clients nickname of Terminator, which has stuck to him. This came after prosecutors on Tuesday painted a terrible portrait of this former Congolese army officer born in northern Rwanda. His crimes include ordering some people to be disembowelled, including pregnant women, they said. The prosecution called on the judges to find him guilty of all the charges.

CAR voices against amnesty

In the Central African Republic (CAR), where new talks have been announced between the government and armed groups, national and international human rights organizations are reiterating their opposition to any kind of general amnesty. It is unthinkable that persons responsible for and complicit in the most serious crimes could obtain amnesty at the negotiating table, and the government should reject this idea unconditionally, they said in a statement on August 24.

The talks, whose date and place have not yet been announced, aim to put an end to the violence that has been tearing the CAR apart since 2013. According to several concurring sources, the armed groups demands include not only power sharing but also a general amnesty.

Namibia and Myanmar

In a desire for reconciliation, Germany on Wednesday handed over to Namibia the remains of some Herero and Nama people killed during the colonial period in what many historians consider to have been the first genocide of the 20th century. At least 60,000 Herero and 10,000 Nama lost their lives between 1904 and 1908. The German colonial forces used several methods, including massacres, exile to the desert where thousands of men, women and children died of thirst, and concentration camps like the notorious one on Shark Island. Descendants of the victims say Germanys gesture is insufficient, as they continue to call for an official apology and reparations.

In a report published last Monday, UN experts accused senior members of the Myanmar army of committing genocide against the Muslim Rohingya people. They said the countrys top generals, including army chief Min Aung Hlaing, should be brought to justice before an international court for the genocide. More than 700,000 Rohingya people fled to neighbouring Bangladesh to escape an August 2017 army crackdown in response to attacks by Rohingya rebels. The UN experts called for the Security Council to refer the Myanmar situation to the International Criminal Court (ICC) or to set up a special ad hoc tribunal as it did for Rwanda and former Yugoslavia.

The probability of a resolution on the Rohingya genocide nevertheless remains low, since China and Russia would likely veto it. Reacting on Wednesday, the Myanmar government rejected the report and questioned the impartiality of its authors.
Dear Mr. Chief Minister,

It is with much anguish that we a a group of former civil servants anxious about the alarming decline recently, in secular, democratic and liberal values of the Constitution a write to you, confident that you will not allow political expediency to trump secular principles.

We write to express our alarm at recent reports of your governmentas plans to amend the Indian Penal Code (IPC) to make acts of sacrilege against religious books a major offence, punishable with life imprisonment. Our objections, echoing similar disagreements widely expressed in the press, are on several grounds. We hope your cabinet will reconsider this decision, that we consider is not wise or thought through, and will withdraw the amendment bill.

Our main arguments are:

Blasphemy provisions, such as the one planned, go against the very grain of the secular character of our Constitution. Rather than reduce the role of religion from the matters of the state, expected of a secular polity, this move will further consolidate the hold of sectarianism, and strengthen the hands of religious extremists on all sides.

Further, blasphemy laws are a direct threat to freedom of speech and expression, a fundamental right. Criminalising sacrilege, and making it a major offence, will create a chilling effect on free speech, giving a handle to anyone claiming to be hurt, to pursue ill-founded prosecutions. This is exactly what is happening. Moreover, it will deter any one from even serious research and re-interpretation of religious texts, which will only encourage religious fundamentalism.

Experience of the implementation of blasphemy laws the world over, point to their being particularly prone to misuse against minorities and weaker sections, to harass them, exact revenge and also to settle personal and professional quarrels, all matters entirely unrelated to blasphemy. (Pew Research Centre, 2016, US Commission on International Religious Freedoms, 2017). Making sacrilege a major offence, wherever it has been affected, has afostered an environment of intolerance and impunity, and led to violations of a broad range of human rightsa . (Freedom House, 2010).

Provisions already exist to deal with insults to religion. Any further amendments to the existing provisions are not merely unnecessary, but are a retrograde step. Laws that seek to restrict freedoms (speech, belief..) have an insidious quality, in that they proliferate, also making space for more severe versions of the original, further restricting freedoms, and tend to gradually spin out of control.

The proposed amendment is bad in law. It is poorly worded, offences are undefined and open-ended, speaking of asacrilege, and ahurta caused to apeoplea. It is also arbitrary a religious texts of only four major faiths are included, leaving others out (as far as Hinduism is considered it cites only one text, when there are a hundred other texts held sacred by different sections of Hinduism).

By prescribing life imprisonment, the proposed amendment makes sacrilege a major offence. This is excessive and disproportionate. Supreme Court has, in its ruling on Sec. 295-A IPC (in Ramjilal Modi vs State of UP, AIR 1957 SC 620) already held that the said provision, that attracts a maximum penalty of four years, punishes only the aaggravated form of insult to religiona .

We have seen that whenever a legislation has not been sufficiently thought through as to its ramifications, is imprecise in its definition of what constitutes an offence, e.g. asacrilegea and is capable of multiple interpretations, it lends itself to the gross abuse of power by vested political interests, particularly those that represent sectarian groups, and adds to the potential of increased police repression.

You will appreciate that we have already paid a heavy price for our past sins of pandering to extremist sentiments of various religions for short term political ends, whether it be the Shah Banu case, the Taslima Nasreen case, opening of the gates of Babri Masjid for pooja, banning of various books, paintings etc. This has brought us to a situation today where the very idea of an inclusive, pluralistic, and liberal India and Indian-ness is seriously threatened.

Our country has recently seen the development of a communally charged environment due to the empowerment of sectarian and illiberal ideas and ideologies, resulting in the targeting of minorities and a general increase in social disharmony. The need of the hour is for all responsible stakeholders to act to reduce the space provided to religious fundamentalists of all kind a not open up space further to them. Additionally, the proposed amendment has the potential to set off competitive mobilisation and copycat blasphemy and sacrilege legislations in other states too. It will only serve to underline divisions and encourage each community to look both over its shoulders as also over the shoulders of others to check what they are doing. It is not difficult to visualise a scenario where such a law can be brutally misused.

The Congress Party has had a chequered history of occasionally fishing in communal waters for short term political ends making it vulnerable to the charge of hypocrisy. In a situation where the need to uphold our secular values has become more critical than ever before, we believe it is incumbent on you as an influential leader of that party to stand by those values and shun the temptation to score short term political points. We do hope your government will withdraw the Indian Penal Code (Punjab Amendment) bill, 2018 and Code of Criminal Procedure (Punjab Amendment) bill 2018.

Thank you and sincerely,
Two Reuters journalists accused of breaching Myanmars state secrets law while reporting on a massacre of Rohingya Muslims were jailed for seven years Monday, fuelling further international outrage a week after the army was accused of genocide.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, who have been held in Yangons Insein prison since their arrest in December, were charged with violating the Official Secrets Act, a draconian British colonial-era law which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years.

The case has sparked an outcry among the international community as an attempt to muzzle reporting on last years crackdown by Myanmars security forces on the Muslim Rohingya minority in Rakhine state.

Army-led clearance operations drove 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, carrying with them widespread accounts of atrocities  rape, murder and arson  by Myanmar police and troops.

The reporters denied the charges, insisting they were set up while exposing the extrajudicial killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine village of Inn Din in September last year.

They had told the court they were arrested after being invited to dinner by police in Yangon, who handed them documents.

As they left the restaurant, the pair were detained for possessing classified material.

But Judge Ye Lwin was unmoved by their testimony.

The culprits intended to harm the interests of the state. And so they have been found guilty under the state secrets act, he told the packed Yangon court.

They are sentenced to seven years in prison each.

Kyaw Soe Oos wife wept after the judge delivered the verdict.

As they were led to the waiting prison van the handcuffed pair, both Myanmar nationals, gave brief but defiant statements on the court steps.

The government can detain us in the prison but dont close the ears and eyes of the people, Kyaw Soe Oo said.

Wa Lone, who gave a defiant thumbs up to the massed ranks of reporters, said: We will face it (the verdict) with stability and courage.

 Crimes against humanity 

Defence lawyer Khin Maung Zaw said an appeal would be lodged as soon as possible against the verdict, which Reuters denounced as based on false charges.

Today is a sad day for Myanmar and the press everywhere, Stephen J. Adler, Reuters Editor-in-Chief, said in a statement, adding that the outcome was designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press.

The UN in Myanmar and the European Union joined the growing chorus of calls for the reporters release. Rights groups decried the verdict as a sign of enduring repression in a country meant to be edging towards a more open and democratic future after almost a half-century of army rule.

The ruling sends a stark warning to other journalists in the country of the severe consequences that await should they look too closely at military abuses, Tirana Hassan, Amnesty Internationals director of crisis response, said in a statement.

This amounts to censorship through fear.

The army has published its version of events at Inn Din village, conceding the Rohingya men were killed while in custody but saying it was a one-off case of abuse by a mixture of security forces and ethnic Rakhine locals.

Mondays ruling comes a week after the release of an explosive United Nations-led study into abuses in Rakhine, accusing Myanmars army chief of heading a campaign of genocide and crimes against humanity against the Rohingya.

It also strongly criticised de facto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi for failing to use her moral authority to stand up for the stateless minority.

The same day, Facebook shut down the pages of Myanmars army chief Min Aung Hlaing and other military top brass, in what the company said was a bid to prevent them from further fanning ethnic and religious tensions.

As calls mount for Myanmars military leaders to face an international tribunal, they have remained defiant, insisting last years crackdown was a proportionate response to attacks by Rohingya militants on border posts.

But Suu Kyis reputation as a defender of human rights has been shredded by her refusal to speak out against the military for its handling of the Rohingya crisis or in support of the jailed reporters.

burs-apj/sm
Two Reuters journalists accused of breaching Myanmars state secrets law while reporting on a massacre of Rohingya Muslims were jailed for seven years Monday, fuelling international outrage a week after the army was accused of genocide.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, who have been held in Yangons Insein prison since their arrest in December, were charged with violating the Official Secrets Act, a draconian British colonial-era law which carries a maximum sentence of 14 years.

The case, which sparked an international outcry, was seen as an attempt to muzzle reporting on last years crackdown by Myanmars security forces on the Muslim Rohingya minority in Rakhine state.

Army-led clearance operations drove 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, carrying with them widespread accounts of atrocities  rape, murder and arson  by Myanmar police and troops.

The reporters denied the secrets charges, insisting they were set up while exposing the extrajudicial killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in the Rakhine village of Inn Din in September last year.

They had told the court they were arrested after being invited to dinner by police in Yangon, who handed them documents.

As they left the restaurant, the pair were detained for possessing classified material.

But Judge Ye Lwin was unmoved, also choosing to disregard a whistleblowing policemans testimony that corroborated their version of events.

The culprits intended to harm the interests of the state. And so they have been found guilty under the state secrets act, he told the packed Yangon court.

They are sentenced to seven years in prison each, he said.

Kyaw Soe Oos wife Chit Su Win wept after the judge delivered the verdict, collapsing on the ground in tears as she filed out of the sweltering courtroom along with other shell-shocked family members, reporters and diplomats.

The handcuffed pair, both Myanmar nationals with young children, gave brief but defiant statements on the court steps.

The government can detain us in the prison but dont close the ears and eyes of the people, Kyaw Soe Oo said.

Wa Lone, whose wife gave birth to a baby daughter less than a month ago, gave a defiant thumbs up to the massed ranks of reporters.

We will face it (the verdict) with stability and courage, he said, before the pair were bundled into a waiting police van and taken back to the notorious Insein prison.

 Genocide 

Defence lawyer Khin Maung Zaw said an appeal would be lodged as soon as possible against the verdict, which Reuters denounced as based on false charges.

Today is a sad day for Myanmar and the press everywhere, Reuters editor-in-chief Stephen J. Adler said in a statement, adding that the outcome was designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press.

The UN in Myanmar, the US, the European Union and EU members Britain and France condemned the verdict and reiterated calls for the reporters release, while rights groups added their voices to the chorus of outrage.

The ruling sends a stark warning to other journalists in the country of the severe consequences that await should they look too closely at military abuses, Amnesty Internationals Tirana Hassan said in a statement. This amounts to censorship through fear.

Frederick Rawski of the International Commission of Jurists described it as a miscarriage of justice following a grossly unfair hearing, citing the lack of evidence and violations of the right to a fair trial.

Reporters Without Borders condemned the sham trial and sentencing as a dark day for press freedom in Myanmar.

The army has published its version of events at Inn Din village, conceding the Rohingya men were killed while in custody but saying it was a one-off case of abuse by a mixture of security forces and ethnic Rakhine locals.

Mondays ruling comes a week after the release of an explosive United Nations-led study into abuses in Rakhine, accusing Myanmars army chief of heading a campaign of genocide and crimes against humanity against the Rohingya.

It also strongly criticised de facto civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi for failing to use her moral authority to stand up for the stateless minority.

The same day, Facebook shut down the pages of Myanmars army chief Min Aung Hlaing and other military top brass, in what the company said was a bid to prevent them from further fanning ethnic and religious tensions.

As calls mount for Myanmars military leaders to face an international tribunal, they have remained defiant, insisting last years crackdown was a proportionate response to attacks by Rohingya militants on border posts.

But Suu Kyis reputation as a defender of human rights has been shredded by her refusal to speak out against the military for its handling of the Rohingya crisis or in support of the jailed reporters.

burs-rs/sm
In an attempt to attract migrant workers from Vietnam to Thailand, the Thai government has approved a proposal to provide work permits for illegal Vietnamese labourers, said Labour Minister Pol Gen Adul Sangsingkeo.



The proposal will benefit about 50,000 Vietnamese nationals who visit Thailand on a 30-day tourist visa and working illegally, he told the media after an August 31 meeting of the government's committee on policy for resolving migrant labour problems and tackling human trafficking in the labour sector.



He added the committee agreed to housemaids and blue-collar workers in most industries to the list of jobs Vietnamese nationals will be allowed to do in Thailand.



The same policy will also be applied to migrant workers from Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia only after Thailand signs the memorandums of understanding (MoU) with the four nations on cooperation in labour supply. Dates for the signing of the MoUs will be set soon.



According to a preliminary data, about 30,000-50,000 Vietnamese are working in Thailand without work permits as garment workers, street vendors and restaurant waiters. In August 2018, more than 60 Vietnamese out of thousands of illegal foreign laborers were arrested.-VNA
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Establishing a medical career inevitably requires signing a number of contracts along the way that we are not trained to evaluate, leaving us at risk for malignant retention strategies. At the beginnings of our careers, we were obligated to sign all contracts offered to us without question. The medical school match did not leave much choice, and salary negotiations were nonexistent. This lack of choice later changed, as most of us can keenly recall receiving our first confusing offer letter while completing the last few months of training. Some of us try to sift through the legalese alone, while others will start the daunting process of procuring a lawyer. Regardless of your approach, be sure to look out for the following three common retention strategies in health care, designed to increase the burden  and thus decrease the freedom  of leaving your position.

1. Exiling restrictive covenants (a.k.a the non-compete)

The general purpose of a restrictive covenant is to ensure medical providers do not take patients from a practice upon leaving. The equity in a medical practice is in its patient panel, and they have every right to guard that asset when a staff member changes their employer. To that goal, a balanced restrictive covenant is generally limited to the catchment area of the providers main established site(s). By restricting the area where an ex-employee can work, a medical practice is at less risk of losing patients, most of whom prefer to maintain care at a convenient nearby site rather than re-establish care somewhere new and farther away. A medical office in New York City, for example, might require a physician changing employers to work outside of a 10-block radius from their established site. That distance would understandably increase to a few miles in a suburban setting where car travel prevails. The expected time frame for a good faith restriction is usually 6 to 12 months.

Contrast that requirement to the malignant adaptation, which ensures that employees are unable to work without moving their home, sometimes out of the state, due to a radius that creates a preposterously long commute. Large health systems often accomplish this by requiring a relatively short radius around every facility within their system, which effectively blocks out a significantly larger territory that could span multiple states. Similarly, the time frame can last years. Signing such contracts could represent career suicide in that region, as medical providers would essentially be unemployable in a large area for a significant period of time.

2. Expensive malpractice insurance

It is standard practice for health care organizations to offer their providers malpractice insurance, yet not all policies are equal. There are two general types: occurrence and claims-made. Occurrence-based malpractice insurance covers all claims indefinitely as long as they are generated on a patient encounter that occurred when the policy was active. Changing insurers or employers does not negate coverage from prior encounters. However, it is usually the more expensive variety of malpractice insurance as it is more comprehensive.

Contrast that to the (sometimes unintentional) malignant retention tactic of claims-made malpractice insurance. While cheaper than the above, this insurance only provides coverage while the policy is active. If a medical provider leaves their job and the policy ends, there are no protections against any subsequent claims brought on a prior patient encounter, and that provider is personally liable. This can be dangerous and financially devastating if such a claim is successful. As a result, physicians are encouraged to purchase tail coverage, which, as the name implies, is a policy purchased by the individual, not the practice, that covers those subsequent claims from a prior malpractice insurance policy. This can prove exceedingly costly, ranging from 1.5 to 2 times the yearly claims-made malpractice insurance rate. For physicians in lower risk specialties, this could be under $10,000, but surgeons and other higher risk specialties could easily spend tens of thousands of dollars just for changing jobs. There are countless horror stories of physicians needing to pay over $100,000 for this service, although that is not the norm.

3. Timely vesting

Retirement vesting schedules are perhaps the most benign strategy of the three on this list, and should not be confused with ownership, partnership or stock vesting. Most health care companies will offer 401k/403b options to their employees, and a majority of those will have some form of matching contributions. The idea is that the company will contribute additional funds (in addition to the negotiated salary) into their employees retirement if the employee allocates a portion of their salary their as well. It is important to read the fine print, as one common practice is to restrict access to those matching contributions based on time. For example, it may take five years before that money fully belongs to the employee  whereas, leaving the company before that time yields only a percentage of the total. Employers can thus promise seemingly higher than average matching percentages that are in reality only available to employees who remain for several years in potentially undesirable work environments. Leaving before being fully vested can cost the employee tens of thousands of dollars.

Next steps: negotiations

Of these three retention strategies found in contracts, retirement vesting schedules have the least room for negotiation. In general, companies have a set standard for all employees where exceptions cannot be made. However, restrictive covenants and malpractice insurance should be discussed further if these malignant retention strategies make it into a contract.

Jonathan Zipkin is an urgent care physician.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
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As luck would have it, I flew (figuratively speaking, of course) down the highway to work this afternoon while listening to the sweeping saga of Harry Potter.

As you may know, not unlike the medical students we teach, no student enters the hallowed halls of Hogwarts without a gift. All possess the potential to master  after years of study and practice, of course  the art and science of magic.

Despite an institutional history checkered by prejudice and conflict, students are now welcomed at Hogwarts regardless of social class, sex, appearance or the purity of their bloodline. Wizard- or Muggle-born, all those endowed with the capacity for magic have a place there. Headmaster Albus Dumbledore, a wizard of scrupulous integrity, is rightly and deeply beloved. Not only does he model an inspiring commitment to the triumph of life over death, hes funny.

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the volume most currently cued up on my phone, the Ministry of Magic, an agency of the wizarding government, has become obstructive and destructive. Whether they are merely oblivious or allied with the forces for death is unclear. I white-knuckled it as our hero Harry and his friends, Hermione and Ron, came face-to-face for the first time with Professor Dolores Jane Umbridge. Let me tell you, its not pretty.

Charged with the life-saving task of teaching Defense Against the Dark Arts, Umbridge quickly reveals herself to be the teacher students universally despise. Rather than prepare her students to save lives, she spends her time demeaning her students burning desire to embark on the practice of magic. Through aggression, covert and overt, she makes it clear that her aim is not to empower them in all their glorious variety, but rather to enforce her view of how things should be. She will go so far as to scar students painfully and permanently in order to make them conform. It is truly a wonder that the young Harry does not lose his mind.

As I listened, I found my mind drifting to an extraordinary essay, one I read recently, from the Scientific American. This piece, entitled Diversity and Inclusion in Medical Schools: The Reality, simultaneously broke my heart and made me furious. I cannot recommend it to you highly enough.

In it, Jennifer Tsai, herself a fourth-year medical student, details the contrast between the modern American medical schools active search for much-needed diversity in the student body, which is to say, the future physician workforce, and the reality encountered by students who fall in some way outside the old-school norm for a doctor. While a recent essay on KevinMD illuminated the modern expectation that medical school applicants submit a medical school diversity essay, these students (of varied experiences and identities), Tsai writes,many among my friends, arent getting what they bargained for. This admission comes with a cost. Once  in school, they are told to (hide the truth of their identity, and) leave precisely what they bring to the table at the threshold of the hospital.

I hope I speak for all of us who teach medicine when I say, how shamefully disingenuous of us!

Not unlike Harry Potter, medical students have come to us precisely because they have innate gifts. Without exception, they have demonstrated the academic potential and personal commitment to life over death required to master  after years of study and practice, of course  the art and science of medicine. Additionally, they bring a diversity of personal qualities and life experience.

Despite an institutional history checkered by prejudice and conflict, medical schools now actively seek students of every social class, sex, ethnicity, religious creed or lack thereof, gender identity and sexual orientation, without regard to disability or the occupation of their parents. These students bring us all of that glorious variety in sacred trust. Their distinct qualities  on every front  are not ours to squander; they are the precious inheritance of the next generation of patients, many of whom will yearn for a physician a lot like them.

We who are their teachers, have a crucial choice to make. And, as Dumbledore notes, It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.

Will we teach our students Defense Against the Dark Arts? Or will we, like Professor Umbridge, waste their instructional time and attention attempting to deny the reality of the future they know to be on its way? Will we be obstructive and destructive, employing overt and covert aggression to enforce some outdated view of who a doctor should be? Will we choose to scar them painfully and permanently in order to make them conform? In this moment when we all find ourselves repeatedly stunned by medical student and resident suicides, we have a holy obligation to ask, is it any wonder that some of them lose their minds?

Our students come to us after years of preparation and sacrifice, often burning with a desire to pick up a wand and begin the practice of medicine. We who teach them are in a position of power and hold important keys to their success. As their teachers, can we not channel the dignity and generosity of Dumbledore?

Like Dumbledore, we certainly wont be around forever. I wonder, do we have it in us to embody scrupulous integrity, embrace our students in all their diversity; stand up for their right to be themselves in the classroom, the OR, and the halls of the hospital; and keep our sense of humor about us to boot? Isnt our commitment to them an essential part of our commitment to life over death?

Stacia Dearmin is a physician and founder, Thrive.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
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Jerry and his wife, Pam, were not medical people and wouldnt be considered high achievers. They seemed to be taking life in stride with a mom and pop disposition. Jerry had Alzheimers disease and was returned to his care facility after having a pacemaker inserted. The staff noticed Jerry slumped in his chair and called 911. Jerrys blood pressure was low, and EMS transported him to the nearest hospital. He arrived with a happy-go-lucky smile on his face.

Pam freely admitted that she was a goofball, after several medical professionals reprimanded her for misplacing the card containing the pacemaker model and serial number. Was the pacemaker malfunctioning? Had Jerry experienced a mini-stroke? Was the dose of his blood pressure medication too high? Was he experiencing a new normal with his Alzheimers? None of this medical stuff mattered to Jerry and Pam as they joked with the ER doctor.

Pam warned the doctor that their daughter, Jean, was a nurse at a nearby hospital and that she was kinda bossy. In the meantime, the doctor told Pam that Jerrys drop attack might never be completely explained, but that lowering his blood pressure medication dosage was appropriate. Besides reassurance, was further testing needed?

Once Jean arrived, the doctor had a definitive answer to his open-ended question about how to proceed. Jean was dumbfounded by the suggestion that her father was fine and stated, This is not what we do at my hospital. The doctor was properly scolded while Pam smiled, her eyes saying, I told you. The idea of engaging a reasonable conversation with shared decision-making was not an option. Jean was the boss. The doctor proceeded with business as usual, ordering all necessary tests for hospital admission and observation.

The following 9 reasons are why reassurance medicine has become a lost art:

1. Evidence-based medicine takes precedence. We live in a data-driven society. Jerry may have looked fine, but what were his vital signs? What did the laboratory findings reveal and was a CT scan performed? Physicians are rarely faulted for doing a major workup on Jerry to rule out other potential reasons for his drop attack. Yet most evidence would likely be inconclusive. Even if evidence proved otherwise, would it change the fact that most nonmedical people prefer to leave well enough alone?

2. Chronic illness requires due diligence. Patients with chronic illness, such as Alzheimers and heart disease, die if theyre not treated aggressively. Never mind that these diseases are leading causes of death despite medical treatment. Is this fact reassuring? Unassuming folks like Jerry and Pam often fret about others fussing over them. Most easy-going people truly believe they must die of something and are less concerned about what that something might be.

3. Medical knowledge overrides common sense. Intelligent people are prone to intimidate and bully the less educated. They seem to always be right and make this known to others. When a physician and nurse go toe-to-toe, one often tries to outsmart the other. Nonmedical people often use common sense and pose questions that can challenge and humble medical professionals. Medical knowledge is held in high regard, but it cant compete with common sense and reassurance.

4. Physicians are not cost-conscious. Physician are not spending their own money on patients  theyre making money from treating patients. Attention has been given to value-based care to curb this practice, but it requires training physicians to order fewer tests and offer more reassurance. Few insurers want to pay for physicians to talk to patients so theres no incentive for them to practice value-based medicine. And there are legal penalties for not practicing defensive medicine.

5. Defensive medicine protects physicians from litigation. Reassurance and defensive medicine are polar opposites. Reassurance comes from a deeper knowing or mothers intuition that discourages the need for emergency treatment for every injury or ailment. Physicians who practice defensive medicine advise every patient who experiences something out of the ordinary to seek emergency care. Jean was playing it safe while neglecting her maternal instinct in caring for her parents.

6. People fail to trust themselves and others. Its too easy to doubt others because were human and fallible. Trust is a matter of the proverbial glass being half empty or half full. Jerry and Pam trusted the doctor while Jean was suspicious. Even though the physician trusted his judgment, he responded to how Jean perceived him. Reassurance can only be an effective plan if both parties have the ability to trust.

7. Attention is rarely given to reducing a patients stress. The quicker stress becomes downplayed, the sooner a patient can relax. Jerry and Pam knew within minutes that the doctor intended to have them return to assisted living. Once Jean arrived, their stress escalated. Reassurance is the best remedy for stress reduction, but the doctors order for stress management was overruled. It seemed that Jerry was called to suffer rather than feel at ease.

8. Something is always wrong with patients. Most family caregivers find themselves saying, If its not one thing, its another. Few can simply treat one issue and forget about others. If Jerrys Alzheimers disease was fatal, would it make sense to treat him for heart disease or a stroke? Would Jerry want his life prolonged knowing that his quality of life would suffer over time? Was Jerry given reassurance that Alzheimers disease if perfectly normal?

9. Reassurance medicine is a spiritual practice. The art of medicine has a spiritual connotation. The laying on of hands, like a pat on the shoulder, demonstrates both compassion and affirmation. Its a spiritual blessing that only bestowed on the patients through compassionate individuals, not a machine or medication. The healing power of reassurance can be as effective as a placebo and evidence suggest that placebos work. Spiritual healing thats good for the soul is good for Jerrys mind and body.

If physicians want to provide reassurance medicine, they need to understand palliative care better. If patients wish to receive reassurance medicine, they need to enroll in a palliative care program. The ER physician demonstrated the art of person-centered care by addressing Jerry and Pam with compassion and understanding. The nonmedical model of palliative care as reassurance medicine allows patients to embrace the art of medicine fully.

If Warren Buffett, Jamie Dimon, and Jeff Bezos wish to tackle rising health care costs, theyre going to need Atul Gawande to show how reassurance medicine supports patient satisfaction and saves money. Once lost, but now found the art of medicine (that uses clinical judgment over scientific evidence) needs to become the saving grace and new valued-based model for health care delivery in America.

Kevin Haselhorst is an emergency physician and author of Wishes To Die For: Expanding Upon Doing Less in Advance Care Directives. He can be reached at his self-titled site, Kevin Haselhorst.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
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My baby was crying non-stop as soon as we got her home. She tried to latch and did well, but I had no way of knowing how much nutrition she was getting. I counted the diapers, and the numbers were just barely on track, and she was making small quantities. I was trying to Google more tips with one hand and nurse her with the other. She was suffering, and I was desperately trying to find the information I needed. She did not sleep. My nipples were bleeding and burning. And I had not slept in three days. I developed an aversion to nursing due to the pain and fatigue but would do anything to calm her and feed her. I am a physician, and I can figure this out, I insisted. I started to withdrawal from phone calls and did not ask for help. I suffered for it. This was the most devastating experience of my life. I was not prepared for motherhood, and I was unraveling.

As a physician, I thought I knew a good deal about infant care. I read through The Harriet Lane Handbook during medical school, read What to Expect When You Are Expecting and began reading the American College of Pediatrics recommended text. I watched a prenatal class that taught lactation techniques and about the process of giving birth. I was preparing for the greatest test of my life and felt confident that I had it handled. After all, I am now a cardiology fellow who is juggling fellowship, research, graduate school and studying for the internal medicine boards. I know how to prepare, so I thought.

On Saturday, August 4th, 2018, my husband and I just returned from a community health fair in Greensboro, NC. Afterward, I took a long nap and woke up with strange pains. Five centimeters later, we arrived at the hospital just before midnight. I delivered a new bundle of joy. Afterward, we received a whirlwind of information. The lactation consultants were showing me tips on nursing, pointed to some relevant pages in a nursing book and wished us good luck. I did not receive any information about signs of malnutrition and what to do about it.

We luckily had a pediatrician appointment after leaving the hospital and discovered that my baby had lost 10 ounces. My pediatrician frowned and pointed out her mild jaundice. She mentioned the risks of formula based on the American College of Pediatrics recommendations but encouraged us to start using it anyway. I was also encouraged to begin pumping to bring in breast milk. Why would nature allow such a delay in vital nutrition? I thought. I was angry with our maker. I was going through the stages of grief starting in her office. Breastfeeding was so important for bonding and her health, I did not want to stray from the recommendations. Despite this, because of her concern and my desperation, I would do anything just to get her to a normal weight.

The next day, my husband went back to work, and I spent almost 24 hours a day caring for her and pumping. I neglected all of my fellowship responsibilities because she was my only priority. I was flailing and exhausted. I would mark her diaper quantity on a changing pad with low confidence that she was making enough excrement. She looked thin and seemed never to get any rest. I was failing her, and my heart broke.

Thankfully, my mother-in-law emailed me and asked if she and a family friend, who took care of my husband as an infant, could help. Also, my pediatrician sent an amazing nurse who came to my house to help as well. She sat with me to discuss lactation problems and answer all my questions. She then weighed my baby, and she gained six ounces! I thanked God for these women. After Nurse Penny left, my mother-in-law told me to rest, and I had the best rest Id ever had.

This experience taught me a great deal, but it did not have to happen. Being a physician did not mean I was ready for motherhood. I spent so much time reading about my body changes during pregnancy and should have focused on the care of a newborn. Knowing the guidelines for breastfeeding did not prepare me for the actual job of being a mother. I started to wonder: If I am a physician and struggling this much, what are other moms going through?

The medical system is another entity that requires improvement. My obstetrics visits were always brief, and nothing happened. That was an opportunity for a few words regarding identifying signs of unsuccessful breastfeeding. In the hospital, the lactation nurse could have spent 10 minutes on this topic. She could have explained that although babies cry, not getting more than an hour of sleep and crying during nursing is a sign of real distress. Also, instead of just explaining how important breastfeeding is, they could have also recommended having formula available if these signs arise. I quipped the American College of Pediatrics is probably a panel of men who spew out data about breastfeeding without considering practical information.

This was a steep and emotional learning curve for me in less than one week. I learned a great deal. Most importantly, I learned to always ask for help  especially as it comes to childcare. Once I opened up, I learned about similar stories. I was not alone. During this time, I watched the Serena Williams documentary on HBO regarding her postpartum period and balled my eyes out. So many amazing women have gone through postpartum difficulties, I had such respect for women as a whole. I learned the best information from moms who went through it, not the American College of Pediatrics.

I hope this article helps other mothers and serves as feedback for the hospital system. There are many opportunities to teach new moms about signs of malnutrition. The hospital should not assume anything, no matter the educational background of the patient. Despite this, my babys weight was recognized early, and the appropriate measures were taken to help her. I am thankful for my husband, family, my pediatrician and nurse Penny. It not only takes a village, but it also takes humility and vulnerability. The hospital system and I can learn a great deal from my story.

A good mantra to have as a new mother was coined by Socrates: I know that I know nothing.

Dr. Mary is an internal medicine resident who blogs at Diverse Medicine.

Image credit: Shutterstock.com
The Reverend David McDonnell was installed as Dean of Ossory and rector of Kilkenny Union of Parishes at a special service in St Canices Cathedral, Kilkenny on Thursday. The new dean is from Carrickmacross, County Monaghan and, most recently, was rector of Dunfanaghy Group of Parishes in Donegal.

He succeeds the Very Reverend Katharine Poulton who has moved to Julianstown in County Meath and who was Dean of Ossory for eight years.

Dean McDonnell is 38 years old and from Carrickmacross. Training initially as a primary school teacher, he taught for five years in Gaelscoil Cnoc Liamhna in Dublin before being ordained a priest in the Church of Ireland in 2009.

He was Curate of the Christ Church Cathedral Group of Parishes Dublin from 2009-2014, treasurers vicar of St Patricks Cathedral from 2011-2014 and also assistant chaplain to St James' Hospital. He also has a keen interest in the music and liturgy of the church and enjoys the arts, history and the great outdoors.

The preacher at the service of institution and installation was the Reverend Canon Marie Rowley-Brooke, a friend of the Dean, spoke on the theme of hospitality and after referring to his pastoral, musical and ecumenical talents said that Dean McDonnel is a gift from God to (the parish) and to the city of Kilkenny. She asked that he be given the hospitality to enable him to flourish.

Fr Frank Purcell, speaking on behalf of priest colleagues in the wider area of Kilkenny, said that he was delighted to welcome Dean David and that he was very much looking forward to working and interacting with him in the future.

Cathaoirleach of Kilkenny County Council, Eamon Aylward, representing civic dignitaries in attendance including Mayor Peter Cleere, Councillor David Fitzgerald, Tim Butler, Director of Services and Chief Executive Colette Byrne wished Dean McDonnell well on behalf of the people of Kilkenny.

Also in attendance was a representative from the Methodist church and a member of the Defence Forces.

Dean McDonnell was welcomed to the group of parishes that also includes St Johns, Kilkenny, St Lachtans, Freshford and St Aidans church, Kilmanagh, by Mr Sam Harper, who acknowledged that the Dean had come to the parish with a lot of experience of both rural and city parishes. He warmly welcomed him and also thanked those who had helped run the parish during the interregnum.

Speaking at the end of the service Dean David thanked all those involved in organising the service and preparing the Deanery for his arrival and says that he looks forward to getting to know everyone in the coming months.

Bishop Burrows said that, in many ways, Dean McDonnells appointment represented the passing on of the baton of ministry to another generation. He also said that it was very pleasant for him, as Bishop, to greet the new Dean as his rector.

Closing with an anecdote related to a fuel-filling experience in Donegal he told Dean McDonnell that in the midst of all the exciting opportunities surrounding him now, in the big job that he has taken on, and while he should take time to be still, he could go like a bat now.

Refreshments were provided by the parish. The choir director was David Forde and the organist was Mr David Milne. Music included Te Deum Laudamus (to the setting in C by CV Stanford).
A bumper tech programme of workshops and headline speakers has been announced for DojoCon 2018, which takes place in Kilkenny this October.

Hundreds will flock to the city for the global conference for the worldwide community of CoderDojos, which has something to appeal to every tech interest, age and ability. Tickets are still available.

Whether youre a parent looking to support your kids love for all things tech and set up your own club, a secondary school student or teacher with an interest in computer science, or a college student pursuing your dream in IT, there will be something for everyone, says DojoCon Coordinator Margaret Ahearne.

Institute of Technology Carlow, one of the primary sponsors and collaborators in DojoCon 2018, will deliver several workshops with mass appeal. These include: Adios Alexa!  How to build your own intelligent digital assistant with readily available components; how to make your own VR headset with cardboard; Drone Coding  learn how to code flight and special workshops in code generated art and music.

Expedia, another main sponsor, will send members of its international engineering teams in London to present workshops on web analytics and design and speak on the main stage.

READ MORE: MAJOR CONFERENCE SET FOR CITY

Oracle Academy, another key sponsor, will host workshops on 3-D animation using Alice and in building games using Greenfoot. Both programmes are perfect for taking back to CoderDojo clubs or for use in schools.

Explorium, Irelands National Science and Sport Centre, will teach attendees to make their own flashing light boxes. Programming tiny Arduino-based microcontrollers, children will learn about circuits and automation and can take their awesome creations home with them.

Contemporary Kinetic Sculptures will focus on how to make Origami kinetic sculptures from paper/card , mated to Arduino microcontrollers.

A specific coding stream at DojoCon 2018 will teach new ideas and skills in Python, Kinect, Hollow Lens, Alice, Greenfoot, Microbit and HTML. Attendees will learn how to create their own app. Workshops in Meet Edison and RasberryPI will highlight the many possibilities with robotics, outline how to make traffic lights and a reaction timer or thermometer.

The team from Emagine, who have built the technology behind the King of the Vikings VR experience in Waterford, will be sharing their experience around working in VR. Cartoon Saloon will also be joining DojoCon2018 and have a workshop on animation and Glasseye will run a workshop on Visual Effects with the team at Kilkenny CoderDojo.

A dedicated workshop stream on important issues around technology will include talks by other CoderDojo clubs on how to start a Dojo, which will be warmly embraced by parents and teachers who want to keep abreast of their childrens and pupils growing interest in and knowledge of technology.

A workshop by IT Carlow on striking the right balance when using technology will also be of interest to parents.

Also scheduled is a talk by David Pollard of Rehab Group on inclusiveness and accessibility in technology and a discussion on using technology to save energy, by Dayse Kilkenny.

The last day of CoderDojo is dedicated to a Hackathon featuring various age-appropriate challenges for seven-to-17-year-olds. DojoCon2018 is expected to attract over 1,000 attendees, including ninjas (coders) over the age of 13, parents and adults volunteers from Coderdojo clubs around the country.

Separate to the workshops, an impressive line-up of keynote speakers will draw the crowds in their own right. They include: Tech entrepreneur Jordan Casey, who set up his award-winning video games company at 13 years of age; award-winning game designer Brenda Romera; scientist-astronaut candidate Norah Patten; presenter of Tech Talk on Newstalk FM, Jessica Kelly; David R Pollard, founder of Learning Tech Labs; Darya Yegorina, Founder and CEO, Cleverbooks AR for Education; Nicky Thompson from Future Learns and James Tubbritt, VR/AR Developer at Emagine

There will also be two speakers from Expedia  Nasreen AbdulJaleel and Connor Culleton  one of the main conference sponsors.

Kilkenny CoderDojo started planning DojoCon 2018 over a year ago, and the amount of support we have received has simply blown us away, said Janet Beck, CEO, Glasseye and, DojoCon 2018 organiser, speaking at the announcement of the DojoCon 2018 programme.

From the speakers to those running the workshops, we will have an eclectic mix of options for attendees throughout the day. Kilkenny has long been a centre for design, from its medieval architecture right through to Oscar-nominated animation.

We cannot wait to welcome, share, network and work with all the visitors who travel to Kilkenny for DojoCon 2018.

You can book tickets for the event here.
Along with sending its working teams to Thanh Hoa to perform support activities, the organisation also directed its chapters in the localities to coordinate with local administrations to help the affected locals.



Initially, central Thanh Hoa province has handed over VND30 million , over 3,300 packs of instant noodles, over 1,500 water bottles, 200 life vests to the needy in Thach Thanh, Yen Dinh, Vinh Loc, Cam Thuy and Ba Thuoc districts.

Thanh Hoa has been seriously suffered by floods and landslides. Currently, landslides blocking road still make three districts of Quan Hoa, Quan Son and Muong Lat inaccessible.

The disasters killed 9 people in Thanh Hoa. Three locals are still missing.

In Son La province, floods killed one local and injured two others, while affecting 1,521 houses, including 37 completely destroyed.

Nearly 615 hectares of rice and crops have been submerged in floodwater, while 11 schools in Mai Son, Van Ho, Muong La, Quynh Nhai, Song Ma and Sop Cop districts were damaged.

Floods and landslides blocked various roads, causing 153 traffic congestion points. As many as 45 irrigation works were damaged, while the power supply in 25 communes in eight districts was affected.

Meanwhile, as of September 2, 27 houses in Nghe An were destroyed, along with 26 hectares of crop and many irrigation works

Vietnamnews




By Jung Min-ho







Thai police have seized more than 1,300 fake Korean products from across the country.





The Korea Trade-Investment Promotion Agency said Saturday that police in Thailand recently clamped down on seven Mumuso stores.





Mumuso, Ilahui and Mini Good are among Chinese copycat businesses that have thrived across Asia in recent years. They pretend to be Korean as a means of attracting customers in the region, where Korea's pop culture enjoys huge popularity.





Mumuso, for example, uses many Korean words and marks to give a false impression that it is from Korea, but is based in China and almost all its products are made in China.





Many Korean companies are becoming increasingly concerned that the low-quality fake products will tarnish their reputations.


By Yi Whan-woo





Vitaliy Fen

Cultural projects named after Korea and Seoul in Uzbekistan demonstrate solid cooperation between the countries, Uzbek Ambassador to Korea Vitaliy Fen said during a reception in Seoul, Aug. 31, to mark Uzbekistan's 27th independence anniversary.

The envoy also noted that Uzbek President Shavkat Mirziyoyev's state visit to Korea from Nov. 22 to 24 last year "determined new prospects" in bilateral relations.

"The Seoul Park in Tashkent, effectively functioning since 2014, the Korean House of Culture and Art, which was built in Tashkent with the support of the government of the Republic of Korea, as well as the renaming of one of the streets in Tashkent in honor of Seoul are vivid examples of cooperation," Fen said in his welcoming speech at the Lotte Hotel in Sogong-dong.

"I especially want to note that the historic state visit of President of the Republic of Uzbekistan Shavkat Mirziyoyev to the Republic of Korea determined new prospects for mutually beneficial cooperation."

Seoul Park is aimed at familiarizing Uzbeks with Korean traditions and culture.

The Korean House of Culture and Arts is to run concerts, educational classes, exhibitions, cooking classes and other cultural programs on Seoul.

According to the ambassador, the countries signed deals worth more than $10 billion when Mirziyoyev visited Korea in 2017.

The agreements varied from trade and investment to finance and technology. Among them, $4.5 billion was related to direct Korean investment.

"Dozens of major projects have been and are being implemented in various sectors of the economy with investments from leading South Korean companies," the ambassador said.

About 500 Korean enterprises run businesses in Uzbekistan, including Hyundai Motor in Namangan, which is the largest investment in the region.

Fen positively assessed educational cooperation as well, such as Korean language classes at the Uzbek State University of World Languages, Tashkent State Institute of Oriental Studies, the Samarkand State Institute of Foreign Languages, and Incheon-based Inha University's activities in Tashkent.

The reception also commemorated the 26th anniversary of the establishment of Korea-Uzbekistan diplomatic ties.

Among the Korean guests were Personnel Management Minister Kim Pan-suk, Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker and Korea-Uzbekistan Inter-parliamentary Friendship Association Chairman Byun Jae-il and Korea-Uzbekistan Friendship Society head Kim Yong-sik.

Korea and Uzbekistan have had friendly relations since the latter became independent from the Soviet Union in 1991 and formed diplomatic ties with Korea the next year.

Korean and Uzbek leaders' visits to each country have been frequent  Mirziyoyev's predecessor, the late Islam Karimov, visited Seoul eight times, and former Korean presidents have visited the Central Asian country five times.

Uzbekistan is a home for ethnic Koreans. About 500,000 Goryeoin, or ethnic Koreans, resettled in the Central Asia 80 years ago. Today about 180,000 live there.

There are about 2,500 Korean residents in Uzbekistan, and nearly 55,000 Uzbeks in Korea.
General Secretary of the Communist Party of China Central Committee and President of China Xi Jinping offered congratulations to General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong and President Tran Dai Quang. Chinese Premier Li Keqiang sent the congratulatory message to Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, while Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National Peoples Congress of China Li Zhanshu extended greetings to Chairwoman of the Vietnamese National Assembly Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.In their messages, the leaders of the Chinese Party, State, Government and National Peoples Congress highly valued the achievements Vietnam has obtained over the past time, voicing their belief that under the CPVs leadership, the Vietnamese people will definitely soon realise the target of building a socialist State with prosperous people, a strong country and an democracy, equitable and civilised society.They affirmed that China attaches importance to developing relations with Vietnam and is willing to join Vietnam in developing their comprehensive strategic cooperative partnership in a stable, healthy and sustainable manner.General Secretary of the Lao Peoples Revolutionary Party and President of Laos Bounnhang Vorachith, Prime Minister Thongloun Sisoulith and Chairwoman of the National Assembly Pany Yathotou also sent congratulatory messages to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, President Tran Dai Quang, PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc and NA Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan.The Lao leaders expressed their delight at the unceasing development of the great friendship, special solidarity and comprehensive cooperation between the two countries Parties, States and people. They once again thanked the Vietnamese Party, State and people for their previous, timely and effective support for Laos to address recent flood consequences in Attapeu province.They also affirmed that despite how complex the regional and international situation is, the Lao Party, State and people will, together with Vietnam, continue nurturing the special bilateral relations.Meanwhile, Cambodian King Norodom Sihamoni, the Central Committee of the Cambodian Peoples Party, Prime Minister Samdech Techo Hun Sen, President of the Senate Say Chhum and the senior parliamentarian Samdech Heng Samrin also sent letters of congratulations.They congratulated Vietnam on the major attainments it has gained under the CPVs leadership, which they said have helped improve the countrys role and stature in the region and the world.They applauded the growth of the solidarity, traditional friendship, and comprehensive, sustainable and long-term cooperation between the Cambodian and Vietnamese Parties, Governments and people. They showed the resolve to intensify those ties, wishing Vietnam to harvest even greater victories in national development.In his messages sent to the Vietnamese President and PM, President of the Councils of State and Ministers of Cuba Miguel Diaz-Canel Bermudez offered the warmest congratulations and stressed the determination to strengthen the long-lasting friendship, fraternity and cooperation between the two nations.The leaders of Vietnam also received congratulations from Russian President Vladimir Putin, PM Dmitry Medvedev, Chairman of the State Duma Vyacheslav Viktorovich Volodin, and Chairwoman of the Federation Council Valentina Ivanovna Matviyenko.The Russian leaders highlighted that the countries time-tested friendship and comprehensive strategic partnership have recorded dynamic strides and achieved big accomplishments in enhancing the trustworthy political ties and relations in economy-trade, science-technology, culture and humanism, thus ensuring their peoples interests and contributing to the stability and security in the Asia-Pacific region.They also expressed their belief that the upcoming official visit to Russia by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong will promote win-win bilateral cooperation in all aspects, as well as close coordination in global and regional issues of mutual concern.Singaporean President Halimah Yacob and PM Lee Hsien Loong also extended congratulations to their Vietnamese counterparts, saying that Vietnam has made great socio-economic progress over the past years, become one of the fastest growing economies in the region, and also been a leading option of foreign investors, including those from Singapore.They emphasised that the two countries are enjoying a sound relationship. Notably, they are celebrating 45 years of bilateral diplomatic ties and five years of the strategic partnership. The leaders hope to continue working closely with the Vietnamese side to expand cooperation and bring the countries relations to a new height in the time ahead.In his message sent to PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc, Thai PM Prayut Chan-o-cha noted that Thailand and Vietnam have close and dynamic relations based on the common visions and interests along with long-standing people-to-people exchanges. He affirmed the resolve to cooperate closely with Vietnam in reinforcing bilateral links for the common interests and prosperity of their people and the region.On this occasion, Vietnamese Deputy PM and Foreign Minister Pham Binh Minh received congratulations on the National Day from Chinese State Councillor, Foreign Minister and Chairman of the China-Vietnam Steering Committee for Bilateral Cooperation Wang Yi; Lao Foreign Minister Saleumxay Kommasith; Cambodian Senior Minister and Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation Prak Sokhonn; Cuban Foreign Minister Bruno Rodriguez Parrilla; Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov; Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan; and Thai Foreign Minister Don Pramudwinai.
Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Hua Chunying's Regular Press Conference on September 3, 2018

2018/09/03

Q: Recently, violent armed conflicts erupted in the capital of Libya, causing a large number of casualties. What is your comment?

A: The Chinese side calls upon all relevant parties in Libya to immediately stop clashes, resolve differences through dialogue and negotiation, continue to move forward the political settlement process and realize reconciliation and stability at an early date.

Q: A Chinese citizen was arrested in the US. He was later released pending investigation. Do you have any comment on that?

A: I have seen relevant reports. The Chinese Consulate-General in Chicago is closely following the relevant news, trying to find out more about the case and verify the relevant situation with the competent authorities in the United States.

Q: In a few days, the DPRK will mark its 70th anniversary as a nation. Which Chinese leader will visit the DPRK and attend relevant activities?

A: With regard to which Chinese leader will visit the DPRK and attend the National Day's celebrations there, I have no information to offer to you at this point.

Q: The ABC website has been inaccessible in China for the best part of the past two weeks. Can the Foreign Ministry provide any clarification as to the exact reason for that?

A: I have seen your relevant report and also noted that your report said you have asked China's cyberspace administration authority. What's more, your report has cited the response from the relevant authority in details, so I believe you are quite clear about this question.

Q: I wonder if you have any comment on Myanmar's government sentencing of two Reuters journalists to seven years in prison for independent reporting?

A: I am not aware of the situation mentioned by you. You may ask the competent authority of Myanmar.

Q: Sudan's President Omar al-Bashir is currently in China. He has met with President Xi Jinping. He is wanted by the International Criminal Court. What is your comment?

A: I think you raised this question at an inopportune time. China is not a contracting party to the Rome Statute. The Chinese side holds reservations about the International Criminal Court's indictment against Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir. We hope that the International Criminal Court can handle the relevant issue in a prudent manner.

China and Sudan enjoy good friendship. We support the efforts made by Sudan to uphold national sovereignty, security and stability. We are willing to work with Sudan to continue to make positive contributions to achieving peace and stability in South Sudan.

Q: According to reports, on August 30, the California State Legislature passed a bill that actively supports cooperation with China in economy, trade, education, culture and people-to-people exchanges, and urges the President and Congress of the United States to support actions that further strengthen economic links between the United States, including California, and China. What is your comment?

A: We have seen relevant reports. This bill reflects the aspiration of all sectors in California to maintain steady development of China-US ties, which we believe is also what the vast majority of the US people want and agree with.

Subnational exchanges and cooperation is an important component of China-US ties. In recent years, subnational cooperation between the two countries have been thriving, delivering rich outcomes in the fields of economy, trade, culture and people-to-people exchanges and tangible benefits to the people of the two sides. Quite a few US governors have made trips to China to express their willingness to expand and deepen all-around cooperation with China. When subnational exchanges between the two sides get more frequent, bilateral cooperation more fruitful and people-to-people exchanges closer, the common interests shared by the two sides will be expanded and the overall development of the China-US relations be driven forward.

We hope that China and the US could work together to consolidate agreement on subnational cooperation, tap into the complementary subnational strength, and expand two-way trade and investment so that China-US subnational exchanges could bring more opportunities and dividends to the two peoples.
Due farmacisti e un chimico catanesi hanno fondato un'azienda che, con criteri di economia circolare, utilizzano e valorizzano piante aromatiche e agrumi del territorio da cui ricavano prodotti con proprieta fitoterapeutiche, antibatteriche e antimicotiche
In a shocking news to the fashion industry, popular model Anam Tanoli has been found dead at her residence in Lahore under mysterious circumstances. She was just 26. Her body has been found hanging from the ceiling fan on Saturday, which was discovered by her husband. She was married and had two kids. Her husband, Navid Ahmad, claims that she had committed suicide after suffering from depression and that he had booked an appointment for her with a doctor on the same day.

PTI quotes Ahmad saying, "When I asked her to get ready to see the doctor she locked herself in her room and hanged herself with her dupatta." The husband further states that he had broken into the room and found her hanging from the ceiling fan. He said he took her to the hospital where the doctors pronounced her dead.

An Insta post by a fashion blog reveals that Anam Tanoli has been a victim of cyber-bullying and that's why she was suffering from depression.

The police, however, are not buying the suicide angle yet and have taken the husband into custody. Police spokesman Niyyab Haider told PTI, "We cannot confirm at this stage whether she committed suicide or she was murdered. The body has been sent for autopsy and we are recording the statements of her parents and other relevant people," (with inputs from PTI)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 02, 2018 11:44 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
After a lot of panic and scare, police finally clarified that the 14 plastic bags recovered from a vacant piece of land in the southern part of the city contained only medical waste and not bodies of newborns or foetuses as stated earlier, police said Sunday. Initially, police officials said they were verifying whether the bags recovered from the Haridebpur area contained bodies of newborns or foetuses.

Water supply in several parts of central and south Delhi remained disrupted for the fourth consecutive day on Sunday. The Delhi Jal Board had earlier started some maintenance work on Thursday and said water supply would be hit till Friday. However, residents of central and south Delhi complained of insufficient water supply on Saturday and Sunday as well.

After floods, Kerala is battling with rat fever or leptospirosis, a water-borne disease, which has claimed over two dozen lives across the state since August 1. Due to rat fever, as many as 28 people reportedly died.

At the launch event of India Post Payments Bank on Saturday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi revealed that officials of Dena Bank had searched for him for 32 years. Narrating an incident at the event, PM Modi said he couldn't maintain a permanent bank account due to non-availability of enough money till he was elected to the Gujarat Assembly.

Some big developments that are expected to happen today are: Devotees are celebrating Janmashtami at Lord Krishna's 'Janmabhoomi' temple. Petrol and diesel prices continue to rise. Petrol is at Rs 79.15/litre (increase by Rs 0.31/litre) and diesel at Rs 71.15/litre (increase by Rs 0.39/litre) in Delhi. Petrol at Rs 86.56/litre (increase by Rs 0.31/litre) and diesel at Rs 75.54/litre (increase by Rs 0.44/litre) in Mumbai

We at LatestLY will bring all the breaking and latest news and updates around the world. Stay with us for the latest updates of the day.
Mumbai, Sep 3: The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) said Monday it has seized 8,000 kgs of shark fins from Mumbai and Gujarat meant for export to China and Hong Kong. The seized shark fins were meant for illicit export by mis-declaring them as dried ray skins, dried marine products and fish maw, among others, a DRI statement said here.

Export of shark fins of all species is prohibited under the law. "The DRI on September 1 seized around 8,000 kgs of shark fins...In all, 3000 kgs of shark fins were seized from a godown at Sewri in Mumbai and 5,000 kgs from Veraval in Gujarat. The DRI has intercepted four persons in this operation, including the mastermind," the statement said. Six Pregnant Male Sharks Found by Marine Biologist in East Coast of India.

Check out the tweet about seized shark fins from Mumbai and Gujarat:

The Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) seized from Mumbai & Gujarat around 8000 kgs of shark fins meant for illicit export to China & Hong Kong & neutralized a smuggling network engaged in wildlife crime. DRI has intercepted 4 persons in this operation. (1.9.2018) pic.twitter.com/eFpRw6gG9f  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

Investigations by the DRI Mumbai unit have indicated the entire quantity was intended to be exported to China and Hong Kong, it said. "It has come up during the investigations that the stocks of shark fins are replenished regularly," the statement said. Exports of shark fins are mis-declared as dried ray skins, dried marine products and fish maw, among others, avoid detection and circumvent prohibition, said the Central government agency.
Ranchi, Sept 3: Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) chief and former Bihar Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav has been having sleepless nights in Ranchi hospital as dogs keep on constantly barking on the streets surrounding the campus. According to a report by The Hindu, Lalu has requested the jail authorities to shift him to paying ward of the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS), Ranchi. Mr Prasad is not being able to sleep whole night as dogs bark outside in the hospital premises the bathroom too stinks, RJD MLA Bhola Yadav, a close aide of Prasad was quoted in the report.

The RJD leader who has been convicted in three fodder scam case is suffering from ailments related to kidneys, blood pressure and sugar. RIMS Director R.K. Srivastav told the media that a medical team will be constituted on the basis of a report on the health of the former Union Minister. Lalus aid further informed that they have requested the hospital authorities to shift him to paying ward of the hospital and well pay the charges required for it.

The RJD Chief had surrendered in a special CBI court as the Jharkhand High Court had directed. Lalu Prasad surrendered in the court of Judge S.S. Prasad, who sent him to the Birsa Munda Central Jail in Ranchi, where he had been lodged earlier after his conviction in several fodder scam cases.

On August 30, the former Bihar Chief Minister was shifted to the cardiac centre of the Rajendra Institute of Medical Sciences after a medical check-up and advice by a team of jail doctors. Out on provisional bail since May 11, Lalu was directed by the High Court on August 24 to surrender by August 30.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 03, 2018 08:13 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Chennai, Sep 3: Tamilisai Soundararajan, the Tamil Nadu president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), got into a spat with a co-passenger who shouted 'Fascist BJP Government Down, Down' at Tuticorin airport on Monday. "Fascist BJP Government Down, Down," screamed Louis Sophia, Soundararajans co-passenger, when they were waiting to collect their baggage at the airport.

Tamilisai Soundararajan got angry and entered into a verbal tiff with the passenger. The police had to intervene to separate the two women. Sophia was detained; however, no FIR was lodged against her. Sophia, as an author, has reportedly written extensively on the Sterlite issue and the Chennai-Salem eight-lane highway project. Tamil Nadu Health Minister Vijaya Bhaskar's Father Denies Reports Of His Admission To IT Department About Vijaya's Involvement In Collecting Bribes.

"A middle-aged lady on seeing me started raising anti-BJP slogans and even followed up to the arrival gate. Her appearance looked threatening, I feel some organisation is behind her," Soundararajan told news agency ANI. Reacting to the incident, BJP spokesperson Narayanan Tirupathi said it was Sophia who provoked Soundararajan, and an FIR should be registered against her.

#WATCH BJP Tamil Nadu President Tamilisai Soundararajan got into an argument with a co-passenger at Tuticorin airport. The passenger who has now been detained had allegedly raised 'Fascist BJP Govt down down' slogan #TamilNadu pic.twitter.com/TzfyQn3IOo  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

Sophia raised slogans in the flight against the BJP. Soundararajan did not react in the flight and stayed calm. After the flight landed at the Tuticorin airport, Soundararajan filed a complaint with the police. However, Sophia continued to raise slogans, and hence there was an argument between them. A case should be registered against Sophia," Tirupathi was quoted as saying.

Tamilisai Soundararajan arrived in Tuticorin for party programmes. "Proceeding to Tuticorin for party programmes in courtallam under Tirunelveli district visit. Will be meeting local leaders & cadres," she tweeted before flying to Tuticorin.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 03, 2018 07:09 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
At least 39 people have been killed and nearly 100 others wounded in ongoing battles between rival militias in Libyas capital of Tripoli. Libya's UN-backed government has had to resort to imposing a state of emergency in Tripoli, and its outskirts after several days of fierce fighting between rival armed groups.

"Due to the danger of the current situation and for the sake of the public interest, the presidential council declares a state of emergency ... to protect and secure civilians, public and private possessions and vital institutions," the Government of National Accord (GNA) said in a statement on Sunday.

And on Sunday rockets hit a camp for displaced people in Tripoli, leaving at least two dead and five injured from the same family, according to emergency services and witnesses.

The camp is home to hundreds of displaced people from the Libyan city of Taourga who were forced into mass exile due to their support for Libya's long-time ruler Moamer Gaddhafi. "Most of the families have left the camp fearing more rockets," Khaled Omrane, a camp resident, told AFP.

According to emergency services, at least 23 rockets fell on the capital on Friday and Saturday causing fresh casualties.

United Nations chief Antonio Guterres on Saturday called for an end to violence in Libya in accordance with a UN-brokered cease-fire agreement.

The Secretary-General condemns the continued escalation of violence in and around Libyas capital and, in particular, the use by armed groups of indiscriminate shelling leading to the death and injury of civilians, including children, a statement from Guterres office said.

The Secretary-General calls on all parties to immediately cease hostilities and abide by the cease-fire agreement brokered by the United Nations and the Reconciliation Committees.

The country is currently governed by two rival authorities: the Tripoli-based GNA, which is recognised by the UN as Libya's official government; and the Tobruk-based House of Representatives in the east of the country, which has the support of renegade General Khalifa Haftar.

The fighting in the capital erupted last week when armed groups from Tripoli clashed with others from a town to the south, vying for power in the administration based in the country's west.

Street battles on Monday and Tuesday pitted the Seventh Brigade, or Kaniyat, from Tarhouna, a town 65km southeast of Tripoli, against the Tripoli Revolutionaries' Brigades and the Nawasi, two of the capital's largest factions.

In the ensuing violence, some 400 detainees escaped after a riot on Sunday at a prison in the southern suburbs of the Libyan capital Tripoli, theatre of a week of deadly battles, police said.

"The detainees were able to force open the doors and leave" as fighting between rival militias raged near the prison of Ain Zara, police said in a statement, without specifying what crimes the escapees had committed.

Guards were unable to prevent the prisoners escaping as they feared for their own lives, the statement said. A police official contacted by AFP was unable to provide further details.

Most detainees at the prison have been convicted of common crimes or were supporters of former dictator Moamer Gaddhafi, found guilty of killings during the uprising that toppled his regime in 2011. (With agency inputs)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 03, 2018 07:17 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Islamabad, Sep 3: Pakistan does not agree with the US view that India has a role to play in bringing peace to Afghanistan, Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhry has said.

Saying both Prime Minister Imran Khan and Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa was on the same page on internal and external security issues, the Minister said Pakistan was quite clear "that India has no role to play in Afghanistan".

The new Prime Minister and the Army chief have held detailed discussions on various issues.

The News International on Monday quoted Fawad as saying that the US wanted to give a role to India in Afghanistan but Pakistan was not in agreement. But both Islamabad and Washington agreed that the US should leave behind a stable Afghanistan, he added, quoting from the deliberations in the meeting.

At the same time, Pakistan wanted good relations with all the countries in the region. The Minister said that while a section of India wanted to make Pakistan weak, the other section wished to peacefully co-exist with Islamabad, the daily said.

He said that with Lok Sabha elections due next year in India, the Indian leadership might not be inclined to respond positively to Pakistan's desire for talks to resolve various issues.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 03, 2018 04:19 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Islamabad, September 3: Pakistan on Sunday claimed that the USD 300 million aid which the Pentagon had decided to scrap was the money the United States owed to Islamabad for its support in the war on terror. Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that the US was supposed to reimburse it which they had not done. Pakistan has will also take up the matter during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's upcoming visit to the nation.

Mehmood also claimed that The USD 300 million is neither aid nor assistance it is the money Pakistan spent from its resources against militants and in the war against terrorism. He demanded that the US should pay back this money as it was spent on the common objective to fight terrorism.

Pak Foreign Min SM Qureshi said,"USD 300 million (from US) is neither aid nor assistance.This came under coalition support fund.We spent this money from our own resources for shared goal of war against terrorism.They are supposed to reimburse it but till now they haven't."(2Sept) pic.twitter.com/QQOCbmnfab  ANI (@ANI) September 3, 2018

The US on Saturday announced that it would cancel USD 300 million aid to Pakistan over its failure to take actions against terror groups. The US and others have long complained that Pakistan provides safe haven to militant networks, allowing them to carry out cross-border attacks in Afghanistan. The move to cancel the aid is still to be approved by the US Congress. The US President Donald Trump has been tough on Pakistan for its inability to fight terrorism.

In August last year, Trump unveiled his new South Asia policy and asked Pakistan to do more against such groups. The US in January this year had also suspended more than USD 1.15 billion security assistance to Pakistan. The US State Department had criticised Pakistan in the past, for failing to deal with the Haqqani network and the Afghan Taliban operating from its soil.

(With agency inputs)

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 03, 2018 01:49 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
Sep 3, 2018, 2:31am ET

Tesla announces surprises debut for Sept. 5

Could this be the production version of the Roadster?

Tesla normally chooses to unveil new models at standalone, Apple-style events, not at major auto shows. It's making a rare exception. The California-based automaker will travel to the Grand Basel show in Switzerland to introduce a surprise.

The Grand Basel isn't your typical auto show. The organizers explain it's a gathering of "automotive exception" where an overwhelming majority of exhibitors will showcase multi-million-dollar classics, not new cars. As far as we know, Tesla is the only firm planning to stage the introduction of a brand-new model at the event.

The company hasn't announced its surprise to the public or the press yet but it is giving loyal owners the chance to win a trip to Switzerland to attend the reveal. The invitation to participate in the drawing merely explains "this September, Tesla will be showcasing a surprise at Grand Basel." It's accompanied by a close-up of a car (pictured) that looks a lot like the second-gen Roadster introduced nearly a year ago.

Many speculate Tesla's surprise is the production version of the Roadster, which made its debut as a close-to-production concept alongside the Semi last year. Time will tell whether that's accurate, or if Tesla has a bigger surprise ins tore.




A man was arrested for stealing items from tents in Electric Picnic, among other thefts under investigation by Gardai following the festival.

Today Monday September 3, the Gardai are focused on traffic leaving the Laois site, but they are also investigating offences during the festival, expected to end up in court.

There were several "simple possession" drug offence detections, from which prosecutions are expected to follow.

There are several theft related offences under investigation, including an incident where a male was arrested in possession of items of stolen property which were taken from tents within the campsite. A file to be prepared for the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Overall, the event went well according to the local Gardai.

People making their way home from the Stradbally site are asked to comply with Gardai on traffic duty and follow the signs on the dedicated routes from the site.

People using public transport are asked to use the only dedicated public transport pick up point, which is signposted and located just off the N80 on the Portlaoise side of Stradbally village.

Other motorists are told to expect significant traffic delays in and around Stradbally village today, and if possible to avoid the area until the late afternoon.

Plans to expand next year's Electric Picnic festival

Below: Aerial view of Electric Picnic 2018 Main Stage where Dua Lipa when was performing. Picture: Aerial.ie Editors
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Killargue are without a post office from today, as Postmistress Patricia Reynolds closed the doors for the last time last Friday, August 31.

Killargue along with Aghacashel and Aughavas closed this term. Aughavas are still fighting for the retention of services, while Newtowngore Post Office expects to close in January.

The rest of Leitrim can breathe a sigh of relief that they kept their post offices, for now.

According to the Irish Postmasters Union the next review of the Network is planned to take place in 2020.

The Irish Postmasters Union (IPU) have thanked and wished well Postmasters and Postmistresses across the country who have voluntarily opted to close their Post Offices.

This follows the announcement by An Post that 159 Post Offices have opted to retire and accept a voluntary exit package offered under a plan which was agreed between the IPU and An Post.

The 50m investment plan was agreed by the IPU Executive and An Post last April and supported by 80% of IPU members in a Ballot.

IPU General Secretary Ned OHara said, It is with regret that any Post Office is closing. However, the IPU would like to thank all Postmasters and Postmistresses who have opted for the exit package for their service as colleagues and as community people over many years. The Union understands and respects their decision.For many years the IPU has highlighted the serious challenges faced by the Post Office Network and we backed a reform and development plan last May. This plan aims to secure as strong a future as possible and we believe it is the best way forward."

A key part of the plan is commitment by An Post that significant new services would be rolled out to all remaining Post Offices including:

-Motor tax, vehicle registration and driving licences

-Identity verification

-A foreign exchange card

-Additional Bill Pay services.



We need to see this part of the plan now begin implementation. The IPU is today calling on An Post to publish a timeline for roll out of new services, so as the 960 Post Offices can offer more services to the public and develop their businesses, Mr OHara said.

It also stressed the fundamental importance of Social Welfare payments continuing to be transacted in Post Offices in the long term. The word on the ground is that if you want to keep your local post office, then use it.

A feature on the closing of Killargue Post Office will be in this week's Leitrim Observer - out Wednesday.

Also read: Fight continues to save local post offices
Fianna Fail TD for Roscommon/Galway Eugene Murphy has highlighted the fact that only 21% of loan applications under the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan scheme in County Roscommon have been approved to date.

The data was released to Fianna Fail under Freedom of Information and provides a breakdown of figures from each of the 31 local authorities across the country.

Under the scheme, applications received by the local authority are sent to the Housing Agency for a recommendation then decided upon by the local authority.

Some 2,105 applications have been received, 656 have been approved and only 134 drawn down which shows that nationally only only 31% of loan applications under the Rebuilding Ireland Home Loan scheme have been approved to date.

"The figures show that in County Roscommon 19 applications were received but only 4 approved and no loans were issued. In neighbouring County Leitrim 8 applications were received but none were approved and no loans issued while in County Westmeath some 21 applications were received but only 2 were approved and no loans were issued," said Deputy Murphy.

Nationally 17m has been paid out to date. The remainder have been declined outright or delayed. In 260 instances, or 20%, of the applications which were adjudicated by the Housing Agency, the local authority reached a different decision or delayed from the Agency recommendation.

"It's extremely disappointing to see that only a mere 17m has been spent under the scheme to date, compared to 2bn which has been lent by commercial providers over a similar time frame. It really is a minuscule amount and is completely at odds with the spin which suggests that this scheme has been a 'great success'.

"The figures also show a major gap between what the Housing Agency recommends and what the local authorities are deciding to do. This raises serious questions over the methodology used by the both the Agency and the local authorities. The substantial refusal rates and delays being experienced only serves to prove that this scheme is clearly not the solution to the affordability crisis ordinary workers are facing.

"We have not seen an affordable home built since 2011, house prices continue to rise; and the governments loan scheme is refusing over half of the people that are applying to it.

"Fianna Fail has continuously called for the re-establishment of an affordable housing scheme and has published its own proposals in this regard. Any Housing Budget needs to prioritise real investment in affordable homes," concluded Deputy Murphy.
Businessman, Sean Gallagher, has addressed Leitrim County Council this afternoon in a bid to secure a presidential nomination.

Three presidential hopefuls had addressed Leitrim County Council: Peter Casey, Sean Gallagher and Sarah Louise Mulligan by 1.20pm with a fourth, expected later.

During his address Gallagher spoke of his hope to become a president for all the people of Ireland.

"I will work with every fibre of my being that those on the margins ...will be at the very heart of this presidency," he said.

He committed to launching an iniative on December 3 to focus on the 9,000 people in Ireland with disabilities, their carers and their families.

He also committed to visiting Irish peacekeepers serving overseas for the UN.

He paid tribute to Leitrim County Council for nominating him today and in the 2011 Presidential election.

Gallagher also spoke of his disappointment in the way he handled the " false tweet from a fake account" put to him during the RTE Frontline broadcast before the last Presidential election.

He said he felt he could have handled the situation better and spoke of how he felt this moment had changed the election for him.

"It caused me to doubt my memory momentarily," he acknowledged.

"And that made me appear unconvincing."

He said he was aware this moment made many who considered voting for him, change their mind.

"I wish to say sorry to those who lost confidence in me in that moment. Many viewers saw me as something I am not and that pains me."

He said in light of what happened he had felt "compelled to hold RTE to account" for what happened.

"I felt I had to hold RTE to account. Not just for me but for every person who puts their name forward for public office."

Leitrim County Council will meet to vote on their nomination at a special meeting next Monday.
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A NEW guide book to Limerick opens up the built heritage of the city in a quirky, user-friendly way that will appeal to locals as well as to visitors.

And with a very clear-cut map to follow, the pocket-sized book, with its colourful illustrations and short accounts, makes for an ideal companion on a walking tour of the city. Or even an armchair tour.

An Illustrated Guide to Limerick City is the third in a series, published by the Irish Georgian Society. Previous guides brought the reader around North and West Kerry and around County Limerick and included text by Tarbert academic Dr Declan Downey with illustrations by Nesta FitzGerald of Glin.

This time, Nesta has teamed up with historian Sharon Slater to produce yet another gem.

I rang Sharon, Nesta explained this week when asked how the book came about.

I really like her books on Limerick. I was really struck by them and I loved what she did. It is so modern and she is telling history in a very easy-to-read way. It ignites your interest in Limerick.

That easy access to the story behind the buildings of Limerick comes through also in Sharons collaboration with Nesta.

The text is more social, and not so much architectural. There are more stories about people, Nesta explained.

The idea is to make the places come alive, to make the history come alive.

Hopefully, when people read it, they will be touched by each little piece, Nesta added.

Her illustrations both reflect the text but also add to it.

I am trying to make people look at their city and understand there are all these great things there, she continued. She wants people to see the buildings in a different way.

Nesta FitzGerald, the daughter of the late Knight of Glin, is a freelance illustrator based between London and Ireland. After completing a degree in Art History she went on to do a Masters in illustration at Kingston University.

She has produced illustrations for The Hunt Museum, Selfridges department store, The Crawford Art Gallery in Cork, The Irish Georgian Society, and has exhibited her prints at galleries in London and Dublin.

Limerick-city born Sharon Slater is an internationally published author and historian who runs the Limericks Life website and is the Limerick Chronicle historian, working for this newspaper on the archive. Her books include The Little Book of Limerick and Limerick: Ireland in Old Photographs.

An Illustrated Guide to Limerick City costs 10 and is available at the Limerick Museum, The Hunt Museum, from the Irish Georgian Society and at OMahonys Bookshop.
UNIVERSITY of Limerick students recently celebrated the launch of a national academic partnership that gives students the opportunity to gain mentorship and funding throughout the academic year.

UL Enactus members took part in the launch of Citi Irelands Pathways to Progress partnership with international nonprofit organisation Enactus Ireland. The project will see students compete for funding that will go on to be used for development programmes aiming to empower young people from disadvantaged areas.

UL students, and previous winners of the programme, Jack OConnor, Hugh Butler, Maria Bennett and Catherine Hallinan launched the second year of the competition at Dogpatch Labs in Dublin.

The UL team were named overall winners of last years initiative with their programme SparkEd which saw the students working with primary and secondary pupils in Limerick and train volunteers for Limericks Gateway to Education.

Pathways to Progress invites students from ten third-level institutions around Ireland to compete for seed funding worth over 12,000.

Students are invited to submit their ideas for Pathways to Progress , which they will then pitch in Dublin later in September where the successful ten teams will be chosen. In addition to funding, successful students will be invited to Citi in November and February for training days which will help develop and refine their ideas, before presenting to a panel of Citi judges and guests at a showcase event in April 2019.

Application to the Pathways to Progress initiative is now open and more information can be found at enactusireland.org
THE second lawyer from a hit Netflix true crime show is to appear in Limerick to discuss details of the case.

David Rudolf, defence attorney from for Michael Paterson in the hit Netflix documentary series The Staircase, is to present an intimate evening discussing details of the case and series at Dolans Warehouse on November 28.

It follows Making a Murderers Dean Strang, who guest lectured at UL earlier this year and spoke about his case at the UCH.

Inside The Staircase: Lies, Fake Science, and the Owl Theory will see Rudolf discuss the conflicts he wrestled with in determining whether to let the filmmakers follow him, his client and his trial preparation.

Michael Petersons case  in which he was convicted in 2003 of murdering his wife, Kathleen Peterson  is the subject of the Netflix series The Staircase, directed by Jean-Xavier de Lestrade, and which started filming soon after Peterson's arrest in 2001 and followed events until last year.

Rudolf is to proffer his insights into the most curious and contentious issues in the case, according to the venue and booker Seoda Shows.

The event will be a limited capacity seated show. Tickets for this event are on sale now and can be purchased from www.dolans.ie.
CHILDREN with mental health issues are still being forced to share psychiatric facilities with adults in Limerick, the Leader can exclusively reveal.

According to figures released by HSE Mid-West mental health services, five children have been admitted to an adult psychiatric unit since 2017; four last year and one this year so far.

A total of 21 children have been admitted to adult psychiatric facilities in Limerick since 2013. The highest number of children in any one year was seven in 2013.

The figures were first received by Social Democrats party through parliamentary questions. Its party spokesperson on mental health, Sarah Jane Hennelly condemned the figures.

The Limerick City representative for the party said the fact that children are being admitted to these facilities is clinically, morally and ethically wrong.

It is not suitable for a young person to be admitted into adult care when they present with a psychiatric issue. We are talking about a young person, under the age of 18, being admitted to adult care. I am aware of several cases whereby families who are in huge distress have only the option of sending their child to adult units or bringing them to Cork or Dublin. Often times, getting overnight care is critical and urgent for the young people and their families. If the State cannot meet these needs then we need to reform the system. It should be matter of priority and urgency.

Ms Hennelly said that Limerick is the only major city without a child and adolescent residential facility yet we face a growing emergency of mental ill-health in young people.

The general election candidate is calling on all TDs in Limerick to treat this issue with the seriousness it deserves.

She added: Make no mistake, if not addressed, this will lead to bigger issues down the road.

The HSE did not reply to a request for comment.
THE ICONIC eye-pop mural in Limerick city has been defaced for a third time in less than two months.

In late August, a vandal used black spray paint to cause significant damage to the massive mural on Nicholas Street.

This was less than a month after someone wrote on the wall with marker, saying: This is ugly, no consultation.

On Sunday, a number of people shared pictures on social media, to their disgust, of the mural being significantly defaced once again.

This time, the vandal used grey-silver spray paint to write: Ugly insult we live here too no consultaton [sic].

After the mural was defaced the first time in July, councillors John Costelloe and Michael Sheahan called for the mural to be removed and replaced with something of more relevance to the area.

However, both Metropolitan Mayor Cllr Daniel Butler and Mayor of Limerick City and County Council, Cllr James Collins believe the mural should be here to stay.

The Eye Scream mural is iconic. Owner John Fitzgerald has told me it is here to stay. In fact, I believe we should have more of them. We should have a trail of murals depcting Limericks characters and stories throughout the city, he told the Leader in August.

Cllr Daniel Butler said a number of weeks ago that he was totally disgusted and appalled by the act of vandalism.

It is a valued resource in the city amongst the public. For someone to go to this level of effort to cause that level of damage, really at this stage, can only make one feel angry and disappointed.

It is not known if the three acts of vandalism have been caused by the same individual or group.
THE HEALTH Service Executive (HSE) has lifted restrictions on Limerick city residents, urging them to avoid drinking water that had excessive levels of aluminium.

The Do Not Drink notice was first imposed 40 houses in the Rosbrien Road, near Old Crescent RFC, on Friday night.

A spokesperson said that Irish Water and Limerick City and County Council worked over the weekend to resolve the issue, which left residents three days without drinkable water.

After water samples were taken this Monday, the HSE was consulted, and the restriction was then lifted, Irish Water told the Leader.

#IWLimerick: Update - The Do Not Drink notice in Rosbrien has now been lifted with immediate effect. See https://t.co/a7Zm27WRMC for more.  Irish Water Care (@IWCare) September 3, 2018

All affected customers can now resume normal use of their water supply, he said, adding that bottled water was distributed to everyone affected by the restriction.

We apologise for any inconvenience to customers as a result of this issue and thank them for their patience as we worked to resolve it. We will continue to monitor the supply to ensure that the matter is fully resolved and that the water remains safe to drink.

Further information and additional advice for customers is available on www.water.ie or by calling the Irish Water Customer Care Helpline on 1850 278 278.

Confirmation of the lifting of the Do Not Use notice will be sent to all affected customers.
Racing up front, Racemup avoided an incident in the $18,265 Futurity final for three-year-old pacers at Miami and went on to win by 10 lengths in a career-best mile.

Leaving from the inside post, Arthur Rey's homebred colt Racemup established the lead and set fractions of :28.1, :59.1 and 1:28.3 en route to victory in 2:00.3 for driver Don Howlett. Good Eye Hawkeye and Reys N A Ruckus completed the race in second and third despite an accident that occurred near the third quarter mark when Dontchase Justpace fell.

Racemup went unraced as a two-year-old and the Whatayasay colt is now four-for-seven on the Manitoba fair circuit with $16,674 banked in purse earnings.

The stakes score was the first of five winning drives on the day for Howlett. He also won with his own trainees Blissful Angel and Honey Booboolina, who prevailed in the $3,500 Open Pace to run her win streak up to six. Howlett also steered two of trainer Cory Manning's four winners on the nine-race program, Saskabush Steve and Dreams Of Mine. Manning drove his stable's other two first-place finishers, Hay Hay Alright and Marvtherat.

Dean Rey rebounded from his Futurity fall with a victory aboard the Sherri Mason-trained Cordees Fantasy. The Mason family had another Sunday score as Witch Doctor, trained by daughter Paula, was the best in the $3,200 Preferred 2 with Tyler Grundy driving.

To view Sunday's harness racing results, click on the following link: Sunday Results - Miami.
The slimy substance found in the Sierra Mixe corn indigenous to Mexico allows the corn to fix its own nitrogen by providing shelter for the microbes which convert the type of nitrogen in the air into more usable forms.

It probably doesn't look like any corn you've seen. At 16 feet (5 meters), it stands about twice as tall as conventional corn. And sticking out of the stalks, high above the ground, are aerial roots, red finger-like protrusions coated in slime.

But despite this alien-like goo, this species of corn  indigenous to the Sierra Mixe region of Oaxaca, Mexico, where the locals have long been cultivating and eating it  is remarkable for another reason. It's the only corn that scientists know of that can take in nitrogen directly from the air and use it to grow.

Nitrogen is an essential nutrient, and the ability for a major crop to use atmospheric nitrogen would change the world, reducing the nitrogen pollution that's become one of the biggest environmental problems afflicting the globe. [The Reality of Climate Change: 10 Myths Busted]

What is nitrogen fixation?

All living organisms need nitrogen. It's needed to build the proteins, for example, that allow organisms to function and grow. But although the atmosphere is 78 percent nitrogen, it's out of reach from animals and most plants. That's because the nitrogen in our air consists of two nitrogen atoms, tightly bonded together, and that requires a lot of energy to break, said Alan Bennett, a plant biologist at the University of California, Davis, who helped analyze the nitrogen-fixing corn.

Among crops, only legumes, such as soybeans, beans, and alfalfa, can access this nitrogen  and only with the aid of bacteria. The microbes use an enzyme to convert or "fix"  atmospheric nitrogen into usable form, compounds such as ammonia (a nitrogen molecule bonded to three hydrogen molecules) or nitrate (a nitrogen bonded to three oxygen molecules), Bennett said.

Most major crops, such as corn, wheat, and rice, can't, according to R. Ford Denison, a crop ecologist at the University of Minnesota.

Why is there nitrogen pollution?

Because crops can't convert the nitrogen in the air to a form they can use, farmers must provide fixed nitrogen for them in the form of fertilizer. In the early 20th century, the German scientist Fritz Haber developed what's known as the Haber-Bosch process to convert atmospheric nitrogen into ammonia  the basis of synthetic fertilizer that now feeds nearly half the world. "Without the ability to produce synthetic fertilizer, we wouldn't be able to produce enough food for the current population," Bennett said.

The problem is that it's hard for farmers to estimate exactly how much fertilizer is needed, leading to overuse and waste. About 57 percent of the nitrogen in fertilizer ends up polluting the environment, said Xin Zhang, an environmental scientist at the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science.

This influx upsets the natural nitrogen cycle of Earth. Normally, nitrogen gets recycled back into the soil. The nitrogen in plants, for example, is in a usable form, so when they drop leaves, seeds or simply die, the nitrogen returns to the soil for other plants to use. Animals also bring usable nitrogen back to the soil through urine and feces. "The key thing is that nobody was taking any nitrogen far away," Denison told Live Science.

When crops are shipped across the world, nitrogen does not get recycled  forcing farmers to replenish it with fertilizer.

What's the big deal?

In a 2009 analysis in the journal Nature of the world's major environmental problems, researchers found that nitrogen pollution has already passed the point where it can lead to devastating consequences. The only two other problems where the planet had exceeded such a threshold were climate change and the loss of biodiversity, according to the analysis.

In the U.S., for example, excess nitrogen from fertilizers ends up in rivers and waterways, draining into the Gulf of Mexico. Algae gorge on the nitrogen, proliferating as algal blooms. But when the algae die, the bacteria that cause decomposition guzzle all the oxygen in the water, creating so-called dead zones that kill sea life. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Association estimated the dead zone in the Gulf of Mexico to span an area about the size of New Jersey.

Nitrates can also seep into the water supply at toxic levels. Some nitrogen can be released into the air as nitrous oxide (two nitrogen molecules bonded to an oxygen molecule), which depletes the ozone layer and is a greenhouse gas that causes global warming, Zhang said.

The production of fertilizer itself is also an energy-intensive process that produces greenhouse gases. Fertilizer is expensive, and wasting it can cost billions of dollars worldwide, according to David Zilberman, an agricultural economist at the University of California, Berkeley.

With the U.N. forecasting that the population will near 10 billion by 2050, the demand for food  and nitrogen  will only intensify.

Can this slimy corn come to the rescue?

The slime on the Sierra Mixe giant Mexican corn, which scientists described in a new study published in PLOS Biology on Aug. 7, feeds a community of bacteria that fixes nitrogen in the air. Although this mucus-covered maize has some scientists excited, it probably won't solve anything right away. "This corn is of course very productive for the community it's grown in, but it's not directly applicable to conventional production systems of corn," Bennett said. For one, it takes eight months to mature  much longer than conventional corn's three months.

The researchers measured that the corn fixed from 29 percent to 82 percent of its own nitrogen. But that amount is negligible compared to what farmers require for their fields, Denison said.

Still, studying it might help researchers engineer or breed nitrogen-fixing corn  either by itself or with the help of bacteria  that can feed the world. The challenges are, nevertheless, immense, Denison said.

To fix nitrogen, bacteria need a lot of energy, which requires oxygen. But oxygen breaks down the enzyme that the microbes rely on for fixing nitrogen. Legumes solve the problem by housing the bacteria inside nodules in the roots, where the plant can control how much oxygen the microbes receive. To engineer or develop this capability in corn is a huge challenge. "I don't see any prospect for that happening in my lifetime," Denison said.

Bennett is much more sanguine. Biotech companies, agriculture corporations, startups and even the Gates Foundation have poured resources into developing nitrogen-fixing crops. "I'm pretty confident that all these approaches will converge in some ways within five or 10 years," he said. "We're likely to see a significant level of nitrogen fixation occurring in conventional maize crops."

If such technology does come to pass, and it works for other crops as well, the benefits would be huge. Poorer farmers who can't afford fertilizer, such as those in southern Africa, would be able to boost their yields to the tune of $2.5 billion to $7.2 billion, Zilberman said. In the most optimistic case, he said, full adoption could lead to $17 billion to $70 billion in cost savings worldwide.

"This technology will be revolutionary," he said. "It will be good for farmers, it will be good for consumers, and it will be good for the environment."

In the meantime, farmers can adopt strategies to deliver fertilizer only when and where it's really necessary. As part of what's called precision agriculture, new technology like sensors and drones are helping farmers be more efficient, Zhang said.

Originally published on Live Science.
By Delana Isles

AN AMENDMENT to a private members motion caused an hour-long ruckus in the House of Assembly on Tuesday (August 28).





The issue arose when Leader of the Opposition Washington Misick requested an amendment to one of several motions that were up for discussion.





The requested amendment would have affected the motion to debate the merits of a motor vehicle import policy for the Turks and Caicos Islands.





But after an hour of back and forth, accusations of fear on the Governments part and denials of such, the proceedings were called to an abrupt end after Premier Sharlene Cartwright Robinson apologised to Misick.





The apology came after she asked for a ten minute adjournment for Misick to "collect his thoughts, see the direction he would like to take when the party leader sought an amendment to his initial amendment which caused some confusion in the House.





But Misick did not take too kindly to premier implying that he was confused and rose to protest the call for an adjournment.





To this, the premier responded: "You cannot object to an adjournment, you dont have the power to call an adjournment oryou sitsit down old man, sit down old man, amid inaudible shouts from Misick, and the speaker loudly calling for order and an adjournment of the House.





Following the adjournment, the premier apologised to Misick for her comments, stating that it was a knee jerk reaction from what she knew was coming from the other side.





She then adjourned the House sine die, as she felt the House was not in a position to carry on with the motions before them on Tuesday given the atmosphere it had sunk into.

Amendment dispute

Prior to the ruckus which led to the adjournment, Misick had asked Speaker Dwayne Taylor if he could make an amendment to the motion so that the motion has more of a committed resolution without actually committing the territory to any additional financial obligation.





That amendment to the motion vehicle import police read: "Be it resolved that this honourable House appoint a committee to look into or to review the current situation in the Turks and Caicos Islands and to make recommendations for the motor vehicle import policy similar to that introduced in Jamaica, an example of which is attached for easy of reference.





This amendment, Misick said, is to ensure that there is action taken after the motion was presented and debated in the assembly.





However, the first objection to the amendment came from the speaker who stated that if Misick was only amending one or two words that would have been fine.





"But that is a complete motionif youre going to bring a motion like thatwhere the amendment is taking on that amount of body, it presents a whole new aspect of debate in terms of preparation and persons having to gather information in order to be able to speak consistently to the motion that you are bringing to the floor.





The speaker insisted that the motion was a new one given the amendment and in that light he said it is not fair to other members of the House to have to contribute to a new motion.





Misick objected, stating that he is unaware on which basis or standing order the speaker was basing his decision, as he does not consider it a new motion at all.





He said that the way the original motion is framed it is a debate that would go nowhere and one which has no commitment, if there is any sort of positive response to the idea the motion is presenting.





He said there is no reason why the House cannot make the amendment, adding that at the end of the day members have the right to vote against the motion.





He then questioned why was there "fear in allowing the amendment.





"What is there fear? I mean, if I put the motion and they disagree then they can vote against the motion.





"I know you are the speaker but I dont understand the basis upon which you are making that decision, because it is not a new motion.





He said the only change allows members to debate what is already in front of the House with the option to make a commitment to take action if it is approved.





The speaker again objected, telling Misick he should have made the amendment prior to Tuesdays sitting, and he should give the House ample time to consider what he insisted was an entirely new motion.





The PNP leader then asked the acting Attorney General, Dr Michael Dillon to weigh in on the issue.





Reading from the Standing Orders, Dillon stated that the matter is governed by Order 52 and 53 of the Standing Rules which says in 53, while a motion or bill is under consideration in the House or committee, a member may propose an amendment to the motion or bill if it is relevant to the question or matter under discussion.





Dillon added: "So, it would appear that a motion to amend can be made and then put to a vote.





He said that in order 52 that notice of a motion does not have to be given in respect of an amendment.





The speaker then acknowledged that the request for the amendment can be done and told the House that he would be putting the motion to amend the original motion to a vote on the floor.





At this point, the premier objected, stating: "This side of the House looks forward to a debate of this motion because it is ongoing works that we have announced to the House already in terms of the environmental policy.





"Old cars were dealt with under the interim administration, but the amendment that is being proposed - and I know what the AG acting has said - but when it materially changes the debate there has to be an opportunity for members of this house to intelligently speak to that bill.





She stated that she nor anyone on her side of the House has ever seen the motor vehicle policy for Jamaica, as such could not speak to a motion that introduces that policy for review and consideration.





"That is the whole spirit behind whether it can be amended or not... but if I, this House or anybody on that side of the House have not had the benefit of seeing the policy that is now going to be included in the amendment, it is not fair to be debating the merits.





"I totally agree with the leader of the opposition because the resolution just asks for us to talk about it.





She insisted that the House needed time to review the Jamaica policy.





However, the speaker stated that in the spirit of democracy, they should put the motion to floor for a vote, given the advice of the acting attorney general on what the standing orders say.





The premier further objected, stating that this move was very unfair to the Government, as they genuinely wanted to review the policy and have an intelligent debate.





"This puts us in a position where this House ought never put any member of this House in. So, if we sit on this side of the House and vote no it would be said that you dont want to debate a motor vehicle policy.





She insisted that it is an important debate to have: "If we say no, it is because we cant speak to this materially different motion.





"You cant do that Mr Speaker, this House cant sit and allow that to happen. So, if we vote no because we havent had sight of the policy which would be the basis of the debate; that doesnt benefit this House or this country.





Misick then addressed the House, stating that he understands the argument, and to demonstrate his intention is not to catch the Government off guard, he is willing to move forward with the amendment by deleting any reference to Jamaicas policy and only speak to a debate about the merits of the introduction of a motor vehicle import policy and to consider the appointment of a select committee.





"But the truth of the matter is that the Government doesnt want to commit to it, the PNP leader accused.





Cheshire Hall member, Doug Parnell stated that the leader of the opposition is in conflict with himself, not the Government.





After several more minutes of back and forth among members from both sides, the premier noted that an hour after the issue of an amendment was raised the leader of the opposition is still not clear what he wants to do; this led to the eventual naming calling and subsequent apology.





The motion

Below is the summary of the contentious motion that Misick presented to the House on Tuesday.





It noted that the Turks and Caicos Islands is a tourist dependent economy that prides itself as one of the most desirable high end tourists destinations in the world evidenced by its tagline





Beautiful by Nature with some of the most exclusive resorts in the region.





It continued that high end visitors are generally more conscious and decimating regarding the environment.





"In the PDM election manifesto 2016: The Change Document - Real Leadership; Real Plans and Real Change. (PDM, 2016) set out 20 anchor projects for real change including the following:





"Anchor Seven - Introduce sustainable funding for protection of the environment;





"Anchor Nine - Establishment of critical authorities - public transportation authority; "Anchor 20 - A mass clean-up and beautification campaign throughout the Islands, the motion outlined.





It added that there is growing concern about the sustainability of the carrying capacity of the local environment and the volume of used motor vehicles imported into the Islands.





It stated that there is currently no policy in place to regulate the importation of motor vehicle into the Islands, that some of these imported vehicles may be contaminated with carcinogens and that solid waste disposal is a major problem in the Islands worsened by the continual accumulation of derelict and abandoned vehicle.





It stated that the unregulated disposal of derelict and abandoned vehicles poses a threat to underground water and surrounding reef by potential leaching of harmful toxins into the water, noting that many other countries in the region has adopted policies to regulate the importation of motor vehicle over a particular age.





In light of all of the above, the motion called for the House to debate the merits of introducing a motor vehicle import policy similar to that introduced in Jamaica.




Q: I think there are more cops on the road right now than I've ever seen before.

Is it just because it's the end of the month and there's a holiday coming up?

 Chris Edwards, Colonie

A: You can expect to see an increased police presence over Labor Day weekend as part of the statewide Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over campaign.

The annual enforcement and education initiative aims to prevent intoxicated and under the influence driving on state and local roads.

For many, Labor Day weekend is the unofficial end of summer, and countless motorists hit the road to squeeze in one last vacation.

A Times Union analysis of traffic on the Thruway over Labor Day weekend 2017 showed that, on average, 10,000 cars traveled through Capital Region tollbooths every hour over the holiday weekend.

In an effort to accommodate travelers, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo announced that lane closures for road and bridge construction projects on New York State highways will be suspended through 6 a.m. Tuesday.

The construction suspension supports the state's Drivers First initiative, which prioritizes the convenience of motorists to minimize traffic congestion and travel delays due to road and bridge work.

"Driver safety is the Thruway Authority's top priority and as we wind down the busy summer travel season, we want travelers to get to and from their destinations safely, on time and with no construction-related delays," said Matthew J. Driscoll, Thruway Authority executive director. "I strongly encourage travelers to utilize the Thruway's numerous service areas, text stops and welcome centers to take a break and to avoid distracted driving."

Weekend travelers are being urged to use 511NY, a free service that allows users to check road conditions or link to air and transit information. The service can be accessed by calling 511 or visiting 511NY.org.

More Information Hot spots What to watch for this week: The Northway (I-87), between Malta and Saratoga Springs: The Crescent Avenue and East High street bridges are now open, but be on alert for off-peak lane closures underneath the bridges between Exit 12 (Malta) and Exit 14 (Saratoga Springs) as final bridge construction work continues. Hamburg Street, Rotterdam: Traffic open in both directions. Watch for flaggers and alternating traffic during continuing roadwork eastbound (Route 146). Michigan Avenue bridge, Schenectady: Left turns prohibited onto I-890. Detour by turning right onto eastbound or westbound I-890, then loop around at next exit. Columbia Street (routes 9 and 20) over South Street and railroad tracks, Rensselaer and East Greenbush: Reduced to two lanes through the fall for a rehabilitation project. Watch for lane shifts. Detour for semi tractor-trailers arriving from Route 9J over the Dunn Memorial Bridge to I-787 northbound, then I-90 eastbound to Exit 9, south on Route 4, and back to routes 9 and 20. Route 7, Brunswick: Watch for lane shifts, flaggers and workers between Leonard Avenue in Sycaway and Route 278 in Brunswick Center for work on ADA-compliant sidewalk ramps. Hoosick Road (Route 7): Pavement repair between Brick Church Road (Route 278) and Grange Road (Route 142) in Brunswick. Final paving from Route 278 to Leonard Avenue will take place weeknights through Sept. 14. County Route 9, West Berne: Bridge construction and rehabilitation will close the intersection of Dutch Settlement Road and County Route 9 beginning Sept. 10. While repairs are made to the approach of the bridge over Fox Creek, a detour will run 16 miles along Rickard Hill Road and state routes 30 and 443. Construction should be completed by Thanksgiving. Route 787, Cohoes: Watch for single alternating left and right lane closures and speed limit reductions southbound on Route 787 between Saratoga Street (Route 32) and Tibbits Avenue from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday for work on the Cohoes Boulevard project. See More Collapse

Do you have a question about transportation? Email gettingthere@timesunion.com. Please include your name, town and telephone number.
Border Patrol agents said they recently spent about 14 hours attempting to locate a suspected undocumented immigrant who had been left behind in the brush.

He was reportedly unconscious and in poor health near Freer.
Laredo Sector Border Patrol agents said they rescued a mother and her two young daughters who became exhausted walking through the brush near Falcon Lake.

The rescue was made on Thursday when agents responding to a suspected illegal entry began tracking the footprints of several individuals. After following the footprints for approximately two miles, agents discovered the woman and her daughters who were among eight undocumented immigrants, the agency said in a news release.
Before the concept of countries existed, Luzia walked the broad savanna of what is now south-central Brazil. Her remains were buried in the Vermelha Cave around 11,500 years ago until they were found and studied in the 20th century. Researchers later said her existence challenged the basic understanding of how humans migrated, and when.

Luzia's remains are among nearly 20 million items feared destroyed after a blaze roared through Rio de Janeiro's National Museum on Sunday, in an inferno that Brazilian officials and scientists are describing as an unbearable erasure of human history.

The fire was like "a lobotomy of the Brazilian memory," said Marina Silva, a former environment minister and candidate in the upcoming presidential election, according to the Guardian. Video of the blaze showed twin columns of towering fire reaching against black sky.

President Michel Tremer said the loss was "incalculable to Brazil" and has directed the museum to be rebuilt using public and private funds, he said Monday. The museum is the biggest natural history museum in Latin America.

Police clad in riot gear held back an angry, massive crowd calling for Tremer's resignation at the smoldering museum. BBC reporter Katy Wilson said "thousands" at the scene blamed the fire on years of austerity measures for lack of funding and modernization efforts at museum.

The museum, which celebrated its 200th anniversary this year, housed priceless items of global and regional history, stretching from a several-ton meteorite to dinosaur bones to items kept by Dom Pedro I, who declared Brazil independent from Portugal in 1825.

That makes the museum a few years older than the country in which it was founded.

"It is an unbearable catastrophe. It is 200 years of this country's heritage. It is 200 years of memory. It is 200 years of science. It is 200 years of culture, of education," Luiz Duarte, a vice-director of the museum, told TV Globo.

It was not clear how the fire started. Duarte blamed the government for poor funding and outdated protection. A fire prevention system was set to be installed but came too late, he said.

"For many years we fought with different governments to get adequate resources to preserve what is now completely destroyed," he said, the Guardian reported. "My feeling is of total dismay and immense anger."

An official visit in 2004 found dangerous wiring and poor safety standards that risked the chance of a catastrophic fire, Agencia Brasil reported then.

Luzia's skeleton shook the foundation of what scientists understood about migration to the Americas, providing an earlier timeline of when the region was discovered and settled, the New York Times reported. In 1999, scientists said Luzia was the oldest skeleton ever found in the Western Hemisphere, and a key to understanding human history.

Historic documents are also feared to have been lost, and firefighters speculated that books and papers may have fueled the blaze. There were no reports of injuries, the Guardian reported.

Photos from the scene early Monday showed firefighters carefully laying out recovered artifacts. But it is too early to tell what has been recovered and what has been lost.

Museums worldwide offered condolences following the destruction, as if the loss were a death in the family.

"We grieve today with our colleagues in Brazil. Our hearts and thoughts are with you," the Smithsonian's Natural History Museum said on Twitter.

The Louvre in Paris said it was met with "profound sadness" at the news. In Mexico City, the National Anthropology Museum called the fire a "tragic event" and said the museum's collection is "a legacy for all of humanity."

London's British Library said the incident is "a reminder of the fragility and preciousness of our shared global heritage."

Anthropologist Mercio Gomes said the fire was as bad or worse than the one that swept through the royal library in Alexandria, Egypt in 48 B.C. - a symbol of great and terrible loss of human knowledge.

"We Brazilians only have 500 years of history. Our National Museum was 200 years old, but that's what we had, and what is lost forever," he wrote on Facebook.

Gromes, the former president of Brazil's indigenous agency, also decried the loss of native artifacts and wonders like Luzia. The human toll to get them to the museum over two centuries was brutal and lasting, he wrote.

"Here they arrived in donkey loins, on the back of slaves, on boats and wagons," he wrote.
By Olivia Rose

"IF I have to reach the people of the Turks and Caicos Islands I will do it by any means necessary.





These were the sentiments of Premier Sharlene Cartwright Robinson who attempted to clear the air on what she called an "embarrassing situation.





The territorys leader suffered harsh online criticism for not paying a substantial amount of money owed for helicopter services rendered from the Camacho Emergency Relief team after last years storms.





Speaking on the popular RTC radio show Expressions which was webcast live on Wednesday, August 22, Cartwright Robinson fervently took responsibility for her actions.





She emphasised that during that distressing time it was absolutely necessary for the Government to use every option available to connect with the people across the territory.





She acknowledged that given the urgency of the situation, which was described as a "crisis, she failed to follow bureaucratic protocol.





"This would be the first time Ill be speaking to this issue publicly because I find it quite embarrassing, but nonetheless I had reached to a place where I assumed that I would then have to take personal responsibility for $55,000.





"Unfortunately when Irma and Maria hit we had no small crafts left in the Islands, all the airplanes were taken out, but Cayman Islands government had loaned us their helicopter.





"We had the benefit of the Cayman Islands police helicopter and because communications were down we had already communicated to at least two of the islands that we will be travelling (myself and the Governor) to the islands to meet with the executive staff.





"The challenge we had already with Grand Turk, with prisoners breaking out and then the fire and the whole question of security on the island, the Governor and I were not allowed to travel into Grand Turk for the first two days until the police wouldve gone in and brought additional staff and made sure that the environment was safe.





She said that the evening before the day they planned to travel, the police commissioner said that he would need the helicopter.





"The morning we went to the airport with the hopes that we couldve left earlier, we were able to secure the services.





"I shouldnt say we. I agreed to use the service of the helicopter that was used after Ike, the services of the same company, and the governor and I boarded the helicopter and we travelled to Grand Turk to meet our commitment.





She further revealed that the helicopter service was also used to travel to South Caicos, since the cell towers were down and the Government needed to establish some form of communication with the island.





"Additionally the director of the Department of Disaster Management and Emergencies who also had to travel to the islands to make first assessment travelled as well on one of those occasions.





"So a total of four trips were made to South Caicos, to Salt Cay, to Grand Turk on two different occasions and that is because I had no other means of reaching to the people of the Turks and Caicos.





The premier further explained that although she made a judgment call to use the only available mode of transportation at that time to touch base with the storm ravaged islands, clearing the outstanding fees owed for the helicopter trips was an arduous task.





She said: "Now I will tell you that I accept responsibility and that I did not ask anyones permission and this is where people need to understand that as minister of finance and as premier I have no authority to incur expenditure.





"Now when this wouldve happened I assumed incorrectly under the circumstances that it would not have been such a major issue but it was declared as an unauthorised expenditure.





She stressed that as minister of finance she had no authority to make that call even in a state of emergency.





"It was a situation that is quite clear and evident to all of us as ministers, that even in circumstances like that we actually have no administrative power...I did it on the spur of the moment to reach to the people.





"The truth is I don't regret doing it because we had to reach to those islands. Maybe I shouldnt have said that, but we had to reach to the people of Grand Turk and touch base with the executive.





The premier revealed that she has since been working with the attorney general to resolve the almost year-old issue.





Even though she assumed responsibility for the expenses incurred, it was decided the monies could be claimed and ultimately cleared under Claims against Government.





The premier added that during October she hopes to launch Civics in Turks and Caicos: How the system works to educate the public on the workings of the Government.




As an attorney who has represented foster parents in custody cases, I am seeing a need for a consistent clearinghouse of information for children who have abusive parents living in another state.

Some policy makers advocate for the creation of a national registry for child abuse cases to better create interstate cooperation between child protective services on this issue. The Adam Walsh Act of 2006 calls for the creation of such a database, most specifically to track convicted sexual predators.

However, this Bush era federal statute also called for the creation of a national data base to track incidents of child abuse and neglect. Currently most states, including Texas, maintain a central registry for child abuse cases. Since they are operated at the state level, these databases vary in how they capture and store data. One example is the amount of time used to store unsubstantiated child abuse reports. In the state of Washington, this information is kept for up to six years. Wyoming, however, will remove such cases from their registry after a period of only six months.

There are certain legal concerns that hinder the implementation of a national registry  a lack of due process. Unlike sex offenders, you do not need a legal finding of child abuse or neglect to wind up on any states registries. In many of them, your name can be added to the database by the assertion of a child protection investigator. Unfortunately, mistakes can often occur on their reports.

One such mistake occurred in 1990 when a lawyer by the name of Esther Boynton, accidentally splashed her 17-year-old daughter with hot coffee. She only discovered she was on the registry when applying for a volunteer position three years later. It would take two more years of legal procedure to have her name removed.

There is also the issue of false reports. In 1986, Scott Whyte was falsely accused of inflicting child abuse by a vengeful ex-girlfriend. The stockbroker spent almost 20 years living in fear of immediate arrest. It was only in 2007 that Whyte was able to clear his name.

The blame should not lie entirely with the Child Protective Services. Most agents are doing what they feel is best for the children involved in these cases. Unfortunately, the agency is afflicted with heavy workloads, high turnover from stress, inadequate technology, low pay and low morale.

A national registry would greatly ease interstate cooperation in child abuse cases. However, successfully introducing this system will entail certain reforms that require better funding. It is important for our elected officials to invest in these agencies that protect our kids.

Attorney Joe Hoelsche is a partner in the Hoelscher Gebbia PLLC. He and his partners represent families in child custody and support issues.
Trade disputes are hitting Texans hard. From construction to oil to farms, businesses across our state are grappling with the outcomes of higher tariffs and unpredictable trade negotiations. But for the agriculture industry, the pains of major policy decisions dont stop with trade. Over the next few weeks, Congress is tasked with finalizing a new farm bill, which will have serious implications for our states farmers.

Set to expire Sept. 30, the farm bill presents a perfect opportunity for lawmakers to provide relief to farmers, especially hog farmers, as they cope with the costly outcomes of the changing global trade environment. Texans are fortunate to have local representation on the committee tasked with the bills negotiations, including Reps. Mike Conaway, R-Midland; Jodey Arrington, R-Lubbock; and Filemon Vela, D-Brownsville.

For the sake of pig farmers in Texas, we hope they keep several pork priorities top of mind.

Our most pressing priority is the funding of a national vaccine bank for use against foot-and-mouth disease, or FMD, which can affect cattle, dairy cows, pigs and sheep.

Currently, the U.S. is only capable of handling a very small, localized outbreak. Livestock farmers likely wouldnt receive a vaccine for weeks for a small outbreak and months for a large outbreak. With almost 1 million pigs supporting nearly 7,000 jobs in Texas, an outbreak of FMD would have devastating consequences for our state.

More broadly, an FMD outbreak would immediately close all export markets for U.S. meat, and beef, pork, corn and soybean industries could expect to lose $200 billion and 1.5 million jobs over the next 10 years.

To ensure the U.S. is fully prepared for an FMD outbreak, the farm bill must include $150 million to fund a national vaccine bank, plus additional resources for the National Animal Health Laboratory Network and state animal health agencies, to be adequately prepared for an animal-disease emergency. Funding for FMD and other foreign animal diseases is even more relevant given the current African swine fever outbreak in China. Recent reports point to the disease spreading, increasing the risk of an outbreak in the U.S.

Our second priority is to ensure the inclusion of the Protecting Interstate Commerce Act in the farm bill. This provision, which exists in the House version, prevents states from dictating the production practices of farms outside their borders. Despite this practice violating the Constitutions commerce clause, Massachusetts prohibits the sale of pork, eggs and veal produced using certain methods, even when produced in states other than Massachusetts. California has an initiative on the ballot in November that will do the same. To comply with these laws, pig farmers and American consumers will be burdened with billions in additional costs.

In addition to the farm bill, two pieces of legislation already pending in Congress help address another pressing issue for farmers  workforce shortage. American farmers are struggling to staff critical positions that help them meet the highest standards of animal care and keep food affordable. While foreign labor could be the answer, the current system doesnt help.

The Newhouse-Cuellar Amendment would modify the existing H-2A visa and allow farmers to use the program year-round instead of only for seasonal labor. Another bill, the Ag and Legal Workforce Act, would create a new category of visa called H-2C and would allow nonseasonal agricultural workers to remain in the United States for up to three years.

We must find ways to relieve the burden on nearly 7,000 pig farms across our state.

The next step is clear  Texas lawmakers must take action when they return to Washington, D.C. Its time to make pig farmers and rural America a priority.

Charles Chuck Real, owner of Real Hog Farms in Marion, has raised hogs for 54 years. He served as swine health commissioner of Texas for 12 years, president and board member of the Texas Pork Producers Association, and on the National Pork Producers Council board and the National Swine Registry.
As the world watches the legal twists and turns of the Trump administration, something far more consequential is happening. Long after Trump, Michael Cohen, Paul Manafort and the rest are forgotten, the inhabitants of Earth will still be dealing with climate change. And policies the president recently announced are going to make the problem worse for us and put future generations on track for disaster.

A couple of weeks ago, Trump began relaxing automotive fuel efficiency standards that require automakers to improve fuel efficiency of cars over the next decade. Now, Trump is replacing former President Barack Obamas Clean Power Plan, a policy that reduces emissions from electric power plants.

By the EPAs own analysis, these actions by Trump reverse policies that were addressing climate change.

To understand how climate is affecting you today, consider the miserable summer weve experienced. Climate change is one of the reasons its so hot. So, it follows that its driving up your air-conditioning bill, as well as the bill for businesses you rely on. Like higher oil prices, this increased expense ripples through the economy and takes money out of your pocket.

Climate change also causes more extreme rainfall  like what we saw during Hurricane Harvey, which hit the Texas Gulf Coast about a year ago.

In some places, Harvey dropped 60 inches of rain in a few days, quickly inflicting $50 billion in damages. Several recent scientific analyses have confidently concluded that climate change turbocharged the storm, and observations have confirmed scientific theories that heavy rain events are becoming more frequent.

Sea-level rise, another result of climate change, is also costing us money. Addressing this problem will require big, expensive infrastructure projects. Public funds are now being used to build sea walls to protect oil facilities on the Texas Gulf Coast.

The irony is palpable  the people who are literally responsible for the problem are getting a free ride to adapt to the impacts. Not so the ordinary people. Neighborhoods that used to stay dry now flood frequently, destroying real estate value.

In some Houston neighborhoods, for example, residents are being forced to raise their houses at significant expense. Those who cant afford it are forced out, leading to a huge loss in personal wealth. In other neighborhoods, new houses are required to be built several feet off the ground, raising the costs of new construction.

And this doesnt come close to fully assessing the costs of burning fossil fuels for energy. Air pollution from power plants and cars kills millions of people around the world every year, including tens of thousands in the U.S.

By 2030, Trumps dirty power plan could, by the administrations own admission, kill up to 1,400 Americans every year. In addition, the Trump administration estimates the plan would lead to 120,000 new cases per year of what it describes as exacerbated asthma, 48,000 missed school days, 48,000 missed workdays and 300,000 minor-restricted activity days by 2030.

Its a depressing and, given the cost of lost productivity, expensive list.

There are also steep nonmonetary costs. When the temperature hits 100 degrees in the summer or if air pollution becomes unbearable, it will become a risk to leave your air-conditioned, air-purified indoor space. The inhabitants of that future  a future not that far away  may be virtual prisoners who cannot go outside on summer days.

Why would a politician propose a policy that is so detrimental to the well-being of his constituents? The answer is that polluting pays handsomely  for the polluters. The money not spent on environmental protection goes straight to the polluters pocket. The other winners are career politicians, who receive enormous political contributions from these same businesses to ensure that the companies can continue to pollute. Everyone else not profiting from pollution, though, loses.

Its important to realize that climate change weve experienced is just a taste of whats coming. The global climate has already warmed about 1.8 degrees since the Industrial Revolution. Warming over the coming century will be several times what were already feeling. When you look at the impacts that are already occurring with a moderate amount of warming, it is clear that theres a train coming and were standing on the tracks.

We should do the smart thing and move, but Trump is trying to tie us to the tracks.

Andrew Dessler is a professor of atmospheric sciences and the Reta A. Haynes Chair in Geosciences at Texas A&M University.
With Dr Peter Hall

Brace yourself, general practice is changing and were all running to catch up. For a start about a quarter of our current GPs are planning to retire in the next five years so there is a workforce crisis looming. The number of young doctors entering the profession is encouraging but, partly due to poor recruitment during the 1990s, there is a big dip in the 40-year-olds. And of course as the New Zealand population ages their medical needs are going to get more complicated. Who is going to look after them?

Then there is a new consumerism impacting medicine. Patients want their services more quickly, more conveniently and more comprehensively than ever before. Technological changes are afoot as well, with many people preferring electronic communications with their doctor. And medical progress, especially in surgical techniques and imaging, is phenomenal. So what does this mean for you, the patient?

Im going to make some predictions here, which I admit are personal and provisional.

You will see your GP face-to-face only when you specifically want to. Many of your interactions and services will be managed really well by other staff  medical assistants, nurse practitioners and practice nurses  and much of that communication will be via email, Skype, portal or txt.

While these services have traditionally been provided free of charge (because they were ancillary to a face to face consultation), in the future they will be stand-alone clinical services and will be charged as such. The convenience may make these new fees more acceptable to patients. When privacy and safety issues are worked out, online consultations will become the norm.

This is already the basis of some innovations such as iMoko  Lance OSullivans effort to make medical services accessible to daycares and schools across the country.

More GPs will have special interests. This means you might see other doctors within the practice to get all the services you need and you will come to regard a group of doctors as your GP.

Medical knowledge is progressing so quickly that it takes teams of doctors to keep up with it. There might be one person conducting the orchestra but it will be quite a big band.

You will become increasingly your own diagnostician. Apps like Ada will enable you to figure out whats wrong with you well before you get anywhere a doctor. And my profession will be smart enough to see those things as opportunities rather than threats, especially if they can be plugged into your clinical records.

So, welcome to the future. Like it or not, we are going there together!
By Delana Isles

FARMERS in the Turks and Caicos Islands could soon see themselves getting much-needed help and support to boost the territorys agriculture sector, with an aim towards local food security.





Spearheading the Governments first agriculture seminar was the Ministry of Agriculture headed by Hon. Edwin Astwood, who was joined by local farmers this past Monday (August 27).





Farmers came from Middle and North Caicos, Providenciales, South Caicos, Grand Turk and Salt Cay to listen to Jamaican agriculture experts at the Blue Haven resort.





They welcomed to the territory current Minister of Agriculture in Jamaica, William Hutchinson and his delegation Chief Technical Director Courtney Cole and Peter Thompson, CEO of Rural, Agricultural, Development, Authority.





The trio visited the TCI on the invitation of Astwood, to share their knowledge, skills and lessons they learned in Jamaicas agriculture sector over the years.





Agriculture is a critical sector of the Jamaican economy, employing almost 19 percent of the population and accounting for nine percent of the countrys Gross Domestic Product (GDP).





During remarks to the press, Astwood said that the TCI could be doing a lot more when it comes to agriculture and securing the territorys food supply, at the same time acknowledging that the sector is still in its infancy stage.





As such, he said he decided to reach out to the Jamaican experts to help the TCIs fledgling industry in its development.





"Last year a team from the Ministry of Agriculture and a few farmers went over to Jamaica to view their agriculture show and the hospitality we received from the ministry and the minister Hon. Hutchinson and was overwhelming. They really took care of team TCI when we were in Jamaica.





"Minister Hutchinson is very experienced in agriculture. He has been in the political realm for a number of years.





"He is a farmer and he has also seen the sector grow in Jamaica, so we are happy to have him here to impart his knowledge and the Jamaican experience for the farmers in TCI, Astwood explained.





Among the things the delegation will be doing while in the territory, is signing a memorandum of understanding with the TCI Government in the area of agriculture.





"Were trying to see if we can work out an MOU in many of the areas where the TCI is having issuesto assist farmers here with some of the basic technical assistance and speaking to some of the farmers, Jamaican Minister William Hutchinson told the press.





"We are looking to see if we can get some workers from Jamaica to come over here and help with some basic agriculture assistance that is needed here.





He said that the Jamaican government is now in the process of developing the agriculture sector on a structural basis, stating that his team will also be imparting this knowledge to their TCI counterparts when the cooperation agreement has been reached and signed.





"One complaint of the farmers here is that there is no government assistance and if they got the assistance then they can supply more produce, the minister observed.





He pointed to the large and booming hotel industry in the TCI, noting that if local farmers were given the necessary tools and help, they could tap into that industry, making the territorys agriculture sector sustainable and even prosperous.





He added that another plus for the TCI is that it already has the land to produce and the irrigation system required for a good farming industry.





"If we had water like you had, we would be booming, Hutchinson said.





Courtney Cole, Jamaicas chief technical director for special projects, suggested that the TCI should look at how it can focus on a few agriculture products that can be grown in abundance on island and do these well.





This, Cole said, would stop the importation of those items from the United States and ensure fresher and cheaper produce.





"I dont know what the food import bill here is, but TCI can target a percentage of that, and say well let us do two or four products from it and see how you can supply.





"This would result in import substitution, and even though the country might have a surplus, you could still have a bigger surplus, and whatever you save from importing produce then you can plow that into the development of your infrastructure for agriculture, because agriculture is not going to go far if you dont have proper infrastructure, Cole noted.





Addressing the MOU that the TCI is looking to sign with Jamaica, Minister Astwood noted that the Government is keen to put things in place where local farmers can get training and where they can have access to the latest farming and breeding technology - knowledge that Jamaica already has.





He said the fact that the TCI is already very familiar with Jamaica and the Jamaican product, makes that country the perfect one for the territory to learn from in the Caribbean region.




Australian country punk (cowpunk) band The Johnnys will finish up a five date New Zealand tour with a concert at the Leigh Sawmill Cafe this month.

Kiwi-born Graham Hood (bass and vocals), Slim Doherty (guitar) and Billy Pommer Jr (drums) hope to repeat the barnstorming shows that they performed at NZ venues such as The Gluepot back in the 1980s.

Its The Johnnys first tour of New Zealand for three decades and will serve as a tribute to seriously ill bandmate, guitarist Spencer P. Jones, who wont be crossing the Tasman.

Graham says after so long away, its great to be back in New Zealand and reconnecting with everyone.

Full-length sets, a whole lot of fun and some very talented local opening acts. See you there, he says,

The Johnnys 1986 album Highlights Of A Dangerous Life was a runaway success in New Zealand, staying in the NZ Album Top 20 charts for 10 weeks, thanks to popular tracks such as Bleeding Heart, Injun Joe, and (Theres Gonna Be A) Showdown.

The band formed in Sydney in 1982 and played their first show at Palms Disco in Oxford Street.

Subsequently, The Johnnys racked up eight singles and three albums, and played the length and breadth of Australia and New Zealand.

A successful show at the Kings Arms Tavern in Auckland, to mark the closing of the long-running music venue, inspired the Johnnys to embark on a New Zealand tour.

The Johnnys will be supported at the Leigh Sawmill concert by The Bads. The show takes place on Sunday, September 30, at 4.30pm.

Tickets: eventfinda.co.nz.
A total of 6.3 kilometres on nine roads in north Rodney will be sealed using the $2.8 million secured from the troubled Araparera Forestry joint venture fund.

North Rodney ratepayers contributed $1.5 million to the scheme through a targeted rate over 28 years and although the scheme wound up three years ago, this the first time any money has been allocated to fulfil the promise to upgrade dusty, gravel roads.

At a Rodney Local Board meeting on August 16, chair Beth Houlbrooke acknowledged the money had taken a lot of time to get here.

The fund has not been the cure-all for our road sealing problems in Rodney, but we hope the distribution that we have come up with fairly addresses the geographic area that was rated, she said.

After the meeting, Ms Houlbrooke said the list of unsealed roads that were eligible for funding was ranked according to multiple criteria such as traffic and heavy vehicle use, safety, the proximity of houses and nearby facilities.

We considered how to stretch each dollar as far as possible, keeping in mind an appropriate standard of seal that will stand up to use. This led to our decision to seal shorter sections of road, which gave the best value for money. Road sealing is due to start in late November and be completed by the end of June next year.

The roads that will receive attention are: Underwood Road (Port Albert), Whitmore Road (Takatu), School Road (Tomarata), Krippner Road (Puhoi), Smith Road (Matakana), Wharehine Road, Tauhoa Road, Dennis Road (Kourawhero) and Rodney Road (Pakiri).

Araparera failure buried

Greg Sayers

Colin Smith

Two Auckland Council representatives, Councillor Greg Sayers and Local Board member Colin Smith, say they have come to the end of the road in their search to uncover why the Araparera forest joint venture failed.

The venture raised just $2.6 million plus interest, a return far lower than anticipated when the scheme was set up in 1984. Cr Sayers and Mr Smith say that despite determined efforts over many years, they have been unable to uncover crucial documents vital to exposing how the joint venture was managed.

They say they have exhausted every option available to them to seek justice and accountability, and are deeply sorry they could not find any conclusive answers for their constituents.

Thirty years have passed and our communities have little or nothing to show for generations of rate paying, Mr Smith says. Ratepayers in the former northern riding are angry, and rightly so.

As part of the investigation, Cr Sayers requested a full independent audit into the joint venture in 2016, but Council only supplied an independent report, which failed to satisfy concerns around the management of the scheme.

Cr Sayers and Mr Smith enlisted the help of accountants and foresters to determine exactly what documents would be needed to fulfil the requirements of a full and proper audit.

We trawled through thousands of Council archival documents to try to uncover the vital weigh-station log sheets from the forests harvest, but this proved fruitless, Mr Smith says.

Without those documents it was impossible to answer the obvious questions ratepayers had over the low return of the scheme. The records were either never kept or were destroyed.

A total of 96,000 tonnes of timber was produced from 200 hectares, with about 70 per cent of revenue earned from exports. The scheme was a joint venture with Ngati Whatua O Kaipara.
Mahurangi Matters will let readers know when the Aquijo is off our coast so keep an eye on our Facebook page (Mahurangi Matters) around September 26.

The worlds largest high-performance ketch will arrive in Auckland later this month with Matakanas own Luke Hoskins at the helm.

The former Mahurangi College student is currently on a world circumnavigation on board the superyacht Aquijo in his first commission as captain.

The 39-year-old is understandably proud of the achievement, but says the icing on the cake will be sailing such a world-class boat through the Hauraki Gulf.

He even plans to honk the horn off Leigh when he picks up a couple of sail maintenance experts from North Sail.

When we get to Auckland well tie up at Orams Shipyard, in Beaumont Street, for two months, for maintenance, he says.

The 86-metre Aquijo is a Tripp-designed boat built in the Netherlands and launched in 2016. She has a high-tensile steel hull and aluminium superstructure, an 11.6-metre keel and two carbon fibre masts that sit 91 metres above the waterline.

Her range under engine at 13 knots is 3200 nautical miles and she has accommodation for 30  13 guests and 17 crew including two chefs.

Luke respects the owners privacy and is reluctant to say more than they are a lovely German family who will join the boat at Christmas for a cruise around New Zealand.

Rounding Cape Horn involved navigating through strong winds and large waves, not to mention an iceberg or two.

The current world tour started in the Mediterranean last November and will end there in 2020 when the boat returns for its five-year survey.

Weve visited some exotic places so far; its been pretty awesome. The family joins us every few months and, in between, we sail the boat between destinations and attend to maintenance.

The longest stretch at sea so far was 14 days, or 4200 nautical miles, across the Atlantic from Cape Verde to Uruguay.

But it was Patagonia that captured Lukes heart.

I had no comprehension of how beautiful that country was  the mountains, glaciers, icebergs, wildlife and history are awesome, he says. We spent a couple of months cruising through the area and sailed around Cape Horn, which was pretty special, too.

On the way north, off Chile, we stopped at Robinson Crusoe Island, the actual island that the sailor Alexander Selkirk was marooned on, whose story inspired the book.

It was then on to Panama, Costa Rica, the Galapagos Islands and Tahiti.

Luke says he loves the opportunity to travel and see amazing countries, but sometimes something as simple as being at sea, miles from any light pollution, and seeing the night sky ablaze with stars is equally stunning.

I just try not to take anything for granted.

As romantic as it might all seem, the job is demanding and takes its toll on relationships with family and friends.

Being onboard involves long hours without a lot of privacy. It is only the fact that I have been able, for a few years now, to work a two month on/two month off roster that has kept me here.

Lukes sailing history is almost a rags to riches story. After studying philosophy and English literature at Victoria University in Wellington, he did the Kiwi thing and packed his bags to travel overseas. On a return trip to visit his parents, Herons Flight owners Mary Evans and David Hoskins, he waited tables at Pizza Construction in Snells Beach and overheard a customer talking about working on superyachts.

He went online, found a boat in Mexico looking for crew, applied and was told that if he could get himself to Port Vallarta in a week, hed have a job. That was in 2002. He bought a one-way ticket and has never looked back.

After NZ, the Aquijo will head for Japan.

As for Luke, he says he would love to stay on the Aquijo for at least another 10 years.

Particularly because it allows me to return to NZ for six months a year. Theres no place like home.
For some it was a nostalgic trip down memory lane, for others a reminder of the nomadic way of traveller life and the deep roots that it holds within this countys culture.

The event, Irish Cobs & the Traveller Way, which was held outside Longford town on Wednesday was run to mark national Heritage Week and included an exhibition of photographs, tools and old style wagons as well as the opportunity to spend time with some beautiful Irish Cobs which, sadly, are now in decline.

The special event was run in conjunction with Devine Equestrian, Ballydangan Irish Cobs and Longford Community Resources clg Traveller Project.

Speaking to the Leader, Tony Owens, Coordinator of Primary Health Care for Travellers at Longford Community Resources clg told the Leader that the Irish Cob was synonymous with the traveller way of life.

Heritage and how all of that is important is part of what we are doing with the Traveller community and all of this helps us to do our health promotion work too, he added.

Its a nice story; Nomadic life was very much part of the Traveller way in the past and many people in our community still remember that.

Meanwhile, the nomadic way no longer exists and Irish travellers are becoming more and more settled as time passes by.

Mr Owens says that despite this, the past is very much ingrained in the communitys culture and heritage.

Some traveller families will tell you that they preferred the Nomadic way of life while others dont remember that way of life at all, but being a traveller doesnt just mean they were Nomadic people, they were a community with their own traditions, history and culture, he continued, before pointing out that just because many people in the community are now settled, it does not mean they are not travellers.

Bridget Devine of Devine Equestrian, also spoke to the Leader during last weeks heritage week celebrations.

She said that the event provided her and other horse breeders with the opportunity to promote the Irish Cob and create awareness around its cultural significance.

We are trying to protect and preserve the Irish Cob breed - they are almost extinct - so we are trying to promote height in the breed, she added, before pointing out that in the Traveller community in the past the Cob also provided status and rank!

The Irish Cob was an indication of wealth; a wealthy traveller that had a bigger Cob with loads of hair and bone along with a gold leaf painting on the wagon held prestige.

In the traveller community, all their investment was in the horse and the wagon and they were brought around the country with pride.

Then as time passed with advances in machinery and within the traveller community itself, the role of the Irish Cob became more and more redundant.

As a result, adds Ms Devine, the Irish Cob is becoming extinct.

She continued; We are now trying to encourage breeders to breed pure Cob to save it.
Its the only show in town it would seem. Ever since Martin Dalby and his crew of passionate sounding band of executives flew into Ireland on April Fools Day 2015, the sense of optimism over Center Parcs arrival to these shores has been nothing short of palpable.

And why not? With the promise of 1,750 full and part time jobs and a 1bn injection into the Irish economy, never mind its local equivalent, it was hardly surprising to see terms like momentous and groundbreaking banded about.

But as Co Longford and, more specifically, Ballymahon prepares to roll out the red carpet for the biggest private tourism development in the history of the Irish State, how prepared is the south Longford town less than 12 months ahead of its anticipated opening?

Local businessman Paddy Diffley of Diffleys Hardware has been a permanent fixture behind the store's front counter for the past 45 years.

He believes the town is adequately resourced to cater for the UK leisure giants arrival.

It is well equipped, he confidently asserted during our exchange last week. Compared to what we were 12 years or so, we have a hotel, bed and breakfasts, good factory units, so we are improving.

The one potential fly in the ointment, Paddy contends is the dearth of property to offset the huge influx of visitors and employees coming into the town.

There is a buzz, he added, when assessing the broader sense of anticipation the Center Parcs brand had invoked on the town.

Its all the talk with the traffic thats going through town. It has to be upbeat. Anyone that comes to a place like this with 1,000 jobs, it has to be upbeat.

The biggest problem we have is there is no accommodation around. Thats the one thing that is missing.

If the advent of Center Parcs Longford Forest has done one thing, it has made other local enterprises up their own game.

Skelly's, an elegant pub located a few hundred yards down, didn't even have a front entrance until recently. Now, it is arguably the town's busiest watering hole, providing bed and breakfast to construction workers.

Like Paddy before him, its owner Pat Byrne is more than assured over how the project will enhance the wider area.

We are expecting people that stay there to come in and have a look around the local town, he said.

I am sure they will come in by car or by bike before they drive into the park or drive into the town when they leave the park just to have a look and see what the town is like.

It really is a game-changer for this area.

Across the road stands a unisex barber shop and beauty bar which was, by its owner's admission, at least in part motivated by the anticipated onset of the short break holiday giant.

Fades and Flicks, like a number of other recent additions to Ballymahon's local business mix, opened its doors around 12 months ago at around the time the Center Parcs bandwagon was starting to click into overdrive.

It wouldnt be entirely motivated by Center Parcs coming but I cant say it wasnt in the back of my mind, confided its proprietor Cormac Boyle.

The Kenagh man, who opened the business with his fiancee Rebecca McGann, gave the air of someone who, despite the euphoria generated by the Center Parcs brand, was still staying somewhat circumspect over the venture's long term market spin-offs.

The one thing I do worry about Center Parcs is how many of the people there are going to actually come into Ballymahon.

I opened knowing that they are going to have a high employment rate and that a lot of people working there will come.

That said, Cormac conceded the realisation that a relatively small rural town like Ballymahon would be home to a multi million euro leisure industry in barely 12 months time was only now starting to register.

There is an excitement and there is that bit of secrecy to it as well because nobody has really seen inside it apart from the Traders Association who got a tour of it. But other than that, the people in the town havent seen it and people are waiting to see just what it really is like inside, he said.

You have had people coming out telling others that they are building an eight acre lake and shipping in trees from Japan so thats exciting.

And it's precisely that semblance of excitement which is Center Parcs' biggest selling point and the most compelling indicator yet to suggest that maybe, just maybe, Ballymahon is ready for its grand opening next summer.
Co Longford Historical Society member Aidan O'Hara was recently presented with the 2018 Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Arts Society Lifetime Achievement Award, in recognition of his remarkable work in documenting, preserving, and promoting Newfoundland-Irish cultural traditions.

Aidan, an award-winning writer and broadcaster, who has worked as a presenter and producer with RTE, and his wife Joyce, travelled to Canada with the Irish Traditional Music Archive (ITMA) for the launch of Aidans digitised song collection on: www.itma.ie/newfoundland

Aidan accepted his Lifetime Achievement Award from John Drover, President Newfoundland Folk Arts Society, at a function in St Johns, capital of Newfoundland.

In 1977, when he was Vice-President of the Society, Aidan was co-founder and first Programme Director of the Newfoundland Folk Festival.

ITMAs Director, Grace Toland, said: It was an important and moving occasion to bring the collections home to Newfoundland and also to share this extraordinary story with the world online.

When Aidan was Vice-President of the Newfoundland Folk Arts Council in the mid-1970s, the Irish embassy asked him to look after John Bruton TD who was coming on a visit to Newfoundland.

Mr Bruton was Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Education at the time, and he was Irelands representative at the Montreal Olympics that summer.

When he became Taoiseach in 1994, Mr Bruton said of Aidan: Aidan OHara is a tremendous ambassador for Newfoundland and promoter of the links between the two big islands.

Aidans story and award success also attracted much coverage in the Canadian media.
By Gemma Handy

ISLANDERS wishing to submit comments to London on the future of the TCIs relationship with Britain have just two days left to do so.





But it is likely to be "many months before the findings of the latest probe by the UK into its governance of its territories are made public.





The note of caution came in response to a series of questions posed by the Weekly News to the Foreign Affairs Committee (FAC) which is leading the investigation.





The FAC would not be drawn on the number of submissions to date from the TCI - or on the likelihood of the committee visiting the Islands to gain a deeper insight into local sentiment.





Individual submissions will be made public "if and when the committee agrees to report them to the House of Commons, FAC spokeswoman Clare Genis said.





"That is a decision for the committee to make, she explained.





How effectively the UK ensures the "security and stability of its 14 remaining territories is currently under the microscope in the first inquiry of its kind in 11 years.





Opinions are being sought from the 250,000 residents affected on everything from their countrys adherence to human rights, to the way they are financed, represented internationally, and their assets and natural resources.





London is only accepting comments submitted via the FACs online portal which can be found by visiting www.parliament.uk and entering foreign affairs committee into the search box.





While the official deadline for written submissions is Monday (September 3), this may be extended in some circumstances, Genis said. Decisions will then be made on who to invite to provide oral evidence.





"Committees normally consider and publish the written evidence they receive without comment, she continued.





"They usually then take oral evidence. Later they agree and publish a report. The whole process usually takes months, often many months, from issuing terms of reference to publishing a report.





The spokeswoman added: "The committee will decide in due course whether to undertake a visit in relation to this inquiry. For security reasons, we generally do not comment on upcoming visits in advance.





The probe was announced on July 20, eight months before Britain is due to exit the European Union (EU).





FAC chair, senior Conservative MP Tom Tugendhat, said that the relationship between Britain and the OTs had evolved greatly over the last few decades - and would change again after Brexit.





Locally, reaction to the investigation has been mixed. Islanders who responded to a recent Weekly News Talk Back column expressed scepticism as to Londons motives.





Others have welcomed the opening of dialogue and some view it as a means to garner increased autonomy for the TCI, particularly in light of recent decisions made in the House of Commons which directly impact its territories.





Fury erupted earlier this year in a number of OTs, including the TCI and the British Virgin Islands, following an announcement that territories would be forced to adopt public registers of company ownership by the end of 2020 in a bid to curb money laundering.





Many fear the negative impact this could have on lucrative offshore financial services industries.





Leaders on both sides of the TCIs political fence have been unanimous in calling for Islanders to make their voices heard.





Leader of the Opposition Washington Misick has expressed hopes that the FAC will look into the threats posed by illegal immigration and gun crime.





Misick also called on London to examine laws put in place to ensure good governance and financial management as a result of the 2008-2009 Commission of Inquiry.





PDM chairman Doug Parnell said he hoped the process would scrutinise the role of the London-appointed governor and non-elected members of the House of Assembly and, ultimately, pave the way for greater local autonomy.




In an interview with Chicago radio station Power 92, Kanye announced that he would be running in the 2024 election, as opposed to his original plan of running in 2020 against Donald Trump.



The ever-confident rapper was adamant that he would one day live in the White house: "If I decide to do it, it will be done. I'm not going to try."



Check out the full interview below:
Between 24-29 July, 370 Marxists from more than 25 countries gathered in the Italian Alps for the 2018 congress of the International Marxist Tendency (IMT). In years to come we believe this congress will be remembered as a turning point in the effort to build a worldwide organisation capable of leading the working class in the struggle to overthrow capitalism.

This was by far the biggest world event the IMT has ever organised. Despite the enormous difficulties in organising such an event, there can be no doubt that it was a tremendous success. Over the course of six days the congress discussed the turbulent world situation; the Marxist approach in the fight against oppression; as well as special sessions on events in Italy and Pakistan; and a full international organisational report. The political discussions revealed a superb political level existing across the whole IMT and a unity of will.

It is on this solid foundation of Marxist theory  combined with a professional attitude  that the inspiring growth of the IMT in the past few years has been achieved.

Since the last IMT world congress many sections have experienced fast growth. A special mention should be made of the Canadian, Swedish, French and Pakistan sections, which have doubled in size; and the US section, which has grown by 50 percent, with many new branches being established across the country. All sections have strengthened their structures, publications and ability to intervene effectively in the movement. Comrade Marco La Grotta from Fightback, the Canadian section of the IMT, explained that there is no magic formula for this growth. Rather, it is down to the untiring education and training of a layer of professional revolutionaries who in turn become builders of the IMT.

370 Marxists from more than 25 countries attended the 2018 congress of the IMT: our largest ever! The congress collection also raised an incredible sum of over 100,000 / Image: Socialist Appeal

Today the IMT is intervening in 41 countries around the world. In spite of all the growth experienced over the past years however, the organisation is still too small and too lacking in resources to take advantage of all of the incredible opportunities which are opening up.

Rather than simply lament this fact however, the congress showed the determination that exists across the IMT to overcome all obstacles and to be ready for the tasks posed by the deepest crisis capitalism has experienced since the 1930s. This was most eloquently expressed in the congress record collection. At last years world event, 70,000 were raised at an already outstanding collection. But this year the congress collection raised an incredible sum of over 100,000.

World perspectives

The congress began by analysing the world situation. The year 2008 will be seen for years to come as a turning point in world history. Since that crisis nothing has been the same. Each attempt by the capitalists to restore the economic equilibrium of the system through austerity and attacks on the living standards of the working class have undermined the social and political stability of the system. 10 years after the beginning of the crisis the capitalists dont seem to have found any means by which to stabilise the situation. For the working class meanwhile, there has been no recovery of living standards.

Alan Woods introduced world perspectives, explaining the aftermath of the 2008 economic crisis / Image: Socialist Appeal

Whilst the leadership of the trade unions and the threat of unemployment may depress industrial action in much of the world, there is nevertheless a subterranean rage developing everywhere, which is capable of exploding without warning anywhere. The consciousness of hundreds-of-millions of workers has been indelibly changed by the events since 2008.

The explosive, even insurrectionary movement that unfolded in Haiti in the weeks before the congress illustrates this point quite vividly. For years the people of this nation have been pillaged, raped and brutalised in every way by the imperialist powers through the UN, NGOs, charities and the like. The straw that broke the camels back was the attempt by the government to slash fuel subsidies: a measure that would plunge millions into utter desperation.

The United States in crisis

In the United States the crisis has expressed itself in the election of Donald Trump. This has resulted in cracks opening up between the president, and important sections of the ruling class and the state. The Republican Party has been utterly devastated by Trumps victory. In truth the other main pillar of American capitalism  the Democratic Party  is in little better shape.

The crisis of the current period is utterly exposing the limits of US imperialism. Nowhere else is this more clearly visible than in the sharp contradictions in the Middle East, in which the American ruling class has entangled itself. Whilst Trump and one wing of the ruling class are trying to extricate themselves from the mess they have created in Syria with Russias assistance, another wing is determined to prevent any rapprochement.

In the United States the crisis has expressed itself in the election of Donald Trump / Image: Flickr, Gage Skidmore

Furthermore, an extremely deep schism has opened up in the American ruling class between the proponents of free trade and a protectionist wing. Far from being mad or a Russian agent, Donald Trump represents an old trend in American capitalism: he is an isolationist.

Clearly some in the American ruling class would like to see tariffs imposed on Americas competitors: particularly aimed at high-tech goods from China. Others though can see all too clearly that once a tit-for-tat trade war is set in motion, it wont be so easy to stop it. It was just such a trend towards protectionism that heavily contributed to throwing the world economy into a depression in the 1930s. Such a scenario threatens to repeat itself now on an altogether more gigantic scale.

While Trump is not the cause of the growing protectionist tendencies on a world scale, he is certainly accelerating them. However, the underlying cause of this crisis is the suffocation of the productive forces by the two main barriers to progress under capitalism: private property and the narrow boundaries of the nation state.

Europe

In the current period however, it is clear that the centre of the world revolution has shifted to Europe. In Greece, eight years of crisis and austerity have caused the economy to shrink by 25 percent. And yet despite all the cuts, the debt-to-GDP to ratio in Greece has increased from 159 percent to 180 percent. In France we have seen mass strikes against Macrons counter-reforms. In Spain we have seen Rajoy overturned. Even in Germany, the old parties are in crisis.

With the rise of the Five Star Movement-Lega government, a new period of even greater instability has opened in Italy / Image: public domain

But by far the biggest headache for the capitalists of Europe is the situation in Italy, which threatens to explode wide open. With 2.3tn of debt hanging around the neck of the state, Italy represents a crisis that is orders of magnitude greater than that in Greece. With the rise of the Five Star Movement-Lega government, a new period of even greater instability has opened in Italy.

Wherever we look around the world then we see the same pattern. Years of attacks on the working class have not fundamentally solved the underlying economic malaise. However, workers are reaching the end of their tethers. Political polarisation is destroying the so-called centre-ground. Meanwhile, in one country after another splits are emerging in the ruling class. All of these symptoms augur a period of upheaval and revolution.

Our task is to build a Marxist tendency of such strength, both quantitative and qualitative, that can prepare the way for a revolutionary party able to lead the working class to the seizure of power and the socialist transformation of society.

Marxism versus identity politics

On the third day of the congress, Fred Weston introduced a discussion on the Marxist approach to the question of fighting against oppression, and for the the liberation of oppressed groups.

The defeats of the working class from the late 1970s until the 1980s caused a mood of pessimism to penetrate a layer of left intellectuals  particularly from the camp of Stalinism. In order to justify their own demoralisation they capitulated to the ideological counter-offensive that followed those defeats and the collapse of the Soviet Union.

Fred Weston introduced a discussion on the Marxist approach to the question of fighting against oppression, and our opposition to the idealism of identity politics / Image: Socialist Appeal

The post-modernists who led the charge against Marxism rejected any notion of progress and science, and they rejected with scoffing arrogance the possibility of achieving a revolutionary transformation of society. Through the conveyor belt of the university lecture theatre, they have sought, and partially succeeded, in infecting a new generation of left-wing youth with their own pessimism.

These reactionary ideas have had their offshoots in the proliferation of all forms of divisive identity politics: from intersectionality, to queer theory, to various strands of feminism.

At base, all of these forms of identity politics have in common an idealist conception of oppression. Rather than analysing the objective, material basis of oppression, their start and end point is the subjective experience of oppression. Rather than seeking a revolutionary overthrow of the capitalist system, they seek to liberate the oppressed through changes in language or discourse, etc.

In so doing, they provide the highest service to the capitalist class. Instead of trying to unite the oppressed in a class struggle against capitalism, they end up dividing the movement into a privilege hierarchy with an infinite number of categories. Such ideas, however radical the language employed, can only have the most reactionary consequences for the movement, pitting men against women, black people against white people, etc.

The discussion covered a range of experiences from across the world. Of particular interest were contributions from our Spanish comrades, who brought valuable experience from the feminist strike of 8 March this year. First-hand experience of the role played by advocates of identity politics was also given by comrades from Belgium, Canada, Britain and elsewhere.

In the end, the congress was unanimous in the need to defend Marxism against these divisive and pernicious ideas.

The crisis in Italy and the role of the Marxists

Throughout the week, one theme stood out: that the Marxists seem to be the only optimists in the world! The capitalist press, academia, the official labour movement leaders  all seem to be seeped in pessimism; the IMT appears to be alone in having a well-founded optimism.

No session illustrated this point better than the commision on the crisis of Italian capitalism.

Far from emerging from the crisis in 2008, things have gone from bad to worse in Italy. GDP-per-capita today remains below what it was at that time, and unemployment among the youth stands at 30 percent. Life is simply becoming unbearable for the majority of poor and working-class people.

Whilst many on the Italian left have lamented the fall of their traditional parties and the rise of Salvini's racist demagoguery and M5S, we as Marxists can see that these events are storing up a mighty social explosion for the near future / Image: European Parliament

Since 2008, technocratic, right-wing, and supposedly left-wing governments have come and gone. All of them have carried out the same policy, however: one of brutal austerity cuts in the interests of international capitalism. However, this is still not enough for the ruling class. The result has been that all the main parties identified with the capitalist establishment  from Berlusconi's party to the Democratic Party (PD), have all seen a collapse in their support.

The PD, in particular, has seen its authority battered. Despite its left-wing credentials it has represented over the last period the most reliable tool for carrying out the austerity policies demanded by the Italian capitalists and the EU.

When Renzi took office he attempted to carry out huge amounts of cuts and counter-reforms in a very short period of time. The main trade union, the CGIL, for its part did nothing to resist these attacks.

The result was not only a collapse in support for Renzi and his government  smashed in the constitutional reform referendum of 2016 and the general election of 4 March  but the collapse of all the parties standing to the left of the PD, which took part in class-collaborationist policies or else failed to present a credible alternative to austerity. This left the ground open for the rise of the Five Star Movement (M5S). The CGIL too has suffered a crisis, being challenged by smaller left-wing unions like the Unione Sindacale di Base (USB).

The anger in Italian society will inevitably burst onto the scene; and the Italian working class will rediscover its militant, revolutionary traditions. The Marxists in Italy, organised around the paper Rivoluzione, are preparing for this / Image: own work

Italy has now entered a unique situation for all the classes in society. The working class  which once boasted a two-million-strong Communist Party  is now deprived of any political representation. The Italian ruling class is also entering new territory. For the first time it is entering a period in which it has no reliable party to rest upon.

Looking around for an alternative, millions of workers have put their hopes in new formations like the Five Star Movement. Despite loud, anti-establishment rhetoric however, this party too will be unable to make good on any of the promises it made before the elections.

Whilst many on the left have lamented the collapse of the so-called left parties in Italy, and see only a bleak landscape ahead, we as Marxists can see that these events are storing up a mighty social explosion for the near future.

It may take six months, it may take a year or two, but inevitably the M5S will break; the anger in Italian society will burst onto the scene; and the Italian working class will rediscover its militant, revolutionary traditions.

This is the perspective that the Marxists in Italy, organised around the paper Rivoluzione, are preparing for.

Session on Pakistan

An inspiring highlight of the congress was the session on Pakistan. The Pakistani comrades leading the discussion painted a graphic picture of the crisis through which Pakistan is heading.

Since 1947, Pakistan has been a pawn of US imperialism and the centre of reaction throughout the region. However, in recent years ties between US imperialism and Pakistan have reached a low ebb, with China increasingly intervening in the country. China has developed key strategic investments in the country through the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project.

All other political trends in Pakistan, from left to right, have lauded these closening ties with China. Only our tendency has seriously analysed these new trends and dared to point out the imperialistic character of the growing interests of China in Pakistan.

The Pakistani comrades leading the discussion painted a graphic picture of the crisis through which Pakistan is heading / Image: Socialist Appeal

The deepening crisis of Pakistani capitalism is now becoming increasingly apparent. In the last seven months, the rupee has lost 20 percent of its value. Furthermore, unemployment is skyrocketing. As the crisis in the Gulf states has deepened, remittances too have dried up and thousands of workers have begun returning from Saudi Arabia.

Under these circumstances the Pakistani ruling class will have to go to the IMF on its knees, begging with bowl in hand, whilst the US is concerned that any bailout will be used to pay back Chinese lenders!

None of the political parties have a programme that can ameliorate the living hell that the ordinary people of Pakistan experience on a daily basis. As such, the masses have turned their backs on all of them. Whilst Imran Khans PTI has come out on top in the recent elections, it too offers nothing for the masses.

However, despite the lack of organised political expression, it is clear that the workers and poor have reached the limit of what they can take. As such, we have seen mass movements of workers and students in recent years. Above all, there was the recent, massive movement of the oppressed Pashtun people, which shook the Pakistani ruling class to its foundations.

Our comrades have come under attack by the Pakistani state on a number of occasions, demonstrating a steel will and a courage that has been an inspiration for all comrades of the international / Image: Socialist Appeal

Our comrades intervened vigorously in this movement against the oppression that the Pashtun people have suffered. They argued in favour of linking up the struggle with that of all oppressed nationalities and groups. Above all, they called for the Pashtun movement to unite with the struggle of the working class to overthrow capitalism in Pakistan and across the subcontinent.

As we have previously reported, our comrades have come under attack by the Pakistani state on a number of occasions. Under these circumstances, the comrades demonstrated a steel will and a courage that has been an inspiration for all comrades of the international, and which electrified the congress.

Retying the knot of history

In the contributions given by comrades from one country after another, a pattern emerged. Throughout the world the leadership of the workers movement, whether of the left or right-wing reformist variety, is being severely put to the test and their policies are being exposed. On the other hand, the attempts by the capitalist class to go on the offensive and carry out their austerity agenda are further destabilising capitalism and giving a greater impulse to the class struggle.

With this congress we retie the knot of history. The real Fourth International is here! / Image: Socialist Appeal

Since the post-war period, the forces of Marxism have been reduced to a small minority on an international scale and have therefore been unable to offer an alternative leadership. Referring to this isolation in the past period, Alan Woods remarked, We have seen a number of occasions where the thread of history has been broken.

In the dark period of fascist and Stalinist reaction in the 1930s, only Trotsky and his followers in the Fourth International kept the untainted banner of Marxism aloft. After the death of Trotsky, the incompetent leadership of the Fourth International shipwrecked that organisation.

Onward to building the international! / Image: Socialist Appeal

Only a tiny handful of individuals in Britain around Ted Grant kept the genuine ideas of Marx, Engels, Lenin and Trotsky alive. Their efforts are today vindicated in the successes of this international. To an electric mood, Alan Woods closed the Congress with the following words:
SPRINGFIELD - Western Massachusetts' precision manufacturers need help.

Help as in workers, and help from schools and community colleges in preparing job seekers for roles in a growing and lucrative industry that doesn't always require a four-year degree.

Small machine shops up and down the Pioneer Valley predict they'll need to hire 1,400 production workers -- machinists, programmers, inspectors -- over the next three years. That's not counting the added employees these shops will need to keep up with growth.

But despite ramped-up efforts, the region's trade schools and Springfield Technical Community College are projected to graduate only 302 young people from their manufacturing programs over the next three years.

"It's an issue we've been concerned with for some time," said Richard K. Sullivan Jr., president of the Economic Development Council of Western Massachusetts. "It's a major economic development issue for us. These companies are major employers in their communities. And they can't grow."

The 1,400-job deficit and other figures come from a recent survey prepared by the MassHire state job centers for Hampden County and for Hampshire and Franklin counties. It's a document the two agencies will incorporate into the regional workforce plan they have already submitted to the Baker administration and will present to schools up and down the valley.

The estimate is based on a survey of 41 companies in the region, all small shops making parts for larger manufacturers -- parts that go into firearms, jet engines, hydroelectric and wind turbines, solar power arrays, automobiles and more. Those companies said they will need 512 workers in the next three years. That number was extrapolated to the other manufacturers in the region to get 1,400.

The survey did not count local manufacturing giants like Springfield's Smith & Wesson, formally known as American Outdoor Brands, which has about 1,000 employees, and Stanley Black & Decker's Lenox Plant. Stanley, which bought the plant just more than a year ago, has added 100 workers for a new head count of 670 employees, and has plans to add another 40 to 60 positions in the coming year.

A solution to the worker shortage, experts say, might be to beef up programs that train workers after they've graduated from high school -- and later in the day, after the high school students have gone home.

Patricia H. Crosby, executive director of the MassHire Franklin Hampshire Workforce Investment Board, said there is funding, but there needs to be more. And everyone from job centers to schools to the industry itself needs to recruit adults, recruit young students, and convince teachers, parents and guidance counselors that manufacturing is not just a viable career, but also an attractive one.

"The jobs are out there," said Kristin Carlson, president of Peerless Precision in Westfield. "We just need people to fill them."

Gary Siedlik of Precise Turning in Westfield said the problem is that high schools and colleges ignored manufacturing education for a generation before the industry started calling more attention to the need for workers. And that call to action was only about a decade ago.

"We have to feed the pipeline," he said. "We'd ignored the pipeline for so many years and now we have to fill it up again."

The need for workers places an increasing burden on companies to do their own training. But that's a tough job when there isn't even a pool of mechanically inclined candidates who know about the industry and want to join it.

"Where are we going to get them?" said David Cruise, president and CEO of the MassHire Hampden County Workforce Investment Board.

One reason companies will need to hire: retirement.

Many local machine shops are staffed by baby boomers nearing retirement. About 9 percent of the workforce will retire in the next three years.

Carlson can rattle off the names of senior members of her inspection and quality control team who will retire in that time span. Those are must-have staffers for companies that depend on compliance with ISO 9001 and AS 9100 standards to keep aerospace and defense customers happy.

"I try and grab students when they are in on co-ops and internships before they go anywhere else," Carlson said.

Siedlik said the household names in manufacturing -- in his business that's original equipment manufacturers like United Technologies -- draw workers from the already too-small pool.

"They hire from us," he said. "And they have deep pockets."

Not that pay in the small machine shops is anything to be embarrassed about. According to Cruise's survey, most shops pay machinists an average of $20 to $25 an hour or more. The lowest-paid employees on a shop floor, computer numerical control (CNC) operators, make $15 to $20 an hour but have an opportunity to move up.

Eight-five percent of the companies surveyed offer paid medical benefits to their employees.

Few local machine shops use robots. Just six shops answered yes to the question out of 35 who responded to the survey.

That didn't surprise Carlson, who said most local shops do small batches of a few very expensive and intricate parts. Often they make prototypes of technology still in development. It's not repetitive work like making the same weld on car after car as it comes down the assembly line. That's what a robot can do.

Cruise said the region has tried to address the worker shortage. Three years ago the Lower Pioneer Valley Career and Technical Education Center opened a manufacturing program for students from Agawam, East Longmeadow, Hampden-Wilbraham, Longmeadow, Ludlow, Southwick-Tolland-Granville and West Springfield.

Franklin County Technical School in Turners Falls updated its machine technology program in 2013 with $700,000 in public and private funds.

And Agawam High School recently restarted a long-dormant manufacturing program.

Sullivan said tech high schools are now competitive to get into, a change he's seen just from his time as Westfield mayor from 1994-2007.

But the high schools and STCC are limited in facilities and time, Carlson said. And qualified teachers are hard to hire. Many people with the necessary skills make more money in private industry.

The two regional MassHire offices already get some funding for advanced manufacturing training. Thirty students from Franklin Tech and Smith Vocational & Agricultural High School in Northampton graduated in the last year from a program run in part by the MassHire Hampshire Franklin office. The Hampden County office organizes and funds programs that had 42 students graduate last year.

The Hampshire Franklin office received $84,000 from the state for its adult-student training programs. The Hampden County office received $207,900 last year, but also used the money to pay for information technology training for manufacturers through Tech Foundry and a class for managers, Cruise said.

Crosby said now the challenge is to fund more training and to recruit more students.
A candle started a fire inside a Boston University dorm over the weekend, according to CBS Boston.

More than 40 Boston University students were displaced over move-in weekend after a Saturday night fire caused around $200,000 in damage at the 722 Commonwealth Avenue student residence.

The fire began around 10 p.m. in a third-floor room. No serious injuries were reported. One student was taken to an area hospital with a minor injury, Boston fire officials said.

Students were moved to other residence halls or asked to live with friends while the dorm was repaired.
HOLYOKE - Holyoke police officers Victor Heredia and James Bartolomei received their sergeant shields during a City Hall ceremony Aug. 28.

Mayor Alex B. Morse administered the oath.

Morse commended both officers for their high scores on the sergeant's exam and their composure during the interview process. "We're making a great decision by promoting both of them to the position of sergeant," he said.

Police Chief Manny Febo joined Morse at the podium. The mayor welcomed the sergeants' family and friends and the department's rank-and-file.

"Thank you all for being so supportive of your loved ones and allowing them to pursue a career in policing that has justly benefited our residents and our community," Morse said. He praised the efforts of Febo, who became chief in July, and the department's officers.

Febo said, "These promotions are well deserved and a result of a commitment from the officers and their families. It is a big commitment." The sergeants bring a combined 35 years to the job, he said.

"It is these experiences that they will be able to draw upon when making decisions as supervisors," Febo said. "With any promotion, there comes new challenges and new responsibilities and expectations."

Febo said he was confident in Bartolomei's and Heredia's abilities. He advised the sergeants to enjoy and reflect on the moment.

Heredia, who joined the department in 2004, said, "It's a big step and big opportunity for us. I worked hard for it, and I'm excited about this new path in my life and police career."

Heredia's six children -- two boys and four daughters -- joined him at the ceremony.

"It's a good way to show that with hard work you can do it, no matter where or how you were raised. You make the decisions to better yourself and move forward," he said.

Heredia graduated from Holyoke High School in 1996.

As reported in The Republican-MassLive in February 2014, Heredia tackled an armed suspect who opened fire on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial Bridge. Responding officers drew their weapons on the suspect.

Heredia and the responding officers garnered praise for their restraint in withholding fire and ending the dangerous episode in a non-lethal manner.

Bartolomei invited Michael Rogowski, a Massachusetts State Police trooper, to pin the sergeant's badge onto his uniform. The two officers formed a friendship 25 years ago when they attended a reserve police academy.

Bartolomei, who became a Holyoke patrol officer in 2001, said, "It's been a long road. I'm happy and ready for this at this point in my career, to become a supervisor and lead some of the younger guys."

He said a large group of officers reached retirement age, which left open supervisory and senior positions within the department.

Bartolomei said his law enforcement philosophy aligns with Febo's focus on community policing. "A lot of what we do, even if we don't call it community policing, is community policing," he said.

"A more directed focus by the chief is certainly a good thing. I can't wait to be part of that," he said said.

Bartolomei's daughters, Isabella and Gabriella, sat in the audience as their father was sworn in.

He graduated from Holyoke High School in 1985. He holds master's degrees in education from American International College and in criminal justice from Curry College.
SPRINGFIELD -- Massachusetts State Police asked those viewing the agency's Facebook page to pause and remember Trooper Mark S. Charbonnier, who was shot and killed after a traffic stop Sept. 2, 1994.

"Please take a moment out of your day on September 2nd to honor and remember the sacrifice of Trooper Mark S. Charbonnier, E.O.W. (End of Watch): September 2, 1994," the Facebook post said Sunday.

The firing began shortly after 3 a.m. when Charbonnier, 31, who was patrolling alone, pulled over a faded red van on the southbound side of Route 3 near Kingston leading to Plymouth and Cape Cod, the Associated Press reported at the time.

A bullet struck Charbonnier in the abdomen just below his bulletproof vest, the AP said. He was a six-year veteran of the state police.

David Clark, 32, was found guilty in March 1996 of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole. His previous crimes included helping to beat a man to death, the AP said.

"Charbonnier, a third-year law student who was married just a year ago, held his gun on Clark even as he began to lose consciousness from his wound. He also managed to radio for help," the AP reported at the time.
A counselor at a YMCA camp in Gloucester was suspended and subsequently arrested and ordered held without bail following an alleged indecent assault during an overnight camping trip.

The Gloucester Daily Times reported Friday that 28-year-old Christopher J. Brayton-Tedesco was arrested that morning at his Gloucester home where police had showed up with a search warrant.

Brayton-Tedesco was an employee at Camp Spindrift in Gloucester. According to the Gloucester Daily Times, an employee there reported to the camp an incident during an overnight camping trip in August "that made him uncomfortable and suspicious."

Details of the incident were or what police were searching for in Brayton-Tedesco's home were not immediately known.

Brayton-Tedesco was arraigned Friday in Gloucester District Court on three counts of indecent assault and battery on a child under 14. Brayton-Tedesco was ordered held without bail pending a dangerous hearing scheduled for Sept. 7, according to Essex County District Attorney spokesperson Carrie Kimball-Monahan.

The police report and other other investigatory materials were ordered impounded by the court.

Christopher Lovasco, CEO of the YMCA of the North Shore, told the Daily Times that the Brayton-Tedesco had passed the camp's background checks and that it "had no cause to suspect improper behavior by the counselor" prior to the accusations.

Lovasco said the camp does "ongoing" background checks on staff and ongoing training on child protection. Upon learning of the incident, Lovasco told the Daily Times that the Brayton-Tedesco was immediately suspended, the camp informed police, the state Department of Children and Families and launched its own internal investigation.

"Words cannot describe how upset and disturbed we are today by the arrest of a former camp counselor," Lovasco wrote in an email to the Daily Times.

According to the Boston Globe, Brayton-Tedesco had also worked at Cambridge charter school Prospect Hill Academy.

In a statement to the Globe, the school said it was providing counseling services to students, families, faculty and staff who need them.
Use of seat belts in Massachusetts enjoyed the highest one-year increase in its history last year, but drivers in this state still buckle up less than the national average.

According to the Massachusetts Traffic Safety Research Program, which has filed a report on behalf of the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security, that's costing dozens of lives each year.

Seat belt use rose from 73.8 to 81.6 percent last year. That's still well below the national average of 90.1 percent.

According to the report, seat belt use saved 115 lives in Massachusetts last year. Had compliance been 100 percent, a lofty yet worthy goal, another 45 would have been saved, the report says.

One of the most frequent criticisms of Massachusetts has been its reputation for over-regulation. Yet the Bay State is one of only 16 where police cannot cite motorists for seat belt violations unless the driver is pulled over for another reason.

The absence of "primary enforcement," which in 34 states means drivers can be pulled over and cited solely for seat belt violations, is mostly due to concern over privacy abuse, overly aggressive enforcement or racial profiling. The National Transportation Safety Board's call for universal primary enforcement was first advanced in 1995, yet goes unheeded in Massachusetts.

The best response to over-regulation is for citizens to follow proper practices on their own accord. Seat belt use is mandatory. It should not take a primary enforcement law for responsible people to follow simple safety practices, but with abuse still at a level of nearly 1 in 5, the day of primary enforcement may still come.

Of the communities observed in the study, Northampton's 97.3 percent usage rate (among 333 occupants) rate was highest in the state. In Brockton, 141 occupants exhibited a 50.5 usage rate, the lowest.

Pickup truck and commercial vehicle occupants showed poor response with each under 70 percent.

Seat belts save lives. That's been proven beyond doubt. The report shows more Massachusetts drivers are getting the message, but that more improvement still needs to be seen - whether primary enforcement ever comes to Massachusetts or not.
By Martin T. Meehan

On Feb. 13, 2002, John McCain and I were standing in a crowded room next to the U.S. House of Representatives when the senator yelled, "Quiet down!"

A monitor showed the floor debate over "Shays-Meehan," shorthand for a campaign finance law I had introduced in the House with my Republican colleague Christopher Shays. The Senate version of it would come to be known as "McCain-Feingold."

Rep. John Lewis, the Georgia Democrat who had become a national figure as a civil rights activist in the 1960s, was speaking in strong support of the bill, and Sen. McCain wanted to hear him.

When the congressman finished, the senator leaned over to me and said, "Marty, we're lucky we get to serve with the likes of John Lewis. That's what makes this institution so great."

I've since left Congress and now serve as president of the University of Massachusetts. As I reflect on my relationship with Sen. McCain, who last month lost a long battle with brain cancer, I realize there are several lessons that students returning to college campuses this fall can learn from his remarkable life and legacy.

First, define your own values.

Of course, John McCain is best known for his "maverick" streak of independence, reaffirmed last summer when he broke from his party to vote against a "skinny repeal" of Obamacare, the signature legislative accomplishment of his one-time opponent for the presidency.

During that 2008 presidential campaign, a woman at one of McCain's town hall meetings suggested that Barack Obama didn't have the country's interests at heart.

"No, ma'am. He's a decent family man and citizen that I just happen to have disagreements with on fundamental issues," McCain bluntly told the woman, one of his likely voters.

Ten years later, direct, non-partisan statements of values like that have been largely lost from - or drowned out of - our national dialogue. Our next generation of leaders can change that.

Second, challenge the status quo with superior ideas.

John McCain was a famously rambunctious student at the U.S. Naval Academy, which he often blamed for having graduated fifth from the bottom of his class.

Later in life, after he was already a war hero and had embarked on his political career, he learned to channel his anti-establishment streak.

The senator and I came together because we both saw the corrosive effects of money on our government. He wanted to disrupt our campaign finance system not just for the sake of change, but because it was the right thing to do to preserve the integrity of our elections. His powerful advocacy for legislation that many of our colleagues thought ran counter to their interests made all of the difference.

Today's college students are at the forefront of political and social movements that have the opportunity to reshape society in positive ways by upending the status quo, from gun control to immigration reform to gender equity in the workplace.

Sen. McCain demonstrated that challenging the status quo works best when you are able to articulate why your approach is the better one.

Third, consider now how you want to be remembered.

John McCain's son and namesake, Navy Lt. Jack McCain IV, wrote an eloquent tribute in which he explained how his father survived more than five years as a prisoner of war in Vietnam, "suffering gravely for refusing early release," because he wanted to return home with honor.

As the senator himself would later tell the midshipmen at his alma mater, his embrace of honor came from a powerful force: the dread of dishonor.

Today's college students belong to what I believe is our brightest and most talented generation, but one raised with social media, where nothing is valued more than eliciting a reaction.

John McCain's example is that no matter your age, your life story is already being told. Never sacrifice your dignity or integrity for short-term gain.

As our next generation of leaders, college students will have to tackle our nation's most pressing issues. I hope they'll look to John McCain's life and six decades of service for inspiration.

__________________

Martin T. Meehan, a Democrat, represented the 5th Congressional District of Massachusetts from 1993 to 2007. He served as chancellor of the University of Massachusetts Lowell from 2007 to 2015, before being named president of the University of Massachusetts.
U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren released nearly a dozen personnel forms this week related to her academic career at Harvard and other schools, including those citing the Massachusetts Democrat's claims of Native American ancestry.

Warren, who is up for re-election this fall, published the 10 documents (view here) on her campaign's website Sunday.

The release included her Rutgers Law School application, University of Houston personnel paperwork and faculty candidate profile, University of Texas appointment forms and University of Pennsylvania personnel paperwork, in addition to the Harvard documents.

Forms released from Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania noted changes to Warren's ethnic status -- modifications which the campaign noted were made years after the former professor was offered tenure.

Elizabeth Warren Harvard registrar memo by The Republican/MassLive.com on Scribd

Warren, who recently released her tax returns in a similar fashion, said she decided to make such additional information public in order to ensure transparency.

"I publicly released 10 years of tax returns and now I'm publicly releasing my personnel files," she said in a statement. "This is the kind of public servant I want to be -- transparent."

Warren's campaign published the files shortly after The Boston Globe released a report suggesting that -- based on interviews and an analysis of hundreds of personnel documents -- the Democrat's ethnicity claims did not impact her career.

The Globe reportedly "found clear evidence, in documents and interviews, that her claim to Native American ethnicity was never considered by the Harvard Law faculty, which voted resoundingly to hire her, or by those who hired her to four prior positions at other law schools."

Warren has faced questions about her Native American ancestry since the Boston Herald reported in 2012 that a Harvard Law spokesman had referred to her as Native American.

The Democrat, who had reportedly claimed family ties to Cherokee and Delaware tribes, said she was unaware that the university had promoted her as a minority professor, the Associated Press reported.

Despite winning the 2012 election, Warren -- an oft-rumored 2020 presidential contender -- has continued to face criticism over her heritage in recent years.

Most notably, President Donald Trump has referred to Warren as "Pocahontas" and called on the senator to take a DNA test to prove her Native American ancestry.

Warren told WGBY in March that she believes the issue was "fully litigated" in the 2012 campaign, adding that she doesn't see it as a being a major concern to most Massachusetts voters.

She further said she believes her family member's claims of Native American ancestry have been sufficient, at least for her, in addressing any questions that could be raised on the issue.
SPRINGFIELD --When voters in Springfield's North End, Forest Park and other neighborhoods in the 10th Hampden District go to the polls on Tuesday morning they will not see a name on the ballot for the state representative seat.

Incumbent state Rep. Carlos Gonzalez, D-Springfield, is running as a write-in candidate and so is his opponent, longtime social worker Ivette Hernandez.

Gonzalez, who was first elected in 2014, is running a write-in campaign because his campaign submitted 112 valid signatures to the Springfield election office. A total of 150 are required to qualify a candidate for the ballot.

Hernandez said she decided to run when she saw there was no name on the ballot.

"I couldn't ignore the fact that there is no one on the ballot for the district, with neighborhoods that are the absolute most impoverished in the entire Commonwealth," said Hernandez who also ran against Gonzalez in 2014, but lost.

The 10th Hampden district includes the city's North End, South End, downtown, and parts of Forest Park.

Gonzalez said what sets him apart from his opponent is that he does not only identify problems in the community, but he does something about it.

"My dedication to the community extends beyond highlighting problems," he said. "My experience is extensive, ranging from a social worker; business developer; manager of people and budgets; building the Spanish language radio station; becoming the first Hispanic to serve as an assistant to the mayor of Springfield; and a leader in the Hispanic business community."

He said beyond his legislative achievements, his ultimate goal is to reduce poverty in his district.

"My first priority is combating the recidivism of poverty. We must change the way and inspire hope and opportunity as a way of life," he said. "I want to encourage greatness, highlight community accomplishments and heroes and heroines and inspire the new generation to believe they have a role to play in their community."

Hernandez has worked for the state Department of Children and Families for more then 23 years and is a longtime community activist advocating for the rights of women and children and the working class.

In an interview on the independent radio station Digital Boombox Network Springfield Community Station Hernandez said the high levels of poverty in the district need to change.

"There is an inequality between Boston and Western Massachusetts and as an activist I know the importance of having a seat at the table," she said. "There is so much need in this district."

Hernandez said there needs to be more communication and collaboration between legislators and the state agencies and community organizations working with people in need.

"We have systematic problems and we can't continue to tackle them from the outside. I work hand in hand with so many social justice organizations and it's important to be willing to collaborate to create change," she said.

Hernandez said she also stands for single payer healthcare, public transportation, justice system reform, immigration justice, and transparent government.

The primary election will be held Sept. 4. Polls open at 7 a.m.- 8 p.m.
SPRINGFIELD -- Take time to read the bill.

And listen.

State Rep. John Scibak, D-South Hadley, was asked to offer advice to the next occupant of the 2nd Hampshire District seat that he will vacate at the end of this term.

Three Democrats are competing in a primary election Tuesday for the post Scibak has held in the Massachusetts House of Representatives for 16 years.

"Listen very carefully, and be deliberate," Scibak said in a phone interview Wednesday.

"I mean, what's going to happen is, they're going to get elected, go to orientation for three days at UMass and then they show up (in January) and say, 'What do I do now?'"

"People will be all over legislators, 'Please co-sponsor this, please sign on.' I think you've got to be deliberative. Sometimes the legislation isn't exactly what it seems. Take time to read the bill," he said.

"There are crazy bills and I think you need to go not by the title, but read what's really in it," he said.

Also: A state representative from Western Massachusetts must accept that travel eats time. Driving between the home district and Beacon Hill and back sometimes will kill a day if a drive that normally takes 90 minutes to two hours one way balloons to three or four hours because of an accident on the Massachusetts Turnpike or bad weather, he said.

"Whoever it is, they'll do fine," Scibak said.

The district covers Easthampton, Hadley, South Hadley and Precinct 2 in Granby (the town has only two precincts) and consists of about 41,000 residents, Scibak said.

It also helps to understand the four communities' distinctions, he said: Easthampton is a former industrial community undergoing a renaissance with focuses on the arts; South Hadley is a bedroom community in which most residents work out of town; Hadley has more farmland preserved under the state Agricultural Preservation Restriction Program than any other district; and Granby's economic development potential is challenged by limited municipal water and sewer capabilities.

The candidates in the order in which they are listed on the ballot are:

Daniel R. Carey, of Easthampton, an Easthampton city councilor and an assistant district attorney in the office of Northwestern District Attorney David E. Sullivan.

John R. Hine, of South Hadley, a Town Meeting member and senior business analyst with Baystate Health.

P. Marie McCourt, of Granby, former School Committee member and assistant director at the Collaborative for Educational Services based in Northampton.

Donald Peltier, of South Hadley, is unopposed on the Republican ballot in the primary election.
When the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that unions can no longer collect fees from non-members, unions and their advocates slammed the decision as an attack on working people. Many labor rights activists warned the decision could seriously diminish the power of unions.

Two months later, the decision does not appear to have had devastating consequences for Massachusetts unions, with many unions saying their members have stuck by them.

However, attorneys for the plaintiffs in the Janus case are now threatening to go back to court if states do not agree with their interpretation of the decision. Their interpretation, which relates to whether union workers have to actively rejoin a union, would have a far more extensive impact than the way state regulators are currently interpreting it.

"These letters are a clear attempt to scare public employers and to spread misinformation," said Meggie Quackenbush, a spokeswoman for Massachusetts Attorney General Maura Healey. "The Janus decision does not, in any way, limit the rights of union members or impact the collection of union dues."

The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 ruling in Janus vs. American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, Council 31, ruled on June 27 that public sector unions can no longer collect "fair share" or "agency" fees from non-union members.

These were fees that workers whose public workplaces were unionized were required to pay in certain states, even if the workers chose not to join the union. The logic was that even workers who did not join the union benefited from the union contract.

The court ruled the practice violated the First Amendment.

Healey issued guidelines stating that public employers can no longer deduct agency fees without an employee's written consent. She wrote that nothing will change for union members, and existing membership cards and agreements will remain in effect.

But in letters to Healey, Gov. Charlie Baker, the state comptroller, Boston Mayor Marty Walsh and other Boston officials, attorneys from the Liberty Justice Center challenged this interpretation.

The Chicago-based Liberty Justice Center, an advocacy group for individual liberties, which represented Janus, is arguing that states must stop collecting union dues altogether until union members re-certify that they want to join the union.

Liberty Justice Center President Patrick Hughes wrote that someone's choice to join a union before the Janus decision was based on the unconstitutional choice to either join the union or pay fees. That consent, he wrote, was "made under duress, not freely given and is invalid" under Janus.

Liberty Justice Center senior attorney Jeffrey Schwab said the letter is the first step toward a potential court challenge.

"It's important employees know they have the option to join a union or not and affirmatively decide what they want to do," Schwab said.

Schwab said the way Massachusetts is interpreting the law is the same interpretation most other states are using.

Asked about the letter, Charlie Pearce, a spokesman for the Executive Office of Labor and Workforce Development, said, "The Baker-Polito Administration has complied with the Supreme Court's decision, and will continue dialogue with stakeholders."

Since Janus was decided in June, several unions with a Massachusetts presence said they have not seen a large drop-off in money or membership.

In Massachusetts, members can leave a union at any time, and it takes 60 days for that decision to go into effect.

Jim Durkin, a spokesman for AFSCME Council 93, said only 20 members have dropped out. The union has 40,000 dues-paying members across four states.

Durkin said AFSCME has been talking about the court case for years, and members realized the case "had nothing to do with free speech or putting a few extra dollars in someone's pocket," but "was designed to crush public sector labor unions."

Peter MacKinnon, president of SEIU Local 509, said the union had fewer than 20 people paying agency fees and 8,500 members. It only lost about 20 people paying fees or dues. The number of people asking about the court case has been "in the single digits," he said.

"While we lost some initially because of that (ruling), it was minimal," MacKinnon said. "Our members are smart and educated, and saw it for what it was, a thinly veiled attack to weaken unions."

According to the Massachusetts Teachers Association, only one half of 1 percent of teacher members in the K-12 system were non-union members who paid agency fees. The numbers were larger in higher education, largely because adjunct faculty and part-time staff are less likely to be union members, but their fees were also lower than full-time staff.

David Holway, president of the National Association of Government Employees, said NAGE had about 40 fee-payers and 40,000 members. Since Janus, he said one person dropped out and about 20 fee-payers joined the union. Federal employees, unlike state workers, can only opt out of a union during a window every six months, Holway said.

"I'm very pleased with the fact that people are sticking with their unions. They understand the value of them," Holway said.
Town and city clerks are ready to count votes in Tuesday's state primary election - and they'll be counting them by hand for the Franklin, Hampshire and Worcester District state Senate race in which only one candidate is on the ballot but three have mounted write-in campaigns.

Chelsea Kline, of Northampton, a women's rights activist and administrator at Bay Path University, is the only candidate on the ballot for the seat formerly held by Amherst Democrat Stanley Rosenberg, who resigned as Senate president May 3 amid a sexual misconduct-related scandal involving his husband.

Three other Northampton residents -- Jo Comerford, director of Moveon.org, Steven Connor, Central Hampshire Veterans' Services agent, and Northampton City Council President Ryan O'Donnell -- have launched write-in campaigns for the district that includes 24 communities.

Clerks have held training sessions, and some will have extra ballot counters on hand, but all say they are ready. The results, however, will be later than the tally for the other races.

The write-in campaign is not going to pose a problem, said Northampton City Clerk Pamela Powers. But she said the stickers from Comerford cover the oval for voters to fill in, requiring hand counting the contest, she said.

"We've been training folks on hand counting procedure," Powers said. "We tested the equipment, so we know about it. We know how to handle it."

She said she'd prefer voters write in the name of a write-in candidate rather than use a sticker, but no matter what, she said it's important for voters come to the polls informed. She reminded voters that if they want to vote in Hampshire, Franklin and Worcester Senate race, they have to ask for a Democratic ballot and if they are writing in a name to put it in the right race. If they write in a name in a different race, that ballot would have to be hand counted as well, Powers said.

She said election workers can't help voters or explain to them how to vote.

Powers said she expects about 600 to vote in each of Northampton's 14 precincts. She is not bringing in extra counters. "It might add to the confusion," she said.

"It's a very important office," Powers said. "We feel strongly we want to do everything we can do to help" -- and that means carefully checking ballots for votes, she said.

Hadley Town Clerk Jessica Spanknebel is not expecting the write-ins to be an issue. "It's part of an election, there's always going to be write-ins," she said. But she will have additional counters.

"Counting the write-ins for the September 4th primary will be not be harder than counting any other write-ins, it will just take time," Greenfield Town Clerk Kathryn J. Scott wrote in an email. "Our staff will be counting the writes-in accordance with Election Law."

That means a vote should be counted whenever the intent of the voter can reasonably be determined, even if a voter omits the candidate's address or makes a mistake in the name or address, according to the Massachusetts secretary of state website.

South Hadley Town Clerk Carlene Hamlin said she is ready. Her staff attended training for write-in races, and she will have extra counters as well. "My election staff is very skilled. We've had write-ins in prior elections," Hamlin said.

Sunderland Town Clerk Wendy Houle said if a sticker comes off a ballot, that could cause a problem while it's being read and that would mean hand counting. She said she too has extra people coming in. "We have some people on standby if we do have a problem with the machines," Houle said.

Despite the race drawing a lot of interest, clerks point out that it is a primary and, in general, primaries don't draw large turnouts.

Houle said she is expecting about 700 of the town's 2,430 registered voters to come out, an average number for a primary.

Hamlin also said she's not expecting a particularly high voter turnout.

Spanknebel said she's seen more absentee ballots than usual, which could signal a larger primary vote. But she predicted turnout only in the 20 to 30 percent range.

Powers is expecting about 30 percent to vote as well.
President Donald Trump appeared to welcome the possibility of facing former Massachusetts U.S. Sen. John Kerry in the 2020 presidential race Monday, contending that the field of rumored Democratic challengers will only benefit his re-election chances.

Responding to reports that Kerry -- the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee -- is considering another White House run, Trump offered that he "should only be so lucky" to square-off against the former secretary of state, or any other possible Democratic candidates.

"I see that John Kerry, the father of the now terminated Iran deal, is thinking of running for president," he tweeted. "I should only be so lucky -- although the field that is currently assembling looks really good -- FOR ME!"

I see that John Kerry, the father of the now terminated Iran deal, is thinking of running for President. I should only be so lucky - although the field that is currently assembling looks really good - FOR ME!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 3, 2018

Trump's tweet came just days after Kerry, in an interview with CBS' "Face the Nation" anchor Margaret Brennan, did not say "no" to the idea of running for president again, but offered that "talking about 2020 right now is a total distraction and waste of time."

In January, an Israeli newspaper reported that Kerry was considering running for president in 2020.

Kerry represented Massachusetts as a U.S. senator from 1985 to 2013, when he took over as President Barack Obama's secretary of state.

He was the Democratic nominee for president in 2004, but lost to Republican George W. Bush.

The former secretary of state is just one of a handful of Massachusetts Democrats who are rumored to be considering 2020 presidential bids. Other possible White House contenders include U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren and former Gov. Deval Patrick.
There were 54,000 Massachusetts voters who requested absentee ballots for Tuesday's primary election, a number that Secretary of the Commonwealth William Galvin called "encouraging."

Of those voters, 42,000 plan to vote in the Democratic primary.

Galvin said 31,000 voters already returned their ballots. That number exceeds absentee ballot turnout in 2014.

Absentee ballots are due to local election officials by the time the polls close on Tuesday.

Last week, Galvin estimated that 700,000 Massachusetts residents will cast ballots on Tuesday. But on Monday he said the strong absentee vote suggests turnout might be higher than that.

Some election experts - and Galvin's opponent in the Democratic primary, Josh Zakim - had worried that holding an election the day after Labor Day would lower turnout.

"All in all, the date is not having an impact in diminishing turnout," Galvin said in an interview.

Higher turnout is predicted in areas that have competitive local races, including parts of Boston and Western Massachusetts.
ATLANTA -- The Red Sox will select the contract of veteran infielder Brandon Phillips on Tuesday, manager Alex Cora announced.

Phillips signed a minor-league deal with Boston on June 27 and has spent the last two months at Pawtucket, hitting .302/.348/.477 with four homers in 38 games. He has had two opportunities to opt out and look for work elsewhere but remained with the organization in hopes of getting a September call-up.

"He's done an outstanding job, from everything I've heard," Cora said. "He's played second and third. He had plenty of opt-outs and stayed with the team. Sometimes, it's not about rewarding people because he's a talented player, but I do feel that, hey man, he wants to be part of this. I think he can contribute."

Phillips went unsigned all winter after hitting .285/.319/.416 with 13 homers for the Braves and Angels last season. The 37-year-old is chasing his first World Series ring in what will be his 16th major-league season.

Phillips will join the team knowing that he may not play that much in September, with Rafael Devers back healthy alongside Ian Kinsler, Brock Holt, Eduardo Nunez and Tzu-Wei Lin as infield options. But with an open 40-man roster spot, giving a proven veteran the chance to contribute is worth having Phillips with the team.

"He's been playing well, which is the most important thing," Cora said. "Forget [that] it's a cool story, he's a great dude, blah blah blah. He's been playing well."
by Laurie Sullivan , Staff Writer @lauriesullivan, August 13, 2018

The skies over Utah and Nevada on most of my way from Wyoming to California were incredibly dark this past Saturday. You could see a thick layer of haze and smoke over the major cities. The smoke came from the fire burning throughout California. Even as far as Jackson Hole, the thick, environmental experts concluded the dark gray smoke from the Redding fire covered the bright blue sky.

Its then that I realized one of the real values of Googles past work with search and the idea around SOS alerts.

Indeed, Google offers an SOS alert for the California wildfires. A query for California wildfires returns a list of information about the California wildfires. The SOS alert is really about helping people in times of crisis and giving them access to timely information about a specific situation. It was introduced in July 2017.

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Google serves up a map of the affected area with approximate locations of where the fires continue to burn. It also has a list of shelters and evacuation centers, active and inactive. The map shows satellite images and information for the Mendocino Complex, Carr Fire, and Holy Fire, along with traffic conditions and road closures in those areas.

But the SOS alert is not only used for California wildfires. People also can find information based on maps for other natural disasters like hurricanes.

In 2017, the U.S. Department of Agriculture released a statement calling for California to change the way it suppresses forest fires. Last year costs past the $2 billion milestone, according the report. Too many standing dead trees in a state with dwindling water supplies is one reason for all the wildfires, opponents argue.

California laws prevent those who want to prevent fires from doing "the prescribed burning, harvesting, or insect control to prevent leaving a fuel load in the forest for future fires to feed on, Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue wrote in a statement. Thats wrong, and thats no way to manage the Forest Service.

Unfortunately, Googles SOS alert is not as comprehensive for rural areas like Wyoming. Compared with those raging out of control in California, Google offers little information about the Bridget-Teton National Forests Fire Trail burning on the Greys River. Most of the information about that fire comes from local the local Wyoming forest service.

As a reminder, when they are outside of the affected area, people looking for information might need to add the name of the event and/or the location to get specific details.

CalFire also provides maps and general locations of the burning fire. Bing also pulls in data from this site.
This and many other myths and ungrounded fears persist to this day in the United States  so suggests a new study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology.

Although psoriasis is not contagious , many people still believe that coming into contact with a person with this condition could have harmful effects.

Beyond having to manage the physical discomfort caused by this disease, people with psoriasis also have to face social stigma based on the misconceptions that their peers may have about the disease.

Characterized by reddish, scaly lesions capable of causing itching, burning sensations, or both, psoriasis affects peoples quality of life to a great degree.

Psoriasis is a long-lasting noncontagious skin condition that can cause much discomfort. Because of its unpleasing appearance, psoriasis is often accompanied by stigma. A new study reveals that myths surrounding the skin condition still persist in this era of readily available information.

Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine in Philadelphia recently decided to find out how many people  both from the public at large and among medical professionals  still believe myths surrounding psoriasis and therefore avoid contact with those who have this skin condition.

Although its widely recognized that the appearance of psoriasis can negatively impact patients social, professional, and intimate relationships, explains senior study author Dr. Joel M. Gelfand, we wanted to quantify the perceptions patients with psoriasis face on a daily basis in order to understand how pervasive they are.

To do this, the scientists sent dedicated surveys to two different cohorts of participants: 198 people randomly recruited through an online data collection service, and 187 medical students enlisted via e-mail.

Alongside the survey, the researchers also sent all the participants images displaying people with psoriasis, as well as close-ups of psoriasis lesions.

While the medical students who responded did not seem to believe in common stereotypes about people with psoriasis, the responses that the researchers received from members of the general public were much less encouraging.

Around 54 percent of these respondents said that they would not consider dating a person with psoriasis, and 39.4 percent said that they would not so much as shake hands with someone with the condition.

Moreover, 32.3 percent of the people in this cohort replied that they would not like a person with psoriasis to come into their homes.

Enduring stereotypes seemed to contribute to these discriminating attitudes, as 26.8 percent of the respondents believed that psoriasis was not a serious condition, and 27.3 percent of the web service participants thought that psoriasis was contagious.

About 57 percent of the respondents also characterized people with psoriasis as insecure, while 53 percent said that such individuals were sick and 45 percent rated them as unattractive.
New research could change the face of biomedicine; the human genome is found to contain far fewer real, or protein-encoding, genes than it was previously believed.

Share on Pinterest Our DNA may contain far fewer real genes than we initially thought.

In the early 1990s, scientists set out to map the entire DNA sequence of the human genome.

The so-called Human Genome Project aimed to find genetic links to diseases and to understand the function and structure of various elements of the genome, such as which genes encode proteins and what factors regulate gene expression.

The initial results of the Human Genome Project predicted that there are 40,000 genes that can encode proteins, large molecules that are vital for the good functioning of the bodys tissues and organs.

However, as that project drew to a close in 2003, estimates for that number fell to around 20,00025,000 protein-encoding genes.

Since that point, scientists have been striving to come up with the final proteome  that is, the total number of proteins that can be expressed by genes  and have been focusing on understanding how the genetic expression of these proteins is mutated in several diseases.

To this end, an international team of researchers led by Michael Tress, from the Spanish National Cancer Research Centre Bioinformatics Unit in Madrid, Spain, has now examined the genes considered protein-coding by the main proteome databases available.
The deadly floods endured by the state of Kerala have been the worst seen by our country in over a century. Families were dislocated, homes were lost and scores lost their lives.

But our brothers and sisters are stronger than ever in this moment of weakness and are rebuilding their lives from the scratch, aided by the tremendous amount of help that has been pouring in from all over the country and even outside.

 Twitter

Amongst the celebs, many did their part by contributing towards the relief work. Some did their bit by raising awareness on social media and then there were celebs like Sushant Singh Rajput who went ahead and did more than expected.

He donated Rs. 1 crore on behalf of his fans towards the Kerala relief fund and urged people to do their bit.

Indian maestro AR Rahman has now come ahead to help the people of Kerala and has pledged Rs. 1 crore towards the flood relief fund.

From my artistes and me touring the USA... To our brothers and sisters of Kerala!



May this small offering help in providing you some relief! pic.twitter.com/9tyxtns3gr  A.R.Rahman (@arrahman) September 2, 2018

The music maestro is currently on tour in the USA and announced this donation after his show in Washington.

Kerala is currently in the process of restoring life back to normal after the floods took a massive toll on life and property, and people of the state are showing immense bravery in rebuilding their lives.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Nikos Kotzias, will pay a visit to Izmir for the inauguration of the renovated building of the Consulate General of the Hellenic Republic on 4 September, 2018. The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey, Mevlut Cavusoglu, will also attend the inauguration ceremony.



On this occasion, the two Ministers of Foreign Affairs will come together and discuss the issues related to bilateral relations.
That the explosion of microbreweries in the area has required changes in some towns' zoning ordinances has been well documented. But plans by some businesses to offer their patrons something to eat have also faced municipal hurdles.

Call it food-truck phobia.

"Food trucks are part of the culture of going to breweries now," said David Kaye, co-owner with his father Robert of Ridgefield's Nod Hill Brewery at 137 Ethan Allen Highway. "A lot of them around the state host food trucks. They offer a variety of casual, good quality food, which enhances the experience of coming here."

That may be so, but Nod Hill needed to work to win Ridgefield's approval last month of an amendment to its 2016 rule forbidding breweries and wineries from featuring food trucks in one spot for more than 15 minutes. The Kayes needed to get a petition signed by more than 2 percent of registered voters to prove that it was an idea whose time had come.

At the subsequent public hearing, "A lot of residents spoke in favor of it, while some were still concerned about it," David Kaye said. Kaye termed the approval "a pretty gratifying success."

It wasn't the first time that the Kayes needed a change in Ridgefield's zoning laws. In February 2017, they were granted a zoning amendment to allow a brewery in their B-2 commercial zone, which previously allowed manufacturing but not brewing. Their food-truck request was made at nearly the same time that Nod Hill opened last October.

Kaye declined to describe either struggle as a "fight," however. "There were concerns about traffic and competition with area restaurants, which we understood," he said. "The town has been supportive of us. We just had to go through the processes in the correct way." Food trucks could start operating on Saturdays by the end of August, he added.

Nod Hill's efforts sounded familiar to Tess Szamatulski, co-owner with husband Mark of Veracious Brewing Co. at 246 Main St. in Monroe, which endured its own two-year struggle to get food trucks onto its site, culminating in approval last summer.

Food trucks were a relative rarity in Monroe and had to operate under the town's peddlers' license, which only allows for a mobile seller to be in one place for 10 minutes, after which it must relocate or, in Szamatulski's words, "drive around the block and set up again for another 10 minutes."

That it took Veracious two years to finally get that ordinance changed was something that did not work in its favor with food truck operators, Szamatulski said.

"When we opened three-plus years ago, we told them that we could have food trucks, and had several of them lined up," she recounted. "Then we became kind of persona non grata when we told them that wasn't the case."

Food-truck operators in Monroe must pay an annual $150 fee to receive health inspector approval. With those trucks pretty much booked for the hot months, Veracious instead has been relying on local eateries like Monroe Social and Country Pizza to deliver, though Szamatulski noted that patrons are welcome to bring in their own food. She said she hoped to meet with food-truck owners in January to provide a steady schedule of choices beginning that month; Veracious is allowed to have two on-site at a time.

Veracious and Nod Hill got off relatively easy. Broken Bow Brewery in Tuckahoe, New York, which is celebrating its five-year anniversary Aug. 17-19, took about five years to get food-truck clearance from the town; this is its first year to offer the trucks.

"Tuckahoe is a very small village that had never allowed food trucks," said Kristen Stone, founding partner and head of marketing. "They wanted to keep the focus on local restaurants, a lot of which have been here for a very long time. They were concerned about food trucks competing with them."

After a lot of back-and-forth, including demonstrating the caliber of trucks Broken Bow was interested in working with, not like the broken-down dives-on-wheels that may find service elsewhere, approval was finally awarded. Because it's limited to one truck at a time, Stone said that Broken Bow plans to have the two scheduled to be at its August anniversary event show up at different times.

Broken Bow originally invited local eateries to set up inside its space at 173 Marbledale Road to offer their wares to patrons but, Stone noted, weekend traffic at the restaurants themselves tended to work against those arrangements.

All of this begs the question: Why don't such breweries simply do their own cooking?

"Generally, most brewery start-ups come from the beer side first," said Paul Gatza, director of The Brewers Association, a nonprofit trade association dedicated to small and independent brewers in the U.S., headquartered in Boulder, Colorado. "It is that passion that drives them to go pro. To offer your own food involves developing some expertise in that area.

"About 80 percent of the openings we see are in the taproom model," Gatza added, "so not doing significant food service in-house is emerging as the dominant business model."

The food-truck option gives the entrepreneur brewer a chance to stay focused on the beer and manage a leaner business through its start-up phase, he said, "but then they are leaving potential revenue to others who handle the food."

"Oh God, no," Szamatulski laughed when asked about Veracious cooking its own food. "Between running the brewery and Maltose Express (the Szamatulskis' beer- and wine-making supply store next door), we're really busy.

"We could probably fit a kitchen in here somewhere," the former caterer allowed. "It would be nice to have pub food here, but it's not worth the hassle with the health department right now."

"For us and other microbreweries, it's important that the focus remains on the beer itself," Stone said. "Even on our koozies it says, 'It's all about the beer.'

"We know how to brew beer and we know how to eat food," she quipped. "But in no way are any of us cooks."

"I have limited interest in flipping burgers," declared P. Scott Vallely, owner and brewmaster at Danbury's Charter Oak Brewing, which officially opened last month at 39B Shelter Rock Road. "I'd rather focus on making the very best beer."

While Vallely also had to navigate his city's regulations to open Charter Oak, ultimately winning an amendment to a decades-old zoning rule, he didn't face Danbury opposition to food trucks. Unfortunately, he said, he's occasionally had other problems.

"Food trucks are so in vogue now that they can be hard to come by," he said. "I had two Saturdays in a row where the truck didn't show up because they got a better gig. If they can sell a few items here or have a guaranteed 40 or more meals at something like a wedding reception or a reunion, they're going to go there. It's understandable, but it can be a little frustrating."

Gatza expressed surprise when told of Charter Oak's troubles. "It seems like a strategy that burns bridges," he remarked. "If a food truck doesn't show for a commitment, they won't be asked back. I would think word gets around and the reputation of that truck could take a hit."

Bad Sons Beer Co. in Derby, while occasionally offering a food truck, prefers to work with local restaurants who deliver, according to Bill da Silva, who with his brother Mark opened at 251 Roosevelt Drive a little more than a year ago.

"We want to be adding to the neighborhood we're in, which is very important to us," da Silva said. "We're not interested in competing with the restaurants, a lot of whom sell our beer. We also close early"  at 8 or 9 p.m. during the week and 10 p.m. on weekends  "with the idea that someone can come here and enjoy a beer before they head out to dinner. Maybe they see our beer at that restaurant and order another one. It works."

Vallely takes the same approach. "We sell a lot of our beer to restaurants and bars," he said, "so we don't want those people to say that we look and smell like a restaurant." Charter Oak tries to avoid direct competition by opening on Thursdays and Fridays  the only weekdays it's open  after the lunch hour and closing by 8 p.m. on those days and Saturdays.

All of the operators noted that they're licensed as "breweries," not as "brewpubs," the distinction being the operation of a kitchen and adhering to additional zoning and health department regulations. One of the newest brewpubs, M&D Brewery, is preparing to begin construction at Fairfield Hills in Newtown. Partner Mark Tambascio, one of the principals at nearby My Place Restaurant, plans to have both a pizza oven and food trucks on-site, alongside beer and other beverages.

Kevin Zimmerman is a reporter for the Fairfield County Business Journal. For more of his work and that of the journal, please visit westfaironline.com.
CROMWELL  State police are investigating an accident with serious injuries that took place Sunday afternoon on Route 9.

According to a release, troopers from State Police Troop H in Hartford were dispatched to Route 9 northbound, exit 19, in Cromwell, short before 4:30 p.m. Sunday for a report of a motor vehicle accident serious injuries. Police expected more information on the accident to be available later tonight.
NORWALK  A Norwalk man pleaded guilty Friday to re-entering the country after being deported to his native Honduras for a sex crime.

Joel Bonilla, 30, admitted in federal court that he had failed to register as a sex offender in the state, according to a release from the U.S. attorney for the District of Connecticut.
Still undetermined is whether the impact caused the October leak, or if the line was hit by something else at a later date.
The Reds have announced that theyve acquired Phillies outfielder Marlon Byrd and cash from the Phillies for righty prospect Ben Lively. The Phillies will pay half of Byrds $8MM salary in 2015, and nothing on his $8MM club/vesting option for the following year.

Earlier this week, FOX Sports Jon Morosi reported that the Reds and Phillies had discussed a Byrd deal that ultimately didnt take flight. It appears, however, that they finally found common ground. The Reds have traded Mat Latos and Alfredo Simon this offseason and have added few significant players of their own. An outfielder to add to Jay Bruce and Billy Hamilton was high on their shopping list, though, so its no surprise theyve agreed to a trade for Byrd.

After an excellent 2013 campaign with the Mets and Pirates, Byrd kept hitting in 2014, batting .264/.312/.445 with 25 homers for Philadelphia. Hes average to above average defensively in a corner outfield spot, although he has mostly played right field recently and will be asked to play left in Cincinnati. Byrd had also frequently been connected to the Orioles this offseason.

Lively, 22, was the Reds fourth-round pick in 2013 out of the University of Central Florida, and hes quickly made his way through the minors, spending 2014 with Class A+ Bakersfield and Double-A Pensacola. Overall, he posted a 3.04 ERA with 10.2 K/9 and 3.1 BB/9. MLB.com ranks Lively as the Reds eighth-best prospect, noting that his stuff overwhelming but that he does have four good pitches and hides the ball well.

FOX Sports Ken Rosenthal, who initially tweeted that the teams agreed to terms, als noted that the amount of money the Reds will receive was significant. CBS Sports Jon Heyman tweeted immediately before the deal that the two sides could soon reach an agreement.

Photo courtesy of USA Today Sports Images.
ALLEN PARK -- More help is on the way for the Lions pass rush, with Marquis Flowers agreeing to come to Detroit according to his agent.

Flowers was a sixth-round pick who never really did much with Cincinnati. He had 15 tackles and no sacks in three years. Then he was dealt to New England last season, joined forces with Matt Patricia and instantly turned in a career year.

He finished with 32 tackles and 3.5 sacks, plus a couple more QB hits, solid production when you consider he played just 26.7 percent of New England's defensive snaps.

Flowers didn't really fit into New England's defense this year, and was cut over the weekend. He used the opportunity to reunite with Patricia, helping to fortify a position that is among Detroit's thinnest with a guy who already knows this scheme and fits it well.

Jarrad Davis and Devon Kennard are Detroit's top two linebackers, with Christian Jones joining them in the starting lineup during camp. Behind them will be Flowers and Eli Harold, another newcomer.

This is Detroit's third addition since turning in its initial 53-man roster to the league on Saturday, following the addition of offensive tackle Andrew Donnal and cornerback Dee Virgin via the waiver wire.

Detroit has yet to offer a corresponding move for the Flowers signing.
ALLEN PARK -- Matt Patricia said Monday that the roster would continue to shuffle following the weekend's trim to a 53-man roster. Minutes later, it started to happen.

The Lions officially announced the signing of linebacker Marquis Flowers and released linebacker Trevor Bates to make room. They also filled the 10th and final spot of their practice squad with defensive tackle John Atkins.

Bates had come on strong during the preseason to make the initial 53-man roster, but he became a casualty once Patricia's former linebacker became available following Patriots cuts. The fourth-year pro could be a candidate to return to the practice squad, though the Lions chose Atkins to fill that final spot for now.

Atkins is an undrafted rookie out of Georgia. The 6-foot-3-inch, 321-pound defensive tackle spent training camp with the Patriots after taking a visit to Detroit as part of the pre-draft process. He was a part of Georgia's national runner-up team last season and finished his college career with 81 tackles but no sacks.

Here is Detroit's full practice squad:

DT John Atkins

CB Cre'Von LeBlanc

DE Eric Lee

LB Alex Barrett

CB Mike Ford

WR Chris Lacy

S Rolan Milligan

QB Jake Rudock

LB Darnell Sankey

OL Dan Skipper
PORT SHELDON TOWNSHIP, MI -- A 24-year-old woman was seriously injured after her jet ski collided with the Port Sheldon channel North Pier Sunday afternoon.

Leah Herbert, 24, from Fennville, was driving the jet ski when it crashed into the pier Sunday, Sept. 2, according to a report from the Ottawa County Sheriff's office. Herbert, who was in critical condition, was taken by helicopter to Spectrum Health Butterworth Hospital.

Passenger Sarah Shanahan, 25, also from Fennville, was riding with Herbert on the jet ski when it crashed.

Shanahan was transported to Spectrum Health in serious, but stable, condition.

Shanahan told the Ottawa County Sheriff's office they entered the Port Sheldon channel and lost control due to the wave conditions. Herbert lost control and the waves forced the jet ski into the North Pier, according to police.

Both women were wearing life jackets during the incident.
OVID TOWNSHIP, MI -- A resident was assaulted and threatened by a man attempting to steal his car this morning, according to police.

A 59-year-old Ovid Township man called 911 at around 6:36 a.m. Monday, Sept. 3, after noticing suspicious activity outside of his house, according to a Michigan State Police news release.

While on the phone with 911 operators, he was confronted at a glass patio door by a lone suspect. The suspect broke through the glass and assaulted the resident, police said.

The suspect went to the kitchen and took a glass of milk and a knife, which he used to threaten the resident, police said.

When state troopers arrived at the scene, police said, the suspect to fled through a swamp and wooded area. Troopers, using a police dog, were able to track and locate the man.

The fleeing suspect was arrested on charges of home invasion, assault, malicious destruction to a building and attempted auto theft. The man was already on parole in St. Joseph County, and had a valid parole violation warrant, according to police.
The Great Lakes Loons finished the regular season with a 1-0 loss Monday at Dow Diamond, but the focus soon shifted to the Midwest League playoffs.

The Loons face the West Michigan Whitecaps in the first round of the Midwest League Eastern Division playoffs. Great Lakes travels to West Michigan for a game Wednesday in the best-of-three series.

The series returns to Dow Diamond for Game 2 at 7:05 p.m. Thursday at Dow Diamond with the "if" game Friday at Dow Diamond.

The Loons, who won the Midwest League title in 2016, finished the second half with a 36-33 record to secure a playoff spot after going 24-44 in the first half.

South Bend scored the lone run in the ninth inning off an error by Devin Mann. The Loons managed just three hits and were led by Jacob Amaya, who reached base twice on a hit and walk.

West Michigan (33-36) beat Fort Wayne, 3-2, in 10 innings Monday to qualify for the playoffs.
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India's export of coconut products has increased to Rs 6,448 crore in value terms during the first four years of the NDA government as against Rs 3,975 crore in the ten years of the UPA, the agriculture ministry said.

A quantum leap in the export of coconut products is expected in the near future as the price of coconut products is increasingly becoming highly competitive, it said.

The government is promoting coconut product exports by giving 5 percent incentive under the new Foreign Trade Policy for 2015-20.

"Income earned from export of coconut products was Rs 3,975 crore during 2004-14, which increased to Rs 6,448 crore during 2014-18," the ministry said in a statement.

With the government's efforts, India has started exporting coconut oil to Malaysia, Indonesia and Sri Lanka. Till last year, India used to import coconut oil from these countries, it said.

Besides, for the first time, India is exporting large quantities of dry coconut to US and European countries, it added. According to the ministry's data, the annual coconut production of India is 2437.80 crore and the productivity is 11,616 coconuts per hectare.
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Leading integrated steel manufacturer JSW Steel plans to scale up the capacity of its manufacturing plant in Vijayanagar, Karnataka to 18 million tonnes per annum (MTPA), its chairman and managing director Sajjan Jindal has said. "Our plan is to take to the next step to 18 MTPA from 13 MTPA," Jindal said.

In June, JSW Steel had announced its plans to invest Rs 7,500 crore until March 2020 to increase the production capacity at its Vijayanagar facility to 13 MTPA. "Hopefully, in the next two years we will start the work there," he said.

When asked as to how much money is the company going to invest in the expansion, he said, "I don't know the money numbers." JSW Steel Deputy Managing Director Vinod Nowal also said the company is planning to expand capacity of its at Vijayanagar facility to 18 MTPA.

The plant currently has a 12 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) capacity. When asked about the timelines for expansion, he said that it "totally depends upon the acquisitions. Suppose something comes then we will take a little pause and ...if suppose Essar and Bhushan is not happening then we can go earlier also for Vijayanagar".

Explaining about the expansion of the company's Dolvi unit in Maharashtra, Nowal said, "Now we are expanding our Dolvi plant close to Bombay from 5 million tonnes to 10 million tonnes and that is our target to achieve by March 2020. Progress is at full swing actually."

The company, he said, is planning to spend around Rs 43,000 crore in the next three years in these expansions, besides downstream facilities. JSW Steel is a part of the diversified USD 13 billion JSW Group. JSW Steel is the leading integrated steel company in India with an installed steel-making capacity of 18 MTPA.
Pune-based Rupee Co-operative Bank has been granted further extension till November 30 by the Reserve Bank of India (RBI), which had put the troubled lender under 'directions'.

The bank was put under directions by the banking regulator over its deteriorating financial health in February 2013. When under directions, the bank will continue to undertake banking business with restrictions till its financial position improves.

The Reserve Bank of India (via an August 28 directive) has extended directions issued to Rupee Co-operative Bank for a further period of three months from September 1 to November 30, subject to review, it said in a statement.

As per Rupee Co-Operative Bank's website, the lender has 40 offices/branches across Maharashtra, including its headquarters in Pune.

The bank's financial position improved as on February 28, 2017, showing a marginal reduction in loss to Rs 687 crore from Rs 698 crore as on March-end 2016.

Deposits and advances declined to Rs 1,367.3 crore and Rs 400 crore as on February-end last year from Rs 1,490 crore and Rs 508 crore a year ago, respectively. Recoveries of bad loans also doubled to Rs 125 crore.

Due to the increasing level of non-performing assets (NPA) and distressed condition in the banking industry, efforts for a solution through merger with other banks could not succeed. The board of administrators (BoA) do not expect any such proposal (for merger) in the near future, the banks present board headed by Sudhir Pandit said in a statement last week.

Due to overall improvement in the bank's functioning, the Board of Administrators (BoA) considers revival of the bank as a viable option for protecting the interest of depositors, it added.

The management said it will now focus on its revival. Till the recent past, bank officials had held that the recovery will be a herculean task and merger was the only way out.

The directions were originally imposed from February 22 to August 21, 2013 and were extended on eight occasions for a period of six months each and five occasions for three months each. The last extension was for a period of three months from June 1 to August 31.

The management said its depositors and employees need to exercise restraint. Over lakhs of depositors have their money struck in the bank since February 2013, except in few select cases.

The issue of directions by RBI should not, per se, be construed as cancellation of its banking license by the banking regulator. The bank will continue to undertake banking business with restrictions till its financial position improves. RBI may consider modifications of these directions depending upon circumstances, the statement added.
Motilal Oswal | CMD, Motilal Oswal Group | This is a new beginning not only for the markets but for the whole country. India is on the way to be a superpower leading the world. (Image: Moneycontrol)

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Motilal Oswal Financial Services (MOFS) reported subdued Q1 FY19 earnings, with net profit declining by 21 percent year-on-year (YoY). Strong performance in capital market as well as fee-based businesses (asset and wealth businesses) was partially offset by continued losses in its housing finance subsidiary: Aspire Home Finance. The performance was also dragged down by mark-to-market provisions on fund-based investments as the non-banking financial company (NBFC) transitioned to IndAS. Net profit fell 2 percent, excluding fair valuation of unrealised investment gains.

In an effort to reduce its dependence on the capital markets, the management ventured into housing finance through Aspire. The latter focusses on affordable housing segment and caters mostly to self-employed customers with an average ticket size of Rs 9 lakh. Despite having infused Rs 650 crore as capital so far, performance of the housing finance subsidiary continues to be weak and non-meaningful to the group.

However, the strategic decision to enter the housing space will yield results in the long run. The diversification will help MOFS mitigate cyclicality in capital market-related earnings. Given that most of MOFS' businesses are fee-based and has limited incremental capital requirements, the housing finance business provides an avenue to deploy excess capital for creating long term value.

Revenue in Q1 stood at Rs 712 crore, up 8 percent YoY, led by a 44 percent growth in asset and wealth management and 17 percent growth in the capital market business. The capital market business consists of: 1) Broking and retail distribution; and 2) Investment banking.

In Q1, broking and distribution revenue and profit grew 22 percent and 120 percent YoY to Rs 303.6 core and Rs 56 crore, respectively, aided by strong volume growth and operating leverage. The performance was slightly negated by slowdown in capital market related activity as reflected by a decline in profit in investment banking by 57 percent to Rs 7 crore.

Retail distribution saw strong traction in Q1, with net sales of Rs 530 crore, taking assets under management to Rs 8,300 crore, a growth of 59 percent YoY.

The most important reading from this segment is the increase in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) margin to 37 percent in Q1 as compared to 29 percent last year. The increase was on account of better operating leverage on higher growth in fee income through distribution of financial products. The incremental cost of distribution is limited as it is a cross-selling opportunity to broking clients. Hence, we expect high EBITDA margin to sustain in this segment.

Distribution income currently contributes around 17 percent of total retail revenue. So, margin can improve further as there is significant scope for increase in distribution AUM through cross-selling.

MOFS enjoys strong market position in retail and institutional equity broking and is among the top five brokers in India. However, the broking segment is highly volatile and future growth can be adversely impacted by rising trend of retail investors preferring mutual funds over direct equity investments. We see this risk to be mitigated to some extent as the company has ramped up its retail distribution business.

Source: Company Rs 1 crore = Rs 10 million

The company reported healthy growth in assets managed under mutual funds, portfolio management services (PMS) and alternative investment fund, with AUM increasing to Rs 37,600 crore as at June-end, a growth of 55 percent YoY. As a result, the asset management segment reported robust numbers, with revenue and net profit increasing 40 percent and 71 percent in Q1.

We are enthused about certain aspects of its AMC business. First, it has positioned itself as an equity specialist. Hence, almost its entire AUM consists of high fee earning equity assets unlike the industry which has more than 50 percent of low yielding debt and liquid assets. Second, 51 percent of its AUM consists of non- mutual fund assets (PMS and AIF), where fees can be higher and driven by performance fees. At present, only 20 percent of non-mutual fund AUM is performance fee linked, but has improved as compared to 14 percent in June last year.

Despite wealth management AUM increasing 35 percent YoY to Rs 15,300 crore, net profit declined 28 percent YoY. This is mainly attributed to 80 percent increase in operating cost as MOFS continues to hire relationship managers to grow this business. The increase in vintage of existing relationship managers will aid assets growth and drive future operating leverage.Aspire reported a loss of Rs 10 crore as provisions on bad loans almost doubled. Asset quality continued to deteriorate with gross non-performing assets increasing to 6.8 percent as at June-end as compared to 4.5 percent last quarter. Due to transition to IndAS, Aspire declared stage 3 assets, around 7 percent of its loan portfolio. Consequently, a significant increase in provisions and write-offs led to it reporting a loss in Q1 FY19. Also, Aspires net worth declined around 4 percent due to transition to IndAS.

The fall in asset quality is in line with management guidance and will continue for another quarter or so. While the company is taking necessary corrective measures and increasing efforts on the collection front, we remain cautious. The management expects provisioning cost to stabilise in the second half of FY19. However, we see reported numbers improving meaningfully from FY20 onwards.

Gradual diversification in MOFS revenues, supported by the growth in fee-based businesses such as asset and wealth management and foray into housing finance is encouraging. Some of these businesses have scaled up well over the last few years. However, overall performance is dragged down by the housing finance subsidiary.

After a dream run till December last year, the stock has corrected almost 45 percent from its 52-week high price in January. The deterioration in housing finance was the key catalyst for the correction in stock price in addition to market factors. As such, valuation has turned reasonable with the stock trading at 21.8 times FY19 estimated earnings and pricing in concerns in the housing business.

However, we dont see a quick pullback in the stock price as asset quality concerns in housing book will continue to linger for at least the next couple of quarters. We expect FY19 to remain a year of consolidation and reported numbers to improve meaningfully from FY20. Given the franchisees strength and future growth levers, long term investors with appetite for some volatility can look to accumulate the stock.

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Tripuras Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb made himself a laughing stock with a series of asinine statements transcending logic and facts in 2018. Whether it was claiming the existence of Internet in Mahabharat that was used by Sanjay to narrate episodes of war to Dhritarashtra or suggesting youths to rear cows instead of running after government jobs, the BJP CM gave series of chances to laugh.

Tripura Chief Minister Biplab Kumar Deb on Sunday stressed on bettering Indo-Bangladesh relationship and said the two culturally bonded nations should take initiatives together for closer economic ties.

Addressing the inaugural session of an Indo-Bangla dialogue organized by Agartala Press Club here today, Deb said both India and Bangladesh are led by development-oriented governments.

Indias relationship with Bangladesh is civilisational and relation on political, cultural and economic fronts is going on for a long time. Both nations are developing. We might be different nations but India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Bhutan, even Indonesia have more or less similar cultures. We are united by this similar culture, he said.

Md Iqbal Sobhan Choudhury, Media Advisor to Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Bangladesh Parliamentarian Obaidur Muktadir Choudhury, former Governor of Bangladesh Bank Atiur Rahman, members of different chamber of commerce from Bangladesh and mediapersons from both countries participated in the event.

Feb said,Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahaman, who took the main role in giving birth to sovereign Bangladesh in 1971, was a good friend of India.

I feel proud of the legacy of February 21, which went on to form the Liberation War. Language activists protested against the decision of Pakistani rulers of imposing Urdu language in 1952 and Pak forces gunned them down in the streets of Dhaka, he added.

Appreciating the role of Sheikh Mujibs daughter and incumbent Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, Deb said she has been leading Bangladesh with zero tolerance to corruption.

He said since the BJP formed the government in Tripura, he has tried to increase trade between Tripura and Bangladesh.

The path has smoothened a lot and many restrictions were relaxed. If goods come directly from Bangladesh to Agartala without the hassles of loading and unloading midway, price of commodities will come down, he said.

He said the ongoing Indo-Bangla connectivity projects including a bridge on River Feni in South Tripura, Agartala-Akhaura rail project can make Tripura a gateway to Northeast India since it is the only state which is just 66 km away from Chittagong port.

Feni bridge, which would connect Tripuras south district directly with Chittagong Port, is expected to be completed by December, 2019.
Citing a threat to USD 75-billion worth investments by foreign portfolio investors (FPIs) into India, an FPI body has sought SEBIs immediate intervention over its April 10 circular. The circular had asked FPIs to comply with KYC norms by December 31, 2018.

The letter written by AMRI, an organisation that represents the FPI community, says that foreign portfolio investors' (FPIs) investment is taking a hit due to the circular. Moneycontrol has a copy of the letter.

In the circular, SEBI had clarified the Know Your Client (KYC) requirements for FPIs.

"The problem is that while the circular was issued to enhance KYC norms, it has instead resulted in restrictions on investments and in some cases, it has even placed a blanket ban on investments through certain FPIs," said the letter.

FPIs have invested more than USD 450 billion in India. Out of this, USD 75 billion is managed by Overseas Citizens of India (OCIs), Persons of Indian Origin (PIOs), Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Resident Institutions & Individuals (RIs).

According to the SEBI (Foreign Portfolio Investors) Regulations, 2014 (FPI Regulations), NRIs are not allowed to register as FPIs. They can only act as investment managers for other FPIs.

An immediate impact of the circular is that from December 31, 2018 ( the date set by SEBIs Circular dated August 21, 2018 for existing FPIs to ensure compliance with the stipulations of the circular), the said USD 75 billion investment will be disqualified from investing into India and will have to be withdrawn and liquidated within a short time frame, thereby adversely affecting the Indian Markets and Indian currency, further said the letter.

SEBI has responsed to the letter, saying that "It is preposterous and highly irresponsible to claim that 75 billion dollars of FPI investment will move out of the country because of SEBI's circular issued in April 2018."

"If the funds are not taken into account, the immediate impact of the circular is USD 75 billion of FPI capital would be liquidated," Nandita Agarwal Parker, president of Asset Managers Roundtable of India (AMRI), told CNBC-TV18.

Parker urged SEBI to withdraw the April 10 circular.

AMRI has further asked the regulator and the government to give clarity on specific questions and has requested consultation with its members.
The dairy sectors recent quarterly results have been driven by two vectors: trend in milk prices and share of value added products (VAP). Since milk prices have been subdued in recent times, plain vanilla players were impacted, even as companies with higher share of VAP were better off. As the dairy sector has witnessed significant stock price correction, there is value emerging in selected pockets.

Sales growth of 33 percent year-on-year (YoY) in Q1 FY19, majorly volume driven, was aided by value added portfolio (41 percent YoY) and skimmed milk powder (35 percent). Better product mix, with VAP constituting 66 percent of sales (versus 62 percent in Q1 FY18), helped expand margin. In addition, benign input costs and operating leverage have been advantageous.

Distribution expansion and a traction from new launches (whey protein, protein powder etc) have also aided earnings growth.

Heritage Foods topline growth grew around 4 percent YoY, with most growth accruing from VAP (14 percent YoY). Improvement in earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) margin was mainly due to lower procurement cost (-7 percent YoY) and a better product mix (29 percent share of VAP). Volume growth moderated (5 percent for milk sale volume) due to elevated competition. Further downward pricing pressure in some of the markets led to lower realisation of milk and fat products (ghee, butter). The management underlined that the excess supply of milk will continue to impact volume growth in the near term

Hatsun Agro Products, a major player in Tamil Nadu, posted moderate sales growth on account of subdued volume growth. However, EBITDA improved 18.9 percent YoY on account of lower procurement prices and product mix. In the case of Prabhat Dairy, the 7 percent sales growth was aided by volume growth (36 percent YoY) which offset weaker pricing. Operating margin improved 50 basis points on account of higher gross margin, but was partially impacted by investment for its distribution network.

Trends in play

Shift toward organised sector: As per the Department of Animal Husbandry, co-operatives and private players procure 20-25 percent of the milk produced. Around 35 percent is still sold in the unorganised sector. The department expects milk handling by organised sector to grow from 20 percent at present to 50 percent by 2022-23.

Regional players moving beyond local territory: Parag Milk Foods recently forayed into the north after acquiring Danone's Haryana facility. It expects the latter's Sonipat plant to generate about Rs 60-80 crore in revenue in FY19. Similarly, Heritage Foods had entered north India after acquiring Reliance Dairy. Here the company is relying on the Reliance brand for increasing its presence in Punjab and Haryana.

New entrants: Other entrants in the recent past were the likes of Godrej Agrovet, which acquired Hyderabad-based Creamline Dairy Products in 2015. French dairy giant Groupe Lactalis acquired Tirumala Milk Products in 2014. The joint venture of Future Group and Fonterra (a New Zealand co-operative) is expected to launch its products in mid-FY19.

Consumer oriented companies figuring backward integration: Britannia Industries, for instance, is pushing for new launches, coupled with a sharp increase in milk procurement  from 20,000 litres at present to 3 lakh litres per day.

Structural shift towards VAP: Recent reports from CRISIL suggests revenue from VAP is expected to grow at 14-15 percent compounded annual growth rate (CAGR) for the next three years. Dairy companies are gearing up for an increase of their share in VAP and hence laying emphasis on it in the ongoing capex cycle. As per CRISIL, organised dairies are expected to spend around Rs 14,000 crore over the next three years to enhance processing capacity by 25-30 percent and strengthen their milk procurement infrastructure.

Emphasis on increasing distribution reach: Parag Milk, for instance, plans to add about 9,000 retail outlets per month. As of now, its distribution stands at 2.6 lakh outlets. In the recent quarter, the management attributed 30 percent growth to expansion of its distribution channel.

The organised sector in the dairy business is looking ahead to increased exposure to high margin high VAP in the milk value chain. This improves the margin profile and helps in reducing sensitivity to milk price volatility. Additionally, efforts are also on to disintermediate the value chain and hence enhance both distribution reach and backward integrate the procurement of milk. While improved margin profile would be moderated by increased competitive intensity, the recent decline in stock prices offers some opportunity to keep an eye on. Parag Milk Foods with its high VAP exposure offers an interesting opportunity to look at the dairy consumption theme.

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Public sector telecom manufacturer ITI Limited signed agreements with 58 start-up companies manufacturing solutions related to information and communication technology (ICT), Internet of Things (IoT) and defence technology, to give fillip to entrepreneurship.

These agreements were signed during the first ICT-IoT Expo on the sprawling premises of ITI in Bengaluru. Among the 400 startups, 58 have been shortlisted.

The PSU has also decided to provide space for incubation centres on a mutually agreed terms and condition and market the products manufactured by the startups on a royalty basis.

These startup companies would manufacture products dealing with civil and military advanced radar systems, advanced edge router systems, next generation 5G technology products, data storage and networking solutions, digital security solutions, among others, the PSU said in a press release.

Speaking at the valedictory of the Tech Expo, Union Minister of State (independent charge) for Communication and Railways, Manoj Sinha said, "With more than 20,000 startups, India has the second largest ecosystem for startups in the world.

The agreement signed today would also help ITI diversify its manufacturing capabilities in partnership with the startups." Telecom commission chairperson and secretary in department of telecom, Aruna Sundararajan said the ITI would manufacture some of the innovative products that have emerged from this event.

Later, speaking to reporters, Sinha assured the entrepreneurs that government will not hesitate to fund these startups.

"Funds will not be a problem. If a good innovation comes to us and manufactures a marketable product, then government has no dearth of funds (to support such companies financially)." ITI's Director (Marketing and HR) R M Agarwal explained, "We are complementing each other (ITI and startups).

Startups are having technology with them, they want a manufacturing infrastructure to manufacture their products, marketing setup to market those things. We are complimenting them. In case, they still need funds, we cannot commit now, but definitely from case to case we can consider.
It was an anti-climax for the market on Monday, as benchmarks closed nowhere near to the levels they had opened at. In fact, a sharp selloff in the last hour erased all the gains, with the market closing at low points of the day. The Nifty managed to give up 11,600, while the Sensex fell around 300 points.

While FMCG were one of the big laggards through the day, weakness among banks, along with IT, pharmaceuticals, energy, and infrastructure sectors also weighed on the indices. Investors also rushed to sell midcaps, as the Nifty Midcap shed around 0.3 percent, after rising a percent in the morning.

Both Sensex and the Nifty began the week on a strong note as investors bet positively on the strong data for June quarter. The number came in at 8.2 percent for Q1 of FY19, higher than what the Street had anticipated. However, possible concerns around trade wars and a weaker rupee spooked investors, sending them in a selling mode.

Investors may have also reacted negatively protests by foreign portfolio investors in relation to know your customer (KYC) norms set by market regulator SEBI in its April 10 circular. They have argued that no consultations were from stakeholders before framing these. CNBC-TV18 spoke to experts who said that USD 70 billion would be impacted by this circular out of USD 450 billion that FPIs mobilise currently.

Among stocks, the likes of ITC and HUL saw weak trades, which put downward pressure on the FMCG index, while ICICI Bank, Kotak Mahindra and Axis Bank pushed the market lower.

At the close of market hours, the Sensex fell 332.55 points or 0.86% at 38312.52, while the Nifty ended lower by 98.10 points or 0.84% at 11582.40. The market breadth is negative as 1,347 shares advanced, against a decline of 1,409 shares, while 199 shares were unchanged.

Wipro, Adani Ports and Dr Reddys were the top gainers, while HUL, Power Grid, and Bajaj Finance lost the most.

"It turned out to be a tricky day on the bourses as a confluence of negative as well as positive macro-economic data and negative global cues confounded investors and kept wider trends at bay. However, markets finally succumbed to selling pressure to close the day with losses of over 0.50%. The Nikkei India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) fell to 51.7 in August , 2018 from 52.3 in July, 2018," Abhijeet Dey, Senior Fund Manager-Equities, BNP Paribas Mutual Fund said in a statement.

Stocks in the news

Shares of Wipro ended 2 percent higher after it signed a largest deal worth USD 1.5 billion and completed the buyout of Alight HR Services India.

Meanwhile, shares of ICICI Bank fell over 2.5 percent as investors turned wary of reports around Chanda Kochhar and family. A media reported indicated that a probe will be conducted on all property dealings around Chanda Kochhar and her family.

Auto stocks were in focus as investors reacted to sales data for August. Bajaj Autos shares rose over a percent as investors reacted to strong sales data for August. Maruti Suzuki slipped 1 percent in the morning trade on Monday after company reported weak sales number for the month of August 2018.

There was a rally in a few infrastructure names as well. Ramky Infrastructure added 2 percent as it sold its entire shareholding in NAM Expressway for Rs 140 crore. Larsen & Toubro (L&T) fell one-third of a percent after rising 1.5 percent intraday even as the company's construction arm won orders worth Rs 2,654 crore across various business segments. Hindustan Construction Company (HCC) gained 5 percent as the companys board is said to consider fund raising on September 5.

Shares of ice-cream maker Kwality was locked at 5 percent upper circuit as the Board approved an FII investment limit up to 74 percent.

Lastly, United Breweries was down 1 percent after research house Kotak Securities maintained a sell call with a target price of Rs 1,100.

Global Update

Markets in Europe were slightly lower, amid concerns of trade war between US and China. Stoxx 600 was down around 0.1 percent.

Meanwhile, markets in Asia were ended in the red as trade war concerns dominated cues here as well. Canada and the US failing to come to a trade agreement also affected moves. Nikkei 225 ended in the negative territory, down by 0.69 percent at 22,707.38.

"We remain positive on the Indian equities over medium to long term, however in the near term one should remain cautious as further correction cannot be ruled out, considering a sharp upmove witnessed over the last couple of weeks. Additionally, global developments on trade war and movement of crude oil prices will be on market radar. Any correction in fundamentally sound companies with strong growth prospects should be considered as a good buying opportunity for investors," Jayant Manglik, President, Religare Broking said in a statement.
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Share price of Godrej Consumer Products touched 52-week high of Rs 1,469, rising 1.5 percent intraday Monday as company divested entire stake in its UK business.

The company has divested its entire stake in its UK business, Godrej Consumer Products UK, to JZ International, a leading pan-European private investment business based in London, effective immediately.

This is in line with company's long-term objective of continually optimising its portfolio and making the appropriate capital allocation choices to drive superior value creation.

Nisaba Godrej, Executive Chairperson, Godrej Consumer Products said, "We continue to make strong progress on our journey to be a leading FMCG player in emerging markets; guided by our 3 by 3 approach, and focused on 3 categories (home care, hair care and personal care), in 3 geographies (Asia, Africa and Latin America).

At 14:48 hrs Godrej Consumer Products was quoting at Rs 1,434.20, down Rs 13.00, or 0.90 percent on the BSE.

Posted by Rakesh Patil
The ICAI has opposed Sebi's proposal to categorise chartered accountants as fiduciaries in the securities market, saying there is no specific statutory provision under the Sebi Act to take action against auditors of listed companies.

The chartered accountants' apex institute, which has more than 2.7 lakh members, has opposed the regulator's proposal to classify chartered accountants as fiduciaries along with other professionals.

In July, the regulator issued a consultative paper on the proposed Sebi (Fiduciaries in the Securities Market) (Amendment) Regulations for public consultations.

In the latest monthly message to the members, ICAI President Naveen N D Gupta said the proposed consultative paper "goes beyond the powers of Sebi".

"There is no specific statutory provision under the Sebi Act conferring powers on Sebi to take action against auditors of listed companies," he said.

Further, the newsletter cited that the apex court of North Carolina, USA has decided that auditors/ accountants are not part of fiduciaries. "Therefore, the consultative paper should not include the chartered accountants as fiduciaries," Gupta said.

Under the norms for fiduciaries proposed by Sebi, defaulters would face stringent penal actions, including ban from securities markets and disgorgement of fees.

Those found guilty of providing wrong audit or valuation reports would have to cough up any unlawful gains they might have made in the process, as per the proposals.

It also comes against the backdrop of the role of auditors and valuers coming under the regulatory scanner in a number of cases, involving financial misdoings.

Entities such as merchant bankers, rating agencies, custodians, debenture trustees and registrar to public issues are registered with Sebi. However, some other fiduciaries like practising chartered accountants and company secretaries, cost accountants, valuers and monitoring agencies are not registered with it.

To fill this gap, a high-level panel on corporate governance, headed by eminent banker Uday Kotak, had also suggested that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) should have clear powers to act against auditors and other third-party fiduciaries with statutory duties in case of frauds as well as gross negligence.

Issuing the consultation paper, Sebi had said that said it is already empowered to issue directions to any person associated with the securities market (including fiduciaries), in the interest of investors or for its orderly development.

Since these fiduciaries are not specifically registered with the regulator or regulated by it under any regulation, there may be a need to clarify and specify the actions that may be taken by Sebi against such fiduciaries in case they submit false reports or certificates.
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The Indian market has turned negative intraday despite opening the week on a positive note with the Nifty down 37 points and trading around 11,643-mark while the Sensex shed 111 points trading around 38,533 mark.

The breadth of the market favoured advances, with 988 stocks advancing, 761 declining and 341 remaining unchanged. On BSE, 1522 stocks advanced, 1204 declined and 178 remained unchanged.

From the BSE 'A' group, Network18 Media and Investments jumped 13 percent. This was followed by Mahindra CIE which spiked 10.64 percent trading on a new 52-week high value of Rs 300.50 and had a spurt in volume by more than 1.44 times while PC Jeweller is also up 10 percent.

Vakrangee added 9.95 percent which had breached upper circuit of Rs 42.55 and had a spurt in volume by more than 1.91 times followed by Shoppers Stop and Gujarat Flurochemicals, which gained 8.71 percent and 8 percent, respectively. Gujarat Fluro Chemicals had a spurt in volume by more than 6.38 times, while on the other hand, Shoppers Stop traded on a new 52-week high value of Rs 690 and had a spurt in volume by more than 3.85 times.

Engineers India was up 7.46 percent and had a spurt in volume by more than 2.80 times. HDIL gained 6.87 percent are the other top gainers from the A-list group of stocks. On August 29, 2018, HDIL breached upper circuit of Rs 31.60 and also had a spurt in volume by more than 1.42 times.

HCC and NCC added 6 percent each with NCC witnessing a spurt in volume by more than 2.48 times while Reliance Naval, Dr Reddy's Labs and Kwality are up 4 percent each.

From the Group B list of stocks, Hatsun Agro Products zoomed 20 percent and SMS Pharma jumped over 18 percent. Celestial Biolabs added 16.88 percent which breached upper circuit of Rs 19.20 and had a spurt in volume by more than 8.61 times.

Albert David spiked 15 percent in the afternoon trade which breached upper circuit of Rs 739.10 and traded on new 52-week high value of Rs 739.10. It had a spurt in volume by more than 16.86 times.

The other gainers include Hikal which is up 13.69 percent followed by Jagsonpal Pharmaceuticals and Foseco India which are up 13.28 percent and 12.65 percent respectively.

Alembic gained 10.77 percent which had a spurt in volume by more than 4.78 times and RPG Life jumped 10.03 percent. Pritish Nandy Communications which breached upper circuit Rs 16.50 had a spurt in volume by more than 4.37 times are some of the other gainers.

: Reliance Industries Ltd. is the sole beneficiary of Independent Media Trust which controls Network18 Media & Investments Ltd.
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Real estate shares on Monday are trading lower by 2-3% after the Supreme Court (SC) banned further construction in a few states.

The Supreme Court has put a ban on all construction activities in Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Uttarakhand and Union Territory of Chandigarh as these states and UT failed to implement a solid waste management policy.

According to the research firm, Citi, the blanket ban on construction could impact projects, and if imposed for long, can severely delay the projects.

Oberoi Realty is most prone to delays due to its Mumbai focus, it added.

At 09:28 hrs, Sunteck Realty was quoting at Rs 501.55, down 2.28 percent, Godrej Properties was quoting at Rs 672.15, down 2.10 percent and Oberoi Realty was quoting at Rs 439, down 0.66 percent..
Kotak Standard Multicap Fund (formerly known as Kotak Select Focus) scheme was launched on September 11, 2009. The AUM of the scheme as on 31st July, 2018 is Rs 21,271.15 crore.

The investment objective of the scheme is to generate long-term capital appreciation from a portfolio of equity and equity-related securities, generally focused on select sectors. The scheme endeavours to identify sectors that are likely to do well over the medium term and takes focused exposures to the same.

There is no restriction on which type of sectors the scheme can take exposure to and the portfolio is diversified at the stock level across market capitalisation.

Fund Manager

Harsha Upadhyaya, an IIM Lucknow Alumni and a CFA charterholder, heads the equity desk at Kotak Mahindra AMC, and also directly manages funds such as Kotak Standard Multicap Fund, Kotak Equity Opportunities and Kotak Tax Saver. He has been managing Kotak Standard Multicap Fund and Kotak Equity Opportunities from August 4, 2012, and Kotak Tax Saver scheme from August 25, 2015.

He has over two decades of experience spread across equity research and fund management with various AMCs.

Investment strategy

The investment strategy of Kotak Standard Multicap scheme is built on the premise that different sectors of the economy perform varyingly over different periods of economic cycle. So, the investment focus of this fund is to invest in select sectors that are likely to outperform broader market at various points of time.

Once the sectors are selected through top-down analysis, the individual investment ideas within those sectors are picked up through bottom-up approach, says Harsha Upadhyaya.

Over the years, we have stuck to investment philosophy and investment mandate of the fund irrespective of market phases. The investment focus has always remained long term, with relatively low portfolio turnover. These simple rules have enabled us to register outperformance through both sector allocation as well as stock selection, the fund manager adds.

Portfolio composition in present scenario

In the backdrop of higher than average market valuations and emerging macro headwinds, now there is barbell approach in portfolio composition. The portfolio has a good mix of cyclical and defensive bets at present. In this fund domestic businesses with operating leverage continue to dominate the portfolio as compared to export/global businesses due to better earnings trajectory. However, exposure to IT sector has gone up in the recent months.

The top overweight sectors in the fund are cement and financials and is underweight on FMCG and metals. The major exclusions from the fund are utilities and telecom sectors.

The fund is allocating 77.24% of the total corpus to large-cap funds, 13.54% to mid-cap funds, 3.54% to small cap and 5.68% to cash as on 31st July, 2018.

Investors should consider investing in multi-cap fund category in present scenario. This funds have the freedom to invest across market capitalisations and sectors without any pre-specified caps.

Manish Kothari, Director & Head of Mutual Funds, Paisabazaar.com, says, Given the recent upsurge in the valuations of large cap companies and significant correction in the mid and small cap zone, multicap funds will be best placed to exploit opportunities and manage risk arising out of changing valuations and other fundamental and technical factors.

Expert takeaway

Kotak Standard Multicap Fund has consistently outperformed its benchmark index and category average since its launch on September 11, 2009. It has also managed the market fall of 2011 better than its peer funds. The scheme focuses on select sectors based on their upside potential in the medium term, adds Kothari.

Being overweight on cements and financials, the scheme will benefit from the Governments focus on increasing private consumption and infrastructure spending. The steady increase in the schemes IT exposure will also benefit it in case of further depreciation in the rupee. Hence, we would recommend investors to consider Kotak Standard Multicap for their long and mid-term financial goals, he says.
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Britain's Prince Charles has acquired the royal family's first electric car with a bespoke Tata Motors' Jaguar I-Pace in his favourite blue shade that has been made exclusively for him.

The environmental campaigner, who has already installed solar panels on royal roofs and switched to low-energy light bulbs, will be handed the keys to the new 60,000-pound Jaguar I-Pace next week, the Sunday Times reported.

Charles, the 69-year-old heir to the British throne, requested that his new Jag be painted in his preferred shade of Loire blue, a choice that will not be available to other buyers of the model.

The Jaguar will join a royal fleet including Rolls-Royces, Bentleys and Range Rovers that run on petrol and diesel. An electric charging point has been installed at Clarence House, Prince Charles' London home, the newspaper reported.

His father, the Duke of Edinburgh, also regularly travelled around London in an environmentally-friendly liquid petroleum gas-powered Metrocab before retiring from public duties last year.

Charles' son, Prince Harry, famously drove his new bride Meghan Markle to their wedding reception in May at Frogmore House, Windsor, in a Jaguar E-type that had been adapted to use an electric motor and is said to be worth more than 350,000 pounds.

The Prince of Wales has also converted his vintage Aston Martin to run on bioethanol fuel made from waste wine and whey, the by-product of cheese production. The DB6 Mk 2 Volante, which he bought in 1970 when he was 21, was used by the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge  Prince William and Kate  after their wedding reception at Buckingham Palace in 2011.

According to reports, Prince Charles will be leasing his new Jag, with the cost to be met by the royal.

He is believed to have opted for the electric Jag over a Tesla model because he prefers the Tata Motors-owned brand's handling to the American electric car maker.
Fast trains may be deployed after ridership assessment of the newly-laid 29.8-km Aqua Line connecting Greater Noida to Noida one month after it begins operations in October 2018, officials in the Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) have said.

Currently, the metro corridor is dotted by 21 stations, with areas adjoining some of them being sparsely populated currently -- the stations have been constructed with an eye on the future.

Once the assessment is undertaken, these stations are likely to be skipped until new demand is fulfilled, thereby enhancing the speed on the corridor.

While the entire 29.8 km corridor is expected to be operational in October, some stations such as 144, 146, 147, 149 and 153 may struggle for ridership as these sectors are yet to be developed and therefore are sparsely populated.

"Trains will stop everywhere initially but there may be fast trains later depending on ridership in some stations. After operating the trains for a month if we find that ridership is less in some stations, we may decide to run fast trains and skip some stations. But initially the entire corridor will be thrown open," says executive director of Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC), PD Upadhyay.

Trials were conducted on the first stretch between Greater Noidas Depot station and Sector 149. The second stretch, from Sector 146 to Noida Sector 83, was tested in May. The third leg from Sector 83 to Sector 71 started this week. The final inspection by the commissioner for metro rail safety is likely to be done in September.

"We will complete the trials and procure all required clearances by September-end so that we may start operations in October this year. The first trail runs began in January, the second in April and the third on August 20," said Upadhyay.

The cost of the project is Rs 5,503 crore. "Around 20 percent of the project cost is to be borne by the Central governments ministry of housing and urban affairs by equity and 30 per cent of the project cost is being taken as loan from NCR Planning Board. Noida and Greater Noida (that have a stake in the 70:30 ratio) on behalf of Uttar Pradesh have contributed Rs 339 crore that includes the land cost of the corridor," he explained.

A City One card will also be issued to commuters. This is a multi-wallet card applicable in the metro, parking area, buses and even for payment of Noida and Greater Noida utility services and shopping at malls. SBI is the concessionaire for this card.

The Noida Metro Rail Corporation (NMRC) will have QR-coded paper tickets for single journeys, unlike the tokens of the Delhi Metro, and also have an option of checking in and out using a mobile app, he said.

"This partnership is on a revenue sharing model. The entire investment is done by the SBI in return for revenue sharing," he said.

The app will be available free of cost for Android and iOS phones.

The card operates on an 'open loop system' technology, and can be used on any metro network such as the Kochi and the Nagpur metros and other upcoming metros. The service, however, is not available on the DMRC metro. The Delhi metro cards are exclusive for rail transit and recently got acceptance on the Delhi government buses.
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Stocks in news

: Total sales up 8 percent at 3.43 lakh units versus 3.17 lakh units (YoY): Total tractor sales up 4.9 percent at 4,812 units versus 4,587 units (YoY): Total VECV sales up 32.8 percent at 6,069 units versus 4,571 units (YoY): Total Royal Enfield sales up 2 percent at 69,377 units versus 67,977 units (YoY): Total sales up 27 percent at 58,262 units versus 45,906 units (YoY): Total Auto sales up 14 percent at 48,324 units versus 42,207 units (YoY): Total sales up 27 percent at 17,386 units versus 13,637 units (YoY): Total sales down 3.4 percent at 1.58 lakh units versus 1.63 lakh units (YoY): Total sales up 10.12 percent at 4,430 units versus 4,023 units (YoY)

SML Isuzu: Total sales of 744 vehicles in August 2018 against 541 vehicles in August 2017.

Wipro wins over USD 1.5 billion deal from Alight Solutions

Petrol price at record high; increased by 31 paise at Rs 86.56/litre in Mumbai

Diesel price at record high; increased by 42 paise at Rs 75.54/litre in Mumbai

HCC board meeting on Septmeber 5 to consider fund raising by the issue of equity shares or other securities

Larsen & Toubro Infotech: L&T to sell 59 lakh shares (representing 3.41 percent of total paid up equity) of the company through offer for sale on September 3 and 4, with an option to additionally sell 46,27,288 equity shares representing 2.67 percent of paid up equity. Floor price of the offer will be Rs 1,700 per share.

Kwality approved increase in the limit of shareholding by Registered Foreign Portfolio lnv & Foreign Institutional Investors from 24% upto 74%

Indiabulls Real Estate subsidiary terminated acquisition of commercial building at Udyog Vihar, Phase IV, Gurugram due to certain commercial issues

Vedanta: KK Kaura has resigned from the post of Interim Chief Executive Officer of company.

Britannia Industries: LIC increased its stake in the company by 0.014 percent to 5.009 percent.

Indian Income Tax Authorities has initiated search under section 132 of Income Tax Act, 1961 at the premises of the Company on August 29, 2018 and August 30, 2018.

The Company is in the process of collating and responding to all the queries raised by the Income Tax Authorities

KIRI Industries - SICC refused to grant a stay of the valuation of Kiri's shares in DyStar pending Senda's Appeal

BHEL: CRISIL has revised company's outlook to Stable from Negative while affirmed the rating for bank facilities at AA+.

GIC Housing Finance: Q1 profit rises to Rs 49.45 crore versus Rs 46.18 crore; total income rises to Rs 292.9 crore versus Rs 274.6 crore (YoY).

Coal India - Coal production for August 2018 at 38.80 MT vs 37.59 MT, growth of 3.2%

Ramky Infrastructure: Company sold shareholding in NAM Expressway to Cube Highways Pte.Ltd., Singapore for Rs 140 crore. The sale proceeds will be used to reduce the debt of the company. Consequent to the sale, consolidated debt of the company will be reduced by about Rs 1,389 crore.

HCL Technologies: Sciencelogic and HCL Technologies partnered to bring Aiops to global enterprise customers.

V-Mart opened three new fashion stores one in the state of Bihar and other two in the state of Assam.

Graphite India: Company's wholly owned subsidiary in Netherlands has signed an investment agreement for acquisition of upto 46 percent stake in General Graphene Corporation, an unlisted US company involved in development of Graphene for commercial applications, for $18.595 million.

MOIL: Company increased prices of ferro grade ore by about 5 percent, retained prices of SMGR, Chemical Grade and Fines; cut prices by 10 percent of specific grade of material i.e. BGL523, DBL456 & DBL457. On sales of BGF534, existing discount of 5 percent during August, 2018 is increased to 10 percent for dispatches during September'2018.

JSW Steel: As per resolution plan submitted by the consortium of JSW Steel and AION Investments Private II Limited, company's shareholding in Monnet Ispat and Energy stood at 23.1 percent. Consortium members holding stood at 74.3 percent.

Godrej Consumer Products: Company through its subsidiary has divested its entire stake in Godrej Consumer Products (UK) Ltd for 34 million pound. Buyer is US-based PE firm JZ International.

Idea Cellular: Company submitted shareholding Pattern for the period ended August 31, 2018.

Idea Cellular: Name of the company changed from Idea Cellular to Vodafone Idea.

Religare Enterprises: Company submitted shareholding Pattern for the period ended August 27, 2018.

Mahindra Logistics: Company appointed Yogesh Patel as Chief Financial Officer and Key Managerial Personnel.

Satin Creditcare Network: CRISIL assigned A1 to company's proposed short term bank loan facility worth Rs 200 crore.

LT Foods: Company approved the proposed investment of up to Rs 140 crore by India Agri Business Fund II Limited in Nature Bio Foods Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of the company, in one or more tranches.

Khadim India: Company has issued the Commercial Paper for an aggregate amount of Rs 30 crore.

Trident Texofab: Company has commenced commercial operation of embroidery and stitching unit at Surat from September 1.

Man Infraconstruction: Board has declared interim dividend of Rs 1.26 per share; record date fixed as September 14.

TVS Electronics: Company informed about resignation of Prakash Katama, Chief Executive Officer (Key Managerial Personnel) with effect from September 30, 2018.

Dharani Sugars: The company has submitted Resolution Plan to the Lenders on its proposal for restructuring its debts to match with the projected cash flows and the same is under discussion with the banks and institutions.

Orient Abrasives: After persistent efforts of the management, the issue with the workers/labourer have been settled and resolved amicably and that the operations of the company have resumed from August 31.

: Nikhil Dujari resigned as Chief Financial Officer. Company assigned function of CFO to Vinay Mokashi, Financial Controller

of the company for interim period.

Everest Industries: Company appointed Nikhil Dujari as Chief Financial Officer.

Advance Syntex: Board approves migration of the company from SME Platform to Main Board of BSE Limited.

Solara Active Pharma Sciences: Company completed acquisition of Strides Chemicals Private Limited from Strides Pharma Science and it becomes a wholly owned subsidiary of Solara Active Pharma Sciences.

Patel Integrated Logistics: India Ratings affirmed long term credit rating 'BBB' [outlook stable] for company's fund based borrowings, finance lease and term loan and 'A3+' [outlook stable] rating for its non fund based borrowings from the banks.

Pioneer Embroideries: Nawal Sharma resigned from the post of Chief Financial Officer and Key Managerial Personnel of the company.

Umang Dairies: Sh. C. Venugopal resigned as Chief Financial Officer of the company.

BHEL - CRISIL has revised comapny's outlook to Stable from Negative while affirmed the rating for bank facilities at CRISIL AA+

Satin Credicare - CRISIL assigned CRISIL A1 rating on comapny's short term bank loan facility
The Congress on accused the central government of shielding its "favourite" industrialists in an alleged scam in import of coal worth Rs 29,000 crore and demanded a "fair and impartial" probe by SIT in a time-bound manner.

Senior party leader Jairam Ramesh also took on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, asking why he did not take up the matter with his counterpart in Singapore where the coal import transactions took place.

Ramesh said Modi has met the Singapore PM three times in as many years after the probe began. He also accused Finance Minister Arun Jaitley of being silent on the issue, while remaining vocal on others.

"In October 2014, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI) revealed about a scam on coal import and a probe was initiated on the over-invoicing of import of coal," Ramesh claimed

On March 31, 2016, the DRI said 40 companies are involved in this scam and it is worth Rs 29,000 crore, the Congress leader alleged.

The DRI, he said, also issued letter rogatory to Singapore seeking its help to access documents lying with overseas branches of the SBI bank where coal import transactions took place.

But the probe has remained stalled, he said, adding that showcause was issued against four out of the 40 companies by the DRI.

"It is clear that after four years, no result of the probe has come because favourite industrialists are involved in it. If you act against the industrialist, then the government will fall," he told reporters here.

"The four companies are owned by favourite industrialists," Ramesh alleged, and named a few business houses who were allegedly issues notice by DRI.

"A Special Investigation Team (SIT) should investigate the scam as has been demanded in September 2017 in a PIL filed by senior advocate Prashant Bhushan's NGO in the Delhi High Court and it should be time-bound.

"All obstacles coming in the way of DRI should also be removed and the government should hold discussions with Singapore to make the documents available to DRI," the Congress leader demanded.

Ramesh alleged that a business house had moved the Singapore High Court to stop sharing of documents available with SBI Singapore branch with the DRI, though the plea was quashed recently.

It has now moved the Bombay High Court to restrain the DRI probe, he claimed.

Ramesh said 70 percent of the coal imports into the country happen through the companies of this business house.

He also displayed a letter dated May 20, 2016 where Revenue Secretary Hashmukh Adia had requested the then SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya to share the documents with DRI.

However, Bhattacharya refused to do so saying it was against Singapore law, Ramesh said expressing his dismay over her refusal.

Referring to an FIR filed by the CBI against some officers of NTPC and others in connection with the investigation, he asked as to why the "big players" involved in the "scam" are being spared.
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India is allowing state refiners to import Iranian oil with Tehran arranging tankers and insurance after firms including the country's top shipper Shipping Corp of India (SCI) halted voyages to Iran due to US sanctions, sources said.

New Delhi's attempt to keep Iranian oil flowing mirrors a step by China, where buyers are shifting nearly all their Iranian oil imports to vessels owned by National Iranian Tanker Co (NITC).

The moves by the two top buyers of Iranian crude indicate that the Islamic Republic may not be fully cut off from global oil markets from November, when US sanctions against Tehran's petroleum sector are due to start.

President Donald Trump ordered the reimposition of economic curbs after withdrawing the United States from a 2015 nuclear deal between Iran and six world powers. No one trading with Iran will do business with America, he said.

"We have the same situation (as most Western shippers) because there is no cover, so we cannot go (to Iran)," an SCI official said.

New Delhi turned to the NITC fleet after most insurers and reinsurers had begun winding down services for Iran, wanting to avoid falling foul of the sanctions given their large exposure to the United States.

SCI had a contract until August to import Iranian oil for Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd (MRPL), two sources familiar with the matter said.

Eurotankers, which had a deal with MRPL to import two Iranian oil cargoes every month, has also said it cannot undertake Iranian voyages from September, the sources said.

The sources spoke on condition of anonymity as they were not allowed to talk to the media about commercial deals.

"The shipping ministry has given refiners permission to buy Iranian oil on a CIF (cost, insurance and freight) basis," a government source said.

Under a CIF arrangement, Iran would provide shipping and insurance, enabling Indian refiners to continue purchases of the country's oil despite the non-availability of cover from Western insurers due to the restrictions imposed by Washington.

The move would benefit Indian Oil Corp (IOC), Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) and MRPL, which plan to lift Iranian cargoes during the rest of the fiscal year ending on March 31.

India wants to continue buying oil from OPEC member Iran as Tehran is offering almost free shipping and an extended credit period.

State refiners, which drove India's July imports of Iranian oil to a record 768,000 barrels per day, had planned to nearly double oil imports from Iran in 2018/19.

Unlike their private peers, India's state-run refiners need government permission to import oil on a delivered, or CIF, basis. Federal policy requires them to favour Indian insurers and shippers by buying only on a free on board (FOB) basis.

The permission for CIF purchases applies only to existing annual contracts with Iran, the government source said.

India, Iran's top oil client after China, will finalise its strategy on crude purchases from Tehran after a meeting with top US officials this week, a senior government official told Reuters last week.

SCI, Eurotankers, the shipping ministry, MRPL, IOC and BPCL did not respond to Reuters emails seeking comment.
President Ram Nath Kovind praised the Indian community in Cyprus for strengthening people-to-people relations between the two nations. Addressing the Indian Community here, the president said, "India is proud of its diaspora and their achievements. They are true cultural ambassadors of India and will deepen our ties with Cyprus."

Kovind arrived in Cyprus on Sunday on the first leg of his three-nation visit to Europe to continue India's high-level engagements with European countries.

The president and his wife arrived at the Larnaca International Airport. They were received by Georgios Lakkotrypis, Cyprus' Minister of Energy, Commerce, Industry and Tourism.

"Happy to begin my visit to Cyprus, one of our closest and most steadfast partners in the international community. My delegation and I bring warm and friendly currents from the Indian Ocean to the waters of the Mediterranean. Looking forward to a productive visit," Kovind tweeted.

Apart from Cyprus, Kovind will also visit Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

This is his first overseas state visit in the second year of his presidency.
Marico | LIC increased stake in company to 4.8 percent in September quarter, from 3.66 percent in June quarter.

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Home grown FMCG firm Marico is expecting a volume growth of 8 to 10 percent and double-digit constant currency growth in international business over the next 3 to 5 years on account of strategic investments, a top company official has said.

The company is also looking at achieving a healthy market share gains as it plans to focus on strengthening its core portfolio, driving increase in sale of value added hair oils and expanding portfolio in the existing and new markets.

In addition to that, Marico has also plans for strategic investments in its core foreign markets such as Bangladesh, Vietnam, Middle East and North Africa and South Africa, coupled with expansion in adjacent markets.

"The company is aiming for 8-10 percent volume growth over the medium term (3 to 5 years), coupled with healthy market share gains," Marico CFO Vivek Karve said.

He further said that Marico "will focus on strengthening the core portfolio creating new engines of growth with portfolio expansion in existing and new markets".

The Mumbai-based company now aspires to deliver a top-line growth of 13-15 percent in the medium term (3 to 5 years) and cross revenue of Rs 10,000 crore by FY 2021-22.

Marico has identified premium leave-in hair nourishment, healthy foods and male grooming as new vectors of growth.

"The company will invest in existing and new brands. In the healthy foods franchise, the company will innovate aggressively to cater to the consumer need of tasty and healthy options.

In the categories of leave-in serums and male grooming, the company will innovate with new product and packaging offerings to build them into growth engines for the future," said Karve adding that Marico "aims to deliver growth at 15 percent plus CAGR in each of these portfolios in the medium term".

Besides, Marico would also continue to expand its reach by "tapping into the bottom of the pyramid, aggressive growth in modern trade and e-commerce channels and embracing digital".

For FY 2017-18, Marico had a revenue of Rs 5,181.32 crore.

Marico expects that a good monsoon and government's efforts to increase farmers' income would increase demands from the rural markets, which contributes around one third of its domestic revenue.

"The company expects to take this up by at least 3-4 percentage points in the next 3-5 years by driving penetration through price point packs and focused GTM (go-to-market) initiatives," he added.

According to him, the "transitory headwinds" in the domestic market which had brought structural reforms in FY17 and FY18 are now appearing to have "largely receded".

Marico, which had got 22 percent of its revenue in FY18, would expand its footprint in the overseas markets and be a leading company in "nourishment and male grooming" in the Asian and African markets, in which it operates.

"We aim to deliver double-digit constant currency growth in FY19 and the medium term, on the back of strategic investments planned in core markets of Bangladesh, Vietnam, Middle East & North Africa and South Africa, coupled with expansion in adjacent markets of South Asia, Indo China region and new export markets," said Karve.
Congress leader and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan is leading in Bhokar.

The opposition Congress tapped the popular festival of 'Dahi Handi' being celebrated Monday in Maharashtra to protest against the alleged 'sins' of the BJP-led governments in the state and at the Centre.

Maharashtra Congress chief Ashok Chavan broke a 'dahi handi' (an earthen pot), symbolising the alleged 'sins' of the two governments, while leading the protest at Karad here in the state.

Party leaders and activists carried banners, having a message that the handi of government's "sins" has got filled to the brim.

"Now people will break the dahi handi of sins of this government in 2019," Chavan said.

Leader of Opposition in Maharashtra Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe-Patil, former chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and ex-state ministers Balasaheb Throat and Harshvardhan Patil also took part in the demonstration and shouted slogans against the two governments.

'Dahi Handi' is a ritual observed during 'Janmashtami', wherein young boys and girls form a human pyramid and one of them climbs on top of it to break the earthen pot carrying curd, symbolising victory through unity.

The Congress' protest is part of the first phase of its 'Jan Sangharsh Yatra', a public outreach exercise to highlight the alleged failures of the governments at the Centre and in Maharashtra, ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha polls.

The outreach programme was launched Friday in Kolhapur and it will culminate in Pune on September 8.

The Congress intends to carry out similar drives in North Maharashtra (beginning October 2), Marathwada, Vidarbha and Konkan, including Mumbai.
Ashok Gehlot and Sachin Pilot Rajasthan Congress

Congress leader Sachin Pilot said the government's silence on the Rafale deal was "baffling" and asserted that the opposition was united in getting answers from the Centre on the aircraft procurement.

Addressing a press conference at the Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (TNCC) headquarter, Pilot said the Congress wants a Joint Parliamentary Committee (JPC) to probe the matter.

"Congress has sought a JPC to probe the matter. I see no reason why the government should hesitate to form it," he said.

The party will launch a nationwide campaign covering "every state, district and block" and submit petitions, right from the Governor to the President, seeking a probe into the matter, he said.

The demand for a JPC will be taken up whenever Parliament convenes, added Pilot, who is the Rajasthan Pradesh Congress Committee president.

Accusing Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government of not answering questions on the deal Pilot said, "I think the silence is more baffling. If anything that we are saying is wrong factually, then the government must come forward and clarify."

"The fact that they choose to remain silent tells you that there is much to hide," said Pilot, adding "the entire opposition is united" on getting answers from the government.

On whether the Congress plans to move the court on the issue, he said "all options are open if we get no answers, including the JPC, then all our options are open."

Asked if his party would disclose the cost of the deal if it was voted to power, he said such details have been revealed "historically," including that of the Mirage fighter aircraft.

Giving a recap of defence deals under the UPA government, he said they had shortlisted Rafale and Typhoon aircraft and had "settled" Rs 526 crore as the price for a single Rafale aircraft.

The Modi government was however buying the same aircraft for Rs 1,670 crore, which was three times more, he alleged.

Due processes to be followed in such deals like going through the Price Negotiation Committee, Cabinet Committee on Security, the mandatory Defense Procurement Procedure and getting the Cabinet Committee on Security nod were "set aside."

"This was done in complete disregard to the conventions and transparency all defence purchases are put through."

On the one hand, the government was using the "shield of urgency" to buy the aircraft, but had gone in for only 36 aircraft while the IAF's requirement was 126.

If there was urgency, "why has a single aircraft not landed in the country?" he asked. Pilot further said all indicators like the state-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited not being taken on board pointed to "malpractice."

UPA had talked about making the aircraft in India through Tranfer of Technology, lower price and offset going to HAL. However, such aspects were set aside and a private entity was encouraged, he said.

Accusing the government of hiding behind the confidentiality clause, Pilot said that as per the Indo-French confidentiality agreement of 2008, the commercial cost of the aircraft can be revealed.

"There is nothing in law that prevents the current government from disclosing the price," Pilot said.

Once the announcement was made to buy Rafale, the other contender Eurofighter had agreed for a 20 percent discount, said Pilot as he wondered why the government had not re-negotiated the price to lower the cost of the aircraft.

Had HAL been given the offset, it would have led to creation of plenty of job opportunities in the defence sector for the youth of the country, he said.

TNCC President Su Thirunavukkarasar said the state unit would this month embark on a reach-out campaign on the Rafale deal, covering all the districts.

Governor Banwarilal Purhoit will also be petitioned on the issue, he said. Meanwhile talking to reporters in Puducherry, Congress leader Jaipal Reddy accused Modi of throwing to the winds all procedures governing defence deals and defence procurement.
opinion

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November 02, 2021 06:30 PM IST Defence | Agni V is a real game changer in the regional strategic scenario The DRDO must take the Agni programme to the logical next step: the development of a full-fledged ICBM with a range of 8,000 kilometres or more

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Congress

Citing Congress' comprehensive win in the Punjab Assembly polls, former Union Minister Manish Tewari said the rights and interests of the party workers must be protected to ensure victory in the 2019 general elections.

The senior Congress leader and national spokesperson of the party asserted that the secular and progressive forces of the country should also unite to save "the idea of India."

"It is because of the hardwork of the party workers that had ensured a two-third victory for the Congress in Punjab in 2017," Tewari said on the sidelines of a workers meeting organised by the Punjab Congress General Secretary Gurmail Pahalwan.

"If party wants to repeat the feat it must ensure the rights and interests of (the) workers are protected and safeguarded," he added.

Congress wrested power from the SAD-BJP alliance in Punjab with an overwhelming majority in the 2017 state assembly polls.

Tewari congratulated the Congress workers for defeating the SAD-BJP in the state when the BJP had swept almost the entire country.

"I know you have great expectations from the government and these expectations are well deserved since you have faced the Akali-BJP onslaught for ten years and then ensured a sweeping victory for the party," he said.

"Now it is our turn to deliver on those promises and expectations," he added.

Replying to a question on the registration of a case by Haryana Police against former chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda and businessman Robert Vadra on Saturday in connection with alleged irregularities in a land deal in Gurgaon, Tewari said it was a case of political vendetta.

Besides, the BJP government was feeling the heat "as it has no defence against the multi-billion Rafale scam, by purchasing the fighter aircrafts for the price two times more than what had been negotiated by the Congress led UPA government".

The BJP government was only trying to divert the attention and it will never succeed in its design, he said.

The Congress leader also slammed the Akalis for criticising the Justice Ranjit Singh Commission which probed the sacrilege incidents of 2015 was not fair.
Priyanka Gandhi Vadra with her husband Robert Vadra at the coronation ceremony of Rahul Gandhi in New Delhi. (PTI)

The Congress attacked the Modi government over the FIR against Robert Vadra and former Haryana chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda for alleged irregularities in land deals and said it was an attempt to divert attention from issues like Rafale agreement and demonetisation.

An FIR against Vadra, who is Congress leader Sonia Gandhi's son-in-law, Hooda and two companies has been registered at Kherki Daula police station in Gurgaon, Manesar Deputy Commissioner of Police Rajesh Kumar had said on Saturday.

As assembly elections in four states and next year's general elections draw near, the "fake news factory and dirty tricks department of Modi government-BJP act maliciously in pursuit of their vicious propaganda", Congress' communications in-charge Randeep Surjewala said in a statement.

He accused the government of serving a new set of "manufactured lies" through "false and fake FIRs against political opponents".

This, Surjewala alleged, was being done to divert attention from the the Rafale deal, the demonetisation "scam", the 12 lakh crore "loot" through hike in prices of petrol and diesel, and the rapidly falling rupee and "failing" economy, among other things.

The FIR said Vadra's company Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd purchased 3.5 acre of land in Gurgaon's Sector 83 from Onkareshwar Properties for Rs 7.50 crore in 2008, when Hooda was the chief minister and also held the portfolio of the Town and County Planning Department.

Later, Skylight Hospitality sold this land to realty major DLF at a price of Rs 58 crore, after procuring a commercial licence for the development of the colony with the influence of Hooda, the complainant, Surinder Sharma, alleged.

The company thus made a profit of about Rs 50 crore, according to the allegation which has been trashed in the past by Vadra.

Surjewala said facts showed that Vadra's Skylight Hospitality Private Limited purchased 3.5 acres of land on January 28, 2008, in the notified commercial zone of Gurgaon's village Sikohpur through a registered sale-deed for Rs 7.95 crore including stamp duties as per the prevailing collector rate.

"In accordance with the prevailing government policy for grant of licence, a commercial licence for 2.5 acres was granted on December 15, 2008. Commercial colony licence charges of Rs 7.43 crore and renewal charges of Rs 73 lakh were also paid. Thus, total amount paid for purchase of land and statutory charges comes to Rs 16.11 crore," he said.

After nearly five years, this land was sold by Skylight to DLF for Rs 58 crore on September 18, 2012, he added.

"Even on this amount, Skylight/Mr Vadra paid an additional tax of Rs 8 crore. Thus, a total amount of Rs 24.11 crore was paid in statutory charges/taxes against the receipt of sale price of Rs 58 crore," Surjewala said.

The licence remains valid till date and has not been cancelled on account of violation of any rule or law or policy for grant of licence, he said, adding that the allegations are "false and fabricated".

"The BJP and Khattar government are spreading canards against Shri Bhupinder Singh Hooda and Mr Robert Vadra qua a small licence for merely 2.7 acres out of total licences running to over 11,000 acres in Gurgaon on account of sheer malafides," Surjewala alleged.
Patidar leader Hardik Patel unveiled his "will" Sunday, the ninth day of his indefinite fast demanding reservation for the community and farm loan waiver.

The quota leader has divided his property among his parents, a sister, 14 youths killed during the quota agitation in 2015 and a' Panjrapole' (shelter for ill and old cows) near his village, a Patidar leader said.

"Hardik Patel has expressed his wish to donate his eyes in case of his death," Patidar Anamat Andolan Samiti (PAAS) spokesperson Manoj Panara told reporters at Hardik's residence near Ahmedabad where he has been observing fast since August 25.

While leaders and representatives from various political parties, including the Trinamool Congress, Nationalist Congress Party and Rashtriya Janata Dal, have visited the 25-year-old quota spearhead in the last nine days, the BJP government has so far not intervened.

Among the delegates who visited Hardik Patel today included former Bihar chief minister and Hindustani Awami Morcha (HAM) chief Jitan Ram Manjhi and Leader of Opposition in the Gujarat Assembly Paresh Dhanani of the Congress.

"Hardik Patel's health is deteriorating. He has not eaten food in the last nine days. He didn't drink water in the last 36 hours," Panara claimed.

He said Hardik Patel has prepared his will while "considering the doctor's advise regarding his deteriorating health".

"As per the will, Hardik has Rs 50,000 in his bank account, of which Rs 20,000 will go to his parents and the rest to a Panjrapole near his native village in Gujarat.

"Royalty from the book on his life 'Who Took My Job', which is currently under publication, as well as insurance money and the money collected after selling a car owned by him will be divided among his parents, his sister and the family members of the 14 Patidars who sacrificed their life during the agitation three years ago," Panara claimed.

He said 15 per cent of the total money will go to Hardik Patel's parents, another 15 per cent to his sister, and rest 70 per cent to the family members of the 14 Patidars.

A doctor from a government hospital who visited Hardik Patel today said he has advised the quota leader to get admitted to the hospital considering his health.

"We have advised him to be admitted to the hospital. His urine and blood pressure is normal, but Hardik has refused blood and urine tests," the doctor said.

Meanwhile, Manjhi told reporters that the government was not "sensitive" towards Hardik Patel's demand for reservation to members of the Patidar community.

"If the government was sensitive, it would have amended the Constitution to increase the reservation from 49.5 per cent to 70-80 per cent. It is there in some states. In Tamil Nadu, quota percentage is around 70 per cent, then why not here?" he asked.

Dhanani said the state government should listen to the protesters sensitively and address the issues concerning farmers in the state.

"The BJP government is trying to suppress and crush the voice of people with baton. The protesters are trying to bring up the issues of the farmers and weaker sections, but the government is instead trying to crush the protest," Dhanani alleged.

He alleged that while Hardik is trying to raise the issues of farmers, the state government has converted 18,000 villages into "fortresses" to prevent his supporters from reaching the venue of Hardik's fast.

"The government should adopt a positive stand and listen to what the protesters have to say," Dhanani said.

Meanwhile, some supporters of Hardik Patel alleged that they were baton-charged by the police when they approached his residence to meet him.

Hardik Patel had launched his hunger strike on the third anniversary of his mega pro-quota rally in Ahmedabad that had turned violent.

He is demanding a loan waiver for farmers and quota for Patidars in government jobs and education under the Other Backward Class category.
Bharat Karnad

The 2x2 talks between the Indian and United States foreign and defence ministers  Sushma Swaraj and Nirmala Sitharaman, and Mike Pompeo and James Mattis respectively  scheduled for September 6, will end in Indias capitulation if the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government of Narendra Modi signs the Communications Compatibility and Security Agreement (COMCASA).

This accord will enable the US to comprehensively penetrate  horizontally and vertically  Indias most secret communications and command and control networks, including the Strategic Forces Command overseeing nuclear security. Official sources have said that the Modi dispensation is satisfied by the Washingtons assurances that no information, classified or otherwise, routinely picked up by the US agencies monitoring and listening in on the Indian national security communications traffic will be divulged to third parties. Scouts honour!

The level of gullibility displayed by the Indian governments trusting Washington to do the right thing is astonishing, considering the US record is one of consistently selling India short. For instance, the intelligence picked up by US agencies in 2008 that the Pakistan Armys Inter-Services intelligence-controlled terrorist groups were planning a seaborne attack on Mumbai was not conveyed to Delhi and the 26/11 mayhem ensued. This mind you when Delhi had made common cause against terrorism with Washington in the wake of the 9/11 strike on New York.

The COMCASA, following up on the Logistics Exchange Memorandum of Agreement (LEMOA) that will allow US troops and military assets to stage military operations in the extended Indian Ocean region out of Indian air, naval and army bases will formally mark the loss of Indias strategic autonomy. What may derail this accord, at least temporarily, and discomfit immediate US plans, is something else altogether  Indias buy of the S-400 air defence system potentially drawing economic sanctions under the recently passed US law, Countering Americas Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA).

The troubling Section 231 in this Act says that sanctions are mandated on any entity or entities engaging in a significant transaction with . . . the defense or intelligence sectors of the Government of the Russian Federation, and Section 235 deems sanctionable any transactions in foreign exchange that are subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and prohibiting any transfers of credit or payments between financial institutions or by, through, or to any financial institution, to the extent that such transfers or payments are subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and involve any interest of the sanctioned person.

The prickliness of the issues involved has led to an impasse. A former MEA official, Rakesh Sood, other than superficially outlining in an op-ed piece the well-known problems with CAATSA, offers no solution other than suggesting unhelpfully that the two sides think creatively.

Ashley Tellis of Carnegie, who pulls weight in Washington and, incidentally, with Modi, doesnt doubt that the S-400 system is the best of its kind in the world and that the combination of the Patriot surface-to-air missiles and the Theatre High-Altitude Air Defence system the Americans have offered is not a match. Even so, he conceives of three options for Delhi. The Modi government, he says, can scuttle the S-400 deal and buy into the lesser US system, or string Russia along and defer payment to avoid precipitating sanctions, or Make a deal with Trump  the option Tellis favours, by speedily agreeing to several high-value transactions for US hardware  the F-16 combat aircraft for the Indian Air Force and the F-18 carrier aircraft for the Indian Navy, that are lucrative enough to the United States and remarkable in its potential geostrategic impact. Indias purchase of these 1970s vintage aircraft will certainly be lucrative for America alright but what remarkable geostrategic impact they will have, is a mystery!

Tellis solutions are basically premised on Delhis malleability. Except this last is an attribute inherent in Modis US policy animated by his conviction that accommodating the US will fetch dividends. Alas, the past and current developments reveal America as eminently untrustworthy. The fact is the waiver of sanctions on the S-400 means nothing, because it is one-off.

The Damocles sword of sanctions will hereafter hang over India and compel New Delhi to toe the US line on everything (Russia, Iran, non-proliferation, removal of tariffs on imports from the US, etc.). The irony is that the supposedly nationalist BJP government has reduced India to this state.
Karimganj: Villagers carry clean water as they wade across flood-affected areas at Nilambazar village, in Karimganj on Sunday, June 17, 2018. (PTI Photo) (PTI6_17_2018_000084B)

Obja Borah Hazarika

News reports on August 31 said that the Chinese government alerted Indian authorities about an increase in water levels in the Yarlung Tsangpo (the Brahmaputra as it is called in China), which originates in Tibet.

This alert, issued after excessive rainfall in China, enabled the governments of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh, the two states into which the Yarlung-Tsangpo flows, to issue their own alerts. Following these alerts, several people were airlifted to safer places.

This sharing of hydrological data by China with India is a result of a MoU signed in June  which brought to an end the hiatus in China sharing hydrological data with India after the Doklam stand-off.

While the security dimension consumes much of the larger narrative on India-China ties, trans-boundary rivers have garnered less attention despite the severity of the issue.

The Brahmaputra is the lifeline of Assam and Arunachal Pradesh. While flooding is common in the river, the devastating floods of 2000 have been linked to the excess release of water by China. However, the flood this time is related to excess rainfall in China and not because of anthropogenic machinations.

India-China riparian relations are contentious because of several reasons.

First, since Arunachal Pradesh is the state into which the river flows, the strategic overtones are not hard to miss, given that China considers the entire region as part of southern Tibet.

Second, unlike other river basins, there is no formal institutional mechanism between Bangladesh, China and India (the three nations through which the Brahmaputra flows) where river data is managed in a transparent management. The MoU signed in June is laudable, but anything short of a formal treaty makes the entire process of relaying information precarious.

Third, there are concerns in India about Chinas plans to dam and divert the river to its parched north and east regions. While China maintains that the run-of-the-river is not obstructed, India claims that such interventions in the natural flow of the river will provide China the ability to prevent water from flowing into India. Some scholars, such as Brahma Chellaney, view such moves as the root cause for water wars in the future.

Ecologists, such as Jayanta Bandhopadhyay, are less concerned because they are of the view that the Brahmaputra being a rain-fed and tributary-fed river, it depends very minimally on the water flowing in from China.

Fourth, India has planned its own inter-linking of rivers with the aim of diverting excess water in rivers to drought-prone areas. Such grandiose projects are often an engineers delight but most ecologists are wary of such large-scale human interventions in river flows as examples from around the world show that they have not resulted in favourable outcomes.

Water-sharing mechanisms need to be formalised and political ties must not have a bearing on it. India and China can take a leaf out of the Indus-Water Treaty. Despite contentious ties between India and Pakistan, the treaty has never been abrogated. Since water is not only an emotive issue but also serves as a lifeline for many in the region, it should not be held hostage to high politics of border standoffs and other national security matters.

The people of the Northeast and others in the sub-regions of China and Bangladesh who are directly impacted by the waters of the Brahmaputra should be made stakeholders in the process of formalising transparency to make the process participatory.

There are two main theses with regard to water and its impact on relations between countries. While environmental scientist Peter Gleick states that trans-boundary rivers will lead to conflict between concerned nations, Aaron Wolf, professor of geography, Oregon State University, opines that countries generally cooperate, despite contentious ties, on issues relating to trans-boundary rivers.

Chinas recent flood alert relayed to India can be seen as a way in which it is cooperating with India on the issue, which it is hoped, will soon segue into a more institutionalised formalisation, which will not be held ransom to possible contentions on border or other issues between the two nations.

(Obja Borah Hazarika is assistant professor, department of political science, Dibrugarh University. Views expressed are personal.)
Telangana Chief Minister and Telugu Rashtra Samithi (TRS) president Kalvakuntla Chandrashekar Rao on Sunday stopped short of announcing the dissolution of the state assembly during a mega rally in Ranga Reddy district.

In his around one-hour-long speech, Rao instead said that the public again wanted TRS government in the state and sought their support to continue the welfare and developmental works being undertaken by it.

Rao also said that the people should not become "slaves to Delhi-based parties".

"Just like in Tamil Nadu, we should also make sure that power is vested in our hands for self-respect rather than Delhi leadership dictating our state... don't become slaves to Delhi parties," the chief minister added.

The mega rally, held at a 2,000-acre venue, was called the Pragathi Nivedhana Sabha. The public meeting witnessed participation of around one lakh farmers on 10,000 tractors and women in large numbers coming from all districts of the state. The rally also caused traffic snarls on roads leading to the venue, 25 km outside capital Hyderabad.

The rally followed a cabinet meeting in which crucial decisions are said to have been discussed.

When asked whether early dissolution of the assembly came up for discussion during the Cabinet meet, Deputy Chief Minister Kadiam Srihari told reporters, "Shortly, another Cabinet meeting will be held where more decisions are to be taken."

An announcement regarding early election could still be made in the coming days, possibly on Thursday (September 6), as Rao is said to hold six as his lucky number.

Major announcements

While Rao stopped short of announcing plans to hold early assembly poll, he announced various schemes virtually across all sectors. Rao reportedly announced schemes worth Rs 60,000 crore.

Rao claimed that Telangana was the first state in the country where farmers were given 24-hour free power supply.

The state has also implemented the Rythu Bandhu (direct cash transfer) scheme under which farmers get a capital subsidy of Rs 8,000 per acre, per annum. Out of the Rs 12,000 crore allocated for the scheme, Rs 6,000 crore have already reached the farmers' bank accounts, reports suggest.

The cabinet also took decisions on some welfare measures, including increasing the salary of women workers under ASHA (Accredited Social Health Activist) programme.

The sops were announced days after media reports suggesting that Rao may announce dissolution of the assembly, paving the way for early assembly polls.

Reports had also suggested that the polls could be held along with the elections in five states  Chhattisgarh, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram and Rajasthan  at the end of this year.

The assembly poll in Telangana is currently scheduled to be held in April-May 2019, along with the general election.

On Friday, state IT minister and Rao's son KT Rama Rao had said that discussions had been held in the party regarding the advancement of the assembly polls, but no decision had been taken.

Why KCR may want early polls

Observers suggest that Rao is hoping to get a larger mandate in the state.

Indias newest state held its first assembly poll simultaneously with the Lok Sabha polls in April-May 2014. In spite of having led the Telangana statehood movement, the TRS had managed to win the poll with a small margin, winning 63 seats in the 119-member assembly.

The Congress finished second with 21 seats, while N Chandrababu Naidu-led Telugu Desam Party (TDP) won 15 seats in the assembly. YS Jaganmohan Reddys YSR Congress Party (YSRC) had ended up winning three seats.

Asaduddin Owaisi-led All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won seven and five seats respectively.

Rao could be hoping to win a bigger margin banking on the various welfare scheme his government has doled out in four years.

Fighting the assembly poll in late 2018 could also enable Rao to campaign for the 2019 Lok Sabha polls freely.

The partys performance in the 2014 general election was impressive. Out of the 17 parliamentary seats in the state, TRS had won 11 seats while the TDP-BJP alliance bagged just two. Congress and YSRC had managed to win two seats and one seat, respectively.

Observers also suggest that Rao has become conscious of being seen close to the ruling party at the Centre. Rao had held two consecutive meetings with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. TRS had also backed the National Democratic Alliance (NDA) candidate in the recent Rajya Sabha deputy chairmans election.

This, Rao may think, could dent his chances of emerging as a key player in national politics in 2019.

The 64-year-old chief minister has been among the key regional players calling for the formation a non-BJP, non-Congress federal front for the 2019 Lok Sabha election.

"If at all the elections are held early, it will help the TRS. We will win both the state as well as Lok Sabha polls convincingly. Holding early elections will give us ample room to find potential partners for 2019 polls," chief ministers son KT Rama Rao told The Indian Express on Sunday.

We believe the time has come to go back to the people and seek a mandate. We have 16 seats in Lok Sabha and we are confident we will win all, including Secunderabad. We want to play a decisive role in Delhi, he added.

Sounding the poll bugle

Rao has said a committee headed by party's Rajya Sabha member K Keshava Rao would be formed soon to prepare the election manifesto with new schemes and programmes.

Earlier in August, Rao met PM Modi and Home Minister Rajnath Singh, among others in Delhi.

According to a report by NDTV, BJP national president Amit Shah has also conveyed to his party leaders in the state that assembly polls in Telangana will be held by the end of this year and that they must gear up for it.

The opposition has also stepped up its attack against the chief minister. Alleging that TRS has failed to fulfil a single major election promise, Congress state unit president N Uttam Kumar Reddy has claimed that Rao is going for early elections as a "last-ditch attempt" to protect his party from the "rising Congress wave".

The Congress leader has also said that the public response to the recent visit by Congress president Rahul Gandhi to Hyderabad had sent shock waves among TRS leaders.
Q15. Liu Qiangdong also known as Richard Liu, is a Chinese Internet entrepreneur. Which company does he lead? (Image: Reuters)

The billionaire founder and chief executive of Chinese e-commerce firm JD.com Inc, Richard Liu, was arrested in the US state of Minnesota on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct and later released after what the company said was a false accusation.

JD.com, backed by Walmart Inc, Alphabet Inc's Google, and China's Tencent Holdings Ltd, said in a statement on Sunday that Liu, whose Chinese name is Liu Qiangdong, was falsely accused.

"During a business trip to the United States, Mr. Liu was questioned by police in Minnesota in relation to an unsubstantiated accusation," the company said.

"The local police quickly determined there was no substance to the claim against Mr. Liu, and he was subsequently able to resume his business activities as originally planned," it said.

The company did not immediately provide further details, and Liu could not immediately be reached by Reuters.

JD.com is one of China's tech heavyweights, competing with larger rival Alibaba Group Holding Ltd . Liu, 45, is well known in China and has a net worth of $7.9 billion, according to Forbes.

He was arrested shortly before midnight local time on Friday and was released just after 4 p.m. on Saturday, according to the website of the Hennepin County Sheriff's Office. It showed Liu was "released pending complaint."

Minneapolis Police Department spokesman John Elder said that an investigation was ongoing and declined to provide details of the arrest.

"We don't know if there will be charges or not because we haven't concluded an investigation," he told Reuters on Sunday.

The University of Minnesota said Liu was a student in its doctor of business administration program, which primarily takes place in Beijing in partnership with Tsinghua University aimed at full-time executives. The students were in the Twin Cities last week as part of their training.

University spokeswoman Emma Bauer in a statement declined to comment further and referred questions to the Minneapolis Police Department.
Police Monday arrested a 19-year-old son of a ruling BJP MLA in Damoh district for allegedly threatening to kill Congress leader Jyotiraditya Scindia through a social media post, an official said.

The accused Princedeep is the son of Uma Devi Khatik who represents Hatta assembly seat in the Legislative Assembly.

"The FIR was lodged by some Congress leaders after they came across the post allegedly posted by Princedeep on Facebook, following which he was arrested," said Hata police station in-charge Dharmendra Singh.

Princedeep used objectionable language against the erstwhile royal who represents Guna Lok Sabha seat and threatened to shoot him if he visited Hatta, he said.

The FIR was lodged by Youth Congress leader Anurag Vardhan Hazari, the officer said.

He said Princedeep was brought to the police station by his MLA mother.

He has been booked under various sections of the IPC, Singh said.

Scindia is scheduled to visit Damoh district on September 5.

Condemning the post, former Madhya Pradesh chief minister Digvijay Singh said the incident showed the "real face" of the BJP and RSS.

State unit Congress spokesman Pankaj Chaturvedi demanded that the government strengthen Scindia's security if needed.
Shripad Naik, India's new minister in charge of the department of Ayurveda, Yoga and Naturopathy, Unani, Siddha and Homeopathy (AYUSH), greets the media as he arrives to take charge of his office in New Delhi November 11, 2014. India has formed the new ministry to promote alternative therapies such as yoga and ayurveda, as Prime Minister Narendra Modi embarks on a mission to raise global appeal and awareness of home-grown health treatment. REUTERS/Anindito Mukherjee (INDIA - Tags: POLITICS HEALTH) - GM1EABB1KNI01

There is an immense scope for cooperation in medical tourism between India and the Netherlands, Union Minister of State for Ayush Shripad Yesso Naik said.

The healthcare system in the Netherlands is one of the best in Europe, and there is a lot of potential to integrate traditional knowledge from India, he said at a seminar titled 'India-Netherlands collaboration in Healthcare, including Ayurveda' at Leiden.

Ayush refers to traditional and non-allopathic medical systems in India. It includes ayurveda, yoga, unani, siddha, and homoeopathy.

"India is the world's largest producer of generic medicine and there is wide scope for medical value travel to India, both in conventional and alternative medical treatments such as Ayurveda," Naik said at the seminar organised by the Indian Embassy here.

Emphasising that the scope for cooperation in the health sector between the two countries is immense, he said, "India and the Netherlands can work together closely to promote healthy living."

Asserting that both the countries have top class medical practitioners, Naik said the Netherlands with its 2.25 lakh Indian origin population can lead the way in promoting Indian traditional medicine across Europe.

Addressing the seminar, Dutch minister for Medical Care and Sport Bruno Bruins said Ayurveda's approach for healthcare differs for individuals and being healthy does not only mean being free from illness but also being independent, functional and participating in society.

"Cooperation between India and the Netherlands in healthcare can become stronger with both countries working together to deal with the issue of antibiotic resistance," he added.

Alojz Peterle, former Prime Minister of Slovenia and current member of European Parliament, said Ayurveda is considered as the mother of modern medicine.

He further said Indo-European strategic cooperation should also include healthcare.

The Indian Ambassador to the Netherlands, Venu Rajamony, pointed out that the biggest health challenge the Netherlands faces is high costs and the need for care for an ageing population.

"Ayurveda and Yoga can help reduce costs and promote healthy ageing," Rajamony said.

The seminar was the concluding event of the 4th International Ayurveda Congress organised by the Indian Embassy in the Netherlands in collaboration with International Maharishi Ayurveda Foundation, Netherlands, All India Ayurvedic Congress, New Delhi and the International Academy of Ayurveda, Pune.

Naik is on an official four-day visit to the Netherlands from September 1. He is leading a delegation of senior officials from Ministry of Ayush, including the Pharmacopoeia Commission of Indian Medicine and Homeopathy.

The minister will meet the Deputy Mayor of the City of The Hague in charge of healthcare, witness a yoga demonstration by Dutch yoga enthusiasts and visit the Samadhi Sthal of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in Vlodrop tomorrow.
A major fire broke out at the National Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on September 2. The 200-year-old institution is the oldest of its kind in the South American country. (Image: Reuters)

So far, there have been no reports of casualties, which occurred on in the evening after the facility was closed for the day. (Image: Reuters)

The museum is home to 20 million artefacts, which includes a priceless collection of dinosaur fossils and a 12,000-year-old skeleton of a woman  the oldest ever found in the Americas. (Image: Reuters)

In a tweet, Brazil's President Michel Temer said that it was a "sad day for all Brazilians" as "200 years of work, research and knowledge were lost". (Image: Reuters)

Fire fighters and people present at the site were seen retrieving some of the items from inside the building. There remains a fear that many valuable national treasures could have been gutted in the blaze. (Image: Reuters)
Pakistan claimed that the USD 300 million aid the Pentagon has decided to scrap was not a military aid as the US owed this money to Islamabad for its support in the war on terror and was supposed to reimburse it.

At a hurriedly called press conference after the Pentagon announced that the US will cancel USD 300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to take actions against terror groups, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said the matter will be taken up during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to the country on September 5.

"The USD 300 million is neither aid nor assistance - it is the money Pakistan spent from its resources against militants and in the war against terrorism. This is the money they (US) are supposed to reimburse, but now either they are not willing or unable to pay back, he said.

"It was all our money that we spent and they (US) were merely reimbursing it," he said.

Earlier he told the BBC Urdu that the US in principle should pay back the money to Pakistan because it was spent for a common objective to defeat militancy and create peace and stability.

"We will sit and discuss this with him (Pompeo). We will try to improve bilateral ties between the two countries. We will listen to him and present our point of view to him as well," he said.

In a fresh blow to the deteriorating ties between the two nations, the Pentagon announced that the US will cancel USD 300 million in military aid to Pakistan over its failure to take "decisive actions" to support President Donald Trump's new South Asia policy and act against terror groups like the Haqqani network and Lashkar-e-Taiba.

The announcement comes just days before Pompeo is due to visit Pakistan to meet the country's new Prime Minister Imran Khan. The US and others have long complained that Pakistan provides safe haven to militant networks, allowing them to carry out cross-border attacks in Afghanistan.

The Pentagon's move, which needs to be approved by the US Congress, is part of a broader suspension of aid announced in January.

To a question about options for Pakistan to get the stopped funds, Qureshi said Pakistan will talk to the US because the money was already spent by Pakistan.

If they don't want to reimburse for future spending, it may be different thing. But morally and in principle, they should reimburse what we spent in the past, he said.

He said Pakistan welcomes the forthcoming visit of Pompeo as it will help to understand each other's point of view.

There are two sides of a picture. They (US) are showing only one side of it; we will show the other side, he said.

He added that there is a trust deficit between Pakistan and the US but the government wants to improve the ties and build trust between the two countries.

Qureshi said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government was not responsible for the latest tension or suspension of funds by the US as the deal to reimburse Pakistan the cost of war on terror was agreed in past.

He also blamed the government of former premier Nawaz Sharif for current tension with the US. Qureshi said the new government of Imran Khan will take all decision keeping in mind the interests of Pakistan.

US President Donald Trump since assuming office has been tough on Pakistan over its inaction against terror groups, saying Washington has got "nothing but lies & deceit" in return for millions of dollars in aid over the years.

Trump in August last year unveiled his new South Asia policy and asked Pakistan to do more against such groups.
Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina said Dhaka could extend its cooperation to Pakistan's new government under Premier Imran Khan's leadership for their mutual welfare.

"Imran Khan came to power after making massive struggle. We will extend cooperation to him if he seeks it from us, she said.

Hasina added, "We will do it considering the welfare of the people of Pakistan, not the conspirators (there). . . We've no objection to share experiences with them for the welfare of the common people".

She said Khan "hit many sixes" on the field but now "it is the time to see whether he could hit those sixes by remaining in power...we'll be happy if he can do it".

Hasina, however, said there were still some "Pakistan lovers" in Bangladesh who are still conspiring against their own country, in an oblique reference to fundamentalist Jamaat-e-Islami and its crucial ally BNP of now imprisoned ex-premier Khaleda Zia.

Dhaka-Islamabad relations plunged to their lowest ebb since Bangladesh initiated the war crimes trial in 2010 exposing Bengali war criminals who carried out atrocities while siding with Pakistani troops in the 1971 war.

To a question on the Myanmar military's use of "fake pictures" as part of their anti-Rohingya propaganda, Hasina blasted the regime there accusing them of spreading disinformation over their minority Rohingya population.

"This is a magical trick...What they are doing is disgusting," she said as foreign media investigations found that the Myanmarese army used fake photos in their bid to show so-called Rohingya atrocities on Burmese Buddhists decades ago.

Hasina said Myanmar committed a heinous act attacking and driving out tens of thousands of Rohingyas of their homeland but "the biggest matter is that they tarnished their own image".

The premier said Myanmar pledged to take back their displaced people from Bangladesh, but the reality is that they did not act accordingly.

"Myanmar is Bangladesh's next-door neigbour, so we never wanted any conflicting position (with them)...the international community gave support to Bangladesh on the issue and I extend my thanks to them for it," she said.

The prime minister said Bangladesh has given shelter to 1.1 million Rohingyas and made all kinds of arrangements for them while Dhaka was continuing talks with Myanmar for their repatriation and signed an agreement to this end.

"When talks are held with Myanmar they don't make any objection on the repatriation of the Rohingyas. But the reality is different," she said.
The Asian rout | The continents 128 billionaires lost $144 billion in 2018. The top three losers were from China, with Wanda Groups Wang Jianlin losing $11.1 billion this year. Close to 40 percent of the Asians under the index, lost their billionaire status as of December 7. (Image: Reuters)

China's massive and expanding "Belt and Road" trade infrastructure project is running into speed bumps as some countries begin to grumble about being buried under Chinese debt.

First announced in 2013 by President Xi Jinping, the initiative also known as the "new Silk Road" envisions the construction of railways, roads and ports across the globe, with Beijing providing billions of dollars in loans to many countries.

Five years on, Xi has found himself defending his treasured idea as concerns grow that China is setting up debt traps in countries which may lack the means to pay back the Asian giant. "It is not a China club," Xi said in a speech on Monday to mark the project's anniversary, describing Belt and Road as an "open and inclusive" project.

Xi said China's trade with Belt and Road countries had exceeded $5 trillion, with outward direct investment surpassing USD 60 billion.

But some are starting to wonder if it is worth the cost.

During a visit to Beijing in August, Malaysia's Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad said his country would shelve three China-backed projects, including a $20 billion railway. The party of Pakistan's new prime minister, Imran Khan, has vowed more transparency amid fears about the country's ability to repay Chinese loans related to the multi-billion-dollar China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

Meanwhile, the exiled leader of the opposition in the Maldives, Mohamed Nasheed, has said China's actions in the Indian Ocean archipelago amounted to a "land grab" and "colonialism", with 80 percent of its debt held by Beijing.

Sri Lanka has already paid a heavy price for being highly indebted to China. Last year, the island nation had to grant a 99-year lease on a strategic port to Beijing over its inability to repay loans for the USD 1.4-billion project.

"China does not have a very competent international bureaucracy in foreign aid, in expansion of soft power," Anne Stevenson-Yang, co-founder and research director at J Capital Research, told AFP. "So not surprisingly they're not very good at it, and it brought up political issues like Malaysia that nobody anticipated," she said.

"As the RMB (yuan) becomes weaker, and China is perceived internationally as a more ambiguous partner, it's more likely that the countries will take a more jaundiced eye on these projects." The huge endeavour brings much-needed infrastructure improvements to developing countries, while giving China destinations to unload its industrial overcapacity and facilities to stock up on raw materials.

But a study by the Center for Global Development, a US think-tank, found "serious concerns" about the sustainability of the sovereign debt in eight countries receiving Silk Road funds. Those were Pakistan, Djibouti, Maldives, Mongolia, Laos, Montenegro, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. The cost of a China-Laos railway project -- USD 6.7 billion -- represents almost half of the Southeast Asian country's GDP, according to the study.

In Djibouti, the IMF has warned that the Horn of Africa country faces a "high risk of debt distress" as its public debt jumped from 50 percent of GDP in 2014 to 85 percent in 2016. Africa has long embraced Chinese investment, helping make Beijing the continent's largest trading partner for the past decade.

On Monday, a number of African leaders will gather in Beijing for a summit focused on economic ties which will include talks on the "Belt and Road" programme.

At a daily press briefing on Friday, foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying denied that Beijing was saddling its partners with onerous debt, saying that its loans to Sri Lanka and Pakistan were only a small part of those countries' overall foreign debt.

"It's unreasonable that money coming out of Western countries is praised as good and sweet, while coming out of China it's sinister and a trap," she said.

Stevenson-Yang said China's loans are quoted in dollar terms, "but in reality they're lending in terms of tractors, shipments of coal, engineering services and things like that, and they ask for repayment in hard currency." Standard & Poor's said Beijing structures the infrastructure projects as long-term concessions, with a Chinese firm operating the facility for a period of 20 to 30 years while splitting the proceeds with the local counterpart or government.

The head of the International Monetary Fund, Christine Lagarde, raised concerns about potential debt problems in April and advocated greater transparency. "It's not a free lunch, it's something where everybody chips in," she said.
China President Xi Jinping

Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Monday that Chinese funds are not for "vanity projects" in Africa but are to build infrastructure that can remove bottlenecks in the continent's development.

Speaking at a business forum ahead of the start of a once every three years China Africa summit, Xi said: "Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects, but in places where they count the most."

"Inadequate infrastructure is believed to be the biggest bottleneck to Africa's development," he added.

Chinese officials say this year's summit will strengthen Africa's role in Xi's Belt and Road initiative to link China by sea and land through an infrastructure network modelled on the old Silk Road with southeast and central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa.

Xi said that the plan, which Beijing has pledged $126 billion for, would help provide more resources and facilities for Africa and would expand shared markets.

Xi was scheduled to address the opening of the summit later in the day.

From 2000 to 2016, China loaned around $125 billion to the continent, data from the China-Africa Research Initiative (CARI) at Washington's Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies shows.

It is the most significant contributor to high debt risks in three African countries, Congo Republic, Djibouti, and Zambia, CARI said last week.

In most other nations, traditional donors, multilateral agencies and private creditors held significantly higher portions of debt, it added. The last decade has seen a boom in African Eurobond issuance.

China has denied engaging in "debt trap" diplomacy, but Xi is likely to use the gathering of African leaders to offer a new round of financing, following a pledge of $60 billion at the last summit three years ago in South Africa.

Ethiopia and Zambia, heavy borrowers from China, have expressed desire to restructure that debt, while bankers believe Angola and Congo Republic have already done so, though details are sparse.

But even countries heavily indebted to China say Beijing offers far better terms than Western banks, and that European nations and the United States fail to match its generosity.

Every African country is represented at the business forum apart from eSwatini, self-ruled Taiwan's last ally on the continent, which has so-far rejected China's overtures to ditch Taipei and recognise Beijing.

African presidents in attendance include South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa, Egypt's Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Zambia's Edgar Lungu and Gabon's Ali Bongo.
No 9 | Japan | $47.6 billion | Fall by 0.1% (Image: PTI)

Japan's defence chief on Monday warned the country faces a tough security environment, with China and Russia stepping up military activity and North Korea posing "imminent threats".

Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera said China had been "unilaterally escalating" its military activities in the past year, including carrying out new airborne operations around Japan and running a nuclear submarine near disputed East Coast isles.

"China has been rapidly improving its military strength and fast increasing its military activities," Onodera told an annual gathering of the top brass of Japan's Self-Defense Forces.

"It is unilaterally escalating its military activities in the sea and aviation spaces around our country. This has become a significant concern for our country's defence," he said.

Onodera made the remarks as Tokyo attempts to improve its tense diplomatic ties with Beijing, with Prime Minister Shinzo Abe expected to visit Japan's biggest trade partner next month.

On coming to power, Abe took a firm position on Japan's claims to a disputed island chain in the East China Sea, aggravating tensions with Beijing.

But he has since softened his rhetoric, and called on China to press North Korea to give up its nuclear and missile programmes.

Japanese businesses have also voiced desire for closer ties with China to boost trade. Onodera said Russia was also flexing its military muscle.

Moscow is planning to hold its biggest drill since the Cold War era and is bringing powerful weapons, including ground-to-air missiles, to the disputed Southern Kuril islands, he said.

"We are seeing movement to again push forward its military activities in the Far East," he said.

Onodera also repeated that North Korea continues to pose a "serious and imminent threat" to Japan, despite international diplomacy intended to convince Pyongyang to denuclearise.
Travel, Pakistan Flag Hd Flag National Country Asi #travel ... Pinterest Travel, Pakistan Flag Hd Flag National Country Asi #travel, #pakistan, #

Pakistani lawmakers are set to choose a new President on Tuesday, an election in which the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf party's candidate is expected to win as the Opposition parties failed to field a joint candidate.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday completed preparations for the election. Polling stations have been set up in all four provincial assemblies in addition to the National Assembly. Chief Election Commissioner Sardar Raza Khan will serve as the Returning Officer.

Outgoing President Mamnoon Hussain's tenure ends on September 8. He had declined for re-election to a second 5-year term.

Three candidates ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf's Arif Alvi, the Pakistan Peoples Party's Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan and Jamiat-e-Ulema (F) chief Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman are in the race.

Alvi is a Karachi-based dentist-turned-politician, who reportedly stood by prime minister Imran Khan during his political career.

The joint Opposition was to field a single candidate to give tough time to Alvi and but failed to do so. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) last month nominated renowned lawyer and veteran politician Ahsan as a candidate.

Other opposition parties including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Muttahida Majlis-e-Aml (MMA) opposed the move. As the differences persisted, they nominated Rehman.

The Opposition parties excluding the PPP met in Lahore on Sunday to discuss the presidential elections. Rehman sought the support of PML-N to convince PPP to withdraw its nominee.

He asked the PPP to withdraw its candidate and avoid damaging the joint Opposition. PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira said that the division in the ranks of the Opposition will only benefit the ruling party.

He also hinted that the PPP could meet incarcerated former premier leader Nawaz Sharif to get his party's support for Ahsan. The PML-N has opposed the candidature of Ahsan as he had used harsh language against Sharif.

Since the PTI controls the National Assembly and has majority in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab and has support of the ruling Party in Balochistan, its candidate Alvi is in strong position.

But the Opposition parties are in majority in Senate. A joint opposition candidate can change the whole game, if he gets the support of some PTI back-benchers or disgruntled lawmakers.

At least two PTI lawmakers have recently criticised its leadership for neglecting them.

Being the highest elected official, president is a symbol of the federation in Pakistan but exercises powers on the recommendations of the prime minister.
State Bank of India (SBI), the country's largest lender has removed pay to Aadhaar functionality from its BHIM SBI Pay app citing regulatory guidelines.

However, several banks like Bank of India, Bank of Baroda, and United Bank of India have not yet removed Aadhaar pay functionality from their BHIM UPI apps. In fact, National Payments Corp of India (NPCI), which developed and promotes Unified Payments Interface (UPI) and Bharat Interface for Money application (BHIM), has itself not disabled Aadhaar pay from its 'BHIM Making India Cashless' app.

Explaining the new features of BHIM SBI Pay, the lender had stated, "Due to regulatory guidelines pay to Aadhaar functionality has been removed."

Earlier in July 2018, NPCI had asked banks to discontinue Aadhaar-based payments through the UPI and Immediate Payment System (IMPS) channels. Pay to Aadhaar is an additional functionality in UPI and IMPS where the payer can transfer funds to the beneficiary using an Aadhaar number.

"Aadhaar number is a sensitive information and the revised framework about its usage in the payment landscape is still evolving. With this background, we proposed removal of Pay to Aadhaar functionality in both UPI and IMPS before the steering committee (meeting held on 5 July 2018). The proposal of removing the Aadhaar number functionality was approved by the steering committee, NPCI had said in a circular issued on 17 July 2018.

From 31 August 2018, the 'Pay to Aadhaar' function would be removed from both UPI and IMPS. All member banks should remove this functionality both as remitter and beneficiary. Also, all interfaces currently offering this functionality, such as UPI apps and third-party apps, should remove this option from their respective apps by 31 August 2018, the circular from NPCI says.

When checked on Google Play, several public sector banks (PSBs) like Bank of India, Bank of Baroda and United Bank of India were still providing Aadhaar pay functionality from their BHIM UPI apps. In fact, Bank of India's 'BHIM BOI UPI' app was updated on 30 August 2018, but still offers pay to Aadhaar facility. NPCI also has not bothered to remove pay to Aadhaar from its own app.



IDFC Bank Ltd, which updated its 'BHIM IDFC Bank UPI' App on 31 August 2018, also has not mentioned anything about removing Aadhaar pay functionality. On the other hand, 'iMobile' app by ICICI Bank Ltd only talks about payments through UPI. It does not mention Aadhaar anywhere in its app.

Last year, NPCI, which is set up as a Section 25 company under the Companies Act 1956 (now Section 8 of Companies Act 2013), and is seen promoting its UPI- based BHIM app, had clarified that it should not held responsible for any loss, claim or damage suffered by the user.

In its terms and conditions for use of the BHIM UPI app, the company, promoted by 10 banks, had stated, "NPCI does not hold out any warranty and makes no representation about the quality of the UPI services or BHIM application. The user agrees and acknowledges that NPCI shall not be liable and shall in no way be held responsible for any damages whatsoever whether such damages are direct, indirect, incidental or consequential and irrespective of whether any claim is based on loss of revenue, interruption of business, transaction carried out by the user, information provided or disclosed by issuer bank regarding users account(s) or any loss of any character or nature whatsoever and whether sustained by the User or by any other person."

An Aadhaar number becomes a financial address when an Aadhaar is 'seeded' into a table called the 'NPCI mapper' by anyone linking the Aadhaar to a bank account. This mapper is a directory of Aadhaar numbers and Institution Identification Number (IIN) numbers used for the purpose of routing transactions to the destination banks. The IIN is a unique 6-digit number issued by NPCI to any participating bank.

If you, or anyone else, link your Aadhaar with another bank account, the NPCI mapper is overwritten with the new banks IIN. Money transferred to an Aadhaar number using the Aadhaar Enabled Payment System (AEPS) gets transferred to the bank account linked to the Aadhaar number at the branch recognised by the IIN.

This idea of a mapper, as used by NPCIs AEPS, does not allow for instructions from sender about the account to deposit money, but relies on periodic update of IIN in the NPCIs table mapping Aadhaar numbers from banks. This mapping is volatile because multiple banks periodically update the Aadhaar numbers linked with accounts held by them. Neither the banks, the NPCI nor you have control on where you would like your payments to go.

According to Dr Anupam Saraph, a renowned expert in governance of complex systems, money launderers exploit this volatility to make money transfers untraceable. "A money launderer can transfer money to an account linked to an alternate IIN and then re-seed the NPCIs mapper with the original IIN for the Aadhaar number, completely wiping out any trace of money to the alternate IIN. Like transactions of bearer shares in Panama, such money transfers becomes no different from a hawala transaction between real parties who remain anonymous or benami."

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The major indices of the Indian stock markets suffered a correction on Monday and closed with losses over Fridays close. On the NSE, there were 853 advances, 925 declines and 313 unchanged. The trends of the major indices in the course of Mondays trading are given in the table below:

The key Indian equity indices traded negative on Monday, after opening sharply higher on the back of healthy April-June GDP figures released last week. The indices trimmed major gains made earlier in the day, due to weak Asian markets. Globally, Asian markets traded in the negative territory on concerns of escalations in the US-China trade war. According to analysts, buying was witnessed in consumer durables, healthcare and IT (information technology) stocks.

Global software major Wipro said it had won a USD1.5 billion (10,500 crore) 10-year deal from the US-based technology firm, Alight Solutions LLC. "We have won a 10-year engagement to provide a suite of solutions and services to the Illinois-based Alight Solutions, a leader in technology-enabled health, wealth, human resources and finance solutions," said the Bangalore-based IT major in a statement. Claiming the deal to be its largest win so far, the company said it would generate $1.5-1.6-billion revenues over the tenure. Wipro shares closed at Rs309.15, up 2.49% on the BSE.

Commercial vehicles maker Ashok Leyland Ltd and car maker Ford India said they had logged sales growth in August. In a statement issued here, Ashok Leyland said it sold 17,386 units last month as against 13,637 units logged in August 2017. Car maker Ford India said its total sales last month stood at 20,648 units as compared to 15,470 units sold in August 2017. The domestic wholesales in August rose to 8,042 vehicles as against 7,777 units in the same month last year. Exports grew to 12,606 vehicles compared to 7,963 units in August 2017, Ford India said. On its part, Honda Cars India Ltd sold 17,621 units last month, up from 17,361 units sold in August 2017. "There was an impact of Kerala floods and heavy rains in many parts of the country combined with GST-related high base effect of August 17. We hope to recover quickly and keep growing strongly with rollout of attractive offers starting from today through the festive season ahead," Rajesh Goel, SVP and Director, Marketing and Sales Honda Cars was quoted as saying in the statement. Ashok Leyland shares closed at Rs133.40, up 3.21% on the BSE.

Two-wheeler majors TVS Motor Company Ltd and Eicher Motors Ltd said they logged sales growth in August 2018. In a statement, TVS Motor said it sold a total of 343,217 units (two and three-wheelers) last month up from 317,563 units sold in August 2017. On the other hand, Eicher Motors said it sold 69,377 units last month, up from 67,977 units sold in August 2017. TVS Motor Company shares Rs565.15, down 0.74% on the NSE. Eicher Motors shares closed at Rs28,715.00, up 2.34% on the NSE.

Automobile major Maruti Suzuki India reported a 3.4% dip in sales in August as the car maker sold a total of 158,189 units in the month, compared to 163,701 units sold in the year-ago month. "Sales during the month were adversely affected due to severe floods in Kerala and heavy rains in other parts of the country," it said. In the domestic market, it sold 147,700 units during August, down by 2.8% from 152,000 units sold in the corresponding month in 2017. The carmaker exported 10,489 units registering a 10.4% drop from 11,701 units shipped out in the year-ago month. It sold 114,261 units of passenger cars in the August 2018, falling by 1.4% from 115,897 units sold in the corresponding month 2017. Sales of its utility vehicles dropped by 16.2% to 17,971 units in August, while vans sales were at 13,663 units, decrease by 1.9% over corresponding month 2017. However, during the first five months of the current fiscal, it posted a 12.4% growth in sales to 813,037 units as compared to 723,618 units sold in the corresponding period of 2017-18. Maruti Suzuki India shares closed at Rs8,876.00, down 2.42% on the NSE.

The construction arm of L&T has won orders worth Rs2,654 crore across its businesses. The Transportation Infra business wins Rs2,095 crore order from MSRDC for 10th package of Nagpur-Mumbai Expressway. The Heavy Civil Infra business bags Rs559 crore order from MSRDC. Larsen & Toubro shares closed at Rs1,364.90, down 0.34% on the NSE.

Graphite India's subsidiary Graphite International BV has signed a definitive Agreement for investment of upto US$ 18.59 million in cash in General Graphene Corporation, a US-based unlisted company located in Knoxville, Tennessee, for a 46% stake (approx.) in the company. Graphite India shares closed at Rs1,008.00, down 0.49% on the NSE.

The top gainers and top losers of the major indices are given in the table below:

The closing values of the major Asian indices are given in the table below:
Capilano Honey Limiteds [ASX:CZZ] share price is the highest it has been in the past two years, despite facing accusations of selling fake honey.

Shares in the honey producer are sitting at $21.01 at time of writing, its highest price since August 2016.

Who is accusing Capilano of selling fake honey?

As reported by ABC, a leading international scientific lab that specialises in honey fraud detection has undertaken two types of tests on eight of Capilanos Allowrie budget products. Including Nuclear Magnetic Resolution (NMR) testing and the Australian standard test, C4.

The German Quality Services International (QSI) lab found that six of the eight products registered as adulterated, meaning that it was not pure honey, when NMR screening was used.

In contrast, these eight products all passed when tested by QSI using the Australian standard test.

The president of the International Federation of Beekeepers Association, Phil McCabe, stated that consumers are being misled referring to the NMR test as the most accurate available, as reported by ABC.

In addition, QSIs managing director Gudrun Beckh, who has been testing honey for nearly 30 years, backs the NMR test findings. Beckh told ABC that,

Fake honey always existed, but in the last years its a growing problem because of the people who adulterate using more and more sophisticated methods, so its more complicated to detect it.

Free Report: Discover four red hot ASX profit plays for 2018. Read Now.

What is Capilano saying in response?

When approached by ABC, Capilano has denied any allegations of selling fake honey, stating that it stands by its products being 100% pure.

Capilano stated that NMR testing was not the best way to determine adulteration, highlighting that it is not a part of the Australian or international testing regime.

The honey producer is claiming that NMR testing is unable to identify that blended honey from different regions is in fact pure. However, Beckh told ABC that the NMR test was able to pinpoint the country of origin and botanical origin of the honey.

What could the outcome be for Capilano?

It isnt looking good for Capilano. To add on to the case against Capilano, ABC revealed that the Australian Bee Industry Council, which Capilano is a board representative in, recently lobbied the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources requesting it move from C4 testing to NMR. Stating that honey producers have found ways around the C4 sugar test.

While this is still all accusations right now, theres little doubt that this episode is likely to tarnish Capilanos reputation for the time being. The major concern here is that supermarkets will pull Caplianos Allowrie brand from their shelves.

We will just have to wait and see how this one plays out.

Regards,

Ryan Clarkson-Ledward

For Money Morning

PS: Youll find over 2,000 stocks listed on the ASX and on any given day a bunch will rise or fall. Its near impossible to monitor these on your own. Our analyst Sam Volkering has picked out four Aussie stocks he believes could be top performers in 2018. Check out his free report The Four Best ASX Stocks for 2018.
One of the most iconic Kiwi treats has been saved from the brink of extinction thanks to a deal secured between Cadbury and RJ's Licorice.

When the Cadbury factory closed it's doors for good back at the start of the year, it meant that Kiwis everywhere faced the heartbreaking loss of some of the most loved Kiwi sweets, including the Jaffa.

But thanks to Levin based sweet company, RJ's Licorice, we can all rejoice as they have announced that they have secured a deal with Cadbury's owners to keep the production of Jaffas going.
Ruth Bamber, a UK tourist, is on the hunt for the precious engagement ring she lost while holidaying in New Zealand.

The woman was spending time in Queenstown with her future husband.

"I left it on the shelf above the sink in the upstairs ladies toilets at Remarkables Ski Area." the woman wrote on her Facebook page.

Her plea for help has sparked an online search, with many people trying to help out any way they can.

"Its really not worth a lot of money, the value of my ring is purely sentimental."

"Im sharing this is the hope that whoever found it will see my post and know that my ring means the world to me."

"If you have my ring, please hand it in to Queenstown Police station or Remarkables Ski Area,NZ. Theyll return it to me at my home address in the UK."

Hopefully the viral search for the ring sees a happy ending!

Source: Yahoo7
Donald Glover's Childish Gambino struck the country like an earthquake earlier this year when he released the metaphor-laden, deeply layered video for "This is America." Both the song and its video wrestled with issues such as systematic racism, financial inequality and the prevalence of gun violence.

Dropped in May, that video welcomed the warmer months. Over Labor Day weekend, the rapper dropped another new video to conclude this hot and humid season, fittingly for a song titled "Feels Like Summer."

The video - co-directed by Glover, Ivan Dixon and Greg Sharp, and illustrated by Justin Richburg - is nearly the diametrical opposite to "This is America." For one thing, it's animated. It also isn't as overtly political, even though the lyrics of "Feels Like Summer" reference climate change, water shortage and colony collapse disorder. Just consider the second verse:

Every day gets hotter than the one before

Running out of water, it's about to go down

Go down

Air that kill the bees that we depend upon

Birds were made for singing

Waking up to no sound

No sound

The video, though, doesn't spend much time on politics. Instead, it's filled with famous rappers just chilling as a character who appears to be Gambino strolls down a city street, listening to his headphones.

Everyone's engaged in classic summer activities. Birdman mans a grill, while Chance the Rapper eagerly awaits his meal. Nicki Minaj and Travis Scott, instead of feuding as they've been in real life, are playing with toy blocks. 21 Savage enjoys what appears to be a joint in his car. ASAP Rocky and Solange Knowles play a friendly round of tug-of-war with the Weeknd and some others. Drake chases after Future, who's riding a bicycle.

The vibe is serene and chill. It invites you to re-watch it again and again to catch all the hip-hop references animated throughout. The focus seems to be community as, for the most part, everyone is getting along.

The video ends with Gambino finally reaching a house, which he walks into. The lyrics annotation website Genius suggested this moment "symbolizes Gambino leaving the rap community" - but that's not the scene people are talking about.

Instead, they're focused on an image that precedes it, and only lasts a few seconds.

In the middle of the video, the screen changes for a moment, the neighborhood scene disappearing. Replacing it is a black screen. Slowly, an extremely depressed Kid Cudi appears, simply standing there.

He's then replaced with his mentor and collaborator, Kanye West, who also stands against a black background. He's wearing a bright red "Make America Great Again" hat - much like the autographed one he posted to Twitter during the epic rant in which he expressed affection for President Donald Trump - but he doesn't appear happy. Tears stream down his face like static waterfalls.

All he needs, or so it seems, is a hug from the former first lady.

A smiling Michelle Obama emerges from the darkness and wraps her arms around West, who opens his eyes. His tears quickly dry up. The darkness washes back over the two, who are replaced with Beyonce standing with her eyes closed and wearing a shirt reading "R.I.P. Fredo Santana," a reference to the rapper who died in January at 27.

The video then continues as before, with children spraying Meek Mill, Lil Wayne and Pusha T with water guns before moving on to J. Cole (who uses a hose to spray them back).

While many on social media have attempted parsing out the video's various references, particular attention has been paid to the West-Obama moment - and not all of the reactions were positive.

It is a fairly surprising thing to see, considering West's recent comments about slavery being a choice and his seemingly strong support of Trump. Many took issue with the scene, claiming it reinforces the corrosive stereotype of black women's primary function being to heal or fix black men.

"According to Childish Gambino, Kanye West needs a black woman to save him. Also related, water is wet," the Root tweeted.

"This messaging is both confusing and infuriating. Black women have our own issues yet we're supposed to fix everyone else's," tweeted another user. "Who is there to save us?"

Others, though, argued that the scene was meant to imply that West could use a motherly figure in his life.

West's mother, Donda West, underwent liposuction and breast reduction surgery in Los Angeles in November 2007. Complications arose, and she died the next day at age 58 "from some preexisting coronary artery disease and multiple postoperative factors following surgery."

West has long blamed himself for his mother's death, and it still appears to affect him. In April, as The Washington Post reported, West tweeted a screenshot of a "text-message conversation in which he said he plans to use a photo of Jan Adams - the surgeon who performed the operation on Donda West that led to her death - as the cover of his new album, which will potentially be titled 'Love Everyone.'" (He didn't end up using the photo, and his album was titled "ye.")

In fact, some have suggested it's actually Donda West, not Michelle Obama, depicted in the video - though that does not appear to be a popular opinion.

The only thing that's clear is Childish Gambino, who once released an album titled "Because the Internet," once again has the internet talking.
As I walked through an Iowa courthouse, I heard two women whisper, Did you hear, they found her body?

There was no need for the women to identify who they were talking about.

The whole state of Iowa and much of the nation had been fixated on the whereabouts of Mollie Tibbetts, a 20-year-old University of Iowa student who went missing July 18.

When I heard that a Mexican immigrant, Cristhian Bahena Rivera, was arrested in her murder, I groaned.

The name Herschel Grynszpan came to mind.

Never heard of him? Well, his role in history has been relegated to that of a footnote, but he was once the excuse Nazis used to step up the persecution of Jewish people.

On Nov. 7, 1938, the Jewish teenager walked into the German embassy in Paris and shot a mid-level diplomat.

Within hours, Nazis began an attack against Jewish communities throughout Germany, known as Kristallnacht (Night of Broken Glass). More than 90 people were killed, more than 30,000 Jews arrested and sent to concentration camps.

Of course, Grynszpan didnt cause the anti-Semitism within the German government, he was just an excuse to act upon it.

I use Holocaust analogies sparingly, recognizing it is unlike any other event in world history. But there are lessons to be learned. One is that bad leaders will exploit ethnic hatreds for political gain.

I fear that Cristhian Bahena Riveras alleged actions may be used by the Trump administration to paint an entire ethnic community in a false light.

Here is what Donald Trump said within hours of Riveras arrest:

You heard about today with the illegal alien coming in, very sadly, from Mexico and you saw what happened to that incredible, beautiful young woman. Shouldve never happened. Illegally in our country. Weve had a huge impact, but the laws are so bad. The immigration laws are such a disgrace, were getting them changed, but we have to get more Republicans. We have to get em.

So much for that treasured American value of being innocent until proven guilty.

The president is trying to use this tragedy to gain political advantage.

From Day 1, Trump has expressed a strong tone of animosity toward Hispanics  not just illegal immigrants.

For example, during the campaign he said federal Judge Gonzalo Curiel who was presiding over one of the two class action lawsuits pending against Trump University was a hater and later referred to him as a Mexican even though he was born and reared in Indiana.

On another occasion he said Mexican immigrants were rapists and drug dealers.

And the president hasnt limited his attacks to illegal immigrants, he has proposed legislation to restrict legal immigration in the U,S., making it harder for newcomers to get green cards or become U.S. Citizens.

Its a shameful period in American history.

Republicans and Democrats agree that the U.S. immigration system needs to be reformed. They dont agree on how it needs to happen.

Lets not let the tragic death of a young Iowan be used as an excuse to harm others.

As Mollie Tibbetts aunt, Billie Jo Calderwood, said, Please do not compound the atrocity of what happened to her by adding racism and hate to the equation.

Scott Reeder is a veteran statehouse journalist. He works as a freelance reporter in the Springfield area and produces the podcast Suspect Convictions.
All regional hospitals have been automated ...
President Donald Trump View Photos

President Trump delivered a Labor Day message and was Mondays KVML Newsmaker of the Day. Here are his words:

On Labor Day, we celebrate the American worker: the bulwark of our national prosperity and the cornerstone of our national greatness. Since taking office, my Administration has sought to restore the obligation of loyalty and allegiance that this Nations Government owes to its workers. In all economic decisions, we believe in our sovereign obligation to defend and protect our countrys workforce, and to seek its economic interests above that of any other country. Americas workers pay our taxes, support our values, serve in our military, raise our children, protect our Constitution, and build our communities. They deserve, in return, the unwavering fidelity of their Government.

Guided by this obligation, my Administration has taken historic action to advance prosperity for the American worker: cutting their taxes, eliminating regulations that threaten their jobs, unleashing American energy that powers their lives, restoring American manufacturing, and ending the transfer of wealth out of our country through disastrous trade deals that gutted our industries and our national strength. The result of our pro-America economic policies have been extraordinary: currently, in America, there are a record 162 million people working; initial claims for jobless benefits are at their lowest in half a century; and the unemployment rate of 3.9 percent is historically low.

We have also taken historic action to defend the American worker by upholding and enforcing the immigration laws enacted for their protection  and by seeking to reform our immigration system so that it protects the jobs, wages, and livelihoods of our Nations workers. Further, as we honor the work of all those in our labor force, we are especially mindful of the dignity gained from a hard days work. Thousands of Americans have found a renewed sense of purpose in our resurgent economy. The dedication, resolve, and pride of the American worker are the reason our Nation has achieved prosperity that was once thought unattainable.

My Administration is focused on investing in Americas workers and ensuring all Americans are on a path to good paying jobs. In July, I signed an Executive Order establishing the Presidents National Council for the American Worker and the American Workforce Policy Advisory Board, harnessing the expertise of leaders in business and education to develop a holistic, national workforce strategy to promote access to affordable, relevant education and job training opportunities. I have called on companies nationwide to sign our Pledge to Americas Workers and commit to investing in their current and future workforce by expanding education and reskilling programs. Already, many companies have answered that call, pledging to train and retrain more than 4.2 million American students and workers for new career opportunities across the country. Earlier this summer, I signed into law a reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act to provide students and workers with the skills necessary to succeed in a 21st century economy. I have also called for reforming the Federal Work-Study program, so that more Federal dollars go toward helping students  especially lower-income students  have more meaningful workplace experiences. And I have proposed to allow students to use Pell Grant funding to pay for cutting-edge, short-term programs that lead to quick and efficient transitions into the workforce.

We also recognize and honor the proud and historic role of our Nations labor unions in advocating for the interests of the American worker and wage-earner  and we have kept our promise to always keep the White House door open to members and leaders of our countrys labor organizations.

Further, as promised, I am renegotiating trade agreements to obtain fairer terms for American workers, farmers, ranchers, and businesses. For the past year, I have been negotiating with Canada and Mexico to fix the North American Free Trade Agreement. Earlier this week, I announced that my Administration has secured a preliminary deal between the United States and Mexico that modernizes and rebalances trade between our two countries in a way that greatly benefits American manufacturing, agriculture, services, and other sectors. I have also notified the Congress of my intent to sign a trade agreement with Mexico  and Canada, if it is willing. The deal I intend to sign will help create more reciprocal trade that grows our economy. It will also support high-paying jobs for American workers and protect the intellectual property of our Nations businesses and workers. In addition to these improvements in our United StatesMexico trade relationship, we have also agreed with the European Commission to work toward achieving zero tariffs, increasing United States exports, and addressing unfair trade practices. And we secured key amendments to the trade agreement with South Korea that will strengthen the manufacturing sector of the economy, generating increased job opportunities for American workers. We are also protecting our economy from unfair trade practices that threaten our innovation and technology.

The dedication, resolve, and pride of the American worker built the greatest country in the history of the world  the envy of nations and the pride of countless millions  and now, we are bringing to life the next great chapter in the history of this magnificent Republic.

The Newsmaker of the Day is heard every weekday morning at 6:45, 7:45 and 8:45 on AM 1450 and FM 102.7 KVML.
Richwood, TX (77531)

Today

Partly cloudy this morning with thunderstorms becoming likely this afternoon. High 79F. Winds ESE at 5 to 10 mph. Chance of rain 80%..

Tonight

Showers and thundershowers this evening will give way to steady rain overnight. Low around 55F. Winds NE at 10 to 15 mph. Chance of rain 90%.
A long history of cattle drives, dude ranches and rodeo champs prop Bandera as the Cowboy Capital of the World, but the town would not be on the map if not for a colony of early Polish workers who settled the region along the Medina River in the 1850s.

You can see some of them in the photographs in the above gallery. Elders in the 1920s, they were just children when their families built the first homes and the first church, St. Stanislaus Catholic Church, one of the oldest churches in Texas. Many of the residents in Bandera today are descendants of these first settlers.
Carol Kaliff /Hearst Connecticut Media

WEST HAVEN  Several school districts in Connecticut have announced that students will be dismissed early Tuesday as the temperature remains warm.

Districts that have announced planned dismissals include: West Haven, Milford, Danbury, New Fairfield, New Milford, Norwalk, Simsbury, and Stamford.
An arrest has been made in the murder of 19-year-old Erin Castro.

Joshua Garcia, described by the victim's family as her "off-and-on" boyfriend, has been charged in the death of the teen. Castro was found dead, hours after celebrating her birthday, in the 6100 block of Camp Bullis Road, around 12:51 a.m. Sunday, according to SAPD.

Castro's mother called police after receiving a call from her daughter saying Garcia had stabbed her in the neck and would not allow her out the vehicle. When officials located her body, it was apparent she had suffered "massive trauma" to her entire body from being run over, according to an arrest warrant.

RELATED: SAPD: Woman found slain on North Side road

She was pronounced dead at the scene.

According to documents, Garcia called his brother to the scene. When he showed up, he told police he saw the couple arguing before Castro fell to the ground. Garcia then ran a silver Lexus sedan over her body before reversing over it.

His brother said he saw Garcia get out of the car and kick Castro's body then drove off, according to records.

Garcia told police he was on en route to a club with Castro and another male when the argument began. He claimed Castro began assaulting him, so he called his brother. He admitted to hitting Castro to the point that she was on the side of the road, not moving. He said he ran the victim over because he was afraid she would call police.

Garcia faces a charge of murder.

Madalyn Mendoza is a digital reporter for mySA.com. Read more of her stories here.| mmendoza@mysa.com | Twitter: @MaddySkye
Bexar County Court-at-Law No. 1 Judge John Fleming needs to make his way back to the courthouse to finish the job he asked taxpayers for back in 2014. Or he should resign.

Four months are left in his current four-year term of office for which he is earning $157,000 a year. The taxpayers deserve a working judge.

A messy family life involving an estranged wife, a fiancee, fears for his personal safety, and health concerns about aging parents who live out of town have resulted in long absences from his courtroom. Even on the days when he does show up, the hours he keeps are short.

The whereabouts of the judge have been subject of courthouse speculation for years. The issue of Flemings work ethic took center stage in public recently when the two-term judge  who defeated an incumbent with 16 years on the bench during a Republican sweep at the polls  had fleeting second thoughts about his bid for re-election.

Fleming filed for re-election, was unopposed in the Republican primary and faces a Democratic challenger on the November ballot.

In a statement emailed to the Editorial Board last week, Fleming said he was withdrawing from the ballot, claiming he was resigning at the end of the calendar year because he was moving to Wichita Falls to be closer to his parents.

Shortly thereafter, he sent out second email saying there was a typo in his earlier statement and he meant he to announce he is retiring  not resigning.

The sudden decision to withdraw from the race surprised fellow Republicans. Flemings last-minute withdrawal from the race meant they would be unable to name a replacement candidate and might have to float a write-in candidate.

Bexar County Republican Party officials ended up rejecting Flemings request to withdraw from the race.

Fleming remains on the November general election ballot as a reluctant candidate. Even if he does not campaign, Fleming could very well end up getting elected. Thats because many voters cast ballots based solely on political affiliation.

In the meantime, retired County Court-at-Law Judge Tim Johnson, one of many visiting judges who have had to cover for Fleming, was handling the absent judges docket last week. It was Johnsons second week there.

Visiting judges who are retired cost taxpayers $500 a day, and that has some county court-at-law judges fearful that Flemings extended use of visiting judges will deplete the budget. His colleagues have made inquiries about his plans through the end of the year but had not received an answer as of last week.

If Fleming has no plans to return to his bench, some have said, they want the cases pending in his court distributed among them so the court does not have to keep using a visiting a judge.

It is highly unlikely that Fleming will give up his job voluntarily before the end of the year. If he stays on the county payroll until then, hell be vested into the countys retirement system and become eligible to sit as a visiting judge.

Under the current system, he is only accountable to the voters. If he is not actively seeking re-election and plans to move out of the county, there is no real incentive for him to return to his bench before retirement.

The courthouse is full of hardworking judges. But the way some treat their job is appalling. Its time to stop thinking of election to a Bexar County bench as winning lottery ticket guaranteeing a cushy salary for four years with minimal effort.

That mindset is a disservice to the hardworking members of the judiciary who take their jobs seriously, and it undermines public confidence in the justice system.

Fleming should either resign outright or return to work as much as he can.
Universal Yums

4.3 overall rating

39 Ratings | 29 Reviews

Universal Yums is a snack subscription box that sends out sacks and candies from a different country each month. Choose from the Yum Box for $14 a month, the Yum Yum Box for $25 a month, or the Super Yum Box for $39 a month. This months box takes us to Taiwan!

This review is of the Yum Yum box, which is $25 a month.

This box was sent to us at no cost for review. (Check out the review process post to learn more about how we review boxes.)

About Universal Yums

The Subscription Box: Universal Yums

The Cost: $25 a month + free US shipping

The Products: The contents of the boxes change each month as they to highlight the best snacks from each featured country. However, you can always expect a mix of flavors: salty, sweet, spicy, fruity, and more. Only authentic snacks from the featured country.

Ships to: U.S., Canada, U.K., and Israel

Universal Yums The United Kingdom August 2018 Review

This is my second box from Universal Yums, and I was excited to see what country they were featuring this month. I love men with British accents, and as a (double) corgi mom, I was excited to learn more about the treats from our friends across the pond. When you flip the flag over, there is a fun little grid that features all the products and gives you the ability to gamify your tasting a bit  awarding the snacks in different categories. Theres a social media challenge asking you to upload your ballot on social media tagging @universalyums for a chance to win a box full of goodies!

A great info guide is included in the box  with a write up (including ingredient list!) of each of the items. I thought it was interesting to learn a little about each snack as I enjoyed it, especially the ones that I found a bit unusual  but more on that in a bit!

Now, lets snack!

Mackies Sea Salt and Cider Vinegar Chips

Fish and chips! These Scottish chips are made with the same vinegar that is used in traditional fish and chip shops in the UK. I probably am in the minority on this one, but I hate the smell of vinegar chips and its virtually the 1 snack I can always pass up. I did sample these for review purposes and I thought that they tasted very much like a think Ruffles salt and vinegar chip. If you like those, youd love these  but for me, its a hard no! I do understand why they included these in the box as a nod to their traditional fish and chips dish.

Deans Light & Crumbly Choc Chip Shortbread Mini Bites

Ah, now I can get behind these. I LOVE shortbread! This is a great size box for sharing since it contains 12 mini bites (although not that mini, these cookies are about 1.5 in diameter). They are super crumbly, or short which I learned from the pamphlet, which means that there is a ton of fat in this recipe (it ties to its namesake shortening, which is the fat used in baking). I only allowed myself to eat one of these, but I could have easily downed this whole package! Seriously  melt in your mouth goodness.

Walkers Nonsuch Dreamy Creamy English Toffee Bar

This bar is divided into 6 sections, but I found it pretty hard to break it apart and ended up just biting it to try. Its a thick, decadent caramel  creamy, buttery, and so yummy. However, it was the type of treat that clung to my teeth which isnt my favorite thing to munch on at work. You definitely need to brush your teeth after this indulgence!

Jonnys Pickled Onion Rings

Eh, these fall into the same category as salt and vinegar chips in my book  gross. The plus side is I found another snack that I can definitely pass up! These onion rings are similar to Funyuns, but with a very strong pickled or vinegar flavor. If you like salt and vinegar chips, these are for you! They are, however, most certainly not for me.

Mackies Haggis and Black Pepper Chips

True or False: Haggis is a small wild animal with two legs shorter than the others so that it can run around the mountains without falling over.

False! if you fell for that no worries. Youre in line with 1/3 of American tourists who fall for this popular Scottish joke. Haggis is actually a pudding made from a mixture of sheeps pluck (heart, liver, and lungs), onion, grains, and spices that is then boiled in an animal stomach.

Gross. (No offense to anyone who might dig that  but that is definitely not my bag).

These chips are made with artificial flavors and contain no meat products so I did give it a try. I could really just pick up the black pepper flavor, and out of the 3 bags of chips in this box, these were definitely my favorite. I think theyd be fantastic in a French onion dip.

Wagon Wheels Jammie  Buy a 6-pack for $6.95

I learned that 350K people eat these cookies every day! These popular treats are basically 2 cookies covered in chocolate and filled with marshmallow fluff and raspberry jam. I had never tasted one before, and I found it to be quite delicious.

Bristows of Devon Rhubarb and Custard Bonbons

Ive really only eaten rhubarb in a strawberry and rhubarb pie, so I was curious what this little snack would taste like. First, this is a pretty large bag  1 piece was plenty for me and was quite chewy (it took a while to chew and swallow it  similar in texture to a caramel). It tasted kind of like a strawberry lemonade candy to me, but I might be in the minority on that one. I did like this treat though and thought it was pretty unique  not something Ive ever noticed in an American grocery store.

Mackies Mature Cheddar and Onion Chips

Finally a chip I can stand behind! These taste like the popular cheddar and sour cream chips often enjoyed in the US. There is a very strong onion flavor, so if you plan to kiss someone with that aforementioned accent in the near future you might want to avoid these!

Toffypops  Retail Value $1.28 USD (0.99)

Dont let the name fool you, these are flaky chocolate covered tea cookies filled with soft butter toffee. In the UK, this is a popular tea time snack. I feel like Ive tasted similar cookies before, but I cant think of the name of them right now. I think there was a girl scout cookie years ago that was almost exactly like this treat.

Moving on to the yum bag thats filled with a few types of individually wrapped candies

Walkers Nonsuch Treacle Toffee  Buy a 150g bag for $3.18 USD (2.45)

For my friends with a sweet tooth, if a caramel itself is not sweet enough for you then this one might tickle your fancy. This caramel is infused with treacle  a sweet golden liquid similar to molasses. I found it chewy, super sweet, and was felt very satisfied after one of these candies.

Kir Royale Chews

These black current and champagne flavored candies (contains no alcohol) are meant to mime a Kir Royale cocktail. I found it to be soft, chewy, tart, slightly sweet, and delicious.

Stockleys Chocolate Limes

Hands down, lime is my favorite candy flavor. I was so angry when they switched out the green skittle to be apple. This hard candy has the zingy lime flavor that I love but in an unusual and (in my opinion unnecessary) twist its filled with a creamy chocolate center. It was just OK for me, I could have sucked on the lime outside all day and didnt need the chocolate but it was fun to try something different.

Prosecco Fudge

This was a soft, sweet little bit of fudge. There was no fizziness, and I couldnt taste much but sweet  in fact, I didnt taste much chocolate. Im also not sure who manufactured this because there were no markings on the wrapper, but it looks to be a popular item offered by many brands if you Google it.

The Verdict: Universal Yums is an international snack box with a great sense of humor! I loved the varieties of flavors and textures featured, and I thought that it was a great value. For $25 I received a ton of different snacks. I also love the playfulness of the curation but was surprised to see several favors from the same brand offered. It makes me wonder if there is a shortage of snacks in the UK or are these the best ones?

If I were to fill out the scorecard from above I would say that in my opinion:

Best Yum: Deans Light & Crumbly Choc Chip Shortbread Mini Bites

Runner-Up: Mackies Mature Cheddar and Onion Chips

Worst Yum: Jonnys Pickled Onion Rings

Most Unusual: Mr. Mais  Chewy Sweet Corn Candy with Butter Filling

To Wrap Up:

Can I still get this box if I sign up today? No, you will receive the September box, which ships 9/15.

Value Breakdown: This box is $25.00 a month (including shipping). I received 13 varieties of snacks, which averages out to $1.92 per item.

Check out all of our Universal Yums reviews and find similar boxes in the Snack Subscription Box Directory!

Keep Track of Your Subscriptions: Add this box to your subscription list or wishlist!

Which Universal Yums snack would you most like to try?
Since taking over from Mugabe with the assistance of the military in November last year, President Emmerson Mnangagwa has faced criticism for doing very little to achieve gender parity in the top echelons of his government.

His ruling Zanu PF partys constitution specifically provides for a 50-50 percent representation of men and women at all levels. Regardless, it is the men who still run the show in both Zanu PF and government.

In the wake of concerns over the partys failure to include a woman in the presidium following the appointment of Constantino Chiwenga and Kembo Mohadi as Mnangagwas deputies on Thursday, Zanu PF national chairperson Oppah Muchinguri-Kashiri revealed that none of the women in the ruling party stood up to the plate to be considered in the presidium.

This was despite ringing calls at the ruling partys previous annual conferences for it to observe the quota system.

If you have checked our Constitution, that is our guiding document, it accommodates the quota system. Its very gender sensitive, it talks about equality, a woman can be president and can push to be vice president, if people feel she is fit for that appointment. Our constitution recognises equality which is supported by the Constitution of the country, which also talks about equality.

The equality clause is what is critical. So we havent had a woman who was interested to stand as a president or vice president but once we have such a person, the party can accommodate such a person, said Muchinguri-Kashiri.

The quota system was once used against Mnangagwa in 2004 when Mugabe used machiavellian tactics to elevate Joice Mujuru, who was way his junior, to the position of vice president even though the former secretary for legal affairs had the majority of the political provinces behind him.

The position had been left vacant following the death of Simon Muzenda in September 2003.

In terms of the partys old constitution, it declared that four members of the partys central committee were supposed to be a president and first secretary, two vice presidents and second secretaries  one of whom shall be a woman  and a national chairperson.

The womens quota system was abolished in 2014, following the sacking of Mujuru, who has been the only woman to be accommodated in the presidium since the country got independence in 1980.

The provision was only re-introduced a year later at the partys annual conference in Victoria Falls, as one of the partys resolutions.

Former Zanu PF member Margaret Dongo told the Daily News on Sunday that there is need for a change in the Zimbabwean political system and adherence to the Constitution, which allows equal representation of both men and women.

That is a womens problem. They have failed to use their voices they have a right to remind the president of the constitutional requirement. This also shows that the issue of gender equality holds no water in the Zimbabwean political system, women have been suppressed and not given a chance to stand and challenge the constitution.

As a result women also have failed to gather confidence and stand up to challenge this system as well. Not forgetting the other women rights-based NGOs and gender commissions which are failing to challenge the government which is not acting according to the Constitution Section 17 which speaks on gender equality, Dongo said.

She said there was need for the country to do away with the traditional, religious and patriarchal systems that do not promote womens elevation.

Dongo also said gender equality will only hold water when a woman is recognised by other women and the society, as an independent person, with principles and values.

I feel as Zimbabweans we still have to learn, understand and appreciate that women can also lead and even make better decisions. I want to suggest that in future elections, presidents should run for office with their vice presidents, meaning that the vice presidents should go through the elections as well, and not to leave it to the elected presidents who are mostly men to appoint the vice presidents.

Women are in majority but minority in decision making positions. The only way to address this discrepancy is to have a vice president elected by the citizens, according to her efforts just like the president is elected, she said.

Since 2015, the partys women league has been demanding that the Zanu PF Constitution be aligned to the national governance charter which says there must be 50-50 representation in all positions.

The move was reportedly aimed at pushing for Mugabes wife Grace to take over from Mnangagwa, who was then the partys vice president.

This move was reportedly being pushed by a party faction known as Generation 40, which was fighting hard to extinguish Mnangagwas chances of taking over the reins of power from Mugabe.

However, after Mugabes resignation last November, following the army intervention, the calls for a woman in the presidium have seemingly died down.

Women in Zimbabwe continue to face a number of challenges in their quest to be at par with their male counterparts. Some of the issues impeding this development include the countrys cultural and religious values and the patriarchal tendencies within the society.

In May this year, the Zimbabwe Gender Commission bemoaned the marginalisation of women in key political and developmental issues, claiming during Zanu PF primary elections only 11 percent of the total aspirants were female.

while the Constitution provides a set of commitments to ensure womens active and equal participation in electoral processes, women continue to be marginalised in politics. This is also despite the country having adopted an engendered Constitution and ratified several international and regional frameworks which promote the equal participation of women in political and decisionmaking processes such as the Convention on the Elimination of all forms of Discrimination Against Women, International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, Protocol on the Rights of Women in Africa and the Sadc Protocol on Gender and Development, Zimbabwe Gender Commission chairperson Margaret Mukahanana-Sangarwe, said then.

According to the countrys Constitution, 60 national assembly seats are reserved for women, 60 senatorial and 10 persons on each provincial council, who would be elected on the basis of proportional representation.

Of the 60 seats reserved for women and 60 senatorial seats, six will come from each of the countrys 10 provinces.

In a statement, the Women in Politics Support Unit, said Mnangagwa must demonstrate commitment to gender parity as enshrined in the Constitution, by even appointing a 50-50 percent Cabinet and prioritise the rights of women.

We welcome the commitment to constitutionalism that the president made at his inauguration, and accordingly draw his attention to Section 56 (2) of the Constitution which provides that women and men have the right to equal treatment, including the right to equal opportunities in political, economic, cultural and social spheres. Therefore, we strongly urge the president to stand guided by the principle of equality and non-discrimination.

Whilst we are encouraged by the presidents declarations to ensure the advancement of women through strengthening their capacity in the economy; we urge him to ensure a prioritisation and promotion of the rights of women in the presidents 2030 Agenda, in particular, ensuring a governance system which is responsive to women and womens rights. This key element must be central in building the path of equality and inclusiveness, which is badly needed for the presidents successful administration of Zimbabwe, the organisation said.

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- The Democratic Party (ADP) claims that the alleged threat was made by Joe Igbokwe of the APC during a television programme

- The ADP wants the police commissioner in Lagos and other security agencies to be aware of the alleged threat

- The party says it is considering necessary steps including going to court over the alleged threat

- Igbokwe reacts by calling Gbadamosi a dangerous character and warning ADP to avoid making the mistake of fielding him in 2019

The Action Democratic Party (ADP), in Lagos state has raised an alarm over what it described as a death threat on the life of its aspirant, Babatunde Olalere Gbadamosi, popularly known as BOG on a live television show.

The party accused the spokesperson of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, Joe Igbokwe, of making the threat.

The opposition party said Gbadamosi was on Standpoint, a political programme on Television Continental (TVC) on Saturday, September 1, 2018 at about 1:30 pm alongside Joe Igbokwe and Gloria Okolugbo, the APC gubernatorial aspirant in Delta state and they were responding to series of questions concerning Nigerian politics ahead of 2019.

Joe Igbokwe in his usual locquaicious manner interrupted BOG when a question about political development in Lagos and Nigeria was asked by the anchor. Instead of addressing the issues, Igbokwe jumped into name calling, blackmailing and assassination threat on Babatunde, the ADP said in a statement to journalists on Sunday, September 2.

READ ALSO: Ijaw nation mourns as accident claims ex-NDDC chairman, son and police aide

The statement issued by Prince Adelaja Adeoye, said the ADP was calling on the Lagos state commissioner of police, Imohimi Edgal, the Department of State Services (DSS), and all the relevant security agencies to note the death threat issued by the APC spokesperson against its governorship aspirant.

The party warned that nothing must happen to Gbadamosi, his family and associates or any of its members before, during and after the 2019 elections.

It also declared that the APC should be held responsible for any breakdown of law and order in Lagos state, because of the alleged death threats even before the commencement of 2019 elections.

The party said Igbokwe may have resorted to the threat because he can see the handwriting on the wall, regarding the impending defeat that awaits his party.

The ADP stressed further that it is instructive to note that Joe Igbokwe may have just let out the plans of his party against the opposition as the 2019 governorship election in Lagos draws closer.

The party added that its members are law abiding and would take all the necessary steps including legal means concerning this alleged threat by Joe Igbokwe.

The party also reminded Igbokwe that Gbadamosi never held any elective or nominative position in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) from which he defected to the ADP.

It therefore wondered where Igbokwes allegation that he ran from the PDP after embezzling funds in the party for 16 years came from adding that the allegation would not be treated with kid gloves.

The ADP has challenged Igbokwe to quickly provide evidence or be dragged to court in the coming days.

ADP said it would like to make it abundantly clear, demanding the public to take note of the activities of the political opportunists, miscreants and thugs who are ready to do dirty jobs for their benefactors, that all the politically motivated killings in Lagos will not be swept under the carpet inclusive of that of Engr Funsho Williams, Dipo Dina and others.

However, in an email response to Legit.ngs enquiry, Igbokwe said he never knew Gbadamosi could go to the extent of abusing other Nigerians who are not Yoruba until they met during the show.

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Igbokwe said: I did not know that this man has been habouring this horrible misgiving against me for ages until he met me to vent his anger and hate. We had met before at Channels TV where he came near to fighting me for expressing my opinion.

He coulf not figure out why I have to come from the east to serve in Lagos. I have seen ethnic bigotry before but the one displayed by Babatunde Gbadamosi today exposed the man who wants to rule the metropolitan Lagos as nothing but a dangerous man full of primordial sentiments and ethnic preoccupation.

I understand he is fond of walking out on TV stations because he cannot control his terrible temperament and emotions. ADP should not make the mistake of fielding thus dangerous character but get a more saner person. Such an ugly character!!!

Legit.ng earlier reported how ahead of the 2019 general elections in Nigeria, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) suffered a major setback as Babatunde Gbadamosi, one of its strong members in Lagos, dumped the political organisation.

Senator Kwankwaso Rabiu announces his Presidential Bid (Election 2019) | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Lai Mohammed said Nigeria has become a popular destination for investors

- The minister said Nigeria is getting global attention because of the incorruptible leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari

- He added that the global leaders are coming to Nigeria because this government is providing good leadership in the areas of security and infrastructure

The minister of information and culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, says Nigeria is getting global attention because of the incorruptible leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The minister stated this on Sunday, September 2, when he appeared as guest on a Nigeria Television Authority programme, Stepping Up.

What we have witnessed recently have shown beyond doubt that Nigeria is today an investors destination.

Last week we received British Prime Minister, Theresa May. During the visit, several bilateral agreements were signed. Friday of same week, we received German chancellor, Angela Merkel. Several bilateral agreements were also signed.

READ ALSO: Chinese dancing Sai baba in full northern regalia (video)

The global leaders are coming to Nigeria because this government is providing good leadership in the areas of security and infrastructure. The perception globally about the government is that it is providing an incorruptible leadership, a government that you can do business with, without fear.

In one year alone, we climbed 24 steps in the ladder of ease of doing business. These are all the things they have seen that are attracting them to cone to partner and invest," he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the minister said the three cardinal goals driving the administrations success were, focus, discipline and integrity.

We did not invent the Treasury Single Account (TSA), but we are the administration that is disciplined enough to ensure that all proceeds of government go into the TSA.

This has helped a lot. Before now, funds belonging to government were in thousands of bank accounts and the result was that we were paying a lot of bank charges on the accounts .

Under the old system, the government could not have wholistic idea of how much fund it had, which hampered planning. Today, every penny of government is being paid into TSA. This has helped a lot," he said.

READ ALSO: 2019: APC states chairmen reportedly storm Abuja over mode of primaries

The minister recalled that the administration at inception suffered massively from the drop in oil prices. He said with discipline, focus and integrity, the administration was able to bring out the nation from recession.

Mohammed said he subscribed to the directive by the APC national executive committee that the process for selecting the partys presidential candidate should be by direct primaries. He said the direct primaries would allow all members of the party in all nooks and crannies of the country the right to choose their leader.

He noted that there had been a lot of hype on the gale of defection particularly as it concerned, his home state, Kwara.

Yes, we lost some people who left with the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, like the state governor and 23 of the 24 members of House of Assembly. But the good news is that APC had gained massively. Many PDP members who could not stand in the same party with Saraki are defecting to APC.

The most important thing is that the people of Kwara are very much with us and I am confident that come 2019, we will win massively in Kwara state, he said.

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On fake news phenomenon, the minister said it is a global epidemic that is not abating at all and our own resolve to confront it is also not abating

He reiterated the government resolve not to coerce or censor but to continue with advocacy and depend on the conscience of media practitioners.

Legit.ng earlier reported that Nigeria's federal government set aside 1.3 billion dollars (about N468 billion) from the National Sovereign Investment Fund to finance five critical infrastructure projects.

The minister of information and culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, disclosed this on Sunday, September 2, when he appeared as guest on a Nigeria Television Authority programme, Stepping Up.

Buhari to contest for presidency in 2019! - on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Abubakar Malami has challenged the suit seeking to stop the removal of Bukola Saraki as Senate president

- Malami challenged the court's jurisdiction to entertain the suit filed by two PDP senators

- He described the action by the senators as mischievous

The Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, has urged the Federal High Court in Abuja to hands of the case seeking to stop the removal of the Senate president, Bukola Saraki.

The AGF challenged the court's jurisdiction to entertain the suit filed before it by two former All Progressives Congress (APC) senators, Rafiu Adebayo and Isa Misau.

The AGF said the lawmakers who defected from APC to the opposition Peoples Democratic Party are mischief makers and have failed to establish the need to institute the action.

READ ALSO: Chinese stun audience as they dance Sai Baba in full northern regalia (video)

He said the lawmakers failed to show that the Senate president's removal would affect personal rights.

In a preliminary action to the suit marked FHC/ABJ/CS/843/2018, the AGF accused the lawmakers of crying more than the bereaved on the matter.

Adebayo and Misau had in their suit alleged that some members of the APC led by the party's national chairman, Adams Oshiomhole, had perfected all plans to use force against Saraki to vacate his position as the Senate president of the eight Senate.

READ ALSO: Why world leaders want to do business with Nigeria - Lai Mohammed

The duo also applied for an order of the court seeking to stop the impeachment of Saraki as the leader of the Senate.

Misau in a 13-paragraphed affidavit said the APC was collaborating with key security agencies and the AGF to ensure that Sarakis removal.

However, the AGF, in his objection, urged the court to decline jurisdiction to entertain the suit, he argued, lacked merit.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the court had on Tuesday, August 28, warned against any unlawful move to remove Saraki from office.

The court said all action on such move will be pending the determination of a suit filed by some senators in that regards.

Nigeria Election 2019: What are Bukola Sarakis chances against President Buhari on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit Nigeria
- Rochas Okorocha has said that he will be missed by Imo people after he is gone as governor of the state

- The governor said Imo people will definitely look back with admiration at his years in office

- According to Okorocha, he has done enough for the people of the state

The governor of Imo state, Rochas Okorocha, has said that the people of the state would miss his presence as governor when he hands over to his successor in 2019.

Okorocha said he has done enough for the people of the state and was sure they would miss him when he is gone.

He said with the over 1,000 verifiable projects of the Rescue Mission Government in the state to his credit, Imo people will definitely look back with admiration at his years in office.

READ ALSO: AGF asks court to hands off suit against Sarakis removal

Daily Trust reports that Okorocha said he had repositioned Imo state for good after the purchase of all the assets sold by previous administrations.

In a statement signed by his chief press secretary, Sam Onwuemedo, the governor said: "The free education programme in the State which some opponents of the government had tried to discredit when it was introduced has yielded obvious remarkable results.

"And aside the school enrolment in the state snow balling from 381,000 in 2011 to more than One million in 2017, the state has continued to lead in JAMB applications for the Seventh time now.

READ ALSO: Chinese stun audience as they dance Sai Baba in full northern regalia (video)

The state has also continued to do very well in WAEC Exams. For instance, in the 2018 Senior School Certificate Exam (SSCE), the state came fifth out of the Thirty six states in the country and the Federal Capital Territory."

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that Okorocha had accused the people of the state of clamouring for an unwritten zoning principle to be adopted concerning who emerges in 2019.

The allegation by the governor followed agitations for the governorship seat to be zoned to Owerri.

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However, Okorocha described the agitators as educated illiterates, uniformed and clanish stating that those calling for zoning do not have the capacity to govern.

Why Governors Steal? Rochas Okorocha of Imo State on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit.ng
- Imo state police has arrested six suspected armed robbers

- Several guns and a bag that contained India hemp were recovered from the suspects

Six suspected members of a deadly armed robbery gang terrorising Imo state have been arrested by operatives of the Federal Special Anti-Robbery Squad (F-SARS).

The suspects were arrested with two locally-made pistols, two locally-made revolver pistols with three live unexpended cartridges, one ammunition and a bag of weed suspected to be India hemp, The Punch reports.

READ ALSO: We will support Atiku in 2019 - Afenifere

The suspects were arrested in the early hours of Sunday, September 2, according to a statement by the state commissioner of Police, Dasuki Galadanchi.

The suspects paraded by the police. Source: Punch

Source: Twitter

Galadanchi gave the names of the suspects as Onyebuchi Uruaku, 62; Micheal Chigozie, 20; Ifeanyi Uchenna, 21; Ugochukwu Ejiniogu, 28; and Chinonso Obiakor, 32.

The police boss said: We have redoubled efforts in fighting criminality in Imo State. This is ember and we have closed all the gaps."

PAY ATTENTION: Read the news on Nigerias #1 news app

Meanwhile, Legit.ng earlier reported that the police command in Akwa Ibom state said its officers had killed four of the five suspected armed robbers who robbed a fuel station in Ikot Ekpene in Akwa Ibom on August 21.

The commissioner of police in the state, Adeyemi Ogunjemilusi, made the disclosure at a news conference in Uyo on Friday.

Robbers Return Firearms to Nigerian Police (Crime News in Nigeria) | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit Nigeria
- A report by the Delta state government has said that the collapsed St. Paul's Catholic Church building was built 100 years ago

- The state government in its reports said the church collapsed as a result of heavily soaked waters

- Recall that the building collapsed on worshippers on Sunday, September 2

The St. Paul's Catholic Church, Ugolo, Adagbrasa in Okpe local government area of Delta state which collapsed on worshippers on Sunday, September 2, was 100 years old, a report has said.

Daily Trust reports that a preliminary report by the Delta state government delegation on inquiry of the collapsed building said the church was built 100 years ago.

An aide to the governor quoting the leader of the delegation and the commissioner of works in the state, James Augoye, said the church collapsed as a result of heavily soaked waters.

READ ALSO: Hands off suit against Saraki's removal - AGF warns court

He said: "The church is a 100 years old church building and in an attempt to rebuild and expand the church, the old church building collapsed as a result of heavily soaked waters occasioned by the weight of worshippers who leaned against the walls while the early morning mass was on."

The aide also called for necessary approvals for buildings especially public structure before construction to avoid such incidences.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that a Catholic Church in Delta state collapsed during morning mass on Sunday, September 2.

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The collapse of the church building led to the death of one person while many others were injured.

What does Nigeria need right now? (Nigerian Street Interview) | on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- PDP has criticised President Muhammadu Buhari's statement on illegal migration

- President Buhari while meeting with Angela Merkel said illegal migrants are doing so at their own risk

- The PDP described this statement as unkind and unnecessary while agreeing with the president that illegal migration is a crime

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has said although it agreed with President Muhammadu Buhari that illegal migration is a crime, the party disagreed with the president's recent statement on illegal migrants.

Recall that Legit.ng reported that President Buhari, during a meeting with German chancellor, Angela Merkel, said Nigerians leaving the country illegally are doing so at their own risks.

READ ALSO: Police arrest 6 suspected robbers terrorising Imo state

The opposition party, PDP, while reacting to the statement said the president could have been more kind to the plight of Nigerians seeking greener pastures.

The party's national publicity secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, said: Is it not disturbing to Mr. President that reports by Nigerian Immigration Services showed that more Nigerians have been trapped in detention and slave camps in various parts of the world?"

The Guardian reports that PDP said it is the presidents duty, as elected leader of government, to pursue the fundamental human rights of his citizens, as well as find solution to the problems pushing Nigerians to adopt illegal migration, irrespective of the huge risks, as option for survival.

PAY ATTENTION: Read the news on Nigerias #1 news app

Legit.ng earlier reported that the All Progressives Congress (APC) said that the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration is committed to mitigating the migration crisis Nigerians are facing, particularly in Libya and in the Mediterranean sea.

The party stated this in a statement issued by Yekini Nabena, its national publicity secretary, in Abuja on Sunday, September 2, when he reacted to comments made by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) on the issue.

Buhari to contest for presidency in 2019! - on Legit.ng TV:

Source: Legit
- Federal lawmakers have revealed why President Muhammadu Buhari must sign electoral bill into law

- They said the bill should be signed to justify N143bn the joint committee on electoral matters recently recommended

- Senator Ita Enang, the special assistant to the president on the National Assembly matters (Senate), said Buhari would sign the bill at appropriate time

Members of the National Assembly are mounting pressure on President Muhammadu Buhari to sign the Electoral Act (amendment) Bill 2018 to justify the N143bn the joint committee of the Senate and the House of Representatives on electoral matters has just recommended as the budget for the 2019 polls.

The Punch reports that the senators and members had discussed the matter across political parties, where they consistently questioned Buharis seeming unwillingness to sign the bill.

Legit.ng gathered that the lawmakers observed that if the bill was not signed, there was no way the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) could spend the N143bn as the bulk of the budget was earmarked for the procurement of election equipment envisaged by the bill.

READ ALSO: PDP criticises Buhari over comments on illegal migrants

The newspaper's findings indicated that much as the joint committee on electoral matters went ahead to approve the money for consideration by the joint committee on appropriations and ultimately, the floors of the two chambers, the lawmakers reportedly continued to express doubts over how INEC would spend it in the absence of the electoral bill.

It was gathered that a top parliamentary source explained: The budget of INEC, and I am talking about the N143bn, not the initial N189.2bn, is this big because of the items they will procure for the elections.

There are innovations in the electoral bill like the mandatory use of the card reader for all accreditation. In other words, there will no longer be manual accreditation whatsoever.

So, INEC came with this huge budget to cover the cost of the so many equipment, card readers, computers and other gadgets the commission will procure to bring the accreditation in line with the provision of the bill.

The concern of senators and members is why the passing of the budget is more important than the signing of the bill? Which one should come first?

It was also reported that another senior official, who spoke on the issue, said that lawmakers feared that if the budget was eventually passed, but the bill was not signed, what would happen to the money?

The official stated: It is true that this concern has been raised. Nigerians too are not helping matters because nobody is asking the President why he is keeping the bill. Everybody is shouting, pass the budget, pass the budget.

If there is sincerity of purpose, the first thing is for Buhari to sign the bill in order to justify this INEC budget.

You dont build something on nothing.

We are worried because we hear from presidency sources that the President does not want to sign the bill. He is likely to return it to the National Assembly.

However, our committees had to continue working just to save the National Assembly the persistent blackmail that it was delaying the budget of the 2019 general elections.

In his reactions, the chairman, House committee on media and public affairs, Abdulrazak Namdas, said he would rather speak on the fact that so far, the National Assembly has kept to its promise to work on the INEC budget.

Namdas said that if INEC proposed its budget for specific reasons, it was the expectation of the National Assembly that the money would be spent on those purposes.

What I will say is that we are on the INEC budget. Mr President and INEC made specific requests, which have been adopted by our committees. So, we only hope that the money will indeed be judiciously used for the purposes the requests came to the National Assembly, he added.

The special assistant to the president on the National Assembly matters (Senate), Senator Ita Enang, said he would not like to comment on the bill.

He said: I will not make any comments on the bill for now. All I can say is that it is well with the Electoral (Act Amendment) Bill.

There have been speculations that Buhari has vetoed the bill and is merely marking time for the National Assembly to resume formally from its annual recess on September 25 before he communicates his decision to the legislature.

But Enang had also frequently dismissed such speculation, claiming that his boss had been studying the bill and would sign it at the appropriate time.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had previously reported that a Lagos-based lawyer and human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, asked President Muhammadu Buhari to urgently sign the new Electoral Act Amendment Bill into law.

Buhari to contest for presidency in 2019! - on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit.ng
- The UN, Nigeria, Germany and Norway are holding a conference in Berlin, Germany, focused on Boko Haram

- Pledges at the conference would help provide humanitarian assistance for Northeast Nigeria and parts of Niger, Chad and Cameroon, ravaged by the insurgents

- By the end of 2018,the UN says it would have provided assistance to no fewer than 6.1 million people affected by the Boko Haram crisis in Northeast Nigeria

Nigeria, Germany, Norway, and the United Nations have converged on Berlin on Monday, September 3, for a pledging conference on Boko Haram.

The Berlin Conference, holding from September 3 to 4, is jointly organised by the three countries and the UN, and is one of the 2018 largest pledging conferences for the Lake Chad region, NAN reports.

Legit.ng gathers that the conference will focus on humanitarian assistance, civilian protection, crisis prevention and stabilisation for the region, as well as seek to raise funds for the humanitarian requirements totaling $1.56 billion.

The pledges at the conference would help provide humanitarian assistance for north-east Nigeria and parts of Niger, Chad and Cameroon, ravaged by Boko Haram insurgents.

READ ALSO: AGF asks court to hands off suit against Sarakis removal

It would also discuss the perspectives of civil society, their concerns and contributions, as well as how to strengthen collaboration between the affected countries and organisations involved in responding to the crisis.

The Nigerian delegation to the Berlin conference is being led by Nigerias ambassador/permanent representative to the UN, Prof Tijjani Bande.

The Nigerian envoy said recently that Nigeria had developed a 6.7 billion dollar robust plan of action for the reconstruction, rehabilitation and resettlement of areas of the northeast devastated by Boko Haram activities.

The Berlin Conference on the Lake Chad has been slated for the first week of September 2018 and would build substantially on the outcome of the February 2017 Oslo Donors Conference on the Lake Chad.

I would like to take this opportunity to call on all stakeholders to redouble efforts and commitment towards making the coming Berlin Conference on the Lake Chad of September 3 to 4, 2018, a watershed.

This is in our collective resolve to further mobilise resources and demonstrate implicit commitment to plans that will ensure moving quickly beyond the immediate humanitarian needs, to concrete sustainable developmental projects capable of substantially elevating the lives of the majority of people in the region, Bande said.

The Nigerian envoy stressed the need for collaboration and cooperation among countries of the Lake Chad, the donors, as well as humanitarian and development partners.

According to him, collaboration between the humanitarian and development agencies has gained traction at the UN in recent times, such that the involvement of national governments is needed to make it work.

READ ALSO: 2019: APC states chairmen reportedly storm Abuja over mode of primaries

He said the protracted humanitarian and development challenges in the Lake Chad region had place enormous responsibilities on all to remain engaged in discussions aimed at scaling up national, regional and global responses to the crisis.

The envoy emphasised that these responses needed to be bolstered by strengthened coordination at the UN level to ensure a more synergised delivery of assistance.

Let me emphasise that the recharge of the Lake Chad Basin, capacity building, and restoration of livelihood, through facilitation of occupational opportunities, job creation, skill acquisition and others, are central to finding lasting solution to the problem in the region.

To realise all these would entail our collective commitment to a broad range of actions, facilitated by strong international cooperation and partnership, involving the UN agencies and development partners, like the World Bank and African Development Bank, among others, Bande said.

The UN had also said that it would have provided assistance to no fewer than 6.1 million people affected by the Boko Haram crisis in north-east Nigeria by the end of 2018.

UN resident and humanitarian coordinator for Nigeria, Edward Kallon, said at a recent event in New York, that Nigeria was still facing a crisis of global magnitude.

The figures are alarming  10.2 million people affected in three states in north-east Nigeria, 7.7 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.

Our 2018 Humanitarian Response Plan was developed to provide assistance for 6.1 million people requiring slightly above a billion dollars in 2018, Kallon said.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that the Nigerian Army said it had unraveled a Facebook and other social media accounts allegedly used by a faction of the Boko Haram group to recruit new members.

The artillery commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Major Murtala Usman, who announced this at the Nigerian Army combat support training week in Maiduguri, said the social media accounts had 2,000 followers.

Nigerian Air Force operations against Boko Haram - on Legit.ng TV:

Source: Legit
- The Nigerian Army has detained a captain, alongside 70 soldiers, over the well publicised Maiduguri airport mutiny

- The army has also moved the suspects to 2 different locations for the commencement of their trial

- The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Tukur Buratai, had described the soldiers action as unacceptable

A report by Vanguard indicates that officers and men of the Nigerian Army who staged a mutiny at Maiduguri Airport two weeks ago have been arrested and detained.

According to the report, a captain and no fewer than 70 others are in detention, in what military authorities described as an embarrassing action, which is against military rules of engagement.

The captain (names withheld), was said to have led others who refused to be redeployed to Gamboru Ngala, a border town in Borno state with Niger Republic, which is known as the stronghold of Boko Haram insurgents.

The arrest and detention of the suspects, according to competent military sources quoted in the report, followed the order by Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant-General Yusuf Buratai, that the suspects be arrested and subjected to severe military disciplinary action.

READ ALSO: Herdsmen crisis forces over 20,000 children out of school in Benue

Following the directive by the COAS, the suspects had since been moved into two unknown locations in Maiduguri, the Borno state capital, with a view to subjecting them to a court martial.

Sources quoted in the report, however said, the suspects rejected their posting to Gamboru Ngala because of war fatigue as most of them had been fighting Boko Haram insurgents for years without rotation.

It was gathered that the soldiers particularly loathed the idea of being sent to the war-front, given the fact that many of their colleagues who were earlier sent there were either killed or badly injured and their equipment taken away by the rampaging insurgents due to bad weather and insufficient platforms.

We became afraid when we discovered that no fewer than 30 soldiers who were sent there were killed within three days due to the heavy rainfall, which has further worsened the terrain mastered by the insurgents.

We do not know why the Nigerian Army suddenly changed its mind and decided to deploy troops to the dreaded area after it had announced that it had pulled out of Gamboru, where Boko Haram appears be operating from after being pushed away from the Sambisa Forest," a source said.

Speaking for the first time since the incident, Buratai said: The incident at the Maiduguri airport that happened just about two weeks ago is an issue, which ordinarily is unimaginable, that disciplined troops, soldiers will behave in that way.

But we have our procedures and this issue has been thoroughly investigated and those that have been found to be involved will face military justice. This sort of affairs will never be tolerated no matter the person or persons involved."

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Four months ago, Buratai offered five youths of Gbajimba Community in Guma local government area of Benue state automatic recruitment into the Nigerian Army.

The COAS made the announcement while interacting with members of the community shortly after he visited troops stationed in the area to ward off herdsmen attacks.

He immediately directed the commander, 72 Special Forces Battalion, Lt.-Col. Suleiman Mohammed, who accompanied him on the visit to select the five youths and screen them. He said they must, however, possess recruitment requirements for enlistment.

Nigerian Air Force operations against Boko Haram on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- Lagos State University Teaching Hospital resident doctors have issued a notice, threatening a shut down soon

- They said the government's inability to employ more doctors to ensure effective health service delivery is posing a big bane to their work

- They also stated that their plea to the appropriate authorities to respond to their 21-day ultimatum and others demands are responsible for the proposed strike

Lagos State University Teaching Hospital resident doctors, at an emergency press conference held on Saturday, September 1, at the LASUTH resident doctors lounge in Ikeja, said they may soon embark on strike come September 5, 2018, if their demands are not met by the appropriate authorities.

In a report by The Punch, the acting president of the association, Dr Ibrahim Ogunbi, stated that the inability of the government to employ house officers to ensure topnotch health service delivery have been hindering their works, prompting them to take the necessary drastic alternative to press their demands.

READ ALSO: Soldier stabs 27-year-old undergraduate over N150,000 debt in Lagos (photo)

Ogunbi said they have earlier given a 21-day ultimatum and early tabled their grouses to the government to provide more hands to ease the burden that comes with health service delivery.

He said with the present situation and breach of agreement, the body cannot continue to fold alms in the face of neglect by the authority, thus their submission to seek the no-work option.

Legit.ng gathers that lack of resident doctors is one of the major problems faced by the body over the last three years.

Ogunbi said: After a 21-day ultimatum, which expired on August 23, the congress resolved that the grace of one week be given for the immediate employment of resident doctors which will put an end to the recurrent shortage of doctors in LASUTH.

Failure to implement this will lead to a total warning strike for three days starting from 8 am on the 5th of September, 2018 followed by an indefinite partial strike during which only emergencies will be attended to until expected response is obtained.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported how medicines purchased by patients at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) were being stolen and resold by medical personnel.

According to the report, nurses are the perpetrators of the crime as some of them have turned to medicine vendors, selling the stolen medicines at a cheaper rate to other patients. This is easy because the patients names are not written on the medicines.

N1,500 for health of Nigerians - On Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit.ng
- Some female presidential aspirants have revealed why they will be contesting against President Muhammadu Buhari

- The aspirants said it is important that the electorates look the way of women to bring forth desired change in Nigeria

- According to them, Nigeria is long overdue for a female president

Six female presidential aspirants have given reasons for the ammbition to occupy Nigeria's highest seat of power.

The women - Professor Olufunmilayo Adesanya-Davis, Dr Oluremi Comfort Sonaiya, Dr Elishama Rosemary Ideh, Adeline Iwuagwu-Emihe, Eunice Atuejide, and Princess Oyenike Roberts - said the electorates must look the way of women to bring forth desired change in Nigeria.

Vanguard reports that the female presidential hopefuls represent 10% of the 60 contenders for the seat currently occupied by President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

The women said for the good of the country, the electorate must elect a woman in 2019.

READ ALSO: Hands off suit against Saraki's removal - AGF warns court

One of the female aspirants, Ideh, who is aspiring on the platform of the Alliance for New Nigeria (ANN) said she was certain she would defeat President Buhari and other presidential contestant in 2019.

While declaring her ambition to run for presidency, Ideh said she would implement workable solutions to address the myriad of problems confronting Nigeria once she becomes the president.

Ideh said: 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 (Economic and Financial Crimes Commission) in terms of its funding, privileges, powers and even the composition of its leadership.

Unlike our opposition, who seeks to use the EFCC as an attack dog to fight their opposition while shielding their friends from the consequences of corruption and other misdemanours, 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.

READ ALSO: Alleged plot to sack acting DSS boss brews war between Buhari's loyalists, southern leaders

"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," Ideh said.

Also speaking, another aspirant Adeline Iwuagwu-Emihe, an American-trained political administrator, promised to vigorously pursue a 10-point transformational and developmental agenda which she recently released if elected.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng previously reported that a former vice president Atiku Abubakar shed tears over state of the nation after he received the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) presidential nomination form. The form was bought from Atiku by one of his support group.

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Atiku in an emotional speech noted that he has not received this much love from the people since three decades he has been in politics.

Support groups of the former vice president had purchased and presented the nomination and expression of interest forms to Atiku, urging him to contest for presidency in the 2019 election.

2019 Presidency: Nigerians reveal why they prefer Atiku to President Buhari on Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
- The deputy president of the Senate, Ike Ekweremadu, has asked the APC to stop muzzling the PDP

- Ekweremadu said that the APC should remember how he helped them with N5 million during their formative years back in 2014

- He insisted that a multiparty system and an opposition are part of what add beauty to any democracy

Ike Ekweremadu, the deputy president of the Senate, has warned the All Progressives Congress (APC) against what he described as the muzzling of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), adding that a multiparty system and opposition are part of what beautifies democracy.

The deputy Senate president, remembering how he assisted the APC with the sum of N5 million during its formative years in 2014, to help expand the political space, The Sun reports.

READ ALSO: Buhari's loyalists, southern leaders at war over plot to remove acting DSS boss

Ekweremadu stated that the APC would not have been victorious in the 2015 presidential election if the PDP and former President Goodluck Jonathan been repressive.

He said this after he has accepted to run for the Enugu west senatorial district ahead of the 2019 general polls. Ekweremadu made this revelation when members of the district, headed by its president, Ohaneze Ndigbo, presented him with the PDP nomination form, which they purchased for him. insisting that he must return to the Senate in 2019 to continue with his good works.

Ekweremadu said: The beauty of democracy is the enlargement of the political space in which everybody is free to participate, bring and exchange ideas, and disagree in order to agree. But we are not seeing that today.

I will tell you something that is going to shock you. In 2014 when APC started, they wanted to register members in Enugu State. Senator Chris Ngige called me and said they were having problem registering members in Enugu State, and asked if I could help them. I was the Deputy President of the Senate in the PDP, but I gave them N5 million. Ngige is still my witness.

During that 2015 election, one lady came to me and said she wanted to run against me on the platform of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) and she needed my support. I said okay, I will start by paying for your nomination form because I believe every party must be given a chance. She lost the election, but I later helped to secure a political position for her.

Just yesterday, I also got a call from a man who introduced himself as an engineer from Achi, but lives in Jigawa. He later came with his family to tell me that he wanted to run for the Senate in Enugu West. I congratulated him and offered to help purchase his nomination form. But he told me he had already bought his form. He was surprised when I offered to buy form for him. As far as I am concerned, power belongs to God.

We should not try to reduce the political space. We must allow people to participate. You can disagree with people, but you must not try to harass them with security agencies and the rest. That is bringing us a lot of embarrassment in the international community.

Concerning the appeal by his people for him to return to the Senate in 2019, Ekwermadu said their visit came at a time he was still pondering his next line of actions.

Ekweremadu stated: A Few weeks ago, I reflected on my past engagements with the people of Enugu West and I was satisfied that, by the grace of God, we were able to make so many improvements in the lives of our people.

I also tried to reflect on my present political trials, persecution and harassment, but I said it could only happen because God allowed it. I believe that God will take care of it and we will triumph.

One option is to come back to you in Enugu and run my Foundation, which will give me opportunity to mentor young men and women in leadership. The second is probably to go to a university and take a fulltime academic job and also try to mentor young people in school.

But my dilemma there is: what happens to all of you that have been my partners in the politics? I concluded that we would collectively decide the next move.

Today, you have spoken, and since you are my employers, I have no choice than to humbly accept to run for the Senate again.

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Presenting the nomination form to Ekweremadu on behalf of the people of the district the president of Ohaneze Ndigbo, state chapter, Alex Ogbonnia as well as the national president, Enugu west peoples Assembly, called on the Igbo to return their first 11, including the deputy Senate president.

Ogbonnia said: Representation must have to deal with relationship with the grassroots and ability to interface with the national authorities in order to attract dividends to the people and we have been very lucky with the representation of Senator Ike Ekweremadu.

Meanwhile, Legit.ng reported that Ekweremadu was in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) where he was being interrogated.

Legit.ng gathered that Ekweremadu appeared at the anti-graft agency office on Tuesday, July 31, in the morning.

A source said: He is currently at the interrogation room. We have some questions for him bordering on corruption. But we do not know yet when he would be released, we will know this by 5pm.

PDP's Magnificent 7 For 2019 Election | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit
President Muhammadu Buhari on Saturday, September 1, arrived in Beijing, China, for the 7th summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC 2018).

President Buhari who is also the chairman of ECOWAS addressed the Chinese and African leaders and business representatives at the opening ceremony of the high-level dialogue.

Legit.ng highlights the major points the president made in his speech:

1. Relationship between China and ECOWAS

President Buhari said there is an excellent relationship between China and West African countries. He said the participation of so many heads of state and government of ECOWAS at the event is a demonstration of the excellent relations between China and ECOWAS.

The president noted that all ECOWAS member states are participating in a FOCAC summit.

He also thanked President Xi Jinping for the pledge to build a befitting secretariat for the commission.

2. The significance of ECOWAS role in Africa

The president also said ECOWAS region accounts for some 30% of Africas population and GDP.

READ ALSO: Alleged plot to sack acting DSS boss brews war between Buhari's loyalists, southern leaders

3. Diversification of economy

President Buhari also stated that ECOWAS member states are presently embarking on policies and strategies to stabilise and strengthen internal growth.

He added that member states are making efforts at diversifying their economies and developing specific policies targeting the most vulnerable groups, in order to ensure more inclusive growth."

He said member states will continue to encourage Chinese state-owned companies and entrepreneurs to invest in the sub-region.

4. China's investment in West Africa

President Buhari also, on behalf of ECOWAS member states, appreciated the Chinese government for its increasing investment in the African sub-region with the aim of building a prosperous and shared future.

China is today, the largest investor in the sub-region in both private and public sectors covering areas such as infrastructure, energy, agriculture, mining, healthcare. China also provides significant assistance in emergency humanitarian aid and response to climate change, he said.

5. The need for closer collaboration between China and ECOWAS member states

President Buhari said Chineses President Xi Jinpings recent visit to ECOWAS sub-region has highlighted the need for even closer collaboration to enable more Chinese investment to support the cause of regional integration and development.

6. ECOWAS welcomes Chinese to West Africa

President Buhari also stated that Chinese tourists to are welcomed to visit West Africa, saying that it will enhance people-to-people exchanges.

He said: Our sub-region is endowed with enormous tourism potentials. With Chinas support, tourism related infrastructure should be developed to empower our citizens, create more employment opportunities among the teeming population and eliminate poverty.

7. Request for visa facilitation

President Buhari also requested visa facilitation for the African sub-regions' businessmen and women, and students who seek to visit China.

8. Encouraging more foreign direct investment in the sub-region

The ECOWAS chairman said that member states will continue to pay emphasis on encouraging more foreign direct investment in the sub-region.

He added that member states are looking at the opportunities that the China International Import-Export initiative will offer African exporters to gain market access for their goods and services in China.

Such an opportunity will help in diversifying the economy of our sub-region from over-reliance on primary agricultural and mineral products and subsequently correct the huge trade imbalance between China and the ECOWAS sub-region on a win-win basis for both parties, the president said.

9. Governance in West Africa

President Buhari added that the ECOWAS member states are committed to deepening and strengthening institutions in the sub-region, through good governance, the fight against corruption, combating terrorism, violent extremism and organised crime.

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Meanwhile, Legit.ng had previously reported that President Buhari urged security agencies not to interfere in peoples choices as the country heads towards 2019 general elections.

President Buhari who said this on Sunday, September 2, in Beijing noted that as a beneficiary of free and fair elections, he is not afraid of a credible process in 2019. R

Speaking at an interactive session with members of the Nigerian community in China, the president pledged that Nigerians eligible to vote in the next general elections will be allowed to freely elect candidates of their choice.

Buhari to contest for presidency in 2019! - on Legit.ng TV:

Source: Legit.ng
- Olusegun Obasanjo declares Dave Umahi a strong candidate for the presidency should the Igbos have an opportunity

- Obasanjo, a former president, praises Umahi for infrastructural development of Ebonyi state

- The elder statesman takes a swipe at the current government

Nigerias former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, has described the governor of Ebonyi state, Engineer Dave Umahi, as one of the strongest candidate for the presidency of the country should the south east region have the opportunity for the position.

Daily Sun reports that Obasanjo said this when he spoke to a delegation of Igbo leaders and Seriki Hausa, led by Eze Lawrence Eze, Ezendigbo Alimosho, who paid him a courtesy visit in Abeokuta, Ogun state.

READ ALSO: AGF asks court to hands off suit against Sarakis removal

The former president said Umahi is not only doing well in Ebonyi state, but, also, revolutionising and transforming the state.

According to Obasanjo, Umahi has laid necessary foundations for economic growth, human capital development and job creation.

Nigerians have paid too great a price for the confusion, deception and disposition inflicted on them by leaders without sense of mission, Obasanjo said adding that the crass nepotism of the present government as well as its myopia and greed have resulted in no economic retardation.

Speaking at the meeting, Olisachebe Hyacinth Ngwee, a member of the Ebonyi state delegation, said Umahi had touched lives positively in Ebony.

Legit.ng earlier reported that Senator David Mark, a former president of the Nigerian Senate, is to join other aspirants on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the race for the 2019 presidential election as he is set to get the partys expression of interest form.

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James Oche, the co-coordinator of Door2Door, a support platform for Mark, confirmed the development on Monday, September 3.

According to Oche, David Mark will get his expression of interest and nomination forms for the election on Tuesday, September 4.

Senator Kwankwaso Rabiu announces his Presidential Bid (Election 2019) | Legit.ng TV

Source: Legit Newspaper
Readers, we have now entered one of our two yearly comments holidays, beginning today and continuing through and including Sunday September 9.

Happy Labor Day!

9 SURPRISING THINGS YOU DIDNT KNOW ABOUT LABOR DAY (UserFriendly)

A different time: 93-year-old female Harley rider says it was frowned upon when she started in 1941 Fox (The Rev Kev)

Fertility doc inseminated dozens of women with own sperm, DNA sites find Ars Technica (Chuck L)

The New Reading Environment n + 1

Super Typhoon Jebi Is Now the Planets Most Powerful Storm The Inertia (David L)

THE FUTURE OF FOOD: Scientists have found a fast and cheap way to edit your foods DNA WaPo. J T McPhee: No problem, mate!

This 16-year-old invented a robot that can help scientists keep trees and forests healthy Business Insider (David L)

The AI, machine learning, and data science conundrum: Who will manage the algorithms? ZDnet (David L)

Retails new niche: Aging baby boomers The Oregonian (CM)

2018 Election

Advocates Say Paper Ballots Are Safest Bloomberg. From early August but still germane.

Ethnicity not a factor in Elizabeth Warrens rise in law Boston Globe

Burn, Baby, Burn

California bill passes PG&E fire liability on to customers ABC Fresno (The Rev Kev)

Class Warfare

Wells Fargo fires employees over falsifying dinner receipts San Francisco Business Times (RS)

Guillotine Watch

Obama readies fall campaign push, but some Dems say no thanks The Hill

Kill Me Now

Puerto Rico

North Korea

China?

Russia

India

Trump Transition

Tariff Tantrum

John McCain & The Unipartys Funeral For Itself Alpha News (ScottTX). Todays a day I really miss Alexander Cockburn, who ignored the de mortuis nil nisi bonum injunction, and could be relied on to produce an honest obituary for the likes of John McCain.

*****

In case you missed the Welsh Guards playing Respect on the day of Arethas funeral at the Changing the Guard. From one Queen to another. pic.twitter.com/nSEdqCsPtY  Padraig Belton (@PadraigBelton) 1 September 2018

Antidote du Jour.



See yesterdays Links and Antidote du Jour here.
The 49 year-old pedestrian who was fatally injured when he was hit by a truck on the M8 motorway close to Junction 11, Cahir South on Sunday evening has been named.

Harry Keskinen was pronounced dead at the scene of the accident, which occurred on the southbound carriageway shortly after 5pm at Tincurry, a few miles from Cahir.

The driver of the truck and his teenage son, who was travelling with him, were uninjured but were brought to South Tipperary General Hospital in Clonmel, where they were treated for shock.

The deceased had been living in the Rosegreen area, near Cashel, and was originally from Australia.

Its understood he had worked in the health service in Cork city and had also lived in the Tallow area of Co. Waterford for a time.

The southbound stretch of motorway between Junction 11 and 12 was sealed off yesterday evening as a Garda forensic collision investigator examined the scene.

The motorway reopened later in the evening.

Anyone with any information about the accident, and who may have been travelling on that stretch of road at the time, is asked to contact Cahir Gardai at 052-7445630.
(Natural News) Fish oil supplements are popular for a reason. They are full of omega-3 fatty acids, which are crucial for your overall health.

According to a study, aside from boosting brain health, taking fish oil with docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) daily can support a healthy immune response in middle-aged obese adults.

How the study was done

AlaskOmega, a company owned by Organic Technologies, collaborated with researchers from East Carolina University, the University of Colorado, Denver, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in the U.S. and the University of Stirling in the U.K. The study was published in The Journal of Nutritional Biochemistry.

The team of researchers spearheaded a new pilot study on humans that involved the 12-week of supplementation of high-DHA-fish oil concentrate from AlaskOmega. The supplements were linked with enhancements in B cell responses.

B cells are a kind of white blood cells that trigger the production of antibodies. These cells are also crucial for cytokine secretion and antigen presentation to T cells. The study findings suggest that DHA can help boost certain aspects of immune function.

Dr. Raz Shaikh, lead investigator of the study, said that based on animal studies, omega-3s could consistently and significantly improve different aspects of immunity, like inflammation. Shaikh, who is also currently Associate Professor of Nutrition at The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, added that until now, not much was known about B cell activation in humans.

Additionally, omega-3s and underlying mechanisms have yet to be clearly understood. He added that the researchers were pleased to observe the immune enhancing properties of DHA-rich fish oil on human B cells.

In the study, 34 obese men and women were randomly assigned to receive one-gram capsules daily of olive oil (control group), fish oil concentrate, or high-DHA-fish oil concentrate for 12 weeks. (Related: Fish oil lowers risk of breast cancer by 32 percent.)

The study results revealed that compared to baseline values, the participants who were given the fish oil concentrate experienced reductions in the percentage of circulating memory and plasma B cells. Meanwhile, the other supplements didnt affect the B cell. The researchers also didnt detect any other differences between the groups post-intervention.

Further study of certain immune system components showed that the DHA-fish oil concentrate helped boost the secretion of pro-inflammatory molecules like tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) and the anti-inflammatory cytokine interleukin-10. The researchers wrote that findings from the pilot study imply that B-cell activity could be sensitive to n-3 LC-PUFA intervention. They also noted that the results call for more in-depth experiments with a larger cohort.

Steve Dillingham, global director for Organic Technologies AlaskOmega Ingredients, the major sponsor of the study, believes that the study findings are encouraging. Dillingham concluded that thanks to the study results, there is now proof that supplementation with a DHA-rich fish oil concentrate can help boost the immune system.

The other benefits of fish oil

Here is further proof that fish oil is good for your health:

It can boost heart health  Fish oil supplementation can address the risks linked with heart diseases such as high blood pressure and cholesterol levels.

 Fish oil supplementation can address the risks linked with heart diseases such as high blood pressure and cholesterol levels. It can help address certain mental disorders  Fish oil supplementation can help improve the symptoms of some psychiatric disorders, like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. This can be due to an increase in omega-3 fatty acid intake.

 Fish oil supplementation can help improve the symptoms of some psychiatric disorders, like bipolar disorder and schizophrenia. This can be due to an increase in omega-3 fatty acid intake. It can help minimize inflammation and symptoms of inflammatory diseases  Because fish oil has potent anti-inflammatory effects, it can help reduce symptoms of inflammatory diseases, like rheumatoid arthritis.

 Because fish oil has potent anti-inflammatory effects, it can help reduce symptoms of inflammatory diseases, like rheumatoid arthritis. It can improve skin health  Fish oil can help repair skin damaged by too much sun exposure or old age. Fish oil supplementation may help maintain healthy skin and ease symptoms from conditions like dermatitis and psoriasis.

You can read more articles about how fish oil can boost your immune response at FishOils.news.

Sources include:

NutraIngredients.com

Healthline.com
Astronomers are still on the lookout for the elusive Planet Nine. Unfortunately, the missing planet might be invisible, which is why it's notoriously difficult to catch.

The ninth planet in the solar system has been lurking in the shadows for a long time now. Scientists hunting for it have found plenty of clues that it's out there, such as one cosmic object's peculiar orbit.

However, a proper glimpse of Planet Nine has yet to be achieved. One reason? It might be invisible.

The Many Challenges Plaguing The Search For Planet Nine

Michael Brown, an astronomer at the California Institute of Technology, explains to Washington Post that while he is optimistic that Planet Nine will eventually be found, there's a reason why it's essentially invisible to current observatories and astronomers.

The location is a major obstacle in spotting this planet. According to calculations by Brown and his colleague Konstantin Batygin in 2016, Planet Nine likely weighs from five to 20 Earth masses and travel along an orbit that's hundreds or 1,000 times farther from the sun than Earth.

At this distance, space is very, very dark. At 600 astronomical units away, Planet Nine would appear 160,000 times dimmer than Neptune. If it hits 1,000 astronomical units, it would be a million times fainter than the farthest known planet from the sun.

The endlessly wide expanse of the solar system is also a considerable challenge for scientists who have to sweep the area for hints of Planet Nine. There are a limited number of instruments that are capable  and too many missions to count.

Furthermore, elements in outer space could conspire to keep the elusive object shrouded from view: the light pollution from Milky Way or the glare of a particularly bright star. If Planet Nine is currently at a distant point in its orbit, it could take thousands of years for it to circle back to a point where it's visible from Earth.

The Future Of Planet Nine

To cope with the many challenges involved in seeing the hidden planet of the solar system, scientists are exploring other methods to detect it such as searching for its heat glow.

Despite the setbacks and seemingly insurmountable challenges, scientists are still expecting for the discovery to come through at one point.

"Every time we take a picture, there is this possibility that Planet Nine exists in the shot," Surhud More, an astronomer at the University of Tokyo, says.
An artist whose historical mural in East San Jose was destroyed spoke out for the first time Sunday, saying when he heard the wall was painted gray, he knew it would be a blank canvas for graffiti artists.

He was right.

The mural, which depicted several Latino historical figures, used to decorate the old Payless Shoe Source building and was painted over sometime last week, sparking a community uproar because it was done without first notifying the artist or the community.

Within days, the blank gray wall became a target, just as artist Jose Meza Velasquez predicted.

Velasquez painted the mural back in 1985 as a cultural project for the now-defunct East Side Youth Center. It cost $25,000 back then, and his labor and many of the supplies were donated. If commissioned today, the mural would cost more than $825,000, he said.

But the mural meant so much more than just its monetary value. Velasquez and his wife say it was an important history lesson for everyone and brought people together.

"This is very important because it's not only for the community and Hispanics; it's for all the communities," Velasquez said.

Juanita Velasquez added: "It tears into the people's spirit, and it tore into this community in a bad way."

California law requires that artists be notified before their work is moved or destroyed. Velasquez said for him to reproduce any part of it, the mural site would have to be protected, and that probably won't happen.

Many believe the new owners of the building were responsible for painting over it, but the city is struggling to figure out who the owner is.
Gunfire wounded eight people, two critically, in a late night shooting at a San Bernardino apartment complex, police said.

Victims, including a 17-year-old shot in the head, were transported to three hospitals, according to San Bernardino Police.

The shooting happened in the front common area of the complex in the 1200 block of East Lynwood Drive, said Capt. Rich Lawhead. Police said the initial investigation indicates there was an exchange of gunfire, but details about what led to the gunfire were not available

Rounds were fired from inside and outside the apartment building. Evidence markers could be seen on the ground around the property. Judging by bullet casings found at the scene, investigators said several types of guns were fired.

Responding officers, who tried to help the injured, encountered what the department described as a hostile crowd that came out of the apartment complex. A passing vehicle and nearby apartment also were struck by gunfire.

By several accounts, locals had congregated in the area, drinking and playing dice, before the shooting erupted.

No arrests were made, and police reported difficulty in getting witness information, despite the number of person present when the shooting erupted.

"Lives were threatened and innocent people that live in or were simply driving through the area were put in harm's way. This is unacceptable," reads in part a statement issued Monday by the office of Andrea Miller, San Bernardino City Manager.

"The city's past reactive responses to crimes of this nature will now transitiion to strategic, proactive actions," Miller stated, citing a recently launched Violence Intervention Program, and putting the Police Department in charge of property code enforcement. She promised additional details later in the week.

"No more turning a blind eye to residents involved in illegal activity," Miller stated.

The financially struggling city of San Bernardino emerged from bankruptcy only last year, its recovery bedeviled by outbursts of crime.

"Public safety is the biggest priority to successfully rebuilding San Bernardino," Miller stated.

Police revised down to eight the initial assessment that 10 people suffered gunshot wounds.

This is a developing story. Refresh this page for updates.
CPS announced the results of background checks conducted in the wake of misconduct and abuse allegations Sunday.

The report stated that 266 employees have not been cleared based on information uncovered in the process, thought their cases are still being evaluated.

Nearly 98 percent of the more than 43,000 employees however, will be allowed return to work57 of those are teachers.

CPS CEO Janice Jackson said Sunday that all staff is ready for classes to start and no school will be disproportionally impacted.

We also put in contingency plans to make sure that substitutes and other individuals from central office, etc. are there and available to support the schools, if needed, on the first day, she said.
A man has been charged in connection to three separate robbery incidents within 30 minutes, involving three womenin in the Lincoln Park and Lakeview area Sunday, according to officials.

Police have identified 27-year-old Dujuan Oliver as the offender in the incidents. Oliver was taken into custody Sunday after officers on patrol observed an illegal U-turn on the 4500 block of North Broadway. Officers having knowledge of earlier robberies, matched the description given by multiple victims.

Authorities said in the first incident, a 20-year-old woman was on the 2600 block of North Orchard Street around 6:30 a.m. when she was robbed.

Ten minutes later, a 25-year-old woman was robbed on the 600 block of West Arlington Place. About 15 minutes after that, a third woman, 29, was robbed on the 900 block of West George Street.



In all three incidents, the offender approached the woman, implied they had a weapon, took the woman's belongings and fled the scene, police said. None of the women were injured, authorities said.

Police said he was wearing a purple After Schools Matters T-shirt with white lettering.
Florida's toxic red tide, a wave of microorganisms that choke sea life, hit the Gulf of Mexico last November and now spreads over about 130 miles of Floridas southwest coast. Gov. Rick Scott has issued a state of emergency for seven counties, where waterways and coastlines are filled with putrid fish floating in brass-colored water.

The tide also poses a health risk to people, NBC News reported. The microorganisms emit brevetoxins, which can get blown into the air. When the toxins are breathed in, they constrict passages in the lungs, causing people to cough and have difficulty breathing.

Dr. Charles Klucka, an allergist with offices in Fort Myers and Punta Gorda, said he has seen 20 percent more patients with breathing difficulty this summer than in previous years, and he believes the red tide is to blame.

Klucka said hes concerned about the lack of research on long-term exposure to brevetoxins. For people that live exposed months and months, we dont know the long-term effects, he said.
Several anti-violence protesters were arrested Monday afternoon as they attempted to march on the Kennedy Expressway around 12:30 p.m. near O'Hare International Airport.



Just before stepping onto the ramp at Cumberland, protest leader Rev Gregory Livingston could be heard telling demostrators, "If you don't want to be arrested, go back now."



Livingston was among those arrested, according to reports.



Illinois and Chicago police insisted Labor Day travelers wouldn't feel an impact from anti-violence protesters who plan to shut down part of the Kennedy Expressway at noon on Monday near O'Hare International Airport.

"This morning [Chicago Police, Illinois State Police and] suburban agencies will be ensuring O'Hare demonstrators have a safe location to assemble," Chicago Police tweeted Monday, "while not disrupting airport operations or highway traffic."



State Police said they spoke with protest leaders and made it clear demonstrators will be arrested if they enter the expressway.



"We expect travel to remain uninterrupted," a police spokesman said.



Protesters began gathering around 11 a.m. at the Cumberland Avenue exit at the Kennedy Expressway. As the scheduled noon start time came and went, protest leaders said they were waiting on a bus of protesters to arrive before they attempted the march. The bus was stuck in traffic, they said.



They planned to march west on the expressway for about a mile to River Road.



By 11 a.m. state, city and suburban police assembled, creating a perimeter at the onramp of the Kennedy at Cumberland, blocking it.

Experts say about 8 million people will travel on Chicago-area tollways over the holiday weekend.

Authorities stressed Friday that entering an expressway is illegal, but organizers have not backed down from their calls to shut down the major roadway near the airport.

"Lets not forget that shutting down expressways is illegal  thats number one," Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said. "You start talking about shutting down operations at OHare Airport, now were going to federal issues."

In nearby Park Ridge, Chief Frank Kaminski said the city is planning to have extra officers on hand, though they're "hoping this is going to be a peaceful event."

"Our goal is to make sure all the major roads and thoroughfares are pretty clear," Kaminski said. "Were going to work with the protesters to make sure they have a place to protest."

Kaminski said residents were being notified to avoid the area Monday.

"Were sending out notices to our residents just to stay away from the area for that time period just as precaution," Kaminski said. "Our goal is to make sure everybody is safe and secure and the event goes off peacefully."

The protesters, led by Rev. Livingston, briefly shut down part of Lake Shore Drive earlier this month, calling on Mayor Rahm Emanuel to help all of Chicago. He said the protest is part of a continuing effort to secure more resources for neighborhoods where the bulk of the city's shootings take place.

"We all share the goal of continuing to build more jobs in our neighborhoods, but rhetoric that ignores reality won't create a single job," Emanuel spokesman Adam Collins said in a previously issued statement.

"It is beyond ironic that Mr. Livingston would announce his desire to shut off access to the airports to demand more jobs for people living in Chicago's neighborhoods less than 24 hours after the Mayor announced 700 new airport concession jobs are being created and filled by residents in Englewood, Humboldt Park and beyond," Collins' statement continued.

"In fact, Mr. Livingston's plans would only harm thousands of people living in neighborhoods across Chicago who earn a good paycheck working at our airports on ground crews, at restaurants, as airline employees and beyond," Collins added.

Another march in July organized by Rev. Michael Pfleger shut down traffic along the Dan Ryan Expressway on the city's South Side.
South Windsor police are mourning the loss of one of their own.

Authorities tell us Sergeant Matthew Mainieri died while off-duty, after he sustained injuries trying to break up a bar fight in South Carolina.

Black bunting has been hung at the department as police grieve privately and still do the job of protecting the town.

After the passing of South Windsor Police Sergeant Matthew Mainieri, the town is remembering his decades of service to the community.

Were very devastated about what happened. This town lost a great hero, said Robin Pendleton, of South Windsor.

Friends of Mainieri, along with the mayor, started a makeshift memorial outside the police department on Sunday.

An off duty South Windsor police officer has died after he sustained injuries while trying to break up a fight at a bar in South Carolina.

This is the worst possible news one can imagine and we are totally heart-broken, said South Windsor Mayor Dr. M. Saud Anwar.

In a statement, Deputy Chief Scott Custer wrote in part: As you can imagine, we are all still processing this tragic loss to our agency. We have lost a wonderful officer, supervisor and friend.

On Sunday, the 41-year-old passed away down in South Carolina, a place he was known to ride his motorcycle to with friends.

Thats where the Georgetown County Sheriffs office tells us Mainieri was attacked at a bar near Myrtle Beach on Saturday.

Deputies quickly charged 21-year-old Kelton Todd, of Aynor, South Carolina, with assault of a high and aggravated nature in connection to the fight. Officials said Todd posted bond on Monday afternoon. Additional charges are pending.

Mainieri sister Caroline Mainieri told NBC Connecticut the family got the call that something happened around 2:30 a.m.

"They didnt tell us he wasnt going to make it. They told us it was really serious," she said.

Caroline said her brother was a good guy and the family wants to see more serious charges.

"Somebody needs to pay for this," she said.

Caroline said she, her mother and her brother's girlfriend are getting everything ready with the help of police officers that traveled from Connecticut to help.

Since weve been here, these police officers have been wonderful. There are two police officers from Connecticut who are stationed up there in South Windsor and have been down here with us since the time we got here," she said.

As I think some of the people who are in our police departments, theyre never off-duty. Theyre always there to help out and thats exactly what he was doing," said Mayor Dr. M. Saud Anwar.

Since Mainieri joined the department in 1998, he rose through the ranks, working in traffic, detectives and most recently started a drone program.

Over the decades, he served as a firearms and motorcycle instructor, and received several awards including the department's Medal of Valor.

Id like to come out and say before you get that tear remember the smile, the great things he stood for and who he was," Pendleton said.

Police said they will help the family during this difficult time. Funeral arrangements have not yet been announced, but the family said they plan to bring Mainieri to Burlington, Vt. for a Catholic mass and burial.
A Connecticut woman is scheduled to face a judge on charges she dumped an 83-year-old woman she was hired to care for out of her wheelchair.

Christine Christensen has a Tuesday appearance in Superior Court on charges of third-degree elder abuse, second-degree reckless endangerment and third-degree assault of an elderly person.

Police say the 62-year-old Christensen, of South Windsor, was caught on surveillance video July 10 shoving the wheelchair at a Windsor Locks nursing facility. The facility says Christensen does not work for them, but was hired by the victim's family.

The 83-year-old slammed face-first into the floor and suffered injuries to the left side of her face and her left arm.

Christensen's attorney says his client did not act intentionally.
What to Know Legislature voted Friday to allow power companies to raise electric bills to cover the cost of lawsuits from last year's deadly wildfires

Consumer advocates and large energy users blasted legislation, saying it is a bailout for PG&E

The measure is part of a wide-ranging plan to reduce the threat of wildfires

The California Legislature voted Friday to allow power companies to raise electric bills to cover the cost of lawsuits from last year's deadly wildfires amid fears that Pacific Gas & Electric Co., would otherwise face financial ruin.

The measure is part of a wide-ranging plan to reduce the threat of wildfires, which have killed dozens of people and destroyed thousands of homes in recent years.

Consumer advocates and large energy users blasted legislation they say is a bailout for PG&E, which expects to pay billions of dollars due to fires started by the company's equipment in Northern California last year. The company would be allowed to charge their customers even if the fires are linked to mismanagement by the company.

"Everybody's getting protected, but customers," said Michael Boccadoro, executive director of the Agricultural Energy Consumers Association. "Utility shareholders are protected. Trial attorneys are protected. Insurers are protected. Victims are protected. Labor's protected. Unfortunately, they forgot to protect customers."

California courts have ruled that utilities are entirely liable for damage caused by power lines, even if they've followed all safety regulations. Lawmakers considered changing that standard but backed off amid a barrage of lobbying by wildfire victims and insurance companies.

Fire investigators have blamed PG&E equipment for 12 of last year's wildfires in Northern California's wine country, including two that killed 15 people combined. In eight, investigators said they found evidence of violations of state law and forwarded the findings to county prosecutors. Authorities have not determined fault for the Tubbs Fire, the most destructive in state history, which destroyed thousands of homes in Santa Rosa.

PG&E is facing dozens of lawsuits from insurers, which have spent billions settling insurance claims from homeowners.

Lawmakers worry the costs to PG&E could be so severe that it would struggle to borrow money or would file for bankruptcy, which they fear would lead to even higher spikes in utility bills.

"This is about protecting ratepayers, not helping utilities," said Sen. Bill Dodd, a Napa Democrat who helped craft the legislation. "The fact of the matter is ratepayers would be hurt in a utility bankruptcy."

Regulators generally don't let utilities bill their customers for lawsuits linked to imprudent management of electrical equipment, but the legislation would create a special process for the 2017 fires. It seeks to take as much as possible from PG&E's investors without harming ratepayers. For the rest, the Public Utilities Commission would have the option to let PG&E collect from customers through a line-item on utility bills for the next two decades.

The cost to ratepayers is unknown because it's not clear which fires will ultimately be linked to PG&E and what its final settlement will look like. Dodd said the average residential ratepayer would pay an estimated $5.20 extra for every $1 billion dollars that PG&E must finance.

"I have a very negative reaction about it, because I am not the person, and the ratepayers arent the people who made it happen, so why are we paying the price," said cusomer Anne Sacco.

The bill "puts the needs of wildfire victims first, better equips California to prevent and respond to wildfires, protects electric customers and preserves progress toward California's clean energy goals," PG&E spokeswoman Lynsey Paulo said in a statement.

While the help for utilities is gotten the most attention the bill also includes a variety of other measures to help utility workers

It includes protections for utility workers from job loss or pay and benefit cuts in the event of a utility bankruptcy or change in ownership. That's a major victory for the politically connected International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers union.

The bill also would require investor-owned utilities  including PG&E, Southern California Edison and San Diego Gas & Electric  to harden their equipment so it's less likely to cause fires. It would make it easier, in some circumstances, to do prescribed burns, clear dead trees and brush, log trees and build fire breaks. It includes $200 million a year for those purposes.

It also extends the life of biomass plants, which use trees to generate energy.

"I think we are all in one state, and if we are not helping each other we are not being good citizens, so I think taking a little bit from everyone would be a good thing We never know. It could be us one day," said customer Rima Barkett.
The U.S. military said it has made a final decision to cancel $300 million in aid to Pakistan, accusing Islamabad of not doing enough to root out militants from its border region with Afghanistan, NBC News reported.

The proposed cuts mark a new low in what were already deteriorating relations with the United States' longtime ally. Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner said in a statement to Reuters on Saturday that if the cuts are approved by Congress, the Pentagon aimed to spend the money on "other urgent priorities."

The Coalition Support Funds  which the Pentagon is now proposing to cut  were part of a broader suspension of aid to Pakistan announced by President Donald Trump at the start of the year.

The Trump administration has claimed Islamabad is granting safe haven to militants who are waging a 17-year-old war in neighboring Afghanistan  a charge Pakistan denies. Announcing the initial suspension of funds in January, the president accused Islamabad of rewarding past U.S. aid with nothing but lies & deceit.
Newly-released video shows a Texas mother with her baby lead police on a wild, high-speed chase.

The pursuit chase happened in June near San Antonio.

Police say 29-year-old Caitlyn Rodriguez, who had outstanding warrants, tried to elude police in her vehicle.

After running over a spiked strip, Rodriguez's SUV crashed into the back of a stopped truck. She got out and opened the back door before pulling out a baby in a carseat.

Moments later, she ran across several lanes of traffic before trying to carjack another driver.

Police made their move and arrested her.

In addition to warrants, Rodriguez now faces charges of child endangerment, evading arrest and possession of a controlled substance.
A magnitude 3.4 earthquake struck near Milpitas on Sunday evening, according to the U.S. Geological Survey.

The quake hit about 7:10 p.m. and was centered about 5.5 miles east-northeast of Milpitas, the USGS said.

The quake had a depth of about 4.3 miles, the USGS said.

There were no initial reports of injuries or damage.

The temblor was centered near Calaveras Dam, but a spokeswoman for the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission said operators conducted a visual inspection of the dam Sunday night out of an abundance of caution and will survey the site again Monday morning.

The reservoir levels already are quite low since the site is under construction, SFPUC spokeswoman Deilia Jackson Darby told NBC Bay Area.

"They do not anticipate any damage to the old or new Calavares Dam sites from the earthquake," she said.

Back in 2001, the state ordered that Calaveras Reservoir never be more than 40 percent full so as to not put too much stress on the dam, which is nearly 100 years old. The water level has been lower in recent years to allow workers to build the new dam, which is scheduled to be finished next year at a cost of over $800 million.

Track the latest Bay Area earthquakes using NBC Bay Area's interactive earthquake map.
Despite anecdotal and historical accounts of pots painkilling properties, scientific evidence that it works better than traditional painkillers is hard to come by. But Dr. Jeffrey Chen, director of UCLA's Cannabis Research Initiative, wants to change that, NBC News reported.

The United States classifies marijuana as a Schedule 1 drug with no medical use, like heroin and cocaine. And as a 2015 article in the journal Current Pain and Headache Reports points out, high-quality clinical studies of pots effectiveness are limited.

"The public consumption of cannabis has already far outpaced our scientific understanding," Chen said. We really desperately need to catch up.

Now, with one of the first academic programs in the world dedicated to the study of cannabis, researchers hope to conduct a high-quality study using opioid patients. The study aims to find out which combination produces the most good, according to Edythe London, a distinguished professor of psychiatry and pharmacology at the UCLA school of medicine who designed the study.
CNN has removed episodes of "Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown" featuring Asia Argento from its streaming service due to allegations against Argento made by actor and musician Jimmy Bennett, E! News can confirm.

A "Parts Unknown" spokesperson told E! News in a statement, "In light of the recent news reports about Asia Argento, CNN will discontinue airing past episodes of Parts Unknown that included her, until further notice."

Argento was in front of the camera for two episodes of the show  Rome and Southern Italy  and directed one of the final episodes in Hong Kong. Argento and Anthony Bourdain dated until the TV host and chef committed suicide on June 8 in France. Bourdain and Argento first met while filming a "Parts Unknown" episode in the actress' hometown of Rome.

On Aug. 19, The New York Times reported that Argento paid Bennett $380,000 after he accused her of sexual battery from an incident that allegedly occurred in 2013 at a hotel in Marina Del Rey, Calif.

Asia Argento and Anthony Bourdain's Complicated Relationship: A Bizarre Twist to an Already Tragic Love Story

Bennett's allegations against Argento claim she removed his pants, performed oral sex and then had intercourse with him. According to the report, Argento was 37 when this allegedly occurred and Bennett was 17. The age of consent in California is 18.

Two days after the news broke, Argento said in a statement that she was "deeply shocked and hurt" about the report and "strongly" denies it. She then brought up her late boyfriend, Bourdain. "Bennett knew my boyfriend, Anthony Bourdain, was a man of great perceived wealth and had his own reputation as a beloved public figure to protect," she wrote.

Argento said Bourdain "insisted the matter be handled privately" and apparently took it upon himself to "help Bennett economically, upon the condition that we would no longer suffer any further intrusions in our life."

Bennett did not initially comment to the Times when the report first came out, but then released his own statement a few days later. "Today I choose to move forward, no longer in silence," he wrote.

Bennett expressed why he waited to speak out: "I have not made a public statement in the past days and hours because I was ashamed and afraid to be part of the public narrative. I was underage when the event took place, and I tried to seek justice in a way that made sense to me at the time because I was not ready to deal with the ramifications of my story becoming public."

He added, "I didn't think that people would understand the event that took place from the eyes of a teenage boy."

Up until the report, Argento was one of the foremost and loudest voices in the #MeToo movement and accused now-disgraced Hollywood producer Harvey Weinstein of rape.

Bourdain constantly praised his girlfriend's fervor and advocacy in the movement and became a vocal supporter as well.

Since allegations against Argento arose, the actress has reportedly been fired from her role as a judge on "X Factor Italy."

E! News has reached out to Argento's attorney for comment.
What to Know Two men were shot in Bed-Stuy on Sunday afternoon, police say

One of the victims died, he was the son of an assistant to Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, law enforcement sources say

No one has been arrested and the investigation is ongoing

The son of an assistant to the Brooklyn borough president was gunned down in broad daylight Sunday, law enforcement sources said.

Two men were shot at about 4 p.m. at Spencer Place and Hancock Street in Bed-Stuy, police said.

I heard gunshots at first and the screaming after," said witness Justin Yang.

"So I come out and I turn down there and I see one guy laying on the corner.

According to law enforcement sources, one of the men died.

The victim is the son of an assistant to Brooklyn Borough President Eric Adams, law enforcement sources said.

Law enforcement sources tell us the victim is Jack Lester. The borough president's office confirmed that Jack Lester is the son of an office employee.

Witnesses said they heard an argument before the shots rang out.

"It sounded trivial nothing serious," said Joel Rodriguez.

The condition of the other victim wasn't immediately released.

No one has been arrested and the investigation is ongoing.
What to Know Police arrested a man accused of shooting an Upper Darby store owner with his own gun following a fight that was captured on video.

Pablo Quintanilla, 24, is charged with criminal attempted murder, aggravated assault, simple assault and several firearms violations.

The store owner is in the hospital in stable condition.

Police arrested a man accused of shooting an Upper Darby store owner with his own gun following a fight that was captured on surveillance video.

Pablo Quintanilla, 24, was arrested Monday and charged with criminal attempted murder, aggravated assault, simple assault and several firearms violations.

Quintanilla entered the Aaron Beer Distributor on the 700 block of Garrett Road in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, Saturday and allegedly stole three beers. Police say Quintanilla reentered the store a few hours later and was confronted by the store owner who had spotted him stealing the beer on surveillance video.

The store owner, a 38-year-old man originally from Vietnam who has been in Upper Darby for 15 years, told the man to leave and an argument ensued between the two men, according to investigators. Surveillance video then shows the store owner punching Quintanilla. Quintanilla then swung at the store owner and pushed him to the ground, police said.

Police say the store owners gun then fell out of his waistband. Quintanilla grabbed the owners gun and fired four shots before fleeing the scene, according to investigators.

The store owner was struck once in the face, once in the arm and once in the chest area. He was taken to Lankenau Hospital where he is in stable condition. Police say the bullet that went through his chest missed his heart while the bullet that went into his face remains lodged in his neck.

Police received several leads after sharing a surveillance photo on social media. Investigators then identified Quintanilla as the suspect and arrested him at a home on the 100 block of Copley Road in Upper Darby Monday around 11 a.m. A car was on its way to pick Quintanilla up and take him to New York where he had been residing at the time of his arrest, Upper Darby police chief Michael Chitwood said.

Chitwood said Quintanilla is originally from Honduras and was living in the country illegally. He was arrested back on February of 2015 by the U.S. Border Patrol in Texas and deported back to Honduras in March of 2015, according to Chitwood.

The tragedy is that youre a businessman, youve been here, youve been a part of the community for 15 years and then some person, some bad guy, some thug whos in here illegally, winds up shooting and almost killing you, Chitwood said. That says a lot for what we deal with day in and day out.

Chitwood said Upper Darby Police notified federal authorities.

Thats not my job to do immigration but when you commit this type of crime, were going to notify whoever, he said.

Chitwood also said the person or people who were planning on taking Quintanilla back to New York didnt know about the shooting incident.

The store owner has a concealed weapons permit. Chitwood advised against store owners confronting suspected thieves.

He shouldve called 911 and got on with life, Chitwood said. Over a bottle of beer or several bottles of beer you lose your life? No, I dont think so. I dont think its worth it.

Aaron Beer Distributor reopened Monday as the store owner continues to recover.

"He cares about people. He loves people," the owner's son, who did not want to be identified, told NBC10. "I can't imagine what my life would be like without him."
The man who was sentenced Friday for punching a San Diego Police Department officer in the face during an altercation has died, NBC 7 has learned.

Frederick Jefferson, 39, was sentenced to seven years in prison for one count of assault with force likely to produce great bodily injury and two counts of resisting an executive officer.

The Medical Examiner's Office confirmed to NBC 7 that Jefferson's body was in their possession but did not confirm how or when he died.

A jury convicted Jefferson in early August for the charges stemming from the dramatic altercation, which was recorded by another officers body-worn camera.

The video shows officers confronting Jefferson as he walks down the middle of Logan Avenue, about a block away from a tense protest underway at Chicano Park.

The video was paused and restarted by attorneys when it was played in open court. We have pieced together several segments of the video so that it plays in real time

*The video was paused and restarted by attorneys when it was played in open court. We have pieced together several segments of the video so that it plays in real time*

Officers instructed Jefferson to get on the sidewalk, and when he refused they warned him that he could be ticketed.

Next, one of the officers reached out to grab Jefferson, and that was when the physical confrontation started.

Jefferson's shirt was ripped as he threw several punches, but missed. At that point, Officer Matthew Ruggiero used his baton to strike at Jefferson who then connected with a punch to Ruggieros face.

With the help at least four more officers, Ruggiero was able to wrestle Jefferson to the ground. In the closing seconds of the video, blood spatter can be seen pooling on the concrete near Jeffersons head, but SDPD said the blood belonged to Ruggiero.

Ruggiero suffered a broken nose, jaw and other facial fractures, according to the department.

At a preliminary hearing in April, Jefferson showed no reaction when the video was played. His public defense attorney argued that Jefferson was only reacting to the officers' attempt to grab him.

The officer whose body cam video was shown in court, said he was concerned because Jefferson was wearing clothing that matched colors worn by one of the nearby protest groups known to be violent.

A man suspected of punching an SDPD officer in the face when opposing rallies clashed at Chicano Park over the weekend appeared in court Wednesday. NBC 7's Artie Ojeda reports.

"He had not been patted down, he hadn't been checked for weapons, we had previously found weapons on other members attending the protest. So my safety and officer Ruggiero's safety was the primary concern at this point, the officer said.

Officer Ruggiero has since returned to work.
The Padres have a gaggle of exciting your players starting to learn about life in the Major Leagues.

But they are still rookies and rookies are going to have some growing pains. That was evident in Sundays 7-3 loss to the Rockies at Petco Park.

Rookie starter Jacob Nix got through 6.0 innings allowing just three earned runs so manager Andy Green let him take a run at the 7th. After a walk and a single Andy went and got him to bring in rookie reliever Trey Wingenter.

He got to face veteran Chris Iannetta, who has seen plenty of good stuff in his 13-year career. Iannetta doubled home both runners, both were charged to Nix, then gave up one of his own. The 3-run outburst put Colorado on top 6-3 and the Padres offense couldnt make up the difference.

But, they did take a 1st inning lead with help from  more rookies. Infielder Luis Urias had another hit, which was sandwiched between a pair of walks. He scored on a single by Franmil Reyes (rookie outfielder) that put San Diego up 2-1.

Their only other run came on an RBI single by backup catcher A.J. Ellis in the 4th inning. After that it was all Rockies.

The Padres do complete their homestand with a 4-2 record and Ill call that progress! They start a short series in Arizona against the Diamondbacks on Monday evening. Bryan Mitchell comes off the disabled list to make the start against Zack Godley.

The Padres have a gaggle of exciting your players starting to learn about life in the Major Leagues.

But they are still rookies and rookies are going to have some growing pains. That was evident in Sundays 7-3 loss to the Rockies at Petco Park.

Rookie starter Jacob Nix got through 6.0 innings allowing just three earned runs so manager Andy Green let him take a run at the 7th. After a walk and a single Andy went and got him to bring in rookie reliever Trey Wingenter.

He got to face veteran Chris Iannetta, who has seen plenty of good stuff in his 13-year career. Iannetta doubled home both runners, both were charged to Nix, then gave up one of his own. The 3-run outburst put Colorado on top 6-3 and the Padres offense couldnt make up the difference.

But, they did take a 1st inning lead with help from  more rookies. Infielder Luis Urias had another hit, which was sandwiched between a pair of walks. He scored on a single by Franmil Reyes (rookie outfielder) that put San Diego up 2-1.

Their only other run came on an RBI single by backup catcher A.J. Ellis in the 4th inning. After that it was all Rockies.

The Padres do complete their homestand with a 4-2 record and Ill call that progress! They start a short series in Arizona against the Diamondbacks on Monday evening. Bryan Mitchell comes off the disabled list to make the start against Zack Godley.
A ride-share customer allegedly assaulted the driver and stole a ride-share vehicle in the San Diego area to ultimately go on a high speed pursuit that concluded on the shoulder of the 10 Freeway in the city of Beaumont in the Inland Empire on Sunday.

The Oceanside PD told KNSD, KNBC's sister station in San Diego, that a passenger allegedly assaulted a ride-share driver before stealing the vehicle. The LA County Sheriff's Office confirmed that the vehicle was stolen in Oceanside and that the airship tracked the vehicle via Lo-Jack.

The California Highway Patrol took over the pursuit as the car traveled at high speeds on the 10 Freeway eastbound through the Inland Empire.

Gil Leyvas and Newschopper4 Bravo were overhead shortly after 3 p.m. as the vehicle traveled past Azusa into Pomona, Ontario and beyond.

The pursuit topped 100 mph, with the driver using the center divider shoulder to pass vehicles and avoid pockets of moderate traffic. At one point at approximately 3:35 p.m in the city of San Bernardino, the driver's attempt to pass a vehicle on the center shoulder of the freeway nearly resulted in a loss of control. However, the driver managed to hold on as the car swerved and seemed like it would crash with nearby vehicles.

However, the suspect recovered and avoided a crash. Instead, the driver seemed to heed the warning and cut down speeding from over 100 mph to roughly 75 mph or even slower.

The vehicle arrived in the Redlands area shortly after 3:40 p.m.

Shortly before 4 p.m., the suspect slowed down and eventually came to a stop off the shoulder of the 10 Freeway in the Beaumont area. It was unclear if a spike strip had worked, if the vehicle ran out of fuel or if the suspect simply grew tired of the pursuit.

The suspect surrendered peacefully, complied with the CHP's instructions and was taken into custody without further incident.
Police in eastern Germany brought an early close Saturday to an anti-migrant march that far-right activists hoped would launch a nationwide movement to challenge the political establishment, with the fatal stabbing of a German citizen as the catalyst.

A trio of nationalist groups held separate rallies in the city of Chemnitz over the Aug. 26 slaying for which a Syrian and an Iraqi citizen were arrested. The two largest groups also organized their first joint march, a display of unity meant to build on other protests since the killing and a potent force to take hold.

Saxony state police cited security concerns for halting the march after more than an hour, producing screams and whistles from demonstrators as officers moved in to clear the streets but no violence or vandalism as the crowd dispersed.

The progress of the far-right march had been interrupted several times before then as counter-protesters blocked the route and the sizeable police contingent on hand rushed to keep them and the marchers apart.

Saxony police estimated the event had 4,500 participants and 4,000 counter-protesters. If attendance is any gauge, the numbers revealed a movement in an early embryonic stage at best rather than approaching a mainstream arrival that could be hastened by well-timed pushes.

The emboldened far-right activists had reason to be optimistic and local authorities to be worried after the opposing camps clashed in Chemnitz on Monday, the day after the 35-year-old German man's death. Scenes of vigilantes chasing foreigners in the city's streets have shocked people in others parts of Germany since then.

Police, at times, were unable to control the earlier protests and clashes.

Leaders of the two groups that combined forces on Saturday night cultivated a different image for the "mourning march," wearing dark suits and carrying white roses.

However, the mood at the event bringing together previously isolated clusters of nationalists  from lawmakers to Hitler-saluting skinheads  darkened as the sun set. People from both ends of the political spectrum could be seen drinking beer and shouting slurs at police.

The tension in the air reflected the polarization over Germany's ongoing effort to come to terms with an influx of more than 1 million refugees and migrants seeking jobs since 2015.

The right blames Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to allow in hundreds of thousands of asylum-seekers from war-torn countries like Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan for multiple problems. Some far-right supporters argued before the killing in Chemnitz that migrants are responsible for an increase in serious crimes, especially attacks on women.

The anti-migrant sentiment has been particularly strong in Saxony state, traditional strongholds of groups that sought to inspire a nationwide movement on Saturday night: the Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West, or PEGIDA, and the far-right Alternative for Germany party, which has won seats in federal and state parliaments with an anti-Muslim platform.

While the share of foreigners residing in Saxony remains below Germany's national average and displays of Nazi symbols are outlawed across the shame-marked country, far-right sympathizers mobilized with exceptional speed on the night of the Chemnitz slaying and the days after.

German Justice Minister Katarina Barley said Saturday that authorities should investigate the role of networks from the radical far right in spearheading the week's protests.

"We do not tolerate that right-wing extremists infiltrate our society," Barley told weekly newspaper Bild am Sonntag. "It's about finding out who's behind the mobilization of far-right criminals."

Local police appeared to have been caught unprepared when the slaying triggered the protests, which attracted crowds openly engaging in Nazi veneration and devolved into violence.

The protests were sparked by a fatal stabbing early Sunday morning of a 35-year-old German man, Daniel Hillig. Two asylum-seekers, a 22-year-old Iraqi and a 23-year-old Syrian, have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter.

German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, known for his anti-migrant stance, said Saturday that he understood why "the people in Chemnitz and elsewhere are upset about the brutal killing" but added "there's no excuse for violence," Funke Media Group reported.

"We need a strong state and we have to do everything politically to overcome the polarization and division of our society," Seehofer stressed.

While anti-migrant protests took place in Germany before, especially during the early 1990s, a strong and vocal opposition usually was there to provide a counterforce. Artists organized concerts to raise awareness, and ordinary citizens lined up in miles-long human chains to protest violence against newcomers.

Chemnitz, a city known for its hardened neo-Nazi scene, at first attracted a comparatively weak response to the recent anti-migrant activity. Some 70 left-leaning and pro-migrant groups organized the "Heart not Hatred" rally that got in the way of Saturday's far-right march.

"I've a lot of experience with far-right protests in Chemnitz," Tim Detzner, a member of the Left Party in Chemnitz, said, noting that the street riots this week "reached a level of aggression, brutality and willingness to use violence that we haven't known before."
Crews recovered the body of a Maryland man who went missing while taking a swim on Saturday.

George Edward "Dewey" Barnes III, 50, was on an anchored boat with a group of friends when some of them jumped off for a swim at the mouth of the Sassafras River, a spokesperson for Maryland Natural Resources Police said. The river feeds into the Chesapeake Bay on the upper eastern shore of Maryland.

Patrol boats, divers and helicopters were involved in the search for Barnes, who is from Germantown, police said. Search teams worked until dusk Sunday and continued the search Monday.

His body was taken to the medical examiner's office.

Barnes was a personal trainer and the husband of a Montgomery County police officer.

He owned Dedicated Fitness, and his clients gathered at a Germantown park Monday to mourn and share stories about Barnes.

"This is comforting but just very sad," Amy Bowman said.

Barnes held his fitness classes in parks in Montgomery County, even in the rain.

"I was 50 pounds heavier and the man whipped me into shape," Sharon Brenner said. "I came to his class once and I said Im never coming back and I came back, and he took me in as a client, as a friend, as a mentor and really changed my life."

Shay Sabounjian, a mother of triplets and twins, said Barnes helped her battle cancer. She recalled seeing him after her treatments.

"I walked up to him and I just put my head on his chest. He wrapped his arms around me and he said, 'I've got you. It's going to be OK,'" she said. "And he did."

Though he was just married in February, he and his wife met on a school bus when they were 9 years old.

They were just perfect for each other; they really were, Sabounjian said. They were supposed to be together.
An officer shot a man who pointed a gun at police outside a hotel in Howard County, Maryland, Sunday night, police said.

Police were called to Extended Stay America in the 8500 block of Washington Boulevard in Jessup after 9 p.m. because of a man behaving erratically in the lobby, police said.

When police arrived, 42-year-old Terrell Ramont Carroll showed a handgun and went outside, police said. In the parking lot of the hotel he pointed the gun at police.

Officers first fired beanbag rounds at him before a three-year veteran of the department shot him in the leg, police said. Carroll is being treated at a hospital.

No one else was injured.

The officer is on routine administrative leave.

Carroll was charged with assault, assault on a law enforcement officer and weapon violations.

It wasn't clear if Carroll had a lawyer; phone listings for him were disconnected.

The officer involved has been placed on standard administrative leave.
As the embattled archbishop of Washington asked parishioners attending a Sunday morning service to keep Pope Francis in their prayers, a man stood and yelled "Shame on you" before storming out.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl was celebrating Mass at the Church of the Annunciation to install Monsignor Michael Mellone as the parishs new pastor. Wuerl is facing a storm of criticism and calls for his resignation after a Pennsylvania grand jury report said he allowed priests accused of sexually abusing children to be reassigned or reinstated when he was the bishop of Pittsburgh.

During his post-Communion remarks, Wuerl asked the parishioners to forgive his own "errors in judgment" and to pray for Pope Francis.

"We need to hold close in our prayers and our loyalty our Holy Father Pope Francis," Wuerl said. "Increasingly its clear that he is the object of considerable animosity."

That's when Brian Garfield shouted, Shame on you! and then walked out of the church.

Wuerl continued, At each mass, we pray for him by name as we do so with our voices, so may we do so also with our hearts. Yes, my brothers and sisters, shame. I wish I could redo everything over these 30 years as a bishop and each time get it always right. Thats not the case.

Garfield, who is Catholic but not a parishioner of Annunciation, said he was upset at being lectured to by Wuerl and was surprised that more people didn't express the same outrage. He said his faith in God remains strong, but he cant say the same thing about his faith in the church.

However, one parishioner turned her back on the cardinal during the remarks.

Theres a tradition in the church, especially here in Washington, Mary Challinor said. There were protests in the late 60s and early 70s of people who, during the sermon in that case, would turn their backs to say, I am here, I am a member of the church, I am celebrating mass, but I dont agree with what is being said, and I dont agree with the policy, but I am here as a Catholic.

She said she doesnt think the church hierarchy understands what the scathing grand jury report released last month about rampant sex abuse in six Pennsylvania dioceses really means to Catholics. The report accused Wuerl, 77, of helping to protect some child-molesting priests while he was bishop of Pittsburgh from 1988 to 2006.

I feel like these people who, in the evidence of the Pennsylvania report, allowed priests who were abusing children to continue in their ministry should no longer be in the church hierarchy, she said. They should be priests. We need every priest we can get, and I dont think they did this out of malice at all, but I think that they abused their position and I feel like they abused the responsibility that was given to them, I guess in Pennsylvania, as a bishop.

A statement posted on the archdiocese's website acknowledges the dissenters, but says "the Cardinal was also met with applause and expressions of support from the parishioners as he concluded his remarks. This sentiment was echoed as he greeted the faithful who approached him and expressed their prayers and support after Mass."

The Archdiocese of Washington is home to more than 630,000 Catholics and is considered an important power center for the church in the U.S. Wuerl has been ranked by commentators as one of the most influential of the 10 active American cardinals.

Some Catholics are calling for the resignation or removal of Wuerl, 77.

Wuerl has not been charged with any wrongdoing but is named numerous times in the grand jury report, which details instances in which he allowed priests accused of misconduct to be reassigned or reinstated.

Wuerl was born in Pittsburgh, attended Catholic University in Washington and received a doctorate in theology from the University of Saint Thomas in Rome. He joined the priesthood in 1966, was ordained a bishop by Pope John Paul II in 1986, and served briefly as auxiliary bishop in Seattle before going to Pittsburgh.
The suspect in the murder of 26-year-old Brittiney Cobb was arrested about 200 miles from the crime scene, after he led police on a car chase through two Virginia cities and then crashed in a tunnel, authorities say.

Rodney Stephaun Conyers, 32, of Oxon Hill, Maryland, is facing a charge of first-degree murder in Cobb's slaying, Prince George's County Police said.

Cobb and Conyers shared their home with two children, neighbors said.

Police said the killing was domestic-related. Court records show the couple was in court in 2014 related to domestic abuse.

According to a preliminary investigation, an argument between the two escalated, they said.

Officers were called to the 1100 block of Southview Drive around 4 a.m. Sunday and found Cobb inside suffering from stab wounds.

She was pronounced dead at the scene.

Conyers was arrested Sunday after Virginia State Police received a Be on the Lookout alert from Prince George's County saying the suspect was thought to be traveling through Virginia in a gold 2014 Kia Spectra sedan.

Shortly after receiving the alert, State Police say Conyers was spotted on Route 58 in Suffolk, Virginia. Officers initiated a traffic stop, but Conyers tried to flee, leading to a car chase through Suffolk and Portmouth before he crashed in the downtown tunnel, they said. The tunnel connects Portsmouth and Norfolk.

Conyers sustained minor injuries in the crash and was taken to a hospital.

He is in the custody of Virginia State Police and is awaiting extradition back to Prince George's County. State Police are in the process of obtaining warrants for the pursuit and traffic crash, they said.

A neighbor told News4 she had no indication anything was wrong.

Anyone with information in the case is asked to please call detectives at 301-772-4925. Those wishing to remain anonymous may call Crime Solvers at 866-411-TIPS (8477), report their tip online at www.pgcrimesolvers.com or use the P3 Tips app.
A huge fire engulfed Brazil's 200-year-old National Museum in Rio de Janeiro, lighting up the night sky with towering flames as firefighters and museum workers raced to save historical relics from the blaze.

The esteemed museum, which houses artifacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman art and some of the first fossils found in Brazil, was closed to the public at the time of the fire, which broke out at 7:30 p.m. Sunday local time, it said in a statement.

There were no reports of injuries, the museum said, and it wasn't immediately clear how the fire began.

Roberto Robadey, a spokesman for the fire department, said 80 firefighters were battling the blaze and that by midnight local time it was "just about under control" and should be out within a few hours.

President Michel Temer called it "a sad day for all Brazilians."

"Two hundred years of work, investigation and knowledge have been lost," Temer said in a statement.

According to its website, the museum has a vast collection related to the history of Brazil and other countries, and that many of its collections came from members of Brazil's royal family.

Robadey said firefighters got off to a slow start fighting the blaze because the two fire hydrants closest to the museum were not functioning. Instead, trucks had to be sent to get water from a nearby lake.

But he added that some of the museum's pieces had been spared.

"We were able to remove a lot of things from inside with the help of workers of the museum," Robadey told Globo News.

Connected to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, the museum has expositions that include anthropology, archaeology and paleontology, among others.

The vice director of the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, told Globo news the museum suffered chronic underfunding.

"Everybody wants to be supportive now. We never had adequate support," he said.

Latin America's largest nation has struggled to emerge from its worst recession in decades. The state of Rio de Janeiro has been particularly hard hit in recent years thanks to a combination of falling world prices of oil, one of its major revenue sources, mismanagement and massive corruption.

Just over a month before national elections, even before the flames were put out, the fire was leading to recriminations about dilapidated infrastructure and budget deficits in the city that hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics.

"Unfortunately, given the financial straits of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and all the other public universities the last three years, this was a tragedy that could be seen coming," Marina Silva, one of the leading presidential candidates, tweeted.

On Instagram, Rio Mayor Marcelo Crivella called on the country to rebuild.

"It's a national obligation to reconstruct it from the ashes, recompose every eternal detail of the paintings and photos. Even if they are not original, they continue to be a reminder of the royal family that gave us independence, the (Portuguese) empire and the first constitution and national unity," he said.

Associated Press video journalist Yesica Fisch and AP reporter Mauricio Savarese contributed to this report.
The U.S. Coast Guard suspended its search for a possibly missing paraglider at 12:39 p.m. Monday.

The Coast Guard said in a statement that it searched the water off of Seabrook, New Hampshire through the night Sunday and into Monday, finding nothing. During the 18-hour search, crews covered 201 square nautical miles.

The search employed two 47-foot boats, a 29-foot boat, a helicopter and an airplane, the statement said.

People on the Seabrook beach say they're concerned about this sort of thing happening at this particular beach.

"This beach here, there's no lifeguards. It's like a private beach, but somebody should be around," said witness John Souboski. "It's kinda scary... you never know."

A person called 911 at approximately 7:30 p.m. to report a hang glider with a potential person in distress about 600 yards off the shore. The Coast Guard later clarified its crews were searching for a blue paraglider.

There were no correlating missing persons reports that would seem a potential match with this incident. As of 12:39 p.m. Monday, there is no confirmation that there is indeed a person in the water.

Anyone with information regarding the case are asked to contact Coast Guard Sector Northern New England at 207-767-0303.
Authorities have found the missing Massachusetts boy they were search for Monday.

The Haverhill Police Department said in a Facebook post Monday night that 12-year-old Jesus Pacheco had been located safe and sound.

Police had earlier asked for the public's help in finding the boy after he had been last been seen around 9:23 a.m. on Sept. 3, in the area of Portland Street and 4th Avenue.

Pacheco was wearing a red shirt, blue shorts and red Nike sneakers.

He is described as approximately 5'1" and 100 pounds with brown eyes and black hair.

Anyone with information on Pacheco's whereabouts was asked to call Haverhill police at 978-373-1212.
There are few places in the country to get a better look at the night sky than Acadia National Park, and stargazers will meet there to do just that in a few days.

The Acadia Night Sky Festival is scheduled to begin on Wednesday. The event bills itself as "the premier night sky event on the Eastern seaboard'' and it takes place all over Mount Desert Island, Bar Harbor and the Schoodic Peninsula.

Organizers say the star celebration is a multi-day festival that includes more than three dozen events dedicated to the enjoyment of Maine's night sky. There's a keynote event scheduled for Friday at 6 p.m. at the Criterion Theatre in Bar Harbor.

This is the tenth time the annual event has taken place. It concludes Sept. 9.
A man has been arrested in connection with three suspicious fires in Boston.

Officers and firefighters responded to three suspicious fires in Boston within an hour and a half of one another Monday night between 1 a.m. and 2:30 a.m.

According to police, officers initially responded to a call for an oil truck fully engulfed in flames in the area of 87 Norwell Street in Dorchester, Massachusetts.

About ten minutes later, a second fire was reported in a trash barrel on Waterlow Street. It was quickly extinguished, police said.

The third fire was reported at about 2:30 a.m. Officers were called to the area of 90 Norwell Street where a resident stated that they observed a male suspect enter their backyard, pile up several items against a fence and light them on fire.

According to police, a K-9 officer located a suspect matching the description in the area of Radcliffe Street and Vassar Street.

He was placed in custody without incident after he was positively identified.

Police say the suspect is Sequonie Suarez, 27, of Dorchester.

He is charged with arson of a motor vehicle, burning personal property (two counts) and trespassing.

Suarez will be arraigned in Dorchester District Court.

It is unclear if he has an attorney.
A Labor Day tradition in one central Vermont community forces political candidates to come up with a plan B if they want get their message out at the event.

It was becoming a parade of politicians, Wendy Rae of the Northfield Labor Day organizing committee recalled of the towns parade in years past.

The event decided some time ago to boot political floats and official campaign displays from the parade route.

We want it to be a unifying opportunity for our community, and sometimes, politics can just defeat that purpose, Rae said of the parade.

Northfield instead showcases nonprofit groups and Norwich Universitys impressive Corps of Cadets.

Politicians are still welcome at the event, and you do see them working the sidelines in election years, just not walking the parade route itself.

The people in Vermont are friendly, whether they support you or not, said Don Turner, the Republican running for lieutenant governor.

Turners campaign has seen him marching in 15 or so parades this year across Vermont, he said, until Northfield.

Each community that has a parade has every right to make the rules that they want, Turner said. Ive heard that a lot of parades are just politicians marching, so I respect that.

Longtime parade-goer Lily Cook said she was glad for a break from political messages.

You get an awful lot of calls on the phone, you know, all the time, Cook said. The parade should be the paradefor Labor Day!

Several candidates who did come to Northfield said even though they couldnt march, the big gathering gave them a chance for face-to-face conversations with votersfolks theyll need to reach in the two months until Election Day.
A woman has pleaded guilty to setting a fire that destroyed three vehicles in Maine.

U.S. Attorney Halsey Frank says that 31-year-old Jaymi Hutchins pleaded guilty Thursday in U.S. District Court to damaging and destroying by fire property used in interstate commerce.

Hutchins is formerly of Gilead, Maine and Rochester, New Hampshire. Her attorney didn't immediately respond to request for comment.

Hutchins faces between five and 20 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. She will be sentenced after the completion of an investigation report by the U.S. Probation Office.

Frank says court records say that Hutchins on Oct. 25, 2016 set fire inside a vehicle in the parking lot of a Maine vehicle towing, recovery, repair and sales business.

The fire destroyed three vehicles including a commercial wrecker.
What is rapidly aging and largely male? If you said the heavy metal music scene, you wouldnt be wrong (cest moi), but thats not the answer in this instance. Its data center staffing.

In its recent report on data center efficiency, Uptime Institute focused primarily on outages and the improvement in power efficiency, but there were other interesting findings, such as this:

Data center staff are getting older on average, and women show no interest in the job.

[ Now read: 20 hot jobs ambitious IT pros should shoot for ]

New skills needed for hybrid IT environments

According to the report, there is a growing need for new skills in an increasingly hybrid IT environment. New skills, such as overseeing and managing SLAs for off-premises workloads, are needed, but people dont have them. Just 35 percent of survey respondents reported that they did not have any of the hiring or staffing issues identified by Uptime.

The leading area of expertise that is particularly critical and yet difficult to hire for is operations and management, according to more than 50 percent of respondents. Finding people who have adequate skills in security, networking, electrical engineering, and cloud skills is also an issue.

Across all respondents, 17 percent said they are having difficulty retaining staff because they are being hired away. There has been intense hiring by hyperscale cloud and internet operators, as well as large colocation providers.

Lack of young people and women

Whats really of interest is whats not coming in: young people and women. More than half (56 percent) of respondents in the survey had more than 20 years work experience. Only 5 percent were new to the industry, with fewer than five years experience.

The survey also found women make up less than 6 percent of the workforce at most data centers, but that was not seen as a problem by 70 percent of the respondents.

Rhonda Ascierto, vice president of Uptime Institute Research, said the survey sample did focus on managers (with some engineers), who tend to have longer industry tenures, but this is still a smaller portion than we had anticipated.

As for the lack of women in data centers, people attributed it to the tendency of organizations to hire entry-level staff from the military or trade school, whereas the other IT professions require college degrees and that pool will have more women than the other non-degree programs.

Women, she notes, fare better in other areas of tech. They make up 12 percent of engineering, 20 percent of IT management, and 34 percent of web developers.

Additionally, labor shortages, which will drive up costs, is a real and underestimated risk. This is one of the fastest-growing sectors in the world, and even large operators, with their attractive salaries and career opportunities, can struggle to fill open positions," Ascierto said. "And yet the industry is effectively ignoring 50 percent of the population. There is growing consensus among data center industry leaders and elsewhere that the future success of the data center business will depend on building a diverse workforce.

Staffing changes

Skills and vertical industries are in flux. Many enterprises are cutting data center staff as they reduce their data center investment. Meanwhile, the colocation and cloud computing organizations are struggling to find candidates for open jobs and those who are hired have to learn new skills for the hybrid cloud world.

Change is stressful, but its shaking out, Ascierto said.

Operators that are seeing success in their staffing strategies tend to focus on staff training, including cross-training existing personnel for both IT and facilities skills, which is essentially merging the two roles into a single generalist position.

This has proven particularly attractive in organizations with a stated cloud-first strategy, which can leave internal staff feeling uncertain about their long-term future, Ascierto said.
Owners of the Tally Ho Pub eager for new business venture following villagers' campaign to save their local

THE team behind The Tally Ho in Hungerford Newtown is looking for tenants to run it.

The community pub is a thriving success story and a source of much local pride  and now its time for a change.

Tally Ho Community Pub Ltd director Monty Smith said this week that the search is on for the right couple to take over the day-to-day running of the business.

The venture is a beacon for other communities hoping to save their local from developers, and many have sought advice.

Hungerford Newtown residents were dismayed when, in 2012, the Tally was sold by brewing giant Wadworth.

The buyer, Acres Developments, sought planning permission to convert it into a terrace of three three-bedroom homes.

However, planning permission was refused.

A convoluted battle followed, but villagers, backed by the West Berkshire branch of Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) and Newbury MP Richard Benyon, prevailed, eventually buying the building back.

It is now owned by a consortium of villagers and other investors and run as community asset, offering good food, bed and breakfast and real ales.

Mr Smith said: It was never our intention to run it ourselves, hands on.

Were now looking to move things on to the next stage and keep pushing the business forward.

We want to keep the property, but sell the tenancy.

But its vital that we maintain the same standards.

The directors have advertised the tenancy within the industry and have already interviewed several hopeful candidates.

But Mr Smith said: It could be that someone local would fit the bill.

So if youve ever thought of running your own pub, weve got a successful business right here.

Ideally were looking for a couple with some experience.

Were in no particular hurry  its more about getting it right.

Mr Smith said that other communities seeking to buy their village pub to save it from developers still contact The Tally Ho team for advice and added: As far as were concerned, this has been a fantastic success story.

In 2014, The Tally Ho won West Berkshire CAMRAs award for Best Community Pub.

The annual award was introduced to celebrate the contribution that local pubs make to their community.

The chairman of West Berkshire CAMRA at the time, Richard Scullion, said: One of CAMRAs key campaigns is to support well-run pubs as the centre of community life.

Their continued existence plays a critical social role in UK culture, and they are great places in which to consume real ale.

Seeing the community rally to keep its pub in this way is an example to us all.

Anyone interested in taking on the tenancy of The Tally Ho should ring the pub on (01488) 682312 to make an appointment for a chat.
Aloe vera has been widely used as a potent natural remedy for a lot of conditions, including insect bites.

What is Aloe vera?

Aloe vera (Aloe barbadensis miller) is a succulent plant used in alternative medicine. With a total of 420 various plant species of Aloe vera, it has been popular in Indian medicine for the treatment of many conditions. For centuries, the plant has gained immense popularity for its beauty, health, skin care, and medicinal properties.

The name aloe vera was derived from the Arabic word Alloeh, meaning a shining bitter substance and vera came from the Latin word vera, meaning true. For years, aloe vera has been widely used in several cultures  Egypt, Greece, Mexico, India, China, and Japan. The plant belongs to the Asphodelaceae (Liliaceae) family that thrives in dry regions in Asia, Europe, America, and Africa.

Aloe vera field. Image Credit: Anyaivanova / Shutterstock

Whats Inside Aloe Vera?

Aloe vera contains many vitamins, minerals, and other active ingredients that give it many health benefits. Each aloe vera leaf has three main layers. There is an inner gel containing 99% water, and the remaining part made of amino acids, glucomannans, sterols, lipids, and vitamins. The middle layer is made of latex, which is a yellow sap containing glycosides and anthraquinones. Lastly, the outer layer is composed of 15 to 20 cells dubbed as rind. It works by protecting the inner part of the leaf and at the same time, synthesizes proteins and carbohydrates.

Sliced aloe vera leaf. Image Credit: Crystalfoto / Shutterstock

There about at least 160 important ingredients identified in aloe vera leaves. Some experts say that the leaf contains 300 to 400 vital components.

Vitamins

Vitamins A, C, and E are potent antioxidants that fight off and neutralize free radicals. Vitamin C is an immune booster and is crucial for the growth of the teeth, bones, and blood. Apart from this, its a potent antioxidant that can protect the body cells from premature aging. Vitamin E accelerates the healing process.

Aloe vera also contains vitamins B1, B2, B6, and B12 that help in the detoxifying process. Specifically, vitamin B12 is vital for nucleic acid synthesis.

Monosaccharide and Polysaccharides

Monosaccharides and polysaccharides such as aldopentose, cellulose, galactose, arabinose, galacturonic acid, glucose, mannose, and xylose, among others, have antibacterial, antiviral, anti-inflammatory, anti-mycotic, and immune-stimulating effects.

Enzymes

Aloe vera contains enzymes namely amylase, bradykinase, aliiase, alkaline phosphatase, peroxidase, catalase, cellulose, lipase, and carboxypeptidase. These enzymes work by reducing inflammation when applied on the skin topically.

Hormones

Aloe vera also contains hormones, such as gibberellins and auxins, which help in the faster healing of wounds. These also have anti-inflammatory properties.

Secondary Plant Compounds

Though found in small amounts, secondary plant compounds can help determine the color, smell, and taste of the plant. Moreover, they can be effective if used pharmacologically. For instance, aloe vera contains essential oils that can provide anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effects. Other anti-inflammatory ingredients include salicylic acid and tannic acid.

Aloe Vera and Insect Bites

People apply aloe vera to the skin for various skin conditions such as acne, burning mouth, insect bites, skin damage, diaper rash, wound healing, and itchy skin, among others.

Due to the contents of aloe vera, it has been widely used to soothe insect bites. Aloe vera is well-known for its healing properties for the skin. Known as a vulnerary, a helping aid to fasten wound healing, it is great in applying topically to insect or bug bites, abrasions, psoriasis, and even burns.

Aside from that, its a popular antipruritic, which is a substance that reduces or prevents itching. Plus, its an emollient, which helps soften and soothe the skin. Hence, aloe vera is good in soothing insect bites.

The potent ingredients found in aloe vera makes it a strong antiseptic against mosquito bites. The vitamins and minerals found in aloe vera can help reduce inflammation, pain, and itching. For instance, the vitamin E found in aloe vera can contribute to soothing the skin and reducing redness. On top of that, it helps make the bite heal faster.

Aloe vera is a potent leaf that can be used in several ways. Its history as a natural remedy can be traced back to centuries ago and until today, its widely used because of its healing properties.

Further Reading
Experiencing homelessness at any time during the pre- or postnatal period can negatively affect a young child's health. Researchers at Children's HealthWatch, based out of Boston Medical Center (BMC), found that children who experienced both pre- and post-natal homelessness and those who experienced homelessness for longer than six months were at highest risk of negative health outcomes. These findings, published in Pediatrics, illustrate the urgent need to intervene and rapidly house children and families experiencing homelessness to minimize the negative health outcomes.

Researchers interviewed 20,000 low-income caregivers of children under four years old who visited outpatient pediatric clinics in five cities across the U.S. between 2009 and 2015. The researchers asked questions to determine if a child experienced homelessness, how long they experienced homelessness, and when in the child's life they experienced homelessness. They then conducted an assessment of the child determining their overall condition; if/how often the child was hospitalized; if a child was over or underweight; and if the child experienced any developmental delays.

More than three percent of caregivers reported experiencing prenatal homelessness, 3.7 percent reported postnatal homelessness, and 3.5 percent reported both.

The study found children who experienced homelessness for more than six months were at high risk of poor health outcomes. Also at high risk were children who experienced homelessness during both the pre- and post-natal period, showing that the earlier and longer in development a child experiences homelessness may have a larger cumulative toll of poor health and development outcomes.

"These findings back up what we already knew about how the stress of homelessness affects children's heath," said Megan Sandel, MD, MPH, pediatrician at BMC and lead investigator at Children's HealthWatch, "but this helps us determine which children are at greatest risk, and makes the argument that policymakers and providers need to intervene to change the trajectory of a child's development."

Researchers also note the toll poor health outcomes caused by child homelessness can exact on health systems. Greater health care utilization, increased hospitalizations, and need for developmental interventions creates substantial family and societal health care expenses.

"As pediatricians, we should be regularly screening families for housing insecurity, including past history and future risk of homelessness," said Deborah Frank, MD, director of the GROW Clinic at BMC and senior author on the study. "Interventions that prevent homelessness for families and pregnant women can be extremely effective, and with data on the housing status of our patients, we can better advocate for more resources to drive innovations in addressing housing instability."

Source: http://www.bmc.org/
The American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM) is honoring Goran Rakocevic, MD, with the 2018 Best Abstract Award for his abstract, Quantitative Clinical and Autoimmune Assessments in Stiff Person Syndrome: Evidence for a Progressive Disorder.

"Stiff person syndrome is a rare yet fascinating neurological disorder rich in symptomatology and manifestations, a challenge to study in a systematic and longitudinal fashion in one center because of its disabling nature over time," Dr. Rakocevic explained. "The highlight of our abstract is the evidence for faster progression of disablement than originally reported and believed."

"Early diagnosis and management of stiff person syndrome (SPS) can be challenging. Dr. Rakocevic's team will be presenting data from the largest prospective SPS cohort followed at a single institution at the 2018 AANEM Annual Meeting. Their data demonstrates that SPS causes progressive stiffness and functional decline, with 80% becoming unable to walk independently. Their research emphasizes the need to treat early and will help clinicians recognize SPS earlier in its course," noted A. Gordon Smith, MD, Co-Chair of the AANEM Annual Meeting Program Committee.

"This abstract is a well written paper. The premise is sound and adds significantly to our literature," said Robert W. Irwin, MD, Co-Chair of the AANEM Annual Meeting Program Committee. "The length of follow up and the number of subjects makes this a strong abstract with clinical implications in persons with this disease."

Dr. Rakocevic said he submitted his research to the AANEM Annual Meeting because "AANEM is the most appropriate venue for neuromuscular medicine practitioners."

When he found out he was receiving the AANEM Best Abstract Award, Dr. Rakocevic said, "I was and still am pleasantly surprised. Every opportunity to present research and exchange ideas at the AANEM Annual Meeting is a rewarding experience and privilege in itself."

Dr. Rakocevic works at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania as an Associate Professor of Neurology, Director of the Neuromuscular Electrodiagnostic Laboratory, Clinical Director of the Jefferson Weinberg ALS Center, and Director of the Neuromuscular Medicine Fellowship Program.

The runner-up for Best Abstract is Shruti Raja, MD, Assistant Professor in the neuromuscular division of the Department of Neurology at Duke University, for the abstract, Validation of the Triple Timed Up-and-Go Test for Clinical Assessment in Lambert-Eaton Myasthenia Patients.

The full list of 2018 AANEM Annual Meeting abstracts will be printed in the September 2018 issue of Muscle & Nerve and is now available via PDF. For more information on individual abstracts, contact Gretchen Williamson at [email protected]

AANEM requires information that goes beyond that which is contained within the abstract, e.g., discussion of the abstract done as part of a scientific presentation, is to be embargoed until the start of the 2018 AANEM Annual Meeting which is October 10, 2018. See the AANEM Abstract Embargo Policy for more information.
The American Association of Neuromuscular & Electrodiagnostic Medicine (AANEM) is honoring Favio C. Bumanlag, BA, with the 2018 Technologist Member Recognition Award for his abstract, Clinical, Laboratory, and Electrodiagnostic Features of Zinc Deficiency-induced Peripheral Neuropathy.

"Zinc, an essential trace element, plays a critical role in maintaining normal structural and functional conditions in the body," Bumanlag explained. "Peripheral nerves are susceptible to damage when zinc deficiency occurs. There isn't much literature written about zinc deficiency-induced peripheral neuropathy and recognition of it will help physicians and technologists effectively manage patients."

Bumanlag said he felt "humbled and honored to be recognized" by the AANEM and is looking forward to discussing his research at the 2018 AANEM Annual Meeting occurring October 10-13, 2018, in the Washington, DC area.

Bumanlag works in the Department of Neurology as the chief technologist at the Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Bumanlag has been an active member of AANEM since 2010. He was also the recipient of the AANEM's Technologist Member Recognition Award in 2016.

The runner-up for the 2018 Technologist Member Recognition Award is Ali Arvantaj, CAP, lead autonomic technologist at University Hospitals Cleveland Medical Center in Cleveland, Ohio, for the abstract, Agarose Based Acetylcholine Reduces Quantitative Sudomotor Axon Reflex Test's (QSART) False Positives.

The full list of 2018 AANEM Annual Meeting abstracts will be printed in the September 2018 issue of Muscle & Nerve and is now available via PDF. For more information on individual abstracts, contact Gretchen Williamson at [email protected]

AANEM requires information that goes beyond that which is contained within the abstract, e.g., discussion of the abstract done as part of a scientific presentation, is to be embargoed until the start of the 2018 AANEM Annual Meeting which is October 10, 2018. See the AANEM Abstract Embargo Policy for more information.
What if social behavior affected the progression of even noncontagious diseases? This is precisely what has been demonstrated by French CNRS teams, with support from the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD), Paris-Sud University, the University of Montpellier, the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission (CEA), and colleagues from Spain and Australia. Using a fly model of intestinal cancer, the researchers have shown that disease progression is impacted both by social isolationwhich has a negative effectand the composition of the social group with which individuals associate. Their findings are published in Nature Communications.

For many animals, humans included, social behavior can play a critical role in the survival of individuals. The effect that interactions between individuals can have on the spread of communicable diseases is well known. But is there any connection between social interactions and the progression, within sick individuals, of noncommunicable diseases like cancers? To address this question, the scientists chose the fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster as their research model. Control of the social environment and experimental induction of disease (an intestinal cancer in this case) are both easily achieved when working with drosophilas. The team sought to determine whether the social environment of diseased individuals altered the speed of tumor progression and if these flies could choose their social environment to slow this progression.

They observed that disease progression in sick flies was faster in social isolation than when interacting with other flies. Even more surprisingly, the very structure of a diseased fly's social group could affect the progression of its illness. When a sick fly is in the company of healthy ones, its tumor spreads more quickly than when interacting with other sick individuals. Detailed analyses of interactions between flies, monitored through video, suggest that sick flies interact less with healthy ones in their presenceeffectively exhibiting a sort of isolation in the midst of the healthy crowd.

It is interesting to note that, when given the choice between a sick or healthy group, a sick fly will choose to join other sick fliesat least during the early stages of illness. Once the tumor is in an advanced state, the fly no longer shows any preference. The behavior of healthy flies is different. Though they make no distinction between healthy flies and sick flies at an early stage of disease, they will avoid sick flies with more advanced tumors and prefer the company of other healthy flies. The exact reasons for such avoidance are still poorly understood and currently under study. It may reflect a nonspecific response to the risks posed by diseases in generalsuch as contagion, compromised reproductive potential, and greater vulnerability to predators.

Though these findings cannot yet be extrapolated to humans, they suggest that social environment plays a substantial, even major, role in the development of a disease like cancer.
Patient satisfaction after plastic surgery is most affected by surgeon-related factors, such as taking the time to answer questions and including patients in the decision-making process, reports a study in the September issue of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS).

By comparison, practice-related issues like waiting time and office staff have a much weaker effect on patient satisfaction scores, according to the new research by ASPS Member Surgeon Neil Tanna, MD, MBA, and colleagues of Hofstra Northwell Health School of Medicine, New York. They write, "In the outpatient plastic surgery setting, patients are more satisfied if they feel that their physician provides them with compassionate, coordinated care."

To Increase Patient Satisfaction, Spend More Quality Time with Patients

The researchers analyzed responses to a patient satisfaction questionnaire distributed to patients of nearly 700 plastic surgeons nationwide. Patient satisfaction is an increasingly used measure of healthcare quality and outcomes. The study included responses from nearly 37,000 patients, including more than 400 from the authors' plastic surgery department.

The study focused on two questionnaire items: patients' ratings of how likely they would be to recommend the plastic surgeon and the plastic surgery practice to others. These "likelihood to recommend" items have been identified as useful indicators of overall patient satisfaction and success of the medical practice.

The results suggested that several categories of practice-related factors did not have a major impact on the likelihood of recommending the surgeon or practice. Correlations were weak for items such as office hours or scheduling appointments, waiting times, interactions with nurses or staff other than the surgeon, or attention to patient privacy or safety.

In contrast, items specifically related to the plastic surgeon were strongly related to the likelihood of recommending the surgeon and practice. The strongest items were the patient's level of confidence in the surgeon and the surgeon's concern for the patient's questions and worries. Other important factors included the surgeon's explanations of the problem or condition and efforts to include the patient in decisions.

That pattern was consistent with previous studies  in plastic surgery and other medical specialties  showing that the perceived quality and among of time spent with the doctor or other healthcare provider has a major impact on patient satisfaction scores. "Patients are most likely to recommend plastic surgeons and their practices whose care is characterized by empathy and communication," Dr. Tanna and coauthors write. A recent study in Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery found that good communication was an important factor affecting online reviews of plastic surgeons.

Although practice-related factors  such as scheduling, office staff interactions, and waiting times  were still significantly related to patient satisfaction, the correlations were much weaker than for surgeon-related factors. While having an attractive, smooth-running practice is still important, "Resources may be better allocated to improving the time and quality of time spent with patients," according to the authors.

Dr. Tanna and colleagues believe their study has important implications for marketing the plastic surgery practice  particularly in improving patients' "likelihood to recommend" as a reflection of the patient's trust in the surgeon. The authors conclude: "In earning patients' trust, plastic surgeons can fulfill goals of a practicing provider and the goal of any medical professional: improving patient experience by meeting their needs."
Financial Secretary Paul Chan

While Hong Kong and Israel are miles apart geographically, we share much in our change-embracing can-do entrepreneurial spirit. In this ever-evolving global economic landscape, Hong Kong and Israel can be each others trusted partner in seizing the opportunities ahead. We are therefore here today to explore new avenues for collaboration with Tel Aviv and with Israel to help create a brighter and, of course, smarter future.

HKs advantages

Hong Kong is on the doorstep of the most prosperous region of Asia. From Hong Kong, you can reach half the worlds population within a five-hour flight. With our long-standing position as a pivotal gateway connecting Mainland China and the rest of the world, Hong Kong is certainly an ideal springboard for Israeli companies looking to develop and strengthen their presence in our region, and especially in the Mainland of China.

Hong Kong also enjoys unique advantages under the one country, two systems arrangement, which allows us to maintain our own economic and legal system while being an integral and closely connected part of China. Flying the flag of free trade and upholding a level-playing field, Hong Kong has been widely recognised as one of the best places in the world to do business and we have been ranked as the worlds freest economy for each of the past 24 years, according to the US-based Heritage Foundation.

On top of our free and open economy, we offer an internationally competitive tax regime, with companies paying no more than 16.5% profits tax. In fact, this year we introduced a new two-tier tax system, by which the tax on the first HK$2 million (US$255,000) of profits is taxed at just 8.25%. There is also no inheritance tax, no capital gains tax and no sales tax in Hong Kong. All this adds up to more money and more time for companies to invest in growing their business.

Regarding our legal system, Hong Kongs mature common law system and fine tradition of rule of law mean that entrepreneurs can rest assured that contracts will be honoured, intellectual property is well-protected and disputes are settled fairly. Arbitral awards made in Hong Kong are enforceable in over 150 contracting states to the New York Convention. This is complemented by reciprocal arrangements with Mainland China.

As one of the world's leading financial centres and China's international financial capital, Hong Kong is the ideal platform for fund raising. In terms of IPOs, Hong Kong has been ranked number one globally for five years in the past nine years. Our deep liquidity, premier financial infrastructure, and comprehensive options for raising capital can meet the varying financial needs of different types of businesses, tech companies included of course, whatever their size and whatever their stage of development.

Hong Kong also enjoys first-mover advantages available to no one else, in leveraging Mainland Chinas continued economic development. We are now the global offshore renminbi business hub with the worlds largest offshore pool of RMB funds. Through Hong Kong, international investors enjoy access to a wide variety of RMB products, including bond issuance, trade settlement and RMB denominated banking. With the launch of Bond Connect, Stock Connect schemes, and mutual recognition of funds arrangements between Hong Kong and the Mainland, Hong Kong serves as the unique two-way portal connecting international and Mainland investors to each others vast market.

Apart from financial services, Hong Kong is the platform for high-end professional services. Our world-class professionals in engineering, architecture, urban planning, surveying and consulting have the experience and knowledge to lead and implement world class infrastructure projects.

As a real testimony to our position as an international financial, transportation and trade centre, more than 8,200 major Mainland China and overseas companies are now operating in Hong Kong. I am delighted that with the support from Invest Hong Kong, a number of promising Israeli businesses have also established their presence in our city recently.

Power of I&T

Indeed, the expansion of Israel-Hong Kong co-operation cannot be more relevant at this juncture, as Hong Kong is actively embracing innovation and technology as the new impetus for economic growth. In fact, I also see much potential for our two economies to join forces in harnessing the mighty power of innovation and technology in 21st century.

Advanced I&T in all its forms is required in order to succeed in the future world economy. With our collective entrepreneurial spirit, business acumen, and shared commitment to scientific research and development, Israel and Hong Kong can forge new synergies in this field.

Following the establishment of the Innovation & Technology Bureau some two years ago, we have allocated more than US$10 billion to upgrade our technological infrastructure, build a vibrant ecosystem for startups, and pool and nurture more technology talent in Hong Kong. We will be focusing on four areas, namely, biotech, smart city, fintech and artificial intelligence and big data analytics.

It helps that Hong Kong boasts a number of top-notch universities with strong research capabilities, as well as world-class information and communication technology infrastructure and the largest data centre cluster in the Asia-Pacific region. Our internet connection speed is among the world's fastest, and our mobile penetration rate, at 247%, is among the highest anywhere  certainly on this planet.

Among the many ongoing initiatives, we are establishing two research clusters in Hong Kong, one focusing on healthcare technologies and the other on artificial intelligence and robotics technologies. By developing these clusters, we aim to attract world-class scientific research institutions and technology enterprises to join forces with our local universities and scientific research institutions in conducting more midstream and downstream R&D projects.

I am confident in this respect, let me add, because of our encouraging track record in this regard. For example, in late 2016, the celebrated Karolinska Institutet of Sweden opened its first overseas research facility for Reparative Medicine at our Science Park. Then last September, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology opened its first overseas Innovation Node, providing entrepreneurial education and training for students and researchers from MIT and from Hong Kong as well. In addition, our country is very supportive of Hong Kong. Researchers in Hong Kong can have access to research funding available on the Mainland and renowned Mainland universities and research institutes have and will continue to set up laboratories in Hong Kong.

Naturally, we welcome Israeli tech entrepreneurs, and talent to partner with Hong Kong in creating high-tech solutions for a smarter future, we also welcome Israeli innovative companies to make use of our world-class financial platform to raise funds.

Our strong financial market will certainly play its part in promoting innovation and technology. For example, we understand that biotech companies face financial challenges, due to the long and costly journey inherent in turning biotech research into effective products and applications. We are keenly aware that biotech companies with promising developments in the works require substantial cashflow to get through the arduous, but necessary, approval process demanded by relevant authorities.

With biotech and other sectors of the new economy in mind, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange introduced in April this year, a new listing regime which allows pre-revenue biotech companies and companies with weighted voting right structures to list on the Main Board. The new listing regime also provides a route for issuers seeking a secondary listing in Hong Kong.

We are developing Hong Kong into the preferred listing platform for emerging and innovative enterprises.

We are also working relentlessly with industry stakeholders to further enhance Hong Kong's ecosystem for start-ups. Today, a new generation of disruptors is taking advantage of Hong Kong's favourable economic and cultural environment to create, innovate and enable tomorrow's economy. In recent years, our start-up scene has also taken off - not surprisingly, of course. According to San Francisco-based research firm Compass, Hong Kong is among the world's five fastest-growing start-up centres. With a growing number of private venture capital funds attracted by Hong Kongs start-ups, as well as incubators, accelerators and co-working spaces now operating in Hong Kong, I am confident that the start-up scene in Hong Kong will continue to flourish.

Greater bay area

Before I conclude, I also wish to highlight the exciting prospects for Hong Kong in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area development, a national development strategy of China.

Linking Hong Kong, Macau and nine cities in Guangdong, including Shenzhen, Guangzhou and Zhuhai, the greater bay area counts a combined population of 69 million and a collective GDP worth US$1.5 trillion, which is comparable to that of Korea. Working together, the synergies to be brought about by these cities are obvious and tremendous. The world class financial services of Hong Kong, the vibrant tech sector in Shenzhen and the advanced manufacturing bases in the other cities in the area, enable the greater bay area to have the combined advantages of the New York Bay Area and the San Francisco Bay Area.

The greater bay area has all it takes to become the international innovation and technology hub of China.

In the coming quarter, two major mega cross-border infrastructure projects, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the Guangdong-Shenzhen-Hong Kong Express Rail Link, will be operational, further enhancing Hong Kongs connectivity with the greater bay area and beyond.

With the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge, the travelling time from Hong Kong to Macao, Zhuhai and Shenzhen will be cut down substantially to less than an hour. A one-hour living circle will be created. And most of the cities in the Pearl River Delta Area are within three hours drive. Cities in Indochina, such as Hanoi in Vietnam, can be reached in about one day. And with the express rail link, the journey time between Guangzhou and Hong Kong will be reduced to 48 minutes, and passengers from Hong Kong can easily access the over-20,000 km national high speed rail network connecting all major cities in the Mainland.

Ladies and gentlemen, although this visit is a first in many ways, Israel and Hong Kong have established a firm foundation for collaboration over many years: the value of our bilateral goods trade exceeds US$4 billion annually; more than 30 Israeli companies operate in Hong Kong in a wide range of sectors; and last year, nearly 75,000 Israelis visited Hong Kong, up more than 16%, year-on-year.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan gave these remarks at the Hong Kong Business Luncheon jointly organised by the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region Government and the Hong Kong Trade Development Council in Tel Aviv, Israel, on September 3.




As the JDS-Congress coalition surged ahead, CM Kumaraswamy lauded the partnership and said that people have rejected BJP's claims of the coalition govt falling apart.

Read More Karnataka Municipal Election Result 2018: BJP president BS Yeddyurappa said that the saffron party has performed 'below expectation'. However, he is confident of saffron party's victory in 2019. Counting for elections to Urban Local Bodies (ULB) across Karnataka is still underway with the Congress and Janata Dal (Secular) hoping to extend their alliance.As the JDS-Congress coalition surged ahead, CM Kumaraswamy lauded the partnership and said that people have rejected BJP's claims of the coalition govt falling apart.



So far, results have been declared on 2,267 out of 2664 seats in the Urban Local Bodies. Congress has won 846 seats, BJP wins 788, JD(S) win 307 and the Independent candidates have won in 277 seats. Considering the current trends in counting, political experts believe that the results could be hung at many places. JD(S) could play a crucial role here.



In the event of a party not getting majority on its own in the election, the Congress and JD-S have decided to forge a post-poll alliance to keep BJP out of power, similar to the May 12 state assembly elections which threw up a hung verdict.



The close fight between the three major parties in Karnataka has forced the chief minister to stay glued to the television set and cancel all engagements till lunch. Interestingly, many Independents are moving towards victory across the state.



Results will be in for 105 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), which had witnessed moderate polling on Friday. As many as 814 candidates are in the fray to be elected to 135 wards in three City Municipal Councils, of which BJP, Congress and JD(S) have 130, 135 and 129 candidates respectively. There are also 350 independents contesting. A JD(S)-BJP coalition was in power in Mysuru and Shivamogga CMCs while a JD(S)-Congress coalition was in power in Tumakuru before being dissolved following notification for the polls.



In all, 8,340 candidates, including 2,306 from the Congress, 2,203 from the Bharatiya Janata Party and 1,397 from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) are in the fray for the ULBs, while 814 contested from the city corporations, including 135 from Congress, 130 from BJP and 129 from JD-S. A record average of 67.5 per cent voter turnout was registered across the state for the civic polls.



The results for elections to Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) across Karnataka will be out by noon. The ruling Janata Dal-Secular (JDS) and the Congress in Karnataka have said they would extend their coalition alliance to the urban local bodies (ULBs) across the state to keep the opposition BJP out of power.



"In the event of either party not getting majority on its own in the ULB elections, we will have post-poll alliance to rule the local bodies as we did to form the coalition government in the state after the May 12 assembly election threw a hung House with a split verdict," a JD(S) official said.



The local bodies across 24 districts of the state had registered an average voting percentage of 63.8, according to polling data from the State Election Commission.



Polling was conducted peacefully across the 2,662 wards of the state, spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities and 23 town panchayats and in 135 wards of the three city corporations. Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were used for polling in all the wards amid tight security, with about 40,000 personnel deployed across the state to maintain law and order. A total of 36 lakh voters were registered for exercising their franchise in the ULB wards and 13.33 lakh in the three towns of Mysuru, Shivamogga and Tumakuru.



In all, 8,340 candidates, including 2,306 from the Congress, 2,203 from the Bharatiya Janata Party and 1,397 from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) are in the fray for the ULBs, while 814 contested from the city corporations, including 135 from Congress, 130 from BJP and 129 from JD-S.



In the 2013 ULB elections held in 4,976 seats, the Congress had won 1,960 seats, while BJP and JD-S had won 905 seats each, while independents bagged the remaining 1,206 seats.



Here's a list of the corporations and councils, which had gone to polls:



Municipal Corporations (3): Mysore, Shimoga, Tumkur.



City Municipal Councils (29): Yadagiri, Surapura, Bagalakot, IIlakal,Mudhola, Jamakhandi, R Banahatti, Sirsi, Dandeli, Karwar, Mandya, Nippani, Gokak, Haveri, Raanebennur, Koppala, Ganagavathi, Raichur, Sindhanur, Ullala, Hassan, Arasikere, Chamarajanagar, Shahabad, Puttur, Udupi, Chitradurga, Challakere, Kollegala.



Town Municipal Councils (53): Madhugiri, Chikkanayakanahhali, Gurumitkal, Lakshmeshwara, Rona, Gajendragarh, Bhantawala, Channarayapatna, Holenarasipura, Sakaleshpura, Channagiri, Hosadurga, Hallikhed, Karkala, Kunakdapura, Haliyala, Kumata, Ankola, Maddur, Pandavapura, Nagamangala, Konnura, Mudalagi, Savadatti, Ramadurga, Baialahongala, Sankeshwara, Chikkodi, Hukkeri, Kudachi, Sadalaga, Hangal, Savanoor, Kushtagi, Piriyapattana, T Narasipur, H D Kote, Chincholi, Chittapur, Sedam, Jevargi, Afzalpur, Alanada, Manvi, Devadurga, Lingasugur, Mudgal, Muddebihala, Badami, Guledagudda, Mahalingapura, Teradala, Hunagunda



Town Panchayats (20): Yallapura, Mundagodu, Nagamangala-belluru, khanapura, Hatti, Shirahatti, Mulgunda, Naregal, Honnali, Jagaluru, Saaligrama, Kudutini, Kotturu, Beelagi, Kerur, Hirekeruru, Yalaburga, Koratagere, Gubbi, Rayabhag.
Abuja (Nigeria) : Eleven persons were killed and 12 others injured in an attack in Nigeria's Jos city, police said on Monday.

The attackers stormed Lopandet Dwei Du area of the city on Sunday and unleashed terror by shooting indiscriminately at the residents, Xinhua news agency quoted police spokesman Terna Tyopev as saying.



The cause of the attack is unknown. Further investigation is underway, he said.



On Wednesday, at least eight persons were killed following an attack by suspected cattle raiders in Nigeria.
Mogadishu (Somalia) : Three soldiers were killed and 14 persons injured after a suicide bomber attacked a government office here on Sunday, police said.

The blast also damaged nearby houses, blew off the roof of a mosque and caused a nearby school to collapse, BBC reported.

Police officer Abdullahi Hussein said a suicide bomber had rammed a car into the district office in Howlwadag district.

The militant group al-Shabab, which has waged an insurgency for more than 10 years, has claimed to be behind the attack.

In a similar incident on July 14, seven people were killed and several others injured in two explosions near the presidential palace in Mogadishu.
Berlin : A court in Germany on Monday sentenced a young Afghan man to eight-and-a-half years in prison for killing his 15-year-old ex-girlfriend in 2017.

Abdul D had stabbed his ex-girlfriend in a drugstore in the western city of Kandel in December 2017.

Judges found Abdul D, allegedly a minor at the time of the fatal stabbing, guilty of murder and bodily harm, Efe reported.

The incident caused a stir across the country, reigniting discussions about determining the age of young asylum seekers who come to the country and claim to be minors.

The trial against Abdul D took place behind closed doors, specifically because the suspect said he was 15 at the time of the assault.

However, according to a medical examination carried out afterward, Abdul D -- who was repentant at the start of his trial in June -- was between 17 and 20 years old at the time of the crime.

The prosecutor had asked for a 10-year sentence -- the maximum sentence available according to the penal code applied to adolescents and young adults aged between 14-20 years old -- while his defence asked for seven-and-a-half years for murder.

The parents of the teenage victim, who had broken up with Abdul D after a relationship that lasted several months, had reported him weeks before the fatal stabbing for threats and insults directed towards their daughter over the phone and on social networks.

The young Afghan was registered as an asylum seeker in Frankfurt in 2016 and received schooling and accommodation in Germany.
Mogadishu (Somalia) : The death toll in the suicide car bomb blast in Somalia's Mogadishu reached seven on Sunday, police said.

The attack, which took place at 8 a.m. in Howlwadag district, injured several people, damaged nearby houses, blew off the roof of a mosque and caused a nearby school to collapse, Efe news reported.

The militant group al-Shabab, which has waged an insurgency for more than 10 years, has claimed to be behind the attack.

In a similar incident on July 14, seven people were killed and several others injured in two explosions near the presidential palace in Mogadishu.

In October 2017, the group committed the deadliest attack in Somali history when a truck bomb killed 512 people in a crowded street in Mogadishu.
Tehran : Lack of efforts by Europe to save the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal will have "serious consequences," Kamal Kharrazi, chief of Iran's Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, said on Sunday, according to Tehran Times daily.

"Re-imposition of sanctions and pressure (by Washington) and Europe's lack of immediate action to meet obligations under the JCPOA (nuclear deal) will have serious consequences," said Kharrazi, former Iranian foreign minister.

He made the remarks during a meeting with British Minister of State for the Middle East, Alistair Burt, in the capital Tehran.

Burt said that the British position on the JCPOA is totally different from that of the United States.

"We are looking for a European mechanism for success of the JCPOA," Burt said, adding that Britain seeks to boost cooperation with Iran.

Iran has urgently called for Europe's "practical and tangible measures" to protect Iranian interests after the U.S. pullout.

Iran signed the landmark nuclear deal with the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China plus Germany in 2015 to halt its nuclear weapons program in exchange for sanctions relief.

US President Donald Trump decided on May 8 to quit the Iranian nuclear deal and vowed to reimpose sanctions, including oil embargo, on Tehran.
Jakarta : Japan's young swimmer Rikako Ikee was named the Indonesia Asian Games' Most Valuable Player (MVP) here on Sunday after winning six gold and two silver medals. She received $50,000 in prize money.

The 18-year-old Japanese won the 50m and 100m freestyle, 50m and 100m butterfly as well as the 4x100m freestyle and medley relays, reports Xinhua news agency.

The teenager is the first female winner of the award, which has been presented at every Games since the 1998 edition in Bangkok.

Back in Japan after the competition, Ikee told the media that she was surprised and happy to know that she has been chosen for the honour. "Thanks to the OCA for considering me as the candidate," she said.

For the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, she said she will prepare more. "Two years is neither long, nor short, I know what I should do, I will try to achieve more in my own country," she said.
Moscow : Thousands protested on Sunday across Russia against government plans to raise the national pension age, after heeding the call to demonstrate from Russia's Communist Party and other left-wing organisations.

President Vladimir Putin on Wednesday softened his stance on the reforms in a bid to quell protests, saying the retirement age for women would only rise from 55 to 60 instead of 63, as initially planned, while for men, the age would increase from 60 to 65, Efe news reported.

Communist Party leader Gennady Zyuganov spoke at the rally, asserting that "there is no confidence in the government and there will be even less if they approve the reforms", which he described as "cannibalistic".

The changes have been given a preliminary green-light by the State Duma, Russia's lower parliament, but have provoked widespread outrage across the country.

Opinion polling has shown that about 90 per cent of Russians are against increasing the retirement age.

According to Moscow Police, around 6,000 people took part in the demonstration while the organisers estimated that around 100,000 people participated.
Washington : The US military has announced that it was cancelling $300 million in aid to Pakistan over what it calls Islamabad's failure to take action against militant groups, a new blow to worsening bilateral ties between the two countries.

"Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy, the remaining $300 million was reprogrammed," Pentagon spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Kone Faulkner said in a statement on Saturday.

"We continue to press Pakistan to indiscriminately target all terrorist groups," Faulkner said, adding that the $300 million aid, which had earlier been suspended, would be now aimed at spending on other "urgent priorities" due to "a lack of Pakistani decisive actions" in tackling the issue.

The move, which needs to be approved by US Congress, is part of a broader suspension announced in January when Washington had announced that it was cutting almost all security aid to the Islamabad, reports the BBC.

Saturday's announcement comes before US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's scheduled visit to Pakistan this week and meet the country's newly-elected Prime Minister, Imran Khan.

The US State Department has criticised Pakistan for failing to deal with terrorist networks operating on its soil, including the Haqqani network and the Afghan Taliban with President Donald Trump also accusing Islamabad of deceiving Washington while receiving billions of dollars.

Washington has long complained that Pakistan provides a safe haven to militant groups, including the Afghan Taliban, Haqqani Network and Al Qaeda, allowing them to carry out cross-border attacks in Afghanistan.

Pakistan has denied these claims.

Since 2002, Pakistan has received over $33 billion in US assistance, including $14 billion in Coalition Support Funds, a US Defence Department programme to reimburse allies that have incurred costs in supporting counter-insurgency operations.
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BETHEL  Owners will soon tear down a home where Benedict Arnold and other Revolutionary War generals might have plotted the 1777 Battle of Ridgefield.

The Daniel Hickok house on Blackman Avenue suffered extensive damage in a December 2014 fire, making it hard for the owners to safely and affordably restore the home.

Instead, the family plans to rebuild the colonial saltbox and its side house in the style and spirit of the historic house, said Jean Marie Angelo, whose wifes ancestors lived in the home for generations.

We love the house and we love the story behind the house, she said. Its our intention to rebuild.

Shoemaker Daniel Hickok was one of Bethels first settlers and built the house in 1760 on what is now Blackman Avenue. Local legend has it that generals Benedict Arnold, David Wooster and Gold Selleck Silliman used the home to escape from the rain for a meeting to plan the Battle of Ridgefield in April 1777.

The family hasnt been able to prove the legend, but said it adds up.

A letter to George Washington, which one of the relatives has seen in the national archives, describes how the generals took refuge in a Bethel home. Hickok was a general in the Revolutionary War, and his home was one of the only houses in Bethel at that time.

The meeting is even mentioned in James Lincoln Collier and Christopher Colliers fictional book, My Brother Sam is Dead.

This rich history led resident Gil Letellier to push for the building to be saved, contacting the Bethel Historical Society and then Angelos family about restoring the home.

Letellier gave the family members advice and connected them with the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation and Ridgefield Historical Society.

Historic carved initials

Letellier said he is disappointed the building will be demolished, but understands why.

I feel terrible about the important piece of history in Bethel not being there anymore, Letellier said. But it has to go down. Its a safety hazard. The cost to repair it was just too exorbitant.

The family consulted at least 15 construction experts, the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation and the Bethel building official, before concluding they could not restore the house.

One of the experts told the family the houses fate was sealed the night of the fire, when flames ripped through the roof and destroyed must of the structure, Angelo said.

The new saltbox and side house will be built in the exact footprint of the existing buildings and include any pieces of the home that can be salvaged. Most elements were destroyed in the fire, although a few of the beams could be incorporated into the design, but are not sturdy enough to hold the structure.

The initials D.H that were carved into the wood beneath the stairs will also be saved.

It's certainly in the image of the house that was there, Letellier said. We're optimistic that it will be fine.

But the interior design of the saltbox will change to bring the home up to modern code. It would be difficult to recreate the design of the walls and closets, as the odd layout indicates the home might have been part of the Underground Railroad.

One-of-a-kind

Gregory Farmer, from the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation, said he would have preferred the house be restored. But he said the family did its due diligence to try to save it.

The owners plan is the next best thing, he said.

The planned building clearly doesn't have any historical significance because it's not historic, but it does maintain the rhythm and flavor of the neighborhood, Farmer said.

He said 18th-century homes make up about 10 percent of the housing stock in a community. These buildings have a level of workmanship and quality of materials not seen in modern buildings.

The unfortunate thing is that they still get torn down every day, Farmer said. They dont grow back. These are one-of-a-kind buildings and when theyre gone, theyre gone.

Dughters of the American Revolution

Angelos family bought the home from owner Jon Mark Peterson after the fire. Her wife is from the Post family, who had owned the home until the mid-1990s and descends from the Hickok family.

Angelo expects to demolish the home in the coming weeks, later than she originally hoped. She said she appreciates the neighbors and towns patience with the blight.

The town of Bethel has been as understanding and gracious as they can be, she said. Theyve bent over backward to understand.

Angelo is not sure how long it will take to rebuild the house, but said she plans to stay in the home part of each week.

Her wife and niece also belong to the Daughters of the American Revolution and envision holding meetings there. The family is also considering occasionally opening the building to the public.

Whatever happens to the house, we want to do it in a way that really honors the history, Angelo said.
REDDING  Former selectmen are advocating for the town to assume ownership of the old Gilbert and Bennett wire mill after failed attempts at revitalizing the property and amid an ongoing foreclosure case against the developer.

Former selectmen Donald Takacs and Leon Karvelis have submitted a letter to First Selectwoman Julia Pemberton about the use of the 50-acre property. They propose the town take the building and use it for a solar farm and recreation.

Pemberton declined to comment on the plan but said it would be brought up at the next Board of Selectmen meeting.

The idea is this needs to move forward, Takacs said. Its an eyesore and a financial burden for the town.

The developer, Georgetown Land Development Co., owes the town $3.5 million in back taxes and $2.2 million in sewer costs. The fire district is owed $180,000.

Georgetown Land Development Co. also owes millions of dollars to a special tax district that was created in 2005 that allowed the project to float nearly $14.5 million in government-backed bonds. The tax district is overseen by the same company that owns the site.

Pemberton has said that the only way the tax district can be dissolved is if there is no debt or the town agrees to take the district on.

Plans were drafted by Georgetown Land Development Co. more than a decade ago, which would have added housing, commercial uses and a railroad piece. That plan expires in 2018 and cannot be extended but can be altered.

Nothing has come of the plans, largely due to the recession that came shortly after the company acquired the property.

It seemed like a great idea at the time, said Takacs, who was on the board then. But it got caught in the housing bubble.

The town started foreclosure proceedings on the property in 2014 and officially filed in 2015. A judge has since ruled the town is the first creditor to be paid back.

Last year, the selectmen presented three options on how to deal with the financial problems with the old mill.

The options include the foreclosure proceedings with the town and the fire district assuming control of the property and either selling it to a private developer or maintaining it for public use. The third option would have the town assume ownership of the property and all of the junior holders would write off their debts in exchange for part of the sale and future tax revenues.

The letter from Karvelis and Takacs advocates for the town to assume the property for public use and have the bond holders write off their debts.

Its just festering and not benefiting anyone, Takacs said.

The former selectmen also propose selling the unused capacity of the Georgetown sewage treatment plant to Ridgefield, which is developing the nearby Branchville area. The plant was expanded to 245,000 gallons in 2008 to meet the expected demand from Georgetown Land Development Corporations plans. But since those plans havent materialized, the plant is left with an average of 60,000 gallons a day.

Takacs said the site would be a lovely area for people to visit if the building wasnt there, especially with the Norwalk River right there.

It has a lot of potential for recreation, he said.

This isnt the first suggestion thats come to the selectmen on how to use the site.

In March 2017, Jane Philbrick, who led a team of brownfield-remediation experts and college students, presented a proposal to remediate the site, and add artist studios, commercial space and inter-generational housing. Philbrick had received a state grant in 2013 to create a plan for the property.
RIDGEFIELD  In the age of social media, nobody is immune to the way online platforms have changed how people communicate with one another  even town governments.

At least thats the way First Selectman Rudy Marconi, and now the towns Board of Selectmen, see it. The selectmen recently agreed to hire a social media consultant to help the town better communicate online.

The new consultant, Emily Pambianchi of Social Grace Communications, took control of the towns social media platforms starting Saturday. She will be able to post information Marconi or another town department wants to get out into the public.

But one of her main goals, Marconi said, will also be to monitor what town issues residents are talking about online to see if theres any need for clarification or help from town officials.

In the town of Ridgefield, if there is social media discussion going on, we wanted to make sure that the content is accurate, Marconi said. (So many) people rely on a device for their information, and if we dont begin playing a part in that  not in terms of an active participant, but observing, monitoring and being able to respond  then were going to fall behind.

Marconi said this could mean anything from making sure an online post about a sidewalk or road that needs to be fixed gets sent to the highway department or ensuring that residents know where to get accurate information about large town projects. Many people have grown accustomed to talking online about these issues instead of calling Town Hall offices, he said.

Having the consultant could also help the town ensure residents are engaged with local government and elections, Marconi said. It was a project a few years ago led by Town Hall interns into the towns voting patterns that prompted him to start thinking of how important social media can be.

When they dug deeper, they found that voters between age 25 and 40 do not follow your conventional media, Marconi said. The reason they dont vote is because theyre not given reminders.

The towns social media platforms could be used to remind people to vote, not in favor of any specific candidate or issue, but to participate in general, he said.

Pambianchi, who will be paid $800 a month from the towns contingency fund for her part-time services, grew up in Ridgefield and worked in communications for SPHERE, The Prospector Theater, and her familys business Pamby Motors before starting her own consulting company.

She has spent the last few days reviewing procedures and is excited to get started, Pambianchi said.

For Ridgefield, an active social presence with relevant content posted regularly will help boost our citizen following, she said. It is one way to listen to what citizens may be asking, wondering, debating  and putting the facts out there for them on the official Town Social Media pages.

She added that Facebook will likely be the best platform for the town to use given that both the younger and older generations check it, though often for different reasons. Quick video content or enticing photo content might also help reach the younger generations, she said.

Pambianchi was hired under a one-year contract. Marconi said the town will continue exploring as the year goes on how to best use her services.

I dont want this to become that we have to tweet and post every single (thing), Marconi said. We need to be sure were going to walk or crawl slowly as we ramp this up to be sure were heading in the right direction.

aquinn@newstimes.com
Former Secretary of State John Kerry isn't shutting the door to a second presidential bid, more than a decade after his narrow loss to President George W. Bush in 2004.

In an interview with CBS News, Kerry, who represented Massachusetts in the Senate for 28 years and was secretary of state during President Barack Obama's second term, declined to say "no" when asked whether he might run for the White House in 2020.

"I'm really not thinking about it," Kerry said. "Talking about 2020 right now is a total distraction and waste of time. What we need to do is focus on 2018."

Rather than speculate on his presidential prospects, Kerry said he's planning to hit the campaign trail for other Democrats ahead of the November midterm elections.

"I think that's the most important work we can do right now, is trying to elect people on a national basis and restore the leadership that the country needs," Kerry told "Face the Nation" host Margaret Brennan on Sunday.

Kerry was on the program to discuss his new memoir, "Every Day Is Extra."

In 2004, Bush won with 286 electoral votes to Kerry's 252. The popular-vote margin between the candidates was slim - only about 3 million votes, or three percentage points, separated the two - and many Democrats lamented that Kerry would have taken the White House had he not narrowly lost the key swing state of Ohio.

After his loss, Kerry returned to the Senate and later took a pass on running for president in 2008. In announcing his decision at the time, he acknowledged that he "came close, certainly close enough to try again," but he ultimately viewed the Senate as the place where he could be most effective in opposing the Bush administration's foreign policy, particularly on the war in Iraq.

If Kerry were to jump into the 2020 Democratic fray, he would have plenty of company. More than two dozen potential candidates are testing the presidential waters, including former vice president Joe Biden, Sens. Kamala Harris of California and Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Starbucks executive chairman Howard Schultz and Michael Avenatti, the lawyer representing adult-film actress Stormy Daniels in her case against President Donald Trump.

Working against Kerry is the fact that Democratic primary voters have been supporting women and minorities over white men at unprecedented rates this year. Many among the new crop of Democrats are also calling for generational change at the top of the party, a trend that could have repercussions in the race for the 2020 White House nomination. Kerry will be 76 by Election Day 2020.

Sunday was not the first time Kerry has mentioned a possible bid. In January, an Israeli newspaper reported that he had told Palestinian officials that he was considering a second White House run.

News of Kerry's remarks Sunday prompted some observers to voice skepticism about his chances, with a few sharing tongue-in-cheek suggestions that other unsuccessful White House hopefuls should join the race as well.

Eve Peyser, a politics reporter for Vice, tweeted: "John F. Kerry should run. Al Gore, too. Let's toss Howard Dean and Dennis Kucinich into the ring as well. And don't forget about Hillary! Spice things up with some John Edwards. And if Michael Dukakis [is] still alive, him too." (Dukakis is alive at 84.)

Others highlighted the assets that Kerry would bring to the race.

Mary Anne Marsh, a Democratic strategist who previously worked on Kerry's campaigns and as a member of his Senate staff, said that although it's too soon to speculate about 2020 presidential prospects, "there's an advantage to having gone through the process once" and come close to winning.

Like the late senators Edward Kennedy, D-Mass., and John McCain, R-Ariz., Marsh said, Kerry returned to the Senate after losing the White House and played a key role in shaping U.S. policy before going on to serve as secretary of state. And although the elections from 2008 to 2018 have underscored the Democratic Party's diversity and inclusivity, that shouldn't preclude certain candidates jumping in the race, she said.

"I don't think there's any prescription to what kind of person - based on gender and race and age - is the best person to face whomever the Republican nominee is," Marsh said. "The great thing about campaigns is you find out what kind of candidate a person is, and more importantly, what kind of person. So, who is the best person to lead this country in 2020?"

The CBS interview also brought to the fore some of the underlying tensions between Trump and Kerry on foreign policy. The two sparred earlier this year over Trump's dismantling of the Iran nuclear deal, with the president accusing Kerry on Twitter of "shadow diplomacy" following reports that the former secretary of state had held behind-the-scenes meetings and phone calls with key players in an effort to preserve the pact.

"I didn't negotiate; I spoke out, and I will always exercise my right to speak out," Kerry said in defending his conversations.

He took aim at Trump for what he said were "dishonest tweets" in which the president claimed Kerry had never threatened to walk away from the table in his negotiations with Iran.

"More often than not, he really just doesn't know what he's talking about," Kerry said. "He makes things up, and he's making that up as he has other things."

Kerry also criticized Trump's mercurial diplomatic style, warning that "there are certain times where unpredictability invites an overreach by a country."

---

The Washington Post's Colby Itkowitz contributed to this report.
BRIDGEWATER  A young man who had been placed in a medically-induced coma after being run over by a tractor near the Bridgewater Country Fair was awake and answering questions Sunday.

Doctors had started easing 23-year-old Tim Meeker, Jr., off sedation a week after he fell from the back of a tractor and was run over by one of the wheels on Aug. 18. But he was still in critical condition last week as his body battled an infection and high fevers, according to updates from his familys church.

On Sunday, the churchs pastor posted online that Meeker has taken further steps toward recovery this weekend. He was awake more hours throughout the day, was answering questions  non-verbally for now  and was able to sit in a recliner for a few hours, Pastor Linda Williams wrote.

Give thanks to the Lord! the post said. Tim Jr. and all his family are thanking God for His loving mercy and to you for all your prayers.

She added that the medical staff has a better handle on Meekers infection and are still treating it aggressively.

These are all small but significant steps in the right direction, Williams continued.

Family and friends of Meeker had attended a vigil held for him in the days after his accident at Williams Salem Covenant Church in Washington.

At the same time, questions remain about how the accident occurred. According to state police, Meeker had been asked by fair workers to help pull cars out of the mud.

Dozens of cars had to be pulled from the muddy parking lot at the fair on Saturday after more than 2.5 inches of rain fell on the region the week before.

While family members said they have no doubt that Meeker was helping out with the effort, officials with the town and the fair said they had no knowledge of his assistance and only limited knowledge of the accident.

aquinn@newstimes.com
The American debate over reproductive rights began in colonial Connecticut with a surgical abortion case 31 years before the Declaration of Independence.

Other watershed events, most famously the arrests that led to the landmark case Griswold v. Connecticut, also unfolded in our state. Today, Connecticut is so liberal when it comes to abortion and reproductive rights that even most conservative Republicans stay mum on the topic.

But ardent and historic campaigners on both sides of this fiery question have called Connecticut home. In fact, Connecticut has experienced some extreme swings of the reproductive rights pendulum.

As we approach what might be another shift for the nation, a look at our states central role in the fight over this still unsettled  and, for many, unsettling  issue might help us understand where weve been and where we might be going.

That first documented surgical abortion case in North America took place in Pomfret, Connecticut in 1745. At that time, abortion was legal until the time of quickening, defined then, as now, as the time the woman first feels the fetus move within her.

The first statute regulating abortion was passed in Connecticut in 1821. The statute, which was more about protecting the life of the mother than the fetus, made illegal the use of poisons to induce a woman quick with child.

In 1844, Anthony Comstock was born in New Canaan. Comstock became a zealous crusader against abortion, contraception, and many others matters related to sexuality. Starting in 1873, the U.S. Congress passed several Comstock laws, which criminalized the delivery and publication of information pertaining to the procurement of abortion, the prevention of conception and the avoidance of venereal disease. Some states  including, emphatically, Connecticut  effectively codified the Comstock laws as state law.

In 1860, Connecticut became the first state to outlaw all abortion. The Connecticut law became a model for the rest of the nation.

Starting in 1935, state Comstock laws notwithstanding, the Connecticut Birth Control League opened clinics in Hartford, Greenwich, New Haven, Stamford and Waterbury. Eventually, police raided the clinics and all birth control centers across the state were compelled to close.

In 1961, in direct defiance of a longstanding Comstock law, Estelle Griswold, president of Connecticut Planned Parenthood, decided it was time once again to defy the states anti-birth control law. Planned Parenthood ostentatiously opened a new clinic in New Haven. Griswold and Dr. Lee Buxton, head of OB/GYN at Yale Medical School, were quickly arrested, as they had planned. The headline in the New Haven Register of Nov. 11, 1961 read: ARREST OF 2 OFFICIALS CAUSES SHUTDOWN OF BIRTH CONTROL CLINIC; TEST OF LAW SEEN CERTAIN IN NEW CASE. Ultimately, in 1965, the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of Griswold (Griswold v. Connecticut), overturning the Comstock law, and establishing a constitutional right to privacy for American citizens.

In 1973, Texas attorney Sarah Weddington used the Griswold decision, notably its establishment of a right to privacy, as a cornerstone of her argument before the U.S. Supreme Court in Roe v. Wade.

In 1990, Connecticut became the first state to set the guarantees of Roe in statutes. Eight other states have followed. So, if the Court overturned Roe, women in Connecticut would still be able to get abortions.

The Senate Judiciary Committee is scheduled to begin hearings Tuesday on the confirmation of Judge Brett Kavanaugh, named by President Donald Trump to replace Justice Anthony Kennedy on the United States Supreme Court. In 1992, Justice Kennedy cast the determining vote in Casey v. Planned Parenthood , in which the Supreme Court affirmed the basic ruling of Roe v. Wade that prohibits individual states from banning most abortions. It is widely assumed that should (Connecticut educated) Judge Kavanaugh become Justice Kavanaugh, he might well cast the deciding vote to overturn Roe on future cases, which are, by design, already in the pipeline.

We might also pause to consider that if this newly constituted court decides to abnegate Roe, could Griswold be far behind? Roe limits states rights to ban abortion and Griswold limits states rights to intrude on personal privacy  but both, of course, are part of the broader culture war unfolding over reproductive rights.

And that raises the question about how Connecticut would respond. Hard as it seems to imagine, might the pendulum someday swing again, even here?

Andrea Haas Hubbell is the writer/producer/director of the Emmy-winning documentary feature The Roots of Roe. She lives in Washington, Conn. Follow her on twitter @AndieHaas
Carbon nanotube bundles are becoming a feasible and economically convenient solution for the realization in our time of super bridges, such as those required across the Straits of Bab al Mandab, Messina or Gibraltar (main spans 2.7, 3.3 or 3.5 km, respectively). The Straits of Bab al Mandab bridge would be intercontinental bridges between the Arabian Peninsula and the Horn of Africa and would cross the Red Sea. A Gibraltar bridge would be between Spain and Morocco would connecting the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea.

Several engineers have advanced designs for the Gibraltar Bridge on various alignments and with differing structural configurations. Professor T.Y. Lins proposal for a crossing between Point Oliveros and Point Cires was designed with 14,000 meter length, deep piers, and 5000-meter spans.

10 GPa-strong carbon nanotube fibers are today available (Koziol et al 2007), suggesting that long cables with a similar strength could be realized in the near future. Those new materials could make super-bridges more feasible.

OPAC Engineers ere engaged by Professor Lin to study structural configurations, stiffening systems, and aerodynamic performance issues for the Oliveros-Cires crossings 5000 m spans. Professor Lins proposed a hybrid stayed-suspension bridge concept. The hybrid stayed-suspension bridge was developed into the most suitable alternative, with greater rigidity and better aerodynamic characteristics than competing systems with much smaller spans. They estimated a $15 billion cost.

Stronger carbon nanotube tethers

Drum-rolled carbon nanotube tethers have been made with a strength of 9.6 GPa.

In 2016, Jian Nong Wang and his colleagues made nanotubes with a process akin to glass blowing: Using a stream of nitrogen gas, they injected ethanol, with a small amount of ferrocene and thiophene added as catalysts, into a 50-mm-wide horizontal tube placed in furnace at 1,1501,130 C.

They packed the nanotubes even more densely by pressing the film repeatedly between two rollers.

The resulting films had an average strength of 9.6 gigapascals. By comparison, the strength of nanotube films made so far has been around 2 GPa, while that for Kevlar fibers and commercially used carbon fibers is around 3.7 and 7 GPa, respectively. The films are four times as pliable as conventional carbon fibers, and can elongate by 8% on average as opposed to 2% for carbon fibers.

DRUM ROLL Spooling a cylinder of blown carbon nanotubes onto a rolling drum, researchers create a black film containing aligned, densely packed nanotubes (left). After being passed through a roller several times, the film becomes flatter and the nanotubes more densely packed (right). The film is exceptionally strong and ductile.

Credit: Nano Lett
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WALLINGFORD  The fall out from Edible Arrangements Aug. 21 headquarters relocation from Connecticut to suburban Atlanta is continuing, this time involving the closure of one of the companys subsidiaries.

Netsolace, which develops software for use by franchisors, will relocate to Georgia by the end of the year, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification notice with the Connecticut Department of Labor. The layoffs will involve about 20 people at Netsolace, which is located at 95 Barnes Road in Wallingford.

Alicia Thompson, a spokeswoman for Edible Arrangements, said a few of the 20 people employed by Netsolace may be asked to relocate to Georgia. Netsolace will move into the same office complex, Lakeside Commons in suburban Sandy Springs, Georgia, that will house Edible Arrangements relocated headquarters operations.

Edible Arrangements specializes in franchised locations that sell fresh-cut fruit arrangements.

The 20 Connecticut jobs being lost with the relocation of Netsolace are in addition to the 110 layoffs that will be occurring as a result of the headquarters moving. Netsolace already had a presence in the Atlanta area, having opened an office there in February 2014.

Netsolace develops software that allows franchisors to increase the productivity and efficiency of their franchisees. The software aids in workforce training, point-of-sale, auditing and compliance as well as following up on leads.

Edible Arrangements has about eight subsidiaries that operate under its corporate structure. In addition to Netsolace, some of the other Edible Arrangements subsidiaries are:

Berry Direct, which specializes in designing, manufacturing, and delivering decorative containers.

BroadPeak, an information technology services company that serves the franchise and retail industries.

Naranga, which develops technological platforms to help franchise owners with multiple locations run various aspects of their business.

It was not immediately clear on Friday whether all of those subsidiaries will be moving to Georgia as well, or how many employees work at each of those companies.

In an interview in July, Tariq Farid, the founder of Edible Arrangements, told the New Haven Register the subsidiaries would remain in Connecticut.

luther.turmelle@hearstmediact.com
NEW HAVEN  For eight years, the New Haven Promise scholarship program, which pays college tuition for city students who achieve academically, through funding from Yale University and with additional programmatic support from other organizations, has sent hundreds to college.

Now, Executive Director Patricia Melton says its time to see what the city can learn from data collected since the program was announced in 2010.

I think this data should have folks asking a lot of questions, not just about success, but about where we can have greater results, she said.

According to recently published data, students in 11 of the citys 30 wards have received more than $1 million in Promise, federal and state grants to attend college to date. In five, primarily covering Fair Haven, the Annex and Westville, students have received more than $1.5 million to date.

Further, also according to the most recent data provided by the school district, the number of city residents  only New Haven students are eligible for the scholarship  enrolled in the schools increased by 800 between 2012 and 2016. The Promise estimates increased enrollment in the citys schools since 2010 has accounted for an additional $100 million in revenue from city, state and federal sources.

The Promise also boasts that New Haven has seen the largest increase in black and Hispanic graduation rates among major cities in Connecticut since the program was announced in 2010: a 17.5 point gain in seven years, versus a 14.2 point gain in Bridgeport and a 11.8 point gain in Waterbury during that same time. Although Hartfords black and Hispanic graduation rate was 61.3 percent in 2010, its graduation rate in 2017 was 13.5 points lower than New Havens, which was 78.4 percent.

The Promise also noted that, by 2018, a large contingent of scholars come from households with less than $30,000 in income annually or nearly 120 of the 345 scholars entering college this semester. It also noted that households with a maximum education level of high school accounted for nearly 110 of those same 345 scholars.

Melton said there was a gradual rollout of the Promise program after it was announced in 2010, where graduates who met the requirements for the scholarship in their senior year received a partial scholarship. By 2014, the first fully-funded cohort entered college, and in 2017, four-year colleges had four classes of fully-funded scholars.

In 2018, a total of $3.7 million was disbursed to Promise scholars, whereas in 2011 $78,000 followed the scholars to college.

Melton said she believes the higher percentages of students who enter college with the scholarship and graduate in four years is owed to the culture imbued in students who aim to earn the money over four years.

Those students who dont do anything and skate on a strong GPA from other years dont do as well, they cant rebound, she said.

According to Promise data, 50 percent of the 96 students who enrolled in a four-year college in 2011 with the Promise scholarship graduated in eight semesters. By 2014, when students were required to have a GPA of 3.0 or higher from all four years of high school, 63.4 percent of the 157 Scholars graduated in eight semesters.

Melton said she also believes the city can learn from the recent data to see which schools produce the most scholars. Since 2010, the two largest, non-magnet high schools  Wilbur Cross and Hillhouse  have produced the largest number of scholarship recipients. So far, 495 Cross students and 329 Hillhouse students have received the scholarship.

One data point Melton said intrigued her is that, as of 2018, Lincoln-Bassett is the middle school with the fewest number of scholars  only nine. The school, which had been one of the districts lowest performers, saw massive improvements in many student-based metrics such as test scores and attendance after entering a state school turnaround program, under the leadership of new principal Janet Brown-Clayton in 2014. The first class of eighth graders to take part in those turnaround efforts are now rising seniors.

Itll be interesting to see in the next couple of years if we see results from that intervention, Melton said.

Nathan Hale has produced the most scholars, with 109, with Edgewood and Betsy Ross tying for second place with 104 scholars.

In total, Fair Haven is the neighborhood represented by the largest number of scholars  282 in eight years  followed by 231 scholars from the Hill, 202 scholars from Westville and 150 scholars from Newhallville and Quinnipiac Meadows each, according to the data.

brian.zahn@hearstmediact.com
MILFORD  On arriving at 100 Raton Drive, in an industrial area surrounded by nice homes, you are met by a dreary warehouse with a simple sign that reads: Tribus Beer Co. over a tall garage door.

But, when you turn the corner, theres a craft beer lovers paradise: a cozy biergarten with tiny lights and flowers and just through the doors a 10,000-square-foot tap room with a cozy feel and brewery of shiny stainless-steel equipment.

Welcome to the citys first craft brewery and tap room.

You walk in and you forget everything, said Matt Weichner, 32, one of three friends who owns the newly opened brewery. Its been a lot of fun seeing the reaction when people come in and enjoy.

Since opening Aug. 11, business has been so great, Weichner said, that they cant brew fast enough to keep up with the total demand for kegs, including their restaurant distribution customers all the way to Stamford.

Its been so busy here, its hard to keep up, Weichner said. Its great to have more demand than supply.

They are open Thursday through Sunday and had some 1,200 visitors in one day for the grand opening and hundreds more on Sunday. They are open Labor Day from noon to 5 p.m.

But theres plenty of beer for the tap room and biergarten customers  and wine, hard cider and soda for those who visit and dont drink beer.

He and his partners/friends, Sebastian DAgostino and Sean ONeill, both 29, started the project a year ago, overhauling the once dilapidated warehouse themselves, building the bar and furniture themselves. They were supposed to open sooner, but there were delays in permits, which allowed them time to add nice details, they said.

Weichner and DAgostino met at the well-known and established New England Brewing Company, where they worked as head brewers.

The men have impressive beer-making credentials  Weichner went to brewing school in Munich, Germany, and Chicago and DAgostino in Berlin, Germany.

The departure from New England Brewing Co. was not only friendly, the two friends continue to collaborate with their former boss and even offer an IPA called Exit Interview to mark the departure. That beer is brewed by New England Brewing company.

ONeill works on the sales and marketing end of the business.

They picked the name Tribus because the Tri means three and the word indicates a tribe or notion of coming together.

We want to create a community where people come together, Weichner said. We want people to come here, create the relationship, show them who we are.

DAgostino, who works the brewery when the tap room and Biergarten are closed Monday through Wednesday, said its been great so far but long to get here.

Its a cool vibe to be around here, he said.

All the men live in Milford and emphasized they want their business to be part of the community and fundraising for organizations.

Weichner said they want to see their beer sold in downtown Milford  the current restaurant reach for their beer distribution is Stamford  and to close at 9 p.m., so they are more of a pre-dinner destination.

Many people come from 3 to 6 p.m., then go downtown and have dinner at Stonebridge, Elis, bin 100 or other restaurants.

Tribus doesnt sell food, but Friday through Sunday they have a different food truck on location and customers can also bring their own food.

They have different brews available at various times.

Shuga Mama is a tribute to the ladies in our life, who worked to pay bills and keep life going while they put the place together, Weichner said.

Appropriately, its an easy drinking IPA with nice citrus flavors and soft mouth feel.

Flow is a vibrant double IPA with tropical fruit taste, Fix is an easy drinking IPA, Bier, is an easy drinking pilsner and then there are brews called, FunkManFunkMan, Quest and Blank Check.

A sign by the bar reads: Good people drink good beer

The tap room and biergarten are family friendly and often there are children in the midst.

Theres a living room area of black leather couches made from pallets and a wide selection of games, including Connect 4, Apples to Apples, Trivial Pursuit and What do you meme? Theres shuffleboard too, and a space that meanders to a back area where hops are delivered, which has a few chairs and tables, as well as Ping Pong and Foosball.

Despite its size, theres something cozy about the taproom and brewery. Its soft industrial with a modern feel.

The men added some nice detail to the place while waiting for the permits and it gives the space an old soul feel.

They used their notes from brewing school to wallpaper a wall.

One of the main walls and another wall toward the bathrooms was painted by Hillhouse High School assistant principal John Tarka and displays a bold mural of intricate circle designs that the three owners consider to be tribal circles. The circles are have hop vines painted on them and the murals cascade onto the floor. Hops are used in making beer.

Tarka said the designs  his signature artwork  are his take on cultures and different ethnicities coming together.

Circle designs say, Were all really connected in this together, Tarka said, noting the guys at Tribus are about the community coming together.

The long bar of light oak is fronted with corrugated metal painted a custom gray, their logo is burnt into the area near the taps and they used a special process to burn the wood of the wall behind the bar

The logo by graphic designer Will Thresher, is two vertical lines with a third horizontal line across the top, representing the three partners and forming a T for Tribus.

The men even built extra bathrooms  theyre selling beer after all  and those too are pleasant and bright. A sign in one reads, I have a fever and the only prescription is Tribus Beer.

Even though demand for their beer is higher than they expected, the men arent running out to expand the brewery yet.

We want to grow naturally and be that local brewery, Weichner said.

For more information, visit the website TribusBeer.co.
Amid employee shortages, supply chain and inventory issues and a slower mail delivery system, experts are advising Americans to do their Christmas shopping as early as possible this year. Retailers large and small are offering holiday deals early this month. National surveys indicate 36% of shoppers plan to spend more this year than in 2020. Do you plan to take advantage of early sales?

You voted:
It's common for car dealerships and manufacturers to offer special promotions to entice customers to trade in their current car for a sparkling new model.

It could be a promise of discounted prices, an inflated trade-in value, rebates or zero-percent financing.

The promotion that drew Harry Witt to local Hyundai dealerships was a common one. It was an offer to eliminate early termination fees on his current Hyundai lease if he would lease a new vehicle.

It seemed simple.

But more than two-and-a-half years after he took the deal, a collection agency came after him for what it said was a nearly $1,000 early termination fee, documents show. Even worse, the alleged lack of payment ended up on Witt's credit report.

"This is outrageous," Witt said. "I'm not responsible for the early termination fee."

It started in January 2016 when Witt received a letter from his dealer, Maxon Hyundai in Union. It said he could return his leased 2013 Elantra without penalty if he leased a new car.

But the dealership didn't have the vehicle Witt wanted - a 2016 Sonata - so he shopped around and found the car at the now defunct Brad Benson Hyundai in Monmouth Junction.

That dealer was honoring the same promotion and would pay off the old lease and any fees, documents show. The deal was made on Jan. 29, 2016, and Witt drove away happy.

Six months later, in July 2016, Witt received a letter from Hyundai Motor Finance saying he owed $955.20 on the old lease.

That had to be a mistake, Witt said he thought.

Harold Witt received this email from the Brad Benson Hyundai lease manager about the lease promotion.

Witt contacted Brad Benson Hyundai, and the lease manager responded in an email to Witt on Aug. 2, 2016.

"There seems to be a problem at Hyundai Finance whereby collection notices are being sent to accounts that were satisfied in other than the usual way," the lease manager wrote. "In other words, yours, and a great many others who were and are eligible for the early termination incentive to get into a new lease seem not to be showing up as being in a new lease through Hyundai."

"You are not and never were 'delinquent' in any way with us or with Hyundai Finance," he wrote.

The manager said he contacted Hyundai Finance to get the issue resolved.

Witt spoke to the dealership a few weeks later, he said, and he was assured everything was taken care of.

Fast forward to July 19, 2018, when Witt received a letter from SRA Associates, a collection agency.

It said Witt had until Aug. 14 to pay the unpaid early termination fee.

Witt contacted the collection agency to dispute the matter, but the agency just asked for the payment, he said. He also tried to contact the dealer, but he learned Brad Benson sold the dealership to DCN Hyundai. The folks at DCN weren't willing to help, he said, and a letter Witt wrote to the general manager went unanswered.

Witt asked Bamboozled for help.

STRAIGHTENING IT OUT

Bamboozled reached out to Hyundai's corporate offices to ask it to review the case, and it said it would investigate.

We also reached out to DCN Hyundai's general manager.

The general manager returned our first message, but we missed the call. He didn't respond to subsequent messages.

In the end, that didn't matter because Hyundai's headquarters came through.

In three days, the matter was solved.

Witt received a call from Hyundai Motor America with an apology, saying he'd receive a check in the amount owed so Witt could pay off the collection company.

He received an email confirmation the next day.

We asked Hyundai some detailed questions about what went wrong, but the spokesman would only say, "I'm just pleased we were able to get everything straightened out and that Mr. Witt is happy."

But there was one more issue. Bamboozled recommended Witt check his credit reports to see if the collection action was reported.

Indeed it was.

"I called TransUnion and they confirmed that there are late payments in February and March 2016 as reported by Hyundai Motor Financial," Witt said. "I disputed that saying that the dealer was supposed to make those payments."

It could take a month to resolve the dispute on the credit bureau's end, so we asked Hyundai to step in to remove the bad marks on Witt's reports.

We also explained to Hyundai that if Witt was to pay off the collection company, it would appear on his credit report that Witt agreed with the debt, and that would result in another bad mark.

Witt soon heard from Hyundai Finance, which said it had zeroed out his account. It promised to send updated information to all three credit bureaus saying the account is now closed with a zero balance and that all payments were on time.

"I told her that Hyundai Motor America is sending me a check for $955.20. What do I do with it?" Witt said. "She said keep it. She said she wouldn't even know what to do with the money if I sent it to her."

So for now, Witt is planning to keep the money.

"In reality, I don't deserve the money but for the aggravation?" he said. "If there's a repercussion, I'll make it right but according to [Hyundai Finance], there is no problem with it."

Witt said he hopes his story will help others fight a wrongful debt.

So, dear readers, remember that when you do business with a car dealership, you can be working with several entities: the dealer, the manufacturer, and the finance company. Even if they all use a similar name, they are all separate businesses.

If you have a problem with a finance company, like Witt did, the dealer may not have the power or wherewithal to help you. But it should have some influence, so be sure to ask for help and be persistent both on the dealer and the corporate level.

Also make it a point to hold onto all your records, even years later, to support your case should something unexpected come up. If Witt didn't have his evidence, we're not sure what would have happened.

Have you been Bamboozled? Reach Karin Price Mueller at Bamboozled@NJAdvanceMedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @KPMueller. Find Bamboozled on Facebook. Mueller is also the founder of NJMoneyHelp.com.

Stay informed and sign up for NJMoneyHelp.com's weekly e-newsletter.
A small South Jersey town's annual reunion had it all. A centenarian celebrated her 100th birthday, a historic postmark was unveiled, gospel music choirs performed -- and Oprah Winfrey was there to see it.

Winfrey's longtime partner, author and podcaster Stedman Graham, is a native of Whitesboro, an unincorporated community within Middle Township. Graham is also the executive director and a founder of the community organization Concerned Citizens of Whitesboro.

According to social media posts about the event, the media mogul had no plans to give a speech, but following a talk by Middle Township Police Chief Christopher Leusner about the department's focus on intervention and education, she was inspired to take the stage and share her thoughts on the connection between adverse childhood experiences and crime.

Oprah supporting Chief Leusners speech and efforts on Adverse Childhood Experiences! Posted by Elizabeth Catanese Terenik on Saturday, September 1, 2018

When Winfrey started a school for girls in South Africa, the school initially had trouble teaching the girls because of traumatic events from their childhoods, she said at the reunion.

"The question isn't what's wrong with them, which is what so many teachers might say," Winfrey said in a Facebook stream of the event. "The question is, 'What happened to you?'"

Winfrey also praised Leusner and the township police for their work.

"There would be no taking the knee, no protests about police departments in America, if all the police departments took on the idea of addressing what happened to you as a child," she said. "I want to applaud you for having the insight, the wisdom and the vision to ask the question, and treating young children like human beings."

In addition to the speech on stage, Oprah also had some fun while at the reunion -- and posted videos of her adventures to her Instagram account.

She met lifelong Whitesboro resident Lillian Inez Palmer, who just turned 100 in June, and asked Palmer for her secret to a long life.

"All I have to say is, wash your face in cold water," Palmer told her.

She also shared a video of herself at the reunion with Graham's cousin Durkie, who ran the vendor booth, Durkie's Chicken-N-Fries. He told her he was making over 200 pounds of fried chicken in a fryer he brought with him from North Carolina.

"Yes, I ate the chicken, but only one DEElicious piece," said Winfrey, who invested in Weight Watchers in 2015. "One piece is like 20 points, Weight Watchers."

This year marked Whitesboro's 30th annual reunion.

It's not Winfrey's first time dropping in at the festival. She also appeared at 2013's reunion, where she was the keynote speaker and announced her endorsement of Cory Booker for Senate.

The town was founded in 1901 by attorney George Henry White and others, who wanted to create an African American residential community that was far from the discrimination the population had encountered in southern states at the time.

The Concerned Citizens of Whitesboro couldn't be reached on Monday.

Wow, Oprah was at Whitesboro's 30th Anniv celebration. Great time!! Posted by Donna C. King on Saturday, September 1, 2018

Gianluca D'Elia may be reached at gdelia@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @gianluca_delia. Find NJ.com on Facebook.
JERSEY CITY -- A 29-year-old Bayonne felon has been charged with pointing a gun at man in Hoboken and threatening to kill him, officials said.

Elvis B. Rodriguez, of the 100 block of Prospect Street, was allegedly looking for the victim when he went to Hoboken and pointed a handgun at the man, described as "a friend," on Aug. 14 at about 1:30 a.m., the criminal complaint says.

The complaint says Rodriguez was identified using surveillance video, a warrant for his arrest was issued on Aug. 29 and he was arrested on the same day, the complaint says.

Rodriguez was charged with aggravated assault and weapons offenses including possession of a firearm by a felon. He has a previous conviction for drug distribution within 500 feet of school property, the complaint says.

Rodriguez made his first appearance on the charges on Thursday in Criminal Justice Reform Court in Jersey City via video link from Hudson County jail in Kearny.

At the hearing, the state moved to detain Rodriguez through the course of his prosecution and a detention hearing is scheduled for Wednesday before Hudson County Superior Court Judge Paul DePascale in the Hudson County Administration Building in Jersey City.
JERSEY CITY -- A 28-year-old Jersey City killer last released from state prison in January has been charged with critically wounding a man with a gunshot to the back in July, officials said.

Sharif Stewart, of Fulton Avenue near Garfield Avenue, was arrested in Providence, RI, on Aug. 23 by Rhode Island's Violent Fugitive Task Force based on a tip forwarded by Jersey City police, according to a RI press report and the criminal complaint.

He has been returned to Hudson County and appeared in Criminal Justice Reform Court in Jersey City on Friday on the charge of attempted murder in connection to the July 14 shooting, as well as weapons offenses including possession of a firearm by a felon, the complaint says.

Stewart was arrested on April 5, 2011 and charged with the March 6, 2011 fatal shooting of Gregory J. Johnson, 54, of Broadway in Bayonne. He was out on bail on drug charges at the time of the homicide.

Stewart and Johnson were at Wilkinson and Ocean avenues on the night of the homicide and Stewart shot Gregory in the back after a dispute triggered by a drug deal gone bad, former Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio said at the time.

On February 27, 2014, Stewart was sentenced to just under seven years for manslaughter and was released from prison on Jan. 20 of this year, according to state corrections records, which say he also has a conviction for resisting arrest and six drug convictions.

When Stewart appeared in court on Thursday via video link from Hudson County jail in Kearny, the state moved to detain him through the course of his prosecution for the July shooting in Jersey City that left the victim in critical condition.

A detention hearing for Stewart will be held on Wednesday before Hudson County Superior Court Judge Paul DePascale in the Hudson County Administration Building.

Whether or not Stewart is ordered detained is likely moot. His arrest has apparently triggered a violation of parole and he is listed as being back in the custody of the NJ Department of Corrections.

The corrections website lists no minimum term for the VOP. The maximum term is listed as four years and 188 days.
JERSEY CITY -- It's been 25 years since he graduated from Snyder High School. Now, Derek Luke, the former city resident and prominent actor, is giving back to the community he was raised in.

Hundreds came out for a massive block party at Audubon Park on Sunday, hosted by Luke, that capped four days of initiatives aimed at helping under-served urban communities, specifically focusing on issues that people of color face.

Luke has starred in prominent roles such as "Friday Night Lights," "Antwone Fisher," and the hit Netflix series "13 Reasons Why."

"There's a leader in each and every one of us, but in some it just hasn't been tapped and developed," said his wife, Sophia Adella Luke, herself an actress. "Somebody took the time to do that for us, so we're going to turn around and do that for the people in the community."

The outdoor celebration started at noon and continued throughout the day.

The event centered around the theme of "Love and Unity in the Community" and featured food, a bouncy house, balloons, face painting, a petting zoo, games, giveaways, as well as a DJ and live performances -- adjacent to the Stegman Street house Luke grew up in.

"This is for the community, and we want to continue to bring light into the cities and to these amazing young people," Sophia said.

It was all part of a four-day initiative for the Derek Luke Foundation, which featured a day focusing on education, and another day focused on empowering men from the inner city.

Luke told The Jersey Journal he hopes he can share a piece of his life with the people of his hometown.

Scroll through the gallery above to see shots of the block party.
JERSEY CITY -- A 33-year-old Kearny man has been charges with punching a woman in the face while police were present, officials said.

Michael Alves, of the 100 block of Kearny Avenue, was charged with assault following the incident in the area of Quincy Avenue and Chestnut Street on Tuesday, the criminal complaint says.

Police responded to the area on a report of a dispute and found Alves and the woman arguing in the street along with numerous other people. Moments later, Alves punched the woman in the face "while in the presence of a law enforcement officer, the complaint says.

The woman suffered minor scrapes on her arms, according to the complaint, which does not say if Alves knew the woman or what they were arguing about.

Alves made his first appearance on the charges on Thursday in Criminal Justice Reform Court in Jersey City via video link from Hudson County jail in Kearny.

At the hearing, the state moved to detain Alves through the course of his prosecution. A detention hearing is scheduled for Wednesday before Hudson County Superior Court Judge Paul Depascale in the Hudson County Administration Building in Jersey City.

Alves told the judge he is a veteran and was advised of services available to those who served in the armed forces.
JERSEY CITY -- Savory smells wafted and barbecues abounded on the lawns of Liberty State Park this afternoon where families, church groups, couples and kids celebrated Labor Day in the shade of trees.

James Simmons, of Jersey City, had two grills sizzling at a family gathering in the park where ribs, chicken, hamburgers and hot hot dogs where on the menu.

"I'm always the cook," said Simmons, of Greenville, who does auto work and has a pawn business. Wielding tongues over the grill in the hot humid weather, he said "For 37 years I've been the cook."

At about 1 p.m., 7 family members sat in lawn chairs or stretched out on blanks in the shade but he said many more were on their way.

"My family likes the park a lot," said Simmons. "Labor Day means a day of rest for me."

The Rev. Ulysses Marino, of Global Harvest Fellowship Church in Bayonne, enjoyed the day with some three dozen parishioners.

Hot dogs, hamburgers and pork chops were cooking, and a number of traditional Filipino dishes were being served like fried dried fish, red salted eggs with tomatoes, adobo chicken and Daeng - marinated and roasted pork.

"Of course, there's rice too - there's always rice," said the pastor of the 15th Street church. He said Labor Day in Liberty State Park is a yearly event for his congregation, as is Memorial Day.

Jessie Suarez and some of her family members were setting up a half dozen picnic tables covered in pink tablecloths. They were throwing a Labor Day baby shower for a family member. Ava is due in three weeks.

"It's a great location," said Suarez. "The view is great and there's a playground for the kids so we don't have to worry about them getting bored."

On the menu for the shower was the standard BBQ fare but there was pollo con arroz as well.

People enjoyed the day off strolling, jogging or biking on the parks paths while other sat on benches along the Hudson River. Kids climbed on playground structures, slid down slides and tossed balls. A flow of people carrying coolers and grills continued to arrive. They hunted for their own shady spots to settle down for the holiday.

In the 88 degree, humid weather that felt more like 100 degrees, an ice cream man stayed busy in his truck keeping up with demand.
A 77-year-old Bayonne woman was killed when she was struck by a car while riding her bike on Avenue C.

On Saturday, just after 7 a.m., Bayonne police officers found Marianna Chojnowska, 77, of Bayonne, on the ground after being hit by a car, said Hudson County Prosecutor's Office spokesman Ray Worrall.

Chojnowska was riding her bicycle on Avenue C when she was struck by a Honda Accord traveling on 27th Street. She was immediately treated by officers and first responders, but she was pronounced dead at the scene shortly after.

The vehicle was being driven by a 22-year-old woman who remained at the scene.

No charges have been filed against the driver, but the investigation continues.

The Hudson County Regional Fatal Collision Unit is actively investigating this case with assistance from the Bayonne Police Department. Anyone with information is asked to contact the Office of the Hudson County Prosecutor at 201-915-1345 or to leave an anonymous tip on the HCPO's website. All information will be kept confidential.












Follow Dr John Coulter on Twitter. @JohnAHCoulter









The House of the Oireachtas, the National Parliament of the Irish Republic, is no longer the political House of Horrors to Unionism  thanks to the impressive range of cross-border institutions spawned by the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.Gone are the days when Unionist politicians would be severely disciplined if they dared to cross the Irish border to carry of their civic duties.This was due in part to the Dail Eireann, the House of Representatives, or the main Dublin Parliament, failing to adopt a gloves off policy towards republican terrorists from the Provisional IRA and INLA using the Republic as a springboard for attacks on the Northern Unionist community and security forces.But thanks to closer cross-border co-operation between the Dail and Westminster, with Stormont (when it is working!) in the middle, Northern and Southern security forces are implementing a realistic policy which is adopting zero tolerance towards dissident republican terrorists bitterly opposed to the Irish peace process.Cross-border co-operation is at its strongest, not just since the signing of the Belfast Agreement in 1998, the St Andrews Agreement in 2006, or even the Hillsborough Castle Deal in 2010.Indeed, among Northern Unionists, the 30th Dail  or lower house  which was constituted following the May 2007 General Election, was perhaps one of the most constructive and popular since the Dail moved to its present home in Dublins Leinster House in 1922.1999 was a key year in cementing Dail/Stormont relations. That was when Articles Two and Three of the Irish Constitution were amended to take account of the consent of the Northern Ireland people if they wanted to join the Republic.Previously, these contentious articles had laid claim that the six counties which comprised Northern Ireland  and a part of the United Kingdom  were part of a whole island which formed one national territory.Central to cementing the Irish peace process was the former Southern Prime Minister, or Taoiseach, Brian Cowen, the veteran centre-Right Fianna Fail leader. In May 2008, Cowen succeeded Bertie Ahern as Irish PM and FF leader, one of the key architects in developing a stable, devolved Stormont administration.Sadly, this is no longer the case as the current power-sharing Executive has been in a state of collapse since January 2017. There have been plenty of hands across the border stunts and photo-calls, but no progress at restoring devolution.Gone are the great days of early March 2010 when the Stormont Assembly gained the necessary cross-community votes to secure the transfer of policing and justice powers back to a Northern administration; the first time since the early 1970s.The seeds of this process were sown by Cowen during his years as Irish Foreign Minister and deputy Irish PM.The Dail also provided some parliamentary lessons for the Stormont Assembly. The Dail has 166 members representing 26 Irish counties, compared to the Norths then 108 Assembly members representing six counties. For the 2017 snap Assembly poll, the number of MLAs per constituency was reduced from six to five.The Dail has mastered the art of coalition government. For example, in the Cowen era, Fianna Fail had 77 TDs, or Deputies. He headed the largest party, but not enough to form a government.This was achieved with a coalition with one of the minority parties, the Greens.Even Sinn Fein has recognised the potential for coalition government and has changed its party rules to allow it to enter a coalition Dail government - a place it once adopted a very strict abstentionist policy.But what has strengthened the Dails relations with Stormont has been the range of successful cross-border institutions.These include: the North South Ministerial Council; the six North South Implementation Bodies, and the British Irish Inter-Governmental Conference set up in 1999.Ironically, the present global economic crisis, with Brexit at its peak, will see the need for the Dail and Stormont to work even closer. Thats if a Stormont Assembly exists by the time Brexit happens in March 2019.The Dail prided itself on developing a strong economy within the European Union. It became known as the Celtic Tiger.The world-wide banking fiasco has seen the roaring Celtic Tiger deteriorate into the strangled yelps of a dying pussy cat.The Republic benefited considerably from its EU membership, but the South is set to become mainly a post Brexit giver of European funding rather than a receiver.The euro skeptic tradition in the republic is vibrant; it took the Fianna Fail coalition government two attempts to secure a Yes vote for the Lisbon Treaty.Any success in kick-starting the Northern peace process and growth of cross-border institutions may not be enough to convince Southern voters that Leo Varadkars Fine Gael-led government should continue to run the Republic.A Southern General Election should be on the cards next year  the same year the next crucial Northern Ireland local government poll is expected. The Irish Presidential election later this year should provide a potential indicator on the outcome of that General Election - especially in terms of the Sinn Fein vote.A rainbow coalition is being considered by parties opposed to the current Fine Gael coalition government. Could we see a Fianna Fail/Sinn Fein coalition government in Leinster House by 2020?The next Dail could even be a rare political concoction of the Right-wing Fine Gael, the socialist Irish Labour Party, and the centre-Left Greens plus a gentle smattering of Independent TDs. Basically, deal with anyone except Sinn Fein!Sinn Fein may be the junior power-sharing Executive partner in the North, but in the Republic, the party is still viewed with suspicion as a hardline Marxist movement pretending to be a nationalist movement for Irish unity.As the Southern Protestant population begins to grow again after decades of decline, the new political partnership which the Dail has cemented with Stormont has taken a new twist with some sections of the Unionist community.Just as the Dail was the key player in convincing Unionists to embrace a power-sharing Executive, so too, some Unionists want the Dail to embrace a new relationship with the Commonwealth, and especially the increasingly influential Commonwealth Parliamentary Association.The CPA represents more than 50 national and regional parliaments, and not all of them were part of the former British Empire. The phrase united strength of the colonial network is becoming a new political buzz term being whispered discreetly in Leinster House.Political jungle drums are sounding a steady upbeat thump as a result of a visit to the Republic by the Queen herself. Many Unionists see this as a potential springboard to get the Republic to have a closer bond with the CPA, of which the Northern Assembly is already a member.Why should Unionism be content with just a say in the running of six of Irelands counties - why not create a situation where it has a say in the running of all 32? Such talk may be dismissed as Liberal Unionist wishful thinking, but in reality such a move to de-stabilise the South post Brexit and bring it into a closer relationship with the UK is actually a Radical Right-wing Unionist ideology.Nonsense! I hear the liberal-left cry; it will never happen! But how many in the liberal-left and republicanism can accurately forecast what will happen in the geographical island of Ireland after March 2019?Yes, there could be a united island, but a united Ireland run by the British. All it will take for this to be a reality is for Unionists to squeeze the economic lifeblood out of the republic.Now that would be some sight - the so-called Butchers Apron gently fluttering over Leinster House.
A 16-year-old is in critical condition after what police say was a neighborhood rivalry where at least seven people were shot Sunday night in Trenton.

At about 8:54 p.m, Trenton police were called to the area near Stuyvesant and Bryn Mawr avenues for a shooting, according to Capt. Mark Kieffer. They discovered a 22-year-old man suffering from gunshot wounds and transported him to Capital Health Regional Medical Center, police said.

While that man was at the hospital, Kieffer said two other adults, ages 25 and 29, and the 16-year-old, who had all been shot in the same area, arrived at the hospital.

The teen is currently in critical condition and the adults are in stable condition, according to Kieffer.

The shooting was one of several in New Jersey's capital city over the holiday weekend. Saturday morning, a 34-year-old Pennsylvania man was found in a car suffering from multiple gunshot wounds and later died.

Later on Sunday, at about 10:33 p.m., three other adults, ages 22, 24 and 29, were also shot near the 400 block of North Montgomery Street, police said.

Kieffer said there were no suspects or arrests for the Sunday evening shootings as of Monday morning.

He said police believe all of the shootings were related to various neighborhood rivalries.

Trenton Police ask that anyone with information about the shootings call 609-989-4155.

Taylor Tiamoyo Harris may be reached at tharris@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter @ladytiamoyo.

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A Freehold Township police officer was one of two people injured in a crash in the township Sunday afternoon, county authorities said.

The Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office, in a statement, said the officer was on duty when their vehicle and a motorcycle collided at the intersection of County Route 537 and Kozloski Road around 2:22 p.m.

Both drivers were taken to Jersey Shore University Medical Center for treatment of their injuries, the severity of which authorities did not specify Sunday evening.

The prosecutor's office did not immediately identify the officer or the rider of the motorcycle, or specify the type of vehicle the officer was driving at the time of the crash.

Authorities said the crash remains under investigation by the county's Serious Collision Analysis Response Team and township police.

Note: This story has been updated to clarify the officer's employer.

Thomas Moriarty may be reached at tmoriarty@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter at @ThomasDMoriarty. Find NJ.com on Facebook. Have a tip? Tell us. nj.com/tips
Skeletal remains found on an island in the Delaware River last week have been identified as those of a fugitive who jumped off a bridge in Bethlehem Township, Pennsylvania, in January, police said Sunday.

Anthony J. Sisonick III (File photo)

Palmer Township Police Detective Jim Alercia told NJ Advance Media the remains have been identified as those of Anthony J. Sisonick III, who was wanted on identity theft, forgery and theft charges when he jumped off the Route 33 bridge.

The prosecutor's office in Hunterdon County last week announced human remains had been found Aug. 27 by a person walking on a flooded island in the river near Frenchtown.

Sisonick's family told police the Palmer Township resident had been upset on Jan. 3 when he parked his 2013 Volkswagen Passat on the right shoulder of the 150-foot-tall bridge and jumped off.

A search of the river by emergency personnel at the time failed to turn up any sign of Sisonick.

Authorities said the Major Crimes Unit of the prosecutor's office, along with Frenchtown borough police and New Jersey State Police, had been working together with the county medical examiner's office to identify the remains.

Alercia said township police were contacted by New Jersey officials Sunday afternoon regarding the identification of the remains but had not received further details.

Tony Rhodin may be reached at arhodin@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @TonyRhodin. Find lehighvalleylive.com on Facebook.
Three people were injured Monday afternoon after a pipe burst aboard a commercial dredging vessel in Seaside Heights off Grant Avenue, the U.S. Coast Guard said.

Authorities received a call around 2:40 p.m. that a suction pipe used to remove material from the bottom of the ocean had burst on the vessel, according to Petty Officer 3rd Class Shannon Kearney, a spokeswoman for the Coast Guard.

Kearney said three people received minor injuries and were being taken to area hospitals by fellow crew members.

She said additional information on the victims and what caused the pipe to burst was still under investigation.

Karen Yi may be reached at kyi@njadvancemedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @karen_yi or on Facebook.
Last month, the American Academy of Pediatrics released a statement recognizing the good old-fashioned merits of play.

"Research demonstrates that developmentally appropriate play ... is a singular opportunity to promote the social-emotional, cognitive, language and self-regulation skills that build executive function and a prosocial brain."

In plain speak, the scholars are telling us that letting kids be kids, letting them run around on the playground and work off the tensions of the school day, is as important as cramming their heads full of book learning for hours on end. (Which is not to say that book learning doesn't matter.)

Now comes proof that state lawmakers are on the same page as the medical experts.

On Aug. 24, Gov. Phil Murphy signed a law assuring that the state's elementary school students have the break they need during the school day to refresh tired brains and re-invigorate cramped muscles.

The measure requires elementary schools to schedule at least a 20-minute recess every day, preferably outdoors if possible. It also sets limits on the reasons teachers and administrators can withhold recess as a means of punishment.

The bipartisan bill passed by overwhelming majorities in both houses of the Legislature.

Its passage marked a victory for state Sen. Shirley Turner, D-Mercer, who first introduced a version in 2009, motivated by increasingly alarming reports of obesity in children.

She proposed it five times after that until it passed in 2016, only to see it knocked down by former Gov. Chris Christie.

"Part of my job as governor is to veto stupid bills," Christie sneered on Fox News. "That was a stupid bill, and I vetoed it."

But it wasn't a stupid bill then, and it isn't now.

Rather, it's an acknowledgment that a brief time out from the rigors of classroom lessons may very well help those lessons sink in better, while also recharging mental batteries.

Look, we don't need experts to tell us unfettered movement benefits youngsters in so many ways: more energy, stronger hearts, better moods. We have ample evidence that a sedentary childhood leads to obesity, which leads to ... well, you know.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, recess also improves children's memories and concentration, helps them stay on-task in the classroom, and even helps prevents disruptive behavior.

While many, probably most, schools already provide a daily recess period, Turner feared too some were shortening the kids' play time, or jettisoning it altogether to cram in more test-preparation time.

The new law comes as a needed restorative. Give Turner and her colleagues extra credit for pushing it through.

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This editorial has been updated.

The New Jersey Spill Act is sacrosanct, and it doesn't matter whether that assertion arouses debate or elicits yawns. It is state dogma - period, full stop, as a certain governor likes to say.

It set the rules for dealing with environmental damage associated with hazardous substances such as oil - rules for liability, enforcement, and restoration - and nearly a half-century after it was signed by Gov. Brendan Byrne, it remains a national model for spill cleanup programs.

The broad provisions under this law should be amended only with the most assiduous consideration.

So it was bewildering that the Legislature tried to dilute the Spill Act by sending a bill to the governor's desk that would limit the liability for suppliers who deliver heating oil to "unregulated tanks" that spill or leak "under certain circumstances."

Equally consternating: The bill had passed both houses unanimously - without expert testimony, without going through either Environment committee, and presumably without much discussion other than the kind of backroom buttonholing that goes unnoticed because it all occurred right in the middle of the June budget battle.

Luckily, Gov. Murphy was paying attention.

And because he was paying attention, he torpedoed the bill last Monday.

Senate president Steve Sweeney, the bill sponsor, has yet to explain how such a bill would serve the public. He never explained why New Jersey would exempt a class of polluters under a law that holds people accountable for cleanups, or why these oil suppliers need legislative help to limit their liability - they often have insurance to protect themselves against risks, and even if they don't, they have commercial general liability insurance coverage that can be extended to cover such accidents.

The governor's veto message was mostly an encomium of the Spill Act, but it makes a brief but critical point about how the bill would "potentially (result) in severe consequences to homeowners" if a less stringent set of rules applied to suppliers of heating oil, as the homeowners would be stuck with cleanup costs.

In this age of the consumer ambush, this deserves greater emphasis, as the Essex County Board of Chosen Freeholders pointed out in its smart and unanimous resolution urging the governor's veto.

Homeowners, the freeholders noted, generally don't carry insurance for oil tank spills; they often aren't even home when their tanks are filled and cannot know how the leaks occurred; and they don't usually realize their tank has leaked until an environmental inspection takes place during a sale.

Upshot: "The bill would exempt a class of polluters that shouldn't be exempted," said Ed Lloyd, the Columbia law professor who has few peers in environmental legal issues. "The Spill Act is a strict liability statute: It says those responsible for the spill clean it up, and that's appropriate. But this bill, rather than (enforcing) liability, would require proof that the supplier knew about it and intended it.

"Well, nobody intends to spill oil, but someone has to be responsible. It's an exemption that doesn't serve the public at all."

Again, it's hard to know what our lawmakers were thinking, and why none paid enough attention to ask leadership why anyone would merit such an exemption. We're grateful Gov. Murphy uncapped his veto pen.

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By Wilfredo Larancuent

There is no question that 2018 has been a challenge for organized labor nationally. The Supreme Court's AFSCME vs. Janus decision was designed to make union organizing more difficult, and the Trump administration has been working on several fronts to weaken labor protections and dismantle protections that benefit working families.



But here in New Jersey we have some reason for optimism. This year saw the passage of significant worker protections on the state level, including the Workplace Democracy Enhancement Act, which secures the right of public-sector unions to communicate with and effectively represent members while prohibiting government employers from encouraging members to resign from unions.



The Paid Sick Leave Act, signed into law in the spring, goes into effect at the end of October and will require employers in the state to provide up to 40 hours of earned paid sick leave per year to covered employees. Gov. Phil Murphy -- a friend to labor in the Statehouse -- has helped us achieve these advances in New Jersey even in the face of rollbacks across the country. But much more work lies ahead.



Murphy's election, as well as that of President Donald Trump, are overwhelming reminders -- for good and for bad -- that elections have consequences. Now we are on the cusp of what may be the most important congressional midterm election of our lifetimes. If we are to counteract the corrosive and increasingly unhinged effects of Trumpism, we must support Sen. Robert Menendez's bid for a third term and work hard to elect a slate of Democratic candidates in the House of Representatives.





Democratic victories in November offer the best, and perhaps only, backstop against GOP efforts to gut the Affordable Care Act, weaken vital safety nets like Medicare and Medicaid, trample immigrants' rights, roll back environmental protections and implement other policies designed to favor the rich and powerful while diminishing protections for working families. Menendez has been a reliable ally for labor and the middle class. He has worked tirelessly for sensible immigration reform, worker protections and other policies that benefit families in our state. He deserves our continued and enthusiastic support.



Likewise, it is crucial to support Democratic candidates in the House. New Jersey -- with five seats that are considered flippable -- is an important piece in the effort to dismantle a GOP majority in Congress that enables Trump.



There is still much left to do in the upcoming legislative session in Trenton, as well. The fight for a $15 minimum wage -- supported by Murphy -- should be a top priority for lawmakers in the coming months. We live and work in one of the most expensive areas of the country. The $15 minimum, phased in over time the way our neighbors in New York are doing, would go a long way in stabilizing New Jersey's working families.



The union council I represent comprises workers who help New Jersey function and thrive -- from caregivers in nursing homes to warehouse distribution workers to school cafeteria aides and motor vehicle inspectors. They help make up the backbone of the economy and deserve a living wage.



We also look to our elected officials in our campaign for fair treatment for warehouse workers -- a burgeoning industry in New Jersey that employs over 40,000. This sector continues to grow with some of the biggest and richest names in retail building huge distribution centers to leverage access to our publicly financed ports and interstate highways to quickly deliver goods.





These large retailers, such as Amazon, are often lauded -- and offered tax breaks -- for bringing jobs to the state. But not enough attention is paid to the quality of those jobs at distribution centers. Many of the large retailers and distributors rely on temp agencies to fill unpredictable schedules. Workers need fair wages and scheduling, reasonable productivity quotas and the ability to organize.



The midterm elections are, of course, our immediate concern. We need allies in Congress and will be working hard to ensure the success of candidates who support policies that help and protect working families. As we head into 2019, we will also work to keep our agenda front and center at the Statehouse, where initiatives that help workers benefit all New Jersey.

Wilfredo Larancuent is president of the SEIU New Jersey State Council, comprised of unions representing 23,000 service workers in public and private employ in the state.

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FedEx Express, one of the leaders of international courier delivery service in the world, changes its service provider in Azerbaijan. In accordance with some sources, the company approved Azeri Express Ltd, one of the country's leaders in providing courier services in the express delivery segment, as its service provider.





Director of Azeri Express Shaig Garibzade confirmed this fact in response to Today.az.



I would like to confirm that FedEx Express has appointed Azeri Express Ltd as its service provider in Azerbaijan, effective September 1, 2018. You'll soon get access to exciting new opportunities, but for now it is business as usual, he noted.





The appointment of Azeri Express Ltd is based on an assessment of FedEx Expresss existing operations and future market requirements. Azeri Express Ltd will offer both TNT and FedEx Express international range of services in Azerbaijan to and from more than 200 countries and territories worldwide. We remain committed to providing you with the same excellent service, Garibzade emphasized.



Azeri Express Ltd has been a representative of the global TNT international express service since 1997 and has more than 20 years of experience in the business. Azeri Express is the only company with exclusive rights to use TNT and FedEx Express services in Azerbaijan.
After a highly public campaign to pass the bill SB822, which will serve as a replacement for the FCC's Net Neutrality rules, the legislative branch of California has approved the bill. Assuming the Democratic Governor Jerry Brown signs the SB822, California will be yet another state that has its own Net Neutrality laws.

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After the FCC repealed its own rules on Net Neutrality, several states began to work on state wide rules to guarantee the rights the FCC previously protected. To date, 6 states have filed executive orders and 4 states (including California, assuming the governor signs it) have approved laws based on Net Neutrality. While many bills for Net Neutrality have failed, several more have the chance to become actual law, especially in blue states, where Democrats support Net Neutrality.

California's newest law is the latest of these attempts, and should it be signed, it will be the fourth state to guarantee Net Neutrality at a state level. According to the Verge, SB822 (the California bill) has the most comprehensive take on Net Neutrality. Since California has one of the largest economies in the entire world, ISPs may decide to comply with California's state laws all across the nation for the sake of simplicity.

While the FCC is prepared to challenge these state laws after passing a rule stating that states could not regulate broadband on Net Neutrality grounds, no such case has been prosecuted yet, and if such a case were to be brought to court, the FCC would be at a disadvantage since it has lost cases on the basis of state rights. Furthermore, attorneys argue that the FCC has no right to regulate states in regard to policy on Net Neutrality when it nullified Net Neutrality on a federal level.

This bill comes after similar laws were passed in Oregon and Washington; more recently, the state of New York has demanded that Spectrum leave the state entirely and ensure that its existing subscribers will have new ISP options and an uninterrupted experience from now to when Spectrum leaves. The FCC's repeal of Net Neutrality protections has unleashed a flood of new regulations for ISPs to follow, and it doesn't appear it's going to get any better for ISPs, and perhaps consumers if ISPs in California can't deal with the new regulations and if Spectrum in New York can't work out a deal with the state.
Competition in Colombia Sparks Renewable Energy Expansion

Aug. 31, 2018

Following more than a year of coordination with NREL and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), Colombia will host its first renewable energy auction in 2019. Approximately 50 countries worldwide, including many of Colombia's South American neighbors, have used auctions to procure renewable energy. For Colombia, the renewable energy auction represents an opportunity to bring low-cost, non-hydro renewable energy to the country while promoting investment in Colombia's energy sector.

Diversifying its energy mix to include more solar and wind is a priority for Colombia. Because the country depends on hydroelectricity for nearly 70% of its energy, dry years are especially harsh. For example, the El Nino-induced droughts of 2016 forced Colombians to ration their energy during peak hours. Further, coal and gas plants are paid a premium to operate during non-drought years to support the grid when hydro energy cannot.

The country believes renewable energy auctions might be a solution that strengthens the energy system with an eye toward international investment. Following the 2017 decision to host an auction, the Government of Colombia's Ministry of Mines and Energy connected with the USAID-NREL Partnership for input on how to customize an auction for Colombia.

"The puzzle is figuring out how to craft an auction process that will provide the right price signals to wind and solar developers to invest and get their capacity on the ground," said David Hurlbut, NREL senior analyst and economist. "And how to do this in an environment where they'd be competing with hydropower for six years, then providing generation during shortage conditions through the El Nino years."

A hurdle for the NREL teamcomprising Hurlbut, Engineer Sherry Stout, and Senior Grid Integration Researcher Barbara O'Neillwas the lack of legislative guidance that would typically inform such an auction.

"Colombia has a low carbon footprint due to the abundant hydro resources," said O'Neill. "For this reason, there is no grassroots or legislative push for something like a renewable portfolio standard. Instead, they needed an auction that was technology-neutral but that would provide a revenue stream sufficient to attract high initial capital cost/low variable-cost sources such as solar and wind."

NREL participated in a series of working sessions with the Colombian Commission for the Regulation of Energy and Gas to discuss how to structure the auction in the Colombian context. The sessions were key to allaying regulatory fears about the auction. NREL also worked with XM, the system operator, to discuss the best ways to integrate variable renewable energy in the future.

"A big part of this auction design involves long-term contracts and how they might emerge from the auction process to provide the revenue necessary for renewable energy projects to take flight while reasonably and fairly allocating risks across generators and customers," said Hurlbut.

The auction provides many benefitslonger-term contracts will attract international investment, reduced emissions will help Colombia achieve its Paris Agreement targets, and the cost savings from the auction will ultimately be transferred to Colombian energy customers through their energy bills.
By Trend





Meeting of Russian President Vladimir Putin and Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan is planned to be held in the near future, RIA Novosti reported citing Russian FM Sergey Lavrov.

"Another meeting between President Putin and PM Pashinyan is planned to be held in the near future. I think that it will be important for us to hear how the new leader of Armenia assesses the prospects for the improvement of the situation in his country," Lavrov said.

"Of course, we are concerned about Armenia's obligations before Collective Security Treaty Organization. We proceed from the fact that these obligations are in effect and must be fully implemented, including the ones related to strengthening the reputation and prestige of our common organization," he noted.

Previously, Lavrov, commenting on the case on the protests on March 1, 2008, had said that the events in Armenia are contrary to the statements of the country's new leadership about the refusal to pursue political predecessors.

According to him, Moscow has always been interested in Armenia's stability, and therefore what is happening there bothers Russia as well.

Pashinyan, commenting on Lavrov's words, said that his Russian colleagues should adapt to the new situation in Armenia.
Agencies have considerable leeway in their negotiations with unions, which the judges ruling generally did not question. The judge simply ruled that management is required to bargain in good faith, and that the president cannot bias the process from the outset or take certain issues off the table. Legal experts say that within those broad parameters, the agencies may be free to tack in the presidents preferred direction, as long as they do so on their own.

Few agencies epitomize this approach better than the Social Security Administration. Union officials say that while management has generally taken a more confrontational posture since the George W. Bush administration, the atmosphere has been poisonous at times under President Trump.

For its part, management complains that labor is too rigid in opposing efforts to serve the growing ranks of benefit recipients better. As the agencys workload has swelled, its staff has been reduced more than 10 percent, primarily because of congressional spending caps, according to an analysis by Kathleen Romig of the left-leaning Center on Budget and Policy Priorities.

In carrying out the executive orders, which took effect in July, managers scrapped several established union practices. Union officials could no longer use agency equipment like computers for work on behalf of colleagues; they could not use agency office space to meet with workers and store documents; and they could not use the agencys email system to communicate with colleagues about workplace issues.

Because the executive orders also called for reining in job protections, like the timetable for correcting underperformance and the options for appeals, some managers made clear to workers that their jobs were in greater jeopardy, union officials say.
By Trend





Muhammad Dawood Sultanzoy, a senior advisor to the president of Afghanistan, and the secretary of Irans High Council of Free Trade Zones explored ways to enhance bilateral economic ties.

During a recent meeting in Tehran, Sultanzoy and Morteza Bank agreed to boost mutual economic and transit cooperation in a bid to link Afghanistan to other countries through the Indian Ocean, the port of Chabahar, and the high seas, IRIB news agency reported on September 3.

Sultanzoy described the political ties between Tehran and Kabul as very good, calling for the development of relations in the fields of industry, transit, tourism, and banking and financial services.

Bank, for his turn, voiced the Islamic Republics resolve for enhanced ties with its neighbors and stressed the importance of closer ties with Afghanistan as an old friend.

We have made every attempt to develop our free trade zones and pave the way for Afghan investors, he said.

Chabahar is the closest and best access point of Iran to the Indian Ocean and Iran has devised serious plans to turn it into a transit hub for immediate access to markets in the northern part of the Indian Ocean and Central Asia.

It aims to create a reliable transport corridor for the smooth transport and transit of goods and services through Chabahar Port between Afghanistan, India, and Iran.
HERXHEIM AM BERG, Germany  After she found out there was a swastika on the church bell, Sigrid Peters refused to continue playing the organ during services.

Shielded from public view, high up a rickety wooden staircase inside the yellow church tower, the bell is still suspended where it was first hung in 1934 by an enthusiastic Nazi mayor in Herxheim am Berg, a hilltop village of 750 people in Germanys southwestern wine country.

It is smaller than the two other bells flanking it and is covered in pigeon droppings. But the swastika is clearly discernible and so is the inscription: Everything for the Fatherland  Adolf Hitler.

People have been getting married under the swastika and they didnt even know it, Ms. Peters said.
ROME  Retaliating against a remarkable campaign from within the church to force the ouster of Pope Francis, the Vaticans former spokesman issued a statement on Sunday night questioning the credibility of an archbishop who has accused Francis of covering up sexual misconduct.

But in seeking to defend the pope against the latest allegations, which relate not to abuse but to the popes own credibility, the former spokesman, the Rev. Federico Lombardi, seemed to confirm a key part of the archbishops claims. And the defense also offered a portrait of the pope and his top advisers as having been politically naive.

In a letter released Friday, the archbishop, Carlo Maria Vigano, challenged the notion, put forward by Vatican officials and the pope, that he had ambushed Francis in 2015 by setting up a private meeting at the Vaticans Washington embassy with Kim Davis, the Kentucky county clerk who became a conservative celebrity by refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples.

Archbishop Vigano said in the letter that he had fully briefed Francis and his top advisers, all of whom he named, about Ms. Davis and her conscientious objection to promoting same-sex marriage. He received approval from them all, he said.
BAGHDAD  On land, Syrias government is mustering thousands of conscripts to bolster its depleted forces. At sea, a Russian naval flotilla is just offshore, ready to intervene with formidable firepower. In Idlib Province, millions of civilians are dreading what comes next.

The warring sides in Syrias long and merciless civil war are preparing for another brutal offensive, and this one may be the last.

The looming assault on Idlib Province is the one the government in Damascus hopes will deliver the final military blow against the rebel fighters and their civilian supporters who rose up more than seven years ago demanding regime change.

Where Syria and its Russian and Iranian allies see a chance to crush the remaining opposition, Western leaders warn of a humanitarian calamity in Idlib, where an estimated three million civilians live.
He will also have a significant role in preserving and interpreting the legacy of one of the most important American choreographers of the 20th century. Mr. Taylor was a towering figure whose career as a choreographer began in the 1950s, rooted in experimentalism. He went on to become known for striking musicality, accessibility, an often eccentric sense of humor and a refined, at times highly technical use of everyday movement. Over the decades, he created many works now regarded as modern classics.

[Read about the choice of Michael Novak to lead the company.]

Mr. Novak said in a telephone interview that he intended to be a responsible steward of Mr. Taylors work while bringing it to a younger audience, and acknowledged some of the challenges he expected to face.

How do we take something that is a historical legacy, he said, how do we make it relevant and exciting and contextualize it for audiences now without diminishing the integrity of the history of the work?

The steps Mr. Taylor took over the past few years stand in contrast with how other prominent modern choreographers prepared for what would come after their deaths. Each grappled with a central question: How can works invented by a master choreographer and interpreted by a dedicated company survive their creator?

Merce Cunningham, for one, took a radical approach, stating a month before his death in 2009 that his company would dissolve after a final, two-year tour. He had also prepared detailed records of his dances so they could be licensed and produced by other companies.
The result is a broad interpretation across design disciplines. While some participants examine emotional response at its most visceral, such as the Latvian pavilions interactive exhibit exploring the joy of doodling in condensation, many participants take a more intellectual tack, creating immersive experiences that deal with heavy-duty political and social issues. Design is viewed as an agent for positive change, rather than simply the process of creating objects.

The British representative is Forensic Architecture, a Turner Prize-nominated organization that gathers architectural evidence in cases of war crimes or other human rights abuses. Brazil offers a poignant and visually arresting snapshot of the effects of deforestation. Israels offering will take the form of a rapid response design studio called Exposed Nerves, intended to show the challenges faced by designers working in Israel. Everyday life is characterized by a lack of security, and political and social upheaval. The result is fast, ever-changing with sometimes unfinished outputs, explained the curator, Hila Shaltieli. This is all as a result of the emotional, stressful and complicated everyday reality in Israel.

Matthew Malpass, a research fellow in critical design at Central Saint Martins, said the concept of what a designer produces was changing. There is a perception that a designer is someone who comes in to design graphics in your corporate brochure, or there is a tangible creative output like a chair, he said. The idea of the designer as someone with the ability to manage complexity is why were seeing design shifting to address broader complex societal issues, but it is a similar process, the way you manage complexity in a design problem. He cited the British governments Policy Lab, which was set up in 2014 to bring in designers to think about organizational change.

At the Biennale many contributions have been produced by collectives and interdisciplinary teams rather than by star brand names. The power of community activism and a citizen-centered approach to design recurs throughout the pavilions. Mr. Sorrell said he believed that there was a discernible shift away from the idea of the designer who commands singular authorship. Engaging a community in the design process is important to creating a positive emotional response  you can give them a sense of identity through design for the community, for civil society, he said. What designers need to be really good at is understanding the minds and the desires of the people they are ultimately designing for.
The designer Henning Koppel is revered among fans of modernism, in his native Denmark and around the world, for the voluptuous pieces he sketched for the Danish silver brand Georg Jensen during a collaboration that lasted three decades.

Now, because of the work of archivists and artisans at the Georg Jensen workshop in Copenhagen, founded by a Danish ceramist and jeweler in 1904, a silver dish based on a piece that Mr. Koppel designed  and destroyed  in 1954 is being introduced.

Named the 1041 after its numerical place in the Georg Jensen archives, the contemporary piece, handcrafted from a 35-pound sheet of silver, was unveiled at a small ceremony at the Louisiana Museum of Modern Art north of Copenhagen on May 8, which would have been Mr. Koppels 100th birthday (he died in 1981). But the company waited until last month to give the $150,000 piece a formal international introduction.

Nicholas Manville, senior vice president of design at Georg Jensen, describes the remaking of the 1041 as forensic design because the only clue to how it was created, besides a sketch discovered in the archives in December 2016, was a photograph.
Update: After facing intense pushback, The New Yorkers editor, David Remnick, said that The New Yorker Festival will no longer be hosting an interview with Stephen K. Bannon, President Trumps former chief strategist. Read more about the decision here.

Readers of The New Yorker prize the magazine for its wide-ranging collection of perspectives. From Oct. 5 to 7, The New Yorker Festival, now in its 19th year, will bring some of these voices to venues around New York City.

Political figures feature prominently in this years lineup, which includes Stephen K. Bannon, President Trumps former chief strategist, who will be interviewed by the magazines editor, David Remnick, a frequent critic of the administration.

I have every intention of asking him difficult questions and engaging in a serious and even combative conversation, Mr. Remnick said in a phone interview.
In 2014, Ms. Tsvetanova, who turned 30 last month, moved to Vienna to take advantage of its more sophisticated business culture, where she co-founded the start-up Blitab Technology (a play on the words blind and tablet). She is also the companys chief executive and has since relocated to San Francisco for proximity to Silicon Valley investors. Later this fall, she plans to introduce Blitabs debut product, a portable tablet (also called Blitab) designed for blind and visually impaired people.

Blitab will soon be available for pre-order on our website, Ms. Tsvetanova said. We plan to ship by the end of the year.

Design-wise, Blitab looks like any other tablet-style device. It is slightly thicker than an iPad, but with two separate display fields. On the tablets bottom half, a touch screen allows users to select an application or web browse using their voice.

On the top half, the tablets glass is perforated into a grid with holes, which allow Blitabs liquid-based technology to create tactile relief  or tixels  that outputs content in the Braille alphabet  the touch-reading system that has been the literacy tool for blind people since 1824. The smart liquid alters the surface of the tablet to convert text, maps and graphics into Braille, by creating a rising sensation under the users fingertips.

Blitab can translate any type of content into Braille using our cloud-based software and displays one page of content at a time, Ms. Tsvetanova said.
FX has described the setting of Mayans M.C. as a post-Jax Teller world, which says both very little about the series and perhaps all you need to know.

The name Jax Teller will mean nothing to you unless you watched Sons of Anarchy, the biker drama (one of FXs biggest hits) loosely inspired by Hamlet, with Jax as the conflicted prince of a crime dynasty.

So Mayans M.C., about another gang that figured in Sons, is a sequel, and one that feels very much aimed at people who already know who Jax Teller was.

But post-Jax Teller world might mean something else as well. It has been almost exactly a decade since Kurt Sutter brought Sons to air. It ran seven seasons, a full-throttle howl of family acrimony and complicated loyalties that bogged down in plotting and sloshed in gore as it went on.
I dont know how you stand up and talk to a Marine or a special operator and explain to them how you have a piece of software that will allow them to come home  or more likely allow them to come home  and youre not going to allow them to use it, he said. I think its a nearly impossible argument to make outside the Valley without people being legitimately pretty upset.

Employees at companies including Google, Microsoft and Amazon dont see it the same way. Google, under internal pressure, abandoned its contract with the Pentagon on Project Maven, which used artificial intelligence software to improve the analysis of imagery from drones. Microsofts chief executive, Satya Nadella, has faced opposition from workers who want the company to end a contract with Immigration and Customs Enforcement. And Amazon employees have objected to providing facial recognition technology to police departments and other agencies.

All of this has set off a quiet  but growing  debate across corporate America in the age of Trump: What does it mean to be a patriotic company when you vehemently disagree with your nations leader?

Within the technology industry, the debate has been couched as a moral and ethical one: We believe that Google should not be in the business of war, employees wrote in a petition that led to the companys withdrawal from Project Maven.

In truth, the ethical arguments are a diversion. This is political.

And there is a real danger in letting politics undermine the storied relationship between the government and Silicon Valley  Hewlett-Packard built sonar, radar and aviation equipment for the government during World War II, for example  that has led to much of the innovation we enjoy today.
Brighton College, one of the most renowned co-educational schools in the UK, has opened its third branch in the UAE in Dubai, reported Emirates news agency Wam.



Marco Longmore, head master of Brighton College Dubai, said, "We are incredibly excited to welcome our first pupils into our brand-new campus in Dubai, as they begin their journey of academic excellence with Brighton College Dubai.



Our main focus this week, is to settle in our pupils into their new nurturing environment. We will do so by phasing in each year group over the week, and welcoming parents too, creating the foundations for our community of kindness."



Brighton College has campuses in Abu Dhabi and Al Ain in the UAE.
Great news photos happen in an instant and are captured by instinct and experience. But sometimes they are also the result of years of preparation, research and commitment to an issue way before it explodes into the national consciousness and dominates the news.

Ten years ago, John Moore returned to the United States after almost two decades covering conflict abroad. Having lived in Nicaragua, India, South Africa, Egypt and Pakistan, he had come home with fresh eyes that allowed him to encounter his own country anew. He was struck by the human drama in the struggle over immigration from Mexico and the people fleeing poverty and violence in their own country. When Arizona passed a restrictive immigration law in 2010, the fear and xenophobia toward immigrants that he began seeing inspired him to spend much of the next eight years traveling the length of the United States-Mexico border, working in immigrant communities and covering law enforcement and protests.

It was a prescient decision.

That fear of immigrants was of course channeled by then-candidate Trump during his campaign to create a potent campaign issue, Mr. Moore noted.
TELLURIDE, Colo.  Before anyone in North America had a chance to see First Man  which is to say before it had its premiere Friday at the 45th Telluride Film Festival  it was already the subject of a ridiculous ideological controversy. The film, directed by Damien Chazelle (La La Land), tells the story of the Apollo 11 moon landing, focusing on the career of Neil Armstrong, who is played by Ryan Gosling. Shortly after the movie was shown at the Venice Film Festival, some conservative commentators pounced on the fact that the movie doesnt depict one of the most familiar images from that lunar voyage, the planting of the American flag on the moons surface by Armstrong and his fellow astronaut Buzz Aldrin.

Mr. Aldrin publicized his own objections to the omission, and complaints spread across social media and conservative outlets like Fox News. Some of the noise floated up into this mountain town where well-heeled cinephiles and high-altitude movie-world professionals gather each Labor Day weekend to sample selected new films alongside carefully programmed revivals and restorations.

To have seen First Man is to wonder what the fuss was all about, or would be if the fuss did not seem so predictable. Without Mr. Chazelles movie, the outrage machine would surely have found another equally dubious target.

Never mind that the accusations of anti-Americanism are absurd on their face. It is obvious to anyone paying attention to whats onscreen that Mr. Chazelle wants to encourage his audience to approach a familiar story with fresh eyes. And so instead of recreating the planting of the flag  which everyone has seen before  he includes a powerful, haunting long-distance shot of the Stars and Stripes flying alongside the landing module, taken from a perspective that would have been impossible in 1969. The point is to suggest how strange, how literally otherworldly, Armstrongs experience must have been.
The one place a wealthy black business owner might least expect to be arrested on flimsy charges by the police would be at a popular restaurant he owns in the heart of Harlem.

But thats what happened to Clyde Pemberton, the owner of MIST Harlem, who along with two of his employees sued the New York Police Department last week in Manhattan federal court for false arrest and violating his civil rights. His lawyers say the entire incident suggested racial bias and was an example of the kind of interactions with law enforcement that often strain the departments relationship with minority communities.

On June 1, 2017, Dr. Pemberton, a retired psychiatrist, was holding a business meeting at his restaurant when he saw two women leaving the bathroom, dragging a third woman who was visibly unconscious across the room at 10:30 p.m., the complaint states. The women, who were all white, knocked over a stanchion of a rope blocking off a section of the restaurant to customers.

When Dr. Pemberton, now 68, walked over to the women to ask what was wrong and suggested the unconscious woman be placed in a chair, one woman punched him in the chest and referred to him with a racial slur, according to the complaint.
But on a tour led by the schools principal, Pamela Price-Haynes, Mr. Carranza liked what he saw. Children who had recently immigrated to the United States from the Dominican Republic, Mexico, Senegal and Yemen were conducting a science experiment, effortlessly using the word hypothesis. The staff spoke proudly about the schools winning debate team and its swim lessons, dance and chess.

Back in his chauffeured car, whisking downtown to his office at the Tweed Courthouse, Mr. Carranza sighed. Test scores cant capture what P.S. 161 is all about, he said. He wished parents  white parents, college-educated ones  would understand how their children could thrive at a school like this. Parents would be better served if they actually visited schools in the neighborhood, he said, instead of simply looking up test scores or demographic numbers online.

But the city has given families the ability to opt out of attending schools like P.S. 161. Nearly 60 percent of the kindergarten families zoned for it use the citys choice process to escape it, just as across the city white and middle-class parents choose to avoid similar schools. They can be seen across New York City in the early morning hours, walking their children, hand-in-hand, past their zoned schools.

Ultimately, Mr. Carranza said he believes parents have the right to do that. He suggested that better programming and after-school opportunities could lure middle-class families to a broader array of schools. Parents will always do what they want to do, or need to do, for what they feel is good for their children, Mr. Carranza said.

It is an argument similar to the one made by the Bloomberg administration, and by the mayor and Mr. Carranzas predecessor, Ms. Farina.

Mr. Torres, the Bronx councilman, for one, notes the gap between what Mr. Carranza has said, and what he has actually done  at least so far. There remains a profound disconnect between the boldness of his rhetoric and the timidity of the Department of Educations policy, he said.

Mr. Carranza said he looked forward to hearing Mr. Torress ideas. His expressed desire to not be incremental has also been expressed to me by lots of people, he said. People are starting to get excited and motivated to have this conversation, this discussion, and then to develop a plan.

Im really optimistic, he added. Im excited.
A whos who of New Yorks political power structure  and those who aspire to crash it  descended on a small stretch of Eastern Parkway in Brooklyn on Monday, seeking votes amid the bright and bedazzled costumes and pulsating beats of the citys annual West Indian American Day Parade.

Gov. Andrew M. Cuomos campaign handed out sweat towels  Caribbeans for Cuomo, they read  on a sweltering day. Cynthia Nixon, his challenger, waved from her own parade float while her volunteers passed out bilingual campaign literature to anyone whod take it.

With less than two weeks until a rare Thursday primary in September, the undercard candidates, for attorney general, lieutenant governor and State Senate, all canvassed the crowds. Some politicians with a far longer horizon  no less than three possible candidates for mayor of New York City in 2021  made appearances, too.

Everybody knows if youre running for office, you have to be here, said Jumaane Williams, who is challenging Mr. Cuomos lieutenant governor, Kathy Hochul. He had an Is it FASCISM yet? button on his shirt near the pin that identifies him as a city councilman.
Then in 2015, Carey W. Gabay, a lawyer in the administration of Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo, died after being caught in a shootout near the parade route. In 2016, the first year JOuvert organizers were granted a parade permit from the city, two more people were shot to death in incidents around the parade. Police said that gangs were using the darkness and crowds as cover to settle scores.

That led to vastly increased security last year. Police closed off areas around the parade and set up checkpoints similar to those used around Times Square on New Years Eve, screening everyone who entered. They used metal- detector wands to search for weapons, and checked bags, taking away any alcohol they found.

Perhaps most important, the parade, which had typically gone off in the predawn darkness, starting around 4 a.m., was moved to the daylight, with a 6 a.m. start time.

Many celebrants lamented that the changes altered the tone of the event. A celebration of freedom characterized by wild dancing and the loss of inhibitions was now surrounded by police barricades and patrolled by thousands of officers under the glare of the sun.
Marie Severin, a multifaceted comic book artist whose confident hand drew most of the greatest heroes in the Marvel Comics pantheon at a time when women were rare in that field, died on Wednesday at a care facility in Amityville, N.Y. She was 89.

She had had a stroke, said Scott Edelman, a friend and former Marvel colleague who confirmed the death.

Ms. Severin was a consummate comic book artist, engaged in most parts of illustrating a comic book, which involves penciling outlines of the characters and scenes, finalizing the images in ink and then coloring them in.

She started in the industry in 1949 as a colorist for EC Comics, working with her brother, John Severin, an artist known for his realistic war and western comics. She was one of a handful of female artists who gained prominence during comics so-called Silver Age, from the mid-1950s until the early 70s.
People who worry about climate change have been in a state of high anxiety about President Trumps ignorance about the issue, his assault on Obama-era policies designed to do something about it and the growing evidence that extreme weather events and other consequences of global warming, long predicted by mainstream scientists, are now upon us.

Along comes California  yet again  to make people feel better about the possibility of serious action. The state is taking new steps to reduce its own greenhouse gas emissions and, in so doing, it is reaffirming its willingness to lead on a matter of global and national concern when Mr. Trump will not.

On Tuesday, the State Legislature approved a bill mandating that by 2045 all of the states electricity come from renewable and zero carbon sources like wind, solar, hydropower and nuclear. The original goal was 50 percent renewables by 2030; this bill kicks the target up to 60 percent by 2030 en route to zero carbon by 2045.

The move is part of Californias broader effort to cut economywide emissions from all sources by 40 percent from 1990 levels by 2030, and stands in luminous contrast to Mr. Trumps recent power plant proposal that would do essentially nothing to reduce emissions beyond what market forces are likely to achieve. Unlike President Barack Obamas Clean Power Plan, the Trump proposal sets no performance standards, or targets, and would allow states to decide how  or even whether  to regulate climate-altering emissions from coal-burning power plants. Making his political intentions crystal clear, Mr. Trump traveled to West Virginia to highlight the plan and extol the virtues of beautiful, clean coal.
Conservative evangelicals were at the White House last week for an event the Rev. Robert Jeffress described as a half state dinner and a half campaign rally. Evangelicals like Mr. Jeffress are ebullient as the Senate prepares to confirm Judge Brett Kavanaugh next week, praising President Trump as the most pro-life, pro-religious liberty, pro-conservative judiciary president of any president in history.

While Senate Democrats and an array of advocacy groups continue to sound the alarm about the threat Judge Kavanaugh poses to womens rights, organized labor, civil rights, gun reform and voting rights, evangelicals who toe the line that the religious right has laid out for decades lift their hands in prayer to thank God for a conservative majority on the Supreme Court that now seems just weeks away.

As an evangelical who cut my teeth in politics during the heyday of the Moral Majority movement in the 1980s, I know the enthusiasm many conservatives feel at the prospect of culture war victories at the Supreme Court. But I join many other faith leaders to oppose Judge Kavanaugh not in spite of our faith commitments, but because of them. As we read the Bible alongside Judge Kavanaughs record, we find his nomination a threat to the Christian ethic we are called to preach and pursue in public life.

Leading the evangelical challenge to an extreme conservative majority on the Supreme Court, a group of evangelical women has issued a call to pause, asking fellow believers to step back from the rhetoric of life to examine how decisions before the court would impact the vulnerable people we claim to care about, even the unborn. The way to reduce abortion is not through escalating culture wars but by reducing poverty, they argue, noting studies that show abortion rates at an all-time low, though they remain highest among poor women who lack access to health care.
To the Editor:

Re Student Debt: Its Worse Than We Imagined, by Ben Miller (Sunday Review, Aug. 26):

A university president I know was invited to an Obama administration meeting regarding default rates on student loans. One administration official admonished the invited presidents on their default rates and the potential loss of funding if their default rate was too high. The next administrator admonished them on needing to make more loans to students with a high risk of default, many of whom are from disadvantaged families and minorities.

The presidents asked how do we square these two conflicting goals. There was no answer forthcoming. I hope this will get better under the Trump administration, but all policy wonks have to understand that their requirements are not being applied in a vacuum.

Mike Fuljenz

Beaumont, Tex.

To the Editor:

I wasnt surprised to note the high default rates on student loans. Students are pressed to go to college from the time their parents start building their college fund, or from the time theyre old enough to receive the societal message that college is the only route to getting a high-paying job and becoming a full-fledged, respected adult.

Because of this, many who are woefully unprepared or lack interest in academics will find a college that accepts them, regardless of ability to repay loans.
Dwight School, renowned for its academically rigorous International Baccalaureate (IB) curriculum taught at its campuses around the globe, has opened the doors of its first school in the Middle East, in Dubai.

Founded in 1872, Dwight is proud to be recognised by the IB Organization as a world leader in international education.

Janecke Aarnaes, head of school at Dwight School Dubai, said: We have opened a beautiful Dwight School campus in Dubai where we will ignite the spark of genius in each and every child. We welcome our founding families to the global Dwight family.

Personalised learning is the hallmark of a Dwight education, through which the school is recognised for igniting the spark of genius in every child. Another unique Dwight feature that will now be available in Dubai is Quest, a learning support program designed over the past 25 years to bring Dwights promise of personalized learning to life for students with specific academic needs to promote their success.  TradeArabia News Service
When Justice Antonin Scalia died in early 2016, liberals and conservatives alike agreed that the next justice could transform American life for a generation or more. Donald Trump warned that if Hillary Clinton got to make the appointment our country is going to be Venezuela. Mrs. Clinton responded that a Trump justice would threaten the future of our planet. The partisan forecasts are even more ominous as Senate hearings begin next week on Mr. Trumps nomination of Brett Kavanaugh to succeed Anthony M. Kennedy on the Supreme Court.

A single judicial seat should not be so freighted. And it might not be, if the court werent so willing to insert itself in disputes that ought to be resolved by the political process. Were a long way from the notion of judicial restraint described by Justice Louis Brandeis a century ago. The most important thing we do, he said, is not doing.

We may pride ourselves that we have self-government, but for decades weve turned to the court to settle our most difficult social and political issues: abortion and gay marriage, campaign finance and gun control, even a disputed presidential election. When the justices rule the way we like, we laud them for interpreting the Constitution. When they dont, we complain theyre making the law based on their own predilections. A good justice is an umpire; a bad justice is a player. No real principle seems to be involved in our assessments of the court, only whether we endorse the outcome of this case or that one. The court has become just another political prize to be won by the party in power, not the neutral arbiter this countrys founders envisioned.

We need more Republicans in 2018 and must ALWAYS hold the Supreme Court! President Trump tweeted this past spring. That kind of cynicism corrodes any legitimacy the court has left.
The scale of global kleptocracy has become so vast  by some accounts, more than one trillion dollars is stolen annually from developing countries  that it is almost impossible to imagine how the problem could ever be defeated. But a tiny victory in Ukraine shows a way forward.

Ukraine has high rates of smoking and drinking, and the national delicacy  salo, or cured pork fat  is representative of a heart-unhealthy traditional cuisine. Cardiovascular disease is by far the leading cause of death in the country, killing two out of every three Ukrainians. Despite this alarming statistic, however, surgeons have long struggled to obtain stents, the small tubes of steel mesh used to open up the arteries that supply oxygen to the heart after they have become clogged.

For years, tens of millions of dollars were siphoned out of the health care budget by corrupt intermediaries and hidden offshore for the benefit of powerful insiders. Meanwhile, hospitals crumbled. Doctors failed to obtain medicines and spare parts for their equipment, or to even be paid. Some took bribes to earn a living wage, undermining their patients trust. Life expectancy in Ukraine lags behind that in the countrys European neighbors.

The precise amount of money stolen overall under Viktor Yanukovych, the egregiously crooked president overthrown in 2014, may never be known, but a former prosecutor general put it at $100 billion. Neither is it known how many Ukrainians died for want of vaccines, other medicine or treatment, which the countrys Constitution supposedly guarantees them the right to.
To a pure originalist, this is an incoherent mixing of methodologies. Any ruling that departs from the original meaning should be thrown out. Judge Kavanaugh has called for no such thing.

Instead, he has proudly said that hes a textualist, which means that he gives primacy to the ordinary meanings of the words of a statute, or the Constitution itself. Textualists steer away from other sources of meaning, like legislative history. Conservatives have often touted textualism for its neutral deference to the legislature. Three of the courts conservative members  Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Samuel Alito and Neil Gorsuch  lay claim to textualism as a guiding principle.

But textualism doesnt serve as an overarching theory for conservative jurisprudence. Textualist interpretation can produce liberal as well as conservative interpretations of statutes. And because ambiguous phrasing in laws leaves judges with choices to make, it doesnt put much of a restraint on judges. As Judge Kavanaugh has said, quoting the liberal-moderate Justice Elena Kagan, We are all textualists now. This means that textualism offers neither a clear dividing line from liberals nor the historical gravitas of originalism.

If Judge Kavanaugh is confirmed, there will be only one dyed-in-the-wool originalist left among the justices  Clarence Thomas  who is also, at 70, the oldest member of the courts conservative wing. The courts other leading originalist, Antonin Scalia, died in 2016. This shift away from originalism is a window into the conservative movements priorities as it prepares to lock in a five-member Supreme Court majority. Originalism is no longer the powerful tool it once was for advancing a conservative jurisprudence.

This is clear from the conservatives expansive interpretation of the First Amendments guarantee of free speech, an approach that has no historical support from the time the First Amendment was written. Despite this, in a series of decisions, from Citizens United in 2010, which opened a faucet of campaign donations and spending, to Janus v. AFSCME in June, which diminished the clout of unions by stopping them from collecting dues from all the workers they represent, conservatives have used the First Amendment to strike down laws that regulate corporations, help unions and limit the influence of money on politics. Tellingly, the court has accepted far more cases involving challenges to regulations of conservative speech than previous courts, with a win rate of 69 percent, compared with 21 percent for cases involving liberal speech. Judge Kavanaugh, too, has embraced this business-friendly interpretation of the First Amendment.
OSLO  In 2015, Karen Dolva learned from a friend whod worked briefly in a pediatric hospital ward of the loneliness that afflicts children during long-term hospital stays. The conversation inspired Ms. Dolva, who was working as a digital consultant at the time, to research the effects of social isolation on young people.

Within weeks, she and two tech industry colleagues, Marius Aabel and Matias Doyle, had formed No Isolation, a tech start-up that aims to develop technological solutions to societal problems like loneliness.

At the London Design Biennale, the Norwegian exhibition includes the newest version of the companys AV1, a desktop unit designed to look like a robot, which can connect a sick student to the classroom. We were surprised, Ms. Dolva, the companys chief executive, said in a Skype interview. We couldnt really grasp that technology hadnt already solved this problem.

The unit, whose role Ms. Dolva likened to that of a video game avatar, has no intelligence of its own. But its white plastic housing covers a camera, microphone and speaker that a student can operate from a smartphone or tablet. Specially positioned motors allow the camera in the units head to scan the classroom a full 360 degrees, or to angle the head upward to face a teacher or fellow student during conversation. (There is even a whisper feature that lets the student engage in a hushed exchange with nearby classmates.)
Much of the empire built by Alex Jones, the Infowars founder and social media shock jock, vanished this summer when Facebook suspended Mr. Jones for 30 days and took down four of his pages for repeatedly violating its rules against bullying and hate speech. YouTube, Apple and other companies also took action against Mr. Jones. But a private Infowars Facebook group with more than 110,000 members, which had survived the crackdown, remained a hive of activity.

In Mr. Joness absence, the group continued to fill with news stories, Infowars videos and rants about social media censorship. Users also posted the sort of content  hateful attacks against Muslims, transgender people and other vulnerable groups  that got Mr. Jones suspended. And last week, when Mr. Joness suspension expired, he returned to the group triumphantly.

My 30-day Facebook ban is up! Mr. Jones announced.

Mr. Jones built his Facebook audience on pages  the big public megaphones he used to blast links, memes and videos to millions of his followers. In recent months, though, he and other large-scale purveyors of inflammatory speech have found refuge in private groups, where they can speak more openly with less fear of being punished for incendiary posts.

Several private Facebook groups devoted to QAnon, a sprawling pro-Trump conspiracy theory, have thousands of members. Regional chapters of the Proud Boys, a right-wing nationalist group that Twitter suspended last month for its violent extremist nature, maintain private Facebook groups, which they use to vet new members. And anti-vaccination groups have thrived on Facebook, in part because they are sometimes recommended to users by the sites search results and suggested groups feature.
George Salazar arrived in New York a decade ago with $900, a dream and an undiagnosed shrimp allergy. (His first job: Waiting tables at Bubba Gump Shrimp Co. It didnt stay undiagnosed long.) Now 32 and a veteran of Broadway (Godspell) and Off Broadway (Here Lies Love), he spends most nights of the week crouched in a bathtub, singing Michael in the Bathroom, which Ben Brantley called the breakout agony anthem of the sci-fi teen angst musical Be More Chill.

He meditates every day and is actually pretty chill. His 110,000-plus Instagram followers are not. These emoji-wielding admirers clamor for photos of his solos, his post-show drinks and a headband collection rivaling only that of Chrissy Teigen. They send him fan art. So do their dads.

Mr. Salazar discussed the life of an actor who has found his way into a cult sensation by reviewing seven of his own Instagram posts. Here are excerpts from the conversation.
Theres a lot of talk that the new Supreme Court, one with two Trump justices on it, might overturn Roe v. Wade. So the court cant just wake up one morning and say, were overruling Roe v. Wade. I think supporters of abortion rights are right to be nervous, but theyre maybe not exactly right about how to be nervous, what to be nervous about. Its a shorthand, sure, to say Roe v. Wade can be overruled, but thats not the only, or even the most likely, outcome. Let me take you through the possible scenarios. Lets call the first category the nuclear options. These are the most extreme and, therefore, least likely scenarios. The first one would flip Roe on its head. Roe says theres a constitutional right to abortion. The court could say the Constitution prohibits abortion in the interest of protecting fetal life. That would suggest that fetal life is like any other life, so that taking it away would be murder. So if the court were to go in that very unlikely direction, abortion would be outlawed across the nation, and women could not get abortions in the United States legally. A second nuclear option would be for the court to do away with the right to privacy established in a case called Griswold in 1965. The individual is entitled to some private sector. That right to privacy is the foundation for Roe v. Wade. If the right to privacy goes, it would do away with the basis for Roe v. Wade and, therefore, Roe v. Wade itself and flip the issue back to the states and allow states to regulate abortion as they wish. The right to privacy has been, and could be, the foundation of many rights, so I dont think its likely the court will go after the right to privacy. A second possibility, and the one everyones talking about, is the court could overrule Roe v. Wade. Protesters: Ho, ho, Roe v. Wade has got to go. Hey, hey, ho, ho. So in a post-Roe world, you still have a right to privacy. But that right to privacy does not include a constitutional right to abortion. States would be free to do what they wanted. And some advocacy groups say perhaps 22 states could make abortion illegal entirely. Thats probably not going to happen anytime soon. Protesters: Hey, hey, Roe v. Wade is here to stay. Chief Justice John Roberts is an incrementalist. He takes things step by step, and I dont think his first impulse is going to be, lets overrule Roe v. Wade when there are other ways to get from here to most of the way there. The last scenario, and the most likely one, is for the court to chip away at Roe v. Wade. The court has already upheld some restrictions on abortion. The 5 to 4 majority upheld a ban on performing abortions in public facilities. The U.S. Supreme Court today upheld the nationwide ban on partial-birth abortion. Medication abortion is now effectively blocked in Arkansas. Much more severe restrictions on abortion rights are a perfectly imaginable scenario when we have a new Supreme Court. Heres how that could happen. States cannot impose an undue burden on womens right to abortion. Thats a fairly malleable standard, and it wouldnt be hard for the Supreme Court to keep it in place, but interpret it slightly differently and say states can impose such restrictions. A couple of years ago, the court heard a case from Texas. And had the court sustained the Texas law, the number of clinics in Texas would have dropped from about 40 to about 10. And that could rapidly diminish the ability of women to get abortions because the nearest abortion clinic, at a minimum, could be hundreds of miles away. Its a little hard to answer exactly what life will look like in a given state because well have a patchwork of laws. But whats for sure is that women in red states, and particularly poor women in red states, will have a much harder time getting abortions as each successive abortion restriction is sustained by a court that now has a solidly conservative majority.
I think Ive proven repeatedly, over a long period of time, that I like reaching out and I enjoy bringing different people together and trying to come up with one voice that we can talk to Congress with. So, in this case, my record speaks for itself. And again, I think the average voter wants somebody whos best for them and not just someone who may look like them at a given time.

One of the places there has been daylight between you and Ms. Pressley is the so-called Blue Lives Matter bill, which creates harsher penalties for crimes against law enforcement officers. In the last debate you called it a throwaway vote, but your opponent criticized that decision, and some civil rights groups have said such bills negatively affect community relations. Can you explain more about your vote for the legislation?

The bill was simply a restatement of current law. And I actually do believe it should be illegal to target police officers and correctional officers. And for those who feel that the bill should have gone further  I would agree.

The bill that was in front of me was a fair bill, and thats why the entire Massachusetts delegation voted for it, and thats why I think it was two-thirds of the Congressional Black Caucus voted for it. And I believe almost all of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus voted for the bill.

It didnt really change federal law  it was more of a statement built on the floor by Republicans. But the statement was fair: I just dont think that you should be able to target police officers and correctional officers.

Were you surprised that your opponent picked up the endorsement of both The Boston Globe and The Boston Herald?

No, not at all.

What do you mean there?

What do you mean? I said I wasnt surprised.

Is that a personal slight? Youve been a congressman for 10 terms now?
The Department of Justice is now moving away from that, and its emerging view of civil rights is a dangerous trend, inconsistent with legal history, and a disturbing manifestation of President Trump, Mr. Siegel said.

The Asian-American suit against Harvard, which argues that the schools admissions policies are discriminatory, is positioned to help one minority group, but former Justice Department attorneys worry that it could ultimately weaken a legacy of the civil rights era that has been used to expand opportunities to other underrepresented minorities.

The Justice Departments support of that suit is a distortion of the law and repeated rulings from the United States Supreme Court, said Anurima Bhargava, an attorney who worked in the departments civil rights division. It undermines schools efforts to bring students of different backgrounds together.

The departments shift in how it regards civil rights has happened quickly and often in lock step with other parts of the administration. The Leadership Conference, a civil rights advocacy group, counts at least 95 instances in which the administration has taken a stance antithetical to longstanding views on civil rights and civil liberties. Those efforts include chipping away at the rights of immigrants and disadvantaged populations, including prisoners.

The moves are happening at such a fast clip that it is hard to keep track of all of them, said Janai Nelson, a lawyer at the NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund.

The departments shift in priorities was on display at the end of July, when Mr. Sessions hosted a religious freedom summit to celebrate what he called the countrys first freedom.

Speakers included the deputy attorney general, Rod Rosenstein, politicians, leaders from many faiths, conservative advocates and Jack Phillips, the owner of the Masterpiece Cakeshop, whose refusal to create a wedding cake for a gay couple on religious grounds was upheld in June by the Supreme Court.
WASHINGTON  One American service member was killed and another wounded in eastern Afghanistan on Monday in what officials described as an apparent insider attack.

The attack is the second episode in less than two months in which an American service member was killed by an Afghan security member. The United States military, which disclosed the death in a statement on Monday, did not provide additional details.

The sacrifice of our service member, who volunteered for a mission to Afghanistan to protect his country, is a tragic loss for all who knew and all who will now never know him, said Gen. Scott Miller, the head of the American war effort in Afghanistan, in the statement. Our duty now is to honor him, care for his family and continue our mission.

The Pentagon, which said that the wounded service member is in stable condition, did not identify either service member, pending family notification.
Majid Al Futtaim, a leading shopping mall, retail and leisure pioneer across the Middle East, Africa and Asia, said it is supporting Dubais efforts to promote green transportation in the city by expanding its electric vehicle (EV) charging facility to City Centre Meaisem this year.



After having successfully installed nine Tesla Destination Charging stations at Mall of the Emirates last year, Majid Al Futtaim will make it easier for early EV adopters to recharge their environmentally friendly vehicles with four designated charging spots at City Centre Meaisem, as well, said a statement from the company.



Maryam Ahli, mall manager at City Centre Meaisem, said: As Dubai forges ahead to create a smart, happy and eco-friendly city, we want to do our part by making it more convenient for residents who adopt a sustainable lifestyle and provide them with a memorable experience whenever they visit us.



While they shop at their favourite stores, dine and take advantage of our leisure offerings, their cars can be docked at the designated spots to be fully powered up, she added.



This is a free service for mall visitors. The designated charging stations have been secured to allow only visitors with EVs to park.



Instructions on how to use the service are displayed at the stations. Customers who require further assistance can contact the traffic marshal available onsite.



The initiative is part of Majid Al Futtaims sustainability strategy, which includes brining innovations and convenient green solutions to its destinations to encourage the community to reduce their carbon footprint, it stated.  TradeArabia News Service
BEIJING  At the start of a new school year, a kindergarten principal in southern China thought dance performances would make a grand welcome. They would include jazz and traditional Chinese dance, she said. Oh, and there would also would be a strutting, shimmying pole dancer.

The goal was to get the kids to learn more about one variety of dance, Lai Rong, the principal, told one Chinese news outlet.

Goal achieved.

The internet in China lit up with video of the pole dance performance on Monday at the Xinshahui Kindergarten in Shenzhen, accompanied by outrage and wonderment that anyone would think pole dancing was a reassuring way to greet anxious children being dropped off for a new semester.

Ceremonies for the Chinese school year are usually solemn affairs, and so social media platforms like Weibo and Chinese news outlets erupted with demands for an explanation and punishment.
In hidden corners across South Korea, tiny cameras are surreptitiously recording thousands of women when they are at their most vulnerable.

Women have come to fear that cameras could be anywhere: perched inside the toilet bowl of a public restroom, disguised as a smoke detector in a shops fitting room, even rolled into a plastic bag at the lip of a trash can.

In Seoul, the capital, the proliferation of such hidden cameras  and the images they record, which often end up on pornographic websites  has often been described by reporters as an epidemic.

The city announced a crackdown on Sunday, increasing the number of municipal employees assigned to search public bathrooms for hidden cameras to 8,000 in October from the 50 currently at work.
HONG KONG  Two Malaysian women accused of pursuing a sexual relationship were caned in an Islamic court on Monday, setting off an outcry from rights groups that said the countrys political transformation this year had done little to ensure equal treatment of all citizens.

The women, who were convicted of sexual relations between women, were each struck six times with a rattan cane in front of witnesses in the Shariah High Court in the state of Terengganu, officials said.

The sentence, delivered four months after an election that saw Malaysias governing party ousted for the first time since the country was founded in 1957, reflects the countrys deeply conservative culture despite a liberalization in its politics.

Rights groups assailed the new government for discrimination against gay men and lesbians and for continuing to allow a form of corporal punishment outlawed in most of the world.
BANGKOK  The two reporters met the police corporal at his insistence, joining him at a restaurant in Yangon. Confused when the conversation did not live up to the policemans initial urgency, the two got up to leave after the meal ended, only to have him hand off two rolled-up pieces of paper with no explanation.

The journalists, U Wa Lone and U Kyaw Soe Oo, reporters for Reuters, barely made it out of the restaurant before they were arrested, the papers confiscated before they had any chance to look at them, they testified.

But on Monday, those papers  despite testimony in April by another police official that higher-ups had ordered them to be planted on the reporters  were at the heart of a judges rationale in convicting and sentencing the two journalists to seven years in prison for violating Myanmars colonial-era Official Secrets Act.

Their case, which has stretched over almost nine months of court hearings, has become the most notable blow in Myanmars intensified crackdown on the press, as officials seek to deny or obscure atrocities against the countrys Rohingya Muslim minority. A United Nations mission recently called for Myanmar military leaders to be tried for genocide against the Rohingya.
LONDON  The sea journey between North Africa and Italy is now deadlier than at any point since the peak of the European migration crisis in 2015, even as unauthorized migration along the route has fallen to its lowest level in the same period, according to data released on Monday by the United Nations.

For every 18 migrants who reached Italy by boat during the first seven months of 2018, one person drowned attempting that voyage. The toll is nearly triple the death rate during the period in 2015, and roughly double the rate in 2016, when a record number of migrants landed without authorization in Italy, which for most of the 21st century has been the main port of entry for people hoping to reach Europe by boat.

The United Nations announcement was made against a backdrop of heightened political and social tension across Europe, where migration has helped strengthen local economies by increasing consumer demand while also creating additional pressure on state institutions and stoking the popularity of far-right parties and causes. Far-right politicians now share power in Italy and Austria, and have polled unusually well in Sweden and Germany, where thousands of far-right sympathizers rallied in the eastern town of Chemnitz this week in protest over immigration.
ROME  As a clamor builds for Pope Francis to respond to the stunning allegations by his former ambassador in Washington that he covered up abuse and lied about a meeting with a prominent opponent to same-sex marriage, the pontiff has extolled the virtues of silence.

Speaking in a Monday morning homily at the Vatican, Francis said, With people who dont have good will, who seek only scandal, who want only division, who seek only destruction  including within the family: silence, prayer.

He added that the truth is humble, the truth is silent and concluded with the prayer, May the Lord give us the grace to discern when we should speak and when we should stay silent.

So far, Francis has stuck with silence since the allegations first shook the church on Aug. 26.

Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, the former Vatican ambassador, accused the pope of knowing about sexual misconduct by an American cardinal, Theodore E. McCarrick, with adult seminarians years before the abuse became public. Archbishop Vigano also said that Francis lifted sanctions on the cardinal that he claimed had been imposed by his predecessor, Benedict XVI. Those allegations remain unproven.
Kimia Khodabandeh sees a more sinister side. Age 18 and a first-time voter, she was born in Sweden to Iranian parents who fled the revolution there. I do feel targeted, she said. I was raised Swedish and feel Swedish, but I dont look Swedish, and they wouldnt accept us as Swedish.

And thats why Im concerned, she continued. We live in a society where everyone is accepted and helps one another, but were heading in the wrong direction. I just dont understand why some people want to ruin everything.

In the end, the Social Democrats and the center left may yet cling to power, and the Sweden Democrats may do well but again be kept out of the government. But the question of whether to make some deal with them, as mainstream parties in Finland, Denmark and Norway have done with their far-right rivals, or to continue to isolate them, is unlikely to go away.

This election is a struggle about values and Swedish identity, said Ulf Bjereld, a professor of political science at the University of Gothenburg and an active member of the Social Democrats. The question is how to keep Sweden in the forefront of liberalism and social democracy versus stronger support for the nation state and borders. Who will Sweden be in this struggle? Were just at the beginning of this debate.
InfoFort, an Aramex company and a leading information management solution provider in the Middle East and Africa, will showcase innovative ways of digitally transforming organisations and catapulting them into the digital realm at the upcoming Gitex Technology Week 2018.



Gitex Technology Week, a major information and communications technology (ICT) trade fair, will take place from October 14 to 18, at the Dubai World Trade Centre, Dubai, UAE.



InfoFort will exhibit its capabilities in Robotic Process Automation (RPA), blockchain, paperless environments, digital workplaces, and other forms of digital transformations, said a statement from the company.



It will display technological advancements and ways in which it helps organisations make best use of the most contemporary digital technologies, it said.



InfoForts solutions automate rule-based business processes through software that captures and interprets data, generates responses and communicates with other digital systems, it added.



InfoFort is also making progress in other areas of digitisation, including in its renowned paperless service, digital workplace, creating document definitions and e-forms, and providing seamless migrations to enVision, its flagship electronic content management system (ECM), said a statement.



InfoFort is enhancing enVision by leveraging the power of a blockchain protocol through functionalities such as proof of authenticity, proof of process and smart contracts. It is improving content services by decentralising them, helping to serve customers in a more secure, efficient and reliable manner.



Abed Shaheen, chief executive officer, InfoFort, said: We are absolutely ecstatic to once again be part of this very influential and key event in Dubai. With the significant progress and profound impacts that weve made, we have an abundance of new and enhanced solutions to share this year, including our e-signature solution.



This has been integrated into enVision to simplify electronic signature processes, making them more secure and encouraging adoption of the technology in the region, Shaheen concluded.  TradeArabia News Service
Dubai Aerospace Enterprise (DAE) said its Jordan-based engineering division Joramco has successfully obtained EASA Part 145 approval for the Boeing 787 aircraft type.



The approval comes after Joramco obtained similar approval for this type from the Jordanian Civil Aviation Authority (JCARC) and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in April of this year.



Strategically located at a free zone area in Queen Alia International Airport in Amman-Jordan, Joramco's facility includes 5 hangars that can accommodate up to 15 aircraft.



With more than 50 years of experience, Joramco has built a sound track record as a leading commercial aircraft maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) facility serving a wide range of customers in the; Middle East, Europe, South Asia, Africa, Russia and the CIS countries, offering services on several aircraft models from the Airbus, Boeing, and Embraer fleets.



Joramco CEO Jeff Wilkinson said: "We are very pleased to gain our EASA approval for the Boeing 787. This approval allows us to broaden our service offerings to a wider base of customers as we continue to build on Joramco's success as a leading MRO facility offering a globally competitive suite of MRO services."



A globally recognized aerospace corporation, DAE is one of the largest aircraft leasing companies in the world. Headquartered in Dubai, DAEs leasing and engineering divisions serve over 125 airline customers around the world from its seven locations in Dubai, Dublin, Amman, Singapore and the US.



Firoz Tarapore, the chief executive officer of DAE, pointed out that the EASA approval for the Boeing 787 further recognised Joramcos extended capability set in maintaining new technology aircraft.



"This achievement reflects DAEs goal of developing a regionally-based world class competitive MRO and services platform to complement its top tier leasing platform," he added.-TradeArabia News Service
A 21-year-old woman from Hong Kong who though she was undergoing a mock wedding test to secure a job as a wedding planner ended up officially married to a total stranger from mainland China.

The woman, who wished to remain anonymous, told authorities that her ordeal began in May of this year, when she saw a social media posting about a job as a make-up artist apprentice. It offered a monthly salary of HK$14,000 (US$1,800) as well as free training, and required no previous work experience at all. Most people would call that too good to be true, but the young woman decided it was the opportunity of a lifetime. Turns out she was wrong.

Photo: StockSnap/Pixabay

After applying for the job, the 21-year-old woman was convinced to train as a wedding planner instead, as she could earn even more money, depending on commissions. It just so happened that she had a particular interest in wedding planning, so she didnt require much convincing. She then took a free wedding planning course in Hong Kong and was told that in order to get her diploma, she would have to travel to Fuzhou, in mainland Chinas Fujian province, where she would take a final exam that included a mock wedding to a man of similar age.

Apparently, the woman only started suspecting that something wasnt right, when she and this man she was pretending to marry were taken to a local government office where they signed an official-looking document. However, her doubts were quickly put to rest by the mock wedding organizers who reassured her that they know the mayor and would void the marriage certificate as soon as the test was concluded.

It was only after returning to Hong Kong and telling one of her friends about the bizarre test that the woman realized she had been scammed into marrying a total stranger. Her job opportunity dissolved and the people she had been in contact with vanished as soon as she signed her official marriage certificate.

Photo: blazejosh/Pixabay

The woman remains married for now, and may have to file for a divorce in order to regain her single status. It is unclear who the man she married is, but his motives are not too hard to figure out. Cross-border marriage scams are quite common in China, as mainland residents get to apply for residence in Hong-Kong if they marry someone already living there. Only 150 permits are issued every day.

The 21 year-old lady was taken advantage of while she knew nothing about the circumstances, said Tong Kang-yiu, director of the Hong Kong Federation of Trade Unions (FTU). Her biggest loss is to have a marriage record and it has caused her psychological damage.
In 1980, Portugal was shocked by the story of Maria Isabel Quaresma Dos Santos, a 9-year-old girl who had spent her entire childhood in a chicken coop, deprived of any human interaction and affection. Because of the effects growing up with chickens had on her behavior, Isabel became known as Chicken Girl.

According to an article published by the Diario de Noticias newspapers in 1980, Maria Isabel Quaresma Dos Santos was born on July 6, 1970, on a farm in Tabua, in Portugals district of Coimbra. When she was only one year old, her mother, who doctors would later diagnose with severe mental problems, locked her away in the chicken coop, because she didnt consider her as part of the family. Maria Isabel would spent the next 8 years of her life in this place, surrounded only by chickens and surviving on the same food as the birds  grains, cabbage leaves and whatever leftovers the family would feed them.

Interestingly, Maria Isabels older brothers did not share her fate. They lived normal lives, slept in the family home, went to school and interacted with other children from the local community. It was later revealed that everyone in Tabua knew about the girl growing up in the Dos Santos chicken coop, but no one ever denounced the family to the authorities or try to help her in any way. Tabua was a small rural community in those times, and people focused on working in the fields instead of getting mixed up in the affairs of their neighbors.

Photo: KoillokDoido/Wikimedia Commons

Although the story of the Chicken Girl  as newspapers referred to Isabel at the time  only broke out in January of 1980, the girl had an opportunity to escape her inhuman prison four years before. In 1976, one of her aunts filed a complaint against her parents and tried to get her examined by doctors. She was diagnosed with severe disability by doctors in Coimbra, who added that she needed to be hospitalized for rehabilitation. However, there were no institutions that would take her in, so after being rejected by several hospitals and mental facilities, the aunt had no choice but to take her back to her family.

It wasnt until 1980, when Maria Bichao, a radiology technician at Torres Vedras Hospital, exposed the girls case to the media that things actually started moving in the right direction. Bichao had been made aware of Maria Isabels situation by other nurses at the hospital and wanted to help. She took the girl to her home for 15 days, but soon realized that she needed professional help, so she contacted journalists from the Portuguese capital about the conditions she had been living in and the effects this had had on her physical and mental state, hoping to raise awareness about her case.

Its hard to imagine that anyone can survive in the conditions that this child has lived in for years. But even more shocking is that her case had been denounced four years ago without any institution taking the necessary steps to resolve it, wrote Maria Catarina, a journalist from Lisbon.

Manuela Eanes, Portugals First Lady at the time, played a big part in this story, arranging for Isabel to be taken to a rehabilitation center in Lisbon. Doctors there were shocked by her animal-like behavior and severe mental disability.

From what I have observed so far, I can say that this is a child suffering from an intellectual insufficiency most likely caused by affective and social abandonment. Isabels behavior is at an elementary biological level, that is, primary reactions of an animal or human being, Joao dos Santos, director of the Center for Child Mental Hygiene in Lisbon, told the O Jornal  newspaper in February 1980.

Portuguese newspaper Expresso reported that despite being profoundly sad and afraid, Maria Isabel couldnt even cry, because crying is the first form of communication between human beings and she had had almost no contact with humans during most of her childhood.

Even more shocking were the reports about the way Maria Isabel mimicked chicken behavior. She took small steps and constantly moved her arms, as if they were wings. She did not speak and only emitted cackles to express herself. Because she had only been fed chicken food, the girl exhibited severe growth problems, and despite being ten years old, her brain had stagnated to the level of a two year olds.

Photo: Archive

Even a decade later, Maria Isabel Quaresma Dos Santos still exhibited gestures and behavior characteristic of the place she had grown up in. She moved with small, quick steps and flapping her arms remained one of the main ways she expressed herself. At age 27, she was able to move by herself on flat surfaces and had become less aggressive.

Despite not speaking, she is very intelligent, independent, and has adapted very well to her environment. She knows how to show what she wants and what she does not want, Cristina Conceicao, a psychologist working with Maria Isabel, told Expresso in 2002.

Maria Isabel Quaresma Dos Santos has been living in a medical facility in Fatima for the last 16 years, and without revealing too many details, to preserve the dignity of the patient, the Expresso newspaper reports that she is well. Isabel recently turned 48-years-old.

The story of Portugals Chicken Girl has been retold for nearly four decades, but earlier this year, an investigation by the Expresso revealed that the newspapers of the 1980s may have exaggerated their reporting. It was true that Maria Isabel had been living in a chicken coop, but only because her mother, who had suffered brain damage due to meningitis, would leave her there unattended while working in the fields. However, neighbors say that there were no chickens, as the family was very poor.

Isabels chicken mimicking was apparently all made up by the newspapers to sell more copies. She did indeed suffer from severe mental deficiencies due to lack of human contact and affection, but her behavior apparently had nothing to do with imitating birds, it was just how she expressed herself.

Caretakers at the institution Isabel has been living in for the last 22 years have always been very protective of her, refusing to let anyone photograph her, and even denying requests from Portuguese and foreign scientists wanting to study her. She apparently has the cognitive level of a 4-year-old.

Sources: Instituto de Educacao, Expresso, Expresso 2
Park City is looking for a PR firm interested in handling a three-year effort to pitch Utah's premier ski location to US and Canadian media outlets.
Bluebird Care, a leading homecare provider across Ireland, has announced that it has been successful in securing tenders to provide care for older persons in all nine Community Healthcare Organisations across Ireland.

The jobs, which will be spread across the country, will vary from Clinical Nurse Managers to Care Assistants and will add to the already outstanding team of 1,800 in place. 450 jobs have been created with 20 earmarked for Laois and Offaly.

The awarding of these contracts has accelerated Bluebird Cares growth plans for 2018/2019 and has led to the recruitment of over 450 new jobs across its 26 nationwide offices. Driven by over 20 per cent growth over the last 12 months, these new roles will enable Bluebird Care to continue to deliver high-quality, person-centred care for clients with a diverse range of needs.

With roles available across the country, including Laois, Offaly, Kildare (30 openings), Dublin West (25 openings), Wexford (25 openings), and Clare (20 openings), these jobs will be firmly rooted in the community, with a range of full and part-time roles available to suit individual lifestyle needs.

Managing Director of Bluebird Care Brian MacGoey commented: We are proud to announce that Bluebird Care will be creating 450 jobs, adding to our already high calibre team of more than 1800 who are providing invaluable care day in day out across Ireland. Winning nine out of nine contracts with the Community Health Organisations further endorses Bluebird Cares commitment to standards of care and our ability to attract the best people.

We are committed to providing high-quality, safe and effective care in our clients own home which is, more often than not, their preferred place of care. Our unique and dynamic working environment allows for rewarding and flexible employment opportunities for potential key staff. With this in mind, we are delighted to begin recruiting caring and compassionate people to join the Bluebird Care team.

We are now inviting all interested and qualified persons to attend their nearest open day, details can be found on Bluebirdcare.ie, or to drop into your local Bluebird office to learn more about developing a gratifying career with one of Irelands leading homecare companies, which holds the EIQA Q Mark for quality.

Bluebird Care offers a range of continuous professional development supports to its staff including training programmes, mentoring and boast various avenues for staff advancement nationwide.

Bluebird are now recruiting to fill the posts across the country and you can find out more here.

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If you have a story for us, sports news, an event happening in your area, or if you want to submit pictures or videos, contact the Offaly Express team via email to justin.kelly@iconicnews.ie, or through our Facebook.
Offaly Independent TD, Carol Nolan, has expressed concern over the imminent closure of five Post Offices in Offaly.

Last week, An Post revealed that the Post Offices in Moneygall, Walsh Island, Mount Lucas, Pullough and Geashill would be closed.

On Monday, Deputy Nolan stated that she was very concerned over the potential closures of post offices in both Laois and Offaly.

"Our post offices are a central, basic and vital part of many rural towns and villages throughout this state. It is unacceptable that the government are standing idly by when urgent action and fulfilment of their obligations is required by rural communities which have borne the brunt of too many cuts to basic services over the last few years," she said.

Nolan called on Deputy Naughten and the government to "honour the fact that a motion calling for a 5-year holding plan to be put in place to save our post offices had been passed in the Dail."

"The Minister or his government cannot shirk their responsibilities; they must implement this 5-year holding plan as soon as possible in order to give our post offices some chance of survival."

Deputy Nolan stated that she had been in contact with Tom O'Callaghan from the Independent Postmasters Group and that she was fully supportive of the Independent Postmasters Group.

In relation to cases where post offices were closing due to the current uptake of redundancy packages, Deputy Nolan said that it was imperative that, "replacement contracts were offered to people in our communities who were interested in taking up the role."

Deputy Nolan concluded by saying, "everything must be done to ensure that our post office network is protected as our post offices offer a valuable service that we in rural Ireland cannot afford to lose. There is an onus on the government to listen to rural communities who have been ignored and neglected for too long."

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If you have a story for us, sports news, an event happening in your area, or if you want to submit pictures or videos, contact the Offaly Express team via email to justin.kelly@iconicnews.ie, or through our Facebook.
Riverbed, a digital performance company, will showcase platforms for digital experience management and next-generation infrastructure at the upcoming Gitex, a major technology show in Dubai, UAE.



Under the theme Maximize Digital Performance:#RETHINKPOSSIBLE, Riverbed will highlight its products Riverbed SteelCentral, the market-leading digital experience visibility solution for end-to-end network, application and end-user experience monitoring.



In the digital era, digital performance is business performance, explained Elie Dib, regional vice president, Middle East, Turkey and North Africa (METNA) at Riverbed.



Riverbed has evolved its portfolio significantly in recent years with solutions that help organizations maximize digital performance across every aspect of their business, allowing them to fundamentally Rethink Possible. By experiencing first-hand the breath of our portfolio of solutions at GITEX, attendees will understand why we are a necessary catalyst in the implementation and successful adoption of major technology trends including cloud, artificial intelligence, mobility and analytics.



Riverbeds unified and integrated Digital Performance Platform, brings together a powerful combination of Digital Experience Management and Next-Generation Infrastructure  from the edge, data center to the cloud  solutions that provide a modern IT architecture for the digital enterprise, delivering new levels of operational agility and dramatically accelerating business performance and outcomes.



The Platform also includes world-class support and professional services from Riverbed. In addition, Riverbed partners with leading technology companies such as Microsoft, AWS, Zscaler, Palo Alto Networks, and ServiceNow, which drives integration and further value for customers.



Participating at GITEX for a number of years, Dib continues, GITEX has always been a focal point of our efforts in the region. It enables us to showcase our latest solutions, thereby initiating and extending conversations with new and existing customers, Dib said.



While we intend to strategically leverage our participation to engage with CIOs and IT decision makers, we understand the shows potential to extend engagement far beyond this. During the five days of the exhibition, we have consistently managed to build and strengthen relationships with all stakeholders, from our customers and technology alliance partners to the channel, and this year will be no different.



Gitex runs from October 14 to 18 at Dubai World trade Centre.- TradeArabia News Service








Royal Jordanian (RJ) has announced the launch of its autumn sales campaign, offering discounted ticket fares to most destinations on its route network.



From September 3 to 14, passengers can book their travel under the "Fares Youll Autumn-atically Buy promotion, for travel between October 1 and May 15, 2019, except during the holiday season (Christmas, New Year and Easter), for a maximum stay at the destination of one month.



This global promo runs in Jordan and most of RJs destinations on the route network, except Cairo, Doha, Istanbul and Copenhagen. It includes round-trip fares on Economy Class from Amman to Aqaba, at JD49 ($69); to Beirut, Larnaca and Athens, at JD169 ($238.3); to the Gulf and Iraq, at JD189 ($266.5); to North Africa at JD239 ($337); to the Far East at JD339 ($478); to Europe at JD369 ($520.4); and to RJs stations in North America at JD499 ($703.8). All prices include taxes.



Passengers flying from Amman to North America are allowed two bags, each weighing 23kg; those flying from Amman to the Far East are allowed one bag weighing 23kg. Travellers flying from Amman to the rest of RJ destinations can purchase weight allowance for one bag weighing 23kg for cheap prices.



Passengers coming from any RJ destination to Amman, or via Amman, are offered similar attractive ticket fares, which vary by destination.



RJ president/CEO Stefan Pichler said: RJ is keeping its promise to offer incredible fares. This autumn, we are glad to give our customers great value for their journeys on our international route map. - TradeArabia News Service
7th Pay Commission: Here is why basic monthly pay of CG employees will not increase

7th Pay Commission: When will the new DA hike be effective from

7th Pay Commission latest news today: Check expected DA in Jan 2019, AICPIN July 2018

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 3: In some good news relating to the 7th Pay Commission, the Central Government recently announced a 2 per cent increase in the Dearness Allowance.

The DA for Central Government employees is calculated based on the All India Consumer Price Index Numbers declared by the Labour Bureau, which falls under the Ministry of Labour and Employment in the last day of every month.

DA and Dearness Relief for existing employees and pensioners is being given twice a year ie in January to June and July to December. This year the first instalment of DA and DR from January to June 2018 has been approved by the Cabinet Committee and is a notification from the Finance Ministry is awaited.

The All India CPI-IW for July 2018 increased by 10 pointed and is pegged at 301. You can check Labour Bureau Press release-AICPIN for July 2018:

Meanwhile protests relating to the 7th Pay Commission is gaining momentum in Jammu and Kashmir. The teachers are still protesting seeking the implementation of the pay panel's recommendations.

Also Read | 7th Pay Commission, latest news today: Why the DA increase is a signal that salaries would increase

The teachers protested in Srinagar demanding the implementation of the 7th Pay Commission. They said that their struggle will continue till their demands are met. Moreover September 5, which is Teachers' Day will be observed as a black day. The protests in fact gained moment after the Union Cabinet announced a DA increase by 2 per cent for the CG employees.

The CG employees under the 7th Pay Commission will get 9 per cent DA in their salary. The DA for the CG employees has been calculated based on the basic salaries of the employees.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 9:40 [IST]
Citing mosquitoes, stray dog barks, Lalu Yadav seeks shifting to another ward in RIMS

India

oi-PTI

Ranchi, Sep 3: Jailed RJD president Lalu Prasad, currently admitted in a Ranchi hospital for medical assistance, has complained about poor hygiene, mosquito menace and barking by stray dogs and requested he be shifted to another ward, a close aide of the former chief minister said Monday.

RJD lawmaker and national general secretary Bhola Yadav told PTI that an application has been submitted to the director of the RIMS hospital, where Prasad is admitted, with the plea that he be moved to the 100-bed paying ward, which at present has only three patients.

"We have cited the reasons also for making such a request. The waste pipe of a toilet close to his ward is clogged, emitting foul smell. This imperils the health of our leader who suffers from infections," Yadav, a close confidant of the RJD chief, said.

Yadav, who has been beside the RJD supremo for most of the time since he was sent to jail in December last year, said the lack of hygiene also leads to the menace of mosquitoes which is another potential health risk, "especially in the rainy season. Besides there is also the problem of excessive noises."

"The post-mortem house is nearby which attracts a large number of stray dogs. Their barks and howls is a nuisance and cause immense discomfort to the septuagenarian," the RJD MLA said.

The MLA also said that being a diabetic, Prasad needs to go for regular walks but the location of the cardiology department ward where he is lodged is "not suitable" for that.

"We have, therefore, requested that he be shifted to the paying ward, which is newly built and comparatively more clean and tidy. We hope the authorities will not have a problem with that since we are ready to pay the room rent and other charges. We did that when Lalu ji was admitted to AIIMS earlier this year," Yadav stated.

After spending a few months out of the jail, the RJD supremo surrendered before a CBI court in Ranchi on August 30 upon the expiry of the provisional bail granted to him by the Jharkhand High Court for medical treatment.

The former Bihar Chief Minister had recently undergone a fistula operation at a Mumbai hospital. A heart patient, he is also said to be suffering from kidney ailments.

Meanwhile, the RJD supremo's expression of discomfort at the Ranchi hospital has drawn snide remarks from the ruling JD(U) in Bihar.

"Now you have begun to fear dogs and mosquitoes. The people of Bihar had feared a lot while you were in power", JD(U) MLC and spokesman Neeraj Kumar tweeted, alluding to the crime rate during the 15-year-long rule by Prasad and, subsequently, his wife Rabri Devi for which the RJD has been drawing flak over the years.

PTI

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 22:15 [IST]
Pune lockdown: Officials release new guidelines for restaurants, religious events and more

Unable to get job due to Covid-19, 24-year-old MPSC aspirant commits suicide in Pune

14-year-old minor girl abducted and raped in Pune; 8 including six auto drivers, two Railways employees held

Dabholkar murder case: CBI gets custody of Sharad Kalaskar

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

Pune, Sep 3: A special court on Monday granted the custody of arms haul accused Sharad Kalaskar to the CBI for probing his alleged role in the killing of rationalist Narendra Dabholkar.

Kalaskar was arrested last month by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) in connection with the seizure of arms and ammunition from different parts of the state.

Kalaskar and three other accused in the arms haul case Vaibhav Raut, Sudhanwa Gondhalekar and Shrikant Pangarkar were produced before Additional Sessions Judge Vinod Padalkar after their police remand ended.

The judge, responding to an application filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), allowed the agency to take the custody of Kalaskar in the Dabholkar killing case.

On Aug 29, Court had rejected the CBI's plea to hand over Kalaskar's custody to the agency, which is probing the Dabholkar murder case, from the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS).

Special Judge V S Padalkar questioned as to why the CBI had not sought the custody of Kalaskar earlier even though a production warrant was issued by the Pune court on August 23.

Also Read | Narendra Dabholkar case: 2 accused sent to CBI custody for 10 days

The ATS arrested Kalaskar on August 10 and his custody was extended till September 3 on Tuesday with the ATS submitting that he had planned to hurl a bomb at a music festival in Pune. After the hearing, however, the CBI filed an application, seeking his custody.

The CBI claimed that Andure, who is in the agency's custody till August 30, and Kalaskar were together when Dabholkar was murdered, so the two accused have to be brought face to face.

Also Read | Accused in Gauri Lankesh case conspired to kill Dabholkar too: CBI

CBI had last week claimed that the murders of Bengaluru-based journalist Gauri Lankesh and Dabholkar were linked.

Dabholkar, a Pune-based anti-superstition activist, was shot dead while he was on morning walk in August, 2013. Lankesh was shot dead in front of her residence in Bengaluru in September, 2017.
Lawyer without brief is like Tendulkar without his bat on cricket ground: SC

Declare setting up Sharia courts as illegal says Muslim woman in SC

India

oi-Madhuri

New Delhi, Sep 3: The Supreme Court has agreed to consider a fresh plea of a Muslim woman seeking to declare as unconstitutional the setting up of Sharia courts to decide marriage, divorce and other cases.

A bench comprising Chief Justice Dipak Misra and Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud asked petitioner Zikra to file an application to intervene as a party in a batch of pleas challenging the practice of polygamy and 'nikah halala' among Muslims.

The apex court, which had last year banned the age-old practice of instant 'triple talaq' among Sunni Muslims, had on March 26 decided to refer to a five-judge Constitution bench a batch of pleas challenging the constitutional validity of polygamy and 'nikah halala'.

Also Read | AIMPLB wants Sharia courts in all districts; BJP says 'this isn't Islamic Republic of India'

Polygamy allows a Muslim man to have four wives. Under 'nikah halala', a man cannot remarry his former wife unless she marries another man, consummates the marriage, gets a divorce and observes a period of separation period called 'iddat'.

Zikra, a 21-year-old resident of Uttar Pradesh and a mother of two, was represented by lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay.

She has demanded that triple talaq be declared "cruelty" under Section 498A and 'nikah halala, nikah mutah and nikah-misyar' rape under Section 375 of the Indian Penal Code.

Also Read | After losing triple talaq battle, AIMPLB looks to stay relevant through Sharia courts

"Polygamy is an offence under Section 494 of the IPC," her plea read.

Muslim personal laws of India permit the practice of nikah halala and polygamy.

In her petition, Zikra narrated her experience of facing "triple talaq, nikah halala and other laws and practices".

The woman was divorced twice and forced to undergo 'niakh halala' to remarry her husband.

"Declare that establishing a Sharia court to decide cases related to marriage, divorce, adoption, inheritance, succession and/or other similar matters is illegal and unconstitutional," Zikra said in the plea.

The Muslim Personal Law, like all other personal laws, is subject to the rigours of the fundamental rights guaranteed under the Constitution and "any part of it contravening the fundamental rights would, to that extent, is void and ineffective", she said.

"Nikah halala, nikah mutah, nikah misyar and polygamy definitely run counter to public order, morality and health," the plea read.

It said these laws must "yield to the basic right of women to live with dignity, under equal protection of laws, without any discrimination on the basis of gender or religion".

Earlier, the top court had said the petitions challenged the prevalent practices of polygamy and 'nikah halala' and they would be heard by the Constitution bench.

The Centre recently made it clear that it would oppose in the Supreme Court the practice of 'nikah halala' when the top court would examine its legal validity in the coming days.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 9:28 [IST]
Delhi blasts: Explosives procured from Udupi, bombs prepared at Batla House

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 3: The explosives used in the Delhi serial blasts of 2008 were procured from Udupi in Karnataka and the bombs were prepared at the Batla House in Delhi.

The chargesheet filed by the Delhi police also details the manner in which the explosives were prepared and the precision with which the Indian Mujahideen had planned on carrying out the attacks.

The chargesheet says that Mohammad Sajid who was an expert in synchronising the analog clock in the IED had started the process 6 days before the blasts. Meanwhile the other accused purchased a pressure cooker from Karol Bagh. The explosives were filled into the cooker and then packed in a bag along with a liquor bottle. The analog clocks were then attached with all the IEDs which acted as a timer, the chargesheet also states.

Further the police said that there was also discussion among the accused that they should abort the mission. The worried that the need would move during transportation as a result the bombs could set off. They said that they had many more missions to undertake and were not fidayeens and hence they had planned on aborting the mission.

However on September 11, one of the accused Ameen called for a meeting and asked them to take extra care while transporting the bombs. He said that caution must be exercised failing which the bomb could go off before the set time of 6.35 pm. He said that the needle could push the time ahead and hence caution needed to be exercised while transporting the bombs. He said that they also needed to ensure that none spot the IEDs and advised the rest of the operatives to stay at the spot at least for 5 to 10 minutes after planting the bombs.
Demonetisation did not slowdown economy, Raghuram Rajan's policies did: Niti Aayog VC

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

New Delhi, Sep 3: Rubbishing Congress' claims that the demonetisation slowed down the economy, Niti Aayog's Vice-Chairman Rajiv Kumar on Monday said that there is not a shred of evidence to prove that the note ban resulted in slowdown. He said slowdown post-demonetisation was a continuation of a declining trend which began after the last quarter of 2015-16.

Kumar lashed out at former finance minister P Chidambaram and former prime minister Manmohan Singh for backing the notion that demonetisation slowed down the economy.

Economy on downhill path due to adventure called demonetisation: Manmohan Singh

"This is a comletely false narrative. I am afraid that leading people like Mr. Chidambaram and our former PM added to this. If you look at the growth rate statistics then you will find that in the posst demonetisation period the growth rate came down not becasue of the demonetisation but becasue there was a declining trend for the last six quarters starting from the last quarter of 2015-16 when the growth rate was as high as 9.2%," Kumar told news agency ANI.

"Every sucessive quarter, the growth has been coming down. So this was continuation of a trend and because of the shock given by the demonetisation as has been claimed. There is no evidence to show that there has been a direct link between the demonetisation and the slowdown in the growth rate," he added.

Did demonetisation really address fake notes problem?

Chidambaram has been criticising the BJP-led Centre's demonetisation move. Last week, Chidambaram said Indian economy lost 1.5% of GDP in terms of growth because of note ban. Dr Manmohan Singh had last year said the economy was on a downhill path, thanks to an 'adventure called demonetisation'. "I don't think demonetization was at all required... I don't think it was technically, economically necessary to launch this adventure," he had said in September 2017.

The Niti Aayog Vice Chairman further reportedly said, "Growth was declining due to former RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan's policies".

Rajan had earlier said that he had made it quite clear to the government that the demonetisation was "not a good idea" and that its implementation was "not well-planned" since 87.5 per cent of the currency was being demonetised. He had said demonetisation "was not a well-planned, well thought-out, useful exercise and I told the government that when the idea was first mooted."

Raghuram Rajan stops short of calling demonetisation a failure, hails GST

On November 8, 2016, the Centre had banned Rs 500 and Rs 1,000 currency notes to curtail the shadow economy and crack down on the use of illicit and counterfeit cash to fund illegal activities and terrorism.

The Indian Economy posted a robust growth of 8.2 % in the first quarter of fiscal 2018-19. This is the highest GDP growth since the second quarter (Q2) of the financial year 2014-15 when the GDP grew at 8.4 per cent.
ECI likely to reject display time of the VVPAT but might accept auditing of 30% machines

India

oi-Vinod

By Vinod

New Delhi, Sep 3: The Election Commission of India (ECI) may reject the opposition political parties like the Congress and Aam Aadmi Party's demand to increase display time of the Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) machine from seven minuets to 15 but it might consider 30 per cent auditing of votes and VVPAT display. The Congress has gone to the court on this matter as there is a petition filed by Madhya Pradesh Congress president Kamal Nath which is pending in the court for next hearing on September 10.

Sources in the ECI said that it was not feasible as increasing display time would cause a long queue outside the polling booth. The ECI might accept the demand of auditing of VVPAT. It was demanded in the All Party meeting convened by the ECI that timing of the display should be increased from 12 to 15 minuets. Sources in the election commission said that if the display time is increased from seven minuets to 15 minuets there would be a long queue of voters outside the poling booth and voting process will be delayed. Moreover, the ECI is planning to fix a button on which it will be written see your vote after casting. The demand increasing time came from Mukul Wasnik of the Congress and Raghav Chadhdha of the AAP. They argued that voters get less time see that whom they had voted.

SC asks EC why it can't release electoral rolls in word format in poll-bound MP

An official of the election commission said that a trial of VVPAT was conducted in July 2011 in Thiruvananthapuram before representatives from common voters, national and regional political parties, civil society organisations and media. The display time in 2011 was five seconds. Sources said that after first field trials some changes were made in it on the recommendation of the committee. So in August 2012 field trials were once against started and display period was increased to 10 seconds but due to technical reasons, it was reduced to seven seconds which was finalized by the technical experts on February 19, 2013. So in September 2013, VVPAT was used in the Assembly elections of Nagaland for the first time and its result was satisfactory.

Now the election commission is planning to install a cover over the paper sensor so no direct light is thrown over the censor. Old VVPAT machine too will have these covers. During the last several by-elections complains were registered in VVPAT. It was found in the investigation technical problem was noticed in the machine where they were exposed to Sun light.

Constitutional amendment a must for 'One Nation, One Poll', law panel to tell govt

The ECI might accept the demand of auditing of 30 per cent VVPAT slip with the EVM machine votes. Sources said that thhe ECI was looking at the scientific solution to the counting of VVPAT slip and votes for which it will not only take help of technical experts but Indian Statistical Institute. Sources further said that the decision will be taken after consultation that in how many constituencies the auditing will be done. At the moment it gets auditing done for just 10 per cent of VVPAT.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 13:24 [IST]
Dubai Civil Aviation Authority has announced its support for this year's HeliShow, taking place in November, as part of efforts to strengthen cooperation with the aviation industry leaders and enhance security, safety, and sustainability.

Held under the patronage of HH Sheikh Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai, the Royal Pavilion at Al Maktoum International Airport in Dubai South will be hosting the Dubai HeliShow in November.



The international aircraft technology and operation exhibition, which takes place every two years, provides an ideal platform to identify the emerging trends and to learn about the latest technological innovations related to commercial helicopters and in areas of civil defence.



Mohammed Abdulla Ahli, director general - Dubai Civil Aviation Authority and chief executive officer, Dubai Navigation Services, emphasised that supporting the Dubai HeliShow reflects the authority's keenness to strengthen the fruitful cooperation frameworks with the aviation industry stakeholders, in the interest of achieving security and sustainability, regionally and globally.



He highlighted the importance of joint efforts in promoting the growth and prosperity of the helicopter industry regionally and globally, with an emphasis on employment opportunities, keeping pace with the Middle East's high demand for commercial helicopters.



Ahli added: Out of our commitment to contribute to the development of the civil aviation sector as a main constituent of sustainable development, we call on all stakeholders involved in the helicopter industry to participate in the upcoming event to showcase their products, services and technologies in the Middle East, which has the highest utilization rate for medium and large-scale fleets, confirming its potential as a promising market."



Ahmad Abulhoul, managing director, Domus Group, organisers of Dubai HeliShow, said: The exhibition is very significant as it is a strategic platform that attracts the elite of decision and policy makers, senior government officials and representatives of the most prominent security authorities and entities in the region and the world. They all will come to review the latest and international technologies and practices in the helicopters sector, which is crucial to various fields such as tourism, oil industry, medical emergency services, law enforcement authorities, transport and others.



The 2018 edition of the event will feature two exclusive conferences"  Helicopter Technology and Operations Conference" and the "Military and Homeland Security Conference". These two conferences aim to highlight important topics such as how to empower police forces with Internet of Things (IoT) tools; the role of women in homeland security; application of robotics in security and helicopters; tackling new patterns in narco-terrorism by integrating intelligence, forensics and response operations; best practices to boost joint inter-agency cooperation between armed forces and homeland security agencies among many others.



The Show will focus on the role of women, who play an important role in various development sectors, in national security, highlighting their active contributions in this field, in addition to the use of robots in the operations of security and public order and helicopters. We are keen to host the exhibition every year, establishing its key role in driving the growth of the global market for helicopters and enhancing competitiveness among the various security and safety agencies," he added.



The Dubai HeliShow 2018 will focus on a number of topics, including the development of aircraft repair and maintenance centres in the region, as well as improved operational efficiencies in command and control, smart computing, surveillance, recovery and e-defense capabilities. It will also discuss the best ways to have a comprehensive internal security program and deployment of ground-based take-off and landing systems technology, as well as the development of multi-mission helicopters for joint search and rescue operations and the establishment of an integrated helicopter infrastructure in line with the requirements of the approaching Expo 2020 in Dubai.



Aside from Dubai Civil Aviation Authority, the exhibition is also supported by a number of key government entities notably the Ministry of Defence, UAE Airforce, Dubai Airports, Dubai Police, and Dubai South. The event will provide a unique opportunity to explore a wide range of businesses and to forge promising partnerships with leading international carriers. - TradeArabia News Service
Elgar Parishad case: Bombay HC adjourns hearing on petition seeking NIA probe to Sep 7

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

Mumbai, Sep 3: The Bombay High Court on Monday adjourned the petition demanding a NIA inquiry into the Elgar Parishad matter for September 7. The matter was adjourned because the copies of the petition were not served to all concerned persons, said reports.

The bench was hearing a petition filed on Friday by one Satish Gaikwad, who claims to be a victim of the Koregaon Bhima violence. He sought a probe by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in the case. Gaikwad urged the high court to restrain the Pune police from further probing the case, and stay the investigation.

Gaikwad in his petition also alleged that the Pune police were investigating the case unfairly and with malafide intentions, reported PTI.

Bhima Koregaon: Pune police gets 90-days' extension to file chargesheet

The HC also pulled up Maharashtra police for holding a media briefing in connection with the case when the matter was sub-judice.

State Additional Director General (Law and Order) Parambir Singh along with the Pune police had addressed the media on the case on Friday (August 31). During the press conference, Singh had read out letters purportedly exchanged between the activists. He had claimed that the police had "conclusive proof" to link Left-wing activists arrested in June and last week to Maoists.

A division bench of Justices S S Shinde and Mridula Bhatkar questioned how the police could read out such documents which may be used as evidence in the case.

Pune police operation to arrest Varavara Rao 'illegal', alleges family

Meanwhile, a Pune court has granted the city police 90 days' extension to file its chargesheet against the arrest of five activists in connection with the the Bhima Koregaon violence. The police had filed an application on Saturday seeking such an extension.

The accused - Sudhir Dhawale, Surendra Gadling, Mahesh Raut, Shoma Sen and Rona Wilson - were produced before the court on Sunday. Police had arrested the five accused in June while probing the alleged Maoist connection to the Elgar Parishad conclave held in Pune on December 31 last year.

OneIndia News with PTI inputs

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 15:19 [IST]
How an Arabic to Malayalam book on Jihad led to Islamic fanaticism in Kerala

Dalit man in Kerala beaten up by wife's brother allegedly for not converting to Christianity

Hanan Hamid, girl trolled for selling fish, injured in accident

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Thrissur, Sep 3: Hanan Hamid, the Kerala college girl who shot to fame after selling fish in her uniform in a busy market in Kochi, suffered serious injuries in an accident.

According to News 18 reports, the car she was travelling in rammed into an electric pole at Kodungallur in Thrissur on Monday. She was later referred to the Medical Trust Hospital in Ernakulam where she is undergoing treatment. She was reportedly on her way back from Vadakara in Kozhikode district after inaugurating a shop.

Kerala floods: Hanan Hamid, trolled for selling fish, donates Rs. 1.5 lakh

Hanan, student of Chemistry in Idukki, came into the limelight after she was spotted selling fish in her college uniform by reporters from Mathrubhumi, following which a story on her was featured on the paper. The 21-yar-old girl subjected to fierce trolling after a few netizens suspected that she had put up an act for the promotion of an upcoming movie starring her.

The story showed Hanan in her college uniform and a plastic cap, selling fish in the Palarivattom-Thammanam junction in Kochi. The news did the rounds on social media and Hanan went viral.

Kerala: Trolled Hanan Hamid walks the ramp for Khadi

Recently, Hanan has donated Rs 1.5 lakh to Kerala flood relief fund. Also, she walked the ramp at Onam Bakrid Khadi Expo in Thiruvananthapuram in August. Hanan surprised everyone with her never-seen avatar in the fashion show.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 15:53 [IST]
'I will shoot you': BJP MLA's son threatens Jyotiraditya Scindia

India

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

Bhopal, Sep 3: BJP legislator Uma Devi Khatik's son Princedeep Lalchand Khatik has threatened to shoot Congress MP Jyotiraditya Scindia.

Lalchand Khatik wrote in a Facebook post: "Jyotiraditya Scindia, you have Jiwajirao's blood running in your veins, who killed Jhansi ki Rani. If you step in Hatta then I will shoot you. Either you will die or I will."

His statement comes ahead of Scindia's scheduled visit to Hatta district to hold a rally on September 5.

Meanwhile, Scindia slammed the BJP and Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan after one of the ruling party MLA's son threatened to shoot him.

"The mentality of the BJP leaders and real face of the party have been exposed with this threat," Scindia told ANI. He further said, "The main objective of the party and Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chauhan is to demolish Congress at any cost."

Making it clear that such a threat will never throw him or his family into a panic, Scindia stated, "I would like to tell them that the Scindia scion never bowed down to such threats and will never do that as well."
S-400 missile deal: Will India be granted waiver from CAATSA?

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

New Delhi, Sep 3: Despite threat of sanctions by the United States, India is likely to go ahead with the purchase of S-400 Triumf air defence missile systems from Russia. New Delhi is likely to convey this to Washington during the much-awaited 2+2 dialogue on strategic affairs between the US and India, set to be held on on September 6.

The US has imposed military sanctions against Russia under stringent CAATSA (Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act). This also extends to countries that engage with Russia in defence matters. US' stand effectively means that any country that engages in defence or intelligence sharing with Russia could also be subject to sanctions.

Also Read | India set to acquire S-400 missile system from Russia: What makes it better than US made Patriot?

On June 5, Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman had said the negotiations between India and Russia to finalise the deal was in the concluding stage and will not be affected by CAATSA which is aimed at Washington's three foes of Russia, Iran and North Korea.

On one hand India wants these missiles to strenghthen defence capabilities, but at the same time does not want to sour relations with the US. India would hope that the Trump administration grants exemption to India under CAATSA. The waiver that India may seek will not be an easy decision for the Trump administration to make because of certain sections in the CAATSA legislation.

Also Read | India-Russia S-400 missile deal to go ahead irrespective of US threat

Section 231 the CAATSA legislation requires that the president impose sanctions on any entity that "engages in a significant transaction with the defence or intelligence sectors of the Government of the Russian Federation".

With the value of the deal being almost Rs 40,000 crore, it definately falls under 'significant transaction' mentioned in CAATSA.

Good news for India is that some sections in the Trump administration want the waiver to be granted to India. Reports say that Secretary of Defence James Mattis is a strong proponent of granting waivers to India.

Also, Section 1294 of the John S. McCain National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) provides for the president to exercise the waiver authority established in CAATSA if he can certify that the waiver is fundamentally in US national security interests, some reports say.

A PTI report, while quoting sources, states that India will push for a waiver from the US for the missile deal with Russia, as the air defence system was critical for its security preparedness.

There is also another aspect to this entire deal, and that is US made MIM-104 Patriot which is comparable to S-400 missile system. MIM-104 Patriot is losing market to the Russian weapon system across the globe.

All you need to know about S-400:

The S-400 Triumf is an anti-aircraft weapon system developed in the 1990s by Russia's Almaz Central Design Bureau as an upgrade of the S-300 family. It has been in service with the Russian Armed Forces since 2007. The S-400 uses four missiles to fill its performance envelope: the very-long-range 40N6 (400 km), the long-range 48N6 (250 km), the medium-range 9M96E2 (120 km) and the short-range 9M96E (40 km). The S-400 was described by The Economist in 2017 as "one of the best air-defence systems currently made."

Also Read | Russia, India to ink deal on S-400 air defence missile systems

Development of the S-400 system began in the late 1980s, and the system was announced by the Russian Air Force in January 1993. On 12 February 1999 the first, reportedly-successful tests were performed at Kapustin Yar in Astrakhan, and the S-400 was scheduled for deployment by the Russian army in 2001.

In 2003, it became apparent that the system was not ready for deployment. In August, two high-ranking military officials expressed concern that the S-400 was being tested with "obsolete" interceptors from the S-300P system and concluded that it was not ready for deployment. Completion of the project was announced in February 2004, and in April a ballistic missile was successfully intercepted in a test of the upgraded 48N6DM missile. In 2007, the system was approved for service.
For more effective probes against terror State Investigation Agency formed in J&K

The inside rot: How govt employees are abetting terror in Jammu and Kashmir

J&K: Massive security operation underway in Pulwama district

India

oi-Madhuri

Srinagar, Sep 3: Cordon and search operation by Army, police, and Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) underway in several villages of Pulwama district, Jammu and Kashmir on Monday.

Security forces commenced a massive search operation in around two dozen villages of Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district on Monday.

The operation began following reports regarding the presence of terrorists in the villages of Putrigam, Rohmu, Rajpora, Matrigam, Goosu, Frasipora and others.

Also Read | J&K: As new hit-list is prepared, Army looks to clean them up by October

This is not the first such operation in the south Kashmir area undertaken by the security forces.

Earlier on Sunday, an encounter between security forces and terrorists was also launched in Laddi in Jammu and Kashmir's Shopian district. Security forces launched a cordon and search operation after a brief exchange of fire. The security forces had received inputs about the presence of terrorists in the area.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 12:43 [IST]
Karnataka to get 7 new ministers, 30 MLAs to be named to top corporations, boards

India

oi-PTI

Bengaluru, Sep 3: Karnataka is likely to get seven new ministers, while 30 legislators of the Congress and the JD (S) will be adjusted as chairmen of top corporations and boards in the state, according to party leaders.

The Karnataka state cabinet will be expanded by the third week of September to its full strength of 34, with the addition of seven new ministers, JDS Secretary general Danish Ali said.

While there will be six new faces from the Congress in the cabinet, one of the JDS legislators will also get a ministerial berth.

Besides, 30 new legislators, including 10 from the JDS, would be adjusted as chairmen of key boards and corporations in the state, Ali, who is also the convener of the coordination committee, told PTI.

The Karnataka cabinet currently has a strength of 27, including 11 from the JDS and 16 from Congress.

Sources said that after completion of 100 days of the government, resentment was brewing among the legislators over ministerial berths and other key posts in the state that are still vacant.

There has been talk of cabinet expansion for many days but the issue was resolved after a meeting of Chief Minister H D Kumaraswamy with Congress chief Rahul Gandhi last week.

The cabinet expansion and naming of the chairmen of boards and corporations will take place simultaneously in the third week of September, Siddaramaiah has said after the coordination committee's third meeting since the formation of the coalition government.

The delay has fuelled dissent among senior leaders of both the Congress and the Janata Dal (Secular), who failed to get a ministerial berth earlier.

This will be the first cabinet expansion of the coalition state government.

The vacancies in other boards and corporations would be filled later, Ali said. There are a total of 94 boards and corporations in the state.

Meanwhile, the sources also said that three leaders would be nominated to the legislative council, after vacancies had arisen as some members were elected to the state assembly.

Besides, a nomination of an Anglo-Indian member is also to be made in the state legislative council.

The sources said the Congress is likely to bag two of the three nominations to the legislative council.

PTI

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 20:48 [IST]
Puneeth Rajkumars last rites to take place tomorrow: Many yet to pay last respects says CM Bommai

12 hours before death, Puneeth Rajkumar had great time with celebs at Gurukirans birthday party [Viral video]

Last rites of actor Puneeth Rajkumar held with full state honours at Kanteerava studio in Bengaluru

Final goodbye to 'Appu': Family bid tearful farewell; Puneeth Rajkumar laid to rest beside his father's grave

Gone too soon: From Puneeth Rajkumar to Sidharth Shukla, untimely deaths leave family and fans stunned

Karnataka urban local body election results: 10 injured in acid attack at Congress rally

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Bengaluru, Sep 3: Around 10 people were injured in an acid attack at Congress celebration rally in Karnataka's Tumkur on Monday. The injured people have been admitted to a nearby hospital.

The incident occurred during Congress candidate Inayatullah Khan's victory procession in Tumkur. The Congress candidate won from ward no 16. The motive behind the attack is not yet known.

Karnataka urban local body election results: Only Independents won in this municipal council

The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has emerged as the single largest party in the Municipal Corporation. The BJP has won 12 wards, Congress -10 and JD(S)- 10 out of 35 wards in Tumkur city.

[Also Read: Karnataka urban local body election results: Congress wins 967, BJP 917 seats]

The Municipal Corporation of Tumkur went to the polls on August 31, 2018 and the election results are being declared on September 3, 2018.

More details are awaited.
Karnataka urban local body election results: Congress wins 982, BJP 929 seats

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Bengaluru, Sep 3: Congress has won 982 seats, BJP 929 and JD(S) 375 seats and 329 seats went to independent candidates out of 2664 seats in 102 urban local bodies where polls took place on August 31.

Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has won 13 seats. Results have been declared on 2662 seats.

Though ruling Congress and JD(S) are contesting the Urban Local Bodies elections separately, they said that they will opt for an alliance only at places where results are hung.

Congress leaders were in jubilant as the party gained an edge over the BJP. Randeep Singh Surjewala said, " People of Karnataka have once again reposed their faith in Congress by making it the No.1 party in Urban Local Bodies. People have accepted development policies of Congress+JDS Govt & have rejected Jumlas of BJP."

Blaming the Congress-JD(S) coalition, BJP state unit President BS Yeddyurappa said, "The BJP should have won more seats but we could not perform the way we wanted to because of the Congress-JD-S coalition." The party, however, is confident of winning a majority in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, he said.

"People's mandate is with the BJP and we are confident of a majority in the next year's general election," he added.

Karnataka: Congress-JDS coalition completes 100 days, HDK meets Rahul Gandhi

The voting was held in 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities and 23 town panchayats and in 135 wards of the three city corporations.

Sl. No. District Name Total Seats Declared Seats BJP INC JD(S) BSP NCP CPI CPI

(M) Ind Oth 1 BAGALAKOTE 312 312 161 122 10 0 0 0 0 19 0 2 BALLARI 39 39 16 20 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 3 BELAGAVI 343 343 104 85 10 0 0 0 0 144 0 4 BIDAR 23 23 5 14 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 5 C' RAJANAGAR 62 61 21 19 0 10 0 0 0 5 6 6 CHITRADURGA 89 89 35 25 16 0 0 0 0 13 0 7 D KANNDA 89 89 42 30 4 0 0 0 0 2 11 8 DAVANAGERE 59 59 31 19 5 0 0 0 0 3 1 9 GADAG 123 123 54 57 2 0 0 0 0 10 0 10 HASSAN 135 135 20 15 91 0 0 0 0 9 0 11 HAVERI 136 136 43 66 3 0 0 0 0 14 10 12 KALABURAGI 168 168 63 90 6 1 0 0 0 8 0 13 KODAGU 45 - - - - - - 14 KOPPAL 104 104 43 47 4 0 0 0 0 10 0 15 MANDYA 117 117 4 35 64 0 0 0 0 13 1 16 MYSURU 134 134 27 48 43 2 0 0 0 14 0 17 RAICHUR 175 175 23 90 40 0 0 0 0 17 5 18 SHIVAMOGGA 35 35 20 7 2 0 0 0 0 6 0 19 TUMKURU 115 115 24 32 51 0 0 0 0 8 0 20 UDUPI 97 97 66 28 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 21 U KANNADA 200 200 85 87 8 0 0 0 0 20 0 22 VIJAYAPURA 23 23 8 8 2 0 0 0 0 5 0 23 YADGIR 85 85 34 38 11 0 0 0 0 2 0 Totals : 2709 2662 929 982 375 13 0 0 0 329 34
Businessman in Kolkata shot at after his car was stopped by 18 men

West Bengal Class 10, 12 exams to be held in offline mode in March, April

Kolkata: Not newborn skeletons, medical waste found at empty plot say doctors

India

oi-Madhuri

Kolkata, Sep 3: The packets found at a Kolkata locality contained medical waste and not decomposed remains of 14 babies and foetuses' as alleged, the doctors who examined them said.

There was panic in the city after it was alleged that workers had found 14 remains of newborns. Kolkata mayor Sovan Chatterjee, who visited the spot, had said that the 14 bodies, wrapped separately in plastic, were in two bags.

Kolkata: Skeletons of 14 babies found wrapped in plastic bags

Suspecting illegal abortion ring, Kolkata police commissioner Rajeev Kumar rushed to the spot.

By Sunday evening, doctors informed the police that the packets contained no human tissue.

West Bengal: 3-year-old shot at amid Panchayat politics

"Doctors who opened the packets found no human tissue. They found dry ice. Examination is on to determine the exact nature of the material," said Nilanjan Biswas, deputy commissioner of Kolkata police's South-West Division.
Amit Shah kicks off poll campaign in Uttarakhand, accuses Congress of doing appeasement politics

Sardar Patel gave message to world that no one can destroy India's unity and integrity: Amit Shah

Local poll results in Karnataka show people's continued support for BJP: Amit Shah

India

oi-PTI

New Delhi, Sep 3: BJP president Amit Shah on Monday thanked voters in Karnataka for their "continued support" for the party after results of the local body elections were announced and claimed that the outcome highlighted people's dissatisfaction against the "unholy alliance" between the Janata Dal (Secular) and the Congress.

Taking a dig at the alliance, he dubbed it opportunistic and said it would not come in the way of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) working for the betterment of the state.

"I heartily thank our sisters and brothers of Karnataka for their trust and continued support for the BJP. I want to assure the people of Karnataka that this opportunistic alliance in state won't come in the way of PM @narendramodi and BJP working for the betterment of the state," Shah tweeted.

He termed his party's performance as "stupendous".

"Overwhelming support for BJP and decline in Congress & JDS seats reflects the dissatisfaction among people of Karnataka against this unholy alliance," he said.

PTI

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 23:24 [IST]
Jocelyn Ong has been appointed as director of finance for Hyatt Regency Dubai & Galleria, situated in the heritage heart of the city.



In this role, Ong is responsible for overseeing all finance related activities at the property which include budgeting, forecasting, account reconciliation, auditing as well as profit and loss reporting.



Prior to this appointment, Ong was the resident director of finance at Hyatt Regency Dubai & Galleria.



After completing her Bachelor of Science in Accounting from Central Luzon State University, Munoz, Philippines in 2002, Ong joined Hyatt hotels as a guest services officer at Hyatt Regency Dubai & Galleria. She was transferred in 2006 as a credit clerk in the Finance Department of the hotel. Since then she has gained valuable experience and gradually progressed through various roles until her recent promotion. - TradeArabia News Service
Madras HC prohibits protests at Chennai's Marina Beach

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Chennai, Sep 3: The Madras High Court on Monday upheld Tamil Nadu government's decision to prohibit holding protests at Chennai's Marina Beach. The Court observed that the beach can't be used for agitations as public order is equally important.

According to The Hindu, The Madras High Court had reserved its verdict on a writ appeal preferred by the State, challenging a single judge's April 28 order granting permission to P. Ayyakannu, leader of a farmers' association, to sit on a fast on the Marina beach here to highlight the plight of the farmers in the State.

Faculty cannot pursue full time course while teaching says HC

Advocate Muthukrishnan, who represented Ayyakannu, contended that no law of the land imposes a ban on holding protests on the Marina beach, and therefore, the police could not impose such a ban through administrative orders.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 12:17 [IST]
Special court grants Vijay Mallya three weeks to reply to ED's notice

India

oi-Chennabasaveshwar

By Chennabasaveshwar

Mumbai, Sep 3: A Special Court on Monday (September 3) granted Vijay Mallya's lawyer three weeks to file reply to Enforcement Directorate's notice. Mallya's counsel should file reply by September 24, after which the court will decide the course of hearing.

Liquor baron Vijay Mallya's lawyer earlier today sought time to file his reply on Enforcement Directorate's notice, even as the ED's counsel argued that no more time can be given.

Mallya's lawyer contended that he had not recieved some of the notices despite him having shared his Mauritius address with the ED, reported ANI.

ED lawyer argued that, as per law, no more time can be given to Mallya to respond on the application, adding that even the Court is powerless to give time beyond one week as mandated by Fugitive Offenders law.

Also Read | Mallya's date before special court under new fugitive law today

ED had earlier moved the court to get Mallya declared a fugitive economic offender under the new law. The court, had on June 30, had issued notice to Vijay Mallya to appear before it on August 27 after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) charged the liquor baron under the new law as it enlarged its money laundering probe against him and others in a RS 9,000 alleged bank fraud case.

The central probe agency has also sought immediate confiscation of assets worth about Rs 12,500 crore of Mallya as part of this latest action.

Also Read | To safeguard assets, Mallya plans return to India

Mallya, however, did not appear on August 27 and reportedly authorised legal representative to submit a reply to the court of special PMLA judge M S Azmi as part of his official response to the notice.

According to reports, the agency charged in its application that Mallya "had no intention to repay the loans from the start and though he and Ms UBHL (United Breweries Holdings Limited) had substantial assets that were sufficient to repay the loans, they intentionally withheld the details from the banks."

It alleged that a "criminal conspiracy was hatched from inception" by Mallya and his firms to obtain loans in "gross violation" of established procedures.

"The investigation under PMLA also revealed several instances of diversion of funds at the behest and for the benefit of Mallya through Ms Kingfisher Airlines," it had said.

Also Read | Western-style toilet, LCD television, 3 fans at Cell number 12 for Vijay Mallya

The agency said it has attached assets worth over Rs8,040 crore of Mallya and others under the PMLA in the past.

A fugitive economic offender is a person against whom an arrest warrant has been issued in respect of a scheduled offence and who has left India so as to avoid criminal prosecution, or being abroad, refuses to return to India to face criminal prosecution," the government had said, as per a PTI report.
How do naxals procure sophisticated weapons: It was the LTTE which aided them

Naxals contemplating joint strikes, getting China-Pak support says this guidebook

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

New Delhi, Sep 3: The naxalites are contemplating carrying out joint strikes along with terrors groups active in the northeastern states. There is a conspiracy to change the demography of the country and this has been going on for long says a training guidebook of the BJP meant to orient its workers and office bearers.

Further it also lashes out at the previous Congress governments for pursuing economic policies that deprived the villagers and gave birth to naxalites. These naxalites are now enjoying the regular support of Pakistan and China the guidebook says.

Is the uproar around urban naxals linked to squeeze on Church funding to India?

The guidebook also identifies "forced conversion" as an internal challenge.

It claims that a conspiracy to change the demography of the country has been going on for several years in the guise of"jihadi" and "masihi", an apparent reference to proselytizing works of some Christian groups, activities backed by money and muscle power.

PM Modi assassination plot: Urban naxal-NE terror groups under radar

Claiming that some external agencies are also involved in forced conversion, the manual says, "The speed of conversion has been so high in some states that it has completely changed their demography. People in such states are extremely agitated over it and that anger may prove to be explosive."

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 12:25 [IST]
Diwali 2021: How to perform Lakshmi puja at home, puja samagri, vidhi and shubh muhurat

Suspected cow smugglers open fire at cops

India

oi-Madhuri

New Delhi, Sep 3: Two suspected cow smugglers allegedly opened fire at a PCR van which was following them in north Delhi's Timarpur area, the police said on Sunday.

The incident took place on the intervening night of September 1 and 2, Deputy Commissioner of Police (north) Nupur Prasad said.

The unidentified duo fired two gunshots at the policemen and fled from the spot leaving behind a tempo carrying two cows, she said, adding that the policemen were not injured.

Also Read | To deal with cow smugglers, this BJP MLA proposes a new methodology

The vehicle, which has a registration number of Rajasthan, has been seized and the cows have been sent to a cow shelter, the DCP said.

A case has been registered. Based on the registration number, efforts are underway to trace the owner of the vehicle and the accused, she said.

Also Read | No slaughterhouses in Uttarakhand says CM

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 9:13 [IST]
Teachers Day 2018: Significance and why it is celebrated

India

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

New Delhi, Sep 3: Teachers play a vital role not only in the development of an individual but also of the society as a whole. It is the knowledge and values imparted by the teachers that ultimately shape an individual's personality. Teachers shape the mind of children which in turn helps them become responsible citizens.

Teachers' Days are special days intended to recognise and appreciate teachers. The universally accepted World Teacher's Day is 5th October. In India, the Teacher's Day is celebrated on 5th September and this tradition started in 1962.

Significance of Teachers' Day

Teacher's Day is marked in honour of Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, who was born on September 5, 1888. Dr Radhakrishnan was India's first vice president and second president. He was a great scholar, philosopher and Bharat Ratna recipient. The day is celebrated in honour of Dr Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, known for his contribution to the Indian education system.

In 1962, when he became the President, his students and friends were keen to celebrate his birthday. To which he replied, "Instead of celebrating my birthday, it would be my proud privilege if September 5th is observed as Teachers' Day." The first Teachers Day was celebrated on September 5, 1962. Since then his birthday is observed as Teachers Day.

Dr Radhakrishnan was a celebrated academic. He taught at Chennai's Presidency College and Calcutta University. He served as Vice-Chancellor of Andhra University from 1931 to 1936. In 1936, Dr Radhakrishnan was invited to fill the Chair of Spalding Professor of Eastern Religions and Ethics at Oxford which he retained for 16 years.

How is it celebrated?

On Teacher's Day, students across the nation honour the teachers and gurus in their lives. Often, special programmes are held in schools and colleges honouring educators and the important - and often, thankless - work they do daily. Social media platforms are flooded with tributes to teachers. On Twitter, many remember their teachers using the hashtag #TeachersDay. Many others offer their teachers greeting cards and hand-made presents as well.

On Teacher's day, students across India dress up as their teachers and take lectures in classes that are assigned to the teachers they represent. Sometimes, teachers sit in their classes as students, trying to relive the time when they themselves were students.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 5:00 [IST]
Wanted to silence Hindu leaders, 5 arrested in Coimbatore tell cops

India

oi-Vicky Nanjappa

Chennai, Sep 3: The police busted a major plot to kill Hindu leaders in Coimbatore. The Special Investigation Unit of the Coimbatore police arrested five persons in connection with the case. During questioning the accused persons said that they planned on eliminating Arjun Sampath of the Hindu Makkal Katchi and Mookambika Mani of the Hindu Munnani.

As per the modus operandi, a group of four had landed in Coimbatore to kill the leaders. The fifth person had received them, the police said.

During the questioning, the accused said that the elimination was planned to silence the voice of these leaders. The police had concerted intelligence on these persons. In fact they had claimed that they were in Coimbatore to attend a marriage.

Also Read | NIA probes ISI link to killing of Hindu leaders in Punjab

Police sources tell OneIndia that this is part of a larger conspiracy. There have been attempts to eliminate Hindu leaders in Coimbatore. Active groups are taking part in this conspiracy, the police also said.

All the five persons have been booked under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. Further investigation into the matter is still on.
India defies US sanctions pressure; allows state refiners to use Iran tankers

International

oi-Deepika

By Deepika

New Delhi, Sep 3: India is allowing state refiners to import Iranian oil with Tehran arranging tankers and insurance after firms including the country's top hipper Shipping Corp of India (SCI) halted voyages to Iran due to US sanctions, reports said.

The attempt to keep Iranian oil flowing mirrors a step by China, where buyers are shifting nearly all their Iranian oil imports to vessels owned by National Iranian Tanker Co (NITC), reported news agency Reuters quoting sources.

The moves by the two top buyers of Iranian crude indicate that the Islamic Republic may not be fully cut off from global oil markets from November, when US sanctions against Tehran's petroleum sector are due to start, it said.

US President Donald Trump this month exited from the Iran nuclear deal and sought the reimposition of economic sanctions against Tehran that were suspended under a 2015 agreement.

No one trading with Iran will do business with America, he said.

The Trump administration has also threatened to impose 'secondary sanctions' on the countries which will not follow its diktat on oil import embargo. The secondary sanction could be in various forms but the most throbbing would be being blocked from American financial System which no country could afford.

India is the second largest buyer of petroleum from Iran after China, and Iran is the third largest supplier to India after Saudi Arabia and Iraq.

New Delhi was not happy with the Trump administration's decision pull out of the Iran nuclear deal last month and its announcement that sanctions will be back in force in two tranches by November 4.

Sushma Swaraj, External affairs minister had said that "India follows only UN sanctions and not unilateral sanctions by any country" days after President Donald Trump pulled out of the Iran deal.

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Story first published: Tuesday, September 4, 2018, 0:53 [IST]
'Deeply regret': Theresa May fails to apologise again for Jallianwala Bagh

Amid Brexit backlash, Theresa May steps down, to resign on June 7

Want closer ties with India says UKs frontrunner for PM

In final interview as PM, May speaks of Brexit formation

No second Brexit vote says UK Prime Minister

International

oi-Madhuri

London, Sep 3: Britain's prime minister has again spoken out against calls for a second referendum on Britain's decision to split with the European Union.

Theresa May wrote in the Sunday Telegraph that it would be a "gross betrayal of our democracy" to have another vote.

Brexit: Cornered Theresa May looks to North-east England to mobilise support for Chequers plan

She said "millions came out to have their say" in the June 2016 vote that set Brexit in motion.

Her embattled government has faced increasingly strident calls for another vote once the terms of Britain's future relations with the EU are known.

May just about survives pro-EU Tories' rebellion; threatens with poll

The prime minister used the column to defend her "Chequers proposal" that would maintain some ties with the EU, and said she won't be pushed around by EU negotiators.

Britain is expected to leave the EU in March and enter a transition phase.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 6:45 [IST]
Pakistan set to elect new President; Arif Alvi leads the race

International

pti-PTI

Islamabad, Sep 3: Pakistani lawmakers are set to choose a new President on Tuesday, an election in which the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf party's candidate Arif Alvi is expected to win as the Opposition parties failed to field a joint candidate.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday (Sep 3) completed preparations for the election. Polling stations have been set up in all four provincial assemblies in addition to the National Assembly. Chief Election Commissioner Sardar Raza Khan will serve as the Returning Officer. Outgoing President Mamnoon Hussain's tenure ends on September 8. He had declined for re-election to a second 5-year term.

Apart from Alvi, the Pakistan Peoples Party's Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan and Jamiat-e-Ulema (F) chief Maulana Fazal-ur-Rehman are also in the race. Alvi is a Karachi-based dentist-turned-politician, who reportedly stood by prime minister Imran Khan during his political career. The joint Opposition was to field a single candidate to give tough time to Alvi and but failed to do so. The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) last month nominated renowned lawyer and veteran politician Ahsan as a candidate. Other opposition parties including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Muttahida Majlis-e-Aml (MMA) opposed the move. As the differences persisted, they nominated Rehman.

The Opposition parties excluding the PPP met in Lahore to discuss the presidential elections. Rehman sought the support of PML-N to convince PPP to withdraw its nominee. He asked the PPP to withdraw its candidate and avoid damaging the joint Opposition. PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira said that the division in the ranks of the Opposition will only benefit the ruling party. He also hinted that the PPP could meet incarcerated former premier leader Nawaz Sharif to get his party's support for Ahsan.

The PML-N has opposed the candidature of Ahsan as he had used harsh language against Sharif. Since the PTI controls the National Assembly and has majority in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab and has support of the ruling Party in Balochistan, its candidate Alvi is in strong position. But the Opposition parties are in majority in Senate. A joint opposition candidate can change the whole game, if he gets the support of some PTI back-benchers or disgruntled lawmakers. At least two PTI lawmakers have recently criticised its leadership for neglecting them.

Being the highest elected official, president is a symbol of the federation in Pakistan but exercises powers on the recommendations of the prime minister. The president of Pakistan is elected in a secret ballot by the provincial and national assemblies. There are total 706 assembly members who will elect the president. The ruling party has the highest number of party votes in the electoral college for elections to the office of the president scheduled for September 4.

PTI is now the only party with members in all the elected houses. It has a total of 251 votes of its party members in the 706-vote-strong electoral college and its tally goes up to 314 if the votes of members of its allied parties - the Balochistan Awami Party, Grand Democratic Alliance, Pakistan Muslim League, Awami Muslim League, Balochistan National Party, BNP-Awami and Jamhoori Watan Party - are also counted.

On the other hand, the joint tally of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and the PPP comes to 260 and if votes of the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal, Awami National Party, Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party and National Party are added, it climbs to 321. The MQM had voted for the PTI candidate in the election of prime minister. Of the independent votes, 15 senators had defeated the PML-N candidate in the election of Senate chairman. It is likely that most of these 42 votes will go in favour of Alvi, making him unbeatable.

PTI
Why military coup in Myanmar is more consequential for india & free open secure Indo-Pacific

Our views not reflected in draft: India abstains from voting on UNGA resolution on Myanmar

UN calls for urgent action as Myanmar may spiral into a catastrophe

Myanmar sentences 2 Reuters reports to 7 years in jail

International

oi-Vikas

By Vikas

Naypyidaw, Sep 3: A Myanmar Court on Monday sentenced two Reuters journalists, who had allegedly violated a state secrets law while reporting on the Rohingya crisis, to seven years jail.

A Myanmar judge had on August 29 postponed the verdict in the case of Kyaw Soe Oo and Wa Lone, saying it will be announced on September 3 (today). The two reporters had pleaded not guilty to violating Myanmar's colonial-era Official Secrets Act. They had contended that they were framed by police while reporting on Myanmar's brutal crackdown on Rohingya Muslims.

"As they committed an offence under the state secrets act, they are sentenced to seven years in prison each," judge Ye Lwin told the court today.

Authorities had charged them with violating a state secrets act, which carries a maximum penalty of 14 years.

Also Read | Reuters journalists case: Myanmar court postpones ruling

They were arrested in December last year after being invited to a dinner with police in Yangon and pounced on as they left the restaurant, accused of possessing classified material, a PTI report said.

Kyaw Soe Oo and Wa Lone were probing the September 2017 massacre of 10 Rohingya men and boys in Myanmar's Rakhine state a week after the military launched a sweeping crackdown on members of the stateless Muslim minority.

The United Nations and Washington have called the campaign "ethnic cleansing", after some 700,000 Rohingya fled Rakhine for Bangladesh, bringing with them testimonies of rape, arson and killings in the northern part of the state. Myanmar rejects the charges but has admitted the killings investigated by Reuters took place.

Also Read | US expects the Reuters journalists to be acquitted

US Ambassador Nikki Haley has last week said that the Trump administration expected to see two Reuters journalists acquitted of all charges.

Haley had then told the Security Council that "a free and responsible press is critical for any democracy".




Turkey has abandoned support for HTS (al-Qa'ida in Syria). Iran states its complete support for a Syrian government offensive to recover the province. Russia has stated that Syria has the right to expel "terrorists" from Idlib Province. The "terrorists" will be the backbone of resistance to government authority. The Russian Navy is massed in the Mediterranean near Syria. SAA forces are massed and in position for the offensive.

It would seem that Trump will soon have decisions to make about US actions in Syria. pl

https://southfront.org/turkey-finally-designates-hayat-tahrir-al-sham-as-terrorist-group/

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/clear-terrorists-from-idlib-says-irans-zarif-in-damascus-video/

https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/syrian-govt-has-every-right-to-liquidate-terrorists-in-idlib-lavrov/
Talks with China will not help says USA NSA on situation on Ladakh

20 members of a family removed from US flight after mask of 1 slipped under nose

AUKUS will be game-changer in Indo-Pacific, won't compete with Quad: US Deputy Secretary

US continues to press Pakistan to 'indiscriminately' target terror groups

International

oi-PTI

Washington, Sep 3: The US continues to press Pakistan to "indiscriminately target" all terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network, the Pentagon said on Sunday, claiming that recent reports distorted details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF).

The remark comes amid news reports that the US has suspended USD 300 million in military aid to Pakistan as Islamabad was not doing enough to tackle militant groups.

"Unfortunately, recent reporting has distorted the details of the Coalition Support Fund (CSF) by stating several things out of context. The suspension of security assistance to Pakistan was announced in January 2018," Pentagon spokesman Lt Col Kon Faulkner said.

[Also Read: US cancels $300m in aid to Pakistan over failure to tackle militants]

He said, "The CSF is included in the suspension and it remains in place. This is not a new decision or a new announcement, but an acknowledgement of a July request to reprogram funds before they expire."

Faulkner said since January, they have consistently engaged with Pakistani military officials at the highest levels, based on both a shared commitment to defeat all terrorist groups that threaten regional stability and security, as well as on a shared vision of a peaceful future for Afghanistan.

'India rejects Pak's objections on 2 hydropower projects as talks conclude on Indus Waters Treaty'

"We continue to press Pakistan to indiscriminately target all terrorist groups, including the Haqqani Network an LeT, and we continue to call on Pakistan to arrest, expel or bring the Taliban leadership to the negotiating table," he said.

Faulkner noted that the 2018 DoD Appropriations Act, published on March 23, details USD 500 million was rescinded by the Congress.

Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy, the remaining USD 300 million was reprogrammed by the Department of Defense (DoD) in July 2018 time frame for other urgent priorities before the funds expire on September 30, he said.

The department is awaiting congressional determination on whether this reprogramming request will be approved or denied.

"The DoD will have a congressional response before September 30, 2018, to allow the DoD to implement the reprogramming actions," the spokesman said.

Fresh news reports about suspension of the CSF is expected to further strain US-Pak relationship, which comes ahead of the Islamabad visit of US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

The top American diplomat is expected to raise issues related to counter terrorism during his meetings with the top Pakistani leaders.

Pakistan has dismissed all such reports about suspension in US aid, arguing that the United States owed the money to it for expenses incurred on fighting terrorism. "It is not a cut in any [US] aid, it is not assistance.

This is our own money which we have used for improving regional security situation and they had to reimburse it to us," Pakistan Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told reporters in Islamabad.

PTI

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 10:44 [IST]
USD 300 million not aid, it's our money, should reimburse: Pak counters US

International

oi-PTI

Islamabad, Sep 3: The $300 million that the Pentagon has decided to scrap is not a military aid to Pakistan, but what it owns to Islamabad for its support in the war against terrorism and should reimburse it, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has asserted, sparking fresh bilateral tensions ahead of a key visit.

The Pentagon on Saturday announced that it will cancel $300 million aid to Pakistan over its failure to take actions against terror groups. Qureshi said the matter will be taken up during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to the country on September 5.

"The USD 300 million is neither aid nor assistance - it is the money Pakistan spent from its resources against militants and in the war against terrorism. This is the money they (US) are supposed to reimburse, but now either they are not willing or unable to pay back," Qureshi said during a hurriedly called press conference on Sunday after the US announced the decision.

"It was all our money that we spent and they (US) were merely reimbursing it," he said.

Earlier he told the BBC Urdu that the US in principle should pay back the money to Pakistan because it was spent for a common objective to defeat terrorism and create peace and stability.

"We will sit and discuss this with him (Pompeo). We will try to improve bilateral ties between the two countries. We will listen to him and present our point of view to him as well," he said.

The US comes just days before Pompeo is due to visit Pakistan to meet the country's new Prime Minister Imran Khan. The US and others have long complained that Pakistan provides safe haven to terrorists' networks, allowing them to carry out cross-border attacks in Afghanistan.

The Pentagon's move, which needs to be approved by the US Congress, is part of a broader suspension of aid announced in January.

To a question about options for Pakistan to get the stopped funds, Qureshi said Pakistan will talk to the US because the money was already spent by Pakistan.

"If they don't want to reimburse for future spending, it may be different thing. But morally and in principle, they should reimburse what we spent in the past," he said.

He said Pakistan welcomes the forthcoming visit of Mr Pompeo as it will help to understand each other's point of view.

"There are two sides of a picture. They (US) are showing only one side of it; we will show the other side," he said.

He added that there is a trust deficit between Pakistan and the US but the government wants to improve the ties and build trust between the two countries.

Qureshi said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government was not responsible for the latest tension or suspension of funds by the US as the deal to reimburse Pakistan the cost of war on terror was agreed in past.

He also blamed the government of former premier Nawaz Sharif for current tension with the US, Mr Qureshi said the new government of Imran Khan will take all decision keeping in mind the interests of Pakistan.

US President Donald Trump since assuming office has been tough on Pakistan over its inaction against terror groups, saying Washington has got "nothing but lies & deceit" in return for millions of dollars in aid over the years.

Trump in August last year unveiled his new South Asia policy and asked Pakistan to do more against such groups.

In August, a row erupted between the two nations following a telephone call by Pompeo to Pakistan prime minister Imran Khan, as Islamabad took exception to the American version of the conversation that the issue of terrorism was discussed during the call.

While Washington insists that Pompeo raised the issue of terrorism Islamabad says the issue did not figure in the telephonic talk.

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Story first published: Monday, September 3, 2018, 22:59 [IST]
Auqib Javeed, TwoCircles.net

Srinagar: The conflict in Kashmir is on course to a dangerous turn with families on both sides being involved in the war. For the first time in three decades of conflict, militants abducted 11 family members of J&K Police officials in different areas across Kashmir. The move is seen as retaliation to the arrest of militant commander Riyaz Naikoos father and vandalizing properties of several families of the local militants.

According to reports, on August 29 Government forces allegedly set fire to the homes of two militant commanders  Shahjahan, the district commander of Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM), and Syed Naved, the Hizbul Mujahideen (HM) in response to the murder of four policemen in Shopian. The Police also arrested around 18 local youth across south Kashmir on the same day.

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Two days later, Hizbul Mujahideen commander Riyaz Naikoo released an audio message claiming responsibility for the abduction of family members and relatives of policemen and set a three-day deadline for the release of all relatives of militants who are in police custody.

We did not want to involve your families in this. We picked up your relatives so that you realise what (our) mothers go through when you arrest their innocent kin, the voice attributed to Naikoo says in the audio clip.

We kidnapped your relatives so that you know that we can reach you. We have set them free with full dignity this time but next time it will not be repeated we will act according to how you act, Naikoo said, adding that this was the last warning to the police.

Experts see this as a dangerous trend since innocent family members are being forcefully involved in the conflict. A former militant, who wished not be named blamed State authorities for this mess.

It was the policy of Indian government forces since 1990s that if they couldnt find the militant or their sympathisers they would pick-up their family members to pressurize them. But this time they (militants) targeted them back and it has shaken the Indian establishment, says the ex-militant adding, For me, its the simple message from the militants to the Indian forces that if you target our families we will not remain silent.

The family members of both sides have appealed that they shouldnt be involved in the war.

Take the example of the family of Ghulam Nabi Sankar. One of Ghulams son, Nazir Ahmad Sankar, is a police officer and a few days ago, his brother Arif Hussain, a teacher by profession, was picked-up by the militants. In a conversation with TwoCircles.net, Ghulam said he believes that the militants are attacking the police families in what seems to be tit for tat.

Army and police have been brutalising and vandalising the families of the militants. They were harassing their families and now they are doing the same to the police families, says Ghulam.

It is better the war should remain between gun and gun, involving families is senseless, he adds.

In another incident, Aisha, a 50-year-old woman and her son Raja Faizan-ul-Bashir were watching television when some masked men barged into their house. As soon as Faizan heard some movement outside the house, he went to check what was happening.

Faizan came running in, and told us that there were militants outside, who wanted him to accompany to his uncles (Mushtaq) house, said Bashir Ahmad Makroo, Faizans father. They were looking for Faizans uncle, Mushtaq Ahmad Makroo, a policeman posted at District Police line, Kulgam.

Aisha tried to convince the militants to take her instead of her son but they refused.

With fifteen minutes, the militants took away my son. After he was kidnapped, my brother called me up and revealed that the militants had come searching for Mushtaq too before they came to Faizan, Bashir said.

Down the same alley also lives the Bhat family. The Bhats have two sons working in Jammu and Kashmir Police  Abdul Bari Bhat, 38, posted in Srinagar, and Mehmood Ahmad Bhat, 32, and posted in Pahalgam. Both are married, while their father, Muhammad Maqbool Bhat, is a retired government teacher.

Tufail Bhat, another son of Maqbool Bhat, said, that at 8:10 pm on Thursday, two militants appeared in their courtyard and started calling the names of his policemen brothers.

Just as Tufail was talking to the militants, his brother Zubair Ansari ran in and asked the militants to spare his younger brother and instead take him along.

The family members of abducted persons made a passionate plea to the militants for the release of their kin. While all the family members of policemen have been released unharmed, a stern warning has been issued that if the police targeted the family members of the militants, the next time the families of policemen would not be spared. The abducted person in different videos apparently shot by militants appealed top brass of State police administration to stop harassing family members of militants so that they wont harass them in turn. Whether this will have a positive impact remains to be seen. What can be said for sure is, however, that unless attempts are made to change the situation, the conflict in Kashmir is only going to get more bloody, personal and dangerous.

Audio released by Militant commander Riyaz Naikoo regarding abduction

https://drive.google.com/file/d/1zxWe1vfG3Ktmpi-HSrjOkaNU4DkycKyA/review?usp=sharing
By TCN News:

Boston, MA, US:

Over 50 people assembled at Harvard Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts, to protest against the arbitrary arrests of human rights defenders and activists across India. The event was organized by the Coalition for a Democratic India, on August 31, 2018.

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The people gathered from the Boston metropolitan area demanded the immediate release of Sudha Bharadwaj, Arun Fereira, Varavara Rao, Vernon Gonzalves and Gautam Navalakha who were arrested under false allegations of having Maoist Links, under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)  a draconian law that allows the police to keep the defendant in custody for prolonged periods of time without bail that the Government has been misusing to suppress dissent.

Civil society organizations and citizens, including persons of Indian, South Asian and American origin, expressed growing concerns over draconian measures taken by the BJP Government that not only undermine democracy and Constitutional rights but also hurt the Indian economy and further disenfranchise vulnerable tribals, Dalits, and Muslims.

Criminalizing dissent and inventing a bogeyman has been an age-old tactic of the ruling elite to divert attention from the issues of joblessness, agrarian crisis and growing violence against women, Adivasis and Dalits, said Neel Minj holding a sign which said  Demonetisation was a crime against the people of India.

More than an undeclared state of Emergency, we are concerned that all of India has been turned into an open prison in which people of conscience live, said Swati Birla of Amherst, Massachusetts.

One participant read out the poem by Gorakh Pandey which roughly translates to 

What the ruling elite with all their forces and guns, fear the most Is that poor unarmed people will stop fearing the elite.

The rise of fascism is not limited to the United States. India and the United Kingdom, among other countries, have to find solutions to real problems that concern the people, and not resort to state coercion and violence said Nino Brown.

Oppression must come to an end, and for this to happen, people all over India, from Kashmir to Kanyakumari, from Gujarat to Guwahati, need to come together in solidarity. Said Rajesh Kasturirangan from Belmont, Massachusetts.

Democracy is not working properly, and all political parties in India are complicit in undermining the Constitution while simultaneously spreading hate and fear among people, said Jaspal Singh of Cambridge, Massachusetts.

The group closed the evening by raising slogans to support peoples power and end oppression on Dalits, Adivasis, Women, Transgenders and Farmers in India.
Uprooted Palestinians are at the heart of the conflict in the M.E Palestinians uprooted by force of arms. Yet faced immense difficulties have survived, kept alive their history and culture, passed keys of family homes in occupied Palestine from one generation to the next.
Breast Implants Market 2018 Key Players  GC Aesthetics, Sientra, Allergan, Mentor, Arion Laboratoires, Ideal Implant, Groupe Sebbin, Cereplas, Establishment Labs and HansBiomed

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Breast Implants Market size is set to exceed USD 4 billion by 2024; according to a new research study published by Global Market Insights, Inc.Rising number of breast augmentation procedures coupled with increasing breast cancer incidence will drive breast implants market size over the forecast timeframe. Augmentation procedures enable women to increase their breast size and improves bust and hip contour balance. Reconstruction procedures help to restore one or both breasts to near normal size, shape and appearance.High cost of implantation procedure will impede industry expansion. Risk of complications in the case of both saline and silicone implants further limits procedure adoption. Complications associated with the procedure include infection, scarring, capsular formation and contraction, sensation changes to breast and nipple and chances of implant rupture. Additional surgeries may be required for treating the same.Request sample copy of this report @Silicone breast implants market accounted for the largest revenue share due to its resemblance to natural breast tissue. Other benefits such as reduced probability of rippling and wrinkling further boosts adoption. However, difficulty of detecting device rupture restrains segment expansion. The rupture can only be detected after conducting an MRI.Anatomical breast implants market is poised to grow at a lucrative pace owing to its sloped contour with more implant material located at the bottom that provides a more natural appearance. These inserts provide greater projection with same volume as compared to round shaped ones. However, risk of rotation and rippling coupled with higher costs restrains segment growth of breast implants market.Application of the inserts in breast reconstruction will grow at a rapid rate over the forecast time frame due to increasing incidence of breast cancer. Growing awareness regarding reconstruction surgery has resulted in increasing procedure adoption. Advantages of the reconstruction surgery such as short duration and less complex nature along with little scarring should further escalate demand. However, risks of complications such as infections, bleeding and delayed healing limits adoption rate to some extent.U.S. breast implants market held significant industry share. Increasing number of women opting for augmentation procedures will drive growth. Increasing per capita expenditure on cosmetic procedures will serve to be a high impact rendering factor.South Korea breast implants market is slated to witness robust growth over the forecast years. Increasing number of clinics and hospitals catering to plastic surgery coupled with increasing number of plastic surgeons is driving industry growth. Increasing desire to look attractive for excelling in professional life further fuels demand. Furthermore, growing influx of overseas patients especially from neighboring countries augments industry expansion.Make Inquiry about this report @Prominent industry players in breast implants market include GC Aesthetics, Sientra, Allergan, Mentor, Arion Laboratoires, Ideal Implant, Groupe Sebbin, Cereplas, Establishment Labs and HansBiomed. The industry players resort to strategic initiatives such as agreements, acquisition and strong emphasis on product development and innovation in order to broaden their product portfolio and strengthen industry presence. For instance, in June 2016, Establishment Labs entered into a ten-year distribution agreement with Human Wellness Corporation to market its Motiva Implants.Breast implants market research report includes in-depth coverage of the industry with estimates & forecast in terms of revenue in USD million from 2013 to 2024, for the following segments:Breast Implants Market by Product Silicone Implant Saline ImplantBreast Implants Market by Shape Round AnatomicalBreast Implants Market by Application Breast Augmentation Breast ReconstructionBreast Implants Market by End Use Hospitals Clinics OthersThe above information is provided for the following regions/countries: North Americao U.S.o Canada Europeo Germanyo UKo Franceo Italyo Spaino Russia Asia Pacifico Chinao Indiao Japano South Koreao Australia Latin Americao Brazilo Mexicoo Argentina Middle East and Africao South Africao Saudi Arabiao EgyptGlobal 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.Arun HegdeCorporate Sales, USAGlobal Market Insights, Inc.Phone: 1-302-846-7766Toll Free: 1-888-689-0688Email: sales@gminsights.com
Healthcare Artificial Intelligence Market 2018 Key Players  AiCure, Cyrcadia Health, Google, IBM, and Microsoft

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Healthcare Artificial Intelligence Market size is forecast to exceed USD 10 billion by 2024; according to a new research report by Global Market Insights, Inc.AI has revolutionized the healthcare industry by designing treatment plans, medication management, assisting in repetitive tasks, and drug discovery. Rising adoption of precision medicine has made enabled simplicity of management and cost reduction. Increasing application in genomics research coupled with incremental innovation in robotic personal digital assistants should boost industry growth.Medical imaging & diagnosis will witness more than 40% growth with expectations to surpass USD 2.5 billion by 2024. It has gained acceptance owing to its capability to detect cancer at early stage, track tumor development and improve the patients life expectancy. Increasing application of artificial intelligence in diagnostics and imaging industry will further growth.Request sample copy of this report @Increasing big data volume and the ever-increasing need to effectively store and manage the healthcare data will drive healthcare artificial intelligence market growth. Advent of innovative technologies for effective diagnosis & treatment should further accelerate business penetration.Huge initial investment, complex ROI structure and significant maintenance & repair costs should hamper industry growth. Rising concerns that healthcare AI adoption could lead to unemployment on a large scale can impede expansion over the forecast timeframe.Drug discovery applications account for over 35% of healthcare artificial intelligence market share, which could see the segment exceed USD 4 billion in revenue by 2024. Machine learning and artificial intelligence will drive R&D and can improve success rate at the early drug development stages. Companies are using machine learning algorithms to reduce development time and build a strong and sustainable drugs pipeline.U.S. healthcare artificial intelligence market was valued over USD 320 million in 2016 and is estimated to witness more than 38% CAGR over the coming years. Favorable government initiatives for promoting big data analytics adoption along with other innovative healthcare technologies will propel business growth.Europe healthcare artificial intelligence market size was valued over USD 270 million in 2016, with expectations to witness more than 39% growth over the forecast years. Increasing AI application should encourage industry players in extensive R&D to develop effective and cheaper healthcare solutions in this region.Japan held over 35% of regional industry share with expectations to witness more than 40% growth. Presence of large number of technology based companies and universities developing healthcare artificial intelligence solutions should fuel industry growth. Rising number of start-ups in the region should further accelerate business expansion.Brazil holds more than 48% of regional revenue, witnessing over 40% CAGR from 2017 to 2024. Growing awareness and favorable government initiatives should accelerate the penetration rate of healthcare artificial intelligence technology.Make Inquiry about this report @Some of the companies operating in healthcare artificial intelligence market space include AiCure, Cyrcadia Health, Google, IBM, and Microsoft. Increasing investments by industry players and growing interest of venture capital firms will spur revenue growth. Healthcare artificial intelligence industry is witnessing growth in startup units in recent years and the trend is anticipated to continue over the forecast period.Healthcare artificial intelligence market research report includes in-depth coverage of the industry with estimates & forecast in terms of revenue in USD million from 2013 to 2024, for the following segments:Healthcare Artificial Intelligence Market By Application Medical Imaging & Diagnosis Drug Discovery Therapy Planning Hospital Workflow OthersThe above information is provided on a regional and country basis for the following: North Americao U.S.o Canada Europeo Germanyo UKo Franceo Spaino Italy Asia Pacifico Chinao Indiao Japano Australia Latin Americao Brazilo Mexico Middle East and Africao South AfricaGlobal 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.Arun HegdeCorporate Sales, USAGlobal Market Insights, Inc.Phone: 1-302-846-7766Toll Free: 1-888-689-0688Email: sales@gminsights.com
About 350 bike-share experts and industry representatives from around the world will be in Portland this week.

The North American Bikeshare Association is holding its fifth annual conference, and Portland will play host for the first time.

The organization is the only one of its kind. It represents cities, nonprofit organizations and private companies operating the on-demand bike rental programs popping up in cities throughout the country.

The four-day event kicks off Tuesday at the downtown Hilton. The event includes days of workshops and speeches on the importance of data security, the industry's future and the role of electric-assist bikes.

John Brady, Portland Bureau of Transportation spokesman, said the city is honored to host the event.

"We're looking forward to sharing the great things we're doing with Biketown with the industry and other cities," he said in an email. "We're also excited to learn about emerging trends and innovations we could take advantage of here in Portland."

Biketown, Portland's ubiquitous orange-blazoned system sponsored by Nike, just finished its second year of operation in July.

According to conference organizers, representatives from virtually all 50 states are expected, and attendees will hail from nine countries.

Axel Bentsen, CEO of Oslo, Norway-based Urban Sharing, said he's approaching the conference as a networking opportunity but also a business trip.

Urban Sharing operates Oslo's bike-share program, which has 3,000 bikes. The Norwegian capital city is routinely listed as one of the most bike-friendly cities on the planet.

"We are absolutely very interested in seeing what we can do in the United States as well," Bentsen said in an interview last week.

The company has a niche in the bike-rental industry: It's locking system allows users to lock up a bike at a public rack or dock-system similar to Biketown's stations spread around Portland. But the bikes also lock to themselves, Bentsen said. He said that combination of locking mechanisms benefits cities and users.

Urban Sharing is bringing that technology to Edinburgh, Scotland, this fall for its new bike system.

Portland's contract with Motivate, Biketown's operator, expires next July. The city has already said it is interested in adding electric-assist bikes to its fleet in the next contract.

Bentsen said his company is eyeing Portland, though it hopes to partner with a bike operator to share its locking technology rather than run the entire system in the U.S.

Portland has already tweaked its Biketown system in recent months, adding service area and allowing users to lock bikes at public racks in certain parts of town.

Bentsen said Portland's next bikeshare contract "is on our radar."

-- Andrew Theen

atheen@oregonian.com

503-294-4026

@andrewtheen
By Jesse Burrows

Almost 20 years ago, Oregon voters put my right to be in a union into the state constitution. Today, on Labor Day, I'm reflecting about what that's meant for my family.

I've been a caregiver in Oregon for almost 18 years. I started out when my mom was injured at work. She was a waitress and won accolades for her excellent work, even being celebrated once for saving a customer's life. After years of faithful service, she was fired when a fall at work left her seriously disabled.

We lost everything. I was only 16 years old and my mother could no longer work. We had to go on public assistance. Our lights were shut off more than once, and I was almost put into the foster care system.

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Submit your essay of 800 words or less on a highly topical issue or a theme of particular relevance to the Pacific Northwest, Oregon and the Portland area to commentary@oregonian.com. Please include your email and phone number for verification.

Thankfully, a friend told my mother about training for an in-home care program. At 18, I became her home care provider. It happened to be the same time that home care became a union represented job. Since then, I've seen my wages steadily increase with each contract. Year after year we gain more respect for our work: a living wage, paid time off, workers compensation, health coverage, paid trainings... The list goes on.

When I needed a root canal, the healthcare plan we won through the union helped cover the cost. A union scholarship helped pay for my college education. When my mother needed full-time care, I almost had to step aside because I couldn't afford to be a caregiver full time. The union fought for us, and with the new raise we won, I was able to make ends meet and continue doing the work.

Each time there was a hole in my support that needed to be filled, the union was there. My mother's experience was completely different. She didn't have a union. When she got hurt on the job, she lost everything. I saw how home ownership and retirement skipped a generation with my mother. Her parents owned a home and had retirement funds. She lost those opportunities, but I have gained them back. The difference? My grandparents had union jobs. My mother did not, and now I do.

SEIU 503 represents family to me because my union has always been there for me when I needed it most. Our union is made up of nurses, caregivers, social workers, janitors and all of those people whose jobs keep this world turning. We are passionate about what we do and who we serve.

With our collective power, we have drastically changed our own lives and the lives of the people we care for. That's the power of unity. That's the power of the union.

-- Jesse Burrows lives in Depoe Bay.
A request for $1,000 from the Michigan Association of Counties has prompted the Midland County Board of Commissioners to join the fight against dark store litigation.

At issue is the dark store valuation approach, which decreases annual property taxes for owners of big box stores. Retailers are claiming that their taxes should be calculated as if their buildings were vacant, or dark, instead of the valuation determined as if the building was at full capacity.

A decreased in valuation on property taxes could have a devastating effect on the overall property tax system and municipal revenues in Michigan. It would also mean an ever-increasing burden on homeowners to provide public services.

The impact on all local units of government is really significant, County Administrator/Controller Bridgette Gransden said.

The Midland County Board unanimously approved contributing $1,000 to aid the City of Escanaba with its defense of a lawsuit against Menards over property valuations and tax amounts.

It is a very precedent setting case regarding the dark store issue. There is legal authority that allows us to do this. There have also been townships and cities that have sent money," Gransden said.

MAC estimates there has been at least $100 million decrease in property valuations since 2013 as a result of dark store valuations.

Besides "dark stores," pharmacies, auto parts stores and fast food outlets have begun using the dark store valuation method.

"If widespread, this could have a devastating impact on the overall property tax system and municipal revenues throughout Michigan, wrote Gransden in a letter to the Midland County Board.

The City of Escanaba has spent nearly $200,000 on legal fees in the case of Menards vs. City of Escanaba.

The $1,000 from Midland County will come from the 2018 Board approved litigation budget.
Something special is happening in the Democratic Party. We are witnessing a new generation of leaders emerge before our very eyes. You should familiarize yourself with Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, as the Florida gubernatorial race will be one of the main races to watch this November, largely thanks to his surprising victory in Tuesday nights Democratic primary. Here he is on CNN this morning, quickly recapping his platform.

Andrew Gillum, who won the Democratic gubernatorial primary in Florida, says his historic victory shows that "we can run wholly on our values, that we can talk to people in a commonsensical way about the issues that confront them" https://t.co/6OO1X2J0SDpic.twitter.com/fUgTaJ9NgZ  CNN Politics (@CNNPolitics) August 29, 2018

At a campaign rally last week, Gillum said It's my opinion that the way we are going to win [the general] is by nominating a candidate who has the ability to move more of our voters to the polls, more black voters, more brown voters, more young voters, more purple voters, more white voters, more working class voters. That's how we're going to win.

Money has so dominated politics to the point where it's downright laughable to define America as a democracy. The worst-kept secret in the world is that American politicians are more accountable to their donors than their constituents. The rise of the progressive movement and its ability to churn out voters who are not part of the narrow paradigm that D.C. consultants make millions perpetuating is perhaps the most important development in American politics post-Trump. Gillum was the only nonwhite, non-rich candidate in the Democratic primary, and he won. These spending figures are astounding.

Florida Democratic primary spending:



Philip Levine: $37.7 million

Jeff Greene: $34.7 million

Gwen Graham: $16.3 million

Chris King: $7.8 million

Andrew Gillum: $6.6 million



Candidate only; Gillum had decent outside support. But still   Alex Leary (@learyreports) August 29, 2018

Overlooked:



Per NBC News data, Gillum only spent $589K on TV, while Collective PAC spent $1.2M.



For context, Levine camp spent $23M (!), while Graham camp spent $8M.  Josh Kraushaar (@HotlineJosh) August 29, 2018

Simply put, the progressive movement has been able to get voters to the polls in a way that traditional Democratic campaigns have not. Florida broke all kinds of turnout records last night.

Huge Dem turnout breaks records in FL.



Historical totals in #FLGOV D primaries:

2018: 1,402,804+

2014: 837,796

2010: 871,335

2006: 857,814

2002: 1,357,017

1998: (uncontested)

1994: 836,414

1990: 1,074,056

1986: 1,005,465

1982: 993,402

1978: 1,037,533  Jared Leopold (@jaredleopold) August 29, 2018

Because this is the Trump Era, the news out of this race isn't all sunshine and rainbows. Gillum's Republican opponent, Ron DeSantis, went on GOP state television this morning and let it be known that he wants every single racist piece of garbage in the state to come out and vote for him.

Uh Ron DeSantis just said FL shouldn't "monkey this up" by electing Andrew Gillum pic.twitter.com/nDPp3Hx7zc  Steve Morris (@stevemorris__) August 29, 2018

That phrase was clearly premeditated. Ive been paying attention to politics my entire life and its very clear when politicians are repeating their talking points. I would bet any amount of money that monkey was an intentionally crafted part of his talking points. Its not even a dog whistlemore like a bullhorn. Ron DeSantis injected this racist tone into his campaign because he is a Trump-style politician and Trump has proven thats the best way for Republicans to churn out voters given their unpopular agenda. After all, this is a country which has elected just two black governors in its entire 242-year history. Richard Nixon proved that running on racism works, and the GOP has used his template over the last half-century. This race will likely get very ugly.

Luckily, a new age of politicians like Andrew Gillum have begun to establish an effective counterweight to Americas longtime appeal to racists at the ballot box, and regardless of whether Gillum wins this November, a new way forward for liberalism has been established. Democrats do not need to be paralyzed by Americas ugly political history. The days of fearing a backlash from racist voters are dwindling. Democrats can unabashedly run on true liberalism that works for a majority of the population because there are more voters willing to support a progressive agenda than the GOPs longtime dog-whistling corporatist one.

Jacob Weindling is a staff writer for Paste politics. Follow him on Twitter at @Jakeweindling.
Well, everyone, you've survived another Made in America.

The gigantic two-day music festival brings out thousands to Philadelphia's Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Curated by Jay-Z, it has a line-up mixed with up-and-coming acts and established stars. This year was no different, as its final day included performances by Kendrick Lamar and Nicki Minaj.

Miguel, Jay Park, Diplo and more: photos from day 2 of Made in America 2018

While those two were definitely highlights, they weren't the only ones. Here are five acts that had us talking afterwards.

Nicki Minaj performs at Made in America on Sept. 2, 2018.

Nicki Minaj

Minaj performed with the word "Queen" behind her, and it was fitting as she commanded the stage. Minaj wasn't afraid to flip the set list midway through when she was feeling "sexy" and wanted another song. She also didn't sweat stopping the show to get five audience members onstage to do an impromptu twerk contest. She was also gracious, bringing up Lil Uzi Vert, Tekashi 6ix9ine and A$AP Ferg to both perform with her and to do a short solo number.

She also had a wardrobe malfunction as her breasts continually fell out of her outfit. As Minaj herself put it in the show: "They done saw my nipples at least 50 times tonight."

PHILADELPHIA, PA - SEPTEMBER 02: A view of the crowd as Kendrick Lamar performs during the 2018 Made In America Festival - Day 2 at Benjamin Franklin Parkway on September 2, 2018 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for Roc Nation)

Kendrick Lamar

Kendrick Lamar owned the stage at Made in America with his usual masterful flow and beats. A last minute addition, Lamar had fans racing from one end of the festival to the other to catch a glimpse of him (and his act). He also let his screens do the talking, reminding the audience of his Pulitzer Prize at one point with the words "Pulitzer Kenny" written in large black letters behind him.

We loved it when he brought Philadelphia rapper Bri Steves on to perform her song "Jealousy." It's always great to see established artists using their cred to help up-and-coming acts get some attention.

Pennsylvania rapper Lil Skies performs at Made in America. The Jay-Z curated, Labor Day weekend music festival Made in America took over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia Sept. 1-2, 2018. Julia Hatmaker | jhatmaker@pennlive.com

Lil Skies

Pennsylvania native Lil Skies was happy to be back home in Pa., he told the crowd during his set. The rapper (who is originally from Waynesboro) burst onto the stage with gusto, forgoing it for the first part of his set as he strutted up and down speakers, leaping onto smaller stages and getting as close to the audience as he could get. All the while he grinned as he rapped, clearly having as much fun as his equally energetic and enthusiastic audience.

Alessia Cara performs at Made in America 2018. The Jay-Z curated, Labor Day weekend music festival Made in America took over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia Sept. 1-2, 2018. Julia Hatmaker | jhatmaker@pennlive.com

Alessia Cara

Alessia Cara could do no wrong during her set, which included solid hits "Stay" and "Here." But honestly, nothing could compare to when she sang "How Far I'll Go" from Moana. The Disney song, which she sings in the film's credits, had the entire crowd singing along. We may have cried.

Ty Dolla $ign performs at Made in America 2018. The Jay-Z curated, Labor Day weekend music festival Made in America took over the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia Sept. 1-2, 2018. Julia Hatmaker | jhatmaker@pennlive.com

Ty Dolla $ign

Sound issues were a bit of a plague during Made in America's final day, with both Ty Dolla $ign and Clairo facing difficulties. All props went to Ty Dolla $ign who switched mics with ease, went a cappella and refused to let the sound problems damper his mood. Also, we loved the motorcycle entrance. It's not original, but it never gets old. Everyone should come on stage on a motorcycle.

Made in America plans to return to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia in 2019. Keep an eye out on PennLive and madeinamericafest.com for more information.

Want more stories about Philly? Click here for all our coverage of the City of Brotherly Love.
Made in America has come, and Made in America has gone.

The Labor Day weekend festival bid farewell for another year to Philadelphia. Curated by Jay-Z, it's become a staple of summers in the City of Brotherly Love.

It went out with a bang too, with epic performances by Kendrick Lamar, Nicki Minaj, Diplo, Miguel, Alessia Cara and more. Check out our photos from the day in the gallery at the top of the page.

Can't see the gallery? Click here

Made in America is more than a concert though. The festival includes a section devoted to nonprofits. It also has an area with lawn games, including giant horseshoes and beer pong (minus the beer). There's a skateboarding area, a ferris wheel and a swing ride.

We made sure to photograph more of the festival scene, rather than just what happened on the stages. And we shot photos of many, many fans. Let us know if you spot yourself in our pictures!

Also spotted at the festival? Meek Mill, who came back for a second day after a triumphant homecoming during the festival's opening. Mill was spotted in the VIP section overlooking the crowd.

You can see photos from the first day of the festival at the link below.

Made in America plans to return to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia in 2019. Keep an eye out on PennLive and madeinamericafest.com for more information.

Want more stories about Philly? Click here for all our coverage of the City of Brotherly Love.
RIO DE JANEIRO (AP) -- A huge fire engulfed Brazil's 200-year-old National Museum in Rio de Janeiro, lighting up the night sky with towering flames as firefighters and museum workers raced to save historical relics from the blaze.

The esteemed museum, which houses artifacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman art and some of the first fossils found in Brazil, was closed to the public at the time of the fire, which broke out at 7:30 p.m. Sunday local time, it said in a statement.

There were no reports of injuries, the museum said, and it wasn't immediately clear how the fire began.

"It's a loss for Brazil, our history was stored there" - A fire has gutted the National Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeirohttps://t.co/uggZmJcdHL pic.twitter.com/k6bieX7dr7  BBC News (World) (@BBCWorld) September 3, 2018

Roberto Robadey, a spokesman for the fire department, said 80 firefighters were battling the blaze and that by midnight local time it was "just about under control" and should be out within a few hours.

President Michel Temer called it "a sad day for all Brazilians."

"Two hundred years of work, investigation and knowledge have been lost," Temer said in a statement.

According to its website, the museum has a vast collection related to the history of Brazil and other countries, and that many of its collections came from members of Brazil's royal family.

Robadey said firefighters got off to a slow start fighting the blaze because the two fire hydrants closest to the museum were not functioning. Instead, trucks had to be sent to get water from a nearby lake.

But he added that some of the museum's pieces had been spared.

"We were able to remove a lot of things from inside with the help of workers of the museum," Robadey told Globo News.

Connected to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, the museum has expositions that include anthropology, archaeology and paleontology, among others.

The vice director of the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, told Globo news the museum suffered chronic underfunding. "Everybody wants to be supportive now. We never had adequate support," he said.

Latin America's largest nation has struggled to emerge from its worst recession in decades. The state of Rio de Janeiro has been particularly hard hit in recent years thanks to a combination of falling world prices of oil, one of its major revenue sources, mismanagement and massive corruption.

By PETER PRENGAMAN, Associated Press
SHAMOKIN -- If this dog could talk, she likely would have quite a story to tell about her seven-month odyssey that ended happily Sunday morning more than 35 miles from where it started.

Jemina, a 2-year-old galgo or Spanish greyhound, ran away from her owners in Hazleton and made it to the Shamokin area, where she had eluded capture.

"This dog is highly intelligent but we fooled her," said Bonnie Snyder, owner of Bellabons Pet Recovery Service in Muncy, who was in on the capture.

The apprehension in the Ferndale section of Coal Twp. outside Shamokin area required the use of a fence with remote-controlled doors along a walkway Jemina used to reach food left out by Marcia Barnabe.

Snyder calls Barnabe an "angel" for taking it upon herself to begin feeding the stray. "The first day I saw her I said she's starving," Barnabe said.

She started feeding her with dry dog food topped with scraps but then the owners, Greg Judd and his wife Lani Trovitch, provided canned food when they traveled to the Shamokin area almost daily to try to catch Jemina, she said.

Barnabe, who has a dog of her own, was unable to catch Jemina but said, "I came close a couple of times."

The galgo was seen in the neighborhood but eluded capture. She would play with Norman Miller's dogs and follow Gina and Rich Zack when they walked theirs, Snyder said.

Jemina was terrified by fireworks around July 4 and electrical storms, Barnabe said. She would go as far as Trevorton but then come back, she said.

Credit for devising the method that led to the dog's capture goes to Steve Hagey of Detect-a-Pet from Hatfield, Snyder said.

The two installed cameras and tore apart the fence on the property of Donna and Mel Helwig.

The new fence looked like the old but contained doors that could be opened remotely to block the 100-foot-long walkway once the dog was in it.

Sunday morning Hagey and Snyder waited out of sight two hours for Jemina to appear to get the food Barnabe left out.

When she got into the narrow walkway the doors were closed remotely trapping her.

Jemina tried to climb the fence on the other side of the walkway but Hagey grabbed her by the collar and put her in a kennel that had been erected on site, Snyder said.

After allowing her to calm down for more than hour, her owners returned her to Hazleton where she got a good bath.

Judd chose not to speak with PennLive. But Monday through Snyder, he said Jemina is doing fine and that he and his wife appreciate the help of people in the Shamokin area.

With the exception of gash on her left front leg and a cut on her front right leg the dog appears in good health after even months on the lam, Snyder said. She gained weight, she said.

Maybe being a street dog in Spain before being sent to the United State for adoption helped her survive seven months on her own.

Jemina is an escape artist, Snyder said. She had gotten away twice in Spain and from kennels in Ranshaw and Ferndale before Snyder said she became involved in July.

"It was a good day," said Barnabe about the capture. She described her relationship with the galgo as "like one of my own." She was told she can visit Jemina anytime she wants, she said.

Judd and his wife had Jemina, their second galgo, only five days before she ran off. But, she recognized them after the capture, Snyder said.

Based on reported sightings it appears she made it to the Shamokin-Coal Twp. area soon after she ran away, she said.
Crossroads and Allen middle schools in the West Shore School District will remain closed because of mold for at least two days after Labor Day.

Crossroads Middle School, which has been closed since Aug. 29 after the discovery of mold there on Aug. 28, likely will reopen on Thursday, according to a message sent to parents by Superintendent Todd Stoltz.

Allen Middle School, has been closed since mold was discovered on Aug. 29, and it is not known when it will reopen. Stoltz said district officials hope to provide an update on Wednesday.

Here's a breakdown of the status of each school, as outlined in Stoltz's message:

Allen:

Eight classrooms have been cleaned and 13 more are still being cleaned, as well as common spaces such as the auditorium, nurse's office and locker rooms.

Crossroads:

Mold has been found in a storage area, locker areas, the TEch Ed room, music rooms and the cafeteria. There was no evidence of mold in any room on the main floor or second floor. While some areas must be sealed off and contained, the district hopes to resume classes in the rest of the building on Thursday.

The locker rooms and Tech Ed rooms require duct-cleaning, which is scheduled to begin Tuesday, when instructional spaces will be cleared and tested. District official hope the tests will show it is safe to resume classes Thursday.

Fairview:

Isolated pieces of furniture in a few rooms showed signs of mold growth. Air quality tests showed no degradation in air quality.

Fishing Creek:

Isolated pieces of furniture in several classrooms needed to be cleaned. Sept. 1 air quality test results showed a high spore count in the library, but there was no visible mold growth. The music storage room also had issues and was closed for remediation. Sept. 1 tests showed degraded air quality in room 26, which will be closed and cleaned by a remediation company.

Highland:

No old has been reported and tests show no degradation in air quality.

Lower Allen:

Air quality tests of Aug. 29 found no degraded air quality, but on Aug. 30, the presence of mold was confirmed in rooms 110 and 112 and students were relocated. The custodial staff has cleaned the affected furniture and disposed of old clipboards that had growth. Results of air quality tests in those rooms are expected on Tuesday.

Newberry:

Isolated pieces of furniture in some rooms appeared to have mold growth. The only area of concern was the outside vestibule entrances to the pods. All those entrances lead directly into spaces with either restrooms or storage areas with wooden doors. Those doors showed signs of mold and were cleaned by custodial staff. There were some locations where air quality was degraded. Cleaning has taken place and the building will be retested.

New Cumberland:

Mold was discovered in the band room, which was closed. Other classrooms that were checked showed no signs of mold. Air quality samples were taken Aug. 30, and the district, mindful of the problem found at Crossroads, tested the Tech Ed area. Mold growth was found and the TEch Ed area was closed. The Health Room next to Tech Ed was also checked, mold found and the room was closed.

Air quality samples showed, except for Tech Ed, no degradation of air quality. New Cumberland will continue to operate with the Tech Ed and music areas sealed off.

Red Land:

Few signs of mold development were found in checking many storage closets and 12 classrooms. Air quality tests showed a high spore count in room 241, possibly due to stained ceiling tiles at the back of the classroom. Addition investigation and testing of this room is planned.

Mold also was found in rooms 112-118, and those rooms will be closed and remediated. Red Land will relocate classes scheduled for these rooms.

Red Mill:

There have been no reports of suspected mold, and air quality tests showed no degradation.

Rossmoyne:

One take in an office area was starting to develop growth and was cleaned. No other problems have been detected.

Washington Heights:

Except for rooms 102 and 103, air quality tests have been good and no mold is visible. The two rooms remain closed and new carpet will be installed. The district is awaiting air quality test results on samples taken Friday.
Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the archbishop of Washington and former bishop of the Pittsburgh Diocese, was yelled at as he tried to apologize for the Pennsylvania clergy sex abuse scandal during mass at a D.C. church on Sunday.

Wuerl is accused of mishandling abuse allegations and trying to keep victims quiet while in Pittsburgh, details that came to light during a sweeping grand jury report that came out last month.

Addressing Washington's Annunciation Catholic Church Sunday, he asked the congregation of about 200 people to forgive his "errors in judgment" and "inadequacies."

One member of the congregation yelled "Shame on you!" and walked out, while another turned her back on Wuerl in protest.

Catholic teachers last week added their voices to the calls for Wuerl to resign, not just over the Pennsylvania clergy abuse scandal but over whether he knew his predecessor was involved in sexual misconduct.

Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano alleges that Wuerl knew about sexual misconduct committed by Theodore McCarrick, but Wuerl insists he was unaware.

"We're demanding that Cardinal Wuerl step down," said Jack Devlin, one of more than 40 Catholic-school teachers who demonstrated against Wuerl outside the annual back-to-school Mass at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on Tuesday morning. "How can I face my students, one, with this on the table and, two, when we tell them to speak up for what's right, if I don't lead by example?"

Wuerl has defended his record loudly. When the Pennsylvania grand jury report came out, the Archdiocese of Washington published a website highlighting Wuerl's contributions toward protecting children from abuse; the website was soon taken down.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl, former bishop of the Pittsburgh Diocese 9 Gallery: Cardinal Donald Wuerl, former bishop of the Pittsburgh Diocese

Vigano alleges that Pope Benedict XVI imposed sanctions on McCarrick for sexual harassment in 2009 or 2010, ordering the former archbishop of Washington to a life of prayer and penance, but that Pope Francis let those sanctions slide until McCarrick's abuses came to light this year.

He mentions Wuerl in his letter, saying that the cardinal was "obviously" informed of Benedict's sanctions of McCarrick. He said, among other things, "The Cardinal lies shamelessly."

Wuerl reiterated in his statement that he never heard about any sanctions from Benedict on McCarrick and that no one ever reported abuse by McCarrick to him in his years in Washington.

Among other things, the grand jury report says Wuerl allowed a child molester to remain in ministry and reinstated another after treatment. The report mentions Wuerl more than 200 times.

- Information from The Washington Post, the Associated Press and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
By Josh Shapiro

Labor Day is about celebrating the contributions that organized labor has made for American workers. While tremendous strides have been made to improve working conditions in the decades since the labor movement began, we still have much work to do.

Pa. Attorney General Josh Shapiro (PennLIve file)

Nowhere is this more apparent than in the rising wage inequality between the wealthiest few and the average worker. It is up to government to protect workers, and up to employers to treat them fairly, with respect and dignity.

Organized labor fights the good fight to assure living wages and benefits for working men and women every day and to ensure safe workplaces.

Despite the efforts of organized labor, many employers continue to exploit their workers.

One example of worker exploitation is "no-poach" agreements. Many large companies that franchise (think fast-food restaurants or pizza chains) insert clauses into their agreements with franchise owners that prevent workers from switching from one work location to another.

These no-poach agreements may restrict franchise owners from hiring any employee - whether a dishwasher, a line cook, or a general manager - from another franchisee of the same corporation and from the corporation itself.

And, workers never get a say in the matter. In most cases, workers never even know about these agreements--or why they didn't get an interview for the job at the company's location closer to their home or offering better hours.

Here's how these agreements work.

For example, if I want to purchase a a Little Caesar's restaurant, I would be forced by corporate headquarters to sign a franchise agreement that contains a clause preventing me from hiring or even interviewing employees from other Little Caesar's locations.

So, if a general manager at a location across town wanted to apply for a general manager position at my store, I would not be allowed to interview or hire him or her.

This hurts workers in multiple ways.

First, they miss out on key opportunities, like higher wages, better hours, and promotions within the company.

Second, it systematically keeps wages low for all workers; after all, if an employer is not afraid of any of their employees leaving for higher-paying jobs, what incentive does it have to raise wages? The same goes for improving hours, benefits, and other working conditions.

MORE: Workers who believe that their rights have been violated in their workplace are encouraged to file a complaint at

It is one thing to have restrictive contracts for high-skill employees, or ones who know trade secrets.

No one expects the person who knows the secret recipe at Coca-Cola to be allowed to jump over to Pepsi. But that isn't who we're talking about. We're talking about people who often earn minimum wage, doing work like taking food orders or making pizzas. There is no legitimate business reason for no-poach agreements.

That's why I recently spearheaded an effort, along with ten of my colleague attorneys general, to investigate eight fast food chains and request information on any no poach agreements they may use and demand that they stop using the agreements.

The companies--including Arby's, Burger King, Dunkin' Donuts, Five Guys, Little Caesars, Panera Bread, and Popeye's--collectively own nearly 1,500 locations across the Commonwealth. Over the years, thousands of Pennsylvania workers have been harmed--and continue to be harmed--by these companies' no-poach agreements.

This issue extends beyond fast food chains. Other franchises, like dine-in restaurants, automotive chains and gyms, also use no-poach agreements. In fact, 58 percent of major franchisors include these no-poach provisions in their franchise agreements. The rate is even higher for fast food restaurants (80 percent).

Because fast food franchises use the clauses much more frequently than other industries, we first focused on that industry.

Several have already responded and are working with us as to how best to end these practices. But until they all agree to stop using no-poach agreements, I will continue fighting for workers and their right to economic opportunity If you work hard, you should be able to achieve a better tomorrow - and no-poach agreements should not get in the way.

On this Labor Day, I commit to continue to fight for working people across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, is the elected Attorney General of Pennsylvania. He writes from Harrisburg.
By Charles Mitchell

This Labor Day marks 10 weeks since the Supreme Court ruled in Janus v. AFSCME that government employees should not be forced to pay a union or risk losing their jobs.

Charles Mitchell (Commonwealth Foundation photo)

In Pennsylvania, that means 330,000 government employees now have a choice when it comes to paying a union--many for the first time in their careers.

The question is, what will they choose?

Will they exercise their First Amendment rights, or continue to support unions whose politics they may oppose? Have they even heard of the Janus decision?

Lloyd Corder of Carnegie Mellon University recently conducted a nationwide study to answer these questions. He surveyed 300 public-sector union members about the Janus decision, and the results are eye-opening.

When asked if they were aware of Janus v. AFSCME, 71 percent of union members responded Yes, 29 percent No. Not only that, but 51 percent agreed with the ruling.

These results suggest the dam could be about to burst. Dr. Corder's survey shows 6 percent of workers have already stopped paying union fees, and a further 25 percent plan to do the same. Not surprisingly, union leaders are frantically trying to keep workers in the dark about their Janus rights.

Meanwhile, organizations like Americans for Fair Treatment make resources and support easily available for any government worker who wants to resign from their union.

Considering the amount of money being stripped from these workers' paychecks prior to Janus, there's a powerful incentive to assert their constitutional rights.

We're talking about hundreds of dollars a year from schoolteachers, municipal clerks, police officers, and firefighters. It's been a bonanza for unions--who have been harvesting millions from Pennsylvanians' paychecks--and a money pit for those workers who don't want or need union services, but who had no choice but to pay up.

Until now.

So naturally, unions are in no hurry to inform the nearly one-third of members who haven't heard that Janus makes all their dues and fees optional.

That's why a , a Janus notification bill sponsored by Rep. Kate Klunk (HB 2571), is so important. It requires unions to tell new government employees and non-union members that membership and payments are now voluntary and won't affect their employment. It also repeals fee collection laws that contradict the Janus ruling.

The Klunk bill's impact on Pennsylvania will be huge.

Knowledge is power, and government workers deserve to have the power to choose. Instead of unconsciously funneling money to whichever political causes the unions feel like supporting, workers get a reminder that their money belongs to them.

The Janus notification bill is only one of several bills currently being introduced on behalf of government workers. Another, whichbans the disingenuous union practice of narrowing members' resignation windows, is being introduced by Rep. Greg Rothman. This is similar to Rep. Fred Keller's HB 2539, which prevents union bureaucracies from their common practice of giving members the run-around when they try to resign. Rep. Keller's bill cuts through the red tape--another win to workers' liberty.

Also, Rep. Seth Grove, R-York, has announced a bill that will give government workers a bigger voice in their workplace by requiring regular union recertification elections.

The need for workers to take back their rights is now greater than ever. Recent proposals by union-backed lawmakers--and executive orders by Governor Wolf--are taking choices away from public servants.

One of Wolf's executive orders, for example, has forcibly incorporated 20,000 home care workers in Pennsylvania's Medicaid program under an agreement with two government unions.

Other lawmakers hope to pass "card check" legislation that strips workers of private and anonymous voting in their workplace unionization elections. These efforts reflect the renewed surge in union influence through political spending, which in Pennsylvania alone totaled $114 million from 2007-2017.

With that much money in play, it's no surprise union allies in Harrisburg are fighting hard to keep workers in the dark.

By passing legislation to inform and empower workers, Pennsylvania can throw open the doors and windows on unions' back room and bring transparency and protection back to the workplace.
Labor Day has marked the victories of unions and America's working people for the last 136 years. It's a day of remembrance for the fight for workers' rights, the very concept of the 8-hour work day, the weekend, the elimination of child labor in favor of universal education, and the injustice of unsafe, lethal working conditions.It is time for us to return to the same principles of economic justice and working class solidarity that delivered those victories.

Our history shows that when workers come together in a union and exercise their collective voice on the job, we transform the economy and the daily lives of all our brothers and sisters who work.

America's working people and their unions have faced many challenges over the last few years, but with adversity comes opportunity. Today, corporations and monied special interests try to pit us against each other as they rig the economy to work for the wealthy few at the expense of the working class. In the last year, we have seen incredible grassroots action in response to threats to our freedoms and our rights. Hundreds of thousands of newly organized union members are reclaiming their power in the workplace, and three quarters of them are younger than 35.

This summer, the Supreme Court ruled in the case of Janus v. AFSCME Council 31 delivering a politically motivated verdict that affects millions of workers across America and hundreds of thousands of Pennsylvanians. Their decision overturned more than forty years of established labor law.

Many were ready to spell the end for the Labor Movement, for fair workplaces and for workers' rights.From the teachers striking and winning in West Virginia, to the brothers and sisters in Missouri who repealed "right to work" legislation at the ballot box for the first time in history, to right here in Pennsylvania when we proved this Spring that our economic values are more unifying and energizing than the divisive rhetoric of politicians, we are proving them wrong.

We are still fighting; we are marching, striking and organizing.As the Labor Movement, we fight for equality and the economic dignity for all workers regardless of their gender, race, ethnicity, religion or who they love. Everyone has the right to respectful treatment and the opportunity to make a living for themselves and their families. Right now, our country is divided along many lines, emotions are raw, and many of us feel like we are not being heard.

This is a pivotal moment, not just for the Labor Movement, the Civil and Equal Rights Movements; it is a moment all of us to refocus on the issues that bring us together in solidarity.And this moment could not be more significant in its magnitude.

We are at a point in history where we are seeing yet another opportunity to create change in the workplace through organizing in a union, by standing up against sexual harassment and gender discrimination, or ending the prejudice that exists based on race and sexual orientation or protesting the consistent failure to care for workers' safety and rights.Labor unions and members have been fighting for legislation to protect workers for years; bills like public sector worker safety, the protection of workers' compensation and unemployment insurance, and addressing discrimination in the workplace.

Yet our state legislature is often unable to act on behalf of the working men and women of this Commonwealth. These are not partisan issues; this is about your right to security and safety on the job, and to come home at the end of the day.

We need courageous Pennsylvanians to stand up and pass the Jake Schwab Worker Safety Bill, the Pennsylvania Workplace Freedom Act, and the "seven" sexual harassment bills sitting in Harrisburg waiting to protect our sisters and brothers from abuse. These aren't partisan pieces of legislation.

It's not about Democrats and Republicans; it's about the working people of Pennsylvania. It is all too easy to point fingers and accuse, judge and sow the seeds of division, but shame does not lead to changed minds or a community of dignity. Only when we come together and demand that each of us is treated with respect on the job, in our communities and in our government, will we become the change we seek.

What we need now to mark 2018's Labor Day is a profound and rigorous rededication to the fight for economic justice.

Rick Bloomingdale is the president of the Pennsylvania AFL-CIO. He writes from Harrisburg.
U.S. Sen. Pat Toomey, R-Pa., can't be bothered to host an in-person town hall in Pennsylvania, but his antics in Washington haven't gone unnoticed by the good people he represents.

First, his sabotage of the Affordable Care Act has resulted in a 4.9% healthcare premium increase in Pennsylvania--and it would have been greater had the state not acted to mitigate the damaging effects.

Second, his extreme efforts to push forth a damaging tax bill has resulted in the richest in Pennsylvania getting an average tax cut of $6,900 while the middle class gets a measly $90.

Finally, we've watched as Toomey idles in the Senate as all the president's men become implicated in a variety of financial and personal crimes, and finally, as the president himself was named directing his attorney to commit a crime.

Toomey, who is in a co-equal branch of government as President Trump, has failed to grasp that when a president is implicated in a crime, his appointment to the Supreme Court should pause until we have proof of innocence or guilt. Instead, Senator Toomey has praised Brett Kavanaugh, and hasn't backed off his commitment to vote for Kavanaugh in the light of the newest set of allegations against Trump. Conveniently, Kavanaugh doesn't think presidents should be indicted.

Senator Toomey, Pennsylvanians aren't asking you to be a progressive hero. We're asking you to be an American hero.

Pause any forward movement of Brett Kavanaugh's appointment while you investigate whether President Trump committed crimes during the 2016 election cycle and beyond. Our democracy depends on it.

FAE Z. EHSAN, Philadelphia
Petoskey Marching Band brings home three grand champion awards

A one year hiatus in competing didn't stop the Petoskey Marching Band from scoring first place and grand champion awards in this year's competitions.
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(Reuters)  U.S. President Donald Trump will target a handful of Obama-era green regulations, including a federal coal mining ban and an initiative forcing states to cut carbon emissions, in an executive order as soon as next week a White House official told Reuters on Wednesday.

Trump and his fellow Republicans who control Congress are seeking to unravel former Democratic President Barack Obamas initiatives to combat global climate change, which they say are costly for U.S. business and have hampered drilling and mining without providing any clear benefits.

Rescinding the federal coal leasing moratorium is part of that executive order, which has lots of different components, including the Clean Power Plan, the White House official, who asked not to be named, told Reuters. The official said the order was scheduled to come next week.

The Clean Power Plan is Obamas centerpiece initiative to combat climate change, requiring states to slash emissions of carbon dioxide, but it was never implemented due to legal challenges launched by several Republican states.

Legal experts have said Trump could begin the process of killing the regulation by having the Environmental Protection Agency ask the courts to return it to the agency for review, effectively ending its legal defense.

Killing the coal mining ban would be easier. Trump could reverse the ban by asking the Department of Interior to lift it and resume its coal leasing program.

Obamas administration imposed the temporary ban on new federal coal leases in January 2016 as part of a broad environmental and economic review of the program aimed at ensuring lease deals account for coals contribution to global climate change and yield fair returns to taxpayers.

But it angered some Western state lawmakers and people in the mining industry, who said it stymied development.

Trump has already rolled back some Obama-era green regulations, including the Stream Protection Rule limiting coal mining waste dumping, and the Waters of the U.S. rule that expands the waterways under federal protection.

(Reporting by Richard Valdmanis; Editing by Jonathan Oatis)
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The White Houses real position on bringing back coal jobs was revealed after Trump economic adviser Gary Cohn made it clear in a meeting with reporters that coal isnt even good feedstock anymore, and the future of American energy is in natural gas, solar, and wind.

Here is what Cohn told reporters according to The White House Press Pool:



Cohns comments are the opposite of what Trump promised during the campaign when he said, Were going to get those miners back to work  the miners of West Virginia and Pennsylvania, which was so great to me last week, Ohio and all over are going to start to work again, believe me. They are going to be proud again to be miners.

The truth is that the coal jobs are gone, and they arent coming back. Trump lied to former and current coal miners in places like West Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, and Western Pennsylvania.

Coal company bankruptcies and job losses in the Appalachian region werent caused by federal regulations as the company owners and Republicans like to claim. Automation within the industry, the natural gas boom, and declining international demand for coal are the real reasons behind the decline.

It was a rare moment of truth from the Trump administration that is likely to be walked back by the White House. The coal jobs arent coming back. Trumps advisers know this even as the President continues to sell a fantasy to a depressed economic region of a coal based revival that is never going to come.
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Rep. Ted Lieu (D-CA) responded to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) offering thoughts and prayers to the Santa Fe High School shooting victims while taking money from the NRA.

Cruz tweeted:

Heidi and I are keeping all the students and faculty at Santa Fe High School in our prayers this morning, along with all first responders on the scene. Please be safe and heed warnings from local officials. https://t.co/5Un3Y4IA86  Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) May 18, 2018

Lieu responded:

There is nothing wrong about praying for victims & first responders at the school shooting at Santa Fe High School in Texas. We should pray for them. But there is something very wrong if that is all you do. Especially when you take massive sums of money from the @NRA. https://t.co/kICEOhsAPY  Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) May 18, 2018

Rep. Lieu was right. There is nothing wrong with offering thoughts and prayers. The problem is that is all Republicans offer. When Sen. Cruz offers thoughts and prayers and then votes against protecting students with common sense gun legislation, he is supporting more harm coming to students while pretending to care. If Republicans arent going to do more, their thoughts and prayers are a cover for their willingness to do nothing.

Thoughts and prayers are fine, but they arent policy. Thoughts and prayers dont keep guns out of the hands of shooters. Thoughts and prayers dont protect kids when the bullets start flying. America needs Senators who will vote to protect kids in schools. Ted Cruz isnt that Senator. The only way that the violence is going to be stopped is if Senators like Ted Cruz either put the lives of children ahead of the NRA or get voted out of office.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.
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Michael Avenatti has announced that he will be leading a big resistance rally to be held at the same time as Trumps rally in Texas.

Avenatti tweeted:

I am excited to announce that I will be leading a large resistance rally in Texas at the exact same time of Trumps (details tba). All groups are welcome to join. We must fight fire with fire and we must send a message that we will fight to make America America again. #Basta  Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) September 2, 2018

Michael Avenatti is giving Trump direct competition

Since Trump only goes to the most Republican areas of the country, most of the time, his rallies dont face any direct competition. It is surprising that more people and organizations dont do what Avenatti is doing. Tom Steyers movement to impeach Trump should consider holding competing rallies near where the president is speaking. Avenatti knows how to get under Trumps skin, and the competing Texas rally is a smart move that will drive Trump up the wall.

Avenatti is trolling Trump on multiple levels

Avenatti is openly flirting with running for the Democratic nomination in 2020, but the idea that the lawyer for Story Daniels is going to be rallying at the same time as Trump is the ultimate troll job. The message to Trump is that his scandals and crimes are following him. Donald Trump cant escape his past deeds, and Michael Avenatti is going to serve as a living reminder in Texas.

Trump won the presidency by trolling his opponents, but Michael Avenatti has turned out to be one of the more effective trolls of Trump. More people should learn from Avenatti and challenge one of Trumps last remaining platforms. People hold counter-rallies when neo-Nazis or the KKK come to town, so there is no reason that Trump and his hate speech should be treated any differently.

For more discussion about this story join our Rachel Maddow and MSNBC group.

Follow Jason Easley on Facebook.
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New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo is up for reelection this year and is doing his best to shore up his support among his core constituencies. And for Democrats in New York, that means the Puerto Rican community.

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to help families sue Trump over Hurricane Maria response

New York Governor Andrew Cuomo to help families sue Trump over Hurricane Maria response https://t.co/MybL8jXj5G pic.twitter.com/HgfOw5MJs9  CBS News (@CBSNews) September 3, 2018

Cuomo went to a largely Puerto Rican church on Sunday and told the congregation that he was going to provide help to families to sue President Donald Trump and his administration. The basis of the lawsuits that Cuomo was suggesting would be the failure of the federal government to provide adequate help to the millions of people affected by Hurricane Maria last year.

The governor said that the Trump administration has violated Puerto Ricans rights of equal protection under the law, as provided in the U.S. Constitution.

Cuomo also said that the state of New York is committed to helping Hurricane Maria victims in Puerto Rico rebuild their homes and businesses after the terrible storm destroyed much of the island in September 2017.

Although not a state, Puerto Rico is a U.S. territory, and citizens of Puerto Rico are also citizens of the United States. They cannot vote in U.S. elections unless they move to the mainland U.S., at which time they are legally able to register to vote in their new states of residence. After the devastation of Maria, tens of thousands of Puerto Ricans relocated to the mainland, primarily to the states of New York and Florida.

President Trump never tried to help Puerto Rico. Florida got attention, Texas got attention, and Puerto Rico got the short end of the stick. That is not just wrong and unethical and despicable, it is also illegal, Cuomo emphasized on Sunday at the Heavenly Vision Christian Center in the Bronx.

Cuomo issued a press statement in which he set forth five problems with the U.S. governments response to and treatment of citizens in the wake Hurricane Maria.

The five biggest issues listed by Cuomo are:

A three week wait for help from federal agencies, A Lack of adequate funding for storm relief, A Lack of food and water for the citizens harmed by the storm, Very Sparse resources available to help victims, and Levels of relief that were not acceptable.

Were going to hold King Trump to the Constitution of the United States, and the Constitution said equal protection under the law. Puerto Rico did not receive equal protection under the law, Cuomo said. New York is standing with Puerto Rico the way we said we would. We are going to fight back and were going to show this president that the law is the law.

In Cuomos remarks and press release he did not provide any more details about his plan.

Cuomo, who is a seeking a third term as governor, also criticized Trumps border wall proposal and his reaction to the white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, last year.

Somebody has to stand up to this president. He is a bully, Cuomo said.

Last week a report was released saying that Hurricane Maria is now considered the most deadly U.S. natural disaster in the last century. Puerto Ricos government requested an independent review by George Washington University, which found Maria killed an estimated 2,975 people  nearly 50 times the previously announced official death toll of 64.
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When Donald Trump ran for the Republican nomination for president in 2016, he popularized the term Lyin Ted when referring to his then-opponent Senator Ted Cruz of Texas. Despite much animosity between the two candidates then, Cruz is locked in a tough reelection battle now, and he has asked the president to come to Texas to help him campaign.

But anti-Cruz activists in Texas are not going to let Trump and Cruz forget the past, and they have raised nearly ten thousand dollars to pay for a billboard to show Texans what Trump had to say about Cruz just two years ago.

David Hogg helps raise thousands to place billboard of Trumps anti-Cruz tweet in Texas

David Hogg helps raise thousands to place billboard of Trump's anti-Cruz tweet in Texas https://t.co/qbScQsPlbC pic.twitter.com/NXeEW33a0B  The Hill (@thehill) September 3, 2018

A GoFundMe page organized by USA Latinx, a political group focused on supporting Latin candidates, easily exceeded its $6,000 fundraising goal in just a few hours. Anti-gun activist and Parkland, Fla., school shooting survivor David Hogg helped promote the project, as did Claude Taylor, the chairman of the liberal Mad Dog PAC.

President Donald Trump will be campaigning to help Sen. Ted Cruz win his re-election, the page reads. A rally is being planned, according to Trump at the biggest stadium in Texas. We are planning to display the presidents own words about Cruz from 2016 on a mobile billboard, to remind Texans of the truth.

Trump recently announced that an October rally is in the works to lend Cruz support. Im picking the biggest stadium in Texas we can find, Trump said Friday on Twitter.

The proposed sign will feature a February 2016 tweet from Trump criticizing Cruz as an all talk, no action politician.

Why would the people of Texas support Ted Cruz when he has accomplished absolutely nothing for them, Trumps tweet reads. He is another all talk, no action pol!

Trump, after being asked for help by Cruz, agreed to campaign for the senator in his tough Senate race against Democratic Rep. Beto ORourke.

Recent polls have shown Cruz and ORourke to be in a very close race, and few people have given the challenger much of a chance to beat the incumbent in deep-red Texas.

After Trump announced he was coming to Texas to help Cruz campaign Stormy Daniels lawyer Michael Avenatti immediately said that he would also have a rally in Texas at the same time as the president.

He tweeted:

I am excited to announce that I will be leading a large resistance rally in Texas at the exact same time of Trumps (details tba). All groups are welcome to join. We must fight fire with fire and we must send a message that we will fight to make America America again.

I am excited to announce that I will be leading a large resistance rally in Texas at the exact same time of Trumps (details tba). All groups are welcome to join. We must fight fire with fire and we must send a message that we will fight to make America America again. #Basta  Michael Avenatti (@MichaelAvenatti) September 2, 2018

As we wrote in PoliticusUSA yesterday:

Avenatti is openly flirting with running for the Democratic nomination in 2020, but the idea that the lawyer for Story Daniels is going to be rallying at the same time as Trump is the ultimate troll job. The message to Trump is that his scandals and crimes are following him. Donald Trump cant escape his past deeds, and Michael Avenatti is going to serve as a living reminder in Texas.
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Former White House aide Omarosa Manigault Newman was a media sensation a few weeks ago when she released recordings she made while employed in the Trump administration. Omarosa was promoting her new book about her days in the White House when she disclosed that much of what is discussed in her tell all book can be verified due to the recordings she made of conversations that people thought were private.

Since Omarosas recordings were made public, people in the White House have been very embarrassed because they represent a massive breach of security.

So how did Omarosa get away with recording everything that happened in an environment that is supposed to be highly secured?

Well, according to Axios, it was all done on her personal cell phone.

According to the source:

She carried two cell phones with her at all times, but kept her personal phone hidden, and letting people see only her government-issued phone.

She said she recorded almost all of her conversations by putting the conversations on her work phone on speaker. She would then record the conversations using her personal phone in her pocket or purse.

Before going into White House meetings, Omarosa said she press record on her personal phone which was hidden.

Concerning why she did it, Omarosa said that she made the recordings so she could go back and refer to them later instead of depending just on her memory of what was said in the meetings. She also said she wanted to cover her own butt indicating a level of paranoia that might have been appropriate in the circumstances.

Many people have asked why Omarosa was able to make the secret recordings so easily in the White House where national secrets are discussed daily on a routine basis. The only explanation that has come out is that people in the White House didnt pay much attention to personal phones until it was later discovered that almost everyone had one. Leaking of confidential information from inside the White House was discovered to be a big problem, but only after Trump had been in office for many months.

Since her book tour began several weeks ago Omarosa has released several revealing recordings made during her time in the White House.

In one recording, chief of staff John Kelly can be heard firing her from her White House position. Omarosa apparently secretly recorded this conversation with Kelly in the White House Situation Room, from which electronic devices are supposed to be banned.

In another tape, President Trump acts surprised that Manigault Newman was fired. Omarosa has also said she has recordings of the president using the n-word.

Omarosa has said several times that she believes making the recordings and releasing them was the right thing to do.

If I did not have this recording, people would still believe the false, incredible story that I was running around the White House  that I tried to charge the residence of the White House. People would still think that I was trying to set off alarms, she told Chuck Todd on NBCs Meet the Press at the time. So yes, I recorded myself and I have no regret about it.

A former White House press secretary last month called Manigault Newmans taping of Kelly a massive violation of every security protocol.

Omarosa recently said she is ready to testify at Donald Trumps impeachment trial.
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Former President Barack Obama has kept kept out of the spotlight since leaving office, but he will soon start campaigning to help Democrats in Novembers midterm elections. He is eager to help his party take back control of the House of Representatives, help vulnerable Senate incumbents win, and help state parties win legislative races in their own states.

The popular former president will start the campaign season by giving a speech at the University of Illinois on Friday. In the coming weeks he will also campaign for Democratic candidates in California, Illinois, Ohio and Pennsylvania.

But, as it turns out not all Democrats want Obamas help this year.

Unsurprisingly, Democratic candidates running in states won by Donald Trump in 2016 by large margins dont see Obamas involvement as a help to them.

There are a few Democrats in states that voted for Trump who say they hope Obama will campaign for them, mostly in the upper midwest. These candidates include Senators Bob Casey Jr. (Pa.), Debbie Stabenow (Mich.) and Sherrod Brown (Ohio). In all of these states Trumps popularity has declined precipitously since the 2016 election, and they have large numbers of Obama supporters.

But other Democratic candidates, such as Senators Jon Tester (Mont.) and Heidi Heitkamp (N.D.) are holding their own in pro-Trump states and dont see how Obama can do them any good.

Were not going to use any surrogates. Surrogates are fine but we dont need them. The race is myself and Matt Rosendale and thats the way we want to keep it, Tester said in an interview. Rosendale is his GOP challenger.

Asked if she thought Obama might show up in North Dakota, Heitkamp said: Nope, no.

He threatened to campaign against me once so I dont think hes coming out there, she said.

While Obama is very popular with many voters in the core Democratic base, especially young and minority voters, Democrats are afraid that his presence in battleground states may fire up conservative and the anti-Obama forces.

Trump wants nothing more than a foil. He knows he can activate the other side, said a source close to Obama. Barack is going to be involved this fall in a very Obamaesque, smart way.

Democrats believe that the most important way Obama can influence the November election is to motivate infrequent voters to vote in November. This will be the focus of his speech on Friday.

He will echo his call to reject the rising strain of authoritarian politics and policies. And he will preview arguments hell make this fall, specifically that Americans must not fall victim to our own apathy by refusing to do the most fundamental thing demanded of us as citizens: vote, said Obama communications director Katie Hill.

Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), the chairman of the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC), said Democrats are thankful for Obamas help but each individual candidate must decide whether to invite him to help campaign in their states.
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President Donald Trump picked West Virginia to announce his plan to reduce pollution controls on coal-fired power plants, which is no surprise.

West Virginia loves coal, and coal miners love Trump, but what both of them may not love is the fact that a reduction in pollution controls is going to greatly increase the number of people who die prematurely from pollution created by burning coal. It will also greatly increase the number of people who get sick with serious illnesses such as heart and lung problems.

When he made his announcement somehow Trump left out those details of the life-threatening side-effects of using coal to create electrical energy.

Even though they will be getting sick and dying at higher rates, it is not expected that Trumps actions will reduce his popularity among West Virginians.

An analysis done by his own Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) concludes that the rollback of Obama-era pollution controls will lead to many more people dying and suffering health problems that they otherwise would not have.

Clean-air controls since the 1980s stopped the columns of black soot that used to rise from coal smokestacks in the region. The clean air rules reduced the number of people dying from coal-fired power plants substantially.

Technology has changed, and now pollutants rise from smokestacks as gases before solidifying into invisible particles small enough to pass through lungs and into bloodstreams.

An EPA analysis says those pollutants would increase under Trumps plan, when compared to what would happen under the Obama rules. This will result in many thousands of more heart attacks, asthma problems and other illnesses than would have happened without Trumps new rules.

The EPA says up to 1,500 more people will die each year under Trumps plan. And the areas that will be hit the hardest are in Trump country  the coal mining regions of West Virginia. There could be dozens of new deaths and hundreds of new serious illnesses each year because of Trumps plan.

Obamas Clean Power Plan targeted climate-changing carbon dioxide and would have curbed harmful emissions of carbon dioxide and other pollutants from the coal-fired power plants. It would have increased federal regulation of emissions from the nations electrical grid and broadly promoted natural gas, solar power and other cleaner energy.

Trumps Affordable Clean Energy program will dismantle President Barack Obamas 2015 Clean Power Plan which has not yet been implemented due to court battles.

Trumps plan will give up much of the federal oversight of existing coal-fired power plants. Not only that, but the government will no longer promote cleaner energy. Individual states will decide how much to regulate coal power plants in their own states.

At his public announcement Trump said Im getting rid of some of these ridiculous rules and regulations, which are killing our companies  and our jobs.

There was no mention of the increases in harmful emissions that would result, compared to the Obama plan, or the health risks.

In West Virginia, coal is popular, and politicians who support coal get elected.

Vivian Stockman of the Ohio Valley Environmental Coalition was protesting outside Trumps rally.

Our state is beholden to coal. Our politicians are beholden to coal. Meanwhile, our people are being poisoned, she said.
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In one of several key political races in South Carolina this fall, Democrat Constance Anastopoulo, left, is looking to upset Republican Attorney General Alan Wilson. File/Provided. File/John A. Carlos II/Special to The Post and Courier
Donald John Dahling, 93, died on Aug. 22, 2018, at the Mayo Clinic Health System Hospital in Lake City.

Donald was born at the Lake City Hospital on March 29, 1925, and was the only child of Frieda Holst Dahling and John Henry Dahling. Donald lived and went to school at public and private schools in Lake City. His parents lived at 621 N Eighth St., then moving to 414 N Eighth St., around the time of Dons graduation from Lincoln High School. He was confirmed at St. Johns Lutheran Church in 1937.

On June 14, 1943, Don was inducted into the Army and left for training at Camp Walters, Texas. After finishing basic training, he was assigned to the 31st Infantry Division in regional headquarters company. He went overseas to New Guinea to serve as a communication lineman and radio operator. He served in New Guinea, Morti, the Aleutian Islands and the Philippines. Don was one of the first to visit Agusian Valley, where they were the first white people to be seen in that land. His only injury during his service was a lacerated arm because of falling from a coconut tree after being shot at by a Japanese sniper. After the atomic bombs were dropped on Japan, he remained on the islands until his time came to be shipped home.

On Aug. 2, 1949, Don and Evlyn Deloris Copp were united in marriage. They lived in Lake City for a few years before moving to Red Wing, where they were both employed. The two had one son, James Donald, who has resided in Virginia for the past 25 years. They have two grandchildren, Jason James Dahling, married to Samantha Chau, and Lindsay Jeanne Matthews, married to Seth Matthews.

While living in Red Wing, Don was employed at the Johnson Tire Company until 1956, when the family moved to La Crosse, Wis. In La Crosse, Don worked for various tire companies as an over-the-road salesman. Don had several health setbacks in the late 50s and early 60s, and the family moved backed to Lake City to be near their families.

Donald was a member of the local VFW and American Legion. He held the position of treasurer for the Lake City Country Club for nearly 18 years. He and Evlyn were members of First Lutheran Church, where they were active in many areas. Don was a member of the Lake City Lions Club, helped with the local Boy Scouts of America as a treasurer, served on the Lake City Street Commission and was a board member for the Lutheran Brotherhood Chapter for four years. In 1995, Don and Evelyn became co-directors of the Lake City Food Shelf and held that position until 2010. During their time with the food shelf, they went from helping ten families per month to more than a hundred families per month.

Don is survived by his son, James (Mary) Dahling of Carrollton, Va.; and two grandchildren, Jason James (Samantha Chau) Dahling of Cranbury, N.J., and Lindsay (Seth) Matthews of Arlington, Texas.

A memorial service will be 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 15, at First Lutheran Church in Lake City with Pastor Tim Ehling officiating. Burial will be at Lakewood Cemetery. Visitation will be one hour prior to the service at the church. Military honors will be by the Lake City VFW Post No. 8729 and American Legion Post No. 110.

Arrangements are with the Mahn Family Funeral Home Anderson-Peterson Chapel in Lake City. Online condolences can be sent to www.mahnfamilyfuneralhome.com.
The Guam Visitors Bureau confirmed Monday that its board and management have decided to reorganize the operations of the bureaus Japan office.

GVBs Japan operations will transition from a GVB-run office to an outsourced marketing representative, which is the model used for all other offices representing Guam in its source markets, a GVB press release states.

We want to be very clear. GVB Japan will remain open and active. We are simply reorganizing to be more efficient, innovative, and responsive in this modern age of tourism, GVB board Chairman Milton Morinaga said in a press release. The Japan market is critical to Guams economy and GVB is 100 precent committed to increasing the number of visitors from Japan. We have been proactive in this approach from the start. This change will help us better promote our island and better serve our stakeholders.

The GVB Japan office opened in 1976, with a location in Tokyo and later in Osaka. The office manages travel trade sales and marketing support, as well as visitor information services. In addition, GVB has an advertising and public relations representative for consumer marketing and promotions. GVB acting Japan Director Hiroshi Kaneko will continue serving the bureau as its country manager.

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GVB CEO and President Nathan Denight said a request for proposals will be issued."Our goal is to have a marketing representative in place by early 2019, he said.

Meanwhile, GVB is preparing to send a Guam delegation to Tourism Expo Japan, formerly called the Japan Association of Travel Agents Tourism Expo, from Sept. 20 to 23 at the Tokyo Big Sight.

The four-day event is considered the worlds largest tourism trade fair, which attracted more than 190,000 people in 2017.
Sen. Amy Klobuchar says she regrets that Democrats eliminated the filibuster for approving judicial nominees other than for the Supreme Court. Klobuchar supported this move at the time.

I suppose its natural for Klobuchar to express regret over the decision. Republicans cited it as grounds for eliminating the filibuster for Supreme Court nominees. This enabled them to confirm Neil Gorsuch and, in all likelihood, will enable them to confirm Brett Kananaugh.

Ive come to believe, however, that the filibuster had to go  if not during the Obama administration than under President Trump. Why? Because its no longer possible, under ordinary circumstances, to get 60 votes to confirm nominees for the Supreme Court, and even courts of appeals, who share the presidents view of judging and the Constitution.

Think about it. How many of the eight current Supreme Court Justices could get 60 votes today in a Senate where the nominating presidents party holds less than, say, 56 seats? Given what we know now about the eight Justices, the answer is none.

How many of the eight would be confirmed in todays environment knowing what was known about them when they were nominated, plus what would be unearthed about them in this era of over-the-top research of nominees? Probably none, though Justice Breyer might have a chance.

Its not just that the political parties are now so polarized. Its also that the law has become thoroughly politicized. Judges are political actors now in cases with political ramifications, and more and more cases carry political ramifications.

The only nominees above the district court level likely to gain 60 votes in a normal Senate would be nominees with a scant judicial and political track record and judges whose track record is so wishy-washy that no president would want to nominate them. Neither party wants those kinds of judges.

Thus, Klobuchar shouldnt regret ending the filibuster for nominees below the Supreme Court level. It enabled the Democrats to land the first punch  President Obamas packing of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, the nations second most important court.

Sure, the GOP is hitting back harder now. But even without the Democrats move, Republicans would have ended the judicial filibuster, as they came close to doing during the George W. Bush administration. They simply would not have tolerated the obstruction of two Supreme Court nominees, plus virtually every Trump court of appeals nominees.
Last year, my wife and I visited Italy for the first time. In Rome, we arranged for a guide to take us through the Vatican. I envisioned an elderly gentleman, but our guide turned out to be an attractive young woman who, I soon decided, was a practicing Catholic. At one point, she asked me guardedly what I thought of Pope Francis. Im not a Catholic, I said, so its probably none of my business. But I dont like him. He seems to care more about left-wing politics than about Christianity. When it comes to politics and economics, he is ignorant; he should stick to theology. She discreetly kept silent, but I was pretty sure she agreed.

I didnt know the half of it. Steve described the scandal that is now engulfing the papacyor would be engulfing it, if reporters were not trying to protect their fellow left-wingerhere. The scandal begins with Pennsylvanias Cardinal McCarrick, whose career as a homosexual who corrupted priests and parishioners alike, apparently on an epic scale, has come to light. Pope Francis has protected McCarrick, apparently reversing sanctions that had been imposed on him by Pope Benedict, while transferring him to Washington, D.C.

Pope Franciss role was brought to light by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano of Ulpiana in the Balkans, who himself discussed McCarrick with Francis and who has alleged, based on his own experience, that Francis was personally involved in protecting McCarrick, who was an important booster of Francis in his bid for the papacy.

The broader context of the scandal is that the American Catholic church welcomed an influx of homosexuals into the priesthood several decades ago. These homosexual priests were the source of the scandals that have devastated the Catholic church in America. It appears that they remain a major power within the church hierarchy, that they supported Francis in his ascension to the papacy, and that he continues to ally himself with them.

At First Things, John Waters has an article titled Francis and the Journalists. He observes that what has bedeviled the American church is not pedophilia, a rare and plainly aberrant condition, but rather homosexuality:

We have known since the John Jay Report published by the US bishops in 2004 that the overwhelming majority of abuse in the Church was carried out against teenage boys. The levels of pedophilia in the Church are shown by this report to be below those of the general populationwhereas the levels of homosexual abuse were many multiples of the general situation.

***

[T]he problem arises in large part from the invasion of the priesthood in the 1970s and 1980s by unprecedented numbers of gay men, devoid of vocations, who now seek to undermine Church teaching on all sexual questions and whorightly or wronglyhave come to see Pope Francis as an ally. This fifth column, the peel masquerading as the fruit, is the chief agent of the coverups of the abuses its own members have perpetrated.

For several decades, international news media have enthusiastically promoted (while usually misrepresenting) the story of homosexual abuse among the Catholic priesthood. And yet, now that the scandal has been dropped at the door of the Pope (!) by an archbishop speaking of his own experience, the press has fallen silent. Why?

Almost from the beginning, the mediawho have otherwise sought at every turn to bury the Churchhave adopted Pope Francis as their champion, creating an entirely bogus, indeed asinine, good popebad pope dichotomy between Francis and his predecessor, Pope Benedict XVI. This is why Archbishop Viganos statement was not widely reported in the Irish media (or indeed elsewhere) until late in the day last Sunday, and then only grudgingly, with the reports laced with innuendo about Viganos motivation and timing.

Why was Vigano not portrayed as a heroic whistleblower? Because he blew the whistle on a leftist pope, whose views on homosexuality, and many other issues, are shared by pretty much all reporters.

The popes exchange with journalists on the plane back to Italy must rank as one of the strangest episodes of mutual avoidance in the history of journalism. An issue that journalists have prosecuted with extreme vigor for a quarter-century had finally arrived at the door of a pope: a direct and concrete accusation that, in a specific instance, he had protected a serial sexual abuser. Yet the omerta of the day continued into the early exchanges of the press conference, with several questions from Irish journalists making no reference to the matter. Then Anna Matanga of CBSthe first mainstream platform to cover the Vigano story on Sundayasked: This morning, very early, a document by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano came out. In it, he says that in 2013 he had a personal talk with you at the Vatican, and that in that talk, he spoke to you explicitly of the behavior of and the sexual abuse by formerCardinal McCarrick. I wanted to ask you if this was true. I also wanted to ask something else: The archbishop also said that Pope Benedict sanctioned McCarrick, that he had forbidden him to live in a seminary, to celebrate Mass in public, he couldnt travel, he was sanctioned by the Church. May I ask you whether these two things are true? The pope replied: I will respond to your question, but I would prefer lastfirst we speak about the trip, and then other topics.  I read the statement this morning, and I must tell you sincerely that, I must say this, to you and all those who are interested. Read the statement carefully and make your own judgment. I will not say a single word about this. I believe the statement speaks for itself. And you have the journalistic capacity to draw your own conclusions. Its an act of faith. When some time passes and you have drawn your conclusions, I may speak. But, I would like your professional maturity to do the work for you. It will be good for you. Thats good.

Huh?

To the uninitiated, this seems like a desperate prevarication mixed with feeble flattery, a playing for time. But if it was a prevarication, it turned out to be an effective one: The popes refusal to answer the question was meekly accepted by the journalists present, who would surely have brought the plane down had the pontiffs name been Benedict or John Paul. The Vigano story has since gained little traction in the mainstream, except for the purpose of discrediting the archbishop.

It seems pretty clear that liberal reporters and editors view Pope Francis as an ally, maybe one who could decisively neutralize their long-time adversary, the Catholic church. Hence they are protecting him against what would, with a conservative pope, be a scandal of historic proportions.

Waters concludes this piece by offering a translation of what Francis said to the journalists on the airplane. I think his interpretation is fair:

Read the statement in the knowledge of the relationship you and I share: We are men and women of the world and like-minded on what is important. We know where we stand on matters like homosexuality and homosexual priests. But be careful how you handle this Vigano businessa wrong word could undo all we have achieved. I have faith in you to figure out who this man is. Do your work well and there will be no need for me to risk my position. Once you have defused the situation, I will deal with Vigano for the record. We are all adults here. I know I can count on you. I need your help on this, but we have an understanding that has worked well so far. Trust me.

Liberal journalists cover a liberal pope. We live in an era that is corrupt in many ways, but I think the corruption of the press is the worst corruption of all.

UPDATE: A reader points out that while Cardinal McCarricks predations were uncovered by an investigation in Pennsylvania, McCarrick himself had jurisdiction in New York, New Jersey and Washington, D.C.
This is good news that I missed a few days ago: U.S. halts funding to U.N. agency helping Palestinian refugees. I would say that headline is wrong in two respects.

The United States on Friday halted all funding to a U.N. agency that helps Palestinian refugees in a decision further heightening tensions between the Palestinian leadership and the Trump administration. A spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas denounced the decision as a flagrant assault against the Palestinian people and a defiance of U.N. resolutions.

This is a theme that recurs throughout the Reuters article. The Palestinians think we have an obligation to support them:

In Gaza, the Islamist group Hamas condemned the U.S move as a grave escalation against the Palestinian people. The American decision aims to wipe out the right of return and is a grave U.S escalation against the Palestinian people, said Hamas spokesman Sami Abu Zuhri.

Yes, I hope that President Trump intends to wipe out the fictitious right of return once and for all. UNRWA has been a key player preserving the myth that millions of Palestinians are refugees.

The Trump administration explained its decision:

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the business model and fiscal practices of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) made it an irredeemably flawed operation. The administration has carefully reviewed the issue and determined that the United States will not make additional contributions to UNRWA, she said in a statement. Nauert said the agencys endlessly and exponentially expanding community of entitled beneficiaries is simply unsustainable and has been in crisis mode for many years.

At PJ Media, David Goldman hailed the administrations action:

President Trump appears to have undertaken a revolution in Middle Eastern diplomacy. Reportedly, the United States will eliminate refugee status for the descendants of Palestinian refugees of 1948, the only group of people anywhere in the world to inherit refugee status. The U.S. also reportedly will eliminate funding for UNRWA, the only UN agency dedicated to a single group of refugees, namely the Palestinian Arabs.

***

This is long overdue.  Roughly equal numbers of Arabs and Jews were displaced as Arab states expelled Jewish populations that in some cases, e.g. Iraq, had lived there for 2,500 years, long before the Arabs. The young Jewish state absorbed almost a million Jewish refugees from Muslim countries while the displaced Arabs were kept in permanent refugee status as a bargaining chip. Right of return simply meant Muslim refusal to accept the existence of a Jewish state.

Exactly. This is the sort of sound policy the Trump administration is steadily carrying out, while journalists obsess on the presidents tweets.
Charles Hurt devotes an entire column to Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchars disgusting performance yesterday morning on Meet the Press. His column appears at the Washington Times under the headline From funerals to talk shows, the Washington gutter oozes everywhere.

In commenting on her MTP appearance, I focused on Klobuchars game of dodgeball with Chuck Todd on the straightforward subject of Keith Ellison, the man from Farrakhan. Hurt picks up another thread of Klobuchars comments, this one on Trump Supreme Court nominee Judge Brett Kavanaugh:

[S]he claims to have read 148,000 documents that reveal Judge Kavanaugh to be so heinous as to be unfit for the high court.

OK, lets say Ms. Klobuchar spent two minutes reading each document. That would be 296,000 minutes  or 205 days  reading these documents. Which is pretty remarkable considering Judge Kavanaugh was nominated 55 days ago.

There is another word for this. It is called a lie. And the person who utters it is known as a liar, even if the person she tells this lie to is so sleepy-eyed as to appear to be fully asleep.

But this isnt even the most astonishing part of Ms. Klobuchars sewer dive on national television.

She goes on to say that as horrific as all these documents reveal Judge Kavanaugh to be, she is not allowed to share the documents with the American people. She is not even allowed to tell us what they say.

I cant even tell you about them right now on the show, she told her sleepy-eyed interlocutor, who gazed back, sleepily.

So, at this point, I am starting to think Mr. Kavanaugh is a racist, child-molesting serial killer. I mean, even Pope Francis would boot this guy out of the church clergy. If only we could see these devastating top secret memos!

Well, it turns out, Ms. Klobuchar cannot tell the truth even about the secrecy of these devastating memos that reveal Judge Kavanaugh to be so unworthy that we innocent taxpayers are not allowed to see.

Last month, Sen. Chuck Grassley, Iowa Republican and Judiciary Committee chairman, asked Democrats on the committee to identify any of the classified records they thought might shed light on Judge Kavanaughs record.

Only one Democrat  Ms. Klobuchar  took Mr. Grassley up on his offer. She asked for 12 records to be made public.

All were.

There was no indication in them, however, that Judge Kavanaugh is a racist, child-molesting serial killer.

Still, Ms. Klobuchar is voting against his nomination to the Supreme Court. And continues to peddle dishonest political smut from supposedly secret documents that nobody can see.
Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar has a certain genius for avoiding outspoken stands on important issues and leading the way on trivial matters calculated to garner broad public support. If she secures a favorable headline or two in the process, its no coincidence. It is the true object of her efforts and its not too difficult. The hometown newspaper is always happy to pitch in on public relations, as Stephen Montemayor does today in the Star Tribune article Rare deal has Minnesota federal court on verge of finally filling 2 long-vacant seats. With hard-hitting coverage like this, its no wonder that she will be reelected this November with something like 65 percent of the vote.

Senator Klobuchar is a reliable vote for the Democratic Party line, but she is quiet about it. She doesnt want to upset anybody. She wants to preside over an era of good feelings  of good feelings about Amy Klobuchar.

If I were Senator Klobuchar, I would be happy as hell to have arrived in the United States Senate largely on the strength of a good name. Her father was a talented sportswriter and daily columnist for the Minneapolis Tribune. Early in her career I had a case with her in federal court in St. Paul. In one court appearance, she identified herself for the record, as did each of the several attorneys appearing on the case. When the court reporter asked her to spell her name, the judge exploded: Good God, man, dont you read the newspaper? Having read the paper over the years, we all knew how to spell Klobuchar.

Like so many Senators, however, Klobuchar has aspirations for higher office. Thus her 2015 book The Senator Next Door: A Memoir From the Heartland. Even the title is warm and cuddly. In the book we learn that she [has] fashioned her own political philosophy grounded in her belief that partisan flame-throwing takes no courage at all; what really matters is forging alliances with unlikely partners to solve the nations problems. As I say, she has a certain genius.

Yet Senator Klobuchar is a nasty Democratic partisan. The bipartisanship she seeks to convey is purely instrumental to her partisanship. She even fools some of her Republican colleagues with it. I would prefer unanimity on the issues basic to our freedom but, short of that, Im in favor of frank partisanship. Let one party at least stand for freedom and give the voters a choice.

Senator Klobuchar wears her supposed bipartisanship as a mask. It is the guise under which she shows her public face, as is her related persona (shes nice). Anyone who deals with her or observes her closely knows Senator Klobuchar is a 24-carat phony.

Klobuchar put her qualities vividly on display in her interview with Chuck Todd on Meet the Press yesterday. The full seven-minute segment is posted here along with a write-up by Leigh Ann Caldwell. I was interested in her response to Todds questions about Minnesota Attorney General candidate Keith Ellison (clip below).

Ellison is avoiding charges of domestic abuse from a recent girlfriend. Its not the most serious problem with Ellisons candidacy  far from it  but its the only one Todd appears to know anything about.

Todd asked Klobuchar whether Ellison has sufficiently explained himself to voters on the abuse question. He is still addressing this to [sic] the people of Minnesota, she said. (Actually, no.) And I think its being reviewed, she added. (Ah, the uses of the passive voice!)

But thats not all. And I know that he is moving forward, she said. (I believe that moving on is the applicable term of art.)

Then she throws in, He got the votes in the [August 14] primary. (Wow! Any port in a storm.)

Would she campaign with Ellison? He hasnt asked me to campaign with him, Klobuchar said. She would campaign with our ticket when the time comes. (Translation: she would prefer not to be seen in public with him.)

The 50-second clip gives you just about everything you need to know about Amy Klobuchar.
Asia-Pacific Polyethylene Market

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 05:42:51

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According to Goldstein Research, Asia-Pacific polyethylene production is expected to reach 70.6 million metric tons by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of 6.2% over the forecast period, 2017-2025. Presence of largest plastic and packaging industries in the region and increasing imports of polyethylene on the back of high demand are driving the growth of Asia-Pacific polyethylene market. Asia-Pacific Polyethylene market segmentation has been done on the basis of technologies, product type, end-user, and geography. high-density polyethylene (HDPE) accounted for the largest market share of 44.8% in 2017, on the back of its application in making plastic bags, bottles, and equipment that provides high strength to weight ratio and high resistance to chemicals and acids. Asia-Pacific Polyethylene market is dominated by China with 58.4% market share on the back of being the largest importer and manufacturer of polyethylene. Emerging economies such as India is expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.8% over the forecast period owing to the expansion of the plastic industry and implementation of industrial automation to increase the production.Browse Full Report:Market SegmentationOn the basis of our in-depth analysis, Asia-PacificPolyethylene Market can be segmented as follows:By Technologies Films and Sheets extrusion Injection Molding Pipe Extrusion Blow Molding Others (spinning, etc.)By Product Type High Density Polyethylene (HDPE) Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) Linear Low Density Polyethylene (LLDPE)By End-User Packaging Industry Plastics Industry Construction industry Automobile Industry Electronic and Electrical Industry Others (Chemical Industry, Aerospace, etc.)By Region China Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Japan Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 India Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Australia Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Taiwan Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 South Korea Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Indonesia Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Thailand Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Singapore Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024 New Zealand Polyethylene Market Analysis, 2016-2024Asia Pacific PolyethyleneMarket Outlook 2024 contains a detailed overview of the Asia Pacific polyethylene market. On the basis of our in-depth analysis, the market can be segmented in terms of market segmentation by technologies, product type, end-users, and countries.Download Exclusive Sample Report:The Asia Pacific Polyethylene Market Report encompasses the competitive outlook of major players that summarises the business strategies, revenue distribution, product portfolio, financial analysis, R&D activities and investments. The comprehensive analysis of polyethylene market report helps the clients to assess their business strategies as per the competitive environment in the market space.Major players of the Asia Pacificpolyethylene market discussed in the report are BASF, The Dow Chemical Company, China Petrochemical, Reliance Industries Limited, ONGC Petro additions Ltd, DuPont, LyondellBasell Industries Holdings, Exxon Mobil, SABIC, Sumitomo Chemical, etc.Further, Asia Pacific Polyethylene Market Report encompasses the major trends & growth opportunities, market dynamics, and other growth factors. The PolyethyleneMarket outlook also comprises of key challenges for the market players, risk analysis, SWOT Analysis, BPS analysis and Market Attractiveness. The report also includes the expert analysis which provides a complete overview of the market post analysis of the economic, political, environmental & social factors of each region and country.Browse Similar Report: https://www.goldsteinresearch.com/report/global-polyethylene-market
According to Goldstein Research, Asia-Pacific solar water heater production is expected to reach USD 3.9billion by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of 6.8% over the forecast period, 2017-2025.

Asia-Pacific Solar Water Heater Market

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 05:49:24

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According to Goldstein Research, Asia-Pacific solar water heater production is expected to reach USD 3.9billion by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of 6.8% over the forecast period, 2017-2025. Zero-emissions and zero-waste environmental solution to heating water and the geographical location of the region in terms of receiving solar energy are driving the growth of Asia-Pacific solar water heater market. Asia-Pacific Solar water heater market segmentation has been done on the basis of product type, component, distribution channel, end-user, and geography. Active solar water heater accounted for the largest market share of 56.4% in 2017 of the total Asia-Pacific solar water heater market. Asia-Pacific Solar water heater market is dominated by China with43.8% market share in 2017 due to its increasing involvement in clean energy heating on the back of its 13th five-year plan (2016-2020), thus it has connected solar water heaters in 180 single family buildings among other finished projects.Browse Full Report:Market SegmentationOn the basis of our in-depth analysis, Asia-Pacific Solar Water Heater Market can be segmented as follows:By Product Type Active Solar Water Heaters Passive Solar Water HeatersBy Component Solar Collectors Evacuated Tube Flat Plate Unglazed Water Storage TanksBy Distribution Channel Online Stores Offline StoresBy End-User Residential sector Commercial sector Industrial sectorBy Region China Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Japan Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 India Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Australia Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Taiwan Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 South Korea Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Indonesia Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Thailand Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Singapore Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 New Zealand Solar Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024Asia Pacific Solar Water Heater Market Outlook 2024 contains a detailed overview of the Asia Pacific solar water heater market. On the basis of our in-depth analysis, the market can be segmented in terms of market segmentation by product type, components, distribution channel, end-users, and countries.Download Exclusive Sample Report:The Asia Pacific Solar Water Heater Market Report encompasses the competitive outlook of major players that summarises the business strategies, revenue distribution, product portfolio, financial analysis, R&D activities and investments. The comprehensive analysis of the solar water heater market report helps the clients to assess their business strategies as per the competitive environment in the market space.Major players of the Asia Pacific solar water heater market discussed in the report are: China Hitek Solar Co. Ltd., Azuma Solar Co. Ltd., EMMVEE Solar Systems, Jinyi Solar, Chromagen, Genersys, Rheem Manufacturing, Alternate Energy Technologies, Apricus Solar, A. O. Smith, Heliodyne, HTP, Inter Solar Systems, Nuetech Solar Systems, SunEarth, Vaughn Thermal,etc.Further, Asia Pacific Solar Water Heater Market Report encompasses the major trends & growth opportunities, market dynamics, and other growth factors. The Solar Water Heater Market outlook also comprises of key challenges for the market players, risk analysis, SWOT Analysis, BPS analysis and Market Attractiveness. The report also includes the expert analysis which provides a complete overview of the market post analysis of the economic, political, environmental & social factors of each region and country.Browse Similar Report:
According to Goldstein Research, Asia-Pacific tankless water heaters market is expected to reach USD 2,800 million by the end of 2024, growing at a CAGR of 9.0% over the forecast period, 2016-2024

Asia-Pacific Tankless Water Heaters Market

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 05:54:48

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According to Goldstein Research, Asia-Pacific tankless water heaters market is expected to reach USD 2,800 million by the end of 2024, growing at a CAGR of 9.0% over the forecast period, 2016-2024. The technological advancements in reducing energy consumption in residential and commercial places are majorly increasing the demand for tankless water heaters and thus propelling the growth of the market all over the region. Asia-Pacific Tankless water heaters market segmentation has been done on the basis of fuel type, technology, installation site, end user, distribution channel, and geography. Non-condensing technology based electric tankless water heater have higher demand due to their functioning, it pushes out hot gases out of the vent to avoid corrosion. The non-condensing electric tankless water heater uses stainless steel category 3 venting which reduces the maintenance but also increases the product cost and can be a barrier for growth of the market in some segments of the society. Asia-Pacific Tankless water heaters market is dominated by developed regions such as Japan and Australia with a market share of 29.4%, closely followed by emerging countries such as China and India. Emerging countries are expected to grow at a CAGR of 5.5% over the forecast period.Browse Full Report:Market SegmentationOn the basis of our in-depth analysis, Asia-Pacific Tankless Water Heaters Market can be segmented as follows:By Fuel Type Electric Tankless Water Heater Gas Tankless Water HeaterBy Technology Condensing Non-CondensingBy Installation Site Outdoor IndoorBy End-User Residential Commercial IndustrialBy Distribution Channel Online OfflineBy Region China Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Japan Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 India Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Australia Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Taiwan Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 South Korea Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Indonesia Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Thailand Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Singapore Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024 New Zealand Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis, 2016-2024Asia Pacific Tankless Water Heater Market Analysis contains a detailed overview of the Asia Pacific tankless water heater market. On the basis of our in-depth analysis, the market can be segmented in terms of market segmentation by fuel type, technology, installation site, end user, distribution channel, and countries.The Asia Pacific Tankless Water Heater Market Report encompasses the competitive outlook of major players that summarises the business strategies, revenue distribution, product portfolio, financial analysis, R&D activities and investments. The comprehensive analysis of tankless water heater market report helps the clients to assess their business strategies as per the competitive environment in the market space.Download Exclusive Sample Report:Major players of the Asia Pacifictankless water heater market discussed in the report are: Rinnai Corporation, Bosch GmbH, A.O. Smith Corporation, Bradford White Corporation, Hotter Electric, Atmor&Eemax, Nortiz Corporation, Inc., StiebelEltron, Rheem Manufacturing Company, Alpha Electric Co., etc.Further, Asia Pacific Tankless Water Heater Market Report encompasses the major trends & growth opportunities, market dynamics, and other growth factors. The Tankless Water Heater Market outlook also comprises of key challenges for the market players, risk analysis, SWOT Analysis, BPS analysis and Market Attractiveness. The report also includes the expert analysis which provides a complete overview of the market post analysis of the economic, political, environmental & social factors of each region and country.Browse Similar Report:
According to Goldstein Research, Asia-Pacific underfloor heating and cooling systems market is expected to reach USD 1.3 billion by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of 8.2% over the forecast period, 2016-2024. The extreme temperature and rising construction activities are thus driving the adoption of underfloor heating and cooling systems.

Asia-Pacific Underfloor Heating and Cooling Systems Market

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 06:02:11

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# 589 Words

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According to Goldstein Research, Asia-Pacific underfloor heating and cooling systems market is expected to reach USD 1.3 billion by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of 8.2% over the forecast period, 2016-2024. The extreme temperature and rising construction activities are thus driving the adoption of underfloor heating and cooling systems. Asia-Pacific Underfloor heating and cooling systems market segmentation has been done on the basis of heating and cooling systems, services, end-users, and geography. Based on methods of underfloor heating and cooling systems, hydraulics method accounted for the largest market share of 48.3% in 2017, on the back of its lower cost of installation, less energy consumption system, its suitability with most of the flooring types and it is compatible with both heating and cooling system application. Asia-Pacific Underfloor heating and cooling systems market is dominated by large economies such as Japan, China, and India, with China being the top consumer of underfloor heating and cooling systems market. Thus, China acquired 18.3% in 2017 and it is closely followed by Japan, Singapore, and India.Browse Full Report:Market SegmentationOn the basis of our in-depth analysis, Asia-Pacific Underfloor Heating and Cooling Systems Market can be segmented as follows:By Heating and Cooling System By Component1. Heating Mats2. Heating Cables3. Sensors and Thermostat4. Heating Pipes5. Manifolds6. Cooling Pipes7. Pumps By Methods1. Radiant Under Floor Heating and Cooling Method2. Hydraunics Under Floor Heating and Cooling MethodBy Services Installation Services Maintenance ServicesBy End-User Residential Industrial CommercialBy Region China Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Japan Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 India Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Australia Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Taiwan Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 South Korea Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Indonesia Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Thailand Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Singapore Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024 New Zealand Underfloor Heating And Cooling Systems Market Analysis, 2016-2024Asia Pacific Underfloor Heating and Cooling Systems Market Analysis contains a detailed overview of the Asia Pacific underfloor heating and cooling systems market. On the basis of our in-depth analysis, the market can be segmented in terms of market segmentation by heating and cooling systems, services, end-users, and countries.Download Exclusive Sample Report:The Asia Pacific Underfloor Heating and Cooling Systems Market Report encompasses the competitive outlook of major players that summarises the business strategies, revenue distribution, product portfolio, financial analysis, R&D activities and investments. The comprehensive analysis of underfloor heating and cooling systems market report helps the clients to assess their business strategies as per the competitive environment in the market space.Major players of the Asia Pacificunderfloor heating and cooling systems market discussed in the report are Honeywell International, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, Schneider Electric SE, Siemens AG, Nexans S.A., Pentair PLC, Uponor, WMS Underfloor Heating, Danfoss A/S, Emersion Electric Co., Robert Bosch, etc.Further, Asia Pacific Underfloor Heating and Cooling Systems Market Report encompass the major trends & growth opportunities, market dynamics, and other growth factors. The Underfloor Heating and Cooling Systems Market outlook also comprise of key challenges for the market players, risk analysis, SWOT Analysis, BPS analysis and Market Attractiveness. The report also includes the expert analysis which provides a complete overview of the market post analysis of the economic, political, environmental & social factors of each region and country.Browse Similar Report:
According to Goldstein Research, Australia bottled water market is expected to reach USD 1,361 billion by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of 3.90% over the forecast period, 2017-2025. Growing health consciousness among the population coupled with strong economic growth is driving Australia bottled water market.

Australia Bottled Water Market

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 06:26:20

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According to Goldstein Research, Australia bottled water market is expected to reach USD 1,361 billion by the end of 2025, growing at a CAGR of 3.90% over the forecast period, 2017-2025. Growing health consciousness among the population coupled with strong economic growth is driving Australia bottled water market. Australia bottled water market segmentation has been done on the basis of product type, packaging type, and distribution channel. Based on product type, prepared water accounted for the highest market share of 60% in 2017 and is expected to continue to dominate the market during the forecast period, owing to the changing preferences as per the health concerns. Australia Bottled water market is dominated by Northern territory, accounted for 63.4% in 2017, due to the availability of water sources and power grid in this region is attracting the establishment of bottled water plants.Browse Full Report:Market SegmentationOn the basis of our in-depth analysis, Australia Bottled Water Market can be segmented as follows:By Product Type Mineral Water Spring Water Prepared Water Still Water Carbonated Water Flavored WaterBy Packaging Type PET Bottles PET CansBy Distribution Channel Online OfflineAustralia Bottled Water Market Outlook 2024 contains a detailed overview of Australia bottled water market. On the basis of our in-depth analysis, the market can be segmented in terms of market segmentation by product type, packaging type, distribution channel, and countries.The Australia Bottled Water Market Report encompasses the competitive outlook of major players that summarises the business strategies, revenue distribution, product portfolio, financial analysis, R&D activities and investments. The comprehensive analysis of bottled water market report helps the clients to assess their business strategies as per the competitive environment in the market space.Download Exclusive Sample Report:Major players of Australia bottled water market discussed in the report are Mount Franklin, Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Coles Natural Spring Water, Pump Pure Water, Cool, Ridge, Frantelle, Peats Ridge, Aqua Pura Fruit Splash, Fiji Water, Evia, etc.Further, Australia Bottled Water Market Report encompasses the major trends & growth opportunities, market dynamics, and other growth factors. The Bottled Water Market outlook also comprises of key challenges for the market players, risk analysis, SWOT Analysis, BPS analysis and Market Attractiveness. The report also includes the expert analysis which provides a complete overview of the market post analysis of the economic, political, environmental & social factors of each region and country.Browse Similar Report:
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 08:02:01

Morten Winther and Henrik Harbo to lead the premier leadership solutions firms Denmark presence as part of Boydens aggressive strategic growth

Boyden Announces New Team in Denmark

For Boyden Denmark

Christian Grnning, +45 276 307 55

christian.groenning@gknordic.com

or

For Boyden

Dan Margolis, +1 (213) 452-6472

dan.margolis@fticonsulting.com

Boyden, a premier talent advisory and leadership solutions firm with more than 65 offices in over 40 countries, today announced that Morten Winther and Henrik Harbo have joined the organisation to lead its Denmark operations, further building Boydens market-leading position globally and in the Nordic region.

The new Denmark team will begin operations immediately in both Copenhagen and Aarhus, making Boyden the only global top ten executive search firm with two Danish offices. Winther and Harbo will serve as Managing Partners. Additionally, Marika Grote will serve as a Principal and Head of Research.

Morten, Henrik and Marika have outstanding reputations in Denmark and across borders as premier advisors and leaders in the upper echelon of the business community, said Trina Gordon, President & CEO of Boyden. Their overall approach and interactions with top multinational clients align perfectly with Boydens global platform and methodology. The team is actively pursuing an aggressive growth strategy that we look forward to sharing in the near future.

Were thrilled to join Boyden as our high growth ambitions match closely with the firms strategic objectives, said Harbo and Winther in a joint statement. Boyden offers a strong global brand and a unique opportunity for our clients to benefit from the organisations world class partners in the Nordic region and across the globe.

Winther, who has served as a top partner of a Nordic-based global executive search firm, brings an international roster of clients that depend on his deep expertise in building strategically focused leadership teams. He is focused on high-profile CEO and other C-level searches aligned with Boydens Technology, Consumer & Retail, Industrial/Energy, Healthcare & Life Sciences, Private Equity & Venture Capital and Social Impact Practices. Winthers earlier roles have included Commercial Director for NRGi Sales & Business Development Manager for Grundfos NoNox, Founder and Managing Partner of Guidestone Inc. and Denmarks Trade Commissioner in Montreal, Canada, among other notable positions. He has served as a Board Member of several companies and holds an MBA from Henley Business School.

Harbo, who also served as a top partner of a Nordic-based global executive search firm, launched his career in executive search almost a decade ago. He brings substantial expertise in investment banking and financial roles within top-tier global organisations. He also offers clients an extensive background in M&A, corporate finance, private equity, as well as industry-specific issues applicable for Boydens Consumer & Retail, Financial and Industrial Practices and the Energy sector. Prior to executive search, he was a Partner at EY Transaction Advisory Services, and began his career as a Financial Manager at A.P. Moller-Maersk. Harbo holds a masters degree in economics and business administration from Aarhus University.

In May, for the second consecutive year, Boyden was ranked in the top 10 on Forbes Best Recruiting Firms for 2018, the second year the list has been published.

About Boyden

Boyden is a premier talent advisory and leadership solutions firm with more than 65 offices in over 40 countries. Our global reach enables us to serve client needs anywhere they conduct business. We connect great companies with great leaders through executive search, interim management and leadership consulting solutions. For further information, visit www.boyden.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180902005
Fact.MR

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 11:05:26

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# 715 Words

Suite 988427 Upper Pembroke Street,Dublin 2, IrelandMarketing Manager+353-1-6111-593

Demand for dental restorative supplies is likely to be on an upswing as several industry-specific and macroeconomic factors continue to influence the dental space. Technological advancements have not left any domain untouched with manufacturers of dental restorative supplies focusing on new innovations in their product lines, says Fact.MR report. Manufacturers of dental restorative supplies are focusing on developing and using advanced material in a bid to enhance the customer satisfaction quotient, achieving sustenance in the competitive dental restorative supplies marketplace. Fact.MR envisages that the demand for dental restorative supplies is projected to expand at a steady CAGR of 4.1% in terms of value during the period of assessment, 2018-2028. Sales of dental restorative supplies during the said period are likely to surpass US$ 6,000 Mn by end of 2028, says the report.Sales of dental restorative supplies are likely to remain influenced with increasing investments in the dental space. This aspect is further fuelled with growing edentulous population that prefers unanchored dentures and dental cosmetic procedures. In addition, the rising oral disease burden globally is anticipated to impact the growth of the dental restorative supplies market. World Health Organization (WHO) revealed that oral disease treatments are the fourth most expensive resulting in high economic burden among low and middle class population.Request For Sample Report- https://www.factmr.com/connectus/sample?flag=S&rep_id=1588 Distributors of dental restorative supplies are playing a major role in enhancing the visibility of dental restorative supplies across regional markets, reveals Fact.MR report. They are focused on enhancing the customer-manufacturer relationship to obtain tangible benefits and are providing information on price adjustments and changing trends. The report says that the dental restorative supplies are driven toward customers largely by distributors as most of the composite material manufacturers are small scale players.Sales of dental restorative supplies are expected to remain concentrated in the developed counties of Europe region, particularly the EU-4. Fact.MR foresees that the demand for dental restorative supplies in Europe region is largely influenced with growing cases of dental diseases, which is expected to translate into sales crossing US$ 1,800 Mn in Europe by 2028 end. The market for dental restorative supplies in Asia Pacific excluding Japan (APEJ) region is expected to be optimistic and manufacturers of dental restorative supplies can expect significant momentum in the emerging countries of China and India during the assessment period. Closely following the suit, developed countries in North America, particularly the United States, are likely to showcase notable demand for dental restorative supplies on the back of increasing occurrences of root canal in the region.To Get more Information on Dental Restorative Supplies Market, Visit - https://www.factmr.com/report/1588/dental-restorative-supplies-market Composite dental restorative supplies are estimated to witness significant demand and adoption during the period of forecast. Sales of composite dental restorative supplies are estimated to touch US$ 2,200 Mn owing to their high durability and availability in different shades suiting the aesthetic requirements of the customer. However, their post-operative sensitivity is expected to confine their scope of application in some cases. On the contrary, impression material is gaining high traction owing to rising demand for indirect restoration procedures, says the report.Demand for dental restorative supplies in dental clinics is projected to expand at a relatively robust rate throughout the period of assessment as compared to hospitals. Hospitals lack wards needed for dental restoration, which is limiting use of dental restorative supplies in the hospital sector.Future prospects of the dental restorative supplies market are expected to be bullish on account of changing customer approach toward dental aesthetics and treatment of dental caries coupled with increasing number of dental procedures worldwide. Moreover, environmental concerns associated with use of mercury in dental restorative supplies has led to the development of ceramic material and glass ionomers that deliver higher customer satisfaction in turn facilitating momentum to the adoption of dental restorative supplies.To Buy Dental Restorative Supplies Market Report, Visit- https://www.factmr.com/checkout/1588/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.
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 19:20:51

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Published by

Neel B

+1-646-568-9980

e-mail

https://www.polarismarketresearch.com







# 848 Words

Neel B+1-646-568-9980

According to a new research published by Polaris Market Research the worldwide Automated Guided Vehicle market is anticipated to reach USD 3,977.8 million by 2026. In 2017, the automotive sector dominated the global market, in terms of revenue. Europe is expected to be the leading contributor to the global market revenue during the forecast period.Request For Sample Of This Research Report @ https://bit.ly/2wESOR3 Growing need for automation and increasing labor costs fuel the market for adoption of AGV. Use of these automated vehicles increases productivity, and efficiency, while saving time and costs. The increasing demand from industries including healthcare, defense, aerospace, agriculture, and food and beverage is expected to provide growth opportunities in the coming years. Emerging and untapped markets of developing economies further provide growing opportunities to key players in the market. Increasing investments, research and development further boosts the growth of the market.There has been a high demand for automation in the global market. Companies are automating processes to reduce cost, save time and deliver better quality products. With stiff competition existing in the global market, companies are automating their processes for better quality and increased productivity. These vehicles automate internal processes and reduce the workload of employees, by working in collaboration with workers for better efficiency. Due to stringent safety regulations, companies are forced to employ Automated Guided Vehicles for dangerous and hazardous environment conditions. Automation of manufacturing processes was earlier restricted to only automotive sector. Now, industries such as healthcare, aerospace, food and beverage are also adopting the automated vehicles solutions. Increasing need of automation in various industries is a key factor driving the growth of the market.Browse Full Research Report with Table of Content @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/automated-guided-vehicle-market/report-description/ With ever-increasing labor costs existing in most of the countries, companies are turning towards AGVs to save costs and time. Their usage increases efficiency while reducing wastage. They also eliminate chances of faults occurring due to human errors. These vehicles can be operated with the help of software, thereby saving the expense spent in training and management of labor. Unavailability of skilled labor to manage the processes along with high labor costs pushes companies towards automation and supplements the growth of this market.Europe generated the highest revenue in the market in 2017, and is expected to lead the global market throughout the forecast period. Asia-Pacific is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. Rapid industrialization and increasing automation in the region drives the market growth. Introduction of new advanced technologies and increasing applications in automotive, aerospace, electronics and healthcare sectors is expected to support market growth. Growing demand from automotive industry for high quality products, along with increasing labor costs encourages companies to invest in automation, thereby augmenting growth.Request For customization @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/automated-guided-vehicle-market/request-for-customization/ The various end-users of AGVs include automotive, aerospace, healthcare, food and beverage, and others. In 2017, automotive accounted for the largest share in the global market, and is estimated to grow at a substantial rate during the forecast period. Companies use these vehicles in the automotive sector to save cost and increase their production. The key factors driving this market include increasing labor costs, new safety regulations, and need for increased efficiency. Use of AGVs in the automotive industry enables manufacturers to achieve high quality, reliability, economic efficiency and less product life cycle cost.The well-known companies profiled in the report include Toyota Industries Corporation, KUKA AG, Daifuku Co. Ltd., Bastian Solutions, Inc., JBT Corporation, Swisslog Holding AG, Seegrid Corporation, Baylo, Inc., EK Automation GmbH, Kion Group AG among others among others. These companies launch new products and collaborate with other market leaders to innovate and launch new products to meet the increasing needs and requirements of consumers.About us Polaris Market ResearchPolaris Market Research is a global market research and consulting company. We provide unmatched quality of offerings to our clients present globally. The company specializes in providing exceptional market intelligence and in-depth business research services for our clientele spread across different enterprises. We at Polaris are obliged to serve our diverse customer base present across the industries of healthcare, technology, semi-conductors and chemicals among various other industries present around the world. We strive to provide our customers with updated information on innovative technologies, high growth markets, emerging business environments and latest business-centric applications, thereby helping them always to make informed decisions and leverage new opportunities.We mainly focus on aiding our customers with substantial competitive intelligence, helping them to secure a competitive advantage in the market and accomplish sustainable growth in different market domains. Adept with a highly competent, experienced and extremely qualified team of experts comprising SMEs, analysts and consultants, we at Polaris endeavor to deliver value-added business solutions to our customers. Through dedicated qualitative and quantitative primary and secondary market research and consulting assignments, we adeptly formulate competitive strategies to address business challenges for our clients through analyzing market trends and emerging technologies.Contact us-Polaris Market Research30 Wall Street8th FloorNew York City, NY 10005United StatesFollow us- LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 19:19:28

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Published by

Neel B

+1-646-568-9980

e-mail

https://www.polarismarketresearch.com







# 661 Words

Neel B+1-646-568-9980

According to a new research published by Polaris Market Research the worldwide Automotive Aftermarket market is anticipated to reach USD 519.2 billion by 2026. In 2017, the tire segment dominated the global market, in terms of revenue. In 2017, North America accounted for the majority share in the global market.Request For Sample Of This Research Report @ https://bit.ly/2MKucjN The expanding global automotive industry, along with increasing average age of vehicles majorly drives the market growth. Consumers are increasingly becoming aware of proper maintenance and repair of vehicles, which supports market growth. Other factors driving market growth include greater need for long distance travel, technological advancements in telematics technologies, and changing lifestyles. New emerging markets, emerging consumer demographics, and sale through online channels would provide growth opportunities for automotive aftermarket market in the coming years.The automotive aftermarket market is highly competitive. Vendors offer products and services required for repair and maintenance for wide range of cars, trucks, vans, and buses. Consumers consider factors such as quality, price, convenience, and vehicle age before making informed decisions about repair and maintenance offered by market players.Browse Full Research Report with Table of Content @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/automotive-aftermarket-market/ Established industries, technological advancements, and high investment in R&D are factors expected to drive the market growth in the region. Asia-pacific is expected to grow at the highest CAGR during the forecast period. This is due to economic growth in countries such as China and India, leading to rising living standards and high disposable income. Expansion of global players into these countries to tap market potential boosts the market growth. Favorable regulations for production of automotive aftermarket components, and poor road infrastructure in developing countries such as India, and Pakistan are expected to augment market growth during the forecast period.The various types of automotive aftermarket products include tire, wheels, battery, lighting, exhaust components, body parts, accessories, telematics, and others. The tire segment is expected to lead the market during the forecast period. Tires are easily damaged by external factors and need to be replaced periodically. There has been an increasing demand of radial tires owing to low rolling resistance, higher durability, and enhanced service.Request For customization @ https://www.polarismarketresearch.com/industry-analysis/automotive-aftermarket-market/request-for-customization/ The well-known companies profiled in the report include Royal Dutch Shell PLC, Denso Corporation, Johnsons Controls Inc., Exide Technologies, Inc., 3M Company, Delphi Automotive PLC, Magneti Marelli S.p.A, Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company, Robert Bosch GmbH, Cooper Tire & Rubber Company among others. These companies launch new products and collaborate with other market leaders to innovate and launch new products to meet the increasing needs and requirements of consumers.About us Polaris Market ResearchPolaris Market Research is a global market research and consulting company. We provide unmatched quality of offerings to our clients present globally. The company specializes in providing exceptional market intelligence and in-depth business research services for our clientele spread across different enterprises. We at Polaris are obliged to serve our diverse customer base present across the industries of healthcare, technology, semi-conductors and chemicals among various other industries present around the world. We strive to provide our customers with updated information on innovative technologies, high growth markets, emerging business environments and latest business-centric applications, thereby helping them always to make informed decisions and leverage new opportunities.We mainly focus on aiding our customers with substantial competitive intelligence, helping them to secure a competitive advantage in the market and accomplish sustainable growth in different market domains. Adept with a highly competent, experienced and extremely qualified team of experts comprising SMEs, analysts and consultants, we at Polaris endeavor to deliver value-added business solutions to our customers. Through dedicated qualitative and quantitative primary and secondary market research and consulting assignments, we adeptly formulate competitive strategies to address business challenges for our clients through analyzing market trends and emerging technologies.Contact us-Polaris Market Research30 Wall Street8th FloorNew York City, NY 10005United StatesFollow us- LinkedIn | Twitter | Facebook
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 11:02:02

Market-Leading Food Contact Conference, P&P, Takes Place This December in Vienna

Smithers Pira

Joanna Gibson

jgibson[at]smithers[dot]com

+44(0)1372-802037

Over 200 experts from across the food contact industry will come together in Vienna, Austria from 3  6 December 2018 to attend Smithers Piras P&P (Plastics & Paper in Contact with Foodstuffs) - http://www.food-contact.com/plastics-paper.

P&P will provide an in-depth and timely overview of the latest EU legislation as well as a small focus on global regulations. Described as The most important event in Europe on food contact regulations by Dario Dainelli at Polymer Comply Europe, the conference provides delegates with a unique opportunity to stay ahead of the latest regulations in food contact, network with like-minded professionals and discover best practice in the industry. Companies speaking at the event will include BASF, Nestle, Iceland Foods, Kraft Heinz, Barilla G. e R. Fratelli, Sherwin Williams, The Food and Environment Research Agency (FERA), CEPI and more.

Alistair Irvine, Business Compliance Manager at Smithers Pira comments With a flurry of new food contact regulations; EU Regulations 79/2018, 213/2018 and 831/2018, there appears to have been a step change in the pace of legislative change. During this three-day conference, we will be focusing on these amendments and other compliance laws across the EU that are crucial for all businesses in the food contact arena.

Presentations include:

Safety assessment for complex starting substances and additives used for coatings/printing inks, Dr Martin Klatt, Head of Product Stewardship Regional Business Unit Dispersions and Resins Europe, BASF

Safety of packed food along the supply chain, Marja Pitkanen, Senior Scientist, VTT Technical Research Centre of Finland Ltd

Non-intentionally added substances (NIAS): Past, present and future, Dr Malcolm Driffield, Manager of the Packaging and Mass Spectrometry Solutions team, Fera Science Ltd

Panel session: Shaping the future of food contact packaging in Europe, panellists include Iceland Foods, Nestle Nespresso, CEPI

For more information on Plastics and Paper in Contact with Foodstuffs visit https://www.food-contact.com/plastics-paper/press

About Smithers Pira

Smithers Pira is the worldwide authority on the packaging, paper and print industry supply chains. They provide world-leading expertise and market intelligence, and offer a range of testing services supported by comprehensive facilities in the UK and US. With over 80 years technical and scientific experience Smithers Pira helps clients around the world with their business and testing requirements.

- Ends -

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180903005
Speaker: Aldonna Ambler, The Growth Strategist, NJ Business Hall of Fame Inductee, & NJAWBO State President 1985-86

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 20:32:55

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New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners

549 Pompton Ave., Suite 107, Cedar Grove, NJ 07009



Donna Thompson

NJAWBO Communications Coordinator

609-308-2530

email

http://www.njawbo.org





# 448 Words

549 Pompton Ave., Suite 107, Cedar Grove, NJ 07009NJAWBO Communications Coordinator609-308-2530

The New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners (NJAWBO) is hosting its NJAWBO Statewide Oceanfront Luncheon Conference and Expo on September 13 at Rooneys Oceanfront Restaurant, Long Branch, New Jersey, from 11:00am to 2:30pm. The focus for this conference is to encourage business owners to challenge themselves, test their limits, and think big. The speaker is Aldonna Ambler, The Growth Strategist, NJ Business Hall of Fame Inductee, and 5th NJAWBO State President (19851986). She will share her Four Steps to Resilience from The Growth Strategist in four segments, with breakout sessions in-between so attendees can discuss how to implement what Ambler has presented in their own businesses. The speaker will interact with attendees to guide them further during these small-group discussions.Aldonna Ambler, from Hammonton, New Jersey, has earned the right to be called The Growth Strategist. She started and grew a suite of global service firms to help midsize B2B companies achieve accelerated growth with sustained profitability. An inductee of the NJ Business Hall of Fame, Amblers business acumen has been recognized by over 30 national and state-level entrepreneur of the year awards. She was named National Woman Business Owner of the Year in 2000. The Founder of The Service Industry Fund, Ambler placed over one billion dollars of growth financing for technology companies, distribution businesses, and service firms. Eight-hundred and fifty clients of her growth strategy business got on and stayed on the INC 500 list of fastest growing privately held companies.A longtime mentor of women business owners, a member of NJAWBO for 38 years, and the 5th NJAWBO state president, Ambler has testified on behalf women business owners at over 30 state and national legislative hearings and has been invited to advise four US Presidents in the oval office of the White House.Take some time out of your busy business schedule to learn new ideas to help you grow your business. Meet NJAWBO members and other business owners from across the state, connect with the sponsors and exhibitors, and build relationshipsall while enjoying a spectacular view of the beach and Atlantic Ocean.The event fee for advance online registration (by 9/11/18) is $45 for NJAWBO members and $55 for others. The fee at the door is $65 for all. To register, go to www.njawbo.org/event/OceanfrontConf-2018-9-13 The New Jersey Association of Women Business Owners (NJAWBO), founded in 1978, is the longest-standing, statewide organization of women business owners in New Jersey. Its primary objective is to encourage and support business ownership by women, provide a legislative voice for the interests of women-owned businesses, and offer leadership, professional development, and networking opportunities for business owners. For more information about NJAWBO, visit www.njawbo.org or email njawbo@ njawbo.org
North America Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Market

PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 05:25:10

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Goldstein Research

99 Wall Street, Suite No:- 527



Steve blade

Global Sales Manager

6465687747

email

https://www.goldsteinresearch.com/





# 448 Words

99 Wall Street, Suite No:- 527Global Sales Manager6465687747

According to Goldstein Research, North America electrical equipment manufacturing market is expected to reach USD 0.72 billion by the end of 2024 from USD 0.5 billion in 2016, growing at a CAGR of 10.2% over the forecast period, 2016-2024. The rebounded manufacturing industry after the 2008 crisis and development of new technologies are driving the growth of the market. North America Electrical equipment manufacturing market segmentation has been done on the basis of a type of equipment, end-users, and geography. Of all the type of equipment, power generation, transmission and control equipment accounted for largest revenue share in 2016. North America Electrical equipment manufacturing market is dominated by the U.S. in terms of revenue generation on the back of heavy manufacturing processes and high demand of equipment across the verticals.Browse Full Report:Market SegmentationOn the basis of our in-depth analysis, North America Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Market can be segmented as follows:By Type of Equipment Household Appliances Lighting Equipment Wiring and Cables Batteries Power Generation Equipment Transmission and Control EquipmentBy End User Commercial Users Residential/ Domestic UsersBy Geography The United States Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Market Analysis, 2016-2024 Canada Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Market Analysis, 2016-2024North America Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Market Outlook 2024 contains a detailed overview of the North America electrical equipment manufacturing market. On the basis of our in-depth analysis, the market can be segmented in terms of market segmentation by type of equipment, end-user, and geography.Download Exclusive Sample Report:The North America Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Market Report highlights the in-depth analysis of electrical equipment manufacturing market report that will help the clients to assess their business strategies as per the competitive environment in the market space. The competitive outlook of major North America players discussed in the North America electrical equipment manufacturing market report includes the business strategies, revenue distribution, financial analysis, product portfolio, R&D activities and investments.Major players of the North America electrical equipment manufacturing market discussed in the report are Samsung Electronics, Generic Electric, Panasonic Corporation, Philips, Siemens, Toshiba, LG Electronics Inc, Whirlpool Corp, Schneider Electric S.A., Bosch Gmbh, etc.Get More Information About North America Electrical Equipment Manufacturing MarketFurther, North America Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Market Report encompasses the major trends & opportunities, market dynamics and other growth factors of the market. The Electrical Equipment Manufacturing Market outlook also comprises of key challenges, risk analysis, BPS analysis, SWOT Analysis and Market Attractiveness. The report also highlights the expert analysis to provide a complete overview of the market including the PESTLE analysis of each region and country.Browse Similar Report:
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 10:30:04

SRV GROUP PLC INVESTOR NEWS 3 SEPTEMBER 2018, AT 11.30

SRV to renovate Antilooppis historical office property in Kamppi



SRV and real estate investment company Antilooppi have signed an agreement on the renovation and modernisation of the historical office property located at Ruoholahdenkatu 21 in Kamppi, Helsinki. The work is scheduled to be completed in the fall of 2019. The final contract price is not disclosed.

Ruoholahdenkatu 21 has seven floors and a total of 10,000 square metres of leasable space. The property used to serve as a printing house and is now getting back its original look. In addition, at the propertys street level, restaurant and cafe services will be opened up to the users of the building as well as to residents and businesses of the neighbouring area. In connection with the development project, flexible and versatile small office and joint-use facilities as well as meeting and negotiation rooms of different sizes will be built in the property to serve the buildings users and the external community.





We will renovate the Ruoholahdenkatu 21 property, respecting its original look. For us, the property is an excellent addition to a series of demanding renovation projects. We have previously completed renovations in a number of historical properties, such as the Brondankulma building in Helsinki, the Tiedekulma and Kaisa House buildings of the University of Helsinki, and Helsinki City Theatre, says SRVs Unit Director,

The property, built in the 1950s, has changed considerably over the years, and now we want to restore it to its original splendour with room height and lattice windows. We will also update the building systems and build roof terraces. The intention is to utilise the full potential of the building and modernise it, while respecting its history and industrial spirit, to serve both the buildings users and the local area, explains Antilooppis CEO, Tuomas Sahi.

Ruoholahdenkatu 21 was built in 1952 for the Uusi Suomi printing house, and the building continued in this role until the 1980s. In the 1970s, the editorial staff of the Uusi Suomi and Kauppalehti newspapers worked in the uppermost floors of the property. After a renovation in the 1980s, the building was head office of the insurance company Ilmarinen until 2002. In recent years, the property has served as an office building for a number of tenants.



International companies for the renovated building

The major users of the property, with nearly 4000 square metres office space, will be Mirum Agency Oy, Pohjoisranta Burson Marsteller Oy and GroupM Finland Oy, which are part of the international marketing and communications group WPP.

The Training for Warriors (TWF) exercise and fitness centre has operated in the building since spring 2018. The worlds second largest shipping line MSC, which will occupy the top floor, will also be located in the property.

Ruoholahdenkatu 21 is highly accessible by both private and public transport. Located at the end of the Lansivayla highway and next to the Baana bicycle and pedestrian route, the property is served by trams, and is only around 500 metres away from the nearest metro station.



For further information, please contact:

Antti Raunemaa, Unit Director, SRV, +358 40 564 4105, antti.raunemaa@srv.fi

Heidi Tetteh, Communications Manager, SRV, tel. +358 40 662 3220, heidi.tetteh@srv.fi

Tuomas Sahi, CEO, Antilooppi, tel. +358 400 907 877, tuomas.sahi@antilooppi.fi



www.srv.fi

You can also find us in the social media:

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SRV - Building for life
PR-Inside.com: 2018-09-03 11:28:02

Volta Finance Limited (VTA / VTAS)  Additional Quote in Sterling Effective from Today

*****

Guernsey, 3 September 2018

Additional Quote in Sterling Effective from Today

Further to the announcement released on 22 August, the Board of Volta Finance Limited (the "Company") is pleased to announce that the additional market quote in Sterling (the "Sterling Quote") for its existing ordinary shares traded on the London Stock Exchange is effective from today. This Sterling Quote exists alongside the Companys existing Euro market quote on the London Stock Exchange and its listing on Euronext Amsterdam.

Existing Euro Quote on London Stock Exchange Additional quote in Sterling on London Stock Exchange Existing Euro Quote on Euronext Amsterdam ISIN GG00B1GHHH78 GG00B1GHHH78 GG00B1GHHH78 SEDOL B28Y104 BFZ4H11 B1GHHH7 Ticker VTA.LN VTAS.LN VTA.NA

The Companys existing arrangement for its shareholders to be able to elect to receive their dividends in either Euros or Pounds Sterling will remain. Shareholders will, by default, receive their dividends in Euros, unless they have instructed the Company's Registrar, Computershare Investor Services (Guernsey) Limited, to pay dividends in Pounds Sterling. As previously announced, the Company targets the payment of stable annual dividends payable on a quarterly basis, which it expects to pay towards the end of each March, June, September and December.

For further information, please contact:

Company Secretary and Portfolio Administrator

Sanne Group (Guernsey) Limited

voltafinance@sannegroup.com

+44 (0) 1481 739810

Corporate Broker

Cenkos Securities plc

Sapna Shah

Andrew Worne

+44 (0) 20 7397 8900

For the Investment Manager

AXA Investment Managers Paris

Serge Demay

serge.demay@axa-im.com

+33 (0) 1 44 45 84 47

*****

ABOUT VOLTA FINANCE LIMITED

Legal Entity Identification code (LEI): 2138004N6QDNAZ2V3W80

Volta Finance Limited is incorporated in Guernsey under The Companies (Guernsey) Law, 2008 (as amended) and listed on Euronext Amsterdam and the London Stock Exchange's Main Market for listed securities. Voltas home member state for the purposes of the EU Transparency Directive is the Netherlands. As such, Volta is subject to regulation and supervision by the AFM, being the regulator for financial markets in the Netherlands.

Voltas investment objectives are to preserve capital across the credit cycle and to provide a stable stream of income to its shareholders through dividends. Volta seeks to attain its investment objectives predominantly through diversified investments in structured finance assets. The assets that the Company may invest in either directly or indirectly include, but are not limited to: corporate credits; sovereign and quasi-sovereign debt; residential mortgage loans; and, automobile loans. The Companys approach to investment is through vehicles and arrangements that essentially provide leveraged exposure to portfolios of such underlying assets. The Company has appointed AXA Investment Managers Paris an investment management company with a division specialised in structured credit, for the investment management of all its assets.

*****

ABOUT AXA INVESTMENT MANAGERS

AXA Investment Managers (AXA IM) is a multi-expert asset management company within the AXA Group, a global leader in financial protection and wealth management. AXA IM is one of the largest European-based asset managers with 717 billion in assets under management as of the end of December 2016. AXA IM employs approximately 2,420 people around the world.

Past performance cannot be relied on as a guide to future performance.
South African hotel and gaming group, Sun International, said on Monday it expects an investigation into a shareholder dispute in Nigeria to be completed shortly, before it would finally exit the country.

The firm, operators of the Federal Palace Hotel, Lagos, had been subjected to probe by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over issues surrounding its initial investment in the Tourist Company of Nigeria (TCN).

In 2006, Sun International, which reported a 46 per cent decline in half-year earnings hurt by subdued growth, bought a 49 per cent stake in TCN, making it the largest single shareholder.

Trouble started, however, when that deal was disputed by some of Nigerias Ibru family, a fellow shareholder in TCN, which prompted various parties including Sun International and Nigerias Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) to appoint consultants Deloitte to investigate.

The Board has decided to exit Nigeria and steps will be taken to achieve this in a manner that does not erode further value. Continued setbacks in Nigeria as well as the ongoing shareholder dispute have frustrated all attempts to develop and improve the property, Sun International said in 2016.

According to Reuters, the company said the board of the TCN, which owns and operates the 5-star Federal Palace Hotel in Lagos, had been reconstituted, with Nigerias SEC appointing two directors.

Deloitte is expected to complete its investigation of the shareholder dispute shortly. Once the Deloitte investigation has been completed, it will pave the way for Sun International to exit its investment in Nigeria, Sun International said.

The property is sought after given its location so there are potential buyers but Nigeria has been volatile for a while. It starts becoming difficult for investors to have confidence, Reuters quoted Sun International Chief Executive Officer, Anthony Leeming, to have said.

Reports on Monday said that consumers in the South Africa market, which contributes 69 per cent to group income, are gambling less as high levels of indebtedness and a recent increase in VAT continue to pressure incomes.

Earlier in March, the company announced the closure of loss-making operations in Sun Nao and the Fish River Sun casino in South Africa, as well as its International VIP Businesses in both South Africa and Panama.

Sun Internationals planned exit is coming amid operational challenges faced by another company, MTN. The Nigerian government recently ordered the telecoms group to repatriate $8.1 billion that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said was illegally sent abroad.

The fine comes two years after MTN, Africas biggest telecoms company, agreed to pay more than $1 billion to end a dispute in Nigeria over unregistered SIM cards.

The CBN said MTN repatriated the money based on illegally issued Certificates of Capital Importation (CCIs) with the connivance of Standard Chartered Bank, Stanbic IBTC, Citibank and Diamond Bank between 2007 and 2015.

But a defiant telecom firm, in a reaction to the sanctions, said it will vigorously defend its position on the issue, describing the sanction as regrettable.
The federal government has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Volkswagen group to develop an automotive hub in Nigeria, the Federal Ministry of Trade and Investment (FMITI) has said.

The statement sent to PREMIUM TIMES, Monday, signed by the Strategy and Communications Adviser FMITI, Bisi Daniels, showed that the MoU was signed by the Minister Industry Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah, for Nigeria and Thomas Schaefer, the Head of the Sub-Saharan Region of Volkswagen, on behalf of the Group.

According to the terms of the MoU, Volkswagen said it accepts to implement a phased approach in relation to the assembly of vehicles, initially from assembly kits with the long-term view of establishing Nigeria as an automotive hub on the West Coast of Africa.

This, the statement added, will include establishing a training academy in conjunction with the German Government, which will train the initial employees. The academy will also provide broader technical training in automotive skills.

Volkswagen also proposed that a comprehensive Volkswagen vehicle and service network be developed in the country subject to commercial viability.

In turn, the Nigerian government will finalise the approval of the Nigerian Automotive Policy (NAP) currently under consideration. The policy includes the gradual transition from the importation of used cars to the manufacture and distribution of new passenger vehicles.

The government has committed to providing a conducive legislative environment that will encourage the manufacturing of motor vehicles in Nigeria, the statement showed.

Mr Enelamah said the MoU is a major step in the countrys walk towards the development of a robust automotive industry to achieve its potential contribution to the continuous economic development.

We believe in the strategic and catalytic role of the automotive industry in the diversification of the Nigerian economy and we remain committed to encouraging and partnering with relevant stakeholders, especially investors and friends of Nigeria.

We will meet our commitments and look forward to welcoming other Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) interested in working with us to increase local production, local procurement, and exports, he added.

The Director General of the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC), Jelani Aliyu, reportedly said, As Africas largest economy and most populous country, Nigeria offers not only a significant domestic market, but also the opportunity of a gateway to the West African market. We are pleased by the progress we have made in our engagement with Volkswagen, and excited to be partnering with a strong stakeholder with a full understanding of the huge potential Nigeria represents.

This week, Volkswagen has been able to demonstrate with conviction that it is serious about its intentions in SubSaharan Africa. We are well placed to become a dominant player in Africa, as the continent continues to stabilise and develop economically, as the last frontier for the automotive industry.

Volkswagen has a fully-fledged manufacturing facility in South Africa, and assembles for vehicles in Kenya, Algeria as well as in Rwanda.

Meanwhile, Mr Daniels added that the national automotive policy has continued to attract investment from within and outside the country.

Recently, a delegation of international automotive investors, comprising original equipment manufacturers and other stakeholders visited the country.

Among others, they sought to: gain insight into the opening business opportunities and investment environment in the Nigerian automotive sector; assist in the shaping of national and state policy to support industry overall and domesticated manufacturing for the automotive sector and gain insight into the automotive sector & potential for enhanced manufacturing in Nigeria.

They also sought tp build relationships and networks with key Government and private sector figures; and to deepen the structured business links and investment between the private sectors of Nigeria and South Africa, he said.
The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) said it had set aside N220 billion to be disbursed as loans to cooperative organisations under Micro Small and Medium Enterprises Development Fund (MSMEDF).

Isaac Okorafor, Director, Corporate Communications Department of the CBN, announced the plan while addressing journalists in Gombe on Monday during the banks programme on Promoting Financial Stability and Economic Development.

He said the loan was set specifically aside to encourage artisans, including people into vulcanising works, hair dressing and barbing among others, especially those who employed others to work with.

If you empower this group of people, the economy will move faster because they will also employ others, he said.

He added that they were discouraged to apply for the loan because they would not be able to access such in commercial banks, where they needed to have a collateral.

This is the reason why we made the provision for this loan for them to access through their cooperative organisations. All they need to do is to open an account with a bank, operate it for sometime and apply.

The loan is without collateral and the interest is only nine per cent. he said.

Mr Okorafor also called on the youth to embrace farming activities and make money out it.

In CBN, we do not give grant to people, but we show you the way to follow and make money, he said

In his presentation, Oludaramola Atanda, Assistant Director, Consumers Protection Department at the apex bank, added that customers should know their right to be served better by their banks.

Mr Atanda implored them to always report any case of strange transactions concerning their account.

He, however, urged them to desist from giving their ATM pin and BVN numbers to others, because they could be defrauded.

(NAN)
Earlier in the week, details emerged that President Muhammadu Buhari had withheld assent to the harmonised Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB).

Ita Enang, the presidential aide on National Assembly Matters, said on Wednesday that the decision was made for constitutional and legal reasons.

Mr Enang said the provision of the Bill permitted the Petroleum Regulatory Commission to retain as much as 10 per cent of the revenue generated unduly increases the funds accruing to the Commission to the detriment of the revenue available to the Federal, States and Local governments as well as the Federal Capital Territory.

Besides, he said the president felt that expanding the scope of Petroleum Equalisation Fund made some provisions of the draft law to be in divergence from his administrations policy and indeed conflicted with provisions on the Fund.

The development comes against the backdrop of the huge expectations in the industry, following more than a decade of dilly-dallying over the passage of the bill.

The House of Representatives passed the bill in the first quarter of 2018, after the Senate had done same earlier in November 2017.

The PIGB is one of four parts of the proposed Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), first introduced in 2000, which seeks to update and replace the outdated provisions with a more comprehensive and current petroleum industry law that aligns with global standards.

But nearly two decades after, the bill again suffered another major setback with Mr Buharis withhold of assent.

Oil Lessons From Ghana?

However, in the years between 2000 and 2018 that Nigeria has failed to properly reform its oil sector, Ghana, a relatively newer producer of oil on the continent, has shown some level of seriousness with governance of its oil industry.

We (Ghana) copied our sector laws from Nigeria and other countries but are wise to paste special to avoid the mistakes, said Daniel Domelevo, Ghanas Auditor General in an address at the ongoing African Regional Extractive Industries Knowledge (REIK) Hub last Monday.

The programme, organised by the Natural Resource Governance Institute (NRGI) in collaboration with German International Development Cooperation (GIZ), offered mid to senior energy reporters, civil society and government officials continent-wide insights into the oil industry.

At the forum, holding in Accra, Ghanas capital city, attendees continue to deliberate on the various challenges facing Africas acclaimed giant, with its numerous paradoxes.

Nicola Woodroffe, a senior legal analyst at NRGI, noted that Nigeria had licencing rounds where those awarded blocks had no capacity to develop them.

The country in NRGIs Resource Governance Index for 2017 ranked 55 among 89 countries, with licencing and other key governance areas identified as poor.

Ghana, the index showed however, has really improved its licencing process with the publication of a register that covers timelines and processes, for transparency purposes. The nation, unsurprisingly, ranked 18 on the index.

In August 2016, more than a decade after Nigeria initiated the idea of an industry governance law, Ghana made what could be described as regional triumph with the passage of its Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).

Tagged Petroleum Production and Exploration Bill, it aimed to strengthen and improve the legal environment governing the exploration and production of its resource.

According to Ghanas energy minister, Kofi Buah, the law was meant to tighten the countrys 1984 law which regulated the sector. Ghanaian participants in Accra told PREMIUM TIMES the PIB is being considered for review, already.

The nation also made provision for a revenue management act which allocates oil revenues between the national oil company and other fund management accounts.

On Friday, a visit to its state-owned Tema Oil Refinery (TOR) at Tema showed the facility, which can refine 45,000 barrels per stream daily, functionsunlike Nigerias four refineries that have become moribund.

At the NRGI programme, facilitators noted that the nation has one of the most well-managed sovereign wealth fund accounts among oil producers, while the management of Nigerias equivalent of same account is riddled with controversies.

Oil and gas sector stakeholders believe however that these anomalies, and several others, are what the PIGB and other sister bills were designed to address.

PIGB In Perspective

The bill seeks to empower institutions and not individuals, remove bad governance which leads to inefficiency, ineffectiveness, rent-seeking tendencies, inequity, secrecy and corruption in the countrys petroleum industry.

The Bill proposes to reform the governing institutional framework of the Nigerian petroleum industry by setting up an independent regulatory agency, unbundling the NNPC into two limited liability companies and setting specific policy roles for the Minister of Petroleum Resources, amongst others.

The other parts of the draft law, which are still pending consideration by the National Assembly, include the Petroleum Industry Administration Bill (PIAB), Petroleum Industry Fiscal Bill (PIFB) and Petroleum Host and Impacted Communities Bill (PHICB).

The PIAB focuses on establishing a transparent and efficient management of exploration and production operations, while the PIFB deals with financiall terms, in terms of tax regimes and contractual terms to help realise full value in line with global standards.

The PHICB takes care of the rights and opportunities for local benefits, in terms of restitution for environmental and social costs of resource extraction activities.

In an interview with PREMIUM TIMES Sunday night, Musa Rasfanjani, a civil society campaigner, expressed disappointment in the nations lacklustre attitude to reforms in the industry.

Its a shame that Nigeria is not leading on good governance in the oil and gas sector after more than four decades of doing business, we dont have an effective legislation and practice that would promote efficiency, transparency, reduce corruption and waste and promote business integrity, he noted.

PIGB is a good direction towards an improved petroleum sector in Nigeria but those who dont believe in strengthening our system for better management of this important sector continue to undermine efforts towards transparent and accountable systems.

Losses Occasioned By Poor Governance

Nigeria lost about N1.74 trillion to the absence of the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB) in 2013, according to the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI).

The transparency watchdog, in a report in January, also said the sector lost over $10.4 billion and N378.7 billion through under-remittances, inefficiencies, and theft due to absence of a clear governance framework for the oil and gas industry.

Africas largest economy depends on oil revenue to fund its revenue and fix other concerns around governance and development. The nation slipped into recession in 2016 following a slump in oil prices. In the second quarter of 2017, it recovered from the recession after oil prices appreciated in the international oil market and has since been on a steady growth.

The nations Gross Domestic Product, GDP, however nosedived to 1.50 per cent in the second quarter of 2018 after an appreciable increase in the first quarter of same year.

Analysts are worried the signs may be ominous as the nation prepares for another round of elections and its attendant politicking in the coming months.

In June, reports said Nigeria overtook India as the nation with the highest number of extremely poor people. The report, published by Brookings Institution, said the number of Nigerians in extreme poverty increases by six people every minute.

With a population of over 200 million, pundits often wonder why the nations huge resources have failed to translate to prosperity for the people. With tens of thousands of dollars made from oil since it began commercial production in 1956, Nigerias underdeveloped status is often attributed to corruption and opacity, especially in the management of its oil sector.

Stakeholders say the PIGB would conveniently address this and other issues if passed, but there are concerns around the presidents refusal to assent to the bill and its return to the Senate.

Already, there are fears that the bill may become another casualty in the executive-legislature face-off that the nation has witnessed in recent time.

Since his inauguration as Senate President in 2015, Bukola Saraki and Mr Buhari have disagreed over several issues, with the nations governance suffering.

Last week, the senate president declared his interest in the nations presidential seat, on the platform of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party. The move came amid controversies on the funding of next year election, weeks after Mr Saraki defected from the ruling All Progressives Congress, which is poised to field incumbent Mr Buhari as its candidate once again at the polls in 2019.

We call on both the executive and legislature to ensure that they do not allow politics, personality egos and party affiliations to supersede the national interest and potential benefits due to Nigeria and her people from the passage of this all important legislation, said the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), in a reaction to the development last week.

We remind the two arms of government that national interest and pride are at stake, as much as their integrity, considering that they have made repeated promises to the citizens that this law will be passed during their tenure in office to break a 12-year old jinx. The passage of the PIGB and indeed all other components of the PIB should not become another campaign promise unfulfilled.
Gideon Ekanem, a consultant with the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO), trains young people in Nigeria on finance, marketing, and communication.

He spoke to PREMIUM TIMES on the challenges facing the Nigerian youth.

PT: What do you think is the most significant challenge the youth of this generation are facing, especially in Akwa Ibom State where you come from?

Gideon: It about most young people not being able to dream because their minds are not really opened, and so they are not seeing the bigger picture. There is also the problem of the countrys leadership not investing in young people.

PT: Do you think the kind of education the young people are getting have failed them?

Gideon: We cannot have schools that are meant to produce problem-solvers, yet we are struggling and cant even solve our basic problems. We cant continue to have department of electrical engineering in our universities, and yet we do not have electricity in our villages. The universities should make students be solution-conscious. The school system, as it is, isnt designed to help young people solve problems; it is a system that just massages their ego, where they all come out and feel excited and entitled. Our school system is not working.

PT: Do you think it will get to a point where these problems will explode on our face?

Gideon: It is already exploding, and it will get worst with the way things are going.

Agreed that young people have to take up responsibilities. But the question also is, as a young person, who do you really model yourself after? Do you model yourself after politicians with some unexplained wealth? Can young people model themselves after those? But unfortunately, that is what the media present to us daily. Politics is massively distorting our media space.

PT: How do you mean when you say politics is distorting the media space?

Gideon: What innovation is trending, for instance, on Channels Television or Premiums Times in the past six months? Nothing of sort! What is trending in Nigeria are mostly political fights. Young people who are struggling to innovate things in Nigeria do not get enough media attention.

PT: Do the Nigerian youth really understand that they are in a quagmire, going by what youve said?

Gideon: Im a young person. I really do understand that this problem exists, and it gives me sleepless nights.

PT: From your interactions with other young people, do you think they understand that these problems exist?

Gideon: Yes, most of them do. But until young people get to the point of knowing what role they themselves should play in problem-solving, they may never have an expectation of the responsibilities other people in the society should take up in order to help. Unfortunately, so many young people are living in self-pity, which is the basis for the kind of work I do as a social entrepreneur, bringing young people to a place of self-awareness, and from there they will start to innovate. But most of us who have reached the innovation point, are always disappointed where help isnt forthcoming.

PT: You said the education system in Nigeria isnt helping matters. How about other institutions like the family and the church?

Gideon: The family is a problem in Nigeria because the economy isnt helping families to get to where they ought to be. In Nigeria, it is either you are rich, very rich or you are poor, very poor. The poor and very poor people are much more than the rich. So, the family has been deficient in this area, parents who arent professionals go out and come back home frustrated and vent their anger on the children, they dont even pay attention to how the children are being raised, they struggle to send their children to school, they get frustrated with children joining bad gangs.

The church is a bigger part of the problem because in the church you have the people running the economy, you have people who are running the government, making policies and decisions that are affecting the family. The church should be effective enough to know when to give people a pat on the back or a swift kick in the rear to get them into the gear.

PT: Lets look at youth involvement in politics in Akwa Ibom state. Almost every young person these days sees politics as a career and this is a major distraction, what do you think could be done about this?

Gideon: The system keeps them that way so it can mob them up for political rallies. In Akwa Ibom, young people are involved in politics, not because they want to learn some leadership skill or support credible candidates or even contest elections themselves, but because that appears to be the only means of economic survival for them.

PT: How can we turn the energy, the vibrancy in our youth into some kind of cultural, political and economic revolution?

Gideon: Now, this is where we come in. Through our organisation, Character and Success Social Enterprise, we have been inspiring young people to make profitable growth, creating platforms for them to converge, connect and learn. We design templates on how young people can be developed. There is the YESS brand (Young Entrepreneurs Success Stories) event which we have been hosting in the past three years in Uyo.

The idea of YESS is to bring successful entrepreneurs to share their success stories with young people, students, aspiring startups, startups, and entrepreneurs, to inspire them to launch new enterprises, create and innovate. In the last three years, the YESS event has inspired over 5000 young people. Last year, we hosted Mr Udeme Ufot of the SO&U adverting agency, and young people were so happy to connect with him.

Right now, we are proposing the Enterprise Valley Hub, a workspace for both tech and non-tech entrepreneurs in Uyo. If you go into the streets, you will see young people walking around with laptops, they need a workspace, they need electric power, they need the Internet, they want to work. You see, most of them who go out for political rallies do so out of frustration. If they could just have a workspace, it will go a long way to help them channel their energy into something profitable. Make a support structure available for young people and you will be able to harness their energy, passion, and vibrancy.
Two women who pleaded guilty to attempting same-sex relations were given six strokes of the cane at the Sharia High Court of north-eastern state Terengganu in Malaysia on Monday.

The punishment took place behind closed doors in the courtroom after the judge handed down the sentence with close to 150 witnesses present.

The unidentified women, aged 22 and 23, were fined 806 dollars (3,300 ringgit) in addition to the six strokes of the cane.

The caning, originally scheduled for Aug. 28, was postponed to Monday due to technical reasons, the Chief Registrar of the court, Wan Wan-Sidek, said as he defended the public caning.

The power of the court has been enacted in [the] Terengganu state constitution  Sharia laws allow for women to be punished, they are just being educated and not tortured, Wan-Sidek said.

Thilaga Sulathireh, from the group Justice for Sisters, who witnessed the ordeal, was concerned about the safety, privacy, harassment, humiliation and trauma of the women.

Theres a disparity and gap between Muslim and non-Muslim women, Sulathireh said.

We are very concerned on how a lot of the punishment is carried out in the name of religion. What happened today was definitely quite shocking.

It really is a sign of how human rights are regressing in Malaysia not only for LGBT but for all people.

Muslims make up approximately 60 per cent of Malaysias population of 32 million.

(dpa/NAN)
The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, has said that journalists conviction in Myanmar was a message that press cannot operate fearlessly.

The UN human rights chief, in a statement on Monday, stressed that the legal process that led to the conviction of two Reuters journalists in Myanmar clearly breached international standards.

The United Nations top human rights official called for the journalists immediate and unconditional release.

She said that the convictions send a message to all journalists in Myanmar that they cannot operate fearlessly, but must rather make a choice to either self-censor or risk prosecution.

Earlier on Monday, Kyaw Soe Oo (also known as Moe Aung) and Thet Oo Maung (also known as Wa Lone) were sentenced to seven years imprisonment on charges of violating, according to the High Commissioners Office (OHCHR), the ill-defined Official Secrets Act.

Bachelet also said that the two journalists coverage of the Inn Din massacre by the military  for which the military subsequently admitted responsibility  was clearly in the public interest as it may otherwise never have come to light.

I call for their conviction to be quashed and for them to be released, along with all other journalists currently in detention for their legitimate exercise of the right to freedom of expression, she stressed.

Bachelet assumed her functions as the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights on September 1, succeeding Zeid Raad Al Hussein, who held the position since September 2014.

(NAN)
Salma Anas-Kolo is a former Borno State Commissioner for Health who served between 2011 and 2015, a time when Boko-haram insurgency was at its peak.

In a grim statistics by Borno state Government last year, the Boko Haram insurgency in the state led to deaths of almost 100,000 persons with over two million internally displaced.

Mrs Anas-Kolo is also a pediatrician and an internationally renowned public health expert who worked at various levels and locations in Nigeria and around the world for the United Nations System, through such agencies as United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) and the World Health Organisation (WHO).

In this Interview with PREMIUM TIMES Ebuka Onyeji, Ayodamola Owoseye and Nike Adebowale, she speaks on various health challenges that befell the state as a result of Boko Haram attacks and how the state responded. She also gives insights on her ambition to run for the Senate in the 2019 elections, the challenges women face in politics, among other sundry issues.

Excerpts:

PT: You were the Commissioner of Health during Governor Kashim Shettimas first tenure in office, between 2011 and 2015, at a time when Boko Haram insurgency was at its peak. How was the experience?

Annas-Kolo: Yes, I was health commissioner at the peak of the crisis. It was a very difficult time because it was a time that Boko Haram reached its peak. It was a time we had Internally Displaced Persons moving into Maiduguri and also moving outside the state.

Some went as far as Cameroon, Niger and Chad. Compounding health problems as of that time birthed disease outbreaks and several other challenges in terms of bomb blasts. What we did was that, immediately we set up an emergency response team and the humanitarian desk within the ministry of health.

As we receive the IDPs, we also set up clinics within the IDP camps. Inadequate health workers remained a challenge in the state even before the crisis and it became worse with the crisis. What we did was to tap on the IDPs that are health workers and immediately train them.

We embarked on massive recruitment of health workers. In 2011, we had only 35 doctors in the whole state, so we beefed that up to almost 140 medical doctors. What we did was to make the work attractive to them by motivating them with additional incentives.

I remember the governor offered vehicles to doctors that took the offers in Borno State. We were also able to ensure that we institutionalised a plan that helped increase the number of trainees cum medical doctors, nurses and midwives by giving those that are already in the training additional monthly allowances.

PT: What were the major health challenges then, and how did the state respond?

Annas-Kolo: We had major disease outbreaks during this period. It was a trying time for the Borno people. It was quite challenging, we have never been confronted with such a huge challenge in the state even in the country. We have never had such a challenge that witnessed massive displacement of people.

About 80 per cent of these are (were) women and children. We mobilised and got a lot of support from our donor partners and the government. What we also did that really helped us was that we were able to mobilise community support, we got a lot of community and religious leaders to be involved.

I also set up a maternal new born and child health task force and also advocacy crew that comprised many of community and religious leaders. So, a lot of activities were going on in that aspect. We also used women groups like traditional birth attendants to create awareness on personal and environmental hygiene within the community.

So that greatly reduced the outbreaks of diseases. We had major outbreaks, there is no doubt about that especially the cholera outbreak, but these measures were able to reduce the outbreaks in the state. If you look at statistics from the MICS survey that was recently released, it showed that there has been a great improvement in the health indices in Borno State especially maternal labour and child health.

We did a lot of work in collaborations. Partners were leaving as at that time, we only tried to encourage them to come back and some did stay back. What most partners want to see is high level of political commitment by state government and we were able to demonstrate that.

All our counterpart fundings were being paid. The counterpart funding for HIV/AIDS, UNFPA, Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation were paid and every other partners that comes. They supported the state and because of the work we did in the state, we were acknowledged as the best performing state in terms of efforts to eradicate polio.

We were able to interrupt transmission of polio in 2013. For almost a year there was no record of polio in Borno State. As at that time also, we were providing free services for women and children within the facilities and encouraging them to visit the health facility for ante-natal care and deliveries with additional incentives of mosquitos nets. We did not allow the crisis to discourage us or dampen our spirit.

PT: Trauma was a major health challenge then? Many people were reported to have been traumatised during this period. Can you give more insight on how this was handled?

Annas-Kolo: What we had then was physical trauma and psychological trauma. I will say that almost everybody in Borno were psychologically traumatised not just the IDPs or victims of bomb blasts. What we did in terms of managing psycho-social trauma was to collaborate with institutions of psychiatric hospitals in the state and we identified a lot of health workers and trained them on psysho-social support.

We also set up centres within the University of Maiduguri and also within the neuro-psychiatric hospitals where we referred patients who had come up with symptoms that could not be controlled. Apart from psycho-social trauma, gender based violence became very prominent at the time.

It was the same period we had the abduction of young girls from secondary schools. Even before the abduction of the over 200 girls (Chibok), we had such incidents happening in communities. We have had incidents where we had to do psycho-social counselling for the girls, including their parents.

Again, the bomb blasts claimed many lives, destabilised and displaced many families. Many people were disabled. All these contributed to the trauma we felt. Unfortunately, the human resources to face these challenges were so limited.

The hospitals we relied on are the general hospitals, the teaching hospital is managed by the federal ministry of health so we tried to strengthen those facilities. We set up emergency centres in the trauma centers and we started providing treatment for patients.

We also procured about 25 to 30 ambulances that were providing 24 hours services to victims of insurgency, especially victims of bomb blast. When I left Maiduguri in 2015, I came back to the federal ministry of health as a director and I was lucky I met a permanent secretary who is also very passionate about victims of bomb blast.

Former Borno state commissioner, Salma Ibrahim Anas-Kolo

Then, we had another minister of health, Professor Isaac Adewole, who is also passionate. They both supported me and I set up a humanitarian response desk in the ministry of health under the directorate of special duties.

So I was heading that department. And under the department, for the first time, we set up a coordinated response to humanitarian services with special emphasis on the insurgency happening in the North-east. It is still functioning till date. We were able to work with the presidential committee for the North-east. We submitted a proposal of support which was later approved.

PT: What was the feeling within the state when the Chibok girls were kidnapped?

Annas-Kolo: Even as the commissioner of health, when the over 200 girls were adopted, I was psychologically traumatised because it is a reality but we had denial at the national level that it didnt happen. We tried to convince the government that it happened in Chibok community.

I am in contact with the Chibok community up till now, I am in contact with the health facility in Chibok that treated the girls that were rescued within the first week. We identified parents and families of the girls that were abducted, brought them and did a lot of psycho-social counseling for them.

We set up a system for them where we established a referral centre and set up psycho-social centre within Maiduguri town. It went on for some time but after I left office, it didnt continue. Yes, in terms of physical trauma, the shock of the Chibok girls abduction is still felt across the state.

PT: Many families were displaced at the peak of these attacks and are yet to be reunited. What has the state done in this regard?

Annas-Kolo: There are challenges in the coordination. I think the major challenge is having a coordinated approach to coordination of humanitarian crisis. I cannot talk much of the humanitarian committee because I am not part of that committee but I know there are other committees working in parallel.

At the state level, there is limitation in terms of coordination. I know the state government has made lots of efforts yet there are some families that are yet to be reunited. It is a sad reality, it is not something that can happen fast. Some children have lost their parents and they do not know anything about where they come from.

Some have been physically and psychologically traumatised, that resulted in mental illnesses. So the burden is still enormous and we have to keep advocating for better approach for a better way of coordinating the response.

We have over 100 partners in Borno state but the coordination is still not too effective. It should be run by the state government, it should be led and driven by the government.

NEMA is currently stepping in more aggressively to improve the coordination from the federal level up to the state level. They have a zonal office and state focal persons in their offices. The state has also set up similar structures as NEMA at the state level, which is also functioning well.

PT: Your reappointment as the commissioner of health in 2014 was rejected by your party because according to them, you refused to support politicians running for offices. Can you shed more light on that?

Annas-Kolo: That was very interesting. I came to Borno as a technocrat in 2011, I was appointed as a technocrat. But once you are in a political position, you adapt to the situation.

The state house of assembly and the politicians acknowledged the works that was done in the sector. What is strange about me that they did not see happening is maybe dashing out money? I ensured we follow all the due processes. I never awarded contracts, it goes through the due processes and is then approved by the government.

I followed every work to conclusion, maybe that was strange to them. So maybe they were not comfortable with it, so when we came back after the reshuffling, the governor posted me again to come back and continue the good work we were doing in the state but the state house of assembly rejected that.

My mandate is that whatever resources is allocated for an intended purpose, we must use the resources to achieve the purpose. It can never be diverted. The health sector deals with lives. Life is not like road constructions, so if we say we are buying drugs, it has to be drugs.

If we say we are renovating facilities then we have to do it. Fortunately, we renovated most of the primary healthcare units in Borno State. We were able to equip the facilities even before the destruction by the insurgency. At the end of the day, we came to an understanding and a lot of them apologised to me and it was later approved.

I still feel I have to come back to Borno on a political platform to continue to support our people because we cannot develop if we do not have a sincere commitment to our people. Remember we are working with limited budget, limited resources including human resources. So for us in Borno State, there is no room for diversion of anything. It has to be used for what it is meant for.

While in office, I tried to promote good governance within the health sector. I encouraged clinical governance even within the service delivery system and this is what has worked. We involved community people as our watchdogs to monitor and track us in the health sector.

Part of what we are suffering in the state today is a breakdown of law and order. First of all, dedication has to come from young people because there is a high rate of school dropouts and those in school were not getting quality education then. When we assumed office in 2011, we started putting all these in place.

When we visited the school of nursing in 2011, the governor and I shed tears because of the state of the school. No toilet facilities, no electricity, and no water supply. So how can a mother send her daughter to such a school? We immediately agreed with the governor to renovate the school and the school was upgraded to a standard one. I am glad I was part of the government between 2011 and 2015 when we initiated all changes and started addressing them aggressively.

The same thing also happened in the education sector, the quality of teachers were upgraded. I served for four years and left on my own because I wanted to pursue a career and stay with my family. That was the major reason I left in 2015.

PT: Recently, you declared your intention to run for the Senate. Knowing the challenges women face in politics, do you think you stand a chance, even at the party level?

Annas-Kolo: I will always say the window should be opened for women to participate in the development of the state. Being a woman is not a weakness, it is a not handicap because I have reached certain level of leadership.

I was a commissioner and most people within and outside Borno acknowledged our efforts because they have seen what we have been able to achieve. So it is about what we can do, not by gender. I tell them not to look at me as a woman but as an individual that can bring progress to the state.

I was appointed as a commissioner of a state by a governor who is a male because he recognised the talent in me. The political space has always been dominated by men because women have not pushed enough. There is a way politics is been played in Borno and Nigeria generally, that is why women havent participated in it. With the 35 per cent affirmative action, if the government and our people will allow that to happen, I think that will allow inclusion of women and that will also open opportunities.

There are challenges that are associated with the level of education of the people. When I say education, I am not talking about western education only but also Islamic education. So they see women as to not be part of it.

I am very proud to be a housewife, I stay at home and I take care of my family. But that does not deprive you of contributing to the state development. This orientation is gradually changing because we are beginning to see the impact that women have made in positions.

I believe wise men are beginning to open windows of opportunities for women to be part of their progress. The major challenge of running as a woman is financing. Women may not have much as their male colleagues in terms of finance because I know as a woman, I am objective and straightforward.

For me in my state, the challenge is not even being a woman because the people are so informed so they encourage me to go for it. The religious leaders are in support of my goal. The challenge we are facing now especially in southern Borno which I am trying to represent as a senator is that we have been caged in what we call a zoning system.

The zoning system is that five local governments have always been producing the deputy governors of the state which is under my emirate council for over 30 years. One local government out of the local governments has been producing the senator for more than 30 years. This is lopsidedness. What we are now promoting is that there should be fairness, openness, there should be no barriers in terms of zoning.

Only those capable should come out and contest not just because you are from a particular local government. So producing a deputy governor should not deprive others of their constitutional rights of contesting for a senatorial seat. And this is what we have suffered for more than 30 years and for me, I am challenging that status quo. It does not allow inclusion and diversification.

PT: You are running against a veteran, Ali Ndume, a former majority leader of the Senate who has been in the National Assembly since 2003 and is also a staunch member of the APC. How do you intend to win this battle?

Annas-Kolo: I think he (Ndume) is my leader, there is no doubt about that. He is currently sitting on the chair and he has been there for 8 years. In the Senate, he is going to complete his eight years and he was also in the house of reps for eight years so that makes it 16 years.

I have a lot of respect for him and he has played his role but the space is large and we make changes for progress. So there is need for us to also move forward because when someone has been in a position for a long time and gains lots of experience, he should be able to move on.

Former Borno state commissioner, Salma Ibrahim Anas-Kolo

So for me, it is the difference that is the conviction and my conviction is that I am bringing a huge difference. With all the experience I have gathered at the state, national and the international level, I think Borno State is not where it should be. In fact we have gone almost 50 years backwards in terms of development.

Narrowing down to my constituency which is Southern Borno, we are battling with so much level of lack of development looking at it from education, employment of our young people and infrastructural development. The roads are so bad, you cannot travel for 30 minutes smoothly apart from some of the areas that were just being constructed by the governor.

Most of them are federal projects that have been abandoned. So I feel the southern area of Borno State has not benefited from federal projects and it is out of my passion for my people and the willingness to support them to move them to the next level that I ask for this opportunity. If I am given that opportunity, I will be able to support and address three critical areas: education, girl child education and the health sector.

PT: Most women in politics complain about the warped party structure. They say its skewed against them. What is your take on this?

Annas-Kolo: At the primary level, which is the most challenging, money and gender is being used to marginalise women. The representation of women at the party level is very poor.

If you take five delegates from each ward, its only one woman you will have. For me, what I am presenting to the men here is that I need them to support me. I am pleading with them to be fair- based on the lessons they have learned in the past. It is not about selling your conscience for money and sacrificing the next four years for poor governance.

They should see me as a progressive individual trying to help her people. God can only help someone that is sincere. It is a mans world. They decide who goes there at the moment.
Nigeria, Germany, Norway, and the United Nations have converged on Berlin Monday for a pledging conference on Boko Haram.

The Berlin Conference, holding from September 3 to 4, is jointly organised by the three countries and the UN, and is one of the 2018 largest pledging conferences for the Lake Chad region.

The conference will focus on humanitarian assistance, civilian protection, crisis prevention and stabilisation for the region, as well as seek to raise funds for the humanitarian requirements totaling $1.56 billion.

The pledges at the conference, would help provide humanitarian assistance for the North-east Nigeria and parts of Niger, Chad and Cameroon, ravaged by Boko Haram insurgents.

It would also discuss the perspectives of civil society, their concerns and contributions, as well as how to strengthen collaboration between the affected countries and organisations involved in responding to the crisis.

The Nigerian delegation to the Berlin conference is being led by Nigerias Ambassador/Permanent Representative to the UN, Tijjani Bande.

The Nigerian envoy said recently that Nigeria had developed a 6.7-billion-dollar robust plan of action for the reconstruction, rehabilitation and resettlement of Northeast, devastated by Boko Haram activities.

The Berlin Conference on the Lake Chad has been slated for the first week of September 2018 and would build substantially on the outcome of the February 2017 Oslo Donors Conference on the Lake Chad.

I would like to take this opportunity to call on all stakeholders to redouble efforts and commitment towards making the coming Berlin Conference on the Lake Chad of Sept. 3 to 4, 2018, a watershed.

This is in our collective resolve to further mobilise resources and demonstrate implicit commitment to plans that will ensure moving quickly beyond the immediate humanitarian needs, to concrete sustainable developmental projects capable of substantially elevating the lives of the majority of people in the region, Mr Bande said.

The envoy stressed the need for collaboration and cooperation among countries of the Lake Chad, the donors, as well as humanitarian and development partners.

According to him, collaboration between the humanitarian and development agencies has gained traction at the UN in recent times, such that the involvement of national governments is needed to make it work.

He said the protracted humanitarian and development challenges in the Lake Chad region had place enormous responsibilities on all to remain engaged in discussion, aimed at scaling up national, regional and global responses to the crisis.

The envoy emphasised that these responses needed to be bolstered by strengthened coordination at the UN level to ensure a more synergised delivery of assistance.

Let me emphasise that the recharge of the Lake Chad Basin, capacity building, and restoration of livelihood, through facilitation of occupational opportunities, job creation, skill acquisition and others, are central to finding lasting solution to the problem in the region.

To realise all these would entail our collective commitment to a broad range of actions, facilitated by strong international cooperation and partnership, involving the UN agencies and development partners, like the World Bank and African Development Bank, among others, Mr Bande said.

The UN had also said that it would have provided assistance to no fewer than 6.1 million people affected by the Boko Haram crisis in Northeast Nigeria by the end of 2018.

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator for Nigeria, Edward Kallon, said at a recent event in New York, that Nigeria was still facing a crisis of global magnitude.

The figures are alarming  10.2 million people affected in three states in Northeast Nigeria, 7.7 million people in need of humanitarian assistance.

Our 2018 Humanitarian Response Plan was developed to provide assistance for 6.1 million people requiring slightly above a billion dollars in 2018, Mr Kallon said. (NAN)
No fewer than 11 people were killed in another round of attack by unknown gunmen in Lopandet Dwei Du area of Jos South local government area of Plateau State, the police have said.

Tyopev Terna, the police spokesperson, also said 12 persons were wounded in the attack and are currently receiving treatment at the Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) and Plateau Specialist Hospital.

The incident was said to have occurred on Sunday at about 8: 30 pm.

The attack is coming just four days after a similar attack in communities of Foron District of Barikin Ladi LGA of the state.

On Sunday, at about 8.30 pm, the Plateau State Police Command, Jos received a distress call to the effect that unknown gunmen attacked Lopandet Dwei Du Area of Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State.

The Command immediately mobilised to the scene of crime. On arrival we discovered that some people were shot. The victims were immediately rushed to Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) and Plateau Specialist Hospital.

As a result of the attack, eleven (11) persons have been confirmed dead by doctors from both hospitals mentioned above while (12) persons were wounded and are now on admission receiving treatment,  Mr Terna said.

In previous attacks, the warring parties, Berom and Fulani communities, blamed each other as being responsible.

When contacted on the development, the spokesperson of Berom Community, Jatau Davou, told PREMIUM TIMES that 13 corpses were recovered and they were still looking for more.

Eyewitnesses saw people in military uniform on motorbikes, well equipped, he said.

According to Mr Terna, more security personnel have been deployed to the area to prevent further attacks and investigation into the crime is ongoing.
All is not well with the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Borno State as Governor Kashim Shettima and his erstwhile political godfather-turned arch-enemy, Ali Modu Sheriff, appear ready to fight dirty ahead the partys primaries.

The party has of late demonstrated that the peace accord it signed to usher in founding members who defected but returned to the party, was a cosmetic arrangement.

State officials of the party on Sunday accused the former governor, Mr Sheriff, of carrying out illegal registration and issuance of membership cards across the state.

The APC state secretary, Bello Ayuba, described the alleged action as an insult to the party and the person of President Muhammadu Buhari.

Top amongst those the party welcomed back in Maiduguri early this year was the former national chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Mr Sheriff, who is also a former governor of the state.

Mr Sheriff left the newly formed APC in 2014 as a fallout of the acrimonious relationship he had with Mr. Shettima, whom he assisted to power in 2011.

On April 4, Mr. Sheriff made a grand return to the APC when he led some former members of the PDP back to his former party and was received by the governor and other party supporters at Government House, Maiduguri.

At the reception, Mr Sheriff said he was returning to the party for good and urged his supporters to queue behind the state government led by his successor, Shettima.

Soon after, the former PDP national chairman picked up the job of campaign coordinator for President Muhammadu Buharis 2019 reelection bid  a job on which he has since rolled out all his political arsenal to deliver at all cost.

Two weeks ago, the state governor had during a luncheon to mark the last Eid-el-Kabir celebration, delivered a speech that revealed a division within the ruling party. He accused those he called Abuja politicians of trying to undermine his authority especially as it concerns who would succeed him come 2019.

The governor urged the party stakeholders that are loyal to him to forge a more united rank in order to quash the plots of the so-called Abuja politicians whom he accused of trying to bring political insurgency to the state.

While the state is grappling with the governors new war path with the Abuja politicians, amongst whom is Mr Sheriff, the party on Sunday came up with the accusation of illegal registration of party members.

Those familiar with the budding conflict within the APC said the former governor was promoting the registration of new members ahead of the APC congress. He is being accused of trying to orchestrate the emergence through direct primaries of a governorship candidate not supported by the governor.

The partys officers in the state insisted that the registration was illegal and capable of throwing the state into chaos and even undermine the reelection bid of Mr Buhari.

The All Progressives Congress, APC, has uncovered an illegal registration of APC members and prospective voters by a suspicious group of persons in Borno State who are acting a hidden agenda that aims to undermine President Muhammadu Buharis reelection bid, the statement signed by the party secretary said.

The APC is calling on all its members across the 27 local government areas to disregard any registration exercise for now because the exercise has nothing to do with the APC national headquarters and the state level.

When the APC is ready to carry out a legitimate registration of members, the party will under normal circumstance, send officials from its national headquarters in Abuja to different states as against a group of suspicious persons that may be working underground to stop legitimate registration of APC members.

Our party officials have been receiving calls from members saying they had come in contact with some people who claim to be officials undertaking registration of APC members in Borno State as well as registration of citizens who intend to vote for President Muhammadu Buhari.

The APC views any so-called registration of Buharis supporters in Borno State or any part of Nigeria as an insult to President Buhari because from the 2015 elections, Buhari won 97 percent of the total votes cast in Borno State and as such registering his supporters under any guise in Borno State is clear disregard for Buharis popularity.

A group of persons currently undertaking an illegal registration are trying to mislead people by collating their names for a purpose that has hidden motive.

The APC said it was aware that a particular individual who is yet to register his return to the APC at the ward level, was behind the illegal registration exercise even while the same individual is known to have provided a venue to a PDP presidential aspirant who visited Maiduguri recently and used that venue provided by the so-called returnee for the purpose of raining abuses on President Muhammadu Buhari.

We assure the APC that the party is 100 percent behind President Buhari and the party will work totally for Buhari the same way it did in 2015 when the so-called new returnees did everything to undermine Buharis election while they were in PDP.

The APC called on security agencies in Borno State to take note that any registration of members is illegal and is capable of causing violence across the State.

The party urged its members to remain peaceful, law abiding and not to take laws into their hands for whatever reason.

A party chieftain who spoke to PREMIUM TIMES but wished not to be named expressed worry that the current happenings in the party may not augur well for the party ahead the 2019 elections.

Whether we like it or not, our party is gradually sliding towards forming a faction and this will not be good for us, said the top officer.

The officer said he had also confirmed the alleged registration of APC members.

The registration is going on despite the call by the party secretary for the police to stop the exercise. In most part of the southern Borno, like Biu and Hawul over 15, 000 persons have been registered so far, he said.

This is all about the direct primaries thing that the party may likely use in selecting the governorship and national assembly candidates this month. And going by the speech of the governor during the Sallah celebration, it is clear that he is at war with the former governor, Ali Sheriff as well as those top politicians from the state who are in Abuja.

Former Governor Sheriff has clearly told his supporters that his job in the state and the zone is to work for Buhari and no one else; his alleged call for registration of voters in the state may be part of his plot to ensure that a governorship candidate believed to have been endorsed by Abuja politicians who have the ears of the president emerges through direct primaries; and governor Shettima seemed not happy with that, he said.

Also speaking on the matter , Christopher Akaba, a Senior Special Assistant to Governor Shettima, described Mr Sheriff as an hypocrite.

I am not surprised because the much talked about 2019 general elections is almost around the corner and just like 2015, we would be seeing politicians who completely abandoned us returning home, to, in their words, rescue the state, Mr. Akaba posted on his official Facebook page.

Some of them who even designed, plotted and perfected the strategy of imposing a long term hardship to the people for their selfish and economic interests, are also claiming to be on a rescue mission.

At the centre of this agitations is no other person than Emperor Ali Modu Sherriff, the so-called Political Gladiator, Godfather and the Alpha and Omega of Borno Politics.

For here was a man, (a member of the PDP then) who ganged up with the PDP controlled federal government at the centre in 2015, to frustrate the APC administration in Borno State led by Governor Kashim Shettima by ensuring that not only were soldiers attached to Governor Shettima withdrawn but the governor humiliated by being deprived of using the Maiduguri International Airport, while the same Sherriff (an ex-Governor) was allowed free access to the airport, including full military escorts and protection,said Mr Akaba.

Reacting to the allegation, the Special Assistant to Mr Sheriff, Kolo Adam, in a statement titled When Ignorance Takes A Lead, said the alleged membership registration was a mere online registration of President Buharis supporters.

Mr. Adam took a swipe at the leadership of the APC in Borno State, whom he said had lack knowledge and understanding of the art of leadership.

His fullfull statement reads:-

Reports reaching my desk indicated that supporters of Governor Shettima in Borno State are not happy with the ongoing online APC membership registration for the support of President Buharis 2019 second term bid, which signifies that direct primaries is inevitable in Borno State.

Thus, they went round discouraging the members of the public who trooped out in mass and cued to register their support. Some of them issued a threat but was disregarded by the people. Allegedly, they went behind the doors and connived with the national secretary mai Mala Buni who was said issued an unauthorized letter discrediting the exercise.

Unfortunately it is on record that the state chairman of APC Ali Tablet (what a name) previously issued a press statement (as attached) over the membership registration stating clearly that there is online registration in the APC constitution, where he said I want to draw your attention to the relevant section of the APC Constitution that deals with eligibility for Membership: Article 9.1 of the APC Constitution (October 2014 as Amended): Section ii; .. Online registration shall also be acceptable provided that it is cleared by the National Working Committee of the Party..

However, it is for this provision and the recent pronouncement by the NWC that the party is calling on Nigerians to register with the APC online so that they can become part of the decision making body in the party when it comes to giving their mandate to President Buhari and others.

Where then on earth the state chapter has the right to claim or cry foul that it is the duty and responsibility of the state that others are handling without their consent. Does it mean that they are superior than the NWC?

Any way all the above is history now that a state will be determine by its PECULIARITY as to DIRECT or INDIRECT PRIMARIES. And Shettima since flew out of the country to attend a meeting in Dubai, which the agenda is left for the Kashimiyas.

Thank you BUHARI, thank you OSHIOMHOLE and thank you SAS.
The Nigerian government has said it did nothing wrong by detaining a journalist, Jones Abiri, for two years without trial.

Mr Abiri was recently released on bail by the court after he was charged following outcry by Nigerians and the international community. Before he was charged to court, the Nigerian government had denied he was a journalist and claimed he was only a crime suspect.

The government gave its justification for the detention on Monday in a suit filed by Mr Abiri through his lawyer, Samuel Ogala. The journalist is demanding a compensation of N200 million from the Nigerian government for his prolonged detention without trial.

Mr Abiri, publisher of a Bayelsa State-based weekly paper, Weekly Source, was arrested by operatives of Nigerias State Security Service (SSS) in July 2016 and detained till July 2018.

In an application brought before the Federal High Court, Mr Abiri asked the court to compel the SSS to pay him for the flagrant abuse of his rights and torture experienced during his detention by the operatives.

Speaking during the opening of the session at the court on Monday, the SSS counsel, G. O. Agbadua, responded to the application by the journalist.

Mr Agbadua said: Section 30(3) of ACJA; where a suspect is taken into custody and it appears to the police officer in charge of the station that the offence is of a capital nature, the arrested suspect shall be detained in custody, and the police officer may refer the matter to the Attorney-General of the Federation for legal advice and cause the suspect to be taken before a court having jurisdiction with respect to the offence within a reasonable time.

According to Mr Agbadua, when it involves capital offence, the rules are different.

It is of individual right to national security and rule of law, the state itself was a result of individuals submitting their powers, their rights to the state for protection.

Reading those provisions, we are of the view that since its individual right, it cannot supersede that of the national security and that bail in capital offence is not as of right, he explained.

Mr Agbadua said Mr Abiri was not entitled to bail as provided by section 35 (7) of 1999 constitution. He urged the court to dismiss the application.

Responding, Mr Abiris laywer, Mr Ogala, said it is not the responsibility of the state to determine what is rule of law and national security.

According to Mr Ogala, it is the duty and responsibility of the court to say yes, this case is a capital offence or whether an applicant is entitled to bail or not. It is not the responsibility of the state security service to sit in their office, arrest, detain and punish a person.

The issue of rule of law and national security is very clear, what I want the court to understand is that, the applicants detention is criminal intimidation and it is punishable.

Similarly, Mr Ogala said there was no evidence of a court order for the applicant to be kept in detention for two years.

He said it was unfortunate that Mr Abiri was detained for two years without access to family or lawyers, which the

respondents have not denied in their affidavit.

After listening to both counsel, the judge, Nnamdi Dimgba, adjourned the matter till September 13.

President Muhamadu Buhari had stirred the hornets recently when he told a gathering of Nigerian lawyers that the rule of law can be shelved when national interest or security were threatened.

He, however, soft-pedalled after public outcry saying his administration would always respects the rule of law; when visiting German Chancellor, Angela Merkel, paid him a visit as part of a state interaction.
President Muhammadu Buhari has declined assent to Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2018 due to some drafting issues that remain unaddressed following the prior revisions to the Bill, an official said.

Ita Enang, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), made this known in a statement in Abuja on Monday.

The presidential aide said that already, the president had communicated his position to the Senate and the House of Representatives on August 30.

Mr President is declining assent to the Electoral Amendment Bill due to some drafting issues that remain unaddressed following the prior revisions to the Bill.

Mr President invites the Senate and House of Representatives to address these issues as quickly as possible so that he may grant assent to the Electoral Amendment Bill.

Mr Enang listed the outstanding issues resolved to include a cross referencing error in the proposed amendment to Section 18 of the Bill.

The appropriate amendment is to substitute the existing sub-section (2) with the proposed subsection (1A), while the proposed sub-section (1B) is the new sub-section (2A).

The proposed amendment to include a new Section 87 (14) which stipulates a specific period within which political party primaries are required to be held.

It has the unintended consequence of leaving INEC with only nine days to collate and compile lists of candidates and political parties as well manage the primaries of 91 political parties for the various elections.

He explained that the Electoral Amendment Bill did not amend sections 31, 34 and 85 which stipulated times for the submission of lists of candidates, publication of lists of candidates and notice of convention, congresses for nominating candidates for elections.

For clarity, may I provide some details of the provisions referenced; Clause 87 (14) states.

The dates for the primaries shall not be earlier than 120 days and not later than 90 days before the date of elections to the offices.

The Electoral Act 2010 referred to herein states in Section 31: that every Political Party shall not later than 60 days before the date appointed for a general election, submit to the commission the list of candidates the party proposes to sponsor at the elections.

Section 34: That the Commission shall at least 30 days before the day of the election publish a statement of the full names and addresses of all candidates standing nominated.

Section 85 (1):That a Political Party shall give the Commission at least 21 days notice of any convention, congress etc., for electing members of its executive committees or nominating candidates for any of the elective offices.

According to him, for the avoidance of doubt, neither the Constitution nor any written law allows a President or a Governor to whom a bill is forwarded by the legislature to edit, correct, amend or in any manner alter the provisions of any such bill to reflect appropriate intent before assenting to same.

He is to assent in the manner it is or to withhold assent.

He further disclosed that Mr Buhari had communicated his action to the National Assembly on the underlisted Bills earlier transmitted: National Agricultural Seeds Council Bill, 2018; and the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences (Amendment) Bill, 2017.

The presidents action on the Chartered Institute of Entrepreneurship (Establishment) Bill, 2018, and Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (Amendment) Bill, 2017, were also communicated to both chambers of the assembly.

Others are the Subsidiary Legislation (Legislative Scrutiny) Bill, 2018; National Institute of Hospitality and Tourism (Establishment) Bill, 2018, and National Research and Innovation Council (Establishment) Bill, 2017.

(NAN)
An alleged meeting of some aggrieved members of Nigerias ruling party, All Progressives Congress (APC) did not hold as contained in a statement by the party.

The party had on Sunday said it was aware of plans by some of its officials to hold an illegal meeting on Sunday.

The party said the illegal meeting is with a view to fault the decisions made by the NWC followed by the National Executive Committee (NEC) as regards the mode of the Partys primary elections.

The party through its spokesperson, Yekini Nabena, said identities of those plotting such meetings have been identified and unless they desist from such they will be dealt with in line with the partys constitution at the appropriate time.

Mr Nabena alleged that the meeting was scheduled to hold by 2 p.m. at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel.

But a visit by PREMIUM TIMES to the venue at exactly 1:58pm indicated that there was no sign that such a meeting was holding or scheduled to hold at the venue.

Over 30 minutes later, people in the hotel vicinity were still going about their normal businesses with most of the hotel attendants in the vicinity not aware of such meeting. The reporter had no option but to loiter around a bit.

No meeting was scheduled to take place here, a staffer of the hotel told our reporter.

When contacted to speak on the development, Mr. Nabena, who earlier raised the alarm hinted that the organisers probably have decided to shift or call off the meeting.

I think they must have shifted the meeting to another venue or probably called it off because of the (media) publications, he said.

The APC last week held its NEC meeting which was attended by President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

One of the major resolutions of the NEC meeting was that the party would adopt direct primaries for its presidential ticket while state chapters would decide whether or not to utilise direct or indirect primaries for other tickets.

Direct primaries involves all members of the party voting to elect candidates while indirect primaries involves delegates doing the election.

The indirect primaries had been largely criticised by many due to the overbearing influence state governors have on delegates and outcomes of such primaries.
The Southern and Middle Belt leaders forum has warned against any plan to remove Matthew Seiyefa, the acting director general of the State Security Service (SSS), saying it would kick against such a move.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the group urged President Muhammadu Buhari to allow the SSS to be run professionally.

The statement, signed by Yinka Odumakin (South-west); Bassey Henshaw (South-south); Chigozie Ogbu (South-east); and Isuwa Dogo (Middle Belt) warned the president to call his chief of staff, Abba Kyari, to order.

PREMIUM TIMES had reported how Mr Kyari is spearheading a ploy to remove the acting SSS boss who was appointed last month.

The plot to remove the Acting DG is said to be hinged on the professional reorganization of the service by him whom the cabal is now interpreting as removing APC elements in DSS for PDP apologists, a clear indication of the divisions this administration has caused in every facet of our life as a nation, the statement read.

Under the sacked DG, Lawal Daura, every need to organise the service along federal character and fill existing vacancies was ignored as he concentrated on nepotism in running DSS and keeping a coterie of those who have retired or have passed retirement in service and many of them having nothing to contribute.

The group said there were about 40 senior officers who were due for retirement or pre-retirement leave whom Mr Seiyefa had replaced in accordance with the service rules.

Until the recent sack of Daura, 16 out of 17 service chiefs were from his (Mr Buhari) corner of the country.

Since the president returned from his holidays in London, he has not made a comment on the invasion of the National Assembly by the DSS in his absence which led to the acting president rightly removing the former Daura, confirming speculation that he is not happy with the removal.
The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) has expressed sadness over the news of some of its pilgrims from Zamfara State who were involved in a tragic motor accident that resulted in three fatalities.

This was contained in a statement signed by the chairman of NAHCON, Abdullahi Muhammad, and made available to PREMIUM TIMES.

The incident, which happened along Makkah to Madinah highway, resulted in the death of: Shinkafi Mallamawa (male) from Shinkafi Local Government, with passport number: A09413309, Abdullahi Sambo (male) from Kauran Namoda Local Government, with passport number: A09413813 and Abdullahi Shugaba (male) from Maru Local Government, with passport number: A50080535.

According to the statement NAHCON has also sent a team of its personnel to retrieve the bodies for internment according to diplomatic guidelines and are treating those that sustained injuries.

Three others who survived the accident are in stable condition, yet they are undergoing thorough investigations and treatment. While we pray for the quick recovery of those injured, we commiserate with the families of the departed and government of Zamfara State. We pray to The Most Merciful Lord to grant the deceased Jannatul Firdaus and the entire people of Zamfara State the fortitude to bear the losses.

Similarly, the commission also commiserates with families of all pilgrims who lost their lives during the 2018 Hajj, especially the government and people of Niger State over the loss of one of its pilgrims who, inadvertently, stepped into an elevator while it was undergoing repairs.

The statement also said the commission regrets the occurrence and has however instituted investigation into the tragedy in conjunction with Saudi Arabian authorities with the aim of preventing any re-occurrence of the situation.

NAHCON condoles with the nation, it said.

We condole with the entire nation over the deaths and pray for the safe return of all pilgrims back home the commission said.
President Abdelaziz Bouteflika of Algeria has dismissed two army generals to tighten his grip on power ahead of him possibly seeking re-election next year and to diminish the power of the military, analysts

and diplomats said.

Two weeks ago, Bouteflika, 81, sacked two more generals, bringing the number of dismissed top military figures to about a dozen in the last few months alone.

Political sources told Reuters that the firings point to an accelerating security reform launched several years ago to transform Algerias politically oriented military into a more professional body.

Easing the grip of an army dominating the OPEC oil producer since the 1954-1962 independence war with France will take time.

But the first results can been seen  dismissals that once caused tremors in the secretive North African country now seem routine.

Generals used to sack, not to be sacked, said one retired intelligence officer, asking like others not to get named due to the sensitivity of the issue.

Decisions used to be taken at Tagarins, now they are taken at Zeralda, he added.

Tagarins is the location of the defense ministry in central Algiers, while Bouteflika works in the coastal village of Zeralda, 20 km west of the capital.

When Bouteflika was first elected in 1999, the army and the intelligence services were seen as the real holders of power.

Now, amid speculation that he will bow to calls from the ruling party to run for a possible fifth term in presidential elections in 2019 despite health concerns, Mr Bouteflika has been concentrating power in his inner non-military circle.

Key players are now his youngest brother Said Bouteflika, Prime Minister Ahmed Ouyahia and Interior Minister Nouredine Bedoui.

The recent sackings include four regional commanders, the head of military intelligence and several generals at the defense ministry, as well as police chief and army officer Abdelghani Hamel.

Before this years cull, Mr Bouteflika had already sacked in 2015 the top intelligence chief, Mohamed Mediene, and tens of senior generals in the intelligence services.

He also replaced the main intelligence agency DRS with a new body called CSS led by a retired general, Athmane Tartag  it reports to the presidency, not to the military like before.

It is a long process, the goal is to make the military more professional, and away from politics, said Arslan Chikhaoui, chairman of a consultancy firm.

Changes in Algeria are closely watched as the country is a key ally in the Western fight against jihadism in the region and a top energy supplier to Europe.

If the shift away from the army continues, this might help investors tired of visa or project applications becoming stuck in a bureaucracy dominated by military and security figures suspicious of foreigners.

That will be welcome news for foreign direct investors who will see the step as further normalization of the decision making process within the government, said Geoff Porter, head of North Africa Risk Consulting.

Algeria wants to drum up more investment for its oil and gas sector to end years of stalling output.

Bouteflika hired in March 2017 a U.S.-trained new CEO to revamp state firm Sonatrach who has been rebuilding ties with oil majors who had lost interest in Algeria due to red tape, disputes and tough terms.

The biggest risk remains the health of Bouteflika who has rarely been seen in public since a stroke in 2013 confined him to a wheel chair.

A reminder of this was his trip last week to Switzerland to conduct what the presidency described as routine tests.

(Reuters/NAN)
Four commercial banks donated a total of N980 million to the Nigerian Police Force in 2017 to support its activities, with the banks incurring the wrath of their shareholders.

Checks by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) indicated that the banks were United Bank of Africa (UBA), Guaranty Trust Bank, FCMB Group and Fidelity Bank.

A breakdown of the figures contained in the commercial banks 2017 annual reports obtained by NAN showed that UBA gave the sum of N300 million during the review period. Guaranty Trust Bank donated N300 million, FCMB and Fidelity Bank contributed N180 million each.

Speaking on the contributions, Moses Igbrude, Publicity Secretary, Independent Shareholders Association of Nigeria, said that the donations were not voluntary but imposed on banks in the name of improving security.

Mr Igbrude said the donations should be voluntarily and not by force, noting that it was not the duty of the banks to fund the Police Force.

While I have no problem with corporate bodies contributing or donating toward improving or assisting the NPF it should not be by force or seen as if it is the banks duty to fund the Police Force.

Anything that increases expenses and reduces the value of an investment is not what shareholders will support, he said.

Mr Igbrude said the burden on banks was so much, and that they provide everything for themselves despite the taxes they pay to the government.

A branch of a bank is like a local government, it provides water, light, security and other things necessary to run that branch.

You want banks to create employment, to kick start the economy by providing funding yet they are burdened with various impediment like AMCON levies, among others.

So what is the role of government in all these? Mr Igbrude asked.

He said the government and the regulators should allow the managements of banks to contribute to security through their individual corporate social responsibility initiatives rather than by compulsion.

In his reaction, Boniface Okezie, National Coordinator, Progressive Shareholders Association of Nigeria, said there was nothing wrong with the donations provided it was channelled for specified purpose.

Mr Okezie said banks should identify urgent needs of the police such as accommodation or provision potable boreholes.

He said the provision of basic amenities would be preferable instead of donating cash.

Okezie said shareholders should not be shortchanged, and that every fund was important when it had to do with return on investment.

Also speaking, Okechukwu Unegbu, former President, Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, said it was the responsibility of the government to provide security for its citizens and to make the business environment right for businesses to thrive.

He said the donations by banks were meant to secure banks facilities and the environment around the banks, noting that the support started a long time ago.

Unegbu said the question remained whether the police utilised the money for the purpose it was meant.

He said the banks were trying in terms of support but could not control the police or do more than contributing the money.

According to him, in other countries banks do not fund the Police because they have good security environment contributed by various police divisions unlike Nigeria where it is centralised.

He, however, called on banks to sponsor specific projects that would affect the lives of the police instead of donating funds.

Sheriffdeen Tella, Professor of Economics, Olabisi Onabanjo University Ago-Iwoye, told NAN that banks, just like any organization, must engage in corporate social responsibility (CSR).

Since the Police assist the banks in security matter, it is important that part of the CSR be spent on them as organisations not individuals.

For example, purchase of vehicles for operations can be taken up under CSR, not building police station.

However, Nnamdi Okonkwo, Fidelity Bank Managing Director, told the shareholders recently that it was an initiative of the Bankers Committee aimed at supporting the Nigerian Police.

Mr Okonkwo said that the committee agreed to support the police by equipping them and as well as provide other things needed to make their jobs easier.

(NAN)
The Nigeria Police Force said it arrested over 1,000 armed robbery, kidnapping and cattle rustling suspects within one year of the creation of the Operation Absolute Sanity on the Kaduna/Abuja highways.

The News Agency of Nigeria ( NAN) reports that the force, on July 25, 2017, commenced the operation on the highways.

The team includes police mobile force, counter terrorism squad, anti-kidnapping unit, intelligence response team, special tactical squad, force intelligence branch and police helicopters.

The operation was to complement and augment the on-going joint police and military operations on ground before now.

The force spokesman, Jimoh Moshood, disclosed this while addressing reporters on the arrest of 32 suspects in connection with armed robbery, kidnapping and cattle rustling on Monday in Tafa, Kagarko Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

Mr Moshood said the arrests cut across Kogi, Kaduna, Niger, Plateau, Sokoto, Zamfara and FCT, among others.

He said that the force would not relent in its efforts to reduce crimes to the barest minimum in the country, adding that the operation would be sustained and extended to other parts of the country.

Mr Moshood said that the 32 suspects specialised in attacking travellers on the Kaduna/Abuja highway.

He said that items recovered from the suspects included 22 Ak 47 rifles, one Toyota Corolla car, and 127 AK 47 ammunition.

The spokesman said the suspects, who confessed to the various roles they played in the crimes, would be charged to court on completion of investigation.

Mr Moshood said that contrary to insinuation by members of the public, the police did not release suspects after presenting them to the media.

The police do not release suspects after parading them as alleged by members of the public, he said.

He said that the police would always ensure that suspects arrested were prosecuted according to the laws of the land.

(NAN)
The Nigerian Navy on Monday said it had inducted over 200 assorted boats into the naval platforms in the last two years.

The Chief of Naval Staff, Ibok Ibas, made the disclosure in Lagos during the inauguration of six fast patrol crafts and eight inflatable boats at the Naval Dockyard Limited, Victoria Island, Lagos.

Mr Ibas said the 200 assorted boats were inducted among other recapitalisation attainment within two years, adding that the ocean had become the primary conduit of international trade and central to the global economy.

Nigeria indeed relies on sea-based resources, particularly oil and gas, as well as maritime-based commerce for survival and sustained national development.

The nations social and economic well-being is intricately linked to the seas, not only for trade, but also how it faces threats to its own security that develop across the seas.

Our resolve to achieve high growth can be realised only if our maritime frontiers and assets are safe, stable and act as enablers, he said.

Mr Ibas, a vice admiral, said that the navy was faced with myriads of potent threats in the maritime environment which was maritime terrorism, resource theft and sabotage of their supporting infrastructure.

Other notable threats are piracy and sea robbery, which target maritime trade and the economy of the nation.

The use of unregulated movements at sea for seaborne trafficking in humans, narcotics and arms and the incidents of smuggling are pervasive and remain issues of grave concern.

In this regard, the Navy must constantly sharpening its capabilities as a multi-dimensional, operationally effective and balanced force capable of countering the full range of maritime challenges across the entire spectrum of conflicts.

Furthermore, effects are also ongoing toward acquiring more fast patrol vessels for littoral waters up to the Exclusive Economic Zone, while the construction of a hydrographic vessel and landing ship will further reinforce the navys regional maritime dominance, he said.

Mr Ibas said that the NN would not have been able to achieve such remarkable progress in its fleet recapitalisation effort without the active support of the Federal Government.

(NAN)
The United Kingdom Department for International Development in Abuja on Monday gave details on how the UK government plans to create 100,000 jobs in Nigeria would be realized.

The spokesperson of the development agency of the British High Commission in Nigeria, David Smith, in a response to PREMIUM TIMES inquiry said the jobs would be created through UK governments LINKS programme, an initiative to power economic growth in northern Nigeria.

The economy of northern Nigeria, particularly the north east region, is currently facing serious development pressures consequent upon ravaging insurgent activities by religious extremists, Boko Haram.

Apart from the devastation of physical infrastructure and economy in the region, millions of citizens, including women and children, have been forced to join the growing population of internally displaced persons as a result of herdsmen and farmers conflict.

Prior to her visit to Nigeria last week, UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, identified Nigeria as home to the largest concentration of the worlds poorest people, with the bulk of the population in the north region.

During the visit, the UK Minister of State for Africa, Harriett Baldwin, who led a business delegation to the business event as part of the visit, announced a new 70-million programme to create 100,000 jobs in Nigeria.

Ms Baldwin said the programme would raise the income of three million people from the poorest parts of Nigeria.

But, giving details on the programme, Mr Smith said the LINKS initiative is a seven year programme to commence in early 2019, aimed at supporting job creation and income generation for the poor, women and those living with disability in the three northern states of Kaduna, Kano and Jigawa.

He said implementation of the programme would be through a contracted service provider, which the UK government is currently out in the market to recruit, with the process already in the evaluation stage for the first bids.

The service provider, Mr Smith said, would propose and implement the details of the programme, apart from working with a range of partners, including Centres for Disease Control (CDC) and the UK Department for International Trade.

The provider will also liaise with Nigerian agencies such as the Nigerian Investment Promotion Council (NIPC) and key international development agencies like the World Bank.

In a practical sense, LINKS will work by using a range of approaches such as technical assistance to public and private sectors, targeted grant funding and fostering linkages between investors, financiers and firms.

The programme will focus on three northern Nigerian states of Kaduna, Kano and Jigawa, with expectation that it has wider benefits which could spread to other northern states, Mr Smith said.

On the types of jobs to be created under LINKS, he said these would be as varied and diverse as the people of Nigeria.

Apart from affordable housing, information and communication technology and even waste management jobs in urban, rural jobs would cover agricultural supply chain and processing jobs.

In terms of categorization, the spokesperson said 40 per cent of the 100,000 jobs would be reserved for women, while six per cent would go to people living with disabilities.

Besides, at least 20 per cent of the jobs would be created in small replicable business models, like franchises the middle class, diaspora and modestly wealthy can also invest in.

So, its not just about big business or global leaders. Its about real Nigerians, he said.

Asked whether the initiative was part of a larger attempt by the UK government to help resolve the poverty situation the UK PM referred to in her controversial reference to Nigeria as home to the largest concentration of the worlds poorest people, Mr Smith said: Yes, absolutely.

He explained Ms Mays government believes the majority of the income improvements for the poor through LINKS would come from identifying innovative technologies or business models that will improve competitiveness and productivity across multiple fields, in a way that ensures the poor share the benefits.

Apart from testing these and other successful programmes, Mr Smith said they would help the entrepreneur or business who has developed the innovation to take it to the next level through attracting private investment.

Also, these innovations should expand and improve the lives of millions more as they spread across the northern part of the country and beyond.

The LINKS innovation and investment programme announced by the Prime Minister is a huge step the UK Department for International Development is immensely proud of, Mr Smith said of the initiative.

Helping to raise the income of three million people and create 100,000 vital jobs will transform Nigeria for the better.

For the people of Nigeria, LINKS means more, bigger and innovative firms creating jobs and raising incomes, both directly and through their supply chains, while generating higher revenues for taxation. Together, we can create a Nigeria fit for the future.
The European Union on Monday released 138 million to help communities in Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon affected by violence, insecurity and environmental degradation.

The donation will provide humanitarian and development assistance in the four countries; as part of overall EU aid package for the Chad Basin worth 232 million.

According to a post on the EU commission website, the Commissioner for Humanitarian Aid and Crisis Management, Christos Stylianides, said at a conference on the Lake Chad Region in Berlin, that the EU will also support livelihoods, helping people rebuild their lives.

The disastrous effects of armed conflict and violence in the Lake Chad basin have had a serious impact in an area already plagued by poverty and the extreme effects of climate change. The EU is committed to continue to help the most vulnerable. Mr Stylianides said.

Today we are stepping up our humanitarian and development assistance. What is crucial is for all parties to the conflict to ensure full access throughout the region so our aid can reach those in need. He added.

Also at the conference in Berlin, the EU Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development, Neven Mimica, said the new funding will enable EU boost existing programmes in North-east Nigeria by strengthening girls education.

As the humanitarian situation remains pressing, we also need to help prepare the region to move from conflict to peace and from fragility to resilience.

Our new funding will invest in social services and tackle poverty, environmental degradation and the effects of climate change. We will also boost some of our existing programmes in North East Nigeria by strengthening girls education and reintegration efforts, as well as health and nutrition services, Mr Mimica said.

The funds allocated for humanitarian assistance to the four countries in the region are Nigeria (47 million), Niger (15 million), Chad (11.8 million), and Cameroon (15.1 million).

It will cover the acute food and nutrition needs as well as supporting protection activities, access to basic health care and shelter. It will also support livelihoods, helping people rebuild their lives.

For development assistance, Nigeria got 74.5 million, Niger 32.2 million, Chad 33.2 million, and Cameroon 2.7 million.

The funds are for creation of appropriate security conditions for the return and sustainable reintegration of internally displaced people and refugees; supporting the provision of basic services (healthcare, food security and education); supporting economic recovery and job creation, notably for the youth.

According to the commission, humanitarian situation in the Lake Chad basin remains extremely fragile.

Over 2.4 million people have been forcibly displaced (including 1.2 million children), while violence and insecurity have also had a negative impact on the lives and livelihoods of more than 17 million people, it said.

Similarly, around 3.6 million people are in need of emergency food assistance and 440, 000 severely malnourished children across the region need life-saving assistance. The resulting humanitarian crisis is among the largest in the world.

The report said the EU provided close to 700 million in humanitarian aid and development assistance to the region between 2014 and 2017.
Australian foreign ministry has announced applications for the 2019 edition of Local Economics and Social Development in Extractives (LESDE) scholarship programme for Africans.

The short course, described as a key component of Australias international development assistance, has been providing opportunities for African awardees to obtain knowledge and skills that would enable them proffer solutions to challenges facing the African continent, according to the organisers.

The scholarship is fully-funded by the Australian government and those who have participated in the past gave testimonies about how it had aided their understanding of mining issues in Nigeria, and enhanced their capacity to tackle them.Aust

The course affords awardees access to latest technologies in socially and environmentally responsible mining. They are expected to learn from theory and research of experts and field visits from Brisbane to Gladstone to Blackwater to Emerald in Central Queensland, Australia.

Thirty scholars drawn from Cameroon, Cote dIvoire, Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Malawi, Namibia, Nigeria, Tanzania and Uganda were selected for the 2018 edition of the programme.

Participants described the experience as highly interesting, with their lectures covering thematic areas such, including introduction to international standards for LESDE impacts of mining.

Integrating a gender and social inclusion lens into managing LESDE impacts of mining, the global context of mining, mineral resources in Australia and and mined land rehabilitation were also amongst a series of courses the participants took. The Centre for Social Responsibility in Mining (CSRM) at University of Queenslands Sustainable Mineral Institute (SMI) coordinated the courses.

Awardees are expected to individually develop a reintegration action plan detailing what they intend to implement upon returning to their respective home countries.

Two staff members of the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, one staff member of Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and one staff member of National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA) participated in the 2018 edition.

Nigerian participants are already putting their knowledge to use, visiting artisanal and small-scale gold mining communities in Mokwa, Borgu, and New Bussa Local Government Areas of Niger State in recent weeks. Some of the knowledge garnered from the short course were transmitted to members of the communities. The participants hope to jointly work on a project aimed at using their new skills and knowledge to influence positive changes both in workplace and at mines host communities.

The second phase of the short course will commence in Madagascar from September 9.

Interested Nigerians are encouraged to submit their applications online here.
A reverend father, Christopher Ogaga, has been kidnapped by gunmen in Delta State.

Mr Ogaga is the parish priest of Emmanuel Catholic Church in Aragba, Okpe Local Government Area of the state.

According to the Commissioner of Police in the state, Muhammad Mustapha, who confirmed the abduction on Channels Television on Monday, the priest was abducted on Saturday along Arava-Oviri-Orere-Okpe Road while travelling to another parish in Warri.

According to him, Mr Ogaga was said to have left Aghalopke for Warri to help the parish priest of Mother of Redeemer Catholic Church, Airport Junction, Effurun for the three masses on Sunday morning when he was kidnapped.

Mr Mustapha added that the abducted clergyman is the Principal of St. Peters Clavers College, in Aghalokpe area of the state.

The officer said operatives of the command had begun a search to ensure the safe return of the priest.

On June 5, gunmen also kidnapped a monarch, Sunday Olisemokwu, the paramount ruler of Ogodor community in Aniocha North Local Government Area of Delta.

Before then, another Catholic priest of the Sacred Heart Parish, Obomkpa in Aniocha North local government area of the same state, Andrew Anah, was kidnapped twice this year.

The clergyman was kidnapped by gunmen who ambushed him, forced him into their vehicle and drove off with him.

Another parish priest serving at the St. Michael Catholic Church, Obajana, Kogi State, Leo Michael was also recently kidnapped.
An ex-aide to former president Goodluck Jonathan, Waripamo-Owei Dudafa, on Monday told a federal judge in Lagos that the N1.6 billion traced to him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission was money donated for a church building project in Otuoke, Mr Jonathans hometown.

Mr Dudafa, who opened his defence in a N1.6 billion fraud charge instituted by the EFCC, said the money was part of a N6 billion realised from a launching for the building of St. Stephens Youth Development Centre.

The launching, which held in Lagos on March 16, 2013, was organised by Mr Jonathan as the grand patron of the Anglican Communion.

From my interactions with former president Goodluck Jonathan, I know that the funds were proceeds of a launching that was conducted by the Anglican Communion of Otuoke community for the building of St. Stephens Youth Development Centre, Otuoke, the former senior special assistant on domestic affairs to Mr Jonathan said, while being led in evidence by his lawyer, Gboyega Oyewole.

About N6 billion was realised from the event. Several persons made various donations in cash and in pledges at the event while the chief launcher, Prince Arthur Eze, donated $10 million (about N1.8 billion).

Mr Dudafa said Mr Ezes donation was actually a pledge which he promised to redeem in batches.

He added that Mr Jonathan subsequently mandated him to follow up on Mr Eze to ensure he redeems his pledge.

When Prince Eze started redeeming his pledge in piece-meal, the former president directed that I should get somebody in the private sector that will be able to keep the fund.

I then brought in a friend, Somprie Omiebi, who later opened an account with a bank in Bayelsa. The naira denominated account was opened to receive Prince Ezes money.

Anytime Prince Eze brought any money, the former president will direct that I link up with a Bureau De Change (BDC) operator who will remit the money directly to the account opened by Somprie Omiebi. Dudafa denied having anything to do with the companies listed in the charge or even knowing the companies.

I am not a signatory to their accounts. I am also not a Director. I know Somprie Omiebi as someone in the private sector that brought those accounts and the companies to the former president and his wife for the safekeeping of their money.

Omiebi is the only person that knows the details of the various accounts.

Mr Dudafa, alongside Joseph Iwejuo, is facing a 23-count charge of conspiracy to conceal proceeds of crime amounting to N1.6 billion.

The EFCC alleged that the accused persons between June 2013 and June 2015, used different companies to fraudulently launder the said money.

The accused and about five other companies are also facing a N5.1 billion fraud charge before Mr Idris.
Award-winning Turkish investigative journalist, Pelin Unker, and her newspaper, Cumhuriyet, are being sued in Turkey over alleged defamation.

The suit filed by influential allies of Turkeys autocratic president, Recep Erdogan, do not claim factual errors or inaccuracies but seek financial penalties for alleged damage to their reputations.

Among those identified as parties in the suit are Turkeys former prime minister, Binali Yildirim, President Erdogans son-in-law and powerful finance minister Berat Albayrak, and members of their families. The presidents allies filed defamation actions against the award-winning journalist, who is also member of the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists.

The next court date, according to ICIJ, is November 22.

Last November, Cumhuriyet published a series of stories as part of the global Paradise Papers investigation that revealed how politicians, multinational corporations and criminals had hidden money offshore and avoided taxes.

PREMIUM TIMES, the only Nigerian platform involved in the investigation, also published details of the offshore arrangements involving Nigerian politicians, including Senate President Bukola Saraki among other political bigwigs.

In Turkey, Unker and Cumhuriyet focused on opaque dealings by some of the countrys most powerful individuals, including allies of President Erdogan, who reports claim does not tolerate dissent.

Cumhuriyet is said to be one of Turkeys oldest newspapers, and it is one of the countrys very last independent media outlets, in a country where major mainstream media now belong to government-affiliated investors. The media are used to wage a propaganda war against the opposition and civil society, Deloire said.

Berat Albayrak accused Cumhuriyet of calumny after the newspaper published details about the company he formerly managed and about his brother Serhat, listed as a director of a Malta company named Frocks International Trading Ltd.

According to the Paradise Papers documents, the company used nominees, which can be used to conceal the identity of real shareholders. Set up in 2003 and closed in 2009, documents from the Maltese company registry showed that Frocks International Trading Ltd. was in the garment and textile business.

Investigations revealed that throughout the same period, Berat and Serhat Albayrak were senior managers of Turkish textile, energy and media conglomerate Calk Holding. Berat, who married President Erdogans daughter in 2014, was CEO of Calk from 2007 to 2013.

Cumhuriyets report showed that Calk has expanded rapidly under the favorable gaze of Erdogans government, as it received a $750 million loan from state-owned banks in 2007 in a non-competitive bid to buy a media company. Calk Holding however told Cumhuriyet before publication that Frocks International Ltd. had never been used and had made no commercial transactions.

Reporters Without Borders (RSF) ranked Turkey 157th of 180 countries on the 2018 World Free Press Index. The organisation described Turkey as the worlds biggest prison for professional journalists.

President Erdogan and people close to him dont tolerate dissent, RSF Secretary General Christophe Deloire told ICIJ in July. Investigative reporting has been increasingly targeted since 2013, Deloire added.

Earlier on Monday, a Myanmar judge had found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and jailed them for seven years, in a landmark case seen as a test of progress towards democracy in the Southeast Asian country.

Yangon northern district judge, Ye Lwin, said Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, breached the colonial-era Official Secrets Act when they collected and obtained confidential documents while reporting on Myanmars violence-plagued Rakhine State.

Press freedom advocates, the UN, the European Union and countries including the United States, Canada and Australia had called for the journalists acquittal.

Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere, Reuters editor in chief Stephen Adler said in a statement.

We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum.
Governor Umaru Al-Makura of Nasarawa has tasked Islamic teachers (Malams) to stop sending their students to the streets to beg.

He said that the increasing rate of child beggars in the state was becoming worrisome.

The governor expressed this concern in Lafia on Monday while addressing the newly employed 2,140 graduates and NCE holders as teachers.

He decried the rate at which children continued to loiter the streets of major towns begging, saying that such would no longer be tolerated.

The governor, however, said that in the interim, the state government would not sanction any child found begging.

He said that the government would do everything possible to take them off the road.

He said that the government would soon put into use the Almajeri school that the federal government built in the state.

In addition to the Almajeri school, our government will also discuss with Islamic teachers (Malams) to see reasons with us and stop sending their students to the streets to beg.

Even, if it means the state government giving the Islamic teachers in the state little allowances every month to keep their students off the streets, he said.

Mr Al-Makura explained that government would take it upon itself to train those discovered to be interested in different skills.

He also assured the citizens of the state that his government would continue to improve their lives through the implementation of positive policies until his last day in office. (NAN)
A former deputy governor of Akwa Ibom State, Valerie Ebe, has said that she doesnt know if she was still a member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) or not.

There have been speculations that Mrs Ebe has defected to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

When PREMIUM TIMES asked her on Sunday evening if she has defected as speculated, the former deputy governor said, I dont know yet. I am in my house. When I leave, you will hear.

Mrs Ebe is from Mkpat Enin Local Government Area which is in the same federal constituency with Ikot Abasi Local Government Area where the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Nsima Ekere, comes from.

Mr Ekere, an APC member, has been tipped as a possible candidate of the party for the 2019 governorship election in the state.

Interestingly, Mrs Ebe was appointed deputy governor in November 2012 by the then governor, Godswill Akpabio, after the then occupant of the office, Mr Ekere, resigned from office to beat his planned impeachment by the Akwa Ibom State House of Assembly.

The impeachment plan was said to have been masterminded by the then governor, Mr Akpabio.

Mr Akpabio, a senator representing Akwa Ibom North West District, defected from the PDP to the APC on August 8.

The senators defection is seen as a major threat to Governor Udom Emmanuels ambition for a second term in office because of the fear that it may likely influence people to withdraw political support for Mr Emmanuel.

Mrs Ebes remark, which smacks of indecision, mirrors the uncertainty within the current politics in Akwa Ibom.

A source close to the former deputy governor told PREMIUM TIMES that she has concluded plans to move to the APC.

It is, however, unclear if her plan to defect has any link with Mr Akpabio or Mr Ekere.
The Police Command in Ekiti on Monday said it had arrested two men, Oguntoyinbo Odunayo and Babatunde Akinola, in connection with the alleged killing of a twin, Kehinde Olomola, in Igede Ekiti.

The command also arrested eight suspected cultists, who it said had been terrorising Igede Ekiti, in Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area of the state and Ado Ekiti in recent times.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that names of the suspected cultists were given as Babatunde Jimoh, Shittu Dayo, Tope Adeleye, Omowaye Rotimi, Akinola Ajisafe, Femi Felix, Adebayo Tope and Tope Oluwabusuyi.

It also arrested a rape suspect and a student of the Federal University, Oye Ekiti, Tolulope Bamgboye, who was picked up for raping a female victim.

The police commissioner, Bello Ahmed, told journalists in Ado Ekiti that the murder suspects, Odunayo and Akinola, allegedly stabbed the victim in the neck.

Mr Ahmed, who briefed journalists through the Public Relations Officer of the Command, Caleb Ikechukwu, said the two were arrested after police got a distress call from Igede Ekiti about the murder incident that occurred on Aug. 28 at Ilamoye in Igede Ekiti.

He said that Mr Olomola died after he was rushed to the Federal Teaching Hospital, Ido Ekiti, for treatment of a machete cut.

A team of police operatives upon investigation found one long axe with blood stain at the scene of the crime.

The two suspects, who had direct connection with the murder were immediately picked up and are being thoroughly grilled to be able to extract useful information from them, he said.

The commissioner said the suspects will be arraigned in court after the conclusion of investigation by detectives.

He said that the suspected cultists, who were alleged to belong to Aye and Eye confraternities were arrested at Odo Igede on August 29.

He said all the suspects had confessed to membership of the secret societies and that the command was perfecting charges against them to serve as deterrent to others.

Mr Ahmed stated that the rape suspect, Mr Bamgboye, was arrested in Oye Ekiti after threatening violence and forcefully had carnal knowledge of a victim, (names withheld) in the town.

He said the suspect had confessed to the crime and would be prosecuted as soon as the police concluded investigation.

In our continued determination to fight crime and criminality in Ekiti, our operatives shall continue to clamp down on those trying to undermine the security of this peaceful state.

I want to enjoin all Ekiti citizens to be security conscious, vigilant, and report any untoward incident or happening observed in their locality to the nearest police station or call the control room number 08062335577, he said.

(NAN)
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.




SAO PAULO, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Eucatex (B3: EUCA3 e EUCA4), one of the largest producers of wood panels in Brazil, with operations also in the paint and varnish, laminated flooring, partition and door segments, informs its investors and the general market that, following approval by Brazil's antitrust agency CADE (Conselho Administrativo de Defesa Economica), it entered into, on the date hereof, a binding asset-exchange agreement with Duratex.

Through the agreement, the company acquires Duratex's facilities and equipment for producing thin wood fiberboard in exchange for a farm of Eucatex and the associated forests.

With the acquisition, the Company will serve clients in Brazil and abroad that it currently is unable to serve with its current product line, further consolidating its position in an increasingly globalized Market.

For more information, contact our Investor Relations team.

E-mail: [email protected]

Telephone: +55 (11) 3049-2473

About Eucatex

Eucatex S.A. Industria e Comercio completes 67 years in 2018 and is one of Brazil's largest manufacturers of laminated flooring, wall partitions, doors, MDP/MDF/T-HDF panels, fiberboard, and paints and varnishes. It operates five modern plants in Botucatu and Salto (both in Sao Paulo) and Cabo de Santo Agostinho (Pernambuco), employing 2,466 people. Its products are exported to more than 37 countries. For more information, visit www.eucatex.com.br/ri.

SOURCE Eucatex

Related Links

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STEM has become a hot topic in the Chinese educational product market

SHANGHAI, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Shanghai International Popular Science Products Expo 2018 (Shanghai Science Expo 2018) came to a successful conclusion in Shanghai on August 27, 2018. The four-day event was co-hosted by the Shanghai Association for Science & Technology, the Shanghai Municipal Administration of Culture, Radio, Film & TV and the Science and Technology Commission of Shanghai Municipality, under the aegis of the China Association for Science and Technology. The Expo attracted nearly 125,000 visitors, witnessed the signing of agreements valued at nearly 12 million yuan (approx. US$1.7 million) as well as letters of intent and similar documents opening the way to future deals collectively valued at a record more than 100 million yuan (approx. US$15 million).

This year's event included the STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics)-themed exhibition area set up by the organizers of the Shanghai International STEM Educational Products Fair 2018. As a new highlight of the Expo, the three and half-day exhibition attracted 12 leading STEM companies from the US, Japan and Germany in addition to domestic players, as well as a multitude of teenagers and young adults who participated in a number of interactive events held within the exhibition area. Notably, the first 3,000 pre-sale tickets to the STEM fair quickly sold out onsite. In addition, the exhibition area provided parents and their children with an open environment where they could take a closer look at the features of STEM educational products on display and learn about the products' many benefits. Most of the visitors to the exhibition area said that they look forward to experiencing a comprehensive range of STEM-themed products and content at the upcoming Shanghai International STEM Educational Products Fair.

Providing a great way to learn programming by inspiring imagination with technology

Programming knowledge is boring. However, novel and fascinating educational toys and smart robots can inspire a child's thirst for knowledge by providing the space for the youngster to gradually master the needed knowledge by engaging in interactive games. Revo IT Asia, in concert with well-known STEM educational brands, among them, osmo, sphero and Cozmo, showcased a variety of STEM-themed products at the Expo. Of note, the company's Star Wars smart robot crammed with innovative technology received rave reviews from visitors of all ages. With a focus on distribution and agency of third-party Apple components and app-compatible connected devices, including STEM-themed educational toys and smart robots, Revo IT Asia has been committed to integrating technology and personalized designs into our everyday lives and sharing the fun engendered by technology with today's modern-thinking consumers.

MatataLab's booth received a great deal of attention. The firm's coding robots for kids on display attracted both children who were seen playing contentedly and their parents who itched to have a go. Using a building-block approach, this STEM education-based product enables learning through play, protects the eyes as it is screen-free, and has no prerequisite for literacy. Unlike existing programming hardware for kids, the MatataLab's coding robots for kids employ a touchable entity programming method based on image recognition technology, focusing more on the training of the child's brain in terms of logical thinking. The series won the 2018 Red Dot Design Award in Germany. At the booth, a variety of creative games including Mata Push, Mata Concert and Mata Painter led to visitors forming a long queue at the front of the exhibition hall.

Technology + Education: exploring a new approach to making the acquisition of scientific knowledge into something interesting

Robots were always among the most popular elements at previous expos. In the STEM-themed exhibition area, the Pepper robots showcased by SoftBank Robotics first performed a group dance in unison amid cheers from the audience. Robotic dogs and spiders created by Abilix based on programming and building characteristics grabbed the attention of teenagers passing to such a degree that it was nearly impossible to convince them to leave. The programming robot contest launched by UBTECH provided an opportunity for teenagers to compete on the same stage. Dr. S's online STEM courses and various STEM toys proved popular among young children. In addition, Elenco's One Button Bandit Kit, Cloud Academy's "DNA necklace" courses, Xiaoma Education's programming courses, Shanghai Lanqi Technology's VR SPACE draw courses, HABA's desktop games and Yangshu Culture (Shanghai)'s AR magnifiers, among other STEM experience content, were also showcased at the event, demonstrating and interpreting new STEM knowledge for the many who stopped by their booths.

Tong Zhizhong, general manager of World Pride Exhibition Services Co., Ltd and head of the STEM exhibition area, said, the STEM exhibition area is a warm up for the upcoming Shanghai International STEM Educational Products Fair 2018, and more STEM education-related content covering natural science, biology, geography and astronomy will debut at the STEM fair in December. The STEM fair looks forward to making technology education easily accessible, so that parents and children can more intuitively understand and experience technology education is and choose the most appropriate education model for their individual situation.

The STEM fair is designed to stimulate local innovation and serve as a catalyst for the development of STEM education in China. While promoting the STEM education model, the fair gave teenagers a hands-on opportunity to experience the enjoyment that can derived from this form of learning and to put that experience into practice by solving problems through an innovative, scientific and multi-faceted approach.

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SOURCE World Pride Exhibition Services Co., Ltd
TOKYO, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ - Wainwright Marks Management has commented on the recent Chinese Meituan Dianping company, a platform that provides food delivery on a ticketing basis.

Researches from Wainwright Marks Management have indicated that a price range of between HK$60 to HK$70 per share for its initial public offering which will be offered on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

With a significant value of potentially $55 billion and over, it will be the second multibillion-dollar technology company to float this year alongside smartphone provider Xiaomi hitting records of a $5.4 billion float.

"Meituan Dianpings have already been seen as one of China's most valuable internet technology companies. The company are projected to raise over $4 billion without an additional over allotment option which means additional shares can flood the market depending on its demand." Commented Head of Corporate Equities, Andrew Miles at Wainwright Marks Management.

Meituan Dianpings are currently discussing a valuation projecting anywhere between $46 billion to $55 billion with the company securing a total of $1.5 billion from five large investors including big companies such as Tencent Holdings who have stated a $400 million holding in the company.

"The company has plans to use this process of an initial public offering to fund and upgrade its technology and develop new products and services according to its published IPO filing." Reported George Peterson, Director of Private Clients at Wainwright Marks Management.

The company founded only eight years ago by entrepreneur Wang Xing, after its $15 billion merger with Dianping back in 2015, the company has broadened its range of services including food delivery, hotel & travel as well as its taxi ride hailing service.

It comes as a new initiative set by the stock exchange that will benefit with a dual-class structure for its shares as a Hong Kong listed company under the new rules to help bolster and attract new technology companies to the exchange.

SOURCE Wainwright Marks Management
TAMPA, Fla., Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Website Closers, the largest Tech & Internet M&A Consulting Firm in the world, facilitates the merger and acquisition of a multitude of digital and tech business models, including technology rights, software (SaaS, IaaS and PaaS), Apps, Internet, IoT, tech-enabled, eCommerce, digital marketing companies, affiliates, and much more. The company represents clients worldwide.

WebsiteClosers has been featured in the 2018 Inc. 5000 list as one of the fastest-growing private companies in America. According to the list released on August 15, Website Closers stood at #586 based on their 3-year growth rate of 850% and $5.2m revenue for the year 2017. This $5.2M in revenue was based on deal values of over $90 Million, with over $500 Million in Revenue.

The Inc. 5000 list is regarded as the most prominent ranking in the United States to identify the nation's fastest-growing private companies. "We are delighted and honored in being the only business brokerage of our kind to make it to the Inc. 5000 list, and are excited to celebrate this unique recognition. As a Business Services company, this recognition extends beyond the confines of our business segment and we are sure that our company will soon be a household name, not only in the United States, but the world over," says Jason Guerrettaz, Co-Founder of Website Closers and Founder of United Commerce Group, Inc 500 company that was ranked #67 on last year's Inc 5000 list. He further added, "We thank our customers for their trust in Website Closers, which played an instrumental role in helping us achieve this milestone. We remain committed to providing the best possible experience to our customers all through their journey of sale and beyond."

The Inc. 5000 has been honoring extraordinary journeys of the fastest-growing companies in America since 1982. Being featured in the Inc. 5000 list is the most prestigious honor for growing private businesses and business leaders. Past Inc. 5000 alumni include Microsoft, Under Armour, Pandora, Facebook and many companies who have become business icons it their respective business segments.

About Website Closers

Website Closers, a leading internet M&A Firm, is dedicated to representing those looking to exit their business for the very highest multiple. Owners of Tech & Internet Companies of all kinds, with an eye on exiting the business, should call or email to learn more about how WebsiteClosers can help them make their dreams come true. All messages are responded to same-day  no exceptions  and usually within minutes of coming in. The team of intermediaries at this firm has a wide array of experience buying, selling and owning a number of Internet companies, including e-commerce websites, software companies, Amazon businesses, eBay businesses, and other digital assets. Because of this experience, they are in the best possible position (compared to other business brokers) to get the deal closed effectively while maximizing the sales price.

For more information, please visit- https://www.websiteclosers.com

Contact Details:

Phone: 800-251-1559

[email protected]

SOURCE WebsiteClosers.com

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EMERYVILLE, Calif., Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Teachers, already loaded down by student loan and personal debt, spend their own money on supplies, often running up their debt even higher. The poll, taken in Maryland, revealed that over 90 percent of educators paid for school supplies. Since 37 percent of educators have student loan debt, this means that money that could have gone to paying down student loan debt went instead to pay for classroom supplies. The normal challenge of paying off student loan debt is exacerbated for teachers because so many are dedicated to giving their students quality learning experiences, including purchasing materials beyond what their schools can supply. American Financial Benefits Center (AFBC), a document preparation company, encourages all borrowers, including teachers, to find a viable financial path forward, balancing their student loan debt with other household and work demands on limited resources.

"In a perfect world, teachers would not have to buy school supplies for their classrooms, and student loan borrowers should be able to lead fulfilling lives without being saddled with overwhelming monthly payments," said Sara Molina, Manager at AFBC. "Though we are unable to help teachers purchase educational materials, our clients know that with our assisting with the application for federal income-driven repayment plans, if their monthly repayment is lowered enough, they may more easily do what they need to do, such as buy school supplies, without going further in debt."

Unfortunately, for many teachers, their commitment to their students is detrimental to their own financial health. More than a third of teachers did not have the funds to buy classroom supplies, and, rather than shortchange their students; they increased their personal debt to increase the quality of their students' experience.

The poll revealed many more challenges for teachers. About half of educators under 50 years of age have student loan debt. Similarly, just over half of educators of color have student loan debt. Four out of 10 teachers held a second job to make ends meet, and, for those under 30 years old, it was even worse with 61 percent needing a second source of income to get by financially. For those with student loan debt, an IDR, based on income and family size, can possibly help teachers, or any borrower, do more than just get by.

"We very much appreciate the dedication of teachers and all those in the helping professions," said Molina. "Our goal is to assist borrowers to worry less about overwhelming student loan debt so they can give to their families, their communities, and even their students without going further into debt."

About American Financial Benefits Center

American Financial Benefits Center is a document preparation company that helps clients apply for federal student loan repayment plans that fit their personal financial and student loan situation. Through its strict customer service guidelines, the company strives for the highest levels of honesty and integrity.

Each AFBC telephone representative has received the Certified Student Loan Professional certification through the International Association of Professional Debt Arbitrators (IAPDA).

American Financial Benefits Center Newsroom

Contact

To learn more about American Financial Benefits Center, please contact:

American Financial Benefits Center

1900 Powell Street #600

Emeryville, CA 94608

1-800-488-1490

[email protected]

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SOURCE American Financial Benefits Center
ROHNERT PARK, Calif., Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- It seems that there's always a new story about how millennials don't feel like adults. When many milestones of traditional adulthood are things they can't afford, why would they? Bogged down with low-paying jobs and student loans, it's a story too often heard that they just can't get ahead and are feeling like they have failed because of it. Ameritech Financial, a document preparation service company, works with student loan borrowers who are struggling to repay their loans in order to help them apply to enroll into income-driven repayment plans which may help them start to feel like they're finally in control.

Many millennials still live at home with their parents because they can't afford to live on their own or have several roommates and still pay huge parts of their paychecks towards rent. They often have to put off things like regular doctor or mechanic visits because they can't justify going to a professional if it's "not bad enough." And not bad enough usually costs more money than fixing the initial problem would have. This may feel on par with a filling turning into a root canal or a tune-up turning into having to replace the entire engine in a car.

"College costs are only increasing, which means more people are having to take out loans to afford attendance, which leads to more individuals struggling with repayment," said Tom Knickerbocker, executive vice president of Ameritech Financial. Trying to pay off student loans might be someone's entire focus because they don't want it haunting them for the rest of their lives. Millennials might feel like they aren't truly an adult until they've got their loans under control because of the constant depiction of what it means to be an "adult." Independence is one of the biggest things that an adult is supposed to aim towards and it can be hard to feel independent when having to drive to a parent's house to do laundry because five or so dollars saved could mean not having to skip dinner.

Ameritech Financial was created to help those struggling with student loan repayment because of a personal belief in financial wellness being a necessity for personal wellness. Some borrowers may have an improved chance at bettering their lives instead of struggling to get by if they are enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan which is intended to lower monthly payments based off of income and family size. Ameritech Financial can be there for qualified borrowers to help them with their enrollment process and to assist them through the yearly recertification process. "We want to help borrowers in the ways we can because we believe it's the right thing to do. Borrowers shouldn't have to struggle financially because they were trying to better their education and themselves," said Knickerbocker.

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]

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SOURCE Ameritech Financial

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BRIDGEWATER, N.J., Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- (EURONEXT: SAN) (NYSE: SNY) -- The European Commission has granted marketing authorization for Cablivi (caplacizumab) for the treatment of adults experiencing an episode of acquired thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura (aTTP), a rare blood-clotting disorder. Cablivi is the first therapeutic specifically indicated for the treatment of aTTP.

aTTP is a life-threatening, autoimmune-based blood clotting disorder characterized by extensive clot formation in small blood vessels throughout the body, leading to severe thrombocytopenia (very low platelet count), microangiopathic hemolytic anemia (loss of red blood cells through destruction), ischemia (restricted blood supply to parts of the body) and widespread organ damage especially in the brain and heart.

Despite the current standard-of-care treatment, consisting of daily plasma exchange (PEX) and immunosuppression, episodes of aTTP are still associated with a mortality rate of up to 20%, with most deaths occurring within 30 days of diagnosisi.

"aTTP is a devastating disease. Many patients undergoing current standard-of-care treatment continue to be at risk of developing acute thrombotic complications, including stroke and heart attack, recurrence of the disease, lack of treatment response and death," said Marie Scully, M.D, professor of hematology at University College London Hospitals. "The approval of Cablivi provides an important addition to the standard-of-care treatment for patients with aTTP in Europe because it can significantly reduce time to platelet count normalization and induce a clinically meaningful reduction in recurrences."

Cablivi was developed by Ablynx, a Sanofi company. Sanofi Genzyme, the specialty care global business unit of Sanofi, will work with relevant local authorities to make Cablivi available to patients in need in countries across Europe.

Cablivi is the company's first Nanobody-based medicine to receive approval and the first newly approved product that will be part of Sanofi Genzyme's Rare Blood Disorders franchise. Earlier this year, Sanofi acquired Bioverativ which has treatments for hemophilia A and B.

"The approval of Cablivi provides new hope for people diagnosed with aTTP, who to date have faced a very difficult disease with limited treatment options," said Bill Sibold, Executive Vice President and Head of Sanofi Genzyme. "This approval is the next step towards our goal of becoming the leading rare blood disorders company in the industry. We are excited about the opportunities to continue to expand our rare blood disorders business and to help many people with very serious diseases."

aTTP Clinical Program and Results

The approval of Cablivi in the EU is based on the Phase II TITAN and Phase III HERCULES studies in 220 adult patients with aTTP. The efficacy and safety of caplacizumab in addition to standard-of-care treatment, daily PEX and immunosuppression, were demonstrated in these studies.

In the HERCULES study, treatment with caplacizumab in addition to standard-of-care resulted in a significantly shorter time to platelet count response (p<0.01), the study's primary endpoint; a significant reduction in aTTP-related death, recurrence of aTTP, or at least one major thromboembolic event during study drug treatment (p<0.0001); and a significantly lower number of aTTP recurrences in the overall study period (p<0.001). Importantly, treatment with caplacizumab resulted in a clinically meaningful reduction in the use of PEX and length of stay in the intensive care unit (ICU) and the hospital, compared to the placebo group.

In clinical trials, caplacizumab demonstrated a safety profile, consistent with its mechanism of action. The most frequently reported adverse reactions were epistaxis, headache and gingival bleeding. No deaths were reported during study drug treatment in the caplacizumab group in the TITAN and HERCULES studies, while for the placebo group, two deaths were reported in the TITAN study and three deaths in the HERCULES study.

U.S. FDA Review of Caplacizumab

Additionally, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has accepted for priority review the Biologics License Application for caplacizumab for treatment of patients 18 years of age and older experiencing an episode of aTTP. The target action date for the FDA decision is February 6, 2019.

About Cablivi

Caplacizumab is a bivalent anti-vWF Nanobody that received Orphan Drug Designation in Europe and the United States in 2009, in Switzerland in 2017 and in Japan in 2018. Caplacizumab blocks the interaction of ultralarge von Willebrand Factor (vWF) multimers with platelets and, therefore, has an immediate effect on platelet adhesion and the ensuing formation and accumulation of the micro-clots that cause the severe thrombocytopenia, tissue ischemia and organ dysfunction in aTTP.

About Sanofi

Sanofi is dedicated to supporting people through their health challenges. We are a global biopharmaceutical company focused on human health. We prevent illness with vaccines, provide innovative treatments to fight pain and ease suffering. We stand by the few who suffer from rare diseases and the millions with long-term chronic conditions.

With more than 100,000 people in 100 countries, Sanofi is transforming scientific innovation into healthcare solutions around the globe.

Sanofi, Empowering Life

Media Relations Contact







Investor Relations Contact Ashleigh Koss







George Grofik Tel: +1 (908) 981-8745







Tel.: +33 (0)1 53 77 45 45 [email protected]







[email protected]

Sanofi Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, as amended. Forward-looking statements are statements that are not historical facts. These statements include projections and estimates regarding the marketing and other potential of the product, or regarding potential future revenues from the product. Forward-looking statements are generally identified by the words "expects", "anticipates", "believes", "intends", "estimates", "plans" and similar expressions. Although Sanofi's management believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are reasonable, investors are cautioned that forward-looking information and statements are subject to various risks and uncertainties, many of which are difficult to predict and generally beyond the control of Sanofi, that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed in, or implied or projected by, the forward-looking information and statements. These risks and uncertainties include among other things, unexpected regulatory actions or delays, or government regulation generally, that could affect the availability or commercial potential of the product, the absence of guarantee that the product will be commercially successful, the uncertainties inherent in research and development, including future clinical data and analysis of existing clinical data relating to the product, including post marketing, unexpected safety, quality or manufacturing issues, competition in general, risks associated with intellectual property and any related future litigation and the ultimate outcome of such litigation, and volatile economic conditions, as well as those risks discussed or identified in the public filings with the SEC and the AMF made by Sanofi, including those listed under "Risk Factors" and "Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements" in Sanofi's annual report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2017. Other than as required by applicable law, Sanofi does not undertake any obligation to update or revise any forward-looking information or statements.

i Benhamou, Y. et al., Haematologica 2012

SOURCE Sanofi

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SAN FRANCISCO, September 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

The global curcumin market size is expected to reach USD 1.30 billion by 2024, according to a new study by Grand View Research, Inc. The market is anticipated to register a CAGR of 12.3% during the forecast years. Anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties of curcumin make it an ideal ingredient in many medical and food applications. The market will witness a significant growth in the coming years due to growing consumer awareness regarding the aforementioned therapeutic properties.

(Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/661327/Grand_View_Research_Logo.jpg )



Turmeric or curcumin is popularly used in cosmetic products. In India, turmeric is used widely in numerous Ayurvedic medicines. Turmeric is used to prevent and heal dry skin, treat acne and eczema, and also to slow down the aging process. Natural cleansers, such as milk, mixed with turmeric act as an effective natural cosmetic, which gives a glowing effect to the skin and aids in controlling crease formation and wrinkles. Turmeric is also used for dyeing silk, cotton, and wool to impart yellowish shade. It is also used as a coloring material in rice milling and leather dyeing.

Pharmaceutical was the largest application segment that accounted for over 50% of the global volume owing to an increasing demand for curcumin-based OTC supplements. Some of the key companies in the market are Wacker Chemie AG, BioMax Life Sciences Ltd., Synthite Industries Ltd., Hindustan Mint & Agro Products Pvt. Ltd., and Arjuna Natural Extracts Ltd. Many of these market players are focusing on R&D activities to maintain their market positions. For example, Arjuna Natural Extracts Ltd. invested approximately USD 1.5 million in the proactive curcumin research in March 2016.

Browse full research report with TOC on "Curcumin Market Size, Share & Trends Analysis Report By Application (Pharmaceutical, Food, Cosmetics), By Region (North America, Europe, Asia Pacific, Rest of the World), And Segment Forecasts, 2018 - 2024" at: https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/turmeric-extract-curcumin-market

Further Key Findings From the Report Suggest:

North America was the largest region with a market revenue of USD 261.2 million in 2016. Growing demand for processed food products and curcumin-based health supplements will drive the market further

was the largest region with a market revenue of in 2016. Growing demand for processed food products and curcumin-based health supplements will drive the market further India is one of the largest manufacturer of curcumin with production exceeding approximately 80% of global market. However, majority of it is exported to North America and Europe regions

is one of the largest manufacturer of curcumin with production exceeding approximately 80% of global market. However, majority of it is exported to and regions Europe is expected to be the fastest-growing region registering a CAGR of 16.6% over the forecast period. Growing demand from buyers coupled with regulatory support from the European Food Safety Association (EFSA) would boost the region's expansion.

is expected to be the fastest-growing region registering a CAGR of 16.6% over the forecast period. Growing demand from buyers coupled with regulatory support from the European Food Safety Association (EFSA) would boost the region's expansion. Key companies in the global curcumin market include Arjuna Natural Extracts Ltd., Synthite Industries Ltd., Sabinsa Corporation, and Helmigs Prima Sejahtera PT. Arjuna Natural Extract Ltd. has a patent for curcumin formulation from turmeric, which signifies the extensive R&D in the market.

Browse related reports by Grand View Research:

Squalene Market - The global squalene market size was USD 111.9 million in 2015 and is expected to witness significant growth over the next few years.



The global squalene market size was in 2015 and is expected to witness significant growth over the next few years. Personal Care Specialty Ingredients Market - The global personal care specialty ingredients market size was USD 9.62 billion in 2015.



The global personal care specialty ingredients market size was in 2015. Arachidonic Acid (ARA) Market - Arachidonic acid (ARA) market is expected to grow over the forecast period owing to the increasing demand for animal feeds, human medicines, and chemical compounds.



Arachidonic acid (ARA) market is expected to grow over the forecast period owing to the increasing demand for animal feeds, human medicines, and chemical compounds. Gum Rosin Market - The global gum rosin market size was USD 1.57 Billion in 2015 and is expected to witness growth at a CAGR of 3.3% over the forecast period.

Grand View Research has segmented the global curcumin market on the basis of application and region:

Curcumin Application Outlook (Volume, Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2013 - 2024) Pharmaceutical Food Cosmetics Others

Curcumin Regional Outlook (Volume, Tons; Revenue, USD Million, 2013 - 2024) North America U.S. Europe Denmark Germany Asia Pacific India Japan Indonesia Rest of the World



Explore the BI enabled intuitive market research database, The Grand Library, by Grand View Research, Inc.

About Grand View Research

Grand View Research, Inc. is a U.S. based market research and consulting company, registered in the State of California and headquartered in San Francisco. The company provides syndicated research reports, customized research reports, and consulting services. To help clients make informed business decisions, we offer market intelligence studies ensuring relevant and fact-based research across a range of industries, from technology to chemicals, materials and healthcare.

Contact:

Sherry James

Corporate Sales Specialist, USA

Grand View Research, Inc.

Phone: +1-415-349-0058

Toll Free: 1-888-202-9519

Email: [email protected]

Web: https://www.grandviewresearch.com



SOURCE Grand View Research, Inc.
Preqin UK, a recognized leader in tracking private equity fund performance, lists Cottonwood as one of the top performing early stage VC funds in the world. Cottonwood's investment strategy focuses on international growth from the beginning and recruiting all resources needed for success.

Mr. Quintana brings more than 20 years of experience in investing, creating, building and growing global technology firms. He's served in senior strategy and corporate development roles at leading Fortune 500 companies like Texas Instruments and Bosch. Quintana spearheaded competency-driven global corporate strategy, corporate ventures, and influenced the expansion of international presence, new products and portfolios.

His role as Global President at Devvio will be to shape and enhance the company's ambitious growth plans including; securing key strategic partnerships, guiding high-performing product and portfolio innovations. With Mr. Quintana's high level of industry experience, he will be able to secure major market opportunities with the support of the Devvio team and product offering.

Mr. Quintana commented: "In my decades of venture capital and corporate development experience with Fortune 500 companies, I have never seen a company with the potential to transform the global economy like Devvio. The technical provenance, elite team and blockchain-enabled business models across a range of industrial landscapes makes this one of the most compelling opportunities in the world and I am excited to be part of the team."

Tom Anderson, CEO of Devvio said of Mr. Quintana joining: "we're thrilled to have Ray join the team. His decades of experience with some of the world's most impressive technology companies will surely be an asset in affirming our position as a leading blockchain company, and enhance our ambition to make this technology easy and accessible to everyone."

For more information on Ray Quintana, Tom Anderson, and the Devvio Inc team, visit the Devvio website or reach out directly via the contact information below.

About Devvio Inc.

Devvio Inc. has created the most scalable and frictionless blockchain solution in the world. Devvio's mission is to be the backbone for the world's financial transactions and become the most reliable enterprise blockchain solution in the world. For more information regarding Devvio visit devv.io and to join its official telegram channel at https://t.me/devvioinc.

Contact

To learn more about Devvio Inc and its team ambitions, please contact:

Tom Anderson, CEO

[email protected]

Michael Koenka, CMO

[email protected]

SOURCE Devvio
PETALUMA, Calif., Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Every business should have something so remarkable that it creates such as buzz that people want to talk about it. Marketing guru Seth Godin coined the phrase "Purple Cow" to exemplify this trait. This concept contrasts with "the boring tax" which Josh Kaufman called marketing departments. A business's purple cow needs to be emotional, gripping, and probably shouldn't be some numbers-based claim unless the number is emotionally gripping or 10 times that of the leading competitor. It often needs to captivate a fringe group and it needs to be both worth sharing and easy to share. If the business is interesting enough, clients will talk about it on their own. Brandon Frere, owner of Frere Enterprises and other companies, recommends that other entrepreneurs find the most interesting aspect of their company and share it with others.

A Purple Cow Stands Out From the Herd

"Every business needs something that the customers want to talk about with their friends more than the good reviews," said Brandon Frere. "You can get a marketing department to share your idea, but your business won't grow as fast as it could unless you offer your clients a product that's interesting enough to get people curious and willing to share."

A Purple Cow is often used as the starting point for associating a unique experience with the company. After that, business owners need to sell the unique experience with everything else. A good example is how Sirius Satellite radio transformed Howard Stern into their purple cow. When Sirius satellite radio first appeared, it had a problem. It wanted to market a wide variety of stations, high-quality radio, and nation-wide radio. The problem is, they couldn't market exclusively to truckers who were considered the clients who most wanted those problems solved. They marketed to a wider audience by gaining exclusivity on Howard Stern. Howard Stern's talk show had enough loyal followers willing to make the switch that it was enough to inform their friends of the station's relative merits. Howard Stern was a purple cow, but no one knew it until he came on to Sirius radio.

There is no point in having a purple cow unless there is a solid company to go with it. An entrepreneur begins to tell a story when they start to develop a company's mission, vision, and values. When the company has progressed enough to create a story, it is important that they think of the statement they want to try to consistently make. After that, it is important to create the most interesting way to tell that story and make sure every interaction delivers the same statement. If a business is focused around a single theme then more people will understand the purpose of the business and how serious the business is at meeting expectations.

"Look at the company you have just made and find the most interesting story for everyone within that company," said Frere. "After you have done that, make the story consistent, make it authentic, and make sure fanatics talk about it. Then, watch as everyone spreads the good news."

About Brandon Frere

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 website, www.BrandonFrere.com, is used as a means of communicating many of the lessons, fundamentals, and information that 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 often 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.

BrandonFrere.com

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SOURCE Brandon Frere

Related Links

http://www.BrandonFrere.com


SAN RAMON, Calif., Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Taking proper care of one's eyesight is a necessary part of a healthy life, especially if someone has a family medical history of ocular diseases. But doctor visits can be expensive, and people might put them off as a result. Financial Education Benefits Center (FEBC), a membership benefits company, provides members with select, relevant discounts for their needs, which luckily include discounts for participating ophthalmologists.

"Physical health is important, and that includes someone's eyes. We rely on our eyes for so much, sometimes to the point of straining them," said Jennifer Martinez, manager at FEBC. Straining eyes, like with too much screen time, on top of a predisposition for eye problems, might lead to some visual trouble later on in an individual's life. Visual diseases like glaucoma can damage eyesight and may not be treatable. Glaucoma treatment, in particular, only slows the disease progress, and cannot cure it. With how much trouble it causes, including not just vision damage but also potentially nausea and migraines, and being hereditary, early diagnosis by a professional is all the more important.

Professional visits can be expensive though, which is where FEBC comes in with its membership discounts. Being able to attend doctor's visits regularly greatly increases the chance of catching visual problems early, and taking the steps to either correct and halt damage being done. With FEBC's health and wellness benefits package, members can look forward to select vision care discounts and access to a professional 24-hour nurse hotline. These benefits are not meant to act as or replace insurance, and the hotline is not for emergency situations, but to provide extra peace of mind about personal wellness. "FEBC was created for the betterment of members lives, and to help them achieve all-around personal and financial wellness," said Martinez.

About Financial Education Benefits Center

Financial Education Benefits Center is located in San Ramon, California. The membership company has already helped thousands save money and obtain the necessary education required to live a financially healthy life.

Financial Education Benefits Center has partnered with several name brand third-party companies to expand the financial and educational products and services available to its members and to provide a variety of wellness services as well.

Financial Education Benefits Center Newsroom

Contact

To learn more about Financial Education Benefits Center, please contact:

Financial Education Benefits Center

2010 Crow Canyon Place Ste. 100

San Ramon, CA 94583

1-800-953-1388

[email protected]

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SOURCE Financial Education Benefits Center

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ATHENS, Greece, September 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

Extensive field tests of UltraLink-GX80 in MTS Russia network prove system's superiority

Intracom Telecom, a global telecommunication systems and solutions vendor, announced today the completion of a number of extensive field tests of its new high capacity E-Band radio system, UltraLink-GX80, for MTS Russia, the country's largest mobile operator, for backhaul and for fronthaul deployment. The company is supplying MTS with E-Band solutions since 2016.

More specifically, from the beginning of the year, the company has performed three successful trials achieving leading capacity at super long distances. The first field test was conducted in St. Petersburg area during the first quarter of this year, with the system providing the highest stability in the maximum modulation scheme of 256-QAM, meaning that the data capacity of the link was 10 Gbps at a distance equal to 8.27 km long. The link was kept in operation for more than 45 days demonstrating excellent performance.

The second field test was carried out in the city of Novosibirsk supporting 3 CPRI interfaces for fronthaul application. UltraLink-GX80 was connected successfully with the existing field infrastructure of MTS. In fact, the three CPRI interfaces served six Remote Radio Heads, of which three where 3G and the rest 4G/LTE Advanced. In this way, the company demonstrated the vast capabilities of the UltraLink-GX80 platform to serve multiple cellular network radios and, thus, achieve significant savings in the Radio Access Network (RAN). As all the performed tests were passed successfully, UltraLink-GX80 proved that it fully supports all the required functionalities for such applications (latency, etc.).

The third field test conducted in Western Siberia, where the link connected the two Northern cities of Salekhard and Labytnangi across the Ob River. The system achieved great performance supporting almost 9 Gbps data capacity at a distance of 13.64 km. This is the longest distance recorded for such high capacity E-Band link.

Mr. Andrei Ushatskiy, Vice President for Technology and IT in MTS commented: "Due to the evolution of the mobile networks, higher and higher data capacities in all the segments of the network are demanded. Therefore, the need to support higher capacities in the transport networks is becoming essential in our days and in the coming future too. We are satisfied with the results of the field tests we conducted with Intracom Telecom and the achieved performance of UltraLink-GX80 covering 'very long' distances and different applications, such as backhaul and fronthaul."

Mr. Athanasios Antoulinakis. General Director of Intracom Svyaz LLC, stated: "We would like to express our thanks to MTS Russia for giving us the opportunity to prove on the field the superior performance of the new UltraLink-GX80 system, that has been developed in house at Intracom Telecom's R&D center. Thanks to the advanced development, the system provides multiple Gbps capacity in extremely long distances. Furthermore, the unique advantage of the system to support CPRI interfaces with just software settings provides operators the flexibility, using the same hardware system, to use the link for both Backhaul and fronthaul purposes, as per their needs."

About Mobile TeleSystems PJSC ("MTS")

Mobile TeleSystems PJSC ("MTS" -NYSE: MBT; MOEX: MTSS) is the leading telecommunications group in Russia, Central and Eastern Europe. We provide wireless Internet access and fixed voice, broadband and pay-TV to over 100 million customers who value high quality of service at a competitive price. Our wireless and fixed-line networks deliver best-in-class speeds and coverage throughout Russia, Ukraine, Armenia, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan and Belarus. To keep pace with evolving customer demand, we continue to grow through innovative products, investments in our market-leading retail platform, mobile payment services, e-commerce and IT solutions. MTS has been listed on the New York Stock Exchange since July 2000 and trades under the ticker MBT. The Company's shares have been listed locally on the Moscow Exchange since November 2003 and trades under the symbol MTSS. For more information, please visit: www.mtsgsm.com

About Intracom Telecom

Intracom Telecom is a global telecommunication systems and solutions vendor operating for over 40 years in the market. The company has become the benchmark in fixed wireless access and it successfully innovates in the 5G/4G wireless fronthaul, backhaul and small-cell SON backhaul international arena. Intracom Telecom offers a comprehensive portfolio of revenue-generating software solutions and a complete range of ICT services, focusing on IoT, SDN/NFV, Big Data analytics & data-driven intelligence, and Smart City solutions. The company also addresses the Energy & Utilities industry, emphasizing on smart metering and end-to-end IT solutions. Intracom Telecom maintains its own R&D and production facilities and invests significantly in developing cutting-edge products and integrated solutions. The company has extensive know-how and a proven track record in the market, serving more than 100 renowned customers in over 70 countries. Its subsidiaries span across Europe, Russia/CIS, the Middle East and Africa, Asia and North America. For more information please visit: www.intracom-telecom.com.

SOURCE Intracom Telecom
SHANGHAI, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- With Made in China 2025 proposed and in implementation, the development of intelligent manufacturing in China is speeding up. Many Chinese companies broke through outdated production modes, sought advanced production standards on design and R&D, and finally became global leaders in various industries. Meanwhile, the industrial revolution is in full swing among the manufacturing developed countries in Europe and the United States - Industry 4.0, IIoT, the industry of the future are hot topics. Many countries have set their own strategic goals aiming to solve the issues they face in traditional manufacturing, such as high resources cost, high product defect rate, difficult innovation processes and low production efficiency.

At present, China's manufacturing industry is still at an imbalanced stage where mechanization, electrification, automation and digitization co-existed in different regions, industries and companies. Therefore, China's manufacturing enterprises must seize this opportunity, take informatization as the key, big data as the foundation and IoT as the support during the production process in order to enhance their global competitiveness.

Considering this historical movement, iManufacturing comes at the right time. It will be launched at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC) on 25-27 November 2019 benefited from the existing strong industrial shows of the organizers, Messe Duesseldorf (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. & China National Machinery Industry International Co., Ltd..

Top experts will gather to focus on intelligent manufacturing in China

As an innovative exhibition & conference platform bringing an all-around focus on development in China's intelligent manufacturing sector, it aims to accelerate China's manufacturing industry with forward-looking Industry 4.0 solutions of exhibitors of global reach.

iManufacturing is expected to attract more than 200 exhibitors, suppliers of hardware, software and solutions in intelligent manufacturing sector as well as more than 10,000 visitors. It will accelerate China's manufacturing base through its high-quality forum, exhibition & events strategy.

To reach this goal, the organizers visited nearly 100 industrial pioneers, such as Thyssenkrupp, Mazak, Victor-Taichung, J-TECH INTELLIGENT, CRRC and Fanuc etc., to share market positioning and value of the iManufacturing and discussed the needs and hot topics of the industry together. All these enterprises showed great interest and expectations on this event.

Press conference is coming soon, which is a perfect platform for enterprises to know the exhibition face to face

For enterprises' better understanding on the event background and innovative ideas, the press conference of iManufacturing will be held on 22nd September, 2018 in InterContinental Shanghai NECC. It will be a perfect platform for you to fully understand the concept and details of the exhibition. We welcome and look forward to your participation!

Key Reasons you need to take part:

Stand at the Center of Intelligent Manufacturing

iManufacturing is focusing on the core technologies in intelligent manufacturing and committed to bring enterprises integrated solutions. We are the most professional intelligent manufacturing event in Asia.

Meet Top Level Experts and Business Cases

iManufacturing will attract more than 200 top-level companies to display the most cutting-edge products on-site and bring over 40 authoritative speakers to share their knowledge and case studies on intelligent manufacturing.

Networking and Deal Making

At iManufacturing, no matter exhibitors, speakers, visitors or conference participants - the leading executives of the industry will meet here. The exhibition is expected to attract more than 10,000 decision makers, who would like purchase products, conclude new projects and find collaborations on site.

Experience the Future

Experience the most advanced technology. iManufacturing will bring an all-around focus on the latest technologies and research and is thus the most important starting point for new ideas and innovations in the industry.

Four exhibits categories creating upgraded intelligent solutions

iManufacturing will bring cutting-edge intelligent manufacturing technologies and best solutions at home and abroad, focusing on the following four categories of exhibits, mainly to provide upgraded intelligent solutions for automobile, medical, electronics, machinery, energy and other industries.

Advanced Manufacturing Technology & Equipment: Industrial Robots and Integrated Applications, Machine Vision and Sensing Technology, CNC Machine Tools, RFID, Barcode Identification, HMI, PLC, Additive Manufacturing (3D Printing), other Automation Equipment, etc.

Industrial Robots and Integrated Applications, Machine Vision and Sensing Technology, CNC Machine Tools, RFID, Barcode Identification, HMI, PLC, Additive Manufacturing (3D Printing), other Automation Equipment, etc. Smart Factory Technology & Solutions: Smart Factory Top-Level Design, Industrial Control Systems, SCADA, MES/ MOM, SCM, PLM, Intelligent Storage, Intelligent Logistics, etc.

Smart Factory Top-Level Design, Industrial Control Systems, SCADA, MES/ MOM, SCM, PLM, Intelligent Storage, Intelligent Logistics, etc. Information and Communication Technology & Application: Big Data, IIOT, Cloud Computing, Industrial Network Security, AI, AR, etc

Big Data, IIOT, Cloud Computing, Industrial Network Security, AI, AR, etc Innovation and Invention: APP, Smart Tools, Simulation Technology, Preventive Maintenance, Assistance Systems, etc.

40+ presentations, in-depth discussion on mainstream application upgrades

In addition to the exhibition, iManufacturing will host over 40 presentations during the trade show, giving insights into key elements of intelligent manufacturing. The organizers will invite top international technology providers and leading Chinese technology companies to share and explore the latest and most advanced smart applications and "upgrade solutions", bringing a truly "intelligent feast" to visitors and exhibitors. Main topics include: The Status Quo and Future Trends of "Germany's Industry 4.0" and the "Industrial Internet from the U.S."; In-Depth Interpretation of Intelligent Manufacturing as the Future Direction of China's Manufacturing Industry; Intelligent Manufacturing Applications and Case Studies in the Automotive Industry; Intelligent Manufacturing Applications and Case Studies in the Healthcare Industry and Intelligent Manufacturing Technology Innovation etc.

iManufacturing is not only a display platform for showing intelligent development and confidence on the global manufacturing industry, but also a key turning point to lead China's and even Asia's enterprises to enter a new era of intelligent manufacturing.

Please view www.asia-iMan.com to get more information about the event.

Messe Duesseldorf (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. (MDS)

Messe Duesseldorf China Ltd., the subsidiary of Messe Duesseldorf GmbH, which is one of the world's top 5 exhibition organizers, is committed to introducing world's no. 1 trade fairs to China relying on its complete and mature marketing & service network in China. To provide better individualized solutions for Chinese market and promote localization services and operation strategies, Messe Duesseldorf China Ltd. established Messe Duesseldorf (Shanghai) Co., Ltd, its wholly foreign investment subsidiary after entering China for ten years. Messe Duesseldorf (Shanghai) Co., Ltd is committed to enlarge exhibition business scope and develop diversified cooperation relationships, as well as enhancing the influence of exhibition propeling the industry and the industry developing the economy, while is also contributing to the reform and opening up of China. Messe Duesseldorf GmbH is the organizer of drupa, the No.1 largest printing exhibition all over the world. More information: www.mds.cn.

China National Machinery Industry International Co., Ltd.

China National Machinery Industry International Co., Ltd. (SINOMACHINT) is a holding subsidiary of China National Machinery Industry Corporation (SINOMACH), a large state-owned business conglomerate and a Fortune Global 500 company. With the overall strategy of commercial exhibition and international trade as its "two engines" , SINOMACHINT is committed to building an integrated service platform for technology exchange and trade promotion between Chinese and foreign enterprises.

SINOMACHINT has over 20 investment enterprises. In recent years, it has been granted honors including "Top 10 Most Influential Exhibition Companies in China", "Top 10 Exhibition Engineering Service Brands in China" as well as the "Best Exhibitor of China." Today' s SINOMACHINT, as a central enterprise, has already progressed into the largest and most comprehensive Chinese exhibition giant. Commercial exhibition is the core business of SINOMACHINT with over 60 years of experience in exhibition organizing and a professional organization team. SINOMACHINT has established a complete exhibition business system that integrates independent organization of domestic and international exhibitions, agency service for overseas exhibitions and exhibition engineering.

SOURCE Messe Dusseldorf (Shanghai) Co., Ltd.

Related Links

http://www.mds.cn


WASHINGTON, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Press Club on Monday condemned the jail terms handed down to two journalists who exposed a genocide in Myanmar and committed to work to free them. The reporters, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo of Reuters news service, are this year's winners of the club's international John Aubuchon Press Freedom award.

"When the Press Club extends the Aubuchon Press Freedom award to journalists it means we are committed to standing by those reporters until they are free and returned to their loved ones," said National Press Club President Andrea Edney. "We are making that commitment with this award to these two Reuters journalists. We will continue to speak out on their behalf until they are released to their colleagues and families."

The two men were arrested while investigating a mass murder of 10 Rohyingya Muslims aided and abetted by Myanmar's military. Reuters published the reporters' story while they were in prison.

"We are heartbroken to learn these two wonderful journalists, husbands and fathers, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, will continue to be unjustly detained for their outstanding investigative work," Edney said. "We believe they did nothing wrong and call for their immediate release and return to their colleagues and families."

"The National Press Club plans to bestow our international John Aubuchon Press Freedom Award on these two brave journalists at our Fourth Estate Award Dinner on Nov. 29. We understand that an appeal of this wrongful conviction will be filed and we look forward to welcoming these reporters in person at our dinner," Edney added.

Founded in 1908, the National Press Club is the world's leading professional organization for journalists. It has more than 3,100 members worldwide. The club supports press freedom through its nonprofit National Press Club Journalism Institute.

Contact: John Donnelly, [email protected]; Kathy Kiely, 202-256-4748 or [email protected]

SOURCE National Press Club
HOUSTON, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- A new physical price assessment for the fast-growing US crude export market is launched today. Global energy and commodity price reporting agency Argus is publishing a price for waterborne US crude exports  Argus WTI fob Houston  that bridges the gap between the US domestic pipeline market and international shipments to five continents.

The Argus WTI Houston price, launched three years ago, is already the benchmark for much of the light sweet crude traded across North American pipeline networks. The new Argus WTI fob Houston price now adds transparency to the waterborne market.

US crude exports climbed to a record 2.2mn b/d in June, more than doubling from an average of less than 1mn b/d in the first half of 2017, US government data show. More than 40pc of US crude exports have reached Asia-Pacific destinations so far this year, and more than 30pc of shipments have gone to Europe.

Unlike the US inland pipeline markets, pricing of export waterborne cargoes has generally been opaque, clouded by complexities around logistics and quality.

"The US export market has needed an independent source of pricing to value light sweet crude exports," Argus Media chairman and chief executive Adrian Binks said. "The new Argus WTI fob Houston price provides that solution for the oil trading community."

The new price will introduce transparency to the export market for light sweet crude. It will complement established Argus benchmark indexes for pipeline WTI Houston and WTI Midland, both of which are used extensively in physical transactions and underpin actively traded futures contracts on the CME and Ice commodity exchanges.

The new price will be for cargoes of 500,000-650,000 bl loading at marine terminals in the Houston area. Prices for other US export grades and locations will also be launched over the next year. These assessments will be for cargoes loading 15-45 days ahead and will be priced as a differential to the Nymex light sweet crude contract.

The new Argus WTI fob Houston export price will be available in the Argus Crude and Argus Americas Crude daily services.

Contact Information

London

Seana Lanigan

+44 20 7780 4272

[email protected]

Houston

Scott Berg

+1 713 968 0000

[email protected]

Singapore

Pierre Lever

+65 6496 9960

[email protected]



About Argus Media

Argus is an independent media organisation with almost 900 staff. It is headquartered in London and has 21 offices in the world's principal commodity trading and production centres. Argus produces price assessments and analysis of international energy and other commodity markets, and offers bespoke consulting services and industry-leading conferences.



Companies in 140 countries around the world use Argus data to index physical trade and as benchmarks in financial derivative markets as well as for analysis and planning purposes.



Argus was founded in 1970 and is a privately held UK-registered company. It is owned by employee shareholders and global growth equity firm General Atlantic.



ARGUS, the ARGUS logo, ARGUS MEDIA, ARGUS DIRECT, ARGUS OPEN MARKETS, AOM, FMB, DEWITT, JIM JORDAN & ASSOCIATES, JJ&A, FUNDALYTICS, METAL-PAGES, METALPRICES.COM, Argus publication titles and Argus index names are trademarks of Argus Media Limited.

SOURCE Argus
THE HAGUE, Netherlands, September 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ --

The Board of Royal Dutch Shell plc ("RDS") (NYSE: RDS.A) (NYSE: RDS.B) today announced the pounds sterling and euro equivalent dividend payments in respect of the second quarter 2018 interim dividend, which was announced on July 26, 2018 at US$0.47 per A ordinary share ("A Share") and B ordinary share ("B Share").

Dividends on A Shares will be paid, by default, in euro at the rate of 0.4048 per A Share. Holders of A Shares who have validly submitted pounds sterling currency elections by August 24, 2018 will be entitled to a dividend of 36.50p per A Share.

Dividends on B Shares will be paid, by default, in pounds sterling at the rate of 36.50p per B Share. Holders of B Shares who have validly submitted euro currency elections by August 24, 2018 will be entitled to a dividend of 0.4048 per B Share.

This dividend will be payable on September 17, 2018 to those members whose names were on the Register of Members on August 10, 2018.

Taxation - cash dividend

Cash dividends on A Shares will be subject to the deduction of Dutch dividend withholding tax at the rate of 15%, which may be reduced in certain circumstances. Non-Dutch resident shareholders, depending on their particular circumstances, may be entitled to a full or partial refund of Dutch dividend withholding tax.

If you are uncertain as to the tax treatment of any dividends you should consult your own tax advisor.

Royal Dutch Shell plc

CAUTIONARY NOTE

The companies in which Royal Dutch Shell plc directly and indirectly owns investments are separate legal entities. In this announcement "Shell", "Shell group" and "Royal Dutch Shell" are sometimes used for convenience where references are made to Royal Dutch Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general. Likewise, the words "we", "us" and "our" are also used to refer to Royal Dutch Shell plc and its subsidiaries in general or to those who work for them. These terms are also used where no useful purpose is served by identifying the particular entity or entities. ''Subsidiaries'', "Shell subsidiaries" and "Shell companies" as used in this announcement refer to entities over which Royal Dutch Shell plc either directly or indirectly has control. Entities and unincorporated arrangements over which Shell has joint control are generally referred to as "joint ventures" and "joint operations", respectively. Entities over which Shell has significant influence but neither control nor joint control are referred to as "associates". The term "Shell interest" is used for convenience to indicate the direct and/or indirect ownership interest held by Shell in an entity or unincorporated joint arrangement, after exclusion of all third-party interest.

This announcement contains forward-looking statements (within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995) concerning the financial condition, results of operations and businesses of Royal Dutch Shell. All statements other than statements of historical fact are, or may be deemed to be, forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are statements of future expectations that are based on management's current expectations and assumptions and involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results, performance or events to differ materially from those expressed or implied in these statements. Forward-looking statements include, among other things, statements concerning the potential exposure of Royal Dutch Shell to market risks and statements expressing management's expectations, beliefs, estimates, forecasts, projections and assumptions. These forward-looking statements are identified by their use of terms and phrases such as "aim", "ambition', ''anticipate'', ''believe'', ''could'', ''estimate'', ''expect'', ''goals'', ''intend'', ''may'', ''objectives'', ''outlook'', ''plan'', ''probably'', ''project'', ''risks'', "schedule", ''seek'', ''should'', ''target'', ''will'' and similar terms and phrases. There are a number of factors that could affect the future operations of Royal Dutch Shell and could cause those results to differ materially from those expressed in the forward-looking statements included in this announcement, including (without limitation): (a) price fluctuations in crude oil and natural gas; (b) changes in demand for Shell's products; (c) currency fluctuations; (d) drilling and production results; (e) reserves estimates; (f) loss of market share and industry competition; (g) environmental and physical risks; (h) risks associated with the identification of suitable potential acquisition properties and targets, and successful negotiation and completion of such transactions; (i) the risk of doing business in developing countries and countries subject to international sanctions; (j) legislative, fiscal and regulatory developments including regulatory measures addressing climate change; (k) economic and financial market conditions in various countries and regions; (l) political risks, including the risks of expropriation and renegotiation of the terms of contracts with governmental entities, delays or advancements in the approval of projects and delays in the reimbursement for shared costs; and (m) changes in trading conditions. No assurance is provided that future dividend payments will match or exceed previous dividend payments. All forward-looking statements contained in this announcement are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. Readers should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements. Additional risk factors that may affect future results are contained in Royal Dutch Shell's Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2017 (available at http://www.shell.com/investor and http://www.sec.gov ). These risk factors also expressly qualify all forward-looking statements contained in this announcement and should be considered by the reader. Each forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date of this announcement, September 3, 2018. Neither Royal Dutch Shell plc nor any of its subsidiaries undertake any obligation to publicly update or revise any forward-looking statement as a result of new information, future events or other information. In light of these risks, results could differ materially from those stated, implied or inferred from the forward-looking statements contained in this announcement.

This announcement may contain references to Shell's website. These references are for the readers' convenience only. Shell is not incorporating by reference any information posted on http://www.shell.com .

We may have used certain terms, such as resources, in this announcement that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) strictly prohibits us from including in our filings with the SEC. U.S. Investors are urged to consider closely the disclosure in our Form 20-F, File No 1-32575, available on the SEC website http://www.sec.gov .

LEI number of Royal Dutch Shell plc: 21380068P1DRHMJ8KU70

ENQUIRIES:

Investor Relations:

Europe

+ 31-(0)-70-377-4540

North America

+1-832-337-2034



Media:

International

+44-(0)-207-934-5550

Americas

+1-832-337-4355



SOURCE Royal Dutch Shell plc
SINGAPORE, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Singapore based SaaS company, Solastis Solutions has released the first version of its CRM with task management solution called Solastis CRM+ for customers. Currently, the solution is being offered in beta stage where it is available free of cost (Limited seats only). Solastis CRM platform is easy to use and can be quickly configured as per the business needs. The application is flexible enough to meet the requirements of SMB's as well as large enterprises. Solastis CRM+ is a cloud-based platform that can be accessed over the internet without the hassle of buying, setting up, and managing an infrastructure.

Solastis solutions Pte Ltd know more about us at solastis.com

CRM industry is a matured market with close to 26 billion USD worldwide sales last year. However, businesses still experience a constant mismatch between their requirements and the CRM offerings. Many products available today lack functionality and flexibility needed for today's digitally distributed businesses. This gap is what Solastis intends to bridge. Solastis CRM is a functionally strong platform which can be configured within less than an hour, but it is capable of supporting SMBs as well as large enterprises and BPOs.

Solastis CRM provides some features which most of the other CRMs don't provide. Notable among them are;

Ability to create Multiple ticket types to represent different business processes in your organisation

Ability to implement a basic sequential task management which can be predefined for a case types. The case then passes through these steps sequentially.

Two dimensions can be attached to the cases, thereby enabling flexible reporting by territories or organisational units.

Solastis CRM also provides strong access control mechanism where you can easily create authorisation roles and control which users get access to what data.

As one of the leading service providers of SaaS solutions in the country, the company is poised with helping businesses harness the benefits of cloud technology by offering software services at affordable rates. The businesses can now look forward to having a strong CRM system at their disposal.

More information about Solastis CRM and the services offered can be found on the website.

About Solastis Solutions Pte Ltd

Solastis Solutions Pte Ltd is a Singapore based SaaS development company specialising in CRM software. The company is backed by promoters with a significant experience in business and IT field.

Media Contact

Solastis Solutions Pte Ltd

Mr Vaibhav Joshi

Tel : +65 8818 9714

email : [email protected]

www.solastis.com

Related Files

Why Solastis CRM.pdf

SolastisCRM all features.pdf

Related Images

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CRM Task Management

Solastis CRM includes a basic sequential task management. A task template can be created and assigned to the case.

authorization-roles.jpg

Authorization Roles

You can specifically authorise users for a specific combination of Organisational unit, territory and case type.

solastis-solutions-pte-ltd.jpg

Solastis Solutions Pte Ltd

Solastis solutions Pte Ltd know more about us at solastis.com

multidimensional-case-analysis.jpg

Multidimensional case analysis

You can assign two dimensions to the case and then analyse case statistics by these two dimensions.

Related Links

Company website

Solastis CRM Features

Related Video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QQSVtRQiWc

SOURCE Solastis Solutions Pte Ltd

Related Links

http://www.solastis.com


DOVER, Del., Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Valorem Foundation Inc. today announced a collaboration agreement with SpicePay, a payment processing software build on three basic principles: speed, safety and personalized approach.

SpicePay adds the following benefits to the Valorem Foundation's platform:

Valorem Foundation Inc.

Speed: Merchants in the EU can access funds in less than 24 hours, as opposed to 72 hours with traditional payment processing.

Safety via SSL: Transaction processes are carried out using a secured connection through HTTPS protocol with 128 bytes encryption of transferred data, which bars any possibility of third-party data interception.

Personal Approach: A level of personal service and complete support, unusual in the industry. Unlike financial institutions, SpicePay does not sort users by any criteria and strives to provide every customer with the same quality service.

View a full list of all the benefits of using SpicePay: The SpicePay Difference.

"We are delighted to partner with SpicePay to create a fair and secure exchange for KYC-vetted transactions bridging the mainstream with crypto. Valorem Foundation's mission is to develop a complete and sustainable financial ecosystem and we trust SpicePay can help us get there. After many conversations with SpicePay's team, we have confidence that they will be a solid partner on our journey to create a simple and easy-to-use financial network on the blockchain. We look forward to expanding our partnership as much as possible in the near future. Together, SpicePay and Valorem Foundation will use their technology to combat the risks of today's volatile cryptocurrency markets and provide a trusted platform for those who wish to see this market flourish and develop into the next big wave," said Val Kleyman, founder and CEO of Valorem Foundation.

Valorem Foundation is developing a community peer-to-peer platform for multi-party transactions. It is a blockchain-based platform that allows users to exchange value via smart contracts. Once on the platform, users will be able to borrow, lend, invest, transfer, hedge others and exchange value between each other using the VLR (our token and method of transacting), creating a trust-based platform that removes the need for third-party services or external vendors.

Valorem Foundation has already launched the following updates for their program located on their new subdomain located at ico.advalorem.io:

User-enabled multi-purpose wallets able to hold Bitcoin, Ethereum, purchase and hold VLR tokens.



Transaction visibility and 0% fee transfers of VLR when transferring inside the environment.



Support functions and password systems.



Troubleshooting and system integrity maintenance.

A note on getting listed on exchanges:

"We have been contacted by various exchanges," says Mr. Kleyman. "However, before any listing takes place, it must be in the interest of all the people who are a part of our community. We will announce a listing agreement once we have finished our due diligence on these potential future partners."

The following is a list of items currently in development by Valorem Foundation:

Implementation of SpicePay for users to be able to purchase VLR via credit/debit card (additional KYC will be required).

Public forum-style community chat and deal proposals.

Private-style chat between two users for private deal finalization.

The following are the services that Valorem is planning on rolling out later this year:

"Lending smart contract" development with hedge voting and reserve.

"Investing smart contract" development with hedge voting and reserve.

"Trust Me" by Valorem Foundation - a user-to-user exchange using smart contracts in order to safely and securely transact between previously unknown parties using an escrow function on the platform. This service is designed primarily to build trust between users who don't know each other.

Valorem Foundation will provide more updates on the smart contracts and specific ecosystem tools as they become available in the near future.

For more information about Valorem Foundation Inc., please visit their website at www.advalorem.io.

SOURCE Valorem Foundation Inc.

Related Links

https://advalorem.io/


Canberra, Sep 3 : Australia's largest honey producer Capilano has been accused by testers of using fake honey in one of its products, media reports said on Monday.

Capilano's Allowrie-branded Mixed Blossom Honey, which sources its products from Australia and overseas, claims to be 100 per cent honey.

However, lab tests have found a majority of its samples to be "adulterated", meaning they contain something other than bee nectar, Xinhua news agency reported.

Trevor Weatherhead, executive director of the Australian Honey Bee Industry Council said he was not sure why anybody would want to pass fake honey off as the real thing. But cost cutting might be a reason.

So far Capilano has denied the accusations and questioned the testing method. "There is no consensus in the industry about the reliability of the Nuclear Magnetic Resolution (NMR) test that has led to the reports," Managing Director Ben McKee said in a statement.
Srinagar, Sep 3 : Security forces started a massive search operation on Monday in around two dozen villages of Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district, police said.

The operation began following reports about the presence of militants in the villages of Putrigam, Rohmu, Rajpora, Matrigam, Goosu, Frasipora and others.

"So far, there has been no reports of any exchange of fire in any of the villages included in the search," a police officer said.

This is not the first such operation in the south Kashmir area undertaken by the security forces.

These operations known as area domination operations are usually undertaken to keep the militants on the run and prevent them from establishing a foothold in the region.
Bengaluru, Sep 3 : The counting of votes for 105 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) across Karnataka began at 8 a.m. on Monday.

The results of the civic polls, which took place on August 31, are expected later in the day or early Tuesday, a poll official said.

Polling took place across the 2,633 wards of the state, spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities and 23 town panchayats and in 135 wards of the three city corporations.

A record average of 67.5 per cent voter turnout was registered across the state for the civic polls.

Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) were used for polling in all the wards.

A total of 36 lakh voters were registered in the ULB wards and 13.33 lakh in the three towns of Mysuru, Shivamogga and Tumakuru.

In all, 8,340 candidates, including 2,306 from the Congress, 2,203 from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and 1,397 from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) are in the fray for the ULBs, while 814 contested from the city corporations, including 135 from Congress, 130 from BJP and 129 from JD-S.

In the event of a party not getting majority on its own in the election, the Congress and JD-S have decided to forge a post-poll alliance to keep BJP out of power, similar to the May 12 state assembly elections which threw up a hung verdict.

In the 2013 ULB elections held in 4,976 seats, the Congress had won 1,960 seats, while BJP and JD-S had won 905 seats each, while Independents bagged the remaining 1,206 seats.
Mumbai, Sep 3 : The Shiv Sena on Monday targeted the Maharashtra Police for the arrests of five left activists last week claiming they were reportedly "hatching a conspiracy to overthrow the central and state governments" besides allegedly "plotting a Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination of Prime Minister Narendra Modi", among others.

"The police contentions behind the arrests are ridiculous... The erstwhile government of Prime Minister Manmohan Singh was voted out and removed by the people -- not by the Maoists.

"As of now... at least, it is still possible to change the government through the democratic processes," the Sena said.

"The (Pune) police must not shoot off their mouths like this and the government must bar them from such statements... It's sheer stupidity," the Sena said in sharp edits in the party mouthpieces, "Saamana" and "Dopahar Ka Saamana".

While the practice of "using the police" for different aims is nothing new for the politicians and government, in the present instance, "the faster the truth emerges, the better," (remove the 'mukhota') for the police, demanded the Sena.

The second argument of the Pune police was that Modi was allegedly being targeted in a "Rajiv Gandhi-style assassination", at which the Sena clawed at the Pune police.

"The former PMs, Indira Gandhi and Rajiv Gandhi were fearless and courageous leaders... It was their boldness which claimed their lives... But Modi will never indulge in such adventures.

"He is already provided the best security in the world and not even a bird can overfly him," the Sena pointed out.

Dismissing the police contentions, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party ally in Maharashtra and the Centre, the Sena said that "if these handful of Maoists had so much political strength", they would never have lost their (Communist) governments in West Bengal, Tripura, Manipur, etc.

Urging the government to rein in the police, it said the action last week was one of the biggest attack on Maoism by the Pune police culminating in the arrests of five "urban-naxals" in simultaneous nationwide raids.

The Maoist movement is spread across Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, West Bengal, Karnataka, Odisha and Maharashtra's Gadchiroli and Chandrapur areas.

In many of these areas they run parallel governments, killing many security personnel and even top politicians like Congress leader V.C. Shukla and others.

The edit said the Pune police arrested P. Varavara Rao, Sudha Bharadwaj, Gautam Navlakha, Arun Fereira and Vernon Gonsalves -- intellectuals in different fields of life, rights activists, considered extremely influential persons moving about in high society circles.

"There are some doubts that something is wrong somewhere with these arrests... The facts must come out before the BJP becomes the butt of new jokes," the Sena concluded.
Bengaluru, Sep 3 : The Congress was ahead of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) as the counting began on Mondau of votes cast for Karnataka's 105 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), the State Election Commission (SEC) said.

The Congress was ahead by 52 seats by winning in 814 civic body seats across the state, while the BJP has won in 762 seats as of 11.45 a.m., according the results declared by the SEC on its website.

So far, results were declared in 2,171 seats of the total 2,709 where the ULB election was held on August 31.

The Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) has so far won in 300 seats while Independents took another 265 seats, as of 11.45 a.m.

Polling took place across the 2,633 wards of the state, spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities and 23 town panchayats and in 135 wards of the three city corporations.

A record average of 67.5 per cent voter turnout was registered across the state for the civic polls.

In all, 8,340 candidates, including 2,306 from the Congress, 2,203 from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and 1,397 from the Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) are in the fray for the ULBs, while 814 contested from the city corporations, including 135 from Congress, 130 from BJP and 129 from JD-S.

In the event of a party not getting majority on its own in the election, Congress and JD-S have decided to forge a post-poll alliance to keep BJP out of power, similar to May 12 state Assembly election which threw up a hung verdict, a JD-S official told IANS earlier.

In the 2013 ULB elections held in 4,976 seats, the Congress had won 1,960 seats, while BJP and JD-S had won 905 seats each, while Independents bagged the remaining 1,206 seats.
Kabul, Sep 3 : At least six militants were killed and four others injured in a clash in Khakriz district of Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province, police spokesman Abdul Bashir Khaksar said on Monday.

According to the official, the clash erupted after Taliban militants stormed some security checkpoints in Mandozai area of Khakriz district early on Sunday, triggering a gun battle which lasted for a few hours leaving six rebels dead, forcing militants to flee, Xinhua news agency reported.

Four more insurgents sustained injuries, the official said. However, he did not make comment on possible casualties of security personnel.

Taliban outfit has yet to make comment.
Mumbai, Sep 3 : The key Indian equity indices traded on a flat-to-positive note during the afternoon session on Monday, after opening sharply higher on the back of healthy April-June GDP figures released last week.

The indices trimmed major gains made earlier in the day, due to weak Asian markets. Globally, Asian markets traded in the negative territory on concerns of escalations in the US-China trade war.

According to analysts, healthy buying was witnessed in consumer durables, healthcare and IT stocks.

At 1.08 p.m., the wider Nifty50 on the National Stock Exchange traded at 11,684.75 points, higher by 4.25 points or 0.04 per cent from its previous close of 11,680.50 points.

The benchmark S&P BSE Sensex, which had opened at 38,915.91 points, traded at 38,666.18 points, higher by 21.11 points or 0.05 per cent from its previous close of 38,645.07 points.

So far, it has touched an intra-day high 38,934.35 points and a low of 38,655.66 points.

The BSE market breadth, however, remained bullish with 1,576 advances and 919 declines.

The top gainers on the Sensex were, Wipro, Sun Pharma, Adani Ports, Reliance Industries, Infosys while Hindustan Unilever, Maruti Suzuki, Kotak Mahindra Bank, NTPC and ICICI Bank were the major losers so far.
Jerusalem, Sep 3 : Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte, during his speech to Filipino workers here on Sunday, apologised for abusing former US President Barack Obama.

Referring to his stern language towards Obama in 2016, Duterte, who arrived in Israel on September 2 on a four-day official visit, said it would be appropriate to say at this time that "Obama, you're a civilian. I am sorry for uttering those words".

At the same time, he described Obama as a "cold" person who was "always at a distance", adding that the current US President Donald Trump is his "good friend", Sputnik news reported.

In 2016, Duterte warned Obama against questioning his extrajudicial drug-war-related killings of alleged criminals.
New Delhi, Sep 3 : In a bid to make Internet safe and secure in India, US-based nonprofit The Internet Society and the Internet Service Providers Association of India (ISPAI) on Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will look into securing routers which is vital for a healthy Internet infrastructure.

The partnership would promote the Mutually Agreed Norms for Routing Security (MANRS) -- a global initiative to implement the crucial fixes needed to reduce the most common threats to the Internet's routing system -- and safeguard the enterprises and the government from cyber threats.

"The need of the hour is to incorporate MANRS in the academic curriculum of the country so that when the youth join the workforce, they will know what measures to take and would not be vulnerable to Internet threats," Rajnesh Singh, Regional Bureau Director-Asia Pacific, The Internet Society, told IANS.

According to the Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT-in), 44,679, 49,455 and 50,362 cyber security incidents took place in India during 2014, 2015 and 2016, respectively. These include phishing, website intrusions and defacements, virus and denial of service attacks, among others.

Routing security is vital to the future and stability of the Internet and MANRS would provide simple but concrete steps for network operators that enable dramatically improved Internet security and reliability.

"MANRS will not be limited to the members of Internet security providers in the country but will also be imparted to the elderly, youth and people especially in the rural areas," Rajesh Chharia, President, ISPAI, told IANS.

"However, there are growing concerns over cyber security and data security and the recent malware threats have impacted many globally," Chharia added.

In joining MANRS, participants commit to implement actions to address common challenges related to routing security such as filtering and anti-spoofing.

As part of the MoU, both ISPAI and ISOC will focus on capacity building to undertake initiatives and activities to promote adoption of MANRS in India, to cooperate and render mutual assistance and to encourage the attendance of ISPAI members to meetings, seminars, workshops and conferences on routing security.

The MoU will also see both organizations exchanging research information and training materials related to routing security.

"Cyber security is one of the top concerns for Internet users in the Asia Pacific region and unsecured routing is one of the most common reasons for malicious threats," Singh noted.

Virginia-headquartered The Internet Society was founded in 1992 by people involved with the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF).

It is governed by a diverse board of trustees that is dedicated to ensuring that the Internet stays open, transparent and defined by the people who use it.
Mumbai, Sep 3 : Reliance Infrastructure (RInfra) has won a Rs 200 crore arbitration award against the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), the company said on Monday.

In a statement here, the company said that a three-member Arbitration Tribunal, on August 31 in an unanimous award asked the NHAI to pay RIfra Rs 150 crore by November 29.

"NHAI will have to pay interest at 12 per cent per annum on the amount if they do not pay Rs 150 crore by the deadline," it said.

"The Tribunal has also awarded Reliance Infrastructure compensation at 13.5 per cent of actual revenue for the loss of revenue suffered due to change in location of the toll plaza.

"This is payable from March 2017 till the end of concession on January 14, 2038. Net present value of this future cash flow is estimated at over Rs 50 crore."

According to the company, the need for arbitration arose due to the prolonged delay by the NHAI in providing land to RInfra subsidiary TD Toll Road resulting in cost overrun "during construction and change in location of toll plaza from km 360+450 to km 382+850 on NH (National HighwaY) 45."

"The contention of TD Toll Road that the project was delayed resulting in cost overrun during construction and location of toll plaza resulting in loss of revenue was upheld by the Tribunal."

TD Toll Road has designed, built and are operating the 87 km long four-lane NH 45 road connecting Trichy and Dindigul in Tamil Nadu.

"The project construction works have been completed and the commercial operation for the project commenced in January 2012," the statement said said.

"The Arbitration Tribunal consisted of illustrious personalities like former Director General, Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, ADG CPWD and Engineer in Charge of CPWD," it added.
Yangon, Sep 3 : A Myanmar court here on Monday jailed two Reuters reporters for seven years for breaching the Official Secrets Act while investigating violence against the Rohingya Muslims, a ruling which drew widespread flak.

Reporters Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were arrested on the night of December 12 after meeting two police officers who, according to the defendants, handed them confidential documents, the Efe news reported.

Since then, both have been held without bail and have appeared 30 times before the court, which started a preliminary investigation on January 9 and formally filed charges on July 9.

The case has been widely seen as a test of press freedom in Myanmar.

The journalists have maintained their innocence, saying they were set up by the police.

"I have no fear," Lone, 32, said after the verdict. "I have not done anything wrong. I believe in justice, democracy and freedom."

The two men, who both have families with young children, have been in prison since their arrest in December 2017.

"Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo and press freedom anywhere," said Reuters editor-in-chief Stephen Adler.

He said the company will "evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum".

The judge told the court the pair had "intended to harm the interests of the state and so they have been found guilty".

Lone and Soe Oo, 28, had been collecting evidence about the execution of 10 men by the Army in the village of Inn Din in northern Rakhine.

During their investigation, they were offered the documents by two police officers, but were arrested immediately afterwards for the possession of those documents.

Authorities later launched their own probe into the killings, confirming the massacre took place and promising to take action against those who had taken part.

The BBC said that many would see this verdict as a crushing blow to freedom of the press in Myanmar and another setback for the democracy, three years after Aung San Suu Kyi's party triumphed in free elections.

Lone and Soe Oo bowed their heads as the verdict was delivered. Wa Lone - who has missed the birth of his first child while being detained -- protested his innocence again as he was led away.

Diplomats and human rights groups widely condemned the jail sentences.

The UN's resident and humanitarian co-ordinator in Myanmar Knut Ostby said the UN had consistently called for the release of the journalists and that "a free press is essential for peace, justice and human rights for all. We are disappointed by today's court decision".

British ambassador to Myanmar Dan Chugg said he was "extremely disappointed" by the verdict.

"The judge appears to have ignored evidence," Chugg told reporters.

His US counterpart Scot Marciel said: "It's deeply troubling for everybody who has struggled so hard here for media freedom. I think one has to ask - will this process increase or decrease the confidence the people of Myanmar have in their justice system?"

Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch (HRW) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) also condemned the verdict and called for the repealing the charges against the reporters as well as their immediate release.

Amnesty's Director of Crisis Response Tirana Hassan called the verdict politically motivated and warned that it would have adverse consequences for freedom of the press in the country.

"It sends a stark warning to other journalists in the country of the severe consequences that await should they look too closely at military abuses. This amounts to censorship through fear," Hassan said in a statement.

FIDH Secretary General Debbie Stothard criticized what she said was the arbitrary detention of the two reporters on fabricated charges.

The verdict comes a year after the crisis in Rakhine state came to a head when a Rohingya militant group attacked several police posts. The military responded with a brutal crackdown against the Rohingya minority.

The UN has said leading army figures in Myanmar should be investigated and prosecuted for genocide.

Media access to Rakhine is strictly controlled by the government so it is difficult to get reliable news from the region.
Srinagar, Sep 3 : A Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) activist escaped an attempt on his life in Jammu and Kashmir's Pulwama district on Monday, police said.

Mehraj Ahmad Parra was fired upon by gunmen in his village Naira but he escaped miraculously, the police said.
Nicosia, Sep 3 : An anti-money laundering memorandum of understanding (MoU) signed between India and Cyprus will help boost investment cross-flows between the two countries, President Ram Nath Kovind said here on Monday.

"We welcome the signing of the MoU between Financial Intelligence Unit, India, and the Unit for Combating Money Laundering of Cyprus," Kovind said while addressing the media after a bilateral meeting with Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades.

"This agreement would further strengthen the institutional framework to facilitate investment cross-flows," he said.

Cyprus is the eighth largest investor in India with a cumulative investment of around $9.2 billion.

"We also emphasised that the revision in the Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement made in 2016 provided greater opportunities for our investment partnership to grow," Kovind said.

Stating that he and President Anastasiades held detailed discussions on the way forward for bilateral long-standing and excellent relations, Kovind said: "We reviewed our ongoing bilateral and multilateral engagements and discussed issues of regional and global concern."

Apart from the agreement on combating money laundering, India and Cyprus also signed an agreement on cooperation in the field of environment.

Kovind said that he and Anastasiades called for enhancing business collaboration in the fields of IT and IT-enabled services, tourism, shipping and renewable energy.

The Indian President thanked Anastasiades for his "express support for an early adoption of the India-initiated Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) at the UN.

"I thanked Cyprus for extending support for India's permanent membership of the UN Security Council," Kovind said.

"I also expressed our gratitude to Cyprus for extending continued and strong support to India for its membership of the Nuclear Suppliers Group and help us move on clean energy pathway."

Kovind arrived here on Sunday on the first leg of his eight-day three-nation tour of Central Europe that will also see him visiting Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

His visit comes in the wake of Anastasiades's visit to India in April last year.
Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 3 : The Congress party in Kerala on Monday expressed strong reservation about selecting the international professional service company KPMG as consultant partner for rebuilding Kerala in the wake of flood disaster in the state.

During a cleaning drive launched by the Congress party in Alappuzha, Leader of the Opposition Ramesh Chennithala warned the Kerala government against engaging the KPMG for consultancy service.

"I have already written to State Industries Minister E.P. Jayarajan, who is spearheading the rebuilding operations, to first verify the numerous complaints that have surfaced against the KPGM, even if their offer is free consultancy service. Instead the government should accept the offer of the Netherlands government who have offered to help us rebuild Kerala," said Chennithala.

Former state Congress President V.M. Sudheeran on Monday wrote on his Facebook that the Kerala government should be extremely cautious in tying up with the KPMG as a few cases were registered against them.

"There are reports in public domain against this firm and hence the Kerala government should be extremely careful in seeking this firm's support," said Sudheeran.

Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said on August 31 that the international management consultant KPMG had agreed to provide free consultancy service and would be the consultant partner for rebuilding Kerala.
Islamabad, Sep 3 : Pakistan does not agree with the US view that India has a role to play in bringing peace to Afghanistan, Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhry has said.

Saying both Prime Minister Imran Khan and Army chief General Qamar Javed Bajwa were on the same page on internal and external security issues, the Minister said Pakistan was quite clear "that India has no role to play in Afghanistan".

The new Prime Minister and the Army chief have held detailed discussions on various issues.

The News International on Monday quoted Fawad as saying that the US wanted to give a role to India in Afghanistan but Pakistan was not in agreement.

But both Islamabad and Washington agreed that the US should leave behind a stable Afghanistan, he added, quoting from the deliberations in the meeting.

At the same time, Pakistan wanted good relations with all the countries in the region.

The Minister said that while a section of India wanted to make Pakistan weak, the other section wished to peacefully co-exist with Islamabad, the daily said.

He said that with Lok Sabha elections due next year in India, the Indian leadership might not be inclined to respond positively to Pakistan's desire for talks to resolve various issues.
Bengaluru, Sep 3 : The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on Monday blamed Karnataka's ruling coalition partners Congress and Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S) for its defeat in the state civic polls held across 22 districts.

"The BJP should have won more seats but we could not perform the way we wanted to because of the Congress-JD-S coalition," BJP state unit President B.S. Yeddyurappa told reporters here.

The party, however, is confident of winning a majority in the 2019 Lok Sabha election, Yeddyurappa said.

"People's mandate is with the BJP and we are confident of a majority in the next year's general election," he added.

In the civic body polls held on August 31, the BJP won 929 seats, with a majority in seven districts including coastal regions of Udupi and Dakshina Kannada, while the Congress won 982 seats with a majority in 10 districts including the northern region of the state.

The civic election verdict shows the BJP performed well in its traditional bastions of coastal districts while Congress retained its position in its strongholds of northern districts.

The ruling coalition partner JD-S, on the other hand, won 375 seats getting a majority in its strongholds of Hassan, Mandya and Tumakuru districts.
Mumbai, Sep 3 : Consolidating its presence in the Middle-East, Business Process Services (BPS) provider Intelenet Global Services on Monday announced it has set up a global delivery centre in Jordan.

The state-of-the-art centre with a capacity of 200 seats will help the company expand its operations across all sectors and provide low-cost Arabic delivery location based on emerging client demands, the company said in a statement.

Backed by The Blackstone Group, a leading global private equity player, Intelenet has four centres in the Middle-East catering to clients across travel, logistics, telecom, financial services and public sectors, BPS service offerings in English and Arabic.

"With this strategic presence in Amman, our continuous endeavour is towards operational excellence and delivering customer satisfaction by providing digital transformation based new age innovations," said Piety Gonsalves, Managing Director-Middle East, Intelenet Global Services.

The centre is in the process of expanding to a 500-seater facility and will be a pivotal center for driving growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region.

Intelenet has a global footprint with presence in eight countries with a combined strength of over 40 service centres and 55,000 employees.
Bengaluru, Sep 3 : Karnataka's ruling coalition partner the Congress won majority of the seats across 10 of 22 districts during vote count for 105 Urban Local Bodies (ULBs) on Monday, the State Election Commission (SEC) said.

In the civic body polls held on August 31, the Congress has won 982 seats out of the total 2,662 seats, with a majority in 10 districts including Ballari, Bidar, Gadag, Mysuru, Uttara Kannada and Raichur, the SEC said in its website.

On the other hand, the Congress' leading ally in the state government, Janata Dal-Secular (JD-S), trailed behind winning 375 seats and a majority in its strongholds of Hassan, Mandya and Tumakuru districts.

The opposition Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won 929 seats, with majority in seven districts including the coastal districts of Udupi and Dakshina Kannada.

Independents won 329 seats across the 22 districts, while other fringe parties and regional outfits won another 34.

The civic election verdict shows the BJP performed well in its traditional bastions of coastal districts, while the Congress retained its position in its strongholds of northern districts.

The result in Vijayapura district in the northern part of the state threw a hung verdict, with both Congress and BJP winning eight seats each of the total 23 seats, while JD-S won two seats and Independents five.

In the event of no party getting majority on its own in the election, the Congress and the JD-S have decided to forge a post-poll alliance to keep the BJP out of power, similar to May 12 state Assembly election which threw up a hung verdict, a JD-S official told IANS earlier.

Polling took place last Friday across 22 districts of the state spread over 29 city municipalities, 53 town municipalities, 23 town panchayats and 135 wards of three city corporations -- Mysuru, Shivamogga and Tumakuru.

A record average of 67.5 per cent voter turnout was registered across the state for the civic polls.

The polling in 45 seats of Kodagu district's civic bodies has been postponed due to recent heavy rains and flooding in the region.

In the 2013 ULB elections held in 4,976 seats, the Congress had won 1,960 seats, while BJP and JD-S had won 905 seats each, and Independents bagged the remaining 1,206 seats.
New Delhi, Sep 3 : National Award-winning actor Rajkummar Rao has been signed as the brand ambassador of Singapore-based active leisure brand Actimaxx.

The move showcases Actimaxx's endeavour to consolidate its market position in the Indian subcontinent, said a statement.

"Fashion for me is comfort. It is something that makes you feel confident. Actimaxx is one such brand which makes you 'feel fit', sharp and edgy. We are confident of building the brand as one of the most successful active leisure brand," said the actor.

On the association with Rajkummar, Divya, brand director of Actimaxx, said: "It is a matter of great pride for us. Mr Rao shares the brand's ethos of innovation in execution and the spirit of challenging the conventional."

The brand is owned by Actibrands PTE Singapore.
Mumbai, Sep 3 : Private life and non-life insurers - Bharti AXA Life Insurance and Bharti AXA General Insurance - on Monday announced a simplified claims procedure for flood victims of Kerala and Karnataka.

In a joint statement issued here Bharti AXA Life Insurance said it has simplified the claim processing for the flood victims of Kerala and Karnataka in three steps - written intimation from the nominee along with cancelled cheque of the nominee's bank account; death certificate from any authorised hospital or police or armed forces; and Aadhar card of the nominee.

"In view of the deluged-ravaged Kerala and some districts of Karnataka and resultant loss of lives, we have set up a dedicated assistance cell at each district in Kerala and the flood-hit districts of Karnataka for simplified life claims with minimal documents.

We understand the plight of our customers and endeavour to settle eligible claims expeditiously. If death certificate is not available, we shall accept a certificate from police, armed forces or any authorised hospital certifying the death of the life insured," Vikas Seth, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Bharti AXA Life was quoted as saying in the statement.

The company has also extended the existing grace period of 15 days or 30 days as applicable to 60 days for payment of premiums due during the period from 15th July 2018 to 30th September 2018 and waived off late or penalty fees on such due premium.

Similarly, Bharti AXA General Insurance has formed help desks to support and guide its customers and instructed its nodal officers and branches in Kochi, Trivandrum, Thrissur, Kotayam and Calicut to fast-track claim settlement processes in the flood-devastated Kerala and the flood-hit districts of Karnataka.

"We have introduced documentation waivers in support of motor claims. Survey has been waived for minor losses, if the insured is able to share the photographs through digital media. On basis of that, remote survey will be conducted and claim shall be processed.

No insistence on Registration Certificate, if it has been lost in flood and the claim shall be processed based on the soft copy available in the online portal,'' Sanjeev Srinivasan, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Bharti AXA General Insurance, was quoted in the statement.

Bharti AXA General Insurance has waived monetary claim letter, damage certificate and letter of subrogation for claims up to Rs 1 lakh.

The company has also decided to skip estimate of loss for completely submerged vehicles in Kerala and Karnataka floods and expedite claim settlement.
Berlin, Sep 3 : A court in Germany on Monday sentenced a young Afghan man to eight-and-a-half years in prison for killing his 15-year-old ex-girlfriend in 2017.

Abdul D had stabbed his ex-girlfriend in a drugstore in the western city of Kandel in December 2017.

Judges found Abdul D, allegedly a minor at the time of the fatal stabbing, guilty of murder and bodily harm, Efe reported.

The incident caused a stir across the country, reigniting discussions about determining the age of young asylum seekers who come to the country and claim to be minors.

The trial against Abdul D took place behind closed doors, specifically because the suspect said he was 15 at the time of the assault.

However, according to a medical examination carried out afterward, Abdul D -- who was repentant at the start of his trial in June -- was between 17 and 20 years old at the time of the crime.

The prosecutor had asked for a 10-year sentence -- the maximum sentence available according to the penal code applied to adolescents and young adults aged between 14-20 years old -- while his defence asked for seven-and-a-half years for murder.

The parents of the teenage victim, who had broken up with Abdul D after a relationship that lasted several months, had reported him weeks before the fatal stabbing for threats and insults directed towards their daughter over the phone and on social networks.

The young Afghan was registered as an asylum seeker in Frankfurt in 2016 and received schooling and accommodation in Germany.
: Nicosia: President Ram Nath Kovind addresses at the House of Representatives of Cyprus, in Nicosia on Sept 3, 2018. (Photo: IANS/MEA). Image Source: IANS/MEA

President Ram Nath Kovind addresses at the House of Representatives of Cyprus, in Nicosia on Sept 3, 2018. Image Source: IANS/MEA

Nicosia, Sep 3 : India on Monday thanked Cyprus for extending support to New Delhi's bid for permanent membership in a reformed UN Security Council and also for the Nuclear Suppliers' Group.

"The salience of national sovereignty and the essential need to defeat radicalism and terrorism unites us," President of India Ram Nath Kovind said in an address to the Cyprus House of Representatives here.

"In this regard, India has called for finalising the Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism at the United Nations and we count on your support," Kovind said.

"I would also like to thank Cyprus for its unstinted backing of India's candidature for an expanded UN Security Council as well as for the Nuclear Suppliers' Group," he added.

India is a member of the G4, that also includes Japan, Germany and Brazil, seeking permanent membership in a reformed UN Security Council.

China has been blocking India's bid for membership in the Nuclear Suppliers Group on the ground that for a nation to become a member of the 48-nation bloc, it should be a signatory to the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT).

In his speech, Kovind also promoted India as an appealing business destination. "India's overriding mission is its economic growth and modernisation, with the fruits of development reaching all sections of our people," he said.

"Cyprus, as a trusted partner and as one of the largest investors in India, is critical to this process. India is at an exciting juncture and offers appealing business opportunities," Kovind said.

Cyprus is the eighth largest investor in India with a cumulative investment of around $9.2 billion.

Kovind said that tax reforms to galvanise India's widespread manufacturing and business capacities and large domestic market have also helped.

"The implementation of the Goods and Services Tax has led to uniform, simpler and digitally-enabled taxation in all of our 29 states. It has integrated the country into one business system," he said.

Earlier in the day, India and Cyprus signed two agreements on anti-money laundering and on cooperation in the field of environment following a meeting between Kovind and Cyprus President Nicos Anastasiades here.

"We welcome the signing of the MoU (memorandum of understanding) between Financial Intelligence Unit, India, and the Unit for Combating Money Laundering of Cyprus," Kovind said while addressing the media after a bilateral meeting with Anastasiades.

In his address to the House of Representatives, the Indian President said that the anti-money laundering agreement "will be useful for both of us".

He also invited Cyprus to partner in the Digital India mission, saying: "You can come as investors and you can come as stakeholders, you can come to buy or to sell, you can come with your expertise and you can come with your brands and your skills. India is open for business - and India is open for Cyprus."

Kovind arrived here on Sunday on the first leg of his eight-day three-nation tour of Central Europe that will also see him visiting Bulgaria and the Czech Republic.

His visit to Cyprus comes after Anastasiades's visit to India in April last year.
Damascus, Sep 3 : Iran's Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif arrived in the Syrian capital Damascus on Monday to hold talks with President Bashar al-Assad ahead of a tripartite meeting between Turkey, Iran, and Russia on the situation in Syria.

Zarif told the media that the militants of the Levant Liberation Committee (LLC), also known as the al-Qaida-linked Nusra Front, must leave Syria's Idlib province, the last major rebel bastion in Syria, Xinhua news agency reported.

The summit, that will take place in Tehran on Friday, will discuss ways to confront the extremist groups including the Nusra Front. Coordination to continue the political process and counter-terrorism in Syria will also be discussed, he said.

"After the victories achieved by the resistance front (Syria, Iran, Hezbollah) against the extremist groups in Syria, it's about time to rebuild this country and the countries of the strategic alliance with Syria are contributing to this matter," Zarif said.

Syria's Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem said that the liberation of Idlib is the major subject at the tripartite summit in Tehran.
Bhopal, Sep 3 : Madhya Pradesh Home Minister Bhupendra Singh on Saturday said the attack on the "Rath" (campaign vehicle) of Chief Minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan during his "Jan Ashirwad Yatra" was part of a conspiracy to kill him.

Talking to mediapersons here, the Home Minister said: "Stones were thrown at the vehicle of the Chief Minister in a pre-planned manner. The stones hit the glasses of bus, which could have hit him (Chouhan) as well.

"It was clearly a pre-planned attack on the life of the Chief Minister but alert security personnel thwarted the attempt."

Three persons have been arrested in connection with the attack, he added.

On the other hand, the Congress has said that the incident was a result of intelligence failure and therefore, the Home Minister should resign.

Ajay Singh, Leader of the Opposition in state Assembly and MLA from Churhat constituency in Sidhi district where the incident took place, said: "Bhupendra Singh is a complete failure as the state's Home Minister. He should resign and the Chief Minister should look for another person to take the responsibility."

The Congress leader said his party and its workers have no role in the attack. "On the contrary, it's a conspiracy hatched by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) itself."

On Sunday night, some miscreants threw stones at the Rath carrying Chief Minister Chouhan -- who is touring the state ahead of Assembly elections -- in Churhat area, said the police.
Bangkok, Sep 3 : Against the backdrop of severe and record heatwaves, bushfires, droughts and floods across the world, governments are convening a supplementary six-day meeting here from Tuesday to prepare the implementation guidelines of the Paris Climate Change Agreement.

The guidelines are needed to make the 2015 Paris Agreement work fairly and transparently for all.

Following a two-year negotiation process, the implementation guidelines are set to be adopted at the annual climate conference, COP24, to be held in Katowice, Poland in December.

While the talks have made modest progress, the Bangkok meeting is the last opportunity before COP24 to accelerate negotiations.

"Building on progress made, countries now need to take a decisive step forward in preparing the ambitious and balanced outcome that we need in Katowice," Patricia Espinosa, Executive Secretary of United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), told reporters here.

Achieving success at COP24 will be challenging without the preparation of an official negotiating text on the implementation guidelines.

"It will be critical for negotiators in Bangkok to produce solid text-based output that can function as the basis for the concluding negotiations in Katowice and be turned into the final implementation guidelines of the Paris Agreement at COP24.

"The texts capturing progress to date are not yet refined enough for this purpose," Espinosa said.

"With only six additional days for negotiations in Bangkok, the UN Climate Change is carefully coordinating demands to fully support countries in their important task," she added.

Highly technical in nature, the implementation guidelines are needed to monitor progress on climate action.

Such action includes measures to deal with climate impacts such as droughts or floods and urgent support to enable developing countries to contribute to climate action.

They are also essential for determining whether emissions are being reduced at an ambitious rate to achieve the Paris Agreement's goal of limiting the global temperature increase to well below 2 degrees Celsius, and as close to 1.5 degrees as possible this century.

Importantly, the guidelines are also needed to make the agreement's institutions fully operational beyond COP24.

"Every year, the impacts of climate change are getting worse. This means that every year, the poorest and most vulnerable, who have contributed almost nothing to the problem, suffer more," Espinosa said.

Chair of the Least Developed Countries (LDC) Group Gebru Jember Endalew said: "This additional Bangkok session will be critical to the delivery of a robust, balanced and comprehensive set of implementation guidelines for the Paris Agreement at COP24.'

"Negotiators have one week in Bangkok before Katowice; time to develop these rules is running out and there remains a lot of work to be done. A last-minute rush in Katowice must be avoided so that the voices of poor and vulnerable countries are fully heard."

The LDC Group looks forward to working with other countries to develop a strong package of guidelines to implement the Paris Agreement.

The 2018 Climate Weeks in Africa, Asia and Latin America, the Global Climate Action Summit in San Francisco in mid-September and Climate Week in New York towards the end of September, to name a few, are all events that rally both governments and non-Party stakeholders around climate change.

"These events clearly demonstrate global momentum. They show that the world is ready to implement the Paris Agreement in the way world leaders envisaged in Paris in 2015," Espinosa added.

With 197 Parties, the UNFCCC has near universal membership and is the parent treaty of the 2015 Paris Climate Change Agreement.
New Delhi, Sep 3 : The Congress on Monday targeted the Centre over a stalled probe against the Adani Group and demanded a time-bound, independent probe by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into an alleged Rs 29,000-crore scam involving over-valuation of coal imports.

Days after Adani Group moved the Bombay High Court seeking to quash all Letters Rogatory (LRs) issued by the Directorate of Revenue Intelligence (DRI), the Congress launched a frontal attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Finance Minister Arun Jaitley for being silent on the scam involving "Modi's industrialist friend" Gautam Adani.

"Jaitley writes blogs on every issue, but he is silent on this. He should write a blog on this. He doesn't have the power to take any action," said Congress spokesperson Jairam Ramesh.

Earlier, a Singapore court had rejected Adani Global's plea, seeking a stay to produce documents pertaining to coal imports to India mostly from Indonesia. After that, the group moved the Bombay High Court on August 28.

The DRI had alleged that the companies inflated the price of coal they were importing from Indonesia to siphon off money abroad and to avail higher power tariff compensation.

"In October 2014, Directorate of Revenue Intelligence announced that there was a huge scam on coal import and a probe was initiated on the over-invoicing of import of coal. On March 31, 2016, DRI gave a new statement that 40 companies are involved in this scam and it is worth Rs 29,000 crore," said Ramesh.

In September 2017, a PIL was filled at the Delhi High Court by an NGO run by (Advocate) Prashant Bhushan and it demanded a Special Investigative Team (SIT) probe.

"On March 9, 2018, DRI in a litigation in the Delhi High Court said there was no need for an SIT and that it was probing the 40 companies and showcause notices were issued to four companies," he said, adding the companies given notices belonged to Gautam Adani, Anil Ambani and the Essar group.

The four companies include Knowledge Infrastructure Systems Pvt Ltd, Coastal Energy Pvt Ltd, Reliance Infrastructure Ltd and Rosa Power Supply Co Ltd.

"Adani Group filed a litigation in the Singapore court urging the documents, which are available with SBI (State Bank of India) Singapore branch on the issue, should not be given to the Indian government," Ramesh said.

On May 20, 2016, then Revenue Secretary Hasmukh Adhia (now Finance Secretary) wrote to SBI chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya saying the bank should provide those documents to DRI so that the probe could be completed, he said.

"After four days, she replied to Adhia saying the documents can't be provided because it was against Singapore law," the Congress leader added.

"The probe has been stalled for four years. But no action has been taken against the company so far," Ramesh said.

"We demand that the DRI probe should be impartial, objective and time-bound. The government should talk to the Singapore government and all papers should be provided to the DRI," he said.
New Delhi, Sep 3 : Two persons were arrested for illegally withdrawing cash from various ATMs in the national capital, police said on Monday.

The accused, Aniket (23) and Gulshan (22) -- residents of Sangam Vihar in south Delhi -- were arrested on Sunday from the same area.

The matter came to light after a victim, S. Murghen, an employee in the Border Security Force (BSF), complained to the police about illegal transaction of Rs 10,000 made from his account, the police said.

He had hinted at the possible role of two youths -- later identified as Aniket and Gulshan -- in the illegal withdrawal of money from his account.

"During interrogation, the accused confessed their involvement in illegal transaction from the account of Murghen. They also admitted their involvement in various other ATM card thefts," Deputy Commissioner of Police Vijay Kumar said.

"Seven ATM cards and cash worth Rs 10,000 were recovered from their possession," he added.
New Delhi, Sep 3 : The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) on Monday blamed Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the deteriorating economic condition, saying "the economy was never in such a mess".

"The BJP's central leadership, in the last few months, either does not know what to do or is simply not bothered about the hardships it is heaping on the Aam Aadmi," Delhi's ruling party said in a statement. "The economy was never in such a mess."

The AAP said that petrol and diesel prices were touching an all-time high while the rupee was falling to a historic low.

The "grossly incompetent BJP government, led by Modi, has failed to address the concerns of rising fuel prices and depreciation of the rupee", he said.

"The Central government has shown remarkable carelessness when it comes to the economy. The country's Finance Ministry is caught in a power struggle between two high ranking Ministers...

"In this situation, the blame for the country's poor macroeconomic indicators lies squarely with the Prime Minister."

The party urged the Central government to address these issues at the earliest.

"The people of this country are waiting for an opportunity to defeat those who keep the Aam Aadmi at the bottom of their priorities. The BJP will face certain defeat in the 2019 polls if this situation continues to worsens," it added.
Kabul, Sep 3 : Several Taliban fighters on Monday laid down their weapons and joined the peace process in Afghanistan's Jalalabad.

The move came as part of an amnesty scheme sanctioned earlier by both the former Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai and the US, Efe reported.

Hundreds of insurgents have handed over arms to the state security forces since the amnesty was rolled out in 2004.

The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) officially ended its military campaign in Afghanistan in 2015, but around 16,000 troops from member states remained in an advisory capacity for the Afghan security forces.

Afghanistan is going through one of its bloodiest phases since the end of NATO's combat mission.
Rome, Sep 3 : 'Arrivederci Saigon', a documentary about a Tuscan all-girl pop group that was improbably caught up in the Vietnam War during a Southeast Asian tour in 1968, spending months in jungle battlefields entertaining US troops, will be screened on Tuesday at the 75th Venice Film Festival.

Eager for success and fame, the talented five-member 'Le Stars' girl band from an industrial district of Tuscany received an offer from their tour manager which was too good to refuse: a series of concerts in the Far East, Manila, Hong Kong, Singapore and other venues.

But after its first show in Manila, the band was immediately diverted to the South Vietnamese capital Saigon for a few gigs and got trapped in the war zone until the end of January 1969.

In Italian film director Wilma Labate's documentary, 50 years after their dramatic and life-changing experience, 'Le Stars' members Viviana Tacchella, Rossella Canaccini, Daniela Santerini and Franca Deni narrate their three months of survival hidden in US military bases in the jungle, living in close confines with American soldiers under North Vietnamese rocket fire and attacks from Vietcong guerrilla light artillery.

Says Labate: "The challenge is to tell the story through the eyes of the protagonists, who were little more than teenagers, re-opening one of the most controversial chapters of the 20th century with the memory and lightness of an incredible experience that has marked their lives forever."
New Delhi, Sep 3 : Heavy rain and blocked roads did not stop Delhiites from celebrating the birth of Lord Krishna - Janmashtami - as thousands of devotees thronged temples and offered prayers.

The famous Laxmi Narayan Temple, ISKCON temple in Amar Colony, Janmashtami Park in Punjabi Bagh, Adhya Katyayani Shaktipeeth Mandir in Chhatarpur and Santoshi Mata Mandir in Hari Nagar were specially decorated. Arrangements were made to handle the devotees' rush.

Manju Das, a resident of Dwarka, said she along with her husband visit the ISKCON temple in her locality every year to perform 'abhishek' to Lord Krishna and enjoy the fervour of Janmashtami.

"Every year we visit the temple, where devotees offer 'chhappan bhog' (a variety of dishes) amid chanting of 'Hare Krishna, Hare Radha' till late night," she told IANS.

Special processions were taken out from temples in different parts of the city which saw participation of a large number of people.

Colourful tableaux depicting the story of Lord Krishna's birth were displayed at Janmashtami Park in Punjabi Bagh and other areas. On the other hand, cultural groups displayed special 'Jhankis' of Lord Krishna in residential areas.

Janmashtami is the largest festival in the Braj region of north India. In Mathura, Krishna is believed to have been born and in Vrindavan, he grew up. Temples are decorated and special programmes are organised in these places on Jamashtami. Devotees come from far and wide to visit the holy temples in Vrindavan and Mathura.
New Delhi, Sep 3 : The Editors Guild of India (EGI) on Monday said the arrest and imprisonment of two Reuters journalists was a "big blow to democracy" and demanded their release at the earliest.

The Editors' body issued the statement after a Myanmar court on Monday sentenced the two journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, to seven years in prison after pronouncing them guilty of having breached the country's Official Secrets Act.

"The arrest and imprisonment of two Reuters journalists is a big blow to democracy. The two journalists were investigating the death of 10 Rohingya Muslims," said the Editor's body in a statement.

Expressing anguish over the arrests, the EGI said that it opposed the use of provisions under the Official Secrets Act in any country to throttle the voice of the media.
New Delhi, Sep 3 : A 35-year-old Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) Panchayat member from Uttar Pradesh was shot dead here on Monday, police said.

Deputy Commissioner of Police Chinmoy Biswal said Dilshad Khan, from Meerut, was shot by two men who came wearing helmets at around 6 p.m. at Batla House here.

He was taken to Holy Family Hospital where he was declared dead.

"Enquiry revealed that the attackers fired at Dilshad four rounds and escaped," the officer said.
Lucknow, Sep 3 : Private carrier Indigo Airlines on Monday started direct flights between Gorakhpur, the hub of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, and New Delhi.

The flight was flagged off by the Chief Minister in the presence of Union Civil Aviation Minister Suresh Prabhu, his deputy Jayant Sinha, Union Minister of State for Finance Shiv Pratap Shukla and the state's Civil Aviation Minister Nand Gopal 'Nandi'.

An 180-seater aircraft will fly daily between the two cities.

Addressing the gathering after inaugurating the service, the Chief Minister said not long ago the Gorakhpur airport resembled a road-side eatery. But with the cooperation of the Modi government, there had been a swift and complete makeover of the facility.

"When we came to power, there were regular flights from three airports in the state. We are now in a situation that very soon flights will be operating from 22 places in Uttar Pradesh," he said.

Spice Jet and Air India already have flights from Gorakhpur.
Kolkata, Sep 3 : Janamashtami was celebrated with fervour on Monday at Mayapur, the global headquarters of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (ISKCON) in Nadia district, along with other parts of West Bengal.

"More than 50,000 devotees from different parts of the world gathered at the temple complex to offer prayers and to witness several spiritual, devotional and cultural programmes organised over the past three days to mark the occasion," an ISKCON spokesperson said.

"The deities of 'Radha-Madhava' (Lord Krishna and Radha) were decked up by colourful flowers. The whole temple campus was illuminated with dazzling lights while the altar was decorated with natural grass and shrubs to create an ambience like Vrindavan, the birthplace of Krishna," he said.

Following the initial prayers, the divine couple were bathed with milk, yogurt, ghee, honey, sugar water and juices of seasonal fruits.

"108 varieties of food items comprising Indian, Chinese and Russian delicacies were offered to the deities followed by a large-sized cake to mark the day of Lord Krishna's birthday," the spokesperson added.

In Kolkata and other parts of Bengal, Janamashtami was celebrated in several households and temples with equal enthusiasm.
Mumbai, Sep 3 : The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) on Monday asked all scheduled commercial banks with more than 10 branches to appoint an Internal Ombudsman (IO). It, however, excluded Regional Rural Banks (RRB) from the requirement.

"The IO shall examine customer complaints which are in the nature of deficiency in service on the part of the bank, that are partly or wholly rejected by the bank," the RBI said in a release introducing the Internal Ombudsman Scheme, 2018.

The IO mechanism was set up with a view to strengthening the internal grievance redress system of banks and to ensure that the complaints of the customers are redressed at the level of the bank itself, the apex bank said.

With an IO, the redress will be done by an authority placed at the highest level of bank's grievance redressal mechanism. It will minimize the need for the customers to approach other fora for redressal, the RBI said.

As a part of this customer-centric approach, the banking regulator issued revised directions in the form of 'Internal Ombudsman Scheme, 2018' to enhance the independence of the IO and to strengthen the monitoring system.

The IO Scheme will cover appointment, tenure, roles and responsibilities, procedural guidelines and oversight mechanism for the IO, among other things. Its execution will be monitored by the bank's internal audit mechanism apart from regulatory oversight by RBI.

The RBI had, in May 2015, advised all public sector and select private and foreign banks to appoint IOs as an independent authority to review complaints that were partially or wholly rejected by the respective banks.
Panaji, Sep 3 : A person was arrested on Monday for opening fire in a bar in South Goa after he was refused more drinks by the staff, police said.

According to the police, an inebriated Mubarak Khan opened fire in a popular bar in the beach village of Colva.

"We received a complaint from the manager of 49Rs bar and restaurant, Felix Fernandes, that Khan fired a bullet and threatened security personnel and hotel staff after he was refused more alcohol, as he was already drunk.

"The accused has been arrested," Police Inspector in-charge of the Colva Police Station Filomena D'Costa told reporters.

He said the weapon used by the accused has not been traced so far.
Hyderabad, Sep 4 : A gold tiffin box weighing two kilogram, a cup, saucer, and spoon studded with rubies, diamonds and emeralds were stolen from Nizam's Museum in Hyderabad, police said on Monday Burglars allegedly broke into the museum located in Purani Haveli in the old city of Hyderabad late on Sunday night.

The museum authorities lodged a complaint with Mir Chowk police station after they found the valuables missing on Monday.

The burglars suspected to have gained entry by removing the iron grill of the ventilator on the first floor. Police believe the burglars used a rope to enter the building.

Police have registered a case and launched investigations. They were examining the CCTV footage. A police officer said that they were investigating the role of insiders in the theft.

Hyderabad Police Commissioner Anjani Kumar and other senior officers visited the museum.

The tiffin box, cup, saucer and spoon belonged to the family of Nizams, the rulers of erstwhile Hyderabad State and were on display along with several other personal belongings of the royal family at the museum located in Purani Haveli, one of the palaces of Nizam.

The museum showcases several personal belongings of Nizams and their family members and the gifts received by Mir Osman Ali Khan, sixth and the last Nizam from 1911 to 1948 when Hyderabad State was annexed by India.A

The museum is also home to Nizam's cars including 1930 Rolls Royce, a 150-year-old manually operated lift and wardrobe of sixth Nizam, who was the richest man in the world in 1930s.

Nizam Trust, run by the Nizam's family, opened this museum in 2000 for general public and it is one of the major tourist attractions in the city.
Moscow, Sep 4 : The Islamic State is seeking alternative sources of finance after its revenues from the sale of oil and collection of taxes from the population in Syria and Iraq shrunk drastically, a senior Russian security official said Monday.

Compared to financial receipts estimated at about $3 billion in 2014, now the IS only gets $200-300 million a year, according to Sergey Beseda, head of the intelligence information and international relations service at the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB).

"There is a tendency to invest previously earned funds in legal business in order to facilitate the regular receipt of finance for further activities," RIA Novosti news agency quoted Beseda as saying at an international conference on countering illegal arms supplies in light of combating international terrorism.

He added that after suffering losses in Syria and Iraq, the IS moved part of its militants to Afghanistan.

The FSB forecast that the IS is likely to take over "certain drug trafficking channels" in order to improve its financial situation, TASS news agency quoted Beseda as saying at the conference.

"There is a reorientation to less costly projects, social work has become more active and propaganda has spread through social networks, and the recruitment of militants also proceeds through social networks," he said.

Such a development could become a new global problem and force the international community to seek new methods of fighting terrorism, said Sergei Kozhetev, first deputy head of the Special Purpose Centre of the Russian Foreign Intelligence Service.

The IS is training and redeploying sabotage and terrorist groups to Europe, Central and Southeast Asia, as well as Russia, Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) Regional Anti-Terrorist Structure executive committee deputy head Dzhumakhon Giyesov told the conference, according to RIA Novosti.
Istanbul, Sep 4 : Turkey has imposed new rules for vessels transiting through the Bosphorus Strait in Istanbul and the Dardanelles Strait in the northwestern province of Canakkale, local media reported Monday.

The rules were introduced given increased risks associated with transit passages from the straits, CNNTurk reported.

Under new regulations, captains have to submit a safety list to the Turkish authorities 3.2 km before entering the straits.

Captains of passenger and container ships longer than 300 meters have to inform officials of their crossing 10 days before entrance.

The 30-km-long Bosphorus flows between the Asian and European parts of Istanbul, connecting the Black Sea and the Aegean Sea. With a minimum width of 750 meters, the strait usually has strong currents and several sharp turns.

The 61-km-long Dardanelles connects the Marmara Sea to the Mediterranean.

The two straits are among the busiest waterways in the world with a high volume of transit vessels, car ferries, fishing boats and excursion craft.

Following a number of serious incidents in the straits, Turkey adopted a series of safety measures in 1994.

Turkey's Foreign Ministry said in a report that the number of oil tankers and other dangerous cargo vessels passing through the Turkish straits has drastically increased in recent years.

According to the ministry's data, 8,832 tankers, carrying a total of 147 million tons of hazardous cargo, passed through the Bosphorus in 2017, up from 136 million in 2016.

In April, a tanker crashed into a historic mansion off the Bosphorus, causing extensive damage.
YIT and Telia Finland have signed a long-term lease agreement on the Tripla Workery East offices under construction in Pasila, Helsinki. The agreement covers approximately 21,000 square metres in the easternmost quarter of Tripla above the new Pasila station.

With the agreement, the occupancy rate of...

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The Illawara region has joined Sydney as the only declining housing markets in the country, according to valuation firm Herron Todd White.

Newcastle and Gippsland were approaching the peak of market last month, and HTW now suggest they are at the peak of the market.

Central Coast had peaked last month, and are now starting to decline.

There's little movement at the bottom of the market, where regulars Perth, Darwin, and Alice Springs remain unmoved.

There is some good news in Western Australian. South West WA is starting to recover having been at the bottom of the market.

Click here to enlarge.
The apartment market in the Central Coast of New South Wales is starting to decline, according to valuation firm Herron Todd White.

In its August property clock, HTW suggested the Central Coast apartments were at the peak of the market. Now they're starting to decline (below).

Nearby, Newcastle apartments are performing strongly. They're at the peak of the market, along with Coffs Harbour and New South Wales' Mid North Coast.

Melbourne and Canberra units are also at the peak of the market.

There's continued bad news for Sydney, Brisbane and Perth, who remain in a declining market.

This month they were joined by Illawarra and Lismore.

Click here to enlarge.
The worlds richest travel data co-op, ADARA (HQ in Palo Alto, CEO: Layton Han) has announced that they will be providing a digital marketing & analytics platform, ADARA Impact, to the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO). This deal gives JNTO access to ADARAs proprietary destination measurement and analytics tool, ADARA Impact. JNTO will receive insights on their various digital marketing campaigns targeting inbound travelers, including searches and bookings for flights and hotels, and search and purchase behaviors of foreign tourists visiting Japan. With this, JNTO will work to enhance the effectiveness of digital marketing efforts and execute a digital marketing plan that grows the Japanese travel market.

ADARA Impact is powered by ADARAs data co-op of first party search, booking and loyalty data from 200+ global travel brands, including hotels, airlines, car rental companies and online travel agents. The unparalleled quality, depth and scale of the travel data in the co-op will provide JNTO and various National Tourism Boards with valuable reports and actionable insights that will help them direct their digital marketing campaigns for maximum effect.

ADARA Impact will provide JNTO and DMOs with visibility on how many travelers interact with their destination ads, content and websites, and whether or not they search, book, and ultimately visit destinations in Japan. Having this insight enables real-time content and messaging optimization to increase the number of visitors, room nights, and spending in all destinations across Japan.

ADARA providing JNTO with ADARA Impact will aid the Japanese Governments goal of increasing global inbound travel to 40 million annual visitors by 2020 and 60 million by 2030. The Japanese government is also targeting an 8 trillion JPY increase in revenue from these efforts by 2020. ADARA Impact will significantly help the achievement of these goals by ensuring government funds are used efficiently to fuel efficient marketing campaigns, build effective websites, and measure marketing campaigns. There is also scope for even larger-scale marketing campaigns in the future.

Layton Han, CEO, ADARA, commented: The partnership with JNTO is a great example of how sharing data safely and securely between disparate but linked data-sets helps to unlock actionable insights that would otherwise remain hidden in silos in individual companies. ADARA Impact will help JNTO drive visitation to Japan and achieve long term tourism goals and we are delighted to be part of it. ADARA is dedicated to the Asia-Pacific region and we are continuing to grow and scale internationally there.

By joining the co-op alongside so many other local partners, JNTOs data will help further elaborate on traveller behaviour in this dynamic market. The partnership with JNTO will be an invaluable asset to destination marketing organisations and travel brands, promoting travel to, from and within Japan.



About ADARA

ADARA empowers the worlds leading travel brands to grow the industry together. Built on the worlds richest travel data co-op, ADARA offers people-based insights for travel companies. Clients get a value-based understanding of their relationship with their customers, with travel patterns, trends and behavior from more than 750 million monthly unique traveler profiles across more than 200 of the worlds top travel brands. ADARA delivers a unified view of consumer behavior, and critical insight with Customer Yield (Value) Intelligence that encompasses 3 core pillars  Learn, Act, Measure - to drive measurable outcomes at the customer level.

Website: https://adara.com/

ABOUT JNTO

Founded in 1964, the Japan National Tourism Organization (JNTO) offers information about Japan in order to promote travel to and within the country. JNTO also sponsors a Goodwill Guide Program, through which around 47,000 bilingual volunteers aid visitors from abroad; throughout Japan there are 77 Systematized Goodwill Guide groups. JNTO manages 20 offices in major cities around the globe, through which they maintain important tourism-related promotions. Each overseas office is in charge of promoting travel and tourism to Japan. They offer a wide range of information regarding transportation, accommodations, shopping, and events information.

Website: https://www.japan.travel/en/
Bay Area Hair Transplant clinics If someone is dealing with hair loss, a smart first step is to do a little research on hair restoration treatments, including ARTAS hair transplantation.

Silicon Valley Hair Institute, the Bay Area Hair Transplant Leader, is proud to announce a "trifecta" of new blog posts on the best hair transplant options in the Bay Area. With hair transplantation a major decision, many residents want to read up on the technology before making even the decision for an in-office consultation.

If someone is dealing with hair loss, a smart first step is to do a little research on hair restoration treatments, including ARTAS hair transplantation, explained Miguel Canales, of Silicon Valley Hair Institute. Our three new posts offer some insight into whats new in hair restoration and how to make the right choice for an individual situation, with a focus on Bay Area hair transplant options as there is no need to leave the area.

To review "trifecta" of new blog posts on Bay Area hair restoration issues, visit http://siliconvalleyhairinstitute.com/tag/bay-area-hair-transplant. Three informational posts concerning state-of-the-art hair transplantation treatments are available at that link. Topics include: a) how to choose a hair transplant specialist, b) ARTAS robotic transplantation in the Bay Area, and c) FUE/FUT hair restoration techniques. Locals from San Jose to San Mateo to San Francisco who are searching for information from the best doctors and surgeons can start with the three blog posts and end with an in-office consultation with Dr. Miguel Canales.

MAKING THE CUT: THREE BLOG POSTS FROM DOCTORS AND SURGEONS IN A TOP BAY AREA TRANSPLANT CLINIC HELP LOCALS FIND THE BEST OPTIONS

Here is the background on this release. For a Bay Area resident suffering from hair loss, filtering through doctors and surgeons to locate the best Bay Area transplant clinics is a logical process. But even before selecting doctors and making appointments, a little educational reading is in order.

For these reasons, Silicon Valley Hair Institute has announced three newly archived blog posts on hair restoration technology. Digging deeper into the blog, one can find topics such as alopecia, female hair loss, and even hair restoration options for persons who are transgender. A quick read of the "trifecta" of the latest three posts is a good first step. A good second step is to reach out to a Bay Area hair transplant specialists for a consultation, as no two individuals' hair is the same.

ABOUT SILICON VALLEY HAIR INSTITUTE

Silicon Valley Hair Institute (http://siliconvalleyhairinstitute.com/), under the leadership of top-rated California hair transplant surgeon Miguel Canales MD, is one of the best facilities offering San Francisco Bay Area hair transplants. Dr. Canales provides the full range of advanced hair transplant and hair restoration procedures for Bay Area residents, from San Francisco to San Mateo to Palo Alto. If one needs a hair transplant specialist, look no further than this Bay Area hair transplant center. Dr. Canales also performs female hair transplants for women and eyebrow restoration, thus offering the best hair transplant and robotic hair replacement options. Robotics include state-of-the-art ARTAS hair transplant technology. Call today to 650-551-1100 for a no-cost consultation, or for more information visit the website.
Since our first meeting with Tony Roma's, we believed in this restaurant concept and considered it compatible with the virtues of Boca del Rio, Veracruz.

Romacorp, Inc., the parent company of Tony Romas, announces today the opening of its newest restaurant location in Veracruz, Mexico. Known for its combination of modernernity and old world traditions, Boca del Rio is now home to the beloved brandTony Romas. This restaurant makes the sixth location in Mexico for the Tony Romas brand.

Since our first meeting with Tony Roma's, we believed in this restaurant concept and considered it compatible with the virtues of Boca del Rio, Veracruz, said Ernesto Arana, Principal of Grupo Gastronomico AWA. We are proud to offer fresh, delicious food in a family-friendly environment to our locals and guests.

The restaurant will feature a plethora of consumer-focused amenities, such as two vibrant private dining rooms, a full-service bar and indoor and outdoor seating for more than 120 guests. Large screen TVs can be found throughout bar area. Boca del Rio is known for its natural beauty, architecture, history and warm and welcoming community, making it the perfect setting for the first Tony Romas location in Veracruz.

We are elated to be opening our first Tony Romas in the beautiful city of Boca del Rio, said John Brisco, President Global Franchise of Romacorp, Inc. We are ready to grow together with this franchisee through the creation of unique and enjoyable experiences for our guests.

Both locals and tourists will be able to enjoy delicious food offerings, including the brands world-famous ribs, mouth-watering steaks, savory chicken, signature seafood, gourmet burgers and much more.

Families, friends and businesses can also reserve private dining space for corporate lunches and dinners and memorable family gatherings. The venue features two spacious private dining rooms and can accommodate up to 20 guests in an area of more than 7,100 square feet.

Restaurant hours are Monday thru Saturday 1pm-12am, Sunday 12pm-10pm For more information, please visit, Tony Romas.

About Romacorp, Inc.

Romacorp, Inc., is the parent company of Tony Roma's restaurants, the world's largest casual dining concept specializing in ribs. Headquartered in Orlando, Florida, Romacorp, Inc. has nearly 150 restaurant locations in more than 30 countries and is one of the most globally recognizable names in the industry. The first Tony Roma's restaurant opened 46 years ago in North Miami, Florida. Tony Roma's is also proud to partner with the Make-A-Wish Foundation (http://www.cnfl.wish.org), one of the world's leading children's charities, in an effort to help grant the wishes of children with life-threatening illnesses across Central and Northern Florida. For more information about Romacorp, Inc. and Tony Roma's, visit http://www.tonyromas.com.

Please visit http://www.tonyromasfranchise.com or call (866) 981-0586 for information about Tony Roma's franchising opportunities.

For information about retail sales licensing opportunities with the Tony Romas brand, contact Bill Cross, SVP, Broad Street Licensing Group at (973) 655-0598.
Earth Ledger: Resolving Climate Change With Blockchain Technology

SmartMinds, a values-driven consultancy company in the field of organizational development and innovative technology has been invited by the United Nations Environment Assembly (UNEA) to present their solutions towards global climate change at "The Earth Innovation Forum." On the 5th September 2018, world leaders, visionaries, and scholars will gather to discuss, "Innovative Solutions for Environmental Challenges and Sustainable Consumption and Production."

SmartMinds' CEO Mark Copeland has been invited to discuss the future of social good and the role technology plays in creating positive impact at a global scale. His company's latest project, Earth Ledger, has found the solution to resolving climate change using blockchain technology, and Mr. Copeland will address the importance of creating a common-good system to revolutionize environmental change and sustainability.

The conference serves as a key component for the UNEA that creates effective partnerships, sustainable socio-economic paradigms and new modes of operation for global culture. SmartMinds will illustrate how Earth Ledger will restore balance to our environment and its ecosystems.

About Earth Ledger

Earth Ledger is a positive-impact platform that provides a wide range of ways to contribute to the restoration of our environment by bringing individuals, organizations, and nations together to research, vote and solve global challenges. Built around a system of consensus, the world can now connect and work together to resolve global challenges and create a sustainable future for generations to come.

About Mark Copeland

Mark has been traveling the world for over 20 years and has worked across more than 10 different industries. As an early mover in the blockchain space, Mark has been involved in digital assets, technology and D.A.O (Decentralized Autonomous Organization) business structures. His experience has inspired him to build an education platform, helping organizations and individuals understand the implications of a decentralized model on global culture.

Combining years of travel and personal development with a certification through the Barrett Values Centre, Mark has compiled his experiences and knowledge into tangible best-practices & high-impact training. He has developed a framework that leads individuals to build a trust-based & values-driven world.

Browse these sites to learn more about Earth Ledger and SmartMinds

For more reading on UNEA's Earth Innovation Forum, visit their website
If you are new to iQ you can schedule a demo and learn more about this opportunity.

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The cooperation agreements happened ahead of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

According to a statement from the office of President Nana Akufo-Addo, the deal includes a $2 billion infrastructure agreement for Ghana to improve its roads and develop railways in exchange for bauxite.

We are looking seriously at how we can secure sources of long-term finance that will allow us to deal with our infrastructural development, Akufo-Addo said.

Another statement also says China Harbour Engineering Co. has agreed to build the marine facilities for a liquefied natural-gas terminal in the port of Tema, which the company is currently extending.

The presidency of Ghana disclosed that Jiangnan Shipyard of China will construct the floating regasification facility.

When completed, the $350 million project will provide as much as 2 million tons of natural gas per year, and supply about 30 percent of Ghanas total electricity generating capacity.

Ghana is floating the idea of a $50 billion so-called Century Bond to get infrastructure funding, and would like China to contribute, Akufo-Addo said.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has gone further than ever before in ruling out a second Brexit referendum, saying it would be a betrayal of democracy and trust.

Writing in The Sunday Telegraph, May attempted the shut down growing calls to re-run the 2016 referendum to leave the European Union.

Amid the threat of a potentially catastrophic no-deal Brexit and evidence that the Vote Leave campaign broke electoral laws, a recent YouGov/Times poll showed that 42% of the UK public now support another vote.

But May said another vote would be a "gross betrayal" of British democracy and trust. Here's her quote in full, from The Sunday Telegraph:

"In the summer of 2016, millions came out to have their say. In many cases, for the first time in decades they trusted that their vote would count; that after years of feeling ignored by politics, their voices would be heard.

"To ask the question all over again would be a gross betrayal of our democracy  and a betrayal of trust."

But Sunday's intervention is the most strident she has been in her language. Also in the Telegraph, May added that she will not accept any compromises to her Chequers Brexit plan "that are not in our national interest."
The CEO of Kantanka Group Kwadwo Safo speaking in an interview with Starr Fm revealed that despite the challenges confronting the firm, they sold more than 120 vehicles last year.

Business is good. Last year was a great year for us. Within just two months last year, we sold 120 vehicles, Safo Starr Fm.

The automobile firm has over the period expressed dissatisfaction over governments new deal with German Car Giant VW scheduled to establish a vehicle assembly plant in Ghana.

The move, which was announced was followed by German Chancellor Angela Merkels visit to Ghana and has generated outcry among some Ghanaians.

The Kantanka Group say they hope government will give them the same prominence they appear to be giving the Germans.

Weve been asking for a certain custom procedure code, tax policies to operate in this country, tax waiver and holidays and weve heard nothing and that made me a bit angry looking at some clauses in the VW MOU. We dont import cars into this country, instead, we import certain components we need to put together to help in the assembling.

I was a bit shocked when I heard the Trade Ministry was involved. We have been engaging the Trade Ministry for long but feedback has not been too good. Government has plans of engaging us again this week and we hope something good comes out of the meeting, he said.
The project, National and Communication Technology Infrastructure Backbone (NICTIB) Phase 11, is aimed at developing information and communications technology in Nigeria.

President Muhammadu Buhari's aide, Garba Shehu, disclosed this in a statement released over the weekend.

The statement added that the agreement was part of "the current administration's commitment to incorporating the development of information and communications technology into national strategic planning".

One of the major challenges facing Africa's largest economy is poor telecoms infrastructure.

The current government has promised to improve it and create jobs for the teeming youths.

President Muhammadu Buhari and other African leaders are in Beijing, China, for the 2018 Forum on ChinaAfrica Cooperation (FOCAC). They will sign different agreements and participate in other sideline events.
Venue: Juba Grand Hotel

UNHCR, The UN Refugee Agency in South Sudan in collaboration with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management will wrap-up the commemoration of the 20th anniversary of the Guiding Principles of Internal Displacement in South Sudan on 05 September 2018.

Government authorities, UN agencies and partners, will renew their commitment to finding and facilitating solutions to internal displacement. Also, participants will propose and enhance concrete activities that will facilitate and strengthen the participation of internally displaced people in the decisions that concern them, and to develop national law and implementing regulations on internal displacement.

A press conference will be attended by Hon. Peter Gatwech, Under-Secretary for Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management, UNHCR Representative in South Sudan Mr. Johann Siffointe, UNHCRs Director of the Division of International Protection, Ms Grainne Ohara and Dr Chaloka Beyani, author of the African Union (AU) Convention for the Protection and Assistance of Internally Displaced Persons in Africa 2012 (Kampala Convention) and the Great Lakes Pact and Protocol on IDPs 2006.

Journalists are invited to cover the press conference on behalf of their media houses.

Background

This year marks the 20th anniversary of the Guiding Principles on Internal Displacement, which were developed under the leadership of Dr. Francis Deng in his previous capacity of former Special Rapporteur on Human Rights of IDPs (1992-2004) and have been widely accepted as being the global standard for protecting and assisting internally displaced people (IDPs). Many states have incorporated them into national legislation, they have inspired regional agreements, and they underscore all major work in this area.
Rose Museos call follows a rise in defilement cases in Kenya, and according to her the one month ban is meant to create awareness against the canker.

However, men are revolting against the move as their wives have started starving them already.

They say the ban is likely to push them to get their sexual satisfaction outside the marriage, saying they are being punished unfairly.

According to Tuko.co.ke, the men said at a public baraza at Kikunduku village in Kibwezi that: "In full respect the one-month sex boycott announced by our leader, we can't persevere and this can bring diseases in families since we will be forced to move to big towns to quench our thirst or move to nearby county like Machakos.

READ MORE: People of Indian village play with live scorpions without suffering any sting

We want mama Makueni to apologise to us men for implicating all men as sex pests.

One man for instance is quoted as saying: "I came back from the city where I work, I found the sex boycott taking effect in my house. What am I supposed to do? I am here to be advised by the council of elders.
Orientdailynews reported thatMr. and Mrs. Emmanuel Udeolisa of Awo Idemili were expecting a child mid-September, but had a bouncing baby boy on August 25 when they were only expected to tie the knot.

The then groom, according to reports had to quickly rush to the officiating priest Rev. Father Dennis Ekene Chukwudindu to inform him about the turn of events, and pleaded for some more time to put themselves together for the wedding ceremony that same day.

After the event, the bride, Chinaza Udeolisa is quoted as having told news men that: I was surprised when I started feeling dizzy and sign of labour three days to our wedding but I dismissed it as part of the pre-wedding planning stress because the doctors gave me up to September middle to expect the baby.

I was still dismissing the signs up till the morning of our wedding, but as the makeup artiste was still fixing my nails, it reached the stage that I could no longer bear the pains.

She added that: Its God that made everything possible because it is not easy that I arrived the hospital and, without wasting time, delivered safely.
On August 12, the first of the five mega events sponsored by the telecommunications company was held at the capacious venue, where several thousands of subscribers were treated to the best of comedy from an international cast of stand-up acts from Ghana, Nigeria and Uganda.

This weekend, eight comedians will be on parade for the enjoyment of Glo subscribers and friends of the brand. Some upcoming acts are also billed to showcase their skills on the big platform being provided by Glo.

READ ALSO: undefined

DKB, Khemikal and Foster Romanus will be joined by Basketmouth, Gordons, Dan D Humorous, Senator and Salvador from Uganda.

Glo Mobile, in a statement, said Sundays show would start at 4 p.m. at the Fantasy Dome which hosted the last comical showdown. The statement assured subscribers of the Glo network of an exciting comedy time as the show is set to surpass the best of humour which was on display at the last Laffta fest event of August 12.

The Uganda born Salvador, who has said he was eager for a return to Accra, urged subscribers to troop to the Dome to have a good time.

READ ALSO: undefined
This represents about 10 percent of the entire population of the country.

The report added that real-time data projections show that about 28 Ghanaians escape extreme poverty every hour, giving the country a fairly positive rank on the continent and in the world.

However, the report adds that Ghana is on track to achieve the Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Goal 1 of ending poverty in all forms by 2030.

The report shows that Ethiopia is the only African country that is on the same level as Ghana as of August 2018. It is expected that both countries will be able to reduce extreme poverty to at least 3% of their respective populations.

Ghana was the first country in Sub-Saharan Africa to reduce poverty by half, as expected by the Millennium Development Goal 1.

But a large number of its people still live in extreme poverty. Most of these people live in the rural areas. Those in the urban areas who suffer extreme poverty have a challenge accessing better infrastructure in the country.

Other features of extreme poverty in rural areas include low income, social exclusion, and high vulnerability to disasters and diseases.

The report also showed that a cursory mapping of the extreme poverty trends in Ghana indicates a gradual decline over the past decade.

Between 1991 and 2014, poverty levels had dropped by over 50%.

As of 2014, 24% of Ghanas population, representing 6.4 million people, were considered poor.

This achievement has been attributed to the various social and pro-poor interventions by successive governments. However, experts have said that these may amount to nothing if the government does not reverse the rising unemployment situation and increasing cost of living.

Meanwhile, Nigeria has overtaken India to become the leading country in extreme poverty in the world.

The oil-rich country has been marked red as being in danger of not meeting the SDG target as the number of persons living in extreme poverty keeps soaring.

READ ALSO: Fuel prices to remain stable in September

87 million of its 197 million population, are reported to be living in extreme poverty, with at least 5 people becoming extremely poor every hour.

Other countries in the league with Nigeria that show rising level of extreme poverty are Somalia, Democratic Republic of Congo, Congo, South Sudan, Chad, Niger, Angola, Central African Republic and Zambia,

The data however shows that South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Kenya, Sudan, Eritrea, Libya, Mali, Guinea, Cote dIvoire, Sierra Leone, Gambia, Burkina Faso, Liberia, Benin, Togo, Guinea, Guinea Bissau are currently not on target of meeting the SDG goal given their current extreme poverty escape rate.

The report found that in Gabon, Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia, less than 3% of their respective populations lived in extreme poverty.
At the Angelus, Pope Francis warns against the danger of hypocrisy. "The hypocrite is a liar, he is not authentic" because he upsets "Gods will by neglecting his commandments to observe human traditions". Listening to the Word of God to be freed from hypocrisy. A possible "humanitarian catastrophe" at Idlib, a rebel stronghold in Syria, about to be attacked by Russian air raids and Assad's army.

Vatican City (AsiaNews) - Commenting on today's Gospel before the midday Angelus prayer in St. Peter's Square, Pope Francis spoke many times on the subject of "hypocrisy" and said that Jesus " always calls us to recognize what is the true center of the experience of faith, that is, love of God and love of neighbor, purifying it from the hypocrisy of legalism and ritualism ".

After the Marian prayer, the Pope appealed to the international community to avoid a new "humanitarian catastrophe" in Idlib, Syria, where "winds of war" are blowing with a probable and imminent Russian air force and government army attack on the city in the hands of former Qaedist and Islamic State rebels.

Speaking to the approximately 20 thousand pilgrims gathered in the square, the Pope stressed that this Sunday Gospel (22nd a year, B, Mark 7: 1-8.14-15.21-23), "addresses an important issue for believers: the authenticity of the our obedience to the Word of God, against any worldly contamination or legalistic formalism ", and that the scribes and Pharisees who question Jesus, wanted" to target the trustworthiness and authority of Jesus as Master. This teacher allows his disciples to ignore the traditions of the ancients ".

Jesus accuses them of hypocrisy. "Hypocrite - said Francis - is one of the strongest words that Jesus uses in the Gospel", especially towards "the masters in religion", "the hypocrite is a liar, is unauthentic," because he or she distorts "Gods will and neglects His commandments to observe human traditions ".

Referring to the second reading of the day (James, 1, 17-18.21-22.27), he explained what the "true religion" visit the fatherless and widows in suffering and not be contaminated by this world "(v. 27) ".

"'To visit orphans and widows' - he continued - means practicing charity towards others, starting from the neediest, the most fragile, the most marginalised. They are the people of whom God takes special care, and asks us to do the same 'Do not be contaminated by this world' does not mean isolating oneself and closing oneself to reality. Here too, it should not be an external but internal attitude of substance: it means to be vigilant because our way of thinking and acting is not polluted by the worldly mentality, that is, by vanity, greed, pride. In reality, a man or a woman who lives in vanity, avarice and pride, and makes himself seen as religious and even condemns others, is a hypocrite ".

"Let's examine our own conscience to see how we welcome the Word of God. On Sunday we hear it in the Mass. If we listen to it in a distracted or superficial way, it will not help us much. Instead, we must welcome the Word with open mind and heart, as a good ground, so that it is assimilated and bears fruit in concrete life. Jesus says that the Word of God is like wheat, like the seed that must grow. Thus the Word itself purifies our heart and our actions and our relationship with God and with others is freed from hypocrisy ".

After the Angelus prayer, the Pope recalled that yesterday, in Kosice (Slovakia), Anna Kolesarova was beatified. The virgin and martyr "was killed for resisting those who would violate her dignity and chastity." "She is like our Italian Maria Goretti - he added. This courageous girl helps young Christians to remain steadfast in fidelity to the Gospel, even when it requires going against the trends of the time and paying in first person ". And he asked the pilgrims for applause for the new blessed.

"With pain", he added: "The winds of war are still blowing and unsettling news about the risks of a possible humanitarian catastrophe in the beloved Syria, in the Province of Idlib. I renew my heartfelt appeal to the international community and to all actors involved to make use of the instruments of diplomacy, dialogue and negotiation, respect for international humanitarian law and to safeguard the lives of civilians. "

The situation of Idlib is even more complicated by the fact that the Western powers seem determined to defend the rebels in every way, as reported to AsiaNews by the vicar of Aleppo, of the Latins, Msgr. Georges Abou Khazen
Russian President Vladimir Putin would travel to Tehran on September 7 for talks with the leaders of Iran and Turkey about the situation in Syria. Today, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was in Damascus for talks with President Bashar al-Assad and other Syrian officials ahead of an expected military offensive by Syrian government forces in Idlib Province, the last opposition stronghold in Syria.



As Radio Free Liberty writes in the article Iranian Foreign Minister In Damascus Ahead Of Idlib Offensive, the visit also comes days before a summit between the leaders of Russia, Iran, and Turkey to discuss the Syrian conflict, now in its eighth year. During their meeting, Zarif and Assad "asserted that the pressures from some Western states on Syria and Tehran will not deter the two countries from continuing to defend their principles," the Syrian president's office said in a statement. Zarif earlier met with his Syrian counterpart, Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, to discuss political and military developments "in preparation for the tripartite summit," according to Syria's Foreign Ministry. "They shared identical views on the importance of strengthening bilateral coordination and political discussions in the coming phase," a statement said.

Zarif also held talks with Syrian Prime Minister Imad Khamis, who told Iran's minister that Syria's reconstruction plans would be carried out with the help of Iranian and Russian companies, Iran's semiofficial Fars news agency reported.

Backed by Russia and Iran, Assad has vowed to defeat the opposition fighters in Idlib if they do not surrender to Syrian government rule. Fars quoted Zarif as saying in Damascus that "the remaining terrorists in the remaining parts of Idlib must be cleaned out and the region should be placed back under the control of the Syrian people."

Fars quoted Zarif as saying in Damascus that "the remaining terrorists in the remaining parts of Idlib must be cleaned out and the region should be placed back under the control of the Syrian people."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in Moscow on September 3 that Syrian government forces had the right to "liquidate terrorists" in Idlib. Syrian, Russian, and Iranian officials often refer to any armed opponent of the Damascus government as a "terrorist." But U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on August 31 that Washington would consider an assault in Idlib by Assad's forces as an escalation of Syria's war. The State Department has also warned that Washington would respond to any chemical attack carried out by Syrian government forces.

With some 3 million people now living in Idlib and the surrounding area, United Nations officials have warned that a government offensive could displace 800,000 people. Last week, Iran's defense minister traveled to Damascus and signed an agreement on military cooperation between the two countries.
In a Tweet, he said that they are only concerned about the governments policies that they expect to protect the local automobile industry and ensure that they also grow.

Mr. President. [The] Only thing we need is good policies to protect the automobile industry and help grow our local industries To anyone that thinks @KantankaAuto is scared of competition. We are not. I simply want better policies for our auto industry.

In another tweet, he said Hahahahahaha to anyone that thinks @KantankaAuto is scared of competition. Were not. I simply want better policies for our auto industry. Ahahahaha

His comments come after it was revealed that German car manufacturer Volkswagen may set up a vehicle assembly plant in Ghana.

At a joint press briefing held as part of the visit of the German Chancellor, Angela Merkel to Ghana, President Nana Akufo-Addo indicated that there was an agreement between Volkswagen, the Government of Ghana and a local company on the assembly plant.

There are so many areas that our bilateral relationship has offered us, but the key part of it for me is the emphasis on investment and trade cooperation, President Akufo-Addo said.

Akufo-Addos earlier promise to support Kantanka

Meanwhile, before he became President, Nana Akufo-Addo in December 2015 promised to purchase a few cars from Kantanka automobile for use during the 2016 election campaign.

This was after he had a test drive of Kantanka Omama pickup, which was locally assembled in Ghana.
Speaking on Accra-based Citi FM, Mr Hadzide said the government has already signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Volkswagen South Africa.

We have just signed a MoU; it has to be properly implemented. Ghana doesnt have to go to Germany, we have signed an MOU with Volkswagen South Africa. We have the framework already. Hopefully, by the last quarter of this year, they should start setting up the plant, he said.

His comments come after President Akufo-Addo at a joint press conference with his German counterpart said that there was an agreement between Volkswagen, the government, and a local company.

There are so many areas that our bilateral relationship has offered us, but the key part of it for me is the emphasis on investment and trade cooperation, President Akufo-Addo said.

Subsequently, some Ghanaians called on the government to support local automobile manufacturing firm Kantanka Automobile Company.

VW in Rwanda

Volkswagen opened a $20 million assembly plant in Rwanda with the expectation of creating 1000 jobs in June 2018. The German carmaker also has plans to co-operate with a local company to establish a ride-sharing service in the country.

The Polo was the first model made at the site, and the firm is targetting an annual production of 5,000 cars in the first phase, by also building its Passat, Tiguan, Amarok, and Teramont models.
The man of God divorced his previous wife, Mama Francisca back in 2006 after 26 years of marriage.

The preacher explained at the time that the challenges in my marriage are personal and shall remain private for the sake of our children and loved ones, noting however that the decision on my part was not taken in a haste without years of prayer, best efforts and Christian counselling.

But opening up to the public on what led to his failed marriage, Archbishop Duncan-Williams said he married when he was too young.

He disclosed that he married his first wife at an immature age of 24 because he didnt want to fall into the trap of sin.

Speaking at the International Youth Empowerment Summit in Accra, the preacher said he was virtually a boy when he first married and that did not help.

He explained that marriage is not for boys, but men, because it entails much more than just settling down with a woman.

Referencing the scripture, he said for this reason, a man shall live his father and the mother and joined his wife, not a boy shall leave the father and mother and join his girl.

A matured man is a man who truly qualifies to be called a married man, a married man is a mature man and a mature man is one who is well developed mentally, economically, spiritually, physically, psychologically and emotionally strong, Bishop Duncan-Williams indicated, to a raucous response from the youth present.
It was confirmed last week that global automobile giants, VW have agreed with the Government of Ghana to establish a vehicle assembly plant in the country.

The MoU was signed during German Chancellor, Angela Merkels visit to Ghana last Thursday.

President Akufo-Addo welcomed the move by VW and said it will improve the management of our national economy.

However, Kantanka appears not enthused by the agreement and has questioned governments commitment to the promotion of local businesses.

In a statement, the local automobile company said the agreement with VW was hastily signed and without government consulting the necessary stakeholders.

We want to state emphatically that we welcome the news of VW setting up a plant here in Ghana. We are not against it. We are aware there will be competition, as there has always been and this is going to give us the marginal propensity to work hard and achieve our long-term goals for mother Ghana and Africa, the company said in a statement.

However, we are of the view that government has hastily signed the agreement without broad stakeholder consultations.

The company also expressed surprise that the Ministry of Trade and Industry has consented to this agreement to bring VW to Ghana, instead of seeking the interest of the local automotive industry.

We are shocked to learn that the Ministry of Trade and Industry is part of this deal and want to question the Ministers position in the promotion of trade and industry in Ghana vis-a-vis the local automotive industry.

We are also shocked to learn that government has fast-tracked the signing of the MoU and want to ask the sector minister, still the Minister of Trade and Industry and again his Senior Minister the last time they have fast-tracked any of the numerous proposals that we have submitted to their offices, the statement added.
He has advised Kantanka Automobile to mass-produce much more smaller and affordable cars, which many Ghanaians can afford.

His comments come at the back of Chief Executive Officer of Kantanka Automobile, Kwadwo Safo Jnr who has sent fusillade of angry tweets at President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo.

It follows a Memorandum of Understanding between Ghana and German car manufacturing giant, Volkswagen, last Thursday.

READ MORE: Uproar over VW assembly plant in Ghana

The MoU was signed following German Chancellor Angela Merkel's visit to Ghana.

The automobile firm which has expressed concerns over governments new deal with German Car Giant VW.

Kwadwo Safo in a series of tweet said:

"The German chancellor came to our beloved country to promote her automobile industry whiles our President,

"What happened to your word Mr President NAkufoAddo,"

"I still remember this day like it was yesterday NAkufoAddo. If we didnt get the support why then do you bring another company to compete against us,"

"Mr President. Only thing we need is good policies to protect the automobile industry and help grow our local industries NAkufoAddo."

But Gabby Asare Otchere-Darko said the company should be blamed for its woes.

He said Katanka should take responsibility for its weak penetration in the market.

However, Kwadwo Safo has revealed that sales is picking up for the local firm contrary to views among Ghanaians.

READ MORE: Kantanka vehicle calls Nana Addo a thief

He said despite the challenges confronting the firm, they sold more than 120 vehicles last year.

"Business is good. Last year was a great year for us. Within just two months last year, we sold 120 vehicles," Safo said.
The image-smear campaign is tailored at reviving hitherto issues that have been dealt with by the courts and judgement given with both parties agreeing to terms of settlement long before the assumption of office of the current Managing Director.

It is gathered that these persons are working in collusion with some members of the board of the company to plant stories in the media in order to soil the hard-won reputation of the George Mensah Okley who since assumption of office, has been working to ensure that the company does not incur further judgement debts.

According to reports by MyNewsGh, checks reveal that BOST since 2015 has been grappling with huge debts over its inability to account for fuel products to the tune of US$11,104,143.29 plus 19% interest from 1st October 2013 to 5th September 2016.

This was after Springeld had sued BOST and secured a judgement in their favour from an Accra High Court.

BOST according to documents available to this portal, led a notice of appeal and stay of execution pending appeal.

This was granted in part on October 20th 2016, staying the payment of interest until the determination of the appeal, whiles the payment of the value of the products was affirmed.

The interest component of the indebtedness remained in contention between the parties and is the subject of a continuing court case brought against BOST by Springfield.

Following an attempt by Springeld to have the case settled out of court, the immediate past Managing Director of BOST, Alfred Obeng, negotiated a settlement arrangement with Springeld in 2017 on the interest owed.

READ ALSO: BOST Board Chair steps down over Sovereign Bank collapse

Obengs efforts resulted in a down payment of US$4 million, to reduce Springelds request of US$14 million, to a negotiated amount of US$9 million.

There are however sustained efforts by some unknown persons to paint the entire agreement bad, creating the impression of fraud on the current MD when in fact, he is rather working to save this country money.

Obeng's dismissal

Obeng it would be recalled was sacked by President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo in June 2018.

He has been dogged by one controversy after another since he assumed office as Managing Director of BOST in January last year.

BOST was heavily criticized last year for selling 5 million litres of contaminated fuel to two unlicensed companies, Movepiina and Zup Oil, which were allegedly set up few days before the sale making Ghana lose about GHc 7 million in revenue.
Two weeks ago, the ex-president officially declared his intention of contesting in the 2020 general elections after availing himself for the National Democratic Congress (NDC) flagbearership race.

In a Facebook post, he said he will soon be visiting all 275 constituencies across the nation in order to bring everyone on board for victory in election 2020.

The former president also congratulated all winners in Saturdays regional elections organised by the opposition NDC.

He urged all party supporters to unite in order to wrestle power from the ruling New Patriotic Party in 2020.

I have also called and expressed my personal message of encouragement to many of the candidates who were not successful in the elections, Mahama posted on Facebook on Sunday.

As I have always said, there are no losers in this contest. Our great party, the NDC, is the winner. It is time for the new executives to reach out and bring every one on board for victory in election 2020.

The real work has just begun and we must all put our shoulders to the wheel going forward. I look forward to meeting you all when I begin visiting the constituencies and regions in the coming weeks.
The CBN had ordered MTN and four other banks to refund $8.1 billion illegal capital repatriation. Allegations which MTN Group Ltd swiftly denied.

Sources told Reuters that the sanction will affect market conditions in Nigeria. The sources also doubted the likelihood of MTN listing on the Nigerian market this year.

Rob Shuter, the Group CEO of MTN also confirmed that the apex bank's sanction will complicate the IPO processes.

He, however, said MTN is continuing with the listing process.

All hands on deck to rescue to MTN

Last Friday, Herbert Wigwe, Access Bank CEO, said, the bankers' committee will intervene in the current forex issues between Nigeria and MTN.

He said he expected a resolution on the matter to avoid a systemic banking crisis given that the repayment of $8.1 billion, which is about half of MTNs market capitalisation, could threaten its Nigerian bankers.

Listing on the Nigerian Stock Exchange

In October 2015, MTN Nigeria incurred a record $5.2 billion fine over its failure to deactivate 5 million unregistered SIM cards. After a series of diplomatic negotiations, the government reduced the fine to $1 billion (N330 billion), payable over the three years on the terms that MTN enlists on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

MTN has fulfilled more than 50% of the fine.
Liu Qiangdong, one of the richest men in China, has returned to China after being briefly arrested in the US over a sexual misconduct allegation.

Liu, the founder and CEO of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com, is estimated to be the 16th-richest man in China.

He was arrested on Friday night and released 16 hours later during a business trip in Minneapolis. Hennepin County Sheriff jail records show that he was released without requiring bail.

John Elder, a spokesman for the Minneapolis police department, told Business Insider on Monday that Liu "was released pending formal complaint, which means he is not charged at this time."

He added, however, that police were still conducting an investigation int othe incident.

JD.com said in a statement on the Chinese micro-blogging site Weibo, on Monday evening local time, that Liu "has now returned to China to continue work as normal."

John Elder, a spokesman for the Minneapolis police, told the BBC on Sunday:

China's Foreign Ministry said on Monday that it had launched an investigation into Liu's arrest, The Washington Post reported.

The details of the allegation are not clear. Elder declined to provide any further details on the case to Business Insider "because this is an active criminal investigation."

Business Insider has contacted JD.com for further comment.

JD.com on Sunday said Liu had been falsely accused, and that it "will take the necessary legal action against false reporting or rumors."

Liu's arrest came shortly after he tried to distance himself from a different sexual-misconduct scandal. In late July hesaid he didn't know anything about a sexual assaultthat was alleged to have taken place after a party he hosted in Sydney in 2015. He was not accused of any wrongdoing in that case.

Liu, also known as Richard, has a net worth of $10.8 billion, or 8.4 billion,according to Forbes. He was named by the latest Forbes billionaire list as the 16th-richest person in China and the 140th-richest person in the world.

JD.com is the second-largest Chinese e-commerce company after Alibaba. The company had 292.5 million active customer accounts in 2017 and reaped a net profit of 50.8 billion yuan, or $7.8 billion, in its 2017 fiscal year,the company said in its annual statement.
The China-Africa summit brings together all African nations and China and aims to boost the continents development.

The goal of the 2018 FOCAC meeting is the promotion of economic and trade cooperation between China and African economies as it seeks to synergize China's Belt and Road Initiative, the United Nations' 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the African Union's Agenda 2063, and the development strategies of individual African countries.

During the summit, the Heads of State will discuss and ratify two major documents, the Beijing Action Plan 2019-2021 and the Beijing Declaration, which will act as guides for China-Africa relations.

More than 1,000 African representatives from over 600 enterprises, business groups, and research institutions are expected to grace a High-Level Dialogue between Chinese and African Leaders and Business Representatives, running from Monday to Tuesday as part of a series of conferences under the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

While in Beijing, President Kenyatta who in a past week has transverse three continents and met three world leaders, will witness the signing of an Economic and Investment Cooperation Agreement between China and Kenya.

President Kenyatta is scheduled to hold bilateral talks with his Chinese counterpart, President Xi Jinping with the talks focusing on trade, infrastructure, investments, education and technology.

Advanced discussions on financing for Phase 2B of the Standard Gauge Railway from Naivasha to Kisumu is on top of President Kenyattas agenda.

Financing for the Western Bypass in Nairobi is also expected to feature prominently in their talks.

President Kenyattas discussions are also expected to advance Kenyas shift away from pure debt financing with new emphasis being placed on Private Public Partnerships and the need to explore innovative off-balance sheet financing for the countrys infrastructure needs.

China is one of Kenyas strongest trading allies and has been instrumental in financing and construction of the countrys largest infrastructure project since independence, the Standard Gauge Railway,
The risk of declining Chinese demand for oil is worrying Middle East officials more than Iran's supply curbs as a result of U.S. sanctions. Bahrain and Oman's oil and gas ministers both told CNBC Monday that China's demand for oil could decline on the back of its trade dispute with the U.S. that has seen tariffs imposed on a wide range of Chinese imports.

CNBC writes in the article China's slowing demand for oil is a serious concern for the Middle East, the following: "I think there is a risk on the demand side," Bahrain's Oil Minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Khalifa Al Khalifa told CNBC's Hadley Gamble in Muscat, Oman. "Is demand going to continue as strongly as it did?" "Obviously the trade issue is going to impact demand in a negative fashion if it continues and persists. You've got the strong dollar, which is another factor."

Oil prices have stabilized over the last two years largely thanks to a deal between OPEC and non-OPEC oil producers, including Bahrain and Oman, to curb oil output. The deal has worked with prices now between $70 and $80 a barrel.

However, the deal has come under fire from President Donald Trump, who said in July that higher oil prices are hitting consumers too hard. OPEC and Russia, the world's largest producers, promised to boost supply a few days afterwards.

Nonetheless, Trump's decision-making is affecting oil market stability too. His decision to re-impose sanctions on major OPEC oil producer Iran (with the restrictions due to kick in in November) could push prices even higher as Iran's contribution to global oil supply is restricted.

But Trump's attack on cheap Chinese imports, and his decision to impose trade tariffs on a wide range of Chinese goods entering the U.S., could damage China's economic growth and in turn lower its demand for oil.

Oman's oil minister, also speaking to CNBC, said not enough attention was being paid to how trade tensions could damage China's demand for oil.

"There is a danger that the demand will be impacted as well. People often focus on the supply side  what happens if Iran stops supplying  but what happens if China reduces its consumption? So we are looking at both sides of this discussion," Mohammed bin Hamad Al Rumhy told CNBC's Hadley Gamble Monday.

"I see that as a possibility as well. If there is a serious trade disagreement between the U.S. and China, the Chinese consumption of energy will be impacted negatively, from our point of view and the ability to produce and export will be impacted," he said at the World Heavy Oil Congress.

"And I think, and many people agree with me, that the demand will be impacted  so that's not good for us."

China surpassed the U.S. to become the world's largest crude oil importer in 2017, importing 8.4 million barrels per day (b/d), compared with 7.9 million b/d for the U.S., according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

In 2017, 56 percent of China's crude oil imports came from countries within OPEC, a decline from a peak of 67 percent in 2012 but still making it a significant market for OPEC and its Middle East members.

In fact, Russia surpassed Saudi Arabia as China's largest source of foreign crude oil in 2016, exporting 1.2 million b/d to China in 2017 compared with Saudi Arabia's 1.0 million b/d.

In terms of recent demand, China's crude oil imports recovered slightly in July after falling for the previous two months, according to Reuters. But the imports were still among the lowest this year due to a drop-off in demand from the country's smaller independent refineries. Oman is a principal supplier of oil to China with the Asian superpower buying almost 90 percent of its exports in 2017, according to the news agency.
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On Sunday, September 2, 2018, Daddy Freeze posted a cropped photo of an unidentified woman with the image of the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RRCG).

Freeze reacts

The well known religious critic had strong words calling the act witchcraft, not Christianity. "This is whoredom, undiluted fornication," he added. He backed his stance with a couple of Bible verses.

According to him, this is "the harlotry; the 'pressing of virgin breasts' that God spoke about in the book of Ezekiel.  1 Corinthians 10 [14] So, my dear friends, flee from the worship of idols."

" Ezekiel 23 King James Bible [3] And they committed whoredoms in Egypt; they committed whoredoms in their youth: there were their breasts pressed, and there they bruised the teats of their virginity. [8] Neither left she her whoredoms brought from Egypt: for in her youth they lay with her, and they bruised the breasts of her virginity and poured their whoredom upon her.

" Ezekiel 23  New Living Translation [20] She lusted after lovers with genitals as large as a donkey's and emissions like those of a horse. [21] And so, Oholibah, you relived your former days as a young girl in Egypt, when you first allowed your breasts to be fondled. [37] They have committed both adultery and murder - adultery by worshiping idols."

Freeze continued in a different post, citing this form of idolatry as one of the reasons why the "entire Nigerian stock exchange is valued at $62 billion (22.5 trillion Naira), while only Toyota is valued at $236billion."

He said, "In ancient times, slaves were branded with scars to show their owners. These days, a wristband or a picture tag of your owner around your neck is enough to show who really owns you and lays claim to your resources!"

As usual, he also blamed the prosperity preachers noting that the demand for seeds "is the greatest fuckery mankind has ever beheld."
The students according to the News Agency of Nigeria reportedly visited China's high-speed railway training base, in Xian, northwest Chinas Shaanxi Province recently.

According to Xinhua, a news platform in China, the Nigerian students visited the innovation workshop and train maintenance plant on Friday, August 28, 2018.

Meanwhile, President Muhammadu Buhari during an interactive session with the Nigerian community in China on Sunday, September 2, 2018, met with some of the students present at the meeting.

Buhari, who is in China to attend the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) summit that is scheduled to hold from Monday, September 3 to Tuesday 4, 2018, met the Nigerian community in China at the Nigerian Embassy in Beijing.

Nigerian student wins Chinese language contest

However, in August, a final year student at the University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Anthony Ekwensi has reportedly emerged as the African Champion at the 17th Chinese Bridge Chinese Language Proficiency Competition for Foreign College Students in China.

The student made it to the final of the competition with four other contestants who according to the News Agency of Nigeria were crowned as the champion of the continent they represented.
The Chairman of the University's Governing Council, Prof. Peter Okebokola said this at the Council meeting in Abuja on Friday, August 31, 2018.

According to Okebukola, the open university currently admits 450,000 students.

He said ''the new council would work with the Senate of the university to double enrolment to one million through the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board (JAMB) in the next couple of years.

We have about 450, 000 for now but more importantly for us is that the quality of delivery of NOUN programmes will be significantly enhanced that in another two years, graduates from NOUN will be the best in Nigeria.

We intend to pick and work with 10 programmes from the university to achieve this goal.

The university council Chairman added that students seeking admission into the NOUN would not write the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) to get enrolled but would be registered within the system of JAMB.

Prison inmate emerges best post-graduate student at NOUN

Chukwunonso Nomeh, an inmate of the Enugu Maximum Prison has reportedly emerged as the best post-graduate student at Special Study Centres of the National Open University, NOUN.

The spokesperson of the Nigeria Prison Service in Enugu State, Chukwuemeka Monday announced Nomeh's academic achievement in a statement issued on Friday, January 12.
The movie star announced to her fans followers on Instagram on Monday, September 3, 2018, with a photo of herself in class. She went on to caption the photo with a quote.

"Its Oxford baby! Im committed to living my best life now! Sometimes we let our hair down in Dubai...Sometimes we sit in class in Oxford! Loving Said business school Oxford Hows your day going #Omonifam? #AfricanButter #TheFirstLady Always remember that I love you," she wrote.

Congratulations Omoni Oboli on this new move as we can't wait for her to come home with a certificate. Omoni Oboli isn't the only celebrity who has in recent times attended an ivy league school abroad. Recall a few months ago, Chika Ike graduated from Havard Business School.

Chika Ike completes her study at Harvard Business School

Back in February 2018, Chika Ike announced to fans that she had completed to her studies at the Harvard Business School. The beautiful and sexy actress who couldn't hide her joy and excitement took to her Instagram page on Sunday, February 4th, 2018 where she posted a photo of herself with her certificate.
In addition to Eberechi, the police in the state have apprehended the rest of the group namely Emeka Nnorue, 44, Ekene Obodoako, 27 and Chika Obi who is 28 years old.

A report by blogger Linda Ikeji confirms that the daughter of the victim, Obiuwanne was abducted by the quartet who reportedly lured her and the child to a bush where the sexual assault was carried out.

ALSO READ: Man kills his brothers after family meeting

As soon as my niece was brought back home by a neighbour and narrated her ordeal, I contacted the Commander of Umunze Vigilance Group, Jerry Ibeh, who organised a search for the missing child,"Martin Okoro, a relation of the mentally-challenged woman mentioned about the abducted child.
According to reports, the trio were apprehended on Friday, August 31, 2018, while they were on their way to meet a herbalist who will help them heal bullet wounds they sustained in a gun shootout.

The Linda Ikeji Blog (LIB) confirms that the youngsters were arrested following a collaboration between the Bayelsa State Volunteers and the Nigeria Police Force.

ALSO READ: Police storm black spot to capture murderous cultist

A picture showing the trio reveals a grin of pain due to the intensity of their injuries, some covered in bandages. The search to capture the group lasted to the deep end of a bush.
The incident which occurred on Friday, August 31, 2018, in North-Western Uganda is one of the many sad occurrences in the region, reports say.

According to Daily Monitor, a Uganda Wildlife Authority (UWA) official, Peter Ogwang said that 700-kilogramm crocodile that killed 5 people was recently captured.

Ogwang said The attacks by these animals are now increasing. Right now I am in Ngoma [central Uganda] tracking down a crocodile which has eaten 32 goats in the village.

Authorities warn

The spokesman of the UWA, Bashir Hangi also warned people in the area to keep away from the places where these crocodiles stay.

Hangi said We are advising people to avoid areas where these man-eater crocodiles are.

Crocodiles stay in fish-breeding areas, but when the fish get depleted, they come on the surface and attack and eat humans.

10-year-old drummer crushed to death

Also, a 10-year-old drummer, Jeffery Enukanehire was killed following the collapse of a Catholic Church on Sunday, September 2, 2018.

According to Vanguard, worshippers had gathered at St. Paul Catholic Church at Adagbrassa in Okpe local government area of Delta State for the morning mass, when the building caved in.
This weeks episode is a story and an insight into the heart, mind and growth of a Hip-Hop legend and all round artist and activist.

Lagos before the fences came up

Ruggedman should definitely be selling land in Lagos. On this episode, he tells his story on how he became a Lagosian despite being born in Ohafia, Abia State, talking about his secondary school.

Apparently, Rugged has a specific Yoruba name for himself and he knew Lagos when people walk into each other's backyards, before fences went up.

ALSO READLoose Talk Podcast - Episode 133 featuring AQ AND Loose Kaynon

Jimmy Jatt has always been a DJ

Rugged catches on his story from Surulere, Obalende and Masha to top the Nigerian charts. He also talks about the influence of FESTAC and Surulere on Nigerian Hiphop.

In truth, this is a story you do not want to meet. While every Loose Talk Podcast is for pop culture connoisseurs, this one is for the Hip-Hop lovers as well.
Her claims stretched to how some women preach empower in public, but go out but behind closed door, are doing crazy things.

Interestingly, she claims that being in a male dominated industry means she needs men and should not bash men.

Is she right? Is she right about the male dominated industry thing?

Tiwa Savage

On Wednesday, August 29, 2018, a video of ace artiste, Tiwa Savagesurfaced in the Internet where she vehemently denounced feminism in an interview with Beat FM 99.9.

Savage believes that a man should be the head of a home and that she would like to submit to a deserving man, even though submission does not mean slavery and derogation.

For the sucker punch, she says, I dont believe men and women are equal. I dont think thats how God created us, especially in the household anyways.

Days earlier, reacting to making the BBC Top 100 Women List, she dropped a charge to women not to let their gender hinder them and claimed she still has to work extra hard to be appreciated.

Are they mutually exclusive? Are her comments wrong?

Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde

In 2014, legendary Nigerian thespian and known female empowerment activist , Omotola Jalade-Ekeinde, pulled a non-committal on feminism and reiterated her values and beliefs on equality.

She all but stated that she believes a man is leader and that equality might be a myth that will never be a reality.

Is she too African? Have her views been warped by terrible realities?

One thing we cannot deny here is that, some women of relatively differing backgrounds, but similar profiles, with sufficient powers to influence the feminism have disassociated with it.

There is a pattern; a worrying trend by strong women who are role models to the younger generation and who engage in empowerment activities to lift women and the girl child are dissociating with the word, feminism.

Why are they disassociating from feminism?

Cumulative factors, common to all their claims; choice, prerogative to decide and profile of empowering women.

Recently, Pulse wrote about hypocrisy displayed in the cases of revered feminists and #MeToo activists, Avital Ronell and Asia Argento, who were getting dragged in the court of public opinion for betrayed what they claim to represent; sexual harassment.

Known advocates of #MeToo like Judith Butler and Rose McGowan backtracked in the standards with which judged and advocated justice against male sexual harassers when women were getting accused.

It might not be enough to criticise feminism

There have been criticisms of the mob mentality of feminists and the aggression of the fourth wave of feminism. Every movement will be judged by its model and success. Every movement that also needs a voice requires empathy, reason and critical reason to thrive, lest it attracts criticism.

However, we humans are emotional beings and on those metrics will we act most of the time, but if we are to achieve success against an established adversary, critical reasoning and empathy are weapons required to succeed.

However, will we judge many by the publicised actions of a few?

No movement is perfect. Nothing is about faults and judging an entire global movement on the actions of a few would occasion incredible injustice. Nothing is perfect.

It however seems they are denouncing the word, feminism and not what it means.

What exactly does "feminism" mean?

Feminism is basically a movement that seeks to empower women, create equity, fairness and equal opportunities as well as freedom of expression.

Feminism has come in four waves  we are currently in its most vocal and aggressive. It is fostered by Internet activism and largely opinion activism, fostered by demographics that agree.

Women are rightly tired

Lets get one thing straight, women are tired. They have a right to be angry and tired. When something gets abused for so long, it turns back and fights tooth and nail with everything it has, damn the consequences.

Critically, the anger should be expected. Worse, the abuser sometimes does not realize his damaged, so he reacts in phony ways to the anger expressed by the abused.

It somewhat explains why a lot men perceive feminism as nothing but a movement of angry, heartbroken women who just want someone to vent to and unload on.

Men are privileged

Nonetheless, men have to be understood. They are privileged, thats what they were taught to believe and act like.

Women expect them to evolve and see reasons to abandon those principles for more reasonable ones where nobody is slave to anybody. Its a valid theory.

Cuppy basically intimating that she would conform to a male dominated industry so she could prosper and Tiwas quip on how men are naturally above women might be problematic.

While for Cuppy, a known fighter for her cause, it does not mean she would take the misogyny or denial of her entitlement on the grounds of gender slide, it might connote the wrong message to the upcoming generation.

No movement for a struggle has ever achieved liberation by conforming to the dictates of the majority or privileged regime.
European Union should abandon principle of unanimous decision-making in order to not hide from the US "like rabbits from boa" due to fear of sanctions, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said.

"We shouldn't hide like rabbits from boa because of economic sanctions or customs duties," he said.

In addition, Maas assured that there's no division in Europe, highlighting the EU's response to introduction of Washington's customs duties and the US withdrawal from the Iranian nuclear deal, RIA Novosti reports.

At the same time, he noted that there's a need to change the way important foreign policy decisions of the EU are made, because current regulations, based on unanimity, create tensions within the EU itself.

As senior fellow at the European Studies Center of the Russian Academy of Science, Vladimir Olenchenko, noted in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza, current decision-making principles are inconvenient for European leaders.

"When the European Union was established in its original form, there were fewer countries, so they had equal saying in decision-making. Everything changes in 2004, when 10 countries joined the European Union - the Baltic countries, Slovenia, Cyprus, then Bulgaria, Romania, Croatia. As a result, everything became much more difficult. Newcomers are located in different parts of Europe, they're affected by different circumstances, both climatic, historical, and economic. They all have different points of view on different problems, so it's hard to achieve unity. That's why current decisions of the EU don't correspond to interests of some countries," he pointed out.

Head of the European Studies Center of the Russian Academy of Science, Alexei Kuznetsov, stressed that Germany begins to feel the need to change European politics just now. "In order to change current decision-making system, it's necessary to carry out huge institutional changes, and it requires consensus in all EU countries," he said.

"It's interesting that initially, consensus was needed in order to protect rights of small EU member states from hegemony Germany, France and other major EU members. But now situation has completely changed, the United States, traditional partner of Europe, emerged as unfair competitor, Russia became an enemy of certain European countries, while remaining a strategic partner of others. Major European powers have to react to this situation somehow, so it's pretty logical that German foreign minister offered such option - but it doesn't mean that any project be implemented quickly," expert warned.
In Nigeria, light-skinned women are placed upon a hushly whispered bias and pedestal with privileges like acting roles geared towards them. Its not the fault of casting directors, Nigeria just loves and appreciates its light-skinned women.

In Yoruba, there are sayings that aim to adore the ivory or paler skin tones of light-skinned women. Though there are sayings for dark-skinned women, they are not as detailed as with their lighter counterparts.

Even crazier, the average Nigerian man might select all the in a pool to select beautiful women before he even thinks of the darker ones who might be more beautiful.

Nigeria currently boasts a worrying amount of 'bleaching experts' with famed cross-dresser, Bobrisky one of them - they are making money through sales and advisory to underline the pressing need and concern of women to get that lighter skin tone.

It is befuddling how much the reality has been warped to suit this narrative. A cursory look at some light-skinned babes and you can easily find evidence that they were born dark, with some discoloration, contrasting colours and dark spots.

The knuckles, knee caps and elbows could be at warring loggerheads, flying different colours to the rest of the body like two warring confraternities in a Nigerian government University or the face and the body could be in stark disagreement as to the singular colour the body should follow - with each colour competing for attention with the body owner who goes a purge to be 'laiskin'

Recently, a company posted a job ad and specifically requested a light-skinned women for a front desk role. Like the casting directors, its not their fault either. Theyre only conforming to societys definition of attractive. Who does not want society's definition of 'beautiful' at his front desk?

In a June 22, 2018 BellaNaija article by Cisi Eze, colorism was attributed to internalized racism for placing lighter skin of a pedestal. As such, women had to find a way to measure up and stay in the conversation or get phased out by the demand for darker skin in places that matter.

Even in high-end prostitution, light-skinned women literally command higher fees as 'Madames' generally demand more from them.

Like the caste system in India, granting privilege based off skin tone, Nigeria seems to be going through same in a county where we all carry the African hair.

We can definitely find a common ground in creating a new standard of good looking that goes beyond lighter skin. However, it is easier said than done. A caste system, so ingrained as Nigeria is harder to eradicate, probably more than toxic patriarchy and usually unspoken with people accustomed to it and only jealousy as its only adversary to mainstream exposure.

Do we then go on aggressive exposure of this subtle demon? That will definitely achieve something, but I would be loath to see it create a standard of political correctness that people only adhere to at face value. People should genuinely see that beauty is in all colours and it behooves people in the public eye as advertisers, modelling agents and casting directors to use their selections for subconsciously changing this warped narrative.
Africa Magic Viewers' Choice Awards (AMVCA) is an annual accolade presented by Multichoice recognising outstanding achievement in television and film, voted on by the general public.The inaugural Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards ceremony was held in Lagoson 9 March 2013, and was broadcast live in more than 50 countries. 5 years later, the AMVCA has become one of the most coveted awards in the African film and television industry.

Speaking about the awards, Channel Director of Africa Magic, Wangi Mba-Uzoukwu said, We are delighted to once again celebrate outstanding achievements in the African film and television industry on the platform of the AMVCAs. As always, we promise a night filled with exciting and stellar performances led by some Africas biggest names in the music industry. Our viewers at home will not miss a moment of the event, as they can tune in to all Africa Magic channels on Saturday, September 1, to see who wins the coveted AMVCA titles.

The awards will once again be hosted by the dynamic duo of South African beauty Minnie Dlamini-Jones, and Nigeria's favourite compere, IK Osakioduwa. This will be the second year that the dazzling duo will be thrilling the audience with their wit, charm, and infectious energy.Lagos is alive as celebrities from all over the content descend on the city ready to take part in the legendary awards show. It promises to be an night to remember.
What we have witnessed recently have shown beyond doubt that Nigeria is today an investors destination.

Last week we received British Prime Minister, Theresa May. During the visit, several bilateral agreements were signed.

Friday of same week, we received German Chancellor, Angela Merkel. Several bilateral agreements were also signed

The global leaders are coming to Nigeria because this government is providing good leadership in the areas of security and infrastructure.

The perception globally about the government is that it is providing an incorruptible leadership, a government that you can do business with, without fear.

In one year alone, we climbed 24 steps in the ladder of ease of doing business.

These are all the things they have seen that are attracting them to cone to partner and invest.

The minister said the three cardinal goals driving the administrations success were, focus, discipline and integrity

We did not invent the Treasury Single Account (TSA), but we are the administration that is disciplined enough to ensure that all proceeds of government go into the TSA.

This has helped a lot. Before now, funds belonging to government were in thousands of bank accounts and the result was that we were paying a lot of bank charges on the accounts .

Under the old system, the government could not have wholistic idea of how much fund it had, which hampered planning.

Today, every penny of government is being paid into TSA. This has helped a lot, he said.

The minister recalled that the administration at inception suffered massively from the drop in oil prices.

He said with discipline, focus and integrity, the administration was able to bring out the nation from recession.

Mohammed said he subscribed to the directive by the APC national executive committee that the process for selecting the partys presidential candidate should be by direct primaries.

He said the direct primaries would allow all members of the party in all nooks and crannies of the country the right to choose their leader.

Mohammed noted that there had been a lot of hype on the gale of defection particularly as it concerned, his home state, Kwara.

Yes, we lost some people who left with the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, like the state governor and 23 of the 24 members of House of Assembly.

But the good news is that APC had gained massively. Many PDP members who could not stand in the same party with Saraki are defecting to APC.

The most important thing is that the people of Kwara are very much with us and I am confident that come 2019, we will win massively in Kwara state, he said.

On fake news phenomenon, the minister said it is a global epidemic that is not abating at all and our own resolve to confront it is also not abating
Yakadi, who confirmed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Minna, attributed the clash to the refusal of a union member to drop off the students he carried from Minna at the Poly Junction instead of the Etsu Yahaya Motor Park, Bida.

According to the police chief, the vehicle was driven by one Baba Mohammed from Minna to Bida

As a result, a fight ensued and a student sustained bruises while the driver sustained injuries on the neck.

The commissioner of police said the students mobilised in large number and went to Estu Yahaya Park to attack the union members, during which seven motorcycles were burnt.

A lecturer in the institution, Danlami Mohammed, Johnson Ouoha and Habib Mohammed were wounded.

Consequently, the youth in the town went on rampage, attacking off campus students and innocent visitors in houses and hotels around the institution, Yakadi said.

He said that 13 suspects were arrested and being interrogated in connection with the fracas.

Ten students are currently on admission at the General Hospital Bida, while one person was confirmed dead, the police commissioner said.

He said that the command had deployed 40 mobile policemen and 20 conventional police from Minna, to beef up security at Bida.

Meanwhile, Dr Abubakar Dzukogi, Rector, Federal Polytechnic Bida, confirmed that a student was killed during the attack.
This is following reports that Boko Haram terrorists killed about 30 soldiers during an attack on a military base near the border with Niger Republic recently.

According to a military source the sect members came in a truck and overwhelmed the soldiers.

They came in large numbers in trucks and carrying heavy weapons and engaged soldiers in a battle that lasted for an hour.

"We lost at least 30 men.

"They overwhelmed the troops who were forced to temporarily withdraw before reinforcements arrived," the source added.

Premium Times reports that the 17 bodies, comprising of one officer and 16 soldiers were recovered by a search and rescue team.

Hundreds reported missing in Yobe

In July 2018,Boko Haram members attacked a military base holding more than 700 soldiers in Yobe state, according to AFP. Hundreds were reportedly killed in the deadly attack.

The spokesman of the Nigerian Army, Texas Chukwu insists that no soldier was killed in the latest attack.

Speaking to Premium Times, Chukwu said No soldier was killed and nothing was recovered.

We do not know where you are getting this information from.

Boko Harams onslaught has displaced many people in the North-East.
Okechukwu gave the assurance in a speech he presented at the annual World Igbo Congress (WIC) which was held in Nashville Tennessee in United States.

Okechukwus speech was released to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday in Enugu.

He said President Buhari has embarked on massive critical infrastructure to reposition the country for rapid growth and transformation in order to meet 21 century challenges.

The situation at home is not as bad as being painted and that all hope is not lost in Nigeria, he said.

Buharis Roads, Rail, Agriculture and Power (RRAP PROJECTS) is the most massive infrastructure development ever embarked upon in Nigeria.

Without being immodest, my understanding is that the Eastern Corridor Railways will be awarded before December 2018 and construction as directed by President Muhammadu Buhari will commence instantly.

All hope is not lost as being painted; one can reassure my brothers and sisters here.

Also, bearing in mind as well that some of the South-East governors are also doing their best to uplift the infrastructure and social amenities in the zone, Okechukwu said.

I am bold to say that the Federal Government is today constructing the Second Niger Bridge on direct contract, not Private Public Partnership, and 69 other ancillary roads across the South-East as applicable in other geo-political zones.

The construction of the Eastern Corridor Railways which will cover 18 states of the Federation will soon commence. Let nobody deceive you, Okechukwu said.

The Chairman of WIC, Prof. Anthony Ejiofor, called on Ndigbo at home or abroad to commit themselves to the development of the homeland, as no group will do it for us.

Ejiofor cited instances where Diaspora people liberated their home countries and appealed that we cannot be an exception.

Dr Stella Nwokeji, a renowned medical consultant, in her presentation pleaded for the establishment of Emergency and Rescue Medic-aid.

She lamented that a lot of lives are on daily basis lost because of lack of emergency rescue and response plans, especially in rural communities in the country.

The World Igbo Congress was attended by Amb. Sylvester Nsofor, Nigerias Ambassador to the United States and his wife as well as Prof. Uzodimma Nwala, President of Ala-Igbo Development Foundation.

Other prominent participants were Prof. Anthony Ejiofor, 2018 WIC Chairman; Dr Richard Nwachukwu, Secretary-General of WIC; Chief Ejike Ekwuazi, Host President and Event Planning Committee Chairman and Dr Innocent Ubakam, Chairman of Economic Development Committee.
According to a report by Channels Television, the gunmen attacked the community on Sunday, September 2, 2018.

The Public Relations Officer of the Plateau State Police Command, Tyopev Terna, said officers of the force responded to a distress call by residents and have been deployed to the area to prevent further attacks on the community.

The people injured in the attack were taken to Jos University Teaching Hospital (JUTH) and Plateau Specialist Hospital for medical attention.

"As a result of the attack, eleven (11) persons have been confirmed dead by doctors from both hospitals mentioned above while (12) persons were wounded and are now on admission receiving treatment," Terna said.

Plateau troubled by killings

In the previous attack that took place last week, at least eight people were killed and 95 houses burnt when Abonong and Zayit communities in Foron district of Barkin Ladi were attacked on Wednesday, August 29.

Three other people were severely injured while the attackers also stole foodstuff and destroyed properties worth millions of naira.

The Wednesday attack comes only two months after Muslim Fulani herdsmen were reported to have killed at least 100 people in several communities in Barkin Ladi between Saturday, June 23 and Sunday, June 24.
Ortom said this while answering questions during an interview with Premium Times.

The Benue Governor revealed that his problem started when he passed the anti-grazing bill into law.

He also explained in the interview, what led to his defection to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

Read excerpts of Governor Ortoms interview with Premium Times below:

Do you mean that all the problems youve had so far originated from the passage of the grazing law?

It is, according to them, a result of the impunity from Miyetti Allah. We have called for their arrest and nobody arrested them up till today.

That is a problem. With all the provocative utterances they have given inciting the people, including claiming to have been responsible for the killing that has been taking place, giving reasons that their cattle were rustled and all that.

They cant be killing innocent people. How can a four-year-old go to rustle cattle? How can a 75-year-old man go to rustle cattle?

How can a pregnant woman who is about to deliver go to rustle cattle? Youll come and kill them. We are against any criminal. We are not supporting any criminal in the state.

If you want attack them and kill them I have no business with that. But when you come to kill innocent people, that is the point and the main reason why this problem has persisted is as a result of the impunity that has been going on.

These people are not apprehended and as I keep saying in any given society the rule of law must be observed, we must respect it, we must observe the rule.

It is the law that regulates the activities of human beings. If anybody decides to take the law into their hands then we cannot live together in that society.

I am aware you visited the president a number of times. At what point did you become so frustrated and helpless that you had to start thinking about exiting the party that brought you to power?

tom: Well, we have discussed several times. But the issue of exiting the party that brought me to power is as a result of non-integration properly into the partys system.

As you are aware, I was a member of PDP until the dying minute when I was frustrated out of PDP so I was looking for another platform and of course APC invited me and felt that due to my popularity, they were sure if we teamed up together we could make it and I also bought into it.

We went there, but the leadership did not allow room for integration and so that has been the point. It is like here in Benue State, because all politics is local, the senator who said he is the leader of the party took control and doesnt want input from outside.

So my supporters and myself were left out and when we tried to insist that look we have to be integrated, I was given a red card. That I am not needed, and everywhere he went, he demonized me, saying all kinds of things.

As governor how come it was difficult for you to take control?

You see, I told you I came in when structures of the party were alreadly in place. I had no hold on that. I came in like that so the same people were there.

I had wanted a process where we can integrate and make sure that we were all stakeholders. That was rebuked and I reported it but the thing continued.

I said well I cannot continue in this manner. There were always major disagreements. When we were talking about prohibition of open grazing he (Senator Akume) was against it.

He said the people in Abuja are too powerful. That they are too powerful and that if I dont rescind that decision to sign the law the people from Abuja would move against me

He said that?

Yes he told me that and I said no there is no way I can do this. I am representing the Benue people and so if I betray the trust that they had in me by electing me governor by not doing their bidding, by becoming afraid somewhere, I mean that is not leadership.

As a leader let me do what I believe to be right. Even if I die, let it be on record that Ortom was killed because of his people. I have chosen to stay with the people and to walk with them.

If they crucify me today, if anything happens to me today, everyone will know that it is because I have chosen to stay with the people.

So like Jesus Christ you are ready to lay down your life for your people?

Of course I have said it. What else will I do? Whichever way you do one day you will die. But if you die for a just cause, it is okay. Jesus died so many years ago for a just cause but hes a hero. Just like Abiola was recently recognised as a winner of June 12 in Nigeria.

That is what I am saying because all these cattle that we are talking about here in Nigeria that are creating so much panic and problems and killings and destruction and all that are not a lot. We are talking about just 20 million cattle. In India, there over 270 million cattle but they ranch. In Brazil, there are over 300 million but they ranch their cattle.

You dont see them moving about the way you see it in Nigeria. In America, there are over 100 million cattle but they are surviving. In fact go to the states of America you dont see any cattle. It is only here that even at the airport and offices you see cattle.

Even in Kenya, you dont see cattle moving the way they do here. So ranching is global best practice in animal husbandry. So trying to set a pace by doing something new is a difficult task. One day people will understand.
The three local government chairmen of the All Progressives Congress (APC) lost their lives in an auto crash in Saudi Arabia on Friday.

The deceased were Alhaji Jafaru Gidan-Sambo, (Kaura-Namoda), Malam Mudi Mallamawa, (Shinkafi) and Alhaji Abdullahi Ruwan-dorowa (Maru).

Presenting the items to families of deceased in Kaura-Namoda, Shinkafi and Ruwan-Dorowa towns on Sunday, Rikiji described their death as a great loss to the state in particular and the country at large.

He said the donation was aimed at assisting the families of the three deceased APC chairmen who died in the Holy land.

I personnally donated one million Naira and 20 bags of rice to each of the affected families.

Also our leader, the former governor of the state and Senator representing Zamfara West, Alhaji Ahmad Sani ask me to present similar amount and quantity of rice to the families, Rikiji said.

Meanwhile, the state governments delegation led by the state Acting Governor, Malam Ibrahim Wakala, condoled the families over the loss.

The delegation, comprised the Secretary to the state government, Prof. Abdullahi Shinkafi, Commissioners, Special Advisers and other top government functionaries in the state.
Frank who recently dumped the APC alleged that the ruling party was cursed and in dire need of deliverance.

In a statement in Abuja on Monday, September 3, 2018, Frank noted that it had increasingly difficult for APC to unite its members and make decisions that are in their best interest.

Direct or indirect primaries

Reacting to the direct and indirect primaries adopted by the APC, Frank said the decision has further pitched one organ of the APC against the other.

The APCs National Executive Committee (NEC) had adopted the direct primaries for presidential nomination and the indirect primaries for Senate, House of Representatives, Governorship and State Houses of Assembly nominations but the Adams Oshiomhole-led National Working Committee unilaterally reversed the decision - a situation that has led to widespread dissatisfaction and disaffection among the top hierarchy and members of the party.

Frank, however, said that the current chaos in the APC is reflective of the lack of direction which the ruling party had foisted on the country in the last three years.

It is a shame that a ruling party cannot unanimously take and stand by its decision on the mode of its primary election, he said.

"Nigerians will soon realise that the calibre of people remaining in the APC are only there for their personal political interests and not for the good of the country.

It is only in the APC-led Federal Government that more than three camps exist around the President - where the Chief of Staff has his own camp, Vice President leads another camp and the President himself is comfortable presiding over a divided house.

"The case is the same among the security agencies where there is no synergy and harmony. So how can a disunited ruling party protect or unite a vast country like Nigeria, Frank asked.

Frank said those who are rushing to join the APC will soon have themselves to blame as they will soon rush out with bitter experiences.

ALSO READ:Timi Frank challenges Buhari to make Ikoyi loot report public

The former APC spokesman said that the infighting within the party "epitomizes APCs lackluster leadership approach which has manifested in unmitigated crisis, policy somersaults, dwindling economic fortunes and rising unemployment and insecurity across the country.
Speaking on France-Inter radio on Sunday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said that Syrian President Bashar al-Assad has won the country's civil war but will not win the peace without a political solution aided by international mediators, Sputnik reported.

Assad won the war, we have to state this. But he hasnt won the peace, Le Drian announced.

According to the minister, the West would retaliate if hemical weapons are used against civilians in the looming battle in the province of Idlib.

He further claimed that even if the government's forces managed to retake Idlib  the last terrorist stronghold  it would not solve the problems that triggered the war seven years ago.

Le Drian also added that France will use this months UN General Assembly to push for a peaceful solution in Syria, and is currently involved in negotiations with the guarantors of peace in the region  Russia, Turkey and Iran  to push them to use their clout with Assad to make political talks happen after the war is over.
The $1.6 billion project  a deal with China  is expected to be commissioned by President Muhammadu Buhari in December 2018. The federal government has already paid N72 billion counterpart funding.

But, during an inspection of the project, Amechi expressed displeasure over the lack of stations along the route -- a situation he blamed on the slow pace of work by the contractor, China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC).

The contractor, however, blamed the slow pace of work on the rains while promising an improvement in a few weeks.

"Did anyone notice that there are no stations? That means the can't operate despite the laying of tracks," Amaechi said.

When asked if he was satisfied with the pace of work on the project, the minister replied: No, I am not satisfied. But they have a reason. The problem is the rain. The work is progressing. You will agree with us that we are progressing. The problem is the rain. There is no way they would have gone extra with the rains.

At the meeting, they agreed that now that the rains are stopping, there will be an improvement. Their fear, however, is that in the next one or two weeks, the rains may come but immediately after that, the work will pick up faster. One and a half years is the original time for the construction of the stations but we have insisted that they will finish it before December," the minister added

Amaechi noted that rail tracks had been laid through a distance of about 12km, but stressed that he was not impressed with this development.

They (CCECC) have been able to lay 12km, as against the 1.3km that was laid the last time we visited. We are still not impressed with the level of work. Their argument is that the track laying is not the problem as they can lay as many tracks as possible any day. They said the problem is earthwork. They said if the rains stopped, they could conclude the earthwork which is at 90 per cent.

The remaining 10 per cent is between Iju to Ajaokuta. They said if the rains stopped, they would finish the remaining 10 per cent faster. They also said by the end of September, they would have finished all the bridges between Iju and Ajeokuta but we are pushing that the contract is between Ebute Meta and Ibadan and should be finished by December, he declared.
According to Vanguard, the minister said this on Sunday, September2, 2018, during an interview on Nigeria Television Authority (NTA).

Mohammed also said that leaders all around the world are giving Nigeria attention because of the Presidents incorruptible leadership.

He said Last week we received British Prime Minister, Theresa May. During the visit, several bilateral agreements were signed.

Friday of same week, we received German Chancellor, Angela Merkel. Several bilateral agreements were also signed.

The global leaders are coming to Nigeria because this government is providing good leadership in the areas of security and infrastructure.

The perception globally about the government is that it is providing an incorruptible leadership, a government that you can do business with, without fear.

In one year alone, we climbed 24 steps in the ladder of ease of doing business.

These are all the things they have seen that are attracting them to come to partner and invest.

He noted that the three cardinal goals driving the Buharis administrations success were, focus, discipline and integrity

We did not invent the Treasury Single Account (TSA), but we are the administration that is disciplined enough to ensure that all proceeds of government go into the TSA.

This has helped a lot. Before now, funds belonging to the government were in thousands of bank accounts and the result was that we were paying a lot of bank charges on the accounts.

ALSO READ:Buhari refuses to sign electoral amendment bill

Under the old system, the government could not have a wholistic idea of how much fund it had, which hampered planning.

Today, every penny of government is being paid into TSA. This has helped a lot.

On Saturday, September 1, 2018, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said that world leaders are queueing to meet President Buhari.
Abubakar, a PDP presidential aspirant, spoke in Lagos while holding a meeting with members of the party in the state.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the meeting was part of his nationwide tour of state chapters, to seek support for his aspiration ahead of 2019 general elections.

He revealed how his former boss, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, before the 2003 elections, gave him the task to deliver the six South/West states then governed by the Alliance for Democracy (AD) to the PDP.

Abubakar said that in carrying out the task, he delivered all the states to PDP, except Lagos.

The former Vice-President said that he deliberately did not do much to win Lagos because of his relationship with former governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.

He apologised to party members for what he called his mistake, saying that Lagos would have been better off, if he had delivered it to the PDP then.

When we came to power in 1999, the entire South/Western states were controlled by the AD.

And when we were approaching the 2003 elections, I told my boss, give me the chance to take over the South-West

And he gave me that authority, and I took all the states with the exception of Lagos.

Why? Because Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and I came a long way from the SDP, PDM and all of that, and I felt I should leave Lagos for him. In fact, I could easily have taken over Lagos, but I did not.

I have since regretted my decision; please, my sisters and brothers in the party, I want you to forgive me for taking Lagos out of that arrangement.

If I have another opportunity again, Lagos will be taken to where it belongs. So, I am appealing to you to give me that opportunity so that I can correct the mistakes that I made, he said.

Abubakar said his decision to seek the number one seat in the country was to reposition and put it on the path of progress.

He said that the country was having serious issues in the areas of economy and security, assuring that he would fix the problems if elected.

Abubakar said that the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had failed to deliver the promised change.

He said that he was committed to the idea of restructuring, and believed it was key to the countrys progress.

The former vice president said he would restructure the country within six months in office, if given the mandate.

Abubakar pointed out that the Federal Government was too powerful, and promised to ensure devolution of power to other federating units.

If I am elected, I will make the centre unattractive and ensure that power devolves to the states, he said.

He called on party members across the country to support his bid as he meant well for the country.

Earlier, the Director-General of the Atiku Campaign Organisation, Otuba Gbenga Daniel, said that his principal had the capacity to reposition Nigeria.

He said that he has the passion and the experience to lead the country and would not disappoint Nigerians, if given the opportunity.

ALSO READ:Saraki reacts to reports that he betrayed Atiku by declaring for President

Daniel, a former governor of Ogun, appealed to members in the Lagos state chapter to be united and support the aspiration of Abubakar.

The only PDP member of the state House of Assembly, Mr Dipo Olohunrinu thanked the former vice president for the visit.

He promised the aspirant full support, adding that PDP members in the state had confidence in him.

We will support you, we will be with you .We are 100 per cent with you and your aspiration, he said.

NAN reports that Abubakar was also accompanied on the visit by former Minister of Niger Delta, Chief Godsday Orubebe.
The group, named Presidential Aspirants Coming Together (PACT), was made up of some of the most prominent new age politicians taking a stab at the presidency.

Former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Kingsley Moghalu, leadership expert and business consultant, Fela Durotoye, and Sahara Reporters publisher, Omoyele Sowore, were the three most recognisable members of the group who were seen in a video vowing to help one another in the quest to forge a new Nigeria.

Since aspirants have started expressing their intentions to run against the current president next year, many Nigerians have suggested that the politically-inexperienced bunch will have a chance if they pool their resources together instead of adopting a scattergun approach. When PACT surfaced, many were confident that maybe they could pull it off if their steps were ordered and precise.

One month after PACT's first meeting, that hope appears to be dashed and the coalition has turned out to be one of the biggest jokes in Nigerian politics.

The new revelations that have surfaced after the group's unraveling have been nothing short of embarrassing for a coalition that was supposed to set the course for the future of the country's politics.

Early grumblings

Before the August election, there had been unconfirmed reports that Sowore had withdrawn from the coalition.

After Durotoye won last week, Sowore disclosed in a video broadcast that he never signed up with the group from the beginning, a claim that has been corroborated by Tope Fasua, another aspirant that was involved with PACT.

Noteworthy among his objections to PACT was the fact that the aspirants themselves were going to be the ones to vote for the consensus candidate even when they could have found a way to invest that mandate in the Nigerian people.

Sowore and a couple of others had also suggested that all the aspirants involved in the coalition should first win their party's ticket before they can decide on a consensus candidate, another suggestion that was shot down.

When the coalition met for its election last week, four other people had already withdrawn and that left only 13 participants. By the time the election was over, there were only nine left.

Durotoye's crown is a poisoned chalice

Durotoye's victory made waves on social media last week because many expressed shock and disappointment at his emergence over Moghalu who had been favoured to be the victor.

After tying on 2 votes in the first round of voting with Moghalu and Mathias Tsado, Durotoye won the second round with four votes to Moghalu's three.

Even though many attempted to fault the process that led to his victory as tainted by fraud, it was adjudged to have been free, fair, and credible according to observers including former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili.

The poll might have been free, fair, and credible, but it stands out mostly for being ridiculously naive in the realm of politics.

For a host of reasons:

The participants

The original pool of participants of PACT belonged to the Young Progressive Party (YPP), Abundant Nigeria Renewal Party (ANRP), Alliance for a New Nigeria (ANN), People's Democratic Party (PDP) and a host of other barely-known parties.

The list of original participants includes: Durotoye, Moghalu, Sowore, Tsado, Fasua, Thomas-Wilson Ikubese, Ahmed Buhari, Elishama Ideh, and Sina Fagbenro-Byron.

Others are Eragbe Anslem, Jaye Gaskia, Victor Ani-Laju, Alistair Soyode, Godstime Sidney Iroabuchi, Clement Jimbo, Ayodele Favor Oluwamuyiwa, Dare Fagbemi and Nicholas Felix.

Outside of Moghalu, Sowore, and Durotoye, many of these other aspirants remain unknown even to the online community of Nigerians that seem to be the only demographic that pays attention to the new crop of politicians.

Many of them, also, are yet to win the presidential ticket of their parties, and have no good chance of even pulling it off.

These people don't have quite the pull to even be valuable enough to emerge a consensus candidate to take on the task set for the group, and this made some of the participants less valuable than others and with less to lose by virtue od participation.

For example, Ahmed Buhari, a participant that has also dropped out, is a member of the PDP hoping to somehow snatch the party's ticket from the reach of political juggernauts like Atiku Abubakar, Bukola Saraki, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Aminu Tambuwal, Ibrahim Dankwambo, because...reasons.

Not only is it the most unlikely thing to happen, his party, the PDP, is already part of the Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP), a union of 39 parties committed to also presenting a consensus candidate for the same election.

Since he has no political structure or even any momentum for next year's election, not only did this make Ahmed Buhari an unimportant addition to the coalition, he was harmful to it. And there are a few others like him who signed up to PACT.

PACT is devoid of any party backing

One other thing that makes PACT a ridiculous gathering of political newbies is the fact that they entered the coalition with no committments from their parties.

For example, after Durotoye won the election last week, his party, ANN, was forced to issue a statement distancing itself from PACT.

"We hereby inform our teeming members, supporters and other Nigerians, that ANN is yet to be in any consensus or alliance talk with any political party or group of persons," read a statement by the party's National Publicity Secretary, Akinloye Oyeniyi.

This statement already puts Durotoye in a precarious position as there are already rumblings that he might not even be in the best position to win his party's ticket, especially after boycotting its recent congress.

The fact that commitments made by aspirants to PACT had no backing, whatsoever, from their parties should have been a red flag to anyone with the least bit of political acumen.

What would be Durotoye's move if he loses his party's ticket at a later date? Why would parties of the losers back the winner of a PACT they never signed up for? And more importantly, when those parties seek alternative candidates, from where will these aspirants who no one has heard of, and probably will not remember their names for more than a week, find the level of support and organisation to contribute meaningfully to the ambition of the consensus candidate?

This PACT was set up to fail, and it's no surprise that it has stumbled at its very first major hurdle.

What was the rush?

More than anything, the decision to conduct an election just a month after the first meeting is such a puzzling one that beggars belief.

According to an insider account by Tope Fasua of the ANRP, who pulled out of PACT shortly after the first meeting, there was an apparent desire by the chief drivers of the coalition to avoid an open debate and an inexplicable urge to push through very quickly.

Considering that more than half of PACTers are massively unknown and have what many refer to as absolutely no electoral value, why did the election have to happen so fast?

According to the official timetable of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), party primaries for the election won't end until October 7, 2018.

This gives the coalition at least one full month to gather momentum and make good decisions that could at least put PACT in good stead to understand the task ahead. Instead, the coalition literally put the cart before the horse.

Biggest losers

The biggest loser from this PACT episode has to be Moghalu, and not only because he lost to Durotoye, who many feel he easily outshines, but because of the way he's received the defeat by immediately dropping out of the coalition and questioning the process even though he was well aware of what it was and signed a memo to that effect.

What's astounded many is that Moghalu didn't seem to need the coalition as he's been doing fine on his own, trravelling the country and gaining grounds and momentum more than any of the other participants, even more than many combined. The fact that he was ever part of this PACT has left many confused about his self-publicised excellent decision-making.

Most crucially, it's also left people questioning his integrity with the manner he's disowned PACT only after losing to Durotoye.

While he's expected to shake off the stench of this episode, eventually, Durotoye might still come off the worst when he contests his party's primary election.

If he loses the party's ticket, he ends up with all the eggs squarely on his face. If he does win it, as he expects to, he has a weak PACT to prop him up against an opposition that is cut-throat in the business of politics. You only have to take a look at the list of people left in the coalition.

The trajectory of PACT, from its participants to its processes and its disintegration, has shown everyone involved to be naive players who are unprepared to make it in the big bad world of Nigerian politics.

PACT's catalogue of poor decision making is so amateurish you don't even expect to see such being made in the politics of tertiary institutions' student unions.
As far as fake news goes, this one was really loud and brazen.

However, Pulse can report that stories of Ambode making a switch to the PDP are a tissue of lies and wide off the mark.

Numerous sources who spoke to Pulse on condition of anonymity reveal that the stories are a figment of the imagination of the tale bearers spinning them.

But how did the story begin?

In every rumour, they say, there could be an iota of truth.

There is a rift between Ambode and godfather of Southwest politics, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu,Pulse has been reliably informed.

That rift borders on the forthcoming governorship primaries in Lagos State. While Tinubu favours irect primaries which will open up the voting process to all party members, Ambode favours indirect primaries where a small pool of accredited party delegates choose who will fly the partys flag at the general election.

Recall that the National Working Committee (NWC) of the APC recently said its presidential primary election will be a direct one; with state governors or state chapters allowed to decide which election primary mode to go with. The APC's

It is believed that Lagos, thanks to Tinubus overbearing influence in the politics of the nations commercial capital, will want to go with direct primaries.

This is where Ambode fell out with Tinubu, because the governor thinks direct primaries is Asiwajus way of saying he isnt backing him for a second term in office, a highly placed source in the politics of Lagos told Pulse over the weekend.

Besides, a direct primary could mean Ambode losing the governorship ticket and he doesnt even want to think about it, the source added.

Tinubu, in case anyone needs reminding, has been deciding who runs Lagos since 2007, with all of the APC structure in Nigeria's most populous city, in his breast pocket.

Ambode was Tinubu's choice in 2015, with then Governor Babatunde Fashola going with Olasupo Shasore who didnt make it past the party primary stage.

What is the situation between Ambode and Tinubu now?

understands that stories of Ambode leaving the APC came from the governors camp.

Ambodes people planted the stories as a way of extracting some kind of concession from Tinubu or as a way of making Tinubu backtrack on his direct primaries stance, another source told Pulse.

Tinubu and Ambode have been holding peace talks and are very close to a middle ground on their differences, Pulse was told.

Commissioner for Information in Lagos, Kehinde Bamigbetan, didn't pick up calls when Pulse tried to reach him for this story. An email sent to his office was also not responded to before this story was published.

So, will Ambode leave the APC?

It is highly unlikely that Ambode will leave the APC for the PDP at this point.

Several sources spoken to for this story laughed off the very thought of Ambode joining the PDP and called it ridiculous.

That will be political suicide for him and he knows better than to pull an ill-advised stunt like that, was told by a top ranking source in the Lagos chapter of the APC.

Ambode was on President Buharis recent delegation to China.

When Bashir Ahmad, Special Assistant to the President on New Media, asked Ambode about the rumours in China, the Lagos governor responded with a chuckle.
Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in Osun, Mr Olusegun Agbaje, said this while making a presentation on INECs Preparations ahead of Osun election at the Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room Dialogue Session in Abuja.

Agbaje said that the commission had been worried about vote-buying since the Ekiti elections and was looking for ways to curb it.

According to him, the current trend of inducing voters with money popularly known as see and buy in the local parlance, was particularly worrisome to the commission.

The issue of vote-buying is worrisome to the commission because it is not easy for INEC to prepare for election and on that day people will come with bags of money.

This undermines the credibility of elections; so, INEC has decided to re-arrange its voting cubicle in a way that voters cannot display their votes.

There will no longer be a way of showing your votes to politicians to go and collect money; we are also working on not allowing voters with phones into the area and security agents will be there to make arrests.

Vote-buying is a disease that is graduating to kill our electoral system and must be stopped, he said.

Agbaje said that INEC was ready for the Osun election, adding that 1,192,386 Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) had been collected while 483,826 were yet to be collected in the state.

He said that there were 3, 010 polling units, 332 registration areas and 30 local government areas in the state.

He added that voting points were 755, registered voters, 1, 682, 495 and that 71 per cent of registered persons had collected their PVCs while 29 per cent were yet to do so.

The REC said that the commission would continue to strengthen its voter-education machinery for improved and targeted exercise.

He urged those that had not collected their PVCs to do so because there wont be voting without the PVC.

He said that there were 48 governorship candidates contesting the Osun election, adding that more than N73, 525,500 was used for training of ad hoc staff for the election.Agbaje said that the attitude of politicians remained a stumbling block to credible election, adding that their mind-set on winning elections was worrisome.

He said that violence and malpractices were also a thing of concern to the commission and stakeholders and that lack of adequate capacity to deal with electoral offences and offenders was another challenge.

He insisted that there was urgent need for the political class to stop using money to buy votes during elections.

The electoral boss in the state called on stakeholders to join hands with INEC to fight the ills in the electoral process by playing their roles in line with relevant laws.

He said that the commission in Osun would create hot lines about two weeks to the election, for citizens to call in cases of noticed irregularities.

He said that the hotline for INECs headquarters for the election was called INECs citizens contact centre 0700callinec or 070022554632, adding that the number was a 12-digit special number.

On his part, Mr Clement Nwankwo, Convener, Nigeria Civil Society Situation Room, a coalition of civil society organisations, said that the meeting was organised to ensure credible polls in Osun.

Nwankwo said that the issue of dealing with electoral offenders was a big task that should be carried out by a designated body.According to him, the government needs to, as a matter of urgency, establish a commission to handle that aspect for effective arrest, investigation and prosecution of electoral offenders.
The state chapter made the declaration after a meeting with the former Vice-President in Lagos on Monday, September 3, 2018.

Daily Post reports that the Lagos PDP Secretary, Prince Muiz Dosunmu said that state chapter is happy with Atikus objectives.

He said Lagos PDP is set to follow a leader who knows the trenches. Your Excellency, Atiku Abubakar knows the pathway and we are ready to follow you.

Speaking also, a PDP chieftain, Dr. Abimbola Ogunkelu, said The PDP in Lagos State believes in Atiku and the large turn out here today is an open testament that Lagos PDP is for Atiku. We are for you here (in Lagos) and we strongly believe in your capacity to lead our great party to victory.

ALSO READ:Atiku slams Buhari govt over abduction of Dapchi girls

Atiku apologises to Lagos PDP

In his remark, Atiku Abubakar said he regretsnot doing much to help the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) win in Lagos State when he had the opportunity in 2003.

The former Vice-President said that he deliberately did not do much to win Lagos because of his relationship with former governor, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu.
The campaign council was inaugurated at the PDP National headquarters in Abuja by the partys chairman, Uche Secondus.

Saraki called on President Buhari to use Osun state as an example of the free and fair election which he promised in 2019.

PDP warns

Secondus also warned that the PDP will not allow what happened in Ekiti to take place in Osun state.

The PDP chairman also alleged that some corrupt people have come together to fund President Buharis campaign so he will protect them.

According to Daily Post, he said Enough is enough, PDP will not tolerate Osun being rigged like Ekiti, we have a popular candidate and the performance of the APC ruling government has been awful with months of salaries owned to workers.

We are aware that the electoral commission that is supposed to operate as an unbiased umpire in the conduct of elections has suddenly made itself a parastatal of the federal government, conniving with APC and security agencies to exchange results.

ALSO READ:INEC bars 23 political parties from Osun governorship election

Even security agencies whose allegiance should be to the constitution and people of Nigeria have allowed itself to behave as if they are operatives of the ruling APC.

We decided to set up this high powered committee to demonstrate the importance we attach to this election, all our Presidential aspirants and some state governors are members plus all other critical stakeholders from South West and other parts of the country.
"More than 50 years after independence... the process of decolonisation of Mauritius remains incomplete," former Mauritian president Anerood Jugnauth said.

This was "as a result of the unlawful detachment of an integral part of our territory on the eve of our independence," he told the judges.

In a diplomatic blow to Britain, the UN General Assembly in June last year adopted a resolution presented by Mauritius and backed by African countries asking the ICJ to offer a legal opinion on the island chain's fate.

The Chagos archipelago was detached from Mauritius for inclusion in the newly created British Indian Ocean Territory in 1965 shortly before Port Louis' independence from Britain.

The African Union and 22 countries -- including Germany and South Africa and several Asian and Latin American nations -- will make statements during the four-day hearing.

'Immense pressure'

They all voted last year whether ask the ICJ to rule on the matter. The US and Australia will also speak and are expected to support Britain while South Africa and the AU are expected to back Mauritius.

After the hearings, the ICJ will hand down a non-binding "advisory opinion", but the judges' ruling may take several months or even years.

An opinion in favour of Mauritius may strengthen Port Louis' hand in future negotiations or could lay the foundation for an eventual formal claim before the ICJ, which also rules in disputes between countries.

Britain used decolonisation talks as leverage and paid 3 million for the Chagos islands. Jugnauth said Mauritian officials were given "no room for any choice" during the 1965 independence talks.

During meetings in London, then British prime minister Harold Wilson aimed to "frighten" Mauritian officials into handing over Chagos in return for independence, Jugnauth said.

"It is against that backdrop of immense pressure and in the circumstances amounting to duress, that less than five hours later, four of the five Mauritian representatives yielded to the detachment of the Chagos Archipelago," he said.

Strategic base

As the Cold War with the former Soviet Union intensified, the US established a military base on Diego Garcia, the largest of the islands.

The Indian Ocean base plays a key strategic role in US military operations.

In the 1970s, it offered proximity to Asia during the fall of Saigon and the Khmer Rouge takeover in Cambodia, and as the Soviet navy extended its influence in the region.

In recent years it has served as a staging ground for US bombing campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.

Britain in the early 1970s also evicted the archipelago's residents -- some 2,000 in total -- to Mauritius and the Seychelles to make way for the base.

Mauritius' top lawyer in the case Philippe Sands on Monday played an emotional video of Chagossian Marie Elyse, as she tearfully described her desire to return to the "island of my birth."

"The desire to return, and the inability to do so, offer tangible evidence that the decolonisation of Mauritius is yet to be completed," Sands said.

Last year's vote before the UN whether to refer the matter to the ICJ was also seen as a test for Britain's ability to rally support from fellow Europeans at the world body, after its shock vote to leave the European Union.

The matter was passed 95-15, with 65 abstentions -- most by European member states including France, Italy and Spain.

London, ahead of Monday's hearings, pledged to mount a "robust defence" saying the move was bound to hurt relations with Port Louis.
Mohammad Javad Zarif's trip to the Iranian ally also comes just days before a top-level tripartite meeting in Tehran to discuss the Syrian conflict, now in its eighth year.

On Monday, he met Syria's chief diplomat Walid Muallem, according to a statement published by the foreign ministry in Damascus.

"They shared identical views on the importance of strengthening bilateral coordination and political discussions in the coming phase," it said.

It said the pair discussed political and military developments "in preparation for the tripartite summit for guarantors of the Astana process."

Since early 2017, Iran, fellow regime ally Russia and rebel backer Turkey have sponsored a negotiations track based in the Kazakh capital to tamp down hostilities in Syria.

The presidents of the three countries are due to meet in Tehran on Friday to discuss the conflict.

Last year, they had designated Idlib province in the northwest as a "de-escalation" zone where violence would halt in preparation for a countrywide ceasefire.

But Syrian government forces are now massing around the province, which has become the last rebel bastion in the country.

Idlib is held by a complex array of rebels and jihadists, many of whom have been blacklisted as "terrorists" by world powers.

Russia and Iran have insisted that jihadist groups in Idlib must be defeated and are expected to back regime forces in any assault.

"Iran will remain a supporter of the Syrian government in its efforts to remove terrorists from its land, and it will continue its advisory role and help the Syrian government in the upcoming Idlib campaign," Iran foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Ghasemi said.

Zarif was also due to meet Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, according to semi-official news agency ISNA.

Tehran has provided steady political, financial and military backing to Assad throughout the war, which has left over 350,000 people dead since it broke out in 2011.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif has said that armed groups must be "cleaned out" of Idlib province in northwestern Syria, Al Jazeera reported citing Iranian media.

Zarif made the remarks while visiting Damascus on Monday, where he arrived for talks with Syrian government officials.

The top Iranian diplomat was scheduled to hold meetings with President Bashar al-Assad and Prime Minister Imad Khamis on bilateral relations and the latest developments in the war.

"All of Syrian territory must be preserved and all the sects and groups should start the round of reconstruction as one collective and the displaced should return to their families," Zarif said, according to Fars news agency.

"And the remaining terrorists in the remaining parts of Idlib must be cleaned out and the region should be placed back under the control of the Syrian people," Zarif added.
49-year-old Donella Knox is set to be released from prison later this week, after serving two years of a 4-year sentence for murder.

Knox killed her autistic daughter at their Blenheim home in May 2016 after a 20-year battle in which she witnessed multiple violent outbursts and years of feeling let down by New Zealand's health system.

Wendyl Nissen talked with the lawyer of Donella Knox, Simon Shamy, who says she is 'very happy' to be released from prison in a couple of days time.

Lifeline missing 1 in 4 calls due to funding shortage
Professor of International Relations at Otago University Robert Patman joins RadioLIVE's Mark Sainsbury to discuss the latest in world politics.

This week's topics:

British Prime Minister Theresa May says she will not compromise with Brussels over her plans for Brexit as a media report said rivals in her party were set to publish their own proposal calling for a cleaner break with the European Union. A memorial service for the late US Senator John McCain turned into a stinging rebuke of President Donald Trump. McCain's daughter, two former presidents and political figures called for a return to civility in their tributes.

After announcing his presidential ambitions in 2015, Kanye West has pushed back his running date from 2020 to 2024. He suggested he now had his view on the 2024 election rather than 2020, avoiding contending against current US President Donald Trump, who West has praised.

Listen to the full interview with Professor Robert Patman above.

Morning Talk with Mark Sainsbury, 9am - 12pm Weekdays and streaming live on 'rova' channel 9 - available on Android and iPhone.

RadioLIVE.
Julian Waters joins RadioLIVEs Vaughn Davis to take a look at the latest in app news.

YouTube is about to get a lot more unskippable ads

YouTube announced the move in a video posted to its official Creator Insider account, framing it as a positive for video producers.

The change will force users to sit through video ads of up to 15-20 seconds when watching clips from all sorts of content creators.

That's up to four times longer than the current five second viewing time for the company's more typical ads that can be skipped.

Vaughn thinks he might have noticed this already.

China moves to limit gaming time

This week there was a call to action from Chinas leader after too many of Chinas children need glasses, and the government intends to implement changes.

Chinese regulators believe that children should not exceed a 15 minute period on tech devices.

Local app of the week: Hawkes Bay App

Some folks in Hawkes Bay have set out to make one regional app to rule them all.

The app provides:

Council info

News

Shipping news! But as a huge image

Weather

Events

Shopping

Vaughn reckons its more of a community directory but worth downloading for ios and Android before visiting the Hawkes Bay  plus its free!

To hear about all of the other hottest apps of the week, listen to the audio with Julian Waters above.

Sunday Social with Vaughn Davis, 7pm - 8pm on RadioLIVE and streaming live to the Rova app on Android and iPhone.

RadioLIVE.
Skeptic Mark Honeychurch joins RadioLIVE's Graeme Hill to expose this weeks woos and scams.

He did a lot of field work this week.

Kandallah School in Wellington seems very keen on allowing evangelists in to preach their Christian beliefs.

Mr Honeychurch turned up at the school to advocate for secular education and copped some flak.

He also attended an Allergy Expo and sampled some of the remedies on offer, including wacky magnet stuff, some kinesiology woo and life improvement courses aligned with Scientology.

Mr Honeychurch also chips in about the horrendous Catholic child rape and subsequent cover-up.

Listen to the full interview with Mark Honeychurch above.



Weekend Variety Wireless with Graeme Hill, 8pm - midnight Saturdays and Sundays, on RadioLIVE and streaming live to the Rova app on Android and iPhone.

RadioLIVE.
On August 28 Container Corp of India celebrated the introduction of containers fitted with an electronic cargo tracking system on the route from Visakhapatnam Port to the container terminal at Birgunj in Nepal.
CANADA: Arctic Gateway Group has bought the 1 300 km Hudson Bay Railway and associated port facilities in Churchill from OmniTRAX, the government announced on August 31. This is expected to allow repairs to the flood-damaged infrastructure to get underway with the aim of restoring train services by the winter.
POLAND: Infrastructure manager PKP PLK signed an agreement with Deputy Prime Minister Beata Szydo and Infrastructure Minister Andrzej Adamczyk on August 27 for 500m zoty towards the modernisation of the Oswiecim  Czechowice Dziedzice route.
Indian media group Viacom18 plans to launch its video-on-demand (VOD) service VOOT in the UK in November.





VOOT will be offered as a freemium service rather than a subscription model, in partnership with UK telcos, the company said.There are two important cost components if one goes behind the paywall. One is the acquisition cost and the other is marketing. At this juncture as we test the international water our thinking is that partnering with telcos is a good step forward, Viacom18 MD Sudhanshu Vats is reported as saying in Television Post.Viacom18 channels such as Colors, Rishtey, Colors HD, MTV Beats and Rishtey Cineplex are already available in the UK, which is home to 1.8 million people of Indian origin.Voot is also set to launch 18 original series over the coming months, starting with chat show Feet Up With Stars, hosted by Anaita Shroff. Celebrities set to feature on the show include Karan Johar, Sonam Kapoor, Rajkumar Rao, Ayushmann Khuranna and Bhumi Pednekar.The new series will be produced in collaboration with Viacom18 Motion Pictures Tipping Point Films and Viacom18s regional TV network . Three will be original regional web series: Dagalti (Tamil), Sirrai (Tamil) and I See You (Kannada).Voot content head Monika Shergill said we have been extremely lucky to be partnering with a galaxy of very talented and committed actors, writers and directors to bring forth our second bundle of Voot Originals, starting with 18 multi-genre and multi-lingual series.The VOD platform also now offers live news through the addition of TV18s bouquet of 16 channels in 13 languages.
The international rolling news channel broadcast in French, English, Arabic and Spanish to 355 million households around the world, has been available to UK audiences in standard definition in the UK since 2012. The four France 24 channels have a combined weekly viewership of 61.2 million viewers, according to measurements in 67 of the 183 countries where the channel is broadcast. From its newsroom in Paris, France 24 gives a French perspective on global affairs through a network of 160 correspondent bureaux located in nearly every country. It is available via cable, satellite, DTT, ADSL, on mobile phones, tablets and connected TVs, as well as on YouTube in four languages.The new deal with Arqiva means that UK customers of Sky and Freesat can access its breaking news coverage in HD with immediate effect. Arqiva will provide its satellite services to deliver the France 24 service to Sky and Freesat through its media facility in Paris. Using its proprietary encoding technology , Arqiva is also helping France 24 optimise the use of satellite capacity for HD delivery.The most satisfying wins are undoubtedly those that result from a long-standing, successful relationship with a partner  we are delighted that we can help France 24 with the next phase of its growth, remarked Arqiva managing director, satellite and media, Alex Pannell. Arqiva prides itself on delivering high quality services that are flexible to the specific needs of our customers, and as France 24 reaches more and more audiences in the coming years, we look forward to evolving our proposition with them.Added David Couret, director of technical distributions at France 24: The launch of France 24 HD represents an important step in our journey to bring instant, high quality news and events coverage to UK viewers, and it is crucial to have a trusted partner like Arqiva working alongside us on this project. Arqiva helped us launch our first UK SD channel back in 2012, and its reliable service and technical expertise has been critical in helping us to grow in this essential market.
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The United States in recent years sometimes used crude intelligence methods trying to recruit Russian citizens in the capacity of their informers, Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told the media on Monday, TASS reports.

"In recent years the United States has been using crude intelligence methods in its attempts to recruit Russian citizens by putting pressure on them," Peskov said in the wake of an article in The New York Times claiming that US secret services had tried to persuade Russian businessman Oleg Deripaska to become their informer and in this way to obtain confirmation of alleged Russian intervention in US elections.

Peskov said such media reports "give much food for thought, but at the same time they are an obvious illustration of the United States recent practices."

"Bearing in mind the fact that such businessmen as Oleg Deripaska are major shareholders and heads of large business structures and industrial processes involving tens of thousands and sometimes hundreds of thousands of people, including those employed in rather sensitive branches of the Russian economy, such incidents clearly testify to attempts at intervention in Russias internal affairs," Peskov said.

He skipped the question if US secret services had used similar attempts towards other major Russian businessmen, adding that such questions should be addressed "to our major businessmen."
BARKHAMSTED  While many have gone back to school, members of the First Congregational Church of Barkhamsted (FCCB) will be hosting the traditional Old Home Day on Sunday, Sept. 9. The programs begin at 10 a.m. with a congregational worship service followed by a prepared lunch served outside the church on the portico, weather permitting, or inside Fellowship Hall.

Everyone is welcome to bring beverages or desserts since those items are not being provided. The church is located at 6 Old Town Hall Road in Barkhamsted. For directions or information visit www.barkhamstedfirstchurch.org.

The historic background of Old Home Day originated from the 1979 celebration of Barkhamsteds 100th anniversary of becoming an incorporated town in 1879.

The church will also be welcoming a new organist on Old Home Day as well. Laurie Pont Hall, a Harwinton resident will be the new FCCB organist. She is the accompanist for the Connecticut Yankee Chorale and has served as organist this summer for the Church of the Transfiguration in Norfolk. Prior to that, she was the organist at the First Congregational Church of Litchfield for 15 years, directed the bell choir and also directed the senior choir after becoming music director in 2008.

We are very excited to have Laurie as our organist since we have been without proper musical leadership at the church since early 2018, said the church pastor, the Re. Susan Wyman. We hope that any members of the community seeking a home church or those who have taken a break from services this summer will consider visiting us this fall. New residents and visitors to the area are always welcome here in Barkhamsted, including children of all ages.

Wymans sermon for Sept. 9 will be The Church Family.

Activities following the service will be held outside, weather permitting, or inside the church Fellowship Hall, located near the intersection of Rte. 181, Boettner and Day Roads.

All are welcome and all services are free. For more information call Rev. Susan Wyman at 860-379-7300. On the day of the event, call the church at 860-379-5864.
Parents protest a hike in school fees in Hunan's Leiyang city, where police detained nearly 50 people amid clashes with hundreds of protesters, Sept. 1, 2018.

Authorities in the central Chinese province of Hunan have detained dozens of people following a mass protest over new schooling arrangements that led to the children of migrants from out of town being charged massively increased fees.

Police in Hunan's Leiyang city said they had detained nearly 50 people amid clashes with hundreds of protesters who gathered outside a police station over the weekend.

They said the 46 people were detained for "attacking" the police station and pelting local officials with bottles and bricks as they appealed for calm.

Video footage of the standoff showed police with riot gear facing off with an angry crowd, with a number of plastic bottles on the ground nearby.

Meanwhile, footage of a public meeting seen by RFA showed angry parents in a hall, shouting at a row of public officials seated on a dais.

The protest came after local education authorities announced a massive hike in the effective cost of dormitory accommodation for students in the fifth and sixth year of primary education, local sources said.

"The Leiyang city government has farmed out the year five and year six students," a local journalist surnamed Zhu told RFA. "They are being forced to pay more than 10,000 yuan [in dormitory fees] when before it was a little over 2,000 yuan."

"They are entitled to nine years' free and compulsory education, but they have put the fees up to more than 10,000 yuan," he said. "People here aren't rich, and it's a bit much for them to put the fees up so high."

Chinese students of all ages are increasingly staying in school dormitories during the academic year, either during the week or full-time, to enable their parents to hold down full-time jobs, often in other cities, to meet family expenses.

He said the arrests came after "protesters clashed with police. Nobody died, but some people were definitely injured."

Swift censorship of news

A doctor who answered the phone at the Leiyang City Hospital on Sunday confirmed Zhu's report.

He said ambulances from his hospital and others in the city had been called to the scene.

"We were on call and at the scene from Saturday onwards," the doctor said. "A number of hospitals got patients [from the incident]."

A Leiyang resident who gave only his surname Yang said the authorities had farmed out students for alternative accommodation under a new scheme that allowed them to split classes.

"[Saturday's protest] was about the fees, which meant that if your household registration [hukou] isn't in Leiyang, you will have to pay fees equivalent to private schooling," Yang said. "They didn't even make it clear whether it had to be an urban hukou, or whether people from the countryside around Leiyang [would qualify for the lower rate]."

Online comments had also complained of unsafe levels of formaldehyde in recently renovated dormitories, Agence France-Presse reported.

Government censors moved swiftly to delete social media posts about the incident, AFP said.

Yang confirmed these reports.

"The parents suspect that the [formaldehyde] readings would be over [the legal limit]," Yang said. "Yesterday's clashes happened because a lot of people are affected, and the authorities are now shutting down [online posts] about this."

Reported by Wong Siu-san and Lau Siu-fung for RFA's Cantonese Service, and by Han Qing for the Mandarin Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Monday that US President Donald Trump and US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo understood that better relations with Russia were in the US interest, UrduPoint reported.

"Personal contacts are of significant importance. I was present at the meeting between [Russian] President [Vladimir] Putin with President Trump, I held talks with Secretaries of States [Rex] Tillerson and Pompeo. Those are people who, in my opinion, understand the need to get along with us in the interest of the United States, as they say themselves," Lavrov told students of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations (MGIMO).
Banner posted at Chinese University of Hong Kong amid a dispute over freedom of speech and the right to debate independence for the city, Sept. 3, 2018.

The leader of a prominent students' union in Hong Kong issued a call for independence for the city during an inauguration ceremony for the new academic year.

Au Cheuk-hei, president of the Chinese University of Hong Kong's student union, said "is a way forward for Hong Kong."

But, as a political viewpoint, it was "neither right nor wrong," Au said, calling on his fellow students to pay more attention to current events and to stand up against injustice.

Au said he believed that recent talk of independence for the city came out of a desire to experience "for real" the high degree of autonomy promised to Hong Kong under the terms of the 1997 handover to China.

His comments were immediately criticized by the city's education secretary Kevin Yeung.

"Hong Kong independence is not feasible in terms of our jurisprudence, actual situation and history, nor is it in line with Hong Kong's status as a part of [China]," Yeung told reporters on Monday.

"Therefore, in the school environment, there is no need or need to publicize or discuss Hong Kong independence ... Such a discussion can only end in one way."

"I wish to reiterate that we feel that it is not necessary to discuss or reaffirm the individual's views on Hong Kong independence at university opening ceremonies," Yeung said.

"Students and student representatives should not talk about Hong Kong independence on these occasions," he said.

He said it was up to the university to "follow up" on such incidents.

Under the terms of the 1997 handover agreement, Hong Kong was promised the continuation of its existing freedoms of speech, association and publication for 50 years.

CUHK vice chancellor Rocky Tuan said students have freedom of expression, but only if it is deemed "responsible."

"Freedom of expression is the cornerstone, is a core value of the university, and so therefore we will always allow discussion when it's done in a rational and peaceful and mutually respectful way, and also in a responsible manner," Tuan told reporters.

"In any of these topics we encourage the students to communicate with us, and we will also actively reach out to them."

Proposed ban of HKNP

But Au told local media that Tuan had warned the union in an earlier meeting that the university campus "is not a place for political wrangling."

The Hong Kong government last month hit out at the city's Foreign Correspondents' Club (FCC) after it went ahead with plans to allow a pro-independence politician to speak at a lunch event in the face of widespread criticism from ruling Chinese Communist Party officials and supporters.

Chan Ho-tin, also known as Andy Chan, who heads the pro-independence Hong Kong National Party (HKNP), gave his lunchtime address to the club in spite of warnings and threats from Hong Kong officials, and amid calls for the government to evict the club from its premises in the downtown Central district.

Chan's political views "inappropriate and unacceptable," and constituted a "direct affront to the national sovereignty, security and territorial integrity of the People's Republic of China," according to the Hong Kong government.

Hong Kong police have gathered more than 700 documents as "evidence" in support of a proposed ban of the HKNP, citing many public speeches and comments made by Chan.

Police say the party's aims of building a republic of Hong Kong and abolishing its mini-constitution, the Basic Law, are in violation of the law's first principle; that Hong Kong is an administrative region of the People's Republic of China.

They cite Chan's pro-independence activities, which include "infiltrating" secondary schools via his party's "political enlightenment" program, publishing articles, taking part in elections to the Legislative Council (LegCo), and various fund-raising and campaigning activities on the streets of Hong Kong.

Claiming that the HKNP has plans in place to achieve the purpose of promoting localism and separatism, police say the party poses an "imminent threat" to Chinas territorial integrity and national security, because Chan had refused to rule out the use of force or civil disobedience.

The Security Bureau has extended a deadline for the party to respond to the police recommendation until Sept. 14 at Chan's request, it said on Monday.

Critics say the Hong Kong government is now criminalizing speech in the city at the behest of the ruling Chinese Communist Party, for whom talk of independence is anathema.

Under the United Nations-endorsed Johannesburg Principles governing national security and human rights law, restrictions to freedom of speech on the grounds of national security aren't legitimate if they seek to "entrench a particular ideology," rather than to stave off a violent threat of a military or internal nature.

Reported by Lau Siu-fung for RFA's Cantonese Service. Translated and edited by Luisetta Mudie.
Reuters journalists Kyaw Soe Oo (L) and Wa Lone (R) are escorted by police after their sentencing by a court to seven years in jail in Yangon, Sept. 3, 2018.

A Myanmar judge on Monday jailed two Reuters journalists for seven years after finding them guilty of breaching a law on state secrets, drawing widespread criticism for the Southeast Asian country already under a cloud for a brutal crackdown on Rohingya Muslims.

Yangon northern district judge Ye Lwin said Wa Lone violated the colonial-era Official Secrets Act when they obtained confidential documents during their reporting on the killing of Rohingya villagers by security forces in Rakhine state.

"The defendants ... have breached Official Secrets Act section 3.1.c, and are sentenced to seven years," the judge said, according to Reuters News Agency.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, had pleaded not guilty earlier this year, arguing they were doing their jobs as reporters, did not collect or copy documents, and did nothing to harm the states interests.

The two were formally charged on Jan. 10, roughly a month after they were arrested on the outskirts of Yangon on Dec. 12 following dinner with two police officers who gave them papers related to a brutal military crackdown on Rohingya Muslims in western Myanmars Rakhine state.

At the time of their arrest, the two reporters were working on a story about the murders of 10 Rohingya civilians from Inn Din village in northern Rakhine state, and the news agency later produced a gripping account of the killings by soldiers and ethnic Rakhine Buddhist neighbors.

In April, a police officer called as a witness for the prosecution gave sworn testimony that a police brigadier general had ordered subordinates to set up the reporters and arrest them for possessing state secrets for their work investigating violence against the Rohingya.

Following an investigation of the incident, the Myanmar military sentenced seven officers and soldiers of other ranks involved in the extrajudicial killings of the 10 Rohingya men to 10 years in prison.

"Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere," Reuters editor in chief Stephen J Adler said in a statement.



"We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum."

"What I want to say to the government is: you can put us in jail, but do not close the eyes and ears of the people," Reuters quoted Kyaw Soe Oo as saying.

Reporters unbowed

Wa Lone, in handcuffs and flanked by police, told supporters and reporters after the verdict not to worry, Reuters reported.



"We know we did nothing wrong. I have no fear. I believe in justice, democracy and freedom," he said.

Khin Mg Saw, one of the pairs defense lawyers said: What we had asked for is justice but it was denied. And this is a message for you guys too  Keep quiet. Dont get nosey.

The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, said the verdict "sends a message to all journalists in Myanmar that they cannot operate fearlessly, but must rather make a choice to either self-censor or risk prosecution".

ASEAN Parliamentarians for Human Rights Chairman Charles Santiago, a Malaysian lawmaker, called the verdict a travesty of justice which undermines press freedom and the judicial system in Myanmar.

These two men are being ripped from their families for no good reason, he added in a statement.

The outrageous convictions of the Reuters journalists show Myanmar courts willingness to muzzle those reporting on military atrocities, said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. These sentences mark a new low for press freedom and further backsliding on rights under Aung San Suu Kyis government.



The New York-based Human Rights Watch said in a statement that the prosecutions case was marked by inconsistencies and irregularities, including conflicting official accounts and evidence of police misconduct.

Inside Myanmar there was sympathy for the two reporters, whom many observers believe were set up by police.

I think its meant to deter objective reporting of the Rakhine issue. Im sure they want to cover up the entrapment of the two reporters, said Myint Kyaw of the Media Council.

Its a scary message to all media, he told RFAs Myanmar Service.

Aung Thane, a lawyer and Upper House Member of Parliament for the ruling National League for Democracy (NLD), said charging the journalists for handling official secrets is not a natural and true way of working on a case. 

These reporters did their jobs by sending news from somewhere to another place. Is that secret?

Disappointment in Aung San Suu Kyi

The Reuters verdict follows an embarrassing week for the Myanmar government of de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi, with U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres calling on Wednesday for accountability for Myanmars horrendous persecution of Rohingya Muslims by security forces that drove more than 700,000 members of the minority group to Bangladesh, after deadly attacks by a Muslim military group on Aug. 25, 2017.

The day before, the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar, working under a mandate from the U.N.-backed Human Rights Council, issued a damning report that called for Myanmar military leaders, including Commander-in-chief Senior General Min Aung Hlaing, to be prosecuted for genocide against the Rohingya.

On Monday, social media giant Facebook said it was removing 18 Facebook accounts, one Instagram account, and 52 Facebook pages linked to the Myanmar military .

Myanmars leadership should immediately quash the verdicts and release Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, Adams said.

These convictions wont hide the horrors against the Rohingya from the world  they merely reveal the precarious state of free speech in the country and the urgent need for international action to free these journalists.

Myanmar Deputy Information Minister Aung Hla Htun told RFA I am personally sorry for them, but they still can appeal.

The two reporters can appeal by discussing with their lawyers. The Information Ministry cant interfere with the judiciary.

NLDs Spokesman Myo Nyunt declined to comment on the ruling, citing the separation of power.

If reporters think the decision is not fair, they can appeal at higher courts. As I am a former political prisoner, I am really sorry for them, he said.

Malaysian lawmaker Santiago said the verdict is a disappointment in a region where the media is under pressure from authoritarian rulers.

Initial high hopes that a Myanmar under Aung San Suu Kyi would side itself with those countries pushing for greater democracy and freedom in Southeast Asia are becoming increasingly dim, he said.

Reported by Kyaw Htun Naing, Nay Rein Kyaw, Htet Arkar and Kyaw Thu for RFAs Myanmar Service. Translated by Khin Maung Nyane and Khet Mar. Written in English by Paul Eckert.
A Dutch judge has ordered a 19-year-old Afghan man held for a further two weeks on suspicion of stabbing two U.S. citizens at Amsterdam's main train station in a suspected terrorist attack.



Following a behind-closed-doors hearing, the judge extended the suspect's custody because of fears he may flee, repeat the crime, or violate the law, an Amsterdam court said on September 3.



Meanwhile, prosecutors said the suspect, identified as "Jawed S., travelled to the Netherlands to carry out an attack because of what he said were repeated insults to the Prophet Mohammad, the Koran, Islam, and Allah.



German Interior Ministry spokesman Harald Neymanns earlier said that the suspect was registered as an asylum seeker in Germany.



Neymanns also said that German police had no information that he was considered a threat to security.

Two American tourists were seriously injured on August 31 when the suspect attacked people with a knife in the crowded train station near Amsterdams city center.

Police at the station quickly shot the man in the lower body. He was taken to the hospital, as were the two injured men.

Thousands of commuters and tourists were evacuated from the train station after the attack. The site is a major hub for international tourists visiting Amsterdam.

Based on reporting by AFP, AP, dpa, and Channel News Asia
YEREVAN -- Armenian Prime Minister Nikol Pashinian has downplayed problems in Yerevan's relations with Moscow, describing them as a "work process in its natural course."

Answering questions from citizens in a live Facebook broadcast late on September 2, Pashinian also announced his upcoming visit to Moscow, during which he will meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

He gave no indications of the date of the planned meeting but said it will take place soon.

"This will be our third meeting, and...we will discuss numerous issues that are on the agenda of our relations and will find solutions to numerous problems," Pashinian said.

"I don't mean to insist that all possible problems will be solved, but I can surely say that our natural cooperation continues," he added.

Some analysts suggest that Russia was irked by several moves by the new Armenian government that included the prosecution of former President Robert Kocharian and several other senior former officials on charges related to the deadly postelection crackdown on opposition protesters in 2008.

Among those charged with "overthrowing the constitutional order" is Yuri Khachaturov, a former deputy defense minister who currently chairs the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization.

In July, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov denounced the prosecutions, arguing that they ran counter to the new Armenian leadership's earlier pledges not to "persecute its predecessors for political motives."

In August, Pashinian, who played a key role in the 2008 protests as an opposition figure, said Moscow should "adapt" to the new political realities of Armenia.

Speculation about souring Armenian-Russian relations increased last week when the Kremlin's official website said Russian President Putin called Kocharian on August 31 to congratulate him on his 64th birthday.

The Kremlin reported no other details of the phone call that came two weeks after Kocharian pledged to return to active politics and challenge the current Armenian government.

In another development, the Russian Interfax news agency reported on August 31 that Moscow had refused to extradite to Yerevan a former Armenian defense minister, Mikael Harutiunian, who is thought to live in Russia, on the grounds that he is also a Russian citizen.

However, a spokesman for Armenian prosecutors denied the report, saying that they were unaware of Harutiunian's whereabouts.

Harutiunian is wanted in Armenia on charges stemming from his alleged role in the 2008 postelection crackdown.

In a separate development on September 3, Armenias parliament speaker, Ara Babloyan, expressed hope that Armenia will receive contracts from the Syrian government for reconstruction projects.



Babloyan made the remarks during a meeting with Syrias ambassador to Armenia, Mohammed Haj Ibrahim.



Backed by Russia and Iran, forces loyal to the government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad are preparing an offensive in Idlib Province, the last stronghold of fighters opposed to Assad.



That has put Russia and Iranian firms in a position where they are expected to get contracts from the Syrian government for reconstruction projects in the war-torn country.



The United States and its allies say reconstruction assistance should be tied to a process that includes UN-supervised elections and a political transition in Syria.
Amnesty International has called on the Russian authorities to disclose the whereabouts of a Chechen refugee who was forcibly disappeared hours after being deported to Russia from Poland last week.

The London-based human rights watchdog made the appeal in a statement on September 3, three days after the Polish authorities deported Azamat Baiduyev to Russia on August 31.

At around midnight on September 1, armed men wearing Federal Security Service and Interior Ministry insignia came to the house where Baiduyev was staying in the Chechen village of Shalazhi, Amnesty quoted eyewitnesses as saying.

Baiduyev was taken to an unknown location with no explanation, and his family was refused information about his fate and whereabouts, the group added.

"There could hardly be a better illustration of why it is not safe to return Chechen refugees to Russia," said Denis Krivosheyev, acting regional director for Eastern Europe and Central Asia at Amnesty International.

Krivosheyev said Baiduyev should be immediately released, unless he is reasonably suspected of any recognizable crime.

Baiduyev reportedly received asylum in Poland in 2007 but later moved to Belgium, where he was detained in 2017 in connection with an alleged involvement in planning terrorist activities.

Belgian authorities did not charge Bayduev with any crime, and deported him to Poland. In April this year, the Polish authorities placed Bayduev in a deportation center for irregular migrants, before deporting him to Russia.

By returning Bayduev to a country where his life and safety is at risk, Poland was clearly in breach of its international obligations, Krivosheev said.

This chilling incident is part of a well-documented pattern of horrendous human rights violations in Chechnya, he added.

On August 30, 15 members of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) enacted the Vienna Human Dimension Mechanism, requesting concrete information concerning human rights violations in Chechnya and demanding effective investigations.

The delegations of 13 European states, the United States, and Canada cited alleged worrying actions taken by Chechen authorities against persons based on their perceived or actual sexual orientation or gender identity, as well as human right defenders, lawyers, independent media, civil society organizations, and others.

Russias apparent unwillingness or inability to address these serious human rights violations has contributed to a climate of impunity for authorities in Chechnya in perpetrating such violations, they said.
A German court has given an 8 1/2-year prison sentence to a failed asylum seeker who claims to be from Afghanistan over the stabbing death of his 15-year-old ex-girlfriend.



The verdict in the town of Landau in der Pfalz on September 3 follows a weekend of protests by rival sides in the migrant debate.



Identified as Abdul D., the defendant admitted to the court that he stabbed the girl at a drugstore in the southwestern town of Kandel on December 27.



Prosecutors argued that he acted out of jealousy and revenge after the girl, a German citizen, broke up with him.



The convicts lawyer told reporters after the Landau district court's decision that his client "accepted" the sentence.



The trial was held behind closed doors in a juvenile court, where prosecutors had sought a maximum term of 10 years.



The accused said he was 15 at the time of the crime, but an expert medical assessment said that he was more likely to be between 17 and 20 years old.



The case sparked national outrage and led to German far-right groups holding protests as part of their campaign against migrants.



An anti-migrant rally in the eastern city of Chemnitz on September 1 drew about 8,000 far-right demonstrators angered by the fatal stabbing of a 35-year-old man that allegedly was carried out by a Syrian and an Iraqi.



Police said about 3,000 counterprotesters turned out to oppose the anti-migrant demonstrators.



Rallies also took place in Kandel.

Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, and the BBC
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has called on his country's armed forces to bolster their defense capacities, while also playing down the possibility of war breaking out.

Khamenei, in comments to military commanders, "emphasized that based on political calculations there is no likelihood of a military war but added that the armed forces must be vigilant...and raise their personnel and equipment capacities," his official website said on September 2.

The remarks came a day after Iran announced plans to increase its ballistic- and cruise-missile capacity and acquire modern jet fighters and submarines amid rising tensions with the United States.

Khamenei's website said the meeting with military commanders took place to mark Iran's Air Defense Day.

A war of words has intensified with the United States since President Donald Trump pulled out of the landmark 2015 nuclear deal that Iran signed with six world powers.

Trump complained that the deal was not tough enough and that Tehran was violating the spirit of the accord by continuing to develop ballistic missiles and by supporting militant activity in the region. The deal gave Iran some relief from sanctions in return for curbs on its nuclear program.

The United States and its Western allies have also demanded that Iran end its military support for Syrian President Bashar al-Assad in that country's seven-year civil war.

And Reuters on August 31 cited three Iranian officials, two Iraqi intelligence sources, and two Western intelligence sources in reporting that Iran had sent short-range ballistic missiles to its Shi'ite militia allies in Iraq and is developing capacity to allow them to build missiles there.

Tehran has denied it has transferred missiles to Iraq or that it is assisting insurgents in the region and has said its nuclear program is strictly for civilian purposes.

Separately, Iranian state media reported that British Minister of State for the Middle East Alistair Burt held talks in Iran on September 2 as Tehran said European states should take action if they wanted to save the nuclear deal.

Iran has called on the European signees -- Britain, France, and Germany -- to help Tehran offset some of the financial damage caused by the U.S. pullout of the deal and the reimposition of sanctions.

The move has been deepening a financial crisis in Iran that has sent its currency tumbling, leading to increased antigovernment street protests in many cities.

Further U.S. sanctions are due in November, including measures to prevent Iran from selling oil.

"It is time for the Europeans to act in addition to voicing their political commitment," IRNA quoted Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif as saying.

"These measures may be costly, but if countries want to reap benefits and if they believe the nuclear accord is an international achievement, they should be ready to keep these achievements," he added.

A day earlier, Iran dismissed comments by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian that Iran "cannot avoid" entering talks on its ballistic-missile arsenal, its nuclear plans, and its role in wars in Syria and Yemen.

State media reported that Zarif had spoken by phone with Le Drian, saying they discussed bilateral ties, the nuclear deal, and regional issues.

Before his visit, Burt said, "As long as Iran meets its commitments under the deal, we remain committed to it as we believe it is the best way to ensure a safe, secure future for the region."

Britain is also seeking the release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a British-Iranian aid worker and project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation.

She was arrested in April 2016 at a Tehran airport and is serving a five-year sentence after being convicted of plotting against the Iranian government, a charge denied by her family and the foundation.

With reporting by Reuters, IRNA, and AFP
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif was in Damascus on September 3 for talks with President Bashar al-Assad and other Syrian officials ahead of an expected military offensive by Syrian government forces in Idlib Province, the last opposition stronghold in Syria.



The visit also comes days before a summit between the leaders of Russia, Iran, and Turkey to discuss the Syrian conflict, now in its eighth year.

During their meeting, Zarif and Assad "asserted that the pressures from some Western states on Syria and Tehran will not deter the two countries from continuing to defend their principles," the Syrian president's office said in a statement.



Zarif earlier met with his Syrian counterpart, Foreign Minister Walid al-Muallem, to discuss political and military developments "in preparation for the tripartite summit," according to Syria's Foreign Ministry.



"They shared identical views on the importance of strengthening bilateral coordination and political discussions in the coming phase," a statement said.

Zarif also held talks with Syrian Prime Minister Imad Khamis, who told Iran's minister that Syria's reconstruction plans would be carried out with the help of Iranian and Russian companies, Iran's semiofficial Fars news agency reported.

Backed by Russia and Iran, Assad has vowed to defeat the opposition fighters in Idlib if they do not surrender to Syrian government rule.

Fars quoted Zarif as saying in Damascus that "the remaining terrorists in the remaining parts of Idlib must be cleaned out and the region should be placed back under the control of the Syrian people."

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in Moscow on September 3 that Syrian government forces had the right to "liquidate terrorists" in Idlib.

Syrian, Russian, and Iranian officials often refer to any armed opponent of the Damascus government as a "terrorist."

But U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said on August 31 that Washington would consider an assault in Idlib by Assad's forces as an escalation of Syria's war.

The State Department has also warned that Washington would respond to any chemical attack carried out by Syrian government forces.

With some 3 million people now living in Idlib and the surrounding area, United Nations officials have warned that a government offensive could displace 800,000 people.

The Kremlin on September 3 confirmed that Russian President Vladimir Putin would travel to Tehran on September 7 for talks with the leaders of Iran and Turkey about the situation in Syria.

Zarif said in Damascus that those talks also would focus on the battle against remaining militant groups that are fighting government forces in Syria.

Zarif said the talks would be "a continuation of the three-way political round" that examines "the methods of how to confront extremist and terrorist groups, like Tahrir al-Sham."

Tahrir al-Sham, which includes the Al-Qaeda-linked group formerly known as the Al-Nusra Front, is the most powerful militant alliance in Idlib Province.

Last week, Iran's defense minister travelled to Damascus and signed an agreement on military cooperation between the two countries.

With reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, Interfax, TASS, and Fars
Japanese news media are reporting that the country's major oil wholesalers are preparing to suspend crude imports next month.

Jiji Press agency and Kyodo on September 3 reported that the action comes in response to U.S. sanctions against Tehran and threats they could be extended to companies doing business with Iran.

U.S. President Donald Trump in May pulled out of the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran and almost immediately began reimposing sanctions against Tehran.

Washington has said it will reimpose sanctions on Iran's oil exports and banking sector in early November, with the goal being to bring other countries' imports of Iranian oil down to zero.

Jiji Press said it appeared Japan will be unsuccessful in its efforts to get a waiver from Washington that would allow it to continue importing oil from Iran.

That has forced Japanese oil companies to prepare to suspend Iranian imports and look for ways to switch to other Middle East producers, Japanese media report.

A Trade Ministry official confirmed to AFP that Japan had requested a waiver but declined to comment further.

A spokeswoman for crude wholesaler Showa Shell Sekiyu told AFP that the company will "observe a government decision" on Iranian oil imports but would not provide specifics.

Other wholesalers declined to comment.

Japan is reliant on outside sources for energy, importing 80 percent of its oil from the Middle East in recent years.

The Japanese government said Saudi Arabia is Japans largest supplier of crude at 39 percent. Iran is sixth at about 5 percent.

In August, Iran's oil minister said that French oil-and-natural-gas company Total had "officially left" Iran in the face of the U.S. threats.

U.S. sanctions have had a major impact on Iran's economy, leading to public discontent and putting pressure on President Hassan Rohani's government.

With reporting by AFP, Jiji, and Kyodo
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A Kyrgyz husband and wife have been convicted of child neglect for refusing to send their kids to public school. The family belongs to a secretive Muslim sect called Yaqyn Inkar, banned as an extremist group in Kyrgyzstan, which avoids contact with all public institutions.
A number of rallies and other events to honor victims of terrorist attacks, including the one in Beslan in 2004, were held in Moscow on Monday, the Day of Solidarity in the Fight Against Terrorism, the city authorities said, UrduPoint reported citing Sputnik. The day marks the 14th anniversary of the tragic events in Russia's city of Beslan, where hundreds of children and adults were held hostage by terrorists in a school. Over 300 people were killed, hundreds were injured.

As deputy chairman of the Ossetian government, Boris Dzhanaev, said in an interview with Vestnik Kavkaza, memory of the dead, both children and adults, will remain in the hearts of people forever. "14 years have passed since this terrible tragedy, when terrorist attacked school in Beslan. Many innocent people were killed: children, their parents, teachers and those brave people who fought to free them. Today in Moscow we see that many indifferent people came here to pay tribute to all of those victims. We must remember them, honor them and never forget that fighting against evil is the most important thing," he said.

Beksoltan Urtaev, chairman of Moscow's Osetian community, stressed that September 3 is an important day. "It's a day of terrible tragedy. I wish something like that never happened again, especially not with children. Children are our bright future, guarantee of future happiness. There's nothing more sacred than children, they're a gift to us all, and people without children look at the world in a completely different way. 14 years ago we lost so many of them, and we must remember and pass on memory from generation to generation so that this terrible tragedy never happened again," Urtaev said.

One of Moscow students who grew up in Beslan also stressed that it's very important to preserve memory of the Beslan tragedy. "I'm from Beslan, my friends died during this terrorist attack, and I came here today to commemorate their memory. I think that this memory should be passed on to our descendants, so that they know that terrorism is evil. It must never happen again," he said.

Chairman of the Migration Issues and Socio-Cultural Adaptation of Foreign Citizens Commission of the Interethnic Relations Council under Russian President, Aslambek Paskachev, said that death of children is the most terrible thing that can happen.

"This grief unites all people who are not indifferent to human misfortune, especially to children. Children are the most important thing that we create in life. We all must unite to prevent repetition of this tragedy. For me and for my friends, for us, Caucasians, this is especially important. It's very scary when people view these terrorist acts, these terrible tragedies as just another news. People must not forget about this tragedy that involved children," Paskachev said.
Pakistani Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi says he intends to speak with U.S. Secretary of State Michael Pompeo about Washington's decision to cut $300 million in U.S. payments to Pakistan's military.

Qureshi said he will raise the issue on September 5 when Pompeo and General Joseph Dunford, chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, visit Islamabad.

"We will sit with [Pompeo], present our point of view and exchange ideas," Qureshi told reporters late on September 2.

Qureshi argued that the money was not "aid," as described by Washington, but a payment to reimburse Pakistan for costs in a joint campaign against terrorism.

"This $300 million was neither any aid nor assistance," he said. "This is the money which Pakistan has already spent in the fight against terrorism through its own resources, and they were to reimburse it to us."

The Pentagon announced on September 1 that will cancel $300 million in military aid to Pakistan due what the United States says is Islamabad's lack of action against militants.

Pentagon spokesman Kone Faulkner said the funds would be reallocated to "other urgent priorities" if approved by Congress.

Earlier in 2018, another $500 million in payments to Pakistan was revoked by the U.S. Congress from so-called Coalition Support Funds (CSF), bringing the total amount of funds withheld to $800 million.

At the start of 2018, President Donald Trump suspended CSF payments to Pakistan along with aid under other programs.

Trump earlier in 2018 wrote on Twitter that the "United States has foolishly given Pakistan more than 33 billion dollars in aid over the last 15 years, and they have given us nothing but lies & deceit, thinking of our leaders as fools."

"They give safe haven to the terrorists we hunt in Afghanistan, with little help. No more!" Trump tweeted.

Pakistan rejects allegations it is not doing enough to fight terrorism and that it provides safe havens for militants operating in Afghanistan.

With reporting by dpa, Dawn, and AFP
Ukraine's national police say a suspect has been apprehended in the stabbing death of Ukrainian historian Mykola Shytyuk.

The police directorate in the southeastern region of Mykolayiv said on September 2 that a 25-year-old man detained in the investigation confessed that he stabbed the historian over a personal argument.

Police said earlier that the slain historian's body was found in an apartment in the city of Mykolayiv on September 1.

Authorities said Shytyuk's body showed signs of a violent struggle, including numerous stab wounds.

Shytyuk was known for his works on the Holodomor famine that killed millions in Ukraine in the early 1930s.

The Holodomor famine took place in 1932 and 1933 as Soviet authorities forced peasants in Ukraine to join collective farms by requisitioning their grain and other agricultural production.
CHOLPON-ATA, Kyrgyzstan -- President Shavkat Mirziyoev says Uzbekistan is eager to join the Council of Cooperation of the Turkic-Speaking Countries, also known as the Turkic Council.

Speaking at the Turkic Council summit in Kyrgyzstan's resort city of Cholpon-Ata, Mirziyoev said on September 3 that Uzbekistan was "honored" to take part in the meeting as a guest.

"We are happy and ready to become a part of this organization and propose the Uzbek city of Khiva to be the capital of the Turkic Council," Mirziyoev said, adding that Tashkent would use its membership in the organization to focus on trade and economic cooperation between member states.

The Turkic Council was established in October 2009 with Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkey as the group's founding members.

Uzbekistan announced its intention to join the group in late April.

Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov said during the September 3 gathering that Uzbekistan's membership "will add a new breath to the organization."

Mirziyoev has taken steps to open Uzbekistan to the outside world and improve ties with its neighbors since he became president following the death in 2016 of his predecessor, Islam Karimov.

During Karimov's autocratic 27-year rule, Uzbekistan's relations with Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, and Turkmenistan were strained by disputes over transit routes, border security, water resources, and other issues.

The Turkic Council's summit on September 3 was attended by presidents of the member states.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban also took part in the summit as an "honored guest."

With reporting by KyrTAG
BESLAN, Russia -- The southern Russian town of Beslan has marked the 14th anniversary of a school hostage-taking attack that ended with 334 people dead after a botched rescue, including 186 children.

More than 1,000 people on September 3 took part in the mourning ceremony at the ruins of the School No. 1 in Beslan in the North Ossetia region.

A bell tolled twice at 1:05 p.m. to mark the first two explosions after which Russian troops started the attack on the school 14 years ago.

During a minute of silence, schoolchildren released 334 balloons to commemorate the victims.

The three days of mourning began on September 1.

Ceremonies were also held in Moscow and other Russian cities.

Militants, demanding the withdrawal of Russia's federal troops from Chechnya, stormed School No. 1 on September 1, 2004 -- the first day of school -- and took some 1,200 children, parents, teachers, and staff hostage.

Most of the hostages who died were killed when Russian security forces stormed the school on September 3.

In April 2017, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that Russia must pay nearly 3 million euros to the relatives of the Beslan victims, saying that Russian authorities failed to protect the schoolchildren, teachers, and parents.
Russia's government says three crew members have been killed in a helicopter crash in Siberia.

The Emergency Situations Ministry branch in Siberia said on September 3 that the bodies of all three crew members were recovered at the crash site of the Mi-8 helicopter in a remote area of the Irkutsk region.

The ministry said the aircraft, operated by Russia's state-controlled Irkutsk-based Angara Airlines, was on a surveying mission when it vanished from the radar screens of air-traffic controllers on September 2.

The crash occurred the same day that a similar Mi-8 helicopter, leased by Afghanistan's Defense Ministry and operated by a Moldovan company, crashed on takeoff from a military base near the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e Sharif.

At least 10 Afghan soldiers and two Ukrainian crew members were killed in that crash.

On August 4, another Mi-8 helicopter crashed in the Siberian region of Krasnoyarsk, killing 18 people aboard.

The Mi-8 helicopter is used by military and civilian operators in Russia and elsewhere in the former Soviet Union.

Mi-8 operators are often hired for security operations from the Balkans to Afghanistan and for international aid operations of the United Nations.

Previous crashes of Mi-8 helicopters have been blamed on poor maintenance and disregard for safety rules.

Based on reporting by TASS and Interfax
A U.S. service member has been killed and another wounded in an attack in eastern Afghanistan, the NATO-led Resolute Support mission says.

A statement said the apparent insider attack occurred on September 3, adding that the service member who died was the sixth American to be killed in Afghanistan this year.

Insider attacks, in which members of Afghan security forces or assailants dressed in Afghan uniforms fire on coalition troops, have become less common in recent years.

"The sacrifice of our service member, who volunteered for a mission to Afghanistan to protect his country, is a tragic loss for all who knew and all who will now never know him," said U.S. General Scott Miller, the new commander of NATO forces in Afghanistan.

The statement did not give the identity of the soldier.

It said that said the wounded service member was in a stable condition.

The attack comes nearly two months after a member of a U.S. Army training unit was shot dead by an Afghan soldier in the southern province of Oruzgan.

Two other U.S. soldiers were wounded in the attack.

Around 14,000 U.S. troops are currently stationed in Afghanistan.

Miller assumed command of NATO forces in Afghanistan on September 2, replacing U.S. General John Nicholson.

"To be successful, we must continually learn and adapt to the enemy and the environment," Miller said at a ceremony at Resolute Support's headquarters.

"There is no room for status quo," he added. "We cannot afford to be complacent.

The Western-backed government in Kabul has been struggling to fend off the Taliban and other militant groups since the withdrawal of most NATO combat troops in 2014.
-- EDITOR'S NOTE: We have started a new Ukraine Live Blog as of August 17, 2019. You can find it here.

-- A court in Moscow has upheld a lower court's decision to extend pretrial detention for six of the 24 Ukrainian sailors detained by Russian forces along with their three naval vessels in November near the Kerch Strait, which links the Black Sea and Sea of Azov.

-- The U.S. special peace envoy to Ukraine, Kurt Volker, says Russian propaganda is making it a challenge to solve the conflict in the east of the country.

-- Two more executives of DTEK, Ukraine's largest private power and coal producer, have been charged in a criminal case on August 14 involving an alleged conspiracy to fix electricity prices with the state energy regulator, Interfax reported.

-- A Ukrainian deputy minister and his aide have been detained after allegedly taking a bribe worth $480,000, the National Anti-Corruption Bureau said on Facebook.

*Time stamps on the blog refer to local time in Ukraine
KYIV -- Ukraine has begun joint military exercises with 10 NATO countries in western Ukraine amid ongoing tensions with Russia over Moscow's illegal annexation of the Crimean Peninsula and the ongoing conflict in eastern Ukraine between government forces and Russia-backed separatists.

The Rapid Trident 2018 drills officially opened on September 3 at the Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyy National Ground Forces Academy in the western region of Lviv.

Taking part are about 2,200 troops from 14 countries, including the United States and nine other NATO member states. The maneuvers are scheduled to continue until September 15.

For Ukrainian forces, the exercises will involve 350 units of military equipment. The Ukrainian Border Guard Service and Ukrainian National Guard troops will take part in the drills for the first time.

The U.S. ambassador to Ukraine, Marie Yovanovitch, said at the opening ceremony that all countries participating in the maneuvers "stand in solidarity with Ukraine for Ukrainian security, Ukrainian sovereignty, and Ukrainian territorial integrity."

The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine has described Rapid Trident maneuvers as "a culmination of multinational training exercises, conducted annually, that serves as the validation for Ukraine's Ministry of Defense under the recommendations of allied and partner nations."

Last week, Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu announced that Moscow's biggest military exercises since 1981 are to be held between September 11-15 in eastern Russia with the participation of China and Mongolia.

With reporting by UNIAN and AFP
KYIV -- Olha Pavlenko, an activist from Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula, has fled the Russian-occupied region after her home in Simferopol was searched by Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) and she was questioned by agents from Russia's Investigative Committee.

A Crimea-based correspondent from Ukraine's Hromadske Radio, Mykhaylo Batrak, said on September 2 that he also fled the Russian-occupied region with Pavlenko after she was investigated over alleged ties with "a terrorist organization in Ukraine."

Batrak said on September 2 that he and Pavlenko initially went to the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, which is adjacent to the territory seized by Russian military forces and illegally annexed by the Kremlin in 2014.

Pavlenko, an activist of the Ukrainian Culture Center in the Crimean capital of Simferopol, told RFE/RL that FSB agents searched her home on August 29 -- confiscating her mobile phone, flash-memory cards, and notebooks containing poems and songs.

Pavlenko said FSB agents told her she was suspected of having ties to Ukraine's nationalist Right Sector, a group that Russia has banned as a "terrorist" organization.

Pavlenko said she was interrogated by the Investigative Committee shortly after her home was searched.

The Ukrainian Culture Center in Crimea is a group that promotes Ukrainian culture and language in the region.

Its activists have been under pressure since Russian military forces seized the Ukrainian territory in 2014.

One of the center's leaders, Leonid Kuzmin, fled Crimea in 2017 after he received anonymous threats and was pressured by police.

Russian-imposed authorities in Crimea have prosecuted and imprisoned several Ukrainians on what rights activists say are trumped-up, politically motivated charges.

In March 2017, the European Parliament called on Russia to free more than 30 Ukrainian citizens imprisoned or detained in Russia, Crimea, and parts of eastern Ukraine that are controlled by Russia-backed separatists.

With reporting by Ukrayinska Pravda and Hromadske
Some 1,500 performers took part in the opening ceremony of the third World Nomad Games in Cholpon-Ata, Kyrgyzstan, on September 2. Kyrgyz President Sooronbai Jeenbekov hosted foreign heads of state at the lavish event. The biannual games are held to "revive and preserve the culture of nomadic civilizations," according to the organizers. More than 3,000 athletes from 77 countries are participating this year.
It is difficult for me to imagine that the Georgian Dream will support any presidential candidate other than me or that parties other than the Georgian Dream will support me, presidential candidate Salome Zurabishvili said in an interview with the Kviris Palitra newspaper, InterPressNews reported.

She said that support of other parties would be politically unacceptable for her.

"The ongoing discussion in the Georgian Dream is absolutely understandable. It is a difficult decision for a party to refuse to nominate its own candidate and support another candidate. Another issue is the registration of presidential candidates, as my registration may be delayed by the Central Election Commission? We can theoretically suppose this. That is why it is absolutely clear why the Georgian Dream is mentioning the 8th of September, as it is a day when all presidential candidates will have been named. On the other hand, it is difficult to imagine that the Georgian Dream will support any presidential candidate other than me or that parties other than the Georgian Dream will support me", Salome Zurabishvili said.
Although US President Donald Trump has come under fire for daring to have a conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, the White House is making no apologies. Its even released a commemorative coin marking the event, RT writes.

The "Kremlin Summit in Helsinki" coin has been listed on the White House gift shop website for $100. However it can be purchased as a 'Deal of the Day' for $49.

The coin is part of the "Historic Moments" series, which is misspelled as "Historic Momements" on the official White House website. The series will "chronicle in coin and ornamental art the entire presidency of President Donald J. Trump in world historic acts of leadership."

Other coins in the "Historic Moments" series include three coins commemorating Korea peace talks and Trump's summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Singapore, one on the US Space Force, a Christmas Greetings coin, and one called "Genius Makes its Own Rules" with a monograph titled "President Donald J. Trump: A Study in Genius."
New Las Vegas-Cancun direct flights by Frontier Airlines

Cancun, Q.R.  Frontier Airlines says that as of December, direct Las Vegas to Cancun flights will be available from McCarran International Airport, marking the first such direct international service at the airport from a U.S.-based airline in nearly10 years.

Chris Jones, the chief marketing officer for McCarran said, All of our (non-stop) flights that have gone out of the country for almost the last 10 years have been from a British flag carrier, a Mexican or Canadian flag carrier and so on.

Frontier is adding international destinations and thats a big deal for us because weve been wondering at what point we would start to see U.S. carriers start to go in that direction.

The new non-stop flights will begin in December and offer two travel days per week to Cancun, Mondays and Fridays.

Josh Flyr, vice president of network and revenue for Frontier Airlines says,We are excited to continue our mission to make flying affordable for Las Vegas with two new international options. (We) are proud to offer the only international service by a U.S. carrier here.

We now serve the Las Vegas community with 31 non-stop options which support both the growth of the tourism industry and offers more choices for locals to enjoy. He says the non-strop flights to Cancun are a double benefit for Las Vegas.

Usually when we add a new service, the focus is usually on visitors coming into Las Vegas, he said. One of the things thats advantageous about these two destinations is these are locations that people from Las Vegas like to visit when they travel. So, I think youll see a greater number of locals using this as a means of taking their own vacations.

The airline will also begin offering one direct flight every Saturday from Las Vegas to Cabo San Lucas.
Young jaguar rescued from Tulum home for lack of dignified treatment

Tulum, Q.R.  A female jaguar was removed from a private home in Tulum after environmental officers found the animal suffering lack of dignified treatment.

The one-year-old jaguar was removed from a home in the town of Francisco Uh May in the municipality of Tulum.

The Federal Attorney for Environmental Protection (Profepa) sezied the animal after they say she was subjected to undignified and disrespectful treatment facing conditions of confinement in a small 2 meter by 1.5 meter cage in the backyard.

The rescue of the animal came after a citizen filed a complaint of someone in possession of a captive jaguar. A visit to the home led inspectors to the backyard where they found the cat in a cage 2 meters long by 1.55 meters wide and 1.30 meters high.

Inside was an even small box, 1.0 meter by 0.80 meter high, that was used as a shelter. The homeowner said he found the jaguar in the jungle as a baby and took it home to care for it.

Profepa officers requested support from the team of veterinarians specializing in wildlife management of the Animal Health Area of the Ecocacheological Park Xcaret, as well as personnel from the National Alliance for the Conservation of the Jaguar.

She was transferred to a Management Unit for the Conservation of Wildlife for proper care. Jaguars are a protected species in Mexico.
A number of rallies and other events to honor victims of terrorist attacks, including the one in Beslan in 2004, were held in Moscow on Monday, the Day of Solidarity in the Fight Against Terrorism, the city authorities said, UrduPoint reported citing Sputnik. The day marks the 14th anniversary of the tragic events in Russia's city of Beslan, where hundreds of children and adults were held hostage by terrorists in a school. Over 300 people were killed, hundreds were injured.
PLANS for the future of the countys economy will be aired at a special session for business owners.

The Investing in our Future session will feature big business names and is part of Barnsley and Rotherham Chamber of Commerces Chamber Means Business exhibition at the New York Stadium on Thursday (September 6) from 9am to 2.30pm.

The business talk session will kick off at 1pm and will feature speakers Ken Smart, project director of the McLaren Composites Technology Centre; Julie Kenny, chair of the Wentworth Woodhouse Preservation Trust; David Shepherd, service director for regeneration and property at Barnsley Council; and Damien Wilson, strategic director of regeneration and environment for Rotherham Borough Council.

The interactive session will offer the chance for local business owners to find out more about the current regeneration work in the region.

Andrew Denniff, chief executive of Barnsley and Rotherham Chamber of Commerce, said: We are delighted to have attracted such a high level of speakers to our event.

I trust that local businesses will come along and get involved in the panel session and take the time to visit all our exhibitors on the day.

Another seminar will take place in the morning of the exhibition but no details have been released yet.

The Chamber Means Business exhibition is free to attend for entrepreneurs and business owners and will feature 56 exhibition stands.
A BUILDING society has urged people to throw the towel in to help the tens of thousands of young women regularly missing school every month due to period poverty.

The Yorkshire Building Society, on Moorgate Street, has become an official donation station for The Red Box Project, a charity which provides free sanitary products to schools.

Contributions towards the sanitary product collection can be made up until Friday, September 7 at the branch, which is opposite the town hall.

Mark Ferris, from the company, said: It's shameful that young women are missing out on their education because of period poverty and were determined to do what we can as a community to solve this problem. Sanitary products are not a luxury that should only be available to those who can afford them  theyre a necessity. So, were encouraging people to give what they can to help such a worthy cause.

At Yorkshire Building Society, we passionately believe in supporting young people in need either through collections like this for The Red Box Project or through our financial education programme, Money Minds and our partnership with End Youth Homelessness.

The Red Box Project was founded in March 2017 and now has over 740 red boxes in schools and education centres up and down the UK as well as three in the USA and one in Canada.

Liesl Rose, co-founder of the Red Box Project said: Research has found that at some point one in ten young women have been unable to afford sanitary products, and one in seven has been forced to borrow money just so they can buy the most basic items. This is unacceptable and should not happen in 2018.

Were delighted that Yorkshire Building Society in Rotherham has joined The Red Box Projects fight to ensure that young women can get through their periods with the dignity they deserve. No-one should have to miss out on their education or anything else simply because they have their period.

The branch is open for donations Mondays to Fridays, 9am until 5pm, Wednesdays, 9.30am until 5pm, and from 9am until noon on Saturdays.

For more information visit www.redboxproject.org
In the past decade, California has tripled its use of renewable power, raising wind turbines above hills and plugging vast fields of solar panels into the grid.

That may have been the easy part.

California legislators now want the state to get 100 percent of its electricity from carbon-free sources by 2045, sending Gov. Jerry Brown a bill to sign that would lock in that goal. The threat posed by global warming, they say, demands no less.

But getting to 100 percent will take more than simply ramping up Californias existing efforts.

Reaching the goal will require more solar plants and wind farms. But it will also depend on developing better, cheaper ways to store large amounts of energy, either by perfecting existing technology or developing new forms.

It could also mean making better use of the renewable power California generates, for example by persuading drivers to buy electric cars and charge them in the middle of the day, when solar power floods the grid. It could also mean more tightly integrating Californias energy market and grid with those in neighboring states.

Its not feasible, cost-effectively, with the technologies we have now, said UC Berkeley energy economist Severin Borenstein. But 2045 is 27 years from now, and were going to develop a lot of new technologies between now and then. And I think thats what this bill is designed to do.

California has set ambitious goals for slashing its greenhouse gas emissions 40 percent by 2030 and this month will host a summit to coordinate international efforts on global warming, despite antipathy from the Trump administration. But the state is already bumping up against some of the issues it must resolve to reach 100 percent clean power.

The states solar plants, for example, often pump out more electricity at midday than the grid needs. California still relies on natural gas power plants to supply electricity in the morning and evening, as the sun sets. But low wholesale electricity prices, caused in part by that daily flood of solar production, are making many of them uneconomical to run.

There really isnt a technology thats cost-effective that can replace them right now  period, said Jan Smutny-Jones, chief executive officer of the Independent Energy Producers Association.

His trade group represents companies that operate conventional power plants as well as owners of solar and wind facilities. Smutny-Jones worries that natural gas plants in the state may be forced out of business while the state still needs them. Many clean-power advocates hope advanced batteries will replace those plants, but that isnt possible yet, he said.

Im a big believer in batteries, but theres a danger in overhyping what they can do and how fast they can do it, Smutny-Jones said. If this was an easy problem, it would have been solved by now.

Not everyone agrees.

J.B. Straubel, chief technical officer of electric automaker Tesla, said the substitution process is already starting. The Palo Alto company has installed banks of its Powerpack batteries to support grid operations in California, Hawaii, Australia and elsewhere and recently announced a similar project with Pacific Gas and Electric Co. at Moss Landing (Monterey County).

My feeling is we can compete very effectively  we are competing today, Straubel said. Its already clear today that its vastly easier and faster to get permitted and deployed a battery project than a natural gas peaker plant.

Michael Macor / The Chronicle

Recognizing the challenges ahead, the bill passed by the Legislature last week, SB100, does include some wiggle room.

For example, the bill does not mention penalties for missing the 100 percent target (though it does for an interim goal of 60 percent renewables by 2030).

And while the current renewable program does not count large hydroelectric dams, they would count toward the 100 percent goal. The bill, in fact, calls for 100 percent of electricity to come from renewables and zero-carbon resources, a clause that would include nuclear power if Californias last nuclear plant werent scheduled to close by 2025.

The 100 percent is a goal, not a mandate, said Laura Wisland, a senior energy analyst with the Union of Concerned Scientists research and advocacy group.

Air Quality Tracker Check levels down to the neighborhood Ratings for the Bay Area and California, updated every 10 minutes

Californias shift toward renewable power has, so far, been swift.

Ten years ago, renewables provided 10.6 percent of the states electricity, excluding large hydroelectric dams. Solar supplied less than half of 1 percent, according to the California Energy Commission. Last year, in contrast, solar alone accounted for more than 10 percent, while renewable sources as a whole provided 29 percent of the states electricity. Large dams kicked in another 14.7 percent.

Were already pretty far down this path, Wisland said.

Reaching 100 percent could require some sources the state has not yet tapped.

Stanford University Professor Mark Jacobson, who has modeled ways to supply all of the states energy needs with renewables, points to floating offshore wind turbines as one emerging technology that could help. Winds off the California coast tend to be more consistent than on land, and they typically peak, he said, around 4 p.m., as solar production is falling. Floating turbines can be located far enough from shore that they dont interfere with shipping  or ruin the seascape vistas cherished by Californians.

There are all sorts of things, Jacobson said, that can and will be done.

David R. Baker is a San Francisco Chronicle staff writer. Email: dbaker@sfchronicle.com Twitter: @DavidBakerSF
Getty Images

A Berkeley man was arrested after he allegedly fled a traffic stop then drove his car at a Pacifica police officer, who managed to dodge it.

Jason Tarrant, 38, was arrested on suspicion of evading police, assault with a deadly weapon on an officer, possession of burglary tools and parole violations, Capt. Chris Clements of the Pacifica Police Department said Sunday.
When black residents vanish from a city known for culinary diversity, what happens to black-owned restaurants?

Farmerbrown is arguably San Franciscos most celebrated black-owned restaurant. For the past 12 years, the Tenderloin business has been the citys standard-bearer for soul food, a genre that has faded with the regions changing demographics. Because of that, the restaurants owner, Jay Foster, believes businesses like Farmerbrown are more important than ever.

Representation matters in restaurants. And when you have a black population in San Francisco thats now basically almost nonexistent, it can be a problem, Foster said.

Foster now has plans to open a new restaurant in the Fillmore, a neighborhood once dubbed the Harlem of the West  and an area increasingly desperate for a black-owned success story. There, he and his partners, Matthew Washington and Erin Traylor, will open an Afro Caribbean restaurant named Isla Vida.

I think the timing with this worked out because right now, we need places that are highlighting brown or African American culture, Foster said.

San Franciscos black population, which only a few decades ago was around 13 percent, has dropped to roughly 6 percent, according to recent U.S. Census Bureau data.

While Farmerbrowns menu is focused on soul food  breaded and fried chicken, sides of leafy vegetables, yams or grits  Foster sees Isla Vida as his teams chance to trace its African and Caribbean roots. The menu will center around grilled meats, an ode to Cuba, Haiti and Jamaica. The final Isla Vida menu could highlight everything from collard greens with roots in West Africa to the fried plantains connected to Jamaica.

Isla Vida is a passion project for Foster. He said he wanted to do something different than Farmerbrown or the similarly styled Little Skillet, which he played a role in opening with his wife, Deanna Sison Foster, in the South of Market neighborhood in 2014.

But just as important as Isla Vida itself is its location in the Fillmore, according to John Templeton, a historian with an emphasis on African American culture in San Francisco.

It will be entrepreneurs like him that revive our community, Templeton said.

With its three African American owners, Isla Vida could breathe new life into a neighborhood once called the Harlem of the West.

Todd Trumbull

The Fillmore has seen an exodus of notable black-owned businesses in recent years. Powells Place, a mom-and-pop soul food spot, shut down in 2007 after 35 years in the neighborhood. Its replacement, Gussies Chicken and Waffles, closed in 2014. The space is now home to an Asian fusion restaurant named Fillmore Social Club.

New Chicago Barbershop was an institution on Fillmore for decades before closing in 2013. In its place now is a fast food spot serving poke bowls and sushi burritos. And Marcus Books, once the countrys oldest African American-themed bookstore, shuttered in 2014.

Foster himself closed Blue Jay Cafe in 2014, not far away in the Western Addition on Divisadero.

David Lawrences 1300 on Fillmore was a pioneer during the past decades efforts to revitalize the neighborhood. It closed in late 2017.

Lawrences more casual barbecue spot across the street, Black Bark, closed in January 2018. Isla Vida will take over its storefront at 1325 Fillmore St.

While these businesses have left, theyve been replaced with a new generation. On the stretch of Fillmore Street south of Geary Boulevard, upscale restaurant State Bird Provisions and burgeoning mini-chains Boba Guys, with its Instagram-friendly matcha lattes, and the Jewish deli outfit Wise Sons have found consistent audiences.

Avery opened in April, serving multicourse tasting menus of either $89 or $189. In May came Merchant Roots, an artisanal market featuring house-made jams, charcuterie and pasta.

Amy Osborne/Special to The Chronicle

People like us dont feel like they have a place thats welcoming in the city, said Matthew Washington, a co-founder of Isla Vida who grew up in the neighborhood. He said its current state is a textbook example of fallout of aggressive gentrification and displacement.

I have to tell my friends that this is their city, too, Washington said. They shouldnt feel like they dont have a place to go.

But success in the Fillmore is not a given for Isla Vida, and no one knows this better than Lawrence, who closed two restaurants there in the past 12 months.

Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.

Both 1300 on Fillmore and Black Bark struggled for several reasons, but Lawrence points to a drop in foot traffic on the southern stretch of the neighborhood after the closure of Yoshis, the huge venue and restaurant next door.

We lost 45 percent of our business when that happened, Lawrence said. Owning a restaurant is all about putting bums in seats. We just couldnt do that with nothing there to bring people to the neighborhood.

And there wasnt anything that showed me it was going to get better soon.

Without any indications that there is a new buyer for the Yoshis property, its likely that Foster and company will have to navigate similar waters as Lawrence.

Instead of trying to bring people to the neighborhood, however, Isla Vida will try to engage its immediate community.

The path to success, Washington said, is connecting with the audience that has longed called the Fillmore home, efforts that he believes are missing from other new businesses in the area.

Recently the Isla Vida team began a $30,000 fundraising campaign to help supply signage and equipment, including bicycles to bolster the restaurants delivery capabilities, an essential revenue stream for a casual restaurant in todays dining landscape.

The crowdsourcing goal, Foster explained, is for the team to connect with the community it wants to serve  without being beholden to investors.

Honestly, we could have gone out and found people who wanted to invest, but we didnt want to run the risk of bringing in people who werent aligned with our vision, Foster said. Our bigger picture is supporting the community in the Fillmore. And we dont want anything to get in the way of that.
William Luther/San Antonio Express-News

Hold the fries  and the politics, please

You know Republican gubernatorial candidate John Cox was starved for attention last week when he tweeted out a picture of himself outside an In-N-Out joint in Fresno. Cox was responding to the decidedly fiber-free suggestion by state Democratic Party Chairman Eric Bauman of boycotting the burger chain because of its $25,000 donation to the states Republican Party. Its a ridiculous notion: One, $25,000 is mere pocket change in a state where spending on high-profile races runs into the tens of millions. Also, as with most pragmatic businesses, In-N-Out covers its bases by giving to both parties, including at least $80,000 this year to a committee that supports business-friendly Democrats.
Americans check their smartphones an average of once every 12 minutes. For many, the never-ending stream of texts, notifications and breaking news creates a compulsion to look at their devices often. Although people feel frazzled and fatigued, cutting ties with mobile phones can be difficult.

For those who want a break, Branch, a San Francisco industrial design firm, offers an idea. Its a new ritual, a series of methodical actions centered around placing your phone inside a handsome concrete box.

Nick Cronan and Josh Morenstein, the firms principals, designed the box to draw you toward its stippled concrete surface. You want to touch it, but you quickly realize that opening the box requires both hands. Inside, the leather cradle indicates a special place for one or more mobile devices. Place a phone inside, then feel the vessel shut. You have now formed a barrier to radio signals and silenced any sounds that may arise.

Called Airplane Mode, the objects name references a fading aspect of air travel. The idea is to think about that moment back in the day when we would get on a flight and just read, watch movies or talk to the person next to you, Morenstein says. There was a time when you were disconnected and all you could do is be in the moment.

Although Airplane Mode helps people resist tech, the designers do not shun Silicon Valley. In Branchs five-year history, tech companies have hired the firm to give form to a range of tech-enabled products, including a flying camera, a home robot and two smartphones.

But good design requires thinking about how people will use products. As parents and business owners, Cronan and Morenstein thought about the demands mobile devices make in their own lives, including the expectation to respond to messages immediately and the urge to check the phone for news and social media likes.

All of those little dopamine hits dont really amount to anything. says Cronan. Were inundated with so much information all the time, all of us are exhausted.

Phones also intrude on time spent with others, giving rise to new social habits aimed at reducing time spent looking at screens. At restaurants, some hide their phone in a pocket. In meetings, many turn their phones face-down to avoid seeing updates.

Im focused on you, is the message people want to send, says Morenstein. But still, the device is on the table.

If we want a break, why not turn off our phones?

Does anyone do that? Morenstein asks.

What about tossing our phones into a shoe box?

Maybe its too easy an answer, Cronan suggests. This approach was about having a certain presence.

In fact, Cronan and Morenstein set out to add a ceremonial aspect to disconnecting. From opening the heavy lid to placing your phone in the cradle, each analog movement becomes an intentional affirmation of the digital sacrifice you are about to make. To complete the gesture, close the box and encapsulate the device.

Theres something unique about this moment that draws you in, says Morenstein. It feels sealed.

Food Guide Top 25 Restaurants Where to eat in the Bay Area. Find spots near you, create a dining wishlist, and more.

With the phone hushed and hidden from view, you can now enjoy a meal with loved ones, spend the evening with your kids or have some uninterrupted personal time.

But for all Airplane Mode offers, it will not charge your phone.

If you put a plug in it, then youre plugged in, says Morenstein. With no hole or charger, Airplane Mode also will avoid obsolescence as devices and their batteries evolve.

In 20 years, when its all just a chip in your brain, you could put your weed in here, adds Cronan. You know, to keep it away from your cat.

Airplane Mode is a collaboration with the Alameda fabricator Concreteworks. Although just two prototypes exist today, both companies have expressed interest in producing the object for sale.

Price available upon request, Morenstein says.

Andy Bosselman is a San Francisco freelance writer. Email: style@sfchronicle.com.
DETROIT  About 50,000 Detroit public school students will start the school year Tuesday by drinking water from coolers, not fountains, after the discovery of elevated levels of lead or copper  the latest setback in a state already dealing with the consequences of contaminated tap water in Flint and other communities.

Detroit Public Schools Superintendent Nikolai Vitti expects the closure of water fountains and other drinking fixtures in all 106 schools to go smoothly because the district  Michigans largest  had previously turned off the tap in 18 schools. The coolers and bottled water will cost $200,000 over two months, after which the district will seek bids for a longer-term contract, he said.
SAN DIEGO  A man who was told there were no more tickets available for an Ice Cube concert at a Southern California racetrack was shot by a sheriffs deputy after the man fired a gun into a crowd, authorities said.

The man, identified Monday as 22-year-old Daniel Elizarraras of Escondido, pulled the gun Sunday night during an argument at the ticket window at Del Mar Fairgrounds and fired several shots, the San Diego County Sheriffs Department said in a statement.

Deputies returned fire, the statement said.

Elizarraras was taken to a hospital and listed in stable condition, sheriffs Lt. Rich Williams said.

The racetrack tweeted less than an hour after the shooting that the situation had been contained. The concert took place as planned.

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A video of the shooting that was posted on Twitter records the sounds of several shots being fired before a man falls to the ground.

Two deputies appear to holster their guns as one shouts at a gathering crowd to get back, get back, get back. Passing concertgoers can be heard shouting expletives after the shooting.

In a broadcast of the tracks final race of the day that was posted on Twitter, an announcer can be heard saying, Theres gunfire at the track, as horses move along the turf course, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported.

The Del Mar Thoroughbred Club said in a statement that under its special events protocol, substantial law enforcement and private security were on site during the event.

We take consolation in the fact that no patrons, officers or security personnel were injured in the incident, the statement said.
MIAMI BEACH  Tropical Storm Gordon lashed southern Florida with heavy rains and high winds Monday and is expected to strengthen into a hurricane when it hits the central Gulf Coast.

Gordon formed into a tropical storm near the Florida Keys early Monday as it moved west-northwest at 17 mph. The storm is expected to reach hurricane strength when it hits the Gulf Coast, including coastal Mississippi, by late Tuesday. From there, it is forecast to move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley on Wednesday.

The National Hurricane Center said Monday night that the storm was centered 95 miles west of Fort Myers. Maximum sustained winds were clocked at 60 mph.

A hurricane warning was put into effect for the area stretching from the mouth of the Pearl River in Mississippi to the Alabama-Florida border. As much as 8 inches of rain could drench some parts of the gulf states through late Thursday.

The Hurricane Center said the storm is also expected to bring life-threatening storm surge to portions of the central Gulf Coast. A storm surge warning has been issued for the area stretching from Shell Beach, La., to Dauphin Island, Ala. The region could see waters rising 3 to 5 feet.

The deepest water will occur along the immediate coast near and to the east of the landfall location, where the surge will be accompanied by large waves, the center said.

Louisiana Gov. John Bel Edwards declared a state of emergency Monday and said 200 National Guard troops will be deployed to southeastern Louisiana.

The storms predicted track had shifted slightly east as of Monday evening, meaning Louisiana is currently just outside the area under the hurricane warning. Still, the southeastern part of the state remains under a tropical storm warning and residents need to be prepared for the storm to shift west, Edwards said.

This storm has every possibility to track further in our direction, Edwards said at a news conference Monday evening.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said the city has the pumps and the power needed to protect residents. But authorities issued a voluntary evacuation order for areas outside the citys levee protection system, including the Venetian Isles, Lake Saint Catherine and Irish Bayou areas.

Jennifer Kay is an Associated Press writer.
A wildfire sparked by a small-plane crash on a mountain outside of Reno had burned about 80 acres by Monday morning near the Mount Rose ski resort, fire officials said.

The aircraft crashed about 1:40 p.m. Sunday in a forested area on Slide Mountain on the northwest side of the Washoe Valley. Medics tried to reach the area Sunday, but the crash site would not be accessible until Monday afternoon, said Ian Gregor, a spokesman for the Federal Aviation Administration.
SAN RAFAEL (BCN)



A decades-long attempt to rename the Dixie School District in San Rafael will be revisited Tuesday at the monthly meeting of the school board, proponents of the rename attempt said.



Advocates of the change say the name is a reference to slavery that is out of touch with Marin County values. The campaign to change the name began in 1997 and the last vote on the name change was in 2003. The school board did not pass the proposed change.



Members of the Committee to Change the Name will address the board during the public comment period of the board's meeting Tuesday at 380 Nova Albion Way in San Rafael. The meeting begins at 7 p.m. The subject is not on the formal agenda.



The move to change the name has similarities with campaigns across the state and the country to remove Confederate monuments and memorials.



"The Confederacy does not need an outpost in Northern California," said Marin resident Noah Griffin, who with fellow resident Kerry Pierson has championed the change since 1997. "We need to teach our children to have compassion for the pain of others, not to dismiss or trivialize it."



Rather than suggesting an alternative name, Griffin said he would like the public to make suggestions, an approach one school board member said she agreed with.



"Dixie is a synonym for the Confederacy. Dixie does not reflect our community's values. It's time to change the name," said Marnie Dixon, a school board member.



Hundreds of people have signed on as supporters at the group's website, https://www.changethename.net.





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)



The former finance manager of a San Francisco architecture firm has been indicted on several fraud charges in connection with the reported theft of approximately $235,000 from the firm, United States Attorney Alex Tse announced Friday.



Karen Posey, 57, of Martinez, was indicted on four counts of wire fraud, and one count each of bank fraud, identity theft and credit card fraud, prosecutors said.



From July 2016 to December 2017, Posey worked as the business finance manager at the firm and reportedly stole money from the firm in various ways, prosecutors said.



Posey is accused of writing company checks made out to herself and then depositing money into her personal bank account, using a corporate credit card to pay for personal expenses and using a corporate debit card to withdraw thousands of dollars in cash from the firm's account.



In total, she is accused of stealing approximately $235,000 from the firm.



Posey was arrested Friday in Martinez and was released on a $50,000 bond. Her next court appearance is scheduled for Monday.





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.
Monterey police are looking for two suspects who allegedly carjacked a vehicle Saturday night and shot at an off-duty Monterey Airport police officer.



Two men reportedly stole the victim's car after hitting him in the face and pointing a gun at him in the area of Encina and Virgin avenues around 8:54 p.m., Monterey police said. The victim gave the suspects the keys to the vehicle and fled.



The suspects were in the car when they were confronted by the off-duty officer and exchanged fire. The officer was not hit. The suspects, who did not appear to be injured, ran away on Virgin Avenue toward Laguna Grande Park. They have not been found, police said.



Both suspects are described as Hispanic males between 5-feet-5 and 5-feet-7-inches tall, wearing blue jeans and dark-hooded sweatshirts. One of them was armed with a handgun, according to police.



Monterey police are investigating the suspected carjacking and attempted homicide of a police officer, and the Monterey County District Attorney's Office is investigating the officer-involved shooting.







A Soledad man has pleaded no contest to three felony charges related to burning a dog alive, Monterey County District Attorney Dean Flippo announced Friday.



Devonte Sirwet, 22, pleaded no contest to first-degree residential burglary, arson and felony animal abuse, prosecutors said.



In December 2017, Sirwet was kicked out of his mother's home because of substance abuse and anger issues, and on March 27, he returned to the home, snuck inside and took Kato, the family dog, prosecutors said.



A short time later, a witness heard what he described as a terrible screaming sound and saw Sirwet pour two bottles of lighter fluid on Kato and set him on fire.



Sirwet then fled in a vehicle, leaving the dog to burn alive. The dog was later euthanized.



Sirwet is expected to receive six years and eight months in prison when he is sentenced on Oct. 18.







A woman suffered moderate injuries Sunday morning when she fell about 40 feet from a Mount Tamalpais trail into a creek in Marin County, the California Highway Patrol said.



The woman, in her 40s, and some friends were hiking at about 10:40 a.m. Sunday on the Cataract Trail near Cataract Falls, about 2.5 miles north of Stinson Beach and four miles northwest of Muir Woods National Monument, when she fell off the trail and down into the creek.



The woman was located by a CHP air crew in a helicopter, and by Marin County firefighters. A paramedic was lowered down to the woman in the creek using a helicopter. The woman and the paramedic were then hoisted out of the ravine and flown to a waiting Marin County ambulance, said CHP Flight Officer-Paramedic Shaun Bouyea.



The helicopter rescue was necessary, the CHP said, because, given her remote location down a ravine, setting up a rope system to lift her to the trail would likely have taken hours.



The woman was treated at a local hospital for undisclosed moderate injuries, Bouyea said.







A body was found about 9:45 p.m. Sunday off of State Highway 87 near the Capitol Expressway interchange in San Jose, and the California Highway Patrol is investigating it as a possible drug overdose.



It wasn't certain late Sunday night whether the body is that of a man or a woman, said CHP Officer Damian Cistaro. It was found west of the sound wall alongside northbound Highway 87, he said.



The Santa Clara County coroner was dispatched to the scene.







A 38-year-old Berkeley resident and parolee was arrested Friday night on suspicion of assault with a deadly weapon on a police officer in Pacifica, among other alleged crimes, after police said he nearly struck an officer with his car while trying to flee from them.



A Pacifica police sergeant saw a black sedan with no front right tire releasing sparks and smoke while driving south on Highway 1 at approximately 9:10 p.m., according to a Pacifica police news release. After police tried to stop the car, the suspect, identified as Jason Tarrant, allegedly accelerated to 70 mph and tried to flee.



The car eventually stalled at Rosita Road and Adobe Drive. When officers approached him, the suspect refused to exit and kept trying to re-start the car, according to police. Once he was able to accelerate again, he turned sharply to the right toward a K9 handler and his partner. The officer narrowly avoided the car, which would have pinned him to nearby objects.



The vehicle became stuck after striking several objects, and officers were able to get the suspect out of the car. Tarrant was arrested on suspicion of evasion, assault with a deadly weapon and possession of burglary tools. He was also found to be on parole for felony burglary and placed on parole hold.







A BART station agent was injured when a man punched the worker in the face at the MacArthur Station late Friday night, according to BART police.



At 11:47 p.m., two women called the agent over to report a man who was harassing them outside the station. As the agent approached, the suspect came up behind him and punched him, officers said.



The agent suffered a one-and-a-half-inch laceration on his right cheek. He was taken to the hospital for treatment.



Officers searched the area but did not find the suspect







The former finance manager of a San Francisco architecture firm has been indicted on several fraud charges in connection with the reported theft of approximately $235,000 from the firm, United States Attorney Alex Tse announced Friday.



Karen Posey, 57, of Martinez was indicted on four counts of wire fraud, and one count each of bank fraud, identity theft and credit card fraud, prosecutors said.



From July 2016 to December 2017, Posey worked as the business finance manager at the firm and reportedly stole money from the firm in various ways, prosecutors said.



Posey is accused of writing company checks made out to herself and then depositing money into her personal bank account, using a corporate credit card to pay for personal expenses and using a corporate debit card to withdraw thousands of dollars in cash from the firm's account.



In total, she is accused of stealing approximately $235,000 from the firm.



Posey was arrested Friday in Martinez and was released on a $50,000 bond.









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.
A pedestrian was killed in a collision with a vehicle this afternoon in unincorporated Santa Cruz County, according to preliminary information from the California Highway Patrol.



The collision was reported at 2:38 p.m. at 10212 Newell Creek Road northeast of Ben Lomond.



No other details were immediately available.





Copyright  2018 by Bay City News, Inc. Republication, Rebroadcast or any other Reuse without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Japanese automaker Honda is ambitious to boost its car-sharing business in China, seizing the opportunity from the significant industrial transition in the world's largest auto market, said Yusuke Hasegawa, executive vice general manager of Honda Motor (China) Investment Co., Ltd, at the 2018 International Forum (TEDA) on Chinese Automotive Industry Development.

He said Honda set the Global 2030 Vision last year to help the company gain a solid foothold in China as the country is facing a series of important changes in automotive business environment. Especially, it is indispensable to strengthen the capability in such areas as connectivity, autonomous driving, vehicle electrification and car-sharing for Honda's business growth in China.

The Honda's executive also revealed that the automaker are cooperating with Alibaba-owned AutoNavi, a Chinese digital map provider, to jointly develop the next-generation car-borne information system. Besides, Honda has joined the alliance led by Baidu's Apollo autonomous driving platform, aiming to accumulate cutting-edge technologies and make autonomous vehicles run much safer in China.

Speaking of the electrification development, Yusuke Hasegawa disclosed that Honda and its joint venture in China are on course researching and developing an EV model, which might be put into volume production at the end of this year.

Honda has cemented the partnership with Neusoft, a China-based leading IT solution provider, according to the executive. They are joining forces to develop core technologies in such key fields as the cloud computing and cloud management of driving data and connected vehicle. Honda believes that the car-sharing business will be enhanced with the popularization of EVs. Moreover, the company will boost its car-sharing cause by providing Chinese consumers with innovative travelling experience and value-for-money mobility services.
LONDON  British Prime Minister Theresa Mays brief summer vacation from Brexit battles came to a noisy end Monday, as she faced attack from both sides of her divided Conservative Party.

Archrival Boris Johnson inflamed speculation that he aims to oust May by branding her plan for Brexit a disaster. Johnson fumed in a newspaper column that Mays proposal to retain close economic ties with the European Union after Brexit would leave Britain locked in the trunk of a Brussels-driven car with no say on the destination.

Meanwhile, a more pro-EU Conservative faction argued that Britain should keep even closer bonds with the bloc than May is proposing, at least temporarily.

Lawmaker Damian Green, an ally of May, conceded the prime minister was in a tight spot. The government is walking a narrow path with people chucking rocks from both sides, he told the BBC.

Johnson, who resigned as foreign secretary in July after feuding with May over Brexit, used his weekly column in the Daily Telegraph to accuse May of surrendering to the EU in divorce negotiations.

Johnson said that Britain has gone into battle with the white flag fluttering over our leading tank and had agreed to pay a 40 billion pound ($51 billion) divorce bill in return for two-thirds of diddly squat.

Britain is due to leave the EU in March, but negotiations have stalled amid divisions within Mays Conservative government over how close an economic relationship to seek with EU.

A proposal hammered out by Mays Cabinet in July proposes keeping the U.K. aligned to EU regulations in return for free trade in goods.

Mays official spokesman, James Slack, dismissed Johnsons attack, saying there were no new ideas in this article to respond to.

What we need at this time is serious leadership with a serious plan and thats exactly what the country has with this prime minister and this Brexit plan, he said.

Jill Lawless is an Associated Press writer.
BERLIN  German politicians called on domestic intelligence officials to place the nationalist Alternative for Germany party under surveillance on suspicion of undermining the countrys constitution, as it stokes resentments against immigrants and Chancellor Angela Merkels immigration policies.

The call came from members of the Social Democrats, part of the governing coalition, as well as the opposition Greens and some members of Merkels own Christian Democrats.

There had been previous demands for surveillance of Alternative for Germany, but they grew in recent days after images spread of leading party members marching beside supporters of the anti-Islam Pegida movement in the eastern city of Chemnitz. A party leader also expressed support for violent demonstrations there after two immigrants were arrested in the fatal stabbing of a German man.

Horst Seehofer, Germanys highest security official, rejected the calls, saying he did not see sufficient grounds for monitoring the party. Political parties, their associated organizations and individual politicians can be subject to such measures if authorities can establish clear evidence of efforts to undermine the principles of the countrys constitution.

A concert devoted to rejecting anti-immigrant sentiment drew around 50,000 people to the heart of Chemnitz on Monday, police in the state of Saxony estimated. The concert was held under the motto We Are More.

The political debate came amid more anger Monday over the sentencing of a young migrant, believed to be from Afghanistan, to 8 years in prison for killing his 15-year-old German ex-girlfriend, in a case that became a flash point for fears over immigration. Many people, particularly those on the anti-immigrant right, condemned the penalty as too lenient.

A life sentence would have been appropriate, Alice Weidel, an Alternative for Germany leader, wrote on her Facebook page, citing the stiffest sentence that can be handed to someone convicted of murder as an adult.

Because German authorities were not able to establish the defendants identity definitively, and he claimed to be 15 at the time of the crime, he was tried as a juvenile, so the maximum sentence was 10 years.

Prosecutors argued that the killer had been jealous after his victim broke up with him several weeks earlier. In keeping with Germany privacy law, he was identified only as Abdul D., and she as Mia V.

The killing, in December 2017, took place in a drugstore in a small western German town, shocking the nation and emerging as a rallying cry for the far right and others who maintain that the government cannot guarantee the safety of Germans in the face of a wave of immigration. Hundreds of demonstrators and counterdemonstrators converged on the town, Kandel, in unrest that gripped the city for days and left dozens of people injured.

Anti-immigrant activists and far-right politicians argue that Merkels relatively welcoming policy toward refugees from the Middle East and Africa poses a threat to the countrys safety, as well as to its national identity.

Melissa Eddy is a New York Times writer.
DAMASCUS, Syria  Irans foreign minister said at the start of a visit to Damascus on Monday that terrorists must be purged from Syrias Idlib and the entire northwestern province returned to government control.

Mohammad Javad Zarifs comments were reported by Irans semi-official Fars news agency and came as Syrian forces and their allies are preparing for an assault on Idlib, the last opposition stronghold in the country.

Syrias territorial integrity should be safeguarded and all tribes and groups, as one society, should start the reconstruction process, and the refugees should return to their homes, Zarif said.

He met with Syrian President Bashar Assad and his Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem, who is just back from a visit to Moscow. The visit comes days before the leaders of Iran, Turkey, and Russia are expected to meet in Iran to discuss the situation in Idlib.

During their meeting Assad and Zarif discussed the agenda of the summit in Iran. A statement from Assads office said Iran and Syria had similar views on the different issues. It provided no further details. Zarif said it was necessary to consult with our Syrian friends ahead of the summit on Friday, according to Fars.

Iran has lent crucial military and economic support to Assad throughout the seven-year civil war and the discussions are expected to focus on the decisive battle for Idlib.

Assad has vowed to defeat the opposition in its last refuge in the northwestern province if the rebels do not surrender to government rule.

Idlib and the surrounding area is home to some 3 million people  nearly half of them already displaced more than once by the civil war. Tens of thousands of people fled to Idlib after surrendering in government offensives elsewhere, choosing to relocate to an opposition-held area rather than risk reprisals or forced conscription at the hands of the government.

U.N. officials believe an offensive on Idlib would trigger a wave of displacement that could uproot an estimated 800,000 people and discourage refugees from returning home.

Thousands of government troops and allied fighters have been massing in areas surrounding the province.

In their meeting Monday, Assad and Zarif also discussed what they called western pressure on their two countries, an apparent reference to the U.S. sanctions on Iran and calls for limiting Irans role in Syria. Israel has grown nervous of Irans growing presence in Syria and threatened to prevent a build-up of pro-Iranian forces near its frontiers with Syria.

The U.S. and France have warned an Idlib offensive would trigger a humanitarian crisis and warned that a chemical attack in Idlib would prompt a western retaliation.

Albert Aji is an Associated Press writer.
KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia  Two Malaysian Muslim women convicted under Islamic laws of attempting to have sex were caned Monday in a rare public whipping that was slammed by lawmakers and rights activists as a form of torture.

Lawyers and activists said the women, ages 22 and 32, were seated on stools facing the judges and given six strokes from a light rattan cane on their backs by female prison officers. More than 100 people witnessed the caning in a Shariah courtroom in northeast Terengganu state, they said.

Muslim Lawyers Association deputy president Abdul Rahim Sinwan said unlike caning under civil laws, the punishment under Islamic laws isnt painful or harsh and was meant to educate the women so they will repent. The women, dressed in white headscarves and clothing, didnt cry or scream but showed remorse, he said.

Repentance is the ultimate aim for their sin, he said.

Human rights groups slammed the punishment and said it could worsen discrimination against people in Malaysias lesbian, bisexual, gay and transgender community.

Caning is a form of cruel, inhuman and degrading treatment and may amount to torture, Amnesty International Malaysia said in a statement. People should not live in fear because they are attracted to people of the same sex. The Malaysian authorities must immediately repeal repressive laws, outlaw torturous punishments and ratify the U.N. Convention Against Torture.

Malaysia follows a dual-track justice system. Nearly two-thirds of Malaysias 31 million people are Muslims, who are governed by Islamic courts in family, marriage and personal issues. The two unidentified women were discovered by Islamic officials in April and sentenced last month by a Shariah court to six strokes of a cane and a fine after pleading guilty.

Justice for Sisters group member Thilaga Sulathireh, who witnessed the caning, said she was shocked by the public spectacle. She said Malaysian laws were inconsistent because civil laws prohibit corporal punishment against female prisoners.

Its a regression of human rights in Malaysia. Its not about the severity of the caning. Corporal punishment is a form of torture regardless of your intention, she said.
YANGON, Myanmar  A Myanmar court sentenced two Reuters journalists to seven years in prison Monday on charges of illegal possession of official documents, a ruling met with international condemnation that will add to outrage over the militarys human rights abuses against Rohingya Muslims.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo had been reporting on the brutal crackdown on the Rohingya when they were arrested and charged with violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, punishable by up to 14 years in prison. They had pleaded not guilty, contending that they were framed by police.

Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere, Stephen Adler, Reuters editor in chief, said in a statement. He said the charges were designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press.

The case has drawn global attention as an example of how democratic reforms in long-isolated Myanmar have stalled under the civilian government of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, which took power in 2016. Though the military, which ruled the country for a half century, maintains control of several key ministries, Suu Kyis rise to government had raised hopes for an accelerated transition to full democracy and her stance on the Rohingya crisis has disappointed many former admirers.

Outside the court, police and journalists shouted as the reporters were led to a truck to be taken away.

This is unfair, Wa Lone told the crowd. I want to say they are obviously threatening our democracy and destroying freedom of the press in our country.

The reporters both testified they suffered from harsh treatment during their initial interrogations after their arrests last December. Their several appeals for release on bail were rejected. Wa Lones wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to the couples first child in Yangon on Aug. 10, but Wa Lone has not yet seen his daughter.

The two journalists had been reporting last year on the crackdown by security forces on the Rohingya in Myanmars Rakhine state. About 700,000 Rohingya fled to neighboring Bangladesh to escape the violence against them after attacks by Rohingya militants killed a dozen members of the security forces.

Investigators working for the U.N.s top human rights body said last week that genocide charges should be brought against senior Myanmar military officers over the crackdown.

The accusation of genocide was rejected by Myanmars government, but is the most serious official recommendation for prosecution so far. Also last week, Facebook banned Myanmars powerful military chief and 19 other individuals and organizations from its site to prevent the spread of hate and misinformation in connection with the Rohingya crisis.

Todays verdict cannot conceal the truth of what happened in Rakhine state, said Tirana Hassan, Amnesty Internationals director of crisis response.

Victoria Milko and Aung Naing Soe are Associated Press writers.
By LT. CMDR. MARIE TILLERY

Special to the Advance

SANTA RITA, Guam -- A 2014 Tottenville High School graduate and Staten Island native is providing a critical maintenance capability to the U.S. Navy's submarine force in the Pacific as part of a hybrid crew of sailors and civilian mariners working aboard the expeditionary submarine tender, USS Frank Cable.

Personnel Specialist Seaman Marc Carbonaro is serving aboard the Guam-based submarine tender, one of only two such ships in the U.S. Navy. The Frank Cable and its crew provides maintenance and resupply capabilities both in port and at sea.

"I am in charge of people's travel," said Carbonaro. "I am responsible for managing government travel cards for everyone in the command."

Carbonaro credits success in the Navy to many of the lessons learned on Staten Island.

"It was a small town, and your reputation mattered, much like it does in the Navy," Carbonaro said.

Guam is also home to four Los Angeles-class attack submarines, Frank Cable's primary clients, but the ship can also provide repair and logistic services to other Navy ships like cruisers and destroyers. The submarine tenders provide maintenance, temporary berthing services and logistical support to submarines and surface ships in the Pacific Ocean as well as the Persian Gulf, Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and parts of the Indian Ocean.

With a crew of more than 600, Frank Cable is 649 feet long and weighs approximately 23,493 tons.

According to officials at the U.S. Navy's Pacific Fleet headquarters in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, the ships, submarines, aircraft and Navy personnel forward-deployed to Guam are part of the world's largest fleet command and serve in a region critical to U.S. national security. The U.S. Pacific Fleet encompasses 100 million square miles, nearly half the Earth's surface, from Antarctica to the Arctic Circle and from the West Coast of the United States into the Indian Ocean. All told, there are more than 200 ships and submarines, nearly 1,200 aircraft, and more than 130,000 uniformed and civilian personnel serving in the Pacific.

The integrated crew of sailors and civilian mariners builds a strong fellowship while working alongside each other. The crews are highly motivated, and quickly adapt to changing conditions. It is a busy life of specialized work, watches and drills.

"I like being stationed in Guam, there are great, friendly people here," Carbonaro said.

Though there are many ways for sailors to earn distinction in their command, community and career, Carbonaro is most proud of earning an award for encouraging someone to join the Navy when he was in the Navy's Delayed Entry Program.

"I wasn't even in the Navy yet and I was being recognized," Carbonaro said.

As a member of one of the U.S. Navy's most relied upon assets, Carbonaro and other sailors know they are part of a legacy that will last beyond their lifetimes, one that will provide a critical component of the Navy the nation needs.

"I'm a better person for serving, I've matured, grown up, and seen places I've never seen before," Carbonaro said. "I've learned more discipline and met people from all around the world. At my age, I am responsible for something I wouldn't be if I was in the civilian world right now."
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- A 65-year-old driver was a one-man wrecking crew, slamming into four parked vehicles and two fences in Mariners Harbor on Wednesday while his blood-alcohol content was more than twice the legal limit, allege prosecutors.

Anthony Sama, of the 100 block of South Avenue, was busted around 9:40 a.m., a criminal complaint said.

Sama was driving a red 2005 Range Rover SUV when he crashed into two SUVs, a pickup truck and a car, all of which were parked on Lake Avenue in his community, the complaint said.

He also banged into fences on opposite sides of the street, said the complaint.

"I was driving and crashed into all the cars," the complaint quotes him as telling cops.

A Breathalyer test determined his blood-alcohol content was .205 percent, said the complaint.

The legal threshold for driving while intoxicated in New York is .08 percent.

Sama was charged with felony counts of aggravated driving while intoxicated and driving while intoxicated.

He's also accused of misdemeanor counts of driving while intoxicated and a lesser charge of unlicensed driving.

Sama was arraigned Wednesday in Criminal Court and released on his own recognizance, said online state court records.

His next court date is October 11.

The defendant was previously convicted of driving while intoxicated in January 2015, said the complaint.

He was sentenced to a conditional discharge, fined and ordered to take an anti-drunk-driving program, the complaint said.

Sama's lawyer could not immediately be reached for comment.
STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- Paula Eberhart is a real-life Wonder Woman. She does so much for so many, and is known in different parts of the world for her talent work on several outstanding projects. Paula approaches obstacles with determination, responsibility and excitement to see them through.

What is your current occupation?

I manage an English language institute in Monte Caseros, Argentina, [where I] am responsible for three employees; teach pre-K to university levels; prepare [students] for national/ international exams; organize activities, exchange programs and offer internships; conduct three community choirs in Argentina; prepare and teach music; and organize and schedule choir trips and performances. When I am in town in New York City, I work in a real estate management company. I'm responsible for its online management program, helping with accounting, tenants and the leases.

Do you belong to any organizations?

I am a member of PEO (Philanthropic Educational Organization) which helps women achieve their educational goals and dreams. I've been a member since leaving college in 1979, when I was invited by my mother's Chapter Z in Staten Island. I believe in its goals for furthering education for women; its social and humanitarian aspects, as we have contact with women from all walks of life through our educational projects; and that it is a non-political/religious sisterhood. Our international organization, founded 150 years ago, maintains six philanthropies: Educational Loan Fund, International Peace Scholarship, Program for Continuing Education, Scholars Award, STAR Scholarship and Cottey College in Nevada and Missouri. The New York State chapter maintains educational scholarship and loans available to the state's residents, and a security fund which gives aid to people regardless of their gender. Currently, I am the president of our local Chapter Z, Staten Island/New York, as well as assistant chair of the STAR scholarship for the New York State Chapter. In 2019, I will be the chair. I have been the head of Chapter Z's International Peace Scholarship Committee since I joined, responsible for incurring recipients in our meetings to give a program at least once a year. My hope is that our organization, with chapters all over the U.S. and Canada, and PEO groups abroad, will continue to strive for inclusive policies.

How has your PEO chapter been influential for women?

In addition to the social aspects and service opportunities PEO offers in each member's life, in our chapter we have sponsored women for scholarships, grants and loans that have been awarded by the PEO International Foundation, which have helped to change their lives. In the past two years we have been successful in proposing six candidates for the Program for Continuing Education who have received grants: a Staten Island resident continuing her studies in special education; a Harvard University student studying for a theater degree; a Brooklynite for ESL teaching; a College of Staten Island student getting a degree in social work; an individual for diagnostic medical sonography study; and a recipient who will be studying graphics design at Parsons. Our STAR recipient -- one of only 100 across the U.S. and Canada -- is going on to an undergraduate education at Franklin University Switzerland ... Most of these recipients and IPS scholars from Argentina, Chile, Kenya, Zimbabwe, Kazakhstan, Mexico, Great Britain, and other countries, have spoken at events and meetings of Chapter Z. We have also helped individual members at times of need with connections, contributions and loving concern. Our sisterhood is a far-reaching one.

How does one go about joining PEO?

A woman has to be invited to join.

Have you received any awards or recognition?

I was awarded the Taragui Award by the Province of Corrientes, Argentina, for highest cultural contribution to the province because of my choral activity and annual international children's and youth choral festival. Monte Caseros named me one of the 10 Most Influential Women of the Year, and I received the Rotary International Graduate Fellowship to study International Relations in Argentina in 1980.

Tell us about your travels. Where do you want to visit?

[I have camped] across the United States in national parks, visited Canada and most of South America, Mexico, Greece, Portugal, France, Great Britain, Germany, Luxembourg, Andorra, Indonesia, Japan, Thailand and Hong Kong. I've lived in Argentina for 35 years and Spain for one, as well as on Staten Island. I favor Spain and Greece, and desire to see Italy, Iceland and the northern lights.

What inspires you?

Beauty to the eye and ear. The arts in its many forms. Teaching my students and making a difference in their lives, hearing the beautiful harmony of choral pieces I've taught sung with passion by my choirs, being part of my daughters' lives and dreams, being instrumental in someone's life.

Who do you admire?

Patricia Stokoe, my teacher/mentor in Buenos Aires. I studied her dance technique, Expresion Corporal, and danced in her company, "Alumine"; Queen Elizabeth I for surviving in a man's world and fomenting the arts and peace in England; and most recently John Carreyrou, the Wall Street Journal writer who blew the whistle on Theranos.

GET TO KNOW PAULA EBERHART

Where she was born: "At Lenox Hill Hospital. My parents lived in the Bronx near Yankee Stadium. We moved here in 1959, before the bridge was completed."

Her family: " I have three daughters: Leslie Sedgeman, a Ph.D. candidate in physiology and biochemistry: Pauline Roteta, a civil engineer working at Blackrock; and Eileen Roteta, [who works in] business and finance at Citibank."

How she'd describe Staten Island: "It's a residential borough that some might describe as the suburbs, but it's more than that. It's NYC. It has Historic Richmond Town and Snug Harbor, landmarked homes, a lighthouse, a fort, hills, wetlands, the Greenbelt, beaches and a Frank Lloyd Wright home. Perhaps the most endearing is its proximity to Manhattan via the ferry, which is free with a view of the Statue of Liberty and the Verrazano-Narrows Bridge."

Where she went to college: "I went to Kirkland College -- now known as Hamilton College -- in Clinton, New York, where I majored in math and dance, minored in Spanish, and got my master's in international relations from Universidad de Belgrano in Buenos Aires, Argentina."
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Infant formula companies are confident the multibillion-dollar e-commerce market in China will not be affected by a new crackdown by authorities on online sales channels such as Alibaba.

The rules stem from a new law passed by Chinese legislators on Friday, which Australian infant formula companies said applies to e-commerce platforms, rather than brands and products carried on them.

Infant formula companies have welcomed new China e-commerce rules.

E-commerce platforms have become a vital route-to-market for Australian companies in recent years, generating millions of dollars in sales revenue for them outside of traditional bricks and mortar retail outlets.

But this important route-to-market has not always been smooth sailing, with a China crackdown on online sales in 2016 temporarily whacking Australian companies like Blackmores.
Richard Liu, the Chinese technology executive arrested in the United States on suspicion of sexual misconduct, has returned to China  where he is the No. 1 topic of conversation.

Chinese news outlets and social media users were consumed Monday by details of Liu's arrest. His mug shot, taken by law enforcement officials in Minnesota, was everywhere online. Chinese netizens speculated about how his wife  a celebrity in her own right, known as Sister Milk Tea  might respond and parsed unfamiliar legal terms.

The intense reactions to Liu's legal troubles reflect the public's fascination with China's self-made tech tycoons, who have become symbols of the country's rise as a global power and its upward social mobility. Their books are best sellers. Their private lives are tabloid fodder. Their speeches on success and entrepreneurship are perpetually running on TV screens at airports.

In effect, they are the rock stars of China's Gilded Age, and Liu is one of the brightest. His company, JD.com, courts the country's growing middle class with quality brand products instead of the shoddy copycats that are common on the Chinese internet. Today, its shares trade on the Nasdaq at a market value of about $US50 billion ($69.3 billion).
Such is the importance of bees to humanity that the decline and disappearance of these prolific pollinators would have catastrophic consequences. Fully two-thirds of agriculture depends on pollination by bees. As Albert Einstein said: Man would have only four years of life left. No more bees, no more pollination, no more plants, no more animals, no more man.

Adulterated honey is threatening Australia's bee hives. Credit:Fairfax Media

The prospect of such a catastrophe is one reason an investigation by The Herald's Adele Ferguson and ABC 7.30s Chris Gillet revealing widespread fraud in the global market for honey is of concern. Clandestine dilution of honey by domestic and international producers, particularly in China, appears to be undermining pristine producers profitability.

Australian honey makers argue that the flood of adulterated honey contributes to a decline in bee populations in nations including Australia. In fact, bee populations are declining for many reasons, including climate change, the use of pesticides and other agricultural practices and also the spread of the varroa destructor mite. Australia is one of the few countries not yet affected by the latter.

It remains unclear exactly what effect a decline in commercial bee hives in Australia would have on the wider ecology but the threat that the two issues are linked makes this an especially significant debate.
European shares ended little changed on Monday as worries about US trade policy and concern over emerging markets weighed on stocks after Asian markets closed lower.

The pan-European STOXX 600 index gained 0.05 per cent to 382.46 points. Activity was subdued as US markets were closed for Labor Day.

The FTSE was the only main European index to finish in the black. Credit:Bloomberg

Stocks in Europe showed little reaction to a report that euro zone manufacturing growth had declined to its slowest pace in nearly two years.

London's FTSE 100 was the only trading centre in the black, ending up 0.8 per cent. A weaker pound provided an accounting boost for British blue chips.
The good news is that there are now 22 ASX200 companies that have 40 per cent or more women in their executive leadership team Credit:AFR

There are now 22 ASX200 companies that have 40 per cent or more women in their executive leadership team and 177 ASX200 companies have one or more women in their executive leadership.

We have reached a tipping point where companies are seeing the advantages of gender balance

We have reached a tipping point where companies are seeing the advantages of gender balance and therefore they are consciously pursuing gender balance, Ms Fagg said.

The report showed 88 per cent of line roles are still held by men, but that the number of companies with no females in line roles had reduced to 59 per cent from 63 per cent last year.

The focus for all companies now had to be on getting more women into line roles - those that directly drive key commercial outcomes such as chief operating officers and heads of business units.

It was also crucial that greater gender balance was achieved in political life, she said, following other board directors including Diane Smith-Gander calling for the Liberal party to introduce gender-based quotas and put women into seats Liberals can win.

Bain & Company partner Chio Verastegui, who led the data collection and analysis, said while there had been an increase in female representation for HR, corporate affairs and legal roles, the proportion of women in key CEO feeder roles increased by just 1.5 percentage points over the past year.

Moving the needle towards gender balance across all levels of leadership will require a bolder, multi-pronged approach, she said. Without taking these types of actions, we should not be surprised to see that the ASX200 only has 14 companies led by female CEOs.

AHG's David Rowland said it had appointed a woman to be its chief human resources officer on August 1 (after the census results were collated). "AHG is an active supporter of diversity with two women on a board of six and many female managers throughout the group," he said.

BWP Management's managing director, Michael Wedgwood, said the company embraced diversity. BWP Trust is externally managed by BWP Management Limited (BWPML), which is 100 per cent owned by Wesfarmers. BWPML has eight employees, five full time positions, and three with flexible work arrangements, he said, and the flexible work arrangements are currently all held by females.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison says a public school program aimed at reducing rates of sexual assault and gender-based violence makes his "skin curl" and is part of the reason he sends his daughters to a Sydney private school.

Mr Morrison said a scenario, aimed at year 9 students that is part of the Building Respectful Relationships program taught in Victorian government schools and involves a 17-year-old bisexual woman who has had 15 sexual partners, does not meet his "values".

Prime Minister Scott Morrison with his wife Jenny and daughters Abigail and Lily. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

"It's not happening in the school I send my kids to and that's one of the reasons I send them there ... they're at an independent Baptist school," Mr Morrison told Alan Jones' 2GB radio program on Monday.

"I don't want the values of others being imposed on my children in my school and I don't think that should be happening in a public school or a private school.
Kiwi journalist David Farrier appears to have caught the attention of Japanese authorities over a recent tour of Fukushima.

The reporter  who explores grisly and offbeat destinations as part of his Netflix series Dark Tourist - toured areas affected by the 9.0 magnitude earthquake that struck Japan in March 2011. The subsequent tsunami claimed numerous lives and caused catastrophic meltdowns at Fukushima's Dai-ichi power plant.

The Fukushima Prefectural Government and the Reconstruction Agency is now considering taking action, according to The Japan Times, as they are concerned the episode could fuel fears about the area.

"We're examining the video content," a senior official from the prefecture told the English-language newspaper.
Hamze Ibrahim, 25, died at a Riverwood home.

A grieving family of a young man who died in Sydney's south on Sunday has condemned the Australian Paramedics Association for self-serving, reckless and unfounded comments that painted them as a violent mob and their loved one as a drug addict.

The death of Hamze Ibrahim sparked a flurry of alarming news reports when the APA alleged paramedics were forced to fend off angry males who eventually forced them to stop treating the patient who was in cardiac arrest and subsequently died.

APA secretary Steve Pearce said a mob of angry men stopped paramedics treating Hamze Ibrahim who later died. Credit:Nick Moir

APA secretary Steve Pearce also told reporters paramedics were called to a property in Iris Avenue, Riverwood, to treat a 25-year-old man suspected of overdosing on drugs.
A former Sydney teacher has been jailed for at least 12 years for the sexual abuse of 15 male students.

Shane Andrew Matthews, 31, who taught at Wattle Grove Public School, and later became the assistant principal at Woodlands Road Public School, was sentenced on Monday to a maximum of 18 years in jail.

Shane Andrew Matthews has been jailed for the abuse of students. Credit:Seven News

Matthews previously pleaded guilty to 33 offences, including persistent child sexual abuse, indecent assault and procuring a child for unlawful sexual activity committed largely between 2012 and 2015.

He has been in custody since police arrested him at his Bradbury home in late 2016.
A woman on Sydney's north shore must pay $83,000 after she cut down two of her neighbour's trees for "dropping leaves in my pool".

Yueling Liu is one of two Hunters Hill homeowners who together have been ordered to pay more than $150,000 for illegal tree clearing and lopping, in a move welcomed by the local council as a deterrent to others.

Yueling Liu was ordered to pay $83,000 after pleading guilty to illegally removing trees from her neighbour's property.

Ms Liu pleaded guilty to hiring a contractor to chop down two native cheese trees without appropriate council approval. She was fined $48,000 and ordered to pay council costs of $35,000 by the Land and Environment Court.

Council workers were called to Ms Liu's large property on Barons Crescent on February 3, 2016, and heard chainsaws operating. The officials found two tree stumps close to the border of Ms Liu's property, but on the neighbour's side.
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet. Credit:Dominic Lorrimer

The $9.3 billion that NSW has raised from selling a 51 per cent stake in the WestConnex freeway project is a welcome boost to the state budget but there are still huge questions about whether this mammoth freeway will deliver on its promise to "bust congestion".

The $9.3 billion figure needs to be balanced against the $5 billion the government will still have to chip in to complete WestConnex and the larger figure the state has already spent on the road.

Even after taking those costs into account, this transaction seems like a sweet deal which will transfer significant risk away from the NSW government to the private sector and free up extra cash for the state to spend on infrastructure. Down the track, NSW could raise more cash from its 49 per cent residual stake in the project.

Treasurer Dominic Perrottet deserves praise for his financial nous but sometimes in the Coalition's "asset recycling" program there has been too much focus on the zeroes in privatisation deals and insufficient thought for how a project, or transaction, affects the broader economy or citizens.
Almost eight degrees in the city now after the coldest September morning in 15 years. In good news, we're heading for a sunny top of 18.

Major delays on the Alamein, Glen Waverley, Lilydale and Belgrave lines. On the roads, incidents on the West Gate Freeway, CityLink and in the Burnley Tunnel.

We'll be back from 6am tomorrow. Enjoy your Tuesday.
Victoria Police has been attacked by its own union over claims junior police officers were left exposed when they responded to a violent riot early on Sunday morning that left a teenage boy with a seriously injured leg.

Police failed to deploy more officers to monitor a controversial rap night at Collingwood's Gasometer Hotel, despite urging the venue to cancel the gig due to the major threat of gang violence, the Police Association said.

But a source close to the venue disputed claims that police told the hotel to cancel the event.

Police Association secretary Wayne Gatt lashed the force for a "complete lack of planning" that put junior officers and the public at risk, saying police knew the 66 Records music event had the potential to erupt "and indeed it did".

The association also revealed that most of the officers initially sent into the fray were fresh from the academy.
Fremantle Dockers authorities are set for a nervous month as negotiations continue in a bid to keep star midfielder Lachie Neale from accepting a lucrative contract to continue his blossoming AFL career at Brisbane.

Lachie Neale goals earlier this season. Credit:AAP

Neale dropped a bombshell when it was disclosed the All-Australian nominee had an audacious offer to join an ambitious Lions bid to bolster a midfield outfit led by ace possession winners Dayne Zorko and Dayne Beams.

Neale, 25, still has next season to serve on his current Dockers contract when he will be a restricted free agent.

He is highly likely to win Fremantles 2018 fairest-and-best award when this seasons votes are revealed next month as what is projected to be the AFLs most feverish trading period in history.
The guidelines for naming federal divisions were developed by the Australian Electoral Commission from recommendations made by the Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters in 1995, and include criteria for naming electorates after deceased Australians who have rendered outstanding service to their country. The guidelines also recommend that Aboriginal names should be used where appropriate.

Canberras newly formed electoral division recognizes Charles Edwin Woodrow Bean (1879-1968), correspondent to the Australian Imperial Force during World War I, official war historian and prominent advocate for the establishment of the Australian War Memorial. There are 150 existing federal divisions, with just 15 named after women in their own right, with a further five divisions recognizing women as members of a family or couple, like Lyons and Hasluck. By contrast, 92 divisions are named after men, including three named after Indigenous men, with the remainder being geographic places.

The decision to name the third Commonwealth Parliament electorate in Canberra after a white Australian male calls for a major rethinking of the way electorates are named. The choice of Bean over Cullen is a timely reminder, as indeed other events in parliament have been over the last week, that we must pay more attention to the equal representation of women in Australian public life.

The Electoral Commissions Redistribution Committee developed a shortlist of three names for the new electorate but ultimately proposed Bean, generating a substantial number of submissions, both in favour of and against the name. An inquiry to consider objections to the proposed redistribution was held on June 4 and many argued that it would be more appropriate to recognise an Indigenous person and/or woman.

One of the names short listed was Ngingali Cullen (1942-2012), an Indigenous woman, activist and co-chair of the National Sorry Day Committee. Cullen advocated for the Stolen Generation memorials in Reconciliation Place, initiated the Journey of Healing campaign and also served as health policy officer for the Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Commission. A long-time resident of the ACT (which Bean was not), Cullen would have been an appropriate choice both because of her significant achievements and her status as an Indigenous woman.

Charles Bean and the initial borders of the three new ACT electorates. Credit:Fairfax Media

As the Commissions final report on the redistribution of electoral boundaries noted, naming the three divisions Cullen, Canberra and Fenner would have achieved gender parity within the ACT electoral boundaries, with one division named after a place, one after a man and one a woman. Moreover, naming Canberras newest division after Cullen would have been a positive step for reconciliation and the recognition process, and would accord with the Commissions own criteria for using Aboriginal names where appropriate. Significantly, it would have made a statement to the community about the importance of womens active citizenship in our country and the important role of Indigenous women in that space.

And yet, the Redistribution Committees proposal to name the new division after a white, Australian male was adopted by the augmented Electoral Commission, with three votes in favour of Bean, two in favour of Cullen and one in favour of the third name on the shortlist, Dr Lewis Nott. It is not known for whom the individual members of the committee voted, but it is hard to miss the fact that the committees composition was comprised of four men and two women.
The Australian Public Service was once regarded as one of the best civil services in the world. And despite the disaster of the early 1990s recession  for which senior economic public servants were partly to blame  in the 1980s and 1990s, it helped political leaders put in place the basis for decades of economic growth and rising wealth.

But a rot set in during the Howard years  albeit drawing on developments under previous Labor governments  and Australia's federal public service has steadily declined under recent governments. While the criticism of increasing politicisation has often been made (by both progressives and conservatives) the bigger issue has been a growing problem of sheer incompetence  so much so that it is difficult to know where to start on the long list of major bungles of recent years. The worst offender has been the Department of Immigration (or "Home Affairs", as it now calls itself ), which under both sides of politics has offered staggering displays of incompetence, often involving offshore detention of asylum seekers.

The rot began to set in under John Howard in 1996, who sacked six department heads upon winning office and placed secretaries on contracts. Credit:Dominic O'Brien

The handling of maritime asylum seekers, and the need to deter them from trying to reach Australia via the highly dangerous mechanism of sailing from Indonesia or points further afield, is a complex policy challenge. Simply accepting tens of thousands of maritime arrivals who would have supplanted refugees from other parts of the world in Australia's limited (though, by international standards, very large) humanitarian program was unacceptable, especially when many died in the effort to reach Australia. And bureaucrats were also tasked with undertaking large-scale solutions to this challenge in extremely short periods of time, to suit the needs of politicians.

But from the re-establishment of offshore processing by the Gillard government onwards, there has been one constant: the department's incompetent letting of, and mismanagement of, the $1 billion contracts for offshore prison camps on Nauru and Manus Island, as well as the use of a range of practices within those camps injurious to the health of detainees. The department also permitted brutalisation at its facility on Nauru  it was made aware of the sexual and physical abuse of female and child detainees but did nothing except to try to prevent evidence from being made public. The result has been dozens of mentally and physically injured asylum seekers needing care in Australia. In some cases, medical treatment has been withheld by the department for too long and asylum seekers have died from treatable illnesses, or taken their own lives.
So when is an employment direction lawful and reasonable?

In Griffiths v Rose (2011), it was alleged that a federal public servant, John Frank Lewis Griffiths, had breached section 13(5) of the code of conduct by failing to comply with a lawful and reasonable direction to not use a department-provided laptop to access certain material on the internet, including pornography. The department became aware of the online activities after surveillance software on the device logged suspicious Google searches. At no point was it alleged that Griffiths had accessed pornography anywhere other than at his home and over his private internet network.

Griffiths argued that the direction to not use the departmental laptop to access the material was unlawful because the software used to monitor his activities breached his rights under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (and the associated sections of the Privacy Act). He also argued the direction was unreasonable because it abrogated his common-law rights to privacy.

Justice Nye Perram did not accept these arguments. Though he placed significant weight on the notice given to Griffiths that his activities would be monitored through the software, the more interesting aspect of Perram's decision (for present purposes) was that he held that it was reasonable and lawful for an employer to ensure that its property, here the laptop, was not used for purposes that the employer did not wish it to be used for. This suggests that, at least when it comes to control the employer can exercise over its property, employers have significant discretion to direct their staff to take, or not take, certain actions.

The second case, Schoeman v Director-General, Department of Attorney-General and Justice (2013), went somewhat differently.
A recently released book by Pankaj Mishra tells a story about the Oklahoma bomber, Timothy McVeigh, and the man who planted the bomb at the World Trade Centre, Ramzi Ahmed Yousef. They later shared adjoining prison cells.

The book is titled The Age of Anger: A History of the Present. On the face of it, the two men were on different paths. McVeigh was an Iraq War veteran, a drifter who had done poorly at school and couldn't hold down a job. Yousef was from Pakistan, had studied in Britain and, before becoming a terrorist, was a skilful computer engineer who had worked for the Kuwait government.

US chief executives' pay relative to average workers' pay rose from 40:1 in the 1960s to 400:1 in the 1970s. Credit:Jessica Shapiro

An article in the London Review of Books observes that if Yousef had embraced life in the United States instead of trying to blow it up, he could have walked into jobs that McVeigh would have loved but was unqualified to get. McVeigh was superfluous to his world in a way that Yousef was not, but they were like each other in that their anger gave them purpose.

One of the things that insightful human-resources practitioners know better than most is that engagement in work can provide people with meaning and purpose, as well as the means to put a meal on the table and live a fulfilling life. On the other hand, the wrong job or no job can lead to sustained anger, and mould a person into perfect fodder for extremist and terrorist causes.
Traitors within the Gate or the Basic Problem with Coups

Bob Moriarty

Archives

Sep 3, 2018

A nation can survive its fools, and even the ambitious. But it cannot survive treason from within. An enemy at the gates is less formidable, for he is known and carries his banner openly. But the traitor moves amongst those within the gate freely, his sly whispers rustling through all the alleys, heard in the very halls of government itself. For the traitor appears not a traitor; he speaks in accents familiar to his victims, and he wears their face and their arguments, he appeals to the baseness that lies deep in the hearts of all men. He rots the soul of a nation, he works secretly and unknown in the night to undermine the pillars of the city, he infects the body politic so that it can no longer resist. A murderer is less to fear. Marcus Tullius Cicero

The American Empire started down a slippery slope to oblivion at the beginning of the reign of Bush Junior.

No one won the election of 2000. The Supreme Court, on partisan count, voted in GWB. He, of course, was the draft dodging drunken village idiot who accomplished nothing of merit his entire life with perhaps the sole exception of finding Jesus in his fourth decade. Frankly I never even knew Jesus was lost.

We had a president who wasnt really THE PRESIDENT and a vacuum of leadership at the top of the most powerful nation in history. Politics abhors a void so the Vice President and his band of merry men took over the reins of power. In a soft coup a group of about a dozen religious fanatics owing their first allegiance to a foreign power seized control of the military and the foreign policy of the United States.

America soon found itself immersed in a series of meaningless wars at great expense where only one territory actually won anything. I call it a territory because countries have borders and laws and this entity has neither.

America eventually tired of The Forever War. On the basis of a pledge of no more war a candidate from the other party became president after the 2008 election. The Nobel Committee was so thrilled that he managed to go 17 days in office without starting a new war that they awarded Obama a Nobel Peace Prize in 2009.

In return Obama managed to serve eight years in office with US troops fighting somewhere during every single day of the two terms.

Then we had the incredible election of 2016 with a candidate promising to tell the truth about who did 911, Hillary would get the jail cell she so richly deserves and we would cut out the stupid wars. So far Trump is batting an even zero for three.

Over the centuries father-time changed Rome since the days of Julius Caesar. The bridge over the Rubicon is now a one-way toll bridge. The toll is mandatory. The toll collector wants his payment now.

Ever since the birth of the CIA in 1947 the three letter agencies in the US, including the CIA, FBI, NSA and DOJ, have believed they should specialize in regime change. We had them in Greece and Guatemala, Iran and Iraq, Syria and Somalia, Ukraine and the Congo, the list goes on forever.

Exactly fifty years ago I was flying combat missions in one of those stupid wars the US used to start every generation or so. At the conclusion of every single flight I would be debriefed by the intelligence officer and file an after action report.

After all, we needed to know what we were doing right as well as what we were doing wrong. Our lives were at stake. We had to understand just how successful we really were. If we were successful at all.

No matter how many trumped up regime changes we have conducted over seventy years, the US just isnt very good at it. If anyone had conducted even a single after action report, we could have changed our ways. But its too late now; the three letter agencies are in the midst of a regime change at home. Remember, that bridge over the Rubicon is a one-way toll bridge and a price must be paid. In blood if need be.

Our problems with Iran go back as far as 1953 where the CIA determined that the citizens of Iran didnt really need to elect their own leaders, we could pick for them since we are so much smarter that they are. The US is the Exceptional country. That was a giant and expensive mistake on the part of the CIA: we are still paying for our error.

In Afghanistan, scene of the longest war in US history, the US cannot defeat insurgents who band together in groups no larger than a good size Girl Scout pack. But we cannot overthrow them. It matters not that they were no threat to the US and have never attacked us. They stand in the way of the Exceptional empire. The major success of the US was to increase the flow of heroin by 1000% in a country where if you were to bomb them back to the Stone Age, you would improve the standard of living.

The US went into Syria contrary to the wishes of the democratically elected government and remains today. It turns out the US and Israel were training and supplying ISIS with weapons. The real goal was regime change on behalf of Israel as detailed in The Clean Break published in 1996 but dismissed at the time for being far too radical for the criminals behind it to get away with.

Few remember the immoral words of Hillary Clinton as she chortled at the death of Muammar al-Gaddafi at the hands of a mob. We came. We saw. He died. Gaddafi was unique in all of Africa in that he actually shared the oil wealth with his people. The US claimed victory but created a desert with the death of tens of thousands. Libya after a regime change has turned into a shit hole. Which is pretty much the standard for the US.

Who do you suppose would win an election in Iraq if Saddam Hussein were alive and running for office today? Is anyone delusional enough to believe we helped Iraqis overall by turning them into homeless refugees after murdering millions of them. How many Americans are even aware that Husseins first paycheck came from the CIA as an assassin?

If every single regime change you conducted turned into a clusterfuck leading to the deaths of millions who in their right mind would actually believe doing one in your own country is a good idea?

The 2016 election was supposed to be little more than the anointment of Hillary Clinton. We know she stole the primary election from Sanders. We know she laundered tens of millions of dollars that was by law supposed to go to the DNC. We know she put out a For Sale sign on the lawn of the State Department and held a tag sale every Saturday during her entire tenure as Secretary of State.

If you wanted something from the US Department of State all you had to do was make a contribution to the Clinton Foundation to get her attention. It was a money-laundering scheme worth hundreds of millions of dollars to the Clintons.

Peter Strzok and James Comey conducted an investigation into her illegal use of a home baked server where her crimes were so obvious that Ray Charles could have seen them. FBI Director Comey was kind enough that he volunteered to announce her total innocence in the place of the DOJ who by law are the group responsible for making that determination.

Even though Strzok worshiped at the altar of Hillary Clinton and hated Donald Trump, he somehow managed to miss the fact that if he really wanted to read the 30,000 emails that Clinton misplaced, all he had to do was contact the Chinese.

After all, they had them. All of them at every level of classification up to Top Secret. The FBI is still lying about Peter Strzok knowing about the Chinese intrusion. Strzok concluded Clinton was as innocent as a newborn baby before finishing his investigation. Without bothering to question even a single witness Strzok just knew Trump was in bed with the Russians.

Thats total bullshit by the way. Trump only beds hookers with giant boobs, not Russians.

The charge by former CIA head, John Brennan, that President Trump committed treason by inviting President Putin of Russia to the US for meetings certainly is treason. But its treason on the part of John Brennan.

It is the job of the president to meet with the heads of foreign states. It is even more vital to discuss with the head of states that might at some point become enemies. John Brennan has committed treason by building out of whole cloth a fictitious story of collusion between Russia and the Trump campaign.

That allegation on the part of Brennan and his fellow cartel members has all the substance of a five-course meal of nothing-burgers.

There was Russian collusion during the election but it was on the part of the DNC, the FBI and Christopher Steele in the form of the Russian dossier. The FBI gang lied to the FISA court about the origin of the dossier and who paid for it. The Clinton campaign originated the document and paid for most of it.

Naturally since the FBI paid for part of it, they didnt want either the FISA Court or the American people to learn of their treachery or where it came from. Thats treason.

The FBI/CIA/DOJ/NSA/DNI are not in charge of determining who should be president. The voters are. To subvert the electoral process is to commit treason.

The mainstream media has yet to realize that they lost control of the narrative with the advent of the Internet. Not that there isnt a lot of fake news on the Internet. But when the MSM is all fake news any real news even from Internet sources gives readers the chance at seeing some of the truth some of the time. The MSM is just as corrupt and guilty of treason as are Comey, Brennan, Clapper, Rosenstein, McCabe, Strzok, Mueller, Sessions, Ohr, Lynch, Page, Clinton and Obama.

Washington DC and the idiots who work there live in a fools paradise, an echo chamber, where they get all their information from each other. They actually believe the American people and the rest of the world listen to their horse manure. How many people gave Trump even a slim chance in the election? Nearly zero because the MSM and three letter agencies dont listen or communicate with the American people.

Few get it. Trump wasnt elected because anyone believed he was anything more than a puffed up buffoon who made a great reality show host. He was nothing more than the anti-Hillary candidate. It was a great way for Americans to vote against the corruption of the political process and the fat cat media. You werent required to like Trump to totally dislike Hillary Clinton and all her baggage.

A common belief in the media is that two half-truths are almost the same as a whole truth. Actually a half-truth is a lie and two half-truths are two lies.

Russian collusion did exist during the election in the form of the Russian dossier. There may have been a few Facebook ads in support of Trump. I dont know and I dont think anyone else does either. But another half-truth that is a total lie is that the Russians had an effect on the election. They didnt.

There is another unspoken half-truth that is a far bigger lie. That is to accuse the Russians of affecting our election without mentioning the US is guilty of far worse. Its not possible to find a coin with only a single side. All coins have multiple sides. As do all issues. To look at one side and pretend it is all that is important is a lie.

Do you remember the video of Victoria Newland where she bragged about the US spending $5 billion to subvert Ukraine over a 20-year period? Now that is some serious ass kicking bribery yet the lamestream media keeps reporting some chump change Facebook ads just as if they swung the election. They didnt. They didnt have any effect on the election. Not a single vote.

The US has participated in subverting the election process of every other country in the world since the CIA began in 1947. They think its their job and now they have done the same to the US system. Average Americans no longer trust the system since they sense the level of official corruption.

The whole Russian/Trump horseshit began after someone stuck a USB stick into the DNC server to steal their email before the election. We know the Russians didnt do it because of the length of time it took to download the emails. It couldnt have been done remotely.

The NSA also knows just who turned those emails over to Wikileaks; after all, if they can put a wiretap on Merkel, they certainly listen to everything going to Julian Assange.

The reason the DNC raised the Russia/Trump nonsense in the first place was to try to cover up for the fact that the DNC was violating election and finance laws like crazy. The DNC just want to toss some shit on the wall in the hopes some would stick. It did but it also stinks to high heaven.

Obama tossed the entire Executive Branch into a blender in his administration. If it was OK for the best part of a dozen neocons to subvert our foreign policy on behalf of a foreign entity under Bush, then it also must be OK to use the FBI, DOJ, IRS, NSA, DNI, and CIA to be in charge of picking the president. But that wasnt the real reason for making all of the three letter agencies political animals. It had far more to do with covering up the wholesale looting of the US Treasury.

Eisenhower warned us of the dangers of the Military Industrial Complex in his farewell speech in January of 1961 after another contested election probably determined by the vote of dead people.

Until the latest of our world conflicts, the United States had no armaments industry. American makers of plowshares could, with time and as required, make swords as well. But we can no longer risk emergency improvisation of national defense. We have been compelled to create a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions. Added to this, three and a half million men and women are directly engaged in the defense establishment. We annually spend on military security alone more than the net income of all United States corporations. Now this conjunction of an immense military establishment and a large arms industry is new in the American experience. The total influenceeconomic, political, even spiritualis felt in every city, every Statehouse, every office of the Federal government. We recognize the imperative need for this development. Yet, we must not fail to comprehend its grave implications. Our toil, resources, and livelihood are all involved. So is the very structure of our society. In the councils of government, we must guard against the acquisition of unwarranted influence, whether sought or unsought, by the military-industrial complex. The potential for the disastrous rise of misplaced power exists and will persist. We must never let the weight of this combination endanger our liberties or democratic processes. We should take nothing for granted. Only an alert and knowledgeable citizenry can compel the proper meshing of the huge industrial and military machinery of defense with our peaceful methods and goals, so that security and liberty may prosper together.

Eisenhower actually used the term Congressional, Military, Industrial Complex in his draft of the speech but one of his staff edited out the term Congressional knowing that identifying them for what they were would piss them off. So its not really the MIC, properly it is the CMIC.

The CMIC has tentacles in every three-letter agency. Years ago they created a revolving door setup where you can work in Government Service in the military or any of the three letter agencies and then move on to highly paid directorships with the CMIC.

Take my word I was an F-4B pilot when I was twenty and flew the plane for 125 missions in Vietnam. I know fighter aircraft and combat. The F-35 is the most expensive and useless aircraft the US ever designed. It wouldnt last five minutes in real combat. But with F-35 programs in 46 US states employing 32,500 jobs, it is viewed as too big to kill.

But the participants in the Defense industry know how to butter the bread of Congress. Thats why we can fight wars lasting decades and no one really remembers why we started fighting in the first place.

It was what allows a tiny and meaningless territory in the Middle East to seize control of US foreign policy and then get the US military to fight wars for them. They were a 5th column and should Trump be removed from office or killed, they will control the US.

Robert Mueller was appointed a Special Counsel under the auspices that he was to investigate any Russian collusion in the 2016 election. That was a joke from the gitgo because the whole Russian Collusion was nothing more than Hillary Clinton whining about losing the election after her buddies in the CMIC and MSM all assured her that she was a shoe in. But it grew a life of its own.

Since the three letter agencies couldnt swing the election for their candidate, perhaps they could just take out Trump with a fake investigation after the election. We know it was phony from the gitgo because even Peter Strzok, who hated Trump, said of the charges, no big there there.

When the guy responsible for both the Hillary Clinton whitewash and instigating the Trump attacks admits at the very beginning of the investigation that there is no big there there perhaps he meant exactly what he said.

Not to his great surprise, Robert Mueller has found no Russian collusion with the Trump campaign in spite of knowing no big there there.

The MSM leapt on the conviction of Paul Manafort and the guilty plea of Michael Cohen just as if they had discovered fire and the wheel on the same day. But Paul Manafort was convicted of financial events that took place ten years before the election of Trump. His guilt or innocence had absolutely nothing to do with Donald Trump or the election. It was just a tool for Special Counsel Robert Mueller to beat him with in an effort to get him creative in coming up with some charges against Trump. All Manafort would have to do is allege something knowing that Trump would deny it under oath and Mueller would have his crime.

But what few Americans realize but all prosecutors know is that every American commits an average of three felonies a day. In the US today a prosecutor can convict anyone of something, innocence be damned. Mueller isnt after the truth, he wants Donald Trumps scalp hanging over his mantelpiece.

Yes he convicted Michael Cohen who pled guilty to helping Trump cover up under the table payoffs to a pair of hookers during the election. Donald Trump and I are the same age. If I had been banging those broads, I would have bragged about it to the world. Why did those two idiots pay them off to shut them up? Id pay them about the same price if they would claim I had had them. True or just a wet dream.

But the money charges against Cohen were his pleas on tax evasion and filing false financial statements. The payments to the ladies of the night were probably legal; they have not been proven in court. If Mueller wanted a guilty plea to rape of an underage German Shepard, Cohen would have consented. After all, Mueller holds the keys to Cohens jail cell in his hands. Cohen would have pled guilty to anything.

In fifteen months as Special Counsel Robert Mueller has found no trace of Russian collusion in the election with Donald Trump. If Mueller really wanted convictions for Russian collusion he would do better to look into the collusion between the FBI, the DNC and those behind the Russian Dossier.

If Mueller really wanted a slam dunk conviction all he would have to do would be to charge Peter Strzok with perjury for claiming that his bias had nothing to do with clearing Hillary Clinton and starting the investigation into Trump. Strzok and his slut exchanged some 50,000 texts. But that was just on Strzoks FBI device. We dont have any idea of how many texts there were between the pair on Strzoks private device. He has assured the FBI that they dont need access to them since they are private and have nothing to do with the matter. We are to believe that he only proved his bias on his FBI device.

If Mueller charged Peter Strzok with perjury in telling Congress and the world that he was totally professional in his investigations he could chalk up an easy conviction. The mere fact that he worshiped Hillary and hated Trump had no effect on his behavior Strzok claimed. Mueller could put Hilary Clinton and eleven clones on the jury. All he would have to do is play the texts one after the other. There could be no defense. The jury wouldnt have to leave the jury box before voting 12-0 to convict.

Almost fifty years ago Robert Mueller was a young Marine platoon commander in Vietnam. When his unit in the 4th Marines were getting their asses kicked at Mutters Ridge, I was overhead at 1200 feet in a single engine Bird Dog providing close air support to save them. We have a lot in common.

As Marine officers we were required to take an oath to support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic. I fought in Vietnam for almost two years believing as I was told that the Vietnamese were our enemies. Of course they werent but still I am proud of the risks I took to save the lives of fellow Marines.

I remember well my oath. Clearly Robert Mueller has forgotten his because he has turned into one of those domestic enemies of the Constitution.

We can survive fools as President; we had the village idiot in George Bush. He allowed the neocons to seize the government.

We can survive Presidents who cant keep their peckers in their pockets. JFK was banging his girlfriends in the White House.

Bill Clinton made a far bigger payoff of $850,00 to Paula Jones for her charge of rape on his part. Contrary to his claims, records show he made 26 flights on the Lolita Express, five after ditching his protection detail. Are we really to believe that seventeen-year-old stewardesses dont wear panties on other flights? He was flying with a convicted pedophile, does anyone actually think that those flights compared with Trump paying off a hooker? A hooker of legal age. Has the leopard changed its spots?

I dont care if Robert Mueller likes Donald Trump. When someone is legally elected president thats it until the next fool wins office. For the FBI, DOJ, NSA, CIA, DNI and MSM to take active measures to overthrow the legal government of the United States is clearly treason.

The US has had a Coup detat in progress since before the 2016 election to ensure Hillary Clinton became president in spite of her numerous and obvious crimes that the three letter agencies and MSM totally ignore. They are missing something important.

When you strike at a king, you must kill him. Ralph Waldo Emerson

Under the provisions of the NDAA passed under GWB and later modified under Barack Obama anyone in the world can be charged with terrorism against the US and incarcerated or killed without judicial oversight. Those deeply currently engaged in high treason against the United States might want to consider their actions.

This is hardly maybe treason its outright and obvious treason.

Coups have a nasty way of surprising those who engage in them.

###

Bob Moriarty

President: 321gold

Archives
Former Labor leader Mark Latham has quit the Liberal Democrats after an impasse over where he would run for the party, clearing the way for a speculated bid with One Nation.

Liberal Democrat leader David Leyonhjelm confirmed a number of options had been canvassed, including lower house seats and a run for the NSW upper house, but they had fallen through.

Mark Latham has quit the Liberal Democrats after 16 months. Credit:AP

"I wish him good luck, but not too much luck," Senator Leyonhjelm told Fairfax Media.

Mr Latham, in a letter to the Liberal Democrats sent on Friday, said he had been "advised to run elsewhere" after being a member of the party for more than a year.
The race to replace Malcolm Turnbull in Parliament has widened to include two more candidates, with Liberal councillor Mary-Lou Jarvis and local surgeon Michael Feneley entering the contest.

The moves come as Christine Forster, the City of Sydney councillor and sister of former prime minister Tony Abbott, withdraws from the contest because her run might be seen as a proxy for division in the Liberal Party.

Eyes on the prize: Liberal preselection candidates for Wentworth, Andrew Bragg (left), Dave Sharma and Mary-Lou Jarvis.

Labor is ramping up its campaign for the blue-ribbon seat of Wentworth in eastern Sydney with its candidate, investment analyst Tim Murray, gaining vocal support from Mr Turnbulls son, Alex.

The Labor campaign urges voters to use the impending byelection in Wentworth to end the Morrison governments majority in Federal Parliament and force an election, raising the stakes for the Liberal Party in a seat it won easily under Mr Turnbull.
Thodey's main message is that he "doesn't have any answers yet"  that's fair enough, in a sense. However, for a review that was established four months ago, it might reasonably be expected that it would have formed a handful of tentative views about a few things. There's no sign of it. That is to say, there's too much yin and not enough yang.

Thodey's speech does not exceed the expectations inherent in its title, "early reflections". He talks about "emerging themes" like respect for the public service, maintaining capability, responsiveness, developing the workforce and, of course, our latest good friend, innovation. He covers experience in four or five countries, some of which may be useful. He only gets specific in pondering if "a single, clear, aspirational purpose statement for the public service" would "drive greater collaboration and convey" and clarify its role for the community. Maybe; maybe not. Public officials and citizens surely know, more or less, that the public service's unchanging role is to support and advise the government and administer such programs for which the Parliament supplies money. Might a "single ... purpose statement" that would be lucky to escape the perils of syrupy, modern cliche be of much help? Let's leave that dangling for the moment.

Our philosopher's view would have been confirmed by a recent speech from the review's chairman , David Thodey, about arrangements he's made for the "face-to-face workshops" with public servants and members of the public "to test our [the review's] thinking".

A Chinese philosopher might think that the current Australian Public Service review has too much yin (passive and in the spirit of things) and not enough yang (active and more in the form of things). If so, a helpful philosopher of this ilk would say: "These forces should be kept in balance for, if they are not, things can easily go off the rails."

The same is so with the "face-to-face workshops". The locations have been notified but there are no dates, no agendas, no indication of the review's "thinking", no outline of procedures to be followed and no indication of who from the review will attend  the ordinary things that people thinking of turning up should be told. If the idea of a "single-purpose statement" is the only suggestion Thodey takes to the "workshop" to be held in Bridgewater (Tasmania), the locals could become unruly.

In 1983, the government established a taskforce on public service reform led by the minister for finance and the public service, John Dawkins, and including several senior departmental secretaries. Within a matter of months, it produced a white paper detailing a large number of specific proposals dealing with the left-over recommendations of the Coombs royal commission and those in the 1983 Reid report. The paper was used as a means of consultation. This latest review should learn from this experience and produce a paper or a series of papers outlining draft conclusions that can be distributed before the workshops. There's no point in wandering into a hall and asking people what they think  consultees need to have something specific to react to. Consultation will not work unless it has clear purpose and specific focus.

The review should do as much as it can to help itself because it's not getting much from other sources. Sure, it received more than 600 submissions but most of these provide slim pickings; there are a few notable exceptions. Of the 130-odd public service agencies, only seven have made public submissions: the Human Rights Commission, the Department of Home Affairs, the Australian Institute of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Studies, the Tax Office, the Transport Safety Bureau, the Small Business Ombudsman and the Infrastructure Department. The first four of these are good and Home Affairs' is the best.

APS review chairman David Thodey, who will report to a different prime minister and public service commissioner than expected. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

It's a pathetic commentary on the state of the service that so few agencies had the guts to make open submissions. Bugger all from the Department of the Prime Minister and Cabinet but one from the NSW Department of the Premier and Cabinet. Bugger all from the Finance Department and the Public Service Commission, both of which have been embarrassed by two weighty submissions from the Community and Public Sector Union. And bugger all from the Department of Industry etc, whose secretary, Heather Smith, complained earlier this year about the lack of a "burning platform" for change; of all people, she should have been prepared to openly nail her colours to the mast. Her "burning platform" seems to have gone up in smoke.
Beijing: The principal of a kindergarten in southern China has been sacked after welcoming students back to the first day of the new school year with pole dancing.

First the principal, and then a female adult dancer clad in black hot pants and heels, performed the raunchy routine gyrating around a flagpole bearing the Chinese national flag, in the school's assembly square as families and students watched on.

Smartphone video taken by stunned family members spread on Chinese social media. An American writer whose two young children attend the Xinshahui kindergarten in Shenzhen's Baoan district expressed his shock on Twitter.

So before our kids got out of kindergarten for the summer, there was 10 days of military 'activities' and displays of machine guns and mortars at the door; now the principal has welcomed them back with a strip pole dance on the flagpole bearing the PRC flag. She's gone nuts, wrote Michael Standaert.
Columbus: Former US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta said President Donald Trump's summit with North Korea leader Kim Jong-un in June about the country's nuclear threat was "doomed to failure" because of a lack of preparation beforehand.

"I'm very worried about the situation because frankly, I think we have a failed summit on our hands right now," Panetta said on ABC's This Week on Sunday.

Former Defence Secretary Leon Panetta Credit:AP

Trump last month called off a planned trip to North Korea by Secretary of State Michael Pompeo after concluding there hasn't been enough progress in talks aimed at denuclearising the Korean Peninsula. In an August 30 interview with Bloomberg News, the president said he can be patient with the North Korean leader, who's yet to take appreciable steps to give up his country's nuclear weapons after Trump declared the issue solved following the summit.

Panetta, who served as defence secretary and CIA director under Democratic President Barack Obama, said the summit "was all about show, it was about shaking hands, exchanging words."
The war has dragged on so long that it is now fought by a generation of soldiers too young to remember the day when planes flown by members of al-Qaeda, which had found protection in Afghanistan under the Taliban, struck the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon. Then, Nicholson, 61, echoed a call to immediately begin peace negotiations  an approach that has become a US priority that the Trump administration hopes will allow it to diminish its presence in the country  while also warning the Taliban that the US would continue to fight. The Pentagon was attacked on September 11, 2001 along with the World Trade Centre towers. A fourth plane crashed in Pennsylvania. Credit:GeoEye His departure comes as the war seems to spiral deadlier even as it recedes from American attention  Nicholson did not meet once with President Donald Trump in the 20 months since he moved into the White House. "Our soldiers are volunteers, permitting the American people and their elected representatives to be indifferent about the war in Afghanistan," said Karl Eikenbery, a former commander of the American forces in Afghanistan who later served as the US ambassador to Kabul. "We continue to fight simply because we are there."

Like his predecessor, John F Campbell, Nicholson is likely to retire immediately, a diplomat with ties to the general said, a sign that the posting is no longer a springboard to more senior roles, and what appears to be the final chapter of his career encapsulates the trajectory of a 17-year war. The US's involvement has moved from a wounded nation's quest to strike back against the Taliban for facilitating al-Qaeda  to what critics say was a show of military hubris that sent young Americans deep into Afghan villages where the Taliban often had an advantage  to a desperate search for a dignified resolution, its urgency heightened by the unpredictability of a US president who has made no secret of his weariness for the war. US General John W Nicholson Jr and his partner, the president and founder of the International Council on Security and Development, Norine MacDonald. Credit:US CentCom Nicholson's four tours of the country, in which he developed a personal commitment and an emotional attachment to the place and its people, also speaks to the toll of the conflict on the men and women who fought there. He led the effort at a difficult time, when the Taliban had cranked up the pressure on the nascent Afghan forces taking the lead in the fight and when the political leadership in Kabul remained in disarray.

During his tenure, the longest by a US commander, he helped double the size of the Afghan special forces and triple that of the country's air force. But he and his fellow generals tout a temporary rare cease-fire in June as a major success under his watch, a reflection of how much the goals and expectations of the US military have changed. Nicholson will be replaced by General Austin "Scott" Miller, who left the shadowy Joint Special Operations Command to take on the war effort of a coalition to which 41 nations contribute. Incoming US Army General Austin Miller, second from left, talks to his colleague as outgoing US Army General John Nicholson, third from left, claps during the change of command ceremony at Resolute Support headquarters, in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Sunday. Credit:AP Defence officials described him as a "straight shooter" largely expected to approach the war with a more realistic attitude of defeating the Taliban than Nicholson, who on multiple occasions suggested that the US had turned a corner in the war. Miller, who overlapped with Nicholson as a cadet at West Point, is well-regarded, but his 35 years of service have been spent mostly with the Special Operations community. That has left little time for larger and more public-facing commands that, by nature, are exposed to political nuances from which their commando counterparts are usually insulated.

At Nicholson's side at the ceremony Sunday was his wife, Norine MacDonald, a security analyst and researcher who has long been active in Afghan affairs. The two met at an event on Afghanistan. MacDonald  who has served as a "first lady" of sorts, her presence encouraging more female voices  accompanied her husband on trips to front-line provinces and high-level meetings, a strong statement in a country where decision-making is dominated by men. An MD 530F military helicopter targets a house where suspected attackers are hiding in Kabul, Afghanistan, on August 21, 2018. Credit:AP But her prominent role in a war zone, where movement is so limited that officers take helicopter shuttles to travel even the smallest distance out of headquarters in Kabul, was disorienting to many soldiers who had seen nothing quite like it. MacDonald's years of work in Afghanistan, which she paused after Nicholson took command, defied easy labels to those who saw her in action.

She distributed emergency food to families displaced by the "bombings and eradication campaigns" of the US-led military coalition, wrote research papers and provided video reportage from difficult corners of the country, vocal against the "blowback" of operations pushing young men to the arms of the Taliban. Loading A strong theme of her work was grass-roots mobilisation against the eradication of poppies, passionately arguing that Afghanistan could gain by legalising the crop for medicinal purposes. That infuriated Afghan and American officials at the time when eradication was the US policy. WikiLeaks cables showed American and Afghan officials repeatedly discussing "efforts to rein" her in. MacDonald's offices were raided by Afghan intelligence, her equipment confiscated, and she was asked to leave the country. While she scrambled to find caretakers for her Russian jeep and motorcycle that she drove around Kabul, and the pet turtle she kept at her home, it was not clear whether she ever left.
Donald Trump is checking out of Asia. He's cancelled a planned November trip to the continent's two biggest annual summits. With them, he's cancelled any prospect of a side trip to Australia.

This just serves to confirm the impression from his various policy ventures into the region. His much-ballyhooed breakthrough meeting with North Korea's Kim Jong-un was a breakthrough all right. For Kim.

Kim still has every bit of the nuclear destructive capability he had before the Singapore summit, but the solid wall of sanctions surrounding North Korea has collapsed. The Trump meeting cleansed North Korea of pariah status. That gave political licence to other countries to trade with it. So the Kim regime now has essential economic oxygen. The pressure of sanctions eased. Trump zero, Kim one.

Kim one, Trump zero: The North Korean leader and US President in Singapore this year. Credit:AP

Trump's intensifying a trade war that only serves to harm both the US and China. And Trump has said that eventually he would like to withdraw the US military bases from South Korea and Japan, essential infrastructure to the American ability to project power and hold its ground in the region. So far, he's creating nothing but wreckage.
Beijing: In China, coincidences are common. Clear explanations of what has just happened can be harder to find.

The Australian Broadcasting Corporation's website has been inaccessible in China for a fortnight. Although China has famously erected a "Great Firewall" around its online population to block internet users from accessing many western websites and social media apps including Google, Twitter and Facebook, it is unusual for an Australian media website to be blocked.

But the day after the Turnbull government quietly announced rules that would exclude one of China's biggest private companies, Huawei, from involvement in Australia's 5G network rollout, the ABC website became inaccessible.
Washington: A man stood and yelled "Shame on you" as Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl on Sunday addressed the sex abuse scandal rocking the Catholic Church and asked parishioners to pray for Pope Francis as he deals with the problem.

A video of the incident inside Annunciation Catholic Church in Washington shows the man, identified by CNN as Brian Garfield, walking angrily toward the exit after he could be heard yelling at Wuerl during a short speech, in which the cardinal also asked parishioners to forgive his "errors in judgment" in handling sexual abuse claims while he was a bishop in Pittsburgh.

Cardinal Donald Wuerl. Credit:AP

Garfield, who could not be reached for comment Monday, told CNN that he is a lifelong Catholic angry about the findings of a grand jury report in Pennsylvania released last month that documented abuse by 300 priests over the course of 70 years.

The report focused attention on Wuerl's mixed record of dealing with abusive priests when he was bishop of Pittsburgh for 18 years before becoming cardinal of the Washington archdiocese in 2006.
Sep 3, 2018 | By Thomas

Silicone molding is an affordable production method that can allow you to make a series of identical objects for prototyping and functional testing. Until now, however, fabricating molds for casting complex objects required a lot of experience and also involved manual work, which made the process slow and expensive. Scientists at the Istituto di Scienza e Tecnologie dell'Informazione (ISTI-CNR) and the Institute of Science and Technology Austria (IST Austria) have developed a new tool for fabricating digital objects through reusable silicone molds. The tool automatically finds the best method to design the molds, and also delivers templates for so-called "metamolds": Rigid, 3D printed molds used to fabricate the optimized silicone molds.

The metamolds (red pieces far left and right) are used to fabricate the silicone molds (greenish and white shapes in the middle). Credit: Luigi Malomo

Silicone molding is simple and accurate and will forgive many mistakes. Extracting the object from the mold generally requires separating the mold pieces without getting them caught in overhanging parts of the object. A careful cut is required to open the mold. "Until now, silicone molding of complex shapes was a craft that needed years of experience and a skillful hand. You needed to know where to place the cuts ideally, and the work was done manually. Our new tool makes this method accessible for everyone," says Bernd Bickel, an Assistant Professor, heading the Computer Graphics and Digital Fabrication group at IST Austria.

With their new tool, the user just needs to upload the desired shape to the computer. The tool then calculates where the cuts need to be placed for an optimal result. This implies that the smallest possible number of mold pieces is utilized, and that the object can be safely removed from the mold once it is finished.

After that the computer automatically creates the 3D-printable templates of the metamold, a container that is used to create the ideal silicone mold pieces. The 3D printed metamolds are then filled with liquid silicone to produce the last silicone mold pieces, which are reusable and can be used to cast multiple replicas.

Scientists believe that this tool will be useful for small series production, such as in jewelry design or art. "When you are not producing millions of copies, this is the method of choice," says Thomas Alderighi from ISTI-CNR, the first author of the study.

As noted by Paolo Cignoni, research director at ISTICNR, one possible application is the production of a small number of replicas for museums that could be handled by visitors for a deeper experience of the exhibition.

The final silicone mold pieces can also be used to create replicas from a variety of different materials, including traditional ones like resin, but also unconventional ones like chocolate or ice.

Their method, which can lower the cost of silicone molding technique, is presented at this year's SIGGRAPH conference and published in the journal ACM Trans. Graph.

Posted in 3D Printing Application

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Cindy leonard wrote at 9/6/2018 5:49:34 PM:How much does the equipment cost? Thank youEric Askue wrote at 9/6/2018 12:31:13 AM:I'm the lead artist at Collapse Industries (also the distributor for the MilkShake3D Printer US) and the creator of World Over Run (a tabletop terrain business). I would like to talk with the developers about there process, as well as share a few points and discuss features. One of the many things about this process is the amount of silicon needed. We use mold jackets and our molds are usually between 10 and 30mm. If this sort of feature was explored and could be done between an SLA for the mold and an FDM for the jacket would make it cheaper and more flexible. there are other concerns to consider as well. Most of the time we make a master (the first casting) for our vault to recast the mold once it starts to fail. The issue with this method is that prototypes from SLA are not entirely stable and with age can deteriorate. Again I'd really like to have a proper conversation because I find this process very exciting for us and the development of our production. Thank you ~Eric Askue evaskue@gmail.comL T D wrote at 9/4/2018 9:46:19 PM:This technique is called pattern making and has always been the standard way to make sand castings or other technical castings. Make patterns that make the molds. It's ridiculous to make a part and then use a razor blade to cut off the silicone mold. That is only done in art castings from a sculpture. Even then, if more than one reproduction casting is to be made, I think you will find that the the impression in plaster or silicone that came directly off the sculpture is used to make PATTERNS that them are used to make the molds that make the wax investments. Note that at each step specialty plasters that have extremely predictable shrinkage or even expansion can be used.this gives optimal control over finished dimensions.Kyle Schiefer wrote at 9/4/2018 7:46:26 PM:You still need to address the grow lines leftover from the printing process (a time consuming step without an easy-to-manipulate part, given that it's opposed halves are nested separately in planar surfaces), and the value of producing solid "molds" in both print time and material costs is ungodly. For roughly the same price, if not considerably less, you can print a single part, clean it up, and mold it in half of the time. After all.. pouring silicone is still an hours long task, and unless you have absolutely identical mold halves, your parting lines will cause a whole new slew of problems in the production realm.. not to mention that silicone tires out, and becomes brittle over time, meaning that even if you did everything right.. every part you cast will require an exponentially greater amount of final clean up and finishing before they can be sold or shipped etc.Hammah33 wrote at 9/4/2018 1:02:21 AM:Composimold also works really well and solves some of these issues... http://composimoldstore.com/blog/this-is-not-for-making-silicone-molds/




The IT teacher Sundiata Lake and Remedial/Special Ed. teacher Helen Hassell at SHS on Saba have introduced a new software of communication for this school year 2018-2019.

The software uses an app by AssistiveWare called Proloquo2go. It is for students with Autism, Down Syndrome, and any other special need students that have difficulties communicating.

With the approval of Principal Diane Wilson, the school board and the support of the parent, the new app, which is installed on an I-pad will give the students an additional tool to interact and communicate with their teachers and fellow students and at the same time the student will learn a lot. Once the app has reached positive results, other students will also benefit from this app. The app will truly be successful with the support, guidance, and patience of all parties, said Sundiata Lake.

The SHS is constantly looking for opportunities to further educate, enhance, and improve the lives of every student also the student with special needs.

Return to Happiness - A Post Disaster Psychosocial Recovery Program for Children came to Saba. The workshop was given by Suzette Moses Burton, Swaitsha Antoine, Tara Leonard-Emanuel, UNICEF representatives.

All the teachers were trained how to support their students when they return to school after a minor or major disaster. The disaster can be hurricane, loss of a friend or family member etc.

The teachers learned through practical exercises how to handle and deal with certain situations.

The school received a few Toolkits with several supplies and activities that can be used with the students. It was a great success, said Jarmila Berkel, the Guidance counselor.

Conscious Discipline is a comprehensive social- emotional and classroom management program that uses everyday life events to reach children and adults.

SHS also implemented several CD techniques in the classrooms. This program allows us as educators to teach by example.

The students are intrinsically motivated to be helpful, responsible, and caring citizens.

The students have to feel safe in the school environment, said teacher Tevonille Dunchi, one of the CD team members. Dr. Becky Bailey is the founder of Conscious Discipline.

Principal Diane Wilson and President of the school board, Ms. Mary Anastacia Simmons have once again topped with its First Week of Teachers Professional Development.

Mathematical Specialist Ms. Laura Gifford from Houghton Mifflin Harcourt- Math in Focus- Singapore Math by Cavendish has visited the school to train, re-train and to give updates on methodology, concept development, and transitioning from one grade into another.

She also focused on Math in Focus: Work Station Ideas, Numeracy/ Fact Fluency, Enrichment Exercises, Mathematical Games, Virtual Manipulatives, Problem Solving, Technology, and Differentiation.

She encouraged the teachers to observe if the students had acquired the pre-requisite skills for an idea/concept sufficiently from the previous grade, and if not, to return to the previous level, let them learn the skill and only then move on, for this will provide a smooth flow into the new areas.

Math in Focus- Singapore Math can be used with the Students Books, Students Workbooks, and also on the E-Boards with the same exercises, enrichment and transitions. Once again, SHS is striving for its staff and students to be nothing but the best!
Aiphones IX Series IP video intercom system helps Roselle Catholic High School upgrade security

Roselle Catholic High School is a co-ed private high school founded 61 years ago in Roselle, New Jersey. Home to more than 400 students, Roselle Catholic is part of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark. In its community, Roselle Catholic is known for its core values promoting academic excellence, service, and tolerance. Like many high schools across the country, Roselle Catholic High School relied on outdated technology to communicate between the front office and classrooms. Outdated intercom system While the front office could connect with the classroom through its dated oneway intercom system, teachers could not communicate with the front office from the classroom. In the event of a classroom emergency, such as a student suddenly falling ill or a classroom disruption, teachers had to rely on a student to run down to the front office to request assistance. Our school is in an older building and the original communication system layout doesnt have the talkback option to the main office, said Principal Tom Berrios. That left teachers in a bad spot if they ever had to reach an administrator for an emergency. Lack of visitor management system School administrators sought a new system that could provide communications between teachers and staff The school also lacked a visitor management system allowing the front office to visually confirm and speak with anyone before permitting them to physically enter the building. In addition, with new health and safety concerns from the COVID19 pandemic, the school wanted to implement new measures to help screen visitors before they enter the building. As part of its efforts to improve security facility-wide, school administrators sought a new system that could provide internal communications between teachers and staffwhile sending audio alerts in the event of an emergency. They also needed a visitor management system enabling them to visually confirm and communicate with visitors before they enter the building. IP video intercom system To assist with these challenges, the school installed the IX Series PeertoPeer IP Video Intercom System from Aiphone. Installing the system was Maffeys Security Group, a systems integration company from Elizabeth, New Jersey, with close ties to the high school. Roselle Catholic High School is my alma mater and we try to help them keep uptodate with the latest technology and security, said Ed Maffey, president of Maffeys Security Group, a family-owned and operated business for 110 years. By leveraging a program through the state of New Jersey, the high school was able to apply and receive a grant designed to support security improvements at both public and private schools. The grant was used to help pay for the new Aiphone IX Series PeertoPeer IP Video Intercom System, which included two master stations, two IP video door stations, and 43 IP audio substations for classrooms. The IX Series delivers flexibility The benefit of the IP video intercom system is its ability to integrate with a recently installed thermal imaging camera The IP system is a scalable, enterpriselevel solution that uses Power over Ethernet (PoE), eliminates the need for a power source for each intercom and substation. The system can easily integrate with access control, video, and other security devices to provide a fully unified solution. One main benefit of the IP video intercom system is its ability to integrate with a recently installed thermal imaging camera system, which is being used to screen students, staff, and visitors before the entrance. A thermal imaging camera located at the front entrance will screen people for a mask and elevated temperature, and only allow access if that visitor is cleared. Video-based monitoring system With the new Aiphone IX Series system, front office staff can respond when a visitor rings a bell asking for entrance. Staff can speak to the visitor and also make visual contact before pushing the door release button to allow that person to enter. The school is equipped with two touchscreen master stations, with one located in the front office and the second located in the principals office. The live video also helps to prevent people from following an approved guest through the doors. Trained front desk staff can monitor a visitor as they enter the building to ensure additional people arent following behind. Added benefits with emergency notifications In addition to enabling communication directly from teachers to the front office, they also can put the entire school on a lockdown notice in the event of an emergency. The Aiphone IX Series can send a prerecorded notification buildingwide, alerting students or staff of a problem and providing directions about what steps to take next. With one push of a button, a message will play continuously and that message can be used for a variety of scenarios The system makes the teachers feel more secure with whats going on in the building and they have an easier way to communicate, said Berrios. Maffey called this feature a hot button capability. With one push of a button, a message will play continuously and that prerecorded message can be used for a variety of scenarios, including fire drills, emergency evacuations, and lockdown situations. Entry door security The school is also using the Aiphone IX Series on an entry door located in the back of the building, which is frequently used by students heading outside for athletics or gym class. After school, the intercom system has become an added security feature because we can now visually see the students who need to enter the building and the locker room, said Berrios. Before we had to keep the door propped open or students could not gain access from the back of the building. Leveraging IP connectivity Maffey said the installation was relatively easy because he was able to leverage the schools existing IP network to run the new IPbased video intercom system. Additional switches helped to fill in areas where network connectivity wasnt available. When we install an Aiphone system we can walk away confident that it is going to work, said Maffey. Aiphone has been our goto intercom system for over 20 years.
By hacking a domestic knitting machine, a software engineer advanced modern knitting and made a massive equatorial star map in tapestry form.

Australian software engineer Sarah Spencer spent years hacking and programming a 1980s domestic knitting machine for fun. This hobby grew into much more, however, as Spencer developed a new computer algorithm that did something never before accomplished with such machines. Her accomplishment  knitting with bird's-eye backing using one knit per pixel in three colors  might not mean much to anyone outside of the knitting community. But this achievement allowed Spencer to make something truly out of this world.

"As a woman in tech, I wanted to create something which would engage young minds in an area of STEM (science, technology, engineering, mathematics)," Spencer said in a statement emailed to Space.com. So, with her souped-up knitting machine, Spencer set her sights on Electromagnetic Field Camp (also known as EMF Camp), a geeky festival in the United Kingdom focused on tech and creativity. She aimed to create an astronomy-based piece to showcase at the event. [Constellations of the Night Sky: Famous Star Patterns Explained (Images)]

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At 6 p.m. GMT on Aug. 31 at EMF Camp, Spencer unveiled the fruits of her labors  "Stargazing: a knitted tapestry." The piece features all 88 constellations as seen from Earth, as well as the equatorial line with the zodiac constellations running along it, stars scaled according to their real-life brightness, the Milky Way galaxy, the sun, Earth's moon and all of the planets within our solar system. Spencer made sure to put the planets, sun and moon in specific, strategic positions so that the heavenly bodies indicate a specific date in time.

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Spencer, of course, includes the Southern Cross constellation in this tapestry, as this constellation is depicted in the Australian flag, on "Stargazing."

But wait, there's more!

Australian software engineer Sarah Spencer hacked this 1980's knitting machine to knit an incredible equatorial star map. (Image credit: Sarah Spencer )

Spencer entered "Stargazing" into REAio, a hackathon at REA Group in Melbourne, Australia. With a team of 18 excited hackers, Spencer electrified the tapestry, lighting up eight of its constellations. While the engineer said she hopes to one day light up all of the constellations on "Stargazing," successfully electrifying some of them snagged the Marvin award for Technical Excellence at the hackathon.

Spencer hopes that "Stargazing" "inspires EMF Camp attendees to go out and look up at the stars," she told Space.com in an email.

"Stargazing: a knitted tapestry" consists of locally sourced Australian wool that matches the blue color of the outfits of the accomplished Australian women depicted in portraits on display as part of the 2018 Archibald Prize at the Art Gallery of New South Wales, Australia. Spencer wanted her universe to be "dressed in a similar ultramarine blue to celebrate the achievements of all women in the fields of science," she said in the statement.

The piece stretches out to about 9 feet (2.8 meters) tall and 15 feet (4.6 m) wide. The astronomical tapestry, which took Spencer a whopping 100-plus hours to complete, weighs in at 33 lbs. (15 kilograms).

Email Chelsea Gohd at cgohd@space.com or follow her @chelsea_gohd. Follow us @Spacedotcom, Facebook and Google+. Original article on Space.com.
Madrid (Spain), September 2, 2018 (SPS) - Dozens of children on Sunday left Barajas International Airport in Madrid, Spain, towards the refugee camps and liberated territories of Western Sahara.



The children left on two direct flights to Tindouf, where they were paid farewell representative of the Frente POLISARIO in Madrid, along with representatives of the associations of friendship and solidarity with the Sahrawi people.



During the summer holidays, they were given a great welcome by parliaments and local governments, which was an occasion to renew political and humanitarian support for the Saharawi people and to remind the Spanish Government of its historic and legal responsibilities towards the Saharawi people.



The children also benefited from medical examinations as well as educational and recreational programs. (SPS)



062/SPS/TRA
Sep 3rd, 2018

To celebrate the upcoming release of the Marvel Comics movie Venom, Grenade is running a massive competition exclusively for its UK fans. The major prize the Carb Killa brand has put together is an all expenses paid, Venom themed trip to Singapore.

The winner will get return flights from London to Singapore and a three nights stay at a luxury hotel. The package also includes a bunch of activities with a private martial arts masterclass, drinks at the AfterDark bar, a 50 meter bungy jump, and a ride on the worlds first dual swing.

To go in the draw to win Grenades Venom themed trip to Singapore, simply visit the brands contest page. Through there all you have to do is answer an easy trivia question about the Venom movie, then enter in your details and sign-up to Grenades newsletter.
This week is filled with a range of delights, from the San Francisco's Symphony's posh opening night to the SHN premiere of Phantom of the Opera.

Looking for something more low key? Don't miss the Ghirardelli Chocolate Festival, Comedians With Criminal Records, Sunday Streets, and more.

Monday, September 3rd ALX by Alexanders Steakhouse on Instagram: Introducing the Duroc Sticky Pork Ribs. Perfect for sharing, but we think you'll want these all to yourself. P: @nicola_parisi Bloody Marys on the Bay

When: 10am to 12:30pm Where: Schooner Freda B - Slip 907, 100 Bay St. (Sausalito) Why: Enjoy a light breakfast of pastries, fruit and cheeses while sipping on a Bloody Mary or mimosa. Then hit up the Sausalito art festival. // Tickets ($75-$89) are available at eventbrite.com

Sausalito Art Festival When: 10am to 5pm Where: Marinship Park, 2200 Marinship Way (Sausalito) Why: Explore art from over 250 creators across 14 mediums, feast on gourmet bites, sip on fine wine, champagne, and beer, and listen to live music in the perfect Labor Day weekend event. // Tickets ($3110-$150) are available at eventbrite.com.

There's A New Steakhouse On The Block

When: 11:30am to 2pm and 5pm to 10pm Where: ALX, 680 Folsom St. Suite 125 (SOMA), alxgastropub.com Why: Alexander's Steakhouse has a new spinoff sister concept opening with ALX, the perfect spot for next-level pub food and casual Californian eats in a trendy, hip atmosphere. Female power duo, Executive Chef Jessie Lugo and Executive Sous Chef Emily Lim, are whipping up batches of burgers, bacon, fries, and dips that pair perfectly with a new curated beer, wine, and cocktail list. Pony up for dishes like goat cheese tater tots, skillet mac 'n' cheese, or the foie-gyu burger, then roll yourself homestuffed and happy.

Tuesday, September 4th (Courtesy of Piri Pica) Pira Pica Hits the Mission When: 11am to 10pm Where: Piri Pica, 590 Valencia St. (Mission), piripica.com Why: Welcome Piri Pica to the Mission, a Portuguese-style, fast casual eats concept by Khalid Mushasha (Lolinda, Black Cat) and Chef Telmo Faria (Tacolicious, Uma Casa), with a focus on flame-grilled piri piri chicken. Faria has anchored his restaurant around four chicken flavors: spicy, extra spicy (aka Pica! Pica! Pica!), zesty lemon and herbs, and mild. Pick your style and make it a crispy chicken sandwich, wrap, or go a la carte with a half or whole chicken.

Comedians With Criminal Records When: 8pm Where: Punchline SF, 444 Battery St. (FiDi) Why: LOL with Stroy Moyd, an Oakland-based comedian who's opened for Dave Chappelle, Tracy Morgan, the Wayans Brothers, Hannibal Buress, and more. He's also a three-time winner of the Fresh Faces Comedy Competition at the Laugh Factory in Hollywood, CA and has performed at numerous comedy festivals around the country including our very own SF Sketchfest. // Tickets ($17) are available at punchlinecomedyclub.com

Odd Salon

When: 6:30pm to 10pm Where: Public Works SF, 161 Erie St. (Mission), publicsf.com Why: Listen to tales of travelers and investigators on the forefront of discovery. Think: maritime escapades of a treasure fleet and roaming the vast lands of the Antarctic. // Tickets ($15-$25) are available at eventbrite.com

Wednesday, September 5th Derrick Davis and Eva Tavares in Phantom of the Opera. (Matthew Murphy) A Boozy Affair When: 3pm to 7pm Where: The Douglas Room, 345 Taylor St. (Tenderloin) Why: Celebrate Griffo Distillery's newest release, Cold Brew Coffee Liqueur, a collab with Equator Coffees & Teas. They'll have a special menu with coffeelicious liqueur and Griffo's full line up of gins and whiskeys. In the industry? Get drinks on the house with a paystub or business card. // eventbrite.com

Opening Night Gala When: 8pm to 12am Where: San Francisco Symphony, 201 Van Ness Ave. (Hayes Valley), sfsymphony.org Why: Pull out your fanciest outfit and hang with celebrity artists in a night of music. Listen to Gershwin's An American in Paris, and violinist legend Itzhak Perlman. There's even an after party post- concert with more live music, cocktails and dancing. // Tickets ($325 to $750) are available at sfsymphony.org

The Phantom of the Opera When: 7:30pm to 10pm Where: SHN Orpheum Theatre, 1192 Market St. (Civic Center), shnsf.com Why: See Cameron Mackintosh's new production of The Phantom of the Opera, which many are saying is bigger and better than before with new scenic design, Tony Award-winning original costume design, and more. // Tickets ($56-$226) are available at shnsf.com

Thursday, September 6th (Willian West) Credo Beauty x Mafia Bags Launch Party When: 5pm to 7:30pm Where: Credo Beauty, 2136 Fillmore St. (Pacific Heights), credobeauty.com Why: See the launch of the limited-edition makeup bag made from upcycled boat, windsurf and kitesurf sails. Inside are fall clean beauty essentials including tinted balm, facial cream, toner, clay cleanser and more. Meet the founder of Mafia, sip on refreshments, and get your bag monogrammed for free at the party.

Around the World Wine Tasting When: 5:30pm to 8:30pm Where: W San Francisco, 181 3rd St. (SoMa), marriott.com Why: Explore wineries from all over the world including Argentina, Australia, Austria, Chile, France, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Spain, Uruguay and more and taste over 300 wines curated by master sommelier Evan Goldstein. // Tickets ($70) are available at eventbrite.com

Friday, September 7th Taylor McFerrin. (Courtesy of SFJazz) Groove to Taylor McFerrin When: 7pm and 8:30pm Where: SF Jazz, 201 Franklin St. (Hayes Valley) Why: Catch the Brooklyn DJ, producer, keyboardist and beatboxerand son of Bobby McFerrinon the dance floor at SFJazz. // Tickets ($30-$35) are available at sfjazz.org

Foodie Festival In Tahoe When: Various times, starting 5pm Friday through 5pm Sunday Where: The Village at Northstar, 5001 Northstar Drive (Truckee), northstarcalifornia.com Why: It's that time of year again up at our favorite lakethe Lake Tahoe Autumn Food & Wine Festival is taking over Truckee for three days of non-stop eating and drinking. Get your buzz on with interactive cocktail classes, watch culinary cook-offs, enjoy multi-course farm-to-table feasts, and wrap it all up with a grand tasting featuring an epic 25 chef showdown. Looking for a place to stay? The Ritz Carlton is hosting a number of the events and is an easy, no-brainer choice. // Tickets ($20 -$280) are available at eventbrite.com

Saturday, September 8th (Courtesy of the Story of Ramen) Rum Time When: 3:30pm to 6:30pm Where: SOMArts Cultural Center, 934 Brannan St. (SoMa), californiarumfestival.com Why: Sip on more than 40 premium rums from around the world and hear from the industry's top luminaries at the 4th California Rum Fest. There will be tastings, seminars, live music, and a tiki bazaar to shop goods from local vendors. // Tickets ($60) are available at californiarumfestival.com

Time To Get (Chocolate) Sauced

When: 12pm to 5pm Saturday and Sunday Where: Ghirardelli Square, 900 North Point (Fisherman's Wharf, ghirardellisq.com Why: The 23rd Annual Ghirardelli Chocolate Festival is back to soothe our sweet tooth. Stroll along the waterfront and enjoy chocolate samples from various vendors, dance to festive live music and catch culinary demonstrations as you fully immerse yourself in all things chocolate. // Tickets ($27-$55) are available at eventbrite.com

Make Ramen Noodles From Scratch When: 1pm to 3pm Where: Story of Ramen, 3231 24th St. (Mission), thestoryoframen.com Why: After renting out different kitchen spaces for over two years, The Story of Ramen is finally settling into a new brick-and-mortar space. Chef and instructor, Manville Chan, will offer both hands-on evening ramen making classes as well as a full-service ramen eats as a lunchtime restaurant. Classes are kicking off this week, and there's no better time to pop in and get deep in the dough. // Tickets ($55) are available at eventbrite.com
WASHINGTON  A federal grand jury in New Haven added tax evasion to the list of charges against a couple accused of defrauding investors to buy two Washington Depot properties and develop a Palm Beach hotel.

Robert Matthews, 60, and Maria Matthews, 48, who live in Connecticut and Florida, were indicted on Friday for failing to pay federal income tax they owed for 2005 and 2007, according to a release from the U.S. attorney for the District of Connecticut.

The tax evasion charge is the 21st count against Robert Matthews, who was indicted in March on fraud and money laundering offenses. Leslie Evans, 71, a real estate attorney from Palm Beach, Fla., was also charged in the scheme.

The indictment accuses Robert Matthews of defrauding investors in his attempt to develop The Palm House Hotel in Florida.

He and Evans are charged with using money investors gave through a program called EB-5, which allows foreign nationals to earn green cards by contributing to development projects in the United States, for personal means, according to the release.

The money helped Robert and Maria Matthews pay off their credit card debt, buy a 151-foot yacht and purchase two properties in Washington Depot, according to the indictment. Robert Matthews had previously lost one of the homes to foreclosure.

Middlebury resident Gerry Matthews, who is the brother of Robert Matthews, and Nicholas Laudano, a construction contractor for The Palm House Hotel, were also accused of being involved in the scheme.

Gerry Matthews had previously waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit wire fraud. Laudano has also waived his right to be indicted and pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud and illegal monetary transactions. They await sentencing.

Robert and Maria Matthews are scheduled to be arraigned in court in New Haven at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday.

The tax evasion charge carries a maximum five-year prison term, but bank and wire fraud charges against Robert Matthews each carry a maximum 30-year prison term.
STAMFORD  Pencils? Check.

Paper? Check.

Bulletproof backpack? Check?

Although a recent study from Northeastern University showed schools are safer than ever, more parents are considering sending their children to school with equipment made to shield them from a shooters bullets.

Stamfords Board of Education is showing skepticism the idea.

We dont believe in sending teachers to schools with guns and I dont believe in sending students to school with armor, said board chair David Mannis.

Joe Curran founded his Massachusetts-based company, Bullet Blocker, in 2007 because he believed the opposite. Curran, who previously worked in law enforcement, had two children in middle school when there was a shooting at Virginia Tech that killed 32 people. Dissatisfaction with the schools protocol for an active shooter  cut the lights and wait it out  led to an idea.

Curran made his first backpack with a cut-up bulletproof vest. His business started with two types of backpacks and expanded to briefcases, notebooks and inserts as more schools banned bags or only allowed clear backpacks.

The backpacks especially have grown in popularity in the last year, Curran said. In the past six to eight months, he said hes added 50 dealers to his otherwise online business.

We see an uptick in sales anytime theres violence worldwide and not just gun violence - any violence, Curran said. With Parkland and Newtown, we saw a very large upswing. Weve consistently had growth over the years and we always get a [sic] growth at back to school, but this year is larger than the past.

Stamford Public Schools has no current policy prohibiting students from using bulletproof backpacks, though Mannis said the district is working on a policy to further bolster school security.

Many parents already feel their students are safe at city schools.

Shira Tarantino, who has two children at Stark Elementary, described bulletproof backpacks as a Band-Aid.

If parents want to buy their kids those items, thats their prerogative, said Tarantino, who is the project director for the Stamford Pediatric Gun Safety Project and a board member for the Enough Campaign. I dont think it changes the safety any way in the schools.

Scott Wilson, president of the Connecticut Citizens Defense League, said the organization has no position on the products, but hes glad that people are engaged over the issue.

Its nice to see some of the mindset changing  that there are things that should be done to protect kids other than statutorily deciding what a gun-free zone is, because we obviously know gun-free zones arent working, he said. Its good to see theyre looking for other policies.

Parents who are interested in the product should know bulletproof backpacks are considered body armor in the state of Connecticut, which means they cannot be shipped directly to consumers. Once purchased online, the backpacks can be shipped to an authorized gun store. Curran says he works with the Blue Line Firearms and Tactical in Trumbull.

As of the start of school last week, Blue Line hadnt sold any of the backpacks this year. Neither had Stamford Tactical, the citys only local gun shop.

According to Curran, the inserts cost upwards of $100 and can protect from most shotguns, but not rifles. However, 93 percent of school shootings are executed with shotguns.

This is the same, if not higher level protection as police body armor, Curran said. The coverage area is the same, if not a little more in terms of the ability of it to work. I think its absolutely critical. I like the idea of them having something where they can take care of themselves.

erin.kayata@stamfordadvocate.com; (203) 964-2265; @erin_kayata
W idows and orphans beware. This tip is to be parked in the very high-risk category, so only consider it for that part of your savings you can afford to lose.

Not only is it a highly speculative company, little more than a shell at the moment, but its even got David Lenigas heavily involved. For the uninitiated, Lenigas is one of the most controversial characters in the world of small-cap investing. As this column has said before, hes as Marmite as they come, but if you like him, you might like this.

Weve picked it because its just done a deal in African infrastructure, and Theresa May has been telling us all to invest in that over the past few days.

Its called Anglo African Agriculture and was formed by small-cap broker Andrew Monk, founder of the brokerage VSA among others. He set it up and floated it five years ago to invest in food manufacturing, raising relatively small amounts from South African entrepreneur George Roach and resources investor Neil Herbert among others.

While it bought a couple of assets  a spices business for one  it failed to do a huge amount, primarily because Monk and Herbert were too busy on other projects. Lenigas came on board and became its 12% shareholder and replaced Herbert as chairman. South African entrepreneur Rob Scott is now running the show.

Fast forward to last week, and another deal emerged which sent the share price racing up to 0.83p. It was a project to lend up to a million dollars to a key port in Kenyas city of Mombasa called Comarco.

The loan, if AAA raises the money to offer it, should be lucrative enough, at 15% APR. But the real value here is in potential future partnerships with Comarco. As part of the loan, AAA gets the right to buy a 4.7-acre strip of land next to the port, which is earmarked for an LNG depot.

More excitingly, Comarco could reverse into AAA completely. That would mean shareholders owning one of the few major seaports of east Africa, with growth potential from the minerals trade just as Africa seems set to emerge from its recent economic doldrums.

Ports businesses make their money in two ways; first from renting out space on the docks and charging a fee for the volume that goes through them; second from the use of the ports tugboats and barges.

The work is diverse: currently, it has a contract on to ship four 250-tonne live baobab trees to the tree sanctuary of billionaire former Georgian president Bidzina Ivanishvili. Comarco could make $850,000 from the four-month job.

The port is handling 994 tonnes a day but has capacity for perhaps 3000 tonnes if the demand comes.

A takeover by AAA would probably involve an equity fundraising or convertible bond issue which would dilute existing shareholders stakes, but they would be getting a smaller piece of a bigger pie.
S portswear retailer Footasylum may have talked a good game, but the City was not in a forgiving mood on Monday.

The company said it was encouraged by its progress and confident of its strategy. But investors put the boot into the struggling firm as it warned on profits.

Footasylum blamed tough trading in July and August, and delays to new shop openings. Chairman Barry Bown said: These are undoubtedly challenging times in the retail industry.

The firm, which stocks brands including Adidas, Converse and Nike, warned revenues for the year to February 2019 are expected to be below the 237.2 million analysts had pencilled in. Profits will be significantly lower than the 13.6 million forecast.

Shares in the AIM-listed firm, which hit headlines in July when it emerged boss Clare Nesbitt had taken just two weeks maternity leave, plunged 40p, or more than 47%, to 44p.

It was better news on the junior market for Finsbury Food Group and double glazing firm Safestyle.

The former revealed a 21 million deal for gluten-free bakery firm Ultrapharm. Finsbury Food will pay an initial 17 million, with up to 4 million more depending on performance and other factors. Family-owned Ultrapharm supplies supermarkets such as Marks & Spencer. Shares in Finsbury Food rose 2.3p to 126.8p.

Investors also piled into Safestyle, up 7.75p, or more than 19%, to 47.75p after the firm, which sells windows, doors and conservatories, said it had settled legal claims against rival SafeGlaze.

The claims related to alleged trade mark infringement and other matters. SafeGlaze UK has agreed to change its trading name and rebrand fully.

On the FTSE 250 risers included Cannes Lions festival organiser Ascential. Shares in the firm edged up 4.8p to 435.6p after it unveiled a deal to buy retail analytics business Brand View which serves over 200 customers from its headquarters in Reading.

Ascential will pay an initial 29.8 million with a deferred payment of up to 8.2 million subject to certain targets being met. The FTSE 250 rose 33.24 points to 20,722.24.

The FTSE 100 was also a riser, 55.04 points higher at 7487.46.

CMC Markets UKs analyst David Madden said the blue-chip index was helped by firmer energy and mining stocks. He said: Despite China posting disappointing manufacturing figures, metals such as copper, platinum and palladium are higher this morning.

Small-cap spotlight

Fishing tackle and equipment retailer Angling Direct on Monday said it has opened a new store in Guildford. Chief executive Darren Bailey said the 6500-square-foot shop was benefiting from a significant amount of lake and river fishing taking place nearby.
L ondon mayor Sadiq Khan came under fire from property bosses on Monday in the wake of delays to the 15.4 billion Crossrail scheme.

The attacks followed Transport for Londons admission that the opening of the east-west rail link had been pushed back from December to autumn 2019.

The latest blow comes months after ministers admitted that the cost had risen by 590 million.

Mike Hussey, chief executive of developer Almacantar, said: I would rather they get their issues sorted and open a seamless, efficient, reliable service in the autumn of 2019 than an unreliable, patchy and problematic opening this December.

Having said that, with such a last-minute announcement and a significant delay, it does feel like Sadiq Khan was asleep at the dead mans handle.

Craig McWilliam, the UK head of Grosvenor, called the delay frustrating.

No corners should be cut, but its vital we secure the reputational benefits to London of the Elizabeth Lines opening next year.

Ian Hawksworth, chief executive of Capital & Counties, said: From a London point of view, the sooner it is finished the better.

Residential focused firms also warned about potential implications from the delay.

London Central Portfolios chief executive Naomi Heaton said: "The delay will, without doubt, add to the woes of many London home owners located outside the heart of the capital. In a market where prices have not grown in real terms over the last year and transactions have fallen, sellers banking on the Crossrail 'premium' may well be disappointed. A double whammy because its 'hope value' was probably built into the price they originally paid.
T he complexity of the Brexit negotiations, and the division and incompetence in the Government, has created a conventional wisdom that no deal is the real trauma facing Britain. This is not just unwise but dangerous.

The growing focus on the possibility of no deal has already shone a spotlight on the contradictions of the Brexit project: warnings of food and medical supplies out of control; the troubled Seventies as a model for border control in Northern Ireland; the federation of Japanese companies expressing complete exasperation at the negotiating approach. So much for control.

Three-quarters of the British public now believe the Government is handling the negotiations badly. The litany of delusion and splits has made pity for the Prime Minister her chief negotiating asset with our European allies.

There will no doubt be more deadlocks, more failed meetings, and further talk of no deal. But there is a far bigger danger than no deal  a bigger game is at play.

Strategic Brexiteers such as Michael Gove have figured it out, and the rest of us need take on the more likely threat: a bad deal that no one voted for.

David Miliband / Getty Images for IRC

This bigger game was highlighted by former chief British diplomat Sir Ivan Rogers: it is that being an inch outside the European system is a million miles from being an inch inside. Clever Brexiteers have twigged to this. They are completely focused on getting out of the EU next March. Then there will be attacks on social, economic and environmental rights guaranteed by our EU membership, as being a third country in our own continent comes home to roost.

The real danger now is that the catastrophe of no deal becomes the point of reference  and leverage  for Theresa Mays bad deal. I think she will eventually agree a minimalist (and complicated) package with the EU, kicking tough issues into the transition period. She will then turn public and political fear of no deal into moral and political pressure to get MPs into line.

No deal will go from being a threat to the Government, to a stick wielded by the Government to gain support for its botched plan. EU negotiators may also warn Britain, and parliaments around Europe, to vote for the plan. Here is why we should not allow ourselves to be cornered like this.

The Governments calamitous triggering of Article 50 without a plan for our exit was clearly a terrible error. But the Article 50 legislation also says that, by agreement, the remaining countries could agree to put off the departure date. And I know that the EU is a master at putting off calamitous events. It is already coping with populist insurgencies internally, plus a revanchist Russia and dismissive America externally, so doesnt need a Brexit calamity.

No deal would be much worse for Britain than for the EU, but there is no way the EU will watch idly as its third biggest economy drops off a cliff. Its just too dangerous. The idea that governments around Europe, including our own, are going to sit on their hands between a defeat of a negotiated package in the autumn and our departure on March 29 is not credible.

Contrary to the Brexiteer narrative, the EU will not buckle, but it could buy time. And no sane British government, which includes the current administration, whatever its defects, would take the country over the brink.

"Three-quarters of the British public now believe the Government is handling the negotiations badly"

The challenges of a democratic rethink pale compared with the danger of ploughing ahead with a bad deal. The package that emerges in the next few months will satisfy no one. Far from healing divisions, it will exacerbate them, while undermining British prosperity at the same time.

MPs will be under huge pressure to swallow their doubts. They will be told that details can be sorted out in the transition. But this is an illusion. The political declaration added to the divorce agreement  where the alleged benefits of the deal will reside  will not be binding. Once we leave then we really are in no mans land.

So its time for some clarity about the fact that the alternative to a bad deal is not no deal, its a peoples vote. As Keir Starmer, the shadow Brexit secretary, said last week, its a chance for the British people to take the time to decide whether they support a Brexit different from what was promised  with a public spending squeeze not a dividend, and new blockages on trade, not the new deals that were imagined.

Far from being the gross betrayal of democracy claimed by the Prime Minister yesterday, or the prelude to civil disobedience, a peoples vote would show a serious determination to engage the will of the people.

Things did not need to work out like this after the referendum. The mood on the continent was summed up as: its a pity we have to do it, but lets do it with minimum disruption. If that attitude had been matched by a British government willing to work across party lines, uniting people in a practical and common sense way, there was room for a Brexit I would have deplored but nonetheless accepted.
T he smallholder farmers who provide food for 70 per cent of the worlds population are the unlikely stars of what could be the worlds largest photography exhibition.

We Feed The World, an exhibition organised by global farming initiative The Gaia Foundation, is planning to break the Guinness World Record for the number of simultaneous exhibitions held at any one time.

One of these shows will come to the Bargehouse Gallery at the Oxo Tower on Londons South Bank on October 11.

The show features more than 400 images by 40 award-winning photographers, including celebrated British photographers Martin Parr and Rankin, who have worked with the project over the last two years to document farming communities around the world.

Nearly 50 farming communities from six continents are included in the exhibition, with the show aiming to challenge the idea that larger-scale industry and quick-fix technologies are the route to feeding the worlds growing population.

We Feed The World will run at Bargehouse Gallery from October 11 to 24. For more information, visit gaiafoundation.org
A new photography exhibition captures Myanmar at a time of conflict and change.

In Blood, Dreams and Gold, David Cotters portraits of people travelling on the Yangon Circular Railway will be on display at Lahpet in Shoreditch from September 24. The pictures are accompanied by words from Anna Chapman, a journalist of Burmese descent.

The railway is a local commuter network built during colonial times, which now serves the people of Yangon. It is currently undergoing huge renovations that will change the windowless, colourful carriages into new slick Japanese-funded trains.

The title is inspired by a description of Yangon by poet Pablo Neruda, who witnessed the country's change a century ago.

Cotter travelled to Myanmar last year to capture life on the trains as they are before this development is completed. He also wants to use this exhibition to draw attention towards a different side of Myanmar to that most covered in the news.

My experience in Myanmar last year was a very warm, welcoming and positive experience with the people being incredibly friendly, charming, humble and happy, says Cotter.

All profits from this exhibition will go towards supporting those affected by the Rohingya crisis.

Blood, Dreams and Gold opens on September 24 and runs for a month. For more information, visit davidcotter.com
I f you're heading off to university this September, you probably already have a pretty good idea of how costly it can be.

Accommodation, bills, textbooks, new bedding... and that's before you've even started freshers' week.

If you don't plan a budget or have a student bank account already set up, things can start to add up quickly.

But before you dive into your overdraft in defeat, you have plenty of other options to fund your way through university - and still have a half-decent social life.

Here's everything you need to know about maintenance loans and getting extra financial help throughout uni...

What is a maintenance loan?

A maintenance loan is a loan from the government which helps students fund extra living costs, such as accommodation and textbooks.

How much maintenance you get will depend on factors such as household income, whether or not you're attending a London university and whether you're living at home.

For those living away from home in London, you can get up to 11,354 in maintenance loan.

As with other loans such as tuition fees, you'll have to pay this back.

Check the Student Finance England website to calculate how much maintenance loan you're entitled to.

Can I get extra financial help?

Students on a low income can apply for income support.

Alternatively, you can apply directly to your university's Access to Learning Fund to find out if you are eligible for extra money.

The amount you get will be determined by your university and is usually paid in lump sums or instalments.

In most cases, you won't have to pay the money back but sometimes you may get a loan that you'll have to repay.

To apply, you'll need a copy of your letter from Student Finance England showing how much student finance you'll get, plus documents about your finances, such as bank statements and rent details.

Is it advisable to get a part-time job to help fund university?

Most students will have a part-time job throughout university to help fund their living costs.

Not only does it earn you some extra cash, having a part-time job whilst studying demonstrates a great work ethic and looks impressive to future employers.

However, it's important to balance employment with your studies.

The majority of universities recommend that students only take on a maximum of between 10 and 15 hours employment per week.

Hunt out jobs with flexible working hours that will allow you to fit part-time work around your studies.

It's also well worth looking out for roles with your Student Union, such as helping out on open days or working the student bar, as these usually pay reasonably and will always try and schedule shifts around your lectures and seminars.

Other essential money saving tips

Unfortunately, you can't do university for free, but there are ways you can help cut the cost.

Here are some essential money saving tips:
T he United States is today celebrating Labor Day, a commemoration with origins dating back to the late 19th century.

The national holiday is celebrated every year on the first Monday in September in the US, Puerto Rico, American Samoa, Guam, the Canal Zone and the Virgin Islands.

Canada also celebrates Labor Day on the same day.

But the celebration comes amid warnings from public health officials over the threat posed by coronavirus, which has raced through the US in recent months, killing nearly 190,000 people.

So, here's what you need to know:

What is Labor Day?

Labor Day is a day set aside to honour working men and women and the contributions they have made to the strength, prosperity and well-being of the US.

There is some debate over the holiday's origins.

Some think Peter J McGuire, a general secretary of the Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and co-founder of the American Federation of Labor, was first in suggesting a day to honour men and women.

Others believe it was Matthew Maguire, a machinist, who founded the holiday in 1882 while serving as secretary of the Central Labor Union in New York.

The first celebration of Labor Day was held in New York in 1882 with a parade and a picnic.

How is Labor Day celebrated?

Traditionally, Labor Day has been centred around grand speeches and parades.

However, modern times calls for modern celebrations, with people spending the day vacationing, throwing parties and spending time with friends and family.

Will this year be different because of coronavirus?

Celebrations are expected to be somewhat subdued this year as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

Public health officials have expressed concern that Labor Day gatherings this year could cause a spike in Covid-19 cases, similar to what happened after Memorial Day and July Fourth celebrations.

Over the summer, the US saw a rise in coronavirus infections, deaths and hospitalisations, primarily in the South and West, that was blamed in part on Americans behaving heedlessly over Memorial Day and July Fourth.

The landscape has improved in recent weeks, with the numbers headed in the right direction in hard-hit states like Florida, Arizona and Texas, but there are certain risk factors that could combine with Labor Day: Children are going back to school, university campuses are seeing soaring case counts, college football is starting, more businesses are open, and flu season is around the corner.

I look upon the Labor Day weekend really as a critical point, said Dr Anthony Fauci, the governments top infectious-disease expert.
I n a transformation worthy of Pygmalion, Hong Kong has gone from cultural irrelevance to glossy giant of the art world. The steamy citys art revenues are the third highest on earth after New York and London according to Art Price, and its wealth of auction houses, galleries and fairs have made it the hub of the lucrative Asian art industry.

This evolution has led to a blossoming of creative output. Vertigo-inducing skyscrapers house glitzy galleries, art fairs shimmer in harbour-front locations and local tycoons build world-famous collections. But when youre luring in the whos who of the global industry, artists without a Wikipedia page can struggle to get a look in.

Its not easy for local art communities to stand out in Hong Kong, says French art adviser, Alexandre Errera, who is based in the city. They face the constant challenge of being overshadowed by the larger commercial events and players in town. However, Hong Kong very much needs local art communities, maybe even more so than other cities. They are critical in making more art enthusiasts aware of the Hong Kong art scene.

This disconnect is partly due to the fact that, unlike other global cultural hubs, Hong Kong has few landmark galleries. The Hong Kong Museum of Art is closed for a 90 million renovation and projects such as the museum M+ and West Kowloon Cultural District are still under construction. That changed in June, when Tai Kwun  the reinvigorated Victorian-era Central Police Station  opened as an arts and culture complex in the heart of the city.

And in a city of crippling rents, aspiring artists dont have an easy path to affordable studios or accessible gallery space. The solution? Reclaim the streets. By circumventing the sleek establishments of Central and Sheung Wan, young artists can splash their work across city walls, gaining a voice and an audience in the process.

A few streets away from the neon-signed arteries of Central, Asias most impressive street art community is making its presence known  loudly. Thanks to the tireless work of grassroots street-art festivals such as HKwalls and HK Urban Canvas, the drab walls of neighbourhoods Sheung Wan, Wan Chai and Sham Shui Po have become the citys most visited canvases. Artists such as Wong Kin-ho, better known as Devil Graffiti, and Simple Bao  a Hong Kong artist whose pieces are full of animation and energy  now transform entire areas with their 20ft street artworks.

Women are a major part of this movement. Yarn bomber Esther Poon Suk-han blitzes the city with her multicoloured knitted artworks that adorn railings, lampposts and street signs. Simple Baos murals in Sai Ying Pun and Wong Chuk Hang have won her global awards, while Amy Tony has turned her considerable talents as an illustrator into mesmerising murals.

Its really energising the city, says Diana Chen, a street art tour leader for Accidental Art. It makes Hong Kong feel more real. Its also extremely shareable on social media and allows the people who would normally say they know nothing about art to engage in conversation, so a social status barrier has been taken away. A lot of street-art murals here also make fun of the superficial world we live in, shedding light on societal issues that come from the wealth disparity in this city.

Young artists are also being listened to. M+ is acquiring work by graffiti artist Tsang Tsou Choi, while Maria Mok, a curator at the Hong Kong Museum of Art, has promised to dedicate entire rooms to up-and-coming local talent.

As a result, Hong Kong is attracting international street artists who are flocking to the city to reshape it in their own vision. There is Fin Dac, an Irish artist, who celebrates the beauty of Asian women; Pasha Wais, a Russian painter who creates fourth-dimension murals; and Szabotage, an award-winning artist from London who moved to Hong Kong to depict my vision of this unique 21st-century city.

The citys topography is one reason for the attraction  the grimy back alleys, quaint cobblestone steps, tree-fringed stairwells, bleak high-rises and myriad shop fronts are the ideal blank canvas for an artist. The sub-tropical island often sits under thick cloud and multicoloured street art can transform the entire atmosphere of a city nursing a typhoon hangover.

But while these alleyways and cobblestone corners may feel hidden, they are also never empty  as one of the most densely populated places on earth, Hong Kong has constant foot traffic, which means each piece of street art gets shared multiple times on social media.

The dense landscape we live in forces people to leave their homes and socialise in more communal spaces, which gives the street a lot of power, says Chen. Its also how people from different cultures collide in this very diverse city, which forces even more creativity and innovation to happen.

And while it remains technically illegal to vandalise the city, the government generally turns a blind eye. Possibly because street art is giving Hong Kong an advantage over its biggest art market competitor: Shanghai. The two cities have had a long-fought case of sibling rivalry and the glittering city of the Bund  with its futuristic private art museums and art-led gentrification  can feel like the natural successor to the Asian art crown.

I have a feeling that so much street art is probably welcomed in Hong Kong, as it makes the place seem cooler and more open than mainland China, says local journalist Stephen Short.

And while murals with a heavy political message rarely stay in place for long, street art remains an essential way for Hong Kong artists to have a voice.

Details:

British Airways, Cathay Pacific and Virgin Atlantic all fly directly from London Heathrow to Hong Kong from 450 return.
T ravel search engine KAYAK has revealed new research into the cheapest and most expensive days of the year for Brits to travel to the most popular holiday destinations.

The data looks at average prices for return flights on searches made on the site between 1 January 2017 and 31 July 2018, for travel between August 1 2017 and July 31 2018.

It suggests travellers could save hundred of pounds just by travelling a month or so earlier or later to certain destinations.

Read on for the cheapest and most expensive days of the year to fly to nine popular travel destinations.

Ibiza

The cheapest day of the year to travel to Ibiza was 13 April during this period, when flight prices cost on average 11, which is well below the average annual cost of 109. Just over a month later  once the opening parties had begun May 25 was found to be the most expensive day to fly to the White Isle, when flights cost on average 285.

Blue Lagoon geothermal spa in Reykjavik, Iceland / Photo by Frank Denney on Unsplash

Reykjavik

April 14 was found to be the cheapest day to travel to Reykjavik during this period, with flights averaging around 38, compared to 270 on the most expensive day, 5 August.

New York

The most expensive day of the year to fly to New York was 29 July, when flights rose to an average of 632, making it nearly five times more expensive than the cheapest day, January 11, when flights cost on average 141.

Sydney

KAYAK says it found average flight prices to be as low as 435 on May 9, which is almost 900 cheaper than what they would cost on 19 December, the most expensive day for travel, when they averaged at around 1,313,

Bangkok

The most expensive day of the year to travel to Bangkok was December 16, when flights cost on average 847.50, but this fell to 315 on May 25, just before the rainy season kicks in.

Dubai

The cheapest day to travel to Dubai during the period analysed was September 19, when prices averaged at 263 and temperatures begin to drop, albeit slightly. The most expensive day to travel to Dubai was December 27, when flights cost on average more than double at 649.

Burj Khalifa, Dubai, United Arab Emirates / Photo by Joshua Fuller on Unsplash

Los Angeles

As with New York, the most expensive day of the year to fly to LA fell in July, when flights crept to 746 on the 29th of the month, but those travelling on January 19 saw this fall to just 274.

Delhi

August 29 was the cheapest day to fly to Delhi during this period, when flights averaged at 310, but this rose to 769 on 23 December.

Denpasar Bali
R egular visitors to Dublin probably spend far too much time staggering around Temple Bar but how many explore the Irish capitals outer reaches via the DART (Dublin Area Rapid Transit)?

Foodies should head to the end of the line, to Howth and Malahide. Here, we look at 10 great spots for getting your seafood fix.

1. King Sitric

This acclaimed seafood restaurant, on the first floor of a bright red restored harbour masters house on Howths East Pier, has been run by Aidan and Joan McManus since 1971.

It has an annexe with eight rooms named after Irish lighthouses, while the more casual East cafe/bar on the ground floor also does a roaring trade. Dont miss the wonderful smoked salmon and scrambled eggs for breakfast.

2. OConnells

Try fillet of sea trout with fennel salad or Atlantic Hake with smoked bacon at this smart pub next to King Sitric, often to the sounds of live acoustic guitar.

Howth's harbour

3. Sale e Pepe

This neighbourhood restaurant in Malahide has been going for more than 20 years. Perhaps better known for its steaks, it also offers dishes such as wild red piri piri prawns with fresh chilli, spring onion and white wine garlic butter sauce.

4. Brass Monkey

Try a bowl of Smokies at this quirky but cosy restaurant on Howths West Pier  smoked cod, cherry tomatoes, spring onion, creme fresh and grated cheese. Its rich but quite delicious. Plus theres an award-winning seafood chowder.

The cafe at Malahide Castle serves up local produce including crab / Malahide Castle

5. Avoca

Located in the visitors centre of Malahide Castle, the Avoca cafe mainly offers tea and cakes but also has a food hall with a great variety of local produce, from crab cakes to fish pies.

6. Octopussy

Octopussy is a tapas bar next to Brass Monkey, with all its fish supplied by Dorans on the Pier next door. Try a platter of oysters from Carlingford Lough, near the border with Northern Ireland, for 16 Euros.

7. Fish Shack Cafe

The Malahide branch of this small chain has a lovely front courtyard with burners. Try Scotsmans Bay seafood chowder for 7.50 Euros or fresh Galway mussels with cream and white wine for 9.50 Euros.

Tuck into lobster and oysters at Octopussy in Howth

8. Beshoff Bros

On Howths West Pier you will find this smart oyster bar, fishmongers and shop, though you are as likely to see visitors strolling the waterfront with boxes of fish and chips from the Beshoffs takeaway nearer to East Pier.

9. Wrights Findlater

Set in an iconic building on the waterfront in Howth, get oysters and Guinness for 10 Euros.

10. Wrights of Howth

If you dont get to visit the West Pier outlet, dont despair - pick up some of the famous fishmonger/delis smoked salmon, as well as Irish cheeses such as Gubeen, at its store in Terminal 1 at Dublin Airport.

Getting there

British Airways, Aer Lingus, Ryanair and easyJet all fly to Dublin. To get to Howth and Malahide from the centre of the city get the DART from Tara Street using a Leap card.

Details
A murder investigation has been launched after a young man was shot dead in a north London cemetery.

A 22-year-old man was pronounced dead at the scene following the attack in Tottenham Cemetery just before 8am today.

Police said they are keeping an open mind with regard to the killer's motive during the early stages of the investigation.

Armed officers and a police helicopter were called to the cemetery alongside paramedics in dramatic scenes as commuters headed off for work.

Scotland Yard said the man was found suffering from gunshot wounds and could not be saved.

His next of kin have been informed of his death and a post-mortem examination is due to take place soon.

Detective Inspector Simon Stancombe said: At this early stage of the investigation we are keeping an open mind to the motive of this attack. I urge anyone who may have seen anything to contact police as soon as possible.

Officers from the Mets Homicide and Major Crime Command (HMCC) have been tasked with investigated the murder. No arrests have been made yet.

The incident took place in a working cemetery just minutes from Tottenham Hotspurs White Hart Lane stadium.

Anyone who witnessed this incident or has information should call police at the incident room on 0208 358 0300 or contact police via @MetCC.
A young woman was rushed to hospital after being stabbed in south London during another weekend of bloodshed in the capital.

The victim, in her 20s, was attacked in Burns Road, Battersea, at 8.10pm yesterday by a man who fled the scene.

Scotland Yard said she was in a serious but stable condition in hospital.

A man who later handed himself in at Notting Hill police station was arrested on suspicion of grievous bodily harm. The victim and her attacker were said to know each other.

Police at the scene of a stabbing on Caledonian Road / PA

It attack came hours a teenager was left fighting for life after being shot in Wandsworth in the early hours.

The 16-year-old boy was found suffering gunshot wounds in York Road at 12.45am yesterday and rushed to hospital in a critical condition.

He is believed to be in a stable condition. There have been no arrests.

On Saturday morning a woman in her 20s was stabbed in Caledonian Road, Islington. She was taken to hospital with non-life threatening injuries.

A man was arrested at the scene on suspicion of attempted murder and has been bailed pending further inquiries.

Two men in their fifties were also stabbed in separate attacks in Barking and Dagenham, east London, yesterday afternoon.
A blogger abused for posting a posed image on Instagram has said she is scared about the online world children will face and has called for more awareness of cyber bullying.

Scarlett Dixon, 24, posted a picture of her positive morning where she was in bed with strawberries, pancakes and surrounded by balloons.

She was swiftly lambasted for the fake photograph which was shared as a paid partnership with dental brand Listerine.

Speaking to the Standard, she detailed how she first laughed off the insults, before they turned into vitriol some going as far as to contain death threats.

Despite being upset, the London-based blogger said she has dealt with bullies in the past and has a thick skin.

But she fears for this kind of attack befalling a more vulnerable person.

Miss Dixon said: I am a 24 year old woman who has dealt with bullying in my past. I'm sensitive and human, but strong. I have an 11-year-old sister and am sad that the online world we have curated is one where users deem it necessary to send such hideously nasty messages and comments.

I am scared for the online world she will grow up in and have to face. I think there's a real lack of accountability online. More awareness and support for those being cyber bullied needs to be presented, especially in the wake of viral social posts with a certain 'shaming' nature.

It could have happened to another young girl or guy, who may not have had that same support system in place. Or who may have found the vile comments particularly difficult to digest.

I'd like to try and raise awareness for this and hope that in the future, we have something in place in case this does happen to a vulnerable young person.

She has admitted her posts can be posed and said she does not try to hide this / Scarlett Dixon

Recalling how she became aware of the malicious comments she said that at first she laughed them off.

She said: I was made aware of the initial thread by a friend and initially, I found the comments quite funny. I don't take myself too seriously as a person and am happy to have a bit of a light hearted joke. But the comments quickly manifested into a vicious bullying campaign.

Her friends helped to have the more vicious comments removed by reporting them.

She said she does not wish to share the vile content, some of which she has received in private messages, further but was happy to send screenshots to the Standard of them.

I just don't think it's necessary to give any promotion to what was said, she said.

Since the shaming she received for her post, Miss Dixon said she is sorry if she did offend anyone as this was not her intention in the slightest.

Thanking those who have supporter her, she said: So as much as I've seen the nastier side of the online world, I've also been privvy to the wonderful, positive and supportive side

Despite the negativity, Miss Dixon said that she has also had positive support / Scarlett Dixon

She also wished to give context to her Instagram feed which she admitted might look utterly ridiculous to some.

She explained that she tried to use social media to show people suffering with IBS, irritable bowel syndrome, which she has had for the last decade, they can be positive and have fun with life despite it.

I understand the initial 'targeting' didn't have anything to do with my IBS and they weren't to know, but I wanted to make sure that people taking my photos totally out of context, were then aware of the wider picture of what I was trying to do, she said.

I use my platforms to shout about important subjects - such as the chronic digestive condition I suffer from. I speak about mental health and try and keep a dialogue going about things that might typically be deemed 'embarrassing' or 'taboo', such as IBS.

She is concerned someone 'vulnerable' could be targetted by internet trolls / Scarlett Dixon

As well as this she added that she admits her content can sometimes be filtered and said: I do aim to be extremely transparent about how I stage my photographs.

In her original post shared on her Instagram and her Twitter against her detractors, of which she accused parents and MPs being amongst, she said her feed is not a place of reality and she does not intend to promote an idealistic version of life for followers to aspire to.
T he 'crown jewels' of property sold off by the Metropolitan Police have been revealed today as the force admits it has "run out of things to sell".

Britain's largest police force has been at "breaking point," according to bosses at the Metropolitan Police Federation. They have sold off their headquarters at New Scotland Yard, police stations and hundreds of flats in its portfolio to make hundreds of millions in savings.

The sell-off has earned the Met 1bn in the past six years, but opponents said the force had "sold the crown jewels".

The full list of properties sold was revealed in a batch of Freedom fo Information requests. The sales include 100 police stations across London - making up a sixth of the total closures amid sweeping cuts throughout the UK.

Greenwhich Police Station and 11 flats in Swanne House, worth  11.5 million are among the more recent sales. Rotherhithe station (6.9 million) and Douglas Webb Former Section House (6.8 million) were also sold off.

1bn buildings sold by the Met These are the most notable sales made since 2012-13. Ten most expensive sales: New Scotland Yard, 370 million, 2016. Land at Hendon police training centre, 120 million total, 2014-2016. Kilmuir House Flats (1-49), Belgravia, 45 million, 2016. Chelsea Police Station, 40 million, 2015. 58 Buckingham Gate, 31.5 million, 2015. 3-5 Nightingale Lane, 30.1 million, 2014. Fulham police station, 20 million, 2016. Hampstead police station, 14.1 million, 2014. Drummond Crescent (1-39), Euston, 12.9 million, 2014. Greenwich Police Station and Swanne House Flats (1-18), 11.5 million, 2018 Five buildings owned by Met the longest: St John's Wood police station, owned since 1843, sold for 8.6 million in 2013. Battersea operational unit, owned since 1859, sold for 6 million in 2014. Hanwell police station, owned since 1872, sold for 952,000 in 2013. Wanstead operational unit, owned since 1885, sold for 1.6 million in 2014. Finchley police station, owned since 1886, sold for 5.5 million in 2014

Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, said: "We've sold the Crown Jewels, so to speak. We've run out of things to sell. This is really, really, worrying for society.

"At the end of the day they have all been sold so that we don't have to cut police officers. That is shocking. The government talk a good talk, always praising us and saying how brilliant we are.

"But when it actually comes to it, you know, there's officers around the country using food banks."

Hundreds of flats and buildings have been bought from the force since 2012, with many owned by the force since the 19th Century, and New Scotland Yard went for 370m to investors from Abu Dhabi for luxury flats two years ago.

The sales mark a further "breakdown" in the service as Met chiefs try to make another 400m in annual savings by 2021 on top of the 600m already made. The reduced resources have seen officer numbers fall by 10 per cent in the past decade. Across the UK there are now 122,404 officers - the lowest number on record since 1996.

Meanwhile, Violent Crime including assaults, rapes and murders rose by an astonishing 22 per cent last year alone, according to the Metropolitan Police Federation's website. Racist religious and homophobic hate crimes are escalating while officers are prioritised to more high profile capital locations.

He said: "You get to breaking point because we're not social workers, we're not mental health specialists - but now my colleagues are having to deal with all these things on a daily basis.

"That just has a massive drain on your resources. It will eventually crack,"

But the Home Office said that the Met's total investment has actually increased.

A spokesman said: "Police have the resources they need to carry out their vital work. However, we know the nature of crime is changing. That is why we provided a strong and comprehensive settlement that is increasing total investment in the police system by over 460m in 2018-19, including increased funding for local policing through Council Tax precept."

Hampstead Police Station, Rosslyn Hill, north west London, was sold 14.1m in 2014. (PA) / PA Wire/PA Images

Mr Marsh highlighted that modern policing has more responsibilities than ever before and says that expanded role is causing strain.

"Funding for the Metropolitan Police is increasing by 110m this year compared to 2017-18... This means the Metropolitan Police is receiving over 2.5bn in direct resource funding this year."

The 110m was signed off by London Mayor Sadiq Khan in February - meaning that the city now pays the highest percentage of the Met's budget than ever before, while general grant funding from the government has fallen by 700m.

Chelsea Police Station on Lucan Place, south London, which was sold by the Metropolitan Police for 40m in 2015. / PA

A spokeswoman for the Mayor's office said: "Closing police stations is the stark reality of crippling government cuts to the police budget which has contributed to officer numbers dropping below 30,000 in London for the first time in 15 years."

Scotland Yard said the sales mean more resources are "available for effective and accessible policing" and that money would be invested in updating remaining buildings and improving IT services.

Reported by PA.
R uth Davidson, leader of the Scottish Conservatives, has long been billed as a potential future high-flyer on the national political stage. We may be about to find out how strong her chances are.

The Londoner hears that Davidson has commissioned a comprehensive poll of the public, which intends to gauge how the rest of the United Kingdom perceives Scotland. The research, however, would have a side-effect: the results will also give the Scottish Conservatives an indication of Davidsons popularity across Britain, revealing how fruitful an eventual leadership could be.

As a well-liked figure in the party, this unofficial polling is expected to yield a positive result. She often comes near the top of ConservativeHomes well- regarded Cabinet League Table of satisfication, which includes Tory leaders in Wales and Scotland too. She even featured on Time magazines Most Influentials list, which credited her refreshing, rambunctious style for the partys resurgence in Scotland. Crucially, she has never ruled out a bid.

In 2015, then-PM David Cameron was asked if Davidson could be leader of the party, he replied affirmatively. Indeed. I dont put a limit on her ambition, he said. I think she is extremely effective. Michael Gove praised her at the recent launch of think-tank Onward, at which she expressed a need for the Conservatives to be a bit more joyful.

Davidson would, of course, have to become an actual MP first but she has proven to be a multi-tasker. Her book, Yes She Can: Why Women Own The Future, will be released later this month before another arrival in October: she is pregnant with her first child. Last week she denied reports that she would take a peerage to enter government after giving birth.

Could she use her maternity leave to disinfect baby bottles and lay the foundations for a new adventure? To quote her answer when asked if she could one day run for Parliament: I havent ruled it out.

Momentum group misses Brexit trick

As tensions on Brexit boil over, are Momentum missing a trick? The Left-wing campaign group formally decided at the weekend that it will not take a position on Brexit.

The choice was made by Momentums little known National Coordinating Group, contrary to a petition which demanded members had a vote on whether to campaign for Labour to hold a vote at Annual Conference in September on giving the people the final say on the Brexit deal. Momentums numbers could sway official Labour Party policy  so far opposed to another Brexit vote.

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Sandra Howard, the wife of former Conservative leader Michael Howard, is glued to BBC drama Bodyguard, in which a female Home Secretary gets steamy with her bodyguard. Im glad my husband didnt have a female protection officer in his Home Secretary days, she wrote on Twitter.

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Historian and journalist Anita Anand, who co-wrote a book on the cursed Koh-i-Noor diamond, explained the gems chequered history at the talk at SOAS on Saturday. The jewel has not been worn by a member of the royal family in years. Well see if Camilla has the courage to wear it, Anand said.

All aboard! Bands and bubbly on Jools Hollands train

Boogie: Scott Wimsett and Alice Temperley (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for KRUG Champagne ) / Dave Benett/Getty Images for KRU

Those in despair at news of a severe delay to the launch of Crossrail may wish to pursue other modes of transportation.

On Friday BBC stalwart Jools Holland hosted a journey across the countryside on a four-carriage train, which stopped at three private platforms along the way for performances. The event, created by Krug champagne, enlisted Holland to pick the line-up.

Guests included shoe designer Charlotte Dellal and models Sam Rollinson, Charlotte Wiggins and Jodie Kidd. Kidd has become something of an expert in alcohol: last year she bought the Half Moon Inn, a pub in Kirdford, West Sussex.

Developers were going to turn it into houses, she said. Its not just somewhere you go to have a pint.

Keiths iron will did not get him a seat

Dreaming of churches: Keith Allen (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/WireImage) / Dave Benett/WireImage

Keith Allen once out-masterminded Mastermind. I got invited to go on Mastermind, and I said my specialist subject would be corrugated iron manufacture and design in the Caribbean from the 17th century onwards, he told the New Statesman.

I love corrugated iron buildings, especially churches. They said their researchers couldnt find enough questions. He is not the only one. Mastermind producer Mark Helsby revealed banned topics include Fawlty Towers and Blackadder, as the topics have been exhausted.

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Green (and yellow): Colin and Livia Firth (Photo by David M. Benett/Dave Benett/Getty Images for Eco-Age) / Dave Benett/Getty Images for Eco

Colin and Livia Firth were in Venice for a lunch thrown by Chopard to launch the Green Carpet Fashion Awards. The couple are going strong after eco-fashion campaigner Livia dropped stalking charges against an ex-lover in July.

SW1A

GREG Handss local greengrocer has been suspended from Twitter for arguing with the MP about feta cheese. Clearly the Conservatives have been given an anti-feta agenda to follow on social media, wrote Andreas Georghiou  and then found himself removed from the site. Suspending my local greengrocer from Twitter for arguing with me about feta cheese does seem just a bit draconian, Hands ponders.

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Jess Phillips MP, on holiday in France, spotted some Frexit posters. My husband objected, saying in French it should be Frortie. My French sister-in-law laughed as that means smear test. Id rather a smear.

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Jacqui Smith, former Home Secretary, is a serial social media blocker. Why should I have to put with you saying something to me that you would never have the never to say to my face? she said on her podcast. And frankly, if you did, Id deck you.

Quote of the day

Like watching a disaster film where a culpable leader is knowingly walking others towards annihilation
S adiq Khan's mid-term report as Mayor of London can today be revealed as less house building, higher serious crime and a transport system running up its biggest ever deficit.

After more than two years in office and with just 20 months before he asks voters for a second term, Mr Khan has yet to deliver on key promises he made in 2016.

And in a massive blow, the Evening Standard has learned that he faces being cut out of housing projects worth billions of pounds because of his slow record on delivering homes.

Government sources revealed that they are drawing up plans to deal directly with boroughs, such as Labour-run Southwark that have a record of getting things done, in order to bypass a Mayor they claim is a roadblock to desperately-needed flats and houses.

Crime has risen four per cent under Sadiq  with violent crime up five per cent and robberies up 22 per cent in the most recent figures / Getty Images

In a special investigation this week, the Standard spotlights the areas that Londoners rated as their biggest priorities in 2016 when Mr Khan ran for office  housing, crime, transport and tackling air pollution.

It reveals mixed results in all four and suggests the biggest issue at the next mayoral election in 2020 will be his record of delivery.

In housing, although the Mayor won 4.8 billion of government funding to cover 116,000 affordable homes by 2022, he started 12,555 in his second full year and is on track for 14,000 this year.

Last week the long-awaited Crossrail scheme was delayed for almost a year / PA

To deliver all he has committed to, Mr Khan would need to build 23,000 a year over four years to catch up. A survey of major housebuilders found the number of new homes started in the private sector has gone down by eight per cent under Mr Khan.

However, he has succeeded in greatly increasing the proportion of construction rated as genuinely affordable housing, from 13 per cent to 34 per cent.

Crime has risen four per cent  with violent crime up five per cent and robberies up 22 per cent in the most recent figures  increases that the Mayor partly blames on government cuts to police numbers.

TfL this year announced a record deficit of almost 1 billion amid falling passenger numbers on some services / Alex Lentati

Knife crime has surged by 48 per cent to the highest level in seven years, with more than 14,998 offences in the year ending in July. Moped-enabled crime surged from 4,663 offences in 2016 to a staggering 23,869 in 2017.

In the past year to August 28, there have been 18,332, indicating the scourge is coming down.

On transport, Mr Khans manifesto promised to make Transport for London a more efficient and profitable operation.

However, last week the long-awaited Crossrail scheme was delayed , which will reduce projected revenues, and TfL is holding a review of bus services that is expected to see routes into central London pared back.

TfL this year announced a record deficit of almost 1 billion amid falling passenger numbers on some services and severe government grant cuts of 700 million.

Mr Khans fares freeze, a key manifesto pledge, is thought to have cost TfL 640 million at the same time as it is coping with the phased withdrawal of government subsidies. TfL aims to eliminate the deficit by 2021 through efficiencies.

On Londons toxic air problem, Mr Khan took bold action to encourage cleaner, greener vehicles. He has already brought in a 10-a-day T-Charge for older vehicles entering central London and is expanding the Ultra Low Emission Zone. Targets include making buses zero emission by 2030 and ending licensing of diesel taxis by 2030.

On housing, Mr Khans spokesman today said he had smashed previous records for affordable homes since City Hall was created.

Whitehall sources claim City Hall under Mr Khan is heaping delays and red tape onto housing schemes.

A source close to Communities Secretary James Brokenshire said: James has been clear he wants to work constructively with the Mayor to build the houses London needs. But when performance standards arent being met, James is prepared to act. If that means working more directly with individual or groups of boroughs, then thats something to be considered.
T heresa May has slapped down Boris Johnson after he unleashed another attack on her Brexit plans  by suggesting the former foreign secretary would fail to offer serious leadership.

The Prime Minister rarely returns fire with such candour, but it comes amid growing anger at No 10 at what they see as Mr Johnson angling to replace her.

Mr Johnson, who quit Cabinet in the summer over her Chequers proposals, claimed today the blueprint meant Britain had gone into battle with the white flag fluttering over our leading tank.

He wrote in his Daily Telegraph column that the inevitable outcome of Brexit talks is a victory for the EU, with the UK lying flat on the canvas with 12 stars circling symbolically over our semi-conscious head.

Mrs Mays official spokesman said of Mr Johnson's criticism: "There are no new ideas here" / AFP/Getty Images

Mrs Mays official spokesman said in response: Boris Johnson resigned over Chequers.

"There are no new ideas in this article to respond to. What we need at this time is serious leadership with a serious plan.

"That is exactly what the country has with this Prime Minister and this Brexit plan.

Damian Green was dismissive of Mr Johnsons rhetoric / Getty Images

In what will be seen as a swipe at hardline Brexiteers and EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier, the spokesman insisted: The Chequers proposals are the only credible and negotiable plan which has been put forward and which will deliver on the will of the British people.

However, No 10 refused to rule out further concessions to Brussels, saying negotiations were continuing. What the PM has said very clearly is that we have now made our move and its now for the EU to make its move, the PMs spokesman added.

Earlier one of Mrs Mays closest allies dismissed Mr Johnsons latest attack.

Damian Green, the Prime Ministers former de facto deputy, told BBC Radio 4s Today programme: I dont think using words like surrender and white flags and so on is consonant with the seriousness of the situation. We are at the crunch stage of these negotiations.

Prominent Tory Remainer Sarah Wollaston tore into Mr Johnson, tweeting: No surprise to see the great charlatan blaming others for a mess of his own creation.

Home Secretary Sajid Javid appealed for all MPs to unite behind the Prime Minister and her Chequers blueprint.

Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab was pictured going into No 10 this morning with a document repeating some of the Governments Brexit mantras including nothing is agreed until everything is agreed.
A senior Labour MP fighting anti-Semitism within the party was today facing a reselection battle after being targeted by Jeremy Corbyn supporters for deselection.

Joan Ryan, who chairs Labour Friends Of Israel, has been accused of being hostile to the Labour leader by members of her Enfield North party.

Sources told the Evening Standard that the manoeuvre is a push by the Corbyn-backing Momentum group to replace the MP, who was first elected in 1997, with a Left-winger.

Letters passed to Left-wing blog Skwawkbox last night claim Ms Ryan has brought the party into disrepute by going to the press with concerns about anti-Semitism.

Her party meets on Thursday to vote on a motion of no confidence and call for an open selection process to choose another MP.

It is being seen as the potential start of a formal deselection process, which ultimately involves a trigger ballot by members and constituency affiliates.

Ms Ryan is the first Labour politician to be hit with a deselection threat by party members since the resignation of veteran MP Frank Field over Labours handling of the anti-Semitism crisis.

She told the Standard: This is a distraction. Just three years ago I won this seat back [from the Tories] and it took a heck of a lot of hard work.

Its a marginal seat and this kind of distraction puts this seat at risk. What the people here need is not this kind of behaviour from a small group of party members.

"We have got a crisis, a huge growth in child poverty, county-lines drug dealing these are the things that matter and for a small group of our members to undermine the Labour Party is divisive nonsense.

Enfield Norths constituency Labour Party (CLP) has grown from 300 members to 1,000 since the election of Mr Corbyn as leader. It is understood the motion is being put forward by about 30 members with the support of the CLP secretary.

It comes as Momentum has demanded a new system for selecting parliamentary candidates to create a new generation of MPs.

Momentum activist Michael Walker told the Radio 4 Today programme: One of the inspirations for this move was in the United States where Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez won a primary challenge against a senior Democratic politician in New York.
A controversial left-wing activist whose comments about Jews led to outcry within the Labour Party has been re-elected to serve in a senior party position.

Peter Willsman was recorded criticising British rabbis who had complained about anti-Semitism as being like Trump fanatics and making up information.

Deputy Labour Party leader Tom Watson described him as a loud mouthed bully following the incident in July and the Board of Deputies of British Jews called for him to be expelled from the party.

Today the staunch Corbyn-supporter has been re-elected to the partys National Executive Committee (NEC) by members after a ballot held over the summer.

He originally formed part of the Momentum backed JC9 slate but was kicked off by the organisation after his comments were made public.

Campaigners descend on Labour HQ

Richard Angel, director of Progress  Labours centrist campaign group, said: The re-election of Pete Willsman shows institutional anti-Semitism in the party and the read need for action.

With Willsman at the top table that is less likely to happen.

Denny Taylor, spokesperson for Labour Against anti-Semitism campaign group said: The election of the #JC9 slate by Labour members to the partys NEC raises further concerns about institutional anti-Semitism in the party.

The NEC oversees the overall direction of the party and policy and is made up of 39 members. The nine positions up for election were all for constituency Labour party representatives.

Mr Willsmans comments about Jews were recorded at an NEC meeting he attended on July 17.

At the time a spokesperson for Momentum said: Our movement is more than half a million strong and we must hold those who represent us to an even higher standard than ordinary Labour party members.

His re-election heaps pressure on Mr Corbyn to take disciplinary action against Mr Willsman as he remains a Labour party member and is not being investigated over the comments.

It will also raise questions about how seriously the leadership is taking complaints of anti-Semitism within the party as the NEC goes into what is set to be a highly fractious meeting tomorrow on whether to adopt the full International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance [IHRA] definition and all its examples.

Some have pointed to comments Mr Corbyn made earlier this summer where he said anyone who denies that this [anti-Semitism] has surfaced in our party is clearly actually wrong and contributing to the problem.

Mr Willsman, who is a member of the Oxford East CLP, apologised to Labour General Secretary Jennie Formby and has referred himself for equalities training.

Momentum maintained its support for eight other candidates elected to the NEC who all support Mr Corbyn and have been elected to the NEC by members.

They are Yasmin Dar, a Manchester City councillor, Jon Lansman, the founder of Momentum, Navendu Mishra, a Unison organiser, Claudia Webbe, an Islington councillor, Darren Williams, a Public and Commercial Services Union representative, Huda Emi, a Labour activist and anti-racism campaigner, Rachel Garnham, representing the mid-Bedfordshire CLP, and Ann Henderson, a member of Labours Scottish Executive Committee.
T he Treasury and the Bank of England have opened formal discussions about Mark Carney staying on as Governor beyond his planned departure date of June 2019, it was reported today.

The Standard revealed last week that Mr Carney had been quietly sounded out about an extension of his term by up to a year to provide stability after Britain leaves the EU in March.

But that has now moved on to more serious talks, according to BBC Business, although no deal has yet been agreed and Mr Carneys extra tenure in the job could be less than a full year.

Chancellor Philip Hammond and senior Treasury officials are believed to favour giving him more time in the job to help reassure the financial markets during what could be a volatile period after Brexit comes into effect.

They also believe it will be hard to recruit a credible successor when there is still so much uncertainty about the terms of Britains split from Brussels. The Financial Times reported that figures close to the Governor believed he was willing to agree to an extension.

Today Theresa Mays official spokesman indicated any such move would be for less than a year, saying in response to the BBC reports: The Governor has said he intends to step down in 2019. That is still the plan. Commentators said that left the door open to an extra six months in the job. Asked if the Government would like him to stay, the spokesman said: The Prime Minister thinks the Governor has done a good job.

The 53-year-old Canadian is certain to be quizzed about the uncertainty over his future when he appears before MPs on the Treasury committee tomorrow.

Mr Carney  once dubbed the unreliable boyfriend by one MP  initially committed to just five years when he took over from Mervyn King in 2013, despite the traditional protocol requiring an eight-year term.

But in the months after Britain voted to leave the EU in 2016, he committed to an additional year, citing the importance to the country of continuity during the UKs Article 50 negotiations.
T his is the shocking moment a disabled comedian received a barrage of abuse from a mum on a train after scolding her children for "littering".

Tanyalee Davis, 47, filmed the furious exchange during which she was called a "disabled b****" and "abnormal" by mother after she accused her children of littering and kicking her disability scooter on a train which stopped at Nottingham on Friday.

British Transport Police said they are investigating footage taken by Ms Davis which shows a row with a group of children and woman who says she is their mother.

The argument erupted after the Canadian comedian claimed one of the teenagers, whose face is blurred in the footage, read a private text message to her partner, complaining about the mess they had left in the train carriage.

Tanyalee Davis / Jacqueline Hitchcock-Wyatt

She said in a tweet in which she shared the footage: An unruly teenager read a PRIVATE text when standing over me in which I was telling my partner thank f*** this obnoxious family is leaving because they left a huge mess.

This girl ended yelling over her brothers and sisters who were cued up to get off at Nottingham saying I called them abnormal.

Tanyalee Davis recorded footage of a row with this woman / Youtube/Tanyalee Davis

She then proceeded to drop trash on the floor at kick it at my scooter. She continued making fun of my hands and legs while her little brothers gave me the finger.

(The mother) made rude gestures to me as a family member grabbed her. The family then stood on the platform making rude gestures."

The woman in the video appears to confront the Ms Davis, who lives in Norwich and has a form of dwarfism called diastrophism dysplasia, calling her a "paedophile", a "disabled b****".

She accuses Ms Davis of calling her children "abnormal" before saying: "If anyones abnormal darling, its you".

Dont record other children. You know youre classed as a paedophile if you record other children," she adds.

She is then filmed appearing to shove her own mobile in Ms Davis' face and shouts: Little paedophile b****."

Youre going on YouTube, youre going on Facebook, youre going on Instagram, youre going on Snapchat.

Bye bye, look at you  disabled b****.

The comedian reported the incident to a train guard who was "lovely" and took her statement.

British Transport Police said in a statement: "We received a report via our text service of verbal abuse towards a woman on board a train between Norwich and Nottingham on Friday 31 August. Officers have spoken with the victim and are currently investigating the incident which happened at approximately 3.30pm.
A hero police officer who helped talk a man from a bridge was given a bunch of flowers hours later by the man she saved as a thank you for saving his life.

At around 0.24am on Saturday, Cheshire Police received a call about a man sat on a bridge in Folly Lane, in Warrington, who was reportedly considering taking his own life.

PC Millyard "assisted in talking [the] suicidal male down" from the bridge before he was taken to Warrington Hospital.

He returned to the police station hours later with a bunch of flowers for PC Millyard to thank her for her life-saving efforts.

PC Millyard can be seen beaming while holding a bunch of flowers in a picture posted on Twitter on Saturday.

A spokesman for Warrington Police said: "Last night, PC Millyard assisted in talking a suicidal male down from a bridge.

"Today, he came to the station with some flowers to say 'thank you' for her efforts."

Hundreds of social media users praised the officer for her work after the image was posted on Twitter, with one writing: "What a hero."

Others wrote "what a lovely way to say 'because of you I woke up today'" and "people don't say thank you often enough. So here's a thank you from me to the wonderful, dedicated police and emergency services."

Speaking to the Evening Standard, a spokesman for Cheshire Police said: "At 00:24 on Saturday 1 September police received a concern for safety report of a man sat on a bridge on Folly Lane, Warrington.

"Police managed to negotiate the man down from the bridge and he was taken to Warrington Hospital.
S ajid Javid warned tech companies today that all eyes are on you as he threatened to impose penalties over their failure to remove horrific child abuse images from their sites.

The Home Secretary said there was overwhelming evidence that abuse, including live-streamed footage, was continuing to appear online and that the response of companies was nowhere near good enough.

He demanded more concerted action from them, including the use of technology to block abuse images before they are uploaded and greater co-operation with the authorities.

Mr Javid warned that if they failed, legislation to impose new sanctions would be brought forward.

He made the announcement in a speech in London, in which he declared that tackling the spiralling scale of online child abuse was his personal mission.

Getting this sort of horrific content off your platforms is the right thing for your business and the right thing for society and all eyes are now on you to do the right thing, Mr Javid told tech giants.

The reality is that the threat has evolved quicker than industrys response... and there are some companies that refuse to take it seriously.

I am not just asking for change, I am demanding it. If technology companies do not take more measures to remove this type of content from their platforms, then I wont be afraid to take action.
T he new head of the Serious Fraud Office has vowed to make Britain an inhospitable place for the worlds most sophisticated criminals as she promised to bring Chicago-style law enforcement to this country.

Lisa Osofsky, a former US prosecutor, said she would be a different kind of director at the SFO and would adopt proactive tactics to fight off attempts by criminals to exploit volatility in Britains already buzzing markets.

She said her methods would include more use of human source intelligence and online analysis to identify emerging threats.

There would also be co-operation with other law enforcers both in the UK and overseas, greater use of artificial intelligence to prepare cases, and a new focus on using information provided by charities and other non-governmental organisations.

Lisa Osofsky has vowed to make the UK 'inhospitable' to fraudsters

Ms Osofskys comments, in a speech in Cambridge, are her first since she took over as the director of the Serious Fraud Office last week.

Ms Osofsky, who has British as well as US nationality, said: The most complicated and difficult cases require a worldwide effort to bring criminals around the globe to justice.

My approach will be proactive and this means working with more and more of you  from intel to inception to investigation to trial to recovering the proceeds of crime.

The markets are buzzing. Criminals thrive on volatility; they exploit it. Look at the IT failures at Lloyds TSB. Fraudsters jumped on this, leaving many innocent victims in their wake.
A British mother jailed in Iran has threatened to go on hunger strike in protest at her prison sentence.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was sentenced to five years' imprisonment in 2016 for spying. She maintains her innocence, saying she was on holiday to introduce her daughter to family in Iran.

Her husband Richard Ratcliffe told the Guardian that she was "at breaking point."

He said that when an Iranian-Canadian professor was released in September, she had become hopeful that she would be next.

Richard Ratcliffe, husband of Nazanin Zaghari Ratcliffe, said his wife was at "breaking point" / Jon Super/Reuters

Mr Ratcliffe added that he only found out about the hunger strike late last week.

The hunger strike began earlier last week however it is unclear whether it resumed over the weekend following a visit from her family.

Last month Ms Zaghari-Ratcliffe was allowed temporary leave from prison in order to visit her family. Despite an appeal for an extension of her release, she returned to Evin prison three days later.

Her husband has written an open letter to Iran's foreign minister Javad Zarif. He wrote that his wife was deeply upset at being forced back to prison.

Gabriella, 4, greeted her mum with a bunch of red flowers upon her temporary release / PA

Mr Ratcliffe branded it a "cruel game".

He added: "Nazanin called me on Tuesday - one of our toughest conversations.

"She wished she had never been released. She said she felt like one of the radical Islamists' captives - as though she had been paraded on the balcony then hidden back away.

"After that call, Nazanin collapsed, the result of two panic attacks. She still has numbness in her legs. She was taken by ambulance to the Evin hospital."
F irearms officers across the UK may have to surrender their weapons because of tougher rules aimed at detecting those who suffer from colour blindness, the Police Federation says.

Hundreds of officers working with forces across England and Wales could be affected by the new tests for colour vision deficiency (CVD), also known as colour blindness.

The Police Federation suggests the tougher rules may discriminate against disability and gender, as the majority of the 6,45 firearm officers working in England and Wales are male and therefore more likely to experience CVD.

Those speaking out against the new regulations say the condition makes little or no difference to the officers' ability to do their jobs.

The Federation also warns that losing skilled firearms officers would go against the government's bid to employ more officers in the fight against terrorism.

However, supporters say some armed officers suffering from CVD could face problems using weapons which use red dots to aim at targets if they have difficulty distinguishing that colour.

Armed police face tougher rules on colour blindness / Getty Images

Che Donald, vice-chair of the Police Federation and also a trained firearms officer, said: The test is intended to screen out CVD sufferers, yet we know from extensive research studies that the tests used are unreliable and do not achieve the objectives set out by the college and are not a proportionate means to achieving a legitimate aim.

Previously, officers were required to pass on one of two CVD tests; they now need to pass on both. Retrospective testing is also taking place for those who previously undertook these tests and identified with mild CVD.

"This single-handedly could destroy the uplift. Hundreds will be affected. This is because CVD is mainly prevalent in the male population and firearms units are still predominantly composed of male officers and CVD affects one in 12 men (8%) and one in 200 women.

"Firearms officers are absolutely distraught.

Royal Wedding: Armed Police on patrol in Windsor - In pictures 1 /11 Royal Wedding: Armed Police on patrol in Windsor - In pictures Armed police patrols the streets in Windsor AP Special police forces arrive in Windsor AP Police officers look on from a rooftop the day before the wedding Getty Images A police dog handler passes the area where fans are camped out in Windsor Reuters Armed police outside Windsor Castle PA Armed British police officers patrol near The Prince Harry pub in Windsor AFP/Getty Images Mounted police on patrol PA Police patrol on motorcycles Getty Images Police officers on the Long Walk AFP/Getty Images Armed police walk on the high street Getty Images Police with dogs in Windsor PA

The rules were introduced by the College of Policing, the body in charge of setting policing standards across forces in England and Wales.

A spokesman for the Police Federation said the rules have caused issues in a number of police forces, including Essex, Nottinghamshire, City of London, the Ministry of Defence and the Metropolitan Police.

Speaking about the changes, a College of Policing spokesman said: The key points which the standards establish are the ability to identify a subject based on a description, of which colour could be a significant factor, particularly where this may lead to pre-emptive use of force or officers using lethal force or firearms, and the ability to operate firearms with a red dot sight system.
A British birdwatcher has been stabbed to death at a South African nature reserve.

Musician Simon Milliken, 60, was found on a trail in the Burman Bush, near Durban on Saturday, September 1.

He is said to have been mugged and attacked while out on an expedition with a friend who escaped and raised the alarm.

Mr Milliken had a home in South Africa and was a keen birdwatcher along with his wife, Maria, the Sun reported.

A source said: It looks like he could have bled to death during the night from a punctured lung and was alive for a long time.

It took them all night to get the dog to Durban by Saturday morning and the victims body was recovered at about 6am.

Police confirmed a murder investigation was underway.

Mr Milliken had played principal bass in the Kwazula-Natal Philharmonic Orchestra, he retired from the orchestra last year but still performed on an ad-hoc basis according to a tribute on the groups website.

A close of friend of Mr Milliken, Cathy Peacock said: What has happened leaves me beyond words, trying to process this terrible tragedy.
A British tourist has died in a banana boat accident at the same Egyptian resort where two tourists died.

The mother, said to be in her 50s or 60s, was pulled from the water after the boat flipped leaving her trapped underneath.

The incident occurred on August 28, just a week after a British couple died in Hurghada following a mystery illness, the Sun reports.

According to a witness who was on the boat at the time, the inflatable flipped throwing its riders off, however one woman remained "trapped" underneath.

The incident took place at Hurghada, a popular resort on the Red Sea / Matzi/Pixabay

He said: "I could hear the woman's daughter wailing as she knew there was something seriously wrong with her mum."

Despite attempts from those on board, the woman could not be revived.

A spokesperson for Thomas Cook told the Standard: "We can confirm that one of our customers sadly died last week while on an excursion in Egypt.

"We would like to offer our sincere condolences to the family and our welfare team to continue to do all they can to support them at this time.

"We are urgently investigating what happened."

Susan Cooper, 64, and her husband John Cooper, 69, who have both died during a holiday in Egypt

The incident comes a week after the death of Susan and John Cooper at the Steigenberger Aqua Magic Hotel in Hurghada.

Their daughter said her parents were "fit and healthy" with "no health problems at all" prior to their holiday.
A national landmark museum in Rio de Janeiro has been engulfed in flames with 'two hundred years' worth of artefacts lost to flames.

Brazil's National Museum in Rio has been engulfed in fire in a vast inferno, with museum workers rushing to save as many relics as possible.

The museum which houses artefacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman art and some of the first fossils found in Brazil, was closed to the public at the time of the fire.

The blaze broke out at 7.30pm Sunday local time.

There were no reports of injuries and it is not clear at this stage how the fire began.

Rio de Janeiro National Museum fire 1 /18 Rio de Janeiro National Museum fire Onlookers watch as a massive fire engulfs the National Museum in Rio de Janeiro AFP/Getty Images Firefighters work as a massive fire engulfs the museum AFP/Getty Images Firefighters work to contain the blaze AFP/Getty Images The cause of the blaze was not immediately clear AFP/Getty Images The museum, which is tied to the Rio de Janeiro federal university and the Education Ministry, was founded in 1818 by King John VI of Portugal REUTERS It houses several landmark collections including Egyptian artefacts and the oldest human fossil found in Brazil REUTERS ts collection include more than 20 million items ranging from archaeological findings to historical memorabilia. REUTERS Firefighters said two hydrants near the museum were not working Getty Images President Michel Temer called it "a sad day for all Brazilians." Getty Images According to its website, the museum has a vast collection related to the history of Brazil and other countries, and that many of its collections came from members of Brazil's royal family. Getty Images The vice director of the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, said the museum suffered chronic underfunding. Getty Images Rio Mayor Marcelo Crivella called on the country to rebuild. "It's a national obligation to reconstruct it from the ashes, recompose every eternal detail of the paintings and photos" Getty Images Museum workers rushed to save as many relics as possible during the fire. AP The blaze broke out at 7:30 p.m. Sunday local time. AFP/Getty Images People watch as a massive fire engulfs the National Museum AFP/Getty Images Flames pictured leaping from the charred shell of the museum AFP/Getty Images 80 firefighters were sent to tackle the blaze AFP/Getty Images The museum is part of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro AP

Roberto Robadey, a spokesman for the fire department, said 80 firefighters were battling the blaze and that by midnight local time it was "just about under control" and should be out within a few hours.

President Michel Temer called it "a sad day for all Brazilians."

Onlookers watch as the fire rages / AFP/Getty Images

"Two hundred years of work, investigation and knowledge have been lost," Temer said in a statement.

According to its website, the museum has a vast collection related to the history of Brazil and other countries, and that many of its collections came from members of Brazil's royal family.

The two fire hydrants closest to the museum were not functioning, fire fighters said. Trucks had to be sent to get water from a nearby lake.

President Michel Temer called it "a sad day for all Brazilians." / AFP/Getty Images

The vice director of the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, said the museum suffered chronic underfunding.

"Everybody wants to be supportive now. We never had adequate support," he said.

Hundreds of years' worth of collections are said to have been lost / AFP/Getty Images

Just over a month before national elections, even before the flames were put out, the fire was leading to recriminations about dilapidated infrastructure and budget deficits in the city that hosted the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Firefighters said two hydrants near the museum were not working / REUTERS

"Unfortunately, given the financial straits of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and all the other public universities the last three years, this was a tragedy that could be seen coming," Marina Silva, one of the leading presidential candidates, tweeted.

On Instagram, Rio Mayor Marcelo Crivella called on the country to rebuild.

"It's a national obligation to reconstruct it from the ashes, recompose every eternal detail of the paintings and photos.
A n Instagram blogger from Australia has been found dead aboard the multi-million pound yacht on which she was working.

Sinead McNamara, 20, was discovered unconscious on the vessel, docked in Argostoli port near Kefalonia, on Friday.

It is believed she passed away while being airlifted to hospital.

The Australian national was a prominent figure on Instagram, with 21,000 followers, and pictures portrayed a lifestyle of travel and adventure.

Her final post on the site was a photograph of an idyllic scene of rocks and grass by the water in Greece.

This image has now become the focus of tributes to the young woman.

One person wrote: Rest in peace you beautiful human being. I know youre going to be even prettier in heaven. Condolences to her family.

Others simply wrote RIP.

On a previous post on Facebook, where Sinead had shared vivid pictures of Santorini, a friend had written that she was living the dream.

Miss McNamara had been working on the ship owned by billionaire businessman Alberto Bailleres for four months.

His family were not on board when she was discovered, according to reports.

Miss McNamara had just finished her final shift on the boat and was about to meet with her sister and mother for a holiday, 9news reported.

Her brother, Jake McNamara, described hearing the news of her death as the worst news of my life, The Telegraph reports.

Greek authorities are still investigating the death and an autopsy has been scheduled.

She was reported to have been found unconscious and tangled in rope at the rear of the boat.
Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Dongfeng Peugeot Citroen Automobile Company LTD (DPCA) appointed Li Guangtao as general manager of the Dongfeng Peugeot branding unit, according to local media.

Meanwhile, David GUERIN was named as vice general manager of the Dongfeng Peugeot brand. Zhou Haibo, the former deputy director of the brand will work as the director of DPCA's NEV and mobility business units.

Dongfeng Citroen, the other DPCA-owned brand, saw the personnel change as well. Ren Guang, the acting general manager of the brand, will keep his role as formal general manager.

Reportedly, Li Guangtao graduated from Jilin University of Technology in 1999 and officially joined Dongfeng Motor in July, 2003. He has rich marketing and management experience thanks to his abundant employment history in Dongfeng Nissan Passenger Vehicle Co. and Dongfeng Venucia Vehicle Company.

David GUERIN joined PSA Group in the same year he graduated from Audencia Business School as MBA. He had successively held several key positions in PSA Group with his footprint existing in France, England and Poland.

Ren Guang, serving DPCA for several consecutive years, had been worked as the director of the Dongfeng Citroen brand's sales unit and the director of the Dongfeng Peugeot's service unit. He has been working as acting general manager of Dongfeng Citroen since his predecessor Rao Jie delivered the resignation in last October.

At the launching ceremony of the all-new Peugeot 408 several days ago, DPCA reveals that it plans to roll out a total of 12 all-new and facelift models in China over the next three years, targeting the 3% of market shares.
Significantly reduced loss in H1 2018



Half Yearly Report

Sydney, Sep 3, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Anti-counterfeit and customer engagement solutions provider YPB Group Ltd ( ASX:YPB ) provides a commentary on H1 2018.- Normalised post tax operating loss improved 67%- Reported post tax loss improved 44%- Revenue up 22%- Operating costs pre write-offs and fx adjustments down 33%- Further improvement expected H2 2018H1 2018 saw an improvement in the company's operating results. Revenue rose and costs fell. The normalised post-tax operating loss excluding write-downs improved to $1.99m from $5.95m, a 67% improvement.Reported post tax loss improved 44% to $4.35m. Non-cash balance sheet write-downs were $2.36m in 2018 and $1.78m in 2017.Net cash used in operating activities in H1 2018 improved 35% to $3.0m. Cash consumption improved at a slower rate than the P&L loss due to payments from restructuring accrued in a prior period but paid in this period. The improvement of H1 is expected to gather pace with clearly lower cash consumption in H2 2018.While pleasing to see revenue rise, the quantum was unsatisfactory. Deal closures and contract start-ups continued to lag expectations due to carry-over inertia from previous management prior to the Executive Chairman resuming operational leadership. Despite that fact, a newly dynamic and focused sales ethos has been created in H1 2018 and the probability of much better sales results in H2 2018 is high. There has been significant progress with sales personnel, culture and partners which is expected to become apparent in H2 2018 client wins and revenue growth.Operating costs in H1 2018 were 33% below pcp. Costs would have fallen further but costs associated with the Token project and extraordinary legal fees related to the capital raise early in H1 2018 were incurred. Consulting and legal and accounting fees are expected to fall in H2 with less project activity and the in-housing of previously outsourced finance functions. Further cost improvement should naturally occur in H2 2018 with no further specific cost action.Despite this, a new cost review and adjustment plan is well developed and will commence in September 2018 with a focus on salaries. Costs must be productive and expenses not yielding results after sufficient grace are again being thoroughly scrutinised. The Board remains intent on making the company financially self-sufficient as quickly as possible.The Bracknor loan was reduced by $1.5m in H1 2018 and the balance of $0.373m will be repaid prior to year end. Bracknor holds no YPB shares and has had no impact on the share price in H1 2018.OutlookH2 2018 should see a clearly improved financial performance over H1 with faster new client flows and revenue growth. Unfortunately, the cultural and operational inertia at the business coalface has taken longer to rectify than expected. That has lead the Board to withdraw its forecast of profitability in 2018. While 2018 profitability is still possible if the largest opportunities in progress close and contribute revenue in H2 2018, it is not probable. The prior forecast was dependent on rapid revenue growth but results have lagged expectations.The company will also no longer be disclosing potential pipeline values to the market. While current possible deals still have circa +$100m of potential annual revenues, the company's track record of predicting values, probability and timing of closure is insufficiently strong for the release of pipeline values to be helpful to shareholders.Despite the above comments, the Board retains a firm goal of achieving profitability and expects that to occur in 2019. The timing and magnitude of any profit is primarily dependent on growing revenues through product sales and/or licensing Motif Micro technology.H1 2018 results are bitter-sweet: improvement was good but not good enough. Most importantly, however, the financial data give zero insight into the very positive progress made in the business over the half year. The team and its performance have been rebuilt and reset and the level of active engagement with customers and prospects has lifted immeasurably.The withdrawal of guidance is not reflective of diminished opportunity, rather it is simply acknowledgement of milestones missed. In fact, the company's opportunity set continues to grow significantly with:1. Macro- The rapid growth of Pan-Asian consumer markets;- The greater opportunity that creates for in-country consumer goods and Western manufacturers;- The greater opportunity for counterfeiters flowing from technology and market access created by online markets;- An increased desire of brands to directly engage with their customers and authenticity undoubtedly triggers engagement; and- The eventual spread of serialisation (item level unique identities) right across consumer goods markets.2. Technology- Smartphone readability of a high security anti-counterfeit mark (Motif Micro), as announced on 24 August 2018, is extraordinarily important for the company's prospects. It is a world leading breakthrough in taking highly secure anti-counterfeit solutions to the mass market for the first time. Smartphone readability is expected to accelerate both direct sales by YPB and its partners and licensing of Motif Micro technology to third parties.- The Connect serialisation and customer engagement platform is performing well after extensive rebuilds over 2017. It is a stable and scalable platform, offering highly costeffective anti-counterfeit and direct-to-customer marketing solutions.- The planned blockchain enablement of Connect is generating clear interest from potential channel partners and clients.3. Sales and revenue- As noted above, the company's sales staff, processes and culture have been rebuilt. Sales activity is high, as too are expectations of accelerated closures. Energy, focus and optimism pervade the sales teams.- Partners and channels have expanded and are active. New partners in Namaste, Australian Made and AliHealth and the rekindling of the Orora relationship should all increasingly bear fruit in H2 2018 and beyond.- Licensing interest in Motif Micro is high and the smartphone readability breakthrough is expected to bring opportunities forward. The payoff from this work, however, is more likely to be in H1 2019 due to the complexities of negotiations.4. Token Issue US$30m target- The probability of a successful Token Issue is high due to the new strategic partnership with a consortium of leading blockchain, crypto currency and crypto exchange experts as announced on 29 August 2018.- A successful Token Issue would create significant shareholder value and make the company financially robust.YPB's Executive Chairman John Houston said: "While I am pleased with the improved result, I am far from satisfied. Nevertheless, I am confident that the business has been transformed internally and that will become apparent externally via significantly improved financial results in the current and subsequent halves. Our opportunities are greater than ever and importantly, after false starts, we finally have the core team, processes and culture to capture them. I look forward to delivering significant success to shareholders in the second half. After years of building to this point, YPB is entering a dynamic new phase driven by accelerating new client wins, our world leading Motif Micro technology breakthrough and the prospect of financial strength from Token Issue success."About YPB Group Ltd

DEACTIVATED
T wo Reuters journalists were jailed in Myanmar today after being found guilty of breaching a state secrets act while reporting on violence against Rohingya Muslims.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were arrested after reporting that 10 Rohingya Muslims were murdered and dumped in a single grave on September 2 last year.

Both men, who are Myanmar nationals, had been covering the crackdown by security forces on the Rohingya when they were arrested and charged with violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act.

The two men pleaded not guilty, contending they were framed by police. But Yangon northern district judge Ye Lwin today sentenced them to seven years in jail, claiming that confidential documents found on the two would have been useful to enemies of the state and terrorist organisations.

Myanmar reporters take pictures as police escort away Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo after being sentenced by a court to jail in Yangon on September 3, 2018 / AFP/Getty Images/Ye Aung Thu

The case has been cited as an example of how press freedom is suffering under the government of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

As the verdict was announced, Kyaw Soe Oos wife broke down in tears. Outside court, he told reporters: What I want to say to the government is: you can put us in jail, but do not close the eyes and ears of the people.

We know we did nothing wrong. I have no fear. I believe in justice, democracy and freedom.

Chit Su Win, (2nd-R) wife of jailed Myanmar journalist Kyaw Soe Oo grieves with family members after hearing the verdict. / AFP/Getty/Ye Aung Thu

British ambassador Dan Chugg, speaking on behalf of EU members, said the verdict had dealt a hammer blow for the rule of law.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo both testified that they suffered from harsh treatment during their initial interrogations, and claimed that they were framed by police.

Judge Ye Lwin said in his ruling that the men tried many times to get their hands on secret documents and pass them to others. They did not behave like normal journalists, reported Jacob Goldberg from Yangong.

But one policeman who testified to the court admitted he had been ordered to plant the documents on the journalists.

Defence lawyer Khin Maung Zaw said the verdict was bad for our country and that he would take any option to get their immediate release.

A UN fact-finding mission reported in August the shocking level of brutality in Myanmar, also known as Burma, under the leadership of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. Testimony includes the indiscriminate killing innocents, sexual slavery, gang rape and the levelling of Rohingya villages.

Reuters journalist Wa Lone (C) is escorted out of the Insein township court in Yangon, Myanmar / EPA/Lynn Bo Bo

The Reuters report on the massacre said 10 men, including fishermen, grocers and high school students, were shot by police at the village of Inn Din, and two of the men were "hacked to death" by Buddhist villagers.

Soe Chay, 55, a retired soldier who helped dig the grave told Reuters: When they were being buried, some were still making noises. Others were already dead." The government said the men belonged to a group of 100 terrorists identified in the area.

Myanmar's Senior General Min Aung Hlaing was among a handful of military chiefs banned form Facebook over the spreading of hate messages. / AFP/Getty Images

Last week Burma's most powerful military leader was banned from Facebook after the UN highlighted how the administration used social media to spread messages of hate and curry support for its attacks.

Dozens of journalists and pro-democracy activists marched Saturday in Yangon, Burma's biggest city, in support of the reporters. The overwhelming majority of the population are Buddhist, while there is widespread prejudice against the Rohingya people which the government blames on migration from Bangladesh, and refuses to acknowledge the people as Burmese.

Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director Human Rights Watch, said: "These two reporters should have never been put on trial in the first place because all they were doing was their jobs as journalists but apparently the government is more interested using this trial to intimidate the local media than anything else. Eventually Burma is going to wake up and realise that these kind of politically driven prosecutions in a judicial system lacking both independence and competence are a major drag on the country's political, social and economic development."

The UN's Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar found patterns of gross human rights violations and abuses committed in Kachin, Rakhine and Shan States that undoubtedly amount to the gravest crimes under international law, principally by Myanmars military, the Tatmadaw, but also by other security forces. They called for the country's leaders to be tried for genocide.

The report stated: Military necessity would never justify killing indiscriminately, gang raping women, assaulting children, and burning entire villages. The Tatmadaws tactics are consistently and grossly disproportionate to actual security threats, especially in Rakhine State, but also in northern Myanmar."

The report pointed at "specific utterances of commanders and direct perpetrators" as a factor in its assessment of genocidal intentions, but did not name the social network specifically.

Investigators discovered mass killings, large-scale gang rape by Tatmadew soldiers and women forced into sexual slavery, among a multitude of other allegations. One survivor said in testimony: I was lucky, I was only raped by three men. Rapes were often in public spaces in front of families, including children.

"The role of social media is significant," the report found.

Satellite images provided by Digital Globe were compared to show the destruction of home in the village of Thit Tone Nar Gwa Son, Rakhine state - one of hundreds of villages said to be flattened by the military in the space of three months. / DigitalGlobe via AP

It added: "Facebook has been a useful instrument for those seeking to spread hate, in a context where for most users Facebook is the Internet. Although improved in recent months, Facebooks response has been slow and ineffective. The extent to which Facebook posts and messages have led to real-world discrimination and violence must be independently and thoroughly examined."

At least 700,000 people have fled violence in the past year, while satellite images identified the mass destruction of 214 villages, and tens of thousands of homes over the space of three months in 2017.
A parent has told of his shock after his children's nursery welcomed kids back from holiday with a performance from a scantily-clad pole dancer.

Journalist Michael Standaert shared a video from the incident on Twitter, asking his followers: "Who would think that this is a good idea?"

He added that he was considering taking his children out of the kindergarten in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.

The local education authority issued an apology for the performance and said in a statement that following an investigation they had dismissed the director of the nursery.

In the video, a woman can be seen dancing on a pole bearing the Chinese flag as parents and children aged between three and five look on.

The dancing was to welcome the students back to school following the summer holidays.

Before the summer holidays, the students took part in 10 days of military activities with machine guns and mortars all displayed at the front of the school.

A statement published on Monday by Shenzhen Baoan District Education Bureau said that it found that pole dancing had taken place at the kindergarten and the bureau "believes that it is not appropriate to perform pole dancing for children in kindergartens."

It added that it had taken three actions. It had instructed the school to apologise to parents, it has ordered the dismissal of the director of the kindergarten and will be inspecting the school's conduct.

It isn't the first time female dancers have been used at events.

Last year a video emerged of strippers dancing at a funeral which is often seen as a sign of wealth in the country.
S eoul's public toilets will be checked daily for hidden spy cameras in a bid to end an epidemic of voyeurs using hidden cameras to spy on woman.

The South Korean city's government announced today it will bring in 8,000 workers to police the 20,554 public conveniences, Yonhap news agency reported.

But campaigners have called for more to be done about the rise in voyeurism which has led to videos of women using toilets being posted online.

You Seung-jin, of the Korea Cyber Sexual Violence Response Centre, said: "What is imperative is to regulate the distribution of spy cameras, rather than what is being planned."

Some 70,000 protesters turn out for the demonstration against voyeurs in early August. / AFP/Getty Images

Authorities have in recent years struggled to stop perpetrators from using tiny, hidden cameras to film women in public places, or under their clothing before sharing the images or selling them to illicit porn sites.

Despite economic growth South Korea remains deeply patriarchal, said You, the vice president of the group that offers legal aid to victims of spy-cam crimes.

"Misogyny is prevalent here and women are often treated as sexual objects," she told the Thompson Reuters Foundation. "What we need is to educate people that this is cyber-sexual violence - it is not their porn."

Seoul's Ministry of Gender, Equality and Family found in 2016 that 80 per cent of people surveyed had experienced an assault at work.

Two of Seoul's "hidden camera-hunters" checking public toilets for equipment left by voyeurs. / AFP/Getty Images

Jung Myung Shin of Seouls Sunflower Centre, told channel NewsAsia: If the boss says, "Come to the group dinner"  a lot of women dare not refuse. If a young woman says, "I dont want to go"  she can appear too assertive. In our society, that can be seen as uncouth behaviour.

Police say have identified 26,000 victims of spy camera crimes between 2012 and 2016, while many other incidents go unreported. The epidemic largely involves men secretly filming women in schools, offices, trains, toilets and changing rooms, they added.
B allet dancers are among those to have paid tribute to a leading dancer who died in a fall from his New York apartment.

Peter Frame, 61, died in the fall from his apartment on the Upper West Side of Manhattan on Thursday last week.

Mr Frane was a principle dancer in the New York City Ballet and performed with the group for 14 years in total before his retirement.

Ashley Bouder, currently a ballerina with the company, paid tribute to her former mentor.

On Instagram, she wrote: We just never know what others are going through. Peter Frame was one of the sunniest, sweetest, genuinely nice humans I have ever met in my life.

I always enjoyed our conversations and was always happy to see him. He brought joy and gentle guidance to so many dancers. His words sunk in, his spirit uplifted, and his teachings live on.

Robbie Fairchild, a fellow New York City Ballet alumni, shared a photo of Mr Frame and wrote: The beauty and generosity of this man.

What an incredible soul. Peter Frame you made everyone feel like you were their biggest fan. We are all so heartbroken. We love you! We miss you!!

After his dance career Mr Frame became a teacher at the School of American Ballet.

Megan Fairchild, a dancer with the New York City Ballet, revered his care for each and every dancer he helped to educate.

I think I can easily say for anyone that knew Peter Frame, we all felt how enormously big his heart was. He cared so much about each and every dancer that went through the school, and continued to provide the same concern and love every time you crossed paths with him after you entered the company, she wrote on social media.

The dancer turned teacher took his life just a day after the death of fellow ballet choreographer and dancer Paul Taylor.

Mr Taylor had died aged 88, due to renal failure, in a hospital in Manhattan.

Choreographer Paul Taylor during a rehearsal in New York, Feb. 5, 2009 / New York Times / Redux / eyevine

A highlight in Mr Frames career had been performing a solo originally danced by Mr Taylor, the New York Times reports.

Mr Taylor first performed the dance in 1959 and taught it to Mr Frame to perform in 1986, with the latter calling the opportunity one of the most exciting in his dance career.
S usanna Reid has shed her TV war paint after going make-up free in a selfie ahead of her return to Good Morning Britain.

Reid bid farewell to viewers in July ahead of her six-week summer break from the show, where she revealed plans to go to America.

Gearing up ahead of her return on Monday morning, Reid shared and image of her no filter skin, taken over the weekend.

Sporting a natural glow, the 47-year-old captioned the image: Before I get my glam on! #nomakeup #nofilter #patchytan #flaws #blemishes #imperfect.

This has been a life-changing summer for me. Ive been lucky enough to spend lots of time with my family and good friends.

For the most part I stayed off social media & that really helps to minimise the distractions you allow into your world when you dont need them.

She added: No twitter cuts down on the baiting & no insta removes the compare-and-despair we can all get sucked into.

Looking forward to being back at it tomorrow, fully armoured & in my tv warpaint. Love to you all #YouDoYou.

Fans of the presenter gushed over her gorgeous bare face throwing their support behind the post.

One user wrote: You dont even need makeup #naturalbeauty.

Another commented: You can still see youve got it dear xx
V ictoria Beckham has poked fun at herself in a new video for Vogue, celebrating her style icon status  including that iconic black catsuit.

The fashion designer posted the hilarious clip on her Instagram page on Monday, opening the clip in a white satin robe before donning the black PVC she wore in the Say Youll Be There video 22 years ago.

At the start of the clip, she said: Today, we're here at Vogue and we're shooting a cover story celebrating the rich and inspiring history of one of the most enduring style icons of all time. Me, Victoria Beckham.

Beckham is then shown holding her leg in the air, scrolling down her phone while wearing the black catsuit from the 1996 video.

It is said that husband David fell for Posh Spice when he first saw her in that outfit on screen.

The next frame shows Beckham doing her famous air grab Spice Girls move before the 44-year-old addresses the camera again.

She said: This is where two fashion forces join to make something really quite incredible, before posing in her wedding dress and a Little Black Dress.

At the end of the clip, Beckham said to Editor-in-chief Edward Enninful: Spice up your life, Edward. Just spice up your life.

Fans rushed to comment on the amazing clip, which Beckham captioned: To celebrate ten years behind the scenes of my first shoot with @britishvogue - where I tell @edward_enninful what I want, what I really really want. x VB #VBsince08.

Written and directed by @isaacjlock. Featuring @edward_enninful, @ctilburymakeup, @venetialscott, @mrsvoguester.


Update on Growth Opportunities

Sydney, Sep 3, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Collaborate Corporation Limited ( ASX:CL8 ) (Collaborate or the Company) is pleased to provide an update on the Growth Opportunities first outlined on 30 April 2018 and updated in announcements released on 21 June and 31 July 2018.Short Term Car Rentals2+ day car rentals launched on 25 June 2018 (previous minimum rental period was 7 days) and over 300 vehicles in the DriveMyCar fleet now support rental periods of less than 7 days. 69% of the corporate fleet vehicles support minimum 2 day rentals which is particularly important as many of these vehicles are located at key demand locations, including Sydney and Tullamarine airports, which attract higher demand and can generate premium prices in holiday periods.In July 2018 16% of rental bookings were for rental periods of less than 7 days, with an average of 4 days per short term booking. DriveMyCar and its vehicle owners receive higher income per day for short term rentals. Gross Revenue per day for short term rentals in the month of July was 34% higher than for 7 day+ rental periods.Utilisation of Peugeot Vehicles and Unlimited Kilometre FeatureLengthy delays in registration of the Peugeot fleet of vehicles led to missed revenue opportunities in prior quarters; however, the fleet is now achieving strong utilisation rates. The Peugeot vehicles were first registered for rideshare use in Melbourne on 31 July and as of today 100% of those vehicles are rented or have forward bookings. In NSW 90% of the vehicles are rented or have forward bookings.The launch of unlimited kilometres for the Peugeot fleet has proven extremely popular and has contributed to the strong uplift in demand for these vehicles.Dealer Rental SolutionThe marketing campaign to engage automotive dealers as supply and handover locations is gaining momentum and now includes email, telephone and advertising components. Negotiations are underway with a number of prospects identified in this DriveMyCar campaign. Expressions of interest have been received from dealers in city and regional areas across Australia. Due to the complex financing and ownership structures typically held by automotive dealers for vehicles, the sign up process can be lengthy. Therefore, priority will be given to dealers that are positioned for faster onboarding.The campaign has been supplemented by the engagement of a telephone sales organisation which has achieved a 10% conversion rate from initial call to booked appointment which is considered to be very high for a cold call campaign. Activity has been further supplemented by an advertising campaign in motoring industry print publications, which is also generating inbound enquiries.Automotive dealers have been identified as being a key source of supply for the Car Subscription product due to be launched later in 2018. This has been the case in the USA where car subscription models are gaining traction.Apartment Car Share PilotAs announced on 31 July 2018, approval was received for the establishment of a 3 month Car Share Pilot in an apartment development on Sydney's north shore. Technical development has been completed and the communications campaign is in the final stages of development. The pilot remains on track for commencement of vehicle owner recruitment in the September 2018 Quarter.About Collaborate Corporation Ltd

Collaborate Corporation Limited is listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX:CL8). It is Australia's leading listed company focused on 'collaborative consumption', 'peer-to-peer' or 'sharing economy' businesses. Collaborate currently has three core business segments: www.DriveMyCar.com.au Australia's leading peer-to-peer car rental business; www.MyCaravan.com.au Australia's leading peer-to-peer caravan rental business; and www.Mobilise.com an online hire marketplace to unlock the enormous potential of under-utilised assets. Through our proprietary trust and reputation platform, www.peerpass.com.au we create 'trust' between individuals and make it possible for people to safely transact with each other in the sharing economy.
Oscar Isaac has opened up about his experience on the set of Episode IX, speaking about JJ Abrams feelings on the film, Poes arc through the films and how it feels doing a film without Carrie Fisher.

The finale of the Skywalker Saga marks the first time that everyone involved in the sequel trilogy has returned following the passing of Carrie Fisher in 2016, and its been reported that unused footage of the beloved actress will be used in Episode IX.

Isaac was answering questions during an interview with USA Today for his latest film Operation Finale, and when asked if it feels like shes around while filming this final chapter, he responded Always. Of course shes with us.

The actor also spoke on JJs attitude on set. It sounds as though the director of The Force Awakens is incredibly positive about the chance to end the story he began, with Oscar claiming he Seems to me just as excited if not more so, because now theres a history there, and the nature of the story is different.

As the man who plays the leader of The Resistance Poe Dameron, Isaac also had something to say about the state the group are in going into Episode IX. Its not looking good for our heroes at this point; he believes its easy to forget that the group are essentially guerrilla fighters, adhering closer to something like the Revolutionary War fighters or even the guerrillas in Cuba with Che and Fidel and all these guys living in the mountains, coming down to do some attacks, and going back and trying to hide from the empire of the United States. Its that kind of ragged at this point.

Isaac, who will also be appearing in the upcoming TV series Star Wars: Resistance, also spoke about Poes arc in The Last Jedi. You want to get people (to question him) as opposed to have some sort of easy answer of like, Yeah, he did the right thing, he was a hero. Whats the cost of this stuff?

Poe had a difficult journey in his last outing, but it sounds like he will have learned from the experience by the time Episode IX rolls around. You hear stories about George Washington as a general, where lots of people die based on their orders, Isaac explained. But that is part of leadership and that push-and-pull in the fight for figuring out whats the best way to move forward.

Domnhall Gleeson has also shared his feelings on what its like knowing every single detail of the finale to the Skywalker Saga. I made the terrible mistake of reading the script, he joked in an appearance on the Happy Sad Confused podcast (via io9).

The nightmare is falling asleep on public transport, he continued. The nightmare is you waking up on a plane and someones dictating. You wake up and your mouths shaping words, you wake up and youre like Skywalker did this. And then you dont realise how long youve been speaking, and theres a kid filming, theres somebody writing it down. And because youre in the air, you say We need to have a talk before we land, I can access my bank account.

It certainly is an eye-opening account of the stress modern day actors as they struggle to keep a lid on crucial plot details that fans the world over are dying to know.

For more news on Episode IX, stay tuned to SWNN.
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Senate President, ALDE (Alliance of Liberals and Democrats, minor at rule, ed. n.) leader Calin Popescu-Tariceanu on Monday asserted that it is too early for a decision regarding the setting up by the PSD (Social Democratic Party, major at rule, ed. n.) - ALDE coalition of the candidate to run for the Presidency of Romania, due in 2019, specifying that the best moment would be the first quarter of 2019.

"These talks are not new. (...) I haven't changed my point of view, I have agreed with the PSD leader Liviu Dragnea at a certain point to have a talk and make a decision. I believe that president Dragnea wanted to send a message out loud to our colleagues and not via the media. Actually, we are not in the situation of having to make any decision in this respect. It is way too early to make a decision on a common candidate or on who's going to be the candidate," Popescu-Tariceanu said.

The ALDE president added that his party has neither come to a decision on whether to run for the European Parliament on separate or joint lists with the PSD."We had an ALDE meeting wherein my colleagues and I have shown our option to run on separate lists, and yet it is not a final option, a decision has not yet been made. I have announced that we, ALDE, have set the selection criteria, so regardless of the way we shall run for the EP, separately or with PSD, the selection criteria will stay valid and will help us define the criteria in a more accurate way, based on scores so that the election be as objective as possible and then we shall decided the formula. Any formula has advantages and inconveniences, obviously," Popescu-Tariceanu stressed.Asked whether he wants to run for the Romanian Presidency, in 2019, Popescu-Tariceanu said: "Naturally, this exercise depends on the joint will, on certain circumstances and a certain political support. When the time comes to talk at the political level, I will certainly tell you. (...) The best moment would be in the first quarter of the next year."


Joins Information Warfare Research Project Consortium

Sydney, Sep 3, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - DroneShield Ltd ( ASX:DRO ) ( OTCMKTS:DRSHF ) ("DroneShield" or the "Company") is pleased to announce that it has been accepted as a member of the Information Warfare Research Project consortium ("IWRP" or the "Consortium"), a consortium focused on advancing information warfare capabilities to enhance United States Navy and United States Marine Corps mission effectiveness.- DroneShield becomes a member of the Information Warfare Research Project ("IWRP") consortium.- A faster path to contracting with the U.S. Government.DroneShield was approved to join IWRP as a demonstrated technology leader with competencies in Cyber Warfare and Battlespace Awareness - key focus areas for the consortium. As a member of IWRP, DroneShield will gain access to US Space and Naval Warfare ("SPAWAR") Systems Command's Other Transaction Authority ("OTA") agreement previously awarded to the Consortium. The aggregate amount of this particular OTA across the Consortium is US$100 million over the next three year period, and the OTA will be used as a vehicle to advance information warfare technologies and innovation delivery to the U.S. fleet. The OTA enables the Consortium members to engage in a broad range of activities advancing such technologies and allows for the delivery of new technology faster and more efficiently than traditional U.S. federal acquisition requirements might permit.In a release made last month by the United States Navy, Rear Adm. C.D. Becker, commander of SPAWAR Systems Command was quoted as stating, "The IWRP OTA will accelerate acquisition and bring non-traditional sources, research and development labs, and industry together to provide new, innovative information warfare solutions." SPAWAR Systems Center Atlantic Deputy Executive Director, Bill Deligne, was also quoted remarking on the use of OTAs, stating, "This mechanism is faster and more attuned to getting something quickly that we want today, as opposed to traditional federal acquisition. [...] While speed is a critical element, reaching beyond the traditional DoD industrial base, further into the commercial sector to capture new, innovative solutions, is also a key element of the IWRP."Oleg Vornik, Chief Executive Officer of DroneShied commented, "DroneShield is honoured to be accepted into the IWRP. A key advantage of participating in the IWRP is the ability to deliver DroneShield's solutions to the U.S. military under the OTA faster and more efficiently than through the traditional U.S. federal acquisition process."About DroneShield Ltd

DroneShield Ltd (ASX:DRO) (OTCMKTS:DRSHF) is an Australian publicly listed company with its head office in Sydney and teams in the US and UK. We specialise in RF sensing, Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Sensor Fusion, Electronic Warfare, Rapid Prototyping and MIL-SPEC manufacturing.

Our capabilities are used to protect Military, Government, Law Enforcement, Critical Infrastructure, Commercial and VIPs throughout the world.

Through our team of primarily Australian based engineers - we offer customers bespoke solutions and off-the-shelf products designed to suit a variety of terrestrial, maritime or airborne platforms.

DroneShield is proudly exporting Australian capability to customers throughout the world and supporting Australia's defence, national security and other organisations protect people, critical infrastructure and vital assets.

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Deputy Prime Minister Ana Birchall conveyed on Monday to British Ambassador Andrew Noble that an important objective for our country is to update and deepen the Strategic Partnership with the United Kingdom.

"I had a very good meeting today with H.E. Mr. Andrew Noble, the agreed ambassador of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to Romania. I welcomed His Excellency in Romania and assured him of my complete availability in pursuing the close dialogue with the UK, a top strategic partner for Romania," Ana Birchall, the Deputy Prime Minister for the implementation of Romania's strategic partnerships, said in a press statement published on Monday on her website.

"I have reiterated, in the context of the meeting, that updating and deepening the Strategic Partnership with the UK is an important objective for Romania," Ana Birchall mentioned.
The Co-Chair of the European Green Party of the European Parliament, Reinhard Butikofer, declared on Monday that the group he belongs to will propose the organisation within the European Parliament of a debate about the control and balancing mechanism of the rule of law in Romania.

"I decided to come here [in Bucharest - ed. n.] to do two things: to prepare the visit of President Iohannis in Strasbourg, on October 23, when the president will address the European Parliament and I also wanted to prepare an initiative that our group hopes to launch in the European Parliament, with the proposal that when we meet again after the parliamentary recess, we hold a debate during the European Parliament's October plenary session about the mechanism of control and balancing of the rule of law in Romania. The European Parliament is the Parliament of all European citizens, which is why we consider that when the rule of law is threatened anywhere, in any country of the European Union, the European Parliament has to get involved," Reinhard Butikofer told a press conference at the Parliament Palace.

He added that in the preliminary report presented to the Venice Committee in July, there are "reasons to be alarmed"."The Venice Commission wrote in paragraph 160 of the preliminary findings that" there are important aspects that are likely to undermine the independence of Romanian judges and prosecutors and the public confidence in the judiciary, and then, three paragraphs later, the Venice Commission details nine recommendations to the Romanian authorities. The Venice Commission does not say that the judiciary should not be reformed, it says that there are nine particular aspects that are a reason of concern, so they want to, and again, I quote, they want "the Romanian authorities to reconsider the system for the appointment or dismissal of high-ranking prosecutors", they want the authorities to remove, or better, to find the provisions, enabling the superior prosecutors to invalidate prosecutor's solution for groundlessness, to remove the proposed restriction on judges and prosecutors' freedom of expression, to supplement the provision on magistrates material liability, to reconsider the proposed establishment of a separate prosecutor's office structure for the investigation of offenses committed by prosecutors and judges, to reexamine the grounds for verification of CSM members. to remove the possibility to revoke elected members of the CSM, through the no-confidence vote of the general meetings, to identify solutions, enabling more effective participation of the CSM members, to abandon the proposed early retirement scheme. These are not superficial matters. They go to the very core of what we mean when we use the term "judicial independence", the Co-Chair of the Green Group of the EP said.Reinhard Butikofer considers that corruption is one of the system's most lethal vices.
Minister of National Defence Mihai Fifor discussed on Monday in Bucharest with chief executive of the European Development Agency (EDA) Jorge Domecq the European defence industrial development program and the European Defence Fund, the Ministry of National Defence (MApN) said in a release.

The meeting of DefMin Fifor and the EDA chief took place in the context of preparations for Romania's taking over and exercising the Presidency of the Council of the European Union.

"We particularly appreciate your presence in Romania today, in a period that is so important to us, as we prepare to take over the Presidency of the EU Council. This role generates additional responsibilities for our country, but also provides opportunities to promote at European level concrete priorities in EDA's fields of action," said the Romanian Minister of Defence.The agenda of talks also included military mobility, NATO-EU relations, and Romania's priorities during its term at the helm of the Council of the EU in the field of common security and defence policy, as well as the activities to be organized in cooperation with EDA in this context.The two officials also exchanged views on the outcomes of the meeting last week in Brussels of the EU defence ministers and on the main subjects of interest: permanent structured cooperation, the coordinated annual review on defence, the military capability development plan, defence research, and the Commission's efforts to financially support capability development processes.
Social Democratic Party (PSD)'s chairman Liviu Dragnea's request concerning the recall of the Romanian Ambassador to the United States, George Maior, is outside any diplomacy rules, former Minister of Foreign Affairs Cristian Diaconescu told on Monday RFI radio station.

"PSD Chairman Liviu Dragnea's request (...) is outside any diplomacy rules and creates a very, very, dangerous precedent. Let us not forget that this concerns a candidate that had the host country's approval and from this point of view it is incomprehensible for someone who practices a more or less civilised diplomacy. The question "why" arises, not because of the breach of some rules in the representation work in the respective state, at some point such a modification can occur. So, Romanian diplomats, unlike the ones from the rest of the world, must know that they are dependent on the party meetings and less dependent on their diplomatic work?," Cristian Diaconescu said.

According to him, the procedure for assigning an ambassador, and, implicitly, that of revocation, has absolutely nothing in common with the political speech and the political decision and nor should such things even happen."This would mean that our ambassadors must know that their mission starts and ends when the political decides, as if they represent political parties abroad, and not Romania, which is a crude abnormality. If diplomats report to political parties, as of that moment one cannot talk about even remotely coherent international relations," Diaconescu argued.Asked if, in his opinion, the Romanian ambassador exceeded his duties by commenting the letter that Rudolf Giuliani sent to the Bucharest authorities, Diaconescu showed that such evaluations are carried out only by the Foreign Ministry.PSD Chairman Liviu Dragnea announced that the Prime Minister was requested on Saturday, at the meeting of the PSD parliamentary groups, in Neptun, that the procedures for recalling the Romanian ambassador to the US, George Maior be kicked off.
Minister of Justice Tudorel Toader and Ambassador of the State of Qatar to Romania Abdulla Nasser A. Alhemaidi discussed on Monday the stage of the two countries' cooperation on justice, the Ministry said in a release.

According to the cited source, Minister Tudorel Toader and Secretary of State Marieta Safta met Ambassador Abdulla Nasser A. Alhemaidi at the premises of the Ministry.

"During the meeting the sides approached aspects related to the stage of Romania - Qatar cooperation in the field of justice, and the strengthening of bilateral relations," the release said.In this context, the Minister of Justice highlighted the importance of the Agreement on judicial cooperation between the Romanian and the Qatari Ministries of Justice, signed in Bucharest on October 21, 2015, and voiced his high appreciation for the availability of both parties to continue steps towards its implementation.
Pro Romania MPs will not vote on a new proposal for the offshore law, party leader Victor Ponta said on Monday.

"As far as the offshore law is concerned, we will not vote on any new proposal. It is a subject we have been working on since 2013 and Romania could stand to gain very much from here in terms of investments, of revenues to the state budget. Yet the subject of energy independence was hijacked for personal interests, for Dragnea to get himself a picture with Trump, or in hopes that Trump could help Dragnea and Valcov get away without serving jail time, but as you can see Trump is unable to help his own aides out of trouble, I strongly doubt it that he is looking to help Dragnea and Valcov to not land in jail. It is very clear that in the current formula Romania won't have investments in the next period and again it's very obvious that when we will need gas we'll import it from Russia. I don't know if Dragnea and Valcov are intently playing into Russia's hands, probably not, but we will not vote on any proposals made by Liviu Dragnea to the offshore law," Ponta told a press conference.

In another thread, speaking about the new pension law, Ponta said lawmakers of his formation are backing the adoption of a regulation to increase pensions, but which should come into force next year, not in 2021."If the necessary money is in place, as the Minister of Finance and the Labor Minister assure us, then we will put forth an amendment to the pension law so that all the raises come into effect on January 1, 2019. If money is short, there is no point in adopting the pension law and lie to the people that it will come into force in 2021. If the money isn't there in 2019, it won't be in 2020 either. My duty is to tell the people the truth," Victor Ponta added.The offshore bill that cleared Parliament at the end of the previous session was sent back to Parliament for review by President Klaus Iohannis.
A number of 770 criminal complaints had been filed by Monday, Sept. 3, with the Military Prosecutor's Office by people who had to suffer from the intervention of law enforcement during the August 10 anti-government protest.

As part of activities carried out by September 3 in connection with the investigation of the violent incidents occurred during the rally in the Bucharest Victoriei Square, the Military Prosecutor's Office has so far received 770 criminal complaints, the Prosecutor's Office said in a Facebook post.


GPTV Update

Melbourne, Sep 3, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Australian Securities Exchange and Frankfurt Stock Exchange cross listed iSignthis Ltd ( ASX:ISX ) ( FRA:TA8 ) (the "Company"), is pleased to announce that it has contracted a major merchant in the MCC 6211 category (equities/brokers/market makers/FX/CFD), in Australia.The Company's contracted merchants for Australian acquiring include XM.com, IC Markets, EuropeFX, ForexFS, DVMarkets, GMTMarkets, Tradedirect365 and others, some of which are already transacting and contributing to revenue.The new merchant has a GPTV (Gross Processed Turnover Volume) of over AU$200m, and was most recently a NAB customer. It is anticipated that the merchant will come onstream and contribute to revenues within four to six (4-6) weeks. The aggregate contracted GPTV based upon the Company's due diligence review of historic merchant account statements, is now expected to be in excess of AU$880m across the EU and Australia, including JCB contribution.The Company has been throttling back transaction flow to below its contracted GPTV merchant maximums, due to changes arising from Apple's policy of protecting user privacy and ensuring compliance with the EU's new privacy regulations known as the GDPR, and the previously reported third party functional and/or throughput limitations. Apple's decision to restrict third party cookies to enhance privacy affected devices globally using its Safari browser, and was announced with minimal notice by Apple. The iSignthis solution is now based on a 'cookie-less' approach that allows for our embedded iFrame payment solution to work within payment applications, as well as within all types of recent mainstream browsers.ISXPay(R) throughput on Safari browsers is now restored in Australia and the EU as a result of resolving issues associated with Apple's blocking of third party cookies and cross site tracking on iOS and MacOS devices, and the Company is now ramping up transactional volumes and revenue flows.Further increased throughput is anticipated as partners complete upgrades to their systems over the next few weeks, and the Company's own Tier 1 connections come onstream per the timetable announced last week.About iSignthis Ltd

iSignthis Ltd (ASX:ISX) (FRA:TA8) is a hybrid monetary financial institution and also a RegTech leader in remote identity verification, payment authentication with deposit taking, transactional banking and payment processing capability. iSignthis provides an end-to-end on-boarding service for merchants, with a unified payment, electronic money and identity service via our Paydentity(TM) and ISXPay(R) solutions.

By converging payments and identity, iSignthis delivers regulatory compliance to an enhanced customer due diligence standard, offering global reach to any of the world's 4.2Bn 'bank verified' card or account holders, that can be remotely on-boarded to meet the Customer Due Diligence requirements of AML regulated merchants in as little as 3 to 5 minutes. Paydentity(TM) has now onboarded and verified more than 1.5m persons to an AML KYC standard.

iSignthis Paydentity(TM) service is the trusted back office solution for regulated entities, allowing merchants to stay ahead of the regulatory curve, and focus on growing their core business. iSignthis' subsidiary, iSignthis eMoney Ltd, trades as ISXPay(R), and is an EEA authorised eMoney Monetary Financial Institution, offering card acquiring in the EEA, and Australia.

ISXPay(R) is a principal member of Mastercard Inc, Diners, Discover, (China) Union Pay International and JCB International, an American Express aggregator, and provides merchants with access to payments via alternative methods including SEPA, Poli Payments, Sofort, PRZ24 and others.

Probanx Solutions Ltd, a wholly owned subsidiary of iSignthis Ltd, provides API based access to CORE Banking solutions, SEPA Core, SEPA Instant and SEPA business scheme, for neobanks, banks, credit unions and emoney institutions, and provides a bridge to the Eurosystem's Central Bank of Lithuania's CENTROLink service.
Washington is upping the ante in Ukraine. Kurt Volker, US Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations, said in an interview with the Guardian published on September 1 that Washington is ready to expand arms supplies to Ukraine in order to build up the countrys naval and air defense forces in the face of continuing Russian support for eastern separatists. According to him, the Trump administration was absolutely prepared to go further in supplying lethal weaponry to Ukrainian forces than the anti-tank missiles it delivered in April. They need lethal assistance, he emphasized. Mr. Volker explained that [t]hey need to rebuild a navy and they have very limited air capability as well. I think well have to look at air defense. The diplomat believes Ukraine needs unmanned aerial vehicles, counter-battery radar systems, and anti-sniper systems. The issue of lethal arms purchases has been discussed at the highest level.

The National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2019 allocated $250m in military assistance to Ukraine, including lethal arms. The US has delivered Javelin anti-tank missile systems to Kiev but this time the ambassador talked about an incomparably larger deal. Former President Barack Obama had been unconvinced that granting Ukraine lethal defensive weapons would be the right decision, in view of the widespread corruption there. This policy has changed under President Trump, who  among other things  approved deliveries of anti-tank missiles to Kiev last December.

Ukraine has officially requested US air-defense systems. According to Valeriy Chaly, Ukraines ambassador to the United States, the Ukrainian military wants to purchase at least three air-defense systems. The cost of the deal is expected to exceed $2 billion, or about $750 million apiece. The system in question was not specified, but its generally believed to be the Patriot.

Volkers statement was made at a time of rising tensions in the Sea of Azov, which is legally shared by Ukraine and Russia. It is connected to the Black Sea through the Kerch Strait. The rhetoric has heated up and ships have been placed under arrest as this territorial dispute turns the area into a flashpoint. Russia has slammed the US for backing Ukraines violations of international law in the area. According to a 2003 treaty, the Sea of Azov is a jointly controlled territory that both countries are allowed to use freely.

The US military already runs a maritime operations center located within Ukraines Ochakov naval base. The facility is an operational-level warfare command-and-control organization that is designed to deliver flexible maritime support throughout the full range of military operations. Hundreds of US and Canadian military instructors are training Ukrainian personnel at the Yavorov firing range.

NATO has granted Ukraine the status of an aspirant country  a step that is openly provocative toward Russia. Macedonia, Georgia, and Bosnia-Herzegovina are also aspirant nations. Last year, Ukraines parliament adopted a resolution recognizing full membership in NATO as a foreign policy goal. In 2008, NATO agreed that Ukraine along with Georgia should become a full-fledged member. In March, Ukraine, Moldova, and Georgia announced the formation of an alliance to oppose Russia.

The US is to render substantial military assistance to a country with an economy in the doldrums, reforms that have foundered, a democracy that is in question, and corruption that is widespread. It will be no surprise if those weapons fall into the wrong hands and are used against the US military somewhere outside of Europe. lIt was the US State Department itself that issued a report this year slamming Ukraines human-rights record. The UN human-rights commissioner tells the same story. So do human-rights monitors all over the world.

By supplying the weapons that Special Representative Volker talked about in his interview, the US will become an accomplice to a conflict that has nothing to do with its national security or interests. The situation in the Donbas is being used by Kiev to distract public attention from the countrys worsening domestic problems. But to Washington Ukraines government is the apple of its eye, a bastard but its our bastard that is ready to do what its told.

The move is provocative and it may have consequences. For instance, Russia could supply the self-proclaimed republics in eastern Ukraine with up-to-date weapons systems in quantities sufficient to deter any military action on the part of Kiev. Once the Minsk accords are no longer functional and cannot command obediance, Moscow could recognize those republics as independent states that are eligible for military cooperation agreements, which would include stationing military bases on their soil. If their governments invited the Russian armed forces to be deployed inside their borders, it would be quite natural to agree to those requests. No international law would be breached. In a nutshell, if the US crosses that red line, Russia will act accordingly. Nobody seems to want a war raging in Ukraine, but thats what the US weapons supplies would promote, egging the Ukrainian government on to seek a military solution. And what if it loses? Washington would be to blame for such a scenario. By the way, is it a coincidence that Mr. Volkers interview appeared just as Alexander Zakharchenko, the leader of the Donetsk self-proclaimed republic, was assassinated? Just asking.
On August 28 the commentator Paul Krugman observed in the New York Times that What Freedom House calls illiberalism is on the rise across Eastern Europe. This includes Poland and Hungary, both still members of the European Union, in which democracy as we normally understand it is already dead. He pointed out that in Poland the ruling Law and Justice party has established a regime that maintains the forms of popular elections, but has destroyed the independence of the judiciary, suppressed freedom of the press, institutionalized large-scale corruption and effectively delegitimized dissent. The result seems likely to be one-party rule for the foreseeable future.

He is almost a lone voice in the Western wildness of feverish anti-Russia propaganda, where there is little reporting of anything even remotely critical of Poland, that pillar of the US-NATO military alliance.

Mr Krugmans main thrust is despair about his own country because he considers it to be suffering from the same disease as Poland, which is causing Trumps Republican Party to be ready, even eager, to become an American version of Law and Justice or Fidesz [the bigoted and racist Hungarian party], exploiting its current political power to lock in permanent rule.

It is doubtful if Mr Krugman noticed a report about Poland that appeared in Defense News the day before his column was published. It was headlined Amid Russian military buildup, Poland reacts and written by a Warsaw-based journalist called Jaroslaw Adamowski, about whom very little is known, which is intriguing, because journalists like to be known, for personal commercial reasons, if no other.

Mr Adamowski began by recounting that As Russia continues to bolster its military capacities along its western borders, neighbouring NATO member states such as Poland are responding to the rising security concerns by adapting and expanding their capabilities. Warsaw is intensifying efforts to strengthen the Polish militarys air defence capacities, secure a permanent presence of US troops on the countrys soil and establish a new division of the operational forces in Polands east.

Adamowski mentions that Moscow claims its military buildup comes in response to Western actions but there is no reference  there very rarely is  to the fact that after the Cold War ended, the US-NATO military alliance expanded from 13 member states to 29, all round Russias borders, without there being even the slightest indication that Russia was contemplating any military action, anywhere. As noted by Stephen Cohen (professor emeritus of Russian studies and politics at New York and Princeton Universities), throughout the [NATO expansion] process, Russia has been repeatedly denounced for seeking any sphere of security, even on its own borders.

And by nobody has Russia been more forcefully vilified and condemned than by the Polish government, the regime which, as Human Rights Watch reports, continues to undermine the rule of law and human rights protection and introduce new laws that curb free expression and assembly. Amnesty International states that harassment of protestors and excessive use of force by the police during demonstrations is the hard-hitting reality in Poland today but almost nothing appears in the Western media about gross violations of human rights in Poland. The place is too valuable as an anti-Russia ally  and an eager purchaser of expensive military equipment.

So it may be no coincidence that few figures in the west have been more supportive and effusive about the Warsaw regime than President Trump who declared a year ago that the US and Poland have reiterated our enduring bond. Weve never been closer to Poland, I think, than we are right now and he continues to be enthusiastic about the country and its government, although his declaration that in the Polish people we see the soul of Europe is not exactly the stance of the European Commission, which although trying hard to keep Poland in the EU, is not prepared to accept a situation in which it states that Polands ruling PIS party can systematically politically interfere with the composition, powers, the administration and the functioning of judicial authorities.

But Washington is happy to do so.

On August 28 the White House announced that Polish President Andrzej Duda will visit the US in September to address ways to strengthen the United States-Poland strategic partnership and plan to discuss topics of mutual interest, including trade, military, and security matters.

It will indeed be a meeting of minds when Trump and Duda embrace on the White House lawn, and no doubt the way will be paved for even more purchases by Poland of expensive military equipment on the lines of the deal to buy US Patriot missiles at the staggering cost of 10 billion dollars, which President Duda called historic.

The Patriot deal might not be truly historic, but it was certainly lucrative, because in March 2018, when the decision was announced, the value of stock in Raytheon, the maker of the Patriot system, went up from $211.36 to $215.82, so someone made a nice profit.

Other recent military purchases by Poland from energetic US arms companies have included $250 million for AIM-120C-7 Air-to-Air Missiles, another $250 million for an Artillery Rocket System, a comparatively modest $200 million for F-16 fighter upgrades, and the same amount for Air-to-Surface Standoff Missiles. As noted by Voice of America, With NATOs Defense Buildup, US Weapons Makers Could Benefit Last year, according to the Security Assistance Monitor, which tracks arms sales trends, five NATO countries  Poland, Canada, Romania, Britain and Greece  were among the 20 largest US arms buyers.

And Poland isnt going to stop spending on weapons. As announced by Pawel Soloch, the head of Poland's National Security Bureau, We want to accelerate the pace of buying equipment and armaments and then in May 2018, no doubt in the interests of democracy and human rights, the Polish government decided to offer the US financial support for the deployment of a permanent US armoured division in Poland at a cost in the range of $1.5 billion to $2 billion. This would complement the recent deployment to Poland of US Air Force Reaper attack drones which are armed with precision-guided bombs and missiles and, as announced by the US Air Force, are intended to promote stability and security within the region and to strengthen relationships with NATO allies and other European partners.

The skys no limit, apparently  but it is difficult to determine how stability and security in Europe are going to be improved by stationing dozens of US Air Force missile-firing drones in Poland. Who is their target?

Little wonder President Duda is going to be so warmly welcomed in the White House, after which happy jamboree his country, that miserable caricature of democracy, will go from strength to strength, and the West will continue to embrace Warsaws hatred of Russia, while ignoring the wise caution of such as Professor Laurent Pech of the UKs Middlesex University, who summed up the appalling situation by saying that Poland is no longer a state governed by the rule of law.

But it has Patriots and Reapers.
While chatting with Harley Couper about a Royal Enfield Classic 350 motorcycle hed owned before purchasing his current Triumph Bonnerville, he told me hed lost family and a friend to mental illness. To be more specific, suicide.

My best mate Russel Manuel, when he was 14, my uncle Ross when I was 16, and my brother Matthew 10 years ago, says Harley.

Harley works in the research collections section at Tauranga Library. He grew up in Hamilton, wrote educational material for a training establishment, and spent 10 years overseas, returning to NZ in 2009.

As his revelation sunk in, I couldnt help but ask how he dealt with it.

How does anyone deal with it? he replied.

Shock, horror, grief.

I was adopted. My adopted mum died when I was 21, and in my late 20s I met my birth family.

My birth mum had three kids. They grew up in Edgecumbe and Whakatane and I grew up in Hamilton. My younger brother Matthew, who was about seven years younger than me was just starting to have some mental health problems.

About 10 years later he suicide-d.

I never really got to know him that well.

I remember at his funeral thinking, people here are grieving the loss of somebody and Im grieving the relationship I could have had with this guy, which I never got to have.

Remembering loved ones lost to suicide is commemorated each year in Tauranga with a memorial service, held to coincide with World Suicide Prevention Day. This year its being held at 10.30am on Sunday, September 9 at Daniels in the Park and the theme is working together to prevent suicide. The service is for family and friends to come in to a space with others who get it, to remember and acknowledge their loved ones who have been lost to suicide, says Janet Baird from Grief Support Services.

We plan to have tea light candles lit around the candle we use in our group meetings for people bereaved by suicide.

The service will be officiated by Mike Savage, with the Mauao Community Choir singing.

Suicides something that has to change in our culture, says Harley. Guys are happy to break a leg or bust an Achilles, but we fail to remember that most of us are going to go through a chapter in our lives where our mental health isnt great.

Twice in Harleys life hes been called by wives of friends who have said I just need you to be here with my husband. Hes not great.

Its just what we ought to do. I reckon women do it better  they talk to each other more about whats going on. Its a healthy trajectory for New Zealand men and women to talk about their mental health and support each other.

People need to feel like they belong to a group.

We need to help people recognise that theyre needed and valued.

Co-ordinated by Grief Support Services with the support of Legacy Funerals and TECT, the memorial service on September 9 is open to all.
Carpentry apprentice Sam Pulis has been named the Bay of Plenty Central Plateau Registered Master Builders CARTERS 2018 Apprentice of the Year.

The 23-year-old from Tauranga trained through the Building and Construction Industry Training Organisation and is employed by Gudsell Designer Homes Ltd.

Sam impressed the judges with the skills he had learned from his apprenticeship.

This year, apprentices put their skills to the test in the first ever regional practical challenge. Apprentices were judged on their initial entry submission, with the top 10 in each region progressing to an interview with the judging panel and an onsite visit where contestants discussed their project.

Judges says Sam has a high level of industry knowledge and skill at this stage of his career.

Sam entered the competition in 2017, and in the past year he has set goals to gain knowledge and experience to take out the win in 2018. He has taken his building knowledge and project leadership abilities to another level.

Sams determination to succeed in everything he does is clear and evident. Knowledge, ability and drive has set him up for a bright future.

Sam was awarded a range of fantastic products and tools, $2,000 to spend at CARTERS, and a spot at an Outward Bound Course.

Second place in the regional competition was awarded to 22-year-old Cameron Diack from Tauranga, who is employed by Jones Builders Ltd.

Third place was awarded to 19-year-old Joshua Hill from Tauranga, who is employed by Federation Homes.

The results were announced at an awards evening on Friday August 31, at Tauranga Yacht & Powerboat Club

Registered Master Builders Chief Executive David Kelly says that Apprentice of the Year showcases the attractiveness of a career in the trades.

Apprenticeships offer the chance to earn as you learn and be a part of an industry with strong job prospects and opportunities for growth. With the construction skills shortage currently facing the building and construction industry, the value of an apprenticeship has never been higher, he says.

We applaud the commitment and determination from all the apprentices and look forward to seeing their skills at the national competition in November as they make their mark on the industry.

Supporting the competition for the 14th year running is principal sponsor CARTERS. CARTERS Chief Executive Mike Guy says that CARTERS is honoured to have been a part of launching the careers of talented apprentices for over a decade.

Apprentice of the Year reflects CARTERS ongoing dedication to supporting New Zealands apprentices through investing in training and mentoring. New Zealands construction sector is booming and attracting young talent to our industry is vital to on-going success, he says.

We congratulate Sam on his success in the regional competition and look forward to seeing all the finalists taking part in the national competition in November.

Sam will now compete against the winners from the other nine regions at the National competition in Auckland this November.

Each finalist will undergo a 45-minute interview with the national judging panel. They will then compete in a practical carpentry challenge, the product of which will be donated to a local charity.

The practical challenge is held on 9 November at the ASB Showgrounds and will be open to the public. The competition is taking place alongside the Auckland Build Expo, which will bring together industry professionals and leaders from across the construction sector.

The winner of the Registered Master Builders CARTERS 2018 Apprentice of the Year will be announced at an awards dinner on 9 November.

Apprentices, employers and young people aspiring to be a part of the construction industry are encouraged to join the Facebook page at www.facebook.com/registeredmasterbuilders
Western Bay of Plenty District Council staff took part in an expedition to relocate kokako to Otanewainuku Forest in Oropi early this month.

Councils Community Relations Advisor Glenn Ayo was one of the Otanewainuku Kiwi Trust (OKT) volunteers who captured 10 kokako from the Kaharoa Ecological area and set them free in Otanewainuku during the second week of August.

Kokako are an endangered native bird and these 10 join 29 others now calling Otanewainuku home following relocation from Kaharoa and Rotoehu forests since the programme began in 2010.

The reintroduction of kokako to Otanewainuku is a partnership project between OKT and the Department of Conservations Kokako Specialist Group. It has been funded through the Department of Conservations Community Conservation Partnerships Fund.

Council has a strong relationship with the Trust and last year provided $20,000 to help fund transmitter and monitoring equipment. Glenn Ayo has been part of previous relocation expeditions.

Kaharoa and Rotoehu forests kokako populations have similar genetics to the original Otanewainuku population, which helps the relocated population to thrive in Otanewainuku.

The first kokako translocations to Otanewainuku in 2010 and 2011 released 19 birds. This began the programme to establish a self-sustaining kokako population and to ensure successful breeding. It was done in conjunction with an intensive predator control programme in Otanewainuku  also run by the Trust.

Glenn says the success of the relocation programme indicates the working relationship between the Trust, DOC, the Kaharoa Kokako Trust and Council  and the massive input from volunteers.

It is only through the different organisations working together and being committed to a common goal that this programme has achieved this level of success over the past eight years.

It is a thrill to see these birds thriving and breeding in Otanewainuku  and it has been equally as thrilling to have been part of it.

Parekura Whareaorere of Waitaha iwi who shared the experience says it was a very special moment.

What an amazing morning! The Trust has been working on the Kokako Restoration Project for nine years and I am glad to have ended the project with the final release. If the forest flourishes, the people will flourish!

The name, Otanewainuku raises our consciousness of the divine gifts within the sanctified domains of Te wao nui a Tane. This is recognised by Waitaha through whakairinga korero, supporting the protection and preservation of waahi tapu, forests and all that live within it.

The kokako belongs to the endemic New Zealand wattlebirds (Callaeidae), an ancient family of birds including the saddleback and the extinct huia. The kokako is the only member of its family still surviving on the mainland.

A survey of kokako in Otanewainuku in 2017 found 47 kokako made up of 18 pairs, six singles and five juveniles  confirming that Otanewainuku is a suitable habitat for kokako and that, with the continued support from volunteers, sponsors and DOC, has the potential to form a strategically important population.
Click the image above to watch the video

In today's forecast we are expecting a few showers, with a chance of them being heavy, but clearing in the evening. Southerlies will be developing in the afternoon.

It's a three-clothing and one-windproof layer day today with a high of 14 and an overnight low of seven degrees. Humidity is 70 per cent.

High tide is at 1.20pm and low tide is at 7.30pm (Tay Street times). There's a sea swell of 0.8m with a sea temperature of 15 degrees. Sunset tonight is at 5.52pm.

If you're going fishing the next best fish bite time is tomorrow morning, between 6.30am and 8.30am.

In NZ history on this day in 1863 the newly-built brig Delaware was wrecked soon after leaving Nelson for Napier, in what is now known as Delaware Bay. Accounts of the incident often focus on the heroism of Huria Matenga, one of five local Maori who helped the crew get ashore.

In 2010 a 7.1 earthquake rocked Canterbury. The earthquake which struck at 4.35 a.m. on a Saturday morning was felt by many people in the South Island and southern North Island. There was considerable damage in central Canterbury, especially in Christchurch, but no loss of life.

In 2010 a plane crashed soon after taking off from Fox Glacier airstrip, killing all nine people on board. The Walter Fletcher FU-24 was piloted by 33-year-old Chaminda Senadhira and carried four skydiving instructors and four skydivers who were touring the West Coast on a Kiwi Experience bus trip.

In world history on this day in 1881 the Edison electric lighting system is switched on, going into operation as a generator serving 85 paying customers. In 1893 Beatrix Potter sent a note to her governess son with the first drawing of Peter Rabbit, Cottontail and others. The Tale of Peter Rabbit was published eight years later.

In 1951 the first transcontinental television broadcast in America was carried by 94 stations. In 1972 Mark Spitz became the first Olympic competitor to win seven medals during a single Olympics Games. In 1972 The Price Is Right premiered on CBS. As of 2018, it is the longest running game show on American television. In 1998 Google was founded by Stanford University students Larry Page and Sergey Brin.

Today is the birthday of computer and cognitive scientist John McCarthy who coined the term artificial intelligence.

Born in 1927 he once said "Hardly anyone has noticed that in the Northern Hemisphere people stir their drinks counterclockwise, whereas the same people stir their drinks clockwise when visiting the Southern Hemisphere."

To get involved in some of the many activities happening around the Bay, please check out our What's on page.

Have a great day!


Issue of Securities Complete

Perth, Sep 3, 2018 AEST (ABN Newswire) - Intermin Resources Limited ( ASX:IRC ) ("Intermin" or "the Company") is pleased to advise that today it has completed the issue of 3,226,345 fully paid ordinary shares after receiving final option exercise forms and payments totalling $548,478.The new shares relate to options, exercisable at 17 cents and expiring on 31 August 2018, issued as part of a placement and share purchase plan in September 2016.A total of 4,792,179 of these options were exercised by holders adding $814,670 to the Company's cash reserves.The balance lapsed on 31 August 2018.The Company's capital structure following the exercise of the listed options is now as follows:Listed Shares: 235,388,464 Fully Paid OrdinaryUnlisted Options: 500,000 (IRCAI) Exercise Price $0.25, Expiry 31 August 2019Commenting on the option exercise, Intermin Managing Director Jon Price said:"We thank holders for their continued support which, together with cash flow from our Teal Gold Mine, places the Company in a strong financial position to deliver on its strategy of self-funding future mine developments, consolidating assets in the Western Australian Goldfields, growing our existing Resource base and continuing the search for the next new gold discovery,"An ASX Appendix 3B Application for Quotation of Additional Securities is attached (see link below) in relation to the final securities issued.To view Appendix 3B and tables, please visit:About Horizon Minerals Limited

Horizon Minerals Limited (ASX:HRZ) is a gold exploration and mining company focussed on the Kalgoorlie and Menzies areas of Western Australia which are host to some of Australia's richest gold deposits. The Company is developing a mining pipeline of projects to generate cash and self-fund aggressive exploration, mine developments and further acquisitions. The Teal gold mine has been recently completed.

Horizon is aiming to significantly grow its JORC-Compliant Mineral Resources, complete definitive feasibility studies on core high grade open cut and underground projects and build a sustainable development pipeline.

Horizon has a number of joint ventures in place across multiple commodities and regions of Australia providing exposure to Vanadium, Copper, PGE's, Gold and Nickel/Cobalt. Our quality joint venture partners are earning in to our project areas by spending over $20 million over 5 years enabling focus on the gold business while maintaining upside leverage.
SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- New York State Police are investigating a stabbing and several fights that occurred Sunday at the New York State Fair.

At about 9:30 p.m., troopers were called to restaurant row for a reported stabbing. Troopers located a Syracuse teen with a stab wound to his chest. The 17-year-old victim was taken to Upstate University Hospital and is currently in stable condition, according state police.

Troopers responded to two women fighting at about 9:53 p.m. The investigation revealed two women were involved in a physical altercation when they fell through a glass area at a food stand, state police said.

A 20-year-old woman was transported to Upstate University Hospital with cuts. She was treated and released Monday morning, state police said.

Troopers responded to multiple reports of disturbances and fights in the Chevy Court area prior to and after the 8 p.m. concert. A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie drew an estimated 40,610 fans -- a new record for concert attendance at Chevy Court, according to fair officials.

Several videos of the fights were posted on social media. (Caution: violence and offensive language) One video posted to Facebook has been viewed more than 290,000 times.

The Solvay Fire Department assisted troopers with removing 30 teens from the roof of a restroom building located in the rear of Chevy Court.



Following the concert, a large number of individuals went to the midway area. Troopers responded to the area and dispersed numerous fights.

State police also requested assistance from local and county law enforcement agencies for a large disturbance at the Byrne Dairy located near the fairgrounds at State Fair Boulevard and Bridge Street.



State police charged three people for the following:

Joseph P. Fish

Wayne G. Kimball

Yakua I. Banks

State police were assisted by several agencies including the Onondaga County Sheriff's Office, town of Geddes Police Department, AMR Ambulance, Solvay Fire Department and State Fire.
Pedestrians cross Bridge Street toward the New York State Fair Sunday afternoon shortly after a man was struck by a pickup truck along this section of the street. State police are continuing to investigate the crash.

GEDDES, N.Y. -- A New York City man was taken to a Syracuse hospital Sunday after he was struck by a pickup truck Sunday afternoon near the New York State Fairgrounds in Geddes, state police said.

Christopher L. Alesci, 28, of Ridgewood in Queens, "began to cross Bridge Street and into the path of the pickup truck," Trooper Jack Keller said in a news release.

Alesci, who was walking from the fair, suffered minor injuries, Keller said. American Medical Response (AMR) took him to Upstate University Hospital for treatment. His injuries are not life threatening.

The driver of the southbound 2006 Honda pickup truck, 40-year-old Eric A. Kwiek, of Syracuse, was not injured in the crash.

Part of Bridge Street, near Matthews Avenue, shut down briefly after the crash. Traffic was flowing a short time later. Many people could be seen crossing Bridge Street and walking along the sidewalks and bridge to get to the fair or paid parking lots nearby.

State police said they are continuing to investigate the crash.
Geddes, N.Y. - Gov. Andrew Cuomo returned to the New York State Fair today to announce an all-time attendance record: as of about 1 p.m., 1,258,000 people had entered the gates over nearly two weeks.

And thousands kept pouring through the gates this afternoon, despite the intense heat. Admission on Labor Day is $1.

The new record means that the state fair, at last, attracted more people than the Erie County Fair and is now the most-attended fair in New York.

In his brief remarks in the Empire Room, Cuomo called the fair an "unrealized asset" until the state starting pouring millions of dollars into the fairgrounds in recent years.

"You had this great fairgrounds, that had such potential," he said. "The state owned it, but did very little with it. And that's the story of Central New York....tremendous potential unrealized."

Cuomo told a story illustrating how he says the state ignored the fairgrounds for too long. "If you left a Coke can in 1899 on the fence, and came back in 2015, that Coke can would have still been there," Cuomo said.

Cuomo was joined by Onondaga County Joanie Mahoney and Syracuse Mayor Ben Walsh. The governor talked about the state's recent investments at the Onondaga County fairgrounds. He talked about improvements to the Midway, the new Exposition Center and other added attractions in recent years.

No one mentioned Acting Fair Director Troy Waffner, who oversees operations at the 13-day festival.

New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo visited the State Fair on Monday afternoon to announce that the fair had broken the all-time attendance record again. (Charlie Miller | cmiller@syracuse.com) Charlie Miller

The governor also recognized the family who broke the record and awarded them a collection of gifts, including lifetime passes to the fair.

The Erie County Fair runs in early August. It's all-time attendance record is 1,220,101 and was set in 2014, according to The Buffalo News.

The New York State Fair gates close at 8:30 p.m. today and the fair shuts down at 9 p.m.
Geddes, N.Y. - As you wander down Restaurant Row today, on the last day of the New York State Fair, be sure to wish Paul Basilio a happy birthday.

He's celebrating 90 years. That makes him the oldest, longest-working concessionaire at the fair. "By a long shot," said Acting Fair Director Troy Waffner.

Yes, Paul Basilio is the former owner and maker of Basilio's Sausage, which started in Syracuse before moving to Canastota decades ago. He's brother to Carmen, the legendary boxer also from the village in Madison County.

But he's also a legend in his own right. "People come and ask for him," his wife said this morning while Basilio repeatedly offered samples of fried dough, occasionally snapped at staff for taking too long to wait on customers, and questioned the location of a condiment.

"He's a character, truly an old-school fair carnie, and I mean that in the best possible way," Waffner said. "He's a good man. He makes a good product. He follows the rules."

Well, nearly all the time. Basilio's fair routine starts in early August, when he comes to start cleaning the stand. "Every year, we find him up on the roof trying to fix something," Waffner laughed. "We tell him, 'we can fix that.'"

Basilio first opened the Basilio's Sausage stand back in 1958. A friend, Jean Basilio said, first broached the idea in the 1950s. "That turned into a yes, and we've been here ever since," she said this morning.

Basilio's is the second-longest-running food vendor at the fair. Only Baker's Chicken Coop is older. It's possible that Paul Basilio - who also made sausage in Syracuse, then Canastota - sold the first sausage sandwich at the fair. "It was about 85 cents," his wife said.

In the early years, that end of the fairgrounds was fairly empty, Jean Basilio said. Paul would park a motorhome nearby and sneak naps during the day.

Today, that end of the fair is bustling. "That new building is a blessing," Jean Basilio said this morning of the state's new $63 million Exposition Center. So are the sheep farmers, who tend and show their animals nearby and have become longtime customers at the stand.

Gary DiGeorge has worked for the Basilio's for 45 years. "I grew up with them," he said today. "They're my neighbors. And he's never yelled at me," DiGeorge said, smiling. "I always did my job."

These days, the Basilios's daughter, Valerie, runs the stand. But Paul and Jean come to the fair each morning, to eat breakfast and see friends. They stay until about 3:30 p.m., when a friend comes by with a cart to help them back to their ride home.

Basilio has lost much of his hearing, and recently his dog ate a hearing aid, for the third time. His wife thinks the hearing loss is from working too close and too long near machines while making sausage. Basilio sold the company to two nephews; sausage is still made under the Basilio Buda brand-name.

Still, he greets people as if he can hear every word. This morning, a friend of five decades stopped by to say hello. Another, who remembered seeing Carmen Basilio fight, shook Paul's hand. "I could see he was talking, but I didn't hear one thing he said," Paul Basilio said.

That doesn't stop him from talking and flirting with regulars and newcomers, sometimes wearing a poofy white chef's hat. Jean Basilio says that's how he's always been, more of the social center of the stand than the cook in the back.

For the past 62 years, Basilio's birthday has fallen during the fair. Today, like in year's past, there will be cake.

But first, Basilio, a fair pro, has a plan. "I'm going to go take a nap," he said.
Times are changing in Upstate New York as summer comes to a close and a new school year begins this week. The weather, however, is not yet ready to change.

Heat advisories are in place for much of Upstate New York for Labor Day with another round of heat advisories likely to come on Wednesday. The weather will not start to feel more like September until the very end of the week.

High pressure over the Mid-Atlantic has been slowly pushing heat and humidity back towards Upstate New York all weekend. The muggy airmass will intensify further Monday as temperatures push 90 degrees and heat index values soar through the 90s.

The hottest areas will include the Finger Lakes and Capital Region, where temperatures are most likely to reach or exceed 90 degrees. Even with highs in the upper 80s, heat index values in Western New York, Central New York, and the North Country will be above 95 degrees thanks to the very humid air.

Only the Catskills and Adirondacks, along with some of the higher elevations of the western Southern Tier, will escape serious heat on Monday. These areas will have a high in the low 80s with heat index values in the mid 80s.

Showers and thunderstorms will likely develop west of I-81 this afternoon and track east into the evening. Severe weather is generally not expected, but frequent, dangerous lightning will be possible.

Tuesday will be a bit quieter and cooler with no rain expected and temperatures in the low and mid 80s across Upstate New York.

The heat will push back in for Wednesday as most kids head back to school. Temperatures and humidity levels will be very similar to Monday's heat, so expect more heat advisories to be issued.

A cold front will work through the area on Thursday with scattered showers and thunderstorms. This front should move out for a clear, dry Friday as cooler air finally moves in. Look for highs Friday to range through the low and mid 70s.

Here are the details day-by-day:

Monday, September 3

Labor Day will start off with a mix of sun and clouds and hot, muggy air. Thunderstorms will be possible this afternoon, starting mostly south of Lake Ontario and then spreading east.

Temperatures will range through the 80s with low 90s in the hottest areas. Very high dewpoints in the 70s will result in mid and upper 90s for heat indices.

Tuesday, September 4



A pleasant mix of sun and clouds is expected with little to no rain falling. If there is rain, it would be an early shower near the NY/PA state line.

Temperatures will be more tolerable with highs in the low and mid 80s. It will still be humid, though.

Wednesday, September 5

Skies will be sunny with some cumulus clouds bubbling up from the late morning through the afternoon. No rain is expected outside of perhaps a widely isolated, small shower.

It will be hot and humid once again with temperatures approaching or exceeding 90 degrees and heat index values pushing towards 100 degrees in the hottest areas.

Thursday, September 6

Showers and thunderstorms will be likely, though the timing and intensity of the rain remains a bit uncertain this far in advance.

Temperatures will partly depend on the timing of the rain. Areas that see rain early may have highs in the 70s or low 80s, while areas where the rain holds off could again approach 90 degrees.

Friday, September 7

A cool northwest wind will blow with partly cloudy skies and nothing more than a morning shower possible.

Highs will range through the 70s, but most areas will be at or below 75 degrees.

Could a snowy winter follow our hot and humid summer? The Old Farmer's Almanac thinks so.

More from NYUP Weather
iDevices is about as agnostic as it gets when it comes to working with third-party gear. The big selling point is that all its products use Wi-Fi as their wireless standard, so they dont need a hub. On top of that, iDevices integrates support for all the big voice-assistant platforms into the full product line: Alexa, Google Assistant, and Siri (via integrated HomeKit support). In other words, no matter what your smart home network looks like to start with, iDevices will fit right in.

We reviewed two of the main products from the iDevices line of in-wall products, its Dimmer Switch and Wall Outlet. Before digging into the details, note that while both products are available exclusively in white, neither includes a matching cover plate in the box, so youll need to acquire one of those separately (or re-use the one you have, provided its a white rocker style).

iDevices Dimmer Switch

The iDevices Dimmer Switch installs without any trouble. Designed to attach to your wiring with pigtails hardwired to the switch, you simply splice everything together with the included wire nuts and jam everything back into the receptacle. As with most smart switches, the iDevices Dimmer takes up a ton of room inside the wall, and getting everything to fit back inside can take some muscle. Of special note: The Dimmer Switch supports both single-pole and three-/four-way configurations out of the box, though you will need matching switch at the end of each circuit in the latter configuration. Youll also need to follow some additional instructions to get everything working correctly.

iDevices iDevices integrated nightlight can be fully color-tuned.

As noted above, iDevices products are configured for HomeKit, so once it comes time to set up the iDevices mobile app, you can simply scan the HomeKit code on the switch and register it with the iOS Home system. But wait, you might say, if the code is on the switch and the switch is in the wall, how do you scan it? Ah, iDevices has thought of this by including a somewhat kooky yet effective tab on the top of the switch. Pull out this tiny shard of plastic and youll find an even tinier copy of the HomeKit code printed on it. If you didnt finish setup before pushing all the wiring back into the wall (or need to reinstall it later), you can do so by simply using the tab code.

The Dimmer features a traditional rocker-style design with a familiar operation: Either click-and-release or tap-and-hold to brighten or dim, or double tap to quickly take the lights to full brightness or turn them off completely. Theres also a small LED in the center of the switch that works as a night light. The LEDs color and brightness can be changed within the iDevices app, with a full gamut of shade options available. Finally, two tiny buttons at the bottom of the device are used for resetting and configuring the system. All told, the switchs appearance is a bit busy, but the nightlight feature is particularly useful. Setup also automatically sets minimum and maximum dimming ranges, which helps to limit flicker and hum.

Christopher Null Pigtails emerging from the back of the iDevices Dimmer Switch make for easy installation, though it can be a challenge to stuff all the wires back into the junction box.

iDevices app is quite simple, and it supports HomeKit devices from other vendors all in the same interface. Switching between rooms requires a significant amount of swiping, though; streamlining the way rooms are accessed would be a helpful upgrade. Once youve swiped far enough to have the correct switch front and center, controls are intuitive. Turn the light on or off with a tap, or dim with a drag. Scheduling and scenes are also supported, and work flawlessly, if you want to get fancy.

And with a street price hovering around $65 a pop ($100 MSRP), youll probably want to get fancy if you decide to invest in this switch. That kind of price tag puts it on par with top-shelf switches like the Wemo Dimmer, which is a tough product to beat (and neither of those are as powerfulor as expensiveas the Noon Lighting System). That said, if you need exemplary out-of-the-box versatility, its not a bad investment by any stretch.

iDevices Wall Outlet

The iDevices Wall Outlet has a lot in common with the Dimmer Switch, including its built-in pigtail connectors, which make replacing an existing outlet a snap. With only three wires to connect, the Wall Outlet installs more quickly than the Dimmer Switch, though its still a challenge to jam back into the receptacle after connecting the wires.

iDevices The Wall Outlet has a nightlight, too, but this one is tiny and destined to be blocked if you plug in an AC adapter of almost any size.

Wireless setup is completed via HomeKit, and just like the Dimmer Switch, the outlet includes a flip-out tab with the HomeKit code printed on it, making setup simpler.

The iDevices Wall Outlet would pass for a standard outlet on first glance except for two small features. First, teeny-tiny physical power buttons are placed adjacent to each socket. This gives you manual control over each outletat least if you have a small enough plug attached; if your attached device has even a small wall wart at the socket, this power switch will be covered up and unusable.

Like the Dimmer Switch, the wall outlet also has a nightlight, located in the dead center of the outlet. This nightlight is tiny, barely the size of the ball point on a pen, but like the Dimmer Switch the color can be tuned and the brightness of the nightlight can be adjusted in the appor turned off altogether. Alas, like the small power switches, it is likely to be covered up by an AC adapter of even modest size.

Christopher Null The iDevices app tracks the Wall Outlet's energy consumption over time.

Setup and management of the Wall Outlet is identical to that of the Dimmer Switch; once configured with HomeKit, you can begin scheduling times when the plug is on or off, or you can add it to a HomeKit automation scene. The biggest bonus feature the Outlet brings to the table is energy reporting, which lets you know how long each socket has been active, how much power has been consumed in kWh, and how much this is likely to have cost you, based on the average cost of power for your state. If iDevices estimated rate is wrong, you can adjust it manually within the app, and you can track all this information by day, week, month, or even year.

And now for the bad news: the iDevices Wall Outlet is even more expensive than the Dimmer Switch, with a street price around $86 (MSRP is $100). With most smart outlets priced at $30 to $40, thats a gargantuan investment for a category that is largely a commodityeven if it can provide a smooth purple nightlight that satisfies your inner child.
Bias is a nasty beast. A market research class I took in graduate school focused on the identification and elimination of bias. My final paper was on an intentionally biased piece of research. It was far easier to introduce bias and then talk about the bias than it would have been to attempt to do unbiased work and defend it as unbiased.

For that reason alone, the Trump administrations recent complaints that Googles search engine is biased are almost certainly true.

The nature of the bias, however, has not been determined. It actually could be bias in favor of Trump (though the odds are against that because Google was so tight with the Obama administration and liberals in general).

The perception of bias simply may be driven by the overwhelming amount of negative ink on the administration and a revenue-focused algorithm that pushes people to that volume.

Ill share some thoughts on bias and then close with my product of the week: The Lenovo Yoga Book C930, announced at IFA last week, is one of the most innovative laptop/tablet products on the market.

Why Bias Is Bad

Bias is bad because it creates an unknown variation from the truth. A biased answer to a question is by nature not accurate. It results from taking reality through a filter that alters the perception of that reality and then produces a false conclusion based on the filter rather than the reality.

For instance, suppose someone asks me what car to buy, and I say, Dont buy a Ford, it stands for Fix Or Repair Daily and all Fords suck. What I likely did was take my personal experience, based on ownership of a number of bad Ford cars, and use it to color my view, ultimately concluding that the brand was low quality.

In reality, Fords quality is in line with other similar car makers  and often better, depending on the line. So, even if the best car for you might be a Ford, Ive excluded all Fords from consideration due to my bias. My advice would be suboptimal at best. At worst it could influence you to make a truly bad decision.

One of the most obvious places we see bias play out is in relationships. When we go into a relationship it is often with a bias toward our partner. We see the good, not the bad, which is due in part to the fact that in a new relationship people are initially on their best behavior. Its also because we downplay the bad or ignore it, focusing instead on what we want to see.

Flip to the other side. During a breakup or divorce, our perception is 180 degrees different. Now we can see only the bad and not the good. That once angelic partner has become a close and personal friend of Satan. Both perceptions likely are biased. During the good times, the partner wasnt all good, and when the relationship failed, the partner wasnt all bad.

One of the ways to ensure better relationships is to do your homework on potential partners up front, before you become invested. What were their past relationships like? What are they looking for in a new relationship? Are they honest and transparent? Can you tolerate their family? Are your most important views, values and goals aligned?

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

More typically, people are interested in whether prospective partners are hot or financially secure. Though these are factors to consider, they shouldnt override the others. Assuming that success is either a long relationship, marriage, or at least a lasting friendship, then doing the honest assessment up front should get you closer to a good match. At the very least, you waste less time on sure failures, and are more likely to avoid nasty dramas.

Google Is Biased

People create the algorithms that Google uses, which increasingly are considered AIs. Any bias those people have likely will be built into the algorithms because we dont see our own biases. We dont intentionally put filters between our brains and eyes, but they get there nonetheless, and the result is that our biased reality is our reality.

A more common expression of this is that to us, perception is reality. The Google employees who build and test the Google algorithms for accuracy naturally are biased.

From the standpoint of political bias, we should see a bias to the left in Google searches, given Googles history with the Obama administration and the fact that tech companies, including Google, generally tend to lean left.

What makes this difficult to confirm is that the news media obviously is biased against the Trump presidency. You really cant blame them, though, because Trump stands out as pounding on media as dishonest. So even if Google were unbiased, the results from Google search would look biased, because of what appears to be an overwhelming bias in the news media.

The big problem with Google, however, is likely not political bias but financial bias. We dont pay Google for our results. We arent really the customer. In Googles world  and this is the same for social media as well  we are the product. The customer is the vendor paying to find out about us, so they can sell to us more effectively.

For instance, if I want to buy tires for one of my Jaguars (yes, I have more than one) the search starts with a listing from stores with prices. Some do attempt to answer the question, but likely are biased toward the tires that provide them the best margins.

The one relatively unbiased source, the Jaguar Forum, was down mid-page and overwhelmed by the retailers. If Google were unbiased, it would rank the Jaguar Forum and sources like Consumer Reports toward the top, because, odds are good that theyd be a ton less biased than companies that are tying to sell me whatever tire they have overstocked.

Now having the best tire does have an impact on your life. It can make the difference between avoiding an accident and dying in one. I should point out that this isnt always the case, however. If you do a search on best ways to lose weight, for instance, Google does seem to put the independent sources up front, and it isnt until the second page that you suddenly seem to get overwhelmed by biased vendor links.

On politics it gets interesting. If you search on just the names Trump Clinton you are overwhelmed with negative Trump stories. To be clear, it does look like the stories out there are overwhelmingly negative except for those from Fox, which dont show up at all on the first page (at least they didnt when I tried it).

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

However, we also know that Fox is one of the most powerful news organizations in America, so its stories should have shown up on the first page. If they dont appear, then what else from the conservative side are we missing?

You can see this if you just add the word Fox to Trump and Clinton. Granted, that is obviously biased toward Fox, but you suddenly see stories that should have come up in the more generic search.

We know that conservative interests largely align with Fox while liberal positions are spread across a wider group of news suppliers. That should have pushed the Fox coverage to the top if the algorithm were based on general interest, but it didnt.

Im a conservative myself. Given that these results should have been biased toward my interests and not away from them, it appears to confirm the likelihood that Googles search engine algorithm has a goal other than meeting my personal needs and interests.

Now Im not suggesting any of these news sources are unbiased, the chart I link to above clearly shows they arent. However, we are focused on Google search and not the news services right now.

It appears that Googles bias is stronger politically than it is financially, because people dont like to look at information that disagrees with their world view. Were Google exclusively, or mostly, revenue-driven, it likely would just give me Fox results (still bias, but driven by the need for profit rather than a political agenda).

Back to Bias Being Bad

Regardless of whether the bias is financial or political, it is not in our best interests because search results lead to decisions. Ideally, we should be getting the closest thing to the truth that Google can deliver. That doesnt appear to be the case, at least when it comes to politics or car tires.

Now that would suggest the need for substantial government oversight, but how do we ensure that those doing the oversight arent swapping Googles bias for their own? A bunch of Republican moderators would result in an all Fox result, and a bunch of Democrats would favor MSNBC. Neither would be better.

That doesnt mean we dont need to prioritize fixing the problem. As we increasingly look to AIs to provide for our care and survival, its critical that we make sure those AIs have our best interests as their primary drivers. So far, as Google and Facebook showcase, we have failed to implement the proper protections and assurances.

Wrapping Up: Perhaps IBM Is the Answer

When it comes to getting ahead of this, the one company that truly stands out is IBM, which earlier this year issued a series of internal edicts: Transparency and Trust in the Cognitive Era.

Basically, they are rules to prevent IBM from developing technology that was counter to the interests of the people who used it. Before Google gets regulated, which now may be a foregone conclusion, the company likely should create a similar list and take it far more seriously than its old dont be evil motto.

We users may be Googles product, but if its focus on creating political or financial bias harms us, then it likely harms Google as well. This class of Google users includes investors, employees, and the employees of the firms that fund Google.

Put differently, Google still has to live in the world it screws up. What Im suggesting is that if avoiding regulation isnt enough of a motivator to shift to IBMs more human-centric path, then maybe staying alive might be. Just saying

There are two products that really stand out to me as the only true 2-in-1 computers in market. They are the Surface Go and the Yoga Book.

What makes them fit into this category better than others is their size and weight. Both are light enough and small enough to be considered a tablet (we know from surveys that most people will not accept a tablet that has an 11-inch or larger screen or a carry weight of much over a pound.

The first Yoga Book stood out because of its more versatile flat keyboard that could work as a digitizer, but that keyboard was too strange and limited for most.

Instead of that odd flat keyboard, the just-announced Yoga Book C930 has an ePaper display with touch capability and haptics. This allows you to not only write and draw on the keyboard but see what you drew on the keyboard as well.

Lenovo Yoga Book C930

In addition, the ePaper display makes for a better high-contrast reading platform than any LCD or OLED screen can, and ePaper uses a tiny fraction of the power an LED screen consumes.

Better with the WAN option so that you are always connected, the Yoga Book C930 really sets the bar in terms of innovation and delivers on the promise of a true 2-in-1. It is a legitimate, though small, laptop as well as a tablet you will be comfortable using as a tablet.

Another really interesting thing about the keyboard is that it can shift not only between modes but also between languages and key configurations, near instantly.

The only note of discord is that it has an Intel rather than an ARM processor, which likely would have been more appropriate for this form factor. I expect Lenovo is holding out for the Snapdragon 1000 before making that jump.

The Yoga Book C930 is arguably the most innovative notebook Ive seen in some time, and as a result, it is my product of the week.

The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of ECT News Network.
Air pollution might be more damaging than originally thought. A new study found that poor air quality causes cognitive impairment especially to the elderly.

Smoke Damages Brain Health

Xin Zhang of Beijing Normal University and Xi Chen of Yale University conducted a massive survey involving about 50,000 people who took standardized tests in 2010 and again in 2014. In order to find a link between poor air quality and a decline in cognitive tests, the researchers recorded time, date, location, and matched tests results to air quality data.

They found that pollution can affect a person's ability to think in both verbal and math tests. However, the damage is more pronounced in older men and in men who had no education beyond primary school.

According to The Economist, one of the lead researchers, Xiaobo Zhang of Peking University, have personally experienced the effects of air pollution to one's cognitive performance. When he returned to China after teaching in the United States, he found it difficult to concentrate whenever Beijing's infamous smog hang over the megacity.

The study also warned about the risks or air pollution and its effect to cognitive performance to the individual and the economy. For example, cognitive decline or impairment is one of the risk factors of dementia in older people. In addition, side effects of poor air quality might impair the ability of the elderly to make the right decisions, especially in a host of complex tasks, including planning their retirement.

The discovery was published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America.

China Hopes For Cleaner Air

Beijing has previously been the barometer for air pollution. For several years, the capital city of China is among the list of places where the air quality became a threat to the residents' well-being.

The problem peaked in 2013, when a set photo was taken showing an almost opaque smog all over the city went viral.

Since then, the government has made major efforts to maintaining clear skies and clean air a priority. Tough anti-pollution measures have been adapted, including the closure of steel processing and plastic factories in Beijing and nearby Tianjin. Building sites and roadworks were also suspended throughout the city.

China is already reaping the fruits of their efforts. The South China Morning Post reported this month that Beijing has achieved record-breaking air quality. Five out of seven lowest monthly pollution readings were recorded this year alone.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
NASA wants to equip its manned mission to Mars with a technology that can convert carbon dioxide into an energy source.

The space agency has launched the CO2 Conversion Challenge in the hopes of encouraging the public to find ways to turn carbon dioxide, which is abundant in the Red Planet, to compounds that will be useful to astronauts.

"Enabling sustained human life on another planet will require a great deal of resources and we cannot possibly bring everything we will need," said Monsi Roman, Centennial Challenges program manager. "If we can transform an existing and plentiful resource like carbon dioxide into a variety of useful products, the space  and terrestrial  applications are endless."

Glucose In Mars

The competition will focus on developing glucose, a compound made up of hydrogen, carbon, and oxygen. On Earth, glucose or soluble sugar is plentiful and inexpensive because they are produced by plants.

However, because of the harsh conditions on Mars, recreating the approach would be nearly impossible. Resources such as water, energy, and even the crew needed to tend to the creation of glucose through plants are extremely limited.

"Energy rich sugars are preferred microbial energy sources composed of carbon, hydrogen and oxygen atom," read the press release disseminated on Aug. 30. "They could be used as the feedstock for systems that can efficiently produce a variety of items. Glucose is the target sugar product in this challenge because it is the easiest to metabolize, which will optimize conversion efficiency."

The winning design could also be used on Earth in order to reduce the carbon dioxide emitted to the atmosphere every day and hopefully, reverse the effects of global warming.

Contest Details And Prizes

Entries will undergo two phases: Phase 1 is submission while Phase 2 is construction and demonstration. Those who want to be involved must submit a design with a description of their approach, including the process that will convert carbon to glucose. As many as five teams will be selected, with each getting $50,000.

Phase 2 or Demonstration Challenge would ask the selected team to build and demonstrate their design. The most promising approach will take home $750,000.

Registration is now open via the NASA CO2 Conversion Challenge website. The space agency will continue to accept submissions until Feb. 28, 2019.

Humans On Mars

In April 2017, NASA announced plans to send humans to Mars. The space agency unveiled a five-phase plan, the most detailed plan to date, to get astronauts safely to the Earth's neighboring planet.

Phase 1, set to take place from 2018 to 2025, includes the launch and testing of six SLS rockets. NASA expects to send a manned mission to Mars by 2030s.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
Circumstantial evidence points at the existence of Planet Nine, the hypothetical planet that some astronomers think lies in the outer region of the Solar System beyond Neptune.

Scientists think that the existence of this world could explain the strangle looping of the trans-Neptunian objects or TNOs at the edge of the star system. Unfortunately, no telescope has so far been able to spot this elusive world.

Invisible To Current Observatories

California Institute of Technology astronomer Michael Brown said there is a reason to believe that if the ninth planet does exist, it could be essentially invisible to existing observatories.

In 2016, Brown and colleague Konstantin Batygin predicted that Planet Nine weighs five to 20 times more than the Earth's mass and that it follows an elliptical orbit up to 1,000 times the distance between the Earth and the sun.

Planets twice as far away as Earth appear 16 times dimmer since the intensity of sunlight weakens by a factor of four going out and by another four times coming back.

This means that at an orbital distance of 600 astronomical units (AU), a body could be 160,000 dimmer than Neptune, which orbits 30 AU away from the sun. At 1,000 AU, the elusive Planet Nine would appear more than a million times weaker.

Astronomers said there is a brick wall at a distance of 1,000 AU, and this could be part of the reason why spotting the planet has proved difficult.

Brown and colleague, Carnegie Institution for Science astronomer Scott Sheppard, now spearhead the search for the planet using the Subaru telescope in Hawaii. Researchers use Subaru's wide field of view to survey potential search area.

The efforts, however, do not guarantee the discovery of the planet as it could remain hidden amid the light pollution of the Milky Way. It may also be invisible in the glare of a bright star.

Worse, the body could be in its orbit where it is beyond the 1,000-AU wall and it can take thousands of years before the planet would swing back around.

Next Generation CMB Experiment

Scientists now consider other options to detect the planet. Physicists, for instance, think that Planet Nine, which is smaller and colder than the gas giants, would shine in the millimeter part of the spectrum between the microwaves and infrared light.

University of Illinois cosmologist Gilbert Holder is optimistic that the millimeter telescopes in Antarctica and Chile would be able to detect the Planet Nine today if it happens to stray across their search field.

Holder thinks that once operational, the Next Generation CMB Experiment could pick up bodies as small as earth at an orbital distance of 1,000 AU.

"There would be nowhere for Planet Nine to hide once this thing was turned on," he said.

 2021 TECHTIMES.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.
BOISE, Idaho (AP) - Researchers have expanded a health-monitoring study of wildland firefighters after a previous study found season-long health declines and deteriorating reaction times.

Eighteen firefighters who parachute from airplanes are wearing advanced motion monitors this summer to track how they hold up.

A University of Idaho study last year with nine firefighters found they lost muscle mass and had slower reaction times as the fire season progressed.

Researchers say initial thoughts from that small sample are that firefighters might need better nutrition to stay fit and mentally sharp.

Researchers hope to conduct the study again next year with more than 100 firefighters.

Some 19,000 wildland firefighters are currently active.

Fourteen firefighters have died this year as wildfires have scorched about 3,500 square miles (9,000 square kilometers) and destroyed some 3,000 homes.

(Copyright 2018 The Associated Press)
East Baton Rouge Parish has hired a forensic engineer as it considers whether to sue Iberville Parish over its plan to erect inflatable temporary dams along Bayou Manchac, which separates the parishes.

After the 2016 flood, Iberville Parish purchased 13,000 feet of the temporary dams, and as Hurricane Harvey approached the Gulf Coast last year, the parish staged the equipment along the southern bank of Bayou Manchac. Though the equipment was not ultimately deployed, East Baton Rouge Parish authorities worried that, in a future storm, the dams could prevent water from draining and exacerbate flooding north of the bayou.

Iberville Parish President Mitch Ourso said they are keeping their eye on a system in the Gulf of Mexico that is forecast to make landfall late Tuesday night or early Wednesday as tropical storm. They have made no decision as of Sunday afternoon whether to deploy the dams, but "we're prepared if we have to," he said.

Even before this storm, East Baton Rouge has been weighing whether a court should step in. The matter could be an issue for the Legislature, too, since state and federal permitting agencies said they had no authority to mediate this type of dispute between parishes.

East Baton Rouge's lawyers have compelled Iberville to turn over documents related to the inflatable dams, also known by their brand name, Aqua Dams. Those records are currently being reviewed by a forensic engineer, parish attorney Lea Anne Batson wrote in an email to The Advocate. She said in an email the engineer would "review all of the information provided by Iberville Parish and provide us with direction regarding any possible cause of action and/or permitting issues.

The expert, Frank Willis of Alexandria, declined to comment.

The parish did not provide a copy of the paperwork received from Iberville Parish, in part because "the documentation produced is the City/Parishs work product in anticipation of litigation," assistant parish attorney Brandi Littles-Lawrence wrote.

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Ourso promised to share what they've given East Baton Rouge, but the documents were not available by press time.

Ourso has defended the use of inflatable dams. East Baton Rouge authorities have allowed so much development in the southern part of their parish that his own constituents are under constant threat of washing out because of all the water being displaced onto them, he's argued.

However, this week, Ourso was more reserved, since an East Baton Rouge resident has filed suit against Iberville and Ascension parishes for digging trenches around Spanish Lake during the 2016 flood, which the plaintiff argues contributed to flooding on his property. Ourso said his lawyer has told him to "behave" and directed questions to his lawyer.

+5 East Baton Rouge landowner wants compensation for losses from emergency flood relief steps in 2016 An East Baton Rouge Parish landowner wants Ascension and Iberville parishes to compensate him for losses he says he incurred as a result of em

Iberville Parish attorney Phil Breaux said the parish hasn't heard from East Baton Rouge for several months, and he wasn't aware of Willis contacting the parish at all. For the time being, Breaux expects Iberville to use the dams.

The lawyer also has not heard of any attempts to change state law, but he wouldn't be surprised if a legislator tries to add more specific language about how temporary dams may be used and whether some higher authority can intervene.

Representative of the state Department of Transportation and Development, the Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority, the Pontchartrain Levee District, and the Governor's Office of Homeland Security all said they had no authority over temporary dams. The Department of Natural Resources has some permitting authority in the coastal zone, and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers could potentially step in if the dams might impact wetlands, but neither of those conditions seem to apply in the Bayou Manchac case, agency representatives said.

Asked if he's been approached about changing state law, Republican state Sen. Dan Claitor, who represents southern portions of East Baton Rouge, responded "not yet."
House Speaker Taylor Barras, R-New Iberia, right, chats with Matthew Block, the governor's executive counsel, left, during a legislative recess on the House floor while awaiting legislation from the Senate which addresses the state budget deficit Monday Feb. 20, 2017, in Baton Rouge, La.
Pope Francis gives his thumb up to faithful as he arrives in St. Peter's Square at the Vatican for his weekly general audience, Wednesday, March 28, 2018. (AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino) ORG XMIT: ALT109
Advocate staff photo by ELIOT KAMENITZ--Ken Weatherup, left, and Dan Gunther pay homage to fitness guru Richard Simmons during the Southern Decadence Parade, part of the Southern Decadence Labor Day Weekend celebration, in New Orleans, La. Sunday, Aug. 31, 2014. The annual celebration has been going on since a small beginning in 1972 with exception of 2005 when Katrina hit. The event which began last Wednesday and ends Monday featured music events, parades, parties and other venues.
Yes. Covid cases have been low and the city is ready

No. It's way too soon, especially with the holiday season

Do what you want, but I'm still wearing a mask

Def keeping my plague doctor costume for 2022

Vote

View Results
(CNN) -- The midterm season kicks off Tuesday when the Senate begins hearings on Supreme Court nominee, Brett Kavanaugh. Although the hearings appear disconnected from the action on the campaign trail, they will become a pivotal moment for each party to highlight for voters what is at stake in November.

President Donald Trump's nomination of Kavanaugh brought many cheers from conservatives. Kavanaugh is one of the legal minds who comes from the movement that centers around the Federalist Society, which conservatives built in the 1980s in an effort to transform the courts. Faced with what they perceived to be the liberal dominance of law schools and justices, conservatives nurtured thick networks of intellectuals, justices, and lawyers who mentored talented conservative minds so that there would be deep bench from which presidents could make their appointments.

Unlike Robert Bork, President Ronald Reagan's failed Supreme Court nominee in 1987, Kavanaugh is more polished and less polemical, which will make it much more difficult for Democrats to paint him as a right-wing zealot. Given Republican control of the Senate and the absence of a filibuster, the odds of Democrats sidetracking the nomination are virtually nil.

Although some on the right have grumbled that he was too Washington establishment for their taste, the National Review praised this "whip-smart legal conservative" while former Bush speechwriter Michael Gerson praised him as a "man of character, decency, and intellectual depth."

A majority of Republican governors signed a letter endorsing him. Kavanaugh has even received praise from several liberals who have urged their party to move forward with the confirmation. Lisa Blatt, a self-described "liberal feminist lawyer," wrote in Politico that "Sometimes a superstar is just a superstar. That is the case with Judge Brett Kavanaugh ... The Senate should confirm him."

In the The New York Times, the distinguished Yale Law School professor Akhil Amar wrote that "it is hard to name anyone with judicial credentials as strong as those of Judge Kavanaugh," who was once his student, and told readers that he "commands wide and deep respect among scholars, lawyers, and jurists."

Although without the filibuster most Democrats understand that they are fighting a losing battle to stop the nomination, they can use the hearings as a forum to remind voters exactly what is at stake in the midterm elections. There are few issues that have provided as clear-cut evidence of what the long-term implications are of united Republican government than the courts. Putting aside the Supreme Court, President Trump and the Senate Republicans have been remarkably effective at moving forward their picks in recent months, setting in motion a massive transformation of the judiciary.

At the Supreme Court level, the appointment of Neil Gorsuch was an early and massive victory for Republicans. This pick will shift the Court decisively to the right, with possibly more vacancies to come. "He has a very nice smile, but an inch below the surface, he is a hard-right warrior," Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer said.

As Democrats are seeking to bolster turnout in November, especially in the Senate races where the odds still favor the Republicans, the hearings will be an exceptional opportunity to lay out the kinds of policies that hang in the balance if Democrats don't regain control of Congress and Republicans keep moving forward with their appointments.

Several potential Democratic presidential candidates, including Cory Booker, Kamala Harris, and Amy Klobuchar, sit on the Judiciary Committee, and will have a chance to burnish their credentials with Democrats. By asking questions about executive power, abortion rights, affirmative action, money in politics, environmental regulation, the legitimacy of unions and more, they can create a roadmap for why voting Democratic in the Senate races is so vital if one cares about these issues.

Republicans understand that the hearings present a similar opportunity for them. Although they will have to be careful since they don't want to push Kavanaugh into making specific statements he would rather avoid and they don't want to further motivate Democrats into a bigger fight, they do want Republican voters to remember why they need to come out for their party even if they don't like Trump's style very much.

If there are concerns among Republicans about the long-term implications of the President for their party, the courts are one area that dispel those fears. In The New York Times, Thomas Kaplan reported that the administration was "leaving an ever-expanding imprint on the judiciary," as Republicans had undertaken a "determined effort to nominate and confirm a steady procession of young conservative jurists."

The recent confirmation of Georgia Supreme Court Justice Britt Grant to the appeals court made Trump the president with the highest number of circuit court appointments at this juncture in the presidency since the system was created in 1981.

If Republicans are seeking ways to energize their base for the brutal slog of the next few months this is it and they will now have a televised platform to remind their voters of this promise. Even without saying much, simply by handling the hearings well and controlling the Democratic attacks, the GOP will walk away happy that they are handing their supporters the most important item on their political wish list.

While it would be wonderful if Supreme Court confirmation hearings could be insulated from the political process, that will simply not happen in the near future. The reality is that the confirmation process has become deeply political and deeply partisan.

Successful nominees have learned how to survive through the polarization rather than pretend that it will go away. The Kavanaugh hearings are no different and, since they are taking place at the start of September, they will become the opening bell for a midterm election that will be as important to the country's future as any we have experienced in recent history.
A swath of the northern Gulf coast from the Alabama-Florida border westward to Morgan City was placed under a tropical storm watch Sunday afternoon, as confidence grew that the area will see impacts from Tropical Storm Gordon on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The watch has been upgraded to a warning Monday, meaning tropical storm conditions would be expected within 36 hours.

Local officials have started preparing for the threat, with St. Charles and St. Tammany parishes announcing sandbag distribution locations Sunday.

New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said in a statement that the Sewerage & Water Board has more power available than what is needed to run the entire drainage system.

Though the National Hurricane Center warned a storm with winds of over 60 mph might be possible, forecasters said the primary threat is heavy rain, with localized flash flooding likely in areas that are harder hit.

Can't see video below? Click here.

According to Kevin Gilmore, a forecaster with the National Weather Service in Slidell, the threat is made worse because south Louisiana has received lots of rain over the last several days from an unrelated tropical wave.

The soils not going to be able to absorb as much, he said, which combined with wind from the system will lead to widespread flash flooding, the threat for coastal flooding, higher than normal tides and maybe even some storm surge issues  with a surge of around 2 feet expected.

Gilmore said typical rainfall amounts should be between 4 and 7 inches as the storm affects the area on Tuesday and Wednesday, with an actual landfall expected sometime Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane Center.

Gilmore added that all of the rain should come over those two days, though, as the storm will move out of the area fairly quickly.

In the meantime, the storm is expected to show slow, steady strengthening as it moves out of the Bahamas, past the Florida Keys and into the Gulf of Mexico on Monday, but "not anything explosive or anything like that, according to Gilmore. In any case, the storms wind intensity should not affect rainfall amounts very much.

With that in mind, Cantrell said now is the time for residents to clear leaves and debris from gutters and around catch basins and to call 311 to report catch basins in need of service.

She said the Department of Public Works is actively cleaning and unclogging catch basins and flushing drain lines in flood-prone areas, and the New Orleans Police Department and Fire Department have pre-staged barricades in some of those areas.

"This is the height of hurricane season, and the city of New Orleans is prepared," Cantrell said.

The S&WB has been holding regular meetings to prepare for the storm, and 115 out of 120 pumps in the city are available, with crews standing by to operate large pump stations, according to Cantrell.

As of Sunday, there had been no announcement of school closures Tuesday or later in the week. Schools and many businesses across the area were already scheduled to be closed Monday for the Labor Day holiday.

---------------

Sandbag distribution locations:

St. Charles Parish

East Bank Bridge Park, 13244 River Road, Destrehan

West Bank Bridge Park, 13825 River Road, Luling

La. 306 at Badeaux Lane East in Bayou Gauche

St. Tammany Parish

St. Tammany Parish Government - Building C, 21410 Koop Drive, Mandeville

St. Tammany Parish Public Works - Airport Road Barn, 34783 Grantham College Road, Slidell

St. Tammany Parish Public Works - Covington Barn, 1305 N. Florida St., Covington

St. Tammany Parish Public Works - Fritchie Barn, 3119 La. 1090, Pearl River

St. Tammany Parish Public Works Barn - Keller Barn, 63131 Fish Hatchery Road, Lacombe

Emergency alerts

Local officials encourage residents to sign up for emergency alert notifications. Those include:

Orleans Parish  NOLA Ready

Jefferson Parish  JPAlert

St. Tammany Parish  ALERT St. Tammany

St. Bernard Parish  St. Bernard Parish Emergency Alert System

Plaquemines Parish  Plaquemines Parish Notification System

St. Charles Parish  St. Charles Parish Emergency Alerts

St. John the Baptist Parish  SJBP Alerts
A tropical storm warning for areas west of the mouth of the Mississippi River, including Lake Maurepas, has been discontinued as Tropical Storm Gordon makes it way to the Mississippi Gulf Coast, the National Hurricane Center said in its 4 p.m. Tuesday update.

Gordon, a relatively compact system with most of its "convective banding" east of the center of circulation, will make landfall late Tuesday night along the Mississippi Gulf Coast as a Category 1 hurricane.

The tropical storm warning for the area west of Grand Isle was also discontinued Tuesday morning, but a tropical storm warning remains in effect from west of the mouth of the Pearl River to the mouth of the Mississippi River, including Lake Pontchartrain. A storm surge watch is still in effect for the areas west of Shell Beach to the mouth of the Mississippi River.

Gordon, with max winds at nearly 70 miles per hour, is about 90 miles south of Mobile and moving quickly toward the northwest at 15 mph, the NHC said in its 4 p.m. update.

On the forecast track, the center of Gordon will make landfall along the north-central Gulf Coast within the warning area Tuesday evening or night and move inland over the lower Mississippi Valley through Wednesday.

The storm is expected to rapidly weaken once it moves inland and then move towards the northwest.

Rainfall estimates for south Louisiana have decreased as the storm's track has come into sharper focus.

While most of the rain is on the eastern side of the system, Slidell and some areas of the north shore are expected to see high winds and heavy rains of about 4 inches or more.

On the south shore, the rain is expected to be 1-3 inches once the storms bands pass over the city Wednesday.

Can't see video below? Click here.
Former rugby league boss and maverick politician Paul Osborne is on the disqualified directors list after a failed venture with an associate connected to the company behind one of Australia's largest fraud scandals.

Mr Osborne won a premiership with the Canberra Raiders in 1994, spent six years as an independent in the ACT Legislative Assembly, and was the chief executive of the Parramatta Eels rugby league club between 2009 and 2011.

Paul Osborne, pictured in 2009. Credit:Jon Reid

In 2013 Mr Osborne became a director of the C8 Group, a logistics company run by Sydney businessman Laurie Macolino.

The same year Mr Macolino, also known as Lorenzo, signed an enforceable undertaking with Australias superannuation watchdog in relation to the $176 million collapse of Trio Capital.
The Virgin Australia board did two things last week that not only cleaned up the groups balance sheet for John Borghettis successor but may also have created a window for the much-speculated re-making of its cluttered share register.

The board wrote-off more than $760 million of assets, including $452 million of deferred tax assets, in the groups results for the year to June, overwhelming the $109.6 million of underlying pre-tax earnings and pushing Virgin to a $653.3 million statutory loss.

The board also did something that was, for Virgin, quite unusual. It provided firm guidance for the first half, saying that on both an underlying and statutory level the airline was expected to post a profit.

The write-downs and the guidance provided a signal that the appointment of a new CEO is imminent. They also, however, created a "window of an informed market that could enable a restructuring of the logjam on Virgins share register and within its boardroom.
Six people have died since more than 3000 lost their weekly workers compensation benefits over Christmas, raising questions about the harshness of a scheme that is $2 billion in surplus.

Carmel Donnelly, chief executive officer for State Insurance Regulatory Authority (SIRA), told a budget estimates committee hearing on Monday that her agency was notified of 375 injured workers who were potentially at risk of self harm over the past 12 months. There were 13 cases of actual self harm.

Of the 3448 who had lost their weekly payments since Christmas, six had died. The cause of the six deaths have not yet been confirmed. One person who died had been previously reported to police as being at risk of self harm.

NSW Minister for Finance, Services and Property Victor Dominello. Credit:Orlando Chiodo

Reports of the deaths have come as an internal government document obtained by NSW Labor reveals the state insurance regulator had anticipated that its policy may result in self harm or even death.
Britain's Royal Academy is to ensure its next exhibition of nudes has an equal gender split of naked men and women, as it navigates the post-Me Too era.

The academy, which has just had a restructuring to celebrate its 250th anniversary, will have almost exact parity between male and female nudes in an exhibition of Renaissance art next year.

The decision, confirmed by Tim Marlow, the artistic director of the academy, at its new season launch on Monday, marks the first time it has introduced a gender quota for any of its exhibitions.

The Renaissance Nude, due to open in March, will include around 85 works created between 1400 and 1530.
Richard Hammond and his family were "gassed" and robbed while staying in a holiday villa in Saint Tropez, the Grand Tour host's wife has told UK press.

Mindy Hammond said Richard, the couple's teenage daughter Willow and a group of friends woke up one morning to discover cash had been stolen from their wallets and purses, and a watch swiped from Willow's room.

"I'm pretty convinced we must have been gassed or something, because they were in all of the bedrooms  they went where they wanted, into each room, opening and closing the drawers, searching through handbags, etc," she told the UK's Sunday Express.

Mrs Hammond, 53, detailed the couple's confusion surrounding the robbery. She said she had initially heard a "door downstairs shut" on the night but believed it was one of the other couples staying up.
Her use of the language of dance alone, or as an adjunct to speech, is the most interesting and original aspect of the work.

As its title  plenty serious TALK TALK  suggests, the piece is as much about the spoken word as movement, propelling Van Hout through an hour of sketches that are both personal and more generally applicable.

Vicki Van Hout is a bold personality on Sydney's dance scene, and this is reflected in her solo show.

The opening sequence is outstanding, combining classical ballet and Indigenous styles of dance in a mad mash-up of movement elevated by her very funny descriptions of what she is doing. I would have been happy to see it again, immediately, it's so good.

Its content also sets out Van Hout's background, with its important Indigenous inheritance, as well as her wry humour that shapes and points up whatever she creates.

She obviously likes playing with words, but her primarily vocal sketches do not work as well, ranging from banal to pretentiously self-conscious. Though I must report that some in the audience found them hilarious, and I certainly enjoyed the occasional gem.

As she moves through a range of characters and situations via small, no-nonsense costume changes, she takes us through a scary hospital experience and a violent beating.

While I didn't hear the culprits named, the circling red light on the backdrop told us: this was a police beating.
CHICO, Calif. - Hundreds of people spent their Saturday night enjoying the best work of Chico's "creatives" at the Butcher Shop, an annual free arts festival that takes place in an orchard on the south side of town. The plays, music, dance and food will all be presented again on Sept. 2.

The event attracts performers from Chico and who used to live and do theater or other artwork in the community. Participants come from as far away as New York, to return to a place they lived and loved - and to work with other artists for appreciative audiences.

The group works online to determine a theme. This year it is "Mysterious Inheritance." Plays and songs were written to incorporate the theme.

This year's plays were written by Elizabeth Ober, Johnny Lancaster, Forrest Gillespie and Jesse Karch. The songs were written by Erin Lizardo, Matt Houghton, Jason Wilmon and Sarah Pape, Scout, Donald Beaman, Webster Moore, and others. Some of the songs had elaborate dance presentations and murals that enhanced the presentations.

The Butcher Shop started in Denver Latimer's Chico backyard, and now is presented annually on Labor Day weekend at the orchard at 2500 Estes Road, which can be found at the south end of Normal Street.

It is produced by the non-profit organization called Slow Theater. They are active in providing acting experiences for youth in Butte County's Juvenile Hall.

Event producer Denver Latimer is inviting Action News Now viewers to come on down to the orchard on Sunday night.The doors open at 5:30 p.m., he said. Local bands will start at 6:00 p.m. Latimer said there are six food trucks with international and locally sourced food.

"Then at 8:00 the big guns come out," Latimer said, promising an exhilarating "Chico" kind of event, that is free to the public.

Many audience members arrive on foot or on bicycle. It is free to park your bike on site, but if you want to park a car it will cost you five dollars. Some audience members pay for premium seating. Others bring their own chairs or picnic blankets.
The world must urgently regain the art of "civilised disagreement" if we are to start tackling the myriad global challenges we face.

That's the view of Simon Longstaff, director of The Ethics Centre and co-curator of The Festival of Dangerous Ideas, to be held in November.

Simon Longstaff would like to see a return to "civilised disagreement". Credit:Steven Siewert

"You can have people who are differently principled who are totally sincere in their positions opposing each other," he said. "What we aim to do with FODI though is to say, 'Come along and at least hear the point of view that you may not be naturally inclined to and understand what it is you are dealing with."

This year's festival has drawn a diverse line-up including Ayelet Waldmen, a US author who celebrates the benefits of "microdosing" LSD; Pankaj Mishra, whose latest book is Age of Anger: A History of the Present; Megan Phelps-Roper, a former member of the notorious Westboro Baptist Church; and Stephen Fry.
After the Liberal Party gnawed off its own limbs in their self-indulgent leadership brawl  and Liberal MP Julia Banks announced she would not recontest her marginal Melbourne seat claiming cultural and gender bias, bullying and intimidation from both her own party and the opposition  the government wants us all to know they are now united and ready to get back to the business of governing for ordinary Australians.

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At the same time, they seem determined to demonstrate they dont really have a clue on one of the biggest bread and butter issues for ordinary families (and especially women in those families): childcare.

Following the leadership debacle, we finally got to the bottom of the au pair scandal thats swirled around Peter Dutton since 2016. Dutton, it seems, just cant say non to an au pair stopped by a Border Force officer.

Of course, most of us cant afford to import au pairs so that little Jocasta and Tarquin get an early start with a European language from a native speaker. Instead, we have to make do with the local childcare centre. But, even here, we learn that Dutton is an unlikely champion of the Nanny State, reportedly making more than $5.6 million in Commonwealth childcare funding since 2014 from his childcare business.
Australians are drinking less alcohol than at any time since the early 1960s, as new figures show the country's gradual downturn in booze consumption has resumed.

The average Australian drank 9.39 litres of pure alcohol last year  down from 9.66 litres in 2016 and 10.76 litres a decade ago, according to the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The decrease  to the lowest level since 1962  marks a return to trend following an uptick in apparent alcohol consumption the previous year.

Beer has long been Australia's most popular drink but it is on the precipice of being beaten by wine. Credit:Shutterstock

Per capita consumption of alcohol fell in every major category, including beer, wine, spirits, cider and ready-to-drink mixers.
Two former ActewAGL contractors skimmed more than $12,000 from customer accounts to pay for a trip to Las Vegas.

However, Taylor Jade Geoghegan, 21, and Jessica Kate Anderson, 29, instead received jail sentences for the fraud.

In the ACT Magistrates Court on Monday, Geoghegan was ordered to repay the power company $6065.

Magistrate Glenn Theakston also sentenced Taylor Jade Geoghegan, 21, to eight months jail, to be fully suspended on signing a good behaviour order, and 160 hours community service.
A Canberra Comanchero arrested while trying to board an international flight will fight allegations he attempted to murder the gang's former ACT president.

Axel Sidaros, 24, allegedly had a ticket to fly to Abu Dhabi when he was arrested at Melbourne Airport last week.

Taskforce Nemesis extradited Mr Sidaros to the ACT from Victoria over the weekend, and he appeared in the ACT Magistrates Court on Monday.

ACT deputy chief police officer Scott Moller, who said said the man arrested was known to ACT Policing and investigation were ongoing. Credit:Karleen Minney.

Mr Sidaros, appearing before Chief Magistrate Lorraine Walker, entered pleas of not guilty to 13 charges, including attempted murder, arson, firearm possession, trespass, and intentionally inflicting grievous bodily harm.
It's the toughest job in the office, and the second most powerful, so all eyes are on who Prime Minister Scott Morrison picks as his principal private secretary to replace Malcolm Turnbull's political consigliere Sally Cray.

Sally Cray effectively ran Malcolm Turnbull's office when he was prime minister. Credit:Andrew Meares

Yaron Finkelstein. Credit:Daniel Munoz

And it looks almost certain to be Liberal grandee Yaron Finkelstein.

Cray ran Turnbull's office. She was a sharp operator known for her colourful threats including her suggestion she would resign her job, call Daily Telegraph editor Chris Dore, and spill the dirt on NSW Deputy Premier John Barilaro after being angered by his performance on 2GB.
Gosford Hospital has launched an investigation into the death of a 19-year-old woman who was reportedly sent home from the hospital with painkillers before being re-admitted and diagnosed with meningococcal.

Mischelle Rhodes died at the Central Coast hospital of meningococcal last week.

She had contracted the meningococcal W strain, the Central Coast Local Health District (CCLHD) confirmed on Tuesday.

Mischelle Rhodes was reportedly sent home from Gosford Hospital before being admitted and diagnosed with meningococcal. Credit:Facebook

Ms Rhodes mother said hospital staff sent her daughter home from Gosford Hospital with analgesics last Tuesday.
The Australian Catholic Churchs Truth, Justice and Healing Council has urged use of a quota mechanism to give women decision-making roles at all levels of the church after evidence gender played a role in diverse child sexual abuse rates across the country.

A "type" of quota mechanism is needed to promote women to positions of authority in parishes, dioceses and religious orders, despite women making up two-thirds of 220,000 Catholic employees in education, social services, health and aged care and within dioceses, the council found in its final report released on Friday.

It urged Australias bishops and 150 religious orders to adopt a quota mechanism after damning evidence to the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse on abuse rates in Catholic institutions, and despite noting the use of quotas can become counter-productive.

The royal commission found the Australian Catholic diocese with one of the lowest child sexual abuse rates over six decades from 1950  Adelaide, at 2.4 per cent  pioneered the appointment of lay women and nuns as episcopal vicars with authority over priests.
CORNING, Calif. - A group of Corning residents gathered Sunday at Sunset Hill Cemetery to express their concern about some items being allegedly taken from tombstones.

This all happened after a social media post circulated claiming that an unknown person is removing momentos from certain tombstones.

Tiffany Kelley has lived in Corning for years and has at least two relatives buried at the well-kept cemetery including her father, a Vietnam Veteran, who is cremated and placed on top of her brothers casket.

We just feel really disrespected by all of this, Kelley said adding that were broken hearted we feel really disrespected and its just wrong how they handled it. They couldve been more compassionate about it. These arent just random things.

Although it is unknown who removed the items from the tombstones, the group on Saturday says they found some of the items behind an office within the area. The group says angel statues, flowers and crosses were some of the items taken.

Another Corning resident who discovered her relatives items were missing was Sandy Simon, who has four relatives buried just inches away from each other.

Simon has lost her father Gene, mother Shirley, sister Joyce and her son Bobby, and she was upset about the mysterious action.

Its a big surprise and my whole family is here, this is where I come when I feel like I want to talk to them," Simon said. "And I know the things they loved and I want to bring it to them and now I have to worry, is it going to be taken?

Action News Now has made calls to the Corning Cemetery District to get a comment about the issue and who might be doing this, but have not heard back from them as of Sunday evening.

Some residents Action News Now reporter Jafet Serrato spoke to, told him they would bring up the issue with the Cemetery District.
Several commercial properties in West End could be demolished to make way for 145 units across two 12-storey towers.

Aria Property Group has submitted a development application to Brisbane City Council for a development on Jane Street, which would include residential, food and drink outlets and shop and office use.

Aria Property Group has proposed a mixed-use development for Jane Street in West End. Credit:Rothelowman

The 2835-square-metre site, opposite Davies Park, is currently occupied by three commercial buildings with three different landowners.

The 1214-square-metre lot was purchased by the landowner for more than $4.6 million in February 2018.
A 26-year-old Queensland man has been charged with murder after a man was shot dead at Deception Bay on the weekend.

Clinton Pollock, shot dead on Sunday night. Credit:Facebook

Police found 35-year-old Clinton Pollock in the front yard of his home suffering a gunshot wound to the chest about 11.30pm on Sunday.

Mr Pollock was pronounced dead at the scene a short time later.

Neighbours and Mr Pollock's sister, who was at the house at the time, rushed to his aid.
While Dr David Klingner could cure depression and anxiety with his infectious laugh and good humour, he was not a medico but an outstanding geologist and business executive. David was educated at Brisbane Grammar and the University of Queensland then, replete with a PhD from Melbourne University, he embarked on a lifelong career with CRA/Rio Tinto.

First, there were several years at Broken Hill as chief geologist. His talents became quickly evident, and he was charged with leading CRA's overseas exploration programs. This took him all over the world  Indonesia, Thailand, Mexico, Chile and other exotic places. Fluent in Bahasa, one of his outstanding achievements was the negotiation of the contract of work for the Kaltim Prima Coal Project in Kalimantan, Indonesia.

Dr G.D. (David) Klingner (1.01.1944 a 13.08.2018) obituary

At the insistence of BP, the joint venture partner, he became the first managing director and saw the construction of the project through to completion and success. His talents of leadership, business acumen and geological skills were admired throughout the company and, after a time, as head of CRA's Energy Group, he moved to London as global head of exploration for Rio Tinto. He held this position until his retirement.

David was as at home with analysts in New York or London as he was with a drill crew in Peru, Laos or Canada. He understood and valued people and knew how to acknowledge their contributions, no matter how foreign their technical skills.
Reporting staffing ratios by professional qualification for those who care directly for residents is straightforward and not complicated. Reporting in this way will allow us to draw on a vast pool of international research when making policy. Rebekha Sharkie's bill is a critical first step in achieving this.

Average direct care nursing levels are about 2.9 hours per resident day, with care by trained nurses providing only a fraction of that. This falls a long way behind what was expected in the late 1980s and early 1990s, and well below the 4.1 hour-a-day minimum recommended in the US.

"It's definitely worse now than it was 20 years ago," he said.

Dr Richard Kidd, who has provided care to residents in nursing homes since the 1990s, spoke for the Australian Medical Association during a House of Representatives inquiry on May 11.

The chief executive of Alzheimer's Australia in 2015 indicated that quality of care was one of the biggest gaping holes in aged care because we don't have "a single measure of quality" and without accurate data about care you cannot have choices.

The aged-care sector argues against fixed ratios on the basis that staffing varies with the frailty of residents. That, too, is an argument for collecting accurate data about resident frailty and care outcomes. Such data tells us whether staffing is adequate. It allows us to develop reliable guidelines for variation in frailty and then check that they are being followed when failures in care occur.

Providers and government regulators have avoided collecting and publishing outcomes data to date. This opacity and secrecy is one reason why regulation has failed citizens so often. After 21 years of opacity and years of pressure there are plans to collect some data and release it, but the lack of enthusiasm is revealed by the delays in doing so.

It took nearly four years for a complex process to develop just three indicators. It needed the assistance of a large and expensive accounting firm. To entice them, providers were promised that the results would not be published.

The lack of enthusiasm is apparent from the small number, one-tenth of homes in Australia, that participated in the voluntary pilot for the National Aged Care Quality Indicator Program. Only 18 per cent of those were for-profit, showing which group has most to fear from transparency.
Outspoken CFMMEU official John Setka has deleted a social media post that prompted Prime Minister Scott Morrison to threaten the "out of control" union with deregistration.

Mr Setka's contrition about the Twitter post  which showed his two children holding a sign telling the government's Australian Building and Construction Commission to "go get fuc#ed"  came as Opposition Leader Bill Shorten dismissed Mr Morrison's attacks on the CFMMEU as a desperate attempt to distract from the government's internal woes.

Mr Morrison said Mr Setka's post, published on Father's Day, was "the straw that breaks the camel's back" after many years of the union "demonstrating lawlessness and their thuggery, their brutality, their threats".

The Prime Minister said he and Industrial Relations Minister Kelly O'Dwyer would consider legislative and regulatory options for eliminating the militant union, which has paid more than $15 million in fines since 2005. About 80 officials from the union, previously known as the CFMEU until a recent merger with the maritime union, are facing courts on a range of charges.
Momentum is building for a royal commission into surging power prices after Deputy Prime Minister Michael McCormack backed the idea, setting up a clash with the energy sector, which decried the step as extreme.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison on Monday declared he would consider a royal commission into the energy sector, escalating the major party battle to dominate policy on electricity prices ahead of the federal election.

Prime Minister Scott Morrison said he was "open" to a royal commission in to the energy sector. Credit:James Davies

Mr Morrison told radio station 3AW that big power companies were as bad as the big banks.

"I'm open to it ... I'll look at it," Mr Morrison said of a royal commission, adding the inquiry was not needed at this point.
I am often tempted to donate my copy of ex-senator Sam Dastyari's far too discreet 2017 memoir (titled One Halal of a Story) to my local book fair. A bland account written by someone who had to leave the Senate under pressure at the start of this year because of links to donors allegedly tied to the Chinese government must surely have passed its use-by date.

And yet I have kept my copy. Every so often, something happens to show that Dastyari is still connected to powerful right-wing Labor Party figures. His memoir is still a good reference source for tracing such connections.

A good instance of what I mean is when Kaila Murnain, secretary of the NSW state branch of the ALP, some time ago told Sky News that Dastyari should "continue to play a role" in the branch's affairs. "Sam," Murnain said, "if you're watching, we do want you back."

In his memoir, Dastyari is just as gushing about Murnain. The memoir features pen portraits of a few of his notable Labor heroes, including Murnain. She is, Dastyari says, "the one to watch". If the NSW ALP, Dastyari, adds, "were the mafia, which it far too often feels like it is, tomorrow Kaila would be elected to the position of boss of the family".
Environment Minister Melissa Price faces her first big test after government documents emerged showing plans to bulldoze a huge swathe of Queensland forest risk wiping an endangered bird off the planet.

The revelations increase pressure on the newly promoted minister to reject the proposal and demonstrate her stated commitment to "preserving our country for future generations. However this would put Ms Price at odds with Queensland Coalition MPs who have lobbied for the mass land clearing to proceed.

A plan to clear about 2000 hectares at Cape York would threaten the "highly endangered" golden shouldered parrot, internal government documents show. Credit:Via Bush Heritage

The plan involves razing about 2000 hectares of pristine Queensland forest at Kingvale Station on Cape York Peninsula, to make way for crops

The area to be cleared  mostly eucalypt forest and melaleuca swamplands - is almost three times the size of the combined central business districts of Sydney and Melbourne.
NSW Treasurer Dominic Perrottet will request a briefing on the government's multimillion-dollar investment in an oyster company, as rival farmers prepare to challenge the decision on the grounds it breaches the government's own competition policy.

Mr Perrottet conceded he was not across the detail of the government's decision to buy a $3.3 million stake in the loss-making company Australia's Oyster Coast (AOC), when questioned on it in a budget estimates hearing on Monday.

However, he stated his personal view "as a small government Liberal is we should be getting out of the way as much of possible" and said treasury had an "important role" to play "in making sure there is a level playing field".

The government's investment in Australia's Oyster Coast has infuriated other players in the oyster industry. Credit:Instagram: @australiasoystercoast

The oyster farm is the second investment by a government agency, Jobs for NSW, through its new GO NSW Equity Fund. It has also purchased a $3.3 million stake in Stone Axe Pastoral, a Wagyu beef agribusiness in Ebor, in northern NSW.
Make your birthday special - by brewing a beer originally made on that date.

For a mere 25 euros, I'll create a bespoke recipe for any day of the year you like. As well as the recipe, there's a few hundred words of text describing the beer and its historical context and an image of the original brewing record.

Just click on the button below.
Woman Crushed by Log at Shasta Lake

The Shasta County Sheriff's Office is investigating the death of a 37-year-old woman at Shasta Lake on Sept. 2 after she was struck by a log rolling down a hill.

Man Arrested for Stabbing Neighbor

Chico Police have arrested Dennis Hodges, 67, after reportedly stabbing his neighbor during a dispute. Hodges has been booked into Butte County Jail under charges of assault with a deadly weapon. The victim is expected to recover.

Cal Fire Extinguishes 13-Acre Fire Near Redding

Cal Fire and Redding Firefighters contained a 13-acre brush fire near the edge of where the Carr Fire reached Redding. The fire broke out around 1 p.m. on Sept. 2, in the area of Quartz Hill Road and Terra Nova Drive. It is fully contained this morning.

Hirz Fire Update

the Hirz Fire is burning 30 miles north of Redding, is now 42,000 acres and is 46 percent contained.

California Legislature Approves PG&E Measure

The California Legislature approved a measure allowing PG&E to pay off lawsuits from last year's deadly wildfires by raising bills for customers. Opponents are calling the bill a "bail out." Lawmakers fear the billions PG&E is expected to pay will bankrupt the company. The bill needs to be signed by Gov. Jerry Brown to become law.

Four People Missing at Moabi Regional Park

Search is underway for four people missing at the Moabi Regional Park in California. The boats crashed along the Colorado River, bordering Arizona. Ten people were also injured. Officials say no one involved was wearing a life vest.

AAA Iffers 'Tipsy Tow' Service for Labor Day

AAA is offering "tipsy tow" service from 6 p.m. on Sept. 3 through 6 a.m. on Sept. 4. The California Highway Patrol is also still on the lookout for impaired drivers, as the maximum enforcement period continues through 6 p.m. tonight.

Senate Confirmation Hearings for Brett Kavanaugh Begin Sept. 4

Senate confirmation hearings for Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh begin Sept. 4. Democrats are sounding the alarm after the Trump administration decided to withhold 100,000 pages of Kavanaugh's records, citing executive privilege. Republicans argue that more than 400,000 documents have already been turned over, the most of any other court nominee.
Christine Forster, Tony Abbott's sister, has pulled out of the Liberal preselection race for Malcolm Turnbull's former Sydney seat amid fears it might stoke divisions within the party.

The City of Sydney councillor last week declared her intention to run for Liberal preselection in the blue ribbon seat of Wentworth after being encouraged by several party members and with the backing of her brother.

But Cr Forster said, since she announced her candidacy, the commentary "has focused on the suggestion that it was a proxy for division within the Liberal Party".

"That is not the case, but to avoid any such perception, I will be standing aside and giving my full support to the successful candidate," she posted on Facebook on Monday.
State opposition leader Matthew Guy faces a major political test this week after the Andrews government tabled an estimated 80,000 pages of documents about his botched rezoning of farmland on Phillip Island in 2011.

The 32 boxes of papers, marked "Confidential," arrived at parliament house in a white van, and were tabled after 10am.

The Andrews government has tabled tens of thousands of pages of documents relating to the Ventnor planning saga. Credit:Jason South

They are likely to include details about a confidential out-of-court settlement that bought silence over the saga, which became known as Ventnor.

Among the documents are said to be those that Mr Guy refused to release to the Ombudsman during an investigation in 2013 and 2014.
[The minister] was concerned about having to give evidence before the judge, according to departmental notes of another meeting. The minister said that the matter needs to settle. The demand for a settlement came even though the governments legal position was so strong that the state government's insurer, the Victorian Managed Insurance Authority, would only indemnify Mr Guy for a maximum of $250,000 for the Ventnor case, plus legal costs. The documents released on Monday also raise questions about the accuracy of Mr Guys public justification for the settlement in the aftermath. On ABC radio with Jon Faine days after the settlement, Mr Guy claimed the deal had been primarily made to save taxpayers the cost of a trial and made on the recommendation of the Government Solicitor. The 32 boxes of documents that were dramatically tabled on Monday by the Andrews government included highly sensitive and confidential legal briefs and notes relating to Mr Guys controversial rezoning decision in 2011. The release of documents was ordered in March by the Labor-controlled lower house.

The state opposition opposed the tabling of the documents, which include cabinet-in-confidence and legally privileged material, claiming the government had broken a raft of precedents including the confidentiality of documents from previous governments. Loading The Ventnor documents raise serious questions for Mr Guy, including the potential misuse of taxpayer funds to avoid the public airing of detail about the most damaging controversy in his tumultuous stint in planning. They also reveal a troubling involvement by senior public servants who sanctioned the multimillion-dollar payout without clear justification.

But on Monday Mr Guy said he was unconcerned. Im focused on preventing crime. The Labor Party is focused on issues that are seven or eight years old, throwing mud at political opponents. On Monday night a spokesman for Mr Guy said: As these documents show, the legal advice was not to settle because the minister did nothing wrong. However, as is often the case, a decision was made to settle the claim to avoid creating a lawyers' picnic." The Age understands the government is now considering referral of the Ventnor settlement to the police or the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission. On September 8, 2011, Mr Guy stunned many in politics, planning and the law, when he used special ministerial powers to override the local Bass Coast council to rezone 24 hectares of farmland for housing at picturesque Ventnor on Phillip Island. Plaintiff - good moral position but bad legal. Minister - has the inverse. Notes from the Victorian Government Solicitor's Office in 2013.

The intervention was against the advice of two expert planning panels, the ministers own department and lawyers, and the unanimous position of the local council. It sparked a storm of protest including from local residents, Mr Guys own Liberal colleagues and even US celebrity Miley Cyrus. Days later, Mr Guy was forced into a humiliating backflip. He was later sued by the then purchaser of the property, Carley Nicholls. She had signed a sales contract on the basis of the rezoning, anticipating a windfall from the rise in land value. At the time, Ms Nicholls' husband, Jim Hopkins, was a property developer, member of the Liberal Party on Phillip Island and family friend of Kennett government-era planning minister Rob Maclellan. The Ventnor farmland today. Credit:Eddie Jim

The Age later revealed that Mr Maclellan had lobbied for the rezoning on Mr Hopkins behalf. Throughout 2013 the merits of the governments defence in the case were assessed and re-assessed by a string of senior government solicitors and barristers as it headed towards trial. Lawyers repeatedly advised there was little legal basis for settling. Plaintiff (Ms Nicholls)  good moral position but bad legal, according to notes from the Victorian Government Solicitors Office. Minister  has the inverse. Loading In July 2013 just weeks before the scheduled trial a senior lawyer says the governments legal case was so good it should reduce its offer of settlement to $250,000. She notes that the collateral damage @ best shambolic office.

Initially Mr Guy seemed determined to defend the Nicholls claim, with departmental deputy secretary Prue Digby noting at the time that the minister wanted to fight it tooth and nail. But Mr Guys resolve weakened as the reality of a Supreme Court hearing neared. In documents marked cabinet-in-confidence from June 2013, Mr Guy laid out his justification for his request for taxpayer funding for between $600,000 to $1.1 million to settle. Among the reasons cited for avoiding a trial were the reputational risk to the state due to a ministerial decision-making process being publicly scrutinised. By settling out of court, Mr Guy averted a public grilling for himself but also of senior party figures who had been embroiled in the Ventnor saga, including then federal frontbenchers Greg Hunt and Andrew Robb, and former premier Ted Baillieu. The documents reveal concern about a subpoena issued to then premier Baillieu.
Rio de Janeiro: Anger smoldered in Brazil on Monday after a fire destroyed the National Museum, a cherished historical repository that lacked a sprinkler system and was reeling from years of financial neglect, making its destruction a "tragedy foretold".

Outside the entrance to the elegant park that houses the 200-year-old building, police officers in riot gear shot tear gas into a small, angry crowd that tried to gain entry, live TV images showed.

The museum's director said part of the collection was destroyed, but that it was not possible yet to detail the losses. The collection of 20 million items included Egyptian and Greco-Roman artifacts and the oldest human skull found in the Western hemisphere.
Labor Day - Without Labor It Don't Get Made

You work hard. And when Labor Day hits you know its your day to celebrate your role in making our economy strong while you provide for your family. Labor Day signals the unofficial end of summer with parades and barbecues and is a mainstay of American culture. But it wasnt always that way on the first Monday of September.

Labor Day started at the state level. New York was the first state to introduce Labor Day legislation. In 1887 Oregon became the first state to pass it. By 1894, almost 30 states followed suit. But it took a tragedy to make it an officially recognized federal holiday.

Shortly after two striking workers were killed by the U.S. Army and U.S. Marshals Service during the Pullman Railcar Strike in 1894, Congress made Labor Day a national holiday with President Grover Clevelands urging as a gesture toward trade unionists.

Since then, all U.S. states, the District of Columbia, and the United States territories have made Labor Day a statutory holiday. Holiday creators envisioned a day of street parades by workers to exhibit to the public the strength and esprit de corps of the trade and labor organizations to be followed by a celebration held for workers and their families. In years to follow Labor Day would grow to include speeches by public officials.

Enjoy your hard-earned day off this Labor Day, Mon., Sept. 4, and celebrate the power of solidarity with workers everywhere.







Presidential Proclamation on Labor Day, 2018

Washington DC September 4, 2018; On Labor Day, we celebrate the American worker: the bulwark of our national prosperity and the cornerstone of our national greatness. Since taking office, my Administration has sought to restore the obligation of loyalty and allegiance that this Nations Government owes to its workers. In all economic decisions, we believe in our sovereign obligation to defend and protect our countrys workforce, and to seek its economic interests above that of any other country. Americas workers pay our taxes, support our values, serve in our military, raise our children, protect our Constitution, and build our communities. They deserve, in return, the unwavering fidelity of their Government.

Guided by this obligation, my Administration has taken historic action to advance prosperity for the American worker: cutting their taxes, eliminating regulations that threaten their jobs, unleashing American energy that powers their lives, restoring American manufacturing, and ending the transfer of wealth out of our country through disastrous trade deals that gutted our industries and our national strength. The result of our pro-America economic policies have been extraordinary: currently, in America, there are a record 162 million people working; initial claims for jobless benefits are at their lowest in half a century; and the unemployment rate of 3.9 percent is historically low.

We have also taken historic action to defend the American worker by upholding and enforcing the immigration laws enacted for their protection  and by seeking to reform our immigration system so that it protects the jobs, wages, and livelihoods of our Nations workers. Further, as we honor the work of all those in our labor force, we are especially mindful of the dignity gained from a hard days work. Thousands of Americans have found a renewed sense of purpose in our resurgent economy. The dedication, resolve, and pride of the American worker are the reason our Nation has achieved prosperity that was once thought unattainable.

My Administration is focused on investing in Americas workers and ensuring all Americans are on a path to good paying jobs. In July, I signed an Executive Order establishing the Presidents National Council for the American Worker and the American Workforce Policy Advisory Board, harnessing the expertise of leaders in business and education to develop a holistic, national workforce strategy to promote access to affordable, relevant education and job training opportunities. I have called on companies nationwide to sign our Pledge to Americas Workers and commit to investing in their current and future workforce by expanding education and reskilling programs. Already, many companies have answered that call, pledging to train and retrain more than 4.2 million American students and workers for new career opportunities across the country. Earlier this summer, I signed into law a reauthorization of the Carl D. Perkins Career and Technical Education Act to provide students and workers with the skills necessary to succeed in a 21st century economy. I have also called for reforming the Federal Work-Study program, so that more Federal dollars go toward helping students  especially lower-income students  have more meaningful workplace experiences. And I have proposed to allow students to use Pell Grant funding to pay for cutting-edge, short-term programs that lead to quick and efficient transitions into the workforce.

We also recognize and honor the proud and historic role of our Nations labor unions in advocating for the interests of the American worker and wage-earner  and we have kept our promise to always keep the White House door open to members and leaders of our countrys labor organizations.

Further, as promised, I am renegotiating trade agreements to obtain fairer terms for American workers, farmers, ranchers, and businesses. For the past year, I have been negotiating with Canada and Mexico to fix the North American Free Trade Agreement. Earlier this week, I announced that my Administration has secured a preliminary deal between the United States and Mexico that modernizes and rebalances trade between our two countries in a way that greatly benefits American manufacturing, agriculture, services, and other sectors. I have also notified the Congress of my intent to sign a trade agreement with Mexico  and Canada, if it is willing. The deal I intend to sign will help create more reciprocal trade that grows our economy. It will also support high-paying jobs for American workers and protect the intellectual property of our Nations businesses and workers. In addition to these improvements in our United StatesMexico trade relationship, we have also agreed with the European Commission to work toward achieving zero tariffs, increasing United States exports, and addressing unfair trade practices. And we secured key amendments to the trade agreement with South Korea that will strengthen the manufacturing sector of the economy, generating increased job opportunities for American workers. We are also protecting our economy from unfair trade practices that threaten our innovation and technology.

The dedication, resolve, and pride of the American worker built the greatest country in the history of the world  the envy of nations and the pride of countless millions  and now, we are bringing to life the next great chapter in the history of this magnificent Republic.

NOW, THEREFORE, I, DONALD J. TRUMP, President of the United States of America, by virtue of the authority vested in me by the Constitution and the laws of the United States, do hereby proclaim September 3, 2018, as Labor Day. I call upon all public officials and people of the United States to observe this day with appropriate programs, ceremonies, and activities that honor the contributions and resilience of working Americans.

IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand this thirty-first day of August, two thousand eighteen, and of the Independence of the United States of America the two hundred and forty-third.

DONALD J. TRUMP
A 36-year-old RM of Tache resident died on Saturday night in an off-road vehicle rollover.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 2/9/2018 (1157 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A 36-year-old RM of Tache resident died on Saturday night in an off-road vehicle rollover.

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Around 11:30 p.m., Steinbach RCMP responded to a report of the crash. Police said in release on Sunday afternoon that the 36-year-old male was with an eight-year-old male, also from the RM of Tache, in a side-by-side off-road vehicle, when it rolled and landed on top of the adult male.

The man was transported to hospital where he was pronounced dead.

The eight-year-old was not injured.

Police said it is believed alcohol was a factor in the crash and said it appeared neither occupant was wearing a helmet or seatbelt.
A Steinbach teenager who recently returned from a whirlwind war history tour in Europe says the trip impressed on her the sacrifice of soldiers past and present.

Hey there, time traveller!

This article was published 3/9/2018 (1157 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Steinbach teenager who recently returned from a whirlwind war history tour in Europe says the trip impressed on her the sacrifice of soldiers past and present.

"I thought I would understand from reading about it and seeing pictures. But once youre there, its a whole different experience," said Cassidy Choquette, a 17-year-old SRSS student entering Grade 12 this fall.

COURTESY OF THE VIMY FOUNDATION Steinbach student Cassidy Choquette is seen at the Canadian National Vimy Memorial near Arras, France.

Choquette was one of 16 students who beat out hundreds of applicants from Canada, France, and the United Kingdom to win the Beaverbrook Vimy Prize, which grants recipients a two-week educational tour of historical sites in England, France, and Belgium.

The Vimy Foundation and Beaverbrook Canadian Foundation hope the prize instills in young people an appreciation for Canadas contributions to the First World War, a release said.

"We opened so many new doors and had so many insightful conversations," said Choquette, the groups lone Manitoban.

PHOTO COURTESY OF THE VIMY FOUNDATION Choquette makes a tombstone rubbing at the grave of Canadian private John George Baggs at La Chaudiere Military Cemetery in Pas de Calais, France. Choquette researched the soldiers life and service during the trip.

Her Grade 11 history teacher, Jolene Fiarchuk, urged her to apply after Choquette completed a soldier research project.

"That got me really passionate about history," Choquette said.

The trip gave her a chance to profile another soldier. She selected Private John George Baggs of Newfoundland, who enlisted in February 1916 and died, aged 23, in the Battle of Vimy Ridge in April 1917.

Choquette read Baggs a letter at his gravesite in the La Chaudiere Military Cemetery in Pas de Calais, France.

"That was the most impactful moment for me," she said.

Students also visited the Canadian National Vimy Memorial near Arras, France, where they observed 30 minutes of silence.

"It was a moment for us to take it in," Choquette said.

The trip also included a history lecture at Oxford University, a walk along Juno Beach, and a visit to Ypres, Belgium, where the Battle of Passchendaele was waged.

Choquette said walking around the battle sites "was very emotional."

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"Empathy is very important to me. I like to think if I was a soldier," she explained.

"I tried my best to put myself in all of these peoples shoesIts such a difficult thing to do but its so important."

Military service isnt an abstract topic for Choquette, who said her brother attends the Royal Military College of Canada in Kingston, Ont., following in the footsteps of her father, who also served.

Choquette herself is considering a history-related career in research or teaching.

While a century has passed since the First World War, Choquette said young people today should reflect on the troops who fought for their freedom.

"A lot of them were my ageIf I, at this age, made that sacrifice for my country and the world, how would I feel if generations after me forgot about me? I wouldnt want to be forgotten, so I want to carry that torch for them."
Journalists gather outside the headquarters of Orbis Business Intelligence, the company run by former intelligence officer Christopher Steele, in London on January 12, 2017. (Leon Neal/Getty Images)

A Look at the Russian Ties to the Steele Dossier

News Analysis

If the Russians wanted Donald Trump to win, would they have allowed or assisted in the production of Steeles dossier?

The obvious answer is they wouldnt. But then, the Russians didnt want a Trump presidency, either.

And why would they? Historically, all Russian ties lay with Hillary ClintonUranium One, the Russia reset, and Bill Clintons $500,000 Moscow speech. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump promised, and followed through on, a program of national energy self-sufficiency. U.S. oil production is now booming. This is a direct threat to Russias primary source of cash.

The last thing the worlds biggest gas station wants is an even bigger gas station opening for business.

That might provide a partial explanation for the employment of Fusion GPS by Russian actors. While the story is a bit complicated, it starts with Vladimir Putins desire to repeal the Magnitsky Act.

The Magnitsky Act is named for Sergei Magnitsky, who was jailed by the Russian government in late 2008. Magnitsky would die in jail almost exactly one year laterfrom beatings suffered at the hands of prison guards.

The Magnitsky Act denies visas and freezes the assets of Russians who are involved in human-rights abuses. It has proven to be a problem for many Russian oligarchs and officials, including Putin. The Russian government would dearly love to see the Magnitsky Act repealed.

As secretary of state, Hillary Clinton opposed passage of the Magnitsky Acta position coinciding with Bill Clinton being paid $500,000 for a Moscow speech on June 29, 2010. While the Magnitsky bill was being formulated, her State Department was asked by lawmakers to deny visas to the Russian officials who were implicated in the Magnitsky matter. Clintons State Department denied the request.

The Russian officials who paid for Clintons Moscow speech would have been barred from entering the United States if the State Department hadnt denied the request.

The Magnitsky Act came before Congress through the efforts of Magnitskys former employer, Bill Browder. This is where Fusion GPS enters the picture. Browder, no stranger to controversy, became the target of a Fusion GPS smear campaign.

Browder made some allegations against a company called Prevezon, a Russian holding company that had been accused by the U.S. government of laundering stolen cash into New York City real estate.

Browder told prosecutors that the cash came from a Russian tax-fraud scheme that had been uncovered by Magnitsky just prior to his jailing in Russia.

Prevezon was represented by a Russian lawyer named Natalia Veselnitskaya. If her name probably sounds familiar, its because Veselnitskaya was one of the participants in the infamous Trump Tower meeting.

In 2013, she employed a U.S. law firm, BakerHostetler, to hire Fusion GPS to dig up dirt on Browder. Simpson has stated in congressional testimony that his efforts focused on trying to get William Browder to testify under oath about his role in this case and his activities in Russia.

In July 2016, Browder filed a formal complaint with the Department of Justice (DOJ) alleging that Fusions work on behalf of Russia was a violation of the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA). Browders complaint was later noted by Sen. Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa) in a letter to then-Acting Deputy Attorney General Dana Boente.

From Grassleys letter: In 2013, the Department of Justice initiated a civil asset forfeiture case against Prevezon Holdings, a company owned by Russian Denis Katsyv, the son of a former Russian government minister. The Justice Department argued that his company had received millions of the laundered $230 million from the conspiracy Mr. Magnitsky discovered, and had used it to purchase real estate in New York.

Prevezon Holdings and the Russian government began a lobbying campaign purportedly designed to try to: repeal the Magnitsky Act; remove the name Magnitsky from the Global Magnitsky Act and delay its progress; and cast doubt on the Justice Departments version of events regarding the corporate identity theft of Hermitages companies, the fraudulently obtained $230 million, and the death of Mr. Magnitsky.

It is particularly disturbing that Mr. Akhmetshin and Fusion GPS were working together on this pro-Russia lobbying effort in 2016 in light of Mr. Akhmetshins history and reputation. Mr. Akhmetshin is a Russian immigrant to the U.S. who has admitted having been a Soviet counterintelligence officer.'

Grassley closed with this:

It is highly troubling that Fusion GPS appears to have been working with someone with ties to Russian intelligencelet alone someone alleged to have conducted political disinformation campaignsas part of a pro-Russia lobbying effort, while also simultaneously overseeing the creation of the Trump/Russia dossier. The relationship casts further doubt on an already highly dubious dossier.

Browder testified before the Senate Judiciary Committee on July 27, 2017. Toward the end of Browders testimony, the following exchange occurred.

Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.): So, I just want to absorb that for a moment. The group that did the dossier on President Trump hired this British spy, wound up getting it to the FBI. You believe they were working for the Russians?

Browder: And in the spring and summer of 2016, they were receiving money indirectly from a senior Russian government official.

Now, fast forward to recent reporting on Bruce Ohr, the former No. 4 official in the DOJ, whose relationship with Christopher Steele has been thrust into the spotlight recently. Ohr has been described as a longtime friend of Steele, with a relationship (that includes Ohrs wife Nellie) going back to at least 2006.

In early communications between the two men, it appears that Steele was lobbying on behalf of Oleg Deripaskaraising questions about Deripaskas role in the creation of the Steele dossier. It appears that Steele may have been employed by Deripaska. Adam Waldman, a Washington lawyer who represents Deripaska, also represented Steele.

All of which brings us to a New York Times article, Agents Tried to Flip Russian Oligarchs.

The article notes: The F.B.I. and the Justice Department unsuccessfully tried to turn Mr. Deripaska into an informant. According to the Times, Bruce Ohr and Steele were instrumental in the FBIs efforts to flip Deripaska. And their conversations regarding Deripaska had nothing to do with Trump.

Officials spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss an initiative that remains classified. Most expressed deep discomfort, saying they feared that in revealing the attempts to cultivate Mr. Deripaska and other oligarchs they were undermining American national security and strengthening the grip that Mr. Putin holds over those who surround him.

In the narrative spun by The New York Times, Ohr was the liaison between the DOJ and the FBI. Steele was the bridge between Deripaska and Ohr.

It states: The program was led by the F.B.I. Mr. Ohr, who had long worked on combating Russian organized crime, was one of the Justice Department officials involved. Mr. Steele served as an intermediary between the Americans and the Russian oligarchs they were seeking to cultivate.

It also reveals that cultivation efforts werent limited to Deripaska.

The attempt to flip Mr. Deripaska was part of a broader, clandestine American effort to gauge the possibility of gaining cooperation from roughly a half-dozen of Russias richest men, nearly all of whom, like Mr. Deripaska, depend on President Vladimir V. Putin to maintain their wealth, the officials said.

According to NY Times, the FBI somehow believed it had a legitimate chance at flipping an inner circle of Russian oligarchs whose continued wealth and status were singularly dependent on Putin.

Alas, efforts at Deripaskas cultivation would fail, just in time for a new topic of discussion between Ohr and Steele.

Just as it was becoming clear that Mr. Deripaska would provide little help to the Americans, Mr. Steele was talking to Mr. Ohr about an entirely new issue: the dossier.

But it seems that Deripaska remained a topic of interest for Ohr.

Last year, Mr. Ohr asked someone who communicated with Mr. Deripaska to urge the oligarch to give up Manafort, according to a person familiar with the exchange.

Last year would be 2017. Ohr and Steele were communicating through May of 2017. Someone would likely be one of two people: Christopher Steele or Adam Waldman. And why would Ohr be asking for Deripaska to give up Manafort. Ohr was not on the special counsels team.

We know the FBI visited Deripaska in September 2016, roughly two months before the presidential election. According to a John Solomon article, the agents posited a theory that Trumps campaign was secretly colluding with Russia to hijack the U.S. election.

At one point in 2017, Deripaska volunteered to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee. A series of texts occurring from late February into mid-May 2017, between Waldman, Deripaskas lawyer, and Sen. Mark Warner (D-Va.) indicate Waldmans efforts at facilitating some sort of meeting. The efforts failed. As Deripaskas lawyer, Adam Waldman, noted:

We specifically told them that we did not want immunity. Clearly, they did not want him to testify. What other conclusion could you possibly draw?

Remember, Waldman was not only the lawyer for Deripaska. He was also representing Steele.

If the FBI was truly attempting to flip Deripaskaand we know there were multiple communicationswhy would Deripaska be willing to testify about those efforts in light of his close ties with Putin. It would seem unlikely that he would intentionally testify to anything that would put his relationship with Putin in jeopardy.

And why did the Senate Intelligence Committee refuse to hear Deripaskas testimony. One might expect that Congress would have some relevant questions for Deripaska. Was Steele in Deripaskas employ. What role did Deripaska play in the dossiers creation. Was he a source for the Steele dossier.

Theres another problem with the narrative provided by the Times. Bruce Ohr testified that his DOJ superiors, including Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates, were unaware of his contacts with Steele. If Ohrs role was so significant, how does it come about that Ohrs superiors had no idea of his communications with Deripaskas primary intermediary. How was the Department of Justice planning on flipping someone they didnt know they were communicating with?

I suspect Deripaskas role will continue to be revealed as the discovery of Ohrs actions moves forward. A role that will almost certainly prove to be a bit different than the one outlined by the NY Times.

As noted by The Conservative Treehouse, It is almost a certainty that Deripaska was one of Chris Steeles sources for the dossier.

Jeff Carlson is a CFA charterholder. He has worked for 20 years as an analyst and portfolio manager in the high-yield bond market. He runs the website TheMarketsWork.com

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
A firefighting crew drives pass a business destroyed in wildfire that tore through Santa Rosa, California, on Oct. 15, 2017. (Reuters/Jim Urquhart)

California Lawmakers Pass Bill on PG&E Wildfire Liability

SAN FRANCISCOCalifornias legislature passed a bill late on Aug. 31 that could help the utility Pacific Gas and Electric Corporation (PG&E) avoid potentially crippling liabilities for wildfires that ravaged northern parts of the San Francisco Bay Area last year.

The bill, passed 29 to 4 in the Senate and 45 to 10 in the Assembly, requires approval by Democrat Governor Jerry Brown.

Some fires in the north of the Bay area were caused by trees toppling into or making contact with PG&E power lines, a report released by state officials in June said. Analysts estimate PG&E, the states biggest utility, could face several billions of dollars in liability as a result.

Democrat State Senator Bill Dodd said the bill was needed to spare customers from big increases in energy costs. Without it, ratepayers will be left holding the bag and communities will needlessly suffer, he said.

The fires killed 46 people in blazes across at least 245,000 acres, including subdivisions in the city of Santa Rosa.

In California, utilities are responsible for fires traced to their equipment whether or not they are complying with regulations. PG&E faces about 200 lawsuits on behalf of 2,700 plaintiffs stemming from last years fires.

If signed by the governor, this would soften that standard by having regulators determine liability based on whether equipment was reasonably maintained and operated. It would also let utilities issue bonds to help pay damages, with a surcharge on ratepayers bills helping to cover interest payments.

Critics say the legislation is a bailout. But Dodd, who led the legislation, has said another bankruptcy by PG&E could be worse for ratepayers than a surcharge on their bills.

PG&E faced bankruptcy during Californias energy crisis in 2001, emerging three years later with customers left to pay higher rates to help repay $13 billion owed to creditors.

A second bankruptcy could potentially lump victims of last years fires in with PG&Es creditors, casting uncertainty over the timing and size of recoveries.

Youve got a lot of investors like hedge funds circling like vultures, Dodd, who represents parts of Northern California hit by last years wildfires, told reporters. What would happen to the North Bay fire victims?

Dodds legislation won bipartisan support in committee to be heard on Aug. 31, the last day of the legislatures session. Consumer advocates have lobbied strongly against the bill.

PG&E hired law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP to explore debt restructuring options, including breaking the firm up to let one division file for bankruptcy, it was reported in August.

PG&E said it would not be financially sustainable without changes to state policy. PG&E reported second-quarter net losses of $984 million, compared with net income of $406 million a year earlier.

By Jim Christie
China Censors Australias ABC Website

The Chinese Communist Party banned the Australian Broadcasting Corporations website on Aug. 22 without an explanation as to why, the ABC has reported.

When the ABC insisted on clarification regarding the reason for the ban, an official from the Chinese Communist Partys (CCPs) Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission eventually responded with the generic reply that Chinas internet is fully open.

The official dictated the CCPs official statement that China welcomes internet firms from all across the world to share good information with Chinese netizens. But the statement then explained that China would act to maintain its state cyber sovereignty rights by banning websites that violated Chinas laws and regulations.

According the statement given by the official, any information deemed to be spreading rumours, pornographic information, gambling, violent terrorism, and some other illegal harmful information which will endanger state security and damage national pride, would be subject to review by government departments that have the right to take technical measures to block dissemination.

The Chinese official did not explain what laws or regulations the ABC had violated and failed to provide any examples of what was the unacceptable content.

Related to Huaweis Loss of 5G Network?

On Aug. 23, the Australian government confirmed in a media release that new legislation would be introduced from Sep. 18 to address the new security challenges facing the nations 5G network plans due to the technologys potential to enable the unimpeded flow of information.

Although the announcement did not explicitly mention the Chinese telco, the federal government said that the involvement of third party 5G vendors who are likely to be subject to extrajudicial directions from a foreign government that conflict with Australian law would leave the country vulnerable to unauthorised access or interference.

Not long after the statement was released, Huawei Australia announced that it had been excluded from participating in Australias 5G mobile network.

We have been informed by the Govt that Huawei & ZTE have been banned from providing 5G technology to Australia. This is a extremely disappointing result for consumers. Huawei is a world leader in 5G. Has safely & securely delivered wireless technology in Aust for close to 15 yrs  Huawei Australia (@HuaweiOZ) August 22, 2018

John Lord, chairman of Huawei Australia, has rejected any implications that Huawei would work with Chinese intelligence agencies if called upon, the ABC reported.

But according to Global Policy Watch, the CCP created a new draft law in 2017 that serves to strengthen Chinas national intelligence and protect its national security. Article 11 in Chinese law grants CCP intelligence operations all necessary methods, tactics, and channels necessary to gather intelligence and evidence needed to punish persons who wish to harm the regime.

Lord said that Chinese regulations do not operate on Australian soil. We have a legal opinion which says it does not affect Huawei in China and, even more so, does not affect Huawei in Australia, said Lord. We only obey and only listen to Australian laws.

Despite Lords firm belief that Huawei would not work against Australias national interests, experiences with Huawei in the United Kingdom have proven to reinforce rather than allay concerns regarding the Chinese telco. In 2005, British Telecom (BT) spent A$17 million to upgrade their network and contracted Huawei to supply hardware and equipment, according to the ABC. Five years later, the UK government was forced to intervene when concerns arose that the equipment was being exploited.

British intelligence told the ABC that the core switchesgatekeepers of incoming and outgoing datasupplied by Huawei had been doing a lot of chattering but to an unidentified source, which sparked attention from the U.K. government. BT had not been under any obligation to inform the authorities of its business deal with Huawei in 2005.

Lord told the ABC that despite the Australian governments decision to ban Huawei, he plans on visiting Canberra to contest the decision with the Minister for Communications and the Arts Mitch Fifield.

As to whether the Huawei ban was related to Chinas censoring of the ABC website, Chinese officials told the ABC that they did not believe the decision had been the deciding factor, given the last 18 months of diplomatic tensions between the two governments. Chinese state media has been sternly rebuking the Australian media over its reporting about political donations from wealthy Chinese businessmen with links to the CCPs United Front organisations since November 2017.

According to the ABC, diplomatic sources had already been expressing earlier in the year that Chinese officials were dissatisfied with the ABCs reporting due to it being a publicly funded broadcaster.

The CCPs internet censors are known to have blocked numerous international news sites including the BBC and The Epoch Times. Despite the CCPs efforts to censor outside information reaching Chinese citizens, Chinese state media channels such as CCTV and CGTN remain freely accessible to audiences outside of China.
ChinaUS Trade War Prompts Taiwan Firms to Shift Supply Chains out of China

Taiwanese tech companies are leaving mainland China in droves as the U.S.China trade war threatens to disrupt supply chains, according to Taiwan media reports.

As more components of important technology and electronic equipment appear on the White Houses latest list of $200 billion worth of Chinese imports slated for proposed tariffs, Taiwanese manufacturers are preparing for the worst. Many Taiwanese firms are contracted to manufacture or assemble devices for big tech multinationals such as Apple and HP, making them a critical part of the global supply chain.

As the trade war escalates, these companies are looking to shift production outside of China.

The tariffs are likely to exacerbate an existing trend of Taiwan manufacturers leaving, as rising costs and a business environment unfair to Taiwanese companies drives more of them out. According to a July 31 article by Global Views Monthly, a Taiwanese magazine, Taiwanese executives are departing mainland Chinas top manufacturing cities, such as Dongguan and Shenzhen in Guangdong Province; and Shanghai and Kunshan in Jiangsu Province.

One unidentified executive told the magazine, Just in our company alone, at the peak, there were more than 200 Taiwanese executives. Now, theres only about 50 of us left.

In a recent report by Mirror Media, James Wang, the CEO of Sercomm, a manufacturer of broadband networking software and firmware, said that once the proposed 25 percent tariffs on $200 billion of goods take effect, 90 percent of Sercomms factories will be affected.

The company will have to double the production capacity at its factory located in Zhunan Township in northwestern Taiwan.

Responding to the trade war, some Taiwanese firms have begun pouring money into domestic facilities. Delta Electronics, a global leader in the manufacture of power supply units, will be investing NT$2.7 billion (about US$87.9 million) in a 30,000-square-meter new factory in the Southern Taiwan Science Park, according to Mirror Media, citing an insider. It also recently purchased an NT$1.5 billion (about US$48.8 million) piece of land to construct a new research and development center near its Taipei headquarters.

Career Technology, which manufactures printed circuit boards for the iPhone, has begun scouring land in Taiwan to build a new facility, according to Business Weekly, a Taiwanese magazine.

Others are shifting production to other countries. In an Aug. 16 report by Bloomberg, Taiwan-based iPhone maker Pegatron said it would add capacity in the Czech Republic and Mexico, and possibly set up facilities in Southeast Asia.

Compal, a contract manufacturer of notebook computers, televisions, and other electronics, told Bloomberg that while assembling notebooks outside of China could cost at least 3 percent more per unit, the possibility of U.S. tariffs could wipe out its gross profit margin of slightly above 3 percent last quarter.

Another contract manufacturer, Quanta, said its profit margin was about 4.5 percent. Hence, the company will shift manufacturing to California and Tennessee in the United States, or to Germany.
This 2018 photo provided by the Hennepin County Sheriffs Office shows Chinese billionaire Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, the founder of the Beijing-based e-commerce site JD.com.(Hennepin County Sheriffs Office/AP)

Chinese Billionaire Liu of JD.com Arrested in Minneapolis

MINNEAPOLISChinese billionaire Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, the founder of the Beijing-based e-commerce site JD.com, was arrested in Minneapolis on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct, jail records show.

Liu, 45, was arrested late night of Aug. 31 and released on the afternoon of Sep. 1 pending possible criminal charges, Hennepin County Jail records show. The jail records dont provide details of the alleged incident.

Minneapolis police spokesman John Elder said on Sep. 2 that he couldnt provide any details because the investigation is considered active. He declined to say where in Minneapolis Liu was arrested or what Liu was accused of doing.

Minnesota law defines five degrees of criminal sexual misconduct, ranging from a gross misdemeanor to felonies, covering a broad array of conduct ranging from nonconsensual touching to violent assaults with injuries. The jail records for Liu dont indicate a degree.

JD.com, the main rival to Alibaba Group, said in a statement posted Sep. 1 on the Chinese social media site Weibo that Liu was falsely accused while in the U.S. on a business trip, but that police investigators found no misconduct and that he would continue his journey as planned.

We will take the necessary legal action against false reporting or rumors, the company said.

Liu recently tried to distance himself from a sexual assault allegations against a guest at a 2015 party at Lius penthouse in Australia. Liu was not charged or accused of wrongdoing, but Australian media reported he tried unsuccessfully to get a court to prevent the release of his name in that case. The guest was convicted.

In June, Google said it would invest $550 million in JD.com. The investment reflected an effort by the U.S. tech company to expand its reach into Asian e-commerce.

JD.com is Chinas second-largest e-commerce company after Alibaba. Among its other investors is Chinese internet gaming and social media giant Tencent Holdings, the developer of the WeChat messenger app and a major rival of Alibaba, and U.S. retailer Walmart Inc.

By Steve Karnowski
Pentagon Suspends $300 Million in Aid to Pakistan Over Terror Groups

The Pentagon says it is stopping $300 million in aid to Pakistan for counterterrorism efforts, after it deemed that the country isnt meeting its demands for decisive action against terrorist groups operating within its borders.

Earlier this year, the State Department said it was withholding security funding to the country that could be reinstated if it were determined that Pakistan was making progress on ridding itself of terrorists that have been fighting a 17-year war in Afghanistan. The Pentagon now says it has decided to cut off Coalition Support Funds that reimburse Pakistan for its efforts at combating terrorism.

Due to a lack of Pakistani decisive actions in support of the South Asia Strategy, the remaining $300 [million] was reprogrammed, Pentagon spokesman Lt. Col. Kone Faulkner said Sept. 1.

The funds will be allocated to other urgent priorities, he said.

Faulkner said the plan will be submitted to Congress and, if approved, will bring the total of Coalition Support Funds that have been cut to $800 million since early this year.

Pakistan has received more than $33 billion in U.S. assistance in the past 16 years, including more than $14 billion in Coalition Support Funds.

A Pakistani official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said he was unaware of a formal notification of the U.S. decision on assistance, but said one was expected by the end of September.

Pakistan, a majority Muslim nation, has had a rocky relationship with its southeast neighbor India and has been a focus of the United States since the al-Qaeda terrorist group carried out the 9/11 attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center in 2001. The United States also accuses it of harboring Taliban terrorists that are trying to destabilize the Afghani government, which Pakistan denies.

Last August, Trump announced a new strategy for South Asia focused on eliminating terrorism in Afghanistan and Pakistan. The strategy takes aim at Pakistans nuclear weapons, which the United States fears could fall into the hands of terrorists.

The Taliban reacted to the new strategy by threatening to make Afghanistan a graveyard for U.S. soldiers.

Afghanistans leadership was buoyant, applauding the presidents commitment to counterterrorism in the region.

I am grateful to President Trump and the American people for this affirmation of support for our efforts to achieve self-reliance and for our joint effort to rid the region of the threat of terrorism, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said in a statement after Trumps speech.

The United States has tried to get Pakistan to root out all of the terrorist organizations within its borders that are destabilizing the region, not just those that pose a threat to the Pakistani government.

Several weeks after the July victory of Prime Minister Imran Khans party, Secretary of State Mike Pompeo called to wish him success and urge him to take decisive action against all terrorists. Pakistan claimed that terrorism was never discussed, and asked the State Department to make a correction in its readout of the call. The State Department declined.

In response to Pakistans request, State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert told reporters on Aug. 23 that Pakistan is an important partner to the United States, and that the United States hopes to forge a good, productive working relationship with the new civilian government.

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and U.S. Marine Corps Gen. Joseph Dunford are planning to visit the region in a few days, stopping first in India and then flying to Islamabad, where they are expected to discuss security.

And to make very clear what we have to do, all of our nations, in meeting our common foe, the terrorists, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis said on Aug. 28.

The issue of the cut funding could be a sticking point, at least on the semantics of the term aid. Pakistan responded to the news that the United States would be stopping Coalition Support Funds by saying that it was using its own money to counter terrorism in the region.

It is not a cut in any [U.S.] aid, it is not assistance. This is our own money which we have used for improving regional security situation and they had to reimburse it to us, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi told reporters Sept. 2 in Islamabad, according to Voice of America.

Previous administrations have tried similar approaches to get Pakistan to comply with U.S. aims for security in the region. This time may be different, however, as new Khan has said he seeks mutually beneficial relations with the United States.

Pakistans foreign exchange reserves have plummeted over the past year and the country will soon have to decide whether to seek a bailout from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) or from friendly nations such as China. The United States has the largest share of votes at the IMF.

[The United States is] squeezing them when they know that theyre vulnerable and it is probably a signal about what to expect should Pakistan come to the IMF for a loan, Sameer Lalwani, co-director of the South Asia program at the Stimson Center think tank in Washington.

Reuters contributed to this report.
CNN Yanks Episodes of Anthony Bourdains Parts Unknown Featuring Asia Argento

Episodes of Anthony Bourdains hit television series Parts Unknown featuring his girlfriend at the time of his death, Asia Argento, have disappeared from CNNs streaming platform.

Argento was featured in two episodes of the show.

Both are no longer available on CNN Go, the companys streaming platform, and will also not be included in syndication.

In light of the recent news reports about Asia Argento, CNN will discontinue airing past episodes of Parts Unknown that included her, until further notice, a spokesperson for the network told Fox News.

Jimmy Bennett breaks silence on Asia Argento sexual assault claims https://t.co/yTHdAoSZio  TODAY (@TODAYshow) August 23, 2018

Argento Accused of Paying Off Teenager

Actor and musician Jimmy Bennett came forward recently to accuse Asia Argento of having consensual sex with him when he was 17 and she was 37.

Bennett was seeking $3.5 million for the intentional infliction of emotional distress, lost wages, assault, and battery, according to a letter of intent to sue.

The age of consent in California, where the alleged encounter took place, is 18.

Bennett grew up knowing Argento, after playing her son in the 2004 film The Heart Is Deceitful Above All Things when he was seven years old.

I just received this statement from @AsiaArgento in response to the NYT story published late Sunday evening. pic.twitter.com/jAOo7TAULX  Yashar Ali ? (@yashar) August 21, 2018

Documents sent to the New York Times showed that Bennett intended to sue Argento but they reached an agreement in April 2018 that had Argento pay Bennett $380,000.

Law enforcement sources told TMZ that Argento is not being investigated for allegedly breaking the law. The Los Angeles County Sheriffs Department is not going to investigate Argento since Bennett is now 22, a source said.

Argento denied having a sexual relationship with Bennett in a statement obtained by journalist Yashar Ali, while stating that it was Anthony Bourdain who decided to pay off Bennett.

Anthony was afraid of the possible negative publicity that such person, whom he considered dangerous, could have brought upon us, she said. We decided to deal compassionately with Bennetts demand for help and give it to him. Anthony personally undertook to help Bennett economically, upon the condition that we would no longer suffer any further intrusions in our life.

Parts Unknown Final Season

Bourdain was found dead in his hotel room in France in June from a reported suicide. He was 61 years old.

Despite his death, CNN announced that a final season of Parts Unknown will air in fall 2018. Its the most popular CNN Original Series program.

Executives said comments have been pouring in from viewers praising the show and Bourdain for helping open their eyes to a different way of traveling.

People said, I was afraid to travel before I watched the show, I followed his route, I was an addict and I connected with Tony and now Im fine, Amy Entelis, the executive vice president of talent and content at CNN, who helped launch the show in 2013, told the Los Angeles Times.

Others were angry that hes not in the world anymore. Its an incredible outpouring. A lot of people are experiencing what we are.

From NTD.tv
David Horowitz: Democrats Have Destroyed and Divided America

According to National Book Award nominee and New York Times best-selling author David Horowitz, todays Democratic Party is dividing the land of the free, and is even threatening its democracy, but says many are unaware of whats happening.

One of the key examples of this, Horowitz said in an interview with The Epoch Times, is what happened when President Donald Trump won the election in 2016.

Probably the most important feature in American democracy is that we have a peaceful transition on power. One of our most sacred traditions is when someone is legitimately elected you give them a honeymoon, an average of seven months, so they can put their policies in place, he said.

The Democrats blew that up sky high. Trump didnt get seven seconds of a honeymoon. They were boycotting his inaugural, they were calling for his impeachment on day one. They were calling him all kinds of names.

Horowitz himself is a former radical socialist who was raised by communists. He later became a critic of the New Left and let go of Marxism entirely after a series of traumatic incidents made him question his convictions and identity, according to his 1996 memoir Radical Son: A Generational Odyssey.

He said Democrats today are actively destroying America by attacking its history and roots and twisting it to fit their agenda.

You want to destroy a country, you attack its fundamental belief in itself, Horowitz explained.

Americans, until the Democrats started whacking away at it, were proud of its history of freedom. Our country inherited the British slave system, [but] our founding fathers declared that all men are created equal, regardless of race. Thats unheard of in the history of mankind. Slavery existed for 3,000 years.

The Africans who came to this country in chains were enslaved by black Africans, he said. White people didnt go into Africa and throw nets and kidnap them, they went to slave auctions in Ghana and they bought them from black African kings. So the truth is blacks were enslaved by blacks and they were liberated by whites.

Horowitz said that free speech and the education system were taken advantage of by the Democratic Party to divide America.

He also blamed Republicans for not fighting back, stating they wont be aggressive.

The Democratic Party controls every inner city in America, every killing fieldChicago, Detroit, Baltimore, St. Louis100 percent controlled by anarchy alliances, 100 percent controlled by the Democratic Party, and have been for 50 to 100 years, he said. Every random school in Chicago, Detroit, that year in and year out doesnt teach the kids yet gives lifetime tenure to the teachers, never holds them accountable, every one of them is 100 percent controlled by the Democratic racists.

The threat to free speech is the most dire threat in our country and its led by our universities, which are one-party, reactionary institutions. Actually, their curriculum is why people are bad, how a lot of people of so-called color are victims, which is horrific nonsense.

Horowitz had already raised similar points in a book he wrote in 2006, The Shadow Party, with co-author Richard Poe, also a New York Times-bestselling author. The book detailed how billionaire George Soros, Hillary Clinton, and other radicals of the 1960s took over the Democratic Party and warped it into its current state.

Schumer, Pelosi, and the whole Democratic Party are guilty and they are destroying the fabric of our democracy, he said. We are now two nations, we cant even talk to each other.

One example he gave was on immigration.

Every time a Democrat says Republicans are anti-immigration they should wash out their mouth their soap. Dont insult my intelligence by saying that, Republicans are for legal immigration. Thats a good debate to have, but Democrats dont allow you to have that debate because theyre already calling you racist.
U.S. Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein on Aug. 30, 2018 in Washington. In an Aug. 27 opinion piece, Rosenstein warned that employees of Safe Injection Sites would be breaking the law and subject to prosecution. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

DOJ, San Francisco May Soon Square Off Over Public Drug-Injection Sites

The federal government and the city of San Francisco appear to be on a collision course over the operation of public facilities for the purpose of injecting illegal drugs, known as safe injection sites (SIS).

Mayor London Breed toured a mockup of an SISno injecting is taking place yetat its grand opening on Aug. 29. The site, called Safe Inside, is located in the Glide Memorial Church in the citys Tenderloin District. It remained open through Aug. 31 for the public to tour.

The facility will become operational if California Gov. Jerry Brown signs AB186. Passed by the state legislature on Aug. 29, the measure was written to authorize San Francisco to operate an SIS.

Given the views expressed by Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein in a New York Times opinion piece on Aug. 27, Fight Drug Abuse, Dont Subsidize It, an operational SIS will bring opposition from the Department of Justice.

In his article, Rosenstein called SIS a taxpayer-sponsored haven to shoot up, and said, cities and counties should expect the Department of Justice to meet the opening of any injection site with swift and aggressive action.

Rosenstein said that almost 64,000 Americans died of drug overdoses in 2016, a 54 percent increase since 2012. Injection sites, he wrote, are very dangerous and would only make the opioid crisis worse.

AB186, which is called Controlled Substances: Overdose Prevention Program, provides a long list of requirements for the city to meet to operate an SIS.

An SIS is required to be supervised by health care professionals; it must provide sterile consumption supplies and collect used needles; it must provide treatment to prevent fatal overdoses; and it must educate participants on the risks of contracting HIV and viral hepatitis.

Rosenstein said that safe injection site is a name used euphemistically. He said that drug addicts often had no idea what they bought from illegal drug dealers, and illicit fentanyl or one of its analogues can be up to 5,000 times more powerful than heroin.

One of the required conditions listed by AB186 for the operation of an SIS is to establish a good neighbor policy to address any neighborhood concerns and complaints.

Rosenstein cast doubt on whether an SIS could be a good neighbor. He quoted David Carson, a city council member in Redmond, Washington, who described his personal observations of a neighborhood near an SIS in Vancouver, Canada, as being just like a war zone.

Carson wrote about his observations after driving to Vancouver to observe the only operational SIS in North America. The situation, he wrote, was worse than what he had imagined.

Once the decision to allow open use of drugs has been made, the open selling of drugs will follow, Carson concluded.

Local activist groups against SIS have expressed disappointment that the DOJs Northern District of California isnt doing enough to stop the SIS, or the legalization of marijuana in California.

Some of the local groups have been sending letters directly to Attorney General Jeff Sessions, urging he take action against SISs.

The Epoch Times received a copy of a letter to Sessions written by Organization for Justice and Equality (OJE). The letter asked, please do not affirm the appointment of any local DOJ director if he/she refuses to enforce this momentous federal law [against SIS].

On Aug. 16, President Donald Trump picked David Anderson as the candidate for District Attorney of Northern District of California. In a telephone interview with The Epoch Times, Frank Lee, the president of OJE, welcomed the news and expressed his high hopes for DOJ under the new leadership, even as Andersons nomination is awaiting confirmation by the U.S. Senate.

AB186 grew out of a San Francisco Board of Supervisors resolution on Apr. 11, 2017, which charged the states Department of Public Health (DPH) with convening a Safe Injection Services Task Force, whose goal was to develop recommendations on the operation of SIS.

AB186 is intended to provide city employees with protection from legal liability in SIS operations. Rosenstein says that SIS operations are illegal, and violations would be punishable by up to 20 years in prison.
A highway sign for the city of San Bernardino, Calif. on July 17, 2012. (Frederic J. Brown/AFP/GettyImages)

Eight Shot at Apartment Complex in San Bernardino, California

LOS ANGELESEight people were shot at a San Bernardino, California apartment complex, including a 17-year-old boy who was in critical condition, police said on Monday.

Police in the Southern California city were unsure what motivated the shooting late on Nov. 2, in an outdoor common area where a group of people had gathered, said San Bernardino police spokesman Captain Richard Lawhead.

Police are bagging up evidence at the scene of the crime where 8 people were shot in San Bernardino at an apartment complex. @nbcla #nbcla pic.twitter.com/KGX1qL10us  Kim Tobin (@KimTobinNBCLA) September 3, 2018

Right now, nobody is cooperating and providing us with the information we need to help us locate a suspect or what led to the shooting or anything else, Lawhead said in a phone interview.

Two people, including the 17-year-old boy, were hospitalized in extremely critical condition, Lawhead said.

The conditions of the other six people were not immediately known. Victims were taken to three hospitals.

Police initially said 10 people had been hit by gunfire at the apartment complex, but Lawson later said a total of eight people had been shot. Police had initially received conflicting reports, he said.

The shooting happened during a hot holiday weekend in San Bernardino, a city of more than 216,000 residents about 60 miles east of Los Angeles.

San Bernardino police downgrade numbers from overnight shooting 8 people shot, 2 in extremely critical condition. One juvenile who is 17 was shot in the head. So far no deaths reported. No arrests made. pic.twitter.com/uxLaJjqEiG  Kim Tobin (@KimTobinNBCLA) September 3, 2018

San Bernardino was the scene of a 2015 mass shooting in which a husband and wife killed 14 people and wounded 22 others before police shot the couple to death. The couple was inspired by Islamic extremists, authorities said.

Related Coverage Alarming Number of Chicago Minors Shot or Killed in Wave of Shootings

There was no indication that Sundays gunfire was in any way connected to the 2015 shooting.

By Alex Dobuzinskis
Italians Come Before Ratings Agencies, Deputy PM Says

MARINA DI PIETRASANTA, ItalyItalys populist government will make a historic choice between what citizens need and what ratings agencies say should be done, the deputy prime minister said on Sept. 2, responding to Fitchs cutting the outlook on Italian debt.

Fitch on Aug. 31 changed the outlook on the worlds third-largest pile of state borrowing to negative from stable, citing concerns about the governments new and untested nature and its promises to hike spending.

Economy Minister Giovanni Tria responded reassuringly on Sept. 1 saying Italy would respect its European Union budget commitments with concrete policy choices in coming weeks.

But on Sept. 2 Deputy Prime Minister Luigi Di Maio, who is also leader of the 5-Star Movement, was less diplomatic, promising to follow through on his partys main campaign pledgea universal income for the poor.

In 2019 the universal income must get started, Di Maio said at a conference on the Tuscan coast. We have to put the financing in the budget so that at least 5 million impoverished Italians can get back to work.

Di Maio said unlike previous governments, the alliance made up of 5-Star and the far-right League party, which took office in June, would answer to citizens before ratings agencies.

We cant think about listening to the ratings agencies and reassuring the markets, and then stab Italians in the back, he said. Well always choose Italians first.

By the end of the month, Italy must unveil its growth and public finance targets, and its budget outline must be approved by the end of October.

The government has said it will seek budget leeway from Brussels, but relations have soured recently over immigration, with Di Maio even threatening to veto the blocs next seven-year budget if the EU does not should more of the burden.

Spread

Italys 2.3-trillion-euro debtequivalent to more than 130 percent of its domestic outputmakes the country vulnerable to changes in investors sentiment.

On Aug. 31, a government official said Italy could exceed the EUs budget ceiling next year if needed, driving short-dated bond yields to their highest levels in almost three months.

On Aug. 30, the gap between Italian and German bond yields reached its widest in just over five years.

In an interview with la Repubblica newspaper on Sept. 2, Tria repeated that Italy would honor its EU commitments, adding that once the government reforms and budget parameters are made public the spread will narrow.

On top of the universal income, the coalition government has said it wants to cut taxes, partially roll back a 2011 pension reform, head off an automatic VAT hike next year, and increase investments in public works.

But recent data have indicated that Italys economy, the euro zones third biggest, is slowing this year, further reducing the governments room to maneuver.

The government is walking on a tightrope, with a large debt load and high financing costs due to the recent increase of the BTP spread, which limits its room to maneuver, said Andrea Iannnelli, bond investment director at Fidelity International, in an emailed note.

By Silvia Ognibene
Flags of Europe flutter in front of the headquarters of the European Central Bank (ECB) in Frankfurt am Main, western Germany, on June 1, 2018. (Photo by Daniel ROLAND / AFP) (Photo credit should read DANIEL ROLAND/AFP/Getty Images)

Italy Could Be Shut out of ECBs Control Room After Draghi Era

Italy could soon find itself excluded from the heart of euro-area monetary policy for the first time in the currencys two-decade history.

European Central Bank President Mario Draghis eight-year term ends in October 2019 and his country has no automatic path to a seat on the Executive Board after that. Instead, its populist leaders must negotiate with the same European governments that theyve antagonized on issues including spending limits and immigration since coming to power in June.

The risk is that excluding the currencys third-largest economy, and a founding member of the European Union, from the body that originates monetary policy, would be seen as a snub by Italians. Some officials have already flirted with euro-skepticism and investors remain concerned that the administration might yet consider leaving the bloc, causing a full-blown financial crisis.

It would make it easier for populists to construct a narrative where they have no voice, the ECB is far away in Frankfurt, said Nick Kounis, an economist at ABN Amro Bank NV in Amsterdam. It would be all about perception.

While the ECBs 25-member Governing Council, including Italian Governor Ignazio Visco, ultimately decides on monetary policy, the six-member Executive Board makes proposals and sets the agenda. Bank of Italy officials privately admit that they are concerned by the prospect of an absence from that panel.

Draghis presidency since 2011 means its unlikely another Italian would replace him when his non-renewable term finishes. The neatest solution might be for Germany to get the presidency for the first time, German board member Sabine Lautenschlaeger to quit, and an Italian to take her place.

But Chancellor Angela Merkel is reportedly focusing on a senior EU political post for her country rather than pushing Bundesbank President Jens Weidmann for the ECB. Moreover, Italy might wince at Weidmann, a critic of the loose monetary policy relied upon by weaker economies.

Two other board positions become vacant next year, but each requires concessions from euro-area finance ministers, who make the appointments.

Belgiums Peter Praet steps down as chief economist in May. To win his seat, Italy would have to convince peers to allow two Italians on the board simultaneously for five months until Draghi leaves. That has only happened once before, for two months in 2011, when Draghi became president before Lorenzo Bini Smaghi succumbed to pressure to quit.

The next opportunity would be when Frances Benoit Coeure leaves on Dec. 31, 2019. But unless France clinches the presidency for an unprecedented second time, it would probably have a stronger claim.

Supervisory Role

Italy could otherwise be without a board seat for more than a year until Luxembourgs Yves Mersch goes in December 2020.

The government could choose accept that situation but push to lead the ECBs bank-supervision arm instead when Frances Daniele Nouy leaves on Dec. 31.

Unlike board posts though, the Single Supervisory Mechanism chair is nominated by the ECB, and its leaning toward a woman for the role. Irish Deputy Governor Sharon Donnery has applied and is widely considered the frontrunner. Italys Andrea Enria, chairman of the European Banking Authority, is said to be a candidate.

Large nations have gone without a board place before. Spain did so for more than five years until Luis de Guindos became vice president, and France had a 17-month hiatus before Jean-Claude Trichet became president. But Germany and Italy have never been absent.

If theres a chance to drag the ECB seat into the Italian political debate, politicians will, said Giovanni Orsina, professor of political history at Luiss University in Rome. There is a constant search for reasons to accuse the government, or excuses to absolve its failures.

By Alessandro Speciale
An international company's building is seen closed in Damascus, Syria Sep. 1, 2018. (Reuters/Omar Sanadiki)

Long Reach of US Sanctions Hits Syria Reconstruction

BEIRUTAs Syrian President Bashar al-Assad attempts to turn military success into postwar reconstruction, Western sanctions are a major obstacle that could scare off foreign companies.

Syria has suffered immense physical destruction, while millions of workers have fled, been conscripted or killed. A U.N. agency estimates the war has cost $388 billion.

Extensive reconstruction still looks far off. Assads allies Russia and Iran, as well as China, have made some investments in the country, but they cannot afford the cost of rebuilding and want other countries to share the burden.

Western countries say they will not approve reconstruction funding for Syria, or drop sanctions, without a political settlement. Meanwhile, sanctions are making it hard for foreign companies to work there.

Although some have managed to do business in Syria, the wide scope of the sanctions and broad U.S. powers to enforce them mean companies risk inadvertent breaches.

Most Western companies are steering clear. One that hopes for future work in Syria, German pipe manufacturer Ostendorf Kunststoffe, exhibited at an international trade fair in Damascus and is building relationships with potential customers.

However, it has not agreed on any contracts yet and its local representative, Nabil Moughrabie, based in Beirut, said the company was waiting for the political climate to clear.

We have obstacles. There isnt any direct shipping from Germany to Syria. There are Syrian banks that cannot receive any money from Europe, and European companies that are afraid to receive any more from Syria, he said.

Sanctions Extended

U.S. sanctions on Syria predate the crisis, but were extended after Assads crackdown on protests in 2011 and again as the country slid into war.

The sanctions have frozen the assets of the Syrian state and hundreds of companies and individuals, including government figures, military and security personnel and others accused of involvement in making or using chemical weapons.

They ban exports, sales or supply of services, along with any new investments, into Syria by any U.S. person. They also bar any dealings by U.S. persons in Syrian oil and hydrocarbon products or their import into the United States.

U.S. persons cannot finance or facilitate any transactions by foreigners that would fall under sanctions if done by Americans.

European Union sanctions were imposed in May 2011, for Syrias brutal repression and violation of human rights, and have been updated several times since.

They are not as sweeping as the U.S. sanctions, but are still extensive and include asset freezes, travel bans, trade restrictions, financial sanctions and an arms embargo.

They bar trade in items that could be used militarily or for repression, luxury goods, precious stones and metals and equipment or technology for some oil and gas sectors including exploration and production, refining and gas liquefaction.

The European sanctions also target Syrias electricity network, banning E.U. companies from building power plants, supplying turbines or financing such projects.

U.S. and E.U. sanctions include exceptions for humanitarian supplies, and for items needed by United Nations missions in Syria.

The E.U. also allows companies to carry out work in the energy and power sectors covered by contracts signed before the sanctions were imposed.

Sanctions Enforced

Its not for the faint hearted, said Anna Bradshaw, a partner at law firm Peters & Peters in London, who advises on sanctions.

U.S. rules pose a bigger risk to companies involved in Syria than E.U. ones, she said.

American authorities have pursued violations more assiduously than the E.U., where enforcement may be complicated by differences among its 28 states in how to interpret rules and penalties.

U.S. sanctions, besides being wider in scope, have a longer reach: American jurisdiction extends to the worldwide activities of all U.S. persons.

That term includes both American citizens and companies, as well as U.S. permanent residents and under some sanctions programsat present not including Syriaforeign subsidiaries of American firms.

In April, U.S. authorities arrested a Bulgarian man working for the Bulgarian office of a U.S. company in a Syrian-related sanctions case for which three Americans were jailed in December.

Washington does not only target U.S. sanctions violators. It can also blacklist foreign companies or people who help others to skirt sanctions  naming them as foreign sanctions evaders barred from most business with Americans.

Main Risks

Non-U.S. companies risk trouble if any part of a transaction involves Americans or American companies.

If you do something that causes someone else who is subject to U.S. jurisdiction to violate U.S. sanctions, then you are on the hook as well, said Bradshaw.

Even diligent companies might inadvertently fall foul of the asset freezes by dealing with a listed individual or entity in Syrias opaque business climate.

That risk has grown as Assad has consolidated control, Bradshaw said: The people who will be commissioning the reconstruction efforts and the people in charge are likely to be the very people targeted by financial sanctions.

The more you can demonstrate that your due diligence is reasonable, the better chance you have of persuading the authorities that they shouldnt pursue you, she said, warning it may not always be possible to spot that a counterparty is sanctioned.

Syrian Finance Minister Mamoun Hamdan told Reuters last week that the sanctions were unjust because they affected ordinary people as well as the government and army.

Despite the humanitarian exemptions, sanctions have hit Syrian healthcare, the World Health Organisations Syria representative Elizabeth Hoff said.

Sanctions affected procurement of some medicines by preventing transactions with foreign banks and stopping many international drug companies from dealing with Syria, she said.

By Angus McDowall
Microwave Weapons Eyed as Possible Source of Mystery Ailments for US Diplomats in Cuba

The source of a mystery illness that affected American and Canadian diplomats in Cuba and China strongly match known effects of microwave electromagnetic radiation, according to scientists.

Beatrice Golomb, professor of medicine at University of California San Diego School of Medicine, said she studied the reported illnesses and was able to match them to microwave electromagnetic radiation, also known as pulsed radiofrequency (RF/MW).

I looked at whats known about pulsed RF/MW in relation to diplomats experiences. Everything fits. The specifics of the varied sounds that the diplomats reported hearing during the apparent inciting episodes, such as chirping, ringing and buzzing, cohere in detail with known properties of so-called microwave hearing, also known as the Frey effect, Golomb said in a statement.

And the symptoms that emerged fit, including the dominance of sleep problems, headaches, and cognitive issues, as well as the distinctive prominence of auditory symptoms. Even objective findings reported on brain imaging fit with what has been reported for persons affected by RF/MW radiation.

Paper to Be Published, Other Scientists Weigh In

Golombs paper on the issue is scheduled to be published in Neural Computation on Sept. 15. It compares the described symptoms of the diplomats with a 2012 study of symptoms reported by people affected by electromagnetic radiation in Japan.

The cited symptoms in both cases are: headaches, cognitive problems, sleep issues, irritability, nervousness or anxiety, dizziness, and tinnitus (ringing in the ears).

A medical team examined 21 affected diplomats from Cuba and published a report in JAMA in March. Douglas Smith, director of the University of Pennsylvanias Center for Brain Injury and Repair and the reports lead author, told the New York Times that microwaves are now considered a main suspect behind the afflictions despite the report making no mention of microwaves.

Smith told CNN that ultrasound and infrasound are also being studied as potential causes of the illnesses as well.

Diplomats Get Sick

In November 2017, then-Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said that American diplomats in Havana had been victims of health attacks that left them with hearing loss, reported the Associated Press.

The Canadian government said that at least one Canadian diplomat in Cuba had also been treated for hearing loss.

We hold the Cuban authorities responsible for finding out who is carrying out these health attacks on not just our diplomats but, as youve seen now, there are other cases with other diplomats involved, Tillerson said.

The affected persons were late revealed to be numbered in the dozens, and include Canadian and American diplomats and family members in China as well.

Other officials, who were not named, said that the hearing loss appeared to have been caused by the deliberate use of some sort of sonic device operating outside the range of audible sound. The attacks were first reported in October 2016.

The United States now has a maximum of 18 staffers in Havana, and recently expelled 15 Cuban diplomats from America.

From NTD.tv
Maximilian Endler, the defendant's lawyer, answers questions outside the regional courthouse during the trial of Abdul D in the German western town of Landau on Sept. 3, 2018. (Andreas Arnold/AFP/Getty Images)

Migrant Sentenced to Prison in Germany for Murder of 15-Year-Old Ex-girlfriend

A migrant has been sentenced to 8 1/2 years in prison for killing his 15-year-old German ex-girlfriend.

The person, who is known only as Abdul D., owing to Germanys privacy rules, stabbed the girl at a drug store in the small southwestern town of Kandel, in December 2017.

The slaying shocked Germany and has fueled a debate about violence committed by migrants, more than a million of whom have entered the country since 2015.

Last month, the fatal stabbing of a 35-year-old man, reportedly by migrants from Syria and Iraq, in the city of Chemnitz, prompted protests from groups opposed to Germanys migration policies.

In March, an Afghan migrant, who was denied asylum in Germany, killed his girlfriend in the city of Flensburg for refusing to convert to Islam and wear a headscarf.

Related Coverage MS-13 Gangster Charged With Murder of Teen

On Sept. 1, there were protests in Kandel, with 350 people gathering, and in Chemnitz, where 11,000 anti-migrant and counter-protesters faced off.

Authorities havent confirmed Abdul D.s nationality or age, but German media have reported that he may be from Afghanistan and was on trial as a juvenile. He apparently entered the country in April 2016, according to a statement released in late 2017.

Entered Germany as a Minor

Abdul D. told authorities that he was 15 when the stabbing occurred, but German news agency DPA reported that an age evaluation during the trial found that he was at least 17.

Asylum-seekers who enter Germany as minors receive better treatment than those who are older, so some lie about their age. There are now calls for authorities to better assess the age of migrants when they enter the country.

The girl, who was identified only as Mia V. during the trial, had ended the relationship with Abdul D. some weeks before the slaying, DPA reported. They met at school and dated for several months, prosecutors said. Twelve days before she was stabbed, she went to the police to press charges, including threat and insult, against him.

During the trial, prosecutors said that Abdul D. wanted revenge. He stabbed the victim seven times with a kitchen knife on Dec. 27, 2017.

Appropriate Verdict

Defense lawyer Maximilian Endler told reporters outside the court that it was the right verdict.

It came after we all made every effort to shed light on the darkness of this crime, he said, according to Reuters. I think we were able to do that, as far as is possible in a criminal trial. And, as such, this is an appropriate verdict.

Endler had sought a sentence of 7 1/2 years in youth custody, but for manslaughter rather than murder, according to German court spokesman Robert Schelp. The public prosecutor called for the most severe juvenile punishment of 10 years for murder.

Endler said: The public prosecutor has assessed how much of the sentence must be served. There will at some point be a decision about that and then it may be that the conditions are met for deporting him back to his own country. That is if deportations to that country are being carried out at that time, which we do not know.

The migrant doesnt intend to appeal the verdict, DPA reported, citing Endler.

There have been regular demonstrations in Germany against Chancellor Angela Merkels liberal refugee policies.

After the protests in Chemnitz on Sept. 1, the widow of the man who was stabbed to death there told German media that he wouldnt have wanted the demonstrations.

Daniel would never have wanted it! Never! she said, adding that the protests were not about Daniel anymore.
Migrant Trips Across Mediterranean Fall, but Risks Rise

GENEVAPeople smugglers are taking greater risks to ferry their human cargo toward Europe as Libyas coast guard intercepts more and more boats carrying migrants, increasing the likelihood that those on board may die during the Mediterranean journeys, the U.N. refugee agency said Monday.

Thats one of the key findings from a new UNHCR report about efforts to reach Europe. The report, titled Desperate Journeys, said that even though the number of crossings and deaths has plunged compared to recent years, the voyage is more deadly in percentage terms for those who venture across.

It said that 2,276 people died last year while trying to cross, or one death for every 42 arrivals.

This year, its 1,095 deaths, or one out of every 18 arrivals. In June alone, the proportion hit one death for every seven arrivals.

On the Central Mediterranean route so far this year, there have been 10 separate incidents in which 50 or more people died  most after departing from Libya. Seven of those incidents have been since June alone, UNHCR said.

The reason the traffic has become more deadly is that the traffickers are taking more risk, because there is more surveillance exercised by the Libyan coast guards, said Vincent Cochetel, UNHCRs special envoy for the central Mediterranean. They are trying to cut the costs: It costs them more to keep those people here longer in their warehouses, under captivity.

Libyan authorities intercepted or rescued 18,400 people between August last year and July this yeara 38-percent increase from the same period of 2016 and 2017. Arrivals by sea from Libya to Europe plummeted 82 percent in those comparable periods, to 30,800 in the more recent one.

UNHCR says a growing worry these days is deaths on land by people trying to get to Libya in the first place, or getting stuck in squalid, overcrowded detention centers: Many get returned there after failing to cross by sea to Europe.

The problems after disembarkation (is that) those people are sent back to detention centers, and many disappear, Cochetel said. Many are sold to militias, and to traffickers, and people employing them without paying them.

He said the drop in departures means that traffickers attempt to monetize their investment, which means they have to exploit more people. That results in more cases of slavery, forced labor, prostitution of those people  because they (smugglers) want to make money on those people.

Would-be workers and migrants are still pouring into Libya: Some are fleeing injustice, abuse or autocrats in their home countries further south in Africa. Others are looking for work in the oil industry or agriculture.

I think you have more deaths on land, Cochetel said, referring to treks across the desert in Sudan, Algeria, Chad and Niger. Many people in Libya are reporting having seeing people dead in the desert on the way to Libya.

In Libya, instability continues even seven years after the fall of Moammar Gadhafi. French medical aid group Doctors Without Borders said Friday that fighting between rival militias in Tripoli, the capital, has endangered the lives of people trapped there and worsened humanitarian needsespecially at migrant detention centers.
Incoming Commander of Resolute Support forces and command of NATO forces in Afghanistan, U.S. Army General Scott Miller walks during a change of command ceremony in Resolute Support headquarters in Kabul, Afghanistan Sept. 2, 2018. (Reuters/Mohammad Ismail)

New US General Arrives in Afghanistan With Peace Still Distant

KABULU.S. Army General Scott Miller assumed command of NATO forces in Afghanistan on Sept. 2, arriving as Washington faces growing questions over its strategy to force the Taliban into talks to end the 17-year conflict.

Miller, former commander of the U.S. militarys Joint Special Operations Command, takes over at a time of mixed hope and fear for the Western-backed government in Kabul.

To be successful, we must continually learn and adapt to the enemy and the environment, Miller said at a change of command ceremony at the headquarters of the NATO-led Resolute Support mission in Kabul.

There is no room for status quo. We cannot afford to be complacent.

The United States is now a year into its strategy of stepping up pressure on the Taliban by increasing airstrikes and sending thousands more troops to train and advise Afghan forces, but clear signs of success have so far proved elusive.

Civilian casualties are running at record levels, there have been repeated attacks on major cities such as Kabul and Jalalabad and while the Taliban have not managed to take any major urban centers, they control large areas of the countryside.

In June, a report by the Pentagons Lead Inspector General offered a downbeat view, saying there was little publicly available evidence that actions to increase pressure on the Taliban were having a significant impact.

Afghan forces, meanwhile, are chronically understrength because of heavy casualties and high levels of desertion, and continue to face problems with organization and logistics that have long hampered their effectiveness.

Hopes of a breakthrough in achieving peace talks were raised by an unprecedented ceasefire over the Eid holiday in June but optimism was dampened by the insurgents dramatic assault on the city of Ghazni last month.

I believe that some of the Taliban want peace also but they are being encouraged to keep fighting, the outgoing commander Gen. John Nicholson said at the ceremony, urging the insurgents to listen to demands for peace from the Afghan people.

It is time for this war in Afghanistan to end, he said.

Longest War

Like Nicholson, Miller spent years in Afghanistan before assuming command of U.S. and coalition forces there and his career has followed the different stages of what is now Americas longest war.

He was among the first U.S. troops to arrive in 2001 as part of the campaign to topple the Taliban following the Sept. 11 attacks in the United States.

Almost a decade later, he served during the surge ordered by President Barack Obama, which saw more than 100,000 NATO troops in Afghanistan in a bid to crush the insurgency, as well as in 2013-14 as most international troops were withdrawn.

Washington has accepted that a purely military victory is not possible and has focused on forcing the Taliban to the negotiating table.

But increasingly questions are being asked about whether the strategy is working amid reports that President Donald Trump has grown impatient with the lack of clear progress.

By James Mackenzie
Report Released on Inmate Left to Die in Jail Cell

Nevada state authorities have released a 300-page report detailing how a 27-year-old woman held for overdue traffic tickets ended up dead in her jail cell.

According to the reports, Mineral County Jail personnel violated multiple policies when they denied the woman medical care, even though she informed them that she was withdrawing from addictive drugs and prone to seizures, the Reno Gazette-Journal reported.

The woman, Kelly Coltrain, eventually did have a seizurea fatal seizure. Despite being in a video-monitored cell, it took more than six hours for anyone to notice that she wasnt moving.

Then, when a Sheriffs deputy finally realized something was wrong, he didnt call for a medical team and didnt try to resuscitate the woman. He left her until morning.

In their report, state investigators opined that the Mineral County Sheriffs Office may have violated state laws prohibiting inhumane treatment of prisoners.

The case was submitted to Lyon County District Attorney Stephen Ryeit was not sent to the Mineral County prosecutor, to avoid potential conflict of interest.

District Attorney Rye declined to press charges, saying, The review of the case, in our opinion, did not establish any willful or malicious acts by jail staff that would justify the filing of charges under the requirements of the statute, according to the Gazette-Journal.

Medical distress

Kelly Coltrains mother, father, and grandmother filed a wrongful death lawsuit on Aug. 29.

In the filing, lawyers Terri Keyser-Cooper and Kerry Doyle wrote: Defendants knew Kelly Coltrain was in medical distress.

Coltrain had been in the cell for several days. She told her jailers that she was withdrawing from addictive drugs, and was prone to seizures while withdrawing. She refused food, and vomited repeatedly.

Her jailers gave her a mop and told her to clean up her mess. She died about an hour later.

Kelly Coltrains medical condition was treatable and her death preventable, the complaint further stated.

If Ms. Coltrain had received timely and appropriate medical care, she would not have died.

Kelly Coltrain suffered a protracted, extensive, painful, unnecessary death as a result of defendants failures.

Terri Keyser-Cooper, who has a long history of successful civil rights lawsuits against Northern Nevada police agencies, told the Gazette-Journal, that Coltrains case was the worst I have ever seen in 33 years. Ive never seen anything like this.

Mineral County Sheriff Randy Adams said he could not discuss details of an ongoing case, but that he had instituted an update of jail policy.

Obviously its terribly unfortunate and its tragic, Adams told the Gazette-Journal. Thats really all I can say.

Death Sentence for Traffic Tickets

Kelly Coltrain lived in Texas but traveled to Nevada to help celebrate her grandmothers 75th birthday.

Coltrain was pulled over for speeding on July 19, 2017, according to the investigation by the Nevada Division of Investigation, the Gazette-Journal reported.

Because she had other unpaid tickets on her record, the officer who stopped her took Coltrain to the Mineral County jail.

At first, Coltrain refused to answer questions about her next of kin or her medical history. However, when she was told that her bail would be higher than the cash she had available, Coltrain told mineral County Sheriffs Sergeant Jim Holland that she was dependent on drugs and had a history of seizures when she went through withdrawals, according to the state report.

Also, according to the states report, Deputy Ray Gulcynski told Coltrain, Unfortunately, since youre DTing (detoxifying), Im not going to take you over to the hospital right now just to get your fix.

Thats not the way detention works, unfortunately. You are incarcerated with us, so  you dont get to go to the hospital when you want. When we feel that your life is at risk then you will go.

On July 22, 2017, according to the report, Coltrain began vomiting, trembling and making short, convulsive type movements.

Around 5 p.m. on July 22, Sergeant Holland brought Coltrain food, a clean jail uniform, and a mop, and ordered her to clean her cell. Coltrain stayed in bed and moped as best she could. Sergeant Holland pointed out places she had missedshe tried to reach those spots.

Sergeant Holland said he considered Coltrain to be lazy but not sick.

The report stated, Sgt. Holland advised he thought Coltrain was just lazy and that she just didnt want to stand up to clean the floor.

Sgt. Holland advised he just wanted the floor to be cleaned and he didnt care how it got done, just that it got cleaned up.

Convulsions, Then Stillness

About an hour after Sergeant Holland left the cell, Coltrain can be seen on video going through continued convulsions for about half an hour. She stopped moving entirely at 6:26 p.m.

Coltrain lay in her cell until 12:30 a.m., when Deputy Ray Gulcynski came to move her to a different cell. He found her unresponsive. He nudged her with his boot, looked at her face, touched her arm, and left the cell.

He then returned and tried to find a pulse. He could not.

Coltrain lay in her cell until 5:48 a.m., when a Washoe County forensic technician arrived to deal with the body. Paramedics were never called, and no attempt was ever made to resuscitate Coltrain.

Also, jail policy requires jail personnel to physically check on inmates who are motionless under covers twice an hour.

In his report, state investigator Detective Damon Earl stated that had jail staff followed its own policies, the incident might not have ended so tragically.

There were a limited number of times where Coltrain had actual contact with the staff, Earl said in his report, according to the Gazette-Journal.

This may be significant because had more contact been made with Coltrain, indicators of Kellys medical condition may have been observed. These indicators may have alerted staff therefore prompting medical attention to be rendered to Coltrain.

Missing Video

According to the state report, the twenty-minute section of video, which included the time when Deputy Gulcynski found Coltrain unresponsive and tried to find a pulse, was removed from the video sent to the investigators.

The Sheriffs department was responsible for supplying the edited video to the state investigators.

The missing segment of video, which establishes when jail personnel first learned that Coltrain needed medical assistance, did not turn up until the civil lawsuit was filed.

The missing video was included in the evidence the state turned over to the two lawyers filing the civil suit.

From NTD.tv

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Father Kris Stubna walks to the sanctuary following a mass to celebrate the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary at St Paul Cathedral, the mother church of the Pittsburgh Diocese in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on Aug. 15, 2018. (Jeff Swensen/Getty Images)

Nebraska Catholic Diocese Hit by Sexual-Abuse, Misconduct Allegations

Allegations of sexual abuse have surfaced against Roman Catholic clergy in the Diocese of Lincoln in Nebraska, the latest in a series of scandals that have rocked the Catholic Church in the United States.

In the past few weeks, a number of accusers have come forward alleging sexual abuse and misconduct. According to the Associated Press, the conservative Nebraska diocese may be facing a criminal investigation.

Annual diocesan audits, meant to uncover sexual abuse, and conducted by the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) were refused by the Diocese of Lincoln between 2002 and 2015, as church leaders called them pointless. The Lincoln diocese was the only one in the United States that balked at the audits, which were a key reform enacted in the wake of the 2002 Boston clergy abuse scandal.

But one of the bishops during that period said he knew of at least two allegations against priests.

I think the closed nature of the diocese made this worse, Rachel Pokora, a member of the Catholic reformist group Call to Action, told AP. Even if the audits never revealed anythingand I think they probably would haveit still shows an unwillingness to be open.

In what appears to be a response attempting to show transparency and accountability, the diocese on Aug. 29 announced the addition of an anonymous hotline and website to assist persons in making reports of misconduct in Lincoln.

This hotline is not a substitute or alternative to calling law enforcement; it is intended to offer the maximum alternatives to make sure any wrong in the Church is uncovered and reported, Bishop James Conley said in the announcement.

Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson has called for more victims of sexual abuse by clergy or adults in positions of authority to come forward. In August on Twitter, he urged victims to please report any instances. The Nebraska attorney generals office has spoken with at least two accusers.

Meanwhile, Lincoln police are investigating a now-retired priest who was accused of having an emotionally inappropriate, non-sexual relationship with a 19-year-old male altar server that involved alcohol in 2017, church officials said.

Nebraskas attorney generals office and the USCCB didnt respond to a request for comment on the allegations by press time.

The allegations come after Pope Francis refused to comment about claims made by a former Vatican ambassador that he covered up sexual-abuse allegations against then-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick of the United States. In addition, a grand jury report from Pennsylvania found that more than 300 Catholic priests had abused more than 1,000 children since 1947 in six dioceses, including Pittsburgh.

The Lincoln diocese has refused to allow female altar servers, highlighting its reputation as one of the countrys most conservative districts, according to AP. Nearly all Catholic churches have removed their bans on female servers shortly after the Vatican lifted the restriction in 1994.
Teen Critical After Getting Sucked into Underground Drainpipe

A 15-year old boy from Louisville, Kentucky, is in critical condition after being sucked into an underground drainpipe.

Davey Albright, a sophomore at Trinity High School, was playing with his brother near a flooded ditch in his back yard on Aug. 31 when he fell into the fast-moving water.

A neighbor discussed the incident with Fox News. Its just unbelievableyou cant believe something like that is happening, said Melissa Stack. It just happened in the blink of an eye.

The culvert in question runs right through Stacks back yard.

Albright was sucked into an underground culvert at Tamarisk Parkway and Melissa Drive in Louisville. He was carried the length of the block and spat out in a neighbors back yard.

The teen was unresponsive and was not breathing when he exited the pipe.

Albright was rushed to Norton Childrens Hospital where he was resuscitated and remains in critical condition.

A show of support from neighbors is on the familys front door. Police say the 15-year-old was found unresponsive and not breathing. Hes in critical condition at the hospital. @WLKY pic.twitter.com/vlek7ESl6v  Tre Ward (@TreWardWLKY) September 1, 2018

Everybody wants to know how they can help, how hes doing, and just seeing what we can do to support mom in the mean time, Stack told Fox News.

Already, the door to Albrights hospital room has been plastered with get-well cards.

Melissa Stack says the open drainage pipes are a known hazard. Water rushes through them at high speed and pressure, and none of them have safety grates.

Its something that needs to be looked at, Stacks told Fox.

Obviously its an issue so we need to figure out what ways we can keep something like this from ever happening again.

Wiggling Finger in Manhole Cover Leads to Rescue

With many parts of the country seeing unusual amounts of rain this summer, the danger associated with drainage ditches and open culverts has come to the fore of issues in more than on community.

An 11-year-old boy was sucked into a storm drain in Harrison, Wisconsin, on Aug. 28.

This boy was also carried away underground, but was lucky enough to grab a ladder under a manhole cover some thirty feet downstream from where he went in.

The boy was able to breathe in the air pocket, despite the entire street being under six inches of water.

Even luckier, the local deputy fire chief who was leading the search for the child was standing on top of the manhole cover. He looked down and saw the boys finger protruding through the cover, and realized that he had found the missing child.

Saved Before Being Sucked In

In a similar incident in Jackson, Wisconsin, on Aug. 27, 9-year-old Gavin Moederndorfer-Quella almost got sucked into an open storm drain.

The boy fell into a drainage ditch on his street but luckily several people saw it happen. They grabbed and held him until, by chance, Jackson Police Officer Kyle Henning drove by and saw the struggling child.

Henning, with the help of the other bystanders, managed to yank the young boy out of the drain. But it was not easy. The suction of the rushing water was so great it took four adults to pull one child free.

Louisville wont be the only city where people are asking how to make the storm drain system safer.

From NTD.tv

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Robert Mueller, head of the Special Counsel investigation of Russian interference in the 2016 United States elections, leaves following a meeting in Washington on June 21, 2017. (Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images)

Commentary: Timing of Twin Convictions for Mueller Team Hardly Coincidental

On the same day in late AugustAug. 22, 2018two close associates of President Donald Trump were convicted in federal court: Paul Manafort by a jury and Michael Cohen through a negotiated plea.

The timing of these convictions is hardly coincidental. They no doubt involved a calculated decisionto create the illusion of momentum.

Prosecutors have much leeway in scheduling pleas (I know, because I was one). They knew the Manafort jury would be returning a verdict within an expectable period of time after being charged by the judge. It would not have been all that difficult to engineer the timing for maximum effect, an example of the tools of publicists being brought to bear on a prosecutorial setting, one where they do not belong.

Attorney Michael Cohen was essentially coerced into pleading guilty to those charges for which he had the most viable defense, but the team of special counsel Robert Mueller held over Cohens head other charges, including money launderingcharges for acts unrelated to the president and his campaign.

But unlike most prosecutors, Mueller was not looking to bring the top charges; he was looking at charges, which though of less importance, come closer to implicating the president. Thus, he created the appearance of a win in his investigation of Trump, while simultaneously keeping a hammer to extract useful testimony from Cohen.

It is worth noting that although Mueller has obtained a number of convictions, few fall within the scope of the mandate he received from the Department of Justice. Not that the true scope of the mandate has been revealed to the publicfor reasons that are bewildering, inexplicable, and violate the principles of transparency so highly touted throughout officialdom, the actual enabling document has been accorded Top Secret treatment.

As far as we know, Russian collusion is the subject matter of the special counsels work. But Augusts convictions, and those that came before, do little to further Muellers mission regarding the Trump campaigns supposed collusion with Russia. Other than, of course, encouraging Trump associates into providing derogatory information on their boss through the threat of extended prison sentences.

To charge Cohen for violating campaign finance laws by facilitating the payments to the two women allegedly involved with Trump is tenuous at best. The payments arguably served a dual purpose in that they protected, or were meant to protect, the presidents reputation, and also to avoid embarrassment to his family.

According to former Attorney General Michael Mukasey, if the payments served a dual purpose, one campaign-related and one not, then they were not a violation of campaign finance laws. Further, if it can be shown that such payments were made in the pastbefore the presidents involvement in political activitythen both Cohen and the president would be clearly exonerated of having violated campaign laws by making the payments to women with whom the president had been romantically involved (Trump denies the claims).

And the fact that the president used his own funds to make the payments corroborates the underlying purpose served by the paymentsthat purpose being not the advancement of his political campaign, but preserving familial relationships jeopardized by his alleged infidelity.

Additionally, only a tortured application of legal principles and the English language can result in a determination that a payment to a former lover, utilizing ones own funds, is deemed to constitute a violation of a campaign finance regulation. Certainly, in a world of normal principles and priorities, based on established and evolved concepts of morality, the issue would be the appropriateness of the underlying relationship itself, and not whether the use of ones own funds to avoid disclosure of the relationship violates an arcane and essentially unrelated law.

With regard to Manafort, Mueller apparently could not unearth any campaign-related activity, or actions that could be tenuously connected to the campaign itself. Presumably, unlike Cohen, Manafort did not choose to cooperate and throw his former boss under the bus. Thus, in all likelihood, Manafort did not have the option to plead to a lesser charge. And because he had been closely associated with Trump in the past, thus coming to the special counsels focused attention, he now faces spending the better part of the rest of his life in prison.

For both convicts, the next steps are the preparation of a pre-sentence report, followed by a formal sentencing. A reasonable prediction will be that Cohen will cooperate to the maximum extent possible, wanting to spend his remaining years with family and freedom. Manafort will probably receive a recommendation from prosecutors that amounts to a life sentence for the 67-year-old former campaign chief.

The one bright light for Manafort: trial Judge T. S. Elliss voiced suspicions about the motives behind the prosecution. Ellis will also be the sentencing judge, and there lies Manaforts only chance to avoid the harsh sentence the prosecutors will no doubt seek.

Epoch Times contributor Marc Ruskin is a 27-year veteran of the FBI, an adjunct professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, and the author of The Pretender: My Life Undercover for the FBI. He served on the legislative staff of U.S. Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan and as an assistant district attorney in Brooklyn, N.Y.

Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of The Epoch Times.
AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka speaks during a news conference at the U.S. Capitol in Washington on June 28, 2018. (Aaron P. Bernstein/Getty Images)

Trump Slams AFLCIO Chief Trumka Over Weekend Comments

President Donald Trump criticized the head of the largest U.S. group of unions on Sept. 3 over comments the AFLCIO president made in an interview aired on television a day earlier.

AFLCIO President Richard Trumka told Fox News Sunday on Sept. 2 that Trumps policies have done more to hurt workers than they have helped.

Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO, represented his union poorly on television this weekend, Trump wrote on Twitter. Some of the things he said were so against the working men and women of our country, and the success of the U.S. itself, that it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!

Richard Trumka, the head of the AFL-CIO, represented his union poorly on television this weekend. Some of the things he said were so against the working men and women of our country, and the success of the U.S. itself, that it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!  Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) September 3, 2018

Trumka had a few positive things to say about Trump, but concluded that Democrats support working people more than Republicans have.

To date, the things that he has done to hurt workers outpace what hes done to help workers, Trumka told Fox News. Overall, workers arent doing so well.

Trumka also doubted if the Trump administrations new trade deal with Mexico can be achieved without bringing in Canada. The AFLCIO boss said that NAFTA has had a devastating effect on Americas workers, but couldnt see how a renegotiated deal could move forward without Canada.

However, Trump has already announced that the United States and Mexico have reached a tentative trade deal that would replace the NAFTA deal. Senior administration officials explained that if Canada didnt join the deal by Aug. 31, the Trump administration would send a letter notifying Congress of a provisional deal with Mexico that is open for Canada to join.

Trumka is the face of big labor unions, as the AFLCIO represents more than 12 million active and retired workers. Trump jabbed at Trumka on Labor Day, hours after sending a message touting his administrations successes.

Happy Labor Day! Our country is doing better than ever before with unemployment setting record lows, Trump wrote on Twitter on Sept. 3. The U.S. has tremendous upside potential as we go about fixing some of the worst Trade Deals ever made by any country in the world. Big progress being made!
Kavanaugh to Take Center Stage at Supreme Court Nomination Hearings

Nearly two months after being nominated to the Supreme Court by President Donald Trump, Judge Brett Kavanaugh will take center stage on Sept. 4 as a series of confirmation hearings commence on Capitol Hill.

Barring a major surprise, the show will span 30 hours, starting with Kavanaughs opening statement and lawmakers comments on the first day, reaching an apex on the second day with 10 hours of questions, and wrapping up after witness statement on day three.

If confirmed, Kavanaugh would shift the nations top court to a solid conservative majority, imbuing the largely predictable hearings with historical significance. As a result, expect Democrats to mount a political-theatrics offensive while most Republicans seek to give the nominee some space to breathe.

Kavanaugh is no stranger to contentious confirmation hearings. His nomination to the Circuit Court of Appeals in 2013 was stalled for three years after Democrats blocked the confirmation.

The Process

The first day of the hearings, Sept. 4, is reserved for Kavanaughs opening statement as well as the statements of the Democratic and Republican lawmakers on the Senate Judiciary Committee.

The next day, senators will get to question Kavanaugh.

Democrats are likely to press Kavanaugh on how he would rule on cases related to abortion, gun rights, and presidential powers, among other issues. Hes been rehearsing his answers in mock sessions for weeks.

Republicans, most of whom are already set on voting for Kavanaugh, are expected to use their questions on topics that would help Kavanaugh make his case for confirmation.

If no major issues arise on Sept. 5 to merit a second day of questioning, Sept. 6 is reserved for outside witness statements, a session that rarely offers any surprises.

Usually, the judiciary committee will hold an open meeting within one week of the conclusion of the hearings to determine what recommendation to report to the full Senate. According to the Congressional Research Service, the committee practice is to recommend the nominee to the Senate, even if a majority opposes the confirmation.

Once the Senate receives the recommendation, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) will schedule a day and time for a floor debate and vote. McConnell has said that he expects to have a final vote on Kavanaugh before Oct. 1.

The Issues

Democrats are sure to highlight the fact that the White House blocked 102,000 pages of documents related to Kavanaughs work as White House staff secretary for President George W. Bush, whose lawyers combed through documents from that time and decided that 27,000 of them were protected under constitutional privilege.

The other 102,000 pages of documents related to Kavanaughs record werent turned over for other reasons. The committee has had access to more than 415,000 pages on Kavanaughs background, Bushs lawyer said in a letter.

The Kavanaugh team has already handed over more than a million pages of documents to the Senate Judiciary Committee, more than any other Supreme Court nominee in history, according to Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley (R-Iowa).

Democratic senators are expected to grill Kavanaugh on a range of ideologically divisive issues, looking to either pressure him into making a misstep or angling for an exchange that could provide media fodder.

Ideally, a Supreme Court hearing is used to examine the qualifications and character of a nominee. Its an opportunity to question the nominee about his or her jurisprudence, Grassley wrote in an editorial for USA Today. But this is Washington after all. With the cameras rolling and millions tuned in, some may try to turn this important evaluation into a political spectacle.

The Vote

The committee hearings will lead to a full Senate vote, where Republicans hold a single-vote majority.

Two Republican senators, Lisa Murkowski of Alaska and Susan Collins of Maine, were thought to be swing votes on the confirmation. But in a sign that they are preparing to vote with the other Republicans, both have recently backed their partys push to restrict the number of documents Kavanaugh would be required to produce.

Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) also briefly was counted as a swing vote after stating that he would keep an open mind about Kavanaugh. But, after meeting with the judge, Paul announced that he would be voting to confirm Kavanaugh.

Meanwhile, three Democratic senators are still considered swing votes. Sen. Heidi Heitkamp of (D-N.D.), Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.V.), and Sen. Joe Donnelly (D-Ind.) all voted to confirm Trumps previous Supreme Court nominee, Neil Gorsuch. All three senators are running for re-election in states Trump won in 2016 and may break from the party line again to improve their electoral standing.

Prior to 2017, a successful filibuster on Supreme Court nominations would force a 60-vote supermajority requirement. Republicans changed Senate rules in 2017 so that a Supreme Court nominee would require a simple majority to confirm. Senate Democrats first invoked the so-called nuclear option five years ago under then-Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.), eliminating the 60-vote threshold to break filibusters on most presidential nominees; Supreme Court nominations were excluded from that change.

Reuters contributed to this report.
Like any good German shepherd, my dog Bella sleeps with one eye and both ears open.

And so, when she went ballistic at 3:30 a.m. a few nights ago, I let her go outside to bark out the alarm. But up and awake, I stood in the doorway and listened as well.

I heard what sound like yips, mixed with whinnies and trills  more varied and musical than any mere coyote yapping or scream-in-the-night fox.

It was a screech owl  a creature of the night. Its a moonlit mysterious bird. But its also spread around the state, in forests and suburban backyards and city parks, both omnipresent and unseen.

They seem to be spreading out, said Patrick Comins, president of the Connecticut Audubon Society.

And in late summer, you might hear one.

They can be very noisy this time of year, said Ken Elkins, director of education at Audubon Connecticuts Bent of the River sanctuary in Southbury.

Oh yes, said Margaret Robbins, owner of the Wild Birds Unlimited store in Brookfield, when asked if shes heard a screech owl in August. We have one in our yard.

But be forewarned. Screech owls  correctly known here as the Eastern screech owl to differentiate it from its western cousins  neither screech nor hoot. They vocalize.

Theyre very talkative, said Karla Bloem, executive director of the International Owl Center in Minnesota.

The reason theyre so trilling now is because theyre establishing their territories.

Screech owls are monogamous. They mate in late winter and the females lay their eggs in early spring. While the chicks grow, the male does all the hunting while the female stays to guard the brood.

But once the young birds fledge, they have to move on. Screech owls talk now is all about saying: This place is mine.

Theyre kicking the kids out, Bloem said.

But once settled, they stay hidden.

Screech owls are totally nocturnal, sleeping during the day, hunting at night.

They live in tree cavities  old woodpecker nests, holes created as the tree decays. They never perch out in the open. And while square-built, theyre short compared to barred owls or great horned owls. Theyre about 8.5 inches tall, the size of a robin or a starling. They dont stand out.

They come in two shades  gray and rufous. But their speckled feathers camouflage them well.

Robbins said she once went on a dawn owl prowl at Bent of the River and hit the daily double.

We saw two screech owls  both the gray and the red phase, she said. It was cool.

The reason screech owls are so well dispersed in Connecticut is because theyre not particularly choosey about location. A tree cavity in the woods is nice. So is one in the burbs or a city park.

Likewise, theyre not picky eaters. They gulp mice and voles and chipmunks. They munch small birds. They nosh on frogs and salamanders. They feed the inner owl with bugs and worms. They live on whats available.

But theres one unanswered question. While screech owls are found all over the state, no one knows if theyre holding their own, or in decline.

They seem to be doing OK, Comins said. But its hard to know.

Thats because these small, nocturnal birds are hard to study. Theyre not out there like osprey or oystercatchers. They dont flit on sunlit branches like warblers, or live in colonies like chimney swifts or purple martins.

Chris Wood, a Woodbury resident who is a board member of the Connecticut Ornithological Association, is now studying years of data compiled by the Woodbury-Roxbury-New Milford summer bird count  Connecticuts June version of the National Audubon Societys Christmas bird count.

He said in June 2009, the count recorded 24 screech owls. In recent years, he said, those numbers have dropped to the single digits.

That could mean screech owls are declining. Or it could mean that the volunteers taking the count simply had a bad day. Or that the screech owls in the area have moved away. Or that there are fewer volunteers willing to get up at 4 a.m. to find owls.

I wouldnt draw any conclusions, Wood said.

Bloem, of the International Owl Center, said the same holds true for other places. Screech owls are spread out across the landscape. But numbers?

Theres very little data, Bloem said. I wouldnt believe it if anyone said they had good data.

Contact Robert Miller at earthmattersrgm@gmail.com
Bobcats are our states top-shelf predators. Stalking at dawn and dusk, they are largely solitary, largely silent, and hard to spot.

Robert Miller: Tufts of fur that fly from limb to limb at night

And, like true Nutmeggers, theyre becoming suburbanized. Short-tailed, stocky and speckled-coated, they may tread on big cat feet through the woods and brush lots and swamps. But they like our backyards as well.

That is one of the preliminary findings of the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protections ongoing study of the states one true wild cat.

Having attached GPS collars to 50 bobcats, they began tracking them. Rather than staying away from people, the DEEP has found the bobcats circle back to us.

We found most are returning to higher housing density, said DEEP wildlife biologist Jason Hawley, who is working on the study.

There is an obvious reason for this. Humans have created a landscape in the state thats amenable to all kinds of wildlife.

White-tailed deer like to browse along the edges of yards and chow down on the shrubbery. If black bears can knock over a garbage can for a meal, thats easy pickings for them. Eastern cottontails bunny-hop across our lawns. Wild turkeys wander through.

We fill backyard bird feeders that, in turn, fatten squirrels and chipmunks and mice. We have trees and stone walls for these scurriers to live in.

Everybody has a bird feeder in their yard, Hawley said.

Knowing this, bobcats have learned to dine at the all-you-can eat squirrel-and-rabbit buffet weve set for them.

Theyre prey stations, said wildlife biologist Laura Simon of our backyard eateries.

It makes sense, said Eileen Fielding, executive director of the Sharon Audubon Center, which offers bobcats the open space they also need. They will go where the calories are.

Its also part of a remarkable turnaround for bobcats in Connecticut.

When farmers deforested the state in the 19th century, there wasnt much woodland habitat left to protect the bobcats. They were also hunted and trapped and treated as varmints. In 1972, fearing their extirpation, the state declared them a protected fur-bearing mammal.

For the rest of the 20th century, bobcats lived mostly in the states northwest corner.

But Hawley said about 10-15 years ago, people started seeing bobcats throughout Connecticut and finding them dead as roadkill. Theyre now found in all of its eight counties.

Cathy Hagadorn, director of the Connecticut Audubon Societys Deer Pond Farm sanctuary in Sherman, said they are common enough there that one of its trails is named the Bobcat Trail.

We had a day this winter when we went out and looked for animal tracks, she said. It was a perfect day, with just a light covering of snow. On a log near the Bobcat Trail, there were perfect bobcat tracks.

But theyre not easily studied. They live alone  males and females only come together to mate and mothers will travel with their cubs until theyre grown and the next mating season arrives.

They can growl and caterwaul when the occasion demands it, but theyre mostly silent. They have large territories 10 to 20 square miles. They stalk their prey  waiting and watching and pouncing  rather than running things down. Theyre cats, not pack-loving, social canines.

Hawley said the DEEP has also found bobcats are the most successful hunters of white-tailed deer fawns. If you want fewer white-tailed deer in the state  and fewer blood meals those deer provide Lyme disease-spreading black-legged ticks in the fall  you should like bobcats.

Simon, who is a specialist in backyard biology, said that mother deer leave their fawns to sit alone in fields for hours. They are eminently pounce-able.

Theyre very easy prey, Simon said.

Hawley said the GPS collars were programmed to fall off the bobcats. But 15 had stopped sending signals. The DEEP is asking people who find those collars to please send them to the DEEP.

They still have data, he said.

The DEEP is also encouraging people who see bobcats to report them, either at deep.ctwildlife@ct.gov. or by using the iNaturalist app on your smart phone.

And while bobcats can take down a family house cat, Simon said they wont bother people.

Theyre looking for easy prey, she said.

Hagadorn of Deer Pond Farm said having bobcats in our midst also shows how humans are part of the states ecology.

When we put out bird feeders, were not just feeding the birds, she said. We also feeding squirrels and chipmunks. And they become food for red-tailed hawks and coyote and bobcat.

Contact Robert Miller at earthmattersrgm@gmail.com
Talks are now under way between U.S. House members who supported a farm bill with a work requirement for food stamp recipients and a handful of senators who passed a version of the bill without a work requirement.

Congress has until the end of September to get a new farm bill to President Donald Trumps desk before the existing one expires. While the bill is important to the agricultural community, the bulk of the spending goes to federal food assistance. The Houses bill passed with a requirement that able-bodied recipients without young children need to either work or train for 20 hours a week to qualify for food assistance. The Senates didnt.

Creighton University Economist Ernie Goss predicts House members of the committee tasked with merging the two bills will not get a work requirement in the final version.

I expect it to be tossed out, he said. Including a work requirement would increase that [workforce] participation rate but, because of Democrats, its very unlikely to include a work requirement.

Although he wasnt selected for the committee by Senate leadership, senior U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin appeared to leave the door open for a work requirement in an interview earlier this year.

There could be, but lets do it carefully, Durbin said. Over half the people who receive food stamps, or the SNAP program, are already working.

A poll conducted for the Foundation for Government Accountability showed broad support from voters on requiring aid recipients to work. Nationally, 82 percent of likely voters polled in April supported a work requirement for the able-bodied to get federal food assistance.

FGA Vice President of Research Jonathan Ingram said the requirement is not only popular with voters but its also popular with the president, who has warned that a farm bill lacking the work requirement could get vetoed.

The president has made it clear that moving people from welfare to work is one of his top priorities, Ingram said. With a record number of open jobs and a near-record high of able-bodied adults on food stamps, theres never been a better time to get them back to work with a common-sense reform that still accounts for our nations vulnerable.

Critics of the requirement said the bureaucratic red tape could result in errors that would force otherwise qualified recipients to go hungry.

Rep. Rodney Davis is the only congressman from Illinois who would be involved in the work requirement negotiations. Davis has said he supports the requirement. Others beside Davis, Republican Rep. John Shimkus and Democratic Rep. Cheri Bustos, were selected but only in narrowed capacities outside of the bills work requirement.
5 hours ago

Burning Mortgage Question: Should You Retire, Then Pay Off Your Mortgage?

A common question: Should you pay off your mortgage before you retire? A less common question: Should you retire, then pay off your mortgage? If you've hemmed and hawed over the benefits of paying off your mortgage versus keeping it, you're not alone.

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Minivan owner, driver face punishment for racetrack ride to Phuket

The driver of a speeding Phuket-bound minivan, together with the vehicles owner, will be summonsed and punished by provincial land transport officials after an online complaint by a passenger.

crimetransporttourismculture

By Bangkok Post

Monday 3 September 2018, 09:17AM

A dashboard speedometer shows a van driving at 130 km/h during a trip from Surat Thani to Phuket on Friday (Sug 31). Photo: Pimpaka Ritraksai / Facebook

Manop Sutthipong, the Surat Thani land transport office chief, said yesterday (Sept 2) that minivan owner Chanranong Boonjui and driver Watchayan Yongbangtrai will be ordered to the office.

The owner will be fined for violating public safety and failing to turn on the GPS device on the vehicle, while the driver will be suspended from the wheel for 30 days, the official said.

He did not give details of the punishment to be slapped on the owner, and did not address a further complaint that the ticket was overpriced.

The incident came to light in a post by Pimpaka Ritraksai on her Facebook account on Friday (Aug 31).

She and a companion had bought a minivan ticket from Phuket to Surat Thani for B200 each, she wrote. On her return journey on Friday, she had to pay B350 for each ticket  a 75% rise  at the terminal in Surat Thani.

Her travel companion asked the ticket seller about the different ticket price and the answer was that its different, Ms Pimpaka wrote.

During the journey back to the resort island, she continued, the driver drove dangerously fast. A picture posted on her account showed the dashboard speedometer at 130km/h.

He overtook one vehicle after another as if we were on a racing circuit, said Ms Pimpaka, who sat in the front compartment beside the driver. He drove so fast I did not dare close my eyes.

Foreigners sitting in the rear compartment told Watchayan to slow down for the safety of the passengers. The driver reportedly became angry and told them that if he drove slowly, they wouldnt get to Phuket till the next day. If they were scared, he said, they were free to get out of the van.

Surat Thani is about 280 kilometres from Phuket.

After the foreigners continued to complain about the minivans speed, Watchayan pulled over, walked around to open the passenger door and berated them.

You see. Thai people no worry, the driver tells them in the recorded video clip. Are you worried? Oh, my god...you okay?

Ms Pimpaka wrote that the incident was quite traumatic. I felt the pressure. I looked at the faces of the foreigners, they were scared, she wrote.

For me, at that point, it was like a nightmare, she added.

She posted another message yesterday to thank officials for taking action against the driver.

Read original story here.
Phuket shows strong at PropertyGuru Thailand Property Awards

BANGKOK: Thailands finest developers dazzled at the 13th annual PropertyGuru Thailand Property Awards 2018 held on Friday evening (Aug 31) at The Athenee Hotel, a Luxury Collection hotel, Bangkok.

propertyconstructioneconomics

By The Phuket News

Monday 3 September 2018, 04:41PM

Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi accepts the 2018 Thailand Real Estate Personality of the Year.

PropertyGuru Thailand Property Awards chairwoman Suphin Mechuchep presents the Best Developer award to AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited.

AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited wins seven awards at the PropertyGuru Thailand Property Awards 2018 including Best Developer.

The winners of the PropertyGuru Thailand Property Awards 2018 celebrate in Bangkok.

Leading the list of winners was AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited, which took home seven golden trophies and was crowned the Best Developer of the year.

Phuket put in a strong showing, with Phukets Boat Pattana Co Ltd winning the Best Boutique Developer award, besting All Inspire Development Public Company Limited, Altitude Development Co Ltd, Habitat Group Co Ltd and Mana Patanakarn Co Ltd, which were all Highly Commended in the category.

Botanica Luxury Villas by Botanica Luxury Phuket Co Ltd won Best Villa Development (Phuket) and Highly Commended recognition in the Best Housing Architectural Design (Resort) category.

Sheraton Phuket Grand Bay Resort by Apex Development Public Company Limited won Best Hotel Development, Best Hotel Architectural Design and Best Housing Landscape Architectural Design (Resort) awards

The Residences at Sheraton Phuket Grand Bay by Apex Development Public Company Limited won Best Condo Development (Phuket) and Highly Commended recognition in the Best Mixed Use Development category.

Mai Khao Beach Condotel by Thai Business Development Company Group and Utopia Naiharn by Utopia Naiharn Co Ltd both Highly Commended in the category, while in the Special Awards category, Mai Khao Beach Condotel by Thai Business Development Company Group won Highly Commended recognition for Best Universal Design Development.

Regarding the top accolade of the night, the independent panel of judges noted in their handing down of the awards, AP Thailand has been at the forefront of innovation and sustainability in real estate development for nearly three decades, offering 15 sub-brands to serve various segments, from lifestyle development to home office projects.

Over the years it has partnered and collaborated with foreign investment, brokerage, design, and property management firms to ensure the delivery of top-notch customer service and for its various corporate social responsibility (CSR) efforts to be implemented successfully.

In addition to receiving praise for CSR initiatives, this years Best Developer was recognised for its outstanding efforts in Sustainable Development, and also collected the new Special Recognition for Design and Construction.

Other big victors include former Best Developer titleholder Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC), earning six gongs out of seven nominations, including the new awards for Special Recognition for Customer Care and Special Recognition for Building Communities. MQDCs joint venture with One.Six Development for The Strand also received an award.

The judging panel wanted to acknowledge the potential growth of niche segments, allowing several other categories to debut this year, including Best Senior Living Development, Best Home Office Development, and Best Co Working Space Development.

In addition, the judges awarded the categories for Special Recognition for Community Retail, Special Recognition for Smart Home Development (two winners), and Special Recognition for Public Facility (three winners).

The events official charity partner presented the Raks Thai Special Recognition for Community Projects Award to Areeya Property Public Company Limited for promoting workers rights, CSR and sustainable development. It was one of two awards not chosen by the judging panel.

The other was for the 2018 Real Estate Personality of the Year, which was presented by the editors of PropertyGuru Property Report to a pioneer of larg- scale and master-planned mixed-use communities in the kingdom, Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi, Group CEO of Frasers Property Limited TCC Assets (Thailand).

Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi, youngest son of Thai billionaire Charoen Sirivadhanabhakdi, is behind 2017 two-time winner GoldenLand, the countrys first LEED platinum mixed-use building at Park Ventures Ecoplex, and the highly anticipated One Bangkok integrated complex.

Joined by more than 620 guests  the largest attendance in the awards history  the black-tie gala ceremony was keynoted by respected speaker Prayoth Benyasut, Deputy Permanent Secretary at the Office of the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Commerce.

Hari V. Krishnan, CEO of PropertyGuru Group, said, I am delighted to congratulate all the Winners and Highly Commended companies in Thailand. Year after year these developers have shown the spirit of ingenuity and tenacity to adapt and cater to consumers evolving needs, producing projects for niche segments like senior living and co-working spaces, and setting a standard of quality for the rest of their Asian neighbours.

Terry Blackburn, founder and Managing Director of the PropertuyGuru Asia Property Awards, said: The Thailand Property Awards remain the showcase event of the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards season. Nowhere else in Asia do we see such creativity, dedication to innovation and commitment to growth. Developers from everywhere in Southeast Asia look here to learn and to be inspired, which is why we will be returning in November to host our Grand Final in Bangkok for the first time.

In his welcoming remarks at the ceremony, Mr Blackburn, who launched the Asia Property Awards series 13 years ago and organised the first-ever Thailand Property Awards gala dinner in 2006, reiterated that whilst the awards programme has evolved, its core fundamentals have remained the same and it continues to be the gold standard in real estate.

He added that Thailand will be hosting the PropertyGuru Asia Property Awards Grand Final on Nov 9, marking the first time that it will be held in the country.

For the complete list of winners, see below.

For more information, email awards@propertyguru.com or visit the official website (click here.)

COMPLETE LIST OF WINNERS & HIGHLY COMMENDED

13th PropertyGuru Thailand Property Awards 2018

DEVELOPER AWARDS

Best Developer

WINNER: AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited

Best Boutique Developer

WINNER: Boat Pattana Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: All Inspire Development Public Company Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Altitude Development Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Mana Patanakarn Co., Ltd.

Special Recognition in CSR

WINNER: AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited

WINNER: Areeya Property Public Company Limited

WINNER: Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC)

Special Recognition in Sustainable Development

WINNER: AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited

WINNER: Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC)

Special Recognition for Customer Care

WINNER: Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC)

Special Recognition for Building Communities

WINNER: Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC)

WINNER: Utopia Development

Special Recognition for Design and Construction

WINNER: AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited

WINNER: Enrich States Co., Ltd.

WINNER: Magnolia Quality Development Corporation Limited (MQDC)

WINNER: Utopia Development

RESIDENTIAL DEVELOPMENT AWARDS

Best Ultra Luxury Condo Development (Bangkok)

WINNER: Vittorio Residence by AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Banyan Tree Residences Riverside Bangkok by Nirvana Daii PLC

Best Luxury Condo Development (Bangkok)

WINNER: The Reserve Sathorn by Pruksa Real Estate Public Company Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Park Origin Phayathai by Origin Property Public Company Limited

Best High End Condo Development (Bangkok)

WINNER: ONE9FIVE Asoke  Rama 9 by TC Development

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Altitude Samyan-Silom by Altitude Development Co.,Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Walden Asoke by Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

Best Affordable Condo Development (Bangkok)

WINNER: Chapter One Eco by Pruksa Real Estate Public Company Limited

Best Luxury Housing Development (Bangkok)

WINNER: Baan Issara Bangna by C.I.N. Estate Co., Ltd.

Best Housing Development (Bangkok)

WINNER: Astera Pride Rama II by V.M.P.C. Company Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: KUUN by ACE Estate Group Co., Ltd.

Best Residential Development (Chiang Mai)

WINNER: Hilltania by SomsriWangtongkum Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The 8 Condominium by The 8 Estate Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Prominence Proud by Regal Asset Company Limited

Best Villa Development (Phuket)

WINNER: Botanica Luxury Villas by Botanica Luxury Phuket Co., Ltd

Best Condo Development (Phuket)

WINNER: The Residences at Sheraton Phuket Grand Bay by Apex Development Public Company Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Mai Khao Beach Condotel by Thai Business Development Company Group

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Utopia Naiharn by Utopia Naiharn Co., LTD.

Best Villa Development (Samui)

WINNER: Verano Residence by Samui Be One Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Ariya Residences by Ariya Samui Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Samui Green Cottages by Neo Estate Corporations Co., Ltd

Best Housing Development (Eastern Seaboard)

WINNER: Patta Prime by Patta Development Co., Ltd.

Best Villa Development (Eastern Seaboard)

WINNER: Sunplay Pool Villas Bangsaray by Sunplay Asia Limited

Best Condo Development (Eastern Seaboard)

WINNER: The Riviera Wongamat Beach by The Riviera Group

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Sunplay The Heights Bangsaray by Sunplay Asia Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Riviera Jomtien by The Riviera Group

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Wyndham Atlas Wongamat Pattaya by Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

Best Residential Development (Hua Hin)

WINNER: Falcon Hill by Falcon Hill Development Limited.

Best Senior Living Development

WINNER: Jin Wellbeing County by Premiere Home Health Care Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Sunplay Bangsaray by Sunplay Asia Limited

COMMERCIAL DEVELOPMENT AWARDS

Best Home Office Development

WINNER: Prove Kaset-Nawamin by Altitude Development Co., Ltd.

Best Retail Development

WINNER:Central Embassy by Central Group

Best Hotel Development

WINNER: Sheraton Phuket Grand Bay Resort by Apex Development Public Company Limited

Best Mixed Use Development

WINNER: Thew Talay Estate Cha Am  Hua Hin by Issara United Co., Ltd. & Issara United Development Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Residences at Sheraton Phuket Grand Bay by Apex Development Public Company Limited

Best Co Working Space Development

WINNER: Spaces Chamchuri Square by Spaces

Special Recognition for Community Retail

WINNER: Summer Hill by Boutique Prakhanong 1 Ltd., subsidiary of Boutique Corporation Public Company Limited.

Special Recognition for Smart Home Development

WINNER: KUUN by ACE Estate Group Co., Ltd.

WINNER: Park Origin Phayathai by Origin Property Public Company Limited

DESIGN AWARDS

Best Luxury Condo Architectural Design (Bangkok)

WINNER: The Strand by One.Six Development and Magnolia Quality Development Corporation

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Park Origin Phayathai by Origin Property Public Company Limited

Best High End Condo Architectural Design (Bangkok)

WINNER: ONE9FIVE Asoke  Rama 9 by TC Development

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Altitude Samyan-Silom by Altitude Development Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Walden Asoke by Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

Best Affordable Condo Architectural Design (Bangkok)

WINNER:The Cuvee by Chaopraya Mahanakorn Public Company Limited.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: UNiO H Tiwanon by Helix Co., Ltd

Best Condo Interior Design (Bangkok)

WINNER: Vittorio residence by AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: ONE9FIVE Asoke  Rama 9 by TC Development

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Cuvee by Chaopraya Mahanakorn Public Company Limited.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Strand by One.Six Development and Magnolia Quality Development Corporation

Best Condo Landscape Architectural Design (Bangkok)

WINNER: ONE9FIVE Asoke  Rama 9 by TC Development

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Park Origin Phayathai by Origin Property Public Company Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: UNIO Sukhumvit 72 by Helix Co., Ltd.

Best Housing Architectural Design (Bangkok)

WINNER: KUUN by ACE Estate Group Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: LEROY Ruamrudee by Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Mastery Phaholyothin24 by Altitude Development Co., Ltd.

Best Housing Interior Design

WINNER: LEROY Ruamrudee by Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: KUUN by ACE Estate Group Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Marui Sothorn 4 by Maruay RealEstate Co., Ltd.

Best Housing Landscape Architectural Design (Bangkok)

WINNER: KUUN by ACE Estate Group Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: LEROY Ruamrudee by Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

Best Condo Architectural Design (Resort)

WINNER: Sunplay The Heights Bangsaray by Sunplay Asia Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Cayla Private Urban Tropical Residence by Cayla Private Equity Co.,Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Wyndham Atlas Wongamat Pattaya by Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

Best Condo Interior Design (Resort)

WINNER: Wyndham Atlas Wongamat Pattaya by Habitat Group Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Cayla Private Urban Tropical Residence by Cayla Private Equity Co., Ltd

Best Condo Landscape Architectural Design (Resort)

WINNER: Cayla Private Urban Tropical Residence by Cayla Private Equity Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Riviera Wongamat Beach by The Riviera Group

Best Luxury Housing Architectural Design (Resort)

WINNER: The Residences at Sheraton Phuket Grand Bay by Apex Development Public Company Limited

Best Housing Architectural Design (Resort)

WINNER: MU-Samui by Neo Estate Corporations Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Ariya Residences by Ariya Samui Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Botanica Luxury Villas by Botanica Luxury Phuket Co., Ltd

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Kalessan Villa by Neo Estate Corporations Co., Ltd

Best Housing Landscape Architectural Design (Resort)

WINNER: The Residences at Sheraton Phuket Grand Bay by Apex Development Public Company Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Ariya Residences by Ariya Samui Co., Ltd

Best Home Office Architectural Design

WINNER: Prove Kaset-Nawamin by Altitude Development Co., Ltd.

Best Retail Architectural Design

WINNER: Central Embassy by Central Group

Best Hotel Architectural Design

WINNER: Sheraton Phuket Grand Bay Resort by Apex Development Public Company Limited

BEST OF THAILAND AWARDS

Best Condo Development (Thailand)

WINNER: Vittorio Residence by AP (Thailand) Public Company Limited

Best Housing Development (Thailand)

WINNER: Baan Issara Bangna by C.I.N. Estate Co., Ltd.

SPECIAL AWARDS

Best Universal Design Development

WINNER: Central Embassy by Central Group

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Jin Wellbeing County by Premiere Home Health Care Co., Ltd.

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Mai Khao Beach Condotel by Thai Business Development Company Group

HIGHLY COMMENDED: Sunplay Pool Villas Bangsaray by Sunplay Asia Limited

HIGHLY COMMENDED: The Riviera Wongamat Beach by The Riviera Group

Raks Thai Special Recognition for Community Projects Award

WINNER: Areeya Property Public Company Limited

Special Recognition for Public Facility

WINNER: Chulalongkorn University Centenary Park

WINNER: Metro Forest Learning Center by PTT Public Company Limited

WINNER: TCDC (Thailand Creative & Design Centre) by Creative Economy Agency (Public Organisation)

PUBLISHERS CHOICE

Thailand Real Estate Personality of the Year

WINNER: Panote Sirivadhanabhakdi, Group CEO, Frasers Property Limited & TCC Assets (Thailand)
Sex worker influx leaves Taiwan mulling Thai visa restrictions

BANGKOK: Taiwan is considering driving down visa-free entries for Thais from six times to twice a year after the number of Thai women discovered working in the sex trade in the territory jumped during the visa waiver programs introduction two years ago.

immigrationcrimesex

By Bangkok Post

Monday 3 September 2018, 09:38AM

Thai women caught working in the sex trade by Taiwan authorities are seen at the National Immigration Agency. Photo: Taiwan Central News Agency via Bangkok Post

According to the Taiwan News website, Minister Without Portfolio Chang Jing-sen convened a cross-departmental meeting on Aug 31 to review visa policy with regard to Thailand, the Philippines and Brunei.

The report said that the number of arrivals from the three countries to Taiwan jumped by 410,000 over the past two years and that there were more cases of sex work reportedly involving those nationals.

Taiwan media reported in April a Thai national who had visited Taiwan multiple times to provide sex services in the country had tested positive for HIV, possibly infecting hundreds of clients, according to local police.

To address the matter, Mr Chang said the government is considering reducing the number of visa-free visits for individuals from those nations.

The stiffened measures are likely to be enforced on Aug 1 next year if given the nod from by parliament, according to Radio Taiwan International.

Citing immigration authority figures, the website said 309 Thai women were found to have provided sex services in Taiwan last year, a big jump from 18 the year before. Only three Thai women committed such an offence there in 2015.

In June, Taiwan decided to extend the trial period for the visa-free privileges from Aug 1 this year to July 31 next year, but reduced each stay to a maximum of 14 days, as opposed to 30 days when the program started in 2016.

Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Busadee Santipitaks said, Taiwan has the right to grant the visa or impose the number of days for it, while a source at the Thai labour ministry said officers are keeping track of the reports.

The source said Taiwanese authorities are in the process of considering reducing the number of visa-free entries as part of measures to tackle an upturn in prostitution offences committed by travellers from Asean countries.

The proposal may have been raised by the Taiwanese foreign ministry but it has not yet been officially announced, the source said, adding there is still no information when the measure will be forwarded to the parliament for consideration.

Meanwhile, Chotika Chotsirimethakorn, a sales executive at Mira Travel Agency, said she did not think the visa policy change will have a significant impact on the number of Thais travelling to Taiwan.

According to the news, the visa-free entry for Thais will not be completely abolished, and there are very few genuine tourists who would wish to visit Taiwan more than two times a year anyway, she said.

However, if Taiwan was to completely stop offering visa-free entry to Thai passport holders, she said the impact could be huge as Taiwan is now the fourth most visited destinations in Asia by Thai tourists, after Japan, South Korea and Hong Kong.

The number of Thais travelling to Taiwan could drop by 50% if Taiwan follows through with its plan to end the program, she said.

A well-informed Thai source, who has been living in Taiwan for more than a decade, told the Bangkok Post that in addition to the problem of prostitution, she has seen many Thai workers in the country fall into illegal drug habits, which also spread to local communities.

This is one of the reasons that, presently, foreign workers in Taiwan are very closely monitored by the state, according to the source.

The decision to alter the terms of entry for Asean nationals may also have been politically motivated, the source said.

Last Tuesday (Aug 28), Thailand announced a new policy stipulating that Taiwanese people who wish to visit Thailand can only apply for visas via a single agency authorised by the Thai government which charges about B500 more than the present channels for granting entry.

Many Taiwanese people were upset with this, the source said.

This move also drove the Taiwanese opposition party to attack the one-sided nature of the current travel arrangements between the two countries.

Although Thailand officials quickly moved to scrap the policy the following day, saying the visa system would remain unchanged, it may have prompted the Taiwan government to rethink visa-free entry for Thais, the source said.

Read original story here.
Challenger Learning Center, MARK II Voyager coming to Watertown

Watertown has been chosen to home the first Challenger Learning Center and MARK II Voyager scaled solar in South Dakota.


Wheelchair accessibility on college campuses still has much room for improvement. We investigated two major universities: Harvard and the University of Washington. Both universities champion diversity and inclusion, and so we wanted to know how well they were doing when it came to disabled students, specifically those who use wheelchairs.

Disabled Students Cannot Browse Campus Libraries

The heart of a university is contained in its library. However, for wheelchair bound students, browsing the libraries at both the UW and Harvard (and these are just two that we sampled) is not possible. According to the American Library Association's website, "The minimum required space between the stacks for wheelchair access is 36 inches. The space that is preferred  and this word makes the difference -- is 42 inches "

Despite the criteria specified in the Americans with Disabilities Act, both campuses have numerous book aisles less than the required 36", let alone the preferred width of 42". Some of the library aisles at both Harvard and the UW are so narrow, they stretch a mere 28" wide, making it impossible for anyone with a wheelchair to move through them.

Disabled students need a minimum of 36" of space to move through an aisle way according to law, with the preferred with of 42". Anything short of 36" fails in ADA compliance, and anything narrower than 32" is outright physically inaccessible.

We visited the office of the vice provost and dean and tried to speak to the dean of libraries at the UW but their office staff would only give us an email address, and when we reached out via email, a communications officer replied to our inquiry stating, "Upon request, library staff in all units will assist with the retrieval of books and with the use of electronic and other bibliographic resources. Time needed for retrieval will vary depending on staff availability. The Disability Services Office will work with a student on a case by case basis as needed for their research or specific course access needs."

While we understand that books higher up in the shelves will require assistance for a student in a wheelchair, the very act of being able to browse stacks is inhibited by narrow aisle widths, making it impossible for these students. For disabled students, being able to simply browse through a library like anyone else is an experience that should be part of their college life, and this kind of inaccessibility falls short of full inclusion.

Ironically, the University of Washington was having a disability rights exhibit in its main library at the time of our investigation where numerous aisles are too narrow for wheelchair access The simple act of browsing through a campus library is off limits to students in wheelchairs.

But why do so many campuses lag behind in wheelchair accessibility, especially when they go so far forward with gender identify inclusion, even installing non-binary gender restrooms? The reason, according to Hank Falstad, an architect and CEO of ACCESS, an ADA compliance company, is cost.

"As an ADA architect for the past 23 years, I have come to the conclusion that building owners, that includes universities, do not want to spend their money on ADA compliance. However, being that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) is of Federal Civil Rights Law, that ADA decision is put in the hands of a Federal Judge."

ACCESS works alongside the Department of Justice, specializing as architects to bring organizations' buildings and sites into ADA compliance. Colleges have a long ways to go. When it comes to inclusion, university campuses champion themselves as being on the forefront, however implementing inclusion for gender and racial issues is much cheaper than it is to implement inclusion for the disabled, which requires expensive modifications to buildings. This is the primary reason that in the realm of "inclusiveness" the disabled are often the last group of people to be fully welcomed. But does that make it any less important?

Freya Pitts, an attorney for Disability Rights Advocates agrees that colleges are lagging. "Yes, there is much room for improvement in terms of accessibility on college campuses. In fact, DRA is currently litigating a case in federal court in New York, WILC v. SUNY Purchase, that focuses on exactly this  a college that fails to provide students and visitors with equal access because of the widespread barriers across campus." Our investigation of the UW and Harvard is only a small sample of a larger, more widespread issue on our campuses. " Students on campus trying to navigate between dorms, classrooms, parking lots, and other on-campus destinations run into uneven and crumbling pavement, missing curb cuts, dangerously steep slopes, broken down elevators, and woefully insufficient signage for accessible routes, especially routes around construction areas," Freya told us. "Instead of being able to focus on just being college students, students with mobility disabilities on this campus must always be planning how they will navigate around these obstacles and get where they need to go.

A Wheelchair Tour Across Campus

At the University of Washington, we approached the campus from the perspective of a wheelchair bound student, and simulated how easily we could navigate the campus. We quickly found that trying to get from one side of the campus to another was wrought with confusion and obstacles blocking our path. For several buildings, it was not obvious where the wheelchair entrance was. There was a significant lack of signs around buildings instructing people in chairs where to go to enter. In some instances, we followed pathways that terminated at stairways, giving us a complete dead end. In another instance, we accessed a group of buildings by the architectural center, and there was a sign containing a map out front illustrating the wheelchair accessible pathways and building entrances, however the sign was so worn out, parts of it were illegible. The main hub of the campus called "the red square", a vast area leading to numerous buildings has a single ramp to the south end which is obstructed by a lamp post, forcing wheelchairs to roll over vegetation.

Going across the UW campus from north to south, we encountered several navigational difficulties, specifically frequent stairways without any side ramps. A large number of buildings were fronted with stairways without any visible ramps, nor any signage telling someone in a wheelchair which direction to go. For example, when approaching the Department of Applied Mathematics building, we were completely uncertain how to get inside as the main entrance has a ramp-free stairway leading to the front door. There was no sign in front telling us where to go, and had to hunt around the sides of the building where we eventually found an access point in the back.

It's very easy to get lost, pathways leading to large stairways like this with no ramps anywhere nearby. In this case, those in wheelchairs must go back to the Red Square (main campus area), and go all the way around to the other side and then back in order to reach the top of these stairs- a significant distance.

Minimum Compliance Vs Full Inclusion

Many in the disabled community see "ADA Compliance" and full inclusion as different entities. For example, even though the University of Washington indeed does have a wheelchair entrance for every building, and even though there is at least one working pathway a wheelchair can use to navigate the campus, this doesn't mean that the campus is "wheelchair friendly". An organization can comply with the ADA on the bare minimum, but in reality the bare minimum often falls short of full inclusion. Imagine a large college campus with hundreds of pathways spanning all over the place, from building to building. Many pathways contain shortcuts from one building to the next, allowing students to quickly get to where they want to go. Now imagine that among these hundreds of pathways, only one exists that is wheelchair friendly. Just one. The student in the wheelchair has to go the long route. Just to get from point A to point B, a mere 100 yards for everyone else, the wheelchair student has to travel 5 times the distance because 99% of every pathway on campus is inaccessible. The wheelchair bound students endure anxiety and stress simply trying to get to their destination, something other students do not deal with. And yet the college calls itself "ADA Compliant". Yes, it may be legally compliant, but that doesn't mean it is fully inclusive.

Universities need to provide equal access for students with all types of disabilities. This doesn't mean colleges aren't making an effort, however. Ian Ruder, Editor of New Mobility Magazine with the United Spinal Association and a former disabled student himself told us, "On every campus in America you can find a number of accessibility problems that are in violation of the ADA. Addressing these is a must, but a proactive attitude and a general willingness on behalf of the administration and the university to address disability obstacles in an open and efficient manner is even more important. This means that for many disabled students, it is the willingness of a university to address accessibility problems that counts more than the existing obstacles themselves.
Guns N' Roses haven't written any original material yet

Speaking to Audacy, axe-slayer Slash said: As far as new Guns is concerned, we havent even gotten to that point of really in earnest sitting down an
OTTAWAU.S. President Donald Trumps threat to leave Canada out of a new NAFTA deal heightened tensions and capped an already dramatic week of negotiations, but some experts say the threat isnt quite as direct as it seems.

On Saturday, Trump threatened to go it alone with Mexico on a revised agreement or to terminate NAFTA entirely.

There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal, he tweeted, while on his way to play golf. If we dont make a fair deal for the U.S. after decades of abuse, Canada will be out. Congress should not interfere w/ these negotiations or I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely & we will be far better off.

Read more:

Donald Trump threatens to terminate NAFTA if Congress stands up for Canada

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With memories fresh from U.S. tariffs on steel and aluminum, Canadian officials are mindful that Trumps threats arent all bluster.

But experts say it wont be quite that easy to cut Canada out of a revised North American Free Trade Agreement.

For starters, Congress has a critical say on trade agreements, noted Toronto-based international trade lawyer Lawrence Herman.

Trump has no authority from Congress to end NAFTA and do a bilateral deal with Mexico as he threatens. I suspect lots of political pushback and, importantly, legal challenges to any such attempt, Herman said on Twitter.

U.S. trade lawyer Dan Ujczo said he doesnt see a procedural barrier to going forward with Mexico alone, but he does think political considerations would scuttle such a move.

The issue is whether Congress will stand up to the president, Ujczo said in an interview Sunday. Its a political question, not a procedural question. At the end of the day, it will be up to Congress to decide whether we can proceed with a bilateral deal as opposed to a trilateral.

Aside from the procedural questions, including a six-month notice requirement, Trump would also certainly face a backlash from members of Congress, state governors and U.S. business leaders whose constituencies and companies would pay an economic price if Canada  Americas largest goods export market in 2017  were left out.

Even before trade negotiations got underway, Ottawa had begun a concerted strategy to reach out to U.S. stakeholders to drive home the benefits of Canada-U.S. trade and what it meant economically to their individual districts.

Thats helped build valuable allies.

On Friday, Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, issued a statement stressing that a revised NAFTA must include all three countries.

NAFTAs many strengths rest on the fact that it ties together three economically vibrant nations, drawing upon each of our strengths to boost the competitiveness of the whole. If you break off one member of this agreement, you break it all, and that would be bad news for U.S. businesses, for American jobs, and for economic growth, Donohue said.

He warned that unless the new deal is a trilateral one, it wont get congressional backing or the support of the business community.

In the view of the Canadians, this gives them leverage at the bargaining table, an assessment backed by Ujczo.

Right now, the U.S. has the negotiating leverage in the negotiating room but Canada has the leverage in terms of Congress, the business community and the general U.S. public, but that balance will not last forever, Ujczo said.

Ujczo said the real test of the presidents trade policy lies not with Trump but rather with his base of support.

I think the real question is where is Trumps base on Canada, he said.

I can say as someone who lives in Ohio, I dont think for the time being theres a great deal of support to proceed with a deal absent Canada, he said.

But he cautioned that the issues that appear to be sticking points in Canada-U.S. discussions  Canadas supply management system, dispute settlement and cultural protections  arent likely to find many defenders south of the border.

In the meantime, while Trump continues to churn the waters, Ujczo notes that these threats and theatrics are part of his negotiating tactics.

Dont underestimate the strategy of good cop, not-so-good cop and bad cop, he said. Others can decide who falls into what category.

Its all part of the presidents no-compromise bargaining style, as he bluntly stated in private comments revealed by the Stars Daniel Dale on Friday.

In an off-the-record conversation with Bloomberg journalists, leaked to Dale by a source, Trump said that any deal with Canada would be totally on our terms.

Trump grumbled about Canada on social media on Saturday, reprising views that the northern neighbour had been taking advantage of the U.S. for many years and that NAFTA was one of the worst trade deals ever that cost the U.S. thousands of businesses and millions of jobs.

We were far better off before NAFTA  should never have been signed  We make new deal or go back to pre-NAFTA! Trump said on Twitter.

Trumps comments ignore data that shows U.S. exports in goods and services have soared since NAFTA was signed. The U.S. Trade Representatives Office says that U.S. exports to Canada are up 181 per cent from 1993 and U.S. exports of services to Canada are up from pre-NAFTA levels by some 243 per cent.

For now, the Canadians are insisting they wont be rattled by Trumps Saturday warning that Canada could be left out of a revised North American Free Trade Agreement.

And as they prepare to resume negotiations Wednesday, they say they are optimistic. Driving that optimism was agreement on auto content that would favour Canada and the United States because of their higher-wage workers, making it less appealing for manufacturers to move production to Mexico. While that was part of the preliminary deal reached by Mexico and the U.S., it follows on proposals made by Canada earlier in the talks.

If implemented it would be very progressive for Canadian workers and Canadian labour. It was important for the United States and Mexico to get that work done, said one official familiar with the discussions.

We continue to work, we continue to talk, we continue to make progress. But for the government of Canada to sign an agreement, it needs to be in the best interests of Canada and Canadians, the official said.

At this key time, Canada cannot let up on its targeted cultivation of U.S. contacts, former Canadian diplomat Colin Robertson said, in order to keep pressure on the White House not to leave Canada by the wayside.

Keep calm and carry on with our current strategy of working Congress and the states, especially governors, and reminding U.S. business that we matter to each other, said Robertson, a vice-president and fellow at the Canadian Global Affairs Institute.

Given Trumps sharp-elbowed trade tactics, that strategy will remain in place going forward, Robertson said, to protect Canadas interests.

Normally we use the president/administration as a shield against a protectionist Congress. Now we are using Congress and the states, especially governors, as a shield against a mercantilist president, Robertson said in an email exchange with the Star.

I think it will oblige us to make a strategic shift in our long-term advocacy in the U.S.A., he said.

Others caution that Trumps tactics have badly damaged Canada-U.S. relations.

The presidents treatment of Canada through this process is the definition of insanity, Bruce Heyman, the former U.S. ambassador to Canada, told CNBCs Squawk on the Street on Sunday.

The U.S. has all the leverage in the world, but just because you can doesnt mean you should. When you take your best friend, your greatest ally in the world and start squeezing them, you can win but I will tell you, the relationship will be damaged much longer than it will take the ink to dry on a new NAFTA deal, Heyman said.

Read more about:
ST. JOHNS, N.L.Police in Newfoundland say a toddler has died and eight people were injured after a three-vehicle collision on Sunday afternoon.

Officers with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary say the vehicles collided in a major intersection in St. Johns.

Police say the toddler, who was a passenger in one of the vehicles, died in hospital.

They say eight other people were taken to hospital, including a woman who is in serious condition.

Investigators did not identify the toddler or any of those injured.

Police say they are investigating the cause of the crash and are asking any witnesses to come forward.
On a bleak Friday in February 1996, Ontario Superior Court Justice Gloria Epstein released a family court decision before immediately boarding a plane to visit her son in Moncton, N.B.

The cases mundane subject matter  spousal support  belied its significance, which would have been apparent when the file landed on Epsteins desk three years prior, just weeks after she became a judge.

M v. H, as the landmark case came to be known, involved the breakup of a long-term relationship between two women. The couple, each known in court only by an initial, had together acquired property and run a business before their acrimonious split, and M sued H for spousal support.

But at the time, Ontarios Family Law Act defined a common-law relationship as one between a heterosexual couple, meaning M and H had no status before the court. Epstein ruled that unconstitutional, because it discriminated against homosexual couples, and rewrote the legislation.

Although she knew her decision bore societal significance, she awoke the next day to an unexpectedly outsized  and angry  reaction.

I had no idea that the decision would make the front page of every major newspaper, Epstein told the Law Society of Upper Canada in a 1999 speech. I was totally unprepared for the very negative reaction of many of my fellow Canadians, including my friends, colleagues and, yes, even some members of my family.

Read more:

Judge says she ended judicial career for sake of Toronto missing persons review

Finding safe spaces for members of Torontos LGBTQ community

Police found remains essentially every day that we were digging in ravine behind home linked to Bruce McArthur

At an event soon after, she was accosted by people anxious to let me know that they found homosexuality quite abhorrent.

A controversial decision according to some, yes  but the right one, the Ontario Court of Appeal and Supreme Court of Canada went on to conclude, the latter in an 8-1 decision.

The upper courts rulings were validating to Epstein  a decision I firmly believed was the right one had passed the supreme test, she told the law society. But so, too, has been the progression of Canadian society in the years since M v. H, with the rights of people within the LGBTQ2S community now far more broadly accepted, she said.

Am I saying that there are no bigots left in Canada on that issue? Of course weve still got a lot of issues, Epstein told the Star in an interview last week. And the review is part of that journey.

That review  an independent examination of how the Toronto Police Service investigates missing persons cases  is the reason her vast third-floor office in Ontarios highest court was half-empty on the day of the interview. Photos of Epsteins family  she has two sons and a daughter  her King-area farm, and an action shot of former Blue Jay Josh Donaldson at bat still adorned the wall, but would be taken down as she retired from the Court of Appeal over the weekend.

Her new office sits just a few blocks north, but the move represents a larger departure. After 25 years as a judge, she is hanging up her robes to take on the high-profile review, commissioned following the arrest of alleged serial killer Bruce McArthur.

I can make no stronger statement of my commitment to this review than by indicating that I chose to retire from the Court of Appeal to enable me to devote my time and my energy to this critical work, Epstein told the Toronto Police Services Board at its August meeting.

Speaking to the Star days later, she called the review a good match for my life trajectory, my values, and what I wanted to do at this stage in my career.

The review was approved by the civilian board earlier this year, as questions mounted over the police handling of the disappearances of men now alleged to be McArthurs victims. The 66-year-old landscaper is currently facing eight counts of first-degree murder.

Most of the alleged victims  many of whom had ties to Torontos Gay Village and were from South Asian or Middle Eastern communities  were reported missing to police. The disappearances of three of the men were the subject of a special police missing persons project, which ran from 2012 to 2014 but ended with no arrests. Police have since been accused of downplaying concerns within the Gay Village about a killer preying on the community.

Criticisms have also followed other recent disappearances. Alloura Wells, a 27-year-old transgender woman, was reported missing to Toronto police but her family alleges they were told the case was not a high priority because she had been homeless (a police spokesperson said that was not the proper response from any part of this organization). She was later confirmed dead.

Tess Richey, 22, was reported missing in November 2017, but her body was later found by her mother, who had launched her own search for her daughter. Kalen Schlatter is charged with first-degree murder in her death, while two Toronto police officers are facing disciplinary charges for allegedly failing to properly investigate Richeys disappearance.

Epstein was frank in her acknowledgment that the independent review was born out of the tragic deaths of members of our community and, more specifically, by deep concerns expressed about how the Toronto Police Service conducted the investigations into their disappearances. It will examine an array of policies and practices surrounding missing persons probes, including whether some could have been tainted by systemic bias or discrimination, Epstein said.

The police service, meanwhile, is conducting its own internal review of how it handles missing persons cases, and creating a dedicated missing persons unit.

In a statement, Toronto police board chair Andy Pringle called the review a necessary and vital step to identify systemic issues and improve trust with Torontos vulnerable communities.

Justice Epstein will bring legal rigour and reputational excellence to this important process, he said.

Beyond providing a timeline  the report will be completed by April 2020  Epstein said it would be premature to comment on her approach to the review, emphasizing the role that consultations with individuals and the public will have in shaping it.

Her winding career path, she said, has always had people at its core: those she met in her early 20s, while running a fishing camp alone in northern Ontarios Temagami area; those she served as a cocktail waitress and coat check girl while attending law school at the University of Toronto; and the clients she encountered after opening, in the mid-1980s, one of Torontos first female-owned litigation boutiques, Gloria Epstein & Associates.

In 1993, Epstein was tapped to be a Superior Court judge, a job she called a gift. With detail and evident fondness, she relays specific instances when she felt lucky to be in the courtroom, including a case where a homeless man called to testify took extraordinary care to dress up, including fashioning a homemade wig, apparently believing he had to cover his head.

How honoured I was at the effort he put into it. This guy had really gone out of his way to show that he respected the court. How lucky am I to have met these people? she said.

When she was appointed to the Court of Appeal after 15 years as a trial judge, she realized the people she hoped to help would no longer be in her courtroom but rather represented in the court documents landing on her desk. She urged her law clerks never to lose sight of that.

Its not about where the comma is and how to interpret the word, she said of appeals. Its about the people, and their lives, and they are relying on us to help them with their problems.

The independent review brings another opportunity for such work, she said  Ill be engaged with people, trying to get it right for them in the right way, to the extent that thats possible. So there is a flow to this that I find logical.

On one of her final days walking the crimson-carpeted halls of the Court of Appeal, she was wrapping up her last case before double-checking the wording of the independent review website, set to launch in the coming days. Casting an eye to her open-toed sandals, she joked that she should have worn runners at the eager pace shes going.

Im looking forward to meeting the people, listening to them, and learning, and then trying to help.

With files from the Star archives and library
Many tears were shed when Ibrahim Darwish last saw his parents and brother in February 2016 as they left a far-flung refugee town in Turkey for Istanbul airport, heading for a new life in Canada.

Last week, years after fleeing the civil war in Syria, the 40-year-old shed more tears when he arrived at Pearson airport to join his family, but this time, they were tears of joy.

It feels like a dream, said Darwish, whose entire family fled Damascus in 2013. Darwish, his wife and two children were left behind in Turkey when his parents, brother and the brothers family were flown to Toronto as government-sponsored refugees.

Darwishs journey started two days earlier with a 25-hour bus ride from Batman to Istanbul. It was then followed by a three-hour flight to Frankfurt, where the family stopped over for six hours before a 8.5-hour flight to Toronto.

After three more hours of immigration paperwork, the exhausted travellers finally came through the sliding doors at the arrivals ramp. Darwish had to pinch his cheek to convince himself he wasnt dreaming before rushing to embrace his parents, brother, nieces and nephews, having waited for this moment for two-and-a-half years.

My family is my life and I thought I would never see them again, he added as he clutched his parents, Amina and Mohammad.

Almost three years after Canada launched its massive Syrian refugee resettlement project, Syrian refugees are still trickling in  though at a much slower pace  from the Middle East. Others have continued to wait in the queue after Ottawa stopped prioritizing Syrian applications.

According to the immigration department, Canada has resettled 56,322 Syrian refugees since November 2015 when the first resettlement wave arrived from Lebanon, Jordan, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates and Egypt.

As of the end of June, officials said there are still 16,736 sponsored Syrians  12,663 under private sponsorship, 3,626 by the federal government, and the rest supported jointly by both  waiting to be processed. Another 2,779 are in the final stages of getting their permanent resident visas to start a new life here.

Private sponsorships for Syrians can take anywhere from 20 months in the UAE to 38 months in Egypt, while processing times for government-sponsored refugees range from 23 months in Egypt to 29 months in Turkey.

Processing times are difficult to predict. They vary depending on multiple factors, including the type of application submitted, the number of applications currently being processed, establishing identity and addressing security concerns, said immigration department spokesperson Beatrice Fenelon.

In the Darwish familys case, the private sponsorship group was happy to witness the reunion at Pearson, but said the wait was frustrating and members are sad to see the drop in public support for refugees as a result of the backlash against the thousands of people illegally crossing the border from the United States.

There is a lot of media coverage of these asylum seekers from the U.S. and the support is waning, noted Jessica Miklos, a member of the group that sponsored the Darwish family. Its hard to wait and easy to get discouraged when for a long period of time theres nothing you can do but wait.

Miklos said she and other team members began searching for housing for the new family as soon as they learned their arrival date, but so far they have had no luck.

Unfortunately, the vacancy rate is very low and landlords who have apartments available are operating by very strict rules, she explained. We have been told several times that even if we have all of the funds, the occupants of the unit must prove Canadian employment and Canadian credit history to be considered. This is true even with a guarantor.

Miklos said the group is now looking at November occupancy and a monthly rent that goes beyond the $2,000 mark, way above what they had planned for two years ago.

Claude Hould, chair of the Rosedale United Church refugee and newcomer program, said the program had 25 sponsorship groups at the peak of Canadas Syrian resettlement and the number is down to eight. In total, they have brought in 100 refugees with 42 people still in the queue to come to Canada.

To Hould, the problem with the bottleneck is the immigration departments limited annual quotas allotted to refugee sponsorships and scarce resources invested in processing.

In some cases, we are still waiting for a spot to submit a sponsorship application. There will be no new file going in until 2020, he said, adding collecting documentation and security clearances for people from war-torn Syria remains a challenge.

It can be stressful when you scramble to get everything together for your (sponsored) family but you balance it out with peoples generosity, said Miklos. Its a really good antidote. It doesnt matter its not everybody, but there are enough people out there willing to help.
BROOKLYN, IOWAThe father of slain Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts is speaking out against using his daughters death in support of views she believed were profoundly racist, a call that comes after U.S. President Donald Trump and others seized on the suspected killers immigration status to argue for changes in U.S. immigration laws.

Authorities have said the University of Iowa student was abducted while she was out for an evening run in Brooklyn, Iowa, on July 18. The man charged in her death, 24-year-old Cristhian Bahena Rivera, is a Mexican farm worker who is suspected of being in the U.S. illegally.

Trump and other politicians quickly noted that element of the case and called for changes to immigration law.

In an opinion piece published online by The Des Moines Register Saturday, Rob Tibbetts wrote that while he supports debate on immigration, some politicians and pundits went too far in using his daughters death to promote political agendas. He said his stepdaughter is Latina and argued that the suspected killer is no more a reflection of the Hispanic community as white supremacists are of all white people.

Do not appropriate Mollies soul in advancing views she believed were profoundly racist, he wrote. The act grievously extends the crime that stole Mollie from our family and is, to quote Donald Trump Jr., heartless and despicable.

The quote comes from a Friday opinion piece by Trump Jr. that criticized the media and Democrats for not playing up the suspects immigration status.

Read more:

Killing of Iowa woman stokes U.S. immigration debate

Father of Mollie Tibbetts says hes been embraced by Iowas Hispanic community

Hundreds mourn at funeral for slain 20-year-old Mollie Tibbetts

Despite what some Democrats may wish in the depths of their hearts, Mollie was murdered by an illegal alien and her murder would never have happened if we policed our southern border properly, the presidents son wrote.

Recorded phone calls citing Mollie Tibbetts death in a push for white supremacist views began Tuesday, just days after her funeral. The robocalls cited comments Rob Tibbetts made in defence of Latinos during her funeral .

The calls question whether his daughter would feel the same if she were still alive and describe Rivera as an invader from Mexico.

Rob Tibbetts wrote in his opinion piece that his daughter was nobodys victim. Nor is she a pawn in others debate.

She may not be able to speak for herself, but I can and will, he went on to say. Please leave us out of your debate. Allow us to grieve in privacy and with dignity. At long last, show some decency. On behalf of my family and Mollies memory, Im imploring you to stop.

Read more about:
WASHINGTONTim Pawlenty, the milquetoast former governor of Minnesota, was trying to make a political comeback. So he did what Republicans running this year tend to do: make like President Donald Trump and rail against illegal immigrants.

Pawlentys opponent in the Republican primary tried to stop him from seizing the role of Trumpiest candidate. At a debate in early August, Jeff Johnson reminded the audience that Pawlenty had called Trump unhinged and unfit after the 2016 release of the tape in which Trump seemed to boast about sexually assaulting women.

Pawlenty had a response ready. Johnson, he reminded the audience, had called Trump a jackass.

Johnson was prepared for that. He had called Trump a jackass, he acknowledged, but a jackass who was preferable to Hillary Clinton.

Johnson seemed to win the exchange, if anyone can win such an exchange, and he ended up winning the race. Upon his defeat, Pawlenty said, It is the era of Trump, and Im just not a Trump-like politician.

There were other reasons for Pawlentys loss. For one, he had been a top lobbyist for big banks. But he was correct in his assessment of a Republican era Trump has thoroughly consumed.

Trump is unpopular with the American public, with an approval rating of just 40 per cent. But he is enormously popular  80-plus-per-cent-approval popular  with voters who identify as Republicans. That figure left Republican candidates competing to sound and act most like the president, as they sought their partys nominations for the House of Representatives, Senate and state governor.

They tried to outdo each others professions of devotion. They ran on Trumps preferred issues and with his preferred style. They gave their opponents Trump-style nicknames, like Taxin Tedra and Sneaky Shapiro. They scrambled to earn Trumps endorsement. One candidate, Arizona Senate candidate Kelli Ward, went so far as to doctor a Trump tweet to make it sound like she already had his endorsement.

Florida Rep. Ron DeSantis, running for governor of Florida, may have been the most fawning. He ran a television ad in which he coached his toddler daughter to build the wall with toy blocks and then cooed the trademark Trump phrase big league to his infant son, who was lying in a crib wearing a red Make America Great Again onesie.

Aided by Trumps endorsement, DeSantis won the Republican primary.

It is nothing new for party candidates to embrace the president or mimic successful campaign tactics. What is remarkable is the zeal with which this years candidates have rushed  amid polling that suggests Republicans are in dire danger of losing control of the House  to be seen as similar to and close with a president who is disliked by key voter groups.

Were getting smoked with independents, and were having the problem Republicans always have, which is keeping Republican women in the tent. Its a problem that is exacerbated by the president, said Brian Murray, an Arizona Republican strategist who is working on two House races and believes the Democrats will handily win the House. I think between 45 and 50 seats are down the drain, Murray said in mid-August. Its bad. Ive been doing this for a while, and you can just smell blood in the air.

Some Republicans in districts with large numbers of Democratic or minority voters are trying to demonstrate that they are different than Trump. Florida governor and Senate candidate Rick Scott has invested heavily in ads in which he speaks Spanish.

On the whole, though, Republican candidates have mentioned their support for Trump in an unusually large percentage of their TV ads: 27 per cent in June and July, according to an analysis by the Wesleyan Media Project. Thats higher than the percentage that had mentioned support for George W. Bush at this point in the 2002 mid-terms, when Bush was riding a post-Sept. 11 approval rating above 65 per cent.

Even when this years primary candidates did not talk explicitly about Trump, they often attempted to adopt his signature issues, immigration foremost among them, and his signature smash-mouth style.

Voters want fighters, especially if that means fighting the media and the liberals, said Republican strategist Scott Jennings. More than policy choices, you have to show emotional connectivity with the fighting mood primary voters are in.

One unsuccessful Georgia governor candidate, Lt.-Gov. Casey Cagle, was secretly recorded saying that his primary felt like it was about who had the biggest gun, who had the biggest truck, and who could be the craziest. Cagle soon released an ad in which he criticized fake news and concluded, Ill never apologize for outlawing sanctuary cities or stopping liberals from taking the values that make our country great. The time for conservatives getting kicked around is over!

For some candidates, Cagle arguably among them, the Trump suit is an awkward fit. Murray said candidates are often attaching themselves to Trump policies as a headline, but then explaining that their positions are more nuanced. Jennings, a former special assistant to Bush and campaign adviser to Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, said voters can immediately sniff out a phoney effort to pull off a Trump-like brand.

Trouble is, most folks dont have Trumps personality or talent for this particular style, so sometimes they look silly trying to do it, Jennings said. Authenticity is the coin of the realm; you cant be something you arent.

But sometimes they only have to convince one person of their sincerity.

Republicans who do get Trumps endorsement have dominated their primaries, winning almost every time. In the Georgia governor primary, Trumps blessing of state Secretary of State Brian Kemp helped turn Cagles close race into a 39-point blowout loss. In the Kansas governor primary, Trumps last-minute endorsement was a key factor propelling a hard-right challenger, state Secretary of State Kris Kobach, to a squeaker victory over Gov. Jeff Colyer.

The primaries, though, are only half the battle. Though both parties are focusing on motivating their hard-core bases, Democratic strategists believe Republican candidates may suffer in the general election for their aggressive efforts to get close to Trump earlier in the year, even if they later try to pivot back toward the political centre.

Election Day, Nov. 6, is just about two months away.

I think theyre in a damned if they do, dammed if they dont situation, said Democratic strategist Craig Varoga.

If they dont pivot, theyre completely out of tune with the electorate. If they do pivot, theyre just proving that theyre a typical politician, probably alienating the Trump base. And they run the risk of having his Twitter account turned on them in a negative way.

Sensing the political winds, at least one House candidate has decided that distancing is a risk worth taking.

Republican Ohio Rep. Dave Joyce represents a district Trump won by 11 percentage points, and he has voted with Trumps position on almost all legislation  but he is running an ad in which he boasts of fighting for funding for Great Lakes cleanup when President Trump tried to take it away.

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JERUSALEMRodrigo Duterte, accused of committing serious human rights violations as part of his deadly crackdown on drugs at home, and who has stirred controversy with comments about the Holocaust, received a warm welcome in Israel when he arrived Sunday for a four-day visit.

Ahead of his departure, Duerte said he looks forward to broader co-operation on a broad range of mutually important areas  defence and security, law enforcement, economic development, trade (and) investments and labour.

Sales of Israeli weapons to his government are high on the agenda, according to Israeli media. Filipino officials have said the Philippines has recently acquired Israeli-made arms such as Galil assault rifles and pistols for its 120,000-strong police force, which is at the front line of Dutertes battle against illegal drugs and other crimes.

Duterte will kick off his four-day visit by attending an event of the Filipino community in Israel on Sunday evening. An estimated 28,000 Filipinos live in Israel, mostly as health aides.

A Filipino living in Israel, Lisa Levi, told Channel 10 TV that she is excited and proud he is visiting.

Speaking in Hebrew, she said, I wish I could hug him and thank him for everything he does. She said her home country is safer now and that accusations of rights abuses are untrue.

Duterte, who has stirred controversy with his foul-mouthed attacks on Barack Obama and even God, will receive a warm welcome in the Holy Land meeting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials.

Duterte drew outrage in 2016 when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Nazi genocide of Jews in the Second World War and said he would be happy to slaughter three million addicts. He later apologized.

He is scheduled to visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem on Monday and later a monument commemorating the Philippines rescue of Jews during the Holocaust.

In contrast to the warm official welcome, Israeli human rights activists plan to protest the visit and have encouraged President Reuven Rivlin not to meet him over accusations of rights abuses at home.

Official Philippine police tallies place the number of suspects killed in police-led anti-drug raids at more than 4,500 since Duterte took office in June 2016.

International human rights watchdogs have cited far higher death tolls.

Duterte, a 73-year-old former government prosecutor, denies condoning extrajudicial killings but has openly threatened drug dealers with death.

Relatives of several people slain in the presidents anti-drug campaign last week asked the International Criminal Court to prosecute him for alleged crimes against humanity, in the second such request for a ruling on thousands of deaths that have occurred during the crackdown.

Dutertes visit this week marks the first ever by a Philippines president to Israel since the countries established diplomatic relations in 1957.

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OTTAWAForeign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland says the conviction of two Reuters journalists for covering the Rohingya crisis undermines the rule of law and freedom of the press in Burma.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were sentenced Monday to seven years in prison for illegally possessing government documents in a guilty verdict Freeland says is not supported by the facts in the case.

In a statement issued Monday, Freeland says Canada is joining the international chorus calling for their immediate release.

Freeland says the verdict in the case seriously jeopardizes the idea of democracy in Burma, which requires the ability to report facts without fear of retaliation, violence or imprisonment.

The two journalists were reporting on a massacre of the Rohingya people by the Burma military in 2017 and say they were framed by police.

The United Kingdom and the United States have also condemned the verdicts as have numerous international human rights organizations.

British Prime Minister Theresa May also called for the journalists release, while the U.S. Embassy in Burma issued a statement saying there were clear flaws in the case and that the verdict was deeply troubling.

Freeland, who herself worked for Reuters before her political career, said Canada will use every opportunity to stand up for human rights and freedom of expression.

This verdict gravely undermines the rule of law and freedom of the press in Burma, and betrays the decades-long struggle by the Burma people for democracy, Freeland said in a written statement issued by her office.

Todays ruling does not reflect the facts of the case.

Former Liberal leader Bob Rae, Canadas special envoy to Burma to investigate the Rohingya crisis, said the courage of the two journalists is worthy of the worlds praise and attention.

They were doing their job, and were framed by security forces, on the evidence as heard in court, he said on Twitter.

United Nations Human Rights Chief Michelle Bachelet said Burma should immediately and unconditionally release the two journalists along with any other journalists being held in Burma for exercising their legitimate right to free expression.

Their conviction sends a message to all journalists in Burma that they cannot operate fearlessly, she said.

The Rohingya are a stateless people who lived primarily in Rakhine State on Burmas west coast. A majority of them are Muslim and have faced repeated persecution, including military crackdowns that began in 2016. An estimated 900,000 Rohingya have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh to escape the violence.

In his final report to Parliament earlier this year Rae called on Canada to increase humanitarian aid for the Rohingya and express a willingness to accept Rohingya refugees who wish to move to Canada.
DES MOINES, IOWAAbout two dozen environmental demonstrators are undertaking a 160-kilometre march in Iowa to protest the Dakota Access oil pipeline.

The Des Moines Register reports that they began their eight-day trek Saturday in Des Moines.

Advocacy groups Bold Iowa and Indigenous Iowa organized the march to show unity against the $3.8 billion (U.S.), four-state pipeline.

Protesters plan to walk 16-24 kilometres a day, completing the march Saturday in Fort Dodge.

Native American Coalition of the Quad Cities President Regina Tsosie told the newspaper that the pipeline could break and poison the water. She also says it has desecrated sacred sites.

Protesters have pushed back against the pipeline for years. But a U.S. Army Corps of Engineers study of the pipeline released last week says it poses no significant environmental threats.

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This Labour Day, workers in Ontario must join forces to stop the erosion of our hard-won rights in the workplace and beyond.

It has been a tumultuous summer during which the new government of Ontario has cancelled or cut programs that serve the most vulnerable Ontarians. Ontario families, children, Ontarians on disability support, people with mental health issues, students and teachers  all have had important programs changed or cut.

In its first months, the Ford government has used legislation to force workers off the picket lines, undermining their democratic right to collective bargaining. It has cut funding to schools and to after-school programs. In Doug Fords Ontario, our government exchanges the rights of Ontarians and quality public services for a lower minimum beer price.

This trend will continue. The premier has shamefully said that he will cancel the raise in the minimum wage, despite the fact that 1.7 million Ontarians and their families are counting on that increase come January. Without that increase, even a minimum wage worker who has full-time work will still fall below the poverty line.

Since the 2018 minimum wage increase, Ontario has seen a boom in job creation, with 61,000 jobs created in July alone. The economy is benefiting. The minimum wage increase will prove more beneficial to minimum wage earners than a tax cut. In fact, theyll make $1,950 a year more, which is $710 more than a tax cut would get them. Higher household incomes mean increased consumer spending, lower workplace turnover and lower absenteeism.

We are the people, and we can stop this government from taking away our rights. Last year, we won significant changes to employment law in our province, changes that have a positive effect for all workers, including fair scheduling laws to paid sick days, the scheduled minimum wage increase, and making it easier to join and keep a union.

Read more:

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Precarious work poses serious consequences for millennials mental health, report says

The benefits to raising Ontarios minimum wage are tangible

Workers in unions do better, and when unions bargain strong protections for the right to join a union and decent work, all workers benefit.

It is advocacy from the people of Ontario, in the labour movement and community groups like the Fight for $15 and Fairness that have won changes in our province, from five paid days leave to help survivors of domestic or sexual violence to protections for workers against contract flipping.

Doug Fords slash-and-burn policies are not cost savers. The fees for cancelling projects outstrip the savings he reports. The $400,000 reported as a payout to Hydro Ones CEO was, in fact, $9 million dollars upon retirement and other incentives. When we demand changes, when we tell our representatives that were counting on them to help our families rather than lining the pockets of a chosen few, we can make change happen.

Workers stand to lose these rights, our public services and the $15 minimum wage unless we come together.

Ontarians are not complacent. We are demanding that Ford stop the arbitrary dismantling of programs, systems and services across our province.

Ontarians have demanded that Toronto city council take the province to court over the halving of seats. They were successful. Likewise, Ontarians are protesting the governments anonymous complaint line, a phone line that undermines the professionalism of education workers and could put their livelihoods at risk. Ontarians have never stopped pushing to protect the public ownership of public services.

Faced with the determination of Ontarians to ensure decent work and adequate supports for all Ontarians, Doug Ford will act. Keep sending the message loud and clear to Doug Ford: Hands off our rights!

Chris Buckley is president of the Ontario Federation of Labour.

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Pipeline ruling shockwaves felt across Canada, Aug. 31

Last week, the Federal Court of Appeal told the government what they should have already known about the proposed Trans Mountain pipeline expansion  the National Energy Board vetting process was horribly flawed, and there was inadequate consultation with the Indigenous people who are affected by it.

The proposed pipeline expansion is simply unfathomable. Even without citizen protests, the financial community knows that investment in the oilsands has no future. Bankers are pulling out and current investors are looking simply to recover their existing investments.

Canada has wasted billions in subsidies to oil companies instead of building the infrastructure for a renewable energy industry. Even when the oil industry was viable, Alberta failed to recover the revenues it was entitled to with too low taxes and too low royalties.

Meanwhile, Norway has made its citizens millionaires by nationalizing its oil industry and undertaking development in an environmentally sustainable way. Canada has given its resources away for a song and now has little to show for it. Compounding the mistake by continuing to prop up a failing industry is a crime against future generations.

Canada and its citizens will have to make wrenching adaptations just to survive when the true cost of climate change hits us. I fear for my children and grandchildren.

Our resources should be directed to building renewable energy and transitioning the workers who will be affected. Those currently employed by the fossil fuel industry should not bear the brunt of the transition. They should be supported by all other Canadians through our tax dollars as they are retrained and find new jobs.

I implore the government to end the Trans Mountain pipeline and tanker project now, for the sake of our future generations.

Patricia E. McGrail, Brampton

Canadians must decide what kind of energy and economic future they want. The oil industry accounts for nearly 10 per cent of Canada's GDP. Face it  we still need oil for society to function.

As we've seen in Ontario, it is very difficult to switch to a green economy, despite the obvious benefits. I hope the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion eventually goes ahead and that Canada isn't torn apart by the politics of energy.
VANCOUVERPolice in British Columbia deployed conducted-energy weapons on minors four times in 2016, according to provincial government findings.

The provincial government published a report in August detailing the number of times Tasers were deployed, whether any deaths were caused, and which police forces were involved. The report also included basic demographic information about the people on whom the weapons were deployed.

Each of the four incidents involved the B.C. Mounties.

RCMP Staff Sgt. Annie Linteau explained to StarMetro why each of the four boys, all aged 16 or 17, were shocked. Three of the boys had to be taken to hospital afterwards.

The RCMPs first incident involved the Surrey detachment in the early afternoon of Feb. 8, 2016. Witnesses reported someone who looked about 20 years old was bleeding from their hand and spraying blood on the windows of a school. When police arrived, they found the teen covered in blood from a cut on his hand. Linteau said police told the teen they would apprehend him and involuntarily admit him to hospital.

But the individual said that he would not and that police could not make him do anything. The subject then became assaultive, Linteau said. The Taser was deployed, she said, and subsequently police discovered the teen was 17.

Later that month, on Feb. 27, a woman called Langley RCMP reporting that her 16-year-old was threatening to kill her husband. Police found him in the house, armed with a knife pressed to his own neck. The teen talked about suicide. Police deployed the Taser, believing the teen was about to harm himself imminently, and involuntarily admitted him to hospital.

Less than two weeks later on Gabriola Island, police responded to a report of a mugging at knifepoint. A man described how he was walking with groceries when he was confronted by someone with a large knife who demanded his cellphone and wallet. Gabriola Island RCMP then found someone matching the teen suspects description nearby, and reported that the teen drew his knife and pointed the weapon at his own neck before retreating into a forest. A police dog was called, and a bulletin distributed to the public resulted in the teen being located sometime later.

The suspect once again produced the knife and pointed it to his neck. After negotiations to drop the knife failed, a CEW (Taser) was deployed, Linteau said. Police took the 16-year-old to jail, and filed five charges against him.

And finally, on Christmas Day, North Vancouver RCMP were called by someone concerned their friend was about to jump off the Iron Workers Memorial Bridge. Police found the teen, 17, on the bridge walkway and told him they were going to apprehend him and admit him to hospital.

When advised of this, the individual became assaultive and after several attempts at attempting to restrain him a CEW was deployed, Linteau said. The teen was taken to hospital.

None of the incidents resulted in a public report or charge recommendations from B.C.s civilian-led Independent Investigations Office, which investigates police in cases of serious harm.

Former lawyer Camia Weaver, a police policy consultant with Pivot Legal Society, said the RCMPs description of the incidents suggest de-escalation techniques were not properly used.

Under the B.C. Provincial Policing Standards, there is no prohibition on the use of Tasers against minors. But Weaver said police officers are supposed to attempt to de-escalate by communicating with the suspect, particularly as several of the teens were only apprehended under Mental Health Act provisions.

All of the cases involved teens who had indicated they may harm themselves, or that they had given up on life. Weaver said in cases of self-harm such as these, its a positive sign police opted for Tasers instead of firearms.

However, Weaver said when police encounter an unarmed person facing a mental health crisis, the better solution is to talk. She pointed to the example of the teenager at the Surrey school as one where a prolonged conversation may have de-escalated the incident.

Actually spend the time to have good communication and not just say, OK. Well Im going to apprehend you and thats it. You have to work toward that, Weaver said.

Linteau said Mounties do not prohibit the use of Tasers on vulnerable people, even small children or the elderly. But whenever possible, an ambulance would be called before the Taser was deployed, or as soon as practicable afterwards.

Linteau said police are trained to only deploy Tasers when someone is causing injury, or the officer believes the person is imminently about to cause injury to themselves or others.

Police in B.C. are only permitted under the provincial standards to use the Taser X26 and its newer cousin, the X26P. The former device is intended to deliver 1,400 to 2,520 volts at a rate of 16 to 20 pulses per second, with government tests showing the latter delivering a peak of about 1,200 volts at a rate of 19 pulses per second.

The provincial governments data actually identified six instances in which a minor was Tasered in B.C. over the course of 2016. RCMP said it duplicated an incident that took place in Langley by mistake in its report to the province. The only other police force that registered a Taser being deployed on a minor was the Saanich Police Department, which mistakenly reported the age of the person involved.

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Marine fuel prices are soaring and the shipping industry is looking for ways to harness ocean winds to power oceangoing vessels.

Danish giant Maersk Tankers said Thursday it has installed 100-foot-tall rotating cylinders on one of its product tankers, adding devices that are effectively high-tech sails that could cut the vessels fuel bill by up to 10 per cent. If the system proves out during testing, Maersk could use the technology on dozens of ships in its 164-tanker fleet.

The operation is the latest attempt to bring together modern oceangoing vessels with Maritimes oldest and most basic technology  sails that harness wind power.

In the 1980s, French ocean explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau commissioned the Alcyone, a vessel named after the daughter of the wind in Greek mythology, which used turbosails that provided thrust in the direction of travel along with the engines.

Shipping executives said previous efforts didnt catch on with operators because either the costs of such technologies were too high or tests didnt yield the expected fuel savings. But modern, lightweight and relatively cheap rotating sails show more promise, they said.

The cylinders on the Maersk tanker are made with composite materials by Finland-based Norsepower Oy Ltd., and cost 1 million to 2 million ($1.2 million to $2.3 million U.S.) to fit on a vessel, depending on the size of the ship.

The technology is based on what is known as the Magnus effect, in which a spinning object drags air faster around one side, creating a difference in pressure that pushes the vessel in the direction of the lower-pressure side.

A.P. Moeller-Maersk A/S, the umbrella group that includes container shipping giant Maersk Line, sold Maersk Tankers to its controlling shareholder Maersk Holding last year.

Maersk Tankers didnt disclose its annual energy bill. Maersk Line spent around $3.4 billion on fuel last year for its fleet of around 800 vessels. The carrier expects its annual cost to increase by roughly $2 billion in 2020, when it starts using cleaner fuels to comply with stricter environmental rules. Marine fuel prices generally have increased about 30 per cent this year from a year ago.

We have been taking incremental steps to cut our energy bill for the past 15 years, but this could prove a game changer, said Tommy Thomassen, Maersk Tankers chief technical officer. Fuel makes up approximately 60 per cent of our total cost and this technology has a significant potential to cut fuel consumption by 7 per cent to 10 per cent on the ships that it will be installed.

Mr. Thomassen said tests so far are promising, and if the savings are proven during the trial runs with the Maersk Pelican tanker, the spinning cylinders could be installed on about 80 of its large and medium-size product tankers.

The Pelican will sail in the next few days.

The sails have been used since 2014 on a ferry operated by Dutch shipping firm Bore Ltd. and were installed on a Viking Line cruise ship in April.

Bore Vice-President Jorgen Mansnerus has said the results were better than expected.

There is a high interest in this technology, said Tuomas Riski, Norsepowers chief executive. As the [technology] gets better, the cost will fall and there is the potential to make the rotor sails a standard feature for certain types of ships like tankers or dry bulk carriers.

The Maersk project is a joint venture with Norsepower, Royal Dutch Shell and the U.K.s Energy Technologies Institute, an industry group focused on alternative-fuel use.

Other shipping operators are also looking for ways to cut fuel costs.

Food and commodities giant Cargill Inc., for instance, has equipped one chartered dry bulk carrier with a 3,444-square-foot kite made of artificial fibres to harness wind power.

Maersk Line and Maersk Tankers also have started using special paints on ship hulls to cut down on algae and other microorganisms that increase drag.
Danish energy company rsted A/S is considering a bid for several U.S. offshore-wind projects and already has the required funding in place, the companys finance chief said.

There are a lot auctions coming up in the U.S., said rsted chief financial officer Marianne Wiinholt in an interview Friday with CFO Journal. We feel we are well-positioned.

The U.S. would be key to rsteds efforts to grow its global footprint. The company has installed about 25 per cent of the installed offshore-wind capacity in the world, according to Marcus Bellander, an analyst at Nordea Bank AB.

Earlier in August, rsted made its first major investment in the U.S. when it agreed to buy Lincoln Clean Energy LLC, a Chicago-based onshore wind and solar company, for $580 million (U.S.).

Bidding for capacity in the U.S. is next on the agenda. Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey each plan to select a bidder for offshore-wind projects in the coming quarters. Connecticut is set to announce the winner of a zero-carbon energy project in the next few months.

The company hasnt made a decision on which U.S. projects it will target. We are looking into all of them, Ms. Wiinholt said.

The CFOs comments come after rsted lost out in an auction in Massachusetts in May. It was a major setback in its quest to enter the U.S. market. This was unexpected, Mr. Bellander said.

The company has taken a number of steps to prepare for these investments. rsted in November sold a green bond  debt earmarked for environmentally friendly projects  totalling 750 million ($872.6 million), and a 500 million green hybrid security, mainly to European investors, Ms. Wiinholt said.

rsted held Danish kroner 2.62 billion ($410 million) in cash and cash equivalents on its balance sheet at the end of the six months ended June 30. Net debt fell 55 per cent to Danish kroner 4.6 billion at the end of June from Danish kroner 10.3 billion at the end of the prior year period.

They have a very strong balance sheet, said Nordeas Mr. Bellander.

rsted will generate additional cash in the coming months as it prepares to sell 50 per cent of its stake in the Hornsea Project One, a wind form off the coast of England that is set to be operational by 2020. Reducing the holding, a tactic known as a farm down, is one way it could build cash reserves, Ms. Wiinholt said.

The company also plans to sell its Danish power grid and its consumer business, Ms. Wiinholt said.

rsted this year won an auction to build 1.82 gigawatts in offshore wind capacity in Taiwan and expects to spend a substantial amount of money on that. It is a huge investment, said Ms. Wiinholt, who declined to provide specifics.
In 1935, Gilbert Potts looked like any movie star  a mix between Ben Affleck and Ryan Reynolds. He could have easily replaced James Cagney or Gary Cooper in any of the crime movies of the day.

Except the 22-year-old wasnt in the business of the silver screen, and his police record indicates that after a series of hold-ups in the Riverbend, he sported a scar of bullet wound on left arm above wrist; scar on left middle finger.

A six-week career of crime in Madison County, waged on a new plane with headquarters at Indianapolis, were related to Madison County officials who visited our men in jail at the Indiana capital, a story on the front page of the Sept. 9, 1935, Telegraph began.

Apparently, Potts and three other co-workers of the federal lock and dam project, Frank Klize, Stanley Ribes and Eugene Schneider, thought working on the dam project wasnt quite lucrative enough, and decided to go on what authorities at the time called an adventure.

His two buddies, Klize and Ribes, of Benld, were staying in the same hotel. Schneider was a former crime associate of Ribes back in Colorado. The four paired when Potts offered the opportunity for easy money.

The quartet cracked their first caper in Benld, perhaps out for some fun. They dropped by the home of a lady acquaintance of Klize, looking for a place to hangout  but she wasnt home, so they hit up the tavern instead.

After imbibing on some liquid courage, they held the place up and stole a car from the parking lot. It was a little too wild for Schneider. Hed already spent time behind the bars, and didnt like the taste. He declined the after-hours party.

The three amigos trudged on, drunk behind the wheel.

They crashed near Pearl  then carjacked Orville Richter, of Kampsville, taping his arms behind his back, eventually dumping him in a cornfield near Newbern and taking the $42 he had in his pocket.

On Aug. 13, 1935, the the gang struck again at Irl Rains cigar store at Fourth and Piasa streets in Alton, guns pointed. They scored $400, a diamond stickpin and a ring.

Next up, on Aug. 19, the bandits attacked Harry Maggos owner of the Lindbergh Park office building. From him, they scored $670.

Two days later, they victimized George Klein, the elderly proprietor of Klein Drug Store in Alton. They leached $80, knocking out the old shop-keep.

By that time, theyd stolen license plates from an Alton man in an attempt to disguise the automobile theyd stolen from Richtor.

Most spectacular of the hold-up series, however, was descent of the bandits on the evening of Sept. 1 on the Three-Mile House, a tavern north of Edwardsville, in which the safe was robbed, and cash and jewelry taken from 13 patrons who were then herded into a basement, the Telegraph reported on Sept. 7. Total amount of loot amounted to hundreds of dollars, one woman reported she had lost jewelry valued at $500.

Apparently satisfied with their haul pilfered from the Riverbend, and fearful they were becoming too well-known, the men fled to Indiana, the old stomping ground of Potts.

It was there that things got really hairy.

After another series of hold-ups  25 in all, including those in the Riverbend  police were still unable to track the gang down. Potts was even thought to have been the man who critically shot as gas station attendant, and a man arriving on a motorcycle who he mistook for a police officer.

Klize and Potts decided to celebrate their continued freedom, checking out a burlesque club in Indiana. Their luck, and the good looks of Potts, apparently held up there.

After a night of drinking, the duo was headed back to the hotel they were staying in, accompanied by two of the clubs dancers when Klize, behind the wheel, nodded off, crashing the car.

Nobody was hurt, but the men fled when police were called to the scene. Klize, suddenly, fired a shot at Potts, hitting him in the arm to, keep him quiet.

The shot had the opposite effect, however. Not seriously wounded, Potts was quickly captured by police, and chirped like a bird about their crimes.

Klize went on to carjack Milton Murphy, the farmer who called police, and his 18-month-old son, keeping the youngster on his lap as a shield from police bullets.

He swiftly drove right into the waiting arms of Indianapolis police, at his hotel, right where Potts told them Klize would likely be headed.

In a struggle with police, Klize was shot four times, but survived.

Their hotel rooms were stacked in cash, guns and jewelry  returned by mail to their rightful owners in Calhoun, Macoupin and Madison counties.

Managing editor Nathan Woodside can be contacted at 618-208-6456.
More than 4,000 soldiers from across the state returned home this past week from a month of hot and intensive training in the swampy woods of Louisiana.

The Illinois National Guards 33rd Infantry Brigade Combat Team soldiers and two dozen additional enabler units from around the United States participated in the training exercise at one of the U.S. Armys premiere combat training sites  the Joint Readiness Training Center at Fort Polk, Louisiana. The exercise lasted from mid-July to the third full week of August. Although many soldiers experienced the local fauna, including alligators, hundreds of wild horses and millions of winged insects, they didnt have the opportunity to sight-see.

It was tough and it was meant to be tough, but the unit exceeded expectations, said Col. Mark Alessia of Sherman, commander of the combat team. We learned a lot and we met the challenges before us. The exercise showed us exactly what we need to do going forward to be at maximum readiness. I am much more confident in our ability to defend the nation after undergoing this training.

The training pitted the 33rd against an opposing force. The scenario exercised the teams ability to synchronize and employ ground infantry troops, artillery, aviation, armor, engineer and logistics to sustain offensive and defensive operations over the training period.

Secretary of the Army Mark T. Esper said the exercise is an opportunity to validate the 33rds training as well as provide feedback to the Armys top brass for the development of new doctrine, and the tactics, techniques and procedures soldiers will use in future fights.

There is a reason why the JRTC and the National Training Center are last stops for any unit before they go abroad on a deployment. We know these are the places where they get the most demanding, the most rigorous, the best training so that they are ready to deploy, Esper said.

The team is expected to participate in a series of training exercises with the Pacific Rim nations in 2019. The 33rds training center rotation required months of planning and weeks of moving more than 1,000 vehicles and other pieces of military equipment to and from Fort Polk. This showed the logistical readiness of the brigade and its ability to rapidly deploy.

The team includes units based in Champaign, Decatur, Springfield and elsewhere in Illinois.
Threatening skies and a few raindrops did not deter hundreds of people from watching Gov. Louis Emmerson cut a ceremonial ribbon officially opening the Illinois River bridge at Florence in May 1930.

An estimated 2,500 people witnessed the dedication of the $681,391 bridge, which reports said provided a through paved route from Columbus, Ohio, to Denver, Colorado.

Emmerson told the crowd that cars, hard roads and bridges were among the weapons with which the past decade has conquered sectionalism and class feeling.

Dedication of this bridge here today is just another link in the great and growing chain of improvements helping to cement friendships that have developed in the past decade, Emmerson declared. It stands as a monument to the progressive spirit of the people of Illinois and removes one more barrier to rapid transportation between all our counties.

The Jacksonville State Hospital Ex-Servicemens Band provided music at the dedication. And Illinois Steel Bridge Co. of Jacksonville, which made the bridges steel framework, also was represented at the ceremonies.

Besides a Jacksonville delegation, officials from Hannibal and Louisiana, Missouri, Quincy, Barry, Pittsfield, Winchester and other nearby towns attended the dedication.

Representing nearly three years labor, the huge bridge connects Pike and Scott counties and brings to a close the partial isolation of thousands of western Illinois residents from the rest of the state, wrote a Jacksonville Daily Journal reporter.

The bridge has nine spans, each 215 feet long, in the main part of the structure. One of them is a 206-foot vertical lift span, which, when open, has a vertical clearance of 65 feet above high-water level.

The most novel feature of the bridge is the vertical lift span through which boats can pass, wrote a Jacksonville Courier reporter. This is one of a very few such spans in the country.

Illinois was in a period of major road- and bridge-building projects when the Florence bridge was constructed.

Illinois has already expended upward of $250 million in building a system of 7,000 miles of the finest roads to be found in the world, Emmerson said. The state will continue that work until every isolated village is made a part of this great system of transportation.

The bridge was the second one built over the Illinois River by the Illinois Division of Highways, the first being located at LaSalle, according to the Courier.

The Florence bridge originally was painted white and was one of the most picturesque and beautiful structures of its kind in the Middle West, the Courier said.

Pike County is not well known throughout the state  not because it is lacking in wealth, in industry, or in the warmth of the greeting which it extends its visitors  but because it has been cut off from the remainder of the state, Emmerson said.

Now that passage over the river has been made easy, your county will become better known.  I am confident that opening of this bridge today marks the beginning of a new era of development for Pike and Calhoun counties.

This Way We Were story was first published June 21, 2004.
Watoto Child CareMinistries is a ministry of Watoto Church that rescues vulnerable children andrestores dignity to them by providing holistically for their physical,spiritual and emotional needs. Watoto has operations in Kampala, Wakiso,Mpigi and Gulu.
Applicantsclaiming a U.S. Veterans preference must submit written documentationconfirming eligibility (e.g., Member Copy 4 of Form DD-214, Letter from theVeterans Administration, or certification documenting eligibility under theVOW Act with an expected discharge no later than 120 days after the certificationis submitted) by the closing date of the vacancy announcement. If the writtendocumentation confirming eligibility is not received in the HR office by theclosing date of the vacancy announcement, the U.S. Veterans preference willnot be considered in the application process. Specific criteria for receiving aU.S. Veterans preference may be found in HR/OEs Family Member EmploymentPolicy (FMEP).
TheManager IT Services will be tasked with administering the controls, tables, andaccessing authority to the business users of the local business systemsdeployed. The incumbent will be providing end user training and support andlead the testing and implementation of new business system releases provided byvendors or internal developers. The jobholder will also be supporting the Headof ICT in running the IT department for quality and efficient service delivery.
The UN World FoodProgramme (WFP) is the United Nations frontline agency against world hunger. Itis the largest and longest serving humanitarian agency in Uganda. Currently WFPfocuses on three priority areas: Saving lives in Emergencies; BuildingResilience through Predictable Safety Nets; Improving Nutrition &Mother-and Child Health; and Supporting Small Holder Farmers to Access Markets.WFP has operations in various parts of the Country.
Abhishek Bachchan reveals filmmaker Aditya Chopra thought of making a sequel to the hit Bunty Aur Babli back in 2005 but he dropped the idea as there was no script at that time.

Recently there were reports that the sequel was in the works but Abhishek said no one has approached him for it. Calling Bunty Aur Babli a special film, the actor told PTI, "Soon after the release of the film in 2005, Aditya Chopra, the producer of the film, was very keen that we do a sequel but he did not have a story at that point of a time.

"Would he want to make a sequel? At that point of time, he did. If Adi finds a story that is worthy and he wants us to do it, he will let us know. As of now I can't say anything."

The film directed by Shaad Ali was about two small-town misfits, played by Abhishek and Rani Mukherji, who run away from their homes to make their mark in the world and end up as fraudsters.

There have also been rumours about Abhishek will be part of Dhoom 4 that will reportedly have Shah Rukh Khan as the antagonist this time. The action franchise has seen different villainsJohn Abraham, Hrithik Roshan and most recently, Aamir Khanin every installment.

"Till Adi doesn't tell me I would not believe any of the rumours," Abhishek added.

The 42-year-old actor is excited to reunite with actor wife Aishwarya Rai after a gap of 10 years for Gulab Jamun.

"Gulab Jamun is a script that both Aishwarya and I agreed to do. We are looking forward to it. But we are still figuring out when to do it," he said.
As money keeps pouring in from various quarters for flood relief activities in Kerala, music composer A.R. Rahman is the latest to lend a helping hand. Rahman and his band of musicians have donated Rs one crore to the chief minister's distress relief fund.

Rahman declared this in the middle of a US tour by his band. Taking to social media to share the news, Rahman wrote: From my artistes and me touring the USA ..to our brothers and sisters of Kerala ! May this small offering help in providing you some relief!

Last week, the music maestro performed for the victims of Kerala floods and dedicated a special song. During his concert in California, he altered the lyrics of his iconic number 'Mustafa Mustafa' to 'Don't worry Kerala..'.

The gesture was widely appreciated. The incessant rains had affected over 55 lakh people and left a trail of destruction in the state.
The adage that failures can teach many lessons seems quite...
Uttarakhand Chief Minister Trivendra Singh Rawat said Bollywood actor Sanjay Dutt has offered to lead an anti-drug campaign to be launched by six northern states affected by the menace.

The actor expressed his desire to become the brand ambassador for the campaign when Rawat was in Mumbai recently to invite entrepreneurs to invest in the state.

"I had a telephonic talk with Sanjay Dutt who was shooting somewhere. He said he had himself suffered much due to drug addiction early in his career and would like to contribute to the campaign against it as its brand ambassador," Rawat said.

Six northern states, including Uttarakhand, Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi and Rajasthan, and also the Union Territory of Chandigarh have worked out a joint strategy to fight the drug menace.

A massive campaign to create awareness among youngsters about the ill-effects of drug abuse is a part of the strategy.

The chief ministers of four states, including Rawat and the representatives of two others, met in Chandigarh last month to discuss the strategy, where it was decided that they would meet every six months to monitor the progress of the campaign.
The wedding of an AIADMK legislator in Tamil Nadu, scheduled to be held on September 12, has been cancelled after his fiancee allegedly went missing.

Bhavani Sagar MLA S. Easwaran, 43, was to marry R. Sandhya, 23, at the famous Bannari Amman temple in the presence of Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palanisamy and Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam. The marriage arrangements were in full swing both at Easwaran's and Sandhya's homes. The invitation sent out to all relatives and the AIADMK party members carries the names of the chief minister and the deputy chief minister as VVIP attendees.

Sandhya, from Ukkaram near Gobichettipalayam in west Tamil Nadu, has gone missing since Saturday, according to a police complaint filed by her mother R. Thangamani. She, according to the complaint, had left her house around 11 am on Saturday saying that she would visit her sister in Sathyamangalam and come back. On enquiry, it was found that she had not gone to her sisters place. Her mobile phone is also switched off.

As per the complaint, Sandhya was in love with one of her friends named Vigensh from Kolathupalayam near Uthukuli in Tiruppur district. The police have registered a case and are investigating the case.
Time for an Era of Respect and Openness in Iraq: Cardinal Sako

It's time for a new era in Iraqi politics, one where Iraqis count on each other and not outsiders, says Patriarch Louis Raphael I Sako, head of the Chaldean church who was elevated to cardinal by Pope Francis at the Vatican in June. After 15 years of sectarianism, corruption, and accumulation of disasters that led to the rise of terrorism, Today we need a will that could bring an end to all that, Sako told Rudaw's Hiwa Jamal in Baghdad. Sako was born in 1948 in Zakho, Kurdistan Region. He was ordained a priest in Mosul in 1974 and also served in Kirkuk where he worked for peace and reconciliation between peoples. He was elected patriarch in 2013. He leads a church whose existence is under threat in Iraq. In the 1987 Iraqi census, the most recent, 1.5 million Christians were counted  1.2 million of whom were Chaldeans. After the ISIS conflict, an estimated half a million remain. Sako warned that if aggressive policies in traditional Christian homelands continues, the minority could disappear entirely. Though he believes there isn't really any safe place in Iraq, including the Kurdistan Region where Christians are marginalized, he dismissed the idea of creating a safe zone for Christian in Nineveh, fearing that would make them targets. The best solution is to build a state of institutions that will respect and protect everyone and keep the guns in the hands of the army and federal police here and in the hands of the Peshmerga in the north. The problems are internal so the solution to restore freedom and democracy in Iraq must come from within the country, he concluded. We Iraqis must protect one another and count on each other. We must have civilized dialogue, be open with each other and respect each other. That's the solution. Rudaw: We're meeting with Cardinal Louis Rafael Sako, the cardinal of the Chaldeans of Iraq and the whole world. He has in recent says released a message to all politicians of Iraq to turn a new page and move forward with true democracy and freedom for all. Cardinal Sako: Thank you very much. This is certainly a crucial question for a sovereign Iraq to be on a strong and healthy foundation. In the last 15 years all the successive Iraqi governments have failed in creating a civil state based on citizenship. The notion of sectarian quotas was something completely foreign to us. These governments created big barriers between people. This kind of mindset cannot create a state that would serve the society equally and become a state of the rule of law and rights of all. These were the reasons for the spread of corruption in all institutions and the death of public services. What one calls public serves disappeared. On the contrary all things collapsed and rivalries replaced them with very negative consequences. The disasters added up so much that it created the ground for terrorist organizations. Before ISIS there was the al-Qaeda. It beheaded people, carried out bombings and ISIS destroyed Iraq's civilization. It beheaded people and forcefully displaced people. All based on identity. It didn't matter Sunni, Christian or Shiites whom they called Rafidha. It didn't matter to them if you were a Christian or any other identity. And I sent out a message for turning a new page and forming a government based on true partnership for the new stage. 15 years have passed and it's for a change. In one of your messages you say Our Father has taught us to always tell the truth even if it means losing our lives saying it. But in today's Iraq where you say it's been failing for fifteen years, is it easy to say the truth. Is there truth? The truth is bitter and painful. The slogans the Americans brought with them glittered but not all that glitters is gold. They spoke of freedom, democracy, economic prosperity and reconstruction. But fifteen years went by and we're still here. No project was done. Services of water and electricity. I don't understand why there should be no electricity. Unemployment has reached a dangerous rate of more than 22 percent. The health services is shameful. In a week alone I went to the Yarmouk hospital several times and you cannot call it hospital. The same with the schools. How could students sit on the ground and study? The curriculum is also bad and old and need change. Education here has fallen victim to political rivalries. Politicians are constantly fighting for power not for the people of Iraq. All their efforts are for power and money and the best proof is the past fifteen years. We've seen every kind of suffering and disaster. Today we need a will that could bring an end to all that. Germany was completely destroyed but when the Germans got together they built the strong Germany we see today and advanced socially and economically. Iraq could do the same if forgets about the past and quit the notion of revenge and conspiracy against one another and put join hands instead. If people are given their rights and duties they'll certainly meet the expectations, and I hope that's what's going to happen. All agree especially the Christians themselves that Iraq is not a safe place for them. But a few days ago you said in a statement that you don't want a safe region for the Christians in the Nineveh plains. Why not If we speak from reality there isn't really any safe place in Iraq. There are killings, abductions and bombings in Baghdad. The same is happening in other cities. Where could you find safety and stability? Even the military institutions are weak and divided across sectarian lines. More dangerous still is that militia groups are running this country and that shouldn't be acceptable. There are all kinds of militia groups who occupy people's homes and properties and become their new owners. That's why it makes no sense to ask for a safe zone for the Christians because it will become a de facto region. I think it is some kind of suicide too because that safe region automatically becomes a target and the Christians will be massacred. The best solution is to build a state of institutions that will respect and protect everyone and keep the guns in the hands of the army and federal police here and in the hands of the Peshmerga in the north. But if we keep having militia groups under Christians, Yezidi, Shaba and Mandeans then there'll only be chaos. Is Kurdistan not a safe haven for Christians? Kurdistan changed after the referendum and faced some serious challenges. There is no guarantee for safety and stability. I hope the Kurds become a positive voice for change and become a factor to coordinate with other Iraqi parties for building a strong Iraq. In the Kurdistan Region there is no sectarian divisions. But there is generally no safe haven for the Kurds or Christians. If there isn't a constitution that would encompass everyone's rights and human values there will be no stability and peace. How could you be optimistic? Kirkuk is a good example. We all saw what happened there. But why is the main congregation of Christians in the Kurdistan Region? The Christians faced forceful displacement under ISIS. They fled their homes and their land in Mosul and the Nineveh plains. And a decision from the federal court of Iraq decrees that the Nineveh plains aren't part of Article 140, meaning it is not a disputed territory. When the Christians were displaced from the plains they went to the Kurdistan Region, Sulaimani, Erbil and Duhok. They also threw themselves into the embrace of our Christian brothers there. We thank the Kurdistan Region. They protected us and welcomed us. But this is not a solution. These people must return to their homes, cities and villages. The situation isn't ideal at the moment, but may be better in the future. Is this the decision of the Chaldean Church that you do not want a safe region for the Christians We've our own central authority and we're the authority for all the Christians of Iraq and Chaldeans abroad. This is the standpoint of all the Chaldean church. We're for dialogue and respecting the rights of all peoples no matter what religious or ethnic group they may be. That's our motto. Also, the reality of the region plays its own role. Living here in Baghdad I know that the situation of a Christian here is different from that of someone living in Erbil. And therefore the opinions may differ, too. Most of the Chaldeans are in the Kurdistan Region now and mainly in Ainkawa. The chair of the Assyrians was transferred from the US to Kurdistan. How come the Chaldean chair hasn't come to the Kurdistan Region The Chaldeans live mainly in the Nineveh plains and their numbers were considerably large in the Kurdistan Region until 1973. Then we migrated. My family were from a village near Zakho then we moved to Mosul. Before the fall of the regime (Saddam Hussein's) out of a million Christians two thirds were Chaldean and they lived in Baghdad. That's why the main congregation of Christians was in Baghdad. They still fled from there too due to the security situation and the disasters that befell them in the Nineveh plains, the worsening economic situation, disintegration of families and Christians abroad encouraging the Christians at home to go abroad too and that played a role in the decline of the number of Christians in Iraq. Despite that the majority of Christians are in Baghdad, Kirkuk, Ammara, Basra and Nasiryah. Do you have numbers and data on how many Christians live where in Iraq? Before the fall of the regime our numbers were 1.5 million. Out of this number around 1.2 million were Chaldeans. Today only a quarter of the Christians are Chaldean. And around half a million Christians are left in Iraq. I believe they're the majority in Baghdad. If we speak of the majority then most Christians are in Baghdad. And perhaps there are around 200,000 Christians in the Nineveh plains and the Kurdistan Region. There are also political problems. The Chaldeans didn't have a chance to partake in the political process. It was not taken into account that they have skilled and talented people who should be given roles and put in high positions. We're marginalized, in the Kurdistan Region, too. The Chaldeans do not have representatives. There may be one here or there, but it's all to do with politics. I hope the Chaldeans are given their due rights in the Kurdistan Region and become true partners. I want to reemphasize that Chaldeans make up the majority of Christians in the Kurdistan Region, then comes the Assyrians and an Armenian minority. In the Nineveh plains there are mainly Chaldeans and Assyrians. Chaldeans, Assyrians and Syrianis speak three different languages and yet all Christians. Are you all one nation and speak these languages? If we take the Kurds as an example, there are Badini Kurds who speak Badini and Kurds in Sulaimani who speak Sorani and we have Faili Kurds, too. But they all together make up the Kurdish nation. Each one with its own specifications. Here with us it's the same. The Chaldeans have their own qualities and the Assyrians and others the same. But in essence we're all one people and these identities have taken shape in the last 500-600 years. We cannot all gather under one name and erase the other names and identities. Doesn't matter what name we have or what identity, what's important is to be given our freedom and let us decide what we want and what we do. But when they insult you and give you a name long like a train as Chaldean-Assyrian-Syriani, then it's unacceptable. I'm telling you I'm Chaldean, but I won't allow you to call me Chaldean-Assyrian-Syriani the same way you say you're a Kurd and won't accept to be called Badini-Sorani-Faili. You're a people with three names and we're the same way as one people and we've tried hard to unite but politicians don't let us. What has been the role of the Kurdistan Region in protecting the Christians? To this day no serious effort has been made to grant the Christians their rights. In fact there are efforts to break them apart so that they cannot unite and form an entity. But in reality the Christians can play a crucial role political and social progress. As I said, there are efforts to drift the Christians apart. When we look at the Christian political parties we see disintegration and divisions and the cause is politics. For instance, the people's assembly was in the beginning a social organization but now it's become political. Is it the Christian parties themselves that are divided or others are dividing them? No, I'm talking about political affiliations. We've understandings between us as three churches the same way the Muslims as Shias and Sunnis have their own higher authority but in the end are all Muslims. We too have Catholic, Assyrian and Orthodox churches, but as higher authority we have one and that's the Catholic Church. It is the culture, language and geography but has no effect on our identity as Christians. But generally there is a division be it in the Kurdistan Region or here and the cause is always political. Each side tries to use the situation in their own interest and they've formed political parties that can't even be independent. It is said that there are serious efforts to change the demography of the Nineveh plains and Shiites and others are settled there. Are you aware of this and is this a threat? Yes, I'm certainly aware of that and it's a serious challenge and a threat to our very existence. Historically that entire region has been Christian. I suggested to the government to form administrative units for the Shabaks and let them have their own entities and in turn leave Alqosh, Bartella, Qaraqosh and Hamdaniyah alone because these are Christian areas. Unless the do that the Christians are going to disappear as they're in danger of disappearance politically already. If this situation continues Christianity will be no more in Iraq. Due to aggressive politics and religious mottos we've become second-class citizens. This is our land and we've been here since before the advent of Islam. It's important that that mentality is changed. Also, it's vital that the laws are changed and people are allowed to criticize and speak up when they face trouble. Everything must happen as people will it. I dress like this and you're free to dress as you wish. Do you want to have an administrative region of your own run by Christians? No, No, we're aware, and we see the demographic change. If there is true freedom, peace, stability and democracy then it's okay for any Iraqi citizen to buy a house wherever they want and live in it. But this is not true now and this freedom and democracy do not exist. This is all political rivalry. Rivalry over land, over power and money and we Christians have become victims of these rivalries and divided over two fronts. Why can't the Christian countries of the world whose leaders are Christian too protect and help the Christians of Iraq? The real solution is here inside the country. Where are those countries who claimed that they would recognize an independent Kurdistan after the referendum? Where are they now? They didn't do anything. They only had their own interests in mind. We do not rely on other countries. We count on those at home and work with them. We work with the Kurds in the Kurdistan Region and with the central government here. Our issue is with these people which means our problems are internal and not external. We do not count on anyone. The Americans, Europeans or Russians haven't come here to protect us or others. They've come to protect their own interests only. That's very clear. We Iraqis must protect one another and count on each other. We must have civilized dialogue, be open with each other and respect each other. That's the solution. The outside forces only mean trouble for us. World Christians protecting Christians here or the Muslims of Indonesia protecting the Muslims here, so on and so forth, it makes absolutely no sense. If that's the case then there'll be a world war. Is the Pope aware of the situation of the Christians here? The Pope is fully aware of the situation. And there is the Iraqi ambassador in the Vatican so is the KRG representative. The Pope has all the information and we talk to him about our situation. But the Pope does in the meantime respect Iraq's sovereignty and believes these problems could be resolved inside Iraq because Iraq is the common home of all of us. What's the Pope's message for the Christians here? The Pope encourages all Christians to stay in Iraq and keep communication and dialogue with everybody. This is our land and where our civilization is. These wars and suffering are transient and will one end as history has proven it. God willing the future will be better and I hope a bright future awaits all Iraqis whoever they are and wherever they may be.
It is trouble time for Tamil Nadu health minister C. Vijaya Bhaskar. After the IT raids and the CBI probe into the Gutkha scam, health minister Vijayabhaskaar is once again in the news for wrong reasons. The opposition DMK on Monday filed a complaint with the Directorate of Vigilance and Anti-Corruption (DVAC) in Chennai, alleging corruption charges against the minister. The complaint was backed by evidences of reports which stated that Vijaya Bhaskars father confessed to collecting bribes from candidates and employees who had applied for jobs and transfer orders in the health department.

The complaint filed by DMKs organising secretary R.S. Bharathi states that Vijaya Bhaskar's father confessed to collecting bribes from candidates and employees for jobs and transfer orders. The report was submitted by the Income Tax Department to the state government for investigation after the raids at Vijaya Bhaskars premises in April 2017. In its complaint, the DMK demanded registering a corruption case against the minister and others. The IT report is a prima-facie case and requires no preliminary enquiry. A case has to be registered and the DVAC should probe into this, Bharathi told THE WEEK.

In his complaint, quoting the IT report, Bharathi has said that cash amounting to Rs 20 lakh was seized from Vijaya Bhaskars residence in Pudukottai. Rs 12,96,000 was kept in several brown covers with respective names of candidates and employees written on it. It was with regard to the job in Nutrition Meal Programme, Bharathi said in his complaint.

This is the third such complaint filed by the DMK against the ruling AIADMK government and its ministers. The opposition party has already filed complaints on corruption charges with the DVAC and also went to the Madras High Court seeking enquiry against Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palanisami and Deputy Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam. The DMK, which has been consistently demanding the resignation of Vijaya Bhaskar after the raids at his house in April 2017 and after a CBI probe has been registered against him in the Gutkha scam, has now gone to register a complaint with the DVAC.

The latest complaint comes after news reports on the IT department submitting a report to the Tamil Nadu government on the raids conducted on the health minister. During the IT enquiry, according to the IT department report to the state government for further investigation, Vijaya Bhaskars father Chinnathambi said, "Rs 12,96,000 was received from various people to get a job for each of them." According to the IT report, the department had seized the cash along with interview call letters in several envelopes from the minister's residence in Pudukottai. It further notes that there were two documents with complete details of the bribe received from Vijaya Bhaskars PAs email.

The IT report further adds details on the seizures in ministers quarry land near Pudukottai. It says the land he owned on lease had violated all the environmental norms. It had mined stones 580 per cent more than the permissible limit, says the IT report.

In fact the raids at Vijaya Bhaskars premises were held in April 2017, days before the suspended RK Nagar bypolls. The polls were suspended after news broke on the huge seizures from his house.

This is the third complaint given by the opposition party against the chief minister, deputy chief minister and now the health minister. Unfortunately, the DVAC is not registering the FIR, in spite of providing substantial evidence. DVAC is an independent agency. It is not subservient to the persons in power," says Bharathi.

However the third complaint against a ruling minister has brought in more trouble for the AIADMK government.
The hacking of Facebook accounts of some residents of the border areas in Jaisalmer district has prompted police to advise people here not to use their mobile numbers as their ID or password.

The police issued the directive, suspecting that the social media accounts might have been hacked by the Pakistan-based hackers.

Jaisalmer Superintendent of Police Jagdish Chandra Sharma told PTI Monday that the cases of hacking have been reported from Nachna area in Pokharan which is close to the Indo-Pak border.

Most of the complaints had used their mobile numbers as their passwords, said Sharma.

The accounts were hacked and their password, profile pictures as well as names were changed, he said, adding that miscreants from across the border are suspected to be behind it.

Sharma said the Cyber Cell of the state police has been asked to probe into the matter.
The Madras High Court on Monday upheld Tamil Nadu government's decision to ban protests at the Marina Beach in Chennai. The court ruled that the space near the shore cannot be used for organising agitations and observed that the public order is equally important.

Hearing an appeal filed by the Tamil Nadu government, the court set aside a single-bench ruling allowing permission to farmer leader P. Ayyakannu to hold a protest at the Marina beach to demand constitution of Cauvery Management Board.

A division bench comprising of Justice K.K. Sasidharan and R. Subramanian had earlier stayed the single judge bench order.

On April 28, the single judge bench had allowed the protests saying, If the British had banned using Marina Beach as a protest venue then Marina would not have witnessed Mahatma Gandhi or BalGangadhar Thilak on its sands for the noble cause of freedom. However, the state government filed a review petition, arguing that protests at Marina would cause public disruption.

The division bench hearing the appeal noted that public order was equally important. The government had been opposing permissions to any kind of protests at Marina after the Jallikattu protests in 2017, which was a huge success. After the Jallikattu protests, the government had issued prohibitory orders against holding any protests or rally at the beach.
Putting the spotlight on the country again, a court in Myanmar has sentences two Reuters journalists to seven years in prison for violating a state secrets act while investigating violence against Rohingyas. The case is being seen as a test of press freedom in the country.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, were sentenced by district judge Ye Lwin, who said that the duo has breached the colonial-era Official Secrets Act when they collected and obtained confidential documents.

The defendants ... have breached Official Secrets Act section 3.1.c, and are sentenced to seven years. The time already served by the defendants from Dec. 12 will be taken into consideration, the judge said.

But the journalists have maintained their innocence saying they were set up by police. They claim that the documents were given to them by police officers.

"I have no fear," Wa Lone, one of the two journalists, said after the verdict. "I have not done anything wrong. I believe in justice, democracy and freedom."

The two men, who both have families with young children, have been in prison since their arrest in December 2017.

"Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and press freedom anywhere," Reuters editor-in-chief Stephen Adler said. We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum.

Both of the journalists are Myanmar citizens who were working for the international news agency. The duo had been investigating the execution of 10 men by the army in the village of Inn Din in northern Rakhine.

During their investigation, they were offered documents by two police officers, but were arrested immediately afterwards for the possession of those documents.

Authorities later launched their own probe into the killings, confirming the massacre took place and promising to take action against those who had taken part.

The UN's resident and humanitarian co-ordinator in Myanmar Knut Ostby said the UN had "consistently called for the release" of the journalists and that "a free press is essential for peace, justice and human rights for all. We are disappointed by today's court decision".

The verdict had been delayed once because of the judge's ill health.

The ruling comes a year after the crisis in Rakhine state came to a head when a Rohingya militant group attacked several police posts.

The military responded with a brutal crackdown against the Rohingya minority.

Media access to Rakhine is strictly controlled by the government so it is difficult to get reliable news from the region.
WITH THE US HAVING imposed its first set of sanctions on Iran, and the second just two months away, it is not going to be easy for India, which has interests with both the US and Iran, especially when the first phase of the Chabahar project is nearly done. Iran's deputy chief of mission Massoud Rezvanian Rahaghi, in an interaction with THE WEEK, spoke on why the US is not a reliable partner and how India can help counter American pressure. Excerpts from the conversation:

Was Iran caught by surprise when President Donald Trump decided to walk out of the Iran nuclear treaty and impose sanctions?

Iran has never witnessed honesty from the United States. Iran gave NATO forces access to Afghanistan to fight Al Qaeda. Iran also arrested several Al Qaeda operatives.... Yet, President George Bush declared Iran a rogue state.

During the eight-year Iraq-Iran war, the US clearly sided with Saddam Hussain. In spite of sending, undeclared, US National Security Advisor Robert McFarlane to Tehran with a cake and gifts as a goodwill gesture to start negotiation, they supported Iraq with military equipment and intelligence reports.

Is Iran looking at dialogue with the US over the sanctions?

Massoud Rezvanian Rahaghi

Because of our experience, there is resistance in Iran to start a new dialogue now. The nuclear deal was the result of a two-year dialogue between Iran and several countries. As President Hassan Rouhani says, if the US wishes to have a genuine dialogue with us, why have they destroyed the bridge?

Looking at the history of the US negotiations with other countries could also teach us a lot. The US has reneged on many multilateral agreements, too, like the UNESCO and UN Human Rights Council. It also walked away from the Paris climate accord and the Trans Pacific Partnership.

Where does the Iran nuclear deal stand at this stage?

Withdrawal of one member from a multilateral pact, which has been endorsed by the UN Security Council, will not abrogate the treaty. We still feel this treaty will stand as long as other partnersEuropean Union, Russia and Chinaabide by their commitments. Even nations which were not part of the dialogue on this treaty, like India, can significantly help in preserving this deal.

What are your expectations from India?

India, together with other countries, can change the world to be more peaceful and make a new world order, based on mutual respect, cooperation and non-interference, where there is no hegemony of one specific country. Today's India is different from the one 25 years ago. It is becoming a big power, so it has bigger responsibilities and everybody expects more from India.

There are some good grounds which India could focus on, including peace in Afghanistan as a shared objective.... India could also play an important role to fight against unilateralism and to maintain and promote our regional peace through multilateral fora and regional groupings.

Why do you think the US walked away from the nuclear deal?

The US is following its own interests. History teaches us that the US usually remains untouched by most events happening around the world. During WWII, while Europe was facing a devastating war, the US economy was unaffected and thus it emerged as a super power. But, in our region, we are interdependent. For instance, 80 per cent of India's energy requirement is met through imports, so any instability in the region affects countries like India and China. The US is trying to increase the price of oil through artificial political tensions, to make the alternative of shale [that it produces] viable. Obviously, the major markets for this would be India, China and Europe, so the US feels the need to create more tension in the region.

India's interests, however, can only be secured by reducing tensions and working with regional partners like Iran, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the UAE, Kuwait and Oman to set up a security arrangement.

During the earlier sanctions on Iran, we had the rupee-rial arrangement to bypass trade in dollars, but it was not very successful. What about this time?

At this stage, it is premature to say what alternative arrangements can be worked out to secure continuation of bilateral trade. During the previous US sanctions, the rupee-rial arrangement worked almost well, but this arrangement requires updates and amendments to adapt to present requirements. I am confident that we will have a reliable mechanism of payment, either a rupee-rial mechanism or some other, to facilitate emerging trade between the two countries.

What are the facets of this emerging trade?

The economies of the two countries are interdependent and complement each other. India looks to Iran for oil and energy resources, which we offer to India with special concessions and flexibility.

India also looks towards the significant role Iran has in preserving regional security and access to Afghanistan and Central Asia through Chabahar Port, which has an annual capacity of eight million tonnes at present. This was the main reason for India to extend a $150 million line of credit to Iran for procuring equipment and necessary investment in Chabahar Port.

What is the present position of Chabahar Port? Wouldn't inviting China to invest in the free economic zone be detrimental to India's interests?

We are delighted that part of the credit line from India has been absorbed. But, there are still some technical issues such as bank guarantees that have to be resolved. Initially, it was agreed that by June 2018, phase one of Chabahar would be handed over to IPGL [Indraprastha Gas Limited]. We expect to hand over operations to IGPL as soon as these issues are resolved.

Chabahar, however, is not just a port project. The development plan encompasses transiting routes connected to that port, including railways, setting up storage tanks and silos, as well as expansion of the free economic zone, which includes many industrial and gas-based projects. We are inviting many countries to invest. We have considered India a priority and given a special status to it. Inviting China and others will not put any limits on India's role in such huge projects.
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Leah Slocum was disappointed with the real estate agent she hired to help her buy her first house.

"She wasn't educated about the market and she didn't prepare me for what was going to happen," Slocum says. "I felt I was going through it blindly."

Slocum put an offer on a house without seeing it first and worked as her own advocate, a job she thought her agent should do.

After the experience, Slocum became a real estate agent herself, knowing she wanted to buy investment properties and confident she could do the job better then that other agent. More than a dozen years later, she is one of three partners who lead the all-female, nine-member Peak Partners Team at Keller Williams Capital District Realty.

In 2017, Peak Partners did just under $30 million in business and, so far this year has approximately $24 million in sales.

Slocum did not expect to go into real estate. She went to college to become a teacher, but found herself working at a startup  the Albany-based software company CommerceHub  putting in long hours before she was even 20 years old.

Slocum stayed with the company for eight years before leaving to become an executive recruiter. She's still a fan of technology companies and startups. In her real estate career, Slocum combined the expertise she gathered at CommerceHub and what she learned in the recruiting business and works with companies to relocate their employees. She gets a read on the people she takes on tours of the area and house shopping trips. She can tell if they like it and will move  or not.

"Twelve years in the business and I still learn something new with every transaction. Clients need you as a therapist. We do a lot of hand-holding, especially with first-time homebuyers. We say the only stupid questions in real estate are the ones you don't ask."

Slocum went to work for RealtyUSA (acquired by Howard Hanna Real Estate in 2016) and worked for a team. She learned a lot and, newly divorced at the time, was under pressure to support herself.

"If I didn't make it work, I wasn't going to eat," Slocum says. "It's tough to make it as a single person, it forced me to grow quickly in the business."

Slocum eventually went out on her own, motivated by a desire to build the charitable side of her business. Giving has always been important to her, Slocum says. Her father died when Slocum was 15, but she remembers her family taking in kids who needed a place to stay, and hosting children through the Fresh Air Fund, which offers New York City kids opportunities for more outdoorsy summer experiences.

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In 2015, she and five other women also working under the RealtyUSA banner formed the Peak Partnership Team. They wanted it to be different  more personal  than just a property transaction. In addition to helping clients through the often nerve-wracking experience of buying or selling, they also offer services such as professional house cleaning, pre-inspections and professional photography.

The idea behind the team concept is to provide a variety of services for clients, but the commission remains the same. Last year, Peak moved from Howard Hanna to Keller Williams Capital District. Three equal partners  Slocum, Ann Manning, Sandy LaValle - run Peak. In addition to the partners, there is a director of operations, a client care manager and four agents.

Slocum isn't opposed to hiring men, she says, but every hire has to believe in the mission and has to be able to hold his or her own among strong women.

The partners formed a charitable foundation called the Peak Giving Tree. A portion of every commissioned sale goes into the nonprofit. Once a year, the Peak team hosts "PeakFest," a fall festival that includes helicopter rides. The Peak agents present a check to a nonprofit and invite other nonprofits to set up tables and raise money for their causes. Admission to the event, held at the Saratoga County Airport, is free. Last year, Peak Giving Tree donated $10,000 to the Double H Ranch, where children with life-threatening illness can experience summer camp, ski lessons and other activities. This year's PeakFest is noon to 4 p.m., Oct. 14. The Giving Tree donation this year will be presented to the Make-A-Wish Foundation at the festival.

lhornbeck@timesunion.com  518-454-5352  @leighhornbeck
Albany

A home health aide who used a tire iron to bludgeon a defenseless 79-year-old man and slashed his throat was sentenced Tuesday to the maximum 25 years to life in prison as the victim's devastated family members asked that she never be set free.

"Only God can take a life. Who gave you the God-given right?" asked Sonya Rose, the elderly sister of victim Richard Englander, as she sat in a wheelchair addressing his convicted killer, Sara Moore, in Albany County Court.

"What possessed you to steal and to murder? It's unconscionable ... I hope you never see the light of day."

Moore, 36, of Wynantskill, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder before Judge Stephen Herrick on Sept. 15. At the time she faced first-degree murder, a charge that carries life in prison without the possibility of parole upon conviction.

Several family members and the judge blasted Moore, telling the killer she could have simply stolen from him and walked away but instead viciously took his life.

"We never got to say goodbye," said the victim's son, Scott Englander.

Moore attacked Englander as he sat on his recliner inside his townhouse at 40 Woodside Drive in a quiet part of Albany off New Scotland Road.

She later told a probation officer conducting a presentencing report that she thought Englander was going to give her "hard time" and she "just had to get high," Herrick said.

Moore, who wiped away tears as Englander's relatives addressed her, apologized to his family and to her own.

"I was wrong. I regret what I did," she told the judge. "I will share my story and try to help people with similar problems. And may God have mercy on my soul."

Herrick reminded Moore that she was hired to care for Englander but almost immediately after being hired she neglected him and stole from him to fuel her drug habit.

Moore took a tire iron from Englander's garage, repeatedly struck him and then cut him with a kitchen knife in a "sawing motion," the judge said.

"I apologize to the family, but I want this on the record," Herrick said.

"It was horrific. I've been a judge for 20 years. Rarely have I seen such (violence) ... he was totally defenseless. You brutalized him."

Albany police arrested Moore Feb. 7. That day, phone calls from Englander's bank led police to the discovery of his body. Investigators said Moore attempted to cash a personal check of Englander's at a TD Bank in Colonie.

Bank workers called police, who went to Englander's home and found the front door ajar.

After police arrived, bank employees called again and reported that Moore had returned with another of Englander's personal checks. The bank refused to cash it. Moore was quickly apprehended.

Englander, a father of three grown children, suffered from multiple sclerosis and used a wheelchair. He had been cared for the previous two years by a trusted health aide.

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That aide stopped working for Englander when her mother broke her hip and needed her help. In February, he placed an ad on Craigslist.

Moore quickly responded and moved in. Her compensation was room and board.

Mimi Englander, the victim's daughter, said Moore asked what kind of person Englander was.

Moore was told he was kind, respectful of others and a gentleman, the daughter recalled.

"The very last thing I said to her was, 'Please take good care of my dad.' Four days later she brutally murdered him by her own admission," the daughter said.

She said two days after Moore moved in, she woke up Englander and asked him for $50. He did not have cash but loaned Moore his credit card.

"That was my dad," said. "When you lose a parent, you should be able to look back and remember the happy memories. What dominates my thoughts is the pool of my dad's blood and broken glass where she brutalized him. I'm haunted by imagining the terror and the fear he felt as she attacked him, the pain he suffered lying there all alone when she left to try to steal from him again."

Herrick described Englander as an exceptional person. He said Englander, who was first lieutenant in the Army, got MS as a result of handling plutonium-tipped artillery shells.

He ran Albany-based Architects Hardware & Specialty Co., which specialized in high-end door and furniture fixtures.

Friends said he was known for his generosity. In 1993, when Arbor Hill Community Center was about to close because it owed the Internal Revenue Service nearly $10,000, Englander covered most of the debt despite having no connection to the facility.

rgavin@timesunion.com  518-434-2403  @RobertGavinTU
ALBANY - For years, people of color voted in recognition of a right their ancestors suffered and died fighting for.

Many issues facing African Americans and other minorities in the United States havent changed since the NAACP formed in 1909, but who people will point to as a reason for the fight has.

The issues are still the same, but the shape has changed. So now the message is, Im voting because Trayvon Martin cant, said Gwen Pope, president of the Albany branch of the NAACP. Its more current and drives the point home. To say that people who are a part of, or were a part of, our lifetime and are no longer here and able to vote, so thats why were doing this.

Pope became the president of the all-volunteer local civil rights chapter last June after then-president of the New Horizons Church Pastor David Traynham stepped down. Traynham couldn't immediately be reached for comment.

Amid the frequent changes in leadership, Pope said the executive committee has risen to the challenge of investing in the community  from advocating for residents on various community issues to launching a youth council  and is proud of whats been done in the last year.

Those accomplishments will hopefully draw younger membership and continue to advance on the issues the local branch focuses on, she said.

Its always been about advocating for the community, she said.

Most recently, the chapter held a town hall meeting to discuss the recent spate in violence in Albany, and plans are in the works for a second meeting Thursday, Sept. 27, Pope said.

She admitted that the leadership changes have created challenges, but my hope is thatwe got some things in place that will have some people in place who either have already been a part of what were doing, or at least know what were doing, and theyll continue to move that ball forward.

Its not about who leads the local branch, but about continuing the mission and focus of the NAACP, Pope said.

Several years ago, the national chapter of the civil rights group developed six game changer focal points for the branches to focus on within their respective communities: economic sustainability, education, public safety and criminal justice, voting rights and political representation, and expanding youth and youth-adult engagement.

Many of the points echo the topics that the group was founded on  ensuring all individuals have equal rights without discrimination based on race.

And there are many issues in the Capital Region that fall into those categories, leaving the Albany chapter running from one event, protest, or meeting, to the next, Pope said.

Theres the fight for a $15 an hour minimum wage. Ensuring environmental justice in the South End  a community inundated by truck traffic and diesel trains  and Sheridan Hollow, where the state is proposing a natural gas powered microgrid. And pushing for required paid sick days for workers in Albany County.

Its a constant battle, Pope said. Youre fighting for a quality education for African American students, and low-income students.

That includes providing scholarships to local students to spearheading the revival of the Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological, Scientific Olympics, or ACT-SO, in the Albany City School District.

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The passion for improving the lives of others was ingrained in Pope from an early age. The 61-year-old Guilderland resident is the daughter of Anne Pope, the northeast regional director of the NAACP. She is employed by New York state. She has one daughter.

Theres always been a piece of something in me thats had that activism, or that desire to be out there on behalf of folks, Gwen Pope said.

She wouldnt comment on the future of the leadership at the local branch, but said whenever her time is up, I will still absolutely remain involved because I believe in the cause and the purpose.

In recent years  from younger generations getting involved in gun violence protests  Pope said future leaders are stepping up.

I notice a resurgence of young people now, and its very exciting, she said. You look at Black Lives Matter groups, look at the young people out protesting (President) Donald Trump and young people from Florida that are protesting gun violence.

With the current federal administration under Trump, Pope said the need to fight for minority rights is more salient now. Those who have been part of NAACPs efforts over the years may have thought the work theyd done would allow their children a reprieve, but thats not the case, she said.

All of the work that those civil rights activists did and the fight that they put forward, you would think that that should be enough that people would understand now that were all equal, Pope said. Now youve got an administration that says, you get none of that. The struggle continues.
WESTERLO - A Berne woman was killed overnight Sunday when the motorcycle she was a passenger on crashed into a telephone pole on County Route 403 in Westerlo.

The passenger, Leanna Rose Prudhomme, 23, was found lying in the roadway and pronounced dead at the scene after deputies arrived shortly before midnight Sunday, Albany County Sheriff Craig Apple said Monday in a news release.
Albany

In some respects, Leecia Eve's campaign for state attorney general has been quieter than that of her three Democratic primary opponents. Unlike other candidates for the seat, she has sparingly issued press releases or written tweets weighing in on the latest alleged outrage committed by President Donald J. Trump's administration.

"I will acknowledge we don't do as many press releases as other folks," Eve told the Times Union editorial board last week. "Random comments  maybe it's not the smartest move. But just random comments, to make random comments, just to be in the paper for whatever reason on a given day, is not how I've ever conducted myself."

Unlike two of her Democratic primary opponents, Eve does not enjoy the benefit of the name recognition that comes with holding elected office. In a late July poll conducted by Siena, Eve was polling in last place, at 4 percent. Forty-two percent of voters at that time were undecided. Since then, Eve has been airing television ads and got positive reviews from her appearance in a televised Spectrum News debate, although she's still spending less money than her better-funded opponents.

Eve, a Harvard Law school graduate, served as counsel to former U.S. Sens. Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton, then as the top economic development official in the Cuomo administration.

"Everyone who has ever worked with me or been the beneficiary of my hard work, knows that I am very methodical, I get in the weeds, I get in the facts, I work in the trenches  then I get the job done," Eve said. "And then we get the job done collectively, together."

Eve now works at Verizon, where she is a lobbyist. In the wake of Eric Schneiderman's stunning resignation as attorney general in May following allegations that he abused women, Eve has been on voluntarily, unpaid leave from Verizon for three months, and says her campaign has been "very, very active" crisscrossing the state and meeting voters. Eve, who originally hails from Buffalo, and is the daughter of former Assemblyman Arthur Eve, recalled visiting Washington County recently, and being told she was the only statewide candidate who had shown up there.

Eve, who landed the endorsement of the Times Union editorial board over the weekend, has been running a television ad highlighting pro bono work she did early in her legal career.

"As a young lawyer, I took on a prison system so no woman had to give birth shackled to a bed," Eve says in the ad. "Now I'm running for attorney general to stand up to Donald Trump's assault on our rights."

Eve and several other young lawyers sued the District of Columbia over the mistreatment of hundreds of female prisoners, citing everything from their poor living conditions, to sexual harassment form guards, to a woman inmate forced to give birth in shackles.

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Eve said the successful suit was ultimately precedent-setting and brought the victims substantial relief.

"That gives you a glimpse of the kind of lawyer I was when I was barely 30 years old, and the kind of attorney general I would be," Eve said.

As of the most recent campaign filing deadline is mid-August, Eve was in fourth place in cash on hand. New York City Public Advocate Letitia James had $1.2 million, Rep. Sean Patrick Maloney had $795,000, law professor Zephyr Teachout had $474,000 and Eve had $159,000.

"Listen, I'm not going to have as much money as a member of Congress. Because people are going to support a member of Congress, for various reasons. I'm not going to have as much money as someone who's endorsed by the governor," Eve said, referring to Maloney and then James, who has Gov. Andrew Cuomo's backing in the race.

"Another one of my opponents is partnering with another candidate for governor, and they are cross-endorsing and cross-fundraising," Eve said, referring to Teachout's campaigning with actress Cynthia Nixon, who is running for governor against Cuomo. "I am running as really, truly the only independent. I am not affiliated with any other campaign. I'm on the ballot because more than 40,000 people put me on the ballot."
ALBANY  A lawsuit against the president, prosecutions of police officers for killing civilians and multi-state coalitions challenging federal policies.

It's all in a day's work for New York's attorney general.

But the broad, proactive powers of the post and the ambitious agendas being plotted by candidates hoping to take on the job, represent the continuing evolution of the office in the last four decades. What once was largely a defensive office tasked with serving as the state's lawyer, is now known for an aggressive portfolio crafted by the personality and politics of the state's top legal officer.

Hoping to exert those powers next year are Democrats Zephyr Teachout, Tish James, Sean Patrick Maloney and Leecia Eve, who face off in a primary on Sept. 13. The Republican nominee is Keith Wofford and a handful of third-party candidates are running too.

Capitol Confidential podcast Former attorneys general Robert Abrams and Dennis Vacco joined the Capitol Confidential podcast to talk about the evolution of their former job. They pealed back the curtain on their experiences, explained the different powers they exerted and reflected on how things have changed. Subscribe to the show on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, or TuneIn. See More Collapse

Today's conception of what's possible is largely rooted in the 15 years that Democrat Robert Abrams served as the state attorney general.

Before walking away from the job in 1993, Abrams had established a reputation as an activist and crusader, testifying dozens of times before Congress, using the office's bully pulpit, joining multi-state lawsuits and proactively pursuing environmental, consumer protection, reproductive rights and discrimination cases on the state and federal level.

"It was a very exciting and meaningful job for me," Abrams said. "The attorney general's office has emerged from a low-key, back seat office in government to an important, front-line protector of people's rights."

He argues that the powers of the office had lain dormant under his predecessors.

"I think they had a more limited vision about what that office could be, or should be, and I had a more activist approach  a broadening approach," Abrams said, while acknowledging that a majority of the job still revolves around defending state actions.

Product of the times

Democrat Eliot Spitzer, the attorney general from 1999 to 2007, said the affirmative actions undertaken often reflect the tenor of the times.

"The office evolves to adapt and deal with the paramount issues that need to be confronted at any moment," he said.

When Republican Dennis Vacco won election to the post in 1994, he said New Yorkers expected the government to address the state's rise in violent crime. Upon taking office, the former prosecutor collaborated with district attorneys, grew the office's criminal bureau into a division and led homicide prosecutions.

"We built off of what Bob had started," Vacco said. "In doing so, I think we helped begin to change the voters' perception of the AG's office."

"I had a lot of people challenging me, saying that my vision for the office wasn't the traditional vision for the office ... Fast forward to 2018, and all you hear these [Democratic] candidates talk about are the investigations they're going to be launching and ... they're more akin to criminal investigations," he said.

Prosecution powers

Historically, though, the office has limited ability to bring criminal cases. Former attorneys general blanch at the common misconception that they're the "chief law enforcement officer" of New York. "The attorney general is the chief legal officer of the state," Abrams said.

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In most cases, according to Vacco, the attorney general's latent prosecutorial authority can only be initiated with a referral from an executive agency, such as a district attorney, state agency or the governor.

This summer, after New York brought a lawsuit against President Donald J. Trump and his charitable foundation, Gov. Andrew M. Cuomo offered state Attorney General Barbara Underwood the authority to pursue a criminal probe.

"It's my sense that the number of requests for referrals and the number of referrals all together has gone up," Vacco said.

Pursuing the president

Speaking to a panel of state legislators in May, Underwood indicated she would continue former-Attorney General Eric Schneiderman's penchant for challenging the Trump administration on policies that she felt violated the rights of New Yorkers.

This brand of antagonism was regularly on display in the 1980s by Abrams, who was a thorn in the side of President Ronald Reagan, a Republican. Abrams joined attorneys general from other states to push the White House for actions on civil rights, fair trade and the environment.

Sparring continued with Vacco under President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, and Spitzer with President George W. Bush, a Republican.

"You're always going to have the [state] AG of the party that's not in the White House always challenging the federal government," Vacco said.

For more on the evolution of the state attorney general's office, check out the Capitol Confidential podcast.


The launch of the brochure for Cashel Arts Festival took place on Saturday 1st September in the Rock of Cashel.

An attractive brochure for the festival was launched at 7.30pm in The Vicar's Choral, immediately followed by a special screening of a new feature-length film 'The Camino Voyage' prior to its cinema release in Ireland in October.

The voyage has been described as an epic 2,500 km Modern Day Celtic Odyssey.

We were delighted that the film maker Donal O Ceilleachair, who is now based in Cashel was with us on the night, said organiser Eibhlis Maher.

Festival Chairperson Anne Marie ODonnell, said the theme of the festival this year is Reflections. Ms O'Donnell thanked the voluntary festival team for their months of work culminating in the brochure and the festival which runs from 20th  23rd September.

A painting, play or song can have different and equally valid meanings which change, evolve and grow in response to mood, time, place or whim. Our programme this year provides a palette of colour and creativity with representatives from the various branches of the arts and which the committee hopes will suggest, shape and cement a set of positive reflections to carry us through the long winter months. The festival promises, as always, to provide a rich weekend of culture and fun and we look forward to seeing you there, said Ms O'Donnell.

The organising committee are Anne Marie ODonnell, Eibhlis Maher, Claire Fox, Diarmuid OLeary, Geraldine Stockil, Mark King, Eleanor Dwyer, Anne Devitt, Emily Kirwan, Petronelle Clifton Brown, Josephine McCan, Gillian Brennan, Paul Maher, Yuliya Shilnikova, Catherine Fogarty and Maebh Ryan.

Anne Marie also thanked the festival sponsors, stating that the festival is reliant on their generosity.

Appreciation was also expressed to Elaine Moriarty and the OPW staff for hosting the event. The OPW is also kindly holding other events in the Rock of Cashel as well as an art installation in conjunction with Mens Shed and Cashel Tidy Towns curated by artist Aoife Banville in St. Dominics Abbey during the festival.

Anne Marie said she hoped the festival weekend will give us the raw materials to create new visions of ourselves and new reflections and that the variety of arts on offer would add new and lasting layers to the fabric of Cashel.

In line with this theme, the Bolton Lecture on Saturday 22nd September will be given by ex-Labour MP, Chris Mullin, who lead a campaign to free the Birmingham Six.

His talk will be based on his recently published memoir (Hinterland) and will reflect over a fascinating life lived fully. Phelim Drew (son of Ronnie Drew) will perform Orwells Down and Out in Paris & London in which Orwell leaves his life of privilege and re-casts himself as a down and out.

This play will take place at Bru Boru theatre on Thursday 20th September following the official launch of the festival by award winning author Julian Gough.

Brochures are available in local shops and businesses and to download at www.cashelartsfest.com

Cashel Arts Festival  20th  23rd September 2018 includes the inaugural Taste of Cashel, Craft Demonstrations, Culture Night, music, workshops, street theatre, film, visual arts and a host of other events.
[September 02, 2018] Linde LienHwa launches its highest quality brand of electronic materials: SPECTRA EM

- Launching SPECTRA EM brand of electronic materials - Continued localization of electronic special gas production for F2 (fluorine) and HBr (hydrogen bromide) TAIPEI, Taiwan, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Linde LienHwa (LLH), the leading supplier of gases and chemicals to the electronics industry in the Asia Pacific region, is introducing the initial portfolio of its highest quality brand of electronic materials called SPECTRA EM at SEMICON Taiwan. This new product line, along with its continuing investment in local production of electronic special gases (ESGs) and electronic bulk gases, enhances LLH's portfolio to meet the growing demand of Taiwanese and regional customers in the semiconductor and display industries. LLH is leveraging access to global expertise to build first-in-kind capabilities in Taiwan to innovate locally for customers. Introducing SPECTRA EM  Linde LienHwa's highest quality electronic materials

Building upon its SPECTRA family of premier electronic offerings, Linde LienHwa is proud to debut its SPECTRA EM line of electronic materials, distinguished by industry-leading purity, packaging and analysis. The initial products included in the SPECTRA EM family include C 3 F 8 , CF 4 , C 4 F 8 , CO, F 2 /N 2 mixtures, HBr, HCDS, NF 3 and SF 6 . "These products exemplify our commitment to quality, expertise and partnership," states Alex Tong, President of Linde LienHwa. "Over the past three years, we have executed on our strategy to localize production and know-how of electronic special gases to best serve our customers. The SPECTRA EM portfolio delivers on our promise for the highest quality available products." SPECTRA EM products join an established family of industry-recognized offerings. SPECTRA-N nitrogen generators lead the way in flexible and power-efficient nitrogen supply for semiconductor and display customers. SPECTRA lithography gases have pioneered reliable, precision blends of neon-halogen mixtures, which have enabled DUV (deep UV) lithographic patterning for high performance and efficiency manufacturing. New production of fluorine mixtures in Guanyin, Taiwan and hydrogen bromide in mainland China

Linde LienHwa has recently commissioned production of two of the newest SPECTRA EM products. Utilizing fluorine generation technlogy developed by JV partner Linde, Linde LienHwa has expanded production at its Guanyin, Taiwan location to offer fluorine mixes. LLH is the first electronics-grade fluorine facility in Taiwan and is the only grade of F 2 manufactured specifically for the electronics industry. Fluorine is a highly reactive gas and it is combined into a 20% blend with nitrogen to yield a mixture that is safe for compression, packaging and transport. Linde also employs this same technology to supply customers in the United States. The fluorine mixtures are used to clean semiconductor manufacturing equipment.



In Tianjin, China, Linde LienHwa has invested to create a new source of electronics-grade hydrogen bromide (HBr) for customers in mainland China, Taiwan and throughout the APAC region. Linde is a leading producer and supplier of HBr globally with production facilities in the US. By employing best practices for purification, analysis and packaging for the new source, Linde LienHwa ensures that its customers will now have an additional source and supply capacity produced in Asia that matches their quality requirements. HBr is a compressed gas that is used as a selective etchant, allowing semiconductor manufacturers to remove one material while leaving a second material untouched. This process has become increasingly important as leading-edge chip manufacturers produce 3D structures to make transistors smaller, faster and use less power. SEMICON Taiwan

Linde LienHwa will be exhibiting at the SEMICON Taiwan tradeshow in Taipei September 5-7. Its focus will be on the safety, quality, commitment, expertise and environmental leadership that Linde LienHwa and its global partner Linde Electronics bring to the semiconductor industry. Stop by the LLH booth or visit www.linde.com/electronics/spectra_em to learn more about the full portfolio of SPECTRA EM electronic materials.

Fox Fang, Vice President of Electronics Supply Chain for Linde LienHwa, will speak at the co-sponsored Semiconductor Materials Forum on September 6 to be held at the Master Forum Stage, 4F, Hall 1, Taipei Nangang Exhibition Center. His talk, "Investing in Taiwan: Benefits of Domestic Development and Production of Strategic Electronic Materials," to be given at 14:15, will demonstrate how localization of production creates customer benefits and increases quality outcomes. SEMICON Taiwan is the annual tradeshow for the semiconductor manufacturing industry in Taiwan. All visitors are welcome to visit Linde LienHwa in the Nangang Exhibition Center in booth number M242. For further inquiries, please contact Ines Huang at ines.huang@linde-lienhwa.com.tw. About Linde LienHwa

Linde LienHwa is an established joint venture of LienHwa Industrial Corp and The Linde Group, and is the largest industrial gas manufacturer in Taiwan. Through close partnership with the worldwide-based Linde Group, Linde LienHwa has the capability to provide various high quality gas and gas-application technologies. Furthermore, in order to keep up with rapid growth, Linde LienHwa has invested tremendously in the high-efficiency gas production equipment. About Linde Electronics

Linde Electronics is the global electronics business of The Linde Group and an industry leader in gases for the electronics marketsemiconductor, solar, display and LED. Linde Electronics helps electronics companies achieve their goals through a strong focus on quality and environmental leadership, its expertise, commitment to the industry through ongoing investments in processes, engineering, and on-site and localized solutions, a broad portfolio that includes environmentally sustainable and highly specialized and rigorously measured electronic specialty gases (ESGs), bulk/pipeline gases, equipment, and services, and through working closely with customers to better meet their evolving needs. For more information, visit www.linde.com/electronics or contact electronicsinfo@linde.com. About The Linde Group

In the 2017 financial year, The Linde Group generated revenue of EUR 17.113 bn, making it one of the leading gases and engineering companies in the world, with approximately 58,000 employees working in more than 100 countries worldwide. The strategy of The Linde Group is geared towards long-term profitable growth and focuses on the expansion of its international business, with forward-looking products and services. Linde acts responsibly towards its shareholders, business partners, employees, society and the environment in every one of its business areas, regions and locations across the globe. The company is committed to technologies and products that unite the goals of customer value and sustainable development. For more information, see The Linde Group online at www.linde.com SOURCE Linde Electronics

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[September 02, 2018] Openbravo and Decathlon Strengthen Their Partnership With the Rollout of Openbravo POS for New Decathlon Markets Across Asia

BARCELONA, Spain and LILLE, France, September 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Openbravo, the global cloud-based omnichannel software vendor for agile and innovative retailing, strengthens its partnership with Decathlon, the leading French sporting goods retailer with +11bn  in annual turnover, more than 1,400 stores and with presence in over 40 countries, by accelerating the deployment of its point-of-sale (POS) solution for new Decathlon markets across Asia. Openbravo is able to support Decathlon's impressive expansion thanks to its modern retail platform enabling faster innovation and accelerated cloud adoption for a more differentiated in-store shopping experience.

(Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/703504/Openbravo_Logo.jpg )



(Photo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/737826/Openbravo.jpg )

A strong relationship started in India that today extends to a rapidly growing list of countries After a partnership that started more than five years ago in India to support its ambitious growth plan in the country, Openbravo is used today in all 81 Decathlon stores across India. Apart from India, Decathlon today uses Openbravo POS to manage tore operations in Australia, Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Philippine and Vietnam, and the list continues to grow.



The Openbravo solution can be quickly and easily deployed and adapted to support different country-specific needs, from fiscal regulations to integrations and innovative technologies like RFID, mobile payments, or a self-checkout solution that was launched in less than 3 months. Openbravo mobile POS capabilities open up additional possibilities for enhanced customer service. According to Tim Liu, IT Manager at Decathlon International and responsible for the POS project in Asia, "With the efficient integration to Decathlon systems and new technologies like RFID or mobile payments, Openbravo helps our store staff in terms of check-out process efficiency and reduces time spent on training. We believe this innovative solution will help us with the digital transformation of our business."

Simplified multi-store IT management and cloud readiness Openbravo thanks to being web-native and deployed on the Openbravo Cloud, has also helped to dramatically simplify store IT infrastructure, enabling faster preparation for new openings and reducing the total effort and cost for daily store maintenance. It also allows Decathlon to move forward in its transition to the cloud, which is another strategic objective for the company. "Thanks to Openbravo, we were able to lighten our infrastructure in stores by eliminating the need of local servers. We are now able to roll out changes in a way that saves much time and cost. Furthermore, we moved to a cloud solution which will fit our cloud strategy and will generate more benefits on costs and deployment from a long-term perspective," Mr. Liu added. About Decathlon Decathlon is today one of the world's leading sporting goods retailers. Founded in Lille, France, Decathlon sells products catering to more than 100 sports. For more information visit corporate.decathlon.com/en. About Openbravo With customers in more than 60 countries and over 15,000 back office users and 20,000 point of sales using its solutions, Openbravo has offices in Dubai, France, India, Mexico, and Spain. Visit http://www.openbravo.com for more information.

Xavier Places

Marketing Director

+34607676568

xavier.places@openbravo.com



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[September 03, 2018] Winning IFA Product Technical Innovation Award, setting up new overseas brands, SKYWORTH unveils "AI" brand strategy

BERLIN, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- On August 31, 2018, the 2018 Internationale Funkausstellung (IFA) Berlin opens on schedule. In the first day, a series of breaking news has made China brand SKYWORTH become the focus immediately. This year is the 30th anniversary of SKYWORTH, S9A, as the annual OLED product, won the "AI Interaction Innovation Gold Award" of IFA Product Technical Innovation Award. SKYWORTH unveiled "AI" brand strategy and set up a new brand METZ blue, which will be launched Europe, India and Hongkong, China in September. SKYWORTH exhibited 100-inch giant screen TV G9, excellent OLED series TV (W80, S9A, S8A), Android TV with "AI" conception and Coocaa Lite TV with cloud-based voice service Amazon Alexa and Prime video, etc. This exhibition also has a super TV experience room. The 86-inch large screen TV F7 to feature Dolby Vision HDR imaging technology, paired with a 7.1.4 Dolby Atmos home theater system, delivers a spectacular and immersive experience. A smart experience room is also set up to highlight the forefront of AI development.



Artificial Intelligence in ecosystem, but also the Artistic Inspiration of design, the Aesthetic Image of picture quality, the Acoustic Instrument of the sound quality, and the All-In-1 system. The strategic reflects SKYWORTH's ambition to expand its skills in the AI field. The "AI Interactive Innovation Gold Award" is well deserved for SKYWORTH comprehensive product layout from high-end OLED TV to smart TV.

SKYWORTH also launched a modern luxury brand METZ blue. This is another step after SKYWORTH's successful acquisition of the German luxury brand Metz company in 2015. While the original brand Metz classic continues to occupy the high-end market in Germany, METZ blue will be more inclusive and more suitable for young generation. From September of this year, METZ blue will be launched in Europe, India and Hongkong, China. For further information please visit www.iskyworth.com

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SkyworthGlobal

E-mail: overseas@skyworth.com Media Contact: Dylan Wang, +86 15626184174, wanghaoyu@skyworth.com Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20180903/2226490-1-a

Photo - https://photos.prnasia.com/prnh/20180903/2226490-1-b SOURCE Skyworth RGB

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[September 03, 2018] ActLight Announces Dynamic PhotoDiode Integration Project and Licensing With Top Semiconductor Company

LAUSANNE, Switzerland, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- ActLight, a Swiss technology firm known for its breakthrough Dynamic PhotoDiodes (DPDs), announced today that it has signed an agreement with a top semiconductor company for the integration and licensing of the DPD into their Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC) for vital signs monitoring, to be used in the next generation of wearable devices. (Logo: https://mma.prnewswire.com/media/737016/ActLight_Logo.jpg) "The demand for vital signs monitoring sensors is growing at an accelerated pace with a need for innovative sensor technologies," said Serguei Okhonin, ActLight Co-Founder and CEO. "The collaboration with this prestigious semiconductor company is expected to deliver to the market the new, world-class sensing solution tha will enhance the vital signs monitoring experience of the wearable device's users".



About ActLight SA ActLight SA, the start-up company founded in 2011 and based in Lausanne - Switzerland, focuses on the field of CMOS photonics by developing a new type of photodetector, the Dynamic PhotoDiode (DPD). Being a fabless company, ActLight specializes in the Intellectual Property (IP) of this area and operates primarily in the IP licensing business model.

The patented CMOS-based photonics technology allows the substantial improvement of the efficiency and accuracy of various light sensing applications, such as Time-Of-Flight (TOF) based range meters, vital signs monitoring, 3D/2D cameras and much more. ActLight operates in the Internet of Things (IoT) market, with a focus on mobile and wearable devices, healthcare/medtech, autonomous driving, drones and robotics. ActLight has been selected by a panel of imaging sensor experts to be in the pool of 5 finalists to showcase its innovative light sensing technology at the European Imaging Sensor Summit taking place in Grenoble - France from 19th to 21st September 2018. More info about ActLight available at http://www.act-light.com Contact: Roberto Magnifico, +41792108313, magnifico@act-light.com or info@act-light.com SOURCE ActLight SA

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[September 03, 2018] Sensorion Announces Three Poster Presentations At The 55th Inner Ear Biology Workshop

MONTPELLIER, France, Sept. 03, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sensorion (FR0012596468  ALSEN), a biotech company specializing in the treatment of inner ear diseases, will present three posters at the 55th Inner Ear Biology Workshop ( IEB 2018 ) which is being held on September 6th  8th, 2018 at Charite  Campus Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The IEB Workshop focuses on the physiology, pathology and therapies of the inner ear.

The details of the poster presentations are as follows: Abstract Title: Comparative characterization of cisplatin-induced ototoxic lesion in vestibular and cochlear neuron primary cultures using multiwell, live-cell imaging Session: Ototoxicity and protection Date & Time: Thursday, September 6th at 1:00 PM  2:00 PM CEST Location: Charite CrossOver Foyer Abstract Title: Live cell imaging of gentamicin induced ototoxicity in organ of Corti explant cultures as a High Content Screening assay Session: Ototoxicity and protection Date & Time: Thursday, September 6th at 1:00 PM  2:00 PM CEST Location: Charite CrossOver Foyer Abstract Title: Electrophysiological functional assessment of vestibular and cochlear primary neuron cultures using microelectrode array recordings Session: Vestibular system Date & Time: Thursday, September 6th at 1:00 PM  2:00 PM CEST Location: Charite CrossOver Foyer



About IEB 2018

This Workshop has over half a century tradition of gathering researchers and clinicians interested in the inner ear issues. Over the years they have learned a lot and based on this knowledge, an enormous technical progress has been made in the hearing aid technology. Inner ear-specific proteins such as prestin, pendrin or otoferlin have been discovered and characterized, but researchers and clinicians still do not know enough about them. The workshop will focus on the physiology, pathology and therapies of the inner ear. Excellent keynote speakers will give stimulating talks which will lay a ground for discussions and contribute to further translational research and innovative treatment. Hands-on workshops can be used for people who want to deepen their practical skills. Researchers and clinicians will have an opportunity to present their newest findings during numerous oral and poster sessions.

About Sensorion

Sensorion is a biotech company pioneering novel treatments of inner ear diseases such as severe vertigo, tinnitus or hearing loss. Two products are currently in the clinical development stage: SENS-111, in phase 2 in acute unilateral vestibulopathy (vestibular neuritis), and SENS-401, which has completed a phase 1 trial. The company was founded by Inserm (the French Institute of Health and Medical Research) and is utilizing its pharmaceutical R&D experience and comprehensive technology platform to develop first-in-class easy-to administer, notably orally active, drugs for treating and preventing hearing loss and the symptoms of bouts of vertigo and tinnitus. Based in Montpellier, Southern France, Sensorion has received financial support from Bpifrance, through the InnoBio fund, and Inserm Transfert Initiative. Sensorion has been listed on the Euronext Growth Paris exchange since April 2015. www.sensorion-pharma.com Contact Sensorion

Nawal Ouzren

CEO

contact@sensorion-pharma.com

Tel : +33(0)4 67 20 77 30



Investor Relations  International LifeSci Advisors LLC

Chris Maggos  Managing Director, Europe

chris@lifesciadvisors.com

Tel. : +41 79 367 6254



European Press

Alize RP

Caroline Carmagnol & Wendy Rigal

sensorion@alizerp.com



US Media  LifeSci Public Relations

Mike Tattory

mtattory@lifescipublicrelations.com

Tel: (646) 751-4362



Label : SENSORION

ISIN : FR0012596468

Mnemonic : ALSEN

Disclaimer

This press release contains certain forward-looking statements concerning Sensorion and its business. Such forward-looking statements are based on assumptions that Sensorion considers to be reasonable. However, there can be no assurance that such forward-looking statements will be verified, which statements are subject to numerous risks, including the risks set forth in the Document de reference registration document filed with the Autorite des marches financiers (AMF- French Financial Market Authority) on September 6, 2017 under nR.17-062 and to the development of economic conditions, financial markets and the markets in which Sensorion operates. The forward-looking statements contained in this press release are also subject to risks not yet known to Sensorion or not currently considered material by Sensorion. The occurrence of all or part of such risks could cause actual results, financial conditions, performance or achievements of Sensorion to be materially different from such forward-looking statements. This press release and the information that it contains do not constitute an offer to sell or subscribe for, or a solicitation of an offer to purchase or subscribe for, Sensorion shares in any country. The communication of this press release in certain countries may constitute a violation of local laws and regulations. Any recipient of this press release must inform oneself of any such local restrictions and comply therewith.

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[September 03, 2018] China Haier achieves results in strategic transformation of targeting high-end customers in Europe

BEIJING, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Chinese home appliance giant Haier, taking the first position in the world's household appliance industry, may change the dominance of the Germany-made products in the industry, according to Die Welt, a German national daily newspaper. "The Chinese want to end the Germans' love for the Miller washing machine," said the report. At the opening ceremony of the IFA Berlin on August 31, Haier showed the ecological scenarios of Haier Smart Home for the first time in Europe and displayed the complete solutions of smart life for the four physical space and the whole house. It is the first time that a home appliance enterprise has showed the ecological scenarios at the world exhibition, which has attracted the attention of local media, distributors and users in Europe. According to Handelsblatt, a leading German-language business newspaper, "no brand and cheap price. This used to be features of the Chinese goods. However, it has become a thing of the past. Today, designing and building brands have become the primary goal of many Chinese companies." Today, Europe has become the next important market for Haier to build a high-end brand. "We will invest 1 billion in Europe for marketing in the next four years," said Yannick Fierling, CEO of Haier Europe, adding that it means that this is ten times Haier's investment in Europ in the past four years.



Earlier, in 2016, Saturn, Germany's largest high-end home appliance sales channel, introduced Haier's two-drum washing machines through bidding and gave the best places of its 100 stores to the product. It is worth noting that the price of the world's pioneering new product is about 20 percent higher than the most high-end product in the local market.

At present, Haier has entered high-end sales channels such as Darty, Currys, MSH, ECI, Unieuro, Expert, AO.COM and M-Video. According to data of the GFK, a German market research institute, the home appliance markets in some European countries continued to be sluggish in the first half of the year. To be specific, Italy saw sales of the home appliance products fall 4.3 percent in the first four months and Germany had a negative growth of 3.2 percent in the first half of the year. As the third largest consumer market in Europe, Russia saw the sales of the home appliance products grow only 6 percent this year. Against the background, Haier bucked the trend in the first seven months of the year and achieved a positive growth of 30 percent in Europe. According to the French media LSA, it is technology that allows Haier to reach the top of the industry, said Aurelien Jouin who acts as general manager of Haier France for one year. It is reported that Haier has built a 10 + N R&D system featuring ten R&D centers with N R&D resources all over the world, which helps Haier create the world's leading high-end products and high-end technologies. In this regard, Yannick Fierling said that Haier will develop a strategy focusing on advanced technologies, based on regional and product expansion, and target the brand building in Europe. "We want to be a leader in the field of high-quality products," Fierling said. In order to raise its market share in Europe to a new level, Haier intends to continue to look for potential acquisition targets in Europe, in addition to multiplying marketing investment and corporate procurement. For Haier, the major breakthrough in the North American market is its acquisition of GE's home appliance business for 5.6 billion U.S. dollars. According to Qingdao Haier's financial report, Haier achieved a growth of 11 percent in the US market in the first half of the year. Why is the price of Haier's products in Germany surpassing the local high-end products? Some commentators believe that this is essentially a transcendence of industrial development logic and industrial development concept, and not just the transcendence in the products. SOURCE Haier Group

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[September 03, 2018] WPP PLC ("WPP"): Appointment of Mark Read as Chief Executive Officer

WPP (NYSE: WPP) today announces the appointment of Mark Read as Chief Executive Officer and his appointment to the Board of WPP as an Executive Director with immediate effect. Roberto Quarta, Chairman of WPP, said: "The Board carried out a rigorous selection process, assessing internal and external candidates. That process, alongside Mark's wise and effective stewardship of the business in the last few months, left us with no doubt that he is the right leader for this company, and we are delighted to announce the Board's unanimous decision to appoint him as Chief Executive Officer of WPP. "Recognised for his leadership throughout the industry, he has an intimate understanding of the business, he enjoys very strong internal support, and he has earned the respect and endorsement of our clients with his constant focus on their needs. He has played a central role in many of WPP's most successful investments and initiatives, and he has deep experience at board and operational level. Most recently, Mark led the transformation of Wunderman into one of the world's top digital agencies, and he understands the importance of culture in creating successful organisations. In short, he is in every way a 21st-century CEO. "WPP is a world leader in communications services. The priority for the Board and the task ahead for Mark and the new management team is to build on this position of strength, while pursuing a clear vision for change and value creation." Mark Read said: "WPP is a great company with exceptional people and strong relationships with clients who place a high value on our work. Few organisations have our global reach - 130,000 people delivering results for clients in 112 different countries. Fewer still have our powerful combination of creativity and expertise in technology and data. "Our industry is going through a period of structural change, not structural decline, and if we embrace that change we can look ahead to an exciting and sccessful future. Our mission now is to release the full potential that exists within the company for the benefit of our clients, to accelerate our transformation and simplify our offering, and to position WPP for stronger growth.



"To achieve that we need to foster a culture that attracts the best and brightest: inclusive, respectful, collaborative, diverse. What makes our company special is its people, and I am very proud to have been given the chance to build a new WPP with them." Roberto Quarta has resumed his role as Non-Executive Chairman on the appointment of Mark Read as Chief Executive Officer.

Andrew Scott will continue in his role as Chief Operating Officer of WPP on a permanent basis as a key member of the senior management team. The Board would like to thank him for his efforts, alongside Mark and the rest of the executive team, during a period of significant change for WPP. Remuneration Mark Read will be paid in accordance with the Compensation Policy approved by share owners on 7 June 2017, as set out in the 2016 Annual Report. Annual Salary of 975,000.

Annual Bonus of up to 250% of salary with mandatory deferral of at least 40% of bonus into shares deferred for a two-year period.

LTIP award of 350% of salary. Performance will be measured over a five-year period using measures in line with our Compensation Policy.

A cash allowance of 20% of salary, less employers' national insurance, in lieu of pension.

A benefits allowance of 35,000 per annum to cover health, risk and other benefits. His contract of employment contains restrictive covenants including an industry non-compete, a non-deal with clients and a non-poach and non-employ of key WPP individuals. Mark Read biography Mark Read, 51, was appointed Chief Executive Officer of WPP on 3 September 2018. Mark has held multiple leadership positions across the company, including nine years as an Executive Director of WPP plc. For 12 years, as Head of Strategy and then CEO of WPP Digital, he was responsible for the company's digital development, including the move into technology through the acquisition of 24/7 Real Media, the creation of digital network POSSIBLE and the launch of Stream, WPP's celebrated "unconference". In 2015, he was appointed Global CEO of Wunderman, where he transformed the network into one of the world's leading customer-focused digital agencies. Wunderman is among WPP's largest businesses, with more than 10,000 people in 200 offices across 70 countries and clients including Microsoft, Dell, Shell, BT (News - Alert) and Adidas. In April 2018 he was named joint Chief Operating Officer of WPP, with responsibility for clients, operating companies and people. Earlier in his career, Mark co-founded and developed internet start-up WebRewards. He also specialised in the media and marketing industries as a principal at consultancy Booz Allen & Hamilton, having started his career at the WPP parent company working on corporate development. Mark has an MBA from INSEAD and an Economics degree from Trinity College, Cambridge University, and was a Henry Fellow at Harvard University. He is the Chairman of the Natural History Museum Digital Council. Wired magazine ranked him as one of the Top 25 Digital Influencers in Europe in 2014 and he was named The Drum's Digital Individual of the Year in 2015 and 2017. He lives in London with his wife and two children. View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180903005099/en/

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[September 03, 2018] New R&D campus at Technology Base in Twente

HENGELO, The Netherlands, Sept. 03, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Energy management company Lithium Werks B.V. ( www.lithiumwerks.com ) has announced that it will build a major clean energy research and development (R&D) campus at Twente Airport. In order to achieve a real transition, from fossil fuels to renewables, energy has to be available in the right place and at the right time, said the initiator Kees Koolen, chairman of the board, Lithium Werks. Over the next five years, we will recruit some 2,000 people to develop clean energy technologies at the campus.

Lithium Werks, which supplies 200 million battery cells to more than 1,000 customers in 50 countries, currently produces lithium iron phosphate batteries, or LFP. For the development of the next generations of batteries, Lithium Werks collaborates with the University of Twente, a pioneer in research in the field of new materials, artificial intelligence and control electronics. The East Netherlands Development Agency Oost NL is investing in Lithium Werks to support the companys vision of an R&D campus, together with the municipality of Enschede and the province of Overijssel. Renewable energy sources, such as wind and sun, often produce the most energy at times when the demand is low. This mismatch between supply and demand means it is still necessary to have conventional coal or gas power stations. With smart energy storage and transport solutions, the energy will be available at the right time and place. This will require both sufficient battery capacity - we need to produce many more batteries - and artificial intelligence software," said Koolen. <>R&D campus at Technology Base



Lithium Werks will create a 42 acre R&D campus for the development of a mobile battery ecosystem at Technology Base. More than EUR 100 million has been invested in the development of the R&D campus by various parties. Oost NL was the first to invest in the project, in line with its brief from local authorities to sustainably strengthen the economy of the Eastern region of the Netherlands. The campus will be built in phases. The first building at Technology Base is scheduled for completion by the end of 2019, initially providing work for approximately 300 people to research new technologies in the field of clean energy. Lithium Werks is planning to recruit some 2,000 people within five years to carry out R&D at the campus. Mobile batteries

Growing demand for electric vehicles is a key driver of the rising demand for batteries. Lithium Werks is employing artificial intelligence technology as it prepares for a future, where autonomous electric vehicles will offer Mobility as a Service (MaaS) that will remove the need for private car ownership. In addition, the autonomous electric vehicles will in effect be mobile batteries that deliver vehicle-to-grid or vehicle-to-home power. Technical knowledge Lithium Werks, which has supplied 200 million battery cells to more than 1,000 customers in 50 countries, has merged with Super B Lithium Power B.V. in Hengelo, and has previously acquired Valence Technology Inc. and the industrial branch of A123 Systems LLC. The company produces lithium iron phosphate batteries, also known as LFP batteries. In order to be able to develop the next generations of storage techniques, Lithium Werks is cooperating with the University of Twente in the Netherlands. The university operates advanced materials research facilities, such as the MESA+ NanoLab, and is familiar with control electronics and artificial intelligence. In bringing together this knowledge we will together play a significant role in the energy transition and make a major contribution to the sustainable development goals, said University of Twente Chairman Victor van der Chijs. Kees Koolen

Kees Koolen, chairman of the board at Lithium Werks, was born on 19 August 1965 in Bergeijk, North Brabant, The Netherlands. Koolen was the CEO of online travel reservation service Booking.com from 2008 to 2011 and subsequently chairman of the Supervisory Board until 2014. He then joined ride-sharing company Uber, which at the time had just 10 employees, to build its international presence outside the United States, and establish Uber Internationals head office in Amsterdam. About Lithium Werks

Lithium Werks is a fast-growing global lithium ion battery company with production facilities in the Netherlands and China, and offices in the USA, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland, Great Britain and Norway. Lithium Werks provides cells, modules and energy management systems to markets such as industrial, transportation, marine and renewable energy. Media contacts: Lithium Werks Press/Media Relations https://lithiumwerks.com/media-relations/ Marloes Eshuis +31 (0)611331598, lwmarketing@lithiumwerks.com Jorn Madslien +44 (0) 20 3151 7540 University of Twente Hinke Mulder +31 (0)6 48590047, hinke.mulder@utwente.nl Oost NL Danielle Gijsbertse +31 (0) 6 28 84 77 33, danielle.gijsbertse@oostnl.nl Technology Base Ellen Kuipers +31 (06) 12327745, ellen.kuipers@technologybase.nl Municipality of Enschede Jochem Vreeman +31 (0)6 41512493, j.vreeman@enschede.nl

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[September 03, 2018] Quantum Dot Films in Displays: Major Technology and Market Trends Examined in IDTechEx Research report Quantum Dot Films in Displays: Major Technology and Market Trends Examined in IDTechEx Research Report

BOSTON, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- IDTechEx Research recently released the report Quantum Dot Materials and Technologies 2018-2028: Trends, Markets, Players. This report provides a detailed analysis of QD technology and markets. It provides a ten-year technology roadmap, showing how various QD implementation approaches will rise and fall. It includes ten-year market forecasts, segmented by QD technologies and applications, showing how the market will grow and how the technology mix will be significantly transformed with time. In terms of displays, it considers edge type, film type, color filter type, on-chip type and emissive type of displays. This report also provides a thorough technical analysis, outlining many technical (material and device level) and market challenges that must be overcome to commercialize QD technologies. Finally, it provides detailed overviews of the key industry players. Quantum dots in displays: the story so far The primary market of quantum dots (QDs) today, beyond research uses, is in displays, Here, the driver is achieving wide color gamut displays thanks to the ultra-narrowband emission of QDs. This attribute is helping position LCDs as a viable competitor against large-sized premium-priced high color quality OLED displays. Up until now, the QDs' material characteristics have defined their use case. The QDs have been essentially only integrated into displays as 'remote' phosphors. In one implementation, the QDs are loaded into a resin which is then coated onto a film that is then sandwiched by two barrier (encapsulation) layers. This arrangement is called film-type QD or QD enhancement film (QDEF). In the other implementation, the QDs are put into tubes which are placed at the edge of displays. This is generally called Edge Optic QDs. In both cases, QDs re-emit the light form the phosphor converted backlight LEDs and in doing so narrow the emission spectrum, thus achieving wide colour gamut and thus pushing the display industry further towards the Rec2020 standard. In both cases, 'remote' phosphor integration was adopted because QDs could not tolerate harsher heat or light flux stress conditions which a closer proximity to the light source (LED) would have imposed upon them. The edge optic QD implementation is now essentially obsolete. Its main proponent (QD Vision) lost an IP battle against the market leader (Nanosys), and consequently had to sell its patent portfolio at a bargain price to a leading QD user (Samsung). The film-type QD implementation however is continuing its growth. Transition away form Cd based QDs will soon be complete? Several key trends today characterize the market and technology dynamics of film-type QDs (or QDEFs). Below we will discuss two key trends: transition away from Cd based and reducing implementation cost. The ban on cadmium (Cd) in Europe is finally announced for October 2019. Even prior to this announcement, Cd QDs had appeared only as a transitory solution, a technology on borrowed time. To respond, the industry has been developing InP based QDs as an alternative to Cd based ones. In the early days, the performance gap between Cd and InP QD technologies was vast. Now however, the quantum yield (QY) difference has all but disappeared, whilst the FWHM gap has also been notably narrowed (note: QY affects efficiency and FWHM affects colour gamut). The FWHM gap however stubbornly persists with InP QDs today achieving around 40nm commercially. Pushing it down towards 38nm commercially (or even 35nm in the lab) remains a challenge. This is because the emission bandwidth is not just a function of the control of the monodispersity of the QDs during the synthesis, but it is also a function of the shape and crystalline structure of the particles. Despite this continued performance discrepancy, the market transition appears largely complete. This is shown below: in 2002, the market share of Cd based QDs was nearly. But the IDTechEx Research report shows, today, in 2018, we expect it to drop to 20%.



Approaches for reducing implementation costs As with all display components, the pressure to achieve more-for-less is relentless and perennial. QDs are no exception. In case of QD films, it means lowering the cost of entire solution including QD materials, substrate, coating, barrier, etc

In fact, the barrier layers are a significant cost contributer. Their cost however can be lowered if barrier performance requirements are relaxed, leading to simpler barrier film structures. This, in turn, can only be achieved if QD materials become more air stable. Progress continues to be made here. As the IDTechEx Research report suggests, the barrier requirements appear to have been relaxed from 1E-4 g/day/sqm to 1E-3 g/day/sqm and 1E-2 g/day/sqm, and now even the target of 1E-1 g/day/sqm seems feasible in the near future. The QD material cost should also be reduced. One way is to increase the efficiency and the brightness of the QDs, leading to a lower consumption per sqm for a given output. Another method would be to lower the cost of QD production per Kg. This of course will stem from greater scale and but also from innovation in the synthesis procedure. As to the latter, companies have explored a low temperature molecular seeding process, a continuous (vs batch) process in heated microcapillary reactors, a one-pot synthesis process for core-shell (or graded core-shell) structures, and so on. In all cases however it remains challenging to balance reaction time and temperature against the need to maintain high size and shape monodispersity, to achieve excellent shelling process, to minimise built-in stresses and CTE mismatches, and to obtain full ligand surface coverage (more so when ligands are exchanged away from as-grown ones to promote compatibility with a resin, a photoresist, or an ink since this is often a time consuming process). There is continued progress all around, but often of an incremental nature. Pricing strategy on the cusp of major change With cost reduction comes renewed questions about the pricing strategy of QD enabled display makers. Originally, display makers positioned QD TVs as ultra-premium. This reflected the need to counter the value proposition of the (then) emerging white OLED TVs and also the actual cost of implementation. Now though that the implementation cost has fallen, and is expected to fall further, new pricing options have become viable. Some makers are seizing this opportunity to create a product range covering a spectrum of prices, whereas others are still struggling to maintain the ultra-premium aura with the help of price signals. This latter position however increasingly appears untenable in the long term. This long-term pricing trend will also present a challenge to large-sized WOLED unless that too can reduce its production costs. Overall, we find that film-type implementation will continue its volume (sqm of displays sold) growth in the short and medium terms. But a major question is whether this trend will last, and if so for how long? This is because alternative implementation approaches are being developed The pending decline of film type QDs? In the IDTechEx Research report Quantum Dot Materials and Technologies 2018-2028: Trends, Markets, Players we have developed a ten-year technology roadmap and market forecasts (segmented by QD integration type), assessing how the QD technology will transition from edge optic (now almost obsolete) and film type towards color filter type, on-chip type and finally emissive type. These emerging approaches have vastly different technology readiness levels as well as requirements and material- and device-level challenges. These alternative approaches are not limited (vs film type) by value proposition, but by technical challenges. Therefore, as these challenges are overcome, film type QDs will first begin to lose their exclusive control of the QD display market, and will then enter into a decline phase. Indeed, we find that film type will have to share the market first with color filter type, then with on-chip type (e.g., microLED displays), and finally with emissive type (long term development but ultimate prize). Innovate or die? These transitions may open the market to new comers who either came too late or were barred by IP issues. In any case, they condemn the suppliers and users to continue to invest in R&D so as not be left behind as these transitions occur. This is exciting because many material improvements are needed: reduce self-absorption, increase air/heat/light stability, improve dispersion and processability in photoresists or inkjets without too much degradation, boost blue absorbance, find optimal device stack, and so on. Quantum Dot Materials and Technologies 2018-2028: Trends, Markets, Players provides a detailed assessment of all these directions of material improvements and outlines the latest progress. For more see www.IDTechEx.com/qd. IDTechEx guides your strategic business decisions through its Research and Events services, helping you profit from emerging technologies. To find out more visit www.IDTechEx.com. Media Contact:

Charlotte Martin

Marketing & Research Co-ordinator

c.martin@IDTechEx.com

+44(0)1223 810286 Related Images figure-1.jpg

Figure 1

Share of Cd free/less QD implementations in the display market as a function of year, demonstrating that the transition away from toxic Cd based QDs is largely complete. Inset: the EU Commission's announcement in Aug 2017 that Cd will be banned from display and lighting applications from Oct 2019. For a detailed analysis refer to Quantum Dot Materials and Technologies 2018-2028 figure-2.jpg

Figure 2

The past, present and future evolution of barrier performance requirements (in g/day/sqm). This relaxation of requirements, which stems from improved air stability, results in a potential cost reduction. To see the details of the costs refer to Quantum Dot Materials and Technologies 2018-2028: Trends, Markets, Players. Source: IDTechEx Research Related Links Further IDTechEx Research Printed Electronics USA 2018 View original content with multimedia:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/quantum-dot-films-in-displays-major-technology-and-market-trends-examined-in-idtechex-research-report-quantum-dot-films-in-displays-major-technology-and-market-trends-examined-in-idtechex-research-report-300705785.html SOURCE IDTechEx

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Global Adaptive Security Market 2018-2023: Analysis by Deployment Model, Type of Service, Application, End-User and Region - ResearchAndMarkets.com

The "Global Adaptive Security Market - Segmented by Deployment Model, Type of Service, Application, End User(BFSI,Government and Defense,Manufacturing,Healthcare,Energy and Utilities,IT and Telecom), and Region - Growth, Trends, and Forecast (2018 - 2023)" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

The global adaptive security market is expected to witness a CAGR of 12.7% over the forecast period (2018-2023).

The need for security compliances and regulations as well as the need to secure IT resources from advanced cyber-attacks are some of the major factors driving the adaptive security market over the forecast period.

North America is expected to retain its position as the most significant market for adaptive security solutions over the forecast period. The strong presence of several market incumbents, coupled with recent security threats in the region, is expected to drive the adoption of these solutions furthe.







According to the recent annual budget plans of Trump's government, the United States has earmarked more than USD 19 billion for cybersecurity-related initiatives. This was majorly due to the increasing number of cyber-attacks on a number of healthcare, electricity, and business sector organizations in the country.

Notable Developments in the Market

Cisco collaborated with Rackspace (News - Alert) to help deliver advanced security for multi-cloud environments. Both the companies are well known for being involved in a strategic partnership for the past 20 years, aimed at providing high levels of security for Cisco (News - Alert) clients. However, with this turn, Cisco is expected to be delivering Rackspace customers advanced protection against evolving sophisticated threats in their multi-cloud environment.

Key Topics Covered

1. Introduction

2. Executive Summary

3. Market Overview

4. Market Dynamics

5. Global Adaptive Security Market Segmentation

6. Company Profiles

Cisco Systems Inc.

Trend Micro Inc.

Rapid7 Inc.

RSA Security LLC

Juniper Networks (News - Alert) Inc.

Fireeye Inc.

Panda Security

Illumio Inc.

Cloudwick Inc.

Aruba Networks Inc.

7. Investment Analysis

8. Future of the Global Adaptive Security Market

For more information about this report, visit https://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/hmv7gx/global_adaptive?w=4.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20180903005267/en/
Posted on: September 3, 2018 2:57 PM

The Anglican Primate of South Sudan, Archbishop Justin Badi Arama, has welcomed the latest peace initiatives in the country, but said that politicians need to do more to turn peace on paper into peace on the ground. South Sudan, the worlds newest country, has been at war with itself for most of its existence. Today, the warring parties are once again meeting in an attempt to cement a recent peace agreement signed in neighbouring Sudan, that was brokered by the Inter-Governmental Authority (IGAD) on Development, a regional international body.

During a visit to the Anglican Communion Office in London last week, Archbishop Justin spoke to the Anglican Communion News Service and expressed his gratitude to IGAD and other regional bodies for the efforts they are doing to bring peace and stability back to South Sudan.

He said: We very much welcome the recent developments in the signing of the agreements in Khartoum. But as a Church, we believe that peace is not something on paper. Peace is a practical reality on the ground, which does not just come with the signing of papers.

Our own assessment as the Church of South Sudan is that there is much to do to bring the political will amongst the leaders so that truth is central and there is true reconciliation and forgiveness that will give room for real peace in South Sudan; but otherwise, political will on paper is what we are doubting.

He said that unless truth was central to the process, the current agreement would remain a peace deal only on paper.

The people of South Sudan are doubting because since, from the start of the peace [process], we learnt our lesson as South Sudanese. In 2016, after the signing of peace which was without political will . . . there was much violence. That is why we are doubting this time.
[September 03, 2018] Collaborative Robots Market to 2025 - Global Analysis and Forecasts

LONDON, Sept. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- Collaborative Robots Market to 2025 by Payload (Up to 5 Kg, 5-10 Kg, and Above 10 Kg), Application (Assembly, Material Handling, Pick & Place, Quality Testing, Packaging, Machine Tending, and Welding) and End-user Industry (Automotive, Metal & Machinery, Electronics, Pharmaceuticals, Plastic & Polymers, and Food & Beverage)  Global Analysis and Forecast



Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5403195



The global collaborative robots market accounted for US$ 420.4 Mn in 2017 and is expected to grow at a CAGR of 46.8% during the forecast period 2018  2025, to account for US$ 8979.3 Mn by 2025. As per the application segment, the assembly is expected to dominate the market, for the forecasted period. Currently, majority of the collaborative robots deployments are taking place in automotive industry, where their major function is to assist human workers with assembly of automotive parts. Collaborative robots are most preferred by smaller and medium organizations as they are cost efficient and efficiently streamline the hibernating processes. However, larger organizations occupy the majority share in the market as they were the early adopters and invest significantly into the market.



Key trend which will predominantly effect the market in coming year is advancement in robotics industry.In the coming years as machine learning algorithms and other technologies such as neuromorphic chips improvise their capabilities to enable smarter robots, the collaborative robots in the near future would be able to perform the tasks that only humans can do at the moment, in fact in a better way.



These robots will then be able to access a plethora of database and recognize machines, people and parts, further enabling them to derive critical insights and act upon them.This in coming future is anticipated to be a key trend for the collaborative robots.



In ddition, the players in this industry are significantly investing in the development of collaborative robots integrated with artificial intelligence and machine learning.







Collaborative robots market by end-user industry is segmented into automotive, metal & machinery, electronics, pharmaceuticals, plastic & polymers, food & beverages and others.Others segment includes industries such as aerospace, healthcare, and construction among others.



Automotive industry is the most important customer of collaborative robots in the year 2017.Automotive OEM manufacturers heavily relies upon automation in their assembly line as well as automotive component manufacturers also relies upon robotics in their manufacturing process.





These reasons have led to the lion's share the automotive industry in adoption of collaborative robots.



The overall market size has been derived using both primary and secondary source.The research process begins with an exhaustive secondary research using internal and external sources to obtain qualitative and quantitative information related to the market.



Also, primary interview were conducted with industry participants and commentators in order to validate data and analysis. The participants who typically take part in such a process include industry expert such as VPs, business development managers, market intelligence managers and national sales managers, and external consultant such as valuation experts, research analysts and key opinion leaders specializing in the collaborative robots industry.



Reasons to Buy

Save and reduce time carrying out entry-level research by identifying the growth, size, leading players and segments in the global collaborative robot's market

- 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 collaborative robot's market, thereby allowing players across the value chain 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 client products, segmentation, pricing and distribution

- Examine the political, economic, social and technology impact of the five regions namely: North America , Europe , Asia Pacific , Middle East & Africa and South America .



Download the full report: https://www.reportbuyer.com/product/5403195



About Reportbuyer

Reportbuyer is a leading industry intelligence solution that provides all market research reports from top publishers



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Tel: +1 (718) 213 4904

Website: www.reportbuyer.com View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/collaborative-robots-market-to-2025--global-analysis-and-forecasts-300705934.html SOURCE ReportBuyer

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Kansas City Worker Rewards

Labor Day deals and freebies KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Don't be sad that summer is over, celebrate with all the local deals on food. Offers.com shared the following list with FOX4. Dairy Queen: It's never too soon to begin the fall tradition of pumpkin-flavored everything. Dairy Queen's Pumpkin Pie Blizzard returns Sept.

AWESOME TKC Reader Suggested Link Questions Workplace Attire

Woman files human rights complaint over mandatory bra rule at work An Alberta woman has launched a human rights complaint against her old job Christine Schell was told she had to wear a bra to work, was fired for disobeying Schell says because there is no similar rule for men, it's a human rights issue The 25-year-old is still waiting to hear the outcome of her case An Alberta woman has filed a human rights complaint against her employer after she was told she had to wear a bra to work.

Kansas Water Crisis

Hundreds displaced in Riley Co., KS flooding KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Overnight rains exceeding 8 inches caused widespread flooding and evacuations in and around Riley County, Kansas. The Riley County Police Department tweeted Monday afternoon that 300 people were displaced following flooding along Wildcat Creek. There is an Emergency Evacuation Shelter set up at Pottorf Hall located at 1710 Avery.

Show-Me The Money

New state website aims to show how Missouri's government spends money Missouri has a new website designed to make government more transparent, according to State Treasurer Eric Schmitt. Schmitt's office recently launched ShowMeCheckbook.mo.gov, which he calls "a one-stop shop" for information on state finances, revenue, payroll, expenses and cash flow.

Sentence After Tragedy

Man guilty of killing father of 3 outside Ford Claycomo plant sentenced to life in prison CLAYCOMO, Mo. - A 27-year-old man was sentenced to life in prison without parole for killing a friend outside the Ford assembly plant in Claycomo. Deonte Buffington-Hardy was sentenced Friday in Clay County. He was found guilty in July of first-degree murder in the 2016 death of 26-year-old Brandon Nunnally.

Kansas City Final Cut

4th and 1: Chiefs roster is set; It's time to play football! KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Opening kickoff is now less than a week away, but we finally know the players that will likely take the field Sunday in Los Angeles. The Chiefs 53-man roster is set, but the 4th and 1 Podcast crew, joined this week by special guest 41 Action News CHIEF meteorologist Gary Lezak, says there's still some experimentation with both the defensive secondary and the offensive line.

Cowtown Deluge Coming Soon

Tropical storm on path towards Kansas City Tropical Storm Gordon is expected to cross the Gulf this week, making a beeline straight for Kansas City. The National Hurricane Center issued a tropical storm watch on Sunday for parts of the Gulf Coast as it brings heavy rains and strong winds to South Florida and was expected to make landfall in Alabama on Tuesday into Wednesday.

Here's a midday update to keep our blog community in the now as we share some of the most important news items for right now . . .Closer to home, we're diving right into these local news links . . .And this is thefor right now . . .
McLaren Special Operations may be known for building exclusive one-off creations, but its now expanding its workload with the launch of a new certification program for the British automakers most iconic model, the F1. Part of the new programs objectives is to authenticate the history and specification of a specific McLaren F1. Coinciding with the launch of the program is the first McLaren F1 to get fully certified: the 1997 F1 GTR Longtail 25R.

This is the first McLaren F1 to be restored and certified by McLarens new F1 certification program

What is special about the McLaren F1 GTR 25R restoration

This certification program was a long time in the making. Now that its up and running, owners of the McLaren F1, without question the most famous McLaren model in history, can have their prized exotics certified, and if need be, restored. According to McLaren, the F1 Certified program was developed, specifically for the purpose of guaranteeing the authenticity of both road and track versions of the Le Mans-winning supercar. Not only does it give peace of mind to current owners of the F1, but its also a very useful document to have in the event of a transaction that specifically involves the F1.

Only 106 McLaren F1s  64 road cars and 28 GTR race cars  were built from 1993 to 1998 so its not that big of a list to begin with.

To get the program rolling, McLaren showed off the first F1 model to get certified and restored by McLaren Special Operations.

The model, referred to as the McLaren F1 GTR 25R, was one of three Longtail versions of the F1 GTR that competed for the Gulf-Davidoff team during the 1997 GT racing season. Notice the iconic Gulf Oil livery? Looks amazing, doesnt it?

In addition to competing in GT races that year, the F1 GTR 25R also competed at that same years 24 Hours of Le Mans race where it was driven by Ray Bellm, Andrew Gilbert-Scott, and Masanori Sekiya. It didnt end up finishing the race  a fractured oil line forced it to retire after 22 hours of racing  but the damages were repaired by the factory before it sold the car to a racing outfit in Japan, which, in turn, continued to race it until 2005.

Since its retirement from racing competition, the F1 GTR 25R stayed in Japan until 2016, when it was bought by its current owner, who brought it back to the U.K. where its being curated by classic car consultancy Kidston SA.

Unfortunately, the F1 GTR 25R had some rough years during its racing career. While it wasnt completely dilapidated, it still needed a ground-up restoration to get it back to as new  condition. Thats where McLarens MSO division enters the picture.

McLaren cherishes its rich heritage of iconic and world-beating cars such as the F1, McLaren CEO Mike Flewitt said. 25R presented us with a unique opportunity to demonstrate this by restoring it to precisely how it was when it raced at Le Mans in 1997, thus ensuring its future. Maintaining the integrity of these historically significant cars is paramount and F1 Certified will play a big role in allowing us to do that for the peace of mind of owners today as well as preserving a wonderful heritage for future generations of car lovers.

For the record, MSO used new, old-stock GTR parts that have been stored at the factory in containers, a lot of which havent been opened in 20 years. Theres nothing more original than unopened parts that have been unused and untouched in the last two decades. Even more impressive, at least in this case, is the fact that all the parts that are specific to the 1997 McLaren F1 GTR were built before June 1997.

MSOs work also included dressing up the F1 GTR 25R in the same exact Gulf-Davidoff livery, right down to the iconic colors of Gulf Oil.

A 39 livery was also added as a nod to the cars official race number when it competed at the 1997 Le Mans 24 Hours.

The restoration and certification process on the F1 GTR 25R also includes a certificate of authenticity, ensuring current and future owners that no less than McLaren itself has validated the race cars legitimacy. As far as authorities on the subject are concerned, theres nobody higher on that list than the company that built the car in the first place.

The COA, as it is, includes confirmation of the race cars provenance, originality, service life, road and race history, and most importantly, condition.

Likewise, the COA also covers details of the cars original specifications and details on past upgrades that were sanctioned by McLaren. Theres no going around what the F1 Certified program can do. It not only covers the legitimacy of the F1 GTR 25R, it covers every detail of the cars history, right down to the specifics.

For a car as important as the McLaren F1, nothing less is acceptable.

Further reading

Read our full review on the 1995-1997 McLaren F1 GTR.

Read our full review on the 1997 Gulf McLaren F1 GTR Longtail.

Read more McLaren news.
Josh Hallingse, the Transylvania Economic Alliance executive director, presented his semi-annual report to county commissioners last week.

The report is a part of the contract requirements the county has with the Alliance.

Hallingse talked about the Alliances focus, goals and achievements during the past fiscal year, which ended June 30.

The Alliance has three main focuses: existing business retention and expansion; product development (sites and buildings); and marketing and business development.

The three cannot be separated and interplay with one another is required to be successful, Hallingse said.

The Alliance evaluates the work it does to meet these focus areas by, for example, setting goals for the number of potential investors who visit the county and those private employers who actually relocate or expand here.

For the previous fiscal year, the Alliance set a goal of eight visits and had seven, and set a goal of four projects locating here and had three.

Hallingse said for the current fiscal year these goals and others have been ramped up because of some success in the amount of sites and buildings that are now available.

Last fiscal year, for example, 204,247 square feet of building space, 30 buildings and 20 sites were available. The Alliances efforts include reaching out to building and property owners to try and include what they have in the available inventory.

Hallingse noted that if and when the building space and sites become occupied, it conversely means a reduction in the amount of product available to market.

You want to see that number go down, but from a marketing standpoint its hard to market and do business development when you have less and less inventory, he said.

The total number of acreage available last fiscal year spiked to roughly 392 acres thanks to the Davidson River Village property (the former Ecusta site) being officially put on the market at $15 million.

It was a big milestone, Hallingse said about the property having a sale price, making it easier to market.

As for the 30 buildings being available, the initial goal was 45. Hallingse largely attributed the drop to the number of available spots being filled in French Broad Place, which he called one of the most marketable sites in Brevard.

For available buildings, the Alliance doesnt consider residential and is more focused on commercial and industrial spaces.

There is no minimum size, Hallingse said, but the smallest space they have available now is about 900 square feet.

The Alliance website includes information about the available sites and buildings.

Hallingse said investment properties, however, are something the Alliance doesnt list.

Existing businesses are a major focus of the Alliances mission, helping them with any problems or issues and addressing ways to aid the business, such as expanding or saving money.

Another Alliance effort is hosting local manufacturing roundtables, where news and issues are shared.

Commissioner Mike Hawkins noted all these activities are great but the really important factors are the jobs that are created and the investments that are made.

Hallingse agreed.

The goal for full-time jobs created last fiscal year was 45 and the actual amount brought in was 65, while the capital investment goal was $3 million and the actual number invested was $2.1 million.

Hallingse said the majority of what was achieved was thanks to the reopening of the Greystone Inn and its new owners investment.

The Alliances goals for the current fiscal year are 50 new jobs and $3 million in investment.

Another factor the Alliance looks at is how Transylvania County compares from an economic development standpoint with peer counties in the state, such as Ashe, Bladen, Dare, Jackson, Macon, Montgomery, Scotland, Watauga, Cherokee, Haywood and Madison.

The factors include population, labor force, jobless numbers, average wages and housing numbers.

Transylvanias population, housing units, tax base, labor force and those employed grew this past year, for example.

Last fiscal year, the countys estimated average annual wage of $35,562; however, that was a slight decrease from the $35, 966 of the previous year.

Commission Chairman Larry Chapman asked Hallingse what he believed were the countys major obstacles in the next few years.

Hallingse pointed to the area that has repeatedly been highlighted as a hindrance in the past: the lack of sites and buildings.

Right now we are selling out of an empty car lot, Hallingse said regarding the countys lack of locations suited for light industrial use.

He said the Davidson River Village site is a critical piece, but other options need to be found.

It takes more than one property, particularly a property that is as complex as a Brownfield site, like Davidson River, Hallingse said.

A Brownfield site is typically a former industrial site thats been polluted in some way and faces restrictions and conditions for reuse.

Chapman mentioned another statistic about the county  its median age of 50, which is the sixth highest median age in the state. He asked whether that was a significant impediment to economic development.

Hallingse said rural communities are typically older but having an older demographic means these are people with experience. He said 35 percent of the countys workforce has more than a college degree, which is well-above the state average.

It does have an impact on who we can recruit, but its also in line with our target markets, he said.

Hawkins said there is more than just one issue, such as available product, when addressing economic development questions. If someone was to bring an industry to the county that could employee 200 people, for example, available housing would be a problem that would have to be addressed, he suggested.

Another effort Hallingse highlighted was the states building reuse program, which the Greystone Inns new owners benefitted from thanks to a $100,000 grant. Hallingse said such programs are essential to economic development.

Hallingse also said that the building under construction on Ecusta Road  the Sylvan Valley Industrial Center  should be completed this fall.

Manufacturing

Hallingse wrapped up his presentation talking about manufacturing and the perception that it no longer exists in the county.

He said the community has changed in the past two decades. In 2002, Ecusta, DuPont and Coats America closed. Prior to that, there were roughly 1,900 manufacturing jobs in Transylvania.

Manufacturing is not dead in our community, he said. Its actually a very important component of our economic development strategy.

There are 700 full-time manufacturing jobs currently in the county, while more than 600 jobs are supported through indirect and direct spending by the manufacturers.

The annual tax impacts from manufacturing in Transylvania includes roughly $12 million to the federal government, roughly $8 million to the state, $7.4 million to the county and $1.3 million to the City of Brevard.

When looking over a five-year period at the percentage of the employment growth rate for manufacturing versus all industries, there was a 68.6 percent increase in manufacturing in Transylvania compared to 8.4 percent in other industries.

That is substantial, Hallingse said.

Statewide, all industries saw a 10.8 percent increase and manufacturing saw a 6.3 percent increase. Nationwide there was a 9.2 percent increase in all industries and 4.2 percent increase in manufacturing.

In net new jobs over a five-year period, manufacturing made up 41.7 percent in Transylvania. In North Carolina, it made up 6.5 percent, and in the country it made up 4.1 percent.

Today, Hallingse pointed out, local residents are also employed in manufacturing in significant numbers  roughly 475  in other counties.

We are exporting talent who could be working here, he said. The labor force is extremely tight, not just here, but everywhere. Employers are having a hard time finding qualified talent, but we do have it herein a significant scale that is being untapped in some cases.

This fall, the Alliance will launch a video-series campaign to highlight 10 of the countys manufacturers.

Hawkins said manufacturing is repeatedly mentioned because of the historical role it played in the county and the impression that it is a good job that pays well, provides benefits and is a more desirable job than most other sectors.

He asked Hallingse if that is still true.

Hallingse said the countys target markets focus on a variety of sectors, including tourism.

But we do focus heavily on the industrial sector, he said. The industrial sector has changed substantially over the last 20 years, but, yeah, a lot of our focus is on those job creators because of the wages and benefits associated, and the tax base associated are typically higher.

In other action at the meeting:

Commissioners approved spending $1.1 million to upgrade the countys public safety radio system.

No one spoke during a public hearing on the proposed changes to the countys Mountain Ridge Protection Ordinance, which ensures that construction on mountain ridges is safe and protects the countys scenic beauty. The current ordinance was adopted in 1983 and hasnt been changed since then.

The Planning and Community Development/Joint Historic Preservation Commission has been awarded a $9,000 State Historic Preservation Grant to undertake an architectural and cultural survey of African American communities in the county and to document these resources.

The effort has also been awarded matching funds from National Trust for Historic Preservation for up to $5,000. The total project cost estimated at $15,500.
Hazel Irene Anderson Adams went home to her Saviour Aug. 21, 2018, at home in Pisgah Forest, at the age of 101 years.

Born in New Bedford, Mass. in 1917, she grew up in North Easton, Mass., graduating from Oliver Ames High School. She studied dressmaking and design at the McDowell School of Costume Design in New York City, where she met and married her husband, Richard, at the Metropolitan Dwayne Methodist Church in 1938.

She was preceded in death by her parents, George and Dora (Lowell) Anderson; her brother, Louis H. Anderson; and son-in-law, Steven Siebert. Her husband of 62 years, who loved her dearly, Richard, passed away in 2000, and was waiting for her on the eastern shore.

Born during the First World War and the Spanish Flu pandemic, she grew up during the Great Depression. She and her husband began their family as World War II was starting. They lived in Chappaqua, N.Y. for 56 years, where she had a small dressmaking and alterations business before moving to North Carolina in 1998.

Over the years they spent many months and drove thousands of miles exploring the beautiful United States, and making many friends along the way. She was known for her lovely white hair, beautiful blue eyes, smile and wry sense of humor.

She was a member of Hillside Christian & Missionary Alliance Church in Armonk, N.Y. and St. Pauls Episcopal Church, in Darien, Conn., before moving to North Carolina.

She enjoyed her time spent at the CarePartners Adult Day Care in Brevard.

She is survived by her son, Anderson C. Adams and daughter-in-law, Debra, of Palestine, Texas; daughter, Janice Lyons and son-in-law, Richard, of Pisgah Forest; daughter, Corliss A. Siebert, of Bellingham, Wash .; nine grandchildren, Clayton Adams, Charles Lyons, Lisa Pianalto, Judah Lyons, Elizabeth Brown, Hagazi Kebede, Joshua Adams, Grace Cannon and Timothy Siebert; and six great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild.

The family will be at home in Pisgah Forest for a drop in celebration of her life Sunday, Sept. 9, 2018, from 2  5 p.m.

Interment will be in Oakwood Cemetery in Mt. Kisco, N.Y. at a later date.

The family wishes to thank Dr. Eric Rhoton and his associates for his life saving intervention in 2012 which gave her six more rich, interesting and special years, where she had several opportunities to fly in a hand built Coot experimental aircraft in the beautiful Pacific Northwest, make another road trip across America, and know her great- (and great-great) grandchildren.

She had a good life. Thanks to Four Season Hospice Care for their kindness and making it possible for her to spend her last days at home.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Persecution Project, P.O. Box 1327, Culpeper, VA 22701. http://www.persecutionproject.org

To leave a condolence for the family of Hazel Adams, visit obituaries at http://www.moore-fh.com.

Moore-Blanchard Funerals & Cremations is caring for the family.
Like many of you, I enjoy strolling about downtown Brevard during the monthly gallery walks, viewing the various local art both inside and outside the galleries. One form of art I feel is highly overlooked is rolling art installations in the form of classic and antique automobiles.

The progression of design in these automobiles reflects the progress of American industry and society as improvements in materials, engineering and construction methods combined into what is now reflections of American history. The local Transylvania County cruise-ins are a great way to view and learn more about this aspect of our societal history.

My purpose in writing is twofold. As most of you are aware, a senseless tragedy befell our community two weeks ago when two native residents were robbed and violently assaulted at The Cardinal Drive-in, a local landmark. The Shelton family has been a staple of the Brevard community for four decades, providing the perfect setting to host the Transylvania Cruisers car club for the summer cruise-ins and other events. What many dont know is that the Transylvania Cruisers club is a not-for-profit organization, which raises money for numerous local charities and scholarships.

As a show of support and community fellowship, I would encourage the readers to come out and enjoy viewing this alternative form of art, along with some onion rings and a milkshake.

Lisa Owen

Brevard
J. Gerardi notes, in his letter to The Transylvania Times of Aug. 27, that had the votes of the voters of California, Illinois and New York not been counted, Donald Trump would have won the 2016 presidential election with both popular and Electoral College votes. Using the same sort of logic, one could have concluded that Hillary Clinton would have won the election, both in popular and Electoral College votes, had the votes of the voters in Michigan, Pennsylvania and Georgia not been counted. In both instances, however, these votes were counted, and Trump did not win the popular vote (by 2.9 million votes) and did win the Electoral College votes and the office. The logic in both instances would be equally absurd and at variance with reality.

The issues that Gerardi avoids, and the issues that pervert the integrity of our democratic elections, are the archaic Electoral College and gerry-mandering. In the Electoral College vote, using California and Montana as exhibits, a single Electoral College vote in California requires 217,351 popular votes, while in Montana a single Electoral College vote requires only 161,703 votes. In short, a popular vote in Montana counts more than a popular vote in California by 34 percent. That fails the test of rationality and the one person  one vote motto of these grand United States.

More locally, very adept gerrymandering has resulted in our delegation to Congress having 10 Republican representatives and 3 Democratic representatives, while the voter registration records for N.C. for 2016 reveal 2.7 million Democrats, 2.1 million Republicans and 2.1 million unaffiliated voters. There are no competitive Congressional districts, according to http://www.projects.fivethirtyeight.com, with 10 districts reliably Republican and three reliably Democratic. This would be inequitable even if all independents were Republican, in which case five representatives would be Democratic.

Wouldnt it be nice if our elected officials thought about the electorate instead of their own reelection?

Peter Mockridge

Brevard
Two-day forum on Yas Island  Abu Dhabi will welcome 85 top tier travel buyers from China and 75 suppliers from across the MENA region



(TRAVPR.COM) UAE - September 2nd, 2018 - With China now the leading source market for visitors to Abu Dhabi and with more than one million Chinese tourists visiting the UAE in 2017, interest in this years MeetChina forum has grown significantly as the two-day event to be held on September 3 & 4 on Yas Island  Abu Dhabi gears up to host even greater numbers.

With Yas Island  Abu Dhabi as destination partner, MeetChina is organised by NPI Media and Mini Spider (Beijing), and supported by the Department of Culture & Tourism  Abu Dhabi and Sharjah Commerce and Tourism Development Authority. The seventh edition of the influential forum will welcome 75 suppliers from the MENA region and 85 top tier travel buyers from across mainland China.

These buyers represent the outbound travel market for leisure and FIT travel as well as official business, government and MICE tourism. Online travel agencies and wholesalers from Beijing, Shanghai and Guangzhou will be in attendance, as will representatives from cities such as Zhengzhou, Chongqing, Chengdu and Urumqi. High-value agents from Taiwan will also attend the forum.

Among the confirmed buyers for the forum are Ctrip International, Tong Cheng International, Beijing Yougou World International (Uniway), One Tour, Top Tour and Chengdu More Trip International.

Taking place at Yas Conference Centre on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi from 3-4 September 2018, the forum is entirely focused on the number one outbound tourism market in the world  China.

Last year more than 1.13 million Chinese visitors travelled to the UAE and the early indications are that this figure will be eclipsed in 2018. First quarter results show that there was a 12 percent growth rate from the previous year in Dubai as 258,000 visitors travelled to the emirate, while Abu Dhabi registered a 31 percent increase as 127,000 tourists visited the capital.

The itinerary for the event has been specifically designed to ensure the very best environment for doing business. Over the course of the forum there will be specific times allocated for B2B meetings between Chinese buyers and regional tourism suppliers, networking lunches and focused seminar sessions with experts representing both the UAE and China.

Delegates will also have the opportunity to visit some of the leading attractions in the country through a hosted lunch at Ferrari World Abu Dhabi and a gala dinner at Warner Bros. World, as well as VIP tours of Louvre Abu Dhabi, Ski Dubai and Mall of Emirates.

Event attendees will also attend a seminar session presented by Ms. Long Fei, Director of Business Cooperation, China Association of Travel Services. At MeetChina 2018, Ms. Fei is presenting an introduction to the China Association of Travel Services, a national and industrial public organization providing services for travel agencies and social organisations related to travel services. The presentation will include a detailed analysis of Chinas Outbound Tourism Market.

###
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editorial@tribune.com

Our Correspondent

Hoshiarpur, September 3

A 42-year-old woman Davinder Kaur was found dead under mysterious circumstances on Saturday at Chhawni Kalan village.

On the return of her husband Ranjeet Singh from Australia and daughter Preeti from from Cyprus on Monday, the family protested against the police, demanding registration of FIR against the accused for the alleged murder. This morning, the angry family members protested at the Jail chowk and blocked the traffic.

The police have started investigating the matter by lodging a case of murder against her sister-in-law Pushpinder Kaur, nephew Narinder Kumar and father-in-law Santa Singh. The deceased Davinder Kaurs father Gurdev Singh, a Sarhola Ranuwan (Nawanshahar) resident, alleged that police was trying to save the accused deliberately. They alleged that on Saturday, when they reached Davinders home, her in-laws were planning to perform her last rites.

Davindars husband Ranjit Singh shifted to Australia about 21 days ago. After lodging the murder case against the in-laws of the deceased, the postmortem of the deceaseds body was carried out.
editorial@tribune.com

Majid Jahangir

Tribune News Service

Srinagar, September 3

The mainstream political parties on Monday sharply criticised the Narendra Modi-led BJP government for the rise of militancy in Kashmir and sought explanation for the worrying trend.

The reactions came after The Tribune on Monday exclusively reported that for the first time in a decade, militant number crossed 300 in the Valley. The data showed all 10 districts in the Valley have the presence of militants  a worrying trend for the forces ahead of the upcoming panchayat polls.

Former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah termed the high number as another achievement of Narendra Modi. Another achievement of the Modi/NDA government  First time in decade, militant number crosses 300 in Valley, Omar tweeted.

Responding to queries of a Twitter user, Maj Surendra Poonia, for blaming Modi and his government for the rise in number of militants, Omar responded: Good questions but perhaps you should be asking yourself these questions since their numbers have risen dramatically in the last few years. See how many there were when I ended my term as CM and how many joined during the NDA/PDP-BJP government.

Reacting to the story, Congress leader Salman Soz said the Narendra Modi government had a lot of explaining to do. Is this incompetence or disregard for the national interest? The Modi government has a lot of explaining to do, he tweeted. Former GOC-in-C of the Northern Command Lt Gen HS Panag (retd) also tweeted: Now indigenous terrorist outnumber Pak terrorists by 2:1.

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) leader and former minister Naeem Akhtar, however, said the political parties should not try to score points if the figures have crossed 300.

It is not about numbers. Even one militant is too many. It is about the mindset and the level of alienation... We should not see the figures in the context of today or tomorrow. We all should realise it is a big problem and we have to address the issue and the maximum responsibly lies with the national leadership. We all have to close ranks and tell them it is not possible until they walk the talk, Akhtar added.

Meanwhile, BJP spokesman Khalid Jehangir reacted sharply to the blame of rise in militancy being put on the party.

Well, everyone knows about the history of Congress politics in Kashmir since 1947 when Sheikh Abdullah was arrested and after that how the Farooq Abdullah government toppled in 1983. The black history in the democratic country was the rigging of the 1987 elections. So, the Congress has a history to smuggle the militancy in Kashmir. On the contrary, Omar Abdullah should have reacted to the Congresss smuggled militancy in Kashmir rather than the PM or the NDA, Jehangir said.
rchopra@tribunemail.com

New Delhi, September 3

Union minister Maneka Gandhi has said she wants the Indian girl abandoned by her foster parents in Spain back in India at any cost, and the Women and Child Development Ministry is taking all necessary steps for it.

She was reacting to a recent media report according to which a Spanish couple had abandoned the 13-year-old girl they adopted from an agency in Madhya Pradesh after they were allegedly deceived about her age.

The girl is currently at a government home in Zargoza in Spain.

At the time of adoption, Udaan, the Bhopal-based adoption agency, reportedly told the couple that the girl was seven years old.

I want the child back from Spain at any cost, she said, adding the Women and Child Development Ministry is taking all necessary steps for it.

There are many other cases of violations registered against the adoption agency, and we are looking into them, Gandhi said.

Udaan has been accused of defaulting under various provisions and not responding to show-cause notices.

An inquiry has been initiated and its in-charge, Apoorva Sharma, asked to appear before the ministry on Thursday, according to a WCD official.

Gandhi has also asked the Indian envoy in Spain, DB Venkatesh Varma, to contact the girl immediately and take necessary steps to send her back to India.

While we are in the process of fixing responsibility for the lapses on the part of the Child Care Institution in Bhopal, I am worried about the state of the girl, she had said earlier.

The Union minister said the girl, on her return, would be placed under the care of a local agency.

In her letter to Varma, Gandhi said, I also understand that the Centre Adoption Resource Agency is in touch with you. It has been ascertained that the girl wants to return to India.

I request you to contact the girl immediately and take necessary steps to send her back to India, where we will place her under care and protection of a suitable local agency, she added. PTI
rchopra@tribunemail.com

Imphal, September 3

Two members of an arms-smuggling racket have been arrested at Manipurs Churachandpur district during a search operation, a police officer said.

The two accused, who were arrested on Saturday, confessed to have brought arms from Behiang village at the India-Myanmar border to Churachandpur town via Singngat, the sub-divisional headquarters of the district, he said.

Based on their statements, the police raided a storage vault at Sumchinvum village in Churachandpur and seized two rifles and several magazines, the officer said, adding that more details in the case would be available after further investigation. PTI
amansharma@tribunemail.com

Ravi S.Singh

Tribune News Service

New Delhi, September 3

The Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) on Monday revised the date of its proposed public meeting at Saharanpur (Uttar Pradesh) in view of the coming elections for zila parishads and panchayat samitis in Punjab.

Its earlier date was September 18, but now the meeting will be held on September 21. Punjab former deputy chief minister and SAD president Sukhbir Singh Badal and SGPC president Gobind Singh Longowal will address it.

Decision for a change in schedule was taken at a meeting of Sukhbir with his party leaders from Uttar Pradesh here. Functionaries of about 50 gurdwaras from far-flung areas of UP also attended the meeting.

Uttar Pradesh SAD in-charge Prem Singh Chandumajra said Saharanpur event has been postponed on account of September 19 local body elections in Punjab and senior party leaders will be busy.

Addressing the meeting, Sukhbir asked the UP leaders to strengthen the party organisationally, and to expand its base.

"First make the party a force to reckon with and then we will think of future electoral strategy," he said, adding the party has enough scope for expansion on account of expanding Punjabi population.

Punjabis are feeling marginalised lot in Uttar Pradesh. They feel they are left out from political process, share in decision making, and in government jobs.

Elaborating on party's expansion plan, Sukhbir said the party leaders in Haryana have been asked to be upfront in the state.

In SAD s political calculus, Punjabis have direct influence in 50 out of the total of 404 (403 plus 1 nominated) assembly seats in Uttar Pradesh.

Longowal said the SGPC is aware of the problems faced by Sikhs in the state, including frequent attack on shrines.

Uttar Pradesh SAD president Gurpreet Singh Bagga told The Tribune that the party plans to hold public meetings also at other places, including Kanpur and Aligarh.
ROBINSINGH@TRIBUNE.COM

Jupinderjit Singh

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, September 2

While human rights organisations, at home and abroad, have been demanding the release of Sikh detainees, the Punjab Police have moved the Ministry of Home Affairs (MEA) seeking relief for policemen booked during Punjabs militancy period, some of whom have been in prison for years.

At meetings with the Union Home Department and the Solicitor General recently, Punjab DGP Suresh Arora, who retires next month, reportedly pleaded for a sympathetic view, stressing that these policemen had been charged for acts committed while on duty during anti-terror operations.

Speaking to The Tribune, DGP Arora held: The department has made a plea on humanitarian grounds and to keep the morale of the police high in view of fresh challenges ahead. Also, the department did initiate action for aberrations during the trying times of terrorism.

However, former DGP SS Virk, among those who led the force during militancy, had another view. All accused police officials cannot be treated likewise. Each case has to be studied and decided on merit. True, the fight against terrorism was a national cause and those at the forefront must be defended. But those who violated human rights and abused authority must be punished, he stressed.

Activist Jaspal Singh Manjhpur, who has been fighting for the release of Sikh detainees, said the move smacked of double standards. Key 20 Sikh detainees are still languishing in jails. The question is why has the trial of these cops started so late, or not started at all? Its because the government has been shielding them, he claimed.

Data gathered from the police shows that the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) booked 188 cops between 1993 and 1998.

As many as 43 of them died during pendency.

Of the rest, 80 are above the age of 75. At least 70 policemen are in prison, facing trial. They have been out on parole or bail for varying periods.

Eighty-three cops, who retired from service during pendency, filed separate petitions for full pension.

Of them, 20 have been convicted. Five committed suicide and three died of illness during incarceration.

One of them, Superintendents of Police Ram Singh, who suffered kidney failure while in Amritsar jail, was convicted by a Special CBI court in 2015 in a fake encounter case.
editorial@tribune.com

New Delhi, September 2

It took the best scientific minds from 20 nations, including India, to scale what is considered as the Mt Everest of the genome world.

After 13 years of painstaking effort, a global community of scientists has decoded the gigantic bread wheat genome (Chinese Spring variety), a feat that breeders hope will help address the productivity and climate resilience issues, especially in India, the worlds second-largest producer of the grain.

The group of scientists, known as the International Wheat Genome Sequencing Consortium (IWGSC), published this month a detailed description of the genome of bread wheat, the worlds most widely cultivated crop.

Wheat is the staple food of more than a third of the global human population and accounts for almost 20 per cent of the total calories and protein consumed by humans worldwide, more than any other single food source. It also serves as an important source of vitamins and minerals, according to a IWGSC press release.

The reference genome provides a roadmap to improve and innovate the crop just like the advances that rice (Oryza sativa L) had witnessed, following the unravelling of its genome in 2005. Rice was the first crop genome that was sequenced.

The high-quality reference genome generated by the global community will help in better understanding of the basic biology of wheat plant and identifying genes underlying important traits, Kuldeep Singh, senior molecular geneticist and director of National Bureau of Plant Genetic Resources, told Mongabay-India.

This achievement will enhance the wheat breeders toolbox and pave the way for development of wheat varieties with higher yields, enhanced nutritional quality, improved sustainability and varieties that are better adapted to climate challenges, he said.

Kuldeep Singh (formerly with Punjab Agricultural University), Nagendra Singh from the ICAR-National Research Centre on Plant Biotechnology (New Delhi), and JP Khurana from the University of Delhi spearheaded the Indian effort (comprising 18 scientists) to sequence chromosome 2A of the genome.

Kuldeep Singh explained that the major challenges to wheat productivity in future in India would pertain to enhancing yields by 2050 and accelerating the breeding of climate-resilient wheat varieties.

One challenge is to improve its yield by 60-70 per cent in next 32 years (by 2050) when Indias population stabilises at 1.66 billion. This translates to roughly 2 per cent per annum and our current rate of improvement is 1-1.5 per cent, Kuldeep Singh said.

Cracking the genome came with its own set of hurdles  the enormity of the genome and its complexity. At 17 Giga bases, the bread wheat genome is five times as large as the human genome and 40-fold larger than the rice genome.

This is because bread wheat essentially is three species rolled into one, said Kuldeep Singh.

Bread wheat is an allopolyploid  which means it has evolved in nature by the natural crossing of three different but very closely related species, each contributing seven pairs of chromosomes which are referred to as A, B and D genomes, making a total of 21 pairs of chromosomes.

Hence, major challenges were to bring together larger number of countries and resources for undertaking this gigantic task. However, technological advances in flow cytometry-based sorting of individual chromosomes, high throughput DNA sequencing techniques and improved algorithms made it possible for the international community to achieve this task at a cost much lower than it was achieved for in human or rice genomes, he explained.  IANS

Staple food

20% Wheat accounts for one-fifth of total calories and protein consumed by humans worldwide

500 Wheat varieties in India

2 India is worlds second-largest producer of the grain, after China

70% Wheat yield needs to increase by 2050 to feed world population

How farmers will benefit

Farmers will benefit from new varieties developed by breeders that will be better adapted to specific field conditions and agronomical practices. The new varieties could be more resistant to drought, need less nitrogen input, or be resistant to diseases, hence requiring less fertilisers or fungicide applications. Farmers will be able to produce better quality seeds, with less impact on the environment, leading to more sustainable production.
gspannu7@gmail.com

Kano (Nigeria), September 3

The death toll from a Boko Haram attack on a Nigerian army post on the border with Niger has risen to 48, military sources said on Monday.

Scores of Boko Haram fighters in trucks stormed the base on Thursday in Zari village in northern Borno state and briefly seized it after a fierce battle.

Boko Haram, which has been waging a deadly insurgency in Nigeria since 2009, has intensified attacks on military targets in recent months.

At least 30 Nigerian soldiers were initially said to have been killed in Thursdays raid.

The casualty toll now stands at 48 with the recovery of 17 more bodies of soldiers in surrounding bushes in Zari by search and rescue teams, a military source who did not want to be named told AFP.

Search operations are still ongoing and more bodies are likely to be recovered. Another military source confirmed the new death toll.

So far (the) bodies of 48 troops have been recovered. Yesterday rescue teams found 17 bodies of fallen soldiers, he said, adding that they included two officers and 46 soldiers.

When the troops were overwhelmed by the terrorists they withdrew in different directions.  AFP
KFC delivery drivers stayed away from the fried chicken franchises outlets for a second day yesterday over a new salary arrangement put in place by operator Prestige Holdings.

An internal memo last Friday to managers stated that the delivery rate increased from $15 to $20 as of Monday.
Shortened version of address by Honorary Doctorate of Law awardee Lynette Seebaran-Suite at the graduation ceremonies of the UWI October 2021 .

May I start with expressing my humblest appreciation of the recognition accorded to me and by extension the womens movement and the legal fraternity of Trinidad and Tobago on the occasion of this award to me of an Honorary Doctorate of Laws.
Police are searching for a Santa Cruz woman who was reported missing last Thursday.

Police sources told the Express that contrary to several reports online that the body of Jenele Guerra had been found in the St Joseph community, no such discovery had been made up to last night.
Hi there,

I live in Australia and was recently trying to purchase tickets for travel through the Amtrak website for train travel and also tickets for a bus tour. Both websites rejected my CC details with an AVS (address verification service) error. The same thing also happened when I tried to book flights directly through a Canadian website. I believe this is a new system in the states and Canada. I rang Amtrak and spoke with them over the phone for over 30minutes and they were unable to get around the issue. I believe the issue may be something to do with the zip code that now needs to be entered into electronic transactions as a fraud prevention measure. Australian post codes are only 4 digits and we haven't adopted this system yet. Amtrak said they would hold the tickets and I just have to come in and pay for them in person by September 1st. I reminded them I am in Australia and I arrive within 24hours of needing to take a train around Christmas time. They could not suggest an alternative solution other than travelling to the states earlier to pay for the tickets or keeping my fingers crossed there are still tickets available the day I arrive.

Has anyone else had this issue? If so, have you found a solution to it? We need to purchase train, bus and ferry tickets as we are travelling one way from San Francisco - Vancouver via Victoria mid December 2018. TIA
Hi guys,

I will stay in Phong Nha 3 days at the last days of October beginning of November and leave on the 4th day at the 8pm plane.

What do you advice me to do?

I was thinking on a 2 day 20km trek but don't know if the weather is going to be good (I'm not going to book hotel on that night if I do the trek).

Thank you.
Hi.

Coming to Japan for 11 days this October and have tried researching the JR pass and SUICA and PASMO cards to determine what will be best fir us, but am still perplexed. Our itinerary as of now.....

Day 1 arrival at Narita airport so need to take express into city

Day 2 take city trains or buses to see sights within

Day 3 same as above

Day 4 day trip to Kamakura

Day 5 day trip to Nikko

Day 6 train to Kyoto and city transport to see sights

Day 7 city transportation to sights

Day 8 day trip to Nara

Day 9 city transportation to sights

Day 10 train back to Tokyo and city transportation to see sights

Day 11 train back to Narita airport

So.....if I did buy a JR pass for 14 days, would it cover all of the trips I want to take, both within the 2 cities, and the day trips, and the airport transfers?

Or,...........should I buy a 7 day JR pass and look into a SUICA or PASMO pass?

Thanks for any help.
We have a 9 day trip planned to Japan in November and need expert advice on itinerary and transportation to various cities. Arrive Tokyo Narita. Have visited Tokyo before so now want to venture out to other cities.

1. Transportation from Tokyo Narita to Kyoto bullet train from Narita, is that possible?

2. Kyoto -- how many days should we stay and where in the city should we look for hotels?

3. If we visit Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara, in which city should we base our hotel stay? Kyoto or Osaka? Or should we make hotel stays in each city?

4. Transportation between these cities, should we purchase JR rail train pass?

4. Are there any other cities we should visit in the Kyoto & Kansai area?

5. What about visiting Koya-San?

Your assistance is appreciated,

Thank-you.
Need some help for my itinerary in Japan in April.

Need some help for my itinerary in Japan in April.

Hello everyone,

Please , I'm in need of your knowledge. :)

I'm planning at least a 3 weeks (21 days) trip to Japan next April (2019) and I'm in need of your help for at least some of the destinations.

This is my second trip to Japan, my first time was in March-April 2014 and I went to Tokyo, Kawagoe, Kamakura, Nara, Osaka, Kyoto, Kanazawa, Shirakawago, Takayama, Yoshino and Motobu (Okinawa).

It was a bit of a "speed" trip as i just wanted to see as many things as i could in one month.

So for the next trip i'm looking for nature, authentic experiences and small town/villages. And to have a "slow" pace. Not do 1 day here, 1 other day at another place etc...

I can add more nights in each town but maybe i'm missing something nearby or maybe we can remove a location and put another one.

So I'm looking for all your experts eyes to help me finish the itinerary of my trip . :D

Till now my trip for 2019 is looking like this ( in no particular order, except for the end when i will have Takayama - Kurobe Alpine Road - Matsumoto - Tokyo as the festival is on the 14-15 April and the alpine road open on the 15-16 only and i must be by the 19 back at work):

Tokyo (arrival)- I'm planning to stay a few nights (4-5) to enjoy the capital .

Fuji Five Lakes - 2-3 nights. I plan to enjoy the view, do some activities, see the famous Chureito pagoda , view some caves and i'm still searching what else to be honest.

Kiso Valley (Tsumago/Magome) - 2 nights (is it too much? enough? not enough?) i plan to do the nakasendo trail between the 2 towns (and maybe the part from nakatsugawa also, i don't know yet.).

Takayama (for the festival , as i missed it the last time, i already know the town) - Hida Furukawa (just a stop for when i will be in Takayama) - So 2-3 days for the 2 towns.

Some onsen town/village in the area (Hirayu, gero , other??? I'm still searching ) for relaxation and serenity, i can do 2 differents locations also - At least 3 days. or 4 if 2 locations (2 days at each one). Budget for this is pretty open (from 200 to 500$ or more if exceptional location/ryokan).

Kurobe Alpine road (at the end of the trip) with a stop at Matsumoto (then Tokyo for the return flight ) - 2-3 days, i don't really know the time it will take to reach the road from Takayama, then do the road, sleep in Matsumoto (or go directly to tokyo?) and go back to my country. It will also depend on the time of the plane.

Also, i can't put too much things at the end of the trip as i need to be by the 19 at work

This is a rough sketch of my trip, and i need some of your advises as to what to add/remove .

Thanks a lot .
I wasn't able to find much info on this cruise which we loved so I am just doing a brief writeup. Please let me know if this is not right place and where I should post.

Best option in my opinion for Narita to Yokohama: Limousine bus (Direct to YCAT (Yokohama City Air Terminal ) from Narita airport) Fare: 3600 yen per adult 2000 yen for those under 25! Duration: approx 85~110 minutes TIP: Ask about HAMA tix  4 adults roundtrip only 11,000 yen ***toilets on bus -I didnt use or check but I asked about. There are other discounts for round trip even if you cannot use HAMA tickets due to timeframe. Easy because it is right outside the airport right by the counter that sells the tickets, no rolling suitcases yourself until youre off the bus!

Stay at Associa Shin Yokohama 2-100-45 Shin Yokohama, Yokohama, Kanagawa-ken, 222-0033 before cruise right by Shin-Yokohama station-Hotel is in Cubicplaza shopping building and attached to Shin-Yokohama Station (NOT to be confused with Yokohama Station which I did right up till I was leaving for trip!) Cubicplaza itself has shopping as well as restaurants on top 2 floors. First few floors have the open food areas, Starbucks etc . Lots of other food places nearby and pharmacy etc. Hotel was fine except beds were horrible, gave me back pain after 2 nights. Staff was friendly and helpful. TIP: fresh made onigiri in 2nd floor of Cubicplaza building. Also nearby is foodcourt like place with lots of smaller restaurant choices outside of Cubicplaza main building. Go towards Pharmacy and then keep walking to see it. Not convenient to Yokohama port at all! We decided to take taxi which wasnt cheap but didnt want to deal with the train transfers etc.

Stayed at Hotel JAL City Kannai Yokohama 72 Yamashita-cho Naka-ku, Yokohama, Kanagawa-ken, 231-0023after cruise close to Nihon-Odori station which is 3 to 4 stations stops from Yokohama station. About 15 minutes walk to port for cruise terminal. Once you walk to port area, keep walking to Red Brick buildings then Yokohama World Porters shopping mall and across the street is Cup Noodle Museum. Wharf area has ferris wheel and other activities and another nearby shopping mall where there is a Pokemon Center for Japan only merchandise. Minato Mirai 21 area.

TIP: rent a pocket WiFi, it is so useful. We rented from Japan Wireless whose prices were lower than most. Worked in every port except Kochi at first but later worked as well. Very useful for keeping in touch with home, checking email etc and with directions etc. Picked ours up at post office at Narita (you can choose hotel etc, we wanted to be able to use it right off the plane) and returned in post box at airport.

Princess Diamond M826 11 day Japan We had cabins C108/IE Middle Forward & C111/IE Middle Forward

The times printed on website was slightly different than when we got on ship. The timetable was provided first day and Ive updated below.

Sat, Aug 4 Tokyo (Yokohama), Japan 04:00 pm

Sun, Aug 5 At Sea

Mon, Aug 6 Akita, Japan 07:00 am to 10:30 pm

Tue, Aug 7 Aomori, Japan10:00 amto 10:30 pm

Wed, Aug 8 At Sea

Thu, Aug 9 Sakaiminato, Japan 06:00 am to 04:30 pm

Fri, Aug 10 Busan, South Korea 07:00 am to 05:30 pm

Sat, Aug 11 Kanmon Straits, Japan 05:00 am 07:00 am (at sea)

Sun, Aug 12 Kochi, Japan 07:00 am to 11:30 pm

Mon, Aug 13 Tokushima, Japan 07:00 am to11:30 pm

Tue, Aug 14 At Sea

Wed, Aug 15 Tokyo (Yokohama), Japan 06:15 am

Impression of Ship: Diamond Princess is a bit older, I believe its maiden voyage was in 2004. It is not a huge ship but kind of nice for this trip which made it cozy. You run into people you recognize etc. The cruise director staff were great, lots of activities. Weve cruised before but never felt as engaged as this trip perhaps because it is a little bit smaller. As previous cruisers pointed out: the majority or cruisers were Japanese with rest from all over the world. It was not an issue at all if you learn a few phrases to interact. They even had an activity to pair up native Japanese and non-Japanese cruisers and my team won, it was a fun activity.

The food was ok with special recipes by Curtis Stone on some or all nights (repeats). I would say it was not at the level of the Baltic Cruise I went on with them on Emerald Princess. I would give it a B+ whereas the Emerald I would give an A and just the level of cuisine. Staff were great as usual. The Horizon court also didnt have as much to offer. They did offer some Japanese food options but in dining room it was the same every night  REALLY? Like not to offer at least one thing different every night? I would have tried them! There were some special Chocolate Journey desserts which were delicious that you should always get! The cabins were a little outdated. The highlight of Horizon Court area is the pizza place! Had a slice one day because I wasnt full and didnt like the buffet stuff. I wish I had gotten the chefs name  one of the best pizzas I had! Did not try any of the grill stuff. You can see some wear and tear in the cabins. The showers were awful! Only 2 settings, one was so weak it was more dripping down which forced me to use the more powerful setting which was bit too much! 2 Formal nights.

DO NOT PAY for their bottled waters! Just bring a water bottle and you can get water from Horizon court. Just takes a little time to refill your cups and pour into your own water bottle. Also once youre in a port and find a convenience store, bottle watered is super cheap unlike in Europe. The bar service guys by Explorers lounge were awesome. We hang out there a lot or by the side of the lounge. Look for Lester, super friendly and once after we ordered and then just got water, he gave us bar snacks without asking! We also won champagne twice from games/activities and just asked them to open the champagne and share with everyone at the event since only my son sips a little champagne and the rest of us dont care for it.

For Port information: Princess had PAID shuttles from every port EXCEPT Tokushima. More on that later in that section. $5 to $10/person for shuttle but depending on port.

Also we did not venture out beyond the main area since we were mostly interested in the festivals. We also did not join any Princess excursions as price was prohibitive for family of 4. We also wanted to be very relaxed so not getting up super early etc took time to have some breakfast.

Also Princess doesnt like to list ahead of time the names of the piers for some reason. In Yokohama it is the Osanbashi pier. This is important in Tokushima, Ive listed pier names in each port section. Also each port has their food specialty, do try them as Ive had one of the best udons in one of the ports and wished I remembered to take pictures etc

Akita (August 6, Monday 7am  10:30pm) Nakajima Berth 2 & 3

 Kanto festival still happening when were there (8/3-8/6) In addition, there are Kanto competitions, held during daytime on the last three days of the event right by Senshu Park. Place: Chuo Dori Street, Akita City. About a 12-15 minute walk from JR Akita Station This is where the Princess shuttle bus dropped us off.

 We did not do anything near the port as we took the shuttle.

 Senshu Park is is nice.

 Route Inn's Hotel Grantia Akita Spa Resort - Short 8 minute walk away from JR Akita Station. You will immediately notice the hotel building the moment you are on the river stretch as it towers over the few buildings that are around the corner. 600 Yen in case you dont get a chance to go to onsens far away, an interesting experience  we did this to pass some time while waiting for night time festivities and it was kind of too late to take shuttle to go back and forth.

 Akitas Specialty Goods Shop- with many goods to choose from is only a five-minute walk from the west entrance of Akita Station. You will find local sake and wine, as well as a variety of local arts and crafts such as kabazaikucherry bark art and magewappa woodwork.

 Rose ice cream  refreshing and delicious kind of like sherbet but much better, sold by little old ladies with a cart

 Floor 12 of building of specialty shop  fantastic crab restautant with set lunches, cant remember name but theres a giant crab in lobby pointing out the restaurant

my Impression of port: Had a welcome center as soon as you got off ship (which set us up to expect the same in other ports but no one else had it). Nice port, night time festival was crowded and exciting with food stalls etc like youve read about.

Aomori (August 6, Tuesday 10am-10:30pm) Okidate Wharf

 Warasse, a Nebuta festival museum, displays large lantern floats actually used in the festival along with other festival items. At the gift shop in the lobby, they and sell Aomori apple cider and juice very delicious. Right outside are festival good stalls and there was a young Shamisen player who performed periodically  very good musician.

 We dined on sushi  very fresh in a nearby fish market.

 OK a complaint about the shuttle here, they stop running at 5pm even though we are at the port till 10pm or later. Some excuse about a bridge not being available but yet we chose to stay out to see the festival during night and took a taxi back. Best taxi driver ever, drove us up to the gangway! So anyways how come the taxi can get to the ship but shuttle bus cant?

 Found the Aspam too crowded

 Nebuta Festival: stop by the visitor center to get a map of the route of festival. Unlike other ports, this one wasnt as crowded maybe since it was the last day of the festival. Im not sure if they normally parade during the day or because it was last day they did it in afternoon and at night. We ended up going towards a big intersection and was able to see all the floats well. At night, the floats are lit up and there is fireworks. We did not choose a good location but could still see.

my Impression of port: loved this festival, so unique, good people, good food, good time.

Sakaiminato (August 9, Thursday 6am-4:30pm) Showa South Wharf

 Mizuki Shigeru Road - The Sakai Port is the hometown of the manga artist Shigeru Mizuki. There are a total of 153 bronze statues of "Yokai" monsters, the main characters in Mizuki's popular cartoon GeGeGe no Kitaro on Mizuki Shigeru Road. Tip: If you have kids or young at heart, there are ink stamp stations throughout the area to collect. Go to the visitor center to purchase a stamp book 100yen (around $1) and look for the stamp stations, if you collect them all you go back to visitor center to get a certificate which makes a nice memento.

 Try the tuna Ramen  delicious

 Prior to departure from Sakaiminato all guest have to attend a departure immigration imspection on board by Japanese immigration officials on board before heading to Busan South Korea  really not too bad at all. THIS IS FOR EVERYONE whether you leave ship or not. When you go to the Busan port, South Korean immigration is done there. The ship cannot leave until EVERYONE does it and they will start announcing names  dont be those people!

my Impression of port: Its all about Mizuki Shigerus creations if you dont venture out too far but we enjoyed it and a good lunch.

Busan (August 10, Friday 7am  5:30pm) Busan International Passenger Terminal 2

 Jagalchi Fish Market is also close to the shuttle stop. If you're in Busan, then you must visit Jagalchi Fish Market, which Busan is famous for. This market displays freshly caught fish and various other sea creatures that are still alive.

 Gukje market is one of Koreas largest, with stalls flanking both sides of the alleyways. Gukje actually translates to international. You will be able to find lots of street food, clothing. It connects to other markets such as Bupyeong Market and Kkangtong Market, Nearest Station: Jagalchi My daughter bought 13 pairs of socks for 10000won (less than $10 USD)

 Yongdusan Park/Busan Tower - Nice views of the Busan on a clear day. Park is free but entry fee required for the tower

 BIFF Square - Center of Busan's annual film festival, there are handprints of Asian stars and lots of street food.

my Impression of port: We have been to Seoul before and Busan looks older and not as sparkly new but still interesting visit.

Kochi (August 12, Sunday 7am  11:30pm)

Upon arrival, everyone has to do an arrival immigration into Japan (since we left to go to South Korea and now back to Japan port!) again not bad at all.

 Yosakoi Festival- This midsummer festival epitomizes the Nangoku-Tosa area. Started in 1954, it runs for four days from August 9 to 12 every year. Festivities are kicked off on Otesuji Street, the main dance venue, and dances are held in 16 dance and contest venues around Kochi City. There are gallery seats along Otesuji Street from which to view the dances.

 Aisukurin (derived form ice cream)- This cold dessert is a Kochi original. The mild sweetness and unique texture make it a beloved year-round treat. The standard flavor is banana, and it is sold under beach parasols at tourist spots and other locations throughout Kochi.

 Kochi Castle-

 TIP: You can see the dances on stage at Kochi castle first. When they perform in the covered shopping arcade, it can be very loud so bring ear plugs. Each team has different outfits and dance choreography, very unique. There is Daiso in the arcade, you can get a stool for 200-300yen only to save your tired feet! They might even sell earplugs. For those unfamiliar with Daiso, they are a Japanese chain dollar-ish store except filled with things that you want to buy and are useful! I wish there was one where I lived!

my Impression of port: really enjoyed all the different teams with their unique costumes and choreography. No 2 were alike, dances are modernized at times and teams from all over Japan it seems.

Tokushima (August 13, Monday 7am  11:30pm)

 For some reason Princess did not provide a paid shuttle and trying to find information even at the shore excursion desk was impossible because they want you to BUY THEIR EXCURSIONS. With 4 people shore excursions were too pricey an option for us. When they finally passed out the shore information turns out the City provided FREE shuttle bus to the train station. Princess is docked at a farther wharf named Akaishi Wharf in Komatsushima town rather than Tokushima. Once we were boarding shuttle they passed out information about a special train for Princess 2:30 departure but too late for us and we were on the train like sardines! the train station is called Minami-Komatsushima and take it to Tokushima station 260 yen one way.

My Impression of port: The hype of the Awa Odori festival made this port a little bit of a tourist trap. The Awa Odori Kaikan building contains the store which is fine, the museum which is not all that interesting for higher fee than it should be and a fee if you want to see the dance on one of the floors which we did not do. The ride up the gondolas for Mt Bizan there is a fee that is ok. This is the first port I felt like they tried to upcharge tourists. Away from this building seemed fine. I found this festival personally just ok since most of the dance is the same. The live music accompaniment is interesting but did not make me feel like we had to stay out late to see it at night and therefore risk the whole train situation back to the ship

Hope this helps future cruisers
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- The DP said the executive will hold talks with Parliament in a bid to find amicable solution

- Parliament had suspended the controversial fuel tax following public outrage

- The amended tax law however could not stop the new prices after Uhuru failed to sign it

- Treasury boss insisted new tax had to take effect, termed Parliament's decision null and void

- Kenyans and a section of leaders are now hoping the president would do the right thing

Deputy President William Ruto has urged Kenyans to calm down as public rage over inflated and punitive fuel prices boiled up.

The DP promised the government would carefully look into all the concerns raised by Kenyans regarding the rising cost of fuel and come up with a solution.

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READ ALSO: Kenya's fuel most expensive in the East Africa region

Member of Parliament tried to suspend the tax law by two years but Uhuru failed to sign the amended tax law. Ruto said solution will be found.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: 5 painful ways the increase in fuel prices will affect every Kenyan

Addressing a congregation at Good Shepherd Catholic Church, North Horr, on Sunday, September 2, Ruto said the executive would hold talks with Members of Parliament to find an amicable solution to the fuel chaos.

"Kama serikali tutaketi chini na bunge ili tuelewane (As a government we will sit down with Parliament and talk so we can reach an agreement). We will find a solution that lessens burden on poor Kenyans but also allows the government to continue with its development plans." the DP said.

READ ALSO: Pasta asimamisha harusi baada ya mabinti "ku-twerk" kanisani (video)

There was confusion on whether the new tax law will take effect after MPs tried to shoot it down but Treasury boss Henry Rotich insisted the new levy must take effect from September 1.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Pasta asimamisha harusi baada ya mabinti "ku-twerk" kanisani (video)

The National Treasury Cabinet Secretary, Henry Rotich, had insisted the 16% fuel tax will be implemented as it is law.

Rotich on Friday, August 31, said the move by Parliament to suspend implementation of the fuel tax by two years was null and void while citing increased international fuel prices.

The lawmakers suspended the new Value Added Tax (VAT) on petroleum products on Wednesday, August 29, following public uproar.

READ ALSO: Tough times for motorists as ERC increases super petrol prices

Unfortunately, President Uhuru Kenyatta flew out of the country (to China) before appending his signature to the amended tax law, which would have granted Kenyans the much needed relief.

A litre of petrol now retails at KSh 127 and diesel KSh 111.78 in Nairobi.

Residents of Mandera will pay the highest of KSh 141.61 for the same quantity of petrol, whereas those in Bungoma, Meru, Bondo, Meru, Bungoma, Isebania and other places across the country will part with KSh 130 per litre of petrol.

A section of politicians are now calling on the president to come to the rescue of poor Kenyans by signing the amended tax law.

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.

Isaac Nyamwamu Story: The Kenyan Man Who Eats Egg Shells - On Tuko TV

Source: Tuko
- The ODM leader believes Uhuru was fully aware of the devastating effect of VAT on fuel

- According to Raila, it was only a matter of time before the same was scrapped altogether

- The ODM leader has been speaking the government's language since the famous handshake with Uhuru

- Government implemented a 16% VAT charge on fuel which has effectively pushed fuel prices to historically high levels

- A litter of super petrol for instance has shot beyond KSh 127 all over Kenya

ODM party leader Raila Odinga believes President Uhuru Kenyatta will listen to Kenyans outrage and resolved the newly-imposed heavy levy on fuel.

Raila, while speaking in Kisumu on Sunday, September 2 , asked Kenyans to be patient in the face of an impending higher living const occasioned by the increased cost of fuel.

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According to Raila, legislators had already embarked on the process to scrap tax on fuel, and it was all a matter of time before it was effected.

READ ALSO: Tortured Uganda MP Bobi Wine arrives in US on wheelchair for treatment

Members of Parliament already made amendments to the (Finance) Bill and removed the 16% V.A.T, (President) Uhuru will intervene very soon, just wait and see. Raila said.

His sentiments came at the back of public outcry against Treasury CS Henry Rotich who has largely been faulted for the impending crisis in the transport sector in the country.

CS Rotich had in 2016 postponed the 16 percent VAT on tax when he read the budget at the time, until recently when the matter resurfaced.

Henry Rotich is currently under fire from Kenyans over the heavy VAT on fuel

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Nairobi Senator on spot for seeking cheap publicity after addressing Uhuru through twitter

Incidentally, Raila's vote of confidence towards the government was not reflective of other ODM-affiliated leaders, who threatened mass action if the heavy tax on fuel was not revised.

As TUKO.co.ke reported earlier, the leaders led by Mathare MP Anthony Oluoch, gave CS Rotich 72 hours to revisit the 16 percent tax otherwise they would make good their threat of rallying Kenyans in protest.

ODM MPs vowed to rally Kenyans in protest if VAT on fuel was not revised.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Fresh hope as DP Ruto promises solution to rising fuel prices

With the President in Beijing China on official duty, it remains to be seen whether the 2018 Finance bill will be improved to accommodate ordinary Kenyans.

He has untill September 13 to sign the bill which was passed by the National Assembly or he could alternatively resend it back for further ammendments.

Stakeholders in the transport sector are set hold a meeting on Monday, September 2 to weigh their next possible course of action.

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

Isaac Nyamwamu Story: The Kenyan Man Who Eats Egg Shells | Tuko TV:

Source: Tuko Newspaper
- The vocal senator felt the move to introduce 16% VAT on petroleum products was a bad one

- He compared the decision on new fuel tax to forceful Mau evictions which he also opposed

- Murkomen agreed with his Nairobi counterpart, Sakaja, that Uhuru needs to stop the rising cost of fuel

- Several other leaders have also opposed the unsettling fuel tax being forced on taxpayers

Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen has taken issues with the decision to introduce 16% Value Added Tax (VAT) on all petroleum products indicating it was a bad move.

Murkomen appeared to believe President Uhuru Kenyatta made the decision to have the fuel prices pushed up and called on him to reconsider the move by assenting to the Bill that Members of Parliament passed to stop the punitive increment.

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Elgeyo Marakwet Senator Kipchumba Murkomen opposed move to introduce 16% VAT on all petroleum products, which led to rise in fuel prices.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Kenya's fuel most expensive in the East Africa region

Reacting to a similar plea by his Nairobi counterpart, Johnson Sakaja, who also pleaded with Uhuru to slam breaks on the rising fuel prices, Murkomen said when he opposed the forceful Mau evictions, he was fighting for a relate cause, which was to stop the government from harassing poor citizens.

"I agree with you Hon Sakaja on this. But remember you issued a statement publicly when I visited the people of MAU against this approach. In your own words, you warned me against inciting Kenyans against Uhurus initiatives because it is "...disingenuous, underhand and disrespectful, the Elgeyo Marakwet senator reminded Sakaja in a tweet seen by TUKO.co.ke on Monday, September 3.

READ ALSO: Fuel prices will go up but not to KSh 130 per litre - Energy Regulatory Commission

Senator Sakaja felt the fuel prices announced by the Kenya Revenue Authority (KRA) and Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on August 31 and which took effect the next day had made life unbearable for the poor citizens.

"Dear Uhuru Kenyatta, kindly assent to the Amendment exempting fuel from VAT. Punguza bei ya mafuta (reduce the price of fuel). The gain in tax revenue is much less than the goodwill of Kenyans in the fight against corruption. If anything, we should entirely do away with VAT on fuel," the Nairobi senator said.

READ ALSO: 5 painful ways the increase in fuel prices will affect every Kenyan

Sakaja's suggestion that the president should get rid of VAT on all petroleum products was the complete opposite of what Treasury boss, Henry Rotich, had recommended and what the International Monetary Fund (IMF) wanted.

The IMF's position was that the 16% VAT on petroleum products would help Kenya reduce its budget deficit by raising more domestic revenue and also tame the country's borrowing appetite.

READ ALSO: Only Uhuru Kenyatta can save Kenyans from high fuel prices - Duale

Meanwhile, several other leaders, among them the former prime minister Raila Odinga, COTU Secretary General Francis Atwoli and National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale, have also urged Uhuru to sign the amended fuel tax Bill to stop the cost of fuel from going through the roof.

If assented to, the amended Bill would suspend the fuel tax by two more years.

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.

Isaac Nyamwamu Story: The Kenyan Man Who Eats Egg Shells - On Tuko TV

Source: Tuko.co.ke
- Ngunyi argued the events that led to the nullification of August 2017 poll needed to be investigated

- He claimed Uhuru's victory may have been nullified based on fake documents

- Ngunyi, however, said Uhuru was not the right man to fight corruption in the Judiciary

- He argued if Raila supported the president's crackdown on the Judiciary, then the war on graft would be won

Controversial political analyst Mutahi Ngunyi has challenged President Uhuru Kenyatta to publicly admit he is indeed 'revisiting the Judiciary' and that he should not feel guilty or apologise to anyone for doing so.

Ngunyi argued revisiting in this case was not about revenge, but rather investigating the various corruption-related allegations that had been made against the Judiciary, especially following the landmark Supreme Court ruling that quashed Uhuru's August 2017 poll victory.

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Mutahi Ngunyi suggested President Uhuru Kenyatta should admit he is revisiting the Judiciary and without apology or feeling of guilt. Photo: The 5th Estate/Youtube.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Raila's dramas will not make him president - Mutahi Ngunyi

Addressing the president through his The 5th Estate webisode on Saturday, September 1, a few days following the dramatic arrest of Deputy Chief Justice Philomena Mwilu over a five-year old graft allegations, Ngunyi alleged the Judiciary was riddled with corruption and therefore should be investigated.

"The Judiciary is a corruption swamp. It needs to be drained. And yes, Uhuru should revisit it unapologetically because the public needs answers," he said.

READ ALSO: Charge sheet reveals how Philomena Mwilu received KSh 12 million bribe

According to the analyst, Kenyans deserved to know whether or not the Supreme Court nullified the August 8 presidential election based on fake documents as was earlier alleged, and also if the court conspired with the Opposition during the 2017 presidential poll petition hearing.

"Did Maraga nullify the August 8 election using fake documents? Did the Supreme Court have any contact with the Opposition during the nullification of the August election? And did Mwilu do corruption as alleged by the DPP? We need answers," Ngunyi said.

READ ALSO: Maraga should be carefull with the arrest of his deputy - Mutahi Ngunyi

The analyst also questioned why more than 34 lawyers, presumed to be allied to the NASA coalition, were representing Lady Justice Mwilu in court.

"If her lawyers are all from NASA, can I trust her to be fair if I am from Jubilee? And can I trust her to be fair if the DPP has charged her in a corruption court suggesting that she sells justice? he posed.

READ ALSO: ODM pokes holes into arrest of deputy chief justice Philomena Mwilu

Interestingly, Ngunyi did not believe Uhuru was the right man to slay the corruption dragon inside the Judiciary as much as he supported the president's move to 'revisit' the Judiciary.

"If there is corruption in the Judiciary, the man to slay the dragon is not Uhuru in my view. Raila is the man to call upon. If Raila supports Uhuru's crackdown in the Judiciary, the monster would fall," the analysts suggested.

The Director of Public Prosecutions Noordin Haji had rubbished claims he was working under instructions to revisit the Judiciary as alleged by Opposition leaders who were reacting to Mwilu's arrest.

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- Kuria said MPs were being hypocritical because they knew government needed money to fund projects

- He told the lawmakers to stop fooling Kenyans about the new levy and tell them the truth instead

- There has been public uproar following introduction of VAT on petroleum products

- A section of leaders piled pressure on Uhuru to assent to amended tax Bill to stop rising cost of fuel

Gatundu South MP Moses Kuria has sharply differed with fellow lawmakers opposing the introduction of 16% Value Added Tax (VAT) on all petroleum products and the resultant increase in fuel prices.

Kuria accused the MPs, led by his Suba South counterpart John Mbadi, of pretending they were not aware the cost of fuel would skyrocket once the new tax law came into effect.

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READ ALSO: Uhuru will save Kenyans from the high fuel prices - Raila Odinga

Gatundu South Member of Parliament Moses Kuria accused fellow lawmakers of pretending they did not know the 16% VAT on fuel would increase fuel prices.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Pasta asimamisha harusi baada ya mabinti "ku-twerk" kanisani (video)

Kuria took to his Facebook page to tell off the leaders piling pressure on President Uhuru Kenyatta to stop the new fuel tax amid public uproar.

According to the Gatundu South MP, the protesting politicians were being hypocritical because when they voted for and approved the KSh 3 trillion budget, they knew the government would need money to finance the budget.

READ ALSO: Fresh hope as DP Ruto promises solution to rising fuel prices

Kuria further argued when MPs approved budget allocation for several multi-billion development projects, Kenyans did not bother to know where the government would get the money from.

"I voted to approve Ksh 179 Billion to build you better roads, Ksh 58 Billion for SGR from Nairobi to Naivasha, more billions for our affordable housing under the Big Four. I gave you money to complete your stalled markets, run universal health care, complete 58 irrigation dams that are underway etc.

You never faulted me. It did not bother you where I would get the money from. You even applauded me. I can not therefore turn around and start crying with you about the VAT on fuel. I will be pretending," Kuria argued in a post seen by TUKO.co.ke on Monday, September 3.

READ ALSO: 5 painful ways the increase in fuel prices will affect every Kenyan

The vocal lawmaker asked the legislators opposing the fuel tax to shut up and stop taking Kenyans for fools because, in his view, they already knew what was coming.

"Kindly ask John Mbandi who sits with me in the budget committee to shut up and wipe out crocodile tears. Tell all those pretentious leaders to man up or woman up and stop treating you like fools," he said.

A number of leaders, among them the National Assembly Majority Leader Aden Duale, have urged Uhuru to sign the amended fuel tax Bill to stop the cost of fuel from going through the roof.

READ ALSO: Matatu owners ask Kenyans to prepare for higher transport cost

Parliament on Wednesday, August 29, suspended implementation of the 16% VAT on petroleum products for two more years.

TUKO.co.ke understands the new fuel prices announced earlier by Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) would go back to normal if Uhuru assents to the amended Bill.

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- The Treasury in June 2018 tabled a budget of KSh 3.074 trillion for fiscal year 2018/19

- The government expected to collect KSh 1.74 trillion in ordinary revenue, mainly from taxes

- After all the revenue was accounted for, there was still a budget deficit of KSh 562 billion

- Rotich proposed new taxes to cover the deficit, among them the Income Tax Bill 2018

- Taking a loan was not an option after IMF and CBK warned Kenya had reach borrowing limit

- IMF also gave Kenya conditions on further borrowing, and that included introducing VAT on petroleum products

-The IMF position was that by increasing domestic revenue, Kenya would reduce its budget deficit

In June 2018, the National Treasury Cabinet Secretary, Henry Rotich, tabled in Parliament the biggest national budget in Kenya's history.

Rotich unveiled a KSh 3.074 trillion budget, the highest in East Africa, but the question that many probably asked then was how the exchequer was planning to raise funds to finance the record-breaking budget.

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READ ALSO: Pasta asimamisha harusi baada ya mabinti "ku-twerk" kanisani (video)

There was confusion on whether the new tax law will take effect after MPs tried to shoot it down but Treasury boss Henry Rotich insisted the new levy must take effect from September 1.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: We have borrowed enough - CBK boss warns as Kenya's debt hits KSh 4.6 trillion

TUKO.co.ke can confirm that Rotich had indeed proposed a raft of measures through which he planned to raise money to meet the budget deficit after both International Monetary Fund (IMF) and Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) warned against any more borrowing.

"We cannot cannot continue borrowing. The country doesn't have any more headroom left, so we can't borrow even for good projects," the CBK Governor Patrick Njoroge said.

Member of Parliament tried to suspend the controversial tax law by two years but President Uhuru Kenyatta failed to sign it the amendment.

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Treasury boss to table KSh 3 trillion budget and here is how it will affect your wallet

The exchequer proposed new tax laws, including the Income Tax Bill 2018 and the controversial fuel tax, which has now become a subject of heated exchange and mass protests across the country.

But was Rotich justified to impose VAT on petroleum products in his desperate quest to raise funds for the big budget?

Below are five possible reasons why the CS wanted the fuel tax implemented, come what may:

READ ALSO: 5 painful ways the increase in fuel prices will affect every Kenyan

1. The Big Four agenda

President Uhuru Kenyatta's Big Four agenda, which revolves around manufacturing, health care, food security and housing, was given top priority in the 2018/19 budget.

The Treasury was expected to provide funds for the mega development projects.

Rotich had also allocated KSh 1.6 trillion to the national government, KSh 372.7 billion to the counties, Ksh 17.7 billion to the Judiciary, KSh 42.5 billion to Parliament and KSh 962.5 billion to the consolidated fund services.

His decision to amend the tax laws could have been informed by the fact that Treasury's options on how to finance the KSh 3 trillion budget were limited.

2. Huge budget deficit

The government expected to collect KSh 1.74 trillion in ordinary revenue, mainly from taxes during the 2018/19 fiscal year.

After all the revenue was accounted for, there was still a budget deficit of KSh 562 billion.

Rotich could have simply borrowed to cover the deficit, but the country's public debt had already reached maximum limit according to the Central Bank of Kenya.

READ ALSO: Kenyan banks that facilitate NYS grand theft put on notice by Central Bank of Kenya

3. Borrowing not an option

As indicated above, taking another foreign loan to finance development or repay exiting loans was no longer the best option for the exchequer after both CBK and IMF warned against it.

4. International Monetary Funds (IMF) demands

IMF pushed Kenya to get rid of tax exemption as part of a wider plan to increase domestic revenues, reduce budget deficit and ultimately slow down burgeoning public debt.

TUKO.co.ke understands introduction of 16% VAT on petroleum products was one of the conditions set by the IMF.

The conditions had to be met for Kenya to access IMF's standby credit facility that the country could draw in the event of economic distress.

Kenya nevertheless turned down the KSh 150 billion insurance loan offer from IMF after the two parties clashed on the terms of the loan.

5. Burgeoning public debt

According to the CBK, Kenya's debt was in the neighbourhood of KSh 5 trillion as of August 2018.

The banking sector regulator had already warned the country had no more headroom left for borrowing, which meant Rotich had to find other ways of raising funds for his huge budget..

6. Global oil prices are on the rise

One of the reasons advanced by Rotich on why the fuel prices had to go up was that the global oil prices were also on the rise.

A litre of petrol now retails at KSh 127 and diesel KSh 111.78 in Nairobi.

Residents of Mandera will pay the highest of KSh 141.61 for the same quantity of petrol, whereas those living and working in Bungoma, Meru, Bondo, Meru, Bungoma, Isebania and places across the country will part with KSh 130 per litre of petrol.

After MPs' attempt to stop implementation of the new prices failed, Kenyans have no option but to dig deeper into their pockets.

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- Police raided a Kisumu bar operating outside set time, arrested 10 people

- Street boys blocked them from moving and police shot in the air to disperse them

- One person was shot on the chest and died while receiving treatment

- Investigations have been launched to retrieve to lost ammunition

One person was on Saturday, September 1, shot dead as police engaged street urchins in a bloody confrontation.

TUKO.co.ke has learnt that the incident happened at Kisumu bus stage where police officers raided a drinking joint operating outside stipulated hours.

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READ ALSO: Pasta asimamisha harusi baada ya mabinti "ku-twerk" kanisani (video)

During the confrontation, the officer commanding the operation lost his CESKA pistol magazine which police are yet to establish contained how many rounds of ammunition. Photo: UGC

Source: Depositphotos

READ ALSO: Embattled musician Bebe Cool now claims rival Bobi Wine is faking injuries for political mileage

According to a police report, the bar was still running at 11:40am and the officers managed to arrest 10 people but before they left, street boys and stage operators blocked the road and begun hurling stones at them.

"They managed to net a total of 10 people and in the process, the stage operators and street boys ganged up together to rescue those arrested and blocked the police vehicle from moving. They started throwing stones at the officers and the officers fired several rounds in the air to disperse the crowd," reads the report.

READ ALSO: Nairobi Senator on spot for seeking cheap publicity after addressing Uhuru through twitter

During the confrontation, the officer commanding the operation lost his CESKA pistol magazine which police are yet to establish contained how many rounds of ammunition.

Fredrick Odhiambo, 27-years-old, as identified by police, was shot by a stray bullet and died shortly after being rushed to Kisumu sub-county hospital to receive medical attention.

"The commanding officer sustained injury on the right leg after he was hit by stone," the report further states.

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- Supply of fuel now hangs in the balance as Petroleum Distributors Association cut off supply on Monday, September 3

- This was in solidarity to the Motorists Association of Kenya are also discontent with the 16 percent VAT on fuel

- Members were instructed not to load any petroleum product as long as the tax was still in effect

Kenyans have been dealt the first major blow since the 16 percent VAT was effected on fuel as the Kenya Independent Petroleum Distributors Association (KIPEDA) went on strike.

For a better part of Monday, September 3 morning, trucks belonging to fuel distributors were dormant at the despots as distributors staged a strike in a show of solidarity to the Motorists Association of Kenya.

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READ ALSO: Pasta asimamisha harusi baada ya mabinti "ku-twerk" kanisani (video)

If fuel supply stalls for a second and third day, a potential crisis is in the offing as fuel shortage will eventually lead to rocketing prices to more devastating levels.

Source: Twitter

READ ALSO: Kisumu police officer loses ammunition in battle with street boys

Further reports reaching TUKO.co.ke indicate KIPEDA has instructed their members not to load any petroleum product until the government rescinds the VAT on fuel.

On Sunday, September 2, Motorist Association of Kenya issued a statement to newsrooms called on motorists to express their anger by boycotting fuel for three days.

READ ALSO: 6 reasons why Treasury boss Rotich wants fuel tax implemented at all cost

We, therefore, wish to call upon motorists to again express their anger tomorrow Monday and Tuesday September 4 and if possible Wednesday by boycotting fuel and participating in a strike of not going to work in the morning as much as possible, the statement read.

The stalling of fuel supply by KIPEDA could spell out doom for motorists and Kenyans in general who already have a heavy tax on the precious commodity to worry about.

If fuel supply stalls for a second and third day, a potential crisis is in the offing as fuel shortage will eventually lead to rocketing prices to more devastating levels.

Kenya petroleum distributors go on strike over fuel price increase

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Uhuru will save Kenyans from the high fuel prices - Raila Odinga

As at Monday, September 2, the ripple effects of the hefty VAT on fuel as public transport fares rose to uncomfortable levels for majority of Kenyans.

Deputy President William Ruto on Sunday offered a glimmer of hope by t, assuring he government would carefully look into all the concerns raised by Kenyans regarding the rising cost of fuel and come up with a solution.

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A battle for the love of a girl ended in tragedy in Tharaka Nithi as a student murdered his classmate on Sunday, September 2.

17-year-old Lewis Muthomis body was found laying lifeless in a pool of blood at Magutuni market in Maara sub-county , more than 24 hours after his death.

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Residents who spoke to media alleged the two boys from Maguma Day Secondary School engaged in a fight over a bar maid at the market earlier in the day.

READ ALSO: Akothees daughter silences critics who think she is ugly, wins international modelling contest

It is believed the suspect stabbed Muthomi in the neck as the fight escalated, eventually killing him.

Confirming the incident, Maara OCPD Johnston Kabusia divulged not much details had been uncovered about the murder as the police were only informed of the gruesome scene by residents at 10 pm on Sunday, September 3.

READ ALSO: Kutana na Mkenya ambaye hula mayai bila kutoa maganda

The suspect was arrested at his home in Maara sub-county, and is currently in police custody as investigations continue to determine further details of the high-schoolers death.

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- Women in Makueni have been urged to go on a month-long sex boycott

- The boycott is meant to fight defilement cases which is on the rise

- Woman Rep Rose Museo said the boycott should be effected in all homes

- Men opposed the move saying they were being punished unfairly

Makueni Woman Representative Rose Museo has called for a one-month sex boycott as one way of fighting defilement cases.

According to Museo, the cases have been rising evert day and women should deny their husbands conjugal rights for a month as a way of protesting about the vice.

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READ ALSO: Kisumu police officer loses ammunition in battle with street boys

Makueni Woman Representative who has announced one-month conjugal rights boycott. Photo: Rose Museo.

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Kutana na Mkenya ambaye hula mayai bila kutoa maganda

However, the announcement caused a public uproar as men claimed the boycott would break their families.

The men opposed the MPs approach claiming it would also open a window of cheating as it may force husbands to look for an alternative to quench their thirst.

Some feared they would be abandoned by their wives.

Speaking in a public baraza at Kikunduku village in Kibwezi where they had assembled, the men said the boycott was a harsh punishment and action meant to break their families.

READ ALSO: Kiambu police officer arrested while demanding bribes at a bar

"In full respect the one-month sex boycott announced by our leader, we can't persevere and this can bring diseases in families since we will be forced to move to big towns to quench our thirst or move to nearby county like Machakos," said one of the men.

We want mama Makueni to apologise to us men for implicating all men as sex pests," another man said.

"I came back from the city where I work, I found the sex boycott taking effect in my house. What am I supposed to do? I am here to be advised by the council of elders," another resident lamented.

READ ALSO: 6 reasons why Treasury boss Rotich wants fuel tax implemented at all cost

Some women in Makueni county are said to have supported the cause and implemented it in their homes.

"This boycott shows that women have come in solidarity to protect their own and action needs be taken by relevant authorities," said Museo.

Story by Triza Mwikali, TUKO Correspondent.

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- In Uganda, super unleaded petrol retails at KSh 108 while in Kenya it sells at KSh 130

- A section of Kenyan motorists resorted to fueling cars in Uganda to escape high prices

- Treasury implemented 16%VAT on petroleum products despite Parliament delaying it until 2020

- Transportation charges have since hiked by at least KSh 20 in Nairobi and other towns

As high fuel prices continue to puncture through pockets of Kenyans, a section of residents in western Kenya have resorted to buying the commodity cheaply from neighboring towns in Uganda.

Motorists in Busia county are procuring petrol and diesel in Ugandan filling stations to escape the high cost of the commodity in Kenya.

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READ ALSO: Fuel prices will go up but not to KSh 130 per litre - Energy Regulatory Commission

The tax has since seen a litre of petrol retail at KSh 127 and diesel KSh 111.78 in Nairobi as gazetted by the Energy regulatory Commission (ERC) on Saturday, September 1. Photo: UGC

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Matatu owners ask Kenyans to prepare for higher transport cost

A report filed by Citizen Digital on Monday, September, 3 revealed that vehicles and motorbikes with Kenyan registration numbers were seen in their numbers queuing for fuel in Uganda towns where a liter of petrol retailed at KSh 108.

This comes came after National Treasury Cabinet Secretary (CS) Henry Rotich effected the 16% VAT on petroleum products despite a directive by the National Assembly to have the tax effected in 2020.

READ ALSO: Tough times for motorists as ERC increases super petrol prices

The tax has since seen a litre of petrol retail at KSh 127 and diesel KSh 111.78 in Nairobi as gazetted by the Energy Regulatory Commission (ERC) on Saturday, September 1.

Mandera resident are now paying the highest amount of KSh 141.61 for one litre of petrol, whereas those in Bungoma, Meru, Bondo, Meru, Bungoma, Isebania and places across the country parted with KSh 130 per litre.

A previous report by TUKO.co.ke on Sunday, September 2, reveled that Kenya had the highest fuel taxes in East Africa despite having one of the strongest currency compared to other countries in the region.

The report had that a litre of petrol and diesel retails at KSh 75 and KSh 70 respectively in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

READ ALSO: Kutana na Mkenya ambaye hula mayai bila kutoa maganda

A litre of petrol retails at KSh 105 and diesel KSh 95 in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, whereas the same retails at KSh 55 and KSh 40 for a litre of petrol and diesel respectively in Sudan.

This comes comes after National Treasury (CS) Henry Rotich effected the 16% VAT on petroleum products despite a directive by the National Assembly to have the tax effected in 2020. Photo: UGC

Source: Facebook

READ ALSO: Kenya's fuel most expensive in the East Africa region

In Kigali, Rwanda, a litre of petrol retails at about KSh 126 and diesel KSh 124 as of August 2018. Mogadishu, Somalia, had the lowest fuel prices with a litre of petrol going for KSh 40 while that of diesel KSh 35 only.

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- Police say the former officer cut the throats of the two

- He had separated with the woman and she had remarried

- The little girl was a Standard six pupil at Muslim Primary School

- The reason behind the killings is yet to be known

Police officers in Kitui have arrested a former General Service Unit (GSU) officer for allegedly killing his ex-wife and daughter.

The woman was aged 33 years while his daughter was 10 years old.

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Kitui police boss Anthony Kamitu has confirmed the incident saying the suspect has been detained at Kitui Central police station.

READ ALSO: Kutana na Mkenya ambaye hula mayai bila kutoa maganda

GSU officers during a past event. A former officer has been arrested for allegedly killing his ex-wife in Kitui County. Photo: The Standard.

Source: Depositphotos

READ ALSO: Foreigner arrested in Nairobi with fake dollars worth KSh 52 million

He will be arraigned immediately investigations are complete, he told TUKO.co.ke.

"He is a former GSU officer by the name Thomas Mwadime Tole from Makueni County," said Kamitu.

The two were found on Saturday, September 1, morning at their home with their throats cut.

READ ALSO: Makueni MP announces one-month conjugal rights boycott

The woman current husband found the door to his house locked from inside and when he broke in, he found the two lying in a pool of blood, dead.

The girl was a Standard six pupil at Muslim Primary School in Kitui.

Their bodies are lying at Kitui hospital mortuary.

Story by Triza Mwikali, TUKO Correspondent.

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- Tanzanians had complained of poor services in government offices

- Most civil servants were accused of taking a lot of time on social media

- President Magufuli then ordered no government official should use social media at work

- Those willing to use social media must first seek approval in writing from the government

The government of Tanzania has banned all public servants in the country from using social media during working hours.

In a circular by the Permanent Secretary in the Office of the President in charge of Public Service Management Florian Ndumbaro, government offices with internet connectivity should not be used to access social media platforms.

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READ ALSO: Ex-GSU officer arrested for allegedly killing former wife, daughter in Kitui

Tanzania president John Magufuli gestures during a past event. His governmnet has banned use of social media during work time.

Source: Facebook

The East African newspaper reported that the decision arose from complaints by members of the public about slow delivery of services.

READ ALSO: Kutana na Mkenya ambaye hula mayai bila kutoa maganda

Ndubaro in the circular No: TG. 472/535/01/A/48 issued on August 14, 2018, said some employees were preoccupied with social media sites during working hours.

The circular was sent to all ministries, regional administrations and state-run agencies and institutions.

The circular was, however, not sent to the semi-autonomous government of Zanzibar.

The new move will now see public servants permitted to visit the social media sites after 3:30pm, local time.

READ ALSO: Makueni MP announces one-month conjugal rights boycott

According to Ndumbaro, government offices that need access to social media during working hours should write to his office seeking permission.

The circular is the second after a similar one was issued on August 31, 2017 by the Public Service Management office.

The President John Pombe Magufuli led-government said poor service delivery jeopardised its efforts to offer services quickly and efficiently as well as its move towards e-governance.

READ ALSO: Ex-GSU officer arrested for allegedly killing former wife, daughter in Kitui

Cheap phone data bundles are enabling wider use of platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter in Tanzania.

Story by Thaddeus Asesa, TUKO Correspondent.

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The United States is ready to discuss further arms supplies to Ukraine to build up the countrys naval and air defence forces.

"Washington is ready to expand arms supplies to Ukraine in order to build up the countrys naval and air defence forces," United States Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker said, The Guardian reports.

As Volker noted, the Trump administration is absolutely prepared to go further in supplying lethal weaponry to Ukrainian forces than the anti-tank missiles it delivered in April.

We can have a conversation with Ukraine like we would with any other country about what do they need. I think that theres going to be some discussion about naval capability because as you know their navy was basically taken by Russia. And so they need to rebuild a navy and they have very limited air capability as well. I think well have to look at air defence, the United States Special Representative underscored.

As reported, the U.S. Senate passed the final National Defense Authorization Act, which foresees the allocation of $250 million in security assistance to Ukraine.

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The U.S. troops are participating in the Rapid Trident 2018 military exercises as America supports the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine.

"The United States takes part in these exercises as we support the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Ukraine. We are stronger when we act together - it's true, both for the military and the whole civil society," U.S. Ambassador to Ukraine Marie Yovanovitch said during the opening of Rapid Trident 2018 multinational Ukrainian-American command and staff exercises, the website of Ukraines Defense Ministry reports.

"These exercises are a unique opportunity for all the commanders to check the combat capability of their units, to work out tactics jointly in one territory," said Colonel Tim Cleveland, co-leader of exercises from the American side. It is a great opportunity for the allies and partners to work with the Ukrainian troops and share experience, he added.

The Rapid Trident 2018, the largest joint land military exercises of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, other military units of Ukraine and military units of foreign states, kicked off today in Lviv region. The troops of ten NATO member countries and four NATO partner countries, namely Ukraine, the United States, Azerbaijan, Bulgaria, the United Kingdom, Georgia, Denmark, Canada, Lithuania, Moldova, Germany, Romania, Poland, Turkey, take part in the drills.

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Ryanair will perform flights on 12 routes to and from Ukraine in autumn-winter period and plans to carry about 635,000 passengers in a year.

"European countries get closer. One of the largest international low-cost carriers  Ryanair - has started to operate flights from Ukraine. The Kyiv-Berlin flight launched today is one of the twelve routes the airline will perform in autumn-winter period. Ryanair plans to carry a total of 635,000 passengers in a year," President of Ukraine Petro Poroshenko posted on his Facebook page.

The Head of State is convinced that Ryanairs entering the Ukrainian market obviously testifies to successful operation of visa-free regime with Europe.

1.29 million Ukrainian citizens have visited the EU since the start of visa-free travel program, the President noted.

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In Washington D.C., President Petro Poroshenko held a meeting with U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Kurt Volker.

The interlocutors discussed the security situation in eastern Ukraine and coordinated further steps for the de-occupation of Donbas, the press service of the head of state reported on Saturday, September 1.

Poroshenko thanked the United States for continuing sanctions policy against the Russian Federation. The head of state stressed the importance of increasing pressure on Russia to immediately release Ukrainian hostages.

The Ukrainian president and the U.S. special representative also exchanged views on strengthening the Ukrainian Army's defense capability.

In addition, the issue of strengthening cooperation between Ukraine and the United States was discussed to prevent Russia's interference in the Ukrainian elections.

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Ukraine has resumed talks with the UK on visa liberalisation for Ukrainian citizens and some progress is possible in the near future.

"...We had to resume talks with the UK on visa liberalisation for Ukrainian citizens. It was agreed that the first round of talks will be held this October. In terms of development of trade relations, I think we will preserve status quo. We also have no problems in political relations. The visa-free regime granted to Ukraine within the framework of the association agreement with the EU does not cover the United Kingdom. Therefore, the visa liberalisation talks have been renewed. We expect a certain progress in this direction. However, conclusion of an agreement on simplified regime is unlikely to be a matter of one or two years," Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin said during a visit to Odesa, an Ukrinform correspondent reported.

Its a lengthy process, the Ukrainian Foreign Minister said, expressing hope that the talks would be completed with signing an agreement.

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On September 4-6, Foreign Minister of the Kingdom of Norway Ine Eriksen Sreide will pay a working visit to Ukraine.

Ukrinform learnt this from the press service of the Ukrainian Foreign Ministry.

According to the report, the purpose of the visit of the Norwegian foreign minister is further development of the Ukrainian-Norwegian cooperation in full accordance with relations of the level of interstate partnership.

Within the framework of the visit, the foreign ministers of Ukraine and Norway plan to hold talks, during which a particular attention will be paid to the development of a political dialogue, strengthening of the positive dynamics of trade and economic relations, attraction of Norwegian investments, as well as effective implementation of the Norwegian government's assistance projects in carrying out reforms in Ukraine.

In addition, the ministers will pay attention to deepening cooperation to counter threats in Europe, including ways to resolve the conflict in Donbas caused by Russian aggression, the Foreign Ministry said.

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The exercise is a culmination of annual multinational training efforts serving as the validation for Ukraine's support on the part of allied and partner nations.

Rapid Trident-2018 international military drills, which are the largest joint land exercises of the Ukrainian Armed Forces units and foreign units, will launch in Lviv region today.

The opening will be held at the International Center for Peacemaking and Security of the Hetman Petro Sahaidachnyi National Ground Forces Academy (the village of Starychy, Yavoriv district, Lviv region), as reported on the website of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

Read alsoCrisis in Sea of Azov: Ukraine's Air Force getting ready to counter Russian aggression

"Rapid Trident is a culmination of multinational training exercises conducted annually that serves as the validation for Ukraine's Ministry of Defense under the advisement of allied and partner nations," the General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine wrote on Facebook.

On September 2, soldiers from 10 NATO Allies and partners of the North Atlantic Alliance launched the 10-day Agile Spirit 2018 command-staff exercises at the Georgian military base in Senaki. The exercises are also attended by Ukrainian units.
Only a few years ago, only 20% of Ukrainians expressed willingness to do so in case it is needed.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko has said 89% of Ukrainians are ready to take up arms to defend their Homeland.

"Imagine, only a few years ago, only 20% of Ukrainians were ready to take up arms to defend our land. And today, it's 89%," he told a student government's debate club at the Naukova Zmina (Scholar Change) lyceum in Kyiv.

Read alsoRussia has 5 ways to meddle in Ukraine election  expert

Earlier it was reported 51% of Ukrainians support Ukraine's accession to the European Union, while 41% back Ukraine's membership in NATO.
According to the expert, Russia is now working out the algorithm of further aggression against Ukraine's interests in the Black Sea.

Russia could repeat in the Black Sea its scenario of the blockade of Ukrainian seaports, now being worked out by Russian coast guard vessels in the Sea of Azov, according to an expert on international relations, Andriy Karakuts,

The expert believes such step by the Kremlin would entail serious consequences, according to Obozrevatel.

"Russia in the Sea of Azov is in many ways working out options for blocking the Black Sea, precisely the part controlled by Ukraine. Unlike in the Sea of Azov, where large warships can't enter because of its status, and because it's a small sea, such scenario unfolding in the Black Sea would cause much more serious consequences," the expert stressed.

Read alsoReuters: U.S. warns Russia against 'harassment' of ships headed to Ukraine

Karakuts recalled that there are several NATO Allies present in the Black Sea region, including Romania, Bulgaria, and Turkey.

"If someone starts blocking the routes leading to the Black Sea ports of Ukraine, we will observe a certain reaction. This is observed through military exercises that take place with the participation of NATO Allies, including Sea Breeze. We're also seeing this through the U.S. helping us build up naval infrastructure along the Black Sea coast," the expert said.

Read alsoU.S. ready to boost arms supplies to Ukraine naval, air forces, envoy says

"Of course, we expect now some supplies of vessels, military boats, which could also strengthen our defense potential," he added.

Also, Karakuts reminded that the U.S. State Department had condemned Russia's actions in the Sea of Azov. "This is the State Department's line to put pressure on the Russian Federation. This is not the first such statement. In mid-August, there was a statement that Russia should not restrict navigation in the Sea of Azov... Such statements could be grounds for appeals to international organizations protecting marine navigation. In this case, the U.S. position is favorable, and the pressure that we can inflict together, will be very useful," the expert believes.
The diplomat stressed Russia was ready for "compromises" on Ukraine and Syria.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said Russia played a decisive role in drafting the Minsk agreements on Donbas settlement and is waiting for a change of power in Ukraine to ensure their implementation.

"We have played a decisive role in drafting the Minsk agreements, which remain the only way to overcome the crisis in eastern Ukraine. We are ready to contribute to this in every possible way. Unfortunately, the achievement of a settlement based on the Minsk complex of measures depends not only on us," Lavrov said during a meeting with students of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, an UNIAN correspondent in Russia reports.

"It is unlikely that before the elections in Ukraine, Kyiv authorities will change their completely destructive line to sabotage and undermine everything that the leaders of Russia, Germany, France and Ukraine agreed on in February 2015," he added.

Read alsoPoroshenko: Kremlin creating tens of thousands of fake accounts in social networks ahead of Ukraine elections

At the same time, Lavrov stressed Russia was ready for "compromises" on Ukraine and Syria.

He said it is unclear why the U.S. wanted to punish Russia for what he called a "crisis in eastern Ukraine."

"This also concerns the settlement of international crises, international conflicts: whether it is in the Middle East, North Africa, or Ukraine, a conflict that the United States has actively formed under the Obama administration and is keeping heated up today, first of all, so that we have irritants on our borders," Lavrov said.

As UNIAN reported earlier, Permanent Representative of Ukraine to the United Nation Volodymyr Yelchenko says negotiations on Donbas between U.S. Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker and Russian presidential aide Vladislav Surkov are "on the verge of collapse."

"There is no unity and progress there. And the progress also depends on the Surkov-Volker track, which seems to be on the verge of collapse. They have not met since January. No decisions have been made... If six or seven meetings have been held without result  something needs to be changed. I'm not able to peer into Surkov's soul, but until real action is taken we cannot do much about it," Yelchenko said at a press conference in Kyiv.
The official stressed that denunciation and non-prolongation were not synonymous terms.

First Deputy Chair of the Verkhovna Rada Iryna Gerashchenko has explained how the Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership with the Russian Federation will be terminated.

Speaking during the meeting of the Conciliation Council of faction leaders and chairmen of parliamentary committees, Gerashchenko said there is a big difference in the concepts of denunciation and non-prolongation of the agreement, an UNIAN correspondent reports.

"I would like our respected politicians, especially where it comes to future presidential candidates, to know the difference, because it is their duty if this choice is precisely Ukraine's foreign policy. It's not about any denunciations, because we will demand from the Russian Federation in all international courts  in The Hague and in other courts  to bear responsibility for violating the agreement," she said.

Read alsoUkraine ready to terminate Treaty of Friendship with Russia - Poroshenko

Gerashchenko said the president of Ukraine had instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs "not to prepare documents for the prolongation of this agreement, which comes automatically."

Gerashchenko once again stressed that denunciation and non-prolongation were not synonymous terms.

"It's only about non-prolongation," she said.

UNIAN memo. The Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership between Russia and Ukraine, dubbed the "Great Treaty," was signed by the presidents of the two countries on May 31, 1997. The two states officially recognized each other's borders and consolidated the principles of strategic partnership and respect for territorial integrity. After the annexation of Crimea and the beginning of Russian aggression in Donbas, calls were repeatedly made to terminate the Treaty because of Russia's violation of Ukraine's territorial integrity.
At the same time, Lavrov assured that Russia was ready to establish relations with the United States.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused United States Special Representative for Ukraine Negotiations Kurt Volker of "supporting harmful whims of Ukrainian authorities."

"Unfortunately, our American colleagues, having appointed Mr. Volker as special representative, fail to work impartially enough. In fact, they support all the whims of the Ukrainian authorities. Although I am sure that, smart as they are, they do realize that these whims are harmful and cross out the prospects for settlement. After all, I hope some disciplining influence of the United States will be imposed on Kyiv because Ukrainians do not listen to anyone else," Lavrov said during a meeting with students of the Moscow State Institute of International Relations, an UNIAN correspondent in Russia reports.

Read alsoRussia's reaction to Zakharchenko murder means Kremlin trying to cover up their puppets  MFA Ukraine

In his opinion, the only way to settle the "Ukrainian crisis" is to implement Minsk agreements, while the Ukrainian authorities he claims should conduct a direct dialogue with Donetsk and Luhansk to this end.

At the same time, Lavrov assured Russia was ready to establish relations with the United States.

"We are ready, as the Russian president and other representatives of our country have repeatedly stated, to approach each other in our relationship with the U.S. as quickly and to such depths as Washington is prepared," he said.

"I think the near future of Russian-American relations is not very clear, but I am convinced that our relations will eventually return to the level of true partners, strategic partners," Lavrov said.

Read alsoVolker-Surkov talks "on the verge of collapse"  Ukraine's envoy to UN

According to him, Moscow and Washington were allies in the Second World War, and "when the two countries get along, the whole world will benefit from this, since there are fewer conflicts."

As UNIAN reported earlier, MFA Russia following the assassination of a self-styled "DPR leader" Alexander Zakharchenko blamed the incident on Ukraine, while Russia's top dilpomat, Sergei Lavrov, called the hit a "farnk provocation," saying that further talks in the Normandy format would be "impossible."
This does not mean though that Russia is withdrawing from the Minsk process, Peskov said.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov has said "it's difficult to discuss anything" with Ukraine in the Normandy format following the murder of the so-called "leader" of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic" ("DPR") Alexander Zakharchenko as Russia has already put the blame for the incident on Kyiv.

However, this does not mean that Russia is withdrawing from the Minsk agreements, Peskov said, according to an UNIAN correspondent in Russia.

"Any negotiations are carried out to see some outcome. To negotiate for the sake of the very process is not quite reasonable. Russia has been and remains a party committed to the Minsk process. Russia also remains a country that has always said that it is Kyiv that is hindering the implementation of these agreements," Peskov said, answering the UNIAN reporter's question about the prospects of the Normandy Four efforts against the background of Zakharchenko's murder.

Read alsoGetting rid of inconvenient puppet or imitation of death: Military columnist names versions of Donetsk blast

"It's very difficult to talk about anything with the Ukrainian side after this terrorist attack. I repeat once again this does not mean Russia is withdrawing from the Minsk process," he said.

At the same time, Peskov refused to answer the question on who Russia sees to succeed Zakharchenko and whether Russia is negotiating with someone in this regard.

"I cannot answer this question," Peskov said.

According to him, Zakharchenko's signature under the Minsk accords was put as that of a "representative of Donbas."

Read also"DPR" chief Zakharchenko killed in Donetsk explosion (Photo)

"President Putin does everything to move the Minsk process from the dead spot, but such terrorist acts in no way contribute to the process. This is unambiguous," Peskov added.

As UNIAN reported, on August 31, "head" of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic" Alexander Zakharchenko was blown up in a Donetsk restaurant "Separ" and died at a local hospital.

The Security Service of Ukraine confirmed Zakharchenko's death and suggested that his death could be the result of internal criminal conflicts among militants, primarily related to the re-distribution of businesses seized in 2014-2018. In addition, the SBU does not exclude the involvement of Russian special services, for whom the odious Zakharchenko could become a burden hindering their plans.

Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova blamed "Kyiv regime" for the murder and demanded that the West guarantee an unbiased investigation into the incident.

Russian President Vladimir Putin expressed condolences over Zakharchenko's death and promised the occupied Donbas "support."
Russia is not going to withdraw from the Minsk peace agreements on Donbas.

France and Germany say that the assassination of leader of the self-proclaimed "Donetsk People's Republic" ("DPR") Alexander Zakharchenko must not derail peace talks on Donbas in the Normandy format held with the participation of Ukraine, France, Germany, and Russia.

"The latest developments in Eastern Ukraine are unlikely to undermine the parties' obligations under the Minsk agreements or the pertinence of the Normandy-format meetings between France, Germany, Russia and Ukraine. It is precisely when tensions arise that negotiations must begin in good faith," the press secretary of France's Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said.

Steffen Seibert, a government spokesman for German Chancellor Angela Merkel, in turn said: "It's of paramount importance that an escalation is avoided now."

He assured that Germany would continue supporting the four-way Normandy talks.

Zakharchenko was killed in a blast in a local cafe in the Russian-occupied city of Donetsk on August 31.

Read alsoKremlin predicts "difficulties" in talks with Ukraine in Normandy format following Zakharchenko's murder

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said on September 1 that further talks in the Normandy format were impossible after Zakharchenko's death.

Russian President Vladimir Putin's press secretary Dmitriy Peskov said on September 3 that "it is difficult to discuss anything" with Ukraine in the Normandy format after Zakharchenko's assassination, but it does not mean that Russia is going to withdraw from the Minsk peace agreements.

Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs Pavlo Klimkin earlier announced that talks at the level of the four countries' foreign ministers might take place on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly in New York City, the United States, in the latter half of September.
Poroshenko will hold consultations on the subject with parliamentarians.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says he is going to inform Russia about the termination of the 1997 Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation, and Partnership between Ukraine and the Russian Federation by the end of the month.

"Let me stress: it is not being torn up, since it's a complicated and lengthy procedure, but it ceases to be effective due to its non-prolongation," Poroshenko said at a meeting with the leaders of Ukrainian parliamentary factions at the Presidential Administration in Kyiv on Monday evening, according to an UNIAN correspondent.

"It is solely within the Ukrainian president's authority. After proposals as for a NSDC [National Security and Defense Council] meeting are introduced, I'm planning soon to send Russia a notice under my signature by September 30 regarding the non-prolongation of the said treaty," he said.

According to the president, this does not require voting in parliament.

Read alsoUkraine ready to terminate Treaty of Friendship with Russia - Poroshenko

"But of course, I would like to hold consultations on this issue in order to take into account the position, the opinion of the parliament, to take them into account when preparing the relevant decision of the National Security and Defense Council," he said.

As UNIAN reported, Poroshenko said on August 28 he was waiting a package of documents from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the start of the process of terminating the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Partnership between Ukraine and Russia.

UNIAN memo. The Treaty on Friendship, Cooperation, and Partnership between Ukraine and the Russian Federation was signed by the then Ukrainian President Leonid Kuchma and his Russian counterpart Boris Yeltsin on May 31, 1997.

The document fixed the principle of strategic partnership, the recognition of the inviolability of existing borders, respect for territorial integrity and mutual commitment not to use its territory to harm the security of each other. It automatically renews on each 10th anniversary of its signing, unless one party advises the other of its intention to end the treaty.

After Russia annexed Crimea and unleashed war in Donbas in 2014, there have been repeat appeals in Ukraine to sever the treaty.
As UNIAN reported earlier, at a meeting with leaders of parliamentary factions April 17, Petro Poroshenko announced that he and the hierarchs of the UOC of the Kyiv Patriarchate and Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church decided to officially address Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I with a request to grant autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine.

Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko says the Ecumenical Patriarchate has recognized itself competent to grant autocephaly [church's ecclesiastical independence] without agreeing the issue with other churches, thus Ukraine has the right to establish its own Local Orthodox Church.

"The Ecumenical Patriarchate has adopted a decision on the right of the Ecumenical Patriarchate to grant to any states the right to establish a Local Church without Moscow's consent. And first of all, Ukraine is given the right to establish a Local Orthodox Ukrainian Church," Poroshenko wrote on Twitter.

As UNIAN reported earlier, at a meeting with leaders of parliamentary factions April 17, Petro Poroshenko announced that he and the hierarchs of the UOC of the Kyiv Patriarchate and Ukrainian Autocephalous Orthodox Church decided to officially address Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I with a request to grant autocephaly to the Orthodox Church in Ukraine, and called for the parliament to support the appeal.

Read alsoMost Ukrainians consider Kyiv Patriarchate true successor of church established in Kievan Rus - poll

On April 19, the Verkhovna Rada adopted a resolution on supporting the president's appeal to the Ecumenical Patriarch.

On April 22, the Holy Synod of the Ecumenical Patriarchate accepted the appeal for further consideration.

Patriarch Bartholomew I on July 27 released an address, noting that the ultimate objective of the Ecumenical Patriarchate was to grant autocephaly to the Ukrainian local Orthodox Church.

On September 2, emeetings (Synaxis) were held of the Hierarchy of the Ecumenical Thron Constantinople (Istanbul), Turkey, to consider the question whether the Church of Constantinople is authorized, without the consent of other churches, to grant autonomy, or autocephaly, to a church that has requested it.

Following the meetings, the answer was positive: "Yes, the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople is authorized to grant autocephaly without any consent [from other churches]."
FSB agents searched Pavlenko's home on August 29.

Olha Pavlenko, an activist from Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula, has fled the Russian-occupied region after her home in Simferopol was searched by Russia's Federal Security Service (FSB) and she was questioned by agents from Russia's Investigative Committee.

A Crimea-based correspondent from Ukraine's Hromadske Radio, Mykhaylo Batrak, said on September 2 that he also fled the Russian-occupied region with Pavlenko after she was investigated over alleged ties with "a terrorist organization in Ukraine," Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) said.

Batrak said on September 2 that he and Pavlenko initially went to the southern Ukrainian city of Kherson, which is adjacent to the territory seized by Russian military forces and illegally annexed by the Kremlin in 2014.

Pavlenko, an activist of the Ukrainian Culture Center in the Crimean capital of Simferopol, told RFE/RL that FSB agents searched her home on August 29  confiscating her mobile phone, flash-memory cards, and notebooks containing poems and songs.

Read alsoCrimean activist Balukh reportedly in serious condition

Pavlenko said FSB agents told her she was suspected of having ties to Ukraine's nationalist Right Sector, a group that Russia has banned as a "terrorist" organization.

Pavlenko said she was interrogated by the Investigative Committee shortly after her home was searched.

The Ukrainian Culture Center in Crimea is a group that promotes Ukrainian culture and language in the region.

Its activists have been under pressure since Russian military forces seized the Ukrainian territory in 2014.

One of the center's leaders, Leonid Kuzmin, fled Crimea in 2017 after he received anonymous threats and was pressured by police.

Russian-imposed authorities in Crimea have prosecuted and imprisoned several Ukrainians on what rights activists say are trumped-up, politically motivated charges.
Three enemy troops were killed and another six were wounded, intel says.

Russia's hybrid military forces mounted 16 attacks on Ukrainian army positions in Donbas in the past 24 hours, with eight Ukrainian soldiers reported as wounded in action (WIA).

"Eight Ukrainian soldiers were wounded in the past day. According to intelligence reports, three occupiers were killed and another six were wounded," the press center of Ukraine's Joint Forces Operation (JFO) said in an update on Facebook as of 07:00 Kyiv time on September 3, 2018.

Read alsoOne Ukrainian soldier killed, another two wounded in past day amid "back-to-school" truce

Russian occupation forces opened aimed fire from grenade launchers, heavy machine guns and small arms to attack the defenders of the town of Maryinka, and the villages of Krymske, Shumy, Pivdenne, Kamianka, Berezove, Pavlopil, Hnutove, Lebedynske, Vodiane, and Shyrokyne.

"Since Monday midnight, Russian-led forces have mounted four attacks on the Ukrainian positions outside the villages of Pisky, Vodiane, Pavlopil and Krymske, using grenade launchers, heavy machine guns, and small arms. There have been no casualties among Ukrainian troops since the beginning of the day," the report says.
Doctors and scientists say microwave strikes may have caused sonic delusions and very real brain damage among embassy staff and family members.

Unconventional weapons may have caused the baffling symptoms and ailments that, starting in late 2016, hit more than three dozen American diplomats and family members in Cuba and China. The Cuban incidents resulted in a diplomatic rupture between Havana and Washington, while a U.S. scientist suggested it could be Russia who stood behind the eerie attack.

Allan Frey, the scientist who uncovered the neural phenomenon, said federal investigators have questioned him on the diplomatic riddle and that microwave radiation is considered a possible cause, the New York Times reports.

He speculated that Cubans aligned with Russia, the nations longtime ally, might have launched microwave strikes in attempts to undermine developing ties between Cuba and the United States.

Read alsoRussia employing "psychological warfare" tools targeting phones of Ukraine troops

Its a possibility, he said. In dictatorships, you often have factions that think nothing of going against the general policy if it suits their needs. I think thats a perfectly viable explanation.

During the Cold War, Washington feared that Moscow was seeking to turn microwave radiation into covert weapons of mind control.

More recently, the American military itself sought to develop microwave arms that could invisibly beam painfully loud booms and even spoken words into peoples heads. The aims were to disable attackers and wage psychological warfare.

The medical team that examined 21 affected diplomats from Cuba made no mention of microwaves in its detailed report published in March. But Douglas H. Smith, the studys lead author and director of the Center for Brain Injury and Repair at the University of Pennsylvania, said in a recent interview that microwaves were now considered a main suspect and that the team was increasingly sure the diplomats had suffered brain injury.
The Senate Standing Committee on Planning, Development and Reform on Monday unanimously recommended to start work on Western Route of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) on priority basis by removing all technical, bureaucratic, and financial hurdles immediately.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Sep, 2018 ) :The Senate Standing Committee on Planning, Development and Reform on Monday unanimously recommended to start work on Western Route of China Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) on priority basis by removing all technical, bureaucratic, and financial hurdles immediately.

The Committee expressed its serious reservations over unnecessary delay in construction of Western Rote saying that the government could not finalize the PC-1 of Dera Ismail Khan-Zhob and Zhob-Quetta roads during previous three years.

The meeting of the Committee was held here under the chairmanship of Senator Agha Shahzaib Khan Durrani and was attended by Senators Gianchand, Kauda Babar, Rukhsana Zuberi, Muhammad Usman Khan Kakar and Hidayat Ullah.

Usman Kakar alleged that the government was giving least priority to Western Route as it spent over two and half years to finalize the PC-1 of the projects which had not yet been completed.

The meeting was informed that PC-1 of the 210 kilometer D.I.Khan-Zhob road was almost on final stage and within 45 days it would be finalized.

Project Director of CPEC in the Ministry, Hassan Daud Butt said that the Ministry would strongly take up the issue of Western Route with Chinese government in 8th Joint Coordination Committee on CPEC to be held in China in couple of months to ensure early completion of the projects.

Giving briefing on Gwadar projects, Hassan Daud said work on the US$140 million Gwadar Eastbay Expressway was in progress and it would be completed in October 2020.

He said currently there were four berths at Gwadar port while in future nine more berths would be constructed and the depth of the port would also be increased.

He said at present one ship carrying fisheries products sails away once in a week.

Chairman of the Committee also expressed its reservations over slow progress of Gwadar projects saying that these projects should have given top priority however the reality is vise versa.

Kauda Babar informed the Committee that recently he visited China where he met with Chinese officials who were also not happy with the slow progress of Gwadar projects.

Regarding water supply issue in Gwadar, the meeting was informed that at present, a Chinese company was providing three million gallons of water per day to the city while the total demand was over 6 million gallons of water daily.

He said billions of rupees were spent on construction of dam and pipelines in the city, however due to no rains in the area, the dam was of not use. However he said if this money would have been spent on desalination plants, there would have no issue of water in the city. He said electricity was the biggest issue in the city now. He said at present the total demand of the city is not more than 20 MW which can be arranged easily, however no attention is being given on this issue. "Without basic facilities of water, electricity and security, how the investors could be convinced to established industries in the city," he questioned.

The meeting was informed that as many as 8 investors including four from China had signed Memorandum of Understandings to establish industries in Gwadar free zone.

Regarding energy projects under CPEC, the meeting was informed that an amount of $34.74 billion whad been invested in the projects purely on Independent Power Producer (IPP) financing mode.

Secretary Ministry of Planning, Hassan Zafar said the government gives only sovereign guarantee to the projects under IPP financing mode and it had nothing to do with repayments. He informed that so far total government-led debt under CPEC amounted to $6 billion while all other investment was either on IPP financing mode, or grant.

The meeting was also informed that the government was giving priority to clean, alternative and cheaper electricity as the tariff of solar electricity was about Rs 5 per unit while that of imported coal was about Rs 8.5 per unit. However the electricity tariff per unit of mine mouth Thar coal based power projects would be only Rs 4.5 per unit, the meeting was informed.
In occupied Kashmir, Indian authorities are going to deploy maximum number of additional troops in central, south and north Kashmir districts in the name of so-called panchayat elections, scheduled between November and December, this year.

ISLAMABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Sep, 2018 ) :In occupied Kashmir, Indian authorities are going to deploy maximum number of additional troops in central, south and north Kashmir districts in the name of so-called panchayat elections, scheduled between November and December, this year.

The authorities are planning to elect about 4400 Sarpanchs and 29,000 Panchs in the presence of 40,000 additional troops during these so-called elections, KMS reported.

About 16 Panchs and Sarpanchs were killed by unidentified gunmen since the last village bodies elections held in 2011.

Government officials say, out of the total of 240 additional companies comprising 24,000 troopers of Indian forces like Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Border Security Force (BSF), Sashastra Seema Bal (SSB) and Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) to be deployed for the polls, 71 are marked for the central Kashmir districts of Srinagar, Budgam and Ganderbal.

According to a draft government plan for the conduct of the local bodies' elections, Srinagar alone will see 28 additional paramilitary companies  2800 troopers  deployed for the elections to not more than 50 seats, a majority of them within the Municipal limits.

South Kashmir districts of Pulwama, Shopian, Kulgam and Islamabad, 55 additional companies of the CRPF will be deployed, ostensibly because there is already a higher degree of deployment of Indian forces in the area.

Similarly, 55 additional companies of paramilitary troopers have been marked for deployment in the three northern Kashmir districts of Baramulla, Kupwara and Bandipora.

At least 203 additional forces' companies, more than 20,000 troopers, would be deployed across Kashmir valley, which are already stationed in the territory since the beginning of Amarnath pilgrimage. In addition, there will be 10,000 to 15000 policemen on poll duty. "So, more than 40,000 additional forces will protect the polling booths of Kashmir region," a government official said. "This is in addition to the existing forces' strength in Kashmir."
(@rukhshanmir)

The Rawalpindi City Traffic Police (CTP) have issued a traffic plan for September 6, Defence Day, to ensure smooth flow of vehicular traffic in the city while the Mall Road, Kashmir, Tameezuddin, Iftikhar Janjua, Masood Akhtar Kiani roads and Bank road turn from Murree Road to remain closed for all kind of vehicular traffic on September 4 to Sept 6 from 2 pm until conclusion of the full dress rehearsal and function at GHQ.

RAWALPINDI, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Sep, 2018 ) :The Rawalpindi City Traffic Police (CTP) have issued a traffic plan for September 6, Defence Day, to ensure smooth flow of vehicular traffic in the city while the Mall Road, Kashmir, Tameezuddin, Iftikhar Janjua, Masood Akhtar Kiani roads and Bank road turn from Murree Road to remain closed for all kind of vehicular traffic on September 4 to Sept 6 from 2 pm until conclusion of the full dress rehearsal and function at GHQ.

According to Chief Traffic Officer (CTO), Muhammad Bin Ashraf, a comprehensive traffic plan has been issued to ensure a smooth movement of vehicular traffic on city roads particularly in Cantt area.

As many as 27 Traffic Assistants, 159 Warden Officers, 14 Inspectors and In-charges along with six Deputy Superintendents of Police will perform special duties on the Defense Day to regulate traffic on alternate routes and ensure a smooth flow of traffic on city roads.

The CTO informed that he would personally monitor the traffic arrangements, adding that the Mall Road, T&T Chowk to Shalimar Chowk, Kashmir Road, T&T Chowk to Chungi 22, Tameezuddin Road, Pearl Continental Hotel turn to CSD, Tufail Road and GHQ Gate no 3 to Chungi 22, Iftikhar Janjua Road, University Chowk near EME Mess to GHQ and Masood Akhtar Kiyani Road will remain closed for traffic during three days.

He said that traffic moving from Saddar to Shalimar Chowk to Peshawar Road will be diverted to Bank Road and reach Mall Road via MH Chowk. Traffic from MH Chowk to Katchery will be diverted towards Railway Road, Kamran Market, Mareer Chowk to reach Katchery Chowk.

No traffic will be allowed towards Transit Camp and Roomi Road and from MilitaryAccounts office to Railway Road during the function on September 6.
(@mahnoorsheikh03)

Dr Arif Alvi wants a 24/7 helpline to address mental health issues.

Lahore (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News  3rd September, 2018) Model and fashion designer Anam Tanoli attempted suicide on Saturday because of mental stress.

Tanolis body was found hanging in a room at her Defence residence.

The model had recently returned from Italy. The police said that they were investigating the matter from all angles despite it appearing as a possible suicide.

A statement of her mother was also recorded by the police which said that the 26-year-old was under mental stress.

Her suicide has triggered a debate about depression, bullying and mental health.

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader and presidential candidate Dr Arif Alvi has also expressed regret over the models suicide.

Dr Arif Alvi called for a 24/7 helpline to address mental health issues.

In a tweet on Sunday, the PTI leader wrote, Millions of people specially women under different socio-economic pressures face depression & some commit suicide. Psychiatric help should be readily available including a 24/7 helpline.
An anti-terrorist court (ATC) here Monday cancelled the protective bail of 11 accused, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA Zulfiqar Ali Bhatti.

SARGODHA, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Sep, 2018 ) :An anti-terrorist court (ATC) here Monday cancelled the protective bail of 11 accused, including Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) MNA Zulfiqar Ali Bhatti.

The accused, however, managed to flee from the court before announcement of the decision.

Police had lodged a first information report against 26 nominated persons and around 90 unknown persons, including the PML-N Member of the National Assembly (MNA) on the charges of provoking public against the army, administration and judiciary after boycotting the election counting process. The accused were booked under 7/ATA-342 and section 148/149, 341/440, 186/353 by the Cantonment Police.

According to FIR, MNA Zulfiqar Ali, his son Dr Najaf and Sarfaraz Bhatti had boycotted the election counting process and shouted slogans and used abusive language against the judiciary, administration and army.
HYDERABAD, (UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 2nd Sep, 2018 ) :The Mehran University of Engineering and Technology (MUET), Jamshoro, conducted the entry test on Sunday for admission to some 2,092 seats in its 2 campuses.

The MUET's spokesman informed that 12,728 candidates had registered for the test, out of which 10,620 appeared for the test.

The candidates included a majority of male students at 9,148 while there were only 1,472 female students.

The spokesman apprised that Jamshoro district based main campus of MUET was offering admission to 12 teaching disciplines and Khairpur district based campus in 6 teaching disciplines.

Speaking on the occasion MUET's Vice Chancellor Prof Dr Muhammad Aslam Uqaili said it was one of the biggest day in the lives of the candidates who were taking the test.

He said MUET is the only public sector engineering university whose faculty and students had got registered more than 15 research patents while 10 business startup companies had also been opened.The Commissioner Hyderabad division, DIG Hyderabad, Deputy Commissioner Jamshoro and SSP Jamshoro, among other officials, visited the test center.
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Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said on Monday that it was necessary to establish an efficient mechanism in order to monitor the implementation of the Minsk agreements on the settlement of the conflict in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas.

MINSK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said on Monday that it was necessary to establish an efficient mechanism in order to monitor the implementation of the Minsk agreements on the settlement of the conflict in the eastern Ukrainian region of Donbas.

The agreements were signed by the leaders of the Normandy Four group that comprises Russia, Ukraine, Germany and France in the Belarusian capital of Minsk in February 2015.

"I don't want to judge, who is right and who is wrong. Perhaps, it is necessary for the heads of states to meet once again and agree on what else should be done in order to create an efficient control mechanism set to monitor the Minsk agreements' implementation," Makei was quoted as saying by the tut.by news portal.

The minister went on to say that the Belarusian side had played a "huge role" in reaching the agreements.

The Belarusian side had already made suggestions on the mechanism, he added.

Makei's remark came after the recent assassination of Alexander Zakharchenko, the leader of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR). He was killed by a bomb blast in the DPR's capital of Donetsk on August 31. The explosion killed Zakharchenko's bodyguard and reportedly injured 11 people.

The DPR and the Luhansk People's Republic (LPR), both located in eastern Ukraine, have been in a state of an armed conflict with Kiev since 2014 when they proclaimed their independence from Ukraine, refusing to accept the new government that came to power in what the DPR and the LPR qualified as a coup. In spite of numerous attempts to settle the conflict, the warring parties continue violating the ceasefire.

According to UN estimates, the conflict has claimed over 10,000 lives.
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Former French President Francois Hollande lacks objectivity and sincerity in some of his descriptions of the Normandy Four summit on Ukraine, particularly in relation to the venue and conditions provided to the state leaders, in his book "Lessons of Power," Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said on Monday.

MINSK (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) Former French President Francois Hollande lacks objectivity and sincerity in some of his descriptions of the Normandy Four summit on Ukraine, particularly in relation to the venue and conditions provided to the state leaders, in his book "Lessons of Power," Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said on Monday.

On February 11, 2015, the leaders of France, Germany, Russia, and Ukraine, including Hollande, who was in office at the time, met in Minsk. The talks went on through the night for sixteen hours and resulted in a document on the resolution of the Ukrainian conflict.

"I am outraged by the kinds of things that lack not only objectivity, but sincerity. I don't understand why Francois Hollande would even do it ... Some things [described in the book] are not true," Makei told tut.by outlet.

Makei questioned Hollande's use of the term "soulless" to describe the Independence Palace in Minsk, where the summit took place, stressing that "hardly any official building has a soul."

"Apparently, Hollande meant that the modern palace in Minsk was not as grandiose as his former residence, Elysee Palace," Makei said.

The Belarusian foreign minister pointed out that Belarus had lost a great number of historical buildings in World War II.

Makei added that it was the decision of the Normandy Four to remain in a room with uncomfortable chairs, mentioned by Hollande, rather than go to special rooms for meetings.

"As for the 'terrible sandwiches'... President of Belarus [Alexander Lukashenko] offered everyone dinner. I remember clearly the French president happily saying: 'Yes, let's have dinner." But [German] Chancellor [Angela] Merkel looked at Hollande harshly and said: 'We have no time for dinner, let's begin the work.' He got flustered and followed Merkel resignedly," Makei said.

The foreign minister said that sandwiches with lard, sausage, ham, cheese and fish were offered to the state leaders several times.

"Yes, there were no oysters, snails, frog's legs, pigeons. As much as the sum equal to $50,000 per day was allocated for food alone," the minister said.

Makei added that the leaders were given separate quarters for rest, but they refused to leave the palace until the end of the overnight summit.
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Monday held talks with Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

BEIJING, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Sep, 2018 ) :Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Monday held talks with Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Noting that Ethiopia is an important African country and an important partner of China in Africa, Li said the China-Ethiopia comprehensive strategic and cooperative partnership has gained in-depth development.

Li said China encourages its enterprises to invest in Ethiopia, expand human resources development and cooperation, and promote construction of transportation infrastructure and supporting projects.

China is happy to see a peaceful and stable East Africa, and willing to work with Ethiopia to strengthen communication and coordination in international and regional affairs and safeguard common interests of both sides as well as other developing countries, Li said.

Abiy said Chinese enterprises are playing an increasingly important role in Ethiopia's economic and social development, adding that Ethiopia is willing to strengthen human resources, energy and infrastructure cooperation with China, improve the business environment and welcome Chinese companies to invest in Ethiopia.

After the talks, Li and Abiy witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents.
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A conference titled "Countering Illicit Arms Trafficking in the Context of Fighting International Terrorism" will take place in Russia's capital, Moscow, on 3-4 September at the World Trade Center, organized by the Russian Foreign Ministry and other Russian ministries and agencies.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) A conference titled "Countering Illicit Arms Trafficking in the Context of Fighting International Terrorism" will take place in Russia's capital, Moscow, on 3-4 September at the World Trade Center, organized by the Russian Foreign Ministry and other Russian ministries and agencies.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will open the conference with a welcoming address that will begin after 14:45 local time on September 3. Under-Secretary-General of the UN, Executive Director of the UN Office on Drugs and Crime Yuri Fedotov is also expected to address the conference, in one of the three thematic sessions, along with experts, political scientists, researchers and civil society activists.

At a briefing of the UN Security Council on August 23, Vasily Nebenzya, Russia's permanent representative to the United Nations, stated that the conference could serve as a platform to discuss how terrorist organizations, such as the Islamic State terrorist group (banned in Russia), were obtaining weaponry.

The conference will be attended by representatives from 21 countries, along with representatives from Russia's Federal Security Service, Foreign Intelligence Service, and other government bodies and agencies. Heads of 11 counter terrorist units in international organizations have confirmed their attendance.

The conference was announced by Alexey Polishchuk, the deputy director of the Russian Foreign Ministry's Department of European Cooperation at the OSCE Annual Security Review Conference. According to Polischuk, the conference will tackle the crucial issue of stopping any type of weaponry from reaching terrorist organizations.
The construction of the first Egyptian nuclear power plant (NPP) Dabaa, assisted by the Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom, will begin around June 2020, when all necessary approvals will be received, Dr. Amgad Alwakeel, project director of the Egyptian Nuclear Power Plants Authority, said on Monday.

CAIRO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) The construction of the first Egyptian nuclear power plant (NPP) Dabaa, assisted by the Russian state nuclear corporation Rosatom, will begin around June 2020, when all necessary approvals will be received, Dr. Amgad Alwakeel, project director of the Egyptian Nuclear Power Plants Authority, said on Monday.

"Since the moment the project launched last December, our department has been doing all that is necessary for its practical implementation ... It envisages three stages. The first, preparatory stage, which began in December 2017 and is currently underway, will last around two and a half years. In this period, all the necessary approvals and licenses will be granted, and [supporting] infrastructure will be built," Alwakeel was quoted as saying by the Sada Elbalad newspaper.

According to Alwakeel, upon receipt of all necessary licenses, which should be around June 2020, the reactors will start being built.

"This stage will start as soon as we are licensed to start the work. It will take five and a half years and will result in the end of the construction and receiving documentation that would authorize the launch. This stage will also comprise the training of personnel who will work at the plant," Alwakeel said.

He went on to say that the third stage, which will take around a year, will involve getting a license for the NPP launch and all the start-and-adjustment works.

In 2008, Russia and Egypt signed an an agreement on the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and in 2015, the two countries agreed to construct the Dabaa NPP, with Russia providing a $25 billion loan to Egypt to cover the cost. The Dabaa NPP, located in the north of the country, will have four 1,200-megawatt generation III+ reactors. The project officially started on December 11, 2017.
Croatia in the Mediterranean Sea on Monday will send the first contingent of troops, part of the NATO-led peacekeeping operation dubbed "Sea Guardian".

Zagreb, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Sep, 2018 ) :Croatia in the Mediterranean Sea on Monday will send the first contingent of troops, part of the NATO-led peacekeeping operation dubbed "Sea Guardian".

RTOP-41 Vukovar, a warship of Croatia's Navy with a personnel of 50 sailors, will sail from Split. The vessel is the first ever ship of the Croatian Navy to take part in a NATO-led operation, which lasts from September 5 to 21.

The warship will conduct non-combat tasks and will provide support to NATO in strategic communications, according to the Croatian Ministry of Defense.

As part of the mission, the sailors will conduct inspection of civilian ships, suspected of being linked to possible threats such as terrorism, illegal maritime activities, or threats to sailing freedom and safety.

NATO at its 2016 summit in Warsaw announced it would transform the Active Endeavour maritime operation in the Mediterranean into a new maritime security operation, Sea Guardian.

The Croatian warship has already been part of international military exercises in Italy, Slovenia, Greece and Albania.
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The murder of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) leader Alexander Zakharchenko last week is a significant blow to the Minsk process, Russia's Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Alexander Lukashevich told Sputnik.

VIENNA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) The murder of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) leader Alexander Zakharchenko last week is a significant blow to the Minsk process, Russia's Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Alexander Lukashevich told Sputnik.

"A significant blow has been dealt to the entire Minsk process. We believe that those forces that still choose the tactics of terror and sabotage of the Minsk accords are playing with fire, heating up the situation and doing everything possible to frustrate the prospects for a peaceful settlement," Lukashevich said.

He said Kiev is unwilling to come to an agreement within the framework of the Minsk process, and the murder is one more confirmation of this.

Lukashevich said Russia regrets that the OSCE leadership has not reacted to Zakharchenko's assassination and urged the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to intensify monitoring on the disengagement line in Donbas.
(@rukhshanmir)

The murder of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) leader Alexander Zakharchenko last week has dealt a significant blow to the Minsk process, Russia's Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Alexander Lukashevich told Sputnik.

VIENNA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) The murder of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) leader Alexander Zakharchenko last week has dealt a significant blow to the Minsk process, Russia's Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Alexander Lukashevich told Sputnik.

"A significant blow has been dealt to the entire Minsk process. We believe that those forces that still choose the tactics of terror and sabotage of the Minsk accords are playing with fire, heating up the situation and doing everything possible to frustrate the prospects for a peaceful settlement," Lukashevich said.

He said Kiev was unwilling to come to an agreement within the framework of the Minsk process, and the murder was one more confirmation of this.

"I think that this terror act is another proof that the Ukrainian side is not ready and does not want to implement the agreements reached during the Minsk settlement process. That is also why work of the contact group is stalled. We repeatedly said that the main reason the settlement process was halted is Kiev's open and deliberate sabotage of the Minsk accords," the envoy said.

Lukashevich said Russia regretted that the OSCE leadership had not reacted to Zakharchenko's assassination and urged the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission to intensify monitoring on the disengagement line in Donbas.

Zakharchenko was killed in a bomb blast in the center of the DPR capital of Donetsk on Friday. The Russian Foreign Ministry and DPR officials said that Kiev was behind the assassination. The Ukrainian Security Service denied involvement in the attack and said Zakharchenko had been killed in a money-related squabble.

Ukraine has been in a state of civil war since 2014, when Kiev launched a military offensive against the self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics after they refused to recognize a new government. In 2015, Russia, Ukraine, France, and Germany brokered the Minsk peace accords in a bid to end hostilities in the area. Another attempt to facilitate the settlement was the establishment of the Contact Group on Ukraine that includes Ukraine, Russia and the OSCE. However, the warring parties continue to record ceasefire violations.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

The anti-immigration far-right is expected to soar in Sweden's September 9 general election, capitalising on voter discontent as Swedes punish traditional parties over immigration, integration and health care.

Stockholm, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Sep, 2018 ) :The anti-immigration far-right is expected to soar in Sweden's September 9 general election, capitalising on voter discontent as Swedes punish traditional parties over immigration, integration and health care.

Prime Minister Stefan Lofven's Social Democrats, who have dominated Swedish politics since the 1930s, will remain the biggest party in the country but likely with a record low score, polls suggest.

The far-right Sweden Democrats (SD) are heading to make the most gains and come in a close second, followed by the conservative Moderates.

A Skop institute poll published on Sunday, a week before the election, credited the Social Democrats with 23.8 percent of support, compared with 31 percent in the 2014 election; SD with 20 percent, up from 13 percent in 2014; and the Moderates with 17 percent, down from 23 percent.

Speaking to AFP after a campaign rally outside Stockholm on Sunday, Lofven criticised the former centre-right government in power from 2006-2014 for having "decreased taxes the most for the richest and decreased resources to our welfare" system.

"We have shifted that, we have invested a lot in our welfare system, in our schools, in our hospitals... Investing in our welfare is the right direction."Sweden is known as a pioneer in fields ranging from equality to environmentalism and women's and children's rights. It has been hailed for its transparency, consensus-building, strong business climate, low crime and tolerant society.

So what happened that made it possible for a party like SD, with roots in the neo-Nazi movement, to "impose its agenda", as Gothenburg University political science professor Ulf Bjereld put it.
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The first session of the Iraq's newly-elected unicameral parliament, the Council of Representatives, started in the country's capital of Baghdad on Monday and was broadcast live by state television.

CAIRO (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) The first session of the Iraq's newly-elected unicameral parliament, the Council of Representatives, started in the country's capital of Baghdad on Monday and was broadcast live by state television.

During their first session, 329 lawmakers will elect the parliamentary speaker and their two deputies. The parliamentarians will later elect a new president, who will then task the majority bloc to form a government.

Earlier on Monday, 16 Iraqi political blocs, including those of Prime Minister Haider Abadi and Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr, formed the 177-seat majority coalition, which will be capable of forming the new government.

On May 12, the first parliamentary election since the defeat of the Islamic State terrorist group (banned in Russia) was held in the country. Since the parliament voted in favor of a manual recount of the ballots due to multiple reports on violations, the results of the election were ratified by the Federal Supreme Court of Iraq on August 19.
(@FahadShabbir)

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said in an interview that Syrian President Bashar Assad "won the war, but not the peace."

"The situation in Idlib is alarming. Assad won the war, but he did not win the peace," Le Drian told the France Inter broadcaster.

The minister also stressed the need for a political solution of the situation.

The province of Idlib is currently hardly controlled by Syrian government forces. There are militants of the armed opposition, as well as terrorists of a number of groups, according to Moscow and Damascus. The militants sporadically attack the positions of the Syrian government troops.

Also in recent weeks, speculation about the possibility of a chemical attack in Syria has grown after Russian officials warned of a plot to launch such an assault in order to provoke western retaliation against the Syrian government.

On August 25, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said that terrorists of the Tahrir al-Sham group (affiliated with the Jabhat Nusra terror organization, banned in Russia) were preparing a provocation in Syria's western Idlib province to accuse Syrian government forces of using chemical weapons against civilians.
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Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Monday that he was eager to enhance cooperation with the Turkic states, as Hungary became the Turkic Council's observer state.

CHOLPON-ATA (Kyrgyzstan) (UrduPoint news / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) Prime Minister Viktor Orban said on Monday that he was eager to enhance cooperation with the Turkic states, as Hungary became the Turkic Council's observer state.

Earlier in the day, the sixth summit of the Turkic Council, comprising four Central Asian countries whose national language is rooted in the Turkic language, took place in Kyrgyzstan's resort city of Cholpon-Ata. The summit brought together heads of Kyrgyzstan, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkey, while Orban and Uzbekistan's president participated as guests of honor. Kyrgyzstan's President Sooronbai Jeenbekov announced, as he was opening the summit, that Hungary was "granted the status of a Turkic Council observer state."

"Hungary is ready to start a new chapter of cooperation, and I thank you for letting me join your ranks," Orban said.

The prime minister went on to say that being qualified as an eastern nation was a compliment for Hungary.

"Because of the fantastic success and the political development of your states, this is a compliment for us to be qualified as an eastern nation.

We respect our culture and our ancient roots," he said.

Orban added that the Hungarian government was currently allocating grants to hundreds of Turkic students studying in the country, and that it was eager to give even more.

He said that the Turkic Council member states, specifically Kazakhstan, were playing an increasingly greater role in Hungary's foreign policy, and called on the heads of states to enhance cooperation.

"This is an honor for me to be granted possibility to join this organization. Among you, we are a nation that lives in the West and has adopted Christianity. Hungary is a NATO member and a European Union member. Being a representative of the eastern people and a European Union member is a very special position. We are proud of our national identity. The West does not recognize this truth today, but we will keep it [the identity]," Orban said.

The Turkic Council, established in 2009, aims to coordinate efforts to fight international terrorism, and promote cooperation in various spheres, inducing law enforcement, trade, science, technology, education and mass media.
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India plans to convey to the United States at their first "2+2" ministerial talks later this week that New Delhi will go ahead with the procurement of Russia's S-400 Triumph air defense systems despite Washington's objections and sanctions threat, local media reported on Monday, citing sources.

NEW DELHI (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) India plans to convey to the United States at their first "2+2" ministerial talks later this week that New Delhi will go ahead with the procurement of Russia's S-400 Triumph air defense systems despite Washington's objections and sanctions threat, local media reported on Monday, citing sources.

New Delhi, in particular, plans to ask Washington not to impose sanctions over the purchases of Russian air defense systems taking into account the long history of defense industry cooperation between Russia and India, according to the Press Trust of India (PTI).

"India has almost concluded the S-400 missile deal with Russia, and we are going ahead with it. Our position on the issue will be conveyed to the US," a high-ranking source told the PTI.

The US-India ministerial talks will take place on September 6 in New Delhi.

In July, Indian Defense Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that talks between India and Russia on the delivery of the S-400s have reached a final stage. If the purchase contract is finalized, India will become the third country after China and Turkey to buy the Russian air defense system.

In late August, US Assistant Secretary of Defense Randall Schriver said that the purchase of the S-400 air defense system was "troubling" for the United States for a number of reasons. Shriver could not clarify whether the US government waived potential sanctions that would be applied under the Countering America's Adversaries Through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) if India were to complete the purchase. However, the official acknowledged that India was a friend of the United States and New Delhi could make its own decisions.
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The 2018 Rapid Trident multinational military exercises uniting 15 states are set to begin in Ukraine on Monday in the country's western Lviv region.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) The 2018 Rapid Trident multinational military exercises uniting 15 states are set to begin in Ukraine on Monday in the country's western Lviv region.

The drills will be held on the territory of the International Peacekeeping and Security Center of the National academy of Land Forces. According to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry, over 2,500 servicemen from Ukraine and 14 foreign states are expected to take part in the joint exercises.

In January, Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signed a law allowing up to 3,000 foreign troops to enter the country for the multinational military exercises scheduled for 2018, including the Rapid Trident drills.

According the Ukrainian law, foreign states cannot have military bases in the country, meaning that every year foreign troops are admitted to Ukraine only after the president signs a special law.

The troops include servicemen from the United States, NATO member countries and states which have joined the alliance's Partnership for Peace cooperation program. Up to 2,000 foreign servicemen and no more than 20 planes and helicopters were allowed into Ukraine to take part in the upcoming Rapid Trident drills, which have been held annually since 2011.
Police officers on Spain's Balearic Islands detained a man who had dealt knife blows to two German tourists, media reported on Monday.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) Police officers on Spain's Balearic Islands detained a man who had dealt knife blows to two German tourists, media reported on Monday.

The police shot the suspect armed with a knife, he sustained a leg injury, the Europa Press news agency reported.

According to the local police, a scuffle broke out between the suspect and two German tourists on Sunday night in Platja de Palma.
Russia is ready to begin the process of improving relations with the European Union if Brussels shows the same intent, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) Russia is ready to begin the process of improving relations with the European Union if Brussels shows the same intent, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Monday.

On Sunday, French President Emmanuel Macron said that discussions with Russia were necessary and that he respected Russian President Vladimir Putin, alleging, however, that Putin dreams about "dismantling the European Union."

"Regarding the attitude of President Putin to the European Union, we regretfully state that it is not at the initiative of Russia that these relations are in such a fairly frozen state, that, it seems to us, is absolutely not in the interests of either the EU member states or the Russian Federation. Both the Russian Federation and the president have repeatedly stated that when Brussels would show such readiness, will be ready to enter the path of revitalization and normalization of relations, especially since in some areas these relations continue, like in terms of the energy dialogue and other topics," Peskov told reporters asked to comment on Macron's statement.

The spokesman noted that China was rapidly catching up with the European Union in terms of economic cooperation with Russia.

"Russia continues to develop bilateral relations with the member countries of this organization [EU]. But in general, since the EU is Russia's main trade and economic partner, China is rapidly catching up with it," he said adding that Putin has repeatedly stressed Russia's interest in seeing the European Union "developing, prosperous, predictable and stable."
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Russian Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Alexander Lukashevich expressed hope on Monday that the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) of the organization in Ukraine will strengthen surveillance over the situation in Donbas amid Kiev's reportedly upcoming offensive after murder of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) leader Alexander Zakharchenko.

VIENNA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) Russian Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Alexander Lukashevich expressed hope on Monday that the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) of the organization in Ukraine will strengthen surveillance over the situation in Donbas amid Kiev's reportedly upcoming offensive after murder of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) leader Alexander Zakharchenko.

On Saturday, a day after Zakharchenko died in a cafe explosion, Eduard Basurin, the deputy commander and spokesman of the DPR Operational Command, said that Ukrainian security forces may launch an offensive in Donbas on September 14.

"I hope that the SMM will monitor the actions of the Kiev military, which after this terrorist act [murder of Zakharchenko] indicated their desire to increase military activity in a number of areas on the contact line," Lukashevich told Sputnik.

On Friday, Zakharchenko and his bodyguard were killed in a bomb blast in a cafe in the center of DPR capital of Donetsk, according to the DPR authorities. Eleven others were reportedly injured.

The conflict in Donbas started in 2014, when Kiev launched a military operation against self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics after they refused to recognize the new government in Kiev that came to power after what they considered to be a coup. In February 2015, the warring parties signed the Minsk peace accords to end the hostilities in the region, but the situation has remained tense, with both parties accusing each other of ceasefire violations.
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MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th September, 2018) Russian inspectors will visit a military facility in the Czech Republic to check the information about the troops deployed there, head of Russia's National Nuclear Risk Reduction Center Sergei Ryzhkov said.

"In accordance with the 2011 Vienna Document on Confidence- and Security-Building Measures, the Russian group of inspectors is going to monitor the military facility of the Czech Armed Forces. The monitoring will take place on September 4, 2018, and last for one day," Ryzhkov said on Monday.

The official pointed out that such events were being held in order to check information about the deployment of troops and weapons.

During a briefing the Russian inspectors will get information about the staff and weapons on the base.

The 2011 Vienna Document is aimed at confidence and security building in Europe and envisages Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) member states providing each other with information on their armed forces, defense planning and military budget details, as well as exchanging military observers and carrying out inspections.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

The Rwandan Embassy in Moscow wants to open more polling stations in Russia to increase the turnout of the East African country's citizens residing in Russia for future elections, Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya, Rwanda's ambassador to Russia, told Sputnik.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) The Rwandan Embassy in Moscow wants to open more polling stations in Russia to increase the turnout of the East African country's citizens residing in Russia for future elections, Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya, Rwanda's ambassador to Russia, told Sputnik.

On Sunday and Monday, Rwanda is holding a parliamentary election.

"For us to have another voting station, we have to have at least 50 voters on the station. So we are looking forward to having more polling stations, like in St. Petersburg next year. We may have one in St. Petersburg for senator [elections], and any other cities that you can group together voters who are in nearby cities - you can group them into one city, so we have more than one polling station," Mujawamariya, who has served as Rwanda's education minister, said.

The ambassador added that some Rwandan citizens in Russia may fail to cast their ballots during the current election because of the distance between Moscow, where the only polling station is opened, and their city of residence.

"Some voters may not come. Even though I am saying we will have a turnout of 100 percent, some of the voters may not turn up because of the distance," Mujawamariya noted.

The diplomat added that the embassy expected 73 Rwandans to vote in the current election.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

Rwanda wants Russia to sign an agreement on supplies of air defense systems to the East African country as soon as possible, Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya, Rwanda's ambassador to Russia, told Sputnik.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) Rwanda wants Russia to sign an agreement on supplies of air defense systems to the East African country as soon as possible, Jeanne d'Arc Mujawamariya, Rwanda's ambassador to Russia, told Sputnik.

In June, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during his visit to Rwanda said that Moscow and Kigali were discussing supplies of Russian air defense systems to the African state.

"There should be an agreement between Rwanda and Russia on air defense systems ... I am sure as soon as possible the air defense, the air protection, will be signed between the two countries.

The ball is now on the Russian side. We are now waiting for a reaction from our counterparts," the ambassador said.

Mujawamariya pointed out that the agreement would give an opportunity to Rwanda to use Russian experience in ensuring air security.

"The main thing is our air security, and Russia has experience. We have need and Russia has experience," she noted.

The ambassador added that the countries would also expand cooperation on other security issues.
A successful referendum will wide open doors for Macedonia to join NATO and start negotiations for EU membership, argue foreign politicians.

Skopje, (APP - UrduPoint / Pakistan Point News - 3rd Sep, 2018 ) :A successful referendum will wide open doors for Macedonia to join NATO and start negotiations for EU membership, argue foreign politicians.

Goran Svilanovic, former Serbian foreign minister, said that only a successful referendum in Macedonia will open many perspectives and huge potential for the country.

"The referendum is, of course, a national issue. But, only a successful referendum will open perspectives and huge potentials. With it, the citizens themselves will have the chance to put an end to the dispute for more than 25 years has blocked progress and integration processes in the country," said Svilanovic, who has been serving as Secretary General of the Regional Cooperation Council (RCC) as of 1 January 2013.

According to him, the agreement reached by the premiers Zoran Zaev and Alexis Tsipras is a courageous one, a historic one encouraging for the whole region, because it introduces fresh potential not only to cooperation as part of Euro-Atlantic integration, but also to allow economic boost of the country and of the region as a whole.

"After the successful referendum, I expect the EU member countries to operationalize the conclusions of the Council of the EU for the opening of negotiations. It can be expected the negotiations process to have a solid tempo given the fact that the country so far has achieved a high level of harmonization of its legislation with the EU's," Svilanovic told MIA.

Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic considers the Skopje-Athens name settlement beneficial for the entire region.

However, he said he had no right to call on the Serbian minority in Macedonia to either come out to vote in the referendum or not.

"We are satisfied that Skopje and Athens will solve the issue, it is good news for Belgrade and for Serbia. But, I don't have the right to call or not to call anyone to vote in the referendum, because it would be unfair and could be considered as direct interference into internal affairs, and we certainly respect Macedonia," Vucic said yesterday after a meeting with Prime Minister Zoran Zaev at the Macedonia-Serbia border crossing.

US Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt welcomed Greece name deal with Macedonia for unleashing regional economic potential, as well as paving the country s path to membership in NATO and the EU.

In an interview Sunday with Kathimerini, Pyatt said he was impressed that the businessmen in Thessaloniki believed - even if they didn't approve it - that the agreement, if implemented, could create important and new economic opportunities.

Greece strongly shares the US view that all these countries should be able to continue to move towards European and NATO membership if their people so choose, Pyatt said.

A "Yes" referendum campaign was launched last week with the slogan "Come Out FOR European Macedonia". It is run by some 30 political parties and nearly 100 organizations.
Syrian President Bashar Assad and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed on Monday the agenda of the upcoming Russia-Iran-Turkey summit in Tehran and the situation in Syria, the Syrian president's press service said in a statement.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th September, 2018) Syrian President Bashar Assad and Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif discussed on Monday the agenda of the upcoming Russia-Iran-Turkey summit in Tehran and the situation in Syria, the Syrian president's press service said in a statement.

The Iranian minister is currently visiting Damascus, where he has already held talks with his Syrian counterpart Walid Muallem and the country's prime minister, Imad Khamis.

"The discussions during the meeting touched on the events in Syria and in the region, and the issues on the agenda of the trilateral summit between Russia, Iran and Turkey, agreed to be held in Iran in the next few days," the statement said.

Earlier in the day, the Iranian Foreign Ministry said that Zarif and Muallem discussed the settlement of the Syrian conflict and the importance of the Astana format meetings on the resolution of the crisis in Syria.

"They also exchanged views on increasing economic cooperation, the participation of Iranian companies in the reconstruction of Syria, cooperation with international organizations especially the United Nations, and the crisis in Yemen," the ministry's statement said.

According to the ministry, Zarif also stressed that Iran supported Damascus in its fight against terrorists.

Iran's participation in the post-war reconstruction of Syria was also discussed during the Iranian foreign minister's meeting with Khamis, the Iranian Foreign Ministry added.

"Prime Minister Khamis thanked the support of the Islamic Republic, stressing that with the participation and cooperation of friendly countries, especially the Islamic Republic of Iran and Russia, as well as private companies, the process of reconstructing Syria would be continued," the ministry said.

The third summit between the three leaders will be held on September 7. According to Muallem, the discussions during the summit will be focused on the liberation of the Syrian province of Idlib, where terrorists are reportedly preparing a chemical attack against civilians in order to make it look like an attack perpetrated by the government forces.
(@ChaudhryMAli88)

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) Syrian Foreign Minister Walid Muallem confirmed on Sunday the reports that explosions in an ammunition depot near the Mezzeh military airfield in the vicinity of Damascus were caused by a short circuit, not Israeli missile strikes.

Earlier in the day, a source in Syrian intelligence services told Sputnik that the outskirts of Damascus were subject to a missile attack. The Syrian air defense systems repelled the blows, he said, adding that Mezzeh military airfield near Damascus was not affected by the strike, but there were explosions at an ammunition depot near it as a result of the attack. The Times of Israel newspaper reported, citing sources, that the strikes had been conducted by Israeli aircraft.

"In fact, from what we understood from sources in the Syrian Defense Ministry, the cause of these explosions was a short-circuit due to overheating ... These expositions were not the result of illegal Israeli aggression," the minister told the Russia-24 broadcaster when asked whether the explosions occurred due to ammunition blowing up or due to an Israeli airstrike.

Over the past several years, Syria has repeatedly accused Israel of attacks on the Mezzeh military airport. According to Tel Aviv, Israel strikes the Iran-supplied Hezbollah arms depot at the Mezzeh facility to prevent the Lebanese movement, listed as a terrorist group in Israel, from obtaining advanced weapons for terrorist aims.
The team of US President Donald Trump floated an idea of a Palestinian-Jordanian confederation to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, regional media reported.

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 03rd September, 2018) The team of US President Donald Trump floated an idea of a Palestinian-Jordanian confederation to Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas, regional media reported.

Abbas said he would only accept the plan if Israel was part of the confederation, the Haaretz newspaper reported on Sunday.

Jordan has reportedly rejected a proposal, citing preference for a two-state solution for Palestine and Israel.

Abbas revealed Trump administration's proposal only days after Israel approved plans for 1,000 new settlement homes in the West Bank, on the land claimed by Palestine.
VIENNA (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 04th September, 2018) Russian Permanent Representative to the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE) Alexander Lukashevich expressed hope on Monday that the OSCE Special Monitoring Mission (SMM) of the organization in Ukraine will strengthen surveillance over the situation in Donbas amid Kiev's reportedly upcoming offensive after murder of the self-proclaimed Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) leader Alexander Zakharchenko.

On Saturday, a day after Zakharchenko died in a cafe explosion, Eduard Basurin, the deputy commander and spokesman of the DPR Operational Command, said that Ukrainian security forces may launch an offensive in Donbas on September 14.

"I hope that the SMM will monitor the actions of the Kiev military, which after this terrorist act [murder of Zakharchenko] indicated their desire to increase military activity in a number of areas on the contact line," Lukashevich told Sputnik.

Moscow hopes that the SMM will more clearly capture the real situation on the ground, according to the Russian representative.

"We very much hope that the mission will correct the current imbalances, and will more clearly record the real situation on the ground. Our attitude toward the mission and its activities, which we have always supported and are supporting, will depend to a large extent on this," Lukashevich said.

On Friday, Zakharchenko and his bodyguard were killed in a bomb blast in a cafe in the center of DPR capital of Donetsk, according to the DPR authorities. Eleven others were reportedly injured.

The conflict in Donbas started in 2014, when Kiev launched a military operation against self-proclaimed Donetsk and Luhansk people's republics after they refused to recognize the new government in Kiev that came to power after what they considered to be a coup. In February 2015, the warring parties signed the Minsk peace accords to end the hostilities in the region, but the situation has remained tense, with both parties accusing each other of ceasefire violations.
The clinical management of BRCA1/2 mutation carriers requires accurate cancer risk estimates. Cancer risks vary according to type and location of the mutation and since there is limited information about mutation-specific cancer risks, genotype-phenotype correlation studies are needed. This is a report of 22 families with the same mutation, BRCA1 duplication exon 13, a mutation that is found world-wide, with the objective to describe the cancer history found in these families. We studied 69 confirmed carriers, 53 women and 16 men, and additionally 29 women who were clinically expected carriers. Among the confirmed carriers, 27 women (51%) were diagnosed with breast cancer, 10 (19%) with ovarian cancer, 5 (9%) with breast and ovarian cancer and 17 (32%) without cancer. Nine women (17%) with breast cancer were 35 years or younger at diagnose. Also, two cases of early onset colon cancer were found, and 37,5% of the male carriers were diagnosed with prostate cancer. These data may have implications for risk assessment and cancer prevention decision making for carriers of the BRCA1 duplication exon 13 mutation.

Familial cancer. 2018 Aug 22 [Epub ahead of print]

Christina Edwinsdotter Ardnor, Anna Rosen, Ingrid Ljuslinder, Beatrice Melin

Department of Radiation Sciences, Oncology, Umea University, Umea, Sweden. ., Department of Radiation Sciences, Oncology, Umea University, Umea, Sweden.

PubMed http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/30136106
Portrait of a George Crum with his wife

George and his wife Kate.

Every time a person crunches into a potato chip, he or she is enjoying the delicious taste of one of the worlds most famous snacks  a treat that might not exist without the contribution of black inventor George Crum. According to the history books, the potato chip was invented on August 24, 1853, at Moon's Lake House in Saratoga Springs, New York.George Speck, also called George Crum was born on July 15, 1824 in Saratoga County in upstate New York. The son of an African-American father and a Native American mother, Crum was working as the chef in the summer of 1853 when he incidentally invented the chip.In the summer of 1853, George Crum was employed as a chef at an elegant resort in Saratoga Springs, New York. On Moon Lake Lodge's restaurant menu were French-fried potatoes, prepared by Crum in the standard, thick-cut French style that was popularized in 1700s France and enjoyed by Thomas Jefferson as ambassador to that country. Ever since Jefferson brought the recipe to America and served French fries to guests at Monticello, the dish was popular and serious dinner fare.At Moon Lake Lodge, one dinner guest found chef Crum's French fries too thick for his liking and rejected the order. Crum cut and fried a thinner batch, but these, too, met with disapproval. Exasperated, Crum decided to rile the guest by producing French fries too thin and crisp to skewer with a fork. The plan backfired. The guest was ecstatic over the browned, paper-thin potatoes, and other diners requested Crums potato chips, which began to appear on the menu as Saratoga Chips, a house specialty.In 1860 George opened his own restaurant in a building on Malta Avenue near Saratoga Lake, and within a few years was catering to wealthy clients including William Vanderbilt, Cornelius Vanderbilt, Jay Gould, and Henry Hilton. His restaurant closed around 1890 and he died in 1914 at the age of 92.The idea of making them as a food item for sale in grocery stores came to many people at around the same time, but perhaps the first was William Tappendon of Cleveland, OH, in 1895. He began making chips in his kitchen and delivering to neighborhood stores but later converted a barn in the rear of his house into one of the first potato chip factories in the country.At that time, potatoes were tediously peeled and sliced by hand. It was the invention of the mechanical potato peeler in the 1920s that paved the way for potato chips to soar from a small specialty item to a top-selling snack food. For several decades after their creation, potato chips were largely a Northern dinner dish.In 1921, Bill and Sallie Utz started the Hanover Home Brand Potato Chips in Hanover, Pennsylvania. Salie Utz used her knowledge of good Pennsylvania Dutch cooking to make the chips in a small summer house behind their home. The hand-operated equipment Salie used made about fifty pounds of potato chips per hour. While Salie stayed home making chips, Bill delivered them to "mom and pop" grocery stores and farmer's markets in the Hanover, PA and Baltimore, MD area.Out in Monterey Park, California the Scudders company started making potato chips in 1926. Laura Scudder is credited with developing the wax paper bag for potato chips which made a wider distribution possible because of its preserving properties. Prior to this bag potato chips were dispensed in bulk from barrels or glass display cases.In 1932, Herman Lay founded Lays in Nashville, Tenn., which distributed potato chips from a factory in Atlanta, Ga. Herman Lay, a traveling salesman in the South, helped popularize the food from Atlanta to Tennessee. Lay peddled potato chips to Southern grocers out of the trunk of his car, building a business and a name that would become synonymous with the thin, salty snack. Lays potato chips became the first successfully marketed national brand.The industry that George Crum launched in 1853 continues to grow and prosper. Potato chips have become America's favorite snack. U.S. retail sales of potato chip are over $6 billion a year. In 2003 the U.S. potato chip industry employed more than 65,000 people.(via The Great Idea Finder
British Prime Minister Theresa May got plenty of attention for her trip to Africa last week. Videos of her dancing  one with secondary students who greeted her in South Africa and another with her dancing with young scouts in Kenya  went viral.



But May's dance-floor diplomacy didn't overshadow her larger mission in Africa, which was to forge business ties for a post-Brexit Britain. In Cape Town, she pledged more than $5 billion to support African markets and also promised that her country would overtake the United States to become the biggest investor in Africa out of the G-7 countries.



Cheta Nwanze, an analyst at the Lagos-based research firm SBM Intelligence says Britain is desperately trying to find new trade partners. "Because Brexit isn't working out as it had expected," he said. "Brexit is seven or eight months away now and they're so many contentious issues that will need to be resolved."



Playing catch up to China



German Chancellor Angela Merkel made her own recent foray to Africa, visiting Senegal, Nigeria and Ghana, also seeking economic benefit. China has played the role of Africa's largest trading partner for the past nine consecutive years, and both Britain and Germany have a lot of catching up to do.

According to British government figures, the country's total trade with Nigeria, South Africa and Kenya  the countries May visited  amounted to $16.9 billion in 2016. That's less than 2.5 percent of the $712 billion in goods and services that Britain exchanged with the European Union in the same year, Reuters reported.



Meanwhile, Germany declared 2017 a key year for its Africa policy and hosted African presidents in Berlin at a G-20 summit to boost private investment. However, to date, Germany only has about 1,000 companies that are active in Africa.



In comparison, China has 10,000 firms in Africa. It has financed more than 3,000 infrastructure projects on the continent, building thousands of kilometers of highways, generating thousands of megawatts of electricity and creating thousands of jobs across the continent.



"China is challenging all the Western countries, even the United States. China has no historical background of colonialism [in Africa] so many Africans prefer working with China," said Bakary Sambe, a development and peace studies analyst in Senegal.



This week, several African presidents are in China for the 2018 Forum for Africa-China Cooperation, which China's Foreign Minister Wang Li described as the biggest summit of all time.



But, Nii Akuetteh, a prominent independent Ghanaian policy analyst based in Washington, D.C., recommends African politicians, businesses and civil society members be wary of both the West and the East.



"If I had my way, they would be far more vigilant and tougher against Merkel, against May, and even against the Chinese, because all these global powers are rushing to Africa now and they all claim that they love Africa and they want to help. Well, we all heard that before and it led to slavery and it led to colonialism," he said.



Stopping migration



Akuetteh said May and Merkel are motivated in part by a desire to stop the waves of African migrants showing up on Europe's shores.



"They are doing this because their populace don't like Africans. Merkel is very clear, that's why she's doing this  we want to create jobs in Africa so you all don't come to Europe," he said.



Merkel said she wants to work with these governments to tackle issues the three countries are struggling with, such as the Boko Haram insurgency and widespread unemployment.



One of the agreement she said was an MOU signed between German automaker Volkswagen and partners in Ghana and Nigeria. Volkswagen announced last week it would assemble cars in Ghana and make Nigeria an automotive hub.



Ayisha Osori, the head of the Open Society Initiative for West Africa, commends this effort and says African leaders need to acknowledge the reasons why citizens are risking their lives to flee.



"It's a good deal to create more jobs to keep people away from migrating, coming over to Europe in less numbers. Looking at the people who try to cross the desert, that go by sea or by boat, what are they running away from? What is it about their lives that is making them to take such dangerous journeys?" Osori asks.



U.S. role?



In this scramble for Africa, the United States looms in the background, contributing mostly military support. The Brookings Institution says U.S.-Africa relations will not reach their potential if the executive office fails to provide diplomatic and policy leadership.



But U.S. President Donald Trump has shown little interest in the continent and angered many Africans with offensive remarks.



Though Trump has no announced plans of going to Africa, first lady Melania Trump announced in August that she will visit  without the president.
Former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, who took the helm of the U.N. human rights office on Monday, will need a strong voice in confronting populists and crises marked by war crimes, activists said.

Bachelet swiftly called on Myanmar to free two Reuters journalists convicted earlier in the day for their reporting on the crackdown on Rohingya.

Bachelet was chosen by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to succeed Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein of Jordan and the appointment was approved by the General Assembly last month.

She was tortured during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet but later rose to serve twice as Chile's president.

She inherits an inbox that includes conflicts in Yemen and Syria and crises in Venezuela and Nicaragua.

Just last week independent U.N. investigators said that six Myanmar generals should be prosecuted for "genocidal intent" and another expert panel said that some air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen may amount to war crimes.

"This is an extraordinarily challenging time for human rights, given the rise of autocratic populists, the increasingly muscular hostility of China and Russia, the loss of the U.S. and often the U.K. as voices for human rights, and a leadership void making possible a proliferation of atrocities in such places as Syria, Yemen, and Myanmar," Ken Roth, executive-director of Human Rights Watch, told Reuters.

But he said some governments and U.N. officials hope she will be "quieter and more selective" than Zeid who criticized governments in China, Israel, Russia and the United States.

The U.N. Human Rights Council, which opens a three-week session on Sept 10, is due to hold a debate on extending the mandate of its investigators on Yemen. It will also examine the next steps towards ensuring justice in Myanmar.

Zeid left a political hot potato after saying in January that his office had found 206 companies doing business linked to unlawful Israeli settlements in the West Bank and urging them to avoid any complicity in "pervasive" violations against Palestinians. His report did not name the companies and said that its database was not yet complete.

"The immediate test she has got in terms of taking on the Council is the settlements database," Roth said, saying that Bachelet should not delay publication of the list.

Another activist group, UN Watch, said last month that Bachelet has "a controversial record when it comes to her support for the human rights abusing governments who rule Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, and we need to know how she plans to address these urgent situations."

Zeid, asked last week his advice to Bachelet, told reporters: "To very much continue along the same trajectory."
In todays polarized political climate, when divisions and mistrust toward people of other races, beliefs and sexual orientation have become a rallying cry, how do we teach young people to become more tolerant? That's a topic the "No Place for Hate" initiative is trying to tackle, starting with the belief that hate and prejudice can be unlearned. VOAs Helena Djordjevic went to one elementary school in Rockville, a Maryland suburb of Washington, to find out more.
Chinese billionaire Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, the founder of the Beijing-based e-commerce site JD.com, was arrested in Minneapolis on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct, jail records show.

Liu, 45, was arrested late Friday night and released Saturday afternoon pending possible criminal charges, Hennepin County Jail records show. The jail records dont provide details of the alleged incident.

Minneapolis police spokesman John Elder said Sunday that he couldnt provide any details because the investigation is considered active. He declined to say where in Minneapolis Liu was arrested or what Liu was accused of doing.

Minnesota law defines five degrees of criminal sexual misconduct, ranging from a gross misdemeanor to felonies, covering a broad array of conduct ranging from nonconsensual touching to violent assaults with injuries. The jail records for Liu dont indicate a degree.

JD.com, the main rival to Alibaba Group, said in a statement posted Sunday on the Chinese social media site Weibo that Liu was falsely accused while in the U.S. on a business trip, but that police investigators found no misconduct and that he would continue his journey as planned.

We will take the necessary legal action against false reporting or rumors, the company said.

Liu recently tried to distance himself from a sexual assault allegations against a guest at a 2015 party at Lius penthouse in Australia. Liu was not charged or accused of wrongdoing, but Australian media reported he tried unsuccessfully to get a court to prevent the release of his name in that case. The guest was convicted.

In June, Google said it would invest $550 million in JD.com. The investment reflected an effort by the U.S. tech company to expand its reach into Asian e-commerce.

JD.com is Chinas second-largest e-commerce company after Alibaba. Among its other investors is Chinese internet gaming and social media giant Tencent Holdings, the developer of the WeChat messenger app and a major rival of Alibaba, and U.S. retailer Walmart Inc.
At one of An Nguyens old jobs in Hanoi, she had a daily ritual: When she wanted to log in to the computer, she had to answer a cybersecurity question such as What is spear phishing? or How does malware work?

Nguyen did not work in the technology industry, but this was her employers way of making sure that all staff had at least a basic understanding of good cyber awareness.

Vietnam could use more people like Nguyen, according to security professionals. They say the countrys small businesses, in particular, do not realize how big a threat they face from hackers or other sources of data breaches.

Cybersecurity for us, sometimes we are too confident -- or maybe we are ignorant, Nguyen, who has since started her own business, said regarding Vietnamese apathy toward computer security. So we dont care much about that.

But small and medium enterprises (SMEs) should care, cyber professionals say, especially considering the factors that make security risks even more acute in Vietnam. These include the Southeast Asian countrys widespread use of pirated software, the high internet penetration among a tech-loving society without the IT support to match, and the love-hate relationship with China.

There are two kinds of people, said Vu Minh Tri, vice president of cloud services at the gaming company VNG, deploying a favorite global cliche -- those who have been hacked, and those who do not know that they have been hacked.

There is a very true saying that there is no company, or no organization, or no computer not impacted by malware, Tri said. Theres only organizations, computers, or people not aware the computer is impacted. So all are impacted. Its just a matter of whether you're aware or not.

A new wrinkle in the story comes from neighboring China, with some cyber-attacks believed to be related to its Belt and Road Initiative, which aims to connect many countries from Asia to Europe through infrastructure projects. Research from the security firm Fireeye suggests Chinese hackers may be used either to defend Beijings partners in the Belt and Road, such as Cambodia, or to target those that do not play ball, like Malaysia.

Vietnam has taken a cautious approach to the initiative, with some scholars expressing concern about risks like burdensome loans and over-reliance on China. The Southeast Asian country also has reason to worry about potential cyber fallout. In one famous case, Chinese internet protocol addresses were suspected in the 2016 hack of Vietnamese airports, where screens displayed messages challenging Hanois claims in the South China Sea.

In this digital era, Asia Pacific region has become the largest digital market in the world, creating tremendous business opportunities for SMEs, Jason Kao, director of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperations SME crisis management center, told small businesses at a Ho Chi Minh City workshop his office sponsored last week.

But not enough of these small and medium-sized enterprises are paying attention to online security, Kao warned.

Since more businesses use computers to connect their customers and store data, cyber-attacks and data leaks can cause serious harm, he said.

The cost burden is understandable, though, he added.

On the one hand, a small business might be too little to attract the unwanted attention of hackers. On the other hand, they might be too small to bear the expense of insuring or guarding against attacks.

As we talk about cost and benefit, we know that we have to buy insurance contracts, we know that we have to protect ourselves, Nguyen said. But we dont have enough resources.

That is the reason ripped software remains popular in Vietnam, earning it a spot among countries to watch in the U.S. Trade Representatives report on intellectual property. Thanks to this pirated software, overseas hackers can access Vietnamese computers, which they use in denial of service attacks - sending so many requests to target websites that the sites become overloaded and shut down.

At the same time Vietnam lacks the information technology specialists who can alleviate some of these dangers. By one estimate, the country could face a shortage of one million IT staffers by 2020.

In the meantime, security advisers offer some basic reminders to increase safety online. Do not click on links, in emails or otherwise, if they are even slightly questionable. Use strong passwords and do not reuse them across different accounts. And of course, avoid pirated software.
Bad news, pop fans. Lana Del Rey will not be headlining the Meteor Festival in Tel Aviv. She cant make it because the venue, Kibbutz Lehavot HaBashan, is in Israel and she been cowed by activists and censors working for the quintessentially white, middle-class Boycott, Divest and Sanctions (BDS) movement.

Del Rey did say, performing in Tel Aviv is not a political statement or a commitment to the politics there, adding that singing in California does not equate to a support for the government there either. But according to the BDS lobby, Israel is a case apart from all other countries. Del Rey was free to play in Madrid, and thus support the governments attacks on Catalan separatists. But Israel is out. Israelis  Arabs, Christians and Jews  are forbidden from hearing Del Rey sing live in a socialist idyll. She tweets:
The U.N. refugee agency is calling for safe and legal pathways for migration as the death toll among refugees and migrants crossing the Mediterranean Sea into Europe reaches new heights.

There has been a significant reduction this year in the number of asylum seekers and migrants reaching European shores via the Mediterranean Sea. The U.N. refugee agency reports arrival rates are down by 41 percent compared to last year.

UNHCR spokesman, Charlie Yaxley tells VOA one in every 42 people died or went missing last year while crossing the Mediterranean Sea, compared to a substantial increase of one in 18 during the first eight months of this year.

During the peak arrival period in June, he says the number of fatalities in the Central Mediterranean accounted for as many as one in seven.

Now, that is a pretty bleak portrait that exists because that means that for every seven men, women and children who are leaving appalling conditions in Libya, one of their fellow travelers did not reach European shores," he noted.

Despite the substantial decrease in refugee and migrant arrivals, xenophobia in Europe is growing. This has resulted in boatloads of people being stranded at sea for many days while nations argue about which one will accept them.

In recent months, the UNHCR and International Organization for Migration have been calling for a predictable, regional approach for the rescue and disembarkation of people in distress in the Mediterranean Sea.

The UNHCR says alternatives must be found to these potentially deadly journeys. It recommends the adoption of safe and legal pathways for refugees to come to Europe. These could include increasing resettlement places and removing obstacles to family reunification.
Rodrigo Duterte, accused of committing serious human rights violations as part of his deadly crackdown on drugs at home, and who has stirred controversy with comments about the Holocaust, received a warm welcome in Israel when he arrived Sunday for a four-day visit.

Ahead of his departure, Duerte said he looks forward to broader cooperation on a broad range of mutually important areas - defense and security, law enforcement, economic development, trade (and) investments and labor.

Sales of Israeli weapons to his government are high on the agenda, according to Israeli media. Filipino officials have said the Philippines has recently acquired Israeli-made arms such as Galil assault rifles and pistols for its 120,000-strong police force, which is at the frontline of Dutertes battle against illegal drugs and other crimes.

Duterte will kick off his four-day visit by attending an event of the Filipino community in Israel Sunday evening. An estimated 28,000 Filipinos live in Israel, mostly as health aides.

A Filipino living in Israel, Lisa Levi, told Channel 10 TV that she is excited and proud he is visiting.

Speaking in Hebrew, she said I wish I could hug him and thank him for everything he does.

She said her home country is safer now and that accusations of rights abuses are untrue.

Duterte, who has stirred controversy with his foul-mouthed attacks on Barack Obama and even God, will receive a warm welcome in the Holy Land meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other officials.

Duterte drew outrage in 2016 when he compared his anti-drug campaign to the Nazi genocide of Jews in World War II and said he would be happy to slaughter 3 million addicts. He later apologized.

He is scheduled to visit the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem on Monday and later a monument commemorating the Philippines rescue of Jews during the Holocaust.

In contrast to the warm official welcome, Israeli human rights activists plan to protest the visit and have encouraged President Reuven Rivlin not to meet him over accusations of rights abuses at home.

Official Philippine police tallies place the number of suspects killed in police-led anti-drug raids at more than 4,500 since Duterte took office in June 2016.

International human rights watchdogs have cited far higher death tolls.

Duterte, a 73-year-old former government prosecutor, denies condoning extrajudicial killings but has openly threatened drug dealers with death.

Relatives of several people slain in the presidents anti-drug campaign last week asked the International Criminal Court to prosecute him for alleged crimes against humanity, in the second such request for a ruling on thousands of deaths that have occurred during the crackdown.

Dutertes visit this week marks the first ever by a Philippine president to Israel since the countries established diplomatic relations in 1957.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel counsels her ministers to read The Sleepwalkers: How Europe Went to War in 1914, a riveting study examining the causes of World War I and the political failures which contributed to the calamity.

Nineteen-fourteen is different from 2018 in many regards, but what haunts Merkel and others who look back is that the run-up to World War I saw the emergence of big man politics and the menacing build-up of nationalism as well as the advancing of nativist projects by various leaders trying to knit together their own disparate regions or to ride surges in public chauvinism.

Geo-strategic stability and predictability gave way. Politicians made major miscalculations. The author of The Sleepwalkers, historian Christopher Munro Clark, notes Since the end of the Cold War, a system of global bipolar stability has made way for a more complex and unpredictable array of forces, including declining empires and rising powers  a state of affairs that invites comparison with the Europe of 1914.

Comparisons to 1914 draw derision from Europes nativist leaders, who accuse their opponents of being alarmist.

Her choice of book is instructive  it speaks to the the fear now haunting centrists and liberals that the rise of Europes populist nationalists, fed by an apparently insoluble migration crisis, is marking a possible end-of-era moment.

But led by Frances Emmanuel Macron, the continents pro-EU centrists are trying to restore stability and predictability in the face of mounting political uncertainty and rising nativism.

Opposed to them is a bloc of nativist leaders, with Italys Matteo Salvini to the fore, which is busy fashioning battle plans for next years European Union parliamentary elections. They have turned for advice to former Donald Trump aide Steve Bannon.

The opposing camps are intent on framing the coming electoral contest as a defining moment for a multinational bloc buffeted by a toxic migration crisis, economic inequality, and a resurgent, goading Russia that has helped to fund maverick anti-EU parties on both the left and right of the political spectrum. At the same time across the Atlantic, President Donald Trump has shown increasing ambivalence about alliance with a bloc Washington helped form.

Identity is at the center of the coming electoral fight, and the first serious skirmish will come in the Austrian city of Salzburg where EU leaders are scheduled to meet beginning September 19 for a two-day summit to discuss, once again, Brexit and how to handle migrants as a bloc. The leaders will disagree on the two main issues on the formal agenda, reflecting starkly opposed visions of Europe.

At Salzburg, Macron will market his ideas for reform and revival, arguing for greater political and economic integration. The nationalists want a brake on further integration as part of their vision of the bloc reversing course to become a looser grouping of nation states, all of whom would be freer from Brussels and less hedged in by EU treaties.

The key champions in the struggle for mastery between liberalism and nationalism sparred last week in a war of words, giving a flavor of the electoral contest to come. Salvini and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban midweek launched an anti-migration manifesto, naming Macron as their main adversary.

There are currently two camps in Europe and one is headed by Macron, Orban said, who sought to portray the French leader as pro-immigration, arguing, he is the leader of those parties who back migration to Europe, and on the other side theres us who want to stop illegal migration.

Throughout the week, the French leader pushed his case for ambitious reforms, some supported by Germany and others not, that would boost EU integration  an antidote, as he sees it, to what he calls the illiberal democracies of Orban and other autocratic-minded nationalists who, he argues, are simplifying the migration crisis to stoke nativist anger.

Macron mocked nationalist leaders for accepting development aid from the bloc, while disdaining the EU. I will give no ground to nationalists and those who spread words of hate. If they want to see me as their main opponent, they're right, he retorted while on a trip to Copenhagen.

In a bid to reconcile the idea of greater European integration with flexibility for national governments, Macron has prepared to reintroduce the policy ideas of his chief economic adviser, Jean Pisani-Ferry. In a lengthy 2016 policy paper for Bruegel, a think tank in Brussels, Macrons aide argued the EU should use Brexit, and other major disputes over EU spending rules, as a chance to re-shape what he calls a Europe of two circles, with the EU at its core and an outer circle of countries in a structured partnership.

The governance of the eurozone remains excessively cumbersome and technocratic, Pisani-Ferry said recently. Macron aides say the French leader will use the Salzburg summit as a platform to market a vision of the bloc as a series of concentric circles with member states and near neighbors able to move at their own pace  a bid, his aides say, to create the breathing space to allow the nativist wave to ebb and to reestablish a sense of common purpose and identity in a bloc currently so at odds with itself.

But EU federalists fear flexible governance will merely empower the current crop of nativist leaders in Central Europe and Italy, already at odds with Brussels over civil rights, rule of law and media freedoms, to go their own way when it suits them, speeding up a geopolitical centrifuge that will end up spinning member states even further apart.

The populists are doing a better job than their opponents of presenting a united front as they ally with like-minded movements for the 2019 European election. This week, the leader of Frances far-right National Rally, Marine Le Pen, will unveil a campaign poster featuring her standing next to Matteo Salvini. Her aides talk about riding a Salvini wave into the EU-wide polls next year and say he will be enlisted to appear in campaign events.

Like other populists, Frances are optimistic about the European election. They note Le Pens supporters surged to a first-place finish in France in the 2014 EU election, before the migration crisis struck.

They also question why liberals outside the borders of France should pin their hopes on Macron. In France, Macron has taken a beating politically, his environment minister resigned this month complaining of sluggish reform, and the French president has struggled to overcome a scandal involving his bodyguard beating up students at a May Day rally.

Last week, a poll recorded his approval rating at 34 percent, his lowest score since taking office last year. That has prompted Salvini to sneer that Macron should be focused on France and spending less time preaching lessons to foreign governments.
A massive fire ripped through Rio de Janeiro's treasured National Museum, one of Brazil's oldest, in what the nation's president says is a "tragic" loss of knowledge and heritage.

Even before the embers had begun to cool early Monday, grief over the huge cultural loss had given way to anger at across-the-board budget cuts threatening Brazil's multi-cultural heritage.

The museum's destruction caused a social media outcry and students and researchers gathered to demonstrate outside its still-smoldering remains.

"It's not enough just to cry, it is necessary that the federal government, which has resources, helps the museum to reconstruct its history," the museum's director Alexandre Keller said in front of the devastated building.

The fire, the cause of which remains unknown, broke out late Sunday at around 2230 GMT.

The majestic edifice  which was closed to the public when the fire started  was swept by flames as plumes of smoke shot into the night sky, while scores of firefighters battled to control the blaze.

Five hours later they had managed to smother much of the inferno that had torn through hundreds of rooms, but were still working to extinguish it completely, according to an AFP photographer at the scene.

By morning the extent of the loss was still unclear  although a fire department spokesman told AFP there were no reports of victims so far.

Charred ruins

Firefighters were poised to enter the charred ruins to see what might be salvageable, the spokesman added, warning that it would be dangerous.

"The facade is resistant, but a lot of material fell from the roof," he said. "We are going to proceed with great care, to see if we can save something."

The natural history and anthropology museum  founded in 1818 and home to over 20 million valuable pieces  has suffered from funding cuts, forcing it to close some of its spaces to the public.

The head of finance and planning at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, on which the museum depends, described the destruction as "a loss to the whole world."

"We are not going to put up with this strangulation of public resources anymore," Roberto Antonio Gambine Moreira told AFP.

"This is a sign of the lack of investment, a lack of resources, and the consequences that brings," he said.

The museum's collection included art and artifacts from Greco-Roman times and Egypt, as well as the oldest human fossil found within today's Brazilian borders, known as "Luzia."

It also housed the skeleton of a dinosaur found in the Minas Gerais region along with the largest meteorite discovered in Brazil, which was named "Bendego" and weighed 5.3 tons.

Pieces covering a period of nearly four centuries  from the arrival of the Portuguese in the 1500s until the declaration of the first Brazilian republic in 1889  were also stored there.

"This is a tragic day for Brazil," President Michel Temer said in a statement. "Two hundred years of work and research and knowledge are lost."

'Culture is grieving'

Brazil's minister of culture, Sergio Sa Leitao, tweeted that "there will be little or nothing left of the palace and the exhibits."

A deputy director at the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, voiced "profound discouragement and immense anger" as the treasured institution burned, accusing Brazilian authorities of a "lack of attention."

He said the museum, a former palace that was once the official residence of the Portuguese royal family, had never had necessary support.

The fire comes as campaigning for October's critical presidential vote gets underway, one of the most uncertain Brazilian elections in decades.

Senator Lindbergh Farias of the country's leftist Workers' Party hit out at the institution's lack of funding and blamed it on spending cuts ordered by the government.

'Lobotomy' of national memory

Sa Leitao, who in July 2017 became culture minister under Temer  a deeply unpopular center-right leader  acknowledged that "the tragedy could have been avoided" but said "the problems of the National Museum have been piling up over time."

The minister recalled that in 2015 under the government of leftist Dilma Rousseff the museum had been closed for maintenance.

Leitao also said the fire struck just after the South American country's National Development Bank had signed a sponsorship contract aimed at revitalization.

He said a reconstruction project would be set in motion, adding "this tragedy serves as a lesson."

"Brazil needs to take better care of its cultural heritage and the collections of its museums," he said.

Meanwhile Marina Silva, a former environment minister who is running for president, called the blaze "equivalent to a lobotomy of the Brazilian memory."

The collection, she said, "contains objects that helped define the national identity  and are now turning to ashes."
U.S. President Donald Trump warned Syria, Russia and Iran in a tweet on Monday against "making a grave humanitarian mistake" by attacking Syria's rebel-held Idlib province.

"The Russians and Iranians would be making a grave humanitarian mistake to take part in this potential human tragedy. Hundreds of thousands of people could be killed. Don't let that happen!" Trump tweeted Monday evening.

Earlier Monday, Iran voiced support for an impending Syrian offensive to recapture the last remaining major opposition stronghold, saying the Idlib region in northwestern Syria should be cleared of "terrorists."

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif traveled to Damascus on Monday to meet with his Syrian counterpart as well as President Bashar al-Assad.

Iranian media quoted Zarif saying Idlib should be put back under control of the Syrian people, and that reconstruction efforts in Syria and the return of refugees should go forward.

The country has been at war since early 2011 with a multitude of parties including pro-government forces, rebel groups and militants all fighting for control over various areas.

Assad's forces, backed by military support from Russia and Iran, have recaptured major cities in recent years, often involving agreements with both opposition fighters and civilians that allowed them to flee to Idlib.

Now the pro-government forces are focused on Idlib, where there are about three million and worries from the United Nations that an offensive there would bring a large humanitarian toll.

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi told reporters in Tehran that Syria has every right to reclaim its territory from terrorists and Iran's support will continue.

Assad's government has long referred to any opposition fighters as "terrorists." The Idlib area includes both rebel groups and militants such as the Nusrah Front.

Zarif's visit comes ahead of a planned trilateral meeting in Tehran Friday between the presidents of Iran, Russia and Turkey to discuss the situation in Syria.
The U.S. sharply condemned Monday's conviction of two Reuters journalists in Myanmar and their seven-year prison terms for violating the country's secrecy laws, calling it "deeply troubling" and a "major setback" in the Southeast Asian country's efforts to promote democratic reforms.

Journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were arrested last December after meeting with two police officers at a restaurant in Yangon and given a stack of documents. They were charged with violating the Official Secrets Act, which was enacted in 1923, when Myanmar was called Burma and was under British colonial rule. Both men have denied asking for the documents.

The U.S. Embassy in Myanmar said the "clear flaws" in the case against the journalists "raise serious concerns about rule of law and judicial independence in Myanmar."

U.S. Ambassador Scot Marciel told VOA the verdict was sad for the journalists and their families. But moreover, he said, "It's sad for people who worked so hard here to promote media freedom. I think one has to ask whether this process will increase or decrease the confidence that the Myanmar people have in their justice system."

He added, however, "It's really for the Myanmar people to assess that."

The two journalists were covering the brutal military campaign in Rakhine state that has driven nearly 700,000 Rohingya Muslims across the border into Bangladesh since last August. They were focused on the massacre of 10 Rohingya by police and soldiers in the village of Inn Din.

'We are still fighting for them'

After their sentencing, the handcuffed journalists were held by police outside the court by their arms as they spoke briefly to reporters before being put in a police vehicle and taken away. Protesters momentarily blocked the police vehicle's path as it left the court.

Thura Aung, Wa Lone's brother, said, "We are still fighting for them and we will keep on going. We have to be strong to support them. ..."

Defense lawyer Khin Maung Zaw said the verdict would be appealed and that it was "very disappointing for all of us. It is bad and has bad effects and is bad for Myanmar, our country, for democracy, for rule of law and for the freedom of press, freedom of expression. It has very bad effects, this verdict has very bad effects on all those things.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley said in a statement Monday, It is clear to all that the Burmese military has committed vast atrocities. In a free country, it is the duty of a responsible press to keep people informed and hold leaders accountable.

"The conviction of two journalists for doing their job is another terrible stain on the Burmese government. We will continue to call for their immediate and unconditional release, Haley said.

International outrage

The arrests of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo have sparked international outrage among free speech and human rights activists, who saw the case as Myanmar's first real test of freedom of expression after embracing democracy in 2016 after decades under repressive military rule.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet called for the immediate release of the journalists.

"Their conviction follows a legal process that clearly breached international standards," Bachelet said in a statement. "It sends a message to all journalists in Myanmar that they cannot operate fearlessly, but must rather make a choice to either self-censor or risk prosecution."

In a statement, the U.S. embassy called for their immediate release and for the Myanmar government "to end the arbitrary prosecution of journalists doing their jobs."

"The American people have long stood with the people of Myanmar in support of democracy, and we continue to support civilian rule and those advocating for freedom, reform, and human rights in Myanmar," the embassy statement said.

British Ambassador Dan Chugg, who attended the court hearing, said, "Speaking on behalf of the British Government and EU member states, we are extremely disappointed with this verdict and sentencing. This case has cast a long shadow over freedom of expression and the rule of law in Myanmar."

He said, "In any democracy, journalists must be free to carry out their jobs without fear or intimidation; this verdict has undermined freedom of the media in Myanmar. The verdict has also struck a hammer blow for the rule of law. We have attended the trial throughout and we believe that the judge has ignored the evidence presented to him as well as ruling against Myanmars own laws. This is a bad day for Myanmar and we call for the journalists to be released immediately.

WATCH: Reuters Editor-in-Chief Discusses Sentencing of Myanmar Journalists

Reuters editor-in-chief Stephen J. Adler denounced the verdict, telling VOA that the journalists' arrest was "a blatant set-up," and with no normal, legal due-process during court proceedings, their convictions were not surprising.

"It seemed like an effort to prevent them from reporting on a very powerful story they were working on about a massacre of 10 individuals," Adler said. "I think the goal was to stop them from reporting but also to deter other journalists from looking too closely at what was going on."

Adler said the two reporters have "done absolutely nothing wrong except doing journalism in the public interest."

Tirana Hassan, Amnesty Internationals director of crisis response, said, "Todays appalling verdict has condemned two innocent men to years behind bars. This politically motivated decision has significant ramifications for press freedom in Myanmar. It sends a stark warning to other journalists in the country of the severe consequences that await should they look too closely at military abuses. This amounts to censorship through fear."

Knut Ostby, the United Nations resident and humanitarian coordinator in Myanmar, said the world body was "disappointed" in the court's decision.

VOA's Ira Mellman contributed to this report.
Palestinian refugees are concerned about their future after the United States announced that it is cutting funds for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinian refugees. The Trump administration has criticized the organization for expanding the community of entitled beneficiaries without solving their problems. VOA's Zlatica Hoke reports.
Experts are growing more and more suspicious that microwave weapons were responsible for inflicting brain damage on nearly 40 U.S. diplomats and their families in Cuba and possibly China, the New York Times reports.



The Americans reported strange high-pitched sounds outside their Havana homes and hotels in 2016 and 2017, followed by severe headaches, nausea, fatigue, dizziness and hearing loss.



A report on the injuries earlier this year did not mention a cause.



But after examining more than 20 victims, the report's author, Dr. Douglas Smith, head of the brain injury center at the University of Pennsylvania, tells VOA a microwave weapon looks more and more like the culprit.



"What kind of mechanical forces can change the brain in the way that's ultimately very similar to a head blow, but there is no evidence of having that very large mechanical injury," he asked.



Dr. Smith said he and his team examined the victims at the request of the State Department and all had the same symptoms as if they suffered concussions.



Smith brushed off suggestions that this may have been some kind of mass hysteria among the diplomats, saying they were examined separately and that no one can fake such injuries as balance and cognition problems.



Allan Frey, a U.S. scientist, discovered in 1960 that the human brain can perceive microwaves as sounds.



According to the New York Times, the United States had researched using microwaves as weapons, including ways to beam speech into an enemy's head and possibly paralyze him.



U.S. intelligence warned more than 40 years ago that the Soviet Union was also looking into microwave weapons.



The Times also reported that a Washington lawyer obtained a National Security Agency statement saying that a foreign power built a weapon "designed to bathe a target's living quarters in microwaves, causing numerous physical effects, including a damaged nervous system."



The precise cause of the sonic attacks on the Americans is still unknown, including who was behind them and why.



President Donald Trump has directly blamed Cuba and, and last year expelled 15 Cuban diplomats from Washington.



Cuba denies any involvement and calls Trump's move political.



The U.S. also brought home a number of Americans from the consulate in Guangzhou, China, in June after diplomats there showed the same symptoms of a sonic attack. A Chinese spokesman said officials investigated and found nothing suspicious.
The U.N. special envoy to Libya is calling for warring parties to respect a ceasefire in the Libyan capital, Tripoli. A health department spokesman in Tripoli has put the death toll in eight days of fighting at 47 dead and 129 wounded.



Efforts to mediate a ceasefire in the Libyan capital continue, despite intermittent shelling and gunfire concentrated to the south of the capital, Tripoli.



U.N. envoy Ghassan Salame has invited the warring sides to talks at an undisclosed location Tuesday.



Meanwhile, Libya 24 news channel tweeted a photo Monday of a delegation of Libyan leaders that was trying to mediate a ceasefire between the warring militias.



The TV reported earlier more fighting had broken out Monday between the so-called 7th Brigade from Tarhouna and the rival "Thawar Tripoli" militias.



While sporadic clashes continued overnight, amateur video showed some Tripoli residents going about their business, including a wedding party driving through the mostly deserted streets of the capital.



Another Tripoli resident tweeted Sunday that he and his friends continued to play cards, and smoke the traditional Arab nargileh water pipe as they listened to the fighting in the background.



Local media report the warring militias are vying for control over the important Yarmouk military camp.



A Libyan analyst living in Paris, Kamel al-Marash, told al Hurra TV the ongoing fighting was not unexpected and the various militia groups are trying to exert control over the centers of power in Tripoli.



He said that National Unity Prime Minister Fayez Seraj has been unable to create a unified national security force or army since he arrived in Tripoli in 2015 and that competing militias under the control of both the interior and the defense ministries are fighting for influence over banks, ministries and military positions.



Some analysts have accused the 7th Brigade from Tarhouna of secretly plotting to capture Tripoli for eastern Libya military commander General Khalifa Hafter, but Marash insists that the report is "totally false." VOA could not confirm or deny the report.
Human Rights Watch is calling for an immediate end to all arms sales to Saudi Arabia in the aftermath of the bombing of a schoolbus last month that killed 51 people, including 40 children.



In a report released Sunday, the HRW called the attack an "apparent war crime," saying it only added to the Saudi-led coalition's "already gruesome track record of killing civilians at weddings, funerals, hospitals and schools in Yemen.''



The coalition, which has the support of the United States, has been fighting the Houthi rebels since March 2015. The coalition backs Yemen's internationally recognized government of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi and aims to restore it to power.



The HRW report comes just a day after the coalition said it has accepted the conclusions of its investigative body that there were "mistakes'' made in the attack, including failing to take measures to minimize collateral damage.



The coalition vowed to "take all the legal measures to hold accountable those who were proven to have committed mistakes'' once it officially receives the findings. It also pledged to coordinate with Yemen's government to compensate civilians.



The U.S. State Department on Sunday welcomed the coalition's statement as "an important first step toward full transparency and accountability.''



But, Bill Van Esveld, senior children's rights researcher for HRW, urged the U.S. and other countries to "immediately stop weapons sales to Saudi Arabia and support strengthening the independent U.N. inquiry into violations in Yemen, or risk being complicit in future atrocities.''
(ANSA) - Rome, September 3 - Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said Monday he was in touch with Italians in Libya amid clashes between rebel militias that have prompted the UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency in the capital Tripoli.

"I am in direct contact with our men: soldiers, diplomats, and ENI staff who are experiencing in Libya risks caused by a senseless military intervention," Salvini said.

He said no harm had yet to be reported.

Italy's embassy in Tripoli is to stay open despite an attack on the national-unity government by rebel militia, foreign ministry sources told ANSA Monday.

They said the embassy "remains operational but with a more flexible presence, which is being assessed on the basis of the needs and the security situation".

Some 400 prisoners escaped from a jail in the Libyan capital, authorities said Sunday, as fighting between rival militias that has killed dozens of people forced the U.N.-backed government to declare a state of emergency in and around Tripoli.


September 3rd marks the first day of the school year across much of the world. But in the English-speaking regions of Cameroon, thousands of children failed to show up for class. Ongoing clashes between the military and separatists seeking independence from Cameroon's French-speaking majority has parents keeping their children away.



There are only a few vehicles and people on the main commercial street in Bamenda, a town in in Cameroon's English-speaking northwest.



Most shops and businesses are closed.



And, despite September 3rd being the first day of the school year, there are no children seen headed to class.



Benette Ngum said she only came out to see how the public responded to calls by armed separatists to keep shops closed and for children to stay at home.



"I will go and register my children but, next week. The money is there, everything is there, the children are even prepared to go to school but, I just want to see how the atmosphere will look like in the first week before I send them to school next week fully," she said.



Most schools in the northwest have been closed since 2016, when fighting broke out between Cameroon's military and armed separatists who want to create an English-speaking state.



Authorities say the separatists have torched more than a hundred schools, which they see as legitimate targets because they force the French language on locals.



Last month, the separatists said they would allow schools to reopen though without any safety guarantee.



The governor of the region, Deben Tchoffo, said the government has taken security measures to protect schools. He is urging parents to put their children back in class.

"The major task lies on the parents, teachers and the school children. That is the reason why I am asking the parents to rise against those that are trying to disrupt resumption of classes in the northwest region," he said.



But parents seem to be listening to the separatists' demand to keep their kids at home on September 3rd and wait for authorities to announce a different date as the start of the school year.



Ajume Francis said he did not send his children to school in the town of Mamfe because authorities have yet to reconstruct it after it was torched.



"The schools that have been burned down, are the students going to sit on the floor? Where would they learn? The government needs to take its responsibility," he said.



Cameroon's Minister of Secondary Education Nalova Lyonga says the government will provide basic school supplies while school buildings are under construction.



"School is a universal good as I said and every Cameroonian must go to school. It is only slaves who do not go to school and we are not slaves. So the head of state has made it possible for us to go to school and I encourage parents to send their children to school," said Lyonga.



More than 200,000 people have been displaced by the violence in Cameroon's English-speaking regions.



The United Nations says a majority of them are school-age children.
Nearly half of college graduates take a first job that does not require a college degree, hurting their long-term income and advancement, according to a recent study.

The negative impact is persistent, says research from Burning Glass Technologies, a software company that researches the labor market, and the Strada Institute for the Future of Work. About two-thirds of graduates whose first jobs do not require a degree will remain "underemployed," as the researchers call it, five years later. Five years after that, about three-fourths of the underemployed are likely to stay that way.

And the underemployed earn $10,000 less than those who took a job that requires a college degree.

The high percentage of underemployed college graduates  43 percent  is not surprising, says Michelle Weise, senior vice president of workforce strategies at the Strada Institute. Some of the data came from the recession of 2008, when the U.S. economy was shrinking and job opportunities were limited.

How to avoid underemployment



Both students and schools are responsible for solving this problem, Weise says.



Students need to plot their career path, she says, starting before they graduate. New graduates should not accept the first job offer they receive, if that is economically possible, she says. Wait for a job that could lead to better future positions.



Choosing a field of study where jobs are plentiful is helpful, she says. Graduates with degrees in science, technology, engineering or mathematics are less likely to be underemployed, studies show.



But students who earn degrees in liberal arts  history, English, psychology  may have a harder time finding a job that uses their abilities. Weiss says that colleges and universities have to do better to support liberal arts graduates in their job search.



"Something we have struggled with, especially since the Great (2008) Recession, is that we are not great at translating what those  skills are that students are developing in those liberal arts programs and how they translate into the workforce," Weise told VOA. "We're not good at showing our students, before they go on the market, how  marketable they really are."



Peter Cappelli is a professor of management at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He says asking students to start preparing earlier to enter the workforce is only part of the solution.



"We're telling them, 'Pick your career when you're 17, and you're applying to college,'" Cappelli says. "And then if you happen to pick the wrong one and you graduate and there's no demand there, you're out of luck.



"Or you could get a very practical degree that helps get you an immediate job, but you haven't learned anything that will help you later in your career," he says.



Cappelli notes that in recent years, colleges and universities have worked hard to make higher education available to more people. But as the number of degree-holders in the country has increased, graduates may find it harder to make themselves appear more desirable than others with a similar degree.



Also, employers have increasingly come to expect more from graduates, somewhat unfairly, Cappelli says. Many advertisements for positions that formerly would be a good fit for recent graduates now ask for years of experience.



Cappelli says that, to make themselves more competitive, college students might gain skills outside their college major. Liberal arts students might consider taking classes in computer programming during the summer break.



Is higher education still a good investment?



Nicole Smith says she understands why students and parents would ask if pursuing higher education is worth it.



Smith, the chief economist for the Georgetown University Center on Education and the Workforce in Washington, says a traditional four-year degree is not the only path to a meaningful and well-paying job. And as the cost of higher education rises, families need to think carefully about the investment.



But the majority of well-paying jobs in the future will require some kind of degree, she says.



"We don't want to discourage people from even stepping foot through the door or to discourage people from even thinking of that opportunity," Smith said.



Some graduates choose jobs that do not require a college degree so they can explore their interests and identities. This exploration may help them focus their career desires and goals, Smith says.
Taiwan's government has apologized three times over deadly floods since August 23 and doubled up restoration work to try to stop storm damage from becoming an issue in pivotal elections this year.

Results of mid-term local elections such as ones set for November, often foreshadow the results of Taiwan presidential races two years later. The president, responsible for foreign affairs, has had thorny relations with China. Now flood control could be an issue also.

Storms that began with a tropical depression dumped up to 1,000 millimeters of rain in parts of south-central Taiwan in the days after, killing seven people. Some citizens in the flood zones have asked why floods could become so severe despite billions of Taiwan dollars spent on prevention.

Premier William Lai apologized over the floods August 25, 29 and 30. His government has vowed to pump the water out of a village under 70 centimeters of flood rain and clean up dead livestock that might otherwise spread disease. Households damaged by floodwaters will get NT$20,000 ($651), the government pledged last month.

Government officials have fretted over disaster responses at least since former president Ma Ying-jeou faced criticism over perception that he did too little, too late after Typhoon Morakot in 2009 set off landslides that killed about 700 people. Ma, who pushed for closer China ties, left office in 2016. His successor Tsai Ing-wen advocates a more guarded approach toward relations with Beijing.

Natural disasters truly do influence the voting behavior of the people, said Ku Chung-hwa, a retired sociology professor and standing board member with the Taiwan advocacy group Citizens Congress Watch.

This year, he said, for the party in power there will be some damage, but the degree of impact perhaps wont be too big.

Epic floods

Storms since August 23, tapering off only last week, wiped out livestock, including 1.56 million chickens and caused $21.34 million in economic damage in the first five days, official documents and local media say. Those reports say about 100 people were hurt and 6,000 evacuated.

The heaviest losses hit Chiayi County and the cities of Tainan and Kaohsiung.

Since Typhoon Morakot and a 1999 earthquake that killed 2,400 people, Taiwan leaders have pounced on natural disasters to show the government is helping to its fullest, analysts say.

People regularly evaluate officials on matters of health and safety, said Joanna Lei, chief executive officer of the Chunghua 21st Century think tank in Taiwan

Theyre upset now, according to local media reports, about the effectiveness of government flood control funding. The government has earmarked NT$187.3 billion especially for flood control from 2006 through the first installment of a program due to run through 2024.

I believe this time Taiwan and Kaohsiung will have a lot of sort of soul searching, Lei said, referring to two southern cities hit by the floods. People in Tainan and Kaohsiung will search their souls in terms of what they have been told and what they are now experiencing.



Leaders now mobilize disaster relief as soon as storms are forecast and offer relief months or years after a disaster passes. Tsai personally pledged a $34,800 donation for victims of a February 6 earthquake that killed 17 in eastern Taiwan.

Disasters with a heavy death toll tend to soil the reputations of leaders the most, Ku said. If handled right, he added, a disaster can even boost a partys image.

We need to observe this most recent (disaster), he said. This time the main thing is property loss and the government came out with immediate subsidies.

November Elections

The latest storms came three months before Taiwan-wide city and council elections. The party that wins the most seats in mid-term local races gets a boost in exposure that can help its bid in the presidential race two years later.

The ruling Democratic Progressive Partys local election sweep in 2014, for example, foreshadowed its win in the 2016 presidential race.

The party takes a cautious view on Taiwans best known issue abroad, its touchy relations with China. China sees Taiwan as a breakaway part of its territory and vows eventually to unite the two sides. The main opposition party advocates more engagement with Beijing.

On Thursday a series of officials told a news conference that a special task force would keep up restoration work. The sheer amount of rain made flood control difficult despite money spent to date, one added.

The premier told a cabinet meeting Thursday that traditional flood control methods have limitations.

We can see that in two days the accumulated rainfall, whether in Chiayi, Tainan or Kaohisung, it was higher than the same during Typhoon Morakot, Water Resources Agency Director-General Lai Chien-hsin told the news conference.
The European Union's top diplomat said Monday that the world is going through a time of chaos and that the 28-nation bloc must work more closely with international partners as the multilateral system comes under threat.



In a speech to EU ambassadors laying out her vision for the year to come, EU foreign policy chief Federica Mogherini said that "the whole world is going through a moment of chaos, and the question is: is it a moment or is it a long-term trend?"



"The very idea of multilateralism is being challenged," Mogherini said.



While she didn't mention the U.S. or President Donald Trump directly, Mogherini underlined the importance of the Iran nuclear agreement and the global climate change pact rejected by Trump. She also referred to the central role of the World Trade Organization, whose rules are being tested by Trump's policies.



"No great power is really great enough in the world of today," she said.



Mogherini urged the ambassadors to reassure partners - ranging from Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, South Korea and all of Africa - that "Europe is not withdrawing from the world stage. On the contrary, we will be even more engaged in the year ahead."



She said the European Commission has proposed increasing the budget of the bloc's External Action Service - essentially a foreign office with about 140 delegations worldwide - by around 30 percent to show that "we are ready to play a role in the world, with our principles, with our values, with our policies, but also with our resources."



With a combined population of around 500 million people, the EU is the world's biggest trading bloc and a top aid donor.
Two Malaysian women convicted under Islamic law for homosexuality were publicly caned Monday.



The two unidentified women, ages 32 and 22, were punished in front of about 100 witnesses at a sharia court in the northeastern state of Terengganu. The pair were discovered in a car by Islamic authorities back in April. They pled guilty for attempting to engage in lesbian sex, and were sentenced to six lashings of a cane and a fine.



Human rights groups have expressed outrage about the verdict.



"To inflict this brutal punishment on two people for attempting to engage in consensual, same-sex relations is an atrocious setback in the government's efforts to improve its human rights record," Rachel Chhoa-Howard, Amnesty International's Malaysia Researcher, said in a statement.



Muslim-majority Malaysia follows a two-track legal system, where civil courts operate alongside Islamic courts, which handle family, marriage and personal issues.



Monday's punishment was carried out amid an apparent and growing backlash against Malaysia's LGBT (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender) community.



The government's religious affairs minister has openly dismissed homosexuality, and ordered portraits of two LGBT activists to be removed from a public exhibition. Earlier this month, a transgender woman was beaten by a group of assailants in southern Malaysia.
Officials from the Indian Ocean island nation of Mauritius told United Nations judges Monday that former colonial power Britain strong-armed its leaders half a century ago into giving up territory as a condition of independence, a claim that could have an impact on a strategically important U.S. military base.

Judges at the International Court of Justice began hearing arguments for an advisory opinion the U.N. General Assembly requested on the legality of British sovereignty over the Chagos Islands. The largest island, Diego Garcia, has housed the U.S. base since the 1970s.

"The process of decolonization of Mauritius remains incomplete as a result of the unlawful detachment of an integral part of our territory on the eve of our independence," Mauritius Defense Minister Anerood Jugnauth told judges.

Mauritius argues that the Chagos archipelago was part of its territory since at least the 18th century and taken unlawfully by the U.K. in 1965, three years before the island gained independence. Britain insists it has sovereignty over the archipelago, which it calls the British Indian Ocean Territory.

Jugnauth testified that during independence negotiations, then-British Prime Minister Harold Wilson told Mauritius' leader at the time, Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, that "he and his colleagues could return to Mauritius either with independence or without it and that the best solution for all might be independence and detachment [of the Chagos Islands] by agreement."

Ramgoolam understood Wilson's words "to be in the nature of a threat," Jugnauth said.

British Solicitor General Robert Buckland described the case as essentially a bilateral dispute about sovereignty and urged the court not to issue an advisory opinion.

Buckland also disputed Mauritius' claim about coercion, citing Ramgoolam as saying after the deal that the detachment of the Chagos islands was a "matter that was negotiated."

The U.K. sealed a deal with the U.S. in 1966 to use the territory for defense purposes. The United States maintains a base there for aircraft and ships and has backed Britain in the legal dispute with Mauritius.

However, Jugnauth said the base shouldn't be affected by his country's claim against Britain.

"Mauritius has been clear that a request for an advisory opinion is not intended to bring into question the presence of the base on Diego Garcia," he told the U.N. judges. "Mauritius recognizes its existence and has repeatedly made it clear to the United States and the administering power that it accepts the future of the base."

Representatives from about 20 nations, including the U.S., and from the African Union are due to speak in the case this week.

Residents evicted

Judges are expected to take months to issue their advisory opinions on two questions: Was the process of decolonization of Mauritius lawfully completed in 1968 and what are the consequences under international law of the U.K.'s continued administration, including with respect to the inability to resettle Chagos residents on the islands?

Britain evicted about 2,000 people from the Chagos archipelago in the 1960s and 1970s so the U.S. military could build an air base on Diego Garcia. The islanders were sent to the Seychelles and Mauritius, and many eventually resettled in the U.K.

The Chagossians have fought in British courts for years to return to the islands. A small group of Chagossians protested outside the court Monday holding banners, including one that read: "Chagossian sacrifice to protect the world but our reward is slow death."

Another Chagossian, Marie Liseby Elyse, recorded a video that was shown to judges. In it, she recalled being taken by boat from her home island.

"We were like animals and slaves in that ship," she said. "People were dying of sadness."

Buckland expressed Britain's deep regret at the way the Chagossians were removed.

Britain, "fully accepts the manner in which the Chagossians were removed from the Chagos archipelago and the way they were treated thereafter was shameful and more," he said.
More than $1 billion in fresh aid will likely be pledged at a conference of donors to the drought-plagued region around Lake Chad, U.N. humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock said on Monday.

A famine was averted in the region last year largely thanks to international aid, but millions of people in Nigeria, Niger, Chad and Cameroon were still in dire need of help, Lowcock told reporters on the sidelines of the Berlin conference.

The crisis is not over. There are still 10 million people who need lifesaving assistance, he said. A quarter of the people we are trying to reach are displaced from their homes and the only means of staying alive they have is what is provided by humanitarian organizations.

Lowcock said last years donor conference in Oslo, Norway had raised $672 million in funds for the region, and he expected to double that amount this year, which will allow more work to be done addressing underlying problems in the region.

Detailed pledges were not immediately available. Over 50 delegations are attending the conference.

Germany, a key destination for migrants fleeing Africa and non-permanent member of the U.N. Security Council from 2019, is co-hosting a two-day conference with Norway, Nigeria and the United Nations to drum up support for the region.

Chancellor Angela Merkels ruling coalition had vowed to help African nations improve conditions to keep people from embarking on treacherous journeys to try to reach Europe.

German Development Minister Gerd Mueller, just back from a visit to Chad, said 2.4 million people have already fled the region due to climate change and violence blamed on the Boko Haram insurgent movement and Islamic State.

We need a joint European solution. And the international community must get far more engaged for the overall region to give these people a chance for survival and undercut a breeding ground for terrorism, Mueller said in a statement.

He said it was vital that donors actually provided the funds they pledged, noting that only third of the needs identified by international organizations had been covered to date.

Achim Steiner, head of the U.N. Development Program, warned that more people could flee the region unless the international community stepped in to provide long-term perspectives for people in the region.

We should remember that we made a mistake eight years ago when the Syria crisis began and many people were forced to flee, he told Reuters in an interview, noting that U.N. agencies were forced in that case to close hospitals and schools and halve food rations due to a shortage of funds.
Archeologists in Egypt say they have unearthed one of the oldest-known villages in the Nile Delta, dating back to before the pharaohs.



The antiquities ministry said the Neolithic site was discovered in Tell el-Samara, about 140 kilometers north of Cairo.



A joint Egyptian and French team found several storage silos containing animal bones and food, indicating human habitation as early as 5,000 B.C, the antiquities ministry said Sunday.



That would be about 2,500 years before the pyramids were built at Giza.



"Analyzing the biological material that has been discovered will present us with a clearer view of the first communities that settled in the delta and the origins of agriculture and farming in Egypt," said Nadia Khedr, a ministry official responsible for Egyptian, Greek and Roman antiquities on the Mediterranean.



The new discovery stoked hopes of reviving tourism, which has waned after the unrest that followed the 2011 Egyptian uprising.
Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa said in an interview with China Global Television Network that Africa has long evolved from the "backward continent" many associate it with, and predicted that the Africa will soon be a significant political and economic player in the world.
In an interview with China Global Television Network in Beijing before Mondays opening of the 2018 summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation, President Emmerson Mnangagwa said Zimbabwe has transitioned to a new world order, and any country still opposed to Zimbabwe is blind.
(ANSA) - Rome, September 3 - The premier's office on Monday denied media reports that Italian special forces were gearing to intervene in Libya.

"In relation to some news that appeared in today's press, we categorically deny the preparation of an intervention on the part of Italian special forces in Libya," it said in a statement.

"Italy continues to follow with attention the evolution of the situation on the ground and it has already publicly expressed concern as well as an invitation to immediately cease hostilities together with the United States, France and the United Kingdom".

Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini ruled out Italian military intervention in the Libya crisis.

"I exclude military interventions that don't solve anything," he said. "And others, too, should understand it".

"Italy must be the protagonist of pacification in Libya. The incursions of others who have other interests must not prevail over the common good which is peace".

Salvini said "I express maximum support for the recognised Libyan authorities. I thank their Coast Guard which is continuing to do its job: let's hope we can return there as soon as possible, it's too important to have a pacified area".

He said "Italy must be protagonist, (Foreign Minister Enzo) Moavero (Milanesi) is moving.

"There's him and the premier, with whom I am dialoguing. Ask them, I don't want to replace them".

Salvini said earlier he was in touch with Italians in Libya amid clashes by rebel militias that have prompted the UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency in the capital Tripoli.

"I am in direct contact with our men: soldiers, diplomats, and ENI staff who are experiencing in Libya risks caused by a senseless military intervention," Salvini said.

He said no harm had yet to be reported.

Italy's embassy in Tripoli is to stay open despite an attack on the national-unity government by rebel militia, foreign ministry sources told ANSA Monday.

They said the embassy "remains operational but with a more flexible presence, which is being assessed on the basis of the needs and the security situation".

Some 400 prisoners escaped from a jail in the Libyan capital, authorities said Sunday, as fighting between rival militias that has killed dozens of people forced the U.N.-backed government to declare a state of emergency in and around Tripoli.

The European Commission said Monday "we urge all parties in Libya to immediately cease hostilities".

A spokesman said "there is no military solution for the situation in Libya, only a political one".

"The escalation of violence is undermining a situation which is already fragile. "Violence will only lead to more violence to the detriment of the Libyans".

At least 47 people have been reported dead and 129 injured in eight days in clashes between armed militias in the capital Tripoli, according to the latest toll provided by the Libyan health ministry, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said in a statement.

UNSMIL called on all sides affected by the conflict to meet Tuesday at midday in a place to be announced at a later date after deadly clashes over the past few days. UNSMIL called for an "urgent dialogue on the current security situation in Tripoli", based on resolutions of the Security Council and the offer of the UN secretary general to mediate between various Libyan sides. Back in Italy, government sources said no government summit has been scheduled so far on the Libya crisis.

Oil giant ENI said Monday its activities in Libya were proceeding as normal and "there are no expatriated staff present in Tripoli".

The fighting in Tripoli erupted last week when the Seventh Brigade, militias which hail from Tarhouna, a town about 40 miles (60 kilometers) south of Tripoli, attacked southern neighbourhoods of the capital. The Tripoli Revolutionaries' Brigades and the Nawasi Brigade, militias which support the U.N.-backed government, have come to the city's defense.


Dining on Rome's Viale Aventino is an increasingly international experience, thanks largely to the nearby Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and its employees from around the world. Here is a selection of international restaurants on the street that connects Circus Maximus with Piazza Albania.

Elleniko

This small Greek-run diner serves authentic and tasty Greek cuisine at prices that won't break the bank. The traditional fare on the menu includes pita souvlaki, Greek salad, mousaka, tiropita and spanakopita, dolmades, tzatziki, baklava and kataifi, as well as wine and beer. Elleniko is ideal for a quick and informal brunch, lunch or dinner or simply a take-away. Open 12.00-23.00, Sun closed. Viale Aventino, 107/109, tel. 0664420648.

Sushi e Noodles

As the name suggests, Sushi e Noodles offers a fusion of Chinese and Japanese food, with sushi being its speciality. This elegant and ever-busy restaurant also has a smaller premises next door where diners can choose from the kaiten conveyor belt or select a take-away option. The extensive menu includes spring rolls, soups, salad, noodles, rice, sushi, maki, sashimi, fish, meat and vegetable dishes. Moderately priced. Open every day for lunch and dinner. Viale Aventino 117, tel. 0664420616, website.

La Renardiere

With its lace-curtains and art deco theme, this small French-run restaurant has the feel of a cosy Parisian bistrot and its authentic French cuisine is cooked according to trusted family recipes. The lunch menu features soup of the day, quiches, terrines, salads, cheeses, and steak tartare. The dinner menu is known for its meat and fish dishes, escargots, and select French wines. The desserts include apple tart, lemon cake, coffee gourmand (coffee served with four mini desserts), and its divine chocolate mousse. Sun closed. Viale Aventino 31/33, tel. 0687785445, website.

Court Delicati

This restaurant serves authentic Malaysian specialities, many of which are hard to come by in Rome, as well as an extensive Chinese and Thai food menu. Dishes include spring rolls, ravioli, dumplings, noodles, prawns, and numerous vegetarian options. Court Delicati is invariably busy and service is brisk. Open for lunch and dinner. Booking advised at weekends. Mon closed. Viale Aventino 39, tel. 065746108.

Manioka

A relatively new entry in the city's Japanese-Brazilian fusion market. This "boteco do sushi brasileiro" is housed mainly in a sprawling downstairs venue although it has a few brightly-coloured tables on the street too. Dishes prepared by the restaurant's Brazilian and Japanese chefs include temaki, farofa and tenkasu, as well as a range of desserts, freshly-mixed juices and exotic cocktails. Mon-Fri midday to 15.00 / 17.00-23.30. Sat midday-15.00 / 17.00-23.30. Sun midday-15.00 / 19.00-23.30. Viale Aventino 40, tel. 0657250060, website.
So many people wanted to hear U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor that the vast hall quickly filled to capacity, and 3,000 people had to be turned away. Inside the main stage ballroom, Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden interviewed Sotomayor, who launched her new childrens book, Turning Pages: My Life Story. During the Q&A part of her presentation, Sotomayor left the stage and walked into the audience  many of them children. The strength of our country is in our teachers, the justice said.
Back in the day, food trucks were the trend, Mei, 34, says with a chuckle. So we did that. But he felt a tickle of intuition that their moment was waning  and he quickly set his sights on the next thing. After more than two years in its periphery, he and partner Peter Choi rented the 5,000-square-foot pool hall. Instead of a one-trick pony ice cream shop, the pair carved it up, building out five stalls and a bar. And just like that, Annandale  a suburb known for its myriad Korean barbecue joints and bakeries  had a food hall.
(ANSA) - Rome, September 3 - The premier's office on Monday denied media reports that Italian special forces were gearing to intervene in Libya.

"In relation to some news that appeared in today's press, we categorically deny the preparation of an intervention on the part of Italian special forces in Libya," it said in a statement.

"Italy continues to follow with attention the evolution of the situation on the ground and it has already publicly expressed concern as well as an invitation to immediately cease hostilities together with the United States, France and the United Kingdom".


Police responding to a report of a stabbing about 4 a.m. in the 1100 block of Southview Drive found a woman lying on the floor inside an apartment with trauma to her body. She was pronounced dead at the scene, according to police.
Racine (D) filed his lawsuit in August, alleging Power Design misclassified 535 electrical workers as independent contractors, which kept them off the payroll and allowed the company to avoid paying some D.C. taxes. The lawsuit also said that those workers didnt get the required paid sick leave, that at least 180 workers werent paid the required overtime rate and that at least 63 werent paid minimum wage.
To strengthen the pipeline, officials know theres a need to overcome perceptions that teachers are afflicted by low pay and bad working conditions. Theres a need to remove barriers to teacher certification for people who are passionate about education but struggle on required tests. And theres a need to persuade students to picture themselves as a teacher when, for so long, theyve mostly seen white faces at the front of classrooms.
Miner said having a counselor or other adult interact with students is important. I just hope were going to sit down with these kids and say, Hey, do you have any questions? Is there anything you want to discuss? I would hope we wouldnt just be having a bowl of condoms out for them to take.
Gomez said he did not find a moderate middle at FAIR. Instead, according to the complaint he filed, he found himself in an extremist organization where jabs at people of color  like one woman who offered to smear mud on her face to look more like an immigrant  were more common than rational talk about immigration reform.
Even as scientists express skepticism that brain organoids will ever come close to sentience, theyre the ones calling for a broad discussion, and perhaps more oversight. The questions range from the practical to the fantastical. Should researchers make sure that people who donate their cells for organoid research are informed that they could be used to make a tiny replica of parts of their brain? If organoids became sophisticated enough, should they be granted greater protections, like the rules that govern animal research? Without a consensus on what consciousness or pain would even look like in the brain, how will scientists know when theyre nearing the limit?
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Stewart, chair of the Prince William Board of County Supervisors, says Medicaid is to blame, arguing that it provides the drug at low cost to Medicaid patients who, he says, then sell it on the black market to addicts. He says Virginias recent Medicaid expansion  benefiting an extra 400,000 low-income patients  will make the problem worse. Stewart wants to require Medicaid recipients to pay more for their synthetic painkillers.
Another study over the past year has revealed an additional potential issue with using CRISPR in humans. Because CRISPR is a bacterial protein, a significant portion of the human population may have been exposed to it during common bacterial infections. In these cases, the immune systems of these people may have developed immune defense against the protein, which means a persons body could attack the CRISPR machinery, just as it would attack an invading bacterium or virus, preventing the cell from the benefits of CRISPR-based therapy.
(ANSA) - Belgrade, September 3 - The Macedonian interior ministry on Monday said three people had been arrested in connection with the recent murder of a Macedonian family living in Italy who had returned home to Macedonia for a wedding.

There is "reasonable suspicion" that 28-year-old Blerta Pocesta, the eldest daughter, killed Amit, Nazmie and Anila Pocesta, the ministry said.

The other two arrested were identified by their initials.

F.G., 31, and V.K., 61, came from Gostivar and Debar, police said.

They were said to have procured the weapon used by the young woman and enabled her to flee quickly back to Italy. The family, of Albanian origin and resident in Friuli, was gunned down in their sleep in Macedonia when they went back for a wedding.

The father, mother and teen daughter were killed at Debar, a small town on the border with Albania.

The family had for a long time been resident at Sacile near Pordenone.

The massacre happened on August 27.

The family has another daughter who stayed in Italy.


Like other people at Carlyle Place, Peak had a lot of adjusting to do when she moved into the facility five years ago, after her first husband died. Lots of people here have come here from somewhere else and given up their homes, their friends and their communities, often after the death of a spouse, Peak said. Once youre here, loss  either your own or someone elses  is around you continually.
Man charge with raping girl, 11: A man has been charged with raping an 11-year-old girl in her bedroom in New York City. Julio Ayala, 18, who is believed to be affiliated with the MS-13 gang, is being held on $500,000 bail after his arraignment Sunday on rape and other charges. ABC7 TV said Ayala's lawyer is calling it a case of mistaken identity. Police say the suspect got into the home through a window while the girl slept in her second-floor bedroom in Brooklyn on Wednesday night. A court complaint says Ayala was carrying forged U.S. residency and Social Security cards when arrested Saturday at another building, where he's accused of trespassing.
Ive just never seen so many people shooting up on a walk to work as I have recently, said Holly, a 27-year-old who recently moved here from Los Angeles and declined to give her last name for fear it might get her in trouble with her employers. I know I am part of the problem, the high housing costs, and Im not proud of that. But I really hope this city is focused on this drug use.
When the trooper explained to Livingston that he would be arrested if he didnt leave an area close to the expressway, Livingston responded politely: Arrest me. The trooper tapped him on the shoulder before leading him away. Authorities have not said if he will be charged.
Suicide blast in Mogadishu kills at least 6: At least six people were killed when a suicide car bomber struck a local government office in central Mogadishu, destroying the building and an Islamic school opposite it. Al-Qaeda-linked al-Shabab said it was behind the attack. At least six people were killed and a dozen injured, police officer Mohamed Hussein said. The school was open, but most children were away on a break.
Many prison jobs are eagerly sought after, even at these meager wages. But that doesnt mean we shouldnt rethink the way we treat prisoner workers. One of the most important guiding principles in modern corrections is normalization  the idea that the prison environment should, insofar as possible, resemble the community to which most prisoners will eventually return. In the outside world, people are paid for their work and are rewarded for good job performance. Theres no reason prison jobs shouldnt operate in the same way.
Sadly, the killing and imprisonment of journalists for their work is a scourge worldwide, including the wanton murders in the Capital Gazette newsroom in Annapolis on June 28. This year alone, 39 journalists have been killed in the line of duty, compared with 46 in all of last year, according to the Committee to Protect Journalists. Last year, the CPJ counted 262 journalists behind bars because of their work, and about half of all those were in just three countries: Turkey, China and Egypt. While these authoritarian regimes are the worst, journalism has proved hazardous in many other locations, including Myanmar, where two Reuters reporters are incarcerated and being prosecuted for their revelatory digging into the brutal exile of the Rohingya Muslims, and Venezuela, where some 70 newspapers, radio stations and television outlets were forced to close last year.
Given the ongoing investigation by special counsel Robert S. Mueller III, it is a distinct possibility that the Supreme Court will have to rule on questions relating to a criminal probe involving the president. Moreover, it is likely that Mr. Trump knew about Mr. Kavanaughs views when he nominated him. If Mr. Kavanaugh were to cast a decisive vote favoring Mr. Trump, it would appear as though the president put him on the court to do just that, and that Mr. Kavanaugh followed the script. Americans might question Mr. Kavanaughs impartiality and the decisions legitimacy. Mr. Kavanaugh must respond with substance and detail to questions about his 2009 article. And he should explain why he would or would not recuse himself if such a case came before him.
(ANSA) - Rome, September 3 - The premier's office on Monday denied media reports that Italian special forces were gearing to intervene in Libya.

"In relation to some news that appeared in today's press, we categorically deny the preparation of an intervention on the part of Italian special forces in Libya," it said in a statement.

"Italy continues to follow with attention the evolution of the situation on the ground and it has already publicly expressed concern as well as an invitation to immediately cease hostilities together with the United States, France and the United Kingdom".

Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said Monday he was in touch with Italians in Libya amid clashes by rebel militias that have prompted the UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency in the capital Tripoli.

"I am in direct contact with our men: soldiers, diplomats, and ENI staff who are experiencing in Libya risks caused by a senseless military intervention," Salvini said.

He said no harm had yet to be reported.

Italy's embassy in Tripoli is to stay open despite an attack on the national-unity government by rebel militia, foreign ministry sources told ANSA Monday.

They said the embassy "remains operational but with a more flexible presence, which is being assessed on the basis of the needs and the security situation".

Some 400 prisoners escaped from a jail in the Libyan capital, authorities said Sunday, as fighting between rival militias that has killed dozens of people forced the U.N.-backed government to declare a state of emergency in and around Tripoli.

The European Commission said Monday "we urge all parties in Libya to immediately cease hostilities".

A spokesman said "there is no military solution for the situation in Libya, only a political one".

"The escalation of violence is undermining a situation which is already fragile. "Violence will only lead to more violence to the detriment of the Libyans".

At least 47 people have been reported dead and 129 injured in eight days in clashes between armed militias in the capital Tripoli, according to the latest toll provided by the Libyan health ministry, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said in a statement.

UNSMIL called on all sides affected by the conflict to meet Tuesday at midday in a place to be announced at a later date after deadly clashes over the past few days. UNSMIL called for an "urgent dialogue on the current security situation in Tripoli", based on resolutions of the Security Council and the offer of the UN secretary general to mediate between various Libyan sides. Back in Italy, government sources said no government summit has been scheduled so far on the Libya crisis.


In a 65-page opinion dissenting from his courts 2-to-1 decision in November 2011 upholding the individual mandate, Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit explained that the 145-year-old federal Anti-Injunction Act barred citizens from suing over the imposition of taxes  or variants such as the individual mandates enforcement penalty  until they actually had to pay them. Therefore, the federal courts should not decide the merits of the individual mandate until someone was forced to pay the penalty for failing to get insurance: 2015 at the earliest.
Some of the Democratic arguments against Kavanaugh are no longer valid. At the time of his 2004 hearing, Democrats focused on his youth and lack of courtroom experience. He was 39 years old and had not served on any court, although he had clerked for three judges, including Justice Kennedy, whom he is now nominated to succeed. Today, he is 53 years old  considered an ideal age for someone who hopes to serve for decades on the Supreme Court  and has issued dozens of rulings for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit.
The tweet on Sessions was an unusually harsh salvo, even for a president who sometimes expresses his thoughts on Twitter to the chagrin of his staff. The tweet indicated that his attorney general should base law enforcement actions on how it could affect the president and the Republican Partys electoral success. It also seemed to indicate that electoral popularity should influence charges.
Now Cao does not know whether he will ever see his money again. He has gone to the police, but they say they cannot help. He has thought about getting another job, though he doubts anyone will hire him. He has not told his wife or children and did not give his full name, so they would not find out.
Liu is known for pushing the company toward 100 percent automation and speaking at global conferences about reducing the need for workers. JD.com is now testing drone deliveries in rural areas and recently unveiled a robot-run warehouse in Shanghai that can package 200,000 orders per day with the help of only four human engineers.
(ANSA) - Rome, September 3 - The premier's office on Monday denied media reports that Italian special forces were gearing to intervene in Libya.

"In relation to some news that appeared in today's press, we categorically deny the preparation of an intervention on the part of Italian special forces in Libya," it said in a statement.

"Italy continues to follow with attention the evolution of the situation on the ground and it has already publicly expressed concern as well as an invitation to immediately cease hostilities together with the United States, France and the United Kingdom".

Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini ruled out Italian military intervention in the Libya crisis.

"I exclude military interventions that don't solve anything," he said. "And others, too, should understand it".

"Italy must be the protagonist of pacification in Libya. The incursions of others who have other interests must not prevail over the common good which is peace".

Salvini said earlier he was in touch with Italians in Libya amid clashes by rebel militias that have prompted the UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency in the capital Tripoli.

"I am in direct contact with our men: soldiers, diplomats, and ENI staff who are experiencing in Libya risks caused by a senseless military intervention," Salvini said.

He said no harm had yet to be reported.

Italy's embassy in Tripoli is to stay open despite an attack on the national-unity government by rebel militia, foreign ministry sources told ANSA Monday.

They said the embassy "remains operational but with a more flexible presence, which is being assessed on the basis of the needs and the security situation".

Some 400 prisoners escaped from a jail in the Libyan capital, authorities said Sunday, as fighting between rival militias that has killed dozens of people forced the U.N.-backed government to declare a state of emergency in and around Tripoli.

The European Commission said Monday "we urge all parties in Libya to immediately cease hostilities".

A spokesman said "there is no military solution for the situation in Libya, only a political one".

"The escalation of violence is undermining a situation which is already fragile. "Violence will only lead to more violence to the detriment of the Libyans".

At least 47 people have been reported dead and 129 injured in eight days in clashes between armed militias in the capital Tripoli, according to the latest toll provided by the Libyan health ministry, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said in a statement.

UNSMIL called on all sides affected by the conflict to meet Tuesday at midday in a place to be announced at a later date after deadly clashes over the past few days. UNSMIL called for an "urgent dialogue on the current security situation in Tripoli", based on resolutions of the Security Council and the offer of the UN secretary general to mediate between various Libyan sides. Back in Italy, government sources said no government summit has been scheduled so far on the Libya crisis.

Oil giant ENI said Monday its activities in Libya were proceeding as normal and "there are no expatriated staff present in Tripoli".

The fighting in Tripoli erupted last week when the Seventh Brigade, militias which hail from Tarhouna, a town about 40 miles (60 kilometers) south of Tripoli, attacked southern neighbourhoods of the capital. The Tripoli Revolutionaries' Brigades and the Nawasi Brigade, militias which support the U.N.-backed government, have come to the city's defense.


For two days in a row, every headline on the front page of the state-run Peoples Daily started with the words Xi Jinping, as the president met with the leaders of Angola, Gabon, Mauritius, Senegal and elsewhere. He also hosted Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who has been charged by the International Criminal Court with war crimes and crimes against humanity.
I hope it will continue to connect our two countries for many years to come, Cornstein said in a visit to the university shortly after his arrival in June. The CEU campus  a collection of handsome stone-and-glass buildings in Budapests elegant Fifth District  is bedecked with blue banners featuring the slogan #IstandwithCEU in both English and Hungarian.
I think hes aware that the wheels of history are turning, said Austen Ivereigh, a Francis biographer. This is a watershed moment, and how he responds  how the entire church responds  is crucial. We could easily go the Trump route where as Catholics we start tearing into one another with mutual allegations. This is what happens at times of tensions. I think he, as the churchs spiritual leader, is trying to guide this as a process  hold the church together.
We have to set the record straight. It is just false and wrong to describe things in that manner, Krahenbuhl said by telephone from his office in Amman, Jordan. There is only one thing that perpetuates the situation of refugees, including Palestinian refugees, and that is the extraordinary failure of the international community to bring about a just and fair and inclusive solution to the conflict.
The case and its verdict have been widely condemned by critics in the international community who see them as evidence that journalists remain vulnerable and potential targets in Myanmar despite the political changes of the past several years. U.S. officials, including Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Nikki Haley, ambassador to the United Nations, have called for the journalists release and for all charges against them to be dropped.
(ANSA) - Rome, September 3 - The premier's office on Monday denied media reports that Italian special forces were gearing to intervene in Libya.

"In relation to some news that appeared in today's press, we categorically deny the preparation of an intervention on the part of Italian special forces in Libya," it said in a statement.

"Italy continues to follow with attention the evolution of the situation on the ground and it has already publicly expressed concern as well as an invitation to immediately cease hostilities together with the United States, France and the United Kingdom".

Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said Monday he was in touch with Italians in Libya amid clashes by rebel militias that have prompted the UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency in the capital Tripoli.

"I am in direct contact with our men: soldiers, diplomats, and ENI staff who are experiencing in Libya risks caused by a senseless military intervention," Salvini said.

He said no harm had yet to be reported.

Italy's embassy in Tripoli is to stay open despite an attack on the national-unity government by rebel militia, foreign ministry sources told ANSA Monday.

They said the embassy "remains operational but with a more flexible presence, which is being assessed on the basis of the needs and the security situation".

Some 400 prisoners escaped from a jail in the Libyan capital, authorities said Sunday, as fighting between rival militias that has killed dozens of people forced the U.N.-backed government to declare a state of emergency in and around Tripoli.

The European Commission said Monday "we urge all parties in Libya to immediately cease hostilities".

A spokesman said "there is no military solution for the situation in Libya, only a political one".

"The escalation of violence is undermining a situation which is already fragile. "Violence will only lead to more violence to the detriment of the Libyans".


National Australia Bank has hit back at allegations at the banking royal commission that it mistreated its superannuation customers arguing it did not owe them an "overarching obligation" to act in their interests.

The claim from NAB came as it and Commonwealth Bank both denied the royal commission's preliminary findings that they engaged in criminal conduct when managing money on behalf of superannuation fund members.

NAB super trustee NULIS said in its official submission to the superannuation hearings at the royal commission there was no evidence it intended to break the law when it failed to report a breach within 10 days to the corporate regulator and thus cant be found guilty of any crime.

Andrew Hagger of NAB was called to give evidence at the royal commission into the bank's dealings with ASIC. Credit:Darrian Traynor

Instead, NAB has argued that not everything the trustee does has to be in the best interest of members, rather the trustee has to act in the best interest of members when it is exercising its duty.
Thats why Interpol is interested, said Phil McCabe, the president of the International Federation of Beekeepers' Association (Apimondia).

International fraudsters, often criminal gangs in China, produce the fake honey and sell it to unsuspecting suppliers at a higher price, making a fortune along the way.

Experts say adulterated honey was generally bulked up with rice syrup and beet syrup and other unidentified substances, which arent detected by official honey tests.

Capilanos Allowrie branded Mixed Blossom Honey, which sources honey from Australia and overseas, and markets itself as 100 per cent honey, showed up as adulterated in the majority of samples tested.

Testing at a leading international scientific lab that specialises in honey fraud detection has found almost half the samples selected from supermarket shelves was adulterated, meaning it had been mixed with other substances. The adulterated samples were all products that blend local and imported honey.

Australias biggest listed honey company and some of the countrys largest supermarket chains face accusations of selling fake honey.

Horticulturalist Robert Costa paid for the controversial testing to be done. Credit:Jason South

Mr McCabe said he would refer the tests, obtained by Fairfax Media and the ABC and commissioned by top law firm King & Wood Mallesons, to Interpol for further investigation.

The results are set to ignite a storm over how honey purity is tested that will involve the federal government as well as local and international regulators. ALDI has already moved to pull an affected product from its shelves as a precaution.

By and large [the impurity] is some kind of syrup thats been converted to look like honey, it tastes like honey. Everything about it seems to be honey when in fact its just sugar syrup or something else  Consumers dont realise what they are buying and eating isnt honey.

Adulterated honey isnt honey at all, Mr McCabe said, adding that the NMR test was the most accurate available.

Capilano strongly denied any issues with its products and criticised the type of test  known as Nuclear Magnetic Resonance  used to detect the impurities, pointing out it differed from the official Australian test.

Four of the six IGA Black and Gold private label registered as adulterated, two of six ALDI Bramwells private label brands failed the NMR test and six out of eight of Capilanos Allowrie budget branded bottles had adulterated honey when NMR screening was used.

Using the NMR testing the results showed that 12 of the 28 samples tested, were not 100 per cent pure honey.

The lab tested eight Allowrie samples as well as IGAs Black and Gold private label and ALDIs Bramwells private label brand and detected adulteration in almost half the samples.

A joint investigation by Fairfax Media and the ABCs 7.30 into the honey industry was supplied a copy of the results from Mallesons. The law firm collected 28 blended and imported honey samples from supermarket stores around Australia, including Coles, Woolworths, ALDI and IGA and documented the stores, locations, brands and batches.

Germanys Quality Services International (QSI) lab was commissioned by the law firm on behalf of horticulturalist Robert Costa to conduct two types of tests of the sampled honey. One used NMR screening and the second used the official C4 sugar test.

Our concern lies in the use of these results to create doubt and confusion over the authenticity of honey...that could be used to mislead the public..

Capilano said one of those weaknesses was that the test did not detect that blended honey from different regions was 100 per cent honey, something the German lab, QSI, vigorously denies.

We are incredibly concerned that they are being used in isolation of more robust analytical testing, given this is also the opinion of the Manufacturer (Bruker) and the two most reputable laboratories in the world (Intertek and QSI), one of which has conducted the NMR analysis. Our concern lies in the use of these results to create doubt and confusion over the authenticity of honey and how that could be used to mislead the public and consumers.

Capilano, which hit the headlines last month when a private equity consortium lobbed a $200 million bid to buy the company, said it was 100 per cent confident its Allowrie honey, which is made using up to 70 per cent imported honey, was pure and that it wasnt surprised by the results given the weaknesses in NMR testing as analytical method.

Capilano was sent a copy of the results. It vigorously denied that any of its products werent pure honey and rejected nuclear magnetic resonance testing as the best way to determine adulteration. It said Australian and international regulators do not use this testing regime at all.

The same 28 samples were then tested using the official Australian test, C4, and all passed. There is no suggestion that ASX-listed Capilanos eponymous brand of Australian sourced honey has any issue.

She said NMR screening can pinpoint country of origin and botanical origin of the honey and that in the tested samples it was the Chinese aspect of the honey was adulterated, not the Australian honey.

NMR has been used for testing fruit juice for many years and for honey for more than five years and no other method for adulteration is approved by more than 10,000 samples worldwide with 100,000 verification measurements, she said.

She said QSI had an extensive database and used various tests for testing honey but NMR was the most reliable. She said blended honey from different regions was tested regularly. QSI performs a variety of tests but Ms Beckh said the NMR was the best for testing impurities.

QSIs chief executive Gudrun Beckh, who has been testing honey for almost 30 years, said she was confident in the NMR test findings and said if a sample showed up as adulterated it meant the honey wasnt pure honey.

The issue is not isolated to Australia, with the European Union, where most of the imports come from China, also fending off fake honey at its borders. According to reports, policymakers are concerned about what is thought to be the third-most adulterated product in the world with 20 per cent of samples tested by the EU failing to meet standards.

Capilano declined an interview but said in a statement it stands by the quality and purity of all of our honey brands, including Allowrie which has never failed more stringent and appropriate testing by world renowned laboratories.

Despite Capilanos criticisms, there is a groundswell of international experts, academics and private companies increasingly relying on NMR as the test of choice for detecting fake honey.

Apimondia, the peak body for the sector internationally, recently said it would use NMR screening as part of its new honey competition rules.

Australias peak industry body, the Australian Bee Industry Council (AHBIC), also endorsed NMR, along with Australias second largest honey operator Beechworth. Some supermarket chains, including ALDI, have also started using the test.

Bees play an important role in pollination. Credit:Jason South

Leaked emails from the AHBIC, of which Capilano is a financial member and has board representation, show it wrote to the Department of Agriculture and Water Resources in July requesting it review the way it tests honey ditching the old C4 test and moving to NMR.

The executive director of AHBIC Trevor Weatherhead said in the email to the department that AHBIC would ask the department to change to the NMR test if it has not done so already.

He said it was reported that suppliers that were adulterating honey were finding ways around the C4 sugar test.

The NMR test has been found to be very effective, Weatherhead said in an email.

At the AHBIC annual meeting a motion was unanimously passed which said the Honey Packers and Marketers Association of Australia requests AHBIC to work with the Australian government to advise them that using the C4 sugar testing to detect adulteration of imported honey is inadequate and to implore them to urgently begin using the best available method (NMR) to test honey imported into Australia.

Fairfax Media and the ABC also contacted IGA, ALDI, Coles and Woolworths about the results of the tests.

At 2pm on Friday ALDI temporarily withdrew the two products in its Mixed Blossom Honey range that QSI identified as adulterated. In a statement it said adulteration is a serious claim, it suggests that additives or masking agents have been added to a product in an effort to bulk volume, reduce costs or alter the flavour profile.

We are proud of our Australian and Mixed Blossom Honey range and evidence that suggests the quality has been compromised will be investigated in full force. ALDI statement

It said ALDI would investigate the claims and if the investigations conclude that the product has been adulterated, it would permanently be removed from sale at ALDI and further actions would be taken with the supplier.

We are proud of our Australian and Mixed Blossom Honey range and evidence that suggests the quality has been compromised will be investigated in full force, the company said.

Woolworths said it treated the accuracy of product labelling very seriously.

We will now work closely with our supplier to review the substance of the claims in detail before determining our next steps".

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Coles said it had deleted all Allowrie products from its shelves in July.

In a statement it said the decision followed a review of its range of honey products.

It said it was proud to support Australian producers and the work of Australian beekeepers who do important work in pollinating plants and food crops all over the country. Our Coles brand honey is 100 per cent Australian.

IGA said "All Black & Gold honey is sourced from a well known Australian-owned producer, and it meets the requirements of the Australian and New Zealand Food Standards Code. Production of the product is under the direct control of the Australian supplier."

Ben Goldsworthy of Beechworth Honey, which uses only Australian honey. Credit:Jason South

QSIs Ms Beckh said honey adulteration was a global problem. She said Chinese honey was the most problematic. She said adulterated honey was generally bulked up  or cut  with cheap syrups such as rice syrup and beet syrup and other unidentified substances, which arent detected by official honey tests.

QSI uses a range of tests, including official tests, targeted tests and NMR, and said the Chinese are constantly developing new tailored products to cheat the tests and sell them to unsuspecting suppliers.

She said Chinese retailers openly admit to charging more for honey tested under NMR.

If you want to have a product for a low price, you get a product which you think is honey but its not honey, she said. She said the Chinese industry offers honey NMR approved for a higher price than other tests.

This is a clear indication that NMR can detect much more than other tests, she said.

Ms Beckh said it was a constant battle trying to keep ahead of the Chinese fraudsters  as well as some in Vietnam and Thailand  who find new ways to cheat the tests by tailoring new cheap syrups to avoid detection of the NMR tests.

The international fraudsters, often criminal gangs in China, produce the fake honey and sell it to unsuspecting suppliers at a higher price, making a fortune along the way.

Thats why Interpol is interested, Apimondias Mr McCabe said.

Capilano is confident in its supply chain and has spent more than $1 million on testing in the past two years.

We have found our supply chain of Chinese honey to always meet our quality specifications which includes being free of adulteration, it said.

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers estimates, food fraud, which includes honey fraud, is a $US40 billion ($55.6 billion) a year global industry.

In China, beehive numbers have increased by 6.7 per cent over the decade to 2016, but exports have soared by 200 per cent, said honey trade expert Professor Norberto Garcia, who has written numerous papers on the honey industry.

The numbers dont add up, he said.

Professor Garcia said the protection of honey purity was not only a problem of food safety or food defence but a problem of food security due to the role of pollination in agriculture.

It is about the capacity of countries to provide their own food.

King & Wood Malleson confirmed it would send a copy of the test results to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) on Monday.

Professor Allan Fels said the alleged breach should be investigated. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Former competition watchdog chairman Allan Fels said the only way to clamp down on fake honey was to take action. He said it was a bad breach of the law that should attract the highest possible punishment.

He called on the ACCC to investigate the allegedly misleading conduct.

The ACCC needs to give priority to anything involving food adulteration in the current era  especially the globalisation era  nothing is more important than food safety, food security and fighting food fraud which is quite extensive and quite profitable if people can get away with it, Fels said.

Local honey producers, beekeepers struggling to compete with cheap imports and horticulturalists also demand action.

Robert Costa, a member of the Costa family, which set up the countrys biggest fruit and vegetable empire and exposed the Calabrian Mafia in fruit markets in the 1990s, is the man who bankrolled the honey sample tests.

Mr Costa said his concern as a horticulturist was that cheap imported honey was hurting the industry, which, in turn, would hurt the production of agriculture.

If we dont have bees to pollinate the crops, then we dont have almonds, or fruit and veg, he said.

He estimates that 65 per cent of agriculture depends on pollination by honey bees. Bees and water are the two most vital ingredients for agriculture, he said.

In the past decade, 25 per cent of commercial beekeepers and hives have left the Australian market, according to figures published in a research report by the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES). The report, published in December 2016 estimated there are 13,000 registered beekeepers across Australia operating over 448,000 hives.

Drought, disease and cheap imports are key factors behind the fall in overall commercial hive numbers.

The honey scandal comes as Capilano, which is 20.6 per cent owned by billionaire Kerry Stokes through his vehicle Wroxby Pty Ltd, is subject to a $190 million takeover offer from a private equity consortium including Wattle Hill and ROC Partners.

Over the weekend, another potential bidder emerged when a parcel of shares were bought above the share price at $21.

The speculation was that Bega Cheese was set to make a counter bid.

Capilano, which was founded in 1953, told the market that the private equity consortium shares its commitment to the Australian honey industry and maintaining strong beekeeper relationships.

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It said a key aim was to drive expansion of brands in offshore growth markets, such as China.

Until 2004, honey imports were banned from Australia, but severe drought conditions helped convince the government to open up the market. When it introduced imports, it agreed to test about 5 per cent of imported honey consignments under Imported Food Inspection Scheme, using the C4 test.

Beechworth Honey, Australias second-largest honey operator and a major competitor to Capilano, and fourth generation beekeepers, only uses Australian honey, despite pressure to import cheaper products to reduce costs and price points.

Beechworth managing director Jodie Goldsworthy said in 2004 when the company  and the industry  was in short supply of honey due to the millennium drought, she considered importing honey but believed the risks were too great.

We looked at each other and said if were to import this honey we wouldnt eat it on our breakfast table, so that for us meant importing honey was not a decision that was right for us.

It was an expensive decision. The shortage of honey meant they couldnt supply the products, which effectively cut the business in half.

In the long run it paid off and built credibility among beekeepers and supermarkets.

Because of those unknown chemicals used overseas at the time, we decided there was a risk it could end up in the honey and it did. There were situations found both in Australia and around the world where those chemicals were found as residues.

The silence has made it really easy for the frauds to go on unhindered. Its time to speak up before its too late. Julie Goldsworthy - Beechworth Honey

Again in 2014 Australia had a similar drought situation. Again Beechworth voluntarily deleted half its products from supermarket shelves in order to maintain 100 per cent Australian honey supply. From a risk perspective we saw that the same risks still existed plus the significant additional risk of fake honey, she said.

We noticed this time around the tactic was to introduce secondary brands to manage the shortage  in which a blend of imported honey was used.

Ms Goldsworthy is conscious of the proliferation of adulterated imported honey. But says what makes her saddest is that the consumer is blind to whats going on. As more and more of this adulterated honey takes over the market globally its a race to the bottom in order to get it cheaper and cheaper, she said.

She said beekeepers of the world have largely been silent about the problem of adulterated honey for fear of hurting the reputation of the industry.

The silence has made it really easy for the frauds to go on unhindered, she said. Its time to speak up before its too late.

Do you know more? Contact Adele Ferguson at aferguson@fairfaxmedia.com.au
Tax commissioner Chris Jordan has warned that the technical outages that have caused disruption for businesses are "a fact of modern life" and not going to cease.

In the wake of continuing outages at the Australian Tax Office, Mr Jordan warned businesses and tax professionals to brace for more.

ATO commissioner Chris Jordan at the Vodafone National Small Business Summit. Credit:Peter Braig

Mr Jordan told the Vodafone National Small Business Summit on Friday cyber security is a concern for all organisations, including the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) but that outages would still happen.

"Systems go down right," he said referring to a power failure disrupting the Reserve Bank of Australia's payment systems last week.
Two former Qantas pilots are taking legal action over what they allege was a hidden clause in their staff superannuation policies that dudded them out of lump sum payments of close to $1 million each after illness ended their careers.

They have also called on finance sector regulators to examine their case as the Hayne royal commission focuses on the superannuation industry.

Former Qantas pilots Anthony Byrnes and Campbell Gribble. Credit:Cole Bennetts

Anthony Byrnes and Campbell Gribble from Sydney were both members of Qantas Super, which included automatic insurance cover for total and permanent disability. They both took out separate income protection insurance to cover them to the age of 60.

The Qantas Super product disclosure statement they were given in 2005 did not provide any information about a disclaimer that would offset their claim to total and permanent disability by any income protection amount. When they applied for the lump sum benefit it was reduced from close to $1 million to nothing.
Danielle Cormack plays the central character, Alceste, the title's misanthrope. Credit:Brett Boardman

At their best the rhymes come fizzing and spitting at you, the wit sizzling as writer Justin Fleming throws fat on Moliere's fire. At other times the work feels more laboured, as if Moliere's satire and Fleming's metre, rhymes and token modernity have been scrunched together like so many peak-hour commuters on a Sydney train.

Fleming has explained in these pages how and why he has varied his rhyme schemes' architecture in previously adapting Moliere, and this ingenuity lubricates the wit as much the many clever rhymes, themselves. Such flashes of virtuosity on Fleming's part let us glimpse how Moliere dazzled his audiences 350 years ago, and, for those fluent in French, continues to do so.

Oddly enough, however, this particular play, widely considered his finest, was a flop in Paris in 1666, primarily because the central character, Alceste, the title's misanthrope, is not intrinsically comical. Even today, he  or in this joint Bell Shakespeare/Griffin Theatre production, she  tests the audience almost as much as she does the other characters with her relentless fault-finding of the rest of humanity. Her saving grace  beyond her unfaltering honour and probity  is her ability to detect her own faults, also.

Director Lee Lewis suggested Fleming swap Alceste's gender, and it has been made to work. Nonetheless, because the character is more admirable than likeable, the actor must bring some compensatory charisma, and Danielle Cormack does show sparks of this, particularly early on. But as the play develops and Alceste becomes more frustrated, Cormack loses this ability to compensate us with charm. Despite finding humanity so deeply flawed, Alceste's anger should be tempered with a quality akin to despairing of its foibles. Although Cormack is capable of exuding a certain energy and effervescence, somewhere between her performance, Lewis's direction and Fleming's writing, a disproportionate stridency sneaks in.
Environment Minister Melissa Price said she would support the construction of a new coal-fired power station and believes Australia will meet its targets under the Paris climate change agreement.

Ms Price, who was sworn into her new job last Tuesday, told Jane Marwick on 6PR's Marwick on Sunday her orders were to deliver the reductions in carbon emissions required under the international agreement.

But this did not mean targets would be legislated, which was the centrepiece of the government's failed National Energy Guarantee (NEG).

The government would not be walking away from the Paris agreement but had not yet considered the future for the NEG.
A 22-year-old Iraqi man is in a serious condition after self-harming at an immigration detention centre in WA's east on Saturday night.

Immigration officers at Yongah Hill Immigration Detention Centre were called to the scene just after 8.30pm, and the man was resuscitated and taken to Northam Hospital.

It's understood news of the man's injuries sparked a riot amongst detainees, who set fire to several accomodation units.

Police were called to the scene and 23 firefighters fought the blaze, and in a statement issued to media just after 2am, the Australian Border Force spokesman said the riot was under control.
Julia Banks is an unlikely poster girl for much that is wrong with Australian politics. Successful in her own right as a corporate lawyer, Banks was the only Liberal Party candidate to wrest a seat from Labor in the 2016 election.

Her victory in the Melbourne suburban seat of Chisholm meant the difference between Malcolm Turnbull retaining - or losing - power. Yet, less than three years later she is leaving politics in disgust at the thuggery that accompanied Turnbulls political assassination; and not just thuggery, by the way, but the self-serving childishness of it all.

Julia Banks and Malcolm Turnbull in his final days as prime minister. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Anyone who tunes in to question time in the House of Representatives  or catches snatches of this farce on the nightly news  would share this concern.

Leaving aside the rights and wrongs of one of the least edifying moments in the countrys political history, including allegations of bullying, the Banks episode reveals a much wider malaise, even crisis, in Australian public life.
'Act correctly' on baggage ENAC tells Ryanair New rules unveiled in Aug set to come in in Nov

(ANSAmed) - ROME, SEPTEMBER 3 - Civil aviation authority ENAC on Monday told Ryanair to "correctly apply" new rules on supplementary payments on baggage.



Under the plans announced last month, Ryanair will no longer let passengers take small suitcases on its planes for free, with charges for cases 10kg and above being introduced in November. Passengers will still be allowed to take one small carry-on bag or free, as long as it fits under the seat in front of them.



(ANSAmed).




A Liberal senator has threatened to use parliamentary privilege to name and shame colleagues that she says bullied or intimidated MPs during the leadership spill that toppled Malcolm Turnbull.

Senator Lucy Gichuhi claimed the behaviour was "widespread" in politics, saying that she saw other senators in tears due to the pressure placed on them amid the leadership turmoil.

The South Australian, who joined the Liberals earlier this year, has since been relegated to the unwinnable fourth spot on the party's Senate ticket.

Lucy Gichuhi said she would "absolutely" use parliamentary privilege to name names. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Senator Gichuhi said she was asked by a Liberal preselector as early as June whether she thought Mr Turnbull was the best person to lead the party to the next election, which made her uncomfortable.
New Foreign Minister Marise Payne has acknowledged she will carry the baggage of an extremely difficult week over Australias approach to climate change when she faces Pacific island leaders worried about the threat to their countries posed by rising sea levels.

Senator Payne will head to Nauru on Monday for her first overseas meeting, the Pacific Islands Forum, at which she expects to finalise a major regional security agreement but is also likely to face questions from leaders in the neighbourhood about Australias commitment to climate action after the chaotic leadership change 10 days ago.

New Foreign Minister Marise Payne. Credit:Alex Ellinghausen

Canberra is looking to deepen its ties with Pacific nations amid concern about Chinas strategic ambitions in what Australia has traditionally considered its backyard, with government ministers repeatedly saying Australia wants to be the partner of choice to smaller neighbours.

With some Pacific leaders voicing their concern about Australias commitment to climate action, Senator Payne acknowledged this was a key issue for low-lying island countries but stressed Australias history of practical action ought to assuage their worries.
For tourists, cryptocurrency eliminates the friction normally involved with travel as it removes the risk of having to carry cash, international transaction fees are non-existent and there's no need to worry about having too much unwanted local currency at the end of the trip. But the main attraction is that it eliminates the biggest risk normally associated with travel: credit card fraud. In 2017, transactions made on Australian cards totalled more than $748.1 billion, an increase of 5 per cent over the previous year. However, as we spend more than ever on our cards, the rate of fraud is also increasing. Credit card fraud was up 5 per cent, netting criminals $561 million with stolen card details accounting for 85 per cent of fraudulent card transactions. Having your credit card lost or stolen is enough to cut a trip short, but with cryptocurrency your smartphone acts as the interface to your digital wallet. If you do lose your smartphone, you can recover your digital wallet on another handset and continue on with your travels. TravelbyBit CEO Caleb Yeoh says that digital currencies don't share the same security flaws as credit cards, as no personally identifiable information is handed over to the merchant.

"Privacy with digital currencies is a security feature; I push a fixed amount of money to the business and that merchant has no ability to pull any more money from my account. Whereas, with credit cards, whoever has my credit card number can pull money from my account again and again and make as many fraudulent transactions as they want online. That's why there's so much credit card fraud going on. Yeoh says that cryptocurrency also offers a number of benefits to businesses, as there's no risk of the transaction being reversed in the event a customer pays with a stolen credit credit card, and there's no merchant fees or any point-of-sale rental costs either. "Whether you're a business or the customer, all you need is a smartphone to transact with digital currencies." TravelbyBit CEO Caleb Yeoh. The low barrier to entry means it opens the door to businesses located in places off the beaten path where there is no credit card services or ATMs and carrying cash is the only option. Yeoh's own experience in such a scenario is what spawned the idea of TravelbyBit.

"I was wandering through Kalpitiya in Sri Lanka not long after the civil war had ended. I wanted to extend my stay, but they couldnt process credit card payments and I had run out of cash. In the end, they let me stay and told me I could pay down the track once I found a way to do so. I thought, thats nice but thats not a reliable way to run a business. "I thought, what if they could just take payment peer-to-peer over a smartphone without the need of an international financial intermediary or credit card service. What if one could carve out an entire adventure just with mobile payments without the risk of credit card fraud?" It's still early days for this nascent technology and despite its benefits, digital currency has a long way to go in terms of adoption before it becomes as commonplace as a credit card. The total value of digital currency trading in Australia last year was $5.9 billion, and while that is bigger than most initially believed, it is a drop in the ocean compared to credit card transactions. It also remains to be seen how much of an impact digital currencies will have on tourism numbers in the long term, though it's off to a decent start. Brisbane Airport is averaging around 50 digital currency transactions a week and growing steadily, while the small coffee shop Cafe Discovery in Agnes Water is doing about ten transactions a week.

The Cafe's owner Leisa Trickett says that the customer reception to digital currencies had "exceeded her expectations". "I'm 60 years old and I think it is going to be the future of international travel. It mightn't happen in my lifetime, but it is here to stay," Trickett said. Loading Other states aren't as enthused about digital currencies and its potential to attract travellers. A Victorian Government spokesperson told Fairfax Media that it is leaving the take-up of cryptocurrency to individual businesses.
WESTPORT  Third times the charm, at least the school board hopes so as it makes its third appeal to towns finance board to fund two additional police officers for Westport schools.

I will not retreat from my request to the board for this year, Superintendent Colleen Palmer told the Board of Education (BOE) in her call for the board to once again push forward a funding method for two additional police officers to be stationed at Westport schools this school year.

Palmer first recommended the BOE institute more school resource officers (SROs) in Westport schools last Fall. After much discussion and a series of school shooting events across the country the school board signed on to the plan.

The Board of Finance approved the school boards request to reappropriate money from the D.A.R.E. officer program to fund an SRO at Staples High School, but has twice over the last two months rejected proposals to fund two additional officers to be housed at Westports middle schools.

Each time the BOE decreased the requested funding amount for the SROs  from a request of $320,000 to the Board of Finance (BOF) at its July 11 meeting to a $2,600 request to the BOF on Aug. 11. Now, the BOE is hoping the BOF will approve an even lower funding request of $185,000.

The significantly lower request is possible because the BOE is no longer asking for the BOF to fund two new officers to fill the positions but rather pay two current Westport police officers to fill the position solely in an appropriation of funds for overtime pay to the police department.

In a 6-1 vote to once again bring the request to the finance board, Vik Muktavaram was the only member to vote against the resolution. If rational people, if reasonable people are asking questions and asking for a pause, I think we should respect that, Muktavaram said in reference to the BOFs decision to twice vote down funds for the additional SROs.

The BOF, which meets Wednesday, has not yet slated a time to vote on the new SRO funding request.

svaughan@hearstmediact.com; 203-842-2638; @SophieCVaughan1




Yes, OK, we hear you: summer technically isn't over until the end of September, but the next few months is where it's at in terms of the theatre world. In fact, there's so many thespy delights coming up that it has been exceptionally hard getting the number on this list down to 30. To help, we've decided to exclude anything but new shows and productions, so transfers such as The Inheritance and Eugenius! don't appear here. Instead below are the new shows you need to be making sure you have tickets for over the coming months.





SEPTEMBER

Theatre royalty in the form of Jonathan Pryce and Eileen Atkins is appearing in this UK premiere of French master writer Florian Zeller's family drama. The piece is directed by Jonathan Kent and tours the UK before arriving in the West End. Richmond Theatre 1 to 8 Sept then touring. Wyndham's Theatre London 2 Oct to 1 Dec.

We've already had one revival of Cy Coleman, Dorothy Fields and Neil Simon's musical this year with Gemma Sutton giving a 'whirlwind' performance at the Watermill in Newbury. Now it's Olivier Award-winner Rebecca Trehearn's turn to take centre stage. Where am I going? Nottingham Playhouse for Bill Buckhurst's production. Nottingham Playhouse 31 Aug to 22 Sept.





Iwan Rheon who will star in Foxfinder in the West End

 Shaun Webb





This is the Broadway production of Stephen Karam's play which scooped up a whole host of Tony Awards in 2016. It follows what happens when three generations of the Blake family gather for Thanksgiving. The full cast arrive over from New York with the show. Hampstead Theatre, 30 Aug to 13 Oct.

If you've ever had to go to extreme lengths to get your child into a school, then Alexis Zegerman's new play  which opens the brand new Kiln Theatre, formerly the Tricycle  will be right up your street. Directed by the theatre's AD Indhu Rubasingham, Holy Sh!t is about battles to secure places in a local Church of England school. Kiln Theatre 5 Sept to 6 Oct.









The suffragette movement gets its own musical with this new piece overseen by Kate Prince. From the sounds of rehearsals, the blend of contemporary politics and soul-filled music is a match made in heaven  is it going to be the British response to Hamilton? Guess we'll have to wait and see. Old Vic 1 to 22 Sept.

Love novels and headbanging? Then Christopher Ash and Carl Miller's new rock musical about the Bronte family should be on your autumn viewing list. The cast of Adam Lenson's production features Funny Girl star Natasha Barnes alongside Siobhan Athwal, Molly Lynch and Matthew Jacobs Morgan. Southwark Playhouse 6 Sept to 6 Oct.

Greek master Aristophanes wrote The Assembly Women a very long time ago, but the structure always was a bit messy. A clutch of writers including Jenny Eclair and Shappi Khorsandi work together on this adaptation which tells what happens when women dress as men and take back control. NST City 6 to 29 Sept.





Maisie Williams in I and You at Hampstead Theatre







Dawn King's intense dystopian play won a whole host of awards when it first premiered at the Finborough back in 2011, and a West End production touting Game of Thrones baddie Iwan Rheon should be a delightful addition to the autumn theatre calendar. Ambassadors Theatre 6 Sept to 5 Jan.

Opening Nadia Fall's first season as artistic director of Theatre Royal Stratford East is this adaptation of Lope de Vega's powerful play about community, tyranny and solidarity. Starring Art Malik, the piece is set in contemporary India and follows what happens to a village terrorised by an inspector. Theatre Royal Stratford East 7 Sept to 6 Oct.

Joe Simpson's memoir, about his ordeal stranded on the side of a mountain, is a gripping page-turner now celebrating its 30th anniversary. So we're very excited to see what artistic directors Tom Morris and David Greig achieve with their stage production. Bristol Old Vic 8 Sept to 6 Oct then touring to Royal & Derngate and the Lyceum in Edinburgh.





Mark Gatiss who is starring as King George III at Nottingham Playhouse







Yet another uber-trad Shakespeare revival? Well no, actually. Kwame Kwei-Armah and Shaina Taub's musical adaptation posits the original in London's Notting Hill and should be a riot of colour, music and fun. Young Vic 2 Oct to 17 Nov.

Yes, OK, so it's not technically a new show, but it is a brand new tour and it's likely coming to a venue near you. Cyndi Lauper and Harvey Fierstein's hit feelgood musical is about a shoe factory in Northampton which starts making shoes fit for a queen. Royal & Derngate 19 Sept to 6 Oct and then touring.





Hayley Atwell and Jack Lowden who will star in Measure for Measure

 Dan Wooller for WhatsOnStage





Jeanie O'Hare's play stitches several of the Bard's works together to retell the War of the Roses from Queen Margaret's perspective. Jade Anouka takes on the crown in this production, not bad for someone who was once told she'd never be able to perform Shakespeare. Royal Exchange Manchester 14 Sept to 6 Oct.

It's back! For the first time since 2014, this rock musical hits the road, featuring songs such as "We Built This City" and "The Final Countdown". If you've seen the film starring Alec Baldwin, you will know what this is all about. If you haven't: prepare for some headbanging and rocking out. Churchill Theatre, Bromley 20 to 22 Sept and then touring.

Welsh venues Theatr Clwyd and the Sherman have teamed up for this co-production which flips William Golding's 1954 classic novel on its head. Featuring an all (bar one) female cast, the production promises to shine a new perspective on a well-known tale. Clwyd 20 Sept to 13 Oct and then Sherman 17 Oct to 3 Nov.





Killian Donnelly in Les Miserables

 Johan Persson





Ralph Fiennes and Sophie Okonedo take on Shakespeare's masterful tragedy directed by Simon Godwin at the National Theatre. What more could you want? Two of our greatest actors performing one of our greatest plays on our fabulous Olivier Stage. National Theatre 18 Sept to 19 Jan.

Director Jamie Lloyd specialises in Harold Pinter, and in this season he marks the 10th anniversary of the playwright's death by staging all  yes you read that right all  of his short plays. The cast involved is epic and includes Jane Horrocks, Tamsin Greig, David Suchet, Meera Syal, Martin Freeman, Lee Evans, Paapa Essiedu and Antony Sher. Pinter theatre 6 Sept to 23 Feb.







OCTOBER

Judi Dench starred in Hugh Whitemore's play with her real life husband Michael Williams in the piece's premiere in 1983. Now her daughter Finty Williams is stepping into Dench's shoes and taking on the role. The play follows what happens when a middle aged English couple are asked by Scotland Yard to spy on their best friends. Menier Chocolate Factory 20 Sept to 17 Nov.

On 13 March 2015 Battersea Arts Centre's Grand Hall burnt down. It was a terrible event which rocked the theatre scene. Three years on and the space is reopening this autumn, in a beautifully renewed form. There's a host of shows running in it to boot, kicking of with Gecko's Missing and Bryony Kimmings' I'm a Phoenix Bitch following swiftly after. Battersea Arts Centre 3 to 20 Oct.

Josie Rourke hasn't directed a play at the Donmar since announcing she'd be leaving the venue, so her star-studded new version of Measure for Measure, featuring Hayley Atwell and Jack Lowden, will be a big cornerstone of her closing season. With the leading pair alternating roles each night, there's a reason to see this one more than once. Donmar Warehouse 28 Sept to 24 Nov.





Jade Anouka who will star in Queen Margaret

 Dan Wooller for WhatsOnStage





Perhaps the most eagerly awaited West End opening of the year is Marianne Elliott's production of Stephen Sondheim's Company. Rosalie Craig plays Bobby, now Bobbi and it will be the first time the role has been played by a woman. Broadway superstar Patti LuPone takes on the role of Joanne and the rest of the cast is equally as exciting. We're out of breath just thinking about it. Gielgud Theatre 26 Sept to 22 Dec.

After her tenure at Shakespeare's Globe, everyone is eagerly anticipating Emma Rice's next project and it's arriving this autumn in the form of new show Wise Children (also the name of her new company), based on the Angela Carter novel of the same name. Old Vic 8 Oct to 10 Nov and then touring.





Amber Gray, Eva Noblezada and Andre de Shields

 Dan Wooller for WhatsOnStage





For three performances only, Adrian Lester (Sky), Jason Manford (Nathan), Clive Rowe (Nicely Nicely), Meow Meow (Adelaide) and loads more brilliant people will perform in Stephen Mear's production of this classic musical in the beautiful surroundings of the Royal Albert Hall. Luck be a lady if you manage to get tickets for this. Royal Albert Hall 19 to 20 October.

Martin McDonagh is well-known for his very (very very) dark humour, with enough fake blood to make a stage manager weep being used in the recent revival of his Lieutenant of Inishmore. So it'll be intriguing to see what he's cooked up in this new play at the Bridge Theatre, which is based on Hans Christian Andersen tales. Bridge Theatre 12 Oct to 6 Jan.

Maisie Williams may have spent more than half a decade murdering all manner of disreputable figures in Game of Thrones, but she now makes her stage debut later this year in intimate two-hander I And You at the Hampstead, directed by outgoing artistic director Edward Hall. Hampstead Theatre 18 Oct to 24 Nov.





Jim Broadbent and the cast of A Very Very Dark Matter

 Eleanor Howarth







NOVEMBER

While Holy Sh!t is likely to kick things off at the newly reopened Kiln Theatre beautifully, we can't wait for this stage adaptation of Zadie Smith's much-loved novel White Teeth, now presented with additional music and dance. Artistic director Indhu Rubasingham takes the helm. Kiln Theatre 26 Oct to 22 Dec.

Husband and wife team actor/director Samuel West and playwright Laura Wade collaborate on this new piece for the Chichester venue, in the Minerva studio. Wade's new play, adapted from the unfinished novel by Jane Austen, follows Emma Watson (not the Harry Potter one), a nineteen year-old who is new in town and looking to marry to avoid poverty. Chichester Festival Theatre 3 Nov to 1 Dec.

Artistic director Adam Penford was one of our names to watch back at the start of 2018 and he definitely hasn't disappointed  overseeing some of the best regional productions seen this year at Nottingham Playhouse. He now directs a new production of Alan Bennett's The Madness of King George, starring none other than the unforgettable Mark Gatiss. We can't wait. Nottingham Playhouse 2 to 24 November.





The cast of Company

 Helen Maybanks





There's a lot of hype around this one. Pop mistress Anais Mitchell's genre-defying new musical, developed in New York with Rachel Chavkin, mixes modern American folk music with vintage New Orleans jazz to reimagine the story of songwriter Orpheus and his muse Eurydice. National Theatre 2 Nov to 26 Jan.

It's time to bring him home! Theatres outside London haven't been able to hear the people sing since the 2010 25th anniversary tour, but that's all set to change as this new production heads out on the road and under the stars. We doubt there will be any empty chairs as Killian Donnelly and his gang of lovely ladies take the runaway cart around the country for one day more. Curve 3 to 24 Nov and then touring.
The cast of Bring It On at Southwark Playhouse were left stunned that they were in the room where it happened on Saturday night, when Lin-Manuel Miranda made a surprise visit.

Students of the British Theatre Academy were performing their show one last time and were satisfied to find that the show's composer took his shot and got a ticket for the final performance.

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Talking to the cast after the show, the Hamilton creator said: "You did an amazing job, it's a very challenging show. I'm so proud and this was so wonderful. You made my wife cry!

"I came all the way from Cardiff [where Miranda is currently filming His Dark Materials], I wouldn't have missed it! It was awesome. It was the first time I've seen it since 2013 and it just all came flooding back to me."

Loosely based on the 2000 film of the same name, Bring It On had it's Broadway debut in 2012 and was nominated a Tony Award for Best New Musical. It has a story by Jeff Whitty (Avenue Q), music and lyrics by Miranda, Tom Kitt (Next to Normal) and Amanda Green (High Fidelity).

BTA's production was directed and choreographed by Ewan Jones with musical direction by Chris Ma, design by Tom Paris, lighting by Ben Jacobs and sound by Hannah Reymes-Clemerson.
A brand new production of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is to head out on a UK tour, it has been announced.

Paul Kerryson will direct the show, which opens in Dartford on 5 September 2019 and then tours the UK and Ireland.

Producer Mark Goucher is joining up with Jason Donovan to produce the tour, marking Donovan's first time as a producer. Donovan performed in the original cast of the West End production and in two subsequent UK tours. Gavin Kalin and Matthew Gale also produce the tour.

The musical is based on the hit film about three friends who drive an old bus to Alice Springs to put on a show.

Casting is yet to be announced for the production, but Tom Jackson-Greaves choreographs, Phil R Daniels designs with Charles Cusick Smith, Ben Cracknell designs the lighting and Ben Harrison is sound designer.

Donovan said: "Having spent years performing and always harbouring the desire to become more involved in the creative process, I am delighted to be joining Mark Goucher as producer on this wonderful show. Priscilla is perfect vehicle to venture into the world of producing and bringing all my experience on the show seems the logical next step. Priscilla is such a wonderful Australian story about diversity. It is a modern musical with a great heart."

The show currently tours until November 2019.
ZAGREB - A strike by about 4,000 workers ended on Monday morning in the two largest Croatian shipyards, the Uljanik of Pula in Istria and the 3. Maj of Rijeka, after two months' of back pay was paid. Government intervention was required to end the strike and the crisis in the two industrial establishments is still acute and their future uncertain. The workers went on strike for two entire weeks to protest against the managers of the two companies that had brought the shipyards to the edge of bankruptcy. Thousands of other citizens joined them in the streets, accusing local and national politicians of facilitating bad management of the companies. The state has an almost 25% share in them. The workers formed a committee that will monitor the situation in the shipyards, inform the media of developments and will e ready to resume the strike if more problems were to arise. The crisis in the Croatian shipyard industry is the result of huge losses over the past two years, estimated at about 300 million euros. An opinion is awaited from the European Commission on the restructuring plan for the two shipyards and the search has begun for a strategic partner to buy a majority stake in the shipyards and bring in fresh capital.
The end of summer is in sight but the autumn theatre season is really hotting up! This week is jam-packed with great openings up and down the UK, so it's been a tricky time picking a top five (we may have resorted to a top seven?). Honourable mentions have to go to Sweet Charity at Nottingham Playhouse which is sure to continue Adam Penford's fine work in his debut year of programming, and also to Road, which kicks off the rechristened Leeds Playhouse's first season.







The Lovely Bones



5. The Lovely Bones

Northampton Royal and Derngate until 22 September, then UK tour

Charlotte Beaumont takes on the lead role of Susie Salmon in the first staging of the classic Alice Sebold novel, adapted for the stage by Bryony Lavery. The show, which is a co-production between a variety of UK venues, follows a girl from the afterlife as she watches while her family deals with the grief in the wake of her rape and murder.







Elizabeth McGovern, Amanda Abbington and Nigel Lindsay

 Dan Wooller for WhatsOnStage

4. God of Carnage

Theatre Royal Bath, until 15 September

Yasmina Reza's God of Carnage is venerated as one of the best dramas of modern times, winning a Tony Award and Olivier Award when it first opened in 2008. Ten years on and Lindsay Posner directs this new revival, featuring some solid British talent  Elizabeth McGovern (Downton Abbey), Amanda Abbington (Sherlock), Ralf Little (The Royle Family) and Nigel Lindsay (Victoria).







Eugenius! and Dust

 Pamela Raith / The Other Richard

3. Dust / Eugenius!

Trafalgar Studios until 13 October / The Other Palace until 7 October

As shows the two may not have very much in common  one is a powerful monologue and the other being a nostalgia-soaked pop musical  but Dust and Eugenius! have been placed together on account of the fact both are returning to London stages following storming original runs. Milly Thomas' Dust moves to Trafalgar Studios following its time at the Soho Theatre and Edinburgh Fringe, while Eugenius! returns to The Other Palace, with a raft of exciting new casting including Rob Houchen.







Battersea Arts Centre

( Morley von Sternberg)

2. Missing

Battersea Arts Centre, until 15 September

Over three years ago Battersea Arts Centre lost its grand hall in a major fire, and, after some pretty remarkable construction work, the venue is about to reopen its major space. Kicking off with the same production that was running when the fire first occurred, Gecko's Missing, the venue's return to full operation is a welcome one and we can't wait to see what its Phoenix season has in store.







Dance Nation and The Humans in rehearsals

 Marc Brenner

1. Dance Nation / The Humans

Almeida until 6 October / Hampstead Theatre until 13 October

We had to double up for our number one spot this week, with two award-winning American plays having their UK premieres at differing north London venues. Stephen Karam's metropolitan comedy The Humans, which picked up a load of Tony Awards in 2016, has its entire cast and creative team across the Atlantic to the Hampstead, while Bijan Sheibani takes the reins for Clare Barron's Susan Smith Blackburn Prize-winning Dance Nation at the Almeida, about a group of young dancers desperate to make it in a cut-throat world.





Last chance to see: Home, I'm Darling (National Theatre), Julie (National Theatre), Imperium (Gielgud Theatre) and The Lieutenant of Inishmore (Noel Coward Theatre)
AMMAN - Unemployment in Jordan reached 18.7% during the second quarter of the year, a slight increase compared to the first quarter, official figures showed today.



Department of Statistics released its quarterly report about job availability and unemployment in kingdom, showing that unemployment among women continued to top 26 percent.



Economists said the deteriorating economic conditions, lack of foreign investment, return of expatriates from the gulf have compounded to high unemployment figure. They fear the numbers could continue climbing as the economy struggles to cope with regional turmoils, lack of foreign investment and increasing taxation that deter investors from taking risks in the country's fragile economy.



Unofficial figures, however, have placed unemployment at 26%, including studies by the centre of strategic studies at the university of Jordan.



The rural areas in the south, including the city of Maan, Karak, Tafeelah and Aqaba suffer from higher rate of unemployment due to less investment and struggling local economies.
The father of slain Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts in a weekend opinion piece spoke out against using his daughter's death in support of "views she believed were profoundly racist," a call that comes after President Donald Trump and others seized on the suspected killer's immigration status to argue for changes in U.S. immigration laws.
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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.
Alio Gold Inc., through its subsidiaries, engages in the acquisition, exploration, development, and operation of mineral resource properties. The company primarily mines for gold and silver. It holds 100% interests in San Francisco open pit gold mine that covers an area of approximately 53,380 hectares situated in the north central portion of the state of Sonora, Mexico; Florida Canyon open pit mine covering an area of approximately 11,886 hectares located in Nevada, the United States; and Ana Paula property situated in the state of Guerrero, Mexico. The company was formerly known as Timmins Gold Corp. and changed its name to Alio Gold Inc. in May 2017. Alio Gold Inc. was incorporated in 2005 and is headquartered in Vancouver, Canada.

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(by Claudio Accogli)

ROME - A state of emergency has been proclaimed in Tripoli, with the capital under attack after a week of violent clashes and the deadly progress made by a rebel militia that appears to have no intention of stopping. The presidential council led by Fayez al Sarraj was forced to take emergency measures after the repeated violation of the frail truces announced over the past few days. The government of national unity has blasted the fighting as an ''attack on the security of the capital and its residents in front of which we cannot remain silent''. The objective of militants - according to the council - ''is to break the peaceful process of political transition'', cancelling ''national and international efforts to reach the country's stabilization''.



Sarraj spent Sunday protected in his headquarters at a naval base, meeting ministers and top military officers in charge of his plans to restore order.



The municipal councils of Libyan elders, in a staunch effort to mediate between the sides, launched an appeal to stop the clashes - so far in vain. The Seventh Brigade, the protagonist of the assault on the capital in which 47 people have died and 129 have been injured since last Monday, according to a toll provided by the Libyan health ministry, is advancing from the south towards the center of the city.



Militants announced the imminent assault on the district of Abu Salim in Tripoli, known for hosting the prison where the late Muammar Gaddafi killed regime opponents in 1996 - almost 1,300 prisoners killed by grenades.



The Brigade ''will continue to fight until armed militias will not leave the capital and security will be restored'', said the leader Abdel Rahim Al Kani. ''We do not want destruction but we are advancing in the name of citizens who are unable to find food and are waiting for days in line to have their salaries while militia leaders enjoy Libyan money'', said Kani.



The Italian embassy in Libya - which is very close to a hotel struck by a rocket on Saturday ''remains open'', the diplomatic post wrote on Twitter, silencing reports of an alleged shutdown and evacuation of officials. ''We continue to support the beloved population of Tripoli during this difficult time''.
Truist Financial Corp. operates as a financial holding company, which engages in the provision of banking services to individuals, businesses and municipalities. The firm offers a variety of loans and lease financing to individuals and entities, including insurance premium financing, permanent commercial real estate financing arrangements, loan servicing for third-party investors, direct consumer finance loans to individuals, credit card lending, automobile financing and equipment financing. It also markets a range of other services, including deposits, life insurance, property and casualty insurance, health Truist Financial Corp. operates as a financial holding company. It engages in the provision of banking services to individuals, businesses and municipalities. The company operates through the following segments: Consumer Banking and Wealth; Corporate and Commercial Banking; and Insurance Holdings. The firm offers a variety of loans and lease financing to individuals and entities, including insurance premium financing, permanent commercial real estate financing arrangements, loan servicing for third-party investors, direct consumer finance loans to individuals, credit card lending, automobile financing and equipment financing. It also markets a range of other services, including deposits, life insurance, property and casualty insurance, health insurance and commercial general liability insurance on an agency basis and through a wholesale insurance brokerage operation, merchant services, trust and retirement services, comprehensive wealth advisory services, asset management and capital markets services. The company was founded on December 6, 2019 and is headquartered in Charlotte, NC. insurance and commercial general liability insurance on an agency basis and through a wholesale insurance brokerage operation, merchant services, trust and retirement services, comprehensive wealth advisory services, asset management and capital markets services. The company was founded on December 6, 2019 and is headquartered in Charlotte, NC.

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China Mobile Limited provides mobile telecommunications and related services in Mainland China and Hong Kong. The company offers local calls; domestic and international long distance calls and roaming services; and value-added services, such as caller identity display, call waiting, conference calls, and others. It also provides wireless Internet service, as well as digital applications comprising music, video, reading, gaming, and animation; wireline broadband services; and wireline voice services. In addition, it offers dedicated line and IDC services to corporate customers in a range of industry sectors; and basic corporate communication products comprising corporate VPMN and SMS, and tailor made solutions. Further, the company provides international telecommunications services, which includes IDD, roaming, Internet, MNC, and value added business services. Additionally, it offers telecommunications network planning, design, and consulting services; roaming clearance, IT system operation, and technology support services; value-added platform development and maintenance services; mobile data, and system integration and development services; network construction and maintenance, network planning and optimizing, and training services; electronic communication products design and sale of related products; and non-banking financial services. It also provides mobile cloud research and development services; call center services; e-payment, e-commerce, and Internet finance services; and mobile Internet digital content services, as well as operates a network and business coordination center. The company serves 950 million mobile customers and 187 million wireline broadband customers. The company was formerly known as China Mobile (Hong Kong) Limited and changed its name to China Mobile Limited in May 2006. The company was incorporated in 1997 and is based in Central, Hong Kong. China Mobile Limited is a subsidiary of China Mobile Hong Kong (BVI) Limited.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Cardinal Health: A+ Secure Packaging LLC, Access Closure, Access Closure Inc., Aero-Med Ltd., Alaris Medical Systems, Allegiance Corporation, Allegiance Healthcare, AssuraMed, AssuraMed Inc., Automatic Liquid Packaging, Bergen Brunswig Corp, Bindley Western Industries, Boron LePore & Associates, Borschow Hospital & Medical Supplies, Cardinal Health 100 Inc., Cardinal Health 104 LP, Cardinal Health 105 Inc., Cardinal Health 107 LLC, Cardinal Health 108 LLC, Cardinal Health 110 LLC, Cardinal Health 112 LLC, Cardinal Health 113 LLC, Cardinal Health 114 Inc., Cardinal Health 115 LLC, Cardinal Health 116 LLC, Cardinal Health 118 LLC, Cardinal Health 119 LLC, Cardinal Health 121 LLC, Cardinal Health 122 LLC, Cardinal Health 123 LLC, Cardinal Health 124 LLC, Cardinal Health 126 LLC, Cardinal Health 127 Inc., Cardinal Health 2 LLC, Cardinal Health 200 LLC, Cardinal Health 201 Inc., Cardinal Health 222 (Thailand) Ltd., Cardinal Health 247 Inc., Cardinal Health 249 LLC, Cardinal Health 3 LLC, Cardinal Health 414 LLC, Cardinal Health 5 LLC, Cardinal Health 6 Inc., Cardinal Health 7 LLC, Cardinal Health Australia 503 Pty. Ltd., Cardinal Health Austria 504 GmbH, Cardinal Health Belgium 505 BVBA, Cardinal Health Canada Holdings Cooperative U.A., Cardinal Health Canada Inc., Cardinal Health Chile Limitada, Cardinal Health Colombia S.A.S., Cardinal Health D.R. 203 II Ltd., Cardinal Health Denmark ApS, Cardinal Health Finland Oy, Cardinal Health Foundation, Cardinal Health France 506 SAS, Cardinal Health Funding LLC, Cardinal Health Germany 507 GmbH, Cardinal Health Germany Manufacturing GmbH, Cardinal Health IPS LLC, Cardinal Health International Philippines Inc., Cardinal Health Ireland 419 Designated Activity Company, Cardinal Health Ireland 508 Limited, Cardinal Health Ireland Unlimited Company, Cardinal Health Italy 509 Srl, Cardinal Health Japan G.K., Cardinal Health Korea Limited, Cardinal Health Malaysia 211 Sdn. Bhd., Cardinal Health Malta 212 Limited, Cardinal Health Managed Care Services LLC, Cardinal Health Medical Equipment Consulting (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Cardinal Health Medical Products India Private Limited, Cardinal Health Mexico 244 S. de R.L. de C.V., Cardinal Health Mexico 514 S. de R.L. de C.V., Cardinal Health Middle East FZ-LLC, Cardinal Health Netherlands 502 B.V., Cardinal Health Norway AS, Cardinal Health P.R. 120 Inc., Cardinal Health P.R. 218 Inc., Cardinal Health P.R. 220 LLC, Cardinal Health Pharmaceutical Contracting LLC, Cardinal Health Pharmacy Services LLC, Cardinal Health Poland Spolka z ograniczonaa odpowiedzialnossciaa, Cardinal Health Portugal 513 Unipessoal Lda., Cardinal Health Singapore 225 Pte. Ltd., Cardinal Health Spain 511 S.L., Cardinal Health Specialty Pharmacy LLC, Cardinal Health Sweden 512 A.B., Cardinal Health Switzerland 515 GmbH, Cardinal Health Systems Inc., Cardinal Health Technologies LLC, Cardinal Health Technologies Switzerland GmbH, Cardinal Health U.K. 432 Limited, Cardinal Health do Brasil Ltd., CareFusion, Cirpro de Delicias S.A. de C.V., Convertors de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Cordis, Cordis (Shanghai) Medical Devices Co. Ltd., Cordis Cashel Company Unlimited, Cordis Corporation, Cornerstone Partners G.P.O. L.P., Covidien Manufacturing Solutions S.A., Curaspan Health Group Inc., Denver Biomedical, Dik Drug, EPIC Insurance Company, Emerge Medical, Enturia, Especialidades Medicas Kenmex S.A. de C.V., Futuremed Health Care Products, Gala Biotech, Geodax Technology, Griffin Capital LLC, HLS Freight Services, Healthcare Solutions Holding, Innovative Therapies Inc., Instant Diagnostic Systems Inc., KPR Australia Pty. Ltd., KPR Italia S.r.l., KPR Switzerland Sales Gmbh, KPR U.S. LLC, Kendall Patient Recovery BVBA, Kendall-Gammatron Limited, Kinray, Leader Drugstores Inc., Limited Liability Company "Cardinal Health Russia", Ludlow Technical Products Canada Ltd., MCD, Magellan Laboratories, Marin Apothecaries, MedMined, Medicine Shoppe International Inc., Mediquip Sdn. Bhd., Medtronic - Patient Monitoring & Recovery, Mirixa Corporation, NaviHealth, Nippon Covidien Ltd., One Cloverleaf LLC, Outcomes Incorporated, Owen Healthcare, PCI Pharma Services, ParMed Pharmaceuticals, Pinnacle Intellectual Property Services Inc., Pinnacle Intellectual Property Services-International Inc., Post-Acute Care Center for Research LLC, Pyxis Corporation, Quiroproductos de Cuauhtemoc S. de R.L. de C.V., R Cubed Inc., R.P. Scherer Corporation, RGH Enterprises Inc., RainTree GPO LLC, RainTree Oncology Services, Renal Purchasing Group LLC, Rxealtime Inc., Sonexus Health LLC, Syncor International, TelePharm, TelePharm LLC, The Harvard Drug Group, The Harvard Drug Group L.L.C., Tradex International Inc., Viasys Healthcare, WaveMark Inc., Zuellig Pharma China, mscripts, mscripts LLC, and mscripts Systems India Private Limited.
State must keep promises over migrants, says Lesvos mayor Spyros Galinos demands government make good on transfer promises

(ANSAmed) - ATHENS, SEPTEMBER 3 - Lesvos mayor Spyros Galinos has made a fresh plea to Greece's Migration Policy Minister Dimitris Vitsas to make good on promises about reducing migrant numbers on the North Eastern Aegean islands to 10,000 by September.



The region is currently flooded with more than 16,000 refugees and migrants, with Lesvos alone hosting over 10,000.



Vitsas had said earlier this summer that the state would speed up relocation efforts and ensure that the number of migrants staying at overcrowded camps on Lesvos, Chios and Samos combined would be cut to 10,000 by September.



That now seems an extremely far-fetched target with the latest migrant flows into Greece currently matching the rate it was at the height of the crisis in 2015 according to the Greek arm of Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF).



"The daily arrivals of refugees and migrants are continuing at rapid speeds and my concerns, as well as those of the local community are intensifying - instead of reductions we are seeing an increase in the number of asylum seekers coming," said Galinos in an open letter.



He added: "With over 10 000 asylum seekers here now, it is imperative that the transfer of people from Lesvos, which hosts a much larger population than all the other islands, happens immediately. I hope that your promise will not go along with all the other unfulfilled promises that our fellow citizens have heard from both our European officials and your predecessors." All of the reception centers of the islands, especially those at Moria on Lesvos and on the island of Chios, are bursting at the seams with outbreaks of violence between rival ethnic groups an almost daily occurrence as tempers and patience continues to be thin amid the poor living conditions.



While depression and sporadic suicides attempts have also been reported in recent months, a recent BBC report also claimed that children as young as 10 are trying to take their lives at Moria.(ANSAmed).




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..
Industria de Diseno Textil SA, known as Inditex SA, is a Spain-based company primarily engaged in the textile industry. The Company's activities include the design, confection, manufacturing, distribution and retail of men, women and children apparel, footwear and fashion accessories, as well as home furnishings and household textile products. The Company's business is divided into three segments: Zara, which provides various fashion and home items under the Zara brand name; Bershka, offering clothes under the Bershka brand name, which aims at teenagers, and Other, which retails apparel under Stradivarius, Oysho, Pull&Bear and Massimo Dutti brand names, among others. The Company operates worldwide through numerous subsidiaries. It is controlled by Pontegadea Inversiones SL.

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Fielmann Aktiengesellschaft engages in the investment in and operation of optical and hearing aid businesses. The company manufactures and sells visual aids and other optical products, including glasses, frames, lenses, sunglasses, contact lenses and accessories, and various merchandise, as well as hearing aids and accessories. As of December 31, 2020, it operated 870 stores, including 605 in Germany, 43 in Switzerland, 38 Austria, 3 in Luxembourg, 33 in Italy, 25 in Poland, 80 in Spain, 28 in Slovenia, and 15 in the rest of Europe. The company also 79 smaller locations in Eastern Europe. Fielmann Aktiengesellschaft also offers its products through online stores. The company was founded in 1972 and is headquartered in Hamburg, Germany. Fielmann Aktiengesellschaft is a subsidiary of Korva SE.

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Italy special forces not gearing for Libya intervention Salvini says in touch with Italians

(ANSAmed) - ROME, SEPTEMBER 3 - The premier's office on Monday denied media reports that Italian special forces were gearing to intervene in Libya.



"In relation to some news that appeared in today's press, we categorically deny the preparation of an intervention on the part of Italian special forces in Libya," it said in a statement.



"Italy continues to follow with attention the evolution of the situation on the ground and it has already publicly expressed concern as well as an invitation to immediately cease hostilities together with the United States, France and the United Kingdom".



Deputy Premier and Interior Minister Matteo Salvini said Monday he was in touch with Italians in Libya amid clashes by rebel militias that have prompted the UN-backed government to declare a state of emergency in the capital Tripoli.



"I am in direct contact with our men: soldiers, diplomats, and ENI staff who are experiencing in Libya risks caused by a senseless military intervention," Salvini said.



He said no harm had yet to be reported.



Italy's embassy in Tripoli is to stay open despite an attack on the national-unity government by rebel militia, foreign ministry sources told ANSA Monday.



They said the embassy "remains operational but with a more flexible presence, which is being assessed on the basis of the needs and the security situation".



Some 400 prisoners escaped from a jail in the Libyan capital, authorities said Sunday, as fighting between rival militias that has killed dozens of people forced the U.N.-backed government to declare a state of emergency in and around Tripoli.



The European Commission said Monday "we urge all parties in Libya to immediately cease hostilities".



A spokesman said "there is no military solution for the situation in Libya, only a political one".



"The escalation of violence is undermining a situation which is already fragile. "Violence will only lead to more violence to the detriment of the Libyans".



At least 47 people have been reported dead and 129 injured in eight days in clashes between armed militias in the capital Tripoli, according to the latest toll provided by the Libyan health ministry, the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) said in a statement.



UNSMIL called on all sides affected by the conflict to meet Tuesday at midday in a place to be announced at a later date after deadly clashes over the past few days. UNSMIL called for an "urgent dialogue on the current security situation in Tripoli", based on resolutions of the Security Council and the offer of the UN secretary general to mediate between various Libyan sides. Back in Italy, government sources said no government summit has been scheduled so far on the Libya crisis. (ANSAmed).




The following companies are subsidiares of Eli Lilly and: 1096401 B.C. Unlimited Liability Company, ARMO BioSciences Inc, ARMO Bioscience, Advanced Cardiovascular Systems, Alnara Pharmaceuticals, Alnara Pharmaceuticals Inc., Andean Technical Operations Center, Applied Molecular Evolution Inc., AurKa Pharma, Avid Radiopharmaceuticals, Avid Radiopharmaceuticals Inc., ChemGen, CoLucid Pharmaceuticals, CoLucid Pharmaceuticals Inc., Dermira, Devices for Vascular Intervention(DVI), Disarm Therapeutics, Dista Ilac Ticaret Ltd. Sti., Dista S.A., Dista-Produtos Quimicos & Farmaceuticos LDA, ELCO Dominicana SRL, ELCO Insurance Company Limited, ELCO Management Inc., ELCO for Trade and Marketing S.A.E., ELGO Insurance Company Limited, Elanco Animal Health Ireland Limited, Elanco Switzerland Holding Sarl, Eli Lilly (Malaysia) Sdn. Bhd., Eli Lilly (Philippines) Incorporated, Eli Lilly (S.A.) (Proprietary) Limited, Eli Lilly (Singapore) Pte. Ltd., Eli Lilly (Suisse) S.A., Eli Lilly Asia Inc., Eli Lilly Asia Pacific SSC Sdn Bhd, Eli Lilly Australia Pty. Limited, Eli Lilly B-H d.o.o., Eli Lilly Benelux S.A., Eli Lilly Bienes y Servicios S de RL de CV, Eli Lilly CR s.r.o., Eli Lilly Canada Inc., Eli Lilly Cork Limited, Eli Lilly Danmark A/S, Eli Lilly Egypt for Trading, Eli Lilly European Clinical Trial Services SA, Eli Lilly Export S.A., Eli Lilly Finance S.A., Eli Lilly Ges.m.b.H., Eli Lilly Group Limited, Eli Lilly Holdings Ltd., Eli Lilly Hrvatska d.o.o., Eli Lilly Interamerica Inc., Eli Lilly Interamerica Inc. y Compania Limitada, Eli Lilly International Corporation, Eli Lilly Ireland Holdings Limited, Eli Lilly Israel Ltd., Eli Lilly Italia S.p.A., Eli Lilly Japan K.K., Eli Lilly Kinsale Limited, Eli Lilly Nederland B.V., Eli Lilly Nigeria Ltd., Eli Lilly Norge A.S., Eli Lilly Pakistan (Pvt.) Ltd., Eli Lilly Polska Sp.z.o.o. (Ltd.), Eli Lilly Regional Operations GmbH, Eli Lilly Romania SRL, Eli Lilly S.A., Eli Lilly Saudi Arabia Limited, Eli Lilly Services Inc, Eli Lilly Services India Private Limited, Eli Lilly Slovakia s.r.o., Eli Lilly Sweden AB, Eli Lilly Vostok S.A. Geneva, Eli Lilly and Company, Eli Lilly and Company (India) Pvt. Ltd., Eli Lilly and Company (Ireland) Limited, Eli Lilly and Company (N.Z.) Limited, Eli Lilly and Company (Taiwan) Inc., Eli Lilly and Company Limited, Eli Lilly de Centro America S.A., Eli Lilly do Brasil Limitada, Eli Lilly farmacevtska druzba d.o.o., Eli Lilly y Compania de Mexico S.A. de C.V., Eli Lilly y Compania de Venezuela S.A., Glycostasis Inc, Greenfield-Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Heart Rhythm Technologies Inc, Hybritech, Hypnion, ICOS Corporation, ImClone GmbH, ImClone LLC, ImClone Systems Holdings Inc., ImClone Systems LLC, Imclone Systems, Irisfarma S.A., Ivy Animal Health, Kinsale Financial Services Unlimited Company, Lilly (Shanghai) Management Co. Ltd, Lilly Asia Ventures Fund I L.P., Lilly Asia Ventures Fund II L.P., Lilly Asian Ventures Fund III L.P., Lilly Cayman Holdings, Lilly China Research and Development Co. Ltd., Lilly Deutschland GmbH, Lilly France S.A.S., Lilly Global Nederland Holdings B.V., Lilly Global Services Inc., Lilly Holding GmbH, Lilly Holdings B.V., Lilly Hungaria KFT, Lilly Japan Financing G.K., Lilly Korea Ltd., Lilly Nederland Finance B.V., Lilly Nederland Finance B.V. - GCC, Lilly Nederland Holding B.V., Lilly Pharma Ltd., Lilly Portugal - Produtos Farmaceuticos Lda., Lilly S.A., Lilly Suzhou Pharmaceutical Co. Ltd., Lilly Trading Co. LTD, Lilly USA LLC, Lilly Ventures Fund I LLC, Lilly del Caribe Inc., Lilly ilac ticaret limited sirketi, Lohmann Animal Health, Loxo Oncology, Lylly Centre for Clinical Pharmacology PTE. LTD., Novartis Animal Health, OY Eli Lilly Finland AB, Origin Medsystems, PT. Eli Lilly Indonesia, Pacific Biotech, Pharmaserve-Lilly S.A.C.I., Physio-Control, SGX Pharmaceuticals, SGX Pharmaceuticals Inc, Spaly Bioquimica S.A., UAB Eli Lilly Lietuva, Valquifarma S.A., and Vital Pharma Productos Farmaceuticos.
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.

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Wall Street analysts have given SPDR S&P Emerging Asia Pacific 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 SPDR S&P Emerging Asia Pacific ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

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Legg Mason, Inc. is a publicly owned asset management holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the firm provides investment management and related services to company-sponsored mutual funds and other investment vehicles including pension funds, foundations, endowments, sovereign wealth funds, insurance companies, private banks, family offices, individuals, as well as to global, institutional, and retail clients. It launches and manages equity, fixed income, and multi-asset customized portfolios through its subsidiaries. The firm also launches and manages mutual funds and exchange traded funds for its clients through its subsidiaries. It invests in private and public equity, fixed income, and multi asset markets across the globe through its subsidiaries. Through its subsidiaries, the firm also invests in alternative markets. It also employs a combination of fundamental and quantitative research to make its investments through its subsidiaries. Legg Mason, Inc. was founded in 1899 and is based in Baltimore, Maryland.

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New Mountain Finance pays an annual dividend of $1.20 per share and currently has a dividend yield of 8.57%. NMFC has a dividend yield higher than 75% of all dividend-paying stocks, making it a leading dividend payer. New Mountain Finance has been increasing its dividend for 2 consecutive year(s), indicating that it does not yet have a strong track record of dividend growth. The dividend payout ratio of New Mountain Finance is 99.17%. Payout ratios above 75% are not desirable because they may not be sustainable. Based on EPS estimates, New Mountain Finance will have a dividend payout ratio of 99.17% in the coming year. This indicates that New Mountain Finance may not be able to sustain their current dividend.

View New Mountain Finance's dividend history.
Morgan Stanley China A Share Fund, Inc. is a closed-end management investment company. Its investment objective is to seek capital growth. The firm invests its assets in A-shares of Chinese companies listed on the Shanghai and Shenzhen Stock Exchanges, either by investing directly in A-shares through a licensed qualified foreign institutional investor or by gaining exposure to the A-share market through the use of derivatives. The company was founded on July 6, 2006 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

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Premier African Minerals Limited, together with its subsidiaries, engages in the mining, exploration, evaluation, development, and investment of natural resource properties on the African continent. The company explores for tungsten, lithium, tantalum, fluorspar, xenotime, zinc, nickel, uranium, gold, specialty minerals, limestone, potash and limestone, and rare earth metals. It holds interests in various properties located in Zimbabwe, Togo, Benin, and Mozambique. The company was formerly known as G&B African Resources Limited and changed its name to Premier African Minerals Limited in April 2012. Premier African Minerals Limited was founded in 2007 and is based in Tortola, British Virgin Islands.

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Royal Bank of Canada operates as a diversified financial service company worldwide. The company's Personal & Commercial Banking segment offers checking and savings accounts, home equity financing, personal lending, private banking, indirect lending, mutual funds and self-directed brokerage accounts, guaranteed investment certificates, credit cards, and payment products and solutions; and lending, leasing, deposit, investment, foreign exchange, cash management, auto dealer financing, trade products, and services to small and medium-sized commercial businesses. This segment offers financial products and services through branches, automated teller machines, and mobile sales network. Its Wealth Management segment provides a suite of advice-based solutions and strategies to high net worth and ultra-high net worth individuals, and institutional clients. The company's Insurance segment offers life, health, home, auto, travel, wealth, annuities, and reinsurance advice and solutions; and creditor and business insurance services to individual, business, and group clients through its field sales force, advice centers, and online, as well as through independent insurance advisors and affinity relationships. Its Investor & Treasury Services segment provides asset, cash management, transaction banking, and treasury services to institutional clients; correspondent banking and trade finance services for financial institutions; and short-term funding and liquidity management services. The company's Capital Markets segment offers corporate and investment banking, as well as equity and debt origination, distribution, sale, and trading services for corporations, institutional investors, asset managers, governments, and central banks. Royal Bank of Canada has a strategic partnership with Royal College Of Physicians & Surgeons Of Canada to support the needs of Canada's medical specialists. The company was founded in 1864 and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

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The following companies are subsidiares of Teledyne Technologies: Alia Corporation Inc, Bolt Technology Corp, Bowtech Products, CARIS, CDL do Brasil Equipamentos e Servicos Submarinos Sociedade Empresaria Ltda., CETAC Technologies, DALSA, Demo Systems, Detcon Holdco Inc., Ensambles de Precision S.A. de C.V., Falcon Analytical, Frontline Test Equipment, GMI Group Holdings Limited, Hafmynd ehf, Hanson Research Corp, IST Oldham Instruments India Private Limited, Industrial Control Machines, Intelek, Intelek Limited, Intelek Pension Trustees Limited, Intelek Properties Limited, LeCroy (Beijing) Trading Co. Ltd., LeCroy Corporation, Lidar Aviation Services Inc., Maple Imaging LLC, Micralyne Inc, Ocean Design Ltda., Oldham Instrument (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Oldham Simtronics SAS, Oldham-Winter GmbH, PDM Neptec, Reynolds Industries Limited, Rhombi Canada LP, Rhombi Holdings Limited, Rhombi Netherlands B.V., Rockwell Scientific Company, Simtronics AS, TDY Jersey Limited, Teledyne Advanced Pollution Instrumentation, Teledyne Australia Pty Ltd, Teledyne BlueView, Teledyne Bogatin Enterprises LLC, Teledyne Bowtech Limited, Teledyne Brown Engineering Inc., Teledyne C.M.L. Group Limited, Teledyne CARIS B.V., Teledyne CARIS Inc., Teledyne CARIS UK Ltd., Teledyne CARIS USA Inc., Teledyne CDL Inc., Teledyne CDL Limited, Teledyne Catalyst Enterprises Inc., Teledyne Computer Access Technology Corporation, Teledyne Controls LLC, Teledyne Cougar, Teledyne Czech s.r.o., Teledyne DALSA (Shanghai) Trading Co. Ltd., Teledyne DALSA Asia-Pacific Ltd., Teledyne DALSA B.V., Teledyne DALSA GmbH, Teledyne DALSA Inc., Teledyne DALSA Industrial Products Inc., Teledyne DALSA K.K., Teledyne DALSA Semiconductor Inc., Teledyne Dalsa, Teledyne Defense Electronics LLC, Teledyne Denmark A/S, Teledyne Detcon Inc., Teledyne Digital Imaging Inc., Teledyne Digital Imaging US Inc., Teledyne Energy Systems Inc., Teledyne Europe Holdings C.V., Teledyne France, Teledyne France SAS, Teledyne Gas Measurement Instruments Limited, Teledyne Gavia ehf., Teledyne Germany GmbH, Teledyne Hanson Research Inc., Teledyne ICM SA, Teledyne ICM SPRL, Teledyne Innovaciones Microelectronics S.L.U., Teledyne Instruments Inc., Teledyne Instruments Malaysia Sdn. Bhd., Teledyne Japan Corporation, Teledyne Korea Ltd., Teledyne Labtech Limited, Teledyne LeCroy AB, Teledyne LeCroy Delaware LLC, Teledyne LeCroy GmbH, Teledyne LeCroy Inc., Teledyne LeCroy India Trading Private Ltd., Teledyne LeCroy Japan Corporation, Teledyne LeCroy Korea Ltd., Teledyne LeCroy OakGate Inc., Teledyne LeCroy S.A.R.L., Teledyne LeCroy S.R.L., Teledyne LeCroy SA, Teledyne LeCroy Singapore Pte. Ltd., Teledyne Limited, Teledyne Micralyne Inc., Teledyne Monitor Labs, Teledyne Monitor Labs P.R. Inc., Teledyne Netherlands B.V., Teledyne ODI, Teledyne Optech Inc., Teledyne Paradise Datacom Limited, Teledyne RD Instruments, Teledyne RD Technologies (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Teledyne RESON, Teledyne RESON A/S, Teledyne RESON B.V., Teledyne RESON GmbH, Teledyne RESON Holding B.V., Teledyne RESON Inc., Teledyne RESON Pte. Ltd., Teledyne RESON UK Limited, Teledyne RISI Inc., Teledyne Rad-icon Imaging Corp., Teledyne Redlake MASD LLC, Teledyne Reynolds Inc., Teledyne SG Brown Limited, Teledyne Scientific & Imaging LLC, Teledyne Scientific Imaging GmbH, Teledyne Scientific Imaging Limited, Teledyne Signal Processing Devices Sweden AB, Teledyne Singapore Private Limited, Teledyne TSS Limited, Teledyne Taiwan Company, Teledyne Technologies (Bermuda) Limited, Teledyne Technologies (Shanghai) Co. Ltd., Teledyne Technologies International Corp., Teledyne Technologies Israel Ltd., Teledyne Tekmar Company, Teledyne UK Limited, Teledyne VariSystems, Teledyne VariSystems Inc., Teledyne Wireless LLC, Teledyne e2v, Teledyne e2v (Beijing) Co. Ltd., Teledyne e2v (Overseas) Holdings Limited, Teledyne e2v Asia Pacific Limited, Teledyne e2v Limited, Teledyne e2v Semiconductors SAS, and The Oceanscience Group Ltd..
TBC Bank Group PLC, through its subsidiaries, provides banking, leasing, brokerage, and card processing services to corporate and individual customers in Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Uzbekistan. The company operates through Retail; Corporate; and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises segments. It offers various current/settlement accounts, and term deposits; mortgage, consumer, retail, and corporate loans, as well as loans for micro, small, and medium enterprises; credit cards, credit lines, letters of credit, and guarantees; and money transfer and currency exchange services. The company also provides motor, life and personal accident, property, health, and other insurance products; investment, brokerage, and corporate finance solutions; and card processing, leasing, PR and marketing, real estate management, asset management, computer and software, e-commerce, and postal services. In addition, it offers internet and mobile banking services. The company operates through a network of 157 branches; 1,570 automated teller machines; 25,163 point of sale terminals; and 3,905 self-service terminals. TBC Bank Group PLC was founded in 1992 and is based in Tbilisi, Georgia.

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TelefAnica Brasil S.A., together with its subsidiaries, provides mobile and fixed telecommunications services to residential and corporate customers in Brazil. Its fixed line services portfolio includes local, domestic long-distance, and international long-distance calls; and mobile portfolio comprises voice and broadband internet access through 3G, 4G, and 4.5G, as well as mobile value-added services and wireless roaming services. The company also offers data services, including broadband and mobile data services. In addition, it provides pay TV services through direct to home satellite technology, IPTV, and cable, as well as pay-per-view and video on demand services; network services, such as rental of facilities; other services comprising internet access, private network connectivity, computer equipment leasing, extended service, caller identification, voice mail, cellular blocker, and others; wholesale services, including interconnection services to users of other network providers; and digital services, such as entertainment, cloud, and security and financial services, as well as sells wireless devices and accessories. Further, the company offers multimedia communication services, which include audio, data, voice and other sounds, images, texts, and other information, as well as sells devices, such as smartphones, broadband USB modems, and other devices. Additionally, it provides telecommunications solutions and IT support to various industries, such as retail, manufacturing, services, financial institutions, government, etc. It markets and sells its solutions through own stores, dealers, retail and distribution channels, door-to-door sales, and telesales. The company was formerly known as TelecomunicaAAes de SAo Paulo S.A. - TELESP and changed its name to TelefAnica Brasil S.A. in October 2011. The company was incorporated in 1998 and is headquartered in SAo Paulo, Brazil.

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The following companies are subsidiares of The Travelers Companies: 10762962 Canada Inc., 350 Market Street LLC, 8527512 Canada Inc., Aetna Life and Casualty Co, American Equity Insurance Company, American Equity Specialty Insurance Company, Aprilgrange Limited, Arch Street North LLC, Auto Hartford Investments LLC, Bayhill Restaurant II Associates, Camperdown Corporation, Constitution State Services LLC, Discover Property & Casualty Insurance Company, Discover Specialty Insurance Company, F&G UK Underwriters Limited, Farmington Casualty Company, Fidelity and Guaranty Insurance Company, Fidelity and Guaranty Insurance Underwriters Inc., First Floridian Auto and Home Insurance Company, Gulf Underwriters Insurance Company, IHP Capital Partners Fund VIII L.P., Northbrook Holdings Inc., Northfield Insurance Company, Northland Casualty Company, Northland Insurance Company, Phoenix UK Investments LLC, SPC Insurance Agency Inc., Select Insurance Company, Simply Business Holdings Inc., Simply Business Inc., St. Paul Fire and Marine Insurance Company, St. Paul Guardian Insurance Company, St. Paul Mercury Insurance Company, St. Paul Protective Insurance Company, St. Paul Surplus Lines Insurance Company, Standard Fire Properties LLC, Standard Fire UK Investments LLC, TCI Global Services Inc., TPC Investments Inc., TPC U.K. Investments LLC, The Automobile Insurance Company of Hartford Connecticut, The Charter Oak Fire Insurance Company, The Dominion of Canada General Insurance Company, The Family Business Institute LLC, The Phoenix Insurance Company, The St. Paul Companies Inc., The Standard Fire Insurance Company, The Travelers Casualty Company, The Travelers Home and Marine Insurance Company, The Travelers Indemnity Company, The Travelers Indemnity Company of America, The Travelers Indemnity Company of Connecticut, The Travelers Lloyds Insurance Company, TravCo Insurance Company, Travelers (Bermuda) Limited, Travelers Brazil Acquisition LLC, Travelers Brazil Holding LLC, Travelers Casualty Company of Connecticut, Travelers Casualty Insurance Company of America, Travelers Casualty UK Investments LLC, Travelers Casualty and Surety Company, Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of America, Travelers Casualty and Surety Company of Europe Limited, Travelers Commercial Casualty Company, Travelers Commercial Insurance Company, Travelers Constitution State Insurance Company, Travelers Distribution Alliance Inc., Travelers Excess and Surplus Lines Company, Travelers Global Inc., Travelers Indemnity U.K. Investments LLC, Travelers Insurance Company Limited, Travelers Insurance Company of Canada, Travelers Insurance Designated Activity Company, Travelers Insurance Group Holdings Inc., Travelers Lloyds of Texas Insurance Company, Travelers London Limited, Travelers MGA Inc., Travelers Management Limited, Travelers Marine LLC, Travelers Participacoes em Seguros Brasil S.A., Travelers Personal Insurance Company, Travelers Personal Security Insurance Company, Travelers Property Casualty Company of America, Travelers Property Casualty Corp., Travelers Property Casualty Insurance Company, Travelers Seguros Brasil S.A., Travelers Syndicate Management Limited, Travelers Texas MGA Inc., Travelers Underwriting Agency Limited, Ultramar Travel Management, United States Fidelity and Guaranty Company, Xbridge Limited, Zensurance Brokers Inc., and Zensurance Inc..
Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. engages in global investment banking, securities, and investment management, which provides financial services. It operates through the following business segments: Investment Banking, Global Markets, Asset Management, and Consumer & Wealth Management. The Investment Banking segment serves public and private sector clients around the world and provides financial advisory services, help companies raise capital to strengthen and grow their businesses and provide financing to corporate clients. The Global Markets segment serves its clients who buy and sell financial products, funding and manage risk. The Asset Management segment provides investment services to help clients preserve and grow their financial assets. The Consumer & Wealth Management segment helps clients to achieve their individual financial goals by providing a wealth advisory and banking services. The company was founded by Marcus Goldman in 1869 and is headquartered in New York, NY.

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Following a neo-Nazi rampage in Chemnitz last Sunday and Monday, tens of thousands have demonstrated across Germany against the far right. Around 10,000 young people and workers took to the streets in the Neukoln district of Berlin on Thursday. Then on Friday, several hundred demonstrators assembled in front of Saxonys state office in Berlin. Several thousand protested in other cities, including Frankfurt and Chemnitz.

In Berlin, World Socialist Web Site reporters spoke with Stefan, 29, a Chemnitz native who studies in Potsdam. I wasnt there over the weekend, but I was born in Chemnitz. It has a big effect on you when you know the city and see the scenes that played out on the streets and know what has been happening in Saxony over the past two or three decades since reunification. This is a new low. I was really staggered by it, it left me feeling helpless. Thats why I'm here today, to send a message.

Stefan said he supports a world and a country where people can live together, irrespective of where they come from, their skin colour, their beliefs; where people cooperate peacefully, live together in peace, and dont have to live in a world of hate. Thats why Im here today. Because I think if you dont start to stand up now, at some point it will be too late, and I dont want to have to accuse myself of not being there if it should come to that.

Stefan said that he sees disturbing parallels with the 1920s and 1930s. If you look at the history of the NSDAP [Nazi Party], they began as a tiny group and nobody took them seriously. They were shouted down as a right-wing mob and suppressed, and then it took ten years before the party came to power.  I think we have the chance to prevent it now. Stefan said he was deeply concerned that if we dont decisively oppose it now, something similar could be repeated.

Asked about the close connections between right-wing extremists, the police and the government in Saxony in particular, Stefan said: I was at the counter-protests against Pegida in 2015 and one thing was clear from the beginning: if you looked at how the police were acting, you knew whose side some of the officers were on. The state apparatus, police and authorities have a magnetic attraction for people with this outlook. I think that nationalist standpoints and state institutions complement each other, precisely because the state institutions work to defend the nation-state.

The audience in Frankfurt

In Frankfurt, more than 10,000 people took part in a rock against the right concert on September 1.

Dennis, a student from Offenbach, said of the Nazi march in Chemnitz: Things like that shouldnt be allowed to happen. The AfD [Alternative for Germany] is clearly an inhumane party. He said the policies of the grand coalition are a major factor in the rise of the Nazis. The participation of the SPD [Social-Democratic Party] in the German government was a huge disappointment for him.

Currently they present themselves in the [Hesse state parliamentary] election campaign as advocates for social protections. But in reality, they never implement any of that, but instead go along with the right-wing policies of the grand coalition. They are therefore jointly responsible for whats happening. Dennis was especially disgusted by the grand coalitions refugee policy. We have to say loud and clear: we don't want Anker centres [detention centres for refugees] to be established everywhere. We want people to be treated like people and not as a problem.

Aaron, who just completed high school, was worried about the reemergence of fascist forces in Germany. They exploited the murder of an innocent man to spread their right-wing ideology. But we cant allow any space for this right-wing agitation. In Germany, of all places, we should know better, weve all seen where it leads.

Aaron said the police gave the fascists free reign in Chemnitz: You could see that these forces had free rein for hours. The police did nothing to counter them. By comparison, one only has to look at what happened last year at the G20 protests in Hamburg and how the police cracked down on the left. In Chemnitz, the right wing was free to do what they liked.

Anne and Tim travelled to Frankfurt. Its important to stand up to the right wing now! stated Anne, who studies in Mainz. Tim, who comes from a small village in northern Hesse, also thought it is important to do something against the racists. At home in the village there areunfortunatelytoo many of them, he added.

Anne and Tim

Anne and Tim were concerned that our state spends so much on the military. That is an outrage, said Anne. All of the preparations for new warsits the wrong direction. Theyre only concerned about controlling resources. Nobody can tell me that these wars are for humanitarian reasons. If that were the case, the first thing they could do is save the people in the Mediterranean. But nobody wants to do that. Tim added, First they sell deadly weapons around the worldand then they complain when there are refugees.

In Chemnitz on Saturday, thousands blocked a so-called funeral march by the far right, during which there were further attacks on journalists and left-wing protesters.

World Socialist Web Site reporters and members of the Sozialistische Gleichheitspartei (SGP) spoke with Herta, 50, who lives near Chemnitz. Its a disgrace that the far right can march here like this, she said. We want to show that many people are opposed to it. The established parties do nothing against the Nazis. Asked who she held responsible for the rise of the far right, Herta answered, The CDU [Christian Democratic Union] adopts the same policies as the AfD, so its hardly surprising.

Marvin, 18, came with friends from Dresden to the demonstration. Nazis shouldnt be allowed to hunt people through the city. Im worried that its going to be like what it was under Hitler here, said Marvin. Many other young people he knew felt the same way. He was outraged at the police, who do nothing to protect foreigners and refugees. Although the AfD protest is large, I think most people here are against the AfD.

Today, a rock against the right concert is planned in Chemnitz, featuring the bands Die Tote Hosen and Kraftklub. More than 30,000 people have said they will attend the event, according to Facebook, while 100,000 have indicated their solidarity. Members of the SGP and its youth and student organisation, the International Youth and Students for Social Equality (IYSSE), will be in Chemnitz and many other cities where further demonstrations against the far right are planned to discuss the necessity of a socialist programme against capitalism, fascism and war.
Less than a month after brutal US sanctions snapped back into force against Iran, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) confirmed yet again, in a report released Friday, that Tehran is in full compliance with the 2015 nuclear accord. The agreement, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) was unilaterally abrogated in May by US President Donald Trump, who made entirely bogus claims that Iran had violated the deal.

The latest IAEA findings further expose the provocative character of the Trump administrations policy, which threatens not only to plunge the entire region into military conflict, but also has dramatically sharpened tensions between Washington and its ostensible European allies. Trump vowed following his announcement that any company doing business with Iran, including those based in Europe, would be barred from trading with the United States.

The fact that US imperialism is the most destabilizing factor in the present situation has been underlined over the past week following aggressive comments by US National Security Adviser John Bolton. On August 22, he declared that Washington intends to push Iranian oil exports down to zero, and do so just as soon as its sanctions on Irans energy sector are re-imposed November 8.

Boltons ominous threat was made as reports emerged that the US may be preparing a major military strike on the Syrian regime of Bashar al-Assad, which, as a close ally of Tehran and Moscow, is viewed by Washington as a major obstacle to the consolidation of its unchallenged control over the energy-rich and strategically pivotal Middle East.

In response to Boltons threat, a top general in Irans Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) threatened to block oil shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, if Washington follows through on Boltons declaration. In recent months, Iranian officials have repeatedly said that if the US and its local clients, such as Saudi Arabia, seek to illegally strangle Irans economyimposing, in what is tantamount to an act of war, an oil-export embargothen it will be within its rights to stop the Saudis and others from exporting oil as well.

The Pentagon has invariably replied to such Iranian warnings with war threats. In what amounted to an implicit threat of direct military action, Major Josh Jacques of US Central Command was quick to respond to the IRGC generals warning, declaring Together, with its allies, Washington stands ready to ensure the freedom of navigation and the free flow of commerce wherever international law allows.

Freedom of navigation has served as Washingtons justification for a massive military build-up in the Asia-Pacific against China, including the deployment of nuclear-capable aircraft and vessels to the region in a series of highly provocative exercises.

Should US imperialism follow through with the threat to invoke freedom of navigation to launch a military assault on Tehran, Washington would provoke a region-wide conflict with catastrophic consequences.

As well as being a direct participant in the Syrian conflict, Iran has also aligned with Turkey and Russia to exclude the United States from ongoing peace talks. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani met last week for a previously unannounced meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has increasingly been at odds with Washington due to its support for the Kurdish YPG in Syria and its backing of a failed coup against Erdogan in July 2016.

Officially, the meeting was billed as preparation for a summit to be attended by Rouhani, Erdogan and Russian president Vladimir Putin in Iran on September 7 to discuss the way forward in Syria. However, the two leaders undoubtedly discussed their plans to maintain Iranian-Turkish energy ties, which are critical to both countries economies, when US sanctions on Iranian energy exports take hold.

Amid these rapidly rising tensions, Tehran announced plans on Saturday to boost its missile capacity and purchase modern fighter jets and submarines. Ayatollah Khamenei, Irans Supreme Leader, said he believed a war would not break out, but added that the army needs to be vigilant  and raise their personnel and equipment capacities.

Khameneis remarks came just days after he told a cabinet meeting, also attended by Rouhani, that Iran could leave the nuclear accord. The nuclear deal is a means, not the goal, and if we come to this conclusion that it does not serve our national interests, we can abandon it, he declared. His message was reiterated in a tweet Friday, following the publication of the IAEA report, from Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammed Javad Zarif.

These threats reflect the deepening crisis confronting the bourgeois-clerical regime in Tehran, under conditions in which Washington is seeking to crash the Iranian economy and is intensifying military pressure. At the same time, unrest is growing in Iran over rampant social inequality, and the bourgeoisies drive to make the working class and oppressed masses bear the burden of the confrontation with imperialism.

Khameneis threat is also bound up with Tehrans growing realization that its hopes that the European powers would and could shield them from Washingtons offensive are proving in vain.

Although the EU has revived legislation it claims will protect European companies from US sanctions if they continue to do business with Iran, hundreds of corporations, including Germanys Daimler and Frances Total, have voted with their feet by declaring their intentions to halt operations in the Islamic Republic.

This has led to a deepening of the rift between the former trans-Atlantic allies. Driven by the intensifying crisis of global capitalism, expressed above all in the breakdown of the post-war economic and political institutions, European politicians, led by Germany, are demanding more independence from and even confrontation with Washington. Two weeks ago, in a comment in the German daily Handelsblatt, German Foreign Minister Heiko Mas called for the creation of an independent European payments system as an alternative to the US-controlled SWIFT system and the drawing of red lines by the European powers in their relations with Washington.

No less than Washington, the European imperialist powers are determined to exert their economic, political and military domination over Iran, the Middle East and other parts of the globe. However, their sharp differences with Washington over policy to Iran are based on frustration that the US sanctions are cutting across billions in European investment, and fears that a war with Tehran would cause oil prices to spike and destabilize the entire Middle East region on Europes doorstep.

This was underlined in the response by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian to the latest IAEA confirmation that Iran is complying with the JCPOAs terms. While defending the JCPOA, Le Drian echoed Trump by demanding that Tehran accept negotiations not only on its future nuclear policy, but also on its ballistic missile program, as well as its roles in regional conflicts in Syria and Yemen. Iran needs to avoid the temptation to be the [regional] hegemon, added Le Drian.

The danger that a catastrophic military conflict could erupt between the US and Iran, which would rapidly draw in the European imperialist powers and other regional players like China and Russia, is compounded by deep divisions within the Iranian regime. These disagreements are being exacerbated both by US imperialist aggression and internal social conflicts, which were expressed most clearly in widespread working class protests against worsening living conditions earlier this year.

In an unprecedented move, the Iranian parliament censured Rouhani following responses he gave to a parliamentary sitting last week on the economic situation and economic policy. Earlier in August, parliamentary deputies voted to remove Rouhanis economy and labour ministers. This reflects sharpening conflicts within the regime between so-called hardliners, whose support for the Iran nuclear deal was at best tepid from the start, and the Rouhani-led moderate wing of the ruling elite, which hoped that the JCPOA would serve as the initial stage of a broader rapprochement with the imperialist powers. Trumps decision to trash the nuclear accord has further weakened the moderate wing, which had already been under increased pressure due to the JCPOAs failure to bring about any real improvement to economic growth and the living standards of the vast majority of the Iranian population.

The Iranian presidents attempts during his parliamentary appearance to portray the US as solely responsible for the countrys economic woes and tar all anti-government protesters as dupes of Washington are thoroughly dishonest. All factions of the Iranian regime, whatever their differences over foreign policy, agree that the working class must be made to pay for the countrys economic crisis and have pursued neo-liberal pro-market reform and austerity measures for years.
US President Trump last Thursday again criticised China in a series of tweets, accusing Beijing of applying pressure to North Korea not to meet US demands to denuclearise. The verbal attack on China comes amid growing signs that negotiations over Pyongyangs nuclear programs, initiated at a Singapore summit between Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in June, have stalled.

Trumps tweets, which were designated as a White House statement, claimed that North Korea was under tremendous pressure from China because of our trade disputes with the Chinese government. It continued: At the same time, we also know that China is providing North Korea with considerable aid, including money, fuel, fertilizer and various other commodities. This is not helpful!

In other words, China, supposedly, is deliberately sabotaging Washingtons negotiations with Pyongyang in retaliation for the escalating US trade war measures against Beijing. Trump provided no proof to support the claim, nor any evidence that China was breaching UN sanctions on North Korea, which have blocked most of the countrys exports and placed limits, but not a complete ban, on its energy imports.

While lashing China, Trump declared that he believed that his relationship with Kim Jong Un is a very good and warm one. The ploy is an obvious one: by criticising Beijing rather than Pyongyang for stalled talks, the US president is seeking to drive a wedge between the two allies and encouraging North Korea to reorient more closely to the US.

Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying responded to Trumps allegations, branding them an irresponsible distortion of facts and logic. She called on the US to honour its pledges and commitments and play a positive and constructive role in settling this issue, just like we Chinese people do. She added that the US should look to itself to find out what is wrong instead of shifting blame onto others.

Trump has continued and escalated the Obama administrations confrontational pivot to Asia aimed at isolating and undermining China, diplomatically, economically and militarily. His stance towards North Korea has veered erratically and recklesslyfrom threatening to totally destroy it last year, to declaring after the Singapore summit that it no longer posed a nuclear threat. Trumps overriding aim is to draw North Korea out of Chinas orbit and further isolate Beijing.

In his tweets last week, Trump used the same carrot-and-stick approach to joint US-South Korean military exercises that were suspended after the Singapore summit. Last Tuesday, US Defence Secretary James Mattis announced that the Pentagon had no plans at this time to suspend any more exercises, suggesting that the war games could resume. Pyongyang is understandably hostile to the drills, which are barely-disguised preparations for war against North Korea.

Trumps statement last Thursday appeared to contradict Mattis. There is no reason at this time to be spending large amounts of money on joint US-South Korea war games, he declared. That remark, however, was quickly followed by a threat: Besides, the President can instantly start the joint exercises again with South Korea, and Japan, if he so chooses.

The joint statement issued by Trump and Kim after their Singapore summit referred only in general terms to a commitment to denuclearise the Korean Peninsulaa phrase that is interpreted quite differently in Washington and Pyongyang. No concrete steps were announced.

Nevertheless, the Trump administration is placing pressure on North Korea to hand over its nuclear arsenal and dismantle its facilities prior to any concessions by the US. The American president cancelled the latest trip by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo that was due to take place last week, claiming that North Korea had not done enough to denuclearise.

The Pyongyang regime has halted its nuclear and missile testing and taken initial steps to dismantle a test site. However, it insists that further steps should be based on reciprocal moves by Washington. In particular, North Korea is pressing for a US declaration formally ending the 195053 Korean War that would pave the way for a peace treaty and an end to decades of isolation. The conflict concluded in 1953 with an armistice that halted the fighting but the two sides still remain technically at war.

Vox news service last week reported that Trump had made a commitment to Kim during their summit to formally announce an end to the war. Citing two sources, it stated that Trump promised the North Korean leader that hed sign a peace declaration soon after they met. Another source said that the US president had made the same promise to a top North Korean official Kim Yong-chol at the White House just days before the summit.

If that was the case, it would explain North Koreas frustration with the failure of Trump to live up to his promises while placing further demands on it to denuclearise. Following Pompeos last trip to Pyongyang, the state-owned media attacked Washingtons gangster-like demands to give up its nuclear arsenal with nothing in return.

The Trump administrations determination to keep up the pressure on North Korea is also cutting across efforts by South Korean President Moon Jae-in to improve relations with Pyongyang. The two countries have already announced that a peace declaration will be signed by the end of the yeara step that the US could block. Moon is due to hold another summit this month with North Korean leader Kim.

Last month, the US effectively sabotaged initial steps by two Koreas to re-establish a rail link between the countries. A joint field study that involved sending a train from Seoul through North Korea to Sinuiju on the Chinese border was blocked by the UN command. In what amounted to a slap in the face to South Korea, this body, which is under US control, requested more fidelity on the details of the proposed visit.

At the same time, the Trump administration is increasingly under fire over North Korea at home from the Democrats and sections of the US media. In a scathing critique of the Trump-Kim summit, Leon Panetta, former defence secretary and CIA director under Obama, told ABC News yesterday that it was all about show and doomed to failure from the beginning because there was never the preparatory work that has to be done prior to a summit meeting.

This domestic criticism of Trump is a component of the intense infighting in US ruling circles over the direction of foreign policy. Unsubstantiated allegations of Trumps collusion with Russia during the US presidential election campaign reflect bitter tactical differences over whether to confront Russia or China first as the US seeks to shore up its waning global dominance.

The danger is that the unravelling of negotiations with North Korea could rapidly plunge the Korean Peninsula back into a confrontation and a precipitous slide towards war.
Australias brutal treatment of asylum seekers was again thrown into the spotlight on August 26 when a small fishing vessel, carrying 17 Vietnamese men, ran aground in northern Queensland.

The passengers waded to shore and ran into the dangerous Daintree rainforest in an effort to escape capture. The Queensland police launched a widespread manhunt for the men, establishing roadblocks. After initially arresting 12 of the men, police captured all 17 by August 31.

The rounding up of the men occurred in the same week as the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents carried out a workplace raid in North Texas, arresting 160 immigrant workers. Across the globe, immigrants and refugees are being treated as criminals.

Australias Department of Home Affairs has refused to provide any information about the detained Vietnamese men or their fate, in line with the wall of secrecy erected around the militarised Operation Sovereign Borders to repel all refugee boats.

Home Affairs Minister Peter Dutton vowed to ensure swift deportation of the group. This violates the international Refugees Convention, which gives refugees the right to apply for asylum and prohibits their return to face persecution in the country they fled.

We have been very clear that we wont allow people who arrive illegally into our country to settle in this country, Dutton told reporters on August 27. People will be deported from our country at the first available opportunity.

Dutton refused to provide any details, saying it was an operational matter. He declared that the men would be deported, regardless of any processes required to do so. People who seek to come by boat will never settle here permanently and were going through the processes now and we will make sure that thats the outcome, he stated.

The Liberal-National Coalition governments rush to deport the men, which was echoed throughout the corporate media, was in stark contrast to the sympathy shown by local fishermen and other residents.

Two of the refugees were found in the crocodile-invested mangroves by fishermen, who picked them up on their boat. Justin Ward and Barry Preston told reporters they gave the men a tour and took them crab fishing because this was their last chance at freedom.

Eventually the two fishermen reluctantly handed the men over to the authorities. Ward recounted: We got back to the boat ramp and they were like which way and we said sorry. I was genuinely very sorry but there was not much I can do or Id get into trouble.

The refugees were quickly flown to Christmas Island, an Australian territory in the Indian Ocean, some 4,300 kilometres away. The island contains one of Australias most notorious immigration detention centres, from where refugees and other people denied visas are deported or sent to Australias prison camps on Nauru or Manus Island, Papua New Guinea.

Immediate deportation was the fate of a similar Vietnamese vessel that the Australian Navy seized in April 2015. Its 46 passengers were forcibly transported by a naval vessel to a Vietnamese port. As in the current case, all information about the refugees and their deportation was hidden from public view.

In 2015, Human Rights Watch (HRW) later reported that the group of 46 faced persecution or imprisonment in Vietnam. Four of them fled a second time, before UN authorities in Indonesia granted them refugee status. The latest 17 refugees are likely to face a similar fate.

Vietnamese Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung and his party are accelerating economic reforms, turning Vietnam into a cheap labour platform for foreign investors. The pro-market doi moi policy, which has been pursued since 1986, has turned Vietnam into one of the most unequal countries in the world. A tiny layer at the top enjoys most of the countrys wealth, while the majority of the countrys 93 million population live in poverty. The average annual income in the country is just $US2,200.

Australias treatment of Vietnamese asylum seekers also involves geo-strategic calculations, bound up with US preparations for war against China. Successive Australian governments have committed to backing the escalating American confrontation with Beijing, which now includes trade war measures by the Trump administration.

In 2015, Dutton indicated that a very strong bilateral relationship with Vietnam led to a deal for Hanoi to accept the return of refugees. In recent years, Vietnam has been drawn into the US conflict with China. Washington has encouraged Vietnam, together with the Philippines, to aggressively pursue territorial claims against Beijing in the South China Sea.

Australias military repulsion of refugees is a policy supported by the opposition Labor Party. In fact, Queenslands Labor Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk attacked the Liberal-National government from the right. She called for a full investigation into how the fishing vessel breached border security. Palaszczuk accused Dutton of taking his eye off the ball during his bid to replace Malcolm Turnbull as prime minister.

Dutton vowed to step up military operations along the countrys northeastern coast. Clearly theres been a failing when surveillance has not worked as it should in identifying this vessel or allowing this vessel to get as close to the coastline as it has, but well work through all of that, he said.

Dutton repeated the governments claim to have stopped the boats. He insisted this was the first vessel; the first people-smuggling venture in over 1,400 days. The term people-smugglers has been used to justify the criminal border protection regime of successive Australian governments, Coalition and Labor alike.

In reality, people-smugglers are typically poor Indonesian, Vietnamese or Sri Lankan fisherman whose passengers are forced to resort to their services in order to seek asylum because of Australias illegal shutting of its borders to refugees.

As for stopping the boats, an unknown number of vessels has been intercepted or sunk over the past decade. Asylum seekers have been seized by the Australian navy and sent back to sea, in some cases without enough food and fuel to reach their destination.

After the Coalition government took office in 2013, Immigration and Border Protection Minister Scott Morrison, who is now the prime minister, launched Operation Sovereign Borders, combining military force with military secrecy.

Far from opposing this regime, the Labor Party has claimed credit for stopping the boats, pointing to its decision in 2012, when it was last in government, to reopen the Nauru and Manus camps, where thousands of refugees have been incarcerated indefinitely.

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Australian government sends refugees back to Vietnam by naval warship

[22 April 2015]
The US and Japan are stepping up their attempts to draw Sri Lanka more closely into their geo-political and military manoeuvres against Chinese influence in the Indian and Pacific ocean regions. Last month, two senior Japanese government ministers made official visits to Sri Lanka and a US naval squad conducted joint exercises with its Sri Lankan counterparts.

Japanese Defence Minister Itsunori Onodera arrived on August 20 for a three-day visit, holding discussions with President Maithripala Sirisena, Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe and Minister of Defence Ruwan Wijewardene. It was the first time a Japanese defence minister had visited Sri Lanka.

Onoderas tour followed his trip to India where he held talks with Defence Minister Nirmala Sitharaman about boosting military ties. Tokyo and New Delhi both want Colombo more closely integrated into the US-led strategic partnership against China.

While Japan is already aligned with the US against China, Tokyo has its own imperialist interests and ambitions in the Asia-Pacific region and is deepening its relations with South Asian countries, especially Inida.

All three countriesthe US, Japan and Indiacontinue to publicly voice their concerns over Colombos relations with Beijing, and in particular the 99-year leasing Hambantota Port to China. Washington, Tokyo and New Delhi all claim that Beijing could use the port as a naval base, despite Colombos repeated assurances that the deal does not allow its use for military purposes.

On August 22, Onodera travelled to Trincomalee harbour where Sri Lankas Eastern Naval Command Headquarters is located and inspected Sri Lankas special naval forces there. A Japanese naval warship was anchored in the natural deep water port during the defence ministers visit. A total of 66 Japanese naval ships have visited Sri Lanka since 2008 underscoring the growing military relations.

Following his Trincomalee tour, Onodera inspected Hambantota harbour, telling Japans NHK television that the port should not be used for military purposesanother indication of Tokyos concerns about the lease with China.

Five days after Onodera left Sri Lanka, the Japanese Minister for Foreign Affairs Kazuyuki Nakane arrived for a three-day visit. He met with Wickremesinghe and participated in a commissioning ceremony of two patrol vessels donated to the Sri Lankan Coast Guard by Japan.

The Japanese embassy said that the boats, which cost $11 million, could be used for search and rescue, pollution control and oil spill management, and maritime security boarding operations. Constructed in Japan, they are part of a $16.5 million Japanese-Sri Lankan Maritime Safety Capability Improvement project.

On August 23, a US naval shipthe USS Anchorageand a Marine Expeditionary Unit arrived in Trincomalee. The 25,000-tonne, 208-metre long and 32-metre wide, amphibious docking vessel carries 600 naval personnel and is designed to transport troops into war zones.

The massive vessel participated in joint US-Sri Lankan search and seizure, and security force reaction exercises on August 30 off the eastern coast near Trincomalee. USS Anchorage Captain Denis Jacko and other US military officers also held discussions with Rear Admiral Sumith Weerasinghe, commander of Sri Lankas Eastern Naval Area.

A statement issued by Robert Hilton, the US embassys charge daffaires, declared, Were also excited to try out the air logistics hub concept that utilizes Sri Lankas strategic location in the Indian Ocean to ensure the quick availability of relief supplies, equipment and other material when needed by the US and partner militaries and humanitarian organizations. The air logistics hub is part of Colombos increasing integration with the US military.

A statement by Cmdr. Deborah K. McIvy, assistant chief of staff for US Expeditionary Strike Group 7, said: Successfully leveraging local logistics support services will help standardize the process for future operations, to include supplying mission-critical supplies for HADR [] efforts.

Humanitarian assistance and disaster relief operations are constantly used by the US, Japan and other imperialist powers for large-scale military mobilisation and as logistical dry-runs against rival powers.

Between June and August, a 25-member Sri Lankan navy team participated for the first time in the US-led Rim of the Pacific exercises, in Hawaii and Southern California between June and August. The biennial event is the worlds largest international maritime warfare exercise and involves the US Navys Pacific Fleet, the Marine Corps and number of other units. US quadrilateral partners, India, Japan and Australia, participated in the exercises along with a number of other countries, including Israel and Vietnam. China was a notable exclusion.

India is deepening its economic and defence ties with Sri Lanka. New Delhi wants a leasing agreement with Colombo for the southern Mattala International Airport, near Hambantota harbour, and is also seeking a strategic foothold at Trincomalee.

While an India-Sri Lanka Defence Dialogue was established in 2012, it did not become fully operational until after Maithripala Sirisena became Sri Lankan president following a US orchestrated regime-change operation to remove then President Mahinda Rajapakse. Washington, with backing from New Delhi, demanded Rajapakse distance Colombo from Beijing as part of US President Obamas anti-China pivot to Asia. After coming to power in 2015, the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government began implementing a pro-US, pro-Indian foreign policy.

Faced with the serious financial problems, the Sirisena-Wickremesinghe government, however, has turned to Beijing for financial support and investment. China paid $US1.1billion to lease the Hambantota port and is currently the islands leading investor. Last month, Chinese President Xi Jinping offered Sri Lanka a $295 million grant as part of its plans to increase its influence on the island.

To counter Washingtons increasingly aggressive political and military moves, Beijing has developed its Belt and Road Initiative, which includes establishing port facilities in countries like Sri Lanka to secure sea lanes to the Middle East and Africa. The massive infrastructure project aims to link the Eurasian region, as well as Africa, by land and sea.

The expansion of US and Japanese military activities in Sri Lanka will only intensify geo-political tensions as the Trump administration ratchets up its trade war measures with China and prepares for military confrontation.
25 years ago: US helicopter gunships murder hundreds in Somalia

On September 9, 1993, two US Cobra helicopter gunships swooped down on a large crowd of Somali civilians protesting at a checkpoint in Mogadishu, the capital city, mowing down hundreds with gunfire from 20 millimeter cannons, whose rounds are powerful enough to destroy armored vehicles and soldiers in fortified bunkers.

A US helicopter gunship in Somalia

Scores of corpses littered the 21 October Road, where the attack took place, while hundreds of dead and wounded were taken to hospitals throughout the city. Dozens of the dead and wounded were children, gunned down along with their parents, as they sought to block the advance of a Pakistani tank column accompanied by US ground troops, on a well-publicized raid on the forces of the Somali National Alliance of General Muhammad Farah Aidid.

The gunships were ordered to attack after the Pakistani troops, part of the United Nations peacekeeping force in Somalia, reported they had come under fire from Somali gunmen at a roadblock. A US military spokesman maintained that unarmed men, women and children were engaged in storming UN vehicles when the gunships opened fire. We saw all the people swarming on the vehicles as combatants, he claimed. Weve seen this before. If they reach our soldiers, they tear them limb from limb.

Other officials sought to disguise the popular resistance to the US and UN forces, claiming that Aidids forces were using women and children as human shields in attacking UN troops.

The massacre followed a series of public statements by Defense Secretary Les Aspin, defining the Clinton administrations aims in Somalia. In a speech August 27 at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, Aspin made it clear that Washington now viewed the Somali operation as an open-ended military occupation.

He said that the US would only begin withdrawing its nearly 5,000 troops if three conditions were met: Somali warlords gave up their heavy weapons, credible police forces were established, and, most importantly the security issue in south Mogadishu must be settled. The last was a reference to the elimination of Aidid, who was now being demonized by Washington and the corporate media as the evil genius of the Somali resistance to foreign occupation.

50 years ago: US casualties escalate in Vietnam

The Pentagon announced on September 5, 1968 that US casualties in Vietnam totaled 408 for the last week in August, the highest weekly figure in three months. The combat losses reflected a renewed offensive by the National Liberation Front coinciding with the opening of the US presidential campaign. It was the second major wave of attacks since the end of the Tet Offensive in February. The NLF launched another series of assaults in early May.

US troops examine the entrance to a tunnel complex in Vietnam

The August fighting centered in Tayninh Province, northwest of Saigon. Thirteen cities in the Mekong Delta were shelled, along with Saigon itself. Several days later the NLF launched a second wave of attacks in the northern provinces targeting Danang, the center of US military operations, and the provincial capital of Hue, scene of the heaviest Tet fighting. Eighteen other cities and military bases were also attacked. In Danang the NLF shelled two US airfields with mortars and rockets. Several commando units infiltrated the center of the city and engaged in a fight with South Vietnamese troops. Sniper fire was also reported near the US Marine supply depot.

Despite the announcement by President Johnson on March 31 that he would not seek reelection and would pursue negotiations with North Vietnam, American deaths reached record levels during the spring and summer. By the end of August the casualty toll for 1968 stood at 11,487. US troop strength reached its all-time peak, 538,500 men.

Meanwhile in Paris the negotiations between the United States and North Vietnam, which began in May, dragged on with no substantive results. North Vietnam continued to demand that the US agree to halt all bombing as a precondition for further talks while Ambassador-at Large Averill Harriman and Cyrus Vance, the US delegates, called for the North to evacuate the demilitarized zone, Laos and Cambodia.

75 years ago: Allied forces invade Italy

On September 3, 1943, the Allied powers began a full-scale invasion and occupation of Italy with large detachments of British and Canadian troops landing at Reggio Calabria in the south of the island. The Italian regime, recognizing that the days of the fascist Axis powers were numbered, had resolved the previous month to align with the Allied powers in the ongoing Second World War, and offered no resistance to their military forces.

Map shows the plan of attack for Allied forces in the Italian

Preparations for the invasion had been taking place for several months. The routing of Italian and German troops in North Africa had created a base from which an attempted occupation of Italy by the Allied powers could be launched. The German Nazi regime, suffering a series of defeats on the Eastern Front, had rebuffed Italian dictator Benito Mussolinis appeals for substantial troop numbers to be sent to Italy to repel any attempted invasion.

The landing of Allied troops came amid a major political crisis of the Italian regime. On July 24, Mussolini had summoned the fascist Grand Council, following Allied landings on the island of Sicily, which were recognized as the opening shot of a full-scale invasion of the mainland. The council voted no confidence in the dictator, and he was removed and arrested.

General Giuseppe Castellano was appointed prime minister by King Victor Emmanuel III. As had been agreed upon by the council, Castellano, a hardened fascist, immediately offered an armistice to the Allied powers on September 3, having already signaled that Italian troops would not resist the invasion.

On September 8, Castellano announced the armistice to the Italian population and it was published by the Italian powers. Fighting ensued between German troops, who had occupied sections of the north of the country, the Allies and the Italian forces loyal to them.

The Allied intervention, and the palace coup to remove Mussolini, took place amid the emergence of a mass movement of the Italian working class against fascism and the war. Over the previous months, factory committees had been formed in crucial industries and mass strikes were organized. The Italian generals, the Allied powers and the Stalinist Communist Party would do everything they could to prevent the upsurge leading to the overthrow of Italian capitalism.

100 years ago: Red Army launches attack on Kazan

On September 7, 1918, the Red Army began shelling Kazan, the most important city held by the counterrevolutionary forces opposed to the Bolshevik regime, and the nearest White-held city to the capital, Moscow. Kazan had been taken by the troops of the counterrevolutionary Komuch government and the Czech Legion on August 7.

Leon Trotsky addressing Red Army troops

The battle at Kazan had been preceded by several weeks of fighting by the stubborn and heroic Soviet resistance at the small railway junction in the town of Sviazhsk, 20 miles west of Kazan, that barred the entry of the White armies to central Russia. The action at Sviazhsk was led by Leon Trotsky personally, from his soon to be famous armored train.

Larissa Reisner, an intelligence officer of the Red Flotilla at Kazan and one of the great memoirists of this period, reports, Trotskys organizing genius now became apparent. Across railways that were openly sabotaged he could get to Sviazhsk not only fresh artillery but everything that was needed for resistance and offensive. Also playing a leading military role at Sviazhsk was the old Bolshevik and later Left Oppositionist I.M. Smirnov.

The Red Flotilla bombarded Kazan from the Volga. The Flotilla, the embryo of the Red Navy, was under the command of F.F. Raskolnikov, an officer who had played a prominent role during the revolution among the sailors of Kronstadt, the navel fortress outside of Petrograd.

A workers uprising in Kazan on September 8 was put down with great brutality by the Komuch government and the Czech Legion. At 3:30 a.m. on September 10, Red Army soldiers under the command of Ioakim Vatsetis assaulted the city walls from the north, south and west, and the city was taken later that day, the first major Soviet victory of the Civil War.

Sviazksk and Kazan were the first successes in what came to be known as the Volga Campaign. Two days after the fall of Kazan, Tukhachevskys First Army took Simbirsk, 100 miles to the south. One historian observed: A command structure was forged that would lead the Red Army to victory. It was in these battles that the pattern of the Red Army was worked out on the Volga. Trotskys regular army was proven.
After weeks of speculation and leaks, the Trump administration announced Friday that it is to end all its payments to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA), including the $290 million planned for this year.

The US State Department also attacked the agencys endlessly and exponentially expanding community of entitled beneficiaries, rejecting UNRWAs definition of Palestinian refugees, which includes not only the 750,000 who became refugees in 1948-9, when they fled or were driven out by Israeli forces, but their descendants who together total some five million. In future, only those who became refugees in 1948-9 will be deemed refugees by the US administration.

The US has hitherto funded nearly 30 percent of UNRWAs total budget that provides health care, education and social services to Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza Strip, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon. It was set to give around $360 million this year, releasing $60 million in January, but withheld a further $65 million of the $290 million it had been due to provide.

The loss of funding will be felt beyond the occupied Palestinian territories, in Jordan, Lebanon and Syria where UNRWA funding provides a vital safety net for regimes that have hovered on the brink of bankruptcy for years.

Although Saudi Arabia, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates and others have offered more than $200 million in additional funding, and Germany said it too would boost its financial support for the agency, senior Israeli diplomatic officials said that Washington had indicated its intention was to close down UNRWA altogether and transfer its functions to other agencies.

UNRWA commissioner-general Pierre Krahenbuhl in an interview with Associated Press contradicted Washingtons assertion that the agency was inefficient. He said, I can say with a great degree of confidence that the decision [to withhold funding] was not related to UNRWAs performance, because in November I had received very constructive and openly positive feedback on those issues. Instead, it was meant to punish Palestinians for protesting Washingtons recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

He warned that although its 711 schools that educate the 526,000 Palestinian refugee children in Gaza, the West Bank, East Jerusalem, Lebanon, Jordan and Syria would open on time, the agency only had enough money to keep them open until the end of September. It needed a further $217 million to keep the schools running the rest of the year.

A few weeks ago, UNRWA announced cuts to its services that would mean laying off more than 100 of its 13,000 staff in Gaza, transferring some 580 to part-time contracts and cutting salaries of hundreds more, sparking angry protests and causing UNRWA to lose control of its compound in Gaza for more than two weeks.

The situation is particularly acute in Gaza where about half of its two million population are dependent upon food aid from UNRWA, which also runs more than 250 of Gazas schools and 22 medical centres.

A spokesman for Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas called the US move a flagrant assault against all Palestinians and a breach of UN resolutions.

Saeb Erekat, the Palestinians chief negotiator in the defunct Israeli-Palestinian peace talks, said, The American administrations decisions on Jerusalem, refugees and settlements embody annihilation of international law and security and stability in the region. He added, They are gifts for radical forces and terrorism in the region.

The US move has delighted Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who earlier this year declared that UNRWA needs to pass from this world. He said, The time has come to dismantle UNRWA and have its parts integrated into the UN High Commission for Refugees. He claimed that UNWRA is one of the main problems perpetuating the conflict [between Israel and the Palestinians].

Ron Prosor, a former Israeli ambassador to London and the UN, led the campaign against UNWRA on Israels behalf. He said, The time has come to state the truth. The refugees should be rehabilitated. There are no more than half a million refugees from 1948. All the rest are hitchhikers getting a free ride; it is about time that they rehabilitate themselves in the places they live.

According to Prosor, a review of the refugee issue, begun under the Obama administration, noted that the number of UNRWA-registered refugees was ten times the original number, with the result that UNRWA has become a monster employing tens of thousands of people in order to perpetuate a whole industry. This makes any attempt to discuss a solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict impossible. He said that only the original refugees should be recognized as refugees.

Last month, Foreign Policy magazine revealed that Jared Kushner, Trumps son-in-law and Middle East envoy, called for an honest and sincere effort to disrupt UNRWA. In January, Kushner sent an email to several senior officials stating that UNRWA perpetuates a status quo, is corrupt, inefficient and doesnt help peace.

Dissolving UNRWAand redefining the number of Palestinian refugeesis aimed at making their right of return to their former homes in Israel, a key issue in any final status deal aimed at settling the Israel-Palestine conflict, simply disappear. Israel has always refused to grant the Palestinians their internationally recognized legal right of return, despite granting that same right of return to Jews all over the world who have never lived in Israel/Palestine.

The shape of the ultimate deal that Trump promised on taking office, to be brokered by Kushner and US ambassador to Israel David Friedman, ardent supporters of an expansionist Israel, has long been clear. The Palestinian Authority must accept its role as security guard for Israel and US imperialism in the region and settle the long-running Israeli-Palestinian conflict on Israels terms: the abandonment of Jerusalem as the capital of any Palestinian statelet made up of non-contiguous towns and villages, and no right of return for the Palestinians who became refugees in 1948-9 and 1967.

Trumps decision to recognise Jerusalem as Israels capital and move its embassy there from Tel Aviv marked the definitive end of a decades-long US policy, which formally upheld the position that the status of Jerusalem could only be determined through a negotiated settlement between Israel and the Palestinians.

In another move clearly intended to force the PA to submit to its terms, the White House announced that it also intended to cut more than $200 million in bilateral aid to the Palestinian Authority that was agreed following the implementation of the 1993 Oslo Accords. State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said that aid to the PA does not provide value to the US taxpayer.

The Palestinian Authority already has a $1.8 billion financial deficit for 2018, thanks to Israels withholding of millions of dollars of the funds it collects on the PAs behalf and the reduction in contributions from Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, that will be further exacerbated by the US cuts.

The cuts, ostensibly the result of a review of aid to the PA, are widely seen as a punishment for the Palestinians anger over Washingtons decision to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem, thereby recognizing Israels control over the entire city, including East Jerusalem that Israel illegally annexed after the 1967 war and the Palestinians claim as their capital. In the words of US President Donald Trump, it served to take the Jerusalem problem off the table in any deal between Israel and the Palestinians.

Now the Palestinians right of return is being taken off the table. US Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley questioned Palestinian claims to a right of return to Israel, saying the issue should be taken off the table and suggesting the Trump administration would consider rejecting the demand that all the original refugees and their descendants be allowed to return to modern-day Israel in any final deal.

The US froze millions in aid to the PA earlier this year after the passage of the Taylor Force Act that made funding conditional on the PA ending financial support for Palestinians in Israeli jails convicted of terrorist offences. The freeze severely affected Palestinians access to medical services and food aid.

Nevertheless, US funds for the PAs security forces, the largest per capita in the world, which act as Israels subcontractor to suppress the impoverished Palestinian working classthereby protecting both Israel and the Palestinian bourgeoisieare to be continued.
WWE 2K19 'Pre-Launch' Trailer Never Says Never
Scientists believe the Big Bang was silent  and then came sound. Eliza McNitts three-part virtual reality project Spheres, the first to play at the Telluride Film Festival, uses the most current research as a starting point to imagine the music of the cosmos.

After debuting at Sundance earlier this year (where it became the first VR experience to be acquired in a seven-figure deal), Spheres will screen at Telluride in three parts, including Pale Blue Dot (narrated by Patti Smith), Songs of Spacetime (narrated by Jessica Chastain), and Chorus of the Cosmos (narrated by Millie Bobby Brown). The full program will screen, free of charge, at the Sheridan Opera House Gallery, this weekend.

Read More:Telluride 2018 Analysis: Why This Years Oscar Season Feels Different  IndieWires Movie Podcast

McNitt recently spoke with filmmaker Darren Aronofsky, the projects executive producer, about roller coasters, spaghettification, the cosmos, the future of VR, and much more. A shorter version of the interview (also attached) will run in The Film Watch, co-published by the Telluride Film Festival and Telluride newspapers. Check out IndieWires exclusive extended version below.

DARREN ARONOFSKY: How did this project start?

ELIZA MCNITT: Well, I had Fistful of Stars, which was a piece that I made that premiered at Prospect Park at the BAM show alongside the live space opera for 6,000 people. That was the piece that I made with Dr. Mario Livio from the Federal Estate Telescope Institute, and [it] told the story of the birth, life, and death of a star. On the day of the election, I quit my job and bought myself a ticket to Japan, left the country, and started to dream up this project. [laughs] Theres a whole other narrative that continues after a star dies. I wanted to unravel that tale of what happens next. The answer to that was Black Hole.

Story continues

ARONOFSKY: What in Japan made you start to think about the project?

MCNITT: I was really fascinated by the idea of creating a larger story, because [Fistful of Stars] ends with the death of a star, and I realized that theres a whole other narrative that continues after a star dies. Its really only beginning of that story, and so I wanted to continue to unravel that tale of what happens next. The answer to that was Black Hole.

ARONOFSKY: You are a storyteller, a filmmaker, and weve discussed how virtual reality is a different medium. What attracted you to VR?

MCNITT: When I started Fistful of Stars, I was approached by a performing arts organization in Brooklyn to create an experience that would make people feel as if they were floating through the stars. But I had never encountered that experience until I tried virtual reality. It felt like the only way to truly transport you to the cosmos.

ARONOFSKY: Which piece of virtual reality gave you that feeling?

MCNITT: I saw a lot of bad VR. My very first experience, in 2013, at the Imagine Science Film Festival, was an experience on a rollercoaster. I was completely disembodied, and I almost fell over and experienced nausea. It was awful. But there was something about it. I just couldnt stop thinking about that feeling of how I had been made so uncomfortable by this technology.

ARONOFSKY: Why is Spheres in three parts?

MCNITT: Believe it or not, Darren, it was supposed to be five parts. [laughs]

ARONOFSKY: You have the ambition of George Lucas.

MCNITT: [laughs] The story I wanted to tell was one of understanding our place in the universe and the search for the music of the cosmos. The story had to begin and end at Earth and be transportive, taking you far beyond to worlds weve never experienced before. I was inspired by this age-long theory of music of the spheres  that celestial bodies must make music. These past few years, with the discovery of gravitational waves, we understood that there is a possibility to that hypothesis. Space-time does sing.

ARONOFSKY: What pops into your head when I say, science and story?

MCNITT: Science is a form of storytelling. Instead of a narrative with a beginning, a middle, and an end, you have a hypothesis, a process, and a conclusion.

ARONOFSKY: The most famous scientists are the best storytellers  Carl Sagan and Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking all turn big ideas into stories so we can grasp and hold on to them. So, what will you do next?

MCNITT: Im going to make a movie.

ARONOFSKY: Oh, really? That ancient form from the 20th century? Maybe you should work in calligraphy or early silk printing. Radio! I hear theres a future in radio.

MCNITT: Yes. [laughs] That ancient form from the 20th century that Ive seen you do quite well. Virtual reality is a captivating and very fascinating storytelling form, but I think that it is going to be another five to ten years before the world really catches on and the technology has fully developed. I have always been deeply fascinated by the process. Ive always been a great admirer of cinema, from Stanley Kubrick to Francois Truffaut to David Lynch to yourself.

ARONOFSKY: There are many things in Spheres that have not been witnessed visually or detected scientifically. How do you use your imagination to bring to life and represent experiences that for many are unimaginable?

Read More:Telluride Film Festival Opens With a Warm Hug for Robert Redford

MCNITT: Thats been one of the greatest challenges. How do you visualize the interior of a black hole? How do we track the explosion of the big bang? How do we listen to Saturns rings? We worked very closely with scientists at Columbia University to help us to visualize what it might be like if you were to fall inside of a black hole. There are no visual references for the interior of a black hole. I cant just go to NASAs website and find an image that shows you what its like.

I found it truly fascinating that there is research about what its like. When a star is sucked into a black hole, it starts being the color red and then stretches and distorts as it passes the event horizon. Then when it goes inside of a black hole it spaghettifies  which is a scientific term I have discovered  into millions of pieces as its ripped apart and falls towards a singularity. Thats a blast of white light where space and time cease to exist. After the scientists described these really intriguing details they turned to me and said, Just make it strange.

ARONOFSKY: Interesting. Make it strange. [laughs]

MCNITT: Just make it strange.

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[MUSIC] [MUSIC] [MUSIC] [MUSIC] [SOUND] [BLANK_AUDIO]

Meghan Markle and Prince Harry are turning their first royal tour  which has already been referred to as a baptism of fire by Queen Elizabeths former press secretary Dickie Arbiter  into a double date.

The newlyweds will be accompanied by another royal couple during their upcoming trip to Australia and the continents neighboring countries, including Fiji, New Zealand, and Kingdom of Tonga. But alas, its not Will and Kate.

According to Hello! magazine, Prince Frederik and Princess Mary of Denmark will join Harry and Meghan, attending the Invictus Games in Sydney at the end of October.

The Danish royals have some pretty distinct ties to the land Down Under. For starters, Mary was born in Australia, and the couple met "in a pub in Sydney during the 2000 Summer Olympics, according to The Express. A year later, Mary moved to Denmark to give her romance with Frederik a real chance. The rest is history.

We picture the royal couples first double date now, debating which of their love stories is more akin to a real-life fairy tale over Tim Tams in Harry and Meghan's temporary waterfront mansion.

Something tells us the Brits will prove victorious, but you never know
A South Carolina woman has been arrested for allegedly poisoning her husband over a period of three days in July.

On Friday, detectives in York County arrested and charged Lana Sue Clayton with Murder and Unlawful Malicious Tampering of Food of her husband Stephen Delvalle Clayton between the dates of July 19 to 21, 2018, according to a press release from the York County Sheriffs Office.

In the press release, the sheriffs office also shared that Stephen, 64, died on July 21 at their home, and that the investigation autopsy toxicology tests discovered poisonous levels of Tetrahydrozoline in the body of the victim. The chemical is frequently used in eye drops.

Lana Clayton admitted to investigators she administered the substance to Stephen Clayton without his knowledge, the sheriffs office continued, adding that the case is still under investigation.

Stephen, who founded a nation-wide company called Physical Therapy Resource before retiring, was found in the foyer of the property after appearing to have fallen down the stairs, The Herald reported.

The York County Sheriffs Office did not immediately respond to PEOPLEs request for comment.

RELATED VIDEO: Teenager Allegedly Enlisted Friends to Fatally Stab His Mom After First Trying to Poison Her Wine

Prior to her arrest  and before the results from the autopsy test were revealed  a funeral was held for Stephen on Aug. 4 in the backyard of the property where he died, neighbors of the couple told WSOC-TV.

An obituary published in The Herald also states that a funeral was held for Stephen on Aug. 4.

 Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Click here to get breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases in the True Crime Newsletter.

RELATED: N.Y. Woman Allegedly Tried to Murder Lookalike by Poisoning Her Cheesecake So She Could Steal ID

Ken Sanford, who knew the couple, told The Herald that he was in shock about the news, adding that Lana seemed like a sweet lady.

Story continues

A woman also told WSOC-TV that she attended a neighborhood Bible study class with Lana.

Police have yet to release a motive for the crime.

Lana, 52, is currently being held in the York County Detention Center, according to online records. It is unclear whether she has secured legal representation.

According to South Carolina State Law Enforcement Division records, she has an existing criminal record, reported The Herald.
Eighteen people were injured in rival demonstrations capping off a week marked by xenophobic protests in the eastern city of Chemnitz, prompting Germanys foreign minister to urge Germans to get off our sofas and speak up against racism.

Chemnitz has been in the spotlight after violent far-right protests erupted over the fatal stabbing of a 35-year-old man, allegedly by a Syrian and an Iraqi last Sunday.

On Saturday, 8,000 people answered a joint call by far-right party AfD and Islamophobic PEGIDA street movement to descend once again on the streets of the former communist city which was in the erstwhile East Germany.

The mobilization vastly outnumbered a contingent of 3,000 counter protesters, including Green party and Social Democratic Party MPs, who had also converged to take a stand against racism.

Local police, backed up by officers from across Germany, were out in force to keep both sides from clashing.

But as the rallies cleared, scuffles took place among small groups. (AFP)

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Chemnitz (Germany) (AFP) - Tens of thousands of people thronged an anti-racism concert Monday in protest against xenophobic mobs that ran rampage in the city of Chemnitz, as Chancellor Angela Merkel urged Germans to stand up against the far right's message of hate and division.

Chemnitz, in former communist Saxony state, was flung into the spotlight as far-right protesters went after foreign-looking people in violent demonstrations last week against the fatal stabbing of a man, allegedly by an Iraqi.

After a weekend of protests in which right-wing extremists vastly outnumbered counter-protesters, a huge crowd estimated by city authorities as 50,000 people massed by early evening at the Chemnitz free concert Monday.

Bearing anti-racism posters, many chanted "Nazis out" at the gig, featuring several punk and indie bands under the motto "there are more of us".

Earlier Monday, Merkel had urged Germans to mobilise against hate.

Merkel's spokesman Steffen Seibert said it was understandable that crimes like the knife attack in Chemnitz would provoke sadness and concern among the population.

But marches by "violence-prone right-wing extremists and neo-Nazis have nothing in the least to do with mourning for a person or with concern for a city's cohesion", he said.

"These people who march and are prone to violence -- some have also shamelessly shown their closeness to Nazism -- they stand neither for Chemnitz nor for Saxony overall, nor are they 'the people'," said Seibert, referring to a popular "We are the people" chant used by far-right protesters.

"We must make that clear to them," be it through political or legal means, he said.

"Every citizen can also raise his or her voice to clearly show them their attitude against hate, against the attempt to divide this country."

- 'Nazis out' -

Merkel's call was echoed by Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, who on Sunday told Germans to "get off our sofas and open our mouths" against xenophobia.

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Organisers were expecting more than 20,000 in Chemnitz, but that had been far exceeded by early evening, with police saying that 5,000 people have arrived for the concert by trains from Leipzig alone, Saxony's biggest city.

"It's not about a fight pitting left against right, but everyone with normal decency -- regardless of their political stripe -- standing up against the far-right mob," said Campino, the lead singer of punk band Die Toten Hosen.

"And it is very important to stop this conduct while it is a snowball and before it becomes an avalanche," he added.

Felix Brummer from Kraftklub also said: "We are not under any illusion that you can save the world with a concert. But sometimes it's important to show that you're not alone."

A "window demo" call has also gone out on social media for those who cannot make it to Chemnitz to hang a colourful poster on the window or balcony to show their support for the anti-racist cause.

But the criticism of the right-wing extremist protesters was immediately rejected by far-right party AfD, which had, along with the Islamophobic street movement PEGIDA, led last week's demonstrations.

- 'Vilified' -

"An entire state and its people are vilified here in general because there is a distinct and understandable resentment about the circumstances," Joerg Meuthen, AfD co-chief said at a street festival in Bavaria, which holds a state election next month.

Amid the highly charged atmosphere in Chemnitz, a failed asylum applicant was sentenced to eight and a half years in jail for another fatal stabbing -- in another case also seized on by the far right's anti-immigrant campaign.

The defendant, identified only as Abdul D., was sentenced by the juvenile court in the western town of Landau to a jail term over the killing.

Abdul D. had admitted to the court to stabbing the girl at a drugstore in the town of Kandel on December 27. Prosecutors believe he acted out of jealousy after the girl broke up with him.

The AfD has seized on Kandel case, like the Chemnitz stabbing, to bolster its case against immigration.

Railing against Merkel's liberal refugee policy that led to the arrival of more than a million asylum seekers since 2015, it won dozens of seats in the German parliament for the first time in last year's election.

Resentment against the newcomers runs particularly deep in Saxony state, where Chemnitz is located.

Surveys suggest the AfD is poised to become Saxony's second biggest party in next year's regional elections.
BEIJING (Reuters) - China is still determined to reform and wants to work with all parties to build an open world economy, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Sunday, reiterating Beijing's message amid a bitter trade war with Washington. The two countries have been rolling out a series of tariffs on each other's exports as U.S. President Donald Trump's administration seeks to tackle a range of issues from the large trade imbalance with China to forced technology transfers. China has criticized the United States for resorting to protectionist and unilateral measures and says it will keep opening up its economy, providing a fair and transparent environment for foreign businesses. Meeting U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in Beijing ahead of a major China-Africa summit, Xi made no direct mention of the trade tensions with the United States, referring instead to "unilateralism and protectionism rearing its head". "China's determination to fully deepen reforms will not change," China's Foreign Ministry paraphrased Xi as telling Guterres. "We are willing to use practical actions to drive all parties to jointly adhere to trade liberalization and facilitation and build an open world economy," Xi added. The ministry's statement did not elaborate. U.S. and Chinese officials ended two days of talks last month without a major breakthrough as their trade war escalated with the activation of a further round of tariffs on $16 billion worth of each other's goods. The two countries have now targeted $50 billion of each other's goods and threatened duties on most of the rest of their bilateral trade, raising concerns that the conflict could dent global economic growth. Trump administration officials have been divided over how hard to press Beijing, but the White House appears to believe it is winning the trade war as China's economy slows and its stock markets falter. Economists estimate that every $100 billion of imports hit by tariffs would reduce global trade by around 0.5 percent. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard; Editing by Kirsten Donovan)
The Hague (AFP) - A 19-year-old Afghan man suspected in last week's stabbing of two American tourists at Amsterdam Central Station said Monday was motivated by insults to Islam, prosecutors said Monday.

"The man is of the opinion that in the Netherlands 'the Prophet Mohammad, the Koran, the Islam and Allah have often been insulted'," the Dutch prosecution service said in a statement.

The suspect, identified as "Jawed S., "had a terrorist motive and travelled to the Netherlands with that aim," the statement added.

The Afghan teenager mentioned far-right Dutch MP Geert Wilders, according to the prosecutor's office.

Friday's attack came a day after an announcement by anti-Islam politician Wilders that he was cancelling moves to stage a cartoon competition to caricature the Prophet Mohammad, a plan that had angered many Muslims.

Known for his virulent anti-Islamic views, Wilders on Thursday said he was nixing plans to stage the competition to "avoid the risk of making people victims of Islamist violence".

- Suspect behind bars -

Earlier Monday Jawed S. appeared before a Dutch judge in connection with the case.

He was remanded in custody and will appear again before judges in two weeks, while police continue their probe.

He remains behind bars under maximum security and is only be allowed visits by his lawyer.

Two American tourists were seriously injured when a knife-wielding man attacked bystanders around noon on Friday at the busy train station next to Amsterdam's historic city centre.

Police reacted quickly and shot the man in the lower body. He and the injured tourists, both men aged 38, were taken to hospital.

The US State Department on Sunday condemned what it called an "unprovoked, horrifying attack" and offered full support to Dutch authorities, both in their investigation and "in our common fight against terrorism in all forms".

Both of the wounded American men remained in a satisfactory condition in hospital Monday, according to Dutch media.

Story continues

German police on Saturday raided the suspect's home, which Dutch newspapers said was located in the western Rhineland-Palatinate state.

A German foreign ministry official Monday confirmed the suspect is an asylum seeker who was appealing a decision to reject his claim. The man had a German residency permit.

German police had no information linking the alleged attacker to any terror groups, the official said.

The Netherlands has been largely spared the kind of terror attacks which have rocked its closest European neighbours in the past few years.

But amid a number of scares and reports that people linked to some of those attacks may have crossed briefly into the country, top Dutch security and intelligence officials have stressed that the threat level is substantial.
Democratic nominee defends leftwing policies and calls for Trump-endorsed opponent to rise above racist attacks

Andrew Gillum wants to turn Florida into Venezuela, his Republican opponent claimed on Sunday, before the Democratic nominee for governor in Florida faced insistent talkshow questioning about his leftwing policies.

Gillum also called on Ron DeSantis to rise above racist attacks on his nomination, the first of an African American for governor in Florida, and said the Republican should be careful in his own remarks.

DeSantis, a 39-year-old US representative, was a surprise winner of the Republican primary, thanks in large part to Trumps support. Previewing the tone of many midterm contests featuring progressive Democrats, he told New York radio host John Catsimatidis: This Andrew Gillum, hes on the far-left socialist fringe. Hes a Bernie Sanders, [Alexandria] Ocasio-Cortez type candidate.

Gillum, the 39-year-old mayor of Tallahassee, was the surprise winner of the Democratic nominating contest. He is endorsed by Sanders, the independent senator from Vermont who ran for the Democratic presidential nomination in 2016. Ocasio-Cortez, a young leftwinger from New York, won a primary in June and will run for election in November.



Trump greeted Gillums win with a tweet, saying a failed socialist mayor  who has allowed crime & many other problems to flourish in his city  is not what Florida wants or needs!

Speaking to Catsimatidis, DeSantis duly highlighted Gillums support for leftwing priorities such as Medicare for all and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice). The mayor has also promised to suspend the death penalty and has a low rating from the National Rifle Association.

I would say its very untraditional for Florida, DeSantis said, adding that he was a solid conservative in the Reagan tradition and Ive been supportive of the presidents agenda.

If you have a guy like this enacting a socialist agenda its going to absolutely destroy all the progress that Florida has made. He wants to turn Florida into Venezuela.



Story continues

Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum speaks to supporters as his wife R Jai Gillum listens during a Democratic party rally on 31 August. Photograph: John Raoux/AP

Venezuela has subsided into chaos under a repressive leftwing government. Trump reportedly asked advisers last year why the US could not invade and replace the regime of President Nicolas Maduro.

Appearing later on CNNs State of the Union, Gillum was repeatedly asked if he would raise taxes to pay for his policies, particularly Medicare for all.

I will absolutely not raise taxes on everyday working Floridians, he said, after first repeatedly promising to secure federal funds and work with other states. He would raise taxes on corporations that have benefited from Republican tax cuts, he said, adding: Being a cheap date state has not worked for the state of Florida.

Gillum also defended his record on crime in Tallahassee and said he wanted to reform Ice, rather than abolish it, as part of opposition to Trump policies he said were wholly unAmerican.

In his interview, DeSantis was not asked about a controversial comment this week, in which he told Fox News: The last thing we need to do is to monkey this up by trying to embrace a socialist agenda with huge tax increases and bankrupting the state.

After the Republican was accused of using dog whistle racist tactics, Gillum told MSNBC he thought DeSantis had decided to pull a page from the Trump campaign playbook and should apologise to Florida voters.

DeSantis told Fox he would not apologise, because I didnt say anything about race.

On Sunday, Gillum was asked about a white supremacist robocall that went out in opposition to his nomination.

I do find it deeply regrettable, he said. On the day right after I secured the Democratic nomination, we had to deal with some of the dog whistles directly from my opponent.

DeSantis condemned the robocall.

We can have a challenge between ideas and around what we think the people of the state of Florida deserve, Gillum continued. What I dont want this race to turn into is a race of name-calling.

I want to make sure that we dont racialise, and frankly weaponise, race as a part of this process, which is why Ive called on my opponent to really work to rise above some of these things. People are taking their cues from him and from Donald Trump.

Appearing on NBCs Meet the Press, Gillum said DeSantis must be careful about his language.

I have not called him a racist, he said. What I have said is that his rhetoric, in my opinion, has to be toned down.
Petrol and diesel prices had gone up by almost a rupee per litre within a fortnight last month.

The factors responsible for drop in production of crude oil have caused a spike in fuel prices in India.

Surat: Union Petroleum and Natural Gas Minister Dharmendra Pradhan Sunday blamed "external factors" for the rise in domestic prices of petrol and diesel, but said the increase is temporary.

Talking to reporters on the sidelines of a conclave organised in Surat, Pradhan said the factors responsible for drop in production of crude oil have caused a spike in fuel prices in India.

"I would like to mention two points, and both these subjects are external. OPEC (Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) had promised that it will raise production by one million barrels per day, which was not raised.

"Apart from that, crises in countries like Venezuela and Iran are increasing. There is a pressure on oil prices due to decrease in production. Secondly, global currencies have weakened against the US dollar," he said.

Pradhan was in Surat to inaugurate a textile and plastic investors conclave, where he addressed entrepreneurs, industry stake-holders and professionals from the plastic and textile industry.

The conclave showcased opportunities in textile, polymer and downstream sectors in Odisha and eastern India.

"This is a matter of concern for the world economy, and the Indian economy is also affected. But considering these factors, the Indian government is planning to put diplomatic pressure.

"A high-level American delegation is visiting India, and India's two senior representatives - defence minister and external affairs minister - will talk to them. All these factors will be discussed. I consider this period (of high petrol, diesel prices) temporary," he said, referring to the 2+2 dialogue between the two countries in Delhi this week.

Fuel prices have been on the rise since August 16 after the rupee dipped to its lowest value against the US dollar.

Petrol and diesel prices had gone up by almost a rupee per litre within a fortnight last month.

Later tweeting about the event, Pradhan said, "Surat, today, is one of the largest man-made fibre clusters in India, processing more than two crore metres of fabric a day. The entrepreneurial spirit of the people of Surat has developed the city into a thriving economy based on textile and various other industrial clusters".

"It fills me with great pride that people from my home state of Odisha have played a key role in this economic transformation journey and a huge number of karigars in Surat today belong to Odisha.

"Government's decision to increase import duty on polyster fibre and yarn will further give impetus to domestic producers," he said in another tweet.

"Odisha provides an excellent investment opportunity, being close to the demand pockets of eastern UP and West Bengal with unique coastal position to caret export demand," the minister tweeted.
By Stephanie Nebehay GENEVA (Reuters) - Former Chilean President Michelle Bachelet, who took the helm of the U.N. human rights office on Monday, will need a strong voice in confronting populists and crises marked by war crimes, activists said. Bachelet swiftly called on Myanmar to free two Reuters journalists convicted earlier in the day for their reporting on the crackdown on Rohingya. Bachelet was chosen by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres to succeed Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein of Jordan and the appointment was approved by the General Assembly last month. She was tortured during the dictatorship of Augusto Pinochet but later rose to serve twice as Chile's president. She inherits an inbox that includes conflicts in Yemen and Syria and crises in Venezuela and Nicaragua. Just last week independent U.N. investigators said that six Myanmar generals should be prosecuted for "genocidal intent" and another expert panel said that some air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen may amount to war crimes. "This is an extraordinarily challenging time for human rights, given the rise of autocratic populists, the increasingly muscular hostility of China and Russia, the loss of the US and often the UK as voices for human rights, and a leadership void making possible a proliferation of atrocities in such places as Syria, Yemen, and Myanmar," Ken Roth, executive-director of Human Rights Watch, told Reuters. But he said some governments and U.N. officials hope she will be "quieter and more selective" than Zeid who criticized governments in China, Israel, Russia and the United States. The U.N. Human Rights Council, which opens a three-week session on Sept 10, is due to hold a debate on extending the mandate of its investigators on Yemen. It will also examine the next steps toward ensuring justice in Myanmar. Zeid left a political hot potato after saying in January that his office had found 206 companies doing business linked to unlawful Israeli settlements in the West Bank and urging them to avoid any complicity in "pervasive" violations against Palestinians. His report did not name the companies and said that its database was not yet complete. "The immediate test she has got in terms of taking on the Council is the settlements database," Roth said, saying that Bachelet should not delay publication of the list. Another activist group, UN Watch, said last month that Bachelet has "a controversial record when it comes to her support for the human rights abusing governments who rule Cuba, Venezuela and Nicaragua, and we need to know how she plans to address these urgent situations." Zeid, asked last week his advice to Bachelet, told reporters: "To very much continue along the same trajectory." (Editing by Matthew Mpoke Bigg)
Dakota Johnson at the Bad Times at the El Royale film premiere in New York Dakota Johnson looked pretty as a picture wearing a low-cut polka dot dress by hit Danish label Ganni to the premiere of Bad Times at the El Royale.

[Photo: Rex]

September is undoubtedly the biggest talking point in the sartorial calendar with the street style set busy thanks to fashion month and a whole new wardrobe already weighing heavy on our mind.

Over in the A-list sphere, celebrities far and wide are celebrating the change in season too demonstrating their take on the AW18 trends.

Venice Film Festival saw Hollywoods elite grace the famous red carpet in celebration of this years silver screen wonders.

Naomi Watts for instance, continued a string of inimitable looks by slipping into a slinky gold midi dress for Miu Miu Womens Tales Dinner on September 2. The actress was joined by fellow actress Lily James who opted for a monochrome cold-shoulder number finished with Mamma Mia-esque waves.

Meanwhile, fashion month saw the usual suspects (were looking at you, Gigi) deliver some killer looks.

In need of inspiration this season? Look no further than this months best dressed list.

Follow us on Instagram and Facebook for non-stop inspiration delivered fresh to your feed, every day. For Twitter updates, follow @YahooStyleUK.

Read more from Yahoo Style UK:

10 new season items that will make you wish autumn would hurry up already

Best dressed celebrities: Augusts top A-list fashion moments

Best dressed at Venice Film Festival, from Claire Foy to Olivia Colman
McALLEN, Texas  By the time Beto ORourke arrived at the historic Cine El Rey theater for his first campaign speech of the day, it had already reached its capacity of 500. So before going inside, he walked through the overflow crowd in the bar next door, high-fiving supporters as they snapped selfies.

Then he left the bar, and, as the crowd chanted his name, took the stage at the theater, where he sang the praises of border towns like this one.

The U.S.-Mexico border, in so many ways for me, is the center of the universe, he told the cheering crowd.

U.S. Rep. Beto O'Rourke (D-Texas) speaks before a crowd in Laredo on Aug. 17, 2018. The three-term Congressman is running a longshot campaign to unseat Republican Sen. Ted Cruz. (Photo: Roque Planas/HuffPost)

ORourke, who describes himself as a lifelong fronterizo  Spanish for border resident  didnt always feel such pride. Like many young folks in the brain-drained border zone, he grew up wanting to leave El Paso, he said. It wasnt until he left and returned as an adult that he began to rethink the significance of growing up in a city that produced the bands At the Drive In and Mars Volta (ORourke has personal connections to both), where Elizabeth Taylor spent her first honeymoon and where Mariano Azuela wrote Los de abajo, one of the defining novels of the Mexican Revolution.

Kids like me had internalized what the rest of the country thought about us, ORourke said. That we werent supposed to amount to much. That we were just a dusty border town. Thats wrong, he contended. The towns and cities of the U.S.-Mexico border are a place for the ambitious, for those who want to take a chance and bet everything on bigness and on greatness.

ORourke, a three-term Democratic congressman who has run an unrelentingly upbeat campaign to unseat Republican Sen. Ted Cruz, didnt name names. But his hopeful message about the border cut against the one emanating from President Donald Trump, who has characterized one of the safest regions in the country as a morass of violence and lawlessness, promising to wall it off from phantom hordes of rapists and murderers.

The Mobilization Election

Story continues

ORourke has mounted a surprisingly competitive campaign in a state that hasnt elected a Democrat to statewide office since 1994, and his positive message about the border is key to his strategy. If he has a path to victory, it runs straight through Hispanic communities like McAllen  places that are solidly Democratic but turn out at rock-bottom rates for midterm elections.

He has excitement on his side. Despite eschewing corporate donations, hes nearly matched Cruz in fundraising. A poll by NBC News and Marist released last week had ORourke trailing by just 4 percentage points. An electronic poll released by Emerson College on Monday had the two candidates nearly tied, with Cruz at 38 percent against ORourkes 37 percent and more than a fifth of respondents undecided.

But ORourke faces the same problem that has bedeviled the Texas Democratic Party for decades: How to translate their natural demographic advantage into success at the polls. White, non-Hispanics make up just 42 percent of the Texas population, mirroring the demographics of solidly blue California. But low turnout among Latinos, who lean Democratic  along with obstacles to representation like gerrymandering and a controversial photo ID requirement to vote  have kept Republicans in control of all statewide offices and both chambers of the state legislature.

In a typical midterm election, only about 22 percent of eligible Hispanic voters cast a ballot. For ORourke to even have a chance, that number needs to rise by at least 10 percentage points, according to Rice University political scientist Mark Jones. Even if that happens, ORourke will also need a bump in the millennial vote  another low-propensity voter group.

An overflow crowd watches Beto O'Rourke make a campaign speech in McAllen, Texas, on Aug. 18, 2018. (Photo: Roque Planas/HuffPost)

If we look at normal turnout for a Texas midterm, ORourke has no realistic chance, Jones said. He has to increase Latino voter turnout, win a larger share of the Latino vote and then reduce Cruzs advantage among Anglos.

The Latinos who do cast ballots dont favor Democrats as heavily as they do in California. Gov. Greg Abbott, whose wife Cecilia is Mexican-American, defeated Democratic challenger Wendy Davis in 2014 with 44 percent of the Hispanic vote. (By contrast, Jerry Browns Republican opponent the same year in the California governors race won just 27 percent of the Latino vote.)

ORourke makes no pretense of targeting his efforts toward any particular group. The cornerstone of his campaign is his pledge to visit all 254 counties in Texas  which he accomplished in June  casting aside the traditional logic of focusing on the states major cities, where Democrats have carved out an advantage, in the name of defusing the polarization of the Trump era. Keeping his message positive, he rarely attacks Cruz by name, except to jab him for taking more interest in campaigning in Iowa than Texas. If youre a Republican, youre in the right place, ORourke said at more than one speech.

The reality, though, is that ORourke has little chance of winning by convincing Cruz voters to switch sides, according to James Henson, the director of the Texas Politics Project at the University of Texas.

This is a mobilization election, not a persuasion election, Henson said. Each candidate has to mobilize its partisan base. Neither candidate has much of a chance of changing each others voters minds because of the gulf between the two candidates.

The campaign knows this. One strategy developed by the El Paso Democratic Party aims to increase border turnout  a proxy for Latino turnout in a region where Hispanics make up by far the majority of the population  by 20 points to 35 percent, a goal that requires mobilizing an extra 170,000 voters.

If the Border comes out in record numbers this election, we could be the reason Texas sends one of our own to the Senate, read a paper detailing the Border Surge strategy.

Battleground Texas

ORourkes strategy isnt new  Democrats have been trying to increase their turnout in Texas for a generation. Ahead of the last midterm elections, in 2014, the party launched a multimillion-dollar turnout effort largely financed by donations from outside the state and led by Democratic consultants who made their names running Obamas presidential campaigns. It failed miserably. Wendy Davis, a gubernatorial candidate whod gained national attention for a 13-hour filibuster to halt a state anti-abortion law, lost by 20 points. Latino voter turnout barely budged.

That humiliating defeat casts a long shadow over this years election, which features no such glitzy, partisan effort threatening to turn Texas purple. Even if ORourke loses, his campaign will be unique because he tried to run at all. Despite the wave of progressive enthusiasm inspired in opposition to Trump, several top Texas Democrats  most notably former HUD Secretary Julian Castro, whos scouting a run for president  skipped running for statewide office. In an election where turnout means everything, the top of the Democratic ticket lacks star power beyond ORourke.

Veronica Escobar, who is likely to take Beto O'Rourke's seat in the U.S. House of Representatives serving El Paso, speaks at a campaign event in Laredo, Texas, on Aug. 17, 2018. (Photo: Roque Planas/HuffPost)

That doesnt mean Democrats have abandoned their hopes of flipping the state. Battleground Texas, the group charged with the failed turnout initiative of 2014, remains active. And the Democratic Partys strategy has shifted toward targeting low-propensity voters, another code word for Hispanic. ORourkes swing across South Texas with other high-profile Democratic candidates like former Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez, who is running for governor, and Veronica Escobar, who is likely to take ORourkes House of Representatives seat, included door-to-door canvassing to make personal pleas to potential voters.

But this years progressive turnout efforts have fallen largely to civic and grassroots groups without political affiliations, like Voto Latino, which is aiming to register between 50,000 and 75,000 new Texas voters this cycle, and is carrying out a digital strategy to keep them engaged and aware of the voter ID requirements ahead of Election Day.

People are loath to expend resources on young voters, especially young voters of color, because they say they dont turn out, said Cristina Tzintzun, the director of Jolt, an Austin-based get-out-the-vote effort targeting young Latinos. But then theres an investment problem.

The Man From El Paso

Even without a major Democratic effort to turn out Latino voters, Cruzs team clearly sees ORourkes cross-cultural appeal as a strength worth attacking. In March, for example, the incumbents campaign launched a radio jingle mocking the Democrats Spanish nickname, intimating that he changed it to curry political favor. (ORourkes given name is Robert.)

Its easy to see why the Cruz camp would view the jingle as an effective tactic. Among the Latinos that do turn out to vote, ORourke faces a name recognition gap. The problem became clear two days after the jingle was released when the far lesser-known Berniecrat Sema Hernandez walloped ORourke across the counties of South Texas in an otherwise easy primary election win. The obvious explanation was that the regions predominantly Latino voters opted for the candidate with the more Spanish-sounding name.

But Cruzs attack was likely a misstep. It was inaccurate, as ORourke pointed out by posting a childhood photo to Instagram with the nickname written across his sweatshirt. But more importantly, attacking his identity drew attention to ORourkes border background.

ORourke is nimble like that. At a time when the Democratic Party is struggling to bridge the growing chasm between its progressive and establishment wings, ORourke manages to walk a fine line. He backed Hillary Clinton over Bernie Sanders during the 2016 campaign but favors an incremental approach toward a single-payer health care system. Hes a long-time champion of marijuana legalization and criminal justice reform, but, as a border resident, an avowed free trader. He backs comprehensive immigration reform, often pointing out that a Dream Act to shield undocumented immigrants who arrived as youths shouldnt come at the cost of increased enforcement against their parents  the original Dreamers, in his words. But he presses that position without a combative stance toward Border Patrol, whom he describes as unfairly caught in the middle of Americas toxic immigration politics.

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At 44, hes also relatively young  and with his lanky frame, jeans and rolled up sleeves, he looks younger still. But having served three terms as a U.S. Representative for El Paso shields him from the constant attacks over inexperience leveled at other rising members of the Democratic Partys left wing, like Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.

And ORourkes bilingual and bicultural heritage helps him on the campaign trail, too. At the McAllen event, he had plenty to say about his experience meeting with parents split from their kids at the border  an emotional issue in a place like McAllen, ground zero for the White Houses family separation policy.

But he also showed more knowledge of the concerns of Hispanic voters than many Democratic politicians, who often default to viewing Latino voters through the prism of immigration politics. His repeated statistic that the largest provider of mental health care services in the state of Texas is the county jail system also appeared to resonate in a state where nearly one-third of Latinos lack insurance.

He spoke glowingly of the regions bilingual schools, where children learn in Spanish one day and English the next. He derided the Border Patrol checkpoints that impede some parents from taking their children to the hospital. And his repeated shout-outs to veterans drew cheers in a region where military service has long offered the surest path toward the middle class or a college education.

It was touches like those, more than his ethnicity, that connected with the crowd.

Anyone who lives in the border, theyre going to get it  theyre going to understand our way of life, said 31-year-old Sarah Tamez, who attended the McAllen event and cited ORourkes support for expanding access to health care as her main reason for backing him. It doesnt matter if youre Hispanic or happen to be Caucasian  youre going to get this life. He comes from the border, he lived it, he embraced the culture. He understands us.

CORRECTION: A previous version of this story misspelled the name of author Mariano Azuela.

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
Britney Spears (REX/Shutterstock)

Britney Spears made a massive gaffe this Saturday during her Blackpool leg of her Piece of Me European tour.

Addressing the crowd she shouted, How you feeling Birmingham I mean Blackpool!

The crowd immediately unimpressed, erupted with a mixture of boos and laughter.

Spears, 36, has been touring Europe since beginning of August, with many of the concerts featuring rapper Pitbull as the opening act.

This isnt the first time Spears has seemingly forgotten where she is, as at Brightons much-hyped August Pride performance, she was caught asking her backup dancer where she was.

After a moment of confusion she beamed, Whats up Brighton pride!

Shes also had a bit of difficulty pronouncing participating audience members names. As part of the show, Spears asks a fan to come on stage and be walked by her on a dog lead as part of her Freakshow performance.

At the end of her Glasgow performance, she reportedly said Give it up for Urine! when the participating audience members name was in fact Ewan.

She also appeared to rename Rylan-Neal Clark Riley when he joined her during her Freakshow performance at Londons O2.

Spears tour returns to North America in October with a performance in Austin, Texas October 21.





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Western Australia police handoutIt is no exaggeration to say that no one really thought 4-year-old Cleo Smith, who vanished without trace from her parents tent 18 days ago, would be found alive.But early Wednesday morning, police broke into a home in Carnarvon, Australia, about 50 miles from where she disappeared and a few blocks from where her family had been agonizing over her disappearance, and found her alone. Cleo was snatched with her sleeping bag from a multi-room camping tent in the ear
Washington (AFP) - Late US senator John McCain will receive his final public sendoff Saturday in a nationally televised ceremony featuring eulogies from two ex-presidents, but with current commander in chief Donald Trump conspicuously absent from the proceedings.

Republican George W. Bush and Democrat Barack Obama will deliver remarks honoring their friend and former White House challenger, at a memorial service in Washington's National Cathedral that McCain planned himself in recent months as he battled brain cancer.

That the men who vanquished McCain in their presidential battles were asked to speak is testament to the former war prisoner's commitment to looking beyond party and signalling that Americans, regardless of political affiliation, are rowing together in the same boat.

Amid today's inflammatory political environment the message could serve as a soothing balm for a nation bruised by two years of divisive discourse.

And the absence of Trump, whose bitter feud with McCain has wrangled US politics during that time, will serve as a final rebuke of the president, highlighting the clash between a Republican elder statesman and the current president from his own party.

McCain's last public event, before he is laid to rest Sunday in a private ceremony at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, comes a day after he was accorded the rare recognition of lying in state in the US Capitol.

While members of Congress honored one of their own in a touching ceremony that featured an address by Vice President Mike Pence, Trump was again not there.

Instead he holed up in the White House and remained uncharacteristically silent on Twitter during the ceremony, before flying to a political event in North Carolina later in the day.

McCain's widow Cindy, his seven children and his 106-year-old mother Roberta McCain joined scores of members of Congress, state governors, diplomats and other dignitaries at the somber Rotunda ceremony.

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Pence, in his tribute, told McCain's family that "it is deeply humbling to stand before you today at the United States Capitol to commemorate the life and service of an American patriot."

"The president asked me to be here, on behalf of a grateful nation, to pay a debt of honor and respect to a man who served our country throughout his life, in uniform and in public office."

It was an awkward message to deliver from a president who has studiously refrained from praising McCain, either during his illness or since his death.

Their feud took root during Trump's 2016 campaign, when he questioned the notion McCain was a war hero -- because he had been captured after his navy fighter jet was shot down over Hanoi in 1967.

McCain pushed back in the following months, calling Trump's behavior petty and "disgraceful," and in one of his final acts in the Senate blocked the Republican effort to repeal Obama's health care law known as Obamacare.

- Presidential dreams dashed -

McCain the aviator spent more than five years in a Vietnamese prison camp, returning home to launch a political career that saw him eventually run for president in 2000 but lose the nomination to Bush.

Eight years later, he won the nomination in a contest that seemed almost predestined -- only to lose the election to Obama, who became America's first black president.

Saturday's ceremony could serve as a rehabilitation of sorts for Bush, who will be delivering one of his most high-profile addresses since leaving the White House nearly 10 years ago.

He has endured deep criticism for controversially leading the US into war in Iraq -- an invasion that McCain steadfastly supported at first, but eventually grew to believe was a mistake.

For Obama, the moment will allow him to share his thoughts about a presidential campaign rival whose magnanimity in defeat only boosted his stature as an American statesman.

"Tonight more than any night, I hold in my heart nothing but love for this country and for all its citizens, whether they supported me or Senator Obama," McCain said at the time.

"I wish Godspeed to the man who was my former opponent and will be my president."
Paris (AFP) - Fifty years ago Britain separated the Chagos Islands from its colony Mauritius, expelling the entire population to make way for the installation of a US military base that is today highly strategic.

Britain's 1965 acquisition of the Indian Ocean archipelago has been disputed ever since, with Mauritius demanding its return.

As the UN's International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague holds hearings on the case from Monday, here is some background.

- Indian Ocean colony -

Located several hundred kilometres (miles) south of the Maldives, the Chagos Islands were discovered by Portuguese explorers in the 16th century but remained uninhabited until they were colonised by France in the 18th century.

African slaves were shipped in to cultivate coconuts and copra.

In 1814 the archipelago of around 55 islands was given to Britain, which in 1903 merged them with Mauritius, around 2,000 kilometres to the southwest.

After the abolition of slavery in 1834, Indian workers arrived and mixed with the first settlers.

Only three of the islands were inhabited: Diego Garcia, the largest, and Salomon and Peros Banhos.

- Detached from Mauritius -

In 1965 Britain detached the islands from Mauritius, then a semi-autonomous British territory, using decolonisation talks as leverage and paying 3 million pounds for them at the time.

This meant that when Mauritius obtained independence three years later, the islands remained under British control, renamed the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT).

In 1966 Britain leased the Chagos Islands to the United States for 50 years, so that it could set up a military base. In 2016 the deal was extended to 2036.

Between 1968 and 1973 around 2,000 Chagos islanders were evicted, a process described in a British diplomatic cable at the time as the removal of "some few Tarzans and Man Fridays".

Most were shipped to Mauritius and the Seychelles.

Citing security reasons, the British authorities have since banned all visits to the islands without a special authorisation, making it impossible for Chagossians to return.

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Mauritius argues it was illegal for Britain to break up its territory. It claims sovereignty over the archipelago and demands the right to resettle former residents.

- Strategic military base -

The Diego Garcia base became of major strategic importance to Britain and the US during the Cold War.

It offered proximity to Asia as the Khmer Rouge takeover of Cambodia diminished Washington's military capabilities in the region, while an assertive Soviet navy was extending communist influence in the Indian Ocean.

After the 1979 Iranian revolution, the United States expanded the base to receive more warships and heavy bombers.

In recent years it served as a staging ground for US bombing campaigns in Afghanistan and Iraq.

- Islanders take action -

Chagos islanders living in Mauritius launched legal proceedings in 1975 against their expulsion, resulting in a 1982 payment of 4 million in compensation along with land valued at 1 million.

There were no reparations for islanders settled in the Seychelles.

In 2007 a British appeals court paved the way for Chagossians to return home but its decision was annulled by the upper House of Lords the following year.

In 2016 the British government confirmed its opposition to the resettlement of Chagossians, including for reasons of defence, security and cost.

Today around 10,000 Chagossians and their descendants are divided among Mauritius, the Seychelles and Britain.

- Marine reserve fiasco -

In 2010 Britain declared the islands part of a Marine Protected Area, arguing that people should not be permitted to live there.

Diplomatic cables revealed by WikiLeaks quoted a British official as saying the plan "put paid to the resettlement claims of the archipelago's former residents."

The move backfired as a UN tribunal declared it illegal in 2015.
Reuters

Former world No.1 tennis doubles player Peng Shuai, one of China's biggest sporting stars, has publicly accused a former Chinese vice premier of forcing her into sex several years ago in a social media post that was later deleted. According to a screenshot of her verified Weibo account late on Tuesday, Peng said that Zhang Gaoli, who became a member of the Politburo Standing Committee - China's top decision-making body - coerced her into sex and they later had an on-off consensual relationship. The post was deleted around half an hour after it was published, although searches for Peng's name on China's tightly controlled internet surged after the posting, and screenshots were shared among private WeChat groups and over iMessage.
Liu Qiangdong was arrested in Minnesota following an allegation of sexual misconduct: AP

The billionaire founder of one of Chinas biggest e-commerce websites has been arrested in the US following allegations of sexual misconduct.

Liu Qiangdong, chief executive of JD.com, was arrested on Friday night and released Saturday afternoon pending possible criminal charges, according to Minnesota jail records.

Minneapolis police refused to provide details on exactly what the 45-year-old, also known as Richard Liu, had been accused of, saying an investigation into the incident was active.

The term sexual misconduct covers a number of charges of varying severity in Minnesota, ranging from non-consensual touching to violent assaults.

JD.com, the main rival to Chinese online retail giant Alibaba, released a statement on Sunday in response to what it described as false rumours about Mr Liu circulating on social network Weibo.

Mr Liu Qiangdong encountered a false accusation during his business activities in the United States, a spokesman for the company said.

After investigation, local police found no misconduct and he will continue his journey as planned. We will take the necessary legal action against false reporting or rumours.

The businessman, worth around $12.7bn (9.8bn), recently tried to distance himself from a serious sexual assault committed by a guest at a private dinner party he had hosted in Sydney, Australia.

Mr Liu was not charged or accused of wrongdoing over the 2015 incident, for which the guest was later convicted, but unsuccessfully requested a court order to prevent release of his name in connection with the case.

In June, Google said it would invest $550m (426m) in JD.com. The investment reflected an effort by the US tech company to expand its reach into Asian e-commerce.

JD.com, China's second-largest e-commerce company, also boasts tech giant Tencent and US retailer Walmart among its major investors.

Additional reporting by AP
Out of 22 bank GMs recommended by govt panel, 17 will be assigned for ED posts.

According to industry sources, around 20 ED posts are needed at present to be filled.

New Delhi: The finance ministry is set to appoint 17 executive directors (EDs) in state-own-ed banks on a priority basis, while five of the selected total of 22 general managers (GMs) have been put on waiting list. Soon after finance minister Arun Jaitley resumed office, the government cleared the decks for the appointment of the top-level executives.

The list of GMs recommended for promotion was sent to the department of financial services in the ministry by the government panel. A top source in the finance ministry, told Financial Chronicle, Out of 22 GMs recommended by the panel for the top-level positions, 17 will be assigned for ED posts in different banks, while five have been put on stand-by or waiting list and will be appointed as per the demand of the banks.

The governments move came after banks persistently flagged their concerns to the ministry for filling up the required vacancies of top executives in their respective banks.

We will soon direct them to join in their respective banks after key approvals are done. We are also waiting for the final approval from the PMO, the source said.

Two GMs have been assigned to work as EDs in the same bank on promotion. Atul Kumar, GM of Syndicate Bank and Sanjay Kumar, GM of United Bank of India have been selected to work as EDs in their parent banks.

As far as the waiting list is concerned, five GMs have been put on standby  AK Khurana of Vijaya Bank, DKPC Garg of Bank of India, Ajay Vyas of Central Bank of India, Usha Ravi of Dena Bank and Vivek Jha of Punjab National Bank.

The finance ministry was informed that banking operations in public sector lenders were being hampered by top-level vacancies as many ED-level posts had been lying vacant for a long time.

Prior to the final approval from the Prime Ministers Office or PMO, the names of EDs will be directed to respective banks. If any of the promoted EDs decline(s) to accept the offer due to some reason or the other, the person on the waiting list will be appointed for the same post, the source said.

In June, the Banks Board Bureau (BBB) had recommended the 22 GMs after interviewing 43 short-listed candidates for ED posts.

According to industry sources, around 20 ED posts are needed at present to be filled for this fiscal because some executive directors will be elevated as managing directors.

Meanwhile, the government is likely to give extension to Bank of Baroda MD and CEO PS Jayakumar based on the assessment of his three-year performance, sources said.

Jayakumar was one of the two officials selected from the private sector and joined the state-owned bank in October 2015. Soon after he assumed charge, BoB made a loss of Rs 3,342 crore in the third quarter (October-December) of 2015-16. In the subsequent quarter too, the lender posted a loss of Rs 3,230.1 crore.
Sen. Cory Booker, D-N.J., at a news conference in July. (Photo: Alex Edelman/Getty Images)

WASHINGTON  The current midterm election cycle has been a long strange trip for New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker. Since the start of last year, Booker has been traveling to campaign on behalf of more than 25 of his fellow Democrats in 19 states.

I think this might be, and Im including presidential election years  Hillary had me all over the place  but this is probably some of the most intense travel of my life, Booker said in an interview with Yahoo News last week.

Booker is one of the more high-profile Democrats in the Senate and is regularly described as a leading contender for the White House in 2020. Given the presidential speculation, all of Bookers moves, particularly campaign travel, are scrutinized as potential steps toward a run. However, Bookers trips so far havent hit the obvious spots for a presidential launch.

Other Democrats rumored to have eyes on the race have already visited early primary states. While Booker has been all over the map, he thus far hasnt visited the three early primary states that would be the most obvious springboards for a presidential bid  Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina. Booker insisted those states arent determining his travel plans.

Im working on a trip to North Dakota. Im going down to Texas.  This is not something for me planning for anything beyond November 2018, Booker said. For me, this is not about swirl. This is about unyielding focus on November the 6th.

Booker believes the Democrats have a shot at taking back Congress.

The Democrats have a  better-than-even chance of taking back the House, Booker said. I think that we have a better chance to take back the Senate than people gave Donald Trump of winning the presidency, so it is a realistic chance.

While hes relatively bullish about the partys chances, Booker knows the odds are against a full sweep of both houses.

Its very uphill, very hard. Its going to take a tremendous Democratic turnout and thats one of the reasons Im running around, Booker said.

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In 2017, Booker spent more than two weeks on the road. This year so far, Booker has been traveling for more than three weeks, and he has plans for additional trips in the months leading up to Election Day in November. And thats not counting appearances Booker has made in his home state, where he continued his annual tradition of touring all 21 counties and campaigned for candidates including Sen. Bob Menendez, a close ally whose reelection Booker described as his top focus for the cycle.

Based on numbers provided by his office, as of late July, Booker has also raised more than $5 million for federal, state and local candidates during these midterm elections.

While Booker says believes a Democratic takeover of Congress would provide a check and balance to Trump, he dodged questions about whether the Democrats plan should include launching impeachment proceedings if they win the House and Senate.

Booker described having a counterbalance to Trump as the No. 1 thing at stake in the midterm elections.

The Democrats have experienced deep divisions since the race between Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential primary. The current election cycle featured several hotly contested primaries, in which more traditional Democrats faced off against candidates from the partys more progressive wing, some of whom had Sanders backing.

When Booker has gone on the campaign trail, hes backed hopefuls on both sides of this spectrum. In Maryland, he endorsed Sanders-approved gubernatorial candidate Ben Jealous. In Virginia, Booker campaigned for Gov. Ralph Northam, who won his race last year after defeating a primary challenger backed by Sanders and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren.

Booker with Maryland gubernatorial candidate Ben Jealous and others in June 2018. (Photo: Cheryl Diaz Meyer for the Washington Post via Getty Images)

Booker rejects the notion theres a rift between progressives and more moderate elements of the Democratic Party as an inside the Beltway dynamic and election time divergence that has become the past.

Weve always been a big-tent party, Booker says.

As examples, Booker cited some of his Democratic Senate colleagues, including two of the partys more conservative members, Joe Manchin and Heidi Heitkamp, and a pair with more progressive reputations, Kirsten Gillibrand and Elizabeth Warren. Booker described this spectrum as healthy for our party.

Though Booker has stumped for candidates from both wings of the Democratic Party, he has avoided weighing in on the more contentious primaries. Rather than involving himself in these intra-party disputes, Booker has generally backed candidates only after they secured the Democratic nomination.

That means Booker hasnt been on the winning side of a pair of recent upsets by New York congressional candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Florida gubernatorial hopeful Andrew Gillum, a pair of progressives who defeated more mainstream challengers.

I just have a rule to stay out of primaries as best as I possibly can, Booker said. This is not about me trying to pick favorites in the Democratic Party, and, frankly, I think the national party should let a lot of these things play out.

But Booker said hes thrilled by Gillums victory, and he lauded Ocasio-Cortez as a 28-year-old powerhouse star.

Booker says theres a chance for a 50-state straight Democratic stretch. Achieving that long-shot goal is part of the reason many of his campaign stops have been in states that are hardly blue strongholds including Mississippi, Arizona, Montana, and Alabama.

So far, Booker has avoided the early primary states that would be most likely to fuel 2020 campaign rumors, but he has made stops in key presidential election battlegrounds like Ohio, Florida and Nevada. Booker also admitted he has invitations to Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, and he wouldnt rule out visiting them soon.

Look, weve just started getting a lot of invitations to go to those three states, Booker said. I think weve got invitations to go to every single state except for Alaska.

_____

Read more from Yahoo News:
Michael Peck

Security,

Did a Russian built anti-aircraft missile hit one of Israels new F-35 stealth fighters?

Did a Russian Made Anti-Aircraft Missile Really Hit an F-35?

Already there are reportsagain, just reportsthat Israeli F-35s have flown combat missions. Given that the U.S. and Israeli air forces are among the most active in the world, sooner or later the F-35 will really, truly see combat. But the rumors are out there now.

Did a Russian anti-aircraft missile hit one of Israels new F-35 stealth fighters?

Pro-Russian media are claiming that an Israeli F-35I was hit and damaged by a Russian-made S-200 surface-to-air missile during an Israeli air strike in Syria earlier this month. Israel says one of its F-35s was damagedafter colliding with a bird.

(This first appeared in October of last year.)

The story begins on October 16, when Israel announced that its aircraft had struck a Syrian SAM battery near Damascus that had fired two hours earlier on Israeli reconnaissance planes flying over Lebanon. The attack damaged the missile battery, and no Israeli aircraft were hit, according to Israel. Coincidentally or not, the incident happened the same day that Russias defense minister, Sergei Shoigu, arrived in Israel for talks with Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman.

Recommended: Could the Battleship Make a Comeback? 

However, Southfront.org, a website that covers the Russian military and its intervention in the Syrian Civil War, suggested a different story. According to the available information, the Syrian Defense Forces used a S-200 missile against the Israeli warplane, Southfront claimed.

Recommended: 5 Worst Generals in U.S. History

Southfront could not resist pointing out that a much-vaunted F-35 stealth fighter had been hit by a missile that dates back to the 1960s. This Soviet-made missile is the most advanced long range anti-aircraft system operated by the Syrian military. Even in this case, its old-fashioned in terms of modern warfare.

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However, the evidence cited by Southfront seems rather tenuous. Hours after the Israeli military announced the strike on the Syrian missile battery, Israeli media reported that an Israeli F-35 had been damaged by a bird strike two weeks before (Google translation here). The plane reportedly landed safely, but the Israeli Air Force did admit that it wasnt sure whether the plane will fly again. Israel has taken delivery of only seven F-35Is so far, with a total of fifty on order.

Recommended: 5 Reasons No Nation Wants to Go to War with Israel

The incident allegedly took place two weeks ago but was publicly reported only on October 16, Southfront noted. However, Israeli sources were not able to show a photo of the F-35 warplane after the bird collision.

Southfront didnt explain why the Israeli Air Force would feel a need to release a photo of a damaged stealth aircraft. As U.S. defense website The Drive points out, the F-35 is just entering Israeli service now, and wouldnt likely be flying missions over Syria just yet unless there was some kind of emergency (and Israel has plenty of F-15s and F-16s to handle those right now). Nor is it optimized for the kind of photographic reconnaissance missions that Israel flies over Lebanon.

As The Drive summed up rather neatly, Although we cannot rule the possibility out entirely, as Freud would saysometimes a bird strike is just a bird strike.

In any event, whats most interesting about this story isnt whether an F-35 was hit by a Russian missile. Like the existence of UFOs, the story may or not be true, but we need more than circumstantial evidence to give it any credence.

No, the interesting part is that the F-35 has become such a symbol of U.S. technological prowessor incompetencethat any rumor that an F-35 has been damaged or shot down in combat will draw attention. Russia and its boosters will pounce on any suggestion that an F-35 has been hit, and no doubt the pro- F-35 crowd will counter those suggestions accordingly.

Already there are reportsagain, just reportsthat Israeli F-35s have flown combat missions. Given that the U.S. and Israeli air forces are among the most active in the world, sooner or later the F-35 will really, truly see combat. But the rumors are out there now.

This is just the beginning.

Michael Peck is a contributing writer for the National Interest. He can be found on Twitter and Facebook.

Read full article
Brett Kavanaugh, President Donald Trumps nominee to fill Justice Anthony Kennedys seat on the Supreme Court, faces a likely contentious confirmation hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee starting Tuesday. We asked dozens of lawyers, activists and other experts what they would ask Kavanaugh, who currently sits on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, if they had the chance. Below is a running selection of their questions, categorized by topic and edited for clarity.

On Abortion Rights

WHY: Abortion rights activists are concerned that Kavanaugh, a social conservative who opposed an undocumented teenagers request to obtain an abortion while in federal custody last year, could be open to further restricting access to the procedure.

Nicole Austin-Hillery, U.S. program director at Human Rights Watch: What do you believe are constitutionally reasonable restrictions that might be placed on women accessing reproductive health care? What are your views on whether women have the right to access accurate and complete information about the full range of reproductive health care offered by a provider?

Erwin Chemerinsky, dean of Berkeley Law: If you had been on the Supreme Court in 1973, how would you have voted in Roe v. Wade [the landmark decision affirming a constitutional right to access safe, legal abortion nationwide]? The question is not What would you do in the future? but How would you have voted then?

Sara Rosenbaum, professor at George Washington Universitys Milken Institute School of Public Health: What are your views on fundamental freedoms and what burdens individuals should be asked to bear and what evidentiary standards you would demand? On abortion, as with religious freedom, the issue is how heavy a burden to impose on individuals who claim that government is burdening the exercise of their rights. This court has made it very easy to claim burden when religious freedom is at stake, but far harder to show undue burden in laws that impair access to abortion.

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David Cole, legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union: Do you believe the Constitutions guarantee of individual liberty protects the right to make personal decisions regarding ones own body and intimate relationships, including whom one chooses to marry, how to raise ones children, whether to use contraception, and whether to obtain an abortion?

The second annual Women's March passes in front of Trump International Hotel and Tower on Jan. 20, 2018. (Photo: Ira L. Black / Corbis via Getty Images)

On Executive Power and Investigations of Sitting Presidents

WHY: Kavanaugh has argued that a sitting president shouldnt be burdened by lawsuits, investigations and indictments  a position that may put him at odds with special counsel Robert Mueller as the latter continues his investigation into Russian interference in the 2016 election. Kavanaugh also told a conservative group two years ago that he would put the final nail in Morrison v. Olson, a 1988 Supreme Court ruling that affirmed the constitutionality of naming independent counsel.

Kristen Clarke, president and executive director of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law: Why do you think the decision in Morrison v. Olson was wrong? Do you oppose the appointment of a special counsel in all circumstances?

Cole: President Trump has nominated you to the career opportunity of your lifetime. If presented with a case involving his personal interests, what standard will you use in deciding whether to recuse yourself from the case?

On Gun Control

WHY: Kavanaugh argued in his 2011 dissent in Heller v. District of Columbia that a ban on semiautomatic rifles was unconstitutional. (Dont be confused by the name: This Heller case challenged D.C.s legislative response to the Supreme Courts 2008 landmark gun rights decision, District of Columbia v. Heller.) The 2011 opinion has gun control advocates worried that Kavanaugh supports an expansion of gun rights.

Eric Tirschwell, director of litigation and national enforcement policy for Everytown for Gun Safety: You state in your Heller dissent that you cant rely directly on history and tradition and have to reason by analogy when it comes to new gun regulations because of conditions that have not traditionally existed. What is an example, for the purposes of this test, of a condition that has not traditionally existed? What about mass shootings  like Parkland, Newtown, Pulse nightclub, Las Vegas and so many others  which are relatively new phenomenon?

Tirschwell: Without getting into how you would decide the cases, how would you go about analyzing relatively new gun laws, including laws closing the background check loophole for gun sales from unlicensed sellers at gun shows or over the internet, laws that prohibit domestic violence offenders and abusers under restraining orders from possessing guns, laws that require surrender of guns in such circumstances, red flag laws that allow family members or law enforcement to get a court order to temporarily block firearm access from those likely to harm themselves or others, and prohibitions on bump stocks?

Semi-automatic AR-15 rifles for sale at Good Guys Guns & Range on Feb. 15, 2018, in Orem, Utah. (Photo: George Frey via Getty Images)

On Covert Government Surveillance of Americans and Torture

WHY: In 2015, Circuit Judge Kavanaugh strongly defended the National Security Agencys broad, covert collection of domestic phone call records in a case called Obama v. Klayman. Questions about Kavanaughs earlier days as an official in the George W. Bush administration and his role, if any, in crafting counterterrorism policies have also been raised. Kavanaugh has previously denied that he was involved in shaping those policies.

Austin-Hillery: What are your views on whether mass, large-scale or discriminatory surveillance is permissible in and outside the U.S.? Do you agree that call records and other data about communications can be highly sensitive? What are your views on how the warrant requirement applies to modern communications technology?

Austin-Hillery: Do you believe that the techniques used on detainees in secret CIA detention sites  not just waterboarding, but the painful stress positions, days of sleep deprivation, forced nudity, diapering and denial of food, individually or in isolation  amounted to torture? Did you play any role in formulation of any detention-related policies when you served under the Bush administration, and if so, what was that role?

Cole: In your 2006 confirmation hearings for a federal court judgeship, you said that you absolutely believed President Bushs statements that the United States does not torture and does not condone torture. Knowing what you know now about the United States use of waterboarding and other coercive methods against detainees, do you still believe that the United States did not torture?

On LGBTQ Rights

WHY: Kavanaugh has no judicial record on gay rights cases, but he did serve in the Bush White House when the president pursued a constitutional amendment that would have banned same-sex marriage, which has raised alarm among advocates for equal rights.

Cole: Do you agree that a core function of the Supreme Court in our democratic society is to protect the rights of minorities that cannot protect themselves in the political process? Does that principle justify the courts precedents protecting LGBT individuals?

Austin-Hillery: Do you believe that Obergefell v. Hodges [the Supreme Court ruling that gave same-sex couples the right to marry nationwide] was correctly decided? What do you understand the term substantially to mean in the context of the Religious Freedom Restoration Act [which generally bars federal laws that substantially burden a persons exercise of religion], and what is the courts role in scrutinizing whether any burden imposed is substantial?

The Fort Meade, Maryland, headquarters of the National Security Agency. (Photo: Handout / Reuters)

On Foreign Money in U.S. Elections

WHY: In 2011, Kavanaugh wrote an opinion upholding the ban on foreign spending for or against candidates in U.S. elections.

Ciara Torres-Spelliscy, law professor at Stetson University College of Law: You stated in Bluman v. Federal Election Commission that foreigners should not be allowed to spend in U.S. elections. Do you still believe this is true? If so, why? And does it trouble you that according to an indictment from special counsel Robert Mueller, Russian nationals allegedly purchased political ads on Facebook during the 2016 election in contravention of the ban on foreign political spending?

On Kavanaughs Personal Debt

WHY: In 2016, Kavanaugh had between $60,000 and $200,000 in debt through three credit cards and a personal loan, according to his financial disclosure forms. The White House has said that he built up the debt by buying Washington Nationals season tickets and tickets for playoff games for himself and a group of friends.

Torres-Spelliscy: Is there paper backup that can prove that your debts were really all caused by sporting event tickets?

On the Affordable Care Act

WHY: A future Supreme Court ruling might strike down President Barack Obamas signature health care law, which has made health care more accessible to millions. Kavanaugh has expressed deep skepticism about the statute.

Rosenbaum: What are your views on the severability doctrine, which underlies Texas v. Azar, the case in which the challengers assert that the zeroing out of a tax penalty means that the most critical insurance protections under the ACA no longer can be enforced?

Austin-Hillery: Do you believe the Affordable Care Act is constitutional? What are your views on how to balance the rights of religious freedom with the right to be free from discrimination?

On Voting Rights and Voter ID Laws

WHY: In 2012, Kavanaugh wrote the decision in an unanimous ruling to uphold a South Carolina law that required a government-issued photo ID to vote. The Obama administration said the law would disenfranchise tens of thousands of minority citizens. That ruling has sparked fears that Republican efforts to suppress voters could get worse if Kavanaugh is confirmed.

Clarke: Do you view that vote dilution claims based on discriminatory results are cognizable under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and that the act is constitutional for permitting such claims? Do you believe that Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act is facially constitutional?

Austin-Hillery: Do you believe the protections afforded under the Voting Rights Act prior to the Shelby County decision in 2013 [a Supreme Court ruling that severely limited the Voting Rights Act] are still needed by the states to ensure fair and equal access to the ballot? Given the recent findings of lower courts in cases challenging voter ID and other forms of voter suppression, do you think the mechanisms afforded by the Voting Rights Act, pre-2013, to combat discrimination in voting should be reinstated or updated?

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A Miami Beach, Florida, polling place during the Aug. 28, 2018, primary elections. (Photo: Scott McIntyre / Bloomberg via Getty Images)

On Net Neutrality and Broadband Regulation

WHY: Kavanaugh is not a supporter of government-enforced internet neutrality. In a dissent last year, he wrote that the Obama-era net neutrality rule was unlawful and must be vacated, alarming advocates for equal treatment of data online.

Austin-Hillery: What are your views on the right to access information and freedom of expression in the digital age? In your view, does the Federal Communications Commission have the responsibility and authority to protect these rights for all people  not just cable companies?

Electronic Frontier Foundation: Can paid prioritization practices run afoul of consumer protection or civil rights laws? How should the broadband internet market be analyzed under current competition laws? Does the Federal Communications Commission have the authority to determine the classification of broadband internet service providers? Does the Communications Act occupy the field and pre-empt states and municipalities from passing their own laws blocking throttling, paid prioritization, and zero rating by broadband internet service providers? How would the Constitution view federal attempts to limit state broadband regulation?

On Environmental Protection

WHY: Advocates for robust protection of the environment have been disturbed by Kavanaughs jurisprudential record, which reveals a deeply unsympathetic view of environmental interests.

Austin-Hillery: To what extent does the Environmental Protection Agency have discretion in combating health risks associated with environmental degradation and climate change?

Sanjay Narayan, managing attorney at the Sierra Club: In PHH Corporation v. Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Judge Kavanaugh opined that the constitutional principle of separation of powers creates a right to liberty from federal regulation for large corporations, presumably including major polluters. Does Judge Kavanaugh believe that consumers and the general public have any corresponding constitutional right to liberty from pollution or other corporate misbehavior? If so, how would he apply his constitutional liberty theory to that right? And does his expansive view of the courts constitutional powers only extend to protecting corporate rights, or does he also believe that the courts have a proper role in safeguarding due process rights, e.g. to abortion?

Narayan: The Supreme Court has held, in Massachusetts v. EPA, that EPA has an obligation to regulate mobile sources of greenhouse gases. In Coalition for Responsible Regulation v. EPA, Judge Kavanaugh opined that EPA has authority to regulate greenhouse gases only to the extent that such authority produced no extreme consequences in the context of emissions. Does Judge Kavanaugh believe that Massachusetts v. EPA was wrongly decided or should be limited to permit only de minimis climate-related regulation? Or that Massachusetts v. EPA authorizes any regulation of greenhouse gases, beyond mobile-source emissions?

On Affirmative Action

WHY: In a 1999 legal brief on behalf of the Center for Equal Opportunity, a group that opposes race-based affirmative action in college admissions, Kavanaugh argued that it is inevitable that the Supreme Court will eventually conclude that we are all one race in the eyes of the government. The Trump administration decided to file a brief in support of a current lawsuit against Harvard University seeking to end affirmative action practices.

Clarke: Do you oppose the consideration of race in university admissions in all circumstances? Do you consider the holding in the University of Texas cases as settled law?

Cole: Do you believe that public colleges and universities have a compelling interest in ensuring that they have diverse student bodies?

On Withholding Records During the Confirmation Process

WHY: Kavanaughs legal team has turned over more than 400,000 pages of records from his time working in the Bush White House. But more than 140,000 pages have been withheld from public view and Trump has claimed executive privilege on more than 100,000 additional pages of records. The secrecy, according to the Bush legal team releasing the records, is needed due to the sensitivity of the communications. But the lack of disclosure has alarmed advocates for transparency in the process.

Rick Barton, lawyer and adjunct law professor at the University of San Diego School of Law: As a sitting federal judge, do you view yourself as bound by the Code of Conduct for United States and the Canons, which require that a judge uphold the integrity and independence of the judiciary and should avoid impropriety and the appearance of impropriety in all activities? Do you view that as applying to the confirmation process? Do you agree with the Code of Conduct which states that a judge must expect to be the subject of public scrutiny and accept freely and willingly restrictions that might be viewed as burdensome by the ordinary citizen? As a nominee to the highest court, did you feel it was your obligation to ensure that this process allowed for a full and fair evaluation of your qualifications? In that regard, did you see it as your obligation to instruct those in the executive or legislative branches to avoid doing anything which would possibly compromise the integrity of this process or do anything to prevent access to documents which bear on your qualifications?

This article originally appeared on HuffPost.
(Reuters) - A Myanmar judge on Monday found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and jailed them for seven years in a landmark case seen as a test of progress toward democracy in the Southeast Asian country. Here are some reactions to the news. U.S. AMBASSADOR TO MYANMAR SCOT MARCIEL: "I'm sad for Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo and their families, but also for Myanmar. It's deeply troubling for everybody who has struggled so hard here for media freedom. "I think one has to ask will this process increase or decrease the confidence the people of Myanmar have in their justice system." BRITISH AMBASSADOR TO MYANMAR DAN CHUGG:"Speaking on behalf of the British government, but also on behalf of European Union member states, we are extremely disappointed by this verdict. "Freedom of expression and rule of law are fundamental in a democracy, and this case has passed a long shadow over both today. "The judge has appeared to have ignored evidence and to have ignored Myanmar law. This has dealt a hammer blow for the rule of law." STEPHANE DUJARRIC, SPOKESMAN FOR UNITED NATIONS SECRETARY-GENERAL ANTONIO GUTERRES: "The Secretary-General takes note with concern of the conviction and sentencing ... in Myanmar of journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo to seven years of imprisonment. He urges the authorities to review their decision. "The right to freedom of expression and information is a cornerstone of any democracy. It is unacceptable that these journalists were prosecuted for reporting on major human rights violations against the Rohingya in Rakhine State. "The Secretary-General will continue to advocate for the release of the journalists. He calls for full respect of freedom of the press and all human rights in Myanmar." FEDERICA MOGHERINI, SPOKESWOMAN OF THE EUROPEAN UNION HIGH REPRESENTATIVE FOR FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND SECURITY POLICY: "Today's court decision... undermines the freedom of the media, the public's right to information and the development of the rule of law in Myanmar. "Their sentencing and imprisonment under the Official Secrets Act of 1923 for covering allegations of serious human rights violations in Rakhine State also serve to intimidate other journalists who will fear harassment and undue arrest or prosecution for merely doing their jobs. "Media freedom and critical journalism are essential pillars of democracy. A free press has a key function in promoting transparency and holding democratic governments to account. "The prison sentences of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be reviewed and the two journalists be released immediately and unconditionally." STEPHEN J. ADLER, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF, REUTERS: "Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere. "These two admirable reporters have already spent nearly nine months in prison on false charges designed to silence their reporting and intimidate the press. "Without any evidence of wrongdoing and in the face of compelling evidence of a police set-up, today's ruling condemns them to the continued loss of their freedom and condones the misconduct of security forces. "This is a major step backward in Myanmar's transition to democracy, cannot be squared with the rule of law or freedom of speech, and must be corrected by the Myanmar government as a matter of urgency. "We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum." MICHELLE BACHELET, U.N. HIGH COMMISSIONER FOR HUMAN RIGHTS: The verdict "sends a message to all journalists in Myanmar that they cannot operate fearlessly, but must rather make a choice to either self-censor or risk prosecution." TIRANA HASSAN, AMNESTY INTERNATIONAL'S DIRECTOR OF CRISIS RESPONSE: "These convictions must be quashed, and both men immediately and unconditionally released. "This politically motivated decision has significant ramifications for press freedom in Myanmar. It sends a stark warning to other journalists of the severe consequences that await should they look too closely at military abuses. This amounts to censorship through fear." BRAD ADAMS, ASIA DIRECTOR, HUMAN RIGHTS WATCH: "The outrageous convictions of the Reuters journalists show Myanmar courts' willingness to muzzle those reporting on military atrocities. "These sentences mark a new low for press freedom and further backsliding on rights under Aung San Suu Kyi's government." FREDERICK RAWSKI, ASIA PACIFIC DIRECTOR, INTERNATIONAL COMMISSION OF JURISTS: "The courts decision effectively punishes these two courageous journalists for exposing human rights violations, following a grossly unfair trial. "The decision is a miscarriage of justice that inflicts needless suffering on them and their families, threatens freedom of expression, damages Myanmars global standing, and undermines its justice institutions all at once." SHAWN CRISPIN, SOUTHEAST ASIA REPRESENTATIVE, COMMITTEE TO PROTECT JOURNALISTS: "Today's ruling... on bogus charges marks a new press freedom low for Myanmar. The process that resulted in their convictions was a travesty of justice and will cast Myanmar as an anti-democratic pariah as long as they are wrongfully held behind bars. We call on Myanmar's civilian authorities to immediately release the journalists." NIKKI HALEY, U.S. AMBASSADOR TO THE UNITED NATIONS: "A Burmese court found two Reuters journalists, Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, guilty of violating the colonial-era 'Official Secrets Act' for investigating and reporting on an army massacre of Rohingya. "It is clear to all that the Burmese military has committed vast atrocities. In a free country, it is the duty of a responsible press to keep people informed and hold leaders accountable. The conviction of two journalists for doing their job is another terrible stain on the Burmese government. We will continue to call for their immediate and unconditional release." IQBAL SOBHAN CHOWDHURY, MEDIA ADVISER TO BANGLADESH'S PRIME MINISTER SHEIKH HASINA: "This has once again proved the Myanmar government has been pursuing the suppression of the freedom of expression and freedom of media. It is now an open secret that any media or any person who wants to reveal the atrocities of the Myanmar army and administration against the Rohingya people will face persecution by the Myanmar government. "We strongly condemn this and demand the release of the Reuters journalists and a halt to any further persecution of any media person in Myanmar." MOHIB ULLAH, ROHINGYA LEADER IN KUTAPALONG REFUGEE CAMP IN BANGLADESH: "This is not justice. I would like to see them free as soon as possible. They did nothing wrong." THANT MYINT-U, MYANMAR HISTORIAN AND COMMENTATOR: "A tragic day for media freedom and an intimation of what's to come." AUNG HTUN OO, MEDIA TRAINER, YANGON JOURNALISM SCHOOL: "The world of Myanmar news media is now in darkness... I understand this is trying to silence journalists so that they do not dare to say anything in the future." CHRYSTIA FREELAND, CANADA'S MINISTER OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS: The verdict seriously jeopardizes the prospects for freedom of expression and democracy, and the fair and transparent application of law in Myanmar, both now and in the future. Canada joins the international community in strongly reiterating our calls for the immediate release of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, who have already been detained for eight months, so that they can rejoin their families and continue their vital work." U.S. SENATOR BOB CORKER, HEAD OF SENATE FOREIGN RELATIONS COMMITTEE: "Imprisoning Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo further tarnishes the already failing leadership of Aung San Suu Kyi and harms Burmas democracy as atrocities continue to be carried out against the Rohingya minority." ED ROYCE, CHAIRMAN OF U.S. HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES FOREIGN AFFAIRS COMMITTEE: "This unjust verdict reaffirms that the Burmese government is complicit in the militarys atrocities. The U.S. should respond with more sanctions and a formal determination of genocide. We must act before it is too late. (Reporting by Antoni Slodkowski; Additional reporting by Shoon Naing, Thu Thu Aung, Simon Lewis, Aye Min Thant and Ruma Paul in DHAKA, Matt Spetalnick and David Shepardson in Washington; Editing by Clarence Fernandez, Philip McClellan, Toni Reinhold and Dan Grebler)
CHEMNITZ, Germany (AP)  Police in eastern Germany brought an early close Saturday to an anti-migrant march that far-right activists hoped would launch a nationwide movement to challenge the political establishment, with the fatal stabbing of a German citizen as the catalyst.

A trio of nationalist groups held separate rallies in the city of Chemnitz over the Aug. 26 slaying for which a Syrian and an Iraqi citizen were arrested. The two largest groups also organized their first joint march, a display of unity meant to build on other protests since the killing and a potent force to take hold.

Saxony state police cited security concerns for halting the march after more than an hour, producing screams and whistles from demonstrators as officers moved in to clear the streets but no violence or vandalism as the crowd dispersed.

The progress of the far-right march had been interrupted several times before then as counter-protesters blocked the route and the sizeable police contingent on hand rushed to keep them and the marchers apart.

Saxony police estimated the event had 4,500 participants and 4,000 counter-protesters. If attendance is any gauge, the numbers revealed a movement in an early embryonic stage at best rather than approaching a mainstream arrival that could be hastened by well-timed pushes.

The emboldened far-right activists had reason to be optimistic and local authorities to be worried after the opposing camps clashed in Chemnitz on Monday, the day after the 35-year-old German man's death. Scenes of vigilantes chasing foreigners in the city's streets have shocked people in others parts of Germany since then.

Police, at times, were unable to control the earlier protests and clashes.

Leaders of the two groups that combined forces on Saturday night cultivated a different image for the "mourning march," wearing dark suits and carrying white roses.

However, the mood at the event bringing together previously isolated clusters of nationalists  from lawmakers to Hitler-saluting skinheads  darkened as the sun set. People from both ends of the political spectrum could be seen drinking beer and shouting slurs at police.

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The tension in the air reflected the polarization over Germany's ongoing effort to come to terms with an influx of more than 1 million refugees and migrants seeking jobs since 2015.

The right blames Chancellor Angela Merkel's decision to allow in hundreds of thousands of asylum-seekers from war-torn countries like Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan for multiple problems. Some far-right supporters argued before the killing in Chemnitz that migrants are responsible for an increase in serious crimes, especially attacks on women.

The anti-migrant sentiment has been particularly strong in Saxony state, traditional strongholds of groups that sought to inspire a nationwide movement on Saturday night: the Patriotic Europeans Against the Islamization of the West, or PEGIDA, and the far-right Alternative for Germany party, which has won seats in federal and state parliaments with an anti-Muslim platform.

While the share of foreigners residing in Saxony remains below Germany's national average and displays of Nazi symbols are outlawed across the shame-marked country, far-right sympathizers mobilized with exceptional speed on the night of the Chemnitz slaying and the days after.

German Justice Minister Katarina Barley said Saturday that authorities should investigate the role of networks from the radical far right in spearheading the week's protests.

"We do not tolerate that right-wing extremists infiltrate our society," Barley told weekly newspaper Bild am Sonntag. "It's about finding out who's behind the mobilization of far-right criminals."

Local police appeared to have been caught unprepared when the slaying triggered the protests, which attracted crowds openly engaging in Nazi veneration and devolved into violence.

The protests were sparked by a fatal stabbing early Sunday morning of a 35-year-old German man, Daniel Hillig. Two asylum-seekers, a 22-year-old Iraqi and a 23-year-old Syrian, have been arrested on suspicion of manslaughter.

German Interior Minister Horst Seehofer, known for his anti-migrant stance, said Saturday that he understood why "the people in Chemnitz and elsewhere are upset about the brutal killing" but added "there's no excuse for violence," Funke Media Group reported.

"We need a strong state and we have to do everything politically to overcome the polarization and division of our society," Seehofer stressed.

While anti-migrant protests took place in Germany before, especially during the early 1990s, a strong and vocal opposition usually was there to provide a counterforce. Artists organized concerts to raise awareness, and ordinary citizens lined up in miles-long human chains to protest violence against newcomers.

Chemnitz, a city known for its hardened neo-Nazi scene, at first attracted a comparatively weak response to the recent anti-migrant activity. Some 70 left-leaning and pro-migrant groups organized the "Heart not Hatred" rally that got in the way of Saturday's far-right march.

"I've a lot of experience with far-right protests in Chemnitz," Tim Detzner, a member of the Left Party in Chemnitz, said, noting that the street riots this week "reached a level of aggression, brutality and willingness to use violence that we haven't known before."

___

Grieshaber reported from Berlin. Frank Jordans contributed from Berlin.
Recently bumped from the top slot by the Chinese release of "Ant-Man and The Wasp," the sixth opus in the Mission Impossible franchise has a made a comeback to once again lead the international box-office rankings. The action spy movie is closely followed by "Crazy Rich Asians" and this summer's blockbuster "The Meg," which, in the wake of a week of musical chairs, are now in second and third place, respectively.

Having sunk to fourth place last week, "Mission: Impossible - Fallout" has made a comeback to take back the lead in global box-office rankings. Christopher McQuarrie's film took in 96.1 million dollars on the first weekend of September, which contributed to a total of more than 647 million dollars since its release. Quite a feat for the film's two heroes, Tom Cruise and Henry Cavill, who have just finished their press tour of China. The duo easily unseated the latest Marvel Studios release, "Ant-Man and The Wasp," which went from first to fourth place in the rankings with 17.1 million dollars in receipts over the weekend. Evangeline Lilly and Paul Rudd will nonetheless be pleased with their film's running total of 594 million dollars worldwide since its release two months ago.

"Crazy Rich Asians" has overtaken this summer's blockbuster "The Meg." With more than 32.6 million dollars, the film by Jon Chu with Michelle Yeoh ("Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon") and Ken Jeong ("Community") is ranked second. Just behind it comes the science fiction thriller "The Meg" by Jon Turteltaub, which grossed more than 28.2 million dollars at the weekend. Nonetheless, Jason Statham takes a step down on the podium from second to third position.

Spike Lee has continued to disappoint with his comedy drama "BlacKkKlansman", which was not placed in the global box-office top 10 at the weekend. However, the film, which tells the tale of an African-American detective who sets out to infiltrate the Ku Klux Klan, climbed a step to reach 12th position in the rankings with 8.9 million dollars of receipts at the weekend. And let's not forget that Spike Lee's latest won the Grand Prix at the 71st Cannes Film Festival in May 2018.

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Global box-office top 10 (in millions of dollars) :

1. Mission: Impossible - Fallout - 96.1

2. Crazy Rich Asians - 32.6

3. The Meg - 28.2

4. Ant-Man and The Wasp - 17.1

5. Hotel Transylvania 3 - Summer Vacation - 13.8

6. Incredibles 2 - 12.7

7. Searching - 11.6

8. The Equalizer 2 - 11.4

9. Alpha - 11

10. Christopher Robin - 9.7
Footage from a police helicopter shows a shootout between Texas State Troopers and a suspect in San Antonio, Texas, on Sunday, February 18.

The footage released by the Texas Department of Public Safety shows a trooper being shot in the arm by Ernest Manuel Montelongo, who resisted arrest and fled after being stopped for a traffic violation. Montelongo was then fatally shot by another Trooper.

The Texas State Troopers Association said that the suspect emerged from his vehicle, produced a gun and forced the trooper to exchange gunfire with him.

Local media reported that authorities said Montelongo was brought to Brooke Army Medical Centre and was pronounced dead a day later. A spokesman for the DPS said the Trooper was doing well. Credit: Texas Department of Public Safety via Storyful




Holly Willoughby made her big return to ITVs This Morning today after an extended summer break.

And she was quick to talk about both her upcoming hosting duties on Im a CelebrityGet Me out of Here! and congratulating her future co-host Declan Donnelly on the birth of his first child Isla.

Willoughby revealed that the newborn will likely be travelling to Australia where Im a Celebrity is filmed, I cant wait for cuddles with her. I think shell be coming to Australia as well!

This was followed by her This Morning co-host Phil Schofield asking her about how she feels about hosting from the Aussie jungle.

When I first found out its exciting, bittersweet but exciting. The kids are coming with me so I had to talk to the schools then mum and dad are coming for a bit too.

So when I sorted the logistics I then thought, Theres going to be spiders there! she explained.

And while she certainly seemed excited for the upcoming stint, she revealed shes dreading three things.

Three things Im not looking forward to  the eating something challenge. Its going to be horrible!

The smells, Im not good with smells! And when they come out with the stuff What have I done? she said.

Willoughby will be standing in for Ant McPartlin, who is taking a break from his television hosting duties after a public battle with alcoholism.

Im a CelebrityGet Me out of Here! returns this autumn.





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About 400 inmates escaped from a prison near the Libyan capital in a mass-jail break on Sunday after a week of deadly clashes between rival armed groups in the city.

The prisoners forced open doors and overwhelmed guards in the Ain Zara prison in southern Tripoli, Reuters reports, citing a police statement. The surrounding area has been wracked with fighting over the past week that pitted militia groups the Seventh Brigade, which hails from from Tarhouna, a town about 40 miles southeast of Tripoli, against the Tripoli Revolutionaries Brigades (TRB) and the Nawasi Brigade.

Numerous armed militias have attempted to wrest control of the city since the ouster of Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2011. The recent surge in fighting, which began on Aug. 26, has included shelling in densely populated residential areas, with the death toll rising to 39 as of Friday and over 100 wounded, according to the Libyan Ministry of Health. An estimated 1,170 households, or around 5,800 people, have also been displaced, according to the European Civil Protection and Humanitarian Aid Operations.

Many of the prisoners were reportedly supporters of Gaddafi and found guilty of killings during the 2011 uprising, according to Agence France-Presse.

Read more: The Final Moments of Muammar Gaddafi

Families in Tripoli are living in fear due to indiscriminate shelling landing in their neighborhoods from a far with no knowledge of who is behind these attacks and where they are coming from, Robeiro said in a statement.

The U.N.-backed government in Tripoli has declared a state of emergency, while the U.N. Mission in Libya invited the various concerned parties to meet on Tuesday for an urgent dialogue on the security situation. U.N. Secretary General Antonio Guterres has also offered to moderate peace talks.

Separately on Sunday, two people were killed and seven wounded when a rocket hit a displaced persons camp for the Tawergha people in Tripoli.
Kabul (AFP) - A US soldier was killed and another wounded in an "apparent insider attack" in eastern Afghanistan on Monday, NATO said, marking the sixth American service member death in the war-torn country this year.

The so-called "green-on-blue" attack was the latest in a series of incidents in which Afghan forces have turned their weapons on international troops with whom they are working.

The last time a US soldier was killed in an insider attack was on July 7 in the country's south.

General Scott Miller, who took command of US and NATO forces in Afghanistan on Sunday, said the soldier's death was "a tragic loss".

"Our duty now is to honour him, care for his family and continue our mission," Miller said in a statement.

The wounded soldier was in a stable condition, the statement said.

NATO did not release the identity of the American soldier killed or provide further details about where the incident took place.

Currently, there are about 14,000 US troops in Afghanistan, providing the main component of the NATO mission there to support and train local forces.

American casualties have fallen dramatically since the withdrawal of US-led NATO combat troops at the end of 2014.
Jerusalem (AFP) - Israeli Defence Minister Avigdor Lieberman on Monday signalled his country could strike Iranian targets in Iraq if they threatened Israel, saying it would hit wherever necessary.

"We will face any Iranian threat, no matter where it comes from," Lieberman said in response to a question about reports that Iran had provided ballistic missiles to allied Shiite militias in Iraq in recent months.

"Our freedom of action is total," he told a conference organised by an Israeli media company.

Israel has pledged to stop Iran, its main enemy, from entrenching itself militarily in neighbouring Syria, where Tehran is backing President Bashar al-Assad's regime in his country's civil war.

A series of recent strikes in Syria that have killed Iranians has been attributed to Israel.

Israel also acknowledges carrying out dozens of strikes in Syria against what it says were advanced weapons deliveries to Hezbollah, the Iranian-backed Shiite group.

Asked about the possibility of Israel hitting Iranian military positions in "Iraq or Tehran," Lieberman said: "We do not limit ourselves to Syrian territory alone. It must be clear."

On Sunday, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu held talks with US special representative for Syria engagement James Jeffrey on the war-ravaged country and Iran.
A display featuring missiles and a portrait of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is seen at Baharestan Square in Tehran - Reuters

Israel has threatened to attack any Iranian military assets in Iraq as it has done in Syria, following reports Tehran has moved ballistic missiles closer to the Jewish state.

Avigdor Lieberman, Israel's defence minister, signalled on Monday it would contend with Iranian provocations wherever they are found.

"We are certainly monitoring everything that is happening in Syria, and regarding Iranian threats we are not limiting ourselves just to Syrian territory. This also needs to be clear," Mr Lieberman told a conference in Jerusalem.

Asked if this included Iraq, he responded: "I am saying that we will contend with any Iranian threat, and it doesn't matter from where it comes ... Israel's freed.

Tehran has transferred dozens of short-range ballistic missiles to Shia proxies in Iraq over the last few months, according to a Reuters report published over the weekend.

Iranian Quds Force commander Qassem Soleimani attends meeting with the Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) in Tehran Credit: Anadolu Agency

The Zelzal, Fateh-110 and Zolfaqar missiles in question have ranges of 400 miles, putting Tel Aviv within striking distance if the weapons were deployed in southern or western Iraq.

The Quds Force, the overseas arm of Irans powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), has bases in both those areas.

It seems Iran has been turning Iraq into its forward missile base, one Western source said.

Israel is technically at war with Iraq, but the two countries have not openly traded blows for decades.

Israel has however conducted hundreds of air strikes against arms transfers and deployments by Iran and its Lebanese ally, the Shia Hizbollah militia, fearing the threat across its border.

Israeli officials will also be watching political developments in Baghdad with concern.

Lebanese soldiers inspect remains of a surface to air missile that landed in the southern Lebanon after being fired by Iranian forces from Syria on the Israeli-occupied Golan Credit: AFP

After months of wrangling, two blocs on Monday claimed to hold the majority of seats in parliament and therefore the right to name a prime minister.

The bloc of incumbent Prime Minister Haider al-Abadi and populist cleric Moqtada al-Sadr has the support of the US, while the bloc of former Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and Badr Organisation militia leader Hadi al-Amiri is backed by Iran.

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Badr is part of the state apparatus and answers to Iraqs prime minister, but Mr Amiri and other members of the groups leadership frequently meet and consult with Qassem Soleimani, Quds Force commander.

A Maliki-Amiri coalition would likely lead Iraq to greater hostilities with Israel.

The Kurds, a minority in Iraq, have yet to pick a side but could end up kingmakers. Brett McGurk, Special Presidential Envoy for the Global Coalition to Defeat Isil, has been trying to convince the various Kurdish parties to fall in line behind Mr Abadi.

Phillip Smyth, Soref fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East Policy, told the Telegraph the Israelis wont want to see another Iranian-controlled government spring up.

I'd also bet this would worry them more if that also means there's the possibility of continued and more advanced weapons transfers, he said.

Richard Baffa, senior defense researcher at the Rand Corporation, warned that escalating tensions between Israeli and Iranian forces have demonstrably increased the risk of a new, large-scale regional conflict.

Tehran's continued provocations and violations of Israel's stated red lines are fueling an escalatory spiral that has the potential to rapidly spin out of control, he wrote.

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Luciano Silighini Garagnani poses for pictures as he wears a T-shirt with a sign reading: Weinstein is innocent. (Credit: Reuters/Tony Gentile)

An Italian right-wing provocateur and filmmaker has hit headlines after wearing a t-shirt emblazoned with the words Weinstein is innocent at a red carpet event at the Venice Film Festival.

Luciano Silighini Garagnani was attending the world premiere of Luca Guadagninos new horror remake Suspiria, stopping on the concourse to pull open his jacket, which also boasted a picture of the disgraced film producer Harvey Weinstein.

The stunt was condemned by Alberto Barbara, the festival chief, who told Deadline that it was a stupid move.

Garagnani is a former casting director turned filmmaker behind a number of low-budget movie projects, though one leading Italian movie distributor added to Deadline that they had never heard of him.

(Credit: Rex)

As well as being a long-time supporter of former Italian prime minister Silvio Berlusconi, Garagnani is also a vocal supporter of the US republican party, and donated to Donald Trumps campaign, according to information posted on his IMDb page.

One of his recent movies, Uno di Noi, translated as one of us, attempted a positive spin on the real life of Silvio Berlusconi and Bunga Bunga night, the infamous sex parties which dogged Berlusconis career.

Weinstein has been accused by more than 70 women over alleged incidents of sexual harassment, assault, and in several cases, rape.

Criminal investigations are taking place in London, New York and Los Angeles.

The 66-year-old producer behind movies from Pulp Fiction and Shakespeare In Love, is currently on bail after being arrested and charged with rape in New York.

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BEIJING, (Reuters) - The billionaire founder and chief executive of Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com Inc, Richard Liu, was arrested in the U.S. state of Minnesota on suspicion of criminal sexual conduct and later released after what the company said was a false accusation.

JD.com, backed by Walmart Inc, Alphabet Inc's Google, and China's Tencent Holdings, said in a statement on Sunday that Liu, whose Chinese name is Liu Qiangdong, was falsely accused.

"During a business trip to the United States, Mr. Liu was questioned by police in Minnesota in relation to an unsubstantiated accusation," the company said.

"The local police quickly determined there was no substance to the claim against Mr. Liu, and he was subsequently able to resume his business activities as originally planned," it said.

The company did not immediately provide further details, and Liu could not immediately be reached by Reuters.

The arrest of Liu, 45, was made just before midnight local time on Friday, and he was released just after 4 p.m. on Saturday, according to the Hennepin County Sheriff website. It showed Liu was "released pending complaint".

Minneapolis Police Department spokesman John Elder said that an investigation was ongoing and declined to provide details of the arrest.

"We dont know if there will be charges or not because we havent concluded an investigation," he told Reuters on Sunday.

JD.com is one of Chinas tech heavyweights, competing with larger rival Alibaba Group. Liu is well known in China, with a net worth of $7.9 billion, according to Forbes.

(Reporting by Cate Cadell in BEIJING and Kane Wu in HONG KONG; Additional reporting by Barbara Goldberg in NEW YORK; Writing by Tony Munroe and Miyoung Kim; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Jane Merriman)
THE HAGUE, Netherlands (AP)  An Afghan asylum-seeker accused of stabbing two Americans in Amsterdam believes that Islam is insulted in the Netherlands, Dutch prosecutors said Monday, giving the first indication of why they think a "terrorist motive" was behind the attack.

The 19-year-old suspect is accused of stabbing the 38-year-old tourists Friday in an unprovoked attack after he arrived at Amsterdam's Central Station on an international train.

The American men were not targeted because of their nationality, which the alleged attacker did not know, prosecutors said. The suspect's grievance was with the European country where the assault took place, they said in a written statement.

"It is apparent from his statements that he believes that in the Netherlands, the Prophet Muhammad, the Quran, Islam and Allah are repeatedly insulted," prosecutors said, noting that the young Afghan man specifically mentioned Dutch lawmaker Geert Wilders, who is well known for his fierce anti-Islam rhetoric.

"From the suspect's statements so far, it is clear the man had a terrorist motive ... and that he traveled to the Netherlands for that reason," the prosecutors' said.

Earlier Monday, German authorities said the man had applied for asylum in Germany and was not considered a security threat there.

Wilders last week called off a planned contest for cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad following death threats and concerns other people could be put at risk. Prosecutors said the suspect did not mention the contest in his statements.

Wilders reacted with a tweet, writing: "Muslim terrorists hate our way of life and our freedoms. They answer criticism of Islam with violence."

The prosecutors added that there was so far no indication the suspect, identified as Jawed S. under Dutch privacy rules, was working with anyone else.

Police shot him after the stabbings, and he remains in a hospital. An investigating judge held a closed-door hearing there Monday and ordered him held for two more weeks on suspicion of assaulting the Americans "with a terrorist motive."

They suffered serious, but not life-threatening injuries in the attack.

The judge extended the suspect's custody because of fears he may flee, repeat the crime or violate the law, according to a statement by an Amsterdam court.
A high-level South Korean delegation will fly to North Korea this week to discuss arrangements for an inter-Korean summit there this month, as relations grow cooler between Washington and Pyongyang.

The South's President Moon Jae-in Sunday named his top security adviser as a special envoy to the North to discuss details before Moon's planned meeting in Pyongyang with Kim Jong-Un.

Chung Eui-yong, head of the presidential National Security Office, will lead a five-member delegation to the North's capital on Wednesday, Moon's spokesman Kim Eui-kyeom told reporters.

The delegation, which also includes South Korea's spy chief Suh Hoon, will fly to Pyongyang via a rare direct route across the inter-Korean border for their day trip.

It will be Chung's second visit to the North since March, when he headed the same five-member team to arrange the first summit between Moon and Kim and met Kim Jong-Un.

The spokesman said it was unclear whether the delegation would meet the North's leader this time around.

Moon and Kim have met face-to-face twice now, the first during a historic summit at the border truce village of Panmunjom in April.

It was the first time a North Korean leader had crossed into the South since the 1950-53 war sealed the division of the Korean peninsula.

They met a second time in Panmunjom in May as they scrambled to salvage plans for a summit between Kim and US President Donald Trump in Singapore, which eventually went ahead on June 12.

Moon and Kim have since agreed to hold a third summit in Pyongyang at an unspecified date in September.

The rapid rapprochement on the Korean peninsula led to the landmark meeting between Kim and Trump in June, which the US leader touted as a historic breakthrough.

At the summit the pair reached a vague agreement to work towards the "complete denuclearisation of the Korean peninsula", but there has been little movement since.

Pyongyang has slammed the US for its "gangster-like" demands for complete, verifiable and irreversible disarmament, and the UN's International Atomic Energy Agency reported there was no indication that the North had stopped its nuclear activities.

Last month Trump ordered Secretary of State Mike Pompeo to abruptly cancel a planned trip to Pyongyang, citing lack of progress on denuclearisation.
Washington (AFP) - US President Donald Trump took a crack Monday at the head of the nation's largest federation of labor unions on the US Labor Day holiday after the workers' advocate criticized his threat to exclude Canada from a new NAFTA deal.

Speaking Sunday on Fox News, AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka said it was "pretty hard to see" how Trump's efforts to revamp the North American Free Trade Agreement would work "without having Canada in the deal."

"We've been aggressively pursuing an agreement that works for the workers in all three countries and I can say we're not done yet," Trumka told the Fox network, a favorite among Trump's base.

The US president -- who said last week there's "no political necessity" for Canada to remain in the trade pact -- responded to Trumka with a jab on the final day of America's three-day holiday weekend celebrating the worker.

"Some of the things he said were so against the working men and women of our country, and the success of the U.S. itself, that it is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly," the US president tweeted of Trumka.

Minutes later Trump took on a more jovial tone, tweeting "Happy Labor Day!"

"The U.S. has tremendous upside potential as we go about fixing some of the worst Trade Deals ever made by any country in the world."

In the Fox interview, Trumka also had charged that Trump has "used his office to actively hurt working people."

The AFL-CIO collectively represents 12.5 million workers, and as its head Trumka is an influential voice on trade issues.

In the ongoing NAFTA negotiations, the US and Mexico announced a tentative agreement last week, potentially leaving Canada out in the cold -- although Ottawa's foreign minister Chrystia Freeland insisted a "win-win-win" agreement was within reach.

The White House notified Congress on Friday of its "intent to sign a trade agreement with Mexico -- and Canada, if it is willing -- 90 days from now."

US-Canadian trade talks are set to resume on Wednesday, and Ottawa and Washington still have time to reach an agreement that would keep Canada in the 25-year-old trade pact with Mexico.
Quito (AFP) - Ministers from a dozen Latin American nations start a two-day meeting in Ecuador Monday on how they can cooperate to end the massive Venezuelan migrant crisis that has jolted the region.

Officials will discuss calls for international funding for overwhelmed public services and whether to impose tighter restrictions to curb migrant flows in the first concerted drive to agree a common policy on the crisis.

The two-day meeting is scheduled to conclude with a joint statement on Tuesday, the host Ecuador said.

"A regional effort will help our countries respond better to these situations, so that we can coordinate efforts and provide humanitarian assistance to people on the move," Ecuador's Foreign Minister Jose Valencia told reporters ahead of the talks.

Colombia, Ecuador and Peru have all called for more funding from developed countries to assist their utterly overwhelmed public services.

The three countries have received the bulk of migrants flowing out of Venezuela.

The EU announced a $35 million aid package on Friday to support Venezuelans both at home and in host countries.

Ministers from Argentina, Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, Chile, Mexico, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, the Dominican Republic, and Uruguay will be present at the Quito meeting, Ecuadoran officials said.

Venezuela and its ally Bolivia have also been invited, but by late Sunday had not signalled they would attend, officials here said.

Hundreds of thousands of Venezuelans are teeming into neighboring countries, fleeing a collapsing economy under President Nicolas Maduro, with falling oil prices and mismanagement leading to shortages of food and medicine.

"It is essential that each country take its share of responsibility," said Santiago Chavez, Ecuador's Deputy Minister of Human Mobility.

Chavez said that would include Venezuela, which will be asked to "implement policies" so that Venezuelan migration "can at least be adequately addressed in the host country."

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Countries across the South America traversed by Venezuelan migrants have vastly differing entry requirements, with some requiring no more than an ID, while others have toughened their restrictions to try to control the flow of migrants.

Ecuador's ombudsman, Ernesto Pazmino, said "all governments should make their countries more flexible in order to cushion this humanitarian crisis."

- International pressure -

Human rights lawyer Daniela Salazar said governments needed to attack the causes of migration, and not only look at its consequences.

"As governments feel that this is affecting them, at least that will help them not to look the other way, and really put enough international pressure in place to urge change in the political situation in Venezuela," said Salazar, a professor at Quito's San Francisco University.

Chavez said an extraordinary meeting of the Organization of American States (OAS) on September 5 would be the appropriate setting for a political discussion on Venezuela.

"In Quito, we are going to focus on the issue on more pragmatic, less political issues," he said.

Chavez said the Quito meeting would focus on countries' funding needs for migrant health, education and development projects.

Salazar said he was concerned that despite the fact that an immigration crisis had been coming "until now there is no real plan by governments to welcome people."

Pazmino said the exodus "exceeded all expectations and countries of the Americas have to establish strategies, a regional contingency plan, to alleviate this crisis caused by the wave of emigration."
Five youth had hatched plot to murder Hindu Makkal Katchi leader Arjun Sampath and Hindu Munnani leader Mookambikai Mani.

According to the police, R Ashik, I Jafar Sadiq Ali, S Ismail, S Samsudeen and S Shalavuddin were detained by the sleuths of Special Intelligence Unit at Coimbatore railway junction on Saturday afternoon. (Representational Image)

Coimbatore: The Special Investigation Unit of the Coimbatore police arrested five Muslim youth who had hatched a plot to murder Hindu Makkal Katchi (HMK) leader Arjun Sampath and Hindu Munnani leader Mookambikai Mani among others.

According to the police, R Ashik, I Jafar Sadiq Ali, S Ismail, S Samsudeen and S Shalavuddin were detained by the sleuths of Special Intelligence Unit at Coimbatore railway junction on Saturday afternoon.

Acting on a tip off, the police detained four people who arrived here from Chennai, on Saturday. Another person who had come to receive them was also picked up for questioning.

The police interrogated them for over 24 hours after which they were arrested and produced before Fast Track Court I. They have been remanded in judicial custody toll September 4.

Security to the leaders of the Hindu Munnani, Sakthi Sena and allied outfits has been increased by the police, sources said. The conspiracy was unearthed after closely following their social media activities, the release added.

All the five were booked under Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and conspiracy.
Lawyers for former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos claim Trump 'nodded with approval' over Putin meeting originally appeared on abcnews.go.com

Lawyers for former Trump campaign adviser George Papadopoulos said the future president "nodded with approval" when Papadopoulos offered to arrange a get-together with Russian President Vladimir Putin, according to a sentencing memo from Papadopoulos' legal team released late Friday.

In the same memo, Papadopoulos' lawyers argued he should serve no jail time after he pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI when interviewed in January 2017.

Papadopoulos was the first person to be charged in special counsel Robert Mueller's probe into Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election.

He is set to be sentenced on Friday.

PHOTO: This undated image posted on his Linkedin profile shows George Papadopoulos posing on a street of London. (AFP/Getty Images)

The former campaign foreign policy adviser's lawyers also claimed in the memo that current Attorney General Jeff Session was even more eager to set up a Putin meeting than Trump.

PHOTO: President Donald Trump speaks at a fundraiser at the Carmel Country Club in in Charlotte, N.C., Aug. 31, 2018. (Pablo Martinez Monsivais/AP)

"Eager to show his value to the campaign, George announced at the meeting that he had connections that could facilitate a foreign policy meeting between Mr. Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin," the sentencing memo states. "While some in the room rebuffed Georges offer, Mr. Trump nodded with approval and deferred to Mr. Sessions who appeared to like the idea and stated that the campaign should look into it."

(MORE: After weeks of uncertainty, Papadopoulos decides to accept plea deal with Mueller )

Congress has repeatedly grilled Sessions about his recollections of the March 2016 meeting in which Putin was discussed, eventually telling the House Judiciary Committee he pushed back on the suggested summit.

Jeff Sessions speaks at the Turning Point High School Leadership Summit in Washington, D.C., July 24, 2018. (Michael Brochstein via ZUMA Wire)

"I do now recall the March 2016 meeting at Trump Hotel that Mr. Papadopoulos attended, but I have no clear recollection of the details of what he said during that meeting," Sessions said during his testimony.

The court filing puts to rest weeks of hand-wringing that played out in public, as Papadopouloss wife and informal spokeswoman went on television to suggest he might withdraw his plea.

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She told ABC News on Wednesday he had decided to stick with his decision to plead guilty.

His lawyers used Friday's sentencing memo to argue the then-28-year-old was not malicious, just in over his head, blinded by loyalty to candidate Trump and that his lies to FBI agents did not hinder the special counsel's investigation.

"George will take responsibility for some inaccuracies during the interview with the FBI," his wife, Simona Mangiante Papadopoulos, said in a statement to ABC News on Wednesday, adding that she hoped the judge determining his fate would not send the former Trump campaign adviser to jail.

(MORE: Papadopoulos could decide to withdraw guilty plea this week, wife says )

The sentencing memo echoes those sentiments.

Papadopoulos was interviewed by the FBI in Chicago on Jan. 27, 2017, when they surprised him at his parents' house.

"George found himself personally conflicted during the interrogation as he felt obligated to assist the FBI but also wanted to distance himself and his work on the Trump campaign from that investigation," the sentencing memo states. "Attempting to reconcile these competing interests, George provided information he thought was important to the investigation while, at the same time, misleading the agents about the timing, nature, and extent of his contacts with Professor [Joseph] Mifsud, Olga, and Ivan Timofeev.

"In his answers," the memo continued, "George falsely distanced his interactions with these players from his campaign work."

Papadopoulos had met with Mifsud, a London-based professor, who facilitated a meeting with Olga, whom he told Papadopoulos was Putin's niece. The meeting came a week before his promise to Trump and Sessions that he believed he could organize a meeting with Putin himself.

Following that campaign meeting, he met with Timofeev, who Mifsud told him had connections to the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

PHOTO: Russian President Vladimir Putin speaks during an address to the nation concerning a pension reforms proposed by the government, in Moscow, Aug. 29, 2018. (Alexey Druzhinin/AFP/Getty Images)

The Putin meeting never came to be, and Papadopoulos began cooperating with Mueller's probe after his arrest on July 27, 2017.

Earlier this month, prosecutors with the special counsel recommended Papadopoulos serve up to six months in jail for lying to federal investigators, arguing that he should be held accountable for having repeatedly misled them about "critical facts, in an investigation of national importance, after having been explicitly warned that lying to the FBI was a federal offense."

"The nature and circumstances of the offense warrant a sentence of incarceration," prosecutors wrote.

Papadopoulos' wife tweeted late Friday that she hopes the judge will show mercy.

I trust that the facts are clear now. Hope for a fair decision. The defense sentencing memorandum is a very accurate portrayal of George genuine cooperation and the fact that he never hindered the investigation," she tweeted. "#freeGeorge.
Tripoli (AFP) - Libya, where a new ceasefire was announced Wednesday to end a month of deadly fighting near the capital, fell into chaos with the ouster and killing of strongman Moamer Kadhafi in October 2011.

Two rival authorities and a multitude of militias are vying for control of the oil-rich country.

The capital Tripoli is the seat of the internationally backed Government of National Accord (GNA), led by Fayez al-Sarraj.

A parallel government operates out of the country's east, backed by the self-styled Libyan National Army of military strongman Khalifa Haftar.

Here is a timeline of the Mediterranean country's descent into chaos:

- Kadhafi killed -

Triggered by uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, demonstrations erupt in Libya in February 2011.

A coalition led by Washington, Paris and London lends its backing.

Kadhafi, who has ruled for 42 years, flees the capital. He is killed on October 20, 2011 during a battle for his hometown Sirte, east of Tripoli.

Three days later, the rebel National Transitional Council (NTC) declares Libya's "total liberation".

In August 2012 it hands power to the transitional General National Congress.

- Embassies targeted -

US ambassador Chris Stevens and three American staff are killed in a September 11, 2012 attack on their consulate in Libya's second city Benghazi.

An Al-Qaeda-linked jihadist group is blamed.

A car bomb in April 2013 targets France's embassy in Tripoli, wounding two French guards.

Most foreign delegations withdraw from the country.

- Rival governments -

Dissident general Haftar, backed by Egypt and the United Arab Emirates, launches an offensive in May 2014 against jihadist groups in Benghazi.

Several military officers from the east join his self-styled Libyan National Army.

In June, following legislative elections, the General National Congress is replaced by a parliament dominated by anti-Islamists.

In August, after weeks of deadly clashes, Islamist-led militias grouped under the "Fajr Libya" (Libya Dawn) banner storm Tripoli and set up a "national salvation" government.

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The parliament and government of Abdullah al-Thani, elected in June, take refuge in eastern Libya.

The country finds itself with two governments and two parliaments.

On December 17, 2015, after months of negotiations, accords signed under UN supervision in Morocco designate a UN-backed Government of National Accord (GNA).

In March 2016 GNA prime minister Sarraj arrives in Tripoli to set up the new government.

- Attacks and vote deal -

In January 2018 militias attack at Tripoli's only working international airport and at least 20 people are killed.

The same month, two car bombings kill nearly 40 people in Benghazi. In May, Islamic State suicide attackers kill 14 people at Libya's electoral commission.

In a bid to restore stability, senior Libyan leaders including Sarraj and Haftar commit at a Paris peace conference in May to hold elections on December 10.

But the unrest continues. In June, a militia attacks two northeastern oil sites under Haftar's control, through which oil is piped abroad.

After days of fighting, Haftar's forces announce they are back in "full control" and have also seized the city of Derna from radical Islamists.

- Clashes erupt near Tripoli -

On August 27, heavy clashes break out between rival militias on the outskirts of Tripoli, killing dozens over the following days.

The UN brokers a ceasefire on September 4 but fighting resumes within days. The capital's airport is attacked with rocket fire on September 12 and rival militias clash nearby on September 18.

By Wednesday's announcement of a renewed commitment to the September 4 ceasefire deal, the fighting around Tripoli has left at least 117 dead and more than 400 injured, according to the GNA.
Curitiba (Brazil) (AFP) - Leftist ex-president Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva will appeal his barring from October's elections to the United Nations and Brazil's Supreme Court, the man set to replace him on the ballot said Monday.

The appeal will be accompanied by a request to suspend Friday's decision by the Superior Electoral Court to prevent Lula from running for a potential third term as president because he is serving a 12-year jail sentence for accepting a bribe.

After visiting Lula in prison in the southern city of Curitiba, Workers' Party potential candidate Fernando Haddad said he had informed the former head of state of "all the possibilities at his disposal."

Haddad pointed to recent backing from the UN Human Rights Committee that said the left-wing icon could not be barred from elections while his legal appeals are ongoing.

The electoral court had disqualified Lula on the grounds of the country's clean-slate law that prevents anyone who has lost an appeal against a conviction from running for office.

Lula was convicted in July 2017 and then lost an initial appeal in January, although he hasn't given up finding an avenue to overturn his sentence.

The electoral court gave Lula's Workers' Party until September 12 to nominate a replacement and banned the 72-year-old from campaigning.

Lula has already picked runningmate Haddad as his potential replacement should he fail to secure a place on the ballot paper, but the former Sao Paulo mayor does not command anywhere near the same popularity as his illustrious comrade.

Lula remains hugely popular in Latin America's biggest economy after lifting tens of millions out of poverty during his 2003-2010 rule.

But he was convicted on charges of accepting a seaside apartment as a bribe from a major construction company seeking government contracts.

Opponents and prosecutors say he is properly being punished for high-level corruption revealed through the epic "Car Wash" graft probe that also saw his hand-picked successor Dilma Rousseff impeached.
AFP/Getty

An Israeli company that designs military-grade vests, uniforms and helmets has developed a bulletproof backpack for school students  and orders are pouring in from the US.

Masada Armour created the bag, which costs upwards of 385, in response to the sheer number of shootings at American secondary schools in recent years.

Now, the firm says it is having to scale up production to keep up with orders from worried parents ahead of the new term.

The backpacks can stop a range of bullets, and can be made even tougher with the addition of extra armour plating (Masada Armour)

In two months we have sold hundreds and are gearing up to increase production rates to 500 units per month, chief executive Snir Koren told the AFP news agency.

The backpack is designed for regular use but can withstand bullets from high-velocity rifles including AK-47s and M-16s.

It weighs five kilograms, meaning it is only suitable for older teenagers, but the company is now looking into creating a range for younger pupils too.

We are developing a lighter model for their type of morphology, said Mr Snir.

Requests for the backpack come as Betsy DeVos, the US education department secretary, said she would allow federal funds to be used to purchase guns for protecting schools.

The announcement outraged those who feel arming teachers  and essentially fighting fire with fire  will only lead to more deaths.

There have been two mass shootings at US schools this year alone.

In the first, Nikolas Cruz gunned down 17 people at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High in Florida in February. Three months later Dimitrios Pagourtzis murdered eight students and two teachers at Santa Fe High School, Texas.

There have been an additional 57 incidents of gunfire - at least nine of them fatal - since the start of the year, according to research carried out by the Every Town For Gun Safety Support Fund group.

Related Video: Designers Say Bulletproof Wear Demand is Rising

Watch news, TV and more on Yahoo View.


The amount of arctic sea ice around the North Pole has long been on a downward trend, and satellite data from the National Snow & Ice Data Center show this decline  particularly stark this time of year  with daily updates.

But there are spikes in any downward trend, and one particular spike in 2013 (thanks to an unusually cool summer) caused such widespread misinterpretation along political lines that it became the subject of a newly published sociological study. The findings show that when one strips away political affiliation, people make smarter decisions about climate science together. It also offers the latest scientific example of how politics dont often allow facts to get in the way.

First, heres the chart that researchers saw as problematic  sort of a political Rorschach test  that shows a spike in arctic sea ice in 2013. For instance, people who think climate change is a liberal hoax could point to the rise in sea ice as evidence the downward trend would soon return upward.

"The graph has been found to produce misinterpretations about the scientific information it communicates because its final data point indicates an increase in the amount of Arctic Sea ice in the opposite direction of the overall trend that NASA intended to communicate," write the researchers.

Damon Centola, a sociologist and professor at the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania, led a study into why people might misinterpret the data above. His research team used social learning processes (showing answers from the rest of a group of people alongside the question) to see if they could eliminate polarization between self-identified Democrats and Republicans.

The research, Social learning and partisan bias in the interpretation of climate trends, was published Monday in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

The sharpest baseline finding before the experiment began was that Republicans significantly misinterpreted the data, Centola says. Overall, in every case, almost 40.2 percent of Republicans said that the arctic sea ice was increasing. Meanwhile, 73.9 percent of liberals correctly estimated the sea ice trend at the baseline.

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Centola, the senior author on the paper, and his team recruited 2,400 people, half Republican and half Democrat, on Amazons Mechanical Turk (the shipping giants marketplace for work that requires human intelligence). They were randomly assigned to 40-person bipartisan social networks to take an intelligence test that asked participants to forecast sea ice levels.

The more accurate your answers, the more you win!, the subjects of this study were informed. They were not informed that the data was determined by NASA, in order to avoid known biases associated with the organizational sources of information, write the researchers.

They were allowed to revise their responses while being show the responses of other people in their network, and when there was no party affiliation next to the responses of their network neighbors, their sea ice prediction were closer to the scientific prediction by NASA.

Other questions included symbols next to them, subtle suggestions that these science questions also had political gravity. When subjects were exposed to party logos during communication, social learning was prevented, and baseline levels of polarization were maintained, they write.

Just by placing the political symbols next to the data, the subjects provided different predictions, suggesting they were motivated by biased reasoning.

When all participants were presented with the data, asked to forecast based on that data, and informed they would be paid more money for accurate answers, Centola says the group solved NASAs problem of people misinterpreting its research.

Eight-five percent of both Republicans and Democrats agreed that arctic sea ice levels were in fact going down, he says of the data that was presented nakedly, without affiliation or imagery. And more importantly, the consensus was a much more accurate consensus for both groups.

Four question types given to the study subjects. Researchers found that accuracy in sea ice forecasting increased when there were no partisan cues.

But when the data was presented with Republican elephant or Democrat donkey, or the words conservative or liberal, or a chart showing how people who identified as conservative or liberal voted, the forecasts skewed away from the correct results.

The charts show the change in accuracy of the four different types of questions after rounds 1 and 3, showing that "partisan priming," or the inclusion of political cues, hurt social learning.

The benefits of social learning were not limited to conservatives, the researchers write. Liberals also improved in networks without partisan cues, finishing with significantly higher trend accuracy than liberals in the control condition. By the end of the study, in bipartisan networks without partisan cues, there were no longer significant differences in trend accuracy between the liberals and conservatives.

When presented with the consensus from the group without party affiliation, the study subjects worked together to make the correct prediction.

We find that in the absence of political imagery, cross-party contact eliminates polarization and leads to much better understanding of climate change, Centola says.

Abstract

Vital scientific communications are frequently misinterpreted by the lay public as a result of motivated reasoning, where people misconstrue data to fit their political and psychological biases. In the case of climate change, some people have been found to systematically misinterpret climate data in ways that conflict with the intended message of climate scientists. While prior studies have attempted to reduce motivated reasoning through bipartisan communication networks, these networks have also been found to exacerbate bias. Popular theories hold that bipartisan networks amplify bias by exposing people to opposing beliefs. These theories are in tension with collective intelligence research, which shows that exchanging beliefs in social networks can facilitate social learning, thereby improving individual and group judgments. However, prior experiments in collective intelligence have relied almost exclusively on neutral questions that do not engage motivated reasoning. Using Amazons Mechanical Turk, we conducted an online experiment to test how bipartisan social networks can influence subjects interpretation of climate communications from NASA. Here, we show that exposure to opposing beliefs in structured bi- partisan social networks substantially improved the accuracy of judgments among both conservatives and liberals, eliminating belief polarization. However, we also find that social learning can be reduced, and belief polarization maintained, as a result of partisan priming. We find that increasing the salience of partisanship during communication, both through exposure to the logos of political par- ties and through exposure to the political identities of network peers, can significantly reduce social learning.

More From Inverse
BROOKLYN, Iowa  The father of slain Iowa college student Mollie Tibbetts in an opinion piece spoke out against using his daughters death in support of views she believed were profoundly racist, a call that comes after President Donald Trump and others seized on the suspected killers immigration status to argue for changes in U.S. immigration laws.

Authorities have said the University of Iowa student was abducted while she was out for an evening run in Brooklyn, Iowa, on July 18. The man charged in her death, 24-year-old Cristhian Bahena Rivera, a Mexican farmworker who is suspected of being in the U.S. illegally. Trump and other politicians quickly noted that element of the caseand called for changes to immigration law .

Rob Tibbetts wrote in the opinion piece published online by The Des Moines Register on Saturday that while he supports debate on immigration, some politicians and pundits went too far in using his daughters death to promote political agendas. He said his stepdaughter is Latina and argued that the suspected killer is no more a reflection of the Hispanic community as white supremacists are of all white people.

Do not appropriate Mollies soul in advancing views she believed were profoundly racist, he wrote. The act grievously extends the crime that stole Mollie from our family and is, to quote Donald Trump Jr., heartless and despicable.'

The quote comes from a Friday opinion piece by Trump Jr . that criticized the media and Democrats for not playing up the suspects immigration status.

Despite what some Democrats may wish in the depths of their hearts, Mollie was murdered by an illegal alien and her murder would never have happened if we policed our southern border properly, the presidents son wrote.

Recorded phone calls citing Mollie Tibbetts death in a push for white supremacist views began Tuesday, just days after her funeral. The robocalls cited comments Rob Tibbetts made in defense of Latinos during her funeral .

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The calls question whether his daughter would feel the same if she were still alive and describe Rivera as an invader from Mexico.

Rob Tibbetts wrote in his opinion piece that his daughter was nobodys victim. Nor is she a pawn in others debate.

She may not be able to speak for herself, but I can and will, he went on to say. Please leave us out of your debate. Allow us to grieve in privacy and with dignity. At long last, show some decency. On behalf of my family and Mollies memory, Im imploring you to stop.
The horse-drawn caisson bearing the body of Senator John McCain moves through the grounds of the United Sates Naval Academy toward the cemetery - AFP

John McCain, the veteran senator who emerged as the most visible Republican critic of Donald Trump, was laid to rest at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, after a private ceremony on Sunday.

Four naval jets performed an aerial salute with a single F-18 fighter peeling off into the sun as part of the missing man formation.

The funeral concluded a week of memorials for McCain, who died on August 25, at the age of 81, from brain cancer.

He trained at the naval academy, graduating in 1958, before serving in Vietnam as a fighter pilot.

A horse-drawn caisson carrying the senator's casket led a procession of mourners from the academy's chapel to its cemetery following a private service.

Family and friends join a procession behind McCain's casket Credit: Mary Calvert/Reuters

The senator's widow, Cindy, and his children were among those who walked behind the casket. Joining them were family and friends as well as members of McCain's class of 1958, military leaders and academy midshipmen.

Prominent political leaders gathered a day earlier to remember the Arizona senator at the Washington National Cathedral

People watch as the casket of John McCain is taken to the US Naval Academy Credit: Susan Walsh/AP

Two former presidents were among those to offer tributes, which included a string of references to his ability to bridge rivalries in a reminder that the country is currently led by a president known for a brash brand of divisive politics.

His daughter, Meghan McCain, offered the bluntest attack on Mr Trump, who had had mocked her fathers Vietnam record as a prisoner of war.

"The America of John McCain has no need to be made great again because America was always great, she declared with a steely glint in her eye.

On Sunday, McCain was buried beside his classmate, Admiral Chuck Larson, who had reserved four burial plots for the two friends and his wife.

"Chuck has his wingman back now," Sarah Larson, the late admiral's wife, told CNN.
By Shoon Naing and Aye Min Thant YANGON (Reuters) - A Myanmar judge on Monday found two Reuters journalists guilty of breaching a law on state secrets and jailed them for seven years, in a landmark case seen as a test of progress toward democracy in the Southeast Asian country. Yangon northern district judge Ye Lwin said Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, breached the colonial-era Official Secrets Act when they collected and obtained confidential documents. "The defendants ... have breached Official Secrets Act section 3.1.c, and are sentenced to seven years," the judge said, adding that the time served since they were detained on Dec. 12 would be taken into account. The defense can appeal the decision to a regional court and then the supreme court. The verdict comes amid mounting pressure on the government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi over a security crackdown sparked by attacks by Rohingya Muslim insurgents on security forces in Rakhine State in west Myanmar in August 2017. More than 700,000 stateless Rohingya Muslims have fled into Bangladesh since then, according to U.N. agencies. The two reporters, who were investigating the killing by the security forces of Rohingya villagers at the time of their arrest, had pleaded not guilty. Press freedom advocates, the United Nations, the European Union and countries including the United States, Canada and Australia had called for the journalists' acquittal. "Today is a sad day for Myanmar, Reuters journalists Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, and the press everywhere," Reuters editor in chief Stephen J Adler said in a statement. "We will not wait while Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo suffer this injustice and will evaluate how to proceed in the coming days, including whether to seek relief in an international forum." The reporters had told the court two police officials handed them papers at a restaurant in the city of Yangon moments before other officers arrested them. One police witness testified the restaurant meeting was a set-up to entrap the journalists to block or punish them for their reporting of a mass killing of Rohingya Muslims in Rakhine. More than 80 people, including senior diplomats, were packed into the court on Monday. Judge Ye Lwin read a summary of witness testimony for about an hour before delivering his verdict, which had been postponed by a week because he was sick. The court determined that "confidential documents" found on the two would have been useful "to enemies of the state and terrorist organizations". Documents in their possession and on their phones were "not public information", he said. 'NO FEAR' Kyaw Soe Oo's wife, Chit Su Win, burst into tears after the verdict, and family members had to support her as she left the court. Wa Lone, in handcuffs and flanked by police, told a cluster of friends and reporters after the verdict not to worry. "We know we did nothing wrong. I have no fear. I believe in justice, democracy and freedom," he said. Kyaw Soe Oo also said the reporters had committed no crime and that they would maintain their fight for press freedom. "What I want to say to the government is: you can put us in jail, but do not close the eyes and ears of the people," he said. Some of the reporters' supporters shouted "let them speak" and jostled with police as they were driven back to prison. Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo both have young daughters and have not seen their families outside of prison visits and court hearings for nearly nine months. Kyaw Soe Oo has a three-year-old daughter and Wa Lone's wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to their first child last month. Government spokesman Zaw Htay didn't respond to requests for comment about the verdict. He has mostly declined to comment throughout the proceedings, saying the courts were independent and the case would be conducted according to the law. 'HAMMER BLOW' U.S. ambassador Scot Marciel said the "deeply troubling" verdict could undermine the confidence the Myanmar people had in the justice system. "Unbelievable! More and more, responsible journalism is found to be a crime in Myanmar!" Yanghee Lee, U.N. special rapporteur on human rights in Myanmar, said on Twitter. The U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, said the verdict "sends a message to all journalists in Myanmar that they cannot operate fearlessly, but must rather make a choice to either self-censor or risk prosecution". British ambassador Dan Chugg, speaking on behalf of EU members, said the verdict had "dealt a hammer blow for the rule of law". France said it deplored `the prison sentences and that the convictions represented a serious violation of press freedom and the rule of law. Ed Royce, Republican chairman of the U.S. House of Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee, called for more U.S. sanctions in addition to targeted measures already imposed on a handful of Myanmar military and police commanders. "This unjust verdict reaffirms that the Burmese government is complicit in the militarys atrocities," he said in a statement. "The U.S. should respond with more sanctions and a formal determination of genocide. We must act before it is too late. In Bangladesh, Iqbal Sobhan Chowdhury, a media adviser to the prime minister, said it was "an open secret" that anyone exposing "atrocities of the Myanmar army" would be persecuted. Marianne Hagen, deputy foreign minister of Norway, whose state-controlled firm Telenor is the second largest mobile phone operator in Myanmar, urged the authorities to "protect freedom of the press, respect basic human rights and secure journalists' rights in the court system". Reuters called the Myanmar military spokesman but an assistant said the spokesman was busy and unable to speak. INVESTIGATING KILLINGS The reporters were arrested on Dec. 12 while investigating the killing of 10 Rohingya men and boys and other abuses involving soldiers and police in Inn Din, a village in Rakhine State. Myanmar has denied allegations of atrocities made by refugees against its security forces, saying it conducted a legitimate counterinsurgency operation against Muslim militants. But the military acknowledged the killing of the 10 Rohingya at Inn Din after arresting the Reuters reporters. A U.N mandated fact-finding mission said last week that Myanmar's military carried out mass killings and gang rapes of Muslim Rohingya with "genocidal intent" and called for top generals to be prosecuted. Myanmar rejected the findings. The International Criminal Court is considering whether it has jurisdiction over events in Rakhine, while the United States, the European Union and Canada have sanctioned Myanmar military and police officers over the crackdown. (Additional reporting by Simon Lewis, Antoni Slodkowski, Thu Thu Aung in YANGON, Ruma Paul in DHAKA; Writing by Robert Birsel; Editing by Clarence Fernandez, Philip McClellan, Kevin Liffey, Toni Reinhold)
In a press conference on Friday, Maharashtra Police said evidence so far clearly states links of arrested activists with Maoist groups.

Bombay High Court questioned the press conference by Maharashtra Police on the arrest of activists in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence case. (Photo: File)

Mumbai: The Bombay High Court on Monday questioned the press conference by Maharashtra Police on the arrest of activists in connection with the Bhima Koregaon violence case saying that the matter is sub-judice.

The Maharashtra Police on Friday held a press conference and elaborated on the evidence it had against the activists it had arrested. The police stated that the evidence collected so far clearly establishes links of the arrested activists with Maoist organisations.

During the press conference, Additional General of Maharashtra Police, Param Bir Singh had said that an e-mail letter, between Rona Wilson and a CPI-Maoist leader spoke of ending "Modi-raj" with a 'Rajiv Gandhi-type incident'. The letter also sought money for procuring grenade launchers, he said.

Also Read: Activist's letter spoke of 'Rajiv Gandhi-type ending for Modi-Raj': Pune cops

Last week, the Maharashtra Police conducted multiple raids and arrested five activists in connection with an event on December 31, 2017, that triggered violence at Koregaon-Bhima village.

Prominent Telugu poet Varavara Rao, activists Vernon Gonzalves and Arun Ferreira, trade union activist Sudha Bhardwaj and civil liberties activist Gautam Navalakha were arrested.

Also Read: Five activists arrested for Bhima violence, raids across India

The police termed the raids and arrests as a crackdown on urban naxals, who they claimed were responsible for the violence.
A huge fire has broken out at the 200-year-old National Museum of Brazil in Rio de Janeiro, engulfing the entire structure and leaving workers scrambling to rescue its priceless relics.

The inferno could be seen for many miles around as the historic building, formerly the palace of the Portuguese royal family, was consumed by flames.

Brazils president, Michel Temer, called it a sad day for all Brazilians.

Two hundred years of work, investigation and knowledge have been lost, Mr Temer said in a statement. The value of our history cannot be measured by the damage to the building.

The fire broke out at around 7.30pm on Sunday night, when the museum was closed to visitors. A museum spokesperson said no injuries were reported, and it was not clear how the fire started.

Three security guards, who had been inside the building at the time the blaze began, were reportedly able to escape the flames unharmed.

Roberto Robadey, a spokesperson for the fire department, said 80 firefighters were battling the blaze and that by midnight local time it was just about under control. Several hotspots remained inside the ruins as dawn broke on Monday.

The museum housed artefacts from Egypt, Greco-Roman art and, in its natural history collection, significant dinosaur bone discoveries and the 12,000-year-old skeleton of a woman  the oldest human ever found in the Americas.

But employees have previously complained of the dilapidated state of the building due to underfunding.

Firefighters complained they were hampered in their efforts to tackle the blaze on Sunday night because the two fire hydrants closest to the museum were not functioning. Instead, trucks had to be sent to get water from a nearby lake.

Nonetheless, some of the museums pieces have been saved.

We were able to remove a lot of things from inside with the help of workers of the museum, the firefighters spokesperson Robadey told Globo News.

However, the Roberto Marinho Foundation, a charity which promotes educational opportunities in Brazil, said it deeply regrets what it described as the immeasurable destruction of the museums collection.

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We are devastated by this tragedy, which has consumed a gigantic part of our history, and results in an irreparable loss today and for future generations, the organisation added in a statement.

Connected to the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro, the museum has expositions that include anthropology, archaeology and palaeontology, among others.

The vice-director of the museum, Luiz Fernando Dias Duarte, also picked up the issue of funding cuts. He told Globo news: Everybody wants to be supportive now. We never had adequate support.

Latin Americas largest nation has struggled to emerge from its worst recession in decades. The state of Rio de Janeiro has been particularly hard hit in recent years thanks to a combination of falling world prices of oil, one of its major revenue sources, mismanagement and massive corruption.

Just over a month before national elections, even before the flames were put out, the fire was leading to recriminations about dilapidated infrastructure and budget deficits in the city that hosted the 2016 Olympics.

Unfortunately, given the financial straits of the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and all the other public universities the last three years, this was a tragedy that could be seen coming, Marina Silva, one of the leading presidential candidates, tweeted.

On Instagram, Rio mayor Marcelo Crivella called on the country to rebuild.

Its a national obligation to reconstruct it from the ashes, recompose every eternal detail of the paintings and photos. Even if they are not original, they continue to be a reminder of the royal family that gave us independence, the (Portuguese) empire and the first constitution and national unity, he said.

The museum is housed inside the Paco de Sao Cristovao, a neoclassical palace set in the Quinta da Boa Vista park.

The building had previously served as a residence of the Portuguese royal family and later Brazils imperial family.

Additional reporting by AP
Jerusalem (AFP) - Israel's defence minister said Monday that negotiations with Palestinians on the situation in both Gaza and the occupied West Bank were pointless and that the country should act unilaterally.

Avigdor Lieberman's remarks came as Egypt and the United Nations were working to forge a lasting ceasefire between Gaza rulers Hamas and Israel after months of tensions and violence.

"I'm aware of all the negotiations and all the mediators and everything going on there," he said at a Jerusalem conference, in remarks relayed by his office.

"The negotiations, regardless of whether they're on Ramallah or Gaza, won't lead us anywhere," he said.

"All the negotiations have led us to a dead end, therefore we need to act on the Palestinian issue -- regarding Ramallah and Gaza -- unilaterally, and define the reality unilaterally, according to our understanding," Lieberman said.

The outspoken minister reiterated the strategy of enabling more commerce and travel in and from the blockaded Gaza Strip in return for a decrease in militant activity from the Palestinian enclave and clashes along the border.

"The average Gazan concerned about his livelihood and how to feed his family must understand that whoever participates in terror activity harms his livelihood," he said.

"Security quiet brings economic benefits."

There have been months of tension along the border and several military-flare ups, but recent weeks have seen relative calm.

Palestinian militants in Gaza and Israel have fought three wars since 2008.
Los Angeles (AFP) - Neil Armstrong's sons and the director of a new biopic on the space hero are hitting back against criticism that the film is unpatriotic because of the lack of a flag-planting scene.

In a statement issued on Friday, Rick and Mark Armstrong said "First Man," starring Ryan Gosling, was intended to depict their father's journey to the moon and delve into "the man behind the myth."

"This story is human, and it is universal," the brothers said in their statement issued jointly with "First Man" author James Hansen. "Of course, it celebrates an American achievement. It also celebrates an achievement 'for all mankind,' as it says on the plaque Neil and Buzz (Aldrin) left on the moon."

The trio added they did not feel the movie was "anti-American in the slightest."

"Quite the opposite," they said. "But don't take our word for it. Wed encourage everyone to go see this remarkable film and see for themselves."

Gosling, who portrays Armstrong in the film, and director Damien Chazelle also hit back at criticism the movie was un-American for not depicting the iconic flag-planting.

"In 'First Man' I show the American flag standing on the lunar surface, but the flag being physically planted into the surface is one of several moments of the Apollo 11 lunar EVA that I chose not to focus upon," he said in a statement carried by Variety. "To address the question of whether this was a political statement, the answer is no.

"My goal with this movie was to share with audiences the unseen, unknown aspects of Americas mission to the moon -- particularly Neil Armstrongs personal saga and what he may have been thinking and feeling during those famous few hours."

Among those who have criticized the film is failed presidential candidate and Republican senator Marco Rubio.

"This is total lunacy," he tweeted on Friday in reference to the absence of the flag planting. "And a disservice at a time when our people need reminders of what we can achieve when we work together. The American people paid for that mission, on rockets built by Americans, with American technology & carrying American astronauts. It wasnt a UN mission."

"First Man" opened the Venice Film Festival this week and is set for release in US theatres on October 12.
Quito (AFP) - Around 2.3 million Venezuelans -- 7.5 percent of the population -- live abroad, and 1.6 million of those have emigrated since the economic crisis worsened in 2015 -- the vast majority to other Latin American countries.

Here is a look at how Venezuela's hard-pressed neighbors have dealt with the issue so far, as ministers from a dozen Latin American states meet in Quito to try to forge a common response.

- No common policy -

In the absence of a coordinated policy, each country adopted its own measures to cope with what has bloomed into a major humanitarian crisis.

Venezuelans could previously move through nearby countries simply using their ID cards, but now, some countries have introduced visa or passport requirements to try to control the influx.

"It's a framework of restrictive measures that goes against human mobility, violates rights and increases the possibilities of insecurity via the threat of human trafficking," said Maria Amelia Viteri, migration researcher at Quito's San Francisco University.

- Open Borders? -

COLOMBIA: The migrants' main destination has taken in nearly a million Venezuelans so far, handing temporary residency status to 820,000. Venezuelans just need an ID card to enter.

ECUADOR: The country planned to introduce a passport requirement but was forced to suspend the move by a court order. It now requires an additional certificate issued by Venezuelan authorities -- or an international organization -- to authenticate the ID document.

Between January and August 2018, more than 641,000 Venezuelans entered Ecuador, with more than 524,000 moving on, according to the foreign ministry.

PERU: A booming economy makes it a magnet. Lima has tightened its border controls and imposed a passport requirement. In the last three years, 414,000 Venezuelans have entered.

CHILE: Chile introduced a visa requirement in April. It ensures residence for one year and access to employment contracts.

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In the first six months of 2018, 124,450 Venezuelans entered Chile, compared to some 177,000 in all of 2017.

BRAZIL: Also lets Venezuelans enter the country with just an ID. Reports of growing xenophobia and violence against migrants in the border state of Roraima has prompted the government to deploy troops. Some 110,000 Venezuelans have arrived since last year, according to the most recent figures released in May.

BOLIVIA: Allows entry to Venezuelans with an ID card for a 90-day tourist visa. Since 2014, it has received some 25,600 Venezuelans. As everywhere else, the numbers are increasing here too.

URUGUAY: Allows in Venezuelans with an ID card, though those arriving by plane must carry a passport. In 2015, 1,100 Venezuelans applied for residence permits in Uruguay and the figure is increasing by 20 percent a year.

ARGENTINA: Home to 95,000 Venezuelans, including some 30,000 currently trying to regularize their stay.

CENTRAL AMERICA: With the exception of Costa Rica, all the Central American countries -- including the Maduro government's close ally Nicaragua -- demand a visa.

-Asylum -

Last year, 27,000 Venezuelans asked for asylum in the United States -- almost twice as many as the year before and five times more than in 2016.

"Asylum claims have skyrocketed in recent years," Michael Bars, spokesman for the US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) told AFP.

"Our system is prone to legal loopholes, fraud and abuse, and this prevents legitimate asylum seekers from being prosecuted quickly," he said.

So far in 2018, nearly 16,000 Venezuelans have requested asylum.

Some 300,000 Venezuelans live in the United States, almost half in Florida.
Pacific leaders opened their annual diplomatic summit in Nauru Monday, but the ceremony was overshadowed by allegations that children of asylum-seekers on the tiny Pacific island have been traumatised by systemic abuse.

Nauru President Baron Waqa formally welcomed delegates to the 18-nation Pacific Islands Forum, saying the summit was a chance to demand the world take urgent action on global warming.

However, when the Nauruan leader faced a rare grilling from the media, questions centred on the plight of those detained on the remote island under an agreement with Australia.

A report released Monday said the mental health of asylum-seekers was buckling under the strain of indefinite detention, adding that "those who have seen this suffering say it is worse than anything they have seen, including in war zones."

"People are broken," said the report, co-authored by the Refugee Council of Australia and the Asylum Seeker Resource Centre.

"Children as young as seven and 12 are experiencing repeated incidents of suicide attempts, dousing themselves in petrol, and becoming catatonic."

The report estimates there are 900 asylum-seekers on Nauru, including more than 100 children.

They are in Nauru as part of Canberra's tough immigration policy, which sees asylum-seekers who try to reach Australia by boat detained and processed in remote camps on Nauru and Papua New Guinea.

Psychiatrist Louise Newman said many children on Nauru -- the report estimates at least 30 -- were suffering from "traumatic withdrawal syndrome" because they could see no end to their plight.

"(It) is found in children exposed to ongoing trauma where they feel hopeless and helpless, resulting in a giving up on engagement with the world," she said.

Waqa said he had seen no evidence of mental health syndromes among refugee children. "They're living among us and running their lives just like any other Nauruans," he said.

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"They're provided all the services that are provided to Nauruans and we live together very happily."

The summit will continue until Thursday, with delegates expected to issue a communique calling for action on climate change.

The Pacific is on the frontlines of the issue, with some island nations fearing they will be swallowed by rising seas and others repeatedly lashed by fierce storms that grow more intense as the weather changes.

"Climate change is already here, it's not just coming in the future," Waqa told reporters.

"We're working extremely hard, especially the small island states, to advocate to the world that something has to be done right away."

Other issues on the agenda include regional security, fighting obesity in the world's fattest region and China's rising influence in the region.
Jessica Manafort at an Independent film award bash in 2010 - Getty Images North America

The daughter of President Donald Trump's disgraced campaign chairman is changing her surname to separate herself from its "public perception".

Paul Manafort, who was Mr Trump's campaign chief during the summer of 2016, was found guilty on eight charges of tax and bank fraud last month.

His daughter Jessica Manafort has now filed paperwork in a New York court to legally change her last name, the New York Post reported.

Ms Manafort, an independent filmmaker, told the newspaper she was seeking the change to separate myself and my work from a public perception that has nothing to do with the person that I am.

Her father's extravagant lifestyle, funded by undeclared income from Ukrainian oligarchs, was described in great detail on US media during his three-week trial.

Mr Trump described his former campaign chief as "a good person" Credit: Rick Wilking / REUTERS

Following his conviction, Mr Trump expressed his sympathies for Manafort, describing the trial as a "witch hunt", adding "he happens to be a very good person, and I think its very sad what theyve done to Paul Manafort.

Her father is expected to face a lengthy jail term when sentenced and faces a second trial on additional charges of money laundering and failing to register as a foreign agent later this month.

Ms Manafort is replacing her famous surname with Bond, her mother's maiden name, saying she it more closely suits [her] profession.

Manafort's wife Kathleen leaves court. The couple's children did not attend the trial Credit: AP

I would like my new name to be Jessica Anne Bond, in place of my present name, the 36-year-old stated in the court filing.

Ms Manafort has already begun using her new surname unofficially and was listed in the credits of her latest film, Rosy, under Jess Bond.

She has previously spoken of the difficulties of being associated with the Manafort name.

Paul Manafort at the Republican Convention in 2016. He left the Trump campaign in August 2016 Credit: AP

Manafort, 69, has worked on the presidential campaigns of three Republican presidents, while Ms Manafort has described herself as a "passionate liberal".

I am a passionate liberal and a registered Democrat and this has been difficult for me. Although I am the daughter of, I am very much my own person and hopefully people can realise that, she told the Los Angeles Times in July.
Bucharest (AFP) - A Romanian government advisor sparked outrage Monday after posting a video clip comparing the country's president to Hitler as political tensions simmer after mass anti-corruption protests last month.

The clip shows an altered photo of centre-right President Klaus Iohannis, a strong government critic and ethnic German, sporting a hairstyle and moustache like Adolf Hitler.

Under the photo, it reads "Heil Iohannis" with a Nazi salute.

The video, posted by the left-wing government's advisor, Darius Valcov, on Facebook, also describes the group Democratic Forum of Germans in Romania (FDGR), which Iohannis led until 2013, as a "Nazi organisation".

Valcov, a former finance minister of the ruling Social Democrats who is appealing an eight-year-prison sentence for corruption meted out by a court in February, removed the video after a flood of outraged comment.

Opposition National Liberal Party spokesman Ionel Danca called for Valcov's dismissal, saying the clip "was extremely damaging, undermining the presidency and the memory of the Holocaust victims".

FDGR president Paul-Jurgen Porr told AFP that such attacks were "deplorable, even more so as Romania gets ready to take over the EU rotating presidency" from Austria in January next year.

He said his group would write a letter to the prime minister also urging Valcov's dismissal.

The government, long besieged by anti-corruption protests, came under renewed pressure last month following violent clashes when 80,000 Romanians rallied in Bucharest.

More than 450 people, including 30 police, were injured after security forces charged protesters with teargas, drawing strong criticism from Iohannis, among others.

Following this, Labour Minister Olguta Vasilescu caused an outcry 10 days ago by describing Iohannis as "cheeky, as a German, to speak of attacking (people) with gas".

Six million Jews were killed by the Nazis in the Holocaust during World War II under Hitler, many of them in gas chambers.

Romanian Foreign Minister Teodor Melescanu -- during last week's visit by his German counterpart -- said he "firmly rejected" all attacks against the country's ethnic German minority, descendants of Saxons and others who settled in Transylvania from the 12th century onwards.
The Authority is a quasi-judicial body that adjudicates over PMLA attachment of assets.

New Delhi: The adjudicating authority of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) has concluded that 41 properties worth about Rs 1,210 crore, attached by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the name of absconding diamond jeweller Mehul Choksi and his associated firms, are money laundering assets and ordered that their attachment should continue.

The ED had provisionally attached 15 flats and 17 office premises in Mumbai, a mall in Kolkata, a four-acre farm house in Alibaug and 231 acres of land at locations like Nashik, Nagpur, Panvel in Maharashtra and Villupuram in Tamil Nadu, in February this year under the PMLA in connection with the about $2 billion alleged fraud at a Mumbai-based branch of the Punjab National Bank (PNB). Considering the material in the original complaint (by the ED), I find that immovable properties provisionally attached are all involved in money laundering. I, therefore, hereby confirm the attachment of properties and order that the said attachment shall continue during investigation for a period not exceeding ninety days or the pendency of proceedings relating to any offence under the PMLA before a court and become final after an order of confiscation is passed by the special court, a recent order issued by Member (Law) of the Adjudicating Authority of the PMLA.

The Authority is a quasi-judicial body that adjudicates over PMLA attachment of assets.
Rudy Giuliani, former mayor of New York City and Trump attorney, says the White House will likely try to block the full public release of Robert Muellers expected final Russia report. (Photo: Regis Duvignau / Reuters)

Rudy Giuliani says the White House would likely attempt to block a full public release of Robert Muellers anticipated final report about the Russia investigation  bolstering long-held fears that the special counsels ultimate findings may never see the light of day.

Giulianis startling admission was tucked inside an expansive New Yorker profile of the former New York City mayor and Trump attorney, published online Monday.

Giuliani, who like the president has repeatedly described the Russia probe as a witch hunt, told journalist Jeffrey Toobin that Trumps original legal team had struck a deal with Mueller about his expected final report that would allow the White House to object to the public disclosure of information that might be covered by executive privilege.

I asked Giuliani if he thought the White House would raise objections, wrote Toobin in the profile.

Im sure we will, Giuliani responded, noting that it would be the president who would make the final call.

Giuliani, whom Trump hired in April amid a change in the presidents legal representation in the special counsel probe, said that his team was preparing a lengthy report which they planned to release at the same time as Muellers to refute its expected findings.

Here's my 8000-word @NewYorker profile of @RudyGiuliani . Note the claim that @realDonaldTrump may try to block public release of Mueller's report. https://t.co/Ll44F99JHA  Jeffrey Toobin (@JeffreyToobin) September 3, 2018

As Vox explained in an earlier article, Mueller is only required by law to deliver a final report to Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein, who will ultimately decide whether to release any or all of Muellers findings to Congress or the public.

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Victoria Nourse, a Georgetown law professor, told Vox that Trump could also order Rosenstein not to release it.

But, she added, thats a bit like firing Mueller, as many Republicans have warned  it just ups the case for impeachment because the president appears to be hiding something.

Whatever the White Houses reaction ends up being to Muellers ultimate findings, the assessment is expected to trigger contentious political bickering as Rosenstein is pressured from different sides to release  or suppress  the information.

Itll be a moment that polarizes the country, exposing just how divided the country is about this investigation and whos on the other side, former House speaker Newt Gingrich told The Washington Post in June.

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Eight people have been shot in a mass shooting at an apartment complex in San Bernardino, California, police have said.

Officers responded to an active shooter in the northeast of the city but no suspect has been taken into custody.

Two victims were in an extremely critical condition, including a 17-year-old boy.

Captain Richard Lawhead said multiple weapons were fired in what police believe was an exchange of gunfire. He said none of the victims had died.

Photos from the scene showed a massive police presence (Cristy Fajardo/Twitter)

Detectives do not have a motive for the shooting.

Right now, nobody is cooperating and providing us with the information we need to help us locate a suspect or what led to the shooting or anything else, Mr Lawhead told Reuters.

Handguns and rifles are believed to have been used, but no weapons were recovered from the scene.

Victims were taken to three hospitals and the condition of the other six victims is not yet clear..

Police initially said 10 people had been hit by gunfire at the apartment complex, but Mr Lawhead later said a total of eight people had been shot. Police had initially received conflicting reports, he said.

#UPDATE: Police say a total of 10 people were shot on Lynwood Drive in #SanBernardino. 3 people are in extremely critical condition but there are no fatalities. Police say a group of people were playing dice in a common area of the complex when the shooting happened. #CBSLA pic.twitter.com/J0S82iu0kg  Mike Rogers (@MikeRogersTV) September 3, 2018

Photos from the scene showed a massive police presence at East Lynwood Drive and nearby roads were closed.

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Alysa Marie, who lives near the complex, told CNN she heard 15 to20 gunshots.

My brother-in-law could hear bullets flying past our house, he was outside at the time of the shooting, she said.

San Bernardino is located around 60 miles (96km) to the east of Los Angeles.

The shooting took place a week after a gunman shot nine people and killed two competitors at a video game tournament in Jacksonville, Florida.
By Marja Novak LJUBLJANA (Reuters) - Slovenian President Borut Pahor expressed his concern on Monday after internet footage showed masked members of an armed group led by a fringe politician conducting training exercises. Former presidential candidate Andrej Sisko told Reuters that his group would secure order if necessary, adding that it was doing nothing illegal - although he acknowledged that the weapons it uses have not been registered with the Slovenian authorities. The president said there was no place for such a group in the European Union member state. "President Pahor stresses that Slovenia is a safe country in which no unauthorized person needs or is allowed to ... illegally care for the security of the country and its borders," Pahor's cabinet said in a statement. Photos on websites and in local media show up to 50 masked people with guns led by an unmasked Sisko, who won only 2.2 percent of the vote when he ran for president last year. Sisko said the group called the "Guard of Stajerska", named after a region of northeastern Slovenia, consists of "several hundred people", adding that these were volunteers who "will secure public peace and order" if needed. "The police have not visited me so far but I expect their visit. We are doing nothing wrong and we would be even interested in cooperating with the police," Sisko said. The police said the force had started an investigation into the matter. Sisko also attacked multiculturalism, saying the country should accept immigrants only if they accept Slovenian culture. He also leads the center-right United Slovenia Movement, which got 0.6 percent of the vote in a June general election and failed to make it to parliament. The party has no connection to the military group, he said. Anti-immigrant sentiment has increased in Slovenia since 2015 and 2016 when almost half a million migrants crossed the country on their way to richer EU states. The number of requests for an asylum in Slovenia has risen significantly from 277 in the whole of 2015 to 1,717 so far this year. However, only 77 people have been granted an asylum in 2018 versus 152 in the whole of 2017, interior ministry data showed. An anti-immigrant stand helped the center-right Slovenian Democratic Party to win most votes at the June election but the party lacked coalition partners to form a government. As a consequence a minority government of five center-left parties is due to be confirmed in the parliament next week. (Reporting By Marja Novak; editing by David Stamp)
By Alex Dobuzinskis

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Eight people were shot at a San Bernardino, California apartment complex, including a 17-year-old boy who was in critical condition, police said on Monday.

Police in the Southern California city were unsure what motivated the shooting late on Sunday in an outdoor common area where a group of people had gathered, said San Bernardino police spokesman Captain Richard Lawhead.

"Right now, nobody is cooperating and providing us with the information we need to help us locate a suspect or what led to the shooting or anything else," Lawhead said in a phone interview.

Two people, including the 17-year-old boy, were hospitalized in extremely critical condition, Lawhead said.

The conditions of the other six people were not immediately known. Victims were taken to three hospitals.

Police initially said 10 people had been hit by gunfire at the apartment complex, but Lawson later said a total of eight people had been shot. Police had initially received conflicting reports, he said.

The shooting happened during a hot holiday weekend in San Bernardino, a city of more than 216,000 residents about 60 miles (96 km) east of Los Angeles.

San Bernardino was the scene of a 2015 mass shooting in which a husband and wife killed 14 people and wounded 22 others before police shot the couple to death. The couple was inspired by Islamic extremists, authorities said.

There was no indication that Sunday's gunfire was in any way connected to the 2015 shooting.

(Additional reporting by Rich McKay in Atlanta; Editing by Frank McGurty and Jonathan Oatis)
Thousands have marched through a German city after racist violence flared up following the arrest of an Iraqi and a Syrian over a fatal stabbing.

Marchers demonstrated both for and against migrants in the eastern city of Chemnitz.

Sunday and Monday evenings saw outbreaks of violence triggered by the arrest of two suspects allegedly involved in the stabbing of Daniel Hillig, a 35-year-old German-Cuban.

Following the arrests, mobs attacked people they took to be foreigners , including an Afghan, a Syrian and a Bulgarian man.

The rallies on Saturday, which drew 8,000 people according to police estimates, ended peacefully although there was palpable tension at times.

Under German Chancellor Angela Merkel's immigration policy, more than one million migrants and refugees have been allowed into Germany since 2015.

Around 4,500 far-right supporters from various movements including the far-right anti-immigration alternative for Germany (AfD) party and the anti-Islam PEGIDA movement attended, according to police.

The far-right protesters marched holding large portraits of victims of attacks by what they claim are asylum seekers.

Some chanted "Merkel must go" and "We are the people" while waving German flags.

Some 3,500 marched in support of Mrs Merkel's policy, carrying banners reading "Chemnitz is neither grey nor brown" and "Heart instead of hate".

Foreign Minister Heiko Maas tweeted in support of those marching against the far-right supporters: "The Second World War started 79 years ago. Germany caused unimaginable suffering in Europe. If once again people are parading today in the streets making Nazi salutes, our past history forces us to resolutely defend democracy."

One of the Greens' leaders, Cem Ozdemir, tweeted a picture of himself with demonstrators and wrote: "We will not let right-wing extremists destroy our country and our democracy. Neither in Chemnitz, nor in Saxony nor anywhere in Germany.

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"Our constitution must prevail. We must defend it. Now!"

There was a heavy police presence in the city, with forces from across Germany providing reinforcements.

They had been outnumbered by thousands of neo-Nazis and other extremists earlier this week.

The violence has applied renewed pressure on Mrs Merkel's most divisive political issue.

Her government has increasingly restricted the once generous asylum laws, as conservative and far-right disquiet has grown.
Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday had had a quick on-the-spot assessment of the security situation in Kashmir Valley.

Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman interacts with Army jawans and officers during a visit to an area along the Line of Control in J&Ks Kupwara on Sunday.

Srinagar: Defence minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Sunday had had a quick on-the-spot assessment of the security situation in Kashmir Valley. During her daylong visit, she also visited some of the forward areas in Jammu and Kashmirs Kupwara district for a review of the situation prevailing along the Line of Control (LoC), the officials said.

During her visit to the frontier, she was accompanied by Army Chief General Bipin Rawat, the Northern Army Commander Lt. Gen. Ranbir Singh and the Srinagar-based Commander of Armys 15 Corps Lt. Gen. AK Bhatt.

A defence spokesman here said that during her visit to the forward areas, Ms Sitharaman was briefed by the commanders on ground on the operational preparedness of the Army and activities of the counter infiltration grid. During her interaction with the troops, she lauded their round the clock sharp vigil along the LoC, high morale and professionalism. She also exhorted them to remain alert for any eventuality to defeat nefarious designs of hostile forces, the spokesman said.

Later during the day, the Defence Minister along with the Army Chief met Governor Satya Pal Malik at Raj Bhavan here to discuss the overall prevailing security situation in the State especially Kashmir Valley.

A statement issued by Raj Bhavan said that the visitors held discussions with the Governor on several important issues including effective management of internal and external security in the context of increasing attempts at infiltration and the on-going anti-terrorist operations.

The governor and the defence minister had detailed discussions also on the urban local bodies and panchayat elections scheduled to be held in the restive state in OctoberDecember, crucial need for strengthening and the maintenance of vital road networks and strategic connectivity in J&K, particularly in the Ladakh region.
Kampala (AFP) - Ugandan politician Robert Kyagulanyi, better known as pop star Bobi Wine, on Monday detailed for the first time beatings he allegedly received from security officers after his arrest last month.

In a lengthy statement posted on Facebook, Kyagulanyi wrote that he wanted to "set the record straight".

The popular 36-year-old musician, who entered Uganda's parliament as an independent MP last year, was arrested last month and charged with treason after some of his supporters allegedly stoned President Yoweri Museveni's car.

"They beat me, punched me and kicked me with their boots. No part of my body was spared," he said from the United States where he is seeking medical treatment for injuries he claimed were sustained during his arrest and detention.

"They wrapped me in a thick piece of cloth and bundled me into a vehicle," he wrote of his arrest in the northwestern town of Arua.

"Those guys did to me unspeakable things in that vehicle! They pulled my manhood and squeezed my testicles while punching me with objects I didn't see," Kyagulanyi said, adding the officers stole his wallet and phone before knocking him unconscious.

Kyagulanyi, who was charged with treason last week and released on bail, was rearrested while trying to leave the country to seek medical treatment. He was subsequently allowed to depart.

The young MP has become a lightning rod for opposition to the long rule of the country's 74-year-old president who critics say is out of touch with a youthful population.

His case has drawn international attention with scores of musicians, activists and politicians signing an open letter condemning his treatment by the government.

Monday's 3,500 word Facebook post was Kyagulanyi's first public statement since his arrest.

"I was shocked on how they tried to downplay the atrocities committed by security agencies on innocent citizens," he said.
Vatican City (AFP) - Pope Francis on Monday said "silence and prayer" were the answer to those seeking "scandal and division", amid a barrage of attacks from ultra-conservative Catholics.

The pope has so far refused to respond to allegations made last month that he for years covered up sexual abuse allegations against a prominent US cardinal.

"With people who lack goodwill, with people who seek only scandal, who seek only division, who seek only destruction, even within the family: (there is nothing but) silence. And prayer," Francis said during a service at St Martha's, the boarding house where he stays.

Among some ultra-conservative Catholics, the pope is regarded as a dangerous progressive who is more interested in social issues than traditional Church matters.

His comments came after Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, a former Vatican envoy to Washington, claimed in August that Francis ignored sexual abuse allegations against US cardinal Theodore McCarrick for five years.

The timing of the letter's release -- right in the middle of Francis's landmark trip to Ireland -- immediately raised speculation about a campaign against the Argentine pontiff.

But so far, Francis has remained silent, refusing to address the allegations and saying only that Vigano's missive "speaks for itself".

On Saturday, Vigano launched a fresh attack, accusing the pope of knowing full well that he was meeting an arch-conservative opposed to gay marriage during a 2015 visit to the United States.

The Vatican said at the time that the pope met Kim Davis, a Kentucky clerk who has refused to sign gay marriage certificates, during a reception along with 'dozens of other guests' at the embassy in Washington.
Ramallah (Palestinian Territories) (AFP) - The UN agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA) has been a lifeline for millions of Palestinians since it was set up nearly 70 years ago.

On Friday, the United States, by far the biggest contributor to the agency, announced it was halting its funding to the organisation, which it labelled "irredeemably flawed".

- Key funder -

The United Nations Relief and Work Agency (UNRWA) was established in December 1949 by the UN General Assembly after the 1948 war surrounding Israel's creation.

More than 760,000 Palestinians either fled advancing Jewish troops or were forced from their homes, mostly towards neighbouring countries.

UNRWA became by default the only guarantor of the international status of those displaced as Palestinian refugees.

It provides aid to more than three million out of the five million Palestinians registered as refugees, through its schools and health centres in Palestinian territories, but also in Lebanon, Jordan and Syria.

There are 58 refugee camps recognised by the agency, of which 19 are in the West Bank, a Palestinian territory under Israeli military occupation for over half a century.

UNRWA schools provide an education to more than 520,000 children, taking 54 percent of the agency's budget. The agency also provides healthcare and financial support.

It employs more than 20,000 people in the Middle East, mostly Palestinians.

- End of US financing -

The United States was the largest single donor to UNRWA, providing more than $350 million (300 million euros) in 2017.

The next largest funder, the European Union, donated half that figure.

In January 2018, Washington donated only $60 million to the agency.

On Friday, President Donald Trump's administration said "the United States will not make additional contributions to UNRWA".

Israel, which welcomed the US decision, accuses the organisation of perpetuating the Middle East conflict by maintaining the idea that millions of Palestinians are refugees with a right to return to the homes from which they or their ancestors fled or were expelled.

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On Thursday, UNRWA's commissioner general Pierre Kraehenbuehl said the agency has a crucial role until a final resolution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is found.

Palestinians point out that the United States gives $3 billion in military aid every year to Israel.

America's termination of funding was described as "cruel and irresponsible" by senior Palestinian official Hanan Ashrawi.

- 'Very serious repercussions' -

UNRWA already faced desperate and chronic financial shortages before Trump's announcement.

The agency is almost completely financed by voluntary contributions by United Nations member states.

In 2015, the agency nearly closed all its schools due to shortfalls, and the organisation carried over a deficit of tens of millions of dollars last year.

On August 30, Jordan announced the organisation of a conference on September 27 in New York to support the agency, which needs at least $200 million by the end of the year.

Germany has announced a "substantial" increase to its contribution.

Mahmoud Mubarak, director of the community-run committees that run the 19 refugee camps in the occupied West Bank which accommodate some 500,000 Palestinians, warned of the "very serious repercussions" of the US move.

By the end of September, "UNRWA won't have a penny," the agency's spokesman Chris Gunness warned in late August.
VATICAN CITY (AP)  The Vatican is starting to push back against Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, author of the bombshell accusation of sex abuse cover-up against Pope Francis, with a statement Sunday from its former spokesman about a controversial 2015 meeting Vigano organized.

The Rev. Federico Lombardi and his English-language assistant, the Rev. Thomas Rosica, issued a joint statement disputing Vigano's claims about the encounter he organized with American anti-gay marriage campaigner, Kim Davis, during Francis' September 2015 visit to the United States.

News of the Davis audience made headlines at the time and was viewed by conservatives as a papal stamp of approval for Davis, the Kentucky clerk at the center of the U.S. gay marriage debate. The Vatican furiously sought to downplay it, with Lombardi saying the meeting by no means indicated papal support for Davis and insisting that the only private audience Francis held in Washington was with his former student: a gay man and his partner.

The Sept. 24, 2015 meeting and ensuing controversy has been cited as evidence of the frosty relations between Vigano and Francis that predated Vigano's remarkable denunciation of how Vatican officials starting in 2000 knew of sexual misconduct allegations against ex-Cardinal Theodore McCarrick but covered them up.

Vigano, whose Aug. 26 claims that Francis knew about McCarrick starting in 2013 have thrown the papacy into turmoil, issued a second statement Aug. 30 saying Francis knew well who Davis was, and that the Vatican hierarchy approved the meeting in advance.

He said he was nevertheless summoned to Rome urgently after news of the meeting was leaked but said the pope had nothing but praise for his efforts organizing the trip when the two met Oct. 9, 2015.

In the joint statement Sunday, Rosica transcribed what he said were handwritten notes from a meeting he and Lombardi had with Vigano the following evening. In those notes, Rosica quoted Vigano as telling them that the pope had actually chastised him for "deceiving" him with the Davis encounter, and for having withheld the fact that Davis had been married four times.

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In his part of the joint statement, Lombardi said Vigano initiated the Davis meeting, should have known about the furor that it would cause, and that even though Vatican officials approved of it, they were not sufficiently informed about the significance such a meeting would take on.

The meeting has taken on new relevance following Vigano's allegations that he informed Francis of McCarrick's misconduct on June 23, 2013, but claimed Francis rehabilitated him from sanctions he said Pope Benedict XVI had imposed on him in 2009 or 2010.

There is no evidence those sanctions were ever enforced, since McCarrick lived a very public ministry in those years, travelling around the world for the church. Vigano said Francis should resign for what he said was his complicity in the nearly two-decade long cover-up of McCarrick's misconduct.

Francis removed McCarrick as cardinal in July after a U.S. investigation determined an allegation he groped a teen-ager in the 1970s was credible. Up until then, the only accusations known publicly against McCarrick were of misconduct with adults, an abuse of power but considered much less serious than sexually abusing a minor in the eyes of the church.

Rosica said no Holy See officials were involved in the drafting of the statement with Lombardi, but that he shared a copy of it with the Vatican secretary of state and foreign minister. The statement was issued, perhaps coincidentally, on the same day as the announcement that Lombardi would be resuming a more prominent communications role for the church by returning to work at the Jesuit journal, La Civilta Cattolica.

The magazine is edited by one of Francis' closest advisers, the Rev. Antonio Spadaro, and serves as something of an unofficial mouthpiece for the Vatican. Its content is vetted by the Vatican secretariat of state prior to publication.
DUBAI (Reuters) - Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said on Sunday war was unlikely but called on Iran's armed forces to boost their defense capacities, according to his official website, as the country faces increased tension with the United States. On Saturday, Iran announced plans to boost its ballistic and cruise missile capacity and acquire modern fighter planes and submarines to boost its defenses following the U.S. pullout from Tehran's nuclear agreement with world powers. "Ayatollah Khamenei emphasized that based on political calculations there is no likelihood of a military war but added that the armed forces must be vigilant ... and raise their personnel and equipment capacities," the website quoted Khamenei as telling commanders of Iran's air defense forces. "The Supreme Leader said ...the air defense units were a very sensitive part of the armed forces and on the front line of confronting the enemy, and emphasized the need to increase their readiness and capabilities," the website said in its report on the gathering, which was held to mark Iran's Air Defence Day. Saturday's news of the military development plans came a day after Iran dismissed a French call for negotiations on Tehran's future nuclear plans, its ballistic missile arsenal and its role in wars in Syria and Yemen. Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said last month the Islamic Republic's military prowess was what deterred Washington from attacking it. Separately, a senior Iranian diplomat met visiting UK Junior Foreign Minister Alistair Burt and urged swift European action on a planned package of economic measures to offset the U.S. pullout from the accord and the reimpositions of sanctions by Washington, the state news agency IRNA reported. "The imposition of (U.S.) sanctions and pressures and the lack of rapid action by Europe to fulfill their commitments will have serious consequences," Kamal Kharrazi, a former foreign minister who heads a top foreign policy council, told Burt, IRNA reported. Iranian officials have said they would decide whether to quit the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers after studying the European package of economic measures that could help offset U.S. sanctions. "European countries have not been able yet to take necessary measures to secure Iran's interests under the nuclear agreement," Kharrazi said. "(Burt) said Britain's position is different from that of the United States and we are looking for a European mechanism to make the nuclear accord successful," IRNA reported. In a meeting with senior parliamentarian Heshmatollah Falahatpisheh, Burt referred to the case of a British-Iranian dual national detained in Iran, IRNA reported. "I thank Iran for its humanitarian act to grant Nazanin Zaghari furlough and her meeting with her family, and we hope that this approach will continue until the release and the pardon of such people," Burt said, according to IRNA. Britain is seeking the release of Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, a project manager with the Thomson Reuters Foundation. She was arrested in April 2016 at Tehran airport as she was heading back to Britain with her daughter, now aged four, after a family visit. She was released for three days last month. Burt, on the first visit by a British minister since U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew from the nuclear deal, earlier met Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi. Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said on Saturday the talks with Burt had involved "access to banking resources and the sale of oil". Iran has been seeking commitment from European signatories of the nuclear deal that it will be able to access the Western banking system and continue to sell oil despite U.S. sanctions. In a statement before his visit, Burt said: "As long as Iran meets its commitments under the deal, we remain committed to it as we believe it is the best way to ensure a safe, secure future for the region." (Reporting by Dubai newsroom; Editing by Raissa Kasolowsky)
This shocking video shows how a woman led police on a high-speed car chase which ended in a crash, then attempted to hijack another vehicle while carrying a baby.

Caitlyn Rodriguez, 29, was charged with evading arrest, endangering a child and possession of a controlled substance after the chase in Texas.

In the footage, released on Friday by the Texas Department of Public Safety, she can be seen driving her grey Mercedes at speeds of up to 100mph.

The woman fled on foot carrying a baby in a car seat (Picture: Texas Department of Public Safety)

It was reported that the chase began after she fled from an officer at a routine traffic stop.

She then proceeded to speed past traffic, went over a central reservation and even into the path of oncoming vehicles.

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A police deflating device managed to take out one of her tires.

After running a red light, she later ploughed her vehicle into the back of another car.

Rodriguez then exited her car and ran around to the passenger rear door and took out the baby in its car seat.

Caitlyn Rodriguez crashed into the back of another car (Picture: Texas Department of Public Safety)

After running across the road with the baby, she tried to hijack an SUV. The woman driving the SUV had her own child in the vehicle.

But officers pulled up just as she was trying to hijack the car and pulled her out and forced her to the ground.

The incident was captured on camera in Bexar County in June.

The baby has been taken into care, it was reported.
JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Workers from South Africa's mainly-white Solidarity union staged a go-slow protest at the petrochemicals firm Sasol on Monday over a share scheme offered exclusively to black staff, and said they would begin a full strike on Thursday. South African companies are required to meet quotas on black ownership, employment and procurement as part of a drive to reverse decades of exclusion under apartheid. Meeting the rules makes a company more likely to qualify for government tenders. Solidarity has been waging a challenge against racial quotas in the workplace, and lodged a complaint against the policy in 2016 with the U.N. Human Rights Commission. Sasol, the world leader in technology that converts coal and gas to fuel, has sold 25 percent of its local operations to qualifying black employees, a foundation and the black public in a 21 billion rand ($1.5 billion) deal financed by the company. It has said the scheme is not a benefit but a mechanism designed to meet the rules on black economic empowerment, and was backed by shareholders. But Solidarity said the scheme was discriminatory and that it would file a complaint to U.S. regulators. Sasol also operates in the United States. The union said 6,300 of its members would hold a go-slow at Sasol's facilities in South Africa, and then strike on Thursday. "We are not against the scheme, we just want it to be inclusive of all workers. If the company makes it inclusive, the majority will still be black, so we see no need to exclude white workers as this is discrimination," said Dirk Hermann, Solidarity's chief executive. Sasol, which employs around 26,000 people in South Africa, said it was aware of Solidarity's intent to strike, and that it had made contingency plans. SHARES SLIP Sasol's shares were 1.4 percent lower at 568.14 rand, with the market expecting the dispute to be resolved without affecting earnings. A Sasol spokesman said parts of the flagship Secunda and Sasolberg plants, which produce fuel and chemicals respectively, were anyway undergoing scheduled maintenance shutdowns, but that both plants otherwise continued to operate. The ruling African National Congress said in a statement that it was concerned by the "obsession with perpetuating racial polarization" triggered by Solidarity's protest. Solidarity's Hermann said the union was not promoting racism and had backed schemes at AngloGold Ashanti and iron ore mining firm Kumba that treated white and black workers equally. But it was in court challenging an empowerment scheme at the cement firm PPC that grants each black worker twice as many shares as a white worker. Herman said Solidarity had also challenged a similar scheme at South Africa's biggest mobile operator, Vodacom, but had been hampered by its low members' roll at the firm. The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration, which mediates in labor disputes, ruled that Solidarity did not have a legal right to challenge Sasol's scheme in court, but could push its cause through industrial action. "We expect Sasol to come to the negotiating table," Hermann said. ($1 = 14.7478 rand) (Reporting by James Macharia; Editing by Kevin Liffey)
In July, President Trump announced Judge Brett Kavanaugh as his latest nominee to the U.S. Supreme Court. On Tuesday, Sept. 4, confirmation hearings on the nomination will begin before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Kavanaugh is a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

His conservative judicial philosophy follows legal interpretations of the Constitution advocating that the text should be given the original meaning it would have had at the time that it became law. If confirmed, he would replace retiring Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, who has been a swing vote in favor of abortion rights.

Heres where Kavanaugh stands on some key issues:

Roe v. Wade:

This is the 1973 landmark Supreme Court ruling that legalized abortion nationwide. Kavanaugh recently met with Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, who supports abortion rights, and told her he views Roe v. Wade as settled law. During 2006 hearings on his circuit court nomination, he declined to give his personal opinion on abortion but offered this: If confirmed to the D.C. Circuit, I would follow Roe v. Wade faithfully and fully. That would be binding precedent of the court. It has been decided by the Supreme Court.

Abortion rights for immigrants:

Recently, an appeals court voted to allow an abortion for a 17-year-old undocumented immigrant, while the Trump administration wanted to transfer her to a sponsor for guidance. In his dissenting opinion, Kavanaugh wrote that the majority was creating a new right for unlawful immigrant minors in U.S. government detention to obtain immediate abortion on demand.

He did add that all parties to this case recognize Roe v. Wade and Planned Parenthood v. Casey as precedents we must follow.

Second Amendment:

In 2011, the D.C. circuit court upheld a ban that applied to semiautomatic rifles in the District of Columbia. Kavanaugh dissented from the majority opinion, noting that the Supreme Court had previously held that handguns, most of which are semiautomatic, are constitutionally protected because they have not traditionally been banned and are in common use by law-abiding citizens.
HARARE (Reuters) - Zimbabwe is donating 10 white rhinos to Democratic Republic of Congo to re-establish a population driven to extinction by poachers a decade ago, Zimbabwe's wildlife authority said. The rhinos were being captured and would be moved from Victoria Falls later this week or early next, Zimbabwe Parks and Wildlife Management Authority (ZimParks) spokesman Tinashe Farawo said on Monday. Congo's white rhinos lived in Garamba National Park near the border with South Sudan but it was not clear where the animals would be located. Wildlife protection is complicated in Congo by lawlessness and militia violence that endures 15 years after the end of a war that killed millions, mainly from hunger and disease. "The Zimbabwean Government was satisfied that the pre and post-translocation conditions in ... (Congo) met the requisite standards for a successful re-establishment of rhinos," a ZimParks statement said. ZimParks and conservationists said moving the rhinos from Zimbabwe would strengthen the gene pool. Zimbabwe had about 800 black and white rhinos in 2016 and is one of just four countries with nearly all the world's white rhinos. Their horns are prized in China and southeast Asia. "Moving rhinos from one place to another is essential to ensure good genetic diversity across the population," said Emma Pereira, a spokeswoman for Save the Rhino, a London-based group. "We hope any move between countries is done with the correct expertise and thoughtful planning." Poachers also target mountain gorillas, one of the world's most endangered species which is found only on a spine of volcanic mountains straddling Congo, Uganda and Rwanda. Their numbers have recovered in recent years thanks to intensive conservation efforts. The head of Congo's wildlife authority could not be immediately reached for comment. (This version of the story removes extraneous words from dateline.) (Reporting by MacDonald Dzirutwe in Harare and Fiston Mahamba in Goma; Writing by Sofia Christensen; Editing by Aaron Ross and Matthew Mpoke Bigg)
It is no secret I get hundreds of emails from a vast array of sources every day. My biggest regret is that I cannot answer all of them, especially those that are kind and boost my spirits, because it would take hours, but I try to read every one of them and am exceedingly grateful.

In my emails there are also many stories, most unattributed. Many times Snopes or Fact-Check will turn a good tale into fiction yet  Ill admit  Ive taken the bait several times, only to be corrected by my readers. Then again, many of my ideas for stories each day spring from emails forwarded to me and I love that.

But the true source may be the best story of all as we enjoy the holiday. This week there came one, To Kill An American. It was purportedly written by an Australian dentist and, upon checking, there are almost exact versions allegedly written by a Canadian war veteran, a Romanian journalist, and goodness knows who else.But the true source may be the best story of all as we enjoy the holiday.

This story, properly titled, What is an American? was actually written on Sept. 25, 2001, by Peter Ferrara, who at the time was an associate professor of law at George Mason University in Fairfax, Va. You will note the date is only 14 days after the darkest day in the history of our country  the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Because we will remember the horrors and must also forever cherish how this nation survived and overcame them, allow me to present the Mr. Ferraras 2001 story from the National Review on this Labor Day with a simple prayer: Lord, never let us forget who we are.

* * *

What Is An American?

By Peter Ferrara, writing in the National Review on Sept. 25, 2001

You probably missed this in the rush of news, but there was actually a report that someone in Pakistan had published in a newspaper, an offer of a reward to anyone who killed an American; any American.

So I just thought I would write to let them know what an American is, so they would know when they found one.

An American is Englishor French, or Italian, Irish, German, Spanish, Polish, Russian or Greek. An American may also be African, Indian, Chinese, Japanese, Australian, Iranian, Asian, or Arab, or Pakistani, or Afghan.

An American is Christian, or he could be Jewish, or Buddhist, or Muslim. In fact, there are more Muslims in America than in Afghanistan. The only difference is that in America they are free to worship as each of them choose.

An American is also free to believe in no religion. For that he will answer only to God, not to the government, or to armed thugs claiming to speak for the government and for God.

An American is from the most prosperous land in the history of the world. The root of that prosperity can be found in the Declaration of Independence, which recognizes the God-given right of each man and woman to the pursuit of happiness.

An American is generous. Americans have helped out just about every other nation in the world in their time of need. When Afghanistan was overrun by the Soviet army 20 years ago, Americans came with arms and supplies to enable the people to win back their country. As of the morning of September 11 , Americans had given more than any other nation to the poor in Afghanistan.

An American does not have to obey the mad ravings of ignorant, ungodly cruel, old men. American men will not be fooled into giving up their lives to kill innocent people, so that these foolish old men may hold on to power. American women are free to show their beautiful faces to the world, as each of them choose.

An American is free to criticize his government's officials when they are wrong, in his or her own opinion. Then he is free to replace them, by majority vote.

Americans welcome people from all lands, all cultures, all religions, because they are not afraid. They are not afraid that their history, their religion, their beliefs, will be overrun, or forgotten. That is because they know they are free to hold to their religion, their beliefs, their history, as each of them choose.

And just as Americans welcome all, they enjoy the best that everyone has to bring, from all over the world. The best science, the best technology, the best products, the best books, the best music, the best food, the best athletes.

Americans welcome the best, but they also welcome the least. The nation symbol of America welcomes your tired and your poor, the wretched refuse of your teeming shores, the homeless, tempest tossed.

These in fact are the people who built America. Many of them were working in the twin towers on the morning of September 11 , earning a better life for their families.

So you can try to kill an American if you must. Hitler did. So did General Tojo and Stalin and Mao Tse-Tung, and every bloodthirsty tyrant in the history of the world.

But in doing so you would just be killing yourself. Because Americans are not a particular people from a particular place. They are the embodiment of the human spirit of freedom. Everyone who holds to that spirit, everywhere, is an American.

So look around you. You may find more Americans in your land than you thought were there. One day they will rise up and overthrow the old, ignorant, tired tyrants that trouble too many lands. Then those lands too will join the community of free and prosperous nations.

And America will welcome them.

* * *

As we celebrate Labor Day, a reminder cant hurt.
India had earlier cited cross-border terrorism as the reason for pulling out of the Saarc summit after the Pathankot and Uri terror attacks.

Pakistan remains extremely keen on resumption of the Saarc process and for the next Saarc summit to be held in its capital city Islamabad.

New Delhi: After the recent successful BIMSTEC summit in Kathmandu and with the regional grouping gaining prominence in the wake of a virtually defunct Saarc, Pakistan may intensify efforts for a meeting of foreign ministers/representatives of Saarc countries including India attending the UN General Assembly in New York later this month.

Whether such a move will materialise in New York remains to be seen, given that India and Pakistan are expected to once again have a sharp exchange of words over Kashmir at the UN Gen-eral Assembly. With a new Government in charge in Pakistan, and its foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi expected to represent it, Islamabad is certain to rake up the Kashmir issue in a major way. New Delhi is expected to hit back with its response.

Pakistan remains extremely keen on resumption of the Saarc process and for the next Saarc summit to be held in its capital city Islamabad. However, India is in no mood to oblige as it wants concrete actions by Pakistan to rein in terrorists operating from Pakistani soil.

Government sources had said a few months ago that India does not contemplate any Saarc summit in the near future as Pakistan continues its policy of being actively involved in sponsoring cross-border terrorism. Sources had then said that one country  an obvious reference to Pakistan  continues its policy of sponsoring terror. Islam-abad was also seen to be opposing connectivity initiatives within Saarc.

It may be recalled that the South Asian grouping Saarc (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation) was described last year by the then foreign secretary S. Jaishankar as a jammed vehicle. It may also be recalled that the 19th Saarc summit, which was scheduled to have been held in Islamabad in 2016, was indefinitely postponed after India, Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan among others pulled out of the event.

India had then cited cross-border terrorism as the reason for pulling out of the summit after the Pathankot and Uri terror attacks.

Diplomatic sources told this newspaper that despite tensions over Kashmir, India and Pakistan are continuing with humanitarian gestures such as release of each others prisoners including fishermen, claiming that the two countries are also exploring ways for deeper engagement.
The Jordanian government rejected on Sunday an American peace plan that was allegedly presented to the Palestinians based on the concept of a Palestinian-Jordanian confederation.

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The rejection came shortly after Palestinian Authority (PA) President Mahmoud Abbas said on Sunday in a meeting held with the left-wing Peace Now movement and Israeli Knesset members that a US negotiating delegation headed by President Donald Trump's two special Mideast advisorsJason Greenblatt and the presidents son-in-law Jared Kushnerrecommended the idea.

Jordan's King Abdullah with PA President Mahmoud Abbas (Photo: Getty Images)

A Jordanian government spokeswoman, Jumana Ghanimat, responded to the report, saying that a confederation between Jordan and Palestine is not open for discussion. Jordans positions is firm and clear regarding the Palestinian issuea two-state solution and the establishment of a Palestinian state on the 1967 borders.

According to Abbas, he told President Trumps delegation that he would agree to such an arrangement on the provision that Israel would also be part of the confederation.

Abbas also claimed that he consistently meets with the heads of the Shin Betwe agree on 99 percent of the issues.

Meeting between Abbas and Israeli peace activists and politicians (Photo: President Abbas's office)

During the meeting, which was attended by the Peace Now Chairwoman Shaked Morag and MKs Mossi Raz (Meretz) and Ksenia Svetlova (Zionist Union), Abbas said that Kushner and Greenblatt asked me if I believe in a federation with Jordan.

I told him: yes. I want a triangular confederation with Jordan and Israel. I asked if the Israelis would agree to that proposal, Abbas claimed.

The 82-year-old Palestinian leader also shared his belief that the US was a hostile force against the Palestinians and is closing the peace process. The US wants to destroy UNRWA completely.

King Abdullah with President Trump (Photo: Reuters)

Abbas also reiterated and emphasized that the the PA security apparatus maintain daily security coordination with the Israeli defense establishment and that its personnel do everything possible so that no Israeli is harmed.

The Trump administration announced on Friday it would cease to provide any financial aid to the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA), which the US and Israel have accused of deliberately bloating the number of bona fide Palestinian refugees.
A group of Arab lawmakers in Israel on Sunday praised British Labour opposition leader Jeremy Corbyn, whose party has been battling accusations of anti-Semitism for months.

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In a letter to Britain's Guardian newspaper, Ahmad Tibi, a deputy speaker of Israel's parliament, and three other members of the Joint Arab List party said Corbyn had a "longstanding solidarity with all oppressed peoples around the world, including his unflinching support for the Palestinian people."

Since unexpectedly becoming Labour leader in 2015 after decades spent on the left-wing fringes of the party, Corbyn has repeatedly faced accusations of turning a blind eye to anti-Semitic comments in the party and among groups he supports.

Joint List MK Ahmad Tibi and Jeremy Corbyn (Photo: Reuters, Alex Kolomoisky)

Incredibly, instead of taking that government to task for (Israels) unadulterated racism, the British political class ignores the Palestinian historical plight, and attacks and abuses the British and European leader who vocally supports the Palestinian cause of peace and equality, the letter in the Guardian read.

Corbyn has responded to protests by meeting Jewish community leaders, reassuring Jewish people they are welcome in the party. He has previously apologized for what he has described as "pockets" of anti-Semitism in his party.

However, several Jewish Labour politicians have slammed Corbyn for what they believe is his turning blind eye to anti-Semitism, with one Jewish MPcalling him a "f***ing anti-Semite" in July.

One of the longest-serving Labour lawmakers, Frank Field, this week attacked its leadership for becoming "a force for anti-Semitism" and said he will no longer vote with the party in parliament.

Further pressure was piled on Corbyn when Britain's former chief rabbi warned that Jewish people are thinking about leaving the country because of anti-Semitism.

Corbyn at wreath-laying ceremony

Israel's own Labour party suspended relations with Corbyn in April, accusing him of sanctioning anti-Semitism and showing hostility towards Israeli policies.

In August, Corbyn acknowledged that he was present at a wreath-laying to Palestinians allegedly linked to the murder of 11 Israelis at the 1972 Munich Olympics.

In their letter, the Arab members of Israel's parliament said they recognize Corbyn as "a principled leftist leader who aspires for peace and justice and is opposed to all forms of racism, whether directed at Jews, Palestinians, or any other group."

Some opinion polls put Labour ahead or level with Prime Minister Theresa Mays Conservatives, meaning he is a potential British leader, although the next election is not due until 2022.
A team from the District Planning and Building Committee arrived on Monday at al-Walaja village, part of which is within the municipal boundaries of Jerusalem, with demolition orders for four houses.

Two houses have already been destroyed and two others have been barricaded by some 100 local residents.

The Border Police fired tear gas at the demonstrators who responded by throwing rocks at the force.
Amir Weissbrod attended a ceremony in Jordanian capital of Amman, where his credentials were presented as Israels new ambassador to Jordan, bringing to a close a crisis between the two states after an Israeli embassy security guard shot dead two Jordanians, one of which he claimed attempted to stab him.

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After submitting his credentials to Jordan's King Abdullah II, Ambassador Weissbrod held a brief conversation with the king.

In 2001, Weissbrod was appointed as spokesman for the Jordanian embassy, a position which he held until 2005.

King Abdullah II and Amir Weissbrod

"All in all, this is a good period in Israeli-Jordanian relations. The border with Jordan is a stable and important one," said the new ambassador.

Over the past few months, Weissbrod met with Jordanian ministers in order to initiate the process of rebuilding the trust between the two states, following a security crisis which saw an Israeli ambassador being expelled from the country for nine months.

Diplomatic sources say relations between Israel and Jordan have been repaired and are now stronger than ever with more and more attempts being made to promote joint economic ventures.

Amir Weissbrod

In March, Jordan accepted Israel's choice of Weissbrod to serve as the new ambassador for the kingdom,

Two months later, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Jordans king in Amman, in what was their first encounter since a diplomatic spat erupted following a deadly embassy incident.

In May, Weissbrod landed in Amman where he officially took up his post as the Israeli ambassador, nearly nine months after his predecessor Einat Schlein, along with her entire diplomatic staff, was forced to leave Jordan due to the shooting incident that ruptured the two countries relations.
A hearing was held in the Kariot Magistrates Court on Monday regarding the arrest extension of one of the suspects in the attack on three young men from Shfar'am on the beach in Kiryat Haim beach in Haifa.
Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif traveled to Damascus on Monday for talks with Syrian officials, where he said that all militants must be "cleaned out" of Idlib province in northwestern Syria, according to Fars News.

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"All of Syrian territory must be preserved and all the sects and groups should start the round of reconstruction as one collective and the displaced should return to their families. And the remaining terrorists in the remaining parts of Idlib must be cleaned out and the region should be placed back under the control of the Syrian people," Zarif said, according to Fars.

Iranian forces have backed Syrian President Bashar Assad in the country's civil war.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif

Last week, Iranian Defense Minister Amir Hatami traveled to Damascus and signed an agreement for defense cooperation between the two countries with his Syrian counterpart.

Following the signing, the defense minister said an axis of resistance is prepared and ready to always respond to any attack against Syria.

The presence of the Iranian forces in Syria is in accordance with a request in Damascus, and no other country has the right to express an opinion on this presence, Hatami said in an interview with the Lebanon-based Al Mayadeen satellite channel.

The defense minister also directly addressed the threat of Israeli attacks against Iran. According to my knowledge of Irans capabilities, in my opinion (Prime Minister Benjamin) Netanyahus threats of attacks against Iran are far from reality, he said.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani is scheduled to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin and Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan in Iran, Iran's foreign ministry spokesman Bahram Qassemi said Monday, according to Fars News.

"I'm optimistic that this meeting will be successful and productive for the region, the people of Syria and the fight against terrorism," Qassemi said.

Fars News said the leaders would meet on Friday.

The meeting comes as Syrian government forces are preparing a phased offensive in the northwestern province of Idlib and surrounding areas, the last big rebel enclave.

Zarif and Assad (Photo: EPA)

"One of the complicated issues today is Idlib which is the last stronghold of anti-government insurgents. The government of Syria is determined to put an end to this catastrophe, Qassemi said, according to Fars News.

"The government of Syria has the right to fight against terrorists in this region. And Iran, as a supporter of the Syrian government, is present and will continue its advisory help as long as the Syrian government wants."
An air strike near a US base in southeastern Syria has killed at least eight pro-government fighters, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported Monday.

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Four Syrians, one Iranian national and three other non-Syrian fighters were among the casualties of the strike carried out on Saturday, the war monitor said.

"A convoy of Iranian forces and allied militia was hit by air strikes as it drove near Al-Tanf base," the head of the monitoring group Rami Abdel Rahman said.





Images from explosion in Mezzeh airbase on Sunday

"We do not know if it is planes of the international coalition", led by Washington to fight against the Islamic State group (ISIS), he said.

He said he could not confirm the strike had been conducted by the US-led coalition present in the region.

The coalition did not immediately reply to an AFP query.

The report came days after Iran was said to have given ballistic missiles capable of striking Tel Aviv to Shi'ite proxies in Iraq.

Iran was also reported to have been developing the capacity to build more there to deter attacks on its interests in the Middle East, according to Iranian, Iraqi and Western sources.

The Zelzal, Fateh-110 and Zolfaqar missiles in question have ranges of about 200 km to 700 km, putting Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh or Tel Aviv within striking distance if the weapons were deployed in southern or western Iraq.

Fateh-110 ballistic missile

Several strikes against the Syrian government or allied forces have been in the past attributed to US forces deployed as part of a multinational coalition against the ISIS group.

The base, set up in 2016 near the borders with Iraq and jordan, was also used for the training of so-called "vetted opposition" to the regime of President Bashar Assad.

Despite a 55-kilometre (34-mile) deconfliction zone around the base, Al-Tanf is seen as a potential flashpoint between US and Iranian or Tehran-backed forces.

Images from explosion in Mezzeh airbase on Sunday

The presence of a US base in the arid border region has been a source of tension and its dismantling is often cited as a key demand by Damascus and its allies.

Beyond the battle against IS jihadists in their nearby desert hideouts, analysts say Washington sees the base as disrupting Iranian efforts to open a east-west land corridor from Tehran to Lebanon.

Syrian state media said on Sunday that loud blasts coming from the Mezzeh airbase early the same morning were from an explosion at an ammunitions dump caused by an electrical problem.

Syrian military officials later said that the explosions, which were originally attributed to Israel, were in fact caused by the electrical malfunction.
A joint Palestinian-Israeli industrial and commercial center is set to be built near the Teneh Omarim settlement located in the Mount Hebron Regional Council, in a venture intended to bolster job opportunities for Palestinians and boost the Israeli economy.

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The mixed industrial hub will receive government funding and is expected to serve as a model of Israeli-Palestinian economic cooperation that will be presented at a conference of US-led finance ministers in the World Economic Forum in Davos in January.

Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon (Kulanu) met on Wednesday in Washington with the US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin, along with President Donald Trumps special Mideast envoy, Jason Greenblatt to flesh out the details of the plan.

Finance Minister Moshe Kahlon and US Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin

The three discussed augmenting economic cooperation between Israel and the Palestinians with American support, a cornerstone of the Trump administration's long-waited peace plan, which has yet to be unveiled.

Palestinians are to significantly benefit from the project, according to its architects, which will offer work opportunities to thousands who are seeking employment.

According to statistics, that figure currently stands at around 9,000 and is expected to climb to 15,000 by 2020.

The Finance Ministry allocated 4 million shekels for planning the project, which will focus on the construction of a modern industrial and hi-tech park, vocational training, and commerce and tourism near the Meitar crossing.

We are leading economic policy in Samaria which is intended to strengthen the Israeli economy and to contribute to Israels security," said Finance Minister Kahlon said. "This policy proves itself and we are widening it into a joint industrial area, including south Mount Hebron.

Economy Minister Eli Cohen also praised the merits of the project, saying that it would provide a two-fold benefit.

Building the industrial area is in the interest of both sides to strengthen ties, and not only in economic terms. Industrial areas in Judea and Samaria contribute to the Israeli economy and to the Palestinian population, he said.
Clashes erupted between security forces and residents of the West Bank village of al-Walaja during the demolition of what Israel says are several illegally built houses on Monday, leaving two Jerusalem municipality inspectors lightly wounded by stones that had been thrown at them.

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The inspectors, who overlooked the evacuation of the houses, were treated at the scene by the Border Police.

According to Palestinian reports, several village residents were also wounded during the riots and one person was hospitalized. One eyewitness said an IDF soldier hit a local resident with the rifle stock.

al-Walaja (Photo: Ir Amim)

Earlier, a team from the District Planning and Building Committee arrived at the scene with demolition orders for four houses and equipped with heavy engineering tools.

After the first two houses were demolished, around 150 local residents barricaded themselves in the two remaining homes in order to prevent the evacuation.

The Border Police fired tear gas and rubber bullets at the residents who disrupted the procedures, some of whom responded by throwing stones.

Riots at demolition site (:  )

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The residents later issued a statement bemoaning the loss of their homes.

Today, 40 people have lost their homes, and there are another 800 people like them in al-Walaja. Border Police used gas and gunfire to get people out of the barricaded houses. In response, there was stone throwing and shooting," read the statement.

(Photo: Ir Amim)

A senior Border Police source said the forces that were present at the scene to enforce the demolition of the illegal constructions faced a violent attack by rioterswho threw stones and other objects at the personnel, prompting them to respond with crowd-dispersal measures.

"Severe violence will not prevent the security forces from enforcing the peace and restoring order," stressed the source.

The village is located south of Jerusalems Gilo neighborhood, and although parts of it are located in Areas B and C, it is still within the municipal boundaries of the capital.

The citys municipality does not provide al-Walaja with basic services such as waste collection and infrastructure construction.

According to the state, the houses were built illegally on land that does not belong to the village and in doing so, the residents prevented the expansion of the capitals municipal area.

(Photo: Ir Amim)

In the past, the residents submitted a proposal that would legally determine their area of residence, but it was rejected by the municipality.

Since the beginning of construction work along the security barrier in 2010, the Ministry of Interior has refrained from issuing demolition orders for homes in neighborhoods of Jerusalem that remain beyond its borders.

However, in 2016 a gradual shift in policy began, which threatens about a quarter of the houses in the village.
Modi described Naidu as a person driven by a holistic vision aimed at improving the lot of common man.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former PM Manmohan Singh during the release of a book by vice-president Venkaiah Naidu in New Delhi. (Photo: PTI)

New Delhi: In a veiled jibe at the Opposition, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on Sunday that by calling for discipline these days, one can be branded an autocrat, as he praised vice-president M. Venkaiah Naidu for being a disciplinarian. After launching a book on the vice president and Rajya Sabha chairmans first year in office, Mr Modi said that Mr Naidu always provides visionary leadership whenever he gets a responsibility.

Venkaiah ji is a disciplinarian, and the countrys situation is such that it has become easy to call discipline undemocratic. If one calls for some discipline, then that person is branded an autocrat. The whole dictionary is opened. But the discipline Venkaiah ji calls for, he himself follows it, Mr Modi said. Opposition parties were reportedly upset with Mr Naidu for not allowing their parliamentarians to raise issues of concern in Rajya Sabha.

Referring to Mr Naidus punctuality and discipline, Mr Modi said, One has to be very alert while touring with Venkaiahji. One, he never wears a watch, he does not keep a pen and does not keep money. He does not wear a watch, but he reaches programmes on time.

And if the programme does not get over in time, then he becomes uneasy. Discipline is in his nature.

The launch of the book Moving on... Moving forward: A year in office was also attended by former Prime Ministers  Manmohan Singh and H.D. Deve Gowda, Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, finance minister Arun Jaitley, Rajya Sabhas deputy leader of the Opposition Anand Sharma and a host of other ministers, MPs and senior officials.

Mr Modi described Mr Naidu as a person driven by a holistic vision aimed at improving the lot of common man.

He recalled that when former Prime Minister Atal Behari Vajpayee was keen to offer to Mr Naidu an important portfolio, he requested to be given the rural development ministry. Mr Modi noted that the Prime Ministers Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY), launched by Mr Naidu, became hugely popular among MPs, given the importance of rural roads.

Referring to Mr Naidus 50 years of public life, the Prime Minister said he has set high standards of discipline, commitment and passion to do justice to any responsibility given to him.

Mr Modi said that if the House functions normally, then nobody pays attention to who is sitting in the Chair but when the House does not run smoothly, then the focus is on the person who is in the Chair. If the House would have been run properly then the vice presidents qualities would not have been manifested, he said.

The Prime Minister also lauded Mr Naidus oratorical skills, saying he has a way with words and is a wonderful speaker, in English or Telugu. It is commendable that Venkaiahjiji has presented a report card of sorts about his first year in office, containing the rich work he has done both inside and outside Parliament, he said.

His (Naidu) desire, that the House functions well, there is a debate inside and those things come out of the House that help the country will come true with his constant efforts, Mr Modi said.

The 245-page book brings out Mr Naidus mission of engagement on the four key issues with various stakeholders across the country and its alignment with the mission of a New India in the making.

Speaking on the occasion, Mr Naidu said that discrimination on the basis of religion, caste or gender is unacceptable to any nationalist and this approach should be followed by everyone.

Mr Naidu, who is also the Rajya Sabha Chairman, called for deciding upon a national policy on the need for the upper house in state legislatures, and urged political parties to evolve a consensus on the code of conduct for their members both inside and outside legislatures.

Noting that the last session of Parliament was called the session for social justice, Mr Naidu said it was important to consider and pass legislations that reflect collective commitment to social justice.

In order to build a more inclusive society, there is a need to move towards ensuring proportional representation of all groups, especially those which have till now been under represented, he said.

There is a need to cleanse politics, strengthen parliamentary and governance institutions, give a big push to next level of reforms to harness entrepreneurial and economic potential, harness the energies of young India and ensure sustainable and remunerative agriculture, Mr Naidu said.
The heads of the Foreign Ministry workers' Committee surprised Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu during a ceremony on Monday celebrating Rosh Hashanah by presenting him with a carrot as a sign of protest against the ministrys new salary conditions.

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The chairman of the committee Eli Ifrah explained the meaning behind the unusual gift.

Foreign Ministry employees present Netanyahu with carrots

"We, the Foreign Ministry employees, we will not be baby carrots," Ifrah exclaimed.

Netanyahu raised the carrot in the air and smiled. However, he did not address the accusations against him.

Earlier, Netanyahu gave a presentation on the widespread international support that Israel receives, almost identical to the one presented at the Ambassadors Conference eight months ago.

Ifrah then gave an elaborated speech expressing his disagreement against the failures to find a solution to the new salary conditions.

"We signed agreements that were not honored, and even before the discussion over them was concluded, they had been violated. Are we required to continue on as if nothing has happened?" Yifrach wondered.

The chairman said that the committee had reached an agreement on the overseas wage model, which has not yet entered into force despite the fact that it has been almost a year since its been signed.

Positions abroad are being terminated right and left  and our partners who join us on our missions around the world are financially and professionally hurt and its because someone at the Foreign Ministry went to sleep, he vented.

"Honorable prime minister and foreign minister, we know when to fight over whats right. We are appealing to you here and now, because you are the prime minister. You are our foreign minister, the chairman continued.

You realize that without these good and talented people, nothing will be done. Without budgets, there are no events. We ask that you intervene and save this ministry, protect the employees from the Ministry of Finance," Yifrach stressed.

Yifrach added that the employees are examining what will be their next move if the situation continues.

"Due to being left with no choice, these days we are examining the continuation of our professional and organizational steps, with the cooperation and backing of the Histadrut  Foreign Ministry employees are not 'baby carrots'. Anyone who believes that we can be put into a freezer and expect us to be paralyzed at temperatures of minus 30 degrees is mistaken!" he lashed out.

Foreign Ministry Director-General Yuval Rotem and Deputy Foreign Minister Tzipi Hotovely also attended the ceremony.
A 20-year-old man suspected of the attack on three Arabs from Shfaram at Haifa beach was released Monday to house arrest.

Two additional suspects in the attack were also released to house arrest at the end of August.
A terrorist attempting to stab Monday an Israeli near Kiryat Arba was neutralized.

There were no reports of injuries.
Vail Ja'abari, 36, from Hebron attempted Monday to stab an IDF soldier at the entrance to the Geva Haavot neighborhood in Kiryat Arba.

The terrorist was shot dead by IDF soldiers standing at the Geva Haavot checkpoint.

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At about 6 pm Ja'abari approached a group of soldiers that were standing at the entrance to the neighborhood located between Kiryat Arba and Hebron and attempted to stab one of the soldiers.

Attempted stabbing attack in Kiryat Arba (:     )

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An initial investigation indicates that the terrorist charged at the soldiers standing at the checkpoint with a knife.

The soldiers responded with gunfire. None of the Israeli soldiers were injured.

However, a Palestinian resident of Hebron, Abed al-Maw'ti al-Qawasmi, claimed that the man was shot by an Israeli settler who "stopped his car suddenly and then fired at him".

Al-Qawasmi said he heard four shots, and that the man killed was not carrying "any knives or anything."

Scene of the crime

This attempted terror attack follows another violent incident comitted on Sunday by a Palestinian who was arrested near Tekoa in the West Bank after attempting to attack a resident of the settlement with a miniature metal model of a bike.

No injuries were reported.

According to eyewitnesses, the assailant, who had been throwing rocks at moving vehicles just moments before the attack, charged at the IDF soldiers while screaming 'Allahu Akbar'.

Knife used by the terrorist

IDF combat soldiers arrested the Palestinian suspect while other soldiers scoured the area in pursuit of other potential suspects.

The motivation behind the attempted attack was examined by security forces, but initial conclusions point to an attempted terror attack.

According to an initial investigation, the Palestinian has been throwing rocks at passing vehicle before fleeing to Tekoa in the Gush Etzion region. He was taken in for questioning following his arrest.
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte on Monday. The two discussed promoting direct flight lines between the two countries, cooperation in the technological industry, agriculture, nursing and other fields.

Duterte invited the prime minister to visit the Philippines.

Prime Minister Netanyahu asked for Duterte's assistance in finding the missing Israeli citizen who stayed in the Philippines, and has not been seen for three years.
Pierre Krahenbuhl, the Commissioner-General of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA), addressed Monday US aid cutoff, saying that millions of Palestinian refugees cannot simply be wished away.

While Israel supports the American move, Palestinian officials threaten to appeal the decision.

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Krahenbuhl wrote an open letter to Palestinian refugees and the agencys staff in response to US aid cutoff and allegations that UNRWA's work only perpetuates the Palestinian refugees' plight.

No matter how often attempts are made to minimize or delegitimize the individual and collective experiences of Palestine refugees, the undeniable fact remains that they have rights under international law and represent a community of 5.4 million men, women and children who cannot simply be wished away, he said.

US President Donald Trump and UNRWA's building (Photo: AP)

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu welcomed the to stop funding the UN agency for Palestinian refugees, accusing it of perpetuating a crisis that lies at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Netanyahu described UNRWA on Sunday as the refugee perpetuation agency whose money should be taken and be used to really help rehabilitate the refugees, whose real number is a sliver of that reported by UNRWA.

US State Department cuts financial aid to UNRWA by nearly $300 million

The United States on Friday halted all funding to a UN agency that helps Palestinian refugees in a decision further heightening tensions between the Palestinian leadership and the Trump administration.

The Washington Post reported that the move was part of the US State Department's re-calculation of its investments in order to fit US's policy regarding the Israeli-Palestinian peace plan.

Crisis in UNRWA (Photo: AFP)

The US decision to cut financial aid to UNRWA is intended to force Palestinians into changing their refugee' status, since there are not enough funds to help those who are defined as refugees, and those who have the right to return home.

The US administration plans to express its displeasure with the way UNRWA invests its funds.

The administration will also call for a change in UNRWA's definition of refugees so that the five million recognized as refugees by the organization will be reduced to a few tens of thousandsonly those that remained alive since the Jewish Agency was founded 70 years ago.

However, the US administration cannot unilaterally change UN's definition of a refugee eligible for UNRWA's assistance, which now also includes the descendants of refugees that were expelled or fled from their lands.

Hanan Ashrawi, a Palestinian legislator, activist, and scholar, speaks to Ynet about the US deciion (:  )

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A change in the definition of the Palestinian refugees may undermine Palestinian's demand for the right of return. Many foreign and security policy experts, including Israeli, have warned against cutting UNRWA's budget since it will increase violence and worsen the already dire humanitarian situation in Gaza.

On the other hand, Washington believes that insistence on the Palestinian's right of return is one of the major points of contention between the parties, which makes it difficult to advance the peace negotiations.

Similarly, US President Donald Trump believes that did the right thing when he recognized Jerusalem as the capital of Israel and thus has "taken Jerusalem off the negotiating table.

In addition to economic support given to UNRWA, the United States provided extensive aid to the West Bank and Gaza. Last week the US administration announced it would redirect $200 million in Palestinian economic support funds for programs in the West Bank and Gaza.

Protest in UNRWA (Photo: AFP)

This move constitutes the US change in policy in the region. Although few in the region believe that the right of return can be fully realized, it has long been regarded as a central issue in peace negotiations.

While Israel support the cut, the Palestinians threaten to appeal to the UN

After Trump ordered the aid cutoff, the Palestinians threatened to appeal to the UN. The US decision was a "flagrant assault" against Palestinian people, Nabil Abu Rdainah, a spokesman for Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas said on Friday.

"The Palestinian leadership is considering the possibility of appealing to the UN General Assembly and the Security Council to oppose the US decision." Rdainah stated.

"The US decision does not serve the peace process but strengthens terrorism in the region and violates the rights of the Palestinian people," he added.

The General Assembly is set to open in New York on September 18 for a week.

Israel supports the American move, and says that defining the Palestinians as refugees only perpetuate the crisis that lies at the heart of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

UNRWA was founded in 1949 after the first Arab-Israel warthe War of Independencein the wake of the exodus of around 700,000 refugees who fled or were driven out of Israel on its founding as a state. The agency provides services to approximately five million Palestinian refugees from Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, the West Bank and Gaza.
Dozens of Arab citizens demonstrated Monday in front of the Yiftach District police station in Tel Aviv in protest of recent murders and violence in the Arab sector.

The demonstrators call for the resignation of the Police Commissioner, Roni Alsheikh.
A quarrel erupted Monday between Joint List's Knesset members Ahmad Tibi, Yousef Jabareen, and Taleb Abu Arar and Bayit Yehudi's MK Moti Yogev at Ben Gurion Airport.

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Tibi, Jabareen and Abu Arar were on their way to meet with European officials in Belgium and Luxembourg as part as their fight against the Nation-State Law.

Jewish and Arab MKs squabble at airport (Photo: Itay Blumenthal)

The members of the Joint Listsome of whom departed to Belgium on Sundaywill meet on Tuesday with EU Foreign Fffairs Chief Federica Mogherini as part of the series of meetings the party is holding in the international arena in protest against the Nation-State Law.

Later this week, the Joint List MKs will meet with additional officials in Luxembourg.

With the Arab MKs' arrival to the airport, they encountered MK Moti Yogev who had come to the airport to welcome youths making Aliyah to Israel.

"We encourage you to leave Israel. We welcome all those who are making Aliyah and welcome you to leave," Yogev charged.

(Photo: Itay Blumenthal)

"This isn't your country, this country will always be the State of Israel and all the traitorsout!" the Bayit Yehudi's MK lashed out.

Turning to Tibi, Yogev said, "Ramallah will also be a part of Israel. Go to Paris, go to the UK, go to your anti-Semitic friends. Go to whoever is willing to have you. Your place is at the departure hall."

Tibi responded, "Let me give you a doctor's advicetake your medicines three times a day."

Tibi told Ynet that his trip to Europe is meant to discuss the Arabs' situation in Israel after the legislation of the Nation-State Law.

MK Ahmad Tibi (Photo: Itay Blumenthal)

"It is important for the world to know what we think of the law. If Yair Lapid, Zehava Galon and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu who gave a speech in congress against an American President can (voice their opinion-ed), we also can," Tibi elaborated.

Jabareen added that Israel has cooperation agreements with the EU according to which it is committed to protect human rights and its democratic values domestically as well as internationally.

"We consider this law (Nation-State Law) as a blatant violation of the (cooperation) agreements, and therefore request the EU to apply pressure on the Israeli government to revoke this law," Jabareen stated.

"We ask for the world's involvement to press Israel to abrogate the law that discriminates against the Arab sector, that disinherits it from its land," Abu Arar said.

"If the state belongs only to the Jewish people, it is no longer a democracy," he opined.
An Israeli businessman on Monday said he received calls and messages from senior Israeli and foreign military officials after he was assigned the former phone number of Israel's military chief of staff.

Israeli Army Radio identified the man only as Yossi. Speaking to the radio station, he said he became alarmed when he began receiving what looked like very sensitive messages.

"A red light went on ... if it got in the hands of another citizen I don't know what would happen," he said.

It wasn't entirely clear how Lt. Gen. Gadi Eisenkot's number was passed on to a private citizen.

In a statement, the military said "the phone number was changed more than a year ago as part of routine procedure coordinated with the supplier." It did not elaborate.

According to the radio report, the provider said the number was not classified and was reassigned to another customer.
German authorities plan to step up surveillance of the far-right Alternative for Germany amid growing concern the third-largest party in parliament is closing ranks with extremist groups.

Activists for AfD, the nationalist party's German acronym, marched in the eastern city of Chemnitz alongside leading figures in anti-migrant group PEGIDA and members of the area's militant neo-Nazi scene in the past week, after two refugees were arrested in a German citizen's fatal stabbing.
Bhushan went on to say that the secret clause in the Rafale deal, as claimed by the govt, is a big lie.

Bengaluru: The payoffs in the controversial Rafale aircraft deal run into a staggering Rs 40,000 crore, claimed Supreme Court lawyer Prashant Bhushan while reiterating that Reliance Defence Ltd Chairman Anil Ambani was a beneficiary to the tune of over Rs 21,000 crore in this deal.

Terming the Rafale deal as the mother of all defence deals compared to which other deals like the Bofors gun and Westland chopper deals would pale into insignificance, Mr Bhushan alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi was solely responsible for signing the controversial deal, bypassing the chief of the Air Force and the defence minister.

Speaking to reporters here on Sunday, Mr Bhushan said that though Reliance Defence Ltd was in existence for over a year, it had a liability to the tune of Rs 8,000 crore and had incurred a loss of over Rs 1,300 crore.

It was assigned 70 per cent of the offset benefits in the Rafale deal worth over Rs 21000 crore.

Besides, the steep hike in the price of the aircraft from Rs 716 crore per fighter to Rs 1,600 crore increased the payoff, which would now be Rs 40,000 crore, with other beneficiaries too involved, Mr Bhushan said.

In the first place, neither Reliance Defence nor any of its allied companies have experience in manufacturing aerospace and defence equipment.

The Pipavav Shipyard owned by Reliance, is already facing serious difficulties in building offshore patrol vessels for the navy.

In such a scenario, why was the company given Rs 21,000 crore worth offset benefits, Mr Bhushan wondered.

Describing the secret clause in the Rafale agreement as a big lie, he said the government had wilfully bypassed institutions and violated procedures that have been evolved to safeguard national security.

The government should disclose the facts relating to the deal, especially those related to cost, he added.
When the British gained control over Palestine as part of the UN mandate, the area encompassed both sides of the Jordan River and covered some 117,000 square kilometers. However, in 1921 the British government drew a separation by cutting the eastern bank of the Jordan River, which became known as the Emirate of Transjordan or simply as Trans-Jordan. To all intents and purposes, this was a colonialist creation.

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When the Peel Commission was appointed in 1936 in response to the Arab Revolt, it decided on yet another division. A mere 4,800 square kilometers were designated for the Jewish state, while 20,600 square kilometers were added to the Arab statsTrans-Jordanwhich already extended over a land mass of around 90,000 kilometers.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas

The recommendation was not about the establishment of a Palestinian state because at that time there was no Palestinian people or a Palestinian entity. The recommendation was for the establishment of a single Arab state on both sides of the Jordan River.

It is worth paying attention to the fact that 96% of the original land of Palestine was reserved for this Arab state, and the remaining 4% was to be given to the Jews. The Arab resistance to the division did not stem from the establishment of an Arab state on both sides of the Jordan River, but from the meager percentage that was set aside for the Jews.

In the 1947 UN Partition Plan, the Jewish state was granted 15,000 square kilometers, which constituted less than 13% of the land originally known as Palestine. It was a marked improvement on the original 4% set aside for the Jews.

Due to the Arab countries' resistance to the new division, and the invasion of Israel by surrounding Arab countries, the Jewish states land grew to 21,000 square kilometers.

One thing we can all agree on is that there was never any distinction made between those residing on the west side of the Jordan River and those on the east side of the river.

They belonged to the same family, practiced the same religion, spoke the same language and the shared the same culture. After the War of Independence, the Jordanians annexed the West Bank and gave citizenship to those living beforehand under the British mandate.

They were not Palestinians in those days. They were Arabs. The UN did not decide to establish a Palestinian state. It decided to establish an Arab state. The connection made by Jordan was completely natural. It was not a connection between foreigners, but between brothers.

Shimon Peres wearing disguise before a meeting with Hussein King of Jordan (EPA)

After the Six-Day War, the Jordanian Option was the preferred option for a peace agreement. After all, the Arab world did not create a separate state in the two decades free from Israeli occupation. In 1987, a final attempt was made to implement the Jordanian Option as part of the London Agreement between King Hussein and Shimon Peres. Yitzhak Shamir, then prime minister, imposed a veto. It was an historic mistake.

If the Middle East behaved rationally, the connection between the people of the same nation would have been natural. After all, they all speak about Arab unity. Indeed, a string of Arab speakers, including Azmi Bishara (former Arab MK who fled the country after being suspected of espionage) for example, admitted that there is no Palestinian people.

It is easy to understand the existence of Egypt, Iraq and Syria, each of which has, to some degree or another, a history and a heritage that gives them a certain uniqueness. But the Jordanians and Palestinians? They have the right to self-rule. But separation, for what and why? What exactly distinguishes them? nothing.

The global left and Palestinian activists in the West Bank, as well as some members of the Israeli right, speak of "one state." However, one state is established in similar and identical communities, which practice the same religion and share a similar culture, it is not established in two different communities.

Jordan is Palestine, and Palestine is Jordan. Czechoslovakia split into two entities, and Yugoslavia split into seven entities on the basis of religious and ethnic self-determination.

What was true there and considered right by most countries of the world should also be true for the Middle East.

Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas (Photo: AP)

Abbas told us Sunday , recommended a peace plan that was based on a confederation with Jordan, it is an appropriate and correct recommendation.

It is not clear why Abbas is insisting on including Israel in such confederation.

Did the Croats invite the Slovenes to join them? It is true that 31 years after the failed London Agreement, it seems that the Jordanian option is no longer considered, but logic demands putting it back on the negotiating table.
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte, who once likened his crime-fighting policy to Hitler's mass murders and then apologised for the comparison, on Monday laid a wreath to commemorate the Holocaust dead in Jerusalem.

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During his visit to Yad Vashem, Israel's Holocaust memorial and museum, Duterte stood alongside his daughter, Sara, whom he fathered with Elizabeth Abellana Zimmerman, his Jewish first wife, which by religious tradition makes Sara Jewish too.

Philippines President visits Yad Vashem (:   )

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In a solemn ceremony, he kindled the eternal flame in the Hall of Remembrance and laid a wreath.

Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte at Yad Vashem (Photo: Ido Erez)

Reading from what he wrote in the visitors' book after the ceremony, Duterte said: "Never again."

"May the world learn the lesson of this horrific and benighted period of human history. May the hearts of peoples around the world remain ever open. And may the minds of all men and women learn to work together towards providing a safe haven for all who are being persecuted."

In 2016, in a reference to an opponent's remark that his rise could be like that of Adolf Hitler, Duterte said he himself would be "happy to slaughter" drug addicts in a similar way to the Nazi leader's mass murder of Jews.

Duterte is paying an official four-day visit to Israel, the first by a Philippines president, and officials on both sides have tried to play down his record of jarring invective.

Duterte at Yad Vashem (Photo: Ido Erez)

Israel's Government Press Office said most of the visit would be closed to the media, an apparent precaution against any faux pas by a president whose two-fisted crime-fighting tactics and rhetoric have raised hackles at home and abroad.

Tourism, labour and defence deals were signed earlier when Duterte met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in his office.

"We share the same passion for peace. We share the same passion for human beings. But we also share the same passion of not allowing a family to be destroyed by those who (have) corrupt ideologies," Duterte said, in an apparent reference to drug dealers.

Duterte writes in visitors' book at Yad Vashem (Photo: Yishai Porat)

Duterte has apologised for likening his war on drug dealers with the Holocaust but he has been dogged by accusations from activists that thousands of killings in his ongoing war on drugs were executions, accusations he rejects. He has also been rebuked by women's groups for remarks that make light of rape.

In June, Duterte called God "stupid" and he has lashed out repeatedly at the Catholic church, calling it hypocritical. His visit will include sightseeing in Jerusalem's walled Old City, which houses major Christian, Jewish and Muslim shrines.

Duterte met with hundreds of Filipinos living in the country who work mainly as care-givers and received a rousing reception, Israeli media said. Between 24,000 and 28,000 work as carers for the elderly.

Netanyahu, in his remarks, said his own father had been looked after by a Filipina care-giver and that after he died at age 102, his uncle had benefitted from the care of the same worker.

"I, like many, many Israeli families, am deeply moved by this show of humanity," Netanyahu said.

On Wednesday, Duterte departs for neighbouring Jordan.
Yuma News

Yuma, Arizona - On Thursday, between approximately 4:09 p.m. and 9:04 p.m., the Yuma Police Department responded to several calls for service that wound up tying into each other. These calls included numerous felony offenses, to include aggravated assault, vehicle thefts and residential burglaries.

Thirty eight year old Christopher Hill was taken into custody at approximately 9:12 p.m. in the 2600 block of S. Otondo Dr. Hill is linked to at least 15 reports which include aggravated assault, vehicle theft, residential burglary and trespass.

The Yuma Police Department encourages anyone with any information about this case to please call the Yuma Police Department at (928) 373-4700.
Our directory features more than 18 million business listings from across the entire US. However, if we're missing your business, add your business by clicking on Add Your Business.
Ormat Technologies, Inc. operates as a holding company. The firm engages in the provision of geothermal and recovered energy power business. It operates through the following segments: Electricity, Product and Energy Storage. The Electricity segment focuses in the sale of electricity from the company's power plants pursuant to PPAs. The Product segment involves in the manufacture, including design and development, of turbines and power units for the supply of electrical energy and in the associated construction of power plants utilizing the power units manufactured by the company to supply energy from geothermal fields and other alternative energy sources. The Energy Storage segment consists of battery energy storage systems as a service and management of curtailable customer loads under contracts with U.S. retail energy providers and directly with large commercial and industrial customers. The company was founded in 1965 and is headquartered in Reno, NV.

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Wall Street analysts have given iShares MSCI Chile ETF a "N/A" rating, but there may be better buying opportunities in the stock market. Some of MarketBeat's past winning trading ideas have resulted in 5-15% weekly gains. MarketBeat just released five new stock ideas, but iShares MSCI Chile ETF wasn't one of them. MarketBeat thinks these five companies may be even better buys.

View MarketBeat's top stock picks here.
Kente Kaba is an African design that has been trending for some years now. The country of origin of the Kente Kaba style is Ghana. However, Ghana Kente kaba styles have now become a global fashion hype. The dressing style has become popular, especially in African themed events. It is a simple yet elegant style to rock in special events, over the weekends and especially when celebrating African traditional ceremonies such as weddings. We have come up with a guide that can help you to pick out your Kente styles Kaba outfit in no time.

The Kente Kaba styles discussed below cover a wide range of options. You will find styles that you can wear to a wedding, bridal party, or an official function. Keep on reading to find out if there are Kente cloth styles that fit your needs.

READ ALSO: Latest Nigerian Kaba styles

Ball gown Kente Kaba design

Source: pinterest.com/uxkaba

This is one of the Ghana Kente styles that is particularly elegant. The ballroom dress is specifically designed to highlight your upper bodice while covering up the part underneath. This makes the design easily respectful for wearing even before respectable members of society.

Some people feel the need to add slits on the ballroom design to make movement in the dress easy. For the teenagers, their designs can have multiple pleats to give it a more vibrant and youthful feel. The ball room design is also very appropriate for baby girls. For the younger girls, the design can have cotton fabric sewn inside as the lining. This makes the outfit more comfortable for the babies sensitive skin and prevents irritability on the babys skin.

READ ALSO: Best tops to wear with african print skirts

Modern Kente kaba design

This is among the latest Kente Kaba styles that have taken the Kente dressing style from a traditional Ghanaian wear to a world class dress. It put Kente on the global map. The most recent way of modernizing the Kente has been noticed in places such as at the carnivals all around the world. One of the ways that the Kente has been modernized is to put a mixture of the Kente cloth dress with other fabrics to come up with a modernized outfit.

The material can be put across to form stripes or in specific zones to create a desirable look for the customers. This concept of mixing the Kente cloth dresses has become a trend even when it comes to trousers. Some people modernize their trousers and blouses by adding the Kente fabric to the seams and the pockets or the sides. This gives the outfit an African touch without being too much.

READ ALSO: African polished cotton dresses for ladies

Laced Kente kaba design

The addition of lace to the Kente fabric as a design is very popular among the Ghanian women. This kind of design is very popular with high end design shops and wedding dresses. The Kente-lace dress is ideal for a bridal team dress. The lace is sometimes put across the arms to cover the open arms or across the chest to hide the cleavage. In some instances, the lace is used in a brides dress to act as a suspender to hold the bridal dress in position as the bride dances.

Lace is preferred in bridal dresses because of the ceremonial look that it gives the finished look. It is also a light fabric that makes the look less heavy on the owner of the dress. In a few cases the lace is even the main material for the head wrap that goes with the dress or with the bag that one carries along. This gives it a kind of modernized lavishness.

READ ALSO: Latest formal African wear for women

Mermaid style Kente kaba design

This is the most popular design for any African wear. It is almost like the standard look. The outfit can be in form of a skirt and top or in a dress form. This Kente design is appreciated as it shows off how the African women are well endowed in terms of their body figures. It is almost like a standard look and can go with a head-wrap or with an off-shoulder scarf. This design is also popular in weddings and other African functions.

Many brides always fall for this look for their pre-weddings or as the design for the bridal party. This dress type offers the designer the option to mix design on the dress and play around with the fabric until the client is satisfied with the end result. This design can be worn up the toes or the knees. The younger generation prefers having one that is a bit shorter but elegance is the key. Most times people prefer having an open back with this kind of dress. Pleats can be added at the bottom section of the dress to make it look more elegant.

READ ALSO: History of fashion in Ghana

Ghana Kente wedding designs for the bridal teams, visitors and friends and family

Source: idoghana.com

This is where the icing on the cake is at. In Ghanaian weddings the Kente is almost like the official recommended outfit. Most couples even go out of their way to make matching outfits for such occasions. The most important thing is to ensure that you choose an elegant design and a designer and tailor who can pull the look off. The wedding designs can range anywhere from the simplest designs to the most complex designs.

Some of the most interesting designs for Kente arose from wedding ceremonies. This is why it is easier to find a Kente design for African traditional ceremonies. Most times it is customary to have a bride and groom to make their outfits out of the same fabric in the African scene. The Ghanaian Kente style can be the best option in such instances. The key to having a good outcome in the outfits is to always choose the tailor carefully.

For the friends and family, it is always good to be careful so that your overall look doesnt overshadow the look of the bridal team. Always go for the simplest yet classy designs. Avoid over accessorizing to prevent your Kente dress styles from standing out too much.

READ ALSO: African bridesmaid dress styles in Ghana

Kente Kaba styles for engagement

Source: teamnhyira.com

Some couples like to identify with their African roots. This is how some couples end up wearing matching Kente Kaba outfits to special occasions like weddings and graduations or even burials. The mens design is pretty simple as they can rock just a Kente shirt with their khaki trousers. The ladys dresses are where most of the attention will be focused on. It's always good to allow the ladies' dresses to have more detail and to be of an intricate design.

READ ALSO: Best African wear for engagement in Ghana 2018

Source: idoghana.com

The couples designs are also suitable for bridal parties, birthday parties and family get-togethers. It is important to remember to keep the color scheme the same. Even when the man chooses to wear khaki trousers or jeans with his Kente, at least the color of the trouser should match with one of the prominent colors on the ladys dress.

READ ALSO: African print long dress styles

Bridal party Kente kaba style

Bridal parties are where the Kente designs are popular. The Kente is almost the number one choice for most bridal parties in Ghana. The elegance of the Kente designs can make your wedding the talk of town of course. Which is always every brides desire. As long as you get a good concept of what you would like the designs to look like then you have yourself an elegant and colorful wedding right there.

READ ALSO: African print short dresses styles

The designs of the dresses dont have to necessarily be similar. Each member of the bridal party can have their own design as long as the fabric has the same pattern. Some can even mix the Kente Material with lace to make it more elegant. The Kente Kaba offers a wide variety of choices for wedding outfits especially for the African couples.

For the bridal parties, accessories are a necessary part. Always go with minimal accessories such as golden, pearl or silver earrings and bracelets. The neck can be left open or can be covered with lace fabric or with a scarf that has been stylishly tied to match with the outfit.

READ ALSO: Latest fashion Gh 2018

Creative blouses and skirts

For the younger generations, an entire outfit made the Kente way may appear to be too much. That is why most designers opt to make fancy blouses that one can pair with any other fashion of skirt or jeans or whatever the wearer desires. Another alternative is to make a skirt or trouser out of the Kente material then the upper outfit out of Kente cloth as well.

This gives your Kente a touch of the modern or vintage depending on how you choose to accessorize it. Pearls are an excellent way of modernizing the look of your urban Kente look. It gives it a vibrant and youthful look. You can also choose to make a balloon skirt that is of knee length. That make of skirt will give you a younger and more vibrant look especially for the younger girls.

READ ALSO: Trendy African wear styles for guys and ladies in Ghana

Ruffled up Kente kstyle

Ruffles are always a great choice of dress for the plus sized woman. It always brings out the best in their looks. The ruffles when assembled well while considering the pattern in the Kente fabric is likely to come out as one of the most elegant pieces. The most important thing is the dimensions in the dress. It is important to ensure that the designer you choose is good with dimensions so that the patterns are symmetrical in the dress.

This will prevent you from having a dress with a skewed pattern on it. It might require you to pay a few more bucks to get a good tailor. But, the end results are always better and more appealing to the eye.

READ ALSO: Best woodin styles for ladies 2018

Kente Kaba with headwrap

Head wraps are very common with African wear. It is, therefore, important to learn online or from a friend how to make the best head wrap. This is specifically crucial for the older generation that fancy the head wraps. Head wraps may not be so popular with the younger people as they still prefer to keep their hairs styled for the outfit.

READ ALSO: Plus size modern African dresses

A head wrap doesnt need to be very complicated. Even a simple pushed back head-wrap can do. As long as the hair, if any is well combed or styled. Some people prefer big head wraps while, others prefer smaller ones. It is always good to know what you prefer so that the tailor can leave enough material for the head wrap.

You can always find numerous tutorials by different fashion bloggers on how to tie a head wrap properly and the different accessories that you can use instead of a head wrap.

READ ALSO: Current trends in fashion in Ghana 2018

Kente Kaba official wear

This is the most recent adoption in office wear for Africans. The Kente official wear has taken over how people dress to the office in Africa. A simple Kente blouse can be paired with official skirt or trousers for the ladies. As for the men, it is the shirt that will represent the Ghanaian Kente style. Part of the Kente fabric can be sewn strategically in the middle of the shirt or along the buttoning areas. It can also be sewn across the shirt. The Kaba detail can also be placed asymmetrically in form of different shapes across the dress or shirt to make it as stylish as possible while still keeping it official.

This makes it elegant and simple thus making the shirts very wearable for the men. In some cases, some African detail such as beads can be added strategically on the shirts of men or blouses for ladies to add a bit of sauce to it.

READ ALSO: Perfect wedding colours combinations in Ghana

Dinner dresses the Kente way

The Kente designs have been embraced by some designers who have been able to come up with desirable dinner dresses of the Kente designs. These designs embody the modern feeling while still embracing the African spirit that the Kente is all about. The dinner dress collections offer a variety that comprises of simple elegant dresses up to the most complicated designs.

These designs include both the men and women in the varieties. The designs may be accessorized with modern shoes or sandals too.

READ ALSO: African print blazer styles

Kente kaba wear for parents of grooms and brides

During weddings and traditional rites functions, it can be hard to find suitable clothing for the parents of the hosts. The African Kaba styles can offer a range of options for such occasions. The Kente Kabas elegant nature and simplicity makes it a good choice for parents to wear and look absolutely fabulous.

READ ALSO: Long African dresses for ladies

The Kente Kaba is popular in Ghana for weddings thus would be a good choice for the families of the bride and groom to wear. It would also bring out the elegance and add flavor to the colors of the wedding if the fabric is chosen well.

Most times for such events, the men have a particular style of traditional dressing. This means that the rest of the effort will be focused on the mothers of the bride and groom. Where that matching can happen for the outfits is probably the color of the bags and shoes that these parents will wear.

READ ALSO: Best African wear for engagement in Ghana 2018

Well, there you have a good collection of the latest Kente styles in Ghana. The different styles of the Ghanaian style for the Kente Kaba and when and how to wear them. The most important things to remember are:

Always ensure you find a well trusted and qualified tailor to make your Kente deisgn

The accessories can either spoil or make your Kente design

Keep your design as simple and elegant as possible. Dont overdo it since it might just ruin the entire look.

READ ALSO: Top trending African wear for men 2018

Source: Yen
The man, who has another rape case against him, is absconding, Assam police said.

The complaint said the man had returned that night and forced the woman and the two girls to have the juice after which they fell unconscious. (Representational Image)

Nagaon: Three women members of a family were allegedly raped by a man who forced them to drink drug-laced fruit juice before committing the crime in Assam's Hojai district, police said on Monday.

The man was known to them as he lived in the same village and the incident took place on an intervening night between Saturday and Sunday at their home in Uttar Dimarupar village, the victims said in their complaint to the police.

The complaint said the man had brought sugarcane juice to their residence on Saturday morning and had requested them to store it in their refrigerator.

The woman's husband works in Saudi Arabia and the two girls are her relatives.

The complaint said the man had returned that night and forced the woman and the two girls to have the juice after which they fell unconscious. The woman was raped first and when she regained consciousness she saw the man committing the crime on the two girls.

When she tried to stop him, the man had allegedly threatened to kill her with a knife, it said.

They filed their complaint with the police with the help of villagers and an investigation has been initiated into the incident.

The man, who has another rape case against him, is absconding, the police said.

Meanwhile, the police have apprehended six persons who were allegedly involved in the gangrape of a woman near Amoni in Nagaon district on August 28.

The police have arrested the person on whose motorcycle the woman was travelling when they were waylaid by four persons and following his interrogation apprehended five others who were allegedly involved in the crime.

Search is on for another culprit, the police said adding the vehicle used by them was also found.

The woman in her complaint to the police had claimed she was allegedly whisked away by four men in their vehicle, gang-raped and left on NH 37.

An oil tanker driver had found her and took her to the nearby Jakhalabandha police station in the district.
The African Institute of Journalism and Communication (AUCC) is a private tertiary institution dedicated to research, study and teach media and communications. Since its establishment 16 years ago, African University College of Communications admission has been seamless, as their main objective is to train Ghanaians about journalism.

Honorable Kojo Yankah, who was a former member of parliament in the fourth republic of Ghana, started the institution. AUCCs objective was to fast-track the front to growing need of communication in the world today.

When it started, it had 60 students, and by November 2007, it had a population of 300 students. It was the certified to offer a four-year Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree program in communications. In 2010, a business school was added to help students think outside the box when they started looking for jobs.

African University College of Communications fees

The fees for the African University College of Communications are as follows:

For the undergraduate fees program also referred to as freshmen is as follows:

Tuition fees costs GHc 1250

Academic users fees costs GHc 30

Examination, and ICT each goes for GHc 40 respectively

The main campus is located at the heart of Accra, with another 100-acre campus being planned to be constructed at the Winneba junction. The core values of AUCC are:

Ethics and integrity

Services to the community

Embrace the African cultural values

Creativity and innovation

Critical and independent thinking

The institutions symbol is the Baobab tree, which represents the institutions confidence, vitality, energy, and strength. The black and orange colors of the AUCC represent the achievement, and the soul of Africans respectively.

African University College of Communications admission requirements

The African University College of Communications provides an exciting myriad of undergraduate programs. From visual communications to accounting, they have the best courses suited for all students. As long as a student meets their academic requirements. The entry levels for all categories of applicants are as below:

SSSCE

A-1-Excellent

B-2-Very good

C-3-Good

D-4-Credit

E-5-Pass

WASSCE

A1-Excellent

B2-Very good

B3-Good

C4-Credit

C5-Pass

C6-Credit

Other requirements include:

SSSCE: A minimum aggregate score of 24 is required to get an admission. Candidates need to get at least D (4) in six subjects

WASSCE: Applicants with a WASSCE certificate must obtain a minimum of six credit passes in six subjects. Out of these subjects, 3 should be electives and 3 core respectively

International students: Internationals students with qualifications similar to those of WASSCE and SSSCE may be considered for admission. They must also be proficient in English.

GCE O and A levels: Applicants with A or O levels must have grade 6 or five O levels subjects including Arts subjects, a science and English.

Having a diploma from a recognizable university in Ghana with final grade point average (FGPA) of 3.25 also makes you eligible to study at AUCC.

African University College of Communications admission process

To apply to study at AUCC, students are expected to follow the following procedures:

1. Contact the AUCC admissions office on +233 0506 012 705,

2. Purchase the schools admission voucher from Cal bank in Ghana.

The cost for each admissions voucher is as follows:

2018 certificate courses GHc 900.00

Executive education GHc 50.00

Post-graduate programs GHc250.00

Undergraduate programs for international students-cedi equivalent of $80

Undergraduate programs for Ghanaians GHc 85.00

You should have a copy of your birth certificate (this applies to mature applicants only)

Photocopies of certificates or result slips and two sized passport photographs. One of the photographs should be endorsed by a Lawyer, Minister of religion, Head teacher of a school, Senior public servant, or University registrar

Academic transcripts for students who were enrolled at an accredited institution. The transcript must be send directly to the registrar, African University College of Communications.

READ ALSO: University of Ghana admissions

Courses offered at African University College of Communications

Below are the courses offered at the African University College of Communications.Their various academic programs include:

International Masters of strategic planning

International Masters of Business Administration

Executive Masters of Business Administration

M.A Journalism

BSc. Business Administration

B.A. Communication Studies

The BSc. Administration course in accounting emphasizes on innovative, analytical and rigorous training that prepares students for the job market. Most students majoring in this program have a strong quantitative background most notably Finance, Accounting, Economics, and Mathematics. The objective is to:

Enable students become literate in accounting, with the skills to analyze financial statements of business entities for the business and personal decisions

Offer earners with the knowledge required to operate and set up simple accounting systems necessary for their business.

Provide learners with the appropriate knowledge and skills for post qualification application in the real world events.

One notable alumni from AUCC is Van Vicker a renowned Ghanaian actor who has featured in numerous films both in Ghana and Nigeria. In his words, he was clear to say studying at the prestigious institution opened avenues for him. He has a well going career which has made him known in Africa and beyond.

Source: Yen.com.gh
The education system in Ghana is one of the best and most stable in Africa. The ministry of education is about to launch the much anticipated double track system for senior high school education which many have described as innovative. With all this, you might be asking yourself, who is the deputy minister of education 2018? The right question, however, might be who are the deputy ministers of education? There are two deputy ministers of education in Ghana who are in charge of Technical and Vocational Education, and on the other hand, Training (TVET) and Basic & Secondary Education. In this article we will get into the lives of these personalities and find out their contribution to the education system in Ghana.

You might already be wondering who the deputy minister of education is. But as stated earlier, there are two deputy ministers of education in Ghana. Mrs Barbara Ayisi Archer is the deputy minister of education in charge of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) whiles Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum is the deputy minister in charge of Basic & Secondary Education in Ghana. The Ministry of Education Ghana takes its role very seriously and as a result we have multiple deputy ministers. Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum and Barbara Ayisi Archer are the deputy ministers of education who are responsible for the development that we are seeing in the education system in Ghana. You might however be wondering, who is the deputy minister of education in charge of tertiary education? That would be the Minister of State - Hon. Prof. Kwesi Yankah.

Profile of Mrs. Barbara Ayisi Archer

Born: 12th February, 1976 in Efutu, Cape Coast

Age :42 years old currently

Origin: Ghanaian

Occupation: Politician, Minister, Educationist

Marital status : Married (with 2 children)

Religion: Christianity (Victory Bible Church International).

Famous for: She is well known for her advise and views concerning the use of the mother tongue in teaching and urged teachers to use the mother tongue at the lower primary level to improve the ability of children to grasp lessons.

Email: barbaraasher@yahoo.com

Instagram: @barbaraasherayisi

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Barbara Ayisi Achers biography

Mrs. Barbara Ayisi Acher has served her nation in many ways prior to her appointment as the deputy minister of education. Between 2003-2006, Mrs. Acher served in the Ghana Education Service as the Form mistress. She then served as a house mistress in Wesley Girls Senior High School from 2010 to 2016. Apart from being the deputy minister of education, she is also the MP for Cape Coast North constituency, in the Central region.

Mrs. Acher has always shown support for the youth of the society. A display of such devotion to the youth of Ghana was when she attended the Miss Malaika 2017 event. For a deputy minister of education age is just a number as she shows her youthful side when she attends these type of events.

Many students who have benefited from the work of the minister in their schools like to call themselves Barbara Ayisi Archer children. She has a heart for the work she does and it is seen in every aspect of her life.

Education of Mrs. Barbara Ayisi Acher

As you would assume from a deputy minister of education, Mrs. Barbara Ayisi Acher is well educated. She is a product of the prestigious Wesley Girls High School in Cape Coast. For her tertiary education, she attended the University of Education and the University of Cape Coast. She currently has a Masters of Philosophy degree in English Literature.

Achievements of Mrs. Barbara Ayisi Acher

Did you search for deputy minister of education achievements? At 42 years old, Mrs. Barbara Ayisi Acher is one of the youngest members of parliament in Ghana. She is also a member of the Education Committee, which is a twenty member committee to which all questions in relation to education in Ghana are referred to. She is also a member of the Foreign Affairs Committee and the Appointments Committee which is composed of the First Deputy Speaker as Chairman and not more than 25 other Members. This Appointments Committee is responsible for recommending to Parliament for approval or otherwise, people who are nominated by the President for high appointments such as Ministers of State and their Deputies, Members of the Council of State, and such other important and sensitive roles specified under the Constitution or any other enactment. These are remarkable feats.

Deputy Minister for Basic & Secondary Education in Ghana

The role of the minister for Basic and Secondary Education in Ghana is an important one at the forefront of the free Senior High School Education plan. Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum is the deputy minister of education in charge of Basic and Secondary Education. We will now take a look at the life and achievements of Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum.

Profile of Yaw Osei Adutwum

Born: 9th April 1964 in Jachie, Ashanti Region

Age: 54 years currently

Origin: Ghanaian

Occupation: Politician and Educationist

Marital status: Married

Famous for: Being the founder of New Designs Charter Schools. Apart from that, Yaw Osei Adutwum is also famous for fluently speaking up to eight local Ghanaian dialects which include Gonja, Hausa, Ga, Fante, Krobo, and Wala.

Email: yaw.adutwum@gmail.com

Yaw Osei Adutwum biography

Yaw Osei Adutwum isnt the deputy minister in charge of basic education only, he is the current deputy minister of education in charge of Basic and Secondary Education in Ghana.The deputy minister of education has also reiterated his commitment by ensuring application of the free Senior High School (SHS) policy. Through this initiative, thousands of students who would have not had the right to education were given the opportunity to attend SHS. Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum also gave the assurance and said that the government was collaborating with various partners to implement major programmes and interventions to guarantee quality.

Hon. Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum is the current Deputy Minister of Education and the Founder and former Chief Executive Officer of New Designs Charter Schools. The school has about 1200 students in grades 6-12 in Los Angeles. Through his college preparatory focus New Designs Charter Schools minimum graduation requirements exceed Californias a-g requirements which set the criteria for acceptance into four year universities. One hundred percent of New Designs High school graduates meets the a-g requirement which boosts the schools four -year university college acceptance rate to not less than 95 percent.

Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum also participates in accreditation visits to high schools through the Western Association of Schools and Colleges and has served as accreditation committee chair on several visits. Concerning his family, Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum likes to keep his family life personal. Even a search for Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum wife will give you very little information about his family. We are sure he has his reasons for keeping it as such.

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Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwums experience

Prior to founding the first New Designs Charter School, he worked as a Mathematics and Information Technology teacher at Manual Arts High School for ten years. At Manual Arts High School, he founded the International Studies Academy, which served as a small learning community where many students thrived socially and academically. In addition he served as a Lead Math Teacher in the USC/Manual Arts Neighborhood Academic Initiative (NAI).

His experience in the NAI program confirmed his belief that high standards in a well-structured learning environment could lead to higher levels of student achievement. Most of the students he taught in the NAI program proceeded to higher education in institutions like UCLA, USC, Yale, UC Berkeley, Stanford, and Cornell University among others.

At the national level he served for two years as a member of a task force established by National Research Center for Career and Technical to develop a national model for career and technical education at the high school and college levels. The project which was coordinated by the New Designs for Learning center based at the University of Oregon and was headed by George Copa, a professor of education and a career and technical education expert.

Education of Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum

Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwum grew up in Ghana and obtained a Bachelors degree in Land Economy (Business Administration with a major in Real Estate) from the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology prior to immigrating to the US. In addition he has a Masters degree in Education Management from University of La Verne and a PhD in Educational Policy, Planning and Administration from the University of Southern California (USC).

Dr. Yaw Osei Adutwums achievements

Yaw Osei Adutwum, Chief Executive Officer: Yaw is the CEO of New Designs Charter School. Prior to his current position he worked as Mathematics and a Business/Information Technology teacher at Manual Arts High School. He holds a teaching credential in Business Education as well as a California State Administrative Services Credential. His experience as a Mathematics teacher in the USC/Manual Arts Neighborhood Academic Initiative taught him what high standards in a well structured college and high school partnership could do for "at risk" students. Most of the students he taught while teaching in the program have proceeded to pursue advanced studies in Universities like UCLA, USC, Yale, UC Berkeley, Stanford, and Cornell University.

In 1997 he graduated from the University of La Verne with a Master of Education (M.Ed) degree in Educational Management. He wrote his Masters Degree thesis on "the evolution of Charter schools in California". He has completed a PhD program coursework in Educational Policy and Administration at the University of Southern California. Between 2000 and 2002 he served as a member of the New Designs Team-a thirteen person national team of educators and industry experts that evaluated career and technical education programs around the country. Yaw has extensive experience working with community organizations in South Central Los Angeles. In December 2002, he was recognized by the Supervisor Yvonne Burke for his services to the residents of Los Angeles County.

In December 2002, he was recognized by the Supervisor Yvonne Burke for his services to the residents of Los Angeles County. As a Math and Technology teacher in the LAUSD Dr. Yaw Adutwum observed a disturbing trend of a high drop-out rate in that state and vowed to do whatever he could to correct the situation. Through seminars and observations, he noticed that his students were just as gifted as any he encountered in the more affluent districts. The problem he saw was a lack of motivation and low academic self-esteem. His students simply needed something to be a part of; a place where their opinions mattered and where they were challenged to do more. He also, understood that he would need the freedom to implement his vision if he was ever going to be able to positively impact the youth of South Los Angeles. With that in mind, he began an eight-year journey in which he went to countless educational conferences, professional development meetings, and spent thousands of dollars getting his masters and doctorate in education to better prepare him to start his own school.

The school that Dr. Adutwum envisioned was New Designs Charter School. The School serves as an educational oasis in South Los Angeles. Students at New Designs are not just coming to school they are coming to their extended family. The entire faculty and staff of the school have bought into the concept of educating the whole child. Although, standardized testing and academic achievement are taken very seriously at New Designs they are not the sole focus. In fact, every morning students take part in a "mood check" in which they share their feelings with their classmates and teachers. In addition, each student has a faculty advisor who assists them both academically and socially.

Consequently, with all the individual attention that the students receive they have responded with one of the highest Academic Performance Index, (API) scores in the city. In addition, due to the devotion of the faculty, students, and parents, the school was able to attain WASC accreditation in only its second year of operation. The school has been able to achieve all of this with all of its funding coming from Average Daily Attendance, (ADA). In short, New Designs functions at a high level of productivity with a minimum of economic input.

Therefore, it is even more remarkable that New Designs Charter School is at the forefront of pedagogical reform and its students are performing at exceptionally high levels. New Designs Charter School serves as a reminder that when presented with the opportunity, students of color and low economic status can perform just as well as their more affluent counterparts.

In Ghana, Dr. Adutwum serves on the committee on Works and Housing Committee and the Poverty Reduction Strategy Committee.

Pictures of Yaw Osei Adutwum and Mrs. Barbara Ayisi Archer

List of President Nana Akufo Addos ministers

Ever wanted to have a list of Nana Akufo Addo Ministers who are currently in office? Below is a comprehensive list of current ministers of state and deputy ministers in Ghana under the Nana Akufo Addo government.

1. Minister of State at the Office of the President

- Hon Sarah Adwoa Safo President  Public Procurement

2. Minister of State at the Office of the President

- Hon. Brian Acheampong

3. Minister of State at the Ministry of Agriculture

- Dr. Nurah Gyeile

4. Minister of State at the Ministry of Education - Tertiary Education

- Prof. Kwesi Yankah

The names of the nominees for Deputy Ministers are as follows:

1. Ministry of Finance

Hon Kwaku Kwarteng

Hon Abena Osei Asare

Charles Adu Boahen

2. Ministry of Energy

Hon Owuraku Aidoo

Hon Joseph Cudjoe

Dr. Mohammed Amin Anta

3. Ministry of Local Government and Rural Development

Hon Osei Bonsu Amoah

Hon Collins Ntim

Hon Kwasi Boateng Agyei

4. Ministry of Information

Hon Kojo Oppong Nkrumah

Hon Ama Dokuaa Asiamah Agyei;

Perry Curtis Kwabla Okudzeto

5. Ministry of Agriculture

Hon William Agyapong Quaitoo;

Hon Dr Sagre Bambangi

Hon George Oduro

6. Ministry of Trade and Industry

Hon Carlos Kingsley Ahenkorah

Robert Ahomka-Lindsey

7. Ministry of Roads and Highways

Hon Kwabena Owusu Aduomi

Hon Anthony N-Yoh Puowele Karbo

8. Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources

Hon Benito Owusu Bio

Hon Barbara Oteng Gyasi

9. Ministry of Works and Housing

Hon Freda Prempeh;

Hon Eugene Antwi

10. Ministry of Education

Hon Dr Yaw Osei Adutwum

Hon Barbara Ayisi Archer

11. Office of Attorney General and Ministry of Justice

Godfred Dame

Hon Joseph Dinkiok Kpemka

12. Ministry of Health

Hon Kingsley Aboagye Gyedu

Hon Tina Mensah

13. Ministry of Railways Development

Hon Kwaku Agyenim Boateng

Hon Andy Appiah-Kubi

14. Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Regional Integration

Hon Mohammed Habbib Tijani

Charles Owiredu

15. Ministry of Communications

Hon George Andah

Hon Vincent Sowah Odotei

16. Ministry of Water Resources and Sanitation

Hon Patrick Boamah

Hon Michael Yaw Gyato

17. Ministry of Defence

Hon Maj. Derrick Oduro

18. Ministry of The Interior

Hon Henry Quartey

19. Ministry of Environment, Science and Technology and Innovation

Hon Patricia Appiagyei

20. Ministry of Regional Re-organisation and Development

Martin Agyei-Mensah Korsah

21. Ministry of Transport

Hon Nii Kwartei Titus Glover

22. Ministry of Employment And Social Welfare

Hon Bright Wireko Brobbey

23. Ministry of Fisheries And Aquaculture

Hon Francis Kingsley Ato Cudjoe

24. Ministry of Aviation

Hon Kwabena O. Darko-Mensah

25. Ministry of Chieftaincy and Religious Affairs

Hon Paul Essien

26. Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection

Hon Gifty Twum Ampofo

27. Ministry of Youth And Sports

Pius Enam Hadzide

28. Ministry of Tourism, Creative Arts And Culture

Hon Dr Ziblim Barri Iddi

29. Ministry of Monitoring And Evaluation

Hon William Kwasi Sabi

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Source: Yen
Without maternity leave, most female employees would dread pregnancy. Luckily, in Ghana, it is a statutory right for every expectant employee to be given a maternity leave by the employer. However, before you are relieved off your duties to go for maternity leave, that there are certain protocols you are expected to observe. This article shares all the necessary information about maternity leave in Ghana.

Apart from the normal annual leave, every pregnant employee is entitled to maternity leave. However, maternity leave laws require an expectant employee to produce a medical certificate issued by a medical practitioner or a midwife indicating her expected date of delivery, to be granted a maternity leave.

Are you asking this question - how long is maternity leave in Ghana? Well, to answer your question, an expectant employee is entitled to at least 12 weeks of maternity leave. The law does not set any limit on maternity leave so an employee is entitled to maternity leave every time she is expectant.

There is a provision for maternity leave extension for at least two weeks in case of a caesarean section or where two to three babies are born out of the same pregnancy. An employee on maternity leave is entitled to a full pay including other benefits which she is otherwise entitled to.

An extended leave can be granted in case of an illness related to the pregnancy or confinement. However, a certified medical practitioner should attest to this. The law does not mention the maximum limit of the days extended and this may depend on the condition in question.

Does maternity leave include weekends in Ghana?

Many employees, both male and female, ask this question. The maternity leave is not clear on such indications but it clearly states that a woman is eligible for a total of three months maternity leave and an addition of her annual leave with a full pay. This is a clear indication of the exact duration of maternity leave to expectant employees in Ghana.

A nursing mother is also entitled to a one-hour interruption during her working hours for the purpose of nursing her baby and that hour should be treated as working hours and paid accordingly. Ghana labour law on maternity leave indicates that an employer cannot terminate an employment due to a pregnancy, during maternity leave or even soon after resuming work from maternity leave.

An employer cannot engage a pregnant woman for overtime work. An employer in Ghana is not allowed to assign a pregnant worker to a post outside her place of residence after completion of her 4th month of pregnancy. This rule remains the same for expectant employees on temporary and permanent agreement. However, the threat posed by such transfers must be attested to by a medical practitioner or midwife as detrimental to the womans health.

Every expectant employee should be knowledgeable on how to calculate maternity leave in Ghana. Although there are no specifications on when the maternity leave should start, this entirely depends on the expectant employee. However, many of them are guided by their expected date of delivery so that they can have the better part of their leave days nursing their bundle of joy. This also clarifies this question - how many days is maternity leave in Ghana?

Women in Ghana have been limited in their careers due to childbirth because when a woman gives birth, she requires some time to rest and exclusively breastfeed her baby for six months. Perhaps this is the reason why the Ghana Medical Association (GMA) is advocating for 6 months maternity leave for pregnant women.

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Quest for 6 months maternity leave

The GMA has called for the review of labor laws to grant an addition of 3 months maternity leave to add up to 6 months for expectant employees. They have also called for the mandatory establishment of nurseries in all public and private institutions. The nurseries would be to enable mothers breastfeed their babies during breaks. They also noted that the proven benefits of six months of exclusive breastfeeding to newborns call for an increase in the current three months maternity leave to six months.

The GMA advocates that expectant employees should start their maternity leave six weeks prior to the date of delivery. Most institutions in Ghana currently give a three month maternity leave and from there, if a mother wants to stay longer with the baby, she can go ahead and apply for her annual leave.

Maternity leave for teachers in Ghana is three months and there have been requests from institutions such as the Integrated Youth Needs and Welfare to extend the maternity leave to six months to pave way for exclusive breastfeeding to their babies.

Its argued that most institutions may not want to pay someone for a whole six months when they are actually not commercially involved in their respective workplaces. This argument has led to some institutions firing their female employees immediately they start giving birth.

Maternity and paternity leave

Maternity and paternity leave are important for both parents to have the opportunity to welcome and bond with the newest member of the family. While maternity leave is mandatory in Ghana, paternity leave tends to be forgotten. The father of the child at times is locked out of this exciting and important moment and the only chance he has is after working hours when he is already tired and exhausted.

The essence of paternity leave is to enable men to take care of their wives and assist the new mothers with the numerous house chores they have to do. This is also his chance to bond with his baby. The law on maternity leave in Ghana fully recognizes the maternity leave but the silence in regards to paternity leave is a clear indication that paternity leave is excluded and this seems to be unfair considering that fathers would also like to have a chance to familiarize themselves with the changes a newborn brings to a home.

The above information is a perfect guide for you to answer this question - how is maternity leave calculated in Ghana. Maternity leave in Ghana is an important period in the lives of mothers. This article clearly states all the requirements for one to qualify for maternity leave in terms of who is eligible, at what time and for how long. This is to ensure that both employees and employers do what is expected of them.

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Source: Yen.com.gh
Most of us have time to kill especially over the holiday breaks or in the evenings. Did you know that you can turn this free time into cash? Instead of spending a lot of time watching online videos or on social media platforms, you can use your spare time to earn money through testing products or filling out online surveys. There are many research companies out there that can offer rewards for your honest opinions. Read on to find a list of trusted paid surveys that can help you make extra money through online jobs in Ghana.

Image: pexels.com

Source: UGC

Wondering how to make money in Ghana? Most legit online survey platforms offer a number of online surveys every month for each individual. So, to earn serious rewards, you will need to sign up to many surveys to always have work rather than waiting for a few surveys to come along every month. It is also important to watch out for fake sites or scams when you are signing up. Look out for sites that offer deals that are too good to be true; it shows they are not authentic. Once you identify several legitimate sites, it is advisable to be honest when filling in the surveys. Sometimes you may be penalized if you give contradicting or give inadequate responses on online survey jobs.

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Here are some of the best online paid surveys you can try in 2019; you can actually work online and get paid through mobile money in Ghana.

Hiving Surveys

Image: joinhiving.com

Source: UGC

Hiving Survey is a website that runs surveys on behalf of other leading brands. Each survey will earn you 50 points. They only offer rewards in cash. Hiving rewards you 50 points in one minute when you complete their survey and you are allowed to withdraw when you reach 4,000 points ($4), 8000 points ($8) or 12,000 points ($12). They also have a referral program that rewards you when you refer your friends, giving you points even if you are not completing surveys.

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This survey company is supported in only two African countries - South Africa and Nigeria. As a Ghanaian visiting any of these countries or other supported countries, you can sign up on the website to start completing surveys and earn.

Prolific

Image: prolific.ac

Source: UGC

If you know you can offer quality answers, then you need to sign up with Prolific because it is one of the ways of earning especially if you are looking for ways of how to make money online in Ghana. This website provides information for researchers and academics at various top companies and universities. Prolific participants earn at least $6.50 per hour.

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Since Prolific is a state-of-the-art survey site, you really need to be focused when you are giving your answers to keep your scores high. In case you drop below a specific set level you will automatically be screened out of many surveys. But, big efforts offer significant rewards. Normally, surveys for Prolific take a bit longer than most surveys. If you manage to fulfill the requirements of this site, it will give a good way of making money online in Ghana.

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OpinionPanel Community

Image: opinionpanel.co.uk

Source: UGC

This is one of the largest UK research panels for graduates and students or any person who is aged between 16 to 25 years. They provide interesting online focus groups and surveys for universities and big brands. Their research often reaches the media spotlight. Each survey earns you 50 points an equivalent of 4 while the online focus groups attract earnings of 30 to 50. The minimum reward threshold is set at 25. You can get your rewards as a high street and Amazon voucher.

The OpinionPanel Community is a trusted site, and you will need around 10 minutes to complete each of their surveys. Note that most of their surveys pay out approximately 1-2. They also have a mobile compatibility application, which means you can choose to complete the surveys even when you are on the go. As a Ghanaian student in the UK, this is another good option for completing surveys to earn money.

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Disclaimer

Most good-paying surveys are not available in Ghana. However, since this article is for educational purposes only, and readers will be liable for their actions especially in the case of using VPNs to change their online Internet Protocol (IP) to sign up on US or UK-based surveys websites.

Takeaway

You can rely on paid surveys in Ghana to make money whether you are a student, stay at home mum or looking for work from home jobs in Ghana. Ensure you pick several sites depending on your needs and how comfortable you are to maximize your earnings when it comes to paid surveys in Ghana.

READ ALSO: How to Make Money Online in Ghana as a Student

Source: Yen News
- Nicholas Duncan Williams has given a chilly account of why his first Marriage to Mama Francisca broke down

- The revered man of God noted that his first marriage failed because he married as a boy who was afraid of the temptation of falling into sin

Founder and general overseer of the Action Chapel International, Bishop Nicholas Duncan-Williams, has opened up on why his first marriage broke up.

Delivering a sermon at a youth event, the preacher touched on circumstances that led to him divorcing his first wife.

The Bishop was married to Mama Francisca, but their 26-year union eventually ended on the rocks following a divorce in 2007.

Nicholas Duncan-Williams

Source: Original

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Until now, the public has been wondering what actually led to the divorce of the couple, especially after staying together for such a long time.

In 2006, the preacher implicitly explained that the challenges in my marriage are personal and shall remain private for the sake of our children and loved ones, noting however that the decision on my part was not taken in a haste without years of prayer, best efforts and Christian counselling.

But speaking for the first time on the matter, Duncan Williams attributed the divorce of his first wife to irreconcilable differences.

He explained that he married at a very young age, which meant that he was virtually a boy and not matured enough.

According to him, he entered into marriage at the age of 24 on the back of a thinking that he would not fall into sin.

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He advised the youth to mature before considering marriage, adding that they should not allowed themselves to be forced into it.

A matured man is a man who truly qualifies to be called a married man, a married man is a mature man and a mature man is one who is well developed mentally, economically, spiritually, physically, psychologically and emotionally strong, Bishop Duncan-Williams said.

The preacher was speaking at this years International Youth Empowerment Summit held in Accra.

The man of God is currently married to Rosa Whitaker, the CEO and President of the Whitaker Group in Washington DC.

Ghana News Today: About Ghana's Banks And Mahama's Presidential Ambition | #Yencomgh

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Source: Yen
- Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has likened the double track system to multiple church services

- He added that it is an innovative idea that should be supported by Ghanaians

- The double track system will begin in Senior High Schools from September 2018

The Vice President, Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia, has compared the double track system to multiple church services.

Speaking at the 2018 Oguaa Fetu Afahye festival celebrated by the people of Cape Coast in the Central Region, he said that the system is an innovative idea that should be supported.

According to him, the rising number of Junior High School leavers coupled with governments policy to tackle poverty through the provision of education, makes the double track system viable for the time being.

Dr. Mahamudu Bawumia Source: Facebook

Source: Facebook

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Dr. Bawumia explained that the churches have thought us that if you have one church building and you have many churchgoers you can have one service at 7:00 am and the second service at 9:00 am and they will all still get the word of the lord.

So we are using an innovative means to bring in the double track system.

The Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah, on Wednesday, August 22, 2018, likened the double track system to multiple church services, a comment that was met with criticisms.

We have some of the Christian churches and because the church cannot take the number of people in the church, they have first service, second service third service, fourth service. Do they receive lower quality preaching or teaching? he questioned.

He went on to say that there was no need for Christians to go for the second service if they had reservations about it.

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In his opinion, the system will solve a problem for almost everybody who qualifies to go to senior high school to go to Senior High School free of charge.

Beginning September 2018, second cycle schools in Ghana will run a semester module as part of moves to address infrastructural challenges brought on by the Free SHS programme.

To this end, some 400 out of the 696 public senior high schools have been selected to operate the system.

The schools would accommodate the over 180,000 students who are expected to gain admission into SHS this year.

This, the government will ensure the fulfillment of its promise of providing equal opportunity for every Ghanaian child to gain access to secondary education.

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Source: Yen
- An NDC Youth Organizer in the Northern Region, Alhassan, has lost his life in a fire outbreak

- Four other family members are currently in a critical condition

- Petrol exploded at his home and caused injuries to the victims

A 42-year-old farmer, Alhassan, who is the National Democratic Congress (NDC) Youth Organizer at Kotito in the West Gonja District of the Northern Region, has lost his life.

Information available to YEN.com.gh shows that, the deceaseds entire family was at home when petrol exploded and causes severe injuries to them.

All the victims were rushed to the Tamale Teaching Hospital, but Alhassan lost his life, and the others are in critical conditions.

Kofi Portuphy, NDC National Chairman Source: theheraldghana.com

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Double track system is just like first and second church services - Bawumia

The leadership of the NDC in the Northern Region and his family have since buried the deceased.

According to reports, the deceased was also a petrol dealer, who buys petrol in drums and retails to customers as a business in the community.

YEN.com.gh understands that a drum containing petrol suddenly exploded when the entire family was at home at that particular time.

Four family members were severely burnt by the fire and were rushed to the hospital for immediate medical attention.

Some residents expressed their frustrations about the lack of ambulance in the West Gonja District.

They appealed to government to repair some broken ambulances in the district to enhance health delivery.

The family had to be transported to the hospital by an ambulance which came all the way from the Sawla Tuna-Kalba District.

READ ALSO: Duncan Williams explains why his first marriage failed

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Source: Yen
- Michy has asked Ghanaians to desist from tagging her with the Shatta brand

- According to her, she prefers to be accepted as Michy

- She recently deleted Shatta from her name on socual media

Shatta Wale's girlfriend, Michy GH, has called on Ghanaians to stop tagging her with the Shatta brand.

The budding musician, who was formerly known as Shatta Michy on social media, recently deleted Shatta from her name, leaving her handle as Michy GH on social media.

However, reacting to the change of name, the Cheating hitmaker told MzGee on the Gee Spot, she prefers to be accepted as Michy rather than associating her with the brand of her sons dad.

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I want people to accept me for me, not tag me to that brand even though I have been a part of the story. I just want to be known for me, it is like owning my brand. I have been a part of the story, building the empire," she said.

Shatta Wale and Michy have been in a relationship for almost 10 years and they have a son together.

On April this year, news broke that the self-acclaimed dancehall king and Michy broke-up.

READ ALSO: Obofour throws lavish birthday party for his wife

Michy posted a picture of herself with a message stating indicating that Shatta Wale is ungrateful, a hypocrite who always beats her up and later apologize.

However, in July, the two got back on track as they were spotted in new video in one of their mansions.

According to the Ayoo hitmaker, they were going to get intimate with each other to seal their reunion after months of being separated.

READ ALSO: Becca subtly flaunts wedding ring in Shatta Michy's face

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- James Gardiner says he could not kiss Tonto Dikeh because he was too timid to get casual with someone he "worships"

- According to Gardiner, Dikeh did not take kindly to it and got angry

Ghanaian actor James Gardiner was interviewed by Deloris Frimpong-Manso and he confessed that at one movie shooting, he was too scared to kiss Nigerian actress Tonto Dikeh. According to him, the actress was left angry on set.

Gardiner, who is signed to Zylofon Media, says he could not kiss Dikeh because he had admired her for so long. When the chance presented itself, he could not bring himself to kiss her.

At a point, the director of the film had to call Gardiner to the sides to convince and encourage him. According to the report by browngh.com, the actor still could not overcome the mental drama he was facing.

His unwillingness then got the actress angry.

He recounted: They told me to kiss Tonto Dikeh and I said how could I kiss her? She might get angry with me.

I was so scared to kiss her.My reluctance was not because I have not kissed a woman before, but its one thing to kiss a woman in your own space and another on the screens. I mean, this is someone I used to watch on the TV and admire so much, so how can I kiss her just like that?

"I was so scared that the director had to pull me to the side and talk to me, and she (Tonto Dikeh) was even getting annoyed because I was struggling to put myself together for the act.

READ ALSO: Kantanka needs to be proactive in order to sell its cars  Gabby Otchere-Darko

Gardiner is an award-winning actor with a career that spans close to a decade.

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According to reports attempts are also being made to pull left parties including the CPI-ML and CPI into the fold.

Patna: The Mahagathbandhan leaders in Bihar have been holding series of closed-door meetings to resolve the issue of seat adjustments with alliance partners based on their strength in constituencies.

According to reports attempts are also being made to pull left parties including the CPI-ML and CPI into the fold.

Sources claimed that a preliminary round of discussions regarding the issue took place recently and attempts are being made to reach an agreement with opposition parties in Bihar to field former JNUSU president Kanhaiya Kumar as their joint candidate from Begusarai Lok Sabha constituency.

CPI leaders couldnt deny the reports and said that Kanhaiya Kumar is the most suitable candidate to contest from Begusarai constituency. Even our central leaders are keen on fielding him as a candidate but officially we can only declare his name after other parties give their final nod on the issue.

Sources familiar with the development said that though RJD chief Lalu Yadav, currently facing an imprisonment term, has agreed to leave Begusarai seat for Kanhaiya Kumar decision regarding the issue can only be taken after seat sharing adjustments are finalised with other partners.

According to sources Tejashwi Yadav was earlier keen on keeping the Begusarai seat for his party but after Lalu Yadav agreed to leave the seat for Kanhaiya Kumar he went silent.

Political analysts believe that resentment from Congress side is also unlikely over Kanhaiya Kumars name as he is being seen as a strong candidate against the BJP in Begusarai.

A native of Begusarai Kanhaiya was arrested by the Delhi police in February 2016 on the charge of sedition, after anti- India slogans were allegedly raised during an event in JNU.

Kanhaiyas father is a left sympathiser and works as a farmer in Bihat Panchayat under Barauni block of Begusarai district in Bihar and his mother is as an Anganwadi worker in the district.

BJPs Bhola Singh had won the Begusarai Lok Sabha seat by defeating RJD candidate Tanveer Hasan in the 2014 general elections by 58,000 votes.
A man claiming to be the father of a "possessed" child has opened up on how many acclaimed men of God in the country refused to help him heal his daughter of her alleged affliction.

In a video sighted by YEN.com.gh, the man who made the revelations indicated that he was informed that his daughter had been "possessed" by a river god.

According to the frustrated father who said he was desperate to find solutions to his daughter's predicament, he had spent thousands of cedis in the form of consultation fees to meet men of God only to be told a different story.

Osofo Kyiri Abosom. Credit: Dawuroafrica.com

Source: UGC

READ ALSO: Fans troll Wendy Shay for wearing 'horrible' makeup to 2018 Glitz Style Awards

He recounted that he was told by founder of International God's Way Church, Bishop Angel Daniel Obinim, that he (the father of the child) had to return a deity to a certain river to set his daughter free.

According to the man, Obinim added that the spirit which was residing in the lady was going to disgrace any man of God they contacted for spiritual assistance.

The father of the young girl revealed that he carried his daughter to Ebenezer Miracle Worship Centre to meet Rev. Ebenezer Adarkwah Yiadom.

He revealed that during their counselling session with the top Kumasi pastor, the young girl was possessed by the spirit and revealed that Rev. Ebenezer Adarkwah Yiadom, popularly known as Prophet One, was not a genuine man of God.

Father of the young lady revealed that he had to pay GHC 3,200 in consultation fees before meeting Rev. Ebenezer Adarkwah Yiadom.

READ ALSO: NDC Organizer dead as petrol explodes at home

He then proceeded with his daughter to see Prophet Asanteman Bofuor, better known as Reverend Obofour, the general overseer of Anointed Palace Chapel.

According to the man, his daughter faced-off with Obofour and revealed that he was also not a true pastor. The spirit possessed lady is alleged to have indicated that the popular man of God had staged some of his miracles and dared him to a challenge.

Before getting to sit and meet with Obofour, the father of the possessed child indicated that he had to pay a sum of GHC 1,500.

His issue then led him to the founder and general overseer of Life Assembly Worship Center, Rev. Christian Kwabena Andrews, popularly known as Osofo Kyiri Abosom.

The man revealed that when he got there, Osofo Kyiri Abosom, who was in a counselling session, immediately said he had closed for the day and was leaving.

He claimed the young lady was then possessed by the spirit at that moment and revealed that Osofo Kyiri Abosoms car was not going to start.

READ ALSO: Michy reveals why she deleted Shatta from her name on social media

After several failed attempts to get his car to start, Osofo Kyiri Abosom is reported to have left in a taxi.

The young lady traced the man of God and upon seeing him, hit his chest three times which instantly crippled him.

Unconfirmed reports have it that Osofo Kyiri Abosom is currently ill and is being chauffeured around in a wheelchair.

Father of the 14-year-old girl added that he had visited other men of God including Rev. Owusu Bempah all to no avail.

This is not the first time where someone has discredited the genuineness of some top men of God in the country.

READ ALSO: Woman gives birth to bouncing baby boy on her wedding day

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Two people fired at the police before escaping, leaving behind a tempo carrying two cows. The policemen were not injured.

The vehicle, which has a registration number of Rajasthan, has been seized and the cows have been sent to a cow shelter, the DCP said. (Representational image)

New Delhi: Two suspected cow smugglers allegedly opened fire at a PCR van which was following them in north Delhi's Timarpur area, the police said on Sunday.

The incident took place on the intervening night of September 1 and 2, Deputy Commissioner of Police (north) Nupur Prasad said.

The unidentified duo fired two gunshots at the policemen and escaped from the spot leaving behind a tempo carrying two cows, she said, adding that the policemen were not injured.

The vehicle, which has a registration number of Rajasthan, has been seized and the cows have been sent to a cow shelter, the DCP said.

A case has been registered. Based on the registration number, efforts are underway to trace the owner of the vehicle and the accused, she said.
The police is examining the CCTV footages of cameras from the surrounding areas. The surveillance team has also been put in check.

New Delhi: In a sensational murder case, a Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) panchayat member, identified as Dilshad (35), was allegedly shot by two bike-borne assailants on Monday evening. He was killed after an alleged fallout between two parties over a property dispute in Zakir Nagar area of Southeast Delhi.

On Monday evening, the police received a call saying that a middle aged man had been shot in Batla House in Jamia Nagar area. Delhi police immediately cordoned off the murder spot and launched a primary investigation. He was declared brought dead by the doctors at Holy Family Hospital situated in New Friends Colony.

The preliminary investigation in the matter suggested that an argument led to an altercation, which allegedly further led to Dilshad being shot four times. On further probe, it was revealed that Dilshad, who is a resident of Joga Bai Extension in Jamia Nagar, was associated with the BSP. He was reportedly a member of panchayat in Sathla village of Meerut in Uttar Pradesh.

The police said it received a call at 6.05 pm registering the incident of firing at Sir Syed Road in Batla House, Jamia Nagar.

The police is examining the CCTV footages of cameras from the surrounding areas. The surveillance team has also been put in check.

Local residents, on being inquired, said that two persons wearing helmets fired four rounds at Dilshad and fled from the spot. A case of murder has been registered and a deeper probe into the matter is underway.
Chavan said that he would personally ask the NCP leadership to give the said seat to the Congress.

Mumbai: At a time when the Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are yet to begin alliance talks at the seat level, Maharashtra Pradesh Congress chief Ashok Chavan has declared a Congress candidate of the Jat Assembly constituency from Sangli. Interestingly, Mr Chavan has declared a Congress candidate from one of the Assembly seats in NCP state chief Jayant Patils district. Mr Chavan said that he would personally ask the NCP leadership to give the said seat to the Congress.

Addressing the Jan Sangharsha rally in the Jat Assembly constituency, Sangli, Mr Chavan said, Vikram Sawant will be our candidate from the Jat Assembly constituency in the coming elections. He garnered 55,000 votes during the 2014 Assembly elections. Now, the NCP will join hands with us.

At a time when the Congress and NCP have not even started talks over seat sharing in the coming elections in Maharashtra, Mr Chavans directly dec-laring the seat without tal-king to the NCP will be vie-wed as Congress aggression.

Mr Chavan said, I will talk to the NCP leadership. I am confident that they will agree to this anno-uncement. During the last election, the Congress candidate garnered more vot-es than the NCP. So, it is our rightful claim to this seat.

Meanwhile, the NCP has not reacted to the annou-ncement. Jat is a seat where the Congress had received more votes than the NCP. So, Congress will obviously have the claim. To energise his workers at the ground level, Mr Chavan might have declared candidature. I dont think our leadership will take it in the wrong way, said a former minister and senior leader of the NCP.

Political rivalry

The infighting among Congress leaders in Sangli came out in the open during the partys Jan Sangharsha Yatra. In the course of their respective speeches, Vidhal Patil, great grandson of former chief minister Vasantdada Patil and MLA Vishvajeet Kadam taunted each other. They tried to blame each other for the recent Sangli municipality defeat. Either claimed that the others group betrayed the party during elections. Sources said that Mr Chavan later gave a dressing down to both leaders for putting on a rather public show of their differences. On the state itself, former minister Harshwardhan Patil asked both the leaders to settle scores in private or quit the party. Those who want to quit the party are free to do so, said Mr Patil.
Feminist foreign policy applies a systematic gender equality perspective throughout the whole foreign policy agenda, the handbook states.

Recently, the Swedish foreign ministry released a handbook pertaining to its feminist foreign policy initiative and made it available online as a guide for those interested in gender equality. It is an inspirational document with valuable information about how Sweden created its feminist foreign policy under foreign minister Margot Wallstrom in 2014, how it changed from top-down policy to becoming part of the entire Swedish Foreign Service, and the results it has achieved.

Feminist foreign policy applies a systematic gender equality perspective throughout the whole foreign policy agenda, the handbook states. It is structured to increase womens rights, representation and resources in every aspect of its operations. It uses a facts-based approach, pointing out the hard numbers and statistics behind systemic inequalities between men and women in each of the three Rs, while remaining grounded in the fourth R  the reality of where these girls and women live, which is a nod to the feminist concept of intersectionalism.

The policy was met with great resistance when it was launched four years ago. Critics said it was unrealistic and hypocritical, pointing out Swedens participation in global arms sales and its abstention from voting against Saudi Arabias election to the UNs womens rights commission in 2017. Even the use of the word feminist to describe a foreign policy was considered provocative.

Ms Wallstrom and her colleagues, Isabella Lovin, minister for international development cooperation, and Anne Linde, minister for EU affairs and trade, did not back down. They outlined six external objectives: globally, the foreign ministry would promote womens full enjoyment of human rights; freedom from violence; participation in conflict resolution and peace-building; political participation and influence; economic rights and empowerment; and sexual rights and reproductive health. The ministry created an organisation to implement the policy, a 10-year national strategy to prevent and combat gender-based violence, and a new structure for sub-goals.

Today, the ministry reports an increase in actions aimed at bringing about true gender equality  through structural change and an increase in girls and womens visibility  wherever Swedens foreign interests lie. Action plans for womens rights and empowerment have been built in conflict zones in Afghanistan, Colombia, Liberia, Syria, Mali and Myanmar. Positive masculinity has been promoted in the Democratic Republic of Congo to address sexual violence by militias against Congolese women. Canada and France have followed Swedens example with feminist foreign policies of their own.

When Swedens feminist foreign policy was first introduced, I wrote in support of it for Quartz. I argued, the seemingly disparate fields of feminism and foreign policy may not be mutually exclusive. Traditionally, foreign policy has been formulated and enacted by men, but as more women join diplomatic circles around the world, they bring their perspective and concern for women into their countries international stances and actions.

Such foreign policy had to be encouraged to grow organically, not imposed, especially in countries where social and religious conservatism have an almost unbreakable hold over governance. The Swedish foreign ministry has followed through with their commitment to intersectionality, provinsg that feminist foreign policy is not merely a Western intervention, but a true effort to co-create a new way of enacting foreign policy globally.

Could Pakistan ever include the principles of inclusion and gender equality into progressive social reform in the same areas as Swedens focus? It remains difficult to break Pakistans traditional power structures, built as they are on a patriarchal status quo.

By arrangement with Dawn
India is a strategic partner, not a member, of Asean, and this strategic partnership has developed fairly well.

Between a nation performing on global platforms like the United Nations or the G-20 and nurturing bilateral relationships, there is expanding space for regional diplomacy. India has invested heavily in this intermediate sphere, but has so far got mixed results. This came into sharp focus as the fourth summit of the Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic Cooperation (Bimstec) ended in Kathmandu last week.

Established in 1997, Bimstec  composed of five South Asian countries (India, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and Sri Lanka) and two South-east Asian nations (Tha-iland and Myanmar)  aims to leverage sub-regional cooperation for accelerating economic development. Functio-ning informally, it achieved very little until 2015. Since October 2016, however, it gathered momentum as India looked around to assemble its friendly neighbours for an interaction with the leaders of Brics (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) at their eighth summit in Goa.

In this backdrop, the key takeaway of the latest Bimstec summit was the leaders decision to order a major institutional reform to strengthen the grouping. Agreed measures include drafting a charter, creating a new Permanent Working Committee, pledge to provide more financial and human resources to the secretariat, and plan to establish a Bimstec Development Fund. Another highly needed reform is to focus on a handful of sectors rather than frittering away limited resources on 16 areas of cooperation.

Expanding connectivity through roads, railways, air links and shipping has been a priority, but the grouping has not moved beyond the stage of studies and planning. It showed promise for energy cooperation as a new agreement on Grid Interconnection was signed in Kathmandu, but this is not enough. The way forward was best spelt out by Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan-o-cha in his businesslike address. He urged the organisation to concentrate on connectivity, trade and investment, people-to-people contact, security, and science and technology and step up to be a key player to support Asia as a driving force of the global economy.

Even limited progress by Bimstec has raised fears about future prosp-ects of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (Saarc). Nepals PM stressed that Saarc and Bimstec do not substitute but complement each other. Others in Nepal went on to allege that India, in its zeal for Bimstec, was trying to undercut the Saarc process.

When confronted with a question on the subject, foreign secretary Vijay Gokhale wisely sidestepped it, observing that Bimstec fits in well with Indias Neighbourhood First policy, Act East policy and New Delhis stress on the development of the Northeast. He also added that India dealt with every multilateral organisation on its merits.

Launched in 1985, Saarc groups together eight countries (Pakistan, Afghanistan and the Maldives. in addition to the five South Asian members of Bimstec). It too managed to achieve modest success. It was moving along gingerly when Pakistans obstruction to proposals on road connectivity and refusal to respect Indias sensitivities on terrorism led to the indefinite postponement of its 19thsummit (which was due to take place in Islamabad in November 2016). Saarc has been in a slumber mode since then. Its future is dependent on the chances of an India-Pakistan rapprochement, which is uncertain at present.

On South Asias western and northern flank, the Shanghai Coope-ration Organisation (SCO) is a Eurasian political, economic and security partnership among China, Russia and four Central Asian countries (Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Uzbekistan). It received a South Asian dimension as India and Pakistan joined the SCO as full members in June 2017.

Its 18th summit held in Qingdao was the first gathering of leaders of all its eight members. President Xi Jinping hailed the SCO as a new model for regional cooperation, which shared ideas to tackle global challenges amid growing instability and uncertainty. For long, there was a perception that China would allow Indias entry into SCO only when India agreed to Chinas admission into Saarc. This proved wrong. Moreover, there were fears that while attending the SCO summit, India might be compelled to reduce its resistance to Chinas Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). This too didnt happen as India, braving isolation, reiterated its principled opposition to President Xis flawed concept of connectivity.

India is a strategic partner, not a member, of Asean, and this strategic partnership has developed fairly well. It was on display at the Asean-India commemorative summit in New Delhi recently, and in the participation of all 10 Asean leaders in Indias Republic Day celebrations. The summit marked the 25thanniversary of Asean-India dialogue relations. The two sides agreed to further strengthen and deepen the strategic partnership for mutual benefit. Much potential exists for expansion of trade, investment, connectivity, tourism and development cooperation, which is waiting to be tapped optimally.

The Indian Ocean Rim Association (IORA) and Brics are among the bigger regional organisations. India has been playing a prominent and proactive role in them too, not only to promote its national interest, but also to contribute to peace, stability and prosperity of the respective regional spaces.

The range and complexity of issues addressed in the regional organisations, seen above, are truly mind-boggling. Despite their limited numbers, Indian diplomatic personnel  both in the external affairs ministry and diplomatic missions abroad  are able to deal with them, ensuring an appropriate leadership role for India. But they need help! Implementation of agreements and programmes, stemming from the regional fora, needs to be done back home  in various ministries and agencies of the Government of India, state governments and the private sector.

Two suggestions merit consideration. First, the external affairs minister should encourage her Cabinet colleagues to take a greater interest in the subjects tackled in regional institutions and ensure a whole-of-the-government appro-ach.

Second, the MEAs Foreign Service Institute should hold a regular series of workshops for senior officials of various ministries to educate them about the changing dynamics of regional diplomacy. Only then will India be able to reduce the gap between declaration and delivery, and serve as a model for other member-states to perform better on the regional stage.
 Flash

Chinese President Xi Jinping on Friday held talks with Burkina Faso President Roch Marc Christian Kabore in Beijing, and the two leaders agreed to open a new chapter of bilateral friendly cooperation on the momentum of the restoration of diplomatic ties.





Kabore, on a state visit to China, is to attend the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC) scheduled for Sept. 3 and 4.





Burkina Faso's first time participating in the forum is of great importance for the development of China's relations with not only Burkina Faso but also Africa, said Xi, adding that China highly appreciates Kabore's political determination to resume diplomatic ties with China.





Bilateral relations between the two countries have made encouraging progress and are off to a good start since China and Burkina Faso resumed diplomatic ties three months ago, said Xi.





China will plan and promote the bilateral ties with a strategic and long-term perspective and is willing to continuously enhance political mutual trust, carry out exchanges and mutual learning, promote bilateral cooperation in various fields in a comprehensive and orderly manner and open a new chapter of friendly cooperation in the new era on the principle of equality and mutual trust as well as win-win cooperation, said Xi.





China supports Burkina Faso's efforts to fight terrorism and maintain stability in the country and in the region, said Xi.





Kabore said the Burkina Faso government recognizes there is but one China in the world, that the Government of the People's Republic of China is the sole legal government representing the whole of China.





Burkina Faso highly values China's commitment of multilateralism and win-win cooperation in international affairs, said Kabore.





Thanks to China's great concern for African people's demands and support to Africa's development, Burkina Faso independently made its decision to restore diplomatic relations with China and return to the family of Africa-China cooperation, which fully conforms to the direction of Burkina Faso's future development, said Kabore.





Kabore said Burkina Faso is satisfied with the rapid advancement and positive achievements of the bilateral cooperation since the restoration of diplomatic ties, adding that the country is willing to learn from China's ideas and theories of development, enhance political mutual trust and deepen practical cooperation in various fields.





Burkina Faso appreciates the leadership China has demonstrated in the framework of FOCAC and expects the FOCAC Beijing Summit will inject new impetus to the development of Burkina Faso-China relations and Africa-China relations, said Kabore.





After the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the signing of cooperation documents.
The military like any other institution is not perfect and is susceptible to odd operational mistakes.

The plea in the Supreme Court against the possible chilling and numbing effect on the serving military in the Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act (Afspa) by over 350 military personnel is symptomatic of a far deeper, psychological and irretrievable concern that goes beyond the legalistic, constitutional and administrative concerns that are specific to this case. A foreboding sense of the unending tightening-of-hands in the face of mounting military casualties in J&K and parts of the Northeast is giving way to a dreary belief of apathy, indifference and casualness when it comes to matters pertaining to the voiceless institution (by tradition) of the Indian armed forces, who in a democratic framework are rightfully beholden to the civilian rule. Somewhere, beyond the condescending platitudes, cliches and photo-ops, the armed forces are only getting acknowledged, revered and requisitioned in moments of ceremonies, political opportunities or unmanageable tribulations. The supposed last resort of the nation is no longer the last in terms of getting requisitioned in internal insurgencies like J&K, civic disturbances like Panchkula, or in providing relief operations in flood-hit Kerala  it is only becoming last in the precedence of officialdom with the ever-growing portents of tightening-of-hands with impunity and in the sad know that the institution will fall in line as always.

The most imposing irony in the Afspa case is that the Indian military, which is not supposed to be handling internal strife as that is the domain of the respective state police forces, intelligence agencies and the concerned Central Armed Police Forces (wrongly called paramilitary), is sought to be brought under the operational policing by the very same institutions that have failed their own primary mandate, and the Indian military is tasked additionally to do their job of countering internal disturbances. The second fundamental issue of the flawed Afspa narrative is the ignorant perception, where an operational imperative and cover (as extended to any military in disturbed areas across the world) is perceived as a privilege, and worse, an unmitigated right to plunder, kill and loot as it pleases! The edifice of the Indian military and its operational sub-components in the form of commands, corps, divisions, brigades and units do not have the right to any individual interpretation and thinking, other than what is sanctified as the objective, method and means that are approved by the sovereign. There is also no additional rupee in the soldiers pay structure, owing to working under Afspa-covered areas, exclusively. Third, the prevalent perspective ignores the existence of military laws, procedural checks and balances and the undeniable institutional commitment of safeguarding all citizens, irrespective of religion, caste, sect or region. Unlike a mercenary or a terrorist  a soldier of the Indian Army does not wish to spend one extra day in the domestic insurgency-affected area, other than as warranted by his or her posting or that of their regiment. The Indian military would prefer to stick to its core role of safeguarding the sovereign borders and when required to undertake blunt kinetic operations against the enemies that exist on the other side of the border, and not in policing roles within the country, and getting questioned on its intent for Afspa retention.

The military like any other institution is not perfect and is susceptible to odd operational mistakes. However, to attribute either a pattern or even a sinister intent in its workings is absolutely incorrect and lazy extrapolation. Pertinent to the state, that amongst all the governmental institutions it is the closest to compliance or non-failure. Matters of individual failure or even culpability cannot be ascribed on the totality of the institution, much unlike Pakistan where the military does have a voice and a mind that is independent of the state itself (state within a state).

In the Panchkula mob fury case, the ultimate deployment of six military columns did what the entirety of the Haryana police struggled to control  the efficacy of the military is guaranteed and imposed by its blunt training and conduct that does the needful, even at the potential cost of paying the ultimate price by its personnel.

In instances of individual/unit level dereliction of duty, the military courts pass the requisite punitive orders that are both time-bound and of the required severity. In some cases the opinions on the operational and circumstantial conduct are possibly questionable and require adequate introspection and internal-debate to handle for posterity. However, for combatants it is also incumbent to know the right conduct, where an act like in the specific case of the human shield could have been undertaken to protect the lives of both civilians as well as combatants in the given situation. So far, there has been no workable alternative suggested that could have been undertaken to avoid loss of lives, given the specifics and constraints in this case. Equally important is to ensure that situation or circumstantial conduct does not get glorified, institutionalised and defended in all circumstances, as the environment concerning the disturbed areas is asymmetric, non-linear and unique that practically warrants a certain outlook that is inherent in the spirit behind the Afspa. Therefore, the operational sensibilities governing Afspa areas are not applicable in non-Afspa areas for the military.

The Indian military is a blunt institution towards the enemy, and equally importantly, towards itself. It intrinsically does not tolerate non-compliance. Therefore, it would be prudent on the courts to strengthen its internal legal framework of auto-correction within the military law and control, as opposed to injecting the services and intrusions of those very institutions that have failed the situation in the first place. Today military is an omnipresent institution that is in the thick of all national calamities and rising to the occasion to cherry-pick and weaken the last standing bastion of sovereign resolve, duty and honour would tantamount to unimaginable disservice to the institution, and to the nation. The sense of institutional-isolation from the daily optics of engagements with the politicians, civil bureaucrats, police services, etc, is unmistakable and unforgivable.
The Chinese campaign includes contacting thousands of LinkedIn members at a time.

German and British authorities have previously warned their citizens that Beijing is using LinkedIn to try to recruit them as spies.

The United States top spy catcher said Chinese espionage agencies are using fake LinkedIn accounts to try to recruit Americans with access to government and commercial secrets, and the company should shut them down.

William Evanina, the US counter-intelligence chief, told Reuters in an interview that intelligence and law enforcement officials have told LinkedIn, owned by Microsoft Corp., about Chinas super aggressive efforts on the site.

He said the Chinese campaign includes contacting thousands of LinkedIn members at a time, but he declined to say how many fake accounts US intelligence had discovered, how many Americans may have been contacted and how much success China has had in the recruitment drive.

German and British authorities have previously warned their citizens that Beijing is using LinkedIn to try to recruit them as spies. But this is the first time a US official has publicly discussed the challenge in the United States and indicated it is a bigger problem than previously known.

Evanina said LinkedIn should look at copying the response of Twitter, Google and Facebook, which have all purged fake accounts allegedly linked to Iranian and Russian intelligence agencies.

I recently saw that Twitter is cancelling, I dont know, millions of fake accounts, and our request would be maybe LinkedIn could go ahead and be part of that, said Evanina, who heads the US National Counter-Intelligence and Security Center.

It is highly unusual for a senior US intelligence official to single out an American-owned company by name and publicly recommend it to take action. LinkedIn says it has 575 million users in more than 200 counties and territories, including more than 150 million US members.

Evanina did not, however, say whether he was frustrated by LinkedIns response or whether he believes it has done enough.

LinkedIns head of trust and safety, Paul Rockwell, confirmed the company had been talking to US law enforcement agencies about Chinese espionage efforts. Earlier this month, LinkedIn said it had taken down less than 40 fake accounts whose users were attempting to contact LinkedIn members associated with unidentified political organizations. Rockwell did not say whether those were Chinese accounts.

We are doing everything we can to identify and stop this activity, Rockwell told Reuters. Weve never waited for requests to act and actively identify bad actors and remove bad accounts using the information we uncover and intelligence from a variety of sources including government agencies.

Rockwell declined to provide numbers of fake accounts associated with Chinese intelligence agencies. He said the company takes very prompt action to restrict accounts and mitigate and stop any essential damage that can happen but gave no details.

LinkedIn is a victim here, Evanina said. I think the cautionary tale ... is, You are going to be like Facebook. Do you want to be where Facebook was this past spring with congressional testimony, right? he said, referring to lawmakers questioning of Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg on Russias use of Facebook to meddle in the 2016 US elections.

Chinas foreign ministry disputed Evaninas allegations.

We do not know what evidence the relevant US officials you cite have to reach this conclusion. What they say is complete nonsense and has ulterior motives, the ministry said in a statement.

But Senator Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, said Beijings exploitation of LinkedIn demonstrates the length to which Chinese intelligence will go, and the 21st Century counter-intelligence challenges facing us in a world where everybodys got an online footprint.

Evanina said he was speaking out in part because of the case of Kevin Mallory, a retired CIA officer convicted in June of conspiring to commit espionage for China.

A fluent Mandarin speaker, Mallory was struggling financially when he was contacted via a LinkedIn message in February 2017 by a Chinese national posing as a headhunter, according to court records and trial evidence.

The individual, using the name Richard Yang, arranged a telephone call between Mallory and a man claiming to work at a Shanghai think tank.

During two subsequent trips to Shanghai, Mallory agreed to sell US defence secrets - sent over a special cellular device he was given - even though he assessed his Chinese contacts to be intelligence officers, according to the US governments case against him. He is due to be sentenced in September and could face life in prison.

While Russia, Iran, North Korea and other nations also use LinkedIn and other platforms to identify recruitment targets, the US intelligence officials said China is the most prolific and poses the biggest threat.

US officials said Chinas Ministry of State Security has co-opted - individuals who are not employed by intelligence agencies but work with them - set up fake accounts to approach potential recruits.

They said the targets include experts in fields such as supercomputing, nuclear energy, nanotechnology, semiconductors, stealth technology, healthcare, hybrid grains, seeds and green energy.

Chinese intelligence uses bribery or phoney business propositions in its recruitment efforts. Academics and scientists, for example, are offered payment for scholarly or professional papers and, in some cases, are later asked or pressured to pass on US government or commercial secrets.

Some of those who set up fake accounts have been linked to IP addresses associated with Chinese intelligence agencies, while others have been set up by bogus companies, including some that purport to be in the executive recruiting business, said a senior US intelligence official, who requested anonymity in order to discuss the matter.

The official said, some correlation has been found between Americans targeted through LinkedIn and data hacked from the Office of Personnel Management, a US government agency, in attacks in 2014 and 2015.

The hackers stole sensitive private information, such as addresses, financial and medical records, employment history and fingerprints, of more than 22 million Americans who had undergone background checks for security clearances.

The United States identified China as the leading suspect in the massive hacking, an assertion Chinas foreign ministry at the time dismissed as `absurd logic.`

About 70 per cent of Chinas overall espionage is aimed at the US private sector, rather than the government, said Joshua Skule, the head of the FBIs intelligence branch, whose responsibilities include ensuring the flow of intelligence to the bureaus counter-espionage operations.

They are conducting economic espionage at a rate that is unparalleled in our history, he said.

Evanina said five current and former US officials - including Mallory - have been charged with or convicted of spying for China in the past two and a half years.

He indicated that additional cases of suspected espionage for China by US citizens are being investigated, but declined to provide details.

US intelligence services are alerting current and former officials to the threat and telling them what security measures they can take to protect themselves.

Some current and former officials post significant details about their government work history online - even sometimes naming classified intelligence units that the government does not publicly acknowledge.

LinkedIn is a very good site, Evanina said. But it makes for a great venue for foreign adversaries to target not only individuals in the government, formers, former CIA folks, but academics, scientists, engineers, anything they want. Its the ultimate playground for collection.

(Source)
Xi said plan, for which Beijing has pledged USD 126 bn, would help provide resources and facilities for Africa and expand shared markets.

'China does not interfere in Africa's internal affairs and does not impose its own will on Africa. What we value is the sharing of development experience and the support we can offer to Africa's national rejuvenation and prosperity,' Xi said. (Photo: File)

Beijing: Chinese funds are not for "vanity projects" in Africa but are to build infrastructure that can remove development bottlenecks, Chinese President Xi Jinping said on Monday, telling Chinese firms they also had to respect local people and the environment.

Xi said at a business forum before the start of a triennial China Africa summit their friendship was time-honoured and that China's investment in Africa came with no political strings attached.

"China does not interfere in Africa's internal affairs and does not impose its own will on Africa. What we value is the sharing of development experience and the support we can offer to Africa's national rejuvenation and prosperity," Xi said.

"China's cooperation with Africa is clearly targeted at the major bottlenecks to development. Resources for our cooperation are not to be spent on any vanity projects but in places where they count the most," he said.

China has denied engaging in "debt trap" diplomacy but Xi is likely to use the gathering of African leaders to offer a new round of financing, following a pledge of USD 60 billion at the previous summit in South Africa three years ago.

Chinese officials have vowed to be more cautious to ensure projects are sustainable. China defends continued lending to Africa on the grounds that the continent still needs debt-funded infrastructure development.

Beijing has also fended off criticism it is only interested in resource extraction to feed its own booming economy, that the projects it funds have poor environmental safeguards, and that too many of the workers for them are flown in from China rather than using African labour.

Xi told business leaders Chinese firms in Africa had to be aware of their social responsibilities and make sure their investments served the community and improved their wellbeing.

"I hope that our entrepreneurs will act to fulfil social responsibilities and respect local culture and tradition," he said.

"I also hope you will do more in staff training and bettering lives for the local people and will put more emphasis on the environment and resources," Xi said.

"Africa knows best"

Chinese officials say this year's summit will strengthen Africa's role in Xi's Belt and Road initiative to link China by sea and land with Southeast and Central Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa through an infrastructure network modelled on the old Silk Road.

Xi said the plan, for which Beijing has pledged USD 126 billion, would help provide more resources and facilities for Africa and would expand shared markets.

China loaned around USD 125 billion to the continent from 2000 to 2016, data from the China-Africa Research Initiative at Washington's Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies shows.

State media has accused the West of sour grapes over China's prominent role in Africa and has angrily rejected claims of forcing African countries into a debt trap.

"In terms of cooperation with China, African countries know best," widely read tabloid the Global Times wrote in an editorial on Monday.

"Western media deliberately portray Africans in misery for collaborating with China and they appear to have discovered big news by finding occasional complaints in the African media about Sino-Africa cooperation," it said.

Every African country is represented at the business forum apart from eSwatini, self-ruled Taiwan's last African ally that has so far rejected China's overtures to ditch Taipei and recognise Beijing.

African presidents in attendance include South Africa's Cyril Ramaphosa, Egypt's Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, Zambia's Edgar Lungu and Gabon's Ali Bongo.

There are some controversial guests. Sudan President Omar al-Bashir, who has been in power for nearly 30 years, is wanted by the International Criminal Court for war crimes over killings and persecution in Sudan's Darfur province between 2003 and 2008.

Xi told him on Sunday that "foreign forces" should not interfere in Sudan's internal affairs, China's Foreign Ministry said.
Mehmood Qureshi said the US in principle should pay back the money to Pak because it was spent for a common objective to defeat terrorism.

Qureshi said the matter will be taken up during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to the country on September 5. (Photo: File)

Islamabad: The USD 300 million that the Pentagon has decided to scrap is not a military aid to Pakistan, but what it owns to Islamabad for its support in the war against terrorism and should reimburse it, Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi has asserted, sparking fresh bilateral tensions ahead of a key visit.

The Pentagon on Saturday announced that it will cancel USD 300 million aid to Pakistan over its failure to take actions against terror groups. Qureshi said the matter will be taken up during Secretary of State Mike Pompeo's visit to the country on September 5.

Read: Pentagon cancels USD 300 million aid to Pakistan for failing to curb militants

"The USD 300 million is neither aid nor assistance - it is the money Pakistan spent from its resources against militants and in the war against terrorism. This is the money they (US) are supposed to reimburse, but now either they are not willing or unable to pay back," Qureshi said during a hurriedly called press conference on Sunday after the US announced the decision.

"It was all our money that we spent and they (US) were merely reimbursing it," he said.

Earlier he told the BBC Urdu that the US in principle should pay back the money to Pakistan because it was spent for a common objective to defeat terrorism and create peace and stability.

"We will sit and discuss this with him (Pompeo). We will try to improve bilateral ties between the two countries. We will listen to him and present our point of view to him as well," he said.

The US comes just days before Pompeo is due to visit Pakistan to meet the country's new Prime Minister Imran Khan. The US and others have long complained that Pakistan provides safe haven to terrorists' networks, allowing them to carry out cross-border attacks in Afghanistan.

The Pentagon's move, which needs to be approved by the US Congress, is part of a broader suspension of aid announced in January.

To a question about options for Pakistan to get the stopped funds, Qureshi said Pakistan will talk to the US because the money was already spent by Pakistan.

"If they don't want to reimburse for future spending, it may be different thing. But morally and in principle, they should reimburse what we spent in the past," he said.

He said Pakistan welcomes the forthcoming visit of Pompeo as it will help to understand each other's point of view.

"There are two sides of a picture. They (US) are showing only one side of it; we will show the other side," he said.

He added that there is a trust deficit between Pakistan and the US but the government wants to improve the ties and build trust between the two countries.

Qureshi said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf government was not responsible for the latest tension or suspension of funds by the US as the deal to reimburse Pakistan the cost of war on terror was agreed in past.

He also blamed the government of former premier Nawaz Sharif for current tension with the US, Qureshi said the new government of Imran Khan will take all decision keeping in mind the interests of Pakistan.

US President Donald Trump since assuming office has been tough on Pakistan over its inaction against terror groups, saying Washington has got "nothing but lies & deceit" in return for millions of dollars in aid over the years.

Trump in August last year unveiled his new South Asia policy and asked Pakistan to do more against such groups.

In August, a row erupted between the two nations following a telephone call by Pompeo to Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan, as Islamabad took exception to the American version of the conversation that the issue of terrorism was discussed during the call. While Washington insists that Pompeo raised the issue of terrorism Islamabad says the issue did not figure in the telephonic talk.
With Russian backing, Syrian government forces are poised to attack the last rebel stronghold. For Card Zenari, everything must be done to avoid the worst. Vicar to Aleppo calls on the international community to find a solution. Yesterday, pope Francis made an appeal during the Angelus.

Damascus (AsiaNews)  The Syrian Catholic Church is very concerned about the safety of civilians as Syrian government forces, backed by Russian air support and Shia ground troops, prepare for an expected offensive against the last anti-Assad stronghold in Idlib, northern Syria, an area still held by jihadist forces, including al Qaeda and the Islamic State group.

The apostolic nuncio to Damascus and the vicar of the Latins of Aleppo hope that international community will be able to find a solution to the conflict.

They and others are also grateful that Pope Francis issued another appeal on behalf of Syria and its people. The pontiff made a heartfelt plea in yesterdays Angelus, calling on the international community to avoid another "humanitarian catastrophe" in Idlib, from where the "winds of war" are blowing.

The situation is complicated by the power games involving Russia and Iran, who back the Syrian regime, and the Western powers that continue to defend the interests of the "rebels" and extremist groups, who are supported by Saudi Arabia and Gulf emirates.

The pontiff renewed his appeal to the international community and to all the actors involved, to make use of the instruments of diplomacy, of dialogue and of negotiations, in respect of international humanitarian law, and to safeguard the lives of civilians.

The planned assault on Idlib in the north comes after the government seizing Aleppo, eastern Ghouta and Douma. By taking areas that are still in rebel hands, Assad with Putins aid would control a strategic region and restore the situation to what it was before March 2011, i.e. before civil unrest turned into civil war and foreign powers coopeted local forces to fight a proxy war.

Only some Kurdish areas in the north and the mostly desert areas in central, eastern and southern Syria are still outside regime control. Some Islamic State fighters found refuge in the latter.

However, although experts and NGOs on the ground disagree on the numbers of people who might be affected by the Idlib campaign, with some estimating that fighting might trigger a new humanitarian crisis with hundreds of thousands (perhaps more than a million) of refugees.

Numbers aside, the prospect of a new exodus to Turkey worries President Recep Tayyip Erdogan who, during his countrys recent election, repeatedly said that Syrian refugees would go home.

The Apostolic Nuncio to Damascus, Card Mario Zenari, is also grateful to the pontiff for his words, which must be listened to, not commented. Still, "The situation is keeping everyone on tenterhooks, he noted. Lets s hope that a solution can be found.

Many, including the United Nations, note great fears and tensions over Idlib. We hope that something can be done and that the worst is avoided, especially for civilians, the nuncio said. This is what we hope."

The Apostolic Vicar of Aleppo of the Latins, Mgr Georges Abou Khazen, shares the nuncios concerns. For him, the priority "is the protection of civilians and their security." At the same time, "a solution must be found [for Idlib] because the jihadists cannot remain. This goes against peace and all logic."

Meanwhile, "The pontiffs words give us courage and hope. He has always been close to us. We are proud of him. Muslims too have on several occasions welcomed his statements."

Lastly, the Apostolic Vicar hopes that "international community can find a solution to end threats and safeguard the local population.
by Nirmala Carvalho

The head of the universal Church is accused of covering charges of harassment against a high-ranking US Church prelate. According to Card. Gracias, "the testimonies present many gaps". Then he adds: "We are grateful that Pope Francis has chosen not to answer".

Mumbai (AsiaNews) - "The Church in Asia firmly supports the Holy Father. As president of the FABC [Federation of Asian Bishops' Conferences], I reiterate that the Church in Asia is 100% on the side of Pope Francis states Card. Oswald Gracias

The Archbishop of Mumbai and President of the Indian bishops, as well as the federation of the Asian bishops, was commenting on the scandal that has rocked the Universal Church and especially Pope Francis. Last week, returning from the World Meeting of Families held in Dublin, the Pontiff was accused of having been aware of the allegations of sexual abuse within the US Church and having been silent.

The accusation is contained in a 11 page letter written by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, former apostolic nuncio to the United States. According to the Archbishop, Pope Francis covered up the sexual abuses committed by Card. Theodore McCarrick against young seminarians. "I know Msgr. Vigano - reports the Indian cardinal - He is an effective and highly respected member of the curia [of Rome] and of Washington. I am very surprised at his decision to make the issue public. "

The publication of the letter rekindled the diatribe between "conservatives" and "reformists" in the Catholic Church. "I'm really disappointed  continues Card. Gracias - This is not the way, it is not the approach [right approach to deal with such delicate issues]. And it does not help ".

The president of the Indian bishops, who is currently in Seoul to attend a forum for peace, adds: "There are many gaps in testimonies and there has been a clever use of words. Words are used with ambiguity. The testimonies are a coordinated effort to adulterate reality".

In conclusion he affirms: "I hope that his Excellency understands the damage he has done to the Church. I am sure that the Holy Father has drawn his conclusions on this dossier and we are grateful that the Vicar of Christ chose not to respond ".
The US accuses UNRWA of perpetuating the conflict by preventing refugee resettlement. The agency supports 5.4 million people. About 70 per cent of Gazans depends on aid. The US decision also threatens Jordan and Lebanon. UNRWA spokesperson rejects accusations, says agencys mandate comes from the General Assembly. The problem is that the parties have failed to reach a peace agreement and a settlement for the refugees.

New York (AsiaNews)  The United States will no longer finance UNRWA, the UN agency that deals with Palestinian refugees. At the beginning of the year, the US contribution had already dropped from US$ 350 million to 60 million.

The State Department announcement last Thursday sparked many reactions: praise from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and concerns from the European Union, activists and the Israeli military.

According to some analysts, the move is directed at Mahmoud Abbas, president of the Palestinian National Authority, who has refused to talk with the US government since the Trump administration decided to move the US Embassy to Jerusalem.

Set up in 1949, the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) supports about 5.4 million Palestinians in the West Bank, Gaza, Lebanon, Syria and Jordan, by funding schools and hospitals, and providing food aid.

According to the United States, the agency perpetuates the conflict and the refugee status of the Palestinians. Praised by Premier Netanyahu, the decision has nevertheless met with opposition in Israel.

While Netanyahu is welcoming it, it's known that the Israeli army and security forces are very much against it. The Israeli army actually has been trying to convince Netanyahu to stop this, said Adam Keller, a spokesperson for Gush Shalom, an Israeli peace group.

For the Israeli activist, the risk is not limited to Gaza. This could lead to more instability, not only in the Gaza Strip but also in Lebanon and Jordan. No sane person would like to see instability in Jordan. I think that this decision is the most stupid and irresponsible.

For Keller, the European Union should step up to play a more decisive role in the Middle East and fill the economic vacuum left by the United States.

I am afraid that there will be humanitarian consequences since 70 per cent of the Gaza population are refugees and their health, sanitation and other services are run mostly by UNRWA, said Ran Goldstein, director of Physicians for Human Rights.

The situation in Gaza is already on edge. I dont understand how civilians there will be able to cope if the situation gets worse, he explained. On the ground, the effect is already felt: the garbage in the streets of Gaza is hardly collected and staff has been laid off.

Combatants for Peace, an NGO that includes Arabs and Jews, slammed the US decision. "Humanitarian aid should not be subjected to any political purpose, said Ghassan Bannoura, the groups spokesperson.

UNRWA plays a vital role in providing millions of Palestinian refugees with education, health and work support and will do so until their situation is resolved, in accordance with the UN resolution. Any aid cuts to this agency could lead to catastrophic results and violence and will not lead to peace."

UNRWA spokesperson Christopher Gunness rejects the accusation of that his agency is perpetuating the conflict. For him, the failure lies with the parties involved in the conflict who have reached a peace agreement to solve the refugee problem.

"You cannot airbrush out of history 5.4 million people, Palestine refugees, a UN protected population. We are talking about real human beings with a humanity and a dignity which must be respected, he said. The refugees have languished for 70 years, many in appallingly squalid refugee camps.

Since UNRWAs mandate comes from the United Nations General Assembly, no single member of the Assembly can unilaterally change our mandate, Gunness noted.

There are, he added, nearly 200 members and they voted overwhelmingly to renew our mandate  167 in favour and just one against. So, despite the Trump administration withholding funds, our mandate remains unchanged and our commitment to it remains undiminished.
Wa Lone (32) and Kyaw Soe Oo (28) worked for the British news agency Reuters. The two reporters (photo) investigated the killing of 10 Rohingya in the village of Inn Din. They were ambushed by police. Despite the condemnation of the international community, the army denies having perpetrated abuses against the Islamic minority in Rakhine.

Yangon (AsiaNews / Agencies) - The North Yangon District Court has sentenced two Burmese journalists to seven years in prison for "having collected and obtained confidential documents" concerning the massacre of some Rohingya Muslims in the State of Rakhine. The defendants violated a law on state secrets dating back to the colonial period and risked a maximum sentence of 14 years.

At the time of their arrest on December 12th, Wa Lone (32) and Kyaw Soe Oo (28) worked for the British news agency Reuters. The police arrested the two reporters as they met with some agents in a restaurant in Yangon. The journalists say they were duped and told the judge U Ye Lwin that two policemen had handed them the documents just before other colleagues arrested them.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo were investigating the killing of 10 Rohingya in the village of Inn Din, which occurred during the military operations of the Tatmadaw (the Burmese army) that followed the outbreak of the latest sectarian violence in Rakhine. Despite the condemnation of the international community, the army denies having perpetrated abuses against the Islamic minority.

However, the final report of a UN investigative mission calls on the Security Council to postpone Myanmar's position to the International Criminal Court in The Hague or to create an ad hoc international criminal court. The fact-finding mission states that "the most important generals of the Tatmadaw, including the commander in chief Min Aung Hlaing, must be investigated and prosecuted for genocide in the north of the state of Rakhine". Among the crimes mentioned after a lengthy investigation, there is murder, forced disappearance, torture and sexual violence "carried out on a large scale".
SETAC Community Center Has its Own Medical Office

Puerto Vallarta, Jalisco, Mexico - A fully equipped medical office for patients requiring ambulatory care is now operating at the SETAC Community Center in Puerto Vallarta.

Attending people who require diagnosis and care of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in addition to post-exposure prophylaxis treatment for HIV and now Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), the clinic is in permanent operation during the hours of attention to the public: Tuesday through Friday from 12 pm to 8 pm and Saturdays from 9 am to 2 pm.





At SETAC's medical office, patients are attended by surgeon and midwife Javier Mauricio Renteria Salazar, who is a "peer" doctor, trained and sensitized for the care required in this area.

The clinic was equipped thanks to support from the New York-based Broadway Cares / Equity Fight AIDS organization, and its Director Tom Viola, who's generous contribution helped SETAC to offer medical attention in a safe space that's free of stigma and discrimination.

The SETAC medical office can provide immediate treatment to patients with sexually transmitted infections (STIs) since the State Council for the Prevention of AIDS in Jalisco (COESIDA) supplies the medications needed to treat syphilis, gonorrhea and chlamydia, in addition to rapid tests for hepatitis B and C.

From now on, people who arrive at the SETAC clinic with symptoms of, or are diagnosed with any of these infections, will be able to be treated immediately.

The objective of this strategy is to cut the chain of STI infections in our key populations: men who have sex with men, gays, trans women and sex workers; and avoid abandoning these patient to the discomfort of being seen, and the fear of stigma or rejection they may feel, when seeking treatment at other health institutions.

The purpose of the SETAC Community Center, located at Aldanaca 178, 4A & 4B, in the Colonia Versalles neighborhood of Puerto Vallarta, is to provide essential services to the community, including physical and mental health treatment, referrals, and education in an atmosphere of safety, free from discrimination. For more information, please follow SETAC on Facebook visit the website, call (322) 224-1974 or email contacto(at)setac.com.mx.
Innovation is a critical part Africa's DNA, but it only plays a part in shaping the continent's narrative when the world becomes aware of it. This is where tactical communication is paramount in disseminating information about the continent's progress, so that the right people join the journey in supporting and investing in innovation.

Mimi Kalinda, co-founder and managing director of Africommunications Group.

African narrative

Strategic communications

The underlying concept of communicating to the right audience requires an understanding of Africas dynamics coupled with a strategic approach that encompasses not only smart ideas and effective planning, but also a combination of traditional and digital media expertise. As the communication landscape evolves rapidly, strategic communication means keeping a watchful eye on the way your audience consumes information and the channels they utilize.Lets look at The African Innovation Summit (AIS), for example. It showcased potential solutions to Africas challenges in water, energy, food and healthcare. Young innovators from across the continent identified problems in their communities and came up with ways to fix them. What followed was genius.A compelling communications strategy was developed and effectively delivered. It entailed a three-step approach from pre-summit to post summit and this method involved telling the stories of each innovator in a way that would inspire audiences to action.The hope was to enhance the African narrative and change the poor perception of its youth.With media and business in attendance at the event, the summit highlighted detailed information about innovations that, with the right funding and support, could change Africas outlook in the future.One of the inventions at the AIS included a remarkable diagnostic test that could detect and distinguish between seven different viruses simultaneously, including HIV.Dr Dougbeh-Chris Nyan invented the portable system, which fits into a college-size backpack and could be powered by a car battery plugged into its cigarette lighter outlet. Solar power was being looked at for alternative power.This device could go a long way in helping deal with Africas health challenges, given that the continent accounts for 25% of the global disease burden. Health should be one of the regions major priorities considering that HIV and AIDS claims around one million lives each year, while Africas leading cause of death in children under five is malaria.This is just one example from the variety of proposals emanating from AIS that could advance Africa into the future. The key driver in turning these creative ideas into prototypes and tangible outcomes is strategic communications. Once the rest of the world sees Africas potential through a positive lens, investment and support is likely to follow.The approach taken at the AIS is the kind of communication businesses should adopt to reach the desired audience on a global scale so that the right kind of funding is attracted. A summit is just one way of achieving this.Africa has been innovating for centuries, but it has evolved over time and what we see now is in tune with the Africa rising narrative. Through strategic communication, these new smart innovations are changing perceptions about what Africans are capable of and challenging the notion of how Africa solves its own problems instead of being recipients of aid.Young Africans are creating their own solutions to problems in their communities, highlighting the resilience of Africas people while putting a spotlight on the effectiveness and formidability of strategic communications coupled with innovation. This indeed is Africa Rising.
Ghanaian authorities should thoroughly investigate and bring to justice all those responsible for an attack on Jerry Azanduna, a reporter with the government-funded Ghana News Agency (GNA), and ensure his belongings are returned, the Committee to Protect Journalists said.

A newsstand in Ghana's capital, Accra, in 2016. Attackers abducted and beat a reporter for the Ghana News Agency on August 27 over his critical coverage of an opposition politician in Bawku. Credit: AP/Sunday Alamba/CPJ.

Beaten

Denials

Azanduna said that on August 27, a group of men tricked him into getting in a car by saying they would drive him to a press conference he had been told to attend. The men instead drove the journalist to the house of Hassan Ayariga, an opposition Ghanaian politician with the All People's Congress party, who questioned him about a recent report by GNA before ordering the men to "teach him a lesson", Azanduna said.The men beat the journalist and seized his phone, USB flash drive, and wallet, Azanduna and Eric Amoh, of the Ghana Journalist Association, told CPJ. The GNA reported on the attack the following day. Ayariga denied to CPJ any involvement with any violence, but said that APC party members did bring Azanduna to his house on August 27."The attack on Jerry Azanduna is absolutely unacceptable and a stain on Ghana's press freedom record," said CPJ Africa program coordinator Angela Quintal in Johannesburg. "Ghanaian authorities must thoroughly investigate this attack and ensure all those responsible are held accountable."Azanduna told CPJ that at about 4 pm on the day of the attack, he received a phone call from someone who identified themselves as "concerned youth in Bawku", asking him to attend a press conference where Ayariga would speak. When he arrived at the location of the supposed press conference in Bawku, in Ghana's Upper East region, Azanduna said that a group of men said the location had changed and instructed him to join them in their car to go to the new venue. Azanduna told CPJ he recognised one of the men in the group and so did not suspect any problem with leaving his car and joining them.Azanduna said that when he questioned why the vehicle was going in a different direction to where the men said they were heading, he was told to "shut up". When Azanduna took out his phone to call for help, one of the men slapped him and confiscated his phone, the journalist said. Azanduna told CPJ he was driven to Ayariga's home in Bawku,where the politician chastised him for his reporting, and said, "The story you did about me, do you know what it has cost me?" The journalist said Ayariga told the men to "teach me a lesson".Azanduna told CPJ the group beat him at the house until he fell unconscious. "I sustained injuries on my left arm and [my] right shoulder was dislocated. My ribs were hurt. My neck and my eyes were all sore," he said.Amoh, from the Ghana Journalist Association, told CPJ that security services rescued Azanduna after receiving a tip about the attack. The journalist was taken to the Bawku police station, where he filed a report before being taken to a hospital. Azanduna said he arrived at the hospital around 6 pm and was discharged around 11 pm on the day of the attack. He said he returned to the police station the next day to make a full statement.Yao Tettegah, chief superintendent of the Bawku Divisional Police, told CPJ on August 31 that the investigation is ongoing and that police were trying to identify the attackers. When asked if police had identified a link between Ayariga and the attack, Tettegah said no.When contacted by CPJ on August 31, Ayariga denied any involvement and said, "When I saw [Azanduna] in my house, I was very angry because I didn't invite him to my house... At the time I saw him nobody beat him... He was sitting on the floor... He should not pretend [he was beaten]."Ayariga told CPJ he questioned Azanduna at the house about his stories, at least one of which he said was inaccurate and should be retracted, and the politician said he thought the party members and Azanduna may have fought before arriving at his home. Ayariga said it is possible Azanduna was beaten after being taken away by soldiers, whom he said were at his home when the journalist arrived.Ayariga told CPJ that he did not instruct the group of men to "teach [Azanduna] a lesson" or instigate any attack. He apologised on behalf of his party members for any altercation that may have taken place and said that he and the APC party do not believe in violence. Ayariga said the APC party would investigate any party members' involvement in violence.
Still, sparkling, flavoured or enriched with additional vitamins and minerals? Bottled water was once a far simpler product, but the number of options available to consumers within this category has increased substantially over the last few years and driven the growth of the industry. With the water crisis in the Cape provinces (Northern, Western and Eastern), we investigate whether sales of bottled water have significantly increased over the past year, and what the outlook is for 2018 and beyond.

Source: INBWA Graphics by Insight Survey

Some key questions the report will help you to answer:

What are the market dynamics (market size, consumption) of the Global Bottled Water industry?



What are the latest South African Bottled Water industry trends, drivers, and restraints?



What are the value and volume trends in the SA Bottled Water market (2012-2017) and forecasts (2018-2022)?



Who are the key manufacturing and retail players in the SA Bottled Water industry?



What are the prices of popular Bottled Water brands (still, sparkling, flavoured) at SA retail outlets and supermarkets?

latestcarefully unfolds the global and local bottled water markets based on the latest information and research. It examines the market drivers and restraints as well as global and local market trends to present an objective insight into the South African bottled water industry environment, market dynamics and its future.Worldwide, the value of the bottled water market has shown meaningful growth over the last few years. Between 2014 and 2017 the market grew at a rate of 9% to reach over US$200 billion in 2017. The market is predicted to continue to grow at a CAGR of 10.7% for the period 2018 to 2023. Globally, the growth of the bottled water industry can be attributed to consumers increasing health concerns with regards to contaminated water, as well as rising levels of disposable incomes.The leading countries in terms of bottled water consumption include China, the United States, Mexico, and Indonesia. In 2017, China had the highest bottled water consumption at 25.5 billion gallons.In 2017, the value of the South African Bottled Water industry grew by 8.4% and growth in 2018 is expected to well over 10%, largely due to the water crisis in the Cape. Looking into the future, the Bottled Water market value is forecast to grow at an average compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 8.3% from 2018 to 2022.In South Africa, the demand for bottled water increased over the last few years as a result of municipal water quality decreasing, and the severe drought experienced in the Western Cape. After the announcement of, there was a massive spike in bottled water sales and the December and January sales increased by 118%.The sales of bottled water in the Western Cape have, however, since declined and return to normal. Consumers are no longer panic buying and many have become more water self-sufficient by installing rainwater tanks and sunk boreholes. According to, Pick n Pays head of groceries and perishables, although there was a significant increase in bottled water sales initially, the deferring of Day Zero and early stocking up of customers has resulted in the demand normalising.The quality of municipal water in South Africa does, however, remain a concern and it is expected that certain consumers will continue to opt for bottled water in the future in order to avoid the health risks associated with contaminated water. In reality, however, most South African consumers simply cannot afford to buy bottled water regularly as it is still considered a luxury by many.The(111 pages) provides a dynamic synthesis of industry research, examining the local and global Bottled Water industry from a uniquely holistic perspective, with detailed insights into the entire value chain  from manufacturing and retailing to distribution, consumption, purchasing trends and pricing analysis.Please note that the 111-page report is available for purchase for R25,000 (excluding VAT). Alternatively, individual sections can be purchased for R9,000 (excluding VAT). For additional information simply contact us at az.oc.yevrusthgisni@ofni or directly on (0)21 045-0202.For a full brochure please go to: South African Bottled Water Landscape Report 2018 Insight Survey is a South African B2B market research company with almost 10 years of heritage, focusing on business-to-business (B2B) market research to ensure smarter, more-profitable business decisions are made with reduced investment risk.We offer B2B market research solutions to help you to successfully improve or expand your business, enter new markets, launch new products or better understand your internal or external environment.Our bespoke Competitive Business Intelligence Research can help give you the edge in a global marketplace, empowering your business to overcome industry challenges quickly and effectively, and enabling you to realise your potential and achieve your vision.From strategic overviews of your businesss competitive environment through to specific competitor profiles, our customised Competitive Intelligence Research is designed to meet your unique needs.For more information, go to www.insightsurvey.co.za
One of the key takeaways from the first Value Forum entrepreneur networking event, recently held in Rivonia, was that South African businesses need to start considering themselves as part of the global economy, putting in place structures that will allow them to operate in a global marketplace.

Developed markets offer tangible opportunities

Mind-shift needed

Guy Addison, CEO of Addison Advisory said: If you read the news headlines, you would be hard-pressed to find positive news stories around South African business levels. It was great to be able to share some insights  and good news - around a recent transaction we were involved in. I got the sense that entrepreneurs left the event with a realisation that while the South African market is tough right now, there remain entrepreneurs building investable businesses and so creating significant wealth in the process.As South Africans, we tend to be very inwardly focused when it comes to our business activities, said Bianca Botes, Peregrine Treasury Solutions, adding: Economic growth in South Africa over the last decade has been benign at best and we tend to think of this as 'normal'. We forget that developed markets like Europe and the US as well as Asia continue to offer very real opportunities for South African businesses but they need to start structuring their businesses to play in a global marketplace.Bernard Jansen, founder of marketing consultancy Firejuice, said: Listening to the discussions around the opportunities for entrepreneurs in the global marketplace, it struck me that marketers themselves love to use global platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Google and LinkedIn as their go-to platforms for marketing their businesses but there was little focus on how to make their brands relevant and personal to the needs of customers. I think this represents a fantastic opportunity for SA marketers and entrepreneurs both locally and globally.Marc Ashton from financial problem-solving resource Decusatio said: As somebody who is an investor in a healthcare startup with global aspirations, it has required a mind-shift around how I look at the global marketplace. Where do I place my intellectual property? Where should we think about putting our cash? How do we build up international distribution? These are all key issues for us and we are having to apply our minds to finding partners who can help us ultimately take this step.Addison concludes: I was encouraged by the demographic of the event with entrepreneurs representing a variety of sectors, including food, financial services, stock exchange operators, healthcare and technology. These were entrepreneurs who had opened their minds up to the global marketplace and were looking to collaborate with credible partners to help them achieve their goals. At a time when the news cycle is often negative, I thought this was an encouraging sign.The inaugural Value Forum was hosted by Addison Advisory in conjunction with Peregrine Treasury Solutions, marketing consultancy Firejuice and financial problem-solving resource Decusatio.
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The Builders Merchants Federation has welcomed a Government decision that ministers will allow BMF members to adopt postponed accounting for import Value-Added Tax on goods brought into the country after the United Kingdom leaves the EU in exactly seven months time.

The Department for Exiting the European Union announced this concession as part of the first wave of technical notices it has published to inform businesses about what plans and preparations they ought to do in case of a no deal Brexit departure.

Ministers have decided that, if the UK leaves the EU without an agreement, they will introduce postponed accounting for import VAT on goods brought into the UK. In other words, VAT-registered BMF members that import materials and products will be able to account for import VAT on their VAT return - instead of paying import VAT on (or soon after) goods arrive at ports. This concession applies to imports from the EU and non-EU countries.

Brett Amphlett, BMF Policy & Public Affairs Manager, said: We are very pleased the Government has decided to allow importers to use postponed accounting for import Value-Added Tax due on materials and products that BMF members distribute.

This is an undoubted win for BMF lobbying at a time of political and business uncertainty amid worries that not enough is being done to prepare for a no deal departure.

While others in construction are worried about the number of workers available after Brexit, our concern from the very beginning was focused on VAT and the likelihood of having to pay 20% extra upfront, and the impact on prices and supplies.

We look forward to the necessary legislation being passed in the coming months to give effect to this very welcome decision.

Without this decision, the BMF calculated that potential additional costs would be about 1 billion for European softwood; 160 million for imported bricks; and 80 million for paint from the EU.

Amphlett said ministers have taken a common sense approach and a tax bombshell has been avoided - especially for SMEs - by taking a decision in good time. However, customs declarations, rules of origin declarations, and paying duties at borders will still be required, he added.

The BMF hopes that detail on these procedure and payments will be in the next wave of DExEU technical notices. Importers will also have to register for an UK Economic Operator Registration and Identification number, and check that contracts and terms & conditions are all up-to-date.
| BY Ricki Green |

On the back of two years of record annual growth for McCann Sydney, McCann Australia has announced the appointment of Adam Lee (left) to the newly created role of managing director of McCann Sydney.

Lees appointment follows an unprecedented run of new business wins for McCann Sydney over the past two years, including Lion Nathan Foods, Google, Sprite, Microsoft, Hollard, Defence Housing Australia and Solaris Paper. The move comes just one month after McCann also boosted its planning capability with senior appointments in both Melbourne and Sydney, and after the agency was named Australias top-ranked creative effectiveness agency in the global WARC 100.

Says Ash Farr, CEO, McCann Australia: After two years of solid growth, its time for McCann Sydney to gain its own managing director. With Adam on board, backed by a first-rate management team and our growing multi-disciplinary services, we can get more serious about aggressive business growth as we continue to steer the agency towards our vision to be Australias best creative agency and a true partner for our clients.

Adam joins our incredible A-Team to rival any Sydney agency, including MRM managing director Brent Clarkes digital strength, Roshni Hegerman and Lachlan Jamess strategic leadership, Dejan Rasics creative credentials, Bradley Moores media stewardship and Nicole Gardner and Alex Bakers client leadership. This is a hands-on role that will see Adam become a key part of the client leadership team, working across our innovative multi-platform campaigns for clients including MasterCard, Cereal Partners Worldwide, Coca-Cola, Universities Australia and Sprite.

Lee joins McCann after senior roles at some of the countrys leading agencies, including Whybin/TBWA, Ogilvy & Mather and George Patterson. Most recently he was group head at Whybin/TBWA, where he was responsible for driving key accounts, such as Tourism New Zealands local and global communications as well as the Tabcorp portfolio.

Prior to working at Whybin/TBWA, Lee spent 11 years at Ogilvy & Mather Sydney, mostly leading the Coca-Cola portfolio of brands. In 2012, he spearheaded Coca-Colas multi-award-winning Share a Coke campaign, which picked up Gold, Silver and Bronze Lions, as well as becoming an Australian-first recipient of the highly-prized Cannes Effectiveness Black Lion the following year. The Share a Coke campaign was instrumental in Coca-Cola being named Creative Marketer of the Year at the 2013 Cannes Festival and also ran in over 50 countries across the world due to its phenomenal success.

Says Farr: Adams appointment is also about replicating the successful management structure weve established in Melbourne with Adrian Mills as MD of the Melbourne office. This enables me to support two extremely talented managing directors as McCann enters its next stage of growth.

Says Lee: Its an exciting time to be joining McCann Sydney: the work is world-class, the strategy is solid, and the increased investment on digital, content and media capabilities puts the agency in a unique position to deliver the right solution to every challenge facing our clients.
| BY Ricki Green |

McCann Sydney has confirmed that after over three years with the agency, managing director Adam Lee will leave the agency in a mutual agreement.

Lee joined McCann Sydney in April 2015 from Whybin\TBWA where he was group head.

Prior to working at Whybin/TBWA, Lee spent 11 years at Ogilvy & Mather Sydney, mostly leading the Coca-Cola portfolio of brands. In 2012, he spearheaded Coca-Colas multi-award-winning Share a Coke campaign, which picked up Gold, Silver and Bronze Lions, as well as becoming an Australian-first recipient of the highly-prized Cannes Effectiveness Black Lion the following year.

The Share a Coke campaign was instrumental in Coca-Cola being named Creative Marketer of the Year at the 2013 Cannes Festival and also ran in over 50 countries across the world due to its phenomenal success.

Says Nicole Taylor, CEO, McCann Worldgroup Australia: I joined McCann Australia in July with a mandate to make the agency as revered as our New York counterpart. Key to that is shaping a team of truly world class talent.

We have amazing people at McCann that I really believe in but we also need an injection of new and different talent to reach our dream of creating Australias most exciting creative agency. It requires me to make tough calls but I will do so with compassion and humanity.

Last week we announced internally that our Sydney Managing Director Adam Lee, will be leaving the agency by mutual agreement.

Adam made a significant contribution to McCann Sydney and built strong relationships during his three years. Its obvious that he loves the business so Im sure that he will continue to have a great career and we genuinely wish him well.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 3)  Agriculture Secretary Manny Pinol on Monday said the National Food Authority is an agency in limbo, but he refused to comment on calls for its abolition.

Demands for the dissolution of the authority come amid jacked up market prices of rice. A state of calamity was even declared in Zamboanga City, where commercial prices rose up to 70 per kilogram. Pinol said prices should have stayed along the 40 range, adding that there is price speculation but no rice crisis.

"I would describe it as an agency in limbo. That's all," Pinol told CNN Philippines' The Source, referring to the NFA.

When pressed, Pinol noted that NFA was the "the only [World Trade Organization]-acknowledged and accredited trading agency of the Philippines."

"The problem with the NFA... is it has been so focused on rice alone. It is called the National Food Authority," he said. "In fact, if you were to ask me what its other function should be, dapat siya ay magiging export agency ng produkto natin [the export agency for our products]. Let's not leave it to our farmers."

The NFA Administration and the NFA Council, each blame the other for the hike in rice prices. The Department of Agriculture is neither a supervisor of the NFA nor a member of the Council, although it is concerned with the distribution of products like rice.

But Pinol said the structure is beside the point. He said the NFA did not have to be under the DA "if there [was] greater collaborative effort" between the two government bodies. He added that he only dipped his finger in the Zamboanga rice crisis because "nobody was handling [it]."

He also said the NFA council members are technocrats who have good intentions but are not grounded.

Pinol explains 'bukbok rice' video

Critics have called for the secretary's resignation, amid his reported proposal to legalize smuggled rice. Pinol has since clarified the idea, saying he only meant to suggest regulating imported rice in the region of Western Mindanao.

He said anybody who wants to bring in rice must have the proper documents and pay tariffs and duties. Pinol also explained his proposal to put up a rice trading center was supported by local officials in the region.

Apart from high prices and reported shortage, the government has also been slammed for weevil-infested rice. This comes on top of reports that galunggong, or round scad fish, was tainted with the toxic chemical formalin  although this was later refuted by the Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources.

In Facebook videos shared by Pinol, the secretary washed supposedly infested rice, cooked it, and ate it alongside galunggong to demonstrate the food was edible. He clarified that he was not advising the public to settle for substandard rice, but he made the video in response to calls that the rice to be thrown out or fed to animals.

"If it could be proven that the rice was already infested with weevil before it left the port of origin, the NFA should return it," said Pinol. "But the other side of the story was, hindi porke may bukbok, hindi na pwedeng kainin [just becauese there are weevils, doesn't mean it cannot be eaten]. That was my message."

He also denied the alleged presence of formalin in galunggong altogether.

Pinol had pushed for allowing more imported rice and fish, in a bid to take prices down. However, consumer groups and fisherfolk believe the government should strengthen local producers instead, as imports could make them even poorer.

Congressmen of the Makabayan bloc filed a resolution at the House of Representatives to halt the galunggong importation order.

Amid the criticism, Pinol maintained that he would not leave his post.

"If the President feels that I am of no use anymore to this administration, I would be happy to leave," he said. "But I'm a fighter. You don't quit in the middle of the fight."

President Rodrigo Duterte himself has also said he will not boot the secretary.
| BY Ricki Green |

BPAY Group has launched a new integrated campaign via BMF to introduce Australians to its new payment service Osko by BPAY.

Millions of money transfers take place every day for millions of different reasons, whether its for paying rent, splitting a cab or paying a mate back for picking up the bill at dinner. But how can it be, that in 2018, we often still have to wait days for the money to hit our account?

Thankfully, this is a thing of the past. Now you can enjoy fast transfers between over 60 participating banks, 24 hours a day, any day of the week in under a minute with Osko by BPAY.

The campaign is in the process of rolling out across TV, cinema, OOH, digital, social and website, introducing Australians to Osko, a brand that does amazing little things that will make a big difference, every day. This campaign was the work of a team of agencies, the BPAY Group marketing team and a group of 12 key marketers from participating banks. This unique group worked collaboratively with the common goal of driving awareness and usage with a campaign that would resonate with customers across the different banks, with each offering a tailored experience to suit the needs of their customers.

Says Renee Amor, general marketing manager, BPAY Group: The luxury of building an industry-wide brand, with ubiquitous distribution through over 60 online banking environments, is one that comes along rarely in a marketing career. Working in a collaborative fashion with representatives across the Financial Services industry has helped ensure the long-term brand and marketing strategy will resonate with our shared customer segments. This campaign is a fabulous result of a solid marketing strategy built on the simplicity of helping people move their own money, fast. I cant wait to see where we go from here as the product continues to evolve. Open and transparent ways of working, particularly with BMF as our long-term lead brand and strategy agency, has produced the goods.

BPAY Group worked closely with BMF as the key brand and strategy agency, IKON Media, Hotwire and Adrenalin Media to deliver this integrated campaign.

The campaign even brought on Instagram phenomenon Celeste Barber to lend her unmistakable voice to the campaign in her Facebook and Instagram stories, paying her to let Aussies know that now they can pay people in under a minute.

Says Jen Speirs, deputy executive creative director, BMF: Its what we didnt need to do here that made this such an opportunity. We didnt need to get people to sign up for another service. Or change what theyre doing. We just needed to introduce ourselves, get people to know what were good at  and of course, like us a lot. Enter striking design, big personality, simple messaging  oh, and Celeste Barber  and thats exactly what we did. Hello Osko, indeed.

Osko Senior Marketing Manager: Brittany Kury

BPAY Group General Manager, Marketing: Renee Amor

Creative Agency: BMF

Executive Creative Directors: Alex Derwin, Cam Blackley

Deputy Executive Creative Director: Jen Speirs

Head of Design: Lincoln Grice

Copywriter: Tom Johnson

Head of Planning: Ali Tilling

Senior Strategic Planner: Sarah Hood

Managing Director: Stephen McArdle

Group Account Director: Emma McJury

Senior Account Director: Peitra Withaar

Account Manager: Peggy Wong

Account Executive: Adam Reeves

Agency Producer: Esta Lau

Director: Buck

Creative Director: Gareth OBrien

Executive Producer: Erica Ford

Producer: Jordan Howes

Art Direction: Josh Edwards, Sam Scopelliti

CG Leads: Michael Lampe

Sound/Music: Antfood

Media Agency: IKON

Digital Agency: Adrenalin Media
| BY Ricki Green |

City of Melbourne has partnered with VERSA Agency to become the first Australian city to create a voice experience that allows residents and visitors to access an Alexa skill that shares the citys featured and free events.

The City of Melbourne, interested in the potential of voice experiences, set out to create an Alexa skill to help people discover Whats On in the city. Joining forces with VERSA, Australias first enterprise-level voice experience agency, City of Melbourne became the first council in Australia to release a voice experience with the launch of Whats On Melbourne.

As one of most liveable cities in the world, Melbourne has hundreds of events on every single day which offers residents, workers and visitors an incredible amount of things to do. The City of Melbournes Whats On website, email newsletter and social media channels help people discover things to do in the City.

Designed to work with the newly-released Echo Spot, the Multimodal Skill, shares Melbournes curated list of upcoming events, displaying a photo and other crucial information  such as the date, time and location. The Skill delivers a seamless user experience, where users can hear details of the events and take the information with them via the Alexa companion app.

As part of City of Melbournes discovery approach to Voice, VERSA designed and built the initial Voice Experience to run as a lean pilot program, enabling the Whats On team to not only understand the adoption of Voice with its intended audience, but to understand how to prepare their content for future conversational experiences.

Says Guy Munro, director of business at VERSA: Being the first council within Australia to launch an Alexa Skill, shows just how the City of Melbourne pushes for innovation. Were excited to see how this skill transforms over time as new features and updates are released.

This Skill was designed with simplicity in mind. Focussing on the free and featured events in the city, the Skill, shares the most important information to the user, while making content creation simple for the Whats On team.
| BY Ricki Green |

Clemenger BBDO Melbourne has welcomed two new group business directors to the NAB account, Georgia Jones and Alex Clarke-Groom.

Jones joins the Clemenger BBDO Melbourne team from digital agency Greenfields where she held a general manager position for two years. Prior to this, Jones held marketing consultant positions for software and e-commerce companies, and was also head of marketing EMEA, for global software company SLI systems.

Jones has worked across a variety of blue-chip companies, including Optus, Bayer and lifestyle brands Stella McCartney and Nespresso. She will oversee Belong and NABs business portfolio, bringing her entrepreneurial mindset and a wealth of knowledge in the digital space.

Clarke-Groom joins the NAB team from Greys London office, where he was based for four years running the global HSBC commercial banking account, Gillette and Greene King Brewery accounts. Clarke-Groom has also worked at VCCP London running the Molson Coors beer portfolio and JWT London across its financial, alcohol and FMCG brands.

His experience has seen him receive industry accolades at Cannes, Eurobest and The British Arrows for HSBC campaign, Lift and Gillettes Loyalty Pays. Clarke-Groom will run NABs consumer team and DrinkWise.

Says Gayle While, deputy CEO, Clemenger BBDO Melbourne: Clemenger is thrilled to have two talented Group Business Directors join the agency and the NAB team, both bringing with them a new set of skills, knowledge and insight.

Says Clarke-Groom: Im excited to be joining a team of people that are so dedicated to making the best and most effective work in the world. The decision to move to Melbourne to work at one of the best creative agencies in the world was an easy one.

Im looking forward to building on the great partnership between NAB and Clemenger and injecting some of my own experience in to the account
Editors and senior reporters from titles such as Adweek, Campaign, Creative Review, Shots, Lurzers Archive, and of course Campaign Brief (representing Australia and New Zealand) as well as mainstream publications (such as C-NET, Marie-Claire, Forbes) in over 50 countries are supported by specialist writers in fields ranging from Artificial Intelligence to Virtual Reality.

The Epica Awards are open for entries until Sunday September 30. ENTER NOW The 2018 jury president is Tony Chambers, Brand and Content Director of Wallpaper* magazine  and one of the worlds foremost branding and communications experts. This years categories include Real Time & Topical Advertising and World Cup ads. Epica also has two brand new Grand Prix: Responsibility and Alternative Media. The show takes place in Amsterdam on November 15. As always, every single agency that enters will receive a free copy of the annual Epica Book  a 400-page bible of creative inspiration. In other words, its a no-lose situation. The Editors and Publishers International Creative Awards: Epica is the only global creative prize awarded by journalists. It offers an independent jury and global press coverage. Launched in 1987, today it is an international celebration of creativity, attracting thousands of entries from more than 70 countries.



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| BY Ricki Green |

IPG Mediabrands, the global media arm of Interpublic Group, has today announced a regional pro bono collaboration with plano. The young health-tech company, launched late last year, with a mission to save sight and empower lives. plano was founded by Australian-born Dr. Mo Dirani (right) and will launch in Australia later this year.

Following extensive scientific research plano have developed an empowering app to help manage excessive and inappropriate devise usage by children and mitigate the associated onset of myopia (short-sightedness), with as many as 80-90% of young adults in major Asian cities now suffering from the disorder. The number of people with myopia is expected to increase to 5 billion by the year 2050 (half the worlds population), if adjustments are not made to current lifestyle trends.

Says Leigh Terry (above left), CEO, IPG Mediabrands APAC: As a part of an industry that delivers marketing messages for brands in an increasingly digital world, we support the uptake of emerging technology, however we also undertake to acknowledge the wider impact and responsibility of doing so.

plano flips the problem into the solution using innovative technology to help mitigate the public health, societal and economic issues posed by these growing global trends. It teaches our children how to avoid the pitfalls of excessive device usage and establish a healthy relationship with emerging technology.

At a network level IPG Mediabrands APAC has aligned to support plano, on a pro-bono basis protracting their growth and development into markets across the Asia-Pacific region and beyond, through a combination of strategic partnerships, media, expertise, and awareness driving CSR initiatives.

Says Naomi Michael, head of marketing and communications, IPG Mediabrands APAC: As a part of our work that matters program, and via a variety of initiatives rolled out over the next 12 months this partnership will unite our 3000 people across the APAC region with opportunity to directly contribute to a positive societal shift that can be tangibly felt and will have a lasting impact.

The increase in smart device usage and myopia is not isolated to one country, but rather its becoming a global public health and economic problem. In Singapore alone, the direct cost of treating/managing myopia was estimated at USD$755 million a year, with estimated global costs reaching approximately USD$328 billion per year. Device dependency, gaming addiction, cyber bullying, diabetes and lack of outdoor activity are all growing global public health epidemics linked to excessive or inappropriate device usage by children worldwide.

Says Dr. Mo Dirani, founder and managing director, plano: It is critical that we intervene early to reduce the risk of children developing sight-threatening myopia, as well as a host of other adverse outcomes resulting from inappropriate device usage behaviour.

The collaboration and support we are receiving from IPG Mediabrands in association with the APAC Media Lab has been incredible. We must work together with important stakeholders, including the government and industry to tackle this growing problem that will critically worsen in the next 10 years if left unaddressed.

The innovative plano app developed to proactively prevent and correct these issues works in the background of phones and tablets. It is the first of its kind to provide a suite of child safety functions, while using science-based features to help modify behaviour in children to reduce myopia related risk factors and encourage healthier device usage.

Carefully developed smart features empower its users to manage their childrens time spent on devices, correct face-to-screen-distance, good eye care habits, and a points generated reward system to empower device-free outdoor activity (distance viewing and UV light exposure are protective against the development of myopia).

plano first launched in Singapore in late 2017, where they have already generated over 60,000 downloads, established broad industry collaborations and partnered with Singapores Health Promotion Board, to drive awareness and education to over 320,000 Singaporean children in the next 12 months.

plano entered the India market last month to an overwhelming response, generating thousands of downloads by parents in the first few days alone.

Says Dr Mo Dirani: India now has more smartphone users than the U.S. has people, the growth rate for smartphone penetration is the highest in the world. A study conducted on 10,000 urban school children in Delhi established a high incidence of myopia progression being linked to time spent in front of screens. With the help and support of IPG Mediabrands we hope to modify this trend more quickly than we thought possible.

plano has today announced its entry into Malaysia. The app is available to download in Singapore, India and Malaysia, with plans to roll-out extensively across the region within the next 6 months, and then more widely into the USA and EMEA.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 3)  President Rodrigo Duterte on Sunday apologized to former U.S. President Barack Obama, almost two years after he told him to "go to hell" for criticizing his administration's war on drugs.

"It would be appropriate at this time to tell Mr. Obama that you are now a civilian and I am sorry for uttering those words. It was plain talk like yours. We have learned our lessons very well," he said in a speech as he met with Filipinos in Jerusalem, Israel.

Before his apology, Duterte explained why he lashed at Obama in October 2016.

"Si Obama, in public, knowing fully well he was talking about me  who is a head of state however how small or humble  he castigated me about human rights. Sinobrahan niya," he said.

Related: Duterte tells Obama to 'go to hell,' explains frustration with U.S.

He added Obama should have gone through the proper venue to criticize his administration's drug war.

"If you have qualms, complaints against me, go to the United Nations. File your complaint there and ask for a hearing. Hindi 'yung didiretsuhin mo ako in public that I am wrong. Nagalit ako, sabi ko 'P****I***, Obama, you can go to hell. You son of a b****.' Sinabi ko iyan because he was not a civilized person anyway," he said.

Duterte added, "Being the President of a republic, you ought to know the basic rules. You do not criticize, especially if it is a problem of the country that you are criticizing. You would not know anong solusyon."

He said he has forgiven Obama and asked for his forgiveness, too.

"If it is in your heart to forgive, you forgive. I have forgiven you," he said.

Government data show more than 4,000 'drug personalities' have been killed in anti-drug operations since Duterte took office in July 2016, while more than 23,000 homicide cases  many of them suspected to be drug-related  are still being investigated.

Duterte also compared the presidential style of Obama and his successor, Donald Trump.

"Trump is a good friend of mine, because he speaks my language and he is a bit warmer. Obama was a cold person, always at a distance," he said.
Photo: Contributed - CTV Vancouver Supporters surround Clark's office in West Kelowna Wednesday afternoon.

BC Federation of Labour President, Jim Sinclair expressed dismay that Premier Christy Clark has made it even more difficult to find a resolve to the teachers dispute. In her press conference today, the Premier was critical of teachers and blamed them solely for school closures.

The Premiers concern with what other unions have agreed to at the bargaining table should not be an issue. Sinclair explained, What teachers want is for schools to be open, for her government to give back the money that the courts have told them should be returned, and to negotiate fair wages and benefits.

The BC Federation of labour sponsored a rally for teachers at Clark's office in West Kelowna Wednesday afternoon. Over 300 people showed up to support the teachers.

A press release from the labour group states, "While the Premier insisted that it was not her intention to be part of the negotiation, she proceeded to attack teachers for their position at the bargaining table. Ms. Clark should immediately end her spin. Union members will not be divided by this government."

Sinclair says, The Premiers comments can only serve to inflame an already difficult situation.She had the opportunity to provide real leadership and propose a solution, and instead her attack on teachers was intended to push the parties further apart.

The BC Federation of Labour has organized other rallies and events this week, culminating in a large rally in front of Christy Clarks Vancouver office at 5 p.m. on Friday.

Join in the BCTF Strike discussion:
I was appalled to read the recent letter from Helen Schiele with respect to Ribfest.

I am not a Rotarian, nor am I in any way connected to the KGH foundation. I am, however, a grandfather who has three special-needs grandchildren who have all been treated at Children's Hospital in Vancouver.

How anyone could use a fundraiser as a platform to express personal feelings against such a great cause is beyond me.

JoeAnna's House is so needed in the Interior of B.C., and my heart goes out to those who may need it.

I would challenge people of similar views as Schiele's to take a walk around similar family care facilities in Vancouver. Have a good look at the families and their faces. They are most likely facing the most horrible time in their life.

Without these facilities, families without the finances would be back at home. They would be isolated from a child who is very ill, afraid and lonely.

Parents need to be with their children, and the children need their parents. That is the real picture of life.

Ken Warren
Photo: Contributed Police supplied image of Anton Reeves.

Police are asking for the publics help locating a missing teenager last seen in Surrey.

Anton Reeves, 17, was last spotted by his family at about 5 p.m. on August 27 at the Surrey Central Mall.

Police said it is believed Reeves was at the Directions Youth Shelter in Downtown Vancouver the next morning.

Reeves is being described as a mixed race male, 17 years old, six-foot-two, 130 pounds, dark brown short curly hair, has a dark brown scraggly beard and moustache.

He was last seen wearing a black Bench zippered jacket with the word Bench across the collar and had on grey Nike sweat pants, black Nike rose shoes with white soles.

Anyone with information is being asked to contact Surrey RCMP at 604-599-0502.
Photo: The Canadian Press

A Myanmar court sentenced two Reuters journalists to seven years in prison Monday for illegal possession of official documents, a ruling that comes as international criticism mounts over the military's alleged human rights abuses against Rohingya Muslims.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo had pleaded not guilty to violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, punishable by up to 14 years in prison. They contended they were framed by police. The verdict was postponed from a week ago because the presiding judge was ill.

The case has drawn worldwide attention as an example of how press freedom is suffering under the government of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. Her taking power in 2016 had raised hopes for an accelerated transition to full democracy from military rule, but she has since disappointed many former admirers.

"What happened today threatens to undermine the rule of law and freedom of press that democracy requires," said Kevin Krolicki, Reuters' regional editor for Asia. He called the verdict "heartbreaking."

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, both testified they suffered from harsh treatment during their initial interrogations. Their several appeals for release on bail were rejected. Wa Lone's wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to the couple's first child in Yangon on Aug. 10, but Wa Lone has not yet seen his daughter.

The two journalists had been reporting last year on the brutal crackdown by security forces on the Rohingya in Myanmar's Rakhine state. Some 700,000 Rohingya fled to neighbouring Bangladesh to escape the violence targeting them after attacks by Rohingya militants killed a dozen members of the security forces.

Investigators working for the U.N.'s top human rights body said last week that genocide charges should be brought against senior Myanmar military officers over the crackdown.

The accusation of genocide was rejected by Myanmar's government, but is the most serious official recommendation for prosecution so far. Also last week, Facebook banned Myanmar's powerful military chief and 19 other individuals and organizations from its site to prevent the spread of hate and misinformation in connection with the Rohingya crisis.

Dozens of journalists and pro-democracy activists marched Saturday in Yangon, Myanmar's biggest city, in support of the reporters. But in the country at large, with an overwhelming Buddhist majority, there is widespread prejudice against the Rohingya, and in the government and military, there is near-xenophobic sensitivity to foreign criticism.

Myanmar's courts are one of the country's most conservative and nationalistic institutions, and the darkened political atmosphere had seemed unlikely to help the reporters' cause.

The court earlier this year declined to stop the trial after an initial phase of presentation of evidence, even though a policeman called as a prosecution witness testified that his commander had ordered that documents be planted on the journalists. After his testimony, the officer was jailed for a year for violating police regulations and his family was kicked out of police housing.

Other testimony by prosecution witnesses was contradictory, and the documents presented as evidence against the reporters appeared to be neither secret nor sensitive. The journalists testified they did not solicit or knowingly possess any secret documents.

UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator in Myanmar Knut Ostby said the UN was "disappointed by today's court decision."

"The United Nations has consistently called for the release of the Reuters journalists and urged the authorities to respect their right to pursue freedom of expression and information," he said. "Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be allowed to return to their families and continue their work as journalists."

In the latest U.S. expression of concern, Washington's envoy to the United Nations, Nikki Haley, said the Trump administration expected to see the two journalists acquitted of all charges.

Haley told the Security Council during a discussion of the Rohingya crisis last week that "a free and responsible press is critical for any democracy."
Photo: The Canadian Press Stephen Thompson, from Atlanta, Ga., places roses as he remembers his father Ernest Thompson who perished in the crash of Swissair Flight 111 at a memorial service at Bayswater Beach, N.S. on Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Andrew Vaughan

Stephen Thompson clutched a tissue Sunday afternoon, unable to hold back tears during an emotional service honouring his father and 228 others who died in a horrific airplane crash 20 years ago.

Thompson attended the service along with others who lost loved ones when Swissair Flight 111 from New York City to Geneva crashed into Nova Scotian waters on the evening of Sept. 2, 1998, leaving no survivors.

"He was my best friend," Thompson said.

"Still, to this day, whenever I come back or think about it, it brings back memories of that night, but I have some great memories as well. The good memories are what I really focus on, but every now and then it comes back," he said.

Thompson said he was thankful for all the people who tried to help, and did help following the crash.

"I can't believe the number of people that are here today," he said. "It meant a lot."

During the service at the Swissair Memorial Site in Bayswater, N.S., Rev. Louis Quennelle of the Anglican Parish of Blandford told the dozens gathered for the ceremony that while the events of that night were tragic, they helped bring many communities and friendships together.

"The lessons of Swissair were many ... One of the lessons taught is that the world can be a very small place. Tragedy touched people in different ways from all around our little blue planet," he said.

Quennelle noted that it's important to remember the first responders who helped in the immediate aftermath of the disaster, saying they "took part in what was originally thought to be a rescue operation, but quickly became one of search, and recovery, and investigation."

Greg Cainen, who was a Halifax Regional Police officer at the time, said the night of the incident is still fresh in his mind.

The MacDonald Bridge between Halifax and Dartmouth was closed that evening, and Cainen was tasked with getting it open to receive ambulances from the disaster, before officials knew the extent of the crash.

"I spoke with the foreman of the company, and I said: 'There's been a tragedy and we need the bridge for ambulance traffic.' He promised it would be open within 30 minutes, and it was," Cainen said Sunday.

"I radioed to another one of our members and I said the bridge was open and ready to receive ambulance traffic. And there was a short pause in his response, and he just said, 'There are no survivors.'"

Two days later, he was sent to patrol Peggy's Cove  a popular tourist attraction where another Swissair monument is located  to ensure the family members of the victims didn't attempt suicide on the slippery rocks "to be with their loved ones."

"When I go there today, I picture checkpoints, I picture helicopter landing zones. It's just different for me," he said.

While he said he doesn't deal with any long-term effects from his work in the aftermath of the Swissair crash, he knows several first responders who live with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder.

Claire Mortimer, who lost her father and stepmother in the crash, said she's heard of at least two suicides by people involved in the recovery efforts, noting that while the pain of her loss has largely healed, some of the people who helped recover the bodies of the victims may still be dealing with the psychological toll of their grisly duty.

"This is a tragedy as much as the plane crash was a tragedy," she said, referencing one of the men who died by suicide.

"I consider people such as (the man,) who took their own lives as a result of their involvement in the Swissair site, to be a victim of Swissair as much as my father. These people need to be recognized and cared for."

Mortimer, a nurse practitioner who specializes in Post Traumatic Stress Disorder therapy, said she hopes to get in touch with first responders who worked at the site of the crash, as well as anyone else in the community who may have been affected, to help those who may be struggling to connect with the resources they need.

Although she lives in Maine, Mortimer has travelled to Nova Scotia so many times she considers it as a second home.

She said the support from the province was instrumental during her healing process.

"It just was such a warm, loving experience, to be embraced by so many people," she said, adding that she, in turn, wants to help others affected by the crash heal in their own way.

Of the 229 people who died, 14 were crew and the rest were passengers, most of whom came from the U.S., France, or Switzerland.

Notable figures on board included well-known AIDS researcher Jonathan Mann, Pierce Gerety of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees, UNICEF adviser Yves De Roussan, and Ingrid Acevedo, public relations director for UNICEF.

Approximately 2,800 people were involved in the recovery and some 200 divers ventured 55 metres below the ocean surface in search of human remains and parts of the aircraft.

The disaster, which began with an electrical fire that spread through the cockpit and caused a catastrophic failure, eventually led to improved safety measures on planes, including certain flammable materials no longer being used on aircraft.

Vic Gerden led the investigation for the Transportation Safety Board, in what would become one of the costliest and most complicated probes in the history of aviation disasters.

In 2003, he released a 337-page report that concluded the fire started when an arcing wire ignited a flammable insulation covering, or MPET, in the ceiling. The report included 23 recommendations on everything from flight recorders and material flammability to in-flight firefighting and what pilots should do if they smell smoke.

In a statement last week, Gerden said 20 of those have led to improved safety measures on planes.

"Perhaps the most significant change is that certain flammable materials such as MPET are no longer used in aircraft, reducing the risk of in-flight fires," he said.

Also, air crew are now trained to "quickly start planning for immediate landing until they are assured there is no fire threat to the aircraft or occupants" when smoke is detected.
Photo: Google Maps

A technology education program officially launching in the fall at the University of Victoria hopes to address a gap in the industry with a novel approach for students.

HighTechU is a pilot program developed through the university's computer science department in partnership with Victoria's technology and education sectors.

It aims to develop skills in enterprising Vancouver Island teens to make them more effective in the tech industry, beyond the primary coding and technical abilities needed.

Andrew MacLean said he and program co-founder Dr. Ulrike Stege wanted to prepare students for the reality of the industry ahead of them, while making diversity a cornerstone of the program.

"It really focuses on the soft skills that go along with that career, and really focuses on workplace competencies for these students," MacLean said from Vancouver Island campus.

"They get a sneak peek and to test drive a technology industry career before they even graduate from high school."

HighTechU has two separate programs  the Computer Science Skills Academy, a six-week program that teaches coding and practical skills, and a summer industry internship program to give those students an eight-week, paid experience with a local technology company in Victoria.

MacLean said students enrolled in HighTechU are taught "soft skills" such as project management and personal communication to help them better understand the breadth of roles in the tech sector.

Stege said there appears to be a perception of what working in the tech sector is like, which she says is not necessarily in line with reality.

"It's never been right and might still not be right. A program like ours will hopefully help to correct that," she said.

MacLean said their mission is to impart to students how critical personal development is to a successful career in technology and that it's as important as mastering the latest code language.

"It's about how to be someone who's not just building something, but someone who's developing something and truly bringing it from start to finish," said MacLean.

MacLean said HighTechU is a grassroots initiative that de-emphasizes students' socio-economic backgrounds while it looks to narrow the diversity gap in the technology sector. They do this by focusing on groups that are underrepresented in the industry, such as women, Indigenous youth and people of colour.

"We have six core competencies we were looking for in students," he said.

Those values of respect, resilience, teamwork, creativity, curiosity and innovation were specifically asked for by the industry partners who worked with MacLean and Stege through each step of their students' application process, he noted.

MacLean said when they pitched the project initially it started out being a coding-primary program, until conversations with several industry partners revealed a different need.

They told MacLean they did not care as much about the technical skills as having balanced, flexible students.

"They said 'we're looking for you to find those students that are self-motivated, passionate,'" said MacLean, "their 'big words' were curious and passionate about technology, willing to learn and do the work and put in the time to be able to adapt to the changing situations (of the industry)."

MacLean likened their approach to the old truism of the fisherman.

"If you teach one programming language, that's great for the year that language is really popular. But then when the new programming language comes out, those students need to be able to learn on their own."

MacLean said they worked closely with three school districts and several private schools in the Greater Victoria area to develop curriculum for the program.

"A lot of the students that come through have done the computer science programs and are exceptional students before they come to us," he said.

One of those students from an earlier pilot, Bridget Weston, finished high school at Victoria High School in June and is already working as an intern at a startup called Sendwithus. Weston will be attending UVic's software engineering program when classes resume.

MacLean added that the demand from industry partners is so high that almost every teacher in the area would need additional training to continue educating in the field.

"Schools think about it one way and we're able to provide additional challenges that aren't always possible in school," said Stege.

The program is delivered at no cost to the students beyond nominal registration fees and MacLean said the next group of students will be welcomed to HighTechU's Academy program in February 2019.
Photo: The Canadian Press New Brunswick Liberal Leader Brian Gallant and wife Karine Lavoie are greeted by supporters after arriving at a campaign stop in Oromocto, N.B., on September 1, 2018. THE CANADIAN PRESS/James West

New Brunswick is Canada's only officially bilingual province, with the closest balance in the nation of residents who speak our two official languages.

Politically, though, language has long been a ticking time bomb.

"I don't think New Brunswick has ever resolved its cultural and linguistic divide," says Herb Emery, a professor at the University of New Brunswick in Fredericton.

"Instead, it's had premiers who have been very good at keeping a lid on it and keeping the peace."

Polls suggest the next premier of New Brunswick after the Sept. 24 provincial election will be one of two very different men.

There's Brian Gallant, the bilingual Liberal incumbent who has been reticent to wade into the province's thorny language politics.

Then there's Blaine Higgs, the anglophone Tory leader who was briefly involved with an anti-bilingualism party three decades ago but has since changed his opinions and is taking weekly French classes.

Despite their differences, neither leader is likely eager to make bilingualism an issue in the campaign.

"When you play the language card ... it's a hot topic," says Christian Michaud, a bilingual Moncton-based lawyer who has worked on language rights cases and constitutional challenges as far as the Supreme Court.

"If you don't do it properly you could face different levels of attack. It could backfire."

There was one language flare-up last week: A French-language leaders debate was scrapped by Canada's public broadcaster after Higgs said he couldnt debate in French and Gallant refused to take on a candidate that wasn't the leader.

"It made political sense for the Liberals to refuse to participate in that debate, because they don't even have to debate any issue and they already appear to be the francophone-friendly party," says Mathieu Wade, a researcher with the Institute for Acadian Studies at the Universite de Moncton.

The language rights act of 1969 is credited with ushering in major social reform and safeguarding the French language in New Brunswick, where in 2016 roughly 32 per cent of people said French was their mother tongue, compared to about 65 per cent English, according to census data.

But the incident offered a glimpse into the language debate that still simmers. Official bilingualism has sparked heated arguments in both English and French over its benefits and costs.

In recent years, separate school bus regimes for francophone and anglophone students, bilingual staffing for paramedics, language obligations for municipalities, and even a complaint  from the official languages commissioner  about a unilingual commissionaire in a government building have all made headlines in New Brunswick.

On one side of the debate, some equate so-called duality  two institutions that each serve one linguistic community  with duplication. They see the costs of providing English and French services across New Brunswick as untenable in the cash-strapped province.

Critics say the division of New Brunswickers among linguistic lines  such as separate health care or school bus systems  amounts to segregation, and that bilingualism requirements in the public sector unfairly disadvantage anglophones.

It's a position that has been carefully sidestepped by the Progressive Conservative party, historically seen as the party of choice among the province's anglophones.

The tension had been exploited in the past by the Confederation of Regions Party, which won eight seats in 1991 on a promise to strike the Official Languages Act from the province's books, and more recently by the People's Alliance party.

People's Alliance Leader Kris Austin, who lost his bid for a seat by fewer than 30 votes during the last election and is running again, promises a populist agenda  including ending duality by combining English and French public services.

"Bilingualism is a wedge issue in New Brunswick and the People's Alliance is prying it open," Emery says.

"There are some New Brunswickers that have never really gone along with official bilingualism and they feel there is favouritism, and the party is taking advantage of that."

On the other side of the debate are those who say their language rights can't be reduced to dollars and cents arguments about economic efficiency.

New Brunswickers have a constitutional right to be served by the government in English or French, and proponents of official bilingualism say the duality of services helps prevent the assimilation of the minority francophone population.

"Language can be taught, learned and forgotten," Wade says. "It's a very porous identity."

"You need to create some boundaries for it to be preserved."

Yet even among defenders of official bilingualism, some moderation of language laws is increasingly considered acceptable.

With school buses, for example, Michaud says anglophone and francophone students should be allowed on the same bus under certain circumstances.

"I would argue that on a school bus there is very little risk of assimilation," he says.

The school bus issue arose three years ago when the provincial government discovered that students from French and English schools were travelling on the same buses in a rural area of southeastern New Brunswick. The school districts were ordered to stop the practice and added extra buses to comply.

The Charter guarantees separate educational institutions for French and English, resulting in two distinct school boards.

But Michaud says he doesn't see a school bus as an extension of the school. And even if bilingual school buses are a breach of the charter  which he doubts  he says it would be a "very limited breach" that would likely be considered reasonable.

"That's the thing with language rights," Michaud says. "Some people use language rights to the extreme where it's about purity and that becomes dangerous."

He adds: "Language rights are there to allow for francophones to ensure they protect their language and culture, but it should not be a trump card for everything."
Liquor baron Vijay Mallya's lawyer on Monday sought more time to file reply on the Enforcement Directorate's notice in connection with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) Appellate Tribunal case.

The lawyer argued that he has not received some of the notices till date despite him sharing his Mauritius">Mauritius address.

In response to this, the ED lawyer argued that as per the law, no more time could be given to Mallya for response on the application, adding that even the court is powerless to give time beyond one week as mandated by the Fugitive Offenders law.

On August 25, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) countered charges leveled by Mallya that condition in Mumbai's Arthur Road Jail is "inhuman" by submitting a video in London's Westminster Magistrates Court, which showed proper facility in the Cell Number 12, where the absconding businessman would be lodged after extradition.

This video was submitted after Mallya's lawyers in the court on July 31 raised question on the condition of toilet and natural light in Arthur Road Jail.

-ANI
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 3)  Employees at the House of Representatives will receive a bonus worth 35,000 in September to get through "taghirap months," the House speaker said Monday.

House Speaker Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo said she was told by someone from the lower chamber that August and September are financially difficult months, resulting in the increased number of loan applications.

"Somebody from Congress told me that August and September are, to use his words, 'taghirap months' kasi raw walang extra na natatanggap [because they do not receive any extra compensation]. Kaya kapag [That's why during] August and September, ang daming [there's a lot of] applications for loans," Arroyo said during a flag raising ceremony Monday morning.

Last month, employees also received 5,000 grocery allowance.

"Well, last August, with the hardwork of Accounts Committee chairman Yedda Romualdez, you received a grocery allowance of 5,000. This month, with the even harder work of Cong. Yedda Romualdez, I have been able to authorize the release of 35,000," she said.

The House Speaker expressed her gratitude to the employees for their hard work, noting how they worked on her bills and took care of her congressional office.

She also thanked them for "adjusting well" when the House changed leadership.

Arroyo said with the help and support of the House workforce, she foresees a productive year with the House under her watch.

"Fortunately, we are not starting from zero because the President's legislative agenda has already been laid out. We just have to roll up our sleeves and get as much done as possible under my watch," she said.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 3)  Authorities said Monday the death toll has risen to two in the latest bombing incident in Isulan, Sultan Kudarat suspected to be the handiwork of an Islamic State group-inspired faction of the Bangsamoro Islamic Freedom Fighters (BIFF).

Philippine National Police (PNP) Spokesperson Bong Durana said the Provincial Director of Sultan Kudarat and the police chief of Isulan were relieved from their posts to give way to the investigation of the attacks.

Sunday's bombing, which also injured at least 12 people, followed another blast five days earlier that killed three people and wounded more than 30 others. 6th Infantry Division Commander Cirilito Sobejana said the group under Salahuddin Hassan may be responsible for the blast on Sunday.

He added that they are monitoring three areas where the suspects may be hiding, as the town continues to be on lockdown.

"Ang suspect natin ngayon sa bombing kagabi ito 'yung grupo ni Salahuddin Hassan. Ito 'yung breakaway group from the BIFF," Sobejana said.

[Translation: Our suspect now for the bombing last night is the group of Salahuddin Hassan. This is the breakaway group from the BIFF.]

Durana echoed the commander's statement saying the attacks were "designed to maim and kill a lot of people" possibly to gain media coverage, which indicate that it could be the work of local terrorists.

"In any other terrorist attack they would want to have their bastardly act to be covered by the media and in areas where they can get good media coverage" He said in a press briefing.

Sobejana said they were already monitoring five improvised explosive devices (IED) that were being transported to South Cotabato before the blast on Sunday.

He said they received reports that these homemade bombs were to be launched in three areas in Sultan Kudarat, including Isulan.

"Before the explosion meron na kaming namonitor na five IEDs na ilalabas, closely monitored namin itong pagtransport nito at ang napag-alaman namin itong lima na 'to dinala nila sa South Cotabato and from there ilalaunch nila 'yung IED attacks sa city of Tacurong, Municipality of Isulan at Municipality of Esperanza," he told CNN Philippines' New Day.

[Translation: Before the explosion we were monitoring five IEDs to be launched. We closely monitored its transportation to South Cotabato and from there they would launch the IED attacks in the city of Tacurong, and the municipalities of Isulan and Esperanza.]

Neither Sobejana nor Durana confirmed if the latest bombing incident was related to the first blast in Isulan on August 28. However, Sobejana said the group of Ismael Abubakar was allegedly responsible for the first incident.

Sobejana assured that military has intensified its checkpoints and monitoring operations to thwart any more possible attacks in the areas.

"We are also doing our focused military operation kung san nanggaling itong mga bombs para sa doon pa lamang maneutraliuze na namin," he said.

[Translation: We are also doing our focused military operations to see where these bombs are coming from so we can neutralize them from there.]

Durana also appealed to the public to remain calm and vigilant amid the incidents.

"In any terror attack, whatever it is, apparently nakita natin [apparently we saw] they would want to sow fear and chaos, but I appeal to the people of Mindanao not to give these lawless elements the luxury of us being cowed with fear," he said.
Evonik is taking the next step in systematically focusing on specialty chemicals with the divestment of its US Jayhawk site in Galena, Kansas. The site produces precursors for agrochemicals, which are not included in the growth businesses defined by Evonik. We want to continue growing profitably in the specialty chemicals sector, says Evonik Executive Board Chairman Christian Kullmann. This also means giving up businesses or sites if a different owner can offer the business better future perspectives. The sale is a further step towards optimizing our portfolio and it opens up new opportunities for us in the targeted development of our growth engines.



Jayhawks activities fall under the Agrochemicals & Polymer Additives business line in Evoniks Performance Materials segment. Under a share deal, funds advised by the international investment firm Permira will acquire the site along with the company and its approximately 120 employees. Were looking forward to successfully growing the business in Jayhawk further, said Sebastian Hoffmann, Principal and member of the Industrials Team at Permira. We already have a high level of expertise in customer-oriented solutions in fine chemicals, for example through the investment of the Permira funds in CABB. A strategic cooperation between Jayhawk and CABB will create a seamless transatlantic product and service offering from which existing and new customers of both companies will benefit."



The sale price is in the high double-digit million dollar range. The transaction is subject to approval by antitrust authorities in several countries.
The Fox Rivers dams were once a source of power for nearby communities, but that is no longer the case for most of the 13 dams on the river. Low-head dams, in particular, cause strong recirculating currents and have led to multiple drownings over the years. And the dams have disrupted the rivers ecosystem, causing excess algae and other environmental issues, experts say.
Little needs to be said at this point to convince anyone of the widespread desire to see boomer icons while theyre still in action. (One imagines that if 2016s Desert Trip had taken place after the deaths of Chuck Berry, Tom Petty and Aretha Franklin, the classic-rock mega-concert could have raked in even more than the $160 million its reported to have made.)
Of the 266 employees, Jackson wrote: CPS will be conducting thorough investigations in all of these instances to better understand the circumstances of each unique case. Employees were only removed based on the results of their background checks if arrests were identified that suggest a potential history of violence, sexual misconduct, or dangerous criminal activity.
I honestly think in the long run we got our message across, Coconate said. I think it took where this was being held, in cop land up here in this part of the city, for people to think about why its beautiful up here and why on the West and the South sides things are so bad.  Theres a lot of money thats really not reaching those neighborhoods.
According to the charges, Williams fired several times at the couple, striking Jackson in the head and wounding the man in the left arm. The man received treatment at Mount Sinai Hospital but Jackson was killed, court papers said.
"Today's verdict cannot conceal the truth of what happened in Rakhine state," Tirana Hassan, Amnesty International's director of crisis response, said in a statement Monday. "It's thanks to the bravery of journalists like Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo, that the military's atrocities have been exposed. Instead of targeting these two journalists, the Myanmar authorities should have been going after those responsible for killings, rape, torture and the torching of hundreds of Rohingya villages."
The president's attack came after Trumka appeared on "Fox News Sunday" over the weekend where he said efforts to overhaul the North American Free Trade Agreement should include Canada. Trumka, whose organization is an umbrella group for most unions, said the economies of the United States, Canada and Mexico are "integrated" and "it's pretty hard to see how that would work without having Canada in the deal."
Did she say 2020? Um, hate to remind the CEO, but Mayor Rahm Emanuel has long set that goal for 2019, which would happen to coincide with the start of his third term in office if hes re-elected. The district insists that Jackson isnt moving the goalposts. Weve seen documents that show the goal as 2019 or 2020. Given the school districts fiddling with graduation stats several years ago, were always wary.
5316 Lawn Ave., Western Springs: $2,399,000 | Listed: Oct. 27, 2021



This six-bedroom home has seven full bathrooms, one half-bath, two fireplaces, a foyer with stone flooring and a sauna/steam room. The kitchen has hardwood floors, custom cabinetry, granite counters, a butlers pantry, a kitchen island and a double oven. The primary bedroom is located on the second floor and has hardwood flooring and a full bathroom. This home also has an office with built-in shelving, a laundry room with ceramic tile, a family room, a dining room, an atrium and a finished basement with a recreation room. Wine storage, a four-car garage and outdoor seating and dining areas complete this home.



Agent: Linda Feinstein, Compass, 630-319-0352



*Some listing photos are virtually staged, meaning they have been digitally altered to represent different furnishing or decorating options.



To feature your luxury listing of $800,000 or more in Chicago Tribunes Dream Homes, send listing information and high-res photos to ctc-realestate@chicagotribune.com.



Join our Chicago Dream Homes Facebook group for more luxury listings and real estate news.
Experts say its decline had a lot to do with retail struggles in general and the fact millennials and Gen Z shoppers were spending less on apparel and more on experiences. Plus, it is harder for companies to keep up with the ever-changing desires of youth who are heavily influenced by so much visual information on Instagram and Snapchat.
Its a really great time to just hug and catch up, and make sure everybody is doing OK, said Van Dyke, of Crestwood, who was surrounded by family along the parade route. Its really a reunion and its to let everybody know that Robbins is still here.
Kevaughm Blackwood, 22, of Jamaica, has two roommates and their room had the hole in the ceiling, a sprinkler head sticking out and paint peeling around the hole. He said they were going to move him, and he asked the manager if he could see the room they were going to move to and the manager said no. As of Friday, he too was supposed to go to the Ramada Inn.
One estimate is that each Illinois taxpayer is in debt $50,000, at minimum, to the state. Add to that your local tax bill  the final installment is due Thursday in the Lake County Treasurers Office  and were talking chalking up real money we owe governments. These are governments to which we elect representatives to make sure they are run correctly, oversee what taxpayers pay for and give us the best bang for our increasingly big bucks.
Park Ridge resident Annamaria Hallagan said she decided to stop at Higgins and Cumberland out of curiosity and see if the demonstrators would actually make it on to the expressway. She said she was surprised to hear what she called racist language coming from some of the white onlookers who had gathered near her on the Park Ridge side of the intersection.
McCain's years as a prisoner of war gave him a righteousness perhaps nobody can match. He never forgot that political opponents are not his enemies, and that there are things more important than winning elections. But perhaps Graham could show a little backbone? When CNN's Dana Bash asked him to name new "wingmen or women," Graham mentioned Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Ark.  the fierce partisan who blew up Graham's immigration deal, was patently dishonest about Trump's "shithole countries" meeting and was dubbed the "Steve King of the Senate" by Graham for his anti-immigrant views, in reference to the ultraconservative Iowa representative.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 3)  The Philippines and Israel inked three agreements Monday, the day President Rodrigo Duterte met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

In a message, Presidential Spokesperson Harry Roque said the deals signed were:

a Memorandum of Agreement on the temporary employment of home-based Filipino caregivers,

a Memorandum of Understanding on scientific cooperation, and

a Memorandum of Intent on the collaboration on promotion on bilateral direct investment

Signatories of the agreements are Labor Secretary Silvestre Bello, Foreign Affairs Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano, and Trade Secretary Ramon Lopez respectively.

No details on the agreements were available as of posting time.

Special Assistant to the President Bong Go documented the meeting between the two state leaders, and shared photos of the event.

The President also visited the Yad Vashem Holocaust memorial in Jerusalem.

President Duterte left the country on Sunday for the historic visits to Israel and Jordan. It is the first official visit by a sitting President to both countries.

Duterte will be away from the country for a week, visiting countries which, despite having established diplomatic ties with the Philippines several decades ago, have never seen a Philippine leader up close.

The visits are in line with government efforts to develop relationships with more non-traditional allies.
Its interesting that you are fine with the federal employees not getting a raise. What makes you think that you will be the recipient of a raise in your Social Security? If you would stop watching Fox angry opinion propaganda, you would know that the party in power is definitely trying to take away your paid for and earned benefits from Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid. And, just wondering why you feel fine with others losing benefits if you can have them instead?
An exhibition exploring the role of empresses of China's last dynasty, the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), opened recently at the Peabody Essex Museum (PEM) in Salem, Massachusetts.

Nearly 200 spectacular objects from the Palace Museum, once known as the Forbidden City, also home to the empresses, are on display at the exhibition which runs until next Feb. 10.

The display is mainly about three empresses, including Empress Dowager Chongqing, who is honored as the Sage Mother after her son Qianlong Emperor inherited the throne; Empress Xiaoxian, Qianlong Emperor's beloved wife; and Empress Dowager Cixi, one of the most powerful women in Chinese history.

As the wives of the emperors, the empresses were the most powerful women in ancient China. However, their time in the palace and their roles in shaping politics, art, religion and even the Chinese history were often underestimated.

Only a few traces could be found in the historical records about the elite group of women. That added some mystique to the women, who enjoyed supreme privilege, status and wealth living at the heart of power in ancient China.

"Despite the stringent palace rules that kept them largely away from public view, these empresses led remarkably complex and inspiring lives," said Daisy Yiyou Wang, PEM's curator of Chinese and East Asian Art.

"This exhibition is thrilling in that it opens a silent yet colorful book about how these women helped shape the course of history."

The relics on display include imperial portraits, jewelry, garments, Buddhist sculptures and decorative art objects, from which the lives of the empresses could be imagined.
The postpartum rehabilitation market is expected to boom, and healthcare facilities are expected to play a crucial role in the transition from the Chinese traditional custom of zuo yue zi, or "postpartum confinement" to modern postpartum rehabilitation, according to a recently released white paper on the issue.

On Friday United Family Healthcare, a leading private healthcare provider, released the paper, which was mainly based on a survey covering 11,000 Chinese women of reproductive age nationwide. The survey was jointly conducted by UFH and Babytree, a leading Chinese website on maternity and child health.

It is estimated the number of babies delivered in China is approaching 17 million per year, and the number of Chinese households with postpartum care demands is approximately 2.4 million per year, according to Yang Lei, a researcher with the Babytree user research unit.

"Women undergo significant physical changes and mood swings due to fluctuating hormone levels during pregnancy and childbirth," said Qin Xinyan, chief medical officer of UFH's postpartum rehabilitation sector.

"New mothers need not only attention and support from family, but also professional help in maternity, rehabilitation and nutrition, among many other needs."

China should promote science-based postpartum rehabilitation practices, because the traditional practices cannot fully meet the needs of women, and some practices are even unhealthy, Qin said.

In the paper, the China Maternal and Child Health Association and UFH jointly asked postpartum rehabilitation facilities to achieve a set of goals, such as ensuring a more than 50 percent exclusive breastfeeding rate each month, conducting depression screening tests for new mothers every month, and reducing the incidence rate of mastitis  inflammation of the mammary gland  among new mothers and umbilical cord infection in newborns to less than 5 percent per month.

New mothers should choose service providers based on such standards, the paper said.

Chen Ziquan, president of the association, said science-based postpartum rehabilitation is different from traditional customs, and healthcare facilities that have specialized equipment and medical professionals who work in accordance with a strict code of conduct can better ensure quality care for new mothers and newborns.

Ninety-nine percent of respondents thought postpartum confinement is necessary, and 14 percent of women, who are more likely to have higher education and older age, would seek professional postpartum rehabilitation service, according to the paper.

Restoring their physical strength, improving breastfeeding and reducing postpartum pain and discomfort are among the top three reasons why women seek postpartum care, and more than 40 percent of respondents said they feel "depressed" and "irritated" mainly because of the lack of care and support from family.

About 83 percent of people are willing to pay in the range of 50,000 ($7,320) to 100,000 yuan for postpartum rehabilitation care, depending on service quality and safety. Twenty-two percent of respondents in first-tier cities said they could accept a price higher than 100,000 yuan, according to the survey.
You are here: Business

A Chinese consortium formed by two power generation equipment makers has officially won the Engineering, Procurement, and Construction (EPC) contract for a coal-fired power plant in Egypt.

Dongfang Electric Corp. and Shanghai Electric Group signed the EPC contracting deal with the Egyptian Ministry of Electricity and Renewable Energy Sunday night in Beijing.

The two will provide six ultra-supercritical, near-zero polluting coal-fired power generating units with a total generating capacity of 6.6 GW for the Hamrawein power plant.

The power plant, over 800 km from Cairo, Egypt's capital, is expected to be built in six years to become Africa's largest clean-coal power plant.

Zou Lei, chairman of Dongfang Electric Corp., said the contract is a landmark for China's high-end power generation equipment manufacturers as they bring the self-developed, most advanced ultra-supercritical clean coal power generating technology to the world for the first time.

The consortium beat two rivals to win the EPC contract tender for 4.4 billion U.S. dollars in June.
Guan Huashi, a 79-year-old Chinese scientist, is leading his research team to look for new drugs from the ocean.

Thanks to scientists including Guan, GV-971, a new Alzheimer's drug extracted from brown algae, completed its phase three clinical trial in July.

Alzheimer's is an irreversible, progressive brain disorder that slowly destroys memory, thinking skills, and the ability to carry out simple tasks.

The disease affects about 48 million people worldwide and the number is expected to increase with the aging population. There is no effective cure.

The drug is targeted at patients with mild-to-moderate Alzheimer's. Independent animal experiments also showed that it can regulate the immune system, reduce neuroinflammation and improve cognition.

"A phase three clinical trial is the last test before reaching the market," said Guan, a researcher with the Chinese Academy of Engineering.

Natural products produced by marine organisms sometimes have pharmacological activity that can be of therapeutic benefit in treating diseases such as cancer, according to Lyu Zhihua, a member of Guan's team and vice dean of the School of Medicine and Pharmacy at the Ocean University of China.

"Around 35,000 marine natural products have been discovered by humans. Half of them have biological activity. There are many more unknown natural products in the ocean," said Guan.

There are a dozen marine-derived drugs commercially available in the market and many more are in clinical trials. The industry has great potential.

Last year, Guan and his colleagues started establishing marine organism sample database and marine drug information database. A 5-billion-yuan (733 million U.S. dollars) fund has been set up to invest in developing new marine drugs.

Several challenges, including supply problems and target identification, need to be met for successful drug development of these often complex molecules.

"The development of marine drugs is always at a slow pace. For example, the research and development of GV-971 took 21 years," said Lyu.

It was like finding a needle in a haystack and then trying to figure out if the needle is useful for these diseases.

Approaches are available to overcome the hurdles. In addition to advances in sampling technologies and synthetic medicine, researchers with the Marine Biomedical Research Institute of Qingdao have sought help from supercomputing.

Based on supercomputing resources in the cities of Qingdao, Jinan, and Wuxi, researchers match and analyze the three-dimensional structures of 30,000 marine natural products with molecular targets of known drugs.

"Traditionally, scientists used one key to open a lock on which they conjecture the key could work. Now with supercomputing technology, one key could be tried on all different types of locks," said Yang Jinbo, chief scientist with the institute.

Yang said that the success rate of turning marine natural products into drug leads has been increased from 20 percent to more than 60 percent.

Scientists with Guan's team plan to take three to four new marine drugs into clinical trials in no more than five years, such as BG136 for the treatment of colon cancer.

Qingdao is famous for its marine science and technology. The city is home to 70 percent of China's marine experts, the deep-sea manned submersible Jiaolong and research vessel Kexue.

Guan describes what they are doing as setting up a blue pharmacy store. "Our aspirations cannot be achieved overnight. Generation after generation of Chinese scientists should work hard to seek potential cures for deadly diseases in the oceans."
As is customary in China, Zhang Yongfei and Tian Xiao held a family celebration this month to mark the 100th day since the birth of their son. Unlike most new parents, however, Zhang will never see his child, and Tian will never hold him.

"You are my eyes, and I am your hands and legs," Zhang, 32, who was born blind, told his wife at the party in Taiyuan, Shanxi province.

Tian, 27, has Lou Gehrig's diseasealso known as amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, or ALSwhich is a progressive condition that attacks the nerve cells that control muscles. Over time, it leaves patients struggling to walk, speak, swallow, and even breathe. So far, there is no cure.

For the past few years, Tian has been paralyzed except for some movement in her right hand. Yet in May, she became only the second woman with the disease to successfully deliver a child in China.

"Were it not for doctor Zhang Yanli, I would not have become a mom," she said.

Zhang Yanli, an obstetrician in her late 50s from the No 1 Hospital of Shanxi Medical University, first met Tian when she was three months' pregnant in November.

She warned of the dangers of going ahead with the pregnancy, but Tian was resolute. "I told her that I was placing two lives into her hands: my baby's and my own," she said. "I knew that this was coming, and it was not something that could be driven away. It was probably my maternal instinct."

Zhang Yanli, who has 38 years of experience, later told the media that it was a difficult decision to become Tian's doctor. "I was shocked after learning about her condition and her dream," she was quoted as saying.

But the obstetrician was moved by Tian's determination and courage. She studied her new patient's medical records, going back more than 20 years, and researched many academic documents.

She found out that the only recorded case of a successful C-section carried out on a woman with Lou Gehrig's disease in China was in 2013.

Zhang designed a tailor-made prenatal care schedule for Tian, and closely monitored mother and baby's physical condition throughout the pregnancy. She also held group consultations with experts in anesthesiology, neurology, neurosurgery and cardiovascular medicine to assess the risks and prepare for the delivery.

The hard work paid off. Tian gave birth to a healthy baby boy weighing 2.9 kilograms on the morning of May 3. His parents have nicknamed him "Miduo", which means "lots of rice", in the hope he has a plentiful life.

Having a son has brought the family happiness, hope and an important challenge, according to Zhang Yongfei. He said the couple will do their best to create a good environment for Miduo.

After graduating from a nursing school for the visually impaired, Zhang Yongfei opened his own massage clinic, employing six people.

Tian began studying graphic design at age 16 and opened her own recording and animation studio in 2010, before she lost the ability to move. Now, she works by controlling a computer with just the little finger on her right hand.

"Although it takes me half an hour to finish an operation that a healthy person could do in five minutes, I'm happy that I'm self-reliant. I like my work," she said.
 Flash

Violence across Iraq killed 82 civilians in August, the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) said Sunday.





A UNAMI statement added that 113 civilians were wounded in the terror attacks and armed conflicts in Iraq in the past month.





It said the number of casualties did not include Iraqi troops and security members killed and wounded, as the Iraqi military declined to give such information.





Previous figures of security members' casualties released by the UNAMI were dismissed by the Iraqi military as "inaccurate."





Figures of August showed that Iraqi capital Baghdad was the worst affected with 77 civilian casualties, as 24 people were killed and 53 others wounded.





The second was the country's northern province of Nineveh, with 39 civilian casualties, as 29 were killed and 10 wounded.





The security situation in Iraq has been dramatically improved after Iraqi security forces fully defeated the extremist Islamic State (IS) militants across the country late in 2017.





However, small groups and individuals of extremist militants melted or regrouped in urban and rugged areas and are carrying out attacks against the security forces and civilians despite operations from time to time to hunt them down.





Many blame the chronic instability, cycle of violence, and the emergence of extremist groups in Iraq on the United States, which invaded the country in March 2003, under the pretext of seeking to destroy weapons of mass destruction in the country. But no such weapons were found.




You are here: World

 Flash

Lack of efforts by Europe to save the 2015 Iranian nuclear deal will have "serious consequences," Kamal Kharrazi, chief of Iran's Strategic Council on Foreign Relations, said on Sunday, according to Tehran Times daily.

"Re-imposition of sanctions and pressure (by Washington) and Europe's lack of immediate action to meet obligations under the JCPOA (nuclear deal) will have serious consequences," said Kharrazi, former Iranian foreign minister.

He made the remarks during a meeting with British Minister of State for the Middle East, Alistair Burt, in the capital Tehran.

Burt said that the British position on the JCPOA is totally different from that of the United States.

"We are looking for a European mechanism for success of the JCPOA," Burt said, adding that Britain seeks to boost cooperation with Iran.

Iran has urgently called for Europe's "practical and tangible measures" to protect Iranian interests after the U.S. pullout.

Iran signed the landmark nuclear deal with the United States, Britain, France, Russia and China plus Germany in 2015 to halt its nuclear weapons program in exchange for sanctions relief.

U.S. President Donald Trump decided on May 8 to quit the Iranian nuclear deal and vowed to reimpose sanctions, including oil embargo, on Tehran.




 Flash

Chinese President Xi Jinping and South African President Cyril Ramaphosa held talks on Sunday ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC), agreeing to elevate the comprehensive strategic partnership of the two countries to a new level.

Xi noted that China and South Africa have valued sincerity, friendship and mutual trust. He also welcomed Ramaphosa's visit and co-chairing the FOCAC Beijing Summit, believing this will inject new impetus into the development of China's relations with South Africa and the continent.

Xi stressed that the significance of the relationship between China and South Africa has far exceeded the bilateral scope and is of global and strategic influence.

Since the establishment of diplomatic ties 20 years ago, the two countries have been committed to mutual respect, trust and benefit, and have always understood and relied on each other, said Xi.

Xi said the two countries should advance toward the major direction and target that have been established, actively implement important consensuses they have reached, make strategic plans for the bilateral cooperation in the next 10 years, strengthen high-level exchanges, deepen political mutual trust, promote practical cooperation and enhance inter-party and people-to-people exchanges.

Xi also called for concerted efforts to make the China-Africa cooperation flourishing, make the BRICS cooperation stronger and better, closely communicate and coordinate within multilateral frameworks, protect the legitimate rights of developing countries, promote democracy of international relations, propel the international system and international order to develop in a more equitable and reasonable direction.

Ramaphosa said the relationship between South Africa and China has been set up on the basis of equality, mutual respect and benefit, adding that it is unfading and strategic.

"I am very happy to visit China for the first time as the president of South Africa and continue our strategic communication," said Ramaphosa, noting that keeping high-level exchanges between the two sides is very important to deepen mutual trust.

South Africa is willing to learn from China's valuable experience in areas including ruling party building and corporate management, and will actively participate in the Belt and Road cooperation, said Ramaphosa.

Ramaphosa called for concerted efforts in upholding multilateralism and international trading regime, and safeguarding the common interests of emerging markets and developing countries.

After the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the signing of cooperation documents.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 3)  The cockpit voice recorder of the Xiamen Airways aircraft that caused the runway mishap at the Ninoy Aquino International Airport (NAIA) is now back in the country.

The Civil Aviation Authority of the Philippines (CAAP) confirmed the data recordings of the flight arrived in Manila on August 31, after it was sent to Singapore for analysis.

In a statement, the CAAP Aircraft Investigation and Inquiry Board (CAAP-AIIB) said the contents of the recorder remain in good quality.

Authorities have yet to disclose details of the recordings, but spokesperson Eric Apolonio said the investigation is more than halfway through.

Hundreds of flights were cancelled and diverted when the Xiamen Airways flight skidded off the NAIA runway on August 16. The mishap also left thousands of passengers stranded.

The main airport resumed normal operations five days later on August 21.

The Senate Committee on Public Services commenced a probe on the runway incident last week. Airport officials said the airline has to pay over 30 million to the Philippine government for the disservice.

The House of Representatives is also set to conduct a hearing on the issue on September 5.

CAAP authorities, meanwhile, said they will release an official report once investigation and analysis are concluded.
 Flash

Chinese President Xi Jinping met with Angolan President Joao Lourenco on Sunday ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (FOCAC).





Noting that China and Angola have jointly explored a unique path of common development since the two countries established a strategic partnership eight years ago, Xi called for efforts to advance this partnership to a higher level as this year marks the 35th anniversary of the establishment of the diplomatic relations between China and Angola.





Xi said China stands ready to strengthen ruling party exchanges and governance experience sharing with Angola, deepen cooperation in all areas, and enhance communication and coordination on major international issues.





China is willing to align the Belt and Road Initiative with Angola's economic diversification strategy and continues to provide assistance, without political conditions attached, to major projects suitable for Angola's national development strategy, Xi said.





Lourenco said Angola-China relations are strong and firm. He thanked China for its contributions to Angola's reconstruction and social economic development, and said Angola firmly upholds the one-China policy.





China has always given its precious help when Africa faced difficulties and has been playing a very important role in Africa's peace and development, Lourenco said, adding that African countries highly value their friendship with China and expect to take an active part in the FOCAC development.





After the meeting, the two leaders witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents.
 Flash

Chinese Premier Li Keqiang on Monday held talks with Ethiopia's Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed Ali ahead of the 2018 Beijing Summit of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation.

Noting that Ethiopia is an important African country and an important partner of China in Africa, Li said the China-Ethiopia comprehensive strategic and cooperative partnership has gained in-depth development.

Li said China encourages its enterprises to invest in Ethiopia, expand human resources development and cooperation, and promote construction of transportation infrastructure and supporting projects.

China is happy to see a peaceful and stable East Africa, and willing to work with Ethiopia to strengthen communication and coordination in international and regional affairs and safeguard common interests of both sides as well as other developing countries, Li said.

Abiy said Chinese enterprises are playing an increasingly important role in Ethiopia's economic and social development, adding that Ethiopia is willing to strengthen human resources, energy and infrastructure cooperation with China, improve the business environment and welcome Chinese companies to invest in Ethiopia.

After the talks, Li and Abiy witnessed the signing of bilateral cooperation documents.
Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, September 3)  Senator Panfilo Lacson was seeing more than 16 billion as potential pork barrel from the 2019 budget of the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH).

During a deliberation on Monday, Lacson bared two suspended road projects which are potential sources of pork barrel from the agency's budget.

The projects include the Sariaya Bypass Road project in Quezon, which has a total allocation of 466.8 million supposed to be implemented from 2014 to 2016. But construction was stalled because of road right of way issues in the light of the DPWH's request for additional funding.

"Obviously this is pork because nandun mismo sa [it's in the] GAA when this was passed second legislative district. Nung [In] 2016, the DPWH requested for further appropriations only to suspend the project three months later March 2016," he said.

"Apparently, walang galaw ito and there's now a PPP (Public-Private Partnership) project toll road so baka naging irrelevant na ito, maging useless na itong Sariaya bypass road because pag na-construct yung toll road baka hindi na magamit ito, so 466.8 million gone to waste," he added.

[Translation: Apparently, there's no movement and there's now PPP project toll road. When it's constructed, the Sariaya bypass road may become irrelevant, useless, thus, 466.8 million has gone to waste.]

Lacson specifically cited the special provision on the right of way acquisition, which states that in the implementation of infrastructure projects, the DPWH shall ensure that all right of way expenses are settled before projects should commence.

"Nakumpleto yung segment nakongkreto ninyo pero hindi rin talaga magagamit because of right of way issues because you failed to settle first. Dapat ma-settle muna yung right of way issues," he said.

[You made the segment concrete but it won't be used because of right of way issues, because ou failed to settle first. Right of way issues should be settle first.]

Lacson also presented the Labey-Lacamen provincial road, a circumferential road project in Benguet.

According to the senator, the road project is suspended because it does not only address the issue of right of way, but also slope protection.

"Kung hindi mo na ginawa yung slope protection hindi inaddress, ginawa kaagad yung kalsada, anong mangyayari sa kalsada, magagamit ba natin yan [If you did not address the slope protection, how to use the road]?" he asked.

"Look, under construction itong kalsada and yet natabunan ng lupa walang slope protection kasi nauna na naman yung construction and this is current ha [Look, the road is under construction, yet covered by land, no slope protection because the construction was again done first, and this is current}," he added.

During the budget deliberation last year, Lacson raised that the 50 billion allocation for right of way of the DPWH's budget to be deleted because he suspected it was not going to be utilized.

"Ipapa-delete natin kasi nung isang taon ni-restore nila yun, eh karamihan pa naman dun sa mga yun mga insertion ng mga congressmen {Let's delete that because they restored it last year and mostly inserted by the congressmen]," he said.

Lacson warned he will move to have the right of way allocation from the department's budget next year because he sees a potential 16 billion pork in the budget of the DPWH.

"Naka lump na naman ito, nakalagay sa central office sa NCR. So ito na naman yung sinasabi ko na nakapark sa national office para ito ay pwedeng paghugutan ng proyekto ng mga mambabatas [It is lumped again in the central office in the National Capital Region. This is what I said that it's parked in the national office and can fund projects of lawmakers]," he said.
(CNN)  Israel on Saturday praised the United States' decision to end funding for the UN agency responsible for providing education, health care and other services to Palestinian refugees, while Palestinian officials said the move threatened peace in the region.

"Israel welcomes the American decision," Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's office said in a statement. "It's worth transferring the money to other organizations which will use the money for the benefit of the population and not for the perpetuation of refugees."

Israel has long complained that the United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees in the Near East (UNRWA) serves to sustain the conflict, because it underpins the "right to return" of Palestinian refugees, a right that Israel rejects.

The head of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) delegation to the United States, Husam Zomlot, accused the Trump administration of reneging on its international commitment and doing Israel's bidding.

"By endorsing the most extreme Israeli narrative on all issues including the rights of more than five million Palestinian refugees, the U.S. administration has lost its status as peacemaker and is damaging not only an already volatile situation, but the prospects for future peace in the Middle East," Zomlot said in a statement.

In a widely trailed announcement Friday, the US State Department said it was ending funding for UNRWA because it believed the United States was shouldering too much of the burden of paying for it. It also said UNRWA had failed to enact reforms.

"The United States will no longer commit further funding to this irredeemably flawed operation," State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said.

The United States has long been the biggest single donor to UNRWA, donating more than $350 million to the agency in 2017.

A senior Trump administration official and a regional diplomat briefed on the decision had suggested the funding announcement would include a rejection of the Palestinian refugees' right to return.

Instead the State Department statement just spoke critically of what it called UNRWA's "endlessly and exponentially expanding community of entitled beneficiaries"  a reference to the fact that descendants of the original refugees are also classified as refugees.

UNRWA now looks after more than 5 million people in Gaza, the West Bank and Jerusalem, as well as neighboring Jordan, Syria, and Lebanon.

When it was founded in 1949, the agency was tasked with providing assistance for the 700,000 Palestinians who had either fled or been expelled from their homes during the war that accompanied the foundation of the state of Israel.

In a statement on its website, UNRWA expressed "deep regret and disappointment" at the United States' announcement.

Rejecting the U.S. criticism, the statement said UNRWA's programs had a "proven track record in creating one of the most successful human development processes and results in the Middle East.

"The international state community, our donors and host countries have consistently praised UNRWA for its achievements and standards. The World Bank described our activities as a 'global public good' and recognized us for running one of the most effective school systems in the region, in which students regularly outperform their peers in public schools."

Pierre Krahenbuhl, Commissioner-General of UNRWA, said this week that the agency's 711 schools in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Gaza, and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, were opening on time for their 526,000 students despite its current "unprecedented" $217 million deficit.

He welcomed increased and new donations from other members of the international community which he said had gone some way to filling a funding gap created when the U.S. initially decided to reduce its contributions to UNRWA early this year.

This story was first published on CNN.com, "Israel praises US halt to Palestinian refugee aid; PLO slams the move."
By A. Ananthalakshmi, Jamie Freed,Chris Thomas, Reuters | Aug. 31, 2018

AirAsia Bhd, Asia's largest budget airline, said it has dropped plans for a joint venture to establish a low-cost carrier in China, in a setback for its plans to expand in the world's second-biggest aviation market.

The Malaysian airline had signed a preliminary agreement last year with Chinese state-backed financial firm Everbright Group and Henan province to set up a low-cost aviation base in Zhengzhou.

But in a statement on Thursday, AirAsia said the memorandum of understanding with Everbright and Henan government had lapsed and "will not be extended". It did not say why.

"China remains an extremely important market for AirAsia, where we are currently the largest international low-cost carrier by capacity," an AirAsia spokesman said on Friday.

"We will continue to grow our presence in the market where we witness growing demand."

AirAsia has a strong presence in major Southeast Asian countries, as well as growing offshoots in India and Japan, but it has yet to enter the Chinese domestic market.

Citing sources, Reuters reported in June that AirAsia had looked at options like buying an existing air operator's certification to speed things up. Chinese regulatory concerns over safety and quality mean there is a queue of multiple airlines waiting for start-up approvals.

AirAsia Group CEO Tony Fernandes had last year described the joint venture plan as "the final piece of the AirAsia puzzle".

The airline's move to drop the joint venture plan comes as Malaysia pushes back on Chinese investment in the Southeast Asian country, saying the deals are "unfair".

Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad, who unexpectedly won a general election in May, has put on ice over US$20 billion worth of infrastructure projects that were awarded to Chinese firms by the earlier administration of Najib Razak.

The AirAsia agreement was signed during Najib's visit to China in May 2017. The former premier had also witnessed the signing of the agreement.
By Alexandra Deabler, Fox News | Sep. 03, 2018

A verbally abusive Frontier Airlines passenger was recorded hurling a series of highly profane insults at flight attendants, and later police officers.

The unidentified passenger became unglued on a Thursday flight from Las Vegas to San Antonio, Texas, fellow passenger Clifton McBee said to News4 San Antonio.

McBee, who recorded the more than two-minute footage of the man yelling inflight, said everyone on the plane could hear the passenger's outburst.

"You don't want to go sleep, cause what's the guy going to do?" said McBee to News4. "You hope security did their job."

The man was placed in handcuffs and escorted off the plane by police officers.

In the cellphone video taken by McBee, the man continues to scream and yell obscenities in the terminal. At one point the man becomes upset asking about his five-year-old child and the police officer tackles him to the ground to keep him still until more officers arrive.

"It seemed like the more people that were around, the angrier he got," said McBee to News4. "It seemed like he wanted to put on a show for everybody."

The man can be heard screaming at officers about his son. He also repeatedly informed officers that they were hurting "his surgery," and claimed that he had bullets in his body that were causing him discomfort.

"Sir, I'm disabled, I've got bullets in my f---ing body, and I'm f---ing hurt," he said to the officer, before turning his head to yell at bystanders.

It was reported that "authorities took care of the child," when the man was taken off the flight.

According to the San Antonio Police Department, the man was taken into custody and later transported to a mental health facility for evaluation, News4 reports.

It is unclear what prompted the man's verbal attack. The FBI is currently investigating the incident.

Frontier Airlines confirmed the incident to Fox News and are cooperating with the investigation.

"Safety is the top priority at Frontier Airlines and we have zero tolerance for anything that threatens the security of our customers or crew. A passenger became disruptive during flight 1144 from Las Vegas to San Antonio on August 30. Police arrested the passenger upon landing in San Antonio. The FBI was investigating because part of the incident occurred inflight. Out of respect for the investigation, we defer to the FBI for any further details," Frontier said in a statement to Fox News.

Clifton McBee did not immediately respond to Fox News request for comment.
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Barcellona e una citta eccitante con numerosi bar, club e bordelli da esplorare. Se vuoi assistere a lunghi spettacoli di strip, recuperare una sessione di massaggio veloce e rilassante, avere desideri innati che devono essere sfogati, quindi i bordelli e i night club di Barcellona potrebbero avere la soluzione perfetta per te!

Se scegli saggiamente un bordello di Barcellona, scoprirai che offre molto di piu di un normale bordello e anche di molto meno. Per conoscere meglio i locali notturni, i pub e i bordelli di Barcellona, leggi:

Perche scegliere un bordello / nightclub con base a Barcellona?

Nightclub Barcellona e una scelta intelligente per alcuni motivi:

Citta multiculturale: poiche Barcellona e una citta multiculturale, non ti sentirai come un pesce fuor d'acqua, non importa a quale etnia appartieni. Inoltre, questo ti da la possibilita di condividere relazioni fisiche con donne di vario genere. Non devi restare con le donne da un solo sfondo razziale.

Un gran numero di club: quando sei con gli amici, e probabile che tu voglia esplorare piu di un night club o pub. Finche sei a Barcellona, questo non dovrebbe essere una fonte di problemi per te, perche Barcellona ospita piu di dodici locali notturni. Quindi puoi saltare rapidamente da uno all'altro se stai cercando "di piu".

Economico: la parte migliore dei bordelli e dei locali notturni di Barcellona e che puoi usufruire di molti servizi per somme insignificanti. Basta pagare qualche dollaro per l'ingresso e goderti il resto dei servizi gratuitamente. Realizzare fantasie non ti costa tanto a Barcellona!

Chiedi aiuto alle agenzie di Barcellona per trovare la discoteca "It":

Ci sono parecchi motivi per cui dovresti prendere l'assistenza di un'agenzia con sede a Barcellona:

Avail le migliori offerte: la parte migliore del ricorso all'aiuto di qualsiasi agenzia di Barcellona e che ti fanno pagare una cifra insignificante per ottenere le migliori offerte sul tuo piatto. Queste agenzie hanno anni di esperienza e piu contatti al loro attivo. Si assicurano di avere il tempo della tua vita, senza dover spendere grandi.

Convenienza: anche se Barcellona e la patria di molti bordelli e locali notturni, trovare quello che e sia comprensivo che economico potrebbe rivelarsi un compito erculeo. E qui che le agenzie di Barcellona vengono in tuo soccorso. Tutto quello che devi fare e indicare le tue esigenze: il tipo di donne che desideri, l'ambiente di cui hai bisogno e il tuo budget. Un intero mal di testa e puramente il loro. Solo il divertimento e su di te!

Se stai cercando una vacanza perfetta con un sacco di bevande alcoliche, alcune donne fantastiche e massaggi rilassanti e altre sessioni, Barcellona e il posto perfetto per te. Entra in contatto con un'agenzia con sede a Barcellona e sfuggi al fastidio di trovarti il bordello di "it'Barcelona".

Contatto

Bordelli Barcellona

Indirizzo: Av. del Litoral, 26, 08005 Barcellona

E-mail: info@bordellibarcellona.com

Sito Web: http://bordellibarcellona.com/
STOCKHOLM, Sep. 3, 2018 /PRNewswire/ -- The Board of Invuo Technologies AB (Invuo) will convene a Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM) for the election of board members. The meeting will be held on 1 October 2018.

Number of board members

Invuo's Articles of Association stipulate that the company's board shall consist of at least 4 members. Today the Board consists of 3 members (Tomas Jalling, Robin Saunders and Petra Sas). An extraordinary general meeting therefore needs to be held to supplement the Board.

Petra Sas leaves the board

In connection with the EGM, Petra Sas will leave her seat in Invuo's Board. The reason for leaving is that she is assuming a new operational position which means that she does not have the time required to remain in Invuo's board.

New Members

As a result of Petra Sas leaving the Board, 2 new Board members need to be appointed at the forthcoming EGM. The Nomination Committee's proposal for new Board members is intended to be presented in the invite for the EGM.

For further information, please contact:

John Longhurst, CEO,A john.longhurst@invuo.com,A +46-8A 564-878-00

Martin Schedin, CFO, martin.schedin@invuo.com, +46-8 -64-878-00

This information is such that Invuo Technologies AB (publ) is obliged to make public pursuant to the EU Market Abuse Regulation. This information was submitted for publication, through the agency of the contact person set out above, at CET 08:50 on September 3, 2018.

About Invuo

Since 2001 Invuo has been providing its proprietary solutions and systems for mobile phone transactions. Invuo operates in two main business areas; mobile phone payment solutions provided through the brand MeaWalleta, and distribution of e-products.

This information was brought to you by Cision http://news.cision.com

http://news.cision.com/invuo-technologies-ab/r/extraordinary-general-meeting-for-election-of-board,c2606710

The following files are available for download:
02 Eylul 2018 Pazar, 11:36

People intent on commemorating those who lost their lives in the 10 October station massacre were not permitted to make a statement at the 10 October Memorial. Representatives of the group, which made a press statement in front of Ankara Station, walked to the 10 October Memorial following the statement, opened a banner and left carnations.

Human Rights Association Ankara Branch Co-Chair Saliha Sahin, who made a statement on behalf of the Ankara Medical Chamber, Contemporary Jurists Associations Ankara Branch, Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions Ankara Region Representation, Human Rights Associations Ankara Branch, Confederation of Public Employees' Trade Unions Branches Platform, 10 October Peace and Solidarity Association and Free Jurists Platforms Ankara Branch, stated that they would monitor the 10 October trial.

Sahin said, The dark tentacles of the war being waged in the Middle East bathed the Ankara Peace Rally in blood. The dark forces that bathed the rally ground in blood have also continued to protect those responsible for the massacre. We devote 1 October World Peace Day to the 10 October peace doves. We once more cry out from here the Saturday Mothers demand for justice.

Mention of mothers

The moment HDP Member of Parliament Filiz Kerestecioglu mentioned the Saturday Mothers, the police announced that an intervention would be staged.

Organization representatives who wished at the end of the event to leave white carnations at the site of the monument built to commemorate the 103 people who lost their lives in the massacre did so under police siege. The police were unwilling to grant access to the area to a banner on which the 103 peoples names were written. After organization representatives had placed the banner on the ground in front of the memorial and placed white carnations on it, the police took the banner and ripped it up. The police, calling on the group to disperse, shoved people out of the area, saying, Sweep them away.

Concert banned!

A Peace Concert to commemorate 1 October World Peace Day in Ozgurluk Park sited in Istanbuls Kadkoy, at which the Confederation of Progressive Trade Unions Choir, the Child Band, Bandista and Adallar were to perform, was banned under an instruction by Kadkoy Sub-Provincial Governate. In response to the ban, Kadkoy Peace Platform announced there would be a music concert in Khalkedon Square. A group congregating around the square that was under police siege protested the ban. Platform members, denied permission for the songs and ballads to be performed in Khelkedon Square, either, wished to march in the streets of Kadkoy to the sound of ululation, songs and ballads but frequently encountered warnings from the police officers who were following the group.

Bars Gunu zincirini de 'krdlar': 'Supurun bunlar'
02 Eylul 2018 Pazar, 14:23

Following the deaths from anthrax of cattle in Ankara and Sivas after Eid al-Adha, the disease has this time been detected in people in Istanbul. Many people have applied to Bakrkoy Dr Sadi Konuk Training and Research Hospital and Haseki Training and Research Hospital on suspicion of having contracted anthrax.

Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Bekir Pakdemirli stated in connection with the matter: Twenty-two people have applied on suspicion of having contracted anthrax. Some of them have been discharged. The private undertaking from which the meat originated has been placed under quarantine. The enterprise in Silivri from which our animal was bought is a private undertaking. There are seven animals at the undertaking and the other animals are healthy. The animals are not imported animals. Within a ten-kilometre radius of the undertaking from which the animals were bought, 3,500 animals will be inoculated by way of precaution as of tomorrow. Since the inoculation takes very speedy effect we do not expect to see other anthrax cases in the region.

Under observation

A Bakrkoy Dr Sadi Konuk Training and Research Hospital employee who did not wish to give their name, in turn, said that twenty-five people had applied on suspicion of having contracted anthrax. Stating that two people had been discharged yesterday following treatment, they indicated that many people were being kept under observation.

Meat changed colour

The nine people who went to Haseki Training and Research Hospital are said to have applied to the hospital on becoming suspicious at the colour of the meat from which they had eaten changing colour. It has been ascertained that nine people are also undergoing treatment at Haseki Training and Research Hospital.

They buried the meat along with the fridge

Commenting to our newspapers reporter, relatives of the quarantined Buker family, residents of Buyukcekmece, said that they had bought the cow from Silivri and the sacrificial meat had been buried along with the fridge by the Sub-Provincial Directorate of Agriculture and Husbandry.

How does it spread?

Anthrax is an infectious disease seen in grazing animals caused by the bacteria named bacillus anthracis. It spreads from animals to humans by contact with wounds on the animal, eating the animals meat and inhaling anthrax spores in the vicinity of diseased animals. Anthrax is divided into the three groups of cutaneous, pulmonary and gastrointestinal. Fatal results may ensue from pulmonary and gastrointestinal infection. The chances of anthrax spreading from person to person, however, are very low.

Wounds appeared on their bodies

Two cows died within a twenty-day interval in the village of Karadoruk in Sivass Gurun Sub-Province. Three people from the same family, one of them a child, who came into the contact with the cows blood, were treated in hospital for various wounds that appeared on their bodies.

Of four thousand cattle that were brought from Brazil for sacrificial slaughter by the Meat and Milk Board to a private farm in Ankaras Golbas, nearly 150 died of anthrax last Monday, and ten thousand animals situated in three neighbourhoods were inoculated for anthrax. A notice reading, Anthrax is present in this neighbourhood was posted at the entrance to the farm on 28 August, and the farm was quarantined.

STATEMENT FROM MINISTER PAKDEMIRLI

Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Bekir Pakdemirli has made a statement in connection with the matter. Appearing live on a TV station, Pakdemirli said the following on a live broadcast:

Our citizens in Buyukcekmeces Silivri Quarter bought a sacrificial animal from a private undertaking. They slaughtered the animal and also consumed up to two or three kilos of the meat. With the meat smelling, they applied to the Pendik Veterinary Research Institute on 28 August. The result of their application came on 31 August. Anthrax was detected in the meat. The meat was immediately destroyed by our ministrys staff. The Sub-Provincial Directorate of Agriculture and Forestry informed the Ministry of Health. Twenty-eight people were detected to have come into contact with the meat. Twenty-two people have made it to hospital. The process of getting some of them to hospital is continuing. Of the twenty-two people, thirteen have applied to Bakrkoy Dr Sadi Konuk Training and Research Hospital and nine to Haseki Training and Research Hospital. Six of the people who applied to Bakrkoy Dr Sadi Konuk Training and Research Hospital were discharged immediately. Four of our citizens are suspected of having cutaneous anthrax on their hands and wrists. Advanced diagnosis is needed. Three people are also being kept at this hospital of ours as a precaution.

ANTHRAX SUSPECTED IN FOUR OF THE TWENTY-TWO PEOPLE

Of the nine people who applied to our Haseki hospital, eight have been discharged. One of our patients has symptoms of pharyngitis. The possibility is being entertained that four of the total of twenty-two people who applied may have contracted anthrax.

WE DO NOT EXPECT OTHER CASES

Seven animals have been found positive for anthrax at the undertaking in Silivri from which the animal was bought. The other animals are healthy. The animals are domestically bred animals. Within a ten-kilometre radius of the location of the undertaking, 3,500 animals will be inoculated by way of precaution as of tomorrow. Since the inoculation takes very speedy effect we do not expect other anthrax cases.

OUR CITIZENS CAN EAT MEAT WITH PEACE OF MIND

Our ministry, as before, is speedily taking precautions. Our citizens can eat meat with peace of mind.

STATEMENT FROM HEALTH MINISTER FAHRETTIN KOCA

A statement in connection with the matter has also come from Health Minister Fahrettin Koca.

The statement included the comments, As is known, the public has been informed by our Ministry of Agriculture that anthrax was detected in a sacrificial animal slaughtered in Silivri on 31 August.

Twenty-two people detected to have come into contact with the animal stated to have had anthrax were invited to our hospitals for treatment and examination purposes. The necessary examinations were made of these people and in six cases light skin lesions were observed. The necessary treatment was arranged for these cases. This type of anthrax that evolves through skin lesions which can spread to humans from animals is a treatable disease that poses no risk of fatality.

No findings were made in the other cases that were examined. Meanwhile, while there are isolated applications to our hospitals on suspicion of having made contact with the same meat, no case inviting suspicion has been detected from among these applications.

There exists no risk of fatality for these patients of ours.
Alex Salmonds resignation from the SNP, after two women made allegations of sexual harassment taking place in 2013 when he was First Minister, has bitterly divided the nationalist party.

Now, current First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who describes Salmond as her friend and mentor, risks triggering another split in the party.

In July, Sturgeon announced that she was delighted to accept an invitation to visit Catalonia, which is locked in a bitter battle for independence with the Spanish government.

But it seems shes put her trip on hold, to the dismay of many SNP supporters who see parallels with the region and their own goal of breaking away from the UK.

Alex Salmonds resignation from the SNP, after two women made allegations of sexual harassment taking place in 2013 when he was First Minister, has bitterly divided the nationalist party

Now, current First Minister Nicola Sturgeon, who describes Salmond as her friend and mentor, risks triggering another split in the party after putting her trip to Catalonia on hold

Sturgeon was invited by Quim Torra, who became Catalonias separatist president in May after last years disputed independence referendum was ruled illegal by the Spanish courts. His appointment followed months of turmoil.

Eight ministers were jailed after being accused of sedition, rebellion and misuse of public funds. The deposed president, Carles Puigdemont, is currently in exile in Belgium.

Why has Sturgeon now got cold feet? Realpolitik, thats why.

Her visit would give credence to the Catalan independence movement and put her at odds with the Spanish government.

If, in the (highly unlikely!) event of the SNP ever securing Scottish independence, one of Sturgeons first tasks would be to apply for EU membership.

Spain might well veto a newly independent Scotland joining the EU in case it relit the fires of Catalonian independence.

So Sturgeon either backs Catalonia or kowtows to the Spanish government and Brussels.

Prezza makes the Hull Sexy List

Veteran Labour bruiser Lord Prescott and his long-suffering wife, Pauline, are on the Hull Sexy List 2018. The citation from the judges in his former constituency, says: The former Deputy PM and his wife still look as dazzling now as they ever have.

Well it might be true for Pauline  famously known as the Liz Taylor of Chester in her younger days  but in his pomp even his erstwhile lover, secretary Tracey Temple, might have found it a stretch to describe Prezza as sexy!

Veteran Labour bruiser Lord Prescott and his long-suffering wife, Pauline (pictured together in 2007), are on the Hull Sexy List 2018

An old friend, who is 61, applied for a job in the Cabinet Office as a junior admin assistant. He was taken aback to be asked on the form: Were you eligible for free school meals? What has that to do with pushing a pen in Whitehall! He binned his application.

Westminster Council, a flagship Tory local authority, has spent an astonishing 1.56 million on gagging orders for staff in the past four years. The figures, disclosed under a Freedom of Information request, cover 58 current or former employees. What has Westminster Council got to hide, exactly?

Tory MP Iain Duncan Smith has revealed the wise advice he once received from his predecessor as MP for Chingford, Norman Tebbit.

Norman said: Its as simple as this. If youre speaking [in the House] and the other side are smiling and cheering at you, sit down. If youre speaking and the other side are shouting at you, keep going. Youre doing the right thing. 

Not for nothing was Tebbit dubbed by then deputy Labour leader Michael Foot a semi-house-trained polecat.

Tory MP Iain Duncan Smith, pictured, has revealed the wise advice he once received from his predecessor as MP for Chingford, Norman Tebbit

Field and a two-faced Labour

Compare the treatment of Frank Field by the Labour leadership with that of Jared OMara, who was elected in 2017.

Field, a Labour Party stalwart for almost 60 years and an MP since 1979, is a figure of great political stature who is hugely respected on both sides of the Commons for his work on child poverty.

As chairman of the Work and Pensions Select Committee, he famously took on Sir Philip Green over the Bhs pension scandal. Yet Labour will kick him out of the party unless he backs down on his principled decision to resign the whip over Jeremy Corbyns failure to deal with anti-Semitism.

Meanwhile, OMara, suspended last autumn for racist, homophobic and misogynistic remarks he made before he became an MP, was reinstated nine months later. (He has since quit Labour.) Double standards of the worst kind.
Eyebrow and eyelash tinting  one of the latest beauty fads sweeping the nation  is banned in certain states as experts warn it could cause serious damage to the skin.

The procedure entails someone brushing dye directly onto the hairs around the eyes so it will make the eyebrows or eyelashes darker for up to six months. But the US Food and Drug Administration has not approved the procedure because of the risks.

'Permanent eyelash and eyebrow tints and dyes have been known to cause serious eye injuries,' according to the FDA website.

Dangerous? Eyebrow and eyelash tinting has been banned in states such as California because of the potential damaging side effects it could cause on the skin

Sabah Feroz, an eyebrow expert from Blink Brow Bar London, explained to Dailymail.com why the procedure could be looked at as more controversial than others, but noted that if you are cautious about who you trust to do the procedure, it should be totally safe.

'The treatment does involve chemicals that can come into contact with the skin, as with when using hair dyes,' Sabah said.

'Tinting products are much gentler than the hair dyes, as they are specifically developed for the eyebrows and lashes, however care must be taken.

'If there are signs of an allergic reaction following the patch test, the treatment must not be carried out.'

Sahab recommended for potential clients to first research what salon they want to get the procedure done before making the appointment.

A reputable salon should not only inform the client about the ingredients in the dye but also do a patch test prior to the procedure to confirm there will be no allergic reactions.

Currently, salons in California are not allowed to perform the procedure because of a law that bans the use of products unapproved by the FDA.

But the procedure is allowed in New York as long as the professionals only use non-permanent dyes on the eyebrows and lashes.

Sabah Feroz, an eyebrow expert from Blink Brow Bar London, encourages clients to get their skin tested first for allergies before buying the cosmetic procedure

Popular dyes for beauticians to use for the process include ones that are vegetable-based, food-coloring dyes, and coal-tar dyes.

Although the vegetable-based dyes are the most natural options, they are still unapproved by the FDA for tinting the eyebrows and lashes.

The procedure has grown in popularity, despite warnings from experts, because thick and bold eyebrows are considered 'in' within the beauty community.

Celebrities such as Cara Delevingne and Lily Collins helped launch thick eyebrows back into the spotlight after they traded in their tweezers for a more natural look.

Since then, many people have turned to eyebrow pencils, pomade and brushes to heighten the look of the hairs above their eyes for a fuller effect  but it can become a lengthy beauty process.

Sabah argues that eyebrow and eyelash tinting gives customers the look they want without needing to use makeup.

'If you have fair hair, a brow tint will give you instant definition and create the illusion of fuller thicker brows,' she said.

'It is also a big time saver for those who fill in their eyebrows daily, and use mascara to darken their lashes, giving your eyes instant depth and definition.'

For people who don't want to commit to the tinting, the expert did recommend investing in a good makeup routine.

'Eyebrows are your focus features, not only do they frame your face, they complete your look. Grooming your brows, doesnt need to be complicated,' she said.
Home and Away actress Pia Miller has the kind of olive skin and windswept brunette hair that looks like she woke up this radiant.

But the 34-year-old told Women's Health that she does have to put effort into her signature style, and it all starts in the shower.

Pia starts by cleansing her face before jumping out of the shower to do an all-over body moisturise.

Scroll down for video

Home and Away actress Pia Miller has the kind of olive skin and windswept brunette hair that looks like she woke up this radiant

The mother-of-two from Melbourne doesn't purely rely on the smoke screens of makeup though, instead making her health a top priority

'I put on an SPF base like Invisible Ink and a little bit of RMS concealer, curl my eyelashes and dust a bit of bronzer over my cheeks and eyelids,' she told the publication.

'I tend not to wear a lot of makeup on my days off but when I am heading out of an evening I love to pop on MAC eyeliner in Coffee, an RMS lip to cheek tint and some mascara.'

The mother-of-two from Melbourne doesn't purely rely on the smoke screens of makeup though, instead making her health a top priority.

Pia plays close attention to what she fuels her body with, adapting the 80/20 food rule of moderation.

Pia Miller (pictured) is a celebrated Australian actress who got her big break on long running soap Home and Away

'I eat healthy 80 per cent of the time and indulge the other 20 per cent,' she told Harper's Bazaar Australia previously.

And it appears to be working with the starlet's Instagram account oozing sex appeal and bikini selfies from tropical locations.

A typical breakfast begins at 7am - or even earlier if she's working - with an espresso made using her La Marzocco coffee machine.

A typical breakfast begins at 7am - or even earlier if she's working - with an espresso using her La Marzocco coffee machine

And it appears to be working with the starlet's Instagram account oozing sex appeal and bikini selfies

Once she's got her kick of caffeine Pia reaches for porridge with berries in winter or a slice of Sonoma sourdough toast with avocado during the warmer months.

'Lunch is usually a salad with some protein like poached chicken,' she told the publication, explaining she might stop by Cali Press or Orchard St for a cold press juice or salad bowl if she hasn't pre-prepared anything.

Dinner tends to be around 7pm when her 'boys' start to get hungry and are looking for something filling.

Once she's got her kick of caffeine Pia reaches for porridge with berries in winter (left) and cooks a homemade pasta for dinner (right)

'Lunch is usually a salad with some protein like poached chicken,' she told the publication

'Some of my specialties are healthy mexi bowls, a delicious pasta, salmon with mashed sweet potato and greens or maybe a chicken and veggie soup,' she said.

If she's wanting to treat herself, a red wine after dinner isn't something she denies herself.

Around her early call times and afternoon school pick ups, Pia will squeeze in a pilates or yoga session (at a studio or in her home).

If she's finding that a bit of a hard task she'll suggest the family head to a local park to 'kick around the footy'

If she's finding that a bit of a hard task she'll suggest the family head to a local park to 'kick around the footy'.

And it's clearly working as she's currently flaunting a body reminiscent of a Victoria's Secret Angel.

We'll be seeing even more of Pia with the stunning brunette starring in TV murder mystery Bite Club.
The US university where a young Meghan Markle studied theatre is using the now Duchess of Sussex's photo to attract new generations of students.

Meghan's photograph appears at the top of a list of illustrious alumni in Northwestern University's new recruiting catalogue, which describes her as a 'humanitarian and the Duchess of Sussex' - prompting some fans to question why her time as an actress had apparently been ignored.

The 37-year-old royal, who graduated from the Illinois-based college's school of communication in 2003 with a bachelor's degree and a double major in theatre and international studies, features alongside fellow high profile former students including the female chairman of IBM, Virginia Rometty, and the comedian Seth Meyers.

The text reads: 'You can do anything when you take a Northwestern Direction. They did.'

A snap said to be taken from the prospectus was shared by a royal fan account on Instagram on Sunday.

A photo of Meghan sits alongside images of other high-profile Northwestern alumni, including the chairman of IBM, Virginia Rometty, and the comedian Seth Meyers, in the college's prospectus. She is described as a 'humanitarian and the Duchess of Sussex'

A snippet from the Illinois college's recruiting catalogue was shared on Instagram by a royal fan account on Sunday September 2nd

Other famous names who studied at Northwestern include the supermodel Cindy Crawford, actor Warren Beatty, the comic Stephen Colbert and the late founder of Playboy Magazine Hugh Hefner.

The fan, who posts under the handle @harrysmegri and has more than 29,000 followers, wrote: 'The Duchess of Sussex, Meghan Markle is at the top of the illustrious alum page in #Northwestern University's newest student recruiting catalog.'

The post has attracted hundreds of likes from followers, although some questioned why Meghan's brief bio beneath her photo made no reference to her acting career.

User @peoniesandpoems posted: 'Not sure why they didn't mention she's an actress,' before adding that Meghan's former career was 'a huge part of her identity'.

Another @rbnslesl2, posted: 'Nice, but would prefer "former actress, humanitarian, and Duchess of Sussex."'

The former TV star appeared in seven seasons of the hit legal drama Suits, before turning her back on the small screen in 2017 and moving to London to live with her future husband, Prince Harry.

The Duchess was a student at the university from 2000 to 2003, and was a member of its Kappa Kappa Gamma sorority.

FEMAIL has contacted Northwestern University for comment.

After graduating she moved back to her hometown, LA, to pursue a career as an actress, landing various movie and small screen roles before getting her big break - being cast as Rachel Zane in the smash hit legal drama Suits.

Meghan turned her back on acting in 2017 and moved to the UK full time to be with her future husband, Prince Harry.

Illustrious alumni: Last week the Duchess joined her husband Prince Harry at a charity performance of the smash hit musical Hamilton at the Victoria Palace Theatre in London. The show on Wednesday August 29th was in aid of Sentebale, the charity Harry founded in memory of his mother, Princess Diana

The happy couple, who married on May 19th this year at Windsor Castle in a ceremony watched by millions around the globe, made a surprise public appearance on Wednesday night after enjoying a summer out of the spotlight.

They hosted a performance of the wildly popular musical Hamilton at London's Victoria Palace Theatre in aid of Sentebale, the charity founded by the Prince which works to improve the lives of young people affected by HIV in Lesotho and Botswana.

It wasn't the first time the couple enjoyed the show, which tells the story of Alexander Hamilton, one of the founding fathers of the US.

They enjoyed a date night in London to see the hit musical before their engagement was announced, and Meghan had previously seen it on Broadway with her close friend, the actress Priyanka Chopra.

The now Duchess of Sussex graduated from Northwestern's (pictured) School of Communication in 2003, with a bachelor's degree and a double major in theatre and international studies
Actress Jameela Jamil has revealed she was date raped at the age of 22.

Jameela, who stars in hit Netflix series The Good Place, told how she was sexually assaulted 10 years ago when she went home with someone she 'didn't know well enough'.

She said: 'I couldn't predict what their behaviour was going to be like behind closed doors and I didn't have the words, or feel I had the right, to stop what was happening.'

Actress Jameela Jamil, 32, pictured in Los Angeles last month, told how she was sexually assaulted 10 years ago when she went home with someone she 'didn't know well enough'

The TV star, 32, discusses the incident in an interview with The Times ahead of her new BBC Radio 4 documentary, The New Age of Consent, which starts tonight.

In it she opens up about her own personal experience and blasts the common and dangerous misconceptions around consent that need to be eliminated.

'"Mmm, OK," or saying nothing isn't enough,' she explained.

'Giving in, or begrudgingly agreeing should not be what you are looking for in a lover. That's a clear amber to red light that you need to stop what you are doing.'

The TV star, pictured in Los Angeles in June, blasts the dangerous misconceptions around consent, saying 'saying nothing' and 'begrudgingly accepting' are not a green light for sex

Jameela, who found fame as a BBC presenter before moving to Los Angeles, revealed her own 'freeze reaction' was mistaken for consent during the 2008 attack.

The experience led the actress to reflect on the dangers of going home with a relative stranger. She said she took comfort in knowing that she would never do that again.

Giving in, or begrudgingly agreeing should not be what you are looking for in a lover. That's a clear amber to red light that you need to stop what you are doing

'It didn't make me feel that I was victim-shaming myself. I felt empowered to know that there were things I could do to make that much less likely to happen again.'

Jameela wrote a blog post on consent in January in the wake of allegations against US comedian Aziz Ansari. The actress wrote how any sexual partner needs to be 'not just willing, but damn well enthusiastic'.

She continued: 'Especially, in my opinion, if that person is the one to be penetrated. You want to enter them.

'You best ensure you are a welcome guest, not someone who just begged, pressured, guilt-tripped or harassed their way inside.'

Jameela, who stars in Netflix hit The Good Place, pictured, discusses her own sexual assault in a new BBC Radio 4 documentary, The New Age of Consent, which stars tonight

In July the star slammed actor Henry Cavill after he told GQ Australia that he was scared to flirt with women for fear of being 'called a rapist or something'.

Jameela tweeted: 'If you don't want to be called a rapist, then when you approach a woman... just don't rape her... Someone please direct Henry Cavill to the nearest bin please #clown.'

The star hopes the two-part BBC Radio 4 documentary will help encourage young listeners to be 'very careful' and to 'follow their instincts'.

The programme also hears stories from survivors - both men and women - heterosexual speakers and those from the LGBTQ+ community.

She asks why there appears sometimes to be a generational divide among women on this issue and what conversations need to be had to form a definition of consent that all parties can understand and agree on.

The New Age of Consent is broadcast on BBC Radio 4 tonight at 8pm.
An emotional video has captured the moment a bride surprised her father in hospital after he was too ill to attend her wedding so they could share a dance together.

Janae Hauger had always dreamed of dancing with her dad to their favourite song on her wedding day, and after he was hospitalised just weeks before her big day, she was determined to still make it happen.

With the big day on August 11 in Ridgewood, Ohio, the 23-year-old's reverie was quickly thrown into doubt when her father, Steve Price, 59, suddenly began complaining of crippling stomach pains just weeks before.

Janae Hauger surprised her father Steve Price in hospital after he was too ill to attend her wedding so that they could have a father-daughter dance together

Just weeks before Janae was due to get married Steve was rushed to hospital where he was diagnosed with severe pancreatitis and three days before was told he was too ill to attend his daughter's big day

Rushed into the hospital on July 16, Steve was soon diagnosed with a severe case of pancreatitis and he remained in the care of the Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center, for several weeks.

However, after suffering a number of setbacks, just three days before he was set to walk his daughter down the aisle, doctors told Steve he was too ill to attend.

Heartbroken, Steve put on a brave face for his daughter, but Janae wasn't willing to jeopardise her dream - she was determined to dance with her father, any way she could.

Just hours after the devastating news, Janae and the rest of her family hatched a plan to do exactly that.

Following her ceremony Janae travelled to her father's hospital with her mother (pictured) and he was taken to the hospital chapel where she was waiting for him

The pair danced Darius Rucker's 'It Won't Be Like This For Long', something they had dreamed of doing for years

Wheeled into the hospital chapel on August 11, Stevie was bought to tears when faced with his daughter in her bridal gown, with Darius Rucker's 'It Won't Be Like This For Long' playing in the background.

Visibly shaking from emotion, Janae encourages Steve to his feet, where the pair gently sway along to the music, as they' always planned to do.

Janae said: 'We had spoken about the moment of him walking me down the aisle for years - [and] of course, dancing with my dad was always a dream moment for me.

'I was completely heartbroken when the doctors gave us the news. I knew I had to dance with my dad on my wedding day, no matter what.'

Steve was able to witness the remainder of the wedding via Facetime from his hospital bed

Janae was joined by her three sisters, mother and brother to help surprise Steve on her big day on August 11

Janae planned the moment meticulously with the help of hospital staff in order to surprise her father.

She continued: 'The nurses worked with us and told him he was going for an x-ray.

'But really I was standing in my wedding gown in the chapel, with my three sisters, brother and mom.

'I honestly cannot put into words the emotion that was in that room the moment my dad was wheeled in the chapel.

'It was a moment where no words were needed, because we all felt the love in the atmosphere.

'He kept telling me how gorgeous I looked and that he couldn't believe we were all there.

'We also already had it in the works for my dad to give me away via FaceTime.

'My dad was there, able to watch the entire thing - him seeing us and us seeing him.

'Tears were all over the place.'
A charity worker who helps to deliver a staggering 1,400 guide dog puppies each year as described her job as the 'best in the world'.

Nicole Bottomley, 58, from Morton Morrel in Warwickshire, part of a specialist team at Guide Dogs UK that welcomes over a thousand dogs each year, has revealed a glimpse into her day to day life as she marks 40 years with the charity.

The mother of two, whose husband Matthew Bottomley is head of breeding operations at Guide Dogs UK, has been working for the organisation since she was 18, after falling for the adorable puppies she saw out and about training near the centre in Leamington Spa while growing up.

Nicole said being there to see the puppies born was the 'best bit', and that knowing they would grow up to be guide dogs who would change the lives of their owners makes 'every day amazing'.

Nicole Bottomley, 58, from Warwickshire, is part of a specialist team at Guide Dogs UK in Leamington Spa that welcomes over a thousand dogs each year, before they are trained to help the blind

Guide dogs are trained to assist blind and visually impaired people by avoiding obstacles, stopping at kerbs and steps, and safely negotiating traffic.

Speaking about what inspired her to work for the charity, Nicole - who became brood bitch supervisor three years ago at the Guide Dogs' National Breeding Centre, said: 'I grew up in the town, so I used to see the dogs out in training in and around the area.

'Even when I was at school, I knew I wanted to work with them. There weren't any vacancies at that point though, so I worked for a short while at a veterinary practice, before progressing to Guide Dogs UK, where I have been ever since.

'The dogs are very rewarding and I love supporting our volunteer families. It's amazing bringing these little puppies into the world. knowing they are, hopefully, going to go on and become life changers.'

After three decades of working for the charity, the supervisor has shared a glimpse at her working day, explaining that knowing she is helping to change lives makes every moment 'amazing' (a litter of puppies are pictured)

Nicole helps deliver a staggering 1400 guide dog puppies each year and has described her job as the 'best in the world' (One of the puppies Nicole helped to deliver)

Starting out as a kennel assistant for the charity, Nicole, who herself has a grand basset griffon vedene dog called Gavin, worked her way up to become the manager, before moving over to the breeding centre, as dog care manager.

Taking a break to have her children Jack, now 24, and Grace, 20, she returned part-time, soon becoming full-time again, when she joined her current team - in which she visits dogs at volunteers' homes where they are being cared for, and helps to deliver puppies.

Nicole explained: 'We are there every step of the way, from the time the bitch is mated. We go after four weeks and conduct an ultrasound scan to confirm that she is pregnant and get an estimate of the size of her litter. An average is seven to eight puppies. After that, we visit weekly.'

Nicole shares children Jack, 24, (right) and Grace, 20, (second left) with husband Matthew Bottomley, head of breeding operations (seen left)

Nicole - who became 'brood bitch supervisor' three years ago at the Guide Dogs' National Breeding Centre, said she wanted to work for the charity since she was in school (seen weighing a puppy)

Starting out as a kennel assistant for the charity, Nicole worked her way up to become the manager, before moving over to the breeding centre, as dog care manager (puppy seen)

Speaking about how the puppies are trained to become guide dogs, she continued: 'Once she has her puppies, we do litter visits during the weeks that the pups are out in the nest, before bringing them back to the breeding centre at six weeks, when we vaccinate and microchip them, then settling them into kennels.

'They are here for a week before they move on to their puppy walking homes, which can be anywhere around the country.'

The dogs are given basic training with their puppy walker - learning to to walk ahead on the lead and understand commands like sit, stay, down and come.

They are also taken to cafes and shops to help them to get used to social situations.

Nicole weighs and checks on the puppies in the first few weeks of their lives

Starting training school at a year old, puppies learn to walk in a straight line, unless there is an obstacle and to stop at kerbs and wait for the command to cross or turn left or right - being matched with an owner when they graduate, who they then train with for another four weeks

Starting training school at a year old, puppies learn to walk in a straight line unless there is an obstacle, and to stop at kerbs and wait for the command to cross or turn left or right.

They are then matched with an owner when they graduate, with whom they are supported through a further four weeks of training.

Nicole added: 'Being there when the dogs are giving birth is really the best bit.

'Most births go smoothly, with no problems. We are there to support if there are complications.

'Last year, we had one mum who was very poorly after the birth. She had six puppies and we ended up having to split them and they were fostered by two other mums. It can be a lot of thinking on your feet and can be quite stressful, but I love it.'

While the delivery is a team effort for her and the other midwives, Nicole said the volunteer families are crucial to the whole process- pictured: One of the puppies Nicole delivered

While the delivery is a team effort for her and the other midwives, Nicole said the volunteer families are crucial to the whole process.

She said: 'We have so many wonderful volunteers that I get to meet. They do an absolutely fantastic job.

'At the moment, we have about 1,400 puppies a year. We have 280 bitches and about 90 studs. That's a lot of puppies and the aim is for as many as possible to become guide dogs.

Nicole with her children Jack and Grace and husband Matthew (seen left to right)

While the delivery is a team effort for her and the other midwives, Nicole said the volunteer families are crucial to the whole process (Nicole seen with one of the puppies)

'For some, it doesn't suit their temperament but they are redirected to other UK charities or rehomed as family pets.

'We are constantly looking for new volunteer homes, within an hour of the centre, where someone is not in full-time employment, so the dog is not left for more than three hours and where they are able to devote six weeks to a litter of puppies once a year. And we'll give lots of training and support to the right person, with a lovely, caring disposition.'

And speaking about devoting her life to dogs, she remained adamant that it is the perfect job for her, adding: 'I have the best job in the world!'

Matthew, Grace, Nicole and Jack are seen (left to right) enjoying family time in between their busy schedule
Quadruplets who were conceived without IVF have defied medical odds to start pre-school.

Mother Grace Slattery, 35, of Caherconlish, County Limerick, Ireland, was offered an abortion for two of her children as doctors considered them to be 'high risk'.

But she and husband James, 37, decided to let 'fate decide' and welcomed Amelia, Lily-Grace, Mollie and Lucas, in May 2014, with each baby weighing between 2lbs and 4lbs.

Now the quadruplets have donned their matching uniforms for their first day of pre-school.

Parents Grace and James Slattery, of County Limerick, Ireland, struggled with fertility issues and suffered four miscarriages before conceiving quadruplets without IVF. Now (pictured left-right at home with their mother) Amelia, Mollie, Lily-Grace and Lucas are starting pre-school

Mr and Mrs Slattery were offered an abortion for two of their babies as they were deemed 'high risk' pregnancies but declined and decided to let 'fate decide'. The couple welcomed Amelia, Lucas, Lily-Grace and Mollie in May 2014, pictured, with each weighing between 2lbs and 4lbs

The odds of conceiving quads without fertility treatment is one in 700,000.

Mrs Slattery said: 'They are definitely little miracles and we still can't believe we got four babies all at once.

'All of them love school and as they wear a uniform now it makes it a lot easier as trying to think of four outfits for them every day takes a long time.

'They are going to be in the same classes at school and they are inseparable when together.'

Mr and Mrs Slattery had struggled for three years with fertility problems and suffered four miscarriages before being given the shocking news that they were pregnant with quadruplets.

Mrs Slattery, pictured while pregnant with her quads, explained she and her husband struggled with fertility but could not afford IVF. They were shocked to be told they had conceived quadruplets without treatment, beating odds of roughly 1 in 729,000

Siblings Amelia, Lily-Grace, Mollie and Lucas Slattery, pictured as babies, are inseparable and will be in the same pre-school classes together, their mother revealed

The babies were carried to 32 weeks and, despite Amelia being born with her organs in the wrong place, all four are now thriving. Pictured, Amelia, Lily-Grace, Lucas and Mollie as babies

What are the odds of having quadruplets? There is a one in 700,000 chance that someone can conceive quadruplets without any help from IVF or other fertility treatments. The most common way for quadruplets to be conceived is if there are four separate eggs that are fertilized by four different sperm. But, it is also possible for embryos to split to form multiple babies. A mother carrying four children is at higher risk of miscarrying at least one baby. Premature birth is always a risk factor when the mother is carrying multiple babies in her womb. The babies are also more likely to be born at a lower than average weight. Advertisement

'We couldn't afford IVF and when tests showed nothing was wrong I was baffled as to why we couldn't have children,' the mother-of-four said.

'I was over the moon when the quadruplets were born in May 2014, and despite being offered to abort two of them before they were even born as they were classed as high risk, we decided to let fate decide.'

The babies were carried to 32 weeks and, despite Amelia being born with her organs in the wrong place, all four are now healthy and thriving.

Mrs Slattery told how each of the children has their individual personalities, with Lucas being slightly more reserved than his sisters.

She added: 'Life is hectic with quadruplets but we wouldn't change it for the world even though it had made us realise that our family is now complete.

The Slattery child (l-r) Lily-Grace, Amelia, Mollie and Lucas are now all starting school together

Mother Grace told how her children (pictured l-r at home in County Limerick) Lucas, Amelia, Mollie and Lily love their school uniforms and enjoy sporting their sunglasses

The parents are now preparing for school life and have bought 10 school uniforms to ensure the children have enough to last them each week.

Mrs Slattery added: 'I will miss them when they go back to school but it will be nice to get some peace and quiet after the summer.

'The school run will be fun as it's almost impossible to keep my eye on all four but the quadruplets love making new friends so I know they'll love it.'

The family have bought 10 school uniforms to ensure there are plenty to keep up with the busy children. Pictured (l-r): Lucas, Amelia, Mollie and Lily-Grace's school bags and shoes

Mother Grace Slattery, pictured with her children (l-r) Lily-Grace, Amelia, Mollie and Lucas admitted the school run is going to be 'fun' as they're almost impossible to keep an eye on
With just a month to go until the big day, Princess Eugenie will be having her wedding dress fitted and finished to perfection.

But despite the speculation the bride-to-be, 28, is determined to keep the name of the designer under wraps ahead of the ceremony at Windsor Castle on 12 October.

She told British Vogue: 'I'm not telling anyone who is making it, but I can say it is a British based designer,' and added: 'As soon as we announced the wedding, I knew the designer, and the look, straight away.'

Now style experts at society bible Tatler have suggested three British designers who could be in the running to design the wedding gown.

They speculate whether the green-thinking princess might favour committed environmentalist Stella McCartney, rely on royal favourite Erdem Moraloglu or turn to Vivienne Westwood, who designed the dress she wore to the wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in 2011.

Here, FEMAIL takes a closer look at each of the candidates...

Stella McCartney

Inspiration? Princess Eugenie, 28, has kept her wedding dress designer under wraps but did reveal they are based in Britain. Style experts at Tatler speculated whether she has followed the lead of the Duchess of Sussex, 37, and chosen a gown by Stella McCartney. Pictured, Meghan in McCartney, her second dress, at her wedding to Prince Harry in Windsor in May

Princess Eugenie has taken inspiration from the Duchess of Sussex for her wedding venue - and might have done the same for her gown.

While she is unlikely to have enlisted the help of Clare Waight Keller at Givenchy - who designed Meghan's first showstopping down - she might have turned to Stella McCartney, who created the duchess's second gown for the big day.

McCartney, 46, was widely praised for the flattering floor-length gown, which Meghan, 37, memorably wore as her and her new husband Prince Harry, 33, left hand-in-hand for their second wedding reception at Frogmore House.

The British designer also uses only sustainable materials, which fits in with environmentally-minded Eugenie's approach to her big day.

She explained recently: 'My whole house is anti-plastic now...and Jack and I want our wedding to be like that as well.'

Vivienne Westwood

Fashion risk: Vivienne Westwood's unconventional designs would be something of an unusual choice for a royal bride - but Eugenie is certainly not afraid to take a fashion risk. Pictured, a creation from the he Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood Spring 2019 Bridal collection

Precedent: Eugenie dazzled in a Vivienne Westwood creation for the royal wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in April 2011 and she might well call on the designer's services for her own big day. Pictured, Eugenie with father Prince Andrew at the royal wedding

Eugenie dazzled in a Vivienne Westwood creation for the royal wedding of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in April 2011 and she might well call on the designer's services for her own big day.

Known for her unconventional designs Westwood, 77, would be something of an unusual choice for a royal bride - but Eugenie is certainly not afraid to take a fashion risk.

The Andreas Kronthaler for Vivienne Westwood Spring 2019 Bridal collection, unveiled in New York earlier this year, was true to the brand's aesthetic, with feathers, rubber and plates of armour all featuring.

There is no doubt the bride would turn heads if she was to select one of the label's creations for the big day.

Erdem

Royal favourite: Erdem is one of Kate Middleton's favourites and Meghan has also delighted fans in his creations. A dress by the designer would be a bold and feminine choice for Eugenie

Tried and tested: Eugenie selected a 950 flowery frock by Erdem for her engagement announcement with Jack Brooksbank, pictured, which enhanced her figure

Erdem Moralioglu is a favourite of the royals and red carpet alike and has dressed stars including Lily James, Jessica Chastain and Gillian Anderson.

The Duchess of Cambridge is so enamoured she donned his dresses on consecutive nights during her visit to Sweden in January and it was widely rumoured that the Duchess of Sussex had chosen Erdem for her own wedding day.

Crucially Eugenie is also known to be a fan, selecting a 950 flowery frock for her engagement announcement, which made her look stylish and enhanced her figure.

The princess was also snapped in Erdem for her recent British Vogue photo shoot, taken in the grounds of the Royal Lodge at Windsor.

With his bold prints and love of florals, Erdem has been dubbed a 'Marmite' designer - making him a fitting choice for a royal who enjoys pushing style boundaries.
GMB host Susanna Reid shared a make-up free selfie with her 220,000 Instagram followers to reveal what she looks like without her 'TV warpaint'.

The 47-year-old mother-of-three posted the candid snap online as she prepared to return to work as the co-host of the morning news show, following a 'life changing summer' during which she had deliberately stayed off social media to avoid the cycle of 'compare-and-despair'.

Adding the hashtags #patchytan, #flaws, #blemishes and #imperfect to her bare-faced and filter-free photo, Susanna said it showed how she looked 'before I get my glam on'.

Fans seemed thrilled by her natural look, with many posting replies to say the TV personality is 'flawlessly beautiful' with or without make-up.

GMB host Susanna Reid, 47, shared a make-up and filter-free selfie on Instagram as she prepared to return to work, and told fans it had been a 'life-changing summer'

The TV star and mother of three told fans she had deliberately stayed away from social media over the summer break in a bid to avoid 'baiting' or 'compare-and-despair'

Susanna, who co-presents Good Morning Britain with Piers Morgan, was back on screens this morning with her trademark glossy blow-dry and artfully applied make-up firmly in place.

She had told fans on Instagram on Sunday night: 'This has been a life-changing summer for me. I've been lucky enough to spend lots of time with my family and good friends.

'For the most part I stayed off social media & this really helps to minimise the distractions you allow into your world when you don't need them.'

Susanna, who has three sons, Sam, Finn and Jack with her former partner Dominic Cotton, said avoiding Twitter 'cuts down on the baiting', while stopping scrolling Instagram 'removes the compare-and-despair we can all get sucked into'.

'TV warpaint': Susanna returned to Good Morning Britain on Monday following the summer break, revealing her more familiar glossy mane and artfully applied make-up on set

The journalists fans were wowed by her natural look, with one, @mlisbo61, writing that the 'natural beauty' was 'so hot my keyboard melted'.

'You don't need make up,' said another admirer, while a third suggested Good Morning Britain should do a 'no make up day'.

Another fan said simply: 'Mega gorgeous.'

Susanna's devoted fans insisted she has no need for makeup, with many posting comments praising her natural beauty

Susanna shared the candid selfie with her some 220,000 Instagram followers on Sunday night, as she prepared to return to studio lights and heavy make-up after a summer off screens

The TV personality didn't shun make up entirely over the summer break - she put in a glamorous red carpet appearance at a charity performance of the hit musical Hamilton on Wednesday night.

She was there to watch the performance hosted by the Duke and Duchess of Sussex at London's Victoria Palace Theatre, in aid of Prince Harry's Sentebale charity, which works to support young people affected by HIV in Lesotho and Botswana.
A wife has discovered that her 99 Argos wedding ring sold as 18ct gold is fake - and could actually be made from brass.

The woman, 55, from Headington, Oxfordshire - who did not wish to be named - has worn the ring with pride since she married her husband back in 2004.

However, the ring snapped when she took it to a jeweller for re-sizing in June, leading to the discovery that the ring was likely not made out of gold.

One test suggested that the metal appeared to be brass, while another report found the metal was 'no better than 9ct yellow gold'.

The woman said that she and her husband contacted Argos, gaining a written apology and offer of a refund.

A woman, 55, has discovered that her 99 Argos wedding ring (pictured after it snapped) sold as 18ct gold is fake - and could actually be made from brass

She explained: 'I really feel this is Argos selling fool's gold, because that's how I feel: a bit of a fool.

'When they said the ring was brass I laughed - I thought they must have made a mistake.

'People might say "it's a cheap ring, what do you expect?" but I expect it to be what it says it is. It's a reputable company.

'No matter how much you pay or where you bought it from, if it's got a UK hallmark you expect it to be what it said.'

The woman, from Headington, Oxfordshire, explained how she had taken the ring to a jewellers to be re-sized, when it snapped

The jewellers tested it and suggested the ring was actually made from brass. A second expert said the metal was 'no better than 9ct yellow gold', and had been incorrectly stamped, or that the stamp (above) was fake

One of the jewellers who tested the ring said the metal had been incorrectly stamped or that the marks are false.

It comes after Argos issued a product recall in 2001 after fears that gold hallmarks had been illegally faked.

The woman said: 'This is not the first time [this has happened] - for it to happen again is really concerning.

'They don't appear to be making any effort. I think they should really think about recalling the batch of jewellery.'

The pair have been back and forth with Argos, tracing credit card records to prove the purchase of the 99 ring, and gaining a written apology and offer of a refund.

However, they say it is not enough and suspect others could be unwittingly wearing false rings.

The woman said the 5mm band was 'more than just a ring' to her, meaning she doesn't want to refund it. However, she added that the ring is no longer wearable and is 'beyond repair'

The woman said the 5mm band was 'more than just a ring' and the offer of simply refunding the 99 item was 'taking the Mick'.

She added: 'My ring is worthless, beyond repair and not wearable. It's fool's gold, it's just a lie.

'It feels like I am missing a part of me - it's about the blessing of the ring and the significance. That ring would have been left to my daughter.'

The pair believe buying the same ring in today's market would cost hundreds of pounds, and a ceremony to have new rings blessed will be extra.

She added: 'I'm very disappointed with the response. Something on this level should be taken more seriously - it's a crime to put a stamp on the wrong quality of gold or silver.'

An Argos spokesperson said: 'We are investigating this with the customer.'
A devastated woman whose husband was jailed for the possession of thousands of child pornography images has admitted that she still loves him in spite of his crimes.

Helen, 62, first discovered that her husband of 44 years, Robert, was watching child porn when police came to their house to arrest him. He would go on to serve 16 months in prison for the crime.

Channel 4's Married to a Paedophile features audio recordings of Helen and another woman, Kate (whose names have both been changed), recorded over the course of 12 months as they come to terms with their husbands being convicted, with their real voices lip synced by actors in the documentary.

While Kate refuses to forgive her husband, Alex, for downloading child porn, Helen attempts to support Robert after his release from prison by setting him up in a flat and allowing him to visit her in the house they had shared.

Revealing she has no plans to divorce him, she says: 'I've loved him for 44 years, you can't just switch that off.'

She decided to choose her grandchildren over her marriage to Robert as her daughter-in-law didn't want them to see their grandfather. Pictured: Abigail McKern portraying Helen

The programme recounts how police came to the couple's house in the middle of the night and Robert answered the door. When her husband didn't return to their room Helen came downstairs to find him collapsed on the floor and apologising.

Helen visited her husband in prison three times a week - something she admitted she came to view as 'dates' - and would send him emails and pictures of the chickens they owned together.

Despite her horror at what her husband has done, Helen says she still feels love for him.

'I do love him. You can't just switch off those feelings,' she adds.

In the documentary she admits that she can't 'switch off' her feelings for her husband and still loves him. Pictured: Actors playing the couple

Helen, 62, decides to stand by her ex husband Robert after he is jailed for downloading thousands of child pornography images. Pictured: Abigail McKern portraying Helen in Channel 4's Married to a Paedophile

Lucy refuses to forgive and splits up with her husband Alex after he is convicted of a similar cime. He moves out straight away. Pictured: Sinead Keenan portraying Kate

Helen sets Robert up in a flat after the end of his 16 month stint in prison, during which she would visit weekly and email him with updates on their chickens. Pictured: Abigail McKern portraying Helen emailing her husband

WHAT ARE THE STATISTICS ON CHILD PORNOGRAPHY? Sharing a sexual image of someone under the age of 18 can result in a maximum prison term of 10 years. However, fewer than one in four of the 2,528 people sentenced at crown court last year received a jail sentence for the crime. Police believe that the actual number of people viewing illegal material is over 100,000. There are thought to be up to 80,000 paedophiles operating in the UK online. Government figures released last year revealed a 700 per cent increase in the number of indecent images reported to police since 2013. Source: Married to a Paedophile on Channel 4 Advertisement

When she would go and visit him she made a special effort to get ready, likening prison visits to a 'date'.

She says: 'I have felt like that before when I've gone to the prison and I've made an effort and got dressed up a bit, shaved my legs and things like that.

'It does sometimes feel a little bit like [a date].'

In the documentary Helen explains that she had no idea that he was in possession of child porn, and assumed he was watching regular adult films.

But police searched their home and discovered thousands of images of child sex abuse, some featuring children the same age as the couple's own two pre-school age grandchildren.

One of the videos that Robert looked at was of a baby being breastfed that was then taken from his mother to be abused.

Robert was sentenced to two years in prison and served sixteen months.

He was placed on the sex offenders register for 10 years and given a sexual offences prevention order, which means his use of the internet is monitored and he is subject to random spot checks by the police.

Although they are separated, Helen helped Robert rent a flat near to their marital home and she stills sees him daily. They have no plans to divorce.

Helen says that sometimes she treated her prison visits like a date with Robert and would get dressed up to go and see him. Pictured: Abigail McKern portraying Helen getting ready to meet Robert from prison

Robert is legally allowed to see their two grandchildren but the pair's daughter-in-law refuses to let it happen because she is 'horrified' by the details of some of the films he watched.

Helen says: 'We are now fully separated, we're still friends but we're separated, and every day I have to remind him of that, he's gradually coming round to it.

'I felt I had to choose between my husband and the grandchildren and I've chosen the grandchildren. He's never really accepted what happened and he'd like to pretend that it didn't happen.'

Also in the documentary is Kate, whose husband Alex was handed a 12 month community supervision order and ordered to attend weekly counselling sessions as punishment for downloading child pornography.

Helen and Robert are now separated but they have no plans to get divorced and she still sees him daily. Pictured: Abigail McKern portraying Helen in the documentary

Kate, who is now in a relationship with another man, says she refuses to forgive her husband, who moved out of their six bedroom house a week after he was arrested to live in a caravan in a field.

One morning when she was coming downstairs for breakfast four police knocked at the door and arrested their husband.

They seized all of the computers in her home, including her own personal laptop to look for evidence.

She says: 'It's pretty upsetting and shameful to have to go to a police station and beg for my stuff back. What are they thinking? Are they thinking I'm somehow associated with this crime?

'I could feel my stomach going, it was the place where everything I was certain of was taken from me.'

Helen says she didn't know that her husband was watching child pornography and assumed it was regular adult films. Pictured: Abigail McKern portraying Helen

Kate's husband Alex (right, played by Nicholas Gleaves with Kristy Philipps playing their daughter Jess) said he started watching child porn when his addiction to porn got more extreme

After his arrest she was called into the police station so Alex could tell her what he was being charged with.

She continued: 'He kept talking about how he'd seen things and I got really angry with him, no you haven't just seen things you went looking for it, it was an active process.

'I'm really angry that he would want to look at that stuff when he had me, what was wrong with me? Why not stick to what was right, what he should have been looking at, which was me?'

The documentary also hears Alex's own explanation for his crime, as he reveals he became so addicted to watching porn that his viewing habits gradually got more extreme.

The couple's daughters have decided to stay in touch with their father, believing his crimes were symptom of a mental illness. Pictured left anr right: Nell Barlow portraying Lucy and Kristy Philipps portraying Jess

Kate, who has a new partner, said she was 'angry' with Alex that she wasn't enough for him. Pictured: Sinead Keenan portraying Kate

He says: 'I always tried to stop but I always went back when things went wrong with work or other parts of my life. If I make excuses it sounds as if I'm not taking responsibility for my actions but I've got to try and find an explanation because if I am the immoral person it'll be very hard to live with myself.'

Alex's children Jess and Lucy (names have also been changed), who are both young adults, have continued to speak to him as they view what he did as a symptom of a mental illness.

Lucy says: 'There was a lot of confusion... I feel sorry for him, I empathise with him and [yet] I'm angry with him.

'There's always going to be a part of me that doesn't understand. I understand becoming addicted to a thing but it's very hard to understand becoming addicted to that.'

Married to a Paedophile airs tonight at 9pm on Channel 4
Jamie Oliver has admitted he has 'never written an authentic recipe in his life' after he was forced to defend himself against accusations of 'cultural appropriation' over his 'punchy jerk rice'.

The 43-year-old Essex-born celebrity cook also revealed that after the Twitter and social media storm over the new produce, the 2.35 bag of microwave rice 'sold out'.

The row was sparked by London MP Dawn Butler, who is of Jamaican descent, who tweeted him saying 'your jerk rice is not ok' - jerk is a traditional Jamaican recipe.

Mr Oliver, who has five children with wife Jools, told Hello! magazine: 'I've never written an authentic recipe in my life', adding 'authenticity' is a word that should be used 'very carefully as most of the things we love... are not what we think they are'.

Explaining, he added that the Cumberland sausage is originally German and the popular Indian dish chicken tikka masala was invented in Britain.

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TV chef Jamie Oliver, 43, has told Hello! that very few dishes are authentic after being accused of cultural appropriation over his 'jerk rice' - a traditional Jamaican recipe

He added that when he's trying to 'nudge' people to 'try something new' he 'edits' original dishes for his recipes.

Mr Oliver defended the name of the ready meal in a statement last month after Caribbean cook Rustie Lee claimed the recipe has 'nothing to do with jerk'.

Oliver told Sky News at the time: 'I've worked with flavours and spices from all over the world my whole career, learning and drawing inspiration from different countries and cultures to give a fresh twist to the food we eat every day.

'When I named the rice my intention was only to show where my inspiration came from.'

The TV chef argued the Cumberland sausage is originally German and 'Indian' dish chicken tikka masala was in fact invented in Britain, as he explained that his recipes are edits of authentic dishes (pictured Jamie's ready-made rice)

After remaining relatively quiet on the row, Jamie took to Twitter in August to give LBC radio host Steve Allen the reason behind his recent social media silence, saying he has 'been quiet as you can't give oxygen to daftness'.

He previously told Sky News: 'I've worked with flavours and spices from all over the world my whole career, learning and drawing inspiration from different countries and cultures to give a fresh twist to the food we eat every day.

'When I named the rice my intention was only to show where my inspiration came from.'

Last week he tweeted: 'Morning @steveallenshow I'm still here mate, been listening everyday though out my family holiday in Cornwall, come back to work and the worlds gone mad?! So I've been [silence emoji] quiet as u can't give oxygen to daftness joxx'.

Jamie (pictured left) was accused of cultural appropriation last month after he launched a 'jerk rice' that members of the Caribbean community claim 'doesn't have jerk in it' including London MP Dawn Butler (pictured right)

The celebrity cook, 43, wrote on Twitter at the time that 'the world has gone mad' after MP Dawn Butler started the debate

The row started on the 18th August when London MP Dawn Butler tweeted him saying 'your jerk rice is not ok'.

The shadow equalities minister, who describes herself on social media as 'the UK's first elected female African-Caribbean Government Minister', wrote: '#jamieoliver @jamieoliver #jerk I'm just wondering do you know what #Jamaican #jerk actually is?

'It's not just a word you put before stuff to sell products. @levirootsmusic should do a masterclass. Your jerk Rice is not ok. This appropriation from Jamaica needs to stop.'

After Ms Butler's tweet, TV chef Levi Roots appeared on Good Morning Britain with fellow Caribbean cook Rustie Lee to discuss the row further.

Jamie Olivier's new jerk rice contains chilli, aubergine and beans, which Rustie Lee claims are 'nothing to do with jerk'

Levi Roots (pictured with the product while appearing on GMB last month) branded the rice a 'mistake' and accused the chef of 'getting on a band wagon'

Roots admitted to hosts Jeremy Kyle and Kate Garraway: ' I do think it was a mistake by Jamie, either by him or by his team.'

But Lee appeared more infuriated by the row, saying: 'It is an insult. Jerk is from the Caribbean. And as much as I love Jamie. The point is it's getting on a band wagon.'

Roots, who took part in a televised 'jerk masterclass' in London a few years ago, was less incensed.

He said: 'I don't think its that serious. I think for Caribbean food to go get to where we want it to get to, we have to change things and I'm a big one for that.

Jamaican TV chef Levi Roots appeared on Good Morning Britain with fellow Caribbean cook Rustie Lee (pictured together) to discuss the cultural appropriation row further

'But you've got to know what jerk is. Jerk is a method of cooking and it is the actual marinade. If it doesn't have certain ingredients in it, it's not jerk.

'Not a lot of people watching this actually know what jerk is. They think it's just a word but it's a flavour. If you don't have these flavours in the food it's not jerk.'

What is jerk? Jerk is a seasoning for meat and fish that originated in Jamaica. The first jerk recipes can be dated back to slavery and the year 1655. It comes in two forms, a dry seasoning that is rubbed onto meat or fish, or a wet marinade used in the same way. The two key ingredients are allspice and Scotch bonnet peppers. Other ingredients include: ginger, sat, brown sugar, garlic, thyme, cloves, scallions, nutmeg and cinnamon. Advertisement

But Lee insisted that his use of marketing was offensive to her community, saying: 'Why didn't he call it pukka rice? He's taken jerk to try and be funny. It's a bit of an insult to Caribbean people.'

She added that Oliver's rice, which is made with aubergine, chilli and beans, is 'nothing to do with jerk'.

Trying to intervene, host Jeremy Kyle read out one definition of cultural appropriation.

He said: 'Cultural appropriation is 'the adoption of elements of a minority culture by members of the dominant culture.

'It is distinguished from an equal cultural exchange due to an imbalance often as a by-product of colonialism and oppression.'

But then exclaimed: 'It's a bowl of rice!'

Asked why it mattered by co-presenter Kate Garraway, Lee responded: 'It does matter.

'It matters because Jerk chicken, pork and fish originates from Jamaica. And the people who have this, it's their thing. Will they be offended? They would be offended.

'She [Dawn Butler] chose a word that made us talk. Would we have been here talking about it [otherwise]?'

'At the end of the day, I've tasted it and it tastes like Caribbean rice and beans with flavours in it.

'The jerk part of it is barbecue and you can't barbecue rice. Jerk chickengoes onto meat, it doesn't go onto rice.'

Jamie Oliver did not respond to GMB requests for comment. MailOnline has contacted one of his representatives.
An infant died of a viral infection she got from an eye exam at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP), the family's lawsuit claims.

The premature baby, Melanie Sanders, was one of 23 children infected with adenovirus at the hospital in 2016, according to Philly.com.

In a medical journal article published in June 2017, hospital staff attributed the outbreak to medical staff failing to wear gloves and clean equipment properly.

The lawsuit alleges Sanders died as a result of the infection, though lawyers for the hospital said in their court answer that survival of babies born so prematurely is uncertain for numerous reasons.

In 2016, 23 children contracted andenovirus eye infections at Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. The virus claimed the life of one infant, the family's lawsuit claims

The authors of the medical journal article said 43 babies received the eye exam in the unit in August 2016, and 23 of them were infected.

Adenovirus is not unheard of, but only accounts for about 10 percent of fever-causing infections among American children.

It is a particularly problematic - and common - virus in hospitals because it is highly contagious.

Usually, adenovirus is first recognizable as 'pink eye,' or conjunctivitis, a mild infection of the membranes surrounding the eye. These are often paired with or shortly followed by by respiratory infections.

All of those who were infected suffered respiratory symptoms; five developed pneumonia; and 11 had eye-related symptoms, they said.

In addition, nine adults, including six nurses and three parents, contracted viral infections.

'Observations revealed lack of standard cleaning practices of bedside ophthalmologic equipment and limited glove use,' the authors wrote.

Sterile gloves and consistent, thorough hand-washing practices are the best hope hospital staffers have for preventing the transmission of the virus.

Children's Hospital of Philadelphia is a major treatment center, especially for babies born early or with complications.

In fact, US News and World Report ranks CHOP second in the nation for neonatology (the treatment of preterm newborns).

The lawsuit said Melanie was being treated for eye issues related to her premature birth and within a few weeks of being transferred to the Philadelphia hospital started having respiratory symptoms.

She tested positive for an adenovirus and went into respiratory distress, requiring a drainage tube to be placed in her chest on four separate occasions, the suit said.

The virus can also cause gastrointestinal distress, urinary tract infections and even brain swelling.

It is unclear whether or not Melanie's immune system was fully intact, though adenovirus is particularly common in those with a compromised ability to fight infection - and that leaves them more vulnerable to secondary bugs too.

The suit went on to say that she developed a bacterial infection on top of the viral illness and died on September 11, 2016.

Once the outbreak was identified, staff moved quickly to determine the source of the virus and warn all of those who were at risk, the hospital said in a statement.

The statement said the hospital instituted safety measures that are currently being shared with hospitals around the country to prevent future viral outbreaks.

It said hospital officials could not comment on the details of the lawsuit.
Baffled doctors were forced to invent a lasso-like tool to remove a 23-inch (60cm) dildo firmly lodged inside a man.

The concerned 31-year-old, from Italy, went to hospital after he couldn't remove the massive sex toy, which had been stuck for 24 hours.

Medics in Milan were unable to get the rubber dildo out using standard methods, complaining it was too big and smooth.

After scratching their heads, the team crafted a new tool that worked like a lasso to catch the end of the dildo and drag it out, which proved successful.

The concerned 31-year-old, from Italy, went to hospital after he couldn't remove the massive sex toy (pictured, the long object running up the right of the scan)

The patient visited the emergency unit of the ASST Great Metropolitan Hospital in Niguarda, a district of Milan.

He told medics he had placed the dildo into his rectum the day before, and said it was 'not removable by hand'.

Upon questioning, he admitted he was suffering mild abdominal pain - but had no other worrying symptoms.

An X-ray revealed a 23 inch (60cm) object in his colon, according to the bizarre tale published in BMJ Case Reports.

Consultants then referred him to the hospital's endoscopy unit, to allow surgeons the chance of removing the dildo.

Writing in the journal, medics led by Dr Lorenzo Dioscoridi said: 'Several standard attempts with different extraction devices were made.'

After scratching their heads, the team in Milan crafted a new tool that worked like a lasso to catch the end of the dildo and drag it out

SEX TOYS FOR THE ANUS: ARE THEY SAFE? There are a range of sexual toys designed specifically for the anus of men and women available on the market. This is because the anus is much more sensitive and requires smoother objects to enter it for stimulation. All objects designed for anal sex also have a flared base which prevents it from ever getting sucked inside by the anus' very strong muscles. But people have long experimented with different objects in their anus, which risk their health. In an online forum, doctors warn that anal masturbation with appropriate toys or fingers is fine, but other objects can tear tissue and even lead to a perforated colon. Other doctors warn of an anal sphincter injury leading to incontinence. Dr Michael Brady, medical director at Terrence Higgins Trust, previously said: 'Sex toys and other objects can be a safe and enjoyable part of a healthy sex life but its important to use common sense when choosing an object. 'Anything with sharp edges or made of glass can shatter and tear the internal lining, which can cause injury and infections, as well as giving viruses an easier route into the body. 'Anything that is inserted into the body should be smooth, non-fragile and easily retrievable.' Advertisement

A 50mm polypectomy's snare - a wire loop device used to chop off abnormal tissue growths called polyps - was also ineffective.

Dr Dioscoridi and colleagues said the technique didn't work because of the 'rigidity, the smoothness and the large size of the foreign body'.

Forceps and a wire-guided dilation balloon - another common method - failed because of the 'hard consistence' of the dildo.

Usually, surgery is the only remaining option to remove foreign bodies that are stuck. But the new technique may change that.

After all their attempts, the medics built a 'home-made' snare, designed to hook onto the dildo and drag it back out of the man's rectum.

In the journal they wrote: 'We finally succeeded in the endoscopic extraction of the device, catching the distal edge of the dildo with this guidewire lasso.

'This device showed a technical advantage as compared with ordinary polypectomy snares, due to its much higher stiffness.'

Dr Dioscoridi said this made it possible to detach the colonic wall from the dildo and 'effectively pull the object'.

The medics said the new technique may be a 'valid option' to remove large foreign bodies from the colon and rectum when standard methods for extraction fail.

The patient was allowed home on the same day of the procedure. He reported no lasting symptoms a month later.

He wrote a thank you note for the consultants for solving his 'embarrassing problem' without having to resort to surgery.

The new case comes after a drunk British man last year perforated his bowel after inserting an 'unusually large' 30-inch (77cm) dildo in his anus.

The patient, whose name is unknown, used the bendy object for sexual gratification when he was drunk, according to the BMJ Case Report.

Doctors at the Northern Lincolnshire and Goole NHS Foundation Trust revealed he 'lost control' of the toy because he was intoxicated.
There are still 'substantial risks' in the area of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in the grip of a deadly Ebola outbreak, the World Health Organisation has warned.

The UN agency says that although efforts to stop the virus spreading are working, it is proving hard to keep track of where the virus is active.

Four new cases surfaced last week in people who did not appear to have come into contact with other infected patients, causing concern for health workers.

The official warning came just days after the death toll rose to 78 in the central African country on August 28.

There have been 86 confirmed cases of the deadly infection since the outbreak began on August 1, with dozens more suspected.

But experimental drugs and vaccines are being rolled out in the North Kivu region in a world-first bid to treat people already infected and prevent new infections.

Health officials say there are still challenges to tackling the Congo's Ebola outbreak because it can be hard to track exactly where the source of the infection is. (Pictured: A health worker gets ready to perform medical checks inside an Ebola Treatment Centre in Beni, where the outbreak began)

The DRC's Ebola outbreak is now entering its second month and the WHO said on Friday 'substantial risks' remain in trying to control the virus.

Global health officials said that while control measures appear to be working, health officials are still unable to track exactly where the deadly virus is spreading.

Four of the 13 new cases from the city of Beni were not previously identified as contacts, meaning officials don't know how they were exposed to Ebola.

An important part of preventing the spread of the virus is monitoring people who have been in contact with others infected with the fever, to make sure they don't develop symptoms and spread the infection.

If people develop the infection without coming into contact with previous patients it could mean the virus is coming from elsewhere.

This makes it harder for health workers to track down and contain all the sources of the fast-spreading disease.

The WHO also reports 'sporadic instances' of high-risk behaviors like unsafe burials, which could worsen the outbreak because Ebola can still be caught from corpses.

But there are rays of hope for the troubled African country  two infected patients have recovered after being given an experimental therapeutic drug.

More than 3,400 people have been given the medicines and experts say the DRC's medical assault on the infection is a 'global first'.

The UN health agency in a new statement said most patients recently admitted to Ebola clinics were given experimental treatments and that many contacts of cases have been immunized with a novel vaccine.

Ebola can be fatal in up to 90 per cent of cases

Ebola is a haemorrhagic fever which causes sudden fever, vomiting, diarrhoea and internal and external bleeding.

The virus can be fatal in up to 90 per cent of cases, depending on the strain, and spreads quickly between people through contact with infected bodily fluids.

The DRC's current outbreak is taking place in the north-east of the country, around the city of Beni near the Ugandan border.

Two patients have recovered after receiving experimental drug

But health officials may be making progress in the fight as a widespread drug programme has shown signs of success.

Last week, two of the first 10 people to have been given an experimental cure known as mAb114 made a recovery from the often-deadly infection.

In a statement the DRC's health ministry confirmed: 'These two people are among the first 10 patients to have received the therapeutic molecule mAb114.'

Treatment usually relies on keeping patients hydrated and quarantined, and trying to manage their symptoms as the body tries to fight off the virus.

Congo's vaccination efforts 'a world first and a ray of hope'

Some 75 people have died in the most recent Ebola outbreak taking place in the North Kivu province in the north-east of Democratic Republic of Congo. Pictured: Health workers carry the body of a suspected victim last Wednesday, August 22, in Mangina, a town near Beni

Developed in the US, mAb114 was the first of five experimental treatments the DRC has begun using in the outbreak.

The health ministry has confirmed four other experimental drugs have been approved for use in the country  ZMapp, Remdesivir, Favipiravir and Regn3450-3471-347.

The World Health Organisation said the country's attempts to stop the virus were 'a global first, and a ray of hope for people with the disease.'

Healthcare offered for free to encourage people to seek help

The mayor in the city of Beni, Jean Edmond Nyonyi Masumbuko Bwanakawa, has announced treatment for Ebola will be free in the region for three months.

He hopes the move will encourage people to seek immediate medical help and not be put off by a fear of having to pay for healthcare.

More than 100 people are thought to still be living with Ebola in the area.

WHAT IS EBOLA AND HOW DEADLY IS IT? Ebola, a haemorrhagic fever, killed at least 11,000 across the world after it decimated West Africa and spread rapidly over the space of two years. That epidemic was officially declared over back in January 2016, when Liberia was announced to be Ebola-free by the WHO. The country, rocked by back-to-back civil wars that ended in 2003, was hit the hardest by the fever, with 40 per cent of the deaths having occurred there. Sierra Leone reported the highest number of Ebola cases, with nearly of all those infected having been residents of the nation. WHERE DID IT BEGIN? An analysis, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, found the outbreak began in Guinea - which neighbours Liberia and Sierra Leone. A team of international researchers were able to trace the epidemic back to a two-year-old boy in Meliandou - about 400 miles (650km) from the capital, Conakry. Emile Ouamouno, known more commonly as Patient Zero, may have contracted the deadly virus by playing with bats in a hollow tree, a study suggested. HOW MANY PEOPLE WERE STRUCK DOWN? WHICH COUNTRIES WERE STRUCK DOWN BY EBOLA DURING THE 2014-16 EPIDEMIC? (CDC figures) COUNTRY CASES DEATHS DEATH RATE (%) GUINEA 3,814 2,544 66.7% SIERRA LEONE 14,124 3,956 28.0% LIBERIA 10,678 4,810 45.0% NIGERIA 20 8 40.0% SENEGAL 1 0 N/A SPAIN 1 0 N/A US 4 1 25.0% MALI 8 6 75.0% UK 1 0 N/A ITALY 1 0 N/A Figures show nearly 29,000 people were infected from Ebola - meaning the virus killed around 40 per cent of those it struck. Cases and deaths were also reported in Nigeria, Mali and the US - but on a much smaller scale, with 15 fatalities between the three nations. Health officials in Guinea reported a mysterious bug in the south-eastern regions of the country before the WHO confirmed it was Ebola. Ebola was first identified by scientists in 1976, but the most recent outbreak dwarfed all other ones recorded in history, figures show. HOW DID HUMANS CONTRACT THE VIRUS? Scientists believe Ebola is most often passed to humans by fruit bats, but antelope, porcupines, gorillas and chimpanzees could also be to blame. It can be transmitted between humans through blood, secretions and other bodily fluids of people - and surfaces - that have been infected. IS THERE A TREATMENT? The WHO warns that there is 'no proven treatment' for Ebola - but dozens of drugs and jabs are being tested in case of a similarly devastating outbreak. Hope exists though, after an experimental vaccine, called rVSV-ZEBOV, protected nearly 6,000 people. The results were published in The Lancet journal. Advertisement

Unsafe burial of patient triggered the outbreak

According to the WHO, the unsafe burial of a 65-year-old Ebola sufferer was to blame for triggering the current outbreak.

After she was buried, members of her family began to display symptoms of the virus and seven of them were reported to have died.

Genetic analysis confirmed the virus in the latest outbreak is the Zaire strain, which is the same as the one earlier this summer.

Yet, Peter Salama, WHO's deputy director for emergency preparedness and response, revealed last week the pathogen is genetically different to the virus seen before.

Fears outbreak is reminiscent of 2014 epidemic

An Ebola patient is being checked by two medical workers after being admitted into a Biosecure Emergency care Unite (CUBE) in Beni, Democratic Republic of Congo

The current Ebola outbreak is the 10th to strike the Congo since 1976, when the virus was first identified and named after the Ebola River in the north of the country.

The outbreak on the border of Uganda was announced just days after another was declared over in the north-west of the Congo at the start of August.

Virologists feared it would be 'reminiscent' of the 2014 Ebola pandemic, which decimated West Africa and killed 11,000 people.

Yet the new outbreak has already dwarfed the one earlier this summer and has stoked more fears among the medical community.

Calls to end violence

In a desperate attempt to stem the outbreak, the World Health Organization's (WHO) chief called for an end to the fighting in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) last week.

Dr Tedros Adhanom travelled to east DRC to examine the situation in person and told reporters in Switzerland he was 'actually more worried after the visit than before'.

He added: 'We call on the warring parties for a cessation of hostilities because the virus is dangerous to all. It doesn't choose between this group and that group.'

Professor Paul Hunter, a virologist at the University of East Anglia, last week praised an experimental vaccine being distributed in the DRC that stops the spread of Ebola.

Aid workers will have to work among more than 100 armed groups

Yet, he also raised fears that conflict in the region might make the outbreak hard to control, as those infected could be displaced to refugee camps where the virus can thrive.

Professor Hunter said: 'The effectiveness of any immunisation campaign depends on the ability to deliver that vaccine to the appropriate people is a timely manner.

'Unfortunately the latest outbreak is in an area of armed conflict and this poses substantial difficulties for effective prevention.'

Aid workers have been told they will have to navigate their response among more than 100 armed groups.

A WHO spokesperson said: 'This is an active conflict zone. The major barrier will be safely accessing the affected population.'
Fascinating footage shows doctors removing a large piece of metal from a beating heart in a life-or-death operation.

Drill operator Satish Kumar, from India, was blue-lighted to hospital after a horrific accident at work that nearly killed him.

A 4cm-long bit of metal snapped off his drill and pierced into his chest, puncturing his heart and narrowly missing the main artery.

Doctors gave Mr Kumar little chance of surviving the injury, describing it as like being shot straight in the heart with a gun.

But a specialist team at Fortis Hospital in Noida  just outside New Delhi  defied all odds to keep the 32-year-old alive.

Surgeons led by Dr Vaibhav Mishra performed an emergency surgery, removing the metallic fragment from his heart.

They have today released a gruesome 90-second long clip of the operation that saved Mr Kumar, which shows his heart beating rapidly.

In a desperate attempt to keep him alive, they use forceps to dig into the heart to pull out the metal buried 'deep inside his heart'.

They also repaired his left ventricle  one of four vital chambers of the organ, where the metal had lodged itself.

Mr Kumar, who works in a factory near New Delhi, endured the life-threatening injury little more than two weeks ago.

By the time he reached hospital, he had already lost vast amounts of blood and time, which is essential for hopes of survival.

Drill operator Satish Kumar, from India, was blue-lighted to hospital after a horrific accident at work that nearly killed him. A 4cm-long bit of metal (left) snapped off his drill and pierced into his chest, puncturing his heart and narrowly missing the main artery

It missed one of his coronary arteries  which supply blood to the heart - by just a few millimetres, local reports state.

Newsflare, a video news agency, claims five hospitals had turned Mr Kumar away, saying he had no chance of survival.

But Dr Mishra and colleagues accepted the challenge. Four days after the surgery, Mr Kumar was able to walk and was allowed home.

Dr Mishra said: 'High-speed penetrating injuries of the heart are universally fatal and this was similar to being shot in the heart by a gun.'

He added: 'Fortunately, the metallic fragment also plugged the hole it had created.

'That stopped the heart from a fatal haemorrhage and we were able to extract the metallic piece buried deep inside the heart.'

Ashleigh Doggett, senior cardiac nurse at British Heart Foundation said: 'Beating heart surgery was pioneered in the UK by BHF Professor Gianni Angelini and is now used worldwide.

'Most forms of heart surgery require the patients chest to be opened, the heart stopped and an artificial pump to take over the work of their heart during the operation.

'This can add considerable complications, so by keeping the heart beating and avoiding the pump, there are fewer complications for bypass patients.'
The Indian state of Kerala is battling an outbreak of so-called 'rat fever' after experiencing the worst floods this century.

As of yesterday, nine deaths and nearly 200 cases were confirmed in the southern state, with health officials fearing fatalities may rise to more than 40 once the results of medical reports come in.

Rat fever, or leptospirosis, is spread via the urine of infected rodents, with symptoms including muscle pain and fever.

Cases in Kerala are thought to have surged after torrential rain began in early August, flooding almost all of the state and killing hundreds of its residents.

Although health officials are handing out preventive medicine throughout Kerala, experts warn this outbreak is more aggressive than previous years', with an epidemic being likely.

The Indian state of Kerala is battling an outbreak of so-called 'rat fever' after experiencing the worst floods this century. Yesterday, nine deaths and nearly 200 cases were confirmed (stock)

WHAT IS LEPTOSPIROSIS? Leptospirosis, also known as Weil's disease or rat fever, is an infection caught from animals. It is spread from the urine of infected animals; most commonly rats, mice, cows, pigs and dogs. A person can catch the infection if soil or freshwater containing infected urine enters their mouth, eyes or a cut. Infected animal blood and flesh can also pass the disease on. Symptoms can include: A very high temperature

Headache

Nausea and vomiting

Aching muscles and joints

Red eyes

Loss of appetite In severe cases people may cough up blood, develop jaundice or have swollen extremities. Treatment involves antibiotics, as well as painkillers. Although leptospirosis is rare in the UK and US, people can reduce their risk by: Washing their hands with soap after handling animals or animal products

Cleaning wounds as quickly as possible

Covering cuts with plasters

Wearing protective clothing if their jobs put them at risk

Showering as soon as possible if they have been in infected waters

Ensuring their dogs are vaccinated against the infection. There is no human jab Source: NHS Advertisement

'Threat of an epidemic'

The health ministry began handing out preventative leptospirosis medicine last month and warned of a possible outbreak of the disease, alongside other waterborne infections, such as typhoid and cholera.

Despite issuing such medication, three deaths occurred last Monday, with the health minister saying: 'The victims had unfortunately not taken preventive medicine.'

Although Kerala experiences leptospirosis cases every monsoon season when paddy fields fill with water, incidences this year seem different.

Not all of the latest outbreak's victims are experiencing the classic symptoms of blood in the urine or bleeding spots on the skin, according to Mohammed Javeed, an internal medicine specialist at a private hospital in Kerala.

He told Reuters: 'This time it is a fast, progressive infection.

'The recent deaths indicate clearly the threat of an epidemic.'

Leptospirosis hit Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria

As well as affecting Kerala, scores of people are thought to have been struck down with leptospirosis in Puerto Rico when Hurricane Maria hit the island on September 20 2017.

The US government was accused of underestimating the number of people that contracted the infection via exposure to contaminated water.

In 2017, Governor Ricardo Rossello admitted four people had died and another six were ill due to leptospirosis.

Yet a CNN/CPI investigation last July found the actual number to be much higher, with 26 related fatalities since the storm struck.
Thousands of children born each year by IVF could be at risk of serious heart problems in later life, a study suggests.

Scientists found signs of 'premature vascular aging' in children as young as 11 who had been conceived as a result of fertility treatment.

And by the age of 16 IVF children were six times more likely to have high blood pressure - a major risk factor for heart attacks and strokes.

The scientists believe how embryos are fertilised and manipulated before they are implanted into a woman's uterus may cause small genetic changes that affect a baby's heart and circulatory system.

They warn that the soaring use of IVF 'may have come at a price' for many children, who could suffer cardiovascular disease as a result.

Thousands of children born each year by IVF may be at risk of heart problems later on (stock)

Children conceived via IVF have higher blood pressure readings

Researchers from University Hospital in Bern, Switzerland, tracked 54 seemingly healthy children who had been born via IVF, and compared them to 43 children born naturally.

They found at age 11 and 12 the IVF children had a 25 per cent narrower brachial artery - the major blood vessel in the arm - and their arteries had thicker walls.

The team then tracked the children for five years.

At the age of 16 and 17 the IVF children were far more likely to have developed high blood pressure.

They had an average blood pressure of 120/71, compared to 116/69 for the teenagers who had been conceived naturally.

Crucially, eight of those conceived via IVF had developed 'hypertension' - the medical term for high blood pressure, involving a reading of more than 130/80.

Only one of the teenagers conceived naturally had hypertension.

Scientists warn the soaring use of IVF 'may have come at a price' for many children (stock)

IVF may 'come at a price'

The study bolsters the results of previous research which found mice born to IVF had heart problems.

The scientists, writing in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, said: 'Assisted reproductive technology has allowed millions of infertile couples to have children.

'However, this success may have come at a price.' They said they had taken into account the health of the mother during pregnancy, and therefore believe 'the cardiovascular alterations are related to the procedure [of IVF] itself'.

More than 8million children have been born via IVF since the technology was pioneered in Britain 40 years ago.

In the UK alone 20,000 children are born each year using IVF.

The scientists said doctors should heed the new 'mechanistic insight' in order to prevent 'cardiovascular risk in the millions of future children expected to be conceived using these methods'.

This could involve making sure IVF children do more exercise and eat healthily or giving them statins and other heart drugs from an early age.

HOW DOES IVF WORK? In-vitro fertilisation, known as IVF, is a medical procedure in which a woman has an already-fertilised egg inserted into her womb to become pregnant. It is used when couples are unable to conceive naturally, and a sperm and egg are removed from their bodies and combined in a laboratory before the embryo is inserted into the woman. Once the embryo is in the womb, the pregnancy should continue as normal. The procedure can be done using eggs and sperm from a couple or those from donors. Guidelines from the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommends that IVF should be offered on the NHS to women under 43 who have been trying to conceive through regular unprotected sex for two years. People can also pay for IVF privately, which costs an average of 3,348 for a single cycle, according to figures published in January 2018, and there is no guarantee of success. The NHS says success rates for women under 35 are about 29 per cent, with the chance of a successful cycle reducing as they age. Around eight million babies are thought to have been born due to IVF since the first ever case, British woman Louise Brown, was born in 1978. Chances of success The success rate of IVF depends on the age of the woman undergoing treatment, as well as the cause of the infertility (if it's known). Younger women are more likely to have a successful pregnancy. IVF isn't usually recommended for women over the age of 42 because the chances of a successful pregnancy are thought to be too low. Between 2014 and 2016 the percentage of IVF treatments that resulted in a live birth was: 29 per cent for women under 35 23 per cent for women aged 35 to 37 15 per cent for women aged 38 to 39 9 per cent for women aged 40 to 42 3 per cent for women aged 43 to 44 2 per cent for women aged over 44 Advertisement

IVF raises a child's risk of high blood pressure by six times

Study leader Dr Emrush Rexhaj said: 'The increased prevalence of arterial hypertension in assisted reproductive technology participants is what is most concerning.

'There is growing evidence that [IVF] alters the blood vessels in children, but the long-term consequences were not known.

'We now know that this places [these] children at a six times higher rate of hypertension than children conceived naturally.' She added: 'It only took five years for differences in arterial blood pressure to show.

'This is a rapidly growing population and apparently healthy children are showing serious signs of concern for early cardiovascular risk, especially when it comes to arterial hypertension.' Experts last night welcomed the findings.

Global heart expert Dr Yutang Wang, of Federation University Australia, said: 'Assisted reproductive technology involve the manipulation of early embryos at a time when they may be particularly vulnerable to external disturbances.

'Therefore, it is not surprising that this could increase individual's susceptibility to some diseases.

'Future research will tell us whether [IVF] increases long-term cardiovascular diseases such as stroke and heart attack in humans, and research into methods to minimise such risks are urgently needed.'
Giving patients a combination of four or five antibiotics may be the best way of tackling killer superbugs, researchers believe.

For years, scientists have warned taking more than one of the drugs at the same time would prove useless in combating bacterial infections.

But a new study debunks the theory and offers hope of 'promising' new route in the face of the ever-growing threat of antibiotic resistance.

Biologists at the University of California, Los Angeles, who made the discovery, say combinations will work if the drugs target bacteria in different ways.

Britain's chief medical officer, Dame Sally Davies has previously warned that the threat of antibiotic resistance is as severe as terrorism and global warming.

For years, scientists have warned taking more than one antibiotic at the same time would prove useless in combating bacterial infections

The UCLA team assessed eight antibiotics. They stumbled across 8,119 combinations of four or five antibiotics that, when taken together, performed better than expected.

Dr Pamela Yeh, senior author of the scientific paper, said: 'We're offering an alternative that looks very promising.

'We shouldn't limit ourselves to just single drugs or two-drug combinations in our medical toolbox.

'We expect several of these combinations, or more, will work much better than existing antibiotics.'

The medical community has traditionally believed combining more than two drugs to fight harmful bacteria would yield diminishing returns.

The prevailing theory is the incremental benefits of combining three or more drugs would be too small to matter.

While fears have also been raised that the interactions among the drugs would cause their benefits to cancel one another out.

But the new study, published in the journal npj Systems Biology and Applications, challenges the theory.

In laboratory tests, Dr Yeh and colleagues analysed how every possible four and five-drug combinations worked against E. coli.

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

A total of 18,278 combinations were tested in total against the bacteria, based on varying dosages of each drug  which work in different ways.

They expected some combinations would be effective at killing the bug, but were startled by how many potent combinations they found.

For every combination they tested, the researchers first predicted how effective they thought it would be in stopping the growth of E. coli.

Among the four-drug combinations, there were 1,676 groupings that performed better than they expected in the laboratory trial.

And among the five-drug combinations, 6,443 groupings proved to be more effective than Dr Yeh and her team expected.

However, 7,530 four and five drug combinations proved less effective than the team predicted, according to fellow senior author Professor Van Savage.

He said: 'I was blown away by how many effective combinations there are as we increased the number of drugs.

'People may think they know how drug combinations will interact, but they really don't.'

Professor Savage suggested the drug combinations were effective, at least partly, because they have different ways of targeting E. coli.

He said: 'Some drugs attack the cell walls, others attack the DNA inside. It's like attacking a castle or fortress.

'Combining different methods of attacking may be more effective than just a single approach.'

The researchers have now warned they are years away from having the combinations thoroughly evaluated as possible treatments in humans.

Dr Michael Kurilla, director of the Division of Clinical Innovation at the National Institutes of Health, praised the discovery.

He said the ability to more 'judiciously' use combinations of existing antibiotics that are losing potency is welcome.

Dr Kurilla warned the emergence of antibiotic resistance is threatening to 'turn back health care to the pre-antibiotic era'.
The pain, swelling and stiffness caused by rheumatoid arthritis could one day be reduced thanks to an injection of 'nanosponges,' a study found.

While the breakthrough will not cure the autoimmune disease, it helps manage the condition that affects 1.3 million Americans and 400,000 Britons.

The neutrophil 'nanosponges' safely soak up and neutralize a variety of proteins that cause inflammation in the joints, usually of the hands, feet and wrists.

In mice, experimental injections of these nanosponges effectively brought severe rheumatoid arthritis under control - and also prevented the disease from developing in those that received shots early enough.

Professor Liangfang Zhang at the University of California San Diego cautions that the nanosponge treatment does not eliminate the disease, and we are far from a cure.

We are still far away from a cure for rheumatoid arthritis, but the closest relief we've found yet could come in the form of minuscule sponges of biodegradable polymer coated with the cell membranes of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell (illustration pictured)

Dr Zhang, of the department of nanoengineering, said: 'We are basically able to manage the disease. It's not completely gone. But swelling is greatly reduced and cartilage damage is minimized.'

The team hopes to one day see their work in human clinical trials.

The senior author at the university's Jacobs School of Engineering explained: 'Rheumatoid arthritis is a widespread and devastating autoimmune disease characterized by systemic inflammation that causes progressive joint damage and disability.

'The precise cause of rheumatoid arthritis remains elusive, and current treatment primarily targets the inflammatory response.

'Nanosponges are a new paradigm of treatment to block pathological molecules from triggering disease in the body.

'Rather than creating treatments to block a few specific types of pathological molecules, we are developing a platform that can block a broad spectrum of them and this way we can treat and prevent disease more effectively and efficiently.'

The new nanosponges are nanoparticles of biodegradable polymer coated with the cell membranes of neutrophils, a type of white blood cell.

Neutrophils are among the immune system's first responders against invading pathogens.

They are also known to play a role in the development of rheumatoid arthritis.

When rheumatoid arthritis develops, cells in the joints produce inflammatory proteins called cytokines.

Release of cytokines signals neutrophils to enter the joints and once there, cytokines bind to receptors on the neutrophil surfaces, activating them to release more cytokines, which in turn draws more neutrophils to the joints and so on.

The nanosponges essentially nip this inflammatory cascade in the bud.

By acting as tiny neutrophil decoys, they intercept cytokines and stop them from signalling even more neutrophils to the joints, reducing inflammation and joint damage.

And they promise an alternative to current treatments such as some monoclonal antibody drugs which have helped patients manage symptoms of the disease.

But they work by neutralizing only specific types of cytokines which is not sufficient to treat the disease because there are so many different types of cytokines and pathological molecules involved.

'Neutralizing just one or two types might not be as effective,' Dr Zhang said.

'So our approach is to take neutrophil cell membranes, which naturally have receptors to bind all these different types of cytokines and use them to manage an entire population of inflammatory molecules.'

First author PhD student Qiangzhe Zhang explained: 'This strategy removes the need to identify specific cytokines or inflammatory signals in the process.

'Using entire neutrophil cell membranes, we're cutting off all these inflammatory signals at once.'

In mouse models of severe rheumatoid arthritis, injecting nanosponges in inflamed joints led to reduced swelling and protected cartilage from further damage.

The nanosponges performed just as well as treatments in which mice were administered a high dose of monoclonal antibodies.

The nanosponges also worked as a preventive treatment when administered prior to inducing the disease in another group of mice.

The study was published in Nature Nanotechnology.
When Jessica Solt learned she had gastric cancer in September 2016, she was horrified at the prognosis.

Doctors told her that because the cancer was in the early stages she could be cured, but they would have to remove her stomach.

Solt, who lives in New York City with her husband Juan Pablo Horcasitas and their one-year-old son Martin, was devastated at the idea of having such a major organ removed.

One month later, the now-36-year-old underwent the hours-long invasive surgery, connecting her esophagus to her small intestine, which acts like a substitute stomach.

Now, Solt has opened up about the challenges of learning to eat smaller portions, balancing her meals so she doesn't get sugar crashes, and how she hopes to inspire others going through a similar situation.

Jessica Solt, 36, from New York City, was diagnosed with hereditary diffuse gastric cancer (HDGC) - a rare, inherited cancer syndrome that puts sufferers at a high risk of developing diffuse gastric cancer at a young age - in 2016. Pictured: Solt in July 2017

Two days later, cancerous cells were detected in her stomach lining and doctors told her the only way to prevent a potential spread was to remove her stomach surgically. Pictured: Solt in August 2017

Hereditary diffuse gastric cancer (HDGC) is a rare, inherited cancer syndrome that puts sufferers at a high risk of developing diffuse gastric cancer at a young age.

According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, HDGC makes up one to three percent of all stomach cancers.

In diffuse gastric cancer, there is no tumor. Rather, cancerous cells form underneath the lining of the stomach in small clusters.

This type of cancer associated with HDGC is often not visible on an upper endoscopy, making it difficult to diagnose.

Therefore, a majority of diffuse gastric cancer cases are diagnosed at late stages.

Symptoms include stomach pain, nausea, vomiting, weight loss and difficulty swallowing.

The National Institutes of Health say that between 20 and 40 percent of people with HDGC have a mutation in the CDH1 gene.

This gene provides instructions for a protein that helps neighboring cells stick together and form tissues.

Most people with this mutation will get HDGC by approximately age 40.

Having a CDH1 mutation and HDGC also puts women at a 40 to 50 percent chance of developing lobular breast cancer and a slightly increased risk for men developing prostate cancer.

The National Institutes of Health say that between 20 and 40 percent of people with HDGC have a mutation in the CDH1 gene, which Solt has. Pictured: Solt with her son Martin in September 2017

In October 2016, Solt underwent the gastrectomy at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and, for the first 10 months, she said she had trouble keeping food down. Pictured: Solt with her son and husband Juan Pablo Horcasitas in December 2017

The only way to prevent HDGC from developing into cancer if someone has the CDH1 mutation, or if already has the cancer, is to have your stomach surgically removed in a process called a total gastrectomy.

A surgeon will connect the esophagus, a tube that connects the throat to the stomach, to the small intestine so that there is still a functioning digestive system.

However, if the cancer has already spread to other organs, sufferers may also undergo chemotherapy or radiation.

Solt found out she was positive for the CDH1 gene mutation in September 2016.

Doctors told her she had a 79 percent chance of developing stomach cancer and, two days, later they found malignant cells in her stomach lining.

The only way to prevent the cancer from spreading throughout her body was to have her stomach removed.

Solt remembers one doctor telling her: 'Jessica, you can live without a stomach.'

'It just seemed so shocking,' Solt said of the diagnosis to PEOPLE.

'It was just so bizarre and terrifying. Life as I knew it was over. I thought I wasn't going to enjoy life or food or my son or my marriage or anything.'

In October 2016, Solt underwent the gastrectomy at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.

She described the months following the procedure as very difficult. Over the next 10 months, Solt had trouble keeping food down and was hospitalized four times because the new connection from her esophagus to her intestine kept closing.

In July 2017, she underwent a second procedure, which essentially re-did the first surgery and removed scar tissue. This time, it was successful. Pictured: Solt with her surgeon Dr Vivian Strong in October 2017

There are some adjustments Solt has had to make including eating much smaller portions because she gets fuller quicker and her sugar levels will crash if she eats a meal too high in carbs and too low in protein. Pictured, left and right: Solt's surgical scars

'Those first months were hell. The first year was a nightmare. It was like eating through a really tiny straw. It was really, really horrible,' Solt told the magazine.

In July 2017, she underwent a second procedure, which was essentially re-doing the first surgery and removing scar tissue.

This time, the new passage stayed open.

'Five days later we ordered Thai food and I ate like a normal person! I was like: "This is great!"' she said.

There are some adjustments Sold has had to make due to living without a stomach.

Solt says she has to eat much smaller portions because she gets fuller quicker, she needs vitamin B-12 shots, and her sugar levels will crash if she eats a meal too high in carbs and too low in protein.

She has also developed food intolerances, but says she's grateful it's only regards to milk and cereal because it could be to so many more foods.

She also says she wishes she could be a 'typical mom' who could play with her son without getting easily tired.

'That's a bummer because I'm only 36 and I wish I had more energy', Solt said.

However, she does say she wants to inspire her son - who has a 50 percent chance of inheriting the disease - by showing him you can thrive without having a stomach.

One way Solt has tried to do this is by participating in a photo shoot with UK-based photographer Sophie Mayanne for a series called Behind the Scars, which celebrates scars that society often deems 'unattractive'.

For the shoot, Solt proudly displays the scars from the surgery that removed her stomach.

In a blog post on Love What Matters, Solt wrote that she plans to have a preventive double mastectomy in 2019 to reduce the risk of her developing breast cancer.
For Michael Danielson, of San Diego, California, the only thing that gave him relief when he was diagnosed was knowing that he could end it all before he reached the final phase. In May, that was overturned. For now it is temporarily in effect, but being debated

Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis is a brutal disease that kills sufferers by gradually shutting down control of every bodily function.

Infecting the nervous system, the incurable disease sets in motion a series of unstoppable events, sometimes swiftly but often slowly over the course of years.

Sufferers lose the ability to control muscles needed to talk, walk, chew, hold things, and moves their faces.

In the later stages, the disease stops their bowel movements, and their ability to swallow.

As anyone with ALS will tell you, it is terrifying, painful, and void of dignity. With no effective treatments there is barely anything to cushion the blow of a doctor delivering the diagnosis.

For Michael Danielson, of San Diego, California, the only thing that gave him a glimmer of relief when he discovered that his muscle twitches were a symptom of this terminal disease was knowing that he could end it all before he reached the final phase, since the End of Life Option Act was passed in October 2015.

He doesn't want to die, but he would rather go quietly on his own terms.

But this year, he says, he has been forced to step onto the soap box to protest for that right, after lawmakers agreed to overturn the ruling in May because it was passed during a loosely connected but, ultimately, unrelated legislative session - something pro-life campaigners say makes the bill unlawful.

After some back-and-forth it's been agreed that, for now, it can stay in effect while the bill is reconsidered.

It is unclear, though, what lies ahead.

Today, the American College of Physicians' medical journal Annals has published a heartwrenching personal essay from Danielson, imploring lawmakers not to keep patients in limbo.

'[O]ne of the most comforting aspects was that I was going to be in control of my end. I was relieved to know that I did not have to suffer needlessly and indeterminately,' he writes.

'The End of Life Option Act afforded me and other terminally ill people the optionand that is a very important wordto have dignity and compassion at the end of our lives. That gave me a great deal of comfort in the past year.'

He adds: 'Without this law in place, I have to let nature take its course. This is painful... stressful. It's unnecessary, and it could go on senselessly for a very long time. If anyone wants to contest the law, let them do that. Let us take it to the court system, but keep the law in place while it's being adjudicated. Playing ping-pong with people's lives is inhumane.'

The letter, released this afternoon, was written earlier this year, during the weeks of to-ing and fro-ing between Californian judges.

But according Dr David Grube, a retired family physician who is now a leading figure in the movement to legalize assisted dying, the shadow of uncertainty means people like Danielson still live with the fear that their life will end painfully.

'It's problematic for patients, their anxiety about whether or not they will be able to have control at the end of their lives or not,' Dr Grube, National Medical Director of Compassion & Choices in Oregon, told DailyMail.com.

'I'm very familiar with the fear and the passion and anxiety and pain and suffering you see at the bedside of dying patients. A third of patients don't use the drugs, but just having them gives them a sense of control. Even more patients just want to be able to talk about it; to know that they have options.'

Beyond California, assisted dying is legal in six states and the District of Columbia. In the other 43 states of America, a doctor who administers lethal medicine to a terminally ill patient risks losing their license.

California passed the End of Life Option Act in October 2015, during a legislative session by Gov. Jerry Brown addressing broader healthcare funding. It came into effect in June 2016.

It wasn't the sole focus of the legislative session but it was certainly the headline bill. Scores of demonstrators gathered on the Capitol in Sacramento in support of assisted dying, led by Dan Diaz, widower of Brittany Maynard, the young Californian woman who moved to Oregon to end her life at just 29 before it would be claimed by terminal brain cancer. She shared her journey with millions of people via YouTube, explaining that her face and body had painfully swelled, and she was suffering multiple seizures a day. Shortly before she died, she called on California to pass legislation allowing citizens the same right.

However, from the moment the bill passed and beyond, pro-life activists were campaigning to overturn it.

The classic complaint from a pro-life perspective is that it runs against the doctor's Hippocratic oath to 'first, do no harm' (something pro-choicers like Danielson say is the reason to legalize assisted dying - 'I believe that doctors are doing more harm by keeping terminally ill patients alive needlessly than by allowing them to take control and have a dignified passing of their choice').

In this case, though, the focus has been on one loophole: that the bill was not directly related to the legislative session at hand.

In May this year, they found an ally in Riverside County Superior Court Judge Daniel A. Ottolia, who overturned it on the grounds that it had not been adequately debated.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra appealed for the law to remain in effect while it was being debated. Ottolia rejected that appeal, and another three appeals that came from terminally ill Californians.

Eventually on June 15, California's 4th District Court of Appeals granted Becerra's motion to keep the law until further notice.

Just over two months later, Dr Grube says California's doctors and patients are 'acting like it's here to stay'. His focus is on the other side of the country, on New York, New Jersey and Massachusetts, where patients currently have two legal options: cease eating and drinking, or get themselves into a hospital where, if they seem in enough pain, doctors have the right to sedate them until the disease takes hold. The first runs against human survival instinct ('except,' Dr Grube says, 'for the very elderly'). The second is logistically complicated.

But as Dr Grube looks east, Danielson remains cautious back in California.

Though he is not short of support - with a strong network of siblings a niece and nephew, close friends and a trusted medical team - he says he cannot be sure how his life will end, since he does not plan to imminently exercise his right to die, and the bill may well ping back to the other side of the table.

'[T]his decision was the one last element of control I had over my life. For that to be taken away fills me with great anxiety, because now I do not know how this is going to play out.'
In 2012, the Government announced that property companies would no longer need planning permission to convert office blocks into flats. The move was designed to alleviate the housing crisis, but it has had a dramatic impact on the office world, particularly outside London.

In Birmingham, for example, office availability has shrunk nearly 60 per cent in the past six years, while Milton Keynes has seen a fall of more than 35 per cent.

The trend plays neatly into the hands of Circle Property, a small but ambitious firm run by some of the most experienced developers in the property sector. The shares are 202p and should rise considerably, as the company expands.

City location: Circle Property bought the offices above Moorgate tube station

Circle is chaired by Ian Henderson, former head of the UKs largest commercial property group, Land Securities. His chief executive is John Arnold, who started in property in the late 1970s and has been in the industry ever since.

The board also boasts the Duke of Roxburghe and Jamie Hambro, patrician chairman of top wealth management firm James Hambro & Partners. Between them, directors own close to 30 per cent of Circle shares so they are well motivated to make the business work.

Performance to date is encouraging. Circle was founded in 2002, when Hambro got together with a few friends and family, raised some cash and asked Arnold to seek out interesting situations in the property sector and make the money work.

The strategy worked well, the business grew and listed on Aim in February 2016, with a focus on under-valued office space in the regions.

Arnold looks for office buildings that are too small for major property companies, too big for private investors and too tricky for either.

Veteran boss: Circle chief executive John Arnold, who started in property in the late 1970s and has been in the industry ever since

Some of the blocks have several vacancies, so they do not appeal to firms looking for easy income. Some are let out at below market rates because the buildings have been neglected. Some have only short leases, which need to be renegotiated.

And some are well priced because Arnold and his colleagues are frequently shown buildings before they officially go on the market.

In almost every case however, the properties need work, including refurbishment, new tenants and discussions over rents and leases.

The work can be time-consuming but yields results. Circle bought one office block in Birmingham in 2016 for 7.75 million. It upgraded the building, introduced new tenants and the property was recently valued at 14.5 million. At the same time, its annual rental income rose from 765,000 to more than 1.2 million.

This approach has been repeated across Circles business. The group has 17 properties in cities such as Northampton, Bristol, Milton Keynes and Birmingham.

Results for the year to March revealed that the total portfolio rose in value by almost 23 per cent year-on-year, to 114 million, while rental income rose 21 per cent to 6.8 million. The dividend rose 8 per cent to 5.2p and net asset value per share  a key measure in the property sector  rose 25 per cent to 230p.

Looking ahead, further strong growth is expected. Some buildings have just been upgraded, so rents are likely to increase this year. Some properties still need refurbishment, so increases in value and income should follow.

The company is actively looking for new sites too, with a pipeline of opportunities in store for the coming months.

Financing future deals may involve issuing new shares, but Arnold and his team will only pursue this route if they are confident that new transactions will deliver robust returns for shareholders.

Existing investors are likely to give Arnold the benefit of the doubt. The regional office market is suffering a lack of space and demand for new sites remains strong. Many of Circles tenants are small firms, such as lawyers and accountants, who seem less concerned by the vagaries of Brexit than some larger, export-focused groups.

Midas verdict: Circle Property is a specialist company run by a know- ledgeable team, who are determined to expand the business and make money for shareholders. At 202p, the stock is a buy.
An MP has warned Coca-Cola that any attempts to shy away from paying its fair share of tax in its 3.9billion takeover of Costa Coffee will not be tolerated.

Peter Kyle, a member of the Commons business committee, said the US fizzy drinks conglomerate could face a full investigation if its purchase of Costa poses a threat to the amount of tax flowing into HMRC's coffers.

Whitbread, the owner of Costa, stunned markets last week when chief executive Alison Brittain revealed it was selling the High Street coffee chain.

An MP has warned Coca-Cola that any attempts to shy away from paying its fair share of tax in its 3.9billion takeover of Costa Coffee will not be tolerated

The deal boosted shares in Whitbread, which also owns Premier Inn, by more than 14pc at the time.

But MPs and tax experts have raised concerns that Coca-Cola could rearrange Costa's structure so that it resembles that of Starbucks, which has a reputation for paying low levels of corporation tax.

Costa, which has been dubbed 'the taxman's favourite coffee shop', forked out 24.7million in corporation tax on profits of 103million last year  more than the headline 20per cent rate required by the Treasury.

In contrast, Starbucks paid just 2.6million of tax on its European operations on 43.8m of profits in 2016. Pret A Manger paid 5.6million on 86million in 2016 while Caffe Nero paid no taxes on losses of 25.5million in 2017.

According to a report by the Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy from 2017, Coke made profits of $23.9billion and paid taxes of $4.9billion over an eight-year period in the US. This amounts to a US corporate rate of 20.4per cent when the main tax rate was 35per cent.

Labour MP Kyle, who sits on the Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy Committee, said: 'If it looks like this is sliding to a position where it could negatively impact our High Street or our country's ability to generate revenue, then of course our committee will take an interest.

Whitbread, the owner of Costa, stunned markets last week when chief executive Alison Brittain (pictured) revealed it was selling the High Street coffee chain

'Coca-Cola has a decision to make. Does it want to be a company that is known for putting profit ahead of everything else, such as Starbucks?

'Or does it want to maintain the reputation that companies like Costa have of honouring the spirit of being a British company that contributes not just to our High Street but to our country through its honest contribution to our tax system.'

Kyle, 47, raised concerns that the purchase of Costa could have similar implications to US conglomerate Kraft Foods' takeover of Cadbury in 2010.

That controversial deal led to thousands of job losses and some production moved abroad, despite promises a factory near Bristol would be kept open.

Kyle added: 'Our country desperately needs companies to pay their taxes along the lines of any other company domiciled here. Increasingly going forward the actions of these sorts of transactions are going to influence the way we regulate.'

Richard Murphy, an independent tax expert, warned HMRC may not have the capacity to investigate Costa's tax affairs after the takeover.

An HMRC spokesman said: 'We subject large businesses to an exceptional level of scrutiny. We actively investigate more than half of the UK's largest businesses at any one time. This does not imply wrongdoing, it's a reflection of how complicated their tax affairs can be and how determined we are to ensure they are paying all the tax they owe.'

Whitbread and Coca-Cola declined to comment.
Emma Maslin: 'Do the right thing and add the credits to the missing years of all these thousands of families who have missed out'

A new Government drive urging parents to claim child benefit to avoid losing state pension has prompted a call to fix the current 'administrative mess'.

An official alert telling parents they 'may inadvertently be missing out on retirement income' is missing the point, according to one mum who has already lost four years of credits towards her state pension.

Emma Maslin, 37, (pictured right) who could be nearly 20,000 out of pocket if she lives for 20 years after retirement, is among thousands of parents potentially facing a poorer old age in a scandal recently highlighted by This is Money.

Parents who do not register for child benefit, because one of them earns more than the 60,000 annual threshold above which it is clawed back, are at risk of losing valuable state pension credits for looking after children rather than working.

Instead the Government expects them to register but not take the child benefit payments.

Maslin claims the Government should 'do the right thing' and give parents their missing state pension credits back, while also overhauling the current system to prevent more people falling into the same trap.

Former Pensions Minister Steve Webb has also renewed his plea to the Government to fully relax the backdating rules so that parents who belatedly claim child benefit can get back all their lost credits towards a state pension.

At present, you can only get three months' worth of credits backdated.

The new Government warning, issued by Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Esther McVey, urges parents with children under 12 to ensure they receive valuable National Insurance credits by submitting a child benefit claim, even if they don't qualify for these payments.

'Dont miss out on potentially increased pay-outs from your future state pension. The state pension is a foundation for retirement,' says McVey. Read more on the Government's alert to parents below.

Have you lost state pension by not signing up for child benefits or filling form in wrong? If this has happened to you, contact tanya.jefferies@thisismoney.co.uk and tell us your story.

Maslin says: 'I feel the Department for Work and Pensions are missing a crucial point here - WHY are people missing out?

'Credits are available to all who have a child under 12 and yet there is a need to actively opt in to receive them.

'There are surely far easier ways to ensure parents are registered than the current system which is seeing thousands of eligible parents missing out.

'Why not link registration for state pension credits to the registration of a childs birth which everyone has to do? Or re-format the form which is required to be filled in - make it an application for state pension credits (available to all) with an opt-in for child benefit (not available to everyone).'

Maslin, who has tried to warn other parents on her Money Whisperer blog, also called for full backdating of state pension credits for those who try to correct the record at a later stage, the way she did.

'I think it is extremely poor that those who do sign up but only when their children are older still only receive three months of backdated credits.

'If the budget was there for these credits all along, do the right thing and add the credits to the missing years of all these thousands of families who have missed out because of a poorly managed administrative mess.'

Why is it so important to claim child benefit? Those who sign up get valuable credits towards their eventual state pension, providing they are not working and building up their National Insurance record that way. Each credit missed could cost you 1/35 of the value of the state pension  around 244 per year or 4,880 over the course of a typical 20 year retirement. Four years lost works out at 19,520. It's crucial a parent who is not working is the one named on the form to get the child benefit, as these credits are worthless to someone employed and already paying enough NI. You can apply to transfer it later, but couples report being refused this option for reasons they don't understand and HMRC has so far failed to explain. Meanwhile, new parents - predominantly women - who fail to sign up because they don't qualify for the payments can end up losing many years' worth of credits they can't get back. This is because if they discover their mistake and belatedly sign up, HMRC will only backdate their records for three months.

Steve Webb, now policy director at Royal London, says it is good that the Government is highlighting the value of National Insurance credits towards the state pension, but instead of one-off initiatives it should proactively target people using its lists of those who might be affected.

'In some cases the Government knows with some precision the exact people who are missing out on these NI credits and it should be contacting them personally and directly.

'For example, the new mothers who have not claimed child benefit will have registered the birth of their child.

'The Government could easily compare the birth register with the child benefit register and contact the families who are missing out. This would have a much bigger impact than generalised publicity, however well-intentioned.

'They also need to relax the backdating rules so that those who find out about NI credits late in the day are able to put in a claim covering the years they have missed.'

Nicky Morgan MP, chair of the House of Commons' Treasury Committee, has also expressed worries and pushed the Government and HMRC to look into the issue of parents losing state pension following changes made in 2013.

The controversial overhaul reduced the entitlement for those earning 50,000-plus a year or wiped it out entirely for those earning 60,000-plus.

But parents who earn too much to qualify for child benefit still have to apply for it so that they receive state pension credits. Those who failed to sign up when the new rules began could have lost six years of state pension credits by now.

In response to the new Government awareness initiative, Morgan said: 'Treasury Committees, both past and present, have expressed concern about the impact of the High Income Child Benefit Charge on National Insurance credits, and people potentially forgoing part of their future state pension.

'Todays announcement from the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions is therefore welcome. The Treasury Committee will continue to challenge the Government to ensure that no-one misses out on these National Insurance credits.'

A recent investigation by This is Money found that even parents who do manage to fill in child benefit forms may still miss out because they are so complicated it can be easy to make a mistake  and there is little forbearance for anyone who does.

Child benefit form: 'Although the guide and the claim form talk about "protecting" your state pension, it could certainly say more clearly that the person who does not claim could end up with a smaller pension,' says Steve Webb

Couples tell us they are struggling to sort out old child benefit claims dating back 10 and even 20 years, but getting bogged down trying to convince the taxman to set things straight.

They are being blocked from transferring state pension rights between them when the 'wrong' partner signs up for child benefit, and are in the dark about why HMRC has refused them.

HMRC is accused of creating a 'shambles' by giving out incorrect information to parents and failing to explain its refusal of appeals to sort things out.

Couples have come forward after reading This is Money columns by Steve Webb about people getting ensnared in 'nightmare' child benefit red tape.

This year, he has highlighted problems faced by one woman who lost credits by mistakenly putting her husband's name first on the child benefit form, and another who like Emma Maslin failed to register because she wasn't eligible for the payments.

Child benefit errors: Thousands of parents are facing a poorer retirement for failing to fill in a form within three months of having a baby

Meanwhile, it is feared many grandparents taking on childcare duties could also be unwittingly losing credits towards a state pension.

But unlike with parents applying late for child benefit, who only get credits backdated by three months, the Government lets grandparents claim transfers for years all the way back to 6 April 2011.

The recipient must still be of working age, but otherwise the process involves the parent filling in and submitting a form.

HMRC has changed child benefit forms to say claiming 'can help to protect your state pension' - but not that you risk losing thousands of pounds in old age if the wrong parent fills in the application, or you omit to claim because you don't qualify for payouts.

Forms are handed out in 'Bounty Packs' in hospitals after births, but parents say these come filled with money-off flyers and promotions and it's not clear they also contain important documents.

HMRC stresses the importance of parents making a claim for child benefit to protect their state pension, whether or not they are eligible receive the payments.

Customers can find specific information on the child benefit claim form, through the HMRC helpline, online at gov.uk, through partners such as Citizens Advice, and in the Bounty packs that go to new parents, it says.

HMRC adds that it continuously reviews its communications to ensure that the right information is available.
An Ohio K9 officer who was verbally correcting his dog's behaviors was attacked by the animal and was forced to shoot it.

Officer Brian Carter was training with his K9 partner Benzi at the Columbus Division of Police K9 office at 2609 McKinley Avenue on Saturday.

A police statement said that Carter was correcting Benzis behavior through verbal commands around 8.58am when Benzi attacked him.

Officer Brian Carter was training with his K9 partner Benzi (both pictured) at the Columbus Division of Police K9 office. Carter received serious bites to his arms during the attack

Carter fired at the 3.5-year-old Belgian Malinois. Carter was taken to a local hospital and Benzi was transported to MedVet where he was euthanized

Carter then fired his weapon at the 3.5-year-old Belgian Malinois.

The Columbus Division of Police (CPD) said Carter received serious bites to his arms.

A tourniquet was applied to Carter who was then transported to Grant Hospital in stable condition.

He underwent surgery Saturday afternoon shortly after being admitted.

Benzi was transported to MedVet where he was euthanized.

Carter has been in CPDs K9 Unit since 2008. Benzi is his second K9 partner.

Benzi had been in service for two years with the Columbus Division of Police. Benzi is seen with Carter as they demonstrate the duties of a K9 officer

Carter (pictured with Benzi) has been in CPDs K9 Unit since 2008. Benzi is his second K9 partner

Sgt Mark Cartwright, supervisor over the Columbus Division of Police K9 Unit, said it was the first time a Columbus Police K9 officer has shot a K9 partner. Pictured is the training facility where the shooting occurred

Benzi had been in service for two years with the Columbus Division of Police.

Sgt Mark Cartwright, supervisor over the Columbus Division of Police K9 Unit, said it was the first time a Columbus Police K9 officer has shot a K9 partner.

According to the division, Benzi 'was more than Officer Carters K9 partner'.

'He was a member of the Carter family. They are all in our healing prayers during this difficult time,' the department said in a statement.

An investigation into the case is underway by the Columbus Police Special Services Bureau.
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Palestinian protesters fled from tear gas fired on a beach by Israeli security forces yesterday during fresh clashes at the Gaza border.

Pictures from the beach showed injured Palestinians being carried away after Israeli soldiers moved to break up the protest near Kibbutz Zikim, north of Beit Lahia in the northern Gaza Strip.

One protester was seen throwing a Molotov cocktail across the beach while another received emergency medical treatment after being shot in the leg during the demonstration. Other Palestinians rode speedboats past burning tyres in the water.

The latest protests followed claims that 80 Palestinians had been injured on Friday at a weekly demonstration along the border with Israel.

Palestinian protesters flee from tear gas fired by Israeli forces during clashes on a beach along the Gaza sea barrier

A Palestinian protester throws a molotov cocktail across a beach along the Gaza sea barrier on the border with Israel

Palestinians protest by riding boats past burning tyres on the water during the latest protest near the Gaza-Israel border

A protester that was shot in the leg is carried to an ambulance during a protest on the beach near the border with Israel

Since March 30, Hamas has led weekly border protests aimed in part at drawing attention to the Israeli-Egyptian blockade imposed after it took control of the territory in 2007.

Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules Gaza, vowed to continue the protests as Egyptian efforts to restore calm continue.

Since then, at least 125, mainly unarmed, protesters have been killed by Israeli fire, according to the Hamas-run Gaza Health Ministry and a local rights group.

An Israeli soldier was killed by a Gaza sniper during the same period.

The latest clashes come after Washington announced on Friday it would no longer provide any funding to the United Nations agency for Palestinian refugees (UNRWA).

A protester who collapsed after inhaling tear gas fired by Israeli forces is helped during a protest on the beach

Palestinian protesters gather on the beach near the border with Israel in Beit Lahiya, in the northern Gaza Strip

Palestinian protesters run from tear gas fired by Israeli soldiers during a protest on the beach on Sunday

The US has long been the largest single donor to UNRWA, providing more than $350 million a year.

Israel and the US object to the fact that Palestinians can pass refugee status to their children, and want the number of refugees covered by UNRWA to be sharply reduced.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu lauded the US decision to halt funding for the UN agency, arguing the body perpetuates the problem instead of solving it.

'The US has done a very important thing by halting the financing for the refugee perpetuation agency known as UNRWA,' Netanyahu said while visiting a school on Sunday for the start of the academic year.

Palestinian protesters ride in speedboats past floating tyres off a beach near the Gaza sea barrier on the border with Israel

Palestinians demonstrators carry away an man who was injured during clashes with Israeli forces in the latest protest

Palestinians protesters flee from natural gas fired by Israeli forces during clashes on a beach on Sunday
Singles are being offered $3,000 by the government to move to the Northern Territory in a bid to boost the area's economy and population.

The government is also offering families $7,000 as an incentive to move to the country's north.

Chief Minister Michael Gunner released a plan last month to create 21,000 jobs in a move to boost the area's economy by $10 billion over the next decade, according to the ABC.

Part of this plan involves giving financial aid to newcomers to help them settle in and deal with living and moving costs.

With lower property prices, cash incentives and a booming job market, the government hopes to see more singles or families coming into the Northern Territory

Chief Minister Michael Gunner released a plan last month to create 21,000 jobs in a move to boost the area's economy by $10 billion over the next decade

Singles who are willing to take on the $3,000 cash incentive and can work in the territory's high priority jobs are highly encouraged to make the big move.

'Just about every regional centre in Australia is trying to grow their population. It's a national trend,' Mr Gunner told the ABC.

This trend also comes after a nearly completed $34 billion Ichthys gas project saw a huge demand in workers in the Northern Territory, according to Domain.

Not everyone, however, agrees that the government's cash incentive plan is the most effective strategy to get people to move.

'The NT government is far better off focusing on job creation and business incentive schemes in my view. If there is good job creation offering well-paid roles, the people will come,' Property analyst Louis Christopher told Domain.

The country's north also experienced a huge drop in the local property market due to its decreased population, with Darwin's median house price down by 11.8 per cent, according to the Domain's June House Price Report.

According to the same report, Darwin's house price is now at $539,497, while units have a median price of $326,126.

Despite the development of the lchthys gas project and growing housing options, Real Estate Central NT Selling agent Brayden Menzies said that many workers left, causing a 'dint' in the population.

With lower property prices, cash incentives and a booming job market, the government hopes to see more singles or families coming into the Northern Territory to fill in its population gap.

The country's north also experienced a huge drop in the local property market due to its decreased population, with Darwin's median house price down by 11.8 per cent

A nearly completed $34 billion lchthys gas project (pictured) saw a huge demand in workers in the Northern Territory

This isn't the first time that the government has offered to pay in a bid to move citizens to less populated states and regional areas.

In 2014, the New South Wales government offered a $7,000 grant to families to move to regional areas of New South Wales. This was done in an effort to decongest Sydney.

In the same year, a skilled regional relocation incentive was also offered to those willing to relocate to regional areas for eligible employment or self-employment, along with a grant of $10,000.

Last month, SBS reported that the Morrison Cabinet could consider a mandatory regional settlement plan to get some migrants to settle in regional areas for up to five years after arriving in the country.

This is also done in a bid to tackle the growing congestion in Sydney and Melbourne, Australia's most populated cities.


An annual agricultural show has been the subject of backlash on social media after 'racist' golliwog dolls won three prizes in a handicrafts competition.

The Royal Adelaide Show was forced to remove the three dolls from a display amid accusation the toys are racist caricatures of African-Americans.

The dolls were awarded first, second and third place in the handicrafts division but were criticised online.

A annual agricultural show has received backlash on social media after 'racist' golliwog dolls (pictured) were victorious in a competition

The dolls were awarded first, second and third place in the handicrafts division

The Facebook page Deadly Yarning from South Australian Aboriginal Communities shared images of the dolls with a caption: 'When you go to the 2018 Royal Adelaide Show only to see #racist dolls being awarded 1st 2nd and 3rd places in the Judging.'

'Absolutely disgusted that they were accepted in the first instance for judging. Shame Adelaide show!' one person commented.

'Boycotting that show from now on, can't claim ignorance, it's 2018,' commented another.

'I'm sorry but i had a golly when i was growing up and didn't find it offensive. I grew up among people of all nationalities and colours. I am by no means racist,' one person argued.

The Facebook page Deadly Yarning from South Australian Aboriginal Communities shared images of the dolls with a caption

The Royal Adelaide show commented on the Facebook post in response, claiming the show didn't intend to cause harm.

'There are variety of traditional dolls entered in the handicrafts competition including Parisian dolls, Japanese dolls and African dolls, however the dolls above have been removed from the display,' the Royal Adelaide Show said.

'No offence was intended.'

A spokeswoman for the Royal Adelaide Show told Daily Mail Australia they did not intend to cause harm and are apologetic to anyone who may be offended.

'We decided to remove the dolls for a number of reasons,' the spokeswoman said.

Facebook users responded in outrage about the 'racist dolls' and one person wrote: 'Absolutely disgusted that they were accepted in the first instance for judging'

The three dolls (pictured) were removed from display following accusations of racism

Another Facebook commenter argued they didn't find the dolls offensive and claimed they were 'by no means racist'

The social media backlash was 'inappropriate and personal' and the show 'had to consider the ladies who entered the dolls'.

The spokeswoman added that the dolls were judged on the 'incredible' skills required to make them.

Last year, a golliwog doll won the 'Judges Choice Award' in the 'Teddy Bears and Friends' category at the show.

The Royal Adelaide Show is the largest ticketed event in South Australia and generates a gross economic contribution of $165.1 million.

The Royal Adelaide show commented on the Facebook post in response, claiming the show didn't intend to cause harm
Zaharie Ahmad Shah (pictured) was the pilot of the doomed flight

DID THE PILOT HIJACK HIS OWN PLANE?

Pilot Zaharie Ahmad Shah planned mass murder because of personal problems, locking his co-pilot out of the cockpit, closing down all communications, depressurising the main cabin and then disabling the aircraft so that it continued flying on auto-pilot until it ran out of fuel.

That was the popular theory in the weeks after the plane's disappearance.

His personal problems, rumours in Kuala Lumpur said, included a split with his wife Fizah Khan, and his fury that a relative, opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim, had been given a five-year jail sentence for sodomy shortly before he boarded the plane for the flight to Beijing.

But the pilot's wife angrily denied any personal problems and other family members and his friends said he was a devoted family man and loved his job.

This theory was also the conclusion of the first independent study into the disaster by the New Zealand-based air accident investigator, Ewan Wilson.

Wilson, the founder of Kiwi Airlines and a commercial pilot himself, arrived at the shocking conclusion after considering 'every conceivable alternative scenario'.

However, he has not been able to provide any conclusive evidence to support his theory.

The claims are made in the book 'Goodnight Malaysian 370', which Wilson co-wrote with the New Zealand broadsheet journalist, Geoff Taylor.

It's also been rumoured that Zaharie used a flight simulator at his home to plot a path to a remote island.

However, officials in Kuala Lumpur declared that Malaysian police and the FBI's technical experts had found nothing to suggest he was planning to hijack the flight after closely examining his flight simulator.

And there are also theories that t he tragic disappearance may have been a heroic act of sacrifice by the pilot.

Australian aviation enthusiast Michael Gilbert believes the doomed plane caught fire mid-flight, forcing the pilot to plot a course away from heavily populated areas.

IF NOT THE PILOT, WAS THE CO-PILOT RESPONSIBLE FOR THE MYSTERY?

Co-pilot Fariq Abdul Hamid, 27, again for personal problems, was suspected by rumour-spreaders to have overpowered the pilot and disabled the aircraft, flying it to its doom with crew and passengers unable to get through the locked cockpit door.

Theorists have put forward the suggestion that he was having relationship problems and this was his dramatic way of taking his own life.

But he was engaged to be married to Captain Nadira Ramli, 26, a fellow pilot from another airline, and loved his job. There are no known reasons for him to have taken any fatal action.

There have been a series of outlandish theories about the disappearance of the plane

Others have suggested that because he was known to have occasionally invited young women into the cockpit during a flight, he had done so this time and something had gone wrong.

Young Jonti Roos said in March that she spent an entire flight in 2011 in the cockpit being entertained by Hamid, who was smoking.

Interest in the co-pilot was renewed when it was revealed he was the last person to communicate from the cockpit after the communication system was cut off.

DID THE RUSSIANS STEAL MH370 AND FLY THE JET TO KAZAKHSTAN

An expert has claimed the missing Malaysia Airlines flight 370 was hijacked on the orders of Vladimir Putin and secretly landed in Kazakhstan.

Jeff Wise, a U.S. science writer who spearheaded CNN's coverage of the Boeing 777-200E, has based his outlandish theory on pings that the plane gave off for seven hours after it went missing, that were recorded by British telecommunications company Inmarsat.

Wise believes that hijackers 'spoofed' the plane's navigation data to make it seem like it went in another direction, but flew it to the Baikonur Cosmodrome, which is leased from Kazakhstan by Russia.

However, Wise admits in New York Magazine that he does not know why Vladimir Putin would want to steal a plane full of people and that his idea is somewhat 'crazy'.

Wise also noted there were three Russian men onboard the flight, two of them Ukrainian passport holders.

Aviation disaster experts analysed satellite data and discovered - like the data recorded by Inmarsat - that the plane flew on for hours after losing contact.

Careful examination of the evidence has revealed that MH370 made three turns after the last radio call, first a turn to the left, then two more, taking the plane west, then south towards Antarctica.

MH370 WAS USED BY TERRORISTS FOR A SUICIDE ATTACK ON THE CHINESE NAVY

This extraordinary claim came from 41-year-old British yachtsman Katherine Tee, from Liverpool, whose initial account of seeing what she thought was a burning plane in the night sky made headlines around the world.

On arrival in Thailand's Phuket after sailing across the Indian Ocean from Cochin, southern India with her husband, she said: 'I could see the outline of the plane - it looked longer than planes usually do.There was what appeared to be black smoke streaming from behind.'

Ms Tee's general description of the time and place was vague and she lost all credibility when she later stated on her blog that she believed MH370 was a kamikaze plane that was aimed at a flotilla of Chinese ships and it was shot down before it could smash into the vessels.

Without solid proof of the satellite data, she wrote on her blog, Saucy Sailoress, the plane she saw was flying at low altitude towards the military convoy she and her husband had seen on recent nights. She added that internet research showed a Chinese flotilla was in the area at the time.

While the debris proved the plane went down in the Indian Ocean, the location of the main underwater wreckage  and its crucial black box data recorders  remains stubbornly elusive.

THE JET LANDED ON THE WATER AND WAS SEEN FLOATING ON THE ANDAMAN SEA

On a flight from Jeddah to Kuala Lumpur that crossed over the Andaman Sea on March 8, Malaysian woman Raja Dalelah, 53, saw what she believed was a plane sitting on the water's surface.

She didn't know about the search that had been started for MH370. She alerted a stewardess who told her to go back to sleep.

'I was shocked to see what looked like the tail and wing of an aircraft on the water,' she said.

It was only when she told her friends on landing in Kuala Lumpur what she had seen that she learned of the missing jet. She had seen the object at about 2.30pm Malaysian time.

She said she had been able to identify several ships and islands before noticing the silver object that she said was a plane.

But her story was laughed off by pilots who said it would have been impossible to have seen part of an aircraft in the water from 35,000ft or seven miles.

Ms Raja filed an official report with police the same day and has kept to her story.

'I know what I saw,' she said.

THE AIRCRAFT SUFFERED A CATASTROPHIC SYSTEMS FAILURE AND CRASH-LANDED ON THE OCEAN

A catastrophic event such as a fire disabling much of the equipment resulted in the pilots turning the plane back towards the Malaysian peninsula in the hope of landing at the nearest airport.

Satellite data, believable or not, suggests the aircraft did make a turn and theorists say there would be no reason for the pilots to change course unless confronted with an emergency.

A fire in a similar Boeing 777 jet parked at Cairo airport in 2011 was found to have been caused by a problem with the first officer's oxygen mask supply tubing.

Stewarts Law, which has litigated in a series of recent air disasters, believes the plane crashed after a fire - similar to the blaze on the Cairo airport runway - broke out in the cockpit.

After an investigation into the Cairo blaze, Egypt's Aircraft Accident Investigation Central Directorate (EAAICD) released their final report which revealed that the fire originated near the first officer's oxygen mask supply tubing.

The cause of the fire could not be conclusively determined, but investigators pinpointed a problem with the cockpit hose used to provide oxygen for the crew in the event of decompression.

Following the 2011 fire, US aircraft owners were instructed to replace the system - it was estimated to cost $2,596 (1,573) per aircraft. It was not known whether Malaysia Airlines had carried out the change.

If either pilot wanted to crash the plane, why turn it around? So the turn-around suggests they were trying to land as soon as possible because of an emergency.

THE US SHOT DOWN THE AIRCRAFT FEARING A TERROR ATTACK ON DIEGO GARCIA

The Boeing 777 was shot down by the Americans who feared the aircraft had been hijacked and was about to be used to attack the U.S. military base on Diego Garcia atoll in the Indian Ocean. So conspiracy theorists claim.

And former French airline director Marc Dugain said he had been warned by British intelligence that he was taking risks by investigating this angle.

There is no way of checking whether Dugain received such a warning or why he believes the Americans shot down the plane.

But adding to the theory that the aircraft was flown to Diego Garcia, either by the pilot Zaharie or a hijacker, was the claim that on the pilot's home flight simulator was a 'practice' flight to the island.

Professor Glees said: 'The Americans would have no interest in doing anything of the kind and not telling the world.

'In theory, they might wish to shoot down a plane they thought was attacking them but they wouldn't just fire missiles, they'd investigate it first with fighters and would quickly realise that even if it had to be shot down, the world would need to know.'
Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has had the last laugh in his bitter feud with Tony Abbott after Mr Abbott's sister revealed she will not contest his former seat of Wentworth.

Mr Abbott's sister Christine Forster, a Liberal Sydney Councillor, indicated she would attempt to gain preselection for the seat last week but has since removed herself from the race.

'I indicated my intention to run for preselection as the Liberal candidate for Wentworth last week because I want to do the very best I can to represent and advocate for the people of my local community,' Ms Forster said in a statement released to social media on Monday.

Former Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has had the last laugh in his bitter feud with Tony Abbott after Mr Abbott's sister revealed she will not contest his former seat of Wentworth

Mr Abbott's sister Christine Forster, a Liberal Sydney Councillor, indicated her intention to run for preselection the seat last week but has since removed herself from the race

I want to do the very best I can to represent and advocate for the people of my local community,' Ms Forster said in a statement released to social media on Monday

'The commentary about my candidacy since then, however, has focused on the suggestion that it was a proxy for division within the Liberal party. That is not the case, but to avoid any such perception, I will be standing aside and giving my full support to the successful candidate,' she said.

'I remain committed to doing everything I can to ensure we defeat Labor in the coming battles.'

Mr Turnbull jetted off to the United States with his wife Lucy for six weeks on Sunday, leaving his former colleagues to battle it out for the blue ribbon seat following his resignation.

Some had commented that Mr Abbott's sister running for Wentworth was a way for him to get revenge on Turnbull who was the man that ousted him as PM two years ago.

Ms Forster had previously said once Turnbull leaves parliament, which he says will be 'not before too long', she will consider entering the preselection fight.

Christine Forster (pictured centre with her partner left) was considering running for Malcolm Turnbull's vacated seat of Wentworth in eastern Sydney

'I have colleagues encouraging me to stand and I am considering doing that if and when the seat is vacated,' she told AAP on Friday.

Businessman and former Australian ambassador to Israel Dave Sharma is considered the frontrunner for the Liberal candidacy - and NSW independent MP Alex Greenwich is also considering running.

Mr Greenwich said he remained focused on retaining his seat of Sydney in the March 2019 state election but when pushed wouldn't rule out standing in Wentworth.

The Greens have revealed local councillor and First Nations advocate Dominic Wy Kanak will be their candidate.

Ms Forster (pictured right with her partner) will no longer compete with expected frontrunner businessman Dave Sharma for the Liberal Party candidacy

Cr Wy Kanak lives in Bondi and is deputy mayor of Waverley Council.

'It's time for a fresh start for Wentworth,' he said in a statement on Friday.

Mr Abbott has held a grudge against Mr Turnbull since he was ousted in a leadership spill in 2015.

Queenland MP Warren Entsch accused Mr Abbott of fuelling division within the Liberal party through his constant criticism of party policy in the past week.

Mr Abbott has held a grudge against Mr Turnbull since he was ousted in a leadership spill in 2015. Lucy Turnbull and Malcolm Turnbull are pictured in 2016

Ms Forster has disagreed with her brother's opposition to same-sex marriage, and filed to marry her long-term partner a week after Australia legalised it in December 2017.

Ms Forster said when the bill was passed, however, that they 'have a great relationship as brother and sister'.

The Liberals have held Wentworth since 1944. Mr Turnbull first won the seat in 2004 and claimed victory in 2016 with 62 per cent of the primary vote.
The professional body representing counsellors and therapists has apologised for suggesting women are emotional and caring  unless they are from the north of England.

The British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy was accused of using gross stereotypes for its definitions of men and women in guidelines on gender, sexual and relationship diversity.

The guidance notes: It is important not to assume, for example, that being a woman necessarily involves being able to bear children, or having XX sex chromosomes, or breasts.

The professional body representing counsellors and therapists has apologised for suggesting women are emotional and caring  unless they are from the north of England (pictured Liz Dawn as Vera Duckworth and Anita Carey as Joyce Smedley in Coronation Street)

Being a woman in a British cultural context often means adhering to social norms of femininity, such as being nurturing, caring, social, emotional, vulnerable, and concerned with appearance.

But it then goes on to say that women on the autistic spectrum may struggle to express emotion.

The guidelines were written by Dr Meg-John Barker

It then adds: In some northern working-class contexts femininity is associated with strength and aggression.

Twitter user Beverly Gibbs responded: So here it is. Being a woman is not about having XX chromosomes, its about being caring, nurturing, vulnerable and concerned with appearance.

Unless youre autistic or Northern. Feel free to tell me if Ive misrepresented that.

The guidelines were written by Dr Meg-John Barker, an activist-academic at the Open University who identifies as non-binary, meaning they use neither he nor she pronouns to describe themselves.

The association apologised if it caused offence.
This is the moment a suspected British druglord is arrested in an attic by Colombian police trying to smash a 1.2billion cocaine cartel.

Andrew Deamer, 52, was tracked down to his remote farmhouse in Rionegro and held in a dawn raid.

Deamer  whose father Frederick was jailed for 18 years on drug offences in 1998  was filmed by police climbing down from his loft after his five golden retriever dogs gave away his hiding place by barking at the hatch.

Another 18 suspects were arrested in simultaneous raids in five cities and paraded along with Deamer in a police line-up, including men nicknamed El Doc, Mosquito, The Skinny One and The Fat One.

Deamer faces at least 14 years in prison if convicted.

Investigators accuse the father-of-two  originally from the village of Barrow upon Soar, near Loughborough  of being a trusted lieutenant of a violent syndicate based near Medellin, from where drug lord Pablo Escobar once supplied 80 per cent of the cocaine smuggled into the US.

Deamer is believed to have run laboratories where the drug was disguised as dog and cat food as well as industrial fertiliser so it could be exported.

His work allegedly brought him a comfortable lifestyle and earned him the nicknames of the Monkey, Marcos and the East Midlands Escobar.

Deamer, who is being held in the notorious La Picota jail in the capital Bogota, left England and moved to Coconut Creek, near Miami, in Florida, where he built two homes.

Neighbours said he owned a Rolls-Royce, several Japanese Akita dogs and drove a custom Ford pick-up truck. He also boasted of flying small planes.

He moved to South America before marrying Colombian Marcela Zapata, 37, who has also been arrested. Social media posts show Deamer posing for photographs with his wife and his five dogs, often against mountain backdrops.

Under one image published in 2016, Marcela said: My husband is the cutest in the world and the best.

Deamer also highlighted comments by former US President Barack Obama suggesting long prison sentences will not solve the drugs crisis.

Andrew Deamer, who has been dubbed the 'East Midlands Escobar', was one of 18 people arrested during raids across Colombia. He is pictured in the white cap

The suspected British druglord, pictured climbing down from his attic hideaway during the raid, was arrested for his involvement in a 354million drugs ring in the country

His father, Frederick, was jailed a year after being caught off the French coast in a boat called Lucky Lady with two tons of cannabis resin.

The former accountant, who also owned a Rolls-Royce, is believed to have died in Spain five years ago. His widow Patricia remains overseas.

Colombias Office of the Attorney General confirmed Deamer faced trial for drugs offences.

Another source said he had signed a preliminary agreement to assist police in return for a lighter prison sentence.

A Foreign Office spokesman said: We are providing consular assistance to a British man detained in Colombia.

Police have confiscated 2.5 tonnes of cocaine in raids over a three-year period, and found 36,000 worth of cash during the raid
A dilapidated cargo ship which turned up off the coast of Myanmar seemingly abandoned by its crew baffled authorities for several days.

Fishermen found the empty cargo vessel, named 'Sam Ratulangi PB 1600',floating some 6.5miles from land in the Gulf of Martaban, last week with no crew on board.

Data showed that its last logged journey was undertaken in June 2009.

A ghost ship bearing an Indonesian flag mysteriously reappeared off the coast of Myanmar

Myanmar Navy personnel found no crew members or goods on board the ship

However Myanmar authorities soon discovered that the ship had been on its way from Jakarta, Indonesia, to a ship-breaking factory in Bangladesh, and bad weather had forced the crew on the tug-boat to abandon it at sea.

Navy personnel found no crew members or goods on board the ship after an initial inspection last week.

However, cut cables at the head of the ship indicated that it had been towed by a tugboat.

Navy authorities have since located the tugboat that it was tied to, sailing 80 kilometres off Yangon city with 13 Indonesian crew members on board.

The Sam Ratulangi PB 1600 was a cargo vessel with a dead weight of 26,500 tonnes

The Myanmar Navy discovered that the cargo vessel had been moored to another ship after finding two cables at its head

The crewmembers told Navy authorities it had left Jakarta on August 13, before the weather forced them to cut off the cables due to bad weather on August 26.

The 'Sam Ratulangi PB 1600', which has a dead weight 26,500 tonnes, had then been carried away by the current, according to Eleven Myanmar.

It is not known why the tug-boat had not made an attempt to collect the vessel.

Investigations are ongoing.
Scott Morrison (with wife Jenny) has provided a scathing assessment of Melbourne's gang crisis in the wake of a violent street brawl

Scott Morrison has provided a scathing assessment of Melbourne's gang crisis in the wake of a violent street brawl, which may have been a revenge attack for the alleged murder of a Sudanese teenager.

About 200 youths, mostly African and Pacific Islander Australians, were involved in the melee which spilled out from the Gasometer Hotel in Collingwood in the early hours of Sunday morning.

An 18-year-old man who was hit by a car during the fight is believed to have been with a teenager accused of the stabbing death of Laa Chol, 19, on the night she died. It is unknown if Sunday's brawl was a revenge attack for the alleged murder.

The prime minister said there is a reason 'these problems' are occurring in Melbourne and not in Australia's other major cities.

'We have the highest proportion of Sudanese population in New South Wales. [But] we don't have these problems. Why is it happening in Melbourne?' he asked on 3AW Radio on Monday.

'There is a law and order problem, clearly, in Victoria, even though we have the same challenges in other cities in the country.'

'We have one main offender who was the driver of the car,' Commander Tim Hansen said

Laa Chol (left and right) died at a party she attended in Melbourne in late July. It is not known if Sunday's violence was a revenge attack over her death

The prime minister recounted how former NSW Police Commissioner Andrew Scipione changed the name of the NSW Police Service to NSW Police Force, bringing about a cultural change.

'Law and order means something in NSW and I feel for Victorians who are asking the big question, why is this happening in our city and it's not happening in other places?' he said.

'There's not the same issue, even though we have the same challenges in other cities in the country, including in my home city of Sydney, because we have a police force that's a force.'

He said it was up to Victorian Premier Daniel Andrews to ensure 'there is a police force that is a force'.

'There is a law and order problem, clearly, in Victoria, even though we have the same challenges in other cities in the country,' Mr Morrison said

'When you don't have that control and rule of law being imposed and forced in your community, people take advantage of it,' he said.

Mr Morrison did not accept there is a racial element to Melbourne's gang violence.

'There is a high proportion of Sudanese in New South Wales too, but we don't have that problem. This is a law and order problem,' he said.

The 18-year-old man is fighting for life after a car slammed into him, crushing his leg, during Sunday morning's brawl following a record label launch.

The organiser of an event which sparked a wild brawl and left a teenager fighting for life warned revellers 'violence will not be tolerated'

'During the affray, a car has collided with a number of parked cars on Mater Street and pinned one person against the parked vehicle,' police Commander Tim Hansen told reporters.

'He sustained a serious leg injury.'

The man remains in a critical but stable condition in The Alfred Hospital.

Daily Mail Australia does not suggest the injured man had any involvement in any capacity with Ms Chol's death, or any wrongdoing on the night of her death.

Six other people were also injured in the brawl while three cars were damaged, and police are still searching for the instigators.

Victoria Police are closing in on the driver of the car that critically injured the man and expect to catch up with the offender by Monday.

No arrests have been made as yet.

A crowd of more than 200 people had spilled onto the streets following a record label launch party

Blood is seen on a car at the scene after a vehicle smashed into parked cars in the early hours of Sunday

Three patrol cars were on duty to keep an eye on the 66 Records launch and police had flagged the venue for monitoring after recent crimes involving the Pacific Islander and African communities.

Commander Hansen said there had been no intelligence in the lead-up that indicated it was going to be a high-risk event and the escalating behaviour came out of left field.

Event organiser J-Nelly told revellers to be on their best behaviour in a Facebook post on Friday, saying 'violence will not be tolerated'.

'A moment of anger isn't worth a lifetime of bad labeling (sic),' he wrote.
Supermarkets and honey brands across Australia are being accused of selling fake honey following the results of honey fraud detection testing.

Germanys Quality Services International (QSI) lab  which specialises in honey fraud detection  ran tests on a range of honeys across Australia, and found that many products boasting 100 per cent honey content also contained different types of syrups.

By and large [the impurity] is some kind of syrup thats been converted to look like honey, it tastes like honey, Phillip McCabe, from the International Federation of Beekeepers Association, told the Sydney Morning Herald.

A honey fraud detection lab ran tests on a range of honeys across Australia, and found that many products boasting 100% honey content also contained different types of syrups

Everything about it seems to be honey when in fact its just sugar syrup or something else  consumers dont realise what they are buying and eating isnt honey.

By and large [the impurity] is some kind of syrup thats been converted to look like honey, said Phil McCabe of the International Federation of Beekeepers Association

Criminal gangs in China allegedly produce this type of honey product cheaply and sell it on to unsuspecting suppliers, making a tidy profit in the process.

The lab ran two separate tests on 28 blended and imported honey samples; the official Australian C4 sugar test, and the Nuclear Magnetic Resolution (NMR) test  designed to detect impurities.

The NMR test showed that 12 of the 28 samples were not 100 per cent honey, while the C4 test passed all 28 samples as pure honey.

Testing ran on products sold in Aldi, Coles, IGA and Woolworths  and from brands including Black & Gold, Bramwells, Gardner and Capilanos Allowrie.

Capilano was sent the results of the NMR test but claimed that Australian and international regulators do not use this testing regime at all.

The lab ran two tests on 28 blended and imported honey samples; the official Australian C4 sugar test, and the Nuclear Magnetic Resolution (NMR) test  designed to detect impurities

'While we have full confidence that Allowrie Honey contains only pure honey, we also recognise that there is no consensus view from across the industry about the reliability of the NMR test that has led to the reports in the media,' said Ben McKee, Managing Director of Capilano Honey Limited.

'We call on the industry to work to prove up the NMR test so that it matches the robustness of results from other testing currently relied on internationally.'

Capilano was sent the results of the NMR test but said that Australian and international regulators do not use this testing regime'

McCabe, however, said that the NMR test was the most accurate test available and that was why he was referring them to Interpol.

A Coles spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that it is proud to support Australian producers and beekeepers and stressed that its Coles brand honey is 100 per cent Australian.

'As part of a recent range review, Coles is no longer ranging Allowrie honey products,' they said.

A Woolworths spokesperson said that it treats the accuracy of product labelling very seriously and was concerned to learn of these claims.

'We will now work closely with our supplier to review the substance of the claims in detail before determining our next steps,' they said.

An ALDI spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia that it is launching an immediate investigation into the claims, and that it would be removing the product in question from its shelves for the duration of the investigation.

'If the investigations conclude that the product has been adulterated, it will permanently be removed from sale at ALDI and further actions will be taken with the supplier,' the spokesperson said.

Daily Mail Australia has also reached out to IGA for further comment.
Former Secretary of State John Kerry said Sunday during an appearance on Face the Nation that he thinks former president Barack Obama should have enforced his 'red line' warning in Syria and thinks the United States paid a price as a result.

Kerry said he thought Obama was going to launch a missile strike in Syria in 2013 after the country attacked its own citizens with chemical weapons.

A year before the attack, Obama had warned Syrian president Bashar al-Assad that the use of chemical weapons would be a 'red line' that would be a 'game changer' for US involvement in Syria.

'I thought we were going to go forward. I thought that weekend was the weekend. I expected the phone call to be telling me that he had decided we were striking that night or whatever was going to happen, and it wasn't,' Kerry said on Face the Nation.

Former Secretary of State John Kerry (pictured) said on Face the Nation that he thinks Obama should have enforced his 'red line' warning in Syria

In 2012, Obama warned Syria that if it used chemical weapons that would be a 'red line' and that would be a 'game changer' for US involvement in Syria

'I put several ideas on the table. The president was not persuaded by my argument. I believed that we had several options we could have done at very low risk to be able to make it clear to Assad that when we had a ceasefire and when he said he was going to live by it, he had to live by it. And I thought we should have done that.'

Kerry said he thinks the US 'paid a price' because Obama did not stand by his warning.

'But we got the chemical weapons out, which was the objective,' he added.

Kerry, who wrote about Obama's inaction in his book Everyday is Extra, went on to say that although he doesn't agree with how the president handled it, he doesn't think it was a 'weak' moment for Obama.

Obama, however, changed course following Syria's attack on its own people with chemical weapons. Syrian president Bashar al-Assad is pictured during a May meeting in Russia

'I don't think it's fair in terms of the president quote 'being weak' because the president took a lot of very tough positions and did a lot of things that evidence strength and that showed a president who had a very clear moral compass as well as very clear, a very clear set of values and principles by which he knew he could protect our country,' Kerry said on Face the Nation.

When asked if he supported the way president Donald Trump handled Syria following its continued use of weapons, Kerry said he agrees with Trump using force but doesn't think it should have stopped there.

'I don't support just a one-off where you drop a few bombs and there's no follow-up diplomacy and no additional effort to try to use the leverage you get out of doing that,' he said. 'I thought that the president should have done that, President Trump should have done that.'
This is the moment a commuter is punched and kicked after stepping off a bus in a brazen daylight attack.

Footage of the vicious assault shows a male victim curled in a ball and clutching his head as two thugs beat him on the pavement in Mandurah, south of Perth in Western Australia.

The frenzied attack at the bus stop stunned onlookers who said they were left 'terrified'.

Footage of the vicious attack captures the victim curled in a ball and clutching his head as the two teenage thugs beat him on the pavement

Vision of the attack, which happened in broad daylight, captures the flannelette shirt-wearing shielding himself from the continuous beating in front of the bus's disability ramp.

A woman attempts to intervene, screaming for the pair to stop as they relentlessly beat him.

Western Australian Transport Minister Rita Saffioti admitted there had been issues on the bus network, according to Perth Now.

A woman attempts to intervene asking them to stop as they relentlessly beat him

She said the State Government has been working with security firms to see how safety can be improved.

Police attended the scene but the victim had already left.

The male victim is yet to come forward to make a complaint about the bashing.

Witnesses at who were at Mandurah bus stop who are yet to go to police are urged to contact Crime Stoppers.
Chinese 'netizens' have been cut off from access to Australia's ABC news website with no real reason being given for the censorship.

The site fell victim to the Chinese government's censorship laws last month, on August 22, for allegedly violating Chinese laws despite being the first Western broadcaster to go China-wide.

More than two weeks later there has still been no official reason for the cut-off as the ABC scrambles to find an answer for the sudden change - while access to Fairfax, News Limited and SBS news sites have not been affected.

Chinese 'netizens' have been cut off from access to Australia's ABC news website with no real reason being given for the censorship

One official from the Office of the Central Cyberspace Affairs Commission told the ABC: 'China's internet is fully open. We welcome internet enterprises from all over the world to provide good information to the netizens of China.'

'However, state cyber sovereignty rights shall be maintained towards some overseas websites violating China's laws and regulations, spreading rumours, pornographic information, gambling, violent terrorism and some other illegal harmful information which will endanger state security and damage national pride.'

Whilst the ABC continues to demand an answer, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has made it clear the issue is not on his agenda.

'Well, I mean, the ABC is funded to broadcast in Australia so we're in control of that,' Mr Morrison told 3AW radio on Monday.

'China's a sovereign country. They make decisions about what happens there. We make decisions about what happens here.'

Whilst the ABC continues to demand an answer, Prime Minister Scott Morrison has made it clear the issue is not on his agenda

The ABC became the first western broadcaster to go China-wide on May 4, 2014, a hurdle not even Google was able to overcome.

However, the access to the site was barred the day after the Australian government announced on August 21 it would block the participation of two Chinese telecommunications companies in the roll-out of the 5G infrastructure network.

China's Foreign Ministry urged Australia to 'abandon ideological prejudice' in the wake of the decision severely impacting Chinese tech disruptor - Huawei.

Access to the site was barred the day after the Australian government announced on August 21 it would block the participation of two Chinese telecommunications companies in the roll-out of the 5G infrastructure network

Official sources in China denied the claim this was the reason for the censorship deeming it 'unlikely'.

It's also been proposed the Great Firewall of censorship came about a year after the ABC began running a Chinese-language news service, considering English-language sites are less commonly censored.

The Chinese version of The New York Times is often routinely censored as is the Chinese language version of the BBC.

Great Firewall of China, a censorship project operated for more than a decade by the Communist Party also blocks access to popular social media sites

It's believed Chinese officials have been severely critical for the past 18 months of Australia media reports, but particularly unhappy with the ABC's as they are a publicly funded organisation.

The Chinese certainly cannot currently access the ABC but it's still free for China's state media outlets to access Australian audiences online and through the CCTV and CGTN channels on pay television.

Great Firewall of China, a censorship project operated for more than a decade by the Communist Party also blocks access to popular social media sites including Instagram, Facebook, Snap chat, Twitter and Pinterest.

In response, China has developed its own social network platforms such as WeChat and Weibo.
Britain has pledged 98million in foreign aid to India - while the country spends almost the same amount on lunar missions.

The Department for International Development will give 52million to India this year and 46million in 2019/20 as part of the aid budget.

But the Indian government are planning to spend a similar amount - 95.4million - on a lunar probe called Chandrayaan-2 which should launch in January. 230 million of its citizens live in poverty.

Tory MP David Davies told the Express: 'The Indians don't want or need our money. In effect we are sponsoring an Indian Moon launch.'

There is no suggestion the money will be used directly for the lunar space programme.

The Indian government are planning to spend millions on a lunar probe called Chandrayaan-2 - despite the British government pledging 98m to the country in foreign aid. 230 million of its citizens live in poverty. Pictured: Shadipur in West Delhi

Other MPs have reacted in anger at the news, as India currently gives more foreign aid than it receives despite the country's problems with disease and proper health care.

In 2015/16, India received 254million in foreign aid - but gave away 912million.

Tory MP Philip Davies told the Express: 'Here we are spending money in a country that has not only got its own space programme but is developing its own overseas aid programme.

'To be honest, the Government needs looking at if its thinks that is an appropriate way of spending taxpayers' money.

'It needs to get out of Whitehall and appreciate the public is not just sick and tired of this but angry too. It is completely unjustifiable and truly idiotic.'

India's Chandrayaan-2 orbiter aims to land a rover onto the moon's surface to collect data in January 2019.

Tory MP David Davies said: 'The Indians don't want or need our money. In effect we are sponsoring an Indian Moon launch.' Pictured: M Vanitha and Gopalan Napesh holding a 3D-printed replica of Chandrayaan-2

Stepping up its rivalry with China, India has invested heavily in its space programme over the course of the last decade. Pictured: Rocket launch in March in Sriharikota, India

Design changes to the craft forced the space body to push the launch back, which was originally scheduled for this year, the Indian Space Research Organisation confirmed last week.

Chandrayaan-1, launched in 2008, orbited the moon and sent a probe to the surface which made a controlled crash landing.

India also launched an orbiter to Mars in 2013, which is still operational.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi pledged last month that India will send a manned flight into space by 2022 during his annual 'Independence Day' speech.

The astronaut would be 'carrying the national flag,' he revealed during the 80-minute speech, which was broadcast live from the historic Red Fort in New Delhi.

Stepping up its rivalry with China, India has invested heavily in its space programme over the course of the last decade.

The Department for International Development defended the decision, saying 'traditional' financial aid had ended and that it was working towards economic development in the country.

It said the 98million would 'help stimulate prosperity, generate jobs, develop skills and open up new markets for both countries'.
Serial killer Dennis Rader revealed what drove him to murder his 10 victims as he opened up about his brutal crimes and childhood in a newly unearthed, and previously unheard, interview recorded soon after he confessed 13 years ago.

Rader, now 73, murdered 10 people, including two children, in Wichita, Kansas over a 17-year stretch between 1974 to 1991.

The killer, who called himself BTK for 'bind, torture and kill', was arrested in 2005 and is currently serving 10 consecutive life sentences at a Kansas prison.

Rader is now the subject of a new Oxygen documentary titled 'Snapped: Notorious BTK Serial Killer', which includes the never-before-heard interview he gave to a local television reporter after he confessed to the murders.

Dennis Rader murdered 10 people, including two children, in Wichita, Kansas over a 17-year stretch between 1974 to 1991. He is pictured above in 2005 after being sentenced to 10 life sentences

'How could a guy like me, church member, raised a family, go out and do those sort of things?' he told KAKE-TV reporter Larry Hatteberg in the interview.

'I want the people of Sedgwick County, the United States and the world to know that I am a serial killer.'

He went on to describe what urged him to kill.

'I personally think, and I know it's not very Christian, but I actually think it's a demon that's within me,' he said.

'At some point and time, it entered me when I was young. And it basically controlled me.'

When asked if he had any feelings for his 10 victims, Rader replied: 'Yes, I do'.

'I mean, I have a lot of feelings for them,' he said.

'I guess it's more of an achievement for this object in the hunt. Or sort of more of a high, I guess.'

Rader, who called himself BTK for 'bind, torture and kill', once dressed up as one of his victims. He is now the subject of a Oxygen documentary titled ' Snapped: Notorious BTK Serial Killer'

Rader evaded authorities for three decades but continuously taunted police about the killings, which eventually led to his downfall

Rader, who was a former church leader and hid his killings from his wife and two children, also revealed in the interview that he started noticing his dark side back in the eighth grade.

He has previously said that lust and a desire for fame and power drove him to murder.

Rader evaded authorities for three decades but continuously taunted police about the killings, which eventually led to his downfall.

He started communicating with Wichita police detectives via a floppy disk that authorities ended up tracing back to his church.

Rader worked with Katherine Ramsland, a forensic psychology professor at DeSales University, to publish a book - 'Confession of a Serial Killer: The Untold Story of Dennis Rader, the BTK Killer' - about his crimes in 2016.

She wrote the book under an agreement that proceeds from its sale goes to the victims' families trust fund.

In it, Rader confessed to having plans to kill an 11th victim by hanging her upside down in her home before he was arrested.

Wichita Police Det. Sam Houston shows a mask during the sentencing hearing that Rader placed on one of his victims

Joseph Otero (left) was Rader's fist victim, strangled to death in 1974 inside his home alongside his wife Julie (right) and two of their five children

Joey Otero was just nine years old when he was killed by Rader in his bedroom, while sister Josephine was hanged in the basement

Rader wrote three and a half pages of the book about his plans for his last kill.

'This was supposed to be my opus, my grand finale, and to make it different, I would set the house on fire using propane canisters,' he wrote.

He said he got into the woman's backyard and knocked on her door, but aborted his plan when a city street crew showed up unexpectedly to work outside the house.

Rader planned to kill her the following spring, but was arrested in February 2005.

Wichita police detectives who captured Rader in 2005 said they were incensed by the pride he exhibited as he divulged the details about the tortures he planned to inflict on the 11th victim.

Police had heard the story from Rader himself in 2005, but decided at the time to suppress the information to protect the woman.

'For him to reveal this information now is cruel,' Tim Relph, a former BTK task force investigator, said when the book was released.

Police said they suppressed most of the details of the planned murder for 11 years because they feared what the shock of a public revelation might do to the woman.

But authorities did inform the woman after finding out that defense attorneys for Rader had hired investigators who might contact her.

'She's a pretty tough lady, but this shook her up quite a bit,' Relph said.

Following his arrest, several of the victims' relatives sued Rader and secured a settlement that agreed he could never profit from his crimes or coverage of them.

Kathryn Bright (left) was attacked by Rader in 1974 with a knife and tried to fight him off, but died later from her wounds. Shirley Vian (right), was strangled to death in 1977

Rader broke into Nancy Fox's home (left) in 1977 and waited for her to come home before strangling her. Marine Hedge (right), who lived on the same street as Rader, was strangled to death in 1985 before Rader posed for pictures with her body in a church basement
Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren, 69, did not use her Native American heritage to push ahead her political career according a report.

The Boston Globe extensively studied documents and interviewed those she was associated with at Ivy League colleges to determine whether her stance as a minority played a part in her obtaining top level roles which led to her career in politics.

Harvard University human resources reportedly didn't even add details of her ethnicity to her file until after nearly five months in her professor position, this despite offering her the job two-and-a-half years earlier.

Harvard University's decision to hire US Senator Elizabeth Warren (pictured August 2018) as a law professor in the 1990s was not based on any assertion that she has Native American heritage

Warren (pictured August 2018) will go head-to-head with three Republicans from Massachusetts who are running in the primary Tuesday

Republicans John Kingston (pictured left April 2018), Beth Joyce Lindstrom (pictured center April 2018) and Geoff Diehl (pictured right April 2018) are her opposition for reelection

Warren further proved the point Sunday by posting documents from applications and various updates to her job records to her website.

'My family is my family,' Warren told the Globe. 'But my background played no role in my getting hired anywhere.'

It signifies she climbed her way to the top on her own merit and although Warren, 69, denies she is running for the American Presidency in 2020, it hasn't stopped Donald Trump from criticizing the Democrat.

She will go head-to-head with three Republicans from her state who are running in the primary Tuesday.

John Kingston, Geoff Diehl, and Beth Joyce Lindstrom are her opposition as she fights for reelection.

This despite many suggesting she has flaunted her roots to claim jobs reserved for minorities at the likes of University of Houston, and University of Texas.

Harvard University didn't even add details of Warren's (pictured 2001) ethnicity to her file until after nearly five months in her professor position, according to documents she shared

Even as a student at Rutgers, she marked 'no' when asked if she was interested to apply for a minority program.

While at some institutions she eventually changed to identifying as Native American, she entered as 'White'.

A University of Houston document from 1978 with options for 'Oriental', 'Black', and 'Mexican American' classes Warren as 'Other'.

'If I dont win the election, [news] ratings are going to go so far down, theyll be out of business, every one of them,' Trump is quoted as saying in March. He had also used the name to describe Warren in November 2017. 'Can you imagine? Can you imagine covering Bernie [Sanders] or Pocahontas? How about that?'

Warren says her family has revealed her Cherokee and Delaware tribe ancestry in the past, something she has longed to hold on to, especially after her mother and aunts passed away.

The Boston Globe newspaper reports that interviews and documents show the issue was not considered by those who admitted Warren to law school at Rutgers or to jobs at The University of Houston, The University of Texas, and the University of Pennsylvania.

'She was not on the radar screen at all in terms of a racial minority hire,' Randall Kennedy, a law professor who was in charge of recruiting minority candidates to Harvard Law School, told the Globe. 'It was just not an issue. I can't remember anybody ever mentioning her in this context.'

Colleagues at Pennsylvania University pointed out that Warren (pictured early 1990s) made it more apparent she was from Oklahoma, referring to herself as an 'Okie' at times

The Globe reports that it examined hundreds of documents, many of them never before available, and talked to 31 law school professors from that period at Harvard.

All but one said her Native American heritage was not discussed as part of the decision to hire her.

One said he was unsure if the issue came up, but if it did, it had no bearing on his vote.

Even colleagues at Pennsylvania University pointed out that she made it more apparent she was from Oklahoma, referring to herself as an 'Okie' at times.

It's backed up by a Penn Law Forum in a November 1990 interview where she says: 'I think the best thing that I can do for Penn students is be a woman and be from Oklahoma and to come from at best a working-class background.'

On the whole, many are surprised the leader of the United States is concerned with the matter.

Warren added her minority to Harvard University files in July 1993, months after she started

A University of Texas document from 1985 classes Warren as 'White'

A University of Houston document from 1978 with options for 'Oriental', 'Black', and 'Mexican American' classes Warren as 'Other'.

At Rutgers, she marked 'no' when asked if she was interested to apply for a minority program

Even Harvard Law professor emeritus, Alan Dershowitz, described as an 'occasional Trump defender' by the Globe admitted he thought Trump had better things to concern himself with.

'This is a made-up issue,' he said about her heritage possibly boosting her career. 'This is not an issue thats worthy of the president or anyone else.'

Harvard professor, David Wilkins was on the 1993 committee that voted for her to join and mentioned that she's not the only one who is 'white' with a background stemming from other ethnicity.

He was one of the only black people teaching law at the time.

It was also during the period dean Robert Clark made a controversial comment regarding affirmative action with Wilkins, saying, 'This is a university, not a lunch counter in the Deep South,' which he later apologized for.

Warren's husband of 38 years added to the sentiment that Harvard and many other colleges were not concerned with fair representation in jobs at the time.

'By the unwritten rules that most schools played by at the time, none of this should have happened,' Bruce Mann, said. 'Law faculties hired in their own image. . . except for those rare occasions when someone came along that was just so stunningly good that they couldnt ignore her.'
Just weeks after a few of Omarosa Manigault Newman's secret recordings from the White House were made public, a new report revealed she taped 'nearly every conversation' during her time as an aide to the president.

A source, who said they witnessed Manigault Newman make the tapes, told Axios she even captured a conversation that involved 'all of the Trumps' in one meeting.

The source told the outlet she carried two cell phones with her - a personal and government-issued device - and hid them inside a purse or pocket when she taped the conversations.

Manigault Newman was also reportedly seemed paranoid and concerned that what 'happened to Hillary Clinton and her emails (would) happen to her.'

The reality show star 'wouldn't write on email or text,' the source said, while adding that 'many conversations happened on Facebook Messenger.'

Omarosa Manigault-Newman (seen in Detroit, Michigan on August 31, 2018) reportedly recorded 'nearly every conversation' she had during her time in the White House

A source, who said they witnessed Manigault Newman make the tapes, told Axios she captured a conversation with 'all of the Trumps.' President Trump boards a plane Friday, August 31, 2018 as he prepares to travel to Charlotte, North Carolina

Manigault Newman said the recordings were a form a protection and means of reference.

One of the conversations exposed last month was Manigault Newman's firing by chief of staff John Kelly in the high-security Situation Room.

Parts of it were played on the air during an appearance on NBC's 'Meet the Press' to promote Manigault Newman's new book, 'Unhinged,' which has seen a slump in sales.

The tell-all memoir from the controversial reality star released on August 14, and dropped more than 40 percent in sales this week.

The recording took place in the room that is a Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility. Staff are not permitted to bring in cell phones or other recording devices.

Small lockers have been positioned outside the door so aides can securely leave prohibited devices during critical meetings.

The former White House aide said she made a recording with John Kelly in the Situation Room. Kelly is seen in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, D.C. on Monday, August 27, 2018

A conference room is shown inside the Situation Room complex at the White House in May 2007

Manigault-Newman received backlash after the secret recordings were revealed, as some argued she is a threat to national security and may have broken federal law.

President Trump also slammed the former aide on Twitter August 13: 'Wacky Omarosa, who got fired 3 times on the Apprentice, now got fired for the last time. She never made it, never will. She begged me for a job, tears in her eyes, I said Ok. People in the White House hated her. She was vicious, but not smart. I would rarely see her but heardreally bad things.

'Nasty to people & would constantly miss meetings & work. When Gen. Kelly came on board he told me she was a loser & nothing but problems. I told him to try working it out, if possible, because she only said GREAT things about me - until she got fired!'

He wrote further: 'While I know its "not presidential: to take on a lowlife like Omarosa, and while I would rather not be doing so, this is a modern day form of communication and I know the Fake News Media will be working overtime to make even Wacky Omarosa look legitimate as possible. Sorry!'

President Trump sent out these tweets about Manigault-Newman August 13

Republican National Committee chairwoman Ronna Romney McDaniel, pictured in 2017, asked 'who in their right mind thinks it's appropriate' for a White House aide to make secret recordings in the ultra-secure Situation Room

McDaniel raised the possibility of criminal prosecution for Manigault Newman
Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, was visiting Minneapolis when police arrested him for sexual misconduct allegations

A Chinese billionaire who founded the Beijing-based e-commerce site JD.com was arrested on Friday night during a trip to Minnesota on accusations of criminal sexual misconduct.

Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, was visiting Minneapolis when police arrested him. The 45-year-old businessman was released from jail on Saturday afternoon pending possible criminal charges, the Atlanta Journal Constitution reports.

Jail records did not provide details on Liu's arrest or the alleged incident, and police said they could comment because it's an active investigation.

JD.com said in a statement on Sunday that Liu was falsely accused while in the US for a business trip and police found no evidence of misconduct. Liu will continue his business trip as planned, the company said.

'During a business trip to the United States, Mr Liu was questioned by police in Minnesota in relation to an unsubstantiated accusation,' the company said. 'The local police quickly determined there was no substance to the claim against Mr Liu, and he was subsequently able to resume his business activities as originally planned.'

Liu founded JD.com, one of China's leading e-commerce sites in 2004. In June, Google announced it was investing $550million in the company as part of a strategic partnership to jointly develop markets outside the country.

JD.com said in a statement on Sunday that Liu was falsely accused and police did not find any evidence of misconduct

JD.com, which stands for Jingdong, is the rival of the popular Chinese e-commerce site Alibaba Group led by CEO Daniel Zhang. Liu, a married father-of-two, is said to be worth an estimated $7.9billion USD.

'We are excited to partner with JD.com and explore new solutions for retail ecosystems around the world to enable helpful, personalized and frictionless shopping experiences that give consumers the power to shop wherever and however they want,' Google Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler said in a statement at the time.

JD said it planned to make a selection of items available for sale in places like Europe and the US through Google Shopping, which allows shoppers to search for products and compare prices on different e-commerce sites.

Liu is the founder of JD.com, one of China's most popular e-commerce sites. Google invested $550million in the company

This is not the first time Liu has been embroiled in a sexual misconduct incident. In 2015, a model said she was sexually assaulted by a man after they had partied at Liu's Australian penthouse.

Longwei Xu was found guilty in July of sexual assault after a jury found that he pinned the woman down and repeatedly tried to have sex with her during an hour-long ordeal at his hotel room in December 2015, Sydney Morning Herald reports. Liu was never accused of any wrongdoing in that incident.
New Minster for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population Alan Tudge has outlined his plan for immigration policy which focuses on a 'bigger Australia' with more decentralised population areas.

'My view has always been that Australia can be a bigger country. But ideally you have a broader distribution rather than very rapid growth in some areas,' Mr Tudge told Fairfax Media.

New Prime Minister Scott Morrison and Mr Tudge are shifting the focus away from reductions to immigrant numbers and towards a redistribution of where they are settled.

New Minster for Cities, Urban Infrastructure and Population Alan Tudge has outlined his plan for immigration policy which focuses on a 'bigger Australia'

New Prime Minister Morrison and Mr Tudge are shifting the focus away from reductions to immigrant numbers and towards a redistribution of where they are settled

Mr Tudge has said that he is in favour of population growth, however, the areas where new immigrants are settled must be broader and not focused in major cities like Sydney and Melbourne.

'I'm not suggesting that for a second that it's migrants' fault  not at all,' he said.

'If you've got regions that can't find workers and smaller states that want more people, then the immigration program is something that should be looked at.'

He did, however, not comment on a specific plan that would require new migrants to settle in regional areas for five years as a condition of their visas.

A decision on the time period for mandatory settlement was due to go to the Turnbull cabinet last week, but the leadership spill put that discussion on hold, The Australian reported on Wednesday.

The proposal has yet to be put to Scott Morrison's new cabinet, and the prime minister's office would not comment on the development of the policy.

New immigrants would be forced to settle in regional areas instead of metropolitan cities for up to five years under a federal plan to ease congestion in Melbourne and Sydney

It is understood a new visa class would apply to the skilled and family migration program but could also apply to refugees.

Almost 90 per cent of new migrants are settling in metropolitan areas such as Melbourne and Sydney.

A population package put before Government before last week's leadership spill included the proposal for new migrants to be settled in regional areas for a period of up to five years - after this migrants could choose to relocate.

The newly appointed PM has created a separate portfolio of population to be lead by former Citizenship Minister Alan Tudge (pictured)

The newly appointed PM has created a separate portfolio of population to be lead by former Citizenship Minister Alan Tudge.

Department of Home Affairs figures revealed by The Australian showed that of the 112,000 skilled migrants that arrived in the country over the previous financial year, 87 per cent settled permanently in Sydney and Melbourne.

Mr Tudge has previously said that the number of incoming migrants was not the only factor in growing population pressures, but rather where these migrants were settling and the distribution being focused in major cities.

'If the population was distributed more evenly, there would not be the congestion pressures that we have today in Melbourne and Sydney,' Mr Tudge told a forum in Melbourne.

'Nor would there be if the infrastructure was built ahead of demand,' he said.
A teenage girl has died from meningococcal disease less than a month after the rare disease killed a local woman.

Health authorities confirmed Mischelle Rhodes, 19, died from the disease at Gosford Hospital on New South Wales' Central Coast last week.

The death comes weeks after a 38-year-old Central Coast woman was killed by W strain of meningococcal disease at the beginning of August.

Health authorities confirmed Mischelle Rhodes (pictured), 19, died from the disease at Gosford Hospital, in New South Wales' Central Coast, last week

The death comes weeks after a 38-year-old Central Coast woman was killed by W strain of meningococcal disease at the beginning of August

The strain of the disease has not been confirmed but authorities say they don't believe the two cases are linked.

Central Coast Local Health District Director Public Health Dr Peter Lewis said those who had close contact with the young woman were prescribed clearance antibiotics to reduce the risk of it being spread to anyone else.

'Our thoughts are with the family of this young woman at this tragic time,' Dr Lewis said.

'If anyone in the community develops any symptoms of meningococcal disease, it's important that they seek medical advice immediately.

The strain of the disease has not been confirmed but there is no link between the two cases

What are symptoms of meningococcal? Fever

Headache

Neck stiffness

Lack of appetite

Joint pain

Unusual skin colour

Extreme tiredness

Vomiting and diarrhoea

Drowsiness

Convulsions, fits or twitching

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'Meningococcal disease is very uncommon in NSW and only two other cases have been notified in CCLHD this year, and only one case for the whole of last year.'

Meningococcal bacteria does not survive well outside the body and is not easily spread from person to person.

The bacteria are passed between people in the secretions from the back of the nose and throat and generally requires close and prolonged contact, such as living in the same household.

Friends of the young woman have shared their condolences following the shocking death.

'Words can't describe how much we will all miss you, you filled our lives with laughter and the best memories, until we meet again, bless your gorgeous soul,' said one friend.

Central Coast Local Health District Director Public Health Dr Peter Lewis said those who had close contact with the young woman were prescribed clearance antibiotics to reduce the risk of it being spread to anyone else (pictured: Gosford Hospital)

Neisha Monteleone, who went to high school with Ms Rhodes, told Daily Mail Australia the young woman was a 'much loved friend.'

'There wasn't one person who wasn't friends with Mischelle,' she said.

'She was a kind soul and a beautiful friend to all who will sadly be missed.'

Ms Rhodes was studying a Bachelor of Security Studies at Macquarie University and previously attended St Peter's Catholic College at Tuggerah.

In Ms Rhodes last Instagram post on August 25, the young girl appeared to be enjoying time at the snow (pictured)
An 18-year-old man left fighting for life after he was hit by a car during a 200-man brawl was reportedly a 'person of interest' in the alleged murder of Sudanese teenager, Laa Chol (pictured)

An 18-year-old who had his leg amputated after he was hit by a car during a 200-man brawl was reportedly a 'person of interest' in the police investigation into the death of a Sudanese teenager.

Laa Chol, 19, died after she was stabbed at a party on the 56th floor of the EQ Tower on A'Beckett Street in Melbourne in late July.

In the early hours of Sunday morning, about 200 African and Pacific Islander Australians were involved in street fight outside the Gasometer Hotel in Collingwood.

An 18-year-old has had his leg amputated and is still fighting for life in hospital after he was crushed between two cars.

The victim was questioned by detectives from the Homicide Squad in relation to Ms Chol's alleged murder, because he was at the apartment at the time of her death, the Herald Sun understands.

It is unclear if the brawl was a revenge attack for the alleged murder, or if the injured man was deliberately targeted.

An 18-year-old man was hit by a car - pinned between two vehicles - and remains in a critical condition in hospital with serious leg injuries

In the early hours of Sunday, about 200 African and Pacific Islander Australians were involved in street fight outside the Gasometer Hotel in Collingwood

An 18-year-old man was arrested and released over Sunday morning's riot, which followed a record label launch at the hotel.

'The man was interviewed and released, pending further investigation,' Victoria Police said in a statement on Monday.

Six other people were also injured.

Three 18-year-olds, two 21-year-olds, and a 26-year-old all received non-life threatening injuries.

Blood is seen on a car at the scene after the car smashed into parked cars in the early hours of Sunday

Ms Chol, 19, died after she was stabbed at a party on the 56th floor of the EQ Tower on A'Beckett Street in Melbourne in late July

Up to 200 people were involved in the melee that spilled out onto the road from the 66 Records launch about 2.45am after a fight started inside the Gasometer.

Police on Sunday said they were caught off-guard by the violence, having put three cars on to patrol the area after hearing of the event.

'Some of the local police have indicated they were concerned about that, that's something I think police will need to absolutely have a look at,' Police Minister Lisa Neville told 3AW on Monday.

'I'll certainly be speaking to Victoria Police about it.'

A crowd of more than 200 people had spilled onto the streets following a record label launch party

The organiser of an event which sparked a wild brawl and left a teenager fighting for life warned revellers 'violence will not be tolerated'

However, she rubbished suggestions of a no arrest policy after no arrests during a similar event in Taylors Hill last month.

New Prime Minister Scott Morrison was on Melbourne radio on Monday criticising police efforts in the city.

'We have (Australia's) highest proportion of Sudanese population in NSW,' Mr Morrison told 3AW on Monday.

'We don't have these problems in NSW, they're not happening in other cities. Why is it happening in Melbourne?'

He said it was up to Premier Daniel Andrews to ensure 'there is a police force that is a force'.

'We have one main offender who was the driver of the car,' Commander Tim Hansen said

The Gasometer Hotel on Monday issued a statement, saying it had a 'proud history of supporting the diverse live music of Melbourne'.

'The safety of our staff, patrons, performers and the local Collingwood community is our number one priority, and we work very hard to provide a safe and inclusive environment for everyone,' the statement read.

'We do not stand for violence, abuse or discrimination of any kind, and the events of this past weekend have been deeply upsetting for all of us. We are cooperating with Victoria Police as part of its investigation.'

Police are pictured at the scene. They blocked Smith Street in both directions between Alexander Parade and Hotham Streets on Sunday morning

In a Facebook post on Friday, event organiser J-Nelly said he had met with 'federal detectives, who are very concerned with the energy, which they have related to the latest sparks of new reports degrading the African community as dangerous thugs'.

'Be mindful of your surroundings and understand violence will not be tolerated,' he wrote in the post.

'United we stand, so by me saying that means if you have an issue with an individual let it be, and move away. A moment of anger isn't worth a lifetime of bad labelling.

'I'm not bothered by any of it because I know each and every single individual who is coming the show is a very mature an intellectual young adult, so let's put that aside and think of one thing and one only... turning the f*** up and good vibes.'

Officers are continuing to investigate the violent incident and no arrests have been made
Farmer resilience is drying up and a flying squad of counsellors could be the answer to the lowest levels of confidence to hit Aussie farmers in more than a decade.

The NSW Government committed $6.3million to the 20 new 'farm gate' counsellors and frontline mental health workers on Sunday - tipping the state's drought aid package to more than $1billion.

As the drought sweeps rural Australia it has been revealed confidence levels have plummeted and depression and anxiety have risen significantly.

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The NSW Government committed $6.3 million to the 20 new 'farm gate' counsellors and front line mental health workers on Sunday

NSW State Premier, Gladys Berejiklian said: 'The drought has increased mental health issues such as depression and anxiety in rural communities and households, which is why we're putting boots on the ground in these areas to make sure help reaches those who need it most.'

'We have already committed more than $1billion in drought support, and this is another way we're helping our farmers and rural communities during these challenging conditions.'

A recent survey by Rabobank revealed worrying results including more than half of survey respondents having a pessimistic outlook on the next 12 months and only 13 percent anticipating improved conditions.

Some 56 percent also expect economic conditions to deteriorate over the next 12 months in comparison to only 35 percent in the June quarter.

NSW State Premier, Gladys Berejiklian (pictured) said: 'The drought has increased mental health issues such as depression and anxiety in rural communities and households

As part of the $6.3million dollar commitment, the new mental health positions will be based in the Local Health Districts of Western, Hunter New England, Murrumbidgee, Nepean Blue Mountains, South Western Sydney and Illawarra Shoalhaven.

The funding is part of a two-year initiative entailing 44,000 hours of mental health crisis support for farmers and their families - as all of NSW endures the 'big dry'.

Minister for Regional NSW, John Barilaro said: 'Our farmers and their families are under daily pressure to feed stock, operate a business and keep the household running and there is no doubt this takes its toll on wellbeing.

The funding is part of a two year initiative entailing 44,000 hours of mental health crisis support for farmers and their families - as all of NSW endures the 'big dry'

'Simply being able to speak to someone about your mental health is one of the strongest tools we have to get through these challenging times.

'We have increased the number of 'farm gate' counsellors on-hand ready to talk to farmers, individuals and business owners in our regional communities and walk side-by-side with them through this drought.'

Minister for Mental Health, Tanya Davies, also announced the funding will be used to provide vital education for existing frontline support staff and to host wellbeing events across the state.

'People with lived experience of life on the land will lend a hand at events to start those conversations that might not otherwise be had. This is about reducing stigma, providing hope and support, and most importantly recovery,' Mrs Davies said.

Minister for Mental Health, Tanya Davies, also announced the funding will be used to provide vital education for the existing front line support staff and to host well-being events

The community events will be held in Dubbo, Yeoval, Narromine, Nyngan, Bourke, Coonamble, Walgett, Coonabarabran, Mudgee and Gilgandra.

Rural Adversity Mental Health Program Coordinator, Tessa Caton revealed there has been a 50 percent increase in the amount of people seeking care between January and June this year.

Ms Caton told the Daily Telegraph: 'We do know from previous droughts that there is a lag, that even if it was to rain substantially, it will take 12-18 months for communities to recover.'

Rural Adversity Mental Health Program Coordinator, Tessa Caton revealed there has been a 50 percent increase in the amount of people seeking care between January and June this year

These commitments are part of the NSW Drought support announced on June 13 by the Liberal and Nationals Party in NSW.

On July 30, the state government topped up this $584 million initial support and announced the Emergency Drought Relief Package.

The suicide rate among rural communities is continually more than 40 percent higher compared to metropolitan areas.

A study published in the Journal of Rural Health this year found suicide by Australian farmers is attributed to six interrelated themes: masculinity, uncertainty and lack of control over farming, feelings of failure, escalating health problems, inability to cope with stress and an acquired capability to commit suicide, with access to means.

The commitment to the mental health of Aussie farmers comes just months after the Royal Flying Doctors Service deemed rural and remote Australia in a state of 'crisis'.

The charity's chief executive, Martin Laverty, told the ABC: 'Last year the Flying Doctors saw 24,500 people to provide mental health counselling, but we could double or triple that service tomorrow and still not touch the surface.'

Mr Laverty also pointed out there are no registered psychologists in 15 of Australia's rural and remote areas.

Lifeline: 13 11 14.

For more information on mental health services contact the NSW Mental Health Line on 1800 011 511 or visit www.crrmh.com.au
Texas-based internal medicine specialist Dr Gary Tigges is under fire for saying female colleagues 'don't work as hard'

A Texas physician is in hot water after he provided a sexist survey response for the Dallas Medical Journal this month revealing his personal opinion on the controversial gender pay gap.

Plano-based internal medicine specialist Dr Gary Tigges took part in a survey for the newspaper, which asked 7,500 physicians whether they believed the gender gap existed in their medical profession.

Tigges shared a rather abrasive response, which had been featured in the September issue of the journal titled 'Women in Medicine.'

The physician wrote: 'Yes, there is a pay gap. Female physicians do not work as hard and do not see as many patients as male physicians.

'This is because they choose to, or they simply don't don't want to be rushed, or they don't want to work the long hours. Most of the time, their priority is something else... family, social, whatever.'

He concluded in the response: 'Nothing needs to be "done" about this unless female physicians actually want to work harder and put in the hours. If not, they should be paid less. That is fair.'

Tigges quickly regretted his words, after he received furious responses in return from female colleagues as well as readers of the journal.

Several female medical professionals shared their disappointment over the remarks on social media.

Tigges shared a rather abrasive response in the September issue of the journal titled 'Women in Medicine'

The comment was part of a survey from the journal asking physicians about the gender pay gap

Nathalie Martinek wrote on Twitter: 'Data and evidence would be really great to include in your assessment and productivity of #womeninmedicine. Stop talking sh*t Gary!'

Andi Murphy agreed that the gender pay gap exists, but contradicted Tigges' statement suggesting women are less productive in the workplace.

'My last hospitalist job was paid per shift with WRVU goals and commensurate bonuses. My productivity numbers were consistently at the top of the entire group,' Murphy wrote.

'I found out six years in my per shift rate was 30% less than all of my male colleagues, including new grads.'

Monica Verduzco-Gutierrez added: 'I'm so upset at @DallasCMS for publishing this. I whole-heartedly encourage them and @texmed to do a big article highlighting #WomenInMedicine & I would be happy to assist.'

Several female doctors shared their two cents about the controversial topic on social media

Tigges published an apology at the top of his Plano Internal Medicine bio after he was chastised for the comments.

The statement said: 'I have heard from several trusted female physician colleagues who disagree with and are deeply hurt and offended by the comments I made to the Dallas Medical Journal regarding pay equity among female and male physicians.

'I want to thank them for reaching out to me and sharing their concerns. I now understand more clearly how intricate this issue is and that there are ways we can work together to resolve these disparities.

'I have worked closely with numerous female physicians for nearly three decades and have witnessed nothing but compassion, diligence and professionalism.'

He concluded: 'I sincerely apologize to all female physicians for my comments and the pain they have caused.

'I also need to apologize to my partners and the staff at Plano Internal Medicine Associates, where we have an open and supportive work environment and where we do not tolerate discrimination based on gender, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation or religion.'

Tigges began a private practice at Presbyterian Hospital of Plano back in 1995 and founded Plano Internal Medicine the following year, his bio states.
Do you have what it takes to be the Ultimate Little Shopper?

Supermarket giant Coles has announced a competition to find the number one fan of their popular Little Shop collectibles and is offering the lucky winner a year's worth of free groceries.

Shoppers are encouraged to upload a photo or video using the hashtag #ultimatelittleshopper on Instagram showing why they are the ultimate Coles Little Shopper.

Coles announced a competition to find the master of the mini collections and has a generous prize for the winner

Shoppers are encouraged to upload a photo or video using the hashtag #ultimatelittleshopper on Instagram showing why they are the ultimate Coles Little Shopper

Customers have until September 6 to enter and the winner will be announced on September 14.

The winner of the first prize will win a year's supply of groceries at the value of $10,000 - awarded as 10 x $1000 gift cards.

Five runner ups will be gifted $500 Coles gift cards.

Customers get one of the miniature collectables, representing regular, full-sized item, when they spend $30 on groceries.

There are almost 500 of the exclusive 'red hands' still yet to be claimed.

Anyone who finds a 'red hand' wins a $100 gift voucher, with only 1000 in circulation.

The winner of the first prize will win a year's supply of groceries at the value of $10,000 - awarded as 10 x $1000 gift cards

Coles Chief Operating Officer Greg Davis said Little Shop is designed to be fun for customers while celebrating some of their favourite brands.

'We know our customers love collectibles, so we have worked with our suppliers to launch a fun campaign in our supermarkets across Australia,' he previously said.

They were initially due to conclude on August 28, but were recently announced to have been extended until supplies runs out.

They were initially due to conclude on August 28, but were recently announced to have been extended until supply runs out
One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has hit out at Senator Derryn Hinch in a fiery TV outburst.

The dispute happened during a discussion on Channel 7s Sunrise program this morning.

Mrs Hanson was explaining her recent exchange with former prime minister Malcolm Turnbull when Mr Hinch cut in, asking what exactly she had achieved.

The One Nation leader initially batted off Hinchs question, but then started to list the various topics shed gone through with the former MP.

The debate escalated when Mrs Hanson said theyd been discussing the use of medicinal cannabis, as Mr Hinch called out that Mrs Hanson had voted against it in a recent parliamentary vote.

Mrs Hanson denied the accusations, saying to Mr Hinch: as usual you dont have a bloody clue what youre talking about.

Read my speeches that Ive done on the floor of parliament Derrynyoure half asleep most of the damn time you wouldnt have a clue what youre talking about, she said.

One Nation leader Pauline Hanson has hit out at Australian Senator for Victoria Derryn Hinch in a fiery TV outburst. Mrs Hanson was explaining her recent exchange with former PM Malcolm Turnbull when Mr Hinch cut in, asking what exactly she had achieved.

The debate escalated when Mrs Hanson said theyd been discussing the use of medicinal Cannabis, with Mr Hinch calling out that Mrs Hanson had voted against it in a recent parliamentary vote. Mrs Hanson denied the accusations, saying to Mr Hinch: as usual you dont have a bloody clue what youre talking about.

She then said she wasnt here to argue with Mr Hinch, before telling him: Go pack your bags and get on your next plane out of the country, thats where you belong.

Baffled, Mr Hinch said that telling people to leave the country was Mrs Hansons usual thing, calling it puerile' and 'stupid.

But, unabashed, Mrs Hanson continued: Well go back to New Zealand and pick up your manners Derryn, she said.

Then come back when youve got some manners.

Mr Hinch was born in New Plymouth, New Zealand, and has been in the country since 1980 where he developed a career as a media personality before becoming Australian Senator for Victoria in 2016.
Housing prices have fallen for the eleventh consecutive month, as mortgage rate rises send a chill through the market.

August saw a nationwide median dwelling price decline of 0.3 percent, a fall of 2.2 percent since September last year.

Westpac's move to hike variable mortgage rates for owner occupiers, combined with tighter access to credit, is likely to see prices fall even further this spring.

Housing prices have fallen for the eleventh consecutive month as mortgage rate rises send a chill through the market (stock image)

Westpac's move to hike variable mortgage rates for owner occupiers combined with tighter access to credit is likely to see prices fall even further this spring (stock image)

CoreLogic head of research Tim Lawless said the credit environment was the major factor in slowing market activity.

'Fewer active buyers has led to higher inventory levels and reduced competition in the market,' he said.

'Collectively, these factors have been compounded by affordability challenges, reduced foreign investment and a rise in housing supply.'

Mr Lawless said Westpac's decision to raise rates would have a dampening effect on the market.

'The news that the first of the big four banks will lift variable mortgage rates in September is likely to send a chill through the housing market,' he told ABC News.

'With household debt at record highs, borrowers are likely to be sensitive to small movements in the cost of debt and this upwards shift in mortgage rates is a negative for housing market conditions.'

August saw a nationwide median dwelling price decline of 0.3 percent, a fall of 2.2 per cent since September last year

Only three of Australia's capital cities saw housing price increases in August - Adelaide, Darwin and Canberra.

Melbourne and Perth showed the biggest declines - 0.6 percent in each city - while prices in Sydney fell 0.3 percent.

Brisbane prices fell 0.2 percent, while Hobart saw a 0.1 percent fall in a year, although the Tasmanian capital enjoyed a 5.6 percent annual increase.

Melbourne performed the worst over the last quarter, and Adelaide took over from Hobart as the strongest growth market.

Sydney and Melbourne make up about 60 percent of the country's housing market by value, and 40 percent by number, and their weak performances drag down the nationwide and combined capitals figures.
The family of a young man who died after a frantic mob allegedly attacked the paramedics trying to save him said they were 'emotional and loud', but deny ambushing emergency workers treating him.

Hamze Ibrahim, 25, was being urgently resuscitated after a suspected drug overdose at a unit in Sydney's south west on Sunday morning, when police said a brawl broke out forcing paramedics to take refuge inside a neighbour's house for safety.

Up to 80 angry men and women who had gathered at the Riverwood unit allegedly threatened the emergency workers and demanded they be given a defibrillator and drugs to treat the dying man themselves.

But Mr Ibrahim's cousin, who gave his name as Issa, denied anyone was aggressive towards paramedics.

'Yes, there were a lot of people there but no one attacked nobody. We were listening, we were cooperating, and doing exactly what the sergeant was telling us,' he said.

'The only thing that was wrong over there was, you know, the females crying and getting a bit loud, but they weren't aggressive towards police.'

Issa called the Kyle and Jackie O Show on Monday morning to defend police reports that his cousin died from a drug overdose.

'(The claims) make my cousin sound like he's a junkie, when he had never taken a drug in his life,' he said.

He said his family was 'thankful' for the paramedics' presence at the scene.

Following the interview, Mr Ibrahim's family's lawyer Raed Rahal, released a statement hitting back at the Australian Paramedics Association's version of the morning's events.

The family of Hamze Ibrahim, 25, (pictured with wife Hanan, right) who died after a frantic mob allegedly attacked the paramedics trying to save him, have denied claims the on-street brawl ever occurred

Mr Ibrahim died from a suspected drug overdose after paramedics were called to a unit block in Riverwood, in Sydney's west, on Sunday morning.

The family instead claim Mr Ibrahim suffered from sleep apnoea and did not use drugs.

'Many members of Mr. Ibrahim's extended family and his friends attended the residence upon hearing of this tragedy,' the statement read.

'The large number of people who did attend were emotional and many had difficulty accepting what had occurred, however, none were violent or threatening towards paramedics or police.

'The sheer number of people, who did attend the residence, and the tense emotional circumstances surrounding the sudden death of a 25-year-old man, may have caused the paramedics to believe they required police attendance.

'The inaccurate comments made on behalf of the association, which in essence, blames the family for the death of Mr Ibrahim, are totally devoid of compassion and empathy.'

'Mr Ibrahim was a hard working and dedicated family man who was loved and respected by family and friends,' Mr Rahal said.

'He leaves behind a wife, a mother, siblings and a large extended family who are all devastated at his sudden passing.'

Following the interview, Mr Ibrahim's family's lawyer Raed Rahal, released a statement hitting back at the Australian Paramedics Association's recall of the morning's events at the western Sydney unit (pictured)

However, Mr Ibrahim's cousin took to breakfast radio on Monday to claiming he died from natural causes, adding he 'had never taken a drug in his life'

Painted online as a devoted family man, Mr Ibrahim took to Facebook just days ago to pay a loving tribute to his wife of three years, Hanan (left)

Just days before his death, Mr Ibrahim posted a loving tribute to his wife of three years, Hanan.

'If you have a woman in your life who helps bring balance to your world, who works hard, who makes you laugh... (and is) who you want to grow old with....put this as your status with a pic to show some appreciation,' he posted above a collection of happy snaps.

Australian Paramedics Association boss Steve Pearce said the scene was so volatile paramedics were forced to barricade themselves inside a unit as an angry mob demanded a defibrillator and drugs to treat the dying man themselves.

'Paramedics were forced to fend off angry males who eventually forced them to stop treating the patient who was in cardiac arrest and subsequently died,' Mr Pearce said.

'On this occasion the stupidity of these people have taken the life of their family member.'

But the family's claims were quickly shot down by the APA, who insisted the group which surrounded Mr Ibrahim on Sunday became increasingly erratic towards paramedics after he fell ill (pictured is a message written on a Victorian ambulance)

Paramedics called for police at the western Sydney address at about 7.45am, but Mr Ibrahim was dead by the time they arrived

'We don't want any more people to face the horrifying situation of their loved ones dying because paramedics are unable to treat patients after threats of violence.'

He also called for faster intervention by police and said attacks on paramedics in the Bankstown area had become a regular occurrence.

No arrests were made.

Police confirmed in a statement that officers attended the scene following a request by the ambulance service.

A police spokeswoman said: 'Officers found a group of people at the home had become agitated and police were provided assistance to the paramedics.'

The death is not being treated as suspicious, and a report is being prepared for the coroner.
Pub baron Justin Hemmes has marked his 45th birthday by spending $40million on a private jet - just weeks after breaking up with the mother of his children.

The millionaire Merivale owner, 45, bought the Bombardier Challenger jet to join his fleet of expensive vehicles including Lamborghinis, Bentleys and McLaren supercars.

His purchase comes just weeks after splitting with Kate Fowler, 28, the mother of his daughters Alexa, two, and Saachi, one.

Pub baron Justin Hemmes has marked his 45th birthday by spending $40million on a private jet - just weeks after breaking up with Kate Fowler

The millionaire Merivale owner, 45, has purchased a Bombardier Challenger jet (pictured)

Hemmes plans to use the plane to carry himself and staff around the world for business purposes, and to scout new locations for his pub empire.

'With Merivale's continued expansion... we purchased a private jet to support further growth both domestically and internationally,' he told the Daily Telegraph.

A friend claimed buying a private jet was a long-held ambition for Hemmes, saying it was 'always on the list'.

'Probably at the top of the list. It just took a little while to get there.'

Hemmes plans to use the plane to carry himself and staff around the world for business purposes, and to scout new locations for his pub empire

The jet has leather interiors and its own lounge area, and is able to seat ten passengers.

The single-engine Bombardier is a popular choice among high-profile celebrities.

Hemmes joins Oprah Winfrey, Jay-Z, Beyonce, Tom Cruise and US President Donald Trump as owners of a Bombardier jet.

Hemmes also has fleet of expensive vehicles including Lamborghinis, Bentleys and McLaren supercars
Parkland shooting survivor David Hogg wants to remind Texans that before president Donald Trump was campaigning on Ted Cruz's behalf, he was warning residents not to vote for the senator because he accomplished 'absolutely nothing'.

Hogg, a gun control activist and survivor of the Florida school shooting, teamed up with USA Latinx, a political group focused on supporting Latinx candidates, and activist Claude Taylor to start a GoFundMe page seeking donations for a mobile billboard to display one of Trump's tweets bashing Cruz.

The tweet chosen by the group reads: 'Why would the people of Texas support Ted Cruz when he has accomplished absolutely nothing for them. He is another all talk, no action pol!'

David Hogg helped raise nearly $10,000 to have this Trump tweet bashing Senator Ted Cruz put on a mobile billboard

President Donald Trump (left) is supporting Cruz (right) as he seeks re-election in Texas, Cruz is currently the junior senator

Trump said in a tweet that he will campaign for Cruz in a major rally in Texas in October

Trump posted the tweet in February 2016 as they campaigned to become the next president of the United States. At the time, the two were rivals and often bad-mouthed each other on social media and during interviews.

The GoFundMe page was seeking $6,000 for help making the billboard but raised nearly $10,000. The group said the mobile billboard will 'remind Texans of the truth'.

Hogg, one of the students who survived the February 14 shooting at his Parkland school Marjory Stoneman Douglas, celebrated the crowdfunding page reaching its goal in a series of tweets on Saturday.

'The young people will win,' the 18-year-old said in one post.

In another post, he included other tweets Trump posted about Cruz in 2016. In one tweet, Trump calls out Cruz for not disclosing major bank loans during his senate run.

Before becoming allies, Trump repeatedly bashed Cruz on social media. In a March 2016 tweet he nicknamed the senator 'lyin' Ted'

Trump also threatened to 'spill the beans' on Cruz's wife Heidi Cruz, which led to Cruz calling Trump a 'sniveling coward'

Cruz was not happy Trump attacked his wife and called him a 'coward' in a tweet in March 2016

In a February 2016 post, Trump questioned why Texans would vote for 'liar' Ted Cruz

He's so dishonest: In another post Trump wondered how Cruz can be an Evangelical Christian when he lies so much

'Ted Cruz is falling in the polls,' Trump declares. 'He is nervous. People are worried about his place of birth and his failure to report his loans from banks!'

In another post, Trump wonders how Cruz can be an 'Evangelical Christian when he lies so much and is so dishonest'. In yet another Twitter jab, Trump questions why Texans would vote for 'liar' Ted Cruz.

'He was born in Canada, lived there for 4 years-and remained a Canadian citizen until recently,' Trump wrote.

Trump also nicknamed Cruz 'lyin' Ted' and threatened to 'spill the beans' on his wife Heidi Cruz.

For his part, Cruz once called Trump a 'sniveling coward' during a television interview. 'I don't get angry often,' he said, 'but you mess with my wife, you mess with my kids that'll do it every time. You're a sniveling coward and leave Heidi the hell alone.'

Cruz is running against El Paso Congressman Beto O'Rourke, pictured at Willie Nelson's 45th 4th Of July Picnic on July 4, 2018 in Austin

David Hogg, who helped create the GoFundMe, said he wanted to remind Texans of what Trump has said about Cruz in the past. Hogg is pictured at event in Springfield last week

It seems now they have made amends and Trump is helping Cruz win re-election in Texas. The president announced in a tweet on Friday that he will be doing a rally for Cruz in October at the 'biggest stadium in Texas we can find'.

'Ted has my complete and total Endorsement,' Trump said about his enemy-turned-ally.

'His opponent is a disaster for Texas - weak on Second Amendment, Crime, Borders, Military, and Vets,' Trump added about Cruz's running-mate El Paso Congressman Beto O'Rourke.

Cruz re-tweeted Trump's message, writing: 'Terrific! Texas will be glad to see you. Working together, weve won major victories for the people of Texas: historic tax cuts, repealing job-killing regulations, rebuilding the military & confirming strong constitutionalist judges. And as a result, the Texas economy is booming!'
A woman led law enforcement in Texas on a high-speed chase, continued to flee on foot when her car crashed and attempted to hijack a vehicle, all while carrying a baby.

In footage released by the Texas Department of Public Safety on Friday, Caitlyn Rodriguez, 29, can be seen driving at up to 100mph at times, reports Fox News.

Despite having an infant in a portable child car seat in her care, she carelessly speeds down the highway, horrifyingly weaving in front of oncoming traffic.

Caitlyn Rodriguez led law enforcement in Texas on a high-speed chase June 15

Her car crashed when she was traveling up to 100mph with the baby during the pursuit

Rodriguez eventually loses control before crashing into a truck in front after the tires on her Mercedes SUV are deflated by a police device.

But it doesnt stop there. The scene gets even more astounding as the wanted person gets out of the wrecked motor and proceeds to run down the side of the road with the baby in tow.

Then Rodriguez invades a white SUV full of passengers, which law enforcement says she was trying to hijack, but its too late and they catch up with her.

A clip shared August 31 in a Public Safety Commission meeting, ends with her being removed from the car and taken into custody.

She continued to flee on foot when her vehicle was wrecked after police flattened her tires

Rodriguez puts the child in danger at several points during the clip released by Texas Department of Public Safety Friday

Law enforcement make sure the tot is out of harms way by picking up the baby carrier and moving away from the action.

The Bexar County event was captured on camera in June and reportedly led to the Rodriguez being charged with endangering a child, possession of a controlled substance and evading arrest.

Child Protective Services have taken the infant into care, reports ABCNews.

Police rescued the baby and Child Protective Services reportedly took the infant into care
It's a royal makeover fit for a queen as Australian coins are set to soon feature a new image.

For the first time in twenty years, a new likeness of Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II was revealed on Monday to be adopted on all circulating and collector coins in Australia.

Tradition will be upheld as Her Majesty continues to face the right of the coin in an effigy featuring the monarch's shoulders and neckline.

It's a royal makeover fit for the Queen as Australian coins are set to soon feature a new image - so can you spot the differences?

The Commonwealth adaptation of the original United Kingdom design has some distinctive new features.

The new likeness shows the Royal Diamond Diadem Crown and Victorian necklace which were worn for The Coronation on June 2 1953 following her ascendance to the English throne on 6 February 1952.

The absence of Her Majesty's shoulders and the Victorian coronation necklace are seen on the original United Kingdom design which has been circulating in England since 2015.

The new look for the Queen was commissioned by the United Kingdom's Royal Mint during a competition won by Jody Clark, 37, a Royal Mint engraver.

Mr Clark's Commonwealth adaptation will begin to appear on Australian coins in 2019 while coins carrying previous portraits of Queen Elizabeth ll will still be circulated.

The new look for the Queen was commissioned by the United Kingdom's Royal Mint during a competition won by a Jody Clark

His Excellency General the Honourable Sir Peter Cosgrove AK MC (Retd), Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia said: This new effigy will be a new image for a new era continuing to tell the story of a reign and lifetime,

Congratulations to the Royal Australian Mint and Jody Clarkthe new coins and effigy are set to become a familiar sight for years to come.

The reverse of the coin still bears the familiar 1998 erepresentation by Ian Rank-Broadley and commemorates the sixth portrait of Her Majesty on Australias coins to mark the Queens status as our longest reigning monarch.

The reverse of the coin still bears the familiar 1998 effigy by Ian Rank-Broadley (pictured)

Assistant Minister to the Treasurer, the Hon Michael Sukkar MP, welcomed the change and said: The Government is upholding the tradition of periodically updating Her Majestys image on Australias coins,"

"This new effigy will replace the Ian Rank-Broadley effigy which has been in use since 1998.

New coins are being produced by the Royal Australian Mint in Canberra - 5000 "proof coins" and 30,000 uncirculated coins.

The Commemorative currency is available for purchase from Monday for regal collectors via the Mint's online store for essentially $14 more than their $1 value.

New coins are being produced by the Royal Australian Mint (pictured) in Canberra and will be circulated in 2019

The yet to be circulated gold coin is 25mm in diameter and weights 9g.

Ross McDermott, CEO of the Royal Australian Mint, acknowledged how loved Queen Elizabeth ll is within the Commonwealth and also welcomes the change.

McDermott told 3AW: Weve now got her shoulders appearing and the Victorian coronation necklace, its a larger portrait and one that hopefully continues to reflect her wonderful looks."

Ross McDermott, CEO of the Royal Australian Mint, acknowledged how loved Queen Elizabeth ll (pictured) is within the Commonwealth and also welcomes the change

The Coronation Necklace pictured on the new effigy was made for Queen Victoria in 1858 by R & S Garrard & Co. and worn by Her Majesty The Queen for her Coronation.

Queen Alexandra, Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth (The Queen Mother) had worn the jewels previously at their respective coronations.

As for the diadem (ornamental headband), this was designed and actually made for her ancestor King George IV to wear at his coronation in 1821 by royal jewelers and goldsmiths, Rundell, Bridge and Rundell.

It remains one of the most incredible diadem's made from diamonds and pearls and is undoubtedly one of the most recognizable of The Queens jewels still today.
Police in Alabama say multiple teenagers were shot and one is in critical condition after a gunman opened fire outside an event venue late Sunday.

The Labor Day weekend shooting broke out at approximately 10:20pm outside Workplay, a live concert hall located in Birmingham.

Sergeant Timothy Gardiner said at least six teenagers were wounded and a seventh suffered another injury as a result of the violent incident.

One of the victims has life threatening injuries.

The conditions of the remaining unidentified six victims are currently unknown.

Police say multiple people were shot outside a teen party at Workplay in downtown Birmingham, Alabama on Sunday night.

At least six people were wounded and a seventh suffered another injury as a result of the altercation

Neither the gunman, nor a motive, have been identified

A teenage party had been going on inside the concert hall at the time the shots were fired from the street.

The identity of the shooter has not been released, nor has a possible motive.

According to tweet posted by local Fox 6 early Monday, a brawl broke out on the street, resulting in several bystanders being shot.

Police said parents may pick their teens up at 6th and 23rd South in Birmingham.

Further investigation is underway.
A mother has given birth to her third child after a high-risk caesarean operation saw the blood drain from her body eight times.

Mother-of-three Sarah Parkes, 35, was shaken but alive after she 'died three times' while giving birth at John Hunter Hospital in New Lambton Heights, New South Wales.

During the operation Ms Parkes received 128 bags of blood through transfusions which entirely exhausted the hospital's supply.

After the ordeal, Sarah was able to successfully deliver her son Billy, who is now two years old.

Sarah Parkes gave birth to her third child (pictured) after a high-risk caesarean that drained all the blood in her body eight times and made her heart stop thrice

'It was horrific, but I can't thank the blood donation (service) enough,' the Coffs Harbour mum told AAP.

While Ms Parkes was aware that her pregnancy was high risk, she never imagined her placenta would attach to her bladder and leave her in such danger.

In the previous caesareans of her two girls, it was found that the placenta was attached to a scar tissue on her uterus, which spread 'like a tumour'.

Her ultrasound did not detect the scar tissue's growth, so she went into hospital early to deliver her third child at 34 weeks.

'When I got cut open, they hit a major blood vessel and I started bleeding to death,' Ms Parkes said.

'My placenta is just pumping blood everywhere and they can't close me up because my placenta needs to be removed. I had seven minutes left to live. Without a vascular surgeon being next door, I wouldn't have survived'.

'My poor little girls had to wait outside ICU every day for a week, asking, 'Is Mum going to wake up today?'

Two years after the delivery, Ms Parkes opened up about the issue in order to raise awareness and emphasise the importance of blood donations.

Ms Parkes was saved because of the 128 bags of blood that exhausted the blood supply of John Hunter Hospital - and was able to successfully deliver her son Billy (pictured)

Two years after her son's delivery, Ms Parkes opened up about the issue in order to raise awareness and emphasise the importance of blood donations

'I need to help people. I want people to look at me and think about donating blood,' she told AAP.

'Women are also out there choosing to have a caesarean not realising there are more risks. I don't want it to happen to anyone else'.

Cath Stone from the Blood Service has also urged people to take an hour of their time to donate.

'Our amazing donors can't do it alone, and we need more people to make blood donation a regular, life-saving habit,' Ms Stone said.

One in three Australians will need blood during their lifetime but only one in 30 currently gives blood, she said.

The Australian Red Cross encourages the public to donate blood in order to save lives. Donated blood only lasts for 42 days - which is why the public is urged to donate regularly.

National Blood Donor Week, which will be from the 2nd to the 8th of September, is an annual celebration of the thousands of Australians who donate blood and save lives.
An elderly woman has been rushed to hospital after she was been bitten by a funnel-web spider.

According to the Queensland Times, paramedics were called to Warrego Highway near North Tivoli in Southern Queensland at around 7am after a woman said she was bitten by the deadly spider.

The woman, aged in her 70s, was reportedly bitten by the venomous arachnid between the toes and has been taken to nearby Ipswich Hospital.

A woman in her 70s has been bitten between the toes by the deadly funnel-web spider in Ipswich, Queensland

Funnel-webs are known as some of the deadliest spiders in the world, with 35 known sub species in Australia alone. Six of those are capable and are known to cause serious injuries to people.

The primary range of this particular spider are usually found along the eastern coast of Australia with regular sightings in New South Wales, South Australia, Victoria, and Queensland.

If bitten by a funnel-web immediate treatment is essential however since the introduction of antivenom in the 1980s fatalities have stopped.

The woman is now believed to be in a stable condition in hospital.
An American writer has slammed Australia's farcical leadership crisis, calling wannabe leader Peter Dutton 'repellent', former prime minister Tony Abbott 'oblivious' and saying Canberra is a 'breeding ground for toxic frontier masculinity'.

New York Times opinion writer Maureen Dowd spent a week in Australia during the Liberal Party spill, in which 'ordinary bloke' Scott Morrison replaced Malcolm Turnbull as Prime Minister.

In a scathing column, Ms Dowd said 'scheming white men' had 'knifed one another in the back' during the leadership challenge, which she said was 'slippery mud wrestling'.

New York Times opinion writer Maureen Dowd spent a week in Australia during the Liberal Party spill

In a scathing column, Ms Dowd said 'scheming white men' had 'knifed one another in the back' during the leadership challenge, and criticised the treatment of Julie Bishop (pictured)

Ms Dowd also said women were 'in a subordinate zone' in the nation's capital.

'In Australia, they use a deceptively innocent word, ''spill'', to describe the brutal parliamentary decapitation wherein politicians can topple popularly elected prime ministers and put another in place for no apparent reason,' she wrote.

'Down under, there's no demonic, mesmerising Macy's parade balloon of a leader like Donald Trump. But there are still plenty of echoes with America's mad, ugly Thunderdome.'

'Welcome to chaos, Australian-style.'

Ms Dowd was critical of the treatment of former foreign affairs minister Julie Bishop, saying she was 'iced out by her less popular male colleagues'.

Ms Bishop quit as a cabinet minister after the coup, but will continue as a backbench MP.

Scott Morrison was eventually voted Liberal leader and Prime Minister by his colleagues after incumbent Malcolm Turnbull resigned.

Ms Dowd said Peter Dutton (left) was 'repellent' and called former prime minister Tony Abbott (right) 'oblivious'




Peter Dutton continues to angrily deny he did nothing wrong by granting visas for two au pairs so they could remain in the country.

The Home Affairs minister remains under fire after it was revealed last week that he granted visas to French au pair Alexandra Deuwel to work for the family of AFL boss Gillon McLachlan and for an Italian au pair to work the family of a former Queensland Police colleague.

The minister told reporters on Monday that he doesn't recall ever meeting Mr McLachlan's cousin Callum when he granted a visa to his nanny Ms Deuwel during his stint as immigration minister in 2015.

Peter Dutton doesn't recall meeting French au pair Alexandra Deuwel's (pictured) boss Callum McLachlan when he granted her a visa

'To say I have a situation where I helped out a friend is complete garbage,' Mr Dutton said.

'I am a person of integrity and proud of the fact. I have nothing to hide at all.'

Mr Dutton accused his Labor counterparts of playing games, adding he was 'gobsmacked' by their hypocrisy and 'mud slinging'.

'I've intervened where Labor have come to see me,' he said.

'I have kept a list of Labor MPs who have come to me with quirky cases. I take face values at the undertakings given to me by members of parliament. I deal with literally hundreds of these cases each year.'

'I am a person of integrity and proud of the fact. I have nothing to hide at all,' Peter Dutton (pictured) told reporters on Monday

He also pointed the finger at 'someone disaffected within Australian Border Force'.

Mr Dutton expects to again defend his decisions when parliament resumes next week.

'Labor can ask me 10 questions every day when we go back if that's what they want to do, but they'll get a whack back,' Mr Dutton said.

Mr Dutton accused former Labor immigration ministers Chris Bowen, Brendan O'Connor and Tony Burke of being silent on the au pair debate in recent days.

Peter Dutton said he did nothing wrong when he granted a visa to Alexandra Deuwel (pictured) in 2015

Peter Dutton admitted he knew AFL boss Gillion McLachlan (pictured) but doesn't recall meeting his second cousin Callum

'There are some people who have been very quiet in this debate,' Mr Dutton said.

'I would like you to ask them questions about the sorts of visas that they've issued or where they've intervened to use their ministerial power. I suspect it's completely above board and not too different from any of the facts in the cases where I've been able to act.'

Mr Bowen told Fairfax Media: 'I can confirm that at no stage have I made any representations on behalf of au pairs at airports who are pretty clearly in breach of the rules. And neither did I, during my three years as immigration minister, approve any.'

Meanwhile, prime minister Scott Morrison has dismissed suggestions Mr Dutton misled parliament by intervening in an au pair case on behalf of a former Queensland Police colleague as a 'furphy'.

'If someone makes an application not even in the name of the person you worked with 20 years ago, and actually does it basically through the switchboard, that's what doesn't pass the pub test,' Mr Morrison said.
Former child star John Alford allegedly assaulted two police officers after jumping behind the wheel of a bin lorry left with a smashed windscreen.

The ex Grange Hill and London's Burning star, 46, sparked chaos in Camden, north London, when he got behind the wheel of a 10-ton truck.

More than 20 officers in seven patrol cars were joined by an ambulance and paramedics at 7.30am on Saturday.

One witness said that the huge police presence suggested they 'seemed to respond like it was a terror attack'.

Footage of the early morning incident showed the former actor initially smiling while behind the wheel of the stationary vehicle.

Former London's Burning star John Alford pictured just before he was arrested after getting behind the wheel of a bin lorry

He then yells to the man filming him: 'I tried to save your truck. It was reversing' before staggering out of the cab.

Alford, pictured on London's Burning, has been charged with criminal damage and two counts of assault on a police officer

Alford can then be heard cheering as the sound of police sirens echoes down the street.

The mobile footage, obtained by The Sun, then cuts to him grappling with two police officers in the street as he screams: 'I ain't done nothing'.

One police officer trying to arrest him says back: 'You smashed the windscreen' and repeatedly tells the suspect: 'Get down on the floor'.

Witnesses in north London said that they had recognised Alford because of his roles as Robbie Wright in Grange Hill and Billy Ray in London's Burning.

One said that Alford had tried to start the Dennis lorry and a bin was thrown at the windscreen.

Alford, who has no fixed abode, was last night charged with criminal damage and two counts of assault on a police officer.

Actor Alford became a famous face played happy go lucky Robbie Wright between 1985 and 1991 on Grange Hill but would later fall on hard times.

After leaving the show, he went on to be a regular on ITV series London's Burning playing Billy Ray.

He also enjoyed several top 40 hit singles, produced by Stock/Waterman, following his TV success.

But his fortunes turned when he was written out after being caught in a drugs sting.

The former child star became a household name on Grange Hill (left in the early 1980s) but later hit hard times and was jailed (right on release in 1999) after a drugs sting by the News of the World

The former teenage pin-up was caught by the News Of The World's Fake Sheikh and then served a six week sentence after being charged.

John Alford celebrates after the drugs trial of Tulisa Contostavlos collapsed following concerns about evidence from Fake Sheikh Mazher Mahmood

The actor was found guilty by a jury at London's Snaresbrook Crown Court in 1999 of one count of supplying 2.036 grammes of cocaine to Fake Sheikh Mazher Mahmood, as well as a similar charge involving 11.9 grammes of cannabis resin.

He struggled to return to his previous success after being released but has had small parts since and even began work as a scaffolder and labourer.

In 2016, Mahmood was found guilty of plotting to pervert the course of justice and following the case, it was suggested that up to 72 defendants in criminal cases in which he played a role could apply for convictions to be quashed.

Alford's case was among those taken up by the Criminal Cases Review Commission but it is not known if it was successful.

In January 2006 Alford was also found guilty of drink driving and subsequently banned from the roads for sixteen months. Magistrates ordered him to pay a 150 fine and 100 costs.
A Sydney teenager has been found guilty of planning to use bayonets in a terror attack after pledging allegiance to Islamic State.

A NSW Supreme Court jury on Monday returned the verdict after deliberating for almost a week.

They are yet to reach a verdict on another teen who was arrested alongside the guilty boy in a Muslim prayer hall in October 2016.

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A Sydney teenager has been found guilty of planning to use bayonets in a terror attack. CCTV allegedly showed the boy and friends inside a gun shop

Crown prosecutor Ian Bourke SC during his opening address said the two school friends were aged 16 when allegedly found in possession of two M9 bayonets and a sharpener bought for $230 at a nearby gun shop.

They also had clothing capable of being used as disguises, as well as a handwritten note in Arabic and English which Mr Bourke said amounted to a pledge of allegiance to ISIS or Islamic State.

The teens, who both allegedly had strong, fundamentalist, extremist views, intended to use the bayonets to kill or injure a member of the public, Mr Bourke contended.

Neither teenager can be named for legal reasons.

The boy (pictured centre being arrested) and two school friends were aged 16 when allegedly found in possession of two M9 bayonets bought for $230 at a nearby gun shop
A Russian man has sued an IVF clinic after his wife admitted that she had swapped his sperm for her lover's during treatment.

Maxim Anokhin only found that his one-year-old son was not his biological child when their relationship turned sour and his wife admitted to the swap.

Yana Anokhina, 38, had reportedly told the clinic she wanted the man she loved to be the father, but had let her husband pay for the treatment and kept him in the dark for the child's first year.

Deceived: Maxim Anokhin only found out that one-year-old Timofey was not his biological child when his wife Yana, right, admitted to the swap when they broke up

Mr Anokhin successfully sued the Moscow clinic which allowed the swap and was awarded 4,600 in compensation for his moral and financial damages.

'I trusted my wife,' he said. 'I believed her and trusted her, 100 per cent.

'It means that when I was told about it I was shocked I was distressed, and I could hardly believe it.'

A home video shows him feeding the young child.

The court found that he had paid for the IVF treatment and had provided his sperm believing that he would be the father of the baby.

Ms Anokhina has not spoken about the swap but reports say she wanted the father of her baby to be the man she loved - not her husband.

Playing happy families: Maxim and Yana Anokhin with Timofey, several moths before he found out the truth about his wife's deception

Ms Anokhina had been cheating on her husband and had reportedly told the clinic she wanted the man she loved to be the father of her baby

But for a year Mr Anokhin believed the child to be his and 'loved and supported' the boy, called Timofey.

Later the couple split and are now both in new relationships, the court was told. Mr Anokhin said his wife revealed the truth to him when they broke up.

'It was found out during the investigation in court that Maxim's wife Yana was the one who initiated the process of replacing her husband's biological material,' reported Vesti.

'Allegedly, she wanted to give birth to a child by a man with whom she was in love, and her husband was the one who paid the costs.'

DNA tests proved that Mr Anokhin was not the father prompting him to sue Kulakov Medical Centre which provided the IVF treatment.

Mr Anokhin's lawyer Olga Nemtseva said the clinic had a duty to her client and could not solely follow the wishes of his wife.

Before the truth: Family videos show Mr Anokhin playing with Timofey in their home

Doctor Liya Kazaryan refused to give evidence, but the court found that staff at the clinic had helped Ms Anokhina with the swap

'Surely he would have been interested in understanding who exactly was going to be the biological father of his child,' she said.

The court found that clinic staff assisted the woman in swapping the sperm, reported Vesti.

The doctor involved in their case, Liya Kazaryan, mentioned in the law suit, has refused to speak in detail.

'I am not giving any interviews I do not want to say a word on this matter,' she said.

But asked how a man could be certain he was the real father, she laughed: 'Only a woman can be sure.'

Denis Ivchenko, lawyer for Yana Anokhina, said he could not comment without his client's authorisation.

'Without her agreement I cannot say a word,' he said.

Mr Anokhin said he took the case against Yana - now his ex-wife - not for money but justice.

'I wanted to make this matter public, so there are no more cheated men like me, cheated husbands, in the future,' he said.

'It should not happen again.'

Mr Anokhin now has another son born without IVF treatment to his new partner. He is now 'happy' but 'cannot forget the other little boy who for a year he called his son', reported Vesti.

Ms Anokhina is now in a relationship with the biological father of her baby.
Allies of Theresa May (pictured in Kenya last week) are said to have privately admitted they will have to give more ground in the face of implacable opposition from Brussels

Ministers have told Tory Remainers there will be more concessions to the EU on the PM's Chequers plan, it was claimed today.

Allies of Theresa May are said to have privately admitted they will have to give more ground in the face of implacable opposition from Brussels - despite a furious backlash from Brexiteers.

The behind-closed-doors assurances will pour petrol on the raging row over Mrs May's proposals for a 'soft' departure from the bloc.

Boris Johnson ramped up tensions today by accusing the premier of going 'into battle with the white flag fluttering'.

The former Foreign Secretary said the UK was 'lying flat on the canvas' in negotiations with the EU - insisting the 'scandal' of Brexit was 'not that we've failed but that we have not even tried'.

His latest intervention will heap pressure on Mrs May over her blueprint - which would see the UK follow EU rules on goods and collect some taxes for the bloc in order to avoid friction at the borders.

Mr Johnson, who quit over the Chequers compromise along with former Brexit secretary David Davis, wrote in his Telegraph column that the negotiations were a 'fix' which could only lead to victory for Brussels.

However, Damian Green, a close ally of Mrs May and her former deputy, complained that Mr Johnson was not being 'serious'.

'I don't think using words like surrender and so on is cogniscant of the seriousness of the situation.

'These are hugely important months for the future of the country and its prosperity.'

What is in Theresa May's Brexit blueprint? These are some of the key features of the Chequers plan being pushed by the UK government: A new free trade area in goods, based on a 'common rulebook' of EU regulations necessary. This will require the UK to commit by treaty to match EU rules

'Mobility' rules which will end automatic freedom of movement, but still allow UK and EU citizens to travel without visas for tourism and temporary work. It will also enable businesses to move staff between countries.

Continued UK participation in and funding of European agencies covering areas like chemicals, aviation safety and medicines

A 'facilitated customs arrangement', removing the need for customs checks at UK-EU ports. It would allow differing UK and EU tariffs on goods from elsewhere in the world to be paid at the border, removing the need for rebates in the vast majority of cases. This is designed to avoid the need for a hard Irish border. But in theory it still allows Britain to sign trade deals.

Keeping services - such as banking or legal support - outside of the common rule book, meaning the UK is completely free to set its own regulations. It accepts it will mean less trade in services between the UK and EU.

Continued co-operation on energy and transport, a 'common rulebook' on state aid and commitments to maintain high standards of environmental and workplace protections.

A security deal allowing continued UK participation in Europol and Eurojust, 'co-ordination' of UK and EU policies on foreign affairs, defence and development.

Continued use of the EHIC health insurance card. Advertisement

He insisted Mrs May's position was 'difficult but not impossible' .

'We're walking a narrow path with people chucking rocks at us from both sides,' he said.

Mr Green said he believed the Chequers plan would end up winning support.

'Everyone is going to have to face the fact that the British Government has got a plan... no-one else in the EU has suggested a plan that is in any way workable,' he said.

One Tory Remainer told The Times they were being privately assured that the Chequers plan would be softened further.

'They are telling me, 'We know this is difficult. We know we may have to move further.'

Another Europhile MP said: '(Chief Whip) Julian Smith has been telling people that Chequers is a step in the right direction and there could be more and even hinting there may be a time where they need to see off the 'true opponents' of Chequers.'

Mr Davis reiterated his call for Chequers to be scrapped altogether today, arguing that the EU must give ground as the 'biggest loser' from no-deal Brexit would be Ireland.

But he said Mrs May should not be forced to leave Downing Street if the policy was ditched.

'We don't need any more turbulence. We need a proper deal. I lived through quite a lot of European debates through the years.

'We've had Prime Minister lose big votes. That's why we should be focusing on the deal and not personality politics.'

The scale of the opposition Mrs May is facing was underlined this morning when Conservative MP Nick Boles condemned her plan.

Mr Boles told BBC Radio 4's Today programme he did not want to see the PM ousted from Downing Street and branded Mr Johnson's jibes 'unfair and a bit derogatory'.

'This is the first time I have broken with my Prime Minister but she is wrong on this,' he said.

'She has not succeeded, let's be clear, but we have a prime minister and I want her to deliver a better Brexit - the kind of Brexit I have set out in my plan.'

Boris Johnson (pictured) has launched a scathing attack on Theresa May's Brexit strategy, saying the PM had 'gone into battle with the white flag fluttering'

David Davis (pictured on GMB today) reiterated his call for Chequers to be scrapped altogether, arguing that the EU must give ground as the 'biggest loser' from no-deal Brexit would be Ireland

Mr Boles wants the UK to ditch the current transition period with the EU and instead park in the Norway model before moving to a Canada-style free trade deal.

The transition period would be replaced by temporary membership of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and the European Economic Area (EEA).

'We can't get to Nirvana in one step,' Mr Boles said. 'I'm suggesting we reject the current withdrawal plan in its entirety.'

He added his was 'a much superior option' to the Chequers plan, which he said now had 'as close to zero' a chance of winning support from Parliament.

'What I want is a plan that's workable,' he added, not a 'humiliation' by the EU.
Buzz Aldrin appeared to criticize Neil Armstrong biopic First Man for leaving out the planting of the American flag on the Moon.

The 88-year-old, who was the second man to set foot on the Moon, on Sunday tweeted a picture of the flag planted after the landing in 1969.

He captioned the photo: 'Proud to be an American.' Aldrin also re-tweeted a photo of him saluting next to the same picture.

It is an apparent dig at Oscar-winning director Damian Chazelle's controversial decision not to include the planting of the flag at the end of his critically acclaimed movie.

The film is not kind in its portrayal of Aldrin, with Corey Stoll's performance painting him as an 'obnoxious loudmouth' and 'so blunt about his ambition that no one can stand him.'

Other reviews described Stoll's Aldrin as a 'swaggering hothead' who is 'cynical, mouthy and insensitive' while one reviewer said his appearances were so scarce that he was all but left out of the film.

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Aldrin, who was the second man to land on the moon after crew-mate Neil Armstrong, tweeted a picture of the flag planted after their landing in 1969

Proud American: Aldrin also re-tweeted a photo oh him saluting next to the same picture

First Man  from the Oscar -winning director of La La Land Damian Chazelle  opened the Venice Film Festival on Wednesday to criticism that it deliberately downplayed American patriotism. Pictured: The flag on the moon in 1969

The film is not kind in its portrayal of Aldrin, with Corey Stoll's (centre in the film) performance painting him as an 'obnoxious loudmouth' and 'so blunt about his ambition that no one can stand him.'

Starring Ryan Gosling as Armstrong, the film begins in 1961 as the US trails the Soviet Union in the space race and takes viewers up to the Moon landing in 1969. Pictured: Stoll as Aldrin

First Man, tipped to win big at the Oscars, opened the Venice Film Festival on Wednesday to criticism that it deliberately downplayed American patriotism.

Starring Ryan Gosling as Armstrong, the film begins in 1961 as the US trails the Soviet Union in the space race and takes viewers up to the Moon landing in 1969.

But it came under fire for not including the moment the astronauts planted the American flag, with Gosling defending the decision by saying the achievement 'transcended countries and borders.'

Marco Rubio was among the politicians to weigh in, tweeting: 'This is total lunacy. The American people paid for that mission,on rockets built by Americans,with American technology & carrying American astronauts. It wasnt a UN mission.'

Canadian actor Gosling said he believes the moon landing was widely seen as a 'human achievement' and that's what the film reflects.

He added that Armstrong, who died in 2012, was 'extremely humble' and deferred focus from himself to the 400,000 people who made the Apollo 11 mission possible.

Ryan Gosling at the premiere of First Man in Venice. The film is not kind in its portrayal of Aldrin, with Corey Stoll's performance painting him as an 'obnoxious loudmouth' and 'so blunt about his ambition that no one can stand him.'

First Man begins in 1961 as the US trails the Soviet Union in the space race and takes viewers up to the Moon landing in 1969. Pictured, Gosling in the film

In response to the criticism of the flag, Gosling said that the Moon landing is an achievement that 'transcended countries and borders.' He also joked that he may be biased because he is Canadian. Chazelle is French-Canadian

The reviews: How Buzz Aldrin is portrayed The Guardian: 'Aldrin is - rightly or wrongly - shown as an obnoxious loudmouth.' Variety: Stoll plays 'the spiky tell-it-like-it-is Buzz Aldrin, whos so blunt about his ambition that no one can stand him.' Daily Mail: Aldrin is Armstrong's 'spiky, insensitive colleague' The Times: Aldrin is 'the comedy relief to Goslings straight man)' BBC: 'You see almost nothing of Buzz Aldrin' The Wrap: 'Corey Stolls cynical, mouthy Buzz Aldrin' Hollywood Reporter: 'Bluntly opinionated Aldrin' Slant Magazine: 'Buzz Aldrin is portrayed as a swaggering hothead who seems to view the whole enterprise as a high-stakes dick-measuring contest' Advertisement

'He was reminding everyone that he was just the tip of the iceberg  and that's not just to be humble, that's also true,' Gosling explained.

'So I don't think that Neil viewed himself as an American hero. From my interviews with his family and people that knew him, it was quite the opposite. And we wanted the film to reflect Neil.'

Gosling also joked that he may be biased because he is Canadian. Chazelle is French-Canadian.

The decision to place a US flag on the Moon was controversial at the time with debates over whether a United Nations flag should be used instead.

Armstrong himself said that his job 'was to get the flag there' and he was less concerned about what flag it should be.

He said Congress had decided that the Moon landing was a US project.

Co-produced by Steven Spielberg, First Man - which also stars Claire Foy as Janet Armstrong - is based on a 2005 biography by historian James Hansen.

It has scored rave reviews and is tipped to win big at the Oscars.

First Man is one of 21 movies in competition for the Golden Lion at the Venice Film Festival which will be awarded on September 8.
This is the moment masked thugs break down the door of a family home leaving its terrified owners crying desperately for help.

The gang of four men was caught on CCTV footage breaking into a semi-detached house in a quiet, residential street in Bexley, south east London just after 9pm on Wednesday.

The brazen burglars are seen carrying an axe, a knife and what the victims believe was 'acid to throw on someone' if they answered the door.

They can be heard saying 'It's Indians mate' before one takes a running jump to take the front door of the five-bedroom property off its hinges with the axe.

No one was inside, but the homeowner can be heard shouting to his partner 'we're being burgled, we're being burgled' through a two-way video security system. The suspects escaped with cash and jewellery and are still at large.

The gang of four men (pictured wearing masks) was caught on CCTV footage breaking into a house in Bexley, south east London just after 9pm on Wednesday

One of the masked men is seen brazenly staring into the CCTV camera as his gang prepares to break into the house

Although they were not at home at the time, the owners of the house are able to see what is going on through a remote access security camera system that offers live video footage of their home via Wi-Fi on their smartphone or tablet.

They are left helplessly watching the burglary unfold and the victim is heard shouting: 'They're in the house. Phone the police, we're being burgled,' as the alarm starts going off and the suspects make a run for it.

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Their son-in-law posted the video footage on Facebook branding the men responsible 'absolute scum' and appealing for witnesses to help catch them.

The victims are a married Asian couple in their fifties who were out at a family dinner nearby when it happened.

Their daughter, 31, told MailOnline: 'We were just walking out of the restaurant when we saw the doorbell flash up on our phones.

'When we realised what was happening my dad shouted 'they're in the house, call the police.'

'We called some of the neighbours and one stood at the edge of the driveway.

'They legged it and when they saw him they were throwing things at him from the car, saying they were going to come back and kill him - it must have been terrifying.

'We feel thankful we weren't there at the time, because they had other weapons and they obviously would have broken in anyway - even if we were there.

'They've made us feel unsafe in our own homes, we're on edge every time we see someone at the door.

'So much goes on outside your home, terror attacks and stuff like that, but you never expect that to come into your home, because that's where you feel safe. We're all very uneasy now.'

The gang ransacked each of the five bedrooms, damaging some of the doors and furniture inside.

She said the burglars were heard saying 'they're Indian's' after spotting a family portrait on the wall.

The family are yet to file their insurance claims and do not know how much the damage will cost.

They added that their main concern was their dog, who was inside the house and left very shaken by the ordeal.

The daughter added: 'We were most worried about the dog, he is very small and he barks a lot.

'They had weapons with them as well as the axe - a knife and what looked like some acid in a bottle, so we were scared they wouldn't be afraid to shut him up.'

Pictured: The Bexley street where the crime took place is residential, lined with large detached properties with an average value of 500,000

Her brother-in-law also wrote on Facebook: 'My father in laws house in bexley just got robbed 9:18pm 29/08/18 broke in front door, absolute scum, any info please get back to me.

'Luckily no one was home. My father in law is speaking through ring door bell. Luckily they didnt harm our dog we left in a room.

'They are heard saying 'its Indians mate' and also a knife, and pick axe is seen.

'Also a bottle of some sort which i assume ls acid to throw on someone if answered.'

Police confirmed the burglary took place at 9.21pm last Wednesday and the men stole cash and jewellery.

The suspects have not yet been arrested and escaped in a silver car.

The street where the crime took place is residential, lined with large detached properties with an average value of 500,000.

The burglars (two pictured) are seen carrying an axe, a knife and what the victims believe was 'acid to throw on someone' if they answered the door

One of the suspects is pictured being passed an axe, which he uses to smash open the door

A Metropolitan Police spokesman told MailOnline: 'Police were called at 21:21hrs on Wednesday, 29 August to reports of a burglary in progress at a residential address in Bexley.

'The victim called police after he was alerted to the burglary via his home security system.

'Officers attended within five minutes of the call, but the suspects had left the premises.

The gang is pictured running away as the alarm goes off and they make off with cash and jewellery

'The suspects, who had their faces covered, gained entry by forcing open the front door.

'Cash and jewellery were reported stolen. The four suspects made-off in an awaiting car, which was possibly silver in colour.

'No arrests have been made. Enquiries continue.'

Anyone with information is asked to call police on 101 quoting CAD7324/29AUG or Tweet @MetCC. Information can also be reported to Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111 or online at crimestoppers-uk.org.
Piers Morgan has ripped into Cosmopolitan magazine for 'celebrating morbid obesity' after it featured plus-size model Tess Holliday on its front cover.

The Good Morning Britain host, back in the studio today after a six-week break, was involved in a fiery debate with the glossy mag's editor Farrah Stoor, who defended the cover for promoting a positive body image.

Mr Morgan, 53, called the move 'dangerous' as Britain endures an ongoing obesity crisis, with an epidemic of overweight people costing the NHS billions each year.

He slammed the magazine in a tweet last week, causing Mrs Holliday, who weighs 300 pounds, to hit back and call him 'small minded'.

Good Morning Britain co-hosts Piers Morgan and Susannah Reid debate the front cover with Cosmopolitan editor Farrah Stoor and actress Tina Malone (far right)

Piers Morgan ripped into Cosmopolitan magazine for 'celebrating morbid obesity' after it featured plus-size model Tess Holliday on its front cover (pictured)

Speaking about the issue on Good Morning Britain today, Mr Morgan said: 'My view, as with the size zero issue, is that it is dangerous.

'We should not be aspiring to be an unhealthy weight, be it far too skinny or far too fat, and the same goes for both women and men.

'For Cosmo to put this on their cover as something to aspire to is dangerous, wrong, and frankly misguided.'

Mrs Stoor hit back, pointing out that Mr Morgan posted a photo of a pasty on social media during a holiday last week, causing him to reply: 'But I'm not 300 pounds'.

She replied: 'Thats such black and white thinking Piers. I dont ask my cover stars to do a blood analysis.

'What else is dangerous is we have a crisis about mental health and body image. It is one cover in a world that has venerated thinness.

Piers Morgan was involved in a fiery debate with the glossy mag's editor Farrah Stoor (pictured), who defended the cover for promoting a positive body image.

Mr Morgan claimed the magazine was 'doing it for click baits and get Cosmo talked about', before adding: 'You are celebrating morbid obesity'

'Ive see her run around with her children, she works 14 to 15 hours a day.'

Mr Morgan claimed the magazine was 'doing it for click baits and get Cosmo talked about', before adding: 'You are celebrating morbid obesity'.

Mrs Stoor replied: 'Am I saying that this is OK to look like? Yes I am. The reason she is on my cover is to show that there is a different way to look.

'We live in a culture that venerates being thin. Someone will see and think "Im going to feel good about looking like this".'

Mr Morgan pointed out that throughout the interview, conducted by Mrs Stoor, she did not mention at any point the health issues surrounding obesity.

When Mrs Stoor responded by saying 'we don't pass judgement', Mr Morgan said: 'You do pass judgement, Cosmo do that literally on every page.

Mr Morgan slammed the magazine in a tweet last week, causing Mrs Holliday (pictured), who weighs 300 pounds, to hit back and call him 'small minded'

'Shes making tons of money out of being this weight. That doesnt mean publishers should be encouraging this image, it means she is likely to die quite early.

'You wont find a doctor in the world that agrees that this is healthy.'

Good Morning Britain co-host Susannah Reid later sided with the magazine, adding: 'Its not just about physical health, its about mental health.

'If Tess Holliday feels comfortable with herself, thats an important thing to promote.'

During the debate, Shameless and Brookside star Tina Malone, who lost 12 stone and 4 pounds, revealed she started missing out on work due to her weight loss.

'I was a "fat bird" actress and ended up losing work but my health was more important,' she said. 'What [Mrs Holliday] is doing is embracing it.

During the debate, Shameless and Brookside star Tina Malone (right), who lost 12 stone and 4 pounds, revealed she started missing out on work due to her weight loss

'She is representing to them an image that isnt right. You should be encouraged to come out and be healthy and lose weight.

'You would not put someone on the front cover with drugs and vodka. She is killing herself. If you look at the picture you can see her knees buckling.'

Mr Morgan first made his opinion known in a tweet on Thursday, writing: 'As we battle an ever-worsening obesity crisis, this is the new cover of Cosmo.

'Apparently were supposed to view it as a "huge step forward for body positivity". What a load of old baloney.

'This cover is just as dangerous and misguided as celebrating size zero models.'

Soon after, Mrs Holliday herself replied, responding: 'To everyone saying Im a burden to the British health care system, Im American so you dont have to worry about my fat a**.

'Worry about what horrible people you are by whining about how me being on the cover of a glossy magazine impacts your small-minded life.'
A kindergarten in south-east China has caused outrage among parents after it lined up a pole dancing performance to welcome its students back to school after the summer holidays.

Video footage of the bizarre arrangement on Monday shows a woman in skimpy clothing and high platform shoes spinning around a pole on a small stage as confused three- to six-year-olds looked on.

The school in question, Xinshashui Kindergarten in Shenzhen, has issued an apology, citing that the performance was well-intentioned.

A kindergarten in Shenzhen, south-east China has caused outrage among parents after it lined up a pole dancing performance to welcome its students back to school after the summer

Video of the bizarre arrangement shows a woman in skimpy clothing and high platform shoes spinning around a pole on a small stage as confused three- to six-year-olds looked on

Horrified parents posted clips of the pole dance on social media, with many saying that they're now trying to withdraw their children from the school and get their tuition back.

'What was the principal thinking? Pole dancing is entirely inappropriate in a school setting,' one parent commented. 'I demand my money back.'

Michael Standaert, a journalist based in Shenzhen who has two children attending the preschool, said having pole dancing as part of the opening ceremony is a 'strange' choice.

'I have nothing against pole dancing for adults doing exercise or in adult clubs and things like that, but it is so strangely inappropriate for a kindergarten performance,' Standaert told MailOnline, adding that he is still deciding whether to withdraw their children from classes.

Several witnesses also told reporters that the performer was dancing on a flagpole bearing the Chinese national flag in front of about 600 people, according to Shenzhen Evening News.

Although pole dancing is gaining popularity in China, many people still associate the sport with pornography and strip clubs and is highly controversial.

Several witnesses also told reporters that the performer was dancing on a flagpole bearing the Chinese national flag in front of about 600 people, according to local reports

Horrified parents posted clips of the pole dance on social media on Monday, with many saying that they're trying to withdraw their children from school and get their tuition back

Although pole dancing is gaining popularity in China, many peoople still associate the sport with pornography and strip clubs and is highly controversial

Lai Rong, the principal of the pre-school in the city's Bao'an District, said in the apology that the school was trying to 'lighten up the atmosphere' during the first day of school.

'We apologise for not putting more consideration into the planning of the dance performance and for causing a bad experience among students and parents,' it added.

The Shenzhen Education Bureau stated on its official Weibo account that the ministry is investigating the incident.

'The education bureau believes it is not appropriate to arrange pole dancing performances for children in kindergartens,' it said.

The authorities have also demanded the dismissal of the preschool's principal.

However, some parents online were supportive of the school's arrangement, saying that there is nothing wrong with the performance.

'What kind of prejudice is this? What's wrong with pole dancing? A lot of children practise Latin dancing, ballet, jazz nowadays - pole dancing is just another art form!' one commented.
An 11-year-old girl was shot in the chest and a 17-year-old girl was shot in the hand and arm in a driveby during a deadly Labor Day weekend in Chicago that saw almost 25 people shot.

The girls were standing outside at around 10.25pm Sunday when a white vehicle drove by with someone firing into the street in the West Pullman neighborhood on the Far South Side.

The 11-year-old was shot in the chest. She was taken to a hospital and listed in serious condition, according to Fox32.

The 17-year-old was shot in her hand and elbow, she is listed in stable condition.

At least three people were killed over the weekend, despite Chicago police taking 65 illegal guns off city streets in a bid to slash the Labor Day weekend homicide toll.

There were an additional 19 injured in shooting-related incidents across the city.

Those killed included a 30-year-old woman who was fatally struck in the back of her head with a bullet while she was among a group of people in an alley, reports NBC Chicago.

A teenager, 18, died after being shot in the chest and head while he was standing on a sidewalk, and a 32-year-old man, who was shot by a man wearing a mask, was killed after being struck in the neck.

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Supt. Eddie Johnson and police officer Daniel Johnson respond to the scene of shots fired at police following a traffic stop in Chicago on August 31

From 6pm on Friday through to noon on Sunday, Chicago Police removed 65 illegal guns from city streets and made 30 arrests for gun charges including illegal possession

To cut the number of violent offences over the holiday weekend, Chicago Police Organized Crime Units conducted raids on various premises on August 31, which resulted in more than 75 arrests on drug and gun charges, and two businesses being closed

Anthony Guglielmi, chief communications officer at Chicago Police, said, 'we have more work ahead to continue to make Chicago safer'.

He tweeted: 'Since Friday at 6pm through noon Sunday, police have taken 65 illegal guns off city streets and made 30 arrests for gun charges including illegal possession.'

Among those arrested was an offender who was taken into custody after shots were fired at police officers following a traffic stop. Guglielmi said: 'Officers returned fire and fortunately no one was hit'.

He said that federal agents from the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives took part in a 'gun strikeforce' to target gun violence and interrupt the 'flow of illegal guns into Chicago'.

In attempt to decrease the number of violent offences over the holiday weekend, Chicago Police Organized Crime Units conducted raids on August 31 'of wanted offenders [which resulted in] more than 75 arrests on drug and gun charges, and two businesses have been closed for nexus to illegal activity,' Guglielmi added.

Targeting troublemakers appeared to make an impact on Saturday, with the day beginning calmly, with no reported shots being fired over a 15-hour-long period, reports the Chicago Tribune.

Chicago Police Department put on an extra 1,400 officers on the streets to try to reduce the number of shootings over the Labor Day weekend

Anthony Guglielmi, chief communications officer at Chicago Police, said: 'we have more work ahead to continue to make Chicago safer'

But a sudden spate saw two men being shot, in South Side's Ashburn neighborhood and in Humboldt Park, on the West Side. In Marquette Park a third man was hit with a bullet, while shootings resulted in injuries to four more men in West Pullman, Little Village and Roseland early on Sunday morning.

Police attributed the weekend's violence to gangs, but local residents told Fox News that such shootings were due in part to people living in poverty, along with a combination of inefficient emergency care, and criminal investigations failing to progress quickly enough.

At least three people were killed and 14 injured in shooting-related incidents  despite Chicago police taking 65 illegal guns off city streets

Police tried to remove as many firearms from the streets of Chicago as possible over the holiday weekend

The Labor Day Weekend death toll, however, was lower than last year's when seven people were killed and 35 wounded across the city.

The Chicago Police Department had put an extra 1,400 officers on the streets to try to reduce the number of shootings over the Labor Day weekend.

The deployment was part of a strategy the department employs over the three warm weather holiday weekends of Memorial Day, July 4 and Labor Day when the number of violent crimes typically increases.

A South Shore man was arrested and charged after allegedly firing at Chicago Police officers. In a statement, the department said that Charles Clark, above, was charged with attempt first degree murder after he 'pulled a handgun from his waistband, pointed it at the officers and fired at them'
A third police officer has been charged by Victoria's corruption watchdog over the violent arrest of a disability pensioner.

In April, secret CCTV footage uncovered alleged horrific physical abuse and verbal torment of a mental health patient at the hands of six policemen on the front lawn of his Melbourne home.

Disability pensioner John locked himself inside his home in October last year when his psychologist called emergency services, concerned the man could self-harm.

When police arrived, he told them he was vomiting blood and had diarrhoea - nasty side effects he claimed were a result of withdrawing from medication for his back pain.

But an altercation at his door step sparked a horrific 20-minute episode that would see him held down by six officers, allegedly brutally beaten with a baton, verbally abused and capsicum sprayed in the face.

Secret CCTV footage has uncovered the horrific physical abuse and verbal torment a mental health patient suffered at the hands of six policemen on the front lawn of his home

The case is being investigated by the Independent Broad-based Anti-corruption Commission (IBAC).

IBAC last week charged a senior constable with unlawful assault, and a second constable with assault-with-a-weapon and unlawful assault.

On Monday, a third senior constable was charged with two counts of unlawful assault and one count of encouraging the commission of an unlawful assault.

The officers are due to face the Melbourne Magistrates Court on October 11.

'You f***ing idiot... You like that? Smells good doesn't,' one officer said in the footage, obtained by Fairfax Media.

'Get your f***ing hands behind your f***ing back,' he continued as John screamed in agony after receiving six blows to the leg from a baton.

'Oh God my back... My eyes... You happy? How tough are youse?' he asked.

In a final humiliation, John was sprayed with a high-pressure hose as he sat handcuffed and in tears on his lawn.

A grinning policeman pulled out his phone to film the ordeal - and appeared to ask his colleague to continue hosing John so he could capture it on camera.

An altercation on John's door step sparked a horrific episode that would see him held down by six officers, brutally beaten with a baton, verbally abused and capsicum sprayed in the face

'You f***ing idiot... You like that? Smells good doesn't,' one officer said in the footage

'It was like a game for them. They wanted to get their rocks off, you know? It's wrong,' John told the ABC's 7.30.

'He's aiming for my nostrils and it's going into my lungs - and that's when I started choking from the water and from the hot mace going into my respiratory [system].

'I couldn't breathe. I really, literally, thought I was going to drown. You can feel the mace and the water together in your lungs.'

Victoria Police issued a statement on Tuesday morning, saying it had 'no tolerance for poor behaviour within its ranks'.

In a final humiliation, John was sprayed with a high-pressure hose as he sat handcuffed and in tears on his lawn, while a grinning officer filmed the ordeal
Labour MP Rosie Duffield (pictured, stock) has vowed that MPs will not take it 'lying down' if Jeremy Corbyn refuses to take action this week

Labour MPs could go on strike if Jeremy Corbyn refuses to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of anti-Semitism, one of his MPs has said.

Rosie Duffield has warned that Labour MPs will not take it 'lying down' if the Labour leader refuses to take action at a crunch meeting of the party's ruling NEC tomorrow.

Her stark warning comes as John McDonnell scrambles to try to soothe the row by saying he expects the definition to be adopted.

Meanwhile, Tory deputy chairman James Cleverly last night accused Mr Corbyn of being an anti-Semite in the strongest attack by a Conservative politician on the Labour leader over the scandal so far.

The Labour leadership has so far refused to adopt the definition - despite warnings by MPs and the Jewish community that it is vital to rebuild trust and deal with anti-Semitism festering among some party members.

The row escalated a fortnight ago when the MailOnline exclusively published a video of Mr Corbyn saying that British Zionists 'have no sense of English irony'.

The comments, made at a 2013 meeting, sparked a furious outcry and prompted former chief rabbi Lord Sacks to brand the leader an 'anti-Semite' who 'defiles our politics'.

At a crucial showdown tomorrow, the National Executive Committee (NEC) will decide whether to U-turn and adopt the anti-Semitism definition after many weeks of bruising criticism.

Ms Duffield told the Jewish Labour Movement conference yesterday that if Mr Corbyn does not back down then MPs could 'walk out'.

She said: 'If this definition is not adopted, the majority of Labour MPs won't take this sitting down.

'We have talked about walking out - going on strike. We are not going to take that lying down.

Jeremy Corbyn (pictured in Liverpool Lime Street station today) has so far refused to adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition - despite warnings by MPs and the Jewish community that it is vital to rebuild trust and deal with anti-Semitism festering among some party members

The Labour Party has been dogged by accusations of anti-Semitism ever since Jeremy Corbyn (pictured on a train from Liverpool Lime Street today) was elected leader in 2016, but it has reached a new crisis this summer

'It is not for us as a party to reject that definition which so many countries have adopted. It's just so embarrassing.'

Why is Labour's new code of conduct on anti-Semitism so controversial? The Labour anti-Semitism row erupted again after the party leadership refused to fully adopt the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's (IHRA) definition. The party's code explicitly endorses the IHRA definition, but it omits four examples from the IHRA list: - Accusing Jewish people of being more loyal to Israel than their home country; - Claiming that Israel's existence as a state is a racist endeavour; - Requiring higher standards of behaviour from Israel than other nations; and - Comparing contemporary Israeli policies to those of the Nazis. Labour insisted that while the examples are not reproduced word-for-word, they are covered in the new code. But critics say the decision allows anti-Semitism to continue to fester. Advertisement

Fellow Labour MP Wes Streeting said Mr Corbyn had been warned that he would be dogged by accusations he is anti-Semitic if he failed to adopt the IHRA definition before the summer - but he still refused.

The MP for Ilford North told the conference: 'On Tuesday the NEC faces a defining moment - whether or not they want to draw a line under this and rebuild trust in the party, or whether they want to plunge the Labour party into its worst political crisis since 1981.'

The Labour Party's ruling NEC body is holding a crucial meeting in central London tomorrow where the leadership is expected to climbdown and finally adopt the definition after a long summer of heated rows over it.

It would mean that the party would finally adopt the four examples of anti-Semitism which it has so far snubbed.

This includes; accusing Jewish people of being more loyal to Israel than their home country, claiming that Israel's existence as a state is a racist endeavour, requiring higher standards of behaviour from Israel than other nations, and comparing contemporary Israeli policies to those of the Nazis.

But they are expected to add crucial caveats - including that it cannot be applied retrospectively and additional clauses to spell out that criticism of Israel is allowed.

Mr McDonnell - the shadow chancellor and one of Mr Corbyn's closest allies on the frontbench - told BBC Radio Kent today that he fully expects the party to adopt the full IHRA definition of anti-Semitism.

John McDonnell (pictured in June at an economic conference in London) scrambled to try to soothe the row by saying he expects the definition to be adopted this week

Gordon Brown (pictured at the Jewish Labour Movement conference in north London yesterday) delivered an impassioned demand for the party to finally heal the 'sore' of anti-Semitism in the party

He said: 'I'm hoping what will happen is exactly what a lot of people were saying was - an acceptance of the IHRA definition and examples. That is what people are pressing for.

Tory Party vice chairman accuses Corbyn of being ant-Semitic The Tory Party chairman last night accused Jeremy Corbyn of being an anti-Semite. James Cleverly issued the most strongly worded attack on the Labour leader since the anti-Semitism row erupted. Asked on the BBC Radio 4 Westminster Hour last night he believed Mr Corbyn was anti-Semitic, Mr Cleverly replied: 'Yes I do.' He added: 'I don't believe he thinks he is. He is convinced he is on the right side of these arguments. 'He has campaigned against the establishment. Often that sees him on the same side as people fighting for liberty and justice. 'But when he says he's always campaigned for peace again we look at examples where he has only ever had dialogue with one side of the argument. 'We didn't see him reaching out the hand of friendship to the unionist organisations during the struggles. 'I feel really uncomfortable saying this, but there is just now such a body of evidence where he has overstepped again and again and again. 'You cannot just lay that down as bad luck. How much bad luck can someone have in their life with who they fraternise with and write positively about and say sympathetic things about.' Advertisement

'But also to ensure that there is freedom of speech so people are free to criticise Israel and its polices, and free to advocate the rights of the Palestinians, but at the same time make sure it is done in language which is acceptable.'

Commenting on the row, he added: 'It has dragged on and I think we should have addressed it much sooner, but we are doing that. People weren't necessarily listening and engaging effectively at the beginning.

'I think they are now, and I am hoping that we can resolve it in terms of the Labour Party tomorrow and more importantly unite, particularly with the Jewish community, to tackle anti-Semitism.'

It comes after Gordon Brown yesterday delivered an impassioned demand for the party to finally heal the 'sore' of anti-Semitism in the party.

Addressing the Jewish Labour Movement conference in north London, the former PM said: 'The International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance's definition of anti-Semitism is something that we should support unanimously, unequivocally and immediately.'

And he demanded that Labour urgently deal with the huge backlog of cases of members accused of anti-Semitism.

He said: 'It cannot be hesitant, it cannot be grudging. We can't just move on we have to move forward true to our values and true to our principles of equality and solidarity and in respect of the wishes of the Jewish community.

'So I say it is time to say that this wrong must and can be righted. This injustice has got to be remedied. This stain has got to be removed.

'This sore that exists and the harm that has been done and the hurt that is caused has got to be undone immediately and it's got to be undone and proved to be undone in the next few days.'

Meanwhile, Mr Cleverly yesterday accused Mr Corbyn of being an anti-Semite.

He told BBC Radio 4's Westminster Hour: 'Jeremy Corbyn has got to travel a huge distance... there have been now now so many examples  and these are just ones where we've got video or photographic footage or written evidence  where Jeremy Corbyn has over years and years and years completely overstepped the bounds of reasonable behavior when it comes to the Jewish community.'

Corbyn backs push to make deselection of Labour moderates easier Jeremy Corbyn today backed a controversial bid to make the deselection of Labour MPs easier in a move which will fuel fears the party is on the brink of a purge. The campaign group Momentum - which has helped keep Mr Corbyn in the leadership - is calling for an overhaul of party rules so it is easier to oust sitting MPs. Quizzed about the plans, the Labour leader said he backed 'greater democratic accountability' in the party. It comes as it emerged that Labour MP Joan Ryan, chairwoman of Labour Friends of Israel, is facing a reselection battle as Corbynistas try to oust her from her seat of Enfield North. Mr Corbyn's remarks will fuel already bitter divisions in the Labour Party, which has been plunged into civil war over the anti-Semitism crisis. Speaking while touring trains in and around Liverpool today, the Labour leader said the influx of new Labour members meant the party should democratise. He told ITV News: Were a party whose membership has grown to half a million from less than 200,000 three years ago, and clearly there have to be come changes and more democratic accountability of everyone within the party. And Im happy that there should be greater democratic accountability. Advertisement

Asked if he believed Mr Corbyn was anti-Semitic, Mr Cleverly replied: 'Yes I do.'

He added: 'I don't believe he thinks he is. He is convinced he is on the right side of these arguments.

'He has campaigned against the establishment. Often that sees him on the same side as people fighting for liberty and justice.

'But when he says he's always campaigned for peace again we look at examples where he has only ever had dialogue with one side of the argument.

'We didn't see him reaching out the hand of friendship to the unionist organisations during the struggles.

'I feel really uncomfortable saying this, but there is just now such a body of evidence where he has overstepped again and again and again.

'You cannot just lay that down as bad luck. How much bad luck can someone have in their life with who they fraternise with and write positively about and say sympathetic things about.'

Veteran Labour MP Frank Field, 76, last week sensationally quit as a Labour MP blaming Mr Corbyn for making the party a 'force for anti-Semitism'.

Challenged over the resignation while on a trip to Liverpool today, Mr Corbyn hit back - saying he did not understand the decision.

He said: 'Frank has been a Labour MP for a very long time, even longer than I have.

'I've known him for a very long time. I've worked with him in the past on social security and other issues. Sometimes we haven't agreed but we have always got along personally.

'I'm sorry he's resigned and I thank him for all the work that he's done as an MP and for the party, but I don't see why he had to resign.

Asked about Mr Field's claims the party is rife with bullying, the Labour leader said: 'I'd have to see the claims, I don't know what the claims are or what the details of them are.

'Obviously bullying and intimidation is totally unacceptable in the Labour party in any form. Debate, of course, discussion, of course.'
A nuclear bunker hidden beneath a courthouse has gone up for sale for 500,000.

The concrete-lined bunker, complete with heavy steel doors, ventilation system, two kitchens and toilets, was built in the 1960s during the height of the Cold War.

Nestled below Torquay Magistrates Court in Devon, the bunker also hosts several living quarters, now filled with shelving.

The bunker also has several living quarters which have now been filled with shelving

The nuclear bunker was built underneath Torquay Magistrates Court (pictured) in the 1960s

The bunker has heavy steel doors, a ventilation system, a kitchen as well as toilets

The bunker also has its own heating and water system - suggesting it was designed to be used for prolonged periods of time.

A labyrinth of rooms and corridors, the southern safe space even has it's own secret escape exit onto a nearby street.There's also a two-ring electric cooker.

Surveyor Kye Daniel, who is handling the sale for JLL, said: 'It's certainly one of the most unusual properties we have come across.'

The courthouse was vacated in September 2017 when court services were consolidated throughout the UK, and sold for 237,000.

The bunker, which also includes 10 cells, has attracted interest from property developers interested in converting it into quirky apartments, offices and even a church.

Kye said thee site also includes the small unloading and parking area to the rear of the building, once used to bring secure prison vans to and from the court house.

The whole site extends to approximately 0.118 ha (0.291acres).
A Myanmar court sentenced two Reuters journalists to seven years in prison Monday for illegal possession of official documents, a ruling that comes as international criticism mounts over the military's alleged human rights abuses against Rohingya Muslims.

Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo had pleaded not guilty to violating the colonial-era Official Secrets Act, punishable by up to 14 years in prison.

They contended they were framed by police. The verdict was postponed from a week ago because the presiding judge was ill.

The case has drawn worldwide attention as an example of how press freedom is suffering under the government of Nobel Peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

Reuters journalist Wa Lone (center) is escorted out of the Insein township court in Yangon, Myanmar on Monday

Kyaw Soe Oo talks to journalists after the verdict, which will see him and Lone imprisoned for seven years

Her taking power in 2016 had raised hopes for an accelerated transition to full democracy from military rule, but she has since disappointed many former admirers.

Wa Lone, 32, and Kyaw Soe Oo, 28, both testified they suffered from harsh treatment during their initial interrogations.

Their several appeals for release on bail were rejected. Wa Lone's wife, Pan Ei Mon, gave birth to the couple's first child in Yangon on Aug. 10, but Wa Lone has not yet seen his daughter.

The two journalists had been reporting last year on the brutal crackdown by security forces on the Rohingya in Myanmar's Rakhine state.

Some 700,000 Rohingya fled to neighboring Bangladesh to escape the violence targeting them after attacks by Rohingya militants killed a dozen members of the security forces.

Investigators working for the U.N.'s top human rights body said last week that genocide charges should be brought against senior Myanmar military officers over the crackdown.

Chit Su Win, second from right, wife of Reuters journalist Kyaw Soe Oo, sits along with other family members as they wait for the verdict

Journalists and activists protesting outside the court on Monday by blocking the car carrying the convicted reporters

The accusation of genocide was rejected by Myanmar's government, but is the most serious official recommendation for prosecution so far.

Following the verdict the European Union called for the immediate and unconditional release of the two journalists.

The EU's foreign policy service said the sentence 'undermines the freedom of the media, the public's right to information and the development of the rule of law in Myanmar'.

'The prison sentences of Wa Lone and Kyaw Soe Oo should be reviewed and the two journalists be released immediately and unconditionally,' it said in a statement.

While the U.S. said the conviction is 'deeply troubling for all who support press freedom and the transition toward democracy.'

Also last week, Facebook banned Myanmar's powerful military chief and 19 other individuals and organizations from its site to prevent the spread of hate and misinformation in connection with the Rohingya crisis.

Dozens of journalists and pro-democracy activists marched Saturday in Yangon, Myanmar's biggest city, in support of the reporters.

Chit Su Win, center, wife of Reuters journalist Kyaw Soe Oo, is comforted by a Reuters official

The case has drawn global media attention as the Burmese government has been accused of violating press freedom

But in the country at large, with an overwhelming Buddhist majority, there is widespread prejudice against the Rohingya, and in the government and military, there is near-xenophobic sensitivity to foreign criticism.

Myanmar's courts are one of the country's most conservative and nationalistic institutions, and the darkened political atmosphere had seemed unlikely to help the reporters' cause.

The court earlier this year declined to stop the trial after an initial phase of presentation of evidence, even though a policeman called as a prosecution witness testified that his commander had ordered that documents be planted on the journalists.

After his testimony, the officer was jailed for a year for violating police regulations and his family was kicked out of police housing.

Other testimony by prosecution witnesses was contradictory, and the documents presented as evidence against the reporters appeared to be neither secret nor sensitive. The journalists testified they did not solicit or knowingly possess any secret documents.

'These two reporters should have never been put on trial in the first place because all they were doing was their jobs as journalists but apparently the government is more interested using this trial to intimidate the local media than anything else,' Phil Robertson, deputy Asia director of New York-based Human Rights Watch, said last week.

'Eventually Myanmar is going to wake up and realize that these kind of politically driven prosecutions in a judicial system lacking both independence and competence are a major drag on the country's political, social and economic development,' he said.
A mother-of-six who paid for an all-expenses family holiday to Phuket has been called 'stingy' by her adult son after asking him to buy his own lunches on the trip.

The Perth mother said she had paid for flights, accommodation, insurance and buffet lunches and dinners for all of her children on the ten-day family trip to Thailand.

She took to Facebook after being called cheap by her 22-year-old son after telling her children, aged between 16 to 27, they would need to buy their own lunches.

People were shocked at the Perth woman's story. One person said he was a 'spoilt little brat who could do with a lesson in reality'

'The 22-year-old has said to me today that I am stingy because I'm not paying for lunches,' she wrote on Perth Mums Group.

'I'd like some honest feedback please as this has upset me and I don't think it's unreasonable at all, especially when everyone else is happy with the arrangements.'

She added that her son does have a job, and they had discussed purchasing extras before the trip was booked.

People on social media were shocked at the woman's story.

One person said the mother's son was a 'spoilt little brat who could do with a lesson in reality'.
A failed asylum seeker has been jailed by a German court for eight-and-a-half years for stabbing his 15-year-old ex-girlfriend to death after she broke up with him.

The defendant, identified only as Abdul Mobin D due to German privacy laws, received a jail term by a juvenile court in the western town of Landau today.

The verdict came a week after violent anti-immigrant protests erupted in the eastern city of Chemnitz over the fatal stabbing of a German national, allegedly by a Syrian and an Iraqi.

Abdul Mobin D admitted in court to stabbing the girl, identified only as Mia V, at a drugstore in the town of Kandel on December 27 last year.

Afghan asylum seeker Abdul Mobin D (right) who claimed to be 15 years old, was jailed for eight-and-a-half years for stabbing his ex-girlfriend, Mia V, 15 (left) to death

The chemist in Kandel, south west Germany, were Mia V was stabed to death just weeks after she broke up with her 'mean and jealous' boyfriend Abdul D

The attacker was overpowered by witnesses who restrained him until police officers arrived.

Prosecutors believe Abdul Mobin D, who claimed to be from Afghanistan, acted out of jealousy after the girl broke up with him.

Besides his nationality, doubts were raised about his age, which he said was 15 at the time of the crime.

An expert estimated his age the be between 17 and a half and 20 but, given the uncertainty, the proceedings were held behind closed doors and under juvenile penal rules.

Mia V was stalked and threatened by her ex-boyfriend in the weeks before she was stabbed to death

The case has been seized upon by the far-right in its campaign against migrants and comes as German police reveal that migrant murder suspects rose by a third last year.

Abdul Mobin D arrived in the German state of Hesse in April 2016 as an unaccompanied refugee, telling the authorities he was 15 years old.

His request for asylum was rejected in February 2017 but he was not immediately deported.

Abdul Mobin D and Mia V had reportedly had a relationship which lasted several months, but she broke up with him early December after he became 'jealous and mean'.

The victim's father David V said he and his family initially welcomed Abdul Mobin D 'like a son' as 'otherwise he would have had nobody', but adds that he always doubted his age.

'He is never in a million years 15-years-old. We hope that through the procedure [age test] that we will now know his true age.'

Following the end of the relationship, Abdul Mobin D reportedly stalked and threatened Mia V which saw her parents file a complaint, accusing the Afghan national of insults, threats and coercion.

Far-right protesters in Chemnitz in ex-communist eastern Germany after the alleged fatal stabbing of a German man by two immigrants from Iraq and Syria

The murders of Mia V and Daniel Hillig have been seized upon by the far-right in its campaign against migrants

Police officers notified the asylum seeker of proceedings over the harassment in person on the morning of the fatal stabbing.

Despite the doubts over his age, German doctors have resisted calls for medical testing to determine young migrants age, saying it is unethical.

The case is one in a string of high-profile crimes allegedly committed by asylum seekers that have stoked popular anger against the new arrivals and put pressure on Chancellor Angela Merkel over her liberal refugee policy, which has seen more than 1 million migrants enter the country since 2015.

Far-right party Alternative for Germany (AfD) has been mobilising regular demonstrations over the killing in the small town with a population of just 9,000, as it has sought to bolster its anti-migrant campaign.

At the peak of the protests, thousands also marched in Kandel, but the rallies have since lost momentum.

On Saturday, a demonstration in the town attracted 350 people, local police said.

Residents of the small town frustrated by the far-right rallies also lined the demonstration route, carrying banners saying 'Stop hate and incitement' or 'Kandel is colourful, not brown' - in reference to the Nazi's khaki uniforms.

Thousands of anti-migration protesters converged on the once thriving industrial city of Chemnitz after carpenter Daniel Hillig was allegedly stabbed to death by two immigrants

Riot police chased black-clad anti-fascist protesters who tried to make their way toward the far-right crowd as they waved the German flag, sang the national anthem and shouted, 'Merkel must go!'

Rhineland-Palatinate state premier Malu Dreyer accused the far-right of exploiting the teenager's death for political gains, saying this was 'intolerable'.

She said: 'It is the hope of all of us that once the trial is over, peace will return to Kandel.'

Across the country in Chemnitz, in the formerly communist eastern side of Germany, tensions have been running high over another stabbing case.

Thousands expected to attend punk concert against far-right rallies Thousands of protesters are expected to attend a concert in the German city of Chemnitz against the far-right rallies. Tonight's performances, by some of Germany's most popular bands, come as a reaction to a week of sometimes violent rallies by far-right groups protesting against migrants. The protests were triggered by the fatal stabbing of a 35-year-old German man in the eastern city on August 26, allegedly by two migrants from Iraq and Syria. The tension built up over the past week reflects the growing popularisation over Germany's ongoing effort to come to terms with an influx of more than 1 million refugees and migrants to the country since 2015. The concert is being promoted under the #WeAreMore hashtag. Advertisement

Thousands of anti-migration protesters converged on the once thriving industrial city after carpenter Daniel Hillig, 35, was allegedly stabbed to death by two immigrants.

Rival rallies in the eastern city on Saturday drew 11,000, with far-right demonstrators outnumbering counter-protesters by 8,000 to 3,000, police said.

Riot police chased black-clad anti-fascist protesters who tried to make their way toward the far-right crowd, whose members from the AfD and PEGIDA waved the German flag, sang the national anthem and shouted, 'Merkel must go!'

Eighteen people were reported injured, police said, with a Social Democrat MP also saying that his team was 'attacked by Nazis' as they were heading towards their bus.

Resentment against the arrival of more than a million asylum seekers since 2015 is particularly strong in Saxony state, where Chemnitz is located.

The AfD, railing against asylum seekers, has won strong support in the state, and surveys suggest that it is poised to become Saxony's second biggest party in next year's regional elections.

On Sunday, Foreign Minister Heiko Maas urged Germans to 'get off our sofas and open our mouths' against xenophobia.

He told Bild am Sonntag: 'All of us have to show the world that we democrats are the majority and the racists are the minority.

'The silent majority must get louder.'

Left-leaning and anti-fascist punk bands were expected to attract thousands for a free concert in Chemnitz to protest the racist violence there, held under the motto 'there are more of us'.
White South African workers have launched a protest after a company shares scheme was offered to only black staff.

The mainly-white Solidarity union staged a go-slow protest at the petrochemicals firm Sasol today over the scheme, which was offered exclusively to black workers.

The union warned its members would begin a full strike on Thursday if the proposal for what it called 'racial exclusion' continued as planned.

On Sunday, Solidarity described the strike as 'the first time in the history of South Africa that white employees strike because of racial exclusion'.

South African companies are required to meet quotas on black ownership, employment and procurement as part of a drive to reverse decades of exclusion under apartheid.

Cooling towers of South African petro-chemical company Sasol's synthetic fuel plant in Secunda, north of Johannesburg

White farmers across South Africa have been protesting the ruling ANC party's land reforms

Meeting the rules makes a company more likely to qualify for government tenders.

Solidarity has been waging a challenge against racial quotas in the workplace, and lodged a complaint against the policy in 2016 with the UN Human Rights Commission.

Sasol, the world leader in technology that converts coal and gas to fuel, has sold 25 per cent of its local operations to qualifying black employees, a foundation and the black public in a 21 billion rand ($1.5 billion) deal financed by the company.

It has said the scheme is not a benefit but a mechanism designed to meet the rules on black economic empowerment, and was backed by shareholders.

But Solidarity said the scheme was discriminatory and that it would file a complaint to American regulators as Sasol also operates in the United States.

The union said 6,300 of its members would hold a go-slow at Sasol's facilities in South Africa, and then strike on Thursday.

Dirk Hermann, Solidarity's chief executive said: 'We are not against the scheme, we just want it to be inclusive of all workers. If the company makes it inclusive, the majority will still be black, so we see no need to exclude white workers as this is discrimination.'

Sasol, which employs around 26,000 people in South Africa, said it was aware of Solidarity's intent to strike, and that it had made contingency plans.

The firm's shares were 1.4 per cent lower at 568.14 rand, with the market expecting the dispute to be resolved without affecting earnings.

A Sasol spokesman said parts of the flagship Secunda and Sasolberg plants, which produce fuel and chemicals respectively, were undergoing scheduled maintenance shutdowns, but that both plants otherwise continued to operate.

Mozambique's Sasol gas project is seen in Temane, the firm employs around 26,000 people in South Africa

The ruling African National Congress said in a statement that it was concerned by the 'obsession with perpetuating racial polarisation' triggered by Solidarity's protest.

Solidarity's Mr Hermann said the union was not promoting racism and had backed schemes at AngloGold Ashanti and iron ore mining firm Kumba that treated white and black workers equally.

But it was in court challenging an empowerment scheme at the cement firm PPC that grants each black worker twice as many shares as a white worker.

Herman said Solidarity had also challenged a similar scheme at South Africa's biggest mobile operator, Vodacom, but had been hampered by its low members' roll at the firm.

The Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration, which mediates in labour disputes, ruled that Solidarity did not have a legal right to challenge Sasol's scheme in court, but could push its cause through industrial action.

Mr Hermann added: 'We expect Sasol to come to the negotiating table.'
A 15-year-old girl plummeted five stories to her death from a fire escape at a TriBeCa house party in New York City while trying to retrieve her cell phone from a locked room.

The teen, Imogen Roche, who was going into her sophomore year at Beacon High School, was attending a party on Reade St. at West Broadway when she went out onto a fifth-floor fire escape at around 11pm, police told DailyMail.com.

Imogen was trying to get her phone from a locked room by climbing through a window and out onto the fire escape where she slipped and fell five stories, landing on the sidewalk on her back, the New York Police Department source added.

Imogen Roche, 15, was at a house party in TriBeCa Sunday night at around 11pm when she went out onto the fire escape to try and retrieve her cell phone that was in a locked room

Imogen's friend posted a tribute to Instagram of her close friend writing 'I can't believe this happened'

Roche tragically slipped while on the fire escape and plummeted five stories to the sidewalk

She was rushed to Bellevue Hospital but she did not make it.

The NYPD source says they are looking to see if alcohol was involved.

Police are also reportedly speaking with the owner of the apartment, who is the mother of Imogen's friend.

One parent of a fellow student at Beacon who knew Imogen told the New York Daily News: 'Oh my God, Imogen. She was very talented and super smart. She's an actor, she dances. And she's an only child. Oh my god, she's beautiful. She's tall. She has a wonderful, infectious personality. She's so nice to people.'

Imogen was five floors up when she climbed out the window of this building when she slipped on the fire escapeand fell to the ground on Sunday at around 11pm

Meanwhile neighbors in the building were left shocked.

'It's a super tragic situation. It was kind of mind blowing to find out that someone had died right outside my apartment,' said a resident on the building's first floor.

The teen was an aspiring actor and dancer and had appeared in short films posted online by Manhattan Youth, an after-school program run by her father, Theseus Roche.

Theseus is an actor and director who is a member of the Screen Actors Guild.
A heartbroken mother has warned people to watch out for meningococcal symptoms after the deadly disease tragically claimed her teenage daughter.

Mischelle Rhodes, 19, was rushed to Gosford Hospital on New South Wales Central Coast last Tuesday suffering a fever, where she had some blood tests done before being sent home with Panadol and Nurofen.

But her condition deteriorated and she returned to hospital the next day with a fast spreading rash, where she died that afternoon.

'I thought she was going to be okay,' her distraught mother Anjini Rhodes told 7 News.

Anjini Rhodes (pictured) is still grieving the sudden death of her daughter Mischelle

'She said to me, 'Doctors told me I'm going to die.' It took away my beautiful girl so fast.'

Ms Rhodes' sudden death comes weeks after a 38-year-old Central Coast woman was killed by W strain of meningococcal disease at the beginning of August.

The strain of the disease has not been confirmed but authorities say they don't believe the two cases are linked.

Ms Rhodes is the third death from 41 reported cases in NSW so far this year.

Mischelle Rhodes (pictured) was studying at Macquarie University before her life was tragically cut short

Central Coast Local Health District Director Public Health Dr Peter Lewis said those who had close contact with Ms Rhodes were prescribed clearance antibiotics to reduce the risk of it being spread to anyone else.

'Our thoughts are with the family of this young woman at this tragic time,' Dr Lewis said.

'If anyone in the community develops any symptoms of meningococcal disease, it's important that they seek medical advice immediately.

The strain of the disease has not been confirmed but there is no link between the two cases

What are symptoms of meningococcal? Fever

Headache

Neck stiffness

Lack of appetite

Joint pain

Unusual skin colour

Extreme tiredness

Vomiting and diarrhoea

Drowsiness

Convulsions, fits or twitching

Red-purple rash Source: Department of Health Advertisement

'Meningococcal disease is very uncommon in NSW and only two other cases have been notified in CCLHD this year, and only one case for the whole of last year.'

Meningococcal bacteria does not survive well outside the body and is not easily spread from person to person.

The bacteria are passed between people in the secretions from the back of the nose and throat and generally requires close and prolonged contact, such as living in the same household.

Ms Rhodes was studying a Bachelor of Security Studies at Macquarie University and previously attended St Peter's Catholic College at Tuggerah.

Ms Rhodes' friends have taken to social media to pay tribute.

'Words can't describe how much we will all miss you, you filled our lives with laughter and the best memories, until we meet again, bless your gorgeous soul,' said one friend.

'She was a kind soul and a beautiful friend to all who will sadly be missed,' one friend said

Neisha Monteleone, who went to high school with Ms Rhodes, told Daily Mail Australia the young woman was a 'much loved friend.'

'There wasn't one person who wasn't friends with Mischelle,' she said.

'She was a kind soul and a beautiful friend to all who will sadly be missed.'

Ms Rhodes' devastated mother had this plea for anyone suffering similar symptoms.

'Don't leave hospital until everything has been looked at and get all the blood tests,' she said.

'The hospital wasn't even busy.'

Health authorities confirmed Mischelle Rhodes (pictured), 19, died from the disease at Gosford Hospital, in New South Wales' Central Coast, last week

In Ms Rhodes last Instagram post on August 25, the young girl appeared to be enjoying time at the snow (pictured)

The death comes weeks after a 38-year-old Central Coast woman was killed by W strain of meningococcal disease at the beginning of August
This was the moment a suspected pedophile was arrested after fleeing to Cambodia.

William Brenner, 63, fled the US while police hunted him for the alleged 'continuous sexual abuse of a child' in Houston, Texas.

He was tracked down this month by American officials who alerted local authorities.

Officials do not know how long he was hiding in Cambodia for and his arrest warrant did not say how long he has been on the run.

William Brenner, 63, fled while police hunted him for the alleged 'continuous sexual abuse of a child' in Houston, Texas

Handcuffed: Brenner was tracked down this month by American officials who alerted local authorities

Police in Preah Sihanouk province pounced on Brenner last Wednesday night

He is now being held before he will be deported to Houston this week to face court

Brenner's arrest warrant (pictured) did not say how long he has been on the run

Police in Preah Sihanouk province pounced on Brenner last Wednesday night.

He is now being held before he will be deported to Houston this week to face court.

Cambodia Interior Minister Sar Kheng said that US authorities had cancelled Brenner's passport after he was found to be staying illegally in the country.

Police chief Major General Chuon Narin said Brenner did not have a job and was arrested as he left a hotel in the coastal city last Wednesday at 7.30pm.

He added: 'The suspect did not have a passport with him and we do not know how long he has been in the country. Cambodian officers arrested him after following information from he US Regional Security Office.

Police chief Major General Chuon Narin said Brenner did not have a job and was arrested as he left a hotel in the coastal city last Wednesday at 7.30pm

The Regional Security Office said the suspect had entered the country without valid travel documents

This was the moment a suspected paedophile was arrested after feeling to Cambodia

Samleang Seila from children's charity Action Pour Les Enfants said: 'We urge Cambodian authorities to quickly deport him and blacklist him from ever entering Cambodia again.'

'We were notified of his presence here and the allegations of child abuse. We acted on the information and executed the arrest warrant to question him for staying in the country illegally.'

The Regional Security Office said the suspect had entered the country without valid travel documents.

US embassy spokesman Emily Zeeberg said: 'The US embassy cooperated with Cambodian law enforcement officers to arrest William Brenner, who is facing charges in the United States.'

Samleang Seila from children's charity Action Pour Les Enfants said: 'We urge Cambodian authorities to quickly deport him and blacklist him from ever entering Cambodia again.'
PC Sarinda Welsh, 39 (pictured outside court) admitted attacking PC Emma Cross and PC Amanda MacKerill when they carried out a welfare check at her house in Beldevere, south east London

A drunken police officer has been banned from the profession after assaulting two of her colleagues in an alcohol-fuelled rage when they went to check on her at home.

PC Sarinda Welsh, 39, admitted attacking PC Emma Cross and PC Amanda MacKerill when they carried out a welfare check at her house in Beldevere, south east London on January 9.

The former Bexley borough officer has been officially struck off after she handed in her notice earlier this year, given a 12-month community order, 385 fine and told to attend alcohol dependency meetings.

Bexley Magistrates Court heard that she threw a glass tumbler across the room, shouting 'where's my f***** Jack Daniels' before reaching for a rack of knives.

She had to be pulled away from them by one of the female officers before she kicked the other who tried to put pyjama bottoms on her, magistrates were told.

Welsh also threw a baking tray across the room, but it narrowly missed both PC Cross and MacKerill.

Welsh was accused of conduct that breached the standards of professional behaviour relating to 'authority, respect and courtesy' 'discreditable conduct' at the hearing on August 29.

The chairman ordered Welsh should be dismissed without notice.

She was also convicted of assaulting her estranged long-term boyfriend Shane Gibson by clawing at his wrist at her home in April - a charge she denied.

She admitted communicating false information to the police on June 5, after claiming Mr Gibson had punched her in the head.

Prosecutor Denise Clewes told Bexley Magistrates earlier this year: 'She had been off work for a period of time because of problems she was having.

Bexley Magistrates Court (pictured) heard that she threw a glass tumbler across the room, shouting 'where's my f***** Jack Daniels' before reaching for a rack of knives

'She had been in rehab and was released the day before the first assaults.

'Police officers visited her to carry out a welfare check and when they arrived they found she had been drinking.

'She threw a glass tumbler that smashed against a wall and PC MacKerill says: "she was shouting and swearing."

'She reached for a knife rack and one of the officers pulled her back, fearing she would cut herself or someone else.

'She swung a baking tray in the direction of the officer that did not hit the officer.'

They attempted to put pyjama bottoms on Welsh before taking her to the police station but she resisted.

'She kicked PC Cross, causing minor tenderness to her left shin.

'Police were at the address again three months later. 'Ms Welsh called them, saying her partner hit her in the face.

'Mr Gibson answered the door and said she was drunk upstairs and had assaulted him while he was asleep.

'He said he pushed her when she tried to wake him up and she fell to the floor. She then dug her nails into his wrist, causing a number of small scratches.

'She said she had been punched in the head by Mr Gibson because she was drunk and had been drinking vodka and whiskey the night before and had been an alcoholic for a long time.

'She said she woke him for work because he was lazy and he pushed her away and she fell to the floor and then called the police.'

Former Bexley borough officer Sarinda Welsh (pictured outside court) has been officially struck off, given a 12-month community order, 385 fine and told to attend alcohol dependency meetings

Two months later Welsh called the police again, claiming her boyfriend was banging on her front door.

'When officers arrived her front door was open and Ms Welsh was asleep on the sofa and there was a strong smell of alcohol.

'She was very confused and said Mr Gibson had punched her to the head and left.

'An ambulance was called and Welsh did not make a statement against her boyfriend to police, who became increasingly suspicious about her claim.

'Mr Gibson was able to prove he was in Bristol all day and showed a receipt for coffee he bought on the M4 half an hour before the police were called.'

Her lawyer Heather Oliver told the court: 'She is a woman of impeccable character, having served twelve years with the police and before that was a legal secretary.

'She has expressed remorse and embarrassment and accepts she was reckless rather than having an intention to hurt the officers.

'On officer was trying to put her pyjama bottoms on and she was lashing out and caught her with her bare foot.'
A paedophile teacher who sexually assaulted young students under his care has been sentenced to a minimum 12 years in jail.

Shane Andrew Matthews, 31, was jailed on Monday in NSW's Campbelltown District Court, with 15 of his victims and their parents watching on.

The teacher pleaded guilty in May to 33 counts of child sexual abuse between 2012 and 2015 at Wattle Grove Public School in Sydney's west.

In court on Monday, refusing to make eye contact with his victims, one student said they felt a power shift, saying: 'It was good to see him s**tting himself.'

Teacher Shane Andrew Matthews (pictured) was sentenced to a minimum of 12 years jail on Monday over the sexual assault of 15 students aged between 10 and 12

The court heard the teacher would dress up as a superhero (pictured) and give out prizes to groom male students

The court previously heard as Matthews would target his male students during lessons, recess, lunchtimes and scripture classes.

Dressing up as a superhero, he identified himself as 'Captain Obvious', and would groom his victims with fake classroom money and prizes on 'superhero' days.

The students and their parents listened on as Matthews' crimes were read before the court, with Judge Jennifer English labelling him a 'predator'.

She was reportedly 'incredulous' when Matthews said he was teaching his students the 'art of self pleasure'.

Matthews (pictured) previously told the court he was teaching the kids the 'art of self pleasure'

The victim previously said he felt let down by a lack of awareness by other teachers and staff at the school.

He says that they were knew Matthews was breaking the rules by keeping students back at lunchtime for 'private tutoring', but did nothing to stop it.

Before coming forward to a teacher, the student confided in his friends.

He says they called him a liar, and made jokes about him being gay.

The court heard the student would wear a skin-tight swimsuit to school everyday to stop Matthews having 'easy access'.

Matthews was handed down a maximum sentence of 18 years in prison with a non-parole period of 12 years in Campbelltown District Court (pictured) on Monday

The assaults took place at Wattle Grove Public School, where Matthews was a teacher for seven years.

He then took up a job as an assistant principal at Campbelltown's Woodland Road Public School in 2016.

He was handed down a maximum sentence of 18 years in prison with a non-parole period of 12 years.

His victims, who were between the age of 10 and 12 during the attacks, told The Daily Telegraph they don't believe Matthews can be rehabilitated, and had hoped for a longer sentence.

'We've saved a lot of kids (by) locking him up,' one victim said outside the courthouse.
The battle between British and French fisherman escalated again today after Gallic trawlers grabbed a giant haul of bluefin tuna off Jersey that their UK rivals must throw back.

Two boats based in Normandy caught 44 of the valuable protected fish while hunting for bream off the Channel Islands - adding to already simmering tensions between the two nations.

The tuna, each weighing between 50kg and 120kg and worth more than 100,000 in total, were then brought ashore at Granville in France to be sold.

British fishermen caught in the 'Battle of the Scallops' last week say the new development proves their French foes are hypocrites.

French fishermen working off the south-west coast of Jersey have caught 44 bluefin tuna, some of which are pictured above. The fish, which are rarely seen in the Islandis waters, weighed between 50 and 120 kg

British and French fishermen are at loggerheads over scallops and are now rowing over tuna

Footage from a week ago showed French crews throwing stones and smoke bombs onto British ships in a row over scallops and now there is a row over tuna

Atlantic bluefin tuna stocks are managed by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT).

Why can the French fish bluefin tuna when Britain are banned? There is an EU quota on fishing for bluefin tuna which last year was set at 13,451.4 tonnes. The member states actively involved in the bluefin tuna fishery are Spain, France, Croatia, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Malta and Cyprus. UK fishermen have no quota. The bluefin tuna fishery is regulated by the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas (ICCAT). ICAAT have been contacted for comment. Phil Treblicock, 64, a fisherman from Newquay, Cornwall, said it was an unfair arrangement. He added: 'I've never caught them - there are some about but there's a total ban. 'They shouldn't be allowed if we're not - it doesn't seem fair. 'It goes against the grain a bit. 'We aren't going to do anything out selves, all we can do is go through the proper channels like the British do.' Advertisement

French fishermen are allowed to keep bluefin tuna while their British counterparts are banned from doing it.

The bluefins are usually only found in the Bay of Biscay and Mediterranean but rising water temperatures are sending more into UK waters.

The UK has no quota to catch bluefin tuna but France, Spain, Croatia, Italy, Greece, Portugal, Malta and Cyprus do.

The new row came as British boats pledged to return to the French coast a week after they fought a Trafalgar-style battle in the English Channel over alleged 'scallop pillaging'.

Derek Meredith, of Brixham, Devon, owner of two boats damaged in the scallop attack by the French last week, said the tuna rules are another example of how unfair the quota system was for British fishermen.

He said: 'It is not an equal playing field but sounds about right for the way the French behave.

'They also have 80 per cent of our cod quota. They just want it all their own way.

'Negotiations should benefit everyone equally and we abide by whatever hand we get dealt. Some stuff we don't like but we have to live with it and we don't go out and retaliate.

'How can it be fair that they come into our waters and are allowed to catch tuna, but we aren't.

'It is an unfair situation all around. We are policed by our authorities and they seem to be able to just do what they want.'

Devon fisherman Nathan Clark shows the damage done to his ship in the nighttime 'battle' last week

Derek said the crew members of his onboard the Golden Promise and Joanna C that were attacked with firebombs and various throwing objects by the French last week were shaken up but they had all now returned to work and were back out fishing.

Michael Gove tells the French to stop the fishermen terrorising British trawler-men in the scallop wars Michael Gove (pictured outside Downing Street in May) said that the French authorities must crack down on the terrorising behaviour Michael Gove has backed British fishermen in the scallop wars - and told the French to bring order to their waters. The Environment Secretary hit out at the 'terrible' scenes British fishermen have been subjected to in the Channel. And he said it is clear that the British fishermen have every right to fish there. He said: 'My heart goes out to the British fishermen who were caught up in the terrible scenes that we saw happen earlier this week. 'They were fishing entirely legally, they had every right to be in those waters and we talked to the French authorities in order to ensure that we have a protocol. 'These are French waters - it's the responsibility of the French to ensure that those who have a legal right to fish can continue to fish uninterrupted.' It is understood that British minsters are in contact with the French administration in an effort to prevent a repeat of the scenes. Advertisement

He said they were planning to return to France for the first time since the incident later this week.

The heavily outnumbered British fleet of four boats was up against at least 40 from northern France before police finally intervened in the Seine Bay last Tuesday.

Rocks and bottles were thrown between vessels and emergency flares fired, as vessels rammed into each other, causing damage to hulls.

At one stage a small French craft was caught between the far larger Honeybourne III  which is based in Shoreham, Sussex  and La Rose des Vents (Rose of the Winds), from Normandy.

'F***- off, f**** - off,' the French shouted during the videoed confrontation at sunrise.

Within EU waters, commercial or recreational vessels are banned from catching or targeting bluefin tuna unless authorised to do so by an EU member state.

As a result bluefin tuna is a prohibited species for UK registered commercial fishing vessels and if caught as a by-catch must be returned to the sea, alive and unharmed to the greatest extent possible.

However, there is no reciprocal ban for the French who have been given free run to invade British waters to get them.

Mick Ward, owner of the Mr Fish tackle shop in Jersey, said that the species - which prefer more southerly waters - are now gradually moving further north towards the UK.

Tensions have been high between both countries for at least 15 years, during what has been dubbed the 'Scallop Wars'.

Tensions have been high between both countries for at least 15 years, during what has been dubbed the 'Scallop Wars'.

The French want their 'Anglo-Saxon' counterparts to stay north of a line running from Barfleur to Cap d'Antifer, both of which are in Normandy, and to only use small vessels to avoid running supplies down.

Normandy fishing chief Dimitri Rogoff said: 'The French engaged the British to stop them fishing, and they clashed with each other.'

French boats currently only have the right to fish for scallops from October 1 until May 15 to allow local stocks to breed and regenerate.

However, the British have no such regulation, although in previous years an agreement has always been worked out that allowed both sides to harvest fairly.

This year no such agreement is in place, and according to the French fishermen, the British have turned up en-masse, in 131 feet boats, to strip the scallop beds leaving nothing behind for when the French will eventually be allowed to join in.

The Royal Navy's entire fisheries protection fleet was unavailable when French trawlermen attacked their British rivals last week.

Only a small number of EU countries can fish for bluefin tuna and France can get them in UK waters but British boats cannot

Not a single one of the squadron's gunboats was in the English Channel when the 'scallop war' flared up on Tuesday.

One was in dock, another was at a festival in Norway and a third was 8,000 miles away.

A fourth warship which came into service earlier this year has been sent back to dock riddled with faulty equipment.
Charles Bronson (pictured) was jailed for life in 1999 for taking a prison art teacher hostage - although he has been in jail since 1974. He is a notorious keep fit fanatic and does 2,000 press ups in his cell at HMP Frankland every day

One of Britain's most notorious prisoners has launched his own brand of fitness supplements, with news of the launch appearing on Facebook today.

Charlie Bronson, now called Charles Salvador, has put his name to the new range of bodybuilding supplements.

Although the full range has not yet been revealed, a new website has been launched and a Facebook page was set up today called Bronson Fitness Ltd.

Writing on the Facebook page, bosses at the firm said: '100 per cent backed by Charlie...Bronson the fighter, Salvador the artist.

'Charlie is very excited about this product launch and fully supports the use of his former name in relation to fitness.'

One of the new products on the site shows a photo of the notorious lag - who has been in jail since 1974 - on a tub of strawberry-flavoured 'Bronco Oats & Whey' supplement.

In a posting on the Facebook site, former bare-knuckle boxer Salvador, 65, appears to have drawn a self portrait urging fans to snap up the new range.

He claims they should get into Bronson Fitness, but not mix it up with advice doled out in his 2002 book Solitary Fitness.

In the sketch he states: 'Don't get Solitary Fitness mixed up with Bronson Fitness..both different, but both work.'

The first product to launch as part of Bronson Fitness Ltd is called Bronco Oats and Whey. It claims to contain strawberry flavoured protein and carbohydrates

A Facebook page has been set up advertising the new brand. George Bamby-Salvador, who earlier this year claimed to be Bronson's son, shared the page on his account this morning

He adds: 'Did Hercules take steroids? What about that Samson geezer? Don't be a mug...you don't need it...not with Bronson Fitness.'

George Bamby-Salvador, who earlier this year claimed to be the son of Charles Bronson took to Facebook today to share news of the product launch.

He said: 'Charlie is very excited about this.'

Salvador, who was jailed for life in 1999 for taking a prison art teacher hostage, is a notorious keep fit fanatic and does 2,000 press ups in his cell at HMP Frankland every day.

Writing recently, Salvador - who holds a string of prison world records, including doing 172 press up in 60 seconds - urged fans not to take steroids or buy 150 pairs of trainers.

He wrote: 'My step-ups keep my legs strong, my sit-ups keep by torso strong and my little jogs keep my lungs strong - my yard is too small to sprint.'

Charles Bronson (pictured) now holds a string of prison world records, including doing 172 press up in 60 seconds

Bronson (pictured), real name Michael Peterson, was first locked up for armed robbery in 1974, but during his time inside he has taken hostages in 10 prison sieges, attacked at least 20 prison officers and caused 500,000 in damage in rooftop protests

He also said that fans should not pay thousands for a gym membership and instead go out and get fit in the park.

He wrote that his was best as you 'didn't waste good money on gym fees, protein drunks or muggy steroids', adding: 'And my way you enjoy it more.

'Pull ups off a tree branch or swing bar in a park, step ups off a park bench, swim in a river, a lake, the sea, sit up on grass or the sand.

'Dips off a fence or a park entrance bar - it's all free.

'My way saves you a grand a year - probably more.

'Remember a 150 pair of trainers don't make you run any faster - try running bare footed on grass or sand - so nice - you feel free.

'Save your well earned dosh - stop being ripped off - get a blender if you want a fruit drink - add with honey.'

This is not the first time Salvador's face has been attached to a brand.

On Saturday reports emerged of a new Willy-Wonka style chocolate bar offering people the chance to meet the man himself.

The official Charles Bronson fan club has launched this new chocolate bar offering fans the chance to meet the notorious prisoner - should they find a golden ticket

The prisoner's official fan club is advertising a new product called 'Bronco Fruit and Nutter'.

One of the bars is said to contain a golden ticket and if found the owner will be allowed to meet Salvador - subject to the necessary police checks.

Earlier this year Salvador caused controversy by claiming he was divorcing his wife - former Coronation Street actress Paula Williamson - after just eight months.

He made the claims after pictures emerged of a man with his head in Williamson's breasts in Tenerife.

Salvador faces trial at Leeds Crown Court in November after allegedly attacking a prison governor at HMP Wakefield on January 25 this year.
These stunning pictures of sharks were captured by a scuba diver in British waters where she was even photobombed by a seal.

Kirsty Andrews, 36, works as a lawyer but spends her spare time diving and photographing wildlife.

These shots were taken on a recent trip to Penzance, Cornwall, when she went shark spotting 10 miles off the Cornish coast.

The lawyer, who was photobombed by a seal, spends her spare time diving and photographing wildlife which has taken her as far as Egypt and the Galapagos

Kirsty, from Bristol, said: 'It's impossible to get blase about these sharks. It's always fantastic.

'Every year I can't resist going again. Blue sharks are just wonderful creatures.'

She took part in a trip with Charles Hood of Shark Adventures, who works out of Penzance.

Kirsty said that as they were motoring out to find the sharks, they also passed pods of dolphin and porpoise and sighted one huge sun fish.

'You don't feel apprehensive at all,' she added. 'They are just not the kind of shark that is a danger to humans.

Scuba diver, Kirsty Andrews, 36, was surrounded by half a dozen sharks in Cornwall as she photographed them

'They are inquisitive, but what they are most interested in are the flash guns on my camera. The electrical receptors on their nose pick up the charge.

'You never feel threatened. In fact the blue shark is the species most at risk from shark-finning, so they are far more at risk from humans than us from them.

'I am a massive advocate for UK diving and UK seas. That's what a lot of my photography is about - showing people the really beautiful animals and seas in the UK.

Kirsty said that as they were motoring out to find the sharks, they also passed pods of dolphin and porpoise and sighted one huge sun fish

'Cornwall is great. I live in Bristol but I come down as often as I can.

'You've got these wonderful clear waters. On a good day visibility can be up to 30 metres or even more when you are off shore with the blues.

'Around the reefs, such as The Manacles, the wildlife is amazing.

'The blue sharks in particular are pretty special. They've got these big expressive eyes.

'I've photographed sharks off Egypt and even in the Galapagos, where they were potentially more dangerous, but the blues are just beautiful animals with their stunning colours.'
South Korea will attempt to crack down on hidden cameras in public toilets after a recent wave of 'spy-cam porn'.

Officials in Seoul, the country's capital, will now begin daily checks for hidden cameras in public toilets after public outcry over the practice.

Many of the country's public toilets have been targeted by voyeurs who have taken to posting clips of unsuspecting women online.

South Korean women protest against sexism and hidden camera pornography on August 4 in the streets of Seoul

Offenders have also used objects including pens, watches and shoes  equipped with spy-cams to take covert clips.

And the crisis has spread at such a rate that the government has been forced to introduce several measures to dissuade those responsible.

Mobile phones sold in the country are now required to make a loud audible sound when taking photos, an attempt to discourage surreptitious recording.

Government employees will also be required to check public places far more regularly under new plans.

At present, the Seoul government checks each toilet about once a month, and employs only 50 inspectors to monitor more than 20,000 public bathrooms.

The new plan will call for the 8,000 city workers who maintain and clean the bathrooms to conduct daily checks.

Seoul has seen record numbers of women taking part in monthly protests against the practice

Police said more than 26,000 victims have been filmed in public toilets and changing rooms between 2012 and 2016, but many cases go unreported.

Despite the number of reported incidents government inspectors have failed to find any cameras in the past two years.

Experts and activists slammed the checks, saying they were little more than a show and most cameras were installed in homes and offices.

Record numbers of women have been holding monthly protests on the streets of Seoul, with last month's demonstration drawing 70,000 protesters.
A British Transport Police officer who bravely fought three terrorists during the London Bridge attack while armed with only a baton has returned to work.

Wayne Marques, 39, of South Norwood, South London, who is on desk duties, said he was 'thrilled' to get back to work for the first time since the atrocity in June 2017.

PC Marques was about to start his night shift on a Saturday when he heard a van had mounted the pavement in the capital, before striking pedestrians.

Wayne Marques, 39, pictured at New Scotland Yard in London last week, said he was 'thrilled' to get back to work for the first time since the atrocity in June 2017

PC Marques, now on desk duties, is pictured previously with colleagues on London Bridge

After the vehicle crashed, Khuram Shazad Butt, Rachid Redouane and Youssef Zaghba began stabbing people in and around Borough Market.

PC Marques ran towards the incident - and, facing the attackers head on, he charged at one of them with his baton, swinging at him to get him away from other victims.

The attackers seriously injured PC Marques, who lost his sight in one eye and had stab wounds to his head and legs. The attackers then ran off into Borough Market.

Since the incident - which saw eight victims killed - PC Marques has undergone a series of operations on his head, leg and hand, and can see out of both eyes again.

He has attended multiple rehabilitation programmes, and is still recovering from his injuries and returning to full strength.

PC Marques will be working on light duties in London. He is pictured speaking after the attack

'Since last June I have been in and out of intensive rehabilitation programmes which at times has been incredibly tough both physically and mentally,' PC Marques said.

'Coming back to work has always been a goal of mine and I have been determined to reach this stage, returning to a sense of normality and routine.'

While PC Marques's recovery continues, he will work on light duties in South London and will not undertake any uniformed operational roles as part of his return to work.

'It feels surreal walking back through the doors but I am thrilled to get back to what I love doing,' he said.

'I know there is still a long road ahead of me before I can put the operational uniform back on, but with time I hope I can reach that stage.

Police surround an attacker on the ground during the attack at Borough Market in June 2017

Chaos broke out during the London Bridge attack, sending people scattering in all directions

'Of course, I wouldn't be here without the overwhelming help and support of my friends, family and my colleagues at BTP.

'They've been there which things got tough and I would like to thank them for this. I must and will not forget everyone that got me to where I am today, I certainly need to catch up on the amount of tea rounds I have missed.'

Chief Constable Paul Crowther, of BTP, added PC Marques is a 'credit to the force'.

'I am delighted to see that Wayne has returned to work after a tough recovery process. His determination and hard work during his rehabilitation is truly inspiring,' he said.

'Wayne is a credit to the force and he undoubtedly exemplifies the very best in British policing. I wish him all the best as he continues to rebuild his strength in his recovery.'
The parents of Alfie Evans have proudly shown off their new baby boy which was born four months after their brain-damaged son died from a rare genetic disorder.

Tom Evans and Kate James appeared on This Morning to reveal their son Thomas for the first time since he was born early last month.

The pair also revealed that they have finally been told of the condition which killed Alfie - a degenerative brain disease called GABA-transaminase deficiency.

Doctors told the parents that they had a one in four chance of passing on the disorder - of which there have only been 10 cases worldwide - to future children.

Following Thomas' birth, the parents faced an 'agonising' four-day wait to see if their new son had the same condition, before tests came back negative.

Tom Evans and Kate James appeared on This Morning to reveal their son Thomas for the first time since he was born early last month

The pair revealed that they have finally been told of the condition which killed Alfie (pictured), and that it was a genetic disorder that had a one in four chance of passing on to future children

Speaking to This Morning co-hosts Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, Kate admitted that she was scared about 'resenting' the newborn baby before his birth.

'At first it wasn't so joyful, we were scared,' she said. 'When he came along it was mixed emotions. It was bittersweet.

'It sounds bad now, but I was scared I would resent the baby. But he's amazing, he looks just like Alfie.

'We found out after Alfie passed about the condition being passed on through us. And then we were told we have a one in four chance of it happening in more babies.

'Around June the midwife phone me and said I had to come in. We went in and they explained they found two faulty genes, one from Tom and one in me.

'I knew there was a chance Tom could have the same condition but it wasn't until I was induced that I began to really worry about it and became convinced he had it.

Following the birth of Thomas (pictured), the parents faced an 'agonising' four-day wait to see if their new son had the same condition, before tests came back negative

Speaking to This Morning co-hosts Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby (pictured), Kate admitted that she was scared about 'resenting' the newborn baby before his birth

The parents of Alfie Evans proudly showed off their new baby boy which was born four months after their brain-damaged son died from a rare genetic disorder

GABA-transaminase deficiency: The disease that killed young Alfie GABA-transaminase deficiency is a brain disease that begins in infancy. Symptoms of the disorder include seizures, uncontrolled limb movements, exaggerated reflexes, weak muscle tone, and excessive sleepiness. Children living with the condition do not usually live past two years of age. Only ten cases have ever been documented, with five dying within the first two years and five young children still living with the condition, but still living with severe neurodevelopmental impairment. The disorder is genetic, and is passed down to offspring 25 per cent of the time when both parents carry the mutated gene. Source: Genetics Home Reference. Advertisement

'He frowns and stretches like Alfie, he is just a double. When I had him, I wondered "what if he does resemble Alfie", how will I feel.

'It's nice to be able to say his name and feel positive.'

Tom, speaking with tears in his eyes, added: 'Sometimes you feel Alfie is in him. You'll say "Alfie" and Tom will smile. We will always have two children, no matter what.

'We're happy for what we had, and what we have still got because we have two amazing children and we will always have them.'

The case of gained widespread media attention after his parents fought to take him to Rome for emergency treatment.

But the 23-month-old baby died in April after a court ruled for his life support to be switched off.

Both Miss James and Mr Evans carry a rare gene which sparked Alfie's illness, leading to fears Thomas could inherit the same condition.

Both Miss James (left) and Mr Evans (right) carry a rare gene which sparked Alfie's illness, leading to fears Thomas could inherit the same condition

The case of little Alfie gained widespread media attention after his parents fought to take him to Rome for emergency treatment

But it the four-week-old boy passed a series of tests in hospital, leaving his parents 'very relieved'.

Mr Evans wrote a touching post on Facebook dedicated to his late son earlier this week.

On Thursday he wrote: '4 months today you gained your wings buddie. The pain and heartache gets worse everyday.

'I love you so so much and miss you the world. Until we meet again buddie I love you forever.'

The couple, from Liverpool, launched a legal bid to keep their dying son alive doctors applied to turn off his life support.

Mr Evans even flew to Rome to visit Pope Francis after doctors in Italy offered to treat the toddler.
Sajid Javid today promised radical action to tackle the scourge of online child abuse.

The Home Secretary painted a terrifying picture of the 'sickening' scale of the problem on the internet - with at least 80,000 paedophiles using websites and social media.

He said people were live-streaming abuse for as little as 12, even choosing the hair colour and other characteristics of their victims. Some children are being groomed in as little as 45 minutes.

In a flagship speech today, Mr Javid called on technology giants to do more to remove vile photos and videos, saying they must show the same level of commitment as they do with terrorist material.

He warned that some firms were not taking the issue 'seriously' and threatened legislation if there is not a major change.

He also reiterated his vow not to be put off by 'cultural or political sensitivities' in taking action against Pakistani grooming gangs.

In a keynote speech today (pictured), Home Secretary Sajid Javid painted a terrifying picture of the 'sickening' scale of the problem on the internet

Teenagers and young children are being targeted by sex predators over the internet as tips to authorities rocket by 700 per cent

Mr Javid told an audience of technology bosses, charities and law enforcement chiefs in east London that he is on a personal mission to tackle child sex abuse.

US internet companies  thought to include Facebook, Twitter, Microsoft and Google, which owns YouTube  are not doing enough to crack down on internet paedophiles, he said.

He highlighted that some abuse sites were 'generating a profit through advertising'.

'Advertising by legitimate companies without their knowledge. Advertising that is indirectly and unintentionally funding these vile crimes,' he said.

'This is totally unacceptable and I call on all companies to carefully consider where their adverts are ending up and what they might be funding.'

In a stark message to web companies, he said: 'I have been really impressed to see the progress the likes of Google, Facebook, Microsoft and Twitter have made in removing terrorist content from their platforms.

'Now I want to see the same level of commitment from these companies and others for child sexual exploitation.

'In recent years, there has been some good work in the area. But the reality is that the threat has evolved quicker than industry's response and industry has not kept up.'

Astonishing 131 child sex suspects arrested in just ONE WEEK Police arrested 131 online child sex suspects in just one week during a nationwide crackdown. Among them were a former police officer, two volunteer police officers, five teachers, a children's entertainer and 13 registered sex offenders. They were held as 225 properties were searched amid fears more than 160 children were at risk from their activities. Investigators warned they were seeing a dramatic increase in offenders using hidden or encrypted software to commit crimes. All the suspects were held for accessing indecent images of children online. Police and child protection charities argue that viewing such images creates a demand for more content  and leads to more children being abused. The National Crime Agency called on the internet industry to do more to help them cut the proliferation of appalling images online. 'The technology exists for industry to design out these offences, to stop these images being shared,' said spokesman Rob Jones. 'While some online platforms have taken important steps to improve safety, we are asking them to take it to the next step, to innovate, to use their brightest minds, and to invest in preventing these online offences from happening in the first place. 'That would significantly reduce the trauma to the victims whose images are shared, prevent other individuals from developing a sexual interest in children through accessing these images, and disrupt the methods used to access them. Securing agreement from industry to do this would represent a monumental landmark in protecting children.' The suspects were arrested in a joint operation led by the NCA and involving forces across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Senior officers fear end-to-end encryption is becoming standard online  making it increasingly difficult to identify and target suspects. Advertisement

I'm not just asking for change  I am demanding it and the people are demanding it.

'If the web giants do not take more measures to remove this kind of content from their websites I will not be afraid to take action.'

Mr Javid said live streamed abuse was a 'disturbing and growing trend'.

He said: 'Poor and desperate families in countries like the Philippines are being targeted by organised criminal gangs to allow their children to be abused on webcams in exchange for money.

'Sickeningly people from around the world  including right here in the UK  are then ordering this live streamed abuse for as little as 12.

'In some cases they are even selecting the age their hair colour the gender the ethnicity, the clothing of the child they want to see abused.'

He said that 21million would be invested in policing over the next 18 months to tackle the scourge of child sexual abuse online.

He said: 'I know that as the Home Secretary and a parent I have a duty to lead this action.'

According to the NCA there are at least 80,000 people in the UK who 'present some kind of sexual threat' to children online.

This includes 66,000 paedophiles on the sex offenders register at November 2017 and 14,000 who have been arrested, are under investigation or have been convicted of child sex crimes since then. Operational experts believe this is a conservative estimate.

A report by the NSPCC two years ago found more than half a million men in Britain may have viewed child sexual abuse on the internet.

The Home Secretary said: 'These people are using encryption and anonymisation tools to make their detection harder than ever before.

'They're jumping from platform to platform, using the dark web and commercial sites, swapping aliases and endlessly creating and then deleting online accounts to try to avoid getting caught.

'These people are as sophisticated as terrorists at hiding their tracks.'

Last year the Home Office announced the investment of 600,000 in Project Arachnid  technology that helps identify and remove abusive material from the internet.

It checks the digital fingerprints of thousands of images every second, triggering alarms when a vile image is copied repeatedly. It then tells technology firms so they can intervene quickly. It has already trawled 1.3billion web pages for suspected child sexual abuse material, analysed 51billion images and issued more than 800,000 takedown notices.

Chief Constable Simon Bailey, head of child protection at the National Police Chiefs' Council, said: 'The police response to tackling child abuse online has been robust, but there is a growing need to pursue offenders who pose the most harm to children and are using sophisticated technology to evade detection.

Technology plays a significant part in all online investigations and there is an expectation that technology firms acknowledge their social responsibility in preventing and designing out this type of offending from their platforms.

'Only by working collaboratively with technology companies and law enforcement partners will we be able to minimise the risk posed to children online by predatory offenders.'

Susie Hargreaves, of the anti-abuse charity Internet Watch Foundation, said live streaming, encryption and grooming were part of the evolving threat of child sexual abuse online.

Sex offenders were increasingly found to be using encrypted software which means they are harder to track down

Mr Javid told an audience of technology bosses, charities and law enforcement chiefs in east London that he is on a personal mission to tackle child sex abuse

She added: 'Sadly, our most recent annual report showed that the severity of the images we identified were up and it appeared that offenders were becoming more sophisticated in their crime.'

Javed Khan of the children's charity Barnardo's said: 'We welcome Sajid Javid's commitment to ramp up the Government's efforts to tackle online child sexual abuse.

'The Government must now deliver its promise to make the UK the safest place to be online by forcing online companies to ensure effective safeguards are in place to help better protect children.

'Any delay to acting now could put a generation of children in danger online.'
The family of a woman who died after a banana boat flipped over while she was on a Thomas Cook holiday in Egypt said they are 'broken inside' following her tragic death.

Janice Bowles, 58, from Bristol, was reportedly trapped underneath the inflatable after it flipped and threw all riders into the sea in Hurghada on August 28.

She died just one week after fellow British tourists John and Susan Cooper died at the nearby five-star Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel.

This picture shows Janice Bowles while she was on her holiday at the resort

Mr Bowles daughter, Annmarie Cox wrote in a Facebook tribute to her mother: 'I am broken inside and don't know how to get my head around it. It is such a devastating shock to the whole family.

'It is with the heaviest heart that I am having to write this status.

'Unfortunately whilst my mum Janice Bowles was on holiday in Egypt, there was an accident and she sadly passed away.

'She was the funniest, kindest, most loving mother i know and if i can aspire to be half the woman she is i know ill do my girls proud.

'I love you momma and can't believe I'll never hear your voice or get to make you p*** yourself laughing.

'Sleep tight you beautiful angel xxxxxxxx visit me often please momma xxxxxxxxx.'

A family member at the home in Bristol declined to comment.

Today the family of Mrs Bowles, who died in front of her daughter, released a picture of the grandmother on her doomed holiday.

She died just a week after two fellow British tourists died suddenly at the five-star Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel

Mrs Bowles was reportedly trapped after the boat it flipped and threw all riders into the sea. Stock picture

Janice Bowles, 58, died after becoming trapped under a banana boat in Hurghada on August 28

One British holidaymaker, an ex-army veteran, who was on board at the time said the boat flipped after the speedboat pulling it along 'bombed out' on the water, The Sun reported.

The incident took place a week after fellow British tourists John and Susan Cooper died suddenly at the five-star Steigenberger Aqua Magic hotel.

The group had been on a dolphin-watching tour just before the tragic accident.

The man told the Sun: 'I could hear the woman's daughter wailing, as she knew that there was something seriously wrong with her mum.

'They got the lady back on an they were doing chest compressions, but at no point were there any breaths given.

'I'm screaming at them 'open her airways' but they pushed me back.'

Thomas Cook have suspended the dolphin-watching tour the group were on while they investigate.

A Thomas Cook spokesman told the Sun: 'We can confirm that one of our customers sadly died last week while on an excursion in Egypt.

Mrs Bowles died off the coast of Hurghada (pictured) after becoming trapped under the inflatable when it flipped over on August 28

Mrs Bowles died a week after fellow British tourists John and Susan Cooper died at the resort

'We would like to offer our sincere condolences to the family, and our welfare team continue to do all they can to support them at this time.

'We are urgently investigating what happened.'

A Foreign Office spokesman said: 'Our staff are assisting the family of a British woman who has died in Hurghada.'

Mr and Mrs Cooper stayed next to a room that had been fumigated just hours before, raising fears they may have been poisoned by toxic gases.

Pest controllers sprayed chemicals into the room on August 20, the day before Susan and John Cooper died.

The couple's daughter Kelly Ormerod reported a strange smell in her parents' room at the five-star hotel at the Red Sea resort of Hurghada in the hours before they died. Kelly's daughter had intended to stay the night with her grandparents but returned to her mother's room due to the odour.
A teenage driver who killed a mother-of-two in a hit-and-run crash in Adelaide after running a red light posed for a photo and uploaded it to Facebook just hours later.

Lucy Paveley, 40, was driving to work when Morrison hit her in a stolen 4WD at Parafield in August 2017.

The teenager did not stop at the scene and later posted a photo online of him stood smiling by a roadside.

Just hours after crashing into Lucy Paveley in August of last year, Lyle Morrison uploaded this photo of himself smiling stood by a roadside

Lucy Paveley (pictured) was hit and killed by Morrison in a stolen 4WD, which a court heard had been driven by the teenager at 146 km/h shortly before the crash

Mrs Paveley's (left) husband Jamie was in court for the hearing at South Australian District Court

Morrison, 19, appeared at South Australian District Court on Monday having pleaded guilty to causing Mrs Paveley's death.

The court heard expert evidence revealing Morrison could have stopped the car when he drove at high-speed through an intersection.

Morrison had been driving at 146 km/h shortly before the crash, the court was told.

Mrs Paveley's husband, Jamie, was in court for the hearing as her friend Jule Chapman urged the teenager to turn a new leaf in prison.

According to Channel 9, she said: 'Do the right thing with it because Lucy can't. All due to your stupid actions in going on a fun joyride.

'After all this is said and done you will have your life back, and your future.'

Mrs Paveley (pictured) was described by her friend in court on Monday as a 'kind and warm-hearted lady who would befriend anyone she crossed paths with'

Morrison was urged by Mrs Paveley's friend to 'do the right thing with it (prison time) because Lucy (pictured left) can't'

Ms Chapman described her friend as 'a kind and warm-hearted lady who would befriend anyone she crossed paths with'.

Morrison's lawyer has urged the judge to consider his difficult background and age in sentencing, saying his client has shown remorse since he posted the photo on Facebook.

A co-accused youth, who cannot be named, also appeared in the District Court on Monday and will be sentenced as an adult.

Both Morrison and the youth in custody have been remanded in custody by Judge Liesl Chapman ahead of sentencing next month.

Morrison (left) has pleaded guilty to causing Mrs Paveley's death in August of last year and was today urged by a close friend of Mrs Paveley to use his time in prison to change his ways
A 13-year-old boy who was found living in squalor on a New Mexico compound said he was being groomed into a jihadist child soldier by his mother's boyfriend.

The boy told FBI agents he was being trained by Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, 40, to commit 'jihad' against non-believers.

The teen was among 11 children and five adults living at the compound in Taos County when it was raided on August 3.

Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, 40, is accused of training children to commit jihad against non-believers

Wahhaj was among five adults and 11 children living at the compound in Taos County when it was raided on August 3

Cops found a huge arsenal of weapons, including an AR-15, when they raided the rural property and found the youngsters had been starved and abused. The children were living without food or clean water

Wahhaj was the father of Abdul-Ghani Wahhaj, a three-year-old boy whose body was found buried at the site later.

The teen said his mother was dating Wahhaj, and that the man trained him and another teenager on the compound 'in firearms and military techniques, including rapid reloads and hand-to-hand combat', according to court documents.

Amalia is 145 miles northeast of Albuquerque and in an isolated high-desert area near the New Mexico-Colorado border

Jany Leveille, who also goes by the name Maryam, was also arrested for child abuse following the raid and remains in jail

Sisters Subhanah Wahhaj, 35, (left) and Hujrah Wahhaj, 38, (right) were arrested last month but were released after prosecutors failed to prepare for an evidentiary hearing within a 10-day period

The teen's mother believed that God had sent her messages, according to the teen, who also said he watched her and Wahhaj perform 'exorcism' rituals over the three-year-old boy.

In one of the rituals, the boy reportedly choked and his heart stopped.

Three of the suspects were released from jail in Taos, New Mexico, after a judge dismissed charges of child abuse when prosecutors failed to prepare for an evidentiary hearing within a 10-day period.

Lucas Morton, his wife Subhannah Wahhaj, and her sister Hujrah Wahhaj, left the jail in Toas with Subhannah's defense lawyer Megan Mitsunaga.

While they won't face punishment for the death of Abdul-ghani Wahhaj as a result of child neglect, the deceased's father Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, and his partner, Jany Leveille, remain behind bars for the charges.

This is the New Mexico compound where 11 children were found on Friday being held by their Muslim extremist father and uncle, Siraj Ibn Wahhaj, along with their parents

The conditions inside the compound were described by police as the worst they had seen in 30 years

There was no food at the compound and the children had terrible personal hygiene, police said

The adults at the compound, including the boy's mother, Jany Leveille, 35, told everyone not to talk about Abdul-Ghani Wahhaj ever being at the compound because they would 'all go to jail'.

A judge on Wednesday dropped child neglect charges against three of the adults because of a missed deadline on behalf of local prosecutors.

The FBI then on Friday arrested all five of the adults on firearms and conspiracy charges.

The Taos County District Attorney said his office would seek grand jury indictments involving the three-year-old boy's death.

The five defendants are scheduled to appear in court in Albuquerque on Tuesday.
The skeletal body of a missing son has been returned to his parents more than three decades after he was taken away by soldiers during a period of political instability in Peru.

Maximo Cueto, 86, and his wife Gregoria, 88, have spent their whole lives and most of their money searching for their son Cesareo since he was taken from his university dormitory one night in 1984.

The couple, who ran a business raising livestock in the southern Andes, have searched as far away as the Amazon rain forest and a former island penitentiary off the coast of Lima.

Maximo Cueto, 86, and his wife Gregoria Gastelu, 88, look at the remains of their son Cesareo Gastelu during his funeral on Saturday

A woman places flowers in La Hoyada, at the site of a military barrack in Huamanga where Cesareo's body was found

And in 2012 Cesareo was finally located after a team of forensic experts carried out thousands of excavations in a 7-hectare plot next to a military barrack in Huamanga.

The remains of 109 individuals were found in a mass grave with many of the bones having been burned in a stove used by the military to dispose of bodies and hide any evidence of torture by Shining Path rebels.

Cesareo was identified after a pile of bones with scrapes on the right knee and marks on the teeth indicating past dental work was found to be their son, said archaeologist Luis Rueda, head of the team behind the excavations.

The return was part of a renewed effort by Peru to bring closure to families of the more than 20,000 people forcibly disappeared during the armed conflict.

The Peruvian government is also bringing into place new laws to streamline the process of identifying bodies murdered in the conflict.

Last Saturday, the Cueto family finally bid farewell to their son in a family mausoleum in Huamanga.

A small ceremony featuring Andean music and close family members saw his maroon coffin paraded through the city at the center of the old conflict.

The remains of 109 individuals were found in a mass grave at the seven-hectare plot in Huamanga
A suicidal father-of-two contacted mental health professionals eight times in the week before he hanged himself, his girlfriend has said.

Luke Henderson was found dead at the home he shared with his partner, Karen McKeown, and their two children in Motherwell, North Lanarkshire last December.

Ms McKeown has now hit out at local medics for failing to intervene when he repeatedly contacted them, and is calling for a review.

Luke Henderson, pictured with his girlfriend McKeown and their children Luke and Kaydence, before his tragic death in December

She said she knew something was wrong when Mr Henderson started saying colleagues at his construction job were spying on and filming him.

He had stopped sleeping, said he could hear voices in his head and could see things which weren't there, she said.

Ms McKeown says her partner spoke to at least 11 different NHS employees between December 22 and December 28 last year.

Medical notes from December 23, show staff who first saw him at Wishaw General A&E thought he was at risk of harming himself and that he was hallucinating.

Ms McKeown said doctors failed to take his pleas seriously in the days before his death

They recorded in their notes that Luke was 'hearing voices in head...feels wants to kill self', 'experiencing delusions' and was 'an immediate risk to himself'.

When he first went to the emergency unit, he was categorised as a high-risk patient, but less than two hours later,after being seen by a nurse, it was ruled that he showed no signs of having a 'depressive illness or psychotic disturbance'.

Despite these notes, NHS Lanarkshire's initial review said their staff had followed procedure and 'consistently did not find any evidence' that Luke wanted to take his own life.

Ms McKeown said: 'If they had done their jobs as medical professionals, the way I did mine as his partner and mother of his children, I believe Luke would still be here. My children would still have their dad.

'They failed him. I felt like he was planning to take his own life.

'There were loads of warning signs - he was asking my cousin to look after me if anything happened to him, he was telling me how much he loved me and kept saying sorry for things. I told doctors this, but they wouldn't listen.'

On the day before his death, Karen took Luke to two GPs to try to get him an urgent appointment, before taking him to her own doctor and registering him there.

Mr Henderson is pictured with his family in the months before he was found dead at their home

The couple were told an appointment was available that afternoon, but when they returned a second receptionist said there had been a mistake and they were sent home.

That night, Karen woke to her eight-year-old son, also named Luke, crying. She saw that her partner was not in bed and when she went to her son's room she discovered he was awake.

Karen said: 'I asked him why he was awake and he said that daddy had come in to say goodnight. That's when I went downstairs and saw Luke's body. I just started screaming.'

The NHS has now launched a review of the case.

Iain Mackenzie, acting general manager for mental health services, said: 'We are aware of this tragic matter and undertook a review in line with Health Improvement Scotland guidelines, which aims to identify any learning points.

'Members of our patient affairs team have also subsequently met with Ms McKeown with a view to further investigate the issues raised by her, and the team is also liaising with the other services involved.

'The investigation is still ongoing and, once complete, we will share the findings with Ms McKeown.'

For confidential support call the Samaritans on 116 123 or visit a local branch, see samaritans.org for details
One of Americas largest sandwich chains has been accused of racism and misogyny after a drive-thru sign announced it was now hiring n****** and whores.

Arbys restaurant at Brooklyn Center, Minnesota, featured the derogatory language on its large roadside sign  which was seen by passing motorists and diners on Monday, September 1.

Brooklyn Center police have launched an investigation to track down who changed the lettering on the sign, which has since been removed after causing outrage on social media.

Shocking: Radio host and 2018 Bush Fellow Larry McKenzie tweeted this photo of the offensive sign at Arby's Brooklyn Center restaurant while on my way to the barbershop

Among those shocked by the terminology was radio host and 2018 Bush Fellow Larry McKenzie, who tweeted a photo of the sign while on my way to the barbershop this morning.

His post was picked up by Tawanna Black, who immediately tweeted Arbys headquarters, saying, @Arbys this racism is on a sign at your [Brooklyn Center] store this morning and the citizens of this community deserve a response IMMEDIATELY! [sic]

Black is founder and CEO of the Center for Economic Inclusion  an organization that aims to close economic gaps between residents of Minnesota.

An apologetic Arbys replied: Overnight, our reader board was compromised and someone put up a message that was extremely offensive.

The message has since been taken down. Were cooperating with local law enforcement officials and will take appropriate action against those involved.

Tawanna Black, founder and CEO of the Center for Economic Inclusion, immediately tweeted Arbys headquarters about the racist and misogynist sign

Arby's has apologized 'to everyone exposed to that message' and is helping the police investigation. The company has also warned it will take 'appropriate action against those involved' in altering its drive-thru sign

We apologize to everyone exposed to that message.

Police said they saw the sign at about 7am on Sunday, and took the offensive lettering down.

They told KFGO that the display sign was close enough to the ground that most people could reach it.

Arbys was founded in 1964, and is the second-largest sandwich restaurant brand in the world with more than 3,300 restaurants in seven countries, including Kuwait, Japan, Turkey and South Korea.

In September last year Arbys Restaurant Group was named as one of Fortunes 100 Best Workplaces for Women for the first time. It was the only quick-service restaurant selected on the list.

At that time, it said that it was striving to promote values which help to create a work environment that is equitable and inclusive to all of our diverse workforce.
A parishioner shouted 'shame on you' as the Archbishop of Washington addressed the Catholic Church's child sex abuse scandal.

When Cardinal Donald Wuerl made his apology speech to the church on Sunday, Brian Garfield stood up and confronted him before storming out.

Another churchgoer turned her back on the clergyman in protest. Wuerl noted the interruption but continued with his speech.

Washington Cardinal Donald Wuerl was confronted by a parishioner who shouted 'shame on you' as he made an apology speech for the church's handling of clergy sex abuse scandal

Wuerl faces accusations that he mishandled clergy sexual misconduct while he was a bishop in Pittsburgh.

He was addressing Washington's Annunciation Catholic Church when some of the crowd turned on him.

In a short speech after Mass, Wuerl asked for forgiveness for his 'error in judgement' and 'inaccuracies' from the 200 or so people in the church.

Wuerl also urged the parish to pray for and remain loyal to Pope Francis.

An 11-page text penned by Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, the Vatican's former ambassador to the US, claimed that Pope Francis knew about sex abuse allegations since 2013.

After the interruption Wuerl apologized for how the sex scandal was handled.

'Yes, my brothers and sisters, shame. I wish I could redo everything over these 30 years,' he said.

Afterward, Garfield told CNN: 'I don't think he is a monster but I wish he would talk less about defending himself and more about his failings.

'It's a little galling to be lectured on transparency by people who are lying to us. I wish he would talk to us as a pastor and not a politician.'

Last month, a Pennsylvania grand jury report found more than 300 Catholic priests abused more than 1,000 children since 1947 in six state dioceses,including Pittsburgh.

Wuerl was not accused of any misconduct, but it was his job to oversee the Pittsburgh diocese during the time several attacks happened.
President Donald Trump kicked off Labor Day with an attack on the head of the powerful AFL-CIO and a defense of his own trade posture.

Trump went after AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka with an early morning tweet, where he faulted the labor chief for 'poorly' representing his own union.

The move came after Trumka said in a TV appearance that a renegotiated trade deal to replace NAFTA should include Canada  the nation's largest North American trading partner and the source of many auto manufacturing jobs for U.S. firms.

Trump tweeted Monday that Trumka 'represented his union poorly on television this weekend.'

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President Donald Trump issued a Labor Day tweet Trump tweeted Monday blasting AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and saying he 'represented his union poorly on television this weekend'

'It is easy to see why unions are doing so poorly. A Dem!' Trump said, using Trumka's party affiliation as an apparent pejorative.

The president's attack came after Trumka appeared on 'Fox News Sunday' over the weekend where he said efforts to overhaul the North American Free Trade Agreement should include Canada.

Trumka, whose organization is an umbrella group for most unions, said the economies of the United States, Canada and Mexico are 'integrated' and 'it's pretty hard to see how that would work without having Canada in the deal.'

The language had extra sting because Trumka is a NAFTA critic and has battled previous trade deals he believed had insufficient labor or environmental protections.

'We're anxious to move forward with it and anxious to have all three countries involved, because NAFTA has had a devastating effect on the working people of this country for the last 25 years,' Trumka said.

Canada is second only to China in trade with the U.S.

Trump blasted Trumka's appearance on 'Fox News Sunday'

Trump began labor day with an attack on the head of the AFL-CIO, Richard Trumka

A few minutes later, Trump sent out a 'Happy Labor Day!' tweet

Trump also wrote that the American worker was doing 'better than ever'

Trump said Saturday on Twitter that there was 'no political necessity' to keep Canada in NAFTA, while blasting the longtime ally for 'abuse.'

'There is no political necessity to keep Canada in the new NAFTA deal,' Trump tweeted during services for the late Arizona Sen. John McCain in Washington.

'If we don't make a fair deal for the U.S. after decade of abuse, Canada will be out. Congress should not interfere with these negotiations or I will simply terminate NAFTA entirely & we will be far better off.'

But it's questionable whether Trump can unilaterally exclude Canada from a deal to replace the three-nation NAFTA agreement, without the approval of Congress. Any such move would likely face lengthy legal and congressional challenges.

President Donald Trump issued a Labor Day tweet going after AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka and saying he 'represented his union poorly on television this weekend'

Trumka had said Canada should be included in a renegotiated North American trade deal

Trump administration negotiations to keep Canada in the reimagined trade bloc are to resume this week as Washington and Ottawa try to break a deadlock over issues such as Canada's dairy market and U.S. efforts to shield drug companies from generic competition.

Trump wants to get a trade deal finalized by Dec. 1.

Trumka also said of Trump: 'the things that he's done to hurt workers outpace what he's done to help workers,' arguing that Trump has not come through with an infrastructure program and has overturned regulations that 'will hurt us on the job.'

In this April 4, 2017 file photo, AFL-CIO president Richard Trumka listens at the National Press Club in Washington

Asked about the low unemployment rate and economic growth, Trumka said 'those are good, but wages have been down since the first of the year. Gas prices have been up since the first of the year. So, overall, workers aren't doing as well.'

On Monday, Trump touted the economy, saying 'Our country is doing better than ever before with unemployment setting record lows.' He added, 'The Worker in America is doing better than ever before. Celebrate Labor Day!'

The unemployment rate of 3.9 percent is not at the best point ever - it is near the lowest in 18 years.
A toddler who went missing in the woods in south China has been found unharmed after spending five days alone with no food or water.

20-month-old Xiaojiao wandered into the forest behind her home in Guangxi region last Monday and her father, Chen Qingran, reported her missing the next day after he could not find her.

The little girl was finally discovered on Friday by a local power station worker, who saw her lying on the ground in the bushes near a canal.

20-month-old toddler Xiaojiao who went missing in the woods in Guangxi region's south China has been found unharmed on Friday after spending five days alone with no food or water

A local power station worker saw Xiaojiao lying on the ground in the bushes near a canal

The missing girl's home (left) and the location where she was found (right) in the woods

Xiaojiao is the youngest daughter of Chen and was reportedly playing with her six-year-old brother and four-year-old sister near their home but later wandered away.

Video footage of the search shows officers wielding torches and tools searching for the girl on foot tirelessly, day and night. They also deployed sniffer dogs during the operation.

The police completed a search radius of about 2.5 kilometres (1.6 miles) and more than 700 people including officers and volunteers were involved in Xiaojiao's search, according to Hangzhou Daily.

Doctors also speculated the girl might have survived on rainwater while lying on the ground

When Xiaojiao was discovered, the tot was severely dehydrated and covered with insect bites

The police completed a search radius of about 2.5 kilometres (1.6 miles) and more than 700 people including officers and volunteers were involved in looking for Xiaojiao

When she was finally discovered, the tot was severely dehydrated and covered with insect bites - but she was miraculously alive despite having no access to food or water for five days.

She was immediately taken to hospital, where doctor Li Dejian of the Yulin Orthopedics Hospital said Xiaojiao's case was a 'miracle'.

Dr Li also speculated that the girl might have survived on sipping rainwater while lying on the ground.

'All our officers are relived by the happy news. Xiaojiao has been given a second chance in life!' the Guangxi Rong County Security Bureau said it its official Weibo account.

Doctors of the Yulin Orthopedics Hospital said Xiaojiao's case was a 'miracle'

Xiaojiao is the youngest daughter of Chen and was reportedly playing with her six-year-old brother and four-year-old sister near their home but later wandered away on Monday
An Amber Alert has been issued for a three-year-old Wisconsin girl abducted early Monday morning.

Two men armed with handguns kidnapped Phoenix Dickens around 2.15am in Milwaukee, placing her in a red minivan before driving off.

Cops say she was seen leaving the area of 62nd and Hampton with the two male suspects but they may have moved to another vehicle afterwards - a dark blue or black car with tinted windows.

Missing: Three-year-old Milwaukee girl Phoenix Dickens was abducted at 2.15am at gunpoint

She was taken by two men armed with handguns and placed in a red minivan. She was last seen wearing a yellow T-shirt with purple and pink checkered pants

Phoenix is 2ft 4in tall, weighs 40 pounds and has brown eyes with long black hair pulled into a pony tail.

She was last seen wearing a yellow T-shirt with purple and pink checkered pants, according to NBC.

Although it's not clear why she was kidnapped, police have released descriptions of the two suspects.

The first is a black male between 30-33 years of age, and between 6ft 2in to 6ft 3in. He was wearing a Jordan hoodie and has a thin build.

Her father announced that there's a $2,000 cash reward for information on her whereabouts

The second suspect is described as a black male, 5ft 7in tall and 150 pounds with a slim build, short hair, and a dark beard. He was seen wearing a V-neck T-shirt.

According to her father Mario Dicken's social media, Phoenix also goes by Mariah and there's a $2,000 cash reward for information on her whereabouts.

He posted early Monday morning: 'MARIAH was just abducted on 62nd and Hampton one block on off Fairmount AT GUN POINT!! 2,000 cash reward for HER SAFE RETURN. SHARE PLEASE #amberalert.'

Anyone with information is asked to call the Milwaukee Police Department at 414-935-7405
Children in France will be banned from using mobile phones at school to in a bid to stop the spread of bullying, violence and pornography.

All junior and primary schools in the country have been hit with the new ban, which also covers tablets and smart watches, and begins today.

The new rule, which was a campaign pledge of President Emmanuel Macron, was brought in under a law passed in July.

High schools, which teach students aged 15 to 18, can introduce partial or total bans on electronic devices as they reopen after the summer break, though this will not be obligatory.

Proponents say the law, which has caused widespread controversy, will reduce distraction in the classroom, combat bullying, and encourage children to be more physically active during break time.

French President Emmanuel Macron made the ban on phones in schools a campaign pledge before his election in 2017

Marie-Caroline Madeleine, 41, said after dropping her daughter off for the first day of middle school in Paris: 'I think it's a good thing.

'It's a good signal that says "school is for studying", it's not about being on your phone.

'It's hard with adolescents, you can't control what they see and that's one of the things that worries me as a parent.'

Nearly 90 per cent of French 12 to 17-year-olds have a mobile phone, and supporters hope the ban will limit the spread of violent and pornographic content among children.

Education Minister Jean-Michel Blanquer has hailed the legislation as 'a law for the 21st century' that would improve discipline among France's 12 million pupils.

He said in June, as the bill was going through parliament: 'Being open to technologies of the future doesn't mean we have to accept all their uses.'

But critics dismissed the measure as a public relations exercise, and predicted it will be difficult to enforce.

The government has left schools to decide how to implement the new rules, recommending that they store students' phones in lockers during the day - but some schools do not have them.

French children under 15 will be banned from using mobile phones, tablets and smart watches at school under rules which begin from the start of the new term today (file photo)

Research shows that in French schools that have already banned phones, many pupils admit to breaking the rules.

Macron, a 40-year-old political centrist, pledged widespread reforms when he was elected in May last year, and education has been no exception.

Along with the mobile phone ban, he has halved primary school class sizes in disadvantaged areas to 12 in a bid to narrow a massive gap in grades between children from poor families and those from wealthy areas.

On the other end of the age spectrum, a shake-up of the higher education system to make university access more selective prompted a wave of student sit-ins this year.

Schools all over the world have struggled to adapt to the rise of the pocket-sized devices as parents grow increasingly anxious about the amount of time their children spend glued to the screen.

In 2015 New York Mayor Bill de Blasio lifted a ban on phones in his city's schools on security grounds, saying parents should be allowed to stay in touch with their children.
Air Chief Marshal Sir Hugh Dowding, who organised Britain's air defence from 1936 to 1940, warned that Britain should not join the EU in an extraordinary letter up for auction

The war hero who masterminded victory in the Battle of Britain later warned of a new 'terrible menace' the country faced before the UK joined the EU, it was revealed today.

RAF supremo Sir Hugh Dowding claimed in 1961 that 'all the unemployables' of Europe would 'invade' Britain if the country were to join the then European Economic Community.

Sir Hugh, nicknamed 'Stuffy' by pilots because he was so aloof, added that in doing so, the newly-formed organisation would 'succeed where Hitler failed'.

Dowding wrote the letter four years after the common market, then known as the EEC, was formed and 12 years before Britain finally joined.

The EEC would later be absorbed by the European Union as it grew larger and more powerful.

The private correspondence to Lord Beaverbrook has emerged for sale at auction five months before the UK is due to leave the EU after 45 years of membership.

The three page letter is coming up for sale with Nottingham-based International Autograph Auctions with an estimate of 1,500.

It was written from Dowding's home in Tunbridge Wells, Kent, to Lord Beaverbrook, who had been Minister of Aircraft Production in Winston Churchill's War Cabinet at the time of the Battle of Britain in 1940.

At first Dowding, who was the RAF air marshal who directed operations in the Battle of Britain, thanks the peer for sending him some cheese from the West Country.

This extraordinary letter from Hugh Dowding to Lord Beaverbrook about the danger of joining the EEC is up for auction

He then goes on to speak about Prime Minster Harold Macmillan's attempts to join the EEC which would ultimately be rejected by French president Charles de Gaulle 18 months later.

SIR HUGH DOWDING'S EEC LETTER IN FULL Mr dear Lord Beaverbrook, A lordly cheese has arrived from the west country. It will receive the same welcome here as did your last one. I have to apologise to you for not earlier acknowledging your kindness in sending a cheque for ... I have been laid out with rheumatoid arthritis since February. In the last half of May I went to a sort of nursing home with lots of massages and baths and a very ... diet. It did me a lot of good but did not cure the trouble which is now more tiresome than prostrating. Anyway, your letter came while I was at the home and as the authorities took the opportunity of making hay in my study under the pretext of spring cleaning, I have only just unearthed the letter. So please don't think that Alison has been remiss, the fault is entirely mine. What a terrible menace this European Common Market is. All the unemployables of Europe will invade us & succeed where Hitler failed. I think that even Macmillan is a bit shaken by the amount of opposition he is meeting. I wish you well in your paper's fight against it. Again many thanks for all your kindness. Your very sincerely, Hugh Dowding Advertisement

Dowding writes: 'What a terrible menace this European Common Market is! All the unemployables of Europe will invade us & succeed where Hitler failed.

'I think that even Macmillan is a bit shaken by the amount of opposition he is meeting.'

Auctioneer Richard Davey said: 'This is a letter of exceptional and historic content, not least for the similarities Dowding writes of between Hitler and his policies during World War II and the state of the European Community in the early 1960s.

'Lord Dowding seldom made public comments on sensitive or controversial issues.

'However, this is a private letter from the architect and victor of the Battle of Britain to Lord Beaverbrook.

'Dowding considered Beaverbrook to have been equally responsible for Britain's victory as a result of his increased production of the Spitfires and Hurricanes which ultimately overwhelmed the German Luftwaffe.

'Great Britain's first attempt to join in 1961 failed largely due to the intervention of the former wartime Allied leader, French President General Charles de Gaulle.

'Will it be another French President, Emmanuel Macron, who manages to facilitate a Brexit deal for the UK with the rest of the EU members?

'Dowding was certainly totally opposed to the concept of Britain joining the 'terrible menace' of the European Common Market, but his suggestion that 'all the unemployables' of Europe might be viewed today as rather 'un-PC'.'

The letter is being sold on Thursday.
Pope Francis recommended silence and prayer for those who 'only seek scandal' in a veiled response to allegations he helped cover up for a US cardinal embroiled in sex abuse scandals.

His calls to move away from division and destruction appeared to be an indirect response to allegations he had covered up for US prelate Theodore McCarrick, who became embroiled in scandal this year.

Italian Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, a former papal envoy in Washington, stunned the faithful last month by claiming Francis lifted unconfirmed Vatican sanctions against disgraced McCarrick and demanding that the pope resign.

Hours after Vigano made the claim in a statement given to conservative Catholic news media, Francis had told journalists seeking his response that he 'won't say a word' about the sensational claims.

Pope Francis during his weekly general audience in the Pope Paul VI hall, at the Vatican after Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano threw his five-year papacy into crisis with his 11-page testimony

The Pope is accused of lifting Vatican sanctions against US Cardinal Theodore McCarrick during Benedict XVI's papacy

Francis said today in his homily during morning Mass at the Vatican hotel where he lives: 'With people lacking good will, with people who only seek scandal, who seek only division, who seek only destruction, even within the family - silence, prayer' is the path to take.

In his homily today, Francis indicated he might be taking his cue from God on whether to speak out or not about Vigano's allegations.

He said to the crowd: 'May the Lord give us the grace to discern when we should speak and when we should stay silent.

'This applies to every part of life: to work, at home, in society.'

Francis also spoke about how Jesus, when confronting the devil, responded with silence. Francis also described the truth as being meek and silent.

Vigano claimed that while Benedict XVI was pope, he sanctioned McCarrick, including avoiding public life, but that Francis later allegedly lifted the punishment.

Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano accused the Pope of helping to cover up McCarrick's abuse and called for Francis

During the years that McCarrick was purportedly under sanctions, the cardinal celebrated public Masses and attended public functions, even before Francis became pontiff.

Vigano also said he told Francis, shortly after he was elected pontiff in 2013, that McCarrick had been given sanctions by Benedict.

Weeks before Vigano went public with his claims, Francis in July yanked McCarrick's cardinal rank after US investigations found sex abuse claims credible.

McCarrick has denied any wrongdoing.

It was the first time that a prelate lost his cardinal's rank in a sex abuse scandal, and the move was widely viewed as an indication that Francis was trying to make good on promises to crack down on clerics who either were found to have abused minors or adults, or covered up for priests who did.

After decades of complaints by faithful in the United States and elsewhere that they were sexually abused as minors or adults by priests, or that their abuses were quietly shuffled from parish to parish, the church, including at the Vatican, has been struggling to effectively deal with the problem, including the role of higher-ups in hiding the abuses.
The SNP's membership has edged ahead of the Tories nationwide for the first time, new figures out today realised.

Across the UK the Scottish National Party - which only stands candidates in Scotland - has around 125,000 members.

The Conservative Party has slipped into third place with 124,000 members, research by the House of Commons Library reveals.

Labour is far ahead with more than half a million paying subscribers, many of which who joined to support Jeremy Corbyn to be leader in 2015.

The SNP's membership has edged ahead of the Tories nationwide for the first time, new figures out today realised

Tory membership has been a subject of particular focus for months amid continued speculation over the future of Theresa May (pictured in Kenya last week) because party members will choose her replacement

A House of Commons Library spokesman tweeted: 'The latest available data shows that membership of the SNP (August 2018) has surpassed the latest reported figures for the Conservatives (March 2018).'

Tory membership has been a subject of particular focus for months amid continued speculation over the future of Theresa May.

If the Prime Minister resigned or was ousted, Tory members would choose the next Prime Minister - unless MPs coronated a single candidate.

Hard Brexiteers linked to the Leave.EU group and ex-Ukip donor Arron Banks have threatened to join the party ahead of the next leadership contest in a bid to install a right-wing candidate.

Nicola Sturgeon reacted with delight to official figures showing her party was now the second largest in the UK by membership.

She said: 'Wow - the SNP is now officially the second biggest party in the whole of the UK.'

SNP business convener Derek Mackay MSP welcomed the figures, which he said were boosted in June by the row over the so-called Brexit 'power grab' on devolved governments.

Nicola Sturgeon (file image) reacted with delight to official figures showing her party was now the second largest in the UK by membership

The SNP leader tweeted 'Wow - the SNP is now officially the second biggest party in the whole of the UK'

'Over 7,000 people joined the SNP in just five days in June, propelling us ahead of a waning Tory party which is at risk of imploding completely over Brexit,' he said.

'Like the extraordinary membership surge of 2014 joining the SNP has once again become not just a powerful symbol, but the best way to ensure Scotland's voice is heard.

'People were rightly outraged at Tory plans to remove powers from the Scottish Parliament, and that only 15 minutes were given over at Westminster to debate the impact of the EU Withdrawal Bill on devolution.'

A Tory source said: 'We have been driving up membership steadily since the beginning of the year.'
This is the moment a furious mother called a 3ft 6in comedian a 'disabled b***h' on a train after she accused her children of leaving litter around her mobility scooter.

Tanyalee Davis, 47, who has a form of dwarfism called diastrophic dysplasia, had been texting her partner to say 'thank f*** this obnoxious family is leaving because they left a huge mess'.

But a teenage girl allegedly read the text while standing over the comedian, and yelled at her brothers and sisters to say the comedian had called them 'abnormal.

A mother (pictured) confronted Tanyalee Davis on the East Midlands Trains service last Friday

The girl is then said to have started abusing Ms Davis, who began filming the exchange on the East Midlands Trains service which was arriving at Nottingham.

Ms Davis was then confronted by the children's mother, who called the Canadian comedian a 'paedophile' and 'disabled b***h' during the incident last Friday.

Ms Davis, pictured on another train in July, denied calling the children 'abnormal'

The woman also made a crude gesture, telling Ms Davis: 'Don't record other children. You know you're classed as a paedophile if you record other children.'

Ms Davis, who lives in Norwich, pointed to the rubbish on the carriage floor, and the mother said: 'What mess? This is all from us, is it? That's not my concern.

'My concern is that you're recording children, my children. You were calling them abnormal five minutes ago. If anyone's abnormal darling, it's you.'

The woman then also started filming Ms Davis on her phone, saying: 'Little paedophile b***h. Paedophile b***h, yeah. There we go.

'You're going on YouTube, you're going on Facebook, you're going on Instagram, you're going on Snapchat. Bye bye, look at you  disabled b***h.'

Ms Davis, who denied calling the woman's children 'abnormal', told her that the siblings were being 'obnoxious'.

Posting a video of the row on YouTube, Ms Davis said: 'An unruly teenager read a private text when standing over me in which I was telling my partner 'thank f*** this obnoxious family is leaving because they left a huge mess'.

The mother (above) called the comedian a 'paedophile' and 'disabled b***h' during the incident

Ms Davis is a 47-year-old comedian from Canada who has a form of dwarfism

'This girl ended yelling over her brothers and sisters who were cued up to get off at Nottingham saying I called them 'abnormal'. She then started calling me names to which I turned on the video because I could see this escalating.

How this was Tanyalee Davis's third bad experience on the trains in just six weeks On July 15, Tanyalee Davis was left sobbing on a Great Western Railway train after a guard ordered her to move her mobility scooter out of the wheelchair area - before making a public announcement about her. Addressing all passengers on the train as the couple headed for Norwich from Plymouth, the employee said the train would have to stop because of her. The comedian was ordered to move so a woman's pram could go in the disabled space. But when she refused, she was 'harassed' and 'shamed'. GWR said later: 'No one travelling with us should be left feeling like this... this should not have happened.' Then on July 20, Ms Davis had a further bad train experience in July when she was waiting by the door at York for a ramp for her scooter - but no one came to help, and the LNER train left. She then had to wait until Darlington to get off, before returning to York on another service. Train staff were said to have been 'mortified' at the error and bought her two bottles of wine. Just last week Ms Davis, who lives in Norwich, revealed how she had to wait two hours to get her mobility scooter from a plane at London Stansted Airport, before finding it was missing a vital custom-made attachment. Advertisement

'She then proceeded to drop trash on the floor and kick it at my scooter.She continued making fun of my hands and legs while her little brothers gave me the finger.

'Their mother who had been in a different carriage the whole time pounced in calling me a paedophile and started recording me saying she was going to call the police.

'She made rude gestures to me as a family member grabbed her. The family then stood on the platform making rude gestures. I contacted the new guard Chris who came onboard at Nottingham and explained what happened.

'He was lovely and took my statement, name and number and suggested I contact British Transport Police which I did. They are pulling CCTV and will be collecting this video.'

A British Transport Police spokesman told MailOnline today: 'We received a report via our text service of verbal abuse towards a woman on board a train between Norwich and Nottingham on Friday, August 31.

'Officers have spoken with the victim and are currently investigating the incident which happened at approximately 3.30pm.

'Anyone who was on board the train and saw what happened is asked to contact BTP by sending a text to 61016 or by calling 0800 40 50 40 quoting reference 416 of 31/08/2018.'

An East Midlands Trains spokesman has been approached for comment.

Ms Davis, who performed her first one woman show called 'Little Do They Know' at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2007, describes herself as 'the Ferrari of comedy  low to the ground and kind of racy'.
Sarah Elizabeth Morris appeared at Flintshire magistrates court this morning (pictured)

A woman appeared in court charged over the death of her baby after the 13-month-old allegedly drowned in her bath three years ago.

Sarah Elizabeth Morris, 34, appeared at Flintshire Magistrates Court this morning to face a manslaughter charge over the death of her daughter, Rosie Morris.

Morris, of Flintshire, Wales, is accused of unlawfully killing Rosie at a house in the nearby village of Greenfield.

The court heard the child drowned in a bath on July 29, 2015.

During a short hearing, Morris, who was dressed in jeans and a blue jogging top, spoke only to confirm her name, age and address.

No plea was entered, and magistrates sent the case to be heard at Mold Crown Court on Friday, October 5.

Morris was given unconditional bail.
An experienced paddleboarder has died while surfing with friends at an isolated beach on the Yorke Peninsula, South Australia.

Robert 'Billy' Baxter, 50, was surfing with friends around 11am on Monday at Daly Heads when he became separated from the group, police say.

His friends found him unconscious in the water nearby, SA Police Sergeant Andrew Gardner said.

He was taken to shore where they attempted CPR but they were unsuccessful.

Robert 'Billy' Baxter, 50, was an experienced surfer and paddleboarded. He died on Monday while surfing with friends at an isolated beach

Robert 'Bill' Baxter, 50, was surfing with friends at Daly Heads, between Marion Bay and Corny Point when he became separated from the group, police say

Police and paramedics arrived but he could not be revived.

'He was a well-respected member of the local community, very popular gentleman in the local surfing fraternity and very well liked so there are a lot of very distressed people in the community at the minute,' Sergeant Andrew told 9News.

'Everyone on scene is obviously very distressed and it's obviously a difficult time.'

Police are investigating the death and preparing a report for the State Coroner.
This is the shocking moment Turkish border guards found a woman curled up inside a suitcase at a customs checkpoint.

The Uzbek woman, 27, was discovered inside the suitcase of a 24-year-old Georgian man at the Sarpi border crossing.

The man, who was not named, was attempting to smuggle her into Turkey's Artvin Province, which borders with Georgia.

Turkish border control discovered a young woman curled up inside a suitcase at the Sarpi customs checkpoint

Footage shows a Turkish police officer opening the large black suitcase after becoming suspicious of its weight.

A young woman wearing a white t-shirt was found curled up inside after the case was unzipped - and she hid her face as she crawled out.

The relationship between Uzbekistan and Turkey has improved recently and Uzbek citizens do not usually need a visa for a 30-day stay.

But the young woman had allegedly been given a five-year ban from entering the country.

A Georgian man was attempting to smuggle the Uzbek woman back into the country - despite her being banned from entering

Border control were alerted to the situation when they noticed the suitcase was excessively heavy

A spokesman for the Sarpi customs checkpoint said stopped the man after becoming suspicious of his unusually heavy suitcase.

The checkpoint allows motorists to move between the two states near the coast of the Black Sea.

Online commentators were quick to condemn the pair. One said: 'Seriously, what was he hoping for?'

Another added: 'I think smuggling is somehow not uncommon for Georgians.'
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Fascinating underwater images which show perfectly preserved shipwrecks in sea beds including ones sunk off the coast of the UK in both world wars have been released in a new book.

The incredible pictures show the remains of HMS Pathfinder which lies off the Scottish east coast and HMS Audacious, which now lies upside down in almost 220-feet of water, far out from Malin Head, off the Donegal coast.

Audacious was the first British battleship to be sunk by an enemy attack during World War One on October 27, 1914, just two months into the war.

UB 116 was a German submarine sunk in British waters in World War One. About 25 metres off the forward side of its remains lies the top of the conning tower with its hatch and periscope

A diver examines the rudder, prop and sternpost of this shipwreck which sit in isolation at a depth of 45 metres

A diver examines the site of the Helmet Wreck, an unidentified Japanese coaster which was sunk during World War Two. It was given its name due to the stack of helmets found in the hold

Another breathtaking picture shows passenger liner, Rio de Janeiro Maru which was sunk during the Pacific War of World War Two in in Truk Lagoon,

One diver is pictured carefully holding a katana samurai sword found inside the Rio de Janeiro Maru wreck and swimming alongside the bronze lettering on the ship's stern.

The type 95 HA-GO light battle tank is pictured near the wreck of Japanese passenger ship San Francisco Maru, which was sunk in Truk Lagoon in the west Pacific in 1944

The images have been released as part of a new book by internationally renowned Scotish diver, Rod Macdonald called Deeper into the Darkness: The Diving Trilogy 3.

'At the time of writing this book we were in the midst of a number of important 100th anniversaries of the momentous events of World War I. The great land battles were being remembered at a number of ceremonies as the dates occurred,' writes Macdonald.

'The great clash of steel titans at sea, the Battle of Jutland, was poignantly remembered, as were the individual sinkings of some famous ships such as HMS Hampshire and HMS Vanguard.

'But for many ships and their crews, sent to the bottom by mine, torpedo or collision, there was no such act of remembrance. Now, therefore, as these great 100th anniversaries passed, it seemed an appropriate time to write about some of the famous World War I naval shipwrecks that lie around our British coastline, in my own act of remembrance to those who perished.'

The Rio de Janeiro Maru was requisitioned by the Japanese Navy and was active until September 1943 when she was reconverted into a transport ship, however, in February 1944, she was bombed during Operation Hailstone by the USA.

Crockery found in the Helmet Wreck bears generic markings of an eagle on top of a globe

A diver swimming alongside the bronze lettering which still rings around the Rio de Janeiro Maru's stern

Paul Haynes carefully holds a katana samurai sword found inside the Rio de Janeiro Maru in Truk Lagoon

Rod Macdonald and Paul Haynes with the bell of British Steam Ship SS Creemuir which was sunk as it made its way north along the East Coast of Scotland by German aircraft

Rod left, and Paul, right, fly the flag of the Explorers Club, a group which promotes the scientific exploration of land, sea, air, and space

The stern of Audacious, the first British battleship to be sunk by an enemy attack during World War One

The images have been released as part of a new book by Rod who is an internationally renowned Scotish diver, called Deeper into the Darkness: The Diving Trilogy 3

Macdonald has previously written about some of the greatest shipwrecks around the UK and his latest book also charts his own journey from novice to technical diver as well as highlighting the history of some of the world's greatest wrecks.

'I decided to write a follow-on to Into the Abyss and The Darkness Below - a third volume in the story of my diving career, which by complete chance, mirrors and charts the development of our sport of technical diving from its origins in the dangerous deep air days of the late 1980s, through concepts such as extended range diving, the use of decompression gases such as nitrox, the use of deep diving trimix gases using helium, through open-circuit trimix diving and on to the present day, when we use amazingly complicated closed-circuit rebreathers that greatly extend the time you can spend on the bottom and the depth you can go to with ease, whilst minimising as far as possible the length of time it takes to ascend safely and decompress,' continues Macdonald.

'Of necessity, reading about diving, and particularly technical diving, means grappling with a number of specialist concepts and pieces of kit that can seem confusing and daunting to the non-diver to begin with.

'Rather than providing a dull glossary, each time something specialist comes up for the first time I've tried to explain it in simple terms so that as you progress through the book, these concepts and pieces of kit will become more familiar.

'Don't worry if you don't understand something at a first reading; you will by the end of the book. So here is my humble effort - an originally unintended trilogy is now formed. I hope you enjoy it.'
Conservative commentator Candace Owens is under fire for condemning using death to advance a political agenda and pointing to John McCain's funeral - having done the same thing herself days earlier.

Following Saturday's funeral for the late Arizona senator, Owens took to Twitter to decry the 'disgusting' jabs made at the Trump administration when Megan McCain said 'America was always great'.

But Twitter users were quick to point how just 11 days earlier Owens, 29, blamed the death of murdered Iowa student Mollie Tibbetts on Democratic immigration policy.

'This new trend of using funerals and eulogies to deliver political messages is really quite disgusting. Sympathy from death as means to sway public opinion is next level corrupt. Everyone involved should be ashamed of themselves,' she tweeted Saturday.

Political commentator Candace Owens is under fire for her contradictory tweets where she condemned using death towards a political agenda and pointed to John McCain's funeral. Yet days earlier she blamed the death of murdered student Mollie Tibbetts on Democrats

On Saturday following John McCain's funeral she said: 'This new trend of using funerals and eulogies to deliver political messages is really quite disgusting'

She added that there was no need to sprinkle political opinions into eulogy speeches as Meghan McCain did when she said: 'America was always great'

Over it: She dismissed the late senator's funeral as a 'DNC swamp spectacle'

She wrote: 'Leftist propaganda does not work on me ... #McCainMemorial'

'Like "oh this is what this person thought politically when he/she died" or "this is who this person liked or disliked when he/she died" is not an argument. I still support @DonaldTrump. Sorry, it needed to be said,' she added.

She criticized McCain's funeral as a 'DNC swamp spectacle' adding 'I'm not going to feign sympathy. This is nothing more than prime time political grandstanding and I'm over it'.

'Leftist propaganda does not work on meeven when it comes in the form of a lavish funeral. #McCainMemorial,' she added.

But just days earlier Owens blamed Tibbett's death on Democrats, pointing out that her suspected killer, 24-year-old Cristhian Bahena Rivera, is an illegal immigrant from Mexico.





'Mollie Tibbetts was killed by an illegal immigrant. There will be ZERO outrage from Democrats and the spineless celebrities who march to their orders because they need open borders for votes,' Owens tweeted on August 21.

But Twitter users were quick to remind her that just 11 days earlier she blamed the death of Mollie Tibbetts on Democratic immigration policy

In her tweets from the day of Tibbett's remains were found she said: 'Leftists boycotted, screamed, and cried when illegal immigrants were temporarily separated from their parents. What will they do for Mollie Tibbetts?'

'How many more AMERICAN lives is the left willing to sacrifice for elections?' she added.

In another tweet she wrote: 'Leftists boycotted, screamed, and cried when illegal immigrants were temporarily separated from from their parents. What will they do for Mollie Tibbetts? What did they do for Kate Steinle? They will NEVER see their parents again.'

Her contradictory statements have left online critics scratching their heads.

Twitter user Parker Malloy shared pictures of Owen's tweets regarding Mollie Tibbetts and John McCain's funeral side by side with the caption '[blinks]', shedding light on the discrepancy.

'Says the woman who used Mollie Tibbetts death to do exactly what she says is disgusting. But we all know this. Its the Trump and @gop way of doing things. Hide hypocrisy behind the fear and anger of your base. Truth will win though. #bluewave,' another Twitter user wrote.

Contradictory: Twitter users pointed out Owen's double standard online

One Twitter user said: 'Says the woman who used Mollie Tibbett's death to do exactly what she says is disgusting'

Comedian Dana Goldberg wrote: 'You mean how the GOP is using Mollie Tibbett's death to fuel racism and sway political opinion?'

Called out: 'Pardon me, but didn't you try to use sympathy from Mollie Tibbett's murder to try and sway public opinion against immigration?' one Twitter user said

Tibbett's cousin joined in the chorus as well saying: 'Stop using my cousin's death as political propaganda. Take her name out of your mouth'

'Pardon me, but didnt you try to use sympathy from Mollie Tibbetts murder to try and sway public opinion against immigration? Even when her family intervened and asked you to stop? Shame on you. Its interesting that a call to act with basic decency is now a "political message",' a critic wrote.

'You mean how the GOP is using Mollie Tibbetts death to fuel racism and sway political opinion? I agree,' Comedian Dana Goldberg tweeted.

Even Tibbett's cousin joined in the chorus, hitting at Owens for using the student's death towards a political agenda.

'Hey im a member of mollies family and we are not so f***** small-minded that we generalize a whole population based on some bad individuals. now stop being a f****** snake and using my cousins death as political propaganda. take her name out of your mouth,' Sam Lucas tweeted.

Rob Tibbetts, the father of Mollie Tibbetts (pictured together left), wrote an op-ed for the Des Moines Register calling on politicians to stop using his daughter as a 'pawn' to further an agenda after Donald Trump Jr (right) blamed her murder on immigration policy

Owens isn't the only one to land in hot water for her comments.

On Friday Donald Trump Jr wrote an op-ed for an Iowa newspaper that slammed liberals for downplaying the illegal alien status of Tibbett's alleged killer.

The next day Rob Tibbetts, Mollie's father, wrote his own op-ed, calling on politicians to stop using his daughter as a 'pawn' to further their agenda.

'Please leave us out of your debate. Allow us to grieve in privacy and with dignity. At long last, show some decency. On behalf of my family and Mollie's memory, I'm imploring you to stop,' Rob wrote.

'But do not appropriate Mollie's soul in advancing views she believed were profoundly racist. The act grievously extends the crime that stole Mollie from our family and is, to quote Donald Trump Jr., "heartless" and "despicable,"' he added.

In his op-ed, Don Jr wrote: 'The mask is off and the true radical face of the Democrats has been exposed... they are seemingly more concerned with protecting their radical open-borders agenda than the lives of innocent Americans.'